maketh her prayer in the words of this verse, before she entereth upon that part of her service, which consists of praise and thanksgiving.

16. For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it; thou delightest not in burnt offerings. 17. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

David in this Psalm, is so evangelical, and has his thoughts so fixed upon gospel remission, that he considers the Levitical sacrifices as already abolished, for their insufficiency to take away sin; affirming them to be (as indeed they were) nothing, in the sight of God, if compared with the sacrifice of the body of sin, offered by contrition and mortification, through faith in Him who, in the fulness of time, was to die unto sin once, that we, together with him, might for ever live unto God.

18. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.

The king forgets not to ask mercy for his people, as well as for himself; that so neither his own nor their sins might prevent either the building and flourishing of the earthly Jerusalem, or, what was of infinitely greater importance, the promised blessing of Messiah, who was to descend from him, and to rear the walls of the new Jerusalem. And thus it ought to be the fervent prayer of every man, especially if he be placed in any exalted station, ecclesiastical or civil, that no sins by him committed, may any way prejudice others, or obstruct the edification of the church.

19. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices.

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of righteousness, with burnt offering, and whole burnt offering; then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.

This had its literal accomplishment when Jerusalem was finished; when the temple was erected on mount Sion; and when the Lord graciously vouchsafed to accept the sacrifices there offered on his holy altars, by king Solomon, at the head of his faithful and devout people. It is spiritually true in the Christian church, where the substance of all the Mosaic types and shadows is offered and presented to the Father, by the Prince of Peace, at the head of the Israel of God. And it will be eternally verified in the kingdom of heaven, where the sacrifices of righteousness and love, of praise and thanksgiving, will never cease to be offered to him that sitteth on the throne, by the church triumphant in glory.

PSALM LII.

ARGUMENT.-In the person of Doeg the Edomite, who was the persecutor of David, and the murderer of the priests, are described, 1-4. the enemies of the truth and the church in all ages; whose utter destruction from the presence of the Lord is foretold, 5. with the exultation of the righteous over them, 67; these last rejoice, 8. in the flourishing state under grace, 9. in hope of future glory, through faith and patience.

1. Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man ? The goodness of God endureth continually.

"The Psalmist thought it strange," says the pious and ingenious Norris, "that any man should

value himself for being able to do mischief, when God esteemed it his glory to do good." In vain did Doeg the Edomite boast himself in the mischief he had done, by massacring the innocent priests and their families; since the goodness of God,' which is unchangeable,' had decreed the preservation of David. As vainly did Herod, the Idumean, or Edomite, glory in the slaughter of the Bethlehemitish infants, since heaven had determined that the child Jesus should not be one of the number. A persecution may produce martyrs; but the gates of hell are never to prevail against the church.

2. Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully,

The mischief done to religion by men of Doeg's turn, is done by the tongue, before it is done by the hand; it is planned leisurely, and executed speedily and deceitfully.'

3. Thou lovest evil more than good; and lying rather than to speak righteousness. 4. Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

As the Christian spirit delighteth itself in goodness, truth, and charity, so the antichristian spirit is here characterized by its offending, not out of ignorance or inadvertence, but mere love of wickedness, falsehood, and malice. To this pitch many

"Sicut novacula acuta"-quæ cum tangere leniter et tantum radere videretur, altè infigitur, ac velut blandiendi specie vulnerat: ita Doeg cum Achimelech in tabernaculo Domini amicitiæ pietatisque specie versatus, fœdo indicio viros optimos prodigit. 1 Reg. xxi. 7. xxii. 9.-Bossuet. So Mudge"Working treacherously," that is, Thy tongue is like a sharp razor, that cuts one's throat before one is aware of it.

have arrived; and who, that enters upon a course of sin, can say, that he shall stop short of it?

5. God shall likewise destroy thee for ever; he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living.

Wonderful is the force of the verbs in the original, which convey to us the four ideas of 'laying prostrate, dissolving as by fire, sweeping away as with a besom, and totally extirpating root and branch,' as a tree is eradicated from the spot on which it grew. If a further comment be wanted, it may be found in the history of David's enemies, and the crucifiers of the Son of David: but the passage will be fully and finally explained by the destruction of the world of the ungodly at the last day.

6. The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, 7. Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.

Such shall be the triumph of Messiah, and of all his faithful servants with him, over the enemies of man's salvation, at that hour when, the world being in flames, the confidence that hath been placed in it must perish for evermore.

8. But I am like a green olive-tree in the house of God: I will trust in the mercy of God for ever and

ever.

The representative of Messiah portrays himself, as the reverse of Doeg and the wicked, in terms applicable likewise to his great original. He was in the house of God, they were in the world; he

was as a fruitful olive-tree, they were as barren, unprofitable wood; he was to be daily more and more strengthened, established, settled, and increased; they were to be cast down, broken, swept away, and extirpated; and all this because he had trusted in the mercy of God, they in the abundance of their riches. We Gentiles were branches of the wild olive,' but are now grafted into the good one: Lord, make us to flourish and bear fruit, in thy immortal courts,' world without end!

9. I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it; and I will wait on thy name, for it is good1 before thy saints.

Faith foresees salvation, and anticipates the day of victory and triumph; in the meantime, while she waiteth patiently for its coming, she refresheth and comforteth herself with frequent meditation on the virtue and power of that saving' name,' which is as ointment poured forth;' by the fragrance of its odours inviting and alluring innumerable converts to run after their beloved Redeemer, in the way of his commandments.

Tenth Day.-Evening Prayer.

PSALM LIII.

ARGUMENT.-This Psalm is in a manner the same with Psalm fourteen, except that there is some difference in ver. 5.

It is a 'goodly thing,' it carries a good appearance, it looks well before the friends of God, to see me praising him, and putting my trust in him.-Mudge.