summing up all in the words, "because we have hote on Ps. XXXIII. trusted in His holy name."

When we are in trouble or in danger we gather courage and comfort from saying this Psalm, and from praying to God the prayer of the last verse, May Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we hope in Thee."

Ds. XXXIV. you the fear of the LORD. 12 What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good? 13 Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile. 14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. 15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry. 16 The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. 17 They cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. 18 The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. 20 He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. 21 Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be condemned. 22 The LORD redeemeth the soul of His servants: and none of them that trust in Him shall be condemned.

Mote on Ds. XXXIV.

When David wrote this Psalm he was in great misery. He had been unjustly driven away from his own country, and was a homeless wanderer; and King Saul, his great enemy, was trying to kill him. But David did not lose his trust in God. He said, "I will bless the Lord at all times," and, praying trustfully to God, he was "delivered from all his fears," except the fear of God, which brings the knowledge of Right and Wrong.

David calls on others to learn the fear of God, as he had learnt it in the time of his trouble, and

to know the true happiness which no human sorrow
can destroy. He saw that the real misery of life.
is hating and trying to hurt each other; but that
if we
66 taste with our feelings, and "see" with
our mind's eye, we shall understand the goodness
of the Lord, and always trust in Him whatever evil
may happen.

Then comes David's practical advice, which makes us feel how earnestly he himself had thought and sought to find the right way to live, till at last he saw it clearly. "Keep thy tongue from evil," he

Mote on

Ps. XXXIV.

66

Mote on says-whether the evil be true or not. How often Ps. XXXIV. quarrels would be avoided if every one did this! Keep thy lips from speaking guile." Take care that what you say is not only true, but that it cannot mean anything but the truth. But David is not content merely to tell us what we should not do. He does not only say "Depart from evil," he adds "and do good." He knew that the best way to depart from evil is to set about doing good. To get rid of bad and wicked feelings, we must turn all our thoughts to trying to do something kind and good for some one else. "Seek peace and pursue it." It is not enough just to keep from making others angry; if others are angry we must try hard to soothe their anger.

Verse 16 says, "The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth." The usual translation of the next verse begins, "The righteous cry," but the Hebrew means, "they cry," namely those who

PSALM XXXIX.

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. (A PRAYER IN TIME OF ILLNESS OR GRIEF.)

I SAID, I will guard my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will guard my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me. 2 I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was stirred. 3 My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue, 4 LQRD, make me to know

do evil,-" and the Lord heareth and saveth them Mote on out of all their troubles. David knew well that Ps. XXXIV. none of us are perfect, that we all do wrong at times; but his complete faith in the gracious mercy of God made him know also that if we have done evil and are truly sorry and pray to God, He will hear us and "save us out of all our troubles." For the Lord is nigh to those who are truly sorry and "broken-hearted" for having done wrong, and will save those who really try hard to turn from their evil ways and do better, or as David puts it, "such as be of a contrite spirit."

So David ends his prayer with the comforting thought that "none of them that trust in the Lord shall be condemned."

The argument of the last four verses appeals to us all in our daily experiences of anxiety and disappointment, and inspires us as it did David with hope and courage, and with faith to "bless the Lord at all times."