the footsteps of Thine Anointed, of the Lord's Messiah. Knowing that the Lord would be His Refuge in spite of all enemies and their mockery and would glorify Him by the pathway of the cross with all its agonies, the Messiah concludes His prayer with a burst of

triumph, v. 52. Blessed be the Lord forevermore. Amen, and Amen. That was the end of the Messiah's vicarious work, blessing and honor and glory, of which all believers are partakers, here in time and hereafter in eternity.

The Mercy of God Man's Only Refuge. A prayer of Moses, the man of God, the prophet who stood in the relation of an intimate friend to the God of Israel, who here contrasts man's frailty, the consequence of his sin, with God's eternity. This psalm is the oldest which has been preserved in the Psalter, the occasion for its writing probably being the incident recorded Num. 14, 22. 23. V. 1. Lord, the Majestic, the All-powerful, Thou hast been our Dwelling-place, a safe Habitation of refuge, in all generations, from one generation to the next, throughout the ages, the Messianic idea underlying the prayer. V. 2. Before the mountains were brought forth, by a process of divine generation, or ever Thou hadst formed the earth and the world, bringing them into existence in a manner exceeding human comprehension, by an absolute creative act, even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God, His divine being extending out of a limitless past and reaching forward to a boundless future, the eternal, unchanging Lord and Creator, in whom the trust of all believers may rest secure forever. V. 3. Thou turnest man to destruction, changing the proud strength and beauty of their bodies into crushed particles, into dust, and sayest, Return, ye children of men, one generation sinking down into the misery of the grave, and a new generation arising by His creative will. From the moment of our birth we bear in our bodies the germ of death; the contrast is between the omnipotence and unchangeableness of God and the frailty and vanity of man. V. 4. For a thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, the eternal God, for whom, strictly speaking, time does not exist, regards them as nothing more than a disappearing moment, and as a watch in the night, as the third part of the night, which, even in the case of men, passes by unnoticed; for during sleep the consciousness of the passing of time is lost. All earthly time does not exist for the everlasting God; He is exalted above all the changes of puny men. V. 5. Thou carriest them away as with a flood, a heavy and devastating rain, whose swift destruction carries mortals away into the sleep of death; they are as a sleep, their whole life is a sleep or a dream, which is past and gone before a person fully realizes it; in the morning they are like grass which groweth up, the blossoming grasses which come to a quick maturity.

V. 6. In the morning it flourisheth, the flowers of the prairies and meadows opening their blossoms in rapid succession, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, the scythe putting an end to the short-lived glory of the meadow-flowers, and withereth. Cp. 1 Pet. 1, 24; Ps. 103, 15. 16. V. 7. For we are consumed by Thine anger, withering away in the glow of its heat, and by Thy wrath are we troubled, destroyed by the intense heat of God's anger. Such is the impression which the destruction of one generation after the other is bound to make upon the thoughtful observer. V. 8. Thou hast set our iniquities, the open wickedness of deliberately leaving the paths of righteousness, before Thee, so that none of them is omitted or overlooked, our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance; for the secrets of all men's heart are open and uncovered before the eyes of His omniscience. Cp. Ps. 19, 13. Note: If we see our sins in the proper spirit of repentance, then God does not see them, for they are then covered by the garment of Christ's righteousness; but if we do not see our sins, then God surely will see them, for they remain uncovered before the light shining before Him, the light of His righteousness and holiness. V. 9. For all our days are passed away in Thy wrath, they are diminished, they vanish, because the anger of the Lord is manifested upon the sins; we spend our years as a tale that is told, like a murmuring, meaningless noise, which is not even brought out in a definite word. Thus the vanity of human life is again brought out. V. 10. The days of our years are threescore years and ten, literally, "The days of our years in them seventy years," not worth mentioning, an insignificant sum; and if by reason of strength, that is, if a man possesses unusual vitality, they be fourscore years, if he actually reaches the age of eighty years, yet is their strength, even that about which men are wont to boast, labor and sorrow, vanity and foolishness, misery and grief. How foolish, then, for men to regard this life as the most desirable thing and to neglect the care for eternity! For it is soon cut off, the life of mortals glides past speedily, and we fly away. All the events of life move past our eyes in rapid flight; there is nothing stable, nothing lasting, in this world. Moses now draws his conclusion, summarizing the points contained in the previous para

graphs. V. 11. Who knoweth the power of Thine anger? this being as immeasurable as God Himself. Even according to Thy fear, so is Thy wrath, that is, Who fears the wrath of God in the proper measure? Who realizes what it means for his own fortunes? The great majority of people in the world go their heedless way, not knowing that death is hanging over their heads. But the believers are willing to learn their lesson. V. 12. So teach us to number our days, giving us the proper understanding that we realize the uncertainty of human life, knowing that every day may be our last day here on earth, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom, for that is surely the essence of wisdom, to be prepared for death at all times. The prayer of Moses now changes to a fervent intercession. V. 13. Return, O Lord, how long? turning back His face in mercy, since it had been averted so long in anger. And let it repent Thee concerning Thy servants, His merciful kindness not permitting the threatened destruction to strike them. V. 14. O satisfy us early with Thy mercy, His grace being their first food at the very break of the dawn, and being supplied in all rich fulness, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days; for the happiness brought by the assurance of the grace of God is a lasting pleasure, its happy excess and wholesome surfeit both satisfying and stimu

lating desire. V. 15. Make us glad according to the days wherein Thou hast afflicted us, in proportion to the period of misery which drove them to repentance, and the years wherein we have seen evil. Cp. Ps. 51, 12. V. 16. Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants, making the wonderful deeds of His grace manifest before them, and Thy glory unto their children, that generations to come may also realize the glory of God as manifested in his salvation of men. V. 17. And let the beauty of the Lord, our God, the sweet favor of the Majestic and All-powerful, who is at the same time the God of our salvation, be upon us, resting upon the believers throughout their lives; and establish Thou the work of our hands upon us, letting His blessing attend the proclamation of God's glory in the work of redemption, as made by His children everywhere; yea, the work of our hands, establish Thou it, for only by and with the blessings of the Lord will the preaching of the Word, the proclamation of salvation, have success and the kingdom of the Lord on earth be built. Thus the prayer of Moses has significance and power for all periods of the Church's existence, until the very end of time.5)

5) A complete exposition of this psalm is given in Lehre und Wehre, 65 (1919), January, March, April.

The Safety of the Believers in Every Emergency.

The author of this psalm is not mentioned in the Bible, but the contents and the spirit of the hymn suggest the name of David, the pestilence referred to probably being that described 2 Sam. 24. V. 1. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High, sheltered in the fellowship of God by faith, abiding secure from all assaults, shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty, safe under the protection of His almighty wings. V. 2. I will say of the Lord, that is the boast of the believer, He is my Refuge and my Fortress, Jehovah, the God of grace, shielding him against the counsels and attacks of all enemies; my God, with the emphasis on the pronoun; in Him will I trust, every believer confidently and cheerfully yielding his life to the guiding hand of God. V. 3. Surely He shall deliver thee, so the psalmist assures every believer, from the snare of the fowler, from Satan, who, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he might devour, and from the noisome pestilence, from the plague of destruction, the afflictions and temptations of Satan and his host. V. 4. He, Jehovah, the God of salvation, shall cover thee with His feathers, His wings forming a protecting wall

about the believers, and under His wings shalt thou trust, knowing that the enemy cannot penetrate to the asylum of God's protection; His truth, the faithfulness of His promises of salvation, shall be thy shield and buckler, an unfailing protection against each and every danger. V. 5. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night, of affliction and tribulation which is intensified by darkness, nor for the arrow that flieth by day, those with which the Evil One tries to wound the hearts and consciences of the believers, v. 6. nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness, the destruction threatened by the various temptations assailing the believers, nor for the destruction, the severe plague, that wasteth at noonday, chiefly by the threats of the enemies of the Lord in the world. Against all such dangers the faithful are secure in the protection of their God and heavenly Father. V. 7. A thousand shall fall at thy side and ten thousand at thy right hand, overcome by the attacks of the enemies, submitting to the various secret and open attacks of the devil and the children of this world; but it shall not come nigh thee, not be able to harm those who cling to the protection of the Lord in firm faith. V. 8. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see

the reward of the wicked, for the unbelievers will be taken by the enemy and will have to suffer for their wickedness. V. 9. Because thou, every believer, hast made the Lord, which is my Refuge, rather the psalmist speaks for himself, "For Thou, Jehovah, art my Refuge," even the Most High, thy Habitation, literally, "the Most High hast thou made thy Habitation," v. 1, v. 10. there shall no evil befall thee, coming upon the believer with sudden destruction, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling, no stroke of misfortune and enmity which can bring us real harm, diminish our salvation and the blessings of God's grace. V. 11. For He, Jehovah, the God of salvation, shall give His angels charge over thee, placing the believers in their special care, as a guard against all evil, to keep thee in all thy ways, as long as the believers walk on the ways of God's will and good pleasure. V. 12. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone, carefully carrying the believers over all obstructions of their faith and spiritual life, so that their salvation will never be really endangered. Every Christian lives the life and performs the work which God has intended for him. If death takes him away, it means that the goal set by God has been reached, so far as he is concerned,

that all the difficulties and obstructions and afflictions of life are behind him. In the mean time, it is true, v. 13. thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder; the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet, overcome all the attacks of the powers of hell, no matter how fierce and insidious they are. The Lord now Himself takes up the strain of the psalm, substantiating what His servant has said. V. 14. Because he hath set his love upon Me, clinging to the Lord with the assurance of complete trust, therefore will I deliver him, from all afflictions and from the attacks of Satan and his host; I will set him on high, exalt him out of the enemy's reach, because he hath known My name, set his faith upon God, accepted His grace, mercy, and salvation. V. 15. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him, coming to the believer's assistance no matter what difficulty he may find himself in; I will be with him in trouble, standing at his side even in the hour of death; I will deliver him and honor him, bringing him up to the glories of heaven. V. 16. With long life, that of eternity in and with God, will I satisfy him, in an everlasting enjoyment, and show him My salvation; for in heaven we shall see God face to face and know Him and all His wonderful blessings upon us, even as we are known.

A Sabbath Meditation.

A psalm or song for the Sabbath-day, used by the Jewish Church on the seventh day of the week, as one of the hymns of liturgical worship. V. 1. It is a good thing, a fine and proper custom, of benefit also to the worshiper, to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing praises, in joyful proclamation, unto Thy name, O Most High, making known Jehovah's perfections, especially in those attributes which are concerned in the salvation of mankind; v. 2. to show forth Thy loving-kindness in the morning, beginning to praise His grace with the very dawn of the morning, as the light of the Redeemer which penetrates the night of sin and condemnation, and Thy faithfulness, whereby He keeps the promises concerning our salvation, every night, for it is in the afflictions and terrors of the night that the thought of God's unswerving faithfulness upholds the spirit, v. 3. upon an instrument of ten strings, the ten-stringed harp, or lyre, and upon the psaltery, in joyful im--provisations dictated by his happy mood; upon the harp, a smaller, zitherlike instrument, with a solemn sound, in an instructive composition. V. 4. For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy work, particularly by the acts of His creation and His providence; I will triumph in the works of

Thy hands, exulting with a loud voice over the entire revelation of God, in both the works of creation and of redemption. V. 5. O Lord, how great are Thy works! and Thy thoughts are very deep, powerfully deep, beyond the understanding of man, unless enlightened by the Spirit of the Lord. V. 6. A brutish man, one whose understanding does not go beyond the intelligence of beasts, in knowing only the desires of this life, knoweth not, neither doth a fool understand this, he cannot really enter into the spirit of the universe, because he does not realize that, in all its manifestations, it is the work of the all-wise and almighty Creator. V. 7. When the wicked spring as the grass, apparently in the greatest good fortune, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish, enjoying the fulness of all that this world has to offer; it is that they shall be destroyed forever, their punishment will overtake them in the world to come, in an eternity of damnation, if not before; v. 8. but Thou, Lord, art most high forevermore, exalted above all creatures in everlasting bliss, no matter what powerful and desperate efforts they make to overthrow His sovereignty. V. 9. For, lo, Thine enemies, O Lord, for, lo, Thine enemies shall perish, be destroyed utterly; all the workers of iniquity shall be scattered, literally, “be

out of joint," become disorganized. V. 10. But my horn, emblem of powerful strength, and at the same time of stately grace, shalt Thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn, the reference probably being to the antelope, ¡ymbol of graceful strength; I shall be anointed with fresh oil, a picture representing the feeling of eventual complete victory which fills the heart of the believers. V. 11. Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies, witnessing their complete overthrow, and mine ears shall hear my desire of the wicked that rise up against me, hearing that all their hopes of success have been disappointed. V. 12. The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree, princess of the trees of the plains and valleys; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon, the proudest and mightiest of the trees of the mountains, emblem of evergreen strength. V. 13. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord, the believers having been transplanted from the

desert of the world to the rich garden of the Lord's Church, shall flourish in the courts of our God, bringing forth the rich fruits of good works growing out of faith. V. 14. They, unlike ordinary plants, shall still bring forth fruit in old age, their spiritual vitality undiminished in spite of the many vicissitudes of life, because the remembrance of God's works of righteousness and grace is bound to renew their strength from day to day; they shall be fat, full of strength and vigor, and flourishing, yielding spiritual blossoms and fruit; v. 15. to show that the Lord is upright, straightforward and dependable in all His dealings; He is my Rock, the believer's place of refuge, and there is no unrighteousness in Him, He is righteous in all His ways. Cp. Deut. 32, 4. Thus the Christians praise the mercy and faithfulness of the Lord throughout their lives, in preparation for the endless songs of thanksgiving in heaven, where they will enjoy the realization of their hopes.

The Eternal Majesty of the Messiah. Even the Jewish commentators applied this psalm to the times of the Messiah. It is a glorious song of praise to Jehovah, the second person of the Godhead, and to the majesty of His kingdom. V. 1. The Lord reigneth, He is King from everlasting to everlasting; He is clothed with majesty; according to His human nature He has been clothed with the majesty which was His, according to His divine nature, from eternity. The Lord is clothed with strength, almighty power, wherewith He hath girded Himself, the full possession of omnipotence being imparted to Him, to His humanity, and He, at the same time, girding Himself therewith; the world also is stablished that it cannot be moved. In His state of humiliation Christ did not always and not fully use the divine attributes communicated to Him, but with His exaltation came the establishment of His throne which made Him, true man, the Ruler of the universe, never to be moved from that exalted position. V. 2. Thy throne is established of old, literally, "from that time," since He was exalted to the right hand of the Father; and at the same time He, according to His divine nature, is from eternity; Thou art from everlasting. The two natures of Christ, the divine and the human, in His work of redemption, in His exaltation, are here referred to.

93.

V. 3. The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the streams of His adversaries have arisen, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves, the enmity of all Christ's opponents being compared to the raging of swollen streams, to the rush of the mighty ocean as it pounds against the shore. V. 4. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea, on His height, the undisturbed Ruler, sits Jehovah, Messiah, who reigns forever, in whose eyes the wild efforts of the mightiest enemies are but puny struggles of pygmies; He has them all in derision with their attempts to dethrone Him. y. 5. Thy testimonies are very sure, altogether trustworthy, they are the sure basis and foundation of the faith and security of the believers, the witness of God's eternal Word, of the Gospel of our salvation, sustains us; holiness becometh Thine house, O Lord, forever, this ornament and glory of Jehovah's house becoming the garment of every believer. Every one who places his trust in Jesus as the promised Messiah, the Redeemer of the world, is cleansed by virtue of the righteousness imparted to him by faith, has received the holiness of the Savior as his own, and stands before the Lord as a perfect child of His good pleasure through all eternity, assured of the fulness of heavenly blessings.

Against Tyrants in the Church. The psalmist, whose name is not given, appeals to God in view of the oppression of the adversaries, who included not only the enemies from without, but also the tyrants within the external organization of the Church. V. 1. O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, show Thyself. The statement yielding all judicial power to the Lord alone is followed by the request that He should shine forth, make known His judicial authority by inflicting a righteous punishment upon the oppressors. V. 2. Lift up Thyself, arising, as from an indifferent attitude, Thou Judge of the earth, in the almighty exaltation of His judicial power; render a reward to the proud, punishing the arrogant pride of the adversaries. V. 3. Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph? Note the force of the figure of repetition in emphasizing the insolence of the wicked and the increasing impatience of the believers in awaiting the interference of the Lord. V. 4. How long shall they utter, bubbling and sputtering, and speak hard things, spouting arrogance against the Lord, and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves, exalting themselves as though the Lord would not or could not keep them in check? V. 5. They break in pieces Thy people, O Lord, crushing the believers by their tyranny, and afflict Thine heritage, the Church of God being known by this designation, and the affliction including every form of oppression and hindering of the work of the Church. V. 6. They slay the widow and the stranger and murder the fatherless, such outrages being reported from almost every period of the Church's history. V. 7. Yet they say, The Lord shall not see, would deliberately ignore their wickedness, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it, that they might continue their insolent outrages unpunished. The psalmist now turns to the wicked in a sharp rebuke of their folly. V. 8. Understand, ye brutish among the people, on a level with the irrational beasts on account of their folly; and ye fools, when will ye be wise? For the arrogant behavior of the wicked showed a lack of ordinary common sense, of the simplest form of observation. V. 9. He that planted the ear, giving it its position and causing it to function as one of the senses of the body, shall He not hear? Would the wicked actually be so dense as to think that this Creator of the sense of hearing could not hear their insolent taunts? He that formed the eye, fashioning it to serve for the sense of sight, shall He not see? Did the tyrants believe that their acts of oppression were really unnoticed by the omniscient God? V. 10. He that chastiseth the heathen, punishing en

tire nations for their sins, shall not He correct? punishing the enemies for their wicked deeds. He that teacheth man knowledge, shall not He know? Before Him, the Source of all wisdom and knowledge, nothing is hidden. V. 11. The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, He is familiar with even the inmost workings of the minds of men, that they are vanity, all their objects and intentions by nature being vain. Cp. 1 Cor. 3, 20. V. 12. Blessed is the man whom Thou chastenest, O Lord, correcting him in the manner in which a father chastises his child, and teachest him out of Thy law, giving him true understanding out of His eternal Word, v. 13. that Thou mayest give him, as a consequence of the saving knowledge thus gained, rest from the days of adversity, those of real evil, of being rejected from the face of the Lord, until the pit be digged for the wicked, until they receive their well-deserved punishment, the result being the relief of the faithful. V. 14. For the Lord will not cast off His people, the believers being His in spite of the present oppression, neither will He forsake His inheritance, His Church. V. 15. But judgment shall return unto righteousness, the latter being bound to be vindicated and set upright once more; and all the upright in heart shall follow it, eagerly hailing the restoration of right and justice after such a long period of oppression. V. 16. Who will rise up for me, in behalf of the petitioner, taking his part, against the evil-doers? Or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity? This rhetorical question emphasizes the answer given in the next verse. V. 17. Unless the Lord had been my Help, upholding and defending him in the midst of his troubles, my soul had almost dwelt in V. 18. silence, namely, in that of death. When I said, in a complaint and prayer to the Lord. My foot slippeth, when there was danger of his falling as a result of the enemy's oppression, Thy mercy, O Lord, held me up, sustaining him in the midst of all dangers. V. 19. In the multitude of my thoughts within me, as worries and anxious cares multiply in his heart, Thy comforts delight my soul, reassuring and refreshing it for cheerfully enduring the afflictions of this life. V. 20. Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with Thee, the judgment-seat of destruction, the tribunal of wicked rulers being allied with God, their boast being that God Himself sanctioned their oppression, which frameth mischief by a law? by abusing the divine right for iniquitous procedure, by using the name and Word of God as a cloak for their oppression. It has often been the case that tyrants quoted the Bible in support of their attacks on the Church, trying to defend their unjust measures by appealing to Holy Writ.