4. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust; his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

The security afforded by a superintending Providence, to those who trust therein, is here, with the utmost beauty and elegance, compared to that shelter, which the young of birds are always sure to find under the 'wings' of their dam, when fear causeth them to fly thither for refuge: see Deut. xxii. 11; Matt. xxiii. 37. The 'truth' of God's word, wherein he promiseth to be our defence, is, to a believer, his shield and buckler,' in the day of battle and war.

5. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day. 6. Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness: nor for the destruction that wasteth at noon-day.

How much man standeth in need of the abovementioned protection of heaven, appeareth from a survey of the dangers to which he is continually exposed. Various are the terrors of the night; manifold the perils of the day! from diseases whose infection maketh its progress unobserved; from assaults, casualties, and accidents, which can neither be foreseen nor guarded against. The soul hath likewise her enemies, ready to attack and surprise her at all hours. Avarice and ambition are abroad watching for her in the day; while concupiscence, like a pestilence, 'walketh in darkness. In adversity she is disturbed by terrors; in prosperity, still more endangered by pleasures. But Jesus Christ has overcome the world, to prevent us from being overcome by it.

7. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand: but it shall not come nigh thee.

This promise has oftentimes, in a wonderful manner, been verified to those faithful servants of God, whom the pestilence itself hath not deterred from doing the duties of their station. The bishop and some of the intendants of Marseilles, who continued to perform their respective offices, during the whole time of the plague there in 1720, are signal and well-known instances. Sin is a pestilence, the contagion of which no son of Adam ever escaped but the blessed Jesus. He stood alone untouched by its venom; thousands and ten thousands, all the myriads of mankind, fell around him; 'but it did not come nigh Him.' Heal us of this our distemper, O thou Physician of souls, and let it not prove our everlasting destruction; stand,' like thy representative of old, between the dead and the living, and let the plague be stayed.' Numb. xvi. 47, 48.

6

8. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

The meaning is, that the righteous person all along spoken of, himself secure from the judgments of God, should in safety behold the destruction wrought by them upon impenitent and incorrigible sinners. This will be the case with the church, as well as her glorious head, at the last day.

9. Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation; 10. There shall no evil befal thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

The sentiment in these verses is evidently the same with that in verses 5, 6; namely, that God preserveth such as trust in him, after the pattern of the holy Jesus, from those evils, and from that perdition which are reserved for the ungodly. Dr. Durrell translates the ninth verse, in the way of apostrophe, literally thus: Surely thou, O Lord, art my refuge; O Most High, thou hast fixed thine habitation;' i. e. in Sion, to be the protector of his

servant.

11. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 12. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against

a stone.

This passage was cited by the devil, who tempted our Lord to cast himself from a pinnacle of the temple, upon presumption of the promise here made, that angels should guard and support him in all dangers. But Christ, in his answer, at once detecteth and exposeth the sophistry of the grand deceiver, by showing, that the promise belonged only to those who fell unavoidably into danger, in the course of duty; such might hope for the help and protection of heaven; but that he who should wantonly and absurdly throw himself into peril, merely to try whether Providence would bring him out of it, must expect to perish for his pains. 'Jesus saith unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.' Matt. iv. 7.

13. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder; the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under thy feet.

The fury and the venom of our spiritual enemies

are often in Scripture portrayed by the natural qualities of lions and serpents.' Messiah's complete victory over those enemies seemeth here to be predicted. Through grace he maketh us more than conquerors in our conflicts with the same adversaries. The God of peace,' saith St. Paul, 'shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.' Rom. xvi. 20. And it is observable that, when the seventy disciples return to Christ with joy, saying, 'Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name;' he answers in the metaphorical language of our Psalm: Behold, I give unto you power to tread on scorpions and serpents, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding, in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you,' &c. Luke x. 17. Give us, O Lord, courage to resist the 'lion's' rage, and wisdom to elude the wiles of the serpent.'

14. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. 15. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him, and honour, or, glorify him. 16. With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.

In the former part of our Psalm, the prophet had spoken in his own person; here God himself is plainly introduced as the speaker. And, O how sweet, how delightful and comfortable are his words, addressed eminently to his beloved Son Messiah; and in him to all of us, his adopted children, and the heirs of eternal life; to all who love God, and have known his name! To such are

promised, an answer to their prayers; the presence of their heavenly Father with them; in the day of trouble, protection, and deliverance; salvation, and honour, and glory, and immortality. All these promises have already been made good to our gracious Head and Representative. His prayers have been heard; his sufferings are over: he is risen and ascended; and behold, he liveth and reigneth for evermore. Swift fly the intermediate years, and rise that long-expected morning, when He who is gone to prepare a place for us, shall come again, and take us to himself, that where he is we may be also!'

PSALM XCII.

ARGUMENT.-The title of this Psalm is, 'A Psalm, or Song, for the Sabbath Day.' It teacheth, 1-5. the duty, time, and manner, of giving thanks for the works and dispensations of God. Thoughtless men are admonished, 6. to reflect upon the final issue of all these works and dispensations; namely, 7-9. the utter perdition of the ungodly, and, 10— 14. the exaltation of the church in Christ Jesus, 15. to the praise and glory of God most high.

1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High: 2. To show forth thy loving-kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night: 3. Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery! upon the harp with a solemn sound.

Thanksgiving' is the duty, and ought to be the delight of a Christian. It is his duty, as being the least return he can make to his great Benefactor: it ought to be his delight, for it is that of angels,