Expositions of Holy Scripture: PsalmsMaclaren, Alexander
Religion
Expositions of Holy Scripture: Psalms
Maclaren, Alexander
Bible. Psalms -- Commentaries
Lives rooted in God through faith in Jesus Christ are not vanity. Let us
lay hold of Him with a loving grasp--and 'we shall live also' _because_
He lives, _as_ He lives, _so long_ as He lives. The brief days of earth
will be blessed while they last, and fruitful of what shall never pass.
We shall have Him with us while we journey, and all our journeyings will
lead to rest in Him. True, men walk in a vain show; true, 'the world
passeth away and the lust thereof,' but, blessed be God! true, also, 'He
that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.'
TWO INNUMERABLE SERIES
'Many, O Lord my God, are Thy wonderful works which Thou hast done,
and Thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in
order unto Thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more
than can be numbered ... 12. Innumerable evils have compassed me
about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not
able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head;
therefore my heart faileth me.'--PSALMS xl. 5, 12.
So then, there are two series of things which cannot be numbered, God's
mercies, man's sins. This psalm has for its burden a cry for
deliverance; but the Psalmist begins where it is very hard for a
struggling man to begin, but where we always should begin, with grateful
remembrance of God's mercy. His wondrous dealings seem to the Psalmist's
thankful heart as numberless as the blades of grass which carpet the
fields, or as the wavelets which glance in the moonlight and break in
silver upon the sand. They come pouring out continuously, like the
innumerable undulations of the ether which make upon the eyeballs the
single sensation of light. He thinks not only of God's wonderful works,
His realised purposes of mercy, but of 'His thoughts which are to
us-ward,' the purposes, still more wonderful, of a yet greater mercy
which wait to be realised. He thinks not only of God's lovingkindness to
Him, but his contemplations embrace God's goodness to his brethren--'Thy
thoughts which are to us-ward.' And as he thinks of all this 'multitude
of His tender mercies,' his lips break into this rapturous exclamation
of my text.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account