A great saying, I promise you. Well, but yet “I am not hereby justified;” Phil. iii. 7; Acts xxiii. 1; 1 Cor. iv. 4. Nor will I dare to venture the eternal salvation of my soul upon mine own justice; “for he that judgeth me is the Lord;” that is, though I, through my dim-sightedness, cannot see the imperfections of my righteousness, yet the Lord, who is my judge, and before whose tribunal I must shortly stand, can and will; and if in his sight there shall be found no more but one spot in my righteousness, I must, if I plead my righteousness, fall for that. 2. That the best of men are afraid to stand before God’s tribunal, there to be judged by the law as to life and death, according to the sufficiency or non-sufficiency of their righteousness, is evident; because by casting away their own (in this matter), they make all the means they can for this; that is, that his mercy, by an act of grace, be made over to them, and that they in it may stand before God to be judged. Hence David cries out so often, “Lead me in thy righteousness.” “Deliver me in thy righteousness.” “Judge me according to thy righteousness.” “Quicken me in thy righteousness.” “O Lord (says he), give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.” “And enter not into judgment with thy servant, O Lord: for in thy sight shall no flesh living be justified.” And David, what if God doth thus? Why, then, saith he, “My tongue shall speak of his righteousness.” “My tongue shall sing of thy righteousness.” “My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness.” “Yea, I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only;” Psalm lviii.; xxxi. 1; xxxv. 24; cxix. 40; xxxv. 28; li. 14; lxxi. 15, 16. Daniel also, when he comes to plead for himself and his people, he first casts away his and their righteousness, saying, “For we do not present our supplications unto thee for our righteousness:” And he pleads God’s righteousness, and that he might have a share and interest in that saying, “O Lord, righteousness belongeth to thee;” to wit, that righteousness, for the sake of which, mercy and forgiveness, and so heaven and happiness, is extended to us.