lawlessness and evil, we may see the force of the Trafficker being expelled from the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, where he had formerly reigned. How different the condition of Jerusalem when it shall be seen as the ally, and finally, the slave of Babylon, and the day when it shall be established as the city of the great King-the seat and centre of holiness, righteousness, and Truth.

On the First Psalm.

THE first verse of this Psalm describes the blessedness or happiness of THE Man that hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked, and hath not stood in the way of sinners, and hath not sat in the seat of scorners. This verse can be strictly true of ONE only. Of none except the Lord Jesus can it be said, that He NEVER had fellowship or connexion with any of the manifold forms of evil.

It is true, indeed, that Christ's people are, through grace, enabled in their measure to follow Him "who hath given us an example that we should follow his steps:" but their blessedness rests not on the ground of their NEVER having walked in ways of evil. Their characteristic blessing is rather found in such a Psalm as the xxxii. Happy is he whose iniquity is forgiven and whose sin is covered, &c.,"-words which stand in marked contrast with the first verse of this Psalm. Nor is it likely that the first Psalm, which is commonly regarded as the preface to the whole book, should be silent respecting Him whose perfectness, and sufferings, and resulting glory, are the great theme of this book of praises.*

"I have been induced," says Fry, "to embrace the opinion of some among the ancient interpreters, who conceive that the first Psalm is intended to be descriptive of the character and reward of the JUST ONE, whose merits, sufferings, and conflicts, will be found unquestionably to be the subjects of many of these sacred songs. God forbid that I should be understood to say that the believer in Christ is not bound to show his faith by his works; or that no particular promises of blessedness encourage his diligence in his vocation, and in his keeping of the commandments of God! This would be contrary to numberless passages of Scripture. What I mean to assert is, that the passage before us is not parallel to these Scriptures, but is to be classed with

The title of this book in the Hebrew is, "the book of praises,"

those that describe the righteousness of the Law. "Blessed is the man that continueth in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them." In this point of view it will, I trust, be admitted, that though Christ must be imitated in His righteous and holy life, and that this imitation is the proof of their discipleship who call Him Lord; yet all the righteousness that can meet the demand of the Law, and all the holiness that can bear the light of the Divine countenance must be sought for in the blessed Surety alone and can become ours only by gracious imputation."-Fry on the Psalms.*

It must be remembered too that the Psalms have for their peculiar subject things manifested in the earth. They are the utterances either of Christ Himself, or else of those in whom His Spirit dwelleth, respecting certain manifestations of evil, and certain manifestations of good, of which the earth, and especially Jerusalem and the Land of Israel, are the sphere. Sometimes evil is the subject,-its hostility to God, God's people, and God's Truth; its heading up in THE ANTICHRIST, its temporary triumph, and final overthrow; at other times Righteousness is the subject -its perfect development in CHRIST; its temporary suffering, and its final triumph: but in either case, the earth, and especially Israel, is the sphere in which all these things are to be displayed-all resulting in glory to God and blessing to His people, and therefore fit subjects for this "Book of Praises."

The earth has already witnessed the sufferings and sorrows of the Lord Jesus, but it hath not yet witnessed His glory. Indeed, in a certain sense, it is still the witness of His sorrows; for His people suffer, and in all their afflictions He is afflicted. "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou ME?" We read of the Lord Jesus, that when personally on earth, "His visage was more marred than any man, and his form more than the sons of men;" that "He was as a root out of a dry ground, having no form nor comeliness." It was the day of His humiliation and suffering, as the Surety for His peoples' sins. He was not then seen "as the tree planted by the rivers of waters;" on the contrary, suffering, not prosperity was His portion, But when He shall be manifested again, how changed the circum

See also Dr. Hawker. "This Psalm, which may be considered as introductory to the whole book, very sweetly opens with a view of Christ's Person, and calls Him 'blessed.' Some features are described which can be spoken of none but Him."

T

stances! He will be seen, not "as a root out of a dry ground," but as the Branch of the Lord beautiful and glorious. "In that day shall the Branch of Jehovah be beautiful and glorious." Is. iv. 2. "Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days, Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is the name whereby he shall be called JEHOVAH OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Jer. xxiii. 6.) Then shall this Psalm be seen to be fulfilled in the manifested blessings that shall rest upon Christ, His people, and His Truth. All shall recognise Him to be "as a tree planted by the rivers of waters, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; its leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth, shall prosper." He will never again have to say, "I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nought and in vain. Yet surely my labour is with the Lord, and my work with my God." The committal of His cause and of His labour unto His God, which hath been already answered by His exaltation into the heavens, will then be further answered by results manifested in the earth.

Some have so interpreted this Psalm, as to corroborate the statements of those who teach that it is right for believers to seek after and to expect worldly prosperity. They wish, as respects wealth, honours, and the like, to be as trees planted by the water-courses: and some have even ventured to say, that the being prospered in earthly things should in the case of believers, be taken as a sure token of Divine approval. The Apostle however thought otherwise when he counted it all joy to be esteemed "as the filth of the world, the offscouring of all things" for Christ's sake. He knew that now is the time when, not the righteous, but the wicked are "in great power and flourish as the green bay tree." "There is an evil which I have seen under the sun folly is set in great dignity, and the rich (the rich in heavenly wisdom) sit in low place. I have seen servants riding upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth."

And thus shall it continue to be, until the hour of the manifested glory of the Righteous One, shall be the hour also of the manifested doom of the wicked. When Christ was as "a root out of a dry ground"-"as a worm and no man"-a reproach of men and despised of the people, they were as cedars of Lebanon, as bulls of Bashan, their eyes standing out with fatness: they had more than heart could

wish.

But when the time shall come for Christ to receive the blessings of this Psalm, and to be known as "a tree planted by the courses of waters," they shall perish. "The wicked shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. They shall be like the chaff which the wind scattereth." The mighty image of Gentile glory shall be broken in pieces then. "Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors: and the wind carried them away that no place was found for them. Then the stone that smote the image (that is, Christ in the strength of His Messiah-kingdom) "became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.”

Such is the result expected by the family of faith whilst they wait during the time of the Truth's suffering and reproach. Although they cannot in the title of their own names, claim the blessing of the first verse of this Psalm, yet, as accepted in the Beloved, they know that they are to be fellow-partakers of His glory, even joint-heirs with Him. Accordingly, He has called them into the path of suffering obedience here: to suffer for and with the Truth. They have to remember that "Jehovah knoweth," that is, observes, understands and appreciates the way of the righteous, even though He may for the present, refrain Himself and not act upon that knowledge. Yet the hour is drawing nigh when He will prove Himself to be a God of judgment by whom actions are weighed.

The subject, therefore, of this Psalm may be said to be the perfectness of the character of Christ, and its contrast with the wickedness of the wicked; as also the future manifested recognition of the excellency of Christ as contrasted with the manifested destruction of the wicked. The first Psalm may therefore be regarded as a preface to the whole book. It leads on our minds to the great final scene-"the morning without clouds" that is to arise upon the earth after all those scenes of sorrow of which other of the Psalms treat, have passed away for ever. It is usual in Scripture to speak first, of that which is in fulfilment last. We are taught respecting the morning of joy, before we learn respecting the night of sorrow. The Psalm may be rendered thus:

O the blessedness of the man

Who hath not walked in the counsel of the wicked,

And in the way of sinners hath not stood,

And in the seat of scorners hath not sate;