A SONG OF DELIVERANCE (Psalm xlviii. 1-14)

TWO SHEPHERDS AND TWO FLOCKS (Psalm xlix. 14; Rev. vii. 17)




BLESSEDNESS AND PRAISE


'Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the
scornful. 2. But his delight is in the law of the Lord.'
--PSALM i. 1, 2.

'Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the
Lord.'--PSALM cl. 6.

The Psalter is the echo in devout hearts of the other portions of divine
revelation. There are in it, indeed, further disclosures of God's mind
and purposes, but its especial characteristic is--the reflection of the
light of God from brightened faces and believing hearts. As we hold it
to be inspired, we cannot simply say that it is man's response to God's
voice. But if the rest of Scripture may be called the speech of the
Spirit of God _to_ men, this book is the answer of the Spirit of God
_in_ men.

These two verses which I venture to lay side by side present in a very
remarkable way this characteristic. It is not by accident that they