When they hear the words of thy mouth.

5 Yea, they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, For great is the glory of the Lord.

6 Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly;

But the proud he knoweth afar off.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt re

vive me ;

Thou wilt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies;

And thy right hand shall save me.

8 The Lord will perform all things for me; Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever; Forsake not the work of thine own hands.

JERUSALEM.

"BEAUTIFUL for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion, the city of the great king." Such is the language in which the Hebrew poets delight to celebrate Jerusalem; called also by its ancient name, Salem, and from its great conqueror and beautifier, "the

Ver. 4. "When they hear the words of thy mouth"; i. e. when they hear of thy promises to David, and see how faithfully they have been performed.

Ver. 8. "Forsake not the work," &c.; i. e. complete what thy hands have begun. The work begun and yet to be completed was the whole series of gracious dispensations towards David and his race. A.

city of David," and from one of its inclosed eminences, "Zion." The city was near the centre of the Promised Land, and was so favored in local situation, that even modern travellers who have seen it in its decay have confirmed the praises which its native bards expressed so fervently in the days of its glory. The following extract is from the Narrative of the United States Expedition to the River Jordan and the Dead Sea:

"There is no city in the world which can compare with it in position. It does not, like other cities, present an indefinite mass of buildings, which must be viewed in detail before the eye can be gratified; but with only its dome-roofs swelling above the time-stained and lofty walls, Jerusalem sits, enthroned, a queen in the midst of an empire of desolation. Apart from its associations, we look upon it with admiration; but connected with them, the mind is filled with reverential awe, as it recalls the wondrous events that have occurred within and around it."

"It is still a noble city. The Jebusites certainly chose for their fort one of the finest sites in the world; and when David took it from them, he might well glory in his beautiful Zion. From this day forward, how dead seemed to me all my former impressions of Jerusalem! Not of its sacredness, but of its beauty and nobleness. I can scarcely remember the time when I did not know familiarly all its hills, and its gates, and its temple. courts, so as to read the New Testament as with a plan in my head. But I never had the slightest con

ception of that beauty, which now at once enabled me to enter into the exultation of David, and the mourning of Nehemiah, and the generous concern of Titus, and the pride of the Saracen, and the enthusiasm of the Crusader." Martineau's Eastern Life, p. 404.

PSALM II.

VAIN ATTEMPTS OF THE NATIONS AGAINST THE KING ANOINTED BY GOD.

No doubt the conquered tribes submitted very reluctantly to the loss of their capital, and to the subjection imposed upon them by the Jewish conqueror. They doubtless made frequent attempts to cast off his yoke. After some such attempt, which had been put down by King David, he indicted this psalm of triumph. The word "son," in the seventh and twelfth verses, and " anointed," in the second verse, have led some commentators to think that prophetic allusion is made to Christ. However this may be, the direct application of these terms was, it is generally admitted, to King David. (See A. Clarke.) He is repeatedly styled the "anointed" in the Psalms and elsewhere; and the term " son is a common appellation of the Jewish kings, who were represented as the special agents and vicegerents of Jehovah. For this reason, rebellion against their sway was considered as rebellion against God.

وو

PSALM II.

1

WHY do the heathen rage,

And the people imagine a vain thing?

2 The kings of the earth rise up,

And the rulers take counsel together,

Against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, 3" Let us break their bands asunder,

4

And cast away their cords from us."

He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall have them in derision.

5 Yea, he shall speak unto them in his wrath, And confound them in his sore displeasure. 6"I myself have set my king

Upon my holy hill of Zion."

8 Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations for thine inheritance,

And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy posses

sion.

9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;

Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."

Ver. 6. Here Jehovah speaks, but in the seventh verse David

resumes.

10 Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings! Be instructed, ye judges of the earth!

11 Serve the Lord with fear,

And rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from

the way,

When his wrath is kindled but a little.

Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

PSALM CX.

THE GLORIES OF DAVID'S REIGN ANTICIPATED.

CHRISTIAN interpreters generally agree in considering this psalm as intended to apply prophetically to Christ. But its application in the primary sense to David is sanctioned by most of the critics, one of whom, Herder, says: "This beautiful ode says to David, on his triumphal entry upon Mount Zion, that he may now be at rest, by the dwelling-place of Jehovah; and, though encompassed with enemies, reign securely, for God is now at his side, as his covenanted ally, who stretches forth for him a sceptre, which all must obey."

PSALM CX.

1 THE Lord said unto my Lord,

"Sit thou at my right hand,

Ver. 1. "Sit thou at my right hand," i. e. be associated with