Psalm 19 (Vulgate 18)

First Exposition

5To the end) a Psalm of David himself*

1. It is a well-known title; nor does the Lord Jesus Christ say what follows, but it is said of Him.

2. Ver. 1. The heavens tell out the glory of God. The righteous Evangelists, in whom, as in the heavens, God dwelleth, set forth the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, or the glory wherewith the Son glorified the Father upon earth. And the firmament sheweth forth the works of His hands. And the firmament sheweth forth the deeds of the Lord's power, that now made heaven by the assurance of the Holy Ghost, which before was earth by fear.

3. Ver. 2. Day unto day uttereth word. To the spiritual the Spirit giveth out the fulness of the unchangeable Wisdom of God, the Word which in the beginning is God with God. And night unto night announceth knowledge. And to the fleshly, as to those afar off, the mortality of the flesh, by conveying faith, announceth future knowledge.

4. Ver. 3. There is no speech nor language, in which their voices are not heard. In which the voices of the Evangelists have not been heard, seeing that the Gospel was preached in every tongue.

5. Ver. 4. Their sound is gone out into all the earthy and their words to the ends of the world.

6. In the sun hath He set His tabernacle. Now that He might war against the powers of temporal error, the Lord, being about to send not peace but a sword on earth, in time, or m manifestation, set so to say His military dwelling, that is, the dispensation of His incarnation. (Ver. 5.) And He as a bridegroom coming forth out of His chamber. And He, coming forth out of the Virgin's womb, where God was united to man's nature as a bridegroom to a bride. Rejoiced as a giant to run His way. Rejoiced as One exceeding strong, and surpassing all other men in power incomparable, not to inhabit, but to run His way. For, He stood not in the way of sinners.

7. Ver. 6. His going forth is from the highest heaven. From the Father is His going forth, not that in time, but from everlasting, whereby He was born of the Father. And His meeting is even to the height of heaven* And in the fulness of the Godhead He meets even to an equality with the Father*. And there is none that may hide himself from His heat. But whereas, the Word was even made flesh* and dwelt in us* assuming our mortality, He permitted no man to excuse himself from the shadow of death; for the heat of the Word penetrated even it.

8. Ver. 7. The law of the Lord is undeflled* converting souls. The law of the Lord, therefore, is Himself Who came to fulfil the law, not to destroy it; an undented law, Who did no sin* neither was guile found in His mouth* not oppressing souls with the yoke of bondage, but converting them to imitate Him in liberty. The testimony of the Lord is sure* giving wisdom to babes. The testimony of the Lord sure; for, no man knoweth the Father save the Son* and ^e ° u>h°msoever lhe Son will reveal Him which things have been hidden from the wise and revealed to babes; for, resistelh the proud* but giveth grace to the humble.

9. Ver. 8. The statutes of the Lord are right* rejoicing the heart. All the statutes of the Lord are right in Him Who taught not what He did not; that they who should imitate Him might rejoice in heart, in those things which they should do freely with love, not slavishly with fear. The commandment of the Lord is lucid, enlightening the eyes. The commandment of the Lord is lucid, with no veil of carnal observances, enlightening the sight of the inner

10. Ver. 9. The fear of the Lord is chaste, enduring for ever. The fear of the Lord; not that distressing1 fear under the law, dreading exceedingly the withdrawal of temporal goods, by the love of which the soul commits fornication; but that chaste fear wherewith the Church, the more ardently she loves her Spouse, the more carefully does she take heed of offending Him, and therefore, perfect love casteth not out this fear, but it endureth for ever.

1 1. The judgmen ts of the Lord are true, justified together. The judgments of Him, Who judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son, are justified in truth22, unchangeably. For neither in His threatenings or His promises doth God deceive any man, nor can any withdraw either from the ungodly His punishment, or from the godly His reward. (Ver. 10.) To be desired more than gold, and much precious stone. Whether it be gold and stone itself much, or much precious, or much to be desired; still, the judgments of God are to be desired more than the pomp of this world; by desire of which it is brought to pass that the judgments of God are not desired, but feared, or despised, or not believed. But if any be himself gold and precious stone, that he may not be consumed by fire, but received into the treasury of God, more than himself does he desire the judgments of God, Whose will he preferreth to his own. And sweeter than honey and the honey comb. And whether one be even now honey, who, disenthralled already from the chains of this life, is awaiting the day, when he may come up to God's feast; or whether he be yet as the honey comb, wrapped about with this life as it were with wax, not mixed and become one with it, but filling it, needing some pressure of God's hand, not oppressing but expressing it, whereby from life temporal it may be strained out into life eternal: to such an one the judgments of God are sweeter, than he himself is to himself, for that they are sweeter than h°ney an(t Me honey comb.

1*2. Ver. 11. For Thy servant keepeth them. For to him who keepeth them not the day of the Lord is bitter. In keeping them there is great reward. Not in any external benefit, but in the thing itself, that God's judgments are kept, is there great reward; great because one rejoiceth therein.

13. Ver. 12. Who under slandeth sins? But what sort of sweetness can there be in sins, where there is no understanding? For who can understand sins, which close the very eye, to which truth is pleasant, to which the judgments of God are desirable and sweet f yea, as darkness closes the eye, so do sins the mind, and suffer it not to see either the light, or itself.

14. Cleanse me, O Lord, from my secret faults. From the lusts which lie hid in me, cleanse me, O Lord. (Ver. 13.) And from the faults of others preserve Thy servant. Let me not be led astray by others. For he is not a prey to the faults of others, who is cleansed from his own. Preserve therefore from the lusts of others, hot the proud man, and him who would be his own master, but, Thy servant. If they get not the dominion over me, then shall I be undefiled. If neither my own secret sins, nor those of others, get the dominion over me, then shall T be undefiled. For there is no third source of sin, but one*s own secret sin, by which the devil fell, and another's sin, by which man is seduced, so as by consenting to make it his own. And I shall be cleansed from the great offence. What but pride? for there is none greater than apostacy from God, which is the beginning of prj(ie 0j maYit And he shall indeed be undefiled, who is free from this offence also; for this is the last to them who are returning to God, which was the first as they departed from Him.

15. Ver. 14. And the words of my mouth shall be pleasing, and the meditation of my heart is always in Thy sight. The meditation of my heart is not after the vain glory of pleasing men, for now there is pride no more, but in Thy sight alway, Who regardest a pure conscience. O Lord, my Helper, and my Redeemer. O Lord, my Helper, in my approach to Thee; for Thou art ray Redeemer, that I might

*et out unto Thee: lest any attributing to his own wisdom bis conversion to Thee, or to his own strength his attaining to Thee, should be rather driven back by Thee, who

-resistest the proud; for he is not cleansed from the great offence, nor pleasing in Thy sight, Who redeemest us that we may be converted, and helpest us that we may attain

<2nlo Thee.

Second Exposition

1. As we have intreated the Lord to cleanse us from our tjfwn secret faults, and preserve His servants from those of others, we ought to understand the meaning of this, that we may sing with man's intelligence, and not as it were with the voice of birds. For black -birds, and parrots, and ravens, and magpies, and such like birds, are often taught by men to utter they know not what* But to sing with understanding has been granted by the divine will to human kind. And how many bad and dissipated men thus sing what is worthy of their ears and hearts, we well know and we deplore* For they are so much the worse, as they cannot be ignorant of what they sing. For they know that their songs are impure, and yet the greater the impurity the greater their readiness to sing, for they think themselves the more joyous in proportion as they are more unclean. But we who, in the Church, have learnt to sing the oracles of God, should at the same time be instant to be that which is written, Blessed is the people that understand the joyful sound. Therefore, dearest brethren, what we have sung15, with accordant voice, we ought also with an undisturbed heart to know and understand. For each one of us has in this canticle prayed unto the Lord, and said unto God, Cleanse Thou me from my secret faults, and preserve Thy servant from those of others. If they shall not get the dominion over me, then shall I be undefiled, and cleansed from the great offence. Now that we may well understand what this is, and the nature of it, let us, as the Lord shall help us, shortly run over the contents of this Psalm.

2. For the canticle is of Christ, as evidently appears from that passage where it is written, He as a Bridegroom coming forth out of His chamber. For who is the Bridegroom, but He to whom has been betrothed by the Apostle that virgin, for whom the chaste friend of the bridegroom chastely fears, lest as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtil ty, so this virgin's mind, the Bride of Christ, should be corrupted from the chastity that is in Christ? In this our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, therefore, abundant and full grace resides, of which the Apostle John saith, And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father 9 full of grace and truth.

Ver. 1. This glory the heavens declare. The heavens are Saints, raised up from the earth, bearing the Lord. Although the visible heaven also, in some sort, hath declared the glory of Christ. When? When, at the same Lord's nativity, a new star, which had never before been seen, appeared. But, nevertheless, these are truer and higher heavens, of which it is said in the following verses of the Psalm, There is no speech, nor language, in which their voices are not heard. Their sound is gone out into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. Whose words but the heavens'? Whose then but the Apostles'? It is they declare unto us the glory of God, residing in Jesus Christ through grace for the remission of sins. For all have sinned, and want the glory oj. qoj^ oeing justified gratuitously by His Blood. Because gratuitously, therefore grace. For grace is no grace if it be not gratuitous. Because we had before done no good thing, whereby we might deserve such gifts, rather in that punishment was, not for nothing, to be inflicted, therefore was the boon for nothing accorded. Nothing had gone before in our deserts but what would entitle us to condemnation. But He, not for our righteousness, but of His own mercy, hath saved us by the later of regeneration. This, I say, is the glory of God; this have the heavens declared. This, I say, is God's glory, not thine. For no good hast thou done, and yet so great good hast thou received. If, therefore, thou attainest unto the glory which the heavens have declared, say unto the Lord thy God, My God9 His mercy shall prevent me. For it hath prevented thee; of course it10, hath prevented thee, for that it found no good in thee. Thou preventedst His punishment by thy pride; He prevented thy punishment by effacing thy sins. For as of a sinner justified, of ungodly made godly, of one condemned received into the kingdom, say thou unto the Lord thy God, Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy Name give the glory. Say we not unto us. For unto whom, if as unto ns? Say we, I repeat, not unto us; for if He were so to deal with us, He could only inflict punishment upon us. Not unto us, hut unto His own Name let Him give the glory, because He hath not dealt with us according to our iniquities. Not therefore unto us, O Lord, not unto us. The repetition is confirmation; Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, hut unto Thy Name give the glory. This those heavens knew, which declared the glory of God.

3. And the firmament skeweth tke works of His hands. What was before said, the glory of God, is here repeated, the works of His hands. What are the works of His hands? It is not, as some think, that God made all things by the Word, and man, as more excellent than all other things, He made by His Own Hands. We must not think this; this is a weak and inexact notion; for He made all things by the Word. For although diverse works of God are mentioned, among which He made man after His own image, yet all things were made by Him, and without Him was not any thing made. But as respects the Hands of God, it is said of the heavens too, And the heavens are the works of Thy Hands. And that you might not suppose that saints are in25, that place called heavens, he added, Jltey shall perish, but Thou abidest. Therefore not man only, but the heavens also, that shall perish, did God make with His Hands, to Whom it is said, The heavens are the works of Thy Hands. And of the earth is this self-same said, For the sea is His and He made it, and His Hands laid the foundations of the dry land. Therefore, if He made the heavens with His Hands, and the earth with His Hands, He made not man alone with His hands; and if by the Word He made the heavens, and tne Word the earth, therefore by the Word man too. What by the Word that by the hand, what by the hand that by the Word. For the stature of God is not marked out by human members, Who is wholly every where, and is no where contained. What therefore He made by the Word, He made by the Wisdom, and what He made by the Hand did by the Power; now Christ is the Power of God, and the Wisdom of God, and all things were made by Him, and without Him was not any thing made. The heavens have declared, do declare, will declare, the glory of God. The heavens, I say, that is, the Saints will declare the glory of God; raised aloft from earth, bearing God, thundering with precepts, lightening with Wisdom, will declare that glory of God, as I said, whereby we that are saved are unworthy of it. This unworthiness, that is, wherein we were unworthy, the younger son acknowledges when straitened by want; this unworthiness, T say, the younger son acknowledges, far from his father's home, a worshipper of demons, as it were a feeder of swine; he acknowledges the glory of God, but when straitened by want. And since by that glory of God we have been made what we were not worthy of, he to his father, / am not worthy to be called thy son. Unhappy, he obtains happiness by his lowliness, and shews himself worthy in the confession of his unworthiness. This glory of God the heavens declare, and the firmament sheweth the works of His hands. The heavens, the firmament, are a firm heart, a fearless heart. For these things are shewn among the ungodly, among the enemies of God, among the lovers of the world, and the persecutors of the righteous; in the midst of a violent world are these things shewn. But what could the violence of the world effect, when the firmament shewed these things? The firmament sheweth; what? the works of His hands. What are the works of His hands? That glory of God, whereby we are saved, whereby we are created in good works. For we are His work, created in Christ Jesus in good works. For He not only made us men, but righteous men too, if so we be, and not we ourselves.

4. Ver. 2. Day unto day uttereth a word, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. What is this? Perhaps it is plain and evident what day unto day uttereth a word is, evident and plain as if by day. But what night unto night sheweth knowledge is, is obscure as if by night. Day unto day, saints unto saints, Apostles unto believers, Christ Himself unto Apostles, to whom He said, Ye are the light of //ieMatt.5, world. This seems plain, and easy of apprehension. But how doth night unto night shew knowledge? Some have understood these words simply, and perhaps it may be so, considering the meaning of this sentence to be, that what the Apostles heard in our Lord Jesus Christ's time, during His converse on earth, this has been passed on to posterity as from time to time; day unto day, night unto night, the former day unto the latter day, the former night unto the latter night, for that this doctrine is preached day and night. Let this simple interpretation suffice him whom it will suffice. But some words in Scripture have from their obscurity this advantage, that they give birth to many interpretations. Accordingly had this been plain, you would have heard some one thing, but as it is obscurely spoken, you will hear many. There is too another interpretation, day unto day, night unto night, that is, spirit unto spirit, flesh unto flesh. There is another, day unto day, spiritual unto spiritual, night unto night, carnal unto carnal. For both hear, though both do not equally understand. For the one hear it as a word uttered, the other as knowledge declared. For what is uttered is uttered to those present, but what is declared is declared to those that are far removed. More senses of the word heavens may be discovered, but because of the stress of the present time, a limit must be imposed. Yet let us mention one more meaning, which certain have, as if by conjecture, opened. When, they say, the Lord Christ talked with the Apostles, day unto day uttered a word; when Judas betrayed the Lord Christ to the Jews, night unto night declared knowledge.

5. Ver. 3. There is no speech nor language in which their voices are not heard. Whose, but of those heavens which declare the glory of God? There is no speech, nor language, in which their voices are not heard. Read the Acts of the Apostles, how, when the Holy Ghost came upon them, they were all filled with Him, and spake in the tongues of all nations, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Lo, there

110 sPeec& nor language, in which their voices are not heard. But not there only, where they were filled, was the sound. (Ver. 4.) Their sound went forth into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. And therefore are we even speaking here. For that sound hath come even unto us, the sound which went forth into all the earth, and the heretic cometh not into the Church! For this cause hath the sound gone forth into all the earth, that thou mayest enter into heaven. O man full of mischief and strife, most evil and still liking to err, O haughty son, hear thy Father's will. Lo, what can be more plain, what more evident? Their sound went forth into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. Needs it any interpreter? Why strivest thou against thyself? Wouldest thou hold a part in dissent, who canst hold the whole in concord?

6. In the sun hath He set His tabernacle. His Church, that is, in open sight, not in secret, not that it should lie hid, not veiled as it were; lest haply as veiled it should light upon the flocks of the heretics. It is said again to one in holy Scripture, For thou didst this secretly, thou shalt suffer in the sun, that is, thou didst the evil in secret, thou shalt suffer the punishment in the open sight of all men. In the sun therefore hath He set His tabernacle. Why, O heretic, fliest into darkness? Art thou a Christian? Hear Christ. Art thou a servant? Hear thy Lord. Art thou a son? Hear thy Father; amend thyself, return to life again. Let us say thee too, He was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. Say not to me, Why dost thou seek me, if I am lost? For therefore do I seek thee, because thou art lost. Do not seek me, says he. This is indeed the wish of ungodliness, whereby we are divided; but not of charity, whereby we are brethren. I should not be extravagant1, if I were to seek my servant; and am I called extravagant, because I seek my brother? Be this his conceit, in whom brotherly love exists not; yet will 1 seek my brother. Let him be even angry, so he be still sought, who is appeased when he is found. I will seek, I say, my brother, and appeal to my Lord, not against him, but for him. Nor in my appeal I say, Lord, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me; but, speak to my brother, that he hold the inheritance with me. Why then errest thou, brother? Why fly by the corners? Why try to lie hid? ' He has set His tabernacle in the sun. (Ver. 5.) And as a bridegroom coming forth out of His chamber, I suppose that thou raayest recognise Him. As a bridegroom coming forth out of His chamber, He rejoiced as a giant to run His course; He hath set His tabernacle in the sun; that is, as a bridegroom when the Word was made flesh, He found a bridal chamber in the Virgin's womb; and thence coming out as from a closet of surpassing purity, joined to the nature of man, humble in His mercy below all, strong in His majesty above all. For this is, He rejoiced as a giant to run His course, He was born, grew up, taught, suffered, rose again, ascended; He ran His course, He halted not therein. The self-same bridegroom then Who did all this, He set in the sun, that is, in the open sight of all men, His tabernacle, that is, His holy Church.

7. Now wouldest thou hear what course He swiftly ran? (Ver. 6.) His going forth is from the highest heaven, and His meeting even to the height thereof But after that He went forth thence, and returned on His backward course, He sent His Spirit. There appeared to them, upon whom He came, cloven tongues as of fire. As fire the Holy Ghost came, to burn the hay of flesh, to smelt and refine the gold; as fire He came, and therefore it follows, and* there is none that can hide from the heat thereof.

8. Ver. 7. The law of the Lord is undefiled, converting souls. This is the Holy Ghost. The testimony of the Lord is sure, giving wisdom to babes, not to the proud. This is the Holy Ghost.

9. Ver. 8. The statutes of the Lord are right, not terrifying, but rejoicing the heart. This is the Holy Ghost The commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes; not dulling them, the eyes, not of the flesh, but of the heart, not of the outer, but of the inner man. This is the Holy Ghost

10. Ver. 9. The fear of the Lord; not a slavish fear, but chaste, loving freely, not fearing to be punished by Him at Whom it is alarmed, but to be separated from Him Whom it loves. This is chaste fear, not which perfect love out, but enduring for ever. This is the Holy Ghost, that is, this fear the Holy Ghost giveth, briugeth, im~ pknteth. The judgments of the Lord are true, justified together, not for the contentions of division, but for the gathering together of unity. For this is, together. This is the Holy Ghosts Therefore He made them, upon whom He first descended, speak in the tongues of all nations, because He announced that He would gather together the-tongues of all nation* into unity. What one man did then, on receiving the Holy Ghost, that one should speak in the tongues of all nations, this unity itself now doth, she speaketh in all tongues. And now One Man speaketh in all nations in all tongues, One Man the Head and the Body, One Man Christ and the Church, perfect Man together, the bridegroom and the bride. But they two, saith He, shall be one flesh. The judgments of the Lord are true justified together > because of unity.

11. Ver. 10. To be desired more than gold, and much precious, stone* Either much gold, or much precious, or much to be desired; much any way, with the heretic little. They do not love together with us, yet with us they confess Christ. This same Christ Whom with me thou dost confess, Him love with me. And he, who wilieth not together, refuses, resists, rejects, with him there is not this desirableness more than gold, and much precious stone. Listen again, sweeter also than honey, and the honeycomb. But this is all against the wanderer; honey is bitter to one in a fever; but notwithstanding sweet and acceptable to one restored to 'health, for to sound health it is dear. To be desired more than gold, and much precious stone, sweeter al$o than honey, and the honeycomb.

12. Ver. 11. For Thy servant also keepeth them. How sweet they are Thy servant proves by keeping them, not by talking. Thy servant keepeth them, for that they are both at present sweet, and healthful for time to come; for in keeping them there is great reward. But enamoured of his strife, the heretic neither sees this brilliancy, nor tastes the sweetness.

13. Ver. 12. For, Who underslandelh sins? Father forgive them, for they know not what they do. Therefore, saith he, lie is a servant1 who keepeth this sweetness, the pleasantness of charity, the love of unity. I, he says, myself who keep it, entreat Thee, (for who understandeth sins?) lest some steal over me, man as I am, and by some, as a man, I be first entangled. Cleanse me, O Lord, from my secret sins. This then we- have sung; see, to this I have come in my discourse. Let us say, and sing with understanding, and pray in our song, and by our prayer obtain our petition, let us say, Cleanse me, O Lord, from my secret sins. For, Who understandeth sins? If darkness is seen, sins are understood. In fact, when we repent of sin, we are in the light. For whilst one is entangled in his sin, with eyes as it were darkened and closed, he sees not the sin; for so, if the eye of thy body be covered, thou canst neither see aught else, nor that by which it is covered. Therefore say we to God, Who can see what He will purify, who can have an eye on what He will heal; say we to Him, Cleanse me, O Lord, from my secret sins, (ver. 13.) and preserve Tliy servant from those of others* My own sins, he says, pollute me, the sins of others afflict me; from the one cleanse me, from the other preserve me. Take away from my heart, I pray, the evil thought, keep back from me the evil counsellor, this is, Cleanse me from my secret sins, and preserve Thy servant from those of others. For these two kinds of faults, both our own and those of others, appeared even from the very first in, the beginning. The devil fell by his own sin, he degraded Adam by another's sin. This same servant of God, who keepeth the judgments of God in which there is great reward, in another Psalm too prays thus, Let not the foot °f^*- pride come unto me, and let not the hand of the wicked move me. Let not the foot of pride come unto me, that is, Cleanse me, O Lord, from my secret sins; and let not the hand of the wicked move me, that is, Preserve Thy servant from the sins of others.

14. If they get not the dominion over me, then shall I be undejiled. If they get not the dominion over me, mine own secret sins and the sins of others, then shall I be undefiled 2. This is no daring reliance on his own strength, but he entreats the Lord to fulfil it; to Whom it is said in another Psalm, Order my ways according to Thy word, and let no iniqutty have dominion over me. If thou art a Christian, not the dominion of any man without; the Lord thy God fear alway. Fear the evil in thyself, that is, thy lust, not what God made in thee, but what thou hast made for thine own self. The Lord made thee a good servant, thou hast created in thine own heart an evil lord for thine own self. Justly wilt thou be subject to iniquity, justly wilt thou be subject to the lord, whom thou hast made for thine own self; since thou wouldest not be subject to Him Who made thee.

15. But if, he says, they get not the dominion over me, then shall I be undefiled, and cleansed from the great offence. What offence, do we suppose? What is that great offence? Perchance it is other than that I am about to mention, yet 1 will not conceal what 1 think. 1 deem the great offence to be pride. This perhaps is in another 1 way intimated in that he saith, And I shall be cleansed from the great offence. Do you enquire how great that offence is, which cast down an Angel, which of an Angel made a Devil, and for ever closed the kingdom of heaven against him? This is the great offence, and the head and cause of all offences. For it is written, The beginning of all sin is pride. And that thou mightest not disregard it as any4ight matter, he says, The beginning of pride in man is to depart from God. No light evil, my brethren, is this vice; Christian humility is displeasing to this vice in those persons, which you see to be of high degree. By reason of this vice men disdain to submit their necks to the yoke of Christ, being more straitly fastened to the yoke of sin. For no release from serving will be theirs; for they do not like to serve, but to serve is expedient for them. By misliking to serve they gain nothing, but that they serve not a good Lord, not that they do not serve at all. Since whosoever will not be the servant of love, he must needs be the servant of iniquity. From this vice, which is the head of all vices, for that all other vices spring from thence, is produced a departing from God, whilst the soul goes into darkness, and makes an evil use of its free will, with all other sins too in its train; so that a man squanders all his substance by prodigal living with harlots, and through want becomes a feeder of swine, who was the associate of Angels. On account of this vice, on account of this great sin of pride, God came in humility. This cause, this great sin, this mighty disease of souls, brought down the Almighty Physician from heaven, humbled Him even to the form of a servant, exposed Him to despiteful treatment, hung Him on the tree; that by the saving strength of so great medicine this swelling might be cured. Let man now at length blush to be proud, for whose sake God hath become humble. So, saith he, shall I be cleansed from the great offence, because, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.

16. Ver. 14. And hereby shall the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be pleasing in Thy sight alway. For if I be not cleansed from this great offence, my words will be pleasing in the sight of men, not in Thy sight. The proud soul would be pleasing in the sight of men; the humble soul would be pleasing in secret, where God seeth; so that if she shall please men with any good work? she would congratulate them whom the good work pleases, not herself, to whom it ought to be enough that she hath done a good work. Our glory, saith the Apostle, &2Cor. this, the testimony of our conscience. And therefore let us also say what follows, O Lord, my Helper and my Redeemer. Helper in good, Redeemer from evil. Helper, that I may dwell in Thy love, Redeemer, that Thou mayest deliver me from mine iniquity.