Page:An Exposition of the Old and New Testament (1828) vol 3.djvu/206

198 is the law of God, which is holy, just, and good, which he freely consents to, and so delights in, after the inner man, Rom. vii. 16, 22. All who are well pleased that there is a God, must be well pleased that there is a Bible, a revelation of God, of his will, and the only way to happiness in him. (2.) The intimate acquaintance which a good man keeps up with the word of God; in that law doth he meditate day and night; by this it appears that his delight is in it, for what we love, we love to think of, cxix. 97. To meditate on God's word, is to discourse with ourselves concerning the great things contained in it, with a close application of mind, a fixedness of thought, till we be suitably affected with those things, and experience the favour and power of them in our hearts. This we must do, day and night; we must have a constant habitual regard to the word of God, as the rule of our actions and the spring of our comforts, and we must have it in our thoughts, accordingly, upon every occasion that occurs, whether night or day. No time is amiss for meditating on the word of God, nor any time unseasonable for those visits. We must not only set ourselves to meditate on God's word, morning and evening, at the entrance of the day and of the night; but these thoughts should be interwoven with the business and converse of every day, and with the repose and slumbers of every night; When I awake, I am still with thee.

II. An assurance given of the godly man's happiness, with which we should encourage ourselves to answer the character of such.

1. In general, he is blessed, v. 1. God blesses him, and that blessing will make him happy. Blessednesses are to him; blessings of all kinds, of the upper and nether springs, enough to make him completely happy; none of the ingredients of happiness shall be wanting to him. When he undertakes to describe a blessed man, he describes a good man; for, after all, those only are happy, truly happy, that are holy, truly holy; and we are more concerned to know the way to blessedness, than to know wherein blessedness will consist. Nay, goodness and holiness are not only the way to happiness, (Rev. xxii. 14.) but happiness itself; supposing there was not another life after this, yet that man is a happy man, that keeps in the way of his duty.

2. His blessedness is here illustrated by a similitude; (v. 3.) He shall be like a tree, fruitful and flourishing. This is the effect, (1.) Of his pious practice: he meditates in the law of God, turns that in succum et sanguinem—into juice and blood, and that makes him like a tree. The more we converse with the word of God, the better furnished we are for every good word and work. Or, (2.) Of the promised blessing; he is blessed of the Lord, and therefore he shall be like a tree. The divine blessing produces real effects. It is the happiness of a godly man, [1.] That he is planted by the grace of God; these trees were by nature wild olives, and will continue so till they are grafted anew, and so planted by a power from above. Never any good tree grew of itself, it is the planting of the Lord, and therefore he must in it be glorified; (Isa. lxi. 3.) The trees of the Lord are full of sap. [2.] That he is placed by the means of grace; here called the rivers of water, those rivers which make glad the city of our God; (xlvi. 4.) from these a good man receives supplies of strength and vigour, but in secret, undiscerned ways. [3.] That his practices shall be fruit, abounding to a good account, Phil. iv. 17. To those whom God first blessed, he said, Be fruitful; (Gen. i. 22.) and still, the comfort and honour of fruitfulness are a recompense for the labour of it. It is expected from those who enjoy the mercies of grace, that, both in the temper of their minds, and in the tenor of their lives, they comply with the intentions of that grace, and then they bring forth fruit. And, be it observed to the praise of the great Dresser of the vineyard, they bring forth their fruit, (that which is required of them,) in due season, when it is most beautiful and most useful; improving every opportunity of doing good, and doing it in its proper time. [4.] That his profession shall be preserved from blemish and decay; His leaf shall not wither. Even the leaf of those who bring forth only the leaves of profession, without any good fruit, will wither, and they shall be as much ashamed of their profession as ever they were proud of it; but if the word of God rule in the heart, that will keep the profession green, both to our comfort and to our credit; the laurels, thus won, shall never wither. [5.] That prosperity shall attend him, wherever he goes, soul-prosperity. Whatever he does, in conformity to the law, it shall prosper and succeed, to his mind, or above his hope.

In singing these verses, being duly affected with the malignant and dangerous nature of sin, and transcendent excellencies of the divine law, and the power and efficacy of God's grace, from which our fruit is found, we must teach and admonish ourselves, and one another, to watch against sin and all approaches toward it, to converse much with the word of God, and abound in the fruit of righteousness: and, in praying over them, we must seek to God for his grace both to fortify us against every evil word and work, and to furnish us for every good word and work.

4. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. 5. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6. For the knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Here is,

1. The description of the ungodly given, v. 4. (1.) In general; they are the reverse of the righteous, both in character and condition; they are not so. The LXX emphatically repeat this, not so the ungodly, they are not so; they are led by the counsel of the wicked, in the way of sinners, to the seat of the scornful; they have no delight in the law of God, nor ever think of it; they bring forth no fruit, but grapes of Sodom; they cumber the ground. (2.) In particular; whereas the righteous are like useful, fruitful, trees, they are like the chaff which the wind drives away, the very lightest of the chaff, the dust which the owner of the floor desires to have driven away, as not capable of being put to any use. Would you value them? Would you weigh them? They are like chaff, of no worth at all in God's account, how highly soever they may value themselves. Would you know the temper of their minds? They are light and vain, they have no substance in them, no solidity; they are easily driven to and fro by every wind and temptation, and have no steadfastness. Would you know their end? The wrath of God will drive them away in their wickedness, as the wind does the chaff, which is never gathered, or looked after more. The chaff may be for a while, among the wheat; but He is coming, whose fan is in his hand, and who will thoroughly purge his floor. They that by their own sin and folly make themselves as chaff, will be found so, before the whirlwind and fire of divine wrath, (xxxv. 5.) so unable to stand before it, or to escape it, Isa. xvii. 13.

2. The doom of the ungodly read, v. 5. (1.) They will be cast, upon their trial, as traitors convicted; they shall not stand in the judgment; they shall be found guilty, shall hang down the head with shame