A Week in God’s Presence (No 2)

A Week in God’s Presence (No 2)

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen!” (2Co_13:14)

I love the way the Message Bible puts this – “The amazing grace of the Master, Jesus Christ, the extravagant love of God, the intimate friendship of the Holy Spirit, be with all of you.”

Amazing Grace. Extravagant Love. Intimate Friendship.

These are the three great gifts already provided to each and every one of us who long to be reconnected in a meaningful and lasting way with the Almighty.

⦁ Amazing Grace. Did you know that God wants to astound you with his empowering presence? He wants to show you that you can trust Him in all things and at all times. His grace is sufficient. The power of Christ at work in and through your life is all you need to be saved, and fully satisfied.
⦁ Extravagant Love. “How great the Father’s love for us; how vast beyond all measure! That He would send His only Son…to make a wretch His treasure!” (Old Irish Hymn) God’s love for you is great and excessive; such that you could never plumb the depths nor reach the heights, nor could you span the width, nor reach the length of it. In one simple and perfect word – His love is extravagant.
⦁ Intimate Friendship. This type of friendship goes far beyond the superficial veneer of social acquaintances, and even bypasses the richer fare of personal relationships. This is intimate friendship – the rarest and deepest of all kinds.  
Grace. Extravagant Love. Intimate Friendship.

These three great gifts are ours in Christ. But perhaps you may not be experiencing these things at all; or to any real measure. Yet God has provided us with a very practical way that will insure our full experience of all He has for us.

Are you ready for this – it’s so simple. In fact, it is so simple you may be inclined to dismiss it. But don’t! If you will trust what I am telling you and start purposefully practicing these three practical things, your heart will expand and God will approach in His fullness.

Here is what I want you to do…
! I just ran out of space; I guess I’ll have to tell you what they are next!

the Spirit of God leads the saints into with the Father

2 Corinthians 13:14
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.... Meaning either the love of Christ; see 2Co_8:9 
which is the same with that of his Father's, is as early, and of the same nature, being a love of complacency and delight; and which, as it is without beginning, will be without end. This is the ground and foundation of all he has done and underwent for his people; of his becoming their surety; of his incarnation, obedience, sufferings, and death in their room and stead; an interest in which, though they always have, yet they have not always an abiding sense of it with them, which is what the apostle here prays for: or else by the grace of Christ is meant the fullness of grace that is in him as Mediator; which is desired to be with the saints as the object of their trust and dependence; to be strong in, draw living water with joy out of, receive and derive daily from; not forsake it, and hew out broken cisterns, but continually apply to, and make use of it, as the fountain of gardens, the well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon; to be with them as a supply to their wants, to furnish them with every thing they stand in need of, and to enable them to do his will and work: or else the redeeming grace of Christ is particularly designed, and the intent of the petition is, that they might see their interest in it, and in all the branches of it; as that they were redeemed by his blood from sin, law, and wrath, had all their sins expiated and forgiven through his sacrifice, and were justified from all things by his righteousness. 

And the love of God; the Father, as the Arabic version adds very justly, as to the sense, though it is not in the text; meaning the love of God to his people, which is eternal, from everlasting to everlasting, free and undeserved, special and peculiar, is dispensed in a sovereign way, is unchangeable, abides for ever, is the source and spring of all the blessings both of grace and glory. Now when this is entreated to be with all the saints, it does not suppose that it is ever from them, or that it can be taken away from them, but whereas they may be without a comfortable sense of it, and a view of interest in it, the apostle prays, that in this respect it might be with them; that they might be directed into it, have it shed abroad in their hearts, and they be rooted and grounded in it, and comprehend for themselves the height, and depth, and length, and breadth of it. 

And the communion of the Holy Ghost; either a larger communication of the gifts and graces of the Spirit of God, called "the supply of the Spirit", Phi_1:19 necessary to carry on the good work of grace, and perform it to the end; or else that communion and fellowship which the Spirit of God leads the saints into with the Father, by shedding abroad his love in their hearts, and with the Son, by taking of the things of Christ, and showing them to them; and also that nearness which the spirits of believers have with the Spirit of God, when he witnesses to their spirits that they are the children of God, becomes the earnest of the inheritance in their hearts, and seals them up unto the day of redemption: all which is requested by the apostle, to 

be, says he, 

with you all; or "with your company", or "congregations", as the Arabic version reads it, with all the saints; for their interest in the love of the Father, in the grace of the Son, and in the favour of the Spirit, is the same, whatever different sense and apprehensions they may have thereof. This passage contains no inconsiderable proof of a trinity of persons in the Godhead, to whom distinct things are here ascribed, and of them asked, equal objects of prayer and worship. "Amen" is by way of assent and confirmation, and as expressive of faith in the petitions, and of earnest desire to have them fulfilled. According to the subscription at the end of this epistle, it was written by the apostle when he was at Philippi, a city of Macedonia, and transcribed by Titus and Lucas, and by them sent or carried to the Corinthians; which seems to be agreeable to what is suggested in the epistle itself, though these subscriptions are not to he depended upon. The Syriac version only mentions Luke; and some copies read, by Titus, Barnabas, and Luke.

A Week in God’s Presence (No 1)

A Week in God’s Presence (No 1)

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen!” (2Co_13:14)

You and I were made to experience God’s Presence. From the very beginning, when the Voice of God walked with Adam in the Garden in the cool of the day, we have the quintessential witness of why we were created — companionship with God.

And from the instant the First Couple were driven out of the Garden into a world defiled by sin, mankind’s greatest longing has been for a real and lasting encounter with the Creator; a reconnection to the realization of God’s Presence.

Something deep inside us compels us to find a way to “break on through to the other side.” We know that we were meant for something more than we are presently experiencing; something heavenly. But we also know that something is wrong; that we somehow have been blocked from having access to all that we were created to experience.

Well, I am here to tell you that the breech of friendship, which happened on that day in the Garden when a dark choice was made to hide from God, now that breech has been healed! Full access has been granted, and God is available to any and all who will draw near to Him!

In fact, He has lavishly provided three avenues by which He Himself will draw near to us, and flood our lives with the fullness of His presence – and all the blessings therein.

Paul refers to these three avenues as “the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost.” There is a practical dimension to these three extraordinary offers, and you can actually do something that will open your life up for God to draw near to you.

You can experience God’s Presence! You can live your life in the fullness of His friendship!

 I will tell you how to do so next.

The Loneliness of Sin

The Loneliness of Sin
He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night— John_13:30

He Made His Bed in Hell
What first strikes us here is the utter loneliness of Judas. No word-painting, however vivid, could give a deeper impression of that than these few words of John: "He ... went immediately out: and it was night." Within, there was light and gladness, and the richest fellowship this world had ever known. For Christ was there, and John was leaning upon Jesus' bosom, and the talk was on high and holy themes that evening. Outside was fierce hostility. Outside was dark. And no man drove out Judas. No push and curse hurried him to the door. It was the momentum of his own heart and life that impelled him to choose the darkness rather than the light.
Shall we follow Judas into the dark street? He turns and looks, and the light is gleaming from the window of the upper chamber. He hurries on, and the streets are not empty yet. A band of young men, like himself, goes singing by. The sounds of evening worship come stealing from the houses. And everything that tells of love, and breathes of fellowship, and speaks of home, falls like a fiery rain on Judas' heart. The loneliness of Judas was intolerable. He had made his bed in hell. A friend of mine was once preaching on that text in the Assembly Hall in Edinburgh. And when he left the hall and was stepping homewards, a young man rushed across the street and grasped him by the arm and cried, "Minister, minister, I have made my bed in hell," and disappeared. And the lonely misery of that cry will ring in my friend's ears till his dying day. There was a loneliness in it like that in Judas. He was estranged, apart. "He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night."
In a Sense Everybody Is Lonely
There is a sense in which every person is lonely. Each has his different road, his different trial, his different joy; and these differences are invisible barriers between us, so that even in fellowship we walk apart. We say we know that woman thoroughly, and we believe we do, till someday there comes a new temptation to her, or a new chance to be heroic, and all our reckoning are falsified, and there are depths our plummet never sounded. I cannot utter forth all that I am. Gesture, speech, even music are but rude interpreters. The dullest has his dream he never tells. The very shallowest has his holy ground. There is an isolation of the soul that brings the note of pathos into history, and makes me very reluctant to judge my friend, and leads me to the very feet of Christ.

In a Sense Christ Was Lonely
For there is a deep sense in which Christ was lonely too. And it is strange that on the night of the betrayal, perhaps the two loneliest figures in the world were the sinful disciple and his sinless Lord. But oh, the world of difference between the two! Christ lonely because He was the Son of God, bearing His cross alone and going out into the glory. And Judas lonely because he was the son of perdition, with every harmony destroyed by sin, and going out into the night. Now towards which figure are you making, friend? For towards one or the other your feet are carrying you. There is a loneliness upon the mountain top.            
There is a loneliness in death and in the grave. And the one is the isolation of the climbing heart, and the other the isolation of the lost. Towards which are you headed? Is it "To the hills will I lift up mine eyes" or "The wages of sin is death"?
Sin Separates
This, then, is one continual effect of sin. In every shape and form, in every age and country, it intensifies the loneliness of life. We talk of social sins. All sin is ultimately anti-social. We hear of comradeship's based upon common vices. All vice in the long run grinds the very thought of comradeship to powder. Sin isolates, estranges, separates; that is its work. It is the task of God ever to lead us to a richer fellowship. It is the work of sin, hidden but sure, to make us lonelier and more lonely till the end. From all that is best, and worthiest, and purest, it is the delight of sin to separate. And I want to touch on the three great separations that sin brings, making life a lonely thing.

Sin Separates Man from His Ideal
First, then, sin separates man from his ideal. When I have an ideal, I can never be quite lonely. When I have the vision beckoning me on, when I have something to live for and to struggle for higher than coin or food, there is a fervor in my common day, and a quiet enthusiasm for tomorrow, that are splendid company for my secret heart. And even if my ideal be a dream, it is so. In the famous battle between the clans on the North Inch of Perth, rendered immortal in the story of Sir Walter Scott, you will remember how the old chieftain Torquil sent out his sons to fight for Hector. And as one son after another fell under the smiting blows of Hal of the Wynd, the old chief thundered out, "Another for Hector," and another of his sons stepped forward to the battle. And they were all slain, every one of them, for Hector—and Hector was a coward. Let the ideal be a dream, yet men will fight for it; and fighting, the heart forgets its loneliness.
And the work of sin has been to separate the world from its ideals—to blot out the vision and to say to men, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Sin lays the emphasis on what I see. Sin holds me back from what I would be, and binds me a prisoner to what I am. Until, at last, through years of weary failure, all that we hoped and longed to be is gone, and the beckoning hands have vanished, and the vision is fled, and we are alone with our own poor selves. Sin separates a man from his ideal. Judas had his ideal once, but the devil entered him, and the ideal died out; and from that hour Judas drew apart.

Sin Separates Man from Man
Not only does sin separate man from his ideal, it separates man from man. When Cain slew Abel, he became an outcast. When David fell, he had to fly. When Peter denied Christ, he went out and wept bitterly. Sin broke life's ties for them, sundered the bonds that bound them to their fellows. Read over every narrative of sin within the Bible, and underneath the outward form of it—it may be passion, envy, treachery, revenge—you will detect, from Genesis to Revelation, the sundering of ties between man and man.
And sin is always doing that. There is not a passion, not a lust or vice, but mars and spoils the brotherhood of life, and tends to the loneliness of individual souls. God meant us to be friends. God has established numberless relationships. And God is righteousness and God is love, and the Spirit of righteousness and love inspires them all. And sin has been unrighteous from the first, and shall be cold and loveless till the end. O sin, thou severing and separating curse! There is no tie so tender but my vice will snap it. There is no bond so strong but sin will shatter it. It separates the father from his child; it sunders hearts; it creates distances within the home, till the full harmonies of life are lost, and the deep fellowships of life impossible. And the world is lonelier because of sin.
And Jesus Christ knew that. Christ saw and felt sin's separating power. And so the Gospel, that rings with the note of brotherhood, centers in Calvary upon the fact of sin. The social gospel is but a shallow gospel, false to the truth and alien from Christ, unless it roots itself in the divine forgiveness and the inspiring power of the Holy Ghost. The poet Whittier tells a story of the Rabbi Nathan, who long lived blamelessly but fell at last, and his temptation clung to him in spite of his prayers and fastings. And he had a friend, Rabbi Ben Isaac, and he felt that his sin had spoiled the friendship. But he would go to him and speak to him and tell him all. And when they met, the two embraced each other; till Rabbi Nathan, remembering his sin, tore himself from his friend's arms and confessed. It was the separating power of sin. But when Rabbi Ben Isaac heard his words, he confessed that he too had sinned, and he asked his friend to pray for him as Rabbi Nathan had asked himself. And there in the sunset, side by side, they knelt and each prayed with his whole heart for the other. "And when at last they rose up to embrace, each saw God's pardon in his brother's face."
Sin, separation—pardon, brotherhood; it is the order of the universe and God.

Sin Separates Man from God
And so sin separates a man from his ideal and a man from men. But the most awful separation of all, the one that reaches the very heart of loneliness, is this: sin separates a man from God.
I can never be lonely in God's fellowship. When I detect His glory in the world, and trace His handiwork in field and sunset; when I recognize His voice in conscience, when I feel the power of His love in Christ; "there is society where none intrudes," there is the sweetest company in solitude; and I may dwell alone, but I can never be a lonely man. "For me to live is Christ," said the apostle; and the friendship of God was so intense for him, that even in the prison at Philippi he had society.
But from the first it has been sin's great triumph to separate the soul from God; and the deepest loneliness of sin is this, that it blinds me to One whom not to see is death, and bars me from the fellowship of Him whose friendship is of infinite value to my heart. If in the sky and sea, if in the call of duty, if in the claims of men, if in the love of Christ, if in all these I see and hear no God. this is a lonely world. And sin has blinded me, and made lonely, as the prodigal was lonely when far from his father and father's home. Shall I arise and go to Him tonight? Shall I return by the way of Calvary to God? I have been separated from holiest and the best. I have been living far from goodness and from God. But - 
Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bidd'st me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come, I come!
—Charlotte Elliott

He (CHRIST) is our great Intercessor!

THE CLUE TO LIFE'S MAZE
"There was a man whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil....Satan said, Doth Job fear God for nought?"-- John_1:1-9.

THIS MARVELOUS poem, one of the profoundest studies in the Bible, deals with the great problem of evil. At some time or other in our lives, we come back to study it, as a clue to life's maze, the expression of our heart's out-cry, and the solution of life's mystery in the Will and Love of God.
From first to last, the supreme questions in this wonderful piece of literature are: "Can God make man love Him for Himself alone and apart from His gifts?" and "Why is Evil permitted, and what part does it play in the nurture of the soul of man?"
(i.e. The Soul being the Mind, Willpower, and Emotions) 

These questions are always with us. In fact, the Book of Job may be said to be a compendium of the existence and history of our race.
The first chapter teems with helpful lessons. The anxiety of parents for their children should expend itself in ceaseless intercession on their behalf. The great Adversary of souls is always on the watch, considering our conduct so as to accuse us before God, not only for overt sins, but for unworthy motives. We cannot forget our Lord's words to Peter: "Satan asked to have you, but I made supplication for thee, that thy faith fail not" (Luke_22:31, R.V.). 
Christ never underestimated the power of Satan, the "prince of this world," but He is our great Intercessor (Heb_4:14-16; Heb_7:25).
In circumstances of prosperity and happiness, we must never forget that it is God who plants a hedge about us, blesses our work and increases our substance. It is good to realize that whatever be the malignity of our foes, there is always the Divine restraint, and we are not tempted beyond what we are able to bear. It is not enough to endure our griefs sullenly or stoically. It should be our aim not only to hold fast to our integrity, but to trust God. 
There is a clue to the mystery of human life, which comes to the man who differentiates between the Real and the Unreal; the Seen and the Unseen.

PRAYER
My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. AMEN.

Waiting upon God.

 Waiting upon God.
There are expressions in this psalm which sound harsh and cruel, and which Christians would shrink from using. But, on the other hand, there is much here that comes home to our experience, and that is helpful and comforting in the great trials of life. It is something to know that good men have suffered affliction before us—that they have been falsely accused and foully wronged, that they have felt the pangs of grief and the bitterness of disappointment, and that they have had to bear much and wait long before deliverance came. The lesson is clear. It is—Wait upon God. This is the refrain, which comes so sweetly at the middle (Psa_59:10), and then with increased force and emphasis at the end (Psa_59:17). The figure seems that of a sentinel on his tower. He is set there to watch. He must be vigilant and patient. There is much to try him, but not till morning breaks will he find release.

I. WAITING UPON GOD ASSURES DELIVERANCE. Waiting implies faith and hope. "The husbandman waits for the harvest." The physician waits for the effect of his remedies. The father waits for the time when his son is educated, and fit to take his place in the world. So we are to have faith, to hold ourselves still, in patient expectancy, till God’s will is made known. Waiting does not preclude personal effort. On the contrary, it implies it. God will not do for us what he has made us able to do for ourselves. Our duty is to work, and wait upon God for his blessing. We must do our part, if we expect God to do his part. But there are times when we have, so far as we know, done all in our power, when we have exhausted all lawful efforts, and yet our condition is not bettered, but rather grown worse. Our straits are great. Our needs are urgent. Our enemies press us on every side, and shout as if sure of their prey. What comfort it is, at such a time, to commit ourselves to God, and to wait patiently for him from whom our salvation comes!    Remember what God is, and what he has done. He is our "Strength" and our "Defense." God in us is our Strength—our strength made perfect in weakness. 
We in God is our "Defense"—our Strong Tower to which we run and are safe.

II.WAITING UPON GOD AWAKENS PRAISE.(Psa_59:14 17.) Here is a sweet strain of thanksgiving. The rage and malice of the enemy still continue, but it is malice that is defeated, and rage that is baulked of its prey. The "morning" brings deliverance, and, instead of the shrieks of the victim, there are the songs of the victor. God has saved his servant who trusted in Him. 
How often has the same thing come true! God’s people, waiting upon him in the day of their trouble, have found "defense" and "refuge." God’s power has delivered them from their enemies; God’s "mercy" has brought joy and peace to their hearts. Therefore they, with renewed ardour, say, "Unto thee, O my Strength, will I sing: for God is my Defense, and the God of my mercy."—W.F.



Psa_59:8-17
But thou, O Lord, shalt laugh at them (comp. Psa_2:4). Thou shalt have all the heathen in derision (see the comment on Psa_59:5, and particularly the explanation there given of "all the heathen").
Psa_59:9
Because of his strength. There is no "because of" in the original, and the reading, "his strength" (עזּוֹ), is doubtful. Several manuscripts have "my strength" (עזּי), and this reading was followed in all the ancient versions. Most modern critics prefer it, and translate, O my strength, as in Psa_59:17. Will I wait upon thee; rather, I will wait upon thee. For my God is my Defense; or, my High Tower (Revised Version).
Psa_59:10-13
The enemies are still the main subject. Their pride, their cursing, their lying, are denounced (Psa_59:12). The psalmist trusts to "see his desire" upon them (Psa_59:10). First he begs that they may not be slain, but only "scattered abroad," so that they may remain as examples of God’s vengeance for the warning of others (verse. 11). Then, forgetting this wish, he pleads for their capture and their utter destruction, without which God’s glory will not be fully vindicated (Psa_59:12, Psa_59:13).
Psa_59:10
The God of my mercy shall prevent me; or, according to another reading, God with his mercy shall prevent (i.e. anticipate) me. God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies (comp. Psa_54:7).
Psa_59:11
Slay them not, lest my people forget; i.e. my true people—faithful Israel. The psalmist’s "first thought is, that by lingering on in life for a while the wicked may be more edifying monuments of the Divine anger" (Cheyne). (For a parallel, see Exo_9:16.) Scatter them by thy power; or, make them wanderers (comp. Gen_4:12, Gen_4:14). It has been often noted that David’s curse seems to have passed on to the entire nation of the Jews. And bring them down, O Lord our Shield; i.e. "cast them down from their honourable positions bring them into misery and disgrace—O Lord, who art our Defense and Shield" (comp. Psa_3:3; Psa_18:2; Psa_28:7).
Psa_59:12
For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips; rather, the sin of their mouth is each word of their lips (Hupfeld, Cheyne); or, O the sin of their mouth! O the word of their lips! (Ewald, Kay, Canon Cook). Let them even be taken in their pride. Saul’s special emissaries (1Sa_19:11) would, of course, be proud of their mission. And for cursing and lying which they speak (comp. Psa_10:7; and, for an example, see 2Sa_16:5-8).
Psa_59:13
Consume them in wrath, consume them; or, "make an end of them"—’’bring them to naught." That they may not be; or, "that they be no more." And let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. The frustration of their plans, and their signal punishment, will cause the God of Israel to be recognized widely as the King of the whole earth. Compare the words of David to Goliath, "I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel" (1Sa_17:46).
Psa_59:14-17
David here turns back from the future fate of his enemies to their present condition,and repeats Psa_59:7 verbatim. He thus reminds himself of his existing danger; he is still being sought—they are still in quest of their prey, and will continue so till morning comes (Psa_59:15). But in the morning he will be gone—he will have escaped them. Upon this thought occurring, he raises a renewed thanksgiving to God (Psa_59:16, Psa_59:17)
Psa_59:14
And at evening let them return; rather, they return, as in Psa_59:6. And let them make a noise like a dog; rather, they make a noise. And go round about the city. Keeping their watch upon me.
Psa_59:15
Let them wander up and down for meat; rather, they wander up and down for meat. David himself was the prey which they desired. They kept guard around his house, wandering, no doubt, up and down. And grudge if they be not satisfied; rather, as in the margin and in the Revised Version, and if they be not satisfied, they will stay all night. This they appear to have done from 1Sa_19:11-15.
Psa_59:16
But I will sing of thy power; rather, of thy strength—the same word as that used in Psa_59:9 and Psa_59:17. Yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning.
When the morning came, David had escaped (1Sa_19:12), and could "sing of God’s mercy" securely at Ramah, where he had joined Samuel. For thou hast been my Defense and Refuge in the day of my trouble; or, my High Tower, as in Psa_59:9 and Psa_59:17.
Psa_59:17
Unto thee, O my Strength, will I sing: for God is my Defense; or, Strong Tower (comp. Psa_59:9, which, if we read עזּי for עזוֹ, is so far, excepting in the verb, identical). And the God of my mercy; i.e. "the God who showeth mercy upon me" (comp. Psa_59:10).

What David would praise God for.

Psalms 59:8-17

David here encourages himself, in reference to the threatening power of his enemies, with a pious resolution to wait upon God and a believing expectation that he should yet praise Him.
I. He resolves to wait upon God (Psa_59:9): “Because of his strength” (either the strength of his enemies, the fear of which drove him to God, or because of God's strength, the hope of which drew him to God) “Will I wait upon thee, with a believing dependence upon thee and confidence in thee.” It is our wisdom and duty, in times of danger and difficulty, to wait upon God; for he is our defense, our high place, in whom we shall be safe. He hopes, 
1. That God will be to him a God of mercy (Psa_59:10): “The God of my mercy shall prevent me with the blessings of his goodness and the gifts of his mercy, prevent my fears, prevent my prayers, and be better to me than my own expectations.” It is very comfortable to us, in prayer, to eye God, not only as the God of mercy, but as the God of our mercy, the author of all good in us and the giver of all good to us. Whatever mercy there is in God, it is laid up for us, and is ready to be laid out upon us. Justly does the psalmist call God's mercy his mercy, for all the blessings of the new covenant are called the sure mercies of David (Isa_55:3); and they are sure to all the seed. 
2. That he will be to his persecutors a God of vengeance. His expectation of this he expresses partly by way of prediction and partly by way of petition, which come all to one; for his prayer that it might be so amounts to a prophecy that it shall be so. Here are several things which he foretells concerning his enemies, or observers, that sought occasions against him and opportunity to do him a mischief, in all which he should see his desire, not a passionate or revengeful desire, but a believing desire upon them, Psa_59:10. 
   (1.) He foresees that God would expose them to scorn, as they had indeed made themselves ridiculous, Psa_59:8. “They think God does not hear them, does not heed them; but thou, O Lord! shalt laugh at them for their folly, to think that he who planted the ear shall not hear, and thou shalt have not them only, but all such other heathenish people that live without God in the world, in derision.” Note, Atheists and persecutors are worthy to be laughed at and had in derision. See Psa_2:4; Pro_1:26; Isa_37:22. 
   (2.) That God would make them standing monuments of his justice (Psa_59:11): Slay them not; let them not be killed outright, lest my people forget. If the execution be soon done, the impressions of it will not be keep, and therefore will not be durable, but will quickly wear off. Swift destruction startle men for the present, but they are soon forgotten, for which reason he prays that this might be gradual: “Scatter them by thy power, and let them carry about with them, in their wanderings, such tokens of God's displeasure as may spread the notice of their punishment to all parts of the country.” Thus Cain himself, though a murderer, was not slain, lest the vengeance should be forgotten, but was sentenced to be a fugitive and a vagabond. Note, When we think God's judgments come slowly upon sinners we must conclude that God has wise and holy ends in the gradual proceedings of his wrath. 
“So scatter them as that they may never again unite to do mischief, bring them down, O Lord, our shield!” If God has undertaken the protection of his people as their shield, he will doubtless humble and abase all those that fight against them. 
   (3.) That they might be dealt with according to their deserts (Psa_59:12): For the sin of their mouth, even for the words of their lips (for every word they speak has sin in it), let them for this be taken in their pride, even for their cursing others and themselves (a sin Saul was subject to,)(1Sa_14:28, 1Sa_14:44), and lying. Note, There is a great deal of malignity in tongue-sins, more than is commonly thought of. Note, further, Cursing, and lying, and speaking proudly, are some of the worst of the sins of the tongue; and that man is truly miserable whom God deals with according to the deserts of these, making his own tongue to fall on him. 
   (4.) That God would glorify Himself, as Israel's God and King, in their destruction (Psa_59:13): “Consume them in wrath, consume them; that is, follow them with one judgment after another, till they be utterly ruined; let them be sensibly, but gradually wasted, that they themselves, while they are in the consuming, may know, and that the standers-by may likewise draw this inference form it, That God rules in Jacob unto the ends of the earth.” Saul and his party think to rule and carry all before them, but they shall be made to know that there is a higher than they, that there is one who does and will overrule them. The design of God's judgments is to convince men that the Lord reigns, that he fulfills his own counsels, gives law to all the creatures, and disposes all things to his own glory, so that the greatest of men are under his check, and he makes what use he pleases of them. He rules in Jacob; for there he keeps his court; there it is known, and his name is great. But he rules to the end of the earth; for all nations are within the territories of his kingdom. He rules to the ends of the earth, even over those that know him not, but he rules for Jacob (so it may be read); he has an eye to the good of his church in the government of the world; the administrations of that government, even to the ends of the earth, are for Jacob his servant's sake and for Israel's his elect, Isa_45:4. 
   (5.) That he would make their sin their punishment, Psa_59:14, compare Psa_59:6. Their sin was their hunting for David to make a prey of him; their punishment should be that they should be reduced to such extreme poverty that they should hunt about for meat to satisfy their hunger, and should miss of it as they missed of David. Thus they should be, not cut off at once, but scattered (Psa_59:11), and gradually consumed (Psa_59:13); those that die by famine die by inches, and feel themselves die, Lam_4:9. He foretells that they should be forced to beg their bread from door to door. 
       [1.] That they should do it with the greatest regret and reluctance imaginable. To beg they are ashamed (which makes it the greater punishment to them), and therefore they do it at evening, when it begins to be dark, that they may not be seen, at the time when other beasts of prey creep forth, Psa_104:20. 
       [2.] That yet they should be very clamorous and loud in their complaints, which would proceed from a great indignation at their condition, which they cannot in the least degree reconcile themselves to: They shall make a noise like a dog. When they were in quest of David they made a noise like an angry dog snarling and barking; now, when they are in quest of meat, they shall make a noise like a hungry dog howling and wailing. Those that repent of their sins mourn, when in trouble, like doves; those whose hearts are hardened make a noise, when in trouble, like dogs, like a wild bull in a net, full of the fury of the Lord. See Hos_7:14, They have not cried unto me with their heart when they howled on their beds for corn and wine. 
       [3.] That they should meet with little relief, but the hearts of people should be very much hardened towards them, so that they should go round about the city, and wander up and down for meat (Psa_59:15), and should get nothing but by dint of importunity (according to our marginal reading, If they be not satisfied, they will tarry all night), so that what people do give them is not with good-will, but only to get rid of them, lest by their continual coming they weary them. 
       [4.] That they should be insatiable, which is the greatest misery of all in a poor condition. They are greedy dogs which can never have enough (Isa_56:11), and they grudge if they be not satisfied. A contented man, if he has not what he would have, yet does not grudge, does not quarrel with Providence, nor fret within himself; but those whose God is their belly, if that be not filled and its appetites gratified, fall out both with God and themselves. It is not poverty, but discontent, that makes a man unhappy.
II. He expects to praise God, that God's providence would find him matter for praise and that God's grace would work in him a heart for praise, Psa_59:16, Psa_59:17. 
Observe,
1. What he would praise God for. 
   (1.) He would praise his power and his mercy; both should be the subject-matter of his song. Power, without mercy, is to be dreaded; mercy, without power, is not what a man can expect much benefit from; but God's power by which he is able to help us, and his mercy by which he is inclined to help us, will justly be the everlasting praise of all the saints. 
   (2.) He would praise him because he had, many a time, and all along, found him his defense and his refuge in the day of trouble. God brings his people into trouble, that they may experience his power and mercy in protecting and sheltering them, and may have occasion to praise him. 
   (3.) He would praise him because he had still a dependence upon him and a confidence in him, as his strength to support him and carry him on in his duty, his defense to keep him safe from evil, and the God of his mercy to make him happy and easy. He that is all this to us is certainly worthy of our best affections, praises, and services.
2. How he would praise God. 
   (1.) He would sing. As that is a natural expression of joy, so it is an instituted ordinance for the exerting and exciting of holy joy and thankfulness. 
   (2.) He would sing aloud, as one much affected with the glory of God, that was not ashamed to own it, and that desired to affect others with it. He will sing of God's power, but he will sing aloud of his mercy; the consideration of that raises his affections more than any thing else. 
   (3.) He would sing aloud in the morning, when his spirits were most fresh and lively. God's compassion's are new every morning, and therefore it is fit to begin the day with his praises.    (4.) He would sing unto God (Psa_59:17), to his honour and glory, and with him in his eye. As we must direct our prayers to God, so to him we must direct our praises, and must look up, making melody to the Lord.