Psalms 119:153-160

RESH.

The same cries of soul are continued through this portion as in the former; and we may, without any forced construction of the words, consider what is here said as peculiarly applicable to the meek and suffering Jesus. Indeed, without respect to Him, the language would lose all its energy; for in relation to all the church of Christ, and all his people, we may well take up the language of the prophet, and say, Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins? Lamentations 3:39. But when we see Christ acting in all he did and suffered for us, and in our stead; when we recollect that though Jesus thus cried, and thus suffered, in himself, he had done no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth; who but must take interest in these cries of the Son of God, when for us, and not for himself, those sufferings and cries were all induced! I detain the Reader to make one remark on a passage in this portion, which indeed we have met with several times before: but one observation may serve for all, I mean the cry put up for the Lord's quickening Spirit. No less than nine times in the several portions of this Psalm, do we find this cry of the soul; Quicken me, O Lord, according to thy loving-kindness. Blessed Spirit! I would say, do thou mercifully quicken those souls of ours, which cleave to the dust. Penetrate them, - Lord; enlighten them; soften, revive, and bring them forth from all their languishing circumstances: thou knowest that none can quicken, none can give life, none can keep alive, none can restore his own soul. Raise up then, thou almighty Lord! raise up our souls, that by thy grace and power, we may ascend in heavenly affections and de sires after Jesus, that our lives being hid with Christ in God, when Christ who is our life shall appear, we may appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:3.