were given up to be destroyed to them against whom they had prepared them; and this was the doing of God, not of man, the act of the justice of the Almighty, not of mortal power. Much more marvellous will be His doings in that time which He has reserved, when He shall establish His Church in perfect peace, when the enemies of righteousness shall be utterly taken away, and there shall be no more strife and no more war for ever. 10. Be still then, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, and I will be exalted in the earth. 11. The Lord of hosts is with us: the God of Jacob is our refuge. As for God's people, 'their strength is to sit still.' Rabshakeh, the ambassador of the king of Assyria, had scorned at the thought that God would deliver His people; and in faith Hezekiah had prayed to the Lord his God to be saved,—' that all the kingdoms of the earth might know that He was the Lord, even He only.' And thus was he answered, and thus were the Assyrians answered: 'Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it? Now have I brought it to pass that thou shouldest be,' to do My bidding. And so in all danger and in all distress, He Who is the Lord of nature is also the Lord of man. He Who arose and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still; and the wind ceased and there was a great calm,' can order the nations of the world at His Almighty will, and will make them fall down before Him, and own Him for their Lord, when He has determined that it shall be so in the counsels of His providence and His grace. In the meanwhile He is with His Church always, even to the end. His name is 'Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.' And His elect, however weak in themselves, are strong in Him; and the less they seek in selfishness to provide for their own safety, the surer refuge shall they find in His love and protecting grace. This Psalm is "to the chief Musician, by the Sons of Korah, a song of joy for the Virgins ;" but the LXX. translate this last word 66 'upon mysteries." It was therefore composed to be sung either in the service of the temple, or in a thanksgiving procession, by a choir of the maidens of Jerusalem. The internal evidence of the Psalm itself leads to the conclusion that it was written after the deliverance of Jerusalem from the invasion of Sennacherib and the Assyrians in the reign of Hezekiah, and was an expression of thanksgiving. (Isa. xxxvi., xxxvii.) If it were the case that it was chanted in public by a choir of virgins, it would fulfil to the letter Isaiah's saying, "The virgin the daughter of Sion hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn; The daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee." (Isa. A comparison of verses 2, 3, 4, with Isa. viii. 6, 7, 8, will confirm the impression that it was written while Isaiah's prophecies were familiar to the people; the mention of the river of water gladdening the city would be natural, when the supply of water which had been stopped, was again restored. (2 Chron. xxxii. 3, 4.) The address of Hezekiah to the people is in the very same spirit of confidence which fills the Psalm, (Ibid. 7, 8); and the peace and repose which it celebrates in verses 7, 8, 9, is that which the miraculous destruction of his enemies brought to Hezekiah. (Ibid. xxii. 23.) The describing the invasion of the Assyrians as a mighty and tempestuous flood roaring outside the walls of Jerusalem, while the city was in safety, is in accordance with the general tone of Eastern poetry. Evening Prayer. FOR ASCENSION-DAY. PSALM xlvii. Omnes gentes, plaudite. 1. O CLAP your hands together, all ye people: O sing unto God with the voice of melody. 2. For the Lord is high, and to be feared: He is the great King upon all the earth. The coming of Christ's kingdom in its fulness is a sight of most deep and perfect joy. All peoples can rejoice in it, because He has subdued all peoples to Himself. His victories are not victories which make the conquered slaves, but victories which make the conquered free. Therefore must we 'lift up holy hands' with our hearts and voices in celebrating the triumphs of our ascended Lord. We must shew forth His praise not only with our lips, but in our lives.' He Who was once humble and of no reputation is now exalted. He Who once was mocked is become most terrible in glory. Earthly powers no longer bear rule over us, whom He has set at liberty from earth but He is become the Lord of our hands, and lips, and souls, Who is the only Potentate and the only King. : 3. He shall subdue the people under us : and the nations under our feet. 4. He shall choose out an heritage for us: even the worship of Jacob, whom He loved. In His victory shall the Church have victory, for all her victories are but the fillings up of His one victory. It is His grace that shall bring the world under the influence and the guidance of the Church. He shall bring the nations from far to sit at the feet of His ministers and pastors. They win their way not by the weapons of the world, but by His word, which is mightier than all man's deed. By calling on His name Who once was crucified, but now is exalted, the evil one is put to silence, and the powers of death are driven back. He hath chosen an heritage for us, and He hath chosen us for His heritage, even as He chose Jacob, and that which was excellent in Jacob, for Himself, at His own loving will. : 5. God is gone up with a merry noise and the Lord with the sound of the trump. He Who from eternity hath filled both earth and heaven, yet in His own appointed time ascended from earth to heaven. He went up from the Mount of Olives, even as Enoch and Elijah had gone up before; yet not borne up, as they were, by the aid of angels, but by His own almighty power. He broke the bands of earth as a spider's web, He triumphed over the powers of the air; and entered, amid the adoring mirth of angels and the wondering joy of men, into His own exceeding glory. And the pro-. clamation of the heavenly messenger, 'Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven,' waxes, ever as the years roll on, 'louder and louder,' like the trumpet-blast on Sinai, until the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised' at the Advent summons. 6. O sing praises, sing praises unto our God O sing praises, sing praises unto our King. : 7. For God is the King of all the earth : sing ye praises with understanding. The true worship of God is praise. Prayer is for our need; praise is for His glory. He Who was God before all ages is now King over us; therefore we praise God Who created us, and we praise God Who redeemed us. We must honour the Son even as we honour the Father; we must honour Him Who became a servant, even as we honour Him as a King. 'He is our praise, and He is our God.' Yea, all our hymns of praise must be sung before Him with the understanding as well as with the spirit, knowing Him and confessing Him, no less than praising Him, Who was God before the flesh, and yet for our sake became God with the flesh and in the flesh. : 8. God reigneth over the heathen God sitteth upon His holy seat. 9. The princes of the people are joined unto the people of the God of Abraham : for God, Which is very high exalted, doth defend the earth as it were with a shield. God has ever been reigning over the world; but |