No More Learning

The contrast is summed up in verses 12 and 20.
(Verse 12. ) "Man in honour" (i. e. with rank and
power) "abideth not: he is like the beasts that
perish. "
(Verse 20. ) "Man in honour that understandeth
not, is like the beasts that perish. "
In these graphic words the Psalmist points out
PSALM L.
a Ipsalm ot asapb.
The mighty God, even the Lord, hath spoken,
and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto
the going down thereof. 2 Out of Zion, the perfec-
tion of beauty, God hath shined. 3 Our God shall
come and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour
before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round
about Him. 4 He shall call to the heavens from
above, and to the earth, that He may judge His
people. 5 Gather My saints together unto Me;
those that have made a covenant with Me by
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
that it is not mere power or possessions that more on
differentiates mankind from "the beasts that XL1X.
perish," but it is the use we make of the God-given
power of knowledge and understanding.
This Psalm calls to mind Scott's expression of a
similar thought.
"High though his title, proud his name,
Boundless his wealth as wish can claim,
Despite those titles, power and pelf,
The wretch concentred all on self.
Living shall forfeit fair renown,
And doubly dying shall go down
To the vile earth from whence he sprung,
Unwept, unhonoured and unsung. "
The sonorous overture and vivid word-pictures of
this Psalm compared with the terse English verses are
a good illustration of the characteristic difference be-
tween Eastern and Western minstrelsy.
L. 3
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
t>& L. sacrifice. 6 And the heavens shall declare His
righteousness: for God is judge Himself. Selah.
7 " Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel,
and I will testify against thee; I am God, even thy
God. 8 I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices or
thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before
Me. g I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor
he-goats out of thy folds, io For every beast of the
forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
ii I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the
wild beasts of the field are Mine. 12 If I were
hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is Mine,
and the fulness thereof. 13 Will I eat the flesh of
bulls, or drink the blood of goats? 14 Offer unto
God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most
High: 15 And call upon Me in the day of trouble:
I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me. " 16
But unto the wicked God saith, "What hast thou to
do to declare My statutes, or that thou shouldest
take My covenant in thy mouth? 17 Seeing thou
hatest instruction, and castest My words behind
thee. 18 When thou sawest a thief, then thou
consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with
adulterers. 19 Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and
thy tongue frameth deceit. 20 Thou sittest and
speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine
own mother's son. 21 These things hast thou done,
and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was
altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove
thee, and set them in order before thine eyes. 22
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
tie. L. Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear
you in pieces, and there be none to deliver. 23
Whoso offereth praise glorifieth Me: and to him
that ordereth his way aright will I shew the salvation
of God. "
mote on This Psalm is a poem on the meaning and use of
(C)B. L. prayer. The first six verses describing the grandeur
of God, the great and perfectly just Judge of all the
earth, leads up to the main thought,--how can we
make our prayers acceptable to God?
The poet seems to hear God himself uttering the
answer. Neither burnt-offering nor sacrifices of
beasts (verses 9 to 15), nor reciting the Divine
statutes, nor declaring the holy covenant (verse 16)
are the essentials of the worship of God; but a
constant effort to live and act with the thought of
PSALM LI.
A Penitential Prayer.
Co tbe Gbief rtfcusictan. H psalm ot 2>avio wben
IWatban tbe propbet rebufteo btm about JSatbsbeba.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy
lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of
Thy tender mercies blot out my trangressions.
2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and
cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my
trangressions: and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and done
this evil in Thy sight: that Thou mightest be
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOtf
y#*a tilmt rrt am *arrai* rnin mi 23(C)s. l.
the goodness of God in our minds, a constant effort mote on
to be good and to do good, to shun evil companions, H>8. L.
and to refrain from evil deeds, and to exercise self-
control against the evil impulses of anger, hatred,
and revenge, and to avoid being led away to do what
we know to be wrong;--that is the way in which we
must (in the words of the Psalmist) "pay our vows
to the most High "--We must make our offering of
"praise " by humbly striving at all times to "order
our way " of life (our thoughts and our acts) in the
image of Divine goodness.
*BBto-*a 3 : wild T>>Nfcnai *pD3a nam2
LI. w
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
pB. LI. justified when Thou speakest, and be clear when
Thou judgest. 5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity;
and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold,
Thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the
hidden part Thou shalt make me to know wisdom.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash
me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Make me
to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which
Thou hast broken may rejoice. 9 Hide Thy face
from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a
right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from
Thy presence; and take not Thy holy spirit from
me. 12 Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation;
and uphold me with Thy free spirit. 13 Then will I
teach transgressors Thy ways; and sinners shall be
converted unto Thee. 14 Deliver me from blood-
guiltiness, O God, Thou God of my salvation: and
my tongue shall sing aloud of Thy righteousness.
15 O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth
shall shew forth Thy praise. 16 For Thou desirest
not sacrifice; else would I give it: Thou delightest
not in burnt offering. 17 The sacrifices of God are
a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O
God, Thou wilt not despise. 18 Do good in Thy
good pleasure unto Zion: build Thou the walls of
Jerusalem. 19 Then shalt Thou be pleased with the
sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and
whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks
upon Thine altar.
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
Wpni tffei WpSin p$3-jp *
riaan tanaM ninm man ntox-p 6 :npK
ntora nfei nneen ne>e> wawi 8 m^Sn
. *t-; t : ** t ^ : *: I j t ? ? ? ? ; -1 I i * : -
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: t^x D'lrtsrn Trn D*stfa ma'w 13
it I ? t -: I av t; . ? ? : i jt : --:
tann TMtrn vita D\ita 1 dwa ^sn 14
a- t i: i" v: ? vi: ? t-
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; ? " ^tftt: * -- a ? v; j" I * |? ? * ;?
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
mote on The 51st Psalm, like the 130th, shows the comfort
ps. Ll. and hglp o? prayer t0 usj when we know we have
sinned.
The beautiful prayer of verses 1 and 2 brings
courage to our hearts to make, like David, a whole-
hearted acknowledgment of our wrong-doing to
God, to throw ourselves on His mercy, and, whatever
happens, to feel submissive to His will (verse 4).
God has given us the knowledge of right and wrong;
when we do what we know to be wrong, we are dis-
honouring God's gift to us. David perceives this, and
recognizes the justice of God's displeasure, and of
any punishment that may befall sinners.
When we know we have done wrong, it is hard to
gather courage to try to win back our own self-
respect. We feel as if a barrier were between God
and ourselves till we learn the meaning and the help
of David's prayer (verse 11): "Cast me not away
from Thy presence, and take not Thy holy spirit
from me. "
If we try--at every moment of our lives--to
remember that His holy spirit is within us, and try
to live in His presence, the lofty ideal of Divine
goodness shines like a beacon before us, ever showing
PSALM LVI.
Co tbe Cbief dBusician. S poem ot Davio wben tbe
p bilis tines toon bim in <3atb.
Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would
swallow me up; all the day long he fighting oppres-
seth me. 2 Mine enemies would swallow me up all
the day long: for they be many that fight against
me, O Thou most High. 3 What time I am afraid,
I will trust in Thee.
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
us the right path, and ever beckoning us to return J^0^
to it when we have gone astray.
Then we feel (R)s'
that God in His Infinite mercy gives us the hope
of His forgiveness and of His help to strengthen us
against temptation, if only we humbly acknowledge
our wrong-doing, and feel truly sorrow for it. "The
sacrifices of the Lord are a broken spirit: a broken
and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise. "
The last two verses of the Psalm reflect King
David's ardent wish that the Israelites should be
worthy of their great mission. He prayed for
them that they might seek to mirror the good-
ness of God in their own souls, and avoid the
error of thinking that the observance of the
ordinances of sacrifices and burnt-offerings was an
all-sufficient manner of worshipping God. The
poetic form of the prayer makes it all the more
beautiful. "Build Thou the walls of Jerusalem"
(i. e. the bulwarks of faith and uprightness in those
who dwell there). "Then wilt Thou be pleased with
the sacrifices of righteousness" The burnt-offerings
and offerings of bullocks could only be pleasing to
God if they were truly symbolical of that higher
offering of the sacrifices of righteousness.
LVI. 12
Drab irh mtxb
at :: j't: - : i~
: Diio b tnsh d*3T'a titej-Sa wst? 2
,t j- ? -:| ? - T ia- t -:T "'ft
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
ps. LVI. 4 In God I will praise His word, in God I have put
my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
5 All the day long they wrest my words: all their
thoughts are against me for evil. 6 They gather
themselves together, they hide themselves, they
mark my steps, when they wait for my soul.
7 Shall they escape by iniquity? in Thine anger
cast down the people, O God. 8 Thou tellest my
wanderings: put Thou my tears into Thy bottle: are
they not in Thy book? 9 When I cry unto Thee,
then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for
God is for me.
10 In God will I praise His word; in the Lord
will I praise His word. 11 In God have I put
my trust: I will not be afraid; what can man do
unto me? 12 Thy vows are upon me, O God: I
will render praises unto Thee. 13 For Thou hast
delivered my soul from death: wilt not Thou deliver
my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in
the light of the living?
PSALM LVII.
Co tbe Cbief d&usfcian. B poem of Davio, wben be
fieo from Saul in tbe Cave.
Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto
me: for my soul trusteth in Thee: yea, in the
shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge, until
these calamities be overpast. 2 I will cry unto God
most high; unto God that performeth all things for
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
hh>nx brbaz 4 :ntttx frhn xiw dv 3 ps. Lvi.
v. . --. , it : v I jv" T_: at * ^
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: mS Dnh^no-^a *Sy awp mn tf >>p-ba 5
itt jt ;:- t 1- t a" -: j-t: i- t
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i ? v: 5* - I -: at v - |v/p -
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pav : j* t: ? t->>* t't t ;v-t
xipN Dva iinx 1 fx 9 jimsDin
at|: v ti j--; 1 *t t I iv t: ? :
t t j" --: ? i"i 1* '* l' ? : -t iv
at ? j ? ;- tl j* I? ' att j"--; t _
chm spna D^riSx ,l? y 12 dix nfeajjiD
r- - I av t: v; - ti [? jtt Jv
xSn rheo *b>B3 nSsn *a 13 faj? nhin
-- :- j -; v t ? ? :- t : <- ? Iit j
:D<<nn nix? D^nSx *jfif? ^n^n1?
lvii. t:
dddd mS nxjaS
. *? t : ? ? t: -? ? - : r
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? hvn T'sb n*Dn 12 *a *5an 1 D^riSx *mpi
j* i" t|:*. u i. - j - pvvt1v I vt;
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
pa. LVII. me. 3 He shall send from heaven, and save me
from the reproach of him that would swallow me
up. Selah. God shall send forth His mercy and
His truth.
4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among
them that are set on fire, even the sons of men,
whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue
a sharp sword. 5 Be thou exalted, O God, above
the heavens; let Thy glory be above all the earth.
6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my
soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit
before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen
themselves. Selah. 7 My heart is fixed, O God,
my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.
8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp:
I myself will awake early. 9 I will praise Thee, O
Lord, among the people: I will sing unto Thee
among the nations. 10 For Thy mercy is great
unto the heavens, and Thy truth unto the clouds.
II Be Thou exalted, O God, above the heavens:
let Thy glory be above all the earth.
? Mote on These two Psalms, both beginning with the same
IP8- prayer, form one poem, the outpouring of David's
p8. LVII. heart to God when he was in great trouble, struggling
against the unfounded jealousy and unjust enmity of
King Saul. In this dark time of trial and danger,
David's unfailing trust in God arms him with courage,
and inspires him with a lofty standard of conduct,
reflected in the refrain of the first part of the poem
(verses 4, 10, and 11, Ps. lvi. ). Verse 12 shows
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
*wvt I dw rheha noi bxH n^y p>>. lvii.
, . . . . . - t . ^- . ? Itt /" "t | a : V
nan dv^n nW* rta *bn& tnr\
i; it at ? j"t; jt >>* Is Pvt -t;* m XrW
n*vyM itort ^sn rryto nb? mw<< :nni3rxi
t t ? ; V" t ;t s ti ? ? --:i*
: Tpn? pNn-1? ! bv wrbx DW'-Sy nan"
David's sense of his own responsibility to God for TOote on
his conduct--a sense which harmonizes with com- ^gnj|VI'
plete faith in God. For if we try always to do what p8, LVII.
is right and kind, we feel, with perfect faith, that
whatever may befall us, God in His Infinite mercy
will not be unmindful of our efforts to obey His law
at all times. David prays not for mere bodily
safety, but for a serene mind and a clear conscience.
"For Thou hast delivered my soul from death; wilt
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
mote on not Thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may
pB. LVI. walk before God in the light of the living? "
Ps. LVII. The ahusion to tear bottles and to the book (or
record) of God (Ps. lvi. 8) is a quaint piece of
imagery, conveying the thought that the measure of
our sorrows and sufferings is balanced against our
sins and shortcomings in the judgment of God.
Imagery is sometimes apt to be taken literally, and
there is reason to believe that a custom actually
grew up of storing tears in a bottle,1 as tangible
evidence of suffering, to serve as a plea for Divine
grace.
1 The "bottles" of those days were skins of the bodies of
animals tied into a convenient shape. In Eastern countries
one still sees men carrying water in goatskins, and pouring it
out by the improvised tap of one leg.
PSALM LX.
Co tbe Gbfef Ausician. H ipoem of 2>avio wben be
strove wttb :aram=mabaraim an& witb 2Uam=Zobab,
wben 5oab returnee ana smote of Boom in tbe
Dalleg of Salt twelve tbousano. *
O God, Thou hast cast us off, Thou hast scattered
us, Thou hast been displeased; O turn Thyself to us
again. 2 Thou hast made the earth to tremble;
Thou hast broken it: heal the breaches thereof; for
it shaketh. 3 Thou hast shewed Thy people hard
things: Thou hast made us to drink the wine of
astonishment. 4 Thou hast given a banner to them
that fear Thee, to lift up before the bow. Selah.
* These victories are recorded in the Second Book of Samuel,
ch. 8, and the First Book of Chronicles, ch. 18.
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? THE CHILDREN'S PSALM-BOOK
In the second part of the poem (Ps. ivii. ), David Hote on
reiterates his loving trustfulness in God. "In the ^f'nj|Vi-
shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge, till pg, LVII.
these calamities be overpast. "
While David was in this exalted frame of mind,
two terrible temptations came to him. Twice he
lighted upon his unrelenting enemy, King Saul,
asleep and defenceless. Each time, with chivalrous
loyalty, David let him go without so much as
touching a hair of his head, saying:--" He (God) shall
send from heaven and save me from the reproach of
him (Saul) that would swallow me up. "
The temptations that assailed him are the theme
of verses 4 and 6 of Ps. Ivii. The fervent
prayers of verses 2 and 5 gave him strength to
resist them. The last five verses are a song of
thanksgiving for God's help in the moral victory.
aaieto nsjx wnns unrur vrkx
it /** 4; t ; ~t kt 1 --; jt;; ? vj>
LX D
75
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