4. Lord. If my swelling heart must speak, Lord, let it speak with thee; even if
there be too much of natural heat in what I say, thou wilt be more patient with
me than man, and upon thy purity it can cast no stain; whereas if I speak to my
fellows, they may harshly rebuke me or else learn evil from my petulance. Make me to know my end. Did he mean the same as Elijah in his agony, “Let me die; I am no better than my fathers”? Perhaps so. At any rate, he rashly and petulantly desired to know the
end of his wretched life, that he might begin to reckon the days till death put
an end to his woe. Yet, there is a better meaning: the psalmist would know more
of the shortness of life, that he might better bear its transient ills, and
herein we may safely kneel with him, uttering the same petition. That there is
no end to its misery is the hell of hell; that there is an end to life’s sorrow
is the hope of all who have a hope beyond the grave. And the measure of my days. David wants to be assured that his days will be soon over and his
trials with them; he wants to be taught anew that life is measured out to us by
wisdom, and is not a matter of chance. That I may know how frail I am,
or when I shall cease to be. Man quarrels with God at such a rate that he would
sooner cease to be than bear the Lord’s appointment. David’s case is not
recorded for our imitation, but for our learning.
PREVIOUS
NEXT
No comments:
Post a Comment