1. O God, thou art my God. Or, “O God, thou art my Mighty One.” The
last psalm left the echo of power ringing in the ear, and it is here
remembered. The poet has no doubts about his possession of his God; and why
should other believers have any? The straightforward, clear language of this
opening sentence would be far more becoming in Christians than the timorous and
doubtful expressions so usual. Early will I seek thee. Possession breeds
desire. Full assurance is no hindrance to diligence, but is the mainspring of
it. He is up at cockcrowing to meet his God. Communion with God is so sweet
that the chill of the morning is forgotten, and the luxury of the couch is
despised. The psalmist consecrates the morning to prayer and devout fellowship.
The best people have been early on their knees. The word early has not
only the sense of early in the morning, but that of eagerness, immediateness.
Anyone who truly longs for God longs for him now. Holy desires are among the
most powerful influences that stir our inner nature; hence the next sentence, My soul thirsteth for thee. Thirst is an insatiable longing after that which
is one of the most essential supports of life; there is no overcoming it by
stoical indifference. Thirst will be heard; the whole man must yield to its
power; so it is with that divine desire which the grace of God creates in
regenerate people; only God himself can satisfy the craving of a soul really
aroused by the Holy Spirit. My flesh longeth for thee. By the two words soul
and flesh he denotes the whole of his being. “The flesh,” in the New Testament
sense of it, never longs after the Lord, but rather it lusts against the
spirit; David only refers to that sympathy which is sometimes created in our
bodily frame by vehement emotions of the soul. Our corporeal nature usually
tugs in the other direction, but the spirit when ardent can compel it to throw
in what power it has upon the other side. When the wilderness caused David
weariness, discomfort, and thirst, his flesh cried out in unison with the
desire of his soul. In a dry and thirsty land, where no water is. A
weary place and a weary heart make the presence of God the more desirable. How
frequently have believers traversed in their experience this dry and thirsty land where spiritual joys are things forgotten! And how truly can they
testify that the only true necessity of that country is the near presence of
their God! The absence of outward comforts can be borne with serenity when we
walk with God; and the most lavish multiplication of them avails not when he
withdraws.
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