Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1896 edition. Excerpt: ... Thirty-first Day. $aue mercg upon me, (c) ffioo. 'Then shalt Thou delight in the sacrifices of righteousness, in burnt-offering and whole burnt-offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine altar.'--Ver. 19. WHEN God in His good pleasure shall do good to Zion, and shall build the walls of Jerusalem, a glorious time will dawn for the city and the people of God. Then, says David, shalt Thou delight in the sacrifices which shall be brought to Thee, and then shall the people also have delight and offer them with gladness upon Thine altar. In a preceding verse he had said: 'Thou delightest not in sacrifice.' In that utterance we found a proof of the deep spiritual insight that David had obtained into the insufficiency of the old covenant sacrifices. God could not take delight in these offerings as such, that is, as the work of man, coupled with so much unrighteousness that they could not take away, and with so much self-righteousness that found its nourishment in them. He had prepared for Himself something higher and better, namely, true obedience and the all-sufficient sacrifice of His Son (Ps. xl. 7, 8; Heb. x. 5--10). But, lo! David now understands by the self-same Spirit that had made known to him the hidden wisdom of the previous portion of this Psalm, that, when once Zion should again be visited by God, and the good pleasure of God towards her be made manifest, He should again take delight in the sacrifices of righteousness. Very important lessons are taught us here. We see, first of all, how the worth of our religion depends wholly on our relation to God. The very same Psalm which says: 'Thou delightest not in sacrifice, ' says again at a later turn: 'Then shalt Thou delight in the sacrifices of righteousness.' In the interval