Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Psalms 89:19

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Psalms 89:19. Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one — Instead of חסידך chasidecha, "thy holy one," חסידיך chasideycha, "thy holy ones," is the reading of sixty-three of Kennicott's and seventy-one of De Rossi's MSS., and a great number of editions besides.

If we take it in the singular, it most probably means Samuel, and refers to the revelation God gave to him relative to his appointment of David to be king in the stead of Saul. If we take it in the plural, it may mean not only Samuel, but also Nathan and Gad.

For what God revealed to Samuel relative to David, see 2 Samuel 7:5, c. 1 Chronicles 11:2-3; and for what he said to Nathan on the same subject, see 1 Chronicles 17:3; 1 Chronicles 17:7-15. All the Versions have the word in the plural.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Psalms 89:0 Remember the covenant with David

Apparently Israel had suffered some military setback that threatened its existence. This caused some people to think that God had forsaken his anointed king. The psalmist therefore recalls the covenant promise God made to David to preserve his dynasty for ever, and on the basis of this he claims God’s help (1-4; see 2 Samuel 7:8-16).

Before speaking further of the covenant, the psalmist praises God for his majesty and greatness. None among the multitudes of glorious heavenly beings can compare with him (5-7). On the earth also he is all-powerful, crushing his foes, working wonders and administering justice (8-14). This one is the God of the people of Israel. He is their glory, joy and strength, the one who gave them their king (15-18).
Assured of God’s perfection and sovereignty, the psalmist turns to consider the covenant that God made with Israel. He outlines how God chose David to be his anointed king (19-20), gave him victory over all his enemies (21-23), enlarged his kingdom beyond the borders of Israel (24-25) and gave him power and glory (26-27). Above all, God made a covenant with David to establish his dynasty permanently (28-29). Even if some kings proved unworthy, God promised that he would not alter his plans. He had chosen the dynasty of David as the means of bringing the Messiah (30-37).
It seems now, however, that their great and powerful God has left them. Their covenant Lord appears to have forgotten his promises (38-39). The kingdom has been ruined, the city destroyed, the land plundered (40-41). Enemies are allowed to conquer as they please. The Davidic king has lost his throne and been openly disgraced (42-45). Why, then, does God not act? Certainly, some must die, but is he going to allow these enemies to conquer and kill until the king and his people are eventually wiped out (46-48)? The psalmist prays that God will remember his covenant promise to David, save his people from their present shame, and give them freedom under the rule of their Davidic king again (49-52).

BOOK 4: PSALMS 90-106

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

REGARDING DAVID

“Then thou spakest in vision to thy saints, And saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant; With my holy oil have I anointed him: With whom my hand shall be established; Mine arm also shall strengthen him. The enemy shall not exact from him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him. And I will beat down his adversaries before him, And smite them that hate him. But my faithfulness and my lovingkindness shall be with him; And in my name shall his horn be exalted I will set his hand also on the sea, And his right hand on the rivers. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation. I also will make him my first-born, And the highest of the kings of the earth. My lovingkindness will I keep for him forevermore; And my covenant shall stand fast with him.”

“I have laid help upon one that is mighty” This rather strange expression is rendered as follows in the RSV. “I have set the crown upon one who is mighty.”

“I will set his hand also on the sea, and his right hand on the rivers” This is probably a reference to the ideal boundaries of the Davidic kingdom, i.e., from the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates. “Rivers” here is either an honorific plural for the Euphrates, or perhaps, a reference “to the land between the rivers,” namely, Mesopotamia.

“I will make him my first-born, the highest of the kings of the earth” The Spirit of God here passes from what was written of the literal king David to that which is true of no other who ever lived, except the Son of God, that Greater David, called “The Son of David” (Matthew 1:1).

Christ is the “first-born of all creation, the first-born from the dead,” the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, indeed the “highest of the kings of the earth.”

“Such ideals were only partially fulfilled in David and his earthly successors; it is the Christ who perfectly fulfills them all in his spiritual kingdom.”C. M. Miller, co-author with Anthony L. Ash, p. 310. But, of course, Israel never had the slightest understanding of the true meaning of all this.

CONCERNING THE DYNASTY

“In this section (Psalms 89:28-37), the psalmist extended the application of 2 Samuel 7 to David’s line of successors. The words here are principally a poetical paraphrase of 2 Samuel 7:14.”Alexander Maclaren, Vol. II, p. 497.

The application of the prophecy in 2 Samuel 7 was elaborated in these verses.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

Then thou spakest in vision - Or, by a vision. See this word explained in the notes at Isaiah 1:1. The meaning is, that God had spoken this by means of visions, or by communications made to his people by the prophets. This “vision” was especially made known to Nathan, and through him to David. See 2 Samuel 7:4-17. The substance of what is here said is found in that passage in Samuel. In 2 Samuel 7:17, it is expressly called a “vision.”

To thy holy one - The vision was addressed particularly to David, but was made through him to the people of Israel. The ancient versions render this in the plural, as referring to the people of Israel. The Hebrew is in the singular number.

I have laid help upon one that is mighty - I have so endowed him that he shall be the protector and defender of my people. He is qualified for the office entrusted to him, and in his hands the interests of the nation will be safe. This was not expressly said in the vision; but this was the substance of what was said. See 2 Samuel 7:9.

I have exalted one chosen out of the people - One not of exalted rank; one not descended from kings and conquerors; but one that had grown up among the people; one called from the ranks of common life; one chosen from among those engaged in humble occupations. In this way it was the more apparent that the power really came from God. Compare 2 Samuel 7:8; see also the notes at Psalms 78:70-72.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

19.Then thou spakest in vision to thy meek ones. The Psalmist now declares at greater length why he said that the king, set over the chosen people for the preservation of the public good, was given them from heaven; namely, because he was not chosen by the suffrages of men, nor usurped at his own hand the supreme power, nor insinuated himself into it by corrupt arts, but was elected by God to be the instrument of maintaining the public good, and performed the duties of his office under the auspices and conduct of God. The design of the prophet, as we shall shortly see more clearly, is to distinguish this Divinely-appointed king from all other kings. Although what Paul teaches in Romans 13:1, is true, “There is no power but of God;” yet there was a great difference between David and all earthly kings who have acquired sovereign power by worldly means. God had delivered the scepter to his servant David immediately with his own hand, so to speak, and had seated him on the royal throne by his own authority. The particle אז, az, which properly signifies then, is taken also for long since, orin old time. The meaning, therefore, is, that whereas some are born kings, succeeding their fathers by right of inheritance, and some are elevated to the royal dignity by election, while others acquire it for themselves by violence and force of arms, God was the founder of this kingdom, having chosen David to the throne by his own voice. Farther, although he revealed his purpose to Samuel, yet as the plural number is here used, implying, that the same oracle had been delivered to others, we may certainly conclude that it had been communicated to other prophets that they might be able, with one consent, to bear testimony that David was created king by the Divine appointment. And, indeed, as other distinguished and celebrated prophets lived at that time, it is not very probable that a matter of so great importance was concealed from them. But Samuel alone is named in this business, because he was the publisher of the Divine oracle and the minister of the royal anointing. As God in those days spake to his prophets either by dreams or by visions, this last mode of revelation is here mentioned.

There next follows the substance or amount of the Divine oracle, That God had furnished with help the strong or mighty one whom he had chosen to be the supreme head and governor of the kingdom. David is called strong, not because naturally and in himself he excelled in strength, (for, as is well known, he was of small stature, and despised among his brethren, so that even Samuel passed him over with neglects) but because God, after having chosen him, endued him with new strength, and other distinguished qualities suitable for a king; even as in a parallel case, when Christ chose his apostles, he not only honored them with the title, but at the same time bestowed the gifts which were necessary for executing their office. And at the present day he imparts to his ministers the same grace of his Spirit. The strength of David, then, of which mention is here made, was the effect of his election; for God, in creating him king, furnished him at the same time with strength adequate for the preservation of the people. This appears still more distinctly from the second clause, where this invincible strength is traced to its source: I have exalted one chosen from among the people. All the words are emphatic. When God declares that he exalted him, it is to intimate the low and mean condition in which David lived, unknown and obscure, before God stretched out his hand to him. To the same effect is the expression which follows,from among the people. The meaning is, that he was at that time unnoted, and belonged to the lowest class of the people, and gave no indications of superior excellence, being the least esteemed of his father’s children, in whose country cottage he held the humble office of a herdsman. ⁽⁵³⁹⁾ By the word chosen, God calls us back to the consideration of his own free will, as if he forbade us to seek for any other cause of David’s exaltation than his own good pleasure.

(539) “L’ennemi n’aura puissance sur luy.” — Fr. “The enemy shall not have power over him.”

Smith's Bible Commentary

Psalms 89:1-52

I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations ( Psalms 89:1-4 ).

Now in verse Psalms 89:3 , actually, the psalm begins with the psalmist declaring, "I will sing praises to the Lord; sing of His mercies. My mouth will make known His faithfulness." Now God responds to that. And verse Psalms 89:3 is God's response. And God's response goes actually clear on down to verse Psalms 89:37 . So God is speaking now. It's a prophecy as the psalmist now is speaking forth for God. "I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to David my servant." What did He swear to David? "Thy seed will I establish forever, and build up thy throne to all generations."

And the heavens shall praise thy wonders ( Psalms 89:5 ),

And now the psalmist comes back. Selah ends God's voice there. God will begin speaking again down a little ways further. So now the psalmist takes it up again. "And the heavens shall praise Thy wonders,"

O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. For who in heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto Jehovah? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints ( Psalms 89:5-7 ),

Or reverenced, actually, in the assembly of the saints.

and to be had in reverence of all of them that are about him ( Psalms 89:7 ).

I think that we can learn quite a bit from the Jewish people concerning the reverence of God. I think that there is a tendency sometimes within the church circles of really not having the proper reverential attitude towards God. Sometimes we begin to get a little flippant about God. And we talk about the man upstairs and we begin to speak of God in irreverent kind of terms even. And I think that we need to be careful about this. We need to become aware and conscious of the greatness of God, the vastness of God. And to be always really just sort of in awe before Him.

There are some people that just by their very position command respect. Because Ronald Reagan has been elected as the next President of the United States, you wouldn't go up, you know, if you were at the airport and you saw him getting off the plane, you wouldn't go running up and say, "Well, Ronnie, all right man. Glad to see you made it, you know." Because of the position as President of the United States you would treat him with respect. You would have respect for the position that the man now has.

We have... living in a society that seems to try to break down this respect for authority. And it is a common thing among our society now of not really showing proper respect for authority. But that is a whole social breakdown. Not showing respect to police officers. Not showing respect to those that are in authority. It just shows a part of the whole social breakdown that is taking place. But it is tragic, because sometimes people also carry that disrespectful attitude over to God. And we should always, actually, hold God in the very highest of respect and reverence.

Now the Jews had such reverence for God that when the scribes would copy the scriptures, every time they came to the name Eloihim, God, in their text, they would take their pen and they would wash it. And then they would dip it in fresh ink to write the letters for God. If they came to the Adonai, the Lord, then they would take and get a fresh pen to write Adonai in the text. If they came to the consonants that stood for that holy name of God, the Y-H-V-H, they would go in and take a bath, change and put on fresh clothes and get a total fresh pen and dip it in ink and write the consonants. But they wouldn't put in the vowels because they felt that the name of God was so holy that they shouldn't even pronounce it in their minds and it should never be uttered from the lips of a person. They wouldn't dare even utter the name.

Now that I think is carrying it perhaps further than God intended, and yet, it does show a degree of reverence towards God that I think that somewhere in the middle of the pendulum we'll find the truth. They may be a little extreme on the one end of legalism, but I think that we tend towards an extreme on the other end, and that in the middle here we need ourselves to come more to the middle of a greater reverence and respect for God. That we don't just speak lightly of God, but we hold Him in highest esteem and respect. God is greatly to be reverenced in the assembly of the saints and to be had in reverence of all of them that are about Him.

O Jehovah God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee? For you rule the raging of the sea: when the waves arise, you still them. You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; you have scattered your enemies with your strong arm. The heavens are yours, and the earth also is yours: as for the world and the fulness thereof, you have founded them. The north, the south you've created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name. You have a mighty arm: strong is your hand, and high is your right hand. Justice and judgment are your habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance. And in thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. For you are the glory of their strength: and in thy favor our horn shall be exalted. For the LORD is our defense; and the Holy One of Israel is our King ( Psalms 89:8-18 ).

Now God responds to this. The psalmist declares of the greatness of God, declaring why He should be reverenced because of the fact that He rules over the earth, over the heavens, created the earth.

Then you spake in vision to the holy one, and said, I have laid up help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one that is chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him: With whom my hand shall be established: my arm shall also strengthen him. The enemy shall not exact upon him ( Psalms 89:19-22 );

That is, will not collect a tribute. He will not be paying tribute to the enemies. He will not be defeated and have to pay tribute to the enemies.

nor the son of wickedness afflict him. And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him. But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted ( Psalms 89:22-24 ).

The horn is a symbol of strength, and so the name of the Lord will be his strength.

I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the eaRuth ( Psalms 89:25-27 ).

This, no doubt, has a double fulfillment not only in David, but also in that Seed that should come from David that will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords, even a prophecy of Jesus Christ.

My mercy will I keep for him for ever, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor allow my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once I have sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me ( Psalms 89:28-36 ).

Which, of course, goes on to the prophecy of Christ, "Who will sit upon the throne of David to order it and to establish it in righteousness and in judgment from henceforth, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this" ( Isaiah 9:7 ). So God has sworn that Christ will sit upon the throne of David forever and ever.

It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as the faithful witness in heaven ( Psalms 89:37 ).

And the Selah brings us to the end of God's response to the psalmist. Now the psalmist declares:

But you have cast off and abhorred, you have been angry with your anointed. You have made void the covenant of your servant: you have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground. You have broken down all of his hedges; you have brought his strongholds to ruin. All that pass by the way spoil him: he is a reproach to his neighbors. Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries; thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice. Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword, and hast not made him to stand in the battle. You have made his glory to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground. The days of his youth have you shortened: and you've covered him with shame. How long, LORD? will you hide yourself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire? Remember how short my time is: wherefore hast thou made all men in vain? What man is he that lives, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses, which you swore to David in thy truth? Remember, Lord, the reproach of your servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people; Wherewith your enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed ( Psalms 89:38-51 ).

And then the close of the third book of the psalms.

Blessed be Jehovah for evermore. Amen, and Amen ( Psalms 89:52 ).

I have mentioned before that each of the books of the psalms closes with a benediction, with the Amen, and Amen. That brings us to the end of the third book. And Psalms 90:1-17 begins the fourth book of the psalms. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Psalms 89

The writer of this royal psalm was Ethan, another wise Levitical musician in David’s service (1 Kings 4:31; 1 Chronicles 15:17-18). The occasion of writing is unclear. Judging from the content of the psalm it appears to have been a time after David had suffered defeat and some severe affliction.

Ethan interceded for the king, claiming the Davidic Covenant promises (cf. 2 Samuel 7:5-16; 1 Chronicles 17). Why was God afflicting David so severely since He had promised to bless him so greatly? Ethan called on God to honor the Davidic Covenant and send the king relief.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

The psalmist now reminded God that He had chosen David to be His anointed servant king. God’s "godly ones" (Psalms 89:19) were the godly in Israel.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

3. The promises of God 89:19-37

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

Then thou spakest in vision to thy Holy One,.... Samuel the prophet, that holy man of God, to whom the Lord spoke in vision, or by a spirit of prophecy, concerning David, the choice and exaltation of him to the kingdom, and his unction for it, 1 Samuel 16:1. The Vulgate Latin version reads it "to thy Holy Ones": and so the Targum, with which agree the Septuagint and Arabic versions, which render it "thy sons"; and the Syriac version "his righteous ones", and so takes in Nathan also, to whom the Lord spake in a vision, by night, concerning the settlement and perpetuity of the kingdom in David's family, 2 Samuel 7:4, c. Aben Ezra interprets it of the singers, Heman, Ethan, and others and Jarchi of Gad and Nathan: but the whole is rather to be understood of David's son, the Messiah; and it may be rendered "concerning thy Holy One" i as he is called, Psalms 16:10, concerning whom in vision, that is, in prophecy, see Isaiah 1:1. The Lord said, by the mouth of his holy prophets, from the beginning of the world, the following things:

and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; this "mighty" One is the Messiah, the mighty God, the mighty Man, the mighty Mediator and Redeemer; who was mighty to save to the uttermost, and was every way fit for and equal to the work of a Redeemer; for which reason the Lord "laid help" upon him, not for himself; for this is not to be understood of help promised or given him as man and Mediator: this is after spoken of, Psalms 89:21, but for others; and so the Targum adds, "for my people": laying it on him is no other than ordering or enjoining him, to which he agreed, to help his people out of that miserable condition they were fallen into, through Adam's transgression, and their own sins, out of which they could not help themselves: the work assigned to Christ, and devolved on him in council and covenant, was to help them out of this estate by price and power; and to help them on in their way to heaven, through all difficulties, trials, and temptations; and to help them to heaven itself, and introduce them there: and being thus laid upon him, according to his Father's will and purpose, and with his own consent, it was found in him, and exercised by him, Hosea 13:9.

I have exalted one chosen out of the people; the same as before, the Messiah, God's elect, his chosen One, Isaiah 42:1 "chosen" to be the head of the church, to be the Mediator between God and man, and to be the Saviour and Redeemer of lost sinners; to be the foundation and corner stone in the spiritual building, and to be the Judge of quick and dead: and he was "chosen out of the people"; out of the vast number of the individuals of human nature God determined to create, there was a certain number which he selected for himself, for his own glory, and to be eternally happy with him; and out of these he singled one "individuum" of human nature, to be united to the eternal Word, the second Person in the Trinity; and which may be truly said to be the "chiefest among", or, as the Septuagint version has it, "chosen out of ten thousand", Song of Solomon 5:10, this the Lord "exalted" to the grace of union to the Son of God, whereby it became higher than angels and men, and to have a more excellent name than either of them, it bearing the name of him to whom it is united, Hebrews 1:4, and he has exalted him to the offices of Prophet, Priest, and King, for which he is

anointed above his fellows; and he has also, having done his work, highly exalted him at his right hand; angels, principalities, and powers, being subject to him.

i לחסידך "de pio tuo", Cocceius; "de sancto tuo", Gejerus.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      19 Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.   20 I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him:   21 With whom my hand shall be established: mine arm also shall strengthen him.   22 The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him.   23 And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him.   24 But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted.   25 I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.   26 He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.   27 Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.   28 My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him.   29 His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.   30 If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments;   31 If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments;   32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.   33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.   34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.   35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.   36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.   37 It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.

      The covenant God made with David and his seed was mentioned before (Psalms 89:3; Psalms 89:4); but in these verses it is enlarged upon, and pleaded with God, for favour to the royal family, now almost sunk and ruined; yet certainly it looks at Christ, and has its accomplishment in him much more than in David; nay, some passages here are scarcely applicable at all to David, but must be understood of Christ only (who is therefore called David our king,Hosea 3:5), and very great and precious promises they are which are here made to the Redeemer, which are strong foundations for the faith and hope of the redeemed to build upon. The comforts of our redemption flow from the covenant of redemption; all our springs are in that, Isaiah 55:3. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David,Acts 13:34. Now here we have an account of those sure mercies. Observe,

      I. What assurance we have of the truth of the promise, which may encourage us to build upon it. We are here told, 1. How it was spoken (Psalms 89:19; Psalms 89:19): Thou didst speak in vision to thy Holy One. God's promise to David, which is especially referred to here, was spoken in vision to Nathan the prophet, 2 Samuel 7:12-17. Then, when the Holy One of Israel was their king (Psalms 89:18; Psalms 89:18), he appointed David to be his viceroy. But to all the prophets, those holy ones, he spoke in vision concerning Christ, and to him himself especially, who had lain in his bosom from eternity, and was made perfectly acquainted with the whole design of redemption, Matthew 11:27. 2. How it was sworn to and ratified (Psalms 89:35; Psalms 89:35): Once have I sworn by my holiness, that darling attribute. In swearing by his holiness, he swore by himself; for he will as soon cease to be as be otherwise than holy. His swearing once is enough; he needs not swear again, as David did (1 Samuel 20:17); for his word and oath are two immutable things. As Christ was made a priest, so he was made a king, by an oath (Hebrews 7:21); for his kingdom and priesthood are both unchangeable.

      II. The choice made of the person to whom the promise is given, Psalms 89:19; Psalms 89:20. David was a king of God's own choosing, so is Christ, and therefore both are called God's kings,Psalms 2:6. David was mighty, a man of courage and fit for business; he was chosen out of the people, not out of the princes, but the shepherds. God found him out, exalted him, laid help upon him, and ordered Samuel to anoint him. But this is especially to be applied to Christ. 1. He is one that is mighty, every way qualified for the great work he was to undertake, able to save to the uttermost--mighty in strength, for he is the Son of God--mighty in love, for he is able experimentally to compassionate those that are tempted. He is the mighty God,Isaiah 9:6. 2. He is chosen out of the people, one of us, bone of our bone, that takes part with us of flesh and blood. Being ordained for men, he is taken from among men, that his terror might not make us afraid. 3. God has found him. He is a Saviour of God's own providing; for the salvation, from first to last, is purely the Lord's doing. He has found the ransom,Job 33:24. We could never have found a person fit to undertake this great work, Revelation 5:3; Revelation 5:4. 4. God has laid help upon him, not only helped him, but treasured up help in him for us, laid it as a charge upon him to help fallen man up again, to help the chosen remnant to heaven. In me is thy help,Hosea 13:9. 5. He has exalted him, by constituting him the prophet, priest, and king of his church, clothing him with power, raising him from the dead, and setting him at his own right hand. Whom God chooses and uses he will exalt. 6. He has anointed him, has qualified him for his office, and so confirmed him in it, by giving him the Spirit, not by measure, but without measure, infinitely above his fellows. He is called Messiah, or Christ, the Anointed. 7. In all this he designed him to be his own servant, for the accomplishing of his eternal purpose and the advancement of the interests of his kingdom among men.

      III. The promises made to this chosen one, to David in the type and the Son of David in the antitype, in which not only gracious, but glorious things are spoken of him.

      1. With reference to himself, as king and God's servant: and what makes for him makes for all his loving subjects. It is here promised, (1.) That God would stand by him and strengthen him in his undertaking (Psalms 89:21; Psalms 89:21): With him my hand not only shall be, but shall be established, by promise, shall be so established that he shall by it be established and confirmed in all his offices, so that none of them shall be undermined and overthrown, though by the man of sin they shall all be usurped and fought against. Christ had a great deal of hard work to do and hard usage to go through; but he that gave him commission gave him forces sufficient for the execution of his commission: "My arm also shall strengthen him to break through and bear up under all his difficulties." No good work can miscarry in the hand of those whom God himself undertakes to strengthen. (2.) That he should be victorious over his enemies, that they should not encroach upon him (Psalms 89:22; Psalms 89:22): The son of wickedness shall not exact upon him, nor afflict him. He that at first broke the peace would set himself against him that undertook to make peace, and do what he could to blast his design: but he could only reach to bruise his heel; further he could not exact upon him nor afflict him. Christ became a surety for our debt, and thereby Satan and death thought to gain advantage against him; but he satisfied the demands of God's justice, and then they could not exact upon him. The prince of this world cometh, but he has nothing in me,John 14:30. Nay, they not only shall not prevail against him, but they shall fall before him (Psalms 89:23; Psalms 89:23): I will bend down his foes before his face; the prince of this world shall be cast out, principalities and powers spoiled, and he shall be the death of death itself, and the destruction of the grave, Hosea 13:14. Some apply this to the ruin which God brought upon the Jewish nation, that persecuted Christ and put him to death. But all Christ's enemies, who hate him and will not have him to reign over them, shall be brought forth and slain before him, Luke 19:27. (3.) That he should be the great trustee of the covenant between God and men, that God would be gracious and true to us (Psalms 89:24; Psalms 89:24): My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him. They were with David; God continued merciful to him, and so approved himself faithful. They were with Christ; God made good all his promises to him. But that is not all; God's mercy to us, and his faithfulness to us, are with Christ; he is not only pleased with him, but with us in him; and it is in him that all the promises of God are yea and amen. So that if any poor sinners hope for benefit by the faithfulness and mercy of God, let them know it is with Christ; it is lodged in his hand, and to him they must apply for it (Psalms 89:28; Psalms 89:28): My mercy will I keep for him, to be disposed of by him, for evermore; in the channel of Christ's mediation all the streams of divine goodness will for ever run. Therefore it is the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ which we look for unto eternal life,Jude 1:21; John 17:2. And, as the mercy of God flows to us through him, so the promise of God is, through him, firm to us: My covenant shall stand fast with him, both the covenant of redemption made with him and the covenant of grace made with us in him. The new covenant is therefore always new, and firmly established, because it is lodged in the hands of a Mediator, Hebrews 8:6. The covenant stands fast, because it stands upon this basis. And this redounds to the everlasting honour of the Lord Jesus, that to him the great cause between God and man is entirely referred and the Father has committed all judgment to him, that all men might honour him (John 5:22; John 5:23); therefore it is here said, In my name shall his horn be exalted; this shall be his glory, that God's name is in him (Exodus 23:21), and that he acts in God's name. As the Father gave me commandment, so I do. (4.) That his kingdom should be greatly enlarged (Psalms 89:25; Psalms 89:25): I will set his hand in the sea (he shall have the dominion of the seas, and the isles of the sea), and his right hand in the rivers, the inland countries that are watered with rivers. David's kingdom extended itself to the Great Sea, and the Red Sea, to the river of Egypt and the river Euphrates. But it is in the kingdom of the Messiah that this has its full accomplishment, and shall have more and more, when the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ (Revelation 11:15), and the isles shall wait for his law. (5.) That he should own God as his Father, and God would own him as his Son, his firstborn, Psalms 89:26; Psalms 89:27. This is a comment upon these words in Nathan's message concerning Solomon (for he also was a type of Christ as well as David), I will be his Father and he shall be my Son (2 Samuel 7:14), and the relation shall be owned on both sides. [1.] He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father. It is probable that Solomon did so; but we are sure Christ did so, in the days of his flesh, when he offered up strong cries to God, and called him holy Father, righteous Father, and taught us to address ourselves to him as our Father in heaven. Christ, in his agony, cried unto God, Thou art my Father (Matthew 26:39; Matthew 26:42, O my Father), and, upon the cross, Father, forgive them; Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. He looked upon him likewise as his God, and therefore he perfectly obeyed him, and submitted to his will in his whole undertaking (he ismy God and your God,John 20:17), and as the rock of his salvation, who would bear him up and bear him out in his undertaking, and make him more than a conqueror, even a complete Saviour; and therefore with an undaunted resolution he endured the cross, despising the shame, for he knew he should be both justified and glorified. [2.] I will make him my firstborn. I see not how this can be applied to David; it is Christ's prerogative to be the firstborn of every creature, and, as such, the heir of all things,Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:2; Hebrews 1:6. When all power was given to Christ both in heaven and in earth, and all things were delivered unto him by the Father, then god made him his firstborn, and far higher, more great and honourable, than the kings of the earth; for he is the King of kings, angels, authorities, and powers, being made subject to him,1 Peter 3:22.

      2. With reference to his seed. God's covenants always took in the seed of the covenanters; this does so (Psalms 89:29; Psalms 89:36): His seed shall endure for ever, and with it his throne. Now this will be differently understood according as we apply it to Christ or David.

      (1.) If we apply it to David, by his seed we are to understand his successors, Solomon and the following kings of Judah, who descended from the loins of David. It is supposed that they might degenerate, and not walk in the spirit and steps of their father David; in such a case they must expect to come under divine rebukes, such as the house of David was at this time under, Psalms 89:38; Psalms 89:38. But let this encourage them, that, though they were corrected, they should not be abandoned or disinherited. This refers to that part of Nathan's message (2 Samuel 7:14; 2 Samuel 7:15), If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him, but my mercy shall not depart from him. Thus far David's seed and throne did endure for ever, that, notwithstanding the wickedness of many of his posterity, who were the scandals of his house, yet his family continued, and continued in the imperial dignity, a very long time,--that, as long as Judah continued a kingdom, David's posterity were kings of it, and the royalty of that kingdom was never in any other family, as that of the ten tribes was, in Jeroboam's first, then in Baasha's, c.,--and that the family of David continued a family of distinction till that Son of David came whose throne should endure for ever see Luke 1:27; Luke 1:32; Luke 2:4; Luke 2:11. If David's posterity, in after-times, should forsake God and their duty and revolt to the ways of sin, God would bring desolating judgments upon them and ruin the family; and yet he would not take away his lovingkindness from David, nor break his covenant with him; for, in the Messiah, who should come out of his loins, all these promises shall have their accomplishment to the full. Thus, when the Jews were rejected, the apostle shows that God's covenant with Abraham was not broken, because it was fulfilled in his spiritual seed, the heirs of the righteousness of faith, Romans 11:7.

      (2.) If we apply it to Christ, by his seed we are to understand his subjects, all believers, his spiritual seed, the children which God has given him, Hebrews 2:13. This is that seed which shall be made to endure for ever, and his throne in the midst of them, in the church in the heart, as the days of heaven. To the end Christ shall have a people in the world to serve and honour him. He shall see his seed; he shall prolong his days. This holy seed shall endure for ever in a glorified state, when time and days shall be no more; and thus Christ's throne and kingdom shall be perpetuated: the kingdom of his grace shall continue through all the ages of time and the kingdom of his glory to the endless ages of eternity.

      [1.] The continuance of Christ's kingdom is here made doubtful by the sins and afflictions of his subjects; their iniquities and calamities threaten the ruin of it. This case is here put, that we may not be offended when it comes to be a case in fact, but that we may reconcile it with the stability of the covenant and be assured of that notwithstanding. First, It is here supposed that there will be much amiss in the subjects of Christ's kingdom. His children may forsake God's law (Psalms 89:30; Psalms 89:30) by omissions, and break his statutes (Psalms 89:31; Psalms 89:31) by commissions. There are spots which are the spots of God's children, Deuteronomy 32:5. Many corruptions there are in the bowels of the church, as well as in the hearts of those who are the members of it, and these corruptions break out. Secondly, They are here told that they must smart for it (Psalms 89:32; Psalms 89:32): I will visit their transgression with a rod, their transgression sooner than that of others. You only have I known, and therefore I will punish you,Amos 3:2. Their being related to Christ shall not excuse them from being called to an account. But observe what affliction is to God's people. 1. It is but a rod, not an axe, not a sword; it is for correction, not for destruction. This denotes gentleness in the affliction; it is the rod of men, such a rod as men use in correcting their children; and it denotes a design of good in and by the affliction, such a rod as yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness. 2. It is a rod on the hand of God (I will visit them), he who is wise, and knows what he does, gracious, and will do what is best. 3. It is a rod which they shall never feel the smart of but when there is great need: If they break my law, then I will visit their transgression with the rod, but not else. Then it is requisite that God's honour be vindicated, and that they be humbled and reduced.

      [2.] The continuance of Christ's kingdom is made certain by the inviolable promise and oath of God, notwithstanding all this (Psalms 89:33; Psalms 89:33): Nevertheless, my kindness will I not totally and finally take from him. First, "Notwithstanding their provocations, yet my covenant shall not be broken." Note, Afflictions are not only consistent with covenant-love, but to the people of God they flow from it. Though David's seed be chastened, it does not follow that they are disinherited; they may be cast down, but they are not cast off. God's favour is continued to his people, 1. For Christ's sake; in him the mercy is laid up for us, and God says, I will not take it from him (Psalms 89:33; Psalms 89:33), I will not lie unto David,Psalms 89:35; Psalms 89:35. We are unworthy, but he is worthy. 2. For the covenant's sake: My faithfulness shall not fail, my covenant will I not break. It was supposed that they had broken God's statutes, profaned and polluted them (so the word signifies); "But," says God, "I will not break, I will not profane and pollute, my covenant;" it is the same word. That which is said and sworn is that God will have a church in the world as long as sun and moon endure, Psalms 89:36; Psalms 89:37. The sun and moon are faithful witnesses in heaven of the wisdom, power, and goodness of the Creator, and shall continue while time lasts, which they are the measurers of; but the seed of Christ shall be established for ever, as lights of the world while the world stands, to shine in it, and, when it is at an end, they shall be established lights shining in the firmament of the Father.

Spurgeon's Verse Expositions of the Bible

The People's Christ

February 25, 1855 by C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892)

"I have exalted one chosen out of the people." Psalms 89:19 .

Originally, I have no doubt, these words referred to David. He was chosen out of the people. His lineage was respectable, but not illustrious; his family were holy, but not exalted: the names of Jesse, Obed, Boaz, and Ruth, awoke no royal recollections, and stirred up no remembrances of ancient nobility or glorious pedigree. As for himself, his only occupation had been that of a shepherd-boy, carrying lambs in his bosom, or gently leading the ewes great with young a simple youth of a right royal soul, and undaunted courage, but yet a plebeian ;one of the people. But this was no disqualification for the crown of Judah. In God's eye the extraction of the young hero was no barrier to his mounting the throne of the holy nation, nor shall the proudest admirer of descent and lineage dare to insinuate a word against the valour, wisdom, and the justice of the government of this monarch of the people. We do not believe that Israel or Judah ever had a better ruler than David; and we are bold to affirm that the reign of the man "chosen out of the people" outshines in glory the reigns of high-bred emperors, and princes with the blood of a score of kings running in their veins. Yea, more, we will assert that the humility of his birth and education, so far from making him incompetent to rule, rendered him, in a great degree, more fit for his office, and able to discharge its mighty duties. He could legislate for the many, for he was one of themselves he could rule the people, as the people should be ruled, for he was "bone of their bone, and flesh of their flesh " their friend, their brother, as well as their king. However, in this sermon we shall not speak of David, but of the Lord Jesus Christ; for David, as referred to in the text, is an eminent type of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour, who was chosen out of the people; and of whom his Father can say "I have exalted one chosen out of the people." Before I enter into the illustration of this truth I wish to make one statement, so that all objections may be avoided as to the doctrine of my sermon. Our Saviour Jesus Christ, I say, was chosen out of the people; but this merely respects his manhood. As "very God of very God" he was not chosen out of the people; for there was none save him. He was his Father's only-begotten Son, "begotten of the Father before all worlds." He was God's fellow, co-equal, and co-eternal; consequently when we speak of Jesus as being chosen out of the people, we must speak of him as a man. We are, I conceive, too forgetful of the real manhood of our Redeemer, for a man he was to all intents and purposes, and I love to sing,

"A Man there was, a real Man, Who once on Calvary died."

He was not man and God amalgamated the two natures suffered no confusion he was very God, without the diminution of his essence or attributes; and he was equally, verily, and truly, man. It is as a man I speak of Jesus this morning; and it rejoices my heart when I can view the human side of that glorious miracle of incarnation, and can deal with Jesus Christ as my brother inhabitant of the same mortality, wrestler with the same pains and ills, companion in the march of life, and, for a little while, a fellow-sleeper in the cold chamber of death. There are three things spoken of in the text: first of all, Christ's extraction he was one of the people; secondly, his election he was chosen out of the people; and thirdly, Christ's exaltation he was exalted. You see I have chosen three words, all commencing with the letter E, to ease your memories that you may be able to remember them the better extraction, election, exaltation. I. We will commence with our Saviour's EXTRACTION.We have had many complaints this week, and for some weeks past, in the newspapers, concerning the families. We are governed and, according to the firm belief of a great many of us, very badly governed, by certain aristocratic families. We are not governed by men chosen out of the people, as we ought to be; and this is a fundamental wrong in our government, that our rulers, even when elected by us, can scarcely ever be elected from us. Families, where certainly there is not a monopoly of intelligence or prudence, seems to have a patent for promotion; while a man, a commoner, a trades man, of however good sense, cannot rise to the government. I am no politician, and I am about to preach no political sermon; but I must express my sympathy with the people, and my joy that we, as Christians, are governed by one chosen out of the people." Jesus Christ is the people's man; he is the people's friend ay, one of themselves. Though he sits high on his Father's throne, he was "one chosen out of the people. Christ is not to be called the aristocrat's Christ, he is not the noble's Christ, he is not the king's Christ; but he is "one chosen out of the people." It is this thought which cheers the hearts of the people, and ought to bind their souls in unity to Christ, and the holy religion of which he is the Author and Finisher. Let us now beat out this wedge of gold into leaf, and narrowly inspect its truthfulness. Christ, by his very birth, was one of the people. True, he was born of a royal ancestry. Mary and Joseph were both of them descendants of a kingly race, but the glory had departed; a stranger sat on the throne of Judah; while the lawful heir grasped the hammer and the adze. Mark ye well the place of his nativity. Born in a stable cradled in a manger where the horned oxen fed his only bed was their fodder, and his slumbers were often broken by their lowings. He might be a prince by birth; but certainly he had not a princely retinue to wait upon him. He was not clad in purple garments, neither wrapped in embroidered clothing; the halls of kings were not trodden by his feet, the marble palaces of monarchs were not honored by his infant smiles. Take notice of the visitors who came around his cradle. The shepherds came first of all. We never find that they lost their way. No, God guides the shepherds, and he did direct the wise men too, but they lost their way. It often happens, that while shepherds find Christ wise men miss him. But, however, both of them came, the magi and the shepherds; both knelt round that manger, to show us that Christ was the Christ of all men; that he was not merely the Christ of the magi, but that he was the Christ of the shepherds that he was not merely the Saviour of the peasant shepherd, but also the Saviour of the learned, for

"None are excluded hence, but those Who do themselves exclude; Welcome the learned and polite, The ignorant and rude,"

In his very birth he was one of the people. He was not born in a populous city; but in the obscure village of Bethlehem, "the house of bread," the Son of Man made his advent, unushered by pompous preparations, and unheralded by the blast of courtly trumpets. His education, too, demands our attention. He was not taken as Moses was, from his mother's breast, to be educated in the halls of a monarch; he was not brought up with all those affected airs which are given to persons who have golden spoons in their mouths, at their births. He was not brought up as the lordling, to look with disdain on every one; but his father being a carpenter, doubtless he toiled in his father's workshop. "Fit place," a quaint author says, "for Jesus; for he had to make a ladder that should reach from earth to heaven. And why should he not be the son of a carpenter ?" Full well he knew the curse of Adam: "in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." Had you seen the holy child Jesus, you would have beheld nothing to distinguish him from other children, save that unsullied purity which rested in his very countenance. When our Lord entered into public life, still he was the same. What was his rank? Did he array himself in scarlet and purple? Oh! no: he wore the simple garb of a peasant that robe "without seam from the top to the bottom," one simple piece of stuff, without ornament or embroidery. Did he dwell in state, and make a magnificent show in his journey through Judea? No; he toiled his weary way, and sat down on the curb-stone of the well of Sychar. He was like others, a poor man; he had not courtiers around him; he had fishermen for his companions; and when he spoke, did he speak with smooth and oily words? Did he walk with dainty footsteps, like the king of Amalek? No, he often spoke like the rough Elijah; he spoke what he meant, and he meant what he said. He spoke to the people as the people's man. He never cringed before great men; he knew not what it was to bow or stoop; but he stood and cried, "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Woe unto you, whitewashed sepulchres," He spared no class of sinners: rank and fortune made no difference to him. He uttered the same truths to the rich men of the Sanhedrim, as to the toiling peasants of Galilee. He was "one of the people." Notice his doctrine. Jesus Christ was one of the people in his doctrine. His gospel was never the philosopher's gospel, for it is not abstruse enough. It will not consent to be buried in hard words and technical phrases: it is so simple that he who can spell over, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved," may have a saving knowledge of it. Hence, worldly-wise men scorn the science of truth, and sneeringly say, 'why, even a blacksmith can preach now-a-day, and men who were at the plough tail may turn preachers,' while priestcraft demands, 'What right have they to do any such thing, unauthorized by us?' Oh! sad case, that gospel truth should be slighted because of its plainness, and that my Master should be despised because he will not be exclusive will not be monopolised by men of talent and erudition. Jesus is the ignorant man's Christ as much as the learned man's Christ; for he hath chosen "the base things of the world and the things that are despised." Ah! much as I love true science and real education, I mourn and grieve that our ministers are so much diluting the Word of God with philosophy, desiring to be intellectual preachers, delivering model sermons, well fitted for a room full of college students and professors of theology, but of no use to the masses, being destitute of simplicity, warmth, earnestness, or even solid gospel matter. I fear our college training is but a poor gain to our churches, since it often serves to wean the young man's sympathies from the people, and wed them to the few, the intellectual, and wealthy of the church. It is good to be a fellow-citizen in the republic of letters, but better far to be an able minister of the kingdom of heaven. It is good to be able like some great minds, to attract the mighty; but the more useful man will still be he, who, like Whitfield, uses "market language," for it is a sad fact that high places and the gospel seldom well agree; and, moreover, be it known that the doctrine of Christ is the doctrine of the people. It was not meant to be the gospel of a caste, a clique, or any one class of the community. The covenant of grace is not ordered for men of one peculiar grade, but some of all sorts are included. A few there were of the rich followed Jesus in his own day, and it is so now. Mary, and Martha, and Lazarus were well to do, and there was the wife of Herod's steward, with some more of the nobility. These, however, were but a few: his congregation was made up of the lower orders the masses the multitude. "The common people heard him gladly;" and his doctrine was one which did not allow of distinction, but put all men as sinners naturally, on an equality in the sight of God. One is your father, "one is your Master, even Christ, and all ye are brethren." These were words which he taught to his disciples, while in his own person he was the mirror of humility, and proved himself the friend of earth's poor sons, and the lover of mankind. O ye purse proud! O ye who cannot touch the poor even with your white gloves! Ah! ye with your mitres and your croizers! Ah! ye with your cathedrals and splendid ornaments! This is the man whom ye call Master the people's Christ one of the people! And yet ye look down with scorn upon the people;ye despise them. What are they in your opinion? The common herd the multitude. Out on ye! Call yourselves no more the ministers of Christ. How can ye be, unless, descending from your pomp and your dignity, ye come amongst the poor and visit them ye walk amongst our teeming population and preach to them the gospel of Christ Jesus. WE believe you to be the descendants of the fishermen? Ah! no, until ye doff your grandeur, and, like the fishermen, come out, the people's men, and preach to the people, speak to the people, instead of lolling on your splendid seats, and making yourselves rich at the expense of your pluralites! Christ's ministers should be the friends of manhood at large, remembering that their Master was the people's Christ. Rejoice! O rejoice! ye multitudes. Rejoice! rejoice! for Christ was one of the people. II.Our second point was ELECTION. God says, "I have exalted one chosen out of the people." Jesus Christ was elected chosen. Somehow or other, that ugly doctrine of election will come out. Oh! there be some, the moment they hear that word, election, put their hands upon their foreheads, and mutter, "I will wait till that sentence is over; there will be something I shall like better, perhaps." Some others say, "I shall not go to that place again; the man is a hyper-Calvinist." But the man is not a hyper-Calvinist; the man said what was in his Bible that is all. He is a Christian, and you have no right to call him by those ill-names, if indeed an ill-name it be, for we never blush at whatever men do call us. Here it is: "One chosen out of the people." Now, what does that mean, but that Jesus Christ is chosen? Those who do not like to believe that the heirs of heaven were elect, cannot deny the truth proclaimed in this verse, that Jesus Christ is the subject of election that his Father chose him, and that he chose him out of the people. As a man, he was chosen out of the people, to be the people's Saviour, and the people's Christ. And now let us gather up our thoughts, and try to discover the transcendent wisdom of God's choice. Election is no blind thing. God chooses sovereignly, but he always chooses wisely. There is always some secret reason for his choice of any particular individual; though that motive does not lie in ourselves, or in our own merits, yet there always is some secret cause far more remote than the doings of the creature; some mighty reason unknown to all but himself. In the case of Jesus, the motives are apparent; and without pretending to enter the cabinet council of Jehovah, we may discover them. 1. First, we see that justice is thereby fully satisfied by the choice of one out of the people. Suppose God had chosen an angel to make satisfaction for our sins imagine that an angel were capable of bearing that vast amount of suffering and agony which was necessary to our atonement; yet after the angel had done it all, justice would never have been satisfied, for this one simple reason, that the law declare " The soul that sinneth IT shall die." Now, man sins, and therefore man must die. Justice required, that as by man came death, by man also should come the resurrection and the life. The law required, that as man was the sinner, man should be the victim that as in Adam all died, even so in another Adam should all be made alive. Consequently, it was necessary that Jesus Christ should be chosen out of the people; for had yon blazing angel near the throne, that lofty Gabriel, laid aside his splendours, descended to our earth, endured pain, suffered agonies, entered the vault of death, and groaned out a miserable existence in an extremity of woe, after all that, he would not have satisfied inflexible justice, because it is said, a man must die, and otherwise the sentence is not executed. 2. But there is another reason why Jesus Christ was chosen out of the people. It is because thereby the whole race receives honor. Do you know I would not be an angel, if Gabriel would ask me. If he would beseech me to exchange places with him, I would not, I should lose so much by the exchange, and he would gain so much. Poor, weak, and worthless, though I am, yet I am a man, and being a man, there is a dignity about manhood a dignity lost one day in the garden of the fall but regained in the garden of resurrection. It is a fact, that a man is greater than an angel that in heaven humanity stands nearer the throne than angelic existence. You will read in the Book of the Revelation, of the four-and-twenty elders who stood around the throne, and in the outer circle stood the angels. The elders, who are the representatives of the whole church, were honored with a greater nearness to God than the ministering spirits. Why man elect man is the greatest being in the universe, except God. Man sits up there look! at God's right hand, radiant with glory, there sits a man! Ask me who governs Providence, and directs its awfully mysterious machinery; I tell you it is a man the man Christ Jesus. Ask me who has during the past month bound up the rivers in chains of ice, and who now has loosed them from the shackles of winter, I tell you a man did it Christ. Ask me who shall come to judge the earth in rigteousness, and I say a man. A real, veritable man is to hold the scales of judgment, and to call all nations around him. And who is the channel of grace? Who is the emporium of all the Father's mercy? Who is the great gathering up of all the love of the covenant? I reply a man the man Christ Jesus. And Christ, being a man, has exalted you, and exalted me, and put us into the highest ranks. He made us, originally, a little lower than the angels, and now despite our fall in Adam, he bath crowned us, his elect, with glory and honor, and hath set us at his right hand in heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kind ness towards us through Christ Jesus. 3. But, my brethren, let us take a sweeter view than that. Why was he chosen out of the people? Speak, my heart! What is the first reason that rushes up to thyself? for heart thoughts are best thoughts. Thoughts from the head are often good for nothing; but thoughts of the heart, deep musings of the soul, these are priceless as pearls of Ormuz. If it be a humbler poet, provided that his songs gush from his heart, they shall better strike the cords of my soul than the lifeless emanations of mere brain. Here, Christian: what dost thou think is the sweet reason for the election of thy Lord, he being one of the people? was it not this that he might be able to be thy brother, in the blest tie of kindred blood? Oh! what relationship there is between Christ and the believer? The believer can say

"One there is above all others Well deserves the name of friend; His is love beyond a brother's, Faithful, free, and knows no end."

I have a great brother in heaven. I have heard boys say sometimes in the street that they would tell their brother; and I have often said so when the enemy has attacked me " I will tell my brother in heaven." I may be poor, but I have a brother who is rich; I have a brother who is a king; I am brother to the prince of the kings of the earth; and will he suffer me to starve, or want, or lack, while he is on his throne? Oh! no; he loves me; he has fraternal feelings towards me; he is my brother. But, more than that: think, O believer! Christ is not merely thy brother, but he is thy husband. "Thy maker is thy husband; the Lord of hosts is his name." It rejoices the wife to lean her head on the broad breast of her husband, in full as surance that his arms will be strong to labor for her, or defend her; that his heart ever throbs with love to her, and that all he has, and is, belongs to her, as the sharer of his existence. Oh! to know by the influence of the Holy Ghost, that the sweet alliance is made between my soul and the ever precious Jesus; sure, tis enough to quicken all my soul to music, and make each atom of my frame a grateful songster to the praise of Christ. Come, let me remember when I lay like an infant in my blood, cast out in the open field; let me recollect the notable moment when he said, "Live!" and let me never forget that he has educated me, trained me up, and one day will espouse me to himself in righteousness, crowning me with a nuptial crown in the palace of his father. Oh! it is bliss unspeakable! I wonder not that the thought doth stagger my words to utter it! that Christ is one of the people, that he might be nearly related to you and to me, that he might be the goel, or kinsman, next of kin.

"In ties of blood with sinners one, Our Jesus is to glory gone; Hath all his foes to ruin hurled Sin, Satan, earth, death, hell, the world."

Saint, was this blessed thought, like a necklace of diamonds, around the neck of thy memory, put it, as a golden ring, on the finger of recollection; and use it as the king's own seal, stamping the petitions of thy faith with confidence of success. 4. But now another idea suggests itself. Christ was chosen out of the people that he might know our wants and sympathize with us. You know the old tale, that one half the world does not know how the other half lives; and that is very true. I believe some of the rich have no notion whatever of what the distress of the poor is. They have no idea of what it is to labor for their daily food, They have a very faint conception of what a rise in the price of bread means. They do not know anything about it; and when we put men in power who never were of the people, they do not understand the art of governing us. But our great and glorious Jesus Christ is one chosen out of the people; and therefore he knows our wants. Temptation and pain he suffered before us; sickness he endured, for when hanging upon the cross, the scorching of that broiling sun brought on a burning fever; weariness he has endured it. for weary he sat by the well; poverty he knows it, for sometimes he had not bread to eat, save that bread of which the world knows nothing; to be houseless he knew it, for the foxes had holes, and the birds of the air had nests, but he had not where to lay his head. My brother Christian, there is no place where thou canst go, where Christ has not been before thee, sinful places alone excepted. In the dark valley of the shadow of death thou mayest see his bloody footsteps footprints marked with gore; ay, and even at the deep waters of the swelling Jordan, thou shalt, when thou comest hard by the side, say, "There are the footprints of a man: whose are they?" Stooping down, thou shalt discern a nail-mark, and shalt say. "Those are the footsteps of the blessed Jesus." He hath been before thee; he hath smoothed the way; he hath entered the grave, that he might make the tomb the royal bedchamber of the ransomed race, the closet where they lay aside the garments of labor, to put on the vestments of eternal rest. In all places whithersoever we go, the angel of the covenant has been our forerunner; each burden we have to carry, has once been laid on the shoulders of Immanuel.

"His way was much rougher and darker than mine; Did Christ my Lord suffer, and shall I repine ?"

I am speaking to those in great trial. Dear fellow-traveller! take courage: Christ has consecrated the road, and made the narrow way the King's own road to life. One thought more, and then I will pass on to my third point. There is a poor soul over there, who is desirous of coming to Jesus, but he is in very great trouble, lest he should not came right; and I know many Christians who say, "Well, I hope I have come to Christ; but I am afraid I have not come right." There is a little foot-note to one of the hymns in dear Mr. Denham's collection, in which he says, "Some people are afraid they do not come right. Now, no man can come except the Father draw him; so I apprehend, if they come at all, they cannot come wrong." So do I apprehend, if men come at all, they must come right. Here is a thought for thee, poor coming sinner. Why art thou afraid to come ?" "Oh!" sayest thou, "I am so great a sinner, Christ will not have mercy upon me." Oh! you do not know my blessed Master: he is more loving than you think him to be. I was once wicked enough to think the same; but I have found him ten thousand times more kind than I thought, I tell you, he is so loving, so gracious, so kind, there ne'er was one half so good as he, He is kinder than ever you can think; his love is greater than your fears, and his merits are more prevalent than your sins. But still you say, "I am afraid I shall not come aright; I think I shall not use acceptable words." I tell you why that is: because you do not remember that Christ was taken out of the people. If Her Majesty were to send for me to-morrow morning, I dare say I should feel very anxious about what kind of dress I should wear, and how I should walk in. and how I should observe court etiquette, and so on; but if one of my friends here were to send for me, I should go straight off and see him, because he is one of the people, and I like him. Some of you say, "How can I go to Christ? What shall I say? What words shall I use ?" If thou wert going to one above thee, thou mightest say so: but he is one of the people. Go as thou art, poor sinner just in thy rags, just in thy filth in all thy wickedness, just as thou art. O conscience-stricken sinner, come to Jesus! He is one of the people. If the Spirit has given thee a sense of sin, do not study how thou art to come; come anyhow; come with a groan, come with a sigh, come with a tear, any come, if thou dost but come, will do, for he is one of the people. "The Spirit and the Bride say, Come; let him that heareth say, Come." Here I cannot resist giving an illustration. I have heard, that in the deserts, when the caravans are in want of water, and they are afraid they shall not find any, they are accustomed to send on a camel, with its rider, some distance in advance, then after a little space follows another; and then, at a short interval, another: as soon as the first man finds water, almost before he stoops down to drink, he shouts aloud, "Come!" The next one, hearing the voice, repeats the word, "Come!" while the nearest again takes up the cry, "Come!" until the whole wilderness echoes with the word "Come!" So in that verse, "the Spirit and the Bride say, first of all, Come: then let him that heareth say, Come: and whosoever is athirst, let him come, and take of the water of life freely." With this picture I leave our survey of the reasons for the election of Christ Jesus. III. And now I am to close up with his EXALTATION."I have exalted one chosen out of the people." You will recollect, whilst I am speaking upon this exaltation, that it is really the exaltation of all the elect in the person of Christ; for all that Christ is, and all that Christ has, is mine. If I am a believer, whatever he is in his exalted person, that I am, for I am made to sit together with Christ in heavenly places. 1. First, dear friends, it was exaltation enough for the body of Christ to be exalted into union with the divinity. That was honor which none of us can ever receive. We never hope to have this body united with a God. It cannot be. Once has incarnation been done never but once. Of no other man can it be said, "He was one with the Father, and the Father was one with him." Of no other man shall it be said, that the Deity tabernacled in him, and that God was manifest in his flesh, seen of angels, justified of the spirit, and carried up to glory. 2. Again: Christ was exalted by his resurrection. Oh! I should have liked to have stolen into that tomb of our Saviour, I suppose it was a large chamber; within it lay a massive marble sarcophagus, and very likely a ponderous lid was laid upon it. Then outside the door there lay a mighty stone, and guards kept watch before it. Three days did that sleeper slumber there! Oh! I could have wished to lift the lid of that sarcophagus, and look upon him. Pale he lay; blood-streaks there were upon him, not all quite washed away by those careful women who had buried him. Death exulting cries, 'I have slain him: the seed of the woman who is to destroy me is now my captive!' Ah! how grim death laughed! Ah! how he stared through his bony eye-lids, as he said, 'I have the boasted victor in my grasp.' 'Ah!' said Christ, 'but I have thee!' And up he sprang, the lid of the sarcophagus started up; and he, who has the keys of death and hell, seized death, ground his iron limbs to powder, dashed him to the ground and said, "O death, I will be thy plague; O hell, I will be thy destruction." Out he came, and in turn the watch men fled away. Startling with glory, radiant with light, effulgent with divinity, he stood before them. Christ was then exalted in his resurrection. 3. But how exalted was he in his ascension! He went out from the city to the top of the hill, his disciples attending him while he waited the appointed moment. Mark his ascension! Bidding farewell to the whole circle, up he went gradually ascending, like the exaltation of a mist from the lake, or the cloud from the steaming river. Aloft he soared: by his own mighty buoyancy and elasticity he ascended up on high not like Elijah, carried up by fiery horses; nor like Enoch of old, it could not be said he was not, for God took him. He went himself; and as he went, I think I see the angels looking down from heaven's battlements, and crying, 'See the conquering hero comes!' while at his nearer approach again they shouted, 'See the conquering hero comes!' So his journey through the plains of ether is complete he nears the gates of heaven attending angels shout, "Lift up your heads, ye ever lasting gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors!" The glorious hosts within scarce ask the question, "Who is the king of glory;" when from ten thousand thousand tongues there rolls an ocean of harmony, beating in mighty waves of music on the pearly gates and opening them at once, "The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle." Lo! heaven's barriers are thrown wide open and cherubim are hastening to meet their monarch.

"They brought his chariot from afar, To bear him to his throne; Clapp'd their triumphant wings and said, 'The Saviour's work is done.'"

Behold he marches through the streets. See how kingdoms and powers fall down before him! Crowns are laid at his feet, and his Father says, 'Well done, my Son, well done!' while heaven echoes with the shout, 'Well done! well done!' Up he climbs to that high throne, side by side with the Paternal Deity. "I have exalted one chosen out of the people." 4. The last exaltation of Christ which I shall mention is that which is to come, when he shall sit upon the throne of his Father David, and shall judge all nations. You will observe I have omitted that exaltation which Christ is to have as the king of this world during the millennium. I do not profess to understand it, and therefore I leave that alone. But I believe Jesus Christ is to come upon the throne of judgment, "and before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats." Sinner! thou belevest that there is a judgment; thou knowest that the tares and wheat cannot always grow together that the sheep and the goats shall not always feed in one pasture; but dost thou know of that man who is to judge thee that he who is to judge thee is a man? I say a man a man once despised and rejected.

"The Lord shall come, but not the same As once in lowliness he came: A humble man before his foes; A weary man, and full of woes."

Ah! no. Rainbows shall be about his head; he shall hold the sun in his right hand as the token of his government; he shall put the moon and stars beneath his feet, as the dust of the pedestal of his throne, which shall be of solid clouds of light. The books shall be opened those massive books, which contain the deeds of both quick and dead. Ah! how shall the despised Nazarene sit triumphant over all his foes. No more the taunt, the jeer, the scoff; but one hideous cry of misery, "Hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne." Oh, ye, my hearers, who now look with contempt on Jesus and his cross, I tremble for you. Oh, fiercer than a lion on his prey, is love when once incensed. Oh, despisers! I warn ye of that day when the placid brow of the Man of Sorrows shall be knit with frowns; when the eye which once was moistened by dew-drops of pity, shall flash lightning on its enemies; and the hand, which once was nailed to the cross for our redemption, shall grasp the thunderbolt for your damnation; while the mouth which once said, "Come unto me, ye weary," shall pronounce in words louder and more terrible than the voice of the thunder, "Depart ye cursed!" Sinners! ye may think it a trifle to sin against the Man of Nazareth, but ye shall find that in so doing ye have offended the Man who shall judge the earth in righteousness; and for your rebellion ye shall endure waves of torment in the eternal ocean of wrath. From that doom may God deliver you! But I warn you of it. You have all read the story of the lady, who, on her marriage-day stepped up stairs, and seeing an old chest, in her fun and frolic stepped inside, thinking to hide herself an hour, that her friends might hunt for her; but a spring lock lay in ambush there, and fastened her down for ever; nor did they ever find her, until years had passed, when moving that old lumbering chest, they found the bones of a skeleton, with here and there a jewelled ring and some fair thing. She had sprung in there in pleasantry and mirth, but was locked down for ever. Young man! take heed that you are not locked down for ever by your sins. One jovial glass it is all. "One moment's step." So said she. But there's a secret lock lays in ambush. One turn into that house of ill-fame one wandering from the paths of rectitude that is all. Oh, sinner! it is all. But dost thou know what that all is? To be fastened down for ever. Oh! if thou wouldst shun this, list to me, whilst for I have but one moment more I tell thee yet again of the Man who was "chosen out of the people." Ye proud ones! I have a word for you. Ye delicate ones, whose footsteps must not touch the ground! ye who look down in scorn upon your fellow mortals proud worms despising your fellow worms, because ye are somewhat more showily dressed! What think ye of this? The man of the people is to save you, if you are saved at all. The Christ of the crowd the Christ of the mass the Christ of the people he is to be your Saviour! Thou must stoop, proud man! Thou must bow, proud lady! Thou must lay aside thy pomp, or else thou wilt ne'er be saved; for the Saviour of the people must be thy Saviour. But to the poor trembling sinner, whose pride is gone, I repeat the comforting assurance. Wouldst thou shun sin? Wouldst thou avoid the curse? My Master tells me to say this morning, " Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." I remember the saying of a good old saint. Some one was talking about the mercy and love of Jesus, and concluded by saying, "Ah, is it not astonishing?" She said, "No, not at all." But they said it was. "Why," she said, "it is just like him: it is just like him!" You say, can you believe such a thing of a person? "Oh yes!" it may be said, "that is just his nature." So you, perhaps, cannot believe that Christ would save you, guilty creature as you are. I tell you it is just like him. He saved Saul he saved me he may save you. Yea, what is more, he will save you. For whosoever cometh unto him, he will in no wise cast out.