I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Petitionary Hymns
Poem XXII.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

O when will thou my Saviour be,
   O when shall I be clean,
The true, eternal sabbath see,
   A perfect rest from sin!
Jesus, the sinner’s rest thou art,
   From guilt, and fear, and pain;
While thou art absent from my heart,
   I look for rest in vain.

The consolations of thy word,
   My soul hath long upheld,
The faithful promise of the Lord,
   Shall surely be fulfill’d;
I look to my incarnate God,
   ’Till he his work begin;
And wait ’till his redeeming blood
   Shall cleanse me from all sin.

His great salvation I shall know,
   And perfect liberty;
Onward to sin he cannot go,
   Whoe’er abides in thee;
Added to the Redeemer’s fold
   I shall in him rejoice:
I all his glory shall behold,
   And hear my shepherd’s voice.

O that I now the voice may hear,
   That speaks my sins forgiv’n;
His word is past, to give me here
   The inward plebdge of heav’n:
His blood shall over all prevail,
   And sanctify the unclean;
The grace that saves from future hell,
   Shall save from present sin.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

John 7:40–52

Israel Is Divided over Christ

Some of the people therefore, when they heard these words, were saying, “This certainly is the Prophet.” 41 Others were saying, “This is the Christ.” Still others were saying, “Surely the Christ is not going to come from Galilee, is He? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So a division occurred in the crowd because of Him. 44 Some of them wanted to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

The Sanhedrin Is Confused over Christ

These verses show us, for one thing, how useless is knowledge in religion, if it is not accompanied by grace in the heart. We are told that some of our Lord’s hearers knew clearly where Christ was to be born. They referred to Scripture, like men familiar with its contents. “Hath not the Scripture said that Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?” And yet the eyes of their understanding were not enlightened. Their own Messiah stood before them, and they neither received, nor believed, nor obeyed Him.
   A certain degree of religious knowledge, beyond doubt, is of vast importance. Ignorance is certainly not the mother of true devotion, and helps nobody toward heaven. An “unknown God” can never be the object of a reasonable worship. Happy indeed would it be for Christians if they all knew the Scriptures as well as the Jews seem to have done, when our Lord was on earth!
   But while we value religious knowledge, we must take care that we do not overvalue it. We must not think it enough to know the facts and doctrines of our faith, unless our hearts and lives are thoroughly influenced by what we know. The very devils know the creed intellectually, and “believe and tremble,” but remain devils still. (James ii. 19.) It is quite possible to be familiar with the letter of Scripture, and to be able to quote texts appropriately, and reason about the theory of Christianity, and yet to remain dead in trespasses and sins. Like many of the generation to which our Lord preached, we may know the Bible well, and yet remain faithless and unconverted.
   Heart-knowledge, we must always remember, is the one thing needful. It is something which schools and universities cannot confer. It is the gift of God. To find out the plague of our own hearts and hate sin,—to become familiar with the throne of grace and the fountain of Christ’s blood,—to sit daily at the feet of Jesus, and humbly learn of Him,—this is the highest degree of knowledge to which mortal man can attain. Let any one thank God who knows anything of these things. He may be ignorant of Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and mathematics, but he shall be saved.
   These verses show us, for another thing, how eminent must have been our Lord’s gifts, as a public Teacher of religion. We are told that even the officers of the chief priests, who were sent to take Him, were struck and amazed. They were, of course, not likely to be prejudiced in His favour. Yet even they reported,—“Never man spake like this Man.”
   Of the manner of our Lord’s public speaking, we can of necessity form little idea. Action, and voice, and delivery are things that must be seen and heard to be appreciated. That our Lord’s manner was peculiarly solemn, arresting, and impressive, we need not doubt. It was probably something very unlike what the Jewish officers were accustomed to hear. There is much in what is said in another place: “He taught them as One having authority, and not as the Scribes.” (Matt. vii. 29.)
   Of the matter of our Lord’s public speaking, we may form some conception from the discourses which are recorded in the four Gospels. The leading features of these discourses are plain and unmistakable. The world has never seen anything like them, since the gift of speech was given to man. They often contain deep truths, which we have no line to fathom. But they often contain simple things, which even a child can understand. They are bold and outspoken in denouncing national and ecclesiastical sins, and yet they are wise and discreet in never giving needless offence. They are faithful and direct in their warnings, and yet loving and tender, in their invitations. For a combination of power and simplicity, of courage and prudence, of faithfulness and tenderness, we may well say, “Never man spake like this Man!”
   It would be well for the Church of Christ if ministers and teachers of religion would strive more to speak after their Lord’s pattern. Let them remember that elegant bombastic language, and a sensational, theatrical style of address, are utterly unlike their Master. Let them realize, that an eloquent simplicity is the highest attainment of public speaking. Of this their Master left them a glorious example. Surely they need never be ashamed of walking in His steps.
   These verses show us, lastly, how slowly and gradually the work of grace goes on in some hearts. We are told that Nicodemus stood up in the council of our Lord’s enemies, and mildly pleaded that He deserved fair dealing. “Doth our law judge any man,” he asked, “before it hear him, and know what he doeth?”
   This very Nicodemus, we must remember, is the man who, eighteen months before, had come to our Lord by night as an ignorant inquirer. He evidently knew little then, and dared not come to Christ in open day. But now, after eighteen months, he has got on so far that he dares to say something on our Lord’s side. It was but little that he said, no doubt, but it was better than nothing at all. And a day was yet to come, when he would go further still. He was to help Joseph of Arimathaea in doing honour to our Lord’s dead body, when even His chosen Apostles had forsaken Him and fled.
   The case of Nicodemus is full of useful instruction. It teaches us, that there are diversities in the operation of the Holy Ghost. All are undoubtedly led to the same Saviour, but all are not led precisely in the same way. It teaches us, that the work of the Spirit does not always go forward with the same speed in the hearts of men. In some cases it may go forward very slowly indeed, and yet may be real and true.
   We shall do well to remember these things, in forming our opinion of other Christians. We are often ready to condemn some as graceless, because their experience does not exactly tally with our own, or to set them down as not in the narrow way at all, because they cannot run as fast as ourselves. We must beware of hasty judgments. It is not always the fastest runner that wins the race. It is not always those who begin suddenly in religion, and profess themselves rejoicing Christians, who continue steadfast to the end. Slow work is sometimes the surest and most enduring. Nicodemus stood firm, when Judas Iscariot fell away and went to his own place. No doubt it would be a pleasant thing, if everybody who was converted came out boldly, took up the cross, and confessed Christ in the day of his conversion. But it is not always given to God’s children to do so.
   Have we any grace in our hearts at all? This, after all, is the grand question that concerns us. It may be small,—but have we any? It may grow slowly, as in the case of Nicodemus,—but does it grow at all? Better a little grace than none! Better move slowly than stand still in sin and the world!

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007).

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Petitionary Hymns
Poem XXI.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Chain’d to the world, to sin ty’d down,
   In darkness still I lie;
Lord, break my bonds, Lord give me wings,
   And teach me how to fly.

Instruct my feeble hands to war,
   In me thy strength reveal,
To put my ev’ry lust to death,
   And fight thy battles well.

Rend ev’ry veil that shades thy face,
   Put on thine helmet, Lord;
My sin shall fall, my guilt expire,
   Beneath thy conqu’ring sword.

Thou art the mighty God of hosts,
   Whose counsels never fail;
Be thou my glorious chief, and then
   I cannot but prevail.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

John 6:60–65

Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, “Does this cause you to stumble? 62 What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him. 65 And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

We learn from these verses that some of Christ’s sayings seem hard to flesh and blood. We are told that “many” who had followed our Lord for a season, were offended when He spoke of “eating his flesh and drinking his blood.” They murmured and said, “This is an hard saying; who can hear it?”
   Murmurs and complaints of this kind are very common. It must never surprise us to hear them. They have been, they are, they will be as long as the world stands. To some Christ’s sayings appear hard to understand. To others, as in the present case, they appear hard to believe, and harder still to obey. It is just one of the many ways in which the natural corruption of man shows itself. So long as the heart is naturally proud, worldly, unbelieving, and fond of self-indulgence, if not of sin, so long there will never be lacking people who will say of Christian doctrines and precepts, “These are hard sayings; who can hear them?”
   Humility is the frame of mind which we should labour and pray for, if we would not be offended by scriptural teaching. If we find any of Christ’s sayings hard to understand, we should humbly remember our present ignorance, and believe that we shall know more by and bye. If we find any of His sayings difficult to obey, we should humbly recollect that He will never require of us impossibilities, and that what He bids us do, He will give us grace to perform.
   We learn, secondly, from these verses, that we must beware of putting a carnal meaning on spiritual words. We read that our Lord said to the murmuring Jews who stumbled at the idea of eating His flesh and drinking His blood, “It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.”
   It is useless to deny that this verse is full of difficulties. It contains expressions “hard to be understood.” It is far more easy to have a general impression of the meaning of the whole sentence, than to explain it word by word. Some things nevertheless we can see clearly and grasp firmly. Let us consider what they are.
   Our Lord says, “It is the Spirit that quickeneth.” By this He means that it is the Holy Ghost who is the special author of spiritual life in man’s soul. By His agency it is first imparted, and afterwards sustained and kept up. If the Jews thought He meant that man could have spiritual life by bodily eating or drinking, they were greatly mistaken.
   Our Lord says, “The flesh profiteth nothing.” By this He means that neither His flesh nor any other flesh, literally eaten, can do good to the soul. Spiritual benefit is not to be had through the mouth, but through the heart. The soul is not a material thing, and cannot therefore be nourished by material food.
   Our Lord says, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” By this He signifies that His words and teachings, applied to the heart by the Holy Spirit, are the true means of producing spiritual influence and conveying spiritual life. By words thoughts are begotten and aroused. By words mind and conscience are stirred. And Christ’s words especially are spirit-stirring and life-giving.
   The principle contained in this verse, however faintly we may grasp its full meaning, deserves peculiar attention in these times. There is a tendency in many minds to attach an excessive importance to the outward and visible or “doing” part of religion. They seem to think that the sum and substance of Christianity consists in Baptism and the Supper of the Lord, in public ceremonies and forms, in appeals to the eye and ear and bodily excitement. Surely they forget that it is “the Spirit that quickeneth,” and that the “flesh profiteth nothing.” It is not so much by noisy public demonstrations, as by the still quiet work of the Holy Spirit on hearts that God’s cause prospers. It is Christ’s words entering into consciences, which “are spirit and life.”
   We learn, lastly, from these verses, that Christ has a perfect knowledge of the hearts of men. We read that “He knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.”
   Sentences like this are found so frequently in the Gospels that we are apt to underrate their importance. Yet there are few truths which we shall find it so good for our souls to remember as that which is contained in the sentence before us. The Saviour with whom we have to do is one who knows all things!
   What light this throws on the marvelous patience of the Lord Jesus in the days of His earthly ministry! He knew the sorrow and humiliation before Him, and the manner of His death. He knew the unbelief and treachery of some who professed to be His familiar friends. But “for the joy that was set before Him” he endured it all. (Heb. xii. 2.)
   What light this throws on the folly of hypocrisy and false profession in religion! Let those who are guilty of it recollect that they cannot deceive Christ. He sees them, knows them, and will expose them at the last day, except they repent. Whatever we are as Christians, and however weak, let us be real, true, and sincere.
   Finally, what light this throws on the daily pilgrimage of all true Christians! Let them take comfort in the thought that their Master knows them. However much unknown and misunderstood by the world, their Master knows their hearts, and will comfort them at the last day. Happy is he who, in spite of many infirmities, can say with Peter: “Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee.” (John xxi. 17.)

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007).

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Petitionary Hymns
Poem  XX. Christ the Light of his People.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

I Lift my heart and eyes to thee,
   Jesus, thou unextinguished light:
My lantern, guide, and leader be,
   My cloud by day, my fire by night.

Glory of Israel, shine within,
   Unshadow’d, uneclips’d appear;
O let thy beams dispel my sin,
   Direct me by a friendly star.

   The world a maze and lab’rinth is,
Be thou my thread and faithful clue;
   Thy kingdom and thy righteousness
The only objects I pursue.
   
Light of the Gentiles, thee I hail!
   Essential light, thyself impart!
Spirit of light, his face reveal;
   And set thy signet on my heart.

Thy office is to enlighten man,
   And point him to the heavenly prize;
The hidden things of God t’ explain,
   And chase the darkness from our eyes.

   Shew me I have the better part,
The treasure hid with Christ in God;
   Give me a perfect peace of heart,
And pardon through my Saviour’s blood.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

John 6:15–21

Christ Walks on the Water
Mt 14:22–23; Mk6:45–52

So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.    16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17 and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 19 Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. 20 But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

We should notice, in these verses, our Lord Jesus Christ’s humility. We are told that, after feeding the multitude, He “perceived that they would come and take him by force to make him a king.” At once He departed, and left them. He wanted no such honours as these. He had come, “not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many.” (Matt. xx. 28.)
   We see the same spirit and frame of mind all through our Lord’s earthly ministry. From His cradle to His grave He was “clothed with humility.” (1 Pet. v. 5.) He was born of a poor woman, and spent the first thirty years of His life in a carpenter’s house at Nazareth. He was followed by poor companions,—many of them no better than fishermen. He was poor in his manner of living: “The foxes had holes, and the birds of the air their nests,—but the Son of man had not where to lay his head” (Matt. viii. 20.) When He went on the Sea of Galilee, it was in a borrowed boat. When He rode into Jerusalem, it was on a borrowed ass. When He was buried, it was in a borrowed tomb. “Though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor.” (2 Cor. viii. 9.)
   The example is one which ought to be far more remembered than it is. How common are pride, and ambition, and high-mindedness! How rare are humility and lowly-mindedness! How few ever refuse greatness when offered to them! How many are continually seeking great things for themselves, and forgetting the injunction—“Seek them not!” (Jer. xlv. 5.) Surely it was not for nothing that our Lord, after washing the disciples’ feet, said,—“I have given you an example that ye should do as I have done.” (John xiii. 15.) There is little, it may be feared, of that feet-washing spirit among Christians. But whether men will hear or forbear, humility is the queen of the graces. “Tell me,” it has been said, “how much humility a man has, and I will tell you how much religion he has.” Humility is the first step toward heaven, and the true way to honour. “He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” (Luke xviii. 14.)
   We should notice, secondly, in these verses, the trials through which Christ’s disciples had to pass. We are told that they were sent over the lake by themselves, while their Master tarried behind. And then we see them alone in a dark night, tossed about by a great wind on stormy waters, and, worst of all, Christ not with them. It was a strange transition. From witnessing a mighty miracle, and helping it instrumentally, amid an admiring crowd, to solitude, darkness, winds, waves, storm, anxiety, and danger, the change was very great! But Christ knew it, and Christ appointed it, and it was working for their good.
   Trial, we must distinctly understand, is part of the diet which all true Christians must expect. It is one of the means by which their grace is proved, and by which they find out what there is in themselves. Winter as well as summer,—cold as well as heat,—clouds as well as sunshine,—are all necessary to bring the fruit of the Spirit to ripeness and maturity. We do not naturally like this. We would rather cross the lake with calm weather and favourable winds, with Christ always by our side, and the sun shining down on our faces. But it may not be. It is not in this way that God’s children are made “partakers of His holiness.” (Heb. xii. 10.) Abraham, and Jacob, and Moses, and David, and Job were all men of many trials. Let us be content to walk in their footsteps, and to drink of their cup. In our darkest hours we may seem to be left,—but we are never really alone.
   Let us notice, in the last place, our Lord Jesus Christ’s power over the waves of the sea. He came to His disciples as they were rowing on the stormy lake, “walking on” the waters. He walked on them as easily as we walk on dry land. They bore Him as firmly as the pavement of the Temple, or the hills around Nazareth. That which is contrary to all natural reason was perfectly possible to Christ.
   The Lord Jesus, we must remember, is not only the Lord, but the Maker of all creation. “All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.” (John i. 3.) It was just as easy for Him to walk on the sea as to form the sea at the beginning,—just as easy to suspend the common laws of nature, as they are called, as to impose those laws at the first. Learned men talk solemn nonsense sometimes about the eternal fixity of the “laws of nature,” as if they were above God Himself, and could never be suspended. It is well to be reminded sometimes by such miracles as that before us, that these so-called “laws of nature” are neither immutable nor eternal. They had a beginning, and will one day have an end.
   Let all true Christians take comfort in the thought that their Saviour is Lord of waves and winds, of storms and tempests, and can come to them in the darkest hour, “walking upon the sea.” There are waves of trouble far heavier than any on the Lake of Galilee. There are days of darkness which test the faith of the holiest Christian. But let us never despair if Christ is our Friend. He can come to our aid in an hour when we do not think, and in ways that we did not expect. And when He comes, all will be calm.  

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007), 3:334–337.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XIX. After being surprised into Sin.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Ah! Give me, Lord, myself to see,
   Against myself to watch and pray,
How weak am I, when left by thee,
   How frail, how apt to fall away!
If but a moment thou withdraw,
That moment sees me break thy law.

Jesus, the sinner’s only trust,
   Let me now feel thy grace infus’d!
Ah! raise a captive from the dust,
   Nor break a reed already bruis’d!
Visit me, Lord, in peace again,
Nor let me seek thy face in vain.

O gracious Lord, now let me find
   Peace and salvation in thy name;
Be thou the eye-sight of the blind,
   The staff and ancles of the lame;
My lifter up whene’er I fall,
My strength, my portion, and my all.

Let thy meek mind descend on me,
   Thy Holy Spirit from above:
Assist me, Lord, to follow thee,
   Drawn by th’ endearing cords of love
Made perfect by thy cleansing blood,
Completely sav’d and born of God.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

The Gospel According to John

Christ Heals the Paralytic Man

5 After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
   2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3 In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, [waiting for the moving of the waters; 4 for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.] 5 A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” 7 The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” 9 Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.

Christ Heals on the Sabbath

We have in this passage one of the few miracles of Christ, which St. John records. Like every other miracle in this Gospel, it is described with great minuteness and particularity. And like more than one other miracle it leads on to a discourse full of singularly deep instruction.
   We are taught, for one thing, in this passage, what misery sin has brought into the world. We read of a man who had been ill for no less than thirty-eight years! For eight-and-thirty weary summers and winters he had endured pain and infirmity. He had seen others healed at the waters of Bethesda, and going to their homes rejoicing. But for him there had been no healing. Friendless, helpless, and hopeless, he lay near the wonder-working waters, but derived no benefit from them. Year after year passed away, and left him still uncured. No relief or change for the better seemed likely to come, except from the grave.
   When we read of cases of sickness like this, we should remember how deeply we ought to hate sin! Sin was the original root, and cause, and fountain of every disease in the world. God did not create man to be full of aches, and pains, and infirmities. These things are the fruits of the Fall. There would have been no sickness, if there had been no sin.
   No greater proof can be shown of man’s inbred unbelief, than his carelessness about sin. “Fools,” says the wise man, “make a mock at sin.” (Pro. xiv. 9.) Thousands delight in things which are explicitly evil, and run greedily after that which is downright poison. They love that which God abhors, and dislike that which God loves. They are like the madman, who loves his enemies and hates his friends. Their eyes are blinded. Surely if men would only look at hospitals and infirmaries, and think what havoc sin has made on this earth, they would never take pleasure in sin as they do.
   Well may we be told to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom! Well may we be told to long for the second advent of Jesus Christ! Then, and not until then, shall there be no more curse on the earth, no more suffering, no more sorrow, and no more sin. Tears shall be wiped from the faces of all who love Christ’s appearing, when their Master returns. Weakness and infirmity shall all pass away. Hope deferred shall no longer make hearts sick. There will be no chronic invalids and incurable cases, when Christ has renewed this earth.
   We are taught, for another thing, in this passage, how great is the mercy and compassion of Christ. He “saw” the poor sufferer lying in the crowd. Neglected, overlooked, and forgotten in the great multitude, he was observed by the all-seeing eye of Christ. “He knew” full well, by His Divine knowledge, how long he had been “in that case,” and pitied him. He spoke to him unexpectedly, with words of gracious sympathy. He healed him by miraculous power, at once and without tedious delay, and sent him home rejoicing.
   This is just one among many examples of our Lord Jesus Christ’s kindness and compassion. He is full of undeserved, unexpected, abounding love towards man. “He delighteth in mercy.” (Micah vii. 18.) He is far more ready to save than man is to be saved, far more willing to do good than man is to receive it.
   No one ever need be afraid of beginning the life of a true Christian, if he feels disposed to begin. Let him not hang back and delay, under the vain idea that Christ is not willing to receive him. Let him come boldly, and trust confidently. He who healed the cripple at Bethesda is still the same.
   We are taught, lastly, the lesson that recovery from sickness ought to impress upon us. That lesson is contained in the solemn words which our Saviour addressed to the man He had cured: “Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.”
   Every sickness and sorrow is the voice of God speaking to us. Each has its peculiar message. Happy are they who have an eye to see God’s hand, and an ear to hear His voice, in all that happens to them. Nothing in this world happens by chance.
   And as it is with sickness, so it is with recovery. Renewed health should send us back to our post in the world with a deeper hatred of sin, a more thorough watchfulness over our own ways, and a more constant purpose of mind to live for God. Far too often the excitement and novelty of returning health tempt us to forget the vows and intentions of the sick-room. There are spiritual dangers attending a recovery! Well would it be for us all after illness to grave these words on our hearts, “Let me sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto me.”
   Let us leave the passage with grateful hearts, and bless God that we have such a Gospel and such a Saviour as the Bible reveals.—Are we ever sick and ill? Let us remember that Christ sees, and knows, and can heal as He thinks fit.—Are we ever in trouble? Let us hear in our trouble the voice of God, and learn to hate sin more.

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007), 3:265–268.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XVIII.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

From Justice’s consuming flame,
   Saviour, I fly to thee;
O look not on me as I am,
   But as I fain would be.

Deserted in the way I lie,
   No cure for me is found:
Thou, good Samaritan, pass by,
   And bind up every wound.

O may I in the final day
   At thy right-hand appear!
Take thou my sins out of the way,
   Who didst the burden bear.

What though the fiery serpent’s bite
   Hath poisoned ev’ry vein—
I’ll not despair, but keep in sight
   The wounds of Jesus slain.

My soul thou wilt from death retrieve,
   For sorrow grant me joy,
Thy power is mightier to save
   Than Satan’s to destroy.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

John 3:22–36
John the Baptist Witnesses Concerning Christ

On one account, this passage deserves the special attention of all devout readers of the Bible. It contains the last testimony of John the Baptist concerning our Lord Jesus Christ. That faithful man of God was the same at the end of his ministry that he was at the beginning—the same in his views of self,—the same in his views of Christ. Happy is that church whose ministers are as steady, bold, and constant to one thing, as John the Baptist!
   We have, firstly, in these verses, a humbling example of the petty jealousies and party-spirit which may exist among professors of religion. We are told, that the disciples of John the Baptist were offended, because the ministry of Jesus began to attract more attention than that of their master. “They came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.”
   The spirit exhibited in this complaint, is unhappily too common in the Churches of Christ. The succession of these complainers has never failed. There are never lacking religions professors who care far more for the increase of their own party, than for the increase of true Christianity; and who cannot rejoice in the spread of religion, if it spreads anywhere except within their own denomination. There is a generation which can see no good being done, except in the ranks of its own congregations; and which seems ready to shut men out of heaven, if they will not enter therein under their banner.
   The true Christian must watch and pray against the spirit here manifested by John’s disciples. It is very insidious, very contagious, and very injurious to the cause of religion. Nothing so defiles Christianity and gives the enemies of truth such occasion to blaspheme, as jealousy and party-spirit among Christians. Wherever there is real grace, we should be ready and willing to acknowledge it, even though it may be outside our own pale. We should strive to say with the apostle, “If Christ be preached, I rejoice, yea! and will rejoice.” (Phil. i. 18.) If good is done, we ought to be thankful, though it even may not be done in what we think the best way. If souls are saved, we ought to be glad, whatever be the means that God may think fit to employ.
   We have, secondly, in these verses, a splendid pattern of true and godly humility. We see in John the Baptist a very different spirit from that displayed by his disciples. He begins by laying down the great principle, that acceptance with man is a special gift of God; and that we must therefore not presume to find fault, when others have more acceptance than ourselves. “A man can receive nothing except it be given him from heaven.” He goes on to remind his followers of his repeated declaration, that one greater than himself was coming;— “I said, I am not the Christ.” He tells those who his office compared to that of Christ, is that of the bridegroom’s friend, compared to the bridegroom. And finally, he solemnly affirms, that Christ must and will become greater and greater, and that he himself must become less and less important, until, like a star eclipsed by the rising sun, he has completely disappeared.
   A frame of mind like this, is the highest degree of grace to which mortal man can attain. The greatest saint in the sight of God, is the man who is most thoroughly “clothed with humility.” (1 Peter v. 5.) Would we know the prime secret of being men of the stamp of Abraham, and Moses, and Job, and David, and Daniel, and St. Paul, and John the Baptist? They were all eminently humble men. Living at different ages, and enjoying very different degrees of light, in this matter at least they were all agreed. In themselves they saw nothing but sin and weakness. To God they gave all the praise of what they were. Let us walk in their steps. Let us covet earnestly the best gifts; but above all, let us covet humility. The way to true honour is to be humble. No man ever was so praised by Christ, as the very man who says here, “I must decrease,” the humble John the Baptist.
   We have, thirdly, in these verses, an instructive declaration of Christ’s honour and dignity. John the Baptist teaches his disciples once more, the true greatness of the Person whose growing popularity offended them. Once more, and perhaps for the last time, he proclaims Him as one worthy of all honour and praise. He uses one striking expression after another, to convey a correct idea of the majesty of Christ. He speaks of Him as “the bridegroom” of the Church,—as “him that comes from above,”—as “him whom God has sent,”—as “him to whom the Spirit is given without measure,”—as Him “whom the Father loves,” and into “whose hands all things are given,”—to believe in whom is life everlasting, and to reject whom is eternal ruin. Each of these phrases is full of deep meaning, and would supply matter for a long sermon. All show the depth and height of John’s spiritual attainments. More honourable things are nowhere written concerning Jesus, than these verses recorded as spoken by John the Baptist.
   Let us endeavor in life and death, to hold the same views of the Lord Jesus, to which John here gives expression. We can never make too much of Christ. Our thoughts about the Church, the ministry, and the sacraments, may easily become too high and extravagant. We can never have too high thoughts about Christ, can never love Him too much, trust Him too implicitly, lay too much weight upon Him, and speak too highly in His praise. He is worthy of all the honour that we can give Him. He will be all in heaven. Let us see to it, that He is all in our hearts on earth.
   We have, lastly, in these verses, a broad assertion of the nearness and presentness of the salvation of true Christians. John the Baptist declares, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” He is not intended to look forward with a sick heart to a far distant privilege. He “hath” everlasting life as soon as he believes. Pardon, peace, and a complete title to Heaven, are an immediate possession. They become a believer’s own, from the very moment he puts faith in Christ. They will not be more completely his own, if he lives to the age of Methuselah.
   The truth before us, is one of the most glorious privileges of the Gospel. There are no works to be done, no conditions to be fulfilled, no price to be paid, no wearing years of probation to be passed, before a sinner can be accepted with God. Let him only believe on Christ, and he is at once forgiven. Salvation is close to the chief of sinners. Let him only repent and believe, and this day it is his own. By Christ all that believe are at once justified from all things.
   Let us leave the whole passage with one grave and heart-searching thought. If faith in Christ brings with it present and immediate privileges, to remain unbelieving is to be in a state of tremendous peril. If heaven is very near to the believer, hell must be very near to the unbeliever. The greater the mercy that the Lord Jesus offers, the greater will be the guilt of those who neglect and reject it. “He that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007), 3:169–173.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XVII.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

O may I never rest
   Till I find rest in thee;
’Till of my pardon here possess’d
   I feel thy love to me!
Unseal my darken’d eyes,
   My fetter’d feet unbind,
The lame shall, when thou say’st “Arise,”
   Run swifter than the hind.

O draw the alien near,
   Bend the obdurate neck,
O melt the flint into a tear,
   And teach the dumb to speak:
Turn not thy face away.
   Thy look can make me clean;
Me in thy wedding robe array,
   And cover all my sin.

Tell me, my God, for whom
   Thy precious blood was shed;
For sinners! Lord, as such I come,
   For such the Saviour bled:
Then raise a fallen wretch,
   Display thy grace in me!
I am not out of mercy’s reach,
   Nor too far gone for thee.

Thou quickly wilt forgive,
   My Lord will not delay;
Jesus, to thee the time I leave,
   And wait the accepted day:
I now rejoice in hope
   That I shall be made clean:
Thy grace shall surely lift me up
   Above the reach of sin.

Hast thou not died for me,
   And call’d me from below!
O help me to lay hold on thee,
   And ne’er to let ,thee go!
Though on the billows toss’d,
   My Saviour I’ll pursue:
Awhile submit to bear his cross,
   Then share his glory too.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

John 1:35–42
Andrew and Peter follow Christ

These verses ought always to be interesting to every true Christian. They describe the first beginnings of the Christian Church. Vast as that church is now, there was a time when it consisted of only two weak members. The calling of those two members is described in the passage which is now before our eyes.
   We see, for one thing, in these verses, what good is done by continually testifying of Christ.
   The first time that John the Baptist cried, “Behold the Lamb of God,” no result appears to have followed. We are not told of any who heard, inquired, and believed. But when he repeated the same words the next day, we read that two of his disciples “heard him speak and followed Jesus.” They were received most graciously by Him whom they followed. “They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day.” Truly it was a day in their lives most eventful, and most blessed! From that day they became fast and firm disciples of the new-found Messiah. They took up the cross. They continued with Him in His temptations. They followed Him wherever He went. One of them at least, if not both, became a chosen apostle, and a master builder in the Christian temple. And all was owing to John the Baptist’s testimony, “Behold the lamb of God.” That testimony was a little seed. But it bore mighty fruits.
   This simple story is a pattern of the way in which good has been done to souls in every age of the Christian Church. By such testimony as that before us, and by none else, men and women are converted and saved. It is by exalting Christ, not the church,—Christ, not the sacraments,—Christ, not the ministry,—it is by this means that hearts are moved, and sinners are turned to God. To the world such testimony may seem weakness and foolishness. Yet, like the ram’s horns, before whose blast the walls of Jericho fell down, this testimony is mighty to the pulling down of strongholds. The story of the crucified Lamb of God has proved in every age, the power of God unto salvation. Those who have done most for Christ’s cause in every part of the world, have been men like John the Baptist. They have not cried, Behold me, or Behold the church, or Behold the ordinances, but “Behold the Lamb.” If souls are to be saved, men must be pointed directly to Christ.
   One thing, however, must never be forgotten. There must be patient continuance in preaching and teaching the truth, if we want good to be done. Christ must be set forth again and again, as the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” The story of grace must be told repeatedly,—line upon line, and precept upon precept. It is the constant dropping which wears away the stone. The promise shall never be broken, that “God’s word shall not return unto him void.” (Isaiah lv. 11.) But it is nowhere said that it shall do good the very first time that it is preached. It was not the first proclamation of John the Baptist, but the second, which made Andrew and his companion follow Jesus.
   We see, for another thing, what good a believer may do to others, by speaking to them about Christ.
   No sooner does Andrew become a disciple, than he tells his brother Simon what a discovery he has made. Like one who has unexpectedly heard good tidings, he hastens to impart it to the one nearest and dearest to him. He says to his brother, “We have found the Messias,” and he “brings him to Jesus.” Who can tell what might have happened if Andrew had been of a silent, reserved, and uncommunicative spirit, like many a Christian in the present day? Who can tell but his brother might have lived and died a fisherman on the Galilean lake? But happily for Simon, Andrew was not a man of this sort. He was one whose heart was so full that he must speak.
   And to Andrew’s out-spoken testimony, under God, the great apostle Peter owed the first beginning of light in his soul.
   The fact before us is most striking and instructive. Out of the three first members of the Christian Church, one at least was brought to Jesus, by the private, quiet word of a relative. He seems to have heard no public preaching. He saw no mighty miracle wrought. He was not convinced by any powerful reasoning. He only heard his brother telling him that he had found a Saviour himself, and at once the work began in his soul. The simple testimony of a warm-hearted brother was the first link in the chain by which Peter was drawn out of the world, and joined to Christ. The first blow in that mighty work by which Peter was made a pillar of the Church, was struck by Andrew’s words, “We have found the Christ.”
   Well would it be for the Church of Christ, if all believers were more like Andrew! Well would it be for souls if all men and women who have been converted themselves, would speak to their friends and relatives on spiritual subjects, and tell them what they have found! How much good might be done! How many might be led to Jesus, who now live and die in unbelief! The work of testifying the Gospel of the grace of God ought not to be left to ministers alone. All who have received mercy ought to find a tongue, and to declare what God has done for their souls. All who have been delivered from the power of the devil, ought to “go home and tell their friends what great things God has done for them.” (Mark v. 19.) Thousands, humanly speaking, would listen to a word from a friend, who will not listen to a sermon. Every believer ought to be a home-missionary, a missionary to his family, children, servants, neighbors, and friends. Surely, if we can find nothing to say to others about Jesus, we may well doubt whether we are savingly acquainted with Him ourselves.
   Let us take heed that we are among those who really follow Christ, and abide with Him. It is not enough to hear Him preached from the pulpit, and to read of Him as described in books. We must actually follow Him, pour out our hearts before Him, and hold personal communion with Him. Then, and not until then, we shall feel constrained to speak of Him to others. The man who only knows Christ by the hearing of the ear, will never do much for the spread of Christ’s cause in the earth.

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007), 3:68–70.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XV. Self Dedication.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Jesus, my Saviour, fill my heart
   With nothing else but thee;
Now thy saving pow’r exert,
   And more than conquer me:
Each intruding rival kill,
   That Minders or obstructs thy reign:
All thy glorious might reveal,
   And make me pure within.

Through my soul in mercy shine,
   Thine Holy Spirit give;
Let him witness, Lord, with mine
   That I in Jesus live;
Set me free from Satan’s load,
   The gift of Liberty dispense,
In my heart O shed abroad
   Thy quick’ning influence.

Let the gifts bestow’d on me,
   Live to thy praise alone;
Lord, the talents lent by thee
   Are thine and not my own:
May I in thy service spend
   All the graces thou has given,
Taken up, when time shall end,
   To live and reign in heaven.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Having finished the Psalms from the Geneva Bible, I am now going to begin the Gospel of John. I’ll be using the NASB, and including commentary from J. C. Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels.

The Gospel According to John

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

The Gospel of John, which begins with these verses, is in many respects very unlike the other three Gospels. It contains many things which they omit. It omits many things which they contain. Good reason might easily be shown for this unlikeness. But it is enough to remember that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John wrote under the direct inspiration of God. In the general plan of their respective Gospels, and in the particular details,—in everything that they record, and in everything that they do not record,—they were all four equally and entirely guided by the Holy Spirit.
   About the matters which John was specially inspired to relate in his Gospel, one general remark will suffice. The things which are peculiar to his Gospel are among the most precious possessions of the Church of Christ. No one of the four Gospel-writers has given us such full statements about the divinity of Christ,—about justification by faith,—about the offices of Christ,—about the work of the Holy Ghost,—and about the privileges of believers, as we read in the pages of St. John. On none of these great subjects, undoubtedly, have Matthew, Mark, and Luke been silent. But in St. John’s Gospel, they stand out prominently on the surface, so that he who runs may read.
   The five verses now before us contain a statement of matchless sublimity concerning the divine nature of our Lord Jesus Christ. He it is, beyond all question, whom St. John means, when he speaks of “the Word.” No doubt there are heights and depths in that statement which are far beyond man’s understanding. And yet there are plain lessons in it, which every Christian would do well to treasure up in his mind.
   We learn, firstly, that our Lord Jesus Christ is eternal. St. John tells as that “in the beginning was the Word.” He did not begin to exist when the heavens and the earth were made. Much less did He begin to exist when the Gospel was brought into the world. He had glory with the Father “before the world was.” (John xvii. 5.) He was existing when matter was first created, and before time began. He was “before all things.” (Col. i. 17.) He was from all eternity.
   We learn, secondly, that our Lord Jesus Christ is a Person distinct from God the Father, and yet one with Him. St. John tells us that “the Word was with God.” The Father and the Word, though two persons, are joined by an ineffable union. Where God the Father was from all eternity, there also was the Word, even God the Son,—their glory equal, their majesty co-eternal, and yet their Godhead one This is a great mystery! Happy is he who can receive it as a little child, without attempting to explain it.
   We learn, thirdly, that the Lord Jesus Christ is very God. St. John tells us that “the Word was God.” He is not merely a created angel, or a being inferior to God the Father, and invested by Him with power to redeem sinners. He is nothing less than perfect God,—equal to the father as touching His Godhead,—God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds.
   We learn, fourthly, that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Creator of all things. St. John tells us that “by Him were all things made, and without Him was not any thing made that was made.” So far from being a creature of God, as some heretics have falsely asserted, He is the Being who made the worlds and all that they contain. “He commanded and they were created.” (Psalm xl. 8.)
   We learn, lastly, that the Lord Jesus Christ is the source of all spiritual life and light. St. John tells us, that “in Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” He is the eternal fountain, from which alone the sons of men have ever derived life. Whatever spiritual life and light Adam and Eve possessed before the fall, was from Christ. Whatever deliverance from sin and spiritual death any child of Adam has ever enjoyed since the fall, whatever light of conscience or understanding any one has obtained, all has flowed from Christ. The vast majority of mankind in every age have refused to know Him, have forgotten the fall, and their own need of a Savior. The light has been constantly shining "in darkness." The most have "not comprehended the light." But if any men and women out of the countless millions of mankind have ever had spiritual life and light, they have owed all to Christ.
   Such is a brief summary of the leading lessons which these wonderful verses appear to contain. There is much in them, without controversy, which is above our reason but there is nothing contrary to it. There is much that we cannot explain, and must be content humbly to believe. Let us however never forget that there are plain practical consequences flowing from the passage, which we can never grasp to firmly, or know too well.
   Would we know, for one thing, the exceeding sinfulness of sin? Let us often read these first five verses of St. John’s Gospel. Let us mark what kind of Being the Redeemer of mankind must needs be, in order to provide eternal redemption for sinners. If no one less than the Eternal God, the Creator and Preserver of all things, could take away the sin of the world, sin must be a far more abominable thing in the sight of God than most men suppose. The right measure of sin’s sinfulness is the dignity of Him who came into the world to save sinners. If Christ is so great, then sin must indeed be sinful!
   Would we know, for another thing, the strength of a true Christian’s foundation for hope? Let us often read these first five verses of St. John’s Gospel. Let us mark that the Saviour in whom the believer is bid to trust is nothing less than the Eternal God, One able to save to the uttermost all that come to the Father by Him. He that was “with God,” and “was God,” is also “Emmanuel, God with us.” Let us thank God that our help is laid on One that is mighty. (Psalm lxxxix. 19.) In ourselves we are great sinners. But in Jesus Christ we have a great Saviour. He is a strong foundation-stone, able to bear the weight of a world’s sin. He that believeth on Him shall not be confounded. (1 Peter ii. 6.)

—J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels (Baker Books, 2007), 3:1–4

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XIV.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

SUPREME High Priest, the pilgrim’s light,
   My heart for thee prepare,
Thine image stamp, and deeply write
   Thy superscription there.

Ah! let my forehead bear thy seal,
   My arm thy badge retain,
My heart the inward witness feel
   That I am born again!

Thy peace, O Saviour, shed abroad,
   That every want supplies:
Then from its guilt my soul renew’d,
   Shall, phœnix like, arise.

Into thy humble mansion come.
   Set up thy dwelling here:
Possess my heart, and leave no room
   For sin to harbour there.

Ah! give me, Lord, the single eye,
   Which aims at nought but thee:
I fain would live, and yet not I—
   Let Jesus live in me.

Like Noah’s dove, no rest I find
   But in thy ark of peace;
Thy cross the balance of my mind,
   Thy wounds my hiding-place.

In vain the tempter spreads the snare,
   If thou my keeper art:
Get thee behind me, God is near,
   My Saviour takes my part!

On him my spirit I recline,
   Who put my nature on;
His light shall in my darkness shine,
   And guide me to his throne.

O that the penetrating sight,
   And eagle’s eye were mine
Undazzled at the boundless light
   I’d see his glory shine!

Ev’n now , by faith, I see him live
   To crown the conquering few;
Nor let me linger here, but strive
   To gain the prize in view.

Add, Saviour, to the eagle’s eye,
   The clove’s aspiring wing,
To bear me upwards to the sky,
   Thy praises there to sing!

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 119:129–136
(Geneva Bible)
Pe.
129 Thy testimonies are wonderfull: therefore doeth my soule keepe them.
130 The entrance into thy wordes sheweth light, and giueth vnderstanding to the simple.
131 I opened my mouth and panted, because I loued thy commandements.
132 Looke vpon mee and bee mercifull vnto me, as thou vsest to doe vnto those that loue thy Name.
133 Direct my steppes in thy worde, and let none iniquitie haue dominion ouer me.
134 Deliuer mee from the oppression of men, and I will keepe thy precepts.
135 Shew the light of thy countenance vpon thy seruant, and teache me thy statutes.
136 Mine eyes gush out with riuers of water, because they keepe not thy Lawe.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XIII.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Father, to thee In Christ I fly,
What tho’ my sins of crimson dye
   For thy resentment call?
My crimes he did on Calv’ry bear,
The blood that flow’d for sinners there
   Shall cleanse me from them all.

Spirit divine, thy pow’r bring in,
O raise me from this depth of sin,
   Take off my guilty load:
Now let me live through Jesu’s death,
And being justified by faith,
   May I have peace with God!

Foul as I am, deserving hell,
Thou cans’t not from thy throne repel
   A soul that leans on God:
My sins at thy command shall be
Cast as a stone into the sea—
   The sea of Jesu’s blood.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 119:81–88
(Geneva Bible)
Caph.
81 My soule fainteth for thy saluation: yet I waite for thy worde.
82 Mine eyes faile for thy promise, saying, when wilt thou comfort me?
83 For I am like a bottell in the smoke: yet doe I not forget thy statutes.
84 Howe many are the dayes of thy seruant? When wilt thou execute iudgement on them that persecute me?
85 The proude haue digged pittes for mee, which is not after thy Lawe.
86 All thy commandements are true: they persecute me falsely: helpe me.
87 They had almost consumed me vpon the earth: but I forsooke not thy precepts.
88 Quicken me according to thy louing kindnes: so shall I keepe the testimony of thy mouth.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XII. O that my ways were made so direct, &c.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

O that my ways were made so strait,
   And that the lamp of faith
Would, as a star, direct my feet
   Within the narrow path!

O that thy strength might enter now,
   And in my heart abide,
To make me as a faithful bow
   That never starts aside!

O that I all to Christ were given,
   (From sin and earth set free)
Who kindly laid aside his heaven,
   And gave himself for me!

Not more the panting hart desires
   The cool, refreshing stream
Than my dry, thirsty soul aspires
   At being one with him.

Set up thine image in my heart;
   Thy temple let us be,
Bid every idol now depart
   That fain would rival thee.

Still keep me In the heavenly path
   Bestow the inward light;
And lead me by the hand till faith
   Is ripened into sight.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 119:33–40
(Geneva Bible)
He.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM XI. Matt. viii. 25. Lord, save us, we perish.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Pilot of the soul, awake,
Save us for thy mercies’ sake;
Now rebuke the angry deep,
Save, O save thy sinking ship!

Stand at the helm, our vessel steer,
Mighty on our side appear
Saviour, teach us to descry
Where the rocks and quicksands lie.

The waves shall impotently roll,
If thou ’rt the anchor of the soul:
At thy word the wind shall cease,
Storms be hush’d to perfect peace.

Be thou our haven of retreat,
A rock to fix our wav’ring feet,
Teach us to own thy sovereign sway,
Whom the winds and seas obey.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 84 (Geneva Bible)
To him that excelleth upon Gittith.
A Psalme committed to the sonnes of Korah.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM X. Desiring to be given up to God
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

O that my heart was right with thee,
And lov’d thee with a perfect love!
O that my Lord would dwell in me,
And never from his seat remove!
Jesus, remove th’ impending load,
And set my soul on fire for God!

Thou seest I dwell in awful night
Until thou in my heart appear;
Kindle the flame, O Lord, and light
Thine everlasting candle there:
Thy presence puts the shadows by;
If thou art gone, how dark am I!

Ah! Lord, how should thy servant see,
Unless thou give me seeing eyes?
Well may I fall, if out of thee;
If out of thee, how should I rise?
I wander, Lord, without thy aid,
And lose my way in midnight’s shade.

Thy bright, unerring light afford,
A light that gives the sinner hope;
And from the house of bondage, Lord,
O bring the weary captive up,
Thine hand alone can set me free
And reach my pardon out to me.

O let my prayer acceptance find,
And bring the mighty blessing down;
With eye-salve, Lord, anoint the blind,
And seal me thine adopted son:
A fallen, helpless creature take,
And heir of thy salvation make.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 42 (Geneva Bible)
To him that excelleth. A Psalme to give instruction, committed to the sonnes of Korah.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM IX. On War
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Great God, whom heav’n, and earth, and sea
With all their countless hosts, obey,
Upheld by whom the nations stand,
And empires fall at thy command:

Beneath thy long suspended ire
Let papal Antichrist expire;
Thy knowledge spread from sea to sea,
’Till every nation bows to thee.

Then shew thyself the prince of peace,
Make every hostile efforts cease:
All with thy sacred love inspire,
And burn their chariots in the fire.

In sunder break each warlike spear;
Let all the Saviour’s liv’ry wear;
The universal Sabbath prove,
The utmost rest of Christian love!

The world shall then no discord know,
But hand in hand to Canaan go,
Jesus, the peaceful king, adore,
And learn the art of war no more.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 150
(Geneva Bible)

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM VIII. John xiv. 17. He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

Savior, I thy word believe,
   My unbelief remove;
Now thy quick’ning Spirit give,
   The unction from above;
Shew me, Lord, how good thou art,
   My soul with all thy fulness fill:
Send the witness in my heart
   The Holy Ghost reveal.

Dead in sin ’till then I lie,
   Bereft of power to rise;
Till thy Spirit inwardly
   Thy saving blood applies:
Now the mighty gift impart,
   My sin erase, my pardon seal:
Send the witness, in my heart
   The Holy Ghost reveal.

Blessed Comforter, come down,
   And live and move in me;
Make my every deed thy own,
   In all things led by thee:
Bid my every lust depart,
   And with me O vouchsafe to dwell;
Faithful witness, in my heart
   Thy perfect light reveal.

Let me in thy love rejoice,
   Thy shrine, thy pure abode;
Tell me, by thine inward voice,
   That I’m a child of God:
Lord, I choose the better part,
   Jesus, I wait thy peace to feel;
Send the witness in my heart
   The Holy Ghost reveal.

Whom the world cannot receive,
   O manifest in me:
Son of God, I cease to live,
   Unless I live in thee
Now impute thy whole desert,
   Restore the joy from which I fell:
Breathe the witness, in my heart
   The Holy Ghost reveal.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

Psalme 137
(Geneva Bible)

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM VII. In Sickness
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

esus, since I with thee am one,    Confirm my soul in thee, And still continue to tread down    The man of sin in me.

Let not the subtle foe prevail
   In this my feeble hour,
Frustrate all the hopes of hell
   Redeem from Satan’s pow’r.

Arm me, O Lord, from head to foot,
   With righteousness divine;
My soul in Jesus firmly root,
   And seal the Saviour mine.

Proportion’d to my pains below,
   O let my joys increase,
And mercy to my spirit flow
   In healing streams of peace.

In life and death be thou my God,
   And I am more than safe:
Chastis’d by thy paternal rod,
   Support me with thy staff.

Lay on me, Saviour, what thou wilt,
   But give me strength to bear:
Thy gracious hand this cross hath dealt,
   Which cannot be severe.

As gold refin’d may I come out,
   In sorrow’s furnace try’d;
Preserved from faithfulness and doubt,
   And fully purify’d.

When, overwhelm’d with sore distress,
   Out of the pit I cry,
On Jesus suffering in my place
   Help me to fix mine eye.

When marr’d with tears, and blood, and sweat,
   The glorious sufferer lay,
And in my stead sustain’d the heat
   And burden of the day.

The pangs which my weak nature knows
   Are swallow’d up in thine:
How numberless thy pondrous woes!
   How few, how light are mine!

O might I learn of thee to bear
   Temptation, pain and loss!
Give me a heart inur’d to prayer,
   And fitted to the cross.

Make me, O Lord, thy patient son;
   Thy language mine shall be:
“Father, thy gracious will be done,
   I take the cup from thee.”

While thus my soul is fixt on him
   Once fasten’d to the wood,
Safe shall I pass through Jordan’s stream,
   And reach the realms of God.

And when my soul mounts up to keep
   With thee the marriage feast,
I shall not die, but fall asleep
   On my Redeemer’s breast.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 95
(Geneva Bible)

1 Come, let vs reioyce vnto the Lord: let vs sing aloude vnto the rocke of our saluation.
2 Let vs come before his face with praise: let vs sing loude vnto him with Psalmes.
3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King aboue all gods.
4 In whose hande are the deepe places of the earth, and the heightes of the mountaines are his:
5 To whome the Sea belongeth: for hee made it, and his handes formed the dry land.
6 Come, let vs worship and fall downe, and kneele before the Lord our maker.
7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheepe of his hande: to day, if ye will heare his voyce,
8 Harden not your heart, as in Meribah, and as in the day of Massah in the wildernesse.
9 Where your fathers tempted me, proued me, though they had seene my worke.
10 Fourtie yeeres haue I contended with this generation, and said, They are a people that erre in heart, for they haue not knowen my wayes.
11 Wherefore I sware in my wrath, saying, Surely they shall not enter into my rest.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM VI. There Is Mercy with Thee.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

ord, should’st thou weigh my righteousness
Or mark what I have done amiss,
   How should thy servant stand?
Tho’ others might, yet surely I
Must hide my face, nor dare to cry
   For mercy at thy hand.

But thou art loth thy bolts to shoot;
Backward and slow to execute
   The vengeance due to me:
Thou dost not willingly reprove,
For all the mild effects of love
   Are center’d, Lord, in thee.

Shine, then, thou all-subduing light,
The powers of darkness put to flight
   Nor from me ever part:
From earth to heaven be thou my guide,
And O, above each gift beside,
   Give me an upright heart.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 53 (Geneva Bible)
To him that excelleth on Mahalath.
A Psalme of David to give instruction.
1 The foole hath saide in his heart, There is no God. they haue corrupted and done abominable wickednes: there is none that doeth good.
2 God looked downe from heauen vpon the children of men, to see if there were any that would vnderstand, and seeke God.
3 Euery one is gone backe: they are altogether corrupt: there is none that doth good, no not one.
4 Doe not the workers of iniquitie knowe that they eate vp my people as they eate bread? they call not vpon God.
5 There they were afraide for feare, where no feare was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that besieged thee: thou hast put them to confusion, because God hath cast them off.
6 Oh giue saluation vnto Israel out of Zion: when God turneth the captiuitie of his people, then Iaakob shall reioyce, and Israel shalbe glad.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

As the Lord’s Day approaches, I think this excerpt from the Memoirs of the Rev. Augustus Toplady contains some good thoughts for us to think on.

Sunday, 31 [1768]. . . .
   How sweet is the work of the ministry, when attended with the unction of power of the Holy one! My soul has been very barren, ever since last Lord‘s Day; but this sabbath has been a sabbath indeed.
   Spent the evening both agreeably and profitably, in reading the confession of faith, charge, and sermon, delivered at Bristol last August . . . Blessed be God for the advancement of his interest among us, under whatever form. Lord, increase the number of thy faithful witnesses, every where and in every denomination of Protestants!

—Augustus Toplady, The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987), 12.

May each of us, especially those of you who serve in ministry, have such a Lord’s Day, and pray such a prayer.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM V. For the evening.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

od of love, whose truth and grace
   Reach unbounded as the skies,
Hear the creature’s feeble praise,
   Let my evening sacrifice
Mount as incense to thy throne,
On the merits of thy son.

Me thy providence has led
   Through another busy day:
Over me thy wings were spread,
   Chasing sin and death away:
Thou has been my faithful shield,
Thou my footsteps has upheld.

Tho’ the sable veil of night
   Hides the cheering face of heav’n,
Let me triumph in the sight
   Of my guilt in thee forgiv’n
In my heart the witness feel,
See the great invisible.

I will lay me down to sleep,
   Sweetly take my rest in thee,
Ev’ry moment brought a step
   Nearer to eternity:
I shall soon from earth ascend,
Quickly reach my journey’s end.

All my sins imputed were
   To my dear, incarnate God;
Bury’d in his grave they are,
   Drown’d in his atoning blood:
Me thou wilt not now condemn,
Righteous and complete in him.

In the Savior’s right I claim
   All the blessings he hath bought;
For my soul the dying Lamb
   Hath a full redemption wrought;
Heaven through his desert is mine;
Christ’s I am, and Christ is thine!

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 1
(Geneva Bible)

1 Blessed is the man that doeth not walke in the counsell of the wicked, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in ye seate of the scornefull:
2 But his delite is in the Lawe of the Lord, and in his Lawe doeth he meditate day and night.
3 For he shall be like a tree planted by the riuers of waters, that will bring foorth her fruite in due season: whose leafe shall not fade: so whatsoeuer he shall doe, shall prosper.
4 The wicked are not so, but as the chaffe, which the winde driueth away.
5 Therefore the wicked shall not stande in the iudgement, nor sinners in the assemblie of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous, and the way of the wicked shall perish.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM IV. For the morning.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

esus, by whose grace I live
From the fear of evil kept,
Thou has lengthen’d my reprieve,
Held in being while I slept,
With the day my heart renew;
let me wake thy will to do.

Since the last revolving dawn
scatter’d the nocturnal cloud,
O, how many souls have gone,
Unprepar’d, to meet their God!
Yet thou dost prolong my breath,
Nor hast seal’d my eyes in death.

O that I may keep thy word,
Taught by thee to watch and pray
To thy service, dearest Lord,
Sanctify th’ present day:
Swift its fleeting moments hast,
Doom’d, perhaps, to be my last.

Crucify’d to all below,
Earth shall never be my care
Wealth and honour I forego
This my only wish and care,
Thine in life and death to be,
Now and to eternity.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 114
Geneva Bible

1 When Israel went out of Egypt, and the house of Iaakob from the barbarous people,
2 Iudah was his sanctification, and Israel his dominion.
3 The Sea sawe it and fled: Iorden was turned backe.
4 The mountaines leaped like rams, and the hils as lambes.
5 What ailed thee, O Sea, that thou fleddest? O Iorden, why wast thou turned backe?
6 Ye mountaines, why leaped ye like rams, and ye hils as lambes?
7 The earth trembled at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Iaakob,
8 Which turneth the rocke into waterpooles, and the flint into a fountaine of water.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM III. When Service is ended.
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

ord, let me not thy courts depart,
Nor quit thy mercy-seat,
Before I feel thee in my heart,
And there the Saviour meet.

Water the seed in weakness sown,
And ever more improve:
Make me a garden of thine own;
May ev’ry flow’r be love!

O send my soul in peace away;
For both my Lord hath bought:
And let my heart, exulting, say,
I’ve found the pearl I sought!

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 147
Geneva Bible

1 Praise ye the Lord, for it is good to sing vnto our God: for it is a pleasant thing, and praise is comely.
2 The Lord doth builde vp Ierusalem, and gather together the dispersed of Israel.
3 He healeth those that are broken in heart, and bindeth vp their sores.
4 He counteth the nomber of the starres, and calleth them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and great is his power: his wisdome is infinite.
6 The Lord relieueth the meeke, and abaseth the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing vnto the Lord with prayse: sing vpon the harpe vnto our God,
8 Which couereth the heauen with cloudes, and prepareth raine for the earth, and maketh the grasse to growe vpon the mountaines:
9 Which giueth to beasts their foode, and to the yong rauens that crie.
10 He hath not pleasure in the strength of an horse, neither delighteth he in the legs of man.
11 But the Lord deliteth in them that feare him, and attende vpon his mercie.
12 Prayse the Lord, O Ierusalem: prayse thy God, O Zion.
13 For he hath made the barres of thy gates strong, and hath blessed thy children within thee.
14 He setteth peace in thy borders, and satisfieth thee with the floure of wheate.
15 He sendeth foorth his commandement vpon earth, and his worde runneth very swiftly.
16 He giueth snowe like wooll, and scattereth the hoare frost like ashes.
17 He casteth foorth his yce like morsels: who can abide the colde thereof?
18 He sendeth his worde and melteth them: he causeth his winde to blowe, and the waters flowe.
19 He sheweth his word vnto Iaakob, his statutes and his iudgements vnto Israel.
20 He hath not dealt so with euery nation, neither haue they knowen his iudgements. Prayse ye the Lord.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM II
At entering into the Church
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

ather of love, to thee I bend
My heart, and lift mine eyes;
O let my pray’r and praise ascend
As odours to the skies.

Thy pard’ning voice I come to hear,
To know thee as thou art;
Thy ministers can reach the ear,
But thou must touch the heart.

O stamp me in thy heav’nly mould,
And grant they word apply’d
May bring forth fruit an hundred fold
And speak me justified.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 18 (Geneva Bible). To him that excelleth. A Psalme of Dauid the seruant of the Lord, which spake unto the Lord the wordes of this song (in the day that the Lord delivered him from the hande of all this enemies, and from the hande of Saul) and sayd,
1 I will loue thee dearely, O Lord my strength.
2 The Lord is my rocke, and my fortresse, and he that deliuereth me, my God and my strength: in him will I trust, my shield, the horne also of my saluation, and my refuge.
3 I will call vpon the Lord, which is worthie to be praysed: so shall I be safe from mine enemies.
4 The sorowes of death compassed me, and the floods of wickednes made me afraide.
5 The sorowes of the graue haue compassed me about: the snares of death ouertooke me.
6 But in my trouble did I call vpon the Lord, and cryed vnto my God: he heard my voyce out of his Temple, and my crye did come before him, euen into his eares.
7 Then the earth trembled, and quaked: the foundations also of the mountaines mooued and shooke, because he was angrie.
8 Smoke went out at his nostrels, and a consuming fire out of his mouth: coales were kindled thereat.
9 He bowed the heauens also and came downe, and darkenes was vnder his feete.
10 And he rode vpon Cherub and did flie, and he came flying vpon the wings of the winde.
11 He made darkenes his secrete place, and his pauilion round about him, euen darkenesse of waters, and cloudes of the ayre.
12 At the brightnes of his presence his clouds passed, haylestones and coles of fire.
13 The Lord also thundred in the heauen, and the Highest gaue his voyce, haylestones and coales of fire.
14 Then hee sent out his arrowes and scattred them, and he increased lightnings and destroyed them.
15 And the chanels of waters were seene, and the foundations of the worlde were discouered at thy rebuking, O Lord, at the blasting of the breath of thy nostrels.
16 He hath sent downe from aboue and taken mee: hee hath drawen mee out of many waters.
17 He hath deliuered mee from my strong enemie, and from them which hate me: for they were too strong for me.
18 They preuented me in the day of my calamitie: but the Lord was my stay.
19 Hee brought mee foorth also into a large place: hee deliuered mee because hee fauoured me.
20 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousnes: according to the purenes of mine hands he recompensed me:
21 Because I kept the wayes of the Lord, and did not wickedly against my God.
22 For all his Lawes were before mee, and I did not cast away his commandements from mee.
23 I was vpright also with him, and haue kept me from my wickednes.
24 Therefore the Lord rewarded me according to my righteousnesse, and according to the purenes of mine hands in his sight.
25 With the godly thou wilt shewe thy selfe godly: with the vpright man thou wilt shew thy selfe vpright.
26 With the pure thou wilt shewe thy selfe pure, and with the froward thou wilt shewe thy selfe froward.
27 Thus thou wilt saue the poore people, and wilt cast downe the proude lookes.
28 Surely thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God wil lighten my darkenes.
29 For by thee I haue broken through an hoste, and by my God I haue leaped ouer a wall.
30 The way of God is vncorrupt: the worde of the Lord is tried in the fire: he is a shield to all that trust in him.
31 For who is God besides the Lord? and who is mightie saue our God?
32 God girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way vpright.
33 He maketh my feete like hindes feete, and setteth me vpon mine high places.
34 He teacheth mine hands to fight: so that a bowe of brasse is broken with mine armes.
35 Thou hast also giuen me the shield of thy saluation, and thy right hand hath stayed me, and thy louing kindenes hath caused me to increase.
36 Thou hast enlarged my steps vnder mee, and mine heeles haue not slid.
37 I haue pursued mine enemies, and taken them, and haue not turned againe till I had consumed them.
38 I haue wounded them, that they were not able to rise: they are fallen vnder my feete.
39 For thou hast girded me with strength to battell: them, that rose against me, thou hast subdued vnder me.
40 And thou hast giuen me the neckes of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.
41 They cryed but there was none to saue them, euen vnto the Lord, but hee answered them not.
42 Then I did beate them small as the dust before the winde: I did treade them flat as the clay in the streetes.
43 Thou hast deliuered me from the contentions of the people: thou hast made me the head of the heathen: a people, whom I haue not knowen, shall serue me.
44 As soone as they heare, they shall obey me: the strangers shall be in subiection to me.
45 Strangers shall shrinke away, and feare in their priuie chambers.
46 Let the Lord liue, and blessed be my strength, and the God of my saluation be exalted.
47 It is God that giueth me power to auenge me, and subdueth the people vnder me.
48 O my deliuerer from mine enemies, euen thou hast set mee vp from them, that rose against me: thou hast deliuered mee from the cruell man.
49 Therefore I will prayse thee, O Lord, among the nations, and wil sing vnto thy Name.
50 Great deliuerances giueth hee vnto his King, and sheweth mercie to his anoynted, euen to Dauid, and to his seede for euer.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I reioyced, when they sayd to me, We wil go into the house of the Lord. (Psalme 122:1 Geneva Bible)

PETITIONARY HYMNS
POEM I
Augustus Toplady (1740–1778)

efining Fuller, make me clean,
On me thy costly pearl bestow:
Thou art thyself the pearl I prize,
The only joy I seek below.

Disperse the clouds that damp my soul,
And make my heart unfit for thee:
Cast me not off, but seal me now
Thine own peculiar property.

Look on the wounds of Christ for me,
My sentence graciously reprieve:
Extend thy peaceful sceptre, Lord,
And bid the dying traitor live.

Tho’ I’ve transgress’d the rules prescribd,
And dar’d the justice I adore,
Yet let thy smiling mercy say,
Depart in peace, and sin no more.

—The Complete Works of Augustus Toplady (Sprinkle Publications, 1987).

salme 94 (Geneva Bible)

1 O Lord God the auenger, O God the auenger, shewe thy selfe clearely.
2 Exalt thy selfe, O Iudge of the worlde, and render a reward to the proude.
3 Lord how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?
4 They prate and speake fiercely: all the workers of iniquitie vaunt themselues.
5 They smite downe thy people, O Lord, and trouble thine heritage.
6 They slay the widowe and the stranger, and murder the fatherlesse.
7 Yet they say, The Lord shall not see: neither will the God of Iaakob regard it.
8 Vnderstande ye vnwise among the people: and ye fooles, when will ye be wise?
9 Hee that planted the eare, shall hee not heare? or he that formed the eye, shall he not see?
10 Or he that chastiseth the nations, shall he not correct? hee that teacheth man knowledge, shall he not knowe?
11 The Lord knoweth the thoughtes of man, that they are vanitie.
12 Blessed is the man, whom thou chastisest, O Lord, and teachest him in thy Lawe,
13 That thou mayest giue him rest from the dayes of euill, whiles the pitte is digged for the wicked.
14 Surely the Lord will not faile his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance.
15 For iudgement shall returne to iustice, and all the vpright in heart shall follow after it.
16 Who will rise vp with me against the wicked? or who will take my part against the workers of iniquitie?
17 If the Lord had not holpen me, my soule had almost dwelt in silence.
18 When I said, My foote slideth, thy mercy, O Lord, stayed me.
19 In the multitude of my thoughts in mine heart, thy comfortes haue reioyced my soule.
20 Hath the throne of iniquitie fellowship with thee, which forgeth wrong for a Lawe?
21 They gather them together against the soule of the righteous, and condemne the innocent blood.
22 But the Lord is my refuge, and my God is the rocke of mine hope.
23 And hee will recompence them their wickednes, and destroy them in their owne malice: yea, the Lord our God shall destroy them.

Grace be with you, and Peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.