,

on the side of Kentigern, Ps. cxxxviii. 5, 'In the ways of the Lord, how great is the glory of the Lord!' and on the side of Columba 'they sang with tuneful voices Ps. lxxxiv. 7, The saints shall go from strength to strength, until unto the God of gods appeareth every one in Sion.' It is matter of regret that the lives of these good men should have been disfigured, through the superstition of a later age, with so many trifling legends; but the evidence we have of their delight in the Psalms and Gospels is proof of their deep spiritual feeling.

Foxe, in his Book of Martyrs, under the year 1554, in the reign of Queen Mary, gives an account of one William Hunter, nineteen years of age, who was pursued to death for the gospel's sake. It is taken from his brother's narration. 'He suffered with great constancy, and recited the 84th Psalm as he was a-dying. Then there was a gentleman who said, “I pray God have mercy upon his soul." The people said, "Amen, Amen." Immediately fire was made. Then William cast his Psalter right into his brother's hand, who said, "William, think on the holy passion of Christ, and be not afraid of death!" And William answered, "I am not afraid." Then, lifting up his hands to heaven, he said, "Lord, Lord, Lord, receive my spirit;" and, casting down his head again into the smothering smoke, he yielded up his life for the truth, sealing it with his blood to the praise of God.'

When Thomas Halyburton was dying, he caused

them to read the 84th Psalm, and to sing the latter

part of it,

'Lord God of hosts, my prayer hear;

O Jacob's God, give ear.

See God our shield, look on the face

Of thine anointed dear.'

He joined in singing, and, after prayer, he said, 'I had always a mistuned voice, a bad ear, but, which is worst of all, a mistuned heart. But, shortly, when I join the temple service above, there shall not be, world without end, one string of the affections out of tune.' And, after that, he caused one of the ministers to read to him what Dr. Owen had said of this temple service above, in his book on the Person of Christ. Thomas Halyburton, born 1674, died 1712, with a brief life, has left in Scotland a well-known name. He was a man of remarkable ability, uniting a fervent nature with a decided power of metaphysical thought. His piety had the character of that of Rutherford and M'Cheyne, clinging to the person of Christ with a deep, intimate affection. His death-bed sayings, many of which were preserved by his friends, are like those of Bunyan's pilgrims by the river's brink when they looked across to the King in his beauty. One of them is, 'O blessed be God that ever I was born! I have a father, a mother, and ten brethren and sisters in heaven, and I shall be the eleventh. O blessed be the day that ever I was born!' He was Professor

of Divinity at St. Andrews, and lies there by Rutherford's side.

Ver. 11. 'No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.' When Thomas Carlyle was leaving, in doubt and despondency, his quiet mountain home at Craigenputtock for the untried tumult of London, he quoted part of this verse for comfort to his brother Alexander and himself, but mingled it with the words of another passage, Rom. viii. 28. It must be confessed that his accuracy in Scripture knowledge is not so remarkable as in some other matters, and he himself would have owned that the exact words of the Psalmist are more suited to his philosophy than those of the apostle. Yet his faith in its core is Christian: 'I turned my thoughts heavenward, for it is in heaven only that I find any basis for our poor pilgrimage on this earth. Surely as the blue dome of heaven encircles us all, so does the providence of the Lord of heaven. "He will withhold no good thing from those that love him!" This, as it was the ancient Psalmist's faith, let it likewise be ours. It is the Alpha and the Omega, I reckon, of all possessions that can belong to man.'

Psalm 85.

Ver. 10. Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other,' was the text of Dr. Thomas Goodwin, the great Indepen

dent divine, at the opening of Parliament, Jan. 27, 1659, when Richard Cromwell was installed as Protector. The sermon is reasonable plea for liberty of conscience, and an exhortation to unity and peace-seed cast on stormy waters, not to be found. till after many days.

Psalm 86.

Observe the place of this psalm, an earnest personal appeal, standing between two others which promise great things to the cause of God. It is one of the plaintive songs, edged with hope, a cloud turning out its silver lining on the night,'-with which the French Huguenots were accustomed to march to death.

Psalm 88.

Bishop Hooper, who was burned at the stake in Gloucester, A.D. 1555, during the reign of Queen Mary, commends this song to his wife, when writing to her from prison. It contains,' he says, 'the prayer of a man brought into extreme anguish and misery, and who, being vexed with adversaries and persecutions, saw nothing but death and hell. And although he felt in himself that he had not only man but also God angry towards him, yet he by prayer humbly resorted unto God, as the only port of consolation in his desperate state of trouble. These psalms,' he continues, 'be for the purpose of help, when the mind can have

H

no understanding, nor the heart any joy of God's promises; and therefore were the 6th, 22nd, 30th, 31st, 38th, and 69th Psalms also made, from the which you shall learn both patience and consolation.'

It had a place also in the history of Henry of Navarre. After the massacre of St. Bartholomew, in 1572, the Reformed party were without a head. Henry seemed called by his birth to take the position, but he was a prisoner in the hands of Catherine de Medici, who sought to corrupt his spirit through sensual indulgence, as she had done with her own son. Henry, however, had not lost conscience, and one night Agrippa d'Aubigné, his attendant, heard him sighing and speaking to himself. On listening he heard the words of the 88th Psalm, O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee. Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry.' D'Aubigné said to him, 'Sire, is it not true that the Spirit of God is still dwelling and working in you? While your friends are fighting against your enemies, you fail them. Your friends fear only God, and you, a woman, before whom you crouch when they stand erect like men.' The prince made his escape from Paris and joined his friends at Alençon. It was the hour of service, and they were singing the 21st Psalm,-the character and blessing of a true king. The king was struck by it, for he had heard it from D'Aubigné during their flight.