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things; delivering the poor, and him that was in mifery, from him that was too strong for him; lifting the fimple out of his distress, and guarding him by his providence, fo that no man fhould do him wrong:-that neither the fun fhould fmite him by day, neither the moon by night.-Of this the Pfalmift had fuch evidence from his obfervation on the life of others, with the strongest conviction, at the fame time, which a long life full of perfonal deliverances could give;-all which taught him the value of the leffon in the text, from which he had received fo much encouragement himself, that he tranfmits it for the benefit of the whole race of mankind after him, to fupport them, as it had done him,

under the afflictions which befel

him.

Trust in God; as if he had faid, Whofoever thou art that shall here after fall into any such straits or troubles as I have experienced,-learn by my example where to feek for fuccour; -truft not in princes, nor in any child of man, for there is no help in them: -the fons of men, who are of low de

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gree, are vanity, and are not able to help thee;-men of high degree are a lie,—too often deceive thy hopes, and will not help thee:-but thou, when thy foul is in heavinefs, turn thy eyes from the earth, and look up towards heaven, to that infinitely kind and powerful Being, who neither flumbereth nor fleepeth; who is

a prefent help in time of trouble: despond not, and say within thyself,why his chariot wheels ftay fo long? and why he vouchfafeth thee not a speedy relief?-but arm thyself in thy misfortunes with patience and fortitude; truft in God, who fees. all thofe conflicts under which thou laboureft,-who knows thy neceffities afar off, and puts all thy tears into

his bottle; who fees every careful

thought and penfive look,—and hears every figh and melancholy groan thou uttereft.

In all thy exigencies trust and depend on him nor ever doubt but he, who heareth the cry of the fatherlefs, and defendeth the cause of the widow, if it is juft, will hear thine,

and either lighten thy burden, and let thee go free; or, which is the fame, if that feems hot meet, by adding ftrength to thy mind, to enable thee to fuftain what he has fuffered to be laid upon thee.

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Whoever recollects the particular pfalms faid to be compofed by this great man, under the several diftreffes and cross accidents of his life, will perceive the justice of this paraphrafe, which is agreeable to the ftrain of reafoning,-which runs through,which is little elfe than a recollection of his own words and thoughts upon

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thofe occafions, in all which he ap

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pears to have been no lefs fignal in his afflictions, than in his piety, and in that goodness of foul which he

discovers under them.-I faid, the reflections upon his own life and providential efcapes, which he had experienced, had had a share in form ́ing these religious fentiments of trust in his mind, which had fo early taken root, that when he was going to fight the Philistine,-when he was but a youth and stood before Saul,he had already learned to argue in this manner :-Let no man's heart fail him; thy fervant kept his father's fheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, and I went out after him and fmote him, and delivered it out of his mouth; and when he arose against me, I caught him by the beard, and fmote him, and flew

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