thee. He has encouraged thee to place the whole weight of thy falvation upon the work of Jefus, who is Immanuel, the creator and the fupporter of all worlds, visible and invifible. Truft in him, and be not afraid: For he is almighty to fave. And he has given thee his infallible promifes to fatisfy thee, that in him thou art fafe from all thy fins and from all thine enemies. O how establishing are his own words! Thus he fpeaketh to thee

Whofoever cometh unto me, and hear"eth my sayings, and doeth them, I will "fhew you to whom he is like: He is

like a man, who built an house, and "digged deep, and laid the foundation "on a rock, and when the flood arofe, "the ftream beat vehemently upon that, "house, and could not fhake it: For it "was founded upon a rock." How happy is thy ftate! Thou art come to him at his bidding, thou hast heard his fayings, and art doing them in faith: Survey thy fafety and bless the Lord. Thou art the wife man, who builds on a foundation contrived by infinite wisdom, and fupported by almighty power: "Behold,

fays the Father, I lay in Sion for a "foundation, a stone, a tried stone, &c.". The Father chofe his co-equal Son, on G whom

whom he would build his whole.church; he is therefore called an elect foundation; and fure, as fure as God can make it, his will and word, his arm and love fecure the foundation and every thing built upon it. Try it again and again, and thou wilt find how fure it is. This is another of its divine excellencies-it is a tried foundation, none ever built on it and were confounded. Believers have made trial of it in every age, and it always answered their hopes Indeed how could it fail them? For the divine architect has fo ftrengthened every part of his ftructure, that the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. How precious then is this foundation!" To them that believe he is pre"cious." All the beauties and pleasures in heaven and earth are to be found in his fulness, and in the creature only as at drop out of the ocean. Unfearchable riches are his So are eternal glories. Bleffed is the man who is living upon this fulness: While he is receiving out of it grace for grace, O how precious is Jefus ! efpecially while he is hoping to receive out of the fame fulness the glory that is to be revealed: For he fhall not be difappointed of his hope; becaufe" the righteous hath an everlasting founda

"tion."

"tion." He is built upon the rock of ages, and is kept there by the power of God. O happy, thrice happy believer. Again furvey thy mercies-see how many-how, great they are to thy body-to thy foul -family, church, national merciesfure and covenant mercies. Who is like unto thee faved by the Lord? The Father is thine with all his love. The Son is thine with all his falvation. The holy

Spirit is thine in all his offices, to comfort, to strengthen, and to fanctify thee, to lead thee fafe by his council, till he bring thee unto glory. And this is alfo thine with its richest bleffings-eternal life is the free gift of God to thee through Jefus Chrift thy Lord. O what has God done for thee! faved from deferved deftruction, and faved with fuch a falvation, fo wrought out for thee, fo fecured to thee, and for ever, what could God do more? Now. thou haft learned the fubject of praife, and canft make sweet melody with these words-" I waited pa

tiently for the Lord and he inclined "unto me, and heard my cry: He brought me up alfo out of the hor"rible pit, out of the miry clay, and set "my feet upon a rock, and established "my goings: And he hath put a new G 2

"fong

fong in my mouth, even praise unto 66 our God." None can learn this new fong, except he be redeemed from the earth-a faved finner, delivered from the pit of corruption, and finding his feet fet faft upon the rock of falvation fings it from experience. He feels what he fings. His heart and mouth go together in bleffing the Lord his God. Now he wants no comment upon the pfalms of praise. He is taught them by the holy Spirit, and can fing them with delight. A grateful fense of the divine favors freely conferred upon him keeps him in tune, humble and thankful. And this is the right frame of mind to offer up the facrifice of praise, with which God is well pleased. He ac cepts it from faints and angels round the throne, and he accepts it alfo from us, when we prefent it in their fpirit. The humbleft upon earth pay him the highest fervice, as he declares Whofo offer "eth praise glorifieth me."

Reader, is this thine experience? Doft thou fing pfalms, and didst thou learn to fing them in this way? Waft thou enabled by faith to love God in Chrift, and art thou now bleffing him with a rejoicing heart? Is his glory the end and aim of all thy fervices? If it be, (but beware of mistakes)

mistakes) then thou art accepted in Jefus, and fo are thy fongs. May thy delight in finging them increase. I wish to be a helper of thy joy, and to that end let us take a fhort review of the fubject. Thou wilt fee the graces needful for finging of pfalms, and if thou findeft God has beftowed them upon thee, then make use of them: Offer up through Jefus Chrift thy facrifice of praife to God continually, that is the fruit of thy lips, giving thanks to his name.

1. Doft thou understand the subject of the book of pfalms, and enter into it in finging? Doft thou fee the praises of Immanuel celebrated throughout, and canft thou take up. the words and fing them with melody in thy heart? Being one with Jefus by faith, and a partaker of his fulnefs, thou wilt fee a new glory in the pfalms; for thou wilt read thine own intereft in all that Chrift is. and has, and wilt make use of it too, receiving from him grace for grace. This will infpire thy foul with warm devotion to the Lord Christ, and will lead thee greatly to prize this bleffed book. Thou wilt delight to

2. Study the fcripture names of it. Doft thou attend to them? Have they their proper weight with thee, fo as to G 3

convince