“And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the Lord of Hosts, their God.”—Hag. i. 14.
“And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the Lord of Hosts, their God.”—Hag. i. 14.
Let usconsider this stirring of the will, and then the great need of it even amongst the faithful people of God.
I. We read a great deal in Scripture of a movement in the will, as we know in practical life, how we ourselves are moved, or aroused on many occasions. We know what it is to be like Peter, who was asleep in the prison till the Angel of the Lord “smote him on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly.”[76a]We are often aroused to make aneffortwhich we never thought of before, and our whole soul is on fire to be working with a holy enthusiasm for God.
Now this stirring of the spirit is the act of God Himself. I am quite aware that there are passages in which man is described as stirring himself, as for example, “There is none that calleth upon Thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee.”[76b]But such an expression is the description of the outward effect, and not of the inward movement of the soul, as is proved by that very text, which gives us the reasonfor the absence of any such stirring, “Thou hast hid Thy face from us.” It was because He had hidden His face that no one was stirred to lay hold on His grace. Thus St. Paul teaches us that it is God Himself who worketh on the will. He urges the little flock at Philippi to be more diligent in his absence than they were in his presence,[77a]and in the next verse he gives us the reason that “It is God who worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” So in this passage, when Zerubbabel was aroused to a new action it was the Lord who stirred his spirit, and who produced such a strong, deep feeling in his soul that he could not rest without making a fresh effort for the Lord. This stirring was the blessed result of the Holy Spirit’s action. Oh, that we had more of it amongst ourselves!
But while it is the work of the Holy Spirit, we shall find that, as a general rule, He makes use of means. Of course, if He pleases, He may Himself speak to the soul in the way of direct personal communication, and so arouse the heart and conscience without the aid of any human instrumentality. But in most cases He makes use of means.
Sometimes men are stirred by the sight of evil, as St. Paul was stirred in spirit by the sight of the idolatry at Athens.[77b]And it does seem strange that God’s faithful people can sit so still as they do, and look on so quietly on the sin that abounds around them. How is it that the whole soul does not burn within us with a longing desire to be at work for God?
Sometimes it is through the power of the ministry. It was so with Zerubbabel, of whom it is said that the Lord stirred his spirit. The means employed in his case was the preaching of the two prophets Haggaiand Zechariah. Sometimes God raises up great preachers whose office it seems to be to awaken nations. Such were Whitfield and the Wesleys. Such was Luther at the time of the Reformation, and such were Haggai and Zechariah after the return of the captives from Babylon. It was through them that the fire was lighted in the soul of Zerubbabel. Their burning words stirred his spirit, and he threw himself with a holy zeal into the service of the Lord.
Sometimes it is by the example and influence of others, as “iron sharpeneth iron.”[78a]There is nothing more infectious than character. There is a certain atmosphere surrounding each of us, and it has its influence on all who come near us. The idle man makes others idle, the corrupt man makes others corrupt; so the holy man wins others to holiness, and the man of Christian enthusiasm will warm up those who come in contact with him.
Sometimes He does it by stirring our nest. This is what He did for Israel in Egypt. They had begun to settle down content with their captivity. They had their flesh-pots, their melons, and their cucumbers, and they did not care to be unsettled; so God stirred them up by oppression. This is the process described in Moses’ song, “As an eagle stirreth up her nest.”[78b]The young eagles, being comfortable in their nest, have no desire to launch forth into the untried experiment of flight. So the parent bird stirs up the nest, and by means of that stirring compels them to a move. Is it not often just the same with us? We are so fond of our nests, so apt to settle down quietly, forgetful of that which is to come. So God in mercy stirs the nest. The heart is saddened, but the very stirring may be God’s appointed instrument for wakingup a new hope, a new longing for the second advent, and a dependence never known before on His own grace, and love, and perfect sufficiency.
By whatever means the Lord does it, we must never forget that it is His own divine act of mercy and grace. No sight of evil, no preaching, no example, no chastening can produce the result. It is God the Holy Ghost that stirs the spirit.
II. Consider the need of this stirring amongst the faithful people of God.
It might be supposed that the true and faithful people of God would not require it, and that they would be irresistibly drawn on by the constraining power of the love of Christ. But this is not the teaching of Scripture, and I am sure it is not the conclusion from experience. We must never forget that the wise virgins went to sleep. Nor must we even lose sight of those thrilling words addressed by St. Paul to those in Rome whom he describes as “beloved of God, and called to be saints,”[79a]when in the prospect of the second Advent he said to them, “Now it is high time to awake out of sleep.”[79b]Had they not, you may say, been already aroused from sleep? Had they not been awakened from the sleep of death, and brought into a new life in Christ Jesus? How, then, should it be high time for them to awake out of sleep? Were they not already the “beloved of God”?
Now, this brings us exactly to the point; to the great need of Divine stirring, even for those who have already been awakened into a new life in Christ Jesus. Turn to the Song of Solomon, and you will find the whole thing explained. In ch. v. the Bridegroom is described as returning home at night, and, knocking at the door of his home, calls to the Bridewithin, and says, “Open to me.”[80]Now what is her state of mind when she hears His knock and listens to His voice? “I sleep, but my heart waketh.” Have we not there the exact description of very common Christian life? How many are there still sleeping, though they hear the knock and their heart waketh? They are neither fully asleep nor fully awake. They are awake enough to hear the voice, but too sleepy to act on it. But we cannot be satisfied with this half and half condition. The Bride in the Song of Solomon was so long in arousing herself, that when at length she did so, it was too late. In ver. 6 she tells her sad, sad story. “I opened to my Beloved, but my Beloved had withdrawn Himself and was gone.” Should not such a description arouse us all? Most truly may it be said that He is standing at our own doors both knocking and calling. Sin is raging, error is spreading, misery is abounding, hell is filling; but, thanks be to God, Christ Jesus is saving, and shall His own chosen people be sleeping quietly, seeking their own ease, and sitting down content if only they can entertain a well-grounded hope that the heavy burden of their own sin has been blotted out through His most precious blood. “Stir up, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the wills of Thy faithful people.”
“Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?”—1Chron. xxix. 5.
“Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?”—1Chron. xxix. 5.
Theoccasion was a very solemn one. It was the last act of David’s reign. He had long desired to build a temple for the glory of God, but he was not allowed to carry out his wish. So he collected the necessary materials, and at length, when he had decided to abdicate in favour of Solomon, he called an assembly and declared Solomon, who was still young and tender, to be his successor, then handed over to him the plans which he had prepared for the Temple, and concluded with a solemn charge.[81]
Having thus ended what may be termed the official business of his life, the aged king proceeded to address the congregation. Let us study four things in that address; his question, his thanksgiving, his prayer, and his final appeal.
He told them how he was passing away, and how the work was great, so he asked them a question which may be well put to every congregation in every age, “Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?”
Now, we hear a great deal in these days of consecration. The idea of consecration is not a new thing in the Church of God, and I am sure that we want more of the true spirit of it in our own hearts. There is such a thing as consecration of heart, and consecration of service. The consecration of heart is the surrender of the whole man with the affections, the powers, and the strong will to the Lord. The consecration of service is the dedication of all our active powers to his work. When David said, “I am thine,”[82a]it was the consecration of heart, and when Isaiah said, “Here am I, send me,”[82b]it was the consecration of service. Now, it was the consecration of service for which David appealed, and it is this practical consecration of service on which we are dependent for the work in a parish. Who is willing to consecrate his service? I cannot see into the secrets of the hearts, but I know who ought to be willing—all those who believe in the words of our Blessed Saviour, “For their sakes I consecrate Myself.”[82c]Did He, the spotless Son of God, consecrate Himself to be the atoning sacrifice for us? And if we believe that, can we doubt for one moment who it is that should be willing to consecrate his service to Him? Redeemed sinner, is it not you? Pardoned believer, is it not you? Are you ready to fall at His feet and say, “Here am I; let me be Thine. Here is my skill: use it. Here is my intellect: use it. Here is my power of speech: use it. Here is my money: use it. Here is all, all I have and all I am: let it all be Thine own, and help me to employ it for Thy glory”?
David’s question fell on willing hearts, and there was a wonderful response to his appeal. Gold, silver, and precious stones were poured into the treasury, and the willing heart with which all was done was beautiful. It was not done grudgingly or of necessity, but with a happy, joyous, thankful spirit, so that the old man’s heart was gladdened, and “David the King rejoiced with great joy.”[83a]It was this joyous spirit that called forth his praise. When he saw the blessed result of his appeal he did not lay it down to his personal influence, or to his own persuasive power, but he stood up and blessed the Lord. He was too old for government, but he was not too old for praise. His last words from the throne were those of praise and prayer. His joy ran straight into thanksgiving, and in this thanksgiving two principles were conspicuous, he gave all the glory to God, and he acknowledged himself and his people to be utterly unworthy of the sacred privilege of this happy service. This is the true view of service and of gifts. When God calls us to work for Him, or to give for Him, we should not regard it as a burden laid upon us, but as an honour to which we are invited, an honour that angels themselves might covet. This was the spirit of David when he said “What am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee.”[83b]And this should be our own spirit in all service and all gifts for such a Lord. We do not want to regard it as a yoke, a necessity, a heavy task imposed on us by God; butas an honour, a privilege, a happy, loving service of the King of kings, for which the best amongst us is utterly unworthy.
After a time his praise ran into prayer. This is just as it ought to be, for praise should encourage prayer, as prayer should always lead to praise. Thus the loving heart should pass backwards and forwards from one to the other, and the two should be so blended that when we are engaged by the one the other should never be out of sight.
Observe the prayer in ver. 18, and remember the circumstances. It was a moment of wonderful national enthusiasm at the commencement of a great national work. Their hearts were filled with joy and they were ready for anything. Now, what was the danger? What would be the danger to ourselves in our own day? Would it not be decay, a gradual dying off of our first zeal, a chill in the first love as there was at Ephesus?[84]What David prayed for, therefore, was continuance, or perseverance. In short he prayed against declension from their first love, for look at his words in ver. 18. For “prepare” the marginal reading is “stablish.” And now you see the point of the prayer, “Keep thisfor everin the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of Thy people, andestablishtheir heart unto Thee.” What an insight it gives both as to our danger and our hope. How it shows us our need of being kept alive in our first love, and teaches us that we must not be trusting to the privileges of past experience, or the fact of past consecration, but that we need the perpetual action of the Holy Spiritin keeping His grace for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart.
And where are we to look for this preservation? Do we not learn that our hearts are like leaky vessels, and the brightest, holiest and most joyous of believers requires the daily power of the Holy Spirit, not merely to stop the leak, but to fill the vessel?
The old man finished his prayer. In it he spoke alone. He was, as it were, the mouthpiece of his people. But that was not enough. It was not sufficient that he should speak on their behalf, but they must praise God for themselves. So having been into the very presence chamber of God in prayer, he came out, as it were to the assembled multitude, and said to the vast throng, “Now bless the Lord your God.” Praise was the climax of the transaction, and praise the last act of David’s reign.
Now may there be the spirit of that remarkable day amongst ourselves. Trace it all the way through, remember the consecration, the liberality, the joy, the praise, the prayer, and the final outburst of congregational worship. May God breathe on us the same spirit. May there be the same consecration of service, the same willing offerings, the same joyous praise, and the same thankful prayer for a holy perseverance unto the end. And, in conclusion, may I not say to you what David said to the congregation, “Now bless the Lord your God.”
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee: yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”—Isa. xli. 10.
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee: yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”—Isa. xli. 10.
Whenwe observe how frequently God says to us “Fear not,” we may be quite sure that there is a great deal in common life to occasion fear. The frequent recurrence of the exhortation in all parts of Scripture teaches us, that through the whole range of Scriptural history there had been that all around God’s people which, without the Lord’s help, must have been sure to make the heart afraid.
You will observe in our text that He does not bid us fear not because He undertakes to remove all danger. What He says is, that when things arise that may justly alarm us, we need not fear. “Fear not,forI am with thee,” (observe the “for”). If fear is to be really overcome, it must be by the eye being kept fixed on God and His promises.
This verse contains two assurances and three promises; assurances of what He is to us now, and promises of what He undertakes to do for us.
“I am with thee.” “I am thy God.” It is interesting to observe how the different portions of Scripturecorrespond with one another. They are all inspired by one Spirit, and all speak one truth. So when I turn to the concluding description of the blessedness of the Heavenly inheritance, I find just the same assurance, “God Himself shall be with them and be their God.”[87]He does not promise to be nearer to His people, even in the heavenly rest, than He declares Himself to be now, when we are in the midst of our struggle upon earth. He promisesthento be with us and to be our God, and He assures us in the text that He is just the samenow.
The words of the assurance, “I am with thee,” imply both reconciliation and companionship. Reconciliation, for He is not against us, but with us. Not separated by the barrier of unforgiven sin, but so completely reconciled, the law being satisfied that every barrier is broken down for ever, and He is altogether on our side.
Companionship, for as a reconciled and loving Father He never for a moment leaves His child, by night or by day, in joy or in sorrow; in active work, or in quiet submission; in the ministry at home or in the distant work of missions. Wherever His people are, and in whatever circumstances, there is He with them as their Father, their Friend, their Companion, their Helper, their God.
For He also says, “I am thy God.” He is not merely with us, but with us in all the omnipotence of Godhead. An earthly friend may fail in helping us; but when He is with us as our God He will never fail. When He says, “I am thy God,” He clearly means that He has chosen us to be His people, a peculiar people unto Himself; and that, having done so, He acts as God, on our behalf, governing, guiding,preserving, saving, and finally gathering to His own presence in His kingdom.
(1) “I will strengthen thee.”
Into whatever position He places us, for that He undertakes to give us the needful strength. If He calls us to be still and suffer, He will give strength for suffering; if to go forth in His name and labour in His service, He will give strength for activity; and in the holy warfare which we are all called to wage with indwelling sin, strength to overcome. And you must notice that, when He promises to strengthen, He describes an imparted power. He does not speak of Himself as acting for you externally, as when He accounts you righteous; but within you, imparting power, and so enabling you to act for Him. The promise of God in Scripture is that He will strengthen us, or, in other words, that He will impart a power of action in His service.
(2) “I will help thee.”
The same lesson respecting man’s activity is taught when He promises to help. There is a great difference between strengthening and helping. To strengthen is an inward work, the gift of an inward power. To help is an external work. I may help a lame man to walk, though I cannot strengthen his limb. But help implies activity on the part of those who receive it. God does not help us to do nothing. He helps us to be patient, loving, gentle, sweet-tempered. He helps us to be diligent and active in His service; but He does not help us to sit still and be passive. Help implies exertion. If He strengthens us by the HolyGhost in the inner man, and if He undertakes to help us in every struggle against sin, it is our privilege to accept His promise, and press on, assured of victory.
(3) “I will uphold thee.”
These words appear to convey the idea of danger. We are walking in slippery places, and with fearful falls on every hand, so that we require not merely a clear eye to guide us, but a strong hand to hold us. In every step of our way we require to be upheld. In every moment of our lives we require to be held up by one who sees all our danger, who knows the path perfectly well, who can hold us with so strong a grasp that nothing can pluck us out of His hand, and who, according to the language of St. Jude, is “able to keep us from falling.”[89a]
It is this perpetual and final preservation that is secured to us in the third promise; and I would have you most particularly observe that it is not with the right hand of His mercy, or the right hand of His love, or of His compassion, or even of His power, but the right hand of His righteousness. And why is this? Because this grace is the result of the covenant. By that covenant His people are given to the Lord Jesus that they may be saved. In fulfilling that covenant He has shed His own most precious blood for us, to make atonement for our sin. And the result is, that as, according to St. John, “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,”[89b]so, also, is He faithful and just to uphold us against a fall.
But here, I know, a question will arise. This is God’s promise, but is it ever realized? It is very beautiful in Scripture, but do we meet with it in practical life? Are these gifts of God really given? Is this presence of God really displayed? thisupholding power really experienced? Let us consider these five points and see.
“I am with thee.” Has this been practically experienced? Look at the words of David in the prospect of his dying hour, “Thou art with me,”[90a]and, again, “O God, Thou art my God.”[90b]
“I will strengthen thee.” Remember how Daniel realized its fulfilment when he said, “Let my Lord speak; for Thou hast strengthened me.”[90c]
“I will help thee.” Remember David’s words, “My heart trusted in Him, and I am helped.”[90d]
“I will uphold thee.” But will He really uphold us through trials and temptations? Will He really keep us fast in the right hand of His righteousness, and that when our faith is weak? Turn to Asaph’s experience. He says of himself, “As for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well-nigh slipped.”[90e]But now look at the upholding arm. “Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand.”[90f]So, then, this promise has been practically fulfilled. God has been true to His word, and men have found Him so. His truth has never failed, and will He fail us? Will he fail the weakest amongst us? Will He cease to uphold His people? Let us trust Him. We are not worthy to do so. If He had treated us as we have deserved, He would long since have cast us off. But He has not treated us as we have deserved. He has loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, so we may trust Him, and leave all in His care; and of this we may rest perfectly assured, that the strong arm will never give way.
“Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”—Psa. xxiii. 5, 6.
“Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”—Psa. xxiii. 5, 6.
Itis a very delightful thing to be able to say “Surely” when we look forward. Now, this sureness for the future depends on our present relationship to God, and the confidence expressed in verse 6 is the blessed result of the unspeakably precious gifts described in the earlier verses of the Psalm. It depends on the connection between the present and the future, a connection resulting from the unchangeableness in the character of God. In order, therefore, to understand the last verse which relates to the future, let us study the one preceding it, which describes the present. We may thus combine the present and the future, and I think the result will be what our Church describes as a “sure and certain hope.”
As I have just said, our confidence for the future depends on our present relationship to God; and, accordingly, the Psalm opens with the words, “TheLord is my Shepherd.” The holy relationship between the Shepherd and the flock is described as being already established, and by both parties recognized, and all that follows is the result of that relationship. We have not time to study the whole Psalm; but look at the three results taught us in verse 5.
Even if there are enemies, they cannot interfere with the full and sure supply which God has provided for His servant. When he reaches the end of his journey, he will find that the Lord has prepared a place for his rest; and now that he is in the midst of it, he may rejoice in that the same most blessed Saviour has prepared a table for his daily supply.
This refers, doubtless, to our daily wants, and it describes His fulfilment of our supplication in the Lord’s Prayer. We pray day by day, “Give us this day our daily bread;” and when we really enter into the spirit of this Psalm, we as much as say that the prayer is answered, the bread provided, and the table spread.
And may we not apply it still more to the bread of life? Is it not our sacred privilege, when the soul is hungered, to feed even on Him; when the soul is athirst, to drink of the pure river of the water of life? And are there not many amongst us who know, by their own experience, the truth of the promise, “They shall be abundantly satisfied?”[92]
This is taught in the words, “Thou anointest my head with oil.” The words refer to the custom of anointing the weary man with ointment or oil. It was poured sometimes on the feet and sometimes on the head. The object in both cases was the same,namely, refreshment; and surely we must thankfully acknowledge that our Heavenly Father does not merely give us the bare necessities of existence, but softens, refreshes, and cheers the spirit. He prepares not the table only, but the joy. “He giveth us richly all things to enjoy.”[93a]
The mercies are so rich, the grace so abundant, the loving-kindness so bountiful, the living fountain so free, that the little cup of human capacity cannot hold it all, and it runneth over. God describes His people as not merely satisfied, but abundantly satisfied; and speaks of the Holy Spirit as not merely bestowed, but as “shed on us abundantly.”[93b]Why, then, are we content with a little water hardly perceptible at the bottom of our little cup? Stephen was “full of faith and of the Holy Ghost,”[93c]and we are told to be “filled with the Spirit;”[93d]why, then, rest content with only a few drops in our own soul while there is the deep, broad river of the water of life able to fill, to overflowing, every vessel that can be found to receive the free supply? Why do we not realize more the truth of the promise, “Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it”?[93e]
So much, then, for the present. A table prepared, a head anointed, a cup running over. These are present gifts—the present and indescribable privileges of those whose joy it is to be able to say, “The Lord is my Shepherd.”
Let us pass on to the future as taught in verse 6. We may observe two things—
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” The idea seems to be that, in the poetry of this beautiful Psalm, Goodness and Mercy are represented as two persons, just as we find first Mercy and Truth as two persons meeting each other in Christ Jesus, and then Righteousness and Peace, two other persons, kissing each other in Him.[94a]So here we have the two persons: Goodness, the bearer of every gift that can possibly be required, and Mercy dealing most graciously even with sin; the two following the servant of the Lord, and never leaving him all the way through. And you may observe theyfollowhim, so that he does not always see them, and may not even know they are there. He may sometimes imagine that he is forsaken and alone, but he is strangely mistaken, for Goodness and Mercy are close behind, the one to supply his need, and the other to deal graciously even with his sin.
If we are in Christ Jesus, we may be as sure of the future as of the past. We may be perfectly certain of the truth of the words of the Good Shepherd, “They shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.”[94b]That promise is so sure that it can never fail, that hand so strong that all the powers of hell cannot pluck the weakest little one from its grasp, that heart so true that we may be perfectly certain He will never abandon one whom He has called by the Holy Ghost into fellowship with Himself.
“I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” David delighted in the house of God; and clearly we must explain these words as referring to the holy worship of the sanctuary. But in order to enter into the full spirit of the passage, we must rise from the Church on earth to the sanctuary in heaven; to the heavenly home and the presence chamber of God. There, indeed, is the table spread, there is the anointing oil, there the cup runneth over; and now, through the rest of our pilgrimage, though the journey may possibly be through the Vale of Baca,[95a]though sometimes the soul may be bowed down, and that even when the heart is fixed, yet in the midst of it all, and through it all, we may live in a close intimacy with Him. We may quietly rest in His love, we may dwell in Him and He in us; and while He gives the gracious promise, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wisecastout,”[95b]we may resolve, God helping us, that we will nevergoout, and that, to the last day of our lives, we will hold fast by Him, till at length the veil shall be withdrawn, and the heavenly home open before us, and we realize what it is, in the highest possible sense, “to dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.”
THE END
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[5]2 Sam. xii. 13.
[6]Psa. li. 13.
[7]Psa. cxlviii. 14.
[8a]Exod. xv. 1.
[8b]Psa. xl. 2, 3.
[8c]Rev. vii. 10, 14.
[8d]Isa. lx. 18.
[9a]Psa. cxliii. 9.
[9b]Acts xvi. 25, R.V.
[13]St. Luke xix. 10.
[15]Rev. xxii. 17.
[17]2 Peter i. 3.
[18a]2 Peter i. 3.
[18b]St. John x. 28.
[20a]Rom. iii. 25.
[20b]2 Cor. v. 21.
[20c]1 Cor. i. 30.
[20d]St. John v. 28.
[21]St. Jude 3.
[26]Eph. ii. 4, 5.
[27a]Gal. v. 22.
[27b]Rom. xv. 13.
[28a]2 Cor. v. 1.
[28b]St. Luke ii. 26.
[29a]Phil. i. 23.
[29b]2 Tim. iv. 6.
[30a]Phil. i. 23.
[30b]2 Tim. i. 12.
[31a]Psa. xxiii. 4.
[31b]St. Luke xix. 9.
[32a]1 Peter i. 8.
[32b]Num. xxiv. 17.
[34a]Isa. xxxii. 2.
[34b]Psa. xxxii. 7.
[34c]Col. iii. 3.
[34d]1 John v. 12.
[35]Gal. ii. 20.
[37]2 Cor. v. 15.
[38]St. John i. 26.
[39a]St. John iii. 34.
[39b]Col. ii. 9.
[39c]Acts x. 38.
[40]Acts ii, 3, 4.
[41a]Phil. iv. 19.
[41b]Job. xlii. 6.
[42]Heb. x. 20.
[44a]Acts xiii. 34.
[44b]St. John xviii. 37.
[44c]Rev. i. 5.
[44d]Psa. xxxv. 3.
[45a]1 John v. 10.
[45b]St. John x. 3.
[45c]Isa. xliv. 10.
[46a]Isa. xlii. 16.
[46b]Psa. xxxi. 3.
[46c]Psa. cxix. 117.
[46d]Psa. xxv. 4.
[47a]Psa. xxiii 4.
[47b]Eph. i. 22.
[47c]Rev. xvii. 14.
[48a]Rev. xvii. 14.
[48b]Acts ix. 6.
[51]Neh. iv. 6.
[52a]Neh. iv. 4.
[52b]St. Matt. xxvi. 41.
[53]Neh. iv. 15.
[55a]2 Pet. iii. 18.
[55b]Rom. iv. 24, 25.
[56]Rom. xi. 20.
[59a]Acts xiii. 2.
[59b]Eph. iv. 16.
[60a]1 Sam. iii. 19.
[60b]Mal. iii. 17.
[60c]Ps. cxxvii. 1.
[61]Eph. ii. 10.
[63a]Isa. xxviii. 16.
[63b]1 John iv. 16.
[64]Heb. xiii. 8.
[65a]Psa. lxiii. 1.
[65b]Sam. xvii. 37.
[66]1 Thess. iv. 13, 14.
[67a]1 Thess. iv. 17.
[67b]Phil. iv. 4, 5.
[67c]1 Cor. vii. 29.
[68a]Rom. xiii. 11.
[68b]St. Matt. xxv. 6.
[68c]St. Luke xxi. 25.
[69a]St. Luke xxi. 26.
[69b]St. Luke xxi. 28.
[69c]St. Luke xxi. 27.
[71]Heb. x. 20.
[72a]Eph. ii. 14.
[72b]Acts xiii. 7.
[72c]Acts xiv. 1.
[73]Acts xiii. 52.
[74a]Acts xv. 4–12.
[74b]St. Matt. xxviii. 20.
[74c]Acts xvi. 14.
[75]1 Cor. iii. 6.
[76a]Acts xii. 7.
[76b]Isa. lxiv. 7.
[77a]Phil. ii. 12.
[77b]Acts xvii. 16.
[78a]Prov. xxvii. 17.
[78b]Deut. xxxii. 11.
[79a]Rom. i. 7.
[79b]Rom. xiii. 11.
[80]Cant v. 2.
[81]1 Chron. xxviii. 20.
[82a]Psa. cxix. 94.
[82b]Isa vi. 8.
[82c]St. John xvii. 19, R.V. Margin.
[83a]1 Chron. xxix. 9.
[83b]1 Chron. xxix. 14.
[84]Rev. ii. 4.
[87]Rev. xxi. 3.
[89a]St. Jude 24.
[89b]1 John i. 9.
[90a]Psa. xxiii. 4.
[90b]Psa. lxiii. 1.
[90c]Dan. x. 19.
[90d]Psa. xxviii. 7.
[90e]Psa. lxxiii. 2.
[90f]Psa. lxxiii. 23.
[92]Psa. xxxvi. 8.
[93a]1 Tim. vi. 17.
[93b]Titus iii. 6.
[93c]Acts vi. 5.
[93d]Eph. v. 18.
[93e]Psa. lxxxi. 10.
[94a]Psa. lxxxv. 10.
[94b]St. John x. 28.
[95a]Psa. lxxxiv. 6, Cp. R.V.
[95b]St. John vi. 37.