in thy bosom; it is a fulness of glory and felicity which will fear no diminution, and which will endure as long as thou thyself. This is the portion of the children of heaven, and this is the portion which I choose. I wish for nothing but thee alone, O God; for every thing else flies from us,-escapes us,-and vanishes from our eyes, and thou only remainest for ever; all other things pollute us,-agitate us,—are but a wearisome and distressing revolution of fear, desire, hope, jealousy, solicitude, and chagrin, and thou only canst calm the inquietude of the heart, and restore to it that peace and consolation which the world cannot give, and which it even does not know. Not that these consolations are always sensibly felt by the faithful, and that the cup which thou givest them has never any bitterness in it; but this bitterness is on the surface only; below it is an inexhaustible source of sweetness and delight. And besides thou wilt one day give us this cup entirely free from all remains of bitterness which are now found in it, and we shall drink large draughts of that pure delight with which thou satisfiest thine elect. This, O Lord, is the heritage of thy children for which I sigh; reserve it for me, O kind and merciful Father! and suffer me never to forfeit it by my unfaithfulness. Dispose, according to thy good pleasure, of the transitory blessings of life, and of the portion which thou hast assigned me upon earth; but give me the eternal portion of thy children, which the blood of thy Son has purchased for them; let that be my heritage, and, of thy goodness, give me that grace which will insure to me its possession.

VERSE 6. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

THE more, O Lord, I compare the peace, the delight, and the secret pleasure, which spring from an observance of thy commandments, with the trouble,

the remorse, and the inquietude, which are suffered by those who give themselves up to passion and to the illusions of the world; the more do I applaud myself for my choice, the more desirable does my lot appear, the more am I surprised that all men, burdened with a yoke of sin, under the tyranny of passion, and even disgusted with those pleasures after which they run with so much eagerness, do not put themselves under thy delightful yoke, which is so consoling, so easy to bear, and which would relieve them from the insupportable weight of all others. As for me, I find myself so happy in having chosen thee, that ail, the riches and honors of the earth do not appear to me worthy of the regard of a soul which has the happiness of possessing thee. How beautiful, how great, how worthy of man, is it to serve thee! How does that glorious servitude elevate man above all the thrones and all the grandeur of the universe! How does it render him superior to his passions, his prosperity, his losses,-to all the events which incessantly agitate other men !

VERSE 7. I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.

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WHAT Suitable thanksgivings can I render to thee, O most merciful God! for having given me the knowledge of these eternal truths? When I consider that they are hidden from most men,-that all their light, all their cares, and all their labors, are limited to the procuring of an imaginary happiness for themselves here below, when I see them, with a fatal bandage upon their eyes, run, like madmen, to the precipice, without examining where their course will terminate,-when I say to myself, How is it possible that they should be so ingenious, so clear-sighted, so judicious, in managing their temporal interests, and that, with regard to their eternal concerns, all their light should abandon them, that they should not even

deign to make use of it, and that they should believe the interest of their souls,—that interest so great, so serious, that only interest which they have upon earth, that they should believe that to be unworthy not only of their anxious cares, but even of their thoughts, when I reflect on these things, the incomprehensible blindness in which they live infuses into my heart new transports of love and gratitude to thee, O my God, for having opened my eyes upon truths so essential and so evident, but of which the greater part of mankind are ignorant, because they wish not to know them. From my necessary intercourse with a world, where all is error and delusion, I learn still more the inestimable benefit which has caused the light to shine upon me, in the midst of so much darkness. When I enter into that profound night in which I see the men of the world buried, my heart reproaches me for not having sufficiently thanked thee, that thou hast dissipated, as respects me, the thick cloud which envelopes them. Let this sentiment of gratitude never be effaced, for a moment, from my heart; let me carry it with me every where, and in the night seasons, let me awake, and take from nature the moments destined to sleep, to pour out my soul before thee, and renew my thanksgivings.

VERSE 8. I have set the LORD always before me: because be is at my right hand, I shall not be moved,

How can I, O most gracious God! lose sight of thy mercy towards me for a single moment, since that is all my consolation in my state of exile? Would this life, so full of chagrin and misery, be supportable, if thou wast not incessantly present to my heart,` to sweeten its bitterness? Could I walk with safety, among so many snares and dangers, if I did not always walk in thy presence? In the midst of all the revolutions which the world exhibits incessantly before mine eyes,-of the daily vicissitudes which ele

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vate some upon the ruins of others,-of that whirlwind of cares, inquietudes, and competitions, whose perpetual agitation draws with it and puts in motion all the children of this world,—in the midst of so many tumultuous objects, I see thee, great God, as a wise superintendant, regulating all, and directing every thing which takes place upon earth, by divine and inexplicable ways, to the accomplishment of thine eternal designs of mercy towards thine elect; and making even the sins and passions of other men subservient to their salvation. Yes, thou art more visible than all the objects which strike our senses. I find and acknowledge thee every where, in the secret bitterness which thou minglest with the pleasures of sinners, in the obstacles which thou puttest in the way of their passions, or the opportunities which thou seemest to give them for their indulgence,--and in the sudden elevation or depression of their fortunes. In all these things I see thy wisdom and goodness which dispose of events; which permit nothing but what will be for thy glory,-for the instruction of the righteous, or for the conversion or punishment of the wicked; and which furnish to all men, even in the objects which seduce them, resources and means of salvation.

VERSE 9. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth my flesh also shall rest in hope.

BEHOLD, O glorious God, what fills my heart with inexpressible joy! I see that chance has no part in any thing which happens upon earth; and that all events, even those which in appearance are the most fortuitous and the most surprising, are prepared in the eternal counsels of thy providence. People who look only to their own cares and endeavors, for the success of their schemes, are incessantly agitated with fears and hopes. Their hearts are never tranquil, because, instead of putting themselves into thy

hands, they give themselves up to the mercy of uncertain events. But as for myself, O Lord, I choose to rely absolutely upon thy wise and paternal counsels, with respect to every thing which now concerns me, or which will hereafter concern me. I am in » thy hands, and this is enough to make me look, with " a tranquil eye, upon all the situations in which it shall please thee to place me upon earth, be they distressing or agreeable. I shall find, in that idea, an inexhaustible source of joy and consolation; because I may say to myself, It is neither the malice nor the favor of man, but thou alone, O good and merciful father who hast thus disposed of me. In every

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situation, therefore, I will sing to thee songs of joy and praise; I will receive, with equal composure, the transitory blessings and evils which thou shalt dispense to me. Every thing comes from thee, and whatever comes from thee I ought to view as a benefit conferred upon me. In this sweet confidence, I shall see the days of my pilgrimage upon earth cheerfully roll on; with this I will alleviate their troubles and lighten their burdens; I will anticipate death in peace,-I will regard it as a sweet repose, as a deliverance from all the dangers and all the temptations which here afflict thy servants; and I will look upon the grave, which shall receive in trust the spoils of my mortality, as a secure asylum which will restore them to me in the resurrection morn, to the end that. thou mayest make them conformable to the glorious body of thy Son who has arisen from the dead.

VERSE 10. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

WHAT Consolation, O my God, in that blessed hope! Those who bound all their desires and all their hopes by the narrow limits of this life, have nothing to comfort them under the trials which they here experience. The world to come is to them ą