PORTION. 3. GIMEL.
Be beneficiall vnto thy seruant, that I may liue and keepe thy word.
THe Prophet desireth life, where he teacheth why mē should desire to liue, that is, that they might keepe Gods word: for life is common to them with beasts and plants: and yet all desire to liue, some for one ende, some for another: but Gods child maketh this the end, that hee might keepe Gods word. And in that he ioyneth these together, hee signifieth that his life without it, is no life, as in the 4. part, vers. 11. where he counteth him∣selfe dead, vnlesse he finde a readines to obey Gods will. A widow liuing in pleasure, is dead whilest she liueth, and this is to be vnderstood of all that liue in any sinne. And this if all they considered which are not ioyned to Christ, it would amaze them: for though this appeare not now, yet at the last day it shall appeare.
This cannot be perswaded to the carnall man, but to vs that haue the knowledge of God, it ought to be certaine: and we must trie our hearts whether this be our desire to liue, that we may keepe Gods word. Many men doe speake this, and sing this; yet fewe in heart doe this: therefore if we be thus minded, wee must shewe it by referring all our doings to Gods glory, which we shall then do, when we measure all our doings by the word. There∣fore Paul (Rom. 4. and Phil 2.) desireth not life, but that he may be ioyned to Christ. All other religion is of no effect, till this principall end be in our hearts; for no man can haue two ends of his life, as to come to preferment, and to be saued: but this must be onely the end, that we might be ioyned to Christ. He desireth not to know, but to keepe, which pre∣supposeth knowledge: wee are here then prouoked to practise, and not to rest in know∣ledge, but to labour to doe that we know. And this is the cause why they of the olde Testa∣ment desired longer life, that they might finish that onely which they had to doe, at such time as they felt some signes of Gods displeasure, and had not sufficiently tasted of Gods fauour: so we, if we cannot finde assurance of the forgiuenes of sinnes, then let vs desire to liue: but when we are come to this, that with Paul we can say, I haue finished my course with* 1.1 ioy, then will the children of God be readie to dye. Many there be that haue neither care of life nor death: and although they feele and see signes of Gods displeasure, yet they are not moued: but the children of God knowe, that it is better to be a liuing dogge, than a dead lyon. And seeing by their euill life they haue dishonoured God, they would be ioyfull to purchase some praise to him by their holy conuersation.
He knoweth his great vnhabilitie to doe good, and therefore desireth it of God. It is not in our choyse to doe good or cuill, for then this prayer had been in vaine: hee knew that this was not in him to keepe Gods word; and therefore in the next verse he desireth that his eyes might be opened: wher he acknowledgeth, that he had not so much as the know∣ledge of Gods word in himselfe; therefore he was far from yeelding such obedience there∣vnto as the Lord requireth. He desireth now to vnderstand, which goeth before practise, and is lesser than it, and yet it is the meanes to come to practise. And if we cannot vnder∣stand it without special grace, then much lesse can we practise it. Many of vs in iudgement doe hate Papists, yet in practise we are such, seeing wee doe many things without prayer, and the knowledge of Gods word. Knowledge goeth before practise, and therefore many in vaine doe say that they keepe the word, when they labour not to know it.
Open mine eyes, that I may see the wonders of thy Law.
IN the former verse hee shewed that hee could not keepe the word without Gods grace, now he sheweth that he cannot know it vnlesse the Lord open our eyes, this is the want