the works of creation, providence, and redemption; thine awful glories as a Sovereign, and thy condefcending grace as a Saviour. This hath been the delightful employment of the faints in every age, efpecially after God hath wrought wonderful deliverances for them.- -Of this, a remarkable inftance occurs in David, the king of Ifrael, who, having obtained complete victory over his enemies, exalted and praised God; and, fenfible that he could not fufficiently magnify him, warmly invited others to unite with him in bleffing his holy name: O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I fought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears*. In like manner, our prophet, contemplating the merciful interpofition of the Almighty in behalf of his church, forms the laudable resolution, in which each of us ought to join, I will exalt thee, and praise thy name.

For thou haft done wonderful things, &c. That which exceeds our knowledge and imitation, and which we cannot account for on natural principles, excites our surprise and wonder. Many, O Lord our God, are thy wonderful works: thy judgments are unfearchable, and thy ways are past finding out. Though innumerable wonders are daily prefented to our view, yet the frequency of their appearance often diminishes our admiration. The corn caft into the ground, which first dies, and afterward yields ten or twenty times more than was fown, is perhaps not lefs aftonishing than the miracle of multiplying a few loaves and fishes, to be a fufficient repast for thoufands of people. The birth of a living child does not feem lefs wonderful than the refurrection of a dead body. Is not the budding of the trees in the fpring as marvellous as was the bloffoming of Aaron's rod? Indeed all the works of God, when contemplated aright, appear truly wonderful. They are, as they

Pfal. xxxiv. 3, 4.

ought

ought to be, in fome measure within our reach, and level to our capacities, fo as, in fome refpects, to affift in pointing out our duty; and yet, in their nature, utility, and defign, they, in other refpects, far furpass our comprehenfion. We fee in them fomewhat plain, that is easily understood; and fomewhat obfcure, that we cannot penetrate or explain. We perceive that they are worthy of God, and bear the impreffion of his divine hand, though we cannot fully fatisfy ourfelves in fome particulars of leffer moment. Had they been in all refpects intelligible to us, they would have wanted one evidence of their divine original of which they are poffeffed. The fame remarks are applicable to the works of the Lord our God, in the difpenfations of his providence relating to his church, which are truly wonderful, and worthy of praises, O give thanks unto the Lord, who hath done great wonders*.

Thy counfels of old are faithfulness and truth. The counfels of Jehovah, which are here extolled, may denote, the refult of his divine wisdom and prudence, the proper provifion made for carrying into execution the purposes that he hath formed. All the difpenfations of providence and grace are the effects of wife counfel, the manifestations of infinite wisdom, goodness, and love. These counfels are celebrated on account of their antiquity: they are of old, or, as the Hebrew word fignifies, from everlafting. His counfels and purposes, according to which he worketh all things, are affirmed, by the apoftle Paul, to be eternal; and, on this account, among others, God is magnified by our prophet. They are likewife praised for being faithfulness and truth. The Most High is inviolably faithful in executing all his purposes: none of them can poffibly be fruftrated: no oppofition, no difficulties, however great, can prevent their execution. The counfel of the Lord ftandeth

* Pfal. cxxxvi. 4.

+ Eph. ii. 11.

'for

'for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations*. In fulfilling his promifes, God is true to his word; in accomplishing his purposes, he is true to himself. A perfect conformity fubfifts between the mind and the word of God, between his word. and his ways. He purposeth nothing but what is juft and right: his word contains a plain declaration of his mind, of which his providential difpenfations are a juft expofition. All his divine attributes are engaged to fupport the immutability of his counfel, which he can never want power or inftruments to execute. In few words, God is faithful and true in all the counfels that he hath formed; in all the doctrines, predictions, commands, threatenings, and promifes, that he hath revealed and recorded in his word. Let us then firmly rely on the divine veracity and fidelity; and diligently endeavour to imitate them, that, in thefe refpects, we may refemble our Father in heaven.

2 For thou haft made of a city, an heap; of a defenced city, a ruin: a palace of ftrangers, to be no city; it fhall never be built.

The firft of God's wonderful works for which he is here magnified, is the destruction of a certain, renowned, fortified city, inhabited by the enemies of his people.This city is fpoken of in fuch terms as inclines me to fuppofe, that great Babylon was primarily intended. It was a large, ftrong, and wellfortified city, as you have repeatedly heard from this prophecy, poffeffed by inhabitants who were inimical to the people of God, and who placed their confidence in the fortifications and strength of their city. This feems to have been the city spoken of in ver. 12. and in chap. xxvi. 5.It was a palace of strangers, being inhabited by the Affyrians and Babylonians,

* Pfal. xxxiii. 11.

who,

who, in fcripture, have this character given them. Thus faith the Lord God, by the prophet Ezekiel, concerning the house of Ifrael: I will deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you*. Of these strangers, it was their palace, the metropolis of their empire, their moft magnificent, their best fortified and royal city; which afforded a remarkable type of Mystical Babylon, that is uniformly reprefented in fcripture as hoftile to the kingdom of Jefus Christ. As the overthrow of this great city was indifpenfably neceffary to the tranquillity, fafety, and happiness of the church, they begin this hymn of thanksgiving by praising the Lord for this wonderful work,

Thou haft made it an heap-a ruin-to be no city; it fhall never be built. To render the fentiment more rich and beautiful, our prophet frequently, with great elegance, defcribes the fame event by an agreeable variety of expreflion, in which he gradually rifes higher and higher. Clear views, by the fpirit of prophecy, of the approaching event, and its perfect certainty, made him fpeak of this predicted event as if it had been already paft. This royal well-fortified city was to be reduced to a prodigious heap of ruins: its very foundations were to be demolished, its walls destroyed, and its palaces overthrown. Nor fhall it again be rebuilt, and restored to its former splendor: it fhall always continue what it now is, a ruinous heap.-Babylon, that flourished under the former difpenfation, was an eminent type of that great city which is feated on many waters, i. e. fupported by much people, called Myftical Babylon, to which there is a vast refort of ftrangers, and which, in due time, fhall also be utterly deftroyed, This wonderful event shall, in like manner, prove the subject of the praises and thanksgivings of the faints, as it is written, Rev. xviii. 20. Rejoice over her, thou hea

* Ezek. xi. 9.

< vens2

vens, and ye holy apoftles and prophets, for God hath avenged you on her.' Having feen the commencement of this deliverance of the church, in the partial accomplishment of this predicted defolation, it becomes us, with admiring gratitude, to extol the Lord, whofe right hand is exalted, and doth ever valiantly.

3 Therefore fhall the ftrong people glorify thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear thee.

These words may have a retrofpect to what is faid in the preceding verfe; because God hath turned the fortified city into defolation, therefore shall the strong people glorify him: or they may look forward to what is mentioned in the following verfe; because the Lord hath been a ftrength to the poor, in his diftrefs therefore fhall he be honoured and ferved. In either view, they import in general, that the deliverance God had wrought for his people, was to prove a happy inducement to them, and to those powerful nations who had been their enemies, to yield him the homage that he required. By the ftrong people may be intended, thofe who were renowned for their strength and valour among the nations; or those who, though weak in themselves, are ftrong in the Lord, and in the power of his might, and are strengthened by him with all might in the inner man, for the performance of every good work. Though they contend not only with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world, fuch is the fpiritual ftrength which they have from God, that they vanquifh all the combined oppofition formed against them. Their strength lies not in themfelves, but in God, their only Lord, who is the ftrength of Ifrael.Concerning these strong people our prophet declares, that they hall glorify God, by entertaining juft and

elevated