Psalms 39:4. LORD, -
That was a good beginning of David’s speech. When we turn our burning words towards God, and not towards men, good will come of them. David’s hot heart finds a vent Godward. This was the wisest thing that he could do, cry unto his God. "Lord," -
Psalms 39:4. Make me to know mine end, -
Did David mean to pray, "Let me die," like Elias did? I am half afraid that he did, and many a time some of God’s servants, in their great heats when their soul has been fuller of passion than of faith, have prayed in this sense, "Make me to know mine end." Yet a better meaning may be put upon the psalmist’s words, and we are bound to put the best meaning upon them that we can. He may have meant, "Let me know, Lord, that my sorrows will come to an end, that they are not to last for ever." Death may be looked at through the glass of faith till it becomes even a goodly and desirable object. "Lord, make me to know mine end," -
Psalms 39:4. And the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.
Our days are all measured, they do not come to an end by accident As mercers measure their ells and their yards of silk or cotton goods, so does God measure out life to us. There is not half an inch more or less than God himself determines that we shall have. If David wanted to know what the measure of his days was, he was trying to pry into the folded leaves of the future. Such prying is both wrong and futile, and we may be thankful that we do not know what the measure of our days is in this sense. We do know that, at their utmost, they are not likely to exceed the threescore years and ten, or the fourscore years, which now make up the ordinary measure of human life.
Psalms 39:4. LORD, -
That was a good beginning of David’s speech. When we turn our burning words towards God, and not towards men, good will come of them. David’s hot heart finds a vent Godward. This was the wisest thing that he could do, cry unto his God. "Lord," -
Psalms 39:4. Make me to know mine end, -
Did David mean to pray, "Let me die," like Elias did? I am half afraid that he did, and many a time some of God’s servants, in their great heats when their soul has been fuller of passion than of faith, have prayed in this sense, "Make me to know mine end." Yet a better meaning may be put upon the psalmist’s words, and we are bound to put the best meaning upon them that we can. He may have meant, "Let me know, Lord, that my sorrows will come to an end, that they are not to last for ever." Death may be looked at through the glass of faith till it becomes even a goodly and desirable object. "Lord, make me to know mine end," -
Psalms 39:4. And the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.
Our days are all measured, they do not come to an end by accident As mercers measure their ells and their yards of silk or cotton goods, so does God measure out life to us. There is not half an inch more or less than God himself determines that we shall have. If David wanted to know what the measure of his days was, he was trying to pry into the folded leaves of the future. Such prying is both wrong and futile, and we may be thankful that we do not know what the measure of our days is in this sense. We do know that, at their utmost, they are not likely to exceed the threescore years and ten, or the fourscore years, which now make up the ordinary measure of human life.