as ever David sang them. Yes, but how many live these words? It is not so hard a matter to learn to repeat them, as children do in their morning prayers-especially amid the surroundings of Home and with the prospect of a hearty breakfast; but it is a hard thing to live in the spirit of them through the day—Nay, even through a few consecutive hours; and it is a case to be reverently and lovingly studied, when you meet with a man who is more than satisfied—who weaves, not only into his morning prayer, but into every action and thought and mood of the day, the sentiment of this verse, that whether he has much or little, he has still a great deal more than he deserves, and who therefore lifts his heart to Heaven in the burst of earnest gratitude: "Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over ! You may, somewhat doubtfully, count a few such examples among all your acquaintances; but, after you know even them a little more minutely, you will prefer to return to Scripture for an instance of the perfectly satisfied man, and enquire how he looked on Life and Life's things and his own relation to them, so as to be able to say, My cup runneth over," and thus to fill his soul with contentment, if after all he really succeeded in doing so! Our Meditation will be found profitable, if it even show us that Contentment is possible; much more, if it touch some spring in the Unseen, and reveal that secret which shall make Contentment certain to us. Even to get into the attitude of the perfectly satisfied man, and look from that view-point upon Self and all things relating to us were something; but what infinite joy, if having got there we can keep there, and learn thenceforth to say, "I have all and abound!”

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Antiquarians, who hunt up ancient fashions, explain to us the figure of this verse. It was a custom at ancient feasts to pour oil upon the head of the guest: especially was this the more profusely done when you wished to distinguish one guest from Mary, for this reason, anointed the Master's head, to express the highest honour which was within her reach; and then, as if it were too much to take upon herself to honour the

the rest.

Redeemer so, she bent behind Him and poured the rest upon His feet, to express her humble service and eternal gratitude, cf. Matthew xxvi. 7; John xi. 2; xii. 3. The Idea, then, conveyed by the figure seems to be the Joy which the Host has in seeing and entertaining his Guest; he honours him at the Table; he anoints him with the oil of joy above his fellows. Psalm xlv. 7. The other clause presents no difficulty, and needs no antiquarian-information to appreciate its meaning: the cup brimful, nay, running over with (one would hope) something generous, coming from the hand of the Master of the Feast, and expressing to you his Guest the plenty of joy in store—the rivers of pleasure at His right hand, from which it is your privilege to drink! We take then this double clause of verse fifth as expressive of Festive Joy; as pointing to the Abundance and the Gladness provided for all His Children by the Good Shepherd, Jehovah-Jesus.

David thus regards his lot and God's provision for him. He looks abroad on the fair and fertile Earth, and exclaims, "Thou hast spread a Table before me:" he pictures himself as seated at that Table, and seeing the Great Father's hand raised to pour out upon his head the oil of gladness, and hold to his lips a brimming cup of blessing. Well! why not? some one asks: the throne of Israel was David's; he had conquered every foe on the field of battle; wealth, fame, the cedar-clad hills, and the rich valleys of Palestine, all were his-Content! who would not be content in such a case? Such an objection will find a ready echo in too many hearts; for we easily sympathize with the profound reflection of that illustrious moral philosopher, Becky Sharp, when she wistfully exclaims, "How easy it is to be good on £5,000 a year!" Now, one may grant that minds

of a certain turn will feel satisfied in such a case without much effort but the verse is worth nothing, unless we can also add, that this same David uttered and uttered as heartily this same sentiment when he was a Shepherd on the fields of Bethlehem as when he wielded the sceptre of Judah. Nay, the passage

will lose its moral value unless we can also add, that the mind which could be discontented and unsatisfied in the humble lot would have been dissatisfied still, and felt still greater discontent in the higher. The kind of spirit against which we direct these remarks is one which the more it receives the more it would have; where dissatisfaction, arising out of an exaggerated estimate of deserts, would grow with growing success; as conceit of Self grew with prosperity, so would feelings of unsatisfaction. with the present lot increase. In short, all our teaching on this point may be summed up in the following remark: If a man who has just enough to satisfy his necessary wants does not feel gratitude to Our Father that has saved him from starvation, it may be safely said that same man would still find room for discontent and ingratitude if his house were filled to overflowing with the good things of life.

They who humbly estimate themselves and their own desert will be found the readiest to thank God for his unmerited goodness, and to say, "Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over." Onlookers may think that their Cup of Life is but scantily filled with blessings, but the Poor in Spirit, who feel that a just God might have left that Cup altogether empty for their sins and ingratitude—think that it runneth over with goodnesses! The men of simple taste and unsophisticated appetites and desires will be found most ready heartily to breathe the sentiment of our text: others who have been suckled at the breasts of Luxury may regard the hardy though wholesome fare of the poor (or of the rich who prefer that fare) as only a step on this side of starvation, but the wise and unsophisticated know that in these matters the alone true luxury is simplicity and naturalness in accordance with that sentiment of Paul: Having food and raiment, let us therewith be content." I Timothy vi. 8. I repeat what I have before expressed— that if we but keep simple tastes and natural unluxurious habits, it is absolutely marvellous what plenty of Festive Joy a good God has provided for every diligent and sober toiler. The

Angels, who bring Festive Joy in their train, shun those Halls where unnatural delicacies are provided for appetites already palled, and their music is heard above that Table where smokes the healthsome and full repast which unsophisticated Nature demands. Whether a man be rich or poor is nothing to the point: the light in which you may regard riches or poverty is the great concern; and whether the mind has yet arrived at that state of perfect Content which enables you heartily to re-echo our text: chiefly, can you, the poor, who are yet in some way graciously provided for, lift up your heart to God and say, as you think how much worse your case might have been, and indeed how much worse off many of your fellows actually are "Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over."

But I haste to regard the text in some of its more purely spiritual meanings. Indeed, I am quite aware that I have already transgressed the etiquette of the pulpit by dwelling so long on the material aspects of the subject—the bread and butter sense of the text. Strange! these material things, these Temporals, occupy, and must occupy nine-tenths of all our thought and care, yet some purists would have us ignore them altogether in preaching, and have us ever addressing our fellow men as if they were fleshless, bloodless Ghosts! On the contrary, precious as are the Spiritual meanings of this Shepherd-Psalm, they become meagre and almost unreal, if you disconnect them from the original and more natural reference to Temporal things.

Will you take these words then as expressive of the Convert's new feelings? God knows, we do not meet with so many of these as our hearts long for-but should there be any here to-day, we know that as they contemplate their new position and privileges, as the redeemed Children of God, they will exclaim, "Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over." They who specially study these things tell us that anointing with oil as a Biblical custom always symbolizes the outpouring of the Spirit of God: we accept their interpretation,

and behold in this verse an adequate setting forth of what the Convert experiences when a spirit of repentance for sin and of faith in Jesus as the Saviour from all sin takes possession of the Heart.

Then they share the Festive Joy of which we spake. Much is said by a certain hard and somewhat cynical class of thinkers, the " mere feeling," the “ I mere enthusiasm " of the Convert's earlier moods, and it is ridiculed as a thing to be laughed down, or tolerated only as an amiable weakness. My Friends, such a state of "feeling" as that which most experience in the time of Conversion, or of any great Spiritual-Reviving is its own great reward; a joy with which no stranger can intermeddle; a glow of young and fresh heart-love to the dear Redeemer which will never or seldom return to you. Cherish it fondly

while it lasts; fan it by the breath of much secret prayer and meditation; do not drag it forth too much into the gaze of unsympathetic eyes-it is too sacred by far to be handled or looked at by the godless mocking crew! Alas, it will deaden soon enough; failure in duty or relapse into some besetting sin will teach you early the sad lesson that though Sin be pardoned it is not yet destroyed, and that though your Salvation be secure with God, you have yet by Christ's grace to work it out in fear and trembling.

Rejoice, then, while you may-but rejoice with trembling! Psalm ii. II. Sing aloud how the Oil of Heaven's Grace has been poured out upon your head and flows down to the utmost skirt of your garments in no stinted streams: but, oh, be not high-minded; for others have passed through the same seasons of plenty, and yet lived to cry in moments of desertion and weakness that the Heavens above them had become iron and brass! Burst forth, O grateful Hearts, and speak the praise of Jehovah-Jesus, who holdeth to your lips now the Cup of Salvation, brimming full, and running over with the new wine of the Love of God to Sinners; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O Beloved; it is Wine that shall make you live for ever; it is