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Abfalom's rebellion; for he fpeaks of "enemies, who then took counsel together, and laid wait for his life." And we find not that he was ever in this perilous and critical fituation after that rebellion. David, then, realized old age earlier than some seem to do. He noticed its first appearance; he brought it near in his meditations, before it had actually invaded him; or, at least, when he began to perceive its approach in the decline of his strength, and the increase of his grey hairs. But many choose to view it as diftant-" Grey bairs are here and there upon them, and they perceive it not." They enjoy, in a comfortable degree, the pleasures of life; and that evil day, in which there is no pleasure, they put far from them.

It would be wife for us to imitate David's example; to think of, and prepare for the evil day, before it comes; to fecure God's gracious prefence now; and in our daily prayers to ask, that "he would not caft us off in the time of old age, nor forfake us when our ftrength faileth."

The Pfalmift here reminds us, that old age is a time when strength faileth: and that at fuch a time God's prefence is of peculiar importance.

I. Old age is a time when ftrength faileth.

There is then a fenfible decay of bodily ftrength. As we come into the world, fo we depart, impotent, feeble and helpless. From our infancy we gradually acquire ftrength, until we arrive to our full maturity. We then for a few years continue ftationary, without fenfible change. After a little while we begin to feel, and are conftrained to confefs an alteration in our ftate. Our limbs lofe their former activity; our customary labour becomes wearifome; pains invade our frame; our fleep, often interrupted, refreshes us lefs than Пеер,

heretofore; our food is lefs guftful; our fight is bedimmed, and our ears are dull of hearing; "they that look out at the windows are darkened, and the daughters of mufic are low;" the pleafures of reading and converfation abate; our ancient companions have generally withdrawn to another world, and the few who are left are, like us, fhut up, that they cannot go forth. Hence focial vifits are more unfrequent and less entertaining; and our condition grows more and more folitary and difconfolate.

With our bodily, our mental ftrength usually declines.

The faculty, which first appears to fail, is the memory. And its failure we firft obferve in the difficulty of recollecting little things, fuch as names and numbers. We then perceive it in our inabil ity to retain things which are recent. What we early heard or read, abides with us; but later information is foon forgotten. Hence, in converfation, aged people often repeat the fame questions and relate the fame ftories; for they foon lofe the recollection of what has paffed. And hence perhaps, in part, is the impertinent garrulity, of which old age is accufed. You fee, then, my young friends, the importance of laying up a good store of useful knowledge in early life. What you acquire now, you may retain later acquifitions will be small and uncertain. Like riches, they will make themselves wings and fly away. In the decline of life you must chiefly depend on the old ftock; and happy, if you fhall have then a rich ftore to feed upon.

When memory fails, other faculties foon follow. The attention is with more difficulty fixed, and more eafily diverted: the intellect is lefs acute in its difcernment, and the judgment more fallible in its decifions.

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The judgment is the laft faculty which the pride of age is willing to give up. Our forgetfulness we cannot but feel, and others cannot but observe. But we choose to think our judgment remains folid and clear. We are never apt to diftruft our own opinions; for it is the nature of opinion to be fatisfied with itself. It is certain, however, that judgment muft fail in fome proportion to the failure of attention and recollection. form a juft judgment by viewing and comparing the evidences and circumftances, which relate to the cafe in question. If then any material evidence, or circumftance escapes our notice, or flips from our memory, the judgment formed is uncertain, because we have but a partial view of the cafe. In all matters, where a right judgment depends on comparing feveral things, the failure of memory endangers the rectitude of the decifion.

When we perceive a decline of bodily and mental ftrength, fear and anxiety ufually increase. Difficulties once trifling now fwell to a terrifying magnitude, because we have not power to encounter them; want ftares upon us with frightful afpect, because we have not capacity to provide against it; the kind and patient attention of our friends we diftruft, because we know not how long we may be a burden to them, and we have nothing in our hands to remunerate them, except that property which they already anticipate as their own. "The grafshopper now becomes a burden; we rife up at the voice of the bird; we are afraid of that which is high, and fear is in the way."

This ftate of infirmity and anxiety, painful in ítfelf, is rendered more fo by the recollection of what we once were, and by the anticipation of what we foon fhall be.

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We contraft our present with our former condition-Once we were men; now we feel ourfelves to be but babes. Once we poffeffed active powers; now we are become impotent. Once we fuftained our children and miniftered to them with pleasure; now we are sustained by them; and we are fure, our once experienced pleasure is not reciprocated. Once we were of fome import ance in fociety; now we are funk into infignificance. Once our advice was fought and regarded; now we are paffed by with neglect, and younger men take our place: even the management of our own fubftance has fallen into the hands of others, and they perhaps fcarcely think us worthy of being confulted. And if we are, now and then, confulted, perhaps our jealoufy whispers, that it is done merely to flatter our aged vanity and keep us in good humor.

Such a contraft Job experienced, and he found it no fmall aggravation of his adverfity. Looking back to former days, he fays, "When I went out of the gates through the city, the young men faw me, and hid themfelves; the aged arofe and ftood up. When the ear heard me, then it bleffed me ; and when the eye faw me, it gave witness to me, because I delivered the poor and fatherless, and the bleffing of those who were ready to perish, came upon me. But now they who are younger than I have me in derifion. They abhor me and fice from me. They mar my path, and set forward my calamity."

And not only the remembrance of what is paft, but the fore thought of what is to come, aggravates the calamity of the aged man.

In earlier life hope ftood by him to comfort him in all his troubles. If he was disappointed in his business, he hoped to fucceed better in a fu

ture effay. If he met with misfortune, he hoped by and by to retrieve it. If he loft his health, he hoped by time and medicine to regain it. If he fuffered pain, he hoped it would be short. Whatever calamity he felt, he looked forward to better days. But now hope has quitted its ftation and retired from his company. "His days are spent without hope." The joys of life are fled, never to return. He anticipates the increase of infirmities and pains from month to month, and the probable event of total decrepitude and confinement, and the entire loss of his feeble remains of fenfibility and intellect.

Well might Solomon call this an evil day.

In the probable expectation of fuch a day, there is no folid comfort, but in the hope of enjoying the presence of God. Therefore, as we obferved,

II. We ought to adopt the prayer of David, "Caft me not off in the time of old age: Forfake me not when my ftrength faileth."

In the first place, the Pfalmift may here be fupposed to request, that God would not caft him off from the care of his providence.

When we have reached old age, or find ourselves near it, we may reasonably and properly pray, that God would excufe us from thofe pains of body and infirmities of mind, with which fome have been afflicted; that he would place us in easy and unembarraffed circumftances, and in connexion with kind and faithful friends; that he would free us from worldly carefulness and anxiety, and allow us liberty for those devout exercises, which are fuited to prepare us for our momentous change. David had feen the grofs misbehavior of fome of his children, and was now probably fuffering under the cruel perfecution of an ungracious fon, who wished the father's death, that he might pof

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