inct of a communion, personal, practical, living,
between God, the fount of light and goodness, and his own soul, with
its capacity of darkness as well as light, of evil as well as good.

In one word, David is a man of faith and a man of prayer--as God
grant all you may be. It is this one fixed idea, that God could
hear him, and that God would help him, which gives unity and
coherence to the wonderful variety of David's Psalms. It is this
faith which gives calm confidence to his views of nature and of man;
and enables him to say, as he looks upon his sheep feeding round
him, 'The Lord is my Shepherd, therefore I shall not want.' Faith
it is which enables him to foresee that though the heathen rage, and
the kings of the earth stand up, and the rulers take counsel
together against the Lord and his Anointed, yet the righteous cause
will surely prevail, for God is king himself. Faith it is which
enables him to bear up against the general immorality, and while he
cries, 'Help me, Lord, for there is not one godly man left, for the
faithful fail from among the children of men'--to make answer to
himself in words of noble hope and consolation, 'Now for the
comfortless troubles' sake of the needy, and because of the deep
sighing of the poor, I will up, saith the Lord, and will help every
one from him that swelleth against him, and will set him at rest.'

Faith it is which gives a character, which no other like utterances
have, to those cries of agony--cries as of a lost child--which he
utters at times with such noble and truthful simplicity. They
issue, almost every one of them, in a sudden counter-cry of joy as
pathetic as the sorrow which has gone before. 'O Lord, rebuke me
not in thine indignation: neither chasten me in thy displeasure.
Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am weak: O Lord, heal me, for my
bones are vexed. My soul also is sore troubled: but, Lord, how
long wilt thou punish me? Turn thee, O Lord, and deliver my soul:
O save me for thy mercy's sake. For in death no man remembereth
thee: and who will give thee thanks in the pit? I am weary of my
groaning; every night wash I my bed: and water my couch with my
tears. My beauty is gone for very trouble: and worn away because
of all mine enemies. Away from me, all ye that work vanity, for the
Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord hath heard my
petition: the Lord will receive my prayer.'

Faith it is, in like wise, which gives its pecul