Psalms 13:5,6 - Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary

See how the note is changed. Yes! when a soul is thus enabled to act faith upon Jesus, and the divine promises in him, there will be soon cause to praise and sing aloud of God's faithfulness and bounty. But do not fail, Reader, to observe with me what the joy of the soul here is. Not that his frames were altered; not that his heart was enlarged; not that more light was brought into his soul: these things he had, and these were all precious; but these were the effects and not the cause of his joy. No! read the verse again, and you will see that what his heart rejoiced in was God's salvation, and God's mercy. And what is this but Jesus, all-precious, all-satisfying, soul-comforting Jesus? I pray you, Reader, mark it down as a matter of great importance for every occasion of soul exercises, that it is Jesus, and not our frames or feelings, that is the cause of all real joy. When we put the effects for the cause, and magnify the fruit of faith instead of the glorious object of faith; we place our comfort where it is not. So that when our frames alter, as alter they soon will, where is our joy then? But if we place it in Jesus, and have it in Jesus; here we may always find it, in every rainy, dark, or gloomy day that follows.