They that fear Thee will be glad when they nee me; because I have hoped in Thy Word.
The good man
I. The spiritual interest of the good in each other (verse 74). In what, concerning each other, are they most profoundly interested? Their ripe moral condition. “Because I have hoped in Thy Word.” Hope in Thy Word implies--
1. That Thy Word has truth.
2. That Thy Word has good. We only hope for the good. Good men rejoice in each other, not merely because of secular or intellectual advancement, hut because of spiritual soundness and progress.
II. The confidence of the good in God (verse 75).
1. Confidence in the rectitude of the Divine procedure. I know it, not merely from the declarations of Thy Word, the testimonies of the good, but from my own experience. I know that all is right.
2. Confidence in the Divine kindness in affliction. “In faithfulness Thou hast afflicted me.” “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten,” etc.
III. The appeal of the good to Him.
1. Here is a prayer for comfort in affliction (verse 76).
2. A prayer for the preservation from dangers (verse 77). I am not only in sorrow and require comfort, hut in danger and require protection.
3. A prayer for the humiliation of enemies (verse 78). Convince them of the wrongness of their conduct towards me.
4. A prayer for the sympathy of the good (verse 79).
IV. The joy of the good in life. “For Thy law is my delight.” “I will meditate in Thy precepts.” The law of God stands for His ideas, His purposes, His sympathies, His plans, as revealed in nature and in the writings of inspired men. (Homilist.)