Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1886-03-20

THE PASTOR, REV. F. NJ. WOODS.
"If the foundations be destroyed, what
can the righteous do?'-Psalm xI-S.
The occasion which gave birth to
this Psalm is not stated. The gen
eral tenor of it, however, points very
probably to the times of trouble and
distress which King Saul's reign in
troduced. Those dark days in Da-
vid's history furnish very natural
background for the picture which is
so wildly drawn in the brief com
pass of its few verses. The founda-
tions Of civil government and Of so
ciety were sadly broken and the
times were out of joint. Justice and
order were trampled down. Things
were fast tending in the direction of
the unelean oracle which enthrones
might, and casts down right to the
ground. David was himself the OBJ
iect Of much of this bitter, vituper-
alive spirit which marked his time.
Some of his timid friends thought
that the time had come when he
should make good his escape. The
fires were already kindling upon him.
But his mind was not at all to flee.
He firmly made answer: SIN the
Lord put | my trust" But they
persist "The wicked bend their
bow they make ready their arrow
- upon the string, that they may privi-
ly shoot at the the upright in heart"
But fear shall not drive him from his
post. How say We to my soul, flee
as a bird to yon montain p Still
they cannot forbear urging him: "If
the foundations be destroyed, what
can the righteous do?" Cui bono
What use that they should further
expose life to dangerl Why attempt
longer resistance Forsake the
crumbling walls Of the burning edi-
flee. Seek safety. These we're the
arguments of weak and timid men.
Or, they may have been the counsels
of cunning and crafty politicians who
sought to entrap David, as in after
days, Shemaiah tried to ensnare Ne
hemiah, by persuading him to hide
in the temple, in time of danger.
Shrewd and INSCRIPTIONS they ieign-
ed themselves to be friends, so as the
more efiectually to deceive the Son
of Jesse. For fight at that juncture
would have been recreancy to the
trust committed to him Or, these
men may have been malicious scott
ers, asking in profane derision of
the holy God whom David loved and
in whom he trusted: "Whereis the
promise of His coming ?n-what has
become of it? Or, anticipating the
heartless and coarse crucifers gath.
cred around Calvary, do they say,
in the same spirit of biting irony:
she trusted in God let Him deliver
him now, if He will have him; for he
said {: i am the Son of God" Per-
haps, measuring David's God with
their own petty line, and Judging of
His power only by what they can
see, genuine Positivists) they are
haunting this sorely-tried, this af-
ficted man, crying to him: where
is noao thy God" o! how cruel,
how mean, these stings Worse
than the venom Of the viper's fang
when stricken into the flesh of sick
or dying man! "The tender mer-
cies of the wicked are cruel"
Whatever may have been the
character or the motives of the men
who proffered this counsel, the text
itself sd " describes a sore evil,
which demanded very positive meas
ures for its remedy. 1t is of the
greatest importance for the founda-
tions of law and order, to be firmly
established. Civil government is a
Divine ordinance, and is, therefore,
to be reverenced and sacredly up
held. 1t must not be regarded as an
institution intended to abet the
schemes of ambitious and mercenary
selfseekers. God appointed it to
meet the exigencies of the great so
cial problems which the vast multi
plication of men upon the earth must
bring into prominence.
Among the very first results of
the increase of the human family,
was the strong tendency of the pow
erful to bear down upon the weak.
Cain and Nimrod could not be trust
ed to keep within the limits of their
own proper rights and to respect the
rights of their neighbors, who were
unable to measure swords with them.
individuals, communities and nations