February 1

I Samuel xvi. — 10. Again Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel; and Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath not chosen these.

11. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest; and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he come hither.

12. And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him; for this is he.

13. Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

I Samuel xvii. — 34. And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

35. And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth; and, when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

36. Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

37. David said moreover, The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go; and the Lord be with thee.

Psalm xxiii. — 1. The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want.

2. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.

3. He restoreth my soul; he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

5. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

6. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

This psalm confirms and illustrates the story of David's early life as given in the Book of Samuel. It is a perfect gem of poetry; but its beauty springs from the personal experience of the writer as reflected upon the inner life of the soul. Simply as a poet, David could not have written it, for the mere poet would have described the shepherd's life from an outward point of view, — how he fed and watered his flock, choosing for them quiet haunts, and watching over and defending them in places of danger; and then would have drawn from this an analogy of God's care of his people. But David was a shepherd; and, instead of describing a shepherd's life, he transfers his own experience in the care of the

flock to God's loving care of him. The Lord is my shepherd: he is doing for me just what I am doing for these tender lambs. He takes care of me; sees that I have food and rest and comfort; is always with me for my supply and defence, so that I can want nothing and fear nothing. And he is so much greater and richer than I, that his goodness overflows my present needs: he consecrates me with the oil of gladness. So may we beautify and dignify our daily life; seeing in our calling, however humble, God's provision for our comfort, and enjoying its fruits as his gift. So may we rise above the fear of death; finding, in God's favor, strength, grace, victory, and joy.

APPROPRIATE HYMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 43, 70, 116.

O thou great and good Shepherd! thou hast watched over us in the hours of darkness and of sleep; defended us from evil: and, with our awaking consciousness, we find thee still at our side. As our eyes open to behold the light of day, our souls would look up and rejoice in the light of thy countenance. Oh! keep us, this day, close unto thee, and lead us in paths of righteousness. Thou art our portion and our joy. Our waiting eyes are unto thee, O Lord! We are fed by thy bounty, preserved by thy care, sustained by thy power. Give us, this day, our daily bread. But thou hast taught us in thy Word that man shall not live by bread alone: we therefore pray thee, feed our souls with the bread of life, and strengthen us by thy Spirit with might in the inner man, that we may do all thy holy will. [Blessed Saviour, care for the children of this family, as lambs of thy flock;

guide, nourish, and defend them.] O God, who art the only worthy portion of our souls! keep us from that love of this world which would draw us away from thee. May the grace of Christ preserve us from sin, and the love of Christ constrain us unto holy living! May thought, motive, temper, speech, action, all be regulated by his blessed teaching and example! In trials succor us; in dangers defend us; in sorrows heal us; in death grant us thy staff to comfort us. Our Father in heaven, be thou the father of this family, supplying all our need, and binding our hearts unto thyself. Join with us in the household of faith all who are dear to us; and bless and multiply the family of thy people till it shall embrace all the kindreds and peoples of the earth. Gather thy whole Church as one flock under the one Shepherd, for the sake of Him who died to save us. Amen.