A Brief Explication of the First Fifty Psalms, Psalm 15
PSAL. XV. A Psalm of David.
The Prophet for distinguishing of the true members of the Church from those who were only outwardly professors, asketh of the Lord, how the one may be known from the other? ver. 1. and receiveth answer to the question, ver. 2, 3, 4, 5.
Ver. 1. LOrd, who shall abide in thy Tabernacle? who shal dwel in thy holy hill?
THe question is proponed about the marks of the sincere believers, the true Covenanters with God, the true Professors of true religion, who they are who shall not be cast out from the society of Gods true Church. Whence learne, 1. The Tabernacle pitched by Moses, and the hill of Sion, where the Tabernacle and the Temple wat at last setled, was a Type of the true Church, and of Communion with God in Christ the Mediatour, a type of God incarnate, dwelling, and exercising all his offices in his Church, and of the heavenly condition of his people called out of the world, and lifted up toward him, designed under the name of Gods Tabernacle, and Gods holy hill. 2. Some of those who professe to be of this fellowship may be thrust out from it again, and debarred from all communion with God, when other some shall remaine in this state, and not be removed. For the question is moved, What are the marks of the members of the Church invisible? and who they are who shal abide in Gods tabernacle, and dwel in his holy hill? 3. Only the Lord who searcheth the heart, can put the difference betweene the true and the false; for this cause the question is proponed to God, Lord, who shall abide in thy Tabernacle?
Ver. 2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousnesse, and speaketh the truth in his heart.
3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.
4. In whose eyes the vile person is contemned, but he honoureth them that fear the LORD: he that sweareth to his own hurt and changeth …t.
5. He that putteth not out his mony to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doth these things, shall …ever be moved.
The Lord answereth in the rest of the Psalme, by shewing the fruits of faith manifested in obedience to Gods commands, both moral and judicial, in the sight of all men: The sincerity of which faith and truth was to be certainly knowne to God only, and to the conscience of every mans self; which was sufficient to satisfie the question, quieting and comforting of the upright ones. Whence learne, 1. That sincere indeavour of universal obedience in a mans conversation, is a fruit and evidence of true faith, and a mark of a true member of the Church invisible, He walketh uprightly, and doth righteousnesse. 2. Another fruit of true faith, is conscience-making of what a man speaketh, ruling his tongue so, as his heart and his tongue do agree in the truth: he speaketh the truth from the heart. 3. A third fruit of unfained faith, is making conscience in all his dealings, that he harm not his neighbour, neither in his name, nor in his person, nor his goods, and making conscience not to receive readily a false report of his neighbour, when it is devised by another, Hee backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. 4. A fourth fruit of sound faith, is the low estimation of any wordly excellency wherewith a wicked man can be busked; to whom, although the godly, according to duty, will give civil honour, as his place requireth, yet hee counteth him a poor miserable man for all his honour and wealth, because hee walketh in a godlesse way: but where he seeth one that feareth God, he esteemeth highly of him in his heart, whatsoever externall expressions thereof hee find fit to give, because of the honourable way of holinesse, wherein the godly walketh; for in his eyes a vile person is contemned, but he honoureth him that feareth the Lord. 5. A fifth fruit of sound faith, is tender respect to the Name of God, and care to keep lawful promises, covenants, and oathes, whatsoever civil inconveniences may follow upon the strict keeping of them; Though he swear to his owne damage, he changeth not. 6. A sixth fruit and evidence of faith, is dispensing with commodity, when God by a speciall reason calleth for so doing, albeit other wayes a man might take reasonably more gaine. Many of such sort of cases do occurre in merchandise, and … exacting of rents and debts, as circumstances may teach, when, and where God calleth for most moderation; such was the judicial dispensing with commodity, put upon the Iewes for loosing the yoke of a bought servant, being a Iew, at the end of six years; and quitting of houses and lands bought from a Iew at the yeare of Iubile, how deare soever it cost the buyer; and not taking usury of a Iew; wherein the Iew was priviledged above men of another Country: for in all these three particulars, it was lawfull for the Iew to doe otherwise with other country-men, to wit, in buying a servant from a stranger, and not … all his dayes, and buying land from a stranger of another country, and transmitting it to his own posterity, and taking usury of a stranger, according to the rate which was acknowledged on all hands to stand with equity; which commodity if an Israelite did not dispense with toward an Israelite, it made him short of this com…endation of the true Israelite, who putteth not his money to usurie. 7. The seventh fruit and evidence of faith, is freedome from briberie, with love of justice, which the believer wil not pervert, to the detriment of the man who hath a good cause, for whatsoever bud or reward man can give him. This is the upright mans last property, He taketh not a reward against the innocent.
Having numbred out the evidences of a sound convert and true believer, who shal never be thrust out of Gods fellowship, he concludeth, That whosoever doth these things, or studieth to do them, shall never be moved. That is, hee that shal evidence his faith in God, by a sincere indeavour to doe the duties of the first and second table of Gods Law, shall not be removed from Gods house, but shall abide in his Tabernacle, and dwell in Sion, in the fellowship of God and his Saints for ever.