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PRESENCE from the pride of man; Thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the
strife of tongues" (Psa. 31: 20).
How bitter, how cruel may be the pride of man! How distracting and distressing the
strife of tongues! How blessed to find such a hiding place, and to rest at peace in the
secret of His presence!
Take as an illustration of this the attitude of the Lord Jesus when His testimony was
rejected, when He had come to His own, and His own had not received Him:--
"Even so, Father: for it seemed good in Thy sight. . . . Come unto Me all ye that
labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, take My yoke upon you and learn of
Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest to your souls" (Matt. 11: 26-29).
Only as we have something of this "spirit of Christ" that rests in the Father's will, only
as we "take His yoke upon us and learn of Him", only as we have a meek and lowly heart
can we find this true rest. Here is no self assertion, no aggressive championship, no
defence, but rather the quiet withdrawing into God's hiding place.
"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of
the Almighty. . . . He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shall thou
trust" (Psa. 91: 1, 4).
As days grow darker, and apostasy deepens, this hiding place will become
increasingly precious, and this title become one of the many "comforts of the Scriptures".
Let us be grateful for the title and its message, and be content during man's day to remain
God's hidden ones.
"The Just shall live by his Faith."
pp. 155 - 158
The words of our title occur in the writing of the prophet Habakkuk, chapter 2: 4, but
the three quotations made by the apostle Paul in Rom. 1: 17, Gal. 3: 11, and Heb. 10: 38
are more generally known than is the original passage. On the three occasions in which
the apostle quotes from Habakkuk, he places the emphasis upon a different section of the
verse. Rom. 1: 17 introduces the quotation in relation to the fact that the power of the
gospel was found in its revelation of a righteousness of God; the apostle's first point is
connected with the Just. Gal. 3: 11, the second quotation, emphasizes Faith, as opposed
to law and the works of the law. Heb. 10: 38, the third quotation, emphasizes the "living
by faith", and chapter 11: is devoted to a series of Scripture biographies, the point in
each case being the practical exhibition of the faith professed. At some future time we
may profitably consider these passages in the epistles. Our intention at the moment,
however, is to consider the bearing of the original passage upon the theme of the
prophecy. Shall we therefore turn to the prophecy of Habakkuk?