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There is a widespread belief that the powers of evil are especially alert and mischievous during the night hours; that is that the darkness is peculiarly the sphere of malignant spirits, whose realm is the outer darkness of the universe, and whose present occupation is to tempt mankind and do all they can to frustrate the coming of the kingdom of universal righteousness, into which they can never enter.

I. IT IS REASONABLE FOR US TO ASSOCIATE THE NIGHT HOURS WITH THE POWERS OF EVIL.

1. The psalmist points out how the wild beasts move about in the dark seeking their prey, and return to lie down in their dens at the day-break. They are the figure and type of evil spirits who go forth especially at night to persuade men to sin.

2. Temptations come to many people more strongly and seductively at night than in their waking hours.

3. Under the cover of the night men commit many crimes. The darkness is friendly to their misdeeds.

II. THE PSALMIST IN MANY PLACES TELLS OF HIS DEVOTIONS IN THE HOURS OF THE NIGHT. Every night he waters his couch with his tears. In the night he communes with his own heart and searches out his spirit. At midnight he rises to give thanks for God's goodness. One might multiply the illustrations, and in every case find this spiritual thought appropriate to them, that by availing oneself of the night hours for prayer, meditation and penitential self-communing, one carries the soul-warfare into the enemy's country, as it were.

III. THE NIGHT SEASON IS A TYPE OF THOSE TIMES OF DESOLATION, OF MELANCHOLY AND LONELINESS WHICH ALL HAVE SOMETIMES TO ENDURE. And it is the way in which we bear ourselves in such circumstances which declares the power and reality of our Christian faith.

1. The seasons of sorrow and of despondency are for the most of us veritable night seasons, hours of darkness. And it may be there are more of them than there are periods of sunshine. What then is our conduct in these night seasons?

2. The night season of sin. The only things which our Lord requires for the full pardon of human guilt are honest penitent confession, and genuine effort to amend.

3. The night of isolation, loneliness, it may be of old age, with loss of friends and of such as have taken interest in us hitherto.

4. The night season is the hour of death. What is to be one's solace in the hour of his passing? The thinking upon the name, the holy name of the Redeemer of our souls.

(Arthur Ritchie.)

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KJV: I have remembered thy name, O LORD, in the night, and have kept thy law.

WEB: I have remembered your name, Yahweh, in the night, and I obey your law.