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I. This is a RIGHTEOUS occupation.

1. It agrees with the profoundest instincts of our souls. "My heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God." It is the hunger of the river for the ocean — every particle heaves towards it, and rests not until it finds it.

2. It is stimulated by the manifestations of nature. His footprints are everywhere, and they invite us to pursue His march.

3. It is encouraged by the declarations of the Bible. "Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him whilst He is near."

4. It is aided by the manifestations of Christ. "Christ is the brightness of His Father's glory," etc.

II. This is a USEFUL occupation.

1. There is no occupation so spirit-quickening. The idea of God to the soul is what the sunbeam is to nature. No other idea has such a life-giving power.

2. There is no occupation so spirit-humbling.

3. There is no occupation so spirit-ennobling. When the soul feels itself before God, the majesty of kings, and the splendour of empires are but childish toys.

III. This is an ENDLESS occupation. "Canst thou by searching find out God?" Never fully. The finite can never comprehend the Infinite.

1. This endless work agrees with the inexhaustible powers of our nature. Searching after anything less than the Infinite would never bring out into full and vigorous action the immeasurable potentialities within us.

2. This endless work agrees with the instinct of mystery within us. The soul wants mystery. Without mystery there is no inquisitiveness, no wonder, no adoration, no self-abnegation.

(Homilist.)

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KJV: Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection?

WEB: "Can you fathom the mystery of God? Or can you probe the limits of the Almighty?