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I. THE FRUITFULNESS OF PIETY. Its abundance. It is like the palm-tree. The righteous surpass the wicked, as the palm-tree the grass that is cast into the fire. "Much fruit" glorifies God. The palm, the noblest tree of the plain, and the cedar, the noblest tree of the mountain, both stand as symbols of the righteous. Both are superior to the caprices of seasons. The palm looks from a lofty eminence down on the desert, and the cedar defies the storm. Both are enduring. Fruits are better than seeds. Deeds than profession.

II. THE IMMEDIATE AND ULTIMATE SOURCE OF THIS PIETY. They are planted in the courts of the Lord. Piety must find its nutrition in holy exercises. Worship, meditation with the lights of Christian truth should lead on to far higher spirituality than the broken lights of the Old Temple services. There is never a doctrine in the Word or nature that is not intended for enrichment and elevation of the true and temper of life.

III. THE FRUITFULNESS OF PIETY GIVES DIRECT AND HONOURABLE TESTIMONY TO GOD. "The Lord is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him." Dependence on God essential to fruitfulness.

(G. B. Johnson.)

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KJV: Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.

WEB: They are planted in Yahweh's house. They will flourish in our God's courts.