"And when He had taken the
book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb,
having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odors, which are the
prayers of [the] saints" (Rev. 5:8).

That latter clause is very
peculiar, as connected with the grace of God in eternity. There are things His
people suffer from that He never forgets. All their prayers are treasured up
before God; their tears are put in His bottle and treasured up. What! the
sorrow I have forgotten, has God put that down? Is that one of the things that
will shine? He can use all for His glory; but can the prayers and groans of a
saint be kept and have a special place, be an odor of a sweet savor to God? The
sinner does not know this; but a poor broken one can say, "Not only does
God remember my prayer, but He puts it by on His throne, like the pot of manna
which He wanted to be laid up, to be remembered as a trophy of the way He
carried His people through the wilderness."

So will their prayers tell there
what their special need of His presence was here. The prayers of the saints are
likened to "golden vials full of odors." Gold marks the divine
character of that by which they are kept:the odor — a fragrant incense going
up — ever the same. Is that said of the prayers of the saints? Yes, not one of
them is lost. The Lord Jesus knew them all; they are ever before God.

FRAGMENT "Let my prayer be
set before Thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening
sacrifice" (Psalm 141:2).