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- float: left; - margin-right: 1em } - -.align-right { clear: right; - float: right; - margin-left: 1em } - -.align-center { margin-left: auto; - margin-right: auto } - -div.shrinkwrap { display: table; } - -/* SECTIONS */ - -body { margin: 5% 10% 5% 10% } - -/* compact list items containing just one p */ -li p.pfirst { margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0 } - -.first { margin-top: 0 !important; - text-indent: 0 !important } -.last { margin-bottom: 0 !important } - -span.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.1em 0 0; line-height: 1 } -img.dropcap { float: left; margin: 0 0.5em 0 0; max-width: 25% } -span.dropspan { font-variant: small-caps } - -.no-page-break { page-break-before: avoid !important } - -/* PAGINATION */ - -@media screen { - .coverpage, .frontispiece, .titlepage, .verso, .dedication, .plainpage - { margin: 10% 0; } - - div.clearpage, div.cleardoublepage - { margin: 10% 0; border: none; border-top: 1px solid gray; } - - .vfill { margin: 5% 10% } -} - -@media print { - div.clearpage { page-break-before: always; padding-top: 10% } - div.cleardoublepage { page-break-before: right; padding-top: 10% } - - .vfill { margin-top: 20% } - h2.title { margin-top: 20% } -} - -</style> -<title>THE PATRIARCHS</title> -<meta name="PG.Rights" content="Public Domain" /> -<meta name="PG.Title" content="The Patriarchs" /> -<meta name="PG.Producer" content="Andrew Sly, Al Haines and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net" /> -<meta name="DC.Creator" content="J. G. Bellett" /> -<meta name="DC.Created" content="1895" /> -<meta name="PG.Id" content="40216" /> -<meta name="PG.Released" content="2012-07-11" /> -<meta name="DC.Language" content="en" /> -<meta name="DC.Title" content="The Patriarchs Being Meditations upon Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job; The Canticles, Heaven and Earth." /> - -<link href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" rel="schema.DCTERMS" /> -<link href="http://id.loc.gov/vocabulary/relators" rel="schema.MARCREL" /> -<meta content="The Patriarchs Being Meditations upon Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job; The Canticles, Heaven and Earth." name="DCTERMS.title" /> -<meta content="patriarchs.rst" name="DCTERMS.source" /> -<meta content="en" scheme="DCTERMS.RFC4646" name="DCTERMS.language" /> -<meta content="2012-07-12T03:02:54.303368+00:00" scheme="DCTERMS.W3CDTF" name="DCTERMS.modified" /> -<meta content="Project Gutenberg" name="DCTERMS.publisher" /> -<meta content="Public Domain in the USA." name="DCTERMS.rights" /> -<link href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/40216" rel="DCTERMS.isFormatOf" /> -<meta content="\J. \G. Bellett" name="DCTERMS.creator" /> -<meta content="2012-07-11" scheme="DCTERMS.W3CDTF" name="DCTERMS.created" /> -<meta content="width=device-width" name="viewport" /> -<meta content="EpubMaker 0.3.19b4 by Marcello Perathoner <webmaster@gutenberg.org>" name="generator" /> -<style type="text/css"> -.pageno { position: absolute; right: 95%; font: medium sans-serif; text-indent: 0 } -.pageno:after { color: gray; content: '[' attr(title) ']' } -.lineno { position: absolute; left: 95%; font: medium sans-serif; text-indent: 0 } -.lineno:after { color: gray; content: '[' attr(title) ']' } -.toc-pageref { float: right } -pre { font-family: monospace; font-size: 0.9em; white-space: pre-wrap } -</style> -</head> -<body> -<div class="document" id="the-patriarchs"> -<h1 class="document-title level-1 pfirst title">THE PATRIARCHS</h1> - -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="clearpage"> -</div> -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="align-None container language-en noindent pgheader" id="pg-header" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<p class="noindent pfirst">This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the <a class="reference internal" href="#project-gutenberg-license">Project Gutenberg License</a> -included with this eBook or online at -<a class="reference external" href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license">http://www.gutenberg.org/license</a>.</p> -<p class="noindent pnext"></p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<div class="align-None container noindent white-space-pre-line" id="pg-machine-header"> -<p class="noindent pfirst white-space-pre-line"><span class="white-space-pre-line">Title: The Patriarchs<br /> - Being Meditations upon Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,<br /> - Joseph, Job; The Canticles, Heaven and Earth.<br /> -<br /> -Author: J. G. Bellett<br /> -<br /> -Release Date: July 11, 2012 [EBook #40216]<br /> -<br /> -Language: English<br /> -<br /> -Character set encoding: UTF-8</span></p> -</div> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-start-line">*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK <span>THE PATRIARCHS</span> ***</p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-produced-by"><span>Produced by Andrew Sly, Al Haines and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net.</span></p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 1em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst"><span></span></p> -</div> -<div class="align-None center container titlepage white-space-pre-line"> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line x-large" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst white-space-pre-line">THE PATRIARCHS:</p> -<p class="medium pnext white-space-pre-line">Being Meditations</p> -<p class="pnext small white-space-pre-line">UPON</p> -<p class="medium pnext white-space-pre-line">ENOCH, NOAH, ABRAHAM, ISAAC, JACOB, JOSEPH, JOB;</p> -<p class="pnext white-space-pre-line">THE CANTICLES, HEAVEN AND EARTH.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst small white-space-pre-line">BY</p> -<p class="medium pnext white-space-pre-line"><em class="italics white-space-pre-line">J. G. BELLETT</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center pfirst small white-space-pre-line">New Edition.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">A. S. ROUSE,</p> -<p class="pnext white-space-pre-line">15 & 16, PATERNOSTER SQUARE, LONDON, E.C.</p> -<p class="pnext white-space-pre-line">1895</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="align-None center container plainpage white-space-pre-line"> -<p class="medium pfirst white-space-pre-line">THE PATRIARCHS:</p> -<p class="pnext small white-space-pre-line">BEING MEDITATIONS UPON</p> -<p class="medium pnext white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#enoch">ENOCH</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#noah">NOAH</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#abraham">ABRAHAM</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#isaac">ISAAC</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#jacob">JACOB</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#joseph">JOSEPH</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#job">JOB</a>;</p> -<p class="pnext white-space-pre-line"><a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#the-canticles">THE CANTICLES</a>, <a class="reference internal white-space-pre-line" href="#heaven-and-earth">HEAVEN AND EARTH</a>.</p> -<div class="vspace white-space-pre-line" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -</div> -<p class="center pfirst x-large"><span class="target" id="enoch">ENOCH</span>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It is not so much of Enoch himself that I now -purpose, in the Lord's grace, I would hope, to -write a little, but rather of the times and the saints -before the flood. Whether it be of them or of him, -the materials, as we know, are very scanty; but in the -way and wisdom of the Spirit of God, they are full of -meaning and of value.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">A peculiar attraction has been commonly felt in the -Book of Genesis.</p> -<p class="pnext">The simplicity of the narratives has to account for -much of this, I doubt not. Human life is in its -infancy and artlessness. The scenes are domestic, -and the habits and manners such as family duties -and affections were forming. This is a great source of -enjoyment to the mind from this book. Such springs -of pleasure are at times tasted in spite of ourselves. -We are spoiled very much by the customs of the world, -and we suppose that we like them. But still we find -ourselves naturally at ease in such scenery as that -which this lovely book presents to us. The wife of one -wealthy lord, who numbered his servants by hundreds, -and his flocks by thousands, would knead the cake for -the traveller; and the daughter of another, without -practising the language of apology, would be seen by -strangers watering the family herds.</p> -<p class="pnext">Yet with all this there was the truest courtesy. -The honour due to all men was as well understood as -the love of kindred. It was not barbaric life, though -simple and inartificial. It was not rude simplicity; -but that which came from an influence that could -mould and adorn life. And that influence was the -knowledge of God. The times of this book were, -as we know they were, unindebted to the advance of -civility, or the regulations of cultivated life; but still -the state of things was not barbarous, just because -there was the knowledge of God. The hand of God -was felt, while as yet the conceits of polished life had -not time or liberty either to garnish or soil the scene.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is this which fashions the manners of these early -times. Peculiar they are, deeply commending themselves -to a right mind; but enough, perhaps, to provoke -the smile of many who belong to times like ours. For -strange nowadays would be the confidential friendship -of a master and his servant. And yet such was between -Abraham and Eliezer, though all the while the duties -and rights of the relationship were religiously observed. -And how unwarrantable would it now be judged, that -the intended husband of one of the daughters, or the -son-in-law himself, as in the case of Laban and Jacob, -should tend the family flocks in the heat of day and -frost of night, getting his wages! And yet in all this -there is no moral offence whatever; nothing but what -may charm the nicest sensibilities of our nature.</p> -<p class="pnext">But that which ought to lend this book its principal -power to engage us is this: the Lord Himself is seen -in it in ways and characters suited to this simple and -primitive style. The action of the book being very -much domestic, plain and unadorned, His way is -according. Whether He communicates His mind, or -manifests His presence, it is after this same pattern. -He does not employ prophets, but personally makes -His pleasure known. It may be in a dream, or with -a voice, as well as by personal manifestation; but still -it is <em class="italics">Himself</em>. And even if angels are employed, they -are rather His <em class="italics">companions</em> than His <em class="italics">messengers</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the cool of the day, or the afternoon, He walked -in the garden. In the field He pleaded with Cain, -<em class="italics">personally</em> pleaded with him, adding the weight and -authority of His own presence to a moment of awful -and solemn interest. He came down at the cry of -Babel, and the cry of the sin of Sodom, just that -He might see, as we would do, whether things were -really as bad as they were said to be. In forms of -intimacy He again and again appeared to Abraham, -Isaac, and Jacob; inviting confidence, expressing displeasure, -or conveying His purpose, in ways of full -personal familiarity. And though, in the progress of -the book, this style may grow a little slack, still it is -maintained in measure to the end, even where we -might have least expected it. For to kings, not of -the stock of Abraham, the Lord God appeared in -dreams by night, and, without amazement, warned -them of their duty, or told them of their danger.</p> -<p class="pnext">The ministry of prophets, as I observed, is not -employed. That would have been too distant, too -reserved, to suit the general style. Nor is the divine -pleasure communicated through the Holy Ghost, or -by inspiration. That is not the way either--not the -<em class="italics">usual</em> way. But it is, as we have seen, the personal -interference of the Lord Himself, coming in a vision, -or by a dream or a word; or in the still nearer way -of taking the forms and attributes of manhood; and -that, too, not in mystic dress, as afterwards to such -as Isaiah, Daniel, or John; but as one who was meeting -man in his place and circumstances. As a traveller, -needing hospitality, He eats of a calf and a cake at the -tent door with one; with another He contends and -wrestles, as a man with his fellow, having a quarrel -or matter of dispute with him.</p> -<p class="pnext">See all this style of action in the case of Noah. -How interestedly does the Lord God enter into the -whole state of things in that day! Just as we all feel, -His eye affects His heart. And then, just as we all -do, He takes counsel with Himself. He saw the -wickedness of man that it was great; it grieved Him -to the heart; and then He said, "I will destroy man -whom I have created from the face of the earth." -And after all this, just as we ourselves would do, -having taken His counsel, He communicates it to a -friend, passing it to the ear, and the heart, and the -sympathies of another.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was <em class="italics">thus</em> that the Lord dealt with Noah. He -dealt with him as a man with his friend, as well as -like God with an elect sinner. And we ourselves -practise these ways. We love these confidences of -friendship. We love a second self. "The end of all -flesh is come before Me," says the Lord to Noah, -telling him what had been passing in His own bosom. -And afterwards, in the day of the waters, in the same -way of gracious friendship, when the ark was about -to float upon the scene of the judgment, "the Lord shut -him in." With His own hand He did it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Here was intimacy. Here was living, palpable nearness -of the Lord God to His creature. And this is in -character with His general actings and communications -in this book. The glory was not as yet taking its place -in a dispensation, shrouded in a cloudy chariot, or -seated between cherubim. In all that there was -majesty and conscious greatness, and the distance of -holiness, as suited an ordered economy. But in the -times of Genesis this was not so. Things were informal, -and the action was desultory; and the Lord was in -person, as the occasion demanded, according to this.</p> -<p class="pnext">In this manner do we find the action of this beautiful -book. The elect of God are thus, and thus is the -living God Himself. It is as divine as anything else -in the Word. And the soul so receives it. And good -reason have we for blessing the Lord, because He has -introduced our hearts to such a book as this. For we -are not always ready for the higher things. We cannot -at all times reach them, or obey a summons to ascend -the heavenly places. But the Spirit of God is tender -of our weakness, and has provided for it. The Scriptures, -if I may take leave to speak in a figure, have change -of air and change of scene for our souls.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is relish and appetite we have to covet, beloved--a -holy delight in the things of God, whether they be -the things of the "children" or of the "fathers;" the -pure milk or the strong meat. <em class="italics">Little</em> ones in His -school are still <em class="italics">living</em> ones. That is the blessed thing. -He who liveth in the mere power of intellect, or in the -schools of men, is dead while he liveth.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There is, however, another thing to be said on the -times and on the Book of Genesis.</p> -<p class="pnext">In those times, or, as the apostle speaks, "from -Adam to Moses," <em class="italics">law</em> did not give character to the -state of the people of God. Adam was under law in -Eden, and so were the children of Israel after the day -of Mount Sinai. But not so the generations from -Adam to Moses. Sin was equally in the world, but -there was no law. Rom. v. 14.</p> -<p class="pnext">But not only, I may observe, were they not under -law; there was also almost a total absence of moral -or preceptive instruction. Much revelation of the -divine pleasure and counsels there was; but scarcely -anything of precept. Under the Spirit, revelation -worked its result on character and conduct, and formed -the mind and the ways of the saints. Evil was resented -by them, and judged of God; but without a written -standard of right and wrong. Without any law against -murder, Cain is exposed; without a fifth commandment, -Ham's dishonour of his father is punished. And so -Jacob's guile is visited and resented by the Lord; and -the wicked way of Joseph's brethren. And without -the light of any precept the soul of a saint can thus -plead with temptation, How can I do this great -wickedness, and sin against God?</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is so, though neither law nor moral instruction -was then published. It was revelation in matters -of faith which, under the Spirit, formed patriarchal -character. Abraham was not enjoined either his -altar or his tent; but his call of God, through the -Spirit, suggested both. No precept required his high, -generous treatment of Lot; but his faith and hope in -God dictated and commanded it. Without direction -on the case, his knowledge of God and the mind of -Christ that was in him disposed him, and taught him to -let the potsherds of the earth strive with their fellows, -but as soon as his kinsman was a captive to go forth -for his deliverance. No word, no oracle from God, -distinguished for him between the king of Salem and -the king of Sodom; but the light that was in him did.</p> -<p class="pnext">I might go through other histories in this book, and -find these same things. The holy judgment of the -mind that was in them, under the Spirit, suggested to -those early saints conduct by means of revelation, -promise, and calling of God. And this is ever beautiful, -when we get genuine samples or instances of it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Such then are among the characteristics of this -earliest and infant age of our history, and of the precious -book which records it. And this earliest method -in the way of the Lord is to be the last and the abiding -method. In Genesis, as we have seen, the Lord God -acted "in the human guise," being personally present in -the scene, and seeking the nearest intimacy with His -creature. And this is to be the eternal thing when dispensations -are over. God in manhood is to be for ever!</p> -<p class="pnext">Precious mystery! Unfathomable wonder! Blessed -to ponder this. The first is to be the last. The song -of salvation--the "song of Moses"--was the first -breath of the ransomed tribes. It was sung on the -banks of the Red Sea, just as they had got beyond -the reach of Pharaoh. After experiences were different. -They had then to do with themselves. But at first the -victory of the divine "man of war" was everything -to them. And this first thing is to be the eternal -thing. The song of Moses is to fill the courts of glory. -Exodus xv.; Rev. xv. And so in earliest days, in -Genesis days, the divine presence was not deemed -strange, or something which did not suit the earth, -or belong to man. The divine courtesies were then, so -to speak, freely given, and unsuspectingly received. -And so at the end, in days of millennial heavens and -earth, the Lord God will be personally again in the -scene.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The first five chapters of this book give us an account -of antediluvian times, or, as they have been called, -"the world before the flood." And it is those chapters -I now purpose to look at a little particularly.</p> -<p class="pnext">The whole opens, as of course, with the work of -creation. I speak not particularly of this. But, instructed -by the apostle, we may say that it is only -<em class="italics">faith</em> which deals justly with this great work. Faith -puts God above all the things that were made, or are -seen. "Through faith we understand that the worlds -were framed by the word of God, so that things which -are seen were not made of things which do appear." -Faith treats God worthily--the only principle in the -soul which does so. He dwells "in the light which no -man can approach unto." Faith owns this. The wisdom -of men busies itself in seeing or inspecting Him. But -though He will "show" great things of Himself, yet -does faith know that no man hath seen or can see -Him. 1 Tim. vi. It enjoys all His manifestations; but -inspects not His dwelling-place in light.</p> -<p class="pnext">The second chapter exhibits the man made in the -image of God, in his estate in the garden of Eden. -All there was tributary to him, all was for him. He -had food for all the faculties and desires of his nature, -and provision of all desirable things. He was made, -however, to <em class="italics">impart</em> as well as to receive; and that is -ever a necessary feature in the happiness of a well-ordered -mind. He was important to the garden, as the -garden was important to him. He had "to dress it -and to keep it." And he saw his dwelling-place the -spring-head of a fruitful river, which went forth with -life and refreshing to the whole earth. With all this -the voice of a Sovereign was heard. A command went -forth. "Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, -thou shalt not eat." But this was no trespass, no -discordant note on the ear of Adam. God will not, -and cannot, give His glory to another. And a creature -of a right thought, "made upright," as Adam was, -must delight in having it so. All this was therefore -only harmonious and consistent happiness.</p> -<p class="pnext">To perfect his condition the Lord God celebrates for -him a coronation day, and a day of espousals. But -this action has an order in it. The Lord takes counsel -with Himself about Adam's espousals. This is done -<em class="italics">first</em>. Then He introduces him to the scene of his -sovereignty. He brings the creatures of the field and -of the air to Adam, to see what he would call them, -and whatsoever he called every living creature, that -was the name thereof. This was investing him with -dominion, setting the crown royal on his head. Then -He prepares the help-meet, and presents Eve to him, -following his coronation with his marriage.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the order of these events--an order which -has a sacred and interesting sense in it. It is not the -mere progress of independent facts. It is the design, -so to speak, of a great master. For there is, as we -now know, a mystery which had been "hid in God," -"purposed in Himself," before the foundation of the -world, His secret (Eph. iii.), of which this marriage -in the garden of Eden was the type. Eph. v. And -according to this the Lord, in the solitude of His own -presence, in the musings of His own bosom, ere He -led forth Adam into his kingdom, prepares his help-meet -for him.</p> -<p class="pnext">This, however, is not merely the <em class="italics">design of a great -master</em>, but the <em class="italics">well-known way of a perfect love</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">The <em class="italics">richest</em> purpose of joy is the <em class="italics">first</em> in counsel.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord's earliest thought was about Adam's best -blessing. The help-meet at his side, the one like -unto him, his companion, was destined to be more to -him than all beside. And that which was chief in -his enjoyments was the earliest and deepest thought -in the mind of his Lord. His Lord pondered it. He -spoke of it to Himself. His coronation was taken -in hand at once and disposed of; but the getting of his -help-meet for him was counselled and talked of beforehand.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the way that love would take. We know -it ourselves. We like to dwell in thought over the -materials of the happiness of one we love. So that -all this is sweet and important to our hearts; for we -read in it that which may again draw out the admiration -and the worship, "Behold, what manner of love -the Father hath bestowed upon us!"</p> -<p class="pnext">And Adam at once owns all this. Out of the -abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. "This is -now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh," he says, -as he received the woman from the hand of the Lord -God, owning that all was now complete. The serpent -may by-and-by insinuate it to be otherwise. But he -is a liar. There is not a flaw in all this estate. No -lack, and no exception. Nothing that did not in its -way contribute to bless him; and nothing of creature -blessedness that was wanting to him.</p> -<p class="pnext">But all this is at once envied by the great enemy. -And he had title to try the stability of it. The nakedness, -the unshamed nakedness, of the man and the -woman was innocency. Yes, but it was also <em class="italics">exposure</em>. -The creature was to be proved. Strength of creaturehood -was to be tried. And the enemy had title to -enter the garden to carry on the trial. He was no -trespasser there. The order and purpose of creation -made room for him, as well as for Adam himself. The -very instrument by which he was to conduct his designs -was there already. The tree of knowledge was in the -midst of the garden.</p> -<p class="pnext">The tempter, this serpent that was "more subtil -than any beast of the field," was the devil. This is -directly told us. Rev. xii. 9; xx. 2. And the scene -around us to this hour tells of his victory. "The -present evil world," whether in its moral condition or -in its circumstances, we get in this chapter iii. And -we might have expected this; for the world as it now -is has derived itself out of the apostasy of Adam; its -character and condition are formed by that great act of -rebellion.</p> -<p class="pnext">The three master-principles which animate "the -course" of it--"the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the -eyes, and the pride of life"--are here seen to become -the springs of moral action in the heart of the woman, -as soon as she listened to the devil; for the soul that -gives up God must find out other masters, and other -resources. And this is the world. The world has no -confidence in God, nothing to bind it to Him, nothing -to give it rest in Him, no sense of His love and truth. -Such has it been since this hour, when man gave ear -to the accuser of God. It has therefore found out -other objects. God made man upright; but he has -sought out many inventions. Eccles. vii. 29.</p> -<p class="pnext">Conscience, too, is quickened into being. Sin did -this. "They knew that they were naked." And it -was then, at the hour of its birth, as it is to this hour, -an <em class="italics">uneasy</em> conscience, a conscience that makes cowards -of all who carry it. "I was afraid," says Adam (unable -to look at God), "because I was naked." Conscience -in man must be of this quality, for it owes its existence -to sin. There was no sense of good and evil in him -till he sinned; and this sense, thus acquired, must leave -him a coward in the presence of the <em class="italics">righteous</em> One.</p> -<p class="pnext">Instinctively they make themselves aprons. This -is our doing still. Our common state of guilt makes -us shun even our fellow-creatures. We cannot stand -inspection even from them. One great and constant -effort, in the scene around us every day, is to escape -<em class="italics">full</em> notice. The apron is still invented. The social -system understands and allows this. Indeed, it is -maintained by a common consent of this sort. And -religion, in its way and measure, as well as the rules -and common understanding of society, helps in all this. -But "the presence of the Lord God" is a different element -from that of the presence of our fellows. No rules -which sustain the social system will make that tolerable -for a moment. The clothing and the ceremony, the -inventions of society, or the good manners that array -and adorn it, will be found vanity. All have come -short of <em class="italics">His</em> glory. Let but the conscience hear the -tread of His foot, or the sound of His voice in the -garden, and no attempt will be equal to that moment. -Even religious inventions will all be vain. They can -give no confidence with God, nor turn the current of -the heart. With his apron upon him, Adam hides -himself among the trees of the garden.</p> -<p class="pnext">This teaches holy and solemn lessons. But with all -this cowardice there is effrontery. "The woman whom -thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree." -Man lays the mischief down at God's door. He says -in effect, "Let God see to it; for the woman is His -creature, and He gave her to me;" as he still, in the -spirit of his mind, says, "Let God see to it; for the -world is His, and He made it." A strange and horrible -union! The insolence of the heart charging God, and -yet a coward conscience unable to meet Him. The -sinner may talk big, and make a noise; he may reason -upon God and his own condition, and frame speeches -and arguments as well as aprons; but in spite of all he -can surround himself with, there he is, like Adam, -ashamed of himself, and afraid of God. Man has -wronged the blessed God, and avoids Him. He charges -Him, and yet is afraid to look in His face while he -does so. All this, in spite of himself, witnesses against -him. "Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee," -the Lord has but to say. And then, as again in the -parable, he must be speechless.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the mind of Adam then, and such is -human nature still. But if this were his moral condition, -what were his circumstances? Just those of man -to this hour also. By the sweat of his face he was to -get bread, and in the sorrow of his heart to eat of it; -and that too in the place of thorns and thistles. And -in like sorrow the woman was to bring forth children; -and all this till they both returned to the dust, out of -which they had been taken. And man is still after -this manner, outside the garden, conversant with toil -and sorrow. Dressing and keeping a lovely surface -and a fruitful soil is not the thing or the allotment -now. Thorns and thistles and an unkindly reluctant -ground are to be contended with, and life to be had by -the sweat of the face in the contest.</p> -<p class="pnext">God alone is above this water-flood, able to manage -this mighty catastrophe. And His supremacy is such -that He will make even such an eater yield meat, and -get sweetness out of even this strong one.</p> -<p class="pnext">In a glorious sense, however, redemption is far more -than remedy of a mischief, or relief, even with advantage, -for an injured, ruined creation. Creation, rather, is the -servant of redemption; for "redemption is no afterthought." -For the pleasure of Him who sits upon the -throne all things are and were created. But that very -throne has <em class="italics">the rainbow round about it</em> (Rev. iv.), the sign -of covenant faithfulness, and that all things were to -stand <em class="italics">in redemption</em>, or in the value of the blood of -Jesus. So that when sin entered, the Lord God was at -once prepared for it (I speak as a man); prepared to -meet it by covenant arrangements made before the -world began, as His very first word to the serpent tells -us, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman, -and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy -head, and thou shalt bruise his heel."</p> -<p class="pnext">Here the great way of God opens upon us. This -promised Seed of the woman, here revealed, is <em class="italics">God's -provision for dead and ruined man</em>, in the face of all -the malice and wrath of the enemy. And He is this -<em class="italics">at all personal cost</em>; for the serpent was to bruise His -heel. But though bruised, <em class="italics">He was to achieve a glorious -victory</em>; for He was to bruise the serpent's head.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are the holy, august characters of this -mysterious stranger--this promised Deliverer or Kinsman. -Such was the truth revealed on the first moment of -our sin, and such has been the truth ever since. This -gospel, published in the first promise in the face of the -devil himself, is maintained in these last days by the -apostle, in the face of men on earth and angels in -heaven. Gal. i. 8. Whether it be the earliest or the -latest preaching of it, this glorious gospel is still the -same. It is "the witness of God which He hath -testified of His Son." It is the gospel of the bruised -and yet victorious Seed of the woman. In the bright -and perfect idea of it man is silent and passive. Abram -had only to <em class="italics">believe</em>, and righteousness was imputed to -him. Israel had but to <em class="italics">stand by</em> and see God's -salvation. Joshua in Zechariah iii., the prodigal, the -convicted adulteress, are all in like case. And here, at -the beginning of our sin, and the beginning of God's -gospel, it is just the same. Adam has only to <em class="italics">listen</em>, -and through hearing to believe and live. The word is -nigh us, and we have but to receive it without working -anything in the heights above, or in the depths beneath. -The <em class="italics">activities</em> are God's; the <em class="italics">sacrifices</em> are God's. The -profoundness of our silence and passiveness in <em class="italics">becoming</em> -righteousness is only equalled by the greatness of the -divine activity and sacrifice in <em class="italics">acquiring</em> righteousness -for us. In the sight of such a mystery we may well -stand and say, "What hath God wrought!" "Simple -indeed it is to us," as one once said, "but it cost <em class="italics">Him</em> -everything."</p> -<p class="pnext">There is nothing in the heart of man like faith in -this gospel. The faith of a poor sinner in the redeeming -grace of God is the most beautiful condition the -soul can be in. As saints, beloved, we may trust God -for our need. We may look to Him for counsel, or for -provision. We may trust Him to vindicate our doings, -comfort us in sorrow, and strengthen us in difficulties. -But the faith of a sinner, in the justifying grace and -work of His divine Saviour, transcends them all. -Nothing is so precious, for nothing apprehends God in -so glorious a character, or gives Him to the soul in so -wondrous a relationship. This faith it is which uses -the richest resources in God, and acts upon the most -blessed discoveries of Him. For while all the ways of -His glory shine brightly--His strength, and comfort, and -wisdom for His needy saints--yet, that He has grace -and salvation for sinners, this excelleth them all.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Spirit of God, in these early times, gives us some -most precious samples of this most precious faith; as -though (may I say it?) delighting in such a thing, He -produced an impression of the finest character <em class="italics">at once</em>, -as soon as occasion served.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus Adam, in his faith, talked only of life, though -in the midst of death--death, which he himself had -brought in, a standing witness against him. He was -doomed to be an outcast in a scene of ruin which his -own sin had produced. He knew this and allowed it. -But he had listened to the story of the conflict between -his destroyer and the woman's Seed. In the very place -of judgment--from among the trees of the garden, -where conscience had driven him--his ear had caught -the sound of the sweet gospel, not of mercy merely, but -propitiation and victory, and forth he comes, talking -of life. He called his wife "Eve," the mother of all -living. All life was in the promised Kinsman-Redeemer. -In creation Adam himself had been constituted -head of life--"Be fruitful, and multiply, and -replenish the earth;" but that, in his esteem, was now -forfeited and gone. Life must flow in a new channel--"He -that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not -the Son of God hath not life."</p> -<p class="pnext">How grand in its very simplicity all this was! And -there was recovery also of <em class="italics">moral</em> glory, in a great sense, -in all this. Adam had not <em class="italics">submitted</em> himself to the -<em class="italics">majesty</em> of God, but affected to be as God. But now -he does <em class="italics">submit</em> himself to the <em class="italics">righteousness</em> of God. -His shoulders bowed themselves to receive the covering -wrought for his nakedness by God's own hand. See -Rom. x. 3. He was now honouring God the Redeemer, -though he had just before been doing all he could to -dishonour God the Creator--so simply was he led by -the Spirit to value the divine provision for a sinner in -the promise of our bruised but victorious Kinsman.</p> -<p class="pnext">In like manner, Eve. She had listened to the same -promise, and therefore, as soon as she had brought forth -her first-born, she gives witness that this promise lived -chief in the thoughts of her heart. "I have gotten a -man from the Lord," said she. She as much overlooked -herself as Adam did. She gloried only in her Seed. -She had listened to the promise with too faithful an ear -to mistake herself for her Seed. It was not over herself, -but over him, that she now, in the language of another -mother, was singing, "My soul doth magnify the Lord, -and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour!" -There was a mistake here, it is true. But there was -witness how the object of faith filled her visions, and -the expectations of faith stirred in her heart. And so -soon as disastrous events manifest her mistake, and -prove to her that this first-born of her womb was -anything rather than the promised Seed--that instead -of being the bruiser of the serpent's head, he turned -out to be the murderer of his brother--still is she -found on the rock where faith had fixed her soul. -"Let God be true, but every man a liar," was her -triumph. Over Seth she exclaims, "God hath appointed -me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew." -Though every cistern fail, she knows the fountain -cannot. One son had been a murderer, and another -his victim; but still God is true. "I will sing of the -mercies of the Lord <em class="italics">for ever</em>; with my mouth will I -make known thy faithfulness to all generations."</p> -<p class="pnext">Precious faith, we may say, "like precious faith," -with Adam, and with us, beloved. So Abel. Faith -in him had respect to the same promise, the same -gospel. The word had spoken of a <em class="italics">bruised</em> Deliverer; -and accordingly it is a victim, a bruised or bloody -sacrifice, he lays on God's altar. But not only so. He -brings the <em class="italics">fat</em> of the victim likewise. He knows the -delight which God Himself takes in the provisions of -His own grace. He knows that He is pleased with -the work of His own hand. He understands that -God is a cheerful giver, that there is no grudging in -the gift of grace. In spirit he hears the music which -the Father's command has awakened in His own house -over His returned prodigal. In the delight with -which God Himself had clothed the naked sinner -with coats which His own hand had willingly wrought -(a happier task than even the six days of creation), -the faith of Abel seems to glory. And as thus the -richest joy that is felt in all the costly mystery of -redemption is felt by God Himself, he lays the richest -part of the victim, the fat of the animal, on the -altar, making <em class="italics">that</em> the Lord's own portion in this -feast of love and joy, in His own house, and at His -own table.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was another most excellent sample of a sinner's -faith. Abel, in spirit, was in Luke xv.--that chapter -which tells us that the Lord's own joy in it may -account for the gospel. And all these are <em class="italics">pattern</em> -works of the Spirit, forming the faith of sinners. -There is no questioning of God's grace, no uneasy -reflections on creature-worthlessness, though there was -plenty of cause for that. The strength, the liberty, -the triumph of the promise live in their souls.</p> -<p class="pnext">And let me add, that if the confession of Lamech -(chapter iv. 23, 24) be the utterance of a convicted -believing sinner (as I believe it is), it is only another -equally fine expression of this same early and excellent -faith. It is of an order worthy to stand with that -of Adam, or of Eve, or of Abel; fervent, strong, unquestioning, -and full of liberty.</p> -<p class="pnext">God's word to Cain had revealed a great truth--that -He, and He <em class="italics">alone</em>, has to do with a sinner. Others, -like Abel, may suffer; but all sin is directly done -against God, and He asserts His title to deal with it -alone. "Whosoever slayeth Cain [the Lord therefore -says], vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold."</p> -<p class="pnext">This great truth, so unspeakably precious to faith, -Lamech seems to have received and fed upon, until his -whole soul triumphed in it. Not merely <em class="italics">preservation</em> -from man, like Cain, does he count upon, but <em class="italics">salvation</em>, -"the salvation of God." Learning that as a sinner -he was <em class="italics">alone</em> with God, he takes that place, and there -discovers how God can deal with him, even in the -security and provisions of grace; and that discovery is -the light in which his soul at once walks. Like Job, -afterwards, he publishes his confession far and wide. -"Hear my voice, ye wives of Lamech," he says; -"hearken unto my speech." Then in true gospel intelligence -he magnifies sin, and owns that it was his -destruction. "I have slain a man to my wounding, -and a young man to my hurt." But then again, in -true gospel simplicity, he much more magnifies grace. -"If Cain be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy -and sevenfold." In his thoughts, "where sin abounded, -grace did much more abound." He is of the very -mind and temper of Paul. His confidence and victory -are apostolic. He seems to sing--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"I hear the accuser roar</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Of ills that I have done;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">I know them well, and thousands more--</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Jehovah findeth none."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">A glorious sight his faith takes of the whole mystery, -and of the boundlessness and riches of grace. He -listens to the provisions of grace (when alone with -God), and the charging of the law, the accusings of -Satan, the alarms of conscience, and the self-righteous -reproaches of men, are not heard.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id2" id="id1"><sup>1</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">These operations of the Spirit through the promise -on the souls of sinners are truly beautiful. The apron -of fig-leaves drops off, or is rather cast away, when -such operations go on. It is found <em class="italics">unnecessary</em> now, as it -was found <em class="italics">insufficient</em> before. And so all the inventions -of men. They are the contrivances of the wrong-doer -himself, the efforts of the creature, the devices of the -sinner, and they can <em class="italics">therefore</em> never do. But they are -as unnecessary as they are insufficient. The coat of -skin, the work of God Himself, has made them so.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is, however, something which this glorious -relief provided for the sinner does <em class="italics">not</em> accomplish. -The thorns and the thistles of the cursed ground -remain; and with them the sweat of the face, and the -sorrow of the heart, and then the return of dust to -dust. As to this hour. We shine in "the righteousness -of God," adorned under His own eye, and by His own -hand dressed for His presence; but all the while -pressures and hindrances and sore grievances wait on -the tilling of the earth; and pains bring us into the -world, till we return to the dust from whence we came. -Neither does this glorious provision of grace displace -the cherubim. They accompany it rather. They are -stationed at the eastern gate of the garden, with their -flaming sword, to keep every way of the tree of life; -and no promise which Adam had listened to, no -covering which Adam had received, changes this. -Man's capacity to regain that tree is gone, and gone -for ever. Never will he be anything but a <em class="italics">saved -sinner</em>, pass he along what paths of glory he may, -from "paradise" to "the kingdom," from the kingdom -to "the new heavens and the new earth." Eating of -that tree is only by gift of Jesus, the woman's Seed -of the first promise. Rev. ii. 7.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such are among the mysteries taught us in this -wonderful chapter, full of mysteries as it is, and of the -profoundest secrets of God. But we have to come -down for instruction to learn man and his ways, as -well as to rise, as we learn God and His counsels.</p> -<p class="pnext">Cain is declared by the Spirit of God in the apostle -to have been "of that wicked one." The first thing -we see in him is his religion. He renders to God, as -offering or sacrifice, the fruit of the cursed ground, the -produce of his own toil. But this was unbelief. It -was the denial of all that had happened since the -creation, the <em class="italics">religious</em> denial of it. It was the direct -contradiction of the way of faith, or of Abel. Abel -took the way of the promise to God, the bloody victory -of the woman's Seed, the death and resurrection of -Christ, and offered of his flock; but Cain refused to -see man's ruin and God's redemption, giving God the -fruit of the earth; in effect saying, that He was to be -read and known in the thorns and the thistles, the -sweat, and the sorrow, and the death; and by the -solemn services of his altar he was denying all truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the way of a heart deeply departed from -God. He was laying the scene of ruin at God's door, -as Adam, ere he repented, had laid down the sin itself -there.</p> -<p class="pnext">His next way is in terrible keeping with all this. -He hates his brother, being of that wicked one who is -a murderer (John viii. 44), and in process of time he -slays him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Tremendous fruit of the apostate, departed nature. -He was the first of that generation who delivered Jesus -to be crucified--self-righteous and murderous. For envy -the Jews delivered Jesus; and Cain slew Abel because -his own works were evil and his brother's righteous. -It is the world. "Marvel not, my brethren, if the -world hate you. We know that we have passed from -death unto life, because we love the brethren. He -that loveth not his brother abideth in death. Whosoever -hateth his brother is a murderer, and ye know -that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." The -Lord pleaded with him. See iv. 6, 7. His heart had -conceived the sin, but his hand had not brought forth -fruit unto death; and with a voice of long-suffering -grace and warning the Lord pleaded with him. The -grace was despised; this grace of pleading with him -at the last hour, as the grace of the promise had been -despised before.</p> -<p class="pnext">"This is the condemnation, that light is come into -the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, -because their deeds were evil." The light which the -Lord Jesus was bringing with Him was the light of life -or salvation. Isa. xlix. 6; John viii. 12. And <em class="italics">this</em> was -the light which Cain hated and refused.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is the light of righteousness or holiness. But -the refusal of it is not without remedy. In that light -the Lord God had come into the garden and called, -"Adam, where art thou?" Adam could not stand it; -for he had sinned. It was intolerable to him. He had -come short of that glory. He retreats from it. And -then the Lord God shines in another light. The promise -is made. The character of the glory is changed. God -seats Himself in a light which the sinner can approach, -and, believing, Adam comes forth.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">This</em> was the light which Cain despised, the light of -salvation, the light of the promise, the light in which -God shines before men outside the garden. And Cain -is therefore cursed as Adam had not been. As it is -said of another generation, "Behold, ye despisers, and -wonder, and perish."</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is the solemn history of the first unbeliever. -But the treasury of corrupt nature that was in him -spends itself in further ways of wickedness. In him -was rising that spring which was to give out "its -superfluity of naughtiness." He lies after all this, -and justifies himself. "I know not," says he; "am I -my brother's keeper?" For "the lusts of his father he -would do;" and when the devil "speaketh a lie, he -speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father -of it."</p> -<p class="pnext">All this, however, and even more than this, was -<em class="italics">man</em>, and not Cain merely. It was the ruined heart -of man exposing itself. And because it was this, -because it was the common nature that was thus disclosing -itself, the Lord takes the judgment of it away -from man. "Whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall -be taken on him sevenfold;" for none are without sin. -"Thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that -judgest; for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest -thyself." All are in the like condemnation. -No one can take up the stone and cast it at another. -And in order to express this great principle of truth, -and that God alone has either title or competency to -deal with sin, the Lord will not allow any man to touch -the fratricide. By this divine writing on the case, all -are to go out convicted, one by one, and leave the -sinner with God. John viii.</p> -<p class="pnext">For the ends of government, when government in -the earth becomes the divine purpose, it shall be said, -Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood -be shed. ix. 6. But this is not so as yet. And for the -teaching of the common pravity, that all of us may be -humbled by the common conviction, that "we have all -sinned, and come short of the glory of God," not one -of the whole human family is allowed to touch this -wicked Cain. And so to this day, when government -has been divinely set up, it is not sin that it deals -with. <em class="italics">Crimes</em>, or offences against public order, and -<em class="italics">wrongs</em> done to individuals, may be judged by man; -but to take vengeance on <em class="italics">sin</em> would be the assuming of -personal guiltlessness. "He that is <em class="italics">without sin</em> among -you, let <em class="italics">him</em> first cast a stone at her." God has to deal -with sin <em class="italics">alone</em>.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id4" id="id3"><sup>2</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">But, further, as to this awful history. Man will not -always be making this terrible exhibition of himself. -He will not at all times appear as the liar and the -murderer. Legion will not be found on every journey -we take. There are restraints. The law, in one sense, -was given to that end. So there are the checks and -improvements of education. And there is the control -of God's hand, and the fear of His providence and -judgment. And there is "the law of opinion," as it -has been called, the verdict of society. These and -the like influences produce an order in the social scene, -which has therefore become not only tolerable, but -full of vast accommodations and large entertainments. -A new <em class="italics">scene</em> is thus produced, though not a new -<em class="italics">creature</em>. Man is man still, the same creature in God's -esteem, or in all divine reckoning, though he appears in -the character of a respectable citizen of the world, and -not as the murderer of his brother. Cain builds a city. -He has a thriving, prosperous family. Through their -skill and industry the face of the world flourishes and -looks well. All is respectable; and pleasant and -friendly the people are one with another. The murder -is forgotten. Man does not hear the cry of blood, but -the sound of the harp and the organ. His inventions -have stifled his convictions. Cain is an honourable -man. But as to the presence of God, he is as -thoroughly separated from it as when his hand was -freshly stained with the blood of his brother.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is solemn. Man, as a respectable citizen of -the world, may be as separated from God as a murderer. -"The remnant of them," as the parable speaks, "took -his servants ... and slew them." The remnant! a word -which lets us know that the refusers of the supper -were of <em class="italics">one</em> class with those who shed the blood of -the innocent.</p> -<p class="pnext">The ease and indifference with which Cain could -turn his back upon the Lord, and upon the recollection -of his brother's blood, are dreadful. He got a promise -of security, and that was all he cared for. And quickly, -under his hand, accommodations and delights of all -sorts fill the scene.</p> -<p class="pnext">In some sense this is principally shocking. This -exceeds. But is not this the "course of the world"? -Was it not man that slew Jesus? Does not the guilt -of that deed lie at every man's door? And what is the -course of the world but the ease and indifference of -Cain in this highest state of guilt? The earth has -borne the cross of Christ; and yet man can busy -himself with garnishing and furnishing it, and making -life in it convenient and pleasurable without God. This -is shocking when we look at it in full divine light. A -respectable citizen of the world Cain was, but all the -while a heartless forgetter of the sorrows of Abel! -His ease and respectability are the blackest features of -his history. He went away as soon as he got a promise -of security; and that promise he uses, not to soften his -heart, and overwhelm him with convictions of all that -had happened, but as giving him full occasion to indulge -and magnify himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">We read in the New Testament of "the way of -Cain." It may be, nay, it is, run by others. Jude 11. -And what a way does this chapter show it to be! He -was an infidel, or a man of his own religion; not -obedient in faith to God's revelation. He practised the -works of the liar and the murderer; he hated the -light; he was proof against God's word in mercy and -in warning; he cares nothing for the presence of God -which his sin had forfeited, or for the sorrow of his -brother which his hand had inflicted. And, as such an -one, he can take pains to make himself happy and -honourable in the very place which thus witnessed -against him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is this the "way of Cain"? Is this man still? -Yes; and nature outlives a thousand restraints and -improvements. For at the end of Christendom's career -it will even then be said of a generation, "They have -gone in the way of Cain."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is deeply solemn, beloved, had we but hearts -to feel it. There is, however, a rescued, separated -people. Seth's family are after another order altogether. -They are not seen in cities, furnished with -accommodations and pleasures, apart, like Cain, "from -the presence of the Lord;" but as the household of -God, separated from that world that lay in the wicked -one, to the faith and worship of His name.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">It is the sight of this elect family that has principally -at this time drawn me to this portion of the precious -oracles of God. There is much, I believe, in their -standing and testimony which has instruction for our -souls. Like all else in these chapters, it is but short -notices we get; but great things are to be found in -them.</p> -<p class="pnext">This family of Seth may generally be thus spoken -of: <em class="italics">They are strikingly opposed to the way of Cain, and -remarkably apprehensive of the way of God</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">I speak not here again of their <em class="italics">faith</em>, but of their -<em class="italics">standing and testimony</em>. Their faith, or the character -of their religion, may be read in that of Adam, who -re-appears here at the head of these antediluvian -saints; and his faith (kindred with that of Eve and -Abel, or of all who receive the gospel of the grace of -God) I have already considered. But I speak now of -their standing as a household of God, and of their -testimony in the world.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord had set a mark on Cain, that no one -finding him should slay him. He would not have the -blood of Abel avenged. This we have already seen.</p> -<p class="pnext">The family of Seth are strictly observant of this. -No attempt, or anything like it, is made by them to -answer the cry of innocent blood. They know that -it is heard in the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; but, -under this word of God, they are deaf to it themselves. -Vengeance does not belong to them. The harvest has -not come. They are not reapers. In obedience they -heard, not the cry of blood, but the voice of the Lord -countermanding vengeance. And they suffer it. They -take the wrong done to their brother, and are acceptable -with God.</p> -<p class="pnext">Express charge demanded this, and this was consequently -simple obedience. But the mind of a saint -is full of light. It is the mind of Christ (1 Cor. ii.); -in us, it is true, darkened in a thousand actings of it, -by the coarseness and blindness of nature with which -it is now linked; but still, in itself it is full of light. -Even angelic nature is all life. Torpidity and dulness -do not belong to it. "Winds" and "flames of fire" -express that nature, and such things act constantly -and fervently; and in like virtue the mind of Christ, -the divine nature in the saint, is full of affection and -intelligence.</p> -<p class="pnext">We get some of its fine ways of acting in this -household of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">The innocent blood is to remain unavenged. Its cry -from the earth is not to be answered, at least for the -present. <em class="italics">That</em> is enough to teach the saint his pilgrim, -heavenly calling. The family of Seth are therefore as -pilgrims and strangers here, and all their habits are -those of heavenly citizens. If the earth be not to be -cleansed, the elect are to be strangers in it with a -heavenly calling.</p> -<p class="pnext">Beautifully true to the mind of God is this! For -this is the way of God; and it was apprehended by -these saints, more in the light and knowledge of His -most perfect and beautiful ways than many of us, -beloved, who, in the fuller revelations of this present -age, have been so much nourished and instructed. But -it is not the much schooling we get, but the capacity -which sits at the lesson. David wanted capacity for -this same lesson, when he talked of building a house -of cedars, a fixed habitation, for the Lord, while the -land was still defiled with blood. But the Lord (may -I say?) would be, like the antediluvian saints, a stranger -on the earth, a dweller in tents, while blood was staining -it; and that very night rebuked the purpose of the -king of Israel. 1 Chron. xvii.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have many exhibitions of this way of God in -different forms of it. The Lord, for instance, would -have no altar in Egypt, uncircumcised as that land was. -He would not have a throne in the land (in the full -glory of it) till the day of Solomon, when all was -sanctified for His royal presence. Afterwards the -glory was grieved away by the abominations which -were done in the temple. The captives, in like spirit, -hang their harps on the willows of the Euphrates; for -how could they sing in a strange land, or let the songs -of Zion be heard in Babylon? Separation was the rule -of the divine mind. Separation was holiness. Pollution -demanded it, and faith rose at the bidding. And -with all this the Seth family, the household of God in -earliest days--days before the flood--are in company. -They are one in spirit with Jehovah Himself in Egypt, -with the glory in the defiled temple, with the harps of -the captives in Babylon, and with the Church of God -in "this present evil world."</p> -<p class="pnext">We have to distinguish between these two things: -<em class="italics">God's assertion of His title to the earth, and God's call of -a people out of the earth</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">These different things have been again and again -exhibited in the progress of the dispensations. And -they have been exhibited, as I have long judged, -alternately.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord began, in Adam, to claim and display His -rights on the earth. The man in the garden was to -own the sovereignty of God, and the earth was the -rest and the delight of the Lord, and the place of His -glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sin entering and polluting all, and the pollution -being left uncleansed, in Seth God called a people -away from the earth to an inheritance in heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then in Noah the Lord God re-asserted His rights -here, and took up the earth as the place where His -elect might find a home, and His own presence be -known again.</p> -<p class="pnext">After this Abraham is separated from kindred, and -from country, and from father's house, to be a heavenly -stranger on the earth, with his altar and his tent, -looking for a city whose builder and maker was -God.</p> -<p class="pnext">Israel, in their day, then take up this mystic tale of -the heavens and the earth, and in the land of Canaan -become the witness of the scene of God's sovereignty. -The ark passes over the river as "the ark of the -covenant of the Lord of all the earth."</p> -<p class="pnext">And now the Church is set for the full testimony of -heavenly mysteries again; and strangership here is the -divine idea, till our being taken to meet the Lord -in the air.</p> -<p class="pnext">This wondrous tale these dispensations of God, like -day and night alternate, have thus been telling from -the beginning; and still are telling. And millennial -days ere long will make these pledges good, and be the -glorious substance of these foreshadowings.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id6" id="id5"><sup>3</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Now let me observe, that whenever God arises in this -progress of His counsels to <em class="italics">assert title to the earth</em>, He -begins by judging and cleansing it. And this, I may -say, <em class="italics">of course</em>; because, the scene of His purposed glory -and presence being corrupted, He must take the -offence away, for His presence could not brook defilement. -Noah's lordship of the earth was, accordingly, -preceded by the flood carrying away the world of -the ungodly. Israel's inheritance of Canaan under -Jehovah, as the God of all the earth, was prepared -by the judgment of the Amorites and the sword of -Joshua. And the future millennial kingdom, when the -earth is to be the place of the glory again, is (as all -Scripture tells us) to be ushered in by that great -action called "the day of the Lord," with a clearing -out of all that offend, and all that do iniquity.</p> -<p class="pnext">But the <em class="italics">call of God</em> is quite of another character. -It proceeds on the principle, that God Himself is apart -from the earth, and is not seeking to have it as the -home of His glory, or the place of His presence; but -seeking a people out of it, to be His, away from it, and -above it. The earth is altogether a stranger to such -a purpose. It is left just as it is found. No judgment, -no visitation of the scene here from the hand of God, -accompanies it.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was exhibited in Abraham. Abraham was the -object of the call of God; and accordingly the -Canaanites find no rival in him. He does not dispute -with them the title or possession of the soil. He finds -them, and he leaves them, lords of it. He desires only -to pitch his tent and raise his altar on the surface of it -for a season; and then, for another season, to have his -bones laid in the bowels of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">So with the Church in this age. She is likewise -under the call of God. But her call leaves the Gentiles -in power, as it found them. "Let every soul be subject -to the higher powers." The saints have only to obey -them unreluctantly, or to suffer from them patiently, -according as the demand made by them is or is -not consistent with their subjection to Christ and -the call of God. They cannot strive with the potsherds -of the earth. Peter's sword is to be put up, and Pilate -is to learn that the servants of Jesus cannot fight. -Their warfare is not with flesh and blood. They -are defeated the moment they begin it. The call of -God has marshalled the hosts of God against principalities -and powers on high, and the battle is there. -It does not connect us with the earth. Our <em class="italics">necessities</em> -do, but not our <em class="italics">call</em>. We need the fruit of the ground, -the toil of the hand, and the skill of the heart, to -provide things needful for the body. Our necessities -thus connect us with it, and we have to do with it -for their supply; but our call separates us from it. -Joshua went into the possession of the Gentiles, that -his sword might make it the possession of the Lord; -Paul went into the places of the Gentiles, to take out -of them a people unto God, linked with the disallowed -Stone, despised and rejected of men.</p> -<p class="pnext">The family of Seth were, in like manner, under this -call of God. It was intimated to them by the charge -to leave the blood of Abel unavenged, and they understood -the intimation. If the earth be left in its -defilement, God is not seeking it (as we have now -seen all His ways declare), and this family of faith -are in that secret. They will not seek it either. Cain's -house was in possession of it, and Seth's family will -leave them there, without a rival or a struggle. The -mind of God in them took this knowledge of the way -of God, and of His pleasure touching them; and they -acted on heavenly principles in a blood-stained earth, -whose judgment was now for a time to linger and to -slumber.</p> -<p class="pnext">I own, beloved, that I greatly admire this fine -expression of the mind of Christ in these earliest -saints. They take the only way which the holiness -of God could sanction. They are "partakers of <em class="italics">His</em> -holiness." The light they walked in was <em class="italics">God's</em>; the -holiness they partook of was <em class="italics">God's</em>. 1 John i. 7; Heb. xii. -10. This is a peculiar thing. That light is not merely -righteousness. It is the light of grace also. Yea, and -the light of heavenly strangership in a polluted world. -It is a light which reproves the course of this world, and -makes manifest other principles and hopes altogether. -There may be righteousness, and the watching and -praying which escapes temptation; but there must be -a walk according to these principles and hopes, to form -a walk "in the light, as He is the light." These earliest -believers beautifully shine there, I believe. They were -not under law. They come between Adam and Moses. -They had not precepts, as I have already shown. But -they were in the light, as God is in the light. And if -afterwards Abram did not need to be told to have his -altar and his tent--if he needed no precept from the -Lord how to order the marriage of his son, or how to -answer the king of Sodom--so these saints of still -earlier days understood the holiness of the call of God, -and took their journey for a heavenly country at the -bidding of the pollution of the earth.</p> -<p class="pnext">I own indeed, again, that I greatly admire this. It -is the beauty of the Spirit's workmanship in His elect -vessels. All is His. "How great is His goodness, -and how great is His beauty!" They learn the word -in spirit ere the voice of the Spirit uttered it--"Arise, -depart, for this is not your rest; it is polluted."</p> -<p class="pnext">The details about these antediluvian believers are -very scanty; but through it all there is this heavenly -character. They do not supply history for the world; -but they do supply instruction for the Church. This is -heavenly. No spirit of burning or spirit of judgment -had purged the blood of the earth, and they shrink -instinctively from it. In the spirit of their minds they -leave it. "What communion has light with darkness? -what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness?" -their conduct asks. Their <em class="italics">religion</em> is that of -separation from the world, and so are <em class="italics">their habits</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">They call on the name of the Lord. The name of -the Lord is the revelation He has been pleased to make -of Himself. Immanuel, Jesus, "the Lord our righteousness," -Jehovah, God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and -the Holy Ghost--these are among His names graciously -and gloriously published by Himself. And "to call on -the name of the Lord" was service or worship of God -in spirit and in truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the religion of these earliest saints. It -was simply the religion of faith and hope. They worshipped -God, and, apart from the world, they waited -in hope. "The work of faith" and "the patience of -hope" are seen in them. Something of the Thessalonian -spirit breathes in them. For they served the -living and true God, and waited for the Son from -heaven, who had already delivered them. 1 Thess. i. -To "call on the name of the Lord" is faith, and salvation, -and worship. It bespeaks the standing of a -saint, and his spiritual service. It shall come to -pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord -shall be saved. Joel ii.; Rom. x. I will offer to thee -the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the -name of the Lord. Psalm cxvi. And such was their -religion, such was their worship. It was worship in -spirit. No temples, or costly carnal services, or institutions -of man appear.</p> -<p class="pnext">And in their ways and habits they are only seen as a -people walking across the surface of the earth, till their -bodies are either laid under it, or are translated to -heaven above it. They rejoice, as though they rejoiced -not; they buy, as though they possessed not; they have -wives, as though they had none. All around them is as -Babylon to them, and their harps are on the willows. -Cain's family have all the music to themselves. But -Seth's family are a risen people. Their conversation is -in heaven. They look for no estates or cities. All they -take is an earlier Machpelah. Nothing is told us of -their place or their business. They are strangers where -even Adam was once at home, and, much more, where -Cain still was. We may follow them, and in spirit -abide with them for a day; but where they dwelt we -know not--like the disciples who followed the glorious -Stranger from heaven in the day of His sojourn here. -John i. 38, 39. They are without a place or a name. -The earth knew them not. Like the stranger Rechabites, -they are, throughout their generations, one after -another, of the wilderness, and not of the city (Judges -i. 16); or in Levitical language, they were a standing -order of Nazarites, more separated to God than even -Israel themselves.</p> -<p class="pnext">They are the earliest witnesses of this heavenly -strangership. Such a life is exhibited afterwards in -other saints of God in its fuller, beautiful details; but -we have it here in spirit.</p> -<p class="pnext">For instance, in Isaac. The world was against him. -But he strives not with it either in deed or in word. -He neither answers nor resists. The Philistines tell -him to go from them. He goes at their bidding. They -spoil him of his labours. He yields and takes it -patiently, as Esek and Sitnah tell us. Gen. xxvi.</p> -<p class="pnext">So his father Abraham before him. Only, sad to tell -it, it is a <em class="italics">brother</em> who acts the part of the world in the -scene. Lot chooses, as the world chooses, the well-watered -plain. Abraham suffers, and takes it patiently--though -it was something more galling than the -wrong of a Philistine--the unthankful, selfish way of -one who should have known better, and who owed him -everything. Gen. xiii.</p> -<p class="pnext">So Israel, in still later days, accepts the insult of -Edom in like spirit. They pleaded for a passage -through their land by the claims of kindred, by -reason of their common origin, by their many toils -and afflictions, by the tokens of the divine favour -toward them, and by their present need as toiling, -way-worn pilgrims through a desert land. But Edom -despised them and threatened. They pleaded again, -but they were insulted again; they suffered it, and took -another road. Num. xx. And so their Lord in the -day of His pilgrimage. He sought another village -when other Edomites of Samaria refused Him. Luke ix. -Precious and happy, thus to put Him at the head -of all that is excellent! The good that is done is <em class="italics">like</em> -Him, as well as <em class="italics">of</em> Him. Isaac suffers wrong from -<em class="italics">the world</em>, and takes it patiently. Abraham suffers -wrong from <em class="italics">one who owed him everything</em>, and takes -it patiently. Israel suffers likewise from their <em class="italics">kindred</em>; -but Jesus from those whom <em class="italics">He was serving and blessing -at the cost of everything to Himself</em>, from the world -which He had made, and from that people whom He -had adopted. And yet "He lays His thunder by," and -goes on His pilgrimage of love and service still.</p> -<p class="pnext">In like spirit the family of God, in days before the -flood pursue their pilgrim path. They leave the world -to Cain. There is not the symptom of a struggle, -nor the breath of a complaint. They say not, nor -think of saying, "Master, speak to my brother, that -he divide the inheritance with me." In habits of life -and principles of conduct, they are as distinct from -their injurious brother as though they were of another -race, or in another world. Cain's family make <em class="italics">all</em> the -world's history. They build its cities, they promote -its arts, they conduct its trade, they invent its pleasures -and pastimes. But in all this Seth's family are not -seen. The one generation call their cities after their -own names; the other call themselves by the name -of the Lord. The one do all they can to make the -world their own, and not the Lord's; the other do all -they can to shew themselves to be the Lord's, and not -their own. Cain writes his own name on the earth; -Seth writes the Lord's name on himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">We may bless the Lord for this vigorous delineation -of heavenly strangership on earth, and ask for grace to -know some of its living power in our souls. It is -this which has drawn me to this portion of the Word -at this time. It reads us a lesson, beloved. And well -indeed, if the instincts of our renewed minds suggest -the same heavenly path with like certainty and clearness. -The call of God leads that way, and all His -teaching demands it. The pastimes and the purposes, -the interests and the pleasures, of the children of -Cain are nothing to these pilgrims. They declare -plainly that they refuse the thought, that there is any -capacity in the earth, as it is now, to give them satisfaction. -They are discontented with it, and make no -attempts to have it otherwise. There lay their moral -separation from the way of Cain and his household. -They were not mindful of the country around them, -but sought a better, that is, a heavenly.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id8" id="id7"><sup>4</sup></a> May I not -therefore say of them, as I have said, that they are -strikingly opposed to the way of Cain, and remarkably -apprehensive of the way of God?</p> -<p class="pnext">After this pattern the Lord would have us: in the -world, but not of it; of heaven, though not as yet -(except in Christ) in it. Paul, in the Holy Ghost, would -so have us, taking example from those whose "conversation -is in heaven." Peter, in the same Spirit, would -so have us "as strangers and pilgrims" abstaining from -fleshly lusts. James summons us, in the same Spirit, to -know that "the friendship of the world is enmity with -God." And John separates us as by a stroke: "We are -of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness."</p> -<p class="pnext">It is for the Church surely, beloved, to walk in this -elevation and separateness. What is according to the -call of God, and what worthy of heavenly hopes, but -this? We breathe but feebly, and glow but faintly, -in company with those and like witnesses. What a -temper of soul, it has just struck me, we get in such -a chapter as Phil. iv.! What a glow is felt throughout -it! What depth and fervency of affection! What a -shout of triumph the spirit raises! What elevation -in the midst of changes, perplexities, and depressions! -The apostle's whole temper of soul throughout that -chapter is uncommon. But if one may speak for -others, it is to us little more than the tale of a distant -land, or the warmth and brilliancy of other climes -reported to our souls by travellers.</p> -<p class="pnext">Lead us, Lord, we pray thee! Teach us indeed to -sing--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"We're bound for yonder land,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Where Jesus reigns supreme;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">We leave the shore at His command,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Forsaking all for Him.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"'T were easy, did we choose,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Again to reach the shore--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">But that is what our souls refuse,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">We'll never touch it more."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">But surely it is one thing to be the advocate of -Christianity, and another to be the disciple of it. And -though it may sound strange at first, far easier is it to -<em class="italics">teach</em> its lessons than to <em class="italics">learn</em> them. But so our souls -know full well.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have, however, still to look at the <em class="italics">destiny</em> and -<em class="italics">endowments</em> of these saints, as we have already looked -at their <em class="italics">faith</em>, their <em class="italics">virtues</em>, and their <em class="italics">religion</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">The translation of Enoch was the first formal testimony -of the great divine secret, that <em class="italics">man was to have -a place and inheritance in the heavens</em>. By creation he -was formed for the earth. The garden was his habitation, -Eden his demesne, and all the earth his estate. -But now is brought forth the deeper purpose, that God -has an election from among men, destined, in the everlasting -counsels of abounding grace, for heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the course of ages and dispensations after this, -this high purpose of God was only dimly and -occasionally, slowly and gradually, manifested. But in -the person of Enoch it is made to shine out at once. -The heavenly calling at this early moment, and in the -bosom of his elect and favoured household, declares -itself in its full lustre. This great fact among the -antediluvian patriarchs anticipates in spirit the hour of -Mount Tabor, the vision of the martyred Stephen, and -the taking up of the saints in the clouds to meet the -Lord in the air.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the high destiny of the elect people.</p> -<p class="pnext">The prophecies of Enoch and of Lamech are samples -of their endowments. And rich indeed, worthy of -their dignity, these endowments were. For those -prophecies under the Holy Ghost tell us that glorious -secrets had been entrusted to them. They were -treated as in the place of friends. "Shall I hide from -them," the Lord was saying to them, as afterwards to -Abraham, "that thing which I do?" For such privileges -belong only to dignity. See Gen. xviii. 18. And -if Abraham knew the doom of Sodom beforehand, -Enoch, in a deeper, larger sense, knew the doom of the -whole world beforehand. And his prophecy lets out a -mystery of solemn and wondrous glory--that the -heavenly saints are to accompany the Lord in the day -of His power and judgment. And, as of a character -equal with this, Lamech's, which comes after, in its -turn, with happier anticipations, sketches the scene -that lies beyond the judgment, days of millennial -blessedness, "the days of heaven upon the earth." The -Lord has not given up the earth for ever. And these -saints before the flood can speak of that great mystery -even before the bow in the cloud becomes the token of -it. But they know the judgment of it must come first; -and they can speak of that mystery also before the -fountains of the great deep were broken up.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rich endowments in the Spirit thus attach to their -high personal dignity with God. As with the Church -now. "Stewards" they were "of the mysteries of -God." They could "sing of mercy and of judgment;" -unto God and of His counsels they could sing. Profoundest -secrets feed their souls. "The deep things of -God," the things both of prophets and apostles, the -things of the epistles and the apocalypse, are theirs. -Paul was entrusted with the circumstances of the -heavenly calling. He speaks of our being caught up -in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and of that -great expectation as being our comfort and relief -against the day of the Lord and its terrors; Enoch in -himself, long before, illustrated that very thing. John -speaks of the raptured saints accompanying the Lord -in the day of His power, joining in the breaking of -the potter's vessel, and in the warfare of the Rider on -the white horse; Enoch in his prophecy, long before, -testified the same. Jude 14, 15. Prophets tell of the -wilderness by-and-by rejoicing, and of the desert -blossoming, of the blessed One renewing the face of -the earth, and instead of the brier, the myrtle flourishing; -but long before Lamech had told of this same -comfort in the earth again, and this rest for man from -the curse of the ground. Gen. v. 29.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rich indeed were these endowments in the Holy -Ghost. There is even peculiar vividness in these -earliest utterances of the prophetic spirit. There is -commonly a haze over the distance. It is not clear, as -if it were the foreground. Indistinctness invests it. -And this, in contrast with the nearer landscape, only -heightens the impression of the whole. So the notices -of the prophets, and the things reported by apostles. -They are delivered in different style. Properly so. The -haze of distance commonly invests the communications -we get of the future. Such is the perfectness of the -way of the Spirit. The very drapery under which the -distant or the future appears sets it off fitly. Clearness, -or literal definiteness, would be offensive, as glare or -nakedness. This is commonly so, and this is all -admirable. But if <em class="italics">at times</em> the distance is illuminated, -we can delight in it; and in these earliest notices the -latest scenes of divine action are thus set off in strange -and beautiful distinctness.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the heavenly calling, its virtues, its dignity, -and its endowments, of this antediluvian family of God. -The end of their path was heavenly also, as heavenly -as any feature of it. I speak not of the <em class="italics">fact</em> of its -ending in heaven, but of the very <em class="italics">style</em> in which it so -ended. No sign among the nations gave notice of it. -No times or seasons had to mark or measure it. No -stated age or numbered years had to spend themselves. -No voice of prophecy had so much as hinted the blessed, -rapturous moment. "Enoch walked with God, and he -was not, for God took him." Nothing peculiar ushered -forth that glorious hour. No big expectations or strange -events gave token of its coming. It was the natural -heavenly close of an undeviating heavenly journey.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was otherwise with Noah afterwards. Great -preparation was made for his deliverance. Years also -spent themselves--appointed years. But not so our -heavenly patriarch. Noah was carried through the -judgment; but Enoch, before it came, was borne to the -place out of which it came.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id10" id="id9"><sup>5</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And if the days and years did not measure it, nor -signs announce it, did the world, I ask, witness it? -Or was it, though so glorious and great, silent and -secret?</p> -<p class="pnext">The language of the apostle seems to give me my -answer, and so does all the analogy of Scripture. He -"was not found, because God had translated him." This -sounds as though man had been a stranger to that -glorious hour. The world seems to have inquired and -searched after him, like the sons of the prophets after -Elijah; but in vain. 2 Kings ii. 17; Heb. xi. 5. And -this tells us that the translation had been a secret to -man; for they would not have searched, had they -seen it.</p> -<p class="pnext">All scriptural or divine analogy answers me in like -manner. Glory, in none of its forms or actions, is for -the eye or ear of mere man.</p> -<p class="pnext">Horses and chariots filled the mountain; but the -prophet's servant had to get his eye opened ere he -could see them. Daniel saw a glorious stranger, and -heard his voice as the voice of a multitude; but the -men who stood with him saw nothing--only a terror -fell on them. The glory on "the holy hill" shone only -in the sight of Peter, James, and John, though the -brightness there at that moment (night as it was) -might have lighted up all the land; for the divine -face "did shine as the sun." Many bodies of saints -arose, attendants on the Lord's rising; but it was only -to some in the holy city they showed themselves. The -heaven was opened over the head of the martyr of -Jesus, in the very midst of a multitude; but the glory -was seen only by him. Paul went to Paradise, and -Philip to Azotus; but no eye of man tracked either -the flight or the journey. And beyond all, when Jesus -rose, and that, too, from a tomb of hewn stone, and -from amid a guard of wakeful soldiers, no ear or eye -was in the secret. It was a lie, that the keepers of -the stone slept; but it is a truth, that they saw no -more of the resurrection than had they done so. -Silence and secrecy thus mark all these glorious -transactions. Visions, audiences, resurrections, flights, -ascensions, the glory down here, and the heaven opened -up there, all these go on, and yet mere man is a -stranger to all. And the translation of Enoch takes -company with all these, I assuredly judge; and so, I -further judge, will another glorious hour soon to come, -in which "they that are Christ's" are <em class="italics">all</em> to be -interested.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">I have now reached and closed the fifth chapter. -The first part of the Book of Genesis will be found to -end here. For these chapters (i.-v.) constitute a little -volume.</p> -<p class="pnext">I. This chapter opens the volume with the work of -creation.</p> -<p class="pnext">II. Creation being complete, the Lord, the Creator, -takes His delight in it; and in the midst of it, and -over it, places the man whom He had formed in His -own image, with all endowments and possessions to -make his condition perfect.</p> -<p class="pnext">III. Man, thus made perfect, being tried and overcome, -we see the <em class="italics">ruin</em> which he wrought, and the -<em class="italics">redemption</em> which God provided.</p> -<p class="pnext">IV. V. These chapters then show us one branch of -this ruined, redeemed family choosing the ruins, and -another branch of it delighting in the redemption.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is simple, and yet perfect. The tale is told--a -tale of other days; but in the results and sympathies -of which we live at this hour.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is the sight of the elect, believing, heavenly household, -which we get in this little volume, which has -at this time drawn my thoughts to it. They walked -on earth as we should walk; but they were, by their -faith, hope, and destiny, all the while, very near -heaven, as we are.</p> -<p class="pnext">Are we touching the skirts of such glory with -unaffected hearts, beloved? Does anything more -humble you in His presence, I ask you (for my own soul -has already given its answer), than the conviction we -have of the little estimation in which the heart holds -His promised glory? It is terrible discovery to make -of oneself. That we have but small delight in the -provisions of His goodness, is more terrible than that -we have no answer to the demands of His righteousness. -And yet both stand in proof against us. After Israel -had left Egypt, they were tested by the voice of the -law; but the golden calf tells that they had no answer -for it. In the progress of their journey, they are tested -by the firstfruits of Canaan; but the desired captain -tells that they had no relish for the feast. And what -is the heart of man still? What was it in Christ's -day? The parable of the marriage of the king's son, -like the captain of the wilderness, tells us that there -is no relish there for the table which God spreads. -What are singing men and singing women to a heavy -ear? The pleasant land is despised still. Canaan is -not worth the scaling of a single wall, or an encounter -with one Amalekite. The farm, the merchandise, and -the wife, are made the captain to take us back, in spite -of the invitations of love and the treasures of glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">Terrible discovery! And yet it is not hard to make -it. The proof of it clings pretty close to us. We -know how quickly present interests move us; how loss -depresses and profit elates us; and then, again, we -know how dull the glory glitters, if but a difficulty or -a hazard lie this side of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Are we sorry because of this, beloved? Does it ever -break the heart into sighs and groans before our God? -Sad and solemn, if we feel it not thus--and terrible, -when we deliberately talk to ourselves of making a -captain again. And this we do when the pastime and -the pleasures of the sons of men again give animation -to our hearts, or when their honours or their pursuits -become again our objects. Lot's wife, beloved, had got -beyond Sodom, and that, too, in company with the -elect, when it was found that she was still there, in -such a sense as to perish with the city. Israel was -as far as the wilderness of Paran, and that, too, in -company with the ark of God, when it was proved -that they were still amid the flesh-pots of Egypt. -Serious remembrances for us all! holy warnings, that -we wanton not with those lusts and enjoyments, which -once we watched and mortified.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Of that day and hour knoweth no man"--are the -solemn words by which the Lord refuses to pledge -the moment of His return to His Jewish remnant. -Matt. xxiv. 36. That moment is to be to them as the -thief of the night, or as the hour of the woman in -travail. So as to death. If it come on any of us -without a moment's warning, the Lord has not been -untrue to any pledge He has given. And so as to the -rapture. In no case is the day or the hour pledged -or made known. All is included in <em class="italics">one</em> word of deep -and holy import--"Watch"--and that one word is -addressed to all: "What I say unto you, I say unto -all, Watch."</p> -<p class="pnext">Whether the close to us be by death or rapture--whether -it be to Israel by being taken or left--the day -and the hour remain alike untold; no pledge of it is -promised at all. Each and all are set on the watch-tower. -<em class="italics">We</em> wait for "the Son from heaven;" <em class="italics">they</em> -will have to wait for "the days of the Son of man;" -but neither of us know the hour that closes the -waiting.</p> -<p class="pnext">That is common to them and to us. We stand in -equal condition with them as to this. But together -with this there is a difference.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Jewish Remnant are given signs. That is, they -are told of certain things which <em class="italics">must</em> precede "the -days of the Son of man," though they are left ignorant -of the day or the hour of that appearing. See Matt. -xxiv. 32-36. The saints now gathering to the hope -of the "Son from heaven" are, on the contrary, not given -any such signs, or told of any necessary precursory -events.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord communicated His <em class="italics">purpose</em> of judgment -to Noah, but said nothing to him of the <em class="italics">time</em> of it. -But Noah knew that it could not be till his ark was -built. He knew not the time when the waters were -to rise; but he knew they could not rise till he and -his were lodged in safety. This was a sign, or an -event necessarily forerunning the close of his history. -And so with the earthly Israel. Circumstances must -take place, though the day or the hour of it be not -known, ere the Son of man can be here on earth -again. But not so with Enoch. No circumstance -necessarily delayed his translation. His walk with -God was not a circumstance. And that was all that -led the way to his ascension. And so with the Church -now gathering. She waits for no circumstance--no -years measure her sojourn here; no events prepare -her heavenward way. She is not put, like the Jewish -election, under the restraint of any signs or preceding -circumstances.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord treats it as <em class="italics">deceit</em> to say "the time draweth -nigh;" while the apostle <em class="italics">expressly puts us under those -words</em>. Luke xxi. 8; James v. 8. <em class="italics">After certain signs -or events</em>, the Lord tells the remnant that their expectation -is near; the apostle tells us that ours is -<em class="italics">always so</em>. Matt. xxiv. 33; Phil. iv. 5. The Lord -exhorts the remnant to watch, because the day may -otherwise overtake them; the apostle exhorts us to -watch, because we are already of the day, and it is -fit that we should act as day-men. Matt. xxiv. 43; -1 Thess. v. 5, 6.</p> -<p class="pnext">Here lies a difference. But still, all are equally -commanded to watch--we in this our day, as ever -knowing that "the end of all things is at hand," and -the remnant, in their coming day, even though they -know that some events must go before.</p> -<p class="pnext">And beautiful and just this is. For if the things -threatened be profoundly solemn, as they are, and the -things promised be unspeakably glorious, as they are, -it is but little to require of us to <em class="italics">treat them as supreme</em>--and -that, in other words, is <em class="italics">watching</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">And the sense of the nearness of the glory should -be cherished by us. I mean its nearness in <em class="italics">place</em> as -well as time. And we need be at no effort to persuade -ourselves of it. It is taught us very clearly and surely. -The congregation of Israel were set at the door of the -tabernacle, and as soon as the appointed moment came -the glory was before them. See Lev. viii. ix. So at the -erection of the tabernacle, and so at the introduction of -the ark into the temple. Ex. xl.; 2 Chron. v. So when -it had business to do (though of different characters) -with the company on Mount Tabor, with the dying -Stephen, or with Saul on the road to Damascus--wherever -it may have to act, and whatever it may be -called to do, to convict, to cheer, or to transfigure--to -smite to the earth the persecutor, to give triumph to -the martyr, or to conform an elect Vessel to itself, it -can be present in a moment, in the twinkling of an -eye. It is but a thin veil, which either hides it or -distances it. The path is short, and the journey rapidly -accomplished. We should cherish the thought of this, -beloved. It has its power as well as its consolation. -And so ere long, when the time of 1 Cor. xv. 51 arrives, -that moment of the general transfiguration, as soon as -the voice of the archangel summons it, the glory will -be here again, as in the twinkling of an eye, to do its -business with us, and in the image of the heavenly to -bear us up, like Enoch, to the heavenly country.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then shall the Lord be glorified in His saints--not -as now, in their obedience and service, their holiness -and fruitfulness, but in their <em class="italics">personal</em> beauty. Arrayed -in white, and shining in our glories, we shall be the -wondrous witness of what He has done for the sinner -that trusts in Him. And as one much loved and -honoured in the Lord has just written to me, so I -write to you, beloved: "No lark ever sprang up on a -dewy morning to sing its sweet song with such alacrity -as you and I shall spring up to meet our Lord in the -air." And his exhortation to me I would make mine -to you (though feebly echoed from my heart): "Oh, my -brother, set it before your mind's eye as a living reality, -and then let hope patiently wait for the fulfilment!"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="center medium pfirst">"Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="noah">NOAH</span>.</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">GENESIS VI.-XI.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">How changed is the whole condition of things since -the day of Genesis!</p> -<p class="pnext">Were I to read the opening of this fine scripture, -and just expose my heart to the simpler earliest -impression of what I get there, it is this thought -which would engage my mind; and yet with all -ease we can account for this strange and wondrous -revolution. In chapter i. God was alone, producing -the fruit of His own handiwork, in wisdom, goodness, -and skill; and then all was good and desirable. On the -return of every evening and morning the divine delights -lingered over what the divine hand was working out, -and behold all was very good; and the seventh day -was sanctified for the celebration of this rest and -enjoyment. But now, it is not God's hand presenting a -perfect work to God's thoughts and affections, but it is -man, the apostate artificer, spreading out a wide scene -of corruption and violence for the grief and repentings -of the divine mind. The secret of the change lies there. -Man has been at work; man has been fashioning and -furnishing the scene, and not the living, blessed God. -The earth is therefore filled with violence; giants there -are, mighty men, men of renown; and the imaginations -of that heart which was now making "this present evil -world" are only evil, and that continually.</p> -<p class="pnext">Here lies the secret. The change was complete because -of the new potter that had been at the wheel; -the change could not be less. The song of the morning -stars, the shout of the sons of God, had no echo in the -scene of creation now; man was now abroad--not as a -part of the work, but as a reprobate workman.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is just this which gives character to the opening -of chapter vi. And there is no relief for all this in -the creature--the best sample and portion it could -offer is itself defiled. The sons of God themselves -are dragged into the mire--their will, their desire, their -taste, are supreme with them. The daughters of Moab -have seduced to fornication; and the Nazarites, who -were purer than snow and whiter than milk, whose -polishing was of sapphire, are become blacker than a -coal. The witness against them is, "he also is flesh."</p> -<p class="pnext">If Adam was seduced by the subtilest of enemies, -and followed the sight of his eye and the desire of -his heart, the sons of God are now seduced by an -enemy equally successful. He works, it is true, from -within rather than without--"he also is flesh"--but -the sight of the eye and the desire of the heart are -again followed. Wives are taken of all "whom they -choose;" other lords are listened to, for God is not in -all their thoughts, and then it matters not whether it -be the promise of the serpent, or the fairness of the -daughters of men. Gen. iii. 4, 5.</p> -<p class="pnext">The multiplying of men on the face of the earth is -noticed as connected with all this corruption--just as -in the history of the Church. Acts vi. 1. It was -when the number of disciples was multiplied that -murmurings and disputings began to arise; and these -kindred cases in Genesis vi. and Acts vi. tell us that -man is never to be trusted, and that the more we get -of him the worse things are. "Jesus did not commit -Himself to them, for He knew all men, and needed -not that any should testify of man, for He knew what -was in man."</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the condition of the scene from one end -to the other; and against all this corruption and violence -which now overspread the earth, the judgment -of God is marked--"My spirit shall not <em class="italics">always</em> strive -with man." There may be, and there shall be, a term -of long-suffering--as it is said, "his days shall be one -hundred and twenty years"--but still judgment is -marked, and the day of visitation will come--the -Spirit will not <em class="italics">always</em> strive.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there is resource in God, as well as judgment -with Him. If man, the work of His <em class="italics">hand</em>, have -"grieved" Him, still, drawing from Himself, He will -(may I say?) go deeper, and find His joy in the counsels -of His <em class="italics">heart</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." Man, as -a sinner, shall become the object of electing, pardoning, -justifying love--he shall engage the <em class="italics">heart</em> now, as of -old, at creation, he engaged the <em class="italics">hand</em> of the Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus from Himself the Lord draws, but from Himself -in a deeper sense and way than before. This was -to be no more repairing of the creature--such a thing -would have been no fit work for God. As to man, -God had to repent that He had made him on the -earth; and as to the scene around him, the mind of -God was changed--changed unalterably, and for ever. -Man, as a thing formed of the dust, was never to be -the divine delight again--mere man. But grace can -make a new thing--not repairing the work marred on -the wheel, but making it another vessel, as it seem -good to the potter to make it. In its old estate it -was ruined, but in its ruins grace will take it up to -make it a goodly and a pleasant vessel of richest -treasures and all-desirable beauty.</p> -<p class="pnext">We admire a ruin; and some, as they have thought -of this, have suspected the <em class="italics">moral</em> of such a sentiment, -and been ready to condemn the heart and eye that -could linger with pleasure over what was the witness -of decay and death, and the entrance of the power of -sin. But I would venture to embolden such, and to -tell them that they may still admire a ruin, and do so -without fear or self-judgment. The redeemed thing is -a vast, and precious, and beautiful ruin; it will bespeak -the power of sin and death for ever, while displaying -the boundless, glorious victory of death's Destroyer. -And the thoughts of the Spirit of God, the mind of -Christ, as well as heaven itself and all its hosts, will -linger over that ruin for a happy eternity. It will be -the ornament and the delight of the creation of God. -"Sing, O ye heavens; for the Lord hath done it! Shout, -ye lower parts of the earth; break forth into singing, -ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein; for the -Lord hath redeemed Jacob!" And again, "Joy shall -be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more -than over ninety-and-nine just persons which need no -repentance."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is heaven's admiration of a beautiful ruin; and -these are the ways of God. The operations of His -hands were, of old, His delight, and the counsels of -His grace are now His delight, and the attending -angels have their music, and their dancing in the house -of the prodigal's Father.</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah, having thus found grace in the eyes of the -Lord, becomes the subject of divine teaching. An elect -vessel is always the vessel for the handiwork of God, -through the Spirit. The Lord communicates His mind -to him; He tells him that the judgment of an evil -world, which had now filled up its measure, was -marked before Him, but that for him and his house -there was safety, and a great deliverance.</p> -<p class="pnext">This communication has a very precious character -in it--<em class="italics">it is strictly according to the previous counsel of -His own bosom</em>. This is very much to be prized. God -tells His elect one, that the end of all flesh was come -before Him--as, in His own secret counsels He had -already said, "My spirit shall not <em class="italics">always</em> strive with -man;" He tells him of the sense and judgment He -had of the <em class="italics">moral</em> condition of the earth--just such as -He had uttered in secret before; and, further, He tells -him to get ready an ark for the saving of his house, as, -in the counsels of His electing love and sovereign -purpose, Noah had already found grace in His eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is very establishing to the heart to notice this. -It lets us understand how <em class="italics">exactly</em> the revelation made -to us puts us into possession of the divine mind, -"Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do?" -says the Lord, on another occasion, when He was, as -here, speaking to Himself. And a <em class="italics">fulness</em>, as well as -exactness, I may say, distinguishes these revelations. -Jesus says to His disciples, "<em class="italics">All</em> things that I have -heard of my Father I have made known unto you"--with, -however, one exception. The Lord God had -fixed 120 years as the term of His longsuffering. -Noah's preaching, as well as ark-building, was to be -for that period. Such was the purpose of God. But -Noah was told nothing of this predestinated interval. -The Lord kept back all mention of the 120 years. -Noah knew, indeed, that the waters could not prevail -till he and his were safe in the ark, but how long that -might be preparing, or whether or not, after it was -finished, any time should pass ere the waters should -begin to rise, he knew not. This part of the divine -counsel the Father kept in His own power; this was -the exception to the fulness of the communication. -Events were to take place, signs were to precede "the -day of the Lord"--such, at least, as the finishing and -filling of the ark. In the language of the prophet, -the bud was to become tender, and to put forth its -leaves. Had any one talked to Noah about the -waters rising ere the ark was ready, Noah would not -have been shaken in mind, or in anywise troubled. -That could not be. "The time draweth nigh" would -have been deceit then, as it will be by-and-by, when -the earthly remnant, or election, are, like Noah, waiting -for redemption. Luke xxi. 8. But still, the period -itself, the term of the divine longsuffering, was put -in the Father's power, and no one knew the day nor -the hour. So rich and full are those harmonies in -earlier and latter days, in typical and closing actions -of God's hand. Noah was at this time an <em class="italics">earthly</em> man--that -is an elect one destined for inheritance in the -earth, as the nation of Israel, by-and-by, will be; and -both of them, in their several days, are provided, by -divine instructions, against the deceits which might -alarm them, or the promises which might seduce them; -but the day and hour of their deliverance are not -told.</p> -<p class="pnext">The ark, in the size, fashion, and material of it, is -entirely the prescription of God. Noah has but to -make it--the Lord plans it as well as appoints it. -The making of it is only the trial and the proof of -faith--"by faith Noah, moved with fear, prepared an -ark to the saving of his house." Israel fashioning the -sanctuary, in after days, was a like act of faith. They -had to make it, and make it they did, with willing -hearts and ready service, yielding their brass, and their -silver, and their gold, their fine linen, badgers' skins, -shittim-wood, oil, spices, and precious stones. But all -this was only the obedience of faith to the way of -deliverance and peace, which God Himself had planned -and revealed. They made the sanctuary as Noah -made the ark; but neither was his act nor their -act anything more than faith in the provisions of God. -And what is the gospel, and faith in the gospel, to this -hour, but such a revelation of the provisions of grace, -and such obedience to that revelation? The religion of -the elect has ever been the same--"It is of faith, that -it might be by grace." Faith in God's sovereign provisions -was Adam's religion at the beginning, then it -was Noah's, afterwards it was the religion of Abraham, -and of every true Israelite; and so at this day it is -ours. We all, as well as Adam, come forth from our -shame, and fear, and confusion of conscience, at the -tidings of the bruised and bruising Seed of the woman. -We all, as well as Noah, prepare an ark for salvation, -and become heirs of the righteousness which is by -faith; we all as well as Israel, betake us from the fiery -hill to the sanctuary of enthroned mercy--and Jesus, -Jesus, is the name borne along the line, from one end -of it to the other, of patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and -saints, Gentile and Jewish, small and great, in the -deep-toned melody that is to charm the eternity of -heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is not merely mercy. Heaven knows no such -thought. Neither is it simple, naked promise. It is -<em class="italics">propitiation</em> and victory, and <em class="italics">purchased</em> as well as promised -blessings.</p> -<p class="pnext">Inspect the sanctuary of God and you will find that -it is not mere mercy that is there. It is enthroned -mercy, mercy on the ark of the covenant, mercy sustained -by the work and on the person of the Son of -God. And faith has respect only to such a mystery -as that. Faith never talks of mere mercy. It could -not. It could no more talk of mere mercy in God -than it could of moral righteousness in man. The -gospel does not know such ideas, and therefore faith -cannot apprehend them. The gospel reveals One who -is just, while justifying the ungodly. Mercy and truth -have met together. It is glory to God in the highest -while it is peace and good will to men. This is the -way of the gospel.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham is in the faith of this, as we see in Genesis -xv. The Lord had said to him, "I will give thee this -land to inherit it." This was a promise, the promise too -of One that could not lie. It was an immutable thing. -And Abraham rightly listened to this. As a sinner, who -knew full well and full justly, that promises to such an -one must have foundations and warranty, he listened to -it; therefore he at once says, "Whereby shall I know -that I shall inherit it?" Is this a challenge of the -promise? Is this a question of the divine truthfulness? -No, indeed. It is only faith letting God know, that it -was a conscious sinner who was listening to His promise, -which needed therefore some warranty, or consideration, -to carry it with certainty to the heart. And the Lord -was well pleased with this. Faith always pleases Him, -as without it nothing does. And at once He prepares to -let Abraham know that <em class="italics">sacrifice sustained the promise</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">Our patriarch, before Abraham, was in the like faith. -And walking in the steps of the same faith he takes an -advanced character. He attains righteousness. "Thee -have I seen righteous before me in this generation," -is now the word of God to him. "By faith Noah, being -warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with -fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the -which he condemned the world, <em class="italics">and became heir of the -righteousness which is by faith</em>."</p> -<p class="pnext">Love, and faith, and the patience of hope were, -however, each to animate his soul, and form his life, -for that solemn interval of 120 years. While the ark -was preparing, the Spirit, in Noah's preaching, was -striving with that generation. Nothing can be more -beautifully replete with meaning than all this. Noah -was in the work of faith, the labour of love, and the -patience of hope--a true Thessalonian saint. He was -preparing the ark in that faith which had received the -divine warning--in love he was telling his generation -of righteousness. 2 Peter ii. 5. Just like a saint of this -day. His own safety is settled and sure--<em class="italics">that</em> he -knows; but he is careful that his neighbours should -share it with him. The Spirit then strove in the -testimony as now He strives; but every stroke of -Noah's hammer day by day told that He would not -<em class="italics">always</em> strive.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the close of this predestinated but undisclosed -period, Noah enters the ark. This was the great salvation -in a mystery. It was as the night of Egypt's doom and -Israel's rescue. Nothing less than safety and deliverance -under the fullest securities and dearest title in an -hour of most solemn judgment, was now the story of -Noah. And this is the salvation of the gospel. In -Egypt afterwards, the very hand which carried the -sword of destruction along the land had appointed the -sheltering blood. Could the sword strike? Impossible! -And now it was He, who took counsel with Himself -about the judgment of the world, who had also counselled -His elect about the way of escape. It was the -hand which was about to let the waters out which was -now shutting Noah in. Could they then prevail against -him! Just, in like manner, impossible!</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"The voice that speaks in thunder</div> -<div class="line">Says, 'Sinner, I am thine.'"</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">The One to whom vengeance belongs has settled all -the plan of safety. He that is bearing the sword into -the land has appointed the scarlet line in the window. -But a solemn scene of judgment accompanies all this. -The sun was risen on the earth, as, after this, Lot -entered into Zoar. And yet that sunny hour was the -very time for the rain of brimstone and fire to fall. -Nothing could be done till Lot entered the city, but -then nothing remained to be done ere the fire came -down.</p> -<p class="pnext">How deeply was the moment of visitation hid! -They might well have said, "Peace and safety," when -they saw that morning sun, as he was wont, gilding -the bright and happy surface of the scene around them. -But even then the "sudden destruction" fell.</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah's generation was eating, and drinking, and -marrying, just as the water began to rise. There was -no harbinger, save, like Lot's escape to Zoar, Noah's -entrance into the ark. But that was folly. To imprison -himself and all that he had in the sides of a -ship aground, that <em class="italics">was</em> folly. But the flood came in -the moment of fancied security, and took them all away. -They were "willingly ignorant" of the word of God, -the testimony of the "preacher of righteousness;" one -who addressed them in the power and on the principle -of a resurrection hope. 1 Peter iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sudden and sure destruction on all outside, but -divine, infallible security on all within. The city of -refuge was <em class="italics">appointed of God</em>, and its walls must be -salvation. Impossible to be less. The same righteousness -which has pronounced a curse on every one that -continueth not in all things written in the book of -the law to do them, has likewise pronounced a curse -on every one that hangeth on a tree. Gal. iii. Can -He then deny His own remedy to the sinner, cursed -under the law, when he pleads, by faith, the Saviour -cursed on the tree? Alike, impossible.</p> -<p class="pnext">"The Lord shut him in." The hand of the Lord -imparted its own strength and security to Noah's -condition. It is not too bold to say, that all within -the door of the ark were as safe as the Lord Himself. -The Lord returned, we may say, to His own heavens, -or to His throne, which is established for ever, -and Noah was left on the earth, in the place and -day of judgment. But Noah was as safe as the Lord. -"We may have boldness in the day of judgment: -because as He is, so are we in this world." Jesus has -gone back to heaven, and we are still in this world, -the judgment of which is marked before God; but we -have the boldness which is proper to Jesus. Wonderful -to utter it! And yet is all that mysterious, glorious -security figured in that little action, "The Lord shut -him in." God's own hand imparted its strength to -Noah's condition ere He returned to the heavens.</p> -<p class="pnext">Some of every sort are borne with Noah from the -place of death into the ark of salvation. The "eight -souls," as Peter speaks, but with them, remnants of -the beasts of the earth, small and great, winged fowl -and creeping things, all are housed and redeemed -together with Noah.</p> -<p class="pnext">So was it afterwards in Egypt. Not a hoof was -left behind. The great redemption of that day, in -like manner, provided for all--Moses and the 600,000, -with their wives and little ones, and also all their -cattle; all again knew and manifested the saving -strength of God. As in the day of Nineveh, long -after, "the much cattle" are the Lord's thought, as -the six-score thousand persons that could not discern -between their right hand and their left.</p> -<p class="pnext">And in the coming day of the inheritance of Christ, -His dominions will measure all the works of God's -hand, "All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of -the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea;" -and the fields and the floods, and the hills and trees of -the wood, shall be joyful before Him. Psalm xcviii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Welcome mystery! Are they not all His creatures? -Did not His hand of old form them, and His eyes and -His heart rest and delight in them? And is this lost -to Him? May Jonah grieve for his withered gourd, -and the Lord not spare the works of His own hand for -His abiding joy? He will renew the face of the earth, -as it is written--The glory of the Lord shall endure for -ever, the Lord shall rejoice in His works. Psalm civ. 31. -"The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for -the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature -was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by -reason of Him who hath subjected the same in hope, -because the creature itself also shall be delivered from -the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory -of the children of God."</p> -<p class="pnext">But it is here that I may pause for a moment, to -notice the dispensational character of these days of -Noah.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The earth, as the scene of God's delight, and of His -people's citizenship, had been lost by the apostasy of -Adam; and the hopes and inheritance of the saints, all -through the days before the flood, were heavenly--the -Lord thereby disclosing, though faintly, certain portions -of the great secrets of His own bosom--the secrets of -the good pleasure purposed in Himself ere worlds were, -that heaven, as well as earth, should be connected with -the destinies of man. The heavens were opened to man, -when Adam, the man of the earth, failed. Gen. v. 24.</p> -<p class="pnext">That was so. But earth was not shut because -heaven was thus opened. The divine counsel ran -otherwise. It was this--that God would "gather together -in one all things in Christ, both which are in -heaven, and which are on earth." And the heavenly -calling having been already revealed in the story of -the saints before the flood, the due season had now -come for the revelation of God's great purpose concerning -the earth, and to make it known that He had -not given it up, because, in His dispensational ways, -He had taken up the heavens.</p> -<p class="pnext">As in Rev. iv. When the heavenly saints, "the -fulness of the Gentiles," the mystic elders and living -creatures, are seated in their heavenly places, the -thoughts of Him who sat on the throne there return -to the earth. The rainbow is <em class="italics">at once</em> seen around the -throne--the witness of this, that the covenant which -gives security <em class="italics">to the earth</em> was about to be the spring -of action in heaven. And so now in these days of -Noah. When the heavenly family had ended their -course, and Enoch was translated, the Lord's thoughts -returned to the earth, and that, I may say, <em class="italics">at once</em>; -for the next thing of character in the progress of the -hand, or the Spirit of God, is the prophecy of Lamech, -pledging God and His mercies to the earth again, and -introducing Noah--"This same [Noah] shall comfort -us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because -of the ground which the Lord hath cursed."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is all simple--scarcely capable of being misunderstood. -The prophecy of Lamech, which introduces -it, tells us what we are to expect and find in the -mystery of Noah. "The key of the parable lies at -the door." The recovery of the earth, the return of -God's rest and delight in it, all this will be made -good in the coming times of the true Noah, in whom, -and in whom alone, all the promises of God are yea -and amen.</p> -<p class="pnext">A great action, however, must usher in those times. -The call of the heavenly people is quite otherwise, -as in the call of the antediluvian saints. There was in -those days no interference with the scene around. -Cain's family was left in possession--quiet, undisputed -possession--of their cities and their wealth. The -visitation of God then, as always under such a call, -only separated a people without affecting either to -regulate or judge the world. It left it as it found it. -But God's claim to the earth, and His purpose to take -it up again, is necessarily otherwise. There He is as -<em class="italics">thoroughly interfering with every thing</em>, as in the other -way of His "manifold wisdom" He was <em class="italics">utterly leaving -all alone</em>. For by judgment He must purge the earth, -and get it fit to be His footstool.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is the dispensational truth we learn here, in -this parable, or in these times of Noah. The earth -has been remembered, and is now resumed, but through -purifying judgments. All takes the sentence of death -into itself, that it may stand as a new thing, in the -strength and grace of Him who quickens the dead. -The earth itself was in the water, or under the water, -and the elect remnant were saved--as in the appointed -city of refuge--from the hand of the avenger; and all -therefore appears again, as in resurrection.</p> -<p class="pnext">Beasts, and fowl, and creeping things, some of every -sort, go into the ark; and there, within that refuge, -which kept its charge in peace from fear of evil, the -ransomed passed the days of their patience.</p> -<p class="pnext">But they were more than safe. They were <em class="italics">remembered</em>--"God -remembered Noah, and every living thing, and -all the cattle that was with him in the ark." So did -Joshua, in other days, remember Rahab. The scene of -death and judgment lay all around our patriarch. -It was one vast, and deep, and mighty ruin--an -extended Jericho the accursed--another and a wider -land of Pharaoh, with the doom of the Lord resting -darkly and heavily upon it. But He who had already -shut His remnant in, now remembers them; and in -that remembrance there was present life, and, in -prospect, a goodly inheritance.</p> -<p class="pnext">It will be so with another elect remnant, in coming -days. Before the same covenant God, who was now -keeping Noah in mind, a book of remembrance will -be written for them that fear the Lord and think upon -His name. Mal. iii. And of them the Lord says, -"They shall be mine in that day when I make up -my jewels;" as now, in virtue of this covenant-remembrance, -the Lord causes a wind to pass over the earth, -the waters abate, and the ark rests on the mountains -of Ararat.</p> -<p class="pnext">This remembrance of God was most precious. But -Noah, in his city of refuge, had other consolations. -The divine remembrance was the hidden comfort of -faith; but he had also blessed, conscious exercises -of spirit.</p> -<p class="pnext">The ark had a window in it. The door was in the -keeping of the Lord, but the window was for Noah's -use. He who had shut him in, alone could let him -out--the times and the seasons were in <em class="italics">His</em> hand. -But while the time of his pilgrimage, as a prisoner of -hope, cannot be shortened, yet may the hopes of -such a prisoner be very preciously nourished, and his -spirit within him blessedly exercised. Noah may open -the window, remove the covering, look out, and send -forth his messengers, his Caleb and Joshua and their -companions, to spy out the land, and report to him -what it is, whether it be fat or lean, good or bad, and -to bring him the fruit of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">What beauty and what wisdom strike the eye and -the heart in all this! This window in the ark, and -its uses, are so significant! The divine <em class="italics">methods</em> are -so worthy of the divine <em class="italics">communications</em>! "Apples -of gold in pictures of silver" are the Spirit's words.</p> -<p class="pnext">Typical, symbolic, parabolic teaching is very acceptable -to the heart, and makes ready entrance there. -We all prove this, just as children like pictures and -stories. Not only, I would here observe, are doctrines -thus taught--not only the great mysteries of the glory, -but experiences of the soul, the personal inworkings of -the Spirit, are illustrated by these same methods. Conviction -of sin, for instance, was expressed in Adam -retreating from the voice of the Lord God, amongst the -trees of the garden. The longings and inquiries of a -soul awakened to a sense of its condition, if haply it -might find its path, are given to us in the Israelite -standing at his tent door stripped of his ornaments, -and looking after the Mediator as he entered the -Tabernacle. Ex. xxxiii. And Moses, with his veiled -and unveiled face, might have spoken of exercises and -experiences of heart to us, even had not the Spirit, by -His light in the Apostle, helped our understandings. -2 Cor. iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">We might go through a thousand such instances. -And by this method the great things of God are -pressed home upon the heart. By these figures the -Lord is standing very near the heart, and knocking -there. It is not His grace displaying itself in the -distance, or shining from afar, but it is the Lord -Himself, and His blessing, coming very near for -our full acceptance. We may <em class="italics">admire</em>, but if we do -not also <em class="italics">enjoy</em>, the purpose of the revelation is not -answered.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now this method is beautifully preserved in these -days of Noah. Indeed the whole of Genesis is full of -it. It is a book of "allegories," as St. Paul speaks--divine -stories written for the school of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">The ark, as I have already noticed, had its door and -its window, and Noah had his spies to send into the -promised land--and the mission of these spies, the -raven and the dove, express the experience of the -saint in the contrary workings of the flesh and spirit, -which contend in him.</p> -<p class="pnext">The raven never returns. The earth may be still -unpurged, but the unclean nature can take up with it. -The "present evil world" will do well enough for fallen, -degraded man. Indeed, the ark was rather a place of -captivity than security, to the unclean raven. She -never returns to it when once escaped. But Noah will -not trust her. Beautiful saintly intelligence! The -raven may remain outside; but that is no proof to Noah -that the earth is clean, or fit for the sole of his foot. -Noah will not trust her, but sends out a clean creature -after her. And different indeed are the tidings which -she bears. It is, in principle, the contest of Caleb and -Joshua with their companion spies. The dove returns -instinctively. There was no rest for her in a place still -under judgment of God, and unpurged. And Noah, -conscious that he can trust her and commit the question -to her settlement, sends her out a second and a third -time. And well indeed he may trust her. Her only -sympathy is with the pledges of peace and of a new -creation. On her second return she bears an olive-leaf -in her mouth, and after her third mission she -never comes back.</p> -<p class="pnext">Beautiful mystery! The earth was redeemed from -the curse now, and in its new-creation state the dove -can delight. All is native air to her. It is now the -land of the turtle and the olive, and Noah understands -the absence of this clean creature. He at once removes -the covering from the ark, and looks out; and the God -of glory shortly lets him out, as the God of all grace -had before shut him in.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely the ways of a saint, the ways of the mind -of Christ, are here! I know not that any action can -be more pregnant with meaning. There was the ark, -and its window, and its door. The ark itself was for -safety, the window for a prospect, and the door for -an exodus, in due season. All this was faith and hope -ending their pilgrimage in the place of promised glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah suspected not the ark; he did not occupy -himself in feeling its timbers, whether indeed they -were keeping the waters outside--he had no doubt of -that. He had no pump in his ship, if I may be -allowed the figure; and I may utter it, since, homely -as it is, it glorifies Jesus in the security He gives the -sinner; for such is the very style of Scripture itself.</p> -<p class="pnext">The lesson taught us may be the profoundest in the -mind of the Spirit, but the school where it is learnt may -be a despised place. Look, for instance, at Genesis xlviii. -You are there at the bedside of a dying old man--a -common homely spot. But there, some of the deepest -and richest secrets of the mind of God are, in a figure, -conveyed to us--the great mystery of our adoption, -according to divine good pleasure; and then our welcome -into the family of God, in the day of our manifestation, -or conversion. And what richer counsels of grace are -there than those? And yet in what more common or -homely school could they have been taught us?</p> -<p class="pnext">As in still earlier days, in Genesis xvi. There you -are introduced to the domestic arrangement of Abraham's -family as to the servant and her mistress, and -their disputes; and yet, in all that, you get the -profound mystery of the two covenants. Gal. iv. And -again, in the act, the ordinary act, of discharging a -servant, another feature in the same mystery is -presented to us, in chapter xxi. The wisdom of God -delights in these scenes and materials; they rebuke -the erring thought of man's heart, that important -things must be done or said by imposing methods--that -the prophet must come forth and strike his hand -over the place. 2 Kings v. 11. But it is with rude -and inartificial instruments that both the wisdom of -God and the power of God are commonly seen. Rams' -horns blew down Jericho, and fishermen turned the -world upside down, as was said of them. But these -homely methods of God's wisdom aid in carrying the -instruction home, and lodging it deep in the intimacies -and recollections of the heart. I may therefore still -say that Noah's ship had no pump in it. Indeed it -could not. Such a thing would have witnessed against -it. God's provisions would have declared their own -insufficiency. That could never have been. God's -provisions and God's works always tell <em class="italics">whose</em> they are -by being <em class="italics">what</em> they are. Simplicity, and yet sufficiency, -give them their character. "Let there be light, and -there was light." "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, -and thou shalt be saved;" and the sinner, believing, -rejoiced in God with all his house.</p> -<p class="pnext">So, in like simplicity, in these earlier days. The -heart of Noah was not soiled by a suspicion. He -rested in the sea-worthiness of his vessel, because of -God's appointment and approval of it--nay, I may -say, because of God's building of it. Faith keeping -his heart quiet and assured as to the judgment, hope -fills it as to the coming glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such is the beautiful way of this "prisoner of hope." -<em class="italics">A prisoner of hope</em> is one of the Spirit's titles, I may -say, for all the saints of God. Jeremiah was such -an one in his day. Jeremiah was shut up in "the -court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's -house," and this, too, for Christ's sake. He was God's -prisoner, and such an one is always hope's prisoner. -Jeremiah is told to purchase Hananiah's field, and -that was food for hope, like the olive-leaf in the -mouth of the dove. It told the prophet of good days -to come, though at that moment he was in a prison, -the Chaldean army at the city gates, and all the -land deserted. The waters were again all around and -abroad; but the ark of the prophet, like that of the -patriarch, had a window in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">So was Israel a prisoner of hope in the night of the -passover. With shoe on foot, staff in hand, and girded -loins, Israel waited in the very midst of the judgments -of the Lord; but, like our patriarch, they waited there -only to pass out to the inheritance of the Lord. And -having the pre-eminence in all things, Jesus again -and again shows us the perfect way of a prisoner of -hope, looking for a resurrection portion. As when He -entered Jerusalem, in John xii., the Jewish multitudes -and the Gentile strangers being drawn thither to -inquire after Him, and all the dignities and joys of -the Son of David seeming to wait on Him, His heart -waits on the resurrection hope still, "the joy set before -him," and forth from that attitude of soul, or place -of expectation, He speaks of the corn of wheat falling -into the ground and dying. Steadily and desirously -did His eye rest on the glory which lay, not <em class="italics">in</em> that -hour, but <em class="italics">beyond</em> it. In a spirit of entire consecration -and sacrifice, He surrenders <em class="italics">that</em> hour (bright to Him -in the world as it was, and big with the promise of all -its kingdoms and the glory thereof) to the Father: and -the voice from heaven then visits this perfect, blessed -"prisoner of hope," with assurances that, in due -season, even resurrection times, His name and victory -and honour should all be provided for and secured.</p> -<p class="pnext">Matchless Jesus!--This voice from heaven was again -the food of hope's prisoner. And what was the transfiguration -on the holy hill but the same? Jesus had -been speaking to the disciples of His death, and -encouraging them (as He would us, beloved) not to -love their lives in this world, when, soon after, six -or eight days, as we read, the holy hill shines suddenly -with the light of resurrection or millennial regions. -And what was all that visitation of glory, but the -grapes of Eshcol brought from Canaan to the camp of -God in the desert; or as the return of the dove to -Noah, with the olive-leaf in her mouth?</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The time, however, for "rendering double" to this -"prisoner of hope" (Zech. ix. 12), comes in due course. -"And God spake unto Noah, saying, Go forth of the -ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' -wives with thee! bring forth with thee every living -thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl and of -cattle, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon -the earth." And Noah went forth. He landed on -the renewed earth, where, at that mystic moment, -all was, in a great sense, according to God's mind -again; no longer corrupt, as when he had last trod -it in its old estate, but clean, under the refining of the -judgment.</p> -<p class="pnext">Not a thing had gone into the ark thirteen months -before, which did not now come forth. The small and -the great had been in it, and the small were as safe as -the great; the creeping thing of the ditch or the hedge, -as free of all danger or harm as Noah himself. Precious -mystery! We may be little, and we are little, as -the heart knows full well; but heaven, or the coming -system of glory, has fitted itself like the ark, for the -receiving of the small as well as the great. "A voice -came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all -ye His servants, and ye that fear Him, both small -and great." We may be calm, though we know ourselves -to be "small" in every way, even as the creeping -thing that went in with Noah--for such a little one -was equally in the covenant, or "the family settlement," -which made each and all, in their way and measure, -inheritors of the new world. The Father's house on -high has surely made its reckoning according to these -differences of "small and great." As in ancient days -of typical glory, all the congregation of Israel, the -distant ones of Dan and Naphtali, as well as the -princes of Judah, joined in the shout of triumph -when the fire came down, and in mystery, the kingdom -was entered. Lev. ix. Clement and others were not -Paul in the measure of their labours, or in the energy -of the Spirit; but they were Paul as having their -names, alike with his, in the book of life. Phil. iv. 3. -The Father has built His house in the heavens, on -the very plan of its receiving the saints as well as -Jesus Himself. It was part of the original design. -Ere foundations were laid, that plan and purpose were -laid. In counsels of everlasting love it was provided -that the house should be a large one, a many-roomed -or mansioned house, that all the children might be -there.</p> -<p class="pnext">What say we, beloved? Do our thoughts of it and -glances at it do justice to this love of God? As well -might you say, your prospect from the highest of the -hills could do justice to God's creation. Could your -glance then measure the ten thousandth part of the -earth? The length, the depth, the breadth, the height--the -love of Christ which passeth knowledge!</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and -took of every clean beast, and every clean fowl, and -offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord -smelled a sweet savour: and the Lord said in His heart, -I will not again curse the ground any more for man's -sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil -from his youth: neither will I again smite any more -every thing living, as I have done. While the earth -remaineth, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, -and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not -cease." The cleansing of the waters of judgment had -made no change in the imaginations of the thoughts -of man's heart. They were still evil, and that only. -The heart was uncured, for "that which is born of -the flesh is flesh," though there be water to cleanse or -fire to refine. It was no change there which gave the -Lord thoughts of peace and not of evil towards men.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Faith eyes the blood of Christ, and not victory -over corruptions," as one has said, even where there is -such victory. But here, <em class="italics">in spite of corruptions</em>, that -blood awakens thoughts of peace and not of evil, to -give the sinner an expected end. Christ was under -the eye of God, and that was enough; as in the day -of atonement. The blood of sprinkling is then seen -everywhere. That was the great secret, the great -principle, of that mystic day in Israel. The blood of -the lamb (Lev. xvi.) went into the presence of God, -attended by a cloud of incense; so that Aaron himself -was hid, and there was no man in the tabernacle of -the congregation, as the holy service of putting the -blood on every thing proceeded. Christ in mystery -was seen, and nothing else--and the fruit of that was -the bearing away of sins into the wilderness, a land not -inhabited, a place of forgetfulness, where there was -no voice to accuse, to judge, or to condemn, where -nothing <em class="italics">could</em> be heard but the voice of that blood -which speaketh better things than the blood of Abel.</p> -<p class="pnext">That blood, now under the eye of the Lord God, -had moved His heart. Do I speak as a man? No, -the word is, "The Lord said in His heart, I will not -again curse the ground." As the Saviour Himself -says (in spirit bound for the altar), "Therefore doth -my Father <em class="italics">love</em> me, because I lay down my life." -The heart of the Lord God has sealed the acceptance -of the sacrifice. It did so here, in the times of Noah.</p> -<p class="pnext">This word that broke from the heart of the Lord -God in Noah's day, the passage of the burning lamp in -Abraham's day (Gen. xv.), and the answer of God -to Solomon (2 Chron. i.), all witness to the value of -the cross of Christ with God established. The rending -of the veil from top to bottom, the breaking of the -rocks, and the bursting of the graves, witness the -same, when the true offering was once and for ever -accomplished. In rich variety of form and character -is the acceptance of the work done in "the place -that is called Calvary" testified and published--in -every tongue and language, as it were, in Hebrew, -and Greek, and Latin.</p> -<p class="pnext">And Noah becomes at once the object of fresh and -multiplied blessings, blessings in glory and inheritance -now, as already he had blessings in election, an acceptance -of grace and the righteousness which is by faith. -"God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, -Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. And -the fear of you, and the dread of you, shall be upon -every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the -air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon -all the fishes of the sea: into your hand they are -delivered."</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah was blessed in the new world. That blessing -conveyed to him property and dominion in the earth, -and the use or enjoyment of the creatures good for -food. "Every moving thing that liveth" was given -to him, that it might be meat for him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Here was a large grant, as wide as the scene which -lay around him. He was monarch of all he surveyed, -lord, like Adam in the garden, of the new world. Instructed, -however, as well as honoured and enriched--taught -that the <em class="italics">blood</em> of the animal was not to be -eaten with its <em class="italics">flesh</em>: "the flesh with the blood thereof, -which is the life thereof, thou shalt not eat"--a -principle which involves all the thoughts and counsels -of God in His way with sinners--as suited a prohibition, -or limitation to the grant made to Noah now, -as had been the prohibition of the tree in the midst -of the garden, to the grant of all things else made to -Adam.</p> -<p class="pnext">The blood was the life, and man was not to eat it. -It would have been a bold re-assuming of that which -through sin he had lost, a challenge to regain life by -forcing the passage kept by the sword of the cherubim. -For this ordinance told the sinner, that having lost his -title to the tree of life, he can never return to it in his -own strength. The life has reverted to God. Blood -is His. And the gospel comes to tell us how He has -used it, even providing with it and through it new, -eternal, infallible life for the dead sinner.</p> -<p class="pnext">The way of God in the gospel was, therefore, rehearsed -to Noah in this ordinance: "The flesh with -the blood thereof, which is the life thereof, thou shalt -not eat." His altar had already told us that he stood -with Adam in the faith of the woman's Seed, and that -that mystery was the principle of his religion and his -worship. But here, while making over every thing to -him for property, dominion, and use, the Lord will not -pass by this great exception out of the grant; conveying, -as it does, the great secret or principle of His -gospel. In the changed circumstances of Adam and -Noah, in the difference between an upright creature -and a ruined sinner, this exception was as fitting and -necessary, as I have said, as that of the tree of knowledge -out of the grant of all with which the Lord, the -Creator, had of old, furnished and filled the scene.</p> -<p class="pnext">We take life from Christ who has made atonement -by His blood. But we deeply own we can get it -nowhere else. <em class="italics">We do not look for it elsewhere, but -we refuse it not from Him.</em> We know we were dead in -trespasses and sins, but we know that we have life in -Him, though only in Him. Adam learnt these things -in the promise of the woman's Seed, and in the sword -of the cherubim; Noah learnt them or witnessed them -in his altar and in this ordinance; these things the -whole book of God declares; and eternity will celebrate -them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Further, however, still--for in this blessing we find -Noah with the sword of justice in his hand. His -fellow-man was to be both protected and avenged. -Man's person was sacred; and his life or blood, if shed -by either man or beast, would be required. "And -surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the -hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand -of man; at the hand of every man's brother, will I -require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, -by man shall his blood be shed."<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id12" id="id11"><sup>6</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Who does not instinctively approve of this? All -that we feel judges the fitness of thus treating the -person of man as sacred. While every other moving -thing that lived was submitted to the use of man, -his fellow-man was to be sacred in his eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">We instinctively approve this. But this scripture -accounts for this instinct. The reason lies here--"in -the image of God made He man." There is a dignity -in man that is entirely his own. He is the natural -head of creation. Man is the possessor and governor, -and not part of the conveyed inheritance, or of the -delegated dominion. He is the object and not the -subject of the divine grant. The instinctive verdict of -our own hearts is thus divinely accounted for.</p> -<p class="pnext">After this, however, a great subject opens before us. -"With thee will I establish my covenant" had been -God's word to Noah, before the ark was made, or -the waters had come. vi. 18. Now that the judgment -is past, and the new earth is inherited, that covenant -is fully detailed, as well as pledged again to God's -elect. ix. 8-17. And it is here that the word -"covenant" is first used. The covenants of which -we read in Scripture are all specific, having their -parties and their objects well defined and plainly -declared. There is no mistaking of them. Whether it -be this covenant of the earth with Noah, the covenant -with Abraham and his seed, the covenant of priesthood -with Phinehas, or that of the throne with David, all is -defined--the parties are declared and the objects set -forth. Nor do these, nor any of them, I surely judge, -contemplate the peculiar calling of the Church. Spiritual -calling in heavenly places, and the results of oneness -with Christ, are neither described nor conveyed by -them. But the Scriptures of the New Testament -abundantly declare a <em class="italics">purpose</em>, or a counsel, of God -according to the good pleasure of His will; a mystery -hid in God, before the foundation of the world, in -which the Church is directly interested. See Romans -xvi. 25; 1 Cor. ii. 7; Eph. i. 9; iii. 8-11; Col. i. 26; -1 Tim. ii. 9.</p> -<p class="pnext">The inquiry may arise, Does this purpose or counsel -take the form of a covenant? Let us call it covenant, -or simply a purpose taken of God; still the great and -holy and august transaction itself is richly found in -the New Testament. But has it, we may still ask, the -character of a covenant?</p> -<p class="pnext">I would not be careful to say that it is ever called -so; but I believe we may say, that many things of a -covenant nature are intimated as attaching to it. -Promises are made, consideration or price contemplated, -arrangements formed and fixed, and all this as -between distinct parties. "In the volume of the book -it is written of Me"--"I was set up from everlasting"--and -such words of deepest and holiest import have -their place in settling these thoughts that arise. And -not only were our election, and appointment to our -peculiar glory, as in predestination, matters before the -world (Rom. viii. 28, 29; Eph. i. 4, 5; 1 Peter i. 2), but -we were then formally or virtually given by the Father -to Christ. John vi. 37, 39; x. 29; xvii. 1, 6, 8, 9, 11.</p> -<p class="pnext">And eternal life is declared to have been promised -before the world was--language which intimates Christ -as a party to a blessed transaction then, and one that -has covenant character in it. Titus i. 2.</p> -<p class="pnext">I do not, then, say that this transaction is called a -covenant, as God's dealing with Noah is, and His -dealing with Abraham, with David, and with Phinehas; -but it has these qualities, or this form of a covenant; -the presence of distinct parties, considerations and -purposes all settled, and the whole confirmed and -acted on. And how does the spirit of a saint welcome -the blessed truth of this great eternal transaction, engaging -all the Godhead in the behalf of our souls!--as -we read, among other passages, "elect according to the -foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification -of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the -blood of Jesus Christ."<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id14" id="id13"><sup>7</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">But what strong foundations are these! what wondrous -discoveries of grace! God Himself, Father, -Son, and Holy Ghost, in counsel and in action for -us! In the Gospel, man is in the place of <em class="italics">vision and -audience only</em>. It is <em class="italics">God</em> that is active. The activities -and sacrifices are <em class="italics">God's</em>, and the sinner has but to hear -and live, to look and be saved. But these doings of -God in the gospel of His grace, are the fruit (as we -thus see) of precious and wondrous counsels, taken in -Himself ere worlds were framed. And what, I ask, -can surpass this? Can title or stability for a sinner, -such as may allay all motion and uneasiness of conscience, -be conceived beyond what he gets in this? -Doings for him by God, and sacrifices made for him, -and all this according to counsels ere worlds began! -A sinner made happy (may I use this word?) at God's -expense!</p> -<p class="pnext">It is covenant or counselled service that Jesus has -rendered us. A promise is made to Noah, that the -waters shall not again prevail to destroy the earth, -but this promise rests on the strong foundation of the -blood of a covenant. Noah's altar had already sent -up a sweet savour, a savour of rest, to God, and in the -satisfaction and delight of that the Lord had said, I -will not again curse the ground for man's sake. That -blood was the foundation of the promise. Just as -with Abraham afterwards. The land is promised to -him, but it is by the covenant of Him who passes -through the pieces of the sacrifice. No <em class="italics">promised</em> -blessing that is not a <em class="italics">purchased</em> blessing also--no -throne of grace, as we have said before, that does not -stay itself on the ark of the covenant. Gen. xv. 17.</p> -<p class="pnext">But the covenant comes with its seal, as well as -with its blood. As here. There is <em class="italics">the bow which witnesses -it</em> as well as <em class="italics">the blood which sustains it</em>. Wondrous -thoughts keep themselves before the soul in all this! -The foundation and the witness, the blood and the -token, the consideration and the attestation of the -great act and deed of God come to mind here. The -like figure whereunto even circumcision afterwards; -for as the bow in the cloud, so circumcision in the -flesh, is a sign of covenant engagements.</p> -<p class="pnext">All such signs, however, beautiful and sure as they -may be, are lost when we think of the great original. -For it is the Holy Ghost Himself that is now given -as the great sign, the seal of our adoption, the earnest -of our inheritance, the witness of the accomplished -work of Jesus, and of the acceptance of it in all its -sufficiency and preciousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">What thoughts are these! The promise of God -sustained by the blood of the Son, and witnessed by -the presence of the Spirit! How has God imparted -Himself to us in this marvellous act and deed for -sinners! The soul can conceive nothing richer. In -divine activities we are interested, but such activities -as are founded on everlasting counsels, and which -make manifest to us and for us the name of God, -"Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."</p> -<p class="pnext">How should it take us out of ourselves, to stand in -sight of this! What a mystery it is; and what have -we to do, but with Moses to "turn aside and see this -great sight," turn aside from all else! The grander -"this great sight" presents itself to our eye, the more -commanding will it be. Let us get rich thoughts of -this mystery. "The secret of the Lord is with them -that fear Him, and He will shew them His covenant." -Let us see this great transaction settled ere worlds -began, see it calling forth all the energies of divine -love and power in Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, see it -undertaking the most deep and marvellous purposes of -grace and glory for the elect, keep the eye on it, like -Moses, till, like him, we discover Him who dwells in -the midst of it, and whose name explains it all.</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Oh, all ye rich, ye wise, ye just,</div> -<div class="line">Who the blood's doctrine have discussed</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And judge it mean and slight--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Grant that I may, the rest's your own,</div> -<div class="line">In shame and poverty sit down</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">At this one well-spring of delight!"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">If it be but a man's covenant, there is both the -consideration and the deed, the purchase money and -the muniments, the price and the witness of its payment. -God treats with our souls in language thus -well understood, and tells us thus of the <em class="italics">consideration</em> -and the <em class="italics">deed</em>, or that which <em class="italics">sustains</em> and that which -<em class="italics">witnesses</em> the counsels of His sovereign good pleasure. -It is a deed of gift to the elect, but it is nothing less -than the blood of the Son which sustains it, and the -presence of the Spirit which witnesses it.</p> -<p class="pnext">What a secret! By nature I am at a great distance -from God, an alien and a foreigner. I am also shut -up, so that I cannot come forth. But in this great -transaction God Himself undertook to travel this unmeasured -distance, and assail the house of my strong -enemy; and in His incarnation, sorrows, and victory -all this mighty doing of love is accomplished, and I -am "compassed about with songs of deliverance."</p> -<p class="pnext">Can it be, as I gaze at such a mystery, that I fear -lest the distant one be not brought nigh, or the captive -one be not delivered? "Surely in the floods of great -waters they shall not come nigh unto me." I may -say--"<em class="italics">Thou</em> art my hiding-place; thou shalt preserve -me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with -songs of deliverance."</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Strong Deliverer!</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Be Thou still our strength and shield!"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">This may well be our confidence in the faith of -such truth. But to these general thoughts on the -covenants and their signs, I might add, the token -given to Noah has a beautiful significancy. The bow, -as it were, rode triumphant on the cloud. It rolled -away the stone and sat upon it. Its form and bearing -were those of a conqueror. It said to the cloud, "Hitherto -shalt thou come and no further, and here shall thy -proud waves be stayed." It gave the angel of death -his measure, and said to him, "It is enough, stay now -thine hand."</p> -<p class="pnext">And all this lives in the divine remembrance. The -earth and the covenant that secures it are there. -"The bow shall be in the cloud, and I will look upon -it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant -between God and every living creature of all flesh -that is upon the earth." Accordingly this promise -to the earth is remembered, the bow in the cloud is -looked at, through every stage and variety of the -dispensational actings of the Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was remembered, of course, all the time the Lord -had His seat in Zion, for then the glory made <em class="italics">the -earth</em> its residence. The Lord then dwelt between -the cherubim, in the temple at Jerusalem, in the -land of Israel. But when the throne of the Lord -leaves that city, and the sanctuary loses the glory, -because abominations had grieved and disturbed it, -the throne and the glory are accompanied by the -rainbow to heaven. Ezek. i. 28. Though the earth -then ceased, for a while, to be the dwelling-place -of God, still it was before Him in counsel. He would -be mindful of it, as the object of His faithful care, -according to the promise.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id16" id="id15"><sup>8</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And therefore when heaven is opened to our view, -we see the faithful and remembered bow encompassing -the throne. Rev. iv. And further still. The rainbow -is seen when the Lord is presented as coming down for -the direct, immediate execution of judgment. The -mighty angel, the divine executor of the day of the -Lord, comes down to the earth clothed with a cloud, the -symbol of judgment, and the fearful vessel of wrath. -Gen. ix. 14; Rev. i. 7. But even then the rainbow is -with Him (Rev. x.); as much as to tell us, that to the -end, and at the end, God remembers His promise to the -earth, and will debate with judgment. The cloud is to -descend, it is true--"They shall see the Son of man -coming in the clouds of heaven." The judgment must -sit--the books must be opened--the vials must be -emptied; but it is only to take out of the kingdom them -that offend--to destroy them that destroy the earth. -The cloud, as it executes its commission, must stay itself -at the beginning of the bow. The <em class="italics">day</em> of the Lord, -or the judgment, must give place to the <em class="italics">presence</em> of -the Lord, or the refreshment and restoration. Time -shall be no longer, the mighty angel may cry; the -present course of things may cease again, as once it -did in the days of Noah; but the bow shines, in the -eye of the Lord, as brightly as ever, and His promise -lives in His heart. The earth is still beloved, for -Noah's sake, as Israel is for the fathers' sake--that -true Noah, in whom (but in whom alone) all the promises -of God are yea and amen; and of whom it shall -be said, in all its fulness and truth, "This same shall -comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, -because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed."</p> -<p class="pnext">This earth of ours, given to the children of men, -therefore outlives the judgment. It stands the shock -of the descent of the mighty angel, though clothed -with a cloud, planting his right foot on the sea, and -his left on the earth, and crying aloud, as when a -lion roareth. Rev. x.</p> -<p class="pnext">And what is it reserved for? For more than the -bow had promised it. It is not only preserved--with -its seed time and harvest, its summer and winter, its -day and night, its cold and heat--but it is to be delivered -into "the liberty of the glory of the children -of God." This is more than had been promised.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the token, and such will be its acknowledgment--such -was the pledge, and such will be its -redemption. Beautiful mystery! The covenant, with -its blood and its sign! God's promise, with the -sacrifice of the Son as its foundation, and the presence -of the Spirit as its witness!</p> -<p class="pnext">But here this thought occurs to me: Are we, beloved, -to stand before such ways and revelations of -God in the same calmness in which they are delivered -to us? Is that the thing that becomes us? The -Queen of Sheba did not stand before the glories of -Solomon in the same way that Solomon himself dwelt -among them. Solomon was at home in the midst of -them. They were all his own. It was <em class="italics">his</em> wisdom, -and <em class="italics">his</em> house that he had built. The meat of the table, -and the sitting of the servants, with their apparel, -were all <em class="italics">his</em>. The ascent by which he went into the -house of God was his. But the Queen of Sheba, from -the distant south, was but introduced to it all. Fitting -it was that he should be at ease there; and fitting it -was that she should be all rapture. So with the book -of God and the disciple. All the profound and precious -mysteries which the Spirit is unfolding there are His -own--the thoughts and counsels of the divine mind. -There is no effort to produce effect in the communication -of them; the tale of the wonders of grace and -glory is told artlessly. But is the soul, introduced to -them, to be, in like manner, unmoved? Such an one -may rather gaze with more of rapture than she who -came from the uttermost parts of the earth, for "a -greater than Solomon is here."</p> -<p class="pnext">And it is more of this Sheba-rapture we want. We -too easily afford to talk of God's things as though -there were no more preciousness and excellency in -them than our hearts could measure; but as secret -after secret comes forth from the wisdom of the greater -than Solomon, surely our souls should say, "Happy are -thy men, and happy are these thy servants, which stand -continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Endowed and blessed, enriched and honoured--instructed -too, and ordained as "the power" under God, -and with all this, at ease, in conscious safety, "no evil -or enemy occurrent," Noah is seated in the new world. -A new trial of man, under new circumstances, was -proceeding; and, as with Adam in Eden, nothing is -left undone on God's part. The oxen and fatlings were -killed, and all things were ready. But where is man's -sufficiency? If Adam failed before him, and lost the -garden; if Israel failed after him, and lost their land of -milk and honey; it may be said to Noah, "Lovest thou -me more than these?" In Christ, and in Him only, -are unfailing fidelity and strength. And Noah, like the -rest, fails, and the virgin soil of the new world is -quickly tarnished by the very first foot that trod it.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he -planted a vineyard, and drank of the vine, and was -drunken, and he was uncovered within the tent."</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah himself is put to shame; the very first man, -the Adam of this new system, begins the history of -this second apostasy, like his first father.</p> -<p class="pnext">The "little fire" is thus kindled; but it is for "a -greater matter." Noah is put to shame; but Ham, his -son, glories in the shame. That was a terrible advance -in the progress of evil. "Ham, the father of Canaan, -saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two -brethren without."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a terrible advance in evil; this was not -simply the being "overtaken in a fault," but "rejoicing -in iniquity." The common moral sense rejects -this--"Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on their -shoulders, went backwards, and covered the nakedness -of their father." And the saint himself is soon restored. -Noah awakens from his wine. He that was overtaken -recovers himself, through the Spirit, and the grace of -God gives him a great triumph--a very precious and -glorious triumph indeed, for the restored one judges his -judge, and condemns his accuser--"Cursed be Canaan, -a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren." -This is something more than recovery--it is triumphant -recovery. Even the apostle's fine word, "Who shall -lay anything to the charge of God's elect?" scarcely -measures it; for that is only the silencing of the -accuser, while this is turning back on the pursuer. -"Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, -I shall rise.... Then she that is mine enemy shall be -trodden down as the mire of the streets."</p> -<p class="pnext">Here, however, we may stand for a moment--the -rich and interesting prospects of the Spirit of prophecy -here spread themselves out before us.</p> -<p class="pnext">This curse upon Canaan is part of Noah's prophecy. -Noah, in spirit, looked out from the renewed earth, but -anticipated the return of corruption and violence, -though the grace of God were to have its witness in -the midst of it. In detail, he saw that one branch of -the human family (now about to re-people the earth) -was to be distinguished by the revelation and presence -of God among them; another by their success and -advancement in the world--a people to be enlarged -and made honourable in the earth; another, by the -constant, unchanging token, in their flesh, of degradation -and servitude. His prophecy contemplated, as we may -say, the Asiatic, the European, and the African man; -or, the Hebrew in the East, with whom was to be -the sanctuary of God--the Gentile of the West, who -was, under the hand or providence of God, to make -himself great in borders beyond his own--and the -slave of the South, who might know a change of -masters, but who was to be a slave still.</p> -<p class="pnext">Short is the notice of the world's history, but just -and perfect as far as it goes, and enough to answer -the purpose of the Spirit in Noah, who was taking his -son Ham for his text.</p> -<p class="pnext">The three prophecies, which we get in these earliest -times, that of Enoch, that of Lamech, and this of -Noah, all touching the earth and its history, though -respecting different stages or parts of that history, -together present a very perfect outline of the whole -thing. We must take them in this order--Noah's, -Enoch's, Lamech's.</p> -<p class="pnext">Noah's prophecy has been accomplishing from of old, -and is still getting its seal and witness in all the changes -of the world's solemn and interesting story. Enoch's -(Jude 14), which spoke of judgment, will have its answer, -its full answer, when the present course of things is -closing, and the day of the Lord comes to convince the -ungodly. Lamech's (Genesis v. 29), which spoke of rest, -will be made good afterwards, when, "the day of the -Lord" having fulfilled the judgment, "the presence of -the Lord" will bring its restitution and refreshing.</p> -<p class="pnext">The present and the future of the world's history, -the varied good and evil of the present, and the judgment -and the glory that are to share the future, are -thus sketched before us in these prophecies. It is easy -to discern these things, and to give these early patriarchal -oracles their order and character.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is Noah's, however, that I must look at more -particularly, as what we have more properly to do -with here. It was delivered on the discovery of the -evil of his son Ham, and the onward course of evil is -then detailed to its close and maturity, ere we leave -these chapters.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have already watched the infant springing of it -in Noah himself, and the advanced form of it in Ham. -Its further growth is next to be seen in the builders of -Babel, some hundred years after the flood. And an -awful exhibition it is.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the birth-time of this new world, Noah's altar -was raised, witnessing faith and worship--but now the -city and the tower are reared, witnessing defiance of -God and the affected independency of man. And the -answer of heaven to these things is just as different. -Noah's altar brought down words and tokens of peace -and security--the cry of the city and the tower now -bring down judgment. Corruption here, and vengeance -from on high, mark the scene, instead of worship -here, and blessing from God. Then it was, that -the Lord hung the bright token of His covenant in -the heavens, but now He is sending abroad over the -earth the witnesses of His righteous anger.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this is not all. The tower is over-topped, high -and proud as it was. The builders may be scattered, -but their principles survive. Judgment does not cure. -All the apostate mind that quickened that proud and -rebellious confederacy, gathers itself rapidly for its -perfect work and display in one man. For soon after -the scattering (it may be about thirty years) Nimrod, -a grandson of Ham, plants his standard on the very -spot which had witnessed the judgment of God. -The beginning of his kingdom was Babel. x. 10. -He unfurls his banner in the very face of Him "to -whom vengeance belongs," and cries, "Where is the -God of judgment?" He was as the fool of Ps. xiv.--"The -fool hath said in his heart, There is no God." -He begins to be a mighty one in the earth. "Before -the Lord he hunted." In defiance of God he sought -conquest and power. He added house to house and -field to field, in the desire to be lord alone. Erech -and Accad and Calneh are mother-cities, and mighty -Nineveh with Rehoboth and Calah, and that great city -Resen, are but colonies in the system of this vaunting -apostate. He had no heart for any portion which God -could give him. He undertook to provide for himself, -to be the maker of his own fortune, that his dignity -and honour should proceed from himself. And such -an one is the man of the world to this day. His -intellect or his industry, his skill or his courage, -makes him what he is, and provides him what he -cares for. Such was this distinguished apostate, this -earliest representative and type of that one who, in -closing days, is to do according to his will, and fill -the measure of man's iniquity.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is a serious sight for the watching and observance -of our souls. Are we, beloved, waiting for other and -purer scenes? and are our hearts upon such enjoyments -as God can sanction, and Jesus share with us?</p> -<p class="pnext">These chapters properly close with this--these scenes -of evil and proud rebellion pass from before us, with -a faint and distant view of the call of another heavenly -stranger apart from the world. But all that is the -dawn of another era in the ways of God, and our -present subject only looks at it in the distance.</p> -<p class="pnext">The second part of the book of Genesis, I may say, -ends here. It presents a complete, distinct action, -suitably following what had preceded it, and as suitably -(were it my purpose to show it) introducing what -is to follow it.</p> -<p class="pnext">In this portion, Gen. vi.-xi., the scene is laid in the -earth. The heavenly family have already been before -us, Gen. i.-v., and their course ended in the translation -of Enoch; now the scene is laid in the earth again, as -at the beginning in the garden of Eden.</p> -<p class="pnext">The contents of this little volume, which I have now -closed, might be given in the following order:</p> -<p class="pnext">vi.-viii. These chapters present the sin and judgment -of the earth, with the election, faith, and -deliverance of the saints in the midst of it all, and -out of it all.</p> -<p class="pnext">ix. This chapter shows us the new condition of man -in the new world, endowed and enriched there by the -God of heaven and earth, secured in the covenant -mercy, and made the representative and executor of -divine authority.</p> -<p class="pnext">x. xi. These chapters unfold great portions of the -history of the new world, the springs, workings, progress, -and maturity of evil, leaving or rendering the -earth such a place as that the Lord must again, a -second time, retire from it (at least for the present) -and bring out from it, also a second time, a people -to be heavenly strangers in the midst of it, like the -antediluvian saints.</p> -<p class="pnext">Heaven and earth have thus, in their season, been -rehearsing the mystery, till together, in coming days, -the days of the glory, they shall display it, when -"at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of -things in heaven, and things in earth, and things -under the earth; and every tongue confess that Jesus -Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"The land shall not be sold for ever," says the Lord; -"for the land is mine." Lev. xxv. 23. Man has a term -of years granted him, in which it is left in his power to -disturb the divine order. For forty-nine years in Israel -disturbing traffic might go on, but in the fiftieth year the -Lord asserted His right, and restored all things according -to His own mind; for it was a time of "refreshing" -and of "restitution" as from His own "presence."</p> -<p class="pnext">Bright and happy expectation! "The earth is the -Lord's, and the fulness thereof," is the proclamation -of Psalm xxiv. And then the challenge goes forth, -"Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord?"--that -is, Who shall take the government of this earth and -its fulness? And the answer is made by another challenge -to the city gates, to lift up their heads to the -Lord of hosts, the King of glory; a fervent form of -words whereby to convey the truth, that the Lord, -as in strength and victory, the Lord as Redeemer and -Avenger, should take the government. As again in -Rev. v. a like proclamation is heard, "Who is worthy -to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?" And -the answer from every region is this, "The Lamb that -was slain, the Lion of the tribe of Judah." He who -sat on the throne gave that answer by letting the Book -pass from His hand into the hand of the Lamb. The -living creatures and crowned elders joined in that -answer by singing their song over the prospect of their -reign over the earth. The hosts of angels add to it, by -ascribing all wisdom and strength and honour and -faculty of dominion unto the Lamb--and every creature -in heaven, on earth, under the earth and in the seas, -in their order and measure, join in uttering this same -answer. The title of the Lamb to take dominion in -the earth is thus owned and verified in the very place -where alone all lordship or office could be rightly -attested--the presence of the throne in heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">And so it is. The nobleman has now gone into the -distant country to get for himself a kingdom. Jesus, -who refused all power from the god of this world -(Matt. iv.), or from the desire of the multitude (John vi.), -takes it from God, as He owns in Psalm lxii. that to -Him it belongs. And in due season He will return, -and those who have owned Him in the day of His -rejection shall shine with Him in the day of His -glory; those who have served Him now shall take -another city with Him then.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the prospect of such a day, Paul says to Timothy, -"Keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, -until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: which -in His time He shall show, who is the blessed and only -potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords." -And in the like prospect the same dear apostle could -say of himself, "I have fought a good fight, I have -finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth -there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which -the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that -day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that -love His appearing."</p> -<p class="pnext">May the Lord give our poor hearts--for they need -it much--more of the like spirit of faith and power -of hope! Amen.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="abraham">ABRAHAM</span>.</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">GENESIS XII.-XXV.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In earlier parts of the book of Genesis, I have already -traced two distinct histories--that of the antediluvian -saints, or the times from Adam to Enoch; and that -of Noah and of those who followed him, down to the -scattering of the nations.</p> -<p class="pnext">The first of these histories occupies chapters i.-v., -the second, vi.-xi.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the chapter which follows--xii.--the story of -Abraham begins, and is continued down to chap. xxv. -This forms the third portion or section of the book -of Genesis, and presents to us a new era in the ways -of God. And in all this, I am sure, there is beautiful -moral order, and an unfolding of the dispensational -wisdom of God. For in these things the heavens and -the earth are made, by turns, to take up the wondrous -tale of that wisdom, and to rehearse divine mysteries--such -mysteries as, "in the fulness of time," will -be accomplished, when, as we know, He shall gather -together in one all things in Christ, both which are -in heaven and which are on earth. Eph. i. 10.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Adam in innocency was a man of the earth. He -had to enjoy it, knowing it all as his, but knowing -nothing as his beside. But when he was sent out of -Eden, he became a stranger in the earth. He received -no commission to improve or furnish it. He had simply -to till the ground for a living, and the translation -of Enoch tells us, that the destiny and inheritance -of that earliest household of God was <em class="italics">heavenly</em>.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id18" id="id17"><sup>9</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">In Noah, however, in process of time, the purpose of -God is different. Noah is a man of the earth again. -He leaves the ark in a character very different from -that in which Adam had left the garden. Noah left -the ark under commission to keep the world in order, -as judge and ruler. It was not strangership on it, but -citizenship in it, and government of it, that was now -again the divine thought. But a second apostasy was -witnessed in the midst of Noah's descendants. In -process of time, they affected independency in the -earth, casting off the fear of God, and seeking to do -for themselves without Him, as Adam had (seeking -to be as God) in the garden of old.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham, upon all this, finds grace in the eyes of -the Lord. He is called out from this apostate scene; -and, as we might expect, from this alternate telling of -heavenly and earthly mysteries, after Noah the man of -the earth, Abraham is called to be a heavenly man.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord said to him, "Get thee out of thy country, -and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house." -This was the character of the call of Abraham. It -was not a call from moral pollution, or from idolatry, -or the like; it was a call from the associations of -nature and of the earth. There were idols to be -left, I doubt not. See Joshua xxiv. 2, 3. But it was -not the leaving of them that constituted the nature -of the call. Yet Abraham, touching the earth, was -to be like Adam outside the garden. He leaves Ur -of the Chaldees, as Adam left Eden. He received -no commission to cultivate the land of Canaan for -the Lord, or to conquer and govern the people there. -The arrangements of the world were left just as they -were. Abraham had nothing to say to the nations -through which he passed on his way to Canaan; and -when he reached that land, he found the Canaanite -there, and there he left him as he found him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Government had been set up in Noah, and nations -had been organized; as natural relationships had been -instituted at the beginning, or in Adam. But Abraham -is called from all this. God Himself is received -by faith; and the things of nature which Adam might -have conveyed to him, or the things of government -which Noah might have secured to him, are left -behind.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id20" id="id19"><sup>10</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">In our patriarch, then, we see the election and the -call of God. He was of the corrupt, departed family -of man, without a single claim on God. But -sovereign grace (in the virtue of which all the redeemed, -according to eternal counsel, stand) had made -him its object; and under such grace he is, in due -time, manifested as a chosen one, and is called of -God to be a heavenly stranger in the world. Scripture -speaks of him as the father of all them that -believe. Rom. iv. We may, therefore, expect to find -the life of faith exhibited in him; and so we do find -it, as this little book designs to show.</p> -<p class="pnext">But in this "life of faith" we do not merely look -for the principle of dependence on God, or of confidence -in Him, though that may be the thought immediately -suggested by such words. It signifies much -more. It is a life of large and various energies; for -according to God, or Scripture, faith is that principle -in the soul which not only trusts Him and believes -Him; it is also that which apprehends His way, acts -in concert with His principles and purposes, receives -His promises, enjoys His favour, does His bidding, -looks for His kingdom, in His strength gains victories, -and by His light walks in light; and thus it is ever, -though variously, exhibiting a life according to Him, -or formed by communion with Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is strongly marked for our observation.</p> -<p class="pnext">Heb. xi. shows us all this--the life of faith in its -vast diversity of exercise and action. Accordingly, we -shall find, in the life of Abraham, occasions where confidence -in God was the virtue exercised; occasions, -too, where strength was put forth and conflict endured; -and again, where surrender of rights and submission -to wrongs were the virtues. And the life of faith is -beautiful in its variety; for this variety is but the -changeful glowing of the same mind, the mind of -Christ, in the saint.</p> -<p class="pnext">But again. We are not to understand that we get -<em class="italics">nothing else</em> than this light and power of faith in the -believer or saint. Perfectness in this variety of the life -of faith is not to be found save in Him who is set -before us as "the Author and Finisher of faith," and -whose way, from beginning to end, and in every -incident of it, was the great exemplar of this life in -full unsullied brightness. Still, however, the life of -Abraham, or of David, or of Joseph, or of Paul, is to -be called the life of faith; for it was the life of those -in whom that principle was, though betraying again -and again, and that too in different ways, the pravity of -nature, the workings of unbelief, and the counsels of a -heart prone to converse with flesh and blood, and to -take the way of a revolted world.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">This life of faith our Abraham entered upon with -beautiful simplicity and earnestness. "He went forth -to go into the land of Canaan, and into the land of -Canaan he came." He went out, not knowing whither -he went. He took God for his security and his portion; -and, as another has said, "it is in this that the Spirit -of God rests, as characteristic of his approved faith; -for, by separation from the world, on the ground of -implicit confidence in God, he lost everything, and -got nothing but <em class="italics">the word of God</em>."</p> -<p class="pnext">We do not like such conditions. The heart resents -them; but the renewed mind approves them, and -justifies God in them. The <em class="italics">sufferings</em> of Christ are -first, and then the <em class="italics">glories</em>. 1 Peter i. 11. Job was -nearer his good thing in God, when he lay in ashes -amid the potsherds, than when he was happy in his -nest. Israel did not descend Mount Lebanon, and -enter Canaan after a fruitful journey, through a land of -cities and villages, and corn and wine, and rivers and -vineyards; but they paced it slowly, through one desert -after another. And so Abraham was called out from -all, to go he knew not whither; but this he knew, that it -was God who had called him. And this was faith's -beginning. "He went forth to go into the land of -Canaan, and into the land of Canaan he came."</p> -<p class="pnext">He came, however, rather to sojourn than to dwell -there. He moves from place to place, and in every -place it is but a tent he pitches. He had been told by -the God of glory, that the land should be <em class="italics">shown</em> him. -He should <em class="italics">have</em> it in <em class="italics">his seed</em> for ever, but in <em class="italics">his own -person</em> he was but to <em class="italics">see</em> it. And, accordingly, we find -him <em class="italics">surveying it carefully</em>, but not <em class="italics">occupying any of it</em>. -For this was the right answer of such a promise. He -<em class="italics">looked</em> on the land, because the promise was that it -should be <em class="italics">shown</em> him. He went first to Sichem and -to the plain of Moreh; from thence, southward, to the -neighbourhood of Bethel and Ai. But he was a man -of the tent, and of the tent only, wherever he went. -The Canaanite was then in the land, and he was the -occupier of the soil; and Abraham did not dispute -with him for a foot's breadth of it. He surveyed it, -and had such possession of it as faith and hope imparted; -but he sought no personal, present inheritance -there. The promise lived in his heart, and the promise -was his measure as well as his joy. Chapter xii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Quickly, however, another man in our Abraham is -before us; for, like all of us, beloved, he was a man of -<em class="italics">nature</em>, as he was a man of God; and there is none -perfect in the life of faith, as we said before, but the -Master Himself. Famine touches the land into which -the call of God had brought him. A strange surprise -this may well be thought to have been. But faith -would have been equal to it. Faith in Paul was equal -to a like surprise. Called into Macedonia by the voice -of God, a prison awaited him. But Paul stands the -shock, though Abraham falls before it. Paul and his -companion sing hymns in the prison in Macedonia; but -Abraham practises a lie, seeking help from the famine -of Canaan in another land, of which his call under -the God of glory had made no mention whatever.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such things have been, and still are, found among -the saints. There are "Little Faith" and "Great -Heart" among the elect, as well as flesh and spirit--nature -and the new mind in each of them. But this -we may know: that if nature <em class="italics">rule</em> us, nature will -<em class="italics">expose</em> us. Even the man of the earth, Pharaoh of -Egypt, puts Abraham to shame; and his journey, -instead of being onward in the witness of his tent -and in the joy of his altar, was that of a wearied -foot, because it was that of a rebuking heart. He -has to "do his first works," to retrace his steps, and -regain his standing--sorrowful works at all times. -He has to leave "by-path meadow" for the King's -highway again, betaking himself back from Egypt to -the place between Ai and Bethel, where he had raised -his altar at the first.</p> -<p class="pnext">What say we to this, beloved? The flocks got in -Egypt accompany him home. The glitter of the gold -and the silver--the offerings of a land that lay beyond -where the God of glory had called him--adorn and set -off his return. All this is so indeed. But what say -we to all this? again I ask. Is the bleating and the -lowing of such flocks and herds in our ears like the -soft music of an approving conscience? or this glittering -wealth like the brightness of the divine presence -which was now lost to Abraham? I am bold to answer -for Abraham, though I may not for myself, that his spirit -knew the difference. The wearied heart was but feebly -relieved by all that he brought with him from the land -of Egypt, or out of the house of Pharaoh. Sure I am -of this. It could not but be so with such a man. -"He that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul," -must have been his experience; and his action in the -scene which immediately succeeds, as I judge, tells us -something of this.</p> -<p class="pnext">Lot, his younger brother, or his brother's son, who -had come with him out of Ur into Canaan, now becomes -the occasion of trial to Abraham, as the famine -had lately been. But faith in Abraham triumphs, I -may say, to admiration. The very style in which he -gives this trial its answer seems to say, that he will -return fourfold to the life of faith for that which -nature had so lately, as it were, taken away from it. -The herdmen of the two brothers, the elder and the -younger, cannot feed their flocks together. They -must separate. This was the occasion of trial which -had now arisen. But "let Lot choose," is Abraham's -language. In a fine sense, he will act on the divine -oracle, "the elder shall serve the younger." Lot may -choose, and leave Abraham what portion he please. -The well-watered plains may be his; Abraham can -trust the Lord of the country, though he lose them. -He may have to <em class="italics">dig</em> wells instead of <em class="italics">finding</em> them; -but it is better to dig for them in the strength of -God, than to find them in the way of covetousness; -better, as it were, to wait for them in Canaan, than -to go after them again down to Egypt. xiii.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is beautiful recovery. And in this way will -faith, at times, exercise judgment on unbelief, and clear -itself again. And now the Lord visits him, as He had -not, as He could not, have done in Egypt. The God -of glory, who had called Abraham into Canaan, could -not go with him into Egypt: but to the man who was -surrendering the best of the land to his younger brother, -in the joy of restored confidence in God, He will -delight to show Himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Where, then, are we, beloved? I will ask. Where -is our spirit? On which road with Abraham are we, as -at this moment, travelling? Are we knowing Egypt -in the bitterness of self-reproach, or a regained Canaan -in the joy of God's countenance? Is it a walk with -God we are taking every day? The life of faith knows -the difference between the checks of the worldly mind -and the enlargements of the believing mind. Abraham -knew these things. He knew, in spirit, what Egypt -was--the place of gold and of silver, and of rebuke -and death; he knew what it was to regain Ai without -an altar on the road; and he knew what it was to rest -again, with altar and tent, in the plains of Mamre.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Thus the chequered life of faith begins. But there is -vastly more in it than this. And in this variety of -action in the life of faith, we notice its <em class="italics">intelligence</em>, the -exercise of the mind of Christ, or of the spiritual sense, -which discerns things that differ, which has capacity to -know times and seasons according to God. This fine -endowment of the saint we find in Abraham, in the -next passage of his history.</p> -<p class="pnext">The battle of the kings is recorded in chap. xiv. -While that was a mere contest between such, Abraham -has nothing to say to it. Let the potsherds strive with -the potsherds. But as soon as he hears that his kinsman -Lot is involved in that struggle, he stirs himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Everything, as we read, is beautiful in its season. -There is a time to build, and a time to pull down. -There was a time for Abraham to be still, and a time for -Abraham to be active; a time to be silent, and a time to -break silence. And he understood the time. Like the -men of Issachar afterwards, he knew the time, and what -Israel ought to do. God's principles were Abraham's -rules. Lot was taken prisoner, and the kinsman's part -was now Abraham's duty. The battle-field in the vale -of Siddim shall be his now, as the tent had been -his till now in the plains of Mamre. The mind of -God had another lesson for him than that which he -learnt while the potsherds of the earth were alone in -the conflict; and a time to break silence calls him out -at the head of his trained servants.</p> -<p class="pnext">Excellent and beautiful indeed in a saint is this -intelligence of the mind of Christ, and beautiful is -everything in its season. Out of season the very same -action is defiled and disfigured. For the <em class="italics">material</em> -of an action is not enough to determine the <em class="italics">character</em> -of an action. It must be <em class="italics">seasonable</em> likewise. Elijah, -from his elevation, may call down fire from heaven on -the captains and their fifties; and so, the two witnesses, -in the day of Rev. xi. But it will not do for -the companions of the lowly, rejected Jesus to act thus -on the Samaritan villagers. Luke ix. It is only in -its season that anything is really right. How was the -garden of Gethsemane (made sacred as it was by the -sorrows of the Lord Jesus) disfigured by the blood -which Peter's sword drew there! What a stain on -that soil, though the power of Christ was present to -remove it! But another sword was doing right service -when it hewed Agag in pieces. For when vengeance is -demanded, when the trumpet of the sanctuary sounds -an alarm for war, vengeance or war will be as perfect -as grace and suffering. It is for God to determine the -dispensational way, and to make known the dispensational -truth. That being done, all life of faith is just -that manner or order or character of life that is -according to it. "The duties and services of faith flow -from truths entrusted. If the truths be neglected, the -duties or services cannot be fulfilled." And the good -pleasure of God, or His revealed and dispensed -wisdom, varies in changing and advancing ages. -Noah, in a few generations before Abraham, would -have avenged the blood of one made in the likeness or -image of God, in the same spirit of faith, as Abraham -allowed one army of confederate kings to slay another. -It is neither the "sword" nor the "garment," as the -Lord speaks in Luke xxii., that must needs be the due -instrument of service, or symbol of faith; but either -of them, according as it severally expresses the dispensational -good pleasure of God at the time.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is much to be observed; for the distinguishing -of things that differ, and the rightly dividing of the -word of God or of truth, is expected, among other -virtues, in the life of faith. Abraham was endowed -with this fine faculty. He walked in the light of that -day, as God was in the light. He knew the voice of -the silver trumpet; when, as it were, to gather to the -tabernacle, and when to go forth to the battle.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But there is more than this in our patriarch at this -time. Two victories distinguish him--one over the -armies of the kings, and one over the offers of the -king of Sodom.</p> -<p class="pnext">The first of these Abraham gained, because he struck -the blow exactly in God's time. He went out to the -battle neither sooner nor later than God would have -had him. He waited, as it were, till "he heard the -going in the mulberry trees." Victory was therefore -sure; for the battle was the Lord's, not his. His -arm was braced by the Lord; and this victory of -Abraham's was that of an earlier sling and stone, or -of the jaw-bone of an ass, or of a Jonathan and his -armour-bearer against a Philistine host; for Abraham's -was but a <em class="italics">band of trained servants against the armies -of four confederated kings</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">The second, still brighter than the first, was achieved -in virtue of fellowship with the very springs of divine -strength. The <em class="italics">spirit</em> of the patriarch was in victory -here, as his <em class="italics">arm</em> had been before. He had so drunk -in the communication of the King of Salem--had so -fed on the bread and wine of that royal, priestly -stranger--that the king of Sodom spread out his -feast in vain. The soul of Abraham <em class="italics">had been in -heaven</em>, and he could not return to the world.</p> -<p class="pnext">That was his blessed experience in the valley of -Shaveh. Happy soul indeed! Oh for something more -than to trace the image of it in the book! Zaccheus, -in his day, was a son of Abraham in this generation, -or according to this life and power. Zaccheus so drank -in the joy and strength that are to be known in the -presence of Christ, that the world became a dead thing -to him. He had sat at table with the true Melchizedek, -and had eaten of His bread and drunk of His -wine. Jesus had spread a feast for His host at Jericho -as He had in other days for Abraham in the valley of -Shaveh; and, strengthened and refreshed, this son of -Abraham, like his father of old, was able to surrender -the world. Behold, Lord, says he, the half of my -goods I give to the poor, and if I have wronged any -man of anything by false accusation, I restore him -fourfold. He could give Abraham's answer to the -king of Sodom, for he had had Abraham's refreshment -from the King of Salem.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely, beloved, this is the way of victory in all the -saints. The springs of strength and joy are found in -Jesus. May you and I be able to look at Him and say, -"All my fresh springs are in thee." "This is the victory -that overcometh the world, even our faith." And -what are all conquests in God's account but such?--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"'Tis within</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The fervent spirit labours. There he gains</div> -<div class="line">Fresh conquests o'er himself, compared with which</div> -<div class="line">The laurels that a Cæsar wears are weeds."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Such, then, are the victories of faith.</p> -<p class="pnext">But we have more still; and in the next scene, in -chapter xv. we see faith's <em class="italics">boldness</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">And let me ask, for our common comfort, what more -precious with God Himself than this? The intelligence -of faith is bright, and its victories glorious; but -in the accounting of the God of all grace, its boldness -surpasses all.</p> -<p class="pnext">After Abraham's victory over the world, or over the -offers of the king of Sodom, the Lord comes to him -with some great pledges and promises. After these -things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a -vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and -thy exceeding great reward. xv. 1. After the heat -of the preceding day, it was meet, in the ways of grace, -that Abraham should be owned again, and encouraged -again. But faith is bold, very bold, apparently aiming -higher than the purposes and undertakings of grace. -And this is a wonderful moment to contemplate. -Abraham seems to throw back the words of the Lord. -"I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward," -says the Lord. "What wilt thou give me?" Abraham -replies--"What wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, -and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of -Damascus?"</p> -<p class="pnext">This was bold; but, blessed to say it, not too bold -for the ear of the Lord who finds His richest joy -in the language of faith like this.</p> -<p class="pnext">Good it is to have a <em class="italics">portion</em>; but Abraham sought an -<em class="italics">object</em>, an object for the heart; something far more -important to us. Adam found it so. Eden was not to -him what Eve was. The garden with all its tributes -did not do for him what the helpmeet did. Eve opened -his mouth; she alone did that, because she alone -had filled his heart. Christ finds it so. The Church is -more to Him than all the glory of the kingdom--as -the pearl and the treasure were more to the men who -found them, than all their possessions, for they sold all -to get them. The strayed sheep, the lost piece of -silver, the prodigal son, are more to heaven--to the -Father, to the Shepherd, to the Spirit, and to angels--as -occasions of joy, than all else; just because the heart -has got its object--love has found its answer. <em class="italics">This</em> is -the mind of Christ. Affection puts the heart on a -journey; and it cannot rest, in the midst of all beside, -without its object; and it says even to the Lord and -His pledges, "What wilt thou give me, seeing I go -childless?"</p> -<p class="pnext">But bold faith this was indeed, appearing thus to -throw back the words of God. But it was precious -to Him. Yea, it was precious to Him on the highest -kind of title; for faith, acting thus and craving after -this manner, spoke the way and the taste of the divine -mind itself. For God Himself looks for children, as -Abraham did. It is not the spirit of bondage that -is to fill His house, but that of adoption; it is not -servants but children He will have round Him. He -has "predestinated us unto the adoption of children, -by Jesus Christ, <em class="italics">to Himself</em>." He has found in His -children an object for <em class="italics">Himself</em>; and Abraham was, -therefore, but telling out the <em class="italics">common</em> secret of his own -heart, and of the bosom of God. And at once his -desire is answered; and the sight of the starry heavens -is made to pledge to the patriarch something better -than all portions and all conditions; for the Lord says -to him, "So shall thy <em class="italics">seed</em> be."</p> -<p class="pnext">How truly may we say, never does faith aim more -justly than when it aims high, and draws with a bold -hand. Never is the mark it sets before it more God's -own purpose. "Ask thee a sign of the Lord thy God," -says the prophet to the king, "ask it either in the -depth, or in the height above;" range through the -divine resources, and use them. What king Ahaz -would not do, wearying the Lord by his reserve, and -unbelief, and slowness of heart, Abraham does and -continues to do. His soul continues in the same -power of faith to the end of this action. He holds -on in the same track. "I'll give thee this land to -inherit it," says the Lord to him shortly afterwards. -"Whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?" is -his reply to the Lord. This is of the same fine -character; and being so--bespeaking the boldness of -faith--it is still infinitely acceptable with the Lord. -Abraham seeks something beyond a promise. Not -that he doubted the promise. He was sure of it. It -could never fail. Heaven and earth would pass away, -ere it could pass away. But "oath and blood" to seal -it were desired by Abraham. He loved <em class="italics">covenant</em> title, -and his faith sought it; but sought no more than grace -and purpose and sovereign good-pleasure had already -designed to give him.</p> -<p class="pnext">And there lies the richest, fullest consolation. <em class="italics">Faith -is never too bold to please the Lord.</em> In the days of His -flesh, He often rebuked the reserves and suspicions -of little faith, but never the strength and decision of -a faith that aimed as at everything, and would not -go without a blessing. So, the very style in which, -in this fine chapter (xv.), He answers the faith of His -servant, tells us of the delight with which He had -entertained His servant's boldness. The very <em class="italics">style</em> -of the answer speaks this in our ears; as afterwards -in the case of the palsied man in Luke v.; for there -the words, "Man, thy sins be forgiven thee," tell how -the heart of the same Lord, the God of Abraham, -had been refreshed by the faith which broke up the -roof of the house without apology, in order to reach -Him. And it is the same here. When a fine, bold, -unquestioning faith sought for a child, the Lord God -took Abraham forth that very night, and, showing him -the starry heavens, said to him, "So shall thy seed -be." When like faith would have the land secured -by something more than a word of promise, the same -Lord pledges the covenant by the passage of a burning -lamp between the pieces of the sacrifice.</p> -<p class="pnext">This <em class="italics">style</em>, as I said, is full of meaning. It eloquently -(may I say?) bespeaks the divine mind. The -Lord does not content Himself by merely promising -a child, as by word of mouth, or by merely giving -some other assurances to Abraham that the land shall -be the inheritance of his seed; but, in each case, He -enters on certain actions, and conducts them with -such august and striking solemnities, as lets us know -instinctively, the delight with which He had listened -to these demands of faith.</p> -<p class="pnext">Would that we knew our God as He is to be -known, for His praise and our comfort! Love delights -to be used. Love is wearied with ceremoniousness. -It is, in its way, a trespasser on love's very nature, and -on its essential mode of acting. Family affection, -for instance, puts ceremony aside all the day long. -Intimacy is there, and not form. Form would be too -cumbrous for it, as Saul's armour was for David. It -has not proved it, and cannot therefore wear it. Love -is doing the business of the house in one and another, -and the common confidence of all allows it to be done -in love's way. So will the Lord have it with Himself. -The intimacy of faith is according to His grace, and -ceremony is but a weariness to Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Grace, as we sing at times, is "a sea without a -shore," and we are encouraged to launch forth with -full-spread sails. The pot of oil would have been -without a bottom, had the woman's faith <em class="italics">still</em> drawn -from it; and the king of Israel's victories would have -been in quick succession, till not a Syrian had been left -to tell the tale, had his faith trod the field of battle as -one who knew it only as a field of conquest. 2 Kings iv. -and xiii. But we are straitened. The boldness of faith -is too fine an element for the niggard heart of man -that cannot trust the Lord: though, blessed to tell it, -it is that which <em class="italics">answers</em>, as well as <em class="italics">uses</em>, the boundless -grace of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">The believing mind is the happy mind; and it is the -obedient mind also, the God-glorifying mind. It is the -thankful and the worshipping mind; the mind too that -keeps the saint the most in readiness for service, and in -separation from pollutions. We may be watchful, and -it is right; we may be self-judging, and it is right; we -may be careful to observe the rule of righteousness in -all that we do, and it is right: but withal, to hold the -heart up in the light of the favour of God, by the -exercise of a simple, child-like, believing mind, this is -what glorifies Him, this is what answers His grace, this -is what above all proves itself grateful to Him with -whom we have to do. "We have access by faith into -this grace wherein we stand." It is not attainment, it -is not watchfulness, it is not services or duties, which -entitle us to take that journey, that gives the soul -entrance into that wealthy place of the divine favour--<em class="italics">by -faith</em> we have access into this grace wherein we -stand.</p> -<p class="pnext">But we go onward still in this history, and find it rich -in other instructions and illustrations of the life of -faith.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sarah now comes forth for the first time in independent -action. Chapters xvi. xvii.</p> -<p class="pnext">The famine had already, as we saw, tempted Abraham -to seek the <em class="italics">land</em> of Egypt, and he got the resources of -that land, with shame and sorrow, and a wearisome -journey back again to Canaan. Sarah now tempts him -to seek the <em class="italics">bondmaid</em> of Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">We know what this Egyptian bondmaid is, from the -divine teaching of the epistle to the Galatians. She is -the covenant from mount Sinai, the law, the religion of -ordinances; and Sarah, in her suggestions to Abraham, -that he should take this Egyptian, represents <em class="italics">nature</em>, -which always finds its relief and its resources in flesh -and blood, finds its <em class="italics">religion</em> there also, as well as everything -else.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Spirit had not as yet dealt with Sarah's soul. -At least, we have had no manifestation of this. She was -an elect one surely; but our election goes long before -we become the subject of divine workmanship; and, as -yet, spiritual life, the life of faith, the operation of the -truth on Sarah through the Holy Ghost, had not been -witnessed. She had not as yet been spoken of by the -Lord. She had not been the companion of her husband -in the exercise of his spirit before God, nor his fellow-disciple -in God's school. She was not called out with -Abraham to number the stars, or to watch the sacrifice. -She was still, I may say, in the place of <em class="italics">nature</em>; and -accordingly she invites her husband to give her seed by -her Egyptian handmaid.</p> -<p class="pnext">That is her place in this action; and Abraham becomes -the saint <em class="italics">betrayed by nature</em>, led in nature's path, -surprised by a temptation from that quarter now, as he -had been before by the pressure of famine.</p> -<p class="pnext">But all this is unbelief and departure from God. It -is the way of man, the way of nature; not of faith or -of the Spirit. We naturally resort to the law, the -bondwoman, the religion of ordinances, when the <em class="italics">soul</em> -feels its need; as we naturally go down to Egypt, or -seek the world, when our <em class="italics">circumstances</em> are needy. -It is unbelief and departure from God, as is seen even -in Abraham; but to leave God and the restorings of -His grace, when the soul has need, is a more grievous -offence and wrong against Him, than to seek help as -from Egypt, when our circumstances have need. My -poverty may tempt me to use shifts and contrivances, -which is bad enough; but if my conscience want healing, -if breaches within need repairing, that I may walk -again in the enjoyed light of His countenance, and I -go to mere religion, or to ordinances, or to anything -but the provisions of His own sanctuary, this is still -worse.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Hagars and the Pharaohs, the bondmaids and -the wealth of Egypt, are poor resorts for the Abrahams -of God. But so it has been, and so it is, through -the working of nature. But Abraham (we will now -see for our comfort) is under God's eye, though led by -Sarah's suggestions. God has His place in him as well -as nature; and He will assert it for his restoring. He -rises on his soul in a fresh revelation of Himself, -demanding of His saint the fresh obedience of faith. -"I am the almighty God; walk before me, and be thou -perfect." For Abraham's soul had lost this truth, the -almightiness or the all-sufficiency of God. He had -gone in to Hagar; he had taken up confidence in the -flesh; he had left the ground he had stood upon in -chap. xv.; but the Lord will not and cannot allow this; -and therefore rises, in a renewed revelation of Himself, -on the spirit of His saint; and it is a rising "with -healing in its wings;" for Abraham falls on his face, -convicted and abashed, and the soul is led again in -paths of righteousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely there are to this hour such moments in the -history of "them that believe," as well as of their "father -Abraham." Abraham had not fallen on his face, when -the Lord appeared to him and spoke to him in chap. xv. -There he stood, conscious that he was in the light with -the Lord. But darkness had now come over his soul, -and he is not ready for the Lord. He is on his face, -silent and amazed. He is not standing, urging the -suits of faith, as there; but on his face, silent and -confounded. The change in his experience is great; -but there is no change in the Lord; for it is the same -love, whether He rebuke or comfort. If we walk in -the light, we have fellowship with Him; if we confess -our sins, we have forgiveness with Him; if we be able -to stand before Him, He will feed and strengthen us; -if we must needs fall convicted in His presence, He -will raise us up again.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is a fine, earnest path of the spirit of a saint. -There is a deep reality here. Departure from God -proves itself to be bitterness; but God proves Himself -to the soul to be restoration and peace; and under -His gracious hand faith is afresh emboldened, and -Abraham plies his suit, as one that was again in the -vigour of chap. xv., and seeks of God that Ishmael -might live before Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">How one longs to have one's own soul formed by -these blessed revelations of grace, and the inwrought -work of faith which answers them. The scene -changes; but God and the soul are together still. -There is reality--reality in the sadness and in the joy, -in the light of the divine countenance and in the -hiding of our own face as in the dust.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this may be said of the life of faith, as seen in -chapters xvi. xvii. But on entering upon the next -scene of action, in chapters xviii. xix., I would observe, -that in the life of Abraham we get something beside -these exercises and illustrations of faith. <em class="italics">We get exhibitions -of certain divine mysteries also.</em></p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All the facts in this history are simple truths. They -happened just as recorded. But there is this twofold -design in them: either to give samples of the life of -faith in a saint, or to give illustrations of some great -ways and purposes of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">And such illustrations of the divine counsels and -mysteries is the common way of divine wisdom -throughout Scripture. What was the tabernacle or the -temple but a place for the constant rehearsal of mysteries, -such as atonement and intercession, and the -varied order of God in the worship and services of -His house, or in the ministry of grace? For such -were the sacrifices and the services there, the feasts, -and the holy days, and the jubilees. What, in like -manner, were the exodus, and the journey through the -wilderness, and the entrance into Canaan, the wars -there, and then the throne of the peaceful one? Were -not all these, whether institutes of the sanctuary, or -facts in the history, exhibitions of the hidden, eternal -counsels of the divine bosom?</p> -<p class="pnext">Now chapters xviii. xix. of this history suggest this -recollection. These chapters are to be read together, -and afford us a large and vivid exhibition of certain -great truths, which concern us at this moment, in as -full a sense as ever the facts themselves, which convey -them to us as in a parable, concerned Abraham and -his generation.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sodom, in that day, was the <em class="italics">world</em>. It had been -warned, but had refused instruction. It had proved -incurably departed from God, and beyond correction. -Sodom had been visited and chastened in the day of -the victory of the confederated kings--as we saw in -chapter xiv.; but it was Sodom still, and was, at this -time, in advanced iniquity, in a state of ripened -apostasy, her last state worse than her first.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sodom was the <em class="italics">world</em> in this day. The Lord Jesus, -in His teaching, gives it morally that place, just as -another generation had been the world in Noah's day. -See Matt. xxiv.; Luke xvii. They are like figures, -presenting to our thoughts "this present evil world," -which is ripening itself for the judgment of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">At such a crisis, however, in this day of the judgment -of Sodom, or the overthrow of the cities of -the plain, as in every other like day, there are two -incidental matters to be deeply pondered by our souls; -there is <em class="italics">deliverance out of the judgment</em>, and there is -<em class="italics">separation before it come</em>. There is Lot, and there is -Abraham. Lot is delivered, when the hour of the -crisis comes; Abraham is separated before it comes.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is much to be weighed in our thoughts. -<em class="italics">Judgment</em>, <em class="italics">deliverance</em>, <em class="italics">separation</em>--these are the elements -of the action here, and these are full of meaning, -and of application to our own history as the Church of -God, and to the world around us.</p> -<p class="pnext">Before this action opens, Abraham had been in a -heavenly place. He was a stranger on the earth, -having his tent only, and wandering from place to -place without so much as to set his foot on; and -now, when the judgment comes, he is apart from it -altogether, like Enoch, the heavenly Enoch, in another -and earlier day of judgment. Each of these, in the -day of visitation, was outside, beyond, or above the -scene of the ruin; not merely delivered out of it when -it came, but separated from it before it came.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham had already stood with the Lord Himself -on an eminence which overlooked Sodom, as he and -the Lord had walked together from the plain of -Mamre; and now, when the judgment spends itself -on that apostate, polluted city, Abraham is again, -in that high place, beholding the desolation afar off. -He was (in the spirit of the place where he stood) -in company with Him who was executing the judgment. -But Lot is only rescued. Lot is a delivered -man, Abraham is a separated one. As Abraham is -the Enoch, Lot is the Noah of this later day, and is -drawn forth from the devoted city.</p> -<p class="pnext">What mysteries are these! What solemn realities, -in the counsels of God, are here rehearsed for our -learning! Do we know what we are looking at in all -this? Do we not see great purposes of God, as in a -glass, in this varied and eventful action? Have we -to ask, Where is this mystic ground, on which we are -here standing? Surely, beloved, we ought to know -it. In this action, the world, as Sodom, is typically -meeting its doom; the righteous remnant, as in Lot, -are delivered in that hour of wrath; and the Church, -as in Abraham, already separated and borne above, -looks afar off on the scene of the mighty desolation. -Surely these mysteries are before us in this action at -Sodom. "Known unto God are all His works from -the beginning of the world." The world, the Church, -and the kingdom, are here in mysteries or types; the -thing that is to be judged; the thing that is to be -separated to heavenly glory; the thing that is to be -delivered, and thus reserved for the earth again after -the purification. Enoch, Noah, and the deluged creation -are again here in Abraham, and Lot, and the -doomed cities of the plain.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are mysteries of which the Book of God is -full. And thus is it again and afresh witnessed to -us, what we are and where we are, though travelling -on, to all appearance, in the common track of everyday -human life, with a generation, in the spirit of -their mind, still, as ever, saying, "Where is the promise -of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, -all things continue as they were from the beginning -of the creation."</p> -<p class="pnext">Many incidental things might occur to the mind in -this, as in other sections of this wonderful history; -such as the visit of the Son of God to Abraham; -Abraham's intercession for Sodom; the angels' reserve -towards Lot; and the contrasted characters of the two -saints--the saint of the tent, and the saint in Sodom. -But my purpose, in this little book, does not take in -such details. But I would ask, in closing this action -in chapters xviii. xix. Are we, beloved, apprehensive of -the moment in which we are living? Is "man's day" -brightening up to its meridian before us, ascending to -its noontide splendour? And what think we of that? -Are we joining in the congratulations of man with -his fellow, that thus it is? Or is all this brightness -suspected and challenged by us, as the sure precursor -of God's judgment? Do we know that the god of -this world finds a house "swept and garnished" as -thoroughly a scene for his evil and destructive energy -as a Sodom? Do we judge, with our generation, that -this cannot be? Or do we hold it in mind, that it is -in such a house that he will work at the closing of -Christendom's history? And are we waiting for the -Son of God to take us up to that mystic eminence -where of old He took His Abraham? The Lord give -us grace to occupy such ground! And we shall the -more easily and naturally do so, if, like Abraham, we -are saints of the tent and not of the city--such saints -(again like Abraham) as rejoice, "in the heat of the -day," to hold communion with the Lord of glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">After this we go, with our patriarch, into the land -of the Philistines, where he sojourns during the times -of chapters xx. xxi.</p> -<p class="pnext">The old compact between Abraham and Sarah is -acted on again, after so long a time--acted on now at -Gerar, as before it had been in Egypt. It had been -made between them ere they left their native country. -It was brought out with them from the very place of -their birth. It was, I may say, in them older than anything -of God; and after many changes and exercises it -is in them and with them the same thing still.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was a very evil thing--both subtle and unclean. -It was false and yet specious, and savoured strongly of -the serpent, of him that is a liar and the father of lies. -Abraham was forced to betray it, vile as it was, to the -king of Gerar. "It came to pass, when God caused me -to wander from my father's house, that I said unto -her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt show -unto me: at every place whither we shall come, say -of me, He is my brother." This was worse than we -might even have feared. There was not a principle in -the life of faith that was not gainsaid by so vile a -compact as this, brought from the very place of their -nativity with them. And such is the flesh, the inbred -corruption. Its way, whenever taken, is shame and -deep dishonour. It degrades a saint even before men. -It is that which will confound and expose an Abraham -before an Abimelech. And it never changes, or improves, -or ceases to be. It is the same in Egypt, and at -Gerar. It lives in us still, and follows us everywhere. -We get it at our birth from the loins of Adam; and -we are, for the common consistency of our way as the -called of God, to mortify and refuse it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Wretched indeed it is to have to see such a thing -as this. But the Spirit of God hides nothing. There -it lies before us, this vile and wicked thing, in the -pathway of the recording Spirit. We have, however, -other happier objects.</p> -<p class="pnext">The progress of Sarah's soul, under the light and -leading of the Lord, is to be tracked in its own peculiar -and instructive path. Under the influence of -the flesh she had, at the outset, joined Abraham in -this unclean compact, of which I have just spoken. -In unbelief, she had afterwards, as we also saw, given -Hagar to her husband; and then, in the haste and -rebellion of the heart, she resented the effects of that -unbelief, and cast out the bondwoman, whom she had -adopted and settled in the family. But at the command -of the Lord, Hagar had gone back to her; and -now, at the time of this action, she had borne with -her in the house for fourteen years. There was, however, -no manifestation of the renewed mind, or the -life of faith, in her. It was even during these years, -that in unbelief she had laughed at the promise, behind -the tent-door. But still, I may say, she had, during -this time, in one sense, <em class="italics">been at school</em>; and she seems to -have learnt a lesson, for she submitted patiently and -unresistingly, to the presence of the bondwoman and -her child in the house of her husband. We hear of -no fresh quarrels between them. This was something. -This was witness of her being in the hand of God, till -at length, as we know, she was given faith to conceive -seed. Heb. xi. A great journey, however, after all -this, is now about to be taken by her spirit. She is -to take the lead even of her husband. And happy -this is--common enough, too, among the saints--but -happy, very happy. And were we of a delivered -heart--a heart given up to the desire of Christ's glory -only--we should rejoice in these discoveries, made in -the regions of the Spirit, though we ourselves would -have to be humbled by them. "The last shall be -first, and the first last." These are among the ways -of "new-born souls," and to be discerned still by those -who "mark the steps of grace." Paul could say of -some, "Who also were in Christ before me;" but we -may be bold to add, in that case, though he did not, -"The last were first." And the generous liberty of the -redeemed soul will but glory in these sovereign actings -of the Spirit.</p> -<p class="pnext">Sarah's elevation above Abraham in the things of -the kingdom of God is now to appear in illustration of -all this. In obedience to the command, Abraham calls -the child that was born, Isaac. But Sarah <em class="italics">interprets</em> -that name: and this is a finer exercise of soul over -the gift of God. To obey a word is good; but to obey -it in the joy of an exercised heart, and in the light -and intelligence of a mind that has entered into the -divine sense of that word, is better. Abraham called -the child that was born to him, Isaac: but Sarah said -"God has made me to laugh; and all they that hear it -will laugh with me." The oracle of chapter xvii. 19 was -made more to her than a command to be observed. It -had springs of refreshing in it, and kindlings of soul. -It was full of light and meaning to the opened understanding -of Sarah. And this leads to strength and -decision. This Deborah of earlier days will brace the -loins of Barak. "Cast out this bondwoman and her -son," says Sarah to Abraham; for she was happy in -the liberty of grace and promise, while he was still -lingering amid the claims of nature, and the desires -which his own loins had gendered. "Cast out this -bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman -shall not be heir with my son, even with -Isaac." And this was <em class="italics">Scripture</em>, as we read in Gal. iv.; -this was the voice of God. This decision of faith, in -the liberty of grace, gets its sealing at once under -God's own hand. "Stand fast in the liberty wherewith -Christ hath made you free," says the Spirit. And -what met the mind of the Lord, in the days of His -flesh, like the faith which was bold and free, after -this manner? the faith which would use Him without -ceremony, which reached Him through a crowd, which -pressed in through the silent reproaches of a misjudging -Pharisee, or through the injurious whispers of a -self-righteous multitude! And how much of the energy -of the Spirit in St. Paul is engaged in giving the sinner -this precious boldness, this immediate assurance of heart -in Christ, in spite of law, conscience, earth, and hell!</p> -<p class="pnext">This boldness of faith in Sarah, this challenge of the -bondwoman, this demand (in her own behalf too) that -she might enjoy her Isaac all alone, is <em class="italics">Scripture</em>. Gal. iv. -30. She spake as "the oracles of God." But in -Abraham nature now acts. He would fain retain -Ishmael. This is no strange thing. Nature now acts -in Abraham, and faith in Sarah; as, on an earlier -occasion, which we noticed, nature had acted in Sarah -and faith in Abraham. But nature in Abraham must -submit. He must not let Sarah be entangled any longer -as with this yoke of bondage. The house must be freed -of Ishmael, for it is to be built only in Isaac. "The son -of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the -freewoman."</p> -<p class="pnext">But all this quickly bears its fruit. Hagar being now -gone, and the house settled in Isaac according to this -demand of faith, glory is therefore quickly ready to -enter. For this is the divine order. Having "access -into this grace wherein we stand, we rejoice in hope -of the glory of God." Such is the order of the Spirit -in the soul of such a saint; and such is the order now -in the mystic house of our Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Abraham is sought by the Gentile.</em> This is full of -meaning. In the days of stress and famine, Abraham -seeks the Gentile, whether in Egypt or in Philistia; -but now, the Gentile seeks Abraham. This is a great -change. Abraham's house, as we have seen, is now -established in grace. Ishmael is dismissed, and Isaac -is gloried in. In mystic sense, Israel has turned to the -Lord, the veil is taken away, Jerusalem has said to -Christ, "Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the -Lord," her warfare is therefore accomplished, and she -is receiving the double. The Gentile seeks Israel. -Abimelech and Phichol, the king and his chief captain, -come to Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is a great dispensational change. Israel is the -head now, and not the tail. The skirt of the Jew is -now laid hold on by the nations; for the Jew has, by -faith, laid hold on the Lord, and the nations say, God -is with you. Chap. xxi. 22; Zech. viii. 23.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is full of meaning; and Abraham on all this -(led of the Spirit) is full of thoughts of glory or of -the kingdom. And rightly so. Because, when the -Jew is sought by the Gentile, instead of being trodden -down or degraded by the Gentile, the kingdom is at -hand. Accordingly, on the king of Gerar seeking -him and suing him, our patriarch raises a <em class="italics">new</em> altar; -not the altar of a heavenly stranger, as in chapter xii., -but an altar to "the everlasting God;" not an altar -in a wilderness-world, but an altar beside a <em class="italics">grove</em> and -a <em class="italics">well</em>; the one being a witness that the solitary -place had been made glad, and that the wilderness -was rejoicing; the other, that the peoples of the earth -were confederate with the seed of Abraham.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id22" id="id21"><sup>11</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">All this bright intelligence of faith in Abraham is -very beautiful. We have already seen other actings -of it in him. He knew a time of peace and a time -of war, and acted accordingly in the day of the battle -of the five kings with four. So, again, he knew his -heavenly place, and took it, when the fire of the Lord -was judging the cities of the plain. So, again, as this -chapter xxi. very remarkably shows us, he also knew -when to suffer wrong and when to resent, when to be -passive and when to assert his rights. For now, in the -time of this chapter, when the Gentile seeks him, he -reproves Abimelech for a well of water which Abimelech's -servants had violently taken away. <em class="italics">But he had -not complained of this injury until now</em>; for Abimelech -said to him, "I wot not who has done this thing; -neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, -but to-day." And this is exceedingly beautiful. It is -perfect in its generation. Abraham had till now suffered, -and taken it patiently, because till now he had been a -heavenly stranger on the earth; and such patient -suffering in such an one is acceptable with God. But -now, times are changed. The heavenly stranger has -become the head of the nations, sought by the Gentile; -and rights and wrongs must now be settled, and the -cry of the oppressed must be heard.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this has great moral beauty in it. I know not -how sufficiently to admire this workmanship of the -Spirit in the mind of Abraham. He was an Israelite -who knew the seasons of the year--when to be at -the Passover, and when at the Feast of Tabernacles. -He knew, in spirit, when to continue with Jesus in -His temptations, and then again, when the day arrived, -how to surround Him with hosannahs as He entered -the city of the Son of David. All such various and -blending lights shone in the spiritual intelligence of -his soul. God, by the Spirit, communicated a beautiful -mind to Abraham. In other days, he would not have -so much of this earth as to set his foot on--he -would surrender the choice of the land to Lot--he -would leave the Canaanite where he found him--he -would refuse to be enriched by the king of Sodom even -in so little as a thread or a shoe-latchet--he would -wander up and down in his tent here, a stranger from -heaven--but now, in a day signified and marked by -the hand of God, he can be another man, and know -his millennial place, as father of the Israel of God, -and their representative as head of the nations. He -can keep the Feast of Tabernacles in its season. His -rebuke of Abimelech--his entertaining him--his enriching -him--his giving him covenant pledges--and all -this in such easy, conscious dignity--and then his -new altar or his calling on God in a new character, -and his planting a grove, all bespeak another man, -and that a transfiguration, if I may so speak, had -taken place in him, according to God.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this I judge to have a great character in it. -But I will not any longer stay here; for there is still -more in this fine life of faith which our father Abraham, -through grace, tracked to the very end, holding -still the beginning of his confidence.</p> -<p class="pnext">And here let me say, this life of faith is, in other -words, life spent in the <em class="italics">power of resurrection</em>. It is -the life of a dead and risen man. It is a lesson, if -one may speak for others, hard indeed to be learnt to -any good effect, but still it is the lesson, the practical -lesson of our lives, that we are a dead and risen -people. At the outset Abraham, in spirit, took that -character. He left behind him all that nature or the -world had provided him with. He left what his <em class="italics">birth</em> -introduced him to, for that which <em class="italics">faith</em> introduced -him to. And as he began, so he continued and ended, -with failings by the way indeed, and that too again -and again, but still to the end he was a man of faith, a -dead and risen man.</p> -<p class="pnext">As such an one he had received Isaac, some twenty -years ago, not considering his own body now dead, -neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb; and as -such an one he now offers him on the altar at the -word of the Lord. The promise was <em class="italics">God's</em>--that was -enough for him. For <em class="italics">faith</em> is never overcome. It -has divine, infinite resources. The believer fails again -and again; but faith is never overcome, or comes short -of its expectation. xxii.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the way of faith, when Isaac was demanded.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id24" id="id23"><sup>12</sup></a> -And the same overcoming faith we trace in the very -next scene, the burial of Sarah. This was the same -faith, the faith of a dead and risen man, the faith -which had already <em class="italics">received</em> Isaac, and <em class="italics">offered</em> Isaac, -now buries Sarah. Abraham believed in resurrection, -and in God as the God of resurrection, the God who -quickens the dead, and calls those things that be -not as though they were. The cave of Machpelah -tells us this. "Earth to earth, dust to dust, ashes to -ashes, <em class="italics">in sure and certain hope</em>," was the language of -Abraham's heart there. His purchase of that place, -with all his care to make it his own, to have it as his -<em class="italics">possession</em>, while beyond it he cared not for a single -acre of the whole land, tells us of his faith in resurrection. -His treaty for it with the children of Heth -is like his words to his servants at the foot of mount -Moriah, "Abide ye here with the ass, while I and the -lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to -you." Each of these things bespoke beforehand what -he knew about his Isaac and his Sarah. He committed -each of them into the hands of Him who, as -he knew, quickens the dead. The corn of wheat -dying, as he knew, was to live again. The handful -of sacred dust, as he knew, was to be gathered again. -Death itself was eyed in like victory of faith, as had -already been eyed the fire, and the wood, and the -beloved victim on the altar. xxiii.</p> -<p class="pnext">These were the victories of faith again. Faith in -our patriarch, after this manner, talked calmly with -all circumstances, and won the day over them all in -their turn. Beautiful victories of "precious faith"! -And they are gained still. Faith still disposes of one -circumstance after another as it rises. It meets our -own personal condition as "dead in trespasses and -sins;" it meets the difficulties and temptations of -the way; it meets the last great enemy. Let me not -make a wonder of meeting things on the journey, or -at the end of it, if I have already met what withstood -me at the outset. Faith will go to mount Moriah, or -to the cave of Machpelah, if it have already gone -out in the starry night with the Lord at Hebron. If -it have met death in my own person, it may meet it -in my Isaac or my Sarah. One speaks, the Lord -knows, of His grace, and not of one's own experience. -But still, beloved, let each of us say, Am I not at -peace with God? Do I not know that He is for me? -Do I not know that my estate of sin, guilt, and condemnation -has been met in His grace? Do I not -know that I am washed, accepted, adopted? Have -I not gone out with Abraham, as in the night of -chap. xv., and found relief for my own state by nature, -and shall I then tarry on my way, though the trial of -mount Moriah await me, or the death and burial at -Machpelah? If faith have already met sin, it is to -know itself conqueror over even death. Let our souls -be accustomed to the thought that the <em class="italics">brightest -victory of faith was achieved at the beginning</em>--that -if at peace with God in spite of sin, we may reckon -on strength and comfort from Him in spite of the -trials of the way, and on power and triumph in Him -in spite of the end of it. Faith which has done its -<em class="italics">first</em> work has done its <em class="italics">greatest</em> work. "If, when we -were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death -of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be -saved by His life." God is glorified in these reckonings -of faith. "He that spared not His own Son, but -delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with -Him also freely give us all things?"</p> -<p class="pnext">It is the power of life over death, life in victory, -that faith uses. It was such power of victorious life -that Abraham possessed himself of by faith. The -sepulchre is empty, and the grave-clothes are lying -there, as the spoils of war. The deadness of his own -body, the altar of his Isaac, and the grave of his Sarah, -were visited and inspected by a <em class="italics">risen</em> man, in the -light of the faith of Him who is the Quickener of the -dead, and calleth those things that be not as though -they were.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are the great things of faith in the souls of -the elect. But further still, in this fruitful, shifting -history. Abraham, at the end, is seen to hold his first -ground, as well as to work his earlier victories. He -maintains, through grace, erect and firm, that very -attitude which he had at once and at the first assumed, -when by faith he hearkened to the call of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">That call of God had done these two things with -Abraham, I might say <em class="italics">for</em> Abraham; it had separated -him from Mesopotamia, and yet left him a stranger in -Canaan. From country, kindred, and father's house -he had been withdrawn; but still, in the midst of -that land and people to which he had come, he was to -be but a pilgrim, dwelling as on the surface of it, in a -tent, whatever part of it he might pass through or -visit.</p> -<p class="pnext">This position was very holy. His separation was -twofold--separation from pollution, such as he might -meet in Canaan; separation from natural alliances, -such as he had been born into in Mesopotamia. He -was under the call of the God of glory; and such a -call made no terms with either the flesh or the world. -In somewhat of Levite holiness, he did not know his -mother's children; in somewhat of church holiness, he -knew no man after the flesh. Nay; beyond even all -this, in somewhat of the virtue of his divine Lord, -he did not know <em class="italics">himself</em>. He was the heir of the -land where he was a pilgrim. The <em class="italics">promise</em> of God -was his, as surely as the <em class="italics">call</em>. He knew himself to -be destined of divine, unimpeachable purpose, to -dignities of a very high order. But to the end he -was willing to pass unknown, entirely unknown. He -talked of himself to the children of the land only as -a stranger and a sojourner. He would pay for the -smallest plot of ground which he wanted. He would -be nothing and nobody in the midst of them. He -never talked of the dignities which he knew, all the -time, really attached to him. David, in like spirit, in -other days, had the oil of Samuel on him, the consecration -of God to the throne of the tribes of Israel; -and yet he would be hid, and thank a rich neighbour, -in his need, for a piece of bread. These men of God -knew not themselves. This was the way of our Abraham; -and this was the virtue of Him who, in this -same departed, evil world, made Himself of no reputation, -though God of heaven and earth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Blessed virtues of soul under the power of the call -of God, through the Holy Ghost! Mesopotamia is -left, Canaan is estranged, and self is forgotten and -hid! The call of God purposes to do at this day with -us what in that day it did with Abraham. It would -fain conform us to itself. Its authority is supreme. -It is not that country or kindred are, of necessity, -defiling. Nature accredits them; and the law of God, -in its season, owns and enforces them. But the call of -God is supreme, and demands separation of a very -high, and fine, and peculiar order. And this was what -addressed Abraham when he dwelt in Mesopotamia, -the place of his birth, of his kindred, and of his -natural associations, and this was what still echoed in -his heart all the time of his sojourn in Canaan.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was not that he was called to assert the <em class="italics">harm</em> of -such things. Not at all. But they were such things as -the call of God left behind; and the harm, or the moral -wrong, or the pollution of a thing was no longer his -rule, but <em class="italics">inconsistency with the call of God</em>. He may -allow the right and the claim of a thousand things; but -it is the voice of the God of glory, to which in faith he -had hearkened already, that must lead him and command -him. "No man, having put his hand to the plough, -and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."</p> -<p class="pnext">He was very true to his call. According to it, at the -beginning, he had gone forth, not knowing, as before -him, whither he went, and leaving, as behind him, all -that even nature itself must accredit, and all but the -sovereign pleasure of God sanction. He continued in -the power of it, sojourning in tents, unknown and -unendowed, a stranger in the world, refusing to take one -backward step. And at the end, we find the same power -of his call as fresh in his soul as ever--as earnest and -as simple in chap. xxiv. as it had been in chap. xii. He -charges Eliezer to act upon it to the full, as he himself -at the outset had done--that is, he was to keep Isaac in -the place of separation at all cost. Let come what may, -Isaac was neither to be taken back to Mesopotamia, nor -to be allied with Canaan. He was, let circumstances -make it difficult as they may, to be maintained in his -true place under the call of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">This has a great character in it. There is another -mystery in this exquisite chapter (xxiv.), as we commonly -know; but I do not notice it here. I rather design to -trace the earnest, simple path, which faith trod from first -to last, in our father Abraham. The voice of the God of -glory was <em class="italics">still</em> heard by him. He was <em class="italics">still</em> the separated -man. He declared plainly that he sought a heavenly -country. He might have had opportunity to return. -This very journey of Eliezer proved that he had not -forgotten the road. But he did not, he would not.</p> -<p class="pnext">This strangership of our patriarch in the earth has -indeed a very fine character. He left Mesopotamia, he -sojourned in Canaan, he hid or forgot himself! Abraham -left Abraham behind, as well as country, kindred, and -father's house. He made himself of no reputation. He -spoke of himself as "a stranger and a sojourner," and -as that only, in the audience of the children of Heth, -though he was, all the while, the one "who had the -promises." All this was real, true-hearted strangership -in the world. And it was conscious citizenship in heaven -that made him, after this manner, a willing stranger -here. Because of possessions in prospect, he could do -without them in hand. The land of promise was to him -but a strange country, because it was but a land of -promise and not of possession. He saw Christ's day, and -was glad; but he saw it in the distance. Heb. xi. 9-14.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">And Abraham was all this to the very end--as these -closing chapters show us. The character which he took -up at the beginning, under the call of God, that character -he maintained to the end. He fails in the power of -faith along the road, again and again, but he is the -same heavenly stranger to the end of his journey.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id26" id="id25"><sup>13</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And strangership of this order is ours, I am deeply -assured. Ours is to be strangership in the earth, -because of conscious and well-known citizenship in -heaven; separation from the world, because of oneness -with an already risen Christ. Nothing can alter this -while we are on the earth. We ought so to look in -the face of a <em class="italics">rejected</em> Christ as to maintain this -strangership in power. And so we do, as far as Christ -is of more value to us than all our circumstances. It -is for want of this that we take up with the world as -we do. We have not learnt the lesson that Moses -learnt--that the reproach of Christ was greater riches -than the treasures of Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hard but blessed. Abraham knew something of it -in power. He was the stranger to the end. He might -have returned to Mesopotamia. He had not forgotten -the road, as we observed before; and the constant -respect and friendliness of all his neighbours proved -that there was no enemy to hinder the journey. But -the call of God had fixed his heart, and he looked -only where it led him.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id28" id="id27"><sup>14</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Would that the soul held these things in increased -power! Little indeed does the heart know of this, if -one may speak for others. But they are real--the -prized fruit of divine energy in the elect of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">After all this we find another and distinct matter in -the history of Abraham. I mean his marriage with -Keturah, and his family by her.</p> -<p class="pnext">This family by Keturah is, we may surely judge, a -distinct mystery. That is, Abraham is here presenting -a new feature of the divine wisdom, or illustrating -another secret in the ways of the divine dispensations. -In these children of the second wife we get (typically) -the millennial nations, the nations which shall people -the earth in the days of the kingdom, branches of the -great family of God in that day, and children of -Abraham. They may lie far off, as in the ends of -the earth; but they shall have their allotments, and -be owned as of the one extended millennial family. -"Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with His people," shall be said -to them. The ends of the earth shall be Christ's inheritance -then, as surely as the Church shall be glorified -in Him and with Him in the heavens, and the -throne of David, and the inheritance of Israel be His, -as set up and revived in the land of their fathers. -Abraham's children will be all the world over.</p> -<p class="pnext">For in that day of glory, the King of Israel shall -be the God of the whole earth. Christ is the Father -of the everlasting age. If Israel be honoured by -Him, all the nations shall be blest in Him. He is -"the light to lighten the Gentiles," as He is "the -glory of His people Israel." Keturah's children, -parcelled off in other lands, bespeak this mystery. -They will be second to Israel, it is true; but, nevertheless, -they will be elect and beloved. As it is here -written: And Abraham gave all that he had unto -Isaac. But unto the sons of the concubines which -Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them -away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, -unto the east country. xxv.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id30" id="id29"><sup>15</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">This is, I believe, the mystic meaning of this new -family of Abraham; and this strange and wondrous -article is that which closes his history. But it is -another witness of the large and varied testimony -which God has borne to His own counsels and secrets -in that history. And this is very remarkable. At -times <em class="italics">the Father</em> is seen in Abraham--as, in his -desire for children--his making a feast at the weaning -of Isaac--his offering up of his son--his sending -for a wife for his son; at other times <em class="italics">the Christ</em> is -seen in him, as the one in whom all the families of -the earth are to be blest--as the kinsman-redeemer -of Israel--as the holder of the headship of the nations--father -of the millennial or everlasting age--and -then, at other times, <em class="italics">the Church</em>, or heavenly people, -are traced or reflected in this wondrous story; and, -at other times, we are on earth, or with <em class="italics">Israel</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have the Blessed One, unto whom all His works -are known from the beginning of the world, in the -details and changeful stories of this life of Abraham, -thus showing forth parts of His ways. In the allegories -of Sarah and her seed, of Hagar and her seed, -of Keturah and her seed, we have the mystery of -Jerusalem, "the mother of us all," Israel in bondage -as she now is with her children, and the gathering -of the nations all the world over, as branches of the -one extended millennial family. Mystery after mystery -is thus acted in the life of Abraham; and many and -various parts of "the manifold wisdom of God" are -taught us.</p> -<p class="pnext">I am quite aware, that <em class="italics">living or personal</em> types may -have been as unconscious of what they were, under -God's hand, as <em class="italics">material</em> types. Hagar, no doubt, was -as passive as the gold that overlaid the table of shew-bread, -or as the water which filled the brazen laver. -But the lesson to us is not affected by this. I have -Christ's royal glory in the state of Solomon, and I -have the deeply precious provisions of His grace in -the golden plate on Aaron's forehead; and I no more -think of enquiring about Solomon himself in that -matter than I do about the gold. The sleeping Adam -teaches me about the death of the Christ of God; -the waking rapture of Adam, on receiving Eve, teaches -me about the satisfaction and joy of the same Christ -of God, when He shall see of the travail of His soul; -but whether Adam knew what he was doing for me, -I do not ask myself. I can learn about the first covenant -from an unconscious Hagar, as I can learn about -the cleansing of the blood of Christ from an unconscious -altar. So, as to our Abraham, in taking his -place in the midst of all these varied and wondrous -mysteries, I enquire not curiously the measure of his -mind in these things. The wisdom of God can say--the -Christ who stood in the eternal counsels can say, -"Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given -me are for signs and for wonders;" but how far Abraham -could speak so, in whatever measure he was -himself in the secret he was made to utter, or whether -he spoke mysteries as in an unknown tongue, we have -not to enquire. "God is His own interpreter."</p> -<p class="pnext">Our patriarch has now closed his actings and his -exercises. We have now to close his eyes, as we read -in chap. xxv. 7, 8, "And these are the days of the -years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred -threescore and fifteen years. Then Abraham gave up -the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and -full of years; and was gathered to his people."</p> -<p class="pnext">He had, we may say, seen the land, but he was not -to go over and possess it. He was the Moses of an -earlier generation; like him, a <em class="italics">heavenly</em> man, a man -of the wilderness and not of the inheritance--a -man of the tent--a child of resurrection. He was -gathered to his people, ere the land was entered by the -Israel of God according to promise. As in the glass -of God's purpose, and by the light of faith, he sees -the land; but he goes not over to possess it. He -dies as on Mount Pisgah, on the wilderness-side of the -Jordan, destined, with Enoch before him and with -Moses after him, to shine on the top of the hill in the -heavenly glory of the Son of man.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">We have now closed the third section of the Book of -Genesis; and, with it, the scenes and circumstances of -the life of Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the midst of these fragments, thus gathered and -treasured up for us by the Holy Ghost, we have seen -faith getting its victories, knowing its rights and pleading -its titles, practising its generosity, enjoying its fellowships, -making its surrenders, and obtaining its consolations -and promises. But we have seen also its <em class="italics">intelligence</em>, -and learnt it to be such a thing as walks in the light, -or according to the judgment, of the mind of Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is something very beautiful in such a sight as -this. We do not commonly witness this fine combination--the -<em class="italics">intelligence</em> of faith, and the <em class="italics">moral power</em> -of faith. In some saints, there is the earnest, urgent -power of faith, which goes on right truthfully and -honestly, but with many a mistake as to the dispensational -wisdom of God. In others, there is a mind -nicely taught, endowed with much priestly, spiritual -skill, in following the wisdom of God in ages and -dispensations, but with lack of power in all that -service which a simpler and more earnest faith would -be constantly pursuing. But in Abraham we see these -things combined.</p> -<p class="pnext">In our walk with God, the light of the knowledge -of His mind should be seen, as well as our hearts be -ever found open to His presence and joy, and our -consciences alive to His claims and His will. The -life of faith is a very incomplete thing, if we know -not, as Abraham knew, the times as signified of God, -when to fight, as it were, and when to be still; when -to be silent under the wrongs of an Abimelech, and -when to resent them; when to raise the altar of a -sojourning stranger, and when to call on the name of -the everlasting God. In other words, we ought to -know what the Lord is about, according to His own -eternal purpose, and what He is leading onward to its -consummation, in His varied and fruitful wisdom.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such is the nature of all obedience; for the conduct -of the saint is ever to be according to the dispensed -wisdom of God at the time, or in the given age.</p> -<p class="pnext">But, let me add, the highest point of moral dignity -in Abraham was this: that he was <em class="italics">a stranger in the -earth</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">This, I may say, outshines all. It was this that -made God not <em class="italics">ashamed</em> to be called his God. God can -<em class="italics">morally</em> own the soul that advisedly refuses citizenship -in this revolted, corrupted world.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the highest point in moral dignity in -Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext">God loveth the stranger. Deut. x. 18. He loves the -<em class="italics">poor</em>, <em class="italics">unfriended</em> stranger, with the love of pity and of -grace, and provides for him. But with the <em class="italics">separated</em> -stranger, who has turned his back on this polluted -scene, God links His name and His honour, and -morally owns such without shame. Heb. xi. 13-16.</p> -<p class="pnext">How finely he started on his journey at the beginning! -The Lord and His promises were all he had. -He left, as we have seen, his <em class="italics">natural</em> home behind -him, but he did not expect to find <em class="italics">another</em> home in -the place he was going to. He knew that he was to -be a stranger and sojourner with God in the earth. -Mesopotamia was left, but Canaan was not taken up -in the stead of it. Accordingly, from all the people -there, he was a separated man all his days, or during -his sojourn among them of about one hundred years. -Canaan was the <em class="italics">world</em> to that heavenly man, and he -had as little to do with it or to say to it as he might, -though all the while in it. When circumstances demanded -it, or as far as business involved him, he dealt -with it. He would traffic with the people of the land, -if need were (to be sure he would), but his sympathies -were not with them. He needed a burying-place, and -he purchased it of the children of Heth. He would -not think of hesitating to treat with them about a -necessary matter of bargain and sale; but he would -rather <em class="italics">buy</em> than <em class="italics">receive</em>. He was loth to be debtor to -them, or to be enriched by them--nor were they his -<em class="italics">companions</em>. This we observe throughout. If Aner, -Eshcol, and Mamre--it may be morally attracted by -what they saw in him--seek confederacy with him, he -will not refuse their alliance on a given occasion of the -common interest, when such interest the God who had -called him would sanction or commend. But still the -Canaanites were not his company. His wife was his -company, his household, his flocks and his herds, and -his fellow-saint, Lot, his brother's son, who had come -out of Mesopotamia with him--as long, at least, as -such an one walked as a separated man in Canaan. -But even <em class="italics">he</em>, when undistinguished from the people -of the land, is a stranger to him as well and as fully -as they.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">All this has surely a voice in our ears. Angels -were Abraham's company at times, and so the Lord -of angels--and at all times, his altar and his tent -were with him, and the mysteries or truths of God, -as they were made known to him. But the people -of the land, the men of the world, did not acquire -his tastes or sympathies, or share his confidence. He -was <em class="italics">among</em> them but not <em class="italics">of</em> them--and rather would -he have had his house unbuilt, and Isaac be without -a wife, than that such wife should be a daughter of -Canaan.</p> -<p class="pnext">To some of us, beloved, this breaking up of natural -things is terrible. But if Jesus were loved more, all -this would be the easier reckoned on. If His value -for us <em class="italics">within the veil</em> were more pondered in our -hearts and treasured up there, we should go to Him -<em class="italics">without the camp</em> with firmer, surer step. "I have -learnt," said one of the martyrs, "that there is no -freedom like that of the heart that has given up all -for Christ--no wisdom like that learnt at His feet--no -poetry like the calm foreseeing of the glory that -shall be."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Of our Abraham and his companions in this life of -faith, confessing that they were strangers and pilgrims -on the earth, it is written, "They that say such things -declare plainly that they seek a country--and truly -if they had been mindful of that from whence they -came out, they might have had opportunity to have -returned, but now they desire a better country, that -is, an heavenly, wherefore God is not ashamed to -be called their God, for He hath prepared for them -a city."</p> -<p class="pnext">Beloved, we are called to be these strangers--strangers -such as God can thus morally own. If the world -were not Abraham's object, we ought to feel, even on -higher sanctions, that it cannot be ours. The call of -the God of glory made Abraham a stranger here--the -cross of Christ, in addition to that, may still more -make us strangers. As we sometimes sing--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Before His cross we now are left,</div> -<div class="line">As strangers in the land."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">"Ye are dead," says the apostle, "and your life is -hid with Christ in God." That is strangership of the -highest order--the strangership of the Son of God -Himself. "The world knoweth us not, because it -knew Him not."</p> -<p class="pnext">In the strength of this strangership in the world, -may we have grace to "abstain from fleshly lusts -which war against the soul"! and in the strength of -our conscious citizenship in heaven may "we look -for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall -change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like -unto His glorious body, according to the working -whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto -Himself."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="isaac">ISAAC</span>.</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">GENESIS XXV.-XXVII.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In the former papers, entitled <span class="small-caps">Enoch</span>, <span class="small-caps">Noah</span>, and -<span class="small-caps">Abraham</span>, I have followed the course of the Book of -Genesis, down to the end of chapter xxiv. I now -propose to take it up from thence, and follow it on -through chapters xxv.-xxvii.; Isaac, after Abraham, -being the principal person there.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is, however, but little in his history, and little -in his character. In some respects this is no matter; for, -whether much or little, his name is in the recollection of -us all who have learnt the ways of the God of grace, "the -God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," which is His name -for ever, His memorial unto all generations. Exod. iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac was a stranger in the earth, a heavenly -stranger, as his father had been, and we see him with -his tent and his altar, as we saw Abraham; and we -hear the Lord giving him the promises, as He had -given them to Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext">"By faith Abraham sojourned in the land of -promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles -with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of -the same promise."</p> -<p class="pnext">This tent-life of the patriarchs had a great character -in it. Hebrews xi. 9, 10 teaches us this. It tells us -that the fathers were content to live upon the surface -of this world. A tent has no foundations. It is -pitched or struck at a moment's warning. And such -a slight and passing connection with this earth, and -life upon it, these patriarchs were satisfied to have -and seek only. They did not look for a city or for -foundations, till God became a Builder. Till His -building was manifested they were sojourners here, -just crossing the plain, or surface of the earth, without -striking their roots into it.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the voice that is heard from the tents of -these pilgrim-fathers. And as their tents bespoke this -heavenly strangership, their altars bespoke their worship, -their <em class="italics">true</em> worship; for they raised their altar to -Him who had <em class="italics">appeared</em> to them. They did not affect -to find out God by their wisdom, and then worship -Him in the light and dictate of their own thoughts. -They did not, thus, in the common folly, profess themselves -to be wise; but they knew God and worshipped -God only according to His revelation of Himself. -Therefore it was not an altar "to the unknown God" -at which they served; but they served or worshipped -in truth. And in its generation the patriarchal <em class="italics">altar</em> -was, in this way, as beautiful as the patriarchal <em class="italics">tent</em>. -The latter put them into due relationship to the world -around them, the former to the Lord God of heaven and -earth who was above them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were alike in all this. -There was, therefore, no new dispensational secret, no -fresh purpose of the divine counsels, revealed in Isaac, -as there had been in Abraham.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id32" id="id31"><sup>16</sup></a> This is so. But -still, though there was no new dispensational scene -unfolded, there was a further unfolding of the glories -that attach to the dispensation or calling which had -been already made known in Abraham. And a very -important one too--such as, if we had divine affections, -we should deeply prize. I mean this: The heavenly -calling or strangership on earth was the <em class="italics">common</em> -thing; but characteristically, <em class="italics">election</em> was illustrated in -Abraham, and <em class="italics">sonship</em> or adoption in Isaac.</p> -<p class="pnext">God called Abraham from the world, from kindred, -country, and father's house, separating him to Himself -and to His promises. But Isaac was already as one -chosen and called and sanctified, while in the house of -his father. He was at home from his birth, and he -was there with God, having been born according to -promise, and through an energy that quickened the -dead; and in all these things he represented <em class="italics">sonship</em>, -as Abraham had represented <em class="italics">election</em>. In Isaac we -see that family that is "born not of blood, nor of the -will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God," -and who stand in liberty; as the apostle says, "Now -we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise." -We are Abraham's seed, so many Isaacs, children of -the freewoman, or in the adoption, if we be Christ's.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now this mystery of sonship or adoption represented -in Isaac, as the mystery of election had been -made known in Abraham, is in divine order. For <em class="italics">the -election of God is unto adoption</em>, as we read, "Having -predestinated us unto the adoption of children by -Jesus Christ unto Himself;" and this being so, this -high, personal prerogative being represented in Isaac, in -the course of his history we get the mystery of the son -of the freewoman very blessedly, largely exhibited.</p> -<p class="pnext">For we get both the <em class="italics">birth</em> and the <em class="italics">weaning</em>. And -each of these events was the occasion of joy in the house -of the father. The child born was called "laughter," -the child weaned was celebrated by a feast.</p> -<p class="pnext">Wondrous and gracious secrets these are. It is the -father's joy to <em class="italics">have children</em>, it is his further joy that -his children should <em class="italics">know themselves to be children</em>. -This was the birth and the weaning of Isaac in the -Book of Genesis. And all this, after so long a time, -is revived in the Epistle to the Galatians. For what -was represented in Isaac is realized in us through the -Spirit. In that epistle we learn that we are children -by faith in Christ Jesus. And there we learn also -that, being children, we receive the spirit of children. -We are <em class="italics">weaned</em> as well as <em class="italics">born</em>. Paul travailed in -birth for them again, as he says: "My little -children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ -be formed in you." The Christ of this passage is -Christ <em class="italics">the Son</em>; and Paul longed and laboured that -they might be brought into the Isaac-state, the liberty -of conscious adoption. They were under temptation to -feed again upon the ordinances which gendered bondage, -and which the tutors and governors of an earlier dispensation -had enjoined. But opposed to this, the -apostle would draw them again into liberty, as he -himself had proved the virtue of it in his own soul. -It had pleased God, as he says, to reveal the Son in -him. The life he lived in the flesh he lived by the -faith of <em class="italics">the Son</em>, who loved him. He could, therefore, -go down to Arabia, where he had no flesh and blood -to confer with, no Jerusalem or city of solemnities, no -apostles or ordinances, no priesthood after a carnal -order, no worldly sanctuary, to countenance, to seal, or -to perfect him. He did not want what any or all -could give him, for he had <em class="italics">the Son revealed in him</em>. -He was a weaned Isaac; and he would fain have the -Galatians to be such likewise; and to hear the word -which of old had been heard in the house of Abraham -over Isaac, "Cast out the bondwoman and her son; for -the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the -son of the freewoman."</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is given us, mystically, in Isaac, the child -of the freewoman, whose birth caused laughter, and -whose weaning was celebrated with a feast. And this -mystery is, we thus see, largely and expressly revived -and opened, in its full character, in the Epistle to the -Galatians.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is not of <em class="italics">glories</em> only that we must be thinking, -when thinking of predestination. God's purposes -concerning us are still richer. We are predestinated -to a state of <em class="italics">gratified affections</em>, as well as to a place -of <em class="italics">displayed glories</em>--to "the adoption of children," -and to be "before Him in love," as well as to the -inheritance of all things. Ephesians i. And the Spirit -already given is as surely in us the power to cry, -"Abba, Father," as He is the seal of the title of the -coming redemption.</p> -<p class="pnext">We are apt to forget this. We think of calling and -of predestination, in connection with glory, rather -than in connection with love, and relationship, and -home, and a Father's house.</p> -<p class="pnext">And yet it is relationship that will give even the -inheritance or the glory its richest joy. The youngest -child in the family has another kind of enjoyment of -the palace of the king, than the highest estate and -dignitary of his realm. The child is there <em class="italics">without -state</em>, for its title is in relationship--the lords of the -land may be there, but they are there as at court, by -title of their dignity or office. And the child's enjoyment -of the palace is not only, as I said, of <em class="italics">another</em> -kind, it is of a higher kind--it is personal and not -official--the palace is <em class="italics">a home</em> to it, and not merely -<em class="italics">the court of royalty</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now it is the son, the child at home, the child in -the privileges of relationship, that we get in Isaac. -It is such an one that he represents--this is what -Isaac, mystically, is. Isaac was kept at home, waited -on by the household, nourished and endowed; and -the wealth as well as the comfort of his father's -house was his; as we read, "And Abraham gave all -that he had unto Isaac. But unto the sons of the -concubines which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, -and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet -lived, eastward, unto the east country."</p> -<p class="pnext">Mystically looked at, Isaac is thus before us, a son, -born of the free woman, born of promise, born of God, -as it is said, "I will come and Sarah shall have a son." -Isaac represents that adopted family who are made -"accepted in the Beloved," who have put on Christ, -who stand in His joy, and breathe His spirit.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have, however, to consider him <em class="italics">morally</em> as well as -<em class="italics">mystically</em>; that is, in his <em class="italics">character</em>, as well as in his -<em class="italics">person</em>. The elements, however, are but few. There is -but little history connected with him. There are but -few incidents in his life, and but little disclosure of -character. And this is to our comfort. At times we -find among the elect of God very fine natural materials, -a noble bearing of soul, or a delicate, attractive form of -human virtue; and again, at other times, either poor, or -even very bad, human materials. And this becomes a -relief to our poor hearts. <em class="italics">Because</em> we find it (from a -better acquaintance with ourselves than with others) -easy to own the poor and wretched materials that go to -make up what we ourselves are; and then it is our -comfort (comfort of a certain sort) to find like samples -of nature in others of God's people.</p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac was <em class="italics">wanting</em> in character. He was neither of -fine nor of bad natural materials. There was much in -him that, as we say, was amiable, and which, after a -human estimate, would have been attractive. But he -was wanting in character. The style of his education -may go far to account for this. He had been reared -tenderly. He had never been away from the side of his -mother, the child of whose old age he was--her only -child; and these habits had relaxed him, and kept a -naturally amiable temper in its common softness. -Quietness and retirement, the temper that rather submits -than resents, and this allied to the relaxing indulgence -of domestic, if not animal, life, appear in him. He was -blameless, we may quite assume, pious and strict in the -observance of relative duties, as a child and as a husband, -and would have engaged the good-will and good wishes -of his neighbours; but he was wanting in that energy -which would have made him a witness among them, at -least, beyond the separation which attended his circumcision, -his altar, and his tent. And such a life is always -a poor one. To his tent and his altar he was true, to -a common measure; but he pitched the one and raised -the other with too feeble a hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac was forty years old when he received Rebecca -to wife. For twenty years they were childless; but -under this trial they behaved themselves even better -than Abraham and Sarah had done. Abraham and -Sarah had no child, and Sarah gave her bondmaid to -her husband. Isaac and Rebecca had no child; but -they entreated the Lord, and waited for His mercy. -This was a difference, and for a moment, the last are -first, and the first are last; and such moral variety do -we find among the people of God to this day. But the -two sets of children suggest different divine mysteries, -as the way of the parents of each thus afford different -moral teaching.</p> -<p class="pnext">There were the two sons of Abraham--Isaac and -Ishmael; but they were by two wives: there are now -the two sons of Isaac--Jacob and Esau; but they are -by the same wife.</p> -<p class="pnext">The enmity between the sons of Abraham began -when Ishmael, a lad of fourteen years of age, mocked -the weaned Isaac. But the struggle between the sons -of Isaac was in the womb. Two nations were there, as -the Lord had told Rebecca, "Two manner of people -shall be separated from thy bowels." And so it came -to pass. The man of God was found in Jacob, the -man of the world in Esau; the principle of <em class="italics">faith</em> was -in the one, the principle of <em class="italics">nature</em> in the other. Two -manner of people were indeed separated from her -bowels, and had struggled in her womb. "The friendship -of the world is enmity against God." And this -was Esau. Accordingly, Esau made the earth the -scene of his energies, of his enjoyments, and of his -expectations. He was "a man of the field," and "a -cunning hunter." He prospered in his generation. -He loved the field, and he knew how to use the field. -He set his heart on the present life, and knew how to -turn its capabilities to the account of his enjoyments. -His sons quickly became dukes, nay kings, and had -their cities; as Ishmael's children had become princes, -and had their castles. Their dignity and their greatness -proceeded from themselves; and the world witnessed -them in their magnificence.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Jacob was "a plain man," a man of the tent. -He took after his fathers. Like Abraham and Isaac, -he was a stranger here, sojourning as on the surface -of the earth for a season, with his eye upon the -promise. His children--while Esau's were dukes, -settled in their domains, in the sunshine of their -dignities and wealth--had to wander from one nation -to another people, to suffer the hardships and wrongs -of injurious Egypt, or to traverse, as pilgrims, the -trackless, wasted desert.</p> -<p class="pnext">Esau was the "profane" one. His hope and his -heart were linked with life in this world, and with -that only; for he would say, "I am at the point to -die, and what profit shall this birthright do to me?" -Like the Gadarenes, and like Judas, Esau would sell -his title to Christ. But Jacob had faith, and was -ready to buy what Esau was ready to sell.</p> -<p class="pnext">Two manner of people were, after this manner, -separated from Rebecca's bowels, as all this tells us. -They are no sooner brought forth than this is seen; -and their earliest habits, their first activities, are -characteristic. It was not merely the bondwoman -and the free, or the children of the two covenants, as -Ishmael and Isaac had been; in Esau and Jacob we -get a <em class="italics">fuller</em> expression of the same natures; the one, -that reprobate thing, had from Adam, profane or -worldly, which takes a portion in the earth and not -in God; the other, that divine thing, had from Christ, -which is believing, hopeful, looking to God's provisions, -and waiting for the kingdom.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this survives to the present day, and flourishes -abundantly in different samples in the midst of us, or -around us. I might say the Cain, the Nimrod, the -Ishmael, and the Esau are still abroad on the earth, -and these tales and illustrations have their lessons for -our souls. They are wonderful in their simplicity; -but they are too deep for the wisdom of the world, -and too pure for the love of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">These things I have gathered for the sake of the -moral and the mystery which so abound in them. -But my immediate business is with Isaac.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Isaac, as I have already noticed, was brought up in -his mother's tent. He was, as I may say, rather the -child of his mother than of his father--the common -case of all of us in our earliest days. But with Isaac, -this was so till his mother died; and then he must -have been much beyond thirty years of age.</p> -<p class="pnext">He knew more of Sarah's tent, than of the busier -haunts and occupations of men. Her tent had been -his <em class="italics">teacher</em>, as well as his <em class="italics">nurse</em>, and this education -left impressions on his character which were never -effaced. We have a passing or incidental, but still, a -very sure, witness of the strength of maternal influence -over him, in chap. xxiv. 67. "And Isaac brought her -[Rebecca] into his mother's tent, <em class="italics">and Isaac was comforted -after his mother's death</em>."</p> -<p class="pnext">This strongly intimates the tendencies of his early -life. And thus was character formed in him. He was -the easy, gentle, unresisting Isaac, pious, as we speak, -and, as I have said of him, blameless and amicable.</p> -<p class="pnext">But with all this, and while this I doubt not is -surely so, I ask, Was it merely nature or character -that bore him unresistingly along the road to Mount -Moriah? See chap. xxii. Was it merely filial piety -which then disposed him to be bound as a lamb for -the slaughter, without opening his mouth? Can we -assume this? Was this the force of character merely? -I say not so. This was too much for human gentleness -and submission, even such as might have been -found in an Isaac, or in a Jephthah's daughter. I must -rather say, the hand of the Lord was over him on that -occasion, just as, long afterwards, it was over the owner -of the ass that was needed to bear the King on to the -city, and then over the multitude that accompanied -and hailed Him on the road; or, as it was over the -man bearing the pitcher of water, who prepared the -guest-chamber for the last passover. On these occasions, -the hand of the Lord was strong to force the -material to comply, and take the impression of the -moment. As also in the earlier days of Samuel, when -the kine carried the ark of God right on the way -homeward, though nature resisted it, their young being -left behind them. For the divine power was upon the -kine then. And Isaac, in like manner, was under -divine power, under the hand of God, on this occasion; -willingly, I fully grant, but made willing as in a day -of power; for he was to be the type or foreshadowing -of a greater than he. The seal was in a strong hand, -and the impression must be taken, clear, deep, and -legible. "Lo, I come to do thy will, O God," is the -writing on the seal. "As a lamb before her shearers -is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth."</p> -<p class="pnext">That was a great moment in the life of Isaac, an -occasion of great meaning. So in his acceptance of -Rebecca. See chap. xxiv. In his taking a wife, not -of all whom he chose, but of his father's providing, -we may trace the same strong hand over him. There -might easily have been more of human submissiveness -and filial piety in this, than in the case of the sacrifice -on Mount Moriah, we may surely allow; but still this -was a <em class="italics">sealing</em> time as well as the other. This marriage -was a type or mystery, as well as that sacrifice. The -wife brought home to the son and heir of the father, -by the servant who was in the full confidence and -secret of the father, this was a mystery; and the -material must comply again, and take the impression -from the hand that was using it. The potter was making -vessels for the use of the household, and the clay -must yield. The prophet's children, ages afterwards, -had names given them, as the Lord pleased, and the -prophet had to say of them, Behold, I and the children -whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for -wonders. Isa. viii. And so, Isaac and Rebecca, in the -day and circumstances of their marriage, were a type, -"for a sign and a wonder." This was their chief -dignity; <em class="italics">they tell the mysteries of God</em>. They are -parables as well as mysteries. They were events set -in time or in the progress of the earth's history, as the -sun and moon and stars are set in the heavens, <em class="italics">for signs</em>. -Each of them has a writing on it under the hand of -God. "I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the -Lord of hosts;" for on these events He has impressed -the image of some of His everlasting counsels.</p> -<p class="pnext">But though this gentle and submissive nature that -was in our Isaac was not equal to such sacrifices and -surrenders as these, yet gentle, submissive nature is -the quality which gives him his character. At times -it acts amiably and attractively; at times it sadly -betrays him. But at all times, under all circumstances, -amid the few incidents that are recorded of him, it is -the easy, gentle, yielding Isaac that we see. And the -presence of one and the same virtue on every occasion -is, I need not say, but poor in point of character. It -is <em class="italics">combination</em> that bespeaks character and divine -workmanship. "The kingdom of God is righteousness -and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost." It is firm as -well as gracious and joyous. And this is moral glory; -as many coloured rays give us the one unsullied result -in the light we enjoy and admire. But this does not -shine in Isaac. In none, surely, in its full beauty, save -in Him in whom all glories, in their different generations, -meet and shine.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jeremiah, I might here take liberty to say, appears -to me to have been a man of one passion, as Isaac was -a man of one virtue. I mean, of course, characteristically -as to each of them, Isaac and Jeremiah. A -godly passion indeed it was, grief over the moral -wastes of Zion, which characterized Jeremiah. But -being thus his <em class="italics">one</em> affection, the passion or sentiment, -which, after this manner, possessed his soul, it makes -him generally very engaging and attractive to the -heart; but at times it allies his spirit with that which -defiles him. He is angry with the people who were -stirring the sorrows of his heart. And he murmurs -against God Himself. I speak, of course, of Jeremiah's -character, as we get it exhibited in his ministry. -I know, surely, in that ministry, looked at in itself, he -was the prophet of God and delivered the inspirations -of the Holy Ghost. But as a man I speak of him; as -a man, he was a man of one passion; as I have said of -Isaac that he was a man of one virtue. But it is those -in whom there is <em class="italics">assemblage</em> of virtues, that tell us -more assuredly of divine workmanship, of trees planted -by the rivers of waters, that bring forth fruit <em class="italics">in season</em>. -Psalm i. For it is this seasonableness that is the real -beauty. Everything is beautiful in its season, and -only then. Gentleness loses its beauty, when zeal and -indignation are called for. The first Psalm is too high -a description for a man of one virtue; it implies -character, and decision, and individuality; it shows a -soul drawing its virtue from God. "He shall be like a -tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth -its fruit in its season; his leaf also shall not wither; and -whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." This is of divine -husbandry; but such we do not see in our Isaac. In -his measure, and certainly in contrast with Isaac, this -combination or assemblage of virtues, of which I have -already spoken, appears in Abraham; and this difference -in the two may be seen in their acting under -similar circumstances. Abraham in chap. xxi. and Isaac -in this chapter xxvi.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id34" id="id33"><sup>17</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac had been very badly treated by the Philistines. -One well after another of his own digging -was violently taken away from him, as the wells -which his father had dug had been filled up. He had -yielded to this wrong with a gentle, gracious spirit, in -a spirit that well became one of God's strangers and -pilgrims here, who look for citizenship in another -world. He went from place to place, as the Philistines -again and again strove with him and urged him. -This was according to the mind which marks him, as -we said, in every incident of his life. Suffering, he -threatens not--doing well and suffering for it, he -takes it patiently; and this we know is acceptable -with God. 1 Peter ii. 20. And so God here attests -this; for He owns His servant in this thing, and -comes to him by night as He had comforted Abraham. -But when, in season, the Philistines are brought to a -better mind, and Abimelech the king, with his friend -Ahuzzath, and Phichol his chief captain, seek Isaac -and alliance with him, I ask, Does not his character, -in its way, betray him?</p> -<p class="pnext">Of course it was right in Isaac to receive them, -and plight them his friendship, and to exchange the -good offices and pledges and securities of neighbourliness -which they sought. For we ought to forgive, -if it be seventy times seven a day. But with that -there is to be faithfulness in its season--faithfulness -as well as forgiveness. "If thy brother trespass against -thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him." -But Isaac was not quite up to this sturdier virtue. -He complains to Abimelech, but it is in such soft and -easy terms, that it seems to carry no authority to the -conscience with it. Not so his entering into covenant -with him. He strikes hands readily, and, I may say, -heartily. He makes a feast for the king of Gerar, -and sends him away as his ally, without his being -brought to any acknowledgment of the wrong which -his people had done to the man whose friendship he -was now seeking and getting. Nor is there on the -lips of Isaac any gainsaying of Abimelech's assertion, -that he had done nothing but good to Isaac all the -time he had been in his country. As far as this -intercourse went, and as far as we can discover the -mind of the king of Gerar, he was not convicted by -Isaac, but returned home with his friends at peace -with himself as well as with Isaac. Isaac had not -made good to Abimelech's conscience the complaint -he had made to his ear--there was want of character -and force in it--it partook of Isaac's own nature.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was but poor virtue in Isaac. It is but poor -virtue in ourselves, when it appears--and some of us -have to treat it as such, and confess it as such, at times. -It is agreeable in a certain form of amiable human -nature; but it is not service to God. We are humbled -by reason of that in our own ways. It is poor, and -our Isaac here gives us, in measure at least, a sample -of this.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was, however, otherwise with Abraham. The -king of Gerar had sought Abraham in his day, and -sought him for a like reason, and with a like desire. -Abraham meets him in as noble a spirit of forgiveness -as Isaac would have done, with an equal readiness of -heart and hand to accept him, and to pledge him. But -with all this, he rebukes him and makes him feel the -rebukes. "Abraham <em class="italics">reproved</em> Abimelech," as we read, -but as we do not read in the case of Isaac. Abraham -will not send him away satisfied with himself, as Isaac -did, with an unanswered boast in his mouth of his and -his people's virtues. He will assure him, as fully as -Isaac could have done, of his full forgiveness and -reconciliation; but he will not hide it from him, that -his conscience may have a question with him, though his -neighbour may accept him and pardon him; that there -are matters (as between him and the Lord) which -Abraham's feast and Abraham's friendship could never -settle.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was <em class="italics">real</em>, real before God, where <em class="italics">reality</em>, beloved, -ever puts us. May we know that secret better, and be -upright before Him! This was beautiful--and by this -Abraham was <em class="italics">blessing</em> Abimelech, and not <em class="italics">merely -gratifying</em> him. But this was not so with Isaac; and -we may leave him on this occasion, in chap. xxvi., with -something of this inquiry in our hearts, Was it mere -nature, or the renewed mind in the saint, that acted -thus?--a question which still occurs.</p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac was an elect one, as surely as Abraham; a -stranger with God in the earth; one who <em class="italics">used</em> his altar -as well as <em class="italics">carried</em> it. He was meditating in the field -when he got his Rebecca, and he had prayed for the -mercy, when Esau and Jacob were given to him. We -speak of <em class="italics">character</em> in him only, when we thus contrast -him with another. We speak of the living, practical -ways of a saint; and we see in him what was below a -witness for God abroad, though amiable and devout at -home. This is found in Isaac; and kindred things are -still found, again I may say, as many of us know to -our humbling. As one once said to me, "There is -much that goes with others for being <em class="italics">spiritual</em>, because -it is done for the eye and taste of our fellow-Christians, -and not, as in God's presence, with a single heart to -Him."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">This indeed is true; and this searches our hearts to -their profit. Such notices of our common ways may -convict, but they need by no means dishearten us. -Quite otherwise; they may be welcomed as for blessing. -The light that penetrates to scatter our darkness, -leaves itself behind to gladden us, and has title to -assert the place as <em class="italics">all its own</em>--so that we ought to -be able, in spirit, to sing of <em class="italics">present light</em> and <em class="italics">past</em> -<em class="italics">darkness</em>, to know what we <em class="italics">were</em>, and what we <em class="italics">are</em>, and -still to sing--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"All that I was, my sin, my guilt,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My death was all my own--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">All that I am I owe to Thee,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My gracious God, alone.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"The evil of my former state</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Was mine and only mine--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The good in which I now rejoice</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Is Thine and only Thine.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"The darkness of my former state,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The bondage, all was mine--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The light of life in which I walk,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The liberty is Thine."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">This is standing, not attainment; this is what faith -entitles us to celebrate. Faith takes up this language, -and the soul surely hears it and understands it. But -<em class="italics">faith</em> is the spring, in the inworking power of the -Holy Ghost. As in Heb. xi., from beginning to end, -it is <em class="italics">faith</em> that is celebrated. Enoch, and Moses, and -David, and the prophets, and the martyrs of other days, -may be presented there in their fruits and victories, -but it is <em class="italics">faith</em>, and not the people of God, that the -Spirit by the apostle is celebrating in that fine chapter.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But I must return to Isaac.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the close of chapter xxvi. we read: "And Esau -was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the -daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the -daughter of Elon the Hittite: which were a grief of -mind to Isaac and to Rebekah."</p> -<p class="pnext">This has much for us in the way of admonition; -but to use it aright, I must look to things connected -with it, or like it, in the earlier history of Abraham, -and then in the future histories of Jacob and his son -Judah.</p> -<p class="pnext">The command to the nation of Israel at the very -beginning was to keep the way of the Lord very particularly -as to <em class="italics">marriage</em>. They were by no means -either to give their daughters to the sons of the -Canaanites, or take the Canaanites' daughters for -their sons. Deut. vii. 3. If they did so, it would be -on the pain of being no longer owned of the Lord. -Josh. xxiii. According to this, the apostate days of -Solomon are marked by disobedience to this very -thing (1 Kings xi.); and afterwards, no real recovery -to God could be admitted, without a return to the -observance of this principle in their marriages. Ezra -x.; Neh. x.</p> -<p class="pnext">Obedience, therefore, in this thing was a peculiar -test of the state of the nation. And it is thus that -I look at it in this earliest book of Genesis. For -though divine law was not then published, divine -principles were then understood. It may be regarded -as the witness of the state of <em class="italics">family</em> religion then, as -it was of the state of <em class="italics">national</em> religion afterwards.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham, in this matter, eminently keeps "the way -of the Lord;" and so Eliezer, one of his "household;" -and so our Isaac, one of his "children." For Abraham -sends a special embassy into a distant land, in order -to get a wife "in the Lord" for his son--Eliezer -goes on that embassy with a ready mind--and Isaac -in patience waits for the fruit of it, not seeking any -alliance with the nearer people; and, though sad and -solitary, keeps himself for the Lord's appointed helpmeet. -Like Adam, he waited for a helpmeet from -the Lord's own hand, though it cost him patience and -sore solitude. This his meditation in the field at eventide -shows. He endured. He might have got a daughter -of Canaan; but he endured. He will rather suffer -the sickening of his heart from the deferring of his -hope, than not marry "in the Lord," or take him a wife -of any that he may choose. And all this was very -beautiful in this first generation of this elect family. -The father, the servant, and the child, each in his way, -witnesses how Abraham had ordered his house according -to God, teaching his children and his household the -way of the Lord. See chap. xviii. 19.</p> -<p class="pnext">But we notice a course of sad decline and departure -from all this.</p> -<p class="pnext">Isaac, in his turn and generation, becomes the head -of the family. But he is grievously careless in this -matter, compared with his father; as this scripture, -the close of chapter xxvi., shows us. He does not watch -over his children's ways, to anticipate mischief, as -Abraham had done. Esau his son marries a daughter -of the Hittites. Isaac and Rebecca are grieved at this, -it is true; for they had <em class="italics">righteous</em> souls which knew how -to be "vexed" with this; but then, it was their <em class="italics">carelessness</em> -which had brought this vexation upon them.</p> -<p class="pnext">This we cannot say was beautiful. But still there -was a happy symptom in it. There was a righteous -soul to be vexed, a mind sensitive of defilement. And -this was well. Jacob, however, declines still further. -He neither anticipates the mischief, like Abraham, -nor does he, like Isaac, grieve over it when it occurs. -But with an unconcerned heart, as far as the history -tells us, he allows his children to form what alliances -they please, and to take them wives of all whom they -choose.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is sad. There is no <em class="italics">joy</em> for the heart here, as -in the <em class="italics">obedience</em> of Abraham; there is no <em class="italics">relief</em> for -the heart here, as in the <em class="italics">sorrow</em> of Isaac and Rebecca.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Judah afterwards goes beyond even all this in -a very fearful way. He represents the fourth generation -of this elect family. But he not only does not -anticipate mischief, like Abraham, in the ordering of -his family, nor grieve over mischief when brought -into it, like Isaac, nor is he simply indifferent about -it, whether it be brought in or not, like Jacob, but he -actually brings it in himself! For he does nothing -less than take a daughter of the Canaanites to be the -wife of his son Er!</p> -<p class="pnext">This exceeded. This was sinning with a high hand. -And thus, in all this, in this history of the four generations -of Genesis-patriarchs, we notice declension, -gradual but solemn declension, till it reach complete -apostasy from the way of the Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">But if this be serious and sad, as it really is, is it -not profitable and seasonable? Can we not readily -own, that it is "written for our learning"? How does -it warn us of a tendency to decline from God's principles! -What took place in the same elect family, -generation after generation, may take place in the -same elect person, year after year. The principles of -God may be deserted by easy gradations. They may -first be <em class="italics">relaxed</em>, then <em class="italics">forgotten</em>, then <em class="italics">despised</em>. They -may pass from a <em class="italics">firm</em> hand into an <em class="italics">easy</em> one, from -thence to an <em class="italics">indifferent</em> one, and find themselves at -last flung away by a <em class="italics">rebellious</em> one. Many have at -first stood for God's principles in the face of difficulties -and fascinations, like Abraham--then, merely grieved -over the loss of them, like Isaac--then, been careless -about their loss or maintenance, like Jacob--and at -last, with a high hand, broken them, like Judah.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is suggested by the scene at the close of chap. -xxvi. As we pursue the story of Isaac after this, we -shall find that his soft and pliant nature allies him not -only with weaknesses, but with defilement, with some of -the low indulgences of mere animal nature. I mean in -the closing action of his life, his blessing of Esau and -Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is a solemn scene indeed, full of warning and -admonition.</p> -<p class="pnext">Though Isaac had been grieved, as we have seen, by -the marriage of Esau with a daughter of the Hittites, -yet we learn immediately afterwards, that it is this very -same Esau that draws and holds the strongest affections -of his father's heart, to which that father would, if he -could, have sacrificed everything. And this was very -sad. It reminds me of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat had -godly <em class="italics">sensibilities</em>, but he was wanting in godly <em class="italics">energies</em>. -Through vanity he sadly sinned; first joining in affinity -with Ahab, king of Israel, and then with Ahab going to -the battle. But still, he had sensibilities that were -spiritual and of divine workmanship. For in the midst -of the prophets of Baal, he was not at ease. He had a -witness within, that this would not do; and he asked, -"Is there not here a prophet of the Lord beside, that we -might inquire of him?" But still, and in spite of all -this, he went to Ramoth-Gilead to battle, and that, too, -in alliance with that very Ahab, who had thus so -painfully wounded the best affections of his soul, and -who, under his own eye, and as they sat on the throne -together, in the spirit of deep revolt from the God of -Israel, had consulted the prophets of Baal.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was strange, as well as terrible; but this was -that king Jehoshaphat. And just after the same manner, -our Isaac on this occasion had his <em class="italics">sensibilities</em>, but not -his corresponding <em class="italics">energies</em>. With a godly mind he -grieved over Esau's marriage with a daughter of Heth; -and yet that very Esau, who thus wounded the witness -within him, was the one to attract and hold and order -the fondest sympathies of his heart, so as to hinder him -from freeing himself to act for God.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was not through vanity, as it was in Jehoshaphat, -that Isaac thus sadly and strangely failed--it was rather, -from the common pravity of his character, such as we -have seen it to be, a general relaxed moral tone of soul. -But whether it be through this or that, he is ensnared, -I may say, by an earlier Ahab, though his soul had the -sense of that Ahab's apostasy. He would help Esau to -the blessing all he could, as Jehoshaphat would help the -king of Israel all he could to the victory at Ramoth-Gilead.</p> -<p class="pnext">What sights are these! what lessons and warnings!</p> -<p class="pnext">But we must inspect this family scene, this family -circle in chap. xxvii. a little more closely. There are -others beside Isaac to be looked at.</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham's servant in chap. xxiv. had brought two -different things with him out of the house of his -master, when he visited the house of Bethuel. He -brought a <em class="italics">report</em> of all that the Lord had done for -Abraham, and <em class="italics">gifts</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">These different things become tests of that household -in Mesopotamia. The report dealt with future -and distant things, and had God necessarily connected -with it--the gifts might have been independent of -Him, and were a present gain. Rebecca was moved -by the report. She takes the jewels, it is true; but -the tidings which the servant brought are chief with -her. The report of what awaited her among a distant -people whom the Lord had blessed had power to detach -her. It was not Isaac merely, or Abraham's wealth -merely. Her father had wealth, and she need not go -far to promise herself a home and its enjoyments. But -<em class="italics">the Lord</em> had blessed Abraham, and had now prospered -the journey of his servant. It was not a question -with Rebecca whether she would take Isaac and a -share in Abraham's wealth, or remain poor and lonely. -The question was this--Would she take the portion the -Lord was now bringing her, or that which her kindred -and circumstances in the world had provided her?</p> -<p class="pnext">And so it is with us, beloved. It is not a question -between heaven and nothing, but between heaven and -the world, between our taking the happiness which -the Lord in His promises, or which human present -circumstances, have for us. Are we desirous of divine -joy and of heavenly riches? Can we say to the Lord -Jesus, Thou shalt "choose our inheritance for us?" -Is the distant land, of which we have received a -report, our object? This was Rebecca; she could -answer these questions. We should wrong her if we -judged that with her it was Abraham's wealth and -Isaac's hand or nothing. It was not so. As we said -before, and surely the story warrants it, she had large -expectations of every kind, if she remained at home. -She need not take a long, untried journey with a -stranger and to a strange people. But all became -nothing to her, when in faith she received the report. -She comes forth at the call of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">Rebecca was a genuine daughter of Abraham. Abraham -had crossed the desert at the call of the God of -glory, and Rebecca now crosses the same desert at -the report of what the God of glory had done for -Abraham. They had the like "spirit of faith." The -stronger expression of it we may find in Abraham, -but it was the like "spirit of faith." Abraham had -gone forth in the faith of an unattested call; Rebecca -now goes forth on an accredited report. There was -no Eshcol brought out of Canaan to Ur to embolden -Abraham to take the journey; but "this is the fruit -of it" was said to Rebecca in the servants and camels -and gold and jewels--a branch with a cluster rich and -abundant indeed. The report is now sealed to Rebecca, -as it had not been to Abraham. Abraham tried an -untried path; Rebecca did but walk in the footsteps -of the flock. But they were on the same road, and -reached the same place.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is simple and beautiful in Rebecca, and the way -of faith to this hour. But, beloved, there is more, and -that, too, of another kind. Rebecca's <em class="italics">character</em> had been -already formed--as, I may say, it is with all of us, -before we are quickened of God. The moment of His -power arrives--we are made alive with divine life then--the -separating call is also answered; but it finds us -of a certain character, a certain shape and complexion of -mind. It finds us, it may be, Cretans (Titus i.), or brothers -and sisters of Laban, or something that wears the strong -stamp of a peculiar pravity of nature. And then character -and mind, derived from nature or from family -or from education and the like, we take with us after we -have been born of the Spirit, and carry it in us across -the desert from Padan-aram to the house of Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is serious. It is serious, that with the quickening -of the Spirit, nature or the force of early habits -and education, or of family character, will cling to us -still. "The Cretans are always liars."</p> -<p class="pnext">Laban, with whom Rebecca had grown up, was a -crafty, knowing, worldly man. It is plain that, on the -occasion of Eliezer's visit, he had been moved only by -the <em class="italics">gifts</em>. They made a ready way for Abraham's -servant; as we read, A man's gift maketh room for -him. Proverbs xviii. 16. Laban was evidently the -stirring, active, important one in his father Bethuel's -house. He had a taste for occasions which called for -management. And all this is a very bad symptom. -It is a bad symptom when one carries the bag. It is -bad to find one prematurely managing and clever, or, -at any period, fond of occasions where skill of that -kind is to be exercised, having an aptness in conducting -either state affairs or family interests. And just -such an one was Laban; and Laban was the brother -of Rebecca; and Rebecca had passed all her life, till -her marriage, with him; and the family character, in -this only great action in which she is called to take a -part, sadly betrays itself.</p> -<p class="pnext">If Abraham and Sarah had brought the foul, unclean -compact between them, as they left their father's -house to walk with God, so did Rebecca bring this -family character, this Laban-leaven, with her. We -have <em class="italics">nature</em> in its pravity with us after our conversion; -and we have our own <em class="italics">fleshly characteristics</em> -also, as well as the common pravity of nature. And -we have to rebuke them sharply, that we may be -sound, that is, morally healthful, in the faith. Tit. i. 13. -And this lesson is afresh pressed upon us, from the -story of this distinguished woman in this chapter.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there is more of the same kind. Jacob, as well -as his mother, Rebecca, got his mind formed by this -same earliest influence. He was all his days--I mean, -all his practical, active days--a slow-hearted, calculating -man; and in this family scene, in chap. xxvii., we find -him to be such an one--a ready, intelligent pupil of -his mother, Laban's sister, and whose favourite child he -had been from his birth. So that as Laban had been -corrupting his sister Rebecca, Rebecca had been corrupting -her son Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">And further still, as this same chapter tells us, -Isaac, whose mind and character, as we have seen, had -been so remarkably formed by his early life in Sarah's -tent, had sunk into the indulgence of some of the low -desires of nature. He loved his son Esau, because he -ate of his venison. This was poor indeed, and something -worse than poor. And this love of venison, we -may surely suggest, must have encouraged Esau in -the chase; just as Rebecca's cleverness, got and -brought from her brother's house in Padan, formed -the mind and character of her favourite Jacob. And -thus one parent was helping to corrupt one of the -children, and the other the other.</p> -<p class="pnext">What mischief, what sad defilement, is disclosed -here, in all this family scene! But we may go on to -expose it even more; for the heart is not only capable -of such defilement, but it is daring enough, at times, -to take its naughtiness <em class="italics">into the sanctuary</em>. "I was -almost in all evil in the <em class="italics">midst of the congregation and -assembly</em>." Proverbs v.</p> -<p class="pnext">The word to Aaron, long after this, was, Do not -drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy son with -thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation. -Lev. x. Nature is not to be animated in order -to wait on the service of God; it is not to be set in -action by its provisions, for the discharge of the duties -of the sanctuary. Strong drink may exhilarate, and -give ebullition to animal spirits, but this is no qualification -for a priest of the house of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">But even into pollution such as this Isaac seems to -have been betrayed. "Take, I pray thee," says he to -Esau, "thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go -to the field, and take me some venison: and make me -savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that -I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die." -He was going to do the last religious act of a patriarchal -priest, and he calls as for wine and strong -drink, the food of mere animal life, to raise and endow -him for the service!</p> -<p class="pnext">This was sad indeed, thus to deliberate on the venison -at such a moment. We may all be conscious how -much of nature soils our holy things, how much of the -mere animation of the flesh may be mistaken for the -easy and strong current of the Spirit. We may be -aware of this, in the place of communion. And this is -to be our sorrow and our humbling--we are to confess -it as evil, or at least as weakness, and to watch -against it. But to prepare for it, carefully to mix -the wine and strong drink, to take a full draught, after -this manner, this exceeds in defilement.</p> -<p class="pnext">And nothing comes of all this but dishonour and -loss. The whole of this family pollution is judged -in the holiness of God, because this was a family of -God in the earth. "You only have I known of all -the families of the earth, therefore I will punish you -for all your iniquities." Isaac is laid aside, Rebecca -never sees Jacob again, and the calculating supplanter -finds himself in the midst of toils and wrongs and -hardships, supplanted and deceived himself again and -again; for twenty long years an alien from the house -of his father. Nothing comes of all this, whether we -look at the crooked policy of the one party, or at the -fleshly favouritism of the other; all is disappointment -and shame, under the rebuke of the holiness of the -Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is, however, one relief, and it is a very important -one, in the midst of this otherwise foul and -gloomy scene. "By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and -Esau concerning things to come." This is the Holy -Ghost's own reference to this chapter in Hebrews xi.</p> -<p class="pnext">But ere I speak of the relief or comfort which -this has for us when thinking of Isaac, I take occasion -to inquire, What was the nature or character of this -blessing by the patriarchs upon their children, which -we find again and again in the Book of Genesis?</p> -<p class="pnext">A blessing was in the hand of Melchizedek in chap. -xiv.; as again, long after, there was a blessing in the -hand of Aaron in Num. vi. These instances we may -easily understand--these blessings were conferred or -pronounced by reason of <em class="italics">office</em>. They were delivered -through priesthood ordained of God. There was -nothing prophetic or oracular in them. The words -which these priests used were rather <em class="italics">prepared</em> than -<em class="italics">inspired</em>; words already prescribed by divine provision, -rather than communicated at the moment by divine -illumination, at least in the case of Aaron.</p> -<p class="pnext">With the patriarchal blessing, however, it was as -clearly otherwise. There was a prophecy or an oracle -in Isaac's words on Esau and Jacob here in chap. xxvii.; -and so was there afterwards in Jacob's words on his -children in chap. xlix., and in his words on Joseph's -children in chap. xlviii.; and so was there before, in -Noah's words, in chap. ix., on Shem, Ham, and Japheth.</p> -<p class="pnext">But why, I inquire, was this great matter thus committed -to the patriarchs?</p> -<p class="pnext">If I mistake not, some of the secrets of patriarchal -religion, patriarchal worship and ministry, are involved -in the answer to this. Religion had, in these earliest -days, the same great truths which it still has for -its spirit and principle. The Fall and Recovery of -man, or Ruin and Redemption, were then made -known, and they were received by faith. The altars -of the fathers, and the ordinance of clean and unclean, -tell us of faith and of the apprehensions of -faith in those days. The tent of the living patriarchs, -and the Machpelah of the departed patriarchs, tell -us that they understood the stranger's calling, and -a coming resurrection; and Abraham's grove at Beersheba -(chap. xxi.), and his alliance with the Gentile -at the well of the oath, tell us likewise, in clear though -symbolic language, that they understood some of the -bright and happy secrets of the millennial age, or of -"the world to come."</p> -<p class="pnext">And worship and ministry, in those infant days, were -in their simplest forms. I may say, <em class="italics">nature</em> suggested -that the father or head of the house should be the -prophet, priest, and king, there. In after times, when -the condition of things spread out, and when, with enlargement -and age, corruption came in, <em class="italics">the holiness of -God</em> demanded a separated or circumcised people; and, -connected with such, a separated or anointed priesthood. -Now, in our day, in the day of the kingdom -of God, which is, as we know, "not in word, but in -power," it is required that ministry should be something -more than nature would suggest, or than holiness -would demand; there must be <em class="italics">power</em>, such as the Spirit -Himself prepares and imparts. But in the early days -of Genesis, those <em class="italics">family</em> days--those infant, earliest -days--the voice of <em class="italics">nature</em> was listened to, and duly and -seasonably so; and accordingly, the head of the family -was the minister of God to the family, and both the -dignities and the services of prophets, priests, and -kings, within the range of the homestead, or in the -family temple, centred in the father.</p> -<p class="pnext">The blessing of the children seems to flow from this. -It was an act performed in the combined virtues of a -prophet and a priest, which, as we see, the fathers of the -families carried in their own persons. They received a -communication of the divine mind, and then uttered it, -as "oracles of God;" and, being separated or priestly -representatives of God to their children, they pronounced -His blessing, God's blessing, upon them.</p> -<p class="pnext">They seem to sustain this character through the Book -of Genesis.</p> -<p class="pnext">In our Isaac it is sad indeed to see how this character -was exercised, or rather abused--as such like high -endowments have constantly been, the priestly dignity, -for instance, in the person of Eli (godly old man as he -was), and the kingly authority, in one tremendous -instance, even by such an one as the deeply-loved and -honoured son of Jesse.</p> -<p class="pnext">So Isaac would have made his office serve, not only -his private partialities, but his very appetites. And this, -too, in the face of solemn, divine warning. The word -had gone before, upon Isaac's children (Esau the elder -and Jacob the younger), "the elder shall serve the -younger." But Isaac's fleshly favouritism and appetites -had made him careless and forgetful of this, and he would -fain have made the elder, Esau, the heir of the promise.</p> -<p class="pnext">And here we may call to mind, that Caiaphas, in his -day, was such an one as Isaac, combining the prophet -and the priest in his own person. And Caiaphas would -fain have abused his office and his gift to his own -wretched purposes and desires. He delivered a true -prophecy with a design on the life of the Lord Jesus. -John xi. And in earlier days, the prophet Balaam was -of the same generation. He sought, all he could, to use -his gift in the service of his lusts. God, however, took -him out of his own hand, and forced his lips to utter the -sentence of righteousness, the judgment of truth. And, -though it be sad to put such men together, even in a -single action, yet so it is; for such was Isaac in Gen. xxvii. -Though a sanctified and filled vessel, he would have -served the wish of his own fond heart, in the use of the -treasure which he carried; but God took him out of his -own hand, and used him as the oracle of His settled, -sovereign purpose. Again I say, it is sad thus to link -such men as Isaac and Balaam in a common moral action. -But we know that "that which is born of the flesh is -flesh." As an old writer says, "The water that is foul in -the well will not be clean in the bucket." The flesh in -an Isaac is as the flesh in a Balaam; and the world in -the heart of each of them is the same world.</p> -<p class="pnext">But they are not one <em class="italics">to the end</em>. This is the comfort, -the gracious comfort, of which I spoke before. -Balaam is Balaam still, the man who loved the wages -of unrighteousness, and ran greedily after his own -error for reward; he goes on as Balaam, giving counsel -to Balak to cast a stumbling-block before the people -of God; and at last he fell, as Balaam, with the uncircumcised, -slain with the sword, like those that go -down to the pit. But Isaac repented with godly -sorrow unto a repentance not to be repented of. -When his eye is opened, and he discovers what he -had been about, and how Jacob had got the blessing -which he had prepared for Esau--when it thus confronts -him to the face, that he had been withstanding -God, but that he could not prevail, his soul seems to -awaken as from sleep, and to get alive to all this, for -we read of him, that he trembled with a great trembling -greatly. v. 33. The sight, the moral sense, of the -place that he was filling, startles his soul. He trembles -in himself. The flesh which he had been nourishing -could not stand him in such a moment--and he seeks -it not--it has been exposed to him; and in the light -and energy of the better life, he acts according to faith, -and says, speaking now of Jacob, and no longer of -Esau, "I have blessed him, yea, and he shall be blessed."</p> -<p class="pnext">There was nothing of this in Balaam; Balaam was -not turned back. When the angel withstood him in -the narrow way, and his ass fell under him, there was -none of this godly sorrow working repentance. But -our Isaac is restored. He seeks another way, and takes -up and follows after God's object from that moment. -It is not "the <em class="italics">madness</em> of the prophet" that the Spirit -records in Isaac, as He had to do in Balaam, but the -<em class="italics">faith</em> of the prophet. For in this hour of happy -restored fellowship with the mind of God, after his -trembling, "with a great trembling greatly," the way -of Isaac is sealed and signalized by the Spirit. "By -faith Isaac blessed Esau and Jacob concerning things -to come." And this is the only matter in the life of -Isaac which is noticed by the Spirit in that chapter, -Heb. xi.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this had character in it, and the Spirit has distinguished -it. The victories of faith which Moses -gained were very fine. He answered both the <em class="italics">attractions</em> -and the <em class="italics">terrors</em> of Egypt; refusing to be called -the son of the king's daughter, and forsaking the -country, not fearing the king's wrath. These were -splendid victories; and are so to this day, when -achieved in the saint. But there are conquests much -less distinguished, which nevertheless are conquests, -recorded in this chapter which celebrates the deeds -of faith. They may be seen in Isaac and in Jacob. -Each of these witnesses of faith, in his day, blessed -the children or the sons before him <em class="italics">according to God</em>, -though this was <em class="italics">contrary to nature</em>. Isaac would -have preferred Esau, and Jacob would have preferred -Manasseh; but Isaac persisted in his blessing of Jacob, -and Jacob in his blessing of Ephraim, and in this, -<em class="italics">nature</em> was conquered. It was not, we may allow, -the <em class="italics">world</em>, in either its snares or its dangers, that stood -out to try the strength of faith in the saint--but still -it was an opposer. It was <em class="italics">nature</em>; the suggestions or -sympathies or partialities of nature--and while we may -admire the splendour of the victories of a Moses or an -Abraham, let us remember and look to it, that we fight -the fight of faith with <em class="italics">nature</em>, and gain the day in that -field, with Isaac and Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">As to Jacob's part in this family scene which we are -looking at, we may certainly say, had he but left his -matters in the Lord's hand, where they had been from -the beginning, from before his birth, and not allowed -his mother to take them into hers, he would have -fared far better. How often has many and many a -Jacob since the days of Gen. xxvii. proved the same! -The Lord had promised him the blessing without any -condition. "The elder shall serve the younger." But -he could not, in the patience of faith, wait the Lord's -time and method to make good His own promise. -Therefore the promise gets laden with reserves and -difficulties and burthens. It shall surely be made -good. The promise of the Lord is certain, and "never -was forfeited yet." He is able to make it stand. The -elder shall serve the younger--but now, by reason of -Jacob's own unbelief and policy, the elder shall give -the younger some trouble: because the younger thinks -well to deal with the promise in his own craft and -skill, he shall be made to reach it after delay and -sorrow and shame.</p> -<p class="pnext">Accordingly, Esau himself gets a promise from the -Lord, through his father Isaac, on this occasion, a -promise which the divine purpose and grace towards -Jacob, at the first, had never contemplated. "And -Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, -thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of -the dew of heaven from above; and by thy sword shalt -thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall -come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, thou -shalt break his yoke from off thy neck." <em class="italics">vv.</em> 39, 40.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this comes to pass. David, who came of Jacob, -sets garrisons in Edom, and the Edomites become his -servants and bring gifts. Jehoram, who also comes of -Jacob, afterwards loses the Edomites as his servants -and tributaries; they revolt, and continue so to this -day. 2 Sam. viii. 14; 2 Chron. xxi. 8.</p> -<p class="pnext">Saviours by-and-by shall come to Zion and judge -the mount of Esau. Obadiah 21. The tabernacle of -David which is now fallen shall be raised up, and -Israel shall possess Edom and the residue of the Gentiles. -Amos ix. This shall be made good in its season, -for the elder shall serve the younger--the promise is -yea and amen. But now, and from the days of Jehoram -the son of Jehoshaphat of the house of David of -the lineage of Jacob, Esau or Edom has been in revolt; -and the promise is thus delayed and complicated and -burthened in ways such as the grace of God and the -gift by grace had never designed, and such as Jacob -had never passed through, had his faith been more -simple.</p> -<p class="pnext">And there is much like this in Christian experience. -See the disciples on the sea of Galilee, in Mark iv. -The Lord had said to them, "Let us go unto the -other side." This was a pledge to them that they -were sure to reach the other side. They need not fear. -They may, if they please, lay them down to sleep with -their Master. But no--they fear, and consult with -flesh and blood. And therefore they reach the other -side with tremblings and amazement and shame. Their -fears loaded their spirit with these burdens, which, had -they left the <em class="italics">fulfilling</em> of the word to Him who had -<em class="italics">given</em> the word, would have been saved them. And so, -the unbelief of Jacob in Gen. xxvii., his putting the -promise of God into his mother's hand, has loaded the -history of his house with those perplexities and contradictions -and changes, which, as we have mentioned, -were all strangers to the promise, as the simple gift of -grace, at the beginning, had purposed it and made it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Many like experiences the disciples had, through -their unbelief, as they companied with the Lord Jesus -all the time He went in and out among them--and -many such are known to us His saints at this day. -Our spirits gather amazement and shame, when we -might have known only the calm and bright enjoyments -of faith, looking, if it were so, at a sleeping -Jesus, and knowing His sufficiency for all promises, -though winds and waves oppose.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus was it with Jacob, according to the part he -acted in this sad family scene. Esau was not the -<em class="italics">guilty</em> one here. He was rather the <em class="italics">injured</em> party; -and therefore, in the hand of Him by whom "actions -are weighed," Esau is the only one who is a gainer. -All the rest have to learn what the way of their -own hearts shall end in. Isaac, Rebecca, and Jacob -alike prove this. It is Esau, so far the injured one, -who gains, as we have seen, anything by it all. By -his sword he lives, and, in time and for a time, breaks -the yoke of his younger brother off his neck.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id36" id="id35"><sup>18</sup></a></p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">After all this, just at the end of his ways, though -not of his days, at the desire of the suspicious and -terrified Rebecca, Isaac sends away Jacob. And this -action is done with an expression of sorrow and shame -and disappointment, the bitter fruit which their own -way had prepared for them. All would have been -different indeed, had the spirit and obedience of faith -kept them in the way of the Lord. xxvii. 42; xxviii. 5.</p> -<p class="pnext">And here we reach, as we said, the end, the practical -end, of the life of our patriarch. He lives, it is true, -for forty years after this; it may be more--but he is -lost to us. He is as if he were not.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the close of chapter xxxv. we read, "And Jacob -came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto the city -of Arbah, which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac -sojourned. And the days of Isaac were an hundred -and fourscore years. And Isaac gave up the ghost, and -died, and was gathered unto his people, old and full of -days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Abraham had carefully possessed himself of Machpelah, -on the occasion of Sarah's death; and there he had -buried Sarah, and there Isaac and Ishmael had buried -him; and there, at this time, Jacob and Esau bury Isaac; -and there afterwards his twelve sons bury Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">The purchase of this parcel of ground, and the care -the patriarchs manifested in the matter of their burial -there, tell us of their faith in their own happy resurrection -and its attendant inheritance of the land. It -tells us that <em class="italics">hope</em> was in their souls as surely as <em class="italics">faith</em>--that -as they rested, without a doubt, in the certainty -of their call and adoption, so did they, with -like assurance, in the life and inheritance prepared -for them in the world to come. They lived in faith, -and they died in faith. They were a people in whose -souls the life of faith and hope was known and enjoyed. -They betray nature again and again; they -err, they shift and contrive and play false with God -at times through unbelief; they incur discipline and -rebuke, and at times are humbled before men; but -they seem never to doubt the blessed facts, that they -were <em class="italics">adopted</em> and <em class="italics">endowed</em> by the God of glory. Faith -and hope lived in their souls. I say not that they -had what we have. There is now an unction, an earnest, -and a witness, fruit of the given, indwelling Spirit, -imparting not only the power but the character of this -day of ours. But the patriarchs, in their infant age, -seem <em class="italics">never to doubt</em>. And this is precious--that God, -even in the earliest communications of Himself--communications -of Himself to His elect even in their -childhood, or, in the infant days of Genesis--would -be known by them as One to be trusted both for the -present and the future.</p> -<p class="pnext">And again I say, this is precious. The Spirit forms -<em class="italics">hope</em> in the soul of the elect, as surely as faith. Machpelah -tells us this, as to the patriarchs. But it was -found before them, and it has been found ever since. -Adam was a hoping as well as a believing man. As -soon as he had faith, he had hope. He walked as a -<em class="italics">stranger</em> on earth, as well as in <em class="italics">the consciousness of life</em>. -And with him, and like him, the antediluvian saints.</p> -<p class="pnext">Israel afterwards celebrated the last night of their -sojourn in Egypt with the staff in their hand and the -shoe on their foot, as simply and as surely as they -had put the blood on the lintel. They hoped for -something beyond Egypt, as certainly as they counted -on security in Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">Moses witnessed this standing of Israel, this proper -standing in the camp of God in the power of faith -and hope, when afterwards he said to Hobab, "We -are journeying to a place of which the Lord said, -I will give it you." And so Paul, in his words before -King Agrippa, "Unto which promise our twelve tribes -instantly serving God day and night hope to come."</p> -<p class="pnext">The oil in the vessels of the wise virgins is the -expression of the power of hope. They provided -against His delay for whose return alone they looked -and waited, be that return far off or nigh.</p> -<p class="pnext">And to give hope its highest, brightest moral glory, -we are given to know, that the present heaven of -Jesus is a heaven of hope. Though seated at the -right hand of the Majesty on high, He is, we know, -"expecting till His enemies be made His footstool." -And the mind of the glorified Church will, by-and-by, -be kindred with this mind of her glorified Lord; -for the heaven of Rev. v. is also a heaven of hope. -"Thou art worthy," say the living creatures and -enthroned elders of that heaven, "to take the book, -and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and -hast redeemed to God by thy blood out of every -kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and -hast made them unto our God kings and priests: and -they shall reign over the earth."</p> -<p class="pnext">In this life of faith and hope, the fathers of the Book -of Genesis are seen to be one. Happy to know this. -They illustrate different mysteries, and read us different -moral lessons; but in this life of faith and hope they -are <em class="italics">one</em>; and each in his day, Abraham, Isaac, and -Jacob, is alike gathered to his people (chaps. xxv., xxxv., -xlix.)--each is "a handful of sacred dust" in the cave -in the field of Ephron the Hittite, laid up there in sure -and certain hope of a resurrection unto life and to the -inheritance.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There is a common saying, "It is better to wear out -than to rust out." But this better thing was not -Isaac's. He rusts out. And <em class="italics">such</em> was the natural -close of <em class="italics">such</em> a life.</p> -<p class="pnext">Was Isaac, I ask, a vessel marred on the wheel? -Was he a vessel laid aside as not fit for the Master's -use? or at least not fit for it any longer? His history -seems to tell us this. Abraham had not been such an -one. All the distinguishing features of "the stranger -here," all the proper fruits of that energy that quickened -him at the outset, were borne in him and by him to the -very end. We have looked at this already in the walk -of Abraham. (See pp. 134-137.) Abraham's leaf did not -wither. He brought forth fruit in old age. So was it -with Moses, with David, and with Paul. They die -with their harness on, at the plough or in the battle. -Mistakes and more than mistakes they made by the -way, or in their cause, or at their work; but they are -never laid aside. Moses is counselling the camp near -the banks of the Jordan; David is ordering the -conditions of the kingdom, and putting it (in its beauty -and strength) into the hand of Solomon; Paul has his -armour on, his loins girded. When, as I may say, the -time of their departure was at hand, the Master, as we -read in Luke xii., found them "so doing," as servants -should be found. But thus was it not with Isaac. -Isaac is laid aside. For forty long years we know -nothing of him; he had been, as it were, decaying -away and wasting. The vessel was rusting till it -rusted out.</p> -<p class="pnext">There surely is meaning in all this, meaning for our -admonition.</p> -<p class="pnext">And yet--such is the fruitfulness and instruction of -the testimonies of God--there are others, in Scripture, -of other generations, who have still more solemn lessons -and warnings for us. It is humbling to be <em class="italics">laid aside</em> -as no longer fit for use; but it is sad to be left merely -to <em class="italics">recover ourselves</em>, and it is terrible to remain to <em class="italics">defile -ourselves</em>. And illustrations of all this moral variety -we get in the testimonies of God. <em class="italics">Jacob</em>, in his closing -days in Egypt, is not as a vessel laid aside, but he is -there recovering himself. I know there are some truly -precious things connected with him during those seventeen -years that he spent in that land, and we could not -spare the lesson which the Spirit reads to us out of the -life of Jacob in Egypt. But still, the moral of it is -this--a saint, who had been under holy discipline, -recovering himself, and yielding fruit meet for recovery. -And when we think of it a little, that is but a poor -thing. But <em class="italics">Solomon</em> is a still worse case. He lives to -defile himself; sad and terrible to tell it. This was -neither Isaac nor Jacob--it was not a saint simply laid -aside, nor a saint left to recover himself. Isaac was, -in the great moral sense, blameless to the end, and -Jacob's last days were his best days; but of Solomon -we read, "It came to pass, <em class="italics">when Solomon was old</em>, that -his wives turned away his heart after other gods," and -this has made the writing over his name, the tablet to -his memory, equivocal, and hard to be deciphered to -this day.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such lessons do Isaac and Jacob and Solomon, in -these ways, read for us, beloved--such are the minute -and various instructions left for our souls in the fruitful -and living pages of the oracles of God. They give -us to see, in the house of God, vessels fit for use and -kept in use even to the end--vessels laid aside, to rust -out rather than to wear out--vessels whose best service -it is to get themselves clean again--and vessels whose -dishonour it is, at the end of their service, to contract -some fresh defilement.</p> -<p class="pnext">Wondrous and various the lessons and the ways -of grace, abounding grace! Quickly indeed does the -soul entertain thoughts of God according to the suggestions -of <em class="italics">nature</em>, instead of knowing Him according to -<em class="italics">faith</em>. Nature holds Him before the soul as a judge, -or as a lawgiver, or an exactor of righteousness, as One -that carries balances in His hand to try every thought -and work--One that is sensitive and resentful of the -slightest touch of evil. But faith holds Him before a -gazing, worshipping eye and heart, as the One who -always loves us, do what He may, or speak as He will. -For faith worketh by love (Gal. v. 6)--it worketh -towards God as Love, and therefore it is a spirit of -confidence and liberty. If we find our souls under -pressure of the spirit of fear or bondage or uncertainty, -we may be sure that they have let go the gentle -hand of faith, and allowed themselves to be led by -such tutors and governors as nature provides. This -ought not so to be. We are to know that we have -<em class="italics">ever</em> to do with <em class="italics">love</em>! When we read, when we pray, -when we converse, when we confess, when we serve, -when we sing, when we look at His hand in providence, -or think of His name in secret, may faith's -communion with God be ours! He loves us. The -relationship in which we stand, and of which our -Isaac was the expression, makes this a <em class="italics">necessary</em> truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is "to Himself" that God has brought us and -adopted us--having predestinated us unto the adoption -of children by Jesus Christ <em class="italics">to Himself</em>, according -to the good pleasure of His will. Eph. i. 5. And -these words "to Himself" bespeak God's own joy in -the <em class="italics">adoption</em> of the elect, in making them <em class="italics">children</em>; -as was Abraham's joy at the weaning of our Isaac. -Christ presents the Church to <em class="italics">Himself</em> (Eph. v. 27), and -the Father gathers the elect as children by adoption -to <em class="italics">Himself</em>. Each has personal interest and personal -delight in the mysteries of grace. And according to -this, the Holy Ghost, in the Epistle to the Galatians, -to which the story of Isaac so refers, pleads the cause -of the Father as well as the cause of Christ with us. He -teaches us that we are redeemed by Christ from the -<em class="italics">curse</em> of the law, and, through the Spirit given to us -by the Father, from the <em class="italics">bondage</em> of the law. All this -is full of blessing to us; and all this, the mystery of -Isaac, the son of the free-woman, suggests to us.</p> -<p class="pnext">Faith is that principle in us which gives to the Lord -Jesus the place or privilege (such a place indeed as -God alone can fill) of sustaining the confidence of a -sinner entirely by Himself, of being the immediate, the -only object of the sinner's trust. But faith, in this -dispensation, involves <em class="italics">relationship</em>. By faith we stand -in the Person as well as <em class="italics">on</em> the work of Christ--and -Christ being the Son, we are children, as we are saved -sinners. We are all the children of God by faith in -Christ Jesus. Gal. iii. 26. And Ishmael is not to share -the house with Isaac. The spirit of bondage gendered -by the law or by the religion of ordinances, is to be -put out, and the spirit of liberty alone is to fill it. For the -house is now set in a child and not in a servant, in -Isaac and not in Eliezer--and <em class="italics">relationship</em> is God's joy -as it is ours. "The <em class="italics">Father seeketh</em> such to worship -Him." Wondrous words of abounding grace, beloved! -and Sarah's joy in our Isaac pledged this in patriarchal -days.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="jacob">JACOB</span>.</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">GENESIS XXVIII.-XXXVI.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">I have already followed the course of the Book of -Genesis to the close of chapter xxvii. From that -chapter to chapter xxxvi., Jacob is principal; and it is -that portion which I now purpose to consider.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is a very important era in the life of Jacob -afterwards--his sojourn in Egypt for seventeen years, -and his death there. But this is found in that part of -the book in which Joseph becomes principal, so that I -shall refer to it only so far as Jacob is concerned.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The life of Jacob is one of very large and varied -action, quite of another character from that of his -father Isaac. The wisdom of God readily accounts -for this; because there is divine intention in the construction -of these histories, as there is divine truthfulness -in the record of them. By them we are -instructed in mysteries, as surely as we are made -acquainted with circumstances. It has been my -desire to notice these mysteries, as well as to gather -the moral of these earliest ages of the human family, -and these first fathers of the elect of God.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Election</em>, and the call of God, in the sovereign exercise -of His grace, were exhibited in Abraham.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Sonship</em>, to which election brings us, (for we are -predestinated unto the adoption of children,) was then -shown in Isaac.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Discipline</em>, as of a son, (for what son is he whom the -father chasteneth not?) is now, in its season, to be -exhibited in Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">And thus, after this manner, these successive histories -not only continue the orderly narrative of facts, but -present us with a view of that course or conduct which -the grace and wisdom of God is taking with His people.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Jacob was a son as well as Isaac. But he was a -son at school, or under correction; not a son, like -Isaac, in the care and nurture of the home of his -father; not as one given to know the rights and -dignities of son and heir, but as one made to know the -love, the practical love, that chastens and corrects. -This was the child Jacob. But we are never to forget -that we are never more distinctly children than when -under such discipline. Discipline assumes adoption. -The exhortation or correction speaks to us as <em class="italics">to children</em>. -The discipline may occupy the foreground, but -the fatherly love is the secret.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this notice of Jacob as a son under discipline -I give here only as a general characteristic. As to the -materials of his history, various and striking as they -are, we may distinguish them into four eras:</p> -<p class="pnext">1. His birth and early life in his father's house in -the land of Canaan.</p> -<p class="pnext">2. His journey to Padan-aram, and his residence -there, in the house of Laban the Syrian, for -twenty years.</p> -<p class="pnext">3. His journey back from Padan-aram, and his second -residence in Canaan.</p> -<p class="pnext">4. His journey from Canaan to Egypt, and his residence -and death there.</p> -<p class="pnext">This may be read as a simple, natural table of contents, -so to call it, and I would follow it out in its -order.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part I.</span>--This earliest portion of Jacob's history, his -birth, and his life in the house of his father in the land -of Canaan till he was about seventy years of age,<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id38" id="id37"><sup>19</sup></a> I -have generally anticipated in the preceding paper, -entitled "Isaac." And I may be allowed to say, -necessarily so; because it is involved in those chapters -of the Book of Genesis, where Isaac is principal. I -must therefore refer to it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part II.</span>--Jacob begins to be seen under discipline -in chap. xxviii., and there it is where this second part -of his history opens, and where also, in the Book of -Genesis, he becomes the chief or leading character.</p> -<p class="pnext">In his journey out towards Padan, but ere he left the -borders of Canaan, at the place called Luz, the Lord -meets him. This was not his father's bed-side, where -he was sinning, but a lonely, dreary, distant spot where -his sin had cast him, and where the discipline of his -heavenly Father was dealing with him. In such a -place God can meet us. He cannot appear to us in the -scene of our iniquities, but He can in the place of His -correction. And such was Luz to Jacob. It was a -comfortless spot. The stones of the place were his -pillow, and the sky over his head his covering; and he -had no friend but his staff to accompany and cheer -him. But the God of his fathers comes there to him. -He does not alter his present circumstances or reverse -the chastening. He lets him still pursue his way -unfriended, to find, at the end of it, twenty years' hard -service at the hand of a stranger, with many a wrong -and injury. But he gives him heavenly pledges, that -hosts on high should watch and wait around him.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord had made, as we know, great promises to -Abraham: the same were repeated to Isaac, and are -now, at Bethel, given to Jacob. But, to Jacob, something -very distinct from these common promises is -added: "And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee -in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee -again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I -have done that which I have spoken to thee of." <em class="italics">v.</em> 15. -This was a new promise, an added mercy; just because -Jacob needed it, as Abraham and Isaac had not. Jacob -was the only one of the three who needed that the -Lord would be with him wherever he went, and bring -him home again. Jacob, by his own naughtiness, had -made this additional mercy necessary to himself, and, in -abounding grace, he gets it; and the vision of the -ladder pledges it. The promises to Abraham and to -Isaac had not included this providential, angelic care. -They had remained in the land; but Jacob had made -himself an exile, that needed the care and watching of -a special oversight from heaven, and he gets it. And -it is to this, I believe, that Jacob alludes, when he says -to Joseph, The blessings of thy father have prevailed -above the blessings of my progenitors. Chap. xlix. 26. -This angelic care, that watched over him, under direct -commission from heaven, in his days of exile and -drudgery, which his own error had incurred, <em class="italics">distinguished</em> -him as an object of mercy, and gave him -"blessings" above those of his "progenitors." And -in this character he reached "the bounds of the everlasting -hills." He was heir of the kingdom as a <em class="italics">debtor -to special mercy</em>, through that abounding grace that had -helped him and kept him amid the bitter fruits of his -own naughtiness. As David, in his day, triumphed in -"the everlasting covenant" made with him, though for -the present his house was in ruins through his own sin. -2 Samuel xxiii.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is God's way, excellent and perfect in the -combination of grace and holiness. And upon this, let -me observe, that in all circumstances there are two -objects, and that nature eyes the one, and faith the -other. Thus, in divine discipline, such as Jacob was -now experiencing, there is the <em class="italics">rod</em>, and also the <em class="italics">hand -that is using it</em>. Nature regards the first, faith recognizes -the second. Job, in his day, broke down under the rod, -because he concerned himself with it alone. Had he -eyed the counsel, the heart, or the hand that was -appointing it (as we are exhorted to do, Micah vi. 9), -he would have stood. But nature prevailed in him, and -he kept his eye upon the rod, and it was too much for -him.</p> -<p class="pnext">So in <em class="italics">failures</em>, as well as in circumstances, there are -two objects. Conscience has its object, and faith again -has its object. But conscience is not to be allowed to -rob faith of its treasures, the treasures of restoring, -pardoning grace, which the love of God in Christ has -stored up for it.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is great comfort in this. Nature is not to be -over-busy with circumstances, nor conscience with -failures. Nature is to feel that no affliction is for the -present joyous, and conscience or heart may be broken; -but in either case, faith is to be at its post and do its -duty; and much of the gracious energy of the Spirit in -the epistles is engaged in putting faith at its post, and -encouraging it to do its duty. The Apostles, under the -Holy Ghost, take knowledge of the danger and temptation -we are under by nature; and while it is abundantly -enforced, that conscience is to be quick and jealous, yet -it is required that faith shall maintain itself in the -very face of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">To know God <em class="italics">in grace</em> is His praise and our joy. We -naturally, or according to the instincts of a tainted -nature, think of Him as one that <em class="italics">exacts obedience and -looks for service</em>. But faith knows Him as one that -<em class="italics">communicates</em>, that speaks to us of privileges, of the -liberty and the blessing of our relationship to Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Jacob's soul was not quite up to this way of -grace. He found the place where the ladder and the -angels were seen, and where the God of his fathers -spoke to him, to be "dreadful." In some sense it was -too much for him. As it was long afterwards with -Peter on the holy hill. God is true to the aboundings -of His grace. Jacob may say, "How dreadful is this -place!" Peter and his companions may have their -fear; but the ladder, nevertheless, reaches to heaven, -and angels are up and down upon it in the sight of -the patriarch; and the glory on the Mount still shines. -For the grace of God is richer than the apprehensions -of the soul about it. God shines in Himself above -our experiences. And it is in Himself He is to be -known, and not in the reflections of our experience.</p> -<p class="pnext">Still, like Peter on the hill, Jacob, in some sense, -found it good to be at Luz, and he called the place -Bethel. It was the house of God to him, for God had -there been with him, and spoken to him; it was the -gate of heaven in his eye, for there the angels had -appeared, as descending from their own place on high. -"This is none other but the house of God," says he, -"and this is the gate of heaven."</p> -<p class="pnext">God both <em class="italics">records</em> His name and <em class="italics">glorifies</em> it. He -records it or reveals it at first, and faith accepts Him. -In due time He verifies that record or testimony, -making it all good, and thus glorifies His name. And -wherever He records His name there is His house. -Ornan's threshing-floor got the same dignity long afterwards, -which Luz now gets, and on the same title. -"This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the -altar of burnt-offering for Israel," says David of that -spot of the Jebusite. 1 Chron. xxii. 1. For it was the -place, like this Bethel of our patriarch, where mercy -had rejoiced against judgment, where God was revealing -Himself in the aboundings of His grace, and there -faith descries the house of God. Jacob and David, -each in his day, were saints under discipline; but the -Lord met them in the rich provisions of His love, thus -revealing Himself or recording His name; and this -was His house to them. But it is easier thus to consecrate -the house, than to learn the lesson that is -taught there. Jacob rightly uttered his heart under -force of the impressions which the vision could not -but awaken; but there is something of old Jacob in -his spirit still. The faulty way of his heart is at work -still, and he seems to calculate, and to make bargains, -and to enter into conditions, though the Lord had -spoken to him there in the language of the promise, -in free, sovereign, abounding goodness. For nature -still stirs itself after many a rebuke and defeat, and -outlives what for a moment may have appeared a -death-blow. Jacob no more now leaves it behind him -at Bethel, than before he had left it behind him in -his mother's tent.</p> -<p class="pnext">But he goes on. Grace sets the chastened saint on -his journey, and with some alacrity too, till "he came -to the land of the people of the east," till he reached -Padan-aram, where his mother's counsel had appointed -him, and, doubtless, where the hand of God had now -conducted him.</p> -<p class="pnext">His introduction to Rachel was at the well, and in -the midst of the flock, like that of Eliezer to Rebecca; -and Eliezer was but Isaac's representative. But Jacob -was the poor man, Isaac the wealthy. Isaac could -enrich Rebecca with earrings and bracelets of gold, -pledges of the goodly estate he had for her. Jacob -has but his toil and sweat of face. The one was as -the son and heir, the other a man who had beggared -himself, and must find his own way through the wear -and tear of life as best he may, with God's help. Israel -served for a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep. Hosea -xii. 12. And a hard service he was about to find it. -But he enters on it at once, and continues at it for -twenty long years. Chap. xxix.-xxxi.</p> -<p class="pnext">The scene is laid in the house of Laban his mother's -brother, and a scene of various moral action it quickly -becomes, and so continues. We have not only Jacob -himself and Laban, but the two wives Leah and Rachel, -and their two handmaids Zilpah and Bilhah.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jacob had been but a little while under the trials -and sorrows of his sojourn with Laban, ere he was -visited after the very pattern of his own offence at -home. He had deceived his father touching his brother -and the blessing. Laban now deceives him touching -Rachel and the marriage. But in much of his behaviour -during the twenty years he spent with Laban, we see -what was excellent in him. For the force and influence -of knowing <em class="italics">that we are under the hand of God for correction</em>, -is necessarily felt by a mind that has anything -right towards God in it. It is not that nature will be -changed or broken under such a pressure, but it must, -in measure, more or less, be controlled. David when -under rebuke, sore and humbling as ever saint had -exposed himself to, carries himself beautifully. His -words to Ittai, to Zadok, and to Hushai, his resentment -of the motion of the sons of Zeruiah, his humiliations, -his lamentations over Absalom, and his using his -victory as if it had been a defeat, all this and more -than this of the same kind, show us a blessed work -of the Spirit in his soul. In Jacob at Padan-aram we -get nothing so fine as this, I know; but, if I mistake -not, we get a saint under discipline conscious of the -discipline, well understanding the character of the -moment under God's hand, and the righteousness of -the rebuke of the Lord, carrying himself meekly and -watchfully. He submits to the wrongs of an injurious -master in silence. He serves patiently, and suffers -without complaint. His wages were changed ten times, -but he answers not again. In all this he is humbled -under the mighty hand of God, as one who would fain -remember his own past ways. And at the end of -twenty years' hard drudgery and ill usage, he is able -to testify of his fidelity, and God Himself seems to seal -the testimony. By the providences of His hand, and -the revelations in visitations of His Spirit, and also -by direct interferences with Laban himself, the Lord -shelters and blesses and vindicates Jacob.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is beauty in this. I say not that nature was -mortified, that the root of bitterness was judged. We -shall find, I know, that after this, Jacob is old Jacob -still, sadly betrayed by the same leaven that had been -working in him from the beginning. But, while in -the house of the Syrian, Jacob was as one who knew -himself to be under the mighty hand of God as for -correction, and carried himself accordingly, neither -justifying himself against reproaches, nor contending -for his rights in the face of wrongs and injustice.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such a one I judge Jacob to have been in the house -of Laban. As to Laban, he was a thorough man of -the world when Jacob entered his house, and so he -was when Jacob left it. In all his dealings, from first -to last, he eyes his own advantage. He is constrained -to own that the hand of God was with Jacob; but he -would make that hand, through Jacob, minister to -himself, and turn Jacob's interest in God to his own -account. For twenty years he had the witness of the -hand of the Lord, and the operation of His grace and -power, under his eye and in his house, and that daily; -but he continued a man of the world still. God came -near to him, as afterwards to Bethsaida and Chorazin -in the doing of His mighty works; but there was no -repentance. And Jacob's departure from his house at -the last, was like an escape out of the enemy's hand, -or from the snare of the fowler. It was a kind of -exodus. In a family way it was what was afterwards -known by Israel in a national way. Laban was as -Pharaoh, and Padan-aram as Egypt to our patriarch. -He would fain have kept Jacob a drudge still, or at -best have sent him away as a beggar; but the Lord -pleaded for Jacob with Laban, as He afterwards -pleaded for Israel with Pharaoh. Laban and Pharaoh -had each in his day <em class="italics">witnessed</em> the operation of God, -but neither of them became the <em class="italics">subject</em> of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">A thorough lover of the world he surely was, and -never anything better; a crafty one, and a hypocritical -one too--common companions. At the end, when all -his devices are broken to pieces, and no enchantment is -allowed to prosper, as against Israel, he does what he -can, according to the miserable, disgusting style of a -crafty heart, to cover the purpose which had now failed, -and to give himself a fair character. He pretends that -Jacob's leaving him was mere fondness for home, while -his conscience must have told him many a very different -reason. He affects grief and indignation at not having -an opportunity of kissing his daughters and grandchildren, -and of sending them away honourably, while -his conscience must have reminded him how he had sold -them again and again. He seems to be concerned for -them, now about to be in Jacob's hand, as if his own -hand had been that of a father to them. He pretends -to spare Jacob through religious fear of God's words, -while he must have felt himself to be completely -restrained by God, willing or unwilling, religious or -profane; as Balaam afterwards. And he gives a serious -air to the last bargain between him and Jacob, introducing -the name of the God of Abraham, though he had -just been searching for his idols, and was preparing to -return to that land out of which God had called Abraham, -and to continue there a thorough, heartless man of the -world still, a worshipper of his own god.</p> -<p class="pnext">Miserable man! pointing a holy, serious lesson for us.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But we have the women and the children of Padan-aram, -as well as Laban the Syrian. The women and the -children of the Book of Genesis are all mysteries. We -see this in Eve and her three children--in Abraham's -Sarah, and Abraham's Hagar, and Abraham's Keturah, -and the seed of each of them. And we noticed in -Isaac (see page 152) the same mystic character in Rebecca -his wife, and Esau and Jacob his children. Each and -all tell out parts and parcels of the purpose of God, as -in figures. And now, in the women which become -connected with Jacob in Padan, whether it be his wife -the elder sister, or his wife the younger sister, or the -handmaids given to them, and in the children of each -of them, there are mysteries again.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the children of Israel, that is, the nation, the -seed of Abraham, we find three classes. 1. There -has already been Israel <em class="italics">after the flesh</em>, set in the land -under title of their fleshly alliance with Abraham. -2. There is now, at this time, the nation <em class="italics">in bondage</em>, -made to know the service of the Gentiles. 3. There -will be, by-and-by, the nation <em class="italics">set in grace</em>, Israel -redeemed and accepted, established in the promises -made to the fathers.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are three generations in the nation of Israel, -as that nation either has been, now is, or is to be -hereafter. And the shadowing of this, I judge, we -see in the families of Jacob in Padan; that is, in the -children of Leah, who had her title in the flesh; in -the children of the handmaids; and in the children of -Rachel the beloved, who had no strength in nature, but -whose seed was all of promise or of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">The way of the wisdom of God is thus learnt in the -women and children here, in chapters xxix.-xxxi., as it -had been in the earlier family scenes of this wondrous -book.</p> -<p class="pnext">As soon as Joseph, the child of promise, the son of -Rachel the beloved, is given to him, Jacob speaks of -leaving Padan, the place of his exile and bondage. -See xxx. 25, 26. And this, simple as it seems to -be, has character in it. The condition of an alien and -servant did not suit him, as soon as he got the seed -that witnessed to him the power of God in his behalf. -He may have felt somewhat instinctively, that it became -him now to assert his freedom, and to bethink himself -of his home and his inheritance. I say not whether -Jacob really entered into this, or whether it was something -of an inspiration that he breathed, and which, in -its full meaning, was beyond him. But so it was that -he said to Laban, immediately upon the birth of Joseph, -"Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to -my country."</p> -<p class="pnext">It had been very much after this manner with -Abraham in an earlier day. As soon as Isaac was -weaned, the scene around Abraham immediately -changed. The child of the bondwoman has to leave -the house, and Abraham takes precedence of the -Gentile. See chap. xxi. The weaning of Isaac was -the turning-point in Abraham's condition. In spirit, -for a moment, he enters the kingdom, raising a new -altar, an altar to the "everlasting God," and planting -a grove. This was very fine, and the character of it -I have considered in its place. See "Abraham," page 126. -But so was it now with Jacob, as then with Abraham. -As soon as Joseph, the child of promise, that witnessed -the grace and strength of God, is given to him, he -conceives the thought of freedom and of home.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was a fine, striking instance of the intelligence -of a new mind in Jacob. The way of faith, I may -add, is seen in Rachel on the same occasion, for she -calls her son "Joseph," that is, "adding;" assured -that the Lord, who had now <em class="italics">begun</em> His mercies towards -her, would <em class="italics">go on</em> with them and <em class="italics">perfect</em> them. As -faith now in our hearts and on our lips, in like spirit, -says, "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered -Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also -freely give us all things?" From His gifts, Rachel -not only "drew a plea to <em class="italics">ask</em> Him still for more," but -in still bolder, happier faith, drew a conclusion to <em class="italics">trust</em> -Him still for more.</p> -<p class="pnext">But though this was so, the connection between -Laban and Jacob is continued for a while after Joseph's -birth, till the separation takes place under force of -other circumstances altogether, leaving Laban, still -more than before, a kind of pillar of salt, or a solemn -remembrance to us of what our wretched hearts are -capable.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part III.</span>--The time of his servitude closes in chap. -xxxi. He is then on his way back from Padan-aram -to Canaan; the principal scenes of his journey being -at <em class="italics">Mount Gilead</em>, shortly after his setting out, and -<em class="italics">Mahanaim</em>, near the brook Jabbok, a little before he -entered the land.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was at Mount Gilead that the parting between him -and Laban took place, for Laban had pursued him so -far. But there they make a covenant, offering sacrifice, -and then eating together as upon the sacrifice.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such a scene, in mystery, exhibits our blessing. -For we enjoy a covenant of peace, secured by a sacrifice, -and witnessed by a feast. So, in the night of -redemption from Egypt, the altar and the table, that -is, the sacrifice and the feast, are there again. The -blood is upon the door-post, and the household, thus -ransomed and sheltered, are within, feeding on the -lamb, whose blood was protecting and delivering them.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there is another thing on this occasion to be -noticed--<em class="italics">it is Jacob who offers the sacrifice</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">This has a great character in it. It tells us that -Jacob knew his place and dignity under God. Laban -had all the claims which nature or the flesh or relationship -could confer, but Jacob acts in spite of them. -Laban was the elder; he was the master and the -father-in-law. But still Jacob takes the place of the -"better," and offers the sacrifice, in the like spirit of -faith as Abraham when entering into covenant with -the king of Gerar (chapter xxi.); or like Jethro at -Horeb, in the midst of the Israel of God, and in the -presence of Aaron. Ex. xviii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such cases are among the triumphs of faith; and -they are no mean triumphs either. To know our -high title in Christ, and by no means to surrender it, -even when circumstances may humble us, this is no -easy thing. Jacob was under discipline in Padan-aram. -He had no altar there. Before God he was -rather a penitent than a worshipper. But before -Laban he knows himself as a saint, and here, at the -Mount Gilead, he has his pillar, his sacrifice, and his -feast, and he exercises that faith which emboldens him -to act according to his dignity as a saint and priest -of God, in the presence of all the claims of flesh and -blood. Elihu, in the book of Job, though renouncing -<em class="italics">himself</em> before his elders, asserts the title of <em class="italics">the Spirit -in him</em>, in the face of the highest claims of nature.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is very encouraging to witness such fragments -of the mind of Christ in the saints. Jacob never -suspected his title in Christ, from first to last, though -under discipline all his days. And this is blessed--blessed -to take the place that grace, in its riches, in -its exceeding riches, in its glory and in its aboundings, -gives us. I do not believe, if Peter in John xxi. had -purposed to reach the Lord as a <em class="italics">penitent</em>, he would -have <em class="italics">hurried</em> towards him as he did. A penitent -would have approached with a more measured step. -But Peter was not thinking of his late denial of his -Lord, but of his Lord Himself. His step was therefore -hurried and earnest. He had sinned against his -Master, it is indeed true, and might have been backward -and ashamed. But, wondrous to say it, as Peter -<em class="italics">the penitent</em> would not have taken so ready and so -earnest a journey, so Peter the penitent would not, at -the end of it, have been so welcome to his Master, as -the confiding though erring Peter. In this is the grace -and heart of Him "with whom is <em class="italics">all</em> our business -now."</p> -<p class="pnext">These are but fragments however, broken pillars in -the temples of God. Nature is nature still; and Jacob, -quickly after all this, betrays himself as <em class="italics">old</em> Jacob still.</p> -<p class="pnext">One has said, that had the Lord slacked His hand -with Job, when the <em class="italics">first</em> trial was over, Job would -have come short of the blessing. There was respite; -and it might have been thought that all had ended. -But God's end in grace was not yet reached; and we -may be sure that Satan's malice was not yet satisfied. -The unweary adversary begins afresh, the Lord gives -him place again, and Job is visited a <em class="italics">second</em> time.</p> -<p class="pnext">And nature is just as unwearied as Satan. Expel -it and it will return. We have just had this little -respite from the way of nature, in Jacob at Mount -Gilead, and seen for a moment the better mind in him, -and some expressions of the glory, but we are quickly, -too quickly indeed, to see the old man again.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jacob goes on his way from Mount Gilead, and as -he approaches the borders of the land, the angels of -God meet him. Jacob at once recognizes them. "This -is God's host," says he, and he called the place -Mahanaim.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was holy ground. The undertakings of chapter -xxviii. had been fulfilled--the pledges of Bethel had -been redeemed. Accordingly, we have no ladder here. -Providential, angelic guardianship had fulfilled its -ministry; Jacob had been kept in the distant land, -and brought home to his own land. The ladder may, -therefore, be taken down, and instead of angels ascending -and descending as between heaven and the -patriarch, angels <em class="italics">meet</em> him. They are standing before -him, just to salute him, or to welcome him on his -return. The Lord God of his fathers and of the promises -was welcoming our patriarch home, and ministers -of the heavenly courts were sent to express the mind -of their King towards him.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was "piping" to Jacob, and Jacob ought to -have "danced." He should have breathed an exulting -spirit. He should have been already in triumph, ere -the battle was fought, or even the armies were arrayed. -He should have entered the field with songs, like -Jehoshaphat. If the hosts of heaven thus waited on -him, what had he to fear from the hosts of Esau? "If -God be for us, who can be against us?" But this was -not so with him. He "laments," rather than dances, at -this piping. He trembles, and prays, and calculates. -He marshals his force, as though the battle were his. -This is all <em class="italics">religious</em>, but it is all <em class="italics">unbelief</em> too; and all -this the Lord resents. Surely He does. It was all out -of harmony in His ear. He had welcomed Jacob home -with every token of an earnest, honourable welcome, -but Jacob was out of spirits.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord seeks to be <em class="italics">one</em> with us, and that we be -one with Him; so that discordance of soul can never -suit Him. He withstands Jacob. "There wrestled -a man with him," as we read, "till the breaking of -the day." This was God's answer to his prayer. -And this is all very significant, and it has lessons -for us.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is found by us much easier to trust the Lord in -all questions that arise between Him and ourselves, -than it is to bring Him in, and use Him, and trust -Him, in questions that arise between us and others--easier -to trust Him for eternity than for to-morrow; -because eternity is entirely in His hand. To-morrow, -as we judge, is more or less divided between Him and -others--in the power of circumstances as well as of -God. Abraham, in his day, betrayed this. He came -forth at the bidding of the God of glory, leaving -country, kindred, and father's house; but as soon as -a famine came, his faith failed, and instead of trusting -the Lord in the face of circumstances, he goes down to -Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jacob, at Mahanaim, betrays the same easy, common -way of nature. He is unable to trust God in the face -of Esau. Esau's 400 men frighten him, and he will -interpose, first, his messengers with words of peace and -friendliness, and then, his presents, that by one or the -other he may allay the heat of his brother's anger. -He has no faith in God, so as to bring Him in between -himself and Esau. He trembles, and prays, and calculates, -and marshals his household. Circumstances -have proved too much for him. But immediately -afterwards, when the Lord Himself withstands him, -when it becomes a question between him and God, -then he is bold and prevails. He faints not, though -rebuked, and rebuked sharply, by the Lord. He -behaves himself like a champion of faith, and obtains -a good report. He carries himself like a prince, and -gains new honours. This is a common experience, and -this moment in Jacob's history at the brook Jabbok -expresses it.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is not, however, necessarily, in such a victory -as this, a cure for that faint-heartedness that had -occasioned the previous conflict. And Jacob is now -about to illustrate this for our further admonition. -In the very next chapter (xxxiii.), which is but the -continuance of the same action, or a further stage in -it, we find him the same timid, unbelieving, calculating -man, in the presence of Esau, as he had been, ere he -had prevailed with the wrestler at Jabbok.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is admonition for us. There may be exercise of -spirit before God, and yet not much advance in the -strength of the soul in carrying on its conflict with the -world. In no stage of his history does Jacob appear -morally lower than in that which immediately follows -Peniel. He is not in anywise purified from himself. -He calculates, he prevaricates, he affects amiability and -confidence, he lies, he flatters. He stood against the -stranger at Jabbok. He was strong in faith, glorifying -the grace of God, even when the way of God had a -controversy with him. But before Esau he practises -and acts the old man to shameful perfection. He rids -himself of his brother by a grossly false pretence. -He is nothing better than a mean flatterer, a servile -courtier, shamelessly speaking of the face of Esau as -of the face of God. It is all miserable--a humbling -picture of the moral condition to which a saint may -come, for a time, if nature be allowed.</p> -<p class="pnext">There are moments of exhilaration of spirit, and we -may be thankful for them; as when Jacob had so lately, -in the preceding chapter, said, "This is God's host;" and -again, "I have seen God face to face, and my life is -preserved." These are moments of exhilaration of spirit. -But then, they may be only <em class="italics">refreshments</em>, and not solid -edification. And sad indeed it is to see a saint after -them returning so quickly to himself. "Where is then -the blessedness ye spake of?"</p> -<p class="pnext">And who will trust his own heart, when we thus see -that Jacob's was so untrue? Jacob had lost the knowledge -of God's name. He had to inquire after it, instead -of using it and enjoying it. That name was "Almighty," -the name that told him of all-sufficiency for all his need. -But Jacob had lost it in chap. xxxii., and he is not as -one who had recovered it in chap. xxxiii. He is contriving -for himself. And we may, in like manner, lose -the name that has been revealed to us. That name is -"Father"--a name that may give abiding calmness and -strength and liberty to the soul. It prepares a home for -the heart. "He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God." -This home is enough to make our joy full, as John -speaks. And though we may be under His hand for -discipline, as Jacob was, still we are to know the power -of that name, the full, secret, unchanging love of a father. -Like Jacob in these two chapters, we have lost the name -of God, if it be not thus with our souls. "Ye have -forgotten the exhortation that speaketh unto you as unto -children," says the apostle to us. And Jacob, therefore, -may be no longer such a wonder to us, but we may the -rather at times be a wonder to ourselves.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">After this, in his journey onward from the place where -he and Esau parted, he reaches Succoth, and then -Shechem, and we may say, he had then returned to -Canaan. But it is only still worse and worse with him. -He seems for a while to have entirely forgotten himself -and the call of God. And mischief must follow this. -Consistency with our calling is looked for. We are all, -it may be in a thousand ways, untrue to it; but if it be -willingly disregarded by an easy, relaxing conscience, -the commonest moral defences may soon give way. -Truth and integrity may be forced to yield, and such -pollutions may at last be found, that would not, as the -apostle speaks, be named among the Gentiles.</p> -<p class="pnext">At Succoth, where our patriarch first arrived, he -builds a house; and then at Shalem, in Shechem, he -buys a field--what Abraham and Isaac, truer to the -call of God, never did, and never would have done. -How could he count on moral security under such -circumstances? The tent had been exchanged for a -house, and the pilgrim stranger had become a citizen -and a freeholder. Was not all this a forgetting of -himself under the call of God? The Lord, long after -this, lets David know, by His servant Nathan, that -there was a difference between a <em class="italics">house</em> and a <em class="italics">tent</em>, -and that He would have that difference maintained. -1 Chron. xvii. But here at Succoth, Jacob violates this. -So also it is the divine memorial of the patriarchs in -their purity, that they dwelt in tents (Heb. xi. 9); but -here at Succoth, Jacob willingly forfeits that memorial. -And again, the Lord did not give Abraham so much -land as to set his foot on (Acts vii. 5); but here at -Shalem in Shechem, Jacob, in spite of this, will have -a parcel of ground, and buy it for an inheritance.</p> -<p class="pnext">The altar, which comes next, in the catalogue, to the -house and the field, may appear at first to be a relief -and a sanctifier, the one good thing in the midst of -corruption. But it is, perhaps, the worst of all. It -was not raised to Him who had appeared to him. -There had been no communion between the Lord and -Jacob, at either Succoth or Shechem. Shechem was -not Bethel, and this parcel of ground, where El-elohe-Israel -was raised, was not the place of stones and -destitution, where abounding grace had shone from an -open heaven on the unfriended head of the patriarch, -but the parcel of a field which Jacob had bought of the -children of Hamor, the father of Shechem. It was -raised, not by a heavenly stranger to the God who -visited him, but in the midst of the uncircumcised. It -looks like an attempt to get the Lord's sanction of -Jacob's loss of his separated, pilgrim, Nazarite character; -to link His name and His worship with that on which -His judgment was resting, and toward which His long-suffering -was shown till iniquity was full.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely it is rather an uncircumcised Jacob we see -here, and not circumcised Shechemites. It is all -miserable. Is this a son of Abraham? Is this a -saint of God? Is this one of God's strangers in a -world that has revolted from Him? This is like the -religious energy of Christendom, which has put the -name of Christ in company with the world that is -under His judgment, and only borne with in His -long-suffering. It is as if Israel had consented to -Pharaoh, and undertaken to give Jehovah an altar -in Egypt. But such altars are no altars--as another -gospel is not another. Such religion is vain, whether -practised in these earliest days at Shechem, or now in -these days of Christendom, among the nations of a -judged, condemned world, from which separation is the -call of God. But this will not do. A fair trade with -the world will be followed, and the course of it pursued -greedily, without watchfulness or conviction, but -religious family services, and religious national ordinances, -the modern order at Shechem, will all the -while be waited on.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was of the fruit of all this that Jacob had afterwards -to say, "O my soul, come not thou into their -secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou -united." For it is to the action in chapter xxxiv. that -Jacob thus refers, when he was about to die, in chapter -xlix. He finds out, at the end, the real character of -all this, the fruit of his dwelling at Shechem. In -self-will a man had been killed there, and a fence -thrown down. But surely Jacob himself had digged -down God's fence before. The partition-wall which -the call of God had raised between the clean and the -unclean, between the circumcision and the Gentile, he -himself, in spirit, had broken down, when he settled -as a citizen or freeholder on his purchased estate at -Shechem. And Simeon and Levi may perfect this, -as soon afterwards as they please.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, which she bare -unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the -land." xxxiv. 1. Was this the way of the house of -Abraham? Was this the family of the separated -patriarch keeping the way of the Lord? Had Abraham -been thus slack? What intercourse had he had for -his children with either the sons or the daughters of -the land?</p> -<p class="pnext">It is all sad, and proclaims its own shame. Shechem -is next door to Sodom. But it is not Sodom, I grant. -Jacob is not Lot. We can distinguish; and we have -to distinguish, though it is sad to be put to the work -of distinguishing. Nature prevails, in some more, in -some less, in all the recorded saints of God. But there -is <em class="italics">moral variety</em>, as well as the <em class="italics">prevalency of nature</em>, -and "things that differ" among the saints are to be -distinguished by us. There is a <em class="italics">soiled</em> garment, and -there is a <em class="italics">mixed</em> garment. Our way, under the Spirit, -is to keep the garment both unsoiled and unmixed. -Surely it is to keep ourselves "unspotted from the -world." But still, a <em class="italics">soiled</em> garment is not a <em class="italics">mixed</em> -garment, a garment, as Scripture speaks, "of divers -sorts, of woollen and of linen." Nor is a garment -with a thread of "another sort" now and again in it, -to be mistaken for a mixed garment, the texture of -which is wrought on the very principle of woollen and -linen. Scripture, ever fruitful and perfect, exhibits -characters formed by what are called "mixed principles," -and also characters which occasionally betray -the mixture, but which are not formed throughout by -them. The life of Lot was formed throughout by -mixed principles. As soon as temptation addressed -him, he entered into connection with evil. Though -associated with the call of God, he had to be saved -so as by fire. The garment which Lot wore was of -divers sorts, of woollen and of linen. Abraham, at -times, wore a soiled garment, but never a mixed one. -Lot was untrue to the call of God from the outset of -his career to the close of it. He became a citizen -where he should have been a stranger, taking a house -in the city of Sodom, while Abraham was traversing -the face of the country from tent to tent. And Lot's -life of false principles leads him into <em class="italics">sorrows that are -his shame</em>--and that is the real misery of sorrow. -He had no comfort in his sorrow. His righteous soul -was vexed: this is told of him; but there was no joy, -no brightness, no triumph in his spirit. The angels -maintained much reserve towards him. He had to -escape with his life as a prey, and under the loss of all -beside.</p> -<p class="pnext">Our Jacob was not of this generation. We dare not -say he was a man of mixed principles, or one who wore -a garment of divers sorts, of woollen and linen. But he -had a soiled garment on him pretty commonly, and here -at Succoth and at Shechem, a garment with threads of -another sort woven in it. His schemes and calculations -disfigure him, and are the soiled garment; his building -a house at Succoth, and purchasing a field at Shechem, -untrue to the call of God, and to the tent-life of his -fathers, look very like a garment with threads of -another sort in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Still Jacob is not to be put with Lot. His life was -not <em class="italics">formed</em> of mixed principles. He was indeed a -stranger with God in the earth. But, like Lot, he had -been in the place of the uncircumcised willingly; and -he was now to feel the bitterness of his own way; and -very much what Sodom had been to Lot, Shechem is -now to Jacob. He is saved (may I not say?) yet so as -by fire. The iniquity of Simeon and Levi, with the -instruments of cruelty that were in their habitations, -bring poor Jacob very low. He is at his wits' end in -the midst of that people, of whom he had purchased -his estate, and in the neighbourhood of whom, he had, -Lot-like, consented to settle.</p> -<p class="pnext">Things, however, are now at the worst. We are -about to make, through the grace of God, a happy -escape with Jacob out of all this, to find a good riddance -of Shechem and all its pollutions.</p> -<p class="pnext">"A word spoken in due season, how good is it!" We -often prove this ourselves. A word will do more for us -at times than long and careful discourses. For "power -belongeth unto God." "Follow me," from the lips of -Christ, had power to detach Levi from the receipt of -custom; while, in the same chapter, a discourse was -heard by Peter without effect, being left by it, as he had -been before it, the easy, kind-hearted, amiable, and -obliging Peter. See Luke v. "Thy people shall be -willing in the day of thy power," even that very people, -of whom it had been said before, "All day long have I -stretched out my hands unto a disobedient and -gainsaying people."</p> -<p class="pnext">An instance of this power is found in the history of -Jacob, just at this time, in chapter xxxv. 1.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Arise, go up to Bethel," said the Lord to him, "and -dwell there; and make there an altar unto God, that -appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of -Esau thy brother."</p> -<p class="pnext">These few words were with power. They formed, I -believe, the great era in the life of Jacob, or rather, in -the history of his soul. They were few and simple, -unaccompanied by anything strange or startling, no -vision or miracle attending them; but they were a day -of power. He had already come forth from the vision -of the ladder at Bethel, from the magnificent sight of -the angelic host at Mahanaim, and from the wrestling -of the divine Stranger at Peniel, scarcely helped or -advanced at all in the real energy of his soul. But now, -power visits him; and power with God may use as weak -an instrument as it pleases; it matters not. The hand -of God can do the business of God, though it have but -a sling and a stone, or the jaw-bone of an ass, or lamps -and pitchers; and the Spirit of God can do the business -of God with souls, though He use but a word, or a -look, or a groan.</p> -<p class="pnext">These few words which open chapter xxxv. prevail -over Jacob. "Arise, go up to Bethel." Bethel is -rewritten on his heart and conscience as by the finger -of God. He falls before it, as Abraham, in chap. xvii., -had fallen before the name of "God Almighty," or as -Peter, long after, in Luke xii., fell before the look of -Jesus.</p> -<p class="pnext">Power is always its own witness, as light is. These -words, carrying the power of God with them, are -everything now to the soul of our patriarch. They -manifest their virtue at once, just as the one touch -of the woman in the crowd did. As soon as Jacob -heard them, without fuller commandment to do so, -he cleanses his household, and will have his tents -purified of all the abominations which they had -brought with them out of Padan. In spirit he was -already at Bethel, the place where God had met him -in the riches of His grace, in the day of his degradation -and misery. Bethel had been reintroduced to his -heart--yea, manifested to his soul in greater vividness -than ever. He now read the story of grace clearer -than ever; and <em class="italics">grace pleads for holiness</em>. The feast of -unleavened bread waits on the Passover. The grace -of God that bringeth salvation teaches us to deny -ungodliness and worldly lusts. For grace, again I say -it, pleads for holiness. And so, Jacob, now hearing -of Bethel in the power of the Spirit, without further -ordinance, or requirement, or command, will have his -house and his household clean.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is full of beauty and meaning. Pollution -cannot be allowed by one who is in the sense and -joy of abounding grace. Gods and earrings, idols and -vanities, are together buried under an oak at Shechem, -and Shechem is left behind. The patriarch rises up -with all that was his, and is quickly on the road to -Bethel. He had kept the feast of unleavened bread -in company with the Passover, as Israel afterwards -did in Egypt; but, like Israel too, he is at once, with -staff in hand and shoe on foot, leaving his Egypt -behind him. And the Lord accompanies him, as He -did Israel in the day of their Exodus afterwards; and -accompanies in <em class="italics">strength</em> too; for, as the rod of Moses -opened the way of Israel in the face of enemies, and -He that was in the cloud looked out and troubled the -host of Pharaoh, so now, we read of Jacob and his -household, "they journeyed, and the terror of God was -upon the cities that were round about them, and they -did not pursue after the sons of Jacob."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is surely full of beauty and meaning, I may -again say. There is mercy and blessing here, but there -is humbling also. Israel had lost the power of God's -name, and Jacob must now learn that he had lost also -the honour of his own name. But all shall be given -back to him. "God Almighty," and "Israel," and -"Bethel" are revealed afresh, at this moment of -revival.</p> -<p class="pnext">God must be worshipped as the God of salvation. -To be sure He must, in such a world as this. Such -worship is the only worship "in truth." John iv. 23. -In Lev. xvii. and in Deut. xii. the divine jealousy -touching this is strongly expressed. It is as "Saviour," -He records His name in a scene of sin and death. As -He says by His prophet, "There is no God else beside; -a <em class="italics">just God and a Saviour</em>; there is none beside me." -Isa. xlv. 21. This is revelation of Him; and on this -all worship is grounded. In this He records His -name, and there is His house of praise. At Bethel, -God has thus recorded His name, and there was His -house, and there Jacob now brings his sacrifices. He -raises his altar, and calls it El-Bethel. With Jacob, -that was the Tabernacle of the wilderness, or the -Temple on Mount Moriah, the Temple on Ornan's -threshing-floor. And this was infinitely acceptable, -and God gave fervent and immediate witness of such -acceptableness; for He appeared to him at once at -the altar there, and blessed him, and said, "Thy name -shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be -thy name: and He called his name Israel. And God -said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and -multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be -of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and -the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee will -I give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the -land. And God went up from him in the place where -He talked with him."</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the expression of divine acceptance, and -delight in Jacob's altar at Bethel. This was like the -glory filling the Tabernacle in Exodus xl., and again -filling the Temple in 2 Chron. v. This was the God -of grace and salvation with desire occupying the house -and accepting the worship which a poor sinner, who -had tasted abounding grace, had raised and rendered -to Him. Nothing can exceed the interest of such a -moment. Solomon felt the power of such a moment; -for on seeing the glory fill the house which he had -built, he utters his heart in these admirable words: -"The Lord hath said that He would dwell in the -thick darkness. But I have built a house of habitation -for Thee, and a place for Thy dwelling for ever." The -Temple, where mercy was seen to rejoice against -judgment, had power to draw the Lord God from the -thick darkness, the retreat of righteousness, into the -midst of His worshipping people.</p> -<p class="pnext">What could exceed this? And, in patriarchal days, -this was seen at this altar or temple at Bethel. The -glory was there. The Lord appeared there, and spoke -there to Jacob, as afterwards to Solomon. Luz was as -Ornan's threshing-floor, and each of them had become -God's house. And Jacob called the place, a second -time, Bethel, but without any of the misgivings that -had soiled his spirit when he was there at the first. -He is now there in the spirit of Solomon before the -glory in the Temple, knowing God's return to him, -and His nearness and presence with him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then, in the freedom and strength of all this, our -patriarch resumes his journey. He goes from Bethel -to Bethlehem, and from thence, by the tower of Edar, -to Mamre, in the south country, where his father Isaac -was dwelling. But in none of these places do we read -of house or land again. It is the tent and the altar -and the pillar, the journeying onward still, the burial of -his aged father, and at last, as one with his fathers, -dwelling in the land where they had dwelt before him. -See chap. xxxvii. 1.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was indeed a different journey, in its moral -character, from the one which he had before taken -from Padan to Mount Gilead, and from thence onward -to Shechem through Mahanaim and Succoth. Jacob is -unrebuked now. We have no wrestling as at Peniel, -no peremptory voice summoning away as from Shechem. -No fears are awakened in our hearts respecting him, -lest the tent may be deserted again, or the call of God -be forgotten. The word "Bethel," on the lips of the -Lord and on the ear of Jacob, had done wonders. "A -word spoken in due season, how good is it!" surely we -may again remember. "Behold, God exalteth by His -power: who teacheth like Him?" And He might -surely have challenged His erring but convicted child, -after this second scene at Bethel, and said to him in -the words of Isaiah, "Thus saith the Lord thy Redeemer, -the Holy One of Israel, I am the Lord thy God which -teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way -that thou shouldest go."</p> -<p class="pnext">It is not that all is perfected as yet. Reuben's -iniquity may tell us this too painfully. But the rising -up from the place of nature, and the moral extrication -of his heart from the spirit of the world, have taken -place. Nor is it that he is as yet beyond the place of -discipline. That is not so. He does not find Rebecca -with Isaac at Mamre. He never sees his mother again, -the mother who had so preserved him and cherished -him. His mother's nurse he buries; and more than -that, his beloved Rachel he loses. He has indeed the -pledge of strength in "the son of his right hand," but -that same son told of sorrow touching Rachel. And -thus he is under discipline still. But--he is in God's -<em class="italics">way</em>, as well as under God's <em class="italics">hand</em>. That is the new -thing. Discipline is telling upon him, and reaching its -end. The path is shining, and its latest hour will soon -be found to be its brightest.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part IV.</span>--When we enter upon chapter xxxvii. -we find <em class="italics">Joseph</em> to be principal in the action, and -principal in the thoughts of the Spirit of God. This -is evident from the second verse: "These are the -generations of Jacob. Joseph being seventeen years -old," &c. But we get detached notices of Jacob from -this chapter to the end of the book, and which give us -the last portion of his history.</p> -<p class="pnext">He was now, as I may call him, a widower. He -appears before us as a lonely, retired man, with more -of recollections than of present activities about him. -He was indeed the patriarch, the common head and -father of all the households of his children, and so -recognized by them. But the <em class="italics">business</em> of the family -was rather in their hands; and he was passing his -widowerhood without seeking to be again the stirring, -energetic man he had once been.</p> -<p class="pnext">His retirement, however, was not like that of his -father Isaac. Isaac, for the last forty years of his -life, is not seen. He appears to have been laid aside, -as a vessel unfit for use, as I have observed of him, -not <em class="italics">wearing</em> out, as the word is, but <em class="italics">rusting</em> out. -See "Isaac," p. 185. But this was not Jacob's closing -years. He was no longer a man of business, but his -retirement was not <em class="italics">inactive</em>. The richest, happiest, -and purest exercises of his soul seem to be now, and -they enlarge and deepen as they advance; chastened -and disciplined as we have seen, his soul is now rendering -the fruit of divine husbandry. We cannot fully -say that Jacob ever reached the high dignity of being -a <em class="italics">servant</em> of God; but we may say, when we have -reached the end of his story, that he was <em class="italics">fruitful</em> to -Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">For there is a difference between <em class="italics">service</em> and <em class="italics">fruitfulness</em>. -Service is more manifested and active, fruitfulness -may be hidden. The hand or the foot may serve, -and so they should. Tipped with the blood and with -the oil, they are to be instruments in the hands of the -Master of the house; but it is in the deep, secret -places of the heart that the husbandry of the saint, -in the power of the Spirit through the truth, is to be -yielding fruit to God. Fruitfulness is known in the -cultivation of those graces and virtues which give real -and intrinsic character to the people of God--those -habits and tempers and properties of the inner man -which, with God, are of great price. It is within, or -"out of the heart," that those herbs, meet for Him by -whom the soul is dressed, grow fragrant and beautiful, -such as bespeak the virtue of that rain from heaven -which has fallen upon it.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is this fruitfulness, as I judge, which will be -found in our Jacob, in this last scene of his pilgrimage. -We have had some fainter notice of this, while yet -he remained in Canaan, and ere he took his journey -to Egypt. But the richer harvest of this husbandry -is gathered during the seventeen years that he spent -in that land, ere he himself was gathered to his fathers. -For this participation of God's holiness, this fruit of -the discipline of the Father of spirits, is commonly -gradual--and we shall find it to be so in Jacob--the -light shining more and more unto the perfect day; -the last hour being the brightest.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the course of chapter xxxvii., which I have now -reached, we are told that the brethren of Joseph were -gone to feed their flocks at Shechem. But why was -this recurrence to Shechem? Was it that the purchased -land, the family estate, was there?<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id40" id="id39"><sup>20</sup></a> It was a -dangerous place to be connected with. It had proved -a snare to the whole family, and the Lord had called -them from it. Had Jacob been as watchful as he -should have been, we might not now have heard again -of Shechem and of the flocks and the brethren there. -But still, it is happy to see that there were symptoms -of uneasiness in his mind about it; for he sends -Joseph to find out how the flocks and the brethren -were faring there, as though there were some misgiving -in his heart about them in so suspected a -place. And this may be received as the pulse of a -quickened state of soul in our patriarch, though that -pulse be but weak.</p> -<p class="pnext">So afterwards in chapter xliii., when he is sending -away his sons, the second time, into Egypt to buy -food, he commits them into the hand of the Lord as -"God Almighty." "God Almighty," says he, "give you -mercy before the man, that he may send away your -other brother and Benjamin." This also tells happily -of Jacob's condition of soul--that in some measure -at least <em class="italics">he had recovered the power of that name which -he had once lost</em>, and which, as we saw, all the exercise -through which he had passed at Peniel had not given -back to him.</p> -<p class="pnext">From these testimonies we may say that Jacob was -under godly exercise, by the hand of the Father of his -spirit, in those early days. Beyond this I need not -notice him, till we see him preparing to go down to -see his son in Egypt before he die. But that moment -was a very important moment indeed in the progress -of his soul--and we must meditate on it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">On his hearing that Joseph was yet alive, and -governor over all the land of Egypt, we read that -his heart fainted, for he believed it not. It was -the Lord's doing--for so the fact was--but it was -marvellous in Jacob's eyes. He "believed not for joy, -and wondered;" for this was receiving Joseph alive from -the dead. At first this was too much for him; but -when he saw the waggons which king Pharaoh had -sent to bear him, and all that belonged to him, down -to Egypt, his spirit revived, and he said, without -further delay, "It is enough, Joseph my son is yet -alive; I will go and see him before I die."</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Nature</em> thus spake at once in Jacob, as soon as the -report was believed; and without further challenge he -begins his journey to Egypt. But a calmer moment, as -we shall now see, succeeds this outburst or ebullition -of nature, and then the way of nature is challenged.</p> -<p class="pnext">"And Israel took his journey with all that he had, -and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifice to the God -of his father Isaac."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is remarkable. Why these sacrifices at Beersheba? -There had been none at Mamre, ere Jacob -set out. Why, then, this halt at Beersheba, and this -service to the God of Isaac?</p> -<p class="pnext">This may at first be wondered at; but it will be -found to be common enough (I had almost said, -necessary) in the ways of the people of God.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Nature</em> had acted in Jacob at Mamre, as soon as he -believed the report about Joseph, and set him at once -on the road to Egypt. But now the <em class="italics">spiritual sensibilities</em> -have waked up, and are challenging the conclusions -and ways of nature. Very common this is. -The <em class="italics">saint</em> is now feeling reserve, where the <em class="italics">father</em> had -felt none. Jacob had not dealt with the Lord about -this journey, as he was beginning it; but the mind of -Christ in him, his conscience in the Holy Ghost, so -to speak, is now taking the lead, and the judgment of -nature is reviewed, and reviewed in the light of the -Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">Many years before this the Lord had said to Isaac, -Go not down into Egypt (xxvi. 2); and this had been -said to Isaac in a day of famine, like the present. -And this is remembered by Jacob as soon as he -reaches Beersheba, the last spot in the southern quarters -of the land, which lay in the way to Egypt, and in -the view of which was stretched out that country to -which Isaac had thus been warned not to go.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this accounts to me for Jacob's sacrifices at -Beersheba to the God of his father Isaac. And all -this has great moral meaning in it. It was a mighty -stir in Jacob's soul, and it was very acceptable to -the Lord. As we find in the day of the siege of -Samaria. The poor lepers outside the city immediately -feed themselves and gather for themselves among -the tents of the Syrians. It was natural, almost -necessary, that they should do so. But soon afterwards -another mind begins to stir in them, as here -in our patriarch, and they say, We do not well: -this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our -peace: if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief -will come upon us: now therefore come, that -we may go and tell the king's household. 2 Kings vii. -This was the action of a better mind, like this present -stir in Jacob's spirit. And this awakening in Jacob -is so acceptable with the Lord, that He comes at once -to him with these words of consolation, "I am God, -the God of thy father: fear not to go down into -Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: -I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also -surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his -hand upon thine eyes."</p> -<p class="pnext">When we consider this for a moment, we may well -say, What a communication this was! How thoroughly -did it let Jacob know that the Lord had read <em class="italics">all</em> his -heart, his present fears and his earlier affections, the -mind of the father and the mind of the saint, the -desires of nature and the sensibilities of the spirit. -"Fear not to go down into Egypt" calmed the present -uneasiness of his renewed mind; "Joseph shall surely -put his hand upon thy eyes," gratified the earlier -desire of his heart over his long-lost child. How full -all this was! How perfectly did it prove the reality -of the sympathy of Christ with <em class="italics">all</em> that was stirring -in His elect one! Jacob found pity in Him, and grace -for seasonable help. "When my spirit was overwhelmed -within me, thou knewest my path," was said by David, -and is here surely understood by Jacob. The groan -that was not uttered by him in man's ear, had, in <em class="italics">all</em> -its meaning, entered the ear of Him who searcheth the -heart. And after this, Jacob can no longer halt at -Beersheba, or question his further journey to Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">He accomplishes it; and his first sight of Joseph, as -we might have expected, and as the Lord would have -fully warranted it to be, was the occasion of fullest joy -to his long-bereaved heart. And I would here observe, -that I have felt, as to Jacob in these his last years, -that he had become a very <em class="italics">affectionate</em> old man; and -this is a happy impression, another witness of an -improved state of heart. For a calculating man, such -as he had been in the habits and activities of his life, -is commonly, and somewhat of moral necessity, wanting -in thoughtfulness and desire respecting others. -He is too much, of course, his own object. But now -it is not thus with Jacob. His grief at the loss of -Joseph was intense. He bewails Simeon bitterly as -well, and seems ready to brave the horrors of famine, -rather than hazard the loss of any more of the children. -And then, at the close of these years, his -adoption of the sons of Joseph, his sympathy with -Joseph in his sorrow over the preference of the -younger, his reference to Rachel and her burial at -Ephrath, and his mention of Leah, and of his fathers -and their wives in connection with Machpelah, all is -from a loving heart. And the general grief which -his death occasioned would tell us that he had been, -in the midst of the people, a loved, affectionate old man. -It is delightful to mark all this.</p> -<p class="pnext">But with all this we find him, in his own person and -ways, very much the same widowed, solitary man in -Egypt as we saw him to have been for years in Canaan -ere he came out. Only it was thus under very strong -temptation to be otherwise; for he maintained his -strangership, though he now had opportunity to make -the earth again the scene of his efforts and expectations. -For we like <em class="italics">reflected</em> dignity. We know the charms of -it full well. If nature were given its way, we would -be making the most of our parentage, and connections, -and set off before others our alliance with that which -is honourable in our generation. Jacob, in Egypt, had -some of the very best opportunities for indulging his -heart in that way. His son was then the pride of that -land. Joseph was the second man in the kingdom, and -Joseph was Jacob's son. Here was a temptation to -Jacob to come forth and show himself to the world. -Joseph's father would have been an object. Would not -all eyes be upon him? Would not place be given to him -and way made for him, whenever or wherever he -appeared? Nature would have said, If Jacob had such -opportunities, let him show himself to the world. The -spirit of the world must have suggested that; as long -afterwards to a greater than Jacob, who had no <em class="italics">reflected</em> -glories to exhibit, but all <em class="italics">personal</em> glories. "If thou do -these things, shew thyself to the world." See John vii. -4. But, in the spirit of one who, in his way, had overcome -the world, Jacob continues a retired man through -all his life of seventeen years in Egypt. He was a -stranger, where every human attraction joined in -tempting him to be a citizen.</p> -<p class="pnext">To me, I own, this is exquisite fruit of a chastened -mind, fruit of divine discipline, the witness of a large -participation of the holiness of God, the holiness that -suited the calling of God, the calling that made Jacob -a stranger and pilgrim on the earth. At Shechem he -reminded us of Lot in Sodom, but here he reminds us -of Abraham in his victory over all the offers of the -king of Sodom.</p> -<p class="pnext">But with this separation from the world there is -nothing of false humility. In the midst of all this -practical strangership he knows and exercises his -dignity under God. As he enters, and as he leaves the -presence of king Pharaoh (chap. xlvii.), he blesses him. -This is to be observed. As he stood there in the royal -presence, he owned himself a pilgrim on the earth, -somewhat poor and weary too; but at his introduction -and on his exit he blesses him, as one who knew what -he was in the election and grace of God; for "without -all contradiction the less is blessed of the better." This -is not what old Simeon did when he had the infant of -Bethlehem in his arms, but this is what old Jacob now -does, when he has the greatest man on the earth before -him. He made no requests of the king, though he -might reasonably have expected whatever he asked. -He was silent as to all that Pharaoh or Egypt would do -for him, but he speaks as the better one blessing the less -again and again. This was like the chained prisoner of -Rome before the dignitaries and officers of Rome. Paul -let Agrippa know--he let the Roman governor know--that -he, their prisoner, carried and owned the good -thing, and that he could wish no better wish for them -all, than that they were as he was. And this is faith -that glorifies grace--the proper business of faith--precious -faith indeed, whether in a prisoner-apostle, -or in an exile stranger-patriarch. Rome and Egypt -have the wealth and power of the world, such as men -will envy and praise, but Paul and Jacob carry a -secret with them that makes them speak another -language.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is all full of meaning in our Jacob. The glory -is hidden in an earthen vessel, but it is there, and the -vessel knows it to be there. Jacob does nothing in those -Egypt-years of his, to make history for the world. He -takes no part in its changes; its interests and progress -are lost upon him; he is at the disposal of others, taking -what they may give him, and being what they may -make him; but he knows a secret that takes his spirit -above them. Others may flourish in Egypt, he only -spends the remnant of his days there. See xlvii. 27, 28.</p> -<p class="pnext">I own indeed that I stand in admiration of this way -of the Lord, of the Spirit of God, with Jacob. To -such a life as his had been, most suited was such an -end as this now is. It is a poor thing that we should -need such a pause as this, at the end of the journey; -but, if needed, it is beautiful to see it fruitful, after -this manner. During that long husbandry of his soul -under "the Father of spirits," that seventeen years in -Egypt, how commonly, I dare to suppose, did Jacob -sit before the Lord, meditating the past years, with -some confusion of face; and the fire would kindle then, -and the refiner's work go on.</p> -<p class="pnext">But when these silent and retired years are about -to close, we find him, somewhat abruptly, stirring and -earnest. It is with Joseph respecting his burial. He -will have Joseph not only promise, but swear, that he -will bury him in the land of his fathers. xlvii. 30. -This is also very beautiful. We never find him urgent -about the conditions of his <em class="italics">life</em> in Egypt; he seems -willing, as I said, to take what they give him and to -be what they make him; but as to his <em class="italics">burial</em>, he is, -now, all urgency and decision. He will have it confirmed -to him by an oath, that his son will take his -dead body to that land which witnessed the promise -of God to him. He is earnest and peremptory now, -as he was indifferent before. For faith likes to read its -title clear, full, and indefeasible. Abraham would have -the inheritance by <em class="italics">covenant</em>, as well as by <em class="italics">word</em>. Chap. -xv. Jacob now will have the burial, such a burial as -is worthy of the hopes of a child of Abraham, by <em class="italics">oath</em>, -as well as by <em class="italics">promise</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this shows us another Jacob than what we once -knew him to be. He is now partaker of God's holiness; -his mind and character are in consistency with the call -of God. He is a stranger with God in the earth, but -in sure and certain hope of promised inheritance. -This is fruitfulness; I say not that it is service; but it -is beautiful fruitfulness in the inner man.</p> -<p class="pnext">In chapter xlviii. which follows, we get that one -act in his life which is signalized by the Spirit as the -act of faith. See Heb. xi. 21. But the whole chapter -is beautiful. All is <em class="italics">grace</em> on God's part, and all is -<em class="italics">faith</em> in the heart of Jacob. For it is the proper -business and duty of <em class="italics">faith</em> to accept the decisions of -grace, and that is just what grace is doing here. -Grace adopts the sons of Joseph, who had no title in -the flesh, and takes them into the family of Abraham. -Grace gives the place and portion of the firstborn, -the double portion, as though they were Reuben and -Simeon. Grace sets the younger of them above the -elder. And grace gives Joseph, or the adopted firstborn, -an earnest of his coming inheritance. To all -this Jacob bows and is obedient. In faith he accepts -the decisions of grace. Nature may resent this; but -Jacob is true to the word of grace committed to him. -Joseph was moved when Jacob was setting Ephraim -above Manasseh. Jacob feels for him; but he fulfils -the word of God committed to him, let nature be -surprised or wounded as it may. He does not listen -to nature in his son Joseph, as he had listened to it -on a like occasion, years and years ago, in his mother -Rebecca.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id42" id="id41"><sup>21</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Surely this is beautiful: faith thus accepting the -decisions of grace. But in this, Jacob was also God's -oracle. He was not only in faith obedient to the -purpose or counsel of grace, but he was used of God -as a vessel of His house, used to declare His mind, to -represent and act His purposes in these mysteries of -grace, the <em class="italics">adoption</em>, and the <em class="italics">inheritance</em>, and the -<em class="italics">earnest</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">And as this vessel was thus so fully approving itself -fit for the Master's use, it is still used. We still see -him and hear him as God's oracle, as we enter chapter -xlix. He calls his twelve sons, and blesses them. -He delivers, under the Spirit, the words and judgments -of God touching them. But this was a very trying -moment to him. It exceeds all in what it cost -him. In preferring Ephraim to Manasseh, he suffered -something. But he, who did not then attend to -nature in his son, will not now attend to it in -himself. He goes through this sorrowful, humbling -scene, feeling it bitterly at certain stages of it; but he -still goes on with it and through it. He had now to -retrace, under the Spirit, and as the oracle of God, and -in their presence, the ways of his sons in past days, -and the fruit of these ways in days still to come. He -had to do much of this with a wounded heart, and -with recollections that might well be deeply humbling. -For these words upon his sons were a kind of -judgment upon himself for his past carelessness about -his children. But still he does go on and finishes his -service, as the oracle of God, and that too with such -sympathies and affections as give us some further -beautiful witnesses of his purified state of soul.</p> -<p class="pnext">Levi's and Simeon's iniquity has to come before -him. But he resents this now in a way, no trace of -which we find in him in the day when that iniquity -was perpetrated. It troubled him then because of -the mischief which it might work for him among -his neighbours. "Ye have troubled me," said he, "to -make me stink among the inhabitants of the land, -among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being -few in number, they shall gather themselves together -against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I -and my house." Chap. xxxiv. 30. This was the mind he -was in when he was a citizen in Shechem. But now it -is on other ground altogether, higher and purer ground, -that his soul refuses this iniquity. It was iniquity; -that is enough; and he will not let his honour be -united with it. Then he opens his eyes on the uncleanness -of Reuben, just to be shocked by it. And then, -as the backsliding of Dan is summoned up before him, -his whole soul is moved, and he is cast on the hope of -God's salvation, his only escape, the only escape which -he would own, from all that was around him, behind -him, or before him. "Dan shall be a serpent by the -way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse's heels, -so that his rider shall fall backward. I have waited -for thy salvation, O Lord."</p> -<p class="pnext">What affections and energies are here! How finely -this vessel did its service in the house of God! Poor -David knew more than sorrow for the loss of Absalom -in the day of Absalom's fall. That slaying of his son -brought sin to remembrance. And here Jacob entered, -with full personal sympathies, into the counsels of -God, and had his own part and share in recollections -that must have stirred the conscience.</p> -<p class="pnext">He not only announced these judgments of God, -but felt them. He was not a <em class="italics">mere</em> vessel, but a <em class="italics">living</em> -vessel. And he was faithful to Him that appointed -him, though the service was, after this manner, full of -humbling and bitterness.</p> -<p class="pnext">We saw Jacob "dumb for a season." This we -noticed as the character of many years of our Patriarch's -closing life. But his mouth had now been -opened by faith; and once opened, God uses him -abundantly as His oracle. This is like Zacharias, the -Zacharias of Luke i. He also, as we know, had been -dumb for a season; but in faith he wrote his child's -name upon a writing-table, and then the Lord used -him as His prophet.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Here the story ends; but I believe we have gathered -the moral of it. The Lord's hand with Jacob tells -us how unwearied He is with His foolish and wayward -ones. It is <em class="italics">variety</em>, too, as well as <em class="italics">patience</em>, that we -see in this constant moral culture. Jacob had to learn -different lessons; and He, with whom he had to do, -set Himself in patient grace to teach them all to him. -Bethel, Peniel, Bethel again, and Beersheba, witness this, -as we have seen. And then, throughout a changeful -course, at home and abroad, in youth and in manhood, -among strangers or at the side of his father and his -mother, Jacob betrayed much that needed chastening, -and the lesson was taught him again and again.</p> -<p class="pnext">He reminds us of the disciples in the days of the -Lord. In how many ways had the Lord to correct -and instruct them! And it was the same to the end; -and the patience of their divine Teacher was the same -to the end. The ignorance, the selfishness, the constant -moral mistakes they made and betrayed, the -different ways in which they crossed the mind of their -Master, all glorify the goodness that waited on them. -And it may remind us also of Him who bore with -Israel's manners in the wilderness for forty years. -And it may be also a remembrancer to ourselves of -much of that patience and grace which we are daily -experiencing at the same hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Discipline, the discipline of a child, is illustrated -in Jacob, as we observed at the beginning, ere we -began to consider his story, and as we now have seen -it to be. And discipline is healthful, and does good -like a medicine. If we need it, it is the <em class="italics">only</em> thing -for us. When in the days of Samuel, Israel asked -for a king, would it have been well for them, if the -Lord had given them David? The Lord had David -in reserve for them; but would it have been seasonable, -would it have been healthful for them, if David -had been given to them at once, when with a rebellious -will they were asking for a king? Surely, they -must first be made to know the bitterness of their -own way. A Saul must be given when Israel asks -a king. This was discipline, and this was the only -thing that would have been healthful for them. But -when they have tasted the bitterness of their own -way, in pity of their misery, the Lord will bring -out that which He has in reserve for them, the man -after His own heart that shall fulfil all His pleasure.</p> -<p class="pnext">How perfect was all this! Had David been given -to Israel in the day of 1 Sam. xi. the whole moral of -the story would have been lost to us. But the love is -the same, whether it be discipline or consolation, -medicine or food.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the characteristic lesson we learn from the -story of our patriarch.</p> -<p class="pnext">With Machpelah and his burial, Jacob then <em class="italics">ends</em> -these dying intercourses with his sons, as he had <em class="italics">begun</em> -them. xlvii. 29, xlix. 29. He had Joseph's word -and oath already on this matter, and now he must put -all of them under the same engagements to him about -it. Death was more important to him than life. Life -kept him in Egypt, death would restore him to Canaan. -Death linked him with the God and the promise of -his fathers. The hopes of faith lay beyond life, and -outside Egypt. In spirit he was saying, Absent from -the body, present with the Lord; "Confident, I say, -and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to -be present with the Lord." As far as patriarchal faith -could utter this, Jacob was uttering it. And at the -very last we read, "When Jacob had made an end -of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into -the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered -unto his people."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was surely no barren or unfruitful time he had -spent in Egypt. Though to him and to his hands -the business of life was all over, he was not <em class="italics">rusting</em> -out, as we had to say of Isaac. Jacob's silence was -husbandry. We rejoice in these last days as his best -days. We rejoice still more in the grace which provided -this pause for him at the end of his journey, that, -in the language of the Psalmist, he might recover -strength before he went hence, and was no more seen.</p> -<p class="pnext">Gracious indeed is it towards all of us His elect -ones, to have such a sight as this, such a specimen -(may I so call it?) of divine patience, wisdom, and -goodness, as this. It is peculiar indeed, having its -own place amid the infinite forms and characters -which grace assumes in relation to the need of the saints. -Jacob's last days were his golden days. To others, to -their flocks and herds, Egypt was a land of Goshen; -but it was not to Jacob's flocks and herds, for we do -not read that he had any; but it was to Jacob's <em class="italics">soul</em> -that Egypt was a Goshen, the very richest, fairest, -best-watered land his spirit had ever enjoyed. It -was more really the gate of heaven to him than -Bethel had been. It was more the face of God to -him than Peniel had been. He had the Lord in -secret and in silence with him there, but in real, -living power. With all that would naturally have -kept him at home on the earth he was a stranger. -In Egypt Jacob was a delivered, extricated man, as -from the beginning and all through he had been a -chosen and a called one.</p> -<p class="pnext">Are we learning that which God was teaching him -there? Are we seeking, with more single heart, the -portion of God's strangers and pilgrims, thinking -rather of Machpelah than of Egypt, of the rapture -that links us with the promise, than of all the daily -growing prosperity of this present evil world?</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="joseph">JOSEPH</span>.</p> -<p class="center medium pnext">GENESIS XXXVII.-L.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Joseph becomes principal in the narratives of the -Book of Genesis as soon as we reach chap. xxxvii., -and so continues, I may say, to the end. So that I now -propose to close with this paper on "Joseph," referring -to the others, entitled "Enoch," "Noah," "Abraham," -"Isaac," "Jacob," as if they had been already read.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Joseph's story has its peculiarity in the midst of the -things of Genesis--its own mystery, and its characteristic -moral; as the others have. <em class="italics">Election</em>, as we -have seen, was illustrated in Abraham; <em class="italics">sonship</em>, or -the adoption of the elect one, in Isaac; <em class="italics">discipline</em> of -the adopted one in Jacob; and now in Joseph, <em class="italics">heirship</em> -is to be.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is a divine order.</p> -<p class="pnext">And, consistently with this, in Joseph we get sufferings -before glories, or before the inheritance of the -kingdom; all this realizing that word of the apostle, -"If children, then heirs ... if so be that we suffer with -Him, that we may be also glorified together."</p> -<p class="pnext">For while discipline attaches to us as children, -sufferings go before us as heirs; and this gives us the -distinction between Jacob and Joseph. It is discipline -we see in Jacob, discipline leading him as a child, -under the hand of the Father of his spirit, to a participation -of God's holiness. It is sufferings, martyr-sufferings, -sufferings for righteousness, we see in Joseph, -marking his path to glories.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this is the crowning thing; and thus it comes -as the closing thing, in this wondrous Book of Genesis--after -this manner perfect in its structure, as it is -truthful in its records. One moral after another is -studied, one secret after another is revealed, in the artless -family scenes which constitute its materials; and in -them we learn our calling, the sources and the issues -of our history, from our election to our inheritance.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus is it for our learning in this Book of Genesis.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But as yet, while we are in this Book, there is no -<em class="italics">law</em>. We are taught that this was so in Romans v. 13, 14. -But we might have perceived it for ourselves. Because, -in dispensational age, so to speak, the time of -this Book was the time of <em class="italics">infancy</em>. The elect were as -children who had never left home, never as yet been -under a schoolmaster.</p> -<p class="pnext">Neither is there any <em class="italics">miracle</em>. I mean no miracle -by the hand of man. For power would no more have -suited such hands, than law or a schoolmaster would -have suited such an age. And, besides, there was no -mission or apostleship to seal. Miracles or "signs -following" were not demanded as credentials of a mission. -But as soon as we leave this Book, and enter -Exodus, we get a mission or an apostleship, and then -we get miracles, as seals, to accredit it.</p> -<p class="pnext">So that what we do not get is just as fitting, from -its absence, as what we do get. Neither power nor -law would have been in season, and accordingly neither -power nor law do we get.</p> -<p class="pnext">But I will now pass on to Joseph, or to chapters -xxxvii.-l.</p> -<p class="pnext">The materials which we find in these chapters, and -which form the history of Joseph, may be separated -into four parts:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<ol class="arabic simple"> -<li><p class="first pfirst">His early times at home in his father's house, in the land of Canaan.</p> -</li> -<li><p class="first pfirst">His life, as a separated man, in Egypt.</p> -</li> -<li><p class="first pfirst">His recovery of his kindred, his father and his brethren, and the results of such recovery.</p> -</li> -<li><p class="first pfirst">His latter times in the land of Egypt till the day of his death.</p> -</li> -</ol> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">This may be received as the contents of this wondrous -story. The way in which it is told has been witnessed -to by the sympathies and sensibilities of thousands of -hearts in every generation.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part I.</span> (xxxvii. xxxviii.)--As soon as we enter on -the history, the heir is at once and immediately seen -in Joseph. His dreams are dreams of <em class="italics">glory</em>. But -<em class="italics">sufferings</em> as quickly form his present reality.</p> -<p class="pnext">The story begins by Joseph being a witness both <em class="italics">to</em> -and <em class="italics">against</em> his brethren. He tells his father of their -evil deeds, and he tells themselves of his dreams. I -cannot blame him in either. I say not how far nature -may have soiled him in the doing of these things; but -the testimonies themselves were, I believe, under divine -authority. There was One who was all perfection, as I -need not say, in everything He did or said, and He bore -witness against the world, and to His own glories. A -want of season and of measure may have soiled these -services in Joseph; for a thing out of season and beyond -its measure, though right in itself, has contracted defilement. -A vessel in the master's house, at times, has -to <em class="italics">hide</em>, as well as to <em class="italics">hold</em>, the treasure that is in it, and -should know where, and when, and how, to use it. -David had the oil of Samuel, the anointing of the Lord, -upon him, and he knew that the kingdom was to be his, -but he veiled his glory till Abigail, by faith, owned it. -And in this David may have surpassed Joseph. I say -not that it was not so. But to tell of what his dreams -or his visions in the Spirit had communicated to him, -was of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">And hence his sufferings. The Lord marks him as the -heir of glory; he speaks of the goodness he had found, -and of the high purpose of God concerning him, and -his brethren hate him. They envy him; and who can -stand before envy? They had already begrudged him -his father's favour, and now they hate him for God's. -They hate him for his words and for his dreams; and -when in the field together (as of old, it had been with -Cain and Abel), they take counsel whether to slay him, -to cast him into a pit, or to sell him to strangers.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this was at a time when he was serving them. -He had come a long way to inquire after their welfare, -and take their pledge, and to carry them blessings from -their father's house with their father's love. Such a -moment was their opportunity. It was not as the -bearer of good tidings that they received him; but -"Behold, this dreamer cometh," they say. "This is the -heir" (Matt. xxi. 38); that was the spirit of their words. -For envy they deliver them; for his love they are his -enemies; and at last they sell him to the Ishmaelites -for twenty pieces of silver.</p> -<p class="pnext">There may be different measures in the common -enmity; but in a great moral sense they are all one -generation. Reuben was Jacob's firstborn, and we may -suppose that he judged himself more answerable to -the aged father for the lad, than any of them. He -saves Joseph from the sword, and Judah proposes a sale -of him to the merchantmen, in the stead of the pit. -After such manners as these there are measures in the -common enmity. As some said of Jesus, "He is a -good man;" others, "Nay, but He deceiveth the people." -In the parable of "the marriage of the king's son," -some went to the farm, and some to the merchandize, -while others were taking the servants and killing them. -But the Lord speaks of all as of one generation. "The -<em class="italics">remnant</em> of them," He says, "took his servants and -slew them." The Judge of all the earth will surely -do right, and sins will get their many stripes and their -few stripes, but <em class="italics">the world</em> has cast out Jesus, and the -world is the world; as here, all are the guilty brethren -of Joseph; and, as the issue of their counsels and of -their common hatred, he is sold to the merchantmen, -and by them is carried down to the market of Egypt, -for further and profitable sale there.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is the heartlessness of all this that is specially -shocking; and it is that which the prophet Amos, -under the Holy Ghost, so solemnly notices in his -reference to the affliction of Joseph. Chap. vi. And -we, though at this distant day, may take our share of -the rebuke of the prophet for like heartlessness, if we -can willingly love the world which cast out the true -Joseph. And what must we say, when we look on -the boasted advance of everything in that world, the -constant skill that is exercised in sweeping and garnishing -that house which is stained with the blood of -Jesus? The beds of ivory, the sound of the viols, the -wine, and the chief ointments, were never so abundant -as in these days. And if we can take up with life in -such a world, are we true, as we ought to be, to the -cross of Christ? A heartless heart we have, and a -heartless world we live in, as it is heartless brethren -of Joseph we are here looking at. One knows it for -one's self full well; and surely, I may again say, it is -this heartlessness that is principally shocking to ourselves -(if one may speak for others), as it was to the -Spirit in Amos. We are not "grieved for the affliction -of Joseph," we are not true to the rejection of Christ. -<em class="italics">Worldliness is heartlessness to Him.</em></p> -<p class="pnext">What depths there are in the corruption that is in -us! As here, they dipped the favoured coat, the coat -that the old father had put on Joseph, they dipped it -in blood, and sent it to their father with these words: -"This have we found: know now whether it be thy -son's coat or no." This is the language of Cain: "Am -I my brother's keeper?" Cain was laying the burthen -of Abel's blood on the Lord, intimating by these words -that the Lord should have been Abel's keeper, seeing -He had had such respect to him and his offering. So -these words of Joseph's brethren seem to lay the burthen -of Joseph's blood upon the aged father, who, if -he loved him as well as this coat seemed to say he did, -should have looked after him better than this blood -seemed to say he had.</p> -<p class="pnext">What depths, indeed, in the revolted, corrupted -heart of man! What discoveries of these depths -temptation makes at times! They sinned, in all this, -against their aged father, and against their unoffending -brother, at a time when the love of the one had counselled, -and the love of the other had undertaken, a -mission to them of grace and blessing; as is said of a -generation which they represent both morally and -typically, "They please not God, and are contrary to -all men."</p> -<p class="pnext">Dark deeds indeed! Joseph's blood is upon themselves, -let them seek to hide it as they may; and the -day is before them when their sin shall find them out, -and this blood upon Joseph's coat shall be a swift -witness against them. For the present they do but -prosper in wickedness, that they may fill up their -measure. The course of Joseph's history is interrupted, -that we might get this sight of them during -Joseph's separation from them. Chap. xxxviii. affords -it to us. And it is indeed apostasy, full departure -from "the way of the Lord," in which Abraham had -walked, and in which he had commanded his children -and his household after him to walk. Judah deals -treacherously, marrying the daughter of Shuah. The -way of the Lord is utterly despised and forsaken by -Judah. Still grace gets pledge here. Pharez is a -second supplanter. The hope of Israel is in the womb, -a blessing is in the cluster; but truly it is such a -cluster of a wild vine as might well be doomed to -the sickle, if sovereign, abounding grace did not say, -Destroy it not. Isa. lxv. 8; Matt. i. 3.</p> -<p class="pnext">And such is the sin of the nation of Israel, as of -this, their own father Judah; and such the grace in -which the nation shall stand in the latter day. Grace -shall then reign in the story of Israel, as it now does in -the person of every saint, elected in the sovereign good -pleasure of God, and made a monument of the saving -power of Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">We may not be prepared for this grace of God in -some of its surpassing exhibitions. We may be less -prepared for it than we think. Jonah was not, Ananias -was not, Peter was not. Jonah iv.; Acts ix. and x. -We are not always practised, skilful weigh-masters in -the use of the balances, the weights and measures of -the sanctuary. Are the heartlessness of chap. xxxvii., -and the defilement of chap. xxxviii., and that, too, -when found together, too bad? I ask. After all this -are we prepared for "repentance and remission of -sins" in the grace of God? The moral sense, the -natural conscience, self-righteousness, the laws of -society, and the judgments of men, supply us with -false weights and measures, and we carry them about -with us more than we are aware of. But they are an -abomination. Deut. xxv. 16. In our thoughts, the -way of the harlot and the publican are worse than the -easy, respectable course of the world. Had we the -balances of the sanctuary, we should assay things -otherwise. "That which is highly esteemed among -men is abomination in the sight of God."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part II.</span> (xxxix.-xli.)--In these chapters, which give -us the second part, according to our division, we have -the life of Joseph while he was a separated man in the -land of Egypt.</p> -<p class="pnext">During this time we shall see the beginning of his -day, or his exaltation. But ere that come, we are to -witness his further sufferings--his sufferings at the hand -of <em class="italics">strangers</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">We may, somewhat naturally, have the thought that -<em class="italics">the Jew</em> is specially guilty, as far as the moral history of -this world goes--specially answerable for sin against the -Lord. But in this we are not fully wise. The Jew had, -indeed, a special hand in the sorrows of Christ; and, -nationally, Israel is under special judgment. But the -Gentile is a distinct, not a different man. The ministry -of our Lord Jesus tested "the world," as well as "His -own." The record touching the cross is this, Of a truth -against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, -both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and -the people of Israel, were gathered together. Acts iv. -All were guilty there. As the apostle of the Gentiles, -in his doctrine, says, the whole world has become -guilty before God. Jew and Gentile are all alike -proved under sin. Rom. iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Our present chapters suggest this. Joseph's affliction, -begun among his brethren, is now continued among -strangers. His brethren had already hated him, and -put him in the pit, and thence taken him to sell him -as a bond-slave; an evil woman of the Egyptians now -falsely accuses him, and he is put in prison, and then -another Egyptian, whom he had served and befriended, -forgets him and leaves him. But, however it may be -with him, whether at home or abroad, God is with him. -This becomes the very characteristic of his history. -Chapter xxxix.; Acts vii. For, in His way with His -elect, God's <em class="italics">sympathy</em> comes first, and then His <em class="italics">power</em>, -the sympathy which accompanies them through their -sorrow, and then the power which delivers them out of -it. We are prone to desire present ease, and would have -all inconvenience and contradiction removed at once. -But this is not <em class="italics">His</em> way. When at Bethany "Jesus -wept;" and afterwards, but not till afterwards, He said, -"Lazarus, come forth." Nature would have had the -death, which had called forth the tears, anticipated. -We judge that we might have been spared many a -trial, and we reason it out as a clear, unquestioned -conclusion, that God had power. As the friends of -the family at Bethany said, Could not this man, that -opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even -this man should not have died? But they reasoned -imperfectly, because they reasoned partially; that is, -only on the <em class="italics">power</em> of Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">We ought to (and we should, had we but bowels in -Christ) very chiefly value the age or dispensation of -His sympathy; it gives <em class="italics">Himself</em> to us in so peculiar a -way. And this sympathy was eminently Joseph's, in -this day of his affliction. As we said, that "God was -with him" is characteristic of his condition. And he had -abundant evidence of this. As soon as he is in Potiphar's -house, all under his hand, committed to him by his -master, prospers. And change of scene works no change -in this; for as soon as he is in prison, the same record -we read of him, and the same circumstances we see -around him. The keeper of the prison puts the same -confidence in him that Potiphar his master had; and -under his hand in the prison all things prosper, as they -had in the Egyptian's house. So that Joseph had full -witness from God, that God was sufficient for him.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was not for such an one to leave the help of the -Lord for the help of the creature. But Joseph craves -the remembrance and the sympathy of the butler, and -would have him give him a good word with the king -his master.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was natural. Joseph had befriended the butler -of the king, and such an one was able to befriend -him. His craving of his sympathy is not to be condemned -on any natural, human, or even moral grounds. -But whether it was quite worthy of <em class="italics">Joseph</em> to do so -may be questioned, whether it was quite the way which -<em class="italics">faith</em> would have suggested.</p> -<p class="pnext">And it comes to nothing. The butler, as we know, -forgets him, and he is left for two long years in the -prison. For God will still be everything to him. -Help shall come, but it shall come from Himself. With -the Lord, the heaviness of the night is sure to yield to -the joy of the morning; and ere this season of his -separation from his brethren came to an end, Joseph is -released, and blessed, and honoured. It becomes the -budding-time of his glories.</p> -<p class="pnext">Excellent things indeed are found in the condition of -the separated Joseph, such things as bear our thoughts -to Him who is the greater than Joseph. I would just -observe four of them.</p> -<p class="pnext">1. There is great <em class="italics">moral beauty</em> in him. He was a -Nazarite then, as pure an one as Daniel in like circumstances, -a captive among the uncircumcised, maintaining -his circumcision, his separation to God, unspotted. -2. There is <em class="italics">precious spiritual gift</em> in him. He was a -vessel in God's house, carrying the mind of Christ, and -ministering that mind as an oracle of God; like Daniel -again, interpreting dreams, and making known even to -kings, though still in his day of humiliation, what was -coming upon the earth. 3. There is the <em class="italics">right hand of -power and dignity for him</em>. He is seated nearest the -throne, and put in possession of those resources on -which his own brethren, who had cast him out, and the -whole world beside, are destined ere long to depend for -preservation in the earth. 4. There is <em class="italics">joy, peculiar -joy, prepared for him</em>. The king makes a marriage -for him, and he becomes the head of a family among -the Gentiles; and this is a source of such joy to him, -that he can, in some sense, as the names of his -children tell us, forget his kindred, and even rejoice -in his affliction.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely these are excellent things found in the condition -of Joseph while separated from his brethren. -And in them we see the Lord Himself in this present -age, the season of His separation from Israel. A child -might trace the likeness; but He, who reveals to babes -and sucklings, has led the way in this. In Stephen's -wondrous word, in Acts vii., we get Joseph and others -put in kindred place and circumstances with the Lord, -who is there called "the Just One." And this is so -full of interest, that though it be but incidental, we -must turn aside for a little, and listen to that great -voice of the Spirit of God.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Stephen appears but for a moment in the course of -the divine history; but it is to fill a very eminent and -distinguished place. The occasion on which he is seen, -and on which he acts, is full of meaning. Jewish enmity -was again doing its dark deeds, and the God of -glory was again disclosing His brighter purposes.</p> -<p class="pnext">Stephen is another witness of the Lord passing from -earth to heaven, leaving the earth for a season in its -unbelief and apostasy, and calling out a people for -heavenly places.</p> -<p class="pnext">Stephen's was another separating era. Abraham's -had been such, and so had Joseph's, and so had that of -Moses, and that of "the Just One," Jesus. The occasion -of the separation from kindred to strangers, (and -that is, from earth to heaven,) may be different, but it -is alike separation. Abraham was separated, because -God was leaving a defiled world unjudged; and unjudged -defilement God cannot make His habitation, nor -allow it to be the habitation of His elect. The world -after the flood had defiled itself, and the Lord was -leaving it in its defilement, not purifying it by a -second flood; and therefore He becomes a stranger in -it Himself, and calls His elect out of it with Him. -Thus Abraham is a separated man. Joseph in his day -was another; separated from home and kindred, like -Abraham; and so Moses. But Joseph and Moses were -not separated like Abraham, simply by the call of God -out of unjudged defilement, but by the enmity and persecutions -of their brethren. And so Jesus, "His own," -and the world made by Him refused Him, and -would not know Him. Wicked hands slew Him, and -the heavens received Him. And so Stephen.</p> -<p class="pnext">Stephen is, thus, in company with these separated -ones, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and "the Just One." -And he is naturally directed by the Spirit, to go over -their histories in this wondrous chapter. And these -separated ones have, at different eras or intervals, in the -progress of God's way upon earth, marked out or foreshadowed -His higher or richer purposes touching heaven. -For their times, as we speak, were <em class="italics">transitional</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">Stephen's was such. Till his day, the scene in "the -Acts of the Apostles" is laid in <em class="italics">the earth</em>. In chapter i. -the risen Lord had spoken to His apostles of "the -kingdom of God." In the same chapter the angels had -withdrawn the eyes of the men of Galilee, as they call -the disciples, from gazing up into heaven, under the -promise that Jesus should return to earth. When the -Holy Ghost is given, as in chapter ii., under His baptism -it is of things in the earth that the apostles speak. -They testify that Jesus was to sit at the right hand of -God in heaven, till His foes on earth were made His -footstool. They then preach, that upon the repentance -of Israel Jesus would return to earth with times of -refreshing and restitution, and that He was exalted to -give repentance and remission of sins to Israel. Israel -is, thus, the people, and the earth the scene, contemplated -in the action or testimony of the Spirit in the -apostles in these earliest chapters.</p> -<p class="pnext">But Jewish enmity again takes its way, as it had -done in many other days, even from the beginning; and -divine grace takes its way also, as it had also done in -such other days. And Stephen, under the Spirit of -God, takes such a moment as his text. He looks back -at the way of the nation, uncircumcised in heart and -ear, resisting the Lord in one or another of His witnesses; -and he looks back also at the way of the God -of glory calling into new and peculiar blessing those -whom either earthly pollution or Jewish enmity was -separating or casting out.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus his own condition at that moment was his -text, just as the condition of things in chapter ii. had -been Peter's text. Peter preached from the gift of -tongues; Stephen, as I may say, from his own face -then shining like the face of an angel, and from the -enmity of the Jews that was then pressing him and -threatening him. The Spirit in Stephen takes up the -moment. It was a transitional moment. It was the -hour of the shining face and of the murderous stones, -of the earth's enmity and of the still brighter, richer -discoveries of grace calling to heaven. And Stephen -looks back to other histories, histories of other elect -ones, who had already filled up kindred moments in -the way of God. For the people of the earth are now -withstanding God in him, as they had withstood Him -in others. As he tells them, they were always resisting -the Holy Ghost; the children and the fathers were -alike in this, throughout all generations of the nation.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus, in Stephen, we are called to witness another -great transitional moment. It is such a moment in the -Book of the Acts, as Joseph's was in the Book of -Genesis. This links Stephen and Joseph, and gives -natural occasion to the Holy Ghost in Stephen to make -reference, as He does, to Joseph. But if the earth is -refusing Stephen a place, as his brethren had refused -Joseph a place in the land of his fathers, heaven shall -open to Stephen. Grace in God shall be active as -enmity in man is active--and the eater shall yield -meat. And heaven does therefore open in Acts vii. -A ray from thence finds its way out, and gently yet -brightly falls upon the face of Stephen, as the people -of the earth were casting him out. And thus sealed -from heaven and for heaven, he speaks of heaven, and -heaven itself opens to him, and then the Holy Ghost -Himself guides his eye right upward to heaven, and -then his spirit is received of the Lord Jesus into -heaven. All is heaven. Stephen gets the pledge -or earnest of it first, then the sight of it in its wide-opened -glories, and then his place in it with Jesus.</p> -<p class="pnext">Nothing can exceed, while still in the body, the -brightness of such a moment. It was the Transfiguration -of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles. It -was beyond the measure of the patriarch's Bethel; for -here the top of the ladder was disclosed, and Stephen -was taught to know his place to be there with the -Lord, and not at the foot of it merely with Jacob. -The moment was transitional, which the time of Genesis -xxviii. was not. It had its forecasting rather in the -rejected, outcast Joseph finding his richer joys and -brighter honours among the distant Gentiles in Egypt. -Or rather, if we please, Joseph's history and Stephen's -history, are, each of them in its day and its different -way, the foreshadowing and the pledge of that glory -and inheritance in heaven to which the Church, the -election of this age, is called.</p> -<p class="pnext">Simply and necessarily, therefore, are Joseph and -Stephen linked together, as we find in Acts vii. Each -of them filled the same transitional place--more -vividly marked indeed in Stephen, and properly so--but -each of them filled it. All was new and heavenly, -as we have seen, with Stephen. It is not <em class="italics">downwards</em> -but <em class="italics">upwards</em> he is commanded to look. The angels -had told the men of Galilee in chapter i. to take their -eyes off from heaven; the Spirit Himself bade Stephen, -in chapter vii., to direct his eye right up to heaven. -The glory of the terrestrial had been one, the glory -of the celestial is now another. Even the gift of -Tongues had not pledged heaven to the disciples in -chapter ii. There was no transfiguration then, no -face shining like the face of an angel. The Holy Ghost -was upon the assembly in Jerusalem, but the assembly -itself was not in sight of heaven as its home and -inheritance. But Stephen was on the confines of the -two worlds. His body was the victim of the enmity -of man's world, his spirit was about to be received -amid the glories of Christ's world. He was rejected -by his brethren, accepted by God. All was transitional--and -fitly does he look back to Joseph and to Moses, -who had been in such a place before him.</p> -<p class="pnext">And here let me say, suggested by this allusion to -Joseph and others in Acts vii., that we are not to be -surprised by this typical or parabolic character of Old -Testament histories. Quite otherwise. We ought to -be fully prepared for it; and that, too, on a very simple -principle. God, acting in these histories (we speak to -His praise) acts in them (surely) <em class="italics">according to Himself -and His counsels</em>. And, consequently, these histories -become so many revelations of Himself, and of the -purposes He is bringing to pass.</p> -<p class="pnext">An assurance of the inspiration of the narrative -does not, therefore, in the full sense, give us <em class="italics">God</em> in -the narrative. There is purpose as well as veracity in -it--there is an "ensample" as well as inspiration. -"These things happened to them for ensamples." -They happened as they are recorded. There is historic -truth in them. But God brought them to pass, in -order that they might be "ensamples;" and till we -find this ensample, that is, the divine purpose in the -history, we have not got God in it. We are to go to -these narratives, be they those of Joseph or any other, -very much in the mind with which the Prophet had to -go to the house of the potter. Jer. xviii. He was to -see a <em class="italics">real work</em> there; vessels made by the hand and -skill of the workman. But there was a <em class="italics">lesson</em> in the -work, as well as a reality. There was a parable in -it; for the Prophet had to see God Himself at the -wheel, as well as the potter. So in these histories -which we get in Scripture. There is reality in them, -exact truthfulness, such as inspiration secures. But -there is meaning also; and till we discover that, and -learn God and His purpose in the history, we have not -really as yet gone down to the potter's house.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this is only by the way, suggested by the use -which the Spirit Himself, through Stephen, makes of -the Old Testament stories of Abraham, Joseph, and -Moses, in that marvellous chapter, Acts vii.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Part III.</span> (xlii.-lvii.)--We now come to Joseph's -recovery of his father and his brethren, and its consequences.</p> -<p class="pnext">Among the things which gave character to Joseph -and his circumstances, while he was separated from -his brethren, we observed this, that he was put into -possession of those resources on which his brethren -themselves and all the world beside were to depend for -preservation in the earth. The set time for the world -drawing on these resources has now arrived; and with -that, the set time for Joseph's restoration to his -brethren.</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph is now in authority. His day of humiliation -and sorrow is over. He is at the right hand of the -throne of Egypt, and the great executor of all rule -and power in the land. None can lift up hand or foot -without him. He has received the king's ring, and he -rides in the second chariot. He is the treasurer and -dispenser of all the wealth of the nation, the one who -opened or shut all its storehouses at his pleasure. -He that <em class="italics">was</em> in the pit <em class="italics">is</em> on the throne.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is Joseph <em class="italics">as</em> in resurrection. I say <em class="italics">as</em> in -resurrection. For the thing itself--resurrection from -the dead--had to wait for the day of the Son of the -living God, who was to be, in His own person, alive -from the dead. But though we could not have "the -very image" of this great mystery, yet we have -"shadows" of it, both in certain ordinances of the -law, and in certain histories of the elect. The dead -and the living birds of Leviticus xiv., and the two goats -of Leviticus xvi., are among such ordinances; and such -historical scenes as the unbinding of Isaac from the -altar on Mount Moriah, or Jonah's deliverance from the -whale's belly, set forth the same. And so does this -season in Joseph's history, being the day of his power -and authority in Egypt after his sore troubles in the -pit and in the prison. It is Joseph <em class="italics">as</em> in resurrection.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Spirit of God, in chap. xlix., using Jacob as -His oracle, looks back at Joseph in this condition, and -celebrates him accordingly. "Joseph is a fruitful -bough, a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run -over the wall: the archers have sorely grieved him, -and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode in -strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong -by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob." And -having spoken this of Joseph, the Spirit uses it as -a figure of a Greater than Joseph; for Jacob adds, -"From thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel." -We have Christ in Joseph. The risen Christ is seen -as in a figure here. All power is now in Him, in -heaven and on earth. He is seated at the right hand -of the Majesty on high. His title to the resources of -creation is sure, sealed by the dignity of the place He -now fills. And the resources which He now <em class="italics">owns</em>, -by-and-by He will <em class="italics">use</em> for Israel and for the whole -earth, after the pattern of this mystery of Joseph. -This we are now about to see.</p> -<p class="pnext">The famine begins, and the opening of Joseph's -storehouses begins, at the close of chap. xli. But the -scene is then changed for a season; and the story of -the brethren's repentance and acceptance is let in, as -a kind of episode. But there is wonderful beauty in -this. Because the restitution of all things waits, as -we know, for the repentance and fulness of Israel. -So that this introduction of the new matter, by way of -an episode, in chapters xlii.-xlvi., is full of beauty and -meaning; and the scene in Egypt, and the full opening -of Joseph's stores for that land and the whole earth, -are resumed in due season afterwards, in chapter xlvii. -For, "what shall the receiving of them be, but life from -the dead?" asks the apostle, tracing, under the Spirit, -the story of Israel. Rom. xi. "If the fall of them be -the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them -the riches of the Gentiles, how much more their -fulness?" So that we are prepared for this repentance -of the brethren going before the full blessing -of the earth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Over this operation, this process of the softening of -their hearts under the hand of Joseph, it would be -impossible not to tarry for a while. I must therefore do -so. Our own hearts would need something, if we were -not alive to this scene, to admire and enjoy it, and be -thankful for it; so full is it of the most exquisite touches -of true affection, so profound in the disclosure of the -moral principles of our nature, and so important in the -sight it gives us of the workmanship of God by His Spirit -leading sinners, through conviction and the sense of -their ruined state, to repentance and newness of life.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The scene of this workmanship of God is laid in a -season of need and sorrow, as is common in the ways of -the God of all grace. For He does not refuse to be sought -by us, when we have no help for it. It was thus with -the prodigal; it is thus with Joseph's brethren; and it -will, I doubt not, be found by-and-by to have been thus -with a goodly portion of those who are to praise His -name in glory for ever. The prodigal had no help for -it, and back to his father and his father's house he must -go. Joseph's brethren have no help for it now, and -down to Egypt and Egypt's storehouses they must go. -Mean it may be, base it may be, in the heart of man -thus to turn to God, when all else is gone. But the Lord -will be found by this base and selfish heart. He will -condescend to enter, as some one speaks, by these -despised doors of nature. For twenty long years -Joseph's brethren had lived easy and prosperous, with -goods laid up, and blessings plentiful around them, and -Joseph and his sorrows had all been forgotten. For a -time the prodigal had his money, the portion of his -father's goods that had fallen to him; and with his -money, as long as it lasted, he took his pleasure, his -back turned upon his father. But famine touches "the -far country" and "the land of Canaan," and then, -whether they will or not, the father's house and Joseph's -stores must be sought. See Hosea v. 15.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus the scene opens, and Joseph's brethren come -down to Egypt to buy food.</p> -<p class="pnext">As soon as Joseph saw them, he knew them. He -"remembered the dreams which he had dreamed of -them." But upon this he at once set himself to the -task of restoring their souls. See xlii. 9.</p> -<p class="pnext">Strange, and yet beautiful and excellent! His dreams -had merely exalted him above them. Had he sought, -therefore, simply to make good those dreams when he -thus remembered them, he might at once have revealed -himself, and, as the favoured sheaf in the field, or as -the sun, the ruling sun, in the heavens, have had them -on their faces before him. But to restore their souls, -instead of exalting himself, becomes at once his purpose. -This was the counsel he took in his heart, as he surveyed -the moment when he might have realized his own -greatness and their humiliation, according to his dreams. -How truly excellent and blessed is this! There was One, -in after-days, who, when He took knowledge that He -had come from God and went to God, and that the -Father had put all things into His hands, rose and girded -Himself, and began to wash His disciples' feet. The -knowledge of His dignities only led Him to wait on the -need of His saints. Who can speak the character of -such a moment? But Joseph here, in the far distance, -reminds me of it. "He remembered his dreams," dreams -which exalted him, and that only; and yet he turns -himself at once to the defiled feet, the guilty hearts, the -unclean consciences, of his brethren, that he might heal, -and wash, and restore them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Strange, again I say. There was no connection -between such remembrance and such action, save as -grace, divine grace, of which Joseph was the witness, -is known; save as the Jesus of John xiii. is understood.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed -of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the -nakedness of the land ye are come." This was taking -them up for the good work (though the process be -humbling and painful) of restoring their souls. The -conscience must be faithfully dealt with, if anything -be done. And Joseph aims at it at once. He makes -himself strange to them. He speaks to them by an -interpreter, and he speaks roughly. He must get -their conscience into action, let it cost himself in -personal feeling what it may. His love, for the -present, must be firm; its hour for melting and -tenderness is before it. It shall be <em class="italics">gratified</em> by-and-by; -it must <em class="italics">serve</em> now. In the day of their sin they -had said of him, "Behold, this dreamer cometh;" and -now, in the day of their conviction, he says of them, -"Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land -are ye come." They had once sold their brother, when -their heart knew no pity; now, with all peremptoriness -which knew no reserve, one of themselves is taken and -bound. But all this was only, in the purpose of grace, -to fix the arrow deep in the conscience, there to spend -its venom, and there to lay the sentence of death. -And this is done. When God acts, the power of the -Spirit waits upon the counsel of love. If they be -bound in fetters, and be holden in cords of affliction; -then He sheweth them their work, and their transgressions -that they have exceeded. Job xxxvi. "We -are verily guilty concerning our brother," they all say -as with one conscience, "in that we saw the anguish -of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not -hear; therefore is this distress come upon us."</p> -<p class="pnext">This was something; it was much; but Joseph has -still to go on with the <em class="italics">service</em> of love. Had he consulted -his <em class="italics">name</em> at the first, when he remembered his -dreams, he would have revealed himself at once, and -stood forth as the honoured one in the midst of his -confounded, humbled brethren. Had he now consulted -his <em class="italics">heart</em>, he would have revealed himself, and been -the gratified one on the bosom of his convicted, sorrowing -brethren. But he consulted neither the one nor -the other. <em class="italics">Love was serving</em>; and the husbandman of -the soul has, at times, like the tiller of the ground, -need of "long patience," and has to wait for the latter, -as for the early rain.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was a happy and promising, because it was a -<em class="italics">real</em> beginning. But Joseph has yet to learn whether -the heart of children and of brothers were in them, -or whether they were still, as once they had been, -reckless of a brother's cries and of a father's grief. -He therefore exercises them still. Roughness and -kindness, encouragements and alarms, challenges and -feasts, favours and reproaches, all are used and made -to work together. Though indeed all is much the -same in the reckoning of a guilty conscience. Jesus -is John the Baptist raised from the dead in the apprehensions -of it. A shaken leaf is an armed host in its -presence. Kindness and roughness alike alarm. They -are afraid because they are brought into Joseph's house. -They fear where no fear is. But all is working repentance -not to be repented of; and the fruit meet for this -is soon to be brought forth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph lays a plan for fully testing whether indeed -a child's heart and a brother's heart were now in them.</p> -<p class="pnext">As they are preparing the second time to return to -Canaan with food for them and their households, -Joseph's cup is put in Benjamin's sack--as we all -know, for it is a favourite story--and they set out on -their journey. But this, simple as it seems, is the -crisis. Their own lips will now have to pronounce -the verdict; for the question is now about to be put, -whether they are as once they were, or whether a -heart of flesh has been given to them. Will the sorrows -of Benjamin move them, as the cries of Joseph -once failed to do? Will the grief of the aged father -at home plead with their heart, as once it did not? -This place, this moment, was the field of Dothan again. -They were returning, in spirit, to the place where all -their offence was committed. In the field of Dothan, -in chap. xxxvii., they had to say, Would they sacrifice -their innocent brother Joseph to their lusts, their envy, -and their malice? Here, when Benjamin is claimed -as a captive because of the cup found in his sack--claimed -as one who has forfeited life and liberty to the -lord of Egypt--it is in like manner put to them to say -whether they would sacrifice him, and return on their -way home, easy and careless and satisfied.</p> -<p class="pnext">Nothing can excel the skill of the wisdom of Joseph -in thus bringing his brethren back, morally and in -spirit, to the field in Dothan. The same question is -raised here as there, and put to them solemnly. Judah, -he whom his brethren shall praise, gives this question -its answer. They were innocent, indeed, touching -the cup. But this is nothing to their consciences, and -nothing on Judah's lips. Conviction loses sight of -everything but sin. Its offence is its object. "I acknowledge -my transgressions, and my sin is ever before -me." The brethren might have spoken of their innocency, -and been somewhat hurt, that, after this manner, -they were again and again misunderstood and charged -falsely. They had been called spies when they were -true men, and now they were handled as common -thieves, though they were honest men. They might -have said this was too bad. They could bear a good -deal, injurious speeches and hard usage, but to be dealt -with thus, was something too much for flesh and blood -to put up with. But no--nothing of this--this was -not Joseph's brethren now. They had once hid their -guilt under the lie which they sent to their father, now -they are willing to hide their innocency touching the -cup under the confession they make to Joseph. Judah -stands forth to represent this new mind in them. -Guiltless they were indeed in all these matters, from -first to last; neither spies nor rogues; but some twenty -years ago they had been guilty of what this stranger in -Egypt (as they must have supposed) knew nothing, but -which God and their consciences knew. They may be -innocent now, but they were guilty then; and their -sin, and that only, was now before them. Confession, -and not vindication, is their language. "What shall -we speak?" says Judah. "How shall we clear ourselves? -God has found out the iniquity of thy -servants."</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph for a moment feigns as though all this was -nothing to him. This may be their business, if they -please, but Benjamin was his. Benjamin is the guilty -one, as far as the great man in Egypt is concerned; -he must remain, and the rest may take themselves -home as fast as they please. "The man in whose -hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as -for you, get you up in peace unto your father."</p> -<p class="pnext">What could exceed this? I ask. Did Solomon's -wisdom in settling the question between the two -harlots exceed it? Did he, in a spirit of judgment -befitting one who sat in the place of judgment, find -out the heart of a mother? and does not Joseph here, -in like wisdom from God, find out the heart of his -brethren? It is all beyond admiration. The heart is -indeed laid open. After these words from Joseph, -Judah draws near, and with the bowels of a son and -a brother pleads for Jacob and for Benjamin. "The -lad" and "the old man" are the burthen of his words, -for they were now the fulness of his heart. He will -abide a bondman to his lord, only let "the lad" go -back to "his father." Let but the father's heart be -comforted, and Benjamin's innocency preserve him, -and Judah will be thankful, come to himself what -may.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is everything. The sequel is now reached, the -sequel which had been weighed from the beginning. -The goodness of God had led to repentance. Joseph -was exalted indeed; the sheaf had risen and stood -upright; but "this was all the fruit, to take away -their sin." So Christ is now exalted, as we read, to -be a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, -and forgiveness of sins. Acts v. 31.</p> -<p class="pnext">And now the veil may be rent, and it shall be rent. -Joseph will be made known to his brethren.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this was a moment hard to meet and to manage. -The re-appearing of one whom they had hated and -sold, and the remembrance of whom had been so deeply -stirring their souls, might be overwhelming. He must -attemper this light to their vision, lest it prove intolerable. -But love is skilful, and has its methods and -its instruments ready for occasions. "I am Joseph," -he says to his brethren; but in the same breath (as -the common word among us is) he adds, "Doth my -father yet live?"</p> -<p class="pnext">Exquisite indeed, in the way of grace, this was, and -perfect in the skilfulness of love. Joseph could have -answered this question himself. Judah's speech (the -echo of which was still in his ears, for it was too precious -to allow him to part with it) had already told -him, that the father was still alive. But Joseph -hastened to bring a third person into the scene. He -could not allow the servants or officers of the palace -to be present then; for this would be to expose his -brethren. And yet to be alone with himself he dreaded -as enough to prove too much for them. And therefore -he must bring some one in, to share that moment with -them; and such an one, the very best of all, was he -whom Joseph's word introduces.</p> -<p class="pnext">Perfect indeed in its place this was. It calls to my -mind the scene at the well of Sychar. "I that speak -unto thee am He," says the Lord to the woman who -had just by His means been discovered to herself in -all her old crimson sins. It was not merely, "I am -He," but "I that speak unto thee am He." In these -words He reveals His glory. He stands before her as -Messiah, who could, as she had said, tell all things, -and who had now, as she had proved, really told all -things, such things as were terrible in the hearing of -an awakened conscience. But He reveals it in company -with the sweet, condescending, inviting grace of -one who was sitting and talking with her. And this -was the title of her soul to find freedom, where she -might have expected to be overwhelmed. And she -did find it.</p> -<p class="pnext">What skilfulness in the ways of love! From its -precious stores, I may say, in well-known words--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"There sparkles forth whate'er is fit</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">For exigence of every hour."</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">We only want to trust it more, and assure ourselves -of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">And there is more of this in Joseph still.</p> -<p class="pnext">Shortly after this he has to say again to them, "I -am Joseph," and to add to it, "whom ye sold into -Egypt." But then he goes at once through a long -tale of God's purposes in all that matter, and lets them -know how important to Pharaoh, to Egypt, and to the -whole world, as well as to them and to their households, -his ever having left home was about to be. -Love does not give them opportunity to occupy the -time with thoughts of themselves. Joseph crowds -a multitude of other thoughts upon their minds--and -he kisses them and weeps with them.</p> -<p class="pnext">Pharaoh's people may now, after all this, return and -share the scene with them. They can now see, in -these visitors from Canaan, not Joseph's persecutors, -but his brethren. They are introduced to the palace -only in that character. As in the parable of the -prodigal. The father will see him in his misery; and, -while yet in rags and hunger and shame, kiss him and -welcome him; but the household shall see him as a -son at the table. "Cause every man to go out from -me," had been Joseph's word, when he was going to -make himself known to them; but now, the house of -Pharaoh shall hear that Joseph's brethren have arrived. -The spirit of that blessed One whom we learn in the -Gospels breathes in all this. We are in John iv. and -in Luke xv. when in Genesis xlv.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There are occasions in the story of human life -which <em class="italics">the heart</em> claims entirely for itself. The Lord -met such, as we all do at times. There was constant -faithfulness in His dealing with the disciples. He did -not let their mistakes pass. He was rebuking them -very commonly, because He loved them very perfectly, -and was training their souls rather than indulging -Himself. But there did come a moment when faithfulness -must yield up the place, and tenderness fill it. -I mean, the hour of <em class="italics">parting</em>, as we get it in John xiv.-xvi. -It was then too late to be faithful. Education -of the soul under the rebukes of a pastor was not to go -on then. "O ye of little faith," or "How is it that ye -do not understand?" was not to be heard then. It -was the hour of parting, and the heart had leave to -take it entirely into its own hand.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now a time of <em class="italics">reconciliation</em> is, in this, like the -hour of parting. The heart claims it for itself. Tenderness -alone suits it; faithfulness would be an intruder. -And thus we find it with Joseph here. He wept aloud, -so that the house of Pharaoh heard it. He wept on -the neck of all his brethren and kissed them, fell on -his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and kissed him. -And if he spoke in the midst of his tears, it was only -to encourage their hearts, and give them pledges and -reasons why they should be in full confidence and ease -before him.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id44" id="id43"><sup>22</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Surely I may claim these rights and privileges for -the hour of <em class="italics">parting</em>, and for the hour of <em class="italics">reconciliation</em>. -And this was so, as we see, in this time of Joseph's -restoration to his brethren. But when all this is over, -and he has introduced them to Pharaoh and the palace, -and they are in readiness to return to Canaan, in full -preparation to bring their aged father into Egypt to -Joseph, when they are just standing, Benjamin with -them, and Simeon with them, and all was the exultation -of a favoured and prosperous hour, one word of warning -would not be out of season, and Joseph has it for -them, "See that ye fall not out by the way." "Simon, -son of Jonas, lovest thou me?" addressed the heart -of Peter much in the same spirit, and at a kindred -moment, when the reconciliation, as I may call it, had -been accomplished, and Peter's unbroken net had -gathered 153, and he had dined with his denied Master -on the sea shore.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Surely the whole of this, from first to last, is perfect. -There is a moral magnificence in Scripture which -makes it, of a truth, the chiefest, as we may say, of -the works of God. The Spirit breathes in it all. Its -tenderness, its grandeur, and its depth, are alike His. -In the issue of the story of Joseph and his brethren -we see something that is very excellent. The rights -and the wrongs of Joseph, the claims which he had -made, and the injuries he had endured, were all wonderfully -answered. Whatever dignities his dreams had -pledged him, he gained them all in full measure. Whatever -wrongs he had suffered, they were all avenged in -the very way his own heart would have chosen. The -judgment of their sin against him was executed in the -bosoms of the brethren themselves; not a hard word -touching it passed his lips from first to last.</p> -<p class="pnext">These were the issues of both the rights and wrongs -of Joseph. "This also cometh forth from the Lord of -hosts, who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in -working."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But I must look back at all this for another moment. -Conviction of conscience may be but natural, the -ordinary necessary working of the soul, the absence of -which would be resented as the evidence of a seared -or hardened state. But when it is more than the -mere stirring of the soul under the authority of -nature--when the Spirit of God has produced it--He -takes His own object or instrument to work by. -David, under the convicting Spirit, says to God, -"Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and done -this evil in Thy sight." And thus will it be with -Israel in the day of their conviction; for their conscience -will then be linked with the once rejected, -crucified Jesus. As the Lord says by the prophet, I will -pour upon them the spirit of grace and of supplications: -and <em class="italics">they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced</em>, -and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for -his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one -that is in bitterness for his firstborn. This is conviction, -when the Spirit of God takes that business out -of the hand of nature into His own hand. This is -conscience doing its work, as the apostle speaks, "in -the Holy Ghost." In such a day, under such authority -and power, Israel will address themselves directly to -Jesus. Isaiah liii. shows us the same in another form. -And precious work this is in the soul--<em class="italics">needed</em> work -still in each of us.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now this is seen in Joseph's brethren. Another has -noticed it already in a general way. But it is deeply -worthy of notice. It was their sin against Joseph they -called to mind in the day of their distress. "We are -verily guilty concerning our brother," they say, "in that -we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, -and we would not hear." Other sins might have been -present to the conscience then. Reuben might have -thought of the defilement of his father's bed, Simeon -and Levi of their blood-shedding and treachery, and -Judah of his marriage; but, stirred into life, not merely -by the trouble which had come upon them, but by the -Spirit, they are mindful of the <em class="italics">common</em> sin, and speak, -as with one conscience, of their wickedness touching -Joseph. And it is this which bespeaks the Spirit's work -in this conviction.</p> -<p class="pnext">Needed work, again I say, this is in every one of -us. But the <em class="italics">fountain</em> has to do its work as well as -the Spirit of grace. Joseph, as we saw, interpreted -his sorrows, though at their wicked hands, very differently -from what their fears and guilt had interpreted -them. They said, and very rightly, "we are verily -guilty concerning our brother;" he says, and very -truly, "God did send me before you, to preserve life." -And this is the gospel. We are convicted, but saved. -We learn that we have destroyed ourselves, but that -in Him is our help. The blood meets the spear. The -fountain is opened in those very wounds which our own -hands have inflicted. And this will be the experience -of the Jewish election (whose history that of these -brethren foreshadow, as we know) in the day of Isaiah -liii. and Zechariah xiii. The cross is the witness. Faith -stands before it, and there learns <em class="italics">ruin</em> and <em class="italics">redemption</em>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In the progress of this wondrous story, the reconciliation, -as we have now seen, is accomplished. Joseph -has received his brethren; and all is therefore ready for -Israel's full blessing. Restoration must follow conversion. -Times of refreshing and restitution must -come upon Israel's repentance. The aged father, with -his household and flocks, is brought from Canaan, and -with his sons presented to Pharaoh, and they are -seated in the very best of the land, the land of Goshen -in Rameses.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were told that they might leave all their own -stuff <em class="italics">behind</em> them, for all the good of the land of Egypt -was <em class="italics">before</em> them. And so it proved to be. Their -empty sacks had come down to Egypt at the first to -be made full, and they were still to prove that there -were a heart and a hand there, both equal and ready to -give without measure, and the emptier they came down -the fuller they would learn this.</p> -<p class="pnext">They were but shepherds, it is true, and such were -an abomination to the Egyptians. But Joseph "is -not ashamed to call them brethren." Strangers they -were, and pensioners; but the man of that day, the -lord of Egypt, again I say, was "not ashamed to call -them brethren." He owns them in the presence of the -king, of the palace, and of the nation. And the king -proves to be of the same mind. That they were -Joseph's brethren was enough for Pharaoh. Truly -this has language in our ears. A day is at hand, when -all this shall be made good in the great originals of -Christ and Israel. He will return to them and say, -"It is my people;" and they will say, "The Lord is -my God."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But though this is great and excellent, it is not -all. The earth itself has to be settled and blest, the -inheritance has to be received and displayed, as the -brethren, the Israel of Christ, had to be thus quickened -and restored; and this we are now to see. Joseph in -chapter xlvii. becomes the upholder of the world in -life and order. By him life is preserved in the earth, -and order maintained. And all the people are made -willing in that day of his power. All is right that -Joseph does, in the eyes of all the people. Their -money, their cattle, their lands, and themselves, are -made over to Pharaoh; and yet all pleases them, for -they owe their lives to Joseph. Egypt, in those days, -was a sample of the new world, the world brought -back to God by <em class="italics">redemption</em>. It was a "purchased -possession," just what the millennial earth is to be. -Eph. i. 14. It was creation reconciled, delivered from -the doom of famine, from death and the curse, by the -hand of a saviour. Joseph's corn had bought the land, -the cattle, and the people. All was under Pharaoh in -a new character, as a purchased possession, standing in -the grace of redemption. Pharaoh, who had been king -of the country, is king of the country still; but he has -another, a redeemer of the land and people, associated -with him now, as once he had not. As in millennial -days. What a picture has the hand of God drawn -for us here! what a pledge have we here, yea, what a -sample of the earth in the days of the kingdom!</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Pharaoh had trusted Joseph, and Joseph had pledged -Pharaoh, in earlier days, when as yet nothing was -done. Ere the word of Joseph began to be accomplished -Pharaoh had seated him in dignity and power, -given him a wife from among the daughters of the -excellent of the land, and put upon him a name that -told already to all who read it, what he thought of him, -and how he received him.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id46" id="id45"><sup>23</sup></a> And Joseph, in the confidence -that all would be according to the interpretations -which God had given him to deliver, accepted all -this at Pharaoh's hand; and then, but not till then, the -plentiful years came, one after another, to make good -the pledges of Joseph to Pharaoh, and to vindicate all -the honours which had been conferred by Pharaoh on -Joseph. See chap. xli.</p> -<p class="pnext">Precious notices of all that which finds its originals, -its counselled and eternal reality, in the secrets which -have been between God and His anointed! We have -only to bow and worship; and as we gather the spoils -and riches of the word of God, to rejoice and be -thankful. "I rejoice in thy word as one that findeth -great spoil." "I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, -as much as in all riches."</p> -<p class="pnext">It was fitting that we should have this sample of -the new world, or the coming millennial condition of -the earth, in the history of Joseph; for, as we said -at the beginning, he is the <em class="italics">heir</em>, set to represent such -an one in the grace of God, after his fathers had -told out, each his several part, in the same fruitful -and abounding grace. <em class="italics">Election</em>, as we have seen, we -got in Abraham; <em class="italics">sonship</em>, to which election predestinates -us, in Isaac; <em class="italics">discipline</em>, to which sonship -introduces us, in Jacob; and now, <em class="italics">the heir and the -inheritance</em> which follows, closing the mystery which -grace has counselled, and closing likewise the Book of -Genesis, in Joseph.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is no speech or language here, but a voice is -heard, clear, full, and harmonious, by the ear that is -awakened. And as we look back on Joseph alone, we -see a page of sacred story, full of Jesus; a <em class="italics">rejected</em> -Jesus first, a <em class="italics">risen and ascended</em> Jesus then, and now -at the end, a <em class="italics">millennial</em> Jesus, Jesus in His inheritance -and kingdom.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Known unto God are all His works from the -beginning of the world." But what we do not get -teaches us this as surely as what we do. He has -formed the light and the darkness. "The day is -thine, the night also is thine." In all this passing -and magnificent exhibition of the inheritance, there -is one whom we might have expected to see <em class="italics">chiefly</em>, -and yet we see her <em class="italics">not at all</em>. Asenath the wife is -not found here. She and her children get no portions -in this great settlement of everything in the land; -they are not so much as seen or mentioned. Is it -that they were forgotten? That could not be. But -she was the heavenly one, the wife given to Joseph -from among the Gentiles in the day of his separation -from his kindred, and her portion is more excellent -than what the land in its best condition could afford -her; it is in him and with him who is the lord and -dispenser of it all. Asenath is lost in Joseph; or, to -be seen only in Joseph.</p> -<p class="pnext">And thus the <em class="italics">full</em> end is told at the beginning; -for all this in the Book of Genesis is "the dispensation -of the fulness of times," when God shall gather together -all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and -which are on earth. And surely it is happy, beloved, -in the sight of the world's present confusion, in the -midst of the agitation of human thoughts which is ever -around us, to learn in the mouth of such witnesses, that -the end is thus before Him, and has been so from the -beginning. "The counsel of the Lord standeth for -ever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations." -His people and His purposes are alike before Him; -and such truths comforted the apostles, when they -found themselves in the midst of church disappointments. -See 2 Tim. ii. 19.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Part IV.</span> (xlviii.-l.)--This is rather, I might say, an -appendix to the history, than the fourth part of it. It -is made up of a few detached actions in Joseph's latter -days.</p> -<p class="pnext">The first thing, however, which we get is kindred -with what we have seen to be the characteristic of the -history itself. Chapter xlviii., which opens this fourth -part, shows us the bestowing of the birthright upon -Joseph; and the birthright and the inheritance are, in -some sense, one.</p> -<p class="pnext">In Israel, or under the law, the birthright carried -the double portion. The firstborn was to have a double -share of the father's goods; and the law enjoined that -this should be his by an indefeasible title, a title that -was not to be challenged. The double portion was not -to be given to any other child of the family on any -ground of personal affection or partiality whatever. -Deut. xxi. 15-17.</p> -<p class="pnext">But though this were so, the birthright might have -been either sold or forfeited by the firstborn himself. -His own acts might alienate it, though his father's -partialities or prejudices could not. And we find this -to have been the case. Esau sold it, and Reuben forfeited -it. Genesis xxv.; 1 Chron. v. In the case of the -sale of it by Esau, Jacob who bought it, of course, had -title to it. The bargain and sale made it his. That -is clear. But in the case of the forfeiture of it by -Reuben, who is to take it? It reverted to the father; -but on which of the sons would he confer it? That -was a question, and it is that question which this chapter -answers. It presents us with the solemnity of the -aged father, dying Jacob, investing Joseph with the -birthright which Reuben his firstborn had forfeited.</p> -<p class="pnext">Upon hearing of the illness of his father, Joseph -comes to his bedside, bringing his two sons, Manasseh -and Ephraim, with him. None of the other sons of -Jacob are present. The Spirit of God, through Jacob, -has a special business with Joseph.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jacob begins the action by reciting to Joseph the -divine grant of the land of Canaan. This was a setting -forth of the family estate, the property which he had -to leave among his children. He then <em class="italics">adopts</em> the sons -of Joseph; for this was needed to the investing of -them with the rights of children, inasmuch, as, in a -great legal sense, they were strangers to Abraham. -Their mother was an Egyptian. They were a seed, -therefore, whom the law would, in its day, have put -away. Ezra x. 3. But Jacob adopts them. He takes -them into the family. "And now," says he to Joseph, -"thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were -born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto -thee into Egypt, are mine." They are constituted of -the seed of Abraham, and made children of Jacob; and -this being done, Jacob at once sets them in the place -of the firstborn; for he adds immediately, "As Reuben -and Simeon, they shall be mine."</p> -<p class="pnext">This was a solemn act of investiture, by which the -rights of the eldest, the double portion which attached -to the birthright, passed over to Joseph in the persons -of his two sons. See 1 Chron. v.; Ezek. xlvii. 13.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id48" id="id47"><sup>24</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">But we have still to ask, Why was Joseph thus preferred? -The forfeited right had reverted to Jacob, and -from his hand it had to be disposed of afresh. But -why was it given to Joseph? Was this merely grace? -I could not say so. Grace, I know, on this great occasion, -takes its way; and were we duly emptied, we should -delight in the way of grace, even though we ourselves -might get, in its distributions, only a left-hand or -Manasseh blessing. But while all this is so, I still -question whether it were <em class="italics">merely</em> grace which thus -conferred the rights of the eldest son upon Joseph.</p> -<p class="pnext">I rather judge that Joseph <em class="italics">earned</em> it. If Jacob aforetime -bought it, Joseph, I believe, had now earned it.</p> -<p class="pnext">We have already, in the history, tracked his path to -the inheritance. It was the path, like that of his divine -Master, whose shadow in the distance he was, of sorrow -and rejection and separation, and yet of righteousness -and testimony. And this path had ended with praise -and honour and glory in the kingdom or inheritance; -and the birthright is kindred with the inheritance.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is, therefore, easy for us to say, as we have said, -that Joseph earned the birthright. Judah earned the -royalty, Levi the priesthood, and so Joseph the double -portion. And his father gave him a pledge, "an earnest -of the inheritance," which was characteristic of this; for -at the end of this action Jacob says to him, "Moreover -I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, -which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my -sword and with my bow." This was an earnest. But -not only so; it was a <em class="italics">sample</em> also. It was characteristic. -It spoke of the inheritance as it was to be in the hand -of Joseph. This portion had been <em class="italics">won</em>, and so had -Joseph's. The sword of Jacob had gained this parcel -of ground, as the patience of Joseph had gained the -inheritance and the birthright; and it is according to -this that the dying father afterwards celebrates him. -"The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the -blessings of my progenitors, unto the utmost bound of -the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Joseph, -and on the crown of the head of him <em class="italics">that was separate -from his brethren</em>." Or as Moses, the man of God, says -of him, "Let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, -and upon the top of the head of him that was separated -from his brethren."</p> -<p class="pnext">The apostle speaks of "the reward of the inheritance," -words which may not sound as if they exactly suited -each other; for the inheritance is of grace, and reward -is of work. So the Lord speaks of giving "a crown of -life," words which may also sound in the ear as somewhat -discordant; for life is of grace, and a crown is a reward. -But the soul accepts these things, and makes no difficulty -of them. "All purchased and promised blessings be -with you," said the dying martyr to his wife. And he -spoke wisely, as he did blessedly; for blessings in one -sense are all purchased; in another, promised or given. -As a sweet hymn, which we all know, has it--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Lord, I believe Thou hast prepared,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Unworthy though I be,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">For me a <em class="italics">blood-bought free reward</em>,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">A golden harp for me."</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">And Joseph, I judge, got the birthright or the inheritance -in this way. It was in his hand "the reward of -the inheritance." It was a bought thing, and yet a -given thing; an earned thing, and yet a free thing. We -see grace in the bestowment of it upon him, but we -see also the fruit or issue of that path of martyr-sorrows -which he, and he alone, of all Jacob's sons, -had trod in patience and in triumph.</p> -<p class="pnext">This action, therefore, is in full company with the -leading character of Joseph's history. We see the heir -in him, and with that the right of the firstborn, the -double portion, with its earnest, "the earnest of the -inheritance," made over to him, in the action of this -chapter.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In the next chapter (xlix.) Joseph is only one of the -many sons of Jacob--Jacob the father being principal. -Joseph and his brethren are together under the eye and -before the thoughts of the dying patriarch, who was -led of the Spirit to tell them what should befall them -in the last days. This I take no further notice of here, -but refer to the history of Jacob, where I have already -considered it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In the last chapter (l.) Joseph is again principal; not, -however, so much mystically as personally; that is, -not as the <em class="italics">heir</em>, but as the <em class="italics">man</em>. We see Joseph himself -here, his character and his virtues, rather than the -lord of Egypt, his place and his dignities. And considered -personally, he is perhaps the most attractive -character in the book of Genesis. There is more of -the fruit and force of godliness in him than in either -of his fathers. We have in him the steadiest, most -consistent walk in the ways of God. There is less -elevation, I am sensible, than in Abraham, as of course -there is less exercise of spirit than in Jacob; but -through all circumstances, trials, honours, changes, he -is still the man of God who walked in His fear and -before Him. His history is not made up of failures and -recoveries, or a doing of first works over again. It is -a path of light, if not of such light as shines more and -more unto the perfect day, yet of light which shines -clear and calm and constant. In his history we have -not angelic visits, nor apparitions of the Lord, or audiences -of divine oracles; but in Joseph himself we have -a vessel used of God, because approved of Him; a very -precious thing with God. It is not Peniel or Beersheba -again, occasional refreshments and illuminations, but -rather an abiding witness within, so that he knew the -way of God, and kept it. "Until the time that <em class="italics">his -word</em> came, the <em class="italics">word of the Lord</em> tried him." The -authority which Egypt, in due season, owned in him, -he had before owned in the Lord. He was the obedient -one himself, and then became the one set in authority. -He continued as with Christ in His temptations, and -then he was appointed to a kingdom. Subjection was -his path to honour, the due path of all the heirs of the -same kingdom.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there are some peculiarities in the story of -Joseph beyond this. We do not find the altar and the -tent with him, as we do with his fathers. Because it -is not strangership in the earth that we see in him, but -the inheritance or the kingdom, after suffering and -humiliation. It is not the tent of his fathers that we -see in his history, but the pit and the prison, which -were his alone, and not his fathers'. The tent and the -altar may duly be the symbols of their calling; the pit -and the prison first, and then the throne, become the -symbols of his.</p> -<p class="pnext">And as another peculiarity, we may observe that the -Lord is never called the God of Joseph, as He is called -"the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the -God of Jacob." But this, likewise, we may account -for. Joseph was rather among the <em class="italics">sons</em> than the <em class="italics">fathers</em>. -The covenant was not made with him, as it had been -with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; nor was any one set -aside in order that he might have the blessing. The -covenant was made with Abraham separated from -country, kindred, and father's house. It was renewed -with Isaac, to the setting aside of Ishmael. It was -renewed again with Jacob to the setting aside of -Esau. But it was not renewed with Joseph; for he -was only one of the sons of Jacob, and they were all -alike interested in it; they were all the seed contemplated -by it; and Joseph was no more of that seed -than either of the others. So that we have no ground -for the characteristic title, "the God of Joseph." For, -while grace was displayed in the call of Abraham, and -then again in the choosing of Isaac the younger, and in -the choosing of Jacob the younger, it was displayed in -Joseph only in its common measure in behalf of all the -seed, a measure that reached to others as to him.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id50" id="id49"><sup>25</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Thus Joseph takes his place in our sight, and we -look at him either <em class="italics">morally</em> or <em class="italics">mystically</em>; with his -characteristic virtues, or in his peculiar typical place. -But we have not quite done with him yet.</p> -<p class="pnext">He was, I would now add, <em class="italics">a great weeper</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">Paul says that he was "mindful" of Timothy's tears; -and there were many tears in the eyes of Joseph which -we might well be mindful of. David and Jonathan -were weepers, as well as Paul and Timothy. But were -I careful to do so, I might claim it for Joseph, that he -exceeded them all. The occasions of his tears were -more various. And indeed it is an earnest, real, and -hearty flow of affections that we have to covet in the -midst of the more cultivated and orderly attainments -of this day. Tears are ofttimes precious things, and -sometimes sacred too.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the beginning, when Joseph saw conviction -awakening in the conscience of his brethren, he wept. -These were tears both of sorrow and of joy. He felt -for them passing through the agony; but he must have -rejoiced to see the needed arrow reaching its mark, and -the bleeding of the wounds that followed.</p> -<p class="pnext">He wept again when he saw Benjamin. The son -of his own mother, her only child besides himself, -whose birth too had been her death, and the only one -in the midst of his father's children (who were all -then before him) who had not been guilty of his -blood. Such an one as this was at that moment seen -by him in Benjamin. These tears, therefore, nature -could account for.</p> -<p class="pnext">He wept again as he saw the work of repentance -going on in his brethren. In his way, he greatly longed -after them; till at the last, Judah's words were too -much for him; conviction of conscience had then ended -in restoration of heart. "The old man" and "the lad" -again and again on the lips of Judah had eloquence -which prevailed, and Joseph could no longer refrain -himself. He sobbed aloud, and the house of Pharaoh -heard him. But these were more than the tears of -nature. This was the bowels of Christ, or the tears of -the Father upon the neck of the prodigal.</p> -<p class="pnext">Each of these weepings was beautiful in its season; -but we have more still.</p> -<p class="pnext">He fell on his father's face, and wept, as his father -had just yielded up the ghost. This was as the grave -of Lazarus to Joseph; and there he and his Lord can -weep together.</p> -<p class="pnext">And again he wept, when, after his father's death, -his brethren began to suspect his love. He was disappointed. -An unworthy return to the ways of a -constant, patient, serving love, made him weep--in -the spirit of Him, I may say, who wept over Jerusalem. -For years had he been doing all he could to win -their confidence. He had nourished them and their -little ones. Years had now passed, and not one rebuke -of them do we find either in his life or in his ways. -Grief over their departed father had just freshly given -them to know what common affections they had to bind -them together. He had supplied them with every -reason to trust him. And yet, after all, they were -fearing him. This was a terrible shock to such a heart -as Joseph's. But he did not resent it, save with his -tears, and renewed assurances of his diligent, faithful -love. And have not such tears as these, I ask, as fine a -character as tears can have? They were as the pulses -of the aggrieved spirit of the Lord. "How long shall -I be with you?" "Why are ye fearful?" "Have I -been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not -known Me?" These were kindred pulses of an aggrieved -heart in Jesus. Jesus has <em class="italics">sanctified</em> tears, and -made them, like everything else that went up from -Him to God, a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savour; -Joseph and David and Paul, yea, Jonathan and Timothy -too, have made them <em class="italics">precious</em>, and put them among the -treasures of the Spirit in the bosom of the Church.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Such an one was Joseph, and in such company we -put him; again, I say, perhaps the most attractive -character in the Book of Genesis. We see in him the -grace and blamelessness that we get in Isaac, the -"piety," as we speak, marking him in all his relations -in life. But withal, there was combination which we -do not find in Isaac. There was firmness--energy as -well as sensibility.</p> -<p class="pnext">It remains for him to do the last office of this piety -to the memory of his father; and he does it, we need -scarcely say, in all grace and faithfulness. He buries -his father, as his father had willed it, in the land of -Canaan. But the whole is conducted with much -solemnity--and the occasion is such, that we must -wait upon it for a little moment.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">In other days, worship was a magnificent ceremonial. -Temples, altars, feasts, holy days, sacrifices, and the like, -furnished it, and officers of different orders, in appropriate -vestments, conducted it. Because in those days -worship pointed onward to certain great mysteries -which had then to be realized. But now these mysteries -have been accomplished in the manifestation of -Christ, His person, work, sufferings, and victories--so -that gorgeous worship is now but a reproach on all -that which is found in Him, in its full substance and -efficacy.</p> -<p class="pnext">So as to funerals, as well as worship. In other days -they were to be gorgeous. Because resurrection was -then only in prospect; and funerals then were a kind -of pledge of the expected resurrection; and it was -fitting that the pledge should be magnificent according -to the glory of that which it pledged. But now, since -resurrection has been realized in the person of the -Lord Jesus, the Son of God, the gorgeous funeral, -like the ceremonious worship, is rather a reproach, as -though the great mystery itself had not been yet -realized in its substance and efficacy. For it is not -funereal pomp which is now the pledge of our coming -resurrection--the resurrection of the Lord is that, the -first-fruits of a promised harvest.</p> -<p class="pnext">Accordingly, worship and funerals are now, in like -simplicity, to bespeak the Church's faith in <em class="italics">accomplished</em> -mysteries. We are now in sight of the victory -of the Lord Jesus. We no longer give or receive -pledges of it, as in ordinances, but we celebrate it. -Joseph of Arimathea gave His body a costly burial, -as Joseph the son of Jacob here gives the body of -his loved and honoured father. We read of Jesus: -"He made His grave with the wicked, and with the -rich in His death." In that day of Joseph of Arimathea -the grave had not been spoiled; and pledges therefore--like -pledges with these in the day of the Patriarch--might -still be given. But in the burial of the Lord -Jesus we properly see the last of these pledges; -because in Him we see the first-fruits of them that -slept. The grave-clothes and the napkins lie in the -empty sepulchre as spoils of a glorious war, and trophies -which tell of glorious victory. Death was overthrown, -and faith now celebrates what offices and usages, as well -as ordinances and ceremonies, had once only pledged -and foreshadowed. And let me add, that faith did -learn this lesson, for the burial which followed that of -Jesus had neither its embalming nor its magnificence. -It was shortly disposed of, reverently withal, and lovingly. -"Devout men carried Stephen to his burial, -and made great lamentation over him."</p> -<p class="pnext">Had we faith, deeply should we prize all this. Our -privileges are great indeed. In the services of the -house of God now, the table has succeeded the altar, -and instead of a sacrifice we have a feast upon a sacrifice. -And so have we to see death and burial, too, in -the light of the resurrection of Jesus.</p> -<p class="pnext">These things we notice in connection with Jacob's -funeral. His death has its moral operation in the -family, bringing out (as is often the case when the -head of a family is removed) what before was not -suspected to be there. But I must meditate on this -for a while.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The simplicity of patriarchal <em class="italics">faith</em> is very remarkable. -It was like their manners--beautiful from their -artlessness. There was nothing of the spirit of bondage -in the Genesis-saints. The patriarchs walked in the -assurance of this, that God was their God, His promises -their portion, and the city and land of the glory their -inheritance. They lived and died in this spirit of faith. -No suspicions or reserves, no questionings, no mistrust -of grace, defiles their souls. And this is surely -the more strange because, while we nowhere among -them trace this spirit of bondage, we see it everywhere -else, immediately after we leave the Book of Genesis, -and then all through Scripture. It would be vain to -follow all the notices of it which Scripture furnishes. -It works naturally and abundantly in us. Surely we -know it in ourselves, and see it in all around us.</p> -<p class="pnext">How is it, then, that it does not betray itself in the -Patriarchs? Was it because they were such constant -witnesses to themselves of the grace and election of -God, and had never heard the voice of the law? This -helped to form their minds, we may be sure. But -besides this, this absence of the spirit of bondage was -beautifully consistent with their dispensational standing; -for they were as children who had never as yet -been from home. They were in infancy, and they -could no more move in the presence of God in a spirit -of fear and uncertainty, than a child, ere he left home, -could be tempted to question his title to the nurture -and shelter of his father's house. And it is of the -moral beauty and perfection of this infant Book of -Genesis that we see this child-like, unquestioning faith -in the saints of God there. They are faulty, and that, -too, at times, through want of faith, when certain circumstances -press them; but their souls are never -defiled by a spirit of mistrust and bondage. We see -this throughout--at least till we reach the moment -when we are taking leave of the Book, and have gone -beyond what is properly the patriarchal character of it. -I mean, in Joseph's brethren, as soon as Jacob's funeral -is over.</p> -<p class="pnext">It then appeared that they had not been trusting -their brother with a guileless, happy confidence. There -had been an object of common interest between them, -and that had been too much the secret of their confidence, -instead of Joseph himself. They had not -boldness by reason of what Joseph was, and of what -he had done, but they had trusted in a circumstance. -Jacob's presence was the stay of their hearts. They -had repented; they had been convicted and quickened; -but still, their confidence did not honour Joseph, as -Joseph had richly deserved at their hands.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this may have a word for us. We may ask -ourselves, if countenance and fellowship of others -were withdrawn, would it be found that our whole -confidence has all along been in Jesus? that we have -so learnt grace, that we can abide the presence of -unveiled glory? that the removal of a Jacob clouds not -the atmosphere in which our souls have been dwelling?</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But we are now reaching the very end of the times -of Joseph. However, ere we witness his death, we -have (seasonable for us to notice this in this eventful -day of ours) a fine instance of <em class="italics">faith's acquaintance with -the course of the world's history</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">I do not speak of a <em class="italics">prophet's</em> knowledge of what is -about to be among the nations, such as Daniel had, -when he told of the rise of one beast after another, and -of the Great Image from its head of gold down to its -toes of iron and clay. Such knowledge was by the -<em class="italics">Spirit</em>, the Lord filling the heart of Daniel, and of -others like him, with His own light. I speak only of -<em class="italics">faith's</em> knowledge of that course of things which the -history of the nations is to take.</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph says to his brethren, "I die: and God will -surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto -the land which He sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to -Jacob."</p> -<p class="pnext">The children of Israel were at that time very happy -in the land of Egypt. They were in the full favour of -the king; they were in possession of the richest district -in the country, and they saw one of themselves the -second person in the kingdom. Not a single symptom -of danger or of change appeared in all their condition. -And Joseph himself was as happy as circumstances -could make him. "He saw Ephraim's children of the -third generation; the children also of Machir the son -of Manasseh were brought up upon Joseph's knees."</p> -<p class="pnext">But in the midst of all this, Joseph speaks of <em class="italics">God -visiting them</em>; words which bespeak days of sorrow to -be at hand, such days as that God would then be their -only friend and helper.</p> -<p class="pnext">Strange this was, very strange! Who could believe it? -Was Joseph dreaming? statesmen and politicians might -have said. But no; Joseph was not dreaming. God's -word was his wisdom. The divine oracle in chapter xv. -had forewarned, that Egypt would afflict Israel, but that -God would befriend them, and bring them back to -Canaan--and this word from God was everything to -Joseph, was everything to faith--appearances were -nothing. The oracle had spoken it. Joseph believed it -and remembered it. And thus by faith Joseph saw -Israel's <em class="italics">affliction</em> in the day of Israel's brightest promise -and prosperity--he saw Egypt's <em class="italics">enmity</em> in this day of -Egypt's friendship--he saw <em class="italics">brick-kilns and task-masters</em> -in the fair fields and sunny harvest of Goshen. As -Noah, by like faith, had once seen a deluged world -during 120 years of successive sowing times and reaping -times, vintages and summer gatherings, times of buying -and selling, planting and building.</p> -<p class="pnext">This was faith's acquaintance with the coming course -of things. And faith, in this our day, is to be a like -politician, and to know something of the course of things -by the light of God's word, in the face of all appearances. -And this is the only act in Joseph's life which is -recorded as of faith in Heb. xi. It is thus strikingly -distinguished in the midst of so many acts of faith and -godliness, and of such a course of walking with God, as -we have seen in him. But it was worthy to be thus -signalized. It was a great witness of Joseph's living -upon the word of God, in the midst of the world's -attractions and occupations, and with a mind superior -to all present appearances. Abraham had been instructed, -through divine visions and audiences, about this -coming history of Israel in Egypt; Joseph only used -what Abraham had received. We have no visits of the -Lord to Joseph, as we have to Abraham. Joseph, if -you please, was not in Abraham's elevation. But we -have in him what is morally the chiefest, the light and -certainty of a believing mind, the apprehensions and -decisions of faith. He remembered what Abraham had -heard, and he acted on what he remembered. What he -wanted in personal elevation, as an oracle of God, he -had, in moral power, as a believer in God. And if I -must needs choose between them, I would rather <em class="italics">believe</em> -than be <em class="italics">inspired</em>. And Joseph believed, when, as we -read, "he made mention of the departing of the children -of Israel, and gave commandment concerning his bones." -Heb. xi. 22. This was <em class="italics">faith's political knowledge</em>, as I -may speak--faith's acquaintance with the things which -were coming on the earth. And this is that which -made a Noah or a Joseph wiser than all the senators of -the kingdoms. We know well how Joseph's words were -vindicated, and how very unlooked for brick-kilns -defiled the goodly lands of Goshen, and task-masters -drove Israel to their work. Just as before, in Noah's -day, waters covered the very tops of the mountains, -and a ship, apparently in all folly built for dry land, -was soon the only ark of safety in a watery world.</p> -<p class="pnext">And I do ask, Is it not to be thus with faith still? -Have we not warrant, by faith in the word of God, to -know the course which this world, with all its growing -refinement and varied progress, is taking every hour? -Have we not reason to know that it is on its way to -judgment? Indeed we have. The Lord Jesus has -been rejected in this world. That is the fact which -gives the world its character with God. No advance -in civil order and cultivation, no spread of even His -own truth among the nations, can avail to relieve the -world of the judgment that awaits it because of this -deed. Let the day be as bright as was the day of the -Egyptian Joseph to Israel, faith knows that "the -polished surface" is soon to be broken up. Circumstances -never give faith its object. It is the word of -God that does that; and circumstances and appearances -are not to be allowed to take the eye of faith off its -object. The house, swept and garnished as it is at -present, promises much. So did the land of Rameses -and the friendship of Pharaoh, in the days of Gen. 50. -But such promises are idle words in the ear of faith; -it regards them not. As Jeremiah said to the king -of Judah, when the allied army had arrived, and the -hostile army had broken up and gone away, "Deceive -not yourselves;" so faith says, in this hour, to the -generation that is boasting in progress, "Deceive not -yourselves." Faith says this with boldness; for well -it knows, that the last state of the swept and garnished -house is worse than the first.</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph then gave proof that he believed what he -testified. Like Jacob, his heart was in Canaan, the -land of the covenant, the land of his father's sepulchres. -And, like Jacob, he took an oath of his brethren, saying, -"God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my -bones from hence." The unseen world was the real -thing with him, as it had been with his fathers. The -call of God had linked them all with that which lay -beyond death, and their thoughts and their hearts were -there before themselves. It was as natural for them to -die as to live.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old."</p> -<p class="pnext">His brethren, the children of Israel, were true to -him, as he had been to his father Jacob. They embalmed -his body at once. Afterwards, Moses carried -it with him out of Egypt; and, at the last, Joshua -buried it in Shechem in the land of Canaan. See -Gen. 50. 26; Ex. xiii. 19; Josh. xxiv. 32.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">We thus close the story of Joseph, and with it the -Book of Genesis, the book of the creation and of the -first ways of God, the book also of the patriarchs, the -earliest families of the children of men, and the infant -age of the elect of God.</p> -<p class="pnext">We are sensible, I think, when we leave this book, -that in some sense we are getting on lower ground. I -think this will be generally felt.</p> -<p class="pnext">In Genesis, the Lord is rather <em class="italics">manifesting Himself</em>; -afterwards He is <em class="italics">exposing man</em>. Man was not under -law, as we have said, during the times of this book. -He was set to learn God under many and different -expressions and revelations of Himself. But as soon -as law enters, and that is very quickly after we leave -this book, man is necessarily brought forward, and we -have to see him, not simply as under the call of God, -but in his own place and character. And surely this is -enough to make us sensible of being, in some sense, on -lower ground. Of course, in the unfolding of counsels, -in the bringing forth of God's resources upon man's -failures, and in the further manifestations of God -Himself upon the exposure of man, we are advancing -all through the volume from beginning to end.</p> -<p class="pnext">But, all-various and wondrous as these counsels are, -which get their disclosure as we proceed through -Scripture, let the wisdom of God be never so manifold, -as we know it is, yet we may say, every part of it gets -some notice or foreshadowing in this Book of Genesis. -These are faint and obscure; but the rudiments of -the whole language are found in this introductory and -infant lesson. Atonement, faith, judgment, glory, government, -calling, the kingdom, the Church, Israel, the -nations, covenants, promises, prophecies, with the -blessed God Himself in His holiness, love, and truth, -the doings of His hand, and the workmanship and -fruits of His Spirit, all these and the like appear in -this book. Creation was displayed at the beginning. -Soiled and ruined under the hand of man, redemption -was published. The heavens and the earth are then -shown to be the scenes of redemption (as they had -been at the first of creation) in the histories of <em class="italics">Enoch</em> -and <em class="italics">Noah</em>. And then in <em class="italics">Abraham</em>, <em class="italics">Isaac</em>, <em class="italics">Jacob</em>, and -<em class="italics">Joseph</em> we get man (the leading subject of redemption, -as of course he is) in his election, adoption, -discipline, and inheritance. These mysteries have been -looked at in this series, and they lie under the eye, -and for the observation of our souls, as we pass on -from one of these histories to another.</p> -<p class="pnext">And let us learn to say, beloved, to His praise who -has spread out such living creations before us, that if -the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament -showeth His handiwork, so with no less clearness and -certainty do the pages of Scripture bespeak the breathings -of His Spirit.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst" id="job">THE BOOK OF JOB.</p> -<p class="center large pnext">JAMES v. 11.</p> -<div class="center large line-block noindent outermost"> -<div class="line">"Behind a frowning providence</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">He hides a smiling face"</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">May surely be said, upon the reading of this deeply -affecting story. Said, too, with peculiar fitness and -fulness of truth, as though the thought of the Christian -poet had been suggested by the tale of the inspired -historian. The frown was specially dark and lowering, -the smile behind it brilliantly beaming and happy. -The veil was very thick, but the glory within very -bright. The boastings of the Lord in His servant -were above the noise of all the water-floods.</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"The bud may have a bitter taste,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">But sweet will be the flower"</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">may as surely be the motto for the story also. For let -us wait only for a little, and the fruit of the travail -will be precious beyond all expectation. Very bitter -indeed was the bud, but very sweet indeed was the -flower. It had to ripen under the pruning of the -sprigs and the taking away of the branches (Isaiah xviii. -5), but it tells, in the end, the skill and patience of its -divine husbandman. I would, however, rather trace -some of the principles of this beautiful Book, than -thus at the beginning more largely anticipate the moral -of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Resurrection, called by the Lord "the power of God," -or, at least, one of the ways of that power (Matthew -xxii. 29), has been made known, through different witnesses, -and in divers manners, from the very beginning. -And connected as it is with redemption, the great -principle of God's way and the secret of His purposes, -it must have been so.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was intimated in the creation of the beautiful -scene around us, for the world itself was called forth -from the grave of the deep. The material was without -form, and darkness was upon the face of it, but light -was commanded to shine out of darkness, and beauty -and order were caused to arise. See Hebrews xi. 3.</p> -<p class="pnext">It declared itself in the formation of Eve. Then -again in the earliest promise about the bruised Seed -of the woman. It was kept in memory in Seth given -in the place of Abel whom Cain slew; and then again -in the line of the fathers before the flood. But still -more illustriously was it published in Noah. "Every -thing in the earth shall die," says the Lord to him, -"but with thee will I establish my covenant;" thus -disclosing the secret, that the earth was to be established -according to the purpose of God, as in resurrection, -stability, and beauty.</p> -<p class="pnext">So, after these earlier fathers, Abraham was to have -both a family and an inheritance on the same principle. -He and his generations after him were taught resurrection -in the mystery of the barren woman keeping house. -The covenant blessing was linked with the risen family. -Ishmael may get possessions, and promises too, but the -covenant was with Isaac.</p> -<p class="pnext">And more marvellously still, not to pause longer -over other witnesses of it, we see resurrection in the -blessed history of "the Word made flesh." We might -indeed have forejudged that it would have been otherwise. -For in Christ, flesh was without taint. Here was -"a holy thing." But even of such we have now to say, -"Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, -yet now henceforth know we Him no more." Christ -known by us now is Christ in resurrection. And this -is enough to let us know assuredly, that resurrection is -the principle of all the divine action, and the secret of -the covenant.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id52" id="id51"><sup>26</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">But resurrection has also been, from the beginning, -an article of the faith of God's people; and, being -such, it was also the lesson they had to learn and to -practise, the principle of their life; because the principle -of a divine dispensation is ever the rule and -character of the saints' conduct. The purchase and -occupation of the burying field at Machpelah, tell us -that the Genesis-fathers had learnt the lesson. Moses -learnt and practised it, when he chose affliction with -the people of God, having respect to the recompense -of the reward. David was in the power of it, when -he made the covenant, or resurrection-promise, all his -salvation and all his desire, though his house, his -present house, was not to grow. 2 Sam. xxiii. The -whole nation of Israel were taught it, again and again, -by their prophets, and by-and-by they will learn it, -and then witness it to the whole world, the dry bones -living again, the winter-beaten teil tree flourishing -again; for "what shall the receiving of them be, but -life from the dead?" The Lord Jesus, "the Author -and Finisher of faith," in His day, I need not say, -practised this lesson to all perfection. And each of us, -His saints and people, is set down to it every day, that -we "may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, -and the fellowship of His sufferings."</p> -<p class="pnext">By the life of faith the elders obtained a good report. -And so the saints in every age. For "without faith it -is impossible to please Him;" that faith which trusts -Him as a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, -which respects the unseen and the future. They, of -whom the world was not worthy, practised the life of -faith, the life of dead and risen people. Hebrews xi. -Stephen before the council tells us the same. Abraham, -Joseph, and Moses, in his account, were great witnesses -of this same life; and he himself, at that moment, after -the pattern of his master, Jesus, was exhibiting the -strength and virtues of it, through the power of the -Holy Ghost, and apprehending, through the same -Spirit, the brightest joys and glories of it. Acts vii.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Now, I believe that the leading purpose of the Book -of Job is to exhibit this. It is the story of an elect -one, in early patriarchal days, a child of resurrection, -set down to learn the lesson of resurrection. His -celebrated confession tells us that resurrection was -understood by him as a doctrine, while the whole -story tells us, that he had still to know the power of -it in his soul. It was an article of his faith, but not -the principle of his life.</p> -<p class="pnext">And a sore lesson it was to him, hard indeed to learn -and digest. He did not like (and which of us does -like?) to take the sentence of death into himself, that -he might not trust in himself, or in his circumstances in -life, or his condition by nature, but in God who raises -the dead. "I shall die in my nest," was his thought -and his hope. But he was to see his nest rifled of all -with which nature had filled it, and with which circumstances -had adorned it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such is, I believe, the leading purpose of the Spirit -of God in this Book. This honoured and cherished -saint had to learn the power of the calling of all the -elect, practically and personally, the life of faith, or -the lesson of resurrection. And it may be a consolation -for us, beloved, who know ourselves to be little among -them, to read, in the records which we have of them, -that all have not been equally apt and bright scholars -in that school, and that all, in different measures, have -failed in it, as well as made attainments in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">How unworthily of it, for instance, did Abraham -behave, how little like a dead and risen man, a man of -faith, when he denied his wife to the Egyptian, and -yet how beautifully did he carry himself, as such, when -he surrendered the choice of the land to his younger -kinsman. And even our own Apostle, the aptest -scholar in the school, the constant witness of this calling -to others, and the energetic disciple of the power -of it in his own soul, in a moment when the fear of -man brought with it a snare, makes this very doctrine -the covert of a guileful thought. Acts xxiii. 6.</p> -<p class="pnext">Encouragements and consolations visit the soul from -all this. Happy is it to know, that our present lesson, -as those who are dead, and whose life is hid with Christ -in God, has been the lesson of the elect from the beginning--that -on many a bright and hallowed occasion -they practised that lesson to the glory of their Lord, -that at times they found it hard, and at times failed -in it. This tale of the soul is well understood by us. -Only we, living in New Testament times, are set down -to learn the same lesson in the still ampler page, and -after the clearer method, in which it is now taught -us in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus -Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is some difference, let me observe, nay, I would -say, distance, between a <em class="italics">righteous</em> and a <em class="italics">devoted</em> man. -No saint is a devoted one, who has not been practising -this lesson of which I have been speaking. The measure -of his devotedness may be said to be according to -his attainment in it, according to the energy he is exercising -as a man dead and risen with Christ. At the -beginning of this history, Job was a righteous man. -He was spoken well of again and again, in the very -face of his accuser. But he was not a devoted man. -The whisper of his heart, as I noticed before, was this, -"I shall die in my nest." Accepted he was, as a sinner -who knew his living and triumphant Redeemer, godly -and upright beyond his fellows, but withal, as to the -power that wrought in his soul, he was not a dead and -risen man.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such also, I might add, was Agur in the Book of -Proverbs. He was godly, and of a lowly, self-judging -spirit. He makes a good confession of human blindness -and pravity, of the unsearchable glories of God, the -purity and preciousness of His word, and of the security -of all who trust in Him. Prov. xxx. 1-9. He was a -man of God, and walked in a good spirit. But he was -not a devoted man. He did not know how to abound -and how to suffer need. He dreaded poverty lest he -should steal, and riches lest he should deny God. He -was not prepared for changes. Neither was Job. But -Paul was. He had surrendered himself to Christ, as -they had not. According to the power that wrought in -his soul, Paul was a dead and risen man. He was ready -to be "emptied from vessel to vessel." He was instructed -both to be full and to be hungry. He could -do all things through Christ strengthening him. See -that devoted man, that dead and risen man, in the -closing chapters of Acts. xx.-xxviii. He is in the midst -of a weeping company of brethren at Miletus, and in the -bosom of a loving Christian household at Tyre. But -were those, the greenest spots on earth to a saint, where, -if any where, the foot of the mystic ladder is felt to -rest, and the fond heart lingers and says, Let us make -tabernacles here, able to detain him? No. Even there, -the dear, devoted Apostle carried a heart thoroughly -surrendered to Christ. "What mean ye," says he, "to -weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not -to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the -name of the Lord Jesus." He would not be kept. And -on from thence he goes, along the coast of Syria up -to Jerusalem, and then for two long years, apart from -brethren, in perils by sea and land, under insults and -wrongs, a single heart and devoted affection bearing -him through all.</p> -<p class="pnext">A good conscience alone is not up to all this. Mere -righteousness will not take such a journey. There must -be that singleness of eye to Christ, that principle of -devotedness, which reckons upon death and resurrection -with Jesus. Job was righteous, but he was not prepared -for such shifting scenery as this. He loved the green -spot and the feathered nest. Changes come, and changes -are too much for him. But God, in the love wherewith -He loved him, as his heavenly Father, puts him to school, -to learn the lesson of a child of resurrection, to be a -partaker of "<em class="italics">His</em> holiness," the holiness not merely of a -right or pure-minded man, but <em class="italics">the holiness that suits the -call of God</em>, the holiness of a dead and risen man, one -of the pilgrim family, one of God's strangers in the -world. Heb. xii. 9, 10.</p> -<p class="pnext">Job was chastened to be partaker of such a holiness -as this. Not that trials and troubles, like his, are -essential to the learning of this lesson. A very common -method it is, indeed, with our heavenly Father, in His -wisdom. But Paul set himself daily to practise that -lesson, without the instructions of griefs and losses in -either body or estate. Phil. iii. In the fervent labourings -of the spirit within, he exercised himself in it every day. -And so should we. We are to dread the Laodicean -state, satisfaction with present condition or attainment. -The Laodicean was not a Pharisee, or a self-righteous -man of religion. He was a professor, it may be, of very -correct notions and judgments, but in a spirit of self-complacency, -he did not cherish increasing freshness and -vigour in the ways of the Lord.</p> -<p class="pnext">Arise, depart; for this is not your rest, says the -Spirit by the Prophet. And why? Why is it not to -be our rest? "It is polluted," he adds. He does not -say it is sorrowful, it is disappointing, it is unsatisfying, -but it is polluted. The quickened soul is to gather -from the <em class="italics">moral</em> and not from the <em class="italics">circumstances</em> of the -scene here, its reasons for cherishing within it the -power of Christ's resurrection. The dove outside the -ark did not fear the snare of the fowler, but found no -rest for the sole of her foot on the unpurged ground.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is humbling to sit down and delineate what has -been so poorly reached in personal power. But "a -beauteous light" may be seen "from far," and as such, -some of us descry and hail the virtues of the risen -life.</p> -<p class="pnext">A dead and risen man will have neither his <em class="italics">springs</em> -nor his <em class="italics">objects</em> here. His principles of action will be -found in Christ, and his expectations in the coming -kingdom. He is taken out of all the advantages and -adornings of the flesh into the righteousness of God, -and then, livingly and practically, is struggling up the -hill, having, in spirit, left the low level of the world, -abating the force of nature, and the fascination of -nature's circumstances, and taking the affections from -things on earth to give them to those which are with -Christ above. He has lost himself, but he has won -Christ. He has taken leave of the course of the world -which goes its rounds on the plain beneath, and is -ascending after Jesus.</p> -<p class="pnext">He lets the world know that it could never provide -him with his object. In the midst of its kingdoms -and delights he is a stranger still. And virtues and -qualities of heart he practises that are of like divine -excellence. He can, like his Master, hide the glory -to which God has appointed him, and be nothing in -the present scene. Abraham did not tell every Canaanite -whom he chanced to meet, that he was the heir -of the country. In the ears of the children of Heth -he said, "I am a stranger and a sojourner with you." -He was content to be, and (what is still harder) to be -thought to be, a homeless, houseless man. So David, -another of the dead and risen family, when hunted and -driven by the evil thing then in power, though the oil -of Samuel was upon him, God's own consecration to -the throne, he did not publish it. That was the secret -and the joy of faith. But he did not publish it. He -did not traffic with it among men--he did not talk of -himself in connection with that which the world could -value. He was rather, in his own reckoning before -men, no better than "a dead dog" or "a flea."</p> -<p class="pnext">Oh, precious faith! Oh, holy and triumphant faith! -But this was an elevation which Job had to reach. -He was not, according to the power which wrought in -his soul, of this generation. Not that his condition in -life made him proud, or self-indulgent, or indifferent -to others. But he <em class="italics">valued</em> his condition. With what -eloquence does he describe it. Chapter xxix. The -minuteness with which he remembers it tells us with -what fondness he had embraced it. The eloquence -with which he describes it (and nothing can exceed -that) betrays with what fervour of heart he had -lingered over it, in the day of its bloom and beauty. -He loved his condition and circumstances in life, his -place, his character, his estimation, his dignities and -praise among men. Godly he was, truly and admirably -so. There was none like him in the earth. But his -place in the earth was important to him. He was -largely ready to communicate and to serve, but he -communicated and served as a patron or a benefactor. -And he desired continuance. "I shall multiply my -days as the sand," was his calculation. Hence the -great end of his trial, and the purpose of recording -it. For this Book gives us the story of a saint in -patriarchal days, or rather, the story of his trials, trials -through which he was to learn the common lesson, -according to the common calling, that we are a dead -and risen people. Job came, I believe, before Abraham, -but he did not come before this lesson; for it had -been taught, as we have seen, from the beginning; -Adam and Abel, and the line of Seth through Enoch -and Noah, had already practised it. And Job, after -them, is set down to the same lesson, only engraven -in somewhat deeper and darker lines.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such, generally, I believe, was Job, and such his -history. A solitary saint he was; at least, not linked -with dispensational arrangements, or with the peculiar -covenanted family, and before the call of God was -manifested in the person of Abraham. This, however, -adds exceeding value to the Book. For it is, thus, -a witness of the religion of God's people in the most -detached and independent condition. Time and place -do not connect him with the ecclesiastical order or -course of things at all. But still, the faith of the -elect of God was his faith, their truths his truths, -their calling his calling, their hopes his hopes. We -have Adam, and Seth, and Noah, and Shem, and Job, -and Abraham, Moses, Prophets, Apostles, and ourselves, -till the number of the elect be accomplished, learning -the joy and the song of redemption. As we sometimes -sing together--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Then shall countless myriads, wearing</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Robes made white in Jesu's blood,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Palms (like rested pilgrims) bearing,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Stand around the throne of God.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"These, redeemed from every nation,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Shall in triumph bless His name;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Every voice shall cry, 'Salvation</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">To our God and to the Lamb.'"</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">Not only, however, the substance or materials, but -the very style of the Book is in the analogy of the -whole inspired volume. It does not teach doctrines -formally, after the method of a science; it rather -assumes them, or lets them publish themselves incidentally. -Even in the Epistles this is the common way. -The great revelation of doctrines made there comes -out, more commonly, in the way of either enforcing -results, or in answer to inquiries, or in defence of -truth against gainsayers or corrupters. So in this -Book, doctrines are assumed, or delivered incidentally; -the more direct object, as I have suggested, being this--to -exhibit a soul set to learn, through trials and sorrows, -the common lesson, the power of our calling, that our -hopes are neither in the world, nor from the flesh, but -in living scenes, with Jesus, beyond all that is here.</p> -<p class="pnext">And deeply affecting as a narrative of trying and -sorrowing events it surely is, for the events themselves -are deeply touching. But they are all ordinary, or -such as are "common to man." Robbers carry off his -oxen and asses. Lightning destroys his flocks. A -high wind blows down his house, and kills his children. -And, at last, a sore disease breaks out on his body from -head to foot.</p> -<p class="pnext">Each of these might have happened to his ungodly -neighbour, as well as to him. In the mere matter of -these afflictions, there was nothing that distinguished -him as a child of God. They were not the sufferings -of righteousness from the hand of man, the sufferings -of a martyr. They were such as were "common to -man." But still they were all under the exactest -inspection and admeasurement of his heavenly Father, -all in the way of appointment and of discipline flowing -from heavenly interests, and divine relationships. And -all, too, the result of great transactions in heaven. -For Satan had been there, accusing Job, and the Lord -had been boasting of him; and the Lord had licensed -Satan to go against Job, with a quiver full of arrows, -but had appointed him his measure and rule.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this is very comforting. For many a child of -God is troubled, in the day of affliction, with the -thought that his trial is commonplace, and no witness -at all that he is not "as other men." But such trouble -is mistaken. In the shape or material of the affliction, -the believer may be just in company with other men, -it is true. The same storm on the distant sea, or the -same disease at home, may have bereaved them alike; -but faith takes account of the relationship with God, -and of the interest which all that concerns a poor saint -awakens in heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the wisdom of God, in the construction of this -beautiful story (true as I know it to be in every incident -that it records), it is made to introduce all the great -actors in the divine mystery, and to reveal the great -truths which form the common faith of the elect.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is much to be prized; for this declares the perfect -harmony of all, even the most distant and independent, -portions of the oracles of God. Accordingly, we see engaged -in the action of this Book the <em class="italics">angels</em> who minister -to the divine pleasure; <em class="italics">Satan</em> the great adversary; <em class="italics">the -elect sinner</em> whose faith is cast into the furnace; <em class="italics">his -brethren</em> in the faith; <em class="italics">the minister of God</em> in the energy -of the Holy Ghost; and <em class="italics">the Lord God Himself</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are the actors in the wondrous scenery of this -Book; so that while the action itself is simply the -trial of a saint, it is so constructed as to bring forth -all these great agents and energies, the very same with -which our souls are conversant to this hour, occupied, -also, in the ways and places which the whole of Scripture -assigns to them. And it is a matter of the richest -interest to our souls to trace this.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus the angels or "sons of God" are here seen for -a moment or two, but exactly in the place and action -which the general consent of all Scripture gives them. -They are in attendance on the Lord in heaven, as -those who had been forth, and were ready again to go -forth, in the service of His good pleasure. For the -whole Word thus bears witness to them. They are -"ministering spirits," "ministers of His that do His -pleasure." They are His hosts on high, and the Lord -Himself is among them. Gabriel stands in His presence. -The Seraphim attend His throne, and they are -winged, either to veil their faces and their feet before -the divine majesty, or to fly, like the wind, to execute -the divine commands. All this is told of the angels -throughout Scripture, and here the heavens are opened -for a moment, and all this is seen and heard.</p> -<p class="pnext">So as to Satan. This Book is in strictest analogy -with the whole volume. "Messengers of Satan" go -forth from the presence of God, as well as Gabriel and -the hosts. "Lying spirits" as well as "ministering -spirits" take their journey and their commission from -thence. He goes about, says an apostle, seeking whom -he may devour; as here, he says of himself, that -he had been up and down, and to and fro, in the -earth. Another apostle tells us, that he, with his principalities -and powers, is in heavenly places; and here -we find him among the sons of God, in the presence of -God. And again; he desired to have all the apostles, -that he might sift them as wheat, put them to the -proof of what they were; and so here as to Job. Satan -is elsewhere called "the accuser of the brethren," and -here he is heard as such. He is the tormentor of this -servant of God, as Scripture generally presents him; -but, as Scripture also testifies, his action is under the -limitations and sovereignty of God. Jesus, God manifest -in the flesh, as He walked in the land of Israel, -gave him his measure (Mark v.); and so Elohim from -the throne does here, and the eye of the Seer and the -voice of the Prophet assign him also exactly this place -and action. 1 Kings xxii.; Zech. iii.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id54" id="id53"><sup>27</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">These analogies are as strict and literal as they can -be. And further--for it is edifying to trace this still--we -find the patriarch in one school with the distant -apostle of the Gentiles--so richly does one Spirit breathe -through the whole volume. We are in the last chapters -of 2 Corinthians, when reading the first chapters of the -Book of Job! We have the "thorn in the flesh," "the -messenger of Satan," in both Job and Paul.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then, as to Job and his friends, or the elect one -whose faith is cast into the furnace, and his brethren in -the faith. A very principal part of this patriarchal story -is made up, as we commonly know, of the controversies -that arose between them. Bitter and heated they were, -in something more than the ordinary measure. But -such things are still, and have been in every age.</p> -<p class="pnext">Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were friends and brethren -indeed, though they proved to be but "miserable -comforters." They came to Job when all had deserted -him, children mocking him, young men pushing away -his feet, his kinsfolk failing him, his inward friends -forgetting him, his servants giving him no answer, and -his wife refusing him, though he entreated for their -children's sake. They were true-hearted friends, who -said that they would go and comfort their afflicted -brother. And they did go; and they sat with him in -his place of ashes and potsherds for seven days.</p> -<p class="pnext">But they fell out by the way. <em class="italics">Sad</em> to tell it, but so -it was; not <em class="italics">strange</em> to tell it, for so has it ever been, -and so is it still. So early as the times of Abraham's -herdmen and Lot's herdmen, this stands on record. -Joseph had to say to his brethren, "See that ye fall -not out by the way." Moses knew the trial of the <em class="italics">camp</em> -even beyond that of the <em class="italics">wilderness</em>, as he went from -Egypt to the Jordan. It was of His own that Jesus in -His day had to say, How long shall I be with you and -suffer you? And Paul counted "the care of all the -churches" the heaviest thing that came upon him.</p> -<p class="pnext">Variety of temper, different measures of attainment, -the quality of the light and the form of the kingdom -in us, if I may so express it, will occasion collision -and trial, even where there is nothing morally wrong. -But from whatever cause it be, so is it still, and so has -it been from the days of Job and his friends, that we -form a great part of each other's trial. The Lord sits -over it all, refining His silver and purifying His gold, -but still so it is, that we help to heat each other's -furnace for the trial of faith.</p> -<p class="pnext">Nothing, perhaps, has been a more common source -of this falling out by the way, than the holding of -favourite religious opinions, or an undue, disproportioned -estimation of certain doctrines or points of -truth. And this was the case here. Job prized certain -points of truth, and his friends had their favourites -also. But each "knew but in part," and darkened the -perfect counsels of God. And by reason of this, they -fell out by the way. Job, sorely afflicted by stroke -upon stroke, insisted on it, that God acted <em class="italics">arbitrarily</em>; -and having a right to do as He pleased, did so. His -friends would have it, that God dealt <em class="italics">retributively</em>, and -that therefore His way with Job convicted Job of -some unconfessed iniquity. Their doctrines also very -much savoured of human thoughts; they were not -refined from the lees of man's religiousness. They -drew much from the traditions of the elders, and from -their own experiences and observations. They accredited -that false though favourite axiom in the morals of -the world, that "honesty is the best policy." "Who -ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous -cut off?" is the challenge which their religion -published. "I have esteemed the words of His mouth -more than my necessary food. But He is of one mind, -and who can turn Him?" is the counsel of his heart. -They insinuate that if all were told, nothing would be -too bad for him; and he reproaches them, in the contempt -and bitterness of a wounded spirit, and an insulted -character. "No doubt ye are the people, and -wisdom shall die with you."</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the strife of words, the bickering and -debate, among them; as sad a sample of falling out -by the way as has ever been known, I may say, among -brethren.</p> -<p class="pnext">Elihu, in whom was a "manifestation of the Spirit," -at length enters the scene, bringing the light of God to -make manifest these forms of darkness. He had listened -to the discourses and controversies of these brethren, -but, in modesty and reserve, as became his years, in the -presence of ancient men, he had hitherto held his peace. -He waited till multitude of days, which should know -wisdom, and speak of understanding, had delivered -sentence of truth. But now he speaks. The stirrings -of the Spirit constrain him. He is silent while it is a -question between himself and them, but he durst not -surrender the rights of the Spirit in him. He cannot -respect any man's person now. In Job's day, God chose -the weak thing, as He has done ever since. Elihu was -but a youth. Timothy was the same. But the ancient -men had failed. The stone of help lies in another -stripling of Bethlehem. For, from beginning to end it -must be known, that the good that is done upon the -earth, He doeth Himself. "Not by might, nor by -power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord." Eliphaz and -his companions shall not have it to say, "We have -found out wisdom;" for "God thrusteth him down, -not man," said Elihu of Job.</p> -<p class="pnext">Job was to be rebuked. He had argued the arbitrariness -of the divine hand in dealing with man, and, -accounting for his present sufferings in that way, he was -so far "righteous in his own eyes." Elihu shows that -this was not so; that all was the holy discipline of One -who, knowing the end from the beginning, ever counsels -the best for His people. Nor will he, like the others, -draw either from himself, or from the elders or fathers. -He will not, in the way of human religiousness, bow -to any names or traditions, however venerated, but, led -of the Spirit, press on in the path where the light of -God shines.</p> -<p class="pnext">Elihu will not join in laying to Job's charge what his -conscience truthfully resisted. But he will tell Job that -the thoughts of conscience are not to rule his judgment, -or dictate his speeches; that he should rather have -allowed the divine wisdom in all this sore discipline, -than concluded on the divine arbitrariness in it, just -because conscience was clear. He tells Job this should -have been his word--"Surely it is meet to be said unto -God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any -more: that which I see not, teach Thou me: if I have -done iniquity, I will do no more."</p> -<p class="pnext">"A mighty maze," philosophy will say, "but not -without a plan." "God is His own interpreter, and He -will make it plain," a Christian poet will say. And a -true and beautiful thought that is. But inspired wisdom -counsels and teaches thus--"Although thou sayest thou -shalt not see Him, yet judgment is before Him; therefore -trust thou in Him." Chapter xxxv. 14. For we are to -know that purposes of wisdom and goodness rule every -event, though another day has so to declare it. "Judgment" -is ever "before Him," as Elihu says. And God -is to be justified in the thoughts of His children now, as -He will be in the face of heaven and earth by-and-by. -Matt. xi. 19; Ps. li. 4; l. 4.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such an one was Elihu. And it is a circumstance -full of meaning and of moral beauty, that Job does -not answer him, as he had the others. Elihu invited -him to speak if he would. But he had a moral sense, -a conscience in the Holy Ghost, that witnessed to the -authority with which this minister of the Spirit spake. -Very precious this is. How often, how common, -among the saints, is this! Yea, and even beyond their -borders, at times, the like authority is felt. How often -has the presence of a holy man controlled the ungodly. -The multitudes in the villages of Israel, after this -manner, owned the Lord at times. They "were astonished -at His doctrine: for He taught them as one having -authority, and not as the scribes." And the want of -this is painful. Have we not often, beloved, been -grieved to see the heart and understanding of others -unmoved by that which has come to our own souls -with all the authority of truth, and in the freshness of -the divine unction? But Job gives us not this pain. -And a man very dear to the saints he is, as he was to -the blessed Lord who was thus afflicting him. Elihu -had spoken to him in the Spirit, and his soul bowed to -the authority of his word. He could not treat Elihu -as he had treated Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. He -may not be as yet humbled, but he cannot be angry; -he may not as yet make confession, but he will not reply. -The Spirit of God in the ministry of His servant had -entered the scene, and Job will at least be silent.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id56" id="id55"><sup>28</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord, however, is He that teacheth to profit. -There are diversities of operations, but it is the same -God that worketh all in all. Paul plants, and Apollos -waters, but it is God that giveth the increase. And, -in analogy with these truths, the action of this beautiful -Book proceeds. The voice of God from the -whirlwind makes the testimony of the gifted minister -effectual to the conscience and heart of Job. In a -series of challenges as to natural things, that voice, -mighty and yet gracious, addresses him. It has been -said, by those competent to entertain such inquiries, -that nothing in the whole compass of language can -equal, much less surpass, the inimitable grandeur and -sublimity of this address. And we can all see that it -does that which it belongs to divine power to do--the -complainant is humbled. "I know that Thou canst do -everything." He confesses to Him whose mighty hand -could exalt him in due time, and, after he had suffered -awhile, was well able to strengthen, settle, and stablish -him. 1 Peter v.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was not the lesson of a sinner which Job had to -learn. He knew already the grace of God. It was -the lesson of a saint he needed to be taught, or taught -more perfectly. It is for this, therefore, that the Lord -seats Himself in the whirlwind. Had Job then, and for -the first time, to learn the lesson of a sinner, the Lord -would rather have addressed him in "the still small -voice," the tone which suits grace, and in which it seeks -and delights to be heard. But Job was already a saved -sinner. He knew already the <em class="italics">grace</em>, but had as yet to -be taught the <em class="italics">rights</em>, of God. And therefore the voice -from the whirlwind. For the saint has to count on -such apparent roughness as the sinner never gets. -John was left in prison, when every sickness and -disease among the people was attended to. The Lord, -in His walks of mercy and of usefulness to all who -needed Him, may often have passed near the prison -doors, but He did not open them, as He could have -done, though He was, all the while, giving sight to the -blind, and hearing to the deaf. Was it that John was -loved the less? No. Among them that were born of -woman there was none like him. And was it that Job -was loved the less, because he was addressed out of the -whirlwind? No. There was none like him in the earth, -a perfect and an upright man. But already knowing -the grace of God, he was now to learn and own His -rights. And he does learn them, and confesses them. -And he confesses them, and bows to them, before the -pressure of the mighty hand was removed, and while -as yet it was heavy upon him. That is much to be -observed, much to be prized. For that is a beautiful -witness, that Job had learnt the lesson indeed, learnt -it spiritually, learnt it in the grace and energy of divine -teaching. It is easy and common to own the good of -a chastisement when it is over, and then to say, I -would not have been without it. That is not above -the reach of nature. But while the burthen is still -borne, to vindicate and bless the hand that lays it on, -that is something more. While as yet he lay in the -place of ashes and potsherds, and sore boils tormented -his body from the crown of his head to the sole of his -foot, Job said, "Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer -Thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. Once -have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but -I will proceed no further."</p> -<p class="pnext">Such was the moral, and such the issue, of this simple -but important action. A lesson had to be taught -a child of God. Human wisdom, and religion too, sets -itself to teach it, but betrays its own weakness and -dishonour. A minister of the Spirit, in the light of -the Lord, rebukes the thought of man, exposing the -wise and the scribe and the disputer of this world, and -applying the principles of the truth of God. And the -power of Him who worketh all in all seals the instruction. -Human and divine energies are thus displayed -in the places and characters which belong to them, the -one abased, and the other magnified.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Such are the actors in the scene of this wondrous -Book--angels, Satan, the tried saint, and his brethren, -the minister of God in the energy of the Spirit, and -the Lord Himself. They hold the place, and do the -deeds, which, as we have now seen, all Scripture assigns -them respectively.</p> -<p class="pnext">This Book, as I observed before, is an independent -Book. The most so, I may add, of any in the inspired -volume. In the progress of revelation it intimates -nothing before it, nor does any other part of that -revelation find it necessary to it. Job's history is not -linked with that of the people of God, nor does it -advance, in any way, the manifestation of the purposes -of God. But stranger and foreigner as it is, it speaks -exactly the same language. The same Spirit breathes -here, the same light shines here. And this is so, not -only in the case of those who are introduced as actors -in the scenes, but also in the truths and doctrines -assumed or asserted. The corruption of nature as -found in the seed of Adam--the value of a sacrifice -as a propitiation with God--a coming day of judgment--resurrection -and life--these are among the common -thoughts here. But more beautiful and striking than -all is the knowledge it takes of <em class="italics">the person and duty of -the Kinsman</em>, a mystery well known in Scripture, and, -throughout Scripture, largely though silently referred -to, when too commonly not perceived--a mystery -which shadows all the great truths that are characteristic -of the work of our redemption.</p> -<p class="pnext">This subject is too great to be fully considered here, -even had I the grace and light to do so. But it is -so happy a one, and suggested by our Patriarch's well-known -confession of his faith, that I cannot altogether -pass it by.</p> -<p class="pnext">Our apostle says, "No man ever yet hated his own -flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it." A necessary -way of nature is here assumed, and assumed with -approval, by the Spirit of God. That regard to one's -self which each one of us is ready enough to render, is -divinely sanctioned. And then, on this very principle -of nature, the apostle goes on to put the Lord's nurture -of the Church. "For no man ever yet hated his -own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, <em class="italics">even as the -Lord the Church</em>; for we are members of His body, of -His flesh, and of His bones." Christ is declared to act -towards us on this instinctive verdict of nature, that a -man is to love his own body. The Holy Ghost, through -the apostle, would let our hearts embrace this joy, -that the force of this first law of nature is felt by -Christ towards us, and the duty it imposes is owned by -Him. So that if I can understand my love for myself, -I may understand Christ's love to me. The duty I -owe myself is acknowledged by my Lord as due by -Him to me. He can but nourish and cherish me, as I -would nourish and cherish myself.</p> -<p class="pnext">Can any thought, I ask, respecting the place into -which the love of the Son of God has brought Him -surpass this? Can the imagination form the idea of -a more intense and devoted affection? Impossible. -If it could, Christ would embody it, and His Spirit -would reveal it, for His love "passeth knowledge." -But it cannot.</p> -<p class="pnext">But though this may be the most marvellous expression -of this love, yet there is another of the same -character. There is another duty owed on the like -claims of nature, which in like manner has been -adopted and acknowledged by the Lord--the duty of -kindred or natural relations.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord, the Son of God, became our Kinsman. -"Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh -and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the -same." And He became this Kinsman that He might -do for the children the duties and services of a Kinsman. -And what these duties are, and how the Lord has -answered and discharged them, we are told in Scripture.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">One principal duty was, to ransom a brother or his -inheritance, if such or either had been sold.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now such a sold or forfeited condition is ours by -nature, under the ruins of Adam. Forfeiture of every -thing is the simple idea that holds our natural condition -in the just light. We have forfeited life, and with it -all things, by the breach of those terms on which we -held life, and with it all things. We have incurred the -debt of death. "In the day thou eatest thereof, thou -shalt surely die." Adam did eat, and this law demanded -death. We sold ourselves under that sentence, -and to that penalty, and were debtors to die the death. -But our Kinsman has paid the price. Jesus died. -He has counted out the money to the uttermost farthing. -In the language of the law, eye has gone for -eye, life for life, blood for blood. We have not been -redeemed by corruptible things as silver and gold, but -by the precious blood of Christ. The value of that -blood was well tried. The blood of bulls and of goats -was not rich enough. It would not do, it could not do. -But "Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God," tells us that -He was satisfied who exacted, and could not but exact, -the full ransom or redemption-price. And now <em class="italics">we and -our inheritance stand repurchased by our Kinsman</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the very principal in the great services of -Christ for us. It is largely noticed and foreshadowed -by the law (Lev. xxv.), but it was understood from the -beginning. For sacrifice or vicarious offering proceeded -on this principle. And that was made known upon the -entrance of sin, or act of forfeiture. The coat of skin -which covered Adam bore witness that he stood in the -value of a ransom, that the virtue of One who had met -the demand of God against him was now upon him.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this is full of blessing--that the great mystery -of the Kinsman or Redeemer was known (published by -the Lord, and believed by the sinner) ere the law had -shadowed it, or prophets proclaimed it.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id58" id="id57"><sup>29</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Another of these duties was this--to rescue or deliver -a brother taken captive.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the previous case of ransom or repurchase, the -Kinsman had to deal with a rightful claimant, and to -answer his demands. His brother or his brother's -inheritance had been sold, and had to be repurchased -at a price well and justly ascertained, according to the -law of estimations. But this duty of rescuing or -delivering a brother is different. Here the Kinsman -has to do with a stranger or a foe; and by counterforce, -or the strength of a stronger arm, to perform this -service.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this, also, is our natural condition, our state -under the ruins of the fall. And this character of -Kinsman-service, the Son of God, partaker of our flesh -and blood, renders us.</p> -<p class="pnext">In this, however, His dealing is with our enemy. In -the previous case of repurchase He dealt with God, -answering His righteous demands for us: here, He -answers the enemy for us. For while it is true that we -had, through disobedience, incurred the debt of death, -the forfeiture of life and all things, so as to need a -ransom, it is also true that we had suffered wrong at -the hand of the Serpent, out of the results of which, -in bondage or captivity to the powers of darkness and -corruption, our Redeemer or Kinsman delivers us.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was in this action that the Lord, in the days of -His flesh, went through the cities and villages of Israel. -As the stronger man He had then entered the strong -man's house, spoiling his goods, and unloosing his -prisoners. And He will finish such work, and perfect -His way as the Kinsman-deliverer, when He, as the -plague of death and hell's destruction, rescues His -sleeping saints. Then will take place the <em class="italics">redemption</em> of -the <em class="italics">purchased</em> possession. See Eph. i. 14.</p> -<p class="pnext">And again I may say, Happy is it to know that this -way of Christ, this work of our great Kinsman, was -also known in patriarchal days. When Abraham -heard that <em class="italics">his brother</em> was taken captive, he armed his -trained servants, and brought again his brother Lot -and his goods. Genesis xiv. Five kings may fight -with four in the vale of Siddim, the potsherds of the -earth may strive with their fellows; all this, in one -sense, is no concern of the heavenly stranger, though -his tent may be pitched in the neighbourhood. But -the way of Christ, which becomes the principle of -conduct to His people, is everything to him--and that -way must have been then known, the service of the -Kinsman-deliverer must have been then quite understood -among the elect household, for as soon as Abraham -hears of Lot, he is all action in a moment, and goes -forth for the rescue of his captured brother.</p> -<p class="pnext">A kindred duty with this was, to avenge the blood -of a murdered brother, or relative.</p> -<p class="pnext">This duty was recognized by the law, and kept in -memory all through the times of the nation. The -ordinance touching the cities of refuge was a relief -against the abuse of it; and the famous parable of -the woman of Tekoah assumed the fact, that the whole -system in Israel took knowledge of it.</p> -<p class="pnext">But, like the others, it was older than the law and -the prophets. Notices of Christ and His ways and -His doings for us were the earliest manifestations of -the mind of God. Happy for our hearts to know this! -And, accordingly, this Kinsman-duty had been prescribed -in very early days. When the sword was -committed to Noah, it was published. "At the hand -of every man's brother will I require the life of man. -Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood -be shed." But it was understood as a divine principle -even before then. Cain trembled before this law, which, -as his words intimate, must have then been known -everywhere. Genesis iv. 14. It was, indeed, a part -of the very first promise. "It shall bruise thy head" -announced it. For that sentence told the Serpent, -that man's Kinsman, the Woman's Seed, would avenge -on him the wrongs done by him upon the family. And -this duty Christ will perform when He casts the old -Serpent, "which is the Devil and Satan," with death -and hell, into the lake of fire.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id60" id="id59"><sup>30</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Such are among the duties which a Kinsman, according -to the mind and reckoning of the Lord, owed, -and such is the glorious performance of them by our -great Kinsman. And wondrous is it to be entitled -thus to write of Him! wondrous that the necessary -and instinctive dictates of nature are suggested by the -Holy Ghost as the ground, warrant, and character of -the love of Christ to the Saints! that, as I said before, -whatever nature tells me I owe myself, that Christ tells -me He owes me; and now, I may add, whatever nature -tells me my kindred owe me, that also Christ tells me -He owes me. And again I ask, Can any thought -respecting the place into which the love of the Son of -God has brought Him, surpass this? Can the imagination -form the idea of a more intense and devoted affection?</p> -<p class="pnext">The Son of God became our Kinsman for the very -end of performing all these Kinsman-services for us. -Hebrews ii., I believe, tells us that. And these duties -and services embody all the great materials in the -mystery of redemption. And, as we have now seen, -they have been made known from the beginning. -Jesus did not wait till the Law presented Him, in -its shadows or swaddling-clothes, to the faith and -joy of poor sinners. The Law afterwards gave the -things concerning Him a tabernacle, but those things -had been made known from the beginning. The fourth -day, in the course of creation, brought forth the Sun, -which then became the tabernacle of the light, but the -light had been abroad through the scene, the light had -been shining, from the earliest moment of the first -day. Jesus was known in the garden of Eden, and -borne on the breath of the very first promise. And -cheering this is to our spirits--happy to track these -notices of the common faith, these thoughts and truths -of God and His covenant, all along the line of the -ages, linking the most distant hearts of the elect in -the fellowship of one joy, and giving them one song -for ever and ever.</p> -<p class="pnext">Among the saints of the earlier days, our Job knew -Him in this great character of Kinsman or Redeemer. -As rescuing him from the power of death, or from -captivity to the grave and corruption, Job celebrates -Him. It is a scripture well known, and much delighted -in by the saints. And well may it be so. All that -ushers it forth to our hearing, and all that sustains -and accompanies it while we listen to it, give it an -uncommon character.</p> -<p class="pnext">"Oh that my words were now written! oh that they -were printed in a book! that they were graven with an -iron pen and lead in the rock for ever! For I know -that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at -the latter day upon the earth: and though after my -skin, worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I -see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes -shall behold, and not another; though my reins be -consumed within me."</p> -<p class="pnext">What an apprehension of Christ in both His person -and His work is here! It is the faith and hope of our -Gospel. Job knew he had a Redeemer, a Redeemer -then living, and thereafter to stand upon the earth -manifested in flesh, and that this Redeemer would -achieve for him a glorious victory over the power of -death, and strength of corruption. And all this fine -apprehension of Christ is accompanied with the simplest -appropriating faith. "Whom I shall see for -myself," says Job, "and mine eyes shall behold, and -not another." This is the confidence of Paul. This -is the liberty that is befitting the full revelation of the -grace of God. Paul and Job, in like spirit, knew the -glorious redemption, and knew it for themselves. "Who -loved me, and gave Himself for me."</p> -<p class="pnext">And what fervency is this with which the Holy Ghost -enables the patriarch to set his seal to all this precious -confession of his faith! Job would have all men know, -and every generation of them, he would publish it far -and wide, he would tell it out without a fear that he -should ever have to cancel a letter of it, he would engrave -it for eternity and have it leaded in the rock, that -he knew his Redeemer!</p> -<p class="pnext">What "light of the Lord" was this in which the -Patriarch walked! "O house of Jacob, come ye, and let -us walk in the light of the Lord." Job walked there -long before the house of Jacob, or the prophets of Israel, -knew of it. The light was abroad, and the Spirit led -the elect into it, from the beginning. And this occasion, -recorded in the 19th chapter, was a moment when that -light beamed brightly in Job's soul. His face did not -then, like Stephen's, shine as an angel's in the presence -of his accusers. He had not, in that way, put on the -garments of a child of resurrection, but his spirit within -was in the regions and liberty and triumph of such a one.</p> -<p class="pnext">This visitation, in the energy of the Holy Ghost, -drawing forth this blessed utterance from the heart of -the patriarch, was the bow in the cloud for a moment. -It shared the path of Job's spirit with the grief and -heaviness that it knew so well--as Jeremiah's vision by -night, and the Mount of Transfiguration, broke the -dreary way of the weeping prophet, and of the adorable -"Man of sorrows." Jer. xxxi. 26; Matt. xvii. 2. It was -the Spirit's power. The poor sufferer was made to look -away from God's dealings <em class="italics">with</em> him to His doings <em class="italics">for</em> -him. For there is a difference. The one calls the soul -into exercise, and often are too unwieldy, beyond the -management of our hearts. Very generally they need an -interpreter. The other takes the soul into entire liberty. -They are so plain that a child may read them. They -bear their own meaning on their forehead. They need -no interpreter. God's providences, or His dealings <em class="italics">with</em> -us, are ofttimes perplexing, as well as tenderly afflicting. -God's grace in the Gospel, or His doings for us, are such -as cannot either puzzle the thoughts or grieve the heart. -They bear their own witness, and tell a tale of devoted, -everlasting love, such as it is impossible to mistake.</p> -<p class="pnext">And these are the things we have to do with, every -day. If we be oppressed or fatigued by the current -course of circumstances, finding them weighty, dark, -and intricate, it is our privilege, and our duty too, to -pass over, in spirit and in thought, to that calm and -sunny atmosphere in which the Gospel, or God's doings -for us, ever invest the soul.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this may be seen in Job. That loved and honoured -saint is generally seen grappling with God's dealings -with him. The hand of God had gone out upon all his -interests and enjoyments. Loss of fortune, children, and -health, had come, by sore surprise, upon him, and he -persists, in the heat and resentment of nature, to keep -all this before his mind. But in a moment of the Spirit's -power he is made to look away from all this, to turn -from God's dealings <em class="italics">with</em> him to God's doings <em class="italics">for</em> him; -and then he triumphs. Then he can contemplate more -than the boils on his body, even the worms destroying -it; but all is light and triumph. Then, in the face of -all enemies, he can sit and sing in spirit, If God be for -me, who can be against me? Romans viii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Truly blessed is this. The tempter would lead us to -judge of God by the dark shadings of many a passage -of our history here. But the Spirit would have us -acquaint ourselves with Him in the beauteous light of -the Gospel, the glory that shines in the face of Jesus -Christ; and there is light there and no darkness at -all--no shadows which have to be chased away, no -dimness that needs to be interpreted.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this rather by the way--I have already traced -certain combinations between this earliest and most independent -portion of the book of God and all other -parts of it, whether near or distant. And very establishing -to the heart this is. But such combinations -or harmonies may be traced still further--in the <em class="italics">scenes -of action</em>, as well as in the <em class="italics">actors in the scenes</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">There are "heaven" and "earth" here, as in all Scripture; -each, too, having its "day" or special occasion. -See i. 4, 6, 13; ii. 1. There are also "this present -evil world," and "the world to come." At the opening -of the action the scene is laid in this present evil -world. It is but domestic, but all the features of the -great world are seen in it. For each family circle, like -every heart, is a little world. Indulgence and the love -of enjoyment appear in the children, and something of -the common "enmity against God" in the wife of our -patriarch. Then, again, there are <em class="italics">natural</em> calamities, -as from wind and fire and disease; and there are -<em class="italics">relative</em> calamities, as from the hand of our neighbour -or fellow-men, as Sabeans and Chaldeans. And all -this is the various casualty of life and human circumstance -to this hour. There is stroke upon stroke, -messenger after messenger, turning over every page of -the history. It is but human life <em class="italics">then</em> instead of <em class="italics">now</em>, -but the same life in its losses, crosses, and sore contradictions. -There is a little reality, a little of the -"friend in need" who "is a friend indeed," but there is a -great deal of scorn and desertion in the hour of -calamity, still so well known in the world. Job has -three friends who sit with him among his ashes and -potsherds, but all beside see him afar off.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is not all this "the present evil world" drawn to -the life?</p> -<p class="pnext">But at the close of the action, the scene is laid in -"the world to come," God's world and not man's, the -world which His energies are to form, and His principles -are to fill. It is the time of refreshing and -restitution. In the 42nd chapter of our Book, we are, -in spirit, in the Millennium. The Holy Ghost gives -us this account of it. "Be patient therefore, brethren, -unto the coming of the Lord," are the words which -introduce His allusion to "the patience of Job," and -to "the end of the Lord." The husbandman toils in -hope, and gets his fruit in harvest, or in resurrection. -And so did Job endure, till, at last, he that sowed -reaped. The 42nd chapter is the harvest of the husbandman. -James v. 7-11.</p> -<p class="pnext">And happy, I may say, is this further witness to the -value which a spirit of confession and repentance has -with our God, beloved. As it is written, "The sacrifices -of God are a broken spirit;" and again, "If we -confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive -our sins." For I doubt not, that it was to Job's few -words of confession and repentance that the Lord -referred when He turned to the friends and told them, -that they had not spoken of Him the thing that was -right, like His servant Job. They had not made confession -at the end, as he had done. And let us cherish -this assurance. There are comfort and strength in it. -The language of repentance prevails. "I have surely -heard Ephraim bemoaning himself," says Jehovah--and -then came the divine compassion: "Is Ephraim -my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake -against him, I do earnestly remember him still." Or, -as we may learn from Hosea, words of confession and -repentance from Israel, in the latter day, mightily -prevail with God. "O Israel, return unto the Lord -thy God; for thou hast fallen by thine iniquity. Take -with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto Him, -Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously." -"I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely," -is the divine answer, with a rich and beautiful chapter -of promises.</p> -<p class="pnext">The consolation of this! the tale it tells us of grace, -unwearied, long-suffering grace! And accordingly Job -flourishes again. The Lord is as the dew to him. He -grows as the lily, his branches spread, his beauty is as -the olive tree, his scent as Lebanon. In "the end of -the Lord" he is seen as "in the regeneration," or day -of the kingdom, and even others dwell under his -shadow, reviving as the corn, and growing as the vine. -See Hosea xiv.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id62" id="id61"><sup>31</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Such was our Patriarch in "the end of the Lord." -Another witness he is that the burning bush is never -consumed, because of the good-will of Him who dwells -in it. It may be Israel in Egypt, or in Babylon, the -children in the furnace, or the prophet in the den. It -may be a poor elect Gadarene, beset with a legion, or -the patriarch, the sport of wind and fire and bodily -disease, of Chaldeans and Sabeans too, the power and -messengers of Satan let out upon him, still the burning -bush is unconsumed for the goodwill of Him who -dwells in it. "We had the sentence of death in ourselves," -says the apostle, as speaking in the name of -them all, "that we should not trust in ourselves, but in -God who raiseth the dead."</p> -<p class="pnext">Such an one was our Patriarch. And such an one he -had learnt himself to be. In the school of God he had -now learnt his calling, as in the experience of his own -soul. But a great lesson it is. A great difference, I am -full sure, between having God in the midst of our -circumstances, and God as Himself the first and great -circumstance. The first was Job's way at the beginning. -He would not have been without God. He owned Him, -and gave Him an altar in the family scene. But he had -not said to Him, Thou shalt choose our inheritance for -us. He had not, as Abram did afterward, <em class="italics">come out from -circumstances with God</em>, trusting Him to surround him -with His own circumstances. The power to do this -cries, "Whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is -none upon earth that I desire beside Thee." For such -was the utterance of a saint when his soul had come -forth from the tempest and temptation of seeing himself -second to the wicked in the conditions and circumstances -of life here. Ps. lxxiii.</p> -<p class="pnext">What a voice this truth has for us! Some may listen -to it for <em class="italics">comfort</em>, others of us of feebler faith for <em class="italics">warning</em>. -The world and pride and selfishness form the circumstances -out of which the call of God summons us; and -religion, in a sense, may have brought God into them; -but faith, in its simplicity, forms the other, and God has -not to be brought into them, for He is there from the -beginning, the great Framer or Artificer of them all.</p> -<p class="pnext">One repeats this truth, for it is, as I judge, the great -secret of this Book. Our Job at the end learnt the power -of the call of God. And this, I may say, imparts a just -and spiritual bearing to all he now does, as well as -invests his whole estate with the beauty and stability -of millennial days.</p> -<p class="pnext">He was, at the beginning, as a <em class="italics">prophet</em>, <em class="italics">priest</em>, and -<em class="italics">king</em>, and so is he again, at the end. But he is so after -a new order, exercising his different functions more -according to the mind of God. As a <em class="italics">prophet</em>, he had, at -the beginning, too confidently assumed to be the interpreter -of God and His ways; but now he says, "I will -demand of Thee, and declare Thou unto me." He will -be a disciple of the Lord, ere he teach others; he will -have his ear opened, ere his tongue be loosed. Isa. 50. 4. -Such is the purifying of his prophetic ministry. He -will know nothing, save as he learns it from God. His -doctrine is not <em class="italics">his</em> now. As a <em class="italics">priest</em>, at the beginning, -he had stepped in between God and his children, to heal -probable or dreaded breaches. But he does not seem to -wash his own clothes, while sprinkling the purifying -water on others. Num. xix. 21. He wanted to remember -that he himself was also in the body, temptable like -the weakest. Gal. vi. 1. But now he is <em class="italics">accepted</em> himself. -Job xlii. 9; Ezek. xiv. 14, 20. As a <em class="italics">king</em>, his honours -now come after his afflictions, his glories after his -sufferings; and also after he prayed for his friends, is -his captivity turned. He exercises grace, ere he is again -entrusted with power--all this being according to the -great originals. "Ye are they which have continued -with Me in my temptations, and I appoint unto you a -kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto Me."</p> -<p class="pnext">In these ways, he is prophet, priest, and king, <em class="italics">after a</em> -<em class="italics">new order</em>, and all is refined in the furnace, like gold -tried in the fire.</p> -<p class="pnext">And he is the father of a family again, a family -also, as I may again say, of a new order--nothing has -to be corrected among them, but all is in happy, -holy fellowship, the heart of the father turned to the -children, and the heart of the children to their father. -At the beginning he had to watch their ways, and -provide for the evil they might have committed. But -at the end there is nothing of this; their father has -only to see them with admiration and delight. They -awakened <em class="italics">fear</em> at first, but now <em class="italics">contentment</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">And further, in this beautiful millennial or resurrection -scene, which thus closes this story, the stormy -wind is hushed, and the lightning of the thunder -strikes no more. In this day of a second Noah, such -as Job was (the lord of a new world), the waters -which once "prevailed" are now "assuaged." And -the Chaldeans and Sabeans no longer spoil the spoil, -and prey the prey. There is "no adversary nor evil -occurrent," no "Canaanite in the house of the Lord" -now. Nothing hurts or destroys in all the holy -mountain. The Lord delivers His people from those -who served themselves of them.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this is pledged and pictured for us here. And -what may be said to be of still deeper value to us, the -great enemy himself, the ready and wishful agent of -all the mischief and sorrow that had come in, is gone -likewise. At the beginning he is in the action, exercising -himself as an accuser in heaven, and as a -tormentor on earth. And it is for the comfort of the -tried saint, that the hand of both God and the enemy -are engaged in his trial; the enemy (as here with -our patriarch) seeking to cast his crown to the ground, -and to cast his fair memorial with God in the dust, -the Lord purposing (and performing it) to brighten -that crown, and still further to bless the heir of those -dignities and joys. It is a comfort to the saint, in the -day of trial, to remember this. But, at the end, the -enemy is gone. The purpose, in the wisdom of God, -for which he had been used, is answered, and he is -gone. The discipline of Job had ceased as in his -destruction.</p> -<p class="pnext">Satan had understood Job. He knew the workings -of that corrupt nature, which his own lie had formed -in the garden of Eden. He had said, "Doth Job fear -God for nought? Hast not Thou made an hedge about -him?... Touch all that he hath, and he will curse Thee -to Thy face.... Skin for skin; yea, all that a man hath -will he give for his life." And serious and terrible is the -thought, beloved, that he knows us so thoroughly, and -understands the springs of thought and will within us. -But though he thus understands <em class="italics">Job</em>, he did not -understand <em class="italics">God</em>. The counsels of grace are above -him. And by reason of this, he has been always, in -the history of this world, defeating himself, while -thinking that he was getting advantage of us; for he -has to meet God in the very thing he does, and the -purposes he plans, against us. When he interfered -with Adam in the garden, he encountered God to his -confusion, and the promise to Adam announced his -own doom. When he provoked David to number -the people, Ornan's threshing-floor was disclosed, and -the spot where mercy rejoiced against judgment becomes -the place of the temple. When he sifted the -Apostles as wheat, he was answered by the prayer -of Jesus, and, instead of faith failing, brethren were -strengthened. And, above all, when he touched Jesus -on the cross, the very death he inflicted was his own -perfect and accomplished ruin. So, in every trouble -which he brings on any of us, he finds, or is to find, -sooner or later, that he has met the mighty God, and -not the feeble saint. He entered Job's nest that he -might spoil it, and leave it driven and wasted. He -came into another garden then. But God was there -as well as his servant Job, and in the end Satan is -confounded.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus is it with the saints and their enemy. They -shall take the kingdom, and in the kingdom Satan shall -have no place. Out of the trials which he had raised -around them and against them, they come forth to wear -their crowns, and sing their songs. And, instead of his -appearing again "among the sons of God," the mighty -angel shall lay hold on him, and cast him into the -bottomless pit.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id64" id="id63"><sup>32</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">This is full of blessing--and this is millennial blessing, -shadowed here in this beautiful story. But there is -more. There will be no question in the millennial -heavens about the saints, as there was about Adam in -the garden, and about Job in the beginning of this -Book. The tree of knowledge tested the creature whom -God had just made. But in the age of the resurrection, -in the heavens where Job and all the children of the -resurrection will be, there will be no such test. There -will be no question about man. There will be silence -in heaven as to man, for the great Kinsman has answered -all questions, and man is glorified there.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such are the changes which have arisen, ere we -leave this divine, inspired story. Has not the <em class="italics">trial</em> of -faith been <em class="italics">precious</em>, as St. Peter speaks, when we can -talk of such changes? The enemy is gone. His -ministers, or messengers, the wind and the fire, the -Chaldeans and Sabeans, take their commission no more. -Job, too, has changed his mind, and made his confession -to God--his friends have changed their mind, and -humbled themselves to him. But there is One who -abides the same. He has no step to retrace, no word to -recall, no deed of His hand, or counsel of His heart, to -alter or repent of. Other scriptures tell of Him, that -He is "the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever," -and that with Him there "is no variableness, neither -shadow of turning." And this precious tale about Him -and His doings so illustrates and exhibits Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">There is never entire calmness, or the absence of all -haste and distraction, where we are not conscious that -our <em class="italics">strength is equal to our business</em>, whatever it may be. -Nor is there, when we are not equally conscious of -<em class="italics">integrity or righteousness in that business</em>. The consciousness -of both righteousness and strength is needed in -order to fit the hand to do a deed, or the foot to take a -step, with entire ease.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now we know that this ease marks all the ways and -operations of God. He is ever at work (to speak after -the manner of men) in the full possession of this undistractedness -of which we are speaking. We might -judge this from the necessary glory of His godhead. -But the ways of Jesus on earth always exhibited this, -and He, as we know, was God manifest in the flesh. -And this ease and calmness, in which all the operations -of God proceed, tell us, that though they may to us -appear strange and even wilful, as Job thought them, -yet is He able to interpret them every one, so as to be -justified in His sayings, and clear when He is judged. -And this is happy. "The bud may have a bitter taste," -and "blind unbelief is sure to err." These things are -so. But "God is His own interpreter, and He will -make it plain." We know how our Job was tried--deeply, -variously, and, as might be thought, wantonly, -needlessly; for he walked in the fear of God, and in -the service of his generation. But "the end of the -Lord" is more than vindication. It is display. The -trial is found to be unto praise and honour and glory. -The light of the coming day, rebuke what it may, will -have only to set off and reflect the excellency of Him -with whom we have to do.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus have we lingered, for a little, over these bright -notices of millennial days, "the days of heaven upon -earth," which shine at the close of this lovely as well -as serious and instructive tale of patriarchal times. -But there is more.</p> -<p class="pnext">At the beginning, Job held all his blessings with -reserve and suspicion. He was not in safety, nor at -rest, nor in quiet; yet trouble came. "The thing which -I greatly feared is come upon me," says he, "and that -which I was afraid of is come unto me." It must needs -be so. The instability with which departure from God -has affected every possession and every profit here -makes this necessary. But, at the end, there are no -"fears within," any more than Chaldeans or "fightings -without." No shadow crosses the settled sunshine -that rests on all around him, or the calm light which -fills all within.</p> -<p class="pnext">And further--his kinsfolk and acquaintance, at the -end, seek him again. They ought, indeed, never to have -deserted him. For we deceive ourselves if we think -that we must be right if we <em class="italics">grieve</em> those whom God is -<em class="italics">disciplining</em>. This is often very far indeed from being -the case. The Lord said in Zechariah, "I am very sore -displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was -but a little displeased, and they helped forward the -affliction." So also is Isaiah xlvii. 6--and so Obadiah -10-14, to the same effect. We are more commonly, -perhaps, in God's mind, and act as the living vessels of -the Spirit, when <em class="italics">soothing</em> such. And sure I am it was -so in Job's case. Had his former friends known God's -way, they would have dealt very differently with him. -They would not have left him. The very fact that -"the hand of God" had touched him, as he so deeply -expresses it, would have been the occasion of "pity," as -he further says, from his friends.</p> -<p class="pnext">However, as part of the bright sunshine that gladdens -his estate at the end, his kinsfolk and acquaintance -again seek him. And they do so to <em class="italics">congratulate</em> as -well as to <em class="italics">compassionate</em> him. And if they talk to -him of past griefs, it is but to heighten his present joy--as -Israel afterwards, in their triumphant feast of -Tabernacles, might make booths and sit under them, in -grateful remembrance of wilderness-days.</p> -<p class="pnext">All these are happy reverses, and the latter end of -our patriarch is twice as good as his beginning. But -among all the gladdening anticipations which shine in -the latter page of this history there is none which more -captivates the heart than <em class="italics">the reconciliation</em>. The patriarch -and his brethren, as the narrative largely tells us, -and as we well know, had sadly fallen out by the way, -as they walked along the high road of "this present -evil world;" but as soon as they enter "the age to -come," the strife of tongues and stir of war are heard -and seen no more.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is truly welcome to the heart. For what joy will -it be to be delivered of selfishness and pride, and many -other workings of an ungenerous and perverted nature. -How are the pleasures of the heart spoiled by such -robbers continually! What a thing a page of history -is! What a record of the agitations of envy and -ambition and revenge! Is it not misery thus to see -men "hateful, and hating one another," and then to -remember that we are still alive and active in the midst -of the same elements? But another thing is in our -prospect; and it is the way of the wisdom and grace of -God again and again, in the progress of His Word, as here -in the 42nd chapter of Job, to give us a mystic picture -of it. Then man, as <em class="italics">deceived by Satan</em>, shall give place; -and man, as <em class="italics">anointed by God</em>, shall prevail. Then shall -be known the joy of getting out of such darkness -into such light, of beholding the Sun again, after -centuries of midnight gloom.</p> -<p class="pnext">We know from Scripture that great physical virtue -will attend this coming kingdom. As prophets sing, -the wilderness "shall rejoice and blossom as the rose"--the -lame shall leap as the hart, the tongue of the -dumb shall sing, the cow and the bear shall feed -together, and the wolf shall lie down with the kid. -Nature in all its order shall own the presence of the -Lord. The floods shall clap their hands, the trees of -the wood shall rejoice, before Him. As creation has -already felt the bondage of corruption, it shall then -feel the liberty of glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">It will be as though dormant sensibilities had all -been suddenly awakened. It will be as the sweeping -of an exquisite instrument with a master hand. It -will be the <em class="italics">same</em> creation, but under new authority, -new influences. Let but the sons of God be manifested, -and the whole system shall spring into new conditions -and consciousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">And so <em class="italics">man</em>, when the powers of that coming age -take him up as their subject. Let but the passage be -made from this present evil world into the world to -come, and new principles will at once gild and furnish -the scene, and give <em class="italics">moral</em> enjoyments (which are the -richest of all) to all personal and social life.</p> -<p class="pnext">This will be the touching of an instrument of still -finer workmanship. The system around the vegetable -and animal world is susceptible of such forms of -beauty and of order as may make it all the vivid, happy -reflection of divine goodness and wisdom; but in the -renewed mind of man there lie latent powers and -affections of nothing less than the divinest texture. -In its present condition it has to struggle with nature, -and to suffer sore let and hindrance from the flesh. It -is oppressed and encumbered by a gross atmosphere. -But it has capabilities of acting, judging, and feeling -of the highest order. And let but the due influences -reach it in power, those sensibilities and faculties will -be all awakened, and forms of moral beauty throughout -all personal and social life will show themselves. What -a hope for the spirit tried in conflict with the flesh! -It will be the same "new creature" that now is: only -in other conditions. Not oppressed and clouded, but, -as it were, breathing its native air.</p> -<p class="pnext">Scripture gives us many a witness of such moral -virtue and enjoyment in the millennial age. It is -one of the most delightful occupations of the mind -of Christ in us, to hear these witnesses, in their mystic -language, deliver their testimony.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Father of Israel and the Gentiles are seen -together, for a moment, in Genesis xxi. And their -communion was a sample of the holy, happy intercourse -of Israel and the nations, in the coming days -of the kingdom. Questions which before had divided -and disturbed them are now all settled. The well of -water, which had been the occasion of strife, is now a -witness of the oath or covenant. All pure social -affections adorn this communion of Abraham and -Abimelech; and they part under pledged and plighted -friendship. Abraham's grove, in principle, makes the -desert to bloom, and his altar makes the earth a -sanctuary; but his way with Abimelech, and Abimelech's -with him, give that bright moment its dearest and -highest character. For there are no enjoyments like -<em class="italics">moral</em> enjoyments, no pleasures like those of the <em class="italics">heart</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">So in Exodus xviii. The heavenly and the earthly -families are seen together, under the type of Jethro -and the ransomed tribes, at the mount of God. And -all is full of moral beauty. And yet the materials -which make up the scene had been, in other and -earlier days, very differently minded towards each -other. Moses and Zipporah had parted in anger, the -last time they had met, and the congregation had been -murmuring again and again. But now the mount of -God has influences for them, and from the highest to -the least, from Jethro down to the most distant parts -of the camp, all is in the power of godly order, subjection, -and fellowship.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then again, that generation that lived in the closing -days of David and in the early days of Solomon -exhibit the same. They had been numbering each -other to the sword, in the wood of Ephraim, but the -sword is turned into a ploughshare now. The days -of Solomon were, typically or in spirit, millennial days, -and sweet and surprising virtue attends them. Instead -of going forth again to the field of battle, they sit, -every man with his neighbour, under the vine and -under the fig-tree. "Judah and Israel were many, as -the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and -drinking, and making merry."</p> -<p class="pnext">Are not these <em class="italics">moral</em> transfigurations? And how -blessed they are! Pass but the border. Leave man's -day for the Lord's day. Breathe the air of the -Mount of God--and all this moral renovation, with -its countless springs and streams of social felicity, -shall be tasted, ever fresh and ever pure. 'Tis but -a little while and all this shall be. The <em class="italics">same</em> brethren, -who may now be a trial to one another, like our Job -and his friends, shall then heighten and enlarge each -other's joy. And in the earthly places, "Ephraim shall -not envy Judah, nor Judah vex Ephraim." Pride and -selfishness shall have ceased to depreciate, as they do -now, with all their companion lusts and wickednesses, -the pleasures of the heart.</p> -<p class="pnext">This patriarchal story, on which we have now been -meditating, more ancient than, and as illustrious as, any -of these inspired records, gives us a like sample of millennial -days. Job and his three friends, Eliphaz the -Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite, -are the same Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, -the same <em class="italics">persons</em>. And they are no longer contending, -but united brethren. They have ascended the mount -at the end; and there lies all the difference. And -barren indeed our hearts must be of every gracious -affection, and dead to all godly emotions, if we hail not -such a prospect.</p> -<p class="pnext">He who by His blood did long ago break down all -partition walls, and who is now, by His Spirit, giving -believers common access to the Father, will by-and-by, -with His own hand, join the stick of Ephraim -and the stick of Judah, and make them one there. -Ezekiel xxxvii. 16. His Israel on the earth shall see -"eye to eye," for the light and the joy of Zion's salvation -shall be passed, with holy speed, from the messengers -on the mountains to the watchmen of the city, and -from them to the people, and from the people to the -nations (Isaiah lii. 7-9)--and, among the heavenly -people, the children of the resurrection, like Job and -his friends, "that which is in part shall be done away, -and that which is perfect shall come."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="the-canticles">THE CANTICLES</span>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"Will God in very deed dwell with men on the -earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of -heavens cannot contain Thee."</p> -<p class="pnext">This was the devout breathing of the king of Israel -(the penman, too, of this little book to which we are -now proposing, in the Lord's grace, to introduce ourselves), -when the glory had come to fill the house which -he had builded.</p> -<p class="pnext">But so it was. The Son of God, Jehovah's Fellow, -He that was with God and was God, was manifest -in flesh, and conversed with us here. He dwelt with -men on the earth. He tabernacled among us. He -was Jesus. We knew Him as such. He was a <em class="italics">Man</em>, -and a Friend, and a Master, and a Companion. He -invited confidence. He sought sympathy and imparted -it. And, as a <em class="italics">Man</em>, we know Him still--as -truly a Man amid the brightest glories of heaven now, -as once He was a Man amid the ruins and sorrows of -earth--as able, through sympathy, to understand the -sufferings of His saints still, as when He walked the -streets and highways here, bearing our griefs and -carrying our sicknesses.</p> -<p class="pnext">And what will He be even for ever? Still <em class="italics">Jesus -Christ</em>. Dominion of all things will be His as a <em class="italics">Man</em>. -The scene may change the second time, from the -present temple in heaven to the kingdom of glory, as at -first it changed from the cities and villages here to the -temple on high, but it is "the <em class="italics">Man</em> Christ Jesus" who -passes from scene to scene. Precious mystery! Manhood -having been once taken up, will never be given -up. A temple has been found for the glory, a vessel -for the blessing, a person for the manifestation, an -instrument for the exercise of power and government, -suited to the counsels of divine wisdom and to the -purposes of divine goodness.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">From the beginning of His ways, and throughout -them, the Lord God has been evidencing His -purpose to bring His creature <em class="italics">man</em> very near to -Him. The expression of this has been different, but -still constant.</p> -<p class="pnext">In patriarchal days the intimacy was <em class="italics">personal</em>. He -walked in the midst of the human family, personally -appearing to His elect; not so much employing either -prophets or angels, but having to do with the action -Himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the times of Israel, He was not so much in "the -human guise" as before. He was rather in mystic -dress. But still He was <em class="italics">near</em> them. The Lord in the -burning bush, the glory in the cloud, the armed captain -by Jericho, speak this nearness. The God of Israel -seen on the sapphire throne, the glory filling the -temple courts, or seated between the cherubim, tell -the same. And the promises, "I will set My tabernacle -among you ... and I will walk among you," -and "Mine eyes and Mine heart shall be there -perpetually," alike witness this desired and purposed -fellowship.</p> -<p class="pnext">Then, in the progress of the ages, the assumption -of manhood is a witness, I may say, that speaks for -itself; and the <em class="italics">ways</em> of God manifest in the flesh -agree therewith. Jesus "came eating and drinking." -And still the same, after He had become the <em class="italics">risen Man</em>. -He had not then, it is true, one lodging and repast -with His disciples, as once He had. He did not then, -as before, go in and out among them. They were -not to know Him "after the flesh," as in earlier days. -But still there was full intimacy. There was many a -note of conscious authority about Him, it is most true. -He speaks of all power in heaven and in earth being -His. He opens their understandings. He pronounces -peace upon them on new and authoritative grounds, -He imparts the Holy Ghost, as the Head of the new -creation. He blessed, as Priest of the temple, the only -Priest. All this He does, as risen from the dead, with -conscious power; but, with all this, He owns intimacy, -loving, personal intimacy, as near and dear as ever, if -not more so. He eats and drinks with them, as once -He did. He calls them "brethren," as He had not -done before His resurrection. He speaks of having -one God and Father with them, as He had not done -then. Though with all authority He sends them -forth to work, yet does He still work with them. -Mark xvi.; Luke xxiv.; John xx. And though He -was at that time paying them only an occasional visit, -a visit now and then, as He pleased, during forty days -(Acts i. 3), yet He intimates, by a little action, that, by-and-by, -all such distance and separation will be over, -and they should "follow" Him to His place, risen and -glorified with Himself. John xxi. 19-23.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is not all this intimacy still? desired and enjoyed -intimacy on the part of our "everlasting Lover"? And -as to this present dispensation, the same is provided -for and maintained, though in a different way. The -Holy Ghost is come. The Spirit of truth is in us. -Our bodies are nothing less than His living temples -or dwelling-places, while the Son has, mystically, borne -us to heaven in and with Himself. Eph. ii. 6. Surely -no form of fellowship which we have contemplated -is more deep and intimate than this. If, personally, -the Lord God was with the patriarchs, and would -take a calf and a cake in the love of hospitality--if, -in the sight of the whole congregation, He would -let the glory fill the temple courts in the joy of its -new-found habitation--if, in "the Man Christ Jesus," -the Lord God would walk with us, and share our -seasons of rest and labour and refreshment, talking at -a well with one elect sinner, or letting another press -His bosom at supper, and ask Him about the secrets -that were in that bosom--in this present day He has us, -in the thoughts and affections of His own heart, up in -heaven with Himself, and the Holy Ghost is here -with us, in the midst of the thoughts and affections -of our hearts.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is this, I ask, intimacy of a feebler nature? Is this -a retracing of His way back into His own perfections -and sufficiency, or amid the glories and principalities -of angels? Is this <em class="italics">reserve</em>, as men speak? Is this -withdrawing Himself, or repenting of former intimacy -with man, as though He had been disappointed -and put off? "Adam, where art thou?" was His voice. -But has Adam's retreat forced the Lord back? Let -this one Witness, this Witness of our times, this indwelling -Spirit, leading us in company with Himself after -this manner, tell us. All His present way is only a -richer pursuit of that purpose which broke forth, in -infant form, in the days of Genesis.</p> -<p class="pnext">And what shall we say of this intimacy in still future -days? Redeemed men take the place of cherubic nearness -to the throne. The living creatures and the crowned -elders are there, and the angels do but surround them -as well as the throne. The Lamb's wife, the holy Jerusalem, -bears the glory in her bosom. The Tabernacle -of God is with men, and He will dwell with them.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But if all this be so, as it surely is, a holy inquiry -arises, How are we to entertain this? In what spirit, -and after what manner, are we to act on the truth of -this gracious purpose of God? <em class="italics">We are to admit and -believe it in all the simplicity in which it is revealed.</em> -This is our first duty. We are by no means to refuse -the thought of this divine nearness. Did John, I ask, -refuse to lie on His Lord's bosom, or excuse himself -for doing so? No. Neither are we, through mistaken -humility, to question whether we have rightly interpreted -the many scriptures which declare this truth. -We are to use the privileges it confers.</p> -<p class="pnext">But with this use of its privileges we are to honour -its claims. For this presence of God is a <em class="italics">pure</em> as well -as a <em class="italics">cheerful</em> element. Of old, the shoes were to be -taken from the feet, when that presence was entered, -to express the sense of holiness which became it. But -that was all. Neither Moses nor Joshua were required -to withdraw; only to tread softly. They were welcomed -and encouraged, while instructed in the holiness -of such intimacy.</p> -<p class="pnext">So in the Canticles. The soul makes its boast of -its Lord's love. It does not refuse to listen to the -tenderest expressions of it, nor to recite His well-known -desire towards her; but withal, there is owned -and felt unworthiness. There is the breathing of the -purest though most intimate thoughts--an affection -quickly sensitive of the putting slight on such wondrous -condescensions of divine love, and diligence in -nourishing in the soul the answer due to them. And, -thus, this little book gives very clear witness to the -truth of God's intimacy with man, and to the manner -in which it should be entertained by us. And in -doing this it introduces us to a great divine mystery, -which, in like manner, gets its early and constant -illustration in the Book of God--a mystery which -must now hold our thoughts for a little. I mean that -of the Bride and the Bridegroom.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Church is called "the Lamb's wife." But this -title has its meaning. "The Lamb" is a figure or a -description of the Son of God which tells us of the -sorrows He endured for us. The soul well understands -this; and therefore this title, "the Lamb's -wife," tells us that it is by <em class="italics">His sufferings</em> the Lord has -made her His own; that He valued her so as to give -up all for her. And from the beginning He has been -publishing this precious gospel truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Ere Adam received Eve he was cast into a deep -sleep, and out of his side was taken a rib, of which -was formed that one that was afterwards presented to -him as his wife. This witnesses the mystery I have -mentioned. Adam was humbled and Adam suffered -(I mean, of course, only in the symbol or mystery), -ere he received Eve; all this casting beforehand the -shadow of the humiliation and suffering of the true -Adam, in acquiring His Eve for Himself.</p> -<p class="pnext">So Jacob afterwards. He had to sustain the burthen -and heat of a long and toilsome day, ere he could possess -himself of Rachel. The law of her people, the law -of her country, and the oppressive exactions of the -covetous Laban, had put him on these terms. He had -to endure the constant consuming of sun and moon, -to toil night and day, and have his exile lengthened -out, or go without his Rachel.</p> -<p class="pnext">Joseph, ere he got his Asenath, was separated from -his brethren.</p> -<p class="pnext">The same thing we see in Moses. He too was -separated from his brethren. And still more, he -<em class="italics">earned</em> Zipporah. He rescued her from oppression, -then opened the well to her and her flock, and then -her father owned his claim to her hand. So with his -second wife. He had to take her at the expense of -his good name with his own kindred; she was a black -Ethiopian, and did not suit the thoughts of his brother -and sister. But he bore the reproach, and married the -Ethiopian.</p> -<p class="pnext">In each of these marriages (typical as well as real) -we see <em class="italics">the character</em> of the Bridegroom; we see the -Lord Jesus Christ possessing Himself of His Bride -<em class="italics">at some personal cost</em>. Whether it be humiliation and -suffering, as in Adam, toil and weariness and conflict, -as in Jacob, separation and dreary loneliness, as -in Joseph, or mere reproach, as doing a thing unworthy -of him, as in Moses, still it is, in principle, a <em class="italics">suffering</em> -Bridegroom that we see.</p> -<p class="pnext">And I might notice Boaz, another type of the same. -He was a mighty man of wealth, but he pleads the -cause of a poor gleaner in his fields; he allows her -approaches and her suit, and takes her to him to wife. -He is not ashamed to make a destitute stranger, who -but a day before depended on the bounty of his hand, -the companion of his wealth and honour, and the -builder of his house and name among the tribes of -Israel. And thus the marriage of Boaz tells out the -same mystery, that the Bridegroom of the Church is -the One who had before been humbled to redeem her, -and make her His own.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Not only, however, in types and illustrations is this -great truth set forth, but in the plain teaching of Scripture -also. It is said, that Christ loved the Church, -then gave Himself for it, then sanctified it by the -washing of the Word--and all this, that He might -present it worthily to Himself as His Bride. Eph. v. -Here, doctrinally, or in the way of plain teaching, we -have the <em class="italics">Lamb the Bridegroom</em>; for ere He takes the -Church <em class="italics">He gives Himself for her</em>. He takes to wife -the one whom He had afore purchased with blood.</p> -<p class="pnext">In Old Testament Scriptures, the same thing is -taught, as between the Lord and Jerusalem, which is, -<em class="italics">in principle</em>, the same as Christ and the Church.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus, in Isaiah it is said, Thy Maker is thy Husband, -thy Redeemer--the whole passage showing -Jerusalem taken up by the Lord in simple loving-kindness, -He owning one that, like the Ethiopian or -like Ruth, might be a reproach to Him. liv.</p> -<p class="pnext">So Jeremiah represents the Lord in the very same -grace, taking Jerusalem even after she had proved -herself unfaithful, and been legally and judicially put -away. iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Hosea is made the representative of the same. i.-iii. -He buys his wife (iii. 2), he washes and cleanses her, as -well as bears the reproach of espousing one in herself -so worthless and lost.</p> -<p class="pnext">So in the striking picture of Ezekiel. Jerusalem is -looked at in her loathsome, offensive degradation; but -when not one eye pitied, the Lord not only took -compassion on, but quickened, washed, clothed, anointed, -beautified, and endowed her, and did not stop till He -had taken her to Himself. xvi.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus is it in the teachings or voices of the prophets, -as in the early types and shadows; both and all telling -out the mystery, that <em class="italics">the Lamb</em> is the <em class="italics">Bridegroom</em>, that -the One who at the end seats her in the companionship -of His glory, had before redeemed her by His -blood, washed and purified her by His Word and Spirit, -suffered reproach for her (Luke xix. 7), and gone down -to her in her ruin, ere He could take her up to His -estate and honour.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the mystery of the Divine Bridegroom. All -human tales or fables fall short of this, let the imagination -that wrought them up be as fervent as it may. -This is the mystery of a love that passes knowledge -between Christ and the Church. She must love Him -for the service He has shown her; He must love her -for the cost she has put Him to. She will find herself -for ever by the side of One who so loved her as to die -for her. He will see one by His side who so engaged -Him that He was willing to go through with His -affection, though the cost of loving her would take (to -speak after the manner of men) all that He was worth. -He cannot but prize her supremely, and so she Him. -This only difference may be observed--that His love -was proved ere she became His, for He had beforehand -counted the cost of loving her--her love, later and -more backward, and only in the second place, began on -her knowing His love for her. For Christ, as the -Bridegroom (as in everything else, whether of grace or -glory, Col. i.), is to have "the pre-eminence." In the -character of His love He entirely outshines the love -of the bride, and leaves hers, as it were, no love at all, -by reason of the love that excelleth.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But having thus looked at the Bridegroom, I would, -in like manner, see the Bride for a moment or two. -But I must limit myself, and will, therefore, only trace -her as reflected in the Book of Genesis.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Eve</em> is, of course, the earliest type. In her we see the -personal characteristics of the bride: she is formed -by the Lord for Adam. Adam's joy in a helpmeet was -what the Lord proposed to Himself when He began -to form Eve. He had respect to Adam's need and joy -in this work. And when Adam receives Eve from the -hand of the Lord, his words express his satisfaction -in her, vindicating the Lord's workmanship, that His -hand had accomplished the design which His love had -undertaken. Eve was fitted to Adam. This was her -full personal beauty. He owned her bone of his bone, -and flesh of his flesh. <em class="italics">All in her was attractiveness.</em> -She entirely answered the expectations, and satisfied -the heart, of him for whom she had been formed. He -took her and clave to her (Gen. ii.); and this, we know, -is a type of Christ and the Church. Eph. v.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Sarah</em> is the next distinguished female in that book; -and she is a mystic person also. But it is not the -Bride whom she expresses, but the Mother. So that -I will not particularly notice her. For Abraham is -"the father of all them that believe"--and Sarah is -"the free woman" or, in an allegory, "the mother of -us all" (Gal. iv.), linked with the family of God in the -place of the mother, rather than with the Lord as His -Bride. So that I pass her by.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Rebecca</em> comes next in this holy line, and in her we -have the Bride again, as in Eve. But great and blessed -truths connected with the Bride are told in Rebecca. -She is separated from Isaac. He is far away, and -has never seen her. But Rebecca is the father's choice, -and Eliezer's care, till Isaac receives her. Isaac -longed for her. That is shown by his going forth in -solitariness to meditate at eventide. But beyond the -sense of this loneliness, we do not see Isaac doing or -suffering anything for her. The council about the wife -is taken between Abraham and Eliezer. They settle -the whole plan. And Eliezer, in beautiful, self-denying -service, goes on toil and travel to secure this elect -Bride for Isaac. And he does secure her. And he -prepares her for him. He not only separates her from -her kindred and her father's house, but conducts her -across the desert; on the way, doubtless, telling her -many a tale of him whose she was so soon to be--till -at length he gives her safely into Isaac's hand, and -Isaac, like Adam, is comforted in his Bride.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is a beautiful light in which to look at the -Bride; the one who is brought home to her lord from -the distant land, having been the object of the father's -choice, and of the servant's care. This is a mystery. -And in it we get the Lord receiving His Bride at the -hand of the Father and of the Holy Ghost, chosen for -Him, and given to Him, He having nothing to do -but to take her at their hand, and to find in her, as -Isaac found in Rebecca, the relief of his solitariness, -the inmate of his tent, and the companion of all his -joys.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Rachel</em>, next in order, shows herself to us. And in her -we get the Bride again, though in a different character. -Here we find the one who was to own and enjoy her, -travelling and toiling for her. And this is just as true, -in the mystery, as the other. For, in one sense, Christ -has only to receive His Bride at the hand of the Father -and the Holy Ghost, the gift of the one and the workmanship -of the other--but, in another sense, He has -Himself gone into the distant land, and (as I have -already been observing on the Bridegroom) laboured -and been put to reproach and wrong for her. In all -this, Jacob sets forth the true Bridegroom. The Lord -Jesus personally has borne the heat of the day <em class="italics">all -alone</em>. He had not where to lay His head, like Jacob--absent -from His Father's house, and the place of -His inheritance--wronged again and again in a world -which, like Laban and his house, ever seeks its own; -and yet, enduring all this, and willing to endure all -this, for the love that He had to her whom His eye had -rested on; as Jacob's seven years of service seemed to -him but as a few days, because of his love for Rachel.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is as striking a picture of the truth as we have -yet seen; here the same mystery of the Bride is -still published to us, though still in a distinct part of -it. In Eve, we had her full personal fitness for her -Lord--in Rebecca, we had her as the object of the -Father's election and the Spirit's care, in order to -give her to Christ--in Rachel, we see her as the -prize, whom the Lord sets before His own eye, for the -sake of which He will give Himself to exile and toil -and wrongs. As reflected in Isaac, He has nothing -to do for her; as reflected in Jacob, He has everything -to do for her.</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Asenath</em> closes these wonders. She is the woman -of the fourth generation of the Patriarchs. There is -the Sarah of Abraham, the Rebecca of Isaac, the -Rachel of Jacob, and the Asenath of Joseph. She -now in her turn takes up the same mystic tale. She -was a Gentile, and in nowise, like the rest, connected -in the flesh with Joseph. The enmity of his brethren -had cast Joseph among her people. And he is -honoured there, and with these strange and Gentile -honours gets a Gentile bride and family; and in the -bosom of this unexpected joy he is willing to forget, -for a season, his father's house, and to account himself -fruitful or happy, though among strangers.</p> -<p class="pnext">This, in its season, is as full of meaning as any of -our previous pages in this tale of the Bride. For -here we get the Bride in her Gentile, heavenly character. -Here we are told a great secret; that this same -personage, whose beauty and personal characteristics -we saw in Eve, whose election by the Father and conduct -under the hand of the Spirit we saw in Rebecca, -and whose purchase for Himself by the personal toil -and sorrow of Christ we saw in Rachel, is a <em class="italics">Gentile</em>, a -<em class="italics">Stranger</em>, one brought into union with the Lord, after -His own kindred in the flesh had refused Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this speaks clearly in the ear of the scribe that -is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven; he traces -the mystery of the Bride in all this, and listens to -Eve, to Rebecca, to Rachel, and to Asenath telling -out separate parts of it. And how does all this witness -to us <em class="italics">the delight which Christ takes in His saints</em>! It -is not merely that He has saved them by His blood, -but they are His crown and His joy, His glory and -His delight. His own love and workmanship have -been displayed in us, more highly than in any scene of -His power. And this joy of Christ in His saints is -strongly expressed in each of these cases. We love -Him for the sorrows He has endured, and He loves -us who thus prize His love. John xiv. 21. And if these -affections be not understood as passing between Christ -and the saint, if we do not, without reserve, allow this -satisfaction in each other, our souls will not enter into -much of that communion which the Scripture provides -for. The Canticles will not be understood, if we do -not allow and entertain the thought of Christ's delight -in the saints, with the same certainty that we allow -the thought of His having purchased and sanctified -them by His blood.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this communion must spring from intelligence -of the soul, or it will be mere natural fervour. When -Ruth sought the feet of Boaz, and did not again go -to the gleaning-field, it was because Naomi had been -instructing her further about him. Her soul had -passed through the light of Naomi's words, and, thus -taught, she desires more intimate fellowship with him -than she had yet enjoyed. She seeks <em class="italics">himself</em>. The -gleaning-field, where she was less than his handmaids, -is deserted, and the place of a suitor for himself is -assumed. She cannot call herself less than one of -his handmaids any longer. She seeks a kinsman's -love, for she knows him to be a kinsman. And this -is truly blessed.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Love, or desire towards another, takes different forms -in the heart. There is the love of <em class="italics">pity</em>, the love of -<em class="italics">gratitude</em>, and the love of <em class="italics">complacency</em>. The love of pity -regards its object in some sort as <em class="italics">below</em> it, and is full of -tenderness. The love of gratitude, on the contrary, -regards its object as <em class="italics">above</em> it, and is full of humility. -The love of complacency does not necessarily look -either above or below, but simply at its object, and is -full of admiration. But, in addition to this, there is -the love of <em class="italics">kindred</em>. It has its foundation in nature, -and hence it is called "natural affection." And this -love of kindred has a glory which is peculiarly its own. -<em class="italics">It warrants the deepest intimacies.</em> There is no settling -of one's self for the other's presence. There is full ease -in going out and coming in. <em class="italics">Expressions</em> of love are -not deemed intrusive--nay, they are sanctioned as being -due and comely. The heart knows its right to indulge -itself over its object, and that, too, without check or -shame. This is the glory of this affection. The love -of pity, of gratitude, or of complacency, must act -decorously, and in proper form. But the love of kindred, -the love of those who dwell in one house, and whom -nature or the hand of God has bound together, feels its -right to gratify itself, and is not fearful of being rebuked. -See, for instance, Canticles viii. 1. This is its -distinguishing boast. Nothing admits this but itself. -This is, in a full and deep sense, "personal affection."</p> -<p class="pnext">Parents and children, brothers and sisters, husbands -and wives (and I might add, friends), know this. They -know their title to indulge, without scorn or rebuke, in -the warmest expressions of their mutual love. And it -is the richest feast of the heart. The love of pity has -its enjoyment, and so have the love of gratitude and the -love of complacency; but they do not, in themselves -and alone, warrant these <em class="italics">personal</em> fervours. Personally, -their objects may be below, above, or at a distance, and -should be approached with a due respect to all their -rights. But not so with our kindred, because it is their -<em class="italics">persons</em> and not <em class="italics">their qualities</em> or <em class="italics">conditions</em>, that form -the ground of our love. We may deal with them without -apology or reserve. In such cases it is <em class="italics">himself</em> that -the heart embraces. It is not his sorrows, his favours, -or his excellencies, but it is himself, which this affection -handles and converses with.</p> -<p class="pnext">We may receive a benefit from a person, and be -assured of a hearty welcome to it, and yet feel ourselves -ill at ease in his presence. Nothing is more -common than this. Gratitude is awakened in the heart -very deeply, and yet reserve and uneasiness are felt. -It calls for something beyond our assurance of his -good-will, and of our full welcome to his service, to -make us at ease in the presence of a benefactor. And -this something, I believe, is the discovery that we -have an interest in <em class="italics">himself</em>, as well as in his <em class="italics">ability to -serve us</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">This delineates, as I judge, the experience of the -poor woman with the issue of blood. Mark v. She -knew the Lord's ability to relieve her sorrow, and her -hearty welcome to avail herself of it. She, therefore, -comes and takes the virtue out of Him without reserve. -But she comes <em class="italics">behind Him</em>. This expresses her state -of mind. She knows her welcome to His service, but -nothing more. But the Lord trains her heart for more. -He lets her know that she is interested in <em class="italics">Himself</em>, -as well as in <em class="italics">His power to oblige her</em>. He calls her -"daughter." He owns kindred or relationship with -her. This was the communication which alone was -equal to remove her fears and trembling. Her rich -and mighty patron is her kinsman. This is what her -heart needed to know. Without this, in the spirit of -her mind, she would have been still "behind" Him. -But this gives her ease. "Go in peace" may then be -said, as well as "Be whole of thy plague." She need -not be reserved. Christ does not deal with her as a -patron or benefactor. Luke xxii. 25. She has an -interest in <em class="italics">Himself</em> as well as in His <em class="italics">power to bless -her</em>. And so as to the Canticles. It is the love which -warrants <em class="italics">personal intimacy</em> (after this manner of the -nearest and dearest relationships) that breathes in this -lovely book. The age of the union has not yet arrived. -But it is the time of betrothment, and we are His -delight. Nay, it was so ere worlds were. Prov. viii.</p> -<p class="pnext">Do we believe this? Does it make us happy? We -are, naturally, suspicious of any offer to make us -happy in God. Because our moral sense, our natural -conscience, tells us of our having lost all right even to -His ordinary blessings. The mere moral sense will -therefore be quick to stand to it, and question all overtures -of peace from heaven, and be ready to challenge -their reality. But here comes the vigour of the spiritual -mind, or the energy of faith. Faith gainsays these -conclusions of nature. It refuses at times to think -according to the moral sense of nature, as it refuses at -times to act according to the relative claims of nature. -In their place, the dictates of the moral sense and the -claims of nature are sacred-—as we read, "Doth not -even <em class="italics">nature</em> itself teach you, that if a man have long -hair it is a shame unto him?" But still they are -not supreme. If God put in His claim, or make His -revelation, the <em class="italics">relations</em> of nature and the <em class="italics">moral sense</em> -of nature are to withdraw their authority. "He that -loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy -of Me." And in the revelation of God, faith reads -our abundant title to be near to Him and happy with -Him, though natural conscience and our sense of the -fitness of things would have it otherwise. Faith feeds -where the moral sensibilities of the natural mind would -count it presuming even to tread.</p> -<p class="pnext">I ask, then, Do we ponder, without reserve or suspicion, -the thought of such love towards us in the -heart of Jesus as this book suggests? Does it make -us happy? We owe the love of children to God -as our Father, the love of redeemed ones to God as -our Saviour, the love of disciples to Jesus as our -Master and Lord. But what is the love that we owe -for this way of Christ's heart to us? How are we to -meet it in a way worthy of it? This book, I believe, -tells us. But this conducts the soul into the holiest. -And what grief, and shame, and trouble of heart -arise, when we reflect how little we are there, and -how many tales against us all this is ever telling!</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The Canticles do not give us the ways of filial -affection, or of the affection due to a benefactor. But -they give us, I believe, the actings of the love of -espousals, in both Christ's heart and ours. The joy -of hearing the Bridegroom's voice, I may say, is fulfilled -here in the heart of the saint, as it was in the -soul of the Baptist. And what, I would ask, are the -attributes of a commanding affection like this? What -do we find the power of it to be, when it seats itself -in us?</p> -<p class="pnext">As to <em class="italics">service</em>, it makes it welcome. To say that -service for the object of this affection is "perfect -freedom" is far too cold. It makes service infinitely -grateful, even though it call for self-denial or weariness. -And it can render its offering without caring -for any eye or heart to approve it, but that of the one -whom it has made its object. It cares not that others -should be able to esteem its ways. It has all the -desired fruit of its service, if its object approve it, -and give but its presence at the end of it. As to -<em class="italics">society</em>, this affection wants none but that of its object. -If there be no weariness felt in service, as we have -been saying, so is there no irksomeness known in -solitude. All that is cared for is the presence of that -one who commands the heart. There is no sense of -solitude, if that one <em class="italics">alone</em> be present; there is no sense -of satiety, though that one be <em class="italics">always</em> present. As to -<em class="italics">authority in the soul</em>, it holds its place, I need not say, -unrivalled. It is the man of the heart. It breaks -the bands and cuts the cords of other desires. It -makes us undervalue all things but the one. It may -take other things up, but this is only by the way. It -is ever glancing at its own thing, even if others be for -a time in the foreground. It looks through the lattices -at it. Other things are esteemed according to their -connection with it. And it will control the wrong and -cultivate the right tendencies of the heart; for occasions -which might wound vanity or gratify pride are not -valued or pursued, while we retain it; and yet to -approve ourselves there, we will nerve the heart and -the hand to great and generous ways.</p> -<p class="pnext">What intenseness is here! and what purity also! It -refreshes the soul to think that we have been created -susceptible of such affections. But the warning of -another is in season. "Wherever a passion has these -properties, or any of them, conspicuous in it, it cannot, -but by being consecrated to God, avoid becoming injurious -to Him and to itself. The very nobleness of it -entitles Him to it." But the same one tells us that we -should seek, not to <em class="italics">annihilate</em>, but to <em class="italics">transfigure</em> it. He -says, "I would not have it swallowed up by death, the -common fate, but be ennobled by a destiny like that of -Enoch and Elias, who, having ceased to converse with -mortals, died not, but were translated to heaven."</p> -<p class="pnext">It is good for us to listen to this. The heart has -been made deeply susceptible of this affection, and -Christ is the offered object of it. He proposes Himself -to it. He claims the supreme place in our hearts. -"He that loveth father or mother more than Me, is -not worthy of Me." Whatever passion of the soul -be moved, it is God's right to have the highest exercise -of it towards Himself. It has not treated Him as God -if it have not rendered this to Him. If each of the -passions of our souls do not give Him its richest and -largest offerings, it is not a <em class="italics">worshipping</em> passion.</p> -<p class="pnext">This we may readily grant, needing, however, increase -of grace ourselves to be worshippers on such a score. -In the language of another; "as, among the Jews, there -were odoriferous unguents, which it was neither unusual -nor unlawful to use themselves or bestow upon their -friends, but also a peculiar composition of a precious -ointment, which God having reserved for His own -service, the perfuming of others with it was sacrilege, -so there are regulated degrees of love which we may -harbour for others, but there is too a certain peculiar -strain of love which belongs unto God." Exod. xxx. -34-38. It is, I may add, idolatry when bestowed on a -creature, but it is worship when rendered to Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">This may sound a solemn truth, but it is a happy one. -Is it not blessed to know that our Lord claims our -hearts and their affections? Have any of us, beloved, -read "the first and great commandment" without, at -least, sometimes rejoicing in the grace that would make -such a demand upon us? Mark xii. 30. Is it nothing -to us that God Himself values our love, that He says to -us, "My son, give Me thine heart"? The wise virgins -delighted in such truth. Many had gone out with them, -professing the common expectation. The foolish had -lamps. They took their place in the common profession. -But the wise counted the cost of the Bridegroom's -absence, and the hope of His return. In the spirit of -their minds they had said that, let His delay be long or -short, they must still wait, for that nothing could satisfy -them but His presence. The night of His absence -might be long or short-—they could not tell—-they -would not undertake to say. It might be, as to its -length, a summer night, or a winter night. But their -hearts deeply owned this—-that nothing could close, -nothing could turn that shadow of death into the -morning, but the restored presence of the Bridegroom. -On this their souls were fixed. And, therefore, they -took vessels of oil, as well as lamps. They prepared for -a night season, they counted on a darksome time, till -Jesus returned. The expectation of their heart so -supremely pointed to Him, that nothing could change -hope to fruition but His presence; they must be expecting, -expecting, and still expecting, till then. "Hope -to the end" they purposed to do, for the grace that -was to be brought to them at the revelation of Jesus -Christ. It was a <em class="italics">worshipping</em> hope.</p> -<p class="pnext">The early freshness faded, I doubt not. This may -sustain us who are so conscious of the dulness and -stupidity of our hearts. The brightness of that moment -when the lamp was first lit is dimmed. "While the -Bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept." But -the reality of supreme delight in Christ, and desire after -Him, had not departed. The vessels were still at the -side of the slumbering virgins. The oil had not to be -<em class="italics">bought</em>, but only to be <em class="italics">used</em> afresh.</p> -<p class="pnext">How does all this, as in a parable, tell of the heart -cleaving to Jesus! And our Canticles express the same. -And our own poets have sung of this love, as well as -these mystic songs of the King of Israel:</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Jesus has all my powers possess'd,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My hopes, my fears, my joys,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">He, the dear Sovereign of my breast,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Shall still command my voice.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"Some of the fairest choirs above</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Shall flock around my song,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">With joy to hear the name they love</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Sound from a mortal's tongue."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">The Church receives such breathings as not beyond -the measure or the melody of the soul. And we want -these affections to make us happy, and to set us free. -It is a divine method of delivering us from the tyranny -of carnal or worldly desires. It is the Spirit's way of -spoiling other attractions of their power to seduce -and fill the heart, and of lifting the soul above the -frettings of low anxieties. Look at the commanding -power of such affection in the poor sinner in Luke vii. -Working in her heart as it did, she was deaf to the -reproaches and blind to the splendours of the Pharisee -and his entertainment. She knew only her Object. -The feast and the guests were all lost upon her. This -was the <em class="italics">power</em> of affection in her. And what was the -<em class="italics">value</em> of it to Christ? Nothing that it dictated or did -passed His notice. He appeared to be silent, and but -the passive Receiver of her offerings; but He had -noted them all. The tears, and the kiss, and the -ointment, and all, had been noted in the book of His -remembrance, and they are read therefrom, when the -time for the opening of that book had come.</p> -<p class="pnext">And look at the same in Mary at the sepulchre. -She sees the angels. And they were dazzling, beautiful -in their generation, and wondrous to the eye of -flesh and blood. But what was all splendour to her -then? The dead body of her Lord was her object, -the fond image of her heart, and even heavenly glories -can be passed by in the pursuit of it. So with David -of old. His soul was full of joy in the Lord. He -will dance before the ark, he would "play before the -Lord;" and if such were shame, he purposed to be -viler still. As with Zaccheus too, not a king like -David, but a mere citizen of Jericho (for the Spirit -links rich and poor, high and low, gentle and simple, -as we speak, in one affection), he would press through -the crowd, and without seeming to give the strangeness -of the deed a thought, climb into a sycamore tree in -pursuit of the desire which then commanded his heart.</p> -<p class="pnext">Would that this, beloved, were more shed abroad in -our hearts! How should we learn to entertain Christ, -as this passion entertains or embalms its object! And -what a heaven it will be, when He is ours in this way, -feeding this fire in our souls, and giving us to know, -in Himself and in His beauties, this seraph love without -chill for ever and ever!</p> -<p class="pnext">Would that our hearts were longing for Him! This -is what we find breathed in the Canticles. It is not -<em class="italics">filial</em> love or <em class="italics">grateful</em> love that would ever send this -message, Tell him that "I am sick of love." It is more -than that. Such is not the language of those affections, -but such is the language of the Canticles. And, therefore, -we cannot say less of this book, than that it is, -after a mystic manner, the utterances of Christ and -of a living, espoused soul--all springing from the faith -which gives the soul the happy assurance of acceptance -and favour with God through the Lord Jesus Christ.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">As to the structure of it as a composition, I doubt -not, for a moment, the correctness of those who treat -it as "a collection of distinct idyls or little poems -perfectly detached and separate from each other, with -no other connection than what they derive from a -common subject, the peculiarities of the style of a -common author, and perhaps some unity of design in -the mystic sense, which they are intended to bear." -The spiritual senses of the saints are to be exercised -in discerning the beginnings and endings of these -different canticles or little songs, and in interpreting -the holy mysteries they express. Different light, and -different enjoyment in doing it, may surely be expected -among us. But that these songs or little poems are -allegories, we will none of us doubt. The intercourses -of an espoused pair are the imagery; the love of Christ -and the saint, the mystic sense. And warranted, I -am sure, are the suggestions of another on this subject, -"that there are those manifestations of His love, and -those affections kindled in the heart towards the person -of the Son of God, which may well borrow their -allusions from the tenderest and most powerful affection -which subsists among men." "As the bridegroom -rejoices over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over -thee." "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is -mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with -joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with -singing." "So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty." -"Thou shalt abide for me many days ... thou shalt -not be for another man: so will I also be for thee." -"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved -the Church." These and kindred passages, with many -typical histories in Scripture, and some ordinances of -the law, all warrant this thought, as well as the character -of the Spirit's inworking at times in the souls of -the saints.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The divine authority of this book has never been -questioned in any way worthy of the least regard -from those who walk simply in the light of God, -refusing man and his thoughts and his wisdom. -"Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is -the disputer of this world?" It was ever reverenced -by the Jews as a part of the oracles of God, and in -that character, we may assure ourselves, received the -sanction of Christ, and of the Holy Ghost in the -Apostles. No one should pause for a moment to -admit its value to the soul of the saint. "We may," -as has been well said, "form but a guess concerning -some of its beauties, but, in the hands of a Christian, -it is invested with a brighter lustre than they could -have discerned, who read it in the days of Solomon. -For though, in regard to the exterior imagery of the -allegories, some of their beauties may be lost, the -hidden mystic sense is brought more to light, and -manifested with fuller assurance to the believer under -the Gospel dispensation. 'For I tell you that many -prophets and kings have desired to see those things which -ye see, and have not seen them.'"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">There is no inquiry into the fact or the ground or -the nature of our acceptance with God, in this book. -Such questions and inquiries are settled beforehand. -The communion is <em class="italics">upon</em> the settlement of them all, -as I have already noticed. Acceptance with God is -known. It is delight in Christ, occupation with Himself, -that we get here. It is not the finding of Him -out, nor is it the confession of sins. The communion -is a <em class="italics">sinner's</em> communion, most surely--but it is of a -consciously pardoned, accepted, and loved sinner. And -when any sorrow or repentance is felt or owned, it -is not for any blot or open transgression, but for -some spiritual backsliding, some momentary coldness, -some infirmity in maintaining or cultivating the soul's -due fervour. This is much to be observed. Nothing -gross, or even open, in conduct--nothing established -as a habit is detected here--nothing that a soul that -had not been already in simple and earnest fellowship -with Jesus would have been apprehensive of. It is -only <em class="italics">a present, temporary slothfulness of heart</em>. The -very repentance and confession is of such a nature as -intimates the fine tone of the soul that could feel and -make it. The contact or touch is so tender, that the -very perception of it speaks the delicacy of the organ -which met it and resented it.</p> -<p class="pnext">But what an element is this! Oh, how coarse, -beloved, are our sensibilities compared with all this. -Our poor souls are rarely here; they are engaged -ofttimes in doing first works again, in grieving over the -advantages which our lusts have taken of us, the surprisals -which the heat of wrong tempers has wrought, -and such like things. But all such occupation of the -soul keeps us below this pure and spiritual delight in -Christ, this sickness of love, this breathing on the -mountains of myrrh, and this dressing and keeping -of the garden of spices, here so blessedly presented. -Surely it is but little of this we know. Is God our -exceeding joy? Is it in the chambers of the King, -in thoughts of glory, we walk? Is our spikenard -greeting our Lord, and are our souls able to call Him -nothing less than our "Beloved"? It were well indeed -if such affections as these were filling and commanding -our hearts. Then should we have weapons -of sure victory wherewith to meet our enemies, and -to beat down the intrusive desires and thoughts that -defile us so often. In the figurative style of another -we may say: "As when, in a clear morning, the rising -sun vouchsafes to visit us, the bright stars which did -adorn our hemisphere, as well as those dark shades -which did benight it, vanish." Lust could not with -any power come against a soul thus occupied. This -"joy of the Lord" would indeed be our "strength." -For what a dwelling-place opens here for faith to -enter! What a banqueting-house for the soul! How -far distant from fear and clouds of conscience such -regions lie! The land of the turtle is this, the garden -of all pleasant fruits.</p> -<p class="pnext">But where is the precious faith to enter it and walk -there? We need to cry for largeness of heart in the -bowels of Christ Jesus. It is of influence on the -whole soul to be occupied with such affections. It -strengthens and sanctifies--for all questions of our -<em class="italics">standing</em> are anticipated, and our energy in <em class="italics">meeting -temptation</em> is increased, and thus the <em class="italics">liberty</em> and <em class="italics">purity</em> -of the soul are secured. For how can the thought -of <em class="italics">condemnation</em> or the temptation to <em class="italics">defilement</em> be -entertained, when the believer is seeking to reach more -into the light and joy of such communion as this? -Does it not lead him into more than a mere escape from -a spirit of bondage, or from practical evil? Is it not -the divine method of making him more than conqueror?</p> -<p class="pnext">As expressing such communion as this, this book of -the Song of Songs may suit any saint. Not, however, -that I mean, that we may necessarily follow one path -of experience, and go from one stage therein to another. -But according to the soul's enlarging knowledge of -Jesus, so will, of course, be its enlarging experience. -And there ought to be <em class="italics">progress</em>--as we read, "Grow in -grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour -Jesus Christ." And as the different relations in which -the Lord stands to us are apprehended and embraced -by the soul, corresponding experiences will arise, for -experience is our entrance into the power of these -relations. And the Canticles I judge to be the utterances -of the soul at one point of this journey, from the -first quickening to the full and final enjoyment. It is -not the experience of Rebecca when first awakened to -leave Mesopotamia, nor of Ruth, when first made ready, -in Moab, to take the God of Naomi as her God, nor as -afterwards a gleaner in the field--it is the exercise of -Rebecca's heart, while on the way to Isaac, listening to -the tales of her gracious and wise conductor, and of -Ruth at the feet of Boaz, as the suitor of his hand and -name.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the general moral of the book. But this -being so, I can the more admire the perfectness of -the Spirit in making this a short book. It is of too -intimate a character to have been much spread out. -It lies within. It is the recesses of the Temple. It -was called by the Jews the "holy of holies." And -that was the smallest place, as well as the most retired. -It expressed the deepest character of communion with -God. There was one communion at the Brazen Altar -or the Brazen Laver in the courts--another in the holy -place, at the Table, the Candlestick, and the Altar--and -another in the presence of the Lord Himself, in the -holiest. And of this character of communion is that -which the Canticles express. It may be that the soul -cannot at all times enter into it. Ruth would not have -been prepared for laying herself at the feet of Boaz -when she entered his field as a gleaner. The teaching -she got from Naomi was needed to bring her into the -threshing-floor.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this little book seems to open with the soul -expressing all this. It opens with strong and fervent -desire toward <em class="italics">Himself</em>; reaching forth to apprehend -Him in some more intimate manner than had been -previously understood. It is as though the saint had -been conscious of being in a lower condition than -would now satisfy. For at times the soul rests itself -simply on the firm ground of doctrines; such as "The -blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all -sin." It is the simple and sure power of such truth -that alone answers, at times, the need of the soul. -But again, at times, the ground under our feet, as -believers, is understood and rested on, and it is the -Lord Himself that the soul desires. And such is its -condition here. "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of -His mouth." She had been keeping the vineyards--attending -to things abroad, but now was learning that -her own vineyard had been neglected; and the deeper -things of personal fellowship are longed for. The -saint is leaving Martha's and taking Mary's place, -longing to feed under His own eye and from His own -hand, and not another's. And at the close, the soul -appears to know that <em class="italics">it had become a keeper of its own -vineyard</em>. At the beginning there had been the grief -that the vineyards of others had been kept, but that -her own had been neglected (i. 6); but now, it is conscious -of being more at home, more about its own -vineyard; as though it had left the Martha place, busy -about many things, and assumed the Mary place, at -the feet of Jesus in personal communion. viii. 12.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the advance, the conscious, happy advance, -which the soul makes through these exercises. It has -reached a higher order of communion with the Lord, -and it desires that this may continue till Jesus return.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">The very style of the writing, too, is just that which -suits the heart under the power of a commanding affection. -"Let <em class="italics">Him</em> kiss me with the kisses of His mouth"--like -Mary Magdalene to the supposed gardener--"If -thou have borne <em class="italics">Him</em> hence"--both <em class="italics">meaning</em> Christ, but -neither <em class="italics">naming</em> Him. For "the heart had been before -taken up with the thoughts of Him, and to <em class="italics">this relative</em> -these thoughts were the antecedent--that good matter -which the heart was inditing. For they that are full of -Christ themselves are ready to think that others should -be so too." Or, it is as the language of the Apostle, who -<em class="italics">means</em> the day of glory and of the kingdom without -<em class="italics">naming</em> it, when he says, "I know whom I have believed, -and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I -have committed unto Him against <em class="italics">that day</em>;" and again, -"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, -which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give -me at <em class="italics">that day</em>."</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus is it, in the very style and manner of the renewed -mind, eyeing, as it does, both the Lord Himself and the -glory. And blessed are these affections. The truth or -the doctrine of the Gospel is no cold, rigid system. -Surely our souls must know this. It is at times laid down -in propositions, taking the form of an argument, deducing -conclusions from adequate and proved premises. But -still the Gospel calls for the warmest affections, and -abundantly provides for them. <em class="italics">Even the Canticles themselves -never pass beyond the strict bounds of the Gospel--they -never exceed that measure which the strictest rules of -evangelic truth would prescribe.</em> So that we should -interpret these little songs or idyls in the light of the -didactic Scriptures, as we may profitably read those -Scriptures in the warmth of these Canticles. The Apostle -says, "I have espoused you to one Husband, that I may -present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." This assumes -all that is in the Canticles. And in this way, the Gospel, -in its strictest meaning, will account for all that is in -Solomon's Song. The latter delineates those affections -which well suit such truths and revelations as the former -teaches or delivers. But this being so important, as -I judge, I desire to instance it in a few particulars.</p> -<p class="pnext">In these idyls, the Lord looks on the saint as altogether -lovely. And so in His eyes is the believer. -A sinner in himself, he has, by faith, taken on him -the beauty of Christ. He is "in Him." He has "the -righteousness of God" upon him. He is "accepted -in the Beloved." Faith alone gives him all this comeliness. -He has been baptized into Christ, and put -on Christ. This is the beauty of the believer; and he -is lovely in Christ's eye, as the Canticles again and -again express.</p> -<p class="pnext">Indeed in this form of beauty there can be no spot. -For it is Christ Himself that the believer is arrayed -with. The very "best robe" in the Father's house is -on him. It is a spotless beauty he shines in. The -doctrine of the Gospel teaches us this, and here Christ -utters His delight in it; such harmonies are there -between the Gospels and the Canticles.</p> -<p class="pnext">But further. In the mystery of Christ and the -believer, Christ has a mountain of myrrh to which He -here invites the believer to turn his steps--and St. Paul -exhorts us, "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those -things which are above, where Christ sitteth." The -believer mounts those hills with Jesus as here invited, -and as in the Gospel exhorted. His conversation is in -heaven. In Christ he sits in heavenly places. And he -savours of the myrrh and the frankincense which are -there.</p> -<p class="pnext">Again, the Lord delights in the graces of His -saint. He rests, with the love of complacency, in the -believer who walks in the Spirit before Him. John -xv. 10. She is an enclosed garden under His eye, a -spring shut up, a fountain sealed. As we read, the -Spirit is in him, a well of water springing up into -everlasting life. He has the savour of the spices, and -the flowings of the living water, <em class="italics">in himself</em>, and the -fragrancy and freshness of these gladden his Lord -anew. This is the teaching of the Gospel, and this -is the language of Christ in the Canticles. He delights -in what is <em class="italics">in us</em> through the Spirit, as well as in -what is <em class="italics">on</em> us through faith. He has His joy in the -places of communion with His elect here, as in the -heaven to which He has ascended.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is largely told us in Scripture. "Hearken, O -daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget -also thine own people and thy father's house, <em class="italics">so</em> shall -the King greatly desire thy beauty; for He is thy -Lord, and worship thou Him." Psalm xlv. Here is -something beyond <em class="italics">imputed</em> beauty. For here we learn -the grace in her which kindles His desire. She has -forgotten her own people and her father's house, so -the King desires her. And she owns Him as Lord, and -worships Him. She will render Him affection and -homage. And all of this suited and attractive grace -was shown in Rebecca. <em class="italics">She left all for Isaac.</em> She -forgot her own people and her father's house, and -came across an unknown desert in company with a -stranger, in the singleness and devotedness of an undivided -heart. And on reaching him for whom she -had consented to all this, <em class="italics">she lights from her beast, and -veils herself</em>. She puts on the ornament of a meek -and quiet spirit. She arrays herself in shamefacedness -and sobriety. She loves, and yet bows. And <em class="italics">so</em> -Isaac desires her. And so is the Church to be <em class="italics">subject</em> -to Christ, and yet <em class="italics">love</em> Him with virgin love. Eph. v.; -2 Cor. xi. 2.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id66" id="id65"><sup>33</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And in the Canticles we find the Spirit of Christ -inviting His saint into the liberty of this present time, -into the atmosphere of a house where the cry of adoption -is heard. All the darker and colder age is passed. -All that dispensation which kept the soul in bondage -and fear is over. The voice of the turtle is heard; -the voice of that perfect love which casts out fear. -"The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth," -says St. John, as though he had the Canticles in mind. -The saint should now arise, taking his place as the -<em class="italics">loved</em> and the <em class="italics">fair</em> one, being in the full consciousness -of personal unspottedness and beauty, through grace, -and of his Lord's perfect favour and delight. He -should come away from "the spirit of fear," and pass -over into the spirit of love and of power "and of a -sound mind." For all in the dispensation is gladdening. -The flowers appear on the earth, and the singing of -birds is heard. All is promise, all pledge, and earnest, -and seal, and unction.</p> -<p class="pnext">And again, if the betrothed one of the Canticles <em class="italics">say</em>, -"While the King sitteth at His table, my spikenard -sendeth forth the smell thereof," the disciple in the -gospel <em class="italics">does</em> this. John xii. 3.</p> -<p class="pnext">And, according to all this, we may observe how some -of the tenderest utterances of this book are warranted -by the simple narratives of the Gospel. If the beloved -watch over the restored soul with the fondest jealousy, -not allowing the busy foot of others to disturb the -silent, hidden rest of the loved one, what does Jesus do -in the favoured house at Bethany less than this? How -does He check the motions of Martha? Ch. ii. 7; -Luke x. 41.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id68" id="id67"><sup>34</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">The great moral principles of truth are also strictly -and fully understood here, though under very delicate -and spiritual illustrations. St. James says, "Ye ask, -and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume -it upon your lusts." In this book we read, "By -night upon my bed I sought Him whom my soul -loveth; I sought Him, but I found Him not." The -great moral principle, that <em class="italics">there is a seeking which does -not find</em>, is equally owned in each of these scriptures; -but the one has a much more delicate exhibition of it -than the other. Jesus is here sought <em class="italics">on the bed</em>, that is, -in some listlessness of mind. The bed may be the -place of <em class="italics">meditation</em> (Psalm lxiii.; Isa. xxvi.), but not of -<em class="italics">seeking</em>, which demands action. And thus the seeker -<em class="italics">on the bed</em>, the listless, drowsy inquirer after the Lord, -will not, till he pass through discipline, as here -(iii. 1-5), find Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">If Christ again and again express His deep satisfaction -in her, through this book, what have we less -than this in the strict teaching of Scripture? Did He -not find, at the beginning, that His "delights were with -the sons of men"? and at the end, when He sees of -the travail of His soul for us, will He not be "satisfied"? -Prov. viii.; Isa. liii. If the sinner be content -with Him, so is He equally with the sinner. The -woman at the well, it is true, forgot her waterpot for -Him; but He forgot His <em class="italics">thirst</em> for her, and that was -greater. And then, in like enjoyment of spirit, He -said, on the very same occasion, "I have meat to eat -that ye know not of." John iv.</p> -<p class="pnext">From the first to the latest moment of our Christian -history, our power to refresh the mind of our Lord is -deeply and fully owned in Scripture. Our earliest confidence -in Him as sinners sets Him at once at a feast -(as we have just seen, John iv. 32), there to make -merry with his friends (Luke xv. 9); for angels rejoice. -The recovery of a wanderer has like joy for Him. -Read the utterance of the divine affection over repentant -Ephraim, in Jer. xxxi. 20. And what under -the eye, and to the heart of our Lord, are the comely -walk of the saints, and their goings in the sanctuary? -Is not "a meek and quiet spirit" in God's sight "of -great price"? Does not the pure behaviour of the -believer <em class="italics">please</em> Him, convey complacency or delight to -the divine mind? 1 Thess. iv. 1. And how is such -complacency in us witnessed again and again by the -promise that He will manifest Himself to us, and make -His abode with us! John xiv.</p> -<p class="pnext">Does not all this make good the suggestions of this -book? And so, in the Gospels as well as in the Canticles, -is not Christ borne away in the chariots of -Amminadib, the chariots of His willing people? -Where, I ask, did the report of the seventy bear Him? -Luke x. 17, 18. Where did the desire of the Greeks -translate Him? John xii. 21-23. And the faith of the -Gentile soldier could, for a moment, hold His spirit in -delight and admiration, and then bear Him onward -to the glory, when the East and the West shall send -home the children of the kingdom with Abraham and -Isaac and Jacob. Matt. viii. 8-11.</p> -<p class="pnext">But the affection which can be thus <em class="italics">gratified</em> may -be <em class="italics">wounded</em>. These are among the properties of love. -You may grieve as well as refresh the loving heart. -And so it is with our Lord, both in the Canticles and -in the Gospels; as we read also in the Epistles, "<em class="italics">Grieve</em> -not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed -unto the day of redemption."</p> -<p class="pnext">And again. The betrothed one here knows that the -heavens (symbolized by hills and mountains) have -received her Beloved. But she knows also that though -He be <em class="italics">at home</em> there, like a roe or a young hart upon -its <em class="italics">native</em> hills, yet that He delights in communion -with her, and visits her, desirously looking through the -lattices. And further still; she knows that her duty -it is to watch against intrusion and disturbance, as the -keepers of a vineyard would watch against the young -foxes. And I ask, Is not all this the truth, the enjoyment, -and the practical energy, again and again -recognized and enforced in the teaching of the Gospel? -We know that the heavens have received Jesus -until "the times of refreshing." We know that He -makes His present abode with the saint, and manifests -Himself to him, as He does not unto the world. And -we know that there is to be energy and watchfulness -that we "walk in the spirit," and not "in the flesh," if -we would taste and enjoy these manifestations of His -name to our souls.</p> -<p class="pnext">So, still further, there is a garden, in this book, -under the tillage of the north wind and the south -wind, that it may yield its fruits and its spices to the -Lord. And does not the severer style of the New -Testament abundantly admit the idea? The Father -Himself is the Husbandman of a vine which He digs -about and dungs; and the saint is as a field that -drinketh in the rain from heaven, to yield herbs meet -for Him by whom it is dressed. John xv.; Heb. vi.</p> -<p class="pnext">In the imagery here we have Christ as a Suitor at -the door, asking of the one He loves admission from -"the drops of the night;" and in the New Testament -we have Him standing and knocking at the reluctant -heart, desiring that entertainment which revived and -zealous affection would surely provide Him. Rev. iii. 20. -And well for us, beloved, if our lukewarm Laodiceanism -do but depart, like the drowsiness of this dear one -in this lovely mystic song. Chap. v. 2-16.</p> -<p class="pnext">And I know not that the constant self-congratulation -of the espoused one in this book is a whit beyond that -of Paul. She can always talk of her Beloved being -hers, and say moreover, "I am my Beloved's, and His -desire is towards me." But he can also always, in -spirit, sing (let the toil and wear of life be what -they may), "The life that I live in the flesh I live by the -faith of the Son of God, <em class="italics">Who loved me, and gave Himself -for me</em>." And that is the language of Paul, happy in -the assurance of Christ's devoted love to him.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id70" id="id69"><sup>35</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">If, I may also say, in the imagery of this book, the -loved saint can say, "I sat down under His shadow -with great delight, and His fruit was sweet to my -taste," the plainer style of an epistle is not less fervent. -"Whom having not seen, ye love; in Whom, though -now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy -unspeakable and full of glory." Surely the heart is -equally in possession of an Object which it knows -is fitted to answer all its desires.</p> -<p class="pnext">And further still. We have, in the actions of this -book, souls in different elevations, the betrothed one, -and "the daughters of Jerusalem." How much is that -known among themselves, and contemplated in the -illustrations and teachings of the New Testament! -All are not fully formed--not fully in the measure of -the stature, so to express it. "We have a little sister, -and she hath no breasts." All are not alike in the -liberty of the dispensation. Such draw out the sympathy -of the saint established in the grace of God, and -solicitous care, and prayer, and inquiry of the Lord, are -made about such, as here. See chap. viii. 8.</p> -<p class="pnext">Indeed, I know not that anything can be more in -the harmonies of the Spirit, in the combined and -glowing lights of the Gospel, than the utterance of the -betrothed one in this short passage. Chap. viii. 8-10. -The actings of her soul, both towards others and towards -the Lord, are the Spirit's sweetest and choicest workmanship. -She has respect to "the infirmity of the -weak," desiring for them strength and edifying in the -fuller measure of Christ, and yet all the time owning -full oneness and relationship with them in Him, while -she rejoices in her own certain, happy assurance, and -the fulness of her growth, even to an ecstasy, that -her breasts were like towers! and because of that, -knowing her Lord's favour towards her, and delight -in her. And sure we may be, that all this is purely -and richly the way of a believing, renewed soul. Full -adoption of the weak, with desires for their larger -liberty and assurance, and yet certainty of personal -standing in the most undimmed joy of entire assurance, -with perfect persuasion that all this liberty and confidence -were thoroughly to the heart and mind of Jesus.</p> -<p class="pnext">Nothing can be more perfect, I believe, than all this -in the harmonies and lights of a spiritual mind, -according to the strictest sense of evangelic truth.</p> -<p class="pnext">So again and again, in the gospel history, we find Jesus -led to forget His sorrows when beholding faith in a -sinner. He found there, as I have already stated, the -refreshment of His spirit. He found a transient -forgetting of His sorrows among the Samaritans, from -the Centurion, from Zaccheus, and from the spikenard -and fellowship of Mary. He seeks the same here. He -comes to His espoused one, that He might find, in -fellowship with her, some other and far different thing -than that rejection and refusal which He was ever -meeting in the world. And is it not also so, that if the -saint be sluggish and careless, the faithful kindred in -Christ will help the discipline? If Jesus say, "Could -ye not watch with Me one hour?" Paul will say, "Quit -you like men, be strong." So in the action of this book. -Jesus leaves a memorial of the soul's drowsiness on -"the hole of the door," that the conscience may take -alarm; and the watchman of the city smite her, and the -keepers of the walls draw the veil from her face. Chap. v.</p> -<p class="pnext">The harmonies of the "one Spirit" are heard in all -this. And so, in the course of these little songs, I -discern the way of the Lord toward a repentant, -recovered soul. See chap. vi. 4-13. She had just -refused to open her door to Him, but, through discipline, -had been brought to fervent communion with -Him again. v. 2-vi. 3. And now His eye and His -heart are full of her again. He looks on her as beautiful -as ever. She is His "undefiled," and nothing less; -no upbraidings pass His lips. Her motion towards Him -is comely and graceful in His esteem. And He lets -her know that her repentance had given Him pleasant -and wondrous refreshment. As soon as she was made -willing (Psalm cx. 2), He got into a chariot to bear Him -away speedily and joyously to her. vi. 12, margin. -She may be a wonder to herself, she may take a place -unworthy of any notice (v. 13); but the Lord and angels -rejoice over her. As we know in the Gospels, the -ninety and nine just ones can be left for the one -prodigal; the angels in heaven rejoice; the house -makes merry; the friends of the beloved triumph over -the returned Shulamite. She is like the returned -Jacob: the Mahanaim, the hosts of God, salute them -both, wait at the threshold of the land or of the house, -to do their Lord's pleasure toward them, and express -His welcome and concern for them. Gen. xxxii. 1; -Cant. vi. 13.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id72" id="id71"><sup>36</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And what is the longing here but that the day -should break? And what is the longing of the same -soul in the words of the Gospel? "Come, Lord Jesus, -come quickly,"--so largely and so exactly do the teachings -and the breathings of the New Testament, in -these and kindred ways, measure the affections of the -heart in this book? Christ dwells in the heart by -faith. Christ lies all night between the breasts. Eph. -iii. 17; Cant. i. 13. And has not the saint attuned his -heart over Jesus in language of like fervour, such as -we all use without shame?</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"How tedious and tasteless the hours</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">When Jesus no longer I see,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Sweet prospects, sweet birds, and sweet flowers,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Have lost all their sweetness for me;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The midsummer sun shines but dim,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The fields strive in vain to look gay,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">But when I am happy in Him,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">December's as pleasant as May.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"His name yields the richest perfume,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And sweeter than music His voice,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">His presence disperses my gloom,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And makes all within me rejoice:</div> -</div> -<div class="line">I should, were He always so nigh,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Have nothing to wish or to fear,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">No mortal so happy as I,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My summer would last the whole year."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">These are among the seals set upon this beautiful -portion of God's Word by the spiritual mind of the -believer, and also by kindred truths and principles -found in other scriptures. And it has been happily -said, that "if there be no express allusion to this book -in the New Testament, the same allegory, as portraying -the same truth, evidently appears to have been familiar -to the minds of the writers of it, and to the minds -also of the people whom they addressed. Not more -abruptly does John the Baptist, for instance, refer to -our Lord as 'the Lamb of God who taketh away the -sin of the world,' as being the character of the Messiah -which all would know and understand, than he does -to the same blessed Person in the character of the -Bridegroom of the Church--'he that hath the Bride -is the Bridegroom.'"</p> -<p class="pnext">And is it not seasonable, in these days of growing -irreligiousness and worldliness, to warn one another, -beloved, to keep our minds incorrupt in the simplicity -that is in Christ? In the preparation-season, which -the present age is, and which the Canticles contemplate, -Eve was getting ready, under the forming hand -of God, for Adam, and for Adam <em class="italics">only</em>. Adam slept -for Eve, and Eve was made for Adam. So with -Christ and the Church. He slept in death for us, -and we are preparing, under the Holy Ghost, for Him. -"I have espoused you to <em class="italics">one</em> husband, that I may -present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." As he says -also in another place, "My little children, of whom I -travail in birth again till <em class="italics">Christ</em> be formed in you," -Christ, and Christ only, Christ in His precious sufficiency -for a sinner, in answer to the Hagar or Galatian -thought of "days, and months, and times, and years," -that other gospel which yet is not another.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this is assailed. The Gospel, in its claim on -the sinner to give his undivided confidence to Christ, -has been abroad on the lips of a thousand witnesses, -to the gladdening of thousands of souls. The enemy -has watched and hated this. Working in the scene -in which he goes "to and fro" and "up and down" -(Job i. 7), he is busy to seduce the heart from this -Gospel. And is not his success far beyond the measure -of the fears of any of us? The religion of fleshly -confidences or of ordinances is to this hour among us. -It admits of worldliness; and worldliness is, at this -same hour, flourishing in company with it. There is -the erection of temples for worship, and of palaces for -the worshippers; stricter care to observe, in its season, -due attendance in the sanctuary, together with unparalleled -skill and energy and enterprise in advancing -the indulgence and elegance of human life, so as -to make the world a <em class="italics">desirable</em> and <em class="italics">safe</em> place to live -in--a place where religion may now be seen to be -observed and honoured.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is all seductive from the principle of faith--this -is corruption of the mind from the simplicity that is in -Christ. The Gospel addresses itself to man, not only as -a <em class="italics">guilty</em> but as a <em class="italics">religious</em> creature. It finds him under -the power of <em class="italics">superstition</em> or <em class="italics">religiousness</em>, as well as of -sin. It is as natural for man to refuse to go into the -judgment-hall lest he should be defiled, as it is, in very -enmity to God, to cry out, "Crucify Him, crucify Him." -And the Gospel gets as stern a refusal from the <em class="italics">religious</em> -man as from the <em class="italics">lustful</em> man. As the Divine Teacher -tells us, the harlot goes into the kingdom before the -Pharisee.</p> -<p class="pnext">Religious vanities are deeply playing their part in -our day, and fascinating many souls. What answer, -beloved, do you and I give them? Is Jesus so precious -that no allurement has power? Is the virgin purity of -the mind still kept? and as chaste ones are we still -betrothed to Christ only? Like the newly-formed Eve, -are we in our place of earliest, freshest presentation to -our Lord? or have we, apart from His side, opened our -ear to the serpent?</p> -<p class="pnext">The kingdom of heaven is as a supper, a royal, joyous -feast got ready for sinners, that they might taste and -see that the Lord is good, and that blessed is the man -that trusteth in Him. It does not put God in the place -of a <em class="italics">receiver</em>, for man <em class="italics">to bring Him His due</em>; but it puts -Him in the place of a <em class="italics">giver</em>, and man is called <em class="italics">to value -His blessing</em>. But the question is, Who listens, with -desirous heart, to the bidding? Who wears "the wedding -garment"? Who prizes Christ? Who triumphs in His -salvation? Who longs for the day of His espousals? -John had this garment on him, knowing, as he did, the -joy of being the Bridegroom's friend. It was flowing -at liberty on Mary's shoulders, as she sat at her Lord's -feet and heard His words. Paul tucked it tight about -him when he said, "God forbid that I should glory save -in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." The eunuch -had just put it on as "he went his way rejoicing" -in the faith of the name of Jesus. Every sinner -adorns himself with it the moment his heart values -Christ. And what joy is it thus to know that when -we put on Christ it is not "sackcloth" we put on, -nor is it "the spirit of heaviness" we enter into, but -"a wedding garment" has clothed us, and with "the -garment of praise" we array our spirits!</p> -<p class="pnext">Have we thus learned "the kingdom of heaven"? -Have we, in spirit, entered it as a banqueting-hall -where both magnificence and joy welcome us? Are -we, consciously, guests at the marriage of a King's -Son? Have we learnt the mysteries of the faith? -Have we gazed at them? Has the musing over them -kindled a fire in the heart to burn up the chaff of -worldly rudiments? Paul had this element in his soul -as he travelled through Greece. And how did the -glow of these mysteries address itself to "the princes -of the world" there? It consumed them all. "Where -is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer -of this world?" Precious ardour of the Spirit! What -a pile was thus fired in the famed cities of the learned -and the wise! and how were all the thoughts of men -thrown as rubbish into it!</p> -<p class="pnext">And how did he treat the rudiments of the <em class="italics">religious</em> -world? He bore the same fervent sense of Christ with -him into their regions, to test what chaff and dross were -there. In Galatia he found much of it; but he spared -none of it. Though an angel from heaven gather such -rubbish; though Peter himself help in the work; -though the Galatians, who once would have plucked -out their eyes for him, be enticed, nothing should stand -before the heat of the Spirit that bore him onward. -"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you?... -Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. -I am afraid of you."</p> -<p class="pnext">Could he do less? Could he carry Jesus in his -heart, and calmly stand and measure his light with the -lights of Greece, or God's great ordinance with man's -traditions?</p> -<p class="pnext">It is to make much of Christ we want, beloved--much -of Himself, and His glorious achievements for -sinners. We want simplicity in that sense of the word--the -breathings of a soul content with Him, and -the peace of a conscience for ever at rest in His -sufficiency. "What think ye of Christ?" is the test, -as a dear hymn well known among us has it--</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">"Some call Him a Saviour, in word,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">But mix their own works with His plan,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">And hope He His help will afford,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">When they have done all that they can:</div> -</div> -<div class="line">If doing prove rather too light</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">(A little they own they may fail),</div> -</div> -<div class="line">They purpose to make up full weight</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">By casting His name in the scale.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"Some style Him the pearl of great price,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And say He's the fountain of joys,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Yet feed upon folly and vice,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And cleave to the world and its toys--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Like Judas, the Saviour they kiss,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">And, while they salute Him, betray--</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Ah, what will profession like this</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Avail in His terrible day!</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">"If asked what of Jesus I think,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Though all my best thoughts are but poor,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">I say, He's my meat and my drink,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My life, and my strength, and my store;</div> -</div> -<div class="line">My Shepherd, my Husband, my Friend,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My Saviour from sin and from thrall,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">My hope from beginning to end,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">My portion, my Lord, and my all."</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<p class="pfirst">May these thoughts and affections be ours. They -are the sweet witness of the one faith, the one Lord, -the one Spirit (Eph. iv.), for they express the leading, -ruling mind of the Canticles. There the soul in -kindred affection has but one object, but that one -is enough. It is satisfied, and never for a moment -looks for a second. It has the "Beloved," and cares -for nothing else. If it grieve, it is over the want of -capacity to enjoy Him. It seeks for nothing but Jesus, -lamenting only that it is not more fully and altogether -with Him. And this is the experience we have to -desire--to find in the Lord a satisfying object, a cure -for the wanderings of the poor heart, which, till it fix -on Him, will go about and still say, "Who will show -us any good?" "The labour of the foolish wearieth -every one of them, because he knoweth not how to -go to the city."</p> -<p class="pnext">"That unsatisfiedness with transitory fruitions which -men deplore as the <em class="italics">unhappiness</em> of their nature is -indeed the <em class="italics">privilege</em> of it." Just indeed, and truly to -be prized, is such a sentiment. For this thirsting -again, this spending of "labour for that which satisfieth -not," casts the heart on Jesus, As this has ever -been, so is it now. The building of palaces, the -planting of vineyards, the getting of singing-men and -singing-women, the multiplying of the delights of the -children of men, all these efforts and travails of the -heart take their course and have their way still. -Eccles. ii. But Jesus revealed to the heart, as in this -book, commands these thoughts and purposes away. -It speaks the language of the blessed Lord Himself; -and the experience in it is the experience of the poor -woman who was able to leave her pitcher at the well--"Whosoever -drinketh of this water shall thirst again: -but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give -him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give -him shall be in him a well of water springing up into -everlasting life."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the -Bright and Morning Star.... Even so, come, Lord -Jesus."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<p class="center large pfirst"><span class="target" id="heaven-and-earth">HEAVEN AND EARTH</span>.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">"In the beginning God created the heaven and the -earth." The scene of the divine handiwork was -twofold; and, accordingly, "in the dispensation of the -fulness of times," God will display Himself again, both -in <em class="italics">heaven</em> and on <em class="italics">earth</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">I would begin my meditation on this divine subject -with Genesis i-xlvii., which presents, I judge, a beautiful -view of the Lord acting, by turns, as in heaven -and on earth, till, at the close, we find them together -in a way typical of what their connection and yet -distinctness will be in that coming dispensation of the -fulness of times. May our meditations be always -submitted to His truth and Spirit, and conducted in -the temper of worshippers.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst"><span class="small-caps">Genesis I. II.</span>—-It was only of the <em class="italics">earth</em> that Adam -was made lord. The garden was his residence, and he -was to replenish and subdue the earth. This was the -limitation of his inheritance and of his enjoyments. -He knew of heaven only as he saw it above him, and -by its lights dividing his day and his night. But he -had no thoughts which linked him, personally, with it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">III.—-But Adam transgressed and lost the garden, -and became a drudge in the earth, instead of being the -happy lord of it. Gen. iii. 17-19. He was now to get a -bare existence out of it, till he was laid down in death -upon it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">IV. V.—-Such was his changed condition. To cling -to the earth now as one's delight and portion was -to act in bold defiance of the Lord of judgment. And -such was the spirit of Cain and his family. He -thought the earth good enough for God, and desired -nothing better for himself. He gave God the fruit of -it, and built a city for himself on the face of it, furnishing -it with desirable things of all sorts, unmoved by -the thought of the blood with which his own hand -had stained it, and of the presence of the Lord, on -whom he had turned his back. But such was not -Adam, or Abel, or Seth, or that line of worshippers -who "call on the name of the Lord." They have in -the earth only a burying-place. But grace having -provided a remedy for them as sinners, and righteousness -having separated them from a cursed earth, they -believe in the remedy, and seek no place or memorial -in the earth, and the Lord gives them a higher and a -richer inheritance, even in <em class="italics">heaven</em> with Himself, as -signified in the translation of Enoch.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">VI.-IX.—-But though the Lord is thus removing -the scene of His counsels and the hopes of His -elect from earth to heaven, yet the earth is not given -up. It is, we know, destined to rejoice, by-and-by, in -the liberty of the glory; or, as I have already quoted, -in "the dispensation of the fulness of times." Eph. i. 9, -10. And, accordingly, this purpose the Lord will at -times rehearse and illustrate, as He does now, in due -season, in the history of Noah.</p> -<p class="pnext">The heavenly family, as we have just seen, only died -both to and in the earth. They could speak, it is true, -both of its coming judgment and blessing. Enoch -foretold of the one, and Lamech of the other. Jude 14; -Gen. v. 29. But they were, neither of them, <em class="italics">in</em> the -scenes they thus talked about. But Noah, who comes -after them, is a man of <em class="italics">the earth</em> again. In his day -the earth re-appears as the scene of divine care and -delight. God has communion with man upon it again. -It has passed through the judgment of the water, and -God makes a covenant with it, has the prophet, priest, -and king upon it, providing for its continuance and godly -government. Noah's connection with it was quite -unlike that of either Cain or Seth. He did not, like -the former, fill it and enjoy it in defiance of God; nor -did he, like the latter, take merely a burying-place in -it; but he enjoyed the whole of it under the Lord. -The Lord sanctioned his inheritance of it, his dominion -over it, and his delight in it.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">X. XI.—-Thus the earth, in its turn, again takes up -the wondrous tale, and is the care and object of -the Lord. But again it becomes corrupt before Him. -Noah himself, like Adam, begins this sad history, and -the builders of Babel, like another family of Cain, -perfect the apostasy, seeking to fill the earth with -themselves independently of God. They were mighty -hunters before the Lord. They scoured the face of -the earth, as though they asked, in infidel pride, "Where -is the God of judgment?"</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">XII.-XXXVI.—-This, however, was not allowed. -Another judgment comes upon them. They are scattered, -and the whole human social order is awfully -broken up. But Abram is called out to find his fellowship -with God, apart from the world. His family dwelt -in Mesopotamia beyond the Euphrates. He came from -the stock of Shem, but was a worshipper of idols, as -all the nations were. But sovereign grace distinguishes -him, and the God of glory calls him forth from kindred, -from home, and from country.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is a call, however, that does not interfere with the -order of the earth, or government among the nations. -He is called to be a <em class="italics">stranger</em>, and not a rival of "the -powers," or a new-modelled governor of any people. -He walks with God as the God of glory--a higher -character than that of the one by whom "the powers -that be are ordained." He is a pilgrim and stranger on -earth, and walks as a <em class="italics">heavenly man</em>. He has promise -that <em class="italics">his seed</em> and <em class="italics">inheritance in the earth</em> shall become -linked together by-and-by; but he, with Isaac and -Jacob, dwell in tents all their days, and a tent life is -that of a stranger here, of one that is not at home and -at rest.</p> -<p class="pnext">Here, then, we have a heavenly people again--heavenly -in the character of their walk, and heavenly, -like Enoch or Lamech, in their intelligence about the -earth's future history, and the promise to their seed of -inheritance in it in due season. But we have still -deeper and fuller mysteries in the history of him who -comes after them.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">XXXVII.-XLVII.--Through the wickedness of his -brethren, as we all know, for it is a favourite story, -Joseph is estranged from the scene of the promised -and covenanted inheritance, and becomes first a -sufferer, and then a husband, a father, and a governor, -in the midst of a distant people; till at last his -brethren, who once hated him, and the inhabitants -of the earth, are fed and ruled by him in grace and -wisdom.</p> -<p class="pnext">Nothing can be more expressive than all this. It is -a striking exhibition of the great result purposed of -God "in the dispensation of the fulness of times." -Joseph is cast among the Gentiles; and there, after -sorrow and bondage, becomes the exalted one, and the -head and father of a family with such joy, that his -heart for a season can afford to forget his kindred in -the flesh. This surely is Christ in heaven now, exalted -after His sorrows, and with Him the Church taken from -among the Gentiles, made His companion and joy -during the season of His estrangement from Israel. -But in process of time Joseph is made the depositary -and the dispenser of the world's resources; his brethren, -as well as all beside, become dependent on him; he -feeds them and rules them according to his pleasure. -And this as surely is Christ, as He will be in the earth -by-and-by, with Israel brought to repentance and -seated in the fairest portion of the earth, and with all -the nations under His sceptre, when He will order -them according to His wisdom, feed them out of His -stores, and re-settle them in their inheritance in peace -and righteousness.</p> -<p class="pnext">Surely the heavens and the earth are, in type, here -seen, as they will really be in "the dispensation of the -fulness of times," when all things, both in heaven and -on earth, shall be gathered together in Christ. Surely -this is a rehearsal of the great result, and the heavens -and the earth tell out together the mystery of God!</p> -<p class="pnext">And I cannot but observe the willing, unmurmuring -subjection which the Egyptians yield to Joseph. He -moves them hither and thither, and settles them as he -likes, but all is welcome to them; and so, in the days -of the kingdom, the whole world will be ready to say, -Jesus has done all things well. What blessedness! -Subjection to Jesus, but willing and glad subjection! -His sceptre getting its approval and its welcome from -all over whom it waves and asserts its power!</p> -<p class="pnext">And again I observe that all this power of Joseph -is held in full consent of Pharaoh's supremacy. The -people, and the cattle, and the lands, are all bought -by Joseph <em class="italics">for</em> Pharaoh. It is Pharaoh's kingdom still, -though under Joseph's administration--as in the kingdom -of which this is the type, every tongue shall -confess Jesus Lord, to <em class="italics">the glory of God the Father</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">These features give clear expression and character to -the picture. But there is one other touch (the touch of -a master's hand, I would reverently say) in this picture -which is not inferior in meaning or in beauty to any. -I mean, that in all this settlement of the earth, Asenath -and the children get no portion. They are not seen; -there is no mention of them even. Jacob may get -Goshen; but Asenath, Ephraim, and Manasseh, nothing. -Is it that the wife and children were loved less, and -the father and brethren more? Nay, that cannot be. -But Asenath and the children are heavenly, and have -their portion, the rather in and with him who is the -lord and dispenser of all this, and they cannot mingle -in the interests and arrangements of the earth. Even -Goshen, the fairest and fattest of the land, is unworthy -of them. They are the family of the lord himself. -They share the home, and the presence, and the closest -endearments of him who is the happy and honoured -head of all this scene of glory.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is not this the great result, in miniature or in type? -Have we not in all this that promised "dispensation of -the fulness of times," when God will gather together -in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven; -and which are on earth? Are not the heavens and the -earth here seen and heard together in their millennial -order? I surely judge that they are. "Known unto God -are all His works, from the beginning of the world."</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But as we go on in the course of the divine dispensations, -earthly and heavenly scenes and purposes still -unfold themselves. Israel, in their turn, and after -these scenes in the hook of Genesis, become the witness -of God, and an <em class="italics">earthly</em> people. A portion of the world -is sanctified for God's possession and dwelling-place -again. As the deluge had purified the whole of it for -the divine power and presence in Noah's day, so the -sword of Joshua now purifies a portion of it for the -same divine power and presence in Israel. God has -His sanctuary and His throne in the land of Canaan. -He is worshipped in Jerusalem, and there His law -is dispensed. The glory is again in the earth. As -Lord of the earth, the God of Israel keeps court -and rule on the earth again. But all is corrupted again. -Canaan was defiled by the apostasy of Israel, as the -Noah-earth had been defiled by the tower of Babel. -Ezekiel, who was set as a watchman in the day of this -apostasy, sees therefore the glory on its way from -Jerusalem to <em class="italics">heaven</em>. It does not seek any other spot -on earth, but, being disturbed at Jerusalem by the -defilements there, it retreats to heaven. Ezekiel xi.</p> -<p class="pnext">Up to this day of Ezekiel the glory had communicated -with Israel <em class="italics">in power</em>. It was a glory, or divine presence, -that had judged Egypt, guided the camp through the -desert, smitten the nations of Canaan, divided their -land among the tribes, and then seated itself in the -temple and on the throne at Jerusalem. All this was -the glory <em class="italics">in power</em>. But, as we have seen, Israel -had now forfeited it, and it returns to heaven. But it -had another character in which to show itself. This -same glory, or the divine presence, God Himself, returns -veiled in the person of Jesus; in whom, as a rejected -Galilean, or carpenter's son, having not where to lay His -head, worse off in the world than the birds or the foxes, -it went about in the land of Israel in fullest grace, -healing, preaching, toiling, watching; poor, yet enriching -others; thirsty and hungry, yet feeding thousands, -and in every thing as simply and surely declaring itself -to be the glory, as it did when it divided the waters of -Jordan, or threw down the walls of Jericho. Only it -was the glory in its <em class="italics">grace</em> now, as it had been the glory -in its <em class="italics">power</em> then. In this form, however, Israel, or the -earth, forfeited it also, though it did not leave the earth -in the same way. Of old, when rejected in its power, -it left the earth of itself, in righteous anger resenting -the affront done to its majesty, and withdrawing itself -in judgment (Ezek. i.-xi.); but now, being rejected -in its grace, it is at last rather sent away than withdraws -itself. But still, whether we see the glory in -power or in grace, the earth has forfeited it, and it is -now hid in the heavens. See Acts vii. 55.</p> -<p class="pnext">This is the history of the glory since Ezekiel xi. to -the ascension of Jesus. And it is again where the -prophet of God saw it going in that chapter, that is, -in heaven. Only it is now gathering the fulness of -the Gentiles there, receiving to itself the "holy brethren, -partakers of the heavenly calling." The Holy -Ghost has come forth to tell us here of the glory there, -to form us into association with its own wondrous -history, or to make its portion our portion.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such is the place, and such the action, of the glory -now.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there is another stage in its history still. Ezekiel -sees it return to the very spot from whence it set out. -Ezekiel xliii. It had never sought any other place -on earth. If Zion be unprepared for Jesus, the earth -must lose Him, for of Zion alone has He said, "This -is my rest for ever." But the glory does return, as -we see in that chapter of Ezekiel. And then will -arise that system commonly known by the name of -"the millennium," when Jesus will become the centre, -the true ladder which Jacob saw, the sustainer of all -things in heaven and on earth, reconciling all by His -blood, and then gathering all in Himself to spread His -glories over all. See Isaiah iv. 5, 6.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus the two parts of the future kingdom, the -heavenly and the earthly, have been pledged again -and again from the beginning; one witness after -another, called forth in the dispensations, has, as we -have seen, been telling of His counsels; and the -millennium will be the owning of these pledges, and -the accomplishment of the promises of these heavenly -and earthly witnesses.</p> -<p class="pnext">It has been grateful to my own soul to think of the -<em class="italics">intercourse</em> of heaven with earth, in the progress of -this varied and wondrous history. I mean in the -visions, or the dreams, or the angelic visits, which at -times the people of God have enjoyed. The audiences -of divine oracles are of this character also. All these -show that the heavens had access to the earth, and -had but to pass through a thin veil to meet or reach it.</p> -<p class="pnext">While the earth was undefiled, the Lord God walked -in the garden. And afterwards, though He was in -some sense estranged from earth, yet He was ever -ready to visit it in the behalf of His elect, as in the -histories of Abraham, Joshua, Gideon, and others. -The ladder which Jacob saw, with its top in heaven -and its foot on the earth; the passing and repassing of -Moses in and out between the Lord and the people; -the elders going up and seeing the God of Israel; -Solomon's ascent from his own house up to the house -of the Lord, these are notices of intercourse between -the heavens and the earth in the days of the kingdom. -So that bright and memorable hour, when Jesus was -transfigured, in company with Moses and Elias, in the -sight of Peter, James, and John. So the occasional -appearances of Christ to His disciples after He had -risen. And so the vision of the descending and -ascending sheet. The heavenly things at such moments -unfold themselves to the eye of man, and give sweet -notice of their nearness to us. We do not as yet -perceive this nearness, for the glory is not yet in its -millennial place over the city of the Jews; but faith -reads these notices of this nearness, and understands -them. Isaiah iv. Faith, in Elisha, knew that the Lord -of hosts was nigh, and he prayed that his servant -might have his eye opened to see that the mountains -around him were filled with the chariots and horses of -heaven; and in the millennial kingdom all this will be -to sight. The heavenly glory, or glory of the golden -city, will shine over the Jerusalem of the land of -Israel. On all her habitations it will be a covering. -The ladder will be erected, with its head in the heavens -and its foot on the earth; the same blessed Lord will -be the centre of all things; and, as in the different -parts of one temple, the services of praise and joy will -be celebrated, every tongue confessing Jesus Lord, to -the glory of God the Father.</p> -<p class="pnext">The <em class="italics">pure moral happiness</em> that will be enjoyed by -reason of this intercourse, is also sweetly pictured in -different types and prophecies. As at the meeting of -Jethro and Moses, of Solomon and the Queen of the -South; as in Isaiah lx., or on the holy Mount, or in the -holy Jerusalem. What right affections do we find in -all these intercourses! What pure social pleasures are, -as I have said, pictured before us! At the mount of -God how naturally Moses at once takes the place of -the inferior, and Aaron too; and how gracefully Jethro, -representing the heavenly man, fills the duties and -wears the honours of their superior! And with what -joy of heart, and praise on his lips, does he listen to -the tale of God's mercies to Israel! In the Queen of -the South what unenvious and ungrudging generosity -of soul we witness, and in Solomon what readiness to -make her happy! He tells her all that was in her -heart, and more besides, filling her with such light and -joy, that, it is said, there was no more spirit in her; -and she returns home, not to envy his greatness, but -to spread the report of it. From Isaiah lx. we learn -how gladly will all the nations, in the day of the -kingdom, wait on Jerusalem with their treasures. Even -like the flight of doves to their windows will be the -willing-hearted journeys of the dromedaries of Midian, -or the voyages of the ships of Tarshish, with their -treasures and their spoils, to nourish the joy and glory -of Zion. They will delight to do her honour, and all -will be with the glow and fervency of a free-will -offering. As afterwards, in the case of Peter on the -holy Mount; when he awoke to the sight and sense of -the heavenly glory, such joy filled his soul as, at once, -and by its own necessity, expelled all selfishness from -his heart. It was not Peter properly who spoke, but -the virtue of the place, the spirit of the scene. He was, -as in the twinkling of an eye, so filled with the air and -breath of heaven, that he was ready to labour and let -other men enter into his labours. "Master, it is good -for us to be here," said he; "let us make three tabernacles, -one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for -Elias." And, again, in the holy Jerusalem, what is the -commerce there between the families of God? All -that is most blessedly of the same great and generous -character. The kings bring their glory and honour up -to the light of the city, counting it their place and -their joy to do her honour, not lightly approaching her, -but, as owning her holy dignity, bringing <em class="italics">only their -glory and their honour</em> up to her. And she dispenses -her treasures with the same gracefulness. The leaves -of her tree, the light of her glory, the streams of her -living river, are all at the welcome disposal of the -nations.</p> -<p class="pnext">All these shadowy expressions of the social delights -of millennial days will be deeply prized by us, if we -love the exercise of pure, unselfish affections.</p> -<p class="pnext">But in this intercourse it is the heavens that will -visit the earth, and not the earth the heavens--the -people of the one will come down to the other, but not -the contrary--the people of the earth will only have -to receive and welcome the visitants from heaven.</p> -<p class="pnext">The kingdom of nature, as we may call it, exhibits -this. For the earth gives nothing to heaven, but receives -from it; as the sunshine and the rain come down to -bless the earth, but the earth adds nothing in return.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id74" id="id73"><sup>37</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">But in this coming intercourse of the heavens and -the earth, when the people of the heavens go up and -down the mystic or millennial ladder, I have thought -that Scripture leads us to judge that there will be -change of raiment, or a certain veiling of their proper -glory, when they come down, and have communion -with the earth beneath them and under them.</p> -<p class="pnext">The expression of this we get in the Lord's appearances -after He rose from the dead. For then He could -assume any veil which suited the business He had to -do, whether that of the gardener to Mary, that of a -travelling companion to the two going to Emmaus, or -that of a courteous stranger on the banks of the lake -to the fishermen. In such appearances He could not -be seen in heaven; but He could thus veil Himself -when the business He had in hand to do on the earth -required it. As of old, Moses was the unveiled Moses -in the presence of God, but the veiled Moses in the -sight of Aaron and the congregation. One suit of -raiment was fitted to heaven, another to earth. And -as also, in the case of the priests, they had such apparel -as became them when they were <em class="italics">within</em>, and they had -another dress wherein to appear <em class="italics">without</em>. They suited -themselves differently to the presence of God and the -people. See Lev. vi. 11; xvi. 4, 23, 24; Ezek. xlii. 14; -xiv. 19.</p> -<p class="pnext">And, besides, we see this changeful appearance of -the Son of God in old times. He had various suits -wherein to show Himself, and wherein to veil the -brighter glory which was fit only to the higher regions. -He was in a burning bush at Horeb, in a cloudy chariot -through the wilderness, and as an armed soldier under -the walls of Jericho. Joshua v. 13. The business of -the kingdom, the concerns of the earth, called Him -here; and He appeared in a way suited to the business -He had to do. And all these are notices of the change -of raiment, in which those who are to govern "the -world to come," and to do the matters of the kingdom -on earth, may wait on their ministry here, and then -return to appear again unveiled in their more proper -heavenly places.</p> -<p class="pnext">But in addition to this doctrine of heavenly and -earthly places and peoples, in the days of the coming -glory, and in addition to the truth of there being -blessed and wondrous intercourse between them, as I -have been shortly stating, we might meditate on some -of the joys and glories <em class="italics">peculiar</em> to each of them.</p> -<p class="pnext">To rise and meet the Lord in the air is the hope -which is the most immediately upon the heart of the -believer. Then the going with Him to the mansions -in the Father's house. As He says, "I will come again, -and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there -ye may be also." And that house will give exercise -to all those family affections which the heart so well -understands. The Father will be there, and the First-born -among many brethren, and the many brethren -themselves. And to extend these relationships, and -awaken affections to the full, there will be the marriage -there, and the now espoused or betrothed Church will -become the bride of the Lamb. Rev. xix.</p> -<p class="pnext">There are scenes of glory also, and occasions of -other joy, accompanying this. In those heavens there -will be the "Holy Jerusalem," the dwelling of the -saints as a royal priestly people, the place of <em class="italics">government</em> -and of <em class="italics">worship</em>. And there will be the Tree of -Life, and the River of Life, and the Light, and the -Throne of God and the Lamb. And the saints will -be there as harpers, not having cymbals and timbrels of -merely <em class="italics">human</em> skill, fitted to raise the joys of earth -(Ps. xcviii.), but having "harps of God," instruments -of divine workmanship, fitted to awaken melody worthy -of heaven itself. And the enthroned elders will be -there, casting their crowns before the throne, and the -angels delighting to ascribe all power and authority -to the Lamb that was slain.<a class="footnote-reference" href="#id76" id="id75"><sup>38</sup></a></p> -<p class="pnext">And throughout all this there will be nothing to -trouble or to hinder. As on earth, in those days, -"nothing will hurt or destroy in all God's holy mountain," -so, in the heavens, there will be no entrance to -anything defiling. There can be no enemies, for they -have been judged; no serpent, for he has been trodden -under foot. There will be no weariness of heart, no -coldness or dulness of soul, no fainting of spirit; but -the servants will serve without fault, and night and -day there will be the happy worship, "Holy, holy, holy, -Lord God Almighty."</p> -<p class="pnext">This heaven too will be one scene of God's own -rest or sabbath; and the saints, in their measure tasting -the same refreshing, will dwell in that rest in bodies -fashioned like unto Christ's glorious body. They shall -be like Him in His glory, seeing Him as He is. They -shall shine "as the sun" in the kingdom of their -Father. In mind, body, and estate they will be conformed -to the Beloved. And there will be the seeing -or understanding of all the precious revelation of God, -not as through a glass, darkly, but as face to face, -knowing even as we are known. And there will be -the white stone; the hidden manna; the morning star; -the white robes, wherein to stand before the throne -of God; the white garments, wherein to walk with -the Lord through the dominions; and the white -raiment, wherein to sit on their own thrones. Rev. -ii. iii. All these will be ours then.</p> -<p class="pnext">But this leads to a scripture which is very fruitful -in notices of heavenly joy and glory. I mean Rev. -ii. iii. The promises there made will be found, I -believe, to unroll before us, in holy and exact order, the -things which await the saints of the heavens in those -coming days.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Ephesus.</span>--"To him that overcometh will I give to -eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the -paradise of God."</p> -<p class="pnext">Those outside shall have the <em class="italics">leaves</em> of this same tree -for healing (Rev. xxii.), but the saints of the heavens -shall have more--the very fruit of the tree itself, -gathered, as it were, immediately from it, where it -grows in the midst of God's own garden; not the fruit -brought to them, but gathered by their own hands -off the very tree. Strong intimation of the freshness, -the constant freshness, of that life which is theirs. As -Jesus says (and what can pass beyond such words?), -"Because I live, ye shall live also." Here, in this -promise to Ephesus, is the tree of life partaken of -immediately by the heavenly saints. For this is their -portion, to receive life from the very fountains and -roots themselves, and there also to feed and to -nourish it.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Smyrna.</span>--"Be thou faithful unto death, and I will -give thee a crown of life.... He that overcometh -shall not be hurt of the second death."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is something beyond what had been said to -Ephesus. Life was regarded as <em class="italics">imparted</em> in its richest -form to Ephesus; but here we see it <em class="italics">gained</em> by Smyrna. -For Smyrna was sorely tried. Some were cast into -prison, and all of them were in tribulation. They were -to suffer many things, but they are promised, on being -faithful unto death, a <em class="italics">crown</em> of life. As James in like -manner speaks, "Blessed is the man that endureth -temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive -the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to -them that love Him." Here the crown of life is -promised to them who endure trial. And this is -beautiful in its season. The Lord delights to own the -faith of His saints; and if they have shown that they -loved not their life in this world unto death, it shall -be as though they had gained it in the world to come. -Life shall be a crown to them <em class="italics">there</em>, as the glorious -reward of their not having cared for it <em class="italics">here</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Pergamos.</span>--"To him that overcometh will I give to -eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white -stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no -man knoweth saving he that receiveth it."</p> -<p class="pnext">We have another source of joy disclosed here. <em class="italics">Life</em> -is possessed, and that abundantly and honourably, as -we saw, at Ephesus and Smyrna; but there is here the -promise of another joy--<em class="italics">the sense of the Lord's personal -favour and affection</em>; communion with Him of such -kind as is known only by hearts closely knit together -in those delights and remembrances with which a -stranger could not intermeddle. This is here spoken -of to the faithful remnant in Pergamos. They had -held His faith in the midst of difficulties, and clung to -His name; and this should be rewarded with that -which is ever most precious--tokens of personal affection, -waking the delightful sense and assurance that the -heart of the Lord is knit to their heart. He will kiss -the saint "with the kisses of His mouth;" or, in the -midst of it all, give that pledge which shall speak it. -It is the <em class="italics">hidden</em> manna which is here fed upon; and -the stone here received has a name on it, which <em class="italics">none -know but he who receives it</em>. This, as another has said, -expresses individual affection. It is not public joy, but -delight in the conscious possession of the Lord's love. -How blessed a character of joy in the coming days is -this! <em class="italics">Life</em> possessed in abundance and in honour we -have already seen at Ephesus and Smyrna; but here, -at Pergamos, we advance to another possession--not -<em class="italics">glory</em> in any form of it as yet, but the blessed certainty -and consciousness of the Lord's <em class="italics">personal affection</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Thyatira.</span>--"He that overcometh, and keepeth my -works unto the end, to him will I give power over the -nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; -as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to -shivers, even as I received of My Father; and I will -give him the morning star."</p> -<p class="pnext">Here we reach <em class="italics">public scenes, scenes of power and -glory</em>. This is not merely life, though enjoyed never -so blessedly, nor simple personal affection and individual -joy, but here is something displayed in honour -and strength abroad; here are power and glory in the -first character in which the glories of the saints are -destined hereafter to be unfolded; <em class="italics">i.e.</em>, in their being -the companions of the Lord in the day when He -comes forth to make His enemies His footstool; or, -according to the decree of the second psalm, to break -them with a rod of iron, to dash them in pieces like -a potter's vessel. This will be His power just as He -takes the kingdom. This will be His ridding out all -that would have been inconsistent with the kingdom. -This will be the girding of the sword upon the thigh, -like David, ere the throne be ascended, like Solomon. -Psalm xlv. It will be the Rider's action, ere the reign -of the thousand years begins. Rev. xix. And in that -exercise of power, and display of glory, the saints (as -we are here instructed and promised) shall be with -Him. This is blessed in its place, and given to us in -due season; for, <em class="italics">after the life</em>, and the <em class="italics">personal, hidden -joy</em>, the <em class="italics">public glories</em> begin to be ushered forth.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Sardis.</span>--"They shall walk with Me in white, for they -are worthy. He that overcometh, the same shall be -clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his -name out of the book of life, but I will confess his -name before My Father, and before His angels."</p> -<p class="pnext">This is a stage onward in the scenes of glory. The -vengeance has been taken, the sword of Him who sits -on the white horse has done its righteous service, the -vessels of the potter have been broken, and the kingdom -has come. Jesus here promises to His faithful -ones that He will confess them before His Father and -His angels. This is not redeeming them from judgment, -or saving their souls (as we speak), but <em class="italics">publicly -owning them before the assembled dignities of the kingdom</em>. -He promises them that they shall walk with -Him in white, for they are worthy. That hand which -now in grace washes their feet, will then take hold of -them in holy, happy intimacy, and own full companionship -with them in the realms of glory. They shall -<em class="italics">walk</em> with Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">What a character of joy is this! To be <em class="italics">publicly</em> -owned, as before (as we read of Pergamos) privately -and personally caressed. In how many ways does -the Spirit of God trace the coming joy of the saints! -The life, the love, the glory, that are reserved for -them; the tree of life, and its crown too; the white -stone, carrying to the deepest senses of the heart the -pledge of love; and then companionship with the -King of glory in His walks abroad through His bright -and happy dominions. But even more than this the -same Spirit has still to tell.</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Philadelphia.</span>—-"Him that overcometh will I make -a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go no -more out: and I will write upon him the name of My -God, and the name of the city of My God, which is -New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven -from My God: and I will write upon him My new -name."</p> -<p class="pnext">We have just seen the heir of the kingdom as the -companion of the Lord of the kingdom, abroad in the -light of the glory, walking there in white with Him, -owned before the Father and before the angels. Here -the promise is, that <em class="italics">the faithful one shall have his</em> -<em class="italics">place in the system of glory itself</em>, that he shall be of -that glorious order of kings and priests who shall -then form the character of the scene, each of them -being a pillar in the temple, and each enrolled as of -the city High and holy dignities! Each of the -faithful ones filling his place in the temple and the -city, a needed member of that royal priesthood then -established in their holy government in the heavens, -where the New Jerusalem abides and shines. What -honour is put on them here! Owned <em class="italics">abroad</em> in companionship -with the Lord, walking through the rich -and wide scene of glory; and also owned <em class="italics">within</em>, as -bearing, each in himself, a part of the glory, every -vessel needed to the full expression of the light of the -New Jerusalem, and formed as the vital part of the -fulness of Him who is to fill all in all! A king and a -priest, each of them occupying his several rank and -station in the temple and the city, the Salem of the -true Melchisedec. What a place of dignity! Surely -love delights to show what it can do, and will do. If -we had but hearts to prize these things, chiefly because -of their telling us of this love which has thus counselled -for us! For what higher, happier thought can we have, -even of glory itself, than that it is the manner in which -love lets us know what it will do for its elect one. -Poor, poor <em class="italics">heart</em> that moves so little at these things, -while the <em class="italics">mind</em> stirs the conception of them!</p> -<p class="pnext"><span class="small-caps">Laodicea.</span>—-"To him that overcometh will I grant to -sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and -am set down with My Father in His throne."</p> -<p class="pnext">Here <em class="italics">the highest point of glory is reached</em>. This is the -bright and sunny elevation up to which this passage -through the joys and honours of the kingdom has conducted -us. Here the faithful one enters into the joy -of his Lord, sharing His throne; not only owned by -Him abroad, and established with Him within, walking -in white with Him, or fixed as a needed and honoured -portion of the great system of royal priesthood, but -with Him seated in the supreme place.</p> -<p class="pnext">These pledges and promises may now end. They -have told of blessedness indeed.</p> -<p class="pnext">Exceeding great things have surely passed before us in -this wondrous scripture, Rev. ii. iii. The tree and crown -of life-—the white stone—-the morning star-—the walking -abroad with Jesus through the realms-—residence -in the temple and city-—a place on the throne itself! -Surely, if Jesus Himself be prized, then will all this be -welcomed by us. And then, as we are further told, the -joy of dispensing to the earth the streams of that living -river, and the leaves of that living tree, which rises and -grows in our heavens (Rev. xxii.); with access, moreover, -to the ladder which lies between the upper and lower -regions, in order, as I have been already observing, to -do the business of the kingdom, in conscious royal -dignity, and full priestly holiness.</p> -<p class="pnext">The glory also shall be revealed <em class="italics">in</em> us, each saint shall -bear it or be a vessel of it, and each of them shall be a -child of light and a child of the day, and each a son of -glory, glorified together with Christ, so as to join with -Him in shedding light, beyond that of the sun or the -moon, upon the creation beneath, that the present earnest -expectation of that creation may be satisfied in the then -"manifestation of the sons of God."</p> -<p class="pnext">"And they shall see His face, and His name shall be -in their foreheads." They shall be intimately near Him, -speaking face to face, as a man speaketh to his friend, -without fear or suspicion, for their title shall be signed -and sealed as with His own hand. He will have -appropriated them to Himself; and this they shall know, -because His name shall be on them. And there, as -within all veils, they will walk in their heavenly temple, -and look on their Lord, and love, and wonder.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">And to all this, we may add, that everything will -be according to our mind, as we speak; all will be -right in our eyes; all will equally and entirely please us, -and be just as we would have it. This we see in the -book of Revelation, in the progress of which the -heavenly family, wherever they are seen or heard, are -always found in the fullest concord with the action -that is going on. In chap. iv. the throne is getting -itself ready for judgment—-lightnings, thunders, and -voices proceeding from it; but the elders and the -living creatures have their doxologies to the name of -the Lord God Almighty, who sits and orders all. In -chap. v. the Lamb takes the book, and they again -rejoice, taking their harps to celebrate Him, and to -make merry at the prospect which this sight opens -to them. In chap. xi. the seventh angel announces -judgment, but they have only to fall on their faces, -and worship, and give thanks. In chap. xii. the war -in heaven and its issue is just as they would have it; -and with a loud voice they publish "Salvation!" In -chap. xv. God's <em class="italics">works and ways</em>, all things of His -<em class="italics">counsel</em> or His <em class="italics">strength</em>, form the theme of their song. -And in chap. xix. the judgment of the woman who -corrupted the earth calls forth again and again the -hallelujah of the glorified family. Thus all, from -beginning to end, is equally and altogether right in -their eyes; all is exactly as they would have it. They -as loudly triumph in the Kinsman <em class="italics">Avenger</em> (chap. xix.), -as they do in the Kinsman <em class="italics">Redeemer</em>. Chap. v. Everything -is to them beautiful in its season. The marriage -of the Lamb, and the judgment of the great whore, are -equally and entirely according to their mind.</p> -<p class="pnext">Different, far different indeed, from what is now -felt by the believer. As far as he is spiritual, nothing -is fully right around him here. And this is only -increasingly so, as the world gets fuller of its own -inventions, and increases with the increase of man. -And a judgment this affords as to the state of our -affections. For we may ask ourselves, How are we -moved by the present advance in the improvements -of the world? Are we congratulating ourselves and -the age upon them, or are they sickening to our hearts? -This may be a touch-stone of the condition of our -souls, whether indeed Christ be our object or not. The -great tower in the plains of Shinar would have been -the boast of a Nimrod, but Abram would have -turned from it to weep. Just as the merchants of -the earth bewail that which the heavens rejoice over. -Rev. xviii.</p> -<p class="pnext">And this is the great inquiry for us now-—Is Christ -the object of our hearts-—the One that we long for? -For that He will be ours, and near us and with us for -ever, will be the highest point in all our rich happiness -in this future heaven which we have been looking -at. Provision for the <em class="italics">heart</em> is always the dearest -thought we can entertain. As with Adam at the -beginning. He was put into the possession of a -goodly estate, which carried with it all that could -gratify the sense. There were the trees and the fruits -of that garden, pleasant to the eye and to the palate. -The desire of the one and of the other, and of all the -senses and faculties of man, might be <em class="italics">holily</em> indulged, -for the tree of knowledge had not been then eaten. -The Lord God was in the supreme place, the creature -was not then worshipped and served more than the -Creator, and all the senses might righteously take their -enjoyments, and the divine Planter of Eden had -provided for them. Gen. ii. 9. Yea, and more than -this. Adam received <em class="italics">dominion</em> from the same hand. -The natural--nay, the divine--delight in power and -dignity was thus provided for; for as the Lord God -in the upper world called the stars by their names, -thus owning them, so did He give Adam on the earth -to call the cattle and the fowl by their names, thus -taking headship of them. And in this way he was -set in the midst of these divine provisions for his eye, -his ear, his tastes, and his desire of dignity. But the -heart was as yet unfed. The day of his <em class="italics">coronation</em> -was not the day of his <em class="italics">espousals</em>. And the Lord God -knows him. He knows the creature whom in His -love and perfections He had formed. It is not good, -says He, that he should be alone, I will make him an -help meet for him. And Adam receives Eve from the -same hand which had given him Eden with its fruits, -and dominion in the earth. And then it is that his -lips are opened. "Out of the abundance of the heart -the mouth speaks." "This is now bone of my bone, -and flesh of my flesh," says Adam, expressing his deep -satisfaction, and that he now needed no more. Eden -could not, with all its delights for the senses, nor could -his vast and unrivalled dominion abroad, as "monarch -of all he surveyed," do what Eve did for him. She -unsealed his lips with a confession that <em class="italics">now</em> he was -satisfied. And so with us in possessing Jesus, above -all glory, in our heavenly Eden, for ever.</p> -<p class="pnext">These, and the like notices of heaven scattered -through the Word, it is blessed to take up and ponder. -And, as one has said, "The Holy Ghost, who is called -the earnest of our inheritance, acts upon these notices, -and makes them living to our souls." And it is these -notices and attractions which make us, in a divine -sense, strangers and pilgrims here. Abraham, it has -been observed, became a stranger in the earth, not from -any sorrow or pressure in Mesopotamia, for we read of -none such, but because "the God of glory" had spoken -in the language of "promise" to him. He was drawn -out from kindred and home and country by something -before him, and not urged or driven out by anything -behind. This was heavenly strangership here.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is it thus, beloved, or are we desiring that it may be -thus, with our souls? Are we pondering the prospect, -and following out the distant glimpses of it, with fixed -and interested hearts? These are the present questions -for the stirring and guiding of our souls. The search -will lead to humbling and rebuke, but it will be an -excellent oil.</p> -<p class="pnext">And, as if to give us full ease of heart in the enjoyment -of this our future heaven, the Lord has taught us -to know that we are in some sense <em class="italics">wanted</em> there, however -unimportant we may deem ourselves. For each is -to be a vessel of the glory, as we have already said; of -larger or smaller quantity it may be, but still each is a -<em class="italics">needed</em> vessel in that house of glory. We commonly -think how necessary the Lord is to us. True indeed. -We shall celebrate the fact that we owe everything to -Him throughout eternity. But it is also a truth (to the -praise of the riches of grace be it spoken) that we are -necessary to Him. "The woman is the glory of the -man." Not in the same way, surely. He is necessary -to us for <em class="italics">life</em> as well as for joy, for <em class="italics">salvation</em> as well as -for glory; but we are important, of course, only to -His joy and glory; as it is written, "That we should -be to the praise of His glory;" and again, "That in the -ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of -His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ -Jesus." Eph. ii 7.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Lord God consulted for Adam's joy when He -purposed in Himself to form Eve. Eve, we may know -full well, was abundantly happy in Adam; but still the -concern of the Lord was about Adam being happy in -Eve. So it is even now in the dispensation of the -Gospel. The true Adam is still consulted for. "The -kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which -made a marriage for his <em class="italics">son</em>." And so will it be still in -the dispensation or age of the glory. It is called "the -marriage of the Lamb"--not, as once observed to me, -the marriage of the Church or of the Lamb's wife, but -<em class="italics">of the Lamb</em>, as though <em class="italics">the Lamb</em> were the One chiefly -interested in that joy.</p> -<p class="pnext">And so it is. The Church will have her joy in -Christ, but Christ will have His greater joy in the -Church. The strongest pulse of gladness that is to -beat for eternity will be in the bosom of the Lord -over His ransomed Bride. In all things He is to have -the pre-eminence; and, as in all things, so in this--that -His joy in her will be greater than hers in Him.</p> -<p class="pnext">And all the foreknown to that end, and none less -than <em class="italics">all</em>, will form the Eve of that Adam, and be the -Bride or the Woman destined thus to be the Man's joy -and glory. <em class="italics">All</em> here are <em class="italics">now</em> "fitly joined together -and compacted by that which every joint supplieth," -and no less <em class="italics">then</em> will the <em class="italics">all</em> be demanded. Oh, how the -Lord not only prepares the heaven, but in this way -prepares the heart for it, that we may enjoy it with -<em class="italics">entire ease</em>, seeing ourselves a needed portion of the -holy furniture of the place! As Joseph would comfort -his brethren by telling them that it was God who had -sent him into Egypt before them, that life might be -preserved by a great deliverance. Their wicked hands -had done it, it is true; but God's purpose had done it also, -and it is this He would have them now think of, and -not the other. For this is the way of love; and "God -is love." Love will not only spread the feast, but do -what it can to let it be tasted with all confidence and joy -of heart. Love will make the guests <em class="italics">sit</em> at the table, give -them a plentiful board, and ease while enjoying it.</p> -<p class="pnext">Can we, beloved, read these notices of the heaven that -is to be ours by-and-by, and for ever, and, as we read, -wish our hearts joy that it is so? Can we count ourselves -happy, having such prospects as these? As the miser -can bear the scorn of the world without, in the thought -of his treasures at home, can we in the hope of this joy -of heaven live above the earth and its promises?</p> -<p class="pnext">Such things, however, as these, excellent as they are, -have something still further with them. The <em class="italics">air</em> of a -place is more important to us than its <em class="italics">scenery</em>. If we -can get both, of course the better; but if we can have -but one, the good air will be surely preferred.</p> -<p class="pnext">Now, heaven, I may say, will have both. It will be -filled with a moral element or atmosphere, as well as -furnished with glories; and the former (I speak as a -man) will be more in the account of our joy than the -latter.</p> -<p class="pnext">I have found it well at times to ponder this, and to -learn something of that moral element that is to be -the air of heaven. Scriptures which I have already -noticed test and prove the purity of that air. The -millennial atmosphere both in heaven and on earth -will indeed be ever fresh, laden with balmy fragrance. -If we are now wearied with our own selfishness, and -with the tempers of "hateful and hating" human -nature, we must long for a change of air, such as the -land of the glory is said to know, the land of the voice -of the turtle. If the brightness of those regions, or -the scenery of the place, have its attraction (and what -heart can conceive it?), what must be the atmosphere -of it to our happy souls, where social life, through all -its relations, as between heaven and earth, and as -between Jerusalem, the land of Israel, and the most -distant islands, moves and kindles continually with the -most generous and delicate affections.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is not that nature will be triumphed over merely; -nature will not be there; at least, not in the heavens -which we are approaching. We shall not have to speak -of saints carrying themselves towards each other in a -good spirit. Such security is well in its place, and while -we sojourn in our "vile bodies." But there the element -itself will be good. The fervent currents of pure and -happy minds, flowing from each to all, will form it.</p> -<p class="pnext">The moral dignity and beauty, the various and yet -consistent perfections that will animate us then, will -all be bright and lovely before the divine mind. God -shall survey the work of His fingers through the -different spheres of glory, and rest with delight in it.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is a thought much to be cherished, that our -eternal ways will thus be the divine delight, and -more than make up to God (I speak again after the -manner of men) for the grief which, by us and in us, -His Spirit is now so continually put to.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such will be the <em class="italics">moral</em> enjoyments in the realms of -glory; no small part of that banquet at which the -Lord will seat His guests, when He comes forth and -girds Himself to wait upon them. Luke xii. 37. We -may be but little able to comprehend the glory itself, -but we can appreciate these moral characteristics of the -heaven we are reaching.</p> -<p class="pnext">While still here, in the conflicts of flesh and spirit, -we are, in some sense, under the guardianship of <em class="italics">conscience</em>, -that principle which judges of "good and evil." -But conscience will not keep heaven in order. Our -<em class="italics">passions</em> and our <em class="italics">righteousness</em> will there be one. Little -do we now advance in a heavenly direction by the -gracious current of affections. But what bliss, when -the very energy which bears us <em class="italics">speedily</em> will also bear -us <em class="italics">rightly</em> onward—-when the very gale which fills the -sails will regulate the rudder; the passion that engages -and delights the soul being the very rule and measure -of all that is worthy of the presence of God!</p> -<p class="pnext">May we cherish in our souls these notices of heaven! -Faint is their impression; humblingly indeed do some -of us know this; but we may entertain them, and bid -them welcome, grieved that our welcome is not more -warm and affectionate.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">But the earth is still remembered, and kept in store -for great purposes yet to be accomplished. The rainbow -was, of old, as we know, made the pledge of this. -It is a token of the covenant between God and all the -earth, and every living thing upon it. The Lord says, -that when the cloud comes, the bow shall be with it—-when -the portent of judgment lowers, the sign of peace -shall shine. And, as we see to this day, the earth has -not been again destroyed. It may not be the residence -of the glory, as it once was, and as it will be again, but -still it is preserved, according to the promise of the -rainbow. And Scripture is diligent and exact to show -us, that in every variety of the divine procedure, this -promise has been, is, and will be remembered.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus it was surely remembered all the time the Lord -had His seat in Zion; for then the Lord made the -earth His habitation. But when the throne of the -Lord leaves Zion, and the holiest of holies loses the -glory, because the earthly people had, by their sin, -disturbed its rest, and all returns to heaven (Ezek. i-xi.), -we see the throne and the glory carrying the rainbow -with them. That is, though the earth was then -stripped of glory; though Jerusalem, the throne of the -Lord, was then for a season laid on heaps, and put -under the foot of the Gentiles; still the Lord would be -mindful of the earth, and make it the object of His -faithful care, according to His promise. And thus we -see the glory, though it leave the earth, bearing with it -the remembrance of the earth: <em class="italics">the rainbow accompanies -it to heaven</em>; this telling us, that though the Lord leave -the earth as the scene of His power and praise for a -time, He has it still in recollection before Him. Accordingly, -when the heaven is opened to our vision in Rev. -iv. we see the faithful bow encompassing the throne -there. How blessed this is! The Lord in the heavens -is still mindful of the earth. He has thrown the very -pledge of its security around His throne on high, so -that though the earth see not that throne, and is no -longer the place of that throne, that throne sees the -earth and remembers it, and longs, as it were, for its -natural footstool.</p> -<p class="pnext">This shows us the security of the earth during this -heavenly dispensation through which we are now passing. -The Lord is now gathering a people <em class="italics">for heaven</em>. It -is true, He is not filling the earth with glory yet, but -gathering an elect family out from it, to have communion -with Himself in heaven; but still He is -mindful of His promise. He looks on the bow, and -preserves the earth, keeps the seed-time and the -harvest, the cold and the heat, the day and the night, -the summer and the winter, in their stated rounds and -seasons. Gen. ix.</p> -<p class="pnext">How simple all this is. When the throne went first -from earth to heaven, we saw it bearing along with it -the recollection of the earth; and now in its place in -the heavens we see it still clasping to its breast and -encircling across its brow this fond and loved token of -the earth's blessing. Ezek. i.; Rev. iv.</p> -<p class="pnext">But there is still more. For let the Lord come -down in the judgments that are by-and-by to visit the -earth, we shall find Him as fully mindful of His -promise not to destroy it, as now He is, or has been -hitherto. This we see in Rev. x. The mighty angel, -the angel of judgment, comes down; and he is clothed -with a cloud, the fearful vessel of wrath, and token of -judgment; as was said at the beginning, "When I -bring a cloud over the earth." But even then the -rainbow is with Him; as it was added, "The bow shall -be seen in the cloud." It is not simply with a cloud -He comes down, but with the cloud and the bow -accompanying it. See Gen. ix. 14; Rev. x. 1. As -much as to tell us, that at the very end He remembers -His word, and will debate with judgment. He will -say to it, "Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further." -The cloud is to descend, it is true; the judgment must -come, the vials of wrath must be poured out; but it is -only to judge those who corrupt or destroy the earth, -and not to destroy the earth itself; for the mighty -angel, as we see from this scripture, who comes down -"clothed with a cloud," has also "a rainbow upon his -head." And the cloud, as it executes its commission, -and pours out its water or its judgments again, must -stay itself in obedience to the bow that is to measure -and control it. The present course of things may -cease, as in the days of Noah, but the bow shines in -the eye of the Lord. His promise lives in His heart, -and the earth shall be the happy scene and witness of -its rich fulfilment.</p> -<p class="pnext">Thus, then, we see that even the judgment itself -shall not touch the ancient promise to the earth. It -is still beloved for Noah's sake, of whom it was said, -This same shall comfort us concerning our work and -toil of our hands, because of the ground which the -Lord hath cursed (Gen. v.), that is, for His blessed -sake whom Noah typified; and we need not say, -beloved, who He is. Therefore it survives the judgment, -it stands the shock of the descent of this mighty -angel, though clothed with a cloud, planting his right -foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, and -crying aloud as when a lion roars.</p> -<p class="pnext">And what is it reserved for? For even more than -the rainbow had promised it. For this is the way of -God. He takes up His pledges, and is faithful <em class="italics">abundantly</em>, -doing more exceedingly than He had spoken. -And so is it in this case of the earth. It is not only -preserved, with its seed-time and its harvest, its day -and its night, but it is brought into the "liberty of the -glory of the sons of God." This is more than had -been pledged to it. The holy city descends out of -heaven, to take its connection with the earth; and, -shining in due sphere above it, forth from its bosom -it sends the leaves of its living tree, the streams of its -living water, and the rays of its indwelling glory, to -beautify and to refresh the earth and its creatures -below. Rev. xxi, xxii. The rainbow need not now -appear, for the cloud is gone. The bow would do -well enough while there was the cloud, the promise -and the pledge might comfort, while there was place -for judgment, or for fear of evil; but now judgment is -over. The cloud is scattered, and the bow has therefore -no place. But the holy city descends out of heaven -from God, to do more, much more, than merely to -redeem the divine pledge. For it is glorifying, and -not merely preserving, the creation. It shall then -<em class="italics">rejoice</em> in the presence of the Lord, when He cometh -to govern the earth.</p> -<p class="pnext">Would not time fail to tell of all the types and -prophecies of the <em class="italics">earth's</em> blessing in the days of the -kingdom? The trees and the fields and the floods, in -their order, will then rejoice before the Lord. The -creation itself shall be delivered into the liberty of the -glory of the children of God. Psalm viii., with many -a kindred voice, proclaims it. The voice of every -creature on earth, under the earth, and in the sea, -heard in vision by the prophet, anticipates it. Rev. v. -And the promised day, when "the desert shall rejoice -and blossom as the rose," when "the leopard shall lie -down with the kid," and when "the heavens shall hear -the earth, and the earth shall hear the corn and the -wine and the oil," will realize it. Isaiah xxxv.; Hosea ii.</p> -<p class="pnext">And <em class="italics">the nations</em>, we know, will fill their place in -this approaching system of glory. They will turn -their swords into ploughshares; and instead of learning -war, they will learn the ways of the Lord, and -walk in His paths. At the appointed season they will -wait, each with his offering, on the King in Zion, holding -their high and joyous feast in the presence of His -greatness there. Then from the uttermost parts of the -earth shall be heard songs to the Righteous One. And -then shall the call of the prophet be answered by the -willing hearts of all the people: "Sing unto the Lord a -new song, and His praise from the end of the earth, ye -that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the -isles, and the inhabitants thereof. Let the wilderness -and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages -that Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the -rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. -Let them give glory unto the Lord, and declare His -praise in the islands."</p> -<p class="pnext"><em class="italics">Israel</em> then shall dwell safely--"every man under -his vine and under his fig tree." They shall be -"all righteous;" they shall be all united; they shall -call every man his neighbour. "Ephraim shall not -envy Judah, nor Judah vex Ephraim." The two mystic -sticks shall become one in the prophet's hand. They -shall be "one nation in the land upon the mountains -of Israel." And, as in the shadowy days of Solomon, -it shall then be said, "Judah and Israel were many, as -the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and -drinking and making merry." Their merriment, too, -shall be holy. It shall be the joy of a sanctuary. -"They shall abundantly utter the memory of Thy great -goodness, and shall sing of Thy righteousness.... They -shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom, and talk of Thy -power." Within themselves, towards the nations around, -and under the God of their fathers, the God of their -covenant, all shall be blessing with Israel. For thus -saith the Lord God, They shall dwell in the land that -I have given unto Jacob My servant.... I will make -a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting -covenant with them: and I will place them, and -multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in the midst -of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be -with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be -My people. And the heathen shall known that I the -Lord do sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in -the midst of them for evermore. Ezekiel xxxvii.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this tells the tale of millennial joys on the earth. -But in this system, of earthly glory, beyond the <em class="italics">creation</em> -itself, <em class="italics">the nations</em>, and <em class="italics">Israel</em>, there is a spot still more -illustrious, an object distinguished in the midst of even -joys and dignities like these. I mean <em class="italics">Jerusalem</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">And I have before now asked myself, Why is it that -Jerusalem is made so much of in Scripture? Why is it -that "the Lord loveth the gates of Zion more than all -the dwellings of Jacob"?</p> -<p class="pnext">It was <em class="italics">His</em> court--the place of His presence both as -the God and the King of Israel. His palace and His -sanctuary were there. The administrations of His laws -and the ordinances of His worship were there. The -thrones of judgment, the testimony of Israel, and the -eucharistic service of His name, were all known there. -Psalm cxxii. It was the place where Jehovah had -recorded His name, and where the glory dwelt, the -symbol of His presence.</p> -<p class="pnext">It was <em class="italics">His home</em>. The whole land was the Lord's -demesne; but Jerusalem was the mansion-house, the -family dwelling. The children were placed out here -and there through the tribes and divisions of the land, -which was the family estate, but Jerusalem was the -family mansion. It was the father's house, the common -home, where, at stated holy days, the children met, according -to the common way of the affection of kindred.</p> -<p class="pnext">This, I believe, was Jerusalem's <em class="italics">first</em> attraction in the -eye and to the heart of the Lord of Israel. He sought -and He found a home at Jerusalem, saying, "This is -My rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired -it." And He left it, when sin had defiled it, with -all the hesitation and lingering which disappointed -affection so well understands. Ezekiel viii.-xi.</p> -<p class="pnext">Jerusalem was all this--the house of the Father, the -palace of the King, and the temple of the God of Israel. -For Israel were His children, His people, and His -worshippers, and the affections of a Father's heart, and -the joys and honours of the Lord and King, found their -object and their sphere at Jerusalem. And this is more -than enough to account to us for her high distinction. -And all this is she to be again. It will be the palace, -the temple, and the family mansion again. It will be -the place of prayer for all nations. It will be the seat -of legislation, worship, judgment, and government. It -will be the fountain, too, of the virtues of the new -covenant, from whence the living waters will flow, to -make her, in those days, the mystic mother of the family. -Psalm lxxxvii. And the glory of the heavens will shine -on her from above, doing for her the service of sun and -moon, while she is lifted up and exposed, that she may -bask in the full light of it, and dwell under it as her -native air. Isa. iv. 5; lx. 1; Zech. xiv. 10.</p> -<p class="pnext">And she shall be the bride of the Lord of the earth, -and the queen in the day of His power. He will clothe -her with ornaments as such, rejoice over her, impart -His name to her, and have her so honoured and -cherished by the whole world, as to treat despite of her -as indignity done to Himself. Psalm xlv.; Isaiah lx.; -Jeremiah xxxiii.; Ezekiel xlviii.; Zeph. iii.</p> -<p class="pnext">All this may well account for the place which -Jerusalem holds in the thoughts of the Spirit. His -prophets, those who spake as they were moved by Him, -address her again and again as the bride, the queen, -and the mother, in the days of the approaching glory. -But what shall we say of Him, who has thus decked -her with all beauty and dignity, and given her such -relationship to Himself? Is it not wondrous and -happy to see the circle of human sympathies thus -seating itself in the divine mind? Is <em class="italics">friendship</em> only -human? How can I say so, when I see Jesus and the -disciple whom He loved walking in company? Are -the affections of <em class="italics">kindred</em> merely human? How can -I say so, when I think of Christ and the Church, and a -thousand witnesses from Scripture? Is the heart's -fond delight in <em class="italics">home</em> a divine as well as a human joy? -How can I doubt it, when I thus see the Lord and -Jerusalem? Surely the divine mind is the seat of -all the pure and righteous sensibilities of the heart, -and "the Man Christ Jesus" tells me so. The Lord -God of Israel has known, and will know again, the -affection that lingers round the homestead of many -a family recollection and joy.</p> -<p class="pnext">Such will be Jerusalem, and such the earth itself, -the nations, and Israel, in the promised days of the -presence and power of the Lord. Faintly traced by -the hand, more feebly responded to by the heart. But -"yet true," though "surpassing fable."</p> -<p class="pnext">All Scripture, however, shows us that such joy cannot -be had on earth, or in the circumstances and history -of the world, in their <em class="italics">present</em> state, nor till the earth -is made the scene of righteousness; and such it is not -to be, till the Lord have ridded it of all that offends, -and all that does iniquity. <em class="italics">The sword of judgment</em> -must go before <em class="italics">the throne of glory</em>. The earth must be -cleared of its corruptions, ere it can be a garden of -holy, divine delights again.</p> -<p class="pnext">The Gospel is not producing a happy world, or spreading -out a garden of Eden. It proposes no such thing, -but to take out of the world a people, a heavenly people, -for Christ. But the presence of the Lord will make -a happy world by-and-by, when that presence can -righteously return to it.</p> -<p class="pnext">The close of the Psalms shows us this. Beautiful -close! All praise—-untiring, satisfying fruit of lips -uttering the joy of a filled heart, and owning the -undivided glory of the Blessed One! But this had been -preceded by the sorrows of the righteous in an evil -world, and then the judgment of that world. For that -Book gives the cries of the righteous in an evil world, -the joys of the Spirit in the midst of that evil, the -varied exercises of the soul by the way, and the end of -the righteous in the joy of praise. All, however, forbids -the heart from entertaining the thought of joy <em class="italics">in the</em> -<em class="italics">earth</em> till the judgment have cleansed it; the <em class="italics">rest</em> is to -be prepared for <em class="italics">Solomon</em> by the <em class="italics">sword</em> of <em class="italics">David</em>.</p> -<p class="pnext">The proper thought of this will keep the heart from -being tossed by disappointments, and take it off from -the expectation of any progress to rest and stability -for the world, or in it, till the Lord have executed -judgment. Our joy now is to be in Himself, in spirit, -in the thought of His love, and the sense of His -peace, helped onward, day by day, in the hope of full -and righteous joy with Him, when the wicked have -gone from the scene for ever.</p> -<p class="pnext">How sensitively does the Lord's mind recede from -the thought of joy in the earth, when the people were -wondering at all things that He did! Turning to His -disciples He said, "Let these sayings sink down into -your ears; for the Son of man shall be delivered into -the hands of men." But this, I may say, was only a -sample of all His mind, as He looked to the earth in -its present condition. It was ever in His thoughts -connected with trial.</p> -<p class="pnext">Psalm lxxv. strikingly utters this. There Messiah -looks on the earth as all dissolved and disordered, -about to drink the cup of judgment at God's righteous -hand. For the present He expected nothing from it. -But then, after the exhausting of that cup, He does -look on it as the scene of joy and praise and exaltation -of righteousness, He Himself bearing up its pillars, and -leading its songs.</p> -<p class="pnext">I feel it, however, to be a very solemn truth, that -God is allowing man, giving him space and time, to -ripen his iniquity, that the judgment may fall upon -him in the height of his pride, and crush the system -which he is raising in its point of greatest pretension -and advancement. It is surely a solemn truth. But -even in such a purpose, as in all others, "Wisdom is -justified of all her children." The believer may be awed -by such a fact in the divine dealings with man, but -he approves it, understands it to be a fitting thing, -that man should be allowed to produce the fully ripened -fruit of his own departure from God, to present it -and survey it in the pride of his heart, and then -receive his righteous answer to all his boasted and -enjoyed apostasy, from the signal judgment of God. -The iniquity of the Amorites was to be <em class="italics">full</em>, ere -justice should overtake it. The Lord bore with Babel -till the cry of it went up to Him. Nebuchadnezzar -had built "great Babylon," as he gloried, by the might -of his power, and for the honour of his majesty, when -he was driven from his high estate; Haman was full -when God emptied him even to the dregs. And the -great man of the earth, at the last, shall come to his -end, just as he has planted the tabernacles of his palaces -in the glorious holy mountain.</p> -<p class="pnext">It is solemn; but it is as wisdom would have it, and -as faith deeply approves it. God is justified in His -sayings, and overcomes when He is judged.</p> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="pfirst">Happy I desire to find this meditation. Where there -is much conflict of thought and judgment among the -saints, it is grateful to the soul to turn to subjects of -<em class="italics">common</em> interest and delight; and when the scene -around is getting full of man's inventions and man's -importance, it is well, to look to those regions of light -and purity, where God, supreme and all-sufficient, will -gather together all things in Christ, both which are in -heaven and which are on earth. Regions of light and -purity indeed, where all will tell of intimacy or nearness, -and yet of the full sense of the position of the Creator and -the creature, the Sanctifier and the sanctified. In many -a delightful page of God's Word is this brightly reflected. -The Lord dwelt in the midst of the camp of Israel -while at rest, and, as it took its journey, went along -with it, whether by night or by day, whether the road -lay right onward, or turned back to the mountain or the -sea. But still He was <em class="italics">God</em>, the Lord of the camp.</p> -<p class="pnext">How does all that commend itself to our souls! We -bow to this. We rejoice to know that He dwells in a -light that no man can approach unto, and yet that He -has walked through the cities and villages of earth; that -He is One whom no man hath seen, nor can see, and -yet that none less than the One who is in His bosom -has declared Him to us, been in the midst of us, our -Kinsman in the flesh, as well as Jehovah's Fellow.</p> -<p class="pnext">His supreme authority, as Lord, is infinite; His distance -and holiness, as God, are infinite. And yet He is -"Head over all things <em class="italics">to</em> the Church," and God Himself -is "for us." At the very moment of His commanding -Moses and Joshua to take their shoes from their feet, -because of His presence, He was manifesting Himself to -them in symbols or characters significant of the deepest -sympathy, and of the most devoted service. Exodus iii; -Joshua v.</p> -<p class="pnext">But enough. I will not pursue these thoughts any -further. Yet in the days of increasing gloom and -perplexity, like the present, the soul is the more sent to -the sure hiding-place of safety, or to the sunny Pisgah -heights of hope and observation. It gets the more -accustomed to meditate on the strength of those foundations -which God has put under our feet-—the intimacy -of that communion into which He has even now -introduced our hearts-—and the brightness of those -prospects which He has set before our eyes.</p> -<p class="pnext">I only ask, beloved, Are we pressing, in desire, after -this portion? Are we unsatisfied with all in comparison -with it? Are we refusing to form any purpose, or -to entertain any prospect, short of this? In Psalm -lxxxiv. the heart of the worshipper is still <em class="italics">on the way</em>, -unsatisfied, though he have "pools," and "rain," and -"strength" of the Lord, till he reach Zion. In Psalm -xc. all which the man of God sees is the vanity of -human life and the "return" of the Lord. He does -not anticipate changes and improvements in the condition -of things, but looks to being "made glad" and -of being "satisfied" at the "return" of Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">Is this our mind? I again ask. Are we still prisoners -of hope, refusing to let anything change the -expectant attitude of the soul? The Holy Ghost is -given to us, not to change that, but to strengthen it. -His very presence does but nourish present dissatisfaction -of heart, and the longings of hope and desire. -He causes the saint to "abound in hope," and gives -breadth and compass to the cry, "Come, Lord Jesus." -Spirit of truth, the other Comforter, as He is, He -does not show Himself for the Bridegroom, nor propose -to make His refreshings "the marriage supper -of the Lamb." The energy of hope, the desirings of -the soul after our still unmanifested Lord, only speak -the Spirit's presence in us the more clearly and blessedly. -It is His very design and workmanship. He draws us -forth to hope to the end for the grace that is to be -brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ.</p> -<p class="pnext">And is He, beloved, our object? The heart well -knows the power of that which is its object. Do we -make Jesus such? Do we find, in ourselves, anything of -that sickness of hope of which we read in Scripture? -And are we able to say, "When He giveth quietness, -who then can make trouble?"</p> -<p class="pnext">May the Spirit shed abroad more and more, in the -heart of each of us, these and the like affections. -And to Him that loved us, and washed us from our -sins in His own blood, be glory and dominion for ever! -Amen.</p> -<blockquote> -<div> -<div class="line-block outermost"> -<div class="line"> </div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Bride of the Lamb! awake, awake!</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Why sleep for sorrow now?</div> -</div> -<div class="line">The hope of glory, Christ, is thine,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">A child of glory thou.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">Thy spirit through the lonely night,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">From earthly joy apart,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Hath sigh'd for One that's far away,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The Bridegroom of thy heart.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">But see, the night is waning fast,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">The breaking morn is near,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">And Jesus comes with voice of love,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Thy drooping heart to cheer.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">He comes; for, oh, His yearning heart</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">No more can bear delay,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">To scenes of full, unmingled joy</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">To call His Bride away.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">This earth, the scene of all His woe,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">A homeless wild to thee,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">Full soon upon His heav'nly throne,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Its rightful King shall see.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">Thou too shalt reign, He will not wear</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">His crown of joy alone,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">And earth His royal Bride shall see</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">Beside Him on the throne.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -<div class="line">Then weep no more, 'tis all thine own,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">His crown, His joy divine,</div> -</div> -<div class="line">And sweeter far than all beside,</div> -<div class="inner line-block"> -<div class="line">He, He Himself is thine.</div> -<div class="line"> </div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</blockquote> -<div class="vspace" style="height: 4em"> -</div> -<div class="container footnotes smaller"> -<table class="docutils footnote-group" frame="void" rules="none"> -<colgroup><col class="label" /><col /></colgroup> -<tbody valign="top"> -<tr class="footnote" id="id2"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id1">[1]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">I do not, however, assume that Lamech was a murderer; but he -could identify himself with such. With Paul, he could, in the sense -of what he was before God, speak of himself as chief of sinners. -And we know also that the repentant Remnant of the latter day will, -in their confession, quite take the place of blood-guiltiness after this -manner. They will look to Him whom they pierced. They will, in -the spirit of Daniel or Nehemiah, make themselves one with the -guilty nation.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id4"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id3">[2]</a></td><td><p class="first pfirst">Some have spoken of the Jews, as guilty of the blood of Christ, -so as to have betrayed the principle of self-righteousness condemned -here. And yet I doubt not that there is a sense in which the Jews -are--in a special sense--connected with that sin in the divine judgment. -The land of the Jews is the distinguished field of blood; the -blood of Jesus, in a great sense, is specially on them and their -children. And so, like Cain, that people are under the special -securities of God. And further; that blood is to be cleansed from off -their land, though it now so stains it. Joel iii. 21.</p> -<p class="last pnext">And still further; the language of Lamech, I also judge, is mystical -or typical, intimating the repentance of the Jews who shed the blood, -after generations of unbelief and hardness of heart. See note, p. 20.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id6"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id5">[3]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Such passages as Eph. i. 10 and Col. i. 20 tell us that both the -heavens and the earth are equally the scene of divine purposes. And -the great argument in Rom. xi. instructs us about those purposes, and -the ways and times of their accomplishment.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id8"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id7">[4]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">What I say of this antediluvian family is only as we see them in -Genesis v. I doubt not, as under every trial of man, failure and -corruption are witnessed. But I speak merely of their standing and -testimony as given to us here. Sons and daughters, as we are told, -were born to them, generation after generation, and seeds of apostasy -were sown and sprang up among them, I doubt not. But this does -not at all affect the lesson we get from this fifth chapter.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id10"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id9">[5]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">I am not careful to apply all this, as I believe it may be applied. -I rather leave it in the way of a suggestion. But it does seem to me -that the Lord, <em class="italics">speaking of the Jewish election</em>, takes Noah for His -text or type (Matt. xxiv.); while the apostle, <em class="italics">addressing the Church</em>, -takes his language the rather from the translation of Enoch. 1 Thess. -iv. 17; 2 Thess. ii. 1. For the Jewish remnant, like Noah, will be -carried through the judgment-—the saints now gathering will be in -the sphere out of which the judgment is to be poured. For we are -taught again and again, as I have noticed before, that exercise of -power in that day, in company with the Lord, is part of the glory of -the saints. See Col. iii. 4; Rev. ii. 26; xvii. 14; xix. 14.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id12"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id11">[6]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">It has been justly said by another, that the principle of <em class="italics">government</em> -was represented in Noah; that Adam had been the representative -head of <em class="italics">creation</em>, and that Noah is the same now of <em class="italics">government</em>. -And I doubt not, that after the judicial scattering from Babel, the -nations became associations in which God still recognized the sword -of justice and the seat of government, which therefore are still to be -exercised, and ought still to be religiously owned and reverenced.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id14"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id13">[7]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">As intimating blessed and distinct actions among the Persons of -the Godhead, according to covenant arrangements, we may remember -Messiah's words in Isa. xlviii.--"And now hath the Lord God and -His Spirit sent me." What words! how full of deep, counselled, and -ordered grace towards sinners! And they are quite according to the -structure of things in the Gospels--for there not only does the baptism -of Jesus but many passages tell us or show us, according to this word -of the prophet, that the mission and ministry of the Lord Jesus were -under the ordaining of God and the anointing of the Holy Ghost;--the -Lord God and His Spirit sent the Son, the Christ or Messiah.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id16"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id15">[8]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Just like the throne of David. That throne is for the present -in the dust--the crown of Judah is cast down--but the promise of -the Lord to it is remembered, as is His promise to the earth. This -analogy Scripture giveth us in Jer. xxxiii. Dishonoured now or made -the sport of the wicked, the promises to the earth and to David's -throne are still in full remembrance, and, in their season, will be -accomplished.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id18"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id17">[9]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The family of Cain was the contradiction of this, in those -antediluvian days. They tilled the ground for something more than -livelihood. Their tillage led to the culture and advancement of -the world as a system of gain and pleasure. And thus were the -two families distinguished--the one was formed by faith, or by -obedience to the revelation of God; the other by the despite of it, as -the world is to this day.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id20"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id19">[10]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">In their day, Abraham's seed, or the nation of Israel, are again -an <em class="italics">earthly</em> people; and they exhibit the very opposite of all this. -They <em class="italics">smite</em> the nations of Canaan; and instead of being called <em class="italics">from</em> -kindred and country, they are called <em class="italics">to</em> all such things; men, women, -children, and even cattle (for not a hoof was to be left behind), -journeyed from Egypt to Canaan--from a land of strangers to their -own inheritance.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id22"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id21">[11]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The Lord Jesus, in His day, acknowledged this same pledge or -symptom of the kingdom. For when the Greeks came up to the -feast and asked to see Him, as the Gentile here seeks Abraham, His -thoughts are immediately upon His glory. He knows indeed that -glory is to be reached only by His death, and so He testifies; but still, -His thoughts go out at once to the glory. See John xii. 23.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id24"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id23">[12]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">There are <em class="italics">mysteries</em> as well as <em class="italics">illustrations of faith</em> in these things; -but I cannot follow them here. The offer of Isaac on Moriah, we -none of us doubt, is a mystery. So, I surely know, is the action of -Hagar and Ishmael in chapter xxi. It is the picture of the present -<em class="italics">outcast</em> but <em class="italics">preserved</em> Jew--a homeless fugitive, destined, however, for -future purposes of mercy. See Gal. iv. 25. But I follow not these -things particularly here.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id26"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id25">[13]</a></td><td><p class="first pfirst">In the mystic history of the earth given to us in Lev. xxiii. the -Church is brought in as the "poor" and the "stranger" gleaning in -another man's field, in ver. 22. But as she entered that field so she -left it. She was the poor one, and the stranger, and the gleaner in -another's field, to the end. The field never becomes her property.</p> -<p class="last pnext">Looked at in the light of this beautiful figure, what is Christendom -under God's eye?</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id28"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id27">[14]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The Lord Jesus, in the days of His flesh, acted as the God who, -of old, had called Abraham. <em class="italics">For He put in the supreme claims of -such an one.</em> "He that loveth father or mother more than Me," says -He, "is not worthy of Me." And again, "Follow Me, and let the -dead bury their dead." Who but God can step in between us and -such relationships, such obligations and services? Duties and affections -like these are more than sanctioned by nature; they are enforced -by law--law of God Himself. But the call of God is supreme, and -Jesus asserted it in the day of His humiliation here.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id30"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id29">[15]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The same mystery, I doubt not, is presented in the marriage of -Moses and the Ethiopian, and in that also of Solomon with Pharaoh's -daughter. Moses' second wife stands, in dignity, below his Zipporah, -who shines in peculiar glory at the mount of God in Exodus xviii.; -and Pharaoh's daughter, though fully acknowledged by the king at -Jerusalem, would not be given a place in the city of David.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id32"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id31">[16]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">See the paper on "Enoch," pp. 32-37, where certain dispensational -purposes of God, in their differences, are considered.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id34"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id33">[17]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">As to the common sin of Abraham and Isaac touching the denial -of their wives, calling them their sisters, see "Abraham," p. 122.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id36"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id35">[18]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Jeroboam in his day took his own way to reach the promise of -God touching the kingdom of the ten tribes, by the prophet Ahijah--and -he delayed his own mercy; just as Jacob does in this chapter. -Nay, further. Jeroboam has to be an exile in Egypt till the death of -Solomon, because of this; as Jacob has for twenty years to be an -exile in Padan, for the same evil. See 1 Kings xi.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id38"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id37">[19]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">It is said in the Jewish writings that he was seventy-seven.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id40"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id39">[20]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">This parcel of ground, at last, becomes only a burying-place, like -Machpelah; but it had not, at first, been purchased as such, as Machpelah -was.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id42"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id41">[21]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">In Joseph obtaining the rights of the firstborn, there is something -besides grace; but I do not notice it here.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id44"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id43">[22]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Neither Pharaoh, nor Pharaoh's house, nor any in Egypt seem -ever to have been told of the sin of the brethren.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id46"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id45">[23]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Zaphnath-paaneah, in the old Egyptian tongue, is said to have -signified "the saviour of the world"; in the Hebrew, as we understand, -it might be rendered "the revealer of secrets."</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id48"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id47">[24]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The title now bestowed was afterwards realized, when the family -estate, the land of Canaan, came to be divided between the tribes; for -Joseph then gets two portions in his two sons, who are treated as though -they had been two distinct sons of Jacob.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id50"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id49">[25]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">God is afterwards called "the God of Israel," as before He had -been called the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob. Because -His covenant was with the nation of Israel.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id52"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id51">[26]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">All orders of His creatures in all places of His dominions witness -Him as the <em class="italics">living</em> God; but in the history of redeemed sinners He is -witnessed as the living God in <em class="italics">victory</em>. This is His glory; and resurrection -should be prized by us as the display of it. The sepulchre -with the grave-clothes lying in order, and the napkin which had been -about the head, are the trophies of such victory. John xx. 6, 7. The -history of redeemed sinners celebrates Him thus. To hesitate about -resurrection is to betray ignorance of God, and of the power that is His. -See Matthew xxii. 29; 1 Cor. xv. 34.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id54"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id53">[27]</a></td><td><p class="first pfirst">The children of light should reckon upon the attempts of the -powers of darkness against them. A sudden moment of conflict -should not therefore surprise us. For we are set to be the scene -or theatre of their defeat by Christ. "It is our illumination" that -exposes us. That is its proper natural operation. The more we are -in the light, I may say, the more exposed we are. It was Adam's -creature-beauty, Job's memorial with God, and the Apostle's attachment -to Christ, that laid them open to Satan.</p> -<p class="last pnext">But let me add, that a "messenger of Satan" may be sent forth -from the presence of God upon either the <em class="italics">flesh</em> or the <em class="italics">heart</em> of man. -An evil spirit from the Lord came upon Saul, and a lying spirit -came upon the prophets of Ahab. 1 Sam. xvi.; 1 Kings xxii. The -Lord was beginning solemn acts of <em class="italics">judgment</em>, and, therefore, these -messengers of Satan were sent forth upon the <em class="italics">heart</em> of those who -were righteously under judgment. But other messengers of Satan -reach only the <em class="italics">body</em> or <em class="italics">circumstances</em>, as in the case of Paul and of our -patriarch. And this is <em class="italics">discipline</em> merely, and not judgment.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id56"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id55">[28]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The knowledge of truth alone will never ensure happy or profitable -ministry. If we draw merely from our stores or possessions of -knowledge, we shall find ourselves confounded. The freshness of the -Spirit in us, and the exercise of our gift under Him, at the time of -ministry, are also needful.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id58"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id57">[29]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The same Hebrew word signifies kinsman, redeemer, and avenger.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id60"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id59">[30]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The Kinsman <em class="italics">delivering</em> and the Kinsman <em class="italics">avenging</em> deals with an -enemy or a wrong-doer, and not, as in the case of <em class="italics">repurchasing</em>, with a -righteous claimant. There is, however, this difference: in the case -of delivering, the Kinsman only rescues his brother or relative out of -the hand of the enemy; in the case of avenging, he visits the blood -of his brother or relative upon the head of the enemy. Christ will -deliver us from the hand of death at the <em class="italics">beginning</em> of the Kingdom -(1 Corinthians xv. 54), He will avenge us upon the head of death at -the <em class="italics">close</em> of the Kingdom. 1 Corinthians xv. 26.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id62"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id61">[31]</a></td><td><p class="first pfirst">I do not regard Job so much as a <em class="italics">type</em>, but rather as a <em class="italics">sample</em>. -His calling was the common calling, as a dead and risen man. Every -saint, now gathering for heavenly glory, is such. Israel in the latter -day will be as such, and the whole system of the millennial age. -The Lord Jesus holds all things, and exercises His offices, as the One -that was dead and is alive again. But I judge it to be more fitting -to speak of Job as a sample of the common calling, than as a type. -I could not, however, object to the expression, were it used by others.</p> -<p class="pnext">Job learnt his lesson through sufferings. The Lord, I may say, -did the same. Hebrews ii. iv. v. He was made perfect for His high -functions in that way. Christ's compassions could not have been -<em class="italics">priestly</em>, till He became a man, partaker of the flesh and blood of the -children, and suffered as such. And Job's history may be read as the -expression or foreshadowing of all this.</p> -<p class="last pnext">So Israel. They will be as a people who, having destroyed themselves, -have found their help in God. Hosea presents them in that -character. Their language in chapter xiv. is the language of such a -people. And Job's history may be regarded as the expression or -foreshadowing of this also. He revives, he grows again as the lily, -and his branches spread, at the end, as Israel and Israel's branches will, -according to their prophet. So that we may speak of Job as a type. -But I still feel and judge it to be more fitting, to present him as a -sample of us all, in the common faith, as dead and risen with Christ.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id64"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id63">[32]</a></td><td><p class="first pfirst">It has been observed by another, that Satan is <em class="italics">always</em> defeated. -This thought seems to get the most striking confirmations from Scripture, -beyond the cases mentioned above.</p> -<p class="pnext">He is the instrument, the willing instrument, of destroying the -flesh; but that destruction ends in <em class="italics">the saving of the spirit</em>. 1 Cor. v. -5. He receives, gladly receives, one that is judicially delivered over -to him; but all that ends in <em class="italics">such an one learning not to blaspheme</em>. -1 Tim. i. 20. He sends forth his messengers as thorns in the flesh, -delighting to do so, as being bent on mischief, having been "a murderer -from the beginning;" but this still works good, for <em class="italics">the servant -of Christ is thereby kept from undue exaltation</em>. 2 Cor. xii. 7.</p> -<p class="pnext">These are illustrious exhibitions of the devil being <em class="italics">always</em> defeated. -Because they show this--that he lends himself directly to his own -overthrow. His own weapon is turned against himself. The one -whom he assails is, by the very assault, given strength or virtue -against him.</p> -<p class="last pnext">Happy assurance! our great adversary is never victorious! It is the -pricks he kicks against.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id66"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id65">[33]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Affection begets confidence. Rebecca committed herself to Eliezer, -<em class="italics">never asking her father or brother for an escort</em>. So the more singly -we love Jesus, the more confidently will our souls trust Him and His -supplies for us alone, without confidence in the flesh or anything else.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id68"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id67">[34]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">"Till <em class="italics">she</em> please," it ought to be, as the "love" is the female in -this book. Ch. ii. 7; iii. 5; vii. 4.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id70"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id69">[35]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">It is commonly interpreted as though Paul, in Gal. ii. 20, were -expressing his <em class="italics">devotedness</em> to his Master. But this is not so. This -robs the verse of its exquisite glory. He is rather speaking of the -joy of his soul in the knowledge of what a devoted and glorious Lover -he had.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id72"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id71">[36]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Another once observed to me, that in the Canticles, the Beloved -expresses <em class="italics">directly to herself</em> the beauties He discerns in her; the -betrothed one never does this, but recites His beauties <em class="italics">in the ears of -others</em>; and further observed, that there was great moral propriety in -this, something quite according to the dictate of a delicate affection.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id74"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id73">[37]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">The saints of the present age, being heavenly in their calling, -should be heavenly also in the spirit of their mind, and consciously, -in all their tastes and desires, only as strangers, and not at home, in -the earth; a people, as another once said, not as looking up from -earth to heaven, but as looking down from heaven to earth.</p> -</td></tr> -<tr class="footnote" id="id76"> -<td class="label"><a class="fn-backref" href="#id75">[38]</a></td><td><p class="first last pfirst">Another once observed, that the moment of highest rapture in -heaven is not when the saints <em class="italics">wear</em> their crowns, but when they -<em class="italics">cast them down</em> before the throne. 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