Page images
PDF
EPUB

A DAY IN THY COURTS IS BETTER THAN A THOUSAND.

I HAD RATHER BE A DOOR-KEEPER IN

SECTION 12.-UPON THE APPROACH OF THE FIRST PASSOVER, JESUS GOES UP TO JERUSALEM: HE CASTS THE TRADERS OUT OF THE TEMPLE: AND WHEN THE JEWS DEMAND OF HIM A SIGN, HE FORETELLS THE RESURRECTION OF

HIS BODY IN THREE DAYS' TIME. MIRACLES ARE WROUGHT, AND MANY BELIEVE UPON JESUS. NICODEMUS VISITS HIM BY NIGHT. John ii. 13-iii. 21. (G. 11.) Jesus attends the passover at the commencement of his public ministry; he casts the buyers and sellers out of the temple. John ii. 13-22.—At Jerusalem. 13, .4 And the Jews' passover was at-hand, and Jesus went-up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that-sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers-of-money 15 KEρμаTIOтas sitting: and when-he-had-made a-scourge of small-cords, he-drove them-all out-of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured-out the changers' money 16 TWV KONλUBLOTшV-TO KEρμа, and overthrew the tables; and said unto-them that-sold doves, Take these-things hence; make not my Father's house an-house of-merchandise. 17 And his disciples remembered that it-was written, The zeal of thine house hath-eaten

18

-'me'-up.

Then answered the Jews and said unto-him, What sign shewest-thou unto-us, seeing

SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATIONS.

13. Jews' passover-for its institution, see Ex. xii. 1-28-the first of the three great feasts, De. xvi. 1-8at which all the males were to appear, ver. 16-as to subsequent passovers, during the ministry of Christ, see 'Notes,' infra.

14. found in the temple-the people from a great distance had to purchase in Jerusalem the things necessary for the feast, De. xiv. 25-the sellers made it an occasion of scandalous abuse, Je. vii. 11. doves-required to be offered, Le. xiv. 22-offered by Mary, Lu. ii. 24, § 4, p. 24.

15. drove-so Nehemiah turned out Tobiah, Ne. xiii. 4-9-it had been predicted of the Lord, Mal. iii. 1-5-the cleansing of the sanctuary foretold, Da. viii. 14-like a house smitten with a fretting leprosy, it was thereafter to be removed, comp. Mt. xxiv. 2, § 86, with Le. xiv. 44, .5-another preparatory cleansing, Mt. xxi. 12, .3, § 83.

16. my Father's house-not for a particular nation, but for the children of God, of all people, Is. lvi. 3-8 -its desirableness, when properly appropriated, Ps. lxxxiv. 10; cxxii.; Is. ii. 3.

house of merchandise-'in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite (merchantman) in the house of the Lord of hosts,' Zec. xiv. 21.

17. written-'the zeal of thine house,' &c., Ps. lxix. 9-the house of God, which is the church of the living God,' 1 Ti. iii. 15, .6-which he hath purchased with his own blood,' Ac. xx. 28-' for even Christ our passover is sacrificed (or, slain) for us,' 1 Co. v. 7. 18. sign-see Miracle,' Sect. xi. p. 80-signs referred to, Ex. iv. 17; De. vi. 22; 1 Sa. ii. 34; 1 Ki. xiii. 3-5; Is. vii. 11, .4-a sign asked, Mt. xii. 38, § 31; xvi. 1, § 47; Lu. xi. 16, § 62.

NOTES.

13. Jews' passover.-See ADDENDA, Passover,' p. 88. The best commentators, ancient and modern, are generally agreed that John mentions four passovers, as occurring during Christ's ministry, of which this is reckoned the first: that mentioned at ch. v. 1, § 23, as the second: that at ch. vi. 4, § 40, as the third: and that at which Christ suffered, the fourth, §§ 81-92. Thus the united ministry of John and Jesus will extend to three years and a half.-See ADDENDA, Jesus' Ministry in Judæa,' p. 87.

Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Every male among the Jews was required to appear at this feast. 14. Found in the temple.-See ADDENDA, Temple,' Sect. i., p. 8. The transaction here recorded is in almost all respects similar to Mt. xxi. 12, .3, § 83.

Sold oxen, &c. Bóas, i.e. cattle. There must have been a grand market, for 256,500 victims are mentioned by Josephus as being offered at the passover. And it is certain, from the rabbinical writers, that immense traffic was carried on in beasts and birds for victims, and much extortion was practised, and a great part of the profit thence arising came into the hands of the priests.

Changers of money. The current coin was Roman. Yet the law required that every man should pay a yearly tribute to the service of the sanctuary of half a shekel, Ex. xxx. 11-.6. This was a Jewish coin. Of course the money-changers would demand a small sum for the exchange; and among so many thousands as came up to the great feasts, it would be a very profitable employment, and one which no doubt soon gave rise to much fraud and oppression.

15. A scourge of small cords. The original word implies that these cords were made of twisted rushes or reeds; probably the ancient material for making ropes, such as were used for tying up the cattle. PRACTICAL

[14 ver. In the church of God, we should fear a self-seeking rest, which the Lord will certainly disturb and pour contempt upon, as he did in the temple where the changers of money were sitting.]

15 ver. The Lord may be pleased to make use of means small and despised for the effecting of great and salutary changes.

He drove, Baλs, inay be understood not of forcible ejection by stripes, but of strict and authoritative injunction, driving out the oxen and beasts only with the whip.

Poured out the changers' money, To Kapua, the small money.' Nobody resisted; for, by a law of the Jews, profaners of the temple might be killed or scourged by any person.

[If it be asked how it was that those engaged in this traffic so readily yielded to Jesus of Nazareth, that they left their gains and property, and fled from the temple at the command of one so obscure as he was, it may be replied: 1st. That their consciences reproved them for their impiety, and they could not set up the appearance of self-defence. 2nd. It was customary to cherish a profound regard for the authority of a prophet. There was something in his manner, as well as in his doctrine, that awed men, and made them tremble at his presence.]

17. The zeal of thine house. The zeal of thine house means extraordinary concern for the temple of God; intense solicitude that the worship should be pure. Hath eaten me up. Hath surpassed all other feelings, so that it may be said to be the one great absorbing affection and desire of the mind.

18. What sign, &c. What miracle dost thou work? [He was reforming, by his authority, the temple. It was natural to ask by what authority this was done; and as they had been accustomed to miracles in the times of Moses, and Elijah, and other prophets; so they demanded evidence that he had authority thus to cleanse the house of God. Our Lord, in the next verse, enigmatically adverts to this question, intimating that, by his resurrection from the dead, they should have abundant proof of his Divine mission.] REFLECTIONS.

16 ver. God is to be worshipped by all people, as our Father in heaven-as the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[17 ver. The honour of God's house does not consist in the costliness of its worship, or the crowding thereunto of worldly men; but in the worshipping of God in spirit and in truth.']

WHY IS THE HOUSE OF GOD FORSAKEN?-Neh. xiii. 11.

[81

THE HOUSE OF MY GOD, THAN TO DWELL IN THE TENTS OF WICKEDNESS.-Psalm 1xxxiv. 10.

WHAT? KNOW YE NOT THAT YOUR BODY IS THE TEMPLE OF THE HOLY GHOST

JOHN ii. 19-25.

19 that thou-doest these-things? Jesus answered and said unto-them, Destroy Avoare this 20 temple, and in three days I-will-raise- eyepw it-up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was- this temple-in-building, and wilt-thou-rear-it-up eyepes in three 21 days? But he spake of the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he-was-risen from nyepon eK the-dead, his disciples remembered that he-had-said this unto-them; and they-believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had-said.

23

(G. 12.) Miracles are wrought during the passover; many believe upon Jesus.

John ii. 23-5.-At Jerusalem.

Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast-day, many believed in 24 his name, when-they-saw ewpouvres the miracles which he did. But Jesus did-not25 commit entσTEVE himself unto-them, because he knew all men, and needed not that any should-testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATIONS.

19. destroy this temple-his accusation, Mt. xxvi. 60, .1; Mk. xiv. 58, § 89-taunted on the cross, Mt. xxvii. 40, § 91.

this temple-his body: as of old in the temple, so in Christ dwelleth all the fulness,' &c., Col. ii. 9-believers in him are the temple of God, 1 Co. iii. 16; vi. 19; 2 Co. vi. 16-this body, like that of Jesus, the Jews sought to destroy, Ac. viii. 1; ix. 1, 2.

in three days-on the third day he arose, Mt. xxviii. 1-8, § 93-so also his people Israel are to be raised up on the third day: after two days he will revive us. In the third he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, &c., Ho. vi. 2, 3-comp. with Is. xxvi. 19-Jesus' first prediction of his death and resurrection-see § 50, and § 52

21. temple of his body-see above, on 'This temple.' 22. believed the scripture-Jesus' resurrection from the dead was the grand confirmation of what had been written respecting the raising up of his people, see above, In three days!

24. did not commit himself-when they would make him a king, Jno. vi. 15, § 41.

25. knew what was in man, Jno. i. 45-8, § 10; iv. 29, § 13; v. 42, § 23; vi. 64. § 43-he knoweth our frame," Ps. ciii. 14-O Lord, thou hast searched,' &c., cxxxix. -I the Lord search the heart,' Je. xvii. 10-Jesus knew the thoughts of men, Mt. ix. 4, § 22; Lu. vi. 8, § 25; Jno. xvi. 30, § 87-neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight,' He. iv. 13-see also Rev. ii. 23.

NOTES.

19. Destroy this temple. [rov vaov TOUTOV, this very temple, perhaps pointing to his body at the same time. This was a somewhat obscure sentence, but of that sort which is not unfrequently used by the best teachers, for the purpose of exciting the attention and sharpening the perception of their auditors. He spoke obscurely of his death, that he might not discourage his disciples; and, to vindicate his authority and dignity, appealed to his resurrection.]

The word temple, or dwelling, was not unfrequently nsed by the Jews to denote the body, as being the resi dence of the spirit. Christians are not unfrequently called the temple of God, as being those in whom the Holy Spirit dwells on earth.-See Scrip. Illus.,' supra. [In three days I will raise it up.-See ver. 18. A full and irrefragable proof of Divinity, since such language would be unsuitable to any created being.] 20. Then said the Jews, &c. They understood him as speaking of the temple at Jerusalem. What he said here was all the evidence adduced on his trial. [The language which he used was often that of parables, or metaphor; and as they sought to misunderstand him, and pervert his language, so he often left them to their own delusions, as he himself says. See Mt. xiii. 13, § 32.]

Forty and six years, &c. The temple in which they then were was that which was commonly called the second temple, built after the return of the Jews from Babylon.-See ADDENDA, 'Temple,' § 1, p. 8. As Herod began to repair the temple sixteen years before the birth of Jesus, and as this conversation took place in the thirtieth year of his age, so the time occupied in the rebuilding of the temple was forty and six years.

[22. They believed the scripture. ETLOTEVOAY TH yeapn. i. e., by a comparison of those parts of the Old Testament, including Ps. xvi. 10, For thou wilt not

leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption,' which predict the Messiah's rising from the dead, with the words of Jesus, treasured up in their minds, and the fact of his resurrection, they thoroughly believed what the scriptures declared, and were convinced of the Divine. mission of Jesus. Horeb here simply signifies to believe, though in the next verse it is used, as generally in the New Test., of faith in Jesus as the Messiah.] 23. Feast day. During the celebration of the passover feast, which lasted eight days.-See § 6, p. 43.

Many believed. Their faith, however, as appears from what follows, was but external and historical; not an internal and vital one. The understanding was convinced, but the will was not subdued to obedience.

The miracles.-See ADDENDA, Miracle,' § 11, p. 80. What these were, we know not. But from this passage, and ch. iv. 45, § 14, and vi. 2, § 40, it is certain Christ worked many miracles not recorded by the sacred writers.-See ch. xxi. 25, § 100.

24. Did not commit himself. The word here translated commit is the same as in ver. 23 is translated believed. It means to put trust or confidence in. Jesus did not put trust or reliance on them. They were not yet in a fit state to receive their king, and to act worthy of his kingdom.

25. Should testify of man. character of any man.

Should give him the

He knew what was, &c. He knew the heart of man. This passage supplies one of the strongest proofs of Christ's Divinity: omniscience being the attribute alone of Deity.-See 1 Ki. viii. 39, Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men.')

PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS.

[18 ver. We should sincerely use the means we already have of ascertaining the truth; else increase of evidence may only be to our greater condemnation, as it was to the unbelieving Jews.]

[19 ver. As it was in the temple that God more especially met with man, so was it a type of Immanuel, God with us,' as well as of his body the church. Now ye are the body of Christ,' 1 Co. xii. 27. Let us contemplate in Jesus the example of those living temples, whose worship is acceptable to God; and who shall be brought together into one holy temple in the Lord. Let us see in our

82]

[blocks in formation]

I RECEIVE NOT HONOUR FROM MEN.- John v. 41.

WHICH IS IN YOU, WHICH YE HAVE OF GOD, AND YE ARE NOT YOUR OWN?-1 Cor. vi. 19.

13

LISAIAH XXIX. continued.] Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept 14 of men: therefore, behold, "I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent 15 men shall be hid. Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who 16 knoweth us? Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing framed say of him that framed it, 17 He had no understanding? Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest? 18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscu19 rity, and out of darkness. The meek also b shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men 20 shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: 21 that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn 22 aside the just for a thing of nought. Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, 23 neither shall his face now wax pale. But when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of 24 Israel. They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.

19. THIS TEMPLE.

his body: as of old in the temple, so in Christ :-Col. ii. 9, For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the,' &c.

[ocr errors]

believers in him are the temple of God:-1 Co. iii. 16, Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?'-vi. 19, What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?'-2 Co. vi. 16, And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall,' &c. this body, like that of Jesus, the Jews sought to destroy: -Ac. viii. 1, And Saul was consenting unto his d.,' &c.-ix. 1, 2. 1, And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2, and desired of him letters to,' &c. IN THREE DAYS.

on the third day he arose :-Mt. xxviii. 1-8, § 93. so also his people Israel, &c. :-Hos. vi. 2, 3. 2, After two days will he,' &c.-see p. (41), AFTER THREE DAYS.' Compare with Is. xxvi. 19, Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead."

See Scripture Illustrations,' page opposite. 25. KNEW WHAT WAS IN MAN.

see Scripture Illustrations,' page opposite.-Ps. ciii. 14, For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth,' &c. PSALM CXXXIX. O LORD, thou hast searched 2 me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar 3 off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, 4 and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it 5 altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, 6 and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. 7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I 8 flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou 9 art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and 10 dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold 11 me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; 12 even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness d hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike 13 to thee. For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast 14 covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous a Heb. I will add.' b Heb. shall add.' or 'body.' Heb. way of pain,' or 'grief' 'drunken.' * Or, ' pelican.' Or, ostriches.'

are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. 15 My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest 16 parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, 17 when as yet there was none of them. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is 18 the sum of them! If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am 19 still with thee. Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O 20 God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men. For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies 21 take thy name in vain. Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that 22 rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred: 23 I count them mine enemies. Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24 and see if there be any f wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Je. xvii. 10, I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.'

Jesus knew the thoughts of men:-see Scripture Illustrations,' page opposite.-He. iv. 13, Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with

whom we have to do.'

see also Rev. ii. 23, And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.'

PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS.

19 ver. 1 Co. xii. 27, Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.'

ISAIAH XXXIV. Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and 8 all that is therein; the world, and all things that come 2 forth of it. For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them 3 to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood. 4 And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree. 5 For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of 6 my curse, to judgment. The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, 7 and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea. And the unicorns shall come down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be i soaked with blood, and their dust made fat with fat8 ness. For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion. 9 And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land 10 thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever. But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, 12 and the stones of emptiness. They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there, 13 and all her princes shall be nothing. And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof and it shall be an habitation of 14 dragons, and a court for lowls. m The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the "screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest. There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.

11

15

16

Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, noue shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath 17 gathered them. And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.

Or, winnowest.' d Heb. 'darkeneth not.' • Or, 'strength,' 5 Heb. the fulness thereof. h Or, rhinocerots." í Or, " Heb. 'daughters of the owl.' "Or, night monster.'

1. NICODEMUS, innocent blood.'-He. ix. 22-8-see ch. ix. p. (60). 22, And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. 23, It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24, For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 25, nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 26, for then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27, And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 28, so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him | shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.'- Pe. i. 19, 20. 19, But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20, who verily was foreordained before the founda- | tion of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.'-See Scripture Illustrations,' page opposite.

2. THESE MIRACLES THAT THOU DOEST.-See Scripture Illustrations, page opposite.

referred to by Peter:-Ac. ii. 22, Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know."

[blocks in formation]

but a new creature.'

cometh down, &c. :-Ja. i. 17, .8. 17, 'Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 18, Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures."

quickened us together with Christ:-Ep. ii. 4, 5. 4, · But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).'

born again of incorruptible seed :—1 Pe. i. 23, Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.'

and I will put my spirit within you:-Eze. xxxvi. 27,.8: after which will come the promised blessing in that kingdom which is righteousness and peace:-ver. 28-38.

EZEKIEL XXXVI. Also, thou son of man, prophesy
unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains
2 of Israel, hear the word of the LORD: thus saith the
Lord GOD; Because the enemy hath said against you,
Aha, even the ancient high places are ours in posses-
3sion :
therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the
Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate,
and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be
a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and "ye
are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy
4 of the people: therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear
the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GoD
to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and
to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities
that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision
to the residue of the heathen that are round about;
5 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire
of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of
the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have ap-
pointed my land into their possession with the joy of
all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out
6 for a prey. Prophesy therefore concerning the land
of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the
hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the
Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and
in my fury, because ye have borne the shame of the
7 heathen: therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have
lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are
about you, they shall bear their shame.

8 But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth
your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of
9 Israel; for they are at hand to come. For, behold, I
am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be
10 tilled and sown: and I will multiply men upon you,
all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities
shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded:
a Or, ye are made to come upon the lip of the tongue.
d Or, your.

11 and I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I 12 am the LORD. Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou 13 shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men. Thus saith the Lord GoD; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy 14 nations; therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the 15 Lord GOD. Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord Gop.

16

Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, say17 ing, Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way and by their doings: their way was before me as the un18 cleanness of a removed woman, Wherefore I poured my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had 19 polluted it : and I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: ac20 I judged them. And when they entered unto the cording to their way and according to their doings heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.

21

But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither 22 they went. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, 23 whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord Gor, when I shall be sanctified in you before d their eyes. 24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.

25

Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all 26 your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, 27 and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do 28 them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to 29 be your God. I will also save you from all your unyour fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will

cleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will in30 crease it, and lay no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine 31 among the heathen. Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your 32 iniquities and for your abominations. Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, 33 O house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your ini34 the wastes shall be builded. quities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and And the desolate land 35 all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become 36 fenced, and are inhabited. Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build 37 the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it. Thus saith the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the 33 with men like a flock. house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.

5. WATER AND SPIRIT.

-see above.
sprinkle clean water upon you, &c. :-Eze. xxxvi. 25, .6

For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and
pour water upon him that is thirsty :-Is. xliv. 3, 4. 3,
floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon
thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: 4, and
[Continued see next page.]

b Or, bottoms, or, dales. e Heb. flock of holy things.

Or, cause to fall.

IN CHRIST JESUS NEITHER CIRCUMCISION AVAILETH ANYTHING, NOR UNCIRCUMCISION, BUT A NEW CREATURE.-Gal. vi. 15.

Nicodemus visits Jesus by night. John iii. 1-21.-Jerusalem. 1,2 There was a-man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a-ruler of-the Jews: thesame came to Jesus by-night, and said unto-him, Rabbi, we-know that thou-art-a-teacher ⚫-come from God: for no-man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with 3 him. Jesus answered and said unto-him, Verily, verily, I-say unto-thee, Except a-man 4 be-born again, yevvnon avwbev he-can not see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a-man be-born when-he-is old? can-he enter the-second-time into 5 his mother's womb, and be-born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I-say unto-thee, Except a-man be-born of water and of the Spirit, he-can not enter into the kingdom of SCRIPTURE ILLUSTRATIONS.

1. Nicodemus-(innocent blood) He. ix. 22-.8; 1 Pe. | incorruptible seed, 1 Pe. i. 23-and I will put my i. 19, 20-through Jesus is that new birth, ver. 2, 3, Spirit within you; and ye shall be my people, and I concerning which is the ensuing discourse, ver. 3-21. will be your God,' Eze. xxxvi. 27, .8-after which will 2. by night-some of the chief rulers believed in is righteousness and peace, ver. 28-39. come the promised blessing in that kingdom which him, yet feared the Jews, Jno. xii. 42, § 85. 5. water and Spirit-'sprinkle clean water upon these miracles that thou doest-referred to, Jno. ii. 23, p. 82-his miracles are also referred to by Jesus, you; and a new spirit will I put within you,' Eze. Jno. v. 36, § 23; x. 25, § 56: xv. 21, § 87-by the people, Xxxvi. 25, .6- pour water upon him that is thirsty;' vii. 31, § 55; x. 21, b.-by the Pharisees, ix. 16, § ib.; up, Is. xliv. 3, 4-washing of regeneration, and re'my spirit upon thy seed; and they shall spring xi. 47, § 58-by Peter, Ac. ii. 22. newing,' &c., Tit. iii. 5-it is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life,' Jno. vi. 63, § 43--if any man have not the Spirit of Christ,' &c., Rom. viii. 9.-See as to water and spirit, Jno. iv. 14, 23, .4, § 13, pp. 93, .4; vii. 38, .9. § 55. NOTES.

3. born again-or from above; born, not of blood, but of God, Jno. i. 13, § 7-a new creature,' Ga. vi. 15 -cometh down from the Father of lights;' begat he us with the word of truth,' Ja. i. 17, .8-quickened us together with Christ,' Ep. ii. 4, 5- born again, of

1. Nicodemus. Means 'the innocent blood.' A ruler of the Jews. A professor of laws, and one of the sanhedrim, or great council of the nation. In the rabbinical writings he is described as a man of unbounded wealth, of magnificent liberality, and of piety the most ardent: insomuch that they ascribe to him the working of miracles. His splendid fortunes were attended, they say, with almost as great a reverse as Job's. He is twice mentioned after this as being friendly to our Saviour; in the first instance as advocating his cause, and defending him against the unjust suspicions of the Jews, ch. vii. 50, .1, § 55, and in the second instance as one who came to aid in embalming his body, ch. xix. 39, § 92.

2. We know, &c. Nicodemus seems here to intimate, that others beside himself, among the rulers, believed that Jesus was a teacher come from God,' was vested with extraordinary authority, as being commissioned to deliver some important message relative to the long-promised kingdom of Messiah, which was now expected speedily to appear. Our Lord, who knew what was in man, immediately proceeds to point out the preparation necessary to the enjoyment of the kingdom of God. He tells Nicodemus that he must be born again, must become like a little child, in order to be given at all an entrance into the kingdom By a similar allusion did he afterwards bring down the high looks of his disciples when there was a strife among them which should be greatest, Mt. xviii. 1-4, § 53 3. Except a man. This is a universal form of expression designed to include all mankind. Of every man it may be said, unless he is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. It includes, therefore, men of every character, and rank, and nation, moral and immoral, rich and poor, in office and out of office, old and young, bond and free, the slave and his master, Jew and Gentile. Be born again. yerinen araber, 'be burn from above.'-See on ver. 4.

kingdom of God, unless he is born again, or regene-
rated, and quickened by the Spirit of God; renewed
in the spirit of his mind; has Christ formed in his
heart; becomes a partaker of the Divine nature;
and in all respects a new creature,-another in heart,
principle, practice, and conversation; or, unless he
be born from above, as the word is rendered in ver.
31; that is, by a supernatural power, having the
heavenly image instamped on him, and being called
with an heavenly calling.]
The kingdom of God. Either in this world, or in
that which is to come. The meaning is, that the
kingdom which Jesus was come to set up can only
be enjoyed by building on him as the one founda-
filled with the Spirit of God, that we can attain to
tion. It is only by emptying ourselves, and being
the kingdom of glory.

4. How can a man be born when he is old, &c. It
is said, the expression be born again was in com-
mon use among the Jews. The word with them
meant a change from the state of a heathen to that
of a Jew. But they never used it as applicable to
a Jew, because they supposed that by his birth he
was entitled to all the privileges of the people of
God. Nicodemus may have had no difficulty in ad-
mitting the necessity of a new birth in the case of
the Gentiles, so that they might become the children
of Abraham; but as for those who were the children
of Abraham by natural descent, he could not con-
ceive of their being given anything better than what
they already possessed.
[5. Be born of water, &c. Cleansing is particularly
spoken of by the prophets as a necessary preparation
for reception into blessing, as in Eze. xxxvi. 25-33,
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye
shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all
your idols, will I cleanse you.' So also was it pro-
mised, ver. 27, And I will put my Spirit within you,
and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall
keep my judgments, and do them.' Then after the
people so spoken of are recognized as born again, as
made the Lord's people anew, ver. 28, And ye shall
dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye
shall be my people, and I will be your God."]

PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS.

[By the phrase, our Lord signifies that no man, either as a man, or as a son of Abraham, or as a proselyte to the Jewish religion, can have any true knowledge of, or right unto, the enjoyment of the iii. 2. Although we may have been laboriously engaged through the day, let us not refuse to be at night employed in assisting others, or being ourselves assisted, in inquiries after the kingdom of God. It is not enough that we acknowledge Jesus to be a teacher come from God; we must know what he does teach, and experience the power of his doctrine.

[Ged deals with men as rational beings. He gives us evidence upon which to believe. Thus, as appealing to Divine evidence, we ought to be able to give, like Nicodemus, a reason of the faith that is in us.] [4 ver. Those high in rank and learning are often,

and

like Nicodemus, found very ignorant of the plainest
matters in religion, and start difficulties to Divine
truth which arise from their own absurd views of
what has been spoken.-Let us, if we desire to reign
with Christ in his kingdom, be sure that we are in-
deed born from above, that we are no longer selfish
worldly; but that, from the love of God, we act after
the example of Him who came down from heaven.]
5 ver. It is not enough that we cease to do evil, we
must also learn to do well, if we would indeed prove
that we have the washing of regeneration and renew-
ing of the Holy Ghost. May this be shed on us abun-
dantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour.

THE LORD IS GRACIOUS.-1 Peter ii. 3.

[83

BEING BORN AGAIN, NOT OF CORRUPTIBLE SEED, BUT OF INCORRUPTIBLE, BY THE WORD OF GOD, WHICH LIVETH, ETC.-1 Pet. i. 23.

« PreviousContinue »