Page images
PDF
EPUB

To day therefore they should hear his voice,

23

him infinitely above the most excellent of sECT.

creatures.

5 And Moses ver- And that Christ is incomparably more to be ly was faithful in honoured than Moses, appears even from this servant, for a testi- consideration, though inferior to the former, mony of those things that Moses [was] indeed faithful in all his house, which were to be as a servant, who was appointed to act in an spoken of after :

iii.

Heb.

iii. 5

inferior economy, for a testimony of things afterwards to be mentioned; the evangelical design of which we shall in some measure discuss in the following parts of this epistle, ac6 But Christ as a cording to their relation and connection. But 6 Son over his own Christ was faithful in a far superior character, house: whose house even as a Son in his own house,f that is, over are we, if we hold fast the confidence, the church, in which as Heir of all things he and the rejoicing of hath not only a trust and office, but also a propthe hope firm unto erty, and which is appointed for him to inhabit

the end.

7 Wherefore, as

and preside over; whose house, his chosen and
delightful habitation, we Christians now are, if
we strenuously maintain [our] freedom of pro-
fession, and boasting of hope, steadfast unto the
end; if having so glorious an hope set before
us, in which we may justly boast as our great-
est honour and happiness, we resolutely adhere
to it, and permit nothing to wrest it out of our
hands.

And to this I am labouring to animate you, 7
the Holy Ghost by the representation I have given of the dig-
saith, To day, if ye
will hear his voice, nity and glory of our blessed Saviour. There-
fore, as the Holy Ghost saith, in a psalm which
he dictated to David, (Psal. xcv. 7,) To day if
8 Harden not ye will ever hear his voice at all, Harden not 8
your hearts, as in your hearts any longer; lest you bring destruc-
the provocation, in tion upon yourselves, as your predecessors did,
the day of tempta-
tion in the wilder- in the bitter provocation which they presumed
to offer me in the day of temptation in the wil-
9 When your fa- derness; When your unbelieving fathers tempt- 9
thers tempted me, ed me, and proved me, as if they would have
proved me, and saw made an experiment how much it was possible
my works forty for me to bear; and this, though they saw my

ness:

years.

works in such a variety of wonders, as passed

In his own house.] Mr. Peirce brings many arguments to prove it should be in his house, that is, God's, in which sense the very words are used and translated before; but as Christ is appointed the Heir of all things, the paraphrase cannot I think be contested. Compare Heh. x, 21.

8 Our freedom of profession.] Some would render it, if we hold fast the confidence, even the rejoicing of our hope firm unto the end, supposing it to refer to that confession which they made at their baptism with solemnity and joy.

24

SECT.

iii. 10

And not be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

in the wilderness in the course of forty suc

ways.

my rest.

iii. ceeding years, Therefore I was angry with that 10 Wherefore I perverse generation, and said they always do was grieved with Heb. and will err in [their] hearts, through their said, They do althat generation, and own obstinacy and folly, and they have not ways err in their known my ways, nor paid any regard to the hearts; and they clearest discoveries of my will and design; have not known my 11 So that after repeated abuses of my patience 11 So I sware in and long suffering, I sware in my wrath, and my wrath, They solemnly declared by my own holy and majes- shall not enter into tic name, that they should never enter into my rest; but that the carcasses of all that came adult out of Egypt, shall fall in the wilderness, and that generation of men be totally consum12 ed. How awful a determination, after all the 12 Take heed, hopes which such signal deliverances had con- brethren, lest there curred to inspire! See to it therefore, brethren, evil heart of unbebe in any of you an lest there ever be in any of you a wicked heart lief, in departing of unbelief, in apostatizing from him who still from the living God. wears the same omnipotent terrors, and con. tinues, and will ever continue, the living and true God, to whom you profess so great a regard, and from whom you will indeed revolt, if you give up the religion of Christ Jesus his 13 Son. You are surrounded with many temp- 13 But exhort one tations to do this; but exhort one another daily, another daily while while you are under this dispensation of grace, lest any of you be it is called, To day; whilst it is called to day, and the deserved judg- hardened through ments of God are suspended, that no one of you the deceitfulness of may by insensible degrees and artful insinua- sin. tions, be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, and its fallacious advances on the mind; whereby if you are not resolutely on your guard, you may be seduced finally to forfeit the invaluable blessings, which are so freely offered, and which have so long been set before you.

verse

1

IMPROVEMENT.

WE are partakers of this heavenly calling, and to us are the messages of mercy addressed: let us therefore hear with reverence and obedience, the admonitions of the word of God.

My rest.] Canaan is so called, as they there reposed themselves after the labours of a long war, as well as the fatigues of a tedious march; and perhaps as entering upon a course of stated worship, it might appear as a kind of sabbath keeping.

iWhilst it is called to day.] L'Enfant thinks this refers to that patience which God still exercises towards a nation soon to be overwhelmed with his judgments.

Reflections on the superiority of Christ to Moses.

25

Let us behold with veneration and delight, the Son of God be- SECT. coming the Messenger of his Father's love, and the High Priest iii. of our Christian profession. He is the great prophet too, whom God hath raised up unto us like Moses, in many respects; but O 2,6 how far superior to him! More completely faithful to him, who 4 hath appointed him; faithful as a Son in his own house.

The world is an edifice raised by Christ: the church is the house in which he delights to reside. Let both be considered in this important view. The Divine perfections of the great Architect are indeed illustriously displayed in the construction and constitution of this visible world. Does the meanest house or cottage declare itself to be the work of some intelligent agent? And does it not much more evidently appear, that this commodious and magnificent structure must have been planned and reared by proportionable wisdom, grandeur and power?

It is the work of Christ; and let it often be devoutly surveyed and contemplated in this view; and from thence let us infer his Divine glories, and read in them his matchless condescensions. Let us learn with how much security and delight we may commit our immortal souls to him who stretched out the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth, and shall endure the same when they shall be dissolved and perish, Let us view him also as the Lord of the church,; and consider the fabric of grace as raised to his honour; that in that as his temple, every one might speak of his glory; and let all the churches, and every member of each, make it their faithful care to honour him more and more.

In this view may we hold fast the confidence, and rejoicing of our hope, steadfast unto the end, and never suffer any one to take our crown, or terrify, or allure us, from that faithful subjection of soul to Christ, which his perfections and our obligations to him concur to demand. Who of us can say, he is beyond all danger of being ensnared by an evil heart of unbelief, of being hardened through the deceitfulness of sin? Let us then, in compli ance with so salutary and necessary an exhortation, redouble our guard; let us watch over ourselves and each other; exhorting one another daily, while it is called to day, and charging our souls by the awful authority of the living God, that after having approached so near him, that after having so solemnly professed to devote ourselves to him, nothing may ever prevail upon us deliberately and wickedly to depart from him.

verse

12

13

26

They should hold their confidence steadfast unto the end:

[blocks in formation]

The apostle goes on to repeat the caution he had given against unbelief, as what would prevent their entering into rest: an expression which he shows to refer to something much nobler than that rest which the Jews enjoyed in Canaan, even on their most sacred days, and in their most prosperous ages. Heb. III. 14.

[merged small][ocr errors]

Heb.

IV. 11.

HEBREWS III. 14.

GIVE you such cautions to guard against

HEBREWS III. 14.
OR we are made

FOR we

of

of unbelief, because I know your highest inter- Christ, if we hold iii. 14 ests are concerned; for we are made partakers

the beginning of our confidence steadfast

of the grace and mercy of Christ, and admitted unto the end.
by him into the family of God, if we hold fast
the beginning of our confidence in him as our
great Saviour, steadfast unto the end of our lives,
whatever difficulties and oppositions may arise.

15 Let us therefore be strenuous and incessant in 15 While it is

this care; forasmuch as it is said,a in the pas- said, To day, if ye sage I have quoted above, To day, if ye will will hear his voice, harden not your hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as they hearts, as in the did in the provocation which was offered to God provocation. 16 in the wilderness. For some of them who 16 For some, when heard so many Divine messages solemnly de- they had heard, did clared, and the law spoken by the very mouth of provoke: howbeit God himself from mount Sinai, provoked [him] of Egypt by Moses : to indignation; but not all they who came out of Egypt by Moses: there was a remnant then,c

Forasmuch, as it is said.] The words Ev There are something ambiguous, and may either signify, forasmuch as it is said, or while it is said; and if the latter version be preferred, perhaps this 15th verse may be connected with the 13th Exhort one another daily while it is called to day, while it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice: as if he had said, The matter is of so much importance, that it is not to be neglected so much as for a single day, lest the proper season should be slipt. But as axes, a different phrase, was used for while in the 13th verse, I judge the rendering I have given most probable, and ventured it, in order to avoid an inconvenient length, by dividing the section as I have here done.

not all that came out

But not all they who came out of Egypt.] Mr. Pyle gives it a different and remarkable interpretation, making the former part of the verse an interrogation, Who were they that when they heard, that is, heard the report of the spies, (Numb. xiv.) did provoke him? Were they not all that came out of Egypt? And this he supposes is a distinct argument for perseverance, taken from the infectious nature, as well as pernicious consequences of infidelity and apostasy But had this been the sense, I think & would have been used instead of axx', especially as by this means the correspondence with the 17th verse would have been more evident.

There was a remnant.] Joshua, Caleb, the women and children, and some

derness?

for unbelief would prevent their entering into rest.

should not enter into

that believed not?

iv.

27

Heb.

as there now is, of believing and obedient souls, SECT. to whom the promise of God shall be accom17 But with whom plished. And by whom was he provoked by along was he grieved forty succession of infidelity and folly for forty years?. 17 years? was it not with them that had [was it] not with those who well deserved that sinned, whose car- displeasure? With those who sinned against casses fell in the wil- him by suspecting his presence with them, after so many amazing and unparalleled demonstrations of it; whose carcasses, according to his awful prediction, fell in the wilderness during those years of wandering to which they were 18 And to whom justly doomed? And was there any thing 18 sware he that they in this that looks like a breach of promise on his rest, but to them the part of the blessed God? Far from it. To whom did he swear that they should not enter into his rest, but unto those who were so obstinate and disobedient, as entirely to forfeit all claim to his 19 So we see that promise and favour? And when we come to 19 they could not enter consider the cause of that disobedience, we see in because of unbelief. that it was owing to a secret infidelity with regard to the Divine power and goodness, either to preserve them in the wilderness, or conduct them into Canaan. So that I may say they could not possibly enter into the promised rest, because of unbelief: that was upon the IV.1 Let us there- whole the evil that destroyed them. Let us IV, 1 fore fear, lest a promise being left therefore improve so awful a dispensation of of entering into Providence to our own instruction, and fear,d his rest, any of you lest a promise being now left [unto us] of entering should seem to come into his most happy and glorious rest, any of use should even at any time, so much as seem like 2 For unto us was to come short [ofit.] For we are made partakers 2 the gospel preached, of the good tidings of the promised rest, as

short of it.

think, some of the Levites, were not included in the sentence. Bishop Fell mentions this as an intimation, that all shall not apostatize in the worst times.

Let us therefore fear.] This example, as has often been observed, is most suitable, being taken from their own ancestors, the evil being the same, namely, unbelief, the time resembling it just after the establishment of a new constitution, and the consequence the same, the exclusion from rest. The superior dignity of Christ above Moses, and the superior excellence of Heaven above Canaan, greatly confirm the force of the argument. Peirce on Heb. iii. 12, note".

[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]
« ՆախորդըՇարունակել »