| Back to Home Page | Back to Book Index
|
Isaiah Chapter
Sixty
Isaiah 60
Chapter Contents
The glories of the church of God, when the fulness of the
Gentiles shall come in. (1-8) and the Jews shall be converted and gathered from
their dispersions. (9-14) and the kingdoms of this world shall become the
kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ. (15-22)
Commentary on Isaiah 60:1-8
(Read Isaiah 60:1-8)
As far as we have the knowledge of God in us, and the
favour of God towards us, our light is come. And if God's glory is seen upon us
to our honour, we ought, not only with our lips, but in our lives, to return
its praise. We meet with nothing in the history of the Jews which can be deemed
a fulfilment of the prophecy in this chapter; we must conclude it relates
principally to future events. It predicts the purity and enlargement of the
church. The conversion of souls is here described. They fly to Christ, to the
church, to the word and ordinances, as doves to their own home; thither they
fly for refuge and shelter, thither they fly for rest. What a pleasant sight to
see poor souls hastening to Christ!
Commentary on Isaiah 60:9-14
(Read Isaiah 60:9-14)
God will be very gracious. We must begin with his
promise, thence all mercies take rise. Many shall be brought into the church,
even from far countries. Christ is always ready to receive all who come to him;
and the gate of mercy is always open, night and day. All that are about the
church shall be made serviceable to it. But those who will not be subject to
Christ's golden sceptre, to his word and Spirit, who will not be kept in by the
laws and rules of his family, shall be broken in pieces by his iron rod. The
peculiar advantages of every nation, and of every description of men, shall
join to beautify the church of Christ. We must suppose this to be accomplished
in the beauties of holiness, and the graces and comforts of the Spirit, with
which gospel ordinances are adorned and enriched. Blessed be his name, the
gates of Zion are ever open to returning sinners.
Commentary on Isaiah 60:15-22
(Read Isaiah 60:15-22)
We must look for the full accomplishment in times and
things, exceeding those of the Old Testament church. The nations and their
kings shall lay themselves out for the good of the church. Such a salvation,
such a redemption, shall be wrought out for thee, as discovers itself to be the
work of the Lord. Every thing shall be changed for the better. In thy land
shall no more be heard threats of those that do violence, nor complaints of
those that suffer violence. Thy walls shall be means of safety, thy gates shall
be written upon with praises to God. In the close of this chapter are images
and expressions used in the description of the New Jerusalem, Revelation 21:23; 22:5. Nothing can answer to
this but some future glorious state of the church on earth, or the state of the
church triumphant in heaven. Those that make God their only light, shall have
him their all-sufficient light. And the happiness shall know no change or
alloy. No people on earth are all righteous; but there are no mixtures in
heaven. They shall be wholly righteous. The spirits of just men shall there be
made perfect. The glory of the church shall be to the honour of God. When it
shall be finished, it will appear a work of wonder. It may seem too difficult
to be brought about, but the God of almighty power has undertaken it. It may
seem to be delayed and put off; but the Lord will hasten it in the time
appointed by his wisdom, though not in the time prescribed by our folly. Let
this hope cheer us under all difficulties, and stir us up to all diligence,
that we may have an abundant entrance into this everlasting kingdom of our Lord
and Saviour Jesus Christ.
── Matthew Henry《Concise Commentary on Isaiah》
Isaiah 60
Verse 1
[1]
Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon
thee.
Arise — A
word of encouragement accommodated to the Jewish, or Hebrew style, wherein, as
by lying down, is described a servile and calamitous condition, chap. 47:1, so by rising, and standing up, a recovery
out of it, into a free, and prosperous one, as may be seen frequently; Rouze
up, intimating her deliverance to be at hand. Here under a type, of Jerusalem's
restoration, is displayed the flourishing state of the Gentile - church, under
the Messiah.
Thy light —
Thy flourishing and prosperous state.
Verse 2
[2] For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the
people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon
thee.
The darkness —
All kinds of errors.
The Lord —
Christ.
Shall be seen —
Shall be conspicuous; as the Lord's arising, to the darkness covering the
earth, so the glory being seen, answers to that gross darkness.
Verse 3
[3] And
the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy
rising.
The Gentiles — A
plain prophecy of the calling of the Gentiles.
Verse 5
[5] Then
thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged;
because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of
the Gentiles shall come unto thee.
See —
With delight the multitudes of thy children running to thee.
Flow —
They shall flock together to behold such an amazing sight.
Fear — Or
stand amazed.
Enlarged —
Both with joy, and love.
The abundance —
The islands of the sea, the nations, shall turn to thee in religion, and
affection.
The forces — Or
wealth.
Verse 6
[6] The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and
Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and
they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.
The multitude —
The treasure, that is brought upon camels. By these, and such like figurative
expressions in several verses of this chapter is implied the coming in of all
nations to Christ, and therefore they are brought in as presenting the chief
commodities of their respective countries.
Dromedaries — A
smaller sort of camel.
Ephah —
The Midianites, and Ephahites dwelt beyond Arabia.
Sheba — A
country in Arabia Felix, whose queen it was, that came to visit Solomon, and
her bringing gifts might be a type of this, Solomon being a type of Christ.
Gold —
The principal commodities with which this country abounded, by which we are to
understand whatever is precious.
Verse 7
[7] All
the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth
shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and
I will glorify the house of my glory.
Kedar —
Arabia Petrea.
Acceptance —
They shall not now, as heretofore, be rejected.
The house —
The temple, or my house: God shall become glorious by the multitude of
sacrifices, that shall be offered, and accepted here. This is a type of how
glorious his New Testament worship shall be.
Verse 8
[8] Who
are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows?
A cloud —
These metaphors import the number as well as speed, of those that should be
begotten by the apostles doctrine.
Verse 9
[9]
Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring
thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the
LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee.
Ships — To
convey them to me.
Tarshish —
Those that traffick by sea. In naming this he implies all that had commerce
with other nations.
From far —
From the remotest parts.
Glorified — He
will make thee honourable in the eyes of the world, especially in setting up
the ministry of the gospel in the midst of thee.
Verse 10
[10] And
the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister
unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on
thee.
Minister —
Shall administer all necessaries to thee.
I had mercy — As
I afflicted thee in my anger, so out of my compassion I will abundantly bless
thee.
Verse 11
[11]
Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor
night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their
kings may be brought.
Therefore —
For that purpose; by reason of the conflux of people, that shall be continually
flocking thither.
Verse 12
[12] For
the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish; yea, those
nations shall be utterly wasted.
Serve —
That will not submit to Christ's scepter.
Verse 13
[13] The
glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box
together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will make the place of
my feet glorious.
The glory —
The box, the fir, the pine, and the cedar, on account whereof Lebanon was so
famous; kings and great ones, the glory of the world, and also persons of a
lower rank, shall be the materials, and members of Christ's church.
To beautify —
This is the reason and end why the glory of Lebanon is to be brought hither; by
these trees understand the beauty, and nobility of the church.
Sanctuary —
The temple wherein was the sanctuary.
The place of my feet — The ark, so called, because, supposing God after the manner of men, to
sit between the wings of the cherubim, his feet would rest upon the ark. All
this is made good in the gospel-church.
Verse 14
[14] The
sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all
they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and
they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
The sons —
Either their posterity, or themselves, for it is the manner of the Hebrews so
to speak.
Bending —
Humbling themselves, as penitents.
Call thee —
They shall acknowledge her to be so.
Verse 15
[15]
Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I
will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
Forsaken —
Both of God and of her inhabitants.
No man went —
Thy streets were left desolate.
Verse 16
[16] Thou
shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings:
and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty
One of Jacob.
Shalt suck —
That the church shall draw, or receive the wealth of nations, and the riches,
and power of kings, and whatever is most excellent, and that it shall come
freely, and affectionately, as milk flows from the breast of the mother.
Verse 17
[17] For
brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass,
and for stones iron: I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors
righteousness.
For brass — An
allusion to the days of Solomon, when gold was as brass.
Peace —
Loving, meek, and peaceable.
Righteousness —
Most righteous. Such even thy tax-gatherers shall be.
Verse 18
[18]
Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy
borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise.
Salvation —
They shall be safe, and able to defend thee; thou shalt be as safe, as
salvation itself can make thee.
Thy gates —
Within and upon thy gates and walls, thou shalt sing praises. All this will be
fulfilled during the thousand years wherein Christ shall reign upon earth.
Verse 19
[19] The
sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon
give light unto thee: but the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and
thy God thy glory.
The sun —
These shall not be esteemed in comparison of the spiritual light of the church;
but here laid down for the churches comfort as the former was for her safety,
so that God will not only be a shield, but a sun.
The Lord —
Christ shall scatter all darkness and ignorance, and this light shall not wax,
and wane, and suffer eclipses, and settings, as the sun and moon do, but shall
be constant, without shadow of change.
The glory —
Always ministering matter of glorying in him.
Verse 21
[21] Thy
people also shall be all righteous: they shall inherit the land for ever, the
branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.
The branch —
Thy people being of my planting, the work of my hands.
Verse 22
[22] A
little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation: I the LORD
will hasten it in his time.
In time — In
due time, the time that I have appointed.
── John Wesley《Explanatory Notes on Isaiah》
60 Chapter 60
Verses 1-12
Arise, shine; for thy light is come
The glory of spiritual Israel
Having repeatedly and fully shown that the national pro-eminence
of Israel was not to be perpetual, that the loss of it was the natural
consequence and righteous retribution of iniquity, and that their loss did not
involve the destruction of the true Church or spiritual Israel, the prophet now
proceeds to show that, to the latter, the approaching change would be a
glorious and blessed one.
(J. A. Alexander.)
Isaiah 60:1-22 is the spiritual counterpart of a typical Eastern day
Isaiah 60:1-22 is the spiritual
counterpart of a typical Eastern day with the dust laid and the darts taken out
of the sunbeams,--a typical Eastern day in the sudden splendour of its dawn,
the completeness and apparent permanence of its noon, the spaciousness it
reveals on sea and land, and the barbaric profusion of life, which its strong
light is sufficient to flood with glory. (Prof. G. A. Smith, D. D.)
Sunrise in the East
In the East the sun does not rise; the word is weak for an arrival
almost too sudden for twilight. In the East the sun leaps above the horizon.
You do not feel that he is coming, but that he is come. This first verse is
suggested by the swiftness with which he bursts upon an Eastern city, and the
shrouded form does not, as in our twilight, slowly unwrap itself, but “shines”
at once, all plates and points of glory. Then the figure yields: for Jerusalem
is not merely one radiant point in a world equally lighted by the sun, but is
herself Jehovah’s unique luminary. (Ibid.)
“Thy light is come”
The perfect tenses are used from the ideal standpoint of the
future. (Prof. J. Skinner, D,D.)
Light breaking on the mountains
Any one who has spent much time among mountains will appreciate
the imagery. Around is absolute blackness; the valleys are in gloom; trees,
rivers, towns have been obscured; nothing is visible but that dim shaft of
granite rising into the silence of the sky. Suddenly we may imagine a spirit’s
voice crying, “The light has come.” Instantly there is a glow on the
mountain--trees, rivers, towns begin to take shape; the whole world has
changed. The point to be observed here is that the light was from God. The city
was exhorted to be in a condition in which the glory of God might be reflected
from it. The chapter describes the degradation of the rest of the world, the
effect of the light on other peoples, how they would be attracted toward it;
and contains near the end this outburst of victorious joy: “The Lord shall be unto
thee an ever lasting light, and thy God thy glory. This prophecy, was never
literally fulfilled, and yet hundreds of years later a light did pour itself
upon Mount Zion; it shone on the thickest darkness of the nations, and unto it
ever since the people have been attracted. That prophecy was fulfilled in
Christ. He is the Light. (A. H. Bradford, D. D.)
The Gospel era
I. THE GOSPEL ERA
IS DISTINGUISHED BY A SPECIAL REVELATION OF DIVINE GLORY. The light that has
come to the world is the glory of the Lord. What is “the glory of the Lord” We
take the answer which the Eternal gave to the request of Moses, “I beseech
Thee, show me Thy glory.” The reply was not, “I will show thee the infinitude
of My possessions, the boundlessness of My, dominions, the almightiness of My
power, the immeasurable depths of My wisdom, but, “I will cause all My goodness
to pass before thee.” The Gospel is a wonderful revelation of God’s goodness,
in the form of amazing mercy towards a guilty world.
1. The glory of His goodness is seen in the gift of His Son. “He
spared not His own Son, etc.
2. The glory of His goodness is seen in the entire history of His
Son. All the compassion, the tender love and mercy, which Christ displayed when
on earth, were the reflected rays of Infinite goodness.
II. THE GOSPEL ERA
IMPOSES A SPECIAL OBLIGATION UPON THE WORLD. “Arise, shine.”
1. Arise. Do not sleep while the rays of Divine goodness are
streaming on you. Arise to thought, to penitence, to gratitude, to worship.
Arise, discharge the duties and enjoy the advantages of a day flooded with the
sun of mercy.
2. Shine. Reflect the rays of this goodness. Let this love of God be
so “shed abroad in thy heart,” that it stream forth its radiance in thy every
action, and bless the circle in which thou livest. Do not be as an opaque body,
obstructing the rays and throwing a shadow over thy sphere; but be a mirror, to
reflect every falling beam. (Homilist.)
Christ the light of the world
The words of the text comprise an exhortation to “arise “ and
“shine”; and a reason to enforce it,--“thy light is come, the glory of the Lord
is risen upon thee.”
I. THE REASON.
There is such a connection between ignorance and darkness, that the one is
constantly put for the other in Scripture. If ignorance is justly termed
darkness, so knowledge is properly compared to light. At the dawn of day, the
traveller takes fresh courage; he perceives the path in which he should go, and
proceeds on it rejoicing. In the same manner religious knowledge enlightens a
man as to his true business in this life, and sets him to work out His
salvation. And Christ is the Sun which sends forth this religious knowledge.
1. The sun, when it rises in the morning, dispels all clouds and
mists and clews, and shows every object in its true colours. So, without that
light which Christ has furnished by His Gospel, we cannot perceive those truths
which it is most needful we should perceive.
2. The sun, when it shines above us, does more than enlighten every
object. It nourishes, it invigorates. Without it, the sickly plant droops and
decays, and brings no fruit to perfection. And the effect of the sun upon
outward nature is a striking emblem of the influence of Christ upon the heart.
In Him is life, vigorous, spiritual life; and the life is the light of men.
II. THE
EXHORTATION. “Arise, shine.”
1. When the sun rises, and scatters the mists of night, he gives a
summons to mankind to rise also, and set themselves to the discharge of their
various duties. In the same manner, the appearance of Christ in the world is a
summons to all who hear of His revelation, to “arise.” To awake out of the
sleep of ignorance, the sleep of thoughtlessness, the sleep of sin, which are,
in truth, the sleep of death; and to apply themselves, before “the night cometh
in which no man can work,” to the business which God has appointed them to
perform both for themselves and for Him.
2. The text requires that you not only “arise,” but that you “shine.”
That Christ has risen in the world is nothing, unless He illuminates your hearts
also. When the sun is up, and shines brightly upon any object, that which
before was dark shines too; receives a brilliancy not its own, not natural to
it. So is it likewise, when Christ illuminates the heart. It takes a new
colouring, a light which by nature it had not. Enlightened by the Gospel, the
simple becomes wise, and acquires the knowledge which is most truly
valuable--the knowledge of duty towards God and man. Enlightened by the Gospel,
he who was selfish and covetous is made liberal, and abounds in the feelings of
brotherly kindness, and in the works of charity. Enlightened by the Gospel, he
who was sensual becomes temperate and pure, and “lets his moderation be known
unto all men.” The “lover of this world becomes a “lover of God,” and “sets his
affections on things above.” In this way the light which has shone upon them is
reflected in their conduct, and is visible in their whole character. The sun
shines; but some objects still continue dark and gloomy. Between them and the
sun’s light other objects interpose, and prevent his beams from shining upon
them. And so it is in the world of grace. (J. B. Sumner, M. A.)
The dawning of God’s light and its awakening call
I. THE DAWNING OF
THE LIGHT. “Thy light is come.” If the light is always near, but the darkness
is in man’s heart and the blindness in his soul, we have to ask how the
darkness passes away, and to point out the manner in which the glory of God
dawns upon it, in order that we may see why its dawning is a summons to arise
and shine. There are three requisites for its dawning--three stages in the
history of the soul’s enlightenment.
1. Spiritual penitence.
2. Spiritual penitence must pass into spiritual love.
3. Spiritual love necessitates spiritual prayer.
II. THE AWAKENING
CALL. “Arise, shine.” That summons is the inevitable result of the dawning of
the light. When God is felt to be near a man thus--in penitence, love, and
prayer, that man is imperatively bound to reflectthe glory which has risen in
his heart; to bear witness of the light which has pierced and transformed his
soul. Let us again observe that this is also based on a great principle, viz
the deepest emotion in a man’s nature must reveal itself in his life. I proceed
to show the way in which the glory of the Lord thus manifests itself in life.
1. In the majesty of holiness.
2. In the beauty of unselfishness.
3. In the earnestness of your efforts for men, (E. L. Hull, B. A.)
The everlasting light
I. THE VOICE
SPEAKS TO INDIVIDUALS. How few even realize their possibilities. We have had
religious training, we have been taught to consider all questions as they
appear in relation to God, we have grown up in a religious atmosphere, and yet
the consciousness that no man is a true man until he reflects Jesus Christ in
words, business, pleasures and thoughts is dim, and not even desired. The light
has come; what does it find? It finds men absorbed and heedless, thinking only
of what they can keep for a little while at best; not caring for their
fellow-men; selfish and as impervious to higher motives as a granite rock to
sunshine. The true glory of a man is to reflect Christ.
II. THE VOICE OF
THE PROPHET REACHES THE CHURCH, both local and universal. The Church realizes
its true mission only as it reflects the Divine light, which means, simply,
realizes the life which was in Jesus Christ.
1. The Church should reflect Jesus in its worship. With Him worship
was something essential and vital. Before every great act of His career He went
apart from men to pray. The sources of His life were in God. Worship and prayer
are the conduits along which flow streams of spiritual vitality. Is the Church
a praying Church? Then it is continuing Christ’s work.
2. The Church lives to repeat the teaching of Jesus.
3. In like manner the Church should reflect Jesus in the service of
humanity. It lives to continue His ministry. The most hospitable place in every
community ought to be the Church of Christ. Has any one a grief? Let him go to
the Church. Are any lonely? Let them go to the Church. Have any disgraced
themselves and their friends? Let them seek the Church and its help. But will
all these various classes find there a welcome? Not only within its walls, but
outside also the Church should serve humanity in the spirit of Christ.
III. THIS CRY OF THE
PROPHET COMES TO NATIONS. Nations, as well as individuals and Churches, exist
to continue the Incarnation. That nation has not begun to realize its
possibilities which has not learned that its superlative privilege is the
manifestation of Jesus Christ. What do I mean? That the function of government
is not only the protection of the people, but the service of humanity. John
Milton truly said that the State is only a huge man. In the vision of the
prophet when the light broke upon the sides of Mount Zion the nations saw the
glory and were attracted by it (verses 3, 14). The most beautiful thing in this
world is the character of Jesus Christ; nothing else so wins men. (A. H.
Bradford, D. D.)
Arise, shine!
I. TO WHOM THE
CHARGE IS ADDRESSED. To the Church of Christ. This is evident from the context.
Further, it appears from the nature of the charge that it can apply only to the
Church. There is none else on earth capable of at once fulfilling the charge.
The world cannot, for it is essentially dark--“darkness covers the earth.” The
Church is compared to reflected and artificial lights. Christ enlightens the
world through His Church.
II. THE CHARGE
ITSELF. This is a twofold charge implying two distinct acts.
1. “Arise.” This implies that the Church is in the meantime in a
prostrate condition; her place is in the dust. This may be partly in penitence.
It may indicate a state of affliction and mourning; the Church may be sitting
in sackcloth. But chiefly it implies a state of sloth, worldliness, carnality.
Whatever be the cause of this prostration the Church is directed to rise from
the dust now.
2. “Shine.” “Christ shall give thee light” for this very purpose; not
merely to enlighten yourself, to impart life and joy to you, but that you may
“shine,” give light to the world. And this applies both to the Church as a
whole and to the members of the Church individually. There are two ways in
which those who have been enlightened by Christ may give light. On the one
hand, by simply shining, each one in his sphere, as a separate light, perhaps
in the midst of darkness. On the other hand, by kindling other lights.
III. THE ARGUMENT BY
WHICH IT IS ENFORCED. “Thy light is come, etc. The Church has no independent
light of her own, cannot shine of herself; and so, such an encouragement as
this is needed. “Thy light’--this must mean Christ Himself, for He is the light
of the Church. “Is come” - Christ did not come till seven or eight hundred
years after this prophecy was delivered. But the prophet refers to Gospel
times. Accordingly the Church did arise and shine at that time more brightly
and auspiciously than she had ever done before. (C. G. Scott.)
An arousing call
There are some Christian men who have wasted a large part of their
lives for want of somebody or something to wake them up. There is more evil
wrought in the world by want of thought than by downright malice, and there is
more good left undone through want of thought than through any aversion to the
doing of good. Some Christians appear to have been born in the land of slumber,
and they continually live in their native country of dreams. They rub their
eyes occasionally, and suppose themselves to be wide awake; but they are in the
Enchanted Ground, and, though they know it not, they are little better than
sleep-walkers the most of their days. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Shining Christians
I. To God’s own
people this is my first message, REMEMBER YOUR PRIVILEGE. Your light has come.
1. Recollect out of what darkness that light has delivered you.
2. This light, which God has given you, is His own glory. “And the
glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.” Byron speaks of God S face being
mirrored in the sea; but there is not space enough for the face of Deity to be
fully reflected in the broad Atlantic, or in all the oceans put together. The
image of God is to be fully seen in Jesus Christ, and nowhere else; for there
you behold attributes which Creation cannot display.
3. There is also this blessed thing to be said about this light; you
will never lose it (Isaiah 60:20).
II. I WANT TO ROUSE
YOU TO SERVICE. “Arise, shine; for, etc. Since your light has come, shine”--
1. By holy cheerfulness.
2. By a gracious godliness.
3. By zealous earnestness.
4. By a secret bravery.
III. I WANT TO RALLY
YOU TO THIS SHINING BY ONE OR TWO ARGUMENTS.
1. By the world’s great need (Isaiah 60:2).
2. Because of the great results that will surely come of it (Isaiah 60:3).
3. Because of the great blessing it will bring to the Church (Isaiah 60:13, etc.).
4. “That I may be glorified” (Isaiah 60:21). (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Epiphany: Christ manifested
I. THE STATE OF
THE WORLD BEFORE THE LIGHT OF THE GOSPEL AROSE.
II. THE OBJECT OF
THE PRESENT DISPENSATION.
III. THE FUTURE
CONSUMMATION. (G. Huntington, M. A.)
The God-lit Church
The old story is repeated; Zion sits in the light while Egypt
cowers in gloom. The light which shines upon her is the glory of the Lord, the
ancient brightness that dwelt between the cherubim within the veil in the
secret place of the Most High, and is now come out in the open world to envelop
the desolate captive. Thus touched by the light she becomes light, and in her
turn is bidden to shine. There is a very remarkable correspondence reiterated
in my text between the illuminating God and the illuminated Zion. The word for
“shine” is connected with the word for “light,” and might fairly be rendered
“lighten” or “be light.” Twice the phrase “thy light” is employed; once to mean
the light which is thine because it shines on thee; once to mean the light
which is thine because it shines from thee. The other word, three times
repeated, for “rising” is the technical word which expresses the sunrise, and
it is applied both to the flashing glory that falls upon Zion, and to the light
that gleams from her. Touched by the sun she becomes a sun, and blazes in her
heaven in a splendour that draws men’s hearts.
I. AS TO THE FACT.
Beneath the poetry of my text there lie very definite conceptions of a very
solemn and grave character and these conceptions are the foundation of the
ringing summons that follows and which reposes upon a double basis--viz. “for
thy light is come,” and “for darkness covers the earth.” There is a double
element in the representation. We have a darkened earth and a sunlit and a
sun-like Church, and unless we hold these two convictions in firm grasp, and
that not merely as convictions that influence our understanding, but as
ever-present forces acting on our emotions, our consciences, our wills, we
shall not do the work God has set us to do in the world. If we take the
sulphurous and smoky pall that wraps the earth and analyze its contents, they
are these: the darkness of ignorance, the darkness of sorrow, the darkness of
sin. On the other side, remember the contrasted picture here of the sunlit and
sunny Church. The incarnation of Jesus Christ is the fulfilment Of my text, “We
beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of
grace and truth. If you and I are Christians, we are bound to believe in Him as
the exclusive” source of certainty. “We hear from Him no Peradventue,” but His
word is “Verily verily, I say unto thee,” and on that we rest all our knowledge
of God, of duty, of man, and of the future. If we have the light we shall be
light. That is but putting in a picturesque form the very central truth of
Christianity. The last word of the Gospel is transformation. We become like Him
if we live near to Him, and the end for which the Master became like unto us in
His incarnation and passion, was that we might become like to Him by the
reception of His very own life unto our souls. These two convictions of these
two facts, the dark earth, the sunlit, sun-like Church, lie at the basis of an
our missionary work.
II. WE HAVE BASED
UPON THESE TWO FACTS THE SUMMONS TO THE CHURCH. “Shine, for thy light is come.
If we have light, we are light: if we are light, we shall shine; but the
shining is not altogether spontaneous and effortless. Stars do not need to be
bidden to shine, nor candles either; but we need the exhortation because there
are many things that thwart the brilliance and the clearance of our minds. The
command suggests effort, and the effort may be in the direction of the specific
vocal proclamation of His name. If we are light, we shall be able to shine; if
we are light, we are bound to shine; if we are light, we shall want to shine.
III. THE CONFIDENT
PROMISE. “The Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of
thy rising.” If we have the light we shall be light; if we are light we shall
shine, and if we shine we shall attract. A painter will fling upon his canvas a
scene that you and I, with our purblind eyes, have looked at hundreds of times
and seen no beauty in it, but when we gaze on the picture then we see how fair
it is. There is an attractive power in the light of Christ shining from the
face era man. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
An imperial ministry
This is a great statesman’s vision unveiling the moral and
spiritual possibilities of a people. The prophet is primarily addressing his
speech to an awakening nation. To direct a nation’s views is to shape its
policies, and to determine the trend and colour of its life. What, then, shall
be the elements of an efficient and fruitful ideal? “The Lord shall arise upon
thee,” etc. (Isaiah 60:2-3). What are the constituent
elements in the vision? “Light “ and “glory. A certain light, the element of
illumination, charity, and simplicity of thought; a certain heat, the element
of fervour, warm and expansive sympathies; a certain gravity, the element of
impressiveness, weight and strength of moral principle. But the glory of the
ideal is still further enriched and intensified. We cannot take Isaiah’s ideal
and employ it with Isaiah’s limitation; we must carry over his vocabulary into
the fuller day and let it receive enlargement in the life and mind of Christ.
“Light,” interpreted by the character of the Master, means the absence of shady
compromise, sunlit definiteness of purpose, the clear discernment of
essentials. “ Heat,” interpreted by the character of the Master, means, an
ardent inclusiveness of sympathy, cosmopolitan in its pervasion. “Gravity,
glory, interpreted by the character of the Master, is significant of moral
weight, incorruptible spiritual ambition, unconquerable virtue, whether
illustrated in the light of a marriage-feast, or in the sombre experience of
Pilate’s judgment-bar. “Arise! “, Stand erect and set thy face towards the
burning vision, and thou shalt “shine’ with reflected glory. By contemplating
the Divine thou shalt incarnate the heart of thy contemplation. “The Lord shall
arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee, ‘ and thy imperial
treasure shall be found in thy shining notabilities, in the radiant motives and
ambitions of thy common life. We have seen this transfiguring ministry at work
in the life of the individual. But we may be more than a little doubtful as to
whether the vision will also serve and ennoble the community. Well, where is
the line of transition? Surely, even in the nation we have again and again
witnessed the transforming influence of the grand ideal. It was even so with
the later experiences of the eighteenth century. The breaking up of formality,
the melting of callousness, the opening out of rivers of philanthropy, the
enlarged and sweetened life of our people, the enlightened measure of
emancipation, can be directly traced to a “strange warming of the nation’s
heart,” resulting from a restored contemplation of the light and glory of God.
The prophet’s vision reveals an imperial deal, and unveils the only permanent
imperial treasure.
1. The imperial character is to be creative of imperial unity (verse 4).
There is to be an enrichment of the home, a consolidation of the family, a
knitting together of the finer fellowships of the nation. And mark how this
statesman describes the large characteristics of the communion. “Then shalt
thou see and flow together.” It is to be an open-eyed communion, an illumined,
society, a fellowship of transparent aims and aspirations. “Thine heart shall
fear; the fellowship is not to be flippant, light-hearted, and vain; it is to
be possessed by the pervasive influence of reverence, that saving element which
preserves the sense of true perspective, and gives everything the setting of a
just proportion. “And be enlarged; the fellowship is not to be fixed and
exclusive; its sympathies are to be elastic and expansive, reaching out in ever
enlarging circles of interest and regard.
2. The imperial unity is to be the minister of a world-wide
illumination. “And nations shall come to thy light,” etc. (verse 3). If this be
the true portrayal of imperial welfare, may we not infer the consequent
obligations which rest upon the leaders of the people? The first essential of
efficient public ministry is a large and exalted aim. The true aim of every
true leader is to build up the moral energy of the people. To give ourselves to
the production of superior men--this is the aim which should possess the minds
and hearts of all who exercise leadership among their fellow-men. An aim like
this, definitely and personally expressed, and pursued with undeviating
consistency, will preserve a man from those perils of benumbment which seem to
attach themselves to every public ministry. (J. H.Jowett, M. A.)
The privilege and prerogative of the Christian Church
The Church is promised an extraordinary measure of light and
glory; an immense increase in the number of her adherents, universal exaltation
in the eyes of her enemies, and permanent safety and happiness.
I. THE DIVINE
ILLUMINATION WHICH THE CHURCH RECEIVED. “Thy light is come,” etc. The text
suggests--
1. The nature of this illumination. It embraces--
2. The necessity of this illumination. The Church existed in a dark
age; intellectual, moral, and spiritual darkness prevailed everywhere. This was
preeminently the case when Christ came. This was--
3. The beauty of this illumination. “The glory of the Lord,’ etc.
Allusion is probably made to the Shechinah. God manifested Himself to His
people, and shone upon them in the glory of His grace and mercy.
4. The source of this illumination. “Thy light is come,” etc. It
emanated from a Divine source. It was derived, not inherent. The Church is not
the fountain of light, but the medium of it. It is called “thy light” because
it was the exclusive or peculiar prerogative of the Church. It does not come
from the Church, but is given to it, for its benefit and use.
II. THE PERMANENT
OBLIGATION WHICH THE CHURCH INCURS IN RELATION TO IT. The Church is a Divine
institution, raised up for a specific purpose. Its work is to teach men the
truth of God and to testify of the grace of God. But she sometimes fails fully
to realize her obligations, privileges, prerogatives, and responsibilities.
Here she is enjoined--
1. To arise. She must arise from spiritual apathy, lethargy, and
obscurity, take her legitimate position before the world, and faithfully
discharge her obligations. Here is a loud call--
(1) To behold the light, and hail it with joy.
2. To shine. Privilege confers responsibility. Every fresh accession
of spiritual illumination or power increases her influence and responsibility.
The Church is a luminous body, and must shine with heavenly lustre.
III. THE GRAND
PREDICTION WHICH THE CHURCH IS ULTIMATELY TO REALIZE. “And the Gentiles,” etc.
This was partially accomplished soon after the rise of the Church, when
thousands of the Gentiles “walked in this light.” When a few years elapsed, the
Roman Emperor and many other kings ostensibly opened their eyes to the beams of
light shed on the world by the Church. Large accessions are being made, and her
power and influence are growing and will extend till the Gospel shall universally
triumph over error, ignorance, and ungodliness. (J. S. Spilsbury.)
The Church: her functions and her blessedness
I. THE CHURCH HAS
THE LARGEST SCOPE. Nations “ come to her light, kings to the brightness of her
rising.” She is world-wide and universal.
II. THE CHURCH
BEARS THE CLEAREST WITNESS. She “arises.” She “shines.” When she pulses and
palpitates with the life of God, how impressive is her trumpet-call! It
penetrates far. It arouses multitudes.
III. THE CHURCH DOES
THE MOST GLORIOUS WORK. “Who are these that fly to her as a cloud, and as the
doves to their windows?” Her Lord in her saves and edifies His sons and
daughters, convinces and converts and comforts.
IV. THE CHURCH
ENJOYS THE MOST LASTING BLESSEDNESS. In His favour her King “has mercy on her.”
He never fails nor forsakes her. He leads her members just now in green
pastures and by the waters of quietness. He will bring them by-and-by to the
“Lovely city in a lovely land.” (A. Smellie, M. A.)
The true light of man
I. THE TRUE LIGHT
OF MAN IS THE MEDIATORIAL REVELATION OF GOD (Isaiah 60:1).
II. THIS TRUE LIGHT
OF MAN WILL ONE DAY BE UNIVERSALLY DIFFUSED (Isaiah 60:3).
III. THE UNIVERSAL
DIFFUSION OF THIS LIGHT WILL EFFECT A WONDERFUL REVOLUTION IN THE WORLD (Isaiah 60:5-11).
IV. THE PEOPLE WHO,
UNDER THIS LIGHT, WILL NOT SERVE THE TRUE GOD, MUST INEVITABLY BE RUINED (Isaiah 60:12). (Homilist.)
Christ our Light
Light makes many a surface on which it falls flash, but it is the
rays which are not absorbed that are reflected in the optics of earth; but in
this loftier region the deviation is not superficial but inward, and it is the
light which is swallowed up within us that then comes forth from us. Christ
will dwell in our hearts, and we shall be like some poor little diamond-shaped
bit of glass in a cottage window which, when the sun smites it, is visible over
miles of the plain. And if that sun falls upon us, its image will be mirrored
in our hearts, and flashing in our lives. The clouds that lie over the sunset,
though in themselves they be but poor, grey and moist vapour, when smitten by
its beneficent radiance become not unworthy ministers and attendants upon its
glory. So it may be with us, for Christ comes to be our light. (A. Maclaren,
D. D.)
The shining of the common place
One summer day, when walking in Surrey, on the slope of a
hill--the sun setting behind me--right away across the valley I espied a most
remarkable light. It was more brilliant than electric light, and seemed to rise
from the ground. At first I supposed that some one had lit a fire with resinous
wood that sparkled and flashed, but there was evidently no smoke. It seemed as
though some angel had dropped a brilliant star down there upon the ploughed
field, and that it was burning itself out. Finally, on my reaching the spot, I
discovered that an old piece of broken glass had caught the light of the
setting sun, and was bathed in a supernatural glow. An old piece of
bottle-glass--yet so brilliant--the bottle-glass not being visible, because of
the light that shone on it! (Life of Faith.)
Verse 2-3
For, behold, the darkness
shall cover the earth
The manifestation of
Christ to the Gentiles
1.
The first token that was
shown to the Gentile world that the great Light had arisen which was to cast
its beams over them as well as over the small nation which alone hitherto had
known God, was the wonderful star which was seen in the sky. This appeared but
twice to the Magi--once to tell them to set out, and once to tell them that
they had arrived. All the rest was faith.
2. It was the manifestation of the Redeemer, the Light of the world,
to the Gentiles. But much had yet to be done before the Gentiles were received
into the full equality of privilege and grace with the Jews. It was above
thirty years yet before the rending of the veil of the temple showed that the
partition-wall was broken down by the death of Christ, which divided Jew from
Gentile; still longer before the commission was given to go and teach all
nations, baptizing them into the name of the Holy Trinity; still longer before
the vision at Joppa and the gift of the Holy Spirit at Ceasarea bade St. Peter
baptize Cornelius, the first Gentile Christian, into the Church.
3. Let us claim our share in that exceeding great joy with which the
wise men saw the first brightness of that star when they saw it in the East. If
we do truth--that is to say, if we really,, try to please God, by living
according to His will--then we “come to the light, and our deeds will be made
manifest that they are wrought in God. (G. Moberly.)
Zion’s glory
The prophet here reverts
for a moment to the previous condition of the world, in order to describe, with
more effect, the glorious change to be produced. He is not, therefore, to be
understood as saying that Zion shall be glorious because, while the nations are
in darkness, she is to enjoy exclusive light, but because the light imparted to
her first shall draw the nations to her. (J. A. Alexander.)
Verse 3
And the Gentiles shall
come to thy light
The attractiveness of an
enlightened and light-giving Church
What shall invite such
multitudes to the Church?
They shall be allowed to join themselves to thee--
1. By the light that shines upon thee.
2. By the light with which thou shinest. (M. Henry.)
The Jews unconsciously
giving light to the Gentiles
I have read in one of George
Macdonald’s novels of a born blind lamplighter. He illumined the city at night;
but he had no sense of what he was doing. So has it been with this land. She
has presented the Portrait to the gallery; she has heard the plaudits of the
spectators, and she has refused to join in them. In all history there is
nothing so unique. It is the enemies of this land that have crowned her
world-king; it is the Gentiles that have come to His light. The lamplighter has
been blind to the beauty of that throne which she has illuminated. Palestine
has lit up the scene; she has listened to the crowd shouting their applause,
and she has wondered why. She has been like a deaf mute in a concert-room. She
has struck by accident the notes of a harp, and by accident they have burst
into music. The audience has cheered the performance to the echo; but the
performer knows not her triumph. (G. Matheson, D. D.)
Blessings of light
Miss Florence Nightingale,
as the result of her wide observation, remarks:--“One of the greatest observers
of human things says, Where there is sun there is thought.” All physiology goes
to confirm this. Where is the shady side of deep valleys, there is cretinism.
Where are cellars and the unsunned side of narrow streets, there is the
degeneracy of the human race; mind and body equally degenerating. Put the pale,
withering plant and human being into the sun, and, if not too far gone, each
will recover heart and spirit. In France there are hospitals where they trust
almost entirely to light for the cure of disease. Surely there is here an
earthly analogue to a spiritual fact. (W. G. Horder.)
Verse 4-5
Lift up thine eyes round
about
The Gentiles gathered
I.
THE GATHERING OF THE
GENTILES TO ZION. From every quarter--from far--from beyond the sea. With all
the forces.
II. ZION’S
EMOTIONS. She sees and overflows with joy. (R. A. Bertram.)
“Nursed at thy side”
Rather, “on thy side,” i.e
carried on the hip, the
Eastern mode of carrying
young children (Isaiah 66:12). (Prof. J. Skinner, D. D.)
Church-membership
The Church’s children
first be nursed at her side, not sent out to be nursed among strangers. They that
would enjoy the dignities and privileges of Christ’s family must submit to the
discipline of it. (M. Henry.)
Verses 5-8
Then thou shalt see
The glory of the millennial
Church
Wealth, Commerce and
Agriculture are three great interests and powers on earthen trinity of forces
which have in all ages engrossed mankind.
Each one of the three will have its representatives in that vast multitude who
are to ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward. (J. R. Macduff, D.
D.)
The enlargement of the
Church
We are likewise told how
the Church shall be affected with this increase of her numbers and enlargement
of her borders.
1. She will be in a transport of joy upon this account (Isaiah 60:5).
2. There will be a mixture of fear with this joy. “Thine heart shall
fear,” as though it were a thing unlawful to join with the Gentiles, etc.
3. She shall be enlarged with Love, so as to leave room for all the
Gentile converts.
4. She shall be struck with surprise and wonder, saying, “Who are
these that fly?” etc. (E. Erskine.)
Verses 6-9
The multitude of camels
shall cover thee
Commercial nations and
nomad tribes aiding the Church
The nations engaged in
commerce bring their wares to the Church; the tribe of Midian, descended from
Abraham and Keturah (Genesis 25:2), and of which the Ephaens formed a branch, dwelling on the east
coast of the Elanitic Gulf in the town of Madyan, lying five days’ journey
south from Aria (according to the Arabic geographers)--these come in caravans
so numerous and so long that the country round Jerusalem swarms with camels.
All these, Midianites and Ephaens, come from Sheba, of which Viral says, solis
est turea virga Sabaeis, and which, according to Strabo, was a populous country
of ample resources, producing myrrh, incense and cinnamon. There (viz in
Yemen), where spices, precious stones and gold are found, they have brought
gold and incense; and these valuable gifts they now bring to Jerusalem, not as
unwilling tribute, but with cheerful proclamation of the glorious doings and
attributes of Jehovah, the God of Israel. As the trading nations come, so also
do the nomad tribes: Kedar, i.e the Kedarenes, armed with bows (Isaiah 21:17), and dwelling infortified settlements (Isaiah 42:11) in the desert between Babylon and Syria; and Nebaioth (likewise
of Ishmaelitish origin, according to Genesis 25:23), a nomad tribe which, though still of no importance during the
Israelitish monarchy, rose in the first century B.C. to eminence as a civilized
nation, whose territory extended from the Elanitic Gulf to the country lying
east of the Jordan, across Belka and as far as Hauran--for the monumental
inscriptions they have left behind reach from Egypt to Babylon, though Arabia
Petrcea is the chief place where they are found. The Kedarenes drive their
flocks of small cattle, when collected, to Jerusalem, and the rams of the
Naboteans, brought by this nation, ere placed at the service of the Church, and
ascend, for good pleasure, the altar of Jehovah. (F. Delitzsch, D. D.)
Dromedaries
Properly young camels. The
word does not occur in the Old Testament elsewhere; amongst the Arabs it
denotes, according to some of the native lexicographers, a camel less than nine
years old. (Prof. J. Skinner, D. D.)
Verse 7
All the flocks of Kedar
shall be gathered together unto thee
Sacrificial service
None of the prophets of
the Old Testament is able to think of the worship of God by the Israel of the
latter days without the offering of sacrifices; but it would be a return to the
limited conceptions of the Old Testament if one were to conclude that animal
sacrifice will ever be restored.
The dividing-wall of national particularism and ceremonial observances forming
shadows of things to come will never be re-established; and with the cessation
of sacrificial worship since the fiery judgment fell upon the second temple,
there has for ever passed away the restriction of worship to any one central
spot on earth (John 4:21), butthe stream of salvation which proceeded from Jerusalem will,
nevertheless, ultimately empty its waters there, and make the city once more a
fountain of blessing. As the prophet has said (Isaiah 56:7), the house of God in Jerusalem will become “a house of prayer “
for all nations: Jehovah here calls it “My house of glory,” as that which was
built for His honour and filled with His gracious presence. He will make its
internal glory like the external, by adorning it with the gifts brought in
homage by the world of converted Gentiles. (F. Delitzsch,D. D.)
I will glorify the house of My glory
A prosperous church
I. WHAT IS NOW THE
HOUSE OF GOD? A house is a place of residence; the house of God, in the proper
sense of the phrase, is the place of His residence. In this sense, the universe
is His house, for He inhabits all space, and neither is, nor can be, confined
to any one spot. Solomon felt this when he built the magnificent temple at
Jerusalem. “Behold,” said he, addressing himself to God, “the heaven and heaven
of heavens cannot contain Thee; how much less this house that I have builded?”
Stephen felt it when, in allusion to the same house, he said, “Howbeit the
Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet, heaven
is My throne and earth is My footstool: what house will ye build Me? saith the
Lord: or what is the place of My rest?” Whilst, however., the universe is thus
the only proper house of God, there are places which, in condescension to our
weakness, are specially denominated HIS house, to denote that He specially
manifests His presence there, is specially worshipped there, and bestows there
special spiritual blessings, rich spiritual banquets. The dispensation of the
law was intended to foreshadow good things to come, and accordingly under that
dispensation there was a typical sanctuary, a house intended to typify the
spiritual house of this dispensation--the Church. In that typical sanctuary
there was a visible emblem of the Divine presence, a cloud overshadowing the
mercy-seat, the same cloud which had gone before the children of Israel when
journeying through the wilderness, as a pillar of a cloud by day, and as a
pillar of fire by night. This visible emblem was a type of the spiritual
presence of God in His Church. In the same typical sanctuary where this visible
emblem was vouchsafed, typical sacrifices were offered and typical blessings
bestowed. The new dispensation being the antitype is spiritual. Hence we have
not now a typical temple, but every believer individually, and especially every
Christian Church, is a spiritual temple. The house of God, then, under this
dispensation, is not the building where the saints meet, but the assembly of
the saints be it where it may; it is a spiritual house built of living stones,
a house where spiritual sacrifices are offered, the sacrifices of praise and
thanksgiving, which arc acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. At the same
time, whilst the building is not the house of God, there is a subordinate sense
in which it may be so denominated.
II. UNDER WHAT
CIRCUMSTANCES MAY THE HOUSE CALLED “THE HOUSE OF GOD” BE DESCRIBED AS “THE
HOUSE OF HIS GLORY”? It is the house of His glory, when His glory is the grand
object in view. This house of His glory must not only be built, but also used
for His glory: We have applied the phrase “house of God in its subordinate
sense to the building; let us proceed to apply it in a higher sense to the
assembly of the saints, to the Church meeting in the building; and we ask, When
is such a Church properly denominated the house of God’s glory?
1. It is so, when the object of its original formation, and that of
its assembling from time to time, is the glory of God. Let professing
Christians meet together as a mere matter of form, meet without any definite
end in view, or meet with any other end than the glory of their Lord, the
Church is no longer the house of His glory; nay, if even they meet for praise,
for their own spiritual improvement and for the conversion of sinners, yet if
the glory of God be not the ultimate end of all this, their assembly cannot be
looked upon as the house of His glory.
2. The Church is the House of God’s glory when His glory is kept in
view in all Church acts; for example, in receiving members, exercising
discipline, choosing officers.
3. The Church is the house of God’s glory, when a spirit in
accordance with HIS glory is cherished and manifested by every individual
member. It is for the glory of God that love should prevail in His house. It is
for the glory of God that there should be peace in His Church. And that the
members of Churches should be characterized by humility.
III. THE PROMISE
THAT GOD WILL GLORIFY THE HOUSE OF HIS GLORY. There is no promise that He will
glorify the house which may be called by HIS name, if it be not the house of
His glory. The glory is--
1. When He makes the house the place of numerous conversions.
2. When He makes it the place of edification to His people. (R.
Arnot, LL. D.)
I will glorify the house
of My glory
I. THE PLACE. For
what reasons, or with what propriety, may the Christian Church be called the
house of the glory of God? Chiefly on these accounts--
1. Because it is planned and built by the purpose and power of the
Most High.
2. Because it contains the special manifestations of the Divine
presence and glory.
Shechinah, the glory of
the Lord.
II. THE PROMISE. “I
will glorify, ‘ etc. God did so in the first temple, by making it an object of
beauty and glory to all His people, and by causing it to excite the admiration
of surrounding nations also; and still further, by sending Christ finally to
minister in that temple. God will glorify the house of His glory--
1. By accepting the services and offerings which, in connection with
it, are performed.
2. By making it the place of special communion and fellowship with
Himself.
3. By protecting it permanently against all the efforts of hostile
powers.
4. By extending its influence, and increasing its celebrity in the
earth.
5. By consummating it, finally, in the splendour and happiness of
heaven. (J. Parsons.)
God glorifying the house
of His glory
The vision is inspiring,
and can only be fulfilled in the moral grandeur of the Church.
I. It begins to be
accomplished WHEN SHE IS MADE A LIGHT TO DISPEL SPIRITUAL DARKNESS. At times
she has not laid sufficient emphasis on her mission as a teaching Church.
Unquestionably philanthropy is a function of the Church. But she ought not to
permit the teaching side of her work to be thrust into the background. Her
special business is to fight darkness with light.
II. God also
glorifies her WHEN HE MAKES HER THE ARENA OF HEAVENLY VICTORIES.
III. God glorifies the
Church IN MAKING HER THE SCHOOL OF SAINTLY VIRTUES. All educational
institutions are to be admired, but the Church is foremost among them. To know
the world, to know self, to know God, cover the entire domain of knowledge and
mark its distinctive steps and progress. In the Church we are trained in the
knowledge of self and God.
IV. But beyond all
this the Almighty glorifies her WHEN HE MAKES IT A GARDEN FOR THE GROWTH OF
HUMAN FELLOWSHIPS. We must not forget that what society knows of brotherhood
has come from the Church. In the Roman Empire there were provident societies,
especially burial guilds, before Christianity, but the real idea of fellowship
began with the household of faith. The people were taught by Christ to love one
another. And when the Church realizes her calling in this respect, and rich and
poor meet together in her communion on equal footing, then is she resplendent
with heavenly glory. (G. C. Lorimer, D. D.)
Verse 8
Who are these that fly as
a cloud?
--
Accessions to the Church
It is a fine conception of
Vitringa, that the ships expressly mentioned in the next verso are here
described in their first appearance at a distance resembling with their outspread
sails and rapid course a fleecy cloud driven by the wind, and a flight of doves
returning to their young. Both comparisons are used as here to indicate
rapidity of notion (Job 30:15; Psalms 4:6-7; Hosea 11:11; Jeremiah 4:13). (J. A. Alexander.)
As doves to their windows
I. THE MOVEMENT
WHICH IS HERE STATED. It is a flight. The expression is intended to signify the
coming of men from the distant regions of the earth to the Church of God, of
which such glorious things are here said.
1. The movement signifies that state into which these men are
transformed, and in which they come to the enjoyment of the designs of mercy.
It is the abandonment of all their idolatrous worship; it is the renunciation
of all that is opposed to God and to salvation; it is their coming back to “the
Shepherd and Bishop of souls”; it is their looking to God as the alone source
of happiness and peace; it is their believing in Him, who alone is able to save
and to bless them.
2. It is under the Gospel dispensation that this is to be
exemplified.
3. Divine influence must be imparted to effect this.
4. This change arises from the statements of Gospel truth as they are
contained in the written Word.
II. WHAT IS
INTENDED BY THE MANNER IN WHICH THIS MOVEMENT IS SAID TO BE MADE? The figures
denote--
1. Eagerness.
2. Their number.
3. Their unity. The clouds are supposed to fly in one body, and to be
driven to one part of the horizon: the doves fly together to attain one home.
So it will be with all who have been conducted by the Spirit into the way of
life everlasting.
III. WHAT IS IMPLIED
IN THE INQUIRY WHICH THE CONTEMPLATION OF THIS MOVEMENT EXCITES.
1. Surprise.
2. Joy. (J. Parsons.)
Converts coming into the
Church
They corne as doves to the
windows.
I. BECAUSE THEY
FLY LOW. The eagle darts up, as if to strike its beak into the sun. There are
birds that seem to dwell under the eaves of heaven; you see them as little
specks against the sky, so far off that you cannot guess the style of their plumage
or the shape of their bodies. They float so far away that if the hunter’s gun
be discharged at them they do not change their course. Not so with the doves or
pigeons; they never take any high excursions. They fly around your roof and
alight on the fence, and seem to dislike great altitudes. So these souls who
come to Christ and to His Church fly low. They ask no great things; they seek a
humble place at the feet of Christ.
II. BECAUSE THEY
FLY FOR SHELTER. The albatross makes a throne of the tempest; the sea-gulls
find their grandest frolic in the storm. Not so with doves; at the first blow
of the north-easter they fly to the coop. Eagle contends with eagle in mid-air,
and vulture fights vulture on the bosom of the carcass; but doves at the first
dash of the bird of prey speed for shelter from fiery eye and iron beak and
loathsome talon. So these souls come for shelter. Christ is the only shelter of
the soul in trouble.
III. BECAUSE THEY
FLY HOME. Most of the winged denizens have no home; now they are at the north
and now at the south, as the climate indicates. This year a nest in one tree,
next year a nest in another tree. But the pigeons alluded to, summer and winter
and always, have a home in the dovecot. And so Christ is the home of those who
come to Him. He is a warm home I they rest under the “feathers of the
Almighty.”
IV. BECAUSE THEY
COME IN FLOCKS. The buzzard, with dripping beak, fluttering up from the
carrion, is alone. You occasionally look up against the wintry sky and see a
solitary bird winging past. But doves or pigeons are in flocks; by scores and
hundreds do they fly. So to-day we see a great flock coming into the kingdom. (T.
De W. Talmage, D. D.)
A flight of doves
I. The first
thought which the verse suggests, in connection with cur Communion services, is
that of BLISSFUL ASSOCIATION. AS the dovecot may have its different apertures,
so each Church retains its own denominational entrance. But the glorious
meeting-place, the spiritual Shelter, is the same.
II. In connection
with our sacred rite, the emblem suggests a PUBLIC PROFESSION. The prophet is
arrested; or, possibly, in the poetical imagery here employed, a chorus of
spectators--in which he veils his own personality--are arrested by the
spectacle. The doves are not spoken of as flying under screen of night or
darkness; neither were they beheld winging a solitary or circuitous flight, as
if dreading and evading observation. But the midday sun looked down on a whole
cloud of them, their golden iridescent plumage flashing in his beams. It is no
unimportant or insignificant feature in your Divinely-appointed ordinance, this
open, dove-like flight to the Covenant Ark.
III. The cloud of
doves, as here represented, betokens THE CHARACTER OF CHRISTIANS AND OF
CHRISTIAN COMMUNICANTS. They are, or ought be, dove-like. The dove has these
among other characteristics--
1. It is the complex symbol, in sacred poetry and art, of peace and
love, of meekness and gentleness, purity and harmlessness (Song of Solomon 1:15; Song of Solomon 6:9; Matthew 10:16). In the rude, early Christian symbolism of the Roman catacombs,
the dove, as the bird of hope, is generally represented in connection,
variously treated, with the olive branch. What a lesson for us all as believers
in Jesus.
2. A second characteristic of the dove is, that it is swift of wing.
The prophet saw them, not sailing like a cloud, or drifting like a cloud, but
flying; borne along with whirlwind speed. The carrier dove is well known for
the swiftness--the length and steadiness--of its arrowy course, surpassing the
proverbial flight of the eagle. This, coupled with Isaiah’s figure, surely
suggests the activities of the Christian life.
IV. The figure of
the dove fleeing to its window reminds and suggests that it is a bird which
requires A SAFE SHELTER. It does not, like some others, cower in hedgerows or
furrows. The wild pigeon may build its nest on the forest tree; but the tame
one seeks its secure dovecot. The Eastern dove, which had no artificial home,
had its equally secure dwelling in the rock-clefts (Song of Solomon 2:14). A little way from the north-west shores of the Lake of
Gennesaret there is a recess in the hills called the “Wady Hyman,” or “Valley
of Doves,” the sides of which are perforated with their retreats. You who are
communicants have been fleeing anew to-day for refuge to the “Rock of Ages.” It
is a special characteristic of the dove, that, however far it goes--though at a
distance of hundreds of miles--it will fly back with unerring aim, sureness,
and safety to its abode. So with “the dove of Christ.”
V. The cloud of
doves on wing to their windows reminds one of Young COMMUNICANTS. In the LXX
the words of this verse are remarkable! “Who are these that fly like doves with
their young?” The doves fly to their dovecot, but not alone; they have their
offspring with them. Not the least beautiful thing about a Communion Sunday is
the spectacle of young doves; those who have just risen from their early
perches, the perches of the morning of life, and are winging their way, bright
and unsoiled, to the Rock!
VI. One other
thought is suggested, by the remembrance of a large class of those who are
always to be found at the Sacrament of Communion--I mean THE AFFLICTED. This
image of doves flying to their windows reminds of storm. They were seen flying;
drifting along like a tempestuous cloud. The dove flies to its dovecot, or to
the rock-clefts, when the storm is brewing. (J. R. Macduff, D. D.)
The joy of the Church on
the multiplication of converts to Christ
I. THE DESCRIPTION
GIVEN OF CONVERTS IN EVANGELICAL TIMES.
1. Whence do they fly? These persons are represented as coming from
among the Gentiles, the Pagan world.
2. Whither do they fly? They repair to Him, who is designated in the
sixteenth verse as “the Lord, the Saviour and Redeemer, the Holy One of Jacob.”
But this is not the whole. These converts are also represented as repairing to
the Church as to their rest and home.
3. What is the mode in which they are represented as flying from
their former position, to Christ and to the Church? The images are very
beautiful and impressive.
II. THE SENTIMENTS
AND EMOTIONS WITH WHICH WE SHOULD VIEW THESE ACCESSIONS TO THE CHURCH. “Who are
these, that fly as a cloud, and as doves to their windows?”
1. This is the language of surprise and admiration; for the
conversion of a soul to God is in all eases a wonder.
2. It is the language of gratitude and pleasure.
3. It is the language of complacency.
4. This is the language of prospective hope. For, if it be admitted
that already many have come and yielded themselves up to Christ, it is a
pleasing thought that they are only as the early drops of the copious shower. (J
Clayton. M. A.)
God’s doves flying to His
windows
I. A SWEET SIGHT
THAT THE OLD TESTAMENT CHURCH GETS OF THE STATE OF MATTERS UNDER THE NEW
TESTAMENT, upon the revelation of Christ in the Gospel among the Gentiles. She
sees poor souls upon the wing, in great multitudes, flying to a Saviour; and a
sweeter sight cannot be seen upon earth.
II. THE MANNER OF
THEIR FLIGHT. “AS a cloud, and as doves.”
III. THE TERM OR
OBJECT OF THEIR FLIGHT. They fly to the windows for their relief. Like the
window of the ark of Noah, whereat the dove entered, when she could find no
place for the sole of her foot, because of the deluge.
IV. THE PLEASANT
SURPRISE THAT THE OLD TESTAMENT CHURCH IS PUT INTO AT THIS SIGHT. (E.
Erskine.)
Marvellous increase of the
Church
The Church, when she
uttered these words, appears to have been the subject of three kinds of
feeling.
I. WONDER.
1. The Church wondered at the number of her converts.
2. The Chaldee has the idea in it of swiftness. “Who are these that
fly as swiftly as a cloud?”
3. The Targum has another idea, that of publicity. The cloud flies so
that everybody can see it. So do these converts fly openly before the world.
4. There is another idea here, which Dr. Gill gives us in his very
valuable commentary. “Who are these that fly as a cloud,” for unanimity? Not as
clouds, but “as a cloud”; not as two or three bodies, but as one united and
compact mass!
5. Again, there is the idea of power. Who is he that shall bridle a
cloud and stop it in its march?
II. PLEASURE.
1. The Church is exceedingly pleased at the character of those who
come to her. “Doves.”
2. The Church feels pleasure in their condition: They “fly.”
3. The translation of the LXX gives us another idea. “Who are these
that fly like doves with their young?” The Church rejoices at the company that
the converts bring with them.
4. The Church feels pleasure at the direction in which these doves
move. “To their windows.” The joy of the Church is that the poor sinner does
not fly to man, nor to the law, but to Christ, the dovecot.
III. ANXIETY. “All!”
says the Church, “it is all very well their flying like a cloud; it is all
right their going as doves to their window-s; but who are they?” She anxiously
desires to be sure that it is all gold that is put into her treasury. “Who are
they?” I address myself to an anxious Church to answer it.
1. They are those that fly. They fly because they cannot stop where
they were, and they are flying, somewhere else for refuge. 2. They fly, not on
the ground, but like a cloud, up high. They were persons that did not care
about the world, but wanted heaven.
3. They were persons driven by the wind, just as the clouds are--who
have no power of themselves to move, but have something driving them behind.
4. They are persons who have been regenerated, for they are “doves.”
They are changed from ravens into doves, from lions into lambs.
5. They are those who have fled to their windows, and found a refuge
in Christ. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The cloud of doves
I. WHO ARE THEY
THAT THEY SHOULD BE SO MANY? The answer to that inquiry is another question:
Why should they not be many?
1. There are a great many sinners in the world; why should not a
great number be converted? When many souls are brought to Christ, they are only
relatively many. Usually, alas! they are relatively small.
2. Has not Christ brought into the world a great redemption?
3. Why should they not come ill crowds when the spirit of God is
quite able to lead them to come?
4. Heaven is very great, and the preparations which grace has made
are very large.
II. WHO ARE THEY
THAT THEY SHOULD FLY?
1. They fly to Christ, because they are driven, and cannot help
flying to Him.
2. They may well fly, because they are in danger.
3. Besides, these flying sinners have strong desires within them. I
sometimes see a man throw a pigeon up into the air, that it may find its way
home. It usually wheels about for a little while, as though it were uncertain
which direction it should take; but, presently, its quick eye catches sight of
some familiar landmark, and by instinct it knows which is its way home, and
then, away it goes. So is it with a soul that the Spirit of God has once
quickened. It longs for Christ. It may hesitate, and look about to find the way
it is to go to find Him; but at last, it says within itself, There He is, and
away it goes, like the doves to their windows.
4. They may well fly, because they have such a short time in which to
reach the Saviour.
III. WHY DO THEY FLY
AS DOVES, that is, in a covey, so that they look like a moving cloud?
1. Because they are all in one common danger. They are too much taken
up with the solemnities of their condition before God to have time or wish for
contention; and, therefore, they do not quarrel and fight, as a number of hawks
might do, but they fly together in one band.
2. Because they are seeking one common refuge.
IV. WHO ARE THEY
THAT THEY SHOULD FLY THIS WAY? I mean, what makes them fly to Christ? What
makes them fly to His Church?
1. Because they are seeking safety, and there is no safety for them
except in Christ.
2. They also need rest, and a dovecot is a place of rest to a dove.
3. You like to come where God’s people assemble because your food is
there.
4. Our companions are there.
5. Some of us fly there because our young are there. (C. H.
Spurgeon.)
Verse 9
Surely the isles shall
wait for Me
The ships of Tarshish
The ships of Tarshish
coming from the extreme end of the European island-region, as the leaders of
the fleet brining Lion’s children from afar.
(F. Delitzsch, D. D.)
Missionary ships
The ships of Tarshish,
transport-ships, shall lie ready to carry members from far distant regions to
the Church, or, which is equivalent, to carry the ministers of the Church to
remote parts to preach the Gospel, and to bring in souls to join themselves to
the Lord. (M. Henry.)
The enlargement of the
Church
I. WHO ARE
BROUGHT. “Thy sons,” i.e such as are designed to be so, those “children of God
that are scuttled abroad” (John 11:52).
II. WHAT THEY SHALL
BRING WITH THEM. They live at such a distance that they cannot bring their
flocks and their rams; but, like those who live remote from Jerusalem, when
they come up to worship at the feast, they shall bring “their silver and their
gold with them.” When we give up ourselves to God we must, with ourselves, give
up all we have to Him. If we honour Him with our spirits, we will honour Him
with our substance.
III. TO WHOM THEY
SHALL DEVOTE AND DEDICATE THEMSELVES AND ALL THEY ARE WORTH. To “the name of
the Lord thy God;” to God as the Lord of all, and the Church’s God and King,
even to the Holy One of Israel, whom Israel worships as a holy One, in the
beauty of holiness, “because He hath glorified thee.” The honour God puts upon
His Church and people should not only engage us to honour them, but invite us
to join ourselves to them. “We will go with you, for God is with you” (Zechariah 8:23). (C. H.Spurgeon.)
Verse 12
For the nation and kingdom
that will not serve Thee shall perish
The character and doom of
a corrupt nation
I.
THE CHARACTER OF A CORRUPT
NATION. The text implies--
1. That there is a certain course of human life which the Bible
recognizes as serving the Lord.
2. That nations as well as individuals are bound to pursue that
course. There is no sentiment more common, none more philosophically absurd,
none more morally pernicious than this: that communities of men are relieved
from obligations which are binding upon individuals.
II. THE DOOM OF A
CORRUPT NATION. “They shall perish, yea, those nations shall be utterly
wasted.”
1. The doom is most calamitous. “It shall perish.”
2. The doom is most certain. It is here threatened with
emphasis--“they shall perish, yea,” etc. All analogy indicates its certainty.
Our subject explains--
Verse 13
The glory of Lebanon shall
come unto thee
Trees employed in the
service of the Church
It is difficult to say
whether the reference he to building materials for the sacred edifice, or to
ornamental trees planted in the temple-courts.
(Prof. J. Skinner, D. D.)
Variety in unity
Variety of instrumentality
and operation subordinate to unity of purpose is a striking feature in all the
works of God. This law provides for beauty as well as use. The text teaches us
that the method by which God works in nature is also the method by which He
works in grace--that the law of variety in unity is the law according to which
Heconsolidates and extends His kingdom among mankind. The allusion and the
doctrine are equally clear. The allusion is to the various trees of Lebanon
employed by Solomon for utility and beauty in the erection of the temple in
Jerusalem. Varying in size, and quality, and appearance of wood, they were all
deemed necessary for the purpose of beautifying the place, that was to be made
more beautiful and glorious still by the majesty and grace of the indwelling
God. The doctrine is that, in like manner, various agencies--men of different
periods and nations, men of different positions, talents, and attainments, men
of opposite creeds and mental tastes--are used by God in the erection and
adornment of that spiritual temple which He makes His special abode, the
magnificence and glory of which, outliving the desolations of time, shall shine
to His praise through the ages of eternity. (W. Waiters.)
Diverse agencies in the
Church
I. THE
ILLUSTRATIONS OF THIS DOCTRINE ARE MANIFOLD.
1. The first I notice is that which is supplied us in the structure
of the Bible. To a superficial observer the Bible seems a collection of small
books bound together without any connecting-link. But if we come to study this
collection of books carefully, we shall see, underlying all diversities, a
unity which indicates that all have been originated and guided by one supreme
mind.
2. Certain periods require certain orders of men and certain gifts,
not necessary at other times.
3. Further, the peculiar qualities of various races and tribes serve
to extend the truth of God, and promote the growth and perfection of His
Church. Christianity does not recognize nationalities as such Jew and Gentile,
Greek and Barbarian,
European and African, American and Asiatic,--all are one in Christ Jesus.
Still, God sanctifies all national characteristics to His gracious purpose of
making Christianity universally triumphant. Jewish reverence, Grecian intelligence
and taste, Roman courage and honour, Scandinavian enterprise, the practical
energy of the Anglo-Saxon, the speculative inquiry and patient toil of the
German, the Frenchman’s brilliant vivacity and grace, the Italian’s glowing
imagination, the ardent negro, and the Oriental full of subtlety and
disputation--all are wrought by the Master-Builder into the strength and beauty
of the structure He is rearing to His honour.
4. Nor can denominational distinctions be regarded as altogether an
evil; for God makes them all subserve the complete manifestation of His
many-sided Gospel, and the wider extension of His kingdom.
5. Original differences of mental constitution and temperament have
also their place and function. There arc diversities of gifts, yet there is the
same Spirit; there are differences of administrations, yet there is the same
Lord; there arc diversities of operations, yet it is the same God which worketh
all in all.
II. PRACTICAL
REMARKS.
1. We may be sure that where God has designed and qualified men for
work in His Church He will prepare the way for their usefulness.
2. Every man should try to find his true position, and prove faithful
in it.
3. The subject affords encouragement to the feeblest of the Lord’s
servants. All have their place and use.
4. Are we not reminded of the duty of charity towards all engaged the
work of the Lord? Too often the diversities of Christian men are occasions for
jealous; let and strife. If we are Christians, we are all plants of God’s right
hand planting; let us be content to bloom after our kind, and rejoice in that
we all contribute something to the glory of the Master’s garden. (W.
Waiters.)
I will make the place of My feet glorious
“The place of My feet”
I. THE SCENE OF
THIS SPECIAL DIVINE GLORY. “The place of My feet.” The sacred writers speak of
God’s feet as indicating His personal presence. The place of God’s feet, or His
footstool, was, in ancient times, the temple at Jerusalem. The allusion of the
language is to a royal throne. Jehovah is conceived of as the King of Israel,
the King of kings, whose throne is in heaven, but His footstool in the earthly
temple; and thither the Israelites as His true subjects were required to
repair, to render homage to their great King, and bend lowly before His footstool.
All this was, in turn, a figure of the better things reserved for us. The
Jewish particularity has been broadened out into the compass of the great
household of faith, whose sons and daughters are drawn from all the earth’s
kindreds, and peoples, and tongues. The true Church, composed of all believers
of whatever name or nation, is God’s temple--“the place of His feet I” In a
real and important sense the wide earth, and the whole material creation, is
His footstool, marked everywhere by the broad footprints of the Creator
revealing His eternal power and Godhead. The signs of Providence reveal the
movements of a present and ever-working God, exercising wise, and righteous,
and benignant control over His creatures.
II. THE GLORY OF
THE SCENE. It was the glory of Eden that there God talked with man face to
face. So it is the glory of heaven that there He replenishes His saints with
the joys of His eternal fellowship. It was the glory of Sinai that there He
displayed His grandeur and proclaimed His law; and of Tabor and Calvary that
there He unfolded His hidden majesty, and the fulness of His mercy. And it is
the glory of the Church that it is distinguished by the clearest manifestations
of the Divine presence and grace. What are these manifestations? God makes the
place of His feet glorious--
1. By the worship that is there rendered and accepted.
2. By the spiritual glory that is there created. “The glory of
Lebanon, etc. The glory of the Church lies in the possession and exercise of
the grandest and noblest moral principles--those that are most assimilated to
the Divine nature. The true purpose of the Church, the final end of its
warfare, is to be a living witness to mankind of these moral principles, to be
an embodied protest against all the money-worship and pleasure-worship, and
therefore worship of the world; to be a revelation to man of higher interests
and blessings, and a Diviner greatness. It is when she is most distinctly
Godlike and Christlike that men fall down and confess that God is in her of a
truth. The glory of the Lord is then risen upon her.
3. By attracting immense and various multitudes from all quarters of
the globe to His Church. Though numbers be not the chief, they are a real
element of glory.
4. By the blessedness there conferred. All the elements of the
Church’s glory hitherto enumerated are elements of blessedness; but there are
other special sources of that blessedness.
Verse 14
The sons also of them that
afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee
Honour done to the Church
A promise like this is
made to the Church of Philadelphia (Revelation 3:9); and it is intended to be--
1.
A mortification to the
proud oppressors of the Church.
2. An exaltation to the poor, oppressed ones of the Church.
3. And this is the honour that shall be done them: they shall have an
opportunity of doing good to those who have done evil to them, and saving those
alive that have afflicted and despised them. It is a pleasure to a good man,
and he accounts it an honour, to show mercy to those with whom he has found no
mercy. (M. Henry.)
The city of the Lord
The city of the Lord
1. He hath built it for the honour of His majesty.
2. It bears His name.
3. He hath fortified it with impregnable walls and bulwarks.
4. He hath beautified it with the graces of His spirit.
5. He hath replenished it with the blessings of His goodness.
6. He hath felicitated it with His gracious presence.
7. It is the city wherein reside the peculiar people of God, who are
the beloved of the Lord, on whom His eyes and His heart are continually fixed.
8. He esteems it above all the kingdoms and empires of the world. (R.
Macculloch.)
An ideal city
That city is truly great
and honourable, it is strong, it is rich, it is safe, it is beautiful, it is
the most desirable place that can be to live in, which is the city of the Lord,
which He owns, in which He dwells, in which religion is uppermost. (M.
Henry.)
Verse 16
Thou shalt also suck the
milk of the Gentiles
The Church served by
nations and kings
The nations and their
kings now give up to the Church their vital substance, as a mother or nurse
gives to the child the milk of her breasts; and the Church thereby has rich
nourishment for prosperous growth, ever fresh material for joy and
thanksgiving.
We can by no means think of enrichment by plunder; the sucking is that of a
child, not a vampire. (F. Delitzsch, D. D.)
Religion advanced by
wealth and power
All interpreters agree
with the Targum in applying this verse to the influx of wealth and power and
whatever else the kings and nations of the earth can contribute to the progress
of the true religion. The figure is derived from De
33:19. (J. A.
Alexander.)
The perpetual excellencies
of the Gospel Church
(Isaiah 60:15-16):--Considering how short Jerusalem’s excellency was, and how
short it came of the vast compass of this promise, we must look for the full
accomplishment of it in the perpetual excellencies of the Gospel Church, far
exceeding those of the Old Testament Church, and the glorious privileges and
advantages of the Christian religion, which are indeed the “joy of many
generations.” Two things are here spoken of as her excellency and joy, in
opposition to her having been forsaken and hated.
1. She shall find herself countenanced by her neighbours. The nations
and their kings that are brought to embrace Christianity shall lay themselves
out for the good of the Church, and maintain its interests with the tenderness
and affection that the nurse shows to the child at her breast.
2. She shall find herself countenanced by her God. “Thou shalt know
that I, the Lord, I am thy Saviour, etc. (M. Henry.)
Sucking the milk of the
nations
Not suck their blood--that
is not the spirit of the Gospel. (M. Henry.)
Verse 17
For brass I will bring
gold
The kingdom of God
This passage occurs amid
the glowing prophecies concerning the millennial kingdom.
It has, however, its application to the kingdom in its present state.
I. THE KINGDOM OF
CHRIST RECOGNIZES DIFFERENT GRADES, QUALITIES, VALUES, USES. Each of these is
most effective in its own place. We would much sooner commit ourselves to a
vessel of steel than to one whose hull was made of gold. No greater calamity
could happen to the world than to turn all substances into gold. In the Church
variety of talent and gifts, differences of classes are essential to
prosperity. God never repeats-Himself. Equality is impossible, and if possible
would be disastrous.
II. ALL THINGS TAKE
ON ENHANCED VALUE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD. “For brass I will bring gold,” etc.
Wherever the Church of Christ comes, instantly all things leap into higher
value--property, schools, trade, institutions, government, the family, the
individual. You may interrogate in just four different directions--Nature, the
Rational World, Sin, the Kingdom. Nature replies: “I change nothing. I furnish
the ore; I cannot bring out the metal; I can’t change even the place of a
stone.” Rational World replies: “I can change the shapes, the places, the
combinations of things, but I cannot change the substances. I cannot turn iron
into silver, wood into brass, stones into iron.” Sin rises in its black
monstrosity, and says: “Yes, I have power to change. I can reach up, lay my
hand on the twenty-two carat gold and drag it down to silver; I can drag the
silver down to brass, the brass to iron, the iron to stone, the stone to wood,
the wood I can burn with the torch of hate, and scatter the ashes on the
red-hot floor of hell--I can do that!” Sin can drag the genius or the archangel
down to the abyss of a hopeless hades. It is only the Kingdom that can say:
“Everything I touch shall increase in value. I can take even the devil’s
outcasts and change them into burning seraphs.’
III. THIS
ENHANCEMENT OF VALUES IS BY AND THROUGH SUCCESSIVE GRADES--wood, stone, iron,
brass, silver, gold. God’s method of working is by development through grades.
There is no such thing as reaching perfection at a bound. It is a walk, a
race--meaning steady progress by steps.
IV. THE DIVINE
AGENCY IS EMPHASIZED. “I will bring.” Transformations in human nature are
effected through Divine power and grace. (A. McE. Wylie.)
The golden age
The golden age of humanity
is in the future. This age is here represented as so far excelling all future
ages as gold excels brass. Morally this may include three things.
I. THAT FOR
PRACTICAL ATHEISM THERE WILL BE GODLINESS.
II. THAT FOR
DOMINANT MATERIALISM THERE WILL BE SPIRITUALITY.
III. THAT FOR
CONTROLLING SELFISHNESS THERE WILL BE BENEVOLENCE. (Homilist.)
The wonderful exchange
This seems like a very
unthrifty kind of commerce. It promises only the most speedy and utter
bankruptcy. Surely one making such an offer must have great treasures, and
great love. There must be a perfect confidence that there can be no exhaustion
of treasure, nor any exhaustion in the delight of perpetually giving others the
best end of the bargain. No one can have such confidence and feeling but God.
It is God, the infinite, who proposes to give gold for brass. It is just what
He is constantly doing in nature, giving out the best for the worst. God always
sees and seeks the highest possible thing in every nature. And He wants us to
catch His penetrative insight. “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart
of man conceived the glories God hath prepared for those who love Him.” But God
is constantly trying to reveal them unto us by His Spirit. He is ever trying to
give us gold for brass, and silver for iron. This ought to be good news for
man. He is always willing to get the best end of a bargain. Now there are
various kinds of life, and many degrees of each kind. There is what is known as
physical, mental, emotional and spiritual life. Evidently there is life that is
as clay, as ore, as iron, as brass, as silver, as gold. God all the time offers
to every man to change his hard iron of life into brass his brass into silver,
his silver into gold. How does He propose to do it? On precisely the principles
that man acts in every-day life. Indeed, God has made it impossible for men to
succeed at all in the life that now is, except in the laws that give success in
the life to come. Just as man gives muscle for bread, or exertion of muscle
that all the delights of life may be his, just as he gives a few midnights So
study that he may be everlastingly wise, just as he gives self-denial that he
may have exuberance of strength, just as he gives all the things that he hath,
in order that he may keep his life, so God always asks your iron when He would
give brass, asks your brass when He would give silver, asks your silver when He
would give gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich, and have crowns of
eternal glory. The trouble with men is they give their muscle for bread, but
will not give iron to God for brass. I think it is a statement capable of
vindication, that God does not enrich by legacy, but by exchange. Every one
that is endowed is in great peril. Look at the great heroes that God has made
in our history: they fill the earth and rise into the skies. Were they endowed?
Not one, except with faculties; they had to develop their virtues. So in the
case of all moral greatness. God gives the Conditions, the opportunities; but
man must work with God. Did the human soul that Christ associated with Himself
submit to this plan of development, and especially did the Son of God, begotten
in holiness and perfection, submit Himself to this law that has been applied to
all men? If this shall be answered in the affirmative, we must conclude that
there is no other possible way to greatness and road to perfection. It is
evident at first glance, that the man Christ Jesus constantly accepted this
law. He was obedient to His parents, giving up His will to them. His announced
principle of life was: “I came not to do My own will, but the will of Him that
sent Me. ‘ He gave up the riches of silver, anal for our sakes became poor. He
vacated the throne of the universe and became Seryant of servants of men. The
Lord of life became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross. He gave
up all silver, brass, iron, stones, and wood. Was there any gold in return
“Wherefore, because of this, God hath highly exalted Him.” There can be no
mistake. We see plainly the way to highest strength of character and greatest
height of glory. It is not the way of present gratification, of selfishness, of
the pursuit of personal and family ends, but a giving up of personal good for
God’s higher good, a selling of lower for higher. Once God opened the windows
of heaven and poured out water enough to drown a world. Then He takes that
great deluge of abundance and makes it an emblem of the abundance of spiritual
blessings.
Bring the tithes into the
storehouse, the little tenths of daily gain, and see if I will not open the
windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room
enough to receive it. (Homiletic Review.)
Verse 18
But thou shalt call thy
walls Salvation
Walls, salvation; gates,
praise
Consider how salvation is
a wall, and how gates are praise.
1. There are three safeties which a sinner wants. He wants to be
saved
Therefore a man’s
salvation comes to him with three unfoldings. This threefold salvation is, to
every man that receives it, as a wall. On the one side, towards the adversary,
it is a wall of fire; on the other side, as it shows itself to him that is
within it, it is shelter. It is beauteous, as with all bright and precious
stones, inlaid with all the loveliness and the attributes of God. And whatever
comes through that wall to touch a man has first touched and pierced his
Saviour; for all the faithfulness of God, and all the power of God, and all the
glory of God, and all the work of the great Mediator, go to make the eternity
and the sufficiency of that great bulwark.
2. “Thou shalt call thy gates Praise.” What is praise? The joy of a
happy spirit, pouring itself back into the bosom of God as its only fountain.
Through the walls of salvation, the Christian enters into a perfect peace--that
with a happy heart ha may go out praisingly. In every object in nature, he
likes to see some reflection of an unseen world! In every providence, he traces
a Father’s hand. He has thoughts high above, that make him walk this world an
independent man. Heaven is gilding all the distance to him. He comes at last to
Zion “with songs and everlasting joy upon his head.” (J. Vaughan, M. A.)
Thy gates Praise.
Songs and hymns have ever
been the most interesting and inspiring of human compositions; if we draw a
line of arbitrary distinction between the two, then I would say that Song
represents the music of the blood, while the Hymn represents the music of the
soul. It is in song that we utter the music of Nature; it is in the hymn we
utter the music of grace and Divine holiness. (E. Paxton Hood.)
The gates of Praise
I do not wonder that the
gates of the Church are called Praise. I do not wonder at it, because it is
clear that praise opens--no I we cannot tell what are the treasures of wisdom
and knowledge until we have passed through the gates of Praise. We do not know
what God hath reserved for them that love Him, until we have passed through the
gates of Praise. As we sometimes walk on from step to step, from landing-place
to landing-place, and scene to scone, until at last we reach some elevation,
when the whole of the grand panorama bursts upon our astonished vision, and the
walk, and the steep ascent, and the hill, and even the beauties of the way, arc
alike forgotten in the overwhelming splendour of the scene; so is it when we
are able to pass through, or even to look through, the gates of Praise; even
the consolations of prayer are all lost by reason of the glory that excelleth;
we step from the finite to the infinite, when we look over the scenery, or
breathe the atmosphere of praise. (E. Paxton Hood.)
The gates of Praise.,
I. PRAISE IS THE
GATE BY WHICH WE PASS OUT OF OURSELVES.
II. IT IS BY THIS
PATH THAT THE BELIEVER PASSES INTO NEW RELATIONS. He enters the Church through
“the gates of Praise. It is impossible that there can be an ungrateful
Christian.
III. Gates within
gates, gates to the city, and gates within the city; THE GATEWAY BY WHICH WE
PASS TO HIGHER KNOWLEDGE, AND TO HIGHER LIFE, IS PRAISE. (E. Paxton Hood.)
Praise because of
salvation
The Rabbins say that when
God created the universe He asked the highest seraph what he thought of the
work of His hands--and he replied that nothing was wanting but that it should
become vocal, and be able audibly to speak its Maker’s praise. But in the work
of salvation it is so: “to Him that sitteth on the throne” it rises in the
grandeur of loud peals of harmony. (E. Paxton Hood.)
Verse 19
The sun shall be no more
thy light by day
The lower giving place to
the higher
The prophet bids his
people look forward to a time when even the sun and moon shall become needless
to them; when in some new and more direct experience of God they shall need
nothing to reflect His light to them, but drink immediately from Himself His
strength and inspiration.
That seems to be the meaning of the words; and so it points us to one feature
which belongs to every progress, the power to do without one thing after
another which has before been essential, the way in which, as we advance to
higher and higher supplies, we are able to gather out, of them what we used to
get from lower sources. It is like that verse in St. John’s description of the
New Jerusalem: “I saw no temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb
are the temple of it.” Or like these soberer words of St. Paul’s autobiography:
“When I became a man I put away childish things.’ This life that rises to the
highest helps and companies is able easily to do without the lower. (Phillips
Brooks, D. D.)
Things once needed may
cease to be necessary
As we climb a high
mountain we must keep our footing strong upon one ledge until we have fastened
ourselves strongly on the next. Then we may let the lower foothold go. The
lives of men who have been always growing are strewed along their whole course
with the things which they have learned to do without. As the track of an army
marching deep into an enemy’s country is scattered all along with the equipage
which the men seemed to find necessary when they started, but which they have
learned to do without as the exigencies of their march grew greater, and they
found that these provisions and equipments were partly such as they did not
need at all, and partly such as they could gather out of the land through which
they marched; so from the time when the child casts his leading strings aside
because his legs are strong enough to carry him alone, the growing man goes on
forever caring each help for a higher, until at last, in that great change to
which Isaiah’s words seem to apply, he can do without sun and moon as he enters
into the immediate presence and essential life of God. (E. Paxton Hood.)
A token of growth
As we grow we come to the
capacity of higher pleasures and higher occupations, and so let go the lower
ones; not by compulsion, because we cannot hold them any longer, but from the
satisfaction of our newer lives; because we have got something else better than
they are, and can do without them now. (E. Paxton Hood.)
The symbol and the reality
Let us take two or three
instances of those things which are valuable as symbols, but which he is able
to do without who has got beyond the symbol and gained the reality which it
represents.
1. Take the instance of wealth. There are some men who can do without
being rich--plenty of men who have to, but some men who can, can easily, can
without discontent or trouble. They love comfort and respectability as much as
these their neighbours. What is the difference? Simply this, that they have
found that comfort and respectability, while money is their natural symbol, are
not dependent upon money, and that one may reach past the symbol, and take the
reality, and let the symbol go.
2. Or take another symbol. Praise is good. To be applauded by our
fellow men, to hear our ambitions about ourselves caught up by their testifying
cheers, to have our own best hopes for our own lives confirmed by their
appreciation of us, that is a true delight for any man. To be able to do without
men’s praise because we do not feel its value, because morosely and selfishly
we do not care what men think, that is bad; that is a sign of feebleness and
conceit. To feel it is wretched, and to affect to feel it is detestable. But to
be able to do without men’s praise because that which their praise stands for
is dearer to us than the praise is, and it so happens that we cannot have both
of them, that is a wholly different thing. Men’s praise stands for goodness.
Every man feels that if it does not mean that, if it is “given to iniquity just
aa freely as to goodness, praise loses all its value. Praise is the symbol;
goodness is the reality.
3. So it runs everywhere. The symbols of the deeper pleasures are the
mere animal indulgences--eating and drinking, the lusts of the flesh. They
stand for intellectual and spiritual joys. How natural their symbolism is. The
Bible talks of “hungering and thirsting after righteousness.’” David says,
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.” Jesus tells His disciples about “eating
His flesh and drinking His blood.” The superficial emotions of the senses stand
for and represent the profound emotions of the soul. In the, harmonious life
the two will live in harmony. The symbol and reality, the body’s and the soul’s
enjoyment, will be complete together. But when in this unharmonious life which
we live the symbol and reality come into unnatural conflict, when either the
soul must be, sacrificed to the body or the body to the soul, he who really
knows what the soul’s happiness is does not hesitate. Here is the power of true
self-sacrifice; here is the secret which takes out of it all the bitterness and
brutality. Always it is the giving up of a symbol that you may have the
reality. In the great sacrifice of all, Christ lays down His life, but it is
that He may take it again. Do you think that Christ did not care for life and
all that makes life beautiful to us? Surely He did; but He cared more for that
which they represent--the living purely, the doing of His Father’s will, and the
serving of His brethren.
4. I am very much impressed by the truth of all this as concerns the
Christian Church. She has her symbols and her ordinances, and she has her true
and inner life. Her outward ways of living really belong with her inward power.
In a perfectly harmonious world there never could be any conflict. In heaven
the outward and the inward Church shall absolutely correspond; but here and now
the Church may be so set upon her symbols and her regularities that she shall
fail of doing her most perfect work and living her most perfect life. The
Christian may be so bound to rites and ceremonies that he loses the God to whom
they ought to bring him near. Here it certainly is true that no symbol is doing
its true work unless it is educating those who use it to do without itself if
need be. (E. Paxton Hood.)
Important questions
1. First you will ask, How can I tell the symbol from the reality,
and so know what things it is good to hold less and less, what things it is
good to hold more and more indispensable? It is not easy to give the answer in
a rule. But the answer no doubt lies in a certain feeling of spirituality and
infiniteness and eternity, which belongs to those things which it is good for a
man not to be able to do without. Those things which serve the soul rather than
the body, those which serve the whole of us and not one special part, and those
which can serve us longest--those are the things which we want to make more and
more indispensable. Those things whose usefulness belongs mainly to the body,
those things which help some part of us and not the whole, and those things
whose use is temporal--it is not good for any of us to have to say, “I cannot
do without these things. This is, perhaps, the nearest that we can come to
rules; but he who lives in the spirit of these rules acquires a certain sort of
feeling of the infiniteness of some things and the finiteness of others, so
that renown, wealth, dignity, sympathy, comfort, friendship, amusement, life,
stand on one side; and honour, truth, bravery, purity, love, eternity, God,
stand on the other. These last he must have. Those others he can do without.
The moment that he touches any new gift he can tell to which order it belongs.
2. But then you say, What then? When I have felt this difference,
when I know what things I must not allow to become indispensable to me, what
shall I do then? Shall I throw all those things away? Shall I strip my life
instantly of all that is not indispensable, and live only in those things which
I cannot live without? No; certainly not. That effort to cast away the symbol
as soon as it was seen to be a symbol has been the source of much religious
unhappiness and failure, and of much of the wrong kind of separation between
religious and irreligious life. Not to give up the symbol, but to hold it as a
symbol, with that looser grasp which lets its inner reality escape into us, and
at the same time makes us always ready to let it go when the reality shall have
wholly opened from it, that is the true duty of the Christian as concerns the
innocent things of the world. That was the way in which Jesus always seemed to
be holding friendship, home, nature, and His own human life; never grasping
them so tightly that their spiritual meanings might not come forth from them
freely, nor that He could not give them up when a higher vocation summoned Him.
3. And that brings us to the last question. How shall I come to count
nothing indispensable but what I really ought to, what I really cannot do
without? The answer to that question is in Christ, who holds the answers of all
our questions for us. As I read the Gospels I can see how, little by little,
Jesus lifted those disciples past one conception of necessity after another,
until at last they knew nothing that was absolutely necessary except God. They
began as fishermen who could not do without their nets and boats and houses and
fishing friends and sports and gains and gossipings. He carried them up till
they were crying, “Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.” (E.
Paxton Hood.)
Verse 20
Thy sun shall no more go
down
The world of light
I.
THE SOURCE OF THE LIGHT.
“The Lord.” This is true even of the present world. The light which reason sheds
on our path is a ray of His kindling. But here, in this world of ours, there
are generally intermediate sources through which the light we have is conveyed
to us. It does not come directly from God. In the heavenly world, however, it
will be different. There, every intermediate agency will be done away, and the
light that shines will shine immediately from God. There are four things
symbolized in the Bible by this word “light, ‘ and all that we shall know or
possess of each of these four things in heaven, we shall know or possess
through Jesus.
1. Knowledge (Psalms 119:130).
2. Holiness (Romans 13:12).
3. Happiness (Psalms 97:11).
4. Beauty or glory (John 17:24). In this lower world we know how true it is that there is no
beauty or glory that the eye takes in for which we are not indebted to the
light that shines from yonder natural sun. In heaven Jesus is the Sun that
shines on all.
II. THE CHARACTER
OF THE LIGHT. Three elements of it are mentioned in our text. When we decompose
the light of the natural sun, seven rays or colours are the result of the
analysis. But these seven we know may be resolved into three--the red, the
yellow, and the blue. Thus there is a trinity of rays of elements in the light
which the natural sun is pouring forth continually And it is an interesting
thing to find that when we come to analyze the light of the heavenly world, the
same feature is found to mark it.
1. There is one ray in this light which may be called the continuous
ray “Thy sun shall no more -o down neither shall thy moon withdraw itself.’
2. We have here a perpetual ray. “An everlasting light. To speak of
the perpetual, as well as the continuous nature of this light, is not a
distinction without a difference. You may have light that is continuous for a
season even when you know that it cannot be perpetual.
3. The third ray may be characterized as a joyous ray. “The days of
thy mourning shall be ended.” (R. Newton, D. D.)
The saint on earth and in
heaven
The words present us with
two different views of truth.
I. THEY TELL US OF
OUR PRESENT STATE.
1. It is a state of change--vicissitude--perpetual alteration. The
sun rises to set; it sets to rise. The moon waxes and wanes.
2. The words point us to our present state of comparative darkness;
for the contrast is between the minor light of the sun, the lesser light of the
moon, and the glorious light of the Lord.
3. The words present us, too, with a picture of a state of mourning:
“The days of thy mourning shall be ended.”
II. THEY OPEN TO US
A GLORIOUS PROSPECT. There are two blessings especially pointed out to us here.
1. Perfect light.
2. Perfect happiness. (J. H. Evans, M. A.)
The present and future
state of the people of God
I. THE PRESENT
STATE OF THE PEOPLE OF GOD. A state of darkness and of sorrow. To what causes
can such experience be ascribed?
1. To their remaining ignorance, and the imperfection of their
present views.
2. This may be the case under a sense of the prevalence of sin, and
especially of unbelief.
3. They may be in such a situation also, from the Lord withdrawing
from them the sensible communications of spiritual light and comfort.
II. THEIR FUTURE
STATE. A state of uninterrupted light, of perpetual cessation from sorrow,
consequently of endless joy. The Lord shall be the everlasting light of His
people.
1. As He will give them a more enlarged capacity of knowing and
enjoying “Him.
2. He will afford them more perfect discoveries of Himself.
3. He will afford them more enlarged views of His works and ways.
4. He will impart to them the fullest assurance of their interest in
His peculiar regard.
5. He will be their everlasting Light. (D. Dickson.)
The eternal day
1. Israel of old had light while all the rest of the world sat in
darkness. This typical Church of God abode not in the light continually, its
history was chequered with alternate brightness and gloom, repentance and
relapse, prosperity and adversity.
2. Another dispensation came; Jesus Christ was born at Bethlehem, “a
light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel,” and the sun
shone upon the earth as it had never done before. A visible Church was called
out to walk in the light, which Church still exists upon the earth, and from
the days of Pentecost until now its sun has never altogether gone down, neither
has its moon withdrawn herself. The light has not been always equally clear,
but it has been still day.
3. But there is a Church upon the earth which is within the visible
Church, and is its central life. I refer to the spiritual Church. This secret
Church, this Church mystical, this true body of our Lord Jesus Christ, may
claim to have had this text fulfilled in its experience in a far larger sense.
“If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin.”
Yet even to the Church spiritual the text has not been fulfilled in its largest
conceivable sense, for I fear me that to the most spiritual some darkness
comes. Their light is sown, but it has not yet sprung up to its full harvest.
4. We must, therefore, refer to a fourth form of the Church. If we
see it not at all in the typical, a little in the visible, very much in the
spiritual, we find it all in the Church triumphant. The full triumph of the
Church of Christ shall begin in the millennium.
I. THE LIGHT OF
THE TRIUMPHANT CHURCH SHALL BE INCESSANT. “Thy sun shall no more go down,” etc.
There will be no intervening nights of darkness, but one long noonday of purity
and felicity, “the days of her mourning shall be ended.” And why will this be?
1. Because the light of heaven is independent of creatures. In heaven
the saints will need no teacher. When God sends a true preacher he is a star in
God’s right hand, and the Church is bound to value his light, which is the gift
of heaven, but we shall need no teachers there; we shall see, not through a
glass darkly, but face to face. Up there they need no comforters to succour
them in the time of their distress, for God Himself has wiped away all tears
from their eyes. Poor saints will not then be dependent upon the alms or the
consolations of others, though once their generous friends were like sun and
moon to them.
2. Because it is cleared of all clouding elements. Here below in the
Church of God, whatever by God’s grace may be our light, errors will arise to
cloud it; evil men come in unawares and distract God’s saints. There are none
such up yonder. Satan himself shall be shut out.
3. The saints themselves shall be so purified that nothing in them
shall darken their light. Here to-day Christ changes not, but we change, and
hence our joy departs. It shall not be so there. Notice that the text hints
that both the major and the minor necessities of saints will be abundantly supplied.
Have you not found sometimes that the Lord Jesus Christ has withdrawn Himself
from you? Then your sun has gone down. You ore prospering in business; God
gives you all that heart can wish, the moon does not withdraw herself, but the
sun has gone, and woe beclouds your spirit. It will never be so in heaven, you
shall see your Lord face to face without a veil between, and that eternally.
Here, on the ether hand, at times Jesus has shone upon you, and as to spiritual
things you have been rich, but then earthly trouble has hovered over you, the
“moon” has withdrawn herself. Not often have both sun and moon been as flesh
and blood would have them. True, you have been able to do without the moon in
the presence of the sun, but you would have preferred both spiritual and
temporal prosperity. Now in heaven all the wants of our nature will be
completely supplied.
4. The Church triumphant will be delivered from the vicissitudes of
those seasons which cause the going down of sun and moon. I do not refer to
slimmer and winter, but to ecclesiastical and temporal arrangements, such as
the Sabbath and times of assembly and Church fellowship. It was a glad day for
Israel when the trumpets rang out the morning of the Jubilee, for every slave
was free, and every debtor found his liabilities discharged. Back came each
man’s lost inheritance, and the whole nation was glad. With sound of trumpet
and of cornet they saluted the rising of the sun on the first day of that
Jubilee year; but the jubilee year went by, and lands were mortgaged and
forfeited, and slaves fell again into slavery, and bankrupts were again, seized
by their creditors. We are coming to a jubilee, of which the trumpets shall
sound for ever.
II. THE LIGHT OF
THE TRIUMPHANT CHURCH IS EVERLASTING. “The Lord shall be thine everlasting
light.” Why will the perfection and bliss of the saints triumphant never end?
1. Because the God from whom it comes is eternal.
2. The covenant by which the saints stand in heaven is a sure one.
3. The guarantee of that covenant can never fail, seeing it is Christ
Himself. “Because I live ye shall live also” is the great seal set upon the
indentures by which we hold our inheritance in the skies.
4. Those who possess heaven are also themselves immortal.
III. THE LIGHT OF
THE CHURCH TRIUMPHANT SHALL BE BOUNDLESS. “The Lord shall be thine everlasting
light.” The Lord is infinite. If He is our sun there can be no limit to the
light in which we shall rejoice.
1. If God is to be our light, then in every separate believer there
will be a perfect light of bliss and holiness. You are aged, you feel also that
you are full of infirmities and sins; now, these will all vanish, and that
weakened form of yours shall be raised in power. Your ignorance will give place
to the light of knowledge, your sin to the light of purity, your sorrow to the
light of joy.
2. In addition to your possessing personal light, you will enjoy the
closest possible fellowship with God.
3. This glorious light will give us the clearest views of Gospel
truth.
4. There, no doubt, we shall understand more of Providence. Here our
sun goes down sometimes as to the Divine dealings; we cannot make out what He
means; the lines are dark and bending; we thought He would have led us by a
straight course, but we wind to and fro in the wilderness. All the happiness
which knowledge and understanding can bring to intelligent beings shall be at
our feet.
5. There we shall receive the utmost endurable joy. Some have thought
the joy of heaven would lie in knowledge; they shall have it. Others have
rejoiced in the prospect of continued service; they shall serve Him day and
night in His temple. The sweetest thought of heaven to me is rest, and I shall
have it, for “there remaineth, therefore, a rest for the people of God.” Peace!
O quiet soul, do you not long for it? You shall have it. Security and a sense
of calm! O tempest-tossed one, you shall have them. Strength, power--some have
wished for that. You shall be raised in power. Fulness, the filling up of every
vacuum! You shall have it; you shall be filled with all the fulness of God.
IV. THE LIGHT OF
THE CHURCH TRIUMPHANT IS UNMINGLED. “The days of thy mourning shall be ended.”
1. The mourning from a persecuting world.
2. There will be no more mourning from the common trials of life.
3. Then shall we be delivered from all mourning caused by our inward
sin.
4. We shall be delivered from every kind of mourning as to an absent
God, for we shall never grieve Him any more.
5. I find that one version reads it, “The days of thy mourning shall
be recompensed,” and I say this to those who have to mourn more than others:
you shall have a recompense. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Verse 21
Thy people also shall be
all righteous
The people of God
considered as righteous
I.
AS THEY ARE ALL INTERESTED
IN THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST JESUS.
II. AS BY THE
INFLUENCES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, THEY HAVE AN INHERENT RIGHTEOUSNESS WROUGHT IN
THEM.
III. BY ABOUNDING IN
WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS TO THE PRAISE AND GLORY OF GOD. Here two cautions are
necessary, to prevent mistakes.
1. Virtuous actions do not constitute a person inherently righteous,
but declare him so; as good fruit is rather a declaration of the goodness of
the tree, than the thing which constitutes that goodness. Therefore,
2. Virtuous actions cannot be said to be necessary to salvation, in
the same sense in which inherent holiness is so. It is possible that, where
holiness is implanted, life may be so quickly taken away that there shall be no
room for its discovering itself by the outward behaviour. Taking these cautions
along with us, the necessity of works of righteousness, though not as a ground
of our justification, yet, as an evidence of it, can never be too strongly asserted.
Every motive, whether from interest or gratitude, whether from the beauty of
religion or the pleasures of a virtuous life, still remains in full force. We
further observe, that the reward of saints hereafter shall bear some proportion
to their progress in holiness here below. (J. Erskine, D. D.)
A righteous people
The prophet here predicts
the elevation of the Church to its normal or ideal state, a change of which we
may already see the rudiments, however far we may get from its final
consummation. (J. A. Alexander.)
Verse 22
A little one shall become a thousand
The amplitude of the Church
The Church of Christ has been often subject to persecution in past
ages; but at a future time it will obtain general protection and patronage.
I. THE IMPORT OF
THE PROPHECY. After a careful examination of the text in connection with the
former part of the chapter, I am led to conclude that it refers, primarily and
in part, to the time when our Lord appeared as “the Light of men,” a “Sun of
righteousness” to illuminate a benighted world, and graciously introduced His
kingdom and dispensation upon earth: but that the principal and pre-eminent
fulfilment of the prophecy is reserved for a future and happier era than men
have ever yet witnessed. The slight and partial fulfilment of the prediction in
the primitive age seems to have been only a shadowy resemblance of its more
complete accomplishment hereafter.
II. AT WHAT PERIOD
THE PREDICTION WILL BE FULFILLED. “I the Lord will hasten it in his time”--not
before the proper time--but in its season--in due time. We are not justified,
by the spirit of out religion, in cherishing an unhallowed curiosity or
presumptuous confidence in our attempts to ascertain the purposes of God. It is
on the wings of faith and hope, not those of pride and speculation, that the
Christian is authorized to soar. Yet whilst a sacred obscurity invests the
whole of this mysterious subject, there seems to be ample encouragement given
to those who are disposed to pursue their investigations with a devout and
docile disposition--with a sober and humble mind.
III. CONCLUDING
REMARKS.
1. The certainty of these events.
2. Our duty in prospect of such events.
The miraculous propagation of the Gospel
I. THE MATTER OF
FACT ITSELF, to which this prophecy refers,--how swift and strange a progress
the Gospel made at, and after its first setting out in, Jerusalem.
II. THIS SUCCESS OF
THE GOSPEL WAS CERTAINLY MIRACULOUS, and owing chiefly to the mighty operations
of the Holy Spirit, and for this plain reason: because the natural and visible
causes which concurred to the production of this great effect were not any ways
equal to the effect produced. The Gospel of Christ, at its earliest appearance,
had all the probabilities in the world against its success: for it was
possessed scarcely of any one of those advantages which do most signally
recommend a new doctrine, and make it thrive. It had no complying tenets, to
soothe men’s appetites and passions. It had no encouragement, no protection
from the civil power; no force or cunning to uphold it; no men of eminence and
esteem to engage on its side. The age which was pitched upon for the discovery
of it was more discerning and enlightened, more curious and inquisitive, than,
perhaps, any that either preceded or followed it; and therefore the success of
this doctrine could not be owing to men’s ignorance or supineness. Finally, its
promulgators delivered it out not by parcels, as is the way of cunning and
designing men; but offered the whole of it to be altogether examined and
compared. Nevertheless, though pressed with all these encumbrances, it sprang
forth, and made its way into the world by a swift and incredible progress. The
inference from hence is plain and indubitable: that a Divine power and virtue
certainly went along with it, to supply what was wanting to it upon other
accounts.
III. CONSIDER WHAT
SHIFTS THE ENEMIES OF THE GOSPEL MAKE USE OF, TO EVADE THE FORCE OF THIS PRESSING
ARGUMENT. It is true, they will own, Christians multiplied very fast, and the
increase of them was, in some sense, miraculous: that is, it was wonderful; as
every unusual thing is to those who do not know or consider the causes of it.
But to a man, they say, who dares to go out of the common road, and to think
for himself, it will appear that there was at that time a set of natural causes
on foot, sufficient to account for this effect, without any recourse to a
Divine and supernatural agent. E.g. The sufferings of the martyrs made mighty
impressions upon men. The purity of the Christian morals was a mighty argument
to bring the men of probity and virtue into the interests of the Gospel. The
analogy of some of its mystical truths to the doctrines of Plato (then in great
esteem) was a very good bait to the men of learning. The distribution of goods
which the first Christians made, and their living together in common, was a
good reason for many men’s embracing that faith which, they were sure, would
maintain them. The casual cessation of oracles was immediately turned to the
advantage of the religion of Christ, as if that had procured it. And the
destruction of the Jewish State contributed greatly to the increase of the
Christian numbers; because it seemed to have been foretold by the Founder of
their faith: and, therefore, luckily coming to pass about that time, raised a
high opinion in men of His Person and doctrine. The causes here assigned were
utterly insufficient to produce the event for which they are assigned.
IV. SHOW HOW GREAT
AN ADVANTAGE IT IS TO THE CHRISTIAN INSTITUTION TO HAVE BEEN PROPAGATED AFTER
SO SWIFT AND UNACCOUNTABLE A MANNER. No other religion ever had so large an
increase with so little of human aid.
V. INQUIRE INTO
THE TIME WHEN, AND THE MANNER HOW, THIS MIRACLE CEASED, and make suitable
reflections upon it with regard both to those who lived then, when this check
was given to the Gospel, and to us who live now. The plain answer to the
inquiry proposed is that the miracle ceased when the civil power began to
declare openly in behalf of Christianity; that is, soon after Constantine came
to the throne. For it was no longer a wonder that our religion should thrive
and flourish when, instead of bitter persecutions, it met with all manner of
encouragements. For a century after Constantine, and upwards, the number of
Christians multiplied exceedingly in all the parts of the world in which it had
already been planted, and to which the empire of the Romans, or their
influence, did extend. For above a century after that, Christianity seems to
have been at a stand. But then it declined apace every day; dissensions among
Christians grew hot, and their zeal for religion waxed cold. The great honours
and endowments which religious princes had bestowed on the Church did too often
occasion ambition and luxury in those who contended for them, or possessed
them. In a word, all the vices of prosperity abounded, together with the
advantages of it. So that the name of Christianity was no longer venerable in
the eyes of men; and its holy doctrine, not producing an answerable sanctity of
life, made no further impressions upon them. This unhappy opportunity Mohammed
laid hold of to set up his religion; which, being suited to the voluptuous
manners of the
East, and seconded by the power of the sword, made large inroads
into Christendom, and tore away entire provinces at once from the profession of
the Gospel. (F. Atterbury, D. D.)
The law of life and increase
So is it with every institution planted in the fear and love of
God, with an aim to advance His glory and man’s good. Its life and increase are
assured, for it becomes God’s work anal enlists God’s aid. The first hospital
was founded by a Christian woman in her own house just outside the gates of
Rome. Now there are hundreds in every land. So we may trace the rise and growth
of institutions for the poor and the insane; of the universities, once small
conventual schools where Christian truth was taught, developing into
comprehensive and influential seats of learning. So, notably, the growth of the
missionary enterprise. The latter was almost unknown a century ago. It began in
the “reveries” of men or the dreams of Christian women, who began by collecting
small amounts and consecrating them to Christ. Now modern missions are a power,
immense, world-embracing. They emphatically illustrate the grace of Christ,
present and dominant in the world. So it is with every endeavour. That which
has the element of righteousness in it, God will care for. It has a vast future
before it. Here, then, is illustrated the indebtedness of the race to the
Gospel of Christ. Men of the world sometimes fancy that this matter of religion
is an obstacle to their secular plans. But, for the very instruments they use
in art and commerce and literature, they are more or less directly indebted to
Christianity. (R. S. Storrs, D. D.)
Spiritual growth
This law of life and increase obtains in the growth of gracious
affections in our own hearts. We seem at times to be making but little
progress; but we have this pledge, “A little one shall become a thousand and a
small one a strong nation.” Christ’s mighty energy is at work in us, as in
society, impressing His image on all things. (R. S.Storrs, D. D.)
The thousand and the one
There is a threefold line of thought in this passage; three points
of contrast in the prophet’s mind between the old world, the world in which he
himself lived, and that new world, our world, of Christ and Christianity.
I. He says that
the old world magnified masses, the thousands; whereas IN THAT NEW WORLD WHICH
CHRIST IS TO BRING, OR RATHER HAS NOW BROUGHT, NOT THE MASS BUT THE INDIVIDUAL
IS TO BE THE POWERFUL THING. Imagine if an angel were to come to me to-day to
offer to prepare me for the study of ancient history. I say to him, “Will you
show me the secret of the old world’s greatness?’ And in answer he takes me up
on a lofty mountain and shows me immense masses. “Do you see that Chinese
Empire,” he says, “do you see that long line of ancestors going back, back,
back further than the eye can see? That is the secret of China’s greatness. Do
you see that great Indian Continent--that long line of caste going back into
antiquity; the thousand? That is the secret of India’s greatness, Do you see
that Jewish Empire? Do you see that long family tree going back to Abraham, and
further back still to the very foundation of all things? That is the secret of
Judea’s greatness.” The old world magnified the thousand. But now let us take
another side of it. Suppose this angel came to me and said, “I have come to
prepare you for a study of modern history, of the world of Christ’s time,” and
I say, “Well, I should like very much to get a specimen of the difference here.
I wish you to show me the secret of England’s greatness during the last century
(the nineteenth). Let me see, first of all, the secret of England’s greatness
in mechanical powers.” I have not the slightest doubt that in answer he is
going to take me at once into the dockyards where the thousand hammers are
clanging and all the mechanical powers are at work. Instead of that, to my
astonishment, he takes me through to Glasgow; he passes down the Clyde; he
comes to Greenock, and he never looks at the shipping; he passes it altogether.
He takes me through the streets, turns into a gloomy, narrow entry, climbs the
stair, opens the door, and, lo I in a humble room and in a very small crib
there lies a delicate infant, and he points to it and says, “That is the secret
of England’s mechanical greatness.”, “What!” I say, “that puny thing that a
breath would put out like a candle?” “Yes,” he says, “that is the secret of
England’s mechanical greatness. That is James Watt; that is the one that has
taken the place of the thousand.” Or suppose I say to him, “I want to see the
secret of England’s scientific greatness in the last century.” I have no doubt
whatever that he is going to take me into the laboratories where the thousand
workmen are plying with the crucible, the pestle, and the mortar. Instead of
that he takes me up to Grantham, into the village school, and there, at the
very foot of the class, sits a very dull-looking boy, more distinguished for
fighting than for anything else. He says, “That is the secret of England’s
greatness in science. That is Isaac Newton. That one is going to take the place
of the thousand in years to come.” Or yet again, suppose I say to him, “I wish
you would show me the secret of England’s religious greatness in the last
century.” I have no doubt whatever that he is going to take me into the great
cathedrals where the aisles are dark with worshippers. Instead of that he takes
me up to a little place called Epworth at midnight, where there is a minister’s
manse on fire, and they are carrying out a screaming infant from the house. And
the angel cries, “That is the secret of England’s religious greatness. That is
John Wesley, one time to have his screams heard all over England, all over
Europe. The one little fire-burned child will in time to come take the place of
the thousand.” And why is it that I attribute this to Christianity? You might
say, “What has Christ to do with this?” It is because if you and I go back
nineteen centuries we shall see all Europe sleeping in an egg-shell: a little
child; a little child laid outside in a stable. There it lay, holding all Europe
in its little breast; its evolutions, its revolutions, its convolutions; its
wars and rumours of wars; its cries for bread; its cries for light; its cries
for liberty. The One has taken the place of the thousand.
II. The second
point of the prophet I take to be this: that IN THE NEW WORLD THAT CHRIST HAS
BROUGHT IN, THE GLORY CONSISTS IN THIS, THAT THE ONE INDIVIDUAL CAN PASS BY
SYMPATHY THROUGH MYRIAD TYPES OF CHARACTER. One has become a thousand. Let me
try to illustrate this by the case of two boarding-schools. I will call the one
the boarding-school of the old world, and the other the boarding-school of the
new. The boarding-school of the old world says, “Do you see these girls? In a
few months you will not know your own little girl from any other. They will all
become so like that no one could possibly distinguish the difference between
them. The thousand shall become one--thoroughly Chinese.” But the second
boarding-school, Christ’s boarding-school, says, “Will you give me this little
girl of yours? She is just now very like other people. There is not much
difference; hut I will undertake to send this little girl through My school,
and she will catch a little bit of every, body in the now vacant mirror of her
mind, she will catch a little bit of every light. Why is it that I attribute
this to Christ? It is because Christ Himself is many members in one body.
Christ is our Representative before the throne of God. What does that mean?
What is a representative before the throne? Why, it is a Member of Parliament.
What is the function of a member for Glasgow? He has to take into the mirror of
his mind all the different wants of the thousand, and give them due
consideration.
III. As a result of
these points, the course of the old world has been still, stagnant,
unprogressive; whereas IN THE NEW WORLD WHICH CHRIST HAS BROUGHT IN THINGS ARE
TO MOVE WITH TREMENDOUS SPEED. “I the Lord will hasten it in its time” (R.V.).
We commonly read it that God will hasten the time of its coming. I understand
it to mean that there are times of acceleration, times when everything with
double quick march; times when you take up the newspaper and find the
unexpected has happened. This is what I understand, an accelerated progress;
“The Lord will hasten it in its time. ‘ I wonder if there is any man here
between eighty and ninety years old? If there is, that man has seen more events
than all the history of the Chinese Empire from the beginning up till now!
Think what he has seen. He has seen wings of steam--the steamboat; then he has
seen wings of fire--the railroad; then wings of light--the telegraph; then
wings of sound--the telephone. Aye, and he has seen something more than that;
he has seen physical wings of memory--the phonograph. He has seen the voice
bottled up in jars, and carried across the Atlantic. He has seen greater things
than these. He has beheld social changes of the most momentous type. He has
seen the institution of the rights of man; he has seen something greater
still--the institution of the rights of woman. He has seen the bursting of the
fetters of the slave; he has seen the birth of charity. It has been a world of
wondrous acceleration. The power that can pass through these thousand changes
must be Divine. You tell me that Christianity has not lived so long as some of
the Eastern religious; that Buddhism, Brahmanism, and Parseeism have lived
longer than Christianity. Yes, so they have; it is easy to be steadfast in a
stagnant pool. “Better thirty years of Europe than a cycle of Cathay. The power
of my Lord’s religion is not its duration, it is the fact that its duration,
such as it is, has been against tremendous odds. It is that the one has been
battling ever with the thousand. (G. Matheson, D. D.)
I the Lord will hasten it
in his time
The ministries of time
God is Sovereign and omnipotent, but He waits the ministration of
time. He could force seasons and laws, but it is His way rather to work through
them and by them. He has ordained them as servitors of His will. His purposes
on the earth, in the conduct of human affairs, had, in respect to their
accomplishment, a germination, a process, and a harvest-hour of consummation.
Time is the prime-minister of Providence, and brings to pass in due order, at
their full periods, and at the appointed juncture, the patient counsels of the
Most High. There is no hurrying and no sickness of deferred hope on that
eternal and tranquil Mind. “One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a
thousand years as one day.” It lends a new dignity and a sterner and loftier
majesty to time, when we consider it thus, not impersonally, as the passing
away of our days rather swift, mute lapse of the stream of life sliding down
the vale--but as a strong executive angel, a sceptred and conscious force that
has it in charge to reveal and fulfil the hidden plan of God. (A. L. Stone,
D. D.)
Time
Time is among men the revealer, the attester, the vindicator, the
rectifier, the fulfiller. (A. L. Stone, D. D.)
Time a test
1. Time tests the principles of human conduct.
2. Time is the test of friendships.
3. Time tries his tests upon character.
4. God even commits His own vindication to time. (A. L. Stone, D.
D.)
God’s purpose sure a fulfilment
All that is here said relating to the Jewish and Christian Church,
to the militant and triumphant Church, and to every particular believer,--
1. It may seem too difficult to be brought about, and therefore may
be despaired of; but the God of almighty power hath undertaken it. I, the Lord,
will do it, who can do it, and who have determined to do it.
2. It may seem to be delayed and put off so long that we are out of
hopes of it; but, as the Lord will do it, so He will hasten it; will do it with
all convenient speed--though much time may be passed before it is done, no time
shall be lost; He will hasten it in its time, in the proper time, in the season
wherein it will be beautiful. (M. Henry.)
──《The Biblical Illustrator》