=========================================================== Scripture Studies: Vol. VII, No. 6 - August 2000 ================================================= In this issue: Old Testament Study - Zechariah 6:9-15 A Classic Study - Navigation Spiritualized, pt. 26, by John Flavel New Testament Study - Matthew 9:9-13 A Topical Study - Loving God vs. Loving the World, pt. 10 A Study of Wisdom - Ecclesiastes 8:11-17 Masthead -------- "Scripture Studies" is edited by Scott Sperling and published ten times a year by Scripture Studies, Inc., a non-profit organization. It is distributed all over the world by postal mail and via the internet, free of charge. If you would like to financially support the publication and distribution of "Scripture Studies", send contributions to: Scripture Studies Inc. 20 Pastora Foothill Ranch, CA 92610 USA Contributions are tax deductible in the United States. If you do not live in the United States, and would like to support "Scripture Studies", please send international postal coupons. Please feel free to upload "Scripture Studies" to any BBS or online service. If you or anyone that you know would like to be added to the subscription list send your request to the above address, or, via email to Scott Sperling at: ssper@aol.com Unless noted otherwise, scripture references are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers =========================================================== Old Testament Study - Zechariah 6:9-15 ====================================== The Crowning of Joshua ----------------------- 9The word of the LORD came to me: 10"Take [silver and gold] from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak. 12Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD. 13It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne. And He will be a priest on His throne. And there will be harmony between the two.' 14The crown will be given to Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the LORD. 15Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the LORD, and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the LORD your God." After the eight visions were complete, Zechariah wrote, "The word of the LORD came to me: 'Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak'" (vss. 9-11). Here, the Lord followed the eight visions that He gave to Zechariah with directions to carry out a symbolic ceremony. "This symbolic act and the message that accompanies it brings into sharp focus the messianic implications of the prophetic visions." [Laney, 73]. "The series of eight visions is followed by a very significant symbolical transaction, which must be regarded as the crowning act-the headstone of the rich symbolico-prophetical teaching which was unfolded to the prophet on that memorable night. It shows us what will follow the banishment of evil from the land, and the overthrow of world-power in the earth, as set forth particularly in the last three visions-namely, the crowning of the true King." [Baron, 187]. Zechariah was told to "take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon" (vs. 10). As we have previously pointed out, only a relatively small number of the Jewish exiles to Babylon returned with Zechariah to rebuild the temple. The rest stayed behind in Babylon. Here we find out that three of the exiles-Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah-had recently returned to Israel, bearing a gift of silver and gold from the exiles in Babylon. Zechariah was to "take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak" (vs. 11). That this is a symbolic act is implicit in the action of crowning the high priest as one would crown a king. In Israel, priests were not to be kings. "This kingly authority could not be promised to Joshua individually, for the office of king was limited to the family of David. It must then have referred to him in his typical character, as the representative type of the Messiah" [Moore, 96]. The Lord leaves no doubt that the action is symbolic, by explaining the symbolism: "Tell [Joshua] this is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD. It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne. And He will be a priest on His throne. And there will be harmony between the two'" (vss. 12-13). The crowning of Joshua is prophetic of the crowning of the Messiah. That this passage concerns the Messiah, Jesus Christ, is clear in a number of ways. First, "the Branch" is a term that refers to the Messiah. This term is found also in other Messianic passages: "Listen, O high priest Joshua and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch" (Zech. 3:8); "In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel" (Isa. 4:2); "A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit" (Isa. 11:1); "'The days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land'" (Jer. 23:5); "In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; He will do what is just and right in the land" (Jer. 33:15). Here in Zechariah, the significance of calling the Messiah "the Branch" is given: "Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD" (vs. 12). The development of the ministry of Jesus, the Messiah, would resemble the growth of a branch. "He shall not openly descend from heaven, in visible glory and greatness, but shall slowly grow up out of the earth, in lowly humiliation. This was true of Him as a man, for He was the humble carpenter's son for thirty years, and grew slowly in the shade as a Nazarene. It was true of Him as Messiah, for He was a root out of a dry ground, despised and rejected of man. It has been true of Him as a recognized Saviour in the world, for His church began as a little flock, and is yet in a minority among men. It is true of Him as a life in each heart, for Christ is formed within us the hope of glory, gradually, first the blade, then the stalk, and then the full ear in the stalk. Hence this phrase is strikingly descriptive of the Messiah as He has been actually manifested in the person of Jesus." [Moore, 97]. The second way in which this passage clearly refers to the Messiah is by the action of crowning Joshua, a priest, as though he were a king. The Lord says in the passage: "And He will be a priest on His throne" (vs. 13). Levitical priests could not be kings. Judaic kings could not be Levitical priests. The Messiah, however, was prophesied to be a king in the line of David, as well as a priest, though of a different order than the Levitical priests. The psalmist wrote of the Messiah: "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek" (Ps. 110:4). Melchizedek was a priest and king who visited Abraham (see Gen. 14:18ff). We learn from the writer of Hebrews that Melchizedek was a type of Christ: both a priest and king (see Hebrews 7). Also prophetic of the Messiah is the statement: "And there will be harmony between the two" (vs. 13). The phrase "the two" refers to the two offices of the Messiah: priest and king. This harmony "between the kingly and priestly attributes of Messiah implies the harmonizing of the conflicting claims of God's justice as a King and His love as a Father and Priest" [JFB, 679]. This harmonization of the two offices could only happen through Jesus, who satisfied through His suffering the requirements of the King's righteous justice, so that through Jesus, the ultimate High Priest, we could have peace with God. Incidentally, many see another way that this passage may be pointing to the Messiah through the prophetic reference of the words that here introduce the Messiah. The Lord says: "Here is the man" (vs. 12), or (as in the King James Version), "Behold the man." These words were the same that were uttered by Pilate when he introduced Jesus, the Suffering Servant, to the crowd in Jerusalem: "Behold the man" (John 19:5, KJV). This prophecy concerning the Messiah related to what the people in Israel were doing in Zechariah's time, because it showed them that the temple that they were building foreshadowed the ultimate temple that will be built by the Messiah: "He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD. It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne" (vss. 12-13). This was most certainly an encouragement to the people building the temple. The temple on which they were working so hard would be a symbol to all generations of the future, glorious temple, in which the Messiah will reign in majesty. To remind the Israelites of the ceremony described here-the crowning of Joshua-and all that it symbolizes, the crown was to be placed in the Temple: "The crown will be given to Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the LORD" (vs. 14). There is a further symbolic aspect in this episode. The fact that the silver and gold was brought from far away by Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah points to the fact that God's people will include not just the Israelites, but people from all over the world: "Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the LORD" (vs. 15). That people from all nations will join in the fellowship of God's people is prophesied throughout the Old Testament, beginning with God's promise to Abraham: "All peoples on earth will be blessed through you" (Gen. 12:3). This is prophesied very clearly elsewhere in the book of Zechariah: "Many nations will be joined with the LORD in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you" (Zech. 2:11); and "'And many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the LORD Almighty and to entreat Him.' This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'In those days ten men from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, "Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you."'" (Zech. 8:22-23). Also prophesied here is the eventual realization by the children of Israel that Jesus Christ is the true Messiah: "Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the LORD, and you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you" (vs. 15). The rejection of the Messiah by the children of Israel is a temporary state of affairs. Paul tells us this very clearly: "I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved" (Rom. 11:25-26). The Lord here in Zechariah ends this prophecy by telling us the condition for the acceptance of the Messiah: "This will happen if you diligently obey the LORD your God" (vs. 15). "Nowhere in the Bible can we find that God has set eternal life before men without their necessary response of faith to it. So it is with Israel" [Feinberg, 303]. =========================================================== A Classic Study - Navigation Spiritualized, pt. 26, by John Flavel ================================================================== A Classic Study by John Flavel (1628-1691) ------------------------------------------ [Here, we continue our reprint of excerpts from John Flavel's book Navigation Spiritualized. John Flavel was a 17th century minister in the seaside town of Dartmouth, England. A good many of his parishioners made their living on the sea, and so Mr. Flavel wrote Navigation Spiritualized, a book which draws parallels between things of the sea and spiritual things.]-Ed. God's Ocean-Deep Mysteries -------------------------- Things in the bottom are unseen: no eye Can trace God's paths, which in the deeps do lie. OBSERVATION. ------------ The ocean is so deep that no eye can discover what lies in the bottom thereof. We used to say, proverbially, of a thing that is irrecoverably lost, it is as good it were cast into the sea. What lies there lies obscure from all eyes but the eyes of God. APPLICATION. ------------ Thus are the judgments of God and the ways of His providence profound and unsearchable, Psal. 36:6: "Thy righteousness is like the great mountains, Thy judgments are a great deep"; i.e., His providences are secret, obscure, and unfathomable; but even then, and in those providences, His righteousness stands up like the great mountains, visible and apparent to every eye. Though the saints cannot see the one, yet they can clearly discern the other, like Jeremiah in Jer. 12:1, Job in Job 7:1, Asaph in Ps. 73, and Habakkuk in Hab. 1:3. These wheels of providence are dreadful for their height (see Ezek. 1:18). There are deep mysteries of providence, as well as of faith. It may be said of some of them, as in Paul's epistle, that they are hard to be understood, darkness and clouds are round about the throne of God: no man can say what will be the particular issue and event of some of His dispensations. Luther seemed to hear God say to him, when he was importunate to know His mind in some particular providence, Deus sum, non sequax (I am a God not to be traced). Sometimes providences, like Hebrew letters, must be read backward (see Ps. 92:7). Some providences puzzle men of the greatest parts and graces: "His way is in the sea, His paths in the great water, and His footsteps are not known" (Ps. 77:19). Who can trace footsteps in the bottom of the sea? "The angels," Ezek. 1. "have their hands under their wings." The hand is either, symbolum roboris (The symbol of strength), or instrumentum operationis (The instrument of action): where these hands are put forth, they work effectually, but very secretly; they are hid under their wings. There be some of God's works that are such secrets, as that they may not be inquired into; they are to be believed and adored, but not pried into (see Rom. 11:33). There are others that may be inquired after, but yet are so profound, that few can understand them: "The works of the Lord are great, sought out of all those that have pleasure therein" (Ps. 111:2). When we come to heaven, then all those mysteries, as well in the works as in the word of God, will lie open to our view. REFLECTION. ----------- O then, why is my heart disquieted because it cannot sometimes discern the way of the Lord, and see the connection and dependence of His providential dispensations? Why art thou so perplexed, O my soul, at the confusions and disorders that are in the world? I know that goodness and wisdom sits at the stern: and though the vessel of the church be tossed and distressed in times of trouble, yet it shall not perish. Is it not enough for me that God hath condescended so far for my satisfaction, as to show me plainly the ultimate and general issue of all these mysterious providences (see Eph. 1:22 and Rom. 8:28). Unless I be able to take the height of every particular, shall I presume to call the God of heaven to account? Must He render a reason of His ways, and give an account of His matters to such a worm as I am? Be silent (O my soul) before the Lord, subscribe to His wisdom, and submit to His will whatsoever He doth. However it be, yet God is good to Israel; the event will manifest it to be all over a design of love. I know not how to reconcile them to each other, or many of them to the promise; yet are they all harmonious betwixt themselves, and the certain means of accomplishing the promises. O what a favour is this, that in the midst of the greatest confusions in the world, God hath given such abundant security to His people, that it shall be well with them (see Amos 9:8 and Eccles. 8:12). =========================================================== New Testament Study - Matthew 9:9-13 ==================================== Miracle of a Transformed Life ----------------------------- 9As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him. 10While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with Him and His disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?" 12On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Here Matthew relates his own call into service by Jesus: "As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. 'Follow me,' He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him" (vs. 9). Interestingly, Matthew places this episode within a section of his book in which he is recounting various miracles of Jesus. Matthew surely realized that the transformation of his own life from a tax collector to a follower of Jesus was miraculous. "It is surprising that Jesus should call a tax-collector, but even more so that that man should be ready so promptly to leave a business so lucrative" [Thomas, 125] In that culture, tax collectors were normally very prosperous. They would bid to the Roman government for the right to collect taxes and tolls. Then, having paid the government for this right, they were free to collect as much as they could in order to make a profit. Their actions to extract every penny they could on taxes and tolls made them very much hated. Certainly, the hatred they faced must have, in turn, engendered much hatred within them. Yet, through Jesus' transforming power, Matthew became a man of love. Brothers and sisters, do not give up praying for your unsaved friends and relatives. The Lord can soften the hardest of hearts, transform the most corrupt of lives. It appears that Matthew worked near the seaside (see Mark 2:13-14). He very likely sat in a booth and collected taxes for the transit of persons and goods across the lake, and received tolls on the fishing and trade of the lake. "We can account for his immediately leaving all and following Jesus by the reasonable supposition that at the place of toll by the lakeside he had often seen and heard Jesus, and had gradually become prepared in mind to obey such a call" [Broadus, 198]. Matthew gave up much in worldly terms to follow Jesus-much more than the other disciples. The fishermen could go back to their professions, should things not work out, but a tax collector could not return to his profession, as his contract with the government would have been awarded to someone else. And then, who would want to employ a former tax collector? Some time later, "while Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and 'sinners' came and ate with Him and His disciples" (vs. 10). Those who are hated in society tend to flock together, and so, Matthew's friends were tax collectors and others who were named as "sinners" by that society. When Matthew became a follower of Jesus, he did not shun his unsaved friends. Rather, he invited them over when Jesus was there, most certainly hoping that they would also become followers of Jesus. Rather than seeing the good that could come from Jesus' influence on the "sinners", the Pharisees disparaged Jesus for socializing with the "sinners": "When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, 'Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and "sinners"?'" (vs. 11). Note that the Pharisees didn't go directly to Jesus with their question. They asked the disciples. Were they afraid to ask Jesus directly? Or did they want to sow seeds of doubt concerning Jesus in the minds of the disciples? Their question, of course, was rhetorical. The Pharisees were, in effect, saying, "No true man of God would associate with such sinners." In saying this, the Pharisees were greatly misunderstanding the purpose of the ministry of the Messiah, which was to save sinners. This ministry of the Messiah was prophesied (among other places) in the book of Isaiah: "I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, 'Here am I, here am I'" (Isa. 65:1). "In their proud blindness [the Pharisees] fancied that a teacher sent from heaven ought to have no dealings with such people. They were wholly ignorant of the grand design for which the Messiah was to come into the world, to be a Saviour, a Physician, a healer of sin-sick souls" [Ryle, 85]. The Pharisees were also greatly misunderstanding their own standing before God: they didn't realize that they themselves were sinners, greatly in need of salvation through Jesus. Instead, the Pharisees maintained a "holier-than-thou" attitude that is greatly displeasing to God. The Lord, through Isaiah, described His feelings toward those who are "holier-than-thou": "I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; a people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; ...which say, 'Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou.' These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day" (Isa. 65:2,3,5, AV). Jesus, hearing the Pharisees' question, though it was directed to the disciples, answered it succinctly and powerfully: "On hearing this, Jesus said, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners'" (vss. 12-13). Jesus' reply consisted of three parts: an argument from analogy; an appeal from Scripture; a declaration of His mission. First, His analogy: "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick." When Jesus healed those who were physically sick, no one had any problem. But when He sought to heal those who were spiritually sick, the Pharisees found fault. Recall the three aspects of Jesus' ministry, as summarized by Matthew: "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people" (Matt. 4:23). Just as Jesus' healing power would have been wasted upon the physically healthy, so also, His teaching and preaching skills would have been wasted on those who were spiritually healthy. We also would do well to remember this: it is not those who have it together spiritually who need Jesus, but those who are lost in sin, spiritually sick. "Here is a lesson needed in every age, for we are too apt to hold ourselves aloof from the vile and disreputable, when kind and patient efforts might win some of them to better things" [Broadus, 200]. Second, Jesus appealed from Scripture: "But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'" It must have been quite shocking to hear Jesus tell the respected teachers of the Law to "go and learn". Jesus was in effect pointing out to them that their knowledge of the Holy Scriptures-which was the basis of their supposed 'righteousness'-was lacking. The Pharisees needed to learn that the ritualistic portions of the law-the sacrifices, etc.-were worthless if one did not practice mercy. "The mere externals of religion are offensive to God, where its spirit and life are absent" [Broadus, 200]. "If sacrifice is emphasized at the expense of mercy, it loses its spiritual value, and becomes an act of hypocrisy" [Thomas, 126]. Third, Jesus declared His mission: "For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." This statement was surprising to the Pharisees. Presently, they expected the Messiah, I suppose, to come and pick out the righteous, beginning with themselves, and lead them into the throne room to rule the earth with Him. Jesus had a more important work to do, however. By the Lord's great mercy and grace, He came first to call sinners to Him, so that they may be imputed with His righteous. You see, at that time, there were none who were truly righteous. Some could be temporarily righteous, by performing the prescribed sacrifices of atonement for their sins. But as soon as they sinned again, they were no longer righteous. The problem with the Pharisees was that they did not know that they were not righteous. They were self-righteous, but not righteous in God's eyes. Their self-righteousness was keeping them from the kingdom of heaven. How true are the Lord's words: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3). =========================================================== A Topical Study - Loving God vs. Loving the World, pt. 10 ========================================================= [Here we continue our series that has the goal of increasing our love for God and the things of God, while decreasing our love for the world and the things of the world. This article resumes a multi-part study by Samuel Annesley, in which he examines, in detail, the greatest commandment. ]-Ed. How May We Attain to Love God by Samuel Annesley (1620 -1696) ------------------------------- "Jesus said unto him, 'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment'" (Matt. 22:37-38, AV). IT IS OUR INDISPENSABLE DUTY THUS TO LOVE GOD II. The second thing I undertake is, demonstratively to prove, that it is our indispensable duty thus to love God.-To love God is our great natural duty. Man would more naturally love God than himself, were it not for sin. Neither angels nor men were at first commanded to love God; nature wanted no spur to this duty. The law of love was implanted in nature. "Thou hast made me, O Lord," saith Augustine, "and my heart is unquiet till it come to thee." I shall at present urge no other demonstration than Christ's reason in the following verse: "This is the first and the great commandment."- Not that any command of God is small. The commands in scripture are like the stars in the firmament, which, though to ignorant persons they are but like twinkling candles, yet are greater than the whole earth. So those commands that careless persons overlook as inconsiderable are such as without respect unto them there is no salvation. I grant there is a difference in the commands. For example: the command about "paring the nails" is of lesser moment than that of having "no other God" (Deut. 21:12; and Deut. 5:7); nay, in the same kind Christ threatens the scribes and Pharisees for their hypocrisy, that they were so exact in titheing their gardens, and so remiss in looking to their hearts (see Matt. 23:23). But among the commands and the diversity of them, Christ tells us this is the greatest. The Jews (some of them) counted the command about sacrifice to be the greatest, as is hinted in the scribe's saying that this command of loving God is "more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices" (Mark 12:33). Others counted that of circumcision to be the greatest; others, that of the Sabbath. Origen observes: "It is well that Christ decides the controversy; though the truth is, he that willingly breaks the least commandment will not stick to break the greatest." Upon a manifold account, is "the great command", such as: 1. Ratione objecti, "In respect of the object."-It is God, the Chiefest Being, the First and Chiefest Good: "What am I, Lord," saith Augustine, "that thou commandest me to love Thee, and threatenest me with misery if I do not love Thee?" This is no small aggravation of the devil's torments,-that he cannot love God. God may require many things of us, but nothing compares to the requirement of our love, because this is the only thing wherein we can answer God. In other things we cannot, or we may not, render God like for like. God created us, and gave us our being; but we can do nothing like this for God. God preserves us in safety, and daily confers innumerable benefits upon us; God delivers from innumerable dangers both of soul and body. There is none of all this to be done for God. God is infinitely above all such returns. And there are other things wherein we may not render God like for like. If God be angry with us, we may not be angry with him; if He reprove us, we must not quarrel with him; if God judge us, we must not censure him. But now God loves us, and through grace we are able to love Him again; and He loves us, and God commands us to love Him again. It is true, there is no equality between God's loving of us, and our loving of God. God's love does infinitely overcome ours. But yet our love to God speaks interest and union; the thing loved gives the name to the love. Love is but an indifferent passion, till it be united to the thing loved, and then it gets a denomination. For example: If the object be earthly, it is an earthly love; if sensual, it is a brutish love; if it be man, it is a human love; if God, it is a divine love: so that by our love we are changed and transformed into a thing more noble, or more vile. We therefore debase ourselves in loving anything but God: there is nothing else worthy of our love. Whatsoever we love, we give it a kind of dominion over us, so that the will loseth its dignity and excellency when it loves inferior things. We are, as it were, married to that we love. "Suppose," saith Raymundus, "a poor man, of mean stock and no reputation, have six daughters: they are all equal by birth as to reputation and esteem, but they are all differenced by their marriage. The eldest marries a farmer, the next a citizen, the third a knight, the fourth a duke, the fifth a king, the sixth an emperor: by these marriages there is a very great inequality. So here, by the object of your love you are dignified or debased." But there is more yet in God's being the object of our love: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God"; thy God, and therefore thou must love Him. Give me leave to enlarge a little on this, and I will be the briefer in the other considerations, How this is the great command: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God." Those things that are ours, though they are not always lovely, yet we love them; our own children, whether of our bodies or our minds, our own estates. We are more troubled at the loss of anything wherein our own property is concerned, than in all the world besides. A small thing of our own is a thousand times more to us than a thousand times as much of another's. We are more concerned for the cutting off our own finger, than the cutting off another man's head. Proprietorship doth exceedingly heighten love. But then, when there is a speciality upon the propriety, that it is impossible to have the want repaired: for example, "my child, and mine only child." Whatever you say of God, you may put an only to it. God so loves every gracious soul, as if He had no other person to bestow His love upon; therefore thou must so love God, as if there were nothing else in the world to bestow thy love upon. Alas! what is yours today, as to outward things, may be none of yours tomorrow. You cannot say so of God: God once yours, and forever yours. But perhaps you will say, "Were God mine, you should need to say no more to inflame my heart to love Him. Propriety in God: could I attain this, I had enough. This is it I wait for, I pray for. I think nothing too much for it. I only fear I shall never attain it. The very comforts of my life are embittered for want of it." To this I answer: We cannot shake off God's sovereignty over us, nor propriety in us. This you will grant. God is, and will be, thy God, thy Lord, thy Sovereign, thy Commander, let thy carriage be what it will. The vilest wretches in the world cannot sin themselves from under God's dominion. "But there is no comfort in this." Well, then, I will therefore add: Thou that mournest after propriety in God, God is thy God; thy gracious God, and Father; thy God in covenant; thy God in mercy and loving-kindness. Dost thou unfeignedly desire to love God? Then thou mayest be sure God loves thee; for God loves first (see I John 4:l9). Dost thou not out of choice prefer the service of God before all other service? Then you shall abide in the love of God (see John 15:10). Brethren, love God as if He were peculiarly yours, and you will thereby have an evidence that He is peculiarly yours. It is reported of one that he continued a whole night in prayer, and said nothing but this: "My God, and my all," or, "God is mine, and all is mine", repeating this a thousand times over. Let this be the constant breathing of thy soul to God: "My God, my all." 2. This is the "first and great command," ratione ordinis et dignitatis, "in respect of order and dignity."-This is the great command, because we must place this before all others in the very yolk of the heart, as the only foundation of piety. Whatsoever is taught in the law and in the prophets flows from this as from a fountain, grows upon this as upon a root. If I forget not, this is somewhere Augustine's metaphor: "This is to the other commands as the needle to the thread: it draws all after it." 3. This is the "first and great command," ratione debiti, "in respect of obligation."-To love God is so indispensable, that, let me with reverence say, God cannot dispense with it. As God first bestows His love upon us before any other gift, and then, whatever He gives afterwards, He gives it in love; so God requires that we first give Him our hearts, our love, and then do all we do out of love to God. Sometimes God will have mercy, and not sacrifice: divine duties shall give place to human. Nay, sometimes duties to God must give way to duties to a beast (see Luke 14:5). But, however duties to God and men may be jostled to and fro, yet there is not any duty can warrant the intermitting of any love to God so much as one moment. 4. This is the "first and great command," ratione materiae, "in respect of the matter of it."-Love to God is the most excellent of all graces (see I Cor. 13:13). Love among the graces is like the sun among the stars, which not only enlightens the lower world, but communicates light to all the stars in the firmament: so love to God does not only its own office, but the offices of all other graces. The apostle names four graces that are necessary to government, which love doth all their offices:-for example: "Beareth all things", that is, love parteth with something of its right, beareth the weaknesses of friends to preserve concord: "Believeth all things", that is, candidly makes the best interpretation of all things, is not distrustful or suspicious upon light and frivolous occasions; "Hopeth all things", that is, gently waits for the amendment of that which is faulty; "Endureth all things", that is, patiently bears injuries, etc. (see I Cor. 13:7). If you take exception to this, saying, "This is spoken of love to men," I readily answer, that surely love to God, for whose image in men, and command concerning men, we love them, will do greater things. 5. This is "the first and great command," ratione amplitudinis, "in respect of the largeness of it."-This requires the whole man, the whole heart, the whole soul, the whole mind, the whole strength. Whatever else we entertain, some other room may be good enough for it: let the heart be kept for God's peculiar presence-chamber. God requires the whole soul: all the inferior powers of the soul, our whole life, must be spent in the love of God. This command reaches the whole mind; God expects that we should in judgment reason down everything into contempt that should pretend a loveliness to jostle out God. 6. This is the "first and great command," ratione capacitatis, "in respect of its capacity," because it contains all commands.-No man can love his neighbour, unless he love God; and no man can love God, but he must observe all His commandments. Origen makes the inquiry of how the commands about legal purification may be reduced to the love of God. Every command of God hath its peculiar obligation, but this law of love hath a super-engagement over them all. For instance: men may accept and commend several duties to them that have not one drop of love in them. For example: if I give bread to one that is ready to famish, or physic to one that is dangerously sick, these things do good according to their own natures, and not according to the good-will of the giver. Alas! man needs relief, and catcheth at it, and never examines the heart, or end, whence it comes. But now God is infinitely above needing anything from us. It is His gracious condescension to receive anything from us, and therefore God never accepts of anything we do but what is done out of love to Him. 7. This is the "first and great command," ratione difficultatis, "in respect of the difficulties" of it, because through our infirmities (not to mention worse) we cannot presently love God.-The prime difficulty is the spirituality of it. This "wisdom is too high for foolish sinners" (Prov. 24:7). Though it is most rational, yet it is the most spiritual, and consequently, the most difficult part of religion. Some commands may be observed without special grace, as all the outside of religion. Yea, some commands may be observed without so much as common grace; as duties merely moral. But this must have a great measure of the Spirit. It speaks much acquaintance with God through experience of His ways, and much conformity to Christ in a well-composed conversation. In short, it includes the highest perfection possibly attainable in this life. Yet let not this difficulty fright you; for through Christ, our sincere love, though weak, is accepted, and our imperfect love, because growing, shall not be despised. 8. This is the "first and great command," ratione finis, "in respect of the end."-All the commands of God are referred to this as their end and last scope, which was first in the mind of the Lawgiver. 9. This is the "first and great command," ratione perpetuitatis, "in respect of the lastingness" of it.-"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God": it is not only spoken after the Hebrew way of commanding, but it notes singular perseverance. Most of the other commands expire with the world, as all or most of the commands of the second table, but this remains and flourishes more than ever. When repentance and mortification, which now take up half our life; when faith, which is now, as it were, mother and nurse to most of our graces; when hope, which now upholds weak faith in its languors; when all these shall, as it were, die in travail, perfection of grace being then in the birth; love to God shall then be more lively than ever. That love which, as it were, passed between God and the soul in letters and tokens, shall then be perfected in a full enjoyment. Our love was divided among several objects that cut the banks and weakened the stream; henceforth it shall have but one current. Our love is now mixed with fear, fear of missing or losing what we love; but that fear shall be banished. There shall never be any distance, never anything to provoke jealousy, never anything to procure cloying, never anything more to be desired than is actually enjoyed. Is not this, then, the "first and great commandment"? Is it not our privilege and happiness to be swallowed up in it? =========================================================== A Study of Wisdom - Ecclesiastes 8:11-17 ======================================== The Importance of Justice ------------------------- 11When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong. 12Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God. 13Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow. 14There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless. 15So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun. 16When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man's labor on earth-his eyes not seeing sleep day or night-17then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it. Solomon continues commenting on the "crooked" things in life: "When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong" (vs. 11). With fallible humans running things, there will always be injustices. Solomon points out that injustice is a dangerous thing, for injustice breeds evil, as "the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong." Now, some would fault God in this area. They would say, "If God is just, why does He not immediately punish evil?" They may even use Solomon's words to fault God: "When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong." And yet, at the same time, these same people should be very glad that God does not punish sin immediately. Where would they themselves be, if He did? We must all thank God that He is patient and longsuffering, that He does not punish us immediately for our sins, that He gives us time to repent from them, and, most of all, that He has provided a way through His Son Jesus that we may be forgiven for our sins. As Peter tells us: "The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (II Pet. 3:9). Also, we must make sure that we do not take improper advantage of God's patience, that our "hearts" are not "filled with schemes to do wrong" because God does not immediately sentence us for our crimes. To do so is, as the Psalmist points out, to revile God: "Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, 'He won't call me to account'?" (Ps. 10:13). "What venom must there be in the corruption of our nature, that can suck such poison out of such a sweet attribute as the patience of God" [Cotton, in Bridges, 199]. Solomon realized that, in the end, God's justice wins the day: "Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God. Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow" (vss. 12-13). Many times, the fulfillment of God's justice will wait until the afterlife. As the sun sets on the wicked, they do not see their days lengthen like a shadow. Rather, they see the darkness of the shadow. For the godly, they can view the lengthening of the shadow as a symbol that their days will continue forever in the life beyond this one. Despite the fact that Solomon realized that God's justice will prevail, he was still frustrated with the injustice he saw: "There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless" (vs. 14). Alas, here on earth, injustice happens. This is how it will always be with fallible humans in charge of things. Such injustices should cause us to cry out for the day when the Lord's righteous reign commences, when injustices will disappear forever. Despite what is crooked here on earth, Solomon commends once again contentment with what God has given us: "So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun" (vs. 15). Contentment with what God has given us is a recurring theme in this book, contentment in spite of what is "crooked" and "meaningless" in this life. This is the fourth time that Solomon has commended enjoyment and satisfaction in this life (see also 2:24; 3:12-15; 5:18-20). These appeals by Solomon to enjoy life seem to get lost amidst his frustration at not being able to understand everything he saw in the world around him. But these appeals are an important part of the book. They give the book balance. They tell us that despite all the things we don't understand in this life, happiness can be found in the blessings God has bestowed on each of us. As for Solomon, he is at his end in his quest by human means to understand the things of life: "When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man's labor on earth-his eyes not seeing sleep day or night-then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it" (vss. 16-17). Solomon surrenders. He realizes that he does not have all the answers; moreover, he realizes that he is unable, by his own means, to discover all the answers. Furthermore, he realizes that it is beyond the grasp of any man to fully comprehend life. Anyone who thinks he knows all the answers to life deludes himself: "Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it." And indeed, it was rather presumptuous of Solomon to think that he could fully understand the workings of the creation of an all-knowing, all-powerful God. "It is no more unnatural that some [things in life] should overwhelm our understanding, than that the sun in full blaze should overpower our sight" [Bridges, 207]. It is quite important that we be humble concerning what we think we know about life, for only the humble can be taught the truth. "Too much attention cannot be bestowed on that important-yet much-neglected branch of learning-the knowledge of man's ignorance" [Whately, in Bridges, 206]. There is much more that each of us needs to learn and understand. This is why it is so important for us continue diligently our study of God's Word, so that we may continue the learning process. "Every secret that is disclosed-every discovery which is made-every new effect which is brought to view, serves to convince us of numberless more which remain concealed, and which we had before no suspicion of" [Butler, in Bridges, 208].