,the ,gospel of the ,pentateuch3 ,a set of ,parish ,sermons ,,preface ,,to ,,the ,,first ,,edition ,,of ,,the ,,gospel ,,of ,,the ,,pentateuch ,,to ,,the ,,rev4 ,,canon ,,stanley4 ,my ,dear ,stanley1 ,i dedicate these ,sermons to you1 not that ,i may make you responsible for any doctrine or statement contained in them1 but as the simplest method of telling you how much they owe to your book on the ,jewish ,church1 and of expressing my deep gratitude to you for publishing that book at such a time as this4 ,it has given to me 7and ,i doubt not to many other clergymen7 a fresh confidence and energy in preaching to my people the ,gospel of the ,old ,testament as the same with that of the ,new2 and without it1 many of these ,sermons would have been very different from1 and ,i am certain very inferior to1 what they are now1 by the help of your admirable book4 ,brought up1 like all ,cambridge men of the last generation1 upon ,paley's ,evidences1 ,i had accepted as a matter of course1 and as the authoritative teaching of my ,university1 ,paley's opinions as to the limits of ,biblical criticism1 #j;a quoted at large in ,dean ,milman's noble preface to his last edition of the ,history of the ,jews2 and especially that great dictum of his1 'that it is an unwarrantable1 as well as unsafe rule to lay down concerning the ,jewish history1 that which was never laid down concerning any other1 that either every particular of it must be true1 or the whole false4' ,i do not quote the rest of the passage2 first1 because you1 ,i doubt not1 know it as well as ,i2 and next1 in order that if any one shall read these lines who has not read ,paley's ,evidences1 he may be stirred up to look the passage out for himself1 and so become acquainted with a great book and a great mind4 ,a reverent and rational liberty in criticism 7within the limits of orthodoxy7 is1 ,i have always supposed1 the right of every ,cambridge man2 and ,i was therefore the more shocked1 for the sake of free thought in my ,university1 at the appearance of a book which claimed and exercised a licence in such questions1 which ,i must 7after careful study of it7 call anything but rational and reverent4 ,of the orthodoxy of the book it is not1 of course1 a private clergyman's place to judge4 ,that book seemed dangerous to the ,university of ,cambridge itself1 because it was likely to stir up from without attempts to abridge her ancient liberty of thought2 but it seemed still more dangerous to the hundreds of thousands without the ,university1 who1 being no scholars1 must take on trust the historic truth of the ,bible4 ,for ,i found that book1 if not always read1 yet still talked and thought of on every side1 among persons whom ,i should have fancied careless of its subject1 and even ignorant of its existence1 but to whom ,i was personally bound to give some answer as to the book and its worth4 ,it was making many unsettled and unhappy2 it was 7even worse7 pandering to the cynicism and frivolity of many who were already too cynical and frivolous2 and1 much as ,i shrank from descending into the arena of religious controversy1 ,i felt bound to say a few plain words on it1 at least to my own parishioners4 ,but how to do so1 without putting into their heads thoughts which need be in no man's head1 and perhaps shaking the very faith which ,i was trying to build up1 was difficult to me1 and ,i think would have been impossible to me1 but for the opportune appearance of your admirable book4 ,i could not but see that the book to which ,i have alluded1 like most other modern books on ,biblical criticism1 was altogether negative2 was possessed too often by that fanaticism of disbelief which is just as dangerous as the fanaticism of belief2 was picking the body of the ,scripture to pieces so earnestly1 that it seemed to forget that ,scripture had a spirit as well as a body2 or1 if it confessed that it had a spirit1 asserting that spirit to be one utterly different from the spirit which the ,scripture asserts that it possesses4 ,for the ,scripture asserts that those who wrote it were moved by the ,spirit of ,god2 that it is a record of ,god's dealings with men1 which certain men were inspired to perceive and to write down3 whereas the tendency of modern criticism is1 without doubt1 to assert that ,scripture is inspired by the spirit of man2 that it contains the thoughts and discoveries of men concerning ,god1 which they wrote down without the inspiration of ,god2 which difference seems to me 7and ,i hope to others7 utterly infinite and incalculable1 and to involve the question of the whole character1 honour1 and glory of ,god4 ,there is1 without a doubt1 something in the ,old ,testament1 as well as in the ,new1 quite different in kind1 as well as in degree1 from the sacred books of any other people3 an unique element1 which has had an unique effect upon the human heart1 life and civilization4 ,this remains1 after all possible deductions for 'ignorance of physical science1' 'errors in numbers and chronology1' 'interpolations' 'mistakes of transcribers' and so forth1 whereof we have read of late a great deal too much1 and ought to care for them and for their existence1 or non-existence1 simply nothing at all2 because1 granting them all--though the greater part of them ,i do not grant1 as far as ,i can trust my critical faculty--there remains that unique element1 beside which all these accidents are but as the spots on the sun compared to the great glory of his life-giving light4 ,the unique element is there2 and ,i cannot but still believe1 after much thought1 that it--the powerful and working element1 the inspired and ,divine element which has converted and still converts millions of souls--is just that which ,christendom in all ages has held it to be3 the account of certain 'noble acts' of ,god's1 and not of certain noble thoughts of man--in a word1 not merely the moral1 but the historic element2 and that1 therefore1 the value of the ,bible teaching depends on the truth of the ,bible story4 ,that is my belief4 ,any criticism which tries to rob me of that ,i shall look at fairly1 but very severely indeed4 ,if all that a man wants is a 'religion1' he ought to be able to make a very pretty one for himself1 and a fresh one as often as he is tired of the old4 ,but the heart and soul of man wants more than that1 as it is written1 ',my soul is athirst for ,god1 even for the living ,god4' ,those whom ,i have to teach want a living ,god1 who cares for men1 works for men1 teaches men1 punishes men1 forgives men1 saves men from their sins2 and ,him ,i have found in the ,bible1 and nowhere else1 save in the facts of life which the ,bible alone interprets4 ,in the power of man to find out ,god ,i will never believe4 ,the 'religious sentiment1' or ',god-consciousness1' so much talked of now-a-days1 seems to me 7as ,i believe it will to all practical common-sense ,englishmen71 a faculty not to be depended on2 as fallible and corrupt as any other part of human nature2 apt 7to judge from history7 to develop itself into ugly forms1 not only without a revelation from ,god1 but too often in spite of one--into polytheisms1 idolatries1 witchcrafts1 ,buddhist asceticisms1 ,phoenician ,moloch-sacrifices1 ,popish inquisitions1 ,american spirit- rappings1 and what not4 ,the hearts and minds of the sick1 the poor1 the sorrowing1 the truly human1 all demand a living ,god1 who has revealed himself in living acts2 a ,god who has taught mankind by facts1 not left them to discover him by theories and sentiments2 a ,judge1 a ,father1 a ,saviour1 and an ,inspirer2 in a word1 their hearts and minds demand the historic truth of the ,bible--of the ,old ,testament no less than of the ,new4 ,what ,i needed therefore1 for my guidance1 was a book which should believe and confess all this1 without condemning or ignoring free criticism and its results2 which should make use of that criticism not to destroy but to build up2 which employed a thorough knowledge of the ,old ,testament history1 the manners of the ,jews1 the localities of the sacred events1 to teach men not what might not be in the ,bible1 but what was certainly therein2 which dealt with the ,bible after the only fair and trustful method2 that is1 to consider it at first according to the theory which it sets forth concerning itself1 before trying quite another theory of the commentator's own invention2 and which combined with a courageous determination to tell the truth1 the whole truth1 and nothing but the truth1 that ,christian spirit of trust1 reverence and piety1 without which all intellectual acuteness is but blindness and folly4 ,all this1 and more1 ,i found in your book1 enforced with a genius which needs no poor praise of mine2 and ,i hailed its appearance at such a crisis as a happy ,providence1 certain that it would be1 what ,i now know by experience it has been1 a balm to many a wounded spirit1 and a check to many a wandering intellect1 inclined1 in the rashness of youth1 to throw away the truth it already had1 for the sake of theories which it hoped that it might possibly verify hereafter4 ,with your book in my hand1 ,i have tried to write a few plain ,sermons1 telling plain people what they will find in the ,pentateuch1 in spite of all present doubts1 as their fathers found it before them1 and as 7,i trust7 their children will find it after them1 when all this present whirlwind of controversy has past1 ',as dust that lightly rises up1 ,and is lightly laid again4' ,i have told them that they will find in the ,bible1 and in no other ancient book1 that living working ,god1 whom their reason and conscience demand2 and that they will find that he is none other than ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4 ,i have not apologised for or explained away the so-called ',anthropomorphism' of the ,old ,testament4 ,on the contrary1 ,i have frankly accepted it1 and even gloried in it as an integral1 and ,i believe invaluable element of ,scripture4 ,i have deliberately ignored many questions of great interest and difficulty1 because ,i had no satisfactory solution of them to offer2 but ,i have said at the same time that those questions were altogether unimportant1 compared with those salient and fundamental points of the ,bible history on which ,i was preaching4 ,and therefore ,i have dared to bid my people relinquish ,biblical criticism to those who have time for it2 and to say of it with me1 as ,abraham of the planets1 ',o my people1 ,i am clear of all these things6 ,i turn myself to him who made heaven and earth4' ,i do not wish1 believe me1 to make you responsible for any statement or opinion of mine4 ,i am painfully conscious1 on reviewing for the ,press ,sermons which would never have been published save by special request1 how imperfect1 poor1 and weak they seem to me--how much worse1 then1 they will appear to other people2 how much more may be said which ,i have not the wit to say6 ,but the ,bible can take care of itself1 ,i presume1 without my help4 ,all ,i can do is1 to speak what ,i think1 as far as ,i see my way2 to record the obligation toward you under which ,i1 with thousands more1 now lie2 and to express my hope that we shall be always found together fellow- workers in the cause of ,truth1 and that to you and in you may be fulfilled those noble and tender words1 in which you have spoken of ,samuel1 and of those who work in ,samuel's spirit3 ',in later times1 even in our own1 many names spring to our recollection of those who have trodden or 7in different degrees1 some known1 and some unknown7 are treading the same thankless path in the ,church of ,germany1 in the ,church of ,france1 in the ,church of ,russia1 in the ,church of ,england4 ,wherever they are1 and whosoever they may be1 and howsoever they may be neglected or assailed1 or despised1 they1 like their great prototype and likeness in the ,jewish ,church1 are the silent healers who bind up the wounds of their age in spite of itself2 they are the good physicians who bind together the dislocated bones of a disjointed time2 they are the reconcilers who turn the hearts of the children to the fathers1 or of the fathers to the children4 ,they have but little praise and reward from the partisans who are loud in indiscriminate censure and applause4 ,but1 like ,samuel1 they have a far higher reward1 in the ,davids who are silently strengthened and nurtured by them in ,naioth of ,ramah--in the glories of a new age which shall be ushered in peacefully and happily after they have been laid in the grave4' #j;b ,that such1 my dear ,stanley1 may be your work and your destiny1 is the earnest hope of ,yours affectionately1 ,c4 ,,kingsley4 ,,eversley ,,rectory1 ,july #a1 #ahfc4 ,,sermon ,i4 ,,god ,,in ,,christ 7,septuagesima ,sunday47 ,,genesis i4 ,i4 ,in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth4 ,we have begun this ,sunday to read the book of ,genesis4 ,i trust that you will listen to it as you ought--with peculiar respect and awe1 as the oldest part of the ,bible1 and therefore the oldest of all known works--the earliest human thought which has been handed down to us4 ,and what is the first written thought which has been handed down to us by the ,providence of ,almighty ,god8 ',in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth4' ,how many other things1 how many hundred other things1 men might have thought fit to write down for those who should come after2 and say-- ,this is the first knowledge which a man should have2 this is the root of all wisdom1 all power1 all wealth4 ,but ,god inspired ,moses and the ,prophets to write as they have written4 ,they were not to tell men that the first thing to be learnt was how to be rich2 nor how to be strong2 nor even how to be happy3 but that the first thing to be learnt was that ,god created the heaven and the earth4 ,and why first8 ,because the first question which man asks--the question which shows he is a man and not a brute--always has been1 and always will be-- ,where am ,i8 ,how did ,i get into this world2 and how did this world get here likewise8 ,and if man takes up with a wrong answer to that question1 then the man himself is certain to go wrong in all manner of ways4 ,for a lie can never do anything but harm1 or breed anything but harm2 and lies do breed1 as fast as the blight on the trees1 or the smut on the corn3 only being not according to nature1 or the laws of ,god1 they do not breed as natural things do1 after their kind3 but1 belonging to chaos1 the kingdom of disorder and misrule1 they breed fresh lies unlike themselves1 of all strange and unexpected shapes2 so that when a man takes up with one lie1 there is no saying what other lie he may not take up with beside4 ,wherefore the first thing man has to learn is truth concerning the first human question1 ,where am ,i8 ,how did ,i come here2 and how did this world come here8 ,to which the ,bible answers in its first line- - ',in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth4' ,how ,god created1 the ,bible does not tell us4 ,whether he created 7as doubtless he could have done if he chose7 this world suddenly out of nothing1 full grown and complete2 or whether he created it 7as he creates you and me1 and all living and growing things now7 out of things which had been before it--that the ,bible does not tell us4 ,perhaps if it had told us1 it would have drawn away our minds to think of natural things1 and what we now call science1 instead of keeping our minds fixed1 as it now does1 on spiritual things1 and above all on the ,spirit of all spirits2 ,him of whom it is written1 ',god is a ,spirit' ,for the ,bible is simply the revelation1 or unveiling of ,god4 ,it is not a book of natural science4 ,it is not merely a book of holy and virtuous precepts4 ,it is not merely a book wherein we may find a scheme of salvation for our souls4 ,it is the book of the revelation1 or unveiling of the ,lord ,god1 ,jesus ,christ2 what he was1 what he is1 and what he will be for ever4 ,of ,jesus ,christ8 ,how is he revealed in the text1 ',in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth8' ,thus3--,if you look at the first chapter of ,genesis and the beginning of the second1 you will see that ,god is called therein by a different name from what he is called afterwards4 ,he is called ,god1 ,elohim1 ,the ,high or ,mighty ,one or ,ones4 ,after that he is called the ,lord ,god1 ,jehovah ,elohim1 which means properly1 ,the ,high or ,mighty ,i ,am1 or ,jehovah1 a word which ,i will explain to you afterwards4 ,that word is generally translated in our ,bible1 as it was in the ,greek1 ',the ,lord2' because the later ,jews had such a deep reverence for the name ,jehovah1 that they did not like to write it or speak it3 but called ,god simply ,adonai1 the ,lord4 ,so that we have three names for ,god in the ,old ,testament4 ,first ,el1 or ,elohim1 the ,mighty ,one3 by which1 so ,moses says1 ,god was known to the ,jews before his time1 and which sets forth ,god's power and majesty--the first thing of which men would think in thinking of ,god4 ,next ,jehovah4 ,the ,i ,am1 the ,eternal1 and ,self-existent ,being1 by which name ,god revealed himself to ,moses in the burning bush--a deeper and wider name than the former4 ,and lastly1 ,adonai1 the ,lord1 the living ,ruler and ,master of the world and men1 by which he revealed himself to the later ,jews1 and at last to all mankind in the person of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,now ,i need not to trouble your mind or my own with arguments as to how these three different names got into the ,bible4 ,that is a matter of criticism1 of scholarship1 with which you have nothing to do3 and you may thank ,god that you have not1 in such days as these4 ,your business is1 not how the names got there1 which is a matter of criticism1 but why they have been left there by the providence of ,god1 which is a matter of simple religion2 and you may thank ,god1 ,i say again1 that it is so4 ,for scholarship is ,martha's part1 which must be done1 and yet which cumbers a man with much serving3 but simple heart religion is the better part which ,mary chose2 and of which the ,lord has said1 that it shall not be taken from her1 nor from those who1 like her1 sit humbly at the feet of the ,lord1 and hear his voice1 without troubling their souls with questions of words1 and endless genealogies1 which eat out the hearts of men4 ,therefore all ,i shall say about the matter is that the first chapter of ,genesis1 and the first three verses of the second1 may be the writing of a prophet older than ,moses1 because they call ,god ,elohim1 which was his name before ,moses' time2 and that ,moses may have used them1 and worked them into a book of ,genesis2 while he1 in the part which he wrote himself1 called ,god at first by the name ,jehovah ,elohim1 ,the ,lord ,god1 in order to show that ,jehovah and ,el were the same ,god1 and not two different ones2 and after he had made the ,jews understand that1 went on to call ,god simply ,jehovah1 and to use the two names1 as they are used through the rest of the ,old ,testament1 interchangeably3 as we say sometimes ,god1 sometimes the ,lord1 sometimes the ,deity1 and so forth2 meaning of course always the same ,being4 ,that1 ,i think1 is the probable and simple account which tallies most exactly with the ,bible4 ,as for the first five books of the ,bible1 the ,pentateuch1 having been written by ,moses1 or at least by far the greater part of them1 ,i cannot see the least reason to doubt it4 ,the ,bible itself does not say so2 and therefore it is not a matter of faith1 and men may have their own opinions on the matter1 without sin or false doctrine4 ,but that ,moses wrote part at least of them1 our ,lord and his ,apostles say expressly4 ,the tradition of the ,jews 7who really ought to know best7 has always been that ,moses wrote either the whole or the greater part4 ,moses is by far the most likely man to have written them1 of all of whom we read in ,scripture4 ,we have not the least proof1 and1 what is more1 never shall or can have1 that he did not write them4 ,and therefore1 ,i advise you to believe1 as ,i do1 that the universal tradition of both ,jews and ,christians is right1 when it calls these books1 the books of ,moses4 #g ,but now no more of these matters3 we will think of a matter quite infinitely more important1 and that is1 ,,who is this ,god whom the ,bible reveals to us1 from the very first verse of ,genesis8 ,at least1 he is one and the same ,being4 ,whether he be called ,el1 ,jehovah1 or ,adonai1 he is the same ,lord4 ,it is the ,lord who makes the heaven and the earth1 the ,lord who puts man in a ,paradise1 lays on him a commandment1 and appears to him in visible shape4 ,it is the ,lord who speaks to ,abraham3 though ,abraham knew him only as ,el-,shaddai1 the ,almighty ,god4 ,it is the ,lord who brings the ,israelites out of ,egypt1 who gives them the law on ,sinai4 ,it is the ,lord who speaks to ,samuel1 to ,david1 to all the ,prophets1 and appears to ,isaiah1 while his glory fills the ,temple4 ,in whatever 'divers manners' and 'many portions1' as ,st4 ,paul says in the ,epistle to the ,hebrews1 he speaks to them1 he is the same ,being4 ,and ,psalmists and ,prophets are most careful to tell us that he is the ,god1 not of the ,jews only1 but of the ,gentiles2 of all mankind-- as indeed1 he must be1 being ,jehovah1 the ,i ,am1 the one ,self- existent and ,eternal ,being2 that from his throne he is watching and judging all the nations upon earth1 fashioning the hearts of all1 appointing them their bounds1 and the times of their habitation1 if haply they may seek after him and find him1 though he be not far from any one of them2 for in him they live and move and have their being4 ,this is the message of ,moses1 of the ,psalmists and the ,prophets1 just as much as of ,st4 ,paul on ,mars' ,hill at ,athens4 ,so begins and so ends the ,old ,testament1 revealing throughout ,the ,lord4 ,and how does the ,new ,testament begin8 ,by telling us that a ,babe was born at ,bethlehem1 and called ,jesus1 the ,saviour4 ,but who is this blessed ,babe8 ,he1 too1 is ,the ,lord4 ',a ,saviour1 which is ,christ the ,lord4' ,and from thence1 through the ,gospels1 the ,acts1 the ,epistles1 the ,revelation of ,st4 ,john1 he is the ,lord4 ,there is no manner of doubt of it4 ,the ,apostles and ,evangelists take no trouble to prove it4 ,they take it for granted4 ,they call ,jesus ,christ by the name by which the ,jews had for hundreds of years called the ,el of ,abraham1 the ,jehovah of ,moses4 ,the ,babe who is born at ,bethlehem1 who grows up as other human beings grow1 into the man ,christ ,jesus1 is none other than the ,lord ,god who created the universe1 who made a covenant with ,abraham1 who brought the ,israelites out of ,egypt1 who inspired the ,prophets1 who has been from the beginning governing all the earth4 ,it is very awful4 ,but you must believe that1 or put your ,bibles away as a dream--,new ,testament and ,old alike4 ,not to believe that fully and utterly1 is not to believe the ,bible at all4 ,for that is what the ,bible says1 and has been sent into the world to say4 ,it is1 from beginning to end1 the book of the revelation1 or unveiling of ,jesus ,christ1 very ,god of very ,god4 ,but some may say1 ',why tell us that8 ,of course we believe it4 ,we should not be ,christians if we did not4' ,be it so4 ,i hope it is so4 ,but ,i think that it is not so easy to believe it as we fancy4 ,we believe it1 ,i think1 more firmly than our forefathers did five hundred years ago1 on some points2 and therefore we have got rid of many dark and blasphemous superstitions about witches and devils1 about the evil of the earth and of our own bodies1 of marriage1 and of the common duties and bonds of humanity1 which tormented them1 because they could not believe fully that ,jesus ,christ had created1 and still ruled the world and all therein4 ,but we are all too apt still to think of ,jesus ,christ merely as some one who can save our souls when we die1 and to forget that he is the ,lord1 who is and has been always ruling the world and all mankind4 ,and from this come two bad consequences4 ,people are apt to speak of the ,lord ,jesus--or at least to admire preachers who speak of him--as if he belonged to them1 and not they to him2 and1 therefore1 to speak of him with an irreverence and a familiarity which they dared not use1 if they really believed that this same ,jesus1 whose name they take in vain1 is none other than the ,living ,god himself1 their ,creator1 by whom every blade of grass grows beneath their feet1 every planet and star rolls above their heads4 ,and next--they fancy that the ,old ,testament speaks of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ only in a few mysterious prophecies--some of which there is reason to suspect they quite misinterpret4 ,they are slow of heart to believe all that the ,scriptures have spoken of him of whom ,moses and the ,prophets did write1 not in a few scattered texts1 but in every line of the ,old ,testament1 from the first of ,genesis to the last of ,malachi4 ,and therefore they believe less and less1 that ,jesus ,christ is still the ,lord in any real practical sense--not merely the ,lord of a few elect or saints1 but the ,lord of man and of the earth1 and of the whole universe4 ,they think of him as a ,lord who will come again to judgment--which is true1 and awfully true1 in the very deepest sense3 but they do not think of him--in spite of what he himself and his apostles declared of him--as ,the ,living1 ,working ,lord1 to whom all power is given in heaven and earth1 and not merely over the souls of a few regenerate2 as the ,alpha and ,omega1 the first and the last1 of whom ,st4 ,paul says1 'that the mystery of ,christ has been hid from the beginning of the world in ,god1 who created all things by ,jesus ,christ4' 99 99 99 ',that1 in the dispensation of the fulness of times1 he might gather together in one all things in ,christ1 both which are in heaven1 and which are in earth4' ,they fill their minds with fancies about the book of ,revelation1 most of which1 there is reason to fear1 are little else but fancies3 while they overlook what that book really does say1 and what is the best news that the world ever heard1 that he is the ,prince of the kings of the earth4 ,therefore they have fears for ,christ's ,bible1 fears for ,christ's ,church1 fears for the fate of the world1 which they could not have if they would recollect who ,christ is1 and believe that he is able to take care of his own kingdom and power and glory1 better than man can take care of it for him4 ,surely1 surely1 faith in the living ,lord who rules the world in righteousness is fast dying out among us2 and many who call themselves ,christians seem to know less of ,christ1 and of the work which he is carrying on in the world1 than did the old ,psalmist1 who said of him1 ',the ,lord shall endure for ever2 he hath also prepared his seat for judgment4 ,for he shall judge the world in righteousness1 and minister true judgment among the people4' ,he fashioneth 'the hearts of all of them1 and understandeth all their works4' ,who can say that he believes that1 who holds that this world is the devil's world1 and that sinful man and evil spirits are having it all their own way till the day of judgment8 ,who can say that he believes that1 who falls into pitiable terror at every new discovery of science or of scholarship1 for fear it should destroy the ,bible and the ,christian faith1 instead of believing that all which makes manifest is light1 and that all light comes from the ,father of lights1 by the providence of ,jesus ,christ his only- begotten ,son1 who is the light of men1 and the inspiration of his ,spirit1 who leadeth into all truth8 ,and how1 lastly1 can those say that they believe that1 who will lie1 and slander1 and have recourse to base intrigues1 in order to defend that truth1 and that ,church1 of which the ,lord himself has said that he has founded it upon a rock1 and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it8 ,but if you believe indeed the message of the ,bible1 that ,jesus ,christ is the ,lord who made heaven and earth1 then it shall be said of you1 as it was of ,st4 ,peter1 ',blessed art thou3 for flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee1 but my ,father which is in heaven4' ,yes4 ,blessed indeed is he who believes that2 who believes that the same person who was born in a stable1 had not where to lay his head1 went about healing the sick and binding up the broken heart1 suffered under ,pontius ,pilate1 was crucified1 dead1 and buried1 and rose again the third day1 and ascended into heaven--ascended thither that he might fill all things2 and is none other than the ,lord of the earth and of men1 the ,creator1 the ,teacher1 the ,saviour1 the ,guide1 the ,king1 the ,judge1 of all the world1 and of all worlds past1 present1 and to come4 ,for to him who thus believes shall be fulfilled the promise of his ,lord1 ',come unto me1 all ye that are weary and heavy laden1 and ,i will give you rest4' ,he will find rest unto his soul4 ,rest from that first and last question1 of which ,i said that all men1 down to the lowest savage1 ask it1 simply because they are men1 and not beasts4 ,where am ,i8 ,how came ,i here8 ,how came this world here likewise8 ,for he can answer-- ',i am in the kingdom of the ,babe of ,bethlehem4 ,he put me here4 ,and he put this world here likewise3 and that is enough for me4 ,he created all ,i see or can see--,i care little how1 provided that ,,he created it2 for then ,i am sure that it must be very good4 ,he redeemed me and all mankind1 when we were lost1 at the price of his most precious blood4 ,he the ,lord is ,king1 therefore will ,i not be moved1 though the earth be shaken1 and the hills be carried into the midst of the sea4 ,yea1 though the sun were turned to darkness1 and the moon to blood1 and the stars fell from heaven1 and all power and order1 all belief and custom of mankind1 were turned upside down1 yet there would still be ,one above who rules the world in righteousness1 whose eye is on them that fear him and put their trust in his mercy1 to deliver their soul from death1 and to feed them in the time of dearth4 ,darkness may cover the land for awhile1 and gross darkness the people4 ,but while ,i sit in darkness1 the ,lord shall be my light1 till the day when he shall say once more1 ,let there be light1 and light shall be4' ,yes4 ,to the man who is a good man and true2 who has any hearty ,christian feeling for his fellow-men1 and is not merely a selfish superstitious person1 caring for nothing but what he calls the safety of his own soul2 to the man1 ,i say1 who has anything of the loving spirit of ,christ in him1 what question can be more important than this1 ,is the world well made or ill8 ,is it well governed or ill8 ,is it on the whole going right or going wrong8 ,and what can be more comforting to such a man1 than the answer which the ,bible gives him at the outset8-- ,this world is well made1 in love and care2 for ,christ the ,lord made it1 and behold it was very good4 ,this world is going right and not wrong1 in spite of all appearances to the contrary2 for ,christ the ,lord is ,king4 ,he sitteth between the cherubim1 be the earth never so unquiet4 ,he is too strong and too loving to let the world go any way but the right4 ,parts of it will often go wrong here1 and go wrong there4 ,the sin and ignorance of men will disturb his order1 and rebel against his laws2 and strange and mad things1 terrible and pitiable things will happen1 as they have happened ever since the day when the first man disobeyed the commandment of the ,lord4 ,but man cannot conquer the ,lord2 the ,lord will conquer man4 ,he will teach men by their neighbours' sins4 ,he will teach them by their own sins4 ,he will chastise them by sore judgments4 ,he will make fearful examples of wilful and conceited sinners2 and those who seem to escape him in this life1 shall not escape him in the life to come4 ,but he is trying for ever every man's work by fire2 and against that fire no lie will stand4 ,he will burn up the stubble and chaff1 and leave only the pure wheat for the use of future generations4 ,his purpose will stand4 ,his word will never return to him void1 but will prosper always where he sends it4 ,he has made the round world so sure that it cannot be moved either by man or by worse than man4 ,his everlasting laws will take effect in spite of all opposition1 and bring the world and man along the path1 and to the end1 which he purposed for them in the day when ,god made the heavens and the earth1 and in that even greater day1 when he said1 ',let us make man in our image1 after our likeness1' and man arose upright1 and knew that he was not as the beasts1 and asked who he was1 and where8 feeling with the hardly opened eyes of his spirit after that ,lord from whom he came1 and to whom he shall return1 as many as have eternal life1 in the day when ,christ the ,lord of life shall have destroyed death1 and put all enemies under his feet1 and given up the kingdom to ,god1 even the ,father1 that ,god may be all in all4 ,,sermon ,,ii4 ,,the ,,likeness ,,of ,,god 7,trinity ,sunday47 ,,genesis i4 #bf4 ,and ,god said1 ,let us make man in our image1 after our likeness4 ,this is a hard saying4 ,it is difficult at times to believe it to be true4 ,if one looks not at what ,god has made man1 but at what man has made himself1 one will never believe it to be true4 ,when one looks at what man has made himself2 at the back streets of some of our great cities2 at the thousands of poor ,germans and ,irish across the ocean bribed to kill and to be killed1 they know not why2 at the abominable wrongs and cruelties going on in ,poland at this moment--the cry whereof is going up to the ears of the ,god of ,hosts1 and surely not in vain2 when one thinks of all the cries which have gone up in all ages from the victims of man's greed1 lust1 cruelty1 tyranny1 and shrillest of all from the tortured victims of his superstition and fanaticism1 it is difficult to answer the sneer1 ',believe1 if you can1 that this foolish1 unjust1 cruel being called man1 is made in the likeness of ,god4 ,man was never made in the image of ,god at all4 ,he is only a cunninger sort of animal1 for better for worse--and for worse as often as for better4' ,another says1 not quite that4 ,man was in the likeness of ,god once1 but he lost that by ,adam's fall1 and now is only an animal with an immortal soul in him1 to be lost or saved4 ,there is more truth in that latter notion than in the former3 but if it be quite right2 if we did lose the likeness of ,god at ,adam's fall1 how comes the ,bible never to say so8 ,how comes the ,bible never to say one word on what must have been the most important thing which ever happened to mankind before the coming of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ8 ,and how comes it also that the ,new ,testament says distinctly that man is still made in the likeness of ,god8 ,for ,st4 ,paul speaks of man as 'the likeness and glory of ,god4' ,and ,st4 ,james says of the tongue1 ',therewith bless we ,god1 even the ,father2 and therewith' 7to our shame7 'curse we men1 which are made in the likeness of ,god4' ,but the great proof that man is made in the image and likeness of ,god is the incarnation of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ2 for if human nature had been1 as some think1 something utterly brutish and devilish1 and utterly unlike ,god1 how could ,god have become man without ceasing to be ,god8 ,christ was man of the substance of his mother4 ,that substance had the same human nature as we have4 ,then if that human nature be evil1 what follows8 ,something which ,i shall not utter1 for it is blasphemy4 ,christ has taken the manhood into ,god4 ,then if manhood be evil1 what follows again8 ,something more which ,i shall not utter1 for it is blasphemy4 ,but man is made in the image of ,god2 and therefore ,god1 in whose image he is made1 could take on himself his own image and likeness1 and become perfect man1 without ceasing to be perfect ,god4 ,therefore1 my friends1 it is a comfortable and wholesome doctrine1 that man is made in the image of ,god1 and one for which we must thank the ,bible4 ,for it is the ,bible which has revealed that truth to us1 in its very beginning and outset1 that we might have1 from the first1 clear and sound notions concerning man and ,god4 ,the ,bible1 ,i say2 for the sacred books of the heathen say1 most of them1 nothing thereof4 ,man has1 in all ages1 been tempted1 when he looks at his own wickedness and folly1 not only to despise himself--which he has good reason enough to do--but to despise his own human nature1 and to cry to ,god1 ',why hast thou made me thus8' ,he has cursed his own human nature4 ,he has said1 ',surely man is most miserable of all the beasts of the field4' ,he has said1 ',i must get rid of my human nature--,i must give up wife1 family1 human life of all kinds1 ,i must go into the deserts and the forests1 and there try to forget that ,i am a man1 and become a mere spirit or angel4' ,so said the ,buddhists of ,asia1 the deepest thinkers concerning man and ,god of all the heathens1 and so have many said since their time4 ,but so does the ,bible not say4 ,it starts by telling us that man is made in ,god's likeness1 and that therefore his human nature is originally and in itself not a bad1 but a perfectly good thing4 ,all that has to be done to it is to be cured of its diseases2 and the ,bible declares that it can be cured4 ,howsoever man may have fallen1 he may rise4 ,howsoever the likeness may be blotted and corrupted1 it can be cleansed and renewed4 ,howsoever it may be perverted and turned right round and away from ,god and goodness to selfishness and evil1 it can be converted1 and turned back again to ,god4 ,howsoever utterly far gone man may be from original righteousness1 still to original righteousness he can return1 by the grace of baptism and the renewing of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,and what in us is the likeness of ,god8 ,that is a deep question4 ,only one answer will ,i make to it to-day4 ,whatever in us is1 or is not1 the likeness of ,god1 at least the sense of right and wrong is2 to know right and wrong4 ,so says the ,bible itself3 ',behold the man is become as one of us1 to know good and evil4' ,not that he got the likeness of ,god by his fall--of course not2 but that he became aware of his likeness1 and that in a very painful and common way--by sinning against it2 as ,st4 ,paul says in one of his deepest utterances1 ',by sin is the knowledge of the law4' ,and you may see for yourselves how human nature can have ,god's likeness in that respect1 and yet be utterly fallen and corrupt4 ,for a man may--and indeed every man does--know good and yet be unable to do it1 and know evil1 and yet be a slave to it1 tied and bound with the chains of his sins till the grace of ,god release him from them4 ,to know good and evil1 right and wrong--to have a conscience1 a moral sense--that is the likeness of ,god of which ,i wish to preach to-day4 ,because it is through ,,that knowledge of good and evil1 and through it alone1 that we can know ,god1 and ,jesus ,christ whom he has sent4 ,it is through our moral sense that ,god speaks to us2 through our sense of right and wrong2 through that ,i say1 ,god speaks to us1 whether in reproof or encouragement1 in wrath or in love2 to teach us what he is like1 and to teach us what he is not like4 ,to know ,god4 ,that is the side on which we must look at this text on ,trinity ,sunday4 ,if man be made in the image of ,god1 then we may be able to know something at least of ,god1 and of the character of ,god4 ,if we have the copy1 we can guess at least at what the original is like4 ,from the character1 therefore1 of every good man1 we may guess at something of the character of ,god4 ,but from the character of ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 who is the very brightness of his ,father's glory and the express image of his person1 we may see perfectly--at least perfectly enough for all our needs in this life1 and in the life to come--what is the character of ,god1 who made heaven and earth4 ,i beseech you to remember this--,i beseech you to believe this1 with your whole hearts1 and minds1 and souls1 and especially just now4 ,for there are many abroad now who will tell you1 man can know nothing of ,god4 ,answer them3 ',if your ,god be a ,god of whom ,i can know nothing1 then he is not my ,god1 the ,god of the ,bible4 ,for he is the ,god who has said of old1 ,they shall not teach each man his brother1 saying1 ,know the ,lord1 for all shall know ,me1 from the least unto the greatest4 ,he is the ,god1 who1 through ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 accused and blamed the ,jews because they did ,,not know him1 which if they ,,could ,,not know him would have been no fault of theirs4 ,of doctrines1 and notions1 and systems1 it is written1 and most truly1 ,i know in part1 and ,i prophesy in part1 and again1 ,if a man thinketh that he knoweth anything1 he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know4 ,but of ,god it is written1 ,this is life eternal1 to know thee1 the only true ,god1 and ,jesus ,christ1 whom thou hast sent4' ,but they will say1 man is finite and limited1 ,god is infinite and absolute1 and how can the finite comprehend the infinite8 ,answer3 ',those are fine words3 ,i do not understand them2 and ,i do not care to understand them2 ,i do not deny that ,god is infinite and absolute1 though what that means ,i do not know4 ,but ,i find nothing about his being infinite and absolute in the ,bible4 ,i find there that he is righteous1 just1 loving1 merciful1 and forgiving2 and that he is angry too1 and that his wrath is a consuming fire1 and ,i know well enough what those words mean1 though ,i do not know what infinite and absolute mean4 ,so that is what ,i have to think of1 for my own sake and the sake of all mankind4' ,but1 they will say1 you must not take these words to the letter2 man is so unlike ,god1 and ,god so unlike man1 that ,god's attributes must be quite different from man's4 ,when you read of ,god's love1 justice1 anger1 and so forth1 you must not think that they are anything like man's love1 man's justice1 man's anger2 but something quite different1 not only in degree1 but in kind3 so that what might be unjust and cruel in man1 would not be so in ,god4 ,my dear friends1 beware of that doctrine2 for out of it have sprung half the fanaticism and superstition which has disgraced and tormented the earth4 ,beware of ever thinking that a wrong thing would be right if ,god did it1 and not you4 ,and mind1 that is flatly contrary to the letter of the ,bible4 ,in that grand text where ,abraham pleads with ,god1 what does he say8 ,not1 ',of course if ,thou choosest to do it1 it must be right1' but ',shall not the ,judge of all the earth do ,,right8' ,abraham actually refers the ,almighty ,god to his own law2 and asserts an eternal rule of right and wrong common to man and to ,god1 which ,god will surely never break4 ,answer3 ',if that doctrine be true1 which ,i will never believe1 then the ,bible mocks and deceives poor miserable sinful man1 instead of teaching him4 ,if ,god's love does not mean real actual love1--,god's anger1 actual anger1--,god's forgiveness1 real forgiveness1--,god's justice1 real justice1--,god's truth1 real truth1--,god's faithfulness1 real faithfulness1 what do they mean8 ,nothing which ,i can understand1 nothing which ,i can trust in4 ,how can ,i trust in a ,god whom ,i cannot understand or know8 ,how can ,i trust in a love or a justice which is not what ,i call love or justice1 or anything like them8 ',the saints of old said1 ,i ,,know in whom ,i have believed4 ,and how can ,i believe in him1 if there is nothing in him which ,i can know2 nothing which is like man--nothing1 to speak plainly1 like ,christ1 who was perfect man as well as perfect ,god8 ,if that be so1 if man can know nothing really of ,god1 he is indeed most miserable of all the beasts of the field1 for ,i will warrant that he can know nothing really of anything else4 ,and what is left for him1 but to remain for this life1 and the life to come1 in the outer darkness of ignorance and confusion1 misrule and misery1 wherein is most literally--as one may see in the history of every heathen nation upon earth--wailing and gnashing of teeth4 ',if ,god's goodness be not like man's goodness1 there is no rule of morality left1 no eternal standard of right and wrong4 ,how can ,i tell what ,i ought to do2 or what ,god expects of me2 or when ,i am right and when ,i am wrong1 if you take from me the good1 plain1 old ,bible rule1 that man ,,can be1 and ,,must be1 like ,god8 ,the ,bible rule is1 that everything good in man must be exactly like something good in ,god1 because it is inspired into him by the ,spirit of ,god himself4 ,our ,lord ,jesus1 who spoke1 not to philosophers or ,scribes and ,pharisees1 but to plain human beings1 weeping and sorrowing1 suffering and sinning1 like us1--told them to be perfect1 as our ,father in heaven is perfect1 by being good to the unthankful and the evil4 ,and if man is to be perfect1 as his ,father in heaven is perfect1 then his ,father in heaven is perfect as man ought to be perfect4 ,he told us to be merciful as our ,father in heaven is merciful4 ,then our ,father in heaven is merciful with the same sort of mercy as we ought to show4 ,we are bidden to forgive others1 even as ,god for ,christ's sake has forgiven us3 then if our forgiveness is to be like ,god's1 ,god's forgiveness is like ours4 ,we are to be true1 because ,god is true3 just1 because ,god is just4 ,how can we be that1 if ,god's truth is not like what men call truth1 ,god's justice not like what men call justice8 ',if ,i give up that rule of right and wrong1 ,i give up all rules of right and wrong whatsoever4' ,no1 my friends2 if we will seek for ,god where he may be found1 then we shall know ,god1 whom truly to know is everlasting life4 ,but we must not seek for him where he is not1 in long words and notions of philosophy spun out of men's brains1 and set up as if they were real things1 when words and notions they are1 and words and notions they will remain4 ,we must look for ,god where he is to be found1 in the character of his only begotten ,son1 ,jesus ,christ1 who alone has revealed and unveiled ,god's character1 because he is the brightness of ,god's glory1 and the express image of his person4 ,what ,christ's character was we can find in the ,holy ,gospels2 and we can find it too1 scattered and in parts1 in all the good1 the holy1 the noble1 who have aught of ,christ's spirit and likeness in them4 ,whatsoever is good and beautiful in any human soul1 that is the likeness of ,christ4 ,whatsoever thoughts1 words1 or deeds are true1 honest1 just1 pure1 lovely1 of good report2 whatsoever is true virtue1 whatsoever is truly worthy of praise1 that is the likeness of ,christ2 the likeness of him who was full of all purity1 all tenderness1 all mercy1 all self-sacrifice1 all benevolence1 all helpfulness2 full of all just and noble indignation also against oppressors and hypocrites who bound heavy burdens and grievous to be borne1 but touched them not themselves with one of their fingers2 who kept the key of knowledge1 and neither entered in themselves1 or let those who were trying enter in either4 ,the likeness of an all-noble1 all-just1 all-gracious1 all-wise1 all- good human being2 that is the likeness of ,christ1 and that1 therefore1 is the likeness of ,god who made heaven and earth4 ,all-good2 utterly and perfectly good1 in every kind of goodness which we have ever seen1 or can ever imagine--that1 thank ,god1 is the likeness and character of ,almighty ,god1 in whom we live and move1 and have our being4 ,to know that he is that--all-good1 is to know his character as far as sinful and sorrowful man need know2 and is not that to know enough8 ,the mystery of the ever-blessed ,trinity1 as set forth so admirably in the ,athanasian ,creed1 is a mystery2 and it we cannot ,,know--we can only believe it1 and take it on trust3 but the ,,character of the ever-blessed ,trinity--,father1 ,son1 and ,holy ,ghost--we can know3 while by keeping the words of the ,athanasian ,creed carefully in mind1 we may be kept from many grievous and hurtful mistakes which will hinder our knowing it4 ,we can know that they are all good1 for such as the ,father is such is the ,son1 and such is the ,holy ,ghost4 ,that goodness is their one and eternal substance1 and majesty1 and glory1 which we must not divide by fancying with some1 that the ,father is good in one way and the ,son in another4 ,that their goodness is eternal and unchangeable2 for they themselves are eternal1 and have neither parts nor passions4 ,that their goodness is incomprehensible1 that is1 cannot be bounded or limited by time or space1 or by any notions or doctrines of ours1 for they themselves are incomprehensible1 and able to do abundantly more than we can ask or think4 ,this is our ,god1 the ,god of the ,bible1 the ,god of the ,church1 the ,god who has revealed himself in ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4 ,and him we can believe utterly1 for we know that he is faithful and true2 and we know what ,,that means1 if there is any truth or faithfulness in us4 ,we know that he is just and righteous2 and we know what ,,that means1 if there is any justice and uprightness in ourselves4 ,him we can trust utterly2 to him we can take all our cares1 all our sorrows1 all our doubts1 all our sins1 and pour them out to him1 because he is condescending2 and we know what ,,that means1 if there be any condescension and real high-mindedness in ourselves4 ,we can be certain too that he will hear us1 just because he is so great1 so majestic1 so glorious2 because his greatness1 and majesty1 and glory is a moral and spiritual greatness1 which shows itself by stooping to the meanest1 by listening to the most foolish1 helping the weakest1 pitying the worst1 even while it is bound to punish4 ,him we can trust1 ,i say1 because him we can know1 and can say of him1 ,let the ,infinite and the ,absolute mean what they may1 ,i know in whom ,i have believed--,god the ,good4 ,whatever else ,i cannot understand1 ,i can at least 'understand the lovingkindness of the ,lord2' however high his dwelling may be1 ,i know that he humbleth himself to behold the things in heaven and earth1 to take the simple out of the dust1 and the poor out of the mire4 ,whatever else ,god may or may not be1 ,i know that gracious is the ,lord1 and righteous1 yea1 our ,god is merciful4 ,the ,lord preserveth the simple1 for ,i was in misery1 and he helped ,,me4 ,whatsoever fine theories or new discoveries ,i cannot trust1 ,i can trust him1 for with him is mercy1 and with the ,lord is plenteous redemption2 and he shall redeem his people from all their sins4 ,however dark and ignorant ,i may be1 ,i can go to him for teaching1 and say1 ,teach me to do the thing that pleaseth thee1 for thou art my ,god2 let thy loving ,spirit lead me forth into the land of righteousness4 ,the land of righteousness4 ,the one true heavenly land1 wherein ,god the righteous dwelleth from eternity to eternity1 righteous in all his ways1 and holy in all his works1 and therefore adorable in all his ways1 and glorious in all his works1 with a glory even greater than the glory of his ,almighty power4 ,on that glory of his goodness we can gaze1 though afar off in degree1 yet near in kind1 while the glory of his wisdom and power is far1 far beyond my understanding4 ,of the intellect of ,god we can know nothing2 but we can know what is better1 the heart of ,god4 ,for ,,that glory of goodness we can understand1 and ,,know1 and sympathize with in our heart of hearts1 and say1 ,if ,,this be the likeness of ,god1 he is indeed worthy to be worshipped1 and had in honour4 ,praise the ,lord1 ,o my soul1 for the ,lord is ,,good4 ,kings and all people1 princes and all judges of the world1 young men and maidens1 old men and children1 praise the name of the ,lord1 for his name only is excellent1 because his name is ,,good4 ,lift up your eyes1 and look upon the face of ,christ the ,god- man1 crucified for you2 and behold therein the truth of all truths1 the doctrine of all doctrines1 the gospel of all gospels1 that the ',unknown1' and ',infinite1' and ',absolute' ,god1 who made the universe1 bids you know him1 and know this of him1 that he is ,,good1 and that his express image and likeness is--,jesus ,christ1 his ,son1 our ,lord4 ,,sermon ,,iii4 ,,the ,,voice ,,of ,,the ,,lord ,,god 7,preached also at the ,chapel ,royal1 ,st4 ,james1 ,sexagesima ,sunday47 ,,genesis iii4 #h4 ,and they heard the voice of the ,lord ,god walking in the garden in the cool of the day4 ,these words would startle us1 if we heard them for the first time4 ,i do not know but that they may startle us now1 often as we have heard them1 if we think seriously over them4 ,that ,god should appear to mortal man1 and speak with mortal man4 ,it is most wonderful4 ,it is utterly unlike anything that we have ever seen1 or that any person on earth has seen1 for many hundred years4 ,it is a miracle1 in every sense of the word4 ,when one compares man as he was then1 weak and ignorant1 and yet seemingly so favoured by ,god1 so near to ,god1 with man as he is now1 strong and cunning1 spreading over the earth and replenishing it2 subduing it with railroads and steamships1 with agriculture and science1 and all strange and crafty inventions1 and all the while never visited by any ,divine or heavenly appearance1 but seemingly left utterly to himself by ,god1 to go his own way and do his own will upon the earth1 one asks with wonder1 ,can we be ,adam's children8 ,can the ,god who appeared to ,adam1 be our ,god likewise1 or has ,god's plan and rule for teaching man changed utterly8 ,no4 ,he is one ,god2 the same ,god yesterday1 to-day1 and for ever4 ,his will and purpose1 his care and rule over man1 have not changed4 ,that is a matter of faith4 ,of the faith which the holy ,church commands us to have4 ,but it need not be a blind or unreasonable faith4 ,that our ,god is the ,god of ,adam2 that the same ,lord ,god who taught him teaches us likewise1 need not be a mere matter of faith3 it may be a matter of reason likewise2 a thing which seems reasonable to us1 and recommends itself to our mind and conscience as true4 ,consider1 my friends1 a babe when it comes into the world4 ,the first thing of which it is aware is its mother's bosom4 ,the first thing which it does1 as its eyes and ears are gradually opened to this world1 is to cling to its parents4 ,it holds fast by their hand1 it will not leave their side4 ,it is afraid to sleep alone1 to go alone4 ,to them it looks up for food and help4 ,of them it asks questions1 and tries to learn from them1 to copy them1 to do what it sees them doing1 even in play2 and the parents in return lavish care and tenderness on it1 and will not let it out of their sight4 ,but after a while1 as the child grows1 the parents will not let it be so perpetually with them4 ,it must go to school4 ,it must see its parents only very seldom1 perhaps it must be away from them weeks or months4 ,and why8 ,not that the parents love it less3 but that it must learn to take care of itself1 to act for itself1 to think for itself1 or it will never grow up to be a rational human being4 ,and the parting of the child from the parents does not break the bond of love between them4 ,it learns to love them even better4 ,neither does it break the bond of obedience4 ,the child is away from its parents' eye4 ,but it learns to obey them behind their back2 to do their will of its own will2 to ask itself1 ,what would my parents wish me to do1 were they here8 and so learns1 if it will think of it1 a more true1 deep1 honourable and spiritual obedience1 than it ever would if its parents were perpetually standing over it1 saying1 ,do this1 and do that4 ,in after life1 that child may settle far away from his father's home4 ,he may go up into the temptations and bustle of some great city4 ,he may cross to far lands beyond the sea4 ,but need he love his parents less8 need the bond between them be broken1 though he may never set eyes on them again8 ,god forbid4 ,he may be settled far away1 with children1 business1 interests of his own2 and yet he may be doing all the while his father's will4 ,the lessons of ,god which he learnt at his mother's knee may be still a lamp to his feet and a light to his path4 ,amid all the bustle and labour of business1 his father's face may still be before his eyes1 his father's voice still sound in his ears1 bidding him be a worthy son to him still2 bidding him not to leave that way wherein he should go1 in which his parents trained him long1 long since4 ,he may feel that his parents are near him in the spirit1 though absent in the flesh4 ,yes1 though they may have passed altogether out of this world1 they may be to him present and near at hand2 and he may be kept from doing many a wrong thing and encouraged to do many a right one1 by the ennobling thought1 ,my father would have had it so1 my mother would have had it so1 had they been here on earth4 ,and though in this world he may never see them again1 he may look forward steadily and longingly to the day when1 this life's battle over1 he shall meet again in heaven those who gave him life on earth4 ,my friends1 if this be the education which is natural and necessary from our earthly parents1 made in ,god's image1 appointed by ,god's eternal laws for each of us1 why should it not be the education which ,god himself has appointed for mankind8 ,all which is truly human 7not sinful or fallen7 is an image and pattern of something ,divine4 ,may not therefore the training which we find1 by the very facts of nature1 fit and necessary for our children1 be the same as ,god's training1 by which he fashioneth the hearts of the children of men8 ,therefore we can believe the ,bible when it tells us that so it is4 ,that ,god began the education of man by appearing to him directly1 keeping him1 as it were1 close to his hand1 and teaching him by direct and open revelation4 ,that as time went on1 ,god left men more and more to themselves outwardly3 but only that he might raise their minds to higher notions of religion--that he might make them live by faith1 and not merely by sight2 and obey him of their own hearty free will1 and not merely from fear or wonder4 ,and therefore1 in these days1 when miraculous appearances have1 as far as we know1 entirely ceased1 yet ,god is not changed4 ,he is still as near as ever to men2 still caring for them1 still teaching them2 and his very stopping of all miracles1 so far from being a sign of ,god's anger or neglect1 is a part of his gracious plan for the training of his ,church4 ,for consider--,man was first put upon this earth1 with all things round him new and strange to him2 seeing himself weak and unarmed before the wild beasts of the forest1 not even sheltered from the cold1 as they are2 and yet feeling in himself a power of mind1 a cunning1 a courage1 which made him the lord of all the beasts by virtue of his ,,mind1 though they were stronger than he in body4 ,all that we read of ,adam and ,eve in the ,bible is1 as we should expect1 the history of ,,children--children in mind1 even when they were full- grown in stature4 ,innocent as children1 but1 like children1 greedy1 fanciful1 ready to disobey at the first temptation1 for the very silliest of reasons2 and disobeying accordingly4 ,such creatures-- with such wonderful powers lying hid in them1 such a glorious future before them2 and yet so weak1 so wilful1 so ignorant1 so unable to take care of themselves1 liable to be destroyed off the face of the earth by their own folly1 or even by the wild beasts around--surely they needed some special and tender care from ,god to keep them from perishing at the very outset1 till they had learned somewhat how to take care of themselves1 what their business and duty were upon this earth4 ,they needed it before they fell2 they needed it still more1 and their children likewise1 after they fell3 and if they needed it1 we may trust ,god that he afforded it to them4 ,but again4 ,whence came this strange notion1 which man alone has of all the living things which we see1 of ,,religion8 ,what put into the mind of man that strange imagination of beings greater than himself1 whom he could not always see1 but who might appear to him8 ,what put into his mind the strange imagination that these unseen beings were more or less his masters8 ,that they had made laws for him which he must obey8 ,that he must honour and worship them1 and do them service1 in order that they might be favourable to him1 and help1 and bless1 and teach him8 ,all nations except a very few savages 7and we do not know but that their forefathers had it like the rest of mankind7 have had some such notion as this2 some idea of religion1 and of a moral law of right and wrong4 ,where did they get it8 ,where1 ,i ask again1 did they get it8 ,my friends1 after much thought ,i answer1 there is no explanation of that question so simple1 so rational1 so probable1 as the one which the text gives4 ,and they heard the voice of the ,lord ,god4 ,some1 ,i know1 say that man thought out for himself1 in his own reason1 the notion of ,god2 that he by searching found out ,god4 ,but surely that is contrary to all experience4 ,our experience is1 that men left to themselves forget ,god2 lose more and more all thought of ,god1 and the unseen world2 believe more and more in nothing but what they can see and taste and handle1 and become as the beasts that perish4 ,how then did man1 who now is continually forgetting ,god1 contrive to remember ,god for himself at first8 ,how1 unless ,god himself showed himself to man8 ,i know some will say1 that mankind invented for themselves false gods at first1 and afterwards cleared and purified their own notions1 till they discovered the true ,god4 ,my friends1 there is a homely old proverb which will well apply here4 ,if there had been no gold guineas1 there would be no brass ones4 ,if men had not first had a notion of a true ,god1 and then gradually lost it1 they would not have invented false gods to supply his place4 ,and whence did they get1 ,i ask again1 the notion of gods at all8 ,the simplest answer is in the ,bible3 ,god taught them4 ,i can find no better4 ,i do not believe a better will ever be found4 ,and why not8 ,why not8 ,i ask4 ,to say that ,god cannot appear to men is simply silly2 for it is limiting ,god's ,almighty power4 ,he that made man and all heaven and earth1 cannot he show himself to man1 if he shall so please8 ,to say that ,god will not appear to man because man is so insignificant1 and this earth such a paltry little speck in the heavens1 is to limit ,god's goodness2 nay1 it is to show that a man knows not what goodness means4 ,what grace1 what virtue is there higher than condescension8 ,then if ,god be1 as he is1 perfectly good1 must he not be perfectly condescending--ready and willing to stoop to man1 and all the more ready and the more willing1 the more weak1 ignorant1 and sinful this man is8 ,in fact1 the greater need man has of ,god1 the more certain is it that ,god will help him in that need4 ,yes1 my friends1 the ,bible is the revelation of a ,god who condescends to men1 and therefore descends to men4 ,and the more a man's reason is spiritually enlightened to know the meaning of goodness and holiness and justice and love1 the more simple1 reasonable1 and credible will it seem to him that ,god at first taught men in the days of their early ignorance1 by the only method by which 7as far as we can conceive7 he could have taught them about himself2 namely1 by appearing in visible shape1 or speaking with audible voice2 and just as reasonable and credible1 awful and unfathomable mystery though it is1 will be the greater news1 that that same ,lord at last so condescended to man that he was conceived by the ,holy ,ghost2 born of the ,virgin ,mary2 suffered under ,pontius ,pilate2 was crucified1 dead1 and buried2 and rose the third day1 and ascended into heaven4 ,credible and reasonable1 not indeed to the natural man who looks only at nature1 which he can see and hear and handle2 but credible and reasonable enough to the spiritual man1 whose mind has been enlightened by the ,spirit of ,god1 to see that the things which are seen are temporal1 but the things which are not seen are eternal2 even justice and love1 mercy and condescension1 the divine order1 and the kingdom of the ,living ,god4 ,and now one word on a matter which is tormenting the minds of many just now4 ,it is often said that all that ,i have been saying is contrary to science4 ,that this science and understanding of the world around us1 which has improved so marvellously in our days1 proves that the apparitions and miracles spoken of in the ,bible cannot be true2 that ,god1 or the angels of ,god1 can never have walked with man in visible shape4 ,now1 my friends1 ,i do not believe this4 ,i believe the very contrary4 ,i entreat you to set your minds at rest on this point2 and to believe 7what is certainly true7 there is nothing in this new science to contradict the good old creed1 that the ,lord ,god of old appeared to his human children4 ,it would take too much time1 of course1 to give you my reasons for saying this3 and ,i must therefore ask you to take on trust from me when ,i tell you solemnly and earnestly that there is nothing in modern science which can1 if rightly understood1 contradict the glorious words of ,st4 ,paul1 that ,god at sundry times and in divers manners spake to the fathers by the prophets1 and hath at last spoken unto us by a ,son1 whom he hath appointed heir of all things3 by whom also he made the worlds1 who is the brightness of his glory1 and the express image of his person1 and upholdeth all things by the word of his power3 even ,jesus ,christ1 ,god blessed for ever4 ,amen4 ,what then shall we think of these things8 ,shall we say1 ',how much better off were our forefathers than we6 ,ah1 that we were not left to ourselves6 ,ah1 that we lived in the good old times when ,god and his angels walked with men6' ,my friends1 what says ,solomon the ,wise8--',inquire not why the former times were better than these1 for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this4' ,it is very natural for us to think that we could become more easily good men1 more certain of going to heaven1 if we saw divine apparitions and heard divine voices4 ,a very natural thought4 ,but natural things are not always the best or wisest things4 ,spiritual things are surely higher and deeper than natural things4 ,it is natural to wish to see ,christ1 or some heavenly being1 with our natural eyes and senses4 ,but it is spiritual and therefore better for our souls1 to be content to see him by faith1 with the spiritual eyes of our heart and mind1 to love him with all our heart and mind and soul1 to worship him1 to put our whole trust in him1 to call upon him1 to honour his holy name and his word1 and to serve him truly all the days of our life4 ,natural1 indeed1 to wish that we were back again in the old times4 ,but we must recollect that these old times were not good times1 but bad times1 and for that very reason the ,lord took pity on them4 ,that they were times of darkness1 and therefore it was that the people who sat in great darkness1 and in the valley of the shadow of death1 were allowed to see a great light4 ,and that after that1 the fulness of time1 the very time which the ,lord chose that he might be incarnate of the ,virgin ,mary1 and came down upon this earth in human form1 was not a good time4 ,on the contrary1 the fulness of time1 #ahfc years ago1 was the very wickedest1 most faithless1 most unjust time that the world had ever seen--a time of which ,st4 ,paul said that there were none who did good1 no1 not one2 that adders' poison was under all lips1 and all feet swift to shed blood1 and that the way of peace none had known4 ,better1 far better1 to live in times like these1 in which there is 7among ,christian nations at least7 no great darkness1 even though there be no great light2 times in which the knowledge of the true ,god and his ,son ,jesus ,christ is spreading1 slowly but surely1 over all the earth2 and with it1 the fruit of the knowledge of the ,lord1 justice1 mercy1 charity1 fellow-feeling1 and a desire to teach and improve all mankind1 such as the world never saw before4 ,these are the fruits of the ,scriptures of the ,lord1 and the ,sacraments of the ,lord1 and of the ,holy ,spirit of the ,lord2 and if that ,holy ,spirit be in our hearts1 and we yield our hearts to his gracious motions and obey them1 then we are really nearer to the ,lord ,jesus ,christ than if we saw him1 as ,adam did1 with our bodily eyes1 and yet rebelled against him1 as ,adam did1 in our hearts1 and disobeyed him in our actions4 ,of old the ,lord treated men as babes1 and showed himself to their bodily eyes1 that so they might learn that he was1 and that he was near them4 ,but us he treats as grown men1 who know that he is1 and that he is with us to the end of the world4 ,and if he treats us as men1 my friends1 let us behave ourselves like men1 and not like silly children1 who cannot be trusted by themselves for a moment lest they do wrong or come to harm4 ,let us obey ,god1 not with eye-service1 just as long as we fancy that his eye is on us1 but with the deeper1 more spiritual1 more honourable obedience of faith4 ,let us obey him for obedience' sake1 and honour him for very honour's sake1 as the young emigrant in foreign lands obeys and honours the parents whom he will never see again on earth2 and let us look forward1 like him1 to the day when him whom we cannot see on earth we may1 perhaps1 be permitted to see in heaven1 as the reward- -and for what higher reward can man wish8--of faith and obedience4 ,,sermon ,,iv4 ,,noah',s ,,flood 7,quinquagesima ,sunday47 ,,genesis ix4 #ac4 ,i do set my bow in the cloud1 and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth4 ,we all know the history of ,noah's flood4 ,what have we learnt from that history8 ,what were we intended to learn from it8 ,what thoughts should we have about it8 ,there are many thoughts which we may have4 ,we may think how the flood came to pass2 what means ,god used to make it rain forty days2 what is meant by breaking up the fountains of the great deep4 ,we may calculate how large the ark was2 and whether the ,bible really means that it held all kinds of living things in the world1 or only those of ,noah's own country1 or the animals which had been tamed and made useful to man4 ,we may read long arguments as to whether the flood spread over the whole world1 or only over the country where ,noah and the rest of the sons of ,adam then lived4 ,we may puzzle ourselves concerning the rainbow of which the text speaks4 ,how it was to be a sign of a covenant from ,god4 ,whether man had ever seen a rainbow before4 ,whether there had ever been rain before in ,noah's country2 or whether he did not live in that land of which the second chapter of ,genesis says that the ,lord had not caused it to rain upon the earth1 but there went up a mist from the earth and watered the face of the ground1 as it does still in that high land in the centre of ,asia1 in which old traditions put the garden of ,eden1 and from which1 as far as we yet know1 mankind came at the beginning4 ,we may puzzle our minds with these and a hundred more curious questions1 as learned men have done in all ages4 ,but--shall we become really the wiser by so doing8 ,more learned we may become4 ,but being learned and being wise are two different things4 ,true wisdom is that which makes a man a better man4 ,and will such puzzling questions and calculations as these1 settle them how we may1 make us ,,better men8 ,will they make us more honest and just1 more generous and loving1 more able to keep our tempers and control our appetites8 ,i cannot see that4 ,will it make us better men merely to know that there was once a flood of waters on the earth8 ,i cannot see that4 ,if we look at the hills of sand and gravel round us1 a little common sense will show us that there have been many floods of waters on the earth1 long1 long before the one of which the ,bible speaks3 but shall we be better men for knowing that either8 ,i cannot see why we should4 ,now the ,bible was sent to make us better men4 ,how then will the history of the flood do that8 ,easily enough1 my friends1 if we will listen to the ,bible1 and thinking less about the flood itself1 think more about him who1 so the ,bible tells us1 sent the flood4 ,the ,bible1 ,i have told you1 is the revelation of the living ,lord ,god1 even ,jesus ,christ2 who1 in his turn1 reveals to us the ,father4 ,and what we have to think of is1 how does this story of the flood reveal1 unveil to us the living ,lord of the world1 and his living government thereof8 ,let us look at the matter in that way1 instead of puzzling ourselves with questions of words and endless genealogies which minister strife4 ,let us look at the matter in that way1 instead of 7like too many men now1 and too many men in all ages7 being so busy in picking to pieces the shell of the ,bible1 that we forget that the ,bible has any kernel1 and so let it slip through our hands4 ,let us look at the matter in that way1 as a revelation of the living ,god1 and then we shall find the history of the flood full of godly doctrine1 and profitable for these times1 and for all times whatsoever4 ,god sent a flood on the earth4 ,true2 but the important matter is that ,,god sent it4 ,god set the rainbow in the cloud1 for a token4 ,true2 but the important matter is that ,,god set it there4 ,important8 ,yes4 ,what more important than to know that the flood did not come of itself1 that the rainbow did not come of itself1 and therefore that no flood comes of itself1 no rainbow comes of itself2 nothing comes of itself1 but all comes straight and immediately from the one ,living ,lord ,god8 ,a man may say1 ,but the flood must have been caused by clouds and rain2 and there must have been some special natural cause for their falling at that place and that time8 ,what of that8 ,or that the fountains of the great deep must have been broken up by natural earthquakes1 such as break up the crust of the earth now4 ,what of that8 ,or that the rainbow must have been caused by the sun's rays shining through rain-drops at a certain angle1 as all rainbows are now4 ,what of that8 ,very probably it was3 but if not1 ,what of that8 ,what we ought to know1 and what we ought to care for is1 what the ,bible tells us without a doubt1 that however they came1 ,god sent them4 ,however they were made1 ,god made them4 ,their manner1 their place1 their time was appointed exactly by ,god for a ,,moral purpose4 ,to do something for the immortal souls of men2 to punish sinners2 to preserve the righteous2 to teach ,noah and his children after him a moral lesson1 concerning righteousness and sin2 concerning the wrath of ,god against sin2 concerning ,god1 that he governs the world and all in it1 and does not leave the world1 or mankind1 to go on of themselves and by themselves4 ,you see1 ,i trust1 what a message this was1 and is1 and ever will be for men2 what a message and good news it must have been especially for the heathen of old time4 ,for what would the heathen1 what actually did the heathen think about such sights as a flood1 or a rainbow8 ,they thought of course that some one sent the flood4 ,common sense taught them that4 ,but what kind of person must he be1 thought they1 who sent the flood8 ,surely a very dark1 terrible1 angry ,god1 who was easily and suddenly provoked to drown their cattle and flood their lands4 ,but the rainbow1 so bright and gay1 the sign of coming fine weather1 could not belong to the same ,god who made the flood4 ,what the fancies of the heathen about the rainbow were matters little to us3 but they fancied1 at least1 that it belonged to some cheerful1 bright and kind ,god4 ,and so with other things4 ,whatever was bright1 and beautiful1 and wholesome in the world1 like the rainbow1 belonged to kind gods2 whatever was dark1 ugly1 and destroying1 like the flood1 belonged to angry gods4 ,therefore those of the heathen who were religious never felt themselves safe4 ,they were always afraid of having offended some god1 they knew not how2 always afraid of some god turning against them1 and bringing diseases against their bodies2 floods1 drought1 blight against their crops2 storms against their ships1 in revenge for some slight or neglect of theirs4 ,and all the while they had no clear notion that these gods made the world2 they thought that the gods were parts of the world1 just as men are1 and that beyond the gods there was the some sort of ,fate1 or necessity1 which even gods must obey4 ,do you not see now what a comfort--what a spring of hope1 and courage1 and peace of mind1 and patient industry--it must have been to the men of old time to be told1 by this story of the flood1 that the ,god who sends the flood sends the rainbow also8 ,there are not two gods1 nor many gods1 but one ,god1 of whom are all things4 ,light and darkness1 storm or sunshine1 barrenness or wealth1 come alike from him4 ,diseases1 storm1 flood1 blight1 all these show that there is in ,god an awfulness1 a sternness1 an anger if need be--a power of destroying his own work1 of altering his own order2 but sunshine1 fruitfulness1 peace1 and comfort1 all show that love and mercy1 beauty and order1 are just as much attributes of his essence as awfulness and anger4 ,they tell us he is a ,god whose will is to love1 to bless1 to make his creatures happy1 if they will allow him4 ,they tell us that his anger is not a capricious1 revengeful1 proud1 selfish anger1 such as that of the heathen gods3 but that it is an orderly anger1 a just anger1 a loving anger1 and therefore an anger which in its wrath can remember mercy4 ,out of ,god's wrath shineth love1 as the rainbow out of the storm2 if it repenteth him that he hath made man1 it is only because man is spoiling and ruining himself1 and wasting the gifts of the good world by his wickedness4 ,if he see fit to destroy man out of the earth1 he will destroy none but those who deserve and need destroying4 ,he will save those whom1 like ,noah1 he can trust to begin afresh1 and raise up a better race of men to do his work in the world4 ,if ,god send a flood to destroy all living things1 any when or anywhere1 he will show1 by putting the rainbow in the cloud1 that floods and destruction and anger are not his rule2 that his rule is sunshine1 and peace1 and order2 that though he found it necessary once to curse the ground1 once to sweep away a wicked race of men1 yet that even that was1 if one dare use the words of ,god1 against his gracious will2 that his will was from the beginning1 peace on earth1 and not floods1 and good will to men1 and not destruction2 and that in his ,,heart1 in the abyss of his essence1 and of which it is written1 that ,god is ,love--in his heart ,i say1 he said1 ',i will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake1 even though the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth4 ,neither will ,i again smite everything living1 as ,i have done4 ,while the earth remaineth1 seed-time and harvest1 summer and winter1 and day and night1 shall not cease4' ,this is the ,god which the book of ,genesis goes on revealing and unveiling to us more and more--a ,god in whom men may ,,trust4 ,the heathen could not trust their gods4 ,the ,bible tells men of a ,god whom they can trust4 ,that is just the difference between the ,bible and all other books in the world4 ,but what a difference6 ,difference enough to make us say1 ,sooner that every other book in the world were lost1 and the ,bible preserved1 than that we should lose the ,bible1 and with the ,bible lose faith in ,god4 ,and now1 my friends1 what shall we learn from this8 ,what shall we learn8 ,have we not learnt enough already8 ,if we have learnt something more of who ,god is2 if we have learnt that he is a ,god in whom we can trust through joy and sorrow1 through light and darkness1 through life and death1 have we not learnt enough for ourselves8 ,yes1 if even those poor and weak words about ,god which ,i have just spoken1 could go home into all your hearts1 and take root1 and bear fruit there1 they would give you a peace of mind1 a comfort1 a courage among all the chances and changes of this mortal life1 and a hope for the life to come1 such as no other news which man can tell you will ever give4 ,but there is one special lesson which we may learn from the history of the flood1 of which ,i may as well tell you at once4 ,the ,bible account of the flood will teach us how to look at the many terrible accidents1 as we foolishly call them1 which happen still upon this earth4 ,there are floods still1 here and there1 earthquakes1 fires1 fearful disasters1 like that great colliery disaster of last year1 which bring death1 misery and ruin to thousands4 ,the ,bible tells us what to think of them1 when it tells us of the flood4 ,do ,i mean that these disasters come as punishments to the people who are killed by them8 ,that is exactly what ,i do not mean4 ,it was true of the flood4 ,it is true1 no doubt1 in many other cases4 ,but our blessed ,lord has specially forbidden us to settle when it is true to say that any particular set of people are destroyed for their sins3 forbidden us to say that the poor creatures who perish in this way are worse than their neighbours4 ',thinkest thou1' he says1 'that those ,galilaeans whose blood ,pilate mingled with their sacrifices1 were sinners above all the ,galilaeans8 ,or those eighteen1 on whom the tower in ,siloam fell1 and killed them2 think you that they were sinners above all who dwelt in ,jerusalem8 ,i tell you nay4' ',judge not1' he says1 'and ye shall not be judged1' and therefore we must not judge4 ,we have no right to say1 for instance1 that the terrible earthquake in ,italy1 two years ago1 came as a punishment for the sins of the people4 ,we have no right to say that the twenty or thirty thousand human beings1 with innocent children among them by hundreds1 who were crushed or swallowed up by that earthquake in a few hours1 were sinners above all that dwelt in ,italy4 ,we must not say that1 for the ,lord ,god himself has forbidden it4 ,but this we may say 7for ,god himself has said it in the ,bible71 that these earthquakes1 and all other disasters1 great or small1 do not come of themselves--do not come by accident1 or chance1 or blind necessity2 but that he sends them1 and that they fulfil his will and word4 ,he sends them1 and therefore they do not come in vain4 ,they fulfil his will1 and his will is a good will4 ,they carry out his purpose1 but his purpose is a gracious purpose4 ,god may send them in anger2 but in his anger he remembers mercy1 and his very wrath to some is part and parcel of his love to the rest4 ,therefore these disasters must be meant to do good1 and will do good to mankind4 ,they may be meant to teach men1 to warn them1 to make them more wise and prudent for the future1 more humble and aware of their own ignorance and weakness1 more mindful of the frailty of human life1 that remembering that in the midst of life we are in death1 they may seek the ,lord while he may be found1 and call upon him while he is near4 ,they may be meant to do that1 and to do a thousand things more4 ,for ,god's ways are not as our ways1 or his thoughts as our thoughts4 ,his ways are unsearchable1 and his paths past finding out4 ,who hath known the mind of the ,lord1 that he may instruct him1 or even settle what the ,lord means by doing this or that8 ,all we can say is--and that is a truly blessed thing to be able to say--that floods and earthquakes1 fire and storms1 come from the ,lord whose name is ,love2 the same ,lord who walked with ,adam in the garden1 who brought the children of ,israel out of ,egypt1 who was born on earth of the ,virgin ,mary1 who shed his life-blood for sinful man1 who wept over ,jerusalem even when he was about to destroy it so that not one stone was left on another1 and who1 when he looked on the poor little children of ,judaea1 untaught or mistaught1 enslaved by the ,romans1 and but too likely to perish or be carried away captive in the fearful war which was coming on their land1 said of them1 ',it is not the will of your ,father in heaven1 that one of these little ones shall perish4' ,him at least we can trust1 in the dark and dreadful things of this world1 as well as in the bright and cheerful ones2 and say with ,job1 ',though he slay me1 yet will ,i trust in him4 ,i have received good from the hands of the ,lord1 and shall ,i not receive evil8' ,,sermon ,v4 ,,abraham 7,first ,sunday in ,lent7 ,,genesis xvii4 #a1 #b4 ,and when ,abram was ninety years old and nine1 the ,lord appeared to ,abram1 and said unto him1 ,i am the ,almighty ,god2 walk before me1 and be thou perfect4 ,i have told you that the ,bible reveals1 that is1 unveils the ,lord ,god1 ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 and through him ,god the ,father ,almighty4 ,i have tried to show you how the ,bible does so1 step by step4 ,i go on to show you another step which the ,bible takes1 and which explains much that has gone before4 ,from whom did ,moses and the holy men of old whom ,moses taught get their knowledge of ,god1 the true ,god8 ,the answer seems to be--from ,abraham4 ,god taught ,moses more1 much more than he taught ,abraham4 ,it was ,moses who bade men call ,god ,jehovah1 the ,i ,,am2 but who1 hundreds of years before1 taught them to call him the ,almighty ,god8 ,the answer seems to be1 ,abraham4 ,god1 we read1 appeared to ,abraham1 and said to him1 ',get thee out of thy country1 and from thy father's house1 unto a land that ,i shall show thee1 and ,i will make of thee a great nation4' ,and again the ,lord said to him1 ',i am the ,almighty ,god1 walk before me and be thou perfect1 and thou shalt be a father of many nations4' ',and ,abraham believed ,god1 and it was counted to him for righteousness4 ,and he was called the friend of ,god4' ,but from what did ,abraham turn to worship the living ,god8 ,from idols8 ,we are not certain4 ,there is little or no mention of idols in ,abraham's time4 ,he worshipped1 more probably1 the host of heaven1 the sun and moon and stars4 ,so say the old traditions of the ,arabs1 who are descended from ,abraham through ,ishmael1 and so it is most likely to have been4 ,that was the temptation in the ,east4 ,you read again and again how his children1 the ,jews1 turned back from ,god to worship the host of heaven2 and that false worship seems to have crept in at some very early time4 ,the sun1 you must remember1 and the moon are far more brilliant and powerful in the ,east than here2 their power of doing harm or good to human beings and to the crops of the land is far greater2 while the stars shine in the ,east with a brightness of which we here have no notion4 ,we do not know1 in this cloudy climate1 what ,st4 ,paul calls the glory of the stars2 nor see how much one star differs from another star in glory2 and therefore here in the ,north we have never been tempted to worship them as the ,easterns were4 ,the sun1 the moon1 the stars1 were the old gods of the ,east1 the ,elohim1 the high and mighty ones1 who ruled over men1 over their good and bad fortunes1 over the weather1 the cattle1 the crops1 sending burning drought1 pestilence1 sun-strokes1 and those moon-strokes which we never have here2 but of which the ,psalmist speaks when he says1 ',the sun shall not smite thee by day1 neither the moon by night4' ,and them the old ,easterns worshipped in some wild confused way4 ,but to ,abraham it was revealed that the sun1 the moon1 and the stars were not ,elohim--the high and mighty ,ones4 ,that there was but one ,elohim1 one high and mighty ,one1 the ,almighty maker of them all4 ,he did not learn that1 perhaps1 at once4 ,indeed the ,bible tells us how ,god taught him step by step1 as he teaches all men1 and revealed himself to him again and again1 till he had taught ,abraham all that he was to know4 ,but he did teach him this2 as a beautiful old story of the ,arabs sets forth4 ,they say how 7whether before or after ,god called him1 we cannot tell7 ,abraham at night saw a star3 and he said1 ',this is my ,lord4' ,but when the star set1 he said1 ',i like not those who vanish away4' ,and when he saw the moon rising1 he said1 ',this is my ,lord4' ,but when the moon too set1 he said1 ',verily1 if my ,lord direct me not in the right way1 ,i shall be as one who goeth astray4' ,but when he saw the sun rising1 he said1 ',this is my ,lord3 this is greater than star or moon4' ,but the sun went down likewise4 ,then said ,abraham1 ',o my people1 ,i am clear of these things4 ,i turn my face to him who hath made the heaven and the earth4' ,and was this all that ,abraham believed--that the sun and moon and stars were not gods1 but that there was a ,god besides1 who had made them all8 ,my friends1 there have been thousands and tens of thousands since1 ,i fear1 who have believed as much as that1 and yet who cannot call ,abraham their spiritual father1 who are not justified by faith with faithful ,abraham4 ,for merely to believe that1 is a dead faith1 which will never be counted for righteousness1 because it will never make man a righteous man doing righteous and good deeds as ,abraham did4 ,of ,abraham it is written1 that what he knew1 he did4 ,that his faith wrought with his works4 ,and by his works his faith was made perfect4 ,that when he gained faith in ,god1 he went and acted on his faith4 ,when ,god called him he went out1 not knowing whither he went4 ,his faith is only shown by his works4 ,because he believed in ,god he went and did things which he would not have done if he had not believed in ,god4 ,of him it is written1 that he obeyed the voice of the ,lord1 and kept his charge1 his commandments1 his statutes1 and his laws4 ,in a word1 he had not merely found out that there was one ,god1 but that that one ,god was a good ,god1 a ,god whom he must obey1 and obey by being a good man4 ,therefore his faith was counted to him for righteousness1 because it was righteousness1 and made him do righteous deeds4 ,he believed that ,god was helping him2 therefore he had no need to oppress or overreach any man4 ,he believed that ,god's eye was on him2 therefore he dared not oppress or overreach any man4 ,his faith in ,god made him brave4 ,he went forth he knew not whither2 but he had put his trust in ,god1 and he did not fear4 ,he and his three hundred slaves1 born in his house1 were not afraid to set out against the four ,arab kings who had just conquered the five kings of the vale of ,jordan1 and plundered the whole land4 ,abraham and his little party of faithful slaves follow them for miles1 and fall on them and defeat them utterly1 setting the captives free1 and bringing back all the plunder2 and then1 in return for all that he has done1 ,abraham will take nothing--not even1 he says1 'a thread or a shoe-latchet--lest men should say1 ,we have made ,abraham rich4' ,and why8 ,because his faith in ,god made him high-minded1 generous1 and courteous2 as when he bids ,lot go whither he will with his flocks and herds4 ',let there be no strife1 ,i pray thee1 between thee and me4 ,if thou wilt take the left hand1 ,i will go to the right4' ,he is then1 as again with the king of ,sodom1 and with the three strangers at the tent door1 and with the children of ,heth1 when he is buying the cave of ,machpelah for a burying-place for ,sarah-- always and everywhere the same courteous1 self-restrained1 high- bred1 high-minded man4 ,it has been said that true religion will make a man a more thorough gentleman than all the courts in ,europe4 ,and it is true3 you may see simple labouring men as thorough gentlemen as any duke1 simply because they have learned to fear ,god2 and fearing him1 to restrain themselves1 and to think of other people more than of themselves1 which is the very root and essence of all good breeding4 ,and such a man was ,abraham of old--a plain man1 dwelling in tents1 helping to tend his own cattle1 fetching in the calf from the field himself1 and dressing it for his guests with his own hand2 but still1 as the children of ,heth said of him1 a mighty prince--not merely in wealth of flocks and herds1 but a prince in manners and a prince in heart4 ,but faith in ,god did more for ,abraham than this3 it made him a truly pious man--it made him the friend of ,god4 ,there were others in ,abraham's days who had some knowledge of the one true ,god4 ,lot his nephew1 ,abimelech1 ,aner1 ,eshcol1 ,mamre1 and others1 seem to have known whom ,abraham meant when he spoke of the ,almighty ,god4 ,but of ,abraham alone it is said that he believed ,god2 that he trusted in ,god1 and rested on him2 was built up on ,god2 rested on ,god as a child in the mother's arms--for this we are told1 is the full meaning of the word in the ,bible--and looked to ,god as his shield and his exceeding great reward4 ,he trusted in ,god utterly1 and it was counted to him for righteousness4 ,and of ,abraham alone it is said that he was the friend of ,god2 that ,god spoke with him1 and he with ,god4 ,he first of all men of whom we read1 at least since the time of ,adam1 knew what communion with ,god meant2 knew that ,god spoke to him as a friend1 a benefactor1 a preserver1 who was teaching and training him with a father's love and care2 and felt that he in return could answer ,god1 could open his heart to him1 tell him not only of his wants1 but of his doubts and fears4 ,yes1 we may almost say1 on the strength of the ,bible1 that ,abraham was the first human being1 as far as we know1 who prayed with his heart and soul2 who knew what true prayer means--the prayer of the heart1 by which man draws near to ,god1 and finds that ,god is near to him4 ,this--this communion with ,god1 is the especial glory of ,abraham's character4 ,this it is which has given him his name through all generations1 ,the friend of ,god4 ,or1 as his descendants the ,arabs call him to this day1 simply1 ',the ,friend4' ,this it is which gained him the name of the ,father of the ,faithful2 the father of all who believe1 whether they be descended from him1 or whether they be1 like us1 of a different nation4 ,this it is which has made a wise man say of ,abraham1 that if we will consider what he knew and did1 and in what a dark age he lived1 we shall see that ,abraham may be 7unless we except ,moses7 the greatest of mere human beings--that the human race may owe more to him than to any mortal man4 ,but why need we learn from ,abraham8 we who1 being ,christians1 know and believe the true faith so much more clearly than ,abraham could do4 ,ah1 my friends1 it is easier to know than to believe1 and easier to know than to do4 ,easier to talk of ,abraham's faith than to have ,abraham's faith4 ,easier to preach learned and orthodox sermons about how ,abraham was justified by his faith1 than to be justified ourselves by our own faith4 ,and say not in your hearts1 ',it was easy for ,abraham to believe ,god4 ,i should have believed of course in his place4 ,if ,god spoke to me1 of course ,i should obey him4' ,my friends1 there is no greater and no easier mistake4 ,god has spoken to many a man who has not believed him1 neither obeyed him1 and so he may to you4 ,god spoke to ,abraham1 and he believed him and obeyed him4 ,and why8 ,because there was in ,abraham's heart something which there is not in all men's hearts--something which ,,answered to ,god's call1 and made him certain that the call was from ,god--even the ,holy ,spirit of ,god4 ,so ,god may call you1 and you may obey him1 if only the ,spirit of ,god be in you2 but not else4 ,,may call you1 did ,i say8 ,god ,,does call you and me1 does speak to us1 does command us1 far more clearly than he did ,abraham4 ,we know the mystery of ,christ1 which in other ages was ,,not made known to the sons of men as it is now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the ,spirit4 ,god1 who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke to the fathers by the prophets1 hath in these last days spoken to us by his ,,son1 ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 and told us our duty1 and the reward which doing our duty will surely bring1 far more clearly than ever he did to ,abraham4 ,but do we listen to him8 ,do we say with ,abraham1 ',o my people1 ,i am clear of all these things which rise and set1 which are born and die1 which begin and end in time1 and turn my face to him that made heaven and earth6' ,if so1 how is it that we see people everywhere worshipping not idols of wood and stone1 but other things1 all manner of things beside ,god1 and saying1 ',these are my ,elohim4 ,these are the high and mighty ones whom ,i must obey4 ,these are the strong things on which depend my fortune and my happiness4 ,i must obey ,,them first1 and let plain doing right and avoiding wrong come after as it can4' ,one worships the laws of trade1 and says1 ',i know this and that is hardly right2 but it is in the way of business1 and therefore ,i must do it4' ,one worships public opinion1 and follows after the multitude to do evil1 doing what he knows is wrong1 simply because others do it1 and it is the way of the world4 ,one worships the interest of his party1 whether in religion or in politics2 and does for their sake mean and false1 cruel and unjust things1 which he would not do for his own private interest4 ,too many1 even in a free country1 worship great people1 and put their trust in princes1 saying1 ',i am sorry to have to do this4 ,i know it is rather mean2 but ,i must1 or ,i shall lose such and such a great man's interest and favour4' ,or1 ',i know ,i cannot afford this expense2 but if ,i do not ,i shall not get into good society1 and this person and that will not ask me to his house4' ,all1 meanwhile1 except a few1 rich or poor1 worship money2 and believe more or less1 in spite of the ,lord's solemn warning to the contrary1 that a man's life does consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses4 ,these are the ,elohim of this world1 the high and mighty things to which men turn for help instead of to the living ,god1 who was before all things1 and will be after them2 and behold they vanish away1 and where then are those that have put their trust in them8 ,but blessed is he whose trust is in ,god the ,almighty1 and whose hope is in the ,lord ,jehovah1 the eternal ,i ,am4 ,blessed is he who1 like faithful ,abraham1 says to his family1 ',my people1 ,i am clear of all these things4 ,i turn my face from them to him who hath made earth and heaven4 ,i go through this world like ,abraham1 not knowing whither ,i go2 but like ,abraham1 ,i fear not1 for ,i go whither ,god sends me4 ,i rest on ,god2 he is my defence1 and my exceeding great reward4 ,to have known him1 loved him1 obeyed him1 is reward enough1 even if ,i do not1 as the world would say1 succeed in life4 ,therefore ,i long not for power and honour1 riches and pleasure4 ,i am content to do my duty faithfully in that station of life to which ,god has called me1 and to be forgiven for all my failings and shortcomings for the sake of ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 and that is enough for me2 for ,i believe in my ,father in heaven1 and believe that he knows best for me and for my children4 ,he has not promised me1 as he promised ,abraham1 to make of me a great nation2 but he has promised that the righteous man shall never be deserted1 or his children beg their bread4 ,he has promised to keep his covenant and mercy to a thousand generations with those who keep his commandments and do them2 and that is enough for me4 ,in ,god have ,i put my trust1 and ,i will not fear what man1 or earth1 or heaven1 or any created thing can do unto me4' ,blessed is that man1 whether he inherit honourably great estates from his ancestors1 or whether he make honourably great wealth and station for himself2 whether he spend his life quietly and honestly in the country farm or in the village shop1 or whether he simply earn his bread from week to week by plough and spade4 ,blessed is he1 and blessed are his children after him4 ,for he is a son of ,abraham2 and of him ,god hath said1 as of ,abraham1 ',i know him that he will command his children and household after him1 and they shall keep the way of the ,lord1 to do justice and judgment1 that the ,lord may bring on him the blessing which he has spoken4' ,yes2 blessed is that man4 ,he has chosen his share of ,abraham's faith2 and he and his children after him shall have their share of ,abraham's blessing4 ,,sermon ,,vi4 ,,jacob ,,and ,,esau 7,second ,sunday in ,lent47 ,,genesis xxv4 #bi-cd4 ,and ,jacob sod pottage3 and ,esau came from the field1 and he was faint3 ,and ,esau said to ,jacob1 ,feed me1 ,i pray thee1 with that same red pottage2 for ,i am faint3 therefore was his name called ,edom4 ,and ,jacob said1 ,sell me this day thy birthright4 ,and ,esau said1 ,behold1 ,i am at the point to die3 and what profit shall this birthright do to me8 ,and ,jacob said1 ,swear to me this day2 and he sware unto him3 and he sold his birthright unto ,jacob4 ,then ,jacob gave ,esau bread and pottage of lentiles2 and he did eat and drink1 and rose up1 and went his way3 thus ,esau despised his birthright4 ,i have been telling you of late that the ,bible is the revelation of ,god4 ,but how does the story of ,jacob and ,esau reveal ,god to us8 ,what further lesson concerning ,god do we learn therefrom8 ,i think that if we will take the story simply as it stands we shall see easily enough4 ,for it is all simple and natural enough4 ,jacob and ,esau1 we shall see1 were men of like passions with ourselves2 men as we are1 mixed up of good and evil1 sometimes right and sometimes wrong3 and ,god rewarded them when they did right1 and punished them when they did wrong1 just as he does with us now4 ,they were men1 though1 of very different characters3 we may see men like them now every day round us4 ,esau1 we read1 was a hunter--a man of the field2 a bold1 fierce1 active man2 generous1 brave1 and kind-hearted1 as the end of his story shows3 but with just the faults which such a man would have4 ,he was hasty1 reckless1 and fond of pleasure2 passionate too1 and violent4 ,have we not seen just such men again and again1 and liked them for what was good in them1 and been sorry too that they were not more sober and reasonable1 and true to themselves8 ,jacob was the very opposite kind of man4 ,he was a plain man--what we call a still1 solid1 prudent1 quiet man--and a dweller in tents3 he lived peaceably1 looking after his father's flocks and herds2 while ,esau liked better the sport and danger of hunting wild beasts1 and bringing home venison to his father4 ,now ,jacob1 we see1 was of course a more thoughtful man than ,esau4 ,he kept more quiet1 and so had more time to think3 and he had plainly thought a great deal over ,god's promise to his grandfather ,abraham4 ,he believed that ,god had promised ,abraham that he would make his seed as the sand of the sea for multitude1 and give them that fair land of ,canaan1 and that in his seed all the families of the earth should be blessed2 and that seemed to him1 and rightly1 a very grand and noble thing4 ,and he set his heart on getting that blessing for himself1 and supplanting his elder brother ,esau1 and being the heir of the promises in his stead4 ,well--that was mean and base and selfish perhaps3 but there is somewhat of an excuse for ,jacob's conduct1 in the fact that he and ,esau were twins2 that in one sense neither of them was older than the other4 ,and you must recollect1 that it was not at all a regular custom in the ,east for the eldest son to be his father's heir1 as it is in ,england4 ,you find that few or none of the great kings of the ,jews were eldest sons4 ,the custom was not kept up as it is here4 ,so ,jacob may have said to himself1 and not have been very wrong in saying it3 ',i have as good a right to the birthright as ,esau4 ,my father loves him best because he brings him in venison2 but ,i know the value of the honour which is before my family4 ,surely the one of us who cares most about the birthright will be most fit to have it1 and ought to have it2 and ,esau cares nothing for it1 while ,i do4' ,so ,jacob1 in his cunning1 bargaining way1 took advantage of his brother's weak1 hasty temper1 and bought his birthright of him1 as the text tells4 ,that story shows us what sort of a man ,esau was3 hasty1 careless1 fond of the good things of this life4 ,he had no reason to complain if he lost his birthright4 ,he did not care for it1 and so he had thrown it away4 ,perhaps he forgot what he had done2 but his sin found him out1 as our sins are sure to find each of us out4 ,the day came when he wanted his birthright and could not have it1 and found no place for repentance--that is1 no chance of undoing what he had done--though he sought it carefully with tears4 ,he had sown1 and he must reap2 he had made his bed1 and he must lie on it4 ,and so must ,jacob in his turn4 ,now this1 ,i think1 is just what the story teaches us concerning ,god4 ,god chooses ,abraham's family to grow into a great nation1 and to be a peculiar people4 ,the next question will be3 ,if ,god favours that family1 will he do unjust things to help them8--will he let them do unjust things to help themselves8 ,the ,bible answers positively1 ,no4 ,god will not be unjust or arbitrary in choosing one man and rejecting another4 ,if he chooses ,jacob1 it is because ,jacob is fit for the work which ,god wants done4 ,if he rejects ,esau1 it is because ,esau is not fit4 ,it is natural1 ,i know1 to pity poor ,esau2 but one has no right to do more4 ,one has no right to fancy for a moment that ,god was arbitrary or hard upon him4 ,esau is not the sort of man to be the father of a great nation1 or of anything else great4 ,greedy1 passionate1 reckless people like him1 without due feeling of religion or of the unseen world1 are not the men to govern the world1 or help it forward1 or be of use to mankind1 or train up their families in justice and wisdom and piety4 ,if there had been no people in the world but people like ,esau1 we should be savages at this day1 without religion or civilization of any kind4 ,they are of the earth1 earthy2 dust they are1 and unto dust they will return4 ,it is men like ,jacob whom ,god chooses--men who have a feeling of religion and the unseen world2 men who can look forward1 and live by faith1 and form plans for the future--and carry them out too1 against disappointment and difficulty1 till they succeed4 ,look at one side of ,jacob's character--his perseverance4 ,he serves seven years for ,rachel1 because he loves her4 ,then when he is cheated1 and ,leah given him instead1 he serves seven years more for ,rachel--'and they seemed to him a short time1 for the love he bore to her2' and then he serves seven years more for the flocks and herds4 ,a slave1 or little better than a slave1 of his own free will1 for one-and-twenty years1 to get what he wanted4 ,those are the men whom ,god uses1 and whom ,god prospers4 ,men with deep hearts and strong wills1 who set their minds on something which they cannot see1 and work steadfastly for it1 till they get it2 for ,god gives it to them in good time--when patience has had her perfect work upon their characters1 and made them fit for success4 ,esau1 we find1 got some blessing--the sort of blessing he was fit for4 ,he loved his father1 and he was rewarded4 ',and ,isaac his father answered and said unto him1 ,behold1 thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth1 and of the dew of heaven from above2 and by thy sword shalt thou live1 and shalt serve thy brother2 and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion1 that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck4' ,he was a brave1 generous-hearted man1 in spite of his faults4 ,he was to live the free hunter's life which he loved2 and we find that he soon became the head of a wild powerful tribe1 and his sons after him4 ,dukes of ,edom they were called for several generations2 but they never rose to any solid and lasting power2 they never became a great nation1 as ,jacob's children did4 ,they were just what one would expect--wild1 unruly1 violent people4 ,they have long since perished utterly off the face of the earth4 ,and what did ,jacob get1 who so meanly bought the birthright1 and cheated his father out of the blessing8 ,trouble in the flesh2 vanity and vexation of spirit4 ,he had to flee from his father's house2 never to see his mother again2 to wander over the deserts to kinsmen who cheated him as he had cheated others2 to serve ,laban for twenty-one years2 to crouch miserably in fear and trembling1 as a petitioner for his life before ,esau whom he had wronged1 and to be made more ashamed than ever1 by finding that generous ,esau had forgiven and forgotten all4 ,then to see his daughter brought to shame1 his sons murderers1 plotting against their own brother1 his favourite son2 to see his grey hairs going down with sorrow to the grave2 to confess to ,pharaoh1 after one hundred and twenty years of life1 that few and evil had been the days of his pilgrimage4 ,then did his faith in ,god win no reward8 ,not so4 ,that was his reward1 to be chastened and punished1 till his meanness was purged out of him4 ,he had taken ,god for his guide2 and ,god did guide him accordingly2 though along a very different path from what he expected4 ,god accepted his faith1 delivered his soul1 gave him rest and peace at last in his old age in ,egypt1 let him find his son ,joseph again in power and honour3 but all along ,god punished his own inventions--as he will punish yours and mine1 my friends1 all the while that he may be accepting our faith and delivering our souls1 because we trust in him4 ,so ,god rewarded ,jacob by giving him more light3 by not leaving him to himself1 and his own darkness and meanness1 but opening his eyes to understand the wondrous things of ,god's law1 and showing him how ,god's law is everlasting1 righteous1 not to be escaped by any man2 how every action brings forth its appointed fruit2 how those who sow the wind will reap the whirlwind4 ,jacob's first notion was like the notion of the heathen in all times1 ',my ,god has a special favour for me1 therefore ,i may do what ,i like4 ,he will prosper me in doing wrong2 he will help me to cheat my father4' ,but ,god showed him that that was just not what he would do for him4 ,he would help and protect him2 but only while he was doing ,,right4 ,god would not alter his moral laws for him or any man4 ,god would be just and righteous2 and ,jacob must be so likewise1 till he learnt to trust not merely in a ,god who happened to have a special favour to him1 but in the righteous ,god who loves justice1 and wishes to make men righteous even as he is righteous1 and will make them righteous1 if they trust in him4 ,that was the reward of ,jacob's faith--the best reward which any man can have4 ,he was taught to know ,god1 whom truly to know is everlasting life4 ,and this1 it seems to me1 is the great revelation concerning ,god which we learn from the history of ,jacob and ,esau4 ,that ,god1 how much soever favour he may show to certain persons1 is still1 essentially and always1 a just ,god4 ,and now1 my friends1 if any of you are tempted to follow ,jacob's example1 take warning betimes4 ,you will be tempted4 ,there are men among you--there are in every congregation--who are1 like ,jacob1 sober1 industrious1 careful1 prudent men1 and fairly religious too2 men who have the good sense to see that ,solomon's proverbs are true1 and that the way to wealth and prosperity is to fear ,god1 and keep his commandments4 ,may you prosper2 may ,god's blessing be upon your labour2 may you succeed in life1 and see your children well settled and thriving round you1 and go down to the grave in peace4 ,but never forget1 my good friends1 that you will be tempted as ,jacob was--to be dishonest4 ,i cannot tell why2 but professedly religious men1 in all countries1 in all religions1 are1 and always have been1 tempted in that way--to be mean and cunning and false at times4 ,it is so1 and there is no denying it3 when all other sins are shut out from them by their religious profession1 and their care for their own character1 and their fear of hell1 the sin of lying1 for some strange reason1 is left open to them2 and to it they are tempted to give way4 ,for ,god's sake--for the sake of ,christ1 who was full of grace and truth--for your own sakes--struggle against that4 ,unless you wish to say at last with poor old ,jacob1 ',few and evil have been the days of my pilgrimage2' struggle against that4 ,if you fear ,god and believe that he is with you1 ,god will prosper your plans and labour2 but never make that an excuse for saying in your hearts1 like ,jacob1 ',god intends that ,i should have these good things2 therefore ,i may take them for myself by unfair means4' ,the birthright is yours4 ,it is you1 the steady1 prudent1 ,god-fearing ones1 who will prosper on the earth1 and not poor wild1 hot-headed ,esau4 ,but do not make that an excuse for robbing and cheating ,esau1 because he is not as thoughtful as you are4 ,the ,lord made him as well as you2 and died for him as well as for you2 and wills his salvation as well as yours2 and if you cheat him the ,lord will avenge him speedily4 ,if you give way to meanness1 covetousness1 falsehood1 as ,jacob did1 you will rue it2 the ,lord will enter into judgment with you quickly1 and all the more quickly because he loves you4 ,because there is some right in you--because you are on the whole on the right road--the ,lord will visit you with disappointment and affliction1 and make your own sins your punishment4 ,if you deceive other people1 other people shall deceive you1 as they did ,jacob4 ,if you lay traps1 you shall fall into them yourselves1 as ,jacob did4 ,if you fancy that because you trust in ,god1 ,god will overlook any sin in you1 as ,jacob did1 you shall see1 as ,jacob did1 that your sin shall surely find you out4 ,the ,lord will be more sharp and severe with you than with ,esau4 ,and why8 ,because he has given you more1 and requires more of you2 and therefore he will chastise you1 and sift you like wheat1 till he has parted the wheat from the tares4 ,the wheat is your faith1 your belief that if you trust in ,god he will prosper you1 body and soul4 ,that is ,god's good seed1 which he has sown in you4 ,the tares are your fancies that you may do wrong and mean things to help yourselves1 because ,god has an especial favour for you4 ,that is the devil's sowing1 which ,god will burn out of you by the fire of affliction1 as he did out of ,jacob1 and keep your faith safe1 as good seed in his garner1 for the use of your children after you1 that you may teach them to walk in ,god's commandments and serve him in spirit and in truth4 ,for ,god is a ,god of truth1 and no liar shall stand in his sight1 let him be never so religious2 he requires truth in the inward parts1 and truth he will have2 and whom he loves he will chasten1 as he chastened ,jacob of old1 till he has made him understand that honesty is the best policy2 and that whatever false prophets may tell you1 there is not one law for the believer and another for the unbeliever2 but whatsoever a man sows1 that shall he reap1 and receive the due reward of the deeds done in the body1 whether they be good or evil4 ,,sermon ,,vii4 ,,joseph 7,preached on the ,sunday before the ,wedding of the ,prince of ,wales4 ,march #hth1 third ,sunday in ,lent47 ,,genesis xxxix4 #i4 ,how can ,i do this great wickedness1 and sin against ,god8 ,the story of ,joseph is one which will go home to all healthy hearts4 ,every child can understand1 every child can feel with it4 ,it is a story for all men and all times4 ,even if it had not been true1 and not real fact1 but a romance of man's invention1 it would have been loved and admired by men2 far more then1 when we know that it is true1 that it actually did so happen2 that is part and parcel of the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,we all1 surely1 know the story--,how ,joseph's brethren envy him and sell him for a slave into ,egypt--how there for a while he prospers-- how his master's wife tempts him--how he is thrown into prison on her slander--how there again he prospers--how he explains the dreams of ,pharaoh's servants--how he lies long forgotten in the prison--how at last ,pharaoh sends for him to interpret a dream for him1 and how he rises to power and great glory--how his brothers come down to ,egypt to buy corn1 and how they find him lord of all the land--how subtilly he tries them to see if they have repented of their old sin--how his heart yearns over them in spite of all their wickedness to him--how at last he reveals himself1 and forgives them utterly1 and sends for his poor old father ,jacob down into ,egypt4 ,whosoever does not delight in that story1 simply as a story1 whenever he hears it read1 cannot have a wholesome human heart in him4 ,but why was this story of ,joseph put into ,holy ,scripture1 and at such length1 too8 ,it seems1 at first sight1 to be simply a family history--the story of brothers and their father2 it seems1 at first sight1 to teach us nothing concerning our redemption and salvation2 it seems1 at first sight1 not to reveal anything fresh to us concerning ,god2 it seems1 at first sight1 not to be needed for the general plan of the ,bible history4 ,it tells us1 of course1 how the ,israelites first came into ,egypt2 and that was necessary for us to know4 ,but the ,bible might have told us that in ten verses4 ,why has it spent upon the story of ,joseph and his brethren1 not ten verses1 but ten chapters8 ,now we have a right to ask such questions as these1 if we do not ask them out of any carping1 fault-finding spirit1 trying to pick holes in the ,bible1 from which ,god defend us and all ,christian men4 ,if we ask such questions in faith and reverence--that is1 believing and taking for granted that the ,bible is right1 and respecting it1 as the ,book of books1 in which our own forefathers and all ,christian nations upon earth for many ages have found all things necessary for their salvation--if1 ,i say1 we question over the ,bible in that child-like1 simple1 respectful spirit1 which is the true spirit of wisdom and understanding1 by which our eyes will be truly opened to see the wondrous things of ,god's law3 then we may not only seek as our ,lord bade us1 but we shall find1 as our ,lord prophesied that we should4 ,we shall find some good reason for this story of ,joseph being so long1 and find that the story of ,joseph1 like all the rest of the ,bible1 reveals a new lesson to us concerning ,god and the character of ,god4 ,i said that the story of ,joseph looks1 at first sight1 to be merely a family history4 ,but suppose that that were the very reason why it is in the ,bible1 because it is a family history4 ,suppose that families were very sacred things in the eyes of ,god4 ,that the ties of husband and wife1 parent and child1 brother and sister1 were appointed1 not by man1 but by ,god4 ,then would not ,joseph's story be worthy of being in the ,bible8 ,would it not1 as ,i said it would1 reveal something fresh to us concerning ,god and the character of ,god8 ,consider now1 my friends3 ,is it not one great difference--one of the very greatest--between men and beasts1 that men live in families1 and beasts do not8 ,that men have the sacred family feeling1 and beasts have not8 ,they have the beginnings of it1 no doubt4 ,the mother1 among beasts1 feels love to her children1 but only for a while4 ,god has implanted in her something of that deepest1 holiest1 purest of all feelings--a mother's love4 ,but as soon as her young ones are able to take care of themselves1 they are nothing to her--among the lower animals1 less than nothing4 ,the fish or the crocodile will take care of her eggs jealously1 and as soon as they are hatched1 turn round and devour her own young4 ,the feeling of a ,,father to his child1 again1 you find is fainter still among beasts4 ,the father1 as you all know1 not only cares little for his offspring1 even if he sometimes helps to feed them at first1 but is often jealous of them1 hates them1 will try to kill them when they grow up4 ,husband and wife1 again3 there is no sacredness between them among dumb animals4 ,a lasting and an unselfish attachment1 not merely in youth1 but through old age and beyond the grave--what is there like this among the animals1 except in the case of certain birds1 like the dove and the eagle1 who keep the same mate year after year1 and have been always looked on with a sort of affection and respect by men for that very reason8 ,but where1 among beasts1 do you ever find any trace of those two sacred human feelings--the love of brother to brother1 or of child to father8 ,where do you find the notion that the tie between husband and wife is a sacred thing1 to be broken at no temptation1 but in man8 ,these are ,,the feelings which man has alone of all living animals4 ,these then1 remember1 are the very family feelings which come out in the story of ,joseph4 ,he honours holy wedlock when he tells his master's wife1 ',how can ,i do this great wickedness1 and sin against ,god8' ,he honours his father1 when he is not ashamed of him1 wild shepherd out of the desert though he might be1 and an abomination to the ,egyptians1 while he himself is now in power and wealth and glory1 as a prince in a civilized country4 ,he honours the tie of brother to brother1 by forgiving and weeping over the very brothers who have sold him into slavery4 ,but what has all this to do with ,god8 ,now man1 as we know1 is an animal with an immortal spirit in him4 ,he has1 as ,st4 ,paul so carefully explains to us1 a flesh and a spirit--a flesh like the beasts which perish2 a spirit which comes from ,god4 ,now the ,bible teaches us that man did not get these family feelings from his flesh1 from the animal1 brute part of him4 ,they are not carnal1 but spiritual4 ,he gets them from his spirit1 and they are inspired into him by the ,spirit of ,god4 ,they come not from the earth below1 but from the heaven above2 from the image of ,god1 in which man alone of all living things was made4 ,for if it were not so1 we should surely see some family feeling in the beasts which are most like men4 ,but we do not4 ,in the apes1 which are1 in their shape and fleshly nature1 so strangely and shockingly like human beings1 there is not as much family feeling as there is in many birds1 or even insects4 ,nay1 the wild negroes1 among whom they live1 hold them in abhorrence1 and believe that they were once men like themselves1 who were gradually changed into brute beasts1 by giving way to detestable sins2 while these very negroes themselves1 heathens and savages as they are1 ,,have the family feeling--the feeling of husband for wife1 father for child1 brother for brother2 not1 indeed1 as strongly and purely as we1 or at least those of us who are really ,christian and civilized1 but still they have it2 and that makes between the lowest man and the highest brute a difference which ,i hold is as wide as the space between heaven and earth4 ,it is man alone1 ,i say1 who has the idea of family2 and who has1 too1 the strange1 but most true belief that these family ties are appointed by ,god--that they are a part of his religion--that in breaking them1 by being an unfaithful husband1 a dishonest servant1 an unnatural son1 a selfish brother1 he sins1 not only against man1 and man's order and laws1 but against ,god4 ,parent and child1 brother and sister--those ties are not of the earth earthy1 but of the heaven of ,god1 eternal4 ,they may begin in time2 of what happened before we came into this world we know nought4 ,but having begun1 they cannot end4 ,of what will happen after we leave this world1 that at least we know in part4 ,parent and child2 brother and sister2 husband and wife likewise2 these are no ties of man's invention4 ,they are ties of ,god's binding2 they are patterns and likenesses of his substance1 and of his being4 ,of the eternal ,father1 who says for ever to the eternal ,son1 ',this day have ,i begotten ,,thee4' ,of the ,son who says for ever to the ,father1 ',i come to do thy will1 ,o ,god4' ,of the ,son of ,god1 ,jesus ,christ1 who is not ashamed to call us his brethren2 but like a greater ,joseph1 was sent before by ,god to save our lives with a great deliverance when our forefathers were but savages and heathens4 ,husband and wife likewise--are not they two divine words- -not human words at all8 ,has not ,god consecrated the state of matrimony to such an excellent mystery1 that in it is signified and represented the mystical union between ,christ and his ,church8 ,are not husbands to love their wives1 and give themselves for them as ,christ loved the ,church and gave himself for it8 ,that1 indeed1 was not revealed in the ,old ,testament1 but it is revealed in the ,new2 and marriage1 like all other human ties1 is holy and divine1 and comes from ,god down to men4 ,yes4 ,these family ties are of ,god4 ,it was to show us how sacred1 how ,godlike they are--how eternal and necessary for all mankind-- that ,joseph's story was written in ,holy ,scripture4 ,they are of ,god1 ,i say4 ,and he who despises them1 despises not man but ,god2 who hath also given us his ,holy ,spirit to make us know how sacred these bonds are4 ,he who looks lightly on the love of child to parent1 or brother to brother1 or husband to wife1 and bids each man please himself1 each man help himself1 and shift for himself1 would take away from men the very thing which raises them above the beasts which perish1 and lower them again to the likeness of the flesh1 that they may of the flesh reap corruption4 ,they who1 under whatever pretence of religion part asunder families2 or tell children1 like the wicked ,pharisees of old1 that they may say to their parents1 ,corban--',i have given to ,god the service and help which1 as your child1 ,i should have given to you'--shall be called1 if not by men1 at least by ,god himself1 hypocrites1 who draw near to ,god with their mouths1 and honour him with their lips1 while their heart is far from him4 ,i think now we may see that ,i was right when ,i said--,perhaps the history of ,joseph is in the ,bible because it ,,is a family history4 ,for see1 it is the history of a man who loved his family1 who felt that family life was holy and ,god-appointed2 whom ,god rewarded with honour and wealth1 because he honoured family ties2 because he refused his master's wife2 because he rewarded his brothers good for evil2 because he was not ashamed of his father1 but succoured him in his old age4 ,it is the history of a man who--more than four hundred years before ,god gave the ten commandments on ,sinai1 saying1 ,honour thy father and mother1 ,thou shalt not commit adultery1 ,thou shalt not kill in revenge1 ,thou shalt not covet aught of thy neighbours--,it is the history1 ,i say1 of a man who had those laws of ,god written in his heart by the ,holy ,spirit of ,god2 and felt that to break them was to sin against ,god4 ,it is the history of a man who1 sorely tempted and unjustly persecuted1 kept himself pure and true2 who1 while all around him1 beginning with his own brothers1 were trampling under foot the laws of family1 felt that the laws were still there round him1 girding him in with everlasting bands1 and saying to him1 ,thou shalt and ,thou shalt not2 that he was not sent into the world to do just what was pleasant for the moment1 to indulge his own passions or his own revenge2 but that if he was indeed a man1 he must prove himself a man1 by obeying ,almighty ,god4 ,it is the history of a man who kept his heart pure and tender1 and who thereby gained strange and deep wisdom2 that wisdom which comes only to the pure in heart2 that wisdom by which truly good men are enabled to see farther1 and to be of more use to their fellow-creatures than many a cunning and crooked politician1 whose eyes are blinded1 because his heart is defiled with sin4 ,and now1 my friends1 if we pray--as we are bound to pray--for that great ,prince who is just entering on the cares and the duties1 as well as the joys and blessings of family life--what better prayer can we offer up for him1 than that ,god would put into his heart that spirit which he put into the heart of ,joseph of old--the spirit to see how divine and ,god-appointed is family life8 ,god grant that that spirit may dwell in him1 and possess him more and more day by day4 ,that it may keep him true to his wife1 true to his mother1 true to his family1 true1 like ,joseph1 to all with whom he has to deal4 ,that it may deliver him1 as it delivered ,joseph1 from the snares of wicked women1 from selfish politicians1 if they ever try to sow distrust and opposition between him and his kindred1 and from all those temptations which can only be kept down by the ,spirit of ,god working in men's hearts1 as he worked in the heart of ,joseph4 ,for if that spirit be in the ,prince--and ,i doubt not that that spirit is in him already--then will his fate be that of ,joseph2 then will he indeed be a blessing to us1 and to our children after us2 then will he have riches more real1 and power more vast1 than any which our ,english laws can give2 then will he gain1 like ,joseph1 that moral wisdom1 better than all worldly craft1 which cometh from above--first pure1 then gentle1 easy to be entreated1 without partiality1 and without hypocrisy2 then will he be able1 like ,joseph1 to deliver his people in times of perplexity and distress2 then will he by his example1 as his noble mother has done before him1 keep healthy1 pure1 and strong1 our ,english family life--and as long as ,,that endures1 ,old ,england will endure likewise4 ,,sermon ,,viii4 ,,the ,,bible ,,the ,,great ,,civilizer 7,fourth ,sunday in ,lent47 ,,philippians iv4 #h4 ,finally1 brethren1 whatsoever things are true1 whatsoever things are honest1 whatsoever things are just1 whatsoever things are pure1 whatsoever things are lovely1 whatsoever things are of good report2 if there be any virtue1 and if there be any praise1 think on these things4 ,it may not be easy to see what this text has to do with the story of ,joseph1 which we have just been reading1 or with the meaning of the ,bible of which ,i have been speaking to you of late4 ,nevertheless1 ,i think it has to do with them2 as you will see if you will look at the text with me4 ,now the text does not say ',do these things4' ,it only says ',,think of these things4' ,of course ,st4 ,paul wished us to do them also2 but he says first ,,think of them2 not once in a way1 but often and continually4 ,fill your mind with good and pure and noble thoughts2 and then you will do good and pure and noble things4 ,for out of the abundance of a man's heart1 not only does his mouth speak1 but his whole body and soul behave4 ,the man whose mind is filled with low and bad thoughts will be sure1 when he is tempted1 to do low and bad things4 ,the man whose mind is filled with lofty and good thoughts will do lofty and good things4 ,for thoughts are the food of a man's mind2 and as the mind feeds1 so will it grow4 ,if it feeds on coarse and foul food1 coarse and foul it will grow4 ,if it feeds on pure and refined food1 pure and refined it will grow4 ,there are those who do not believe this4 ,provided they are tolerably attentive to the duties of religion1 it does not matter much1 they fancy1 what they think of out of church4 ,their souls will be saved at last1 they suppose1 and that is all that they need care for4 ,saved8 ,they do not see that by giving way to foul1 mean1 foolish thoughts all the week they are losing their souls1 destroying their souls1 defiling their souls1 lowering their souls1 and making them so coarse and mean and poor that they are not worth saving1 and are no loss to heaven or earth1 whatever loss they may be to the man himself4 ,one man thinks of nothing but money--how he shall save a penny here and a penny there4 ,i do not mean men of business2 for them there are great excuses2 for it is by continual saving here and there that their profits are made4 ,i speak rather of people who have no excuse1 people of fixed incomes--people often wealthy and comfortable1 who yet will lower their minds by continually thinking over their money4 ,but this ,i say1 and this ,i am sure that you will find1 that when a man in business or out of business accustoms himself1 as very many do1 to think of nothing but money1 money1 money from ,monday morning to ,saturday night1 he thinks of money a great part of ,sunday likewise4 ,and so1 after a while1 the man lowers his soul1 and makes it mean and covetous4 ,he forgets all that is lovely and of good report4 ,he forgets virtue--that is manliness2 and praise--that is the just respect and admiration of his fellow-men2 and so he forgets at last things true1 honest1 and just likewise4 ,he lowers his soul2 and therefore when he is tempted1 he does things mean and false and unjust1 for the sake of money1 which he has made his idol4 ,take another case1 too common among men and women of all ranks1 high and low4 ,how many there are who love gossip and scandal2 who always talk about people1 and never about things--certainly not about things pure and lovely and of good report1 but rather about things foul and ugly and of bad report2 who do not talk1 because they do not think of virtue1 but of vice2 or of praise either1 because they are always finding fault with their neighbours4 ,the man who loves a foul story1 or a coarse jest--the woman who gossips over every tittle tattle of scandal which she can pick up against her neighbour--what do these people do but defile their own souls afresh1 after they have been washed clean in the blood of ,christ8 ,foul their souls are1 and therefore their thoughts are foul likewise1 and the foulness of them is evident to all men by their tongues4 ,out of their hearts proceed evil thoughts about their neighbours1 out of the abundance of their hearts their mouths speak them4 ,now let such people1 if there be any such here1 seriously consider the harm which they are doing to their own characters4 ,they may give way to the habits of scandal1 or of coarse talk1 without any serious bad intention2 but they will surely lower their own souls thereby4 ,they will grow to the colour of what they feed on and become foul and cruel1 from talking cruelly and foully1 till they lose all purity and all charity1 all faith and trust in their fellow-men1 all power of seeing good in any one1 or doing anything but think evil2 and so lose the likeness of ,god and of ,christ1 for the likeness of some foul carrion bird1 which cares nothing for the perfume of all the roses in the world1 but if there be a carcase within miles of it1 will scent it out eagerly and fly to it ravenously4 ,the truth is1 my friends1 that these souls of ours instead of being pure and strong1 are the very opposite2 and the article speaks plain truth when it says1 that we are every one of us of our own nature inclined to evil4 ,that may seem a hard saying2 but if we look at our own thoughts we shall find it true4 ,are we ,,not inclined to take1 at first1 the worst view of everybody and of everything8 ,are we ,,not inclined to suspect harm of this person and of that8 ,are we ,,not inclined too often to be mean and cowardly8 to be hard and covetous8 to be coarse and vulgar8 to be silly and frivolous8 ,do we not need to cool down1 to think a second time1 and a third time likewise2 to remember our duty1 to remember ,christ's example1 before we can take a just and kind and charitable view8 ,do we not want all the help which we can get from every quarter1 to keep ourselves high-minded and refined2 to keep ourselves from bad thoughts1 mean thoughts1 silly thoughts1 violent thoughts1 cruel and hard thoughts8 ,if we have not found out that1 we must have looked a very little way into ourselves1 and know little more about ourselves than a dumb animal does of itself4 ,how then shall we keep off coarseness of soul8 ,how shall we keep our souls ,,refined8 that is1 true and honest1 pure1 amiable1 full of virtue1 that is1 true manliness2 and deserve praise1 that is1 the respect and admiration of our fellow-men8 ,by thinking of those very things1 says ,st4 ,paul4 ,and in order to be able to think of them1 by reading of them4 ,there are very few who can easily think of these things of themselves4 ,their daily business1 the words and notions of the people with whom they have to do1 will run in their minds1 and draw them off from higher and better thoughts2 that cannot be helped4 ,the only thing that most men can do1 is to take care that they are not drawn off entirely from high and good thoughts1 by reading1 were it but for five minutes every day1 something really worth thinking of1 something which will lift them above themselves4 ,above all1 it is wise1 at night1 after the care and bustle of the day is over1 to read1 but for a few minutes1 some book which will compose and soothe the mind2 which will bring us face to face with the true facts of life1 death1 and eternity2 which will make us remember that man doth not live by bread alone2 which will give us1 before we sleep1 a few thoughts worthy of a ,christian man1 with an immortal soul in him4 ,and1 thank ,god1 no one need go far to look for such books4 ,i do not mean merely religious books1 excellent as they are in these days3 ,i mean any books which help to make us better and wiser and soberer1 and more charitable persons2 any books which will teach us to despise what is vulgar and mean1 foul and cruel1 and to love what is noble and high-minded1 pure and just4 ,we need not go far for them4 ,in our own noble ,english language we may read by hundreds1 books which will tell us of all virtue and of all praise4 ,the stories of good and brave men and women2 of gallant and heroic actions2 of deeds which we ourselves should be proud of doing2 of persons whom we feel1 to be better1 wiser1 nobler than we are ourselves4 ,in our own language we may read the history of our own nation1 and whatsoever is just1 honest and true4 ,we may read of ,god's gracious providences toward this land4 ,how he has punished our sins and rewarded our right and brave endeavours4 ,how he put into our forefathers the spirit of courage and freedom1 the spirit of truth and justice1 the spirit of loyalty and order2 and how1 following the leading of that spirit1 in spite of many mistakes and failings1 we have risen to be the freest1 the happiest1 the most powerful people on earth1 a blessing and not a curse to the nations around4 ,in our own ,english tongue1 too1 we may read such poetry as there is in no other language in the world2 poetry which will make us indeed see the beauty of whatsoever things are lovely and of good report4 ,some people have still a dislike of what they call foolish poetry books4 ,if books are foolish1 let us have nothing to do with them4 ,but poetry ought not to be foolish2 for ,god sent it into the world to teach men not foolishness1 but the highest wisdom4 ,he gave man alone1 of all living creatures1 the power of writing poetry1 that by poetry he might understand1 not only how necessary it was to do right1 but how beautiful and noble it was to do right4 ,he sent it into the world to soften men's rough hearts1 and quiet their angry passions1 and make them love all which is tender and gentle1 loving and merciful1 and yet to rouse them up to love all which is gallant and honourable1 loyal and patriotic1 devout and heavenly4 ,therefore whole books of the ,bible--,job1 for example1 ,isaiah1 and the ,psalms-- are neither more nor less than actual poetry1 written in actual verse1 that their words might the better sink down into the ears and hearts of the old ,jews1 and of us ,christians after them4 ,and therefore also1 we keep up still the good old custom of teaching children in school as much as possible by poetry1 that they may learn not only to know1 but to love and remember whatsoever things are lovely and of good report4 ,lastly1 for those who cannot read1 or have really no time to read1 there is one means left of putting themselves in mind of what every one must remember1 lest he sink back into an animal and a savage4 ,i mean by pictures2 which1 as ,st4 ,augustine said #adjj years ago1 are the books of the unlearned4 ,i do not mean grand and expensive pictures2 ,i mean the very simplest prints1 provided they represent something holy1 or noble1 or tender1 or lovely4 ,a few such prints upon a cottage-wall may teach the people who live therein much1 without their being aware of it4 ,they see the prints1 even when they are not thinking of them2 and so they have before their eyes a continual remembrancer of something better and more beautiful than what they are apt to find in their own daily life and thoughts4 ,true1 to whom little is given1 of them is little required4 ,but it must be said1 that more--far more--is given to labouring men and women now than was given to their forefathers4 ,a hundred1 or even fifty years ago1 when there was very little schooling2 when the books which were put even into the hands of noblemen's children were far below what you will find now in any village school2 when the only pictures which a poor woman could buy to lay on her cottage- wall were equally silly and ugly3 then there were great excuses for the poor1 if they forgot whatsoever things were lovely and of good report2 if they were often coarse and brutal in their manners1 and cruel and profligate in their amusements4 ,but even in the rough old times there always were a few at least1 men and women1 who were above the rest2 who1 though poor people like the rest1 were still true gentlemen and ladies of ,god's making4 ,people who kept themselves more or less unspotted from the world2 who thought of what was honest and pure and lovely and of good report2 and who lived a life of simple1 manful1 ,christian virtue1 and received the praise and respect of their neighbours1 even although their neighbours did not copy them4 ,there were always such people1 and there always will be--thank ,god for it1 for they are the salt of the earth4 ,but why have there always been such people8 and why do ,i say confidently1 that there always will be8 ,because they have had the ,bible2 and because1 once having got the ,bible in a free country1 no man can take it from them4 ,the ,bible it is which has made gentlemen and ladies of many a poor man and woman4 ,the ,bible it is which has filled their minds with pure and noble1 ay1 with heavenly and divine thoughts4 ,the ,bible has been their whole library4 ,the ,bible has been their only counsellor4 ,the ,bible has taught them all they know4 ,but it has taught them enough4 ,it has taught them what ,god is1 and what ,christ is4 ,it has taught them what man is1 and what a ,christian man should be4 ,it has taught them what a family means1 and what a nation means4 ,it has taught them the meaning of law and duty1 of loyalty and patriotism4 ,it has filled their minds with things honest and just and lovely and of good report2 with the histories of men and women like themselves1 who sinned and sorrowed and struggled like them in this hard battle of life1 but who conquered at last1 by trusting and obeying ,god4 ,this one story of ,joseph1 which we have been reading again this ,sunday1 ,i do not doubt that it has taught thousands who had no other story-book to read--who could not even read themselves1 but had to listen to others' reading2 that it has taught them to be good sons1 to be good brothers2 that it has taught them to keep pure in temptation1 and patient and honest under oppression and wrong2 that it has stirred in them a noble ambition to raise themselves in life2 and taught them1 at the same time1 that the only safe and sure way of rising is to fear ,god and keep his commandments2 and so has really done more to civilize and refine them--to make them truly civilized men and gentlemen1 and not vulgar savages--than if they had known a smattering of a dozen sciences4 ,i say that the ,bible is the book which civilizes and refines1 and ennobles rich and poor1 high and low1 and has been doing so for fifteen hundred years2 and that any man who tries to shake our faith in the ,bible1 is doing what he can--though1 thank ,god1 he will not succeed--to make such rough and coarse heathens of us again as our forefathers were five hundred years ago4 ,and ,i tell you1 labouring people1 that if you want something which will make up to you for the want of all the advantages which the rich have--go to your ,bibles and you will find it there4 ,there you will find1 in the history of men like ourselves--and1 above all1 in the history of a man unlike ourselves1 the perfect ,man--perfect ,man and perfect ,god together--whatsoever is true1 whatsoever is honest1 just1 pure1 lovely1 and of good report2 every virtue1 and every just cause of praise which mortal man can desire4 ,read of them in your ,bible1 think of them in your hearts1 feed on them with your souls1 that your souls may grow like what they feed on2 and above all1 read and study the story and character of ,jesus ,christ himself1 our ,lord1 that beholding1 as in a glass1 the glory of the ,lord1 you may be changed into his likeness1 from grace to grace1 and virtue to virtue1 and glory to glory4 ,and that change and that growth are as easy for the poor as for the rich1 and as necessary for the rich as for the poor4 ,,sermon ,,ix4 ,,moses 7,fifth ,sunday in ,lent47 ,,exodus iii4 #ad4 ,and ,god said unto ,moses1 ,i ,,am ,,that ,i ,,am4 ,and now1 my friends1 we are come1 on this ,sunday1 to the most beautiful1 and the most important story of the whole ,bible-- excepting of course1 the story of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ--the story of how a family grew to be a great nation4 ,you remember that ,i told you that the history of the ,jews1 had been only1 as yet1 the history of a family4 ,now that family is grown to be a great tribe1 a great herd of people1 but not yet a nation2 one people1 with its own ,god1 its own worship1 its own laws2 but such a mere tribe1 or band of tribes as the gipsies are among us now2 a herd1 but not a nation4 ,then the ,bible tells us how these tribes1 being weak ,i suppose because they had no laws1 nor patriotism1 nor fellow-feeling of their own1 became slaves1 and suffered for hundreds of years under crafty kings and cruel taskmasters4 ,then it tells us how ,god delivered them out of their slavery1 and made them free men4 ,and how ,god did that 7for ,god in general works by means71 by the means of a man1 a prophet and a hero1 one great1 wise1 and good man of their race--,moses4 ,it tells us1 too1 how ,god trained ,moses1 by a very strange education1 to be the fit man to deliver his people4 ,let us go through the history of ,moses2 and we shall see how ,god trained him to do the work for which ,god wanted him4 ,let us read from the account of the ,bible itself4 ,i should be sorry to spoil its noble simplicity by any words of my own3 ',and the children of ,israel were fruitful1 and increased abundantly1 and multiplied1 and waxed exceeding mighty2 and the land was filled with them4 ,now there arose up a new king over ,egypt1 which knew not ,joseph4 ,and he said unto his people1 ,behold1 the people of the children of ,israel are more and mightier than we3 ,come on1 let us deal wisely with them2 lest they multiply1 and it come to pass1 that1 when there falleth out any war1 they join also unto our enemies1 and fight against us1 and so get them up out of the land4 ,therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens4 ,and they built for ,pharaoh treasure cities1 ,pithon and ,raamses4 4 4 4 ,and ,pharaoh charged all his people1 saying1 ,every son that is born ye shall cast into the river1 and every daughter ye shall save alive4 ,and there went a man of the house of ,levi1 and took to wife a daughter of ,levi4 ,and the woman conceived and bare a son3 and when she saw him that he was a goodly child1 she hid him three months4 ,and when she could no longer hide him1 she took for him an ark of bulrushes1 and daubed it with slime and with pitch1 and put the child therein3 and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink4 ,and his sister stood afar off1 to wit what would be done to him4 ,and the daughter of ,pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river2 and her maidens walked along by the river's side2 and when she saw the ark among the flags1 she sent her maid to fetch it4 ,and when she had opened it1 she saw the child2 and behold the babe wept4 ,and she had compassion on him1 and said1 ,this is one of the ,hebrews' children4 ,then said his sister to ,pharaoh's daughter1 ,shall ,i go and call to thee a nurse of the ,hebrew women1 that she may nurse the child for thee8 ,and ,pharaoh's daughter said to her1 ,go4 ,and the maid went and called the child's mother4 ,and ,pharaoh's daughter said unto her1 ,take this child away1 and nurse it for me1 and ,i will give thee thy wages4 ,and the woman took the child1 and nursed it4 ,and the child grew1 and she brought him unto ,pharaoh's daughter1 and he became her son4 ,and she called his name ,moses3 and she said1 ,because ,i drew him out of the water4' ,moses1 the child of the water4 ,st4 ,paul in the ,epistle to the ,hebrews says that ,moses was called the son of ,pharaoh's daughter2 that is1 adopted by her4 ,we read elsewhere that he was learned in all the wisdom of the ,egyptians1 of which there can be no doubt from his own writings1 especially that part called ,moses' law4 ,so that ,moses had from his youth vast advantages4 ,brought up in the court of the greatest king of the world1 in one of the greatest cities of the world1 among the most learned priesthood in the world1 he had learned1 probably1 all statesmanship1 all religion1 which man could teach him in those old times4 ,but that would have been little for him4 ,he might have become merely an officer in ,pharaoh's household1 and we might never have heard his name1 and he might never have done any good to his own people and to all mankind after them1 as he has done1 if there had not been something better and nobler in him than all the learning and statesmanship of the ,egyptians4 ,for there was in ,moses the spirit of ,god2 the spirit which makes a man believe in ,god1 and trust ,god4 ',and therefore1' says ,st4 ,paul1 'he refused to be called the son of ,pharaoh's daughter2 esteeming the reproach of ,,christ better than all the treasures in ,egypt4' ,and how did he do that8 ,in this wise4 ,the spirit of ,god and of ,christ is also the spirit of justice1 the spirit of freedom2 the spirit which hates oppression and wrong2 which is moved with a noble and ,divine indignation at seeing any human being abused and trampled on4 ,and that spirit broke forth in ,moses4 ',and it came to pass in those days1 when ,moses was grown1 that he went out unto his brethren1 and looked on their burdens3 and he spied an ,egyptian smiting an ,hebrew1 one of his brethren4 ,and he looked this way and that way1 and when he saw that there was no man1 he slew the ,egyptian1 and hid him in the sand4' ,if he cannot get justice for his people1 he will do some sort of rough justice for them himself1 when he has an opportunity4 ,but he will see fair play among his people themselves4 ,they are1 as slaves are likely to be1 fallen and base2 unjust and quarrelsome among themselves4 ',and when he went out the second day1 behold1 two men of the ,hebrews strove together3 and he said to him that did the wrong1 ,wherefore smitest thou thy fellow8 ,and he said1 ,who made thee a prince and a judge over us8 intendest thou to kill me as thou killedst the ,egyptian8 ,and ,moses feared1 and said1 ,surely this thing is known4 ,now when ,pharaoh heard this thing1 he sought to slay ,moses4 ,but ,moses fled from the face of ,pharaoh1 and dwelt in the land of ,midian'--the wild desert between ,egypt and the ,holy ,land4 ,so he bore the reproach of ,christ2 the reproach which is apt to fall on men in bad times1 when they try1 like our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 to deliver the captive1 and let the oppressed go free1 and execute righteous judgment in the earth4 ,he had lost all1 by trying to do right4 ,he had been powerful and honoured in ,pharaoh's court4 ,now he was an outcast and wanderer in the desert4 ,he had made his first trial1 and failed4 ,as ,st4 ,stephen said of him after1 he supposed that his brethren would have understood how ,god would deliver them by his hand2 but they understood not4 ,slavish1 base1 and stupid1 they were not fit yet for ,moses and his deliverance4 ,and so forty years went on1 and ,moses was an old man of eighty years of age4 ,yet ,god had not had mercy on his poor countrymen in ,egypt4 ,it must have been a strange life for him1 the adopted son of ,pharaoh's daughter2 brought up in the court of the most powerful and highly civilized country of the old world2 learned in all the learning of the ,egyptians2 and now married into a tribe of wild ,arabs1 keeping flocks in the lonely desert1 year after year3 but1 no doubt1 thinking1 thinking1 year after year1 as he fed his flocks alone4 ,thinking over all the learning which he had gained in ,egypt1 and wondering whether it would ever be of any use to him4 ,thinking over the misery of his people in ,egypt1 and wondering whether he should ever be able to help them4 ,thinking1 too1 and more than all1 of ,god--of ,god's promise to ,abraham and his children4 ,would that ever come true8 ,would ,,god help these wretched ,jews1 even if ,,he could not8 ,was ,god faithful and true1 just and merciful8 ,that ,moses thought of ,god1 that he never lost faith in ,god for that forty years1 there can be no doubt4 ,if he had not thought of ,god1 ,god would not have revealed himself to him4 ,if he had lost faith in ,god1 he would not have known that it was ,god who spoke to him4 ,if he had lost faith in ,god1 he would not have obeyed ,god at the risk of his life1 and have gone on an errand as desperate1 dangerous1 hopeless--and1 humanly speaking1 as wild as ever man went upon4 ,but ,moses never lost faith or patience4 ,he believed1 and he did not make haste4 ,he waited for ,god2 and he did not wait in vain4 ,no man will wait in vain4 ,when the time was ready2 when the ,jews were ready2 when ,pharaoh was ready2 when ,moses himself1 trained by forty years' patient thought1 was ready2 then ,god came in his own good time4 ,and ,moses led the flock to the back of the desert1 and came to the mountain of ,god1 even to ,horeb4 ,and there he saw a bush--probably one of the low copses of acacia--burning with fire2 and behold the bush was not consumed4 ,then out of the bush ,god spoke to ,moses with an audible voice as of a man2 so the ,bible says plainly1 and ,i see no reason to doubt that it is literally true4 ',moreover he said1 ,i am the ,god of thy father1 the ,god of ,abraham1 the ,god of ,isaac1 and the ,god of ,jacob4 ,and ,moses hid his face2 for he was afraid to look upon ,god4 ,and the ,lord said1 ,i have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in ,egypt1 and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters2 for ,i know their sorrows2 and ,i am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the ,egyptians1 and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large1 unto a land flowing with milk and honey2 unto the place of the ,canaanites1 and the ,hittites1 and the ,amorites1 and the ,perizzites1 and the ,hivites1 and the ,jebusites4' ,then followed a strange conversation4 ,moses was terrified at the thought of what he had to do1 and reasonably3 moreover1 the ,israelites in ,egypt had forgotten ,god4 ',and ,moses said unto ,god1 ,behold1 when ,i come unto the children of ,israel1 and shall say unto them1 ,the ,god of your fathers hath sent me unto you2 and they shall say to me1 ,what is his name8 what shall ,i say unto them8 ,and ,god said unto ,moses1 ,i ,am that ,i ,am3 and he said1 ,thus shalt thou say unto the children of ,israel1 ,i ,am hath sent me unto you4' ,i ,am2 that was the new name by which ,god revealed himself to ,moses4 ,that message of ,god to ,moses was the greatest ,gospel1 and good news which was spoken to men1 before the coming of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,ay1 we are feeling now1 in our daily life1 in our laws and our liberty1 our religion and our morals1 our peace and prosperity1 in the happiness of our homes1 and ,i trust that of our consciences1 the blessed effects of that message1 which ,god revealed to ,moses in the wilderness thousands of years ago4 ,and ,moses took his wife1 and his sons1 and set them upon an ass1 and returned into the land of ,egypt1 to say to ,pharaoh1 ',thus saith the ,lord1 ,israel is my son1 even my firstborn1 ,let my son go that he may serve me1 and if thou let not my firstborn go1 then ,i will slay thy firstborn4' ,a strange man1 on a strange errand4 ,a poor man1 eighty years old1 carrying all that he had in the world upon an ass's back1 going down to the great ,pharaoh1 the greatest king of the old world1 the great conqueror1 the ,child of the ,sun 7as his name means71 one of the greatest ,pharaohs who ever sat on the throne of ,egypt2 in the midst of all his princes and priests1 and armies with which he had conquered the nations far and wide2 and his great cities1 temples1 and palaces1 on which men may see at this day 7so we are told7 the face of that very ,pharaoh painted again and again1 as fresh1 in that rainless air1 as on the day when the paint was laid on2 with the features of a man terrible1 proud1 and cruel1 puffed up by power till he thought himself1 and till his people thought him a god on earth4 ,and to that man was ,moses going1 to bid him set the children of ,israel free2 while he himself was one of that very slave-race of the ,israelites1 which was an abomination to the ,egyptians1 who held them all as lepers and unclean1 and would not eat with them2 and an outcast too1 who had fled out of ,egypt for his life1 and who might be killed on the spot1 as ,pharaoh's only answer to his bold request4 ,certainly1 if ,moses had not had faith in ,god1 his errand would have seemed that of a madman4 ,but ,moses ,,had faith in ,god2 and of faith it is said1 that it can remove mountains1 for all things are possible to them who believe4 ,so by faith ,moses went back into ,egypt2 how he fared there we shall hear next ,sunday4 ,and what sort of man was this great and wonderful ,moses1 whose name will last as long as man is man8 ,we know very little4 ,we know from the ,bible and from the old traditions of the ,jews that he was a very handsome man2 a man of a noble presence1 as one can well believe2 a man of great bodily vigour2 so that when he died at the age of one hundred and twenty1 his eye was not dim1 nor his natural force abated4 ,we know1 from his own words1 that he was slow of speech2 that he had more thought in him than he could find words for--very different from a good many loud talkers1 who have more words than thoughts1 and who get a great character as politicians and demagogues1 simply because they have the art of stringing fine words together1 which ,moses1 the true demagogue1 the leader of the people1 who led them indeed out of ,egypt1 had not4 ,beyond that we know little4 ,of his character one thing only is said3 but that is most important4 ',now the man ,moses was very meek4' ,meek3 we know that that cannot mean that he was meek in the sense that he was a poor1 cowardly1 abject sort of man1 who dared not speak his mind1 dared not face the truth1 and say the truth4 ,we have seen that that was just what he was not2 brave1 determined1 out-spoken1 he seems to have been from his youth4 ,indeed1 if his had been that base sort of meekness1 he never would have dared to come before the great king ,pharaoh4 ,if he had been that sort of man he never would have dared to lead the ,jews through the ,red ,sea by night1 or out of ,egypt at all4 ,if he had been that sort of man1 indeed1 the ,jews would never have listened to him4 ,no2 he had--the ,bible tells us that he had--to say and do stern things again and again2 to act like the general of an army1 or the commander of a ship of war1 who must be obeyed1 even though men's lives be the forfeit of disobedience4 ,but the man ,moses was very meek4 ,he had learned to keep his temper4 ,indeed1 the story seems to say that he never lost his temper really but once2 and for that ,god punished him4 ,never man was so tried1 save ,one1 even our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 as was ,moses4 ,and yet by patience he conquered4 ,eighty years had he spent in learning to keep his temper2 and when he had learned to keep his temper1 then1 and not till then1 was he worthy to bring his people out of ,egypt4 ,that was a long schooling1 but it was a schooling worth having4 ,and if we1 my friends1 spend our whole lives1 be they eighty years long1 in learning to keep our tempers1 then will our lives have been well spent4 ,for meekness and calmness of temper need not interfere with a man's courage or justice1 or honest indignation against wrong1 or power of helping his fellow-men4 ,moses' meekness did not make him a coward or a sluggard4 ,it helped him to do his work rightly instead of wrongly2 it helped him to conquer the pride of ,pharaoh1 and the faithlessness1 cowardice1 and rebellion of his brethren1 those miserable slavish ,jews4 ,and so meekness1 an even temper1 and a gracious tongue1 will help us to keep our place among our fellow-men with true dignity and independence1 and to govern our households1 and train our children in such a way that while they obey us they will love and respect us at the same time4 ,,sermon ,x4 ,,the ,,plagues ,,of ,,egypt 7,palm ,sunday47 ,,exodus ix4 #ac1 #ad4 ,thus saith the ,lord ,god of the ,hebrews1 ,let my people go1 that they may serve me4 ,for ,i will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart1 and upon thy servants1 and upon thy people2 that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth4 ,you will understand1 ,i think1 the meaning of the ten plagues of ,egypt better1 if ,i explain to you in a few words what kind of a country ,egypt is1 what kind of people the ,egyptians were4 ,some of you1 doubtless1 know as well as ,i1 but some here may not3 it is for them ,i speak4 ,egypt is one of the strangest countries in the world2 and yet one which can be most simply described4 ,one long straight strip of rich flat land1 many hundred miles long1 but only a very few miles broad4 ,on either side of it1 barren rocks and deserts of sand1 and running through it from end to end1 the great river ,nile--',the ,river' of which the ,bible speaks4 ,this river the ,egyptians looked on as divine3 they worshipped it as a god2 for on it depended the whole wealth of ,egypt4 ,every year it overflows the whole country1 leaving behind it a rich coat of mud1 which makes ,egypt the most inexhaustibly fertile land in the world2 and made the ,egyptians1 from very ancient times1 the best farmers of the world1 the fathers of agriculture4 ,meanwhile1 when not in flood1 the river water is of the purest in the world2 the most delightful to drink2 and was supposed in old times to be a cure for all manner of diseases4 ,to worship this sacred river1 the pride of their land1 to drink it1 to bathe in it1 to catch the fish which abound in it1 and which formed then1 and forms still1 the staple food of the ,egyptians1 was their delight4 ,and now ,i have told you enough to show you why the plagues which ,god sent on ,egypt began first by striking the river4 ,the river1 we read1 was turned into blood4 ,what that means--whether it was actual animal blood--what means ,god employed to work the miracle--are just the questions about which we need not trouble our minds4 ,we never shall know3 and we need not know4 ,the plain fact is1 that the sacred river1 pure and life-giving1 became a detestable mass of rottenness--and with it all their streams and pools1 and drinking water in vessels of wood and stone--for all1 remember1 came from the ,nile1 carried by canals and dykes over the whole land4 ',and the fish that were in the river died1 and the river stunk1 and there was blood through all the land of ,egypt4' ,the slightest thought will show us what horror1 confusion1 and actual want and misery1 the loss of the river water1 even for a few days or even hours1 would cause4 ,but there is more still in this miracle4 ,these plagues are a battle between ,jehovah1 the one true and only ,god ,almighty1 and the false gods of ,egypt1 to prove which of them is master4 ,pharaoh answers3 ',who is ,jehovah 7the ,lord7 that ,i should let ,israel go8' ,i know not the ,jehovah4 ,i have my own god1 whom ,i worship4 ,he is my father1 and ,i his child1 and he will protect me4 ,if ,i obey any one it will be him4 ,be it so1 says ,moses in the name of ,god4 ,thou shalt know that the idols of ,egypt are nothing1 that they cannot deliver thee nor thy people4 ,thus saith ,jehovah1 ,thou shalt know which is master1 ,i or they4 ',thou shalt know that ,i am the ,lord4' ,so the river was turned into blood4 ,the sacred river was no god1 as they thought4 ,jehovah was the ,lord and ,master of the river on which the very life of ,egypt depended4 ,he could turn it into blood4 ,all ,egypt was at his mercy4 ,but ,pharaoh would not believe that4 ',the magicians did likewise with their enchantments'--made1 we may suppose1 water seem to turn to blood by some juggling trick at which the priests in ,egypt were but too well practised2 and ,pharaoh seemed to have made up his mind that ,moses' miracle was only a juggling trick too4 ,for men will make up their minds to anything1 however absurd1 when they choose to do so3 when their pride1 and rage1 and obstinacy1 and covetousness1 draw them one way1 no reason will draw them the other way4 ,they will find reasons1 and make reasons to prove1 if need be1 that there is no sun in the sky4 ,then followed a series of plagues1 of which we have all often heard4 ,learned men have disputed how far these plagues were miracles4 ,some of them are said not to be uncommon in ,egypt1 others to be almost unknown4 ,but whether they--whether the frogs1 for instance1 were not produced by natural causes1 just as other frogs are2 and the lice and the flies likewise2 that ,i know not1 my friends1 neither need ,i know4 ,if they were not1 they were miraculous2 and if they were1 they were miraculous still4 ,if they came as other vermin come1 they would have still been miraculous3 ,god would still have sent them2 and it would be a miracle that ,god should make them come at that particular time in that particular country1 to work a truly miraculous effect upon the souls of ,pharaoh and the ,egyptians on the one hand1 and of ,moses and the ,israelites on the other4 ,but if they came by some strange means as no vermin ever came before or since1 all ,i can say is--,why not8 ,and the ,lord said unto ,moses1 ',say unto ,aaron1 ,stretch out thy rod and smite the dust of the land1 that it may become lice throughout all the land of ,egypt4' ,whether that was meant only as a sign to the ,egyptians1 or whether the dust did literally turn into lice1 we do not know1 and what is more1 we need not know2 if ,god chose that it should be so1 so it would be4 ,if you believe at all that ,god made the world1 it is folly to pretend to set any bounds to his power4 ,as a wise man has said1 ',if you believe in any real ,god at all1 you must believe that miracles can happen4' ,he makes you and me and millions of living things out of the dust of the ground continually by certain means4 ,why can he not make lice1 or anything else out of the dust of the ground1 without those means8 ,i can give no reason1 nor any one else either4 ,we know that ,god has given all things a law which they cannot break4 ,we know1 too1 that ,god will never break his own laws4 ,but what are ,god's laws by which he makes things8 ,we do not know4 ,miracles may be--indeed must be--only the effect of some higher and deeper laws of ,god4 ,we cannot prove that he breaks his law1 or disturbs his order by them4 ,they may seem contrary to some of the very very few laws of ,god's earth which we do know4 ,but they need not be contrary to the very many laws which we do not know4 ,in fact1 we know nothing about the matter1 and had best not talk of things that we do not understand4 ,as for these things being too wonderful to be true--that is an argument which only deserves a smile4 ,there are so many wonders in the world round us already1 all day long1 that the man of sense will feel that nothing is too wonderful to be true4 ,the truth is1 that1 as a wise man says1 ,,custom is the great enemy of ,faith1 and of ,reason likewise2 and one of the worst tricks which custom plays us is1 making us fancy that miraculous things cease to be miraculous by becoming common4 ,what do ,i mean8 ,this3 which every child in this church can understand4 ,you think it very wonderful that ,god should cause frogs to come upon the whole land of ,egypt in one day4 ,but that ,god should cause frogs to come up every spring in the ditches does not seem wonderful to you at all4 ,it happens every year2 therefore1 forsooth1 there is nothing wonderful in it4 ,ah1 my dear friends1 it is custom which blinds our eyes to the wisdom of ,god1 and the wonders of ,god1 and the power of ,god1 and the glory of ,god1 and hinders us from believing the message with which he speaks to us from every sunbeam and every shower1 every blade of grass and every standing pool4 ',is anything too hard for the ,lord8' ,if any man here says that anything is too hard for the ,lord1 let him go this day to the nearest standing pool1 and look at the frog-spawn therein1 and consider it till he confesses his blindness and foolishness4 ,that spawn seems to you a foul thing1 the produce of mean1 ugly1 contemptible creatures4 ,be it so4 ,yet it is to the eyes of the wise man a yearly ,,miracle2 a thing past understanding1 past explaining2 one which will make him feel the truth of that great #acith ,psalm3 ',thou hast beset me behind and before1 and laid thine hand upon me4 ,such knowledge is too wonderful for me2 it is high1 ,i cannot attain unto it4 ,whither shall ,i go from thy spirit8 or whither shall ,i flee from thy presence8 ,if ,i ascend up into heaven1 thou art there3 if ,i make my bed in hell1 behold1 thou art there also4' ,that every one of those little black spots should have in it ,,life-- ,what is life8 ,how did it get into that black spot8 or1 to speak more carefully1 is the life ,,in the black spot at all8 ,is not the life in the ,spirit of ,god1 who is working on that spot1 as ,i believe8 ,how has that black spot the power of ,,growing1 and of growing on a certain and fixed plan1 merely by the quickening power of the sun's heat1 and then of feeding itself1 and of changing its shape1 as you all know1 again and again1 till--and if that is not wonderful1 what is8--it turns into a frog1 exactly like its parent1 utterly unlike the black dot at which it began8 ,is that no miracle8 ,is it no miracle that not one of those black spots ever turns into anything save a frog8 ,why should not some of them turn into toads or efts8 ,why not even into fishes or serpents8 ,why not8 ,the eggs of all those animals1 in their first and earliest stages are exactly alike2 the microscope shows no difference4 ,ay1 even the mere animal and the human being1 strange and awful as it may be1 ,,seem1 under the microscope1 to have the same beginning4 ,and yet one becomes a mere animal1 and the other a member of ,christ1 a child of ,god1 and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven4 ,what causes this but the power of ,god1 making of the same clay one vessel to honour and another to dishonour8 ,and yet people will not believe in miracles6 ,why does each kind turn into its kind8 ,answer that4 ,because it is a law of nature8 ,not so6 ,there are no laws ,,of nature4 ,god is a law ,,to nature4 ,it is his ,,will that things so should be2 and when it is his will they will not be so1 but otherwise4 ,not ,,laws of nature1 but the ,,spirit of ,god1 as the ,psalms truly say1 gives life and breath to all things4 ,of him and by him is all4 ,as the greatest chemist of our time says1 ',causes are the acts of ,god-- creation is the will of ,god4' ,and he that is wise and strong enough to create frogs in one way in every ditch at this moment1 is he not wise and strong enough to create frogs by some other way1 if he should choose1 whether in ,egypt of old1 or now1 here1 this very day8 ,whatsoever means1 or no means at all1 ,god used to produce those vermin1 the miracle remains the same4 ,he sent them to do a work1 and they did it4 ,he sent them to teach ,egyptian and ,israelite alike that he was the ,maker1 and ,lord1 and ,ruler of the world1 and all that therein is2 that he would have his way1 and that he ,,could have his way4 ,intensely painful and disgusting these plagues must have been to the ,egyptians1 for this reason1 that they were the most cleanly of all people4 ,they had a dislike of dirt1 which had become quite a superstition to them4 ,their priests 7magicians as the ,bible calls them7 never wore any garments but linen1 for fear of their harbouring vermin of any kind4 ,and this extreme cleanliness of theirs the next plague struck at2 they were covered with boils and diseases of skin1 and the magicians could not stand before ,pharaoh by reason of the boils4 ,they became unclean and unfit for their office2 they could perform no religious ceremonies1 and had to flee away in disgrace4 ,after plagues of thunder1 hail1 and rain1 which seldom or never happen in that rainless land of ,egypt2 after a plague of locusts1 which are very rare there1 and have to come many hundred miles if they come at all2 of darkness1 seemingly impossible in a land where the sun always shines3 then came the last and most terrible plague of all4 ,after solemn warnings of what was coming1 the angel of the ,lord passed through the land of ,egypt1 and smote all the first-born in ,egypt1 from the first-born of ,pharaoh upon his throne to the first-born of the captive in the dungeon2 and there arose a great cry in ,egypt1 for there was not a house in which there was not one dead4 ,a terrible and heart-rending calamity in any case1 enough to break the heart of all ,egypt2 and it did break the heart of ,egypt1 and the proud heart of ,pharaoh himself1 and they let the people go4 ,but this was a ,,religious affliction too4 ,most of these first-born children--probably all the first-born of the priests and nobles1 and of ,pharaoh himself--were consecrated to some god4 ,they bore the name of the god to whom they belonged2 that god was to prosper and protect them1 and behold1 he could not4 ,the ,lord ,jehovah1 the ,god of the ,hebrews1 was stronger than all the gods of ,egypt2 none of them could deliver their servants out of his hand4 ,he was the only ,lord of life and death2 he had given them life1 and he could take it away1 in spite of all and every one of the gods of the ,egyptians4 ,so the ,lord ,god showed himself to be the ,master and ,lord of all things4 ,the ,lord of the sacred river ,nile2 the ,lord of the meanest vermin which crept on the earth2 the ,lord of the weather--able to bring thunder and hail into a land where thunder and hail was never seen before2 the ,lord of the locust swarms--able to bring them over the desert and over the sea to devour up every green thing in the land1 and then to send a wind off the ,mediterranean ,sea1 and drive the locusts away to the eastward2 the ,lord of light--who could darken1 even in that cloudless land1 the very sun1 whom ,pharaoh worshipped as his god and his ancestor2 and lastly1 the ,lord of human life and death--able to kill whom he chose1 when he chose1 and as he chose4 ,the ,lord of the earth and all that therein is2 before whom all men1 even proud ,pharaoh1 must bow and confess1 ',is anything too hard for the ,lord8' ,and now1 ,i always tell you that each fresh portion of the ,old ,testament reveals to men something fresh concerning the character of ,god4 ,you may say1 ,these plagues of ,egypt reveal ,god's mighty power1 but what do they reveal of his character8 ,they reveal this3 that there is in ,god that which1 for want of a better word1 we must call anger2 a quite awful sternness and severity2 not only a power to punish1 but a determination to punish1 if men will not take his warnings--if men will not obey his will4 ,there is no use trying to hide from ourselves that awful truth--,god is not weakly indulgent4 ,our ,god can be1 if he will1 a consuming fire4 ,upon the sinner he will surely rain fire and brimstone1 storm and tempest of some kind or other4 ,this shall be their portion too surely4 ,vengeance is his1 and vengeance he will take4 ,but upon whom8 ,on the proud and the tyrannical1 on the cruel1 the false1 the unjust4 ,so say the ,psalms again and again1 and so says the history of these plagues of ,egypt4 ,therefore his anger is a loving anger1 a just auger1 a merciful anger1 a useful anger1 an anger exercised for the good of mankind4 ,see in this case why did ,god destroy the crops of ,egypt--even the first-born of ,egypt8 ,merely for the pleasure of destroying8 ,god forbid4 ,it was to deliver the poor ,israelites from their cruel taskmasters2 to force these ,egyptians by terrible lessons1 since they were deaf to the voice of justice and humanity-- to force them1 ,i say--to have mercy on their fellow-creatures1 and let the oppressed go free4 ,therefore ,god was1 even in ,egypt1 a ,god of love1 who desired the good of man1 who would do justice for those who were unjustly treated1 even though it cost his love a pang2 for none can believe that ,god is pleased at having to punish1 pleased at having to destroy the works of his own hands1 or the creatures which he has made4 ,no2 the ,lord was a ,god of love even when he sent his sore plagues on ,egypt1 and therefore we may believe what the ,bible tells us1 that that same ,lord showed1 as on this day1 a still greater proof of his love1 when1 as on this day1 he entered into ,jerusalem1 meek and lowly1 sitting on an ass1 and going1 as he well knew1 to certain death4 ,before the week was over he would be betrayed1 mocked1 scourged1 crucified by the very people whom he came to save2 and yet he did it1 he endured it4 ,instead of pouring out on them1 as on the ,egyptians of old1 the cup of wrath and misery1 he put out his hand1 took the cup of wrath and misery to himself1 and drank it to its very dregs4 ,was not that1 too1 a miracle8 ,ay1 a greater miracle than all the plagues of ,egypt4 ,they were physical miracles2 this a moral miracle4 ,they were miracles of nature2 this of grace4 ,they were miracles of the ,lord's power2 these of the ,lord's love4 ,think of that miracle of miracles which was worked in this ,passion ,week--the miracle of the ,lord ,jehovah stooping to die for sinful man1 and say after that there is anything too hard for the ,lord4 ,,sermon ,,xi4 ,,the ,,god ,,of ,,the ,,old ,,testament ,,is ,,the ,,god ,,of ,,the ,,new 7,palm ,sunday47 ,exodus ix4 #ad4 ,i will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart1 and upon thy servants1 and upon thy people1 that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth4 ,we are now beginning ,passion ,week1 the week of the whole year which ought to teach us most theology2 that is1 most concerning ,god1 his character and his spirit4 ,for in this ,passion ,week ,god did that which utterly and perfectly showed forth his glory1 as it never has been shown forth before or since4 ,in this week ,jesus ,christ1 the incarnate ,god1 died on the cross for man1 and showed that his name1 his character1 his glory was love--love without bound or end4 ,it was to teach us this that the special services1 lessons1 collects1 epistles1 and gospels of this week were chosen4 ,the second lesson1 the collects1 the epistles1 the gospel for to- day1 all set before us the patience of ,christ1 the humility of ,christ1 the love of ,christ1 the self-sacrifice of ,christ1 the ,lamb without spot1 enduring all things that he might save sinful man4 ,but if so1 what does this first lesson--the chapter of ,exodus from which my text is taken--what does it teach us concerning ,god8 ,does it teach us that his name is love8 ,at first sight you would think that it did not4 ,at first sight you would fancy that it spoke of ,god in quite a different tone from the second lesson4 ,in the second lesson1 the words of ,jesus the ,son of ,god are all gentleness1 patience1 tenderness4 ,a quiet sadness hangs over them all4 ,they are the words of one who is come 7as he said himself71 not to destroy men's lives1 but to save them2 not to punish sins1 but to wash them away by his own most precious blood4 ,but in the first lesson how differently he seems to speak4 ,his words there are the words of a stern and awful judge1 who can1 and who will destroy whatsoever interferes with his will and his purpose4 ',i will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart1 and on thy servants1 and all thy people1 that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth4' ,the cattle and sheep shall be destroyed with murrain2 man and beast shall be tormented with boils and blains2 the crops shall be smitten with hail2 the locusts shall eat up every green thing in the land2 and at last all the first-born of ,egypt shall die in one night1 and the land be filled with mourning1 horror1 and desolation1 before the anger of this terrible ,god1 who will destroy and destroy till he makes himself obeyed4 ,can this be he who rode into ,jerusalem1 as on this day1 meek and lowly1 upon an ass's colt2 who on the night that he was betrayed washed his disciples' feet1 even the feet of ,judas who betrayed him8 ,who prayed for his murderers as he hung upon the cross1 ',father1 forgive them1 for they know not what they do8' ,can these two be the same8 ,is the ,lord ,jehovah of the ,old ,testament the ,lord ,jesus of the ,new8 ,they are the same1 my friends4 ,he who laid waste the land of ,egypt is he who came to seek and to save that which was lost4 ,he who slew the children in ,egypt is he who took little children up in his arms and blessed them4 ,he who spoke the awful words of the text is he who was brought as a lamb to the slaughter2 and as a sheep before the shearers is dumb1 so he opened not his mouth4 ,this is very wonderful4 ,but why should it ,,not be wonderful8 ,what can ,god be but wonderful8 ,his character1 just because it is perfect1 must contain in itself all other characters1 all forms of spiritual life which are without sin4 ,and yet again it is not so very wonderful4 ,have we not seen--,i have often--in the same mortal man these two different characters at once8 ,have we not seen soldiers and sailors1 brave men1 stern men1 men who have fought in many a bloody battle1 to whom it is a light thing to kill their fellow-men1 or to be killed themselves in the cause of duty2 and yet most full of tenderness1 as gentle as lambs to little children and to weak women2 nursing the sick lovingly and carefully with the same hand which would not shrink from firing the fatal cannon to blast a whole company into eternity1 or sink a ship with all its crew8 ,i have seen such men1 brave as the lion and gentle as the lamb1 and ,i saw in them the likeness of ,christ--the ,lion of ,judah2 and yet the ,lamb of ,god4 ,christ is the ,lamb of ,god2 and in him there are the innocence of the lamb1 the gentleness of the lamb1 the patience of the lamb3 but there is more4 ,what words are these which ,st4 ,john speaks in the spirit8-- ',and the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together1 and every mountain and island were moved out of their places2 and the kings of the earth1 and the great1 and the rich1 and the chief captains1 and the mighty men1 and every bondman and every freeman hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains2 and said to the mountains and to the rocks1 ,fall on us1 and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne1 and from the wrath of the ,lamb2 for the great day of his wrath is come2 and who shall be able to stand8' ,yes1 look at that awful book of ,revelation with which the ,bible ends1 and see if the ,bible does not end as it began1 by revealing a ,god who1 however loving and merciful1 long-suffering1 and of great goodness1 still wages war eternally against all sin and unrighteousness of man1 and who will by no means clear the guilty2 a ,god of whom the apostle ,st4 ,paul1 who knew most of his mercy and forgiveness to sinners1 could nevertheless say1 just as ,moses had said ages before him1 ',our ,god is a consuming fire4' ,now ,i think it most necessary to recollect this in ,passion ,week2 ay1 and to do more--to remember it all our lives long4 ,for it is too much the fashion now1 and has often been so before1 to think only of one side of our ,lord's character1 of the side which seems more pleasant and less awful4 ,people please themselves in hymns which talk of the meek and lowly ,jesus1 and in pictures which represent him with a sad1 weary1 delicate1 almost feminine face4 ,now ,i do not say that this is wrong4 ,he is the same yesterday1 to- day1 and for ever2 as tender1 as compassionate now as when he was on earth2 and it is good that little children and innocent young people should think of him as an altogether gentle1 gracious1 loveable being2 for with the meek he will be meek2 but again1 with the froward1 the violent1 and self-willed1 he will be froward4 ,he will show the violent that he is the stronger of the two1 and the self- willed that he will have his will and not theirs done4 ,so it is good that the widow and the orphan1 the weary and the distressed1 should think of ,jesus as utterly tender and true1 compassionate and merciful1 and rest their broken hearts upon him1 the everlasting rock4 ,but while it is written1 that whosoever shall fall on that rock he shall be broken1 it is written too1 that on whomsoever that rock shall fall1 it will grind him to powder4 ,it is good that those who wish to be gracious themselves1 loving themselves1 should remember that ,christ is gracious1 ,christ is loving4 ,but it is good also1 that those who do ,,not wish to be gracious and loving themselves1 but to be proud and self-willed1 unjust and cruel1 should remember that the gracious and loving ,christ is also the most terrible and awful of all beings2 sharper than a two-edged sword1 piercing asunder the very joints and marrow1 discerning the most secret thoughts and intents of the heart2 a righteous judge1 strong and patient1 who is provoked every day3 but if a man ,,will not turn he will whet his sword4 ,he hath bent his bow and made it ready1 and laid his arrows in order against the persecutors4 ,what ,christ's countenance1 my friends1 was like when on earth1 we do ,,not know2 but what his countenance is like now1 we all may know2 for what says ,st4 ,john1 and how did ,christ appear to him1 who had been on earth his private and beloved friend8 ',his head and his hair were white as snow1 and his eyes were like a flame of fire1 and his voice like the sound of many waters2 and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword1 and his countenance was as the sun when he shineth in his strength4 ,and when ,i saw him1 ,i fell at his feet as dead4' ,that is the likeness of ,christ1 my friends2 and we must remember that it is his likeness1 and fall at his feet1 and humble ourselves before his unspeakable majesty1 if we wish that he should do to us at the last day as he did to ,st4 ,john--lay his hand upon us1 saying1 ',fear not1 ,i am the first and the last1 and behold1 ,i am alive for evermore1 ,amen4 ,i have the keys of death and hell4' ,yes1 it is good that we should all remember this4 ,for if we do not1 we may fall1 as thousands fall1 into a very unwholesome and immoral notion about religion4 ,we may get to fancy1 as thousands do1 rich and poor1 that because ,christ the ,lord is meek and gentle1 patient and long-suffering1 that he is therefore easy1 indulgent1 careless about our doing wrong2 and that we can1 in plain ,english1 trifle with ,christ1 and take liberties with his everlasting laws of right and wrong2 and so fancy1 that provided we talk of the meek and lowly ,jesus1 and of his blood washing away all our sins1 that we are free to behave very much as if ,jesus had never come into the world to teach men their duty1 and free to commit almost any sin which does not disgrace us among our neighbours1 or render us punishable by the law4 ,my friends1 it is ,,not ,,so4 ,and those who fancy that it is so1 will find out their mistake bitterly enough4 ,infinite love and forgiveness to those who repent and amend and do right2 but infinite rigour and punishment to those who will not amend and do right4 ,this is the everlasting law of ,god's universe2 and every soul of man will find it out at last1 and find that the ,lord ,jesus ,christ is not a ,being to be trifled with1 and that the precious blood which he shed on the cross is of no avail to those who are not minded to be righteous even as he is righteous4 ',but ,christ is so loving1 so tender-hearted that he surely will not punish us for our sins4' ,this is the confused notion that too many people have about him4 ,and the answer to it is1 that just ,,because ,christ is so loving1 so tender-hearted1 therefore he ,,must punish us for our sins1 unless we utterly give up our sins1 and do right instead of wrong4 ,that false notion springs out of men's selfishness4 ,they think of sin as something which only hurts themselves2 when they do wrong they think merely1 ',what punishment will ,god inflict on ,,me for doing wrong8' ,they are wrapt up in themselves4 ,they forget that their sins are not merely a matter between them and ,christ1 but between them and their neighbours2 that every wrong action they commit1 every wrong word they speak1 every wrong habit in which they indulge themselves1 sooner or later1 more or less hurts their neighbours-- ay1 hurts all mankind4 ,and does ,christ care only for ,,them8 ,does he not care for their neighbours8 ,has he not all mankind to provide for1 and govern and guide8 ,and can he allow bad men to go on making this world worse1 without punishing them1 any more than a gardener can allow weeds to hurt his flowers1 and not root them up8 ,what would you say of a man who was so merciful to the weeds that he let them choke the flowers8 ,what would you say of a shepherd who was so merciful to the wolves that he let them eat his sheep8 ,what would you say of a magistrate who was so merciful to thieves that he let them rob the honest men8 ,and do you fancy that ,christ is a less careful and just governor of the world than the magistrate who punishes the thief that honest men may live in safety8 ,not so4 ,not only will ,christ punish the wolves who devour his sheep1 but he will punish his sheep themselves if they hurt each other1 torment each other1 lead each other astray1 or in any way interfere with the just and equal rule of his kingdom2 and this1 not out of spite or cruelty1 but simply because he is perfect love4 ,go1 therefore1 and think of ,christ this ,passion ,week as he was1 and is1 and ever will be4 ,think of the whole ,christ1 and not of some part of his character which may specially please your fancy4 ,think of him as the patient and forgiving ,christ1 who prayed for his murderers1 ',father1 forgive them1 for they know not what they do4' ,but remember that1 in this very ,passion ,week1 there came out of those most gentle lips--the lips which blessed little children1 and cried to all who were weary and heavy laden1 to come to him and he would give them rest--that out of those most gentle lips1 ,i say1 in this very ,passion ,week1 there went forth the most awful threats which ever were uttered1 ',woe unto you1 ,scribes and ,pharisees1 hypocrites4 ,ye serpents1 ye generation of vipers1 how can ye escape the damnation of hell8' ,think of him as the ,lamb who offered himself freely on the cross for sinners4 ,but think of him1 too1 as the ,lamb who shall one day come in glory to judge all men according to their works4 ,think of him as full of boundless tenderness and humanity1 boundless long-suffering and mercy4 ,but remember that beneath that boundless sweetness and tenderness there burns a consuming fire2 a fire of divine scorn and indignation against all who sin1 like ,pharaoh1 out of cruelty and pride2 against all which is foul and brutal1 mean and base1 false and hypocritical1 cruel and unjust2 a fire which burns1 and will burn against all the wickedness which is done on earth1 and all the misery and sorrow which is suffered on earth1 till the ,lord has burned it up for ever1 and there is nothing but love and justice1 order and usefulness1 peace and happiness1 left in the universe of ,god4 ,oh1 think of these things1 and cast away your sins betimes1 at the foot of his everlasting cross1 lest you be consumed with your sins in his everlasting fire6 ,,sermon ,,xii4 ,,the ,,birthnight ,,of ,,freedom 7,easter ,day47 ,exodus xii4 #db4 ,this is a night to be much observed unto the ,lord1 for bringing the children of ,israel out of ,egypt4 ,to be much observed unto the ,lord by the children of ,israel4 ,and by us1 too1 my friends2 and by all nations who call themselves ,,free4 ,there are many and good ways of looking at ,easter ,day4 ,let us look at it in this way for once4 ,it is the day on which ,god himself set men ,,free4 ,consider the story4 ,these ,israelites1 the children of ,abraham1 the brave1 wild patriarch of the desert1 have been settled for hundreds of years in the rich lowlands of ,egypt4 ,there they have been eating and drinking their fill1 and growing more weak1 slavish1 luxurious1 fonder and fonder of the flesh-pots of ,egypt2 fattening literally for the slaughter1 like beasts in a stall4 ,they are spiritually dead--dead in trespasses and sins4 ,they do not want to be free1 to be a nation4 ,they are content to be slaves and idolaters1 if they can only fill their stomachs4 ,this is the spiritual death of a nation4 ,i say1 they do not want to be free4 ,when they are oppressed1 they cry out--as an animal cries when you beat him4 ,but after they are free1 when they get into danger1 or miss their meat1 they cry out too1 and are willing enough to return to slavery2 as the dog which has run away for fear of the whip1 will go back to his kennel for the sake of his food4 ',because there were no graves in ,egypt1 hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness8 ,wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us to carry us out of ,egypt8' ,and again1 ',would ,god we had died by the hand of the ,lord in the land of ,egypt1 where we did sit by the flesh-pots1 and eat meat to the full6' ,,brutalized1 in one word1 were these poor children of ,israel4 ,then ,god took their cause into his own hand2 ,i say emphatically into his own hand4 ,if that part of the story be not true1 ,i care nothing for the rest4 ,if ,god did not personally and actually interfere on behalf of those poor slaves2 if the plagues of ,egypt are not ,,true-- the passage of the ,red ,sea be not ,,true--the story tells me and you nothing2 gives us no hope for ourselves1 no hope for mankind4 ,for see4 ,one says1 and truly1 ,god is good2 ,god is love2 ,god is just2 ,god hates oppression and wrong4 ,,but if ,god be love1 he must surely show his love by doing loving things4 ,if ,god be just1 he must show his justice by doing just things4 ,if ,god hates oppression1 then he must free the oppressed4 ,if ,god hates wrong1 then he must set the wrong right4 ,for what would you think of a man who professed to be loving and just1 and to hate oppression and wrong1 and yet never took the trouble to do a good action1 or to put down wrong1 when he had the power8 ,you would call him a hypocrite2 you would think his love and justice very much on his tongue1 and not in his heart4 ,and will you believe that ,god is like that man8 ,god forbid6 ,comfortable scholars and luxurious ladies may content themselves with a ,,dead ,god1 who does not interfere to help the oppressed1 to right the wrong1 to bind up the broken-hearted2 but men and women who work1 who sorrow1 who suffer1 who partake of all the ills which flesh is heir to--they want a ,,living ,god1 an acting ,god1 a ,god who ,,will interfere to right the wrong4 ,yes--they want a living ,god4 ,and they have a living ,god--even the ,god who interfered to bring the ,israelites out of ,egypt with signs and wonders1 and a mighty hand and an outstretched arm1 and executed judgment upon ,pharaoh and his proud and cruel hosts4 ,and when they read in the ,bible of that ,god1 when they read in their ,bibles the story of the ,exodus1 their hearts answer1 ,,this is right4 ,this is the ,god whom we need4 ,this is what ought to have happened4 ,this is true3 for it must be true4 ,let comfortable folks who know no sorrow trouble their brains as to whether sixty or six hundred thousand fighting men came out of ,egypt with ,moses4 ,we care not for numbers4 ,what we care for is1 not how many came out1 but who brought them out1 and that he who brought them out was ,,god4 ,and the book which tells us that1 we will cling to1 will love1 will reverence above all the books on earth1 because it tells of a living ,god1 who works and acts and interferes for men2 who not only hates wrong1 but rights wrong2 not only hates oppression1 but puts oppressors down2 not only pities the oppressed1 but sets the oppressed free2 a ,god who not only wills that man should have freedom1 but sent freedom down to him from heaven4 ,scholars have said that the old ,greeks were the fathers of freedom2 and there have been other peoples in the world's history who have made glorious and successful struggles to throw off their tyrants and be free4 ,and they have said1 ,we are the fathers of freedom2 liberty was born with us4 ,not so1 my friends6 ,liberty is of a far older and far nobler house2 ,liberty was born1 if you will receive it1 on the first ,easter night1 on the night to be much remembered among the children of ,israel--ay1 among all mankind--when ,god himself stooped from heaven to set the oppressed free4 ,then was freedom born4 ,not in the counsels of men1 however wise2 or in the battles of men1 however brave3 but in the counsels of ,god1 and the battle of ,god--amid human agony and terror1 and the shaking of the heaven and the earth2 amid the great cry throughout ,egypt when a first-born son lay dead in every house2 and the tempest which swept aside the ,red ,sea waves2 and the pillar of cloud by day1 and the pillar of fire by night2 and the ,red ,sea shore covered with the corpses of the ,egyptians2 and the thunderings and lightnings and earthquakes of ,sinai2 and the sound as of a trumpet waxing loud and long2 and the voice1 most human and most divine1 which spake from off the lonely mountain peak to that vast horde of coward and degenerate slaves1 and said1 ',i am the ,lord thy ,god who brought thee out of the land of ,egypt4 ,thou shalt obey my laws1 and keep my commandments to do them4' ,oh6 the man who would rob his suffering fellow-creatures of that story--he knows not how deep and bitter are the needs of man4 ,then was freedom born3 but not of man2 not of the will of the flesh1 nor of the will of man1 but of the will of ,god1 from whom all good things come2 and of ,christ1 who is the life and the light of men and of nations1 and of the whole world1 and of all worlds1 past1 present1 and to come4 ,from ,god came freedom4 ,to be used as his gift1 according to his laws2 for he gave1 and he can take away2 as it is written1 ',he shall take the kingdom of ,god from you1 and give it to a people bringing forth the fruits thereof4' ',for there be many first that shall be last2 and last that shall be first4' ,it is this which makes the ,jews indeed a peculiar people3 the thought that the living ,god had actually and really done for them what they could not do for themselves2 that he had made them a nation1 and not they themselves4 ,it is this which makes the ,old ,testament an utterly different book1 with an utterly different lesson1 to the written history of any other nation in the world4 ,and yet it is this which makes the history of the ,jews the key to every other history in the world4 ,for in it ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 the living ,god who makes history1 who governs all nations1 reveals and unveils himself1 and teaches not the ,jews only1 but us and all nations1 that it is he who hath made us1 and not we ourselves2 that we got not the land in possession by our own sword1 nor was it our own strength that helped us1 but thou1 ,o ,lord1 because thou hadst a favour unto us2 that not to us1 not to us is the praise of any national greatness or glory1 but to ,god1 from whom it comes as surely a free gift as the gift of liberty to the ,jews of old4 ,i say1 the history of the ,jews is the history of the whole ,church1 and of every nation in ,christendom4 ,as with the ,jews1 so with the nations of ,europe2 whenever they have trusted in themselves1 their own power and wisdom1 they have ended in weakness and folly4 ,whenever they have trusted in ,christ the living ,god1 and said1 ',it is he that hath made us1 and not we ourselves1' they have risen to strength and wisdom4 ,when they have forgotten the living ,god1 national life and patriotism have died in them1 as they died in the ,jews4 ,when they have remembered that the most high ,god was their ,redeemer1 then in them1 as in the ,jews1 have national life and patriotism revived4 ,and as it was with the ,jews in the wilderness1 so it has been with them since ,christ's resurrection4 ,they fancied that they were going at once into the promised land4 ,so did the first ,christians4 ,but the ,jews had to wander forty years in the wilderness2 and ,christendom has had to wander too1 in strange and bloodstained paths1 for one thousand eight hundred years and more4 ,for why8 ,the ,israelites were not worthy to enter at once into rest2 no more have the nation of ,christ's ,church been worthy4 ,the ,israelites brought out of ,egypt base and slavish passions1 which had to be purged out of them2 so have we out of heathendom4 ,they brought out1 too1 heathen superstitions1 and mixed them up with the worship of ,god1 bearing about in the wilderness the tabernacle of ,moloch and the image of their god ,remphan1 and making the calf in ,horeb2 and so1 alas6 again and again1 has the ,church of ,christ4 ,nay1 the whole generation1 save two1 who came out of ,egypt1 had to die in the wilderness1 and leave their bones scattered far and wide4 ,and so has mankind been dying1 by war and by disease1 and by many fearful scourges besides what is called now-a-days1 natural decay4 ,but all the while a new generation was springing up1 trained in the wilderness to be bold and hardy2 trained1 too1 under ,moses' stern law1 to the fear of ,god2 to reverence1 and discipline1 and obedience1 without which freedom is merely brutal license1 and a nation is no nation1 but a mere flock of sheep or a herd of wolves4 ,and so1 for these one thousand eight hundred years have the generations of ,christendom1 by the training of the ,church and the light of the ,gospel1 been growing in wisdom and knowledge2 growing in morality and humanity1 in that true discipline and loyalty which are the yoke-fellows of freedom and independence1 to make them fit for that higher state1 that heavenly ,canaan1 of which we know not ,,when it will come1 nor whether its place will be on this earth or elsewhere2 but of which it is written1 ',and ,i ,john saw the holy city1 ,new ,jerusalem1 coming down from ,god out of heaven1 prepared as a bride adorned for her husband4 ,and ,i heard a great voice out of heaven saying1 ,behold1 the tabernacle of ,god is with men1 and he will dwell with them1 and they shall be his people1 and ,god himself shall be with them1 and be their ,god4 ,and ,god shall wipe away all tears from their eyes2 and there shall be no more death1 neither sorrow1 nor crying1 neither shall there be any more pain3 for the former things are passed away4 ,and he that sat upon the throne said1 ,behold1 ,i make all things new4 ',and ,i saw no temple therein3 for the ,lord ,god ,almighty and the ,lamb are the temple of it4 ,and the city had no need of the sun1 neither of the moon to shine in it3 for the glory of ,god did lighten it1 and the ,lamb is the light thereof4 ,and the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it2 and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it4 ,and the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day3 for there shall be no night there4 ,and they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it4 ,and there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth1 neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie3 but they which are written in the ,lamb's book of life4' ,that1 the perfect ,easter ,day1 seems far enough off as yet2 but it will come4 ,as the ,lord liveth1 it will come2 and to it may ,christ in his mercy bring us all1 and our children's children after us4 ,amen4 ,,sermon ,,xiii4 ,,korah1 ,,dathan1 ,,and ,,abiram 7,first ,sunday after ,easter1 #ahfc47 ,numbers xvi4 #cb-ce4 ,and the earth opened her mouth1 and swallowed them up1 and their houses1 and all the men that appertained unto ,korah1 and all their goods4 ,they1 and all that appertained to them1 went down alive into the pit1 and the earth closed upon them3 and they perished from among the congregation4 ,and all ,israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them3 for they said1 ,lest the earth swallow us up also4 ,and there came out a fire from the ,lord1 and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense4 ,i will begin by saying that there are several things in this chapter which ,i do not understand1 and cannot explain to you4 ,be it so4 ,that is no reason why we should not look at the parts of the chapter which we can understand and can explain4 ,there are matters without end in the world round us1 and in our own hearts1 and in the life of every one1 which we cannot explain2 and therefore we need not be surprised to find things which we cannot explain in the life and history of the most remarkable nation upon earth--the nation whose business it has been to teach all other nations the knowledge of the true ,god1 and who was specially and curiously trained for that work4 ,but the one broad common-sense lesson of this chapter1 it seems to me1 is one which is on the very surface of it2 one which every true ,englishman at least will see1 and see to be true1 when he hears the chapter read2 and that is1 the necessity of ,,discipline4 ,god has brought the ,israelites out of ,egypt1 and set them free4 ,one of the first lessons which they have to learn is1 that freedom does not mean license and discord--does not mean every one doing that which is right in the sight of his own eyes4 ,from that springs self-will1 division1 quarrels1 revolt1 civil war1 weakness1 profligacy1 and ruin to the whole people4 ,without order1 discipline1 obedience to law1 there can be no true and lasting freedom2 and1 therefore1 order must be kept at all risks1 the law obeyed1 and rebellion punished4 ,now rebellion may be and ought to be punished far more severely in some cases than in others4 ,if men rebel here1 in ,great ,britain or ,ireland1 we smile at them1 and let them off with a slight imprisonment1 because we are not afraid of them4 ,they can do no harm4 ,but there are cases in which rebellion must be punished with a swift and sharp hand4 ,on board a ship at sea1 for instance1 where the safety of the whole ship1 the lives of the whole crew1 depend on instant obedience1 mutiny may be punished by death on the spot4 ,many a commander has ere now1 and rightly too1 struck down the rebel without trial or argument1 and ended him and his mutiny on the spot2 by the sound rule that it is expedient that one man die for the people1 and that the whole nation perish not4 ,and so it was with the ,israelites in the desert4 ,all depended on their obedience4 ,god had given them a law--a constitution1 as we should say now--perfectly fitted1 no doubt1 for them4 ,if they once began to rebel and mutiny against that law1 all was over with them4 ,that great1 foolish1 ignorant multitude would have broken up1 probably fought among themselves--certainly parted company1 and either starved in the desert1 or have been destroyed piecemeal by the wild warlike tribes1 ,midianites1 ,moabites1 ,amalekites--who were ready enough for slaughter and plunder4 ,they would never have reached ,canaan4 ,they would never have become a great nation4 ,so they had to be1 by necessity1 under martial law4 ,the word must be1 ,obey or die4 ,as for any cruelty in putting ,korah1 ,dathan1 and ,abiram to death1 it was worth the death of a hundred such--or a thousand--to preserve the great and glorious nation of the ,jews to be the teachers of the world4 ,now this ,korah1 ,dathan1 and ,abiram rebel4 ,they rebel against ,moses about a question of the priesthood4 ,it really matters little to us what that question was--it was a question of ,moses' law1 which1 of course1 is now done away4 ,only remember this1 that these men were princes--great feudal noblemen1 as we should say2 and that they rebelled on the strength of their rank and their rights as noblemen to make laws for themselves and for the people2 and that the mob of their dependents seem to have been inclined to support them4 ,surely if ,moses had executed martial law on them with his own hand1 he would have been as perfectly justified as a captain of a ship of war or a general of an army would be now4 ,but he did not do so4 ,and why8 ,because ,,moses did not bring the people out of ,egypt4 ,moses was not their king4 ,,god brought them out of ,egypt4 ,god was their king4 ,that was the lesson which they had to learn1 and to teach other nations also4 ,they have rebelled1 not against ,moses1 but against ,god2 and not ,moses1 but ,god must punish1 and show that he is not a dead ,god1 but a living ,god1 one who can defend himself1 and enforce his own laws1 and execute judgment--and1 if need be1 vengeance--without needing any man to fight his battles for him4 ,and ,god does so4 ,the powers of ,nature--the earthquake and the nether fire--shall punish these rebels2 and so they do4 ',and ,moses said1 ,hereby ye shall know that the ,lord hath sent me to do all these works2 for ,i have not done them of mine own mind4 ,if these men die the common death of all men1 or if they be visited after the visitation of all men2 then the ,lord hath not sent me4 ,but if the ,lord make a new thing1 and the earth open her mouth and swallow them up1 with all that appertain to them and they go down quick into the pit2 then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the ,lord4' ,men have thought differently of the story2 but ,i call it a righteous story1 and a noble story1 and one which agrees with my conscience1 and my reason1 and my notion of what ought to be1 and my experience also of what is--of the way in which ,god's world is governed unto this day4 ,what then are we to think of the earth opening and swallowing them up8 ,what are we to think of a fire coming out from the ,lord1 and consuming two hundred and fifty men that offered incense8 ,this first4 ,that discipline and order are so absolutely necessary for the well-being of a nation that they must be kept at all risks1 and enforced by the most terrible punishments4 ,it seems to me 7to speak with all reverence7 as if ,god had said to the ,jews1 ',i have set you free4 ,i will make of you a great nation2 ,i will lead you into a good land and large4 ,but if you are to be a great nation1 if you are to conquer that good land and large1 you must obey3 and you shall obey4 ,the earthquake and the fire shall teach you to obey1 and make you an example to the rest of the ,israelites1 and to all nations after you4' ,but how hard1 some may think1 that the wives and the children should suffer for their parents' sins4 ,my friends1 we do not know that a single woman or child died then for whom it was not better that he or she should die4 ,that is one of the deep things which we must leave to the perfect justice and mercy of ,god4 ,and next--what is it after all1 but what we see going on round us all the day long8 ,god does visit the sins of the fathers on the children4 ,there is no denying it4 ,wives do suffer for their husbands' sins2 children and children's children for whole generations after generations suffer for their parents' sins1 and become unhealthy1 or superstitious1 or profligate1 or poor1 or slavish1 because their parents sinned1 and dragged down their children with them in their fall4 ,it is a law of the world2 and therefore it is a law of ,god4 ,and it is reasonable to be believed that ,god might choose to teach the ,israelites1 once and for all1 that it ,,was a law of his world4 ,for by swallowing up those women and children with the men1 ,god said to the ,israelites1 it seems to me in a way which could not be mistaken1 ',this is the consequence of lawlessness and disorder--that you not only injure yourselves1 but your children after you1 and involve your families in the same ruin as yourselves4' ,but there was another lesson1 and a deep lesson1 in the earthquake and in the fire4 ,and what was this8 that the earthquake and the fire came out from the ,lord4 ,earthquakes have swallowed up not hundreds merely1 but many thousands1 in many countries1 and at many times4 ,fire has come forth1 and still comes forth from the ground1 from the clouds1 from the consequences of man's own carelessness1 and destroys beast and man1 and the works of man's hands4 ,then men ask in terror and doubt1 ',who sends the earthquake and the fire8 ,do they come from the devil--the destroyer8 ,do they come by chance1 from some brute and blind powers of nature8' ,this chapter answers1 ',no4 ,they come from the ,lord1 from whom all good things do come2 from the ,lord who delivered the ,israelites out of ,egypt2 who so loved the world that he spared not his only begotten ,son1 but freely gave him for us4' ,now ,i say that is a gospel1 and good news1 which we want now as much as ever men did2 which the children of ,israel wanted then1 though not one whit more than we4 ,many hundreds of years had these ,israelites been in ,egypt4 ,storm1 lightning1 earthquake1 the fires of the burning mountains1 were things unknown to them4 ,they were going into ,canaan--a good land and fruitful1 but a land of storms and thunders2 a land1 too1 of earthquakes and subterranean fires4 ,the deepest earthquake-crack in the world is the valley of the ,jordan1 ending in the ,dead ,sea--a long valley1 through which at different points the nether fires of the earth even now burst up at times4 ,in ,abraham's time they had destroyed the five cities of the plain4 ,the prophets mention them1 especially ,isaiah and ,micah1 as breaking out again in their own times2 and in our own lifetime earthquake and fire have done fearful destruction in the north part of the ,holy ,land4 ,now what was to prevent the ,israelites worshipping the earthquake and the fire as gods8 ,nothing4 ,conceive the terror and horror of the ,jews coming out of that quiet land of ,egypt1 the first time they felt the ground rocking and rolling2 the first time they heard the roar of the earthquake beneath their feet2 the first time they saw1 in the magnificent words of ,micah1 the mountains molten and the valleys cleft as wax before the fire1 like water poured down a steep place2 and discovered that beneath their very feet was ,tophet1 the pit of fire and brimstone1 ready to burst up and overwhelm them they knew not when4 ,what could they do1 but what the ,canaanites did who dwelt already in that land8 ,what but to say1 ',the fire is king4 ,the fire is the great and dreadful ,god1 and to him we must pray1 lest he devour us up4' ,for so did the ,canaanites4 ,they called the fire ,moloch1 which means simply the king2 and they worshipped this fire-king1 and made idols of him1 and offered human sacrifices to him4 ,they had idols of metal1 before which an everlasting fire burned2 and on the arms of the idol the priests laid the children who were to be sacrificed1 that they might roll down into the fire and be burnt alive4 ,that is actual fact4 ,in one case1 which we know of well1 hundreds of years after ,moses' time1 the ,carthaginians offered two hundred boys of their best families to ,moloch in one day4 ,this is that making the children pass through the fire to ,moloch--burning them in the fire to ,moloch--of which we read several times in the ,old ,testament2 as ugly and accursed a superstition as men ever invented4 ,what deliverance was there for them from these abominable superstitions1 except to know that the fire-kingdom was ,god's kingdom1 and not ,moloch's at all2 to know with ,micah and with ,david that the hills were molten like wax ,,before ,,the ,,presence ,,of ,,the ,,lord2 that it was the blast of his breath which discovered the foundations of the world2 that it was ,,he who made the sea flee and drove back the ,jordan stream2 that it was before ,,him that the mountains skipped like rams and the little hills like young sheep2 that the battles of shaking were ,god's battles1 with which he could fight for his people2 that it was he who ordained ,tophet1 and whose spirit kindled it4 ,that it was he--and that too in mercy as well as anger--who visited the land in ,isaiah's time with thunder and earthquake1 and great noise1 and storm and tempest1 and the flame of devouring fire4 ,that the earth opened and swallowed up those whom ,god chose1 and no others4 ,that if fire came forth1 it came forth from the ,lord1 and burned where and what ,god chose1 and nothing else4 ,yes4 ,if you will only understand1 once and for all1 that the history of the ,jews is the history of the ,lord's turning a people from the cowardly1 slavish worship of sun and stars1 of earthquakes and burning mountains1 and all the brute powers of nature which the heathen worshipped1 and teaching them to trust and obey him1 the living ,god1 the ,lord and ,master of all1 then the ,old ,testament will be clear to you throughout2 but if not1 then not4 ,you cannot read your ,bibles without seeing how that great lesson was stamped into the very hearts of the ,hebrew prophets2 how they are continually speaking of the fire and the earthquake1 and yet continually declaring that they too obey ,god and do ,god's will1 and that the man who fears ,god need not fear them--that ,god was their hope and strength1 a very present help in trouble4 ,therefore would they not fear1 though the earth was moved1 and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea4 ,and we1 too1 need the same lesson in these scientific days4 ,we too need to fix it in our hearts1 that the powers of nature are the powers of ,god2 that he orders them by his providence to do what he will1 and when and where he will2 that1 as the ,psalmist says1 the winds are his messengers and the flames of fire his ministers4 ,and this we shall learn from the ,bible1 and from no other book whatsoever4 ,god taught the ,jews this1 by a strange and miraculous education1 that they might teach it in their turn to all mankind4 ,and they have taught it4 ,for the ,bible bids us--as no other book does--not to be afraid of the world on which we live2 not to be afraid of earthquake or tempest1 or any of the powers of nature which seem to us terrible and cruel1 and destroying2 for they are the powers of the good and just and loving ,god4 ,they obey our ,father in heaven1 without whom not a sparrow falls to the ground1 and our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 who came not to destroy men's lives1 but to save them4 ,and therefore we need not fear them1 or look on them with any blind superstition1 as things too awful for us to search into4 ,we may search into their causes2 find out1 if we can1 the laws which they obey1 because those laws are given them by ,god our ,father2 try1 by using those laws1 to escape them1 as we are learning now to escape tempests2 or to prevent them1 as we are learning now to prevent pestilences3 and where we cannot do that1 face them manfully1 saying1 ',it is my ,father's will4 ,these terrible events must be doing ,god's work4 ,they may be punishing the guilty2 they may be taking the righteous away from the evil to come2 they may be teaching wise men lessons which will enable them years hence to save lives without number2 they may be preparing the face of the earth for the use of generations yet unborn4 ,whatever they are doing they are and must be doing good2 for they are doing the will of the living ,father1 who willeth that none should perish1 and hateth nothing that he hath made4' ,this1 my friends1 is the lesson which the ,bible teaches2 and because it teaches that lesson it is the ,book of books1 and the inspired word or message1 not of men concerning ,god1 but of ,god himself1 concerning himself1 his kingdom over this world and over all worlds1 and his good will to men4 ,,sermon ,,xiv4 ,,balaam ,,numbers xxiii4 #ai4 ,god is not a man1 that he should lie2 neither the son of man1 that he should repent3 hath he said1 and shall he not do it8 or hath he spoken1 and shall he not make it good8 ,if ,i was asked for any proof that the story of ,balaam1 as ,i find it in the ,bible1 is a true story1 ,i should lay my hand on this one only--and that is1 the deep knowledge of human nature which is shown in it4 ,the character of ,balaam is so perfectly natural1 and yet of a kind so very difficult to unravel and explain1 that if the story was invented by man1 as poems or novels are1 it must have been invented very late indeed in the history of the ,jews2 at a time when they had grown to be a far more civilised people1 far more experienced in the cunning tricks of the human heart than they were1 as far as we can see from the ,bible1 before the ,babylonish captivity4 ,but it was ,,not invented late2 for no ,jew in these later times would have thought of making ,balaam a heathen1 to be a prophet of ,god1 or a believer in the true ,god at all4 ,the later ,jews took up the notion that ,god spoke to and cared for the ,jews only1 and that all other nations were accursed4 ,there is no reason1 therefore1 against simply believing the story as it stands4 ,it seems a very ancient story indeed1 suiting exactly in its smallest details the place where ,moses1 or whoever wrote the ,book of ,numbers1 has put it4 ,we1 in these days1 are accustomed to draw a sharp line between the good and the bad1 the converted and the unconverted1 the children of ,god and the children of this world1 those who have ,god's ,spirit and those who have not1 which we find nowhere in ,scripture2 and therefore when we read of such a man as ,balaam we cannot understand him4 ,he is a bad man1 but yet he is a prophet4 ,how can that be8 ,he knows the true ,god4 ,more1 he has the ,spirit of ,god in him1 and thereby utters deep and wonderful prophecies2 and yet he is a bad man and a rogue4 ,how can that be8 ,the puzzle1 my friends1 is one of our own making4 ,if1 instead of taking up doctrines out of books1 we will use our own eyes and ears and common sense1 and look honestly at this world as it is1 and men and women as they are1 we shall find nothing unnatural or strange in ,balaam2 we shall find him very like a good many people whom we know2 very like--nay1 probably1 too like--ourselves in some particulars4 ,now bear in mind1 first1 that ,balaam is no impostor or magician4 ,he is a wise man1 and a prophet of ,god4 ,god really speaks to him1 and really inspires him4 ,and bear in mind1 too1 that ,balaam's inspiration did not merely open his mouth to say wonderful words which he did not understand1 but opened his heart to say righteous and wise things which he did understand4 ',remember1' says the prophet ,micah1 ',o my people1 what ,balak1 king of ,moab1 consulted1 and what ,balaam1 the son of ,beor1 answered him from ,shittim unto ,gilgal1 that ye may know the righteousness of the ,lord4 ,wherewith shall ,i come before the ,lord1 and bow myself before the high ,god8 ,shall ,i come before him with burnt offerings1 with calves of a year old8 ,will the ,lord be pleased with thousands of rams1 or with ten thousands of rivers of oil8 ,shall ,i give my firstborn for my transgressions1 the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul8 ,he hath shewed thee1 ,o man1 what is good1 and what doth the ,lord require of thee1 but to do justly1 and to love mercy1 and to walk humbly with thy ,god4' ,why1 what deeper or wiser words are there in the whole ,old ,testament8 ,this man ,balaam had seen down into the deepest depths of all morality1 unto the deepest depths of all religion4 ,the man who knew that1 knew more than ninety-nine in a hundred do even in a ,christian country now1 and more than nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine in a million knew in those days4 ,let no one1 after that speech1 doubt that ,balaam was indeed a prophet of the ,lord2 and yet he was a bad man1 and came deservedly to a bad end4 ,so much easier1 my friends1 is it to know what is right than to do what is right4 ,what then was wrong in ,balaam8 ,this1 that he was double-minded4 ,he wished to serve ,god4 ,true4 ,but he wished to serve himself by serving ,god1 as too many do in all times4 ,that was what was wrong with him--self-seeking2 and the ,bible story brings out that self-seeking with a delicacy1 a keenness1 and a perfect knowledge of human nature1 which ought to teach us some of the secrets of our own hearts4 ,watch how ,balaam1 as a matter of course1 inquires of the ,lord whether he may go1 and refuses1 seemingly at first honestly4 ,then how the temptation grows on him2 how1 when he feels tempted1 he fights against it in fine-sounding professions1 just because he feels that he is going to yield to it4 ,then how he begins to tempt ,god1 by asking him again1 in hopes that ,god may have changed his mind4 ,then when he has his foolish wish granted he goes4 ,then when the terrible warning comes to him that he is on the wrong road1 that ,god's wrath is gone out against him1 and his angel ready to destroy him1 he is full still of hollow professions of obedience1 instead of casting himself utterly upon ,god's mercy1 and confessing his sin1 and entreating pardon4 ,then how1 instead of being frightened at ,god's letting him have his way1 he is emboldened by it to tempt ,god more and more1 and begins offering bullocks and rams on altars1 first in this place and then in that1 in hopes still that ,,god may change his mind1 and let him curse ,israel2 in hopes that ,god may be like one of the idols of the heathen1 who could 7so the heathen thought7 be coaxed and flattered round by sacrifices to do whatever their worshippers wished4 ,then1 when he finds that all is of no use2 that he must not curse ,israel1 and must not earn ,balak's silver and gold1 he is forced to be an honest man in spite of himself2 and therefore he makes the best of his disappointment by taking mighty credit to himself for being honest1 while he wishes all the while he might have been allowed to have been dishonest4 ,oh1 if all this is not poor human nature1 drawn by the pen of a truly inspired writer1 what is it8 ,moreover1 it is curious to watch how as ,balaam is forced step by step to be an honest man1 so step by step he rises4 ,a weight falls off his mind and heart1 and the ,spirit of ,god comes upon him4 ,he feels for once that he must speak his mind1 that he must obey ,god4 ,as he looks down from off the mountain top1 and sees the vast encampment of the ,israelites spread over the vale below1 for miles and miles1 as far as the eye can see1 all ordered1 disciplined1 arranged according to their tribes1 the ,spirit of ,god comes upon him1 and he gives way to it and speaks4 ,the sight of that magnificent array wakens up in him the thought of how divine is older1 how strong is order1 how order is the life and root of a nation1 and how much more1 when that order is the order of ,god4 ',how goodly are thy tents1 ,o ,jacob1 and thy tabernacles1 ,o ,israel6 ,as the valleys are they spread forth1 as gardens by the river's side1 as the trees of lign aloes which the ,lord hath planted1 and as cedar trees beside the waters4 ,his king shall be higher than ,agag1' and all his wild ,amalekite hordes4 ,he will be a true nation1 civilized1 ordered1 loyal and united1 for ,god is teaching him4 ,who can resist such a nation as that8 ',god has brought him out of ,egypt4 ,he has the strength of an unicorn4' ',i shall see him1' he says1 'but not now2 ,i shall behold him1 but not nigh3 there shall come a ,star out of ,jacob1 and a ,sceptre shall rise out of ,israel1 and shall smite the corners of ,moab1 and destroy all the children of ,sheth4' ,and when he looked on ,amalek1 he took up his parable1 and said1 ',amalek was the first of the nation2 but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever4' ,and he looked on the ,kenites1 and took up his parable1 and said1 ',strong is thy dwelling-place1 and thou puttest thy nest in a rock4 ,nevertheless1 the ,kenite shall be wasted1 till ,asshur shall carry thee away captive4' ',alas1 who shall live when ,god doeth this6' ,and then1 beyond all1 after all the ,canaanites and other ,syrian races have been destroyed1 he sees1 dimly and afar off1 another destruction still4 ,in his home in the far east the fame of the ships of ,chittim has reached him2 the fame of the new people1 the sea-roving heroes of the ,greeks1 of whom old ,homer sang2 the handsomest1 cunningest1 most daring of mankind1 who are spreading their little trading colonies along all the isles and shores1 as we now are spreading ours over the world4 ,those ships of ,chittim1 too1 have a great and glorious future before them4 ,some day or other they will come and afflict ,asshur1 the great empire of the ,east1 out of which ,balaam probably came2 and afflict ,eber too1 the kingdom of the ,jews1 and they too shall perish for ever4 ,dimly he sees it1 for it is very far away4 ,but that it will come he sees2 and beyond that all is dark4 ,he has said his say2 he has spoken the whole truth for once4 ,balak's house full of silver and gold would not have bought him off and stopped his mouth when such awful thoughts crowded on his mind4 ,so he returns to his place--to do what8 ,if he cannot earn ,balak's gold by cursing ,israel1 he can do it by giving him cunning and politic advice4 ,he advises ,balak to make friends with the ,israelites and mix them up with his people by enticing them to the feasts of his idols1 at which the women threw themselves away in shameful profligacy1 after the custom of the heathens of these parts4 ,in the next chapter we read how ,moses1 and ,phinehas1 ,aaron's grandson1 put down those filthy abominations with a high hand2 and how ,balaam's detestable plot1 instead of making peace1 makes war2 and in chapter xxxi4 you read the terrible destruction of the whole nation of the ,midianites1 and among it this one short and terrible hint3 ',balaam also1 the son of ,beor1 they slew with the sword4' ,but what may we learn from this ugly story8 ,recollect what ,i said at first1 that we should find ,balaam too like many people now-a-days2 perhaps too like ourselves4 ,too like indeed4 ,for never were men more tempted to sin as ,balaam did than in these days1 when religion is all the fashion1 and pays a man1 and helps him on in life2 when1 indeed1 a man cannot expect to succeed without professing some sort of religion or other4 ,thereby comes a terrible temptation to many men4 ,i do not mean to hypocrites1 but to really well-meaning men4 ,they like religion4 ,they wish to be good2 they have the feeling of devotion4 ,they pray1 they read their ,bibles1 they are attentive to services and to sermons1 and are more or less pious people4 ,but soon--too soon-- they find that their piety is profitable4 ,their business increases4 ,their credit increases4 ,they are trusted and respected2 their advice is asked and taken4 ,they gain power over their fellow-men4 ,what a fine thing it is1 they think1 to be pious6 ,then creeps in the love of the world2 the love of money1 or power1 or admiration2 and they begin to value religion because it helps them to get on in the world4 ,they begin more and more to love ,piety not for its own sake1 but for the sake of what it brings2 not because it pleases ,god1 but because it pleases the world2 not because it enables them to help their fellow-men1 but because it enables them to help themselves4 ,so they get double-minded1 unstable1 inconsistent1 as ,st4 ,james says1 in all their ways2 trying to serve ,god and ,mammon at once4 ,trying to do good--as long as doing good does not hurt them in the world's eyes2 but longing oftener and oftener to do wrong1 if only ,god would not be angry4 ,then comes on ,balaam's frame of mind1 ',if ,balak would give me his house full of silver and gold1 ,i cannot go beyond the commandment of the ,lord4' ,oh no4 ,they would not do a wrong thing for the world--only they must be quite sure first that it is wrong4 ,has ,god really forbidden it8 ,why should they not take care of their interest8 ,why should they not get on in the world8 ,so they begin1 like ,balaam1 to tempt ,god1 to see how far they can go2 to see if ,god has forbidden this and that mean1 or cowardly1 or covetous1 or ambitious deed4 ,so they soon settle for themselves what ,god has forbidden and what he has not2 and their rule of life becomes this--that whatsoever is safe and whatsoever is profitable is pretty sure to be right2 and after that no wonder if1 like ,balaam1 they indulge themselves in every sort of sin1 provided only it is respectable1 and does not hurt them in the world's eyes4 ,and all the while they keep up their religion4 ,ay1 they are often more attentive than ever to religion1 because their consciences pinch them at times1 and have to be silenced and drugged by continual church-goings and chapel-goings1 and readings and prayings1 in order that they may be able to say to themselves with ,balaam1 ',thus saith ,balaam1 he who heard the word of ,god1 and had the knowledge of the ,most ,high4' ,so they say to themselves1 ',i must be right4 ,how religious ,i am2 how fond of sermons1 and of church services1 and church restorations1 and missionary meetings1 and charitable institutions1 and everything that is good and pious4 ,i ,,must be right with ,god4' ,deceiving their ownselves1 and saying to themselves1 ',i am rich and increased with goods1 ,i have need of nothing1' and not knowing that they are wretched1 and miserable1 and blind1 and naked4 ,would ,god that such people1 of whom there are too many1 would take ,st4 ,john's warning and buy of the ,lord gold tried in the fire--the true gold of honesty--that they may be truly rich1 and anoint their eyes with eye-salve that they may see themselves for once as they are4 ,but what does this story teach us concerning ,god8 ,for remember1 as ,i tell you every ,sunday1 that each fresh story in the ,pentateuch reveals to us something fresh about the character of ,god4 ,what does ,balaam's story reveal8 ,balaam himself tells us in the text1 ',god is not a man that he should lie1 nor the son of man that he should repent4 ,hath he said1 and shall he not do it8' ,yes4 ,fancy not that any wishes or prayers of yours can persuade ,god to alter his everlasting laws of right and wrong4 ,if he has commanded a thing1 he has commanded it because it is according to his everlasting laws1 which cannot change1 because they are made in his eternal image and likeness4 ,therefore if ,god has commanded you a thing1 ,,do ,,it heartily1 fully1 without arguing or complaining4 ,if you begin arguing with ,god's law1 excusing yourself from it1 inventing reasons why ,,you need not obey it in this particular instance1 though every one else ought1 then you will end1 like ,balaam1 in disobeying the law1 and it will grind you to powder4 ,but if you obey ,god's law honestly1 with a single eye and a whole heart1 you will find in it a blessing1 and peace1 and strength1 and everlasting life4 ,,sermon ,,xv4 ,,deuteronomy 7,third ,sunday after ,easter47 ,deut4 iv4 #ci1 #dj4 ,know therefore this day1 and consider it in thine heart1 that the ,lord he is ,god in heaven above1 and upon the earth beneath3 there is none else4 ,thou shall keep therefore his statutes and his commandments1 which ,i command thee this day1 that it may go well with thee1 and with thy children after thee1 and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth1 which the ,lord thy ,god giveth thee1 for ever4 ,learned men have argued much of late as to who wrote the book of ,deuteronomy4 ,after having read a good deal on the subject1 ,i can only say that ,i see no reason why we should not believe the ancient account which the ,jews give1 that it was written1 or at least spoken by ,moses4 ,no doubt there are difficulties in the book4 ,if there had not been1 there would never have been any dispute about the matter2 but the plain1 broad1 common-sense case is this3 ,the book of ,deuteronomy is made up of several great orations or sermons1 delivered1 says the work itself1 by ,moses1 to the whole people of the ,jews1 before they left the wilderness and entered into the land of ,canaan2 wherefore it is called ,deuteronomy1 or the second law4 ,in it some small matters of the law are altered1 as was to be expected1 when the ,jews were going to change their place and their whole way of life4 ,but the whole teaching and meaning of the book is exactly that of ,exodus and ,leviticus4 ,moreover1 it is1 if possible1 the grandest and deepest book of the ,old ,testament4 ,its depth and wisdom are unequalled4 ,i hold it to be the sum and substance of all political philosophy and morality of the true life of a nation4 ,the books of ,isaiah1 ,jeremiah1 and ,ezekiel1 grand as they are1 are1 as it were1 its children2 growths out of the root which ,deuteronomy reveals4 ,now if ,moses did not write it1 who did8 ,as for the style of it being different from that of ,exodus and ,leviticus1 the simple answer is1 ,why not8 ,they are books of history and of laws4 ,this is a book of sermons or orations1 spoken first1 and not written1 which1 of course1 would be in a different style4 ,besides1 why should not ,moses have spoken differently at the end of forty years' such experience as never man had before or since8 ,every one who thinks1 writes1 or speaks in public1 knows how his style alters1 as fresh knowledge and experience come to him4 ,are you to suppose that ,moses gained nothing by ,,his experience8 ,as for a few texts in it being like ,isaiah or ,jeremiah1 they are likely enough to be so2 for if 7as ,i believe7 ,deuteronomy was written long before those books1 what more likely than that ,isaiah and ,jeremiah should have studied it1 and taken some of its words to themselves when they were preaching to the ,jews just what ,deuteronomy preaches8 ,as for any one else having written it in ,moses' name1 hundreds of years after his death1 ,i cannot believe it4 ,if there had been in ,israel a prophet great and wise enough to write ,deuteronomy1 we must have heard more about him1 for he must have been famous at the time when he did live2 while1 if he were great enough to write ,deuteronomy1 he would have surely written in his own name1 as ,isaiah and all the other prophets wrote1 instead of writing under a feigned name1 and putting words into ,moses' mouth which he did not speak1 and laws he did not give4 ,good men are not in the habit of telling lies3 much less prophets of ,god4 ,men do not begin to play cowardly tricks of that kind till after they have lost faith in the ,,living ,god1 and got to believe that ,god was with their forefathers1 but is not with them4 ,a ,jew of the time of the ,apocrypha1 or of the time of our ,lord1 might have done such a thing1 because he had lost faith in the living ,god2 but then his work would have been of a very different kind from this noble and heart-stirring book4 ,for the pith and marrow1 the essence and life of ,deuteronomy is1 that it is full of faith in the living ,god2 and for that very reason ,i am going to speak to you to-day4 ,for the rest1 whether ,moses wrote the book down1 and put it together in the shape in which we now have it1 we shall never be able to tell4 ,the several orations may have been put together into one book4 ,alterations may have crept in by the carelessness of copiers2 sentences may have been added to it by later prophets--as1 of course1 the grand account of ,moses' death1 which probably was at first the beginning of the book of ,joshua4 ,and beyond that we need know nothing--even if we need know that4 ,there the book is2 and people1 if they be wise1 will1 instead of trying to pick it to pieces1 read and study it in fear and trembling1 that the curses pronounced in it may ,,not come1 and the blessings pronounced in it may come upon this ,english land4 ,now these ,jews were to worship and obey ,jehovah1 the one true ,god1 and him only4 ,and why8 ,why1 indeed8 ,you ,,must understand why1 or you will never understand this book of ,deuteronomy or any part of the ,old ,testament1 and if you do not1 then you will understand very little1 if anything1 of the ,new4 ,you must understand that this was not to be a mere matter of ,,religion with the old ,jews1 this trusting and obeying the true ,god4 ,indeed1 the word religion1 so far as ,i know1 is never mentioned once in the ,old ,testament at all4 ,by religion we now mean some plan of believing and obeying ,god1 which will save our souls after we die4 ,but ,moses said nothing to the ,jews about that4 ,he never even anywhere told them that they would live again after this life4 ,we do not know the reason of that4 ,but we may suppose that he knew best4 ,and as we believe that ,god sent him1 we must believe that ,god knew best also2 and that he thought it good for these ,jews not to be told too much about the next life2 perhaps for fear that they should forget that ,god was the living ,god2 the ,god of now1 as well as of hereafter2 the ,god of this life1 as well as of the life to come4 ,my friends1 ,i sometimes think we need putting in mind of that in these days as much as those old ,jews did4 ,however that may be1 what ,moses promised these ,jews1 if they trusted in the living ,god1 was that they should be a great nation1 they and their children after them2 that they should drive out the ,canaanites before them2 that they should conquer their enemies1 and that a thousand should flee before one of them2 that they should be blessed in their crops1 their orchards1 their gardens2 that they should have none of the evil diseases of ,egypt2 that there should be none barren among them1 or among their cattle4 ,in a word1 that they should be thoroughly and always a strong1 happy1 prosperous people4 ,this is what ,god promised them by ,moses1 and nothing else2 and therefore this is what we must think about1 and see whether it has anything to do with us1 when we read the book of ,deuteronomy1 and nothing else4 ,on the other hand1 ,god warned them by the mouth of ,moses that if they forgot the ,lord ,god1 and went and worshipped the things round them1 men or beasts1 or sun and moon and stars1 then poverty1 misery1 and ruin of every kind would surely fall upon them4 ,and that this last was no empty threat is proved by the plain facts of their sacred history4 ,for they ,,did forget ,god1 and worshipped ,baalim1 the sun1 moon1 and stars2 and ruin of every kind ,,did come upon them1 till they were carried away captive to ,babylon4 ,and this we must think of when we read the book of ,deuteronomy1 and nothing else4 ,if they wished to prosper1 they were to know and consider in their hearts that ,jehovah was ,god1 and there was none else4 ,yes-- this was the continual thought which a true ,jew was to have4 ,the thought of a ,god who was ,,his ,god2 the ,god of his fathers before him1 and the ,god of his children after him2 the ,god of the whole nation of the ,jews1 throughout all their generations4 ,but not their ,god only4 ,no4 ,the ,god of the ,gentiles also1 of all the nations upon the earth4 ,he was to believe that his ,god alone1 of all the gods of the nations1 was the true and only ,god1 who had made all nations1 and appointed them their times and the bounds of their habitations4 ,we cannot understand now1 in these happier days1 all that that meant2 all the strength and comfort1 all the godly fear1 the feeling of solemn responsibility which that thought ought to have given1 and did give to the ,jews--that they were the people of ,jehovah1 the one true ,god4 ,for you must remember that all the nations round them then1 and all the great heathen nations afterwards1 were1 as far as we know1 the people of some god or other4 ,religion and politics were with them one and the same thing4 ,they had some god1 or gods1 whom they looked to as the head or king of their nation1 who had a special favour to them1 and would bless and prosper them according as they showed him special reverence1 and after that god the whole nation was often named4 ,the ,ammonites' god was ,ammon1 the hidden god1 the lord of their sheep and cattle4 ,the ,zidonians had ,ashtoreth1 the moon4 ,the ,phoenicians worshipped ,moloch1 the fire4 ,many of the ,canaanites worshipped ,baal1 the lord1 or ,baalim1 the lords--the sun1 moon1 and stars4 ,the ,philistines afterwards 7for we read nothing of ,philistines in ,moses' time7 worshipped ,dagon1 the fish-god1 and so forth4 ,the ,egyptians had gods without number--gods invented out of beasts1 and birds1 and the fruits of the earth1 and the season1 and the weather1 and the sun and moon and stars4 ,each class and trade1 from the highest to the lowest1 and each city and town throughout the land seems to have had its special god1 who was worshipped there1 and expected to take care of that particular class of men or that particular place4 ,what a thought it must have been for the ,jews--all these people have their gods1 but they are all wrong4 ,we have the ,,right ,god2 the only true ,god4 ,they are the people of this god1 or of that2 we are the people of the one true ,god4 ,they look to many gods2 we look to the one ,god1 who made all things1 and beside whom there is none else4 ,they look to one god to bless them in one thing1 and another in another2 one to send them sunshine1 one to send them fruitful seasons1 one to prosper their crops1 another their flocks and herds1 and so forth4 ,we look to one ,god to do all these things for us1 because he is ,lord of all at once1 and has made all4 ,therefore we need not fear the gods of the heathen1 or cry to any of them1 even in our utmost distress2 for we belong to him who is before all gods1 the ,god of gods1 of whom it is written1 ',worship him1 all ye gods2' and ',it is the ,lord who made the heaven and the earth1 the sea and all that therein is4 ,him only shalt thou worship1 and him only shalt thou serve4' ,if we obey him1 and keep his commandments2 if we trust in him1 utterly1 through good fortune and through bad--then we must prosper in peace and war1 we and our children after us2 because our prosperity is grounded on the real truth1 and that of the heathen on a lie2 and all that the heathen expect their false gods to do for them1 one here and another there1 all that1 the one real ,god will do for us1 himself alone4 ,do you not see what a power and courage that thought must have given to the ,jews8 ,do you not see how worshipping ,god1 and loving ,god1 and serving ,god1 must have been a very different1 a much deeper1 and a truly holier matter to them than the miserable selfish thing which is miscalled religion by too many people now-a-days1 by which a man hopes to creep out of this world into heaven all by himself1 without any real care or love for his fellow-creatures1 or those he leaves behind him8 ,no4 ,an old ,jew's faith in ,god1 and obedience to ,god1 was part of his family life1 part of his politics1 part of his patriotism4 ,if he obeyed ,god1 and clave earnestly to ,god1 then a blessing would come on him in the field and in the house1 on his crops and on his cattle1 going out and coming in2 and on his children and his children's children to a thousand generations4 ,he would be helping1 if he obeyed and trusted ,god1 to advance his country's prosperity2 to insure her success in war and peace1 to raise the name and fame of the ,jewish people among all the nations round1 that all might say1 ',surely this great nation is a wise and an understanding people4' ,thus the duty he owed to ,god was not merely a duty which he owed his own conscience or his own soul2 it was a duty which he owed to his family1 to his kindred1 to his country4 ,it was not merely an opinion that there was one ,god and not two2 it was a belief that the one and only true ,god was protecting him1 teaching him1 inspiring him and all his nation4 ,that the true ,god would teach their hands to war and their fingers to fight4 ,that the true ,god would cause their folds to be full of sheep4 ,that their valleys should stand rich with corn1 that they should laugh and sing4 ,that the true ,god would enable them to sit every man under his own vine and his own fig-tree1 and eat the labour of his hands1 he and his children after him to perpetual generations4 ,this was the message and teaching which ,god gave these ,jews4 ,it is very different from what many people now-a-days would have given them1 if they had had the ordering of the matter1 and the making of those slaves into a free nation4 ,but perhaps there is one proof that ,god ,,did give it them1 and that the ,bible speaks truth1 when it says that not man1 but ,god gave them their law4 ,no doubt man would have done it differently4 ,but ,god's ways are not as man's ways1 nor ,god's thoughts as man's thoughts4 ,and ,god's ways have proved themselves to be the right ways4 ,his purpose has come to pass4 ,this little nation of the ,jews1 inhabiting a country not as large as ,wales1 without sea-port towns and commerce1 without colonies or conquests--and at last1 for its own sins1 conquered itself1 and scattered abroad over the whole civilized world--has taught the whole civilized world1 has converted the whole civilized world1 has influenced all the good and all the wise unto this day so enormously1 that the world has actually gone beyond them1 and become ,christian by fully understanding their teaching and their ,bible1 while they have remained mere ,jews by not fully understanding it4 ,truly1 if that is not a proof that ,god revealed something to the ,jews which they never found out for themselves1 which was too great for them to understand1 which was ,god's boundless message and not any narrow message of man's invention--if that does not prove it1 ,i say--,i know not what proof men would have4 ,but now ,i have told you that ,god bade these ,jews to look for blessings in ,,this life1 and blessings on their whole nation1 and on their children after them1 if they obeyed and served him4 ,does ,god ,,not bid us to look for any such blessings8 ,the ,jews were to be blessed in ,,this world4 ,are we only to be blessed in the next8 ,to that the ,seventh ,article of our ,church gives a plain and positive answer4 ,for it says that those are not to be heard who pretend that the old ,fathers1 i4e4 ,moses and the ,prophets1 looked only for transitory promises--i4e4 for promises which would pass away4 ,no4 ,they looked for eternal promises which could not pass away1 because they were according to the eternal laws of ,god1 which stand good both for this world and for all worlds for this life and for the life everlasting4 ,yes1 my friends1 settle in your hearts that the book of ,deuteronomy is meant for you1 and for all the nations upon earth1 as much as for the old ,jews4 ,that its promises and warnings are to you and to your children as surely as they were to the old ,jews4 ,ay1 that they are meant for every nation that is1 or ever was1 or ever will be upon earth4 ,if you would prosper on the earth1 fear ,god and keep his commandments2 and know and consider it in your heart that the ,lord ,jesus ,christ he is ,god in heaven above and on the earth beneath3 there is none else4 ,he it is who gives grace and honour4 ,he it is who delivers us out of the hands of our enemies4 ,he it is who blesses the fruit of the womb1 and the fruit of the flock1 and the fruit of the garden and the field4 ,he is the living ,god1 in whom this world1 as well as the world to come1 lives and moves and has its being2 and only by obeying his laws can man prosper1 he and his children after him1 upon this earth of ,god4 ,,sermon ,,xvi4 ,,national ,,wealth 7,fifth ,sunday after ,easter47 ,deut4 viii4 #aa-ah4 ,beware that thou forget not the ,lord thy ,god1 in not keeping his commandments1 and his judgments1 and his statutes1 which ,i command thee this day3 lest when thou hast eaten and art full1 and hast built goodly houses1 and dwelt therein2 and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply1 and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied1 and all that thou hast is multiplied2 then thine heart be lifted up1 and thou forget the ,lord thy ,god1 which brought thee forth out of the land of ,egypt1 from the house of bondage2 who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness1 wherein were fiery serpents1 and scorpions1 and drought1 where there was no water2 who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint2 who fed thee in the wilderness with manna1 which thy fathers knew not1 that he might humble thee and that he might prove thee1 to do thee good at thy latter end3 and thou say in thine heart1 ,my power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth4 ,but thou shall remember the ,lord thy ,god3 for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth1 that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers1 as it is this day4 ,i told you before that the book of ,deuteronomy was the foundation of all sound politics--as one would expect it to be1 if its author were ,moses1 the greatest lawgiver whom the world ever saw4 ,but here1 in this lesson1 is a proof of the truth of what ,i said4 ,for here1 in the text1 is ,moses' answer to the first great question in politics1 ,what makes a nation prosperous8 ,to that wise men have always answered1 as ,moses answered1 ',good government2 government according to the laws of ,god4' ,that alone makes a nation prosperous4 ,but the multitude--who are not wise men1 nor likely to be for some time to come--give a different answer4 ,they say1 ',what makes a nation prosperous is its wealth4 ,if ,britain be only ,,rich1 then she must be safe and right4' ,to which ,moses1 being a wise lawgiver1 and having1 moreover1 in him the ,spirit of the ,lord who knoweth what is in man1 makes a reasonable1 liberal1 humane answer4 ,moses does not deny that wealth is a good thing4 ,he does not bid them not try to be rich4 ,he takes for granted that they will grow rich2 that the national fruit of their good government will be that they will increase in cattle and in crops and in money1 and in all which makes an agricultural people rich4 ,he takes for granted1 ,i say1 that these ,jews will grow very rich2 but he warns them that their riches1 like all other earthly things1 may be a curse or a blessing to them4 ,nay1 that they are not good in themselves1 but mere tools which may be used for good or for evil4 ,he warns them of a very great danger that riches will bring on them4 ,and herein he shows his knowledge of the human heart2 for it is a certain fact that whenever any nation has prospered1 and their flocks and herds1 and silver and gold1 all that they had1 have multiplied1 then they have1 as ,moses warned the ,jews1 forgotten the ,lord their ,god1 and said1 ',my power and the might of my hand hath gotten me this wealth4' ,and it is true1 also1 that whenever any nation has begun to say that1 they have fallen into confusion and misery1 and sometimes into utter ruin1 till they repented1 and turned and remembered the ,lord their ,god1 and found out that the strength of a nation did not consist in riches1 but in ,,virtue4 ,for it is he that giveth the power to get wealth4 ,he gives it in two ways3 ,first1 ,god gives the raw material2 secondly1 he gives the wit to use it4 ,you will all agree that ,god gives the first2 that he gives the soil1 the timber1 the fisheries1 the coal1 the iron4 ,do you believe it8 ,i hope and trust that you do4 ,but ,i fear that now-a-days many do not2 for they boast of the resources of ,britain as if we ourselves had made ,britain1 and not ,almighty ,god2 as if we had put the coal and the iron into the rocks1 and not ,almighty ,god ages before we were born4 ,and if they will not say that openly1 at least they will say1 ',but the coal1 and iron1 and all other raw material would have been useless1 if it had not been for the genius and energy of the ,british race4' ,of course not4 ,but who gave them that genius and energy8 ,who gave them the wit to find the coal and iron8 ,god2 and ,god gave it to us when we needed it1 and not before4 ,think of this1 ,i beseech you2 for it is true1 and wonderful1 and a thing of which ,i may say1 ',come1 and ,i will reason with you of the righteous acts of the ,lord4' ,men say1 ',as long as ,england is ahead of the world in coal and iron she may defy the world4' ,i do not believe it2 for if she became a wicked nation all the coal and iron in the universe would not keep her from being ruined4 ,but even if it were true1 which it is not1 that the strength of ,britain lies in coal and iron1 and not in ,british hearts1 what right have we to boast of coal and iron8 ,did our forefathers know of them when they came into this land8 ,did they come after coal and iron8 ,not they4 ,they came here to settle as small yeomen2 to till miserable little patches of corn1 of which we should be now ashamed1 and to feed cattle on the moors1 and swine in the forests--and that was all they looked to4 ,then they found that there was iron1 principally down south1 in ,sussex and ,surrey2 and they worked it1 clumsily enough1 with charcoal2 and for more than twelve hundred years they were here in ,england1 with no notion of the boundless wealth in iron and coal lying together in the same rocks which ,god had provided for them2 or if they did guess at it1 they could not use it1 because they could not work deep mines1 being unable to pump out the water2 for ,god had not opened their eyes and shown them how to do it4 ,but just when it was wanted1 ,god did show them4 ,about the middle of the last century the iron in the ,weald was all but worked out2 the charcoal wood was getting scarcer and scarcer1 and there was every chance that ,england1 instead of being ahead of all nations in iron1 would have fallen behind other nations2 and then where should we have been now8 ,but1 just about one hundred years ago1 it pleased ,god to open the eyes of certain men1 and they invented steam-engines4 ,then they could pump the mines1 then they could discover and use the vast riches of our coal-mines4 ,then1 too1 sprung up a thousand useful arts and manufactures2 while the land1 not being wanted for charcoal and firewood1 as of old1 could be cleared of wood1 and thousands of acres set free to grow corn4 ,population1 which had been all but standing still1 without increasing1 has now more than doubled1 and wealth inestimable has come to this generation1 of which our forefathers never dreamed4 ,now what have we to boast of in that8 ,what1 save to confess ourselves a very stupid race1 who for twelve hundred years could not discover1 or at least use the boundless wealth which ,god had given us1 because we had not wit enough to invent so simple a thing as a steam-engine4 ,all we should do1 instead of boasting1 is to bless ,god that he revealed to us just what we needed1 and at the very time at which we needed it1 and confess that it is ,,he that giveth us power to get wealth4 ,it is he that hath made us1 and not we ourselves4 ,look again at another case1 even more extraordinary1 which has happened during our own times--indeed within the last ten years--the discovery of gold in ,australia4 ,there had been rumours and whispers of gold for years before2 and yet no one looked for gold1 cared for it1 hardly believed in it4 ,god had dulled their understanding and blinded their eyes for some good purpose of his own4 ,that is what the ,bible would have said of such a matter1 and that is what we should say4 ,and at last some man finds lying out upon the downs a huge lump of gold--by accident 7as men call it2 by the special providence of ,god1 as they ought to call it72 and at that every one starts up and awakes1 and begins looking for gold4 ,and now that their eyes are opened1 behold6 the gold is everywhere4 ,not merely in lonely forests and unexplored mountains1 but on farms where the sheep have been pastured for years past2 ay1 even ,melbourne streets were full of gold1 under the feet of the passengers and the wheels of the carriages2 there had the gold been all along1 but men could not see it till ,god opened their eyes4 ,verily1 verily1 ,god is great1 and man is small4 ,i do not say that this was a miracle in the common meaning of the word2 but ,i do say that this was a striking instance of that everlasting and special providence of the living ,god1 who ordereth all things in heaven and earth1 from the rise of a nation to the fall of a sparrow2 and does so1 not by breaking his own laws1 but by making his laws work exactly as he will1 when he will1 and where he will2 and ,i say that it is a fresh proof of the great saying1 that no man can see a thing unless ,god shows it to him4 ,for it is the ,lord who gives us power to get wealth4 ,it is he that hath made us1 and not we ourselves2 and in him we live and move1 and have our being4 ,this1 then1 was what ,moses commanded--to remember that they owed all to ,god4 ,what they had1 they had of ,god's free gift4 ,what they were1 they were by ,god's free grace4 ,therefore they were not to boast of themselves1 their numbers1 their wealth1 their armies1 their fair and fertile land4 ,they were to make their boast of ,god1 and of ,god's goodness4 ,he that gloried was to glory in the ,lord1 and confess that a ,syrian ready to perish was their father ,jacob1 when the ,lord had mercy on him1 and made him the head of a great tribe1 and the father of a great nation2 that not themselves1 but ,god had brought them out of ,egypt with signs and wonders2 that they got not the land in possession by their own bow1 neither was it their own sword that helped them1 but that ,god had driven out before them nations greater and mightier than they4 ,this they were to remember1 because it was true4 ,and this we are to remember1 because it is more or less true of us4 ,god has put us where we are4 ,god has made of us a great nation2 ,god has discovered to us the immense riches of this land4 ,it is he that hath made us1 and not we ourselves4 ,but more4 ,you will see that ,moses warns them that if they forget ,god1 the ,lord who brought them out of the land of ,egypt1 they would go after other gods4 ,he cannot part the two things4 ,if they forget that ,god brought them out of ,egypt1 they will turn to idolatry1 and so end in ruin4 ,now why was this8 ,why should not the ,jews have gone on worshipping one ,god1 even if they had forgotten that he brought them out of the land of ,egypt8 ,some people now-a-days think that they would1 and that they might have very well been what is called ,monotheists1 without believing all the story of the signs and wonders in ,egypt1 and the passage of the ,red ,sea1 and the giving of the law to ,moses4 ,such men may be very learned2 but there is one thing of which they know very little1 and that is1 human nature4 ,moses knew human nature2 and he knew that if men forgot that ,god was the living ,god1 the acting ,god1 who had helped them once1 and was helping them always1 and only believed about there being one ,god far away in heaven1 and not two1 that ,,that sort of dead faith in a dead ,god would never keep them from idols4 ,they would want gods who ,,would help them1 who ,,would hear their prayers1 to whom they could feel gratitude and trust2 and they would invent them for themselves1 and begin to worship things in the heavens above1 and the earth beneath1 because they had forgotten their true friend and helper1 the living ,god4 ,and so shall we4 ,if we forget that ,god is the living ,god1 who brought our forefathers into this land2 who has revealed to us the wealth of it step by step1 as we needed it2 who is helping and blessing us now1 every day and all the year round--then we shall begin worshipping other gods4 ,i do not mean that we shall worship idols1 though ,i do not see why our children's children should not do so a few hundred years hence if we teach them to forget the living ,god4 ,there are too many ,christians at this day who worship saints1 and idols of wood and stone2 and so may our descendants do--or do even worse4 ,but we ourselves shall begin--indeed we are doing it too much already--worshipping the so-called laws of nature1 instead of ,god who made the laws1 and so honouring the creature above the creator2 or else we shall worship the pomps and vanities of this world1 pride and power1 money and pleasure1 and say in our hearts1 ',these are our only gods which can help us--these must we obey4' ,which if we do1 this land of ,england will come to ruin and shame1 as surely as did the land of ,israel in old time4 ,if we do not believe in the living ,god1 we shall believe in something worse than even a dead god4 ,for in a dead god--a god who does nothing1 but lets mankind and the world go their own way--no man nor nation ever will care to believe4 ,and now1 nay dear friends1 remember that a nation is1 after all1 only the people in that nation3 you1 and ,i1 and our neighbours1 and our neighbours' neighbours1 and so forth2 and that therefore1 in as far as we are wrong1 we do our worst to make the ,british nation wrong4 ,if we give way to ungodly pride and self-sufficiency1 then we are injuring ourselves2 and not only that1 but injuring our neighbours and our children after us1 as far as we can4 ,and therefore our duty is1 if we wish well to our nation1 not to judge our neighbour1 nor our neighbour's neighbour1 but to judge ourselves4 ,if we go on trusting in ourselves rather than ,god2 if we keep within us the hard self-sufficient spirit1 and boast to ourselves 7though we may be ashamed to boast to our neighbours71 ',my power and the strength of my hands have got me this and that2' and in fact live under the notion1 which too many have1 that we could do very well without ,god's help if ,god would let us alone--then we are heaping up ruin and shame for ourselves and for our children after us4 ,ruin and shame1 ,i say4 ,we are apt to forget how easy and common it is for ,god to turn the wisdom of men into folly2 to frustrate the tokens of the liars1 and make the prophets mad4 ,how men blow great bubbles1 and ,god bursts them with the slightest touch4 ,how1 when all seems well1 and men cry peace and safety1 sudden destruction comes upon them unawares4 ,how1 when men say1 ',soul1 take thine ease1 eat1 drink1 and be merry2 thou hast much goods laid up for many years1' ,god answers1 ',thou fool1 this night shall thy soul be required of thee4' ,my friends1 we see ,god doing thus in these very days by great nations1 by great branches of industry4 ,look at the ,american war1 look at the ,manchester cotton famine1 and see how ,god can confound the strong and cunning1 and blind their eyes to the ruin which is coming till it is come in all its might4 ,and then think1 ,if it be so easy for him to confound such as them1 is it less easy for him to confound you and me1 if we begin to fancy that we can do without him1 and ask1 ',doth ,god perceive it8 ,or is there knowledge in the ,most ,high8 ,we are they that ought to speak4 ,who is ,lord over us8' ,yes1 in this sense ,god is indeed a jealous ,god1 who will not give his honour to another4 ,and a blessed thing for men it is that ,god ,,is a jealous ,god1 that he ,,will punish us for trusting in anything but him--will punish us for trusting in ourselves1 or in our wisdom1 or in wealth1 or in science1 or in armies and navies1 or in constitutions and laws2 in anything1 in short1 save the living ,god4 ,for if he left us alone to go our own way without trusting or fearing him1 we should surely go down and down 7as the ,chinese seem to have gone down71 generation after generation1 till we became only a mere cunning and spiteful sort of animals1 hateful and hating one another4 ,but when we are chastened for our folly1 we are chastened by him that we may be partakers of his holiness2 that we may be his children1 looking up to him as our father1 from whom comes every good and perfect gift2 the ,father of ,lights1 with whom is no variableness or shadow of turning2 and who therefore will and can give us1 his children1 light1 more and more to understand those his invariable and eternal laws1 by which he has made earth and heaven2 who has given us his ,son ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 and will with him likewise freely give us all things4 ,,sermon ,,xvii4 ,,the ,,god ,,of ,,the ,,rain 7,fifth ,sunday after ,easter47 ,,deut4 xi4 #aa1 #ab4 ,the land1 whither ye go to possess it1 is a land of hills and valleys1 and drinketh water of the rain of heaven4 ,a land which the ,lord thy ,god careth for3 the eyes of the ,lord thy ,god are always upon it1 from the beginning of the year1 even unto the end of the year4 ,i told you1 when ,i spoke of the earthquakes of the ,holy ,land1 that it seems as if ,god had meant specially to train that strange people the ,jews1 by putting them into a country where they ,,must trust him1 or become cowards and helpless2 that so they might learn not to fear the powers of ,nature which the heathen worshipped1 but to fear him the living ,god4 ,in this chapter is another instance of the same4 ,they were to be an agricultural people4 ,their very worship was 7if you can understand such a thing now-a-days7 to be agricultural4 ,pentecost was a feast of the first-fruits of the harvest4 ,the ,feast of ,tabernacles was a great national harvest home4 ,the ,passover itself1 though not at first an agricultural festival1 became one by the waving of the ,paschal sheaf1 which gave permission to the people to begin their spring-harvest--so thoroughly were they to be an agricultural and cattle-feeding people4 ,they were going into a good land1 a land of milk and honey and oil olive2 a land of vines and figs and pomegranates2 a rich land2 but a most uncertain land--a land which might yield a splendid crop one year1 and be almost barren the next4 ,it was not as the land of ,egypt--a land which was1 humanly speaking1 sure to be fertile1 because always supplied with water1 brought out of the ,nile by dykes and channels which spread in a network over every field1 and where--as ,i believe is done now--the labourer turned the water from one land to the other simply by moving the earth with his foot4 ,it was a mountain land1 a land of hills and valleys1 and drank water of the rain of heaven2 a land of fountains of water1 which required to be fed continually by the rain4 ,in that hot climate it depended entirely on ,god's providence from week to week whether a crop could grow4 ,therefore it was a land which the ,lord cared for--a land which needed his special help1 and it had it4 ',the eyes of the ,lord ,god were always upon it1 from the beginning of the year unto the end of the year4' ,beautiful1 simple1 noble1 true words--deeper than all the learned words1 however true they may be 7and true they are1 and to be listened to with respect71 which men talk about the laws of ,nature and of weather4 ,who would change them for all the scientific phrases in the world8 ,the eyes of the ,lord were upon the land4 ,it needed his care2 and therefore his care it had4 ,therefore the ,jew was to understand from his first entry into the land1 that his prosperity depended utterly on ,god4 ,the laws of weather1 by which the rain comes up off the sea1 were unknown to him4 ,they are all but unknown to us now4 ,but they were known to ,god4 ,not a drop could fall without his providence and will2 and therefore they were utterly in his power4 ',and it shall come to pass1 if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which ,i command you this day1 to love the ,lord your ,god1 and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul1 that ,i will give you the rain of your land in his due season1 the first rain and the latter rain1 that thou mayest gather in thy corn1 and thy wine1 and thine oil4 ,and ,i will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle1 that thou mayest eat and be full4 ,take heed to yourselves1 that your heart be not deceived1 and ye turn aside and serve other gods1 and worship them2 and then the ,lord's wrath be kindled against you1 and he shut up the heaven1 that there be no rain1 and that the land yield not her fruit2 and lest ye perish quickly from off the good land which the ,lord giveth you4' ,now the ,bible story is1 that this warning came true4 ,more than once we read of drought--long1 and severe1 and ruinous4 ,in one famous case1 there was no rain for three years2 and ,ahab has to go out to search through the land for a scrap of pasture4 ',peradventure we shall find grass enough to save the horses and mules alive4' ,and most distinctly does the ,bible say that these droughts came at times when the ,jews had fallen into idolatry1 and profligacy therewith4 ,that is the ,scripture account4 ,and if you believe in the living ,god1 whose providence ordereth all things in heaven and earth1 that account will seem reasonable and credible to you4 ,what special means ,god used to bring about these great droughts we cannot know1 any more than we can know why a storm or a shower should come one week and not another4 ,and we need not know4 ,god made the world1 and ,god governs the world1 and that is enough for us4 ,be that as it may1 ,moses goes down to the very root and ground and true cause of the riches of the land1 and of the rainfall1 and of the prosperity of the ,jews1 and of the prosperity of any living nation on earth1 when he says1 ',therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul1 and bind them for a sign upon your hand1 that they may be as frontlets between your eyes4' ',ye shall lay up these my words in your heart and your soul1 and teach them your children when thou sittest in thine house and when thou walkest by the way1 when thou liest down and when thou risest up4' ,that is1 thou shalt believe continually in a living ,god--a ,god who is working everywhere at every moment1 about thy path and about thy bed1 and spying out all thy ways2 and not only about thee1 but about all that thou seest4 ,from him comes alike rain and sunshine2 from him comes the life of man2 from him comes all which makes it possible for man to live upon the earth4 ,and it is a plain fact that the ,jews for a long time did believe this--at least the prophets1 psalmists and good men among them--to the most intense degree2 to a degree in which perhaps no nation has believed it since4 ,with them ,god is everything1 and man nothing4 ,man finds out nothing3 ,god reveals it to him4 ,man's intellect does nothing3 the ,spirit of ,god gives him understanding to do it--even1 says ,isaiah1 understanding to plough1 and to sow1 and to reap his crops in due season4 ,it is the ,spirit of ,god1 according to the prophets and psalmists1 which makes the difference between a man and a beast4 ,but upon the beasts too1 and the green things of the earth1 and on all nature1 the ,spirit of ,god works4 ,he is the ,lord and giver of life4 ,take only those four ,psalms1 the #hth1 #ahth1 #bith1 #ajdth1 and learn from them what the old ,jews thought of this wonderful world in which we live4 ',these all wait upon thee'--all living things by land and sea--'that thou mayest give them meat in due season4 ,when thou givest it them they gather it4 ,when thou openest thy hand they are filled with good4 ,when thou hidest thy face they are troubled4 ,when thou takest away their breath they die1 and are turned again to their dust4 ,when thou lettest thy breath go forth they shall be made1 and thou shalt renew the face of the earth4' ,so again1 in the world of man1 ,god is the living ,judge1 the living overlooker1 rewarder1 punisher of every man1 not only in the life to come1 but in this life4 ,his providence is a special providence4 ,but not such a poor special providence as men are too apt to dream of now-a-days1 which interferes only now and then on some great occasion1 or on behalf of some very favoured persons1 but a special providence looking after every special act of man1 and of the whole universe1 from the fall of a sparrow to the fall of an empire4 ,and it is this intense faith in the living ,god1 which can only come by the inspiration of the ,spirit of ,god1 which proves the old ,testament to be truly inspired4 ,this it is which makes it different from all books in the world4 ,this it is1 ,i hold1 which marks the canon of ,scripture4 ,for in the ,apocrypha--true1 noble1 and good as most of it is--you do not find the same intense faith in the living ,god1 or anything to be compared therewith2 and that for the simple reason that the ,jews1 at the time the ,apocrypha was written1 were losing that faith very fast4 ,they felt themselves that there was an immense difference between anything that they could write and what the old psalmists and prophets had written4 ,they felt that they could not write ,scripture4 ,all they could do was to write commentaries about it1 and to carry out in their own fashion ,moses' command1 ',thou shalt bind my words for a sign upon your hands1 and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes1 and thou shalt write them upon the doorposts of thine house4' ,they were right in that2 but as they lost faith in the living ,god1 they began to observe the command in the letter1 and neglect it in the spirit4 ,you know--some of you1 at least--how these words were misused afterwards2 how the scribes and the ,pharisees1 in their zeal to carry out the letter of the law1 went about with texts of ,scripture on their foreheads1 and wrists1 and the hems of their robes1 enlarging their phylacteries1 as our ,lord said of them4 ,but all the time they did not understand the texts1 or love them1 or get any good from them2 but only made them excuses for hating and scoffing at the rest of the world4 ,they had them written only on their foreheads1 not on their hearts--an outside and not an inside religion4 ,they had lost all faith in the living ,god4 ,god had spoken1 of course1 to their forefathers2 but they could not believe that he was speaking to them--not even when he spoke by his only begotten ,son1 the brightness of his glory1 and the express image of his person4 ,god1 so they held1 had finished his teaching when ,malachi uttered his last prophecy4 ,and now it was for them to teach1 and expound the law at secondhand4 ,there could be no more prophets1 no more revelation2 and when one came and spoke with authority1 at first hand1 out of the depth of his own heart1 he was to be persecuted1 stoned1 crucified4 ,no4 ,they had the key of knowledge2 and no man could enter in1 unless they chose to open the door4 ,nothing new could be true4 ,john the ,baptist came neither eating nor drinking1 and they said1 ',he hath a devil4' ,the ,son of ,man came eating and drinking1 and they said1 ',behold a gluttonous man and a wine-bibber1 a friend of publicans and sinners4' ,and meanwhile the poor1 the ignorant1 those whose hearts were really in earnest1 were looking out for a prophet and a deliverer--often going after false prophets1 with ,theudas and ,barcochab1 into the wilderness2 but going1 too1 to be baptized with the baptism of ,john1 and crowding in thousands to hear our ,lord preach to them of the living ,god of whom ,moses had preached of old2 while the scribes and ,pharisees sat at home1 wrapped up in their narrow1 shallow book- divinity1 and said1 ',this people1 who knoweth not the law1 is accursed4' ,nothing new could be true4 ,it must be put down1 persecuted down1 lest the ,romans should come and take away their place and nation4 ,but they did not succeed4 ,our ,lord and his truth1 whom they crucified and buried1 rose again the third day and conquered2 and the ,romans came after all1 and took away their place and nation4 ,and so they failed1 as all will fail1 who will not believe in the living ,god4 ,my friends1 all these things were written for our example4 ,as it was then1 so may it be again4 ,there may come a time in this land when people shall profess to worship the word of ,god2 and yet1 like those old scribes1 make it of none effect by their own commandments and traditions4 ,when they shall command men1 like the scribes1 to honour every word and letter of the ,bible1 and yet forbid them to take the ,bible simply and literally as it stands1 but only their interpretation of the ,bible2 when they shall say1 with the scribes1 ',nothing new can be true4 ,god taught the ,apostles1 and therefore he is not teaching us4 ,god worked miracles of old2 but whosoever thinks that ,god is working miracles now is a ,pantheist and a blasphemer4 ,god taught men of old the thing which they knew not2 but whosoever dares to say that he does so now is bringing heresy and false doctrine1 and undermining the ,christian faith by science falsely so called4' ,and all because they have lost all faith in the living ,god--the ever-working1 ever-teaching1 ever-inspiring1 ever-governing ,god whom our ,lord ,jesus ,christ revealed to men2 in whom the ,apostles1 and the ,fathers1 and the great middle-age ,schoolmen1 and the ,reformers believed1 and therefore learned more and more1 and taught men more and more concerning ,god and the dealings of ,god1 as time went on4 ,and then1 when they see ignorant people running after quacks and impostors1 spirit-rappers and table-turners1 ,st4 ,simonians and ,mormons1 and false prophets of every kind1 they will have nothing to say but ',this people which knoweth not the law is accursed4' ,while when they see anything like new truth1 or new teaching from ,god appear1 instead of welcoming the light1 and going to meet the light1 and accepting the light1 they will say1 ',what shall we do8 ,for all men will believe on him1 and then the powers of this world will come and take away our station and our order8' ,as if ,christ could not take better care of his ,church for which he died than they can in his stead6 ,and so they will persecute ,god's servants1 in the name of ,god1 and call upon the law to put down by force the men whom they cannot put down by reason4 ,from ever falling into that state of stupid lip-belief1 and outward religion1 and loss of faith in the living ,god3 ,good ,lord1 deliver us4 ,from all blindness of heart2 from pride1 vainglory1 and hypocrisy2 from envy1 hatred1 and malice1 and all uncharitableness3 ,good ,lord1 deliver us4 ,from all false doctrine1 heresy1 and schism2 from hardness of heart and contempt of thy word and commandment3 ,good ,lord1 deliver us4 ,for if people ever fall into that frame of mind 7as did the scribes and ,pharisees71 and the good ,lord do not deliver them from it1 it will surely happen to them as it is written in the ,bible4 ,the powers of this world will come and take away their place1 and their power1 and their station3 but meanwhile the truth which they think that they have stifled will rise again1 for ,christ1 who is the truth1 will raise it again2 and it shall conquer and leaven the hearts of men till all be leavened2 and while the scribes and ,pharisees shall be cast into the outer darkness of discontented and hopeless bigotry1 the kingdoms of the world1 which they fancied were the devil's dominion1 shall become the kingdoms of ,god and of his ,christ1 and be adopted into that holy and ever-growing ,church1 of which it is written1 that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it1 for in it is the ,spirit of ,god to lead it into all truth4 ,to which blessed end may ,god bring us1 and our children after us4 ,amen4 ,,sermon ,,xviii4 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,moses 7,first ,sunday after ,trinity47 ,,deut4 xxxiv4 #e1 #f4 ,so ,moses the servant of the ,lord died there in the land of ,moab1 according to the word of the ,lord4 ,and he buried him in a valley in the land of ,moab1 over against ,beth-peor2 but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day4 ,some might regret that the last three chapters of ,deuteronomy are not read among our ,sunday lessons4 ,there was not1 however1 room for them2 and ,i do not doubt that those who chose our lessons knew better than ,i what chapters they ought to choose4 ,we may1 however1 read them for ourselves1 not only in the daily lessons1 but as often as we choose4 ,and well worth reading they are4 ,for ,i know of no stronger proof of the truth of the book of ,deuteronomy1 and of the whole ,pentateuch1 than its ending so differently from what we should have expected1 or indeed wished4 ,if things went in this world1 as they do in novels and fables1 according to man's notion of what is right and good1 then ,moses and his history would have had a very different ending4 ,and if the story of ,moses had been of man's invention1 we should have heard--,i think1 from what we know of the fables1 'myths' as they call them now1 which nations have invented about themselves1 and their own early history1 we may guess fairly what we should have heard--how ,moses brought the ,jews into the land of ,canaan1 and established his laws1 and reigned over them1 and died in honour and great glory--if he died at all1 and was not taken up into the skies1 and changed into a star1 or into a god2 and how he was buried with great pomp2 and how his sepulchre did remain among the ,jews until that day2 and probably how men worshipped at it1 and miracles were worked at it1 and so forth4 ,also1 we should have heard how1 as soon as the ,israelites came into the land of ,canaan1 they began forthwith to serve the ,lord with all their heart and soul1 as they never did afterwards1 and to keep ,moses' law1 while it was yet fresh in their minds1 more exactly than ever they did afterwards2 and in short1 we should have had one of those stories of a 'golden age1' a 'good old time1' a pattern-time of early purity and devotion1 of which nations and ,churches1 of all tongues and all creeds1 have been so ready to dream in their own case2 and which they have used1 not altogether ill1 to rebuke vice in their own day1 by saying1 ',look how perfect your forefathers were4 ,look how you1 their unworthy children1 have fallen from their faith and their virtue4' ,this1 ,i think1 is what we should have been told if the ,pentateuch had been the invention of man4 ,this is exactly what we are ,,not told2 but1 on the contrary1 the very opposite4 ,what we are told is disappointing1 sad1 gloomy1 full of dark fears and warnings about what the ,jews will be and what they will have to endure4 ,but it is far more true to human nature1 and to the facts which we see in the world about us1 than any story of a good old time would have been4 ,they are still wandering in the land of ,moab1 when the time draws near when ,moses must die4 ,he is a hundred and twenty years old1 but hale and vigorous still4 ,his eye is not dim1 nor his natural force abated4 ,but the ,lord has told him that his death is near4 ,he gives the command of the army of ,israel to ,joshua the son of ,nun1 and then he speaks his last words4 ,songs they are1 dark and rugged1 like all the higher ,hebrew poetry2 but1 like it1 full of the very ,spirit of ,god--the ,spirit of wisdom and understanding1 the ,spirit of faith and of the fear of the ,lord4 ,there are three of these songs which seem to belong to those last days of his4 ,the ,prayer of ,moses the man of ,god--which is our #ijth ,psalm1 our burial ,psalm4 ,we all know the sadness of that ,psalm2 its weariness1 as of one who had laboured long1 and would fain be at rest2 its confession of man's frailty--fading away suddenly like the grass2 its confession of ,god's strength1 ,god from everlasting1 before the mountains were brought forth2 its eternal gospel of hope and comfort1 that the strength of ,god takes pity on the weakness of man1 ',lord1 thou hast been our refuge1 from one generation to another4' ,then comes the ,song of the ,rock--the song of which 7it seems7 the ,lord said to him1 ',write this song1 and teach it the children of ,israel1 that it may be a witness for me against them4' ,and so ,moses writes2 and seemingly before all the congregation of ,israel1 according to the custom of those times1 he chants his death- song1 the ,song of the ,rock4 ,it is such a song as we should expect from him4 ,god is the ,rock4 ,he was thinking1 it may be1 of the everlasting rocks of ,sinai1 where ,god had appeared to him of old4 ,but ,god is the true1 everlasting ,rock1 on which all things rest2 the ,eternal1 the ,self-existent1 the ,i ,am1 whom he was sent to preach to men4 ,but he is a good and righteous ,god likewise4 ,his work is perfect4 ',a ,god of truth1 and without iniquity1 just and right is he4' ,in him ,moses can trust1 but not in the children of ,israel2 they are a perverse and crooked generation1 who have waxen fat and kicked4 ,god has done all for them1 but they will not obey him4 ,even in the wilderness they have worshipped strange gods1 and sacrificed to devils1 not to ,god2 and so they will do after ,moses is gone2 and then on them will come all the curses of which he has so often warned them4 ',the sword without1 and terror within1 shall destroy both the young man and the virgin1 the suckling also with the man of gray hairs4 ,o that they were wise1 that they understood this1 that they would consider their latter end6 ,how should one chase a thousand2 and two put ten thousand to flight8' ,what a people they might be1 and what a future there is before them1 if they would but be true to ,god6 ,but they will not4 ,and so ,moses' death-song1 like his life's wish1 ends in disappointment and sadness1 and dread of the evils which are coming upon his beloved countrymen4 ,lastly1 he blesses them1 tribe by tribe1 in strange and grand words1 such as dying men utter1 who1 looking earnestly across the dark river of death1 see further than they ever saw amid the cares and temptations of life4 ,and he blesses them4 ,he will say nothing of them but good4 ,he will speak not of what they will be1 but of what they ought to be and can be4 ,but not in their own strength--only in the strength of ,god4 ,man is to be nothing to the last2 and ,god is all in all4 ',there is none like unto the ,god of ,jeshurun1 who rideth upon the heaven in thy help1 and in his excellency on the sky4 ,the eternal ,god is thy refuge1 and underneath are the everlasting arms4 ',happy art thou1 ,o ,israel3 who is like unto thee1 ,o people saved by the ,lord1 the shield of thy help and who is the sword of thy excellency6 and thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee2 and thou shalt tread upon their high places4' ,those are the last words of ,moses4 ,then he goes up into the mountain top1 never to return2 and the children of ,israel are left alone with ,god and their own souls1 to obey and prosper1 or disobey and die4 ,the time of their schooling is past1 and their schoolmaster is gone for ever4 ,they are no more to be under a human tutor4 ,they are come to man's estate and man's responsibility1 and they are to work out their own fortunes by their own deeds1 like every other soul of man4 ,for ,moses himself must not enter into the promised land4 ,in spite of all his faith1 his courage1 his endurance1 his patriotism1 he has sinned against ,god1 and he must be punished2 and punished1 too1 in kind--in the very thing which he will feel most deeply1 in being shut out from the very happiness on which he has set his heart all along4 ,he who has brought the ,jews to the edge of the promised land must not have the honour and glory of taking them into it4 ,he must have no honour and glory4 ,that must be ,god's alone4 ,man must be nothing1 and ,god all in all4 ,moses must die in faith1 not having received the promises1 as many another saint of ,god has died4 ,and why8 ,to teach him and the ,jews and us that man ,,is nothing1 and ,god is all in all4 ,moses had given way to the very temptation which would beset such a man4 ,he had spoken unadvisedly with his lips1 and said1 ',hear now1 ye rebels1 or ye fools1 must ,,we bring you water out of this rock8' ,,we1 and not ,god4 ,he had claimed for himself the power and glory of working miracles4 ,the miracles1 he thought for a moment1 were his1 and not ,god's4 ,and it may be that this was not the only time that he had so sinned4 ,he may naturally have thought that he had some special power and influence with ,god4 ,but be that as it may1 the ,jews were trained to believe that the miracles were ,god's1 ,god's immediate work1 and not performed by the wisdom or sanctity or supernatural power of any saint or prophet whatsoever4 ,let the ,jews once learn to give the honour and glory to ,moses1 and not to ,god1 and the whole of their strange education went for nothing4 ,instead of worshipping ,god they would begin to worship saints4 ,instead of trusting in ,god1 they would begin to trust in men2 whether on earth or in heaven matters not4 ,if ,moses was to have the honour and glory1 the ,jews would surely grow into a superstitious1 saint- worshipping1 miracle-mongering people1 and come to ruin and slavery thereby4 ,they were to fear ,god and nought else4 ,to trust in ,god and nought else4 ,so ,moses must vanish out of their sight1 sadly and mysteriously4 ,all they know of him is1 that he is punished for a sin which he committed long ago1 as you and ,i may be4 ,all they know of his death and burial is1 that his body was not left foully to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field2 for the ,lord buried him4 ,they know not how1 and did not need to know4 ,and we need not know4 ,enough for them and for us to know that no dishonour was done to the grand old man2 that as he died far away on the lonely mountain top without a child to close his eyes1 his last look fixed upon the good land and large which lay spread out below1 of entering which he had been dreaming for forty--it may be for more than forty--years4 ,enough for us to know that the kindly earth received his body again into her bosom1 and that the true ,moses--the immortal spirit of the man-- returned to ,god who created him1 and inspired him1 and sustained him to be perhaps the greatest man--save ,one who was more than man--who ever trod this earth4 ,so our human feelings1 like those of the ,jews1 are satisfied4 ,but ,moses is not to be worshipped by them or by us2 no splendid temple is to rise over his bones2 no lamps are to burn1 or priest to chant round his shrine2 no miracles are to be worked by his relics2 no man is to invoke his patronage and intercession in their prayers4 ,the people whom he has brought out of ,egypt are to be free--free from the slavery of the body1 free from the more degrading slavery of the soul4 ,and so they go on over ,jordan to fulfil their strange destiny1 to fight their way into the promised land1 to root out the ,canaanite tribes1 whose iniquity was full1 whose sins had made them a nuisance not to be suffered on the earth of ,god4 ,but do they go to establish a golden age2 to become a perfect people8 ,nothing less4 ,to become1 according to the book of ,judges1 just what ,moses foretold--an ignorant1 selfish1 often profligate and disorderly people1 doing each what is right in his own eyes1 falling continually into idolatry1 civil war1 and slavery to the heathens round about4 ,nothing more shows the truth of this history than its humility1 its continual confession of sin1 its readiness to confess the ugly truth that the ,jews are a foolish1 ignorant1 unmanageable1 lawless1 sensual race1 stiffnecked and rebellious1 always resisting the ,holy ,spirit4 ,the immense difference between the ,old ,testament history and that of all other nations is1 that it is a history not of their virtues1 but of their sins2 and a history1 on the other hand1 of ,god's punishments and mercies4 ,god in the ,old ,testament is all1 and the ,jews are nothing2 and one may say that it differs from all other histories in this1 that it is not a history of the ,jews themselves at all1 but a history of ,god's dealings with them4 ,if any man chooses to explain that1 by saying that the story was all invented by priests and prophets afterwards1 to rebuke the people for falling into idolatry1 he must have his fancy4 ,thought is free- -for the present1 at least--though it is written that for every idle word that men speak1 they shall give account at the day of judgment4 ,but one question ,i must ask1 and ,i am sure that ,british common sense and ,british honesty will ask it too3 ,if these prophets were really good men1 fearing ,god1 and wishing to make their countrymen fear him likewise1 would it not have been a rather strange way of showing that they feared ,god to tell their countrymen a set of fables and lies8 ,good men are not in the habit of telling lies now1 and never have been2 for no lie is of the truth1 or can possibly help the truth in any way2 and all liars have their portion in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone4 ,and that such men as the prophets of whom we read in the ,old ,testament did not know that1 and therefore invented this history1 or invented anything else1 is a thing incredible and absurd4 ,here we have the ,old ,testament1 an infinitely good book1 giving us infinitely good advice and good news1 and news too concerning ,god-- ,god's laws1 ,god's providence1 ,god's dealings1 such as we get nowhere else4 ,and shall we believe that this infinitely good book is founded upon falsehood8 or that the good men who wrote it could fancy it necessary to stoop to falsehood1 and take the devil's tools wherewith to do ,god's work8 ,that they may have been imperfectly informed on some points there is no doubt2 for the ,bible tells us that they were men of like passions with ourselves1 and they may not always have been true to the ,spirit of ,god who was teaching them1 even as we are not1 though he teaches us4 ,they only knew in part and prophesied in part2 and now that which is perfect is come1 that which is in part is done away2 the mystery of ,christ was not revealed to them as it has been to us by the holy apostles and prophets of the new dispensation1 of which ,st4 ,paul says1 comparing it with the knowledge which the old ,jews had when the gospel came1 ,that the glory of the law had no glory1 by reason of the more excellent glory of the gospel4 ,they may1 ,i say1 have made slight errors in unimportant matters1 though it is far more probable that those errors have crept into the text1 as the ,scriptures were copied again and again through many centuries by different scribes1 of whose perfect good sense and honesty we cannot be certain4 ,but who that really values his ,bible cares for them any more than he cares for the spots on the sun which he can find through a telescope8 ,the sun still shines1 and gives light to the whole earth1 and the ,bible still shines1 and gives light to every soul of man who will read it in reverence and faith4 ,but that the prophets ever invented1 or ever dared to tamper with truth1 is a thing not to be believed of men whose writings are plainly1 by their own meaning and end1 inspired by the ,holy ,spirit of ,god4 ,one more reason--and a reason which to me is unanswerable--for believing1 like our forefathers1 that the ,old ,testament is true4 ,the ,old ,testament1 as well as the ,new1 tells us of the 'noble acts' of the ,lord--of certain gracious and merciful and just things which the ,lord did to the children of ,israel4 ,but if that be not true1 what follows8 ,that ,god has not done the noble acts which men thought he had1 and therefore that ,god is not as noble as men thought he was2 that men have actually fancied for themselves a better ,god than the ,god who exists already4 ,absurd4 ,absurd1 truly2 and if you choose to call it by a harder name still1 you have a right to do so4 ,do not you think that ,god must be better1 not worse2 more generous1 not less2 more condescending1 not less2 more just1 not less2 more helpful1 not less1 than man can fancy or describe8 ,are not the riches of ,christ unsearchable1 and the mercies of the ,lord boundless8 ,is he not able and willing to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we can ask or think8 ,did not even ,st4 ,paul say that he only knew in part and prophesied in part8 ,and must it not be true of the whole ,bible what the beloved apostle ,st4 ,john says of his own ,gospel1 ',and there are many other things which ,jesus did1 the which if they should be written every one1 ,i suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written8' ,bear that in mind1 remembering always that the ,god of the ,old ,testament is the ,god of the ,new likewise2 and whenever you read1 either in the ,old or ,new ,testament1 of the noble acts of the ,lord1 say boldly1 as millions of hearts have said already1 when the good news of the ,bible came to them1 ',this is so beautiful that it must be true4 ,the ,spirit of ,god in the ,bible1 and the judgment of the ,church in all ages1 bears witness with my spirit that this is true4 ,so ought ,god to have done1 and therefore surely so hath ,god done4 ,shall not the ,judge of all the earth do ,,right8' ,footnotes3 #j;a ,evidences1 ,part ,,iii4 ,cap4 iii4 #j;b ,lectures on the ,jewish ,church1 ,lect4 xviii4 p4 #dja4 #g ,i must say that all attempts to put a later date on these books seems to me to fail simply from want of evidence4 ,i must say1 also1 that all attempts to distinguish between ',jehovistic' and ',elohistic' documents 7with the exception1 perhaps1 of the first chapter of ,genesis7 seem to me to fail likewise2 and that the theory of an ,elohistic and a ,jehovistic sect has received its reductionem ad absurdum in a certain recent criticism of the ,psalms4