PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
Horae Homileticae — Volume 2 of 21
Simeon, Charles, 1759-1836 · 273,224 words · 589 reading sections
60 Numbers, Xiv. 20, 21. [156.
r Isai. xli. 14, 15. s Heb. ii. 11. * Heb. iii.12. » Lukexvii.5. * 1 Cor. vii. 32. Phil. iv. 6. 1 Pet. v. 7. y Phil. i. 27. god's answer to the intercession OF MOSES. Numb. xiv. 20, 21. And the Lord said, I have pardoned, according to thy tvord: but, as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory…
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3. A consistency with his own conduct — [" Thou hast forgiven this people from Egypt even until now : and wilt thou abandon them at last ? O let it not be so : pardon, I beseech thee, yet again and again their iniquity, according unto the greatness of thine unbounded mercy p." This plea, if used with men, would ha…
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excellent, because it was a holy pleading with God. Let us now proceed to consider, II. The answer he obtained — " I have pardoned," saith God, " according to thy word. Thou hast entreated me to spare them; and I will spare them: but, I swear by my own life, that the whole of my conduct on this occasion shall be …
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4. His goodness in rewarding virtue — [Two of the spies were faithful to their God : and behold how God interposed for them! The congregation was just going to stone them, and God instantly displayed his glory in such a manner as to appal the hearts of their enemies. To them also he bore testimony, that they had "…
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Application — [Behold now this glory of the Lord! see how it shines throughout this mysterious dispensation ! see his condescension in hearing prayer — his mercy in forbearing vengeance — his justice in punishing sin — his goodness in rewarding virtue — his faithfulness in fulfilling his word — and his power to ex…
391 wordsSECTION 66Following The Lord Fully.
Numb. xiv. 24. But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me full >/, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went ; and his seed shall possess it. THE fewness of those who shall finally be saved is strongly declared in the Holy Scriptures ; yet they who venture to suggest …
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his grace, and to bring them in safety to the heavenly Canaan. But as the great body of the Jewish nation deceived themselves to their ruin, so, it is to be feared, the greater part of the Christian world will ultimately be disappointed of their hopes. To follow the Lord will be to but little purpose, unless we fo…
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the cities in which they dwelt, were walled up to heaven : and it is probable that there was a dreadful pestilence at that time ravaging " the land, and swallowing up the inhabitants thereof." But Caleb had the promise of Jehovah to rest upon ; and there- fore he knew that he could not fail of success; yea, he was …
451 wordsSECTION 69157.] Following The Lord Fully. 69
kingdom ? Yes : neither men nor devils shall deprive him of his inheritance : that very land, which by faith he has so often viewed and trodden, shall be given to him ; and " all the seed of Caleb " and of Abraham shall have it for their everlasting portion. Behold, Christian, where Caleb now is, thou shalt shortl…
478 wordsSECTION 70Presumption Of The Rebellious Israelites.
3. Those who, like Caleb, are following the Lord fully- [Fear not singularity in so good a cause. If you are sin- gular in following the Lord fully, the fault is not yours, but theirs who presume to violate the divine commands. Go on then, though the whole universe should be against you. If God acknowledge you as…
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•Canaanites, even in direct opposition to the will of God. This is called in our text, " presumption:" " they presumed to go up unto the hill-top." Let us, for the elucidation of this subject, inquire, I. Wherein their presumption consisted — To believe the promises of God, and to expect the accomplishment of the…
433 wordsSECTION 7272 Numbers, Xiv. 44. [158.
is this ! We do not like the way which God has prescribed for us to walk in, and we will go to heaven in our own way. This conduct we may attempt to justify; but God has stamped upon it its true character, as daring and impious presumption.] To form a just estimate of their conduct, let us consider, II. Wherein i…
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ness ! O, if they could but have another opportunity afforded them, how gladly would they embrace it ! how resolutely would they obey the voice of God ! they would no more pre- sumptuously prefer their own will and way to his, but would obey him cheerfully and without reserve. But in vain are all such desires : th…
480 wordsSECTION 74The Danger Of Presumptuous Sin.
Numb. xv. 30, 31. The soul that doeth aught presumptuously (whether he be born in the land or a stranger), the same re- proacheth the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Because he hath despised the word of the Lord, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off: his i…
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To illustrate this subject, I shall shew, I. The danger of presumptuous sin under the Law — Presumptuous sin is not to be understood of every sin that is committed wilfully ; but of those sins which, as the marginal translation expresses it, are committed " with a high hand:'1'1 such, for instance, as that of Pha…
360 wordsSECTION 7676 Numbers, Xv. 30, 31. [159.
[No one who could form the least idea what " a fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of the living God" would despise his threatenings. But there is a vague notion in the minds of men, that God will never execute them. Thus David de- scribes these poor deluded men : " The wicked, through the pride of his coun…
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the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy tiling, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace f?"] 2. Because a contempt of the Gospel is, in fact, a rejection of the only means whereby sin can be forgiven — [Whither shall a man flee, who rejects the Saviour ? " What other sacrifice for sin" will he…
408 wordsSECTION 78The Sabbath-Breaker Stoned.
Numb. xv. 32 — 36. And while the children of Israel tvere in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the Sabbath-day. And they that found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congre- gation : and they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be …
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our souls in life, and providing every thing for our support and comfort. And is this the Being to whom we grudge that small portion of time which he requires ? But further, this gracious God has so loved us as to give his only-begotten Son to die for us and shall we think it hard to consecrate one day in the week…
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against God; and it is manifest that both Moses and God himself regarded it in that light: it was therefore a pre- sumptuous sin, and consequently, as the Scripture expresses it, " a reproaching of God himself" as a hard master that was unfit to be obeyed e. Such is every violation of the Sabbath amongst us. It is…
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did not our God bring all this evil upon us and upon our city i Yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the Sabbath f." Surely then, if such was the issue to the individual that led the way, and such the consequence to the whole nation, when it had followed the example, it will be madness in us to make l…
493 wordsSECTION 8282 Numbers, Xv. 32—36. []60.
God's wrath has not broken forth against us, and cut us off in the midst of our transgressions. Let us know how to estimate the forbearance we have experienced ; and let " the goodness of our God lead us to repentance."] 2. For holy vigilance — [The ceremonial part of the Sabbath is done away ; so that there cert…
510 wordsSECTION 83The Use And Intent Of Fringes On Their Garments.
83 Numb. xv. 37 — 41. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Sp>eak unto the children of Israel, and bid them thai the// make them fringes in the borders of their garments, through- out their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue : and it shall be unto you for a fringe, t…
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I. The end which we ought to aim at — That, for which the use of the fringe was appointed to the Jews, is equally necessary for us; namely, to preserve continually upon our minds a sense of, 1. Our duty to God — [We are told to " walk in the fear of the Lord all the day long." For this purpose we should have the …
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The ordinance before us goes further still, and prescribes, II. The means by which we are to obtain it — True it is that no distinctions in dress are pre- scribed to us : the ordinance in this respect is annulled. But, as a means to an end, the appointment of the fringe may teach us, 1. To make a spiritual impro…
483 wordsSECTION 8686 Numbers, Xv. 87—41. [161.
which they were originally given ; not merely to shew to others what respect was due to the individuals, but to shew to the individuals themselves what might justly be expected of them, and what their rank and office required : the one should main- tain his honour unsullied ; the other should be so heavenly in his…
924 wordsSECTION 8788 Numbers, Xvi. 38. [162.
korah's rebellion. Numb. xvi. 38. The censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar; for they offered them before the Lord; therefore they are hallowed: and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel. IT is painful, in perusing the history of t…
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But, in fact, their rebellion was against God himself — [This is plainly declared to them by Moses f. What mat- ter was there of complaint against Aaron? He did only what God had commanded him : and was he to be blamed for that ? Moses forbears to make the same apology for himself : but his observation was equally…
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their appeal to God respecting their title to the priesthood, " a fire came forth from the Lord, and consumed them all." Terrible was this if viewed only as a temporal judgment : but if considered in reference to the eternal world, it was awful indeed ! That it might be kept in remembrance for the in- struction of…
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[Moses as the governor, and Aaron as the high-priest, of Israel, were types and representatives of the Lord Jesus Christk: and in rebelling against them, they virtually rebelled against him also. Thus, amongst ourselves, how many are there who say, "We will not have this man to reign over us1!" Some com- plain of …
290 wordsSECTION 91Clxiii.
aaron's intercession. Numb. xvi. 48. And he stood betioeen the dead and the living : arid the jilague was stayed. CORRUPT as human nature is, there are some sins which we scarcely think it possible for a rational being to be guilty of; and, if it were suggested to us that we ourselves were in danger of committing…
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b Acts xx. 24. c 2 Cor. xii. 15. d Rom. ix. 3. 1 Cor. ix. 22. e 2 Tim. ii. 10. " God would speak the word, and that great might be the company of such preachers f !"] 2. The effect of it— [How wonderful ! No sooner does the cloud of incense arise from Aaron's hands, than the plague is stayed ! On the day before,…
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2. The efficacy of them for the end proposed — [Death was arrested in its career, and could proceed no further. And to what is it owing that our rebellious world has not long since been consigned over to destruction ? " Not unto us, O Lord Jesu Christ, not unto us, but unto thy name be the praise :" thou by thine …
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n See Heb. ix. 13, 14. 164.1 aaron's rod that budded. 97 every one of you, to forget yourselves, as it were, and your own personal concerns, and to be swallowed up with love and pity for your perishing fellow-creatures. Remember that they are not a whit safer by reason of their delusions. They may call rebels, " …
376 wordsSECTION 9598 Numbers, Xvii. 10. [164.
convinced, but that they would on some future occa- sion renew their pretensions to the priesthood, and thereby provoke him to destroy them utterly. Of his own rich mercy therefore he proposed to give them a sign, which should for ever silence their murmurings and preclude the necessity of heavier judgments. In o…
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1. The resurrection of Christ — [Christ is expressly called, " a rod out of the stem of b Isai. v. 3, 4. c Jer. ii. 17. and iv. 18. d Ps. li. 4. Jesse e ;" and so little prospect was there, according to human appearances, that he should ever nourish, that it was said of him, " He shall grow up as a tender plant, a…
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Address, 1. Those who are unconscious of having rejected Christ- fit is not necessary in order to a rejection of Christ that we should combine against him as the Israelites did against Aaron : we reject him, in fact, if we do not receive him for the ends and purposes for which he was sent. Our inquiry then must …
291 wordsSECTION 98The Law Of Purification.
mercy Only let us come to him through Christ, and all our past iniquities shall be " blotted out as a morning cloud."] 3. Those who confess him as their divinely ap- pointed Mediator — [From this time the Israelites never presumed to ap- proach the Lord but through the mediation of the high-priest. Whether they o…
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inconveniences, apparently without any adequate reason. This might be illustrated by many of the ordinances ; but in none so forcibly as in that before us. The kind of defilement which was to be remedied, was as light and venial as could possibly be conceived : it implied no moral guilt whatever; nor could possibl…
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flesh, the blood, the dung, were all burned together ;) and some cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet wool were burned with it. Then the ashes of the heifer were gathered up by another person, and deposited in a clean place without the camp. Every minute particular of this ordinance we shall not at- tempt to explai…
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ordinance: but we shall gain a still clearer insight into it by considering, II. Its instructive tendency — We do not apprehend that any Jew, perhaps not even Moses himself, could discover in it all that we do. Yet we would be extremely cautious of indulging our fancy, or of deducing from the ordinance any in- s…
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with him in his work, and exercising his almighty power to render it effectual for our good. Is there no mystery in all this? Truly, "great is the mystery of godliness:" and the more we contemplate it, the more shall we be constrained to exclaim with the Apostle, " O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and …
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entirely we are indebted to the free grace of God, or be suffici- ently on our guard against self-preference and self-complacency.] 4. The indispensable necessity of resorting to it — [If any person had contracted uncleanness, it signified nothing how the defilement came : he was unclean ; and he must purify himse…
780 wordsSECTION 104166.] Moses And Aaron To Die In The Wilderness. 109
Consider, Brethren, what I say ; " and the Lord give you understanding in all things."] Numb. xx. 12. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congre- gation into the land which I have given them. S…
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testify that displeasure in words : but it must not be such an anger as transports us into unbecoming actions or vehement invectives. The expressions used by Moses on this occasion, shew, that his anger was by no means duly moderated. It did not terminate on the offence, but struck at the person of the offenders ;…
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What has been said may suffice to shew that their offence was not so light as it may at first sight appear to be : but its enormity will be best seen in, II. The punishment inflicted for it — The sentence denounced against them was, that they should die in the wilderness, and be denied the privilege of leading th…
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admonition, " Let us fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into (rod's rest, any of us should seem to come short of ith." We know indeed that this sentence of exclusion did not ex- tend to the Canaan that is above : and it is probable that many others who died in the wilderness, were therefore " judged and…
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Canaan : and, if ever we would be saved at all, we must trust, not in our own obedience to the law, but in Him who fulfilled it, and redeemed us from its curse s. Next, it instructs us in the transitory nature of the ceremonial law. Before the sentence was to be executed on Aaron, he was to go up to the top of Mou…
514 wordsSECTION 109Death Of Aaron.
forth: and in reference to both of them it may be said, " He was the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believethV] To CONCLUDE [Let us receive from this history the instruction it was intended to convey. Let us learn from it the excellency of the Gospel, which reveals the Saviour to us; and let u…
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before its termination, Moses himself also was con- strained to yield to the stroke of death. In the death of Aaron, to which we would now call your attention, there are two things more especially to be noticed; I. The transfer of his office — Moses received an order to " strip off Aaron's gar- ments, and to put …
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the changeableness of Aaron's priesthood ; and intimated, that it should successively devolve on dying men, till he should arrive, who should never die, but "be a Priest for ever after the order of Melchizedec." But the manner in which this transfer was carried into execu- tion deserves particular attention, inasm…
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I despair of obtaining salvation by any works either of the cere- monial or moral law ; and I trust wholly in the Lord Jesus Christ : I seek to be justified solely and altogether by faith in him."] Whilst our minds are instructed by the transfer of Aaron's office to Eleazar his son, our hearts cannot but be affect…
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2. The manner [was] dignified — [Methinks I see Aaron, accompanied by Moses and Eleazar going up to Mount Hor " in the sight of all the congregation:" there is in him no appearance of infidel hardness, or unbeliev- ing fear, or pharisaic confidence : he acquiesces in the divine appointment, and, with meek composur…
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only by the loss of them. They enjoy a faithful ministry, but will not avail themselves of it, till " the candlestick is removal," and the privileges, which they have slighted, are withdrawn. The same is too often experienced by children who have neglected the admonitions of their parents, and servants who have di…
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for ever ! Ah ! fearful thought ! The Lord grant that it may sink* down into all our hearts, and stir us up to " flee from the wrath to come !" Do any inquire, What shall we do to be saved ? My answer is, There is an High- Priest, who dieth not ; or rather, I should say, who, though once he died on Mount Calvary, …
508 wordsSECTION 116168.] The Israelites Discouraged By The Way. 121
honours thou possessest here, thou needest feel no regret at parting with them. Thou hast found thy trials in this wilder- ness great and manifold : and happy mayest thou be to go unto the rest that remaineth for thee. Thou hast no need to be afraid of death : it should be regarded only as the stripping off of thy…
267 wordsSECTION 117122 Numbers, Xxi. 4. [168.
Numb. xxi. 4. And the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. THE history of human nature is nearly the same in all ages. Successive generations ought progres- sively to advance in wisdom, because they have the advantage of others' experience. But youth will not avail themselves of the instruc…
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At another time they seem almost to possess it ; and then, not long after, find themselves at a greater distance from it than ever. Thus "hope deferred maketh their heart sick:" and being disappointed in their expectations, they yield to great dejection of mind : ' If I am not of the number of God's peo- ple, when…
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What a picture is this of human frailty ! The mind discouraged on one account, looks not out for circumstances of alleviation and comfort, but gives itself up to disquietude and dejection. Temporal blessings lose all their relish. Let even the bread of life be administered to persons in such a frame, they can taste…
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thirty years that they had continued hi the wilderness ? and did it not become them to place their confidence in him, though they could not see the immediate reason of his dispensations ? Thus should we do, when tempted to disquietude and despondency : we should say, "It is the Lord ; let him do what seemeth him g…
496 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical edition (1832-33); scan/OCR from Internet Archive.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.