34 Wherefore, beliold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and Scribes : and some of them ye shall kill and crucify ; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city :
35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36 Verily I say unto you, All these things sliall come upon this generation.
37 0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, tJiou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy chil- dren together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not !
38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
These verses form the conclusion of our Lord Jesus Christ's address, on the subject of the Scribes and Phari- sees. They are the last words which He ever spoke, as
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a public teacher, in the hearing of the people. The characteristic tenderness and compassion of our Lord, shine forth in a striking manner at the close of His ministry. Though He left His enemies in unbelief, He shows that He loved and pitied them to the last.
We learn, in the first place, from these verses, that God often takes great pains with u7igodly men. He sent the Jews "prophets and wise men and scribes." He gave them repeated warnings. He sent them message after message. He did not allow them to go on sinning with- out rebuke. They could never say that they were not told when they did wrong.
This is the way in which God generally deals with unconverted Christians. He does not cut them off in their sins without a call to repentance. He knocks at the door of their hearts by sicknesses and afflictions. He assails their consciences by sermons, or by the advice of friends. He summons them to consider their ways by opening the grave under their eyes, and taking away from them their idols. They often know not what it all means. They are often blind and deaf to all His gracious messages. But they w^ill see His hand at last, though perhaps too late. They will find that " God spake once, yea twice, but they perceived it not.'' (Job xxxiii. 14.) They will discover that they too, like the Jews, had prophets, and wise men, and Scribes sent to them. There was a voice in every providence, " Turn ye, turn ye, why wdll ye die ?" (Ezek. xxxiii. 11.)
We learn, in the second place, from these verses, that God takes notice of the treatment whichHis messengers and ministers receive, and will one day reckon for it. The