He turns the hearts of kings whithersoever He will. He overruled the time when Augustus decreed the taxing. He directed the enforcement of the decree in such a way, that Mary must needs be at Bethlehem when ''the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.'' Little did the haughty Roman emperor, and his officer Cyrenius, think that they were only instruments in the hand of the God of Israel, and were only carrying out the eternal purposes of the Xing of kings. Little did they think that they were helping to lay the foundation of a kingdom, before which the empires of this world would all go down one day, and Roman idolatry pass away. The words of Isaiah, upon a like occasion, should be remembered, "He meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so." (Isaiah X.7.)
The heart of a believer should take comfort in the recollection of God's providential government of the world. A true Christian should never be greatly moved or disquieted by the conduct of the rulers of the earth. He should see with the eye of faith a hand overruling all that they do to the praise and glory of God. He should regard every king and potentate, — an Augustus, a Cyrenius, a Darius, a Cyrus, a Sennacherib, — as a crea- ture who, with all his power, can do nothing but what God allows, and nothing which is not carrying out God's will. And when the rulers of this world "set themselves against the Lord," he should take comfort in the words of Solomon, "There be higher than they." (Ecdes. v. 8.)
Let us notice, lastly, the manner in which Christ was bom. He was not bom under the roof of His mother's house^ but in a strange place, and at an "inn." When
52! KsposrroBT thoughts.
bom. He was not laid in a carefblly prepared cradle. He was "laid in a manger, because there was no room in tiie inn."
We see here the grace and condescension of Christ. Had He come to sare mankind with royal majesty, sur- romided by His Father's angels, it would hare been an act of undeserved mercy. Had He chosen to dwell in a palace, witii power and great anthority, we should have had reason enough to wonder. But to become poor as the very poorest of mankind, and lowly as the very lowliest, — ^this is a love that passeth knowledge. It is unspeakable and unsearchable. Never let us forget that through this humilialion Jesus has purchased for us a title to glory. Through His life of suffering, as well as His death. He has obtained eternal redemption for us. All through His life He was poor for our sakes, from the hour of His birth to the hour of His death. And through His poverty we are made rich. (2 Cor. viii. 9.)
Let us beware of despising the poor, because of their poverty. Their condition is one which the Son of God has sanctified and honoured, by taking it voluntarily on Himself. God is no respecter of persons. He looks at the hearts of men, and not at their incomes. Let us never be ashamed of the cross of poverty, if God thinks fit to Ifiy it upon us. To be godless and covetous is diE^racefol, but it is no disgrace to be poor. A mean dwelling place, aiid coarse food, and a hard bed, are not pleasing to flesh and blood. But they are tiie portion which the Lord Jesus Himself willingly accepted from the day of His entrance into the world. Wealth ruins fi&r more souls than poverty. When the love of money
LUKE, CHAP. n. VBK. 1—7. SSJ
f
begins to creep over us, let us think of the manger at Bethlehem, and of Him who was laid in it. Such thoughts may deliver us from much harm.
KOTES. LXTKB n. 1—7.
1. — {G(28ar Augtutus.] This is that Octavius who, after the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra at Actium, took the government of the Roman Empire into his own hands, and was, properly speaking, the first Cesar, or Boman Emperor.
[Tlie world.] Some think that the Qreek word so translated, is specially applied in the New Testament, to Judsea and the countries surrounding it. There is no sufficient proof of this. It cannot he taken in this limited sense in Acts xvii. 31, and Rev. xii. 9, and need not he so taken here.
[Taxed,] The word so translated, nught he equally well rendered " enrolled." It is so in the margin. In the only other place in the New Testament, where it is used, it is translated " written.'* Heh. xii. 23.
2- — [This taxing was first made, dc] There is a well-known diffi- culty connected with this verse, which caDs for a few remarks. According to uninspired writers, Cyrenius or Quirinius, as he is called by Latin authors, was not governor of Syria, imtil eight or ten years after Christ was bom. How can this be reconciled with St. Luke's statement? The following expla- nations have been given.
Some say that the name of Cyrenius hsis got into the text by mistake, and that we ought to read instead of it, either Quintilius or Saturninus, who were the two governors preceding Cyrenius. But it is a most unsatisfactory proceeding to alter texts, in order to meet difficulties. In the present case there is no warrant for the alteration.
Some say that the explanation is to be found in the word translated, "was made," and that it ought to be rendered, "took effect" The sense would then be, that " this enrolling, or tax- ing, though ordered now, only first took effect when Cyrenius was governor."
Some say that the word translated, "first," should have been translated, " prior to," or " before." The sense would then be, ''this taxing was before that made under Cyrenius." For such a translation there is authority in John i. 15 and 30.
Some say that there were two taxings, in both of which Cyrenius was officially concerned, though not exactly in the same capacity on both occasions, — and Hiat St Luke was Aware of tiliis, and expressly inserts the word "&rst," to show