repression of '^;''^y^„,.^ "^/'Continuance and S"- the in o Jer'oboam, and the ...rd -sin'
msmwmm
rh^ Yet this view was loo concentrated to be
^'^ 1 u t not to the retrospective record in
faTd 2 Kinis fhat we look for li,,ht on the progress
of the na ional conscience, but to contemporary
^ntWit^es t he so-called Later Prophets, ,e the
danger of sin.
The next matters for consideration are tbe pun-
;;t^^hn.:nt for almost.all sin is deatl. Jn U^^ry, at -mv rate, the seventy of the Law is ama^'"-- u-l I is taken into account is not so much the 1 1 de^rt of tlie individual, as bis guilt i.ivolvmg the
Hiir^'-^^^aS=^T;fr
Tl V 4-(}') • see Westcott, Ep. to Ileb. p. -!S8 lie
n V Y OF ATOSI-.MK.N'T must also be taken into con-
c^Z.C«h its main o;'!'^" appears^ to h^
S^^b;cb^wrtt3r'rh4iii:^^^c^
Tf^ec w^s that God was thought of as injured by
- en • and the cnilt^oSering had in it, as we
havVseen' the no ton of compensation for in u.y
one In Job (T^' 350) we find the hrst explicit
conuadl^i^ ohhis tiUght. «^' ";;^-;3
The history of I>»vi<» ^PPJ-^ -^''^::;^nr^lnf/ 'riTe one flagrant and "-e other dithcu I to ^^-^ ^^^i,a are UU-ossi- points which come out ui ''•» ''''' 'l™ ,\.,,H.e ; (2) punishment iility of immediate f--!f;«";f , "^^^^P'.^V 8) the .unish.neut after forgiveness, ^f •''•%»"'.= '"',"; othVrs. Thii, however, of the sinner involves ^""'^"''1;., Y,[, °„"e that of the census appears more clearly in tie "1"' "'^i"',',,!,'! the sin is ascribed (i 's •«.). Tlu> point to ^r^^^^^lZ. ,vay as the evil to the causation ot J "'"'?* i J iJ 1' scribed as -from God.' spirit which came "I"" »" "' t^ a^ of the same character. Several other passages, e.g. ■'".fT-J'S'"' ' 1.2.S iT.^ builds the On them Clemen (/.«/.re "'"f/„f"C author ( r«-« ".'«''<■'■) conclusion that (Jod "as regarded as the a tuor i ^^.^^^^„„,
of sin. It is more "?",'^f ' 't.^ .."ct on of Divine control an.l
of that r«-'-V'«">',"H'"i' "'t ill Vimes been felt, and not alone human freedom which has at ajlimes net ^ ^_^^^_^ ^__^,^
in Israel. For l'^*.': J'^'J Cnd"' a 1 iS« What was in Hebn-w c-iprcssions, see Mr 1.)"-^ anil -'"^ ; ., . , ,.„ produced ■cl gion only a hesitation and V"r^l^^';,,Xi, fatal to ■>>"■■»"'>■ dangerous results became in Islam ? ™^;l'^^. '^^ )„ lo,,,, a„d •The unbelief of the "nbebeier the i.nput> oi i^^.^
bad actions. "•!"«';: J"- (T^*" Z ^^ wi?h His 'satisfaction
„ approvB
,.l„.o.. leads the way in bringing moral offences
to the front. He carries on one side of I.Iijali _s
.V ami the trans-ressions denounced m Am 1. i
work, and the tatiste-, |,t„„anity between
are offences against jusiiti m"' , „ ' -i^ iio-i"!
sxr-TiSi,S£;;2si£, e„
because it is sin "S=""^V;'o 1 lohn AVI a H-sea have the OT counterpart to 1 .John. »> n-n ', rand indeed all the prophets) did, was to enlai^e
^ss obvious contributions and developments. See also Clemen, Lehre von der bunde, p. .0 1-
Another point in the teaching of the prophets as to sin is tlieir preaching of repentance, both national and individual, outside the covenant (cf. Jonah) as well as within it. The development of individualism by Jeremiah and Exekiel is a moment of great importance in the doctrine of sin. Hitherto the prominent thoutiht has been that of sin affectini; tlie nation through the individual, and entailing; N'uilt on succeeding generations, though it nuist be noticed that the heredity of guilt is not allowed as a ground for private revenge (I)t 24''', 2 K 14'', but cf. 2 S 21''). Ezekiel attaches his teaching to that of Jeremiah, and works it out. His result is well summed up by A. U. I)avid.son in his note on Kzk 18, 'the individual man is not involved in the sins and fate of his people or his forefailiers.' Hut even Ezekiel did not dissolve entirely the great predominant OT thought of the soli<larity of Israel in respect of sin. There wa-s work for that conception to do in the NT. It made possible the thought of the vicarious atonement of Christ, as representative of the nation and the race (Jn ll'"'- •"'-). For a strong instance of the sense of sin as national, .see Is (!4. The feeling has been well exiiresscd by Montefiore : ' At his worst the individual felt he belonged to the people of God, and shared their righteou.sne.ss ; and at his best he still felt the depressing burden of Lsrael's national sins' {Ilihbert Lert. p. 512). The whole (piesllon was deeply affected by the obscurity and comparative unimportance of the Heb. ex- pectation of a future life. When that dawned clearly, the importance of the individual dawned with it.
iii. TliK IlAr.ior,R.\pii.\. — The Psalms belong largely, though not entirely, to the prophetic school of thought, and either anticipate or develop its teaching, according to the view we may take of their respective dates. It is in the Psalms that we first have a deep view of sin from the sinner's side. In the Prophets we have the historian or preacher deriouniing, but in the Psalms the sinner confessing sin, either personal or national. This deep sen.se of sin arises invariably out of the pres- sure of suffering in some form ; and in some cases, at any rale, is due to the national suffering of the Captivity and Exile. The Psalmist does not re- pent for fear of future punishment, but from the pres.sure of present aflliction. It is true that we find the consciousness of uprightness and sincere purpose .OS well as the consciousness of sin (e.r/. Ps 2H). but this does not contradict the general im- pression. A special aspect of sin in the Psalms is that of falsehood. The service of J" is thought of as truth, i)ractii'al truth, much in the same way as in the (iospel and Epp. of St. John ; hence sin, its opposite, is untruth, vanity, lies. In the P.salms, as in the Prophets, sin is no longer a matter of strict legalism, of failure to obey. Emotions and affections cunie in largely (as in some degree in Hosea and Dint.;. The Psalmists love (joil, and look on sin ius breaking this happy relation, hiding His face and shutting up His mercies. All this reaches its highest point in Ps .01, with its pro- found consciousness of sin in the individual and in the race (v.'', cf. Job 14'), hatred of it for its own sake, not merely for its conse(|Uences, and hopeful assurance of forgiveness and renewal.