b Rom. vii. 12. " Exod. xxx. 23, 25, 34, 35.
d Mai. i. 8. e Amosii. 13.
covctousness, impurity, and whatever else is hateful unto God, have at all times found a ready admission into our hearts: and if an outward restraint has been imposed upon our actions, it has not proceeded from a fear of Godf, or a hatred of sin, but from a regard to our characters among men, and to the tem- poral consecpiences which we dreaded. When we have known that our dispositions were offensive to God, we have not re- garded him, any more than if he had been our slave, that was constrained to bear whatever we might impose upon him : we have altogether contemned himg as unworthy of our notice, and lived as though there were no such Being in the universe.]
Marvellous as this contrast is, we shall be yet more astonished, while we consider,
II. God's address to us, founded upon the foregoing representation —
The former part of God's address is a free and gra- cious promise of forgiveness —
[What might such rebels have expected, but to hear God say, " Ah ! I will ease me of mine enemies11;" " I swear in my wrath, that they shall never enter into my rest';" "my fury shall rest upon them, and I will be comforted k." But, behold, how different is his voice ! ' I, even I, whom you have so in- sulted, degraded, wearied ; I, who could in an instant cast you into hell, as I did the rebel angels ; I, who might be glorified in your eternal condemnation ; even I, am ready to blot out all your transgressions, as a morning cloud : yea, I will blot them out through the blood of my dear Son ; and, though I might well " seal them up in a bag," and bring them forth at a future day to your everlasting confusion, I will no more remember them ; they shall be perfectly blotted out, even as if they had never been committed. I well know, that if I seek for any thing in you to justify such an act of mercy, I shall never find it : there is nothing in you but what calls for wrath and fiery indignation : yet I will not on this account forbear to exercise mercy ; I will pardon thee for mine own sake, that I may be glorified in displaying the exceeding riches of my grace.'
How infinitely does this surpass our highest conceptions ! and how obdurate must be the heart that can withstand these overtures of love and mercy !]
The latter part of the address is an urgent invita- tion to accept of mercy —
[It may possibly be understood as a rebuke to a proud self-justifying Pharisee. Many, instead of humbling themselves
f Rom. iii. 18. s Ps. x. 4, 13. h Isai. i. 24.
1 Ps. xcv. 10, 11. k Ezek. v. 13.