2. Who worship God alone —
[There were some among the Jews who feared the Lord, and yet served other gods d: so amongst ourselves there are many who would be thought to fear God, while they are endeavouring to reconcile the inconsistent services of God and mammon. But Israel stand directly opposed to such charac- ters in the contexte : they not only will not make or worship idols of wood or stone, but they will harbour no idols in the heart : they will not provoke the Lord to jealousy by any hid- den abominations f, but labour to be " Israelites indeed, in whom is no guile."]
Now since it is promised to such persons that they shall be saved, it will be proper to inquire,
II. In what way they shall be saved —
The Lord Jesus Christ is the person mentioned in the text as the author of their salvation g: and they must be saved,
1. By the merit of his blood —
[Whatever integrity of heart any man may possess, or however fervent he may be in his supplications before God, he must be saved in the same way as any other sinner, and enter in at the same door with publicans and harlots. His very best services are polluted ; and he needs to be cleansed from " the iniquity of his holy things" as much as from the vilest trans- gressions. Nor is there any other fountain opened for sin but that which was opened upon Mount Calvary : nothing but the blood of Christ can ever cleanse from sin : the holiest man that ever lived must be "accepted in the beloved " "nor is there salvation for him in any other :" even Paul himself, notwith- standing all his legal and evangelical obedience, desired to be "found in Christ, not having his own righteousness, but the righteousness which is of God by faith in Christ11." And " in the same adorable Lord must all the seed of Israel be justified, and must glory1."]
2. By the efficacy of his grace —
[It is not by any efforts of their own that Israel are ena- bled to differ from others : " they are saved, not by the exercise of created power, but in the Lord their GodV They must all adopt the same humiliating confession, " In the Lord have I righteousness and strength1." Are they strong? it is in the Lord, and in the power of his might™ : do they gain the vic- tory ? they must thank God for giving it them through Jesus
d 2 Kings xvii. 33. and Zeph.i.5. e ver. 16. f Ezek.xiv. 3.
s Compare ver. 23. with Rom. xiv. 10, 11. h Phil. hi. 9.
1 ver. 25. * Hos. i. 7. ' ver. 24. m Eph.vi. 10.