Certainly they refer,
1. To God's ancient people, the Jews —
[To them he here promises, that, whatever they may suffer, they shall not be lost, as other nations have been, amongst their conquerors ; but shall be preserved a distinct people, even to the end ; and shall, notwithstanding all that they have done to provoke him utterly to cast them off, be restored once more to his favour, as in the days of old.
The manner in which these promises are made deserves particular attention. Who is it that pledges himself for the accomplishment of these things ? It is no other than the Creator and Governor of heaven and earth. And what assurance does he give that they shall be fulfilled? He declares that the heavenly bodies shall sooner be annihilated, than his word be forgotten; and that never, till we had measured the highest heavens, and penetrated to the inmost recesses of the earth, should one jot or tittle of it fail.
And if we look into their history, we find every thing ful- filled hitherto. In their captivity in Babylon, their national character was still preserved ; and after it, they were restored to their own land. So at this hour, though for above seven- teen centuries they have been scattered over the face of the whole earth, they are still a peculiar people as much as ever : and if we knew for certainty where the ten tribes are, I think they also would be found to have retained so much of their original character, as clearly to distinguish them from all the people amongst whom they sojourn. Nor can we doubt for a moment but that God will again manifest himself to them, as in former days. He has not cast them off for ever : " they are still beloved of him for their fathers' sakes :" and " his gifts and calling to them are without repentance a." Forsaken as they are at present, it is but for a little moment : for as God, by the rainbow in the heavens, has given a pledge that his oath relative to any future deluge shall be fulfilled ; so has he sworn that his kindness shall not ultimately depart from Israel, or his " covenant with them ever be dissolved b."J
2. To the Christian Church —
[To apply the passage exclusively to the Church of Christ is shamefully to pervert it. Yet we must not withhold from her, her share of the blessings which God has promised to her. Throughout all the prophecies, the Church of God, previous to the coming of the Messiah, and subsequent to the establish- ment of his kingdom upon earth, is considered as one ; that which first existed being the foundation, and that which was afterwards erected being the superstructure, of the same
a Rom. xi. 28, 29. " Isai. liv. 7—10.
1075.1 THE church's security. 245
heavenly temple : and the promises made to it, so far as they respect it in its former state, will have a literal accomplishment ; and, so far as they pertain to it in its latter state, a spiritual or mystical accomplishment. In this latter sense we may pro- perly apply to the Christian Church the prophecy before us. For it has enemies, even as Israel of old; jet " shall not the gates of hell ever prevail against it." Notwithstanding it has often been at a very low ebb in the world, yet is it preserved by the power of God : and though, for its degeneracy, God's wrath might well break forth against it to destroy it, yet is it preserved for good, and shall at a future period be greatly ho- noured of the Lord ; being extended far and wide, and being established over the face of the whole earth. For the accom- plishment of this, we have the same security as the Jewish Church has for the fulfilment of the promises made to her, namely, the promise and the oath of Almighty God: and we may be as sure that the honour reserved for her shall be accorded to her in due time, as if we saw it imparted before our eyes. As sure as God himself is true, " all the kingdoms of the world shall become the kingdom of the Lord and of his Christ ;" and " the whole earth, both of Jews and Gentiles, shall be one fold under one Shepherd," " there being only one Lord, and his name One."]