verified in all its extent; " Behold, my servants shall eat; but ye shall be hungry : behold, my servants shall drink ; but ye shall be thirsty : behold, my servants shall rejoice ; but ye shall be ashamed : behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart ; but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and howl for vex- ation of spirit™." Well may this prospect compose the minds of all God's afflicted people ; and well may they be contented to go on their way weeping for a season, when they have a prospect of such a harvest, and an assurance of bringing with them such sheaves into the garner of their God.]
m Isai. lxv. 13, 14.
Micah vii. 18—20. Who is a God like unto thee, that par- doneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the rem- nant of his heritage ? He retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us ; he will subdue our iniquities ; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.
TO acquire the knowledge of God we must study his word; but we should mark also particularly his works : e.g. of creation, providence, and redemption. The passage, if taken separately, is grand ; but with the context it is infinitely more sublime. The prophet has been contemplating the glory of the latter day, and it is with an especial reference to that that he breaks forth into these strains of grateful adoration.
Let us consider the words, I. As uttered by the prophet in the prospect of the mercies that await his people in the latter day —
To enter fully into his views we must mark,
1. The dispensation which he has been contem- plating—
[He opens the subject of the Millennium, first, in a large and general view, (ch. iv. 1 — 4.) He next shews the blessings of which the Jews shall partake in that day, (ver. 6, 7.) This, though accomplished in part at Babylon, (ver. 10.) is certainly posterior to Christ's advent, as the events (ver. 11 — 13.) shew. It is to take place under the Christian dispensation, (ch.v.2 — 4.)