And attend to the instruction founded upon it — [Hear what the dispensation says to you : " You stand by faith ;" and have the same reason to tremble for fear of God's judgments as they had. If they had continued to ex- ercise faith in God, they had never been cast out : nor shall you, if you " live altogether by faith in the Son of God, who loved you, and gave himself for you." But if you distrust God, and rebel against him, and rely on any thing of your own, instead of the Lord Jesus Christ, God's anger will smoke against you in like manner ; and you also will become monu- ments of his righteous indignation. If God spared not the natural branches, there is no reason to think he will spare those which have been taken from a wild olive-tree, and graffed in among them. The improvement, therefore, which you are to make of this dispensation, is, " Be not high-minded, but fear." Put away all your self-preference and contempt of others : and, under a consciousness of your liability to fall, beg of God to strengthen your faith ; and endeavour to " walk in the fear of the Lord all the day long."]
And now, brethren,
1. Accept thankfully this reproof —
[You cannot but be sensible, how shamefully the Jews have been neglected, not only by you, but by the whole Chris- tian world, these seventeen hundred years. Any excuse has been quite sufficient to justify your indifference for their wel- fare. " The time for their national conversion is not come." Was it come, then, eighteen hundred years ago? Who has spoken more strongly respecting their rejection than St. Paul? Yet did he labour with all earnestness, if by any means he might save some. And this also we ought to do, even though we had eighteen more centuries to wait for this event. But the time, we have reason to think, is very near at hand ; as events, no less than the prophecies, appear to indicate. But, be this as it may, I call on you to blush and be confounded for having so long boasted against them ; and henceforth, by every possible means, to concur in promoting their conversion to the faith of Christ ]
2. Follow diligently the counsel given you —
[Improve the situation, wherein, through God's tender mercy, you are placed. Are you partakers of the root and fatness of the true olive-tree ? See to it, that you bring forth
such fruits as this root produced in former days
Look at Abraham, David, Isaiah, Daniel, Paul ; and see that the grace of God operate as effectually in you as it did in them. And when you call to mind what efforts were made by the holy Apostles for your benefit, let a measure of the same love animate you in behalf of those in whose place you stand ]