there. He would find no one there that resembled him, or that had a like taste with him, or that could join with him in anv of his pursuits. He would be out of his element alto- gether: nor would one in hell pant more for deliverance, to get rid of his pains, than he would for an escape from the company and occupations for which he felt no relish. Hence, when God says, " Be ye holy ; for I am holy," we must under- stand him, not as issuing a mere arbitrary command, but as declaring, that none but a holy being has any reason to expect, or any capacity to enjoy, his favour.]
But we shall have a deeper insight into the injunc- tion, if we consider,
II. The exhortation founded upon it —
"As he that hath called you is holy, so be ye holy, in all manner of conversation." In these words the Apostle does not merely confirm the authority of the injunction itself, but points out the extent to which it is to be obeyed, and the object we must aim at in order to a full compliance with it.
We must take God himself for our pattern™ —
[The natural perfections of the Deity are, and ever must be, peculiar to himself: but his moral perfections must be possessed by us, so far as we are capable of attaining them. His goodness, his patience, his mercy, his love, his truth, his faithfulness, are all to be imitated by us ; so that " what God himself is in the world, that are we to be also"." That we might be at no loss on this all-important subject, the Lord Jesus Christ has " set us an example, that we might follow his steps0:" and we are "to walk in all things as he walked1'," and to " purify ourselves even as he was pureq." Of course, we cannot expect ever to attain his perfection : but that is no reason why we should not aim at it. There is no one point in which we should allow ourselves to fall short of it : we should strive to be holy in all things, even as God himself is holy ; and " perfect, even as our Father which is in heaven is perfect1."]
By this must we shew that we are his people indeed —
[It is to this that " God has called us." It is the very object which he had in view, in his whole work of grace upon
m This is the idea suggested in the original. n 1 John iv. 17. ° 1 JJct. ii. 24. Pi John ii. 6. fi 1 John iii. 3.
* Matt. v. 48.