The Pulpit Commentary — Leviticus — Section 354

"His blood shall be upon him," he meant his penalty shall rest upon him-it shall not be borne and taken away by the blood of the substituted victim. In other words, •• He shall bear his iniquity," or the penalty of his iniquity, himself (see eh. vii. 18). There. have _always been, and there will always be, in the world II the unforgiven;" men, like Carn, who bea.r about them t!Je brand of an unpardonable offence; sons and -<laughters who have erred ~nd h9:ve not ~n taken back into parental love; criminals that have lost the pi~ m soci~ty wh1~h they_ have no hope of regaining; forlorn wretches that have so smned a,,01unst their consr,:ence that they cannot forgive them- -selves, and have abandoned themselves to a terrible despair. But what of the Divine forgiveness or refusal to forgive? We are taught- L 'llIAT PROVISION WAS MADE IN THE LAW FOR THE PARDON 01!' MANY 0l!'J'ENCES. This was the end of all the sin and trespass offerings, and on the Day of Atonement" all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions" were "borne -away" into the uninhabited land, into the wilderness of oblivion (eh. xvi. 21, 22). !L THAT UNDER THE LAW THERE WERE OFFENCES WHICH COULD NOT BE THUS ATONED, AND WERE NOT FORGIVEN, Those who wrought shameful acts of idolatry or immorality could brin_g_ no oblat~on to the altar; they could look for no mercy; no blood -of atonement was avruhng; their II blood was upon them;" they died before the Lord. !IL THAT, UNDER THE GOSPEL, l!ER0Y IS OFFERED !!'OR THE WORST TRANBGREBBOBS IF THERE BE PENITENCE AND FAITH. 'l'he one" unpardonable sin" (Mark iii. 29) is either {1) a sin which was possible in the days of the Incarnation and is absolutely beyond -commission now, or (2) consists in that hardening of the heart against the Spirit's in- fluence which results in final impenitence. But where there is repentance toward God .and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, there is an open gate into the kingdom of Go<l's mercy, into eternal life. No heinousness of offence, no multiplicity of transgressions, bars the way. "By him all that believe are justified from all things, from which they -could not be justified by the Law of Moses" (Acts xiii. 39). IV. THAT MA.NY SOULS, THOUGH WALKING IN THE LIGHT 01!' THE GOSPEL, ARE CONTENT TO BANK AMONG THE UNFORGIVEN. In the light, in the full sunshine of privilege and opportunity, there are thousands of men who do not find, because they will not seek, the mercy and the friendship of God. They live unforgiven; "their blood is upon them." They go through life (1) with an oppressive sense of condemnation upon them; (2) excluding themselves from purest spiritual blessedness (Pa. mii. 1, 2); (3) voluntarily unfitted for the highest service man can render his brother. V. THAT THE IMPENITENT PA.SB INTO THE FUTURE WITH UNFORGIVEN BIN UPON THEm SOUL. How terrible to pass beyond the line which bounds the period of probation with our II blood upon us;" to pass on (1) to condemnation and reproach at the bar of -God, (2) to exile from the heavenly city, (3) to the retribution which the j~stice of God must iaflict! Go, in the day of grace, to the" Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the worl<l," through whom there is" remission of sine" (Luke :u.iv. 47).-G. Ver. 23 (latter part).-God's di,pleasure with ourselves. "They committed all these things and therefore I abhorred them." This expression arrests us by- L I~s SOMEWHAT STARTLING STRENGTH. "I abhorred them." Does God positively abhor man? the Creator his creature? the Father hie child? Are we to understand that the Lord 1 who is "gracious and full of compaasion, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy," feels an actual cibhorrenu of those beings to _whom he is so n~rly and_ inti- mately related. those human spirits he formed for himself, to reflect h1S_ own image and to enjoy hie own immortal blessedness? The word startles us; it may well alarm UB • it suggests the question, Is it possible that we also may become such that our God ~ay be compelled to look on us with a displeasure which amounts to ab- horrence '! We look at- Il. THE BAD AND SOLID TRUTH WHICH IT CONTAINS. "God hates the sin and loves the sinner," we say, and truly. Yet this sentence does.not cover t~e w_hole truth _of -the case. God does pity the sinner, and seeks to save him. But he u dupleased unth him also. Of anything like malignity or ill will we rejoice to know that the holy and gracious One is absolutely incapable; but we are bound to believe tha_t he feels a -sacred and holy resentment against those who violate t.he laws of r1ghteousnesR. 1. Scripture plainly affirms that he does. "Therefore I abhorred them; " "God is angry <{JIJ, XX. 1-27.] TIIE BOOK OF LEVITICUS.