I. TIIB NATURE OF TFIIB BIN. The peculiarity of it deserves to be carefully studied. It is npt to ,be _taken for gra?ted that "temptin!$ God" means simply provoking him to nnger. This, however, IS a sense of tempting scarcely applicable to the Divine. God can be provoked to wrath, but he is not" tempted" thereby (Jas. i. 13). "Tempt- ing," in the sense of the text, means "putting to the proof," "imposing tests." Professor Tyndall's famous proposal of a prayer test would have fallen unrler this description. 'That this is the right view of the sin is plain from the narrative, and from allusions in the Psalms. " They tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us or not?" (Exod. xvii. 7). "They tempted God in their hearts . . . they said, Can G0,l furnish a table in the wilderness?'' (Ps. lxxviii. 18-20). In thi~ view of it the appositeness of the Saviour's quotation of the passage becomes more obvious (Matt. iv. ,). II. THE OC0ABION OF THE BIN. A result of the want of food and water. Poverty suggests this class of doubts, and inspires the thought of putting God to some test of his faithfulness. But the temptation may originate in other causes-in intellectual doubt, in a sign-seeking spirit (Matt. xvi. 1), in downright presumptuousness. III. 'l'm: EVIL OF THIS SIN. 1. Its root of unbelief. It is a" limiting of the Holy One of Israel" (Ps. lxxviii. 41). 2. Its querulous impatience. Instead of trustin~ God, waiting upon him, and seeking light and help in a proper spirit, it flies in God's face, ae,cuses him of unkindness, and complains of his injustice. 3. Its darin1 pre- sumption in presuming to lay down rules to the Almighty, to which he is require,l to conform. God brings us into situations of trial, not .that we may apply tests to him, but that he may test us-test our faith, our patience, our humility. For those who come successfully through the trial there is the great reward of having dark things at •length cleared up, and of being purified and strengthened by the struggle. Failure, on the other hand, exposes to severe chastisements.-J. O. Ver. 25.-0ur ;-igltteousness. As contrasted with Pauline sayings, the text ls an illustration of the maxim, "On the outside of things look for differences, on the inside for likenesses" (Hare). The form is that of the Law, the spirit is that of Christ, whose gospel is the key to the Law's utterances. I. A REQUIREMENT WHICH ONE ONLY, VIZ. CHRIST, HAS PERFECTLY FULFILLED. "This is the name whereby he shall be called, the Lord our Righteousness" (Jer. xxiii. 6). He "is the end of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth" (Rom. x. 4). How? ln the strictly legal, as in the strict ideal sense, righteousness requires an absolutely perfed fulfilment of every one of God's commandments. The Jewish covenant required no less. 'l'he Jews were to live in their righteousness, i.e. in perfect keeping of the whole Law. But in point of fact, no Jew ever rendered perfect obedience. In many things, like others, he offended, and the covenant footing was only maintained through daily pardon of daily offences. Christ is our Redeemer from the curse thus entailed by transgression (Gal. iii. 13). As the Lord's righteous Servant, and Fulfiller of the Law, he has implemented the condition of acceptance in such a way that his obedience carries with it results to others as well as to himself (Rom. v. 17-21). In him the believer is justified. He claii;ns him as the Lord his Righteousness. Christ has for him at once fulfilled the Law's precept, and abolished its penalty. Sinful in himself, in Christ his sins are covered, and justification is obtained (Rom. iii. 22-27; viii. 1-4; 1 Cor. i. 30; 2 Cor. v. 21). II. A REQUIREMENT WHICH BELIEVERS m CHRIST ARE ENABLED TO FULFIL, TROCGil IMPERFECTLY, YKT ACCEPTABLY. The utmost that the Jew could render was that imperfect but sincere obedience which is still the mark of the true believer. Tim believer's duty is to render a perfect obedience; his privilege is that, falling short of this, his sincere though faulty obedience will be graciously accepted for the sake of Christ. lu harmony with his calling, it was to be the Jew's uim to realize the righteousness which the Law set before him. But·in his inability to do this the weak- ness of the Law revealed itself, and in contrast with this weakness (Rom. viii. 3) is the power of the gospel, enabling the believer to triumph, and to bring forth fruit unto holiness, the end of which is everlasting life (Rom. vi. 22). This also is a "rigbt- e?usness of faith," as springing from faith, _and render~d possibl_e ~hrough it. I~ is his righteousness, yet in a deeper sense not h1s, but Christ s, for It IS the work ol Chnst living in him (Gal. ii. 20). It is not the ground of acceptance, but a result of it; 134 TRE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY. [oH, Vt. 1-20,
not R title to heaven, but meetness for it. It is itself a ~ift of grnce, part of Christ's ~alrntion (!lliltt. v. 6; Eph. v. 9, 10; Phil. ii. 12, 13; 1 Pet. ii. 24; 1 John iii. 7-10; with Rom. ,·i., vii., viii.),-J. 0.