towards their earthly parents: how much more God's children towaros their heavenly Father I II. As RAISED BY HIK TO POWER AND GREATNESS, tliey are yet more bound to serve him. Every gift of God to us increases our responsibilities, lays us under a more stringent obligation to make a due return to our Benefactor. Israel was increased from a family into a nation, was multiplied in numbers, given a land flowing with milk and honey, raised from the bondage of Egypt to an independent and commanding position. Each step in their progress constituted a demand on them for greater love, profounder gratitude, more exact observance of every Divine commandment. III. As EXALTED ill'.ONG THE NATIONS, they are at once called upon fo1 additional thankfulness, and required to manifest to the heathen that God's favour has not been bestowed on them by mere caprice, but with some reference to their capacity of profiting by it. "A city set on e. hill cannot be hid" (Matt. v. 14). Eminence of whatever kind ea.Us upon us for increased exertion. Noblesse oblige. If men are bound to serve God in the lowest walks of life, still more a.re they bound to serve him when he hns "raised them out of the dust, and lifted them out of the dunghill, that he may set them with princes, even with the princes of his people" (Ps. cxiii. 7, 8). And as with individuals, eo with nations. Eminence among the powers of the earth calls on them to set a good example-to" let their light shine before men," to make a decided pro- fession of religion, and to carry out their profession in their acts. Israel, however, had acknowledged none of these obligations. They had "rebelled age.inst God," turned away from following him, cast his words behind their back. More dull than either ox or ass, they had refused to "know God," to have him in their thoughts, to "consider his operations" (eh. v. 10). Have not multitudes of Christians also followed their example? They too are God's children (Rom. viii. 16; 1 John iii. 1, etc.), created by him, regenerated by him, adopted by him in his beloved Son, Jesus Christ. They too have been raised by him to greatness, increased from a" little flock" to hundreds of millions, "carried on eagles' wings" (Exod. xix. 4), borne saLly through the storms of centuries. And they have been exalted among the nations of the earth, given the chief place, manifestly elevated above both Jews and heathen. Must not Christians, if they rebel, if they refuse to " know God " or " consider" him, expect the same terrible punishments as overtook the Israelites, or others similar to them? "If we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrilice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation; which shall devour the adversaries" (Heb. x. 26, 27). "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. x. 31). Vera. 4---9.-The prophet's enfor~mene of God's charge. God's words are so weighty, that they may well be few; the preacher's enforcement of them must needs be, com- paratively speaking, lengthy. Isaiah, in addressing his erring countrymen, aimed at producing in them- I. CONVICTION OF SIN. For this purpose, he begins with an array of seven charges (ver, 4), varying, e.s it were, the counts of the indictment: (1) they are a sinful nation; (2) they are laden with guilt ; (3) they are a race of evil-doers ; ( 4) they are children that act corruptly; (6) they have forsakeu Jehovah; (6) they have scorned him; (7) they have estranged themselves from him, and, as it were, turned awny from him and gone bnckwe.rd. The first four are genernl, and seem to be little more than rhetorical variations of one and the same theme. We may learn from them that rhetoricn.l variation is allowable, nay, proper, since different words catch hold of different persons, rouse them, touch them to the quick, are effectual to the producing of repent- ance. The last three charges are particular, and to some extent different, each exceed- ing the last in heinousness, and thus rising in the way of climax-desertion, insult, complete estrangement. Metaphor is then called in to work on the imagination, am\ through the imagination on the Qonscience : the nntion is depicted as a diseased and stricken body, a mass of sores and corruption (vers. 6, 6). II. FEAR OF PUNISHMENT, Undoubtedly fear is a low motive in religion-.,ome think it altogether o.n unworthy one, But while hwnan nature remains such BS it is, while the mass of men are incapnble of being stirred by the higher motives, appeal must be made to the lower ones. 'l'he prophet, therefore, reminds his people of Go<l's judgmentij 10 THE BOOK OF THE PROPRE'l' ISAIAH. [Oil, L 1-31,
in the past (ver. 7), thl'eatens them with further judgments in the future (ver, 5) and ('nds the p&rngraph by suggesting that his people have barely escaped the most te;rible of all judgmenis-- destruction like that of Sodom and Gomorrah.