The Pulpit Commentary — Isaiah — Volume 2 — Section 371

selves heartily to the religious life do come positively to enjoy it. It is the Divine reward of their devotion that they find personal pleasure in their pious works and ways. What strikes us as a most marked contrast betwei;n the older and the new religious life is this-our fathers found their pleasure in their religion, while we find our pleasure in anything and everything but our religion. The irksomeness of religious services and religious works is the sure sign that we have little or no plea.~ure in these things. God does not give us this reward because our hearts and energies are not in such things. A kind of force and fear holds us to a round of engagement; relics of old association and of an old sense of d11ty, keep us to formal acts of worship; but when the heart is gone out of religious service joy goes too. The lost sense of pleasure is not the worst thing in our spiritual condition, but it may be one of the signs of the worst. Self-pleasure is God's reward-is one of the proper ends of the pious life. II. SELF-PLEASING MUST NOT BE THE END SOUGHT IN' RELIGIOUS DUTIES, we need not dwell on the case of the hypocrite, who purposely seeks ends of his own in making his show of piety. It is more searching to deal with the case of the self-deceived, who mistakes the idea of religion-, and thinks himself to be serving God when he is only gratifying himself; and with the case of those who act from divided motives, and are always in danger of making self-pleasing the ruling one. God is to be honoured, obeyed, and served for his own sake alone, no matter what a man may get or lose by his service. It is the sternest reproach of some professed followers of God, that " they feared Jehovah, but served their own gods;" it would adapt the expression to modern mistakes if we read it, "They feared the Lord, but lived for ends of self-pleasin2;." It may be shown that the teachings concerning the heaven which is to be obtainer! through a religious life are too often presented as an encouragement to self-pleasing. Illustrate by the calamity that befell Pliable, in' Pilgrim's Progress,' who was going on pilgrimage for the sake of what he himself would get by it.-R. T. Vers. 6, 7.-God's idea of fasting. It shoulrl be noticed, as giving special point to this reference to fasting, that, besides the regular fasts of the Jewish religion, there were, during the Captivity in Babylon, special fasts appointed as days of repentance and prayer for Israel. God complains that these fasts did not say to him exactly what those who fasted intended them to say, because he lookeJ. at the whole conduct of the men to seo if it was in harmony with the fasting. The important principle is here illustrated that, if a man be right with God, he will be right also with his fellow-men. If a man does not forgive his brother his trespasses, he cannot be in such a state of mind as makes it any use to him for God to forgive his trespasses. If a man is harsh, exacting, violent, in his dealings with his fellow-creatures, God will take no notice of his sad countenance, fasting, and fine pretences of penitence. God is never deceived by the excellent appearance of our Sunday ways. He judges us by the records of all the week. I. Goo's IDEA OF FASTING IS NOT A FINE OUTWARD SHOW OF HUMILIATION. (Ver. 5.) Bowed head. Starved body. Sackcloth dress. Ashes for a seat. That looks fine, and men may be deceived by it, but not God. Compare our Lord's teaching in the sermon on the mount. "Be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast." "The prophet findg fault with the fasting of the Jews in two respects. 1. Because they did not combine fasting with works of righteousness. 2. Because they held the bodily exercise to be the chief thing." Outward appearances may speak for us to God, only we must take care that they have something sincere and true and worthy to say to him, from oar hearts. " Rend . your hearts, and not your garments ; " "The Lord sesrcheth the heart." II. Goo's IDEA OF FASTING IS SELF-RESTRAINT IN ORDEB TO GAIN HIGHER EFFI- 0IEN0Y FOB SERVICE. And such fasting needs to make no show. The man who fasts in this sense may "anoint his head, wash his face," and look cheerful. The best signs of fasting are the good works which we can accomplish, which we gain power, through our self-restraints, to accomplish-loosing bands, freeing the oppressed, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, blessing all. Fasting, in the sense of a refusal of all food, belongs to ceremonial religion and hlMi its origin in Eastern lands. Fasting in ita most spiritual form, as personal self-restraint, will-mastery over habHs and preferences, 384 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [on. Lvm. 1-14,