Jc:sus in the temple seems in his natural element, not too young even at twelve years ol age to show an ardent interest in all that concerned Divine worship and service. Ill. 'l'IIE AMPLE ENCOURAGEME1'"T WHICH JEHOVAH GIVES TO JEREMIAH, Jn I\ few 'lrnrds, God puts before his servant all that is needed and all that can be supplied. 1, There will be clca1· commands from God, and from the prophet there must be correspond- ing obedi,;nce. Not with Jeremiah rests the deciding of whether he shall go here or there, or to what place first and to what last. He is always a sent man, and when he comes i;:it-0 the presence of his appointed audience, his message is a provided message. Thus it is ensured that he never finds himself in the wrong place or speaking at the wrong time. Well does God kno,v how little we are able, of ourselves, to decide when to spe:ik and when to be silent, what to say and what to leave unsaid. 2. One conse- quence of God's message faithfully delivered will be hostility and menace from the hearers, and therefore • there is_ an exhortation to courage, and an indication of the ground which makes that courage possible. When Jeremiah gets into a certain presence and speaks a certain word he will be threatened. The threatening must be expected ; it shows that the arrow of God's truth has found its home. All the powers of the human face will be called into malignant exercise against the prophet. The eye, the tongue, the muscles of the face will all be joined in strong combination to express the contempt and hatred filling the brain that lies behind, In no way can Jeremiah escape this experience; he must face the enemies, but in doing so he has the assurance that his Commander is near t-0 deliver. 3. God makes now an actual communication to the prophet. The path is not yet taken, the audience is not yet in view, but by way of earnest inspiration the words of the Master are put into the servant's mouth. 'l'his of course was an indescribable experience. What it is to have the words of God in one's mouth can only be known by an actual enjoyment of the privilege. The only way in which we can discern bow real and fruitful this experience was, is by observing its effect. There is no more hesitating, no turning from one answered plea to find another more cogent. Henceforth the prophet goes on steadily and faithfully in his mission, and his perfect service is best pro-ved by this, that in due time he meets with the indicated opposition, and recei-ves from _God his promised protection_.-Y. Ver. 10.-The vast compass of the prophet's work. I. THE WIDE EXTENT TIIB rnol'HECIES COVER. Primarily they bad to do with Jerusalem and Judah and all the families of the house of Israel. Dut this was only the beginning. They went on to affect in the most intimate way all the nations and the kingdoms. The principles of righteousness and truth and Divine authority cor.cern all. 'fhey can no. more be kept within certain geographical bounds than can the clouds and rains of heaven. On this day, when the Great I AM came to the youthful Jeremiah, he set him over the nations and over the kingdoms, and here is the reason why these prophecies, with their grand ethical deliverances, have still such a firm hold upon Christendom, upon the Gentile just as much as the Jew. Wherever there still remains the worshipper of stocks and stones, wherever the oppressor is found, and the man who confides in· the arm of flesh, and the man who is utterly indifferent to the glory of God,-then in that same place thero is occasion to insist most strenuously upon the continued application of Jeremiah's words. The prophets were more than indignant patriots; they were and are still witnesses to an ideal of humanity, nowhere regarded as it ought to be, and only too often neglected, if not contemptuously denied. He who came forth to condemn his own people for lapsing into idolatry did thereby e;1ually condemn other nations for not d:par~ing from it. 'l'he gospel for every creature is preceded by a body of prophecy, which 1s shown also to concern every creature, not by laborious inference, but by such explicit words as we find in ibis verse. II. THE DEPTH OF THE WORK TO Vl'JUCII THESE PROPHECIES POINT. The work is not only wide; it is deep as it is wide. 'l'he ultimate aim is set forth in two ~gure~: 1. Building. 2. Planting. On these two figures Paul dwells very suggestively m writing to the Corinthians. The constructive work of God in the human soul needs more than one figure sufficiently to illustrate it. But all true building must be on a sufficient foundation; all Divine planting, if it is to come to anything, must be in a suitable soil. Hence there goes beforehand an unsparing work, to destroy things alre~y in existence. Buildings already erected must be pulled down; plants alrrady growmg VR. I. 1-19.] THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. 17
must be uprooted and put beyond the chance of further growth. We have done thinas which ought to have been left undone; and the word to Jeremiah is that they must be undone, in order that the things which ought to be done may be fully done. The terms indicating destruction are multiplied to emphasize the need, and prevent escape into ruinous compromise. 'l'here must be no tacking on of a new building to certain humanly cherished parts of the old. Constructions after the will of God must not be liable to a description such as that of the image which Nebuchadnezzar saw in hi~ dream; all must ho strong, pure, and beautiful from basement to summit. In th11 garden of the Lord there can be no mixing of heavenly and earthly plants. A clean sweep-such is necessitated for the glory of God and the blessedness of man. Thus at the very first is given a hint of the hostility which Jeremiah ,vould provoke. Pulling down means the expulsion of self from its fortress, and its bereavement of all that it valued. Every brick detached, every plant uprooted, intensified the enmity one degree more. "Destroy," "overthrow," are the only words that can be spoken as long as any- thing remains in which human pride and selfishness take delight. But at the same time, the prophet goes forth to build and to plant. He takes nothing away but what he leaves something infinitely better behind. When God sends a messenger to us, his great first word is ·"thorough;" and even though he has to make his way through human pains, tears, murmurings, and semi-rebellions, he keeps to the word. Remember, then, that he who pulls down also builds; he who uproots also plants; and he builds and plants for eternity.-Y.