Ver. 24.-God's correction of his people. A preliminary difficulty is felt here, in that this earnest deprecation seems to apply to the position of an individual. Ver. 23 is easily taken as being the utterance of Jeremiah himself, but ver. 24 can only apply with pro- priety to the nation. Such an ntterance as that of this chapter must evidently be taken as a. combination made up by several speakers. Jehovah speaks; Jeremiah speaks; the nation speaks; and in such an outburst as that of ver. 24 the nation speaks fitly, not as a multitude, but as with the voice of one man. It will be noticed that there is a cor- respondence with eh. iii. 4, where Israel is represented as possibly addressing Jehovah, and saying, "My Father, thou art the Guide of my youth." And here is an ample confession that the filial, dependent, submissive spirit is needed still. I. OBSERVE THE ADMISSION OF WRONG-DOING. "Correct me," uttered at all, is e.n admission that correction is deserved. The whole of the supplication of course implies a reference to the relation of father and child, as if Israel said, "My Father, I have done wrong, and I know that all wrong-doing children, when the wrong is discovered, must expect to be corrected." The correction of children by their parents must have been 'l'ery familiar to all Israelites; the Book of Proverbs, in many of its pithy sentences, being in part a consequence of this familiarity and in part a ea.use of it. A most important part in the benefit of correction came from its very certainty, from the child's know ledge that the correction could not be escaped. Though the extent of it might be an open question, the certainty was to be no question at all. 'l'ho position might be put thus: If an earthly father, being evil, yet has firmness enough not to overlook the least departure from his commandments, then the pure Jehovah above, who is regarded as the Father of Israel, cannot be less strict to mark iniquity. Israel bas done wrong, and to make an ample admission of the wrong, to welcome the needful chastisement, is nothing more than what is right. There is no merit in such an admission; the suppliant who makes it is only doing what he ought to do. To continue insensible of the wrong adds to the wrong, and llflakes correction as correction altogether in vain. II. A FEAR LEST THE CORRECTION MAY DECOME EXCESSIVE AND INJURIOUS. Israel has before its mind, the conception of a father in his relations, powers, and duties. But since the measurements arc made from the earthly father with all his imperfec- tions, it follows that not only are the encouraging aspects of the relation seen, but also dreadful possibilities as to how far the chastising force may go. Israel argues too closely from the father on earth to the Father in heaven. 'l'he earthly father is seen hc,iling over with rage, beating his child in the wildness of his fury, not because it ou. xt. 1-23.] 1.'HE BOOK OF THE PROPHET JEr..E1HAU.
has done wrong, but because it h~s thwarted him. It is important to notice this very partial way of conceiving the fatherhood of God; this exaggeration of mere might. 'l'here is thus given an index to the insufficiency of the knowledge which the Israelites had of God, and a proof how much Jesus was needed to come in and reveal the Father, bringing the serenity and composed action of his attributes into full view. God, of course, never acts with fury and frenzy as we apply these words to man. God produces results through man, and there may be fury in the human agents, but in the God behind them there is none. 1.'he narrow notion of Jehovah expressed in vers. 24 and 25 itself needed to be corrected, His favour towards Israel was not an arbitrary thing, nor could it be right that his imagined wild fury might justly expend itself on heathens. If Israel was to be corrected with judgment, the same judgment was s11rely needed to correct the heathen. If there is fury with them, there can be no true dealing in judgment with Israel. Severity with the heathen as typical enemies of the typical people of God is another matter; but severity must never be confounded with fury. III. THE KIND OF CORRECTION DESIRED, "Correct me, but with judgment." Correc- tion, to have any proper effect, must be deliberate, and proportioned to the offence that has been committed. While it comes from a fatherly purpose, it must come also with the calmness and impartiality of a judicial procedure. A charge is made; evidence is adduced and examined; defence, denial, extenuation, are listened to ; everything must be weighed; and so be who is corrected will feel in his conscience that the correction is just. The severity is not blind and measureless force. If it cannot fall short of a certain standard of pain, neither will it exceed it. Any olher sort of dealing has no right to the name of co1Tection at all. Foolish Rehoboam, threatening to chastise the people with scorpions, is an illustration of what must ever be avoided by those who are in power. Be it a child or be it a. man who is smitten, no good can be done unles3 there is the sense that the smiting is just.-Y.