1 Sam. xii. 22 ; 2 Sam. vii. 23). '.rhis, for Vers. 22, 23 ..-;-Anothor at.ago of the dopnr- Ezekiel, was the crowning blessedness of ture of the D1vme glory closes the vision. all, as it had been thflt of earlier and con- It had rested over the middle of the city temporary prophets (Hos. ii. 23; Jer. xxiv. It now halts over the mountniu on the ensl 7). To that tboul('ht he returns again Rnd side of the city, i.e. on the Mount of Olivce agAin, as to the anchor of his hope (eh. xiv. (2 Sam. xv. 30; Zech. xiv. 4). Currey 11 ; xxvii. 14 ; xxxvi. 28; xxxvii. 23, 27). mentions, but without a reference a Jewish Ver. 21.-But as for them, etc. We note tradi!ion that the Sheohinah, or giory-oloud, the peculiar phraseology. The heart of the remamed there for three years, calling the people walks not simply after their detestable people to repentance. Whnt is here recorded things, but after the heart of those things. ~ay have_ suggested the thought of Zech. There is, as it were, a central unity in the xiv. 4. We mny remember that it was from evil to which they unite themselves, just as this spot that Christ " beheld the city and the heart of man tarns to the heart of wept over it" (Luke xix. 41) ; that fr~m it God when the two are in their ideal relation He, the true Shechinah, ascended into to each other. For thoae who did this, heaven. Here, perhaps, the dominant whether in Jerusalem or among the exiles, thought was that it remained for a time to there was the prospect of a rigbteous retri- ~~et the work of judgment. And so the bution. The words close the message which v1s1on was over, and the prophet was home Ezel.-icl heard in the courts of the temple back in vision to Chaldea, e.nd made known in his visions, but which he was to deliver to the exiles of Tel-Abib the wonderful and fver. 25) t.o them of the Captivity. terrible things that he had seen.
HOMILETICS. Ver. 3.-The false confidence of •u1nbelief. Jeremiah told the captives to settle in the land of exile and build houses there, because the Captivity was to last for genera- tions (Jer. :xx.ix. 5). But the frivolous people have rejected that wise counsel, and they declare that such provision for exile is not necessary. " It is not time to build these houses the prophet spoke of," they say; "we will stay in the city, like the flesh in the cauldron." L IliPENITENOE CREATES FALSE CONFIDENCE. This is to be expected, just as we see, on the other hand, that a deep sense of guilt brings with it a fear of judgment to come. When we feel and own our sin, we must admit that we deserve punishment, and we must see that the ground of assurance is cut from beneath our feet. What right have we to believe that God will shield us from harm, while we are bidding defiance to his Law? But while a soul is impenitent the ill desert and threatening doom are no1, perceived. It does not own that it should be punished. It defends itself and shelters itself behind innumerable excuses. Moreover, the moral sense is now blunt, and the faculty of spiritual insight blind. The messenger of God, too, is regarded as an enemy, and therefore little attention is given to his word. Thus arises a meretricious faith, the opnosite of true faith, the confidence of unbelief. !I. FALSE CONFIDENCE POSTPONES AND MINIMIZES THE PROSPECT OF CALAMITY. 1. It postpones. Possibly the evil day may lie in the future. This much is tacitly admitted, But it is so far away that we need not give any consideration to it. While the prophet declares that it is at the door, the reckless unbeliever relegates it to a region of dim futurity beyond the horizon of practical considerations. 2. It minimizes. Even if it is admitted that the dreadful day is near, the evil of it is made little of. "There is no need to build houses,'' these " Jerusalem sinners" exclaim. The storm may come soon, but it will quickly pass. Thus men make the least of the prospect of future punish- ment. False confidence first postpones the consideration of it, and then softens its terrors. To the impenitent sinner hell is first a far-off possibility; then, though it is a nearer future, it is not thought to be so unendurable as the J)l'eachers declare. III. THERE 16 GREAT DANGER IN FALSE CONFIDENCE. The Jews were simply deceiving themselves. '!'heir very language should have revealed their folly to them. They described the city ae a cauldron in which they were ae the flesh. Their only application of this metaphor was to represent themselves as well inside the city, and therefore as not needing to build other houses. But the prophet did not have to go far afield to find another very obvious application of the same metaphor. 'l'he cauldron is to be set on a fire, and the flesh is only placed io it to be seethed. The cauldron, therefore, cm. XI. 1-25.] THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET EZEKIEL. 193