The Pulpit Commentary — Joel — Section 38

thn1 he will <lo for them." Accordingly, he now pa.!!llell from temporal lionollta to 11piriLUBI ble88ing11. I. THK Dll<PENBATION OF TRI: OOIPEL I8 A BPIBITUAL DIIIPKNBATION. To a sorely chaHtoned people euch temporal mercies IMI a.re promised in the precedlng vorees must liave been very delightful, and the great change of their condition consequent on repentance mu11t have been IMI m&rVellm1a IMI It WIMI merciful, But tho prophet, looking away forwarn into the future, foretells the coming of a fo.r more eventful era-an era marked by ihe best.ow&! of far richer and ~ore .abundant blessings. 1 .. The period referre,d to_wu t.o be BUhllequent to the ca.l.am1ties alroady endured, and the comforting compensa.t1on1 that followed. Long after the Btorm of adversity then present would be overpB11t, and aft.er the state of peace and prosperity that would succood, there wouln come a time of unparalleled blessin~. The fulfilment of this prophecy hogan at the D11y of Pentecost. 2. TM plfflitude of bks,ing. Then the droppings of the Spirit, that had been vouchsafed to patriarchs a.nd prophets and the people of God under the old economy, would give place t.o a downpouring of tho Spirit without stint and without restriction. This outpouring of the Spirit, in his gifts and graces and consolations, would extend to all nationalities, Gentile as well IMI Jew; and to both sexes, daughters and sons alike; and to all ages, both young and old; and to all classes, bond as well ea free, servants and handmaids together. Not t.o the seed of Abraham, nor to the land of Israel, would the bleeeing be confined, but all flesh would be permitted to see the glory c,f the Lord, and, the inhabitants of. all lands would bo privilc-ged to come and worship before him. Peter himself scarcely comprehended the full extent of the blessing until he wae specially commissioned t.o open the door of faith to the Gentiles. 3. Part,,i,c11l,mr instances of the fulfilment present.themselves-in the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Gentile Cornelius, the Ro~n. centurion, and;his friends; in the prophesyini:: of the four daughters of Philip the evang~list, as in that of .Agabus; in the vision of Peter in Joppo., and in that of 0ornelius in Cmsarea ~ome short space previoU61y, as also in those wonderful visioDB and revelations vouchsafed to Paul when he was caught up int.o Paradise, and hear.d uDBpeakable words. 4. Prol()'Tl,- gatwn of the blessing. If we consider the efi"ecte produced, we shall find that th'3 blesi;ing did not cease at the Day of Pentecost, By the outpouring of the Spirit, cw doubt, apostles and evangelists received SlJCh discoveries of Divine things as. fully fitted them for writing the New Teeto.ment Scriptures, for declaring things secret, distant, and future, for founding the Christian Church, and ordering all tliings aright therein. TheHe extra.ordinary gifu of the Holy Ghost were confined to apostolic times, and in part to sub-apostolic times, and perhaps a generation after; but the ordinary operations and influences of the Spirit have never cea.eed from then till now. 'l'he. extraordinary manifestations of the Divine will produced by the outpouring of the Spirit were only. a partial accomplishment of the promise, and meant u a means for the full accom- plishment of the same. Besides, it wu not intended that all who receive the Spirit, and thereby learn the mysteries of the gospel and attain to the knowledge of salva- tion., should assume the power of prophesying, or exercise the function of the gospel ministry ; for Paul, speakicg of spiritual gifts, says, in relation to persons possessing such gifts, "Axe all apostles ? are all prophets? are all teachers ? " Nor are the· reve- la.tious vouchBafeG something without the Word of God, or beside it, or any way inde- pendent of it; for in the most solemn and signal fulfilment of this _Promise, whe!1 the Spirit wu poured out at Pentecost, Peter all along appeals to Scr1pture,._an~ directs his andience thereto in order to justify the change wrought on them, and vmd1cate the doctri.n811 he addressed to them. By "prophesy" and "visions" and "dreams," we may understand the prophet u speaking of "gospel times and mercies, in terms. borrowed from the times of the Old Testament; and the meaning is that, as of old, the excellont way and measure of the knowledge of God was by prophecy, vision, an~ dreams (~umb. rii. 6); so, under the New Testament, beside what was extraordmary, all who get the Spirit of God may, for knowing th1, mysterie11 o( ea.lvatio~, be ~ompared wiLb these ancient prophem. Alld aa o~ old, by these ways of man1festllt10n! ~on attained to the knowledge of the myst.enee of God, so should they by the Bpmt of G.od in the use of ordinary means." 5. PerfectfuJ,filment of the promise. Wonderful BI< the Pentecolltal period was for the outpouriog of the Spirit in 11uch powor and plenty, and superior iII eDergy and extent u the Divine influonce11 then were t.o thoae cm. u. 1-32._J THE BOOK OF JOEL. 3!'i