The Pulpit Commentary — Hosea — Section 175

know the duty which we nre bound to render to him in gratitude for his amazioa loving-kindness, and in love to him who first loved us. 2. How is this knowleda~ attained? 'l'here must be diligent, prayerful study of the Divine Word under the teaching of tho Divine Spirit. The physician never dreams of gainina a knowledae of his profession, and of qualifying himself for the performance of its r~sponsible d;ties, without years of preparatory study in order to grasp its principles and master its details; nor can he afford to abandon that study even after he has entered on the practice of his professional labours-earnest thought and unwearying diligence are still required. The merchant who would succeed in mercantile life must devote much attention to the principles of commerce and the various departments of trade; days of toil and nights of close application to business are indispensable. The agriculturist, if be would attain to eminence or even respectability in his calling, cannot expect to do so without suitable training and diligent attention in order to acquaint himself with the proper methods of tillage. Shall men willingly devote their noblest energies and highest powers ancl best days to the occupations of time, and yet afford only some brief intervals of lei8ure, or some spare hours, and very slight attention to attain the knowledge of that God who is above them, and to prepare for that eternity that is before them? 3. By what means do we gain increase of this knowledge ? What promotes our growth at once in :;:race and the knowledge of God? The answer is before us. We are to follow on, hunt after, strive zealously to know the Lord. There must be continued diligence, constant perse- verance; there must be devout and daily readin~ of God's Word-some tirne every day less or more should be given to the study of Holy Scripture; there must be fervent • prayer for the teaching of the Holy Spirit: for" the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; they are foolishness unto him, because they are spiritually dis- cerned." Have we already acquired some knowledge of God, not merely out of the volume of creation, or by the light of our own intellect, or from the teachings of others, but from this Word of God, which is brimful of the knowledge of God; and do we know God to be a just God and yet a Saviour-our God and Father through Jesus Christ our Lord? Then we must beware of becoming cold, or languid, or lifeless. We must avoid everything and anything that would turn us aside, or tempt us to prefer our secular business to salvation, or to set the trifles of time in the place of the realities of eternity. But should coldness creep over us, or should a spirit of slumber overtake us as the virgins in the parable, or should our little progress in the Di vine life and Divine things discourage us, let us repair at once to the mercy-seat for Divine help and grace; and the Spirit of truth will guide us into all truth. Let us ever bear in miod that we must persevere to the end in order to be saved, that we must be faithful unto death if we would obtain the crown of life, and that if, after having put our hand to the plough, we turn back, the Lord will have no pleasure in us. Follow on, then, as the runner in the race to win the prize, as the warrior in the conflict to gain the victory, as the mariner steers his homeward-veering bark to reach his native shore. V. THE BLESSEDNESS PROMISED TO THOSE WHO PERSEVERE IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF GoD. The promised blessing is here presented under two beautiful figures-the return- ing light of morning, and the refreshing rain. 1. There is freshness in the morning air, there is beauty in the morning light, there is loveliness in natural scenery when the light of morning shines on it. One of the oldest Greek poets often speaks of morning, and usually with some epithet of praise or admiration, such as "saffron-robed Aurora," or "Aurora, daughter of the dawn.'' "The morning." We associate morning with the idea. of refreshment and relief. If you have been laid on a. bed of sickness, or tossing on o. bed of pain, or watching by the bedside of one dear to you as your own life, how welcome is the light of morning l After tossings to and fro till the dawning of the da.y, the morning brings some measure of relief or relaxation. Many a. one in the circum- stances supposed is crying out, "Would God it were morning l" or sighing out, "Oh for the light of morning, to shorten the wea.riness of the night, or bring some alleviation!·• There, again, is the mariner toiling through the dreary hours of a stormy winter night, while neither moon nor stars appear; how he wishes and longs for the light of morning! Or a traveller has been overtaken by the darkness of the night, and has lost his wa.y in some pathless wilderness, or among the glades of a mountain forest; how he waits and watches for the first gleam of morning light to extricate him from his perplexity and peril I In all these cases the morning is looked forward to for relief; nor is it ever  li4 THE BOOK OF HOSEA, [cH, VI. 1-11,