·Bpoke!l to be evaded. They cannot deny that the satisfactory son is not the one wb() professes great respect for his father's authority, while be does only what pleases h)mself, b1;1t the one who does his father's bidding, even though he has at first disowned his authority. These men were so unceremoniously dealt with by our Lord because they were false. They may not have clearly seen that they were false, but they were so" (Dods). I. SPEECH SHOWN TO BE WORT1;1LESB BY DEEDS, Professions are good and right; they ought to be made. Hut profess10ns must not stand alone. They ought to express pwrpose. They ought to be followed by appropriate action. The peril of relig;i.on in -every age lies in the fact that credit is to be gained and confidence won by making profession; and so the insincere man, and the man who can deceive himself, a.re tempted to make religious profession hide their self-seeking. And it must also be said that religious profession, and observance of mere religious rites, becomes a prevailing custom, by which men a.re carried away, and relieved of anxiety about ma.king deeds match words. The Pharisee class are evidently pictured in this son. They were ·extremely anxious about speaking right and showing right, but they were sadly indifferent about doing right. What needs to be continually re-impressed is, that supreme importance attacbes to being right and doing right; these will find natural -and proper expression. If we are right, our profession will match ourselves. II. SPEECH PUT TO SHAME BY DEEDS. The son is in no way to be commended who refused obedience. It was a bad profession, and found expression for a bad mind. ·But when he came to a good mind, a.ad weat and obeyed, the obedience put to shame -the hasty and unworthy words. No doubt our Lord referred to the publican class, who had taken their own wilful and self-pleasing way, but now they had come to a better mind, and were even pressing into the kingdom.-R. T. Ver. 33.-1Vie wicked h-usbandmen. 'Ibis parable belongs to the series in which our Lord shows up his enemies, and reveals to them at once their own shameless schemings, and his complete knowledge of their devices. But while the relation of the parable to those Pharisees should be recognized, it is necessary also to see that the man of God can never let the evils of his age alone. Those Pharisees were holding men in creed and ceremonial bondage ; Christ did not attack them because of their personal enmity to him, It was this-a liberator of human thought can never let the thought-enslavers alone. Illustration: Luther, or C. Kingsley. In this parable we have the dealings of God with men illustrated in the dealings of God with the Jews, and pictured in the parable of the vineyard-renters. Explain the first references of the parable. Vineyard, God's chosen poople. H-usbandmen, the ordinary leaders and teachers of the nation. Servants, the prophets or spedal messengers. Destru,ction, the final siege of Jerusalem. Others, the transfer of gospel privileges to the Gen tiles. I. THE REABONABLEl'IEBB OF GoD's DEALINGS WITH MEN. Illustraw this : 1. From the vineyard-figures. (Compare the more elaborate description in Isa. v.) Chosen ground. Planted. Nourished. Guarded. Pruned. And a wine-vat prepared in expectation of fruit. What could have been done more? 2. From the historical facts of God's dealings with Israel. God's call, redemption, provision, guidance, a.nd prosperity. The finnl seeking fruit was Christ's coming. 3. From our own personal experience, as members of the spiritual Israel of God. Recall the graciousness of the Divine dealings _with us. II. THE UNREASONABLENESS OF MEN'S DEALINGS WITH GoD. Illustrate this: 1. From the vineyard-figures. The shame, dishonesty, ingratitude, and rebellion of these husbandmen. See to what length it goes. 2. From the historical facts. The resist- ance, again and again, of Jewish prophets, as Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos. The wilful casting out of the Son. 3. From our own personal experience. Take the case of one unsaved. Up to thi_s resisted motherhood, friendship, Bible, inward call of Christ, etc. How must man's unreasonableness be divinely met? (1) The sinfulness by Divine chastisement. (2) The unworthy response to privilege by the loss of privilege. (3) The persistent wrong by judgmeut, "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men."-R. T.
Ver. 42.-.The history of the Corner-stone. Foundations are not now laid as ii,. 356 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW. [err. xxn. 1-46.
l'lden times. Foundation-stones arc now mere ornaments. Thero is no sense In whioh buildings now re.sf on them. Memorial-stones are taking the place of foundation- etones. Probably the figure of the " corner-stone " is taken from the corner of Mount l\forinh, which had t-0 be built up from the valley, in order to make a square area for the temple courts. Dean Plumptre says, "In the primary meaning of the psalm, the illustration seems to have been drawn from one of the stones, quarried, hewn, and marked, 8\ny from the site of the temple, which tho builders, ignorant of the head nrchitect'e plans, had put on one side, as having no place in the building, but which was found afterwards to be tbat on which the completeness of the structure depended, that on which, as the chief corner-stone, the two walls met, and were bonded together." 'l'ake this suggestion, and consider- !. C!rnrsT AS THE PREPAllED CORNER-STONE. Describe the work done on the lime- stone block in order to fit it for its placo as a foundation-stone. The apostle permit9 us to think of the experiences of our Lord's human life as fitting him to be the Saviour he became. The Captain of our salvation was made perfect through suffering, for his work as the " bringer-on of souls." " Though he were a Son, yet learned he- obedience by the things that be suffered." The.Corner-stone was being chiselled and bevelled for its place. Work out this figure. II. CHRIST AS THE REJECTED CoBNEB-BTONE. When our Lord spoke, the Corner- stone was almost ready; and there were the men who prided themselves on being the builders of God's temple of religion. .And they were, then and there, rejecting tb.M " tried Stone, that precious Comer-stone." They would put nothing on it. It was- not to their mind. It may lie for ever in the quarry for all they care. But happily they were only like overseers, or clerks of works. The Architect himself may order th.ia Stone to be brought, a.nd made the " Head of the corner." IIL CHBIBT AS THE HONOURED CoBNEB-STONE. The .Architect himself did interfere, brushed those petty officials aside, had the tried Stone brought out, and on it he has bad built the new temple of the ages. That temple is rising into ever richer and nobler proportions, and it was never more manifest than it is to-day, that the "Corner- stone is Christ."-R. T.