Anger rouses anger as fire kindles fire. 'fhe reference to forgiveness shows that St. Paul is especially condemning outbursts of wrath against people who have treated us maliciously. 3. Evil example. "Clamour and railing" are public offences. When many men concur in pouring wrath on a selected victim it is difficult to stand aside from the current of abuse and recognize the unholiness of it. The admonition may be applied (1) to public life, that politics may be freed from the degradation of personal spite ; (2) to affairs of religion in condemnation of the odium theologicum, and also of the odium antitheologicv,m,-why should we hate a man because his opinion is not ours? (3) to social life, since it is better to suffer an injury unavenged than to add a. second injury in return. II. THE POSITIVE DUTIES. Christianity is not satisfied with passive meekness. We must not only turn the cheek to the smiter, we must love our enemies-a duty of positive feeling and action. 1. General kindness. This would destroy the selfishness that is at the root of all revengeful feelings. He who has injured us is our brother. The ties of our common brotherhood that urge us to love him should be stronger than the provocations of his unkindness that would make us bitter against him. 2. Tender- heartedness. This should make us pity the offender for the shame and guilt he bas brought upon himself, and long for reconciliation with him. 3. Forgiveness. The final step for the healing of positive injury is the most necessary, for without it we can have no Divine forgiveness, nor can we truly love our enemy. III. THE GRAND MOTIVE. "Even as God also in Christ forgave you." As we must forgive others before God will forgive us, so when he has forgiven us a stronger reason is added to urge us to forgive those who may in fttture injure us. 1. The Divine for• giveness is the reason for our forgiveness and kindness to others. The parable of the unforgiving servant reveals the gross inconsistency of an unforgiving spirit in Christian men and women (Matt. xviii. 23-35). How can we who simply exist because God has forgiven us deny forgiveness to our brethren? If God who is infinitely above us has condescended to forgiveness, shall we stand more strictly on our petty rights? If God has forgiven us our innumerable, great, and awful sins against him, can we be backward in pardoning the much fewer and slighter sins of our fellow- men against us? Forgiven the debt often thousand talents, how have we the face to exact the debt of a hundred pence? 2. The Divine forgiveness is the patt~n of our forgiveness. It is (1) at the greatest cost-" in Christ," through the gift of God's own Son; (2) covering all sins, the worst and blackest without exception ; (3) perfect, full, and ungrucl,,oing-remembering our sins no more, removing them from us ns far as the east is from the west, burying them in the sea; (4) cheerful and generous-• putting the rin~ and best robe on the penitent ; (5) free, not earned by sacrifice, penance, or good works. Such should be on our forgiveness of one another.-W. F. A.
EXPOSITION. <'-ised by him towards us; cv<'ry consitlera- OHAPTER V. tion, therefore, ought to incluco us to show Ver. 1.-Be ye therefore imitators of God, the some spirit. as ohildren beloved. These words ,uo closely Ver. 2.-And walk in love. Taking np connected with the preceding. In eh. iv. anew the exhortation of eh. iv. I .. Let your 32 he h1ul urged the cxomple of God in ordinary life be spent in an ntmosphcro of one very momentous motter; he now urges love. Drink it in 1'rom heaven, ns plants it in a more geneml sense and on nnot!Jer drink in the sunshine; radiate it forth from ,1:round. We ought to forgive men bcconee eyes and face; let hands and fed b0 acti\'o God has forgiven us-all ndmit that; but in the service; let looks, worrls, nnrl nets o.11 moreover, we ought to imitate our Father in bo steeped in it. Even as Christ also loved' hie forgiveness nnd in hie loving spirit, be- us. '.rho passing from tho Fnthcr to the. because beloved children should nlways Son Ill! our Examplo is not a new depnrt.ure; imitate, and will o.lwn.ye Btrive to imitate, for the Son reveals the F1,thcr, the Son's whnt is good in o. belove<l fother. }'or• love is the counterpart of th0 Fnther's, mnrlo giving lorn is one of the great glories of our visible to us in thn wnv most fitted to im- Falber; it ho.a been rnndo pec11linrly nttrn.c- press us. 'l'hou~h Clirist's lo\'e, like his tivo in our eyes, because it h11S been e1cr- Father's, is eternal, the aorist is use,1, to 208 THE EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIANS. [en. v. 1-33.