The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Thessalonians — Section 23

their pen,eoution patiently; yet nothing wu done for their redreu. Was not thlll a break-down of justice? The case is like that of the psalmist, who wae perplexed at the prosperity of the wicked till he went into the sanctuary, and then, by faith and the knowledge of unseen Divine law, umh·rstood their end (Ps. lxxiii. 17). His faith In the 1upremacy and justioe of God leads the apostle to put the contrary construotlon on passing events to that which would be laid upon them by unbelief. I. Tmt PATIE!-'T B!-'DURANOE OF PERSECUTION lB A TOKEN OF Goo's OOHING JUDGIIENT OF BEW ARD. The jndgment has two sides. Thero are sheep as well ae goats. To those who groan under the yoke of present injustice the coming of a future judgment must be hailed with joy. Then the cruelty win cease, the calumny will be repudiated, the wrong will be righted. But how is the patient endurance of perseo.ition a token of the coming jud_gment? 1. It shcnoa the nece,aity of iC. Of course, this argument is only addressed to faith. If we believe in God and his righteousness we cannot suppose that he will permit wrongs to remain unredressed. If justice were done on earth we need expect no further rectification. But the postponement of justice makes the ruture coming of it certain. Here is a reason for looking forward to a future life. If thi~ life were rounded into perfection we should not have so much occasion for expecting another life. But now that it is broken and not justly completed there must be a future. If the wages of God's labourers are not paid to-day there must be a morrow when they will be pa.id. 2. lt 1,e1·mits the persecuted to look forward to a happy issue from it. They will not be counted worthy of the king<lom of God simply because they endure persecution. Suffering is not merit. Heaven is not bare compensation. But the patient endurance is a sign of character, an,i it reveals a fitness for the future award of blessiu~s. The untried may be nncertain of their fate The tried and faithful have reason for more confidence. II. THE UNAVENGED INFLICTION OF PEBBECUTION 18 A TOKEN OP Qop's OOHING .nroo- HENT OF PUKISRHEz..'T. The blood of Abel cries to God from the ground. The meek, patient endurauce of the martyr demands fufure retribution more powerfully than the loudest cry for vengeance. The better the character of the persecuted is, the less they deserve their ill treatment and the more patiently they bear it, the greater will the guill of the persecutors appear. Thus this condition of affairs is a token of a coming judg- ment of wrath 1. It shows the necessity of it. If justice were already done, guilty men might have some excuse for denying tbe probability of a future judgment. llut now t.hev cannot speak of it as an idle threat of the Church. Justice demands it. 2. It wam, the wicke,d, to e.xpect a dreadful, doom. It reveals the guilt of their sin; and it makes so glaringly apparent the contrast between their couduct and that of their victims that a difference of destiny of corresponding magnitude may be upected.- W. F. A. Vera. 6-10.-The judgment-day. This vivid description of the judgment-day begins with an appeal to the justice of its awful events: "If so be that it is a righteous thing," etc. The details of the great day can only be revealed by Divine inspiration. But the great outlines of its proceedings may be predicted by our own consciences. L Tu SEPARATIOl!I OF DESTINIES. Destinies are now apparently mixed and dis- arranged without any evident regard to justice. They will not be so then. There will be a clear division between the sheep and the goats. 1. Suffering to ~ per- ,ecwo,-s. They who give affliction shall suffer affliction. There is a law of nature u well as a principle of fairness in the Zez talionis when it is rightly applied. A ba~ man's doom is to be the recoil of bis evil deeds upon bis own head. 2. Rest to the persecuted. The specially coveted reward of the afflicted is rest. To the weary su1ferer that alone iB an immeasurable blessing. 'l'bere ill some compensation in the fact that rest, which to the idle and comfortable ie itself a weariness, becomes the most happy solace to the suffering. Note: (1) This rest ie the more enjoyable because it is shared with beloved friends (Paul. Silas, etc). (2) It is not given to all the afflicted, but to afflicted Christians. IL 'l'HE TIME OF THE .JUDGMENT. It is here synchronized with the second advent of Christ. He is King and Judge as well as Friend and Saviour. His repudiation of the office of Judge during his eartaly humiliation (Luke xii. 14) shouhi only make us feel how surely the exercise of hiB rightful j11dicial functions must be reserved for l!Ome OIL L 1-12.] 'fHE SECOND EPISTLE TO THE THESSALONIANS. 21