"And thou shalt beat some of it _very small_, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy." There is uncommon depth and power in the expression "very small." It teaches us that every little movement in the life of Christ, every minute circumstance, every act, every word, every look, every feature, every trait, every lineament, emits an odor produced by an equal proportion--"a like weight" of all the divine graces that compose His character. The smaller the perfume was beaten, the more its rare and exquisite temper was manifested.
"And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof; it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord. Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people." This fragrant perfume was designed exclusively for Jehovah. Its place was "before the testimony." There is that in Jesus which only God could appreciate. True, every believing heart can draw nigh to His matchless Person, and more than satisfy its deepest and most intense longings; still, after all God's redeemed have drunk to the utmost of their capacity, after angels have gazed on the peerless glories of the Man Christ Jesus as earnestly as their vision is capable of,--after all, there will be that in Him which God alone can fathom and enjoy. No human or angelic eye could duly trace the exquisitely minute parts of that holy perfume "beaten very small," nor could earth afford a proper sphere in which to emit its divine and heavenly odor.
Thus, then, we have, in our rapid sketch, reached the close of a clearly marked division of our book. We began at "the ark of the covenant," and traveled out to "the altar of brass;" we returned from "the altar of brass," and have come to the "holy perfume;" and, oh, what a journey is this, if only it be traveled, not in company with the false and flickering light of human imagination, but by the infallible lamp of the Holy Ghost! What a journey, if only it be traveled, not amid the shadows of a by-gone dispensation, but amid the personal glories and powerful attractions of the Son which are there portrayed! If my reader has so traveled it, he will find his affections more drawn to Christ than ever; he will have a loftier conception of His glory, His beauty, His preciousness, His excellency, His ability to heal a wounded conscience and satisfy a longing heart; he will have his eyes more thoroughly closed to all earth's attractions, and his ears closed to all earth's pretensions and promises;--in one word, he will be prepared to utter a deeper and more fervent Amen to the words of the inspired apostle when he says, "IF ANY MAN LOVE NOT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, LET HIM BE ANATHEMA MARAN-ATHA."[16] (1 Cor. xvi. 22.)
[16] It is interesting to note the position of this most solemn and startling denunciation. It occurs at the close of a long epistle in the progress of which the apostle had to rebuke some of the grossest practical evils and doctrinal errors. How solemn, therefore, how full of meaning the fact, that when he comes to pronounce his anathema, it is not hurled at those who had introduced those errors and evils, but at the man who loves not the Lord Jesus Christ! Why is this? Is it because the Spirit of God makes little of errors and evils? Surely not: the entire epistle unfolds His thoughts as to these. But the truth is, when the heart is filled with love to the Lord Jesus Christ, there is an effectual safeguard against all manner of false doctrine and evil practice. If a man does not love Christ, there is no accounting for the notions he may adopt, or the course he may pursue. Hence the form and the position of the apostolic anathema.