definite meaning from which we are not at liberty to depart. We may not substitute for the idea which the word in Scripture and in ordinary language is intended to express, any arbitrary philosophical notion of our own. God is the Being, who, because He is all that the word Jehovah implies, is the proper object of worship, that is, of all the religious affections, and of their appro- priate expression. He is, therefore, the only appropriate object of supreme love, adoration, gratitude, confidence, and submission. Him we are bound to trust and to obey.
Jehovah is not only God, but He says to his people collectively and individually, " I am thy God." That is, not only the God whom his people are to acknowledge and worship, but who has entered into covenant with them ; promising to be their God, to be all that God can be to his creatures and children, on condition that they consent to be his people. The special covenant which God formed with Abraham, and which was solemnly renewed at Mount Sinai, was that He would give to the children of Abraham the land of Palestine as their" possession and bless them in that inheritance on condition that they kept the laws delivered to them by his servant Moses. And the covenant which He has made with the spiritual children of Abraham, is that He will be their God for time and eternity on condition that they acknowledge, receive, and trust his only begotten Son, the promised seed of Abraham, in whom all the nations of the earth are to be blessed And as in this passage the redemption of the Hebrews from their bondage in Egypt is referred to as the pledge of God's fidelity to his promise to Abraham, and the special ground of the obligation of the Hebrews to acknowledge Jehovah as their God ; so the mission of the Eternal Son for the redemption of the world is at once the pledge of God's fidelity to the promise made to our first parents after their fall, and the special ground of our allegiance to our covenant God and Father.
§ 4. The First Commandment.
The first commandment is, " Thou shalt have no other gods before me." I, that is, the person whose name, and nature, and whose relation to his people are given in the preceding words, and I only, shall be recognized by you as God. •
This command, therefore, includes, first, the injunction to rec- ognize Jehovah as the true God. As this recognition must be intelligent and sincere, it includes, —
1. Knowledge. We must know who, or what Jehovah is. This
278 PART III. Ch. XIX. — THE LAW.
implies a Knowledge of his attributes, of his relation to the world as its creator, preserver, and governor, and especially his relation to his rational creatures and to his own chosen people. This of course involves a knowledge of our relation to Him as dependent and responsible creatures and as the objects of his redeeming love.
2. Faith. We must believe that God is, and that He is what He declares Himself to be ; and that we are his creatures and his children.
3. Confession. It is not enough that we secretly in our hearts recognize Jehovah as the true God ; we must openly and under all circumstances and despite of all opposition, whether from mag- istrates or from philosophers, avow our faith in Him as the only living and true God. This confession must be made, not only by the avowal of the lips as when we repeat the Creed, but by all appropriate acts of worship in public and private, by praise, prayer, and thanksgiving.
4. As the law is spiritual, not only as bearing the impress of the Spirit, and, therefore, holy, just, and good, but also as taking cognizance of the inward as well as of the outward life, of the thoughts and feelings as well as of external acts, this recognition of Jehovah as our God includes the exercise towards Him of all the religious affections ; of love, fear, reverence, gratitude, sub- mission, and devotion. And as this is not an occasional duty to be performed at certain times and places, but one of perpetual obligation, a habitual state of mind is the thing required. The recognition of Jehovah as our God involves a constant sense of his presence, of his majesty, of his goodness, and of his providence, and of our dependence, responsibility, and obligation. We are to have God always before our eyes ; to walk and live with Him, having a constant reference to his will in the conduct of our inward and outward life ; recognizing continually his hand in everything that befalls us, submitting to all his chastisements and grateful for all his mercies.
The second or negative aspect of the command is the condem- nation of the failure to recognize Jehovah as the true God ; fail- ing to believe in his existence and attributes, in his government and authority ; failing to confess him before men ; and failing to render him the inward reverence and the outward homage which are his due, that is, the first commandment forbids Atheism whether theoretical or practical. It moreover forbids the recog- nition of any other than Jehovah as God. This includes the prohibition of ascribing to any other being divine attributes ;