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<TITLE>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible [Deuteronomy, Chapter XXVI].</TITLE>
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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1706)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>D E U T E R O N O M Y</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXVI.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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With this chapter Moses concludes the particular statutes which he
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thought fit to give Israel in charge at his parting with them; what
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follows is by way of sanction and ratification. In this chapter,
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I. Moses gives them a form of confession to be made by him that
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offered the basket of his first-fruits,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:1-11">ver. 1-11</A>.
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II. The protestation and prayer to be made after the disposal of the
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third year's tithe,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:12-15">ver. 12-15</A>.
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III. He binds on all the precepts he had given them,
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1. By the divine authority: "Not I, but the Lord thy God has commanded
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thee to do these statutes,"
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:16">ver. 16</A>.
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2. By the mutual covenant between God and them,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:17-19">ver. 17</A>,
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&c.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="De26_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Offering of First-Fruits.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1451.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And it shall be, when thou <I>art</I> come in unto the land which
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the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God giveth thee <I>for</I> an inheritance, and possessest
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it, and dwellest therein;
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2 That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the
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earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God
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giveth thee, and shalt put <I>it</I> in a basket, and shalt go unto
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the place which the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God shall choose to place his name
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there.
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3 And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be in those
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days, and say unto him, I profess this day unto the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God,
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that I am come unto the country which the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> sware unto our
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fathers for to give us.
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4 And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and
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set it down before the altar of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God.
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5 And thou shalt speak and say before the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God, A
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Syrian ready to perish <I>was</I> my father, and he went down into
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Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation,
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great, mighty, and populous:
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6 And the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted us, and
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laid upon us hard bondage:
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7 And when we cried unto the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> God of our fathers, the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>
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heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour,
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and our oppression:
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8 And the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty
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hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness,
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and with signs, and with wonders:
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9 And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us
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this land, <I>even</I> a land that floweth with milk and honey.
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10 And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land,
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which thou, O L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before
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the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God, and worship before the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God:
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11 And thou shalt rejoice in every good <I>thing</I> which the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>
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thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house, thou, and the
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Levite, and the stranger that <I>is</I> among you.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Here is,
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I. A good work ordered to be done, and that is the presenting of a
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basket of their first-fruits to God every year,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:1,2"><I>v.</I> 1, 2</A>.
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Besides the <I>sheaf of first-fruits,</I> which was offered for the
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whole land, on the morrow after the passover
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Le+23:10">Lev. xxiii. 10</A>),
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every man was to bring for himself a basket of first-fruits at the
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feast of pentecost, when the harvest was ended, which is therefore
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called the <I>feast of first-fruits</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ex+34:22">Exod. xxxiv. 22</A>),
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and is said to be kept with a <I>tribute of free-will-offering,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+16:10">Deut. xvi. 10</A>.
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But the Jews say, "The first-fruits, if not brought then, might be
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brought any time after, between that and winter." When a man went into
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the field or vineyard at the time when the fruits were ripening, he was
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to mark that which he observed most forward, and to lay it by for
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first-fruits, wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and
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dates, some of each sort must be put in the same basket, with leaves
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between them, and presented to God in the place which he should choose.
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Now from this law we may learn,
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1. To acknowledge God as the giver of all those good things which are
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the support and comfort of our natural life, and therefore to serve and
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honour him with them.
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2. To deny ourselves. What is first ripe we are most fond of; those
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that are nice and curious expect to be served with each fruit at its
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first coming in. <I>My soul desired the first ripe fruits,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mic+7:1">Micah vii. 1</A>.
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When therefore God appointed them to lay those by for him he taught
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them to prefer the glorifying of his name before the gratifying of
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their own appetites and desires.
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3. To give to God the first and best we have, as those that believe him
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to be the first and best of beings. Those that consecrate the days of
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their youth, and the prime of their time, to the service and honour of
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God, bring him their first-fruits, and with such offerings he is well
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pleased. <I>I remember the kindness of thy youth.</I></P>
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<P>
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II. Good words put into their mouths to be said in the doing of this
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good work, as an explication of the meaning of this ceremony, that it
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might be a reasonable service. The offerer must begin his
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acknowledgment before he delivered his basket to the priest, and then
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must go on with it, when the priest had set down the basket before the
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altar, as a present to God their great landlord,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:3,4"><I>v.</I> 3, 4</A>.</P>
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<P>
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1. He must begin with a receipt in full for the good land which God had
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given them
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>):
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<I>I profess that I have come</I> now at last, after forty years'
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wandering, <I>unto the country which the Lord swore to give us.</I>
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This was most proper to be said when they came first into Canaan;
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probably when they had been long settled there they varied from this
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form. Note, When God has made good his promises to us he expects that
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we should own it, to the honour of his faithfulness; this is like
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giving up the bond, as Solomon does,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+8:56">1 Kings viii. 56</A>,
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<I>There has not failed one word of all his good promise.</I> And our
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creature-comforts are doubly sweet to us when we see them flowing from
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the fountain of the promise.</P>
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<P>
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2. He must remember and own the mean origin of that nation of which he
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was a member. How great soever they were now, and he himself with them,
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their beginning was very small, which ought thus to be kept in mind
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throughout all the ages of their church by this public confession, that
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they might not be proud of their privileges and advantages, but might
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for ever be thankful to that God whose grace chose them when they were
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so low and raised them so high. Two things they must own for this
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purpose:--
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(1.) The meanness of their common ancestor: <I>A Syrian ready to perish
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was my father,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>.
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Jacob is here called an <I>Aramite,</I> or <I>Syrian,</I> because he
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lived twenty years in Padan-Aram; his wives were of that country, and
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his children were all born there, except Benjamin; and perhaps the
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confessor means not Jacob himself, but that son of Jacob who was the
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father of his tribe. However it be, both father and sons were more than
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once ready to perish, by Laban's severity, Esau's cruelty, and the
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famine in the land, which last was the occasion of their going down
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into Egypt. <I>Laban the Syrian sought to destroy my father</I> (so the
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Chaldee), <I>had almost destroyed him,</I> so the Arabic.
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(2.) The miserable condition of their nation in its infancy. They
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sojourned in Egypt as strangers, they served there as slaves
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>),
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and that a great while: as their father was called a <I>Syrian,</I>
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they might be called <I>Egyptians;</I> so that their possession of
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Canaan being so long discontinued they could not pretend any
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tenant-right to it. A poor, despised, oppressed people they were in
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Egypt, and therefore, though now rich and great, had no reason to be
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proud, or secure, or forgetful of God.</P>
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<P>
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3. He must thankfully acknowledge God's great goodness, not only to
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himself in particular, but to Israel in general.
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(1.) In bringing them out of Egypt,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:7,8"><I>v.</I> 7, 8</A>.
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It is spoken of here as an act of pity--<I>he looked on our
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affliction;</I> and an act of power--he <I>brought us forth with a
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mighty hand.</I> This was a great salvation, fit to be remembered upon
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all occasions, and particularly upon this; they need not grudge to
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bring a basket of first-fruits to God, for to him they owed it that
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they were not now bringing in the tale of bricks to their cruel
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task-masters.
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(2.) In settling them in Canaan: <I>He hath given us this land,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>.
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Observe, He must not only give thanks for his own lot, but for the land
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in general which was given to Israel; not only for this year's profits,
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but for the ground itself which produced them, which God had graciously
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granted to his ancestors and entailed upon his posterity. Note, The
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comfort we have in particular enjoyments should lead us to be thankful
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for our share in public peace and plenty; and with present mercies we
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should bless God for the former mercies we remember and the further
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mercies we expect and hope for.</P>
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<P>
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4. He must offer to God his basket of first-fruits
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>):
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"I have <I>brought the first-fruits of the land</I> (like a
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pepper-corn) as a quit-rent for <I>the land which thou hast given
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me.</I>" Note, Whatever we give to God, it is but <I>of his own</I>
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that we <I>give him,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ch+29:14">1 Chron. xxix. 14</A>.
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And it becomes us, who receive so much from him, to study what we shall
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render to him. The basket he set before God; and the priests, as God's
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receivers, had the first-fruits, as perquisites of their place and fees
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for attending,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Nu+18:12">Num. xviii. 12</A>.</P>
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<P>
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III. The offerer is here appointed, when he has finished the service,
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1. To give glory to God: <I>Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God.</I>
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His first-fruits were not accepted without further acts of adoration. A
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humble, reverent, thankful heart is that which God looks at and
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requires, and, without this, all we can put in a basket will not avail.
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<I>If a man would give all the substance of his house</I> to be excused
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from this, or in lieu of it, <I>it would utterly be contemned.</I>
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2. To take the comfort of it to himself and family: <I>Thou shalt
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rejoice in every good thing,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>.
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It is the will of God that we should be cheerful, not only in our
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attendance upon his holy ordinances, but in our enjoyments of the gifts
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of his providence. Whatever good thing God gives us, it is his will
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that we should make the most comfortable use we can of it, yet still
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tracing the streams to the fountain of all comfort and consolation.</P>
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<A NAME="De26_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="De26_15"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Appropriation of Tithes.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1451.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>12 When thou hast made an end of tithing all the tithes of
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thine increase the third year, <I>which is</I> the year of tithing,
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and hast given <I>it</I> unto the Levite, the stranger, the
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fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates,
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and be filled;
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13 Then thou shalt say before the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God, I have brought
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away the hallowed things out of <I>mine</I> house, and also have given
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them unto the Levite, and unto the stranger, to the fatherless,
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and to the widow, according to all thy commandments which thou
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hast commanded me: I have not transgressed thy commandments,
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neither have I forgotten <I>them:</I>
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14 I have not eaten thereof in my mourning, neither have I
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taken away <I>ought</I> thereof for <I>any</I> unclean <I>use,</I> nor given
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<I>ought</I> thereof for the dead: <I>but</I> I have hearkened to the voice
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of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> my God, <I>and</I> have done according to all that thou
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hast commanded me.
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15 Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless
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thy people Israel, and the land which thou hast given us, as thou
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swarest unto our fathers, a land that floweth with milk and
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honey.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Concerning the disposal of their tithe the third year we had the law
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before,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+14:28,29"><I>ch.</I> xiv. 28, 29</A>.
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The second tithe, which in the other two years was to be spent in
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extraordinaries at the feasts, was to be spent the third year at home,
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in entertaining the poor. Now because this was done from under the eye
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of the priests, and a great confidence was put in the people's honesty,
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that they would dispose of it according to the law, to <I>the Levite,
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the stranger, and the fatherless</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>),
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it is therefore required that when at the next feast after they
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appeared <I>before the Lord</I> they should there testify (as it were)
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upon oath, in a religious manner, that they had fully administered, and
|
|
been true to their trust.</P>
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<P>
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I. They must make a solemn protestation to this purport,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:13,14"><I>v.</I> 13, 14</A>.
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1. That no hallowed things were hoarded up: "<I>I have brought them
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away out of my house,</I> nothing now remains there but my own part."
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2. That the poor, and particularly poor ministers, poor strangers, and
|
|
poor widows, had had their part according to the commandment. It is fit
|
|
that God, who by his providence gives us all we have, should by his law
|
|
direct the using of it, and, though we are not now under such
|
|
particular appropriations of our revenue as they then were, yet, in
|
|
general, we are commanded to give alms of such things as we have; and
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then, and not otherwise, all things are clean to us. <I>Then</I> we may
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take the comfort of our enjoyments, when God has thus had his dues out
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of them. This is a commandment which must not be transgressed, no, not
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with an excuse of its being forgotten,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>.
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3. That none of this tithe had been misapplied to any common use, much
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|
less to any ill use. This seems to refer to the tithe of the other two
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|
years, which was to be eaten by the owners themselves; they must
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|
profess,
|
|
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|
(1.) That they had not eaten of it in their mourning, when, by their
|
|
mourning for the dead, they were commonly unclean; or they had not
|
|
eaten of it grudgingly, as those that all their days eat in darkness.
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|
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(2.) That they had not sacrilegiously alienated it to any common use,
|
|
for it was not their own. And,
|
|
|
|
(3.) That they had not given it for the dead, for the honour of their
|
|
dead gods, or in hope of making it beneficial to their dead friends.
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|
Now the obliging of them to make this solemn protestation at the three
|
|
years' end would be an obligation upon them to deal faithfully, knowing
|
|
that they must be called upon thus to purge themselves. It is our
|
|
wisdom to keep conscience clear at all times, that when we come to give
|
|
up our account we may lift up our face without spot. The Jews say that
|
|
this protestation of their integrity was to be made with a low voice,
|
|
because it looked like a self-commendation, but that the foregoing
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|
confession of God's goodness was to be made with a loud voice to his
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|
glory. He that durst not make this protestation must bring his
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|
<I>trespass-offering,</I>
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|
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Le+5:15">Lev. v. 15</A>.</P>
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|
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<P>
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|
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II. To this solemn protestation they must add a <I>solemn prayer</I>
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|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>),
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|
|
|
not particularly for themselves, but for <I>God's people Israel;</I>
|
|
for in the common peace and prosperity every particular person prospers
|
|
and has peace. We must learn hence to be public-spirited in prayer, and
|
|
to wrestle with God for blessings for the land and nation, our English
|
|
Israel, and for the universal church, which we are directed to have an
|
|
eye to in our prayers, as the <I>Israel of God,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ga+6:16">Gal. vi. 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
In this prayer we are taught,
|
|
|
|
1. To look up to God as in a holy habitation, and thence to infer that
|
|
holiness becomes his house, and that he will be sanctified in those
|
|
that are about him.
|
|
|
|
2. To depend upon the favour of God, and his gracious cognizance, as
|
|
sufficient to make us and our people happy.
|
|
|
|
3. To reckon it wonderful condescension in God to case an eye even
|
|
upon so great and honourable a body as Israel was. It is looking down.
|
|
|
|
4. To be earnest with God for a blessing upon his people Israel, and
|
|
upon the <I>land which he has given us.</I> For how should the earth
|
|
yield its increase, or, if it does, what comfort can we take in it,
|
|
unless therewith <I>God, even our own God, gives us his blessing?</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+67:6">Ps. lxvii. 6</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="De26_16"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="De26_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="De26_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="De26_19"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Israel Reminded of the Covenant.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1451.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>16 This day the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God hath commanded thee to do these
|
|
statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them
|
|
with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.
|
|
17 Thou hast avouched the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> this day to be thy God, and to
|
|
walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments,
|
|
and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice:
|
|
18 And the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar
|
|
people, as he hath promised thee, and that <I>thou</I> shouldest keep
|
|
all his commandments;
|
|
19 And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made,
|
|
in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an
|
|
holy people unto the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> thy God, as he hath spoken.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
Two things Moses here urges to enforce all these precepts:--
|
|
|
|
1. That they were the commands of God,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.
|
|
|
|
They were not the dictates of his own wisdom, nor were they enacted by
|
|
any authority of his own, but infinite wisdom framed them, and the
|
|
power of the King of kings made them binding to them: "<I>The Lord thy
|
|
God commands thee,</I> therefore thou art bound in duty and gratitude
|
|
to obey him, and it is at thy peril if thou disobey. They are his laws,
|
|
therefore thou shalt do them, for to that end were they given thee: do
|
|
them and not dispute them, do them and not draw back from them; do them
|
|
not carelessly and hypocritically, but with thy heart and soul, thy
|
|
whole heart and thy whole soul."
|
|
|
|
2. That their covenant with God obliged them to keep these commands.
|
|
He insists not only upon God's sovereignty over them, but his propriety
|
|
in them, and the relation wherein they stood to him. The covenant is
|
|
mutual, and it binds to obedience both ways.
|
|
|
|
(1.) That we may perform our part of the covenant, and answer the
|
|
intentions of that
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>):
|
|
|
|
"<I>Thou hast avouched</I> and solemnly owned and confessed <I>the Lord
|
|
Jehovah to be thy God,</I> thy Prince and Ruler. As he is so by an
|
|
incontestable right, so he is by thy own consent." They did this
|
|
implicitly by their attendance on his word, had done it expressly
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ex+24:1-8">Exod. xxiv.</A>),
|
|
|
|
and were now to do it again before they parted,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+29:1"><I>ch.</I> xxix. 1</A>.
|
|
|
|
Now this obliges us, in fidelity to our word, as well as in duty to our
|
|
Sovereign, to <I>keep his statutes and his commandments.</I> We really
|
|
forswear ourselves, and perfidiously violate the most sacred
|
|
engagements, if, when we have taken the Lord to be our God, we do not
|
|
make conscience of obeying his commands.
|
|
|
|
(2.) That God's part of the covenant also may be made good, and the
|
|
intentions of that answered
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:18,19"><I>v.</I> 18, 19</A>):
|
|
|
|
The <I>Lord has avouched,</I> not only taken, but publicly owned thee
|
|
to be his <I>segullah,</I> his <I>peculiar people, as he has promised
|
|
thee,</I> that is, according to the true intent and meaning of the
|
|
promise. Now their obedience was not only the condition of this favour,
|
|
and of the continuance of it (if they were not obedient, God would
|
|
disown them, and cast them off), but it was also the principal design
|
|
of this favour. "He has avouched thee on purpose <I>that thou shouldest
|
|
keep his commandments,</I> that thou mightest have both the best
|
|
directions and the best encouragements in religion." Thus we are
|
|
<I>elected to obedience</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Pe+1:2">1 Pet. i. 2</A>),
|
|
|
|
<I>chosen that we should be holy</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eph+1:4">Eph. i. 4</A>),
|
|
|
|
purified, a peculiar people, that we might not only do good works, but
|
|
be zealous in them,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Tit+2:14">Tit. ii. 14</A>.
|
|
|
|
Two things God is here said to design in avouching them to be his
|
|
peculiar people
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+26:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>),
|
|
|
|
to make them high, and, in order to that, to make them holy; for
|
|
holiness is true honour, and the only way to everlasting honour.
|
|
|
|
[1.] To make them high above all nations. The greatest honour we are
|
|
capable of in this world is to be taken into covenant with God, and to
|
|
live in his service. They should be, <I>First,</I> High <I>in
|
|
praise;</I> for God would accept them, which is true praise,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ro+2:29">Rom. ii. 29</A>.
|
|
|
|
Their friends would admire them,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Zep+3:19,20">Zeph. iii. 19, 20</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>Secondly,</I> High <I>in name,</I> which, some think, denotes the
|
|
continuance and perpetuity of that praise, <I>a name that shall not be
|
|
cut off. Thirdly,</I> High <I>in honour,</I> that is, in all the
|
|
advantages of wealth and power, which would make them great above their
|
|
neighbours. See
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Jer+13:11">Jer. xiii. 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
[2.] That they might be a holy people, separated for God, devoted to
|
|
him, and employed continually in his service. This God aimed at in
|
|
taking them to be his people; so that, if they did not keep his
|
|
commandments, they received all this grace in vain.</P>
|
|
|
|
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