1. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? This was the startling cry of Golgotha: Eloi,
Eloi, lama sabacthani. The Jews mocked, but the angels
adored when Jesus cried this exceeding bitter cry. Nailed to the tree we behold
our great Redeemer in extremities, and what see we? Let us gaze with holy
wonder, and mark the flashes of light amid the awful darkness of that
midday-midnight. First, our Lord’s faith deserves our reverent imitation; he
keeps his hold upon his God and cries twice, My God, my God. The spirit
of adoption was strong within the suffering Son of Man, and he felt no doubt
about his interest in his God. Oh that we could imitate this cleaving to an
afflicting God! Nor does the sufferer distrust the power of God to sustain him,
for the title used—El—signifies
strength, and is the name of the Mighty God. He knows the Lord to be the
all-sufficient support and succor of his spirit, and therefore appeals to him
in the agony of grief, but not in the misery of doubt. He would like to know
why he is left; he raises that question and repeats it, but neither the power
nor the faithfulness of God does he mistrust. What an enquiry is this before
us! Why hast thou forsaken me? We must lay the emphasis on every word of
this saddest of all utterances. Why? There was no cause in him; why then
was he deserted? Hast. It is done, and the Saviour is feeling its dread
effect; it is surely true, but how mysterious! It was no threatening of
forsaking which made the great Surety cry aloud: he endured that forsaking in
very deed. Thou. I can understand why traiterous Judas and timid Peter
should be gone, but thou, my God, my faithful friend, how canst thou leave me?
This is worst of all, worse than all put together. Hell itself has for its
fiercest flame the separation of the soul from God. Forsaken. If thou
hadst chastened I might bear it, for thy face would shine; but to forsake me
utterly, ah! why is this? Me. Thine innocent, obedient, suffering Son,
why leavest thou me to perish? A sight of self seen by penitence, and of
Jesus on the cross seen by faith will best expound this question. Jesus is
forsaken because our sins had separated between us and our God. Why art thou
so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? The Man of
Sorrows had prayed until his speech failed him, and he could only utter
moanings and groanings as men do in severe sicknesses, like the roarings of a
wounded animal. To what extremity of grief was our Master driven! What a strong
crying and tears were those which made him too hoarse for speech! What must
have been his anguish to find his own beloved and trusted Father standing afar
off, and neither granting help nor apparently heating prayer! Yet there was a
reason for all this which those who rest in Jesus as their Substitute well
know.
2. For our
prayer to appear to be unheard is no new trial. Jesus felt it before us. He
still held fast on God, and cried still, “My God,” but his faith did not
render him less importunate. Our Lord continued to pray even though no
comfortable answer came, and in this he set us an example of obedience to the
words, “men ought always to pray, and not to faint.” No daylight is too
glaring and no midnight too dark to pray in; no delay or apparent denial,
however grievous, should tempt us to forbear from importunate pleading.
3. However
ill things may look there is no ill in thee, O God! We are very apt to
think and speak hardly of God when we are under his afflicting hand, but not so
the obedient Son. He knows too well his Father’s goodness to let outward
circumstances libel his character. There is no unrighteousness with the God of
Jacob. If prayer be unanswered it is not because God is unfaithful. If we
cannot perceive any ground for the delay, we must leave the riddle unsolved,
but we must not fly in God’s face to invent an answer. While the holiness of
God is acknowledged and adored, the afflicted speaker in this verse seems to
marvel at how the holy God could forsake him, and be silent to his cries. The
argument is: Thou art holy; oh, why is it that thou dost disregard thy holy One
in his hour of sharpest anguish? We may not question the holiness of God, but
we may argue from it, and use it as a plea in our petitions.
4. This is
the rule of life with all the chosen family. Three times over is it mentioned
that they trusted; they never left off trusting, for it was their very
life; and they fared well, too, for thou didst deliver them. Out of all
their straits, difficulties, and miseries faith brought them by calling their
God to the rescue; but in the case of our Lord it appeared as if faith would
bring no assistance from heaven; he alone of all the trusting ones was to
remain without deliverance. The experience of other saints may be a great
consolation to us when in deep waters, if faith can be sure that their
deliverance will be ours; but when we feel ourselves sinking, it is poor
comfort to know that others are swimming. Our Lord here pleads the past
dealings of God with his people as a reason why he should not be left alone;
here again he is an example to us in the skillfull use of the weapon of all
prayer. The use of the plural pronoun our shows how one with his people
Jesus was even on the cross. We say, “Our Father which art in heaven,” and he
calls those “our fathers” through whom we came into the world, although he
was without father as to the flesh.
5. As if he
had said, “How is it that I am now left without succor in my overwhelming
griefs, while all others have been helped?” We may remind the Lord of his
former lovingkindnesses to his people, and beseech him to be still the same.
This is true wrestling; let us learn the art. Observe that ancient saints cried
and trusted, and that in times of trouble we must do the same; and the
invariable result was that they were not ashamed of their hope, for deliverance
came in due time; this same happy portion will be ours. The prayer of faith can
do the deed when nothing else can. Let us wonder when we see Jesus using the
same pleas as ourselves, and immersed in grief far deeper than our own.
6. But I am a worm, and no man. How could the Lord of glory be brought to such abasement as
to be not only lower than the angels, but even lower than men? What a contrast
between “I AM” and I am a worm! Yet such a double nature was found in
the person of our Lord Jesus when bleeding on the tree. He felt himself to be
comparable to a helpless, powerless, downtrodden worm, passive while crushed,
and unnoticed and despised by those who trod on him. He selects the weakest of
creatures, which is all flesh; and becomes, when trodden upon, writhing,
quivering flesh, utterly devoid of any might except strength to suffer. This was
a true likeness of himself when his body and soul had become a mass of
misery—the very essence of agony—in the dying pangs of crucifixion. Man by
nature is but a worm; but our Lord puts himself even beneath man, on account of
the scorn which was heaped upon him and the weakness which he felt, and
therefore he adds and no man. The privileges and blessings which
belonged to the fathers he could not obtain while deserted by God, and common
acts of humanity were not allowed him, for he was rejected of men; he was
outlawed from the society of earth, and shut out from the smile of heaven. How
utterly did the Saviour empty himself of all glory, and become of no reputation
for our sakes! A reproach of men. Their common butt and jest; a byword
and a proverb unto them; the sport of the rabble, and the scorn of the rulers.
Oh the caustic power of reproach, to those who endure it with patience, yet
smart under it most painfully! And despised of the people. The very
people who would once have crowned him then condemned him, and they who were
benefited by his cures sneered at him in his woes. Sin is worthy of all
reproach and contempt, and for this reason Jesus, the Sinbearer, was given up
to be thus unworthily and shamefully entreated.
7. Read the
evangelistic narrative of the ridicule endured by the Crucified One, and then
consider how it grieved him. The iron entered into his soul. The scornful
ridicule of our Lord was unanimous. Which shall we wonder at the most, the
cruelty of man or the love of the bleeding Saviour? How can we ever complain of
ridicule after this? Pouting, grinning, shaking of the head, thrusting out of
the tongue, and other modes of derision were endured by our patient Lord; men
made faces at him before whom angels veil their faces and adore. They punned
upon his prayers; they made matter for laughter of his sufferings, and set him
utterly at nought.
8. Here the
taunt is cruelly aimed at the sufferer’s faith in God, which is the tenderest
point in a good man’s soul, the very apple of his eye. They must have learned
the art from Satan himself, for they made rare proficiency in it. There were
five forms of taunt hurled at the Lord Jesus (Matthew 27:39–44); this mockery
is probably mentioned in this psalm because it is the most bitter of the whole.
When we are tormented in the same manner, let us remember him who endured such
contradiction of sinners against himself. We must not lose sight of the truth
which was unwittingly uttered by the Jewish scoffers. They themselves are
witnesses that Jesus of Nazareth trusted in God: why then was he permitted to
perish? Jehovah had previously delivered those who rolled their burdens upon
him; why was this man deserted? Oh that they had understood the answer! Their
principal jest, seeing he delighted in him, was true. The Lord did
delight in his dear Son, and when he became obedient unto death, he still was
well pleased in him. Jehovah delights in him, and yet slays him.
9. Thou art he that took me out of the womb. Kindly providence attends with the surgery of tenderness at
every human birth; but the Son of Man, who was marvelously begotten of the Holy
Spirit, was in an especial manner watched over by the Lord when brought forth
by Mary. The destitute state of Joseph and Mary, far away from friends and
home, led them to see the cherishing hand of God in the safe delivery of the
mother. Her child, now fighting the great battle of his life, uses the mercy of
his nativity as an argument with God. Faith finds weapons everywhere. The person
who desires to believe will never lack reasons for believing. Thou didst
make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breasts. Was our Lord one of those
babes and sucklings out of whose mouths strength is ordained? So it would seem;
and if so, what a plea for help! Early piety gives particular comfort in our
later trials, for surely he who loved us when we were children is too faithful
to cast us off in our riper years. Some give the text the sense of “gave me
cause to trust, by keeping me safely,” and assuredly there was a special
providence which preserved our Lord’s infant days from the fury of Herod, the
dangers of traveling, and the ills of poverty.
10. I was cast upon thee from the womb. Into the Almighty arms he was first received, as into those
of a loving parent. God begins his care over us from the earliest hour. Thou
art my God from my mother’s belly. The psalm begins with “My God, my
God,” and here not only is the claim repeated but its early date is urged. Our
birth was our weakest and most perilous period of existence; if we were then
secured by omnipotent tenderness, surely we have no cause to suspect that
divine goodness will fail us now.
11. This is
the petition for which he has been using such varied and powerful pleas. His
great woe was that God had forsaken him; his great prayer is that he would be
near him. A lively sense of the divine presence is a mighty stay to the heart
in times of distress. For trouble is near; for there is none to help.
There are two fors, as though faith gave a double knock at mercy’s gate; that
is a powerful prayer which is full of holy reasons and thoughtful arguments.
The nearness of trouble is a weighty motive for divine help; this moves our
Heavenly Father’s heart, and brings down his helping hand. It is his glory to
be our very present help in trouble. Our Substitute had trouble in his inmost
heart, for he said, “the waters have come in, even unto my soul”; well might
he cry, be not far from me. The absence of all other helpers is another
telling plea. In our Lord’s case none either could or would help him; yet it
was a sore aggravation to find that all his disciples had forsaken him, and
lover and friend were put far from him. There is an awfulness about absolute
friendlessness which is crushing to the human mind, for man was not made to be
alone, and is like a dismembered limb when he has to endure heart-loneliness.
12. The
mighty ones in the crowd are here marked by the tearful eye of their victim.
The priests, elders, scribes, Pharisees, rulers, and captains bellowed round
the cross like wild cattle, full of strength and fury. The Rejected One was all
alone, and bound naked to the tree.
13. Like
hungry cannibals they opened their blasphemous mouths as if they were about to
swallow the man whom they abhorred. They could not vomit forth their anger fast
enough, and therefore set the doors of their lips wide open like those who
gape. Our Lord’s faith must have passed through a most severe conflict while he
found himself abandoned to the tender mercies of the wicked, but he came off
victorious by prayer, the very dangers to which he was exposed being used to
add prevalence to his entreaties.
14. Turning
from his enemies, our Lord describes his own personal condition in language
which should bring the tears into every loving eye. I am poured out like
water. He was utterly spent, like water poured upon the earth; his heart
failed him, and had no more firmness in it than running water, and his whole
being was made a sacrifice, like a libation poured out before the Lord. He had
long been a fountain of tears; in Gethsemane his heart welled over in sweat, so
that he was reduced to the most feeble and exhausted state. All my bones am
out of joint. As if distended upon a rack. Is it not most probable that the
fastening of the hands and feet, and the jar occasioned by fixing the cross in
the earth, may have dislocated the bones of the Crucified One? If this is not
intended, we must refer the expression to that extreme weakness which would
occasion relaxation of the muscles and a general sense of parting asunder
throughout the whole system. My heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst
of my bowels. Excessive debility and intense pain made his inmost life to
feel like wax melted in the heat. The Greek liturgy uses the expression “thine
unknown sufferings,” and well it may. The fire of almighty wrath would have
consumed our souls forever in hell; it was no light work to bear as a
substitute the heat of an anger so justly terrible.
15. Most
complete debility is here portrayed; Jesus likens himself to a broken piece of
earthenware, or an earthen pot, baked in the fire till the last particle of
moisture is driven out of the clay. No doubt a high degree of feverish burning
afflicted the body of our Lord. All his strength was dried up in the tremendous
flames of avenging justice, just as the paschal lamb was roasted in the fire.
Thirst and fever fastened his tongue to his jaws, so that he could scarcely
speak. So tormented in every single part as to feel dissolved into separate atoms,
and each atom full of misery, the full price of our redemption was paid, and no
part of the Surety’s body or soul escaped its share of agony. The Lord of Glory
stoops to the dust of death.
16. We are to
understand every item of this sad description as being urged by the Lord Jesus
as a plea for divine help; and this will give us a high idea of his
perseverance in prayer. For dogs have compassed me. Here he marks the
more ignoble crowd, who were howling like hungry dogs. Hunters frequently
surround their game with a circle, and gradually encompass them with an
ever-narrowing ring of dogs and men. Such a picture is before us. In the center
stands, not a panting stag, but a bleeding, fainting man, and around him are
the enraged and unpitying wretches who have hounded him to his doom. Here we
have the “hind of the morning” of whom the psalm so plaintively sings, hunted
by bloodhounds, all thirsting to devour him. The assembly of the wicked have
inclosed me. Thus the Jewish people, which called itself an assembly of the
righteous, is justly for its sins marked upon the forehead as an assembly of
the wicked. This is not the only occasion when professed churches of God have
become synagogues of Satan, and have persecuted the Holy One and the Just. They
pierced my hands and my feet. This can by no means refer to David, or to
anyone but Jesus of Nazareth. Pause, and view the wounds of the Redeemer.
17. So
emaciated was Jesus by his fastings and sufferings that he says, I may tell
all my bones. He could count and re-count them. The zeal of his Father’s
house had eaten him up. Oh that we cared less for the body’s enjoyment and ease
and more for our Father’s business! It is better to count the bones of an
emaciated body than to bring leanness into our souls. They look and stare
upon me. Unholy eyes gazed insultingly upon the Saviour’s nakedness. The
sight of the agonizing body ought to have insured sympathy from the throng, but
it only increased their savage mirth, as they gloated over his miseries. Let us
blush for human nature, and mourn in sympathy with our Redeemer’s shame. The
first Adam made us all naked, and therefore the second Adam became naked that
he might clothe our naked souls.
18. The
garments of the executed were the perquisites of the executioners in most
cases, but it was not often that they cast lots at the division of the spoil;
this incident shows how clearly David in vision saw the day of Christ, and how
surely the Man of Nazareth is he of whom the prophets spoke. It may be noted
that the habit of gambling is of all others the most hardening, for men could
practice it even at the cross-foot while besprinkled with the blood of the
Crucified. No Christian will endure the rattle of the dice when he thinks of
this.
19. But be not thou far from me, O God. Invincible faith returns to the charge, and uses the same
means, namely, importunate prayer. He repeats the petition offered before. He
wants nothing but his God, even in his lowest state. He does not ask for the
most comfortable or nearest presence of God; he will be content if he is not
far from him; humble requests speed at the throne. O my strength, haste thee
to help me. Hard cases need timely aid; when necessity justifies it we may
be urgent with God as to time, but we must not do this out of willfullness. In
the last degree of weakness he calls the Lord my strength; after this
fashion the believer can sing, “when I am weak, then am I strong.”
20. Deliver my soul from the sword. By the sword is probably meant entire destruction,
which as a man he dreaded; or perhaps he sought deliverance from the enemies
around him, who were like a sharp and deadly sword to him. The Lord had said,
“Awake, O sword,” and now from the terror of that sword the Shepherd wanted
to be delivered as soon as justice should see fit. My darling from the power
of the dog. Meaning his soul, his life, which is most dear to every person.
The original is, “my only one,” and therefore is our soul dear, because it is
our only soul. Would that everyone made their souls their darlings, but many
treat them as if they were not worth so much as the mire of the streets. The dog
may mean Satan, or else the whole company of Christ’s foes, who though many in
number were as unanimous as if there were but one. If Jesus cried for help against
the dog of hell, much more may we. Beware of the dog, for his power is great,
and only God can deliver us from him. When he fawns upon us, we must not put
ourselves in his power; and when he howls at us, we may remember that God holds
him with a chain.
21. Having
experienced deliverance in the past from great enemies, who were strong as the
unicorns, the Redeemer utters his last cry for rescue from death, which is
fierce and mighty as the lion. This prayer was heard, and the gloom of the
cross departed. Thus faith, though sorely beaten, and even cast beneath the
feet of her enemy, ultimately wins the victory. It was so in our Head; it shall
be so in all the members. We have overcome the unicorn, we shall conquer the
lion, and from both lion and unicorn we shall take the crown.
22–31. The
transition is very marked; from a horrible tempest all is changed into calm.
The darkness of Calvary at length passed away from the face of nature, and from
the soul of the Redeemer, and beholding the light of his triumph and its future
results the Saviour smiled. It will be well still to regard the words as a part
of our Lord’s soliloquy upon the cross, uttered in his mind during the last few
moments before his death.
22. I will declare thy name unto my brethren. The delights of Jesus are always with his church, and hence
his thoughts, after much distraction, return at the first moment of relief to
their usual channel; he forms fresh designs for the benefit of his loved ones.
He is not ashamed to call them brethren. He anticipates happiness in having
communication with his people; he intends to be their teacher and minister, and
fixes his mind upon the subject of his discourse. The name, i.e. the
character and conduct of God, are by Jesus Christ’s Gospel proclaimed to all
the holy brotherhood; they behold the fullness of the Godhead dwelling bodily
in him, and rejoice greatly to see all the infinite perfections manifested in
one who is bone of their bone and flesh of their flesh. What a precious subject
is the name of our God! It is the only one worthy of the only Begotten, whose
meat and drink it was to do the Father’s will. We may learn from this
resolution of our Lord that one of the most excellent methods of showing our
thankfulness for deliverances is to tell to our brethren what the Lord has done
for us. We mention out sorrows readily enough; why are we so slow in declaring
our deliverances? In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
Not in a little household gathering merely does our Lord resolve to proclaim
his Father’s love, but in the great assemblies of his saints, and in the
general assembly and church of the firstborn. This he is always doing by his
representatives, who are the heralds of salvation, and labor to praise God. In
the great universal church Jesus is the one authoritative teacher, and all
others are nothing but echoes of his voice. Jesus declares the divine name so
that God may be praised. The church continually magnifies Jehovah for revealing
himself in the person of Jesus, and Jesus himself leads the song, and is both
leader and preacher in his church. Delightful are the seasons when Jesus
communes with our hearts concerning divine truth; joyful praises are the sure
result.
23. Imagine
the Saviour as addressing the congregation of the saints. He exhorts the
faithful to unite with him in thanksgiving. The description of “fearing the
Lord” is very frequent and very instructive; it is the beginning of wisdom,
and is an essential sign of grace. Humble awe of God is so necessary a
preparation for praising him that none are fit to sing to his honor but such as
reverence his Word; but this fear is consistent with the highest joy, and is
not to be confounded with legal bondage, which is a fear which perfect love
casteth out. Jew and Gentile saved by sovereign grace should be eager in
magnifying the God of our salvation: all saints should unite in the
song. The spiritual Israel all fear him, and we hope the day will come
when the bodily Israel will be brought to the same mind. The more we praise God
the more reverently shall we fear him, and the sweeter will be our songs.
24. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of
the afflicted. Here is good matter and motive for
praise. The experience of our covenant Head and Representative should encourage
all of us to bless the God of grace. Never was man so afflicted as our Saviour
in body and soul from friends and foes, by heaven and hell, in life and death;
he was the foremost in the ranks of the afflicted, but all those afflictions
were sent in love, and not because his Father despised and abhorred him. It is
true that justice demanded that Christ should bear the burden which as a
substitute he undertook to carry, but Jehovah always loved him, and in love
laid that load upon him with a view to his ultimate glory and to the
accomplishment of the dearest wish of his heart. Under all his woes our Lord
was honorable in the Father’s sight. Neither hath he hid his face from him.
The hiding was but temporary, and was soon removed; it was not final and eternal.
But when he cried unto him, he heard. Jesus was heard in that he feared.
He cried from the depths, and was speedily answered; he therefore bids his
people to join him in singing a Gloria.
Every child of God should seek refreshment for his faith in
this testimony of the Man of Sorrows. What Jesus here witnesses is as true
today as when it was first written. It shall never be said that anyone’s
affliction or poverty prevented his being an accepted suppliant at Jehovah’s
throne of grace.
25. My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation. The one subject of our Master’s song is the Lord alone. The
word in the original is “from thee”—true praise is of celestial origin. The
rarest harmonies of music are nothing unless they are sincerely consecrated to
God by hearts sanctified by the Spirit. The cleric says, “Let us sing to the
praise and glory of God,” but the choir often sing to the praise and glory of
themselves. Oh when shall our service of song be a pure offering? Observe how
Jesus loves the public praises of the saints. It would be wicked on our part to
despise the twos and threes; but, on the other hand, let not the little
companies snarl at the greater assemblies as though they were necessarily less
pure and less approved, for Jesus loves the praise of the great congregation. I
will pay my vows before them that fear him. Jesus dedicates himself anew to
the carrying out of the divine purpose in fulfillment of his vows made in
anguish. Did our Lord when he ascended to the skies proclaim amid the redeemed
in glory the goodness of Jehovah? And was that the vow meant here? Undoubtedly
the publication of the Gospel is the constant fulfillment of covenant
engagements. Messiah vowed to build up a spiritual temple for the Lord, and he
will surely keep his word.
26. The meek shall eat and be satisfied. Mark how the dying Lover of our souls solaces himself with
the result of his death. The spiritually poor find a feast in Jesus, to the
satisfaction of their hearts. The thought of the joy of his people gave comfort
to our expiring Lord. Note the characters who partake of the benefit of his
passion; the meek, the humble, and lowly. Lord, make us so. Note also
the certainty that Gospel provisions will not be wasted—they shall eat—and
the sure result of such eating—and be satisfied. They shall praise
the Lord that seek him. For a
while they may keep a fast, but their thanksgiving days must and will come. Your
heart shall live forever. Your spirits will not fail through trial. Thus
Jesus speaks even from the cross to the troubled seeker. If his dying words are
so assuring, what consolation may we not find in the truth that he ever liveth
to make intercession for us! Those who eat at Jesus’ table receive the
fulfillment of the promise, “Whosoever eateth of this bread shall live
forever.”
27. One is
struck with the Messiah’s missionary spirit. It is evidently his grand
consolation that Jehovah will be known throughout all places of his dominion.
Out from the inner circle of the present church the blessing is spread in
growing power until the remotest parts of the earth will be ashamed of their
idols, mindful of the true God, penitent for their offenses, and unanimously
earnest for reconciliation with Jehovah. Then shall false worship cease. This
is a stimulus to those who fight his battles.
It is well to mark the order of conversion: they shall remember—this
is reflection, like the prodigal who came to himself; and turn unto Jehovah—this
is repentance, like Manasseh who left his idols and worship—this is holy
service, as Paul adored the Christ whom once he abhorred.
28. As an
obedient Son the dying Redeemer rejoiced to know that his Father’s interests
would prosper through his pains. He who by his own power reigns supreme in
creation and providence has set up a new kingdom of grace, and by the
conquering power of the cross that kingdom will grow until all people proclaim
that he is the governor among the nations. Amid the tumults and
disasters of the present the Lord reigns; but in the halcyon days of peace the
rich fruit of his dominion will be apparent to every eye.
29. All they that be fat upon the earth. The rich and great are not shut out. Grace now finds most
of its jewels among the poor, but in the latter days the mighty of the earth shall
eat, shall taste of redeeming grace and dying love, and shall worship
with all their hearts the God who deals so bountifully with us in Christ Jesus.
Those who are spiritually fat with inward prosperity will be filled with the
marrow of communion, and worship the Lord with especial fervor. In the covenant
of grace Jesus has provided good cheer for our high estate, and taken equal
care to console us in our humiliation: all they that go down to the dust
shall bow before him. There is relief and comfort in bowing before God when
our case is at its worst; even amid the dust of death prayer kindles the lamp
of hope. None can keep alive his own soul. While all who come to God by
Jesus Christ are thus blessed, whether rich or poor, none who despise him may
hope for a blessing. This is the stern counterpart of the Gospel message of
“look and live.” We must have life as Christ’s gift, or we shall die
eternally. This should be proclaimed in every corner of the earth, that it may
break in pieces all self-confidence.
30. Posterity
will perpetuate the worship of the Most High. The kingdom of truth on earth
will never fail. The Lord will reckon the ages by the succession of the saints.
Generations of sinners come not into the genealogy of the skies. God’s family
register is not for strangers, but for the children only.
31. They shall come.
Sovereign grace will bring out from among men the blood-bought ones. Nothing
will thwart the divine purpose. In this the dying Saviour finds a sacred
satisfaction. And shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall
be born. None of the people brought to God by the irresistible attractions
of the cross will be dumb; they will be able to tell out the righteousness of
the Lord, so that future generations know the truth. Fathers will teach their
sons, who will hand it down to their children; the burden of the story always
being that he hath done this, or, that “It is finished.” Salvation’s
glorious work is done, there is peace on earth, and glory in the highest.
Excerpt from:
The Treasury of David
By Charles H Spurgeon
