Exodus 30:7-10

“Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the LORD for the generations to come. Do not offer on this altar any other incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it. Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering for the generations to come. It is most holy to the LORD.”

The little acquaintance which Christians in general have with the Mosaic Law, unfits them for the reception of that instruction which the Law is well calculated to convey. Doubtless, to find the precise import of all its ordinances is beyond the power of man. But there is much of it explained in the New Testament; and much may properly be explained from analogy; and the light which it reflects on the truths of Christianity would richly repay any efforts that were made for the discovery of it.

In the altar of incense, in its materials, for instance, or its structure, we are not aware that any mystery of practical importance is contained, except indeed that it was preeminently holy, and therefore required peculiar sanctity in those who should approach it. Its situation too, as immediately before the mercy-seat, and separated from it only by the veil which divided the sanctuary from the holy of holies, marked in a peculiar way, that those who burnt incense upon it were to consider themselves as more than ordinarily near to God, and to have in exercise every disposition that befits them in so high and holy an employment. The use to which it was ordained, is the point to which I would more particularly call your attention. And we may consider it,

I. As a typical institution.

And here are two things particularly to be noticed in relation to it, namely:

1. Its daily use.

Aaron himself in the first instance, and afterwards other priests in their courses, Luke 1:8-9, was to trim the lamps every morning and evening, and to light any of them that might have gone out. At these seasons, he was to take fire from the altar of burnt-offering, and to put it on a censer, and to burn incense with it upon the altar of incense. This, I say, he was to do every morning and evening; and that was called “a perpetual incense before the Lord.”

This, beyond all doubt, was intended to typify the Lord Jesus Christ, who, as our great “High-Priest, is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man, Hebrews 8:1-2.” To him is assigned the office of interceding for his Church and people; and he has ascended up into the more immediate presence of his God for that end; as says the Apostle, “Christ has not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true, but into Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us! Hebrews 9:24.” There he superintends the lamps of his sanctuary, “walking among the seven golden candlesticks, which are the seven Churches, Revelation 1:13; Revelation 1:20; Revelation 2:1,” and either trimming or furnishing them with supplies of oil, as their various necessities may require. At the same time he offers up to God his intercessions for them, pleading with him in behalf of every individual, and obtaining for them all those blessings which they more particularly stand in need of.

To the Aaronic priests God had said, “There will I meet with you;” and no doubt he did, in numberless instances, as well as in that of Zachariah, Luke 1:11-13, grant to them there more peculiar answers to their prayers. Our Great Intercessor could say, “I know that you hear me always, John 11:42;” nor can we doubt but that myriads of his people are either preserved from falling, or restored after their falls, purely through “his intercession for them, that their faith may not ultimately fail, Luke 22:32.”

2. Its annual expiation.

It was enjoined that “an atonement should be made upon the horns of this altar once a year with the blood of the sin-offering of the atonements.” And this, I apprehend, was to show that without the blood of atonement, no intercession could be of any avail. An atonement must be made for sin; and “without it there could be no remission, Hebrews 9:22.” The blood, too, that must be put on this altar must be the blood of bullocks, and not either of goats or lambs; for in the very same offering which was made for sins of ignorance, the blood or bullocks which was shed for a priest, and for the whole congregation, was put upon the horns of the altar of incense; whereas that which was shed for a ruler, or a common person, which was of goats and lambs, was put upon the altar of burnt-offering; by which the sins of priests were marked as of greater enormity than the sins of others; and the altar of incense as of higher sanctity than the altar of burnt-offering. Compare Leviticus 4:7; Leviticus 4:18 with Leviticus 4:22; Leviticus 4:25; Leviticus 4:27; Leviticus 4:30; Leviticus 4:34.

This is very strongly expressed in the New Testament, there being always a superior efficacy ascribed to the intercession of Christ than even to his death. Thus when, to the question, “Who is he that condemns?” the Apostle answers, “It is Christ that died,” he adds, “yes rather, who is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us! Romans 8:34.”

Again, in the Epistle to the Hebrews he lays the greatest stress on the intercession of Christ as being the most effectual for the salvation of his people, “He is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lives to make intercession for them! Hebrews 7:25.”

And to the same effect, also, in his Epistle to the Romans, “If when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life! Romans 5:10.” Whether this was intended to be marked by the atonement being only annual, while the offering of incense was daily, I pretend not to say. I would apprehend not. I should rather think that that part of the appointment signified that Christ would make the expiation but once, while his intercession would be continual; but, at all events, the union of the two is absolutely indissoluble; as John intimates, when he says, “If any man sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, who is also the atoning sacrifice for our sins! 1 John 2:1.”

In fact, his atonement is the very plea which he offers in our behalf. When the high-priest entered within the veil, immediately after burning the incense he sprinkled the blood of the sacrifice upon the mercy-seat and before the mercy-seat, Leviticus 16:11-14; intimating thereby, that all his hope of acceptance, whether for himself or others, was founded on the sacrifice which he had offered.

Precisely thus does the Lord Jesus Christ prevail; for it is in consequence of his having offered his soul a “sacrifice for sin,” that he is authorized to expect a spiritual seed to be secured to him; and in consequence of his “having borne the sins of many,” that he confidently and with effect “makes intercession for the transgressors! Isaiah 53:10; Isaiah 53:12.”

I have observed, that we may yet further consider this ordinance,

II. As an emblematic rite.

In this view it marks,

1. The privilege of Christians.

We have before said, that common priests were ordained to officiate at this altar. And are not we “a royal priesthood? 1 Peter 2:9.” Are not we “made kings and priests unto our God? Revelation 1:5-6.” Yes; and “the prayers we present to God come up before him as incense; and the lifting up of our hands is as an evening sacrifice, Psalm 141:2.”

In this manner are we privileged to draw near to God. We, every one of us, “have, through Christ, access by one Spirit unto the Father, Ephesians 2:18;” yes, “we have boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, Hebrews 10:19,” and to prostrate ourselves at the very footstool of God himself. Did God say to Aaron, “I will meet you there?” So says he to us also, “Draw near to me; and I will draw near to you, James 4:8.” Nor need we go to Jerusalem, or to his tabernacle to find him; for he has said, that “in every place incense should be offered to him, and a pure offering, Malachi 1:11.” And, that we may feel ourselves more at liberty to approach him, his altar under the Christian dispensation is represented as of wood, and not of gold, and as being four times the size of that which was made for his tabernacle, Ezekiel 41:22; to denote, I apprehend, the greater simplicity of Gospel worship, and the admission of all nations to the enjoyment of it.

We must indeed pay particular attention to that caution given to Aaron in the text, “You shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt-sacrifice, nor meat-offering; neither shall you pour a drink-offering thereon.” The incense was to be that alone which God had appointed; and special care was taken to make no confusion between the offerings belonging to the altar of burnt-offering, which were for an atonement, and that which was proper to the altar of incense, which was for acceptance only.

Thus, when drawing near to God in prayer, we must not bring the fervor of mere carnal spirits, which are so often mistaken for true devotion; but a broken and contrite spirit, which alone sends forth an fragrance that is well pleasing to God, Psalm 51:17.

Nor must we imagine that by our prayers, or by anything else that we can bring to God, we can atone for sin, or contribute in the least degree towards the efficacy of Christ’s atonement; these must be kept quite distinct; and while our prayers are offered on the altar of incense, our pleas must be taken solely from the altar of burnt-offering, even from the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, “by whom alone our offerings can ascend to God, Hebrews 13:15,” and “through whom alone they can be acceptable in his sight, 1 Peter 2:5.”

In this manner we are to approach God, while we go in before him to trim our lamps, and to have them duly supplied with oil. Every morning and evening at the least must the fragrance of our incense ascend up before God; or, as the Apostle says, we must “pray without ceasing, 1 Thessalonians 5:17;” and we may be sure that “God will meet with us,” and bless us in all that we solicit at his hands, “However wide we open our mouth, he will fill it, Psalm 81:10;” yes, “he will do for us exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think, Ephesians 3:20.”

2. The ground of their acceptance in the use of it.

This is strongly marked in the annual atonement made on this altar. Day and night was the priest to officiate there; yet, after he had presented incense on that altar for a whole year, he must make atonement on the altar with blood.

Just so, however much or devoutly we pray, we must trust, not in our prayers, but in the great Sacrifice that has been offered for us. Yes, our very prayers need that sacrifice; the very best service we ever offered, needed an atonement; nor could it come up with acceptance before God, if it were not washed in the Redeemer’s blood, and presented to God by him!

Hear what John says, in the book of Revelation, “Another angel came, (the Angel of the Covenant, the Lord Jesus,) and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar that was before the throne; and the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God, out of the angel’s hand, Revelation 8:3-4.” “Were God to call us into judgment for the very best prayer we ever offered, we could not answer him for one of a thousand, Job 9:3;” no, nor for one during our whole lives; but when cleansed in the Redeemer’s blood, both our persons and our services shall be regarded by God as pure, even “without spot or blemish! Ephesians 5:25-27.”

Of course, it is here supposed that we harbor no willful sin within us; for, “if we regard iniquity in our hearts, God will not hear us Psalm 66:18;” our very “incense will be an abomination to him, Isaiah 1:13;” and, in offering it, “we shall be as though we offered swine’s blood, or blessed an idol, Isaiah 66:3.” But, if we “draw near to God with a true heart, we may also approach him with full assurance of faith, Hebrews 10:22.”

Let us see here,

1. How highly we are privileged under the Christian dispensation.

The Jews were privileged, and highly too, in comparison with all the nations of the earth, in that they had ordinances of divine appointment, in the due observance of which they might find favor with God.

But how infinitely are we distinguished above the Jews themselves! We have not to seek the intervention of a man, a sinful man, yes, and a dying man, who must soon leave his office to another, and be followed by an endless succession of sinners like himself. We have a High-Priest, who is “Emmanuel, God with us;” “who needed not to offer first for his own sins, and then for the people’s sins;” and “who, having an unchangeable priesthood, continues forever,” and “is consecrated for evermore Hebrews 7:23-28.” Moreover, we are not like the Jews, to whom all access to God in their own persons was prohibited; and who, if they had presumed to invade the priestly office, would have been made monuments of God’s vengeance on the very spot.

No, we may draw near to God, every one of us for himself; even to God’s throne may we go, and offer him our sacrifices with a certainty of acceptance. The way prepared for us is “a new and living way;” and while going to him in that way, “we may ask what we will, and it shall be done unto us;” yes, even “before we ask, he will answer; and while we are yet speaking, he will hear, Isaiah 65:24.” Reflect on these privileges, brethren, and be thankful for them; and improve them diligently in the way prescribed.

2. What a holy people we should be unto the Lord.

What the priests were in their attendance on the altar, yes, what the Lord Jesus Christ himself is before the throne of God—that should we be, to the utmost of our power. We should be ever delighting ourselves in the exercise of prayer and praise, and dedicating our whole selves to the service of our God. Let our “lamps” be ever kept burning bright before the Lord. Let us obtain “from the sacred olive branches fresh supplies of golden oil through the golden pipes” of his word and ordinances, Zechariah 4:11-12; and let our whole deportment show, that we correspond with the description given us, “a people near unto the Lord! Psalm 148:14.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 28:36-38

“Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD. Fasten a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban. It will be on Aaron’s forehead, and he will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites consecrate, whatever their gifts may be. It will be on Aaron’s forehead continually so that they will be acceptable to the LORD.”

If it were once ascertained that God had imposed a number of ordinances upon his people, we should be ready to conclude that his institutions were not mere arbitrary and insignificant laws, but that they had some spiritual meaning, worthy of their divine Author. But when we are informed by God himself, that many things, apparently most indifferent, were intended to shadow forth the great mystery of redemption, we are persuaded that not even the minutest ordinance among them was without some appropriate and important signification. But though we believe this, we do not presume to assign the meaning of each, any further than we are warranted by the Scriptures themselves. Instead of wandering into the regions of conjecture, we judge it more for general edification to confine ourselves to matters which are obvious and acknowledged.

The whole dress of the high-priest was unquestionably typical; and designated either the office of our great High-Priest, or his qualifications for the discharge of it. That part to which we would now direct your attention, is his mitre. This, as the text informs us, was a covering for his head (somewhat like the turbans worn in the East at this day); it was made of fine linen, and had, in the front of it, a gold plate, with this inscription, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. It was worn by him whenever he officiated in the temple. Through this the high-priest was considered as holy, and was the appointed means of expiating the defects that were in the services of the people, and of procuring acceptance for their persons. Now, while the end for which it was worn manifests, beyond a doubt, that the appointment was typical, it enables us to declare with certainty the true intention of the type.

This institution then was intended to foreshow,

I. The holiness of our great High-Priest.

Christ was in truth “the holy one of Israel” It was necessary that he should be spotless himself; for had he not been so, he could not have made atonement for us; yes, he would have needed an atonement for himself, Hebrews 7:26-27. 1 John 3:5. The utmost care was taken respecting the typical offerings, to ascertain that they were without blemish; and it seems to have been particularly ordained by God that the innocence of Jesus should be established by every possible proof, (and by the repeated testimony even of the judge that condemned him,) in order that his fitness, as our sin-offering, might appear. Thus was the type accomplished in him; and a sure foundation was laid for all the hopes that are built upon him.

II. The need we have of a saving interest in it.

The high-priest, so dressed, was to “bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the people should hallow.” Their best services were imperfect, in manner at least, if not in the matter of them also; and they were to seek acceptance through the holiness of their high-priest alone.

Thus it is with us also. All that we do is imperfect. The best service we ever performed was mixed with sin, and needed an atonement to be made for it. Without an atonement, it could never have been regarded by a holy God. This was strongly marked in the ordinance before us, and ought to be remembered by us as a ground for the deepest humiliation.

III. Its efficacy in our behalf.

The people’s services were, through this typical holiness of their high-priest, accepted by God, notwithstanding the imperfection of them; nor shall ours be despised, if we trust in the merits and mediation of the Lord Jesus. This was beautifully represented under the Mosaic dispensation by the acceptance of leavened bread, Leviticus 2:11 with 7:13 and 23:17, and mutilated beasts Leviticus 22:21-23, when offered as thank-offerings, and not as offerings for sin; and the same encouraging truth is plainly asserted in the New Testament, Hebrews 13:15; 1 Peter 2:5. Let us only be savingly interested in “the spotless Lamb of God,” and all that we do in his name shall find acceptance before God.

This subject is well calculated,

1. To humble the self-righteous.

What room can there be for trusting in our own righteousness, when the most righteous act we ever performed had an iniquity in it which needed to be borne by our great High priest? Lay aside your proud thoughts, and “seek to be found in Christ, not having your own righteousness, but his.”

2. To encourage the desponding.

Be it so; you are a sinner, “but if any man sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;” and through him you may draw near to God with boldness and confidence! Ephesians 3:12; Hebrews 10:19-22.

3. To direct and animate the godly.

You are now “priests unto God;” and are to have holiness to the lord written upon your foreheads, Zechariah 14:20, that it may be visible to God and man. Remember that “God will be sanctified in all who draw near unto him, Leviticus 10:3; Psalm 93:5;” and that “as He who has called you is holy, so must you be holy in all you do, 1 Peter 1:15-16; 1 Peter 2:9.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 28:29-30

“So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel on the breastplate of judgment over his heart, when he goes into the holy place, as a memorial before the LORD continually. And you shall put in the breastplate of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the LORD. So Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel over his heart before the LORD continually.”

Little do men in general imagine what treasures of knowledge are contained in the Old Testament. There is little revealed concerning Christ in the New Testament, which was not prefigured in the Mosaic ritual. As everything relating to his life and death may be clearly seen in the prophets, so everything relating to his office and character may be learned from the ceremonial law. Even the ornaments of the high-priest were intended to shadow forth some of the most important offices which our blessed Lord sustains. That particular ornament which we propose to notice at present, is the breastplate of judgment; respecting which we shall point out,

I. Its primary use.

It will be proper, before we speak of its use, to show what the breastplate was.

The priest wore an ephod, (a kind of short coat without sleeves,) made of fine linen, richly embroidered. The breastplate was a piece of fine linen, which, when doubled, was a span square. Upon that were placed twelve precious stones, each of them having the name of one of the tribes (according to their seniority) engraved upon it. This was worn upon the bosom, over the ephod; and the high-priest was to wear it whenever he went into the presence of God; and it was called “the breastplate of judgment,” because God, by means of it, communicated his mind and judgment to him respecting the children of Israel.

Within this breastplate were placed the Urim and the Thummim. What these were, we are not informed. Many have thought, that they were not distinct from the stones; and that the terms Urim and Thummim merely designated the use to which those stones were applied. But the language of the text, especially when confirmed by Leviticus 8:8, leaves no doubt, but that the Urim and Thummim were distinct from the breastplate, and were “put into” it after it was made. It is no objection to say, that the one is sometimes mentioned without the other, or, that we know not who made the Urim and Thummim, or what they were. It is sufficient for us to know, that they were added to the breastplate, and that they were appointed for a very important purpose.

The particular use of the breastplate shall now be distinctly declared.

The breastplate thus formed, was to be worn by the high-priest, whenever he performed the duties of his office. It was suspended from his shoulders by two golden chains, fixed to two onyx-stones; on which, as well as on the twelve stones, were engraved all the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, six on each stone; and both the one and the other were “for a memorial before the Lord continually.” We must understand this as spoken after the manner of men. We are not to suppose that God needs to be reminded of his people; but the sight of their names, whenever the high-priest came into his presence, was (so to speak) to remind him that he had a people who were to be the objects of his peculiar care.

The Urim and Thummim were for a different purpose. They were, in some way or other, to communicate answers to the high-priest, whenever he consulted God upon any matter relating to the civil or religious concerns of the nation. To inquire how the answers were given, whether by a secret suggestion to the mind of the high-priest, or by an audible voice, or in any other way, is vain; we should be content to be ignorant about those things whereon God has not seen fit to inform us. That the Urim and the Thummim were consulted, and not only by the high-priest, but by others without him; and that specific answers were obtained from God, is certain. Joshua, Numbers 27:21, and those who succeeded him in the government of Israel, Judges 1:1, sought instruction from God through the medium of these. The eleven tribes had the mind of God repeatedly made known to them in the same way, when they desired to be informed, whether they were to wage war against the offending tribe of Benjamin, Judges 20:18; Judges 20:23; Judges 20:27-28. David in various straits took counsel of God in this way, and had such information conveyed to him as was impossible for any but the omniscient God to impart, 1 Samuel 23:9-12; 1 Samuel 30:7; 1 Samuel 8. Saul asked counsel in the same way; but could not obtain an answer, because he had provoked God to cast him off, 1 Samuel 28:6. At the time of the Babylonian captivity, the Urim and the Thummim were lost, and were never afterwards recovered, Ezra 2:63; Nehemiah 7:65; until Christ, whom they typified, came to instruct us in all things that can at all conduce to our real welfare.

The very names, Urim and Thummim, serve in a great measure to designate their particular use. Their import is, Lights and Perfections; and they were for the express purpose of conveying light to those who consulted them, even such light as would perfectly and infallibly direct their way.

Thus, as the breastplate of judgment consisted of two different parts, so it was intended for two different uses:

the stones in it were for a memorial before God;

the Urim and Thummim that were in it, were for the obtaining of instruction from God.

But we shall have a very inadequate notion of the breastplate, unless we understand,

II. Its typical intent.

Few are so ignorant as to need to be informed, that Christ is our great High-Priest. Now the breastplate, of which we have been speaking, was designed to represent,

1. What Christ is doing for us.

Christ, in the execution of his priestly office, was to “enter into the holy place,” there “to appear in the presence of God for us.” Accordingly, after his resurrection, he ascended to Heaven, that he might there complete the work he had begun on earth. On his heart are engraved the names of all his people; on his shoulders he also bears them all; not one of them is forgotten by him; he presents them all before his Father, and is “their memorial before God continually.”

God cannot even look upon his Son without being reminded, that there is in this lower world a people who need his incessant care. He sees at one view all their states, and all their circumstances. He sees how dear they are to his Son, who bears them ever on his heart; who sympathizes with them in their afflictions, and desires to have them extricated from all their difficulties. Were he disposed to be unmindful of them, he could not cast them out of his thoughts, or be deaf to the intercessions of our great High-Priest.

Here then is the security of all the children of God, “they have a great High-Priest, who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God,” who has undertaken their cause, and is their Advocate with the Father, and “who is therefore able to save them to the uttermost, because he ever lives to make intercession for them!”

2. What Christ will do in us.

In Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” There is no case wherein we may not consult him; nor any, wherein he will not grant to direct our steps. How he will answer us, we will not presume to say; he has ten thousand ways of making known his will, and of over-ruling our purposes, without at all infringing the liberty of our will, or altering the general dispensations of his providence. It is sufficient for us to know, that “the meek he will guide in judgment, the meek he will teach his way;” and that “whatever we ask of him he will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

From the consideration of his being our great and compassionate High-Priest, we are encouraged to come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help us in the time of need! Hebrews 4:14-16; and we are sure, that, if we come unto God through him, “we may ask what we will, and it shall be done unto us.” We need not say, This is so great a matter, that it would be presumptuous in me to ask it; nor, This is so small, that it would be unworthy of his attention; for, whether it be great or small, he would spread it before his heavenly Father, and obtain for us an answer of peace; his light should dispel our darkness, and his perfections dissipate our fears; the weakest should not be left to faint, Isaiah 40:29-31, nor the most ignorant to err, Isaiah 35:8.

In this subject we may find abundant matter,

1. For reproof.

When we come into difficult circumstances, we are too apt to imagine, like the Church of old, that “God has forsaken and forgotten us.” But if God reproved them by declaring, that “a nursing mother could sooner forget her nursing child than he could forget them, since they were engraved on the palms of his hands, Isaiah 49:14-16,” how much more are we reproved by this typical representation of Christ, on whose shoulders we are supported, and on whose heart we are engraved! O let such unbelieving fears be put away! Let us “know in whom we have believed, that He is able to keep that which we have committed to him.” Let us remember, that, while he retains his priestly office, and his Father retains his regard for him, “he will not allow one of his people to perish!”

2. For encouragement.

Our trials may be numerous, and our difficulties urgent; but our High-Priest is ever at hand, to inquire of God for us. Nor does he need to be informed by us, what to ask; for he “knows what is in man,” and sees at the same time all the devices of our enemy. If only we lift up our hearts to him, his effectual aid shall be instantly obtained; for he is with us, to know our desires; and with God, to interest him in our favor. Let us then be encouraged to cast our care on him; and let us make him, what God has intended he should be to us, “our wisdom, and righteousness, our sanctification, and redemption! 1 Corinthians 1:30.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 25:8-9

“Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.”

The more minutely we consider the Mosaic economy, the more we find it fraught with the richest instruction; and we are persuaded, that, if the lovers of literature had any idea what inexhaustible treasures of wisdom and knowledge are contained in it, they would not be so regardless of it, as they too generally are. We cannot read a single chapter without seeing ample ground for this remark. To go no further than the text; wherein we have the command of God to build a tabernacle for him, and to fit it up in a peculiar manner. Even upon the face of this command there is something that invites inquiry; but, when we have explored its hidden sense, we shall discover in it a deep mystery, and derive from it much important information.

Let us consider then the directions,

I. As given to the Jews.

In order to obtain a clear and just view of the subject, it will be proper to notice,

1. The general direction.

God delights in the exercise of mercy. Mercy prompted him to separate for himself a peculiar people in the midst of a ruined world. Mercy led him to reveal himself to them in such a way as to impress them with a solemn sense of his majesty; and afterwards to give an order respecting the making of a sanctuary for him, where they might obtain more easy and familiar access to him, and he might the more abundantly display unto them the riches of his grace. It was not for his own accommodation that he gave the order, (for “the Heaven of heavens cannot contain him,”) but for their benefit; that, by seeing him continually in the midst of them, they might know that he was in a peculiar manner their God. It was an honor to them that he would accept their offerings, and that he would condescend to dwell in a habitation, such as his poor and sinful creatures could provide for him.

2. The particular limitation of it.

Such things only as he appointed were to be used either in the framing, or the furnishing, of the tabernacle; and, that everything might be formed agreeably to his mind, he not only gave to Moses a general description of what was to be done, but showed him a model of every individual thing that was to be made; and enjoined him to make it exactly according to the pattern shown to him in the mount. This order was given to Moses repeatedly, and with very peculiar force and emphasis; and his strict adherence to it in every particular is, in the last chapter of this book, mentioned no less than eight times, once after every separate piece of furniture that was made, Exodus 40:16-33.

In the New Testament too his compliance with the command is repeatedly noticed, and the very order itself expressly quoted, Acts 7:44; Hebrews 8:5.

Now what was the reason of this limitation? Why must only such and such things be made; and they of such precise materials and shape? The reason was, The whole was intended to typify things under the Gospel dispensation; and as none but God could know all the things which were to be prefigured, so none but he could know infallibly how to designate them to the best effect. Had Moses been left to contrive anything out of his own mind, there might have lacked a correspondence between the type and the antitype; but when a model of everything was shown him by God himself, the whole must of necessity accord with the mind and purpose of him for whom they were made.

We forbear to particularize the correspondence between the shadows and the substance, because that cannot be profitably done without entering more fully into the subject than our time at present will admit of; but that the correspondence was designed by God, and actually exists, and was the end for which such precise orders were given, is beyond all doubt.

Hebrews 8:5, “They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in Heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”

Hebrews 9:8-10, “The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still standing. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings–external regulations applying until the time of the new order.”

But the directions in our text had not merely a typical reference; for it may properly be considered,

II. As applicable to us.

The tabernacle typified, not only the Lord Jesus, “in whom dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,” but us also.

“The Church of God is his house, 1 Timothy 3:15,” “the habitation of God through the Spirit, Ephesians 2:21-22.” Yes, every believer is himself “the temple of the living God; as God has said; I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people, 2 Corinthians 6:16.” Moreover, God himself, commending the fidelity of Moses in constructing everything according to his order, draws for us the parallel between the tabernacle erected by him—and that which Christ possesses in our hearts, “Moses truly was faithful in all his house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; but Christ as a Son over his own house; whose house are we, Hebrews 3:5-6.” The truth is, that “God dwells not in temples made with hands.” Even while his tabernacle and temple were yet standing, God testified respecting them, that the temple which alone he regarded, was a broken and contrite spirit! Isaiah 57:15; Isaiah 66:1-2 with Acts 7:47-50.

To us therefore may the direction fitly be addressed.

My brethren, make a sanctuary for the Lord, that he may dwell among you; let every one willingly present unto him his heart, and entreat him to fill it with his presence. Let his habitation too be furnished with everything suited to the worship which you have to offer. You are not called to carnal ordinances, and therefore have no need of such things as were needed under the Jewish dispensation. It is with the gifts and graces of the Spirit that you are to serve and honor God.

Abound therefore in them. Grudge no expense whereby you may obtain them. Let them all be formed according to the model shown you in the mount. In Christ Jesus you have a perfect pattern of them all. “Look to it,” that your graces accord with his. Let none be lacking, none be different. Let the command of God be the reason of all that you present unto him, the example of Christ the pattern, and the glory of God the end. Whatever you have brought with you out of Egypt (out of your unconverted state) honor God with it; let it be gold and silver, or talents of any kind, consecrate them to the Lord; make use of them for the building of his tabernacle, and the exalting of his glory in the world.

More especially, remember to be conformed to the pattern in this respect; his tabernacle was most glorious within; on the outside were rams’ skins, and badgers’ skins; but within, all was of gold and linen exquisitely wrought. O that our interior might be such, as most to glorify our God! We are far from saying that the exterior should be neglected; but it should be modest and unassuming; and those who from their connection with us can penetrate within the veil, should see that our hidden virtues are the most eminent, and that God is most honored in those dispositions and habits of ours, which are most concealed from public view.

In vain are you baptized into the name of the Sacred Trinity, if you do not “observe and do all things Christ has commanded you;” nor indeed can you in any other way hope for the accomplishment of that promise, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world! Matthew 28:19-20.”

Let me therefore entreat you to seek for “grace” whereby you may serve God acceptably; and to make the blessed resolution of the Psalmist, that “you will give neither sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eye-lids, until you have found a place (in your own hearts) for the Lord—a habitation for the mighty God of Jacob! Psalm 132:2-5.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 24:11

[KJV translation] “And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink.”

[NLT translation] “And though these nobles of Israel gazed upon God, he did not destroy them. In fact, they ate a covenant meal, eating and drinking in his presence!”

God is everywhere present, but no where visible, unless he is pleased to draw aside the veil—and reveal himself to us. It is in Heaven alone that his unveiled glory is continually seen. There have however in former times, been many occasions whereon he has discovered himself to men, sometimes in human form, sometimes in angelic form, and sometimes in a bright appearance, in which no similitude could be traced, and of which no representation can be made. The manifestation of which the text speaks, seems to have been of the last kind. It was given to a great many people at once; and while they beheld his presence, they feasted before him.

In discoursing upon this interesting event, we shall notice,

I. Their vision.

The circumstances of the vision are particular, and deserve an attentive consideration.

The people to whom the vision was given were Moses, and Aaron with his two eldest sons, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the “elders of Israel,” who are also called “nobles.” Who these nobles were, we cannot absolutely determine; but it is most probable that they were people of consequence in the different tribes, who were selected to represent the nation at large; and, if six were taken out of each tribe, they might in round numbers be called seventy, though strictly speaking they would amount to seventy-two.

The time at which they were thus favored, was after they had consented to the covenant which God had made with them. Subsequent to the publication of the moral law from Mount Sinai, God ordained a variety of statutes, which were peculiar to Israel as a nation; and at the same time made with them a national covenant, partaking of a covenant of works, and partly of a covenant of grace. In this, they undertook to serve God; and God undertook to protect and bless them. This covenant had been confirmed by a sacrifice, in which the different parties had met, as it were, and given their consent to it. God was represented by the altar; and the twelve tribes were represented by the twelve pillars which Moses had erected near the altar, as well as by the seventy elders, who had been chosen out from among them. The blood of the sacrifice had been sprinkled on them all—on the altar, the pillars, and the people. The book of the covenant also had been sprinkled with it, Hebrews 9:18-23, to show that, though God did not relax the demands of his law, he would not be extreme to mark the unallowed violations of it. After this covenant had been thus made and ratified, God called Moses and the others to come up higher on the mountain; and revealed his glory to them.

The manner also in which God revealed himself, is worthy of notice. There had been a manifestation of the Deity prior to this; but O! how different from it! That display which God made of himself at the giving of the law was in blackness and darkness, and tempest; and attended with such tremendous thunderings and lightenings, that all the people, yes, and Moses himself, exceedingly trembled and quaked.

But, in this vision all was light and serene, and calculated to inspire the beholders with joy and confidence. The appearance of the Deity was beyond the brightness of the meridian sun; and underneath it “the pavement, as it were, upon which he stood, was like the sapphire” stone, or like the azure sky, bespangled with stars!

Thus the vision altogether was suited to a new-covenant state, wherein the people were introduced into communion with their God, and honored with these astonishing tokens of his love and favor.

Such a vision is now given to us under the Gospel.

We shall not indeed behold God precisely as they did; for such visions have long since been discontinued. But there is a spiritual view of the Deity, which we may, and must, partake of; and which. we are authorized to say, was typified by the vision before us. In the Epistle to the Hebrews, the preceding context is expressly quoted, and that too with some additional circumstances not related by Moses, Hebrews 9:18-23; and we are told that the event there referred to, was “a pattern of the heavenly things,” which we enjoy under the Gospel. The view which we have of the Deity, prior to our embracing the new covenant, inspires us with nothing but terror; but when we have accepted the covenant of grace, which was confirmed by the sacrifice of Christ, and have sprinkled on our consciences the blood of that sacrifice, then we shall be admitted to a more clear, but less dreadful, new of God. is justice will appear more dreadful in the sacrifice which it demanded, than even in the curses it denounced. It will be seen tempered with mercy; and ready to harmonize with mercy in every act of love. This vision we are to enjoy, not through the medium of representatives, but every one of us for himself. It is of Christians in general, and not of some distinguished favorites only, that the Apostle says, “God has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ! 2 Corinthians 4:6.” Here, by the way, we see where we are to have this vision; it is to be “in our hearts;” it is an object of contemplation to the mind; and not of sight to our bodily organs.

Together with their vision, it will be proper to notice also,

II. Their feast.

It was generally supposed that none could see God and live, Genesis 32:30; but here the seventy elders, as well as Moses and Aaron, beheld him, and yet “he laid not his hand on any one of them” to hurt them. This is the meaning of the words preceding the text. On the contrary,

They feasted on their sacrifice in the divine presence.

They had sacrificed burnt-offerings, and peace-offerings. Of the latter, the offerers were allowed to eat in token of their acceptance with God. Indeed it had long before been customary for parties covenanting with each other, to feast together at the ratification of their covenant, Genesis 31:54. And here, if we may so speak, the different parties feasted together; God’s part of the sacrifices had been consumed upon his altar; and the remainder was eaten by the offerers. Doubtless it must have been a precious feast to those, who had so lately trembled at the thunders of Mount Sinai. Their souls must have been yet more refreshed with a sense of the divine favor, than their bodies by the provision thus allotted for their support.

But their feast was no less typical than their vision.

Christ, who is our sacrifice, calls all his people to “eat his flesh, and to drink his blood.” But we must not imagine that this refers to corporeal food; our Lord speaks of spiritual food, of which our souls are to partake by the exercise of faith on him. Yes, his atonement is indeed a feast to the soul; in this sense it may be truly said, “His flesh is food indeed; and his blood is drink indeed! John 6:53-56.” On this we are to feed in the immediate presence of our God. However “far off we are, we may draw near by the blood of Jesus, Ephesians 2:13.” Yes, “we may have boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus Hebrews 10:19;” we may see God reconciled to us in him; and may rejoice in him as our God and portion forever. The wonders of his love are to be the continual banquet of our souls. His “exceeding great and precious promises” are “a feast of fat things, of wines on the lees well refined! Isaiah 25:6.” Of these we are to “eat freely, and abundantly! Song of Solomon 5:1.” We are to “sit under his shadow; and his fruit will be sweet unto our taste! Song of Solomon 2:3.” Yes, “we shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, Psalm 63:5;” enjoying a “peace that surpasses all understanding,” and being “filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory! 1 Peter 1:8.”

Address,

1. Those who are afar off from God.

The prohibition given to the Israelites, is cancelled with respect to you. The veil of the temple was rent in twain at the death of Christ, in token that a new and living way was opened to all, and that all who believed, were constituted “a royal priesthood, 1 Peter 2:9.” Will you then decline the invitation that is sent to you? We are commissioned to go forth into the highways and hedges to call you to the feast, which a God of infinite love has prepared for you. O come, and partake of it.

But remember that, in order to enjoy it, you must first accept the new covenant, and submit to be saved by the free mercy of God in Christ Jesus. Sprinkle yourself with the blood of Christ, your all-atoning sacrifice for sin; and then you may have fellowship both with the Father and the Son, and feast before God forever on the provisions of redeeming love.

2. Those who are inclined to rest in external privileges.

Such was the case with the greater part of those to whom the text refers. One would have supposed that they could never have forgotten their obligations to God, or have ceased to serve him; but, alas! in a very little time, Nadab and Abihu were struck dead for their impiety; and of the seventy elders, not one, as far as we know, held fast his integrity. They were ready, as indeed were all the people also, to profess their allegiance to the Deity, “All that the Lord has said, will we do, and be obedient;” but they soon forgot their pious resolutions, and revolted from their duty.

Beware, brethren, lest it be so with you. It will be to very little purpose to say at last, “Lord, Lord, have we not eaten and drunk in your presence? Luke 13:26.” If you have “not been steadfast in his covenant,” your outward professions, or past experiences, will avail little. Maintain therefore continually your dependence upon Christ; and, in his strength, exert yourselves to fulfill his holy will.

3. Those who are coming to the table of their Lord.

We ask not whether you have a deep experience of divine truth, but whether you have fled to Christ from the terrors of the law? Have you seen yourselves condemned by the covenant of works; and are you seeking mercy through the covenant of grace? Are you really sprinkling yourselves with the blood of Christ, your great sacrifice, and coming to God through him alone? If so, behold, there is a table spread, and you are called to come and feast upon your sacrifice in the presence of your God.

Come there in faith; and your God will make his glory to pass before your eyes. Yes, Christ will “reveal himself to you in the breaking of bread, Luke 24:31; Luke 24:35,” “and fill you with “his loving-kindness, which is better than life itself.” Thus shall you be strengthened for all future services, until at last you shall be called to “eat and drink at Christ’s table in the kingdom of your Father! Luke 22:30.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 24:6-8

“Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and the other half he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.” Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”

Of such terrible majesty is God, that none could behold his face and live. Even in his most condescending fellowship with men, he has made them to feel, that he is “a God greatly to be feared, and to be had in reverence of all those who are round about him.” When he descended on Mount Sinai, to proclaim his law, all the people of Israel entreated that he would not speak to them any more, except through the intervention of a Mediator. He was graciously pleased to make further communications to his people, and to enter into a covenant with them; but here a select number only were permitted to approach him, and of them none but Moses was allowed to “come near unto him.”

The covenant which he made with them, is the subject now before us; and we shall consider it in a two-fold view:

I. As made with Israel.

An altar being built, together with twelve pillars, the one to represent Jehovah, and the other the twelve tribes of Israel.

1. The covenant was made.

God, as the author of that covenant, declared by Moses the terms on which he would acknowledge Israel as his peculiar people. Moses had written In a book the laws which God had made known to him—the moral, the ceremonial, the judicial; and all these he read in the audience of the people. To these, in the name of God, he required a cheerful and uniform obedience; and, upon their obedience to these, God promised on his part to favor them with his continued protection, and with the ultimate and peaceful enjoyment of the promised land. Thus was care taken that they should know to what they were to subscribe, and that their future welfare depended on their fidelity to their own engagements.

The people on their part gave their consent to the terms prescribed; and this they did in the most solemn manner. In declaring their acceptance of the covenant they were unanimous, cordial, unreserved. There was not one dissenting voice. They had repeatedly before engaged to do whatever the Lord should enjoin, Exodus 19:8; Exodus 24:3; but here they do it with additional force and emphasis, “We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.” Nor do they make the least exception to any one thing as burdensome or oppressive. In the most unqualified manner they bind themselves to a perfect and perpetual obedience, We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey.”

2. The covenant was ratified.

From the very time that God first set apart Abraham to be the progenitor of his peculiar people to the time when that people were carried captive to Babylon, it seems to have been customary to confirm covenants by sacrifices; which, when slain, were divided into parts placed opposite to each other; and then the parties covenanting passed between those parts, and thereby pledged themselves to a faithful observance of the covenant. In Abraham’s time, Genesis 15:9-10; Genesis 15:17; in David’s time, Psalm 50:5; in Jeremiah’s time, Jeremiah 34:18-20. A similar custom obtained also among the Greeks.

But in this instance solemnities were used, which showed that the sacrifices were essential to the covenant itself. God could not enter into covenant with sinners until an atonement had been offered for their sins. And now that this atonement was offered, one half of the blood of the sacrifices was poured upon the altar, to evince that God was reconciled to them; and the remainder was sprinkled upon the book and upon the people, in order to seal upon their hearts and consciences his pardoning love, and to remind them that all their hope in that covenant depended on the blood of atonement with which it was sprinkled.

After having duly considered this covenant as made with Israel, it will be proper to view it,

II. As typifying that covenant under which we live.

That it was a type of the Christian covenant we are sure, because Paul quotes the very words of our text, to prove that the death of Christ was necessary to give efficacy to his mediation, and to secure to us the blessings of his covenant, Hebrews 9:17-19. He mentions also some additional circumstances not related in the history; but of them we forbear to speak, that our attention may be confined to the point immediately before us. The connection between the two is that which we assert, and which we wish to illustrate. Let us then return to the covenant made with Israel, and notice more particularly,

1. The nature of the covenant made with Israel.

The covenant made with Israel was a mixed covenant:

partly legal, for it contained the law of the ten commandments delivered on Mount Sinai;

partly evangelical, for it comprehended many ceremonial institutions whereby the people were to obtain remission of their sins;

and partly national, because it comprised many civil restrictions which were peculiar to that people.

But the covenant under which WE are, is purely evangelical, having not the smallest mixture of anything else with it. Our covenant does not prescribe laws, by obedience to which we are to obtain mercy; but offers mercy freely as the gift of God through Christ, and promises grace, whereby we shall be enabled to fulfill the will of God. Sanctification is not required of us as a ground for our justification, but is promised to us as a fruit and evidence of our justification. In this New Covenant we are not to obey in order that God may give, but to obey because he has given, and will give. We are not first to give to God that he may afterwards give to us; but he gives all, and we receive all.

2. The ratification of the covenant made with Israel.

The blood of sprinkling used by Moses was a mere shadow; it had of itself no value whatever; it could neither satisfy the justice of God, nor bring peace into the consciences of men. But the blood with which our covenant is ratified is called “the blood of GOD, Acts 20:28,” because it was the blood of Him who was God as well as man. That blood has indeed an efficacy that transcends all conception. It has reconciled God to a guilty world; and, when sprinkled on the hearts of men by faith, it fills them with “a peace which passes all understanding.” And as Moses, in the quality of God’s high-priest, sprinkled the blood both upon the altar and the people, so does our “great High-Priest,” the Lord Jesus, now sprinkle his blood for us before the throne of God, and sprinkle it also on our hearts, whenever we go to him for that purpose.

The New Covenant too itself is continually exhibited to us as sprinkled with his blood; so that we may be certain that God will fulfill it to us in all its parts. If only we accept it, and rely upon it, all its blessings shall be ours, both in time and in eternity.

3. The acceptance of the covenant made with Israel.

There was much in the people’s acceptance of that covenant worthy of our imitation; but there was also much which it befits us carefully to avoid:

In the first place, guard against their ignorance. They were evidently not acquainted with the requisitions of the covenant to which they subscribed. They heard its contents read to them indeed; but they did not enter into their full meaning, neither had they duly considered them.

Let not this be the case with us, lest we “begin to build without counting the cost.” Let us consider that it requires us to receive everything as people wholly destitute, and to receive it in every part without the smallest partiality or reserve. Let us remember, that though it does not require holiness as a meritorious condition of our acceptance, it promises holiness as one of its chief blessings, Ezekiel 36:25-27; and that, if we do not desire, and strive, to be “asholy as God is holy,” and “as perfect as God is perfect,” all our professed hope in the covenant is vain and delusive. We can no more be saved by the covenant without holiness, than we can without faith. Let this be known, and weighed, yes and be wrought into the soul as a fixed principle, before we presume to think that we have any interest in Christ, or in the covenant which he has sealed with his blood.

In the next place, guard against their self-righteousness. They imagined that they could so fulfill their obligations as to earn and merit all the blessings of the covenant.

Let not us make so fatal a mistake. Let us rather acknowledge, that “if we had done all that is commanded us, we would be only unprofitable servants.” But who will say that he has done all that is commanded him, or indeed any one thing, in which God could not discern some imperfection and defect? If this is so, then do we need mercy and forgiveness even for our best actions; and consequently can never merit by them the salvation of God. Let this then be also engrafted in our minds, that we may be accepted with the publican, and not be rejected with the Pharisee.

Lastly, let us guard against their self-dependence. They never doubted but that they were able to do all that was commanded them. They thought it was as easy to perform as to promise. But in a very few days they provoked God to jealousy with their golden calf; so little did they remember the precepts that had been given to them, or the vows that were upon them.

Let it not be so with us. Let us bear in mind, “we have not of ourselves a sufficiency even to think a good thought;” and that “without Christ we can do nothing.” If we embrace the covenant as they embraced it, we shall fail as they failed.

We cannot better CONCLUDE this subject than by addressing you as Moses addressed the Israelites, “Behold the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you;” or, as Paul quotes the words, “the covenant which God has enjoined unto you!”

1. Behold the covenant itself.

It is “ordered in all things and sure;” there is not a need which a human being can feel, for which ample provision is not made in it. And it is free for every creature under Heaven. Whatever you may have been in times past, you may at this moment partake of all the blessings of this covenant, if only you are willing to receive them freely, and without reserve.

On the other hand, if you disregard this covenant, and “count the blood of it an unholy thing,” “there remains no other sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation to consume you!” God has shut you up to this, and enjoined it unto you by an irreversible decree. Receive it therefore, and live; reject it, and perish!

2. Behold the blood of the covenant.

What instruction does that blood convey! Did the Israelites see their bleeding sacrifices, and not discern the desert of sin? How much more then must we discern it in the precious blood of our incarnate God! And surely we may also see in it the transcendent love of Christ, who submitted to “make his soul an offering for sin,” that, the covenant being sealed with his blood, we might be partakers of its richest blessings.

What comfort too does it convey to the soul! Look on that blood, you doubting Christian, and then say whether God will not fulfill all the promises that he has ever made; say whether, in such a mode of ratifying his covenant he has not provided “strong consolation for all who flee to the refuge set before them” in the Gospel.

Finally, What a stimulus does it give to all holy and heavenly affections! Shall not that question be continually upon your mind, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits unto me?” Look on that blood, and grudge God your services, if you can. Think much of any duties you can perform, or of any sufferings you can endure for him, if you can. Only keep your eye fixed upon that blood, and you shall be irresistibly constrained to exult and glory in God, and to consecrate unto him all the faculties and powers of your souls.

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 23:29-30

“But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land.”

The more we investigate the dispensations of Providence, the more we shall see that “God’s ways are not as our ways, nor his thoughts as our thoughts.” If we had been left to form conjectures respecting man in his first creation, who would have conceived that God would allow the work of his hands to be so marred as Adam was by the fall, and so large a portion of his creatures to perish in everlasting misery?

Nor, if we were told that God would take to himself, from among the fallen sons of Adam, a peculiar people, and rescue them by so many signs and wonders from their bondage in Egypt, would we have imagined that he would, after all, keep them in the wilderness for the space of forty years, until the whole generation were swept away; and allow two individuals only, of the whole nation, to enter the promised land. But “his ways are in the great deep; and his footsteps are not known.”

When, at last, he had brought his people into Canaan, we would then at least suppose that he would give them a speedy and quiet possession of the land. Yet, behold, he tells them beforehand, that he will “not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land.”

We propose to inquire into,

I. The design of God in the dispensation here referred to.

It was intended,

1. As an act of mercy, to preserve his people.

The people altogether amounted to about two millions; and the country which they were to occupy extended from the Red Sea to the Euphrates, Genesis 15:18. But, if so small a population were spread over so wide a space, the wild beasts would quickly multiply, and speedily desolate the whole land. True, indeed, God could, if it would so please him, interpose by miracle to change the ferocity of the most savage animals; but that was no part of his plan. He permitted, therefore, vast multitudes of the heathen nations yet to live, so that they might, for their own sake, prevent the increase and incursions of the wild beasts, until Israel should have multiplied so as to be able, in every part, to protect themselves.

2. As an act of righteousness, to test them.

All the trials with which God’s people were visited in the wilderness were sent “to prove them,” whether they would serve the Lord or not. Not that God needed any such information, as the result of experiment; because “he knew what was in man,” whose heart and thoughts were open to him from the foundation of the world; but it was desirable, for their own sakes, that they should have an insight into their own hearts, and be able to appreciate the whole of God’s dealings with them.

By the continuance of the heathen nations among them, they would see how prone they were to seek their own carnal ease and interests, by mingling themselves among them, when they should have been laboring with all their might to effect their utter extirpation.

By observing also the success or failure of their efforts against these enemies, they would be able to judge with accuracy, how far they were in favor with God, or under his displeasure; and would consequently be led to approach him with suitable emotions of gratitude or contrition. This is the view which the Scripture itself gives us of this very dispensation, “These were the nations which the Lord left to prove Israel by them: the Philistines, Canaanites, Sidonians, and the Hivites; it was to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken to the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses, Judges 3:1-4.”

3. As an act of judgment, to punish them.

Though there were good ends to be answered, by a gradual execution of the judgments denounced against the seven nations of Canaan, it was the fault of the Israelites themselves that the extirpation of them was not more rapid and complete. They gave way to sloth, when they should have been in full activity. They yielded to fear, when they should have gone forth in assured dependence on their Lord. By this, they greatly increased their own trials, and multiplied their own afflictions. God had told them by Moses, saying, “If you will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall come to pass, that those whom you let remain of them shall be thorns in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein you dwell. Moreover, it shall come to pass, that I shall do unto you, as I thought to do unto them, Numbers 33:55.”

Joshua also, at the close of his life, reminded them, that “no man had been able to stand before them;” and then assured them, that “one man of them should be able to chase a thousand, if only they would take heed to themselves to love the Lord their God; but that, if they did in any wise go back, and cleave unto the nations which remained among them, and make marriages with them; then know for a certainty,” says he, “that the Lord your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land which the Lord your God has given you, Joshua 23:9-13.”

Accordingly, this prediction was soon verified; and God punished them, as he had said; for, on their “making leagues with the inhabitants of the land,” they were induced at last to “forsake the Lord, and worship Baal and Ashteroth;” and “the Lord’s anger was kindled against them; and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies; and they were greatly distressed. Therefore the Lord left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither did he deliver them into the hand of Joshua, Judges 2:2; Judges 2:12-15; Judges 2:23.”

Thus in this dispensation there was a mixture of mercy and of judgment; of mercy primarily; of judgment through their own fault.

This view of God’s dealings with his people of old affords us a fit occasion to inquire into,

II. His design in a corresponding dispensation towards his people at this day.

The redemption which he has given to us through the blood of his only dear Son might justly lead us to expect, that when once we are truly brought out from the dominion of sin and Satan, our triumphs over them would be complete. But it is not so; for though the yoke with which we were oppressed is loosened, a measure of our bondage still remains; there is yet “the flesh lusting against the spirit, so that we cannot do the things that we would do, Galatians 5:17.” Yes more, “there is yet a law in our members warring against the law in our minds, and too often bringing us into captivity to the law of sin which is in our members! Romans 7:23.” Now why is it, that God allows his people to be yet harassed with the remains of sin? He allows it,

1. For our deeper humiliation.

The sins of our unconverted state may well humble us in the dust, and cause us to “go softly,” in the remembrance of them, to our dying hour. But the views of our depravity, which we derive from them, are as nothing in comparison with those which we gain from the workings of corruption in our converted state. These are the views which cause us to cry out, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me! Romans 7:24.” These were the views which constrained Job to exclaim, “Behold, I am vile;” “I repent, and abhor myself in dust and ashes! Job 40:4; Job 42:6.”

And, in proportion as they are revealed to us, they will constrain every living man to “loath himself for his iniquities and abominations! Ezekiel 36:31.” Now this is a feeling that well becomes our sinful race; and though the acquisition of it is obtained through much painful experience—yet does it, in the outcome, well repay all that we have suffered in the attainment of it.

2. For our ultimate advancement.

A child has all the members of a perfect man; yet are they in a very feeble and imperfect state; and it is by the exercise of his powers that he has those powers strengthened and enlarged.

Just so it is with every child of God. He is born a babe; and, though every gracious principle exists within him, he is so feeble as scarcely to be able to withstand temptation, or to exercise his powers to any great extent. But, through the remains of sin within him he is led to frequent conflicts with it; by exercise, his powers are increased; and by progressive increase, they are perfected. Thus, from “a babe,” he grows up to maturer age and stature, and becomes “a young man;” and from “a young man,” “a father.”

Nor is it in this world only that the believer is benefitted by his conflicts; for in proportion as he grows in the knowledge of the Savior and in a conformity to his image, will be the weight of glory bestowed on him in the realms of bliss. The improvement of the talents committed to him will bring a corresponding recompense, at the time that he shall give up his account to God. If no corruption had remained in his heart “to prove him,” he would have had scarcely any opportunity of showing his fidelity, his zeal, his love, his gratitude. But being called “to fight a good fight,” and having approved himself “a good soldier of Jesus Christ,” he shall receive, together with the approbation of his Lord, a brighter crown, and a more glorious inheritance, than could have been awarded to him at the period of his first conversion.

3. For his own eternal glory.

Doubtless the first exercise of mercy towards a repenting sinner brings much glory to God; and if at the first moment of his conversion every saint were translated to glory, he would have abundant reason to adore and magnify the grace to which he was so greatly indebted. But of the patience, the forbearance, the long-suffering, the compassion, and the faithfulness of God—he would have a very indistinct and inadequate conception. It is by his inward trials and conflicts that he acquires the fuller discovery of these perfections, and is prepared to give God the glory of them in the eternal world. The shouts of one who is but a babe in Christ will, on his introduction to the divine presence, no doubt be ardent; but what will be the acclamations of a soul that has passed through all the eventful scenes of arduous and long-protracted warfare! Of what wonders will he have to speak! or rather, how may we conceive of him as prostrating himself in silent adoration through his overwhelming sense of the divine goodness, while the less-instructed and less-indebted novice rends the air with acclamations and hosannahs! Yes truly; if the angels stand round about the saints, as not having so near an access to God as they, so we may conceive of the less-privileged saints as standing round about the elders, in whom “God will be more admired,” and by whom he will be more “glorified, 2 Thessalonians 1:10 with Revelation 7:9-12.”

We must not however dismiss this subject without adding:

1. A few words of caution.

It is, as we have said, the fate of man in this world still to carry about with him a corrupt nature, which proves a source of much trouble and distress; nor can any man hope to get rid of it, until he shall be liberated by death itself. Nevertheless, it is our own fault that the corruptions which remain within us are not more weakened and subdued. Let anyone read the account given of the different tribes, in the first chapter of the book of Judges, and say whether he does not impute blame to the Israelites themselves, for allowing the nations, whom they were ordered to extirpate, to retain so formidable a power in the midst of them, Judges 1:21; Judges 1:27; Judges 1:29-35. Had they persevered with the same zeal and diligence as they exercised on their first entrance into Canaan, and pursued with unrelenting energy those whom they had been commanded to destroy, their occupation of the land had been far more peaceful and entire.

Just so, if we, from our first conversion to God, had maintained with unremitting zeal our warfare with sin and Satan, as it became us to do, we should have had all the corruptions of our nature in more complete subjection, and should have enjoyed a far greater measure of tranquility in our own souls. Let not anyone, then, delude himself with the thought that the strength of his corruptions is a subject rather of pity than of blame; but let all know, that they are called to maintain a warfare; that armor, even “the whole armor of God,” is provided for them, in order that they may prosecute it with success; and that, if only they will “behave like men,” the Captain of their salvation has assured to them a complete victory. Gird on your armor then, my brethren; and, if your enemy has gained any advantage over you, return to the charge; and never cease to fight until Satan, and all his hosts, are “bruised under your feet!”

2. A few words of encouragement.

The doom of your enemies is sealed, Deuteronomy 7:22-23; and, if you “go forth in the strength of your Lord,” “you shall be more than conquerors through him who loves you! Romans 8:37.” Let it not be grievous to you that such a necessity is imposed upon you. Did your Savior himself enter the lists, and fight against all the powers of darkness until he had triumphed over them and despoiled them all; and will not you, at his command, go forth, to follow up, and complete, his victory, Colossians 2:15 with John 16:11.

Fear not on account of the strength or number of your enemies; for “they shall be bread for you;” and your every victory over them shall nourish and strengthen your own souls.

Let all animate one another to the contest. See the happy effect of this among God’s people of old. We are told, “Judah said unto Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with you into your lot. So Simeon went with him. And Judah went up; and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand, Judges 1:3-4.”

True it is, indeed, that we cannot aid each other precisely in the same way that they did; but we may encourage one another, and strengthen one another, and by our example animate one another to the combat; and may thus contribute, each of us, to the success of those around us. And it is but a little time that we have to fight; for soon we shall come to that better land, where “there shall no more be the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of Hosts.” Even in this world we are taught that such a period shall arrive Zechariah 14:21; but, if not permitted to behold it here, we shall assuredly behold it in the world above, where “former things shall have passed away, and sin and sorrow shall be found no more! Revelation 21:4.” “Therefore comfort one another with these words!”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 23:20-22

“See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to
bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to
what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion,
since my Name is in him. If you listen carefully to what he says and do all
that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who
oppose you.”

It is but too common for men to cast the blame of their own negligence on
God. But they who labor so much to exculpate themselves now, will one day
be silent; and God will finally be justified in every sentence that he
shall pass. His kindness to the church of old may show us what his conduct
is towards us. And they who are thus guided, warned, and encouraged, must,
if they perish, ascribe their condemnation to themselves alone. The words
before us contain,

I. The work and office of Christ.

Christ is here called an angel or messenger.

He is often called by this name in the Holy Scriptures. He is the angel
that was in the pillar and the cloud, Exodus 14:19. That angel was Jehovah,
Exodus 13:21. That Jehovah was Christ, 1 Corinthians 10:9. See also Malachi
3:1. Nor does he disdain to assume it himself John 12:49. In his essential
nature indeed Jesus is equal with the Father. But in his mediatorial
capacity he sustains the office of a servant.

As the angel of the covenant, Jesus leads and keeps his people.

He is represented as a leader and commander, like Joshua, his type, Isaiah
55:4. He went before them in the wilderness in the pillar and the cloud.
And still, though invisible, Jesus guides them in their way to Heaven,
Psalm 25:9; Psalm 32:8.

Nor does he leave them until he brings them safely to glory.

He did not forsake the Israelites, until he had accomplished all his
promises, Joshua 23:14. Having “prepared the land for them,” he preserved
them for it. Thus has he “prepared mansions for us” also, John 14:2; and
will surely bring us to the full possession of them! 1 Peter 1:4-5.

But as this office of Christ implies a correspondent duty in us, God
suggests,

II. A caution against neglecting him.

We are much in danger of displeasing him.

As our guide, he expects implicit obedience. Nor can we rebel against him
without “provoking” his indignation, Isaiah 63:10. Hence we need continual
circumspection.

The consequence of displeasing him will be terrible.

Doubtless to penitents he is full of mercy and compassion. But to
impenitent offenders he will manifest his wrath, Psalm 7:11-13. Nor will he
allow any to continue in their sins with impunity, Ezekiel 24:13-14.

His power and dignity are a certain pledge to us that he will avenge the
insults that are offered him.

By “the name of God” we understand not his authority only, but his very
nature, John 14:10-11; John 10:30. And this union with the Father is a
pledge to us, that he will act as befits the divine character. Nor will any
consideration of mercy ever tempt him again to sacrifice the honor of the
Deity to the interests of man.

It is not however by terror only that God would persuade us; for he adds,

III. An encouragement to obey him.

Obedience is in one sense, the condition of God’s favor.

We know that there is nothing meritorious in man’s obedience. Yet is there
an inseparable connection between that and the divine favor. Nor is it a
partial obedience only that he requires at our hands. Obedience must be
earnest, unwearied, uniform, and unreserved.

And to those who yield him this obedience he will show himself an active
friend, and an almighty protector.

His favor consists not in a mere inactive delight. It will manifest itself
in a constant and powerful interposition on their behalf, 2 Chronicles
32:8; Isaiah 49:25. He will not fail to secure them the victory over all
their enemies.

Address,

1. Those who disregard the voice of this divine Messenger.

From what is spoken of his mercy you are ready to think him destitute of
justice. And from the depth of his condescension you conclude he will not
vindicate his own honor. But where God most fully proclaims his mercy, he
declares his justice also, Exodus 34:7. Do not make him your enemy, who
came from Heaven to save you.

Consider what means he has used to guide you to the promised land.

Consider what great things he would do for you, if you would obey his voice.

Consider what certain and terrible destruction your rejection of his mercy
will bring upon you, Hebrews 12:25. And instantly surrender up yourselves
to his direction and government.

2. Those who, though they submit to his government, are doubtful of success.

The Israelites, notwithstanding all the miracles they had seen, were afraid
they should not finally attain the object of their desires.

Thus among ourselves, many tremble lest their expectations should never be
realized. But is not God able to beat down your enemies before you? Or will
he forget the promise he has so often renewed? If he is incensed against
you, it is not owing to unfaithfulness in him, but to instability in you!
Jeremiah 2:17. Only be vigilant to obey his will, and to follow him fully;
and you need not doubt that he will preserve you unto his heavenly kingdom
2 Timothy 4:18.

3. Those who are following him with cheerfulness to the heavenly land.

Blessed be God, there are some of you like-minded with Joshua and Caleb,
Numbers 14:24; Numbers 32:12. And are not you living monuments of the power
and grace of God? Have you not on many occasions proved his readiness to
pardon sin? And do you not daily experience his paternal care and
protection? Go on then with increasing vigilance and an assured hope. Know
that all the power and perfections of God are engaged for you; and that
“having guided you by his counsel, he will finally bring you to glory.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 23:13

“Pay close attention to all My instructions!”

If we were about to prosecute a journey through an extensive forest, where the path was exceeding intricate, where we were in hourly danger of treading upon serpents and scorpions, and where there were declivities so steep and slippery that it was almost impossible but that we must fall down some tremendous precipice—we would feel it necessary to get the best information, and to use the utmost caution in all our way.

Such is really our state. In our journey towards Heaven we may easily mistake the road; and, even when we are walking in it, we are encompassed with so many dangers, and obstructed by so many difficulties, that we need to exercise continual vigilance. Hence, in tender love to us, our heavenly Guide puts us on our guard, and says, “Pay close attention to all My instructions!”

In discoursing on these words we shall consider,

I. The injunction.

It is our duty and our happiness to have all our actions conformed to the mind and will of God; but, in order to this, we must attend diligently to the matter, the manner, and the end of our actions:

1. The matter of our actions.

Notwithstanding that we have the written word, which, when duly followed, will suffice to direct our conduct; yet we must have a very considerable knowledge of the Scriptures, and a well-regulated mind, in order to ascertain clearly the will of God. It frequently happens that one duty seems to interfere with another; as when a work of mercy calls for a violation of the Sabbath, or a command of an earthly parent militates against the command of God. In the former case we are to “prefer mercy before sacrifice;” in the latter, we must “obey God rather than man.” But how to discriminate aright at all times, is very difficult; and a well-intentioned person may grievously err, if he does not bring his actions to the touch-stone of God’s Word, and determine, through grace, to regulate them according to that standard, Acts 26:9-11; Galatians 2:13 and John 16:2.

2. The manner of our actions.

It is by no means sufficient that the matter of our actions is right, for they may be so debased by the manner of performing them, as to be rendered hateful in the sight of God. Prayer is a duty plainly enjoined; but if it is cold and formal, or offered with an unbelieving heart, it will find no acceptance with God; in vain do people worship God in such a manner, Matthew 15:7-9; they shall receive nothing at his hands, James 1:6-7.

Nothing could have been more pleasing to God than David’s attempt to bring up the ark to Mount Zion, after it had been at least fifty years in a state of obscurity; but David was inattentive to the manner in which God had appointed the ark to be carried; he put it on a new cart, instead of ordering it to be borne upon the shoulders of the Levites; and therefore God manifested his displeasure against him, and against all the people, by striking Uzza dead upon the spot for presuming to touch the ark! 1 Chronicles 15:13.

We ourselves are not satisfied to have our commands obeyed, unless a due attention is paid also to the manner of executing our will. Much less therefore will God be pleased, if we be not as studious to “serve him acceptably,” as to serve him at all.

3. The end or motive of our actions.

Our end or motive in acting determines more than anything the quality of our actions. Not that a good end will sanctify a bad action; but a bad end will vitiate every action connected with it. If, for instance, in our religious services we seek the applause of men, we must expect no reward from God. The gratification of our pride and vanity is all the reward that such polluted services can obtain, Matthew 6:1-5; Matthew 6:16.

In the account which is given us of Jehu, we find that the very same action, which was rewarded on account of its outward conformity with God’s command, was punished on account of the evil principle by which he was influenced in performing it. He did well in extirpating the seed of Ahab, and was rewarded for it to the fourth generation, 2 Kings 10:30. But forasmuch as he was actuated by vanity and ambition, the blood which he shed was imputed to him as murder! 2 Kings 10:16 with Hosea 1:4.

Nor is there anything more common than for even religious people to mistake the path of duty through an inattention to their own spirit. The disciples doubtless thought themselves under the influence of a commendable zeal, when they would have called fire from Heaven to consume a Samaritan village; as did Peter also, when he cut off the ear of Malchus. We should therefore be peculiarly cautious with respect to this, lest by the mixture of any selfish motive or base affection we offend Him, whom it is our desire and endeavor to please.

God having prescribed rules for a just ordering of our whole spirit and conduct, we must, “Pay close attention to all God’s instructions!”

The importance of this injunction will appear, while we consider,

II. The reasons for God’s command.

Surely it is a necessary injunction, and no less reasonable than necessary; for,

1. The same authority exists in each of God’s commandments.

It is God who issued a prohibition of adultery and murder; and it is the same Almighty Being who forbids us to entertain a selfish wish or covetous desire! James 2:10-11. Shall we then acknowledge his authority in our actions, and disregard it in our principles? Shall we think ourselves at liberty to deviate from any part of his revealed will? If so, we cease to act as his creatures, and become a god unto ourselves.

2. Without close attention to all of God’s instructions, we cannot perform any duty aright.

We cannot find out the real motives of our actions without daily self-examination, and earnest prayer to God for the teachings of his Spirit. However simple the path of duty may appear, there are ten thousand ways in which we may depart from it. And, as long as our hearts are so deceitful, and we have such a subtle adversary striving to mislead us, we shall be in perpetual danger of mistaking our way. If therefore we would serve God aright in anything, we must pay close attention to everything.

3. An inattention to smaller duties, will lead to a violation of the greatest duties.

Who shall say where we shall stop, if once we begin to trifle with God? Eve little thought to what she should be brought by only listening to the suggestions of the tempter; nor did David foresee what would result from the wanton look which he cast on Bathsheba. It was on account of the danger arising from the smallest approach to sin, that God, in the words following our text, forbade his people even to “mention the name” of a heathen deity; and on the same account he requires us to “abstain from the very appearance of evil!” And if we will not “watch in all things,” we shall soon have to eat the bitter fruit of our negligence; yes, it will be well, if from walking in the counsel of the ungodly, we do not soon stand in the way of sinners, and at last sit in the seat of the scornful! Psalm 1:1. Every word in this verse rises in a climax:

“walk, stand, sit;”

“counsel, way, seat;”

“ungodly, sinners, scornful.”

4. The greater our attention to all of God’s instructions, the more shall we adorn our holy profession.

There are multitudes on the watch to find out the smallest faults in those who profess religion; and to condemn religion itself on account of them. But an attentive, obedient walk “cuts off occasion from those who seek occasion;” and “by well-doing we put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.” It can scarcely be conceived what an effect the conduct of religious people has upon the world, either to recommend religion to them, or to harden them against it. Should we not be careful that we “give no occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully?” Should we not endeavor to “be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves?” Let us then “so make our light to shine before men, that they may be constrained to glorify our Father that is in Heaven.”

5. The whole of our conduct will be reviewed in the day of judgment.

The most secret springs of action will be brought to light in that solemn day, and “the counsels of the heart be made manifest, 1 Corinthians 4:5; Ecclesiastes 12:14.” God will weigh, not our actions only, but our motives, Proverbs 16:2. “Men judge according to appearance; but He will judge righteous judgment.” If this consideration will not make us attentive and obedient, then what can we hope to prove effectual? O that we could bear in mind the strictness of that scrutiny, and the awfulness of that decision!

Address,

1. Those who ridicule the preciseness of others.

To what end has God commanded us to be careful, if we are not to regard the injunction? Do you suppose that you are to annul his commands, and to establish rules of conduct that are contrary to his? Or, if you are presumptuous enough to do so in reference to yourselves, do you think that you are to prescribe for others also? You affect to pity the Lord’s people as weak enthusiasts; but know that you are the true objects of pity, who can rush blindfold in such a manner to your own destruction. Yes, over such as you the Savior wept; and if you knew your guilt and danger, you would weep for yourselves! Repent, before it is too late; for, however wise you may imagine yourselves to be, the time is coming when you will change your voice, and say, “We fools counted our life madness!” Take care that you yourselves be righteous enough, before you ridicule others as “righteous over-much.”

2. Those who, in spite of scoffers, are endeavoring to please their God.

Blessed be God, who enables you to stem the torrent, and to serve him in the midst of a wicked world! But, be on your guard against that scrupulosity, which makes those things to be sins which are no sins; and that superstition, which makes things to be duties which are no duties. Be as careful of adding to the Word of God as of detracting from it. Let the different parts of Scripture be compared with each other; and learn your duty not so much from any detached passage, as from a collective view of all those passages which may reflect light upon it. Nevertheless in doubtful matters, you will do well to lean to the safer side.

Yet while you are thus circumspect yourselves, do not presume to judge others. Things may be right in others, which would be wrong in you; and right in you under some circumstances, which under different circumstances would be highly improper. Do not then bring others to your standard, or try them at your bar, “it is to their own Master that they must stand or fall.”

Lastly, let not your preciseness fill you with self-preference and self-esteem. However accurately you may walk, there will be still enough to humble you in the dust. You must to your last hour go to Jesus as the chief of sinners, and seek acceptance with God through his blood and righteousness!

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)

Exodus 20:18-19

“When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance and said to Moses, “Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”

The law of God was originally written on the heart of man; but by sin it was almost obliterated, so that scarcely any traces of it remained. When therefore it pleased God to separate to himself a peculiar people, who should know his will, and enjoy his presence, and subserve his glory, it was necessary, if we may so speak, that he should republish his law, and record it in some way, which might give it a permanent establishment in the world. This he was pleased to do on Mount Sinai, after having conducted his people there in safety, and shown, by the wonders he had wrought, that he was indeed the only true God. What were the particulars of that law, we do not now stop to inquire. See discussion on Romans 3:20.

That to which we would draw your attention is, the manner of its promulgation. In the preceding chapter we are informed of all those particulars which are briefly recapitulated in our text. On contemplating that tremendous scene, we are naturally led to inquire, Why did God publish his law in that manner? The answer to this question is important; and will prove highly instructive to us all. He did it:

I. To impress their minds with a fear of his Majesty.

God is a great God, and greatly to be feared, Deuteronomy 10:17. But though the Israelites had seen ample demonstrations of this in Egypt, they had a very inadequate sense of it upon their minds. Hence arose their murmurings and distrust as often as any fresh difficulty occurred. And what is at the root of all our disobedience? Is it not that “we do not fear that great and fearful name, The Lord our God! Deuteronomy 28:58.”

To beget in the minds of those whom he was bringing into covenant with himself a just sense of his greatness, he appeared to them in a thick cloud, with thunderings, and lightnings, and the most terrific sound of a trumpet. The effect was produced, insomuch that Moses, though terrified beyond measure himself, was forced to administer comfort and encouragement to them.

We find somewhat of a similar effect upon ourselves in a violent tempest; and, if we could realize the scene that was exhibited on Sinai, we would say indeed, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God!”

II. To show them the nature of that dispensation.

The dispensation of the law, though suited to the Jews at that time, and even glorious, as a type or figure of the Gospel dispensation, was yet in fact “a ministration of death, 2 Corinthians 3:7; 2 Corinthians 3:9.” It required perfect obedience to the law, and denounced a curse for every instance of disobedience; and required all the people, not only to accept it, but to approve of it, in that particular view. Compare Galatians 3:10 with Deuteronomy 27:26.

Who can contemplate such a covenant, and not tremble to have his hopes founded on it? There was indeed much of the Gospel contained in the ceremonial law; and the penitent Israelite found refuge there. But the law published on Sinai was “a fiery law,” “a ministration of condemnation;” and the terrors which were infused into the people by the thunders of Sinai, fitly represented the terrific nature of that covenant. Happy would it be for us, if we availed ourselves of these instructive intimations, to renounce that covenant which consigns us over unto death, and to embrace that better covenant which is revealed to us in the Gospel!

III. To make them feel their need of a Mediator.

The people, who but just before had been with difficulty restrained from breaking through the bounds that had been assigned them, were now so alarmed, that they fled from their station, and entreated that God would no more deliver his commands to them in that way, lest they should die. They desired that Moses might be appointed as a Mediator between God and them, and that all future intimations of God’s will should be given them through him. Of the full meaning of their own request they themselves were not aware; for, inasmuch as Moses was a type of Christ, it was, in fact, a desire that Christ might be their Mediator, and that all their fellowship with the Deity might be through Him. This was the construction which God himself put upon it; and in this view he approved of. Compare Deuteronomy 5:27-28; Deuteronomy 18:15-18;

To the same effect also the Apostle speaks. He tells us that the law was not designed to give us life, but to show us our need of Christ, and to bring us unto him as our only hope, Galatians 3:24.

Inferences:

1. How thankful should we be for the Christian covenant!

It is to this that we are come, if we have truly believed in Christ. And oh! how different is our state from those who are yet under the law, Hebrews 12:18-24. Instead of being prohibited from drawing near to God, we are permitted and commanded to come unto him. Let us avail ourselves of the blessed privilege, and seek closer fellowship with our God, and brighter views of his glory.

2. How careful should we be not to revert to the Jewish covenant!

We do, in fact, revert to it, if we seek justification by the law of works. If we do anything in order to be justified by it, we instantly become debtors to do the whole law. Let it not then appear to us a light matter to indulge a self-righteous spirit; for if we do, we renounce all hope from the grace of the Gospel, and “Christ, with respect to us, has died in vain, Galatians 5:1-4.”

3. How studiously should we cultivate the fear of God!

As terrible as the appearance and the voice of God were on that occasion, his appearance in the day of judgment will be infinitely more tremendous! “Knowing therefore the terrors of the Lord, we would persuade you” to turn unto him, before it be too late. We wish however to produce in you, not a slavish fear, but a filial fear. A slavish fear will only drive you from God. But a filial fear will make you happy in the service and enjoyment of God; and therefore we add, “Let his fear be ever before your faces, that you sin not.”

Charles Simeon (1759-1836)