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on his soul, Josiah was induced to repair the temple, in order to the restoring of God's worship there: and Hilkiah the priest, while executing his orders, found a copy (perhaps the original copy) of the Law, which had been lost amidst the rubbish and ruins of the place. On hearing its contents, Josiah was filled with great anguish, and sent to Huldah the prophetess to know whether the judgments which God had denounced against that apostate nation might by any means be averted: in reply to which he was informed, that the calamities would surely come upon them; but that, in consideration of his penitence, the awful period should not arrive till he himself should be removed to a better world.

From the words before us we shall take occasion to shew,

I. What state of mind the threatenings of God should produce in us

The conduct of Josiah on this occasion will serve to guide our thoughts.

The threatenings of God should produce in us, 1. A fear of his judgments

[If men can puff "at God's judgments"," it is because they have never considered how tremendous they are. Let any man once think seriously of "dwelling with everlasting burnings," and we will defy him not to tremble, like Felix d and Belshazzare. Josiah "rent his clothes" with horror, when he heard only of temporal calamities: how much more therefore ought we to fear, when we hear of the miseries that will be endured in "the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone!"]

2. A sorrow of heart for those sins against which his judgments are denounced

[We are ready to acknowledge, that they who have committed gross sins should mourn for their iniquities. But we should remember that the judgments of God are denounced also against pride, unbelief, impenitence, worldly-mindedness, and numberless other secret sins, which are overlooked, or even

b Ps. x. 5.

c Isai. xxxiii. 14. See also Mark ix. 43-48. and Rev. xiv. 10, 11. d Acts xxiv. 25. e Dan. v. 5, 6.

commended, by the world. For these therefore must we "weep, and humble ourselves before God," yea, and lothe ourselves for them in dust and ashes.]

3. A turning unto God in holy and unreserved obedience

[This is the true test of sincerity: fears and sorrows are of little avail, if they produce not a thorough change of heart and life. Josiah, from the first moment that he heard the threatenings of God, set himself to accomplish a national reformation, and prosecuted it with zeal to his dying-hour. Thus must we be zealous for our God. We must not pretend to be sorry for our sins, and still continue to live in them; but we must put away the accursed thing, whatever it be, and devote ourselves to God without reserve. It is he only who "confesseth and forsaketh his sins, that shall find mercy."]

To promote such a state of mind amongst you, we proceed to shew,

II. Its acceptableness to God

The message sent to Josiah sufficiently marks this. God assured him that his prayer was heard in consideration of his penitence. But that such a state of mind is at all times acceptable to God, will more clearly appear, if we consider that,

1. By it all the perfections of God are glorified

[Repentance is often called "a giving glory to God;" and the propriety of this expression is evident: for, exactly as the impenitent man pours contempt on all the divine perfections, setting at nought the power and majesty, the justice and holiness, the love and mercy, the truth and faithfulness of God; so, on the contrary, the penitent brings glory to them all, inasmuch as he acknowledges his obnoxiousness to the divine displeasure, and his ardent desire to obtain an interest in the promises of the Gospel. If then God be concerned for his own glory, he cannot but be pleased with those who, in his appointed way, are labouring to advance it.]

2. To it all the promises of God are made—

[Many are the judgments denounced against the stouthearted: but in all the inspired volume there is not one word to "break a bruised reed.' On the contrary, the weary and heavy-laden are invited to come to Christ without any distinction on account of the particular sins with which they are g Josh. vii. 19. Jer. xiii. 16.

f Prov. xxviii. 13.

burthened. God assures the contrite soul, while it is yet trembling at his word, that he will look upon it with peculiar pleasure and complacencyh; and that though a man's conduct may have been such as to fix indelible disgrace upon him in the world, God will never despise him, provided he be of a broken and contrite spirit. Not even the transient humiliation of Ahab was suffered to pass without some favourable regard: much less shall that be overlooked which is sincere and pemanent'. It is indeed not for any merit that there is in our repentance, but for the merits of Jesus Christ, that we shall find acceptance: nevertheless all true penitents, and none other, shall be saved by him.]

INFER,

1. How desirable is it to be well acquainted with the Holy Scriptures!

[The word of God denounces vengeance against many characters that are thought innocent among men: nor will our ignorance of these threatenings avert or delay the execution of them. Let us then study the sacred oracles with an express reference to ourselves, that we may know what God says in them respecting us. Peradventure we may find many passages, which, when applied to our hearts, will give us just occasion to mourn like the pious monarch before us. Better were it far to know the full extent of our guilt, and thereby to be stimulated to repentance, than through ignorance of our state to continue impenitent, till the wrath of God shall come upon us to the uttermost.]

2. How enviable is the condition of a true penitent!

[Every prayer of a real penitent is "heard" of God. Let him "open his mouth ever so wide, God will fill it." Let him but plead what the Lord Jesus has done and suffered for him, and God will never cast out his prayer. Surely then there is no man so truly happy as he who "walks humbly with his God." Indeed our Lord himself repeatedly tells us this; "Blessed are the poor in spirit: blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted"."

The

But it may be thought that such an abject state of mind would be unsuitable to a man of power and opulence. Jewish monarch however entertained no such vain conceit; he judged it not unbecoming even his high station to feel, yea to manifest also to all around him, a fear of God. Let all of us

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then, the high as well as the low, the spiritual as well as the profane, seek to have "a tender heart." Let us beg of God "to take away from us the heart of stone, and to give us hearts of flesh," well knowing, that the more exquisite our sensibility is with respect to sin, the more pleasing will be our state before God.]

CCCCXXXII.

FORBEARANCE OF GOD BROUGHT TO A CLOSE.

2 Chron. xxxvi. 15, 16. And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwellingplace: but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

IN speaking of the divine perfections, it is common to represent them all as infinite, because they do not admit of any increase: but perhaps it would be more correct to speak of them as limited, because they all so limit each other as to produce one harmonious agency in all their operations; every perfection being exercised so far, and so far only, as is consistent with the glory of the whole Deity. Justice, for instance, never exerts itself to the disparagement of mercy; nor does mercy ever triumph over the rights of justice: so neither does patience interpose for the arresting of judgment, any longer than consists with the claims of holiness: as soon as ever its protracted influence would reflect dishonour on God as the Moral Governor of the universe, it recedes, and leaves the sword of vengeance to execute its heavenly commission. The truth of this statement fully appears from the words before us; from which we are naturally led to notice,

I. God's patience exercised

It was exercised to a most astonishing degree towards his people of old

[The Scripture frequently speaks of God, not only as sending messengers to his people, but as "rising early" and sending them. This intimates, that as soon as ever they went

astray, he commissioned his servants to reclaim them; yea, many hundred years before the final execution of his judgments upon them, he forewarned them how he would proceed, and cautioned them against driving him to such extremitiesa. When these warnings were disregarded, he sent them prophets, to bring these things to their remembrance, and to plead with them in his name. Sometimes he raised up prophets for particular occasions; at other times he continued them for many years in their office, in order by any means to turn the people from their sins. Full of "compassion towards his people," and averse to forsake the land which he had given them for a dwelling-place," he bore with all their frowardness and perverseness; many a time turning away his anger," when he might justly have broken forth against them, and made them monuments of his everlasting indignation".

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But how did they requite his tender mercies? "They mocked his messengers (we are told), and despised his words, and misused his prophets." Even against Moses himself did their resentment frequently burn, insomuch that on one occasion they were ready to stone him. Their prophets in every successive age were treated with all manner of indignities, menaced, imprisoned, martyred, according as the wrath of their rulers was permitted to prevail. "Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted?" said St. Stephend; and our blessed Lord, to comfort his disciples under the trials which they would meet with, reminded them, that "so had the prophets been persecuted, who were before them."]

In like manner is it exercised in reference to us

[God is yet sending his ambassadors to us, not merely to reprove and warn, or to encourage us with a hope of temporal rewards, as he did to the Jews, but to offer us redemption through the blood of his dear Son, and to beseech us to accept of reconciliation with him. -And such is his "compassion towards us," that he cannot endure the thought of giving us up, as long as a hope remains of converting us to himself

And what return do we make to God? Do we not act precisely as the Jews before us did? There is no faithful messenger that addresses us in Jehovah's name, but we call him an enthusiast: however temperate and kind, and reasonable his exhortations may be, we mock and deride him as

a Lev. xxvi. 14-39. and Deut. xxviii. 15—68.

b Ps. lxxviii. 38. and cvi. 13-48.

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c Exod. xvii. 4.

f 2 Cor. v. 18-20.

g Ezek. xxxiii. 11. Jer. xiii. 27. Hos. xi. 8.

See particularly the temperate message sent by Hezekiah,

2 Chron. xxx. 6-10.

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