OF THE SALVATION OF ALL ISRAEL II.
James Dodson
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DISCOURSE VIII.
Rom. xi. 26. “And so all Israel shall be saved.”
By a knowledge of the parties who will enjoy God’s promised salvation, and of the way in which their obtaining it is described in the sacred record, we are favoured with some information about the prediction contained in the text. But, in order to obtain a more perfect and satisfactory view of it, something farther is necessary. That which may contribute, in some degree, to supply this defect, is an inquiry into the blessings which this salvation comprehends. While we are ignorant of the parts of this salvation, or inattentive to them, our view of this subject must be very imperfect, our interest in it will not be sufficiently excited, and our endeavours for its accomplishment cannot be properly directed. Having attempted, in the foregoing Discourse, to mention the parties for whom this salvation is designed, and to explain the Apostle’s descriptions of the way in which it will be conferred on them; we are now to attend to the parts of that salvation.
III. I am now to mention some of the blessings in which the salvation of all Israel will consist.
In doing this, the two following things must be kept in view,—the present condition of Israel, and the predictions of the Scriptures concerning them. That salvation which God bestows on men is always, in his wisdom and grace, perfectly adapted to their circumstances. An attentive view of the condition in which all Israel is now placed, will, therefore, help us to unfold the parts of their salvation. A careful search into the meaning of those Divine oracles, in which their salvation is described, is the only infallible method of attaining to the knowledge of that salvation, which is laid up for God’s ancient people, among the treasures of his grace. In this investigation, I shall endeavour to attend both to the present situation of the children of Israel, and to what the Spirit saith to the churches concerning their deliverance from that misery in which they remain, and their restoration to that blessedness that is prepared for them.
1. The salvation of Israel will consist in the beginning and progress of a work of saving grace, on the hearts of great multitudes
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of that people. The seed of Israel are in a state of unbelief, and our Saviour declares, “That he that believeth not, shall be damned.” They are in a state of guilt and sin, and are under the wrath and curse of God. Like all other unconverted sinners, they are ignorant of their spiritual condition. They are destitute of the favour of God, strangers to Christ’s righteousness, and are alienated from that Divine life which the Spirit breathes into the souls of them who are saved. They are under the power of sin and moral depravity which reign in the hearts of those who are dead in trespasses and sins. They are subjected to the power of Satan, who worketh in the children of disobedience. Like their unbelieving progenitors, who opposed and crucified the Lord of glory, “They are of their father the devil, and the lusts of their father they will do.” They are also under the power of the things of this present evil world, and their hearts are set on things that perish. They are also employed in fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and are walking in the broad way of rebellion against God’s authority and law. This is the very guilty and miserable condition of every unconverted sinner, whether he is a Jew or a Gentile. In bestowing salvation on Israel, God will bring multitudes of them out of this darkness, into his marvellous light. He will send his word of the law into their hearts, impregnated with the power of the Holy Spirit, and in the exercise of his own grace and mercy to them in Christ, he will give them such discoveries of their sin and misery, as will constrain them to exclaim, like their fathers on the day of Pentecost, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” He will convince them of their inability to deliver themselves from this deplorable condition. By sending the light of the Gospel into their souls, in the power of the Spirit, he will discover to them the only way of salvation through Christ Jesus, and his grace exercised to them in the Redeemer. By his Spirit’s operation on them, he will renew them in the spirit of their minds, and implant in their hearts the principles of saving grace. He will enable them to receive Christ by faith in him as their only Saviour, and to renounce all hopes of salvation in any other way. By this glorious change they shall be united unto Christ’s person, clothed with his righteousness, instated into his covenant, put among his children, sanctified by his Spirit, comforted by his word, and entitled to his salvation. Having begun this good work in them, the Lord their God will
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finish it unto the day of Jesus Christ. He will teach them to live by faith on the Son of God, to receive grace for grace out of his fulness, to mortify their corruptions, to resist the temptations of Satan, to overcome the world, and to perfect holiness in the fear of God. He will admit them to communion with himself in his ordinances, bless them with the comforts of his Holy Spirit, make them zealous for his glory on the earth, lead them safely through death, and at last he will bring them to the heavenly and eternal rest. By these Divine operations, “Israel shall be saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation.”
2. Israel’s salvation will include the Lord’s gathering them together. In their present situation, they are exceedingly scattered. There are few parts of the earth into which they have not entered, and where a part of them have not their abode. Upon them our Lord’s prediction has been circumstantially fulfilled; “They shall be led away captive into all nations.” From this part of their misery they shall be delivered. To them that Divine promise will be accomplished in due time; “He that scattered Israel will gather him and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.” Of this part of Israel’s salvation, the prophet Isaiah speaks, Chap. xi. 11. “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.” This prediction foretells the last and final gathering of that people at the latter day. It will be accomplished on that day, “When the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea,” verse 9. This fixes it for the time I have specified; for to no other period will this description apply. It is also represented as a Divine gathering of them from a second captivity and dispersion. “The Lord shall set his hand the second time to recover the remnant of his people.” These words cannot refer to a second return from Babylon in the days of Ezra; because the characters of this time, as we shall see immediately, prove the contrary.—The places from which they are gathered are very different from the places from whence they came, when they returned from Babylon. Those places extend to Asia, Africa, and Europe, and therefore cannot signify the return of any of the Jews from captivity in the land of Babylon.—This prediction assures us,
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that the outcasts of Israel, as well as the dispersed of Judah, shall then be assembled, and gathered together. The captivity of the ten tribes did not return, when the Jews were liberated from Babylon.—This gathering will be accomplished when the Gentiles shall seek to the root of Jesse, and shall experience his rest to be glorious. This is such a feature of the time, as fixes it, without doubt, in the Gospel dispensation. Nothing has happened, either to Judah or Israel, since that dispensation began, resembling, in the least degree, the fulfilment of this prediction.—The union and love of the two families, re-established in their own land, is another circumstance in this prophetic vision which fixes its realization among the wonders of the latter day. “The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim,” verse 13. In Ezekiel’s prophecy, chap. xxxvii. 21, the same Divine work is mentioned. “Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side.” In this prophecy the children of Israel signify the house of Joseph in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel his fellows, as distinguished from the house of Judah and his companions, verse 16. This gathering must mean the gathering of the latter day. It will not be accomplished until the two nations be joined into one; until they submit to Jesus, the root and offspring of David, as their one king and only shepherd; until they are cleansed from their idols, their detestable things, and their transgressions; until God shall renewedly make with them his everlasting covenant of peace; until he set his sanctuary and tabernacle in the midst of them for evermore; nor until God, in a most solemn manner, shall avouch them to be his people, and they shall avouch him to be their God, verses 22—28. These things will be performed for both Judah and Israel, when God shall gather them. They describe both the time and the nature of that Divine work. They prove that the time for it is not yet come, and that the work itself will be exceedingly glorious. He will first gather many of them to Christ, and to the faith and profession of the Gospel. He will gather them to one another in christian affection and brotherly love. The great trumpet of the everlasting Gospel will be blown in their hearing, and its joyful sound will be applied to their hearts, and then the outcasts, and those who are ready to perish, shall come and worship the Lord,
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and the New Testament David, in the Gospel sanctuary. There will be local and partial gatherings among that people, gatherings in the places where they reside, and of the persons whose hearts the Lord has touched. The number of those gatherings, and of the people who are gathered, shall increase gradually, till they are all gathered to one resting place in their glorious Shiloh.
3. The salvation of all Israel contains their restoration to their own land. Israel at present are disinherited, but God will restore their possessions. I am aware that this is controverted by some very eminent persons. Upon the consideration of it, as a controversy, I will not enter; but I will endeavour to state very briefly, a part of that Scripture testimony which satisfies my own mind, that the seed of Israel shall again possess the land of their fathers.
The first that I shall mention is found in Isaiah xviii. 7, “In that time shall the present be brought unto the Lord of Hosts of a people scattered and peeled, and from a people terrible from their beginning hitherto; a nation meted out and trodden under foot, whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the place of the name of the Lord of Hosts, the mount Zion.” In this verse, a time is mentioned. The context describes it to be a season of extraordinary operations, agitations, and alarm, which will greatly interest mankind. A time when all the inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, are solemnly called to see, or look, when the Lord lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, they are commanded to hear his voice, verse 3. A time when the condition of God’s ancient people will be very low. A season when some nations shall send ambassadors to them to change their situation, and to prepare them for extraordinary employment. It appears to be a time of singular mercies to some, and of judgments to others, corresponding to the period described in Daniel xii. 1. In the verse to which I particularly refer, we have a description of the people to whom the prediction has a peculiar reference. Every particular of that description has a melancholy application to all Israel. The idea under which they are represented is that of a present, or gift, which will be acceptable to God in Christ. Those who will bring them are the Gentiles Churches and nations who will be instrumental in their conversion and return. The Glorious One to whom they shall be brought, as a present, is the Lord of Hosts. And the place to which they shall be carried is the place of the name of the
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Lord of Hosts, the mount Zion. They shall be brought to the holy city Jerusalem, and to the land of promise. The prediction in the xi. chapter of Isaiah, from verse 10th to the end, has been considered already as a proof of the Lord’s gathering Israel and Judah. It proves also their return to their own land. They are to conquer and possess the Philistines, Edom, Moab, and the children of Ammon. This they could not do unless they were put in possession of their own land. Besides, in verse 16, their return is plainly foretold. “And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left from Assyria,” or the Gentile nations, “like as it was unto Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.” As Israel, when they came up out of Egypt, did subdue and possess the land of Canaan; so the remnant of this people, who are left among the Gentiles, when they shall be assembled together, shall conquer and inhabit the land of promise.
Jeremiah’s prediction refers to the same event; chap. xxiii. 5—8. “Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is the name whereby he shall be called, The Lord our righteousness.” Since the name of this righteous branch, and of this King, who shall reign and prosper, is called, The Lord our righteousness, our Lord Jesus Christ must be the person to whom this prediction refers. It is also foretold, “In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely.” At no period since Christ’s crucifixion, when Gospel days began, has this prophecy received any thing like an accomplishment. In the Messiah’s days that are past, Judah and Israel have been scattered among the nations, have been cast out of the Church of God, and have been blasphemers of the Person, and opposers of the Gospel of Christ. Those days of Messiah, in which this prediction will be fulfilled, are yet to come. And when they are come, two things will assuredly take place. The children of Judah and Israel shall no more say, “The Lord liveth that brought them up out of the land of Egypt; but, the Lord liveth that brought up and led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them.” This deliverance shall be so great and glorious, that former deliverances, in some sense, will not be remembered, nor come into their mind. The second thing that shall be done for Israel, in Mes-
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siah’s days, the Prophet expresses in the following words: “And they shall dwell in their own land,” verses 7—8.
The prediction in Ezekiel xxxvi. 8—15, establishes also the same truth. “But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come,” &c. In this prophecy there are several things which fix its fulfilment for the latter days of the Gospel. The parties who shall enjoy this deliverance are emphatically described, “And I will multiply men upon you, All the house of Israel, even all of it.” The prosperity of Israel during the period to which this prophecy refers, verses 9, 10, 11, cannot be applied to them from their return from Babylon till Christ’s incarnation. This application of the prediction is infallibly confirmed from the repeated declarations it contains relative to the continuance of their prosperity. Addressing the mountains, the hills, the rivers, and the vallies of the land of Canaan, the Lord says, “Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men.—Therefore, thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord God. Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord God.” It is impossible to apply this prediction to the Jews’ return from Babylon, because after this time, their land was often deluged with blood, their cities destroyed, their inhabitants slain, and even their temple robbed and profaned, in the wars between the Greek governments of Egypt and Syria, the wars carried on by the Romans in the east, till Canaan itself became a province of that empire, and the wars in which they themselves engaged for their own defence, or for and against some of these contending powers. How is it possible to apply this prophecy to that period, when the house of Israel, for nearly eighteen hundred years, have been driven from their own land, and dispersed among the nations. This prediction must refer to a period of Israel’s restoration to their own land, after which they shall no more go out; and this will be realized at the commencement of the Christian Millennium. There are many other predictions which foretell a return of Israel to their own land, which shall never be followed by their departure out of it, and such a degree of prosperity in it, as has never
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been their lot since their return from Babylon, Isaiah lx. 15—18; lxi. 4—7; lxii. 3, 4. Amos ix. 14, 15. Zech. xiv. 8—11—20, 21. In the prediction, Ezek. xxxvii, which has been already proved to belong to the last days of the Christian dispensation, it is declared, “I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land,” verse 21. Again, it is foretold, “And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt, and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children, for ever; and my servant David shall be their Prince for ever,” verse 25. In the condition of the Jewish nation, after their return from Babylon, there cannot be found the accomplishment of these predictions: This therefore is reserved for a future day. If the dispersion of Israel from their own land belonged to their punishment; their restoration to it pertains to their salvation. And if Jerusalem must be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled; the Jews must again enjoy Jerusalem in prosperity, when those times are consummated.
4. The salvation of all Israel comprehends their possessing their own land to the full extent of the Divine promises, which were made to their fathers, with a proportionate increase of their numbers to inhabit it. They shall not only return to their own land, but they shall possess it, to the full extent of the ancient promise. I shall mention some of those promises which contain the Divine grant of the land to them, and which also describe its boundaries. The first of them is found in Gen. xv. 18: “In that same day the Lord made a covenant with Abraham, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt, unto the great river, the river Euphrates.” From the eastern branch of the Nile, to the river Euphrates. This was their southern and eastern boundaries. Another Divine promise, in which the limits of their land are also fixed, is recorded, Exod. xxiii. 3: “And I will set thy bounds from the Red Sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river.” In this Divine grant, the southern, the eastern, and the western boundaries of their land are distinctly marked—A line drawn from the Red Sea, unto the western banks of the Euphrates, And their western coast was the eastern shores of the Mediterranean sea, where the Philistines dwelt. The Lord afterwards
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said to Israel by Moses, Deut. xi. 25: “Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread shall be yours, from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the uttermost sea, shall your coast be.” In this Divine grant of the land to Israel, their western coast and their eastern border are mentioned again. From the Mediterranean shores, to the banks of the Euphrates. But in this promise, their northern boundaries are clearly defined, in these words, “from the wilderness and Lebanon.” By a line drawn from mount Lebanon eastward, to the Euphrates, and by another drawn from the same mountain to the Mediterranean sea westward, the northern boundary of that land, which God promised to Israel, will be exactly understood. When Joshua succeeded Moses as the leader of the tribes of God, the Lord spake unto him, saying, “My servant Moses is dead, now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even unto the great River, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great Sea, toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast,” Josh. i. 2, 3, 4. When the Lord renewed his promise and description of Israel’s possession to Joshua, he mentions the same boundaries which he had fixed in his grant and delineation of the land to Moses, and nearly in the same words. It also merits our special attention, that, in the vision of Ezekiel, relating to the state of Israel in the last days, the very same limits of the land are still more distinctly mentioned, and the same inheritance is described in all the four sides of it. Ezek. xlvii. 13—21. The Prophet adds, “So shall ye divide this land unto you, according to the tribes of Israel.” Since the days of Joshua, no division of the land has been made. This division, therefore, must be yet to come. From those limits of Israel’s possession, fixed by the Lord of the whole earth, it appears that their coast runs along the banks of the Euphrates on the east, and along the shores of the Mediterranean sea on the west, for several hundred miles. But their northern, and especially their southern lines, were of much greater extent. Impressed with this display of God’s goodness to his people, Moses says in his song, “When the Most High divided to the nations
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their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. For the Lord’s people is his portion, Jacob is the lot of his inheritance,” Deut. xxxii. 8, 9. In no period of Israel’s abode in the land of Canaan, did they actually possess this territory. It was for a short time only, that they had dominion over it. Of David’s conquest of this country, we have an account in chapter viii. of 2 Samuel. In verse 12, the countries which he subdued are enumerated: Syria, Moab, the children of Ammon, the Philistines, Amalek, and Hadadezer, king of Zobah. In verse 14, Edom is mentioned. “And he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom put he garrisons: and all they of Edom became David’s servants.” In verse 3, it is said, that those conquests were won at the time when “he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates.” When Solomon succeeded his father David, we have the following account of his dominion. “And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms, from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt; they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life,” 1 Kings iv. 21. This is the same territory that is described in the Divine grants or promises which have been already mentioned. It has been said, indeed, that God promised Israel the land of Canaan in possession, and the other kingdoms only in dominion. I have great doubts of the truth of this opinion. God makes no such distinction in his promises to Israel. Concerning the inhabitants of these countries, in their utmost extent, God said to Israel, “For I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hands, and thou shalt drive them out before thee,” Exod. xxiii. 31. What land? “From the Red Sea, unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river?” From the Divine grant which is registered in Deut. xi. 23, 24. “Then will the Lord drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves.” What nations? “From the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates, even unto the uttermost sea.” The Divine command given to Israel by Moses, when they were marching through the wilderness, Not to meddle with Edom, not to distress Moab, nor the children of Ammon, was not a revocation of the original grant, but a revelation of Israel’s present duty. The reason for this injunction does not now exist. The Lord had given the
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first of these kingdoms to the posterity of Esau, and the other two kingdoms to the children of Lot; but the names of those nations have long ago perished from the earth, and their offspring have been undistinguishably blended with the seed of men. As their territories, however, were included in the original grant of Israel’s inheritance, there will be a time when their seed shall enjoy them. It is surely most reasonable to believe, that when the Jews return to their own land, the whole of this country will be given to them, not in dominion only, but in actual possession. The promises of God to that people must be fully accomplished, and the Divine grants of this land to them must be completely executed. If they have not been fully realized under the former dispensation, because of Israel’s sin, Judges ii. 1, 2, 3, there will be a time, under the Gospel dispensation, when Israel’s posterity shall possess the whole of that territory. There are some things in the predictions relating to the time when all Israel shall be saved, tending strongly to confirm this sentiment. In the prediction which is recorded in Isaiah, xi. chap. it is declared, verse 14, “But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines, toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together; they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab, and the children of Ammon shall obey them.” The accomplishment of this prediction, belonging, as it does, to the Gospel dispensation, constrains us to believe that the seed of Israel, when they shall return to the Lord, will possess the whole of that land that is contained in the original grants. The land of the Philistines on the west, the land of the children of the east, and the land that was possessed by the three nations who dwelt by the borders of the ancient possession of their fathers, Moab, Edom, and the children of Ammon. This tract of land is fertile, extensive, and placed, as it were, in the midst of the earth. How conveniently is it situated for intercourse with all the nations, and what facilities does it afford to its inhabitants for commerce with all parts of the globe. By the Persian Gulph and the Red Sea, it gives ready communication with the eastern nations. By the Mediterranean, it supplies its inhabitants with easy access to the maritime kingdoms of Europe, to the coasts of Africa, and the most distant parts of the world. And by the Black Sea, and that of Asoph, it enables them to approach to the eastern parts of Europe, and the western kingdoms of Asia. When settled in this land, their num-
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bers shall greatly increase, till they occupy and replenish the whole region that was granted unto them. At that time, the promises which God made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that he would multiply their seed, and make them like the stars of heaven, and even like the dust of the earth for number, will be fulfilled in the most glorious manner. Since the whole of the promised land has never been possessed by the chosen seed, under the Mosaic economy, they shall enjoy it in the latter days of the Gospel, when “all Israel shall be saved,” and when “the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions,” Obadiah v. 17.
5. The establishment of the Christian religion among them, in its purity and power, belongs to Israel’s salvation. The whole of the Apostle’s reasoning, from the 11th to the 32d verse of this chapter, goes to prove their conversion to Christianity, and its establishment among them. They shall enjoy their fulness, they shall be received in again, and they shall be again graffed into their own olive tree. Their blindness shall be removed when the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in; they shall obtain salvation; the Deliverer shall turn away ungodliness from them; through God’s covenant with them their sins shall be taken away; and they are beloved for the Fathers’ sakes. He also declares that they shall obtain mercy through the mercy of the Gentiles; and that God, who had concluded them all in unbelief, would have mercy on them all. The seed of Israel, therefore, must be brought to embrace, to profess, and to live under the influence of the Christian religion. Of this important truth, with the Scripture evidence of which we should be acquainted, there are abundant proofs, in the writings of the Old Testament. When God shall raise up to David, a righteous Branch, when this King shall reign and prosper, and in the days of him whose name is Jehovah our righteousness, Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely, Jer. xxiii. 5, 6. This prediction refers to the times of the Gospel, for they are the Saviour’s days, the period that follows his tabernacling among men. Since these days began, this salvation and safe dwelling have never been enjoyed by Israel or Judah. There must, on that account, be a season yet to come when this promise will be fulfilled to them. This salvation they cannot possess without the knowledge of him who is the Lord their righteousness, nor without a saving faith in him who is the end of the law for righteousness unto every one that be-
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lieveth. This conclusion, therefore, is most certain, That this promise may be fulfilled to Israel and Judah, the Christian religion must be established among them. In Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24, there are promises which are of the same nature, which are made to the same objects, and which shall be fulfilled at the same time. This shepherd signifies the Lord Jesus, who was of the seed of David according to the flesh. He shall feed them, he shall be their Prince, for the government shall be on his shoulders, and the Lord shall be their God. As this promise refers to a time posterior to the humiliation of Jesus, and as it has not yet been fulfilled to the ancient people, the time of the promise, though it is drawing near, has not as yet fully come. Their faith in Christ, and their subjection to his religion, being essentially necessary to their obtaining the blessings of this promise; they shall in due time bow to the sceptre, submit to the righteousness, and wait for the law of our Redeemer. The prediction of the same Prophet, at the end of his xxxviith Chapter, verses 26, 27. contains similar promises to that people. Has God’s everlasting covenant of peace been with them since their dispersion among the nations? Has he since that time placed them in their own land, and multiplied them? Has his sanctuary been in the midst of them, or his tabernacle with them for evermore? Has God been their God, or have they been his people, since they rejected the Gospel and crucified Christ, and since God made them wanderers among the nations? The reverse of all this has been, since that time, their fearful punishment. But when the time of their deliverance shall come, they will enjoy all these blessings, and God will set up his Gospel sanctuary, and his spiritual tabernacle in the midst of them for evermore. Predictions of this kind being very numerous, it is as difficult as it is unnecessary to quote them all. The prophecy in Hosea iii. 5. shall only be mentioned; “Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and shall fear the Lord and his goodness, in the latter days.” The preceding verse foretells a most dismal desolation, which in its fullest sense, can only be applied to the present dispersion of that people. This verse declares what shall be the employment of Israel when those days are ended. Their returning and seeking the Lord, and Christ, the glorious Son of David, and their fearing the Lord and his goodness, indicate plainly their acceptance and profession of the
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Christian religion. The time of the accomplishment of this promise, “the latter days,” demonstrates clearly that it will take place under the Gospel, and toward the end of that dispensation.
6. Israel’s independent political existence among the nations must also be contained in this salvation, because this power among them has long been completely dissolved. The necessity of this appears from the nature of their situation. Since they shall be assembled together, since they will be brought to their own land, and since they shall possess it to its utmost extent, they must be an independent, and even a powerful nation on the earth. This is also necessary from the ordinances of God. He has instituted the ordinance of civil government among men, as well as he has appointed ecclesiastic rule in the Church. His ancient people, therefore, after their restoration, must enjoy the benefits arising from each of those Divine institutions. Since God has given all things into the hand of the Mediator; made him Head over all things to his Church, and has promised that all dominion shall serve and obey him, their rulers, as well as the rulers of every other nation, shall become, in an eminent degree, nursing fathers to his Church. They shall no more be ruled with force and cruelty; the leaders of this people shall no more cause them to err, nor shall they any more deprive them of any natural rights or civil privileges, to which, by the Divine law, they are entitled. In the predictions which relate to Israel at this blessed period, there are abundant proofs, that they shall enjoy this dignity and happiness. In Jeremiah’s prophecy, chap. xxxi. verse 23, it is said, “Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, As yet they shall use this speech in the land of Judah, and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity, The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.” These words have a respect to Israel’s privileges under the Gospel dispensation, because they are immediately connected with a prediction concerning the incarnation, in the preceding verse, “For the Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall compass a man.” Israel shall be made “an habitation of justice, and a mountain of holiness,” when they shall know, embrace, and obey God manifested in the flesh. At their final restoration, Israel will become an habitation of justice, in the perfection of their civil institutions and administrations; and a mountain of holiness, in the purity of their doctrine, worship, and government as a Church.
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Isaiah’s prediction, Chap. lx. 17, 18—21. proves the same truth. “I also will make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness. Violence shall be no more heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. Thy people also shall be all righteous, they shall inherit the land for ever.” In these words, God speaks of Israel’s purity and prosperity, in their civil, as well as in their ecclesiastical capacity, and it is impossible to see any accomplishment of this prophecy to them, since their return from Babylon to the present time. How often has their land, since that era, been filled with violence, wasting and destruction; and they are not yet in possession of it. In Ezek. xxxvii. 22, Israel is also spoken of as a nation under the government of civil rulers. In the nine chapters which conclude this prophecy, Ezekiel records a vision which describes the blessedness of Israel in the millennial period. In that vision the conduct, the worship and the portion of their Prince, as well as the duties and provision of their Priests, and the inheritance and prosperity of the people, are Divinely appointed. From these considerations, it clearly appears that God’s Israel shall yet enjoy an independent political existence among the nations; and this is an additional proof of their return to their own land.
7. A most happy friendship and intercourse with the nations of the earth, are also included in Israel’s salvation. This friendship and intercourse will extend to their civil transactions, their religious concerns, the accommodation of strangers, and an interchange of Missionary labours. This friendly intercourse will reach to their civil transactions with the nations. “In that day shall there be an high way out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria; and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. In that day Israel shall be the third with Egypt, and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land. Whom the Lord of Hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of mine hands, and Israel mine inheritance.” The two great nations which bordered on Israel’s possession, Egypt in Africa on the south west, and Assyria in Asia on the north east, are mentioned in this prophecy. These nations shall then be at perfect peace, and lasting friendship with one another. Israel shall be the third with them, and a blessing unto both. The grand cause of all this concord, is the influence of the
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Christian religion on them all; because at that delightful season, Egypt shall be the Lord’s people, Assyria the work of his hands, and Israel will be his inheritance.—There shall also exist between Israel and the other nations the most cordial religious intercourse. This is foretold in Zech. viii. 20, 21, 22. “Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, it shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities; And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of Hosts; I will go also, yea, many people, and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of Hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.” These verses certainly contain an unfulfilled prediction; a prediction which shall be accomplished when all Israel shall be saved, and which will constitute their land the religious Mart of the nations.—This mutual intercourse betwixt Israel and the nations, will also include their friendly accommodation of strangers. The laws of no nation enjoined such hospitality to strangers as those which God gave to his ancient people, Exod. xii. 48, 49. But in the millennial season this shall be greatly enlarged. This law of the God of Israel is written and recorded in Ezek. xxvii [xlvii?]. 22, 23. I shall quote only the last of these verses. “And it shall come to pass, that in what tribe the stranger sojourneth, there shall ye give him his inheritance, saith the Lord God.”—There shall be a blessed intercourse also betwixt them in Missionary labours for the conversion, edification and the establishment of the nations, in the Christian religion. Accordingly, it was said to Daniel, Chap. xii. 4. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the Book, even to the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” To the exertions of Jewish messengers of Gospel tidings, this prophecy must not be confined; but it must be extended to the labours of those of the Gentile churches; for it must begin with them, and by them must be chiefly carried on. These words predict the number, the activity, the harmony and the success of those messengers of the Churches, in promoting the glory of Christ, and the salvation of men, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. And this solemn scene has already commenced.
8. This salvation of all Israel, shall continue till the end of time. The Divine promises to Israel in the millennium, warrant us to entertain this opinion. “Thy sun shall no more go down, neither
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shall thy moon withdraw itself; for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people shall be all righteous, they shall inherit the land for ever,” Isa. lx. 20, 21. And again, “Thou shalt no more be termed, Forsaken, neither shall thy land any more be termed, Desolate; but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married.” Chap. lxii. 4. Israel’s sun went down, and his moon withdrew; he was forsaken, and his land was made desolate in the Babylonish captivity. But their return from that land could not be an accomplishment of these promises, because all those evils have again befallen them, and they are still remaining upon them, for nearly 1800 years. And, therefore, the time of their fulfilment is yet to come, and when it shall arrive, Israel’s blessedness, spiritual and temporal, shall continue till the end of the world. The same consolatory doctrine concerning Israel’s felicity, is confirmed by two predictions of the Prophet Ezekiel. The former of these is contained in Chap. xxxvii. 25—28. “And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their children, for ever, and my servant David shall be their Prince for ever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.” The latter of these predictions is recorded as the conclusion of Ezekiel’s prophecy, concerning Gog and Magog. “Then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, who caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen; but I have gathered them into their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them; for I have poured out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.” Chap. xxxix. 28, 29. From these predictions we are both authorised and required to believe, that there shall be a season when Israel shall dwell in the promised land for ever, or to the end of time; when God will cause his sanctuary to be in the midst of them for evermore; and when he will no more hide his face from them. Deprived of all these privileges, and rendered miserable by the want of them, they have now
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existed for many ages in a most deplorable state. In due time however, the vision shall speak, and not lie; because it will come, it will not tarry. In delivering these promises to millennial Israel, God does not speak to them as he spake to their fathers. This is the form in which he usually addressed them, “If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land; but if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it,” Isa. i. 19, 20. God having purposed to preserve Israel in their integrity, during the millennium, his promises to them, referring to that period, run in a most gracious and absolute style, so that no unworthiness in them, nor opposition from others shall be able to prevent, or even to retard, their accomplishment. It cannot be said with any propriety, that the prophecy, Rev. xx. 7—10, militates against this view of the duration of Israel’s purity and happiness in the last days. In the vision concerning the little season, there is nothing which indicates that the Church will then be overcome. It only imports that apostasy from the faith and profession of the Gospel, through Satan’s influence, will be very prevalent, in some parts of the world; that these apostates will entertain a deadly hatred at the Church; and that they, and all those whom Satan has deceived, will make vigorous exertions to destroy the camp of the saints, and the holy city. But the prediction assures us, that this will terminate, not in the ruin of the Church, but in the sudden and entire destruction of her enemies; because fire will come down from God out of heaven and devour them. Notwithstanding the gloomy period of “the little season,” it is perfectly evident from these verses, that God’s promises concerning the holiness and welfare of the Church, both of the Jews and the Gentiles, will be fulfilled, until the season of the vision that follows in the next verse shall arrive; “And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God.”
This Discourse must now be concluded with a few inferences.
1. In the last days, the Lord will do great and glorious things for his ancient people. He will destroy their enemies, and will make his Israel glorious in the earth; “Behold, at that time, I will undo all that afflict thee, and I will save her that halteth, and gather
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her that is driven out; and I will get them praise and fame in every land where they have been put to shame. At that time I will bring you again, even in the time that I gather you; for I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord,” Zeph. iii. 19, 20. The various places to which they were driven out, and from which they will be gathered, and the greatness of that renown which the Jews shall obtain, and that before all the nations of the earth, forbid us to look for a full accomplishment of this prophecy, to their return from Babylon. Besides, God’s operations, by which this deliverance will be introduced, apply more properly to John’s vision of the Armageddon war, than to any thing that happened when the Jews were liberated from Chaldea. “Therefore, wait ye upon me, saith the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy. For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent,” verses 8, 9. The Lord will bestow on them all the parts of his promised salvation. Multitudes of them will believe in Christ unto the saving of their souls. They shall be gathered from their dispersion, called home to their own land, and put in possession of their goodly inheritance. Recovered from their unchurched state, and all its mournful effects; they shall yet be a people near unto God, and shall enjoy the blessings which flow from that relation to him. Raised to the rank of an independent nation, and to the enjoyment of peace and friendship with the kingdoms around them, they shall enjoy outward blessings, and shall contribute to the temporal comfort of others. All this shall continue to the end; for he will never cast them off, after the name of the city shall be, “The Lord is there.”
2. This subject furnishes comfort to those who mourn for the past and present situation of the tribes of God. To all men who can appreciate spiritual misery, this will be the language of their low condition, “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? Behold, and see, if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord has afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger,” Lam. i. 12. To all such mourners, whether Jews or Gen-
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tiles, this subject suggests consolation from the best sources, and of the purest kind. While it is the duty of christians to take up a wailing, and to indulge in mourning for Israel’s woes, they must not sorrow as them who have no hope. The Lord hath yet spoken good concerning Israel. His promise to them is still left on record; “I have seen his ways and will heal him; I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him, and to his mourners,” Isa. lvii. 18. The Lord will heal their souls by applying to them the word, the Spirit, the blood, and the grace of their Redeemer. He will heal their religious and their political condition as we have seen. He will heal their land. How deplorable is its present state? and how miserable are its inhabitants? But when they shall return to the Lord, the mountains, the hills, and the vallies of the land “shall shoot forth their branches, and yield their fruit unto his people of Israel.” He will lead them also; lead them to Christ as their only refuge, and to the promised land as their proper inheritance. O christians, let your faith and hope be fixed on the Divine promises relative to Israel’s salvation; your faith in believing their truth, and your hope by expecting their accomplishment. The exercise of faith and hope will qualify you for pouring out your hearts in prayer to God, and for zealously employing other means for obtaining Israel’s deliverance. To all who are thus exercised, that most comfortable declaration shall be fulfilled, “Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her; rejoice for joy with her all ye that mourn for her,” Isa. lxvi. 10.
3. What shall be the blessedness of the Gentile nations, when all Israel shall be saved! Egypt will be the Lord’s people, and Assyria the work of his hands, when Israel shall again become the Lord’s inheritance. When all Israel shall be saved, the fulness of the Gentiles shall be come in. Egypt and Assyria represent the Gentile nations, and especially the heathenish and mahometan countries of Asia and Africa, the two quarters of the globe in which these two nations are situated. Every one of those countries, distant, extensive, blind and wicked as they are, shall hear the joyful sound, and will behold the Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world. The last days will be that portion of time in which the displays of Divine grace in Christ to the children of men by the Gospel, will not be confined either to the Jews, or to the Gentiles; but these will be common to both. Under the Mosaic dispensation, the know-
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ledge of God, by supernatural revelation, was enjoyed exclusively by Israel’s seed; and under the Christian economy it has been hitherto chiefly confined to the Gentile nations. These two dispensations will perhaps be found nearly of equal duration. But when the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, the glorious Gospel will be the blessed enjoyment of all nations. “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God, as the waters cover the sea; And the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ.” In the enjoyment of privileges and blessings from God, every land shall then resemble the Christian Church among the Jews; for to every one of them shall be given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. With what joyful anticipations should the christians of the present day look forward, by faith in the promise, to that happy season! With what satisfaction should they contemplate the present appearances of its approach: And how earnestly should they cry at the mercy-seat, that the Lord may hasten it!
4. The impropriety of denying Israel’s return to their own land, is evident from this subject. The ancient predictions appear to confirm our belief of it. By the prophecies of Christ himself, and by the doctrine of the Apostle, in our context, this opinion is also supported. The thing itself seems highly expedient. As he has preserved them hitherto, in a state of separation from all people, it is reasonable to suppose that he will continue them in that condition to the end. His glory will be more conspicuously displayed in their conversion, when it is followed up with their restoration to their fathers’ inheritance, and perfected by their remaining in it till time shall be no more. The glory of our Divine Lord and Saviour, who disposes of his flock in different folds, will also be greatly advanced, by those dispensations of mercy to the house of Israel. In New Testament revelation, he has received those significant characters, “A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel,” Luke ii. 32. Oh, in how small a degree, and for how short a time, has Christ, since his incarnation, been the glory of his people Israel. Since Christ tabernacled among men, he has indeed been a light to lighten the Gentiles. As the sun of righteousness, he has arisen on them with healing in his wings; and millions of Gentile believers have, by his influence, gone forth, and grown up in meetness, for glory, like calves in the stall. He has visited them, as the day
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spring from on high, to guide their feet into the way of present and everlasting peace. But at the latter day, his light will be more bright and extensively diffused over those nations; for then the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days. But the principal operations of Jesus, as the glory of his people Israel, are yet to be performed, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound. As God’s goodness to the Gentiles under the Mosaic economy, consisted chiefly in his promises concerning their calling and salvation; so his purposes of grace toward Israel, under the foregoing part of the evangelical dispensation, have been principally manifested by predictions relative to their restoration, and to their conversion to the faith of the Gospel. Since God’s promises to the Gentiles have been verified, his predictions concerning Israel will also be realized. By conveying to their understandings the saving knowledge of himself, by converting them to his religion, by conducting them before all nations to their own land, by interesting multitudes in his everlasting salvation, and by his gracious presence with them to the end, our Lord Jesus Christ will be, through many ages, the glory of his people Israel. The extraordinary effusion of the Spirit on all Israel, connected with their conversion and restoration, establishes the truth of their return to Canaan in the latter day. “For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean, from all your filthiness, and from all your idols will I cleanse you; A new heart also will I give you, and a new Spirit will I put within you, and I will take the stoney heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them: And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God,” Ezek. xxxvi. 24, 25. To this we may add the words of the same Prophet, chap. xxxix. 29, “Neither will I hide my face any more from them; for I have poured out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.” The Jews were not in all countries when they returned from Babylon; but they shall be found in all places of the earth when this prophecy will be accomplished. There were not any very remarkable out-
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pourings of the Spirit on the captives who returned from Babylon; neither did they, at that time, attain any extraordinary degrees of personal, ecclesiastic, or national purity and prosperity. The messages which were delivered to them, by the Prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who laboured among them at their return from Babylon, and by the Prophet Malachi, who was sent to them after they were re-established in their own land, clearly demonstrate that this was not the time that those predictions were fulfilled. Besides, how often and how grievously has God hid his face from them, since they were liberated from Babylon! But when the Lord Jesus will, in his gracious operations, be the glory of his people Israel, he will pour out his Spirit upon them in such a copious manner, as will make them truly religious, eminently holy, and exceeding prosperous in their own land. The number of predictions concerning Israel’s return, and many of the circumstances which they contain, render it impossible that they could receive their accomplishment when the Jews came from Babylon, and constrain us to look for a time to come, when Israel’s God will finally turn again their present captivity, as streams in the south, when those who now sow in tears shall reap in joy.
5. From this subject, the sinfulness of indifference about the conversion and restoration of all Israel is very evident. Has God said, in revealing his will to the Gentile Churches, “And so all Israel shall be saved;” and shall we be unconcerned about their enjoyment of this salvation? Has he declared that the Deliverer shall come out of Sion, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob; and shall we neither desire nor pray for his coming? Has he spoken to us of his covenant unto his ancient people for taking away their sins; and shall we be careless about the Divine execution of this covenant for redeeming Israel from all his iniquities? Has God plainly told us, that it is by the mercy of the Gentiles, that Israel shall obtain mercy; and shall we neither endeavour to apply our mercy to them, nor cry to the Lord for the success of this application, that they also may obtain mercy? If we do so, we will prove ourselves to be indifferent to the accomplishment of God’s gracious promises, to the salvation of immortal souls, to the temporal and spiritual happiness of all Israel, and to the prosperity and comfort of the Gentile Churches. Oh, how criminal is this indifferency in the sight of God, and how inhuman and unchristian is it in the view of
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men! When God shall confer this salvation on all Israel, He will display his glory by fulfilling his merciful promises. He will enlighten, justify, and save very many precious and immortal souls. He will promote the blessedness of the souls and bodies of Jacob’s seed. And he will bestow on the Gentile Churches those spiritual communications, which will be to them like riches from poverty, like life from the dead. No christian, in the exercise of grace, can feel indifferent to these things. Let none excuse themselves by saying, We are making no opposition. Opposition is the work of Satan, and of those who are totally under his power. But the want of concern and exertion is also a fruit of this enemy’s temptations. Our Saviour has said, “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad,” Mat. xii. 30. The inhabitants of Meroz were not cursed, because they embodied themselves with Israel’s foes; but “because they came not to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty,” Judg. v. 23. Neutrality in this cause will assuredly expose us to the Divine displeasure, and in one way or another, its effects will overtake us. Since there is a promise left to Israel of entering into the Gospel rest, let us labour that they enter into it speedily, and may no longer come short of it by continuing in their unbelief.
6. This subject directs our attention to the duty of the children of Israel. In the Old Testament Scriptures, the conversion of the Gentiles was foretold; and when the time came, they repented and believed the Gospel. In the New Testament Scriptures, the salvation of all Israel is predicted; and when the season arrives, they also shall seek the Lord their God, and the New Testament David their King. The present times possess many signs which indicate the near approach of that period, when the Deliverer will come out of Sion to turn away ungodliness from Jacob. The attention that is now given to the house of Israel, the numerous means that are now employed, almost in every place where they sojourn, for their illumination and conversion, the reception which the Jews give to Christ’s messengers, the use which they make of the New Testament and evangelical tracts, the success of those means in converting to the christian faith a goodly number of them, and the zeal and exertions of some of the converts for the salvation of their brethren, proclaim, with a loud voice, that God is about to arise and to have mercy upon Sion, for the time to favour her, yea the set time is
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come. In such a crisis as this, there are many things which, in a peculiar respect, become the indispensable duty of the seed of Jacob. It is their duty to search the Old Testament Scriptures, that they may know the nature and excellence of all the parts of that salvation, which God hath promised to them: To search the New Testament, that they may understand the work of Christ, and the doctrines and ordinances of the Gospel: To compare the predictions of the Prophets concerning the Messiah, with the fulfilment of them in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: To endeavour to divest themselves of all contracted prejudices against the christian religion; And to pray earnestly for God’s Holy Spirit to lead them to the land of uprightness. It is also incumbent on them to consider the exact and circumstantial accomplishment of New Testament predictions, both on themselves and others. In the destruction of their city and temple, in the slaughter of the inhabitants of the land, in the dispersion of those who escaped the sword, and in the long continuance of Divine judgments upon them, how remarkably have Christ’s prophecies been fulfilled on the Jews! In the rise, the prevalence, and duration of the antichristian system of error, persecution, and idolatry, the visions of John, with equal precision, have been completely realized. It is the duty of Israel to consider, that, as the truth of the Old Testament is confirmed by the fulfilment of those predictions which it contains, so the Divine inspiration of the New Testament is ratified by the same incontestible evidence. It is also their duty to regard, with careful attention, the instructions of Christ’s messengers, to meditate closely upon the things they hear, to converse affectionately with one another about them, to beware of smothering their convictions, and to follow, in their belief and conduct, wherever the Lord, by his word and Spirit, may guide them. It is incumbent on them seriously to ponder the awful state in which they and their forefathers have been placed for so many ages, the predictions of God’s word, concerning it, the procuring causes of their misery, and the only way of obtaining deliverance. Like all other guilty creatures, they should be earnestly concerned for the salvation of their souls, the pardon of their sins, the acceptance of their persons with God, the renovation of their natures, the sanctification of their life, the escaping the perdition of ungodly men, and the obtaining of grace and glory. Oh, how applicable to them, as well as to others, is the exhortation of Haggai, “Consider your
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ways.” To them Ezekiel’s call may be properly addressed, “Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” When they shall be enabled to obey this exhortation, and to comply with this call, by believing in Christ, their Messiah, the invitation of Isaiah will be fulfilled on them; “Arise shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.”
7. When we have been considering the salvation of Israel, it is necessary for us to attend to our own salvation. By his Apostles, Jesus, in the first place, sent the word of this salvation to the Jews. “Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God; to you is the word of this salvation sent,” Acts xiii. 26. On the next sabbath-day, when almost the whole city of Antioch in Pisidia, came together to hear the word of God, and when the Jews spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming; Paul and Barnabas then said, “It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you; but seeing you put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo! we turn to the Gentiles; for so the Lord hath commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation to the ends of the earth,” verses 46, 47. The Gentiles having cordially embraced the Gospel, its effects among them were conspicuous, and its publication was extensive, verses 48, 49. On a very solemn occasion, the Apostle Paul informed a company of Jews of the same things; “Be it known, therefore, unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it,” Acts xxviii. 28. In these portions of Scripture, our privilege and duty are set before us. We and our forefathers, and many other parts of the Gentile world, have long enjoyed the Gospel of our salvation. To us has the word of this salvation been sent. With us it is still continued. This privilege is unspeakably great. Oh, consider its value and importance. Our duty is represented in these verses, by a christian example, and a Divine promise. The Gentiles in Antioch were glad, they glorified the word of the Lord, and they believed. We are bound by the authority of God to imitate their example. The good tidings of the Gospel, revealing to us salvation through Christ Jesus, should put more gladness into our hearts than is enjoyed by those whose worldly substance is increased. Our duty is also stated in a Divine promise.
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Concerning the Gentiles God has said, “And they shall hear it.” Contrasted with the blindness and obduracy which then fell down upon the Jews, this promise to the Gentiles must import that many of them should “see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and should be converted, and God should heal them,” verse 27. It is our duty to exercise a most earnest concern, that this promise, in all the extent of its meaning, may be fulfilled on us. This is the privilege of all those who are saved. It has already been accomplished to multitudes of Gentile sinners; and it will yet be realized by many more of our kindred race. Has it been fulfilled unto me? should be the inquiry of every hearer of the Gospel. Has God, by his word and Spirit, opened your eyes to see, unstopped your ears to hear, and renewed your hearts to understand the Gospel method of salvation, through the righteousness of Christ, received by faith alone? As perishing sinners, Christ and the blessings of his salvation are freely offered to you; the Divine command requires that you look unto him and be saved; and the invitations of mercy are sounding in your ears, “Come unto me all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Accept of this offer, obey this command, and comply with this invitation, by receiving Christ Jesus the Lord, and by daily walking in him. Be assured, that it will be more tolerable, in the day of judgment, for the barbarous heathen, and the unbelieving Jew, than for those who neglect this great salvation. Under this impression, think seriously: by using the means of grace, labour diligently, and cry mightily at the throne of grace, that God, for Christ’s sake, may bless you with the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost; may justify you freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; may put you among his children; may sanctify you in spirit, and soul, and body; and may enable you, all the days of your life, to perfect holiness in the fear of God. In this way you shall be made partakers of that common and everlasting salvation, which is prepared for all Israel, and for the fulness of the Gentiles at the latter day, and shall be admitted to sing that triumphant song, with them and others, in the regions of endless glory; “Salvation to our God, who sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb, for ever and ever.”