Page:An Exposition of the Old and New Testament (1828) vol 6.djvu/48

42 and earth, and the sea, the upper and lower world, and all the creatures that are in both." Thus we christians distinguish ourselves from the heathen, that, while they worship gods which they have made, we are worshipping the God that made us and all the world. And it is very proper to begin our prayers, as well as our creed, with the acknowledgment of this, that God is the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. Though the apostles were at this time full of the mystery of the world's redemption, yet they do not forget or overlook the history of the world's creation; for the christian religion was intended to confirm and improve, not to eclipse or justle out, the truths and dictates of natural religion. It is a great encouragement to God's servants, both in doing work, and suffering work, that they serve the God that made all things, and therefore has the disposal of their times, and all events concerning them, and is able to strengthen them under all their difficulties. And if we give him the glory of this, we may take the comfort of it.

2. Their reconciling themselves to the present dispensations of Providence, by reflecting upon those scriptures in the Old Testament which foretold that the kingdom of the Messiah would meet with such opposition as this at the first setting of it up in the world, v. 25, 26. God, who made heaven and earth, cannot meet with any [effectual] opposition to his designs, since none dare [at least, can prevailingly] dispute or contest with him. Yea, thus it was written, Thus he spake by the mouth, thus he wrote by the pen, of his servant David, who, as appears by this, was the penman of the second psalm, and therefore, most probably, of the first, and other psalms that are not ascribed to any other, though they have not his name in the title. Let it not therefore be a surprise to them, or any discouragement to any in embracing their doctrine, for the scripture must be fulfilled. It was foretold, Ps. 2. 1, 2. (1.) That the heathen would rage at Christ and his kingdom, and be angry at the attempts to set it up, because that would be the pulling down of the gods of the heathen, and giving check to the wickedness of the heathen. (2.) That the people would imagine all the things that could be against it, to silence the teachers of it, to discountenance the subjects of it, and to crush all the interests of it, If they prove vain things in the issue, no thanks to them who imagined them. (3.) That the kings of the earth, particularly, would stand up in opposition to the kingdom of Christ, as if they were jealous (though there is no occasion for their being so) that it would interfere with their powers, and intrench upon their prerogatives. The kings of the earth, that are most favoured and honoured by Divine Providence, and should do most for God, are strangers and enemies to divine grace, and do most against God. (4.) That the rulers would gather together against God and Christ; not only monarchs, that have the power in their single persons, but there where the power is in many rulers, councils, and senates, they gather together, to consult and decree against the Lord, and against his Christ—against both natural and revealed religion. What is done against Christ, God takes as done against himself. Christianity was not only destitute of the advantage of the countenance and support of kings and rulers, (it had neither their power nor their purses,) but it was opposed and fought against by them, and they combined to run it down, and yet it made its way.

3. Their representation of the present accomplishment of those predictions in the enmity and malice of the rulers against Christ, What was foretold we see fulfilled, v. 27, 28. It is of a truth, it is certainly so, it is too plain to be denied, and in it appears the truth of the prediction, that Herod and Pilate, the two Roman governors, with the Gentiles, (the Roman soldiers under their command,) and with the people of Israel, (the rulers of the Jews and the mob that is under their influence,) were gathered together in a confederacy against the Holy Child Jesus whom thou hast anointed. Some copies add another circumstance, ἐν τῇ πόλει ταύτῇ—in this thy holy city, where, above any place, he should have been welcomed. But herein they do that which thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. See here, (1.) The wise and holy designs God had concerning Christ. He is here called the Child Jesus, as he was called (Luke 2. 27, 43.) in his infancy, to intimate that even in his exalted state he is not ashamed of his condescensions for us, and that he continues meek and lowly in heart. In the height of his glory he is the Lamb of God, and the Child Jesus. But he is the Holy Child Jesus, (so he was called, Luke 1. 35. that Holy Thing,) and thy holy Child; the word signifies both a son and a servant, πᾶιδα σου; he was the Son of God; and yet in the work of redemption he acted as his Father's Servant, (Isa. 42. 1.) My Servant whom I uphold. It was he whom God anointed, both qualified for the undertaking, and called to it; and thence he was called the Lord's Christ, v. 26. And this comes in as a reason why they set themselves with so much rage and violence against him, because God had anointed him, and they were resolved not to resign, much less to submit to him. David was envied by Saul, because he was the Lord's anointed. And the Philistines came up to seek David when they heard he was anointed, 2 Sam. 5. 17. Now the God that anointed Christ, determined what should be done to him, pursuant to that anointing; he was anointed to be a Saviour, and therefore it was determined he should be a Sacrifice, to make atonement for sin; he must die therefore, he must be slain, yet not by his own hands; therefore God wisely determined before by what hands it should be done, it must be by the hands of those who will treat him as a criminal and malefactor, and therefore it cannot be done by the hands either of angels or good men; he must therefore be delivered into the hands of sinners, as Job was, ch. 16. 11. And as David was delivered to Shimei to be made a curse; (2 Sam. 16. 11.) ''The Lord has bidden him. God's hand and his counsel determined it, his will, and his wisdom''. God's hand, which properly denotes his executive power, is here put for his purpose and decree, because with him saying and doing are not two things, as they are with us. His hand and his counsel always agree; for whatsoever the Lord pleased that did he. Dr. Hammond makes this phrase of God's hand determining it, to be an allusion to the High-Priest's casting lots upon the two goats on the day of atonement, (Lev. 16. 8.) in which he lifted up the hand that he happened to have the lot for the Lord in, and that goat on which it fell was immediately sacrificed; and the disposal of this lot was from the Lord, Prov. 16. 33. Thus God's hand determined what should be done, that Christ should be the Sacrifice slain. Or, (if I may offer a conjecture,) when God's hand is here said to determine, it may be meant, not of God's acting hand, but his writing hand, as, (Job 13. 26.) Thou writest bitter things against us; and God's decree is said to be that which is written in the scriptures of truth, (Dan. 10. 31.) and in the volume of the book it was written of Christ, Ps. 40. 7. It was God's hand that wrote it, his hand according to his counsel. The commission was given under his hand. (2.) The wicked and unholy instruments that were employed in the executing of this design, though they meant not so, neither did their hearts think so. Herod and Pilate, Gentiles and Jews, who had been at variance with each other, united against Christ. And God's serving his own purposes by what they