46 SECT. vi. Luke Reflections on the birth of John the Baptist. about them: and all of Judea. And a religious awful kind of dread fell, not 65 And fear came only on those that were present, but on all that on all that dwelt round dwelt near them: and all these things, in a very these sayings were 1. 65. particular detail of circumstances, were publish- noised abroad throughed, and became the great topic of conversation out all the hill-country 66 over the whole hill-country of Judea. And all 66 And all they that wise and pious persons that heard [them] laid had heard them, laid them up carefully in their hearts, as matters them up in their hearts, saying, What manner highly worthy their future consideration, saying, of child shall this be? What kind of a child will this be, who is ushered And the hand of the into the world in so extraordinary a way? And Lord was with him. their expectations were farther raised by observing that, as he grew up, the hand of the Lord was signally with him; and, through the divine blessing, he appeared not only a healthful and thriving, but likewise, on other and higher accounts, a very hopeful child. IMPROVEMENT. Ver. So sure are the promises of God, and so certainly will the full 57 accomplishment of them another day shame our suspicious unbe lieving hearts, and awaken the tongues of his servants to songs of 58 praise! Happy the souls who, by a lively faith in them, are anticipating that blessed day, and whose minds, kept in tune by these pleasing views, are opening themselves to the most tender sympathy with others, and, like the kindred of this pious pair, are making the religious joys of others their own; so sharing, rather than envying the superior favours bestowed upon them! 65,66 Let us learn, with them, wisely to observe what God is doing around us and to lay up remarkable occurrences in our hearts: that, by comparing one step of divine conduct with another, we may the better understand the loving kindness of the Lord, and be engaged to act with more regular obedience in a holy subserviency to his gracious purposes. 66 When, like good Zacharias and Elizabeth, we have the pleasure to see our infant offspring growing up in safety and chearfulness, with healthy constitutions of body and towardly dispositions of mind too, let us ascribe it to the hand of the Lord, which is upon them for good. Let us remember that we are at best but the instruments of the divine care and favour to them; and that our families would soon become scenes of desolation, did not God watch over them in a thousand circumstances of danger and distress, which no prudence of ours could have foreseen, and which no care of ours could have been able to provide against, SECT. Zacharias breaks out into a song of praise. 47 SECT. VII. Zacharias, on the birth of his son, breaks out into a sublime anthem of praise. Luke I. 67, to the end. Luke I. 67. vii. NOW John being born, as we have before SECT. a "Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, be-68 cause he hath now owned the relation in so signal a manner; for he hath graciously looked down upon his people in their distress, and wrought out an illustrious and complete redemption for them: And he hath raised up for 69 even an honourable us a horn of salvation, and powerful Saviour, who is already conceived, and will quickly be born, according to our long expectation, in the family of his servant David: As he hath spoken by the 70 inspiration of his Spirit, and given frequent intimations to us by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been from the beginning of time.. It now appears that none of those 71 predictions are forgotten by him, since he is preparing for us such a glorious deliverance that we may thus obtain salvation from the power of the most formidable of our enemies, and may at length be rescued, by his redeeming grace, from the hand of all that hate us: And this gracious messenger, hath God now sent, that he may faithfully perform the mercy 72 which * A horn of salvation.] As a horn is often used, for the most obvious reasons, to express strength and dignity, it being the ornament and defence of the creature that wears it; so it is sometimes used in the Old Testament with a peculiar reference to the Messiah. Compare Psalm exxxii. 17. xxxix. 24. 1 Sam. ii. 10. and 2 Sam. xxii. 3. b From the beginning of time.] It cannot certainly be inferred from hence, as some have argued, that there was from the beginning of the world a series of prophets, or that every individual prophet spoke of the Messiah, which can never be proved D 2 without doing great violence to the re- c Be rescued by his redeeming grace a Perform 48 The song of Zacharias. SECT. which he [promised] to our fathers, the bless- fathers, and to rememed effects of which extend also to them; and ber his holy covenant: by him shall God appear to be mindful of his 1.72. holy covenant, which hath passed through so ma Luke ny various dispensations, yet still in the main us, that 73 continues the same: It being indeed no 73 The oath which ousness. of the hands of our 75 In holiness and before 76 And thou, child, the est; for thou shalt go ways; Then, turning to his new-born son, he added, 76 And thou, my dear child, shalt have the honour to be justly called The prophet of the Most High shalt be called God an illustrious Prophet indeed! for thou Prophet of the Highart he, who, according to the prediction of before the face of the Isaiah, (Isa. xl. 3.) shalt go before the face of the Lord, to prepare his Lord, even of our Divine Messiah, to give notice of his approach, and to prepare his ways. It shall be thine honourable and delightful 77 To give knowoffice, not merely to bring the tidings of some ledge of salvation un-, temporal deliverance, but to give the know- to his people, by the ledge of eternal salvation to his people in di- remission of their sins, recting them how they are to obtain the for78 giveness of their sins; Which, how great so- 78 Through the tenever they have been, may now be obtained der mercies of our through the tender compassions of our God, God; whereby whose bowels of mercy have yearned over his day-spring from on backsliding children; by virtue of which com79 passions the dawning of the celestial day hath d Perform the mercy promised towards our fathers.] Ποιησαι έλεος μέλα των πατέρων ημών most literally signifies to exercise mercy towards our fathers; and might perhaps intimate that the mercy extended to the pious patriarchs was owing to Christ, who was afterwards to appear. Compare Rom. iii. 25. I cannot recollect any other place where wont this is to perform a promise. e The oath which he sware wato Abraham.] In vindication of our version from any objection which might arise to a learned reader from the construction of that original moInvai diaInuns-oxov ov uμGE X. 7. λ. see Bos, exercit. p. 35. and Eisner in loc. f And to walk in holiness and righteousness.] This, as well as deliverance from enemies, being spoken of as the merciful visited high hath visited us, the 79 To give light to them grant of God, I cannot but conclude it refers to those passages in which God promised to pour out extraordinary degrees of a pious spirit on his people under the reign of the Messiah. Compare Is. xliv. 1-5. Jer. xxxi. 31-34. and Ezek. xxxvi. 23-27. g Tender compassions of our God.] ΣndayXye thes, his bowels of mercy: A strong Hebraism; which, though I have not literally retained it in my version, I have expressed in the paraphrase; and it is a method I shall often take in like cases. Compare Jer. xxxi. 18-20. h The dawning of the day.] It is true that avalon may signify, as some here render it, the rising sun: and I doubt not but here is a reference to such texts as Mal. iv. 2. and Is. lx. 1-3. and, possibly, consider ing ness and in the sha John the Baptist's retirement. vii. 49 them that sit in dark- visited us from on high: And the Sun of SECT. dow of death, to guide Righteousness is shortly arising, to spread saour feet into the way cred knowledge and joy over the regions of of peace. 80 And the child in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his grew, and waxed strong shewing unto Israel. Luke ignorance and misery, to enlighten those that 1.79. Thus was John the Baptist ushered into the ing the known ambiguity of the Hebrew word ZEMACH, which also signifies a branch, there may be some allusion to Jer. xxiii. 5. and Zech. iii. 8. But it is strange that any should have thought Zacharias, a Jercish priest, hath here referred to the Greek version of those texts. It is well known the word properly signifies that part of the heavens where the light begins to arise and the first shining of that light. Compare Rev. vii. 2. The dawning of the day seemed therefore a very literal version; and, I apprehend, it more beautifully describes the state of things just at this interval than if the sun had been represented as actually risen. The shadow of death.] Such phrases as these, do, with peculiar propriety, describe the ignorant and miserable state of the Gentile world, and perhaps this former part of the verse may refer to them; but, as Christ's preaching to the Jews in Galilee (for it was only to Jews he applied, Mat. xv. 24 x. 5, 6. and Rom. IMPROVE xv. 8.) is said, Mat. iv. 14-16. to be an k This solitude was a happy prepara- 50 SECT. vii. Vcr. Joseph's perplexity on his finding Mary with child, IMPROVEMENT. WITH what sacred joy should we join in this hymn of praise ! 67 The blessings celebrated in it were not peculiar to the family of Zacharias or to the house of Israel; but we, through the 68 Divine Goodness, have our share in them: the Lord God of Israel hath visited and redeemed us. He hath remembered his covenant with the pious patriarchs in favour of millions who are their seed 72, 73 only as heirs of the faith of Abraham.-To us hath he accomplished 70, 78 the words he had spoken by his holy prophets, and through his tender mercies hath caused the Sun of Righteousness to arise upon 79 us; upon us who were once indeed sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death; and whose ancestors, for many succeeding generations, were lost in ignorance, idolatry and wickedness. Let us bless the Lord, who hath given us light; and make it our daily prayer that it may be the happy means of guiding our feet into the way of peace.-Let us, with pleasure and thankfulness, receive 77 the knowledge of salvation by the remission of our sins, without which we shall never see it but at an unapproachable distance. Let us repose our chearful confidence in this Almighty Saviour, 69 this Horn of Salvation, which God's own right-hand hath raised up for us through him let us seek the pardon of our sins and 74 deliverance from all the enemies of our souls. And let a grateful sense of his redeeming love engage us resolutely to walk in the 75 strictest holiness and righteousness, as in the presence of God, and carefully to maintain before him a conscience void of offence all the days of our lives. 80 SECT. viii. Mat May we carry this temper along with us into solitude and retirement may it animate us in the busiest scenes of life; and, in every particular instance, may it determine us in our choice of either and regulate our conduct in both! SECT. VIII. Joseph's suspicions concerning Mary removed by the appearance of an angel to him. Mat. I. 18, to the end. MAT. I. 18. A ND now, having given an account of the birth of John, afterwards surnamed the Baptist, we proceed to that of JESUS CHRIST, 1. 18. the great subject of our history, which was attended with the most surprising circumstances, and was thus introduced. His mother Mary being contracted to Joseph, according to the method of the Jewish espousals, before they came to cobabit together as man and wife, she was found to be MAT. I. 18. Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. |