and the execution of his plan. "His counsel stands, and he doth all his pleasure."1 The doctrine of providence, a particular providence (for it is not very easy to understand what is meant by a general providence as opposed to a particular one), is supported by numerous and powerful arguments, deduced from rational principles, as well as from the declarations of inspired Scripture. Admit the wisdom, the power, and the omnipresence of the Divine Being, and you cannot consistently deny his providence. "Are not two sparrows," says our Lord, "sold for a farthing? yet one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father: even the hairs of your head are all numbered."2 Can He who cares for sparrows, and numbers the hairs of our head, can he be inattentive to, or unconcerned in, what so closely concerns the honor of his character, and the highest interests of his people, as their afflictions? 66 66 The agency of God in the afflictions of his people is not only deducible from, or more properly involved in, the doctrine of his universal providence; but it is taught in the most explicit terms which language can furnish: "Shall there be evil," that is, suffering, affliction, in any form, "in a city, and the Lord hath not done it ?" 'I am the Lord, and there is none else; there is no god beside me. I form the light, and create the darkness; I make peace, and create evil. I, the Lord, do all these things." The Lord killeth, and maketh alive he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich he bringeth low, and he lifteth up." "See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me. I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any who can deliver out of my hand." "He maketh sore, and bindeth up; he woundeth, and his hands make whole." The person accidentally killed, as we phrase it, is by Moses said to be "delivered by God into the hands" of the person who unintentionally deprived him of life.3 : And we are to consider those afflictions as proceeding from the hand of God, not merely when there appears to us no intermediate agent, whether physical or intelligent, as in the case of sudden death, or unaccountable accident; but whatever be the immediate occasion, whether they occur from the operation of what we call natural causes, in the course of the established order of things, or from the agency of intelligent beings, human, angelic, or infernal, they are to be considered as coming forth from him "of whom, and through whom, and to whom are all things." The miraculous slaughter of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, for whose punishment the Lord "made a new thing," and the death of those who through disease or old age were cut off in the wilderness, were equally the works of the Lord. Wars which spring from human passions, and are carried on through human instrumentality, equally with the famine and the pestilence, are numbered among the works of God; and their ravages are "desolations which he makes in the earth." When adversity mingles its bitter 2 Matt. x. 29, 30. 1 Sam. ii. 6. Deut. xxxii. 39. Job v. 18. Exod. xxi. 13. • Psal. xlvi. 8. 1 1 Sam. vi. 9. Eph. i. 11. Isa. xlvi. 10. ingredients in our cup, whatever these ingredients are, let us never forget that it is God who puts that cup into our hand. It matters not whether our affliction springs from those disastrous visitations in which the agency of man has no part, and over which it has no control, like that mysterious blight which has lately turned into rottenness so large a portion of the produce of our fields, and the food of the people; or arises from the improvidence, the injustice, or the cruelty of human beings; in either case it forms a part of the administration of Him whose kingdom ruleth all. Job spoke like a philosopher as well as a saint; his words were those of wisdom as well as of piety, when, after the Sabeans had carried away his oxen, the fire of God falling from heaven had consumed his sheep, the Chaldeans had robbed him of his camels, and murdered his servants, and a great wind from the wilderness had buried his children in the ruins of his eldest son's house, he said, "It is the Lord." The lightning and the tempest, the Sabeans and the Chaldeans, he considered, and rightly, as the instruments (the human beings, the guilty instruments) of the execution of God's most holy and righteous appointment. "The Lord," said he, " gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." And He of whose faith and patience Job's afford but a faint resemblance, amid his unparalleled sufferings, proceeding in a great measure directly from the malignant agency of men and devils, looked beyond Judas and his band, Caiaphas and the chief priests, the denial of Peter and the flight of the disciples, Pontius Pilate and the Roman soldiers, the prince of darkness and his hosts, to Him whose high and holy determination all these were unconsciously and most wickedly carrying into accomplishment, and with meek reverence and devout submission said, "The cup which my Father giveth me to drink, shall I not drink it?" a This important principle, that our afflictions are the work of God, seems the principal truth intended to be taught by the representation before us; a truth, the apprehension of which is absolutely necessary to the deriving of any spiritual advantage from affliction. A conviction of this will persuade us that our afflictions are not the effect of caprice, or of cruelty; that they are the result of design, wise design, benignant design, sent to serve a purpose, a holy and benevolent purpose. The words, however, seem farther to indicate, what we are very ready to forget, that in affliction God is very near us. He is always so, ever at our right and left hand, intently looking on us; but in affliction, to rouse us to the fact of his nearness, He, as it were, lays his hand on us; and we are stupid indeed if we still continue inapprehensive of his presence. Affliction, as a laying God's hand on us, intimates not only that he is near us, but that he is actually dealing with us; he has business with us, he has to do with us, and we have to do with him. He has accounts to settle with us; He is not satisfied with us; we are not what he would have us to be. If we were, he would not indeed let us alone; that were a dreadful evil; but he would interfere only to give new proofs of his love in new gifts of his grace; his hand would 1 Job i. 21. 2 John xviii. 11. never be on us for chastisement; it would be on us only for good. He does not afflict willingly. If he gives us a blow, assuredly we deserve it. We have provoked it. It comes from a reluctant hand. Still farther, in the case of God's own people, and it is of them the apostle is speaking, affliction, viewed as laying his hand on them, is a manifestation of kind interest in them. He has not given them up; He means to make something of them; He smites because he loves them; He "chastens them for their profit." It is not the stroke of a cruel one; it is not the hand of the destroyer. To vary the figure, affliction with them is as "the refiner's fire, and the fuller's soap. He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver; and he shall purify them and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering of righteousness." § 2. Our duty in affliction is to "humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God." Having thus considered the Christian's state of affliction as a state of subjection to God's chastening hand, let us now consider the corresponding view the apostle gives of their duty: Christians are to "humble themselves under the mighty hand of God." The command is equivalent to "despise not the chastening of the Lord." Rebel not against it, fret not under it, murmur not at it, call not in question either Jehovah's right, or the manner in which he asserts it. Beware of doubting the wisdom, or the righteousness, or the kindness of the visitation. "Be still, and know that He is God." "Glorify the Lord in the fires." "Sanctify the Lord God in your heart." "Hear the rod, and Him who has appointed it." 2 The whole truth on this subject may be comprehended in the three-fold injunction-humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, as creatures under the hand of their Creator; as subjects under the hand of their Sovereign; as children under the hand of their Father. (1.) As creatures under the hand of the Creator. Christians in affliction should humble themselves as creatures under the hand of their Creator. Pride, impatience, murmuring, and rebellion under affliction, which all flow from pride, are absolutely monstrous in a creature under the hand of the Creator. What is the creature but what the Creator has made him? What has he but what God has given him? Is not he and all that he has far more the Creator's property than his own? Is he not, must he not be, ought he not to be, entirely dependent on, submissive to, Him who made him? "Hath not the potter power over the clay?" "Shall the clay say to him who fashioned it, What makest thou? or the work to him who formed it, Thou hast no hands?" "Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood?" a In affliction we feel the touch of that hand 1 Heb. xii. 10. Rom. ix. 22. Mal. iii. 3. Psal. xlvi. 10. Isa. xxiv. 15; viii. 13. Mic. vi. 9. which made us, and which can easily turn us to dust again. Surely, in these circumstances, it is meet to acknowledge that we are "nothing, less than nothing and vanity," before him "who was, and is, and is to come, the Almighty;" "of whom, through whom, to whom, are all things." We should even wonder that he takes so much notice of us as to send us salutary afflictions. "Lord, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him! or the son of man, that thou makest account of him! that thou shouldest visit him every morning and try him every moment? Man who is like unto vanity; whose days are as a shadow that passeth away!" 1 (2.) As subjects under the hand of their Sovereign—rebel subjects under the hand of their righteously offended Sovereign. Christians should humble themselves in affliction as subjects under the hand of their Sovereign, as rebel subjects under the hand of their righteously offended Sovereign. If creatures should be humble just because they are creatures, sinful creatures are tenfold bound to be humble. In the being sinners, everything base and degrading is necessarily included. There is no folly like sin, no baseness like sin. Affliction is intended to bring sin to remembrance. We should never forget our guilt and depravity, and the state of condemnation and debasement into which they have brought us; but in the day of affliction we should especially say, "I remember my faults this day," I lay my hand on my mouth, my mouth in the dust, unclean, unclean. I have no ground of complaint, I can have none. I deserve no good. I deserve all evil. "It is of the Lord's mercies I am not consumed."2 Does it not become rebels justly doomed to death, spared by the clemency of their insulted, injured sovereign. yet bearing ever on them distinct marks of their crime, and both of his unmerited clemency and just displeasure, does it not become them to be humble? Deep selfabasement is the becoming temper in him who knows that he has incurred the righteous displeasure of God by innumerable, unprovoked violations of the law that is holy, just, and good; and that in him, that is, in his flesh, dwells no good thing. Deep self-abasement is the temper which becomes him at all times, and especially when he is under the mighty hand of God. However severe the afflictions, why should he murmur? Why should he complain? "A man for the punishment of sins," a man punished, but punished far less than his iniquities deserve? Surely it is meet to be said unto God, I have borne chastisement, I will not offend any more: that which I see not, teach thou me; if I have done iniquity, I will do so no more." language of his heart should be, "Righteous art Thou, O Lord, when I plead with thee." "Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? O, thou Preserver of men." "I have sinned, I have committed iniquity, I have done wickedly, I have rebelled by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments. O Lord, righteousness belongeth to thee, but to me confusion of face, because I have sinned against thee." Thus does it become the sinner, under the mighty hand of 1 Psal. cxliv. 3, 4. * Lam. iii. 22. Lam. iii. 39. Job xxxiv. 31, 32. Jer. xii. 1. Job xl. 4; vii. 20. Dan. ix. 5, 7. The God, to "sit alone and keep silence, to put his mouth to the dust, if so be there may be hope?" This kind of humbling a person's self is just as becoming the converted as the unconverted man. It will forever continue a fact that he has broken God's holy law, and had a thoroughly depraved nature; and the recollection of these facts, which affliction is intended to recall to the mind, should forever hide pride from the Christian's eyes. (3.) As children under the hand of their Father. But the Christian stands to God in the relation, not only of a creature to the Creator, not only of a subject to his sovereign, but also of a child to his father. This is the peculiar relation in which the Christian stands to God; and in this relation, he ought, in the season of affliction, to "humble himself under the mighty hand of God." Of all men, it least becomes the Christian to question the wisdom, or righteousness, or kindness of the Divine afflictive dispensations, to be fretful or unsubmissive under the mighty hand of God. He knows the character of him who inflicts chastisement; he knows how richly he deserves chastisement; he knows how much he stands in need of chastisement; he knows the true nature and design of chastisement; and therefore he ought to be distinguished by the humility of reverence, the humility of acquiescence, the humility of gratitude. He should humbly acknowledge the right of him who inflicts; he has done nothing but what he has a good right to do. He should humbly acknowledge that the affliction was not uncalled for; he has got nothing but what he deserves; and that, however heavy, it might have been much heavier, without affording him cause either of surprise or complaint; and he should humbly acknowledge his obliga, tions to his Father in heaven, both for afflicting him and afflicting him in measure; for sending the very afflictions in kind and degree, which infinite wisdom saw he needed, and which infinite faithfulness secures shall serve their purpose. I cannot conclude this part of the subject better than in the words of the apostle in his Epistle to the Hebrews, when he bids them not forget "the exhortation which speaketh unto them as to children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord"—that is, in other words, humble yourself under his mighty hand. "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits and live?" § 3.-Motives to humbling ourselves under the mighty hand of God. The motives which either implicitly or explicitly are here urged by the apostle for Christians thus humbling themselves under the mighty 1 Heb. xii. 5-9. |