Worship service 04/19/26.

Greetings and call to worship.
—Greetings and good morning, saints and beloved brethren. Grace, mercy and peace be multiplied to you exceedingly through the love of the Father and of Jesus Christ our Lord. We are gathered together on the Christian Sabbath to give glory to His holy name and worship Him whom our souls greatly delight in. Blessed be His glorious name forever and ever. Jon. 2:9 says, “I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.” Inasmuch as we are saved by the Lord’s mercy through true and thorough repentance, let us be thorough also in our self-examination and piety, sanctifying the Sabbath and honoring the Lord on this His holy day,

A Puritan minister writes, “LVIII. Ques. What is required in the fourth commandment?
Ans. The fourth commandment requireth the keeping holy to God such set times as he hath appointed in his Word, expressly one whole day in seven, to be a holy Sabbath to himself.
Q. 1. What is the difference between the worship required in this fourth commandment, and the worship required in the first, second, and third?
A. The first commandment hath a respect unto the object of worship; the second commandment hath a respect unto the means of worship; the third commandment hath a respect unto the manner of worship; but this fourth commandment hath a respect unto the time of worship.
Q. 2. What time for worship doth the fourth commandment require?
A. The fourth commandment doth require such set times for worship to be kept holy unto God as he hath appointed in his Word.
Q. 3. May not the Popish holidays be observed?
A. The Popish holidays ought not to be observed, because they are not appointed in the Word: and, by the same reason, no other holidays may be kept, whatsoever pretence there be of devotion towards God, when there is no precept or example for such practice in the Holy Scripture.”

 

Prayer unto the public reading of the Holy Scripture:
Our holy and righteous Father,
Full of all glory, justice, and righteousness,
Merciful and faithful—The Covenant God who will by no means clear the guilty, taking vengeance on them that follow after other gods, yet showing mercy to thousands that love thee with the whole heart and keep thy commandments:
We come before thee solemnly and sincerely, as those whom thou hast elected from before the creation of all worlds and purchased by the precious blood of thy Son, called out of darkness and brought into the fellowship of the gospel and the kingdom of Jesus Christ. We bow in all reverence before thy throne, knowing the severity of thy law, the holy requirements of the gospel, as well as our own vileness and unworthiness to draw so near unto thee.
We freely confess, O Lord, that apart from the mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are denied access to the covenant promises, are under the wrath and curse of God, and must be cast from thy presence as an abominable thing. Moreover, we confess that without faith in the Mediator, consent to sound doctrine and a repentant heart, endeavouring to walk evenly and zealously for thee, which is the gracious work of the Spirit, we have no evidence of fellowship with thee. For we are by nature guilty and polluted, unable of ourselves to repent or return, and altogether unfit to render thee any service that is not defiled by sin. Therefore, do we confess our utter dependence on the Father’s love for our election, the Son’s righteousness for our justification and the Spirit’s work in our hearts for our sanctification. We believe that thou art our God, and the rewarder of them that diligently seek thy face. Therefore, inasmuch as we are convinced of our sin in Adam and the redemption in Jesus Christ alone, we cry out to thee for mercy: For pardoning mercy to cover our iniquities, And sanctifying mercy to make us meet for thy presence. Hear our prayers, deliver us from all trouble, cleanse us by the blood of Christ and the washing of the Spirit by the word. Sanctify us by the truth of thy word. Defend us from all evil, Strengthen our faith, subdue the lusts of the flesh that swell within us, And enable us to perform this holy service, Not in our own strength, But in the virtue which thou dost supply of thine own free goodness. And now, O Lord, as we come to the reading of thy holy word, we pray for a special blessing upon this portion of Scripture, that it may be effectual to build up thy holy church, which thou hast called thy special possession, and thy little flock. Open our hearts to receive it with meekness; Give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and cause us by thy grace to live by it; And may the same Spirit who breathed life into the church in all ages; the fathers, apostles and prophets, the reformers and Puritans, so guide our whole lives, That we may grow up in Him in all things, even He who is the Bridegroom and Head of the Church, Jesus Christ, our Prophet, Priest and King. All this we ask in his most worthy name, Amen.

Devotional and doctrinal exposition on the Psalms:

Psalm 28 [2]: 1 Being in great fear and heaviness of heart to see God dishonored by the wicked, he desireth to be rid of them. 4 And crieth for vengeance against them: and at length assureth himself, that God hath heard his prayer, 9 Unto whose tuition he commendeth all the faithful.

A Psalm of David.

1 Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.

2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.

3 Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but malice is in their hearts.

4 Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their inventions: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.

5 For they regard not the works of the Lord, nor the operation of his hands, therefore destroy them, and build them not up.

6 Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my petitions.

7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.

8 The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.

9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and exalt them for ever.

Exposition:
—We saw previously the close relation between this Psalm and the former: that David, being burdened with many trials and grievous, expected that the Lord would be gracious unto him, and that he should behold the goodness of the Lord even in the land of the living. And we must ever remember this, and bear it carefully in mind, that although God oftentimes gives good things to those whom He hateth and hath appointed unto destruction, yet the righteous are not without His mercy and goodness toward them. True, at times they are persecuted, tortured, and killed for the sake of the faith which they profess; and especially the ministers are exposed to the violence of men on behalf of that gospel which condemns their self-righteous and wanton manner of life. Yet we must also remember the words of the Psalm, “I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread,” and again, “There is no man that hath left house, or brethren… but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time,” and likewise the promise of “the life that now is, and of that which is to come.”

Seeing then that the Christian is enabled, by the grace and meekness of Christ, to moderate his desires, and does not cling to this world so as to indulge himself in carnal appetites and opulent vanities, the Lord is pleased to grant us an allowance, and permits us to enjoy many things for rest, recreation, and benefit, that we, giving thanks to Him for them, might be the more assured of the sweetness of the life to come. For if the whole of our life were nothing but toil and sorrow, we might be tempted to question the kindness of God toward us; and yet if all were sweetness and ease, we should soon grow dull, and cease to savour His gifts, which are indeed very precious. Therefore, inasmuch as God hath given us richly all things to enjoy, let us give Him thanks.

But we must mark well the first verse of this Psalm, which we are here set to expound. For David does not cry as one who hath no hope, but firmly sets his expectation on the mercy of God. In this verse we may observe:

1. David had One to cry unto, for he was in communion with God, and God with him. Therefore, let no Christian despair, and let no discontentment creep into the corners of the mind; but be stayed, and be still, active and lively in communion with God, who always heareth His own.
2. Not only had David One to cry unto, but One who was mighty and able—not like those weak and useless comforts of men, such as the inattentive spouse who nods and does nothing, or the friend to whom one vents much anguish, and who, distracted by his own cares, gives no heed. But God is mighty to save, and condescends to hear every prayer poured forth in faith by His people. Therefore, He is here called a Rock.
3. The formal petition itself: “Be not silent to me.” That is, answer me—either in the very thing I request, or else with such inward joy and encouragement as may strengthen me to continue in hope. For God oftentimes sweetens outward delay with inward patience. So that when the Christian has no visible prospect, and nothing to lay hold upon according to sense, yet may he still take heart and wait upon the Lord, because the Lord hath comforted His servant.
4. David casts himself wholly upon the Lord, knowing that except the Lord answer him, he must be like those that have no help. This is indeed a distinguishing mark of the Christian: that he is not partial with God, nor a hypocrite in religion, as if God did one part and man another in the answer of prayer. The Papists imagine that because the Christian prays, therefore God answers according to the merit of prayer. Not so. This is altogether contrary to the spirit of the saints, who say, “Not unto us,” and, “Grace for grace.”
5. Finally, David compares himself to them that go down into the pit, if the Lord be silent to him. For we are not like those in the world who are depressed and anxious, fearing at nothing, trembling at the shaking of a leaf, and continually weighed down under grievous distempers that torment the mind and vex them daily, having no promise of succour or relief. Nay, but though the Christian may be tempted to despair, he is not given over to it, neither doth it reign over him. David says that if the Lord be silent, he should become like them—but the case is not so, because the Lord is not silent to us, though He may appear to be so. For, “His anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

David therefore maintains his steady faith and hope toward God, believing that He will answer him in His own time; and he shows his sincerity by casting himself wholly upon Him, as one utterly destitute unless the Lord send help from above.

Let us then follow this pattern with like-mindedness, and cry unto the Lord our Rock, calling upon Him to answer us—whether in the thing itself, or in good comfort and hope, that we may wait for it patiently. For he that asks for that which is lawful and according to the will of God shall receive it. Therefore ask, and faint not; but plead with the Lord to answer according to the desire of thy heart.

Calvin— “By calling God his strength, David more fully shows that he confided in God’s assistance, not only when he was in the shade and in peace, but also when he was exposed to the severest temptations. In comparing himself to the dead, too, he intimates how great his straits were, although his object was not merely to point out the magnitude of his danger, but also to show that when he needed succor, he looked not here and there for it, but relied on God alone, without whose favor there remained no hope for him. It is, therefore, as if he had said, I am nothing if thou leavest me; if thou succourest me not, I perish. It is not enough for one who is in such a state of affliction to be sensible of his misery, unless, convinced of his inability to help himself, and renouncing all help from the world, he betake himself to God alone. And as the Scriptures inform us that God answers true believers when he shows by his operations that he regards their supplications, so the word silent is set in opposition to the sensible and present experience of his aid, when he appears, as it were, not to hear their prayers.”

Henry— “The sad despair he should be in if God slighted him: “If thou be silent to me, and I have not the tokens of thy favour, I am like those that go down into the pit (that is, I am a dead man, lost and undone); if God be not my friend, appear not to me and appear not for me, my hope and my help will have perished.” Nothing can be so cutting, so killing, to a gracious soul, as the want of God’s favour and the sense of his displeasure. I shall be like those that go down to hell (so some understand it); for what is the misery of the damned but this, that God is ever silent to them and deaf to their cry? Those are in some measure qualified for God’s favour, and may expect it, who are thus possessed with a dread of his wrath, and to whom his frowns are worse than death.”

 

Opening Prayer.
—Our gracious and glorious Father in heaven, thou who art holy and wonderful in counsel, thou who dost provide for thy people who call upon thee in all things, we pray that thou wouldst continue thy loving care over us and take care of us, for we cannot provide for or take care of ourselves. It is of thee we have and of thee that we live. Continue to provide for us even as thou hast, for we wait on thee. Not for the things of this life only, but especially the true riches, thy word and the grace to understand and obey. Grant us such a heart to love thee and guide us in the way we should walk, that we might be pleasing to thee, obedient children and ashamed of nothing. Grant it to us in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in whose mighty and blessed name we pray. 

Amen.

 

Lesson 80. [1.2.54.] The Contents of Holy Scripture: The Prophets. Jonah. The Prophet against the Opulence of Nineveh. Part 2.

Westminster Confession of Faith 1.2.

Under the name of holy Scripture, or the Word of God written, are now contained all the books of the Old and New Testaments,
Genesis—Obadiah, Jonah
All which are given by inspiration of God, to be the rule of faith and life.

Intro. Augustine, City of God, 21.24.
“This also availeth against those who, pursuing their own cause, try, as though by a greater mercy, to set themselves against the words of God. They say that the things God declared men would suffer are true in this sense: that men are worthy to suffer them, not that they shall in fact suffer them. For, say they, God will grant them deliverance through the prayers of his saints, who at that time will pray for their enemies all the more because they will then be holier, and their prayer more effectual and more worthy to be heard by God, having no sin at all remaining in them. Why then, with that same perfect holiness, and with those purest and most merciful prayers able to obtain all things, will they not also pray for the angels, for whom everlasting fire is prepared, that God may soften and reverse his sentence for the better, and deliver them from that fire? Or will someone perhaps be found rash enough to affirm even this: that the holy angels, together with holy men, who shall then be equal unto the angels of God, will pray for condemned angels and men alike, that by mercy they may not suffer what by truth they deserve to suffer? No one of sound faith hath said this, and no one shall say it. Otherwise there is no reason why the Church should not even now pray for the devil and his angels, seeing her divine Master commanded her to pray for her enemies. Therefore the same reason why the Church now prayeth not for the evil angels, whom she knoweth to be her enemies, is the very reason why in that judgment to come, though perfected in holiness, she shall not pray even for men to be tormented in eternal fire.

For now she prayeth for those enemies whom she hath among mankind, because now is the season of fruitful repentance. And for what doth she chiefly pray for them, save that God may give them, as the Apostle saith, repentance, that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, by whom they are held captive according to his will? Indeed, if she were so certain concerning some persons as even to know who they were—those who, though still living in this life, are nevertheless predestined to go into eternal fire with the devil—she would no more pray for them than for the devil himself. But because she is certain concerning none, she prayeth for all her human enemies, so long as they are yet in this body; yet she is not heard for all. For she is heard for those alone who, though they oppose the Church, are nevertheless so predestined that the Church is heard for them, and they become sons of the Church. But if any shall retain an impenitent heart unto death, and shall not be converted from enemies into sons, doth the Church then pray for them, that is, for the spirits of such departed persons? Why not, save because he is now reckoned in the portion of the devil, who, while he was in the body, was not translated unto Christ?

The same reason therefore why prayer shall not then be made for men to be punished with eternal fire is the reason why neither now nor then is prayer made for evil angels. It is likewise the reason why, though prayer is made for some men, yet even now it is not made for unbelieving and ungodly dead men. For prayer is heard for certain of the departed, whether of the Church herself or of certain godly persons; but for those who, having been regenerated in Christ, neither lived so ill in the body as to be judged unworthy of such mercy, nor so well as to be found to have no need of such mercy. Thus also, when the resurrection of the dead is accomplished, there shall not be lacking some to whom, after the punishments which the spirits of the dead suffer, mercy shall be given, so that they be not cast into eternal fire. For it would not be truly said of some that it shall not be forgiven them, neither in this world nor in the world to come, unless there were others to whom, though not in this world, it is yet forgiven in the world to come.

But when the Judge of the living and the dead shall have said, “Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world”; and, on the contrary, to others, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels”; and “these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal”: it is an excessive presumption to say that the punishment of any of these shall not be eternal, when God said that they shall go into eternal punishment; and by persuading men in this presumption, men are brought either to despair of eternal life itself, or at least to doubt it.

Let no man therefore so understand that Psalm, “Will God forget to be gracious? will he in his anger shut up his tender mercies?” as to suppose that God’s sentence is true of good men but false of evil men; or true of good men and evil angels, but false of evil men. For what the Psalm saith belongeth to the vessels of mercy and to the children of promise, of whom the prophet himself was one. For when he had said, “Will God forget to be gracious? will he in his anger shut up his tender mercies?” he immediately added, “And I said, Now have I begun; this is the change wrought by the right hand of the Most High.” He plainly expounded what he meant by, “Will he in his anger shut up his tender mercies?” For this mortal life itself is the anger of God, wherein man is made like unto vanity; his days pass away as a shadow. Yet even in this anger God doth not forget to be gracious, making his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sending rain on the just and on the unjust; and thus he doth not shut up his tender mercies in his anger. Most chiefly is this seen in what the Psalm expresseth, saying, “Now have I begun; this is the change wrought by the right hand of the Most High”; because even in this most miserable life, which is the anger of God, he changeth the vessels of mercy for the better, though the misery of this corruption still remaineth under his anger, because even in that anger he doth not shut up his tender mercies.

Since therefore the truth of that divine song is fulfilled in this way, there is no need to understand it also of that place where those not belonging to the City of God shall be punished with everlasting punishment. Yet those who are pleased to extend this saying even unto the torments of the ungodly, let them at least understand it thus: that, while the wrath of God remaineth upon them, which in eternal punishment hath been foretold, God doth not in that wrath shut up his tender mercies, but causeth them to be tormented with penalties not so grievous as they deserve. Not that they should either never undergo those punishments, or at some time bring them to an end, but that they should suffer them more lightly and more mildly than their deserts require. In this way both the wrath of God shall remain, and yet in that wrath he shall not shut up his tender mercies. This, indeed, I do not affirm because I hold it; yet neither do I resist it.

But as for those who think that the words, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire,” and, “These shall go away into everlasting punishment,” and, “They shall be tormented for ever and ever,” and, “Their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched,” and others of the like kind, were spoken as a threat rather than as truth—the divine Scripture itself most plainly and fully rebuketh and refuteth them, rather than I. For the Ninevites repented in this life, and therefore fruitfully, sowing as it were in that field wherein God willed that what is sown in tears should afterwards be reaped in joy. Yet who will deny that what the Lord foretold concerning them came to pass, unless he hath not sufficiently considered in what manner God overthroweth sinners, not only in wrath, but also in mercy? For sinners are overthrown in two ways: either as the Sodomites, that the men themselves may be punished for their sins; or as the Ninevites, that the sins of the men themselves may be destroyed by repentance. Therefore what God foretold was accomplished. Nineveh, which was evil, was overthrown; and that which was not, namely a good Nineveh, was built up. For though the walls and houses stood, the city was overthrown in its depraved manners. And thus, though the prophet was grieved because that did not happen which those men feared would come to pass when he prophesied, yet what had been foretold by the foreknowledge of God did come to pass, because he who foretold it knew in what manner it would be fulfilled unto the better.

But that these men, merciful in a perverse way, may know to what end that saying pertaineth, “How great is the multitude of thy sweetness, O Lord, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee,” let them read what followeth: “which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee.” What is this, “thou hast laid up for them that fear thee,” and “thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee,” unless it be this: that to those who, through fear of punishment, seek to establish their own righteousness, which is of the law, the righteousness of God is not sweet, because they know it not? For they have not tasted it. They trust in themselves, not in him; and therefore the multitude of God’s sweetness is hidden from them. For indeed they fear God, but with that servile fear which is not in charity; because perfect charity casteth out fear. Therefore to those who trust in him he perfecteth his sweetness by inspiring in them his charity, that with a chaste fear—not that fear which charity casteth out, but that which endureth for ever and ever—they may glory in the Lord when they glory.

For the righteousness of God is Christ, who, as the Apostle saith, “is made unto us wisdom from God, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption; that, according as it is written, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.” This righteousness of God, which grace giveth without merits, they know not who desire to establish their own righteousness; and therefore they are not subject unto the righteousness of God, which is Christ. In this righteousness is the great multitude of the sweetness of God, of which the Psalm saith, “O taste and see that the Lord is sweet.” Tasting this in this pilgrimage, though not yet unto full satiety, we rather hunger and thirst for it, that hereafter we may be filled with it, when we shall see him as he is, and that shall be fulfilled which is written, “I shall be satisfied when thy glory shall be manifested.” Thus Christ perfecteth the great multitude of his sweetness toward those that trust in him.

But if God, as they suppose, hath laid up that sweetness of his for them that fear him, whereby he will not condemn the ungodly—so that, not knowing this, and fearing condemnation, they may live rightly, and thus be able to pray for those who live not rightly—how doth he perfect it for those that trust in him, seeing that, as they dream, by this sweetness he will not condemn even those who do not trust in him? Let that sweetness therefore be sought which he perfecteth for them that trust in him, not that which men suppose to profit those who despise and blaspheme him. In vain therefore doth a man seek after this life what in this life he neglected to procure for himself.

That word of the Apostle also, “For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all,” was not spoken as though he would condemn no man. Rather, what he meant is plainly shown by what goeth before. For when the Apostle was speaking of the Jews, who should afterwards believe, to the Gentiles, to whom he was of course already writing as believers, he saith: “For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.” Then he added that saying wherein these men deceive themselves to their own comfort, saying, “For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.” Upon what all, save those of whom he was speaking, as though he had said, both you and them? God therefore concluded both Gentiles and Jews—those whom he foreknew and predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son—all in unbelief, that, being confounded by repentance out of the bitterness of their unbelief, and turned by faith unto the sweetness of the mercy of God, they might cry out that word of the Psalm, “How great is the multitude of thy sweetness, O Lord, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee, but hast perfected for them that trust in thee”—not in themselves, but in thee. Therefore he hath mercy on all the vessels of mercy. And what is “all”? Clearly both those whom he predestined from among the Gentiles, and those whom he predestined from among the Jews—whom he also called, justified, and glorified—not all men whatsoever, but all of these, condemning none of them.”

Lessons from Jonah.
“Jonah is a sinner, but not a castaway. God lays him not by as a broken vessel, treads him not to the dunghill, as unsavoury salt; but receives him upon his return by repentance, and restores him to his former employment, gives him yet a name and a nail in his house; yea, sends him a second time on his message to Nineveh; and counting him faithful, puts him again into the ministry, who was before a runagate, a rebel, … But he obtained mercy, 1 Timothy 1:13 , as did likewise the apostles, after that they had basely deserted our Saviour at his passion; and Peter, after he had denied him, see John 20:22-23 ; John 21:15-17 . The penitent are as good as innocent, Quem poenitet peccasse, pcene est innocens (Sen. Agam.). “Return, ye backsliding children” (saith the Father of mercies), “and I will heal your backslidings,” Jeremiah 3:22 . The Shulamite returning is as lovely in Christ’s eye as before; and all is as well as ever between them, Song of Solomon 6:4 . There is a natural Novatianism in the timorous conscience of convinced sinners to doubt and question pardon for sins of back sliding and falling after repentance; but had they known the gift of God, and who it is that saith to them, “Be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee,” they would have conceived strong consolation.”

• Where God wills to send his ministers, there they will be sent. Jon. 3:1-2

• That message which God commands is alone the word which ministers must speak. Jon. 3:2

• Jonah labored to escape his commission and flee from the presence of the Lord, just as Saul labored to extinguish the church, but the Lord gave them heavy labors in accordance with His own will. Jon. 3:3, Acts 9:15-16

• Repentance is the only means of turning away the wrath of God. Jon. 3:5-10 Calvin— “We hence gather that the preaching of Jonah was not so concise but that he introduced his discourse by declaring that he was God’s Prophet, and that he did not proclaim these commands without authority; and we also gather that Jonah so denounced ruin, that at the same time he showed God to be the avenger of sins that he reproved the Ninevites, and, as it were, summoned them to God’s tribunal, making known to them their guilt; for had he spoken only of punishment, it could not certainly have been otherwise, but that the Ninevites must have rebelled furiously against God; but by showing to them their guilt, he led them to acknowledge that the threatened punishment was just, and thus he prepared them for humility and penitence. Both these things may be collected from this expression of Jonah, that the Ninevites believed God; for were they not persuaded that the command came from heaven, what was their faith? Let us then know, that Jonah had so spoken of his vocation, that the Ninevites felt assured that he was a celestial herald: hence was their faith: and further, the Ninevites would never have so believed as to put on sackcloth, had they not been reminded of their sins. There is, therefore, no doubt but that Jonah, while crying against Nineveh, at the same time made known how wickedly the men lived, and how grievous were their offenses against God. Hence then it was that they put on sackcloth, and suppliantly fled to God’s mercy: they understood that they were deservedly summoned to judgment on account of their wicked lives. Since the whole Scripture testifies that pardon is gratuitously given us, and that God cannot be otherwise propitious to us than by not imputing sins, there is no need, with regard to the present passage, anxiously to inquire why God looked on the works of the Ninevites, so as not to destroy them: for this is said merely as a consequence. Jonah then does not here point out the cause, but only declares that God was pacified towards the Ninevites, as soon as they repented. But we shall speak more on this subject.”

• It is lawful and just for Gentile kings to enforce repentance on the people. Though neither magistrate nor preacher can cause any man to truly repent, yet the preacher is to preach and the king to make laws compelling men to it. Jon. 3:7-8, Ezra 7:26-27

• We are called to repentance regardless of our persuasion of outward mercies. Jon. 3:9 Trapp— “This is the speech of one that doubteth and yet despaireth not, like that of David praying for his sick child, “Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live?” 2 Samuel 12:22 . We are staggering, saith Saint Paul, but not wholly sticking, 2 Corinthians 4:8 . They that go down to the pit (of despair, as well as of the grave, Isaiah 38:18 ) cannot hope for thy truth, but are hurried headlong into hell, as the Gergesites’ swine were into the sea. The prophet Jonah was peremptory, that by such a day Nineveh should be destroyed. These men, therefore, had good reason to doubt, if not the pardon of their sins, yet the saving of their city. All their hope is, that this that Jonah denounced was not God’s absolute decree, but only his threatening, and that conditionally too, viz. except they repented. This, if they could do, and heartily, they knew not but that mercy might be yet obtained. Keep hope in heart, or the work will go on heavily, Psalms 43:5 . Hope is the daughter of Faith; but such as is a staff to her aged mother.”

• The works of God, however mysterious and contrary to our own way, must ever be the cause of our joy. Jon. 4:1

• The mercy of God is ever greater than our own capacity to have mercy on others. Jon. 4:2-3, Matt. 6:14-15, Rom. 11:33 (this shows that Jonah’s attempt to flee was not only in fear, but in jealousy, of the veracity of God’s word and his own reputation) Trapp— “Having seen God he now fears no colours, dreads no danger; as neither did Moses, Micaiah, Isaiah, Isaiah 6:9-12 , Paul, Acts 21:13 , Luther going to Worms. —”Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men,” 2 Corinthians 5:11 , we forewarn them to flee from the wrath to come, Matthew 3:7 , we pull them out of the fire of hell, as firebrands, Judges 1:23 .” “This he knew to be God’s name, Exodus 34:6-7 , but withal he should have remembered what was the last letter in that name, viz. that he will by no means clear the guilty. See Nahum 1:2 ; Nahum 1:8 . The same fire hath burning heat and cheerful light. Gracious is the Lord, but yet righteous, saith David, Psalms 116:5 , his mercy goes ever bounded by his truth. This Jonah should have considered; and therefore trembled thus to have upbraided God with that mercy by which himself subsisted, and but for which he had been long since in hell, for his tergiversation and peevishness. But “mercy rejoiceth against judgment,” James 2:13 , and runneth as a spring, without ceasing. It is not like those pools about Jerusalem that might be dried up with the tramplings of horse and horsemen. “The grace of God was exceeding abundant,” 1 Timothy 1:14 . It hath abounded to flowing over ( υπερ επλεονασε ) as the sea doth above the largest rocks. See this in the present instance. Jonah addeth sin to sin, and doth enough to undo himself for ever: so that a man would wonder how God could forbear killing him, as he had like to have done Moses when he met him in the inn. But he is God, and not man; he contents himself to admonish Jonah for his fault, as a friend and familiar, velut cum eo colludens, jesting with him, as it were, and, by an outward sign, showing him how grievously he had offended. Concerning these attributes of God here recited, See Trapp on ” Joel 2:13 ” and say, with Austin, Laudent alii pietatem: Dei ego misericordiam. Let no spider suck poison out of this sweetest flower: nor out of a blind zeal make ill use of it, as Jonah doth, for a cloak of his rebellion, lest abused mercy turn into fury.”
  a. This refutes the evangelicals who would have mercy on those whom God hath reserved for judgment.
  b. This rebukes the proud in heart who would not that God should show mercy on others, neither have they mercy on others who wrong them.

• The rebukes of the Lord are ever gracious and tender towards us, weak mortals. Jon. 4:4,6 “Where art thou?” Genesis 3:9, “What doest thou here, Elijah?” 1 Kings 19:9. Or Nathan’s parable.

• God is just to grant us comfort and to remove it just as quickly. Jon. 4:7

• God hath tender regard for the works of His hands, and pitieth those who are out of the way. Jon. 4:10-11, Ps. 28:5, 92:4, 111:7, 138:8

• When God hath spoken, let men keep silent before Him. Trapp— “Jonah is now sad and silenced; and although we hear no further of him, yet methinks I see him (Job-like) laying his hand upon his mouth in a humble yieldance; yea, putting his mouth in the dust, and saying, “Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further,” Job 40:5 . “Teach me, and I will hold my tongue: for thou hast caused me to understand wherein I have erred. How forcible are right words!” Job 6:24-25 .”

• The men of Nineveh will rise in judgment against this generation and condemn it. Poole— “The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment, that is, shall at the general resurrection rise, and stand up in judgment as witnesses against the scribes and Pharisees, and the other unbelieving Jews of this age, and shall be instruments as to that condemnation which God shall that day pronounce against them. Why? Because they repented at the preaching of Jonas and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here. Jonas was a stranger to them, he wrought no miracles amongst them to confirm that he was sent of God, he only came and cried, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed; yet they repented, if not truly and sincerely, yet in appearance; they showed themselves to be affected with what Jonah said, his words made some impressions upon them, as that the king arose from his throne, laid his robe from him, covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes, called a fast, as Jonah 3:5-8. But, saith our Saviour, I am greater than Jonah: I was long since prophesied of, and foretold to this people, to come; I am come; I have preached amongst them, and not only preached, but wrought many wonderful works amongst them, yet they are not so much affected as to show the least signs of repentance.”

Conclusion.

Closing Prayer. 

 

YouTube Audio: https://youtu.be/m3X9czkGzos