_And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you._
SPIRITUAL REFORMATION
1. The nature of the spiritual reformation required. It involves two
things, a practical application of the Word of God: and an entire
dedication to the glory of God.
2. The urgency of the spiritual reformation required.... [ Continue Reading ]
_I will curse your blessings._
BLESSINGS ABUSED BECOME A CURSE
Taking into view the whole of the intelligent creation, and the extent
of the duration to which it is destined, the curse of God on these who
wantonly brave His love and benevolence, will be seen to be a
necessary result of His goodness... [ Continue Reading ]
_That My covenant might be with Levi._
THE MINISTER OF DIVINE TRUTH
I. As he always should be.
1. A man divinely called.
2. A man of profound reverence.
3. A man of moral truthfulness.
4. A man of practical devotion.
5. A man of the highest usefulness.
6. A man of the highest intelligence.... [ Continue Reading ]
_My covenant was with him of life and peace._
UNSPEAKABLE BLESSINGS
The covenant which God made with Levi now belongs to all men. The
benign purposes in every ancient covenant find their fulfilment and
enlargement in Christ.
I. The blessings here spoken of.
1. Life. Physical life is a great poss... [ Continue Reading ]
_For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge._
THE PRIEST’S LIPS SHOULD KEEP KNOWLEDGE
There exists a broad and general analogy between the priesthood of the
Levitical, and the ministry of the evangelical dispensations, an
analogy sufficiently distinct and well-defined to enable us to argue
from t... [ Continue Reading ]
_I also made you contemptible._
PULPITS SINKING INTO POPULAR CONTEMPT
The priesthood of Israel is referred to. No greater calamity could
happen to a community than this.
I. A calamity to all parties.
1. To the priests. Few things are more painful to man than social
contempt. It divests a man of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Have we not all one Father?_
ONE FATHER
I. God is not only the Creator, but the common Father of mankind. This
relationship implies two things: a resemblance in nature; and the
existence of parental sympathy; and also the obligation of filial
devotion.
II. This relationship is an argument why ma... [ Continue Reading ]
_And hath married the daughter of a strange god._
UNHOLY MARRIAGES
The Jews were commanded to keep themselves separate from the heathen
nations around them (Deuteronomy 7:2; Deuteronomy 7:4). This was
necessary that they might maintain their position as custodians of a
peculiar revelation, and as... [ Continue Reading ]
_The master and the scholar._
AN INTERESTING RELATIONSHIP
Various renderings have been given of these words. The meaning,
however, from the context is clear. The leaders of the people were
causing them to err. They had committed the evil themselves of casting
off their Jewish wives for heathen wom... [ Continue Reading ]
_Between thee and the wife of thy youth._
MARRIAGE
I. As a social compact. “She is thy wife,” here is the peculiarity
of the relation. It is the fountain of humanity in its perpetuation,
and the source of its purest affections, its dearest charities, and
its richest enjoyments. It is a relation of... [ Continue Reading ]
_For one covereth violence with his garment._
EVIL COVERED UP
Sin indulged gathers force and violence. The oozing stream from the
bursting reservoir becomes a torrent, and the torrent becomes a
deluge. Lust leads to treachery, treachery to cruelty, cruelty to
violence. There is a terrible momentum... [ Continue Reading ]
_Where is the God of judgment?_
A STARTLING QUESTION
Times of abounding wickedness have been times of unbelief. Evil
hinders the manifestation of God in the world. His laws seem to have
no executive force; His righteousness is obscured; His very existence
is questioned, see text. This question may... [ Continue Reading ]