Hosea 13:9 O Israel, you have destroyed yourself; but in me is your help. Our text gives the decision of God, who cannot be deceived, and who cannot deceive. Men do not believe His declarations. They cast the blame of their destruction from themselves upon God. Sometimes it is His decree which constrains them: sometimes it is the withholding of His grace which excuses them; sometimes it is the force of temptation and their own inability which exempts them from blame. The destruction of impenitent sinners is procured by themselves. I. ESTABLISH THIS TRUTH BY ARGUMENTS. 1. Drawn from the attributes of God. Where would His justice, His mercy, His veracity be, if He were the procuring cause of man's destruction? 2. Drawn from the Word of God. What terms does it use when it speaks of the nature of God? If God be to blame for the sinner's perdition, all these tender expostulations must be only a pompous display of unreal feelings. God gives many unequivocal assurances that He would "have all men to be saved." If God is to blame, these assurances must be untrue. 3. Drawn from the conduct of God. Observe the way in which He has acted towards our race in general, or toward each one of us in particular, and we must be convinced that if we are lost, the blame of our perdition must rest entirely on ourselves. 4. The sentiments of all believers establish this same truth. 5. The testimony of believers is corroborated by the confessions of sinners them selves. Nevertheless, sinners object to this truth. II. ANSWER THE OBJECTIONS. 1. From the decrees of God. This objection is drawn from a subject of which we have very inadequate conceptions, and in which we soon get beyond our depth. 2. The principle on which this objection is founded is not a just one. It is that when two doctrines are affirmed in the Scripture, which to our limited capacity appear irreconcileable, we are authorised to embrace the one and reject the other. Show why this principle is unjust. 3. From the inability of man. It is said that God requires of men certain duties which they cannot perform. But inability is of two kinds, natural and moral. Natural inability consists in a defect of rational faculties, bodily powers, or external advantages. Moral inability consists only in the want of a proper disposition of heart to use our natural ability aright. And this is the essence of sin. If the sinner lies under the first inability, he is excusable; but if under the second, he is inexcusable. Moral inability is viciousness of heart, and depravity of disposition. By reason of wilfully cherishing this moral inability, you are inexcusable, you "destroy yourselves." (H. Kollock, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.WEB: You are destroyed, Israel, because you are against me, against your help. |
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