nation, a peculiar people, that ye should show forth

the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light. The children of God are, with respect to the people of the world, a kind of first fruits of His creatures, who hath called them by His grace to the knowledge of Himself. They are devoted to His service, concerned for and engaged in the promotion of His glory; while the people of the world are unconcerned about the honour of God, careless about rendering Him the fealty and obedience which is due from His rational creatures, and indifferent about the diffusion of the knowledge and love of His name in the world.

The apostle proceeds to show in what manner Christians are to conduct themselves as the redeemed from among men, the first fruits unto God, and to the Lamb." Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak. We are to be swift to hear the word of truth, that we may be made acquainted with it, and live in obedience to it. Those who turn away their ears from hearing the truth,48 cannot be the children of God. Yet, what numbers are there who refuse to hear the word of God, who despise the means of grace. If we are the children of God, we shall not forsake the assembling of ourselves together in His house of prayer, to hear His holy

46 1 Peter ii. 9. 47 Revelation xiv. 4. 48 2 Timothy iv. 4.

word; but shall be anxious so to hear, that our souls may live. We shall desire to receive the instruction of heavenly wisdom, that we may grow thereby; that we may be benefited, and God may be glorified. We shall seek grace from God to enable us to treasure up His word in our hearts, for our edification and admonition and consolation; that we may be conformed to His will in all things, and be made partakers of His great salvation.

Those who are swift to hear are to be slow to speak, that is, in cavilling, or objecting to the word of God. We find that those who heard our Lord Jesus Christ, were continually finding fault with His instructions; whatever He said, they were always ready to raise some objection against His doctrine. The hearers of the gospel of Christ are to be slow to speak. They are to meditate upon the word of God, to examine what they hear by the unerring record of Divine truth, as the Bereans are commended for doing; of whom it is said, that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so; and therefore many of them believed. The hearers of the word of God are also to watch over their words as well as their conduct, to bridle their tongues, and not to speak evil one of another, as our apostle exhorts;

49 Acts xvii. 11, 12.

50 1 Timothy i. 7.

but to be careful on all occasions what they say, and whereof they affirm.50

They are likewise to be slow to wrath; to beware of being angry with the word which they hear, or of taking offence at it, as the hearers of Christ did. They were offended with Him. To beware also of being angry that others do not receive the word of God into their hearts; that some around them are forgetful hearers and not doers of the word. They are to be slow to wrath, because the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. The righteous cause of God is not to be promoted by human wrath being enlisted under its banner. If we are indeed grieved at the hardness of the hearts of any persons, we should rather express our grief in prayer for them, than by indignation. Our prayers will do them good, and will certainly bring a blessing upon ourselves, while our wrath will do them no good, but ourselves harm.

The apostle next informs us in what spirit we should hear the word of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness. A polluted mind will never entertain the word of God. All impurity is so abhorrent from the Divine nature, that the Spirit of God cannot dwell where filthy thoughts are indulged in the mind, or filthy practices allowed in the conduct. Where faith in Christ exists, it purifies the heart and the life. The hearer of the word of God is also to put away all superfluity

of naughtiness, or all that wickedness with which the world abounds and overflows. He is not to think lightly of sin because it is so common, or because multitudes of people are living in ungodly practices. The overflowings of ungodliness, and the multitude of the ungodly, should rather excite in him a spirit of watchfulness and prayer, that he may not be led away by the evil examples around him, to do that which is displeasing to the Lord, who is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity.51 This precept also implies, that those who attend the house of God should come before Him with deep self-abasement, confessing their sins, and humbly imploring His pardoning mercy and sanctifying grace, that they may be pleasing to Him; and thus may be prepared to hear what He shall say to them in His holy word.

The apostle goes on to exhort his Christian brethren, to receive with meekness the engrafted word, which, he says, is able to save your souls. We are to consider that it is the gospel of our salvation which demands our attention, and therefore it should be heard with meekness and humility. And that the word of God must be engrafted or implanted in us, must take root in our hearts, and become a living principle within us, in consequence of which we shall be fruitful in every good word and work.52 It is thus that the word of God must operate in us, in order to the salvation of our

souls. We must be influenced by the Spirit of God, to be enabled to receive the word of God in this manner. It is by His grace that the incorruptible seed of the word of God takes root in the heart. He breaks up the fallow ground, He produces conviction of sin in the mind, which humbles the sinner at His feet, and leads him to value the word of God, so as to receive it with meekness and humility. By His grace the careless hearer is no longer indifferent to the things which concern the salvation of his soul, but hears the word of God with an earnest desire to be made acquainted with the things which belong to His everlasting peace. By His grace the temporary hearer, who was carried away by his feelings, becomes steady and serious and earnest that the word of God may abide in his heart and not be unfruitful. By His grace the worldlyminded hearer is led to dismiss the cares of this world from his mind, that he may direct his attention to that which is beyond it, to the world to come; and instead of seeking his portion in this life, to desire earnestly that which is better than any thing which this world can give, to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.53

Is it our prayer, when we hear the word of God, that the Spirit of God would, by His grace, enable us to receive it with meekness and hu

51 Habakkuk i. 13. 52 Colossians i. 10. 53 Matthew vi. 33.