Part 4

But we have not yet done with Ruth. You see clearly that just as we are raised by redemption to a condition infinitely higher than that of Adam before the fall, so Ruth was raised by redemption to a position incomparably higher than that of Elimelech’s family before the famine. But we must look at her own previous condition, for it was far below the original condition even of Elimelech. He was one of the seed of Abraham, a member of the covenant, a proprietor in the promised land. But she was a poor heathen girl on the mountains of Moab, an alien from the commonwealth of Israel and a stranger from the covenant of promise. Yet that poor heathen girl was raised by redemption to a higher position than all the Jewesses in the whole family of Elimelech. Does it not teach us the power of redemption to break down every barrier, to overturn every human calculation, to clear away every hindrance, and to raise to the most glorious salvation those very persons whose case to man’s eye seems hopeless? Doubtless there were noble women in Bethlehem who would have been glad enough to have been brought into the sacred line of the motherhood of the Coming One. But the honour was given through redemption to the poor young widow from Moab. So there may be many Englishmen, familiar with the words of the covenant, and living, as it were, within religious boundaries, but still strangers to real fellowship with God; while others, far away in heathen lands, in India, in Africa, in China, are brought in through the power of redeeming blood, and made heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. So, again, there may be many amongst us at home who seem as far off as that young woman was when she was growing up an idolater in Moab; but the lesson that we are to learn is that there is such a fulness in redemption, such a power, such a completeness, such an efficacy that that far-distant sinner, even though he has been an idolater; though he can never forgive himself, may be forgiven by God; and not forgiven only, but raised by infinite grace even to a oneness with the Son of God. Let no one, therefore, feel hopeless, whatever his position, and whatever his past idolatry; for redeeming blood can triumph over everything, and can so blot out all sin that those who are the farthest off of any amongst us may yet be made nigh by the blood of Christ, and finally presented spotless before His throne.

But one word more about Ruth, for if we really desire thus to be made nigh, her words to Naomi may serve to illustrate the spirit in which we must come to the Lord Jesus. If we were to call this a type such an application of them would lead to nothing but confusion. But looking at it simply as a piece of history they may suggest a most important illustration. She said to Naomi, ‘Whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.’ If you desire to be made to sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus kneel down, and from the bottom of your heart say the same to Him. You may be still far away from God, a stranger in a strange land. But there is He, having come amongst us to fetch you home, to seek you, to save you, to raise you to Himself. Let there be then the loving surrender of your whole soul into His hand; and let the prayer of your inmost heart be, ‘Whither thou goest, I will go; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.’

VI. THE SPIRIT.

‘Into thine hand I commit my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.’—Ps. xxxi. 5.

IT is a very happy thing for the Church of God that David’s life was chequered by trials, and his character by no means free from fault. If he had never been in difficulty, we should never have been taught how difficulty drove him to his God; and if he had been a man without sin, we should not have had from him any lessons on repentance as we now have in his penitential psalms. To his difficulties we are indebted for the 31st psalm, and to his sins for the 51st. For this 31st psalm, ‘Trust in difficulty’ would be a suitable heading. It opens with the words, ‘In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust;’ and after referring to many sources of anxiety, it concludes with that noble appeal to all believers, ‘Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord.’

But I am not about to attempt any examination of the whole psalm, but simply to draw your attention to this one sacred verse, and to the spirit of confiding trust expressed in it. In the study of it we will examine, first, the trust, then the redemption which was the foundation of it. May God teach us so to realise the plenteous fulness of that redemption that we may be always able in confiding faith to exercise the trust!

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I. The trust

This is expressed in the words, ‘Into thy hand I commit my spirit.’ There are few words in the whole word of God, presented to us with more sacred authority than these, for they were quoted by our Lord Himself even on the cross, and were almost the last words uttered by Him before His death. We must therefore approach them with a hallowed sense of profound reverence, and remember that the place whereon we stand is holy ground.

That use of them by our Blessed Saviour shows that they express the confiding trust of a dying believer, that the trust is a death-bed trust, and one especially prepared for that solemn moment when we come to the threshold of eternity, and, leaving all below, are just on the point of entering alone into the unseen world. Let no one think lightly of such a moment, or suppose that because there may be perfect peace there is no deep solemnity in the approaching change. There is an inexpressible solemnity about it, and it is only the foolhardy man that will ever brave it unprepared. But the words of this text are exactly suited to the well-prepared believer. He has reached the point when friends can do no more for him. The faithful wife can accompany him no further; the loving child can no longer minister to his comfort; every human help utterly fails; and the dying man is left alone with God. But his Blessed Father is at his right hand, and can reach his soul even when men think he is unconscious; so that, even at that moment when to the eye of man there is nothing but weakness, confusion, and failure, the trusting heart, in the inner secrets of the soul, can lean on the Beloved, and say, ‘Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.’ This is what our Lord did just as he was dying; this is what Stephen did when he said, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit;’ and this is what I hope each of us may be able to do when the time of our departure is come, and the curtain which separates earth from heaven is being drawn aside to let us pass.

But I do not think that death is the only occasion on which we may use these words, or that we are to lay them by unused till we require them in our dying hour; for, as far as we can gather from the psalm, they are to have a present life-use likewise. The psalm is not a death-bed psalm, but one composed under difficulties. Nor did David write it under any expectation that he would be overpowered by these difficulties, for in verses 2, 3, and 4, he prays for deliverance; and in verse 8 he expressly declares, ‘Thou hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room.’ We must, therefore, regard these words as spoken by one who was in difficulty, and being in difficulty, availed himself of the privilege of committing all his difficulties into his Father’s hand. But you will observe that in this verse he does not speak so much of his difficulties as his spirit. He does not say, ‘Into thy hand I commend my difficulties,’ but ‘Into thy hand I commend my spirit.’ He may in those words have prayed for the preservation of his life, but I think it was rather the preservation of his own spirit, what St. Paul describes ‘the spirit of the mind,’ for which he required help. We all know how the spirit is harassed, and the rest of the soul disturbed, when we are placed in circumstances of perplexity. At such times we are often distracted in prayer, and are so much occupied by the things that trouble us that we are tempted to forget our resting-place. Hence the importance of especial prayer, not merely that difficulties may be overcome, but that our own spirit may be kept unruffled and undisturbed in perfect peace reposing on the Lord. This is just what David did in the psalm. He earnestly prayed that he might be delivered. ‘Deliver me in thy righteousness.’ ‘Deliver me speedily.’ He earnestly sought God’s guiding hand, in order that in his own conduct he might do God’s will: ‘For thy name’s sake lead me and guide me.’ And meanwhile he trusted his own spirit, his mind, his thoughts, his temper, his whole man into his Father’s keeping, and said, ‘Into thy hand I commit my spirit.’

II. But now let us turn to that redemption which was the foundation of his trust. He did not trust without a reason, but said, ‘Into thy hand I commit my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth;’ and we have to consider what he meant by that expression, ‘Thou hast redeemed me.’ In answer to this question, I have no hesitation in expressing my firm conviction that the redemption to which he referred was precisely the same as that on which we ourselves rest, the redemption from the guilt of sin wrought out by the Lord Jesus on the cross. There has never been any other redemption which could be the foundation of trust either in life or in death; and when we find the blessing of the Gospel connected in the Old Testament with redemption, we have no choice but to believe that the redemption with which they are connected is that great redemption by the Lord Jesus on which all our own hopes exclusively depend. Take, for example, such words as those of David, in Ps. cxxx. The great subject of that psalm is forgiveness: ‘There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared’ (ver. 4); and the reason why Israel is to hope for it is that ‘with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.’ What but the redemption through the precious blood of the Lord Jesus can be described as thus plenteous for all who need forgiveness? The same may be said of those words of God Himself in Isa. xliv. 22: ‘I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me, for I have redeemed thee.’ He cannot refer in those words to any deliverance that had already taken place, for he is only inviting the sinner to return; but he clearly refers to the blotting out of the curse through atoning blood, and to the way of life laid open to the returning sinner. So I cannot doubt for a moment that redemption in this verse means exactly the same as in both those passages. In Isaiah God said, ‘I have redeemed thee;’ and in this verse David said, ‘Thou hast redeemed me.’ The one gives, the other accepts; but they both speak of the same thing, the redemption on the cross, the only satisfaction for sin. Thus our blessed Lord, when He quoted the words, omitted this latter clause. He said, ‘Into thine hands I commit my spirit;’ but he did not say, ‘For thou hast redeemed me.’ The reason of this is obvious, for God had not redeemed Him, and He Himself was at that very time engaged in completing the redemption by His death. He could not use the words, for they referred to that great act of mercy in which at that very time He was engaged.

But it may be said, If the redemption here spoken of was not to take place for more than a thousand years after the psalm was written, how was it that David spoke of it as a completed thing? Why did he not rather say, ‘Thou art about to redeem me?’ In answer to that question, two reasons may be given, either of which would be quite sufficient to explain his words.

(1.) The redemption was already complete in the eternal purpose of God. Remember those words by St. Peter (1 Pet i. 19, 20): ‘Ye were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ . . . who verily was fore-ordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you;’ and remember how he is described (Rev. xiii. 8) as ‘the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.’ Although, therefore, the Son of God has not yet become incarnate, God speaking of His divine purpose could say, ‘I have redeemed thee;’ and His believing servant, referring to that same purpose, could reply, though a thousand years must pass before he witnessed it, ‘Thou hast redeemed me.’

(2.) But it was not purposed only, for it was promised. It was promised to our first parents the very day of their miserable fall, and it was kept continually before the eye of God’s people by a series of types and prophecies. Thus David’s language is an illustration of the words, ‘Faith is the substance of things hoped for.’ What God had promised was as sure to him as if he held it in his hand; it was as much his own as if he had seen it. He was as sure of the power of the cross of Christ, as if he had been standing by, and had heard the centurion say, ‘Verily this was the Son of God.’ And is it not apparent from the verse itself that this is the real meaning of his words? for what is the peculiar force of those concluding words ‘O Lord God of truth?’ Do they not teach us that he was assured of that redemption, not because it had seen it accomplished, but because it was made sure by the truth of God? The truth of God was pledged to the redeeming work and therefore that work was as sure to him as if it were already finished. He did not, therefore, wait to puzzle his mind about times and seasons; he knew that God was true to His promise, and therefore being assured of His declared purpose, he said, ‘Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.’

But if this be the case, we are surely brought to the conclusion that, whatever be our position, redeeming grace must be the one foundation of believing trust. Patriarchal faith looking forward, and modern Christian faith looking backward, both meet in one point, that point being the cross of Christ. And as for ourselves it matters not what are our peculiar circumstances. We may be actively engaged in the work of life, involved in its perplexities, and compelled to take a part in its struggles; or we may be at the end of life, expecting in a day or two to depart hence, and be no more: but in either case we must rest simply on the atoning blood, and resting on it, whether it be for life or for death, we may say in calm, quiet, peaceful, trusting faith, ‘Into thy hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.’

But while we trust the perfect work we must not forget the perfect truth, for we are quite as dependent on that truth as David was. To his mind that had turned a future act into a present reality, and on that same truth we rely in order that the same act, long since completed, may be to us a present salvation, and the assurance of it a present power. We want each one to look back to the cross as David looked forward to it, and to say in happy, peaceful, personal trust as he did, ‘Into thine hand I commit my spirit, for thou hast redeemed me.’ But in order to do this we must not forget the truth. We cannot rest on the work without the word any better than on the word without the work. It is when both are combined, and both applied by the Holy Ghost to the soul, that we can say, ‘Thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth,’ and resting on those eternal counsels, whether living or dying, may trust Him without a fear.

May we not then, every one of us, learn a lesson of simple trust from these few words in David’s psalm? It matters not what is our position. When we are dying men and drawing near to the gateway of eternity we may calmly look up, and trust our soul for all eternity into His hand. If we be exposed to harassing anxiety, and are anxious about our own temper and judgment in difficult circumstances, we may spread our own spirit in simple faith before the throne. Or if we are undertaking work, and endeavouring to be employed for God, feeling the need of wisdom, zeal, love, and power, we may commit it all into His loving care. Yes, whatever it is that weighs on our mind, death, anxiety, disappointment, or duty, we may trust it all, and, whatever it is, may say as St. Paul did, ‘I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.’ Yes; and He is perfectly sure to keep it safe.

But there is one little word in the text that I have not noticed, and yet it is an essential one to the trust. Great principles are often found in little words, and so it is here, for all hangs on that little monosyllable ‘me.’ If you can only say, ‘Thou hast redeemed mankind,’ your soul will never rest in abiding trust. Nor will it if you can only say, ‘Thou hast redeemed thy Church,’ for the safety of the Church does not secure the peace of the individual. It is only when you can reverently look up to the atoning blood, and say, ‘Thou hast redeemed _me_,’ that you will be able in hallowed peace to commit everything into His loving hand. When you can say with deep thanksgiving, ‘In whom _I_ have redemption through his blood,’ you may then without the shadow of a doubt commit your body, your soul, your spirit, your will, your thoughts, your work, and all you care for, into His loving hand.

VII. ANATHOTH.

‘Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee, saying, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.’—JER. xxxii. 7.

THE Old and New Testaments are so linked together that they cannot well be separated. The Old is the foundation of the New; the New is the head-stone of the Old; and the same great principles run through them both. Thus faith in the Old Testament is the same in principle as faith in the New; and by studying the faith of the ancient patriarchs and prophets we may learn most important lessons respecting that of the modern believer. In different ages and different persons faith may differ in its object and in its form; but it is always the same in principle, and always involves the fixed assurance that what God has promised He is able and certain to perform. This is very clearly seen in the deeply important lesson of practical faith conveyed to us in this history of Jeremiah. The events described in the chapter took place during the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. Zedekiah was then king, and was struggling to the utmost of his power against the powerful enemy that was come up against him. In the midst of the siege the Prophet Jeremiah was employed to convey a most discouraging prophecy, for, as you read verse 3, Jeremiah said, ‘Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will give this city unto the hands of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it.’ Of course such a prophecy was calculated to dishearten the defenders of the city. So, though it was the word of the Lord, Zedekiah arrested the prophet and shut him up in the court of the prison. Jeremiah, therefore, was in a position of great distress, the city was besieged, and he knew from his own prophecy that it would be taken; while he himself was a prisoner at the mercy of a bad and arbitrary king.

But while he was there alone in his prison the word of the Lord came to him saying that his first cousin, by name Hanameel, would come unto him and say, ‘Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.’ You will remember that we found the nearest of kin had the right of redemption, and evidently Jeremiah stood in that position to his cousin. As famine and pestilence were raging in the city (see ver. 24), it is easy to understand why Hanameel was compelled to sell. But he could not sell to any one, for the right of redemption belonged to Jeremiah. The prophet, therefore, was warned by the Lord that Hanameel was coming to him with this object; and accordingly he very soon appeared as was foretold, and said, ‘Buy my field I pray thee that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of redemption is thine; buy it for thyself,’ ver. 8. You must not fail to notice the confirmation of his faith through this fulfilment of the prophecy, for when Hanameel came to him he said, ‘Then knew I that this was the word of the Lord.’ Till then he was probably not quite satisfied, but when his cousin came as it had been foretold, then he knew it was of God. Let us learn a lesson for ourselves. There were many prophecies of a coming Saviour scattered throughout the four thousand years that preceded His birth, and I can perfectly understand the difficulty of faith in those who did not see those prophecies realised; but now that the Promised One has come according to His promise, and the great prediction has been fulfilled, the least that we can say is, ‘Now we know that this was the word of the Lord.’

But to return to Jeremiah. Being convinced that the whole thing was of God, he proceeded at once to redeem the field. He took care that the deeds were properly drawn, signed, sealed, and witnessed. And when the money, seventeen shekels of silver, was paid, and the conveyance complete, he trusted the deeds to Baruch, his faithful friend, and charged him to deposit them safely in an earthen vessel. His words were, ‘Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this evidence which is open, and put them in an earthen vessel that they may continue many days.’ You will observe that last clause, ‘that they may continue many days.’ He seemed quite sure that it would be a long time before they would be wanted.

Thus the transaction was complete, and the land redeemed; but not so Jeremiah’s part respecting it, for when he had delivered the evidence of purchase unto Baruch, his next act was to kneel down in prayer. He says, ver. 16, ‘I prayed unto the Lord.’ I have not time now to study either his prayer or God’s answer to it; I would only remark in passing what a blessed thing it is when all that we do is of such a character that we can pray about it before God. It would wonderfully alter the character of commercial life if every bargain could be spread in prayer before God, and if every contract were of such a nature that as soon as it was complete we could kneel down and ask God’s blessing on it. I am inclined to think that this principle would knock off a great many of the hard bargains made in life. It would certainly prevent all cases of fraud and adulteration, and put a stop at once to the whole principle of the non-payment of lawful debts. Jeremiah, when he would redeem the land, first paid the money, and then knelt down to pray.