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"Don't you think there i si nGod much that i s incomprehensible?" Manifestly. Therefore i t stands writen, "Canst thou find out th eAlmighty t o perfection," (Job 1 1 : 7 ); an dagain "How unsearch- able ar eHi sjudgments an dHi s ways past finding out, " (Rom . 11.33) . Bu t you misapply th e principle i n your Scripture interpretation. Yo ucriticise as i f yo uknew al labout Go dwhen yo u "wrest" ( 2Pet .3:16) th e"hard saying" (Jno. 6 : 60 ) thinking "Go d could not , have uttered these exact words, they are no tlike Him. H ei s incomprehensi-. ble, th eprophet misunderstood." Where- as yo ushould say ,"This i s a hard say - ing" bu tGo di s unsearchable; H ei s not what I fancy Hi mt o be ,bu twhat He ha srevealed Himself t o be. " "Can Psalm 2:4 ,b e th eexact expres- sion o f God? Would H eever hold a lost soul i n derision?" Th eword does no t say that H ewould laugh a ta "lost soul." The anti-Christian powers o f earth ar e seen marshalling their puny wisdom an d strength Impiously against omniscent omnipotence, wh oca nbu tlaugh a t an d mock their folly? I t i s a s a naughty child beating an dkicking th e strong man wh olaughs an dmocks a t it s feeble resistance—yet i n n o vindictive spirit. What i s more ludicrous than pigmy ma n "Kicking against th e pricks?" (Act . 9 : 5 ) ."How ca nw e sup - pose that Go dwould make th emistake of repeating in .Ezra I. ; what wa sal - already written i n II . Chro. 36? " Ho w do yo uknow that this wa sa mistake? Can a writer never repeat himself, es - pecially i n another connection, bu tb y mistake? Or ,a s i t i s i n this Instance, a different writer copy, o r restate a re - cord bu tb ymistake? Was i t a mistake for Paul t osa yt o th eRomans, "the just shall live b yfaith," and to repeat i tt o the Galatians," an dagain t o th e Hebrews? And must w ereject th etruth that Go d spoke i n each case through Paul be - cause these instances were al l quoted from Habbakuk? Di dno tGo dinspire and control th eEvangelists because th e synoptics tell practically th esame story? Wouid i t b emore honor t o Go d fo r Hi m to us eme nan dimpart information i n a manner unnatural, no t customary among me nthan contrariwise? Go d
does no tstultify himseilf b y repetition. Sometimes I feel an dpray earnestly, at others I d ono tfeel; ar em y prayers acceptable i n the latter Case?" That w o should ever come t o th egracious Lord God, and plead 1or the blessings o f salva- tion; th ewelfare o f ou rbeloved; th e conversion o f solus; an d th e evangeliza- tion o f th e world without feeling, i s shameful an dshows Si nha sdulled ou r sensibility. Bu t prayer rests o nM no t feeling. I fth efacts o f prayer, faith, sin - cerity, an dtrue desire; God, th eprom- ise, an dtn eneed, remain, ou rprayers are acceptable i n Jesus Christ, th esame yesterday, and' today, an dforever. I f you meant i t yesterday, when yo ufelt, you mean i ttoday, when you d ono tfeel; you desire t o feel, an dt o have a sense of adoring gratitude. W ehave "a n High Priest wh oca nb e touched with the feeling o four infirmity." H ealways feels, an dfeels fo rus ,a s well a s with us. W e ar e accepted i n Him ,an d heard i n Him ,b y virtue o f Hi schoice, for w ear echosen i nHim eternities ago . He ca n no t change, an d s o long a s we change only i n feelidpg, not , i n will an d purpose an d belief i nHi m He hears. T o remember, an d t o meditate o n these things does much to restore feeling. Th efact that i s the thing, no tth efeel. "How ar ew e t o understand (Gen . 49:10) . Wa sno t 'th escepter' taken from Judah before Christ ("Shiloh") came?" Th etext ha sseveral possible renderings. Perhaps n oother verse ha s had more wresting this wa yan d that. We ma ydeal with th e question more fully i n th enext issue. Th e fact that neither translation ca nb e dogmatically asserted cancels i t a sa n argument posi- tively identifying Jesus a s th eMessiah; but very fe wdeny that i t i s Messianic, the ol dJewish commentators agreed i n this. Th emost natural rendering an d most harmonious with other predictions, is absolutely true t o th eHebrew, "Th e scepter shall no tdepart frotn Judah for - ever; fo rShiloh shall come; an dt o Him shall th eobedience o f th epeoples be. " The Heb . fo r "until" means also "for - ever." Judah's throne ha sfallen; bu t not forever; th ePrince o f Peace shall restore it .
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