Exposition of Romans 8-11, Chapter 10 · Verse 19
VERSE 19. But I ſay, did not Iſrael know? Firſt, Moſes ſaith, *Deut. 32.31.I will prouoke you to iealouſie by them that are no people, and by a fooliſh Nation I will anger you.
THe Apoſtle hath in the verſes before ſoundly proued, that the Goſpell is by the will and counſell of God to be preached to the Gentiles.
The Iew is mute, and hath nothing farther to obiect againſt that point, but falls to excuſe his oppoſition agaiſt the preaching of the Goſpell to them, by pleading ignorance, that hee did not know it: vvas the will of God ſo to hauehave it.
To this Paul anſwereth: What (ſaith he) did not Iſrael know? Did ye not know This? Why, Moſes and Eſay affirme it, in whom you are conuerſant. And ſo falls into a plaine declaration of the Abiection of the Iewes, and receiuing of the Gentiles, as before he had done in the 9. Chapter.
Here then are two things. Firſt, a taking away of the excuſe, (viz. ignorance) which the Iewes made to couer their malice againſt the preaching of the Goſpell to the Gentiles, by a reprehenſarie declaration, that they were not ignorant. Secondly, this he proues by the Teſtimonie of the Prophets.
Did not Iſrael know? The Geneua Tranſlation ſupplieth (God.) without any ſenſe, which is exceedingly well obſerued in His Maieſties Tranſlation, and there left out: For that vvhichwhich they pretended not to know, was not God, but the will of God, in the matter before ſpoken of: As if hee ſhould ſay, You may be aſhamed to ſay you are ignorant, you know it well enough, or might or ought to know it.
doctrine The corruption of our hearts leades vsus to the practice of thoſe things which we know to be ſinne, Rom. 1.31. Iude 10.
Ʋſe 1.Abſtaine from all ſinne, ſpecially from ſinne of knowledge. A regenerate man may through infirmitie, or in the violence of tentation ſinne againſt knowledge, as Dauid and Peter; but beware of cold bloud: and continuing in knowne ſinne. Antecedent Ignorance will not ſaue a man, much more will conſequent Ignorance condemne him. Ignorantia mollit non tollit rationem peccati. Scientia non mollit peccatum, ſed tollit excuſationē peccati.Ignorance taketh not away ſinne, but knowledge taketh away all excuſe of ſinne. Now I hauehave ſpoken to them (ſaith Chriſt) they hauehave no cIoh. 15.22.colour for their ſinne. To with-hold the knowne truth in vnrighteouſneſſe, prouoketh the dRom. 1.18.wrath of God. Doeſt thou not know that drunkenneſſe, whoredome, &c. are abominable ſins? And yet thou practiſeſt them. Alas, what hope canſt thou hauehave? A willing practice of knowne ſinne, and Repentance, can nouer ſtand together: nay, it is the high way to a reprobate minde, and to that vnpardonable offence.
Though thou canſt not but ſinne in theſe daies of thy frailety, yet beware of two things. Firſt, of beeing willingly ignorant of that which God giues thee the meanes to know, for this is the marke of a wretch. 2. Pet. 3.5.Secondly, of doing contrarie to knowledge: For hee that knowes to doe well, and doth it not, and by proportion to auoid ill, and ſhunnes it not, to him it is ſinne, that is, his knowledge aggrauates his faults.Iac. 4. vlt.
Ʋſe 2.The Iewes ſinned againſt their knowledge: What was the cauſe? Euen their Enuy that the Gentiles ſhould be admitted to the prerogatiue of Grace. This made them deliuer Chriſt to be crucified. This cauſed the ſtoning of Stephen: this the perſecution of Paul. Beware of Enuy, which is a diueliſh ſinne; the rotting of the bones, which makes a man twice miſerable: For the enuious man is cruciated both with his owne euils, and with the good things of his Neighbour. The way to auoid enuy for worldly matters, is to deſpiſe the world, and the folly of it, and to louelove heauenly things; and the way to auoid enuy for the grace of God ſhewed on another, is to louelove the glory of God, which is ſet forth by my neighbour, as well as by my ſelfe.
The proofe is, from the teſtimony of two famous Prophets; Moſes, in the reſt of this 19. verſe, and Eſay, verſe 20.21.
Firſt Moſes: Moſes is called the firſt, not becauſe of a ſecond Moſes, but firſt in time or dignity: or firſt in this allegation.
The Teſtimonie is out of Deuteronomie, containing a threatning of Reiection to the Iewes, for their vile dealing againſt God: wherin are two things to be conſidered; 1. The phraſe wherein this Reiection is ſet downe. 2. The Amplification of it.
I will prouoke you to ielouſie, and I will anger you. This is the phraſe.
The Amplification is two-fold; 1. Frō the Author, which is God: who doth not cauſe enuy, but cauſe it to come to light, being in the heart before: nor is the Author of ielouſie as a ſinne, but as its a puniſhment, doing that for puniſhment, which would ſtirre vp their corrupt hearts to ielouſie. 2. From the Inſtruments which God vſeth to anger and prouoke them withall: Namely, No people: A fooliſh Nation. That is, the Gentiles; whom the Iewes accounted beaſts, and not men, euen dogges.
As a man diuorcing an adulterous wife, and in her face taking her bondmaid to be his wife, and adorning her with the garments and iewels of his former wife, muſt needs make her pine with enuy & ielouſie: So God threatens the Iewes, whō he had choſen to be his Spouſe, that he would caſt them off for their wickednes, and beſtow their priuiledges on the Gentiles. Or as a Mother, ſometimes for a fault done by her little one, thruſts it from her, and ſaith it ſhall be her child no longer, taking vp a ſtrangers child into her lap: ſo doth God threaten the Iewes. Heres the difference, we doe it not ſeriouſly, but God doth.
This is then as if the Lord ſhould ſay, You hauehave choſen another husband; I will chuſe another wife: You another God, euen your Idols; I another people, euen the Gentiles: You hauehave angred me, giuing my honor to Idols; and I vvill anger you, giuing your prerogatiues to the Gentiles.
doctrine God will forſake them, which forſake him. 2. Chro. 15.2. Iam. 4.8.
Vſe 1.To be out of the Couenant, is to be of no account. The Gentiles in regard thereof are ſaid to be No people, and a fooliſh Nation. If a King hauehave an Army of many thou-ſand dead men, or cripples, there is no reckoning to be made of them: So, no reckoning of men vnconuerted; for they are dead in their ſinnes, very beaſts without reaſon, till they be enlightned.
Ob. But are not many vnregenerate men great Politicians?
A. Yes, they are: but in the account of God they are very fooles and beaſts. The Gentiles had many learned Philoſophers and wiſe men for gouernment, before their Calling; yet God ſaith they were a fooliſh Nation. The beginning of wiſedom is the feare of God.Prou. 1.7.
Vſe 2.There are many that deſpiſe & ſcoffe the childrē of God for their ſimplicitie, and holy profeſſion: let ſuch remember, that euen by thoſe whō they ieſt at, God wil anger them, either in this life, or at the day of Iudgement. The time ſhall come, that thou ſhalt gnaſh with thy teeth, to ſee them ſaued, thy ſelfe damned, them carried to heauen, thy ſelfe haled to hell. As thou haſt laught them to ſcorne, ſo ſhall they laugh at thy deſtruction.
Ʋſe 3.Liue, England, according to thy knowledge, and bring forth fruit worthy of the Goſpel, which thou enioyeſt, and thou ſhalt liue long; elſe God will caſt thee off, and anger thee. Now we are the people of God, let vsus obey him, leſt he make vsus no people.
As a Maſter deales with a naughty ſeruant, plucking his Liuery ouer his eares, and turning him out of dores: ſo God will take from vsus his Word and Sacraments, our Liuerie and cognizance, if we reuerently profit not by them, but deſpiſe them. Now God honours vsus aboue many, nay, aboue any Nation. O what griefe, enuy, anger, ielouſie, muſt it needes breed, if euer the day ſhould come, that wee ſhould ſee the Turks, or other Infidels, poſſeſſors of theſe fauours, and our ſelues turned off! There would be no griefe to this.
The Gentiles got the kingdome of the Iewes, and all their wealth: but for all this, they enuied not them ſo much, as that God ſhould be the God of the Gentiles, and not of the Iewes. The loſing of their Temporalties, was not ſo much vntounto them, as the loſing of their Spiritualties. Thus hee dealt with the Iewes, and thus will he deale with vsus, if we deſpiſe his Goſpel, not belieuing nor obeying it. But if wee forſake not God, he will neuer forſake vsus: it can neuer be ſhewed by any obſeruation, that God began firſt.