Exposition of Ezekiel 14-19, Commentary on Ezechiel · Chapter 16 · Verses 60-63
VERS. 60, 61, 62, 63.
Nevertheleſſe I will remember my covenant with thee in the dayes of thy youth, and I will eſtabliſh unto thee an everlaſting covenant.
Then thou ſhalt remember thy wayes, and be aſhamed, when thou ſhalt receive thy ſiſters, thine elder and thy younger, and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant.
And I will eſtabliſh my covenant with thee, and thou ſhalt know that I am the Lord.
That thou mayeſt remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more becauſe of thy ſhame, when I am pacified towards thee for all that thou haſt done ſaith the Lord.
WEe are now come to the ſixth and laſt part of the Chapter, which is Evangelicall, and conteins promiſes of mercy and comfort. Formerly the Prophets had thundred out the threats of God againſt the multitude and wicked ones; here he brings forth cordials to refreſh the ſad hearts, and drooping ſpirits of the Saints who were amonſt them.
In the words are held out,
1. Mention of a covenant made, and the time of it; My covenant with thee in the dayes of thy youth.
2. A double promiſe.
1. Of remembring that Covenant.
2. Of eſtabliſhing an everlaſting covenant, verſ. 60.62.
3. The benefits of the Covenant, or effects thereof, which are,
1. Evangelicall repentance, verſ. 61. Then ſhalt thou remember thy wayes, and be aſhamed. 63. That thou maiſt remember, &c.
2. Reception of her ſiſters to mercy, the incorporation of Jewes and Gentiles into one body, which is done by way of gift and free grace; I will give them unto thee, but not by thy covenant.
3. Acknowledgement of the Lord, verſ. 62. And thou ſhalt know that I am the Lord.
4. Patient ſubmiſſion unto the hand of God, verſ. 63. And never open thy mouth any more.
5. Propitiation or pacification; When I am pacified tow…rds thee.
Verſ. 60. Nevertheleſſe I will remember my covenant with thee.
God properly doth neither remember nor forget; they are humane acts; remembrance is an act of the underſtanding, recollecting the ſpecies of things forgotten: and forgetfulneſs is a ſeparation between the underſtanding & the ſpecies of things, not always an abolition, in theſe ſenſes neither the one nor the other doth befall God: He is ſaid to remember, when he doth that which demonſtrates he hath regard to us, and ſo to remember his Covenant, when hee deales with us according to the grace and mercy comprehended in it. Pſal. 115.12. The Lord hath been mindfull of us, he will bleſſe us. His bleſſing is evidence of his mindfulneſſe. 136.23. who remembred us in our low eſtate. God did that convinced them that he was mindfull of them. So Pſal. 98.23. The Lord hath made known his ſalvation, his righteouſneſſe hath he openly ſhewed, he hath remembred his mercy and truth.
God is ſaid to remember in regard of us, not of himſelfe. Chryſ. Hom. 27. in Gen. becauſe he makes us to know and remember. When he doth ſuch things as are documenta & indicia, that he is mindful of his Covenant. As when God puniſheth, lays his hand heavy upon people, he remembers them and their iniquities: and thus Maldonate carries it here, I will remember my Covenant; that is ſaith he, I will puniſh you; for puniſhments are part of the Covenant as well as promiſes: but although he be right in this, that when God puniſhes, he remembers men, and makes men remember him; yet he is alone with all Interpreters I meet with, in putting that ſenſe here upon the words. They all take them to be meant of a gracious remembrance of his Covenant; I will remember my covenant. I ſhewed thee much kindneſſe then, and I will again ſhew thee kindneſſe,
My Covenant.
I ſpake largely of the word berith, whence it was derived, and of the nature of a Covenant in the 8. verſ. He ſaith here not the covenant, but my covenant: he was principall in it, he ſware and entered into Covenant with them.
In the dayes of thy youth.
When thou waſt in Abrahams family and loynes, or when thou waſt brought out of Aegypt, and wandredſt in the Wilderneſſe at mount-Sinai, I made a Covenant with thee, being newly come out of the houſe of bondage.
I will eſtabliſh.
Heb. is, foreign I will confirme. You have the ſame word, Iſa. 29.3. and it's tranſlated, I will raiſe forts againſt thee. …pt. is, foreign ſuſcitabo, conſtituam, you have broken, nul'd the Covenant what lyes in you; but I will raiſe it up againe, and put life and power into it, make it firme and ſtable: ſo Vatab. and Vulg. ſuſcitabo.
An everlaſting Covenant.
Heb. is, foreign pactum ſeculi. Sept. foreign an eternall teſtament. Vatab. Vulg. Lavat. pactum ſempiternum. Calv. Aecolampad. Jun. Pol. faedus perpetuum. Fr: une aliance eternelle.
What covenant this was is to be opened. When this people had ſo grievouſly ſinn'd, as to be in a great part ruin'd, and the reſt ſent into captivity to outward view, God ſeem'd to have no people; the promiſe made to Abraham, Iſaac, & Jacob, that in their ſeed all the Nations of the earth ſhould be bleſſed, ſeem'd to be void, and the Covenant made between God and them at Mount-Sinai wholly diſſolv'd; but however things appeared, it was otherwiſe: God minded his Covenant, and would eſtabliſh it with the remnant of them; and make additions of more grace and mercy to it, before he gave them the Law in Tables of ſtone, now hee would write it in their hearts, and give them power to keep it. In Jer. 31.31, 32, 33, 34. you have the Covenant ſet downe which our prophet here meanes, and it's cal'd a new Covenant, becauſe of the new addition and new adminiſtrations, not that the ſubſtance of it is altered: It's the ſame law is written in the hearts of thoſe God makes his Covenant with, as was writ in the tables of ſtone. It's againe mentioned in Heb. 8.10, 11, 12. That covenant at Mount-Sinai ſome make to be mix'd partly of workes, and partly of grace; ſome looked for life and juſtification by it, but therein it was faulty and weake, Rom. 9.31, 32. Gal. 3.21. Rom. 3.20. Chap. 8.3. And ſo farre as it comprehended ought of the Covenant of works, it was antiquated, and more grace added, Chriſt and the Goſpel brought in more clearely and fully.
Obſerv. 1.
Although Gods people ſin greatly, break covenant with him, meet with ſad judgements, yet he will ſpare ſome of them, and ſhew mercy to them. Jeruſalem had grievouſly ſin'd, deſpis'd the oath, broken covenant, deſerv'd as ill at Gods hands as could be; but what ſaith God; Nevertheleſſe I will, &c. However the people of God ſin, however he deale with them for a ſeaſon, yet hee will not altogether take mercy from them. Judg. 2.13. They forſooke the Lord, and ſerved Baal and Aſhtorath; whereupon God ſold them into the hands of their enemies round about: God was againſt them for evill, and they were greatly diſtreſſed. Verſ. 16. Nevertheleſſe the Lord raiſed them up Judges, which delivered them out of the hand of their ſpoilers. Pſal. 106.78. They underſtood not the workes of God in Aegypt, nor remembred the multitude of his mercies, but provoked him at the Sea, even at the Red Sea. Nevertheleſſe he ſaved them for his name ſake. Pſal. 89.31, 32, 33. If they break my ſtatutes, and keepe not my commandements, I will viſite their tranſgreſſions with the rod, and their iniquity with ſtripes. Nevertheleſſe my loving kindneſſe will I not utterly take from you. Iſa. 57.17, 18. For the iniquity of his covetouſneſſe I was wrath, and ſmote him, and hid me, and was wrath, he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. This was bad enough: and though God hid himſelfe, yet he ſaw what hee did. I have ſeen his wayes, croſſe, perverſe, provoking. Nevertheleſſe I will heale him alſo, and reſtore comforts unto him.
This ſets out the glory and greatneſſe of divine mercy: Are a people rich in ſinning? God is rich in mercy; are their ſins great? his mercies are greater; are their ſinnes olde? his mercies are from everlaſting. Let not ſowre, hard, ſinking thoughts lodge in our breaſts, what-ever our ſins have been. Pſalm 147.11. The Lord hath pleaſure in thoſe hope in his mercy.
2: However men forget their promiſes, covenants, yea break them; yet God will not forget his promiſes, his covenant, I will remember my covenant. Though man had a ſtrict charge not to forget the covenant: Deut. 4.23. Take heed to your ſelves leſt yee forget the covenant of the Lord your God. Yet he forgate it; yet God doth not ſo, he is a God forgets not covenant, verſ. 31. He is mindfull of it, Pſal. 111.5. He keeps covenant, 2 Chron. 26.14. He remembers it for ever, Pſal. 105.8. Men are deceitfull, lying, vaine things. Pſal. 62.9. Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lye: but God is reall, faithful and true; hence i'ts ſaid, Deut. 7.9. The faithfull God which keepeth covenant. Tit. 1.2. God which cannot lye, promiſed. And 2 Tim. 2.13. If we believe not, yet he abideth faithfull, he cannot deny himſelfe. However the creature prove, God doth things upon the acount of his faithfulneſſe. 1 Theſ. 5.24. Faithfull is he who hath called you, who alſo will doe it.
Solomon juſtifies God in this point of his faithfulneſſe obſervably. 1 King. 8.56. Bleſſed be the Lord which hath given reſt unto his people Iſrael, according to all that he promiſed, there hath not failed one word of all his good promiſe which he promiſed by the hand of Moſes his ſervant. So in Joſh. 23.14. ſaith he, I am going the way of all the earth, and ye know, in all your hearts, and in all your ſoules, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord your God ſpake concerning you, all are come to paſſe unto you.
Therefore doubting of Gods performance is a great ſin; to diſtruſt him cannot faile us or deceive us is intollerable; we apprehend it ſo through weakneſſe of grace and ſtrength of corruption. Pſal. 89.39. Thou haſt made void the covenant of thy ſervant. Becauſe things went ill, the Church was ſorely afflicted, and many ſuffered hard things, he thought ſo. God had told David a little before, that he would not ſuffer his faithfulneſſe to faile. Pſal. 77.8. ſaith Aſaph, is his mercy cleane gone? doth his promiſe faile for evermore?
Let us truſt in the Lord for ever, and truſt perfectly, he is a God of truth, remembers his covenant. Pſal. 146.5. Happy is he whoſe hope is in the Lord, &c.
It ſhould be encouragement to prayer, Pſal. 89.49. Lord where are thy former loving kindneſſes which thou ſwareſt unto David in thy truth. Pſal. 74.20. Have reſpect unto the covenant: for the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty. The covenant with Abraham, Iſaac, &c. Abraham father of all the faithfull now, and we may preſſe God with the Covenant, as David, For the darke places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty.
3. Mercies come from God to a people through the Covenant, or for the Covenants ſake: had not the Lord beene in Covenant with this people, he would have minded them no more then other Nations: but becauſe he had made a covenant with them in the dayes of their youth, therefore he would ſhew mercy, doe for them. 2 King. 13.23. The Lord was gracious unto them, and had reſpect unto them, and compaſſion on them becauſe of his covenant with Abraham, Iſaac, and Jacob. Though they were very wicked, murmuring, provoked God many wayes, yet for his Covenant-ſake he did ſhew them kindneſſe. Pſal. 105.42. He gave them quailes, water out of the rocke: and why? did they deſerve it: no, for he remembred his holy promiſe, and Abraham his ſervant. Moſes knew this, and therefore when the people had ſin'd, ſo as that God was reſolv'd to deſtroy them, Exod. 32. Calfe, &c. Verſ. 13. he ſets upon God with this argument; Remember Abraham, Iſaac, and Iſrael thy ſervant, unto whom thou ſwareſt by thine owne ſelfe. As it's a great condeſcenſion in God to make Covenant with any, ſo it's unſpeakable mercy to thoſe that are in Covenant with him.
4. When a Covenant is ſhaken, broken, fallen to the earth, and null'd on mans part, God can raiſe it up again; I will eſtabliſh. Jeruſalem had ſin'd, ſuffered grievous things, was carryed into Babylon, abode there 70. yeares, and lay buryed as in a grave, the Jewes were even out of hope, Ezek. 37.11. Our bones are dryed, our hope is loſt, and we are cut off for our parts. But in the next verſe ſaith God, O my people I will open your graves, cauſe you to come up out of them, and bring you into the land of Iſrael.
5. When God doth renew the covenant with his people, he makes ſome comfortable, or gracious additions; as when an houſe, Towne, or City are repaired or new built, ſome enlargements or beautifyings there are, which were not before. So here, I will eſtabliſh to thee an everlaſting covenant. The Covenant before, they brake; but this was a Covenant they ſhould not breake, Jer. 31.32. Therefore this Covenant is ſaid, Heb. 8.6. to be a better covenant, and eſtabliſhed upon better promiſes. The promiſes are; That he will write his law in their hearts: That all ſhall know him from, &c. That he will forgive their iniquity, and remember their ſin no more. Theſe promiſes are better.
1. More ſpirituall.
2. More free without conditions.
3. More extenſive.
Second editions have additions. Adam had the promiſe. Abraham more fully, &c. with an oath.
6. God doth all here upon the account of his owne good pleaſure; I will remember, I will eſtabliſh.
What ſaw God now in Jeruſalem to cauſe or incline him to renew the Covenant: Shee had deſpiſed the Oath, broken the Covenant, run out to exceſſive idolatry; yet ſaith God, I will, &c. Iſa. 43.25. I am he that blotteth out thy tranſgreſſions for my owne ſake, not their ſakes. 1 John 2.12. I write unto you little children, becauſe your ſinnes are forgiven you for his mames ſake.
A new heart will I give you, a new ſpirit will I put within you.
I will put my ſpirit within you, &c. Ezek. 36.26, 27.