Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/4_400.lzh/4_419.TXT

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the Papists now, or they do not flow from love; nor i
are they done in faith, nor in the name and strength of
Christ, nor to the glory of God by him: some, as the
same persons, would be thought to be rich in righte-
ousness, when they have no true righteousness at all;
not the righteousness of the law, which requires per-
fection of obedience; not the righteousness of faith,
which is the righteousness of another; the righteous-
ness of God is imputed, and is without the works of
men; they have no righteousness that can justify them,
or save thetn, or bring them to heaven: some, as the
Arminians, would be thought to be rich :,n spiritual
strength, and in the power of their free will, when
they have neither will nor power to any thing spiri-
tually good; neither to regenerate and convert them-
selves, nor to come to Christ, nor to do any good
work: some, as the Perfectionists, would be thought
to be so rich as to be free from sin, and perfect in
grace, when they have none at all, as says the apostle,
1 John i. 2. their picture is drawn in Ephraim, and
their language spoke by him, Hos. xii. 8. The apos-
tate church of Rome would be thought rich with the
merits of saints, and works of supererogation, when
she has no merit at all; nor is it possible for a creature
to ,merit any thing at the hands of God; compare with
all thi. Rev. iii. 17. There is that maketh himself
poor, yet hath great riches; there are some, on the
other hand, who greatly degrade themselves; live in a
very mean way, as though they were very poor; either
through covetousness, or because they would not draw
upon them the envy of their neighhours, or 'encourage
their friends to borrow of them, or invite thieves to
steal from them, or for some low end or another: the
pope of Rome sometimes affects to seem poor, though
at other times, and in other respects, he would be
thought rich; at the Lateran procession the new-
elected pope scatters pieces of brass money among the
people, saying, as Peter, whose successor he pretends
to be, did, Silver and gold have I none; yet comes into
great riches. These words may be applied spiritually,
in a good sense; there are some who are sensible of
their spiritual poverty, and own it; they ingenuously
express the sense they have .of their own nothingness
and unworthiness; they declare they have nothing,
and can do nothing; they renounce all their own
works in the business of salvation, and ascribe it wholly
to the grace of God; they have very mean thoughts,
and speak very meanly of themselves, as less than the
least of saints, and the chief of sinners: yea, some
carry the matter too far in the expressions of their po-
verty; will not be persuaded that they have the true
riches of grace, at least will not own it; but give way
to their dsubts and fears about it, when they are pos-
sessed of much; to whom some think these words are
applicable. However, they are to such who are poor
in spirit, as before described; who have, notwithstand-
ing, great riches, the riches of justifying grace, the
riches of Christ's righteousness: the riches of pardon-
ing grace, a large share thereof, much being forgiven
them; the riches of sanctifying grace, faith, more pre-
cious than that of gold that perisheth, with all other
graces; the riches of spiritual knowledge, preferable to
gold and silver: they have Christ, and all things along
with him; they have God to be their portion, and ex-
ceeding great reward; they have a large estate, an in-
corruptible inheritance, in heaven; they have a better
and a more enduring substance there; theirs is the
kingdom of heaven, Matt. v. 3. it is prepared for
them, and given to them; compare with this 2 Cor.
vi. 10.
Vet. 8. The ransom of a man's life are his riches,
As Benhadad's were to him, when he was in the hands
of the king of Israel, 1 Kings xx. 3,-1-. and as the trea-
sures the ten men had in the field were to them, for
the sake of which Ishmael, the son of Netbanish, slew
them not, Jer. xli. 8. This is the advantage of riches
when a man is taken captive in war, or by pirates, or is
in the hands of thieves and robbers, he can redeem
himself by his money; or when his life is in danger by
diseases, he can procure healing medicines; or by fa-
mine, he can get food to preserve it, when a poor man
cannot: but this is not to be done always, and is only
to be understood of a temporal life; for, as to the spi-
ritual and eternal redemption of the soul of man, that
requires a greater ransom-price than such corruptible
things as silver and gold; nothing short of the precious
blood of Christ is sufficient for that, Job xxxvi. 18.
Psal. xlix. 6--8. 1 Pet. i. 18, 19. Moreover, these words
may not so much design the convenience as the incon-
venience of riches to men; since these often invite
thieves to assault their persons, and break into their
houses, and threaten their lives; and put wicked men
upon forming schemes, and drawing up charges and
cusations against them, purely to get their money;
which bring their lives into danger, and which they
can only redeem by their riches. But the poor hear-
eth not rebuke; no charge and accusation is brought
against him; no rebuke or reproof is given him; no
notice is taken of him, because nothing is to be got from
him; he may sleep with his door unlocked, thieves
will give him no disturbance; he may travel upon the
road without being bid to stand {c}. Jarchi interprets
this of him that is poor in the law; that hearkens not
to reproofs and admonitions, given him to depart from
evil: but rathe,-it may be applied to the poor in
spirit; who trust not in themselves ar, d their own
righteousness, but in the grace of God and righte-
ousness of Christ; who indeed hear the rebukes of
good men, and take them kindly; and of bad men, and
return not revilings for them; and also the rebukes of
Providence, or the chastisemeats of their heavenly
Father, yet they will never hear any rebuke in wrath
from him here or hereafter; when the rich in their
own conceit, who trust in their riches and righteous-
ness, and think to ransom their souls from death by
them, will have rebukes with flames of ire.
Ver. 9. The light of the righteous rejoiceth, &c.]
The light of joy and gladness, which is sown for them,
and arises to them; the light of spiritual knowledge
and experience they have; the light of sound doc-
trine; the light of good works, and a Gospel conver-
sation; all this, as it is delightful to themselves anti
others, so it is increasing more and more to the per-
feet day, and it continues: so the Septuagint and

{c} Cantabit vacuus coram latrone viator, Juvenal. Sat. 10. v. 22.