his authority, is only vain oblation, which can never afcend before his throne with acceptance.

12 When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand to tread my courts?

The hypocritical people to whom God, by the prophet, directed this difcourfe, continued to attend the ordinances of divine inftitution, and regularly to appear before the Lord in the duties of his worship; and therefore rafhly concluded, they merited the favour of God, and were accepted of him. The appearances referred to, might be either thofe which were more ordinary and frequent, when they were employed in the daily and weekly exercises of divine worship, or thofe which were more feldom and folemn, when, three times in the year, all the males appeared before the Lord their God. In order to administer just reproof for their improper conduct, and the unfuitable manner in which they made thefe appearances, the inquiry before us is propofed, in which the prophet expoftulates with them concerning their fin and folly. Who hath required this at your hands, &c. The Most High had exprefsly commanded them to appear before him on many occafions, and particularly fpecified in what manner they ought to approach his facred prefence. Their carelefs inattention to this laftmentioned circumftance gave occafion to the challenge contained in this verfe. You who were never cleanfed from your fins, who have not returned to the Lord in the exercife of fincere repentance, and whofe hearts are far from him, whilst you profefs much love to him with your mouths, can you poffibly imagine, that the all-perfect and moft holy Jehovah would command you to tread his courts, whilft you only bring thither your bodies, and leave your hearts behind you? Be affured, that he never required you to approach the courts of his houfe in fuch an unholy

and

and hypocritical manner, and that he will never accept or approve of fuch diffimulation. It is your hearts which he chiefly regards, and juftly claims, without which all your fpecious appearances, all your numerous oblations, are not well-pleafing to the Lord. You may be fenfible, that your hearts, far from delighting in his fervice, which is honourable and glorious, are continually going out after their covetoufnefs, and wandering after earthly objects. And can you think that the Holy One of Ifrael will accept of fuch worshippers, who, though they have a male in their flock, which is his peculiar property, yet offer to the Lord a corrupt thing, and only prefent to him the formal homage of a corruptible body, deftitute of a purified heart?-Permit me from hence to inculcate upon you, my hearers, the high importance of performing the fervice of God in the manner he requires. Being infinitely holy, he hates the leaft impurity in his worship; being very jealous, the fmalleft deviation from duty awakens his awful difpleafure. Mofes, for his rafhnefs, in not exactly executing the divine command, was excluded from the land of Canaan; and many of the Corinthians, on account of the unworthy manner in which they partook of the Lord's fupper, became weak and fickly. Inftructed of your danger, by fuch alarming inftances as thefe, labour to get your hearts brought into an unreferved fubjection to the divine authority, and to ferve God in the lively, fpiritual manner he requires, that, along with outward refpect, he may have the inward homage of renewed hearts. Thus evidence yourfelves to be the circumcifion, who worship God in the fpirit, who have no confidence in the flesh, and rejoice in Chrift Jefus.

13 Bring no more vain oblations, incenfe is an abomination unto me, the new-moons and Sabbaths, the calling of affemblies I cannot away with, it is iniquity, even the folemn meeting.

The

The hypocritical people to whom our prophet was fent are here informed, that their oblations and folemn feafts were as offenfive to God as their facrifices.The oblations mentioned were probably the offerings of the first-fruits, and the tithes of wheat and bread, wine, oil, and falt, with a variety of other things, which were ordered, by divine appointment, to be brought to the tabernacle, and afterward to the temple, that they might be prefented unto God by the priests. Thefe are called vain and unprofitable, being offered deftitute of regard to the divine authority whereby they were commanded, of that fupreme love to Jehovah with which every act of obedience ought to be accompanied, and without faith in the great objects concerning which they were defigned to convey instruction. Thefe oblations being feparated from the exercifes of repentance, prayer, and thankfgiving, had in them nothing fpiritual and valuable, that was worthy of God, acceptable to him, or that could be useful to the offerer. The Lord therefore required his profeffing people, to bring no more fuch unprofitable offerings to him. He did not order them to refrain from bringing their oblations to the place appointed, but to bring no more fuch as were unavailable for the purpofes intended by them. He would have them punctually to bring thofe offerings that might be advantageous to them, whereas he exprefsly forbids them to continue any longer perform, ing what was to them a wearifome and unmeaning fervice, that could be attended with no good confequences. To imprefs this the deeper upon their minds, it is added, Incense is an abomination unto me. Incenfe was a rich perfume, prepared of fweet fpices, which was commanded to be put on the fire laid on the altar of gold before the Lord, and to be burnt thereon continually, in order to represent the perpetual, acceptable interceffion of Jefus Chrift. This incenfe, though prepared according to divine direction, and offered on the altar which was commanded, God das

clares

clares was an abomination to him. Whilft the men of Judah foolishly imagined, that the Almighty was delighted with the fragrancy of the fpices of which it was compofed, and entertained apprehenfions of him inconfiftent with his infinite majefty and perfect purity, he affures them, that incenfe was deteftable to him, and the object of his juft abhorrence.From whence we learn this important leffon, That the abufe of things, in themselves moft valuable, in the worship of God, will render it odious to him, and provoke him to testify, how hateful thofe fervices are in his fight which are performed under the influence of formality and hypocrify. Every thing in divine worship is vain, and offenfive to the Moft High, which is not executed in the spiritual manner he hath required. This circumftance ought to render us exceedingly cautious in every part of his fervice, moft attentive to the offer ings we prefent before him, and folicitous that they may be acceptable in his fight through the interceffion of Jefus Christ.

The new-moons and fabbaths, the calling of affemblies I cannot away with, it is iniquity, even the folemn meeting. The new-moons were the days on which the moon was firft feen after the change, which was to the children of Ifrael the beginning of their months. At thefe feafons they were ordered to offer unto the Lord an additional burntoffering, a meat-offering, drink-offerings, and a finoffering, befide their daily facrifices *. These times were observed by them with peculiar marks of fanctity, and abftinence from ordinary labours, as is plainly intimated in the language of the oppreffors, recorded by the prophet Amos, When will the new'moon be gone, that we may fell corn, &c. t'.The Sabbaths are next mentioned: by which we may understand the seventh day of the week, when additional facrifices were appointed to be offered befides

See Numb. xxviii, 11. et feq.

+ Amos viii. 5.

thofe

thofe that were daily prefented. These Sabbaths were commanded to be kept holy to the Lord, as days of facred reft, and types of that eternal Sabbatifm which remaineth for the people of God. The Sabbath of years may be alfo confidered as alluded to in this expreffion; that is, every seventh year, when the land lay uncultivated, the debts of their brethren were dif charged, and fervants fet at liberty.To these are added, the calling of affemblies; the folemn convocations which were held on the 10th day of the feventh month, which they were appointed to obferve as a public faft, on which they were to afflict their fouls for fin, and to do no work. On thefe folemn occafions, the priest was to make an atonement for them, to cleanse them from all their fins, and to make an atonement for the holy fanctuary, for the tabernacle of the congregation, for the altar, for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. This was indeed a folemn meeting, as it is called in the latt clause of the verfe. What could be more folemn, than to fee the whole numerous people of Ifrael and Judah convened for the purpofes of allicting their fouls, and making atonement for their fins before the Lord?Concerning these feafons and affemblies, God faith,

I cannot away with them, it is iniquity. By these expreffions, God declares his averfion to the offerings and feftivals of the men of Judah, and fuggefts the reafon of their offenfiveness to him. It is not difficult to perceive their import, which feems to be fhortly to this effect: I cannot endure to fee you bringing oblations and incenfe to my altar, in that formal, hypocritical manner which attends you in every part of my fervice. It is highly offenfive to me, to fee you, who profefs to be my peculiar people, fpending the facred feafons I have inftituted among you in the frivolous and finful way you commonly obferve them. Instead of keeping them holy to the Lord, and entering into the fpirit of the excrcifes proper for fuch folemn occafions, your conduct exhibits a fcene of complicated