THE DUTY OF THE AFFLICTED
Isaiah 9:9-14. And all the people shall know, &c.
God here complains of what Israel did when grievous and prolonged afflictions, sent by God, fell upon them [935] then they left undone what they ought to have done, and did what they ought not to have done; and this opens up the great subject of the duty of the afflicted.
[935] The Ten Tribes had already suffered many an infliction; their political organisation had often been broken up by civil wars and foreign invasions, as the house of unburnt brick dissolves into mud before the rain, and the flower of the people had been cut down as lavishly as men cut down the cheap sycamores; but with that stoutness of heart, that obstinate toughness which in all ages to the present has marked this race, the men of Ephraim and Samaria seem to rise superior to every calamity; like Solomon, they will change the sycamores for cedars, and they will replace the brick with hewn stones. The conversion of Damascus from an ancient enemy into an ally encouraged them in their hopes; but Jehovah will confound their policy by bringing the conquerors of Damascus upon them.—Strachey.
An entirely different interpretation has to be put upon affliction in the case of men whose sincere desire is to govern their lives according to the will of God, and in the case of men who are living wholly unto themselves. It is exclusively of afflictions that befall men of the latter order that we intend now to speak, though many things that will be said apply to all the afflicted.
I. In the case of the ungodly, the DESIGN of affliction is in the first instance corrective, and then, in the event of its not accomplishing this end, punitive.
II. Their DUTY is—
1. To recognise that their afflictions come from God. This is a fact that wicked men are very slow to recognise; they prefer to attribute their troubles to “bad luck,” miscalculations on their part, superior ingenuity or force on the part of their human adversaries, &c. They prefer anything to a recognition of the awful fact that it is God who is dealing with them (H. E. I. 143).
2. Submission to the will of God. This is frequently the result of recognition that the affliction comes from Him; men cease to use such language as is attributed to the Israelites (Isaiah 9:10). Were it not that sin dethrones the reason, this would always be the case; but it is not so,—men can be found so hardened in iniquity that they resolve to fight against God. Stoutheartedness in affliction is an admirable thing; there is a place for it; but it is utterly misplaced when it leads men to struggle against the Almighty. The only and inevitable result is heavier affliction and ultimate ruin (Isaiah 9:11-14. [938]. H. E. I. 146, 147).
3. Repentance toward God.
(1.) Repentance is more than submission (H. E. I. 4206–4209).
(2.) God will be satisfied with nothing less than change of heart towards Him.
(3.) Here we reach one of the most terrible results of iniquity; by it men are incapacitated for naturally doing that which is indispensable to their salvation. Did not God pity sinful men, they could never attain to that state of heart and mind without which it would be impossible for God to forgive them. But Christ has been “exalted … for to give repentance and forgiveness of sins.” With the outward stroke of affliction there comes to the heart the inward grace of Christ: let transgressors be prompt to submit to the one, and to avail themselves of the other (H. E. I. 145, 4210).
[938] A man under God’s affliction is like a bird in a net; the more he strives, the more he is entangled.—Bishop Hall.
These, then, are the duties of sinful men upon whom affliction has come. Let your compliance with them be—
1. Prompt. Not to comply with them is to perish. Not to comply with them promptly is an aggravation of all your former iniquity (H. E. I. 4247, 4248). By delay you may exhaust the Divine patience (Proverbs 29:1).
2. Thankful. Adore the benignity of God, in that He is willing to receive you on your mere repentance; a repentance which He Himself enables you to exercise. Remember that where God sees it, He does not merely turn away His chastisements from the penitent transgressor; He receives him into His favour, and blesses him as a son in whom He delights (Luke 15:22-23). Men do not act so. When their foes submit, they require from them an indemnity for the wrong that has been done; often an indemnity that is intended to be crushing, e.g., Germany and France. But God in all His dealings with penitent sinners shows Himself to be a God of grace (Micah 7:18-19).
3. Intelligent. Do not imagine that there is anything meritorious in your repentance (H. E. I. 4225–4228). Remember that God thus deals with you solely for Christ’s sake, through whose atonement it has become possible for Him to show mercy to penitent transgressors. Here is an additional argument for the exercise of repentance, that God Himself, at so great a cost, has laid the foundation on which He can deal with you otherwise than in the way of justice. If you persist in your iniquity, and by your stubbornness leave Him no alternative but to destroy you, He will be able with absolute truth to say to each of you, “Thou hast destroyed thyself!” Even in pronouncing judgment upon you, He will clear Himself; as did our Lord when He left Jerusalem to its fate (Matthew 23:37-38). [939]
[939] When the monster-taming Hercules overcame all in the Olympics, Jupiter at last, in an unknown shape, wrestled with him: the victory was uncertain, till at length Jupiter descried himself, and Hercules yielded. No striving with supreme powers: we must submit ourselves unto the mighty hand of God, acknowledge our offences, call to Him for mercy. If He strike, as it is with them that are wounded with the spear of Achilles, Ho alone must help.—Burton.