Isaiah 1:3 The ox knows his owner, and the donkey his master's crib: but Israel does not know, my people does not consider. I. THE WEIGHTIEST OBLIGATION. Isaiah speaks of ownership as a relation existing between a brute beast and a man; the "ox knoweth its owner." There is a legal and not unimportant sense in which a man may own art animal; the creature is his in so far as this, that no one else can lay an equal claim to its use, and no one can dispute his legal right to employ it in his service. In a far larger sense than this does man belong to God. God has that strong and indefeasible claim (1) which the Creator has on the creature he has called into being; (2) which the Divine Sustainer has on the one whom he has been momentarily preserving in being; (3) which the generous Giver has on the one upon whom he is bestowing innumerable and invaluable benefactions; (4) which the merciful Judge has on the one he has spared again and again when life has been forfeited by wrong-doing; (5) which the Divine Friend has on the one whom he has delivered at the greatest possible cost to himself. Surely he is, in very deed, our Divine Owner: to him we belong; our lives, our powers, ourselves, are his. There is nothing which the brute of the field owes to his human master, there is nothing which man owes to man, that is comparable to that strong, supreme obligation under which we all rest to God. II. THE HIGHEST INTEREST. The ass or any other domestic animal has the greatest interest in his "crib:" there he finds food, rest, renewal, - life. The highest interest which man has is not in the place where he secures food and rest. This is, indeed, necessary for his bodily well-being. But in gaining this he does not find his life. The life of man is in an instructed mind and, still more distinctively, in a well-ordered soul; in an intelligence that holds the highest truth it is capable of receiving; in a heart that fills and overflows with purest and holiest emotions; in a will that chooses the wisest courses; in a spiritual nature that realizes and rejoices in its highest relationships. A man who acts as if his chief interest were in a comfortable "crib," a well-stocked "stall," is a man who does not know himself and his opportunities. III. THE DIVINE REPROACH. "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib," etc. The brute beast has sense enough to recognize his master, discernment enough to perceive what is best for him to do, but instructed and enlightened Israel, recipients of so many mercies, and with all their golden chances of enlargement and elevation, did not recognize their God nor understand their true and real interests. When we live in ignorance of God and in pursuit of the lower instead of the higher blessedness, we may see ourselves condemned and feel ashamed in our soul as we look on the beasts of the field, and see them using their humble powers to discharge their duties and to enjoy their heritage. A life of spiritual ignorance is (1) a shameful thing, rebuked by the "beasts that perish;" (2) a guilty thing, exciting the high displeasure of Almighty God, drawing down his urgent and powerful remonstrance; (3) a needless thing, - it is in our power to rise above it, if we will and when we will. The last word of the text, as rendered in our version, is suggestive of the true way of return. We have to "consider," to reflect upon our obligation and our interest; and honest and serious consideration must lead to self-condemnation, conviction will end in repentance, and repentance will issue in eternal life. - C. Parallel Verses KJV: The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider. |
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