1 Kings 19:12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. 1. This "still small voice," for us, is both conscience and Jesus. It is Jesus, acting by His wisdom, and His truth, and His courtesy, and His gentleness, and righteousness, and holiness, on our conscience. And the "still small voice" of affection says, "Great is intellect; glorious is the pursuit of truth, knowledge, discovery; glorious the application of these things in what we call art! Glorious all that. More beautiful still, more truly human is the love of a sister for her brother, the love of a mother for her child. Love is more beautiful than even thought, glorious as thought is." Does conscience tell us that this God watches over us, that He acts according to laws? But those laws are much more manifold than we suspect, much more complicated than we suspect. It is a west wind blowing, with, I believe, a little south in it. Do you think that is an accident? It is all the result of law, laws and influences — antecedents, we may call them-that have been at work for four thousand and more years before to-day. It is very difficult to ascertain all those laws; nay, it is humanly possible and impracticable. But God has all those antecedents in His hand. To speak it reverently, think it reverently, that Great Mechanic has but to touch some of those remote and complicated links in the chain of antecedents, or cause and effect, if you like so to call them; has but to touch some of the higher, more remote, less visible, less conspicuous, less ascertainable links in the chain of antecedents, and it is changed; and you shall have, not the west or the south-west, but a northerly or an easterly wind. Does conscience speak to us of this Great Being, and of Him as shown to us in Jesus Christ, infinitely and humanely caring for us, and watching over us. 2. This voice was to Elijah articulate. "What doest thou here, Elijah? Go, return," says this voice; "go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus." Strange prophet, this Elijah. Strange history, very often overlooked and not noticed at all. Go back! where to? To Jerusalem? No. Go back! where to? To the sacred cities of Israel's kingdom? No. Where to? To the wilderness. Another wilderness; not this southern one, but far off beyond thine own Gilead, north of that, east of that, go away to that wilderness, that belongs to Damascus, the chief city of the Syrian, the Gentile uncircumcised. Ah, think you God cares not for the uncircumcised, the Syrian, as well as for the Jew? (J. Macnaught.) Parallel Verses KJV: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. |
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