II. In the common intercourse of the world, THE FORMER OF THESE PARTIES, RATHER THAN THE LATTER, IS PRACTICALLY THE OBJECT OF REVERENCE, RESPECT AND FEAR. Indeed, the whole system of society seems founded on the principle that human sanctions are above Divine.

III. THE MEANING OF THAT EMPHATIC QUESTION WITH WHICH THESE WORDS COMMENCE, "WHO ART THOU?"

1. The inquiry seems to have been primarily addressed to those whose prevailing fear of man was the result rather of weakness under trying circumstances, than of carnal blindness and depravity of heart. It seems intended for the encouragement of God's people when threatened with dangers, and particularly when harassed by the terrors which cruel enemies inspire.

2. But in another sense, and with far different emphasis, does it apply to those who, in the genuine spirit of the world, and with the full agreement of the will, pay that homage to man which the deliberately refuse to God. Well may it be said to such, in a tone of mingled indignation and surprise, "Who art thou?"

(H. Woodward, M.A.)

I. "WHO ART THOU?" The question was put to Israel, with reference, not to what they were in themselves — in dependence upon their own strength or holiness; for they were weak and miserable offenders, suffering the punishment of their offences; conquered, and carried into exile by heathen enemies; friendless and hopeless: but it referred to Jehovah s choice of them as a peculiar people, to their experience of the Divine protection, and their covenanted right in the Divine promises. And, without reference to God, and His salvation, what can be the answer of any human being to the question, "Who, or what art thou?" — nothing, and less than nothing; a vapour, that is exhaled and is not; an atom, that perishes and is forgotten; a sinful and miserable being, the child of perdition, "at his best estate altogether vanity." It is not so, however, that God sees us. He beholds all things here below in His blessed Son. Redemption enables every believer to return a lofty answer to the inquiry, "Who art thou?"

II. If such be a correct draught of the reply which the faithful Christian can make to the question, "Who art thou?" THE UNFITNESS, THE IMPROPRIETY OF HIS YIELDING TO THE FEAR OF MAN IS MANIFEST.

1. It saps the vital strength of the Christian character, in undermining our faith. I cannot truly believe in God, as He has revealed Himself, and yet stoop to this fear.

2. It leads men to vain ,and unworthy expedients — to trust in the "arm of flesh" and in "refuges of lies."

3. Carnal fear is the very worst form of that unreasonable care and anxiety, against the encroachments of which our Lord cautions, us.

4. "But," asks the prophet, "who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid? Art not thou — thou, the child of God — of so high a dignity, of a strain and lineage so glorious, that thou oughtest not to be suspected of so degrading a passion as ignoble fear?

III. ALWAYS CONNECTED WITH FEAR OF MAN, IS FORGETFULNESS OF ALMIGHTY GOD.

(R. Cattermole, B.D.)

I. It is certain mater of fact, that IN THE CONDUCT OF OUR LIVES WE ARE MORE AWED BY THE FEAR OF MAN THAN WE ARE BY THE FEAR OF GOD. This is proved from experience and observation. As evident as it is, that men commit those sins in secret which they dare not commit openly; that they take more care to appear religious than really to be religious; that in a licentious age they are afraid to own themselves to be under the influences of religion; that they commit greater sins to hide less; that they choose rather obstinately to persist in an error, than to own they were in the wrong; that they choose rather to break the laws of God than to be out of fashion; that they are time-servers, and play fast and loose with their principles, in order to secure or to promote their interest; that they "make shipwreck of their faith" when storms arise, and fall away in times of persecution; so evident is it, that in the conduct of their lives they are more swayed by the fear of men than they are by the fear of God.

II. INQUIRE HOW THIS COMES TO PASS.

1. As to the case of habitual, profligate, daring sinners, their conduct in this matter is easily accounted for. By a constant, uninterrupted course of sinning they have worn out all sense of religion, all notions of God, all apprehensions of a future state, and a judgment to come.

2. Every disciple of Christ is not so great a proficient in the doctrine of the Cross, as to reach up to that fulness of stature in Christ to which St. Paul was arrived, when he could, without arrogance, declare his undaunted courage and resolution of mind in that magnanimous, but sincere, profession, which we find him making, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" etc.

3. If persecution is proved to be so strong a temptation, and the faith of the generality of Christians is so weak, it is no great matter of surprise, that men should often yield to the violence of such pressing trials, and should be overawed into sinful compliances, by the fear of those evils, which, though they bear no proportion to the wrath of God, that shall be revealed in the last day, are yet strong enough to betray the succours which reason and religion offer.

4. But still what account can be given why men venture the loss of their immortal souls, to avoid evils of a much less magnitude; such as are shame, disrepute, the displeasure of superiors, the dislike of equals, or even sometimes the disapprobation of inferiors? The best account I am able to give of such extravagant and unjustifiable conduct is this: the sins to which men are drawn by such slight temptations are not usually of that heinous kind, as those are to which they are tempted by the terrors of greater evils; as the temptation is mush weaker, me the aims to which they are tempted are much lighter: though therefore they cannot plead the violence of the temptation, yet they are apt to hope, that the sins into which they are so easily betrayed, being not of the deepest die, will the sooner be blotted out.

III. SHOW THE EXTREME FOLLY AND UNREASONABLENESS OF IT. By the order of nature our passions ought to be under the government of reason; by the laws of God they ought to be subject to the rules of religion. Our reason tells us, that the greatest evils are most to be feared; our religion teaches us, that the evils to come are exceedingly greater than any we can feel at present: both reason, therefore, and religion agree to condemn the avoiding lesser evils, by running into greater, which we always so, when out of fear to offend men we presume to sin against God.

IV. GIVE SOME RULES HOW WE MAY CONQUER THIS VICIOUS AND IMMODERATE FEAR OF MAN.

1. We fear men more than God, because the evils threatened by men are apprehended to be nearer than those threatened by God. To weaken the force of this motive to the fear of men, we should consider that this apprehension of ours may be false; for though the sentence of God against evil works is not always executed speedily, yet the judgments of God do sometimes seize upon the sinner, even in the very act of sinning. But allowing them to be as yet far removed, and to advance with the slowest pace, yet the disproportion which they bear to the sorest evils men can inflict, is so great, that if we view them together, the "treasures of wrath which are laid up against the day of wrath" cannot appear light and inconsiderable, notwithstanding their present distance. But to take away all danger of our being imposed upon by viewing them as far remote, we ought in our thoughts to bring them nearer to us.

2. It will be further expedient for us to strengthen our good resolutions by considering those supports which we may expect from God, if we bravely bear up against those trials by which our virtue is, at any time, assaulted. The same power of God which will be manifested in our punishment, if we give way to the vicious fear of men, will exert itself in our assistance, that we may effectually overcome it. Having, therefore, these threats and promises of the Lord, let us act like men who are endued with reason, and like Christians who are strong in faith.

(Bp. Smalridge.)

1. To be in such a dread of a dying man.

2. To fear "continually every day" (ver. 13); to put ourselves upon a constant rack, so as never to be easy, nor have any enjoyment of ourselves. Now and then a danger may be imminent and threatening, and it may be prudence to fear it; but to be always in a toss, to tremble at the shaking of every leaf, is to make ourselves all our lifetime subject to bondage, and to bring upon ourselves that sore judgment which is threatened (Deuteronomy 28:66, 67).

3. To fear beyond what there is cause for. Thou art afraid of "the fury of the oppressor." It is true there is an oppressor, and he is furious. He designs, it may be, when he has an opportunity, to do thee mischief, and it will be thy wisdom, therefore, to stand upon thy guard; but thou art afraid of him "as if he were ready to destroy," as if he were just now going to cut thy throat and there were no possibility of preventing, it. A. timorous spirit is thus apt to make the worst of everything, and sometimes God is pleased presently to show us the folly of it. "Where is the fury of the oppressor?" It is gone in an instant, and the danger is over ere thou art aware. His heart is turned, or his hands are tied.

II. THE IMPIETY OF THOSE FEARS. Thou "forgettest the Lord, thy Maker," etc. Our inordinate fearing of man is an implicit forgetting of God.

( M. Henry.)

     4017   life, animal and plant
     4460   grass
     5805   comfort
     8754   fear
     9021   death, natural

Isaiah 51:12-13

     8722   doubt, nature of
     8764   forgetting God

Isaiah 51:12-15

     5819   cowardice

January 26. "I Called Him Alone and Blessed Him" (Isa. Li. 2).
"I called him alone and blessed him" (Isa. li. 2). When we were in the East we noticed the beautiful process of raising rice. The rice is sown on a morass of mud and water, ploughed up by great buffaloes, and after a few weeks it springs up and appears above the water with its beautiful pale green shoots. The seed has been sown very thickly and the plants are clustered together in great numbers, so that you can pull up a score at a single handful. But now comes the process of transplanting. He first …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

The Awakening of Zion
'Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord; awake, as in the ancient days, in the generations of old.'--ISAIAH li. 9. 'Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion.'--ISAIAH lii. 1. Both these verses are, I think, to be regarded as spoken by one voice, that of the Servant of the Lord. His majestic figure, wrapped in a light veil of obscurity, fills the eye in all these later prophecies of Isaiah. It is sometimes clothed with divine power, sometimes girded with the towel of human weakness, sometimes …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Hearken and Look; Or, Encouragement for Believers
THE second verse contains my actual text. It is the argument by which faith is led to look for the blessings promised in the third verse. It is habitual with some persons to spy out the dark side of every question or fact: they fix their eyes upon the "waste places," and they study them till they know every ruin, and are familiar with the dragons and the owls. They sigh most dolorously that the former times were better than these, and that we have fallen upon most degenerate days. They speak of "shooting …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 27: 1881

A Prospect of Revival
THE pedigree of God's chosen nation Israel may be traced back to one man and one woman--to Abraham and Sarah. Both of them were well stricken in years when the Lord called them, yet, in the fulfilment of his promise, he built up of their seed a great nation, which, for number, was comparable to the stars of heaven. Take heart, brethren; these things are written for our example and for our encouragement. His Church can never sink to so low an ebb that he cannot soon build her up again, nor in our …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 62: 1916

"Sing, O Heavens; and be Joyful, O Earth; for the Lord Hath Comforted his People. " -- Isaiah 49:13.
"For the Lord shall comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody." -- Isaiah 51:3. "Sing, O Heavens; and be joyful, O Earth; for the Lord hath comforted his people." -- Isaiah 49:13. A living, loving, lasting word, My listening ear believing heard, While bending down in prayer; Like a sweet breeze that none can stay, It passed …
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

Of Inward Silence
Of Inward Silence "The Lord is in His Holy Temple, let all the earth keep silence before him" (Hab. ii. 20). Inward silence is absolutely indispensable, because the Word is essential and eternal, and necessarily requires dispositions in the soul in some degree correspondent to His nature, as a capacity for the reception of Himself. Hearing is a sense formed to receive sounds, and is rather passive than active, admitting, but not communicating sensation; and if we would hear, we must lend the ear …
Madame Guyon—A Short and Easy Method of Prayer

Of Rest in the Presence of God --Its Fruits --Inward Silence --God Commands it --Outward Silence.
The soul, being brought to this place, needs no other preparation than that of repose: for the presence of God during the day, which is the great result of prayer, or rather prayer itself, begins to be intuitive and almost continual. The soul is conscious of a deep inward happiness, and feels that God is in it more truly than it is in itself. It has only one thing to do in order to find God, which is to retire within itself. As soon as the eyes are closed, it finds itself in prayer. It is astonished …
Jeanne Marie Bouvières—A Short Method Of Prayer And Spiritual Torrents

Lii. Manna. Exodus xvi. 4.
I.--Manna like salvation, because undeserved. The people murmured at the very first difficulty. If they had been grateful they would have said, "The God who brought us out of Egypt, and through the Red Sea, will not allow us to die of hunger." But instead of this they accused Moses of being a murderer. And in answer to this God said, "I will rain bread from heaven." What an illustration of Romans v. 8. II.--Manna like salvation, because it saved the people from perishing. Nothing else would …
Thomas Champness—Broken Bread

Early Battles
Six months of joyous service amongst the Welsh miners was cut short by a telegram announcing to the sisters the serious illness of Mrs. Lee. Taking the news to their Divisional Commander, they were instructed to Headquarters. It was found that the illness was due to shock. The income from investments of the little estate left by Mr. Lee had dwindled; it now had disappeared altogether. Captain Lucy faced the matter with her usual practical decision. 'Mother, darling, there are two ways out. Either …
Minnie L. Carpenter—The Angel Adjutant of "Twice Born Men"

Stedfastness in the Old Paths.
"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls."--Jer. vi. 16. Reverence for the old paths is a chief Christian duty. We look to the future indeed with hope; yet this need not stand in the way of our dwelling on the past days of the Church with affection and deference. This is the feeling of our own Church, as continually expressed in the Prayer Book;--not to slight what has gone before, …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII

An Appendix to the Beatitudes
His commandments are not grievous 1 John 5:3 You have seen what Christ calls for poverty of spirit, pureness of heart, meekness, mercifulness, cheerfulness in suffering persecution, etc. Now that none may hesitate or be troubled at these commands of Christ, I thought good (as a closure to the former discourse) to take off the surmises and prejudices in men's spirits by this sweet, mollifying Scripture, His commandments are not grievous.' The censuring world objects against religion that it is difficult …
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12

Ci. Foretelling his Passion. Rebuking Ambition.
(Peræa, or Judæa, Near the Jordan.) ^A Matt. XX. 17-28; ^B Mark X. 32-45; ^C Luke XVIII. 31-34. ^b 32 And they were on the way, going up to Jerusalem [Dean Mansel sees in these words an evidence that Jesus had just crossed the Jordan and was beginning the actual ascent up to Jerusalem. If so, he was in Judæa. But such a construction strains the language. Jesus had been going up to Jerusalem ever since he started in Galilee, and he may now have still be in Peræa. The parable …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Work of Jesus Christ as an Advocate,
CLEARLY EXPLAINED, AND LARGELY IMPROVED, FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL BELIEVERS. 1 John 2:1--"And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." By JOHN BUNYAN, Author of "The Pilgrim's Progress." London: Printed for Dorman Newman, at the King's Arms, in the Poultry, 1689. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. This is one of the most interesting of Bunyan's treatises, to edit which required the Bible at my right hand, and a law dictionary on my left. It was very frequently republished; …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Thirdly, for Thy Actions.
1. Do no evil, though thou mightest; for God will not suffer the least sin, without bitter repentance, to escape unpunished. Leave not undone any good that thou canst. But do nothing without a calling, nor anything in thy calling, till thou hast first taken counsel at God's word (1 Sam. xxx. 8) of its lawfulness, and pray for his blessings upon thy endeavour; and then do it in the name of God, with cheerfulness of heart, committing the success to him, in whose power it is to bless with his grace …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

Death Swallowed up in victory
Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory! D eath, simply considered, is no more than the cessation of life --that which was once living, lives no longer. But it has been the general, perhaps the universal custom of mankind, to personify it. Imagination gives death a formidable appearance, arms it with a dart, sting or scythe, and represents it as an active, inexorable and invincible reality. In this view death is a great devourer; with his iron tongue …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

Isaiah
CHAPTERS I-XXXIX Isaiah is the most regal of the prophets. His words and thoughts are those of a man whose eyes had seen the King, vi. 5. The times in which he lived were big with political problems, which he met as a statesman who saw the large meaning of events, and as a prophet who read a divine purpose in history. Unlike his younger contemporary Micah, he was, in all probability, an aristocrat; and during his long ministry (740-701 B.C., possibly, but not probably later) he bore testimony, as …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament