For I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land. I will build them, and not pull them down. I will plant them, and not pluck them up.
Parallel Translations
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For I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land. I will build them, and not pull them down. I will plant them, and not pluck them up.
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For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.
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And I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.
Cross-references (18)
Passages linked to Jeremiah 24:6 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Jeremiah 42:10 ‘If you will still live in this land, then I will build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I grieve over the distress that I have brought on you.
- Jeremiah 29:10 For Yahweh says, “After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon, I will visit you and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.
- Jeremiah 33:7 I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.
- Jeremiah 12:15 It will happen that after I have plucked them up, I will return and have compassion on them. I will bring them again, every man to his heritage, and every man to his land.
- Jeremiah 32:41 Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.”
- Jeremiah 1:10 Behold, I have today set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to uproot and to tear down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.”
- Jeremiah 32:37 “Behold, I will gather them out of all the countries where I have driven them in my anger, and in my wrath, and in great indignation; and I will bring them again to this place. I will cause them to dwell safely.
- Psalms 34:15 Yahweh’s eyes are toward the righteous. His ears listen to their cry.
- Ezekiel 36:24 “ ‘ “For I will take you from among the nations and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land.
- 1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears open to their prayer; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
- Deuteronomy 11:12 a land which Yahweh your God cares for. Yahweh your God’s eyes are always on it, from the beginning of the year even to the end of the year.
- 2 Chronicles 16:9 For Yahweh’s eyes run back and forth throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. You have done foolishly in this; for from now on you will have wars.”
- Nehemiah 5:19 Remember me, my God, for good, all that I have done for this people.
- Job 33:27-28 He sings before men, and says, ‘I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it didn’t profit me. He has redeemed my soul from going into the pit. My life will see the light.’
- Jeremiah 23:3 “I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they will be fruitful and multiply.
- Jeremiah 18:7-9 At the instant I speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it; if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do to them. At the instant I speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it;
- Ezekiel 11:15-17 “Son of man, your brothers, even your brothers, the men of your relatives, and all the house of Israel, all of them, are they to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Go far away from Yahweh. This land has been given to us for a possession.’ ” “Therefore say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet I will be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they have come.” ’ “Therefore say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “I will gather you from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.”
- Jeremiah 21:10 For I have set my face on this city for evil, and not for good,” says Yahweh. “It will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.” ’
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain He confirms what he said in the last verse,…
He confirms what he said in the last verse, but in other words, for it was difficult to persuade them that they were happier who were apparently lost, than those who still enjoyed some measure of safety. He had said that he would acknowledge them; but he now adds, I will set my eye upon them He uses a metaphor which often occurs in Scripture, for God is said to turn away his face when he hides his favor; and in the same sense he is said to forget, to depart, not to care, to despise, to cast away. Then, as God might have seemed to have no more any care for this people, he says, “I will set my eyes on them.” But he goes even farther, for he refers to the sentence announced in the last verse — he had said that he was the author of their exile, “I have cast them into the land of the Chaldeans” but he now confirms the same thing, though in other words, when he says, “Mine eyes will I set on them for good.” For God is said to visit men, not only when he manifests his favor towards them, but also when he chastises them and punishes them for their sins. He had then set his eyes on them to execute punishment; he says now that he would act differently, that he would kindly treat the miserable.
He afterwards says, I will restore them For, as he had sent them away, it was in his power to restore them. As, then, he could heal the wound inflicted by his own hand, this promise ought to have been sufficient to dispel every doubt from the minds of the captives as to their return; and further, the Jews, who as yet remained in Jerusalem and in the land of Judah, ought to have known that they in vain boasted in their good lot, as though God treated them better than their captive brethren, for it was in his power to restore those whom he had banished.
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And he adds, I will build and not pull them down, I will plant and not pluck them up This mode of speaking would not be so significant either in Latin or in Greek; but such a repetition, as it is well known, often occurs in Hebrew. But whenever a negative is added to an affirmative, such form of expression is to be thus interpreted, “I shall be so far from plucking them up, that I will plant them; I shall be so far from pulling them down, that I will build them up;” or, “since I had pulled them down, I will now build them up; since I had plucked them up, I will now plant them:” or a perpetuity may be meant, as though God had said, “I will plant them, so as not to pluck them again; I will build them, so as not to pull them down again.” But the most frequent import of such expressions is what I first mentioned, “I will not pull them down, but on the contrary build them up; I will not pluck them up, but on the contrary plant them.”
The meaning of the whole is, that however sad might be the calamities of the people in Chaldea, they being as exiles reduced to a desolate condition, yet God could collect them again, like one who plants a tree or builds a house. The metaphor of building is common in Scripture, and also that of planting. God is said to plant men, when he introduces a certain order among them, or when he allots to them a certain place to dwell in, or when he grants them peace and quietness. God is said in Psalm 44:2, to have planted his people; but I will not refer to the many passages which are everywhere to be met with. God often says that he had planted his vineyard. (Isaiah 5:2, etc.) And then well known is this passage,
“The branch of the Lord, and the planting for his glory.” (Isaiah 60:21)
This is said of the preservation of the Church.
The meaning then is, that though God severely chastised the exiles who had been led into Chaldea, yet their condition was not to be estimated by one day, or a month, or a few years, but that a happy end was to be expected. And as God intended at length to shew himself reconcilable and propitious, it follows that the calamity which had happened to them was lighter than that which awaited the rest, who resolutely despised God and his prophets, and thus increased the vengeance which had been already denounced on them. It follows, —
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Jer 24:6 For I will set mine eyes upon…
Jer 24:6 For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull [them] down; and I will plant them, and not pluck [them] up.
Ver. 6. For I will set mine eyes upon them for good.] I will see to their safety, and provide for their necessities. See Psa 34:15. {See Trapp on "Psa 34:15"}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain I will set mine eyes upon them for good;…
I will set mine eyes upon them for good; the soul looking out at the eye, discovereth its inclinations and affection, whether of love or wrath. Hence we read of God’s setting his eyes upon people for evil, Amo 9:4, as here of his setting his eyes upon them for good. Or else it may signify God’s setting himself to do them good, as a man when he sets upon doing a thing, sets his eyes upon it in order thereunto.
I will bring them again to this land; some of them probably returned before the end of the captivity, some at the end of the seventy years.
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I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up: the meaning of these metaphorical expressions is, I will prosper them, and provide for them. We read, 2Ki 25:27,28, that Evil-merodach, king of Babylon, in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin, lifted his head up out of prison, spake kindly to him, &c.; but this prophecy was also fulfilled in Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, Mordecai, and others, who are thought to be carried away with Jeconiah; or the prophecy may be understood of the posterity of those who were at this time carried away.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And I will give them an heart to know…
And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord,.... God, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in goodness and truth, pardoning iniquity, transgression, and sin; the unchangeable Jehovah; the everlasting I AM; a covenant keeping God; faithful and true to his promises; able and willing to perform them; and does all things well and wisely; and was their Lord and God. This knowledge designs not the first knowledge of the Lord, but an increase of it; and not head knowledge, but heart knowledge; a knowledge of God, joined with love and affection to him, high esteem, and approbation of him; and including communion with him, and an open profession and acknowledgment of him: and it is an appropriating knowledge also; a knowing him for themselves, and as their own; and such a knowledge or heart to know the Lord is a pure gift of his, and without which none can have it: and it may be observed, that in captivity it was given them; afflictions were the means of it; and happy it is when hereby men come to have a knowledge of God, and to be better acquainted with him, Psa 92:12;
and they shall be my people, and I will be their God; that is, it shall appear that they are so, by the above blessings of grace and goodness bestowed upon them; the Lord hereby owning them for his people, and they hereby coming to know that he is their God:
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for, or "when" (e).
they shall return unto me with their whole heart; affectionately, sincerely, and unfeignedly. It supposes that they had backslidden from God, his ways and worship; but now should return by sincere repentance to him, and to his worship, and obedience to his commands; so the Targum,
"for they shall return to my worship with their whole heart;''
all this will have an entire accomplishment in the latter day, when the Jews will be converted and turn to the Lord, and fear him and his goodness.
(e) "quum reversi fuerint ad me", Junius & Tremellius.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Up, till the Messias appear, and the true Israel…
Up, till the Messias appear, and the true Israel of God, his disciples, to whom the promises chiefly pertain. They will continue for ever. If this answer does not give satisfaction, as it ought, we may say that the Jews did not comply with the condition, and were therefore abandoned to the Romans. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain (Jer 12:15).
(Jer 12:15).
not pull . . . down . . . not pluck . . . up--only partially fulfilled in the restoration from Babylon; antitypically and fully to be fulfilled hereafter (Jer 32:41; Jer 33:7).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 6. Set mine eyes upon them — Namely, for…
6. Set mine eyes upon them — Namely, for good, that is, to do good to them, not only by preparing their way before them, thus making their abode in the land of exile tolerable, but especially by bringing them into more full possession of their spiritual heritage.
Will bring them again — These words contain a meaning deeper and richer than a mere literal return to Palestine. For, as a matter of fact, to the great mass of the people this promise, in this sense, had no fulfilment at all. A mere remnant of those carried away came back, but, for the great body of the people, the captivity was the beginning of a dispersion which has continued till this present time.
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The higher and more universal import of these words was spiritual. By going away into exile, and submitting to the hard discipline of the captivity, they came into the land of promise. God cast down the scaffolding of their political life, in order that the temple of spiritual truth might stand forth in all its divine beauty. He removed the merely mechanical and earthly pressure which held the people together, in order that the forces of life might have freer play. He destroyed them as a nation to exalt them as a people. That this is the sense here intended is evident from the seventh verse — words, the full blessedness of which can never be exhausted.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 6. I will plant them] Cp. Jer_31:27 f., Jer_32:41.
6. I will plant them] Cp. Jer_31:27 f., Jer_32:41.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (6) I will set mine eyes upon them for…
(6) I will set mine eyes upon them for good.—The state of the Jews at Babylon at the time of the return from exile was obviously far above that of slaves or prisoners. They had money (Ezr_2:69), they cultivated land, they built houses (Jer_29:4; Jer_29:28). Many were reluctant to leave their new home for the land of their fathers, and among these must have been the families represented at a later date by Ezra and the priests and Levites who accompanied him (Ezr_8:15). They were not subjected, as many conquered nations have been, to the misery of a second emigration to a more distant land. The victory of Cyrus manifestly brought with it every way an improvement in their condition; but even under Nebuchadnezzar they rose, as in the case of Daniel and his companions, to high honour.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain I will build them, etc. (comp. Jer_1:10 Jer_12:16) As…
I will build them, etc. (comp. Jer_1:10 Jer_12:16) As the next verse shows. it is not merely outward prosperity that is meant, but spiritual regeneration.
Vers. 6, 7. Prosperity restored.
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I AFTER CHASTISEMENT HAS BEEN RIGHTLY RECEIVED, GOD LOOKS FAVORABLY ON HIS CHILDREN. He sets his "eyes upon them for good." Men shrink from the eyes of God as from a keen and fatal scrutiny. But God is not always looking as the Judge. He beholds his children with love. There is a wonderful tenderness in this gaze, like that of a mother fondly watching over her suffering infant a deep pity for sorrow, an earnest care to ward off harm, a kindly will to bestow all real good. It is blessed indeed to be so beheld by God. There are men possessed of such great power and influence that some consider a favorable look from them sufficient to make their fortune. What must be the effect of God setting eyes on a man for good?
II WHEN GOD LOOKS FAVORABLY ON HIS CHILDREN HE MAY SECURE THEIR TEMPORAL PROSPERITY. This will not always happen, for it will not always be for the real good of men. Still, it does often occur. We are too ready to confine the recognition of God"s action in our lives to the sterner sides of it. God sends prosperity as well as adversity. If he banishes, he restores; if he pulls down, he builds up again. And the joy of the restoration and the glory of the latter building exceed those of earlier times. If earthly prosperity comes from God it is real and solid. God can maintain it after he has bestowed it. He will build so that none shall pull down. The man who is innocently enjoying a prosperity sent by God need have no superstitious fears of a jealous Nemesis. He is not secure from trouble; but he has no special ground for apprehending it simply because he is happy at present.
III WHEN GOD LOOKS FAVORABLY ON HIS CHILDREN HE WILL CERTAINLY SECURE THEIR SPIRITUAL PROSPERITY. This is seen in a restoration of a true knowledge of God.
1. It is good for us to know God. The knowledge of God is here represented not so much as a subject of duty as in the light of a form of spiritual blessedness. The loss of this knowledge leads to the darkness of a godless life. The enjoyment of this knowledge is eternal life. (Joh_17:3)
2. A true knowledge of God is the recognition of God as he is quite another thing from our common conception of his nature. Then we see and feel the grandeur, the mystery, the glory of "the eternal.
3. This knowledge of God depends on the condition of our hearts. The "heart" represents the whole inner life. When this is rightly disposed we can know God, and only then. What we need, therefore, is not a new revelation, but a change of heart. When our soul is in sympathy with God, when our spiritual vision is open, we can see indications of God"s presence and character which would otherwise be obscure.
4. The right condition of heart for knowing God must be produced by God. God promises to give them a heart to know him. He only can create the heart anew. The greatest blessing of redemption is that he will do this.
IV THE WELFARE OF GOD"S CHILDREN IS RESTORED BY THE RESTORATION OF THE CLOSE RELATIONS BETWEEN HIM AND THEM. "They shall be my people, and I will be their God." This relation is twofold. God exercises paternal influences, they engage in filial duties.
1. God takes them under his care. They are his people, to be guarded and blessed by him. So Christians are God"s peculiar people. (1Pe_2:9)
2. They take God for their portion. He is their God theirs to worship, serve, love, rejoice in.
V THE RESTORATION OF TRUE PROSPERITY DEPENDS ON THE GENUINE RETURN OF GOD"S PEOPLE TO THEIR FIDELITY TO HIM. The restoration was not a mere compensation for the troubles of the exile. Happiness does not necessarily follow trouble. The father runs to meet the prodigal son when he returns, but cannot regard him favor-ably before this.
1. This return must be with the heart. Repentance, of all acts, must be genuine and heartfelt. A formal acknowledgment of God without a change of heart is a mockery and an insult to him, which can bring us no good.
2. This return must be with the whole heart. A partial return to God is no true return. He claims the whole heart or none of it.
"I will set mine eyes upon them for good.
The distressed and afflicted for his sake he ever regards with special attention and interest. "The captives are dearest to God." Banished from Palestine, they are still his banished ones," and he will make them to return. Those who are undergoing severe trials, in circumstances, in faith, etc., but who are truly seeking after God, are to be comforted with this word. It is a promise that has been gloriously fulfilled. It pledges
I GOD"S CARE.
1. Protection.
2. Provision, temporal and spiritual.
Although we see him not, he ever sees us and regards us with complacency and love.
II GOD"S FAVOR. This indicates interest, but because of something evoking it the first germs of faith and repentance. When others see them not, he sees the longings of the soul and its efforts after better things; and he will further them.
III GOD"S GUIDANCE. Although they were led away into a strange land and amidst an alien people, he would never lose sight of them; but, directing their footsteps, would bring them back again to the land they had left and to himself. It was a strange way, but it was God"s way, and his influence would be continually in them and upon them for good. It is the surest proof that God"s eye is upon us for good when his Spirit is within us. As many as are led of the Spirit are the children of God. M.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain For I will set Mine eyes upon them for…
Jer_24:6-7
For I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and l will bring them again to this land.
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Gods regard for His people
I. The nature of Gods declaration respecting Himself, I will set Mine eves upon them for good.
1. This denotes--
(1) His omniscience over them (Job_34:21, compared with 31:4).
(2) His providence for them (2Ch_16:9).
(3) His grace to save them (Rom_8:29).
2. It implies--
(1) Divine personality--For I (Eze_34:11).
(2) Divine attention--Will set Mine eyes (Psa_32:8).
(3) Personal affection--Upon them (Eze_16:5-6).
(4) Great kindness--For their good (Isa_54:8).
II. A description of the deliverance here declared, I will bring them into this land
1. Here we have the idea of distance (Eph_2:17).
2. How He brings them back.
(1) By the death of His Son (Rev_5:9).
(2) By the obedience of His Son (Rom_5:19).
(3) By virtue of His intercession (Heb_7:25).
3. This is--
(1) A rich land.
(2) A large land.
(3) A peaceful land.
(4) A land of security.
III. The blessings designed fob them on their return.
1. Negatively Not pull them down.
(1) Not condemn them (Rom_8:1).
(2) Not visit their sins upon them (Heb_8:12).
2. Positively--I will build them up.
(1) The foundation of the building (1Co_3:11).
(2) The dimensions (Rom_11:5).
(3) The materials (Eph_2:1).
(4) The cement by which this building is united (Col_2:2-3).
(5) The instruments employed in building (2Co_4:7).
3. These plants had been--
(1) Fruitless.
(2) Cumberers.
(3) Injurious. Yet God did not pluck them up.
4. But He transplanted them to a superior soil: I will plant them.
(1) In a delightful situation (Psa_48:2).
(2) In a good and fertile soil (Psa_1:3).
(3) Where there is plenty of sun and rain (Psa_84:11).
IV. The results of all this.
1. And I will give them a heart to know Me.
(1) As a gracious God.
(2) A covenant-keeping God.
(3) A faithful God.
(4) A mighty God.
(5) And a God of salvation to His people.
2. And they shall be My people. As proved by their--
(1) Studying the Bible.
(2) Offering up prayers and praises.
(3) Attendance on His house.
(4) Living to God.
(5) And simply believing on Christ.
3. And I will be their God.
(1) By ruling in their understandings.
(2) Subduing their wills.
(3) And living in their hearts.
4. For they shall return unto Me with their whole heart.
(1) Positively-Nothing shall prevent them, for they shall return.
(2) Cordially--Their heart shall be delighted in returning.
(3) Personality--Each and all shall return in the same person, unto Me.
(4) Dissatisfaction--They return from all things sinful to God. (T. B. Baker.)
I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord.--
Heart-knowledge of God
By this great promise of the text is not merely meant that God will lead the converted to know that there is a God, because that may be known without s new heart. Any man possessed of reason may know that there is a Supreme Being, who created all things and preserves the universe in existence. The text promises that the favoured ones shall know that God to be Jehovah. Man fashions for himself a god after his own liking; he makes to himself, if not out of wood or stone, yet out of what he calls his own consciousness, or his cultured thought, a deity to his taste, who will not be too severe with his iniquities, or deal out strict justice to the impenitent. The Holy Spirit, however, when He illuminates the mind, leads us to see that Jehovah is God, and beside Him there is none else. He teaches His people to know that the God of heaven and earth is the God d the Bible, a God whose attributes are completely balanced, mercy attended by justice, love accompanied by holiness, grace arrayed in truth, and power linked with tenderness. When the heart is content to believe in God as He is revealed, and no longer goes about to fashion a deity for itself according to its own fancies and notions, it is a hopeful sign. The main stress of the promise lies, however, in this: I will give them a heart to know ME; that is, not merely to know that I am, and that I am Jehovah, but to have a personal knowledge of Myself. It is not enough to know that our Creator is the Jehovah of the Bible, and that He is perfect in character, and glorious beyond thought; but to know God we must have perceived Him, we must have spoken to Him, we must have been made at peace with Him, we must have lifted up our heart to Him, and received communications from Him. If you know the Lord your secret is with Him, and His secret is with you; He has manifested Himself unto you as He does not unto the world. He must have made Himself known unto you by the mysterious influences of His Spirit, and because of this you know Him. I the seat of this knowledge I will give them a heart to know Me. Observe that it is not said, I will give them a head to know Me. The first and primary impediment to mans knowledge of God lies in the affections The heart is the seat of the blindness; there lies the darkness which beclouds the whole mind. Hence to the heart the light must come, and to the heart that light is promised.
1. I understand by the fact that the knowledge of God here promised lies in the heart, first, that God renews the heart so that it admires the character of God. The understanding perceives that God is just, powerful, faithful, wise, true, gracious, longsuffering, and the like; then the heart being purified admires all these glorious attributes, and adores Him because of them.
2. The heart-knowledge promised in the covenant of grace means, however, much more than approval: grace enables the renewed heart to take another step and appropriate the Lord, saying, O God, Thou art my God, early will I seek Thee. All the saved ones cry, This God is our God for ever and ever; He shall be our guide even unto death
3. All true knowledge of God is attended by affection for Him. In spiritual language to. Know God is to love Him. He that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love. It is the great passion of the renewed soul to glorify God, whom he knows and loves; knowledge without love would be a powerless thing, but God has joined this knowledge and love together in a sacred wedlock, and they can never be put asunder. As we love God we know Him, and as we know Him we love Him. Admiration, appropriation, affection are crowned with adhesion. To know a thing by heart is, in our common talk, to know it thoroughly, Memories of the heart abide when all others depart. A mothers love, a wifes fondness, a sweet childs affection, will come before us even in the last hours of life; when the mind will lose its learning and the hand forget its cunning, the dear names of our beloved ones will linger on our lips; and their sweet faces will be before us even when our eyes are dim with the shadow of approaching death. If we can sing, O God, my heart is fixed, my heart is fixed, then the knowledge which it possesses will never be taken away from it.
II. The necessity of this knowledge.
1. To know God is a needful preparation for every other true knowledge, because the Lord is the centre of the universe, the basis, the pillar, the essential force, the all in all, the fulness of all things. You may learn the doctrines of the Bible, but you do not know them truly till you know the God of the doctrines. You may understand the precepts in the letter of them, and the promises in their outward wording, but neither precept nor promise do you truly know until you know the God from whose lips they fell. The ancient sage said, Man, know thyself. He spake well, but even for this man must first know his God. I venture to say that no man rightly knows himself till he knows his God, because it is by the light and purity of God that we see our own darkness and sinfulness.
2. The knowledge of God is necessary to any real peace of mind. Suppose a man to be in the world and feel that he is right every way except with regard to God, and as to Him he knows nothing. Hear him say, I go about the world and see many faces which I can recognise, and I perceive many friends upon whom I can trust, but there is a God somewhere, and I know nothing at all about Him. Whether He be my friend or my foe I know not. If thoughtful and intelligent he must suffer unrest in his spirit, because he will say to himself, Suppose this God should turn out to be a just God, and I should be a breaker of His laws! What a peril hangs over me. How is it possible for me to be at peace till this dreadful ignorance is removed? He is the God of peace, and there can be no peace till the soul knows Him.
3. That this knowledge of God is necessary is clear, for how could it be possible for a man to have spiritual life and yet not to know God? If you do not know Him you are not a partaker of His grace, but you abide in darkness Into His heaven you can never enter till He has given you a heart to know Him; do not forget this warning, or trifle with it.
III. The excellency of this knowledge.
1. One of the first effects of knowing God in the soul is that it turns out our idols. God so enamours the soul of the converted man, so engrosses every spiritual faculty, that he cannot endure an idol, however dear in former times; and if perchance in some back-sliding moment an earthly love intrudes, it is because the man has withdrawn his eye from the splendour of the Deity.
2. The second good effect of the knowledge of God is that it creates faith in the soul; to prove which I might give a great many texts, but one will suffice (Psa_9:10): They that know Thy Name will put their trust in Thee. We cannot trust an unknown God, but when He reveals Himself to us by His Spirit, then to trust Him is no longer difficult; it is, indeed, inevitable.
3. This knowledge of God creates good works also (1Jn_2:3). A heart to know the Lord begets and nurtures every virtue and every grace, and is the basis of the noblest character, the food which feeds grace till it matures into glory.
4. To know God has over us a transforming power. Remember how the apostle writes (2Co_3:18). Every thought which crosses the mind affects it for the better or the worse, every glance is moulding us, every wish fashions the character. A sight of God is the most wonderfully sanctifying influence that can be conceived of. Know God, and you will grow to be like Him.
5. The knowledge of God causes us to praise Him. In Judah is God known; His name is great in Israel. It is not possible for us to have low thoughts of Him, or to give forth mean utterances concerning Him, or to act in a miserly way towards His cause, when we practically know Him.
6. The knowledge of God brings comfort, and that is a very desirable thing in a world of trouble. What saith the Psalmist? God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
7. To know God also brings a man great honour. Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because e hath known My name. Think of it--set on high, and set on high by the Lord Himself, and all as the result of knowing the name of the Lord.
8. The man who knows the Lord will have usefulness given him (2Co_2:14). We cannot teach others of things which we do not know ourselves. If we have no savour in us there cannot be a savour coming out of us. We shall only be a drag upon the Church in any position if we are destitute of the knowledge of God in Christ Jesus; but if we are filled with a knowledge of Christ, then the sweet savour of His name will pour forth from us as perfume from the flowers.
IV. The source of this knowledge. None but the Creator can give a man a new heart, the change is too radical for any other hand. It would be hard to give a new eye, or a new arm, but a new heart is still more out of the question. The Lord Himself must do it.
1. It is evidently a work of pure grace. He freely gives to whomsoever He wills, according to His own declaration, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.
2. It is evidently a work which is possible. All things are possible to God, and He says, I will give it to them. He does not speak of it as a blessing desirable, but unattainable; on me contrary He says, I will give them a heart to know Me
3. It is a work which the Lord has covenanted to do (Hos_2:19; Jer_31:32-34). (C. H. Spurgeon.)
A believing knowledge of God
The manner of knowing the difference between believers and unbelievers as to knowledge, is not as much in the matter of their knowledge as in the manner of knowing. Unbelievers, some of them, may know more and be able to say more of God, His perfections and will, than many believers; but they know nothing as they ought, nothing in a right manner, nothing spiritually and savingly, nothing with a holy, heavenly light. The-excellency of a believer is not that he hath a large apprehension of things, but that what he doth apprehend, which may perhaps be very little, he sees it in the light of the Spirit of God, in a saving, soul-transforming light: and this is that which gives us communion with God, and not prying thoughts, or curious raised notions. (J. Owen.)
To know God-a new, a gladdening experience
A touching story is told of the child of a French painter. The little girl lost her sight in infancy, and her blindness was supposed to be incurable. A famous oculist in Paris, however: performed an operation on her eyes and restored her sight. Her mother had long been dead, and her father had been her only friend and companion, when she was told that her blindness could be cured, her one thought was that she could see him; and when the cure was complete, and the bandages were removed, she ran to him, and, trembling, pored over his features, shutting her eyes now and then, and passing her fingers over his face, as if to make sure that it was he. The father had a noble head and presence, and his every look and motion were watched by his daughter with the keenest delight. For the first time his constant tenderness and care seemed real to her. If he caressed her, or even looked upon her kindly, it brought tears to her eyes. To think, she cried, holding his hand close in hers, that I had this father so many years and never knew him!
They shall return unto life with their whole heart.
The whole heart must be given to God
Suppose a mother gave her child a beautiful flower-plant in bloom, and told her to carry it to a sick friend. The child takes it away, and when she reaches the friends door she plucks off one leaf and gives it to her, keeping the plant herself. Has she obeyed her mothers command? Then afterwards, once a day, she plucks off another leaf, or a bud, or a flower, and takes it to the friend, still retaining the plant. Did she obey the command of her mother? Nothing but the giving of the whole plant could fulfil the mothers direction. Now, is not that a simple illustration of what we give to God? He commands us to love Him with all our heart and with all our being, and we pluck off a little leaf of love now sad then, a little bud or flower of affection, or one cluster of fruit from the bending branches, and give to Him; and we call that obeying. (J. R. Miller.)
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The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.