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noured . and gratified by his compliance ; but they would not listen to that voice which uttered in deep and sympathizing tones , "Repent , for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand . ' And the suavity of their manners , and the indifference of heart which saved them from the crime of persecution , did not protect them from the reproach of Christ , or from the woes by which he predicted that they would be overwhelmed . . . ' . . _ ^_^ __^_^ - .
Chorazin—Bethsaida— . Capernaum ! ye are a triple monument of divine judgment— -& warning for all ages- % i manifestation of the principle on which God ' s sentences are pronounced—a refutation of that theological calumny which represents him , in his government of ment as regarding the means more than the end , faith more than righteousness , or righteousness only when it is the product of a particular faith . It does not appear that ye were unbelieving , as unbelief is commonly considered , but worse than that , ye were unrepentant !
These three cities , being situated upon the coast of the sea of Galilee , were probably engaged in commerce and fishing . That this is true respecting Capernaum is known upon good authority ; and in the time of our Saviour it was a place of considerable trade and opulence . Its prosperity and splendour are indeed ppjnted out to us in the language of Christ : ' And thou , Capernaum , which , art exalted to heaven / a form of expression
elsewhere found in the Scripturesy and signifying a high and proud state of advancement in all things that minister to enjoyment and luxury . The counterpart of the expression .,. ' Shalt be brought down to hell , ' hades , the grave , signifies a state of desolation , poverty , and misery . That the other two cities were places of some trade and riches is further rendered probable by their being contrasted with Tyre and Sidon , those queens of the sea ,, whose merchants were princes , and whose merchandise was the riches of the whole earth .
From their state of busy opulence , and the self-complacency naturally growing out of it , probably arose their outward courtesy towards our Lord , an their inward insensibility to his exhortations and warnings . Repentance was to them a strange sound . What had they to repent of who were easy in their circumstances , or who gained a full livelihood by the sweat of their brow ? True ,
Christ was a teacher sent from heaven ; he did extraordinary works ; and they were ready to reverence him . But what could he accuse them of ? They doubtless smiled at his enthusiasm , or spoke of it as very proper in a divine messenger ; they should not respect him so much if he did not possess it : but , as to taking his words to heart , that was another thing . No , they should not re * pent . They were very well satisfied to be as they were .
It was so . It is so . The prosperous , whatever may be their actual moral condition , are ever ready to believe themselves sufficiently favourites of heaven . Blinded by the present , they see not whither their unsanctified prosperity is tending ; how , unless they repent , they are sowing the seeds of destruction , which shall
Untitled Article
A DFXLARATION OF JUDGMENT . 349
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), Nov. 1, 1833, page 349, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2625/page/29/
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