741 O God , why have You rejected us forever ? Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture ? 2 Remember Your congregation , which You have purchased of old , Which You have redeemed to be the tribe of Your inheritance ; And this Mount Zion , where You have dwelt . 3 Turn Your footsteps toward the perpetual ruins ; The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary . 4 Your adversaries have roared in the midst of Your meeting place ; They have set up their own standards for signs . 5 It seems as if one had lifted up His axe in a forest of trees . 6 And now all its carved work They smash with hatchet and hammers . 7 They have burned e Your sanctuary to the ground ; They have defiled the dwelling place of Your name . 8 They said in their heart , "Let us completely subdue them." They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land . 9 We do not see our signs ; There is no longer any prophet , Nor is there any among us who knows how long . 10 How long e , O God , will the adversary revile , And the enemy spurn Your name forever ? 11 Why do You withdraw Your hand , even Your right hand ? From within Your bosom , destroy them!
12 Yet God is my king from of old , Who works deeds of deliverance in the midst of the earth . 13 You divided the sea by Your strength ; You broke the heads of the sea monsters in the waters . 14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan ; You gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness . 15 You broke open springs and torrents ; You dried up ever-flowing streams . 16 Yours is the day , Yours also is the night ; You have prepared the light and the sun . 17 You have established all the boundaries of the earth ; You have made summer and winter .
18 Remember this , O Lord , that the enemy has reviled , And a foolish people has spurned Your name . 19 Do not deliver the soul of Your turtledove to the wild beast ; Do not forget the life of Your afflicted forever . 20 Consider the covenant ; For the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence . 21 Let not the oppressed return dishonored ; Let the afflicted and needy praise Your name . 22 Arise , O God , and plead Your own cause ; Remember how the foolish man reproaches You all day long. 23 Do not forget the voice of Your adversaries , The uproar of those who rise against You which ascends continually .
751 We give thanks to You, O God , we give thanks , For Your name is near ; Men declare Your wondrous works . 2 "When I select an appointed time , It is I who judge with equity . 3 "The earth and all who dwell in it melt ; It is I who have firmly set its pillars . Selah . 4 "I said to the boastful , 'Do not boast ,' And to the wicked , ' Do not lift up the horn ; 5 Do not lift up your horn on high , Do not speak with insolent pride .' "
6 For not from the east , nor from the west , Nor from the desert comes exaltation ; 7 But God is the Judge ; He puts down one and exalts another . 8 For a cup is in the hand of the Lord , and the wine foams ; It is well mixed , and He pours out of this ; Surely all the wicked of the earth must drain and drink down its dregs . 9 But as for me, I will declare it forever ; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob . 10 And all the horns of the wicked He will cut off , But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.
761 God is known in Judah ; His name is great in Israel . 2 His tabernacle is in Salem ; His dwelling place also is in Zion . 3 There He broke the flaming arrows , The shield and the sword and the weapons of war . Selah . 4 You are resplendent , More majestic than the mountains of prey . 5 The stouthearted e were plundered , They sank into sleep ; And none e of the warriors could use his hands . 6 At Your rebuke , O God of Jacob , Both rider and horse were cast into a dead sleep .
7 You, even You, are to be feared ; And who may stand in Your presence when once You are angry ? 8 You caused judgment to be heard from heaven ; The earth feared and was still 9 When God arose to judgment , To save all the humble of the earth . Selah . 10 For the wrath of man shall praise You; With a remnant of wrath You will gird Yourself. 11 Make vows to the Lord your God and fulfill them; Let all who are around Him bring gifts to Him who is to be feared . 12 He will cut off the spirit of princes ; He is feared by the kings of the earth .
16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs , but on God who has mercy . 17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh , " FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE I RAISED YOU UP, TO DEMONSTRATE MY POWER IN YOU, AND THAT MY NAME MIGHT BE PROCLAIMED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH ." 18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires , and He hardens whom He desires . 19 You will say to me then , " Why does He still find fault ? For who resists His will ?" 20 On the contrary , who are you, O man , who answers back to God ? The thing molded will not say to the molder , "Why did you make me like this ," will it? 21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay , to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another e for common use ? 22 What if God , although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known , endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction ? 23 And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy , which He prepared beforehand for glory , 24 even us, whom He also called , not from among Jews only , but also from among Gentiles .
25 As He says also in Hosea , " I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE , 'MY PEOPLE ,' AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED , 'BELOVED .' " 26 " AND IT SHALL BE THAT IN THE PLACE WHERE IT WAS SAID TO THEM, 'YOU ARE NOT MY PEOPLE ,' THERE THEY SHALL BE CALLED SONS OF THE LIVING GOD ." 27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel , " THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THE SONS OF ISRAEL BE LIKE THE SAND OF THE SEA , IT IS THE REMNANT THAT WILL BE SAVED ; 28 FOR THE Lord WILL EXECUTE HIS WORD ON THE EARTH , THOROUGHLY AND QUICKLY ." 29 And just as Isaiah foretold , " UNLESS THE Lord OF SABAOTH HAD LEFT TO US A POSTERITY , WE WOULD HAVE BECOME LIKE SODOM , AND WOULD HAVE RESEMBLED GOMORRAH ."
30 What shall we say then ? That Gentiles , who did not pursue righteousness , attained righteousness , even the righteousness which is by faith ; 31 but Israel , pursuing a law of righteousness , did not arrive at that law . 32 Why e ? Because they did not pursue it by faith , but as though it were by works . They stumbled over the stumbling stone , 33 just as it is written , " BEHOLD , I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE , AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED ."
(Read Romans 9:14-24)
Whatever God does, must be just. Wherein the holy, happy people of God differ from others, God's grace alone makes them differ. In this preventing, effectual, distinguishing grace, he acts as a benefactor, whose grace is his own. None have deserved it; so that those who are saved, must thank God only; and those who perish, must blame themselves only, Hosea 13:9. God is bound no further than he has been pleased to bind himself by his own covenant and promise, which is his revealed will. And this is, that he will receive, and not cast out, those that come to Christ; but the drawing of souls in order to that coming, is an anticipating, distinguishing favour to whom he will. Why does he yet find fault? This is not an objection to be made by the creature against his Creator, by man against God. The truth, as it is in Jesus, abases man as nothing, as less than nothing, and advances God as sovereign Lord of all. Who art thou that art so foolish, so feeble, so unable to judge the Divine counsels? It becomes us to submit to him, not to reply against him. Would not men allow the infinite God the same sovereign right to manage the affairs of the creation, as the potter exercises in disposing of his clay, when of the same lump he makes one vessel to a more honourable, and one to a meaner use? God could do no wrong, however it might appear to men. God will make it appear that he hates sin. Also, he formed vessels filled with mercy. Sanctification is the preparation of the soul for glory. This is God's work. Sinners fit themselves for hell, but it is God who prepares saints for heaven; and all whom God designs for heaven hereafter, he fits for heaven now. Would we know who these vessels of mercy are? Those whom God has called; and these not of the Jews only, but of the Gentiles. Surely there can be no unrighteousness in any of these Divine dispensations. Nor in God's exercising long-suffering, patience, and forbearance towards sinners under increasing guilt, before he brings utter destruction upon them. The fault is in the hardened sinner himself. As to all who love and fear God, however such truths appear beyond their reason to fathom, yet they should keep silence before him. It is the Lord alone who made us to differ; we should adore his pardoning mercy and new-creating grace, and give diligence to make our calling and election sure.
(Read Romans 9:25-29)
The rejecting of the Jews, and the taking in the Gentiles, were foretold in the Old Testament. It tends very much to the clearing of a truth, to observe how the Scripture is fulfilled in it. It is a wonder of Divine power and mercy that there are any saved: for even those left to be a seed, if God had dealt with them according to their sins, had perished with the rest. This great truth this Scripture teaches us. Even among the vast number of professing Christians it is to be feared that only a remnant will be saved.
(Read Romans 9:30-33)
The Gentiles knew not their guilt and misery, therefore were not careful to procure a remedy. Yet they attained to righteousness by faith. Not by becoming proselytes to the Jewish religion, and submitting to the ceremonial law; but by embracing Christ, and believing in him, and submitting to the gospel. The Jews talked much of justification and holiness, and seemed very ambitious to be the favourites of God. They sought, but not in the right way, not in the humbling way, not in the appointed way. Not by faith, not by embracing Christ, depending upon Christ, and submitting to the gospel. They expected justification by observing the precepts and ceremonies of the law of Moses. The unbelieving Jews had a fair offer of righteousness, life, and salvation, made them upon gospel terms, which they did not like, and would not accept. Have we sought to know how we may be justified before God, seeking that blessing in the way here pointed out, by faith in Christ, as the Lord our Righteousness? Then we shall not be ashamed in that awful day, when all refuges of lies shall be swept away, and the Divine wrath shall overflow every hiding-place but that which God hath prepared in his own Son.
