To be near unto God - pagina 587

thinks of him, goes out to him, and seeks his holy fellowship. On the other hand God's love is wounded when his child can forget him, and not think of him, and be engaged in mind with everything save him; when, as far as it depends on us, he is the forsaken one. For, in order deeply and strongly to impress upon the heart the outgoing of the Fatherheart of God after love's fellowship with his child, God in his word does not shrink from representing this love to us in the image of conjugal affection. In the description of connubial love in Ezekiel 16, it is constantly declared that God hath betrothed himself unto Israel. In the image of the church as bride, the passionate love which unfolds in the relation of husband and wife, is repeatedly applied to God and his people. As a bride lives solely and alone for her bridegroom, so must God's people live solely and alone for God. And as desertion on the part of the bride or wife deeply offends the heart of the bridegroom or husband, wounds and bruises it, so that envy arises irresistibly, even jealousy burning like fire, so the Lord our God declares that he is moved by holy envy when his people can forget him, when his redeemed ones can wander away and desert him in his love. Yea, then, even the anger of quick jealousy can not be restrained. "Who visiteth the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation" Thus to be near unto God has its terrible other side. He who is not near unto God, is near unto something else, inclines his heart to something else, gives his love to something else. And this provokes Divine jealousy. Whether in that case

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