neither more nor less than their due: the judge in this case is God himself, as the apostle declares in the next verse; he alone knows, he alone can justly determine what such apostates are worthy of; but, in general, that this shall unspeakably exceed that annexed to the transgression of the law, is left to themselves to judge, "suppose ye." What do ye think in your own hearts will be the judgment of God concerning these sinners? This argument the apostle frequently insists upon, (as chap. ii, 2-4, and xii, 25,) and it had a peculiar, cogency towards the Hebrews, who had lived under the terror of those legal punishments all their days.

§8. (II.) From the whole we proceed to observe, 1. The contempt of God and his authority in his law, is the gall and poison of sin.

2. When the God of mercies will have men shew no mercy, as in temporal punishments; he can and will, upon repentance, shew mercy as to eternal punishment; for we dare not condemn all into hell when the law condemned as to temporal punishment.

3. Though there may be sometimes an appearance of great severity in God's judgments against sinners, yet when the nature of their sins and their aggravation shall be discovered, they will be manifest to have been righteous and within due measures,

4. Let us take heed of every neglect of the person of Christ, and his authority, lest we enter into some degree or other of the guilt of this great offence.

5. The sins of men can really and actually reach neither the person nor authority of Christ; they only do that in desire, which in effect they cannot accomplish. This doth not extenuate their sin; the guilt of it is no less than if they did actually trample upon the Son of God.

6. Every thing that takes off from an high and

glorious esteem of the blood of Christ, as the blood of the covenant, is a dangerous entrance into apostasy. 7. There are no such cursed pernicious enemies to religion as apostates.

§9. 1. The inevitable certainty of the eternal punishment of gospel despisers depends on the essential holiness and righteousness of God as the ruler and judge of all; it is nothing but what he in his just judgment, which is according to truth, accounteth them worthy of, Rom. i. 32.

2. It is a righteous thing with God to deal thus with men; wherefore all hopes of mercy, or the least relaxation of punishment to all eternity, are vain as to apostates; they shall have judgment without mercy. 3. God hath allotted different degrees of punishment to the different degrees and aggravations of sin.

4. The apostasy from the gospel here described, being the absolute height of all sin and impiety that the nature of man is capable of, renders them eternally obnoxious to punishment, and the greatest sin must have the greatest judgment.

5. It is our duty diligently to inquire into the nature of sin, lest we be overtaken in the great offence.

6. Sinning against the testimony given by the Holy Ghost to the truth and power of the gospel, of which men have had experience, is the most dangerous symptom of a perishing condition.

7. Threatenings of future eternal judgments on gospel despisers belong to the preaching of the gospel.

8. The equity and righteousness of the most severe judgments of God against gospel despisers is so evident, that it may be referred to the judgment of men themselves if not totally obstinate in their blindness.

9. It is our duty to jutify God and to bear him witness with respect to the righteousness of his judgments against gospel despisers.

VERSES 30, 31.

For we know him that hath said, vengeance belongeth unto me,' I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, the Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall in the hands of the living God.

$1, (I.) Exposition. The severity before mentioned supported by sacred testimonies. $2. Vengeance belongs to God 3. God the supreme judge. $4 Hence the awful danger of falling under this displeasure. $5,6 (11) Observations.

§1. As if the apostle had said, in the severe sentence we have denounced against apostates, we have spoken nothing but what is suitable to the holiness of God, and what indeed in such cases he hath declared he will do. The conjunction (yap) for, denotes the introduction of a reason of what was spoken before, but more particularly the reference he had made to their own judgments of what sore punishment was due to apostates; if you would be fully convinced of the righteousness and certainty of this dreadful destruc tion of apostates, consider, in the first place, the au thor of it, the only judge in the case; "we know him that hath said," what God speaks Deut. xxxii, 35, 36. concerning his enemies, and the enemies of his people in covenant with him, is applicable to that people itself, when they absolutely break and reject the covenant; for these, upon their apostasy come into the places of the most cursed enemies of God and his faithful people; and therefore God will be to them, what he was to the worst of his adversaries; for shall he not act in the like manner towards them who murdered the Lord Jesus, and persecuted all his followers?

§2. This first testimony in the original is (huopato me vengeance and recompence, which the apostle renders by (Eydinos probárodovia) a just recompence, to the same purpose. Recompence is the actual exercise

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of vengeance; (dinn, endinnois) vengeance is the actual execution of judgment on sinners, according to their desert, without mitigation of mercy; it is an act of judgment, and wherever mention is made of it, God is still proposed as a judge; it being a just retribution according to the just demerit of sin. This vengeance -God appropriateth to himself in a peculiar manner, as that which in its full latitude, no creature hath any interest in; see Psal. xciv, 1, 2; for it respects only sin Sin its own formal nature, as an offence against God; although he hath in magistrates allowed the infliction of punishments on offenders to answer the proper ends of government and to promote the peace of the world; yet as to vengeance, as it denotes giving satisfaction to 1ourselves in the punishment of others, it is forbidden to all persons both public and private. God in executing vengeance gives satisfaction to his own infinte holi iness and righteousness, which makes it holy and just; wherefore the formal reason of the appropriation of all vengeance unto God, is, that he alone can judge and punish in his own case, and to his own satisfaction.. "He hath made all things for himself, and the wicked for the day of evil;" in this appropriation of vengeance unto God there is supposed and included, that indeed there is vengeance with him, which in due time he 7 will execute; “I will repay saith God;" He doth oftentimes exercise great patience and forbearance, even then when vengeance might justly be expected; “how long dost thou not avenge our blood?" This commonly adds to the security of wicked men, and they learn to despise the threatenings of all the divine judgments which they have deserved, 2 Pet. iii, 3-7; Eccles. viii, 11; they are ready to conclude, that either vengeance doth not belong to God, or that it shall be executed when and where they are not concerned; but

a determined time is fixed for the execution of deserv ed vengeance; hence he calls it "the year of vengeance, and the day of recompence;" so here, "I will recom pence, saith the Lord."

§3. The second testimony, taken from the same place, is of the same import with this; "The Lord shall judge his people." In Deuteronomy, chap. xxxii, 36; it is applied to such a judgment of them as tends to their deliverance; but the general truth of the words is, that God is the supreme judge, he is judge himself; Psal. i, 6; this the apostle makes use of, concluding that the righteousness of God, as the supreme judge of all, obligeth him to this severe destruction of apostates; for "shall not the judge of all the world do right?” Shall not he who is judge, in a peculiar manner, of those that profess themselves to be his people, punish them for their iniquities, especially such as break off all covenant relation.

§4. "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." These words are both an inference from those immediately foregoing and a recapitulation of all he had spoken to this purpose. Let men look to it, let them look to themselves, and consider what they do; "for it is a fearful thing." &c. In what sense God is called the "living God," and with respect to what ends, hath been declared before, chap. iii, 12; and ix, 14. In brief, this title is ascribed to God in opposition to all dead and dumb idols, and with respect to >> his eternal power, whereby he is able to avenge the sins of men; indeed it calls to mind all the other holy properties of his nature, which are suited to impress dread and terror on presumptuous sinners, whose punishment is thence demonstrated to be unavoidable; the event of sinning is (EμTEGEN EIC Xeipas) to fall into his hands; which is a common expression with reference