Bible Commentaries

PROPHESIERS OF SMOOTH THINGS

‘Thy prophets have seen visions … of vanity … and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to bring again thy captivity.’

Lamentations 2:14 (R.V.)

I. This lament of Jeremiah over his city might be repeated still.—To ministers of religion, to teachers, and to all who are eager to save their friends from the downward path, these words are abundantly applicable. Too often we ‘see visions of vanity,’ and do not deal faithfully with the question of sin that lies at the root of all the misery which we are endeavouring to combat. We can only turn away captivity when we dare to draw aside the veil by which a man hides himself from himself, as Nathan when he said to David: ‘Thou art the man.’

II. We must remember our own sins.—It is only when we have detected and removed the beam which is in our eye, that we can see clearly how to remove the mote which is in our brother’s eye. It is only when we consider ourselves, and how we have been tempted and have yielded to temptation, that we can restore those who are tempted. We need to gird ourselves with the towel of the deepest humility before he can wash the feet of our brethren.

III. We must have an invincible optimism.—It is useless to disclose a man’s iniquities unless we know of the Balm in Gilead and the Physician there, and can speak brightly and hopefully of that perfect cure which is within the reach of every soul. The sinner himself has seen all the blackness and poison of his sin; it is needless to speak further of it; it is essential to unfold the possibilities of pardon.

IV. We must be full of the tenderness of the Divine Comforter.—The wounds that sin has made are so sore that the sinner winces from the touch, and we must be very sweet and gentle. The publicans and sinners drew near to Jesus because He would not break the bruised reed or quench the smoking flax.

Illustration

‘Preachers, so soothing, are smooth-preachers and dumb dogs, who bring great and irreparable injury to a whole country, for the sun shall go down over such prophets and the day shall be dark over them (Micah 3:6). And although they may receive for a long time goodwill and favour, money and encouragement from men, yet they lose, together with their hearers who delight in such accommodating ministers, all favour from the living God.’