My Notes
Authors
John Calvin - Commentaries
**For the Lord shall judge his people. Some connect this sentence with what precedes it, and thus take the word _judge _for _to punish, _and the Apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrews, seems to support their opinion, inasmuch as he proves by this testimony how fearful a thing it is “to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews10:30, 31.) But there is no reason why the Apostle should not have accommodated to a different purpose what was set forth by Moses for the consolation of the godly, in order that believers might be the more heedful, the nearer they saw God to show Himself as the Judge of His Church; unless it be perhaps preferred to construe the words of Moses thus: Although God should judge His people, yet at length He will be propitiated, or touched with repentance, so as to temper the vehemence of His anger. Whichever way we understand them will be of little difference in the main; for, after Moses has threatened the despisers of God, and the apostates, who desire to be accounted members of His household the Church, he now turns to the strangers and denounces against them that the cruelty which they have exercised towards the Israelites shall not be unpunished, because God will at length be mindful of His covenant, and will pardon His elect people. If you take the word _judge _for to _govern, _or to _undertake their cause, _the particle _for _must be rendered adversatively, as though it were said _nevertheless _or _but; _if we prefer the other sense, it will be equivalent to _although, _or _even though. _Doubtless the object of Moses is to encourage the hopes of the pious, who have profited by God’s chastisement, by showing that He will mitigate His severity towards His elect people, and _in _His _wrath _will _remember mercy. _(Habakkuk 3:2 .) Thus, then, Moses here teaches the same thing which God afterwards more clearly unfolded to David:
“If _thy _children forsake my law,… I will visit their transgressions with the rod of man,… nevertheless my loving-kindness will I not take away from them,” etc. 287287 C. evidently quoted from memory, and amalgamated the two citations. (Psalms 89:30 , 33; 2 Samuel 7:14 , 15.)
For nothing is more fitted to sustain us in afflictions than when God promises that there shall be some limit to them, so that He will not utterly destroy those whom He has chosen. Whenever, therefore, the ills which we suffer tempt us to despair, let this lesson recur to our minds, that the punishments, wherewith God chastises His children, are temporary, since His promise will never fail that “his anger endureth but a moment,” (Psalms 30:5 ,) whilst the flow of His mercy is continual. Hence, too, that lesson which is especially directed to the Church: 288288 Here also the substance, and not the words of the passage, are given.
“For a moment I afflicted thee, but I will pursue my mercies towards thee for ever.” (Isaiah 54:8 .)
He here calls them His _servants, _not because they had deserved His pardon by their obedience, but because He condescends to acknowledge them as His own; for this honor has reference to His gratuitous election; as when David says, “I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid,” (Psalms 116:16 ,) he assuredly arrogates nothing peculiar to himself; but only boasts that he from the womb had been of God’s family, just as slaves are born in the house of their masters. At the same time we must observe that, whenever God declares that He will be merciful to His servants, he only refers to those who heartily seek for reconciliation, and not to the reprobate, who are carried away to destruction by their desperate obstinacy. In short, to the end that God should repent of His severity, repentance is required on the part of sinners; as he teaches elsewhere:
“Turn ye unto me,… and I will turn unto you.” (Zechariah 1:3 .)
Instead of _shall repent, _some translate the word, shall console himself. 289289 _LXX _Παρακληθήσεται _V. _“miserebitur.” Addition in _Fr., _“Le mot de _repentir _s’accorde mieux au stile de l’Escriture;” the word _repent _accords best with the style of Scripture. Jerome, regarding the drift of the passage rather than the meaning of the word, translates it shall have mercy.
We must, however, remark the time which God prefixes for the exertion of His grace, viz., when all their power _(virtus) _shall have departed from them, and all shall be reduced to almost entire destruction; for the word _hand _is used for vigor; 290290 _Vide _margin, A. V. as though it were said that God would be by no means content with a light chastisement, and consequently would not be appeased until they should have come to extremities. This circumstance is well worthy of notice, so flint our hopes may not fail us even in the most severe afflictions of the Church; but that we may be assured that although all may be in the worst state possible, still the due season of reparation will come even yet.
That none should remain behind, or _shut up or left, _is almost a proverbial phrase in Hebrew; as when it is said, (1 Kings 14:10 ,) “I will cut off from Jeroboam,… him that is shut up and left in Israel,” i.e., as well in the city as in the country, or at home as abroad. And this is again repeated respecting the posterity of Ahab. (Ibid. 21:21.) And hence it is plain that they are mistaken 291291 This notion is attributed in Poole to “many of the Hebrews, and Malvenda.” who explain this as referring to riches shut up in treasure-houses, and cattle dispersed through the fields. And this will be still more apparent from another passage in which the Prophet unquestionably referred to this, “The Lord saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter; for there was not any shut up, nor any left,” and inasmuch as He had not determined to _blot out _His people,” he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam;” as much as to say, that God, as He had promised, had pity upon His people in their extreme destitution. (2 Kings 14:26 , 27.)