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"In all their affliction, He was afflicted."
[THIS SHORT SERIES IS INTENDED TO LEAD THE BELIEVER
TO SEE THAT THE "FELLOWSHIP OF HIS SUFFERINGS" IMPLIES
THAT GOD HIMSELF SHARES, IN A VERY REAL SENSE,
THE SUFFERING THAT IS THE INEVITABLE CONSEQUENCE
OF THE FALL OF MAN, AND THUS TO RECEIVE STRENGTH
TO ENDURE AND TO TRIUMPH.]
#1.
pp. 190 - 192
If the God we worship be the God of the theologian and the philosophers, a Being
Who is absolute and unconditioned, then much could be advanced to prove that suffering
or feeling of any sort cannot be a divine experience. This subject, under the title "Is God
passible?" (capable of feeling or suffering), has caused much heartburning in theological
centres. If the God we worship finds the express image of His Person in His beloved
Son, if the God we love be "The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ", if the God of
grace calls Himself "The God of Jacob", then no proof is needed to persuade His
believing children that He does sympathize, feel, and indeed share, the groan of a
creation subjected to vanity. Any attempt adequately to deal with so vast a theme would
demand that the whole of the Scriptures be laid under tribute. Such an enquiry is quite
beyond the intention of these short articles. Our immediate object is to minister to those
who are suffering in mind, body or estate, and we feel that the aspect of truth we here
wish to present is one well calculated to reach this end.
When brought face to face with suffering, especially on the scale that now confronts
the world, a very great number of believers are beset with questions. They fear to
attribute any feeling to the great I AM, yet find it difficult to believe that He can be any
way "moved" by human distress. Unless "love" in the Godhead is something not only
greater but essentially different from any and every exhibition of human love, then the
great truth that "God is love", contains a full answer to the problem, and it seems to us
that all doubts in the matter must therefore vanish as mist before the sun. This, however,
is too sweeping a manner in which to deal with sensitive consciences. We must
accordingly descend to details; we must present our proofs; we must show our reasons;
above all, we must endeavour to show the teaching of the Scriptures on this great subject.
The text which we have chosen for our title, expresses the point we wish to make in
this series, viz., "In all their affliction, He was afflicted" (Isa. 63: 9). To break off at
this point and raise the question of correct readings, Hebrew MSS and similar subjects
may appear to be an uncalled for academic intrusion. But as there will always be the
possibility of an objector raising the matter, we must in this introductory article consider
the validity of our text.
The R.V. of Isa. 63: 9 reads, as a marginal alternative: