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If this never comes to pass, God will have broken His Word, and if He can do this
with His earthly people how do we know that He will not do so with us who are members
of the Body of Christ? We are assured that the "gifts and calling of God are without
repentance" (i.e. change of mind on His part, Rom. 11: 25-29). Truly His covenant "will
He not break nor alter the thing that has gone out of His lips" (Psa. 89: 34-37).
Consequently the returning Lord and Judge sends out His command as we have seen
in verse 5. In the eleventh chapter, Isaiah declares:
"And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set His hand again the
second time to recover the remnant of His people . . . . . and He shall set up an ensign for
the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel and gather together the dispersed of
Judah from the four corners of the earth . . . . ." (Isa. 11: 11, 12).
This, and many other passages in the Word of God assure us that the true Israel,
descended from Isaac, will at last enjoy the earthly inheritance that God has promised
them. Now is the time of God's silence in grace which has characterized this present age.
When He speaks again, it will surely be in judgment as the book of Revelation clearly
teaches, but His scrutiny is first given to the people of Israel:
"Hear, O My people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against thee, I am
God, even thy God" (50: 7).
Nothing can alter the fact that added light and knowledge bring added responsibility.
Later on Amos brings this home to the same people, showing that guilt is in proportion to
privilege:
"You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities" (Amos 3: 2).
The wicked made the fatal mistake of thinking that God was like themselves (50: 21).
This was because He did not summarily punish them. They misinterpreted His
longsuffering silence as apathy and indifference. Doubtless there are multitudes today
who make the same mistake. Evil abounds everywhere and nothing appears to happen.
God apparently does not take any notice, but verse 22 contains a terrible warning
showing that God does know and care and one day sin will be judged by Him Who is the
Judge of all the earth.
"Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to
deliver."
The whole Psalm is a warning against religious formalism which was stressed so
much by the later prophets.
Psalm 89:
This great Psalm brings before us the faithfulness of God. The word occurs seven
times, in verses 1, 2, 5, 8, 24, 33, 49. In the last verse the word rendered `truth' is the
same as the other occurrences translated `faithfulness' as the R.V. shows. One of the