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"The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back".
3. The Face
The tongue can only speak as the ear is opened, and the opened ear cannot be
disassociated from suffering and reproach:
"I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from
shame and spitting" (Isa. 50:6).
The words reveal the Saviour here. He was and is the One Who preeminently has the
tongue of the learner. As the great High Priest He is able to succour the tempted and
tried, because He has suffered, being tempted, Himself: He does give a "word in season"
to the weary. In Matthew 11:28, 29 we have those memorable words:
"Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon
you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls".
The context is instructive. The cities wherein the Lord had done many mighty works
repented not. Humanly speaking His ministry had bee most discouraging. Yet:
"AT THAT TIME Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because
Thou has hid these things from the wise and prudent, and has revealed them unto babes. Even so,
Father: for so it seemed good in Thy sight" (Matt. 11:25, 26).
Here is the glorious illustration of Isaiah 50. He Who was so meek and lowly that He
could look up under these circumstances and say, "Even so", He was the One Who could
say "Learn of Me". He could speak a word "in season" for He was not rebellious. He had
the tongue because He had the ear and the heart.
Shall we not learn this lesson, and in our pilgrimage be better fitted to pour oil and
wine of comfort, speaking a word in season to the weary ones whom we meet, and
learning not only what but how to speak the word that shall minister true consolation?
The Ministry of Consolation
No. 2
"Fret not thyself" (Psa. 37).
The English word "fret" comes from the Anglo-Saxon fretan = to gnaw. The Hebrew
word used here means to burn, to kindle (Gen. 44:18, Num. 11:33). The LXX translates
the Hebrew parazeloo. This word is also used in the Greek translation of Deuteronomy
32:21, 1 Kings 14:22, and Psalm 78:58, and in the New Testament in Romans "Fret not
thyself" in Psalm 37 must not be rendered by the English idea of to fret, to be peevish, to
mourn, or to grieve.