The opening of this brief chapter records the divine call and the
divine qualification of "Bezaleel and Aholiab" to do the work of the
tabernacle of the congregation. "And the Lord spake unto Moses,
saying, 'See, _I have called_ by name Bezaleel, the son of Uri, the
son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and _I have filled_ him with the
spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and
in all manner of workmanship.... And I, behold, _I have given_ with
him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the
hearts of all that are wise-hearted _I have put_ wisdom, that they may
make all that _I have commanded_." Whether for "the work of the
tabernacle" of old, or "the work of the ministry" now, there should be
the divine selection, the divine call, the divine qualification, the
divine appointment, and all must be done according to the divine
commandment. Man could not select, call, qualify, or appoint to do the
work of the tabernacle; neither can he to do the work of the ministry.
Furthermore, no man could presume to appoint himself to do the work of
the tabernacle; neither can he to do the work of the ministry. It was,
it is, it must be, wholly and absolutely divine. Men may run as sent
of their fellow, or men may run of themselves; but let it be
remembered that all who run without being sent of God shall one day or
other be covered with shame and confusion of face. Such is the plain
and wholesome doctrine suggested by the words, "I have called," "I
have filled," "I have given," "I have put," "I have commanded." The
words of the Baptist must ever hold good--"A man can receive nothing
except it be given him from heaven." (John iii. 27.) He can therefore
have but little room to boast of himself, and just as little to be
jealous of his fellow.
There is a profitable lesson to be learnt from a comparison of this
chapter with Genesis iv. "Tubal-cain was an instructor of every
artificer in brass and iron." The descendants of Cain were endowed
with unhallowed skill to make a cursed and groaning earth a delectable
spot, without the presence of God: "Bezaleel and Aholiab," on the
contrary, were endowed with divine skill to beautify a sanctuary which
was to be hallowed and blessed by the presence and glory of the God of
Israel.
Reader, let me ask you just to pause and put this solemn question to
your conscience,--Whether am I devoting whatever of skill or energy I
possess to the interests of the Church which is God's dwelling-place,
or to beautify an ungodly, Christless world? Say not in thine heart, I
am not divinely called or divinely qualified for the work of the
ministry. Remember that though all Israel were not Bezaleels or
Aholiabs, yet all could serve the interests of the sanctuary. There
was an open door for all to communicate. Thus it is now. Each one has
a place to occupy, a ministry to fulfill, a responsibility to
discharge; and you and I are at this moment either promoting the
interests of the house of God--the body of Christ--the Church, or
helping on the Godless schemes of a world yet stained with the blood
of Christ and the blood of all His martyred saints. Oh, let us deeply
ponder this, as in the presence of the great Searcher of hearts, whom
none can deceive--to whom all are known.
Our chapter closes with a special reference to the institution of the
Sabbath. It was referred to in chapter xvi, in connection with the
manna; it was distinctly enjoined in chapter xx, when the people were
formally put under law; and here we have it again, in connection with
the setting up of the tabernacle. Whenever the nation of Israel is
presented in some special position, or recognized as a people in
special responsibility, then the Sabbath is introduced. And let my
reader carefully note both the day and the mode in which it was to be
observed, and also the object for which it was instituted in Israel.
"Ye shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy unto you: _every
one that defileth it shall surely be put to death_; for whosoever
doeth _any work_ therein, that soul shall be _cut off_ from among his
people. Six days may work be done; but _in the seventh_ is the Sabbath
of rest, holy to the Lord: whosoever doeth _any work_ in the Sabbath
day, _he shall surely be put to death_." This is as explicit and
absolute as any thing can be. It fixes "the seventh day" and none
other; and it positively forbids, on pain of death, all manner of
work. There can be no avoiding the plain sense of this. And be it
remembered that there is not so much as a single line of Scripture to
prove that the Sabbath has been changed, or the strict principles of
its observance in the smallest degree relaxed. If there be any
Scripture proof, let my reader look it out for his own satisfaction.
Now, let us inquire if indeed professing Christians do keep God's
Sabbath on the day and after the manner which He commanded. It were
idle to lose time in proving that they do not. Well, what are the
consequences of a single breach of the Sabbath? "_Cut off_"--"_put to
death_."
But, it will be said, we "are not under law, but under grace." Blessed
be God for the sweet assurance! Were we under law, there is not one
throughout the wide range of Christendom who should not long since
have fallen beneath the stone of judgment, even upon the one solitary
point of the Sabbath. But, if we are under grace, what is the day
which belongs to us? Assuredly, "the first day of the week"--"the
Lord's day." This is the Church's day--the resurrection day of Jesus,
who, having spent the Sabbath in the tomb, rose triumphant over all
the powers of darkness; thus leading His people out of the old
creation, and all that pertains thereto, into the new creation, of
which He is the Head, and of which the first day of the week is the
apt expression.
This distinction is worthy of the serious attention of the reader. Let
him examine it prayerfully in the light of Scripture. There may be
nothing and there may be a great deal in a mere name. In the present
instance, there is a great deal more involved in the distinction
between "the Sabbath" and "the Lord's day" than many Christians seem
to be aware of. It is very evident that the first day of the week gets
a place in the Word of God which no other day gets. No other day is
ever called by that majestic and elevated title, "The Lord's day."
Some, I am aware, deny that Rev. i. 10 refers to the first day of the
week; but I feel most fully assured that sound criticism and sound
exegesis do both warrant--yea, demand the application of that passage,
not to the day of Christ's advent in glory, but to the day of His
resurrection from the dead.
But most assuredly, the Lord's day is never once called the Sabbath.
So far from this, the two days are again and again spoken of in their
proper distinctness. Hence, therefore, my reader will have to keep
clear of two extremes. In the first place, he will have to avoid the
legalism which one finds so much linked with the term "Sabbath;" and,
in the second place, he will need to bear a very decided testimony
against every attempt to dishonor the Lord's day, or lower it to the
level of an ordinary day. The believer is delivered, most completely,
from the observance of "days, and months, and times, and years."
Association with a risen Christ has taken him clean out of all such
superstitious observances. But, while this is most blessedly true, we
see that "the first day of the week" has a place assigned to it in the
New Testament which no other has. Let the Christian give it that
place. It is a sweet and happy privilege, not a grievous yoke.
Space forbids my further entrance upon this interesting subject. It
has been gone into elsewhere, as already intimated, in the earlier
pages of this volume. I shall close these remarks by pointing out, in
one or two particulars, the contrast between "the Sabbath" and "the
Lord's day."
1. The Sabbath was the _seventh_ day; the Lord's day is the _first_.
2. The Sabbath was a _test_ of Israel's condition; the Lord's day is
the _proof_ of the Church's acceptance, on wholly unconditional
grounds.
S. The Sabbath belonged to the old creation; the Lord's day belongs to
the new.
4. The Sabbath was a day of _bodily_ rest for the Jew; the Lord's day
is a day of _spiritual_ rest for the Christian.
5. If the Jew worked on the Sabbath, he was to be put to _death_: if
the Christian does not work on the Lord's day, he gives little proof
of _life_;--that is to say, if he does not work for the benefit of the
souls of men, the extension of Christ's glory, and the spread of His
truth. In point of fact, the devoted Christian who possesses any gift
is generally more fatigued on the evening of the Lord's day than on
any other in the week, for how can he rest while souls are perishing
around him?
6. The Jew was _commanded_ by the _law_ to abide in his tent; the
Christian is _led_ by the spirit of the _gospel_ to go forth, whether
it be to attend the public assembly or to minister to the souls of
perishing sinners.
The Lord enable us, beloved reader, to rest more artlessly _in_, and
labor more vigorously _for_, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! We
should _rest_ in the spirit of a _child_, and _labor_ with the energy
of a _man_.