Woes on the Pharisees
529
of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them
from city to city.” Prophets and wise men, full of faith and the Holy
Ghost,—Stephen, James, and many others,—would be condemned
and slain. With hand uplifted to heaven, and a divine light enshrouding
His person, Christ spoke as a judge to those before Him. His voice,
that had so often been heard in gentleness and entreaty, was now heard
in rebuke and condemnation. The listeners shuddered. Never was the
impression made by His words and His look to be effaced.
Christ’s indignation was directed against the hypocrisy, the gross
sins, by which men were destroying their own souls, deceiving the
people and dishonoring God. In the specious deceptive reasoning of
the priests and rulers He discerned the working of satanic agencies.
Keen and searching had been His denunciation of sin; but He spoke
no words of retaliation. He had a holy wrath against the prince of
darkness; but He manifested no irritated temper. So the Christian who
lives in harmony with God, possessing the sweet attributes of love and
mercy, will feel a righteous indignation against sin; but he will not be
[620]
roused by passion to revile those who revile him. Even in meeting
those who are moved by a power from beneath to maintain falsehood,
in Christ he will still preserve calmness and self-possession.
Divine pity marked the countenance of the Son of God as He cast
one lingering look upon the temple and then upon His hearers. In a
voice choked by deep anguish of heart and bitter tears He exclaimed,
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest
them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy
children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her
wings, and ye would not!” This is the separation struggle. In the
lamentation of Christ the very heart of God is pouring itself forth. It is
the mysterious farewell of the long-suffering love of the Deity.
Pharisees and Sadducees were alike silenced. Jesus summoned His
disciples, and prepared to leave the temple, not as one defeated and
forced from the presence of his adversaries, but as one whose work
was accomplished. He retired a victor from the contest.
The gems of truth that fell from Christ’s lips on that eventful day
were treasured in many hearts. For them new thoughts started into
life, new aspirations were awakened, and a new history began. After
the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, these persons came to the
front, and fulfilled their divine commission with a wisdom and zeal