Bene-Jaakan
‘” Numb, xxxiii. 31.
“Ami they departed from and pitched in Bene, jaakaii.”
A PROPER answer is often of great importance, and it was a dreadful thing, when the man who entered the festive hall was addressed by the king with the words, “Friend, how earnest thou in hither without a wedding-garment?” and he was speechless. “And the king ordered him to be bound hand and foot, and taken away, and cast into outer darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.” Dreadful result! awful inability to reply! But what offence had the man committed? Nothing more than his not having on a wedding-garment. And his crime consisted in presuming to appear without it. But why did not the man excuse himself, and begin to say, “Lord, thou hast invited, nay, even in some measure, compelled all sorts of vagabonds and beggars to come, and yet afterwards art angry about wedding-garments! What crying injustice! Who can expect poor people that come from the highways and hedges, to bring garments with them, suitable for such a marriage feast as this?” But this he was not able to say, for according to the custom of the East, every guest is presented by the master of the feast with a festive robe, called a caftan. This man had therefore refused to accept it. And for what reason? He was deceived by the good opinion he had of his own dress, which, comparatively, might have been very decent. He thought highly of himself in it, and lightly of others, even in their caftans, which, it is true, were borrowed, and did not belong to them. This proud self-complacent opinion was his ruin. 0, if he had only been humble! Let us become so betimes, and therefore encamp with the children of Israel where we now find them.
The name of this twenty-seventh encampment is Bene-jaakan. It also lies further off from Canaan, and nearer to the Red Sea. Its name signifies children of apprehension or of the oppressor, or penitent children.
This is a very natural result of correction, from whence the previous station derived its name. We find a beautiful exposition of this word in Psalm cxix. 67, 71, and 75, where the Psalmist says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now have I kept thy word.” ‘* It is good for me to have been afflicted, that I might learn thy statutes.” “I know, 0 Lord! that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me.”
The Psalmist speaks of a threefold humiliation, and a threefold advantage derivable from it. The first is restoration from error and consequent keeping of the divine word. The second consists in learning the divine statutes. And in the third, which lasted the longest, the truth and faithfulness of God was manifested. Let us, therefore, briefly consider this threefold beneficial effect of being afflicted.
Real humility implies, generally, that the individual considers himself ignorant, weak, poor, needy, and wretched. It commences in an individual when he looks at things differently to what he did before. He was like a sheep, going astray, and was pleased with it. But he now begins to perceive, that he is in the wrong, and that a great change must take place in him, else the result will be awful. He begins to observe that he is spiritually diseased, a sinner, and ungodly, and thus begins to divest himself of a fatal and fundamental error. This is an important commencement of humiliation. Does it exist in you all? This sight of our own deficiencies ought powerfully to operate on every one.
This change of sentiment awakens the man out of bis previous slumber. It disturbs the dangerous rest he had hitherto enjoyed. It is accompanied with many accusations, and bitter inward reproofs, as well as grievous apprehensions, lest it should now be too late, the door be shut, and the Lord no longer inclined towards him. Fear, terror, and anxiety are excited in the mind; and thus the man is humbled, rendered little, desponding, and timid.
Hence arise various good resolutions and determinations. Henceforth he is resolved to be a different character, he will no longer act as he has hitherto done, he is firmly resolved zealously to pursue another path; he will now seek none but Jesus, and execrate that which grieves him. He avails himself of what strengthens these resolutions, and avoids what may shake them.
They ripen also into actions., By these gracious attractions, the man becomes inclined and induced to avoid a variety of evil, and to do much that is good, however difficult both may be to him, and whatever constraint and effort it may cost him.
This we may call a preparatory, general humiliation; but then follows one of a deeper and more complete nature. “I know, O Lord,” says David, ‘’ that thy judgments are right, and that in faithfulness thou hast afflicted me;” which faithfulness manifests itself in prosecuting this humiliation to the attainment of its aim; which is, a more profound knowledge of self and sin, which leaves the man scarcely any thing of what is good, and renders every thing sinful, even the most indifferent actions, because nothing is done aright, when brought before the inward tribunal. It is no longer enough that good actions are performed, but they are judged of according to their inward nature, motives, and intentions, even with regard to prayer and benevolent actions.
Besides all this, inward corruption and concupiscence manifest themselves more and more, which cause the individual to think more lightly of himself than before. This humiliation is occasioned by judgments, as David also says. The more the man is visited by painful providential dispensations, and temptations, and trials of various kinds, the more he perceives how every thing in him, except the grace he has received, is corrupt and opposed to the divine wJlL How difficult does he find it to reconcile himself to all the ways of God, and even occasionally to keep himself from murmuring and despondency! He feels that in his flesh dwelleth no good thing, and therefore humbles himself under the mighty hand of God, that he may be delivered from the body of sin and death. He acknowledges that the Lord’s judgments are right; and when overtaken by some grievous fault, he exclaims, in the penitential language of David, “Against thee, thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”
Great, however, is the benefit of these humiliations. From how many important errors is the individual cleansed, which he cherished with respect to man, his power and wisdom, and with respect to grace and its operations. He learns the statutes of the Lord, and keeps his word. He humbles himself, and to such individuals, God gives grace. He seeks his salvation the more fully in Christ, the less of ability and sufficiency he feels in himself. In his clearer moments, when perceiving these advantages, he says with David, •’ It was good for me to have been afflicted,” so that in the end, I knew not what to answer. He gives himself up with renewed readiness to humiliation, however painful it may be, and is willing to be weak, that the Lord may be his strength; to be nothing, that the Lord may be all: to be poor, that his riches may be magnified in him, and to be little, that he alone may be great.
The holy prophet especially commends the faithfulness of God, which had manifested itself in afflicting him; and this faithfulness evidences itself in various ways. The affliction is neither too great nor too little. It does not last longer than is good for the individual, nor does it cease too soon. The Lord does not concern himself about the complaint which may be made, but carries through his salutary purposes. He regulates the humiliation according to the necessities of each, and attacks him va the most painful part, but just where it is the most required. He supports the so-ul in enduring it, even though the waters may rise to the very lips, and the billows roll over our heads. At the proper time, the water is turned into wine, the gold is taken out of the fire, the wind and the waves are commanded to be still, and Lazarus, though buried, comes forth again alive.
But there is another species of humiliation, which is still more wearisome, and which continues even to the end of the pilgrimage through the wilderness. There is a humiliation of the will. How gladly would Moses have entered into Canaan! And yet the answer to his earnest entreaty was, let it suffice thee; speak no more of it. How gladly would Paul have been freed from the bufFetings of Satan I But it was said to him, “My grace is sufficient for thee.” The Lord at one time grants every request, at another, none. The individual must give up his will, however correct it may appear.
There are also humiliations of knowledge, so that the man can no longer make any use of what he knows. Israel says, ‘* My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God,” and acts as if he had never* heard that ‘’ the Lord giveth strength to the weary and power to the faint.” In their distress, the disciples no longer rrmembered that their Lord had said, ‘* I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice.”
There are humiliations of strength. If previously the individual was able in his own strength to order, regulate, effect, and avert many things, he feels deprived of this ability, and sees himself reduced to faith in the Lord, who has promised to be powerful in the weak. But in this case also, things do not go as we would have them; and after being able to say, ‘* I can do all things,” we are constrained to exclaim, “Thou weakenest my strength in the way,”
There is also a bringing down of self- estimation. “He that thinks himself to be something,” says the Apostle, “deceiveth himself.” And these words contain much.. We must, therefore, not even think we are any thing, let alone something! But who is there that acts according to this? In so far, however, as we are still something in ourselves, Christ is not yet all in all to us, as he ought to be. We must lose our own lives, and consequently every thing. Hence we may infer, how far we have still to travel, before we can creep through such a needle’s eye, and before we reach the prize of our high calling.
Finally, there are humiliations of our own views and sejitiments. Thy insight into the gospel, the covenant of grace, and the atonement may be very clear; but it may also become darkened, and will be so, if advantageous to thee. Therefore, be not high-minded. Thou hast much courage, boldness, comfort, gifts. But the more thou hast, the more can be taken away from thee, so far as thou hast it. Thou art a believer, and it is not difficult for thee to apply the gospel to thyself; thou possessest assurance and a state of enjoyument. If retained in it, be abundantly thankful, nor depart from poverty of spirit, but enter ever deeper into it; be exceedingly humble. The Lord will then give thee more than what thou hast already.
Since it is of such great advantage to be humbled, may the Lord faithfully humble us, that we may not go astray, but learn his word, keep his statutes, and obtain the grace which the Lord giveth to the humble! Amen.