But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
The speaker is divine Wisdom, God Himself in the Saviour who died for men and stood among them in Jesus Christ, addressing those who refuse when He calls and stretches out His hand, setting aside all His counsel and rejecting His reproof, instruction and warnings, hating knowledge and not choosing the fear of the Lord, as the Jewish nation and its priests and rulers did with hard, impenitent hearts when they condemned Him. That refusal is forsaking a true and loving Friend to serve the gods of this world with God-given time, means and intellect, letting the world, frivolous amusements, pride, appetite and conformity absorb the attention until the heart is hardened and truth is no longer heard, which is resisting and grieving the Spirit of God and rejecting light, evidence, love and mercy. The destruction that follows is the rejecters' own fault, reaping what was sown by eating the fruit of their own way, with fear coming as desolation and distress as a whirlwind, as seen when the temple was burned, the city leveled and the people scattered, and when calamity comes He laughs and mocks and will not answer those who then call and seek Him early. When He triumphed from the tomb and when He comes in glory to judgment, the voice once heard pleading for repentance will condemn those who despised His counsel and recall the invitations and privileges they slighted, and mercy and forbearance will not continue forever but reach their limit when probation closes and the Spirit is finally grieved away. The warning itself is an act of tender pity kindly calling sinners to be zealous, repent, make peace with Him and choose eternal life while there is hope of pardon, applying to rejecting plain commandments such as the seventh-day Sabbath and the final warning, and to the last days as in the days of Noah when probation ends too late, for fear, vows and pleas for mercy made only in terror or at judgment do not avail without lasting conversion.
Speaker, Setting and Refusal
The speaker is divine Wisdom Himself, God and the Saviour who died for men, the voice of Jesus Christ while He was in their midst speaking through warning, judgments, and blessing given and withdrawn. Those who despise His counsel and refuse His reproof in this life will turn away in pain from His glorified face.
The verse addresses the Jewish nation and the generation that rejected Him, especially the priests and rulers who condemned Him. They refused with hard, impenitent hearts that even the wisdom of His appeals could not reach, acting under Satan's guidance in rejecting and murdering the Son of God. That generation was entrusted with sacred responsibilities and given great spiritual and temporal advantages, yet laid under the most solemn responsibility and declared guilty for its rejection. It was like the fruitless fig tree that appeared alive and professed faith with leaves but bore no fruit and remained under condemnation after His warning. Their power could not prevail against God, for the tomb was guarded by heaven and they could not keep the Son of God imprisoned.
To set at nought all counsel and have none of reproof is to refuse when He calls and to regard not His outstretched hand. It is to set His counsel aside and reject His correction, slighting the instruction and warnings of the Word of God and despising the great salvation offered through Christ. It is to hate knowledge and not choose the fear of the Lord, to turn away from knowledge and the fear of the Lord after Wisdom's public call, and to refuse to come to Him to have life and receive life. Such rejection spurns His efforts to save and to turn men from error, persisting in unbelief despite warnings.
That refusal is to forsake a true and loving Friend to serve the gods of this world with God-given talents of time, means, and intellect. It is to follow the path of convenience and worldly pleasure while intending to return to God at some time, but letting the world with its follies and deceptions absorb the attention. Frivolous amusements, pride of dress, and indulgence of appetite harden the heart and benumb the conscience so the voice of truth is not heard, duty is despised, things of infinite value are lightly esteemed, and the heart loses all desire to sacrifice for Him who has given so much for man. By excuses and persistence in sin and conformity to the world men harden themselves in the same refusal, until they learn too late that earthly wealth, status, and possessions cannot secure a share in His glory.
Refusing counsel and reproof is resisting the Spirit of God and rejecting light, evidence, and truth. It is to slight the reproofs and warnings of His Word and of His Spirit, to despise the great salvation offered, and to fail to respond to His love and mercy. By such persistence men grieve His Spirit until its voice is no longer heard and it is at last grieved away.
Judgment and Its Consequences
Destruction that follows refusal is the rejecters' own fault, for fear comes as desolation and destruction comes as a whirlwind with distress and anguish, and in the reaping time they gather what was sown by eating the fruit of their own way and being filled with their own devices. Suffering is the sure consequence of choosing sinful practices and violating the laws of nature, leaving the unrepentant and self-reliant to be caught unprepared, to fall, and to be taken by the enemy. This was seen in the Jewish nation that refused Him, when the temple was burned, the city leveled, and the people scattered.
When that calamity comes He laughs at calamity and mocks when fear comes, and will not answer when they call upon Him and seek Him early. Having slighted instruction and warnings and despised the great salvation offered through Christ, having lived for worldly pleasure, they seek help but do not find Him as refuge or consolation and are left to their own ways. The time comes when those who refused Him will seek Him but not find Him, and will suffer the fruit of their own choices.
At Christ's triumph from the tomb the priests and rulers who condemned Him met this desolation and whirlwind, unanswered in their calling and seeking. When He comes in glory and they face Him in judgment, the voice once heard pleading for repentance condemns them and recalls the calls, invitations, warnings, counsel and privileges they refused and slighted. Those who despised His counsel will turn away in pain from His glorified face, recognizing too late that earthly wealth, status and possessions cannot secure a share in His glory.
Those who persist are responsible and without excuse, and if destroyed they alone are responsible and guilty for it. Continued refusal hardens them against further counsel and leaves them hardened without conviction or hope, blinded to the true character of sin so they flatter themselves they meant good and did no wrong, and left to chosen delusions. Yet there is hope if they humble their hearts, put away what He reproves, turn to God wholeheartedly, and repent and reform, for God will pardon the transgressor who repents.
Mercy and forbearance toward rebellion will not continue forever but have a limit, when warning, expostulation, patience and probation are about to close. The precious but brief moments to repent and confess must be used before mercy is heard no more and the Spirit is finally grieved away and less manifested, until angels fold their wings and cease watchcare and no prayers or words of peace prevail for rejecters of light. Those who listen to wisdom, by contrast, dwell safely.
Mercy, Warning and Application
The warning itself is an act of mercy, tender pity kindly and faithfully calling sinners to be zealous and repent while opportunity remains. It presses the reader before the coming of the Lord to make peace with Him, to come to Jesus, to partake largely of salvation and to choose eternal life. There is hope, for God will pardon the transgressor who turns to Him wholeheartedly.
To set at nought counsel and refuse reproof is to reject plainly stated commandments and the final warning, especially the seventh-day Sabbath. It is to disregard solemn admonitions, light and correction, with increasing resistance to His voice. It is also to persist in unsound and unjust decisions despite clear counsel. It is to rob God of service purchased with His own blood by spending time in idle talk and foolish amusement and trading eternal life for worldly pleasure, lest heaven be lost and the rejecter be sent away from God's presence to share the humiliation and punishment of Satan and his angels.
The same rejection is foretold for the last days. As in the days of Noah so it will be at the coming of Christ: after the message of warning has been given to cities filled with wickedness, probation ends and it is too late for wrongs to be righted. Then Christ comes and leaves rejecters to destruction.
Fear, confession, vows and pleas for mercy that come only in terror, crisis, death-bed sorrow or judgment are too late if they do not amount to lasting conversion. The precious but brief moments to repent and confess must be used before judgment, for later cries for help will be unanswered and people will face the consequences of their own choices. Like passengers terrified in a storm, and like a woman mocking her vow after reaching land, such sorrow may pass when danger is gone and leave the person rebellious as before. Mocking the Lord's warnings is perilous.
The speaker is divine Wisdom, God Himself in the Saviour who died for men and stood among them in Jesus Christ, addressing those who refuse when He calls and stretches out His hand, setting aside all His counsel and rejecting His reproof, instruction and warnings, hating knowledge and not choosing the fear of the Lord, as the Jewish nation and its priests and rulers did with hard, impenitent hearts when they condemned Him. That refusal is forsaking a true and loving Friend to serve the gods of this world with God-given time, means and intellect, letting the world, frivolous amusements, pride, appetite and conformity absorb the attention until the heart is hardened and truth is no longer heard, which is resisting and grieving the Spirit of God and rejecting light, evidence, love and mercy. The destruction that follows is the rejecters' own fault, reaping what was sown by eating the fruit of their own way, with fear coming as desolation and distress as a whirlwind, as seen when the temple was burned, the city leveled and the people scattered, and when calamity comes He laughs and mocks and will not answer those who then call and seek Him early. When He triumphed from the tomb and when He comes in glory to judgment, the voice once heard pleading for repentance will condemn those who despised His counsel and recall the invitations and privileges they slighted, and mercy and forbearance will not continue forever but reach their limit when probation closes and the Spirit is finally grieved away. The warning itself is an act of tender pity kindly calling sinners to be zealous, repent, make peace with Him and choose eternal life while there is hope of pardon, applying to rejecting plain commandments such as the seventh-day Sabbath and the final warning, and to the last days as in the days of Noah when probation ends too late, for fear, vows and pleas for mercy made only in terror or at judgment do not avail without lasting conversion.
Speaker, Setting and Refusal
The speaker is divine Wisdom Himself, God and the Saviour who died for men, the voice of Jesus Christ while He was in their midst speaking through warning, judgments, and blessing given and withdrawn. Those who despise His counsel and refuse His reproof in this life will turn away in pain from His glorified face.
The verse addresses the Jewish nation and the generation that rejected Him, especially the priests and rulers who condemned Him. They refused with hard, impenitent hearts that even the wisdom of His appeals could not reach, acting under Satan's guidance in rejecting and murdering the Son of God. That generation was entrusted with sacred responsibilities and given great spiritual and temporal advantages, yet laid under the most solemn responsibility and declared guilty for its rejection. It was like the fruitless fig tree that appeared alive and professed faith with leaves but bore no fruit and remained under condemnation after His warning. Their power could not prevail against God, for the tomb was guarded by heaven and they could not keep the Son of God imprisoned.
To set at nought all counsel and have none of reproof is to refuse when He calls and to regard not His outstretched hand. It is to set His counsel aside and reject His correction, slighting the instruction and warnings of the Word of God and despising the great salvation offered through Christ. It is to hate knowledge and not choose the fear of the Lord, to turn away from knowledge and the fear of the Lord after Wisdom's public call, and to refuse to come to Him to have life and receive life. Such rejection spurns His efforts to save and to turn men from error, persisting in unbelief despite warnings.
That refusal is to forsake a true and loving Friend to serve the gods of this world with God-given talents of time, means, and intellect. It is to follow the path of convenience and worldly pleasure while intending to return to God at some time, but letting the world with its follies and deceptions absorb the attention. Frivolous amusements, pride of dress, and indulgence of appetite harden the heart and benumb the conscience so the voice of truth is not heard, duty is despised, things of infinite value are lightly esteemed, and the heart loses all desire to sacrifice for Him who has given so much for man. By excuses and persistence in sin and conformity to the world men harden themselves in the same refusal, until they learn too late that earthly wealth, status, and possessions cannot secure a share in His glory.
Refusing counsel and reproof is resisting the Spirit of God and rejecting light, evidence, and truth. It is to slight the reproofs and warnings of His Word and of His Spirit, to despise the great salvation offered, and to fail to respond to His love and mercy. By such persistence men grieve His Spirit until its voice is no longer heard and it is at last grieved away.
Judgment and Its Consequences
Destruction that follows refusal is the rejecters' own fault, for fear comes as desolation and destruction comes as a whirlwind with distress and anguish, and in the reaping time they gather what was sown by eating the fruit of their own way and being filled with their own devices. Suffering is the sure consequence of choosing sinful practices and violating the laws of nature, leaving the unrepentant and self-reliant to be caught unprepared, to fall, and to be taken by the enemy. This was seen in the Jewish nation that refused Him, when the temple was burned, the city leveled, and the people scattered.
When that calamity comes He laughs at calamity and mocks when fear comes, and will not answer when they call upon Him and seek Him early. Having slighted instruction and warnings and despised the great salvation offered through Christ, having lived for worldly pleasure, they seek help but do not find Him as refuge or consolation and are left to their own ways. The time comes when those who refused Him will seek Him but not find Him, and will suffer the fruit of their own choices.
At Christ's triumph from the tomb the priests and rulers who condemned Him met this desolation and whirlwind, unanswered in their calling and seeking. When He comes in glory and they face Him in judgment, the voice once heard pleading for repentance condemns them and recalls the calls, invitations, warnings, counsel and privileges they refused and slighted. Those who despised His counsel will turn away in pain from His glorified face, recognizing too late that earthly wealth, status and possessions cannot secure a share in His glory.
Those who persist are responsible and without excuse, and if destroyed they alone are responsible and guilty for it. Continued refusal hardens them against further counsel and leaves them hardened without conviction or hope, blinded to the true character of sin so they flatter themselves they meant good and did no wrong, and left to chosen delusions. Yet there is hope if they humble their hearts, put away what He reproves, turn to God wholeheartedly, and repent and reform, for God will pardon the transgressor who repents.
Mercy and forbearance toward rebellion will not continue forever but have a limit, when warning, expostulation, patience and probation are about to close. The precious but brief moments to repent and confess must be used before mercy is heard no more and the Spirit is finally grieved away and less manifested, until angels fold their wings and cease watchcare and no prayers or words of peace prevail for rejecters of light. Those who listen to wisdom, by contrast, dwell safely.
Mercy, Warning and Application
The warning itself is an act of mercy, tender pity kindly and faithfully calling sinners to be zealous and repent while opportunity remains. It presses the reader before the coming of the Lord to make peace with Him, to come to Jesus, to partake largely of salvation and to choose eternal life. There is hope, for God will pardon the transgressor who turns to Him wholeheartedly.
To set at nought counsel and refuse reproof is to reject plainly stated commandments and the final warning, especially the seventh-day Sabbath. It is to disregard solemn admonitions, light and correction, with increasing resistance to His voice. It is also to persist in unsound and unjust decisions despite clear counsel. It is to rob God of service purchased with His own blood by spending time in idle talk and foolish amusement and trading eternal life for worldly pleasure, lest heaven be lost and the rejecter be sent away from God's presence to share the humiliation and punishment of Satan and his angels.
The same rejection is foretold for the last days. As in the days of Noah so it will be at the coming of Christ: after the message of warning has been given to cities filled with wickedness, probation ends and it is too late for wrongs to be righted. Then Christ comes and leaves rejecters to destruction.
Fear, confession, vows and pleas for mercy that come only in terror, crisis, death-bed sorrow or judgment are too late if they do not amount to lasting conversion. The precious but brief moments to repent and confess must be used before judgment, for later cries for help will be unanswered and people will face the consequences of their own choices. Like passengers terrified in a storm, and like a woman mocking her vow after reaching land, such sorrow may pass when danger is gone and leave the person rebellious as before. Mocking the Lord's warnings is perilous.