en for
His inheritance." Hence, here too, there is nothing absolutely new. If
such were the subject of discourse, then the whole Kingdom of God under
the Old Testament dispensation would be changed into a mere semblance
and illusion. But the small measure of the condition--with which even
God himself cannot dispense, but of which He may vouchsafe a larger
measure, viz., the writing of the Law in the heart, whereby man becomes
a copy of God, the personal Law--was necessarily accompanied by the
small measure of the consequence, The perfect fulfilment of God's
promise to Abraham and Israel, to which the prophet here alludes,
could, therefore, be expected from the future only.

Ver. 34. "_And they shall teach no more a man his neighbour, and a man
his brother, saying: Know the Lord; for they all shall know me, small
and great, saith the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I
will remember their sin no more._"

Even from ancient times, the first hemistich of the verse has created
great embarrassment to interpreters, from which very few of them, not
excepting even _Calvin_, manage to extricate themselves skilfully. The
declaration that, because all will be taught by God, human instruction
in things divine is to cease, has, at first sight, something fanatical
in it, and, indeed, was made use of by Anabaptists and other
enthusiasts in vindication of their delusion.[4] Many interpreters
attempt an evasion, [Pg 442] by referring the words to the future life;
thus _Theodoret_, _Augustine_, (_de Spirit. et lit._ c. 24) and _Este_,
who, in a manner almost _naive_, remarks: "This difficulty, it seems,
is very simply avoided by those who refer this promise to the future
world, where, no doubt, all care about teaching will cease." But the
matter is, indeed, not at all difficult. All that is necessary is to
keep in mind that human instruction is here excluded, in so far only as
it is opposed to divine instruction concerning God himself; that hence,
that which is here spoken of, is _mere_ human instruction, by which men
are trained and drilled in religion, just as in every other branch of
common knowledge,--a result of which is, that they may learn for ever
without ever coming to the knowledge of the truth. Such an instruction
may be productive of historical faith, of belief in human authority;
but it is just by this, that the nature of religion will be altogether
destroyed. Even the true God becomes an idol when He is not known