Wesley Corpus

4, 5.) 11. And even those who abstained from these gross outward sins were still inwardly corrupt and abominable: “The whole head was sick, and the whole heart was faint; yea, from the sole of the foot even unto the head there was no soundness, but wounds, and bruiscs, and putrifying sores.” (Isaiah i. 5, 6.) “All these nations.” saith God, “are uncircumcised; and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in heart.” (Jer. ix. 26.) “Their heart is divided.” (Hosea x. 2.) “They have set up their idols in their heart; they are all estranged from me through their idols.” (Ezekiel xiv. 3, 5.) Their soul still “clave unto the dust.” They “laid up trea sures upon earth.” “From the least of them,” saith Jeremiah, “even unto the greatest, every one is given to covetousness.” (vi. 13.) “They panted after the dust of the earth.” (Amos ii. 7.) “They laded themselves with thick clay.” (Hab. ii.6.) “They joined house to house, and laid field to field, until there was no place.” (Isaiah v. 8) Yea, they “enlarged their desires as hell:” They were “as death, and could not be satisfied.” (Hab. ii. 5.) 12. And not only for their covetousness, but for their pride of heart, were they an abomination to the Lord: “The pride of Israel,” saith Hosea, “doth testify to his face.” (vii. 10.) “Hear ye, give ear,” saith Jeremiah, “be not proud.-Give glory to the Lord your God.” (xiii. 15, 16.) But they would not be reproved; they were still “wise in their own eyes, and pru dent in their own sight;” (Isaiah v. 21;) and continually say ing to their neighbour, “Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou !” (Isaiah lxv. 5.) They added hypocrisy to their pride: “This people,” saith God himself, “draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their hearts far from me.” (Isai. xxix. 13.) “They have not cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds.” (Hosea vii. 14) “They return, but not to the Most High; they are like a deceitful bow.” (Verse 16.) “They did but flatter him with their mouth, and dissemble with him in their tongue.” (Psalm lxxviii.