Verse 17. - Seeing thou hatest instruction (comp. Proverbs 1:25, 29). God, by his Law, teaches men their duties; but many men "hate" to be instructed. And castest my words behind thee (comp. 1 Kings 14:9; Nehemiah 9:26). They proceed from "inward alienation" to "open rejection" of the moral law.

50:16-23 Hypocrisy is wickedness, which God will judge. And it is too common, for those who declare the Lord's statutes to others, to live in disobedience to them themselves. This delusion arises from the abuse of God's long-suffering, and a wilful mistake of his character and the intention of his gospel. The sins of sinners will be fully proved on them in the judgment of the great day. The day is coming when God will set their sins in order, sins of childhood and youth, of riper age and old age, to their everlasting shame and terror. Let those hitherto forgetful of God, given up to wickedness, or in any way negligent of salvation, consider their urgent danger. The patience of the Lord is very great. It is the more wonderful, because sinners make such ill use of it; but if they turn not, they shall be made to see their error when it is too late. Those that forget God, forget themselves; and it will never be right with them till they consider. Man's chief end is to glorify God: whoso offers praise, glorifies him, and his spiritual sacrifices shall be accepted. We must praise God, sacrifice praise, put it into the hands of the Priest, our Lord Jesus, who is also the altar: we must be fervent in spirit, praising the Lord. Let us thankfully accept God's mercy, and endeavour to glorify him in word and deed.Seeing thou hatest instruction,.... Or "correction" (z); to be reproved or reformed by the statutes and covenant they declared to others; they taught others, but not themselves, Romans 2:21; or evangelical instruction, the doctrines of grace, and of Christ; for, as concerning the Gospel, they were enemies, Romans 11:28; and since they were haters of that, they ought not to have been teachers of others;

and castest my words behind thee; the doctrines of the Gospel, which they despised and rejected with the utmost abhorrence, as loathsome, and not fit to be looked upon and into; and also the ordinances of it, the counsel of God, which they rejected against themselves, Acts 13:45.

(z) "correctionem", Vatablus; "correptionem", Gejerus.