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| When Praying the Father, You are Not to Be Angry with a Brother. PREVIOUS SECTION - NEXT SECTION - HELP
Chapter
XI.—When Praying the Father, You are Not to Be Angry with a
Brother.
That we may not be as far from the ears of God as
we are from His precepts,8826
8826 Oehler divides these
two chapters as above. The generally adopted division unites this
sentence to the preceding chapter, and begins the new chapter with,
“The memory of His precepts;” and perhaps this is the
preferable division. | the memory of His
precepts paves for our prayers a way unto heaven; of which
precepts the chief is, that we go not up unto God’s
altar8827 before we compose whatever of discord or
offence we have contracted with our brethren.8828
For what sort of deed is it to approach the peace of God8829 without peace? the remission of
debts8830 while you retain them? How will he appease
his Father who is angry with his brother, when from the
beginning “all anger” is forbidden us?8831
8831 “Ab
initio” probably refers to the book of Genesis, the
initium, or beginning of Scripture, to which he is about to
refer. But see likewise Eph. iv. 31, Matt. v.
21, 22. [Gen. iv. 6, 7.] | For even Joseph, when dismissing his
brethren for the purpose of fetching their father, said, “And be
not angry in the way.”8832 He warned
us, to be sure, at that time (for elsewhere our Discipline is
called “the Way”8833
8833 See Acts ix. 2; xix. 9, 23, in the Greek. | ), that when, set in
“the way” of prayer, we go not unto “the
Father” with anger. After that, the Lord, “amplifying the
Law,”8834 openly adds the
prohibition of anger against a brother to that of
murder.8835 Not even by an evil
word does He permit it to be vented.8836 Ever if we
must be angry, our anger must not be maintained beyond sunset,
as the apostle admonishes.8837 But how rash is it
either to pass a day without prayer, while you refuse to make
satisfaction to your brother; or else, by perseverance in anger, to
lose your prayer?E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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