Ere they attain to innocency

Ere they attain to innocency.

The words are, He cannot attain; that is, he is so deeply engaged that he cannot attain to innocency: when men are engaged in evil ways they cannot get out.

Take heed of engagements in that which is evil.

Secondly, if by custom and engagement in evil we have no power to get out, this will be no excuse to us. In (2 Peter 2:14) they have eyes full of adultery, and they cannot cease to sin: this is the aggravation of sin, no excuse. A learned man of late has an excellent note upon this, They cannot bear innocency: and indeed according to the Hebrew this may as well be added for explication, for in the Hebrew there is nothing else but this, They cannot innocency; the word attain, is not in the Hebrew, and it may very well suit with the time wherein Hosea did prophesy; and the meaning is this: They cannot bear with those who will not join with them but will go to Jerusalem to worship, and this provokes the Spirit of God against them, because they cannot bear those that would seek to free themselves from defilements in the worship of God: there is nothing in the world wherein men cannot less bear one with another than in dissensions about the worship of God, and commonly the nocent party is the most bitter against the innocent; as the Lutherans they were worse in their ways than the Calvinists, specially in the point of superstition, but they were a great deal more bitter against the Calvinists than the Calvinists were against them; it was an expression that Calvin has, Though Luther (says he) should call me Devil, yet I would honor him, as a servant of Jesus Christ.

The word here that is translated Innocency, signifies cleanness: false worship whatever holiness may seem to be in it yet they are not clean, but God's worship is clean, the fear of the Lord is clean: it is such wickedness as if God should say, You are never like to wash off the guilt of it as long as you live, it is not so easy to get off the guilt of superstitious worship as men are aware of, we cannot but acknowledge to our own shame that we have sullied ourselves with superstition formerly, we had need wash and rinse our hearts again and again, and be willing to lie abroad a frosting whole nights, that we might be cleansed from the filth that we heretofore have defiled ourselves withal, yes we should not think much, nor marvel though the fire of God's wrath comes out against us and burn hot and long, if it may be but to purge us and not destroy us, it is well; for it is not easy to be cleansed from superstition; it is only the blood of the immaculate Lamb that is able to cleanse it, (this filth) it sticks very fast. And so much for the fifth verse.