CHAPTER 3

1 John 1:9, KJV

9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.

Psalm 85:5, KJV

5 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?

Romans 2:4, KJV

4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that
the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Ephesians 1:7, KJV

7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of
his grace;

Hebrews 10:12, KJV

12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of
God;

Hebrews 10:17, KJV

17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.

Ephesians 4:32, KJV

32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's
sake hath forgiven you.

Psalms 86:5
For thou, Lord, art good
Essentially and independently good, from whom every good and perfect gift comes; good in
himself, and good to others; good to all, in a providential way; and good to his own special
people in a way of grace: this is asserted by Christ, ( Matthew 19:17 )
and ready to forgive;
there is forgiveness with him, and it is to be had without difficulty; he has largely provided
for it; he is forward unto it, he freely giving it; it is according to the riches of his grace; he
does abundantly pardon; no sooner is it asked but it is had; this David knew by experience,
( Psalms 32:5 ) ,
and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee;
in truth, in sincerity, in a right way, through Christ, and faith in him; to such not only the
Lord shows himself merciful, but is rich and abundant in mercy; he has a multitude of tender
mercies, and abounds in his grace and goodness, and in the donation of it to his people; all
which encourage their faith and hope in their petitions to him.
Proverbs 28:13
He that covereth his sins shall not prosper
God may cover a man's sins, and it is an instance of his grace, and it is the glory of it to do it,
but a man may not cover his own: it is right in one good man to cover the sins of another,
reproving him secretly, and freely forgiving him; but it is wrong in a man to cover his own:
not that any man is bound to accuse himself before a court of judicature, or ought to expose
his sins to the public, which would be to the hurt of his credit, and to the scandal of religion;
but whenever he is charged with sin, and reproved for it by his fellow Christian, be should
not cover it, that is, he should own it; for not to own and acknowledge it is to cover it; he
should not deny it, which is to cover it with a lie, and is adding sin to sin; nor should he
justify it, as if he had done a right thing; nor extenuate or excuse it, or impute it to others
that drew him into it, as Adam, which is called a covering transgression, as Adam, ( Job
31:33 ) ; for such a man "shall not prosper"; in soul or body, in things temporal or spiritual;
he shall not have peace of mind and conscience; but, sooner or later, shall feel the stings it;
he shall not succeed even in those things he has in view by covering his sins; he shall not be
able to cover them long, for there is nothing covered but what shall be revealed; if not in
this life, which yet often is, however at the day of judgment, when every secret thing shall
be made manifest; nor shall he escape the shame and punishment he thought to avoid by
covering it, as may be observed in the case of Achan, ( Joshua 7:11-25 ) ; in short, he shall
have no mercy shown him by God or man, as appears by the antithesis in the next
clause; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh [them] shall have mercy;
who confesses them to men privately and publicly, according to the nature of the offences,
from whom they find mercy; but not to a priest, in order for absolution, which no man can
give; sin is only in this sense to be confessed to God, against it is committed, and who only
can pardon it; and though it is known unto him, yet he requires an acknowledgment of it,
which should be done from the heart, with an abhorrence of the sin, and in the faith of
Christ, as a sacrifice for it; and it is not enough to confess, there must be a forsaking
likewise, a parting with sin, a denying of sinful self, a leaving the former course of sin, and a
quitting the company of wicked men before used to, and an abstaining from all appearance
of evil; as is and will be the case, where there is a true sight and sense of sin, and the grace
of God takes place: and such find "mercy", pardoning grace and mercy, or pardon in a way
of mercy, and not merit; for though the sinner confesses and forsakes it, it is not that which
merits pardon and mercy in God, who is rich in it, delights in showing it, and from whom it
may be hoped for and expected by all such persons; see ( Psalms 32:5 ) ( 1 John 1:9 ) . So
the Targum and Syriac version, God will have mercy on him.

Romans 2:4
Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness
The apostle anticipates an objection against what he had said, taken from the prosperity of
these persons; who might conclude from thence, that they were not so wicked as he had
represented them; and that they should escape the judgment of God, otherwise they would
have been punished by God in this life, and not have prospered as they did; which objection
is removed by observing, that it was not their innocence, but "the riches of" divine
"goodness, and longsuffering and forbearance", which were the causes of their prosperity:
by "the riches of God's goodness", are not meant the riches of his special, spiritual, and
eternal goodness, which his own people are only partakers of: but the general riches of his
temporal and providential goodness, which the men of the world have commonly the
greatest share of; they have it in great plenty, which is signified by "riches": and by his
"longsuffering and forbearance" are designed, not his forbearance of his chosen ones and
his longsuffering to them, which issue in their salvation; but his forbearance of sinners, and
longsuffering towards them, in not as yet pouring down his wrath and displeasure on them;
all which are "despised" by them; the riches of his goodness, when he is not glorified for his
providential mercies, and in them, and when these are abused to the lusts of men. The
forbearance
of God is despised, when men on account of it harden themselves in sin; and his
longsuffering,
when they deny his concern in Providence, or a future judgment, and promise themselves
impunity. Moreover, the apostle obviates the above objection by asserting that God's end in
his goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, was not to testify to their innocence, as they
imagined, but to lead them to repentance, of which they were ignorant;
not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance.
This is to be understood not of a spiritual and evangelical repentance, which is a free grace
gift, and which none but the Spirit of God can lead, or bring persons to; but of a natural and
legal repentance, which lies in an external sorrow for sin, and in an outward cessation from
it, and reformation of life and manners, which the goodness of God to the Jews should have
led them to; who had a large share of the good things of life, a land flowing with milk and
honey, and many outward privileges which other nations had not, as the giving of the law,
the covenant and promises, the word and ordinances; and repentance here chiefly designs,
as it may respect the Gentiles, a change of mind and practice in them relating to idolatry and
superstition Now the providential goodness of God has a tendency to lead persons to
repentance on this account; but of this end of divine goodness the Gentiles were ignorant;
nor was this end answered thereby; which shows the wretched depravity of human nature;
see ( Acts 14:15-17 ).