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"Rend your heart and not your garments." Above all, important that repentance should be real — the weeping the sign of inward sorrow; the fasting the result of lower desires kept in abeyance by higher. There was danger of a superficial, evanescent revival.

I. EXPLAIN THE ALLUSION TO THE RENDING OF THE GARMENT. Many signs and symbols among Jews by which they professed to express feeling, desire.

(1) In prayer — kneeling, prostration, standing, lifting the hands, hiding the face, smiting upon the breast.

(2) Rending garment. This expressed strongest, most intense emotion of sorrow, or terror, or horror. (Genesis 37:29, 34; 2 Samuel 3:31; 1 Kings 21:27; Jeremiah 36:24; Matthew 26:65; Acts 14:14.) The emotion professedly expressed in Judah at that time — the deepest sorrow for sin; the most earnest contrition and repentance.

II. REMEMBERING THE SIGN AND EMOTION SIGNIFIED, NOTICE DIFFERENT CLASSES OF MEN.

1. Some neither rend their hearts nor their garments. No outward sign of sorrow, and no sorrow without sign. Describe what should lead all to sorrow for sin. The history of sin, its present existence in the world, in us. God's revelation of His hatred of sin. God's revelation of love to the sinner. The life of Christ — Gethsemane, Calvary. The voice of conscience; the pleadings of the Holy Ghost. Draw the contrast between what should be and what is. Indifference, coldness of multitudes. Mad delight of many in the world's great source of misery.

2. Some rend their garments, and not their hearts. The outward sign, but no inward reality. The untruthful, hypocritical. Notice the religion of formal custom. The services of the present day — devout attitudes in prayer — observance of fasts — celebration of feasts — revival services. The danger — the lack of inward reality.

3. Some rend their hearts and not their garments. The inward reality, and not the outward sign. Men of reserve, emotion kept concealed in the heart's shrine. They shrink from demonstration, from the show of religious feeling, and so apparently they are cold, but not really so. Picture the earnestness of private communion; sorrow's deep wound which only God can see; sorrow which words, looks, cannot express — too deep for human sympathy.

4. Some rend their hearts and their garments. The inward sorrow; the outward expression. Room in the world for demonstrative and undemonstrative. Notice the tendency of reserved to misjudge those not like them, and the injustice of calling religious excitement worthless. Illustrations: The publican's outward demonstration; the bitter weeping of Peter. Some must rend their garments when their hearts are rent.

III. LEARN THE REQUIREMENT OF GOD.

1. That it is necessary for us to rend our hearts. Repentance for sin a necessity. This the fruit of the law; this the germ of the Gospel. The Baptist's cry; the Saviour's cry; the cry of the apostles — "Repent."

2. As to the rending of the garment. "Rend your hearts," etc. The text means, "not only your garments." Other similar expressions.

(1) From the Bible. "I will have mercy, and not sacrifice." The meaning, "mercy rather than sacrifice."(2) From ordinary conversation. "Give us deeds, not words." The meaning, that deeds are more important than words. Customary, demonstrative, peculiar experience of feeling was not forbidden. Reality as opposed to mere form insisted on.

3. God does require the pure and holy life. The rent heart the open heart. Christ enters, abides, makes pure. The pure heart expressed by the pure life. The heart made clean, the garment also is made white. This agreement must be. There cannot be the changed heart without the converted life.

(J. M. Blackcie, LL. B.)

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KJV: Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

WEB: "Yet even now," says Yahweh, "turn to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning."