No amount of mere external evidence can produce genuine faith. The Israelites, who had seen a long succession of wonders in the land of Egypt, who had passed through the divided waters of the Red Sea, who were daily receiving by miracle food from heaven, who had trembled at the manifestations of the Divine majesty on Mount Sinai, within sight of that mountain made a golden calf their god. The men who saw the miracles of Christ performed almost daily in their presence, cried out, ‘Crucify him! Crucify him!’ Hence our Saviour said, that those who hear not ‘Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.’ We may confidently conclude, therefore, that those who now believe not the gospel, would not be persuaded had they seen all the miracles which Christ performed.
It is important that the attention of the doubting should be directed to the fact, that their want of faith is to be attributed to their own moral state, and not to any deficiency in the evidence of the truth. ‘If the gospel be hid,’ says the apostle, ‘it is hid to them that are lost: in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them’ (2 Cor. 4:3, 4).
Charles Hodge, The Way of Life (East Peoria: Banner of Truth, repr. 2020), 2–3 (HT: Inwoo Lee).
Dr. Clark,
I am not sure but it appears there is one ‘not’ not needed:
‘We may confidently conclude, therefore, that those who not believe not the gospel, would be persuaded had they seen all the miracles which Christ performed.‘
Corrected.
Thank you.