There is, therefore, every inducement to partake of this delightful sacrament; and whether we regard its high authority, viz., the Lord’s express command, or its sacred nature, as a service of remembrance, a means of spiritual nourishment, and a foretaste of the marriage supper of the Lamb, we may well wonder how any true believer can forego the enjoyment of such a privilege. But yet we must not suppose that the simple act of coming to the Lord’s Supper can secure these blessings, for, as we read in ver. 17, we may “come together, not for the better, but for the worse.” Nay, more, it is expressly declared, in ver. 29, “He that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.” These are solemn and most important words; enough to startle inquirers, and to make all mere professors tremble; nor can any man who fears God presume to read them lightly. They suggest two most important subjects of inquiry,—What do they mean? and, To whom do they apply? III. WHAT DO THEY MEAN? OR, THE DANGER OF EATING AND DRINKING UNWORTHILY. In endeavouring to ascertain what the passage really means, our best course will be to refer at once to the context; for, however valuable be human explanations, there is no expositor of the Bible so good as the Bible itself. The word rendered “damnation” in the text, is translated “judgment” in the margin of our Bibles, and for the following reason. There are two sorts of judgments mentioned in the Scripture,—the chastisement of God’s children, and the final punishment of the wicked. Of these, the chastisement is laid on those whom God loves; “Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth” (Heb. xii. 6); but the final punishment is on the unbelieving. Chastisement is limited and proportioned to his people’s strength, whereas the final punishment is an unmixed cup of horror. Chastisement is for the improvement and sanctification of those who are to reign with Christ; the final punishment is for the vindication of God’s righteous law. And chastisement takes place here in the form of sickness, suffering, and sorrow; whereas, the final punishment is in eternal fire. Now, it must be allowed that the word “damnation” conveys the idea of this most awful and final punishment, and many minds have been thereby unduly alarmed upon the subject. But the context seems to teach us that the leading idea in the apostle’s mind was chastisement for he proceeds to say—“For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves we should not be judged. But when we are judged we are chastened of the Lord that we should not be condemned with the world.” It is plain that he here speaks of chastisement. He says expressly, “we are chastened;” he describes it as temporal affliction in this present life; and he teaches that it is sent for the express purpose of saving us from final ruin, “that we should not be condemned with the world.” {13}