First, In his confession divers things are to be taken notice of.
As,
1. The fairness and simplicity of his confession: A sinner: I am a sinner; "God be merciful to me a sinner." This indeed he was, and this indeed confesses; and this, I say, he doth of godly simplicity. For, for a man to confess himself a sinner, it is to speak all against himself that can be spoken. And man, as degenerate, is too much an hypocrite, and too much a self-flatterer, thus to confess against himself, unless made simple and honest about the thing through the power of conviction upon his heart. And it is yet worth your noting, that he doth not say he was, or had been, but that at that time his state was such, to wit, a sinner. "God be merciful to me a sinner," or who am, and now stand before thee a sinner, or, in my sins.
Now a little to shew you what it is to be a sinner; for every one that sinneth may not in a proper sense be called a sinner. Saints, the sanctified in Christ Jesus, do often sin, but it is not proper to call them sinners: But here the Publican calls himself a sinner; and therefore in effect, calls himself an evil tree, one that hath neither good nature, nor that beareth good fruit: one whose body and soul is polluted, whose mind and conscience is defiled: one who hath "walked according to the course of this world, and after the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." They having their minds at enmity with or against God, and are taken captive by the devil at his will. A sinner, one whose trade hath been in and about sin, and the works of Satan all his days.
Thus he waves all pleas, and shews of pleas, and stoops his neck immediately to the block. Though he was a base man, yet he might have had pleas; pleas, I say, as well as the Pharisee, though not so many, yet as good. He was of the stock of Abraham, a Jew, an Israelite of the Israelites, and so a privileged man in the things and religion of the Jews, else what doth he do in the temple? Yea, why did not the Pharisee, if he was a heathen, lay that to his charge while he stood before God? but the truth is, he could not; for the Publican was a Jew as well as the Pharisee, and consequently might, had he been so disposed, have pleaded that before God. But that he would not, he could not, for his conscience was under convictions, the awakenings of God were upon him; wherefore his privileges melt away like grease, and fly from him like the chaff of the summer threshing-floor, which the wind taketh up and scattereth as the dust; he therefore lets all privileges fall, and pleads only that he is "a sinner."
2. In this confession he judges and condemns himself: For, for a man to say, "I am a sinner," is as much as to say, I am contrary to the holiness of God, a transgressor of his law, and consequently an object of the curse, and an heir of hell. The Publican therefore goeth very far in this his confession, but this is not all; for, for a man to confess that he is a sinner, is in the
3. Third place, to confess, that there is nothing in him, done, or can be done by him, that should allure, or prevail with God to do any thing for him. For a sinner cannot do good; no, nor work up his heart unto one good thought: no, though he should have heaven itself, if he could; or was sure to burn in hell fire for ever and ever if he could not. For sin, where it is in possession and bears rule, as it doth in every one that we may properly call a sinner, there it hath the mastery of the man, hath bound up his senses in cords and chains, and made nothing so odious to the soul as are the things that be of the Spirit of God. Wherefore it is said of such, that they are enemies in their minds; that the carnal mind is enmity to God, and that wickedness proceedeth of the wicked; and that the Ethiopian may as well change his skin, or the leopard his spots, as they that are accustomed to do evil may learn to do well. (Eph 2, Rom 8, 1 Sam 24:13, Jer 13:23)
4. In this confession, he implicitly acknowledgeth, that sin is the worst of things, forasmuch as it layeth the soul without the reach of all remedy that can be found under heaven. Nothing below, or short of the mercy of God, can deliver a poor soul from this fearful malady. This the Pharisee did not see. Doubtless he did conclude, that at some time or other he had sinned; but he never in all his life did arrive to a sight of what sin was: His knowledge of it was but false and counterfeit, as is manifest by his cure; to wit, his own righteousness. For take this for a truth undeniable, that he that thinks himself better before God, because of his reformations, never yet had the true knowledge of his sin: But the poor Publican he had it, he had it in truth, as is manifest, because it drives him to the only sovereign remedy. For indeed, the right knowledge of sin, in the guilt and filth, and damning power thereof, makes a man to understand, that not any thing but grace and mercy by Christ, can secure him from the hellish ruins thereof.
Suppose a man sick of an apoplexy unto death, and should for his remedy make use only of those things that are good against the second ague, would not this demonstrate that this man was not sensible of the nature and danger of this disease. The same may be said of every sinner, that shall make use only of those means to justify him before God, that can hardly make him go for a good Christian before judicious men. But the poor Publican, he knew the nature of his disease, the danger of his disease; and knew also, that nothing but mercy, infinite mercy could cure him thereof.
5. This confession of the Publican, declareth that he himself was born up now, by an almighty, though invisible hand. For sin, when seen in its colours, and when appearing in its monstrous shape and hue, frighteth all mortals out of their wits, away from God; and if he stops them not, also out of the world. This is manifest by Cain, Judas, Saul, and others, who could not stand up before God under the sense and appearance of their sin, but fly before him, one to one fruit of despair, and one to another. But now this Publican, though he apprehends his sin, and that himself was one that was a sinner, yet he beareth up, cometh into the temple, approaches the presence of an holy and sin-revenging God, stands before him, and confesses that he is that ugly man, that man that sin had defiled, and that had brought himself into the danger of damnation thereby.
This therefore was a mighty act of the Publican. He went against the voice of conscience, against sense and feeling, against the curse and condemning verdict of the law; he went, as I may say, upon hot burning coals to one, that to sin and sinners is nothing but consuming fire.