r SSA 5 es Dee Macnee En ad I Ph aes 5 DY Ie : ’ ee 3 : See ‘ ety : be Roan, ) ee : é : “ P woe “LIBRARY OF THE 1 reotosicak Seminary: PRINCETON, N. J. fee 6ST 1101 .N37 1805 Shelf Nares, Robert, 1753-1829. _- A connected and Book chronological view of the ————— —= $$ re x a ee ’ Ve ‘ Vhs a7 en CYC At Henry: vo] © Ton te, eae ‘ ay hoe ee a rs! " M in ” Peet . x ra Bag cw, wd it) “ae r ab a Nae | i A ae A CONNECTED AND CHRONOLOGICAL VIEW OY THE PROPHECIES RELATING TO ‘Che Christian Church ; IN TWELVE SERMONS: PREACHED IN LINCOLN’S-INN CHAPEL, FROM THE YEAR 1800 TO 1804, AT THE LECTURE FOUNDED RY THE RIGHT REV, WILLIAM WARBURTON, LORD BISHOP OF GLOUCESTER, a OS Gai ——— y BY ROBERT NARES, A.M. F.R.S. F.A.S. Archdeacon of Stafford, &e. London : San PRINTED FOR F, C, AND J. RIVINGTON, No. 62, ST. PAUL’s CHURCH-YARD; AND J, HATCHARD, No, 190, PICCADILLY, eR, 1805, seRON a oh bie vit Cin * oe Be Aid wade 4a ant eae aaa 5 " “fs & af ‘puobiroaann ‘sts Lar, ait MDW aad bo vane) a0, iMabene Anes 4 a" ~ > [ow s a. aa f. t Wf. A a BE | ab Baligty Ge: | 2 f : - por ‘ * qr. ae oH saat ag et? ry ica) re a Oa3 ¥ Mt it TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE Davin Winuam, EARL. OF MANSFIELD, THE RIGHT HONOURABLE ALEXANDER, EARL OF ROSSLYN, AND THE HONOURABLE Sr JOHN SKYNNER, Kyr. (Late Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer), TRUSTEES FOR THIS LECTURE ; THESE DISCOURSES ARE MOST HUMBLY INSCRIBED, BY THE AUTHOR, ROBERT NARES. _ British Muszum, 2 Jan.-l, 1805, ry re Tee OR jan *y iit dow oe i uence na ny EXTRACT FROM THE DEED OF TRUST FOR FOUNDING THIS LECTURE. === POCTGUYUSVG GG 0 Cee AN Indenture, bearing date July 21st, 1768, sets forth, ‘* That the Right Reverend Wiliam, Lord Bishop of Gloucester, has transferred the sum of £500, Bank four per cent. * annuities consolidated, to the Right Honourable William Lord Mansfield, Lord Chief Justice of his Majesty’s Court of King’s Bench, the Right Honourable Sir John Fardly Wilmot, Lord Chief Justice of his Majesty’s Court of Common Pleas, and the Honourable Charles Yorke, of Lincoln’ s-Inn, in the county of Middlesex, upon trust, for the pur- pose of founding a Lecture in the form of a Ser- mon, Zo prove the truth of revealed Religion an general, and of the Christian tn particular, from the completion of the Prophecies in the Old and * Since reduced to $ per cent. by Act of Parliament. \ EXTRACT, &e. New Testament, which relate to the Christian Church, especially to the apostacy of Papal Rome: . That in case of any vacancy in this trust by the de- cease of any.one or more of the above mentioned Trustees, the place or places shall be filled up, from time to time, and as occasion may require, by the sur- viving Trustees, or Trustee, or by the Executors of the survivor of them: That the Trustees shall appoint the Preacher of Lincoln’s-Inn for the tume being, or some other able Divine of the Church of England, to preach this Lecture: That the Lecture shall be preached every year in the Chapel of Lincoln’s-Inn (if the Society give leave*), and on the following days, wiz. the first Sunday after Michaelmas Term, the Sunday next before, and the Sunday next after Hilary Term: That the Lecturer shall not preach the said Lecture longer than ‘for the term of four years, and shall not again be nominated to preach the same: And, when the term of four years is expired, that the said Lecturer shall print and publish, or cause to be printed and published, all the Sermons or Lectures that shall have been so preached by him.” * The Society have given leave that this Lecture be preached in «heir Chapel, and on the days specified. | PREFACE. PREFACE, ‘THEsE Lectures have uniformly been dedicated by the Preachers to the Trustees of Bishop Warburton’s Lecture; but in following a precedent established with so much propriety, it is my misfortune to lament the death of one of the three Personages to whom I am indebted for the honour of the appointment. Distin- guished by the voluntary notice of the Earl of Rosslyn, indebted to his patron- age when Lord Chancellor, and still more to his kind intentions, which could’not be carried into effect, I had pleased myself with the hope of presenting this Book to him, as a proof ‘that I had laboured, at least, to execute the task he had proposed. That Iam prevented by the sudden ter- mination PREFACE. mination of a career, which had been so honourable and so useful, is not only a pri- vate but a public loss. An unavailing re- egret, and thanks, now, alas! equally un- availing, are all the return I can make for many and unsolicited favours. Consulting, as my subject required, among other volumes, the posthumous « Remarks on Select Passages of the Old Testament”, by the late learned Dr. . Kennicott, I observed, that he had in- tended to reduce the Prophecies descriptive of the Messiab into a connected and regular arrangement, and. to illustrate them with notes. Itis added, indeed, that “ he had not proceeded in the design, so as to leave any thing ina state which would admit its publication.” My own plan was already formed, and in great part executed, when 1 observed this passage: but desirous of obtaining, if possible, illustrations of it, which could not fail to be valuable, I made a care- PREFACE. a careful enquiry, whether any thing yet remaining among the unpublished papers of Dr. Kennicott could answer, at least, that purpose. Unfortunately for the public it proved otherwise ; and such aids, as are to be derived from the volume above men- tioned, were all that could be obtained from the pen of that learned divine. I am, however, equally indebted for the attention paid to my enquiry, by his ex- cellent and amiable relict. It appeared to me that a Connected and Chronological View of the Prophecies re- lating to the appointed subject of these Lectures might be of public utility. With this view I formed and digested my plan, and composed the present collection of Discourses. If they should be found as instructive, as I hope and trust they are sound, my labour will be amply repaid, CONTENTS. A uh a CONTENTS. “<= 2206 CO BSL CC © © exe —- SERMONST, CONTRAST RETWEEN PAGAN DIVINATION AND TRUE PRO- PRECY. (5) (P33) IsalAH, Xlvi. 9, 10. Remember the former things of old : for I am Gods and there is none else; I am God, and there ts none like me: Declaring the end from the beginning , and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, my counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure. ) \ SERMON II.- PROPHECY THE BOND OF CONNECTION PETWEEN THF TWO COVENANTS. (P. 31.) LUKE, xxiy. 44, And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning me. | SERMON CONTENTS. SERMON III. _ROPHECIES, FROM THE DEATH OF JACOB TO THE JOUR- NEY IN THE WILDERNESS. (P. 59.) 1 PETER, 1..10. Of which salvation the Prophets have enquired, and | searched diligently, who prophesied of the Grace that should cone unto you. SERMON IV. | THE VIEW OF PROPHECY CONTINUED. (P. 89.) ACTS, XXVJll,. PART OF VER. 23: He expounded and. testified the Kingdom of God, per- suading them concerning Jesus, both out of the Law of Moses, and out of the Prophets, from morning till evenmng.- RAEI SERMON V. HISTORICAL VIEW CONTINUED. (P. 117.) HEBREWS, iv. 8, 9. For if Jesus (Joshua) had given them rest, then would he not afterwards have spoken of another day. There remaineth, therefore, a rest to the people of God. ' SERMON VI. PROPHECIES RESPECTING DAVID, AND BY HIM. (P. 143.) LUBE, 1. 92, Sa. R He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God shall give unto him the @-'« Throne CONTENTS. | Throne of his father David. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his Kingdom there shajl be no end. SERMON VII. THE CHRONOLOGY OF PROPHECY CONTINUED, (P. 171.) JOHN, 1. PART OF VER. 45, We have found him of whom Moses in the Law, and the: Prophets did write, Jesus of ‘Nazareth, the Son of Joseph. SERMON VIII, THE PROPHETS CONTINUED, FROM JOEL TO MALACHT. (P. 201.) MATTHEW, xi. 13. for all the Prophets, and the Law, prophesied until John. SERMON IX, ON THE COMING OF THE MESSIAH, (FP. 295.) GALATIANS, iv. PART OF VER. 1. But when the JSulness of the time was come, God sent Sorth his Son, | SERMON X, PROPHECIES RELATING TO TIMES SUBSEQUEN T TO. THE MESSIAH. (P. 265.) HOSEA, xii. 19, L have also spoken by the Prophets, and I have multi- plied visions, and used semilitudes, by the Ministry _Of the. Prophets. | ONDE SERMON CONTENTS. _ SERMON XI. PROPHECIES CONTINUED. (PB. 289.) MATTHEW, XXIV; "SS. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shalt. not pass dway. | : SERMON XII. THE FOUR LAST PERIODS OF PROPHECY. (P. 323.) REVELATION, XiX, PART OF VER. 10. Worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of Prophecy. SERMON SERMON IL Preached November $0, 1800. SERMON I. CONTRAST BETWEEN PAGAN DIVINATION AND TRUE PROPHECY. Isarau, xlvi. 9, 10. 9. Remember the former things of old: for I am God, ‘and therets none else; I am God, and there is none Like ‘mes 10. Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, _ saying, my counsel shall’ stand, and Iwill do. all my pleasure. 3 ® | In expostulating with his people for their sERM. idolatries, by the mouth of his Prophet, | °° God has condescended strongly to mark the contrast, between the total inertness of their false deities, and his own all-per- BQ fect 4 a, Contrast between Pagan Divination seRM. fect knowledge and power’. _ The oreat feature of distinction pointed out is PRo- puEcy, which God had, even from the begin- ning, displayed before his chosen people ; a gift which proves directly the omni- science, and indirectly the resistless power of the bestower. | iebedonia The knowledge of future events 1s that object which man, with the greatest desire, has the least ability to attain. By tracing cause and effect in their usual operations, by observing human charac- ters, by marking present tendencies, he can form some plausible conjectures ; and an individual of superior sagacity will often form 4hem with such. skill 8 Tet them bring forth, and shew us what shall happen” ; “ let them shew the former things, what they be, that we may consider them, and I Sa she latter end of them; or declare us things for to come. Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may know that _yeare gods.” Isaiah, xli, 22,23. See also xliv. 6,7, and xu. 8, 9. and # and true Prophecy... . | 5 and success, as ‘to astonish less penetrating sERM. minds. Still, however, he is limited toa !: kind of contact with present circumstances. That which he foresees must have some’ connection with what he actually beholds,. or some dependence on it; otherwise his. enquiries are vain, and his conjectures idle. and delusive : and even within those narrow limits, how often is his penetration baffled, and his wisdom deceived! The slightest intrusion of uncommon circumstances, the smallest deviation from rules which can- not possibly be rendered exact, destroys the visionary chain which he has con- structed, and exposes his ignorance to himself and others. Yet the desire for knowledge of this kind continues. Anxious to preserve the good he enjoys, to attain that which he pursues, or to avert the evils which he feels or apprehends, man would gladly enquire of futurity, what promises it can make, on these important points, Extending his care from himself, | . B 3 CLO 6 Contrast between Pagan Divination srw. to those who spring from him, he would I. explore the fortunes of his family ; or, ex- panding it to the whole compass cf those among whom he was born, he would trace the fate of his country, and anticipate its future glory, prosperity, or power. ‘The attempt is totally vain : and his utmost ef~ forts convince him that such knowledge is too wonderful for man. He abandons the attempt, without extinguishing the desire; remains restless and discontented at his own ignorance ; and hopes that yet some other means may be devised, to gratify this strong propensity. However imperfect may be his notions of religion, to his gods he copiously ascribes that knowledge, which he finds deficient in himself. The small degree of foresight he possesses enables him, at least, to imagine a prescience more extensive. His gods | must know those things which he is Anxious to discover ; and he believes, be- Cause and true Prophecy. F cause he hopes, that they must have ap- sErM, pointed certain means for imparting that Knowledge, of which they have formed him so desirous. From these dispositions and reasonings Were derived, in early times, the various and superstitious arts of DIVINATION ; arts as widely differing, in their arbitrary forms as the fantastic imaginations of men; exhibiting, in the several countries where they were practised, a melancholy picture of human folly; and, too often also, of human depravity. To these arts the na- tions of the East appear to have been ad- dicted, from the very earliest times; and, in prosecution of them, they invented and practised many strange and abominable rites. These are represented as being at their height, among the corrupt inhabitants of Canaan, at the time when Israel was directed to take possession of that land, under the providence and power of God. B i In [. 8 SERM. I. Contrast between Pagan Divination _ In warning the people whom he con- ducted, against the contagion of these - superstitions, Moses has left us an early and a eurious picture of them. ‘ When. thou art come’, says he, ‘ into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those na- tions.. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh bis son or bis daughter. to pass through the fire, or that useth di~ vinalion, or an observer of times, or an en- chanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a con- . sulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or. a necromancer. For-all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord; and be- cause of ibese abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee®.” As a safeguard against these tempta- tions, and for. other purposes connected with the miraculous government under which the Israelites were placed, THEY were indulged with genuine prophets,. autho- > Deut. xvill. 9—12. rized and true Prophecy; 9 rized to declare the truth, and to deliver sperm. authentic predictions, many of which Dg should speedily be ascertained by their fulfilment. “ When a prophet’, says the same lawgiver, “* speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that 1 the thing which the Lord bath not spo- ken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptu- 3 oust ¢’ ; and the punishment of such pre- sumption was not lessthan death. There was also a dilemma established, very powerful to discourage false prophets. For if any one presumed to prophecy, in any other name than that of the Lord, he was to. suffer death ; and if he spoke in that sacred name, and spoke untruly, he was also to incur the- same punishment. “ But the | prophet which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not com- manded, or be that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die*.” © Deut. xviii, 225 * Ibid. v. 20. When 10 SERM. | é Contrast between Pagan Divination When this salutary law had been neg- lected, and false prophets and diviners had arisen even in Israel, one grand rule of distinction still remained; the pretended prophecies were found fallacious, while those which really proceeded from the Lord were established by unerring accom- plishment. The diviners who consulted. false gods, or were directed by superstitious practices, could have no better source for their predictions than the natural sagacity of man; if indeed they consulted even that aid, and did not rather depend upon some arbitrary and senseless tokens. What wonder, therefore, that their attempts were generally vain, and their ignorance easily exposed !—But the true God, the God of Israel, is the disposer of all events which. take place throughout the universe. When therefore he ordered events according to his own will, and they palpably contradicted the surmises of diviners, he was said to baffle them. and expose them to confusion and shame. and true Prophecy. Ik shame. This description of himself God sERM. hath given by his prophet Isaiah. « I am ibe Lord,—that frustrateth the tokens of lyars, and maketh diviners mad ; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolisb*.”’ But of his own prophets he adds, “< that confirmeth the word of bis servant, and performeth the counsel of bis messengers ‘.”” My text also further declares, that this is the exclusive privilege of God, and that “© there is none like him” ,—declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, “ my counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.” Behold, then, what a weight of respon- sibility the prophets of the Lord were, from the first, obliged to take upon themselves ! If their predictions did not prove infallibly true ; if, in the most minute particulars, they were found to differ from the events *Isa. xliv. 25. Ibid. v. 26. | to | Gs 12 SERM. Ls ad Contrast between Pagan Divination to which they referred, the men by whonr they had been uttered were no longer pro- phets&. They were detected impostors, ex- posed to shame for their folly, and even to the punishment of death, for their pre- sumption ; and particularly for their blas- phemous attempt to speak in his holy. name, by whose spiRiT they had not been inspired ; by whose authority they had not been commissioned. It is not necessary to examine (though the answer to the enquiry would be suffi- ciently obvious), what would be the na- tural conduct of men pledging themselves to foretel future events, without being conscious of a real inspiration. We are relieved from this necessity, by the well- known practices of those who have de- livered spurious oracles. Of these, the . world has been completely informed, by ® All prophecies relating to near events, which in Scrip- ture are very numerous, were exposed to this test. the and true Prophecy. é 13 the long-continued history of ancient SERM. times; wherein the priests of the false “Lay gods endeavoured to gain credit for their idols, and profit for themselves, by fore- telling things tocome. But how did they ‘conduct this difficult traffic? Did they make it hazardous as well as difficult, by pledging their lives on the truth of their predictions? Far otherwise:—they had very different arts, and plans much more compatible with the consciousness of being extremely liable to error. In the first place, unless a direct appeal to their inspiration ‘was made, by a specific enquiry, they usually observed a prudent silence. They uttered no spontaneous prophecies. - In saying nothing, they exposed themselves to no detection; and when they were obliged to speak, it was always with suf- ficient precaution. Obstacles were. first thrown in the way of enquiry. By magnifi- cent and repeated sacrifices it was rendered extremely expensive. This preliminary had a double 14 Contrast between Pagan Divination SERM. a double advantage - it lessened the number a ere of enquirers, and, at the same ‘time, ‘se- cured abundant advantage to the priests. These sacrifices were preceded, attended, and followed by many prescribed ceremo- nies®; the omission or mismanagement of any one of which was sufficient to vitiate the whole proceeding. The gods were not at all times in a humour to be con- sulted. ‘Omens were to be taken, and auguries examined; which, if unfavourable in any particular, either precluded the en- quiry for the present, or required further lustrations, ceremonies, and sacrifices ; to purify the person who consulted, and ren- der him fit to receive an answer from the gods; or to bring their wayward deities to a temper suitable to the enquiry. The an- swers given at last, when no further means of evasion remained, were frequently delu- ‘sive, and capable of quite contrary interpre- tations ; of which some striking instances * Van Dale, De Oraculis, T.i. p. 3. are and true Prophecy, ES -arevery generally and popularly known‘. But sErM. bi this expedient was by no means necessary ; eee since there were many other subterfuges, of equal or still greater efficacy, for pre- serving the credit of the oracle. If the event happened not to correspond with the prophecy, it was discovered, when too late, that some indispensable ceremony or observance had been omitted; that the gods were averse to the enquirer ; or that he had been not in a proper state for consulting them. Ifanevilevent took place, whena good one had been promised, it was the fault of the enquirer. If, on the contrary, the re- sult was more favourable than the predic- tion, this was owing to the intercession of the priests ; to the prayers they had offer- ed, or the rites they had performed, for propitiating the offended powers. Yet with these, and many other pre- cautions, which need not be enumerated ? See the itndehaieh: of the Oracle given to Croesus, in the notes to Beloe’s Hero dotus, B. 1. at 16 » SERM. ee Nee Contrast between Pagan Divination at present, the priests of the false gods suc- ceeded very imperfectly, in maintaining the credit of their divinations. The wiser and more sagacious heathens, in latter times ‘at least, held them in utter contempt. They were ridiculed by the comic poets ; and the pretendedly inspired priestess was, in seve- ral instances, even popularly accused of be- ing bribed, to prophecy according to the interests of a particular party.—Such was the success of false prophecy, even with all the aids of art, and a systematic plan of imposture, to preserve it from detec- tion. The copious knowledge that we possess > of the manner in which the Grecian oracles “were conducted (the most famous and the longest-supported imposition of the ‘sort, that was ever practised among men), seems to have been providentially preserved, for the sake of marking more distinctly to latter ages,the surprising contrast between thearts invented and carried on for their Support, and and true Prophecy. ¥ 4 and the plain and open simplicity, which so sERM. the true God :—to expose the arts, which fi- nally were unable to preserve the false pro- phets from contempt, by comparing them with the dignity of truth, which ultimate- ly prevailed, against the utmost power of » prejudice, and every tendency to supersti- tion. Among the Fathers of the Church, and for a long time after them, an opinion was very prevalent, that evil spirits were permit- ted to delude men by the heathen oracles : that they were allowed to utter some true predictions, in order to give credit to that system of superstition ; and to maintain the worship which was paid to them, un- der the assumed names of those imaginary gods. But if the evil spirits had any share in supporting this mystery of iniquity, they certainly were very strictly limited, as to the aid they were allowed to give their worshippers ; whom they left to practise | all the miserable shifts of men who know- Cc ingly i . 7. often characterizes the genuine Oracles of igri “#8 SERM, 1a eed Contrast between Pagan Divination ingly promised and professed, much more than they were able to perform. On this ground, an author of reputation * has, in an express work on Oracles, denied alto- gether the interference of demons in con- ducting those impostures : and in truth it is difficult to conceive that, with any preter- natural aid,’ the heathen diviners could have made so bad an appearance. Very seldom did a ray of truth, even by acci- dent, illumine their cloudy caves ; never did they venture to proceed without ,a thousand precautions; and still, with all their care, they fell into neglect and disre- pute. | | The prophecies. of the. chosen people were given without solicitation ; they were pronounced openly before the people ; and the prophet'knew himself by law exposed to capital punishment, if any one among his predictions were to be completely over- * Van Dale. , | thrown, - 9 and true Prophecy. 19 thrown!. A large proportion of their pro- serm. phecies was committed to writing, and pre- served in books left open always to public examination. This isa test from which the spurious ' As it might perhaps be objected, that a wary prophet could escape the danger of detection, by confining his pre- dictions to remote events, it may not be amiss to produce some instances of prophecies which required -and re- ceived a speedy fulfilment. The famous prophecy of Isaiah, applied in its second and higher sense to the Messiah, in its first meaning was of this kind, « Before the child shall know to refise the evil and choose the good’, a precise and short limit, ‘ the land that thou ab- horrest shall be forsaken of both her kings”, Ch, vii. 16. or more plainly, in the beginning of the eighth chapter, ** Before the child shall have knowledge to cry, my fa- ther and my mother, the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be taken away before the King of Assyria. “ This”, says Lowth, ‘ was accordingly accom- plished within three years s when Tiglath-Pileser, King of Assyria, went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Retsin’”’ &e. in loc.—The captivity, and various circumstances of it, were foretold by the prophets, a very short time before the Co events. I. one 20 SERM. I. Contrast between Pagan Divination spurious prophets of the heathens always shrunk. Never were their oracles collected in any authentic records; never brought into one view, with even a pretence to prove the prescience of their deities. The pretended Sibylline books were indeed events, See If. xxit.15, &c.—Frequently the prophecy given was a direct answer to a specific enquiry. Thus in Jerem. xxi. Zedekiah enquires of the issue of the war against the King of Babylon, and the fatal conséquences of it are directly and strongly foretold. In the 26th chapter of Jeremiah, that prophet is publicly accused for prophecying against the city ; he defends himself . as being commissioned by the Lord to do so, and he is there- fore acquitted. The whole chapter is well worthy of no- tice. Inthe 28th chapter, Jeremiah foretels the. death of a false prophet, who had contradicted him, as to hap- pen within a year. ‘* Hear now, Hananiah; the Lord hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to. trust ina lie.. Therefore thus saith the Lord: behold, I will cast thee from the face of the earth; this year thou shalt i , : f 2 ~ die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the Lord: So Hananiah the prophet died the same year,in the seventh month. Whoever reads the prophets with attention will find many More instances, employed and true Prophecy. ai nt employed at Rome, as an engine of sERM. policy and priestcraft ; but never were they exposed, except to the privileged few, who knew their use and application, and had an interest in continuing the de- ceit. So profoundly was the secret kept, that it never was at all betrayed; and when at length a compilation was offered to the world, professing to contain the Sibylline oracles, it was so gross and clumsy a forgery, as never to impose on any man of sense ™, who exerted even the smallest skill, in bringing it to the test of criticism. ™ Except, indeed, the eccentric Whiston, who pub- lished a book in their defence, with an edition and ver- sion of them; entitled, ‘* A Vindication of the Sibylline Oracles”, &c. 1715. But he was a lover of parodoxes.. Several of the Fathers seem to support them, but they did not, on this point, exert any critical skill. Perhaps also they argued, ad homines. See abr. Bibl. Grec, xxxill, 14. Addison speaks of some of them as genuine, which, he says, ‘in the first ages of the Church, were easily distinguished from the spurious”. On the Chr. Relig. §.vi. 9. But he does not further explain himself. * C3 It i ay 22 SERM. I. Contrast between Pagan Divination It isa temark which holds alike in every circumstance of Divine Revelation, never did , _ impostors attempt to produce their cr edentials, in such amanner as the real messengers of God. Yet does the malice or the blindness of opposers continually endeavour to confound them. Because there have been lying oracles, the true must be suspected: be- cause there have been false prophets, pre- tenders to divine inspiration, therefore they by whom the Spirit of God has truly spoken cannot obtain a candid hearing. Yet if the things considered differ most es- sentially in the mode, in the circumstances, in the proof; in all respects, except the name; where is the candour, or even the common sense, of involving them in one sentence of rejection ? | The Arch-Impostor of Arabia, who built as muchas possible on the foundation of the genuine Scriptures, had the wisdom to abstain from two things, which he knew > to and true Prophecy. 23 to be beyond his reach. He worked no SERM: MIRACLES; he uttered no PREDICTIONS; such only excepted as referred to another state of Being, which consequently could not fully be refuted before the general Resur- rection. It did not escape his penetrating mind, how arduous and desperate would be the task, of persuading men that they saw, what never came to pass; or of bringing real events to a seeming correspondence with predictions hazarded atrandom. He Ds 2 eye contented himself with occasional revela- | tions of doctrines and of precepts; con- cerning which, whether they were invent- ed by himself, or brought to him, as he pretended, by the angel Gabriel, no cer- tain proof could be obtained, In this forbearance, he acted at least wise. ly. These great Engines of Omnipotence are not for unassisted man to wield ; and, of all predictions founded on human fore- sight alone, none can be so certain as that g 4 which 2 A, Contrast between Pagan Divination sERM. which ‘foretels disgrace, subversion, and I. contempt, to every system which endea- vours to rest on prophecy as a support, without the aid of real inspiration. Propuecy may beusefully characterized, asa miracle, of which the testimony remains in itself. It isa miracle, because to foretel events, to which no chain of circumstances leads, no train of probabilities points, is as much beyond the power of human agents, as to cure diseases with a word, or even to raise the dead. But, that actions of the latter kind were ever performed can be proved, at a distant period, only by wit- nesses; against whose testimony cavils may be raised, or causes for doubt ad- vanced. But the man who reads a pro- phecy, and perceives the corresponding event, is himself the witness of the miracle ; he sees that thus it is, and that thus, by human means, it could not possibly have been. A pro- and true Prophecy. « 25 _ A prophecy yet unfulfilled isa miracle at ser. present incomplete ; and these, if nume- rous, may be considered as the seeds of fu- ture conviction, ready to grow up and bear their fruit, whenever the corresponding facts shall be exhibited on the theatre of the world. Will the sceptic then say that a man should disbelieve even his own knowledge, when it bears witness to cir- cumstances so extraordinary? As well might he say it, as reject the testimony of miracles, merely because it gives evidence to facts of very unusual occurrence. Yet, in the instance of prophecy. absurdity oe hardly go so far. 4 _ The Holy Scriptures are thickly sown with the seeds of prophecy, from the be- ginning even to the end: and these have been gradually developed throughout the history of man; and will be more and more unfolded to the consummation of Lé ee! _ things, respecting this present world. A . series 26. SERM. hy Contrast between Pagan Divination series of prophets, it has been already ob- served, was given to the nation of Is- rael, to preserve them from the abominable superstitions, and idolatrous divinations, of he nations among whom they dwelt. But this was not the origin of prophecy. It originated in the earliest period of the world, from God himself, who foretold to Adam and the Patriarchs the distant hopes of restoration and redemption, provided for the *humar race. The prophetic spirit was next communicated to the Patriarchs and rested more especially upon Moses ; whose inspiration had at once a retro- spect to the period of creation, and a view to the redemption of man; and even to the most distant fates of the chosen people, whom he had conducted out of Egypt. It was imparted, through a series of prophets, till the completion of thecanon of the ancient Scriptures. ~It was again poured out, without measure, upon our blessed Saviour, and was continued to his Apostles, and true Prophecy. ; 27 Apostles, till the second canon of the Scrip-s@RM. tures was also closed, by the Revelation ie given'to St. John. “In this extended scheme of communica- tion, if we find that “ the testimony of fesusis ihe spirit of prophecy’ ”; if we find a frequent and almost a constant reference to a divine person, in due time to be revealed; toa spiritual kingdom to be founded by him ; to many events and circumstances relating to that kingdom, which we can prove to . have been actually realized ; and to others, of which the completion is on the soundest principles to be expected; can we hesitate to believe, that the whole proceeds from him “ who is God, and there is none else; who is God, and there is none like him—wha declared the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, MY COUNSEL SHALL STAND, R ReviixXime 40, AND 28 Contrast between Pagan Divination, &c. ‘SERM. AND I WILL DO ALL MY PLEASURE” ?— IY Such is the conviction which the studious enquirer into prophecy will ever find, and which it is the appointed business of the present Lectures to illustrate. It will be pursued hereafter, by the blessing of God, at the times appointed by the Founder.— Now to God, &c. SERMON SERMON IL SD Preached Fanuary 18, 1801. ra... eae Poy tod pS Ai ee a” vere wii sali Parner sear cigs Pi eros 1 AS nay Bie m4 Ah a SERMON Hy mh PROPHECY THE BOND OF CONNECTION , BETWEEN THE TWO COVENANTS. oe $299 OSG OILS C02 eer LUKE Xxiy. 44, And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that alt things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning Me. i mr fs i WE have here the teftimony of our Savi- srr. . : ; , II ur : t t : our himself, that the Scriptures of the Old | Testament are full of nim :—and, having said these words, he proceeded, as the Evangelist informs us, to “ open the under- standings” of his disciples, « that they might understand” SERM. lt aad Prophecy the Bond of Connection understand’ those prophecies: explaining to them, from that source, that thus it be- hoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in bis name, among all nations. Nor was this, by any means, the only time when he taught this sacred doctrine to them. _It appears, from the passage itself, that he had been used to in- timate the same truths, “while be was yet with them’; that is, during his personal ministry in the flesh, before his Cruci- fixion and Resurrection. To two of them also, after those events, he had given a general instruction, similar to that which he now communicated to the eleven ; for, cs beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, . he” had “ expounded to them, in all the Scrip- tures, the things concerning himself*.” _ Why these instructive and most im- portant discourses were not preserved for * Luke xxiv, 27. us ‘between the Two Covenants, 93) us by the inspired writers, itis not, ‘at thissenm. period, easy to ascertain, or evento conjec=) tI ture.’ It'séems, however, ‘most probable, that the oinission Was ifttended to stimulate: _ the diligence of Christians; who, being thus! informed; on- the. highest authority, that’. such a series of prophecies does exist, might? be led to search the Scriptures: for them, and, by those enquiries; might become more learned in the word of God: When our Saviour thus taught the disciples in person, it was necessary that much in- struction should be conyeyed in’ a short period, and their minds fully prepared with this kind of knowledge, that they might be induced, under all external dis- couragements, to continue together in Je- rusalem; “ wntil they should be endued with power from on high,’ -But, where leisure and opportunity are allowed, it is perhaps more conducive, on the whole, to the good.of as Vv. 49. D be religion, SAP Prophecy the Bond of Connection SERM. religion, that men should search the Scrip-, I. Pe | . tures at large, which lie before them, than that they should receive an epitome of all the knowledge required, even from an infal- lible instructor. Whether this be the rea- son or not, the fact undoubtedly is, that so it has been ordained by Providence, for wise and good reasons certainly, (whether we can discover them or not), that these inestimable instructions of our Saviour have been withheld from us ; and we are left to search out for ourselves, what we are told was the purport of these divine discourses, concerning the applica- tion of the ancient prophecies to him. This was indeed the general injunction of our Saviour, when no peculiar circum- stances led him to be more exact in his mode of teaching :—‘ Search the Scrip- tures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life, and they are they which testify of me Sens ¢ John, v. 29 af He between the Two Covenants.” 35 ‘He was ready from the first to abide by that ser. proof, even in the hands of his enemies, !- which he himself thought proper after- wards to lay open to his disciples. To any one who contemplates the his- tory of opinions, on the subject of revealed religion, it must appear as if the mind of man, unwilling to receive implicitly this spiritual gift, even from the Almighty, had employed itself in every possible way, to change the terms or disfigure the nature of his Holy Covenant. In tracing these varia- tions, the most opposite notions will ap- pear to have been assumed, at different periods; while the truth perhaps, situated in the middle space, has been destined to see the needle of human reason pass by turns from one extremity to the other, hardly settling for a day on the exact me- ridian, which the hand of OmnrporENce hath drawn, sin A remark- 36 | SERM. =D fe Or Prophecy the Bond of Connection A remarkable instance of this melancholy deviation belon gs particularly to our present subject. While the Jewish Temple and polity remained, even they who were con- verted from that religion to Christianity, could not easily be persuaded, that.a more perfect Covenant was intended to: supersede the law revealed to their fathers. Over- powered by the force of) the apostolic mi- racles and preaching, they received, in- deed, as of necessity, the Christian Cove- ‘nant,’ bat still, without, relinquishing the Mosaic.. Not only ‘did. they, themselves -observe its ordinances, but they held that, even for converts from heathenism, there was no safe way to Gospel Salvation, but through the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish law. Against this error, which in some. respects was natural, and might have appeared venial, had it not tended to un= dermine the very foundations of the Gos- pel Covenant, by denying the sufficiency of the great atonement of Christ, the preaching “ between the Two Covenants.. 37 preaching and the pens of the Apostles were s—ERM, employed 4, But the evil, it is probable, 1!: could not: be entirely eradicated, till God had openly declared his will upon the sub- ject, by the awful destruction of the City and Temple, and the necessary end thus put to all the local privileges and observances of the Jews. In this, therefore, we seem to perceive one reason at least, among many, why a term was at that period de- creed, to the offences and existence of Je- rusalem. When the Temple was utterly destroyed, and the local rites and ceremo- nies thereby rendered impracticable, by the manifest interposition of God, and in conformity with the predictions of Christ; it could no longer be pretended, at least by those who had any faith in him, that the Mosaic ceremonies were still valid, and ought of necessity to be observed. * See Galatians, v. 1—4, and other places. wiciy D3 A different. 38 SERM. AF te Prophecy the Bond of Connection A different state of circumstances pro= duced, in later times, an error totally oppo- site; and Christians, long disjoined from any union or harmony with the Jews, have sometimes been desirous to forget even the necessary and unalterable connection of the two Revelations. Pressed by the cavils and objections of infidels, sometimes taken from the substance of the historical books, sometimes from the prophecies, sometimes from the application of particu- lar passages ; and latterly, from the weakest of all objections, that it had been custom- ary to found a new religion upon an old one *; pressed by these cavils, and, too su- pine, or too little informed, to find the © This was urged by Collins, in his Grounds and Rea- sons of the Christian Religion, p. 20.—See Warburtcn’s Works, vol. 11. p. 92.—Afterwards, he says, ‘* Mr. Collins wrote a book to exclaim against our ill faith; and to re- mind us of, and prove to us, the inseparable connection between the Old and New Testament. This was no un- seasonable reproof, however intended, for so egregious 4 folly,” Ib, p. 409. proper between the Two Covenants. 39 proper answers to them, many Christians sERM. thought it best, as an eminent writer Pa 3 aed says, “ to throw aside the care of the “ewish. Religion (a burden which. they could as ill bear as the rebellious Israelites themselves), and try to support the Chris- iian, by proving its divine original inde- pendently, and from itself alone *.”’ This error assuredly received no counte- nance whatever, from the words or con- duct of our Saviour ; who declared express- ly, that he came “ not to destroy the law and the prophets, but to fulfil them” ; who, for example’s sake, submitted to all the ordinances of the law, which remained in force till his career was completed ; and appealed decisively to the ancient Scrip- tures, as foretelling his office and charac- ter ; even pointing out on some occasions, as we have seen, the particular passages, in which he was promised and described. ‘Warburton, doc. sup. cit. D 4 ‘hhe ay Ke) Prophecy:the Bond of Connection ‘senme |’ The great and general : bond of union | i - ‘between the Covenants Is, in jtruth,; that -<9f propnecy; by!which the Holy Spirit ‘has miraculously connected the beginning ‘and the end of the world, » Wherever man is found, there also are the pervading rays of DIVINE PRESCIENCE, either, tending, to our Saviour, and marking him out as,the Messrau of God; or proceeding from HiM, and giving light to, the faithful, even till the final day of Universal Judgment, . Prophecy,» in its, most, intimate .con+ nection with! Christianity, . has, this \.ex- aéent and compass ; and.our, blessed. Saviour gave,an account only jof,ene, division, of © the subject, when he explained, in the an- cient Scriptures, the prophecies that related to himself: . It was, however, as much as could at that time be given,, His.own pre- dictions, with those of, his, Apostles, and such of the Jewish Oracles, as extend. be- yond the period of his. first advent,—all bh ) these between the Two Covenants. 44 these are to be weighed by a’ Christian of SERM. this day, if he would contemplate the whole 1. : j el ated force of prophecy, as applicable to our Sa- viour,, and to those who call. upon his name, This, therefore, is the kind of view pro- posed to be taken.in the present Lectures ; I. First, comprebending the. prophecies that relate to‘our Saviour, as Author and perpetual Head of the Christian Church :. U. Secondly, those which foretell the fate of his disciples, whether adverse or prosperous, from the time of his departure from them, to that of bis last most solemn advent:. These will form the two grand divisions of the subject. But, before we proceed further, it may be right more particularly to explain, that, extensive as this plan may appear, it com- prises only asmall part of that, which the general subject of pRopHEcy would de- mand, to do justice to. it in its whole ex- tent. 42 SERM. Il. ere | View of Prophecy tent. It takes no notice of any predic- tions which relate to particular persons, or were fulfilled a short time after they were given. It omits all those, of no small importance, which denounce the defeats and captivities of the Jews, under the law, to punish their disobedience ; and many of those oracles also which describe the fall of kingdoms and empires. These, and various other prophecies, must be passed by in this account, as not belonging to the line of enquiry which is marked out for these Lectures. >. The riches of divine goodness are always too abundant to be compre- hended by man, in any single mode of consideration. © © First Division of the Subject. In searching out, then, in the first place, the prophecies which relate to our Saviour, let us take the rule of enquiry which he him-_ self has pointed out. *¢ All things”, said he, “ must be fulfilled, which were written in the from the Creation. 49 the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, srrm. and in the Psalms, concerning me.” By the. '' Law of Moses are evidently intended, col- lectively, the five Books of Moses, called THE PenraTeucu; of which only a part indeed literally contains tHE Law, but the whole was so termed, by common and | universal usage, among the Jews. Now, in the Books of Moses, there are certainly many things written concerning Christ, which we know to have been fulfilled. Of these, some are so generally acknowledged as hardly to require repeating. Of that kind is the promise of the Redeemer, presumed to be conveyed in the sentence passed upon the serpent ; whose most vital part was ordained to be crushed, by him who should be exclusively the seed of the wo- man’, ‘There is something very singular in the nature of this prophecy. ‘Taken in the general sense of its words, it seems to denote no more than that some man should ® Gen, 1,15, ‘ . Crea iLlo.y 4) 44 View of Prophecy. sernM. hereafter be born, among the descendants If. of Eve, to whom the privilege should be conceded of avenging the treachery of the tempter.. Eve appears thus to have under- stood it ; and when her first child was born, gave him a name, the purport of which was, “I have gotten aman > from the Lord” : hoping probably that, this was ibe very person destined to. atchieve the important yictory. But when, in process of time, the real Conqueror was born, and, in cons sequence of his miraculous conception, ac- knowledged no human origin, except from the stock of his Virgin Mother ;. then en- tirely a new light. was thrown upon the apparently simple words of the prophecy, which had not been till then understood ; and it became universally and clearly. in- telligible, what there was specific in the prophecy, which applied, particularly to Christ, and not, to. any, other person that ever bore the form of man; no other, be- * Or, perhaps, ‘! éhe man’. ing, from. the Creation, 45 ing, in.that peculiar and unexpected sense, SERM. THE SEED OF THE WOMAN}: After this period, the light of prophecy seems to have been withheld for many generations * ; 2, the corresponding Hebrew phrase, might, mean the son of woman; mony being, like homo, applicable _ to either sex. Grotius, and other good interpreters, con- sider the phrase as meaning a man of humble condition, and cite authorities. Others say, that, he was so called be- cause he was given for man in general. la Christ’s own mouth, it was certainly a term of humility. _* Possibly there might be something prophetic in the words of Eve on the birth of Seth. ‘ For God”, said she, Its 4S SERM. Vl, v View of Prophecy increasing wickedness which brought tlie vengeance of the Deluge upon all the earth. Even the righteous Noah, though he obtained the preservation of himself and his house from the general calamity, does not appear to have received any new intimation of the greater and more perfect deliverance, intended for his descendants, Abraham, whose exemplary faith and obe-_ -dience obtained a higher reward, had the gracious intentions of the Almighty very gradually opened to him. First, he was promised to inherit the land of Canaan, where as yet he had not even the smallest property. Abundant and powerful poste- she, “ hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel whom Cain slew.’ Gen. iv. 25. When Cain was born, She had said, “ £ have gotten aman from the Lord” ; hoping, as many interpreters think, that he might be the promised seed : in the second instance, the words another seed, seem yet more strongly to point to that hope. Cain was out of the question now from his wickedness, and Abel from his unfortunate end; but with a third son her hopes revived. * | ) rity from the. Creation. 47 rity was then announced to him, while as sErM. yet he had no child. When the three An- Biel gels visited him’ (who have been thought, not without reason, to have designated. by their appearance the highest mystery of Divinity), it was at length made known to him, that in bim should ALL THE NATIONS OF THE EARTH BE BLESSED !. Yet Isaac, his only legitimate ™/son, was not yet born. But Abraham appears to have relied, with the utmost confidence, upon the promise ; and doubtless most ardently desireda further communication of the divine will. The time at length arrived ;.and Abraham was at once finally tried, and finally instructed. He saw the day of Christ, and he rejoiced to see it®,—in the prophetic representa- ~ 4 Gen: xviii. 18. ™ Or rather his only free-born son. The children of a handmaid were not regarded as illegitimate, in our sense of the word, and the mother was held, in some sense, a wife. But the free-woman and her children had the preference, — * John, vil. 56. tion 43 View of Prophecy - sERM. tion afforded to him, by the commanded, iI. but not completed sacrifice. of. Isaac°. That Isaac.was made a type of Christ, is strongly intimated by the inspired writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews; and that Abraham, when tried and found complete- ly firm, in faith and obedience, should be made acquainted with the prophetic mean-_ ing of that type, is above all things pro- bable. Thus was it, according to the Founder of these Lectures (whose opinion is supported by many strong and able ar- guments), that Abraham saw the day of Christ, and was glad.. That the action was originally intended to be significant, and that Abraham knew it to: be so (hav- ing in other instances been instructed by similar means’), is an opinion connected © I have ventured here to adopt, in part, the interpre- pt, im part, pre- tation of Bishop Warburton. See his Works, vol. iil. —p. 380, &c. P See Gen. xv. vv. 9, 10, 11, &c. with from the Creation. 49 with ‘the former, and by no means desti- seRM. tute of proof. It was, we are surely autho- rized to say, an action too extraordinary in itself, to be commanded without some hidden and more excellent meaning, than at first sight appeared. Here then the intimations of the pro- phetic spirit appear, for a time, to have been again suspended. ‘There are not, at least, any such communications recorded by the Sacred Historian, till we have made some progress in the life of Isaac. To him the Lord appeared, at the time when the se- cond famine prevailed in the land, and, forbidding him to go down to Egypt, re- newed the promise of the land itself ; and added, that, ‘‘:in his seed should all the na- ~ tions of the earth be blessed’ : assigning, as a reason, the exemplary faith and obedi- ence of his father. “ Because that Abraham Steet RHVIA A. BE obeyed If. ary 59 View of Prophecy SERM. obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my Il. commandments, my statutes, and my laws*”. The next period of promise occurs in the narrative of Jacob’s life. To this Patri- arch was given a most strong and solemn confirmation of the promises made to his fathers, in that celebrated vision, which he saw in hisway to Haran. “ He dream- ed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it: and behold tux Lorp stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Abrabam thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land where- on thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed: and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in THEE, and in thy SEED, shall all the families of the earth be blessed*”. Here, we may observe, is also a double ¥ Gen. xxvi. 5. ’ Ibid. xxvii. 12, 13, 14. promise, from the Creation. 51 promise, that the inheritandé of the land sERM. In. should be given to his posterity ; and the inal more glorious intimation, that from his off spring ‘should arise the Redeemer of all Mankind. This was doubtless that parti- cular promise, which Isaac wished to be confirmed to his son, when he bestowed his parting benediction ;—“ May God Al- mighty’, said he, * bless thee, and make thee Sruitful, and multiply thee ; that thou mayest be a multitude of people, and give theé THE BLESSING OF ABRAHAM, to thee and to thy seed with thee*’.—Jacob, deeply moved and impressed with a vision, which pictured to’ him the miraculous connection intended to be formed between heaven and earth, by the steps of his posterity, new-named the place BETH-EL,—THr House or Gop; and vowed continual obedience to the God of Abraham and Isaac. From this time, he continued full of holy faith; as a reward for which, he had frequent visions from * Gen. XXVILl. By Ae | EQ the 52 View of Prophecy sERM. the Lord; till, at the end of life, a more Ij. particular view of the divine promises was indulged to him, than had hitherto been communicated to man. ‘“ By faith”, says the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, €<) facops when be was dying, blessed the sons of Fosepb*’. This, however, is only an imperfect allusion to the fact; for he blessed, not only the sons of Joseph, but his own sons also, and among them espe- cially ‘udab, in a manner that proves him to have had a more perfect view of the truth, than had been given to Abraham or to Isaac. He was enabled to limit the promise of the Saviour to the family of JuDAH; and even to point out the time and conditions of its accomplishment, in the well-known words, ‘“ the sceptre shall not depart from Fudab, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until SHILOH come; and unto bim shalt the gathering of tbe people be*'. " Heb. xi. 21. * Gen. xlix. 10. Whatever jrom the Creation. JD - Whatever be the exact meaning of the sERM. mame SuHiLow (for respecting its ety- mology interpreters have differedy), it _ appears most evident, from the context, that some illustrious person was intended ; and, that this person could be no other than tHE Messtau, even the Jewish in- terpreters have agreed; though: the clear and manifest limit of his advent, in point of ‘time, they have, for their own pur- poses, endeavoured to remove. Yet, if we ask whether Yudab hath at this hour a Lawgiver or a Sceptre among his posteri- ty, er whether he has had them since the destruction of Jerusalem, I know not of any subterfuge to which, with even a shadow of probability, they can have recourse, So decisive were the words of prophecy on this subject, even at the early period of Jacob’s death. If we consider also the cir- cumstances of that Patriarch, at the time ” Whether from row to give peace, Parkhurst; or now to send, which Jerom seems to have taken. E 3 “ of I ia dined RA View of Prophecy srrM. of giving this prediction, we shall see still further cause to wonder at the foresight with which he was endowed ; confessing that nothing less than divine inspiration — could thus have illuminated his mind. So far from any Scepire being, at that time, in the hands, or ‘in the hopes, of | Jacob’s family, they were then strangers in afo- reign land. According toany human powers - of conjecture, there was no appearance, | or shadow of probability, that any one of the Patriarch’s family would be the founder of a Royal House; still less: that Fudab, in particular, would be selected by Providence to obtain that eminent distinction. But the hopes‘of Jacob werenotvague; he remembered the vision at BETHEL (formerly called Luz);and he knewexpressly that Ca- naan was to be the seat of dominion to his posterity. This he had declared explicitly to Joseph. “© God Almighty’, said he; “ ap- peared to me at Luz, in theland of Canaan, and o | blessed from the Creation. be blessed me; and said unto me, Bebold I will spr. make tbe’ fruitful and multiply thee, and I 1: will make of thee a multitude of people, and I ae will give THIS LAND to thy seed after thee*”’. Thus mindful‘of the promise made at an early period of his'life, the Patriarch was indulged, at its close, with a further insight Into the designs of Heaven; and saw not only a Sceptre existing in his family, but that Sceptre determined to the line of Ju- DAH. He saw also, at a per iod still more remote, the cessation of that government, though notyet begun; and he beheld, finally, the coming of the promised Saviour, after this predicted reign of Judah should have ceased. So particular an instance of fore- sight, baffles all that can be fancied. or al- ledged, on the notion of conjecture ; and marks a knowledge which could have been derived only from the Fountain of all Know- ledge. * Gen. xlviil. 4. £4 Without “> 50 SERM. Il. View of Prophecy, Sc. Without pursuing this topic further, for the present, which the time will not admit, it is now sufficiently evident, that when our blessed Saviour spoke of. the things which were written concerning him in the Law, or the Books of Moses, he pointed to a source of information far from being barren or unproductive. On a fu- ture occasion I shall, with the blessing of | God, unfold, to a» further extent, the meaning of those words, and mark the progress of prophetic information, respect- ing the Mrssiau, through many subse~ quent steps. | Now to God, &c. SERMON SERMON I. y BT) Oe Preached February 15, 1801. REA al ~! ( ty" ‘ ir. Dea eer an Pe SERMON It. PROPHECIES, FROM THE DEATH OF JACOB TO THE JOURNEY IN THE WILDERNESS. cers 0596 DEG SEIS S00 aaa 1 PETER, 1.10. Of which salvation the Prophets have engured, and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you. lr the Prophets enquired, and searched srr. diligently, concerning the salvation which ow hath since come unto us; and our Saviour (as we have heard in a former text *), tes- tified and explained, that to those Pro- * See Serm. II. the Text. phets 60 SERM. “ETT. Prophecies, from the Death of Sfacob phets God had revealed, and by their mouths had declared, the things which concerned himself and his Church, our duty to examine these Oracles, and com-= pare them with their accomplishments, must be of all things the most evident and certain. In my endeavour to open this moment- ous subject to your minds, according to the appointed purpose of these Lectures, I have undertaken » to consider the Pro- phecies in a twofold view :—/irst, as re- lating to the crigin of the CurisTIAN CHURCH in its DIVINE FouNDER ;—and, secondly, as pointing out the fate and for- tunes of his disciples, and the CuuRcnH at large, after his departure. I now proceed in the former of these divisions, from the point at which I ceased before. > See Serm. II. p. 9. The to the fourney in the Wilderness. 61 The parting denunciations and blessings srr. of the patriarch Jacob to his sons, if exa- mined ina general view, would demand a very extensive consideration. Regarding them only so far as they refer to the pro- mise of the Saviour, there is little for me in this Lecture to notice ; excepting the benediction given to Judah, on which I have already expatiated. I will only add (nearly in the words of a respectable Eng- lish Commentary ‘) a general summary of the blessing bestowed upon Judah, con- sidered as a prophecy of the utmost im- portance to the evidences of Christianity. Jacob may then be considered as thus speaking to his son Judah :— «« The authority of ruling, in the high- est degree of pre-eminence, and for the longest continuance, (though under dif- ferent forms of government) shall belong * The Assembly’s Annott. Gen. xlix. 10. to Tif. 62 Prophecies, from the Death of ‘facob SERM. to the tribe of Jupau?: or, 1f it be im- III. »yarted to any other tribe, yet shall it be : so given, that Judah shall have the name and honour of the kingdom, common- wealth, or polity, of whatever kind, among the people who are to descend from me; so that they shall not be styled the people of Reuben, Levi, Gad, or any other of my sons, but of Yudab; Jupx1, Jews. The tribe of Jupau also shall be distinct, and not obscured or confounded, like the other tribes, after a certain period; but shall maintain and know its descent from him: of which honour it shall not be deprived un- til ue shall come, who will be Suiton, the Prince of Peace, the commissioned Mes- senger and Author of SALVATIOoN,—the Son of Judah by lineal descent: unto whom, in due time, shall be gathered all the people of the earth.” * Judah had immediately the first place assigned, in the encampments of Israel. A prediction to the ‘fourney in the Wilderness. 63 A prediction of this nature, given, not sErM. only so many ages before the time of its TI: ll ied accomplishment, but so long before the least footing was gained for any part of the family, in the land where the whole was to be transacted ;—such a prediction baffled all pretence to ascribe it to human sagacity; and is referable only to the power to whom all times are present. Lower it, even to the utmost, and ascribe the fabrication of it (if that be alledged) to a time long posterior to the settlement in Canaan, to times when the prophecy can even be demonstrated to have existed, as it now stands; still it will contain cir- cumstances | (such as the continuation of Judah’s pre-eminence, down to the utter dissolution of the Jewish state) which no man could have conjectured, even at the latest assumed period of history. The di- vinity of the prophecy so adheres to it, that unless it can be said to have been written after the destruction of Jerusalem _ by 64 Prophecies, from the Death of ‘facob SERM. by Titus, which may be contradicted by Ill. absolute demonstration, it cannot be attri- buted to an unassisted human mind. It is like a liquor impregnated with some admirable ingredient, of which you can- not remove the flavour, till you destroy its very nature. Some commentators have been desirous to consider the prophecy, which was ad-_ dressed by the same Patriarch to ‘foseph°, as _ © The prophecy is this :—** JosEpy is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches. run over the wall: the archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong, by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (FROM THENCE IS THE SHEPHERD, THE STONE OF IsRAEL:) even by the God of thy father who shall help thee; and by the Al- mighty who shall bless thee, with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb. The blessings of thy father have prevailed, above the blessings of thy progeni- tors, ’ to the “fourney in the Wilderness. 65 as alluding also, in a secondary sense, tosERM. the Messiah ; nor will I pronounce such an_ 1/1: interpretation erroneous ; but, in addition to the clearness of what now has been de- veloped, it is, with respect to our purpose, undoubtedly superfluous. Ee Thus far then we have brought down the prophetic expectation of THE Savi- our. We have seen it left by Jacob, as assured to the posterity of Judah ; and fix- ed in Its limits to a time, when that tribe should still retain a species of pre-eminent power. tors, UNTO THE UTMOST BOUND OF THE EVERLASTING HILLS: they shall de on the head of Josrpu, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.” Gen. xlix, 22-26.—It is impossible not to see that some of these expressions have allusion to the great Son of Promise, especially the words, ‘* thence is the shepherd, the stone, or Rock, of Israel.” But it is un-” necessary to dwell on this passage. ee - Never- 66 SERM,. Ill. ae ed _ Prophecies, from the Death of “facob Nevertheless, appearances long conti- nued unfavourable, to the acquisition of any kind of sovereignty, for the posterity of Judah, or any other of the children of Israel. They increased, indeed, in numbers, but it was in a foreign land: they lost the protection of the monarchs of the country, and became objects of suspicion, instead of favour; of persecution, instead of in- dulgence.. he destined ruler and his sub- jects groaned under one common slavery ; they were worn with cruel tasks, and weakened by the murder of their male children. In this state of things, it pleased the God of their fathers to raise up Moses among them ; who being preserved, ‘by peculiar providence, from the fate which then attended their male infants, was destined to put an end to their Egyp- tian bondage, by means altogether mira- culous. At * , P wit _— . ee ee ee \ to the Yourney inthe Wilderness. 67 At this time it was that God, in a so-srErRM. Jemn manner, revealed his name Jenovan to Moses‘, and established what has been called the TueEocracy ; that is, eo ac= tual administration of God, under that name, as supreme Governor of the people of Israel. “ And I will take you to me for £ Exod. vi. 3. Not then first heard of (see Gen. xxii. 14, &c.) but first theocratically assumed. This was evident- ly the commencement of the Theocracy; see ver. 7,— This information, that Gop would become their actual Lord and Governor, by the name of JEHOVAH, ought to have raised their spirits; but, so depressed were they with their sufferings, that it produced no kind of effect, ‘* they hearkened not unto Moses, for anguish of spirit, and for ‘cruel bondage”. Exod. vi. 9. In Ezek. xx. 5, the time when God chose Israel for his people is express- ly said to have been in Egypt, which marks therefore thé commencement of the Theocracy. The words are remark- able :—‘‘ In the day wHEN I CHosE IsrakL, and lifted up mine hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known unto them, IN THE LAND OF EGYPT, when I lifted up my hand unto them saying, I AM THE Lorp your Gop”, &c. This exact limit for the com- mencement, and direct record of the establishment of the Theocracy, has not, I believe, been usually remarked. F 2 A PEOPLE; rar ore “68 Prophecies, from the Death of “facob; &Se. SERM. A PEOPLE, and I will be to you a God’.— Sut t. ad This is the theocratic government, dis- tinctly expressed.—* And ye shall know that Tam Jenovan your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. And I will bring you in unto the land con- cerning the which I did swear to give it to Abrabam, to Isaac, and to facob: and I wilt give to you for an heritage: I am JEHo- vans.” Now, Jehovah, according to the soundest authorities of the Jewish and Christian Churches®, was the Word of God; that is, Curist. Already then were the Jewish nation virtually under the go- vernment of Christ ; but, for the time of the Saviour’s manifestation in the flesn, they were to wait for other intimations. To show the inseparable connection of © the whole’ eB with the Revelation © Exod. vi. 7,8. llix, Fudgm. of Fewrsh Church, p.216; and Bull's Biase Fidee Nicene, hes. 1. afterwards The Nature of Prophetic Types. 69. afterwards to be given, the very first posi+ sERM. tive institution delivered to Israel, after 14: this establishment of the TueEocratic Go- VERNMENT, contained an undoubted inti- mation of the intended sacrifice of Christ : undoubted, I say, to us, to whom it has been since explained, in a vast variety of ways; but veiled, at the-time, to them under the impenetrable cloud of mystery. This was the institution of the Passover, which took place at the very eve of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage; as afterwards the actual sacrifice of the Lamb of God opened the way to the general de- liverance of man, from the bondage of Sin and Death. In this place then it will be proper, and perhaps necessary, to say a few words con-= cerning this peculiar species of prophecy, the Prophecy of Typxrs ;—a thing unheard of in any theological system, but that of the true Religion ; and, if we examine it, im- | Fg possible 70 The Nature of Prophetic Types. sERM. possible to be attempted, without the ac- Ill. tual assistance of divine foreknowledge. \c em Its nature is this—An institution Is estab- lished, or an action is commanded, which are discovered, many centuries afterwards, to have designated and pictured out events ihen, at length, actually happening. Or, a person is raised up, who proves afterwards to have been a type, or representation of another person, then unborn. To form a type of this kind, who then is competent, but he who looks through all time, and knows what is to happen many centuries af- terwards? Thus the commanded sacrifice of Isaac (as I noticed in the preceding dis- course'), typified, or shadowed out, the sacrifice of Christ. It was the sacrifice of an only son, of one on whom all the pro- mised hopes of Redemption depended ;— who was restored, in the one case, from the sentence of death, by the interposition of divine mercy; in the other, from real Sern LL. pi 15. death, The Nature of Prophetic Types. | 71 death, by a miraculous resurrection. This, sERM. it is true, is not decisively clear, toamind 1! averse to the faith ; but to the Christian it is sufficiently proved by the single text of the Epistle to the Hebrews, where it is said that Abraham, through faith in the promises, offered (up) his only begotten son 3 *¢ accounting that God was able to raise bim up, even from the dead; from whence -also be recewed him, in a figure*”’: that is, by a typical representation. But the case of the Passover, with which we are at present more particularly con- — cerned, is of a very different kind. - This even the infidel, if he will consider it, must acknowledge to contain irrefragable proof of divine prescience. For, though be will not, probably, allow the mystical in- tention of the several ceremonies then ap- pointed, he cannot deny that the Passover -* Heb. xi. 17—19. F A was — 72 The Nature of Prophetic Types. SERM: Was a'sacrifice for redemption from bondage ie fea and death ; that the victim was appointed to be a Lamb without blemish, the uni- versal symbol of unspotted innocence ; that 4 bone was not to be broken, a circum- stance fulfilled in Christ, contrary to the practice in crucifixions, as exemplified in his companions in death; and, what is most extraordinary, that the death of Christ, as historically recorded, took place on the very day of the PASCHAL SACRI- FICE, which it was to supersede; as the real event, which till then had been prefigured by it. | oy These coincidences, marked in all ages by Christians, who commemorate the sa- crifice of Christ’s Passion at the season of the Jewish Passover, were pointed out by the Apostles. “ Christ, ouR Passover”, says St. Paul, “ is sacrificed for us’: and throughout the otherwise difficult book of 11 Cor. v. 7: , the an 4 i us My a 7 wr The Nature of Prophetic Types. 73 the Apocalypse, this at least is perfectly srrm. III. Clear, that the Lamb who was slain repre- = a ied sents the person of Christ, and receives the honours due to his exalted character. ‘«¢ Bebold, the Lamb of God”, said the Bap- tist, ** who taketh away the sins of the world” ; and this was said, long before there could be, to human knowledge, any prospect that Jesus would become a victim. Nor does the language of the ancient Prophets | differ very materially from this: “ He is, brought as a lamb to ibe slaughier’’, said Isaiah™: and Jeremiah, only varying the person, says, ‘‘ I was like a lamb, or an ox that is brought to the slaughter°.” | Such was the typical sacrifice of the Passover, established by the express command of God, when Israel was on the point of de- parting out of Egypt. Other types we shall have occasion to observe, as we trace the progress of prophetic intimations ; but ut ® Ise uh 75. et, John, Legg. a (1 eed ie > a this 74 aay!) s i * ’ , The Nature of Prophetic Types. SERM. this is, of all that exist, abundantly the _ He most illustrious. In an extended sense, indeed, the Israel- ites altogether are justly considered as typifying the Christian world. Their bondage in Egypt is truly said to repre- sent the natural and unconverted state of man, in bondage to sin and wrath. God then became their King, and by the blood of the Paschal Lamb, rescued them from impending destruction. ‘Their passage through the wilderness delineates to us the probationary struggles of Christians ; and the promised land of Canaan prefigures the heavenly Kingdom, towards which we travel in our pilgrimage through life. Let not these comparisons be hastily condemned as fanciful. Many of them are sanctioned by the authority of inspired writers ; and all of them are readily adopt- ed by sound judgment, when once the mind The Nature of Prophetic Types. ws mind is divested of Anti-Christian preju- SERM.: Iif. dices; and prepared to trace the conse- quences of this just principle, that ihe God of the one Covenant is the God of the other. Thus was their mutual reference provi- dentially ordained, for the sake of illus- tration ; and intended to produce that pe- culiarly strong confirmation of the truth, which arises from undoubted prophecy, plainly and undeniably fulfilled, Reflect now on the vast though gradual improvement of things, from the period of the first transgression, to the time at which we have here arrived in our view. An ob- scure, and apparently indefinite intimation, has been ripened into a clear and luminous prediction ; and the descendants of those men to whom the promises were originally given, have become the peculiar people of God; and are employed to shadow out to others, in later times, those mercies which, as yet, they themselves could not fully com- prehend, 76. SERM. prehend. Their Covenant with God was: Ill. The Sourney of the Israelites soon aiter ratified, with great solemnity, in the wilderness ; and they hada code of laws delivered to them, under which they were long to enjoy the divine protection. During the journeying of the Israelites in the wilderness, the divine Government. over them was. openly and completely established. They were conducted by the visible interposition of God; they were detained and supported, where no human power could possibly support them ; their wants were miraculously supplied’; and theiracts of ingratitude and rebellion noless miraculously punished. It was impossible, under those circumstances, for any soul living in Israel to doubt that God had ac- tually established a Covenant with his people. Under this Covenant, their Di- vine Governor was now conducting them > 6 Their shoes waxed not old.”—Deut, to in the Wilderness: oe to that land which had so long been pro- sERM. mised to their fathers. The fulfilment of !!- this promise, so contrary to all human ee probability, ought naturally to have led their minds to look onward, to the greater promise of a Saviour and Deliverer, who was to redeem mankind from their sins; and in whom all nations of the earth should finally be blessed. That they might not - enter into the promised land without some secret intimation, at least, of this more im- portant prediction, in the fortieth year of their journeyings, and in moving from some of their latest stations (the thir- ty-fifth and thirty-fixth 4), the memorable symbol of the brazen serpent was set up before them. This wasa transaction pub- licly performed, before all Israel, among whom that brazen image remained to the days of Hezekiah*. Whoever looked upon this symbol, then raised before their. eyes, * Numb. chap. xxi. v. 4, &c. _” 2 Kings, XVil. 4- was 78. The Sourney of ihe Israelites SERM, was delivered from the pain and danger of alt the venomous bite of serpents. That the Israelites, at this time, had any notion of the secret reference of this miraculous in- strument, asa type of the Messiah, does not appear from the history. Moses, it is probable, was not ignorant of its inten- tion; and the similarity in some of the circumstances and effects, to the great sa- crifice of our Saviour upon the Cross, is such as could not be mistaken when once it had been brought to notice. Christ himself was perhaps the first who men- tioned it expressly, in his discourse with Nicodemus ;. but his authority places it at once beyond all doubt. ““ As Moses”, said he, “ lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up*.” In reading which passage, it should not be _ forgotten, that his own speech was like- wise prophetical ; and that he made the * John, ul. 14. application in the Wilderness: "9 application of the type to himself upon the ser. Cross, long before any circumstances had '!! intimated the chance or probability that he would so terminate his life, or, in that sense, would be lifted up. Here then is a symbolical representa- tion of Christ’s crucifixion, and its mira- culous effects, delivered fourteen hundred years before the event to which it referred ; and applied by Christ himself to that event, while its completion was still beyond the sight of human wisdom. Can we fail to see, in this instance, the marvellous power of divine prescience, connecting the most distant, occurrences ; and of divine wis- dom, pursuing one uniform and certain plan, throughout all ages of the world ? I have not asserted that the Israelites had originally any intimation of the mean- ing of the symbolical serpent, towards - which they looked up, and were healed of | ua tae their 80 SERM. oe oe eye The Fourney of the Israelites, ce. their wounds ; but from a passage in the Book of Wisdom (a book not inspired, but probably antecedent to the time of our Saviour), it appears that the Jews had long considered it as something sacra- mental, and of high and secret import. The passage is remarkable. “ For when’, says that author, “ they perished with the stings of crooked serpents, thy wrath endured not for ever. But they were troubled for a small season, that they might be admonished ; bav- ing a sign of salvation to put them in remem- brance of the commandment of thy law. for be, that turned himself towards it, was not saved by the things he saw; but by THEE THAT ART THE SAVIOUR OF ALL. Again, some verses lower; ‘“ For it was neither herb, nor mollifying plaister that. restored ° them to beallh, BuT THY WoRD', O Lord, 7 which _t See the late Mr. Gilpin, Serm. u. vol. 1. * Un- doubtedly”, says a commentator on this passage, ‘ this appointment, besides exercising the faith of the beholder, upon a Lhe Nature of Prophetic Types. St which healeth all things .”’—~Wisdom, ch. xvi. serw. Vv. 5—7, and v. 12. sil It has become too much the practice among many Christians, to disregard all intimations upon this occasion, had reference to the Mystery of Christ, whose victory over the old serpent, the grand enemy of mankind, was hereby typified and represented. Many of the ancients are of the same opinion, and ima- gine this serpent to be an emblem of the Cross, anda sym- bol, or sign of that salvation afterwards to be effected by it: but Justin Martyr is more particular, for he adds, that this serpent was likewise made in the very form of a cross. Jpol. 2. Arnald in loco.—Thy word, in the twelfth verse, is also explained by the same com: mentator to mean Christ. ‘* This seems”, he says, ‘‘ to be spoken of the very person of the Aéyes, and is undoubt- edly taken from Psalm cvii. 20.” He adds, that the Asyes was the person offended, confirming it from St. Paul, “ Neither tempt ye Curist, as some of thein also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.” i Cor. x. g. The Chaldee Paraphrase on Numb. xxi. 8, thus explains it. See more by Arnald in the same note. Patrick ob- jects to the idea of Christ being represented by the figure G of $2 SERM. Ifl. ee The Nature of Prophetic Types. ‘ntimations of a typical nature. They are thought to give too great a scope to fancy”, and are known indeed to have occasioned grievous wanderings, to. some warm and ungoverned imaginations. I have therefore taken occasion here to explain their real nature; and to show that, in some instances, of a serpent, and thinks that ic rather represented the old serpent, as vanquished by his Cross ; he allows, how- ever, that it was a mysterious fymbol. On Numb. xxi. 8. some trace of a similar idea seems to appear in Philo Ju- deus. Eay yep 0 yous, Sux bets nOoviny rw rns Evas oQer, isyvow alidely Porinws To cw Peoovrns xcAros, TY Mwiciws opi, uml dice wire thy Ozov adr, Cnseias. Si enim mens morsa a voluptate, Evee serpente, possit liquidd perspicere temperantiz pul- chritudinem, Mosis serpentem, ¢é per hunc Deum ipsum, vivet. Allegor. Lib. u. vol. i. p. 81. Edit. Mangey.— Mabius, de Serpente Hneo, as cited by Calmet, allows the serpent to have been a symbol of Christ’s crucifixion, but endeavours to draw from it a defence of image-wor- ship. « Collins, in his book on the ‘* Grounds and Reasons of the Christian Faith’, denies TYPES and SECONDARY SENSES altogether ; and Sykes and others have been too far influenced by him. Sce Warb. Diy. B. vi. Sect. 8. they # The Nature of Prophetic Types. 83 they convey to us the most subtile and won- ser. | derful species of prophecy: a species which -man would never have devised, and which, were he to attempt to imitate it, must be | hazarded, with millions of chances to one against his success, and with no kind of intermediate use to the contriver. For, not professing to be a prophecy, at the time when it is delivered, it raises no ex- pectation ; it confers no credit on the in- ventor ; and when its application should at length appear (were it possible for the at- tempt to be successful), he would be far beyond the reach of all advantage from it. In instances such as have now been produced, the reference and connection between the type and the distant event, when at length it has taken place, seem to be so clear, that they must be ac- knowledged by any reasonable mind. For Christians, the best general rule is, not to admit any circumstance as typical, which G 2 has PPE: ed 34 SERM Ii}. red The Nature of Prophetic Types. has not so been represented by some in- spired person; unless, indeed, it should arise inevitably as a consequence from some other types, which have been thus established ; or is in itself so perfectly dis- tinct, that it cannot easily be otherwise interpreted. In the sketch which I have thus begun, of the prophecies concerning Christ and his Church, it is my intention to interweave the most remarkable of the typical notices of these great objects; and for this impor- tant reason, more especially, that every | one may see, and be convinced, how fixed and uniform the purpose of God was, con- cerning man’s redemption. That it was no fortuitous combination of circumstances, which produced the great sacrifice of our Saviour’s death, or any leading events in the history of Christ and his Church ; but the determined plan of Divine Wisdom, intimated from the beginning of the world ; foretold, The Nature of Prophetic Types. 85 foretold, with various degrees of clearness, sERM. but witha strength in general gradually ea, increasing, from that time to the period of its fulfilment ; often also, fhadowed out in ceremonies and positive ordinances, when no prophetical reference was visible at the time, to the ordinary observer of those in- stitutions. The whole polity of the Israelites was, in fact, a prefigured Christianity ; and the positive institutions of the law. were, in general, types and shadows of the freer grace, in due time to be bestowed.” Jgeno- VAH, God of Israel, was Christ himself, the actual Head of the Theocracy ; as he is, since his incarnation, the perpetual Head of the Christian Church. These coincidences, seen and known, wonder- fully strengthen the application of the prophecies themselves; and_ this plan, which, as far as I know, is new, cannot G 3 fail, (86 The Nature of Prophetic Types. serM. fail, I think, to open to us the clearest and II. most connected view of the whole subject. J fhaill pursue it, with the blessing of God, at the times appointed by the Foun- der of this Lecture. | Now to God, &c, SERMON | SERMON IV. EEE OD 6a ————- Preached November 29, 1801. e4 ‘ ; 3 | Le = 3 i . | | 3 | | 3 = - : : 4 . | | | | | ) = : | 7 eS é ; i a | 5: ts . | | : ; 2 ; as =) ; < ) | . - , q | = : o — my . > = , | ™ » < 2 * : on 3 . | t | | | , = : . se | =s = ; : = : - = s es - *% ae . : i + ; . 3 ‘ a | : > = | | . ~~ 2 a SERMON IV. THE VIEW OF PROPHECY CONTINUED. weet 066 CHE G OSE 006 ae ACTS XXVlil. PART OF VER. 23. He expounded and testified the Kingdom of God, per- suading them concerning Jesus, both out of the Law of Moses, and out of the Prophets, from morning till CUERING « SUCH was the final preaching of St.srerm. _ Paul at Rome, as recorded in the Acts of 1°° ce E —y~ ibe Apostles : and it is a circumstance well worthy of notice how exactly it accords with the parting discourses of the Lord himself, as represented by the same in- spired go The View of Prophecy continued. SERM. spired historian, St. Luke*. St. Paul was Iv. __, faithfully treading in the steps of his bless- Dee Master, and the concluding efforts of his ministry were conformed exactly to that perfect example. Thus powerfully reminded of the im- portant fact, that the whole spirit and texture of the ancient Scriptures lead ex- actly to the dispensations of the New Co- venant, we shall pursue with advantage the plan I have laid down for the first part of these Lectures; which is to imitate, as far as may be practicable, those sacred discourses, and to “ persuade concerning Fesus, out of the daw of Moses, and out of all the Prophets.” In my preceding Lecture>, this enquiry Was carried as far as the approach of the _* Luke xxiv, 44.—Text to second Lecture. : * Compare Numbers, from chap. Xxl, v. 10, to xxii, @ I. ; | Israelites ° The View of Prophecy continued. gl Israelites to the promised land, when theirsERM, murmurings were punished by fiery ser- pents, and their wounds healed by the symbolical representation of the Saviour. On that occasion, an opportunity was taken to unfold, in some degree, the true nature of ScripTURAL Typrs; and to show that they were calculated to convey the most unsuspected and extraordinary species of prophecy ; a species which pre- cludes at once both the possibility of im- position, and the motives for attempting it: as declaring nothing expressly at the moment, and waiting for its explication to a period when the prophet must very long have ceased to live. Such a prophecy re- sembles, in some measure, a curious medal buried deep within the earth, which will not become historical evidence, till it shall be brought again to light, after the lapse of many ages. On this matter, we shall find hereafter other fit and necessary occa- sions to expatiate ; at present its chief use will iv. eye a 92 SERM. IV. wary Double Senses of Prophecies explained. will be to conduct us, in the clearest man- ner, to another object of our enquiry, which the course of the history itself im- mediately presents to our view. This object is the doctrine of double, or SECONDARY SENSES‘ in prophecies ; which, © Bishop Watson, in the fourth volume of his Collec- tion of Tracts (p. 481), has thought fit to insert Dr. Ben- son’s Essay on the Unity of Sense, wherein that author undertakes to prove, that ‘* no text of Scripture has more than one single sense.’’. Yet in his Argument to that Tract, p.v. he has mentioned many great divines who held a contrary opinion, and particularly says of Grotius, that ‘* he was the first interpreter of Scripture who dis- tinctly shewed that the greater part of the prophecies of the Old Testament had @ double sense, and have receiveda double accomplishment.” He also says of Bishop War- burton, that in the sixth Book of Div. Leg. ‘* he has an- - swered what Collins had objected against a second sense of prophecy’. P.,vit. Why, thinking thus, he should think fit to reprint an argument on the contrary side, and that alone, without any counterbalance, excepting the few words now cited from his Introduction, it is not easy to conjecture. in ‘Double Senses of Prophecies explained. 93 some instances, arise immediately, and by sERM. necessary connection, out of TYPICAL re- presentations. Nothing can be more clear and obvious to the understanding than this; that if one PERSON or THING be ap- pointed as a symbol, or representation of another, a prophecy, which primarily ap- pliesto the one, may be expected to havealso a further view and reference to the other. Whatever is said of the symbol must be applicable, in some degree, to the object re- presented by it ; and the expansion of pro- phetic intelligence, therefore, from the one to the other, is (as far as we can understand prophetical suggestion at all) the most na- tural and easy process that can be imagined. The instance of this, to which our sub- ject now conducts us, appears in a famous prophecy of Balaam. ‘The Israelites had Vi anya made but few removals, from the time when they were punished by fiery serpents, and, in the course of the ensuing year, | were D4 The Historical View of Prophecy continued. SERM. were encamped in the plains of Moab?; IV, when Balak, King of the Moabites, alarm- ed at their conquests over the Amorites, suelo / and over the King of Basan, endeavoured to attack them by the arts of divination, before he should attempt to encounter them in arms. The person whom he se-+ lected, as a fit instrument in this attempt, was Balaam, concerning whom much has. been disputed, in various ways. Respect- ing his general situation, however, it seems most probable that he was originally a worshipper of the true God, and gifted with the prophetic spirit; but, being a worldly-minded and unstable man (as we have other instances in Scripture*), was 4 These were on the eastern side of Jordan. The Moabites were descendants of Moab, son of Lot, and ob« tained this country from the Emims, or Giants, who bes fore possessed it. 7 * Particularly the prophet in 1 Kings, xi. concerning, whom see my 7th Discourse, in the volume printed in 1794. . tainted Tbe Historical View of Prophecy continued. 95 tainted with Gentile ‘superstitions, andsrerm. willing to make a gain of his miraculous !V- talent, if by any means he could contrive ib ual todo so. St. Peter, speaking of apostates, compares them to this man, in a manner which strongly implies that he had for- saken the path of true piety, to take up those evil practices for which he is censured in Scri pture. ‘‘ Who’, says he, “ have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor (or Beor), who loved the wages of unrighteousness §,” ‘This man, then, was sent for by Balak, who certainly had an opinion of his supe- ‘rior sanctity, since he said in his message, “ I wot that he whom ihou blessest is blessed, and be whom thou cursest is cursed*.’ Balak sent also ample presents, and, when they were ineffectual, still more ample pro- mises; by which the mind of Balaam was RL Derek 8, * Numb. xxii, 6. 96 The Historical View of Prophecy continued. serM. so moved, that, though the Lord opposed BV. his journey, he was urgent to obtain per- wission, contrary to his positive know- — ledge of the divine will; which he had from inspiration, as well as from the very nature of the case. The miracles that fol- lowed, and the various particulars of the . transaction, well known to all who attend the service of the Church, it is not to our present purpose to detail. Nor shall I go through the various prophecies he deliver- ed, the greater part of which related to the more immediate circumstances and pro- spects of Israel. However remarkable, and calculated to produce conviction, some of these prophecies may be', they belong to other topics of enquiry, and not to that b For instance, where he says, in his first prophecy, - “s Lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.” Numb. xxill. g. This re- markable separation of the people, Moses, who records the prophecy, could have known, at that time, only by inspiration. Q | on The Historical View of Prophecy continued. 07 on which we are at present employed, sERM. y But when, by the over-ruling Spirit of 1Y- sod, he had thrice been compelled to bless ore “Teracl, instead of cursing them, he then began a fourth time to utter predictions, promising voluntarily to declare what should happen in THE LATTER DAYs. At that time, taking a higher style than he had hitherto employed, he delivered this remarkable prophecy :—* I shall see him, but not now: I shall bebold him, but not nigh. There shall come a STAR out of Jacos, and a Sceptre shall rise out of IsraEL, and shall smite the corners of Moas, and destroy all the children of _ SuetHi” The whole of this prophecy (extending to two more verses) exhibits a remarkable example of the twofold inten- tion of the same words, or what is usually called A DouUBLE SENSE. The words, it may be observed, are magnificent, and in- * Numb. xxiv. 17. H dicate 98 The Historical View of Prophecy continued. ser. dicate a kind of transport of inspiration. : as) « J shall see bim, but not now, I shall bebold bim, but not nigh’? ;—and the figures of a Star and a Sceptre sufficiently indicate that some very illustrious object was to be de- signated. The best commentators, there- fore, both Jewish and Christian *, have agreed in this; that, besides King David, who was primarily intended in the predic- tion, the prophecy has reference also to the greater Sceptre and the brighter Star of the MESSIAH. “Whatever may be thought, at first sight, of this interpretation, it becomes - much more intelligible and probable, when | we consider that David was made, in many points, and is now generally known to have been, a type or representation of k Onkelos, Jonathan, the Jerusalem Targum, i Moses Haddarsan, and Bereschith Rabbath, are cited by Pa- trick (in loc.) as thus applying it; and, among the Chris- tian Fathers, Eusebius and Cyril of Alexandria. Christ: The Historical View of Prophecy continued. 99: ‘Christ: and that even of his own predic- srrm tions, many, which seem at first to respect 1% - himself alone, have'also a proved: and ac- knowledged reference to the: MESSIAH ; who was styled, on many accounts, the Son of David. An eminent and. saga- cious Divine, the celebrated Founder of these Lectures, says, of this prophecy of Balaam, that <« it may possibly, in some sense, relate to David ; but, without ques-— tion, it belongs principally to Jesus',’’ Bishop Newton insists more upon its -re- ference to David, but allows also that it manifestly points to our blessed Saviour ™. In this acceptation, “ the sons of Sheth’ are understood to stand for mankind in gene- ral; and the other people mentioned may be either literally or figuratively understood. Thus, then, we find even this reluctant witness for Israel, Balaam, whose corrupt ' Divine Leg. iv. § 4. Works, vol. ii. p. 447. “ On the Prophecies, vol. i. p. 139. HQ inclinations 100 ‘The Historical View of Prophecy continued. SERM., inclinations were sold to the enemies of oe, Israel, compelled by the spirit of the Lord to foretell, not only the national glories of that people, but even that more eminent DELIVERER, through whom all | nations were to receive the mercy and the blessing of God. This compulsory pro~ phecy scems to have been, in part, design- ed as a punishment to the depraved pro- phet ; whose heart wished other things, whose malice became afterwards more ac- tive against Israel °, and who was finally slain among their enemies, when their conquest of Moab was completed’. To us, his prophecy may serve to illustrate, not only the prophetic style in general, and the connection naturally subsisting between types and double senses (so that what is said of the type, must be extended, in a secondary sense, to the person or thing typified), but also the unceasing re- ‘Numb, xxxi. 16. _ * Ib. xxxi. v. 8. Josh. xiii. 23. ference, The Historical View of Prophecy continued. 101 ference, of all great objects relating to the serM. ne Iv. Israelites, to that Divine Person in whom . their dispensation was to terminate. Thus far, therefore, we have seen, inour view of the Books of Moses, that they con- tain many strong intimations of the Mes- siah, who was to be revealed ; and conse- quently that our Saviour, when he appealed to those Books, as testifying of him, gave proofs, which still remain to be traced, of his divine commission and exalted charac- ter. But did not Moses, it is natural to ask, himself also personally prophecy of Christ, besides recording the predictions of others? We may answer, I think, explicitly that he did. In the Book of Deuteronomy is a famous prophecy, to which our Saviour might perhaps particularly allude, when he said to the Jews, “ bad ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me, for he wrote of mer.” » John y. 46. H g Certain - yoo The Historical View of Prophecy continued. SERM. Certain it 1s, that more than one of the pa, Apostles cited that prophecy as. applicable expressly to him. It is contained in the “€fth discourse of Moses, when he was pre- ‘paring to close his ministry, and taking his farewel of the people. It is twice repeated, once in the person of Moses, and again as spoken by the Lord himself, « The Lord thy God”, said he, ‘ will raise up unto thee a Pro- phet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall bearken’. He then proceeds to tell them, that the Lord him- self had promised this at Horeb, when the people, terrified beyond measure, intreated that they might not again hear the voice ‘of the Lord God, nor behold these tre- mendous fires, which blazed around the mountain, at the delivery of the Law. This, he informs them, the Lord approved, saying, “ they bave well spoken that which they bave spoken” ; therefore said the Lord, for any future purpose of legislation, (as is 4 Deut. xvill. 15. mani- Lhe Historical View of Prophecy continued. —- 109 a manifestly implied) any occasion in which SERM. LV. these terrific miracles might again be ex- , , ‘pected, “ I will raise them up a Propbet trom among their brethren, like unto thee, and I will put my words in bis mouth ; and be shall speak unto them all that I command ind it shall come to pass, that whosoever t bearken unto my words, which he ‘-. shall grea in my name, I will require it of , him’. This, St. Peter, in his discourse “at the gate of the Temple, after healing the cripple who lay there, introduces ex- — pressly, asa part of that chain of prophecy by which God had foreshown Christ. “«« Which God hath spoken’, said he, “ by the mouth of all bis holy Prophets, since the world began. For Moses truly said unto the Fa- — ibers, a Propbet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me*.” Ina similar manner also St. Ste- phen appears to refer to it'. After such ' Deut. xix. 1619. * Acts ili, 21, 22. ‘* Acts vii. 97. - 9 > vu H 4 bia ttanamas Peta 104 The Historical View of Prophecy continued. - ‘SERM. jntimations, we may safely dismiss the no- —_ Coty tion that Joshua, or any other prophet, or series of prophets, could be intended by Moses in this prediction, or any per- son but ruz Messi1au himself. He was to be like unto Moses : and various learned men have pointed out a wonderful collection of d Christ? ; : and the continuator of Deuteronomy resemblances between Moses an (either Ezra or some other inspired per-" son) says decisively, on the other hand, { as if to prevent all mistake, and speaking probably after all or most of the prophets under the law, “ there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses*, The Pro- phet, bearing that resemblance, was yet to come. Thus it appears evident, that Moses, in closing his ministry, was authorized to fore- « Eusebius and Jortin particularly. See both their ob- servations repeated by Newton, Proph. vol. i. p. 165. x Deut. xxxiv. 10. tell The Historical View of Prophecy continued. 10% tell Christ; by declaring, that when a new serM. | law and a new covenant were to be estab- Nae lished, they should no more be given with that apparatus of terror, which had astonish- ed the people at Horeb, but by a mild and gentle teacher, whose words should yet have all the authority of the Divine Law. “ And it shall come,to pass, that whosoever will not bearken to my words, which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of bimy.” Let the Jews of the present day tell, or, if they refuse to answer, their forlorn condi- tion for ages past will speak aloud, whe- ther their sin, in not hearkening to those sacred words, when spoken in mildness to them by our Saviour, hath not been visit- ed, from that time to this hour, upon the devoted and since scattered remnant of their nation. The Lord hath reguirep it OF THEM, as he declared; and he will re-= quire it, till his merciful command shall * Deut. xviii. 19. call 106 The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. SERM. call them all together, and unite them to db IV. the flock of Christ. There was another method by which Moses was also me: by divine appornt- ment, abundantly to testify of Jesus; of which little notice has hitherto been taken sn these Discourses. This was, by shadow- ing out, in the rites and ceremonies of the Law, the future grace and mercy of the Gospel. On the subject of the Passover, something was briefly said in the preced~ ing Discourse, but the application is much more extensive, and deserves to be ex- plained with more exactness. ‘ The Law’, says the Epistle to the Hebrews, “‘ had @ shadow of good ibings to come” *t.. Thus: OF sacrifices in general it has — justly said, that their original intention was to pre- figure and represent the death of Christ, - The connection is not so immediate or evi- 4 Heb. x. 1. dent The Law itself a Prophecy of Chrish. i 1OF dent between the idea of atonement, and sERM. the sacrifice of a living creature, that it '¥: should present itself naturally to the mind of man; but it seems to have been from the first a divine institution, wonderfully spread and maintained among the various families of mankind, that such religious ceremonies should be employed for expia- tion, as might most properly represent the death of him, who was to give himself as a sacrifice and universal atonement, for the sins of the whole world. The sacrifices of the Jewish law, more particularly, were intended as types of the death of Christ ; and most especially those that were of a piacular and expiatory nature. ‘ Thus,” says an eminent writer, “ the victim burnt without the camp foretold his sufferings without the city ;—the blood sprinkled in _ the Holy of Holies by the High Priest, on the great day of expiation, prefigured our entrance into heaven, whither Christ was to prepare the way for us by his blood: | the 108 The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. SERM. the sacrifice of the Pascal Lamb, which IV. was both piacular and eucharistical, pro- claimed the innocence of our Redeemer, and the universal benefit of his blood to mankind .”” Of the sacred writers, he who most fully sanctions and explains these interpretations - js the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, generally supposed to be St. Paul.“ The first Covenant’’, says he, “ bad ordmances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary .”’ Having then specified the leading particu. lars of the two tabernacles, and their ap- paratus, he thus proceeds :—* Now when ihese things were thus ordained, ihe Priests went always into the first tabernacle, accom~ plishing ihe service of God, but into the second the Holy of Holies] went the High Priest alone, once every year, not without blood, ™ Warb. Div. Leg. ix. c. 2. vol. ii. p. 669. b> Heb, 1x01. which The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. 109 which be offered for himself, and for the er- SERM. rors of the people. The Hoty Guosr this ee signifying’’—these words are very remark-. able—«« that the way into-the Holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while “ the first tabernacle was yet standing, which was a fi~ gure for the time then present *4.’ He then proceeds to the solemn application. “ By Christ beng come, an High Priest of good things to come, by a greater and more per- fect tabernacle,—neitber by the blood o goats and calves, but by his own blood, entered in once into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us*.” The inspired writer pursues these ideas in various forms; and then introduces a strong and practical ap- plication of them to his converts. « Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the _ HOLIEST by the blood of Fesus, by a new and _ living way, which be bath consecrated for us, “ That is, ** as it was yet standing.” eV Hedy iedOig, |. Thi gas en, fin through 110. The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. sERM. through the vei, that is to say, bis flesh, EVs and having an Hicu Prinst over the House of God ;=-let us draw near. with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water ®.” Thus the sacrifices in the Mosaic Ritual were a kind of prophecy by action § ; in which Providence was pleased to make permanently manifest to the world the in- timate connection between the first and the second Revelation of his will. This con- nection, we should remember, was mark- ed at the time of our Saviour’s death, even by a miracle of strong significance. For when he yielded up the ghost, among ‘other prodigies which attended that awful — moment, the veil of ibe Temple was rent in iwain, from the top to the bottom, that veil which divided the Holy of Holies from the Heb. x 19, 20, &c. © Ward. iii. p. 673. more ’ The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. tit more accessible part of the sacred building: srrm. intimating, as the inspired writer now cited !V- tells us, that the way into the holiest was now made plain and open by his blood. His death being the GREAT SACRIFICE OF -ExpraTion, which was not to be repeated, but was there offered once for all, ruz . VEIL WAS RENT; to show that the annual expiation of the Jewish High Priest was no longer necessary, but that ALL MEN might have access to God, through Christ. {f we could have any doubts of the inter- pretation given by an Apostle, this miracle might remove them. It is evidently the voice of God himself, proclaiming the same truth, It isa publicand open interpretation of the original intention of the veil in the temple, given by a solemn act of miracu- lous interference. This wonderful union of the two Cove- _nants, by symbols established in the first, and ordained to prefigure. the most im- portant 112 The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. SERM. portant circumstances of the second, af- IV. fords the strongest proof imaginable that both proceeded from the same Divine Law- giver. For how could Moses, by hisown sa gacity, have invented or imagined any thing that should prefigure the Mrss1au; or point out any action that he was to perform, so many ages after ? It is clear that, in doing this, he must have been directed by HIM, to whom all times are present, and whose counsels for the Redemption of. mankind were fixed from the foundation of the world. The ritual Law of Moses, we have seen, was full of Christ; 1t was an introduction : and preparation for his Covenant. » * The Law’, says St. Paul, by a different figure, «¢ was our Schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ’ We cannot, therefore, wonder that the Covenant which was preparatory should be removed, when that to which it led was come: and those Jews who expect Gal. iii. 21. 1 BER. ed, The Law itself a Prophecy of Christ. 113 ed, or may.still expect, that their law should srry. be perpetual, evidently comprehended not ‘its verynatureand design. It pointed, from the first, to u1m who was to fulfil, and to illustrate all its ordinances; to wim who was to substitute spiritual truths, for its carnal types and symbols. It was no change, therefore, in the purpose of God to introduce the second Covenant in the place of the first ; it was the original de- sign of his mercy, already shadowed out in the ceremonies of the law, but declared with the utmost distinctness by. his Pro- phets, as the time approached for the sub- Stitution. Of this, weshall see more as we proceed; at present, we may pause, as having traced the prophetic intimations of the Messiah, to the period when the Isracl- ites were about to enter into the promised Jand. Now to God, &c. I. SERMON DV wena ede, 3 des a v de 4 ; i eit abe ee My ee ! ie We tik f in y Wey Gs bgn is ie . ¥ cena ite i ne past Path ree val? ce od By SERMON V. Preached Fanuary 17, 1802. Jo mat ae PA ws a See Sega Py cc pa cantar Saew, Rt ies on ict bie mi Ny ¢. ie ‘aS = 4 ey ¥ SERMON V. HISTORICAL VIEW CONTINUED, ———~sama® 60 BOG OOOO 600 emir HEB. iV. 8, 9, Por if Fesus ( Joshua) had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There vemaineth, therefore, a rest to the people of God. ‘Tue subject of these Lectures has in- SERM, sensibly and unavoidably conducted us to V- —\~ that of Types : a topic undoubtedly de- manding caution, but not that Caution which proceeds with diffidence ; so long as we preserve the plain and distinct path, | I 3 _ through 118 The first Covenant typical of the Second. sERM. through which it leads to truth. In discus- V. ery sing this topic, I have had occasion to de- fine, and to exemplify, this singular species of prophecy, in such a way as must, I should conceive, point out its high importance. It has been shown, by adducing some of the most prominent instances, that the first Covenant was, in its general form and design, Typical of the second. Whence it follows, in a sense not always affixed to the words, that our Saviour came “ to ful- fil the Law’, as well as the Prophets; by realizing those legal types, under which his great atoning sacrifice had formerly been shadowed out. The PAssovER was sacrificed for the Jews, but ne was the RUE PAssovER; the Lamb without spot or blemish,—a bone of whom was ‘not to be broken, and who was sacrificed for all mankind. We come now to a coincidence, which, after what has been premised, cannot fail to The first Covenant typical of the Second. 119 to appear extraordinary. When Israel sERM. wandered in the wilderness, under the ju- dicial infliction of God, for ingratitude and disobedience, the promised REsT appointed for that people was the land of Canaan. - - Unto whom”, said the Lord, namely, to the offending generation, “ I sware in my wrath, that they should not enter into my REST*.”” Thus, therefore, it happened. The offenders entered not into Canaan, but fell in the wilderness ; during the forty years in which they were deservedly con- demned to wander. Their children, led by Joshua and Caleb, who had been ex- cepted from the general sentence, were established there by preeternatural force, and conquest achieved by miracle. But this Canaan, the land of promise to the Jews, is considered as representing that better land, and more perfect rest, in heaven, which is promised under the * Ps. xcv. 11. See also Numb, xiv, 28. I 4 Christian Vv. {20 SERM, Vi eed The first Covenant typical of ibe Second. Christian Covenant: and, to mark that signification more distinctly, who was their leader into it? JosHua, whose name. is the same as Jrsus; who is actually called Jesus throughout the Greek Scrip- tures, and particularly in the passage which forms my text. Joshua, says the Apostolic writer, or Jesus, (as he terms him) gave not perfect REsT to the people ef God by leading them into Canaan. “ There re- maineth therefore a Rest for them’’,—and that rest is heaven. On this topic, he founds his exhortation, immediately sub- joined :—** Let us labour therefore To EN- TER INTO THAT REST, lest any man fall by ihe same example of unbelief’, or disobedi= ence?. f We see therefore, even to demonstra- tion, that there is nothing fanciful in types, in their own nature; though they may be, * Heb. iy. 11. and General Rules respecting Types. 121 and undoubtedly have been, fancifully ser. abused. The Scriptures expressly warrant °Y: ye such applications ; and, so far as we are , supported by Scripture, we certainly may go with safety. Joshua was a type of Christ, as leading Israel into the promised land, which was itself a type of that more excellent inheritance, into which Christ is appointed to conduct the faithful. The very name, therefore, was prophetical : and the first Jesus pointed directly to the se- cond. Far from endeavouring to exhaust this most wonderful subject of Types, I have been studious only to point out such gene~ ral features of it, as may produce a strong conviction, that this was actually a mode of prophecy employed by divine wisdom ; and a mode, to the use of which no wis- dom of inferior nature could have made pretensions. With respect to the further 5 application 229 SERM. v. Vee —ee/ ‘General Rules respecting Types. application of the principle, I do not hesi+ tate to recommend it: recommending, at the same time, the strictest temperance and catition ; to proceed only in the dis~ tinct and visible track of Scripture; every where exerting judgment, no where in= dulging imagination. One general rule of application may, however, be assumed, with full warrant of seriptural authority, . The Jewish Church may be considered al- together as typical of the Christian ; their temporal rewards and punishments, as in- timating the higher sanctions of the Gos- pel; their sacrifices and atonements, as shadows of the one all-perfect sacrifice and atonement; their land, as representing that heavenly country, towards which we all are tending, through this wilderness the world; and consequently their ap- pointed Captain, who led them into that country, as a type of him, whom he re« sembles also in name, Jesus, the leader | of General Rules respecting Types. 12g of “* many sons to glory”, or, as he is styled sERM. . by an inspired writer, “the Captain of our —"*_, Salvation °’’. Other types may certainly be found, which are warranted also by Scripture ; but the general parallel arising from these circumstances, is the most certain Key ¢to the understanding of both Covenants. The connection between them is indissoluble, and whoever attempts to disunite them commits a violence against both, which ignorance would scarcely venture, were it not so commonly united with presump- tion. Whoever professes to receive the second Covenant, and yet rejects the first, © Heb. ii. 10. “It is actually so called by Taylor, who has pursued the subject through all its parts, in the Introduction, termed a Key, to his Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans. td 124, SERM. 4 ae My Genera! Rules respecting Types. is an unbeliever*, in effect, though he / may be anxious to conceal it, and perhaps even from his own conscience.. He is an unbeliever, because he rejects the positive and repeated testimony of the Apostles and Evangelists, and even of Christ himself. For all of these bear witness to the Books of Moses, to the Prophets, to the Psalms; to all ‘the ancient Scriptures, and to every link of that connection, which, by the blessing of God, I am here permitted to explain. Nor let us forget, how naturally and how directly these typical prophecies lead to that double, or “ germinating *’ sense, © Such undoubtedly was Dr. Geddes ; though he pro- fessed a strange and inconsistent belief, denying the in- spiration of Moses. From the natural progress of a mind so infatuated with presumption, there can be little reason to doubt, that, had he proceeded to the New Testament, he would equally have denied the inspiration of that second Code. | * As Lord Bacon calls its ' which Historical View of Prophecy resumed. i25 which is attributed to several verbal pre+ sERM. dictions in the Scriptures. Where one person or thing is'‘a type of another, no- thing, as before remarked, can be more natural or consistent than that a prophecy applicable to the former, should extend it- self, at the same time, to embrace the lat- ter. Of this, we have seen already some instances, and others will hereafter occur. I had proceeded, in the series of these observations, according to the plan which I laid down, (before these general re- marks) as far as to the entrance of the Is- raelites into the promised land, under Joshua ; whose name and office occasioned the observations and the rules now intro- duced. From this period, there is nothing to be expected, for some time, to the pur-— pose of our important researches. The people of Israel were employed, for many ® See Serm, I. p. 41. years, Vv. Ne a A 126 ~Historical View of Prophecy continued. SERM. years, in the conquest and settlement of Vi their land. During this space, the re- velations, which were occasionally made, seem to have had reference only to the ob- jects immediately present. We find, at least, no intimation of the greater and more distant blessing, so distinct, as to authorize us to bring it forward in that class. Nor is this extraordinary. The people of God had a present task to per- form, the importance of which might have suffered perhaps an apparent diminution» had any higher object been, at the same time, displayed to their view. To drive out the offending Canaanites, whom God had condemned; and to preserve them- selves from the idolatries and abomina- tions, against which that condemnation had been. pronounced, required the utmost efforts of their courage, zeal, and piety, These so far prevailed that a settlement was made, and the sentence of the Lord in part performed. But, even in this respect, their Historical View of Prophecy continued. 1o¥ their obedience was imperfect: for they serm. ~ made such covenants as had been expressly _¥- forbidden; and spared idolatries, which became soon after a snare ta themselves. Still worse scenes were to follow, and such as made it more and more improbable, that as their views should then be enlarged, or that more exalted hopes should be pre- sented to them. “ They served the Lord”, indeed, in general, as the Books of Joshua and Judges inform us, <“ all- the days of *foshua, and all the days of the elders that aut-lived ‘foshua, who bad seen all the reat works of the Lord, that be did for Israel,’ But when the generation so instructed had passed away, then arose others who “ knew not the Lord, nor the works be bad done” ; and who “ did evil in the sight of the Lord’, and “ followed other gods’’, and “ provoked 323 ibe Lord to anger’.”” The history of the * Judges, ii. 6. “See also Josh. xxiv. 91. i Judg. il, 10, 11. succeeding : 128 Historical View of Prophecy continue d. SERM. succeeding times, therefore, is the narra- tive of judgments rather than of mercies ; or, at the best, of transient aids, vouchsafed for temporary amendment; but it by no means leads us to expect new revelations of the highest hopes the nation could en- tertain. “ Whithersoever they went out’’, says the sacred Historian, “ the hand of the Lord was against them for evil, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord bad sworn unto ibem; and ihey were greatly distressed*.” It was only when their Judges were raised up', that they obtained, from time to time, a partial respite from their general suffer- * Judg. u. 15. "We do not, however, deny that those persons who were JupcEs in Israel, and in many cases inspired, might themselves have had views of sacred things, which were not then voubhsatad to the people at large. Thus Han- nah is supposed to allude to the Messiah in the close of her Hymn :— He shall give strength unto his King, and exalt the horn af his ANOINTED.” 1 Sam, Ul. 10.— Observe, that at this time there was no king in Israel. “ing, Historical View of Prophecy continued. 129 -ing™ At other times, they were undersErw. the oppression of various foreign masters, Y- and subject to innumerable hardships and degradations. It was not till after the establishment of David in the throne, when the people were weaned, fora time, from their idolatries, when the ark of the Lord had been brought into the city of David*, from which the Jebusites were so lately expelled, and the piety of the King had restored the true worship of the God of Israel (between three and four hundred years after the death of Joshua), that any new intimation was given of the future glory of the chosen nation. David, full of gratitude to God, for the | _ unexampled prosperity he had to that time enjoyed, began to feel ashamed of his own OM Frebs ie ae: ~ ™ ALA. C. 1048. K regal 130 SERM. V;, en A Historical View of Prophecy continued. regal splendour, in comparison with the slight accommodation hitherto given to the ark of God. ‘ See now,’ said he to the Prophet Nathan, “ I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwel- leth within curtains®’: namely, in the tabernacle, which he had pitched for it, within the city of David. Moved by these considerations, he wished to build a temple for the Lord, and opened his intention to the Prophet. His design was not accept- ed, for reasons of a powerful nature? ; but because eo Sam. vil. 2- > David himself explained the reason to Solomon, be- ~ fore his death, when he charged him to build that temple which he had first projected. “* My son”, said he, “ 1¢ was in my mind to build an house unto the name of the Lord my God: but the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name because thou hast shed much blood upon the earthin my sight. Behold, ason shall be born to thee, who shall be @ Man Fistorical View of Prophecy continued. . 191 | ‘ because the wish itself was pious, it wassrrm. made the occasion for a most encouraging et, and gracious communication, Among other things, which the Prophet was com- manded to say to David, in the name of the Lord, were these important words. “ Also the Lord telleth thee that be will make THEE AN HOUSE; and when thy days be ful- filled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shal{ proceed out of thy bowels, and I will estab~ lish bis kingdom. ~ He shall build an bouse jor my name, and will establish the throne of bis kingdom FoR EVER.” It is added afterwards": “ But I will settle him in a man of rest. He shall build a house for my name.’ 1 Chron. xxii. 7—10.. A temple built by a warrior could not have typified that Church which was to pro- claim universal peace on earth, good will towards men, On his throne being established for ever, see also the places cited in the text. 12 Sam. vii. 11, &ce. "See the parallel place, 1 Chron. xvii. 14. K 2 mine 132 SERM. Vi Sn aed Historical View of Prophecy continued. mine bouse, and in my kingdom FOR EVER, and bis throne sball be established BOR EVER- MORE. The extension of this promise, from its immediate objects, Solomon and his king- dom, to the greater dignity and kingdom of the Messiah, is suggested by the words FOR EVER and FOR EVERMORE,; expres- ‘sions not applicable to Solomon, or to the throne established in his house, till they are absorbed in the everlasting kingdom of Christ. The words also, “ he shall be M¥ Son, and Iwill be nis FATHER’, seem to point to the higher object of the pro- phecy. It might require, perhaps, some persua- sion, to convince us that this Divine Oracle had in truth so exalted a meaning and re- ference, were it not confirmed by other circumstances. David, to whom the Spi- £9 Chron. xxi. 10. rit Historical View of Prophecy continued. 193 rit of the Lord had been given, from the srerw. day when he wasanointed by Samuel, ap-__ V- pears in this sense to have understood it ; for he repaired immediately to the place where the ark of God was kept, “ and sat before the Lord”’, and, in a most solemn prayer, returned thanks for a blessing, which, as he intimates, was “ not after the manner of man*’; and he particularly dwelt, in the close of his prayer, upon - those momentous words, which made the promise everlasting. “ And now, O Lord God, thou art that God, and thy words be true, and thou hast promised this goodness unto thy servant : therefore now let it please ibee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue FOR EVER before thee: for thou, O Lord God, hast spoken tt ; and with thy bles- sing, let the house of thy servant be blessed FOR EVER’. Some commentators have, “1 Sam. xvi.1g. "2Sam. vii. 18. * Ib. ver. 19. + Ib, ver. 28, 29. K 3 vr vandegd; 194, Historical View of Prophecy continued. SERM. indeed, doubted whether David at that time understood the prophecy as of the Messiah *; yet when we consider how often he alludes in his Psalms to that sacred personage, and how full his mind appears to have been of the prophetic knowledge of his glories, we cannot, I think, reasonably doubt, that he would -see from the first what has seemed so evident to many un- inspired observers. | But, whatever David might have known, or not known, weE have sufficient evidence that this. prophecy had a real reference to Christ, It is so considered by an inspired writer, the author of the Epistle to the He- brews, who applies to Christ the wordsabove cited : *“ Iwill be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son*”’ ; which, as first spoken by * See the Notes to Mr, Reeves’s useful and illustrative edition of the Bible, MiTIED 4. 4: Nathan, Historical View of Prophecy continued. 19% Nathan, and afterwards repeated by srrM, David “, might appear only to refer to his ee} successor Solomon. St. Peter also, preach- ing to the Jews, considered the promise made to David as absolute in its reference to the Saviour, and thus explained it :— “ Therefore, being a Prophet, and knowing that God bad sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of bis loins, according to the flesh, be would raise up Christ to sit on bis throne : be, seeing this before, spoke of the resurrec- sion of Christ**.”” So also St. Paul, on a similar occasion, speaking of David, said, «< Of this man’s seed hath God, AccoRDING TO HIS PROMISE, raised unto Israel a Savi- our, “fesus*.” Certain it 1s, that, from this very period, the Messiah was expected to appear in the family of David, as a blessing promised *v2 Sam. vil. 14. on Chront Xxits 20+ MA cts, ido, ** Ib. xu. 29. “es K 4, by 136 Historical View of Prophecy continued. sERM. by God himself. In the 132d Psalm, Tey which is, not without probable reason, at- tributed to Solomon, the promise is urged in strong terms: “* For thy servant David's sake, turn not away the face of thine anointed (or Messiah). The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David, be will not turn from it, of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne ®.”’ . he 89th Psalm, if it was writ- ten, as some suppose, so late as the Baby- lonish captivity %, is not so directly to our purpose ; because this promise of God had then received other strong and public ex- planations ; but its words are as explicit as language can supply. <“* I bave made a Covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant: thy seed will I establish FOR EVER, and build up thy throne to all generations Again, “ Once have I sworn # V.10 and 12. ** By Ethan the Ezraite. See Reeves’s Common Prayer-book, i /oc. | *» V.3 and 4. by Historical View of Prophecy continued. 1g 7 by my boliness, that I will not lie unto David. serm. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me. It shall be established for ever as ibe moon, and as a faithful wit- ness in heaven *”’. | - We may consider it, therefore, as estab lished by abundant authority, that the di- vine promise of the Saviour, to be born in the family of David, was made to that _ monarch himself; and apparently in the very words which I have recited from the Books of Samuel and Chronicles. Hence- forward, then, the promise which had been given to Abraham for the nation of his descendants, and to Jacob for the tribe of Judah in particular, becomes fixed to the single family of David; in which it was afterwards to receive limitations yet more strict, but of a local nature. i We Ni 85-587: Of Vv. 138 SERM. oy State of Religion Of David, and his own prophetic decla- rations respecting Christ, we shall have much more hereafter to observe: at pre- sent, I must confine myself to a few re~ marks, rather of a general nature. One thing more especially deserving of notice is, that, from the establishment of David's throne in Jerusalem, sacred knowledge was never again reduced so low among the Jews, as it had been in the preceding in- terval. The kingdom was extended and consolidated ; the idolatrous nations of the land reduced in number and in power; the establishment of a regular and splen- did worship at Jerusalem, in the taber- nacle under David, and in the temple un- der Solomon, furnished with hymns full of piety and prophetic spirit ;—these, and various other’ circumstances, so diffused the knowledge of God among the people, that though they relapsed sometimes into idolatry, it was apparently an idolatry mixed preposterously with the worship of | | God, from the Accession of David. 139 God, and not exclusive of it. David and SERM. Vv. Solomon were themselves distinguished | prophets, and taught the people, both by precept and example, to worship the true God; till the doting apostacy of Solomon disgraced the close of his life. When their successors became unworthy and cor- rupt, another series of prophets began ; whose words, solemnly delivered before the people, and preserved in written and public memorials, remain to this day a testimony of the goodness of God to Is-~ rael, They show also the manner in which that people was prepared, with knowledge gradually increasing, for the advent of the Saviour ; whom yet, though many individuals received him, they, un- happily for themselves, rejected as a na- tion. From the period, then, to which we have now arrived, we shall no longer have to collect all the prophetical notices of Christ 146 State of Religion, Ge. sERM. Christ and his Church; our business will V. rather be, so to select and bring together the principal of these intimations, that there may result from the whole a full and accurate view of the gradual preparation made for the great event of man’s Redemp-+ tion; and a strong and perfect conviction that no part whatever of it did, or could proceed, from any art or contrivance of man ; but that the whole must be derived from the superintending power, and infi- nite wisdom of God, This design, with the blessing of God, I shall pursue on a future occasion. Now to God, &c. SERMON SERMON VIL. Preached February 14, 1802. sais ? vi Py, : Bae he SEE OAS) SRR tk Wives Spo Seep s a » mn a + ee REL eg a ¥ 4 ae Bete a Te . re ayy % b ~ ie 5 y » tris ’ on yigy NS a " SERMON VI. PROPHECIES RESPECTING DAVID, AND BY HIM. ened OS SSE GQ OSSE 06 Ctsmemane— LUKE 1. 32, 33. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto him the Throne of his Father Davip. And he shall reign over the house of facob for ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end. ‘Tuesr words are prophetical,.and were sero. delivered by the mouth of an angel to the acy | Virgin Mother of our Lord; but if a com- mentary were required, on the words of _the prediction given to David (on which some 14d SERM. VI. Need oe G Prophecies respecting David, and by him. some observations were made in my pre- ceding Discourse*), nothing more com- pletely illustrative of its high and peculiar sense could possibly be given, than these remarkable expressions. The connection of the Child, then unborn, with the family and throne of David, and the everlasting nature of his Kingdom (which, in every reference, except to the Messiah, had been wholly unintelligible), are here marked out, by the voice of a Messenger sent down from God. Let it not be supposed, however, - that the original prophecy was then first interpreted. Though some degree of ob- scurity may appear, at first sight, to rest upon it, David himself had understood it ; as, indeed, was shown on a former occa- sion. He had offered his thanksgivings, with a solemnity suited to so eminent a blessing : in various hours of inspiration, he was through life indulged with more. eve particular Prophecies respecting David, and by him. 14,5 particular views of that transcendent glo-sErM. ry, whi , | his house and V!: Ys which was to rest dul iS: lineage ; and, after him, the whole suc- cession of Prophets had been commissioned to repeat, at proper intervals, the same divine promise, and to remind the people - of Israel that it would infallibly stand fast, and be fulfilled. In consequence of these repeated inti- mations, the Son or Davip was, long be- fore the birth of Jesus, established as the common title of the Mrssian, who was expected to redeem his people. | This ap- plication of the title occurs so often, in the New Testament, as to be known to every Christian. It is impossible to forget, that “ Hosanna to the Son of David!’ was the cry of the Jewish populace, when they trusted they were introducing the promised King, to take possession of his Throne.’ The elucidations of this subject, which were given by the Prophets subsequent to the SA Coo L time | 146 SERM, Vi. ere Prophecies respecting David, and by bim. time of David, we shall hereafter have oc- casion to consider, The business of the present Discourse will be to offer such a view of David, and of the general tenor of his prophecies, respecting Christ and his Church, as must satisfy every mind, that | nothing casual or ambiguous belongs to these coincidences; but that all was or- dered by the will, and directed by the wis-. dom of the Almighty. David must be considered in two points of view; 1st, as a type of the Messiah ; and, edly, as an inspired person, enabled to foretell his advent, his sufferings, his glory, and his everlasting kingdom. Messiah was to be both King and Priest, that is, according to a prediction of David himself, “a Priest for ever, after the order of that MetcuizepEc”’, who PF Seles eminently big’ Prophecies respecting David, and by him. 147. eminently united both those characters. serm. As a Priest, the Saviour was represented by Aaron, more especially ; asa King, by David ; who first, according to the will of God, reigned over that people, who typi- fied his elect, as chosen from the world; and in that city of Sion, which is the established image of the seat of God and Christ in Heaven*. This typical charac- ter of David, nothing can more completely illustrate and establish, than the consi- deration that, both in his own prophecies, and in those of all the principal prophets after him, his name is used, when the Messiah is evidently the person intended. Jeremiah says of Israel, that at the time of their restoration, they “ shall serve the Lord, and Davip their King *.” Hosea, almost in the same words, « they shall seek the Lord, and Davip their King*.” Eze- * Crusius in Proph, T.ii. p. 250. "Ch, xxx. v. gs * Ch. ti. v. 5. L 2 | kiel VI. on ed 148 SERM. Vi. on \ Prophecies respecting David, and by him. kiel says, “ Even my servant Davin shall feed them‘: and again, “* my servant Davip shall be their Prince for ever ®.” The future form of these declarations, made at’ times - when the real Davip had long been dead, proves sufficiently that some great person- age must be prefigured under that name ; and that personage, from the context, and from every rational consideration, could be only the Curist, or the Messiau ; the promised King of Israel. The establishment of this point is the more important, because when David, in the spirit, speaks apparently of himself, in words which afterwards, by the same spi- rit, were applied to Jesus Curist, the double sense, thus intimated to us, is explained completely by the knowledge that David, in- the genuine language of Scripture, is the undoubted representative of Christ. € Ch. xxxiv. v.23, *&Ch, xxxvil v. 25. Here Iustration of the Doctrine of Double Senses. 3 49 Here then let us, since the subject na-'serRm. turally presents itself, reflect with some pom, regret, on the rashness, but too common, which, from partial views of Scripture, leads men to deny those things which lie a little deeper than the surface in theology; which require consideration and compari- son, to evince their actual existence. Of this kind is the doctrine of pousier SENsEs, or intentions, in prophetic writings ; which some have ventured to reject, who in other matters were sincere believers. ‘ Of the reasonableness of this doctrine some ‘ex- planations have been addressed already to the veneral hearer; but let us’ further tell those doubting Christians, that, in de- nying it, they go much further than they have probably conceived, towards an utter shipwreck of the faith. For what shall we say, if even our Saviour has taken to himself the application of some prophecies, which only in a secondary sense could | possibly be so applied? “Will not they OO aa L 3 who Illustration of the Doctrine of Double Senses. who generally reject such applications, be found guilty, in those instances, of resisting and contradicting the Saviour himself ? And “ that he did actually make such application, we can bring abundant examples from the Psalms, and other parts of Scripture ; and shall have occasion to produce several, in the progress of our present enquiry. It will ! therefore be wise for those Christians, who have not yet investigated this important subject of double senses, to suspend, at least, their judgment, till they can exa- mine it with some attention and precision. That David is in Scripture an established type of Christ has been already proved; it remains to consider him as a Prophet, more peculiarly than any of his predeces- sors, enabled to foretell the advent, and the great designs of the Redeemer. Our Saviour said to his Disciples, in a text which I have already employed’, « ald » As the text to Lecture II. things Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. 151 things must be fulfilled, which were written sERM. in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, V': | it Sey and in the PSALMS, concerning me'.” ‘The Law of Moses we have already examined ; it is now the proper time for considering the Psalms. In approaching to the Book of PsaLms, how shall we express a due admiration of those sacred poems! Sublime, beyond all competition, even as strains of lyric writ- ing, they are filled with an inspiration, infinitely higher than belongs to any hu- man poetry. They have been called, by an able writer who well knew them, “ an Epitome of the Bible, adapted to the pur- poses of devotion.’ In truth, all the impor- tant subjects which the Scriptures any where present, are there adapted to the use of meditation, prayer, thanksgiving, in- ' Luke, xxiv. 44, « Bishop Horne, Preface to Ps. in init. L 4, struction, 152 Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. SERM. struction, and whatever else a holy life can VI. mw PO all this, they are filled throughout with the divine spirit of prophecy, which, some- ssibly suggest or require. In addition to times covertly, and sometimes openly, de- lineates in them the life, the character, the sufferings, the glories, and the merits of the great Redeemer. Davin, who, for the most part, is-the speaker in them, appears some- times as the actual, and sometimes as the mystical Kine or ISRAEL 3 and frequently both characters are so united, that, where the literal ends, and where the spiritual sense begins, may not be easily discerned ; but'that both are truly there cannot, ex- cept by a deplorable, and perhaps a wilful | blindness, be unperceived. We behold, says a most eminent writer '!, “ the two senses, .very distinct from each other, -yet conspiring in perfect harmony, and bear- ' Bishop Lowth on Hebrew Poetry, Psal. xi. as trans- lated by Horne. Ps, Pref. xl. ing all tinat Ieee ~~ Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. 153 ing a wonderful resemblance in every fea-SERM. ture and lineament; while the analogy Oud between them is so exactly preserved, that either may pass for the original, from whence the other was copied. New light is continually cast upon the phraseology, fresh weight and dignity are added to the sentiment, till cradually ascending from things below to things above, from human affairs to those which are divine, they bear the great important theme upwards with them, and place it in the- height and brightness of heaven.’’—This is the senti- ment of Bishop Lowth, applied by him to a single Psalm, but applicable undoubtedly tomany more. That all the Psalms in the present collection are the compositions of David, certainly is not to be asserted ; but a great majority among them actually bear © his name ; and the rest are assuredly in- ) inspired productions, though the author js ‘ not always to be ascertained. They all partake the general sanction of our Savi- - | ours 154 Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. SERM. our’s approbation, and appear to have ex- bi gt isted in his days, in the same form which they still retain. From what has been said, it must be evident, that to trace whatever may be ap- plicable to our Saviour in the Psalms, would be to transcribe a large part of those sacred hymns. Every thing in them may be considered as, in some sense, applicable ; and for this reason it is that they have been in all times adopted, by all Christian Churches, to express and enliven their de- votions. David, in his penitence, in his faith, and in his zeal, is indeed an ad- mirable example to us; but it is when we substitute ‘* Mrss1au for Davin, the Gospel for the Law, the Church Christian for that of Israel, and the enemies of the one for the enemies of the other™, that we make the Psalms our own’’, and obtain a new ™ Horne, ‘Pref.-xxyu. and O_o Ss ll. ee ee a oe ~ = ha eer ~ Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. 155 and peculiar right to employ them in our SERM. Vi. addresses to the Almighty. It cannot, therefore, be attempted, in a Lecture like the present, to advance more than the heads and leading points of this great ar- gument®"; in doing which, it will perhaps be wise to confine ourselves to those pas- sages of the. Psalms which are actually, cited in the New Testament. In this track We cannot err; the voice of inspiration leads the way, and we shall not take a single step without divine authority: That our Saviour referred to THE PsALMS at large, as prophecying of himself, has been already noticed; but the Evangelists have also preserved a few particular cita- tions, made by their blessed Master, which, coming from so infallible a source, demand * A different sketch of some of the principal Psalms prophetic of the Messiah may be seen in Altix’s Reflexions on the Old Testament, ch. x. and x1. reprinted in Wat- son’s Tracts, vol. i. p. 984. especial 156 SERM. Vi. Prophetic Character of ihe Psalms of David. especial attention. “ I know’’, said Jesus, “whom I bave chosen, but that ibe Scripture may be fulfilled, HE THAT EATETH BREAD WITH MEHATH LIFT UP HIS HEEL AGAINST mE®.”’ This is taken from the 4ist Psalm, v.g; and the citation of our Saviour affords a perfect proof that it has, besides its ob- vious and immediate meaning, a spiritual sense, in which it is applicable tonim. It is therefore employed to denote the trea-_ chery of Judas, as it might, in its first meaning, have been applied to the revolt of Absalom, or any other treachery that afflicted David. In preaching to the Jews, and showing them, by parable, the sin they would com- mit in rejecting him, our Saviour quoted the 118th Psalm, as applicable to himself, He said to them, “ Did ye never read in ihe Scriptures, the Stone which the builders ° John, xii. 18. refused, _ Prophetic Character of the Psaims of David. —_15°7 refused, is become the bead Stone in the ser. Corner. This ts the Lord's doing, and it ts ey marvellous in our eyes?.’ What our Savi- our has thus taken to himself, can, to us, require no further confirmation! But this” ‘passage is so remarkable in its application to Christ, that in three or four different ways it has been adduced, by persons in- spired, as referring to his rejection and exaltation. St. Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, and preaching to the Rulerg and Elders of Israel, spake boldly of Jesus of Nazareth, whom they had crucified, but God had raised up; and added, in direct terms; “ ibis is THE STONE which was set at nought OF YOU BUILDERS, which is become THE HEAD OF THE CORNER‘.” St. Paul, in allusion to the same passage, speaks of the Building of God, and Jesus Christ, P Matth, xxi. 42, and the parallel places, Mark xii, 10, Luke xx. 17. 9 Acts, iv. 11. “ THE 158 SERM. Vi. Nera! Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. “THE CHIEF CORNER STONE':” and St. Peter, rather more remotely in point of expression, invites his converts to come to Christ,. as unto a living Stone, disallowed © indeed of men, but chosen of God, and pre- cious *.”” Yetif we were to look at the 118th Psalm, without any intimation of this _kind, we should not perhaps perceive that the whole alludes to Christ. But this, by the . aid of these divine teachers, THE CHURCH has perceived ; and, by appointing it as a Psalm for Easter Day, has given it to us as an hymm, in which Messiah is the speaker, and the subject his triumphant resurrection and ascension *. To the 110th Psalm also our Saviour gave the perfect key, when he questioned the Pharisees upon it, as to the possibility of Curist being at once the Son and POM. Al. 4 Qs “1 Pet. m4. * See Horne, Arg. to Ps. cxviil. sub. fin. 2 the Prophetic Character of the Psalms of ‘David. 159 the Lord David": a point which their sero. shallow theology could. not enable ateny to explain; but which, since that time, the Spirit of God has rendered clear. to every Christian, who faithfully, and with. out prejudice, reads the Gospel. In the Psalm thus opened to their minds, or fur- ther illustrated by new inspiration, the. Apostles could see other applications ; and the writer to the Hebrews dwells particu- larly on “ tbe Priesthood after the order of Melchisedec”, which, from this Psalm, he attributes to Christ. Such are the Psalms, which, on the di- rect and express authority of our Saviouf, are known to be prophetic of him. To which it should be added, that, even on the Cross, his last exclamation was in the words of the 22d Psalm*; a coincidence undoubt- “ Matth. xx. 42, and parallels. * Allix’s view of the application of this Psalm is so mas- terly, that I shall here transcribe it entire, “ It cannot be 160 Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. SERM. undoubtedly not casual, but meant to im- Vi. ply that the words originally pointed to him, by whom they were thus finally, and on so solemn an occasion, employed. — | Many be denied, when one reads the 22d Psalm, but that the person there spoken of is described figuratively, as one _exposed to the severest sufferings ; from which he 1s af- terwards delivered by the divine assistance, and advanced to rule an Empire, which extends over all nations of the world, and afterwards universally adored. 1. He that speaks, cries out as if God had forsaken him, and had stopped his ears unto his cry. 2. He describes himself as a worm, and no man, as the reproach of men, and one de- spised of the people. 3. He takes notice, that those who were witnesses of his sufferings made a mock at them; — bidding him trust in God that he might deliver him. i He ranks his enemies among the bulls of Bashan, and raging /ions, which (according to the prophetical way of speaking) mean the chief men in the nation. Amos, Iv. 1, Ezek. xxii. 25. 5. He joins the dogs with them, that is, profane persons and Gentiles. 6. He represents his hands and his feet as pierced with nails. 7. He shows that he was stretched out before, in such a manner that they might count all his bones. This expresses the idea of a man fastened to a cross, and exposed to the view of all / Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David. 161 Many other Psalms have been, by Evans sERM. welists and Apostles, applied to Jesus Christ, which it is not perhaps necessary SO. particularly toexamine. It may be suf- ficient to mention, as more remarkable than the rest, the second Psalm, in which the rage of the heathen against the Lord all the world; as he afterwards describes himself to be quite dried up, from the loss of blood, when he was cru- cified. 8. He takes notice of their parting his garments, and, 9. Of their casting lots upon his vesture. In short, one sees throughout all the expressions of this Psalm the image of a death equally shameful and cruel. The other ‘part of the Psaltn gives us an account of the déliverance of that person who is mentioned in this holy Hymn. 1. He obliges himself to praise the Lord in the most nume- rousassembly. 2, He observes it as an effect of. this de. liverance, that all the ends of the world should remember and turn unto the Lord, and that all the Kindreds of the _Mations should worship before him. | 3. At last, he takes. VWF. a id ~ motice that the kingdom of God should spread itself over — all the nations of the world. One may judge by the His« tory of David, whether this Psalm is applicable to him,” — Watson's Tracts, vol. i, p. a9. ; M and 162 SERM. VI. eet Prophetic Character of the Psalms of David: and his Anointed, is applied by the Apostles ¥ to the vain fury of the unbe- lievers against Messiah, and his Kingdom ; and the sixteenth, in which the “ HoLy One”, of whom it was ordained that “ he should not see corruption’, can only signify ‘our Saviour; and is accordingly inter- preted of him both by Sr. PeTer and Sr. Paut*% The sixty-ninth Psalm is five times, at least, referred to in the New Testament, as being uttered by the Pro- phet in the person of the Messiah “, whose sufferings it graphically describes; and it is therefore adopted by the Church into ' the service for Good Friday. With so many authorities before us, and more that might be cited, in great abundance, to the same effect, can we ¥ Acts, iv. 25... . 7 Ib. ii. 25, and xiii. 35. # John, ii.17. Rom. xi. 9,10. Acts, i 20. Matt. xxyli. 34. John, X1x. 28. hesitate Confirmation of Types and Double Senses. 168 hesitate to believe of the Psalms, that they sERM. : Vi. are full of the testimony of the Holy Spi- rit, to the office, character, and dignity of the Messiah ? When we see these applications made by. Christ himself, and his Apostles, we re- ceive from them a rule of interpretation, which we are bound to follow. Every text so applied by them becomes a key to the Psalm in which it is found; and since nearly a third part of the whole number is thus illustrated, it cannot be very hazard- ous to continue the same method by ana- logy ; and to believe that our Saviour was intended to be designated, wherever the _ circumstances apply to him, with a similar facility and exactness, In thus following the sacred writers, and him who Was sur perior to them all, their heavenly Master, and our own, we must.of absolute neces~ Sity give up all narrow prejudices against typical allusions, and prophecies of double M 2 appli- 164, SER M. i Confirmation of Types and Double Senses. application: - A secret bond of union, form- ed by divine wisdom, has so connected the remote times of David and of Christ, that something very like a history of the Redeemer may be compiled from the words of the Psalmist. “s To Christians, these coincidences must appear not only convincing but decisive: and, to:'those who:are without the pale of faith, itomay be further shown, that they ‘were not discovered or invented by ‘the partizans of Christianity. . The Jews also, who are enemies to Jesus, explain them in ‘a similar manner, that ts,.as pertaining to the Mrssrau ; though, through blindness, they refuse to acknowledge him, in the person of that Saviour who shath already ‘appeared. a The. second Psalm is inter- preted by the Jewish T eachers, Abenezra and Kimebi,.as relating to David, and his ! ‘promised son, Messias. : ‘* Our masters”, says one of. these writers (meaning. the St ae Sai more Confirmation of Types and Double Senses. 165 more early Rabbins),- « anciently under-srerm. Stood it of the Messias, and this éexplicas VT: tion is a natural one »,” Other Jews con- fess, in this and several more instances, that the Rabbins of earlier times explain- ed them of the Messiah, but that for the sake of replying to the heretics“, that is, the Christians, it is best to confine them to the person of David. The Apos- tate Spirit himself, according to the nar- rative of the Evangelists, confessed that the Psalms were prophetic of the Son of God; for he said, in the course of his temptation, alluding to the gist Psalm, “If thou be the Son of God cast thyself down: for 1T 18 WRITTEN “4, he shal] give his-Angels charge concerning THEE, and in ®. Bishop Chandler’s Defence, p. e129. * Orthe Minnim. See Chandler, lic. ““ “ It ts written”, was the approved and established mode of quoting Scripture, M $3 their 166 | SERM. Vi. aan od Prophecy brought down their bands shall they bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone*.” In this, as in some other instances of evil spirits, reluctant testimony was borne to the truth, by those who were most alien- ated from it. We have traced, then, the unfolding of the divine promises, from Adam even ta David, by whom they are greatly multi- plied, and rendered definite and explicit. The very last prophetic words which this Monarch spoke, according to the sacred Historian, in the second Book of Samuel *, are full of confidence respecting the glori- ous promises of God, to him and to his fa- mily. “ Although my house be not so with God”, that is, although it be not of such worth or merit as to deserve so high dis- tinction, ‘‘ yet he hath made with me an EVERLASTING COVENANT, ordered in all © Matth, iv. 6. * 9 Sam, xxiii. 4. things to the Death of David. 167 things and sure.” * This”, he adds, “ is all SERM. mys lvation, and all my desire, although he V!: 7 i y aes sn § om i make it not to grow,’,—that is, although it may not be speedily produced %, but be reserved to distant times for its manifesta- tion. When it is considered that, in explain- ing this part of the subject, it has been ne- cessary, from the very nature of things, to select, and compress; and to give only a few specimens, out of the abundance-of materials which present themselves, it will not surely be denied, that these are things which no contrivances of human art or wisdom could possibly have ordered and disposed, in such a manner. One or two intimations, delivered as prophetic, might be supposed to obtain an apparent fulfil- ment by casual means; but a volume of prophecy is not so to be supported ; and if * See Bishop Chandler’s Defence, Pp. 194. M 4 the 168 Prophecy brought down, Se. s—rM. the Psalms are full of Christ (the proof of i which might itself be extended to vo- lumes), his image must have been deline- ated there by that hand which made the universe ; and by that wisdom which form- ed the mighty plan of our Redemption. ~ Now to God, &c., SERMON SERMON VIt. 2S Preached December 5, 1802 SERMON VII. THE CHRONOLOGY OF PROPHECY CONTINUED. . —— ene? BO ® SEG OSS088ea=——_ JOHN i. PART OF VER, 45, ~—— We have found him of whom Moses in the Law, and the Prophets, did write, Fesus of Nazareth, the Son of Joseph. ‘Tuus it was that Philip, then recently SERM. chosen an Apostle, announced the trath V"U- to the good Nathanael. There was no doubt entertained, at that time, among the Jews, that the coming of the Messian, as \u eel 172 The Chronology of Prophecy continued. sERM. as at that period, had been distinctly fore- VEL; told by Moses and the Prophets; and the endeavour of the devout among them was, not to ascertain or demonstrate that fact; but to find him whom they had been thus instructed to expect. The search of the Apostles was. concluded when they had found Jesus: nor is it yet too late to find, | by comparing the same authorities, with ‘the records those Apostles have left, that Jesus was the Messiah, of whom Moses and the Prophets wrote ; beyond all possi- bility of reasonable doubt. In.making this comparison, I have thought it necessary ~ to dwell particularly upon David, King of Israel, as a type or representative of Christ ; and upon his Psalms, as contain- ing many of the most illustrious prophe- cies concerning him, This proceeding is ex- pressly authorized by our Saviour himself, who spake to his Disciples of the Psatms, among the scriptural documents, in which the promise of Ne coming was contained. Having | Chronology continued from David. 173 Having proceeded thus far, it will now be srraz. my endeavour to complete the chronologi- V!t- . . , ; - . i tad cal chain, to the final cessation of the spirit of prophecy under the law. From David, so highly distinguished by the divine blessing, we pass naturally to one not less favoured in some particulars, SOLOMON, his son, and successor. If the promise of the Messiah was clearly re- vealed, and made known to the father, David, it is no less certain that it was ex- plained also to Solomon. Two of the Psalms of King-David, in which he speaks most copiously of that great object of pro- mise, are understood to have been Written for occasions, in which Solomon. was very nearly concerned. These are the 45th and the 7d. The former is an Epi- thalamium, composed, as is generally thought, on ‘the marriage of Solomon, with the daughter of Pharaoh, King of ° Egypt. 174 Chronology continued from David: SERM. Egypt*. It has certainly many marks, VIL. both internal and external, of that design 3 | ernaia ; Sir5 standing in the second Book of the Psalms - (according to the ancient division) which is almost entirely ascribed to David, and addressing a Queen, who was to ‘ forged ber own people, and ber father’s bouse >. But this Psalm, thus written for Solomon, is full of references to the Messiah, so * See 1 Kings, iii. 1, where it is thought that the He brew ought to be rendered ‘‘ had made affinity”, the mar- riage having taken place in David's time. Beza, in his Argument to Psalm xly. says that the Holy Spirit had condemned this marriage, and refers to 1 Kings, xi. for 66 that purpose; but the parenthesis there, ‘‘ many strange women (together with the daughter of Pharaoh) does not of necessity imply censure on her.” See Recves’s Bible, «© She was doubtless a proselyte.” Patrzck. » Ver. 10. It is intitled also ‘‘a Song of Loves”, Shir Xedidoth, which is thought to refer tothe name Fedidiah, Beloved of God, giyen to Solomon by divine authority, 2 Sam. xi. 25. stron g Chronology continued from David. 175 strong and pointed, that it has been se- ser. lected by our Church as one of the proper Psalms for Christmas Day. For this re- ference, indeed, it has even Apostolical authority ; since, in the first Chapterto the Hebrews, the inspired writer quotes the 6th and 7th verses of this Psalin, intro- ducing them with « but unto the Son he saith, thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.” David then, addressing his own son, was wrapt by inspiration to speak also of the Son of God, and his mystical mar- riage with the Church. Nor does it in a trifling degree confirm the current suppos sition, respecting the origin of the Psalm, that Solomon’s own Epithalamium, en- titled the Song of Songs, is founded alto- gether on the same parallel; and offers the King and his beloved Spouse as images or types of Christ and his future Church. Authorized by the example of David, and inspired by the same spirit, Solomon pour- ed forth his own lyric and_ prophetic strains, Vil¢ ~~ S 176 Chronology continued from David. SERM. strains, in absolute continuation of his fa# Vit. thers Hymn} and this close connection of the 45th Psalm with the Song of Solo- amon illustrates both, in the strongest and most satisfactory manner. The 7od Psalm, which I mentioned als so, as bearing reference to Solomon, ~was composed by the Psalmist with a double allusion, to his son, and to the Messiah °, It was produced, most probably, when, to_ defeat the machinations of Adonijah, Da- vid, a short time before his decease, caused Nathan the Priest and Zadok the Prophet to anoint Solomon King *. The prosperity ¢ Among others who have thus, illustrated this Psalm, : Mattei, in the Argument to his beautiful Version of it, says, ‘* Convengon tutti 1 piu savi, che questo salmo siesi composto da Davide per Salomone, di cul prédice il feli- ‘cissimo regno, ch’era una figuta ~di quello spirituale di Gesu Cristo.” (Ps. Ixxi. in his version.) So also Beza - and others. 41 Kings, i. 92-40. > .- Chronology continued from David. 177 and glory of his kingdom are there pre- srr. dicted, but with them also the higher glory oes and endless duration of Christ’s Kingdom; in words which are not in their nature ap- plicable to any temporal power. This Psalm, it is true, is not cited in the New Testament as having reference to the Mes- siah, but to whom else can we properly apply such expressions as “ they shall fear - thee as long as the Sun and Moon endureth, throughout all generations’ ; and « in bis days shall the righteous flourish ; and abundance of peace so long as the Moon endureth® 2” That _ it was written jor Solomon is testified by the ancient Hebrew title, as well as by the - general subject; and since we have now seen so many transitions of the same kind,. in other inspired compositions, we cannot surely be slow to believe that Solomon and Christ were at once presented to the mind. of the aged Psalmist, when he produced * ‘Vy. Bit Naa this 178 Chronology continued from David. sERM. this animated Hymn. It is evident, in- VII. deed, from this and other proofs, that So- ; ‘atte lomon, as well as David, was a typi- cal representative of Christ; and particu- _ larly in consideration of the peace and prosperity of his Kingdom. Sotomon was also a Prophet, and in the Book of Psalms there are three com- positions generally attributed to him. It ‘is said, indeed, in the Book of Kings, that he wrote above a thousand Songs‘: but for some reason, now unknown, they were not preserved as sacred compositions. They were, perhaps, only moral and instructive compositions, like some parts of his Pro- verbs, and Ecclesiastes ; and not of so high a strain, as to be admitted into the sacred Canon. The Psalms I allude to, as com- | posed by him, are the 127th, 128th, and f ° e 1 Kings, lv. 32. 132d, ~~ Chronology continued from David. 179 132d®, Of these, the two former are Only sERM, pious exhortations to trust in the Lord, VY! 4 Nor and appear not to contain any thing dis- tinctly prophetical*: but the third is full of the promises of God, so clearly express- ed, that it is appointed for the service of the Church, on the Festival of the Nativity. That it was written by Solomon is almost a matter of historical record; since the 8th, 9th, and 10th verses form the actual conclusion of his dedication prayer, as recited in the Book of Chronicles‘, In both places the words, “ turn not away the Jace of thine ANOINTED “", naturally suggest, o ’ - * Patrick on Psalm cxxvii. and Gray’s Key, p. 304. * Though Bishop Horne considers them both as capa \ ble of typical extension, to the house, family, and bless. edness of Christ. *¢ Chron. vi. 41, 42. Compare also ver. 1° of the Psalm, with 1 Kings, viii. 23. “In the Hebrew yrwn, both in the Psalm and in Chro. nicles, Inthe Sept. 78 xpisd ce, A N 2 , even Bi € 180 SERM. VI. ee Chroftology continued from David. even in English (but still more in Hebrew), not only the King then reigning over Is- rael; but the Mrss1au, the CuRIsT, the true anointed of God. , Of the remaining Works of Solomon, two, the Books entitled Proverbs and 9 Ecclesiastes, appear not to contain any thing prophetical, even. by implication or allusion ; but are wholly dedicated to in- struction, in the highest morality, and.true piety. The Canticles, on the other hand, ‘are considered as replete with the spirit of ~ prophecy; the interior, or higher sense, throughout that work, being the union of Christ with his Church, and the blessed- ness resulting from it. On this, however, I shall not expatiate, since it opens no new views'upon the subject, but only con- tinues that sacred allegory, the example of which had been given by David in the 45th Psalm,: already noticed in this Discourse. ‘Here? 7 Chronology continued from David. 181 Here, then, let us for a moment reflect ; SERM. having conducted our enquiry to an im- portant point, the close of Solomon’s reign. Hitherto the prospects of the people had been improving, since the establishment of this kingdom. David had subdued their enemies; and Solomon had extended their dominion, increased their wealth and glo- ry, andenabled them to worship the Lord- according to his own appointment, in a Temple commanded and approved by him- VII. a tn self. But this prosperity, as it arose from the blessing of God, so was it speedily subverted, when the people and their kings began to apostatize from him. Solo- mon himself, in the decline of his life and wisdom, was seduced by idolatrous wo- men, to “turn from the Lord God of Israel”, as the sacred Historian expresses it, « which ‘had appeared unto. him twice”; a strange and lamentable instance of dotage, and of the decay of an understanding far above the common lot of man. ' Kings, xi. 9. N 3 The * 182 | Chronology continued, -seRM. The people also, never detached from wrt their idolatrous propensities, till they had felt the severe and lasting punishment of the captivity, were but too easily seduced from God ; and were doubtless fully pre- pared for that sin of. a separate worship, which Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, confirm- »* ed and established among them, Hence the decree went forth from the Lord for dividing the kingdom ; ten tribes of which, forming the kingdom of IsraEL, were given to the dominion of Jeroboam, a stranger to the royal blood™, and two only (under the name of one, that is Jupau"), to Reho- boam, the unworthy son of Solomon. _ Thus was all that wonderful fabric of splendour, which Solomon had been ™ He was an Ephrathite (1 Kings, xi. 26), that is, of © Bethlehem Ephrata, inthe tribe of Judah, where David was born, and afterwards Christ. " According to the prophecy of Jacob, noticed in the _ third Lecture. See particularly at p. 62. enabled \ ‘ ee % from the Death of Solomon. 183 enabled ‘to raise, dissolved, as in a mo-sERM. ment. The finger of God touched it, and V1": it vanished more wonderfully than it ‘had - risen. Henceforward the Hebrews were a divided people; often at war between themselves, and never of sufficient power to subdue their common enemies. To those who read the descriptions of Solo- mon’s magnificence and power, it will in general seem evident, that a change, so sudden and so complete, could not have happened, but by the express interference of Providence. It is natural even to feel surprise, that the Jews themselves, struck by so astonishing a visitation, did not speedily repent, and return to the Lord their God. But hitherto the notion seems to have prevailed inveterately among them, that though JeEnovan, their God, was in- deed the true God, as had been proved in their sight, by innumerable signs and miracles, yet other gods, so reputed in other nations, might have at least subor- N 4. | dinate : 4 184 | Chronology continued, — sERM, dindte powers; and might be worthy of VIS jute a a being admitted to a share of service; and a participation of worship. Difficult as it is for us to conceive this strange error, it was certainly not less difficult for them to dis~ miss it. All nations at that time in ex- istence admitted a community of Gods ; ‘and it was not till long after the period, with which we -are now concerned, that the Jews, by force of sufferings, were confirmed in a more reasonable faith. When the new King of IsRaEL, there-. fore, to prevent that attachment to Jeru- salem, the capital. of the rival kingdom, which would naturally have arisen from go- ing regularly thither to sacrifice, according to the law, set up golden calves in Bethel and in Dan, saying, “ It is too much for ~ you to go ‘up to ‘ferusalem: bebold thy — gods, O Israel, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt °*, the infatuated people — ssi ° 1 Kings, xii. 28. | | | listened f % ; Jrom the Death of Solomon. 18” listened to his voice, were contented tosERM. pay worship. to those brutish gods, and thus confirmed.the division of the king- doms, and their own disgrace and ruin. A melancholy period succeeded, and nearly two centuries were exhausted, from the death of Solomon ’, before any new pro- phecies were given, concerning the future glory of Israel, or their promised Saviour. The prophetic spirit, indeed, was not to- tally withheld,,and a succession of Prophets -was continued‘4, some of whom were of ® Solomon died 975, A.C. Amos, the first of the Prophets who spoke of Christ, arose about 790. Yonah only pre- ceded him, of the Prophets whose books remain. 1 For example, under Zeroboam, the old Prophet of Bethel, 1 Kings, xiii. 1—32; and Ahyah the Shilonite, ib. xi. 29, and xiv.2. Under Baasha, Jehu son of Ha- nani, ib. xvi. 7 and 19. Under Aad, Elijah, Elisha, and a Prophet not named, who spoke by signs, ib. xvii. 4, xx. 16and25. Also Micaiah, son of Imlah, ib. xxii. 8; and Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, ib. 11. -consider- Vail. were 186 \ f * ad Prophecies continued, SERM. considerable dignity and fame, as Elijah VII. and Elisha; but their predictions related only to the sins, the punishments, and the fortunes of the generations then passing ; and by no means looked forward to the time when the Messiah should be sent, to establish the Throne of ‘Righteousness. » At least, if prophecies of that nature were _ delivered, they are not recorded in the. Books of Scripture. | It was not, however, intended that this great object should be removed from their sight, or absolutely forgotten. ’ Conse- quently, in the reign of Jeroboam II. (about 790, A.C.) a series of Prophets commenced, who, for nearly four centuries, continued to intersperse among their other predictions, particular intimations, which pointed gra- dually, with increasing clearness, to the . promised Saviour and King. These Pro- phets are sixteen in number, from ‘Yonah to Malachi; and they not only uttered their ! predictions - » %, through ihe Sixteen Prophets. Tae predictions before the people, but wrote sERM. PEt te He | : if them in books, where they are still pre- Y! served. In the arrangement of these books, as they stand in the sacred volume, very different considerations * from any thing of a chronological order * have been followed ; u * The Jewish Church divided the Prophets into greater and less, with regard only to the magnitude of their books. On this account the four greater Prophets, 1. Isaiah, 2. Je- remiah, 3. Ezekiel, and, 4. Daniel, stand first. The twelve smaller Prophets follow in this order. 4. (1) Ho- sea, 2. (4) Joel, 3. (2) Amos, 4. (5) Obadiah, 5. (6) Jo- nah, 6.(3) Micah, 7. Nahum, 8. Habakkuk, 9. Zepha- - niah; 10. Haggai, 11. Zechariah, 19. Malachi. The f- gures within brackets mark the usual order in the Septu- agint Version ; which agrees with the Hebrew after Nahum. The four greater Prophets, in the Septuagint, stand last. * Several writers have undertaken to point out the order > of time in which the predictions of these sixteen Prophets ~ were delivered. If we were to seek an exact accuracy in the arrangement, the truth is, that we must arrange the prophecies themselves, not the mere series of the Pro. - phets, several of whom were contemporary, But this Minute 188 Prophecies continued, ec. sERM. followed; but, as it is the plan of the pre- VII. sent course of Lectures, to show in what ‘manner the knowledge of Christ was ori- ginally communicated to mankind, I shall take a view of them in that order which learned men, from internal marks and col- lateral testimonies, have considered as the actual chain of their succession in point of time ‘. . or t. The minute exaetness Is not necessary to the present plan. An arrangement of that kind is attempted in Taylor's Scheme of Scripture Divinity, republished in Watson’s Tracts.— See that Collection, vol. i. p. 140. * Gravy’s Order in his Key, p. 423, Reeves’s Order, in his new Edi- — which, for the Minor Prophets, < tion of the Bible. agrees with Bishop Newcome, 1. Jonah, 1. Jonah, 2. Amos, 2, Amos, cs Hoses, 3. Hosea, f Isaiah, 4. Isaiah, " 5. Joel, 5. Micah, 6. Micah, | ° ' 6, Nahum, 7. Nahum, paulren JOM, 8. Zephaniah, Prophecies of Yonah, Amos, 3. 189 - 1. The first in the series, Jonan, doesserm. | not, indeed, require to be mentioned, in V!!- rye this point of view; for there is no part of his prophecy that seems to throw any light upon the subject of the Messiah’s advent. As a type of our Saviour’s resurrection, in his miraculous return from a living grave, and in the duration of his abode in it, this * prophet could not be known till after the resurrection of Christ; except to the divine 12, 12. 14. 1a: 16. . Zephaniah, .. Jeremiah, » Habbakuk, . Daniel, Obadiah, Ezekiel,’ Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. e! 8. - Jeremiah, . Habbakuk, 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. Zephaniah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Obadiah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. I have followed Gray, because of his agreement with ‘Bishop Newcome. differs also a little from these. Others have small dif- ferences. The order in Cruden’s Concordance , . s _ discern- 190 / SERM. VIil. wy / | Propheciés of ¥onab, Amos, &e. discernment of Christ himself". I merely mention him, therefore, as the first, in _. point of time, among those whose prophe- cies are written at large. 2. He is followed immediately by Amos, who, in the same reign, but perhaps a — little later*, delivered ‘the divine Oracles to hiscountrymen. He prophesied against the iniquities both of Judah and Israel, and of many neighbouring nations ; he is par- ticularly severe against the idolatries at | Beth-el, Gilgal, and many other places; he foretold also the captivity’; but, in the close of his prophecy, he promises the " See Maitth. xii. 40. Luke xi. 30, See a Tract on this Prophet, by Isaac ‘James, noticed in the British Critic, vol. xxil.p. 321. * Because he says, ‘‘ in the reign of Uzziah, King of ” boam II. King of Israel. ’ Chap. v. 27, &c. restora- Judah’, who did not begin to reign till the 14th of Jero-’ Prophecies of Hosea. | | 191 restoration of the Jews, with some obscure satinki intimations of their higheo plory he Ya Var. that day will I raise up the tabernacle of ie vip that is fallen, and close up the breaches ihereof; and I will raise up bis ruins, and I will build it, as in the days. of old.” 3. Hosea followed, in the third place, and prophesied, for several successive reigns, with a considerable accession of clearness, concerning the great object of our enquiry. By him were these remark- able words pronounced and written, which distinctly mark him ‘as an Evangelical Prophet. « For the children of Israel shali abide many days without a King, and with-. out a Prince, and without a. sacrifice, and without an image, and wilbout an epbod, and without teraphim. Afterward shall the chil- dren of Israel scek ithe Lonp THEIR Gop, AND Davin THEIR Kine ; and shall fear * See Chap. viii. ver. 11, to the end. 1 | the 192 Prophecies of Isaiah. . SERM, the Lord and his goodness in the latter days **.” Vil. We have examined too far into the lan- euage of Scripture, even in the course of the present Lectures, to doubt for a mo- ment who must be here meant by Davin, at a period so long subsequent to the time of the first David. Toivards the close of Hosea’s volume also, are words, which have been cited by an Apostle», as refer- ring to the Gospel Salvation :—< O death, I will be iby plague ; O grave, I will be thy cc 323 destruction ©. _. 4. But these intimations were all eclipsed, and every thing else-that had been hither- to predicted, when Isaran uttered his 22 Ch. iil. ver. 45. ‘ , y ; _ : . * St. Paul, in the first Epistle to the-Corinthians, ch. xv. ver. 55. See, however, the important notes of the present Bishop of St. Asaph, on this passage of Hosea. His opinion is, that the exclamation of St. Paul is an indirect allusion to this text, but no citation of it. Ch. xiil.-ver.-14. prophecies. Prophecies of Isaiah. 198 prophecies. He is, indeed, the EvANGE- sERM. LicAL Propuet, chiefly, and by way of V!!- . | ~~ eminence so called; because, in his in- spired book, we have almost an anticipated Gospel ; so clear are his descriptions of the great features of our Redeemer’s life and character, of his birth, his ministry, his sufferings, his glory, and the peace and happiness of his kingdom! ‘That I should cite many of these passages at large cannot be required. Is there any Christian so ill instructed as not to know, who it was that spoke of the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, as “ the voice of one crying in the Wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord *4 ?’—who spoke of the miracu- lous conception, by a Virgin, whose Son should be called IMMANUEL **; of the dig- nity of the Child, thus to be born, whose name should be “* WonDERFUL, CouUNSEL- LOR, THE Miguty Gop, THE EVERLAST- “Is. xl. 3. | “Ib. Vit. 14. oe ING. oAQ4 SERM. WII. eS Prophecies of Isaiab. ING Fanner, THE PRINCE OE PEACE #?” It is well known also, that Isaiah was the Pro- phet who spoke of the same Messiah as in a state of humiliation,—as “ despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief &.;” as, above all others, meek and gentle ™, yet of power to open “ the eyes of the blind, and. the ears of the deaf,” to make « the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb to sng”. It is he also who described him, as *‘ betrayed, and smitten’, < cut off for.our transgressions, ° and .<‘.gwing bis soul an offermg for. our sin**’ ; but yet founding an everlasting Kingdom,.and being a Prince, “ of the in- crease of whose Government and Peace there 33 should, be. no end"'.’’ Nor can we forget that. the, same Prophet spoke of this de- liverer as a.rod io go Sth out of the stent. uh | r% ‘ ‘ ' A. s Pyare tuatile ona xii. 2. "TD ARRVo 5s) MID. Uiii.ig. TDR ae of Prophecies of Isaiah, Mie 5 of fesse, and aBRancu ™™ from bis roots"; SERM. and that, by a profusion of beautiful a: images, he depicted the peace, Innocence, and happiness, which were ultimately to be! derived from the blessed Government of: the Messiah’. The time of Jsaiah cox incidesvery nearly with that of Hosea, whom I-mentioned before him PP; but in _ the distinctness, as well as in the extent of his! prophecies, he far exceeds that Pro- phet... He lived to see the ten tribes, which formed the kingdom of Israel, car= ried into captivity : and was iniquitously put to death by Manasseh, King of Judah, “oP See Serm. VIII. ps org. ™ xi, Byidepy PO ssixiciG. i * Isaiah's prophecy began under Uzziah, and extended to about the 26th year of Hezekiah. (Reeves.) He was put | to death by Manasseh in A.C. 696. So that probably he did not begin early in the reign of Uzziah, which lasted fifty-two years, Mr. Reeves places him early (viz. 812), but that would make him Jive 116 years, from his begin- . hing to prophefy. Oriii 0 2 , the 196 Prophecies of Isaiah. seRM. the unworthy successor of the good Heze- VII. tee kiah. Henceforward, then, the great promise of God to his people may be considered as ‘ fully revealed ; and, had his wisdom with- held any further intimations, tnere would have been no want of prophetic evidence, to prove his gracious design, either before or after its accomplishment. But a long and severe captivity was yet to come, to Judah as well as to Israel ; which, while it weaned the people ultimately from their idolatries, (an effect that every other pu- nishment had failed to produce) might have driven them also to despair, had they ‘not been from time to time sustained by the gracious promises of God, that his temple should again be built, and that their great deliverer should visit it in person. These promises, in my next Lecture, I purpose to trace to their conclusion, in the — : same Prophecies of Isaiah, 197 same chronological order; which will com- SERM. plete the first part of the plan laid down sii when I: began; namely, to take general view of ** the prophecies relating to our Sa- viour, as Author and perpetual Head of the Christian Church %.”’ Striking as the par- ticulars are which have been already no- ticed, the few that remain, in this part of the enquiry, are assuredly not of inferior interest or importance; and I cannot but feel persuaded, that this simplified view of the prophetic evidence relating to our Sa- viour, taken by itself, must be of much utility, as being easily comprehended, and easily remembered ; and showing one great bulwark of our faith, in all its strength and perfectness, May God give a blessing to the endea- vour thus dedicated to the service of Truth; and grant that we may not only be streng 8 Lect. II. p. 41. 083 in - 198 __ Prophecies.of Isaiab. SERM. in faith, as knowing the sound Foundations NII. of that which we believe, but perfect in | holy resolution, by the aid of his’ blessed Spirit, to perform those things, -which we have been taught through the ministration of his beloved Son. To which three divine Persons, in their _ eternal and mysterious Unity, be ascribed, &c. SERMON | SERMON VIIL ED ED pe ——— Preached Fanuary 28, 1803. 04 ik u : Ws ‘ # why Ae at ‘ ® SERMON VIII. |THE PROPHETS CONTINUED, FROM JOEL TO MALACHI. nema 528 OOS © OO 6900 ma———- MATTH. xt. 13. For all the Prophets, and the Law, prophesied until Fokn. Or John the Baptist, mentioned in this ser. text, it was the sole and exclusive office to Vill. prepare the Way of the Lord, tur Mes- StAH, and to proclaim his immediate ap- proach. It is evident, therefore, that the testimony of the Law and the Prophets, to — he same event, must here be the subject of allusion, 208 The Prophets con tinued, sERM. allusion. The words are those of our Sa- VIII. viour, who, in the same sense,»declared. that he came not to destroy the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfil them*. That the Law is every where full of the image of | Christ, we have had occasion to see >i in former Hf Ob Airs The testimony of the Prophets, to this particular point, we have begun to view in chronological order, and are now to pursue that enquiry. . Of the four first Prophets, ‘fonab, Amos, Hosea, and Isaiab, 1 spoke in the .preceding Lec- ture; I proceed now to the fifth. s, Jozi is, by some good authorities, considered as the next in time to these; but. the point is not ascertained, by. the a / title, or any. internal marks 5 and others, aOR ait, Un » YRWE 9 _? Matth. v. rat ab 0 Ok} -» Not at full lenoth 3 ‘but sufficiently to lead to further ious and knowtedge! | id 10 ¥ ics m3 295 therefore, — % ~ blest, from ‘Foel to Malachi. 203 therefore, have placed him a little later «, SERM. Without examining with more care than ‘eich the case requires, which of these arrange- ments may be most correct, I acquiesce in the former’ account. “The Evangeli- cal prophecies of ‘ Joel; though important, carry no distinctive mark of their place i in - the series ; and as they were, at all events, nearly coincident with those we have men= tioned, there can be no reason why they should not here be introduced. Sort was a Prophet of Judah; he takes no notice of the Kingdom of Israel; and the plan of his prophecy, which contains only three chapters, is this:—He begins with * Mr. Reeves places him after Micah and Nahum, and argues for that arrangement in the Introduction to his Notes on Joel. Huet considers Hosea as undoubtedly the first of thé twelve minor Prophets, but,’ with respect to the first™ six collectively, he says, ‘‘ utram persequare sententiam pa- rum refert, equales quippe fuerunt sex hi priores, exiguo vel nullo ztatis discrimine; atque hinc nata ea varietas 3? Dem, Evang. p. 289. the 20h SERM. VII. The Prophets continued, the temporary circumstances of the King- dom of Judah, then afflicted. by a famine ; he prays, and exhorts others to do.the, same, with every solemnity of fasting and humi- lation. On these terms,.he is inspired to promise, first, a relief from, the immediate calamity; secondly, the, advent of the Messiah. . He sketches, after .that, the great outlines of the national history ; first, the judgments of the Lord upon, the un- worthiness of the people; :and lastly, their final conversion, and admission to the Kingdom of God. , The progressive ar- rangement of these predictions adds much to their force, for which reason the part that relates particularly. to our purpose will not, perhaps, alone appear equal in clearness to some that have been cited. It is this¢; “« And it sball come to pass after- | : | ward, * The allusion to the Messiah is by some supposed to begin at the 29d verse; because the words, which in our translation are, “ he hath given you the former rain moderately”, from Foel to Malachi. 20% ward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all sERM. ; | hug aly WIT. flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall ‘shai! prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: and: also upon the servants, and upon the handmaids, in those days will I pour out my spirit*®.”” Then follow immediately, the denunciations of divine wrath, which were realized at the final capture of Jerusalem; and which were pronounced, in very similar terms, by moderately”, are in the Vulgate rendered, ‘“ dedit vobis Doctorem Fustitia.”. The ambiguity is, in the Hebrew word m2, which signifies either a teacher, or rain. Some of our earlier English translations (and indeed the margin of our present Bibles), have rendered it according to the Vulgate. Thus Coverdale, “a bese? of righte- ousness.” Douay Bible, “ a Doctor of Justice.” The Septuagint differ again, and has it Dexey duivra Bpdryudlee eis Sixasoctynye Where so much is clear, it is not worth while to dwell upon a doubtful passage. Archbishop New- come renders it, ‘‘ For he giveth you the former ‘pe wk in - ag Bel a a Nog capitan net under 3. orl, ii. 28, 2. - our 206 SERM. Vilh ae ed The Prophets, contmued, our Saviour. .“ The-sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great.and the terrible day of the Lord come ',’ Joel, however, whose book is very short, furnishes no further particulars to the tes- timony of Christ % ee 6. MicaH; who followed, is more copi- ous, on this subject,’ and. more distinct. He prophesied in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, as the in- troductory verse, or superscription of: his book testifies; and consequently, in the parallel reigns of Pekah and Hosea, kings of Israel. Were his time not thus mark- ed, it would be. nearly ascertained by * Joel, ii Bt. * Except we take ver. 39 of chap. ii. ‘* For'in Mount Sion and Ferusalem, shall be DELIVERANCE.” Much might be said on this, but it is not the plan of these Lec« tures to notice every thing, only to select the passages of most clearness and importance. - Jeremiah, from Foel to Malachi: - - 99g Jeremiah, who speaks -of him as a pro- sERM. VIIL i ali phet, and refers. him to the reign of Heze- kiah*, -To-him it, was peculiarly given to mark the precise place of the future Savi- our’s birth 5, which he did in these. famous words. “But thou BETHLEHEM Epura- TAH, ‘though thou. be litle among the thou- sands of Fudabh, yet out of thee shall ur come forth unto me; that is to be Ruler in Israels whose goings forth have been from of old, Jrom everlasting’. \ Nor is this anapplica- tion made only in Christian times. When Herod enquired of the Chief Priests and Scribes where Christ should be born, on this very prophecy, they founded. their re- ply, that jas ilatabe must be the place *, k Thus was the very place of Christ’s birth ascertained, seven hundred years before it happened ; as J eremiah afterwards alluded to the Massacre of children, “occasioned ® Jevem, xxvi. 18.->7 ‘Micah, v. ii, — * Matth. ii. 5, 6. ; ? | by 208 The Prophets continued, SERM. by this answer of the Priests to Herod. IIL. Micah also exhorted the people to remem- ber “ what Balak the King of Moab consult- ed, and what Balaam the son of Beor an- swered bim'’, which, as we found in an earlier part of our enquiry, conveyed an illustrious promise of the future Messiah. The final glories of Christ’ s Kingdom are depicted by this Prophet, in the following magnificent terms, representing” distinctly the conversion of the Gentiles. “ But im - the last days it shall come to pass, that THE MounrTain of THE House or THE LorpD shall be established in the top of the moun- tains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, and people shall flow unto it. dnd many na- tions shall come and say, Come, and let us go up io the Mountain of the Lord, and to the House of the God of Sfacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for the Lord shall go forth out of — *Ch. vi. 5. See Serm. LV. p. 97: 2 Zion, from. Foel to Malaebi. 209 _ Zion; and the Worp or tHe Lorp from SERM, Ferusalem™.’ This passage may how- ever have, and probably has, a further re- ference to the complete establishment of the Gospel after the conversion of the / Jews. 47. NauumM, who follows, confines his pre- dictions, more than the other Prophets, to the transactions near his own times; of which the destruction of Nineveh, which happened about a century afterwards, is the most illustrious. His prophecy forms only three short chapters. 8. ZepHAniaH clearly alludes to the prosperous state of the Jews after their econversion, but does not speak so distinct- ly of the prior mercies of the Gospel. We are told, however, by Jewish interpreters, and others who have copied them, that the following verse alludes particularly to the ™ Ch. iv. 1, 2. VIII. ei ye Pp “Messiah. ~ 210 SERM. VIII. rye The Prophets continued, Messiah. “ For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon THE NAME OF THE Lorp, fo serve bim with one consent.” The name of the Lord, they say, means the Saviour. This also has been applied: « The Lorp thy Gop, in the midst of thee is mighty, be will savx, rejoice over thee with joy®.” g. But Jenemiau, towards the close of the kingdom of Judah, was enlightened respecting the Messiah, in a manner much more conspicuous. He is one of the four Prophets called ibe Greater, on account of the magnitude of the Books they have left; and the value of that of Jeremiah is certainly not disproportioned to its bulk. Out of the astonishing mass of prophetical matter, contained in the fif- ty-two chapters of this Prophet, we are concerned at present only with the parts which announce the coming of the Mes- * Zephan. iii. 9. ° Tb, ver. 17. siah, from Yoel to Malachi, 211 Siah. This, however, may here be ob-srRM. served, in general terms, that the very ae, various contents of the prophetical Books have been among the means appointed by Providence for their continued preserva- tion. Had they all referred to events very remote from the time of their delivery ?, they might have failed to excite an im- mediate interest: had they, on the con- trary, been confined to the concerns of the generation then living, they might, after a time, have been considered as ob- solete, and consequently would have been - neglected. But, by the wise ordinance of God concerning them, the proof of each prophet’s inspiration was placed before his contemporaries, by the immediate fulfll- ment of some of his words ; while succeed= : * This was actually objected, at one period, to Eze. a kiel: “* behold they of the House of Israel say, the vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he pro- phesteth of the times that are afar off.” xii, 27. Pie ing 212 SERM: Virt. score The Prophets continued, ing generations had still to look for other accomplishments, of importance to them- selves and their descendants. Even at this | time, when the prophecies relating to the first coming of the Messiah, his acts, and sufferings, have been long fulfilled, the predictions which refer to the final conver- sion of the Jews, and their happy recep- tion, into the then universal Kingdom of Christ, remain, to demand attention and excite expectation, even to the latest ages of the world. It may be remarked also, how very various are the uses of these sa- cred Books, and how great must be the advantage of considering them in every pos- sible point of view. In Jeremiah, and several other prophets, there are many parts en- tirely historical, which in that respect are valuable records, and supply defects which otherwise would be irreparable. Jeremiah, in particular, has much of this nature, im- portant on account of the marks of time which it imparts, respecting the delivery of from Fel to Malachi. 214 of his predictions. But to proceed ‘to that skrM. which relates more gsestaerts to our spresent! V7". rye purpose.” : JerEmrAu, from the circumstances of the depraved Jews, at the time of his mission, was chiefly employed in denouncing wrath against them. An object of hatred and perse- Cution on this account, to his countrymen, he occasionally complains with bitterness of the task in which he was employed 4, * At other times, however, he was indulged with the more pleasing office of foretelling the hopes and glories of his country. Thus, in his-e9d chapter, we find this illustrious prophecy of Christ. “ Behold the days Chap. xv. 10, &c. xviii. 18, &c. Since the pro- phetical office was so full of misery and danger, there is little reason to suppose that’ it would be undertaken by impostors ; except those who determined only: to, flatter the people with their predictions, who are sufficiently eX~ posed by rei true prophets. PeeG Pig cone, 214 | / The Prophets continued, SERM. come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto VII. the Lord a righteous BRANCH 3 anda King shall reign and prosper,and shall execute judg- ment and justice in the earth, In his days fudab shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely : and this is bis name whereby he shall be called, THE Lorp our‘ Ricutrousness’.” This expression of THE BRANcH, used also by Isaiah in the same manner, and afterwards by Zechariah *, was thus established as an appropriate name of Christ ; whose super= human dignity is at the same time reveal~ ed, in the title THE Lorp our RIGHTE= OUSNESS. In denouncing to the Jewish nation the captivity they were to undergo for their * These words are repeated chap. xxxili. 14, &c. with some variations and additions. ° Vv. 5 and 6. ¢ Zech. 11. 8, and vi. 12. In the latter place he says, * Behold the man whose name is THE BRANCH.” sins, from “Ffoel to Malachi. 215 | sins, their merciful God continually com-serM. forted them with hopes, though distant, VO of pardon and restoration. “ Though I make a full..end of all nations, whither I have scattered thee’, says Jeremiah, “ yet will Inet make a full end of thee.” They were still to return,.and serve the Lord their God, and Davip their King”, whom, saith the Lord, “I will raise up unto them.” _ They were also, by the mouth of this Pro- phet, expressly promised a new and freer Covenant.‘ Bebold the days come, saith the Lord, that 1 will make a NEW Cove. NANT with the House of Israel, and with the House of Yudab ; not according to the Covenant that I made with their fathers, in ibe day that I took them by the hand, to bring them, out of the land of Egypt, but I will put my Law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more*.- This was to be a Covenant of a errr xy tas * Ib, XXXxI. 31-—94. P 4 mercy - 216 The Prophets continued, SERM. mercy and pardon, as the former had been VIII. of strict and ceremonial ordinances. What then is the infatuation of the Jew, who supposes the law of Moses to be everlast- ing, contrary to the very words of the Lord, delivered by the mouth of this dis- tinguished Prophet! Of the full deter- mination of the Lord to fulfil these pro- mises, Jeremiah was also authorized? to speak, in the-strongest terms. “ Jf ye can break my Covenant of ihe day, and my Cove- nant of the night, and tbat there should not be day and night in their season; then may also my Covenant be broken with Davin my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon bis throne; wilh the Levites, the Priests, my Ministers. _As the bost of bea- ven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and ihe Levites that “minister unto me ¥” * Chap. xxxill. 91, 22. Ges - When, from *oel to Malachi. O17 ~ When, therefore, those terrible judge. SERM. * ments were executed upon: Israel, which YI. had also been predicted in every particu- lar, the destruction of their kingdoms and “temple, and the captivity of the people ; these events, instead of being causes for ~ despondency, as naturally they would have been, were demonstrations of the veracity of the Prophets ; and proofs that the mercies of their God would be no less certain, than these foretold inflictions of his just displea- ‘sure. Hence, in their captivity, in the midst of idolaters, instead of being more-infected with that long prevalent crime, the rem- nant of Israel were finally weaned from it; and returned to their country, after the appointed period, zealous for the ex- clusive sovereignty of their God, and in earnest expectation of the time when his gracious promises should be fulfilled. These things could hardly have happened, had any link in the prophetic chain proved unsound, ra 218 SERM. VIEF. ( The Prophets continued, unsound, one word of an authorized pro- phet fallacious. 10. Haspakuk was probably contem- porary with Jeremiah ; the short Book of’ his Prophecies relates chiefly to the im- pending captivity, and to the subsequent fall of Babylon. Some of his words, as of sacred import, have been cited by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews ; but their reference to the advent of Christ, if intended, isnot clear. ‘ For the vision ts yet for an appointed’ time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie; though it tarry, wait for it———but the just shall live by bis faith.’ The following words have also in general been supposed to allude to the diffusion of divine knowledge under the - Gospel. <<, For tbe earth shall be filled with _ the knowledge of the Glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea®.” * Ch. 1,°9, 45 debs xe. 37a" ®@ Ob, D. tas . 11° from ‘foel to Malachi. 219 11. To speak at large of the Prophet sERM. DantEL, would be to write a copious trea- tise. It is necessary to the plan we have taken up to state onlysome principal points, within a moderate compass, Daniel was the great prophet of the captivity ; through the whole, or nearly the whole of which, he continued to utter his predictions. That his Book was deemed of high authority in early times, is evident from the conduct of Josephus, who details, with great exact- ness, the historical parts of it, and of the prophetic so much as he conceived to have VIII. ean been clearly fulfilled. Concerning that which was yet future, he observes a cau- tious silence; evidently through fear of offending the Roman Government, the dew struction of which is so clearly foretold in the very first of these prophecies. Yet he intimates that he believes the future part, as surely as the past ; referring his readers to the sacred Books themselves, for those things which it was not his province, as an historian, 920 » SERM. VIII. The Prophets ‘continued, historian, to relate >». -That the modern Jews have attempted to degrade the autho- rity of Daniel, arises assuredly from this only; that the calculations in his prophe- cies cannot possibly be made to consist with their notions of a Messiah still to come, | From the predictions of Daniel, princi- pally, was derived the prevalent expectation, diffused over the world at the time of our Sa- viour’s birth, that a great Prince and. de- liverer was then to arise in the Fast; an ex- -pectation fundamentally right, though de- based by many erroneous notions, arising from the false interpretation of other prophe- cies. Concerning Daniel then, lest we should be led into too extensive a detail, suffice it here to say, that he prophesied distinctly of three great empires, to succeed that of Babylon, then’ existing. The succession bb Antiq. Jud. pe ch, Xy . 6; . from “foel to Malachi. O21 is this, according to his description ; 1. Ba- sperm. bylon, -2. Persia, 3. Macedon, 4. Rome ; under which laft period was’ to arise the _ great and everlasting Kingdom of the Messiau. | And in the days of these kings shall the God of Heaven set up a Kingdom, which shalt never be destroyed ; and the King- dom shall not be left. to other people, bud. it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, ‘and it shail stand FoR EVER“. This sacred Kingdom was typified by the image of “a Sione cut out of a mountain without hands’, and this was the part which Josephus refused to transcribe ; being ap- parently hostile to the power of the Em- perors whom he served @4. Daniel also, not only marked the suc- cession of these powers, but, in other parts ; + a Se © Dan. u. 14. dd EdnAwas 08 nor wept TS Aibe Aawiaros 7) Pairs 2AM’ Exnos prey aw vy ¥ ii c ne” th spe Osu A £1, 4 . i f re ¢ w wx EV0EE TETO ISOEsi¥, TH WACEAVOVIA. Hat TA YRYTHUEVAe TUY|LAPEM, ° \ U bd / , STH MEAACVT A, OLEiAayTs. Xs 10. 8 4e ‘ P ] n r , of { 1 dn eee ast 222 The Prophets continued, sera. Of his prophecies, specified even the time vill. of the Messiah’s advent. Seventy weeks, ™~ from the end of the captivity; or rather, as it is expressed, “ from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build fe- | rusalem’’,are assigned as the period decreed, “to finish the transgression, and to make an _end of sins ; and to make a reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteous- ness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to ANOINT THE MOST HoLy“.” The general opinion of interpreters, re- specting these seventy weeks, has been, that they represent weeks of years (seven years making a week), and consequent- ly give four hundred and ninety, years as the whole extent of the period. It is true, that there are difficulties in the application of some inferior parts of this prophecy ; but four hundred and ninety years so nearly coincide with the interval ** Chap. ix. 24, &c. : between from Foel to Malach. 223 between the reign of Artaxerxes, and the sSERM. birth of Christ, that no great error can gin exist In that calculation. It is clear also, that to extend these weeks to the present time (above two thousand years after the death of Artaxerxes), must be incompatible with any fair or probable interpretation; yet this the Jews must do, before they can justify their obstinate opinion, that THE Hoty One bas not yet been anointed. So clear on the contrary was the Christian in~ terpretation, to the Jews, while yet unpre- judiced, that we are told of a learned Rabbi, named Nehumias, who, fifty years before the coming of our Saviour, declared that within that period this prophecy of Daniel must be accomplished*. Some predictions of Daniel are supposed also to extend to the latest periods of the world; but of these I shall not treat at present. * Rabbi Nehumias. See Kett, vol. i. p. 165. 42, OBADIAH, 224 SERM. Net The Prophets continued, 12. Obapian, the next.Prophet in the Series, was contemporaty with Daniel, in the early part of his mission ; but has left us only a single chapter, and in that no= thing relative to the Messiah, excepting the declaration that, “ upon Mount Zion shall be DELIVERANCE, and there shall be holiness ®’ ; and the following verse, which concludes the whole prophecy: “ dnd Sa- viours shall come up on Mount Zion, to judge the Mount of Esau; and the Kingdom shalt be TuE Lorp’s™.”.. This was. applied to the Messiah, even by the learned Rabbi Maimonides. | 13. More copious, on this subject, is EZEKIEL, who began to prophesy during the captivity ; and was employed not only to warn, but to console the people of the Lord. He foretold at large a new Cove- © Vers: iz mm Vere2ts 4 * See Huet, Demonstr. Evang. p. 390. 2 nant, Srom “foel to Malachi. 225 nant, nearly in the same words that Jere- srerM, -miah had used before him*®*; and he V!!!: re also repeated the promise of their great -Deliverer, under the accustomed name of Davip. “ And I will set up one Shepherd over them, and be shall feed them, even my servant Davin; be shall feed them, and he shall be their Shepherd. And ‘I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David a Prince among them: I the Lord have spoken it.” «* Moreover’, he adds in another place, «* I will make a Covenant of Peace with them, it shall be an everlasting Covenant with them™.”” Much, however, in this Pro- phet, is wrapped in a veil of mysterious allegory, the complete developement of which is still perhaps far distant. ““ Compare Ezek. xviii. 2, with Jerem. xxxi. 29. "Ch. xxxiv. 23, 24. So also xxxvii. 24, 25. om Ch, xxxvil. 26. Q 14. The 6226 The Prophets continued, ‘SERM. 14, The next Prophet; Haceat, belongs Sib, toa laterperiod. | His chief office; was, af- ter the return from Babylon, to encourage the people in building the second ‘Temple. The principal topic of his encouragement was, that the glory of this house, contrary to all present appearance, should exceed the glory of the former™ ; because the DESIRE OF ALL NATIONS. should come, and fill - that House with glory. The first Temple had seen the glory of the Lord in a visible, but, in some degree, an emblematical ap- pearance; the second should behold. him iIN‘PERSON. Of what dignity this visitor should be is infallibly implied in the com- parison °°. ) | 15. ZECHARIAH, =" Ch. ii, 9. > The divinity of Christ may, in fact, be irresistibly de- duced from this prophecy. For the first Temple had receiv- ed the Shechinah, or visible glory, which announced the prefence of the Lord; but the second, it is said, was to eclipse it, because the Lord was actually to visit it in | person ; from Foel to Malachi. 2947 15. ZECHARIAH, nearly at the same sERM. time, foretold the coming of THE BRANCH ??. “ Bebold the ‘man whose name is THE Brancu—be shall build the Temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon bis Thrones.” « The House of David,” said he at another time, “< shall be as. God, as the Angel of the Lord before them™.”’ He also, like Isaiah, fore- told Some of the temporal humiliations of the Messiah. « Lbey shall look on me whom tbey have pierced*.”’ And again, « one shal] ' Say unto him, what are these wounds in thine hands? then shall be answer, those with which I was wounded in the bouse of my friends.” person ; now that visitation was fulfilled by Jesus Christ, or “ not at all; and he consequently was tHe Lory HIMSELF in person. That'is, the only Lord ever naanifested to Israel: for no man hath ‘seen God (the Father) at any time ; the person seen, ‘in all visible ap Praneones, was THE Son, the Jehovah,, the God of Israel. Ch. iii, 8. Ch. vi. 12, 19. * Ch, xi. 8. e Chyxm aoe Chi'xili: 6. | Q2 A pas- VIItI. Yad 228 SERM. VITT, end Tbe Prophets continued, A passage as remarkable as any that can be found. 16. The series of Prophets was closed by Matacut, much later than Zecha- riah, and, according to appearances, at the very time announced by Daniel “ for sraL- ING THE VISION, and the prophecy.” He left with the Jewish nation the strongest © intimations of the glory to come. He foretold the appearance of the previous ‘Messenger, and of THE LORD HIMSELF, whose presence was to dignify the second Temple. <‘ Bebold I will send my. Messen- ger, and he shall prepare the way before ME : and THE Lorp, whom ye seek, shall sudden- ly come to bis Temple, even the Messenger of the Covenant, whom ye delight in; bebold, ux shall come, saith the Lord of Pisin ae *«* Unto you that fear my name shall THE Sun oF RIGHTEOUSNESS ARISE, with healing in . , mh Oh rte tthe bis a from Yoel to Malach. 229 bis wings **.”” The concluding words of this sERM. Prophet, like a last legacy of inspiration, aks prepare us finally for the solemn advent of Christ. ‘ Bebold, I will send you Elijab the Prophet, before the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and be shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” As if he had said, “ Henceforth no prophetical instruc- tion shall be given, till that Prophet shall appear, who shall be called Extyan; and whose office it shall be to make jm- mediate preparation in the hearts and minds: of men, for the solemn manifesta- tion of tHEe Lorp HIMSELF, on earth.” Who this Elijah or Elias was, our Saviour _ himself has told us Y, It was the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, “ the Voice of one crying in the Wilderness’, as he had been long before described, | S GR iri ¥/Matth. xi, 14. 938 | ! Thus 230 The Prophets continued, SERM. Thus have we followed the chain of pro- pal phecy, in its most important object, from . the beginning even to theend. ‘“ The Pro- phets and the Law’, said our Saviour, “ pro- phesied until “fobn.” We have now arriyed at the interval, which divided the Prophets from that great harbinger of Christ. The infinite variety of other circumstances, by which those divine Messengers. proved their inspiration, have been little noticed in this enquiry ; our attention having been fixed upon that only which had reference to the Gospel. Here, however, we can- i0t have failed to remark an exact and beautiful consistency ; pointing out, that though the channels of inspiration differed, the source of it was the same; that it flowed always from the same divine knowledge, and from the same most merciful inten- tions. The threatenings against sin are followed always by promises of mercy 5 and that mercy is never satisfied, till it rests In universal conversion, and universal blessedness. from ‘foel to Malachi. 231 blessedness. Let us hope that this period,serm. so long retarded by the perverseness of V!!!: men, and still apparently resisted with He the utmost force of that impediment, is steadily advancing, by the secret plans of Providence ; which, when they shall be ripened, will supersede all doubts, correct all errors, remove the veil from every heart, and make the world one fold, be- neath the blessed Shepherd Jesus Curist. Now to God, &c. 4 SERMON HSK ; s a q lett Cal's 4 Fl ek er ih LEY (e ay "her { pare i: ; Fy’ ag et ia Seth CPs — SERMON Ix. Preached February 13, 1803. SERMON IX. ON THE COMING OF THE MESSIAH. GALAT. 1V. PART OF VER. 4. But, when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son. We are; now prepared for the greatsrrM. event spoken of in this passage. Inthe 1X. preceding Lectures, we have traced the chronological chain of prophecy, from Adam down to Malachi ; by whom the volume of the Old Testament was closed, about 296 _SERM. TX, aggre The Interval previous to his coming. about four hundred years before Christ ; in the whole of which interval the voice of a prophecy was silent. In this long pause, or suspension of the di- rect communication of God with his people, there is something peculiarly solemn. It is like the Apocalyptic silence in Heaven, which precedes the sounding of the seven Trumpets. It was a preparation for the grand event of the Messian’s Birtn. Had prophecies and miracles been frequent, during all that, period, in the Jewifh Church, the great distinction of dignity, attending the Saviour of the World, would have been lowered? ; he might have been mistaken for some ordinary Messenger of Heaven. But when, after so long an in- termission, these mighty works were again manifested in him, with a vast increase of splendour, he then stood forth at once, * Jenkins on Christ. Rel. it. p. 485. distinguished Lhe Uses of Prophecy to the Tews. 23% distinguished as the mighty One, whose sErM, advent had been'so long the topic of pre- 1: diction ; and after that, the object of an anxious expectation.. This, said they whose prejudices were, for the time, over- come by the force of miracles, “7s of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world.” Jesus appeared at once, as a Pro- phet and a worker of miracles; characters with which, for four successive centuries, no man among the Jews had been in- vested. If we consider the conduct of Divine Providence towards the Jews, and the ma- nifest uses of prophecy to them, we shall see other probable reasons (and, since Scripture is silent upon it, only probable reasons can exist) for this long interrup- tion of the line of Prophets. When their kingdom was first settled, with the express approbation of God, under his faithful servant David, the promise of the Messiah was 238 \ The Uses of Prophecy to ihe Fews. * SERM. Was fixed to his family, and became a IX. constant subject of prophetic vision to that inspired Monarch ; insomuch that, in all ~ his Psalms,. whatever be their primary in- tention, there may be understood a secret, if not a manifest reference, to that glorious Personage, and his everlasting Kingdom. The same happened, in some degree, to his son and successor Solomon. But, when he fell into idolatry ; and, still more, when the kingdom, after him, was divided, and the separated kingdom of Israel had been formed into a recular establishment of idol- atrous worship, two great uses of prophecy, among others, became particularly con- spicuous: 1. the one, to warn both Israel and Judah of the impending punishments, which must ensue, if they continued their idolatrous practices; 2. the other, to pre- serve and keep alive their faith in that Great Deliverer, who was hereafter to ap- pear. Various’ other collateral purposes, both to the Jews, and to other nations, were s - The Uses of Prophecy to the Fews. 239 were effected, from time to time, by means srr. of prophecy; but these were the great !%- lines, continued through every part of the dispensation, and perpetually recalled to notice. At length the vengeance, so long threat- ened, fell upon the whole nation; and seventy years of captivity, in a foreign country, while their city, their territory, and their temple, were trodden down, and lay in-desolation, proved beyond all con- troversy one part of the above proposition, i. e. “ that God would punish for idolatry, in the way that be had then denounced; name- ly, by rejection, and national shame.’ But, in the deep misery..of this infliction, there was a danger, that the contrary movement of despair might succeed to the infatuated obstinacy of the people: or it might have happened, that, when they were removed, for nearly two generations, from their own language, and all the local _ recol- 240 The Uses of Prophecy to the Fews. sERM. recollections of their country; placed in the IX. midst of idolaters, and in a state of slavery under them, they might totally have for- gotten their God, their duties, and their hopes, and have become an undistinguish~ able part of the people among whom they lived. To prevent these evils, their pro-_ phets were continued through the capti- vity, during which period some of the most illustrious of those heavenly Messengers were commissioned to instruct, to comfort, and to warn them. When they returned from captivity, while their second temple was building, and their re-established na- tion was gradually acquiring solidity and strenoth, the line of prophets was conti- nued, for about a century. The promises of the Messiah had new been confirmed, and fully opened; and théir last prophet, Malachi, concluded his Book with what appears, as before noticed, to be afarewell charge. Forhe told them, 2 “ that Interval between Malachi and Christ. 241 ‘< that the Sun of Righteousness should serM. arise, with healing in his wings ; that they som ought, in the mean time, to adhere to the Law of Moses, and the Statutes given to Israel in Horeb; and that before THE GREAT DAY of the Lord’, that is, THE COMING OF THE Messiau, “ Elias should be sent, to prepare u1s way, lest the whole land should fall under the curse of unbe- lief>.”” This is the substance of the con- cluding verses of Malachi, and contains a kind of general warning, respecting the Messiah, and the interval which was to precede his manifestation. The chief purposes of prophecy, with respect to the Jews, were now completed. The people were weaned from idolatry, into which they never afterwards relapsed ; the Laws of Moses, and the service of the Temple, were re-established, and were > > Mal. iv. 2. oe not 24,2 SERM. IX. es) =- Interval between Malachi and Christ, not likely to be again neglected ; the pro- mise of the Messiah was made as clear as words could make it ; and no new punish- ment remained to bedenounced. The in- tervening period was to be a period of ex- | pectation ; resting on former promises, and the written records of Scripture: till He should come into the world, who was to fulfil all promises, and realize all autho- rized hopes. Providence does nothing in vain. While prophecy could render ser- vice, it was continued ; when it could do no more than was already done—no more than would be equally effected by its pre- servation in writing, it ceased°; and re- vived » “€ Some have held that it did not cease ; and Justin Mar- tyr is particularly cited by Smith, in his Discourse on Pro- phecy (chap. xii. Watson’s Tracts, iv. 355), a8 holding that opinion : that writer however adds ; ‘* But Clemens Alex- andrinus hath much trulier, and with the consent of all — Jewish antiquity, resolved us that all prophecy determined in Malachy, in his Stromat. lib.fi. where he numbers up all the Prophets of the Jews, thirty-five in all, and Malachy as Interval between Malachi and Christ. 24,8 vived no more-till the approach of him, sERM. who had been its first and greatestobject. '*° | aN What a solemnity does this give to the | advent of Christ! After a silence of four hundred years, the voice of prophecy is renewed to announce his immediate ap- proach. An Angel brings the tidings, to the destined Mother of Christ ;—-Holy men and women are gifted with the Spirit of God, so long withheld, to declare the ap- proaching mercy ;~and the Baptist, who, according to the words of Christ himself, was the Extras who had been promised, began to preach the doctrine, and give the as the last.” This writer afterwards says, in conformity to the sentiments here advanced, “‘ this cessation of prophecy determined, as it were, all that old dispensation, wherein God hath manifested himself to the Jews under the Law; _ that so, that growing old, and thus wearing away, they might "expect that new difpenfation of the Messiah, which had been promised so long before, and which should again gestore this prophetic spirit more abundantly.” P. 956, R 2 Baptism 24.4 Inierval between Malachi and Christ. geRM. Baptism of Repentance ;—* to turn the BA. ere hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just—because the Kingdom of God was now actually at band.” Let those also observe, who have any inclination to cavil at the evidences of sa- cred truth, how different every thing here is from any appearance of collusion or fraud. While genuine prophets remained, their oracles were collected and preserved in Writing; when the spirit of prophecy was withdrawn, there were no pretensions to it made, Had it ever been a fraudulent con- trivance, how many means and motives were there always to continue it !—but when it had been confessedly at an end for solong a period as four hundred years, how impos- sible must it have been to revive it with success! Among the heathens, there were always pretended prophets; and their authority was at one time equal to what it was at another: that is, well calculated to impose Interval betiveen Malachi and Christ. 245 impose upon credulity and ignorance, but sERM. nothing more. Among the Jews, there were eth real prophets, or there were none. The few attempts that were made, to imitate the style of Scripture, and set up a pre- tence to inspiration, were detected by the Jews themselves; and the books entitled Apocrypha * are a standing proof how im- possible it was to impose upon the leading teachers of that nation, by the most spe- cious imitations of Holy Writ, “It is universally allowed”, says Gray in his Key, “that the Books of the Apocrypha never were in the Canon of the Jews.” Josephus, in his Treatise against Apion, B. 1. says they had only twenty-two facred books: how these were reckoned, authors have differently stated; but it is certain that the Apocryphal Books. did not make a part of the number. See Josephus, Ed. Huds. T. it, p- 1333, and Prideaux’s Connections, vol. i. p. 992, 8vo.—They were, in fact, all composed after the sacred Canon was closed, and are extant in Greek only, or Latin, not in the Hebrew. Rg if 246 SERM, 1X. anand Interval between Malachi and Christ. If it be alledged, that, after Malachi, the Jews probably became too wise to be imposed upon by the pretences of prophe- cy and miracle, which till then had suc- ceeded among them, we may enquire, on our parts, how it could happen that, after | four hundred years of such sagacity, they should again, at once, become credulous . and should dream of miracles and prophe- cies which had not any real existence ? | If any thing can deserve the name of a moral impossibility, this surely is of that description : and the prophecies and mira~ cles of the New Testament must be received with the more indubitable faith, from the knowledge that, for four centuries, the Jewish people had proved themselves in- capable of being deceived by false pre- tences of that nature. ‘True it is, that the Rulers of the Jews for a time rejected our Saviour, andeven put him toaviolent death; but it is no less true, that in Jerusalem itself, and even among the very Rulers of it, The aeptiel Appearance of the Messiab. 2417 it, his faith obtained its triumphs, after his sERM. Lx decease; and that they who finally per- sisted in unbelief were, as he had posi- ‘tively predicted, overwhelmed, within a very.short period, by misery and national destruction. It is evident, however, from these facts, that the prevalent fault of the Jews, at the period of our Saviour’s ap- pearance, was not an easy credulity, but, on the contrary, an obstinate. hardness of heart, and a strong unwillingness to re- ceive even a rational conviction. By these considerations, then, we are prepared to view, with proper feelings, the ereat event referred to by the Apostle in my text—“ the fulfillng of the time”, and « the actual sending forth of the Son of God.” : | With regard to the fulness of the time, much might with propriety be said > as much has frequently been written. It was R 4 FULL, 248 The actual Appearance of the Messiah. SERM. FULL, undoubtedly, with respect to the “IX ancient prophecies, especially those which included any kind of calculation. It was full, probably, with respect to the state of the world, the progress of human know- ledge, and the wants of unenlightened man. It was full, with respect to the Jews, whose expectations were then awake, and whose trial was then prepared. But these very copious subjects, to discuss them with any care, would detain us much too long from our principal objects*. Let us there- fore be content to believe, that the fulness of the time was actually come, in all re-- Spects ; since we know the fact to be, that God did then send forth his Son. He sent him not without an apparatus of. splendour, adapted to the great and won- * They may be seen also handled, much at large, in various English books; such as Jenkins on the Reason- . ableness of Christianity, Chandler, &c. &c. derful The actual Appearance of the Messiab. = 2.49 derful occasion; the descent of the eter- sERM. nal Son of God, for man’s salvation. The intercourse of man with heavenly Beings, so very long suspended, was now at length Ix renewed. Visions of Angels were vouch- safed to several individuals, but all with immediate reference to the approaching birth of Christ. The subjects of these vi- sions were prophetic. The first-of them was indulged to Zacharias, the Priest, the father of John the Baptist, to announce the con- ception and birth of that child; to declare that he should be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb ; and that his office should be to prepare the way of THE Lorp. Some of the words of the Angel are peculiarly worthy of notice. « Many of ihe children of Israel’, said he, “ shall he turn to THE Lorp THEIR Gop: and be shall go before uiM in the spirit and power of Elias :”” putting which assertions toge- ther, is it not clear that the person whom he was to precede was the Lord their God ? " But 250 SERM. TX. ye The actual Appearance of the Messiab. But it was Jesus whom he preceded ; whose divine dignity is therefore expressly signi- fied by the Angel Gabriel. ‘Then follow the words which connect this angelic prophe- cy with the final prediction of Malachi, which is, in fact, repeated: “ To turn the ‘bearis of the fathers to the children.” He adds, ‘“ and the disobedient to the wisdom | of the just: to make ready a people. pre- pared for the Lord'.” These assigned. of- fices precisely show, that the Elijah foretold by the prophets, as the forerunner of the Lord, and John the Baptist, were one and the same person; which our Saviour after- wards declared. _ Angelic visions, and effusions of the Holy Spirit, now became almost frequent. Six months after the conception of Elizabeth, .the wife of Zacharias, the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, her cousin, of the house * Luke 1. 15-17. of The actual Appearance of the Messiab. 251 of David; saluting her as the destined sERM, Mother of the Lord. His birth was to be IX. | —~ miraculous; contrary to the order of na- ture, but conformable to the prophecy of Isaiah, which said, “ A VirGIn shall con- ceive and bear ASon.” The dignity of the Holy Child was now again distinctly pro- nounced by the Angel. < He shall be great, and shall be called (i. e. shall be) the Son of the Highest ; and the Lord God shail give unto him the throne of his father DAvip 5° — (according to the prophecies, as we have had abundant occasion to see)—* and he shall reign over the house of ‘facob for ever, and of bis Kingdom there shall be no end.” When Mary afterwards visited her cousin, the Holy Spirit fell upon the latter, and she saluted her at once, as the Mother of HER Lorp. Mary herself also was in- spired, as it appears, to pronounce that subline hymn of thanksgiving, which “Luke 1, 392, 33. begins, 252 SERM. TX. Stl tee The actual) Appearance of the Messiah. begins, “ My soul doth magnify the Lord !”" At the birth of John, further prodigies ap- peared ; the miraculous dumbness of Za- charias was by miracle removed; and he also was filled with the Holy Ghost, and uttered a discourse, abundant in reference to the former prophets, and full of actual prophecy. Of his new-born 'son, in par- ticular, he said,—‘* and thou, child, shalt be called the Propbet of the Highest, for thou shalt go before the face of THE LoRD" to pre- Ao To Joseph, the husband of Mary, another angelic vision appeared, pare bis ways’, which declared her innocence and sancti- ty, and conferred.on the child yet unborn . the name of Jesvs, signifying a SAVIOUR ; and coinciding with the name of him who had led the people of Israehinto the earthly -Canaan, as he was to open to them the heavenly. The birth of this child, when it * Compare this with what is said above in pp. 227 and ae Luke i. 76. a. took - The actual Appearance of the Messiab. 253 - took place, was the subject of hymns and serM.. songs of praise to a visible chorus of An- '*° \ns ye gels, appearing in the clouds of heaven. At the presentation of Christ in the Tem- . ple, there were again prophecies delivered, and they who waited for ibe glory of the Lord, returned their solemn thanks, that they had lived:to sce it manifested. I have drawn.these great events toge- ther, because, though they must all be known to every Christian, they have been _seldom, perhaps, collectively considered, as | showing that the long line of prophecies concerning Christ was thus completed, in a manner fully suited to the dignity of him who was to come ;-—the Messi1aun, the Son or Gop. The manner was such as few, if any, men could have conceived, and none surely would have dared to assert, without the warrant of truth; especially ata time when visions, prophecies, and mira- cles, had been so long unknown to all the 3 nation 254 SERM, IX, Of Fobn the Baptist. nation of the Jews. The simplicity of the Gospel narrative, compared with the mag- nificence of the events recorded, form such a combination as never could have arisen, but from the union of modest honesty with miraculous truth. John the Baptist, the immediate forerun- ner of Christ, not having authority to pro- pound the New Covenant, is considered as the last and greatest Prophet. under the Old. «“ The Propbets and the Law prophesied un- til Yobn*.’’ ‘This was the declaration of our Saviour, who pronounced also, that, ‘«< among those who are born of women, there isnot a greater prophet than ‘fobn the Bap- vist'.”” “© Nevertheless’, he adds, “ he that is least in the Kingdom of God is greater than be™,’ So wide is the disparity between the two Covenants, and so infinitely pre- ferable the latter to the former. John * Matth: xi. 13. ' Luke xi. 28. ™ Tb. performed Cur Saviour himself a Prophet. BES performed no miracle’, nor prophesied sERM. YX: ef any distinct event. He preached re-. | pentance and the remission of sins, and baptized with water; declaring that he who was immediately to. come, a person infinitely superior to himself, would bap- tize with the Holy Ghost and with fire. Jesus himself, in whom the Spirit of God was manifested, in all possible ways, being given to him without measure or re- straint; in teaching, spake as never man spake; in working miracles, exceeded every power that had been hitherto displayed on earth ; in prophesying, opened a new se- ries of predictions, and pointed out events immediate and remote, with a distinctness altogether unparalleled®. Our Saviour -was not only a perfect Prophet, but he was the first correct interpreter of ancient ® John x. 41. *See Newcome on our Lord’s Conduct, p. 288. prophecy. 256 Our Savour himself a Prophet. sERM. prophecy.. He came, as:he declared, “ not IX. to destroy the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfil them.” He undertook, however, to ful- fil them, in a sense which no man hitherto had expected; and no man, certainly, would have invented for them; with the thought of applying their predictions to himself. The triumphant representations of the Messiah had alone been perceived or attended to, in the Prophetic Volume; Jesus first turned to the opposite side of the picture, and showed that the “ son of man must SUFFER many things, and be re- jected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and BE KILLED?,” Messiah was certainly to bea Sovereign, of whose’ Kingdom there was to be no end: but Jesus expressly declared, that his Kingdom, as Man, was not of this world; and that his triumph would be ? Mark vii. 31. here- Our Saviour himself a Prophet. 257 hereafter, in the Clouds of Heaven. Con- ser, formably to this right interpretation of !*- ye the ancient prophecies, our Saviour pre- dicted the treachery of one disciple, the consternation and desertion ofthe rest, and his own death upon the cross. «His view, however, rested not here. "He looked forward to his resurrection and as- eension ; to the effusion of the Holy Spirit upon his Apostles; to their successful preaching in all the world; to the rejec- tion of the J ews, and the conversion of the Gentiles ; events which, though impossible tor human sagacity to foresee, certainly took place, and justified his words.» With more minute exactness did he foretell that judicial visitation of Jerusalem (at that time in the highest degree improbable), when its state and polity should be de- stroyed, and its magnificent temple level- led with the dust. ‘This prediction, strictly limited to time for its fulfilment, is, of all that ever were given, the most exact and s circum- a 58 Our Saviour himself a Prophet. SERM. circumstantial, and affords, therefore, the _'*. most perfect proof of miraculous foreknow- ledge in the prophet who pronounced it. Various other particulars, then hidden from every mortal eye, and discoverable by no analogy which could be founded on the course of human events, were predicted by our'blessed Saviour. Such as the per- secution of his disciples, the fortitude of some, and even the particular fate of others; the divisions and dissensions of | Christians among themselves, and the se- cure permanency of the Church, under every circumstance of external or internal disadvantage. These things, which have ~ always been fulfilling, from that time to this, and will be to the end of the world, are standing proofs of divine knowledge, in him by whom they were foretold ;—proofs incapable of refutation or contradiction. We Sead Our Saviour himself a Prophet. 259 We have arrived now at a part of theserM. subject where it is. convenient to pause. The Spirit of Prophecy, so far as it relates to the redemption of mankind, by the Sa- viour sent from God, has been traced, from the original promise to our first parents, through the Patriarchs, the Law, the Psalms, and the sixteen Canonical Pro- phets ; to the cessation of that gift in Is- rael, about a century after the return from the Babylonish captivity. We have seen it also restored, with much increase of splendour, after an interval of four hundred years, immediately before the birth of Christ ; whose appearance it solemnly an- nounced, and whose way it fully prepared. The dignity of the Messiah we have thus seen marked, by thesuddenand copious effu- sion of the Holy Spirit; by the renewal of divine visions and communications (sus- pended still longer than the gift of pro- phecy), and by the miraculous powers, so frequently and publicly exerted by Christ $g _ himself. IX. ery et 266 1X. Our Saviour himself a Prophet. serm. himself, If any additional weight of evi- dence can be wanting, after all these par- ticulars, let us recollect the divine Voice from heaven, which twice pronounced aloud, “ THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, IN WHOM I AM WELL PLEASED !” Of the prophetic spirit, as it was exerted by Christ himself, a brief account has now been given. I shall hereafter have occa- sion to dwell more particularly upon it. It continued, after him, to illuminate some of his disciples; by an examination of whose words, compared-with some predic- tions, even of thé prophets under the Law, we shall be enabled to show, that the chain of prophetic instruction, respecting sacred things, is continued even to the end of the world. On the prophecies whose accom- plishment is still future, we shall find un- doubtedly a degree of obscurity remaining. But let us recollect how completely the dubious parts of the predictions relating. to the is Our Saviour himself a Prophet. 261 the Messiah were cleared up by the life, srrm. death, and resurrection of Christ. How =, wonderfully, yet how satisfactorily, were reconciled in him the apparently contra- dictory predictions of triumph and humili- ation, of power and suffering, of low con- dition and of universal and endless empire. Contemplating these things, let us feel a full assurance, that the completion of the prophecies past, is a sufficient pledge for the accomplishment of the rest ; and (in- terpreting with caution, as not expecting to be made prophets ourselves by the aid of scriptural predictions) let us rest in per- fect faith and confidence, that not one syl- lable shall be unfulfilled, of all that is fore- told, in the genuine Scriptures of Truth. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but the. words of Christ and his Prophets shall not pass away. Now to God, &c. sg SERMON rr dng jt wl Silks mS. y +. ay 1219 are SERMON X, Preached December 4, 1808. a4 whe nak oats Leh aaey Wirgerass cee OST M4 . 1. i s vee a les : + cf roy SERMON X. PROPHECIES RELATING TO TIMES SUBSE*# QUENT TO THE MESSIAH. ener 899899) OG S660 camme—— HOSEA, Xli. 10. I have also spoken by the Prophets, and I have multi- pled Visions and used Similitudes, by the Ministry of the Prophets. ‘Tuus it is that the Divine Author of all sERM. Prophecy declares his interference, in giv- ag ing the knowledge of future events to his people ; with some intimation of the pe- culiar methods by which it was principally eonveyed, The methods here #mplied are three: 266_ SERM. x agreed View of the Modes of Prophecy. three: 1. Direct Declaration; 9. Vision: and, 3. Similitude. The first mode is so- lemnly used by Isaiah in the opening of his | prophecy, where he exclaims, “ Hear, O Heavens, and give ear, O Earth, for the Lord hath spoken.” At other times it is, “ thus saith the Lord”, or “the word of the Lord came to bis Prophet saying’, or something equivalent to these. In the second method of Visions were chiefly conveyed the impor- tant prophecies of Daniel, those of Ezekiel and others; particularly the great pro-~ phecy of the New Covenant, the Apoca~ lypse, and these visions usually comprised also Similitudes, or symbolical representa~ | tions of persons and things. Other Simi- dludes were occasionally exhibited by Pro- phets, enjoined to perform certain signifi~ cant actions ; and a third kind of Similitude occurs in the parables of our Saviour, many of which are of a prophetical nature, . Th a OS pa a ee Retrospect of the preceding Lectures. 267 In these, and other ways*, the Prophets sErM, have been enabled to impart a knowledge of futurity ; as on various subjects, so more particularly on that great point which has hitherto been the subject of these Lectures, THE ADVENT OF THE PROMISED REDEEM= ER. We have traced, in a chronological series, the prophecies, of all kinds, relating to our Saviour; thus completing the first part of our original plan», which had re- ference only to Curist, his Birth, Cha- racter, Office, and Dignity. This divi- sion, from the multiplicity of matter which it offered, even in the most cursory view, has occupied nine Lectures. It remains to contemplate, in the same mirror of pro- ~ phecy, the fate and fortunes of the Christian Church, which was the second division of our proposed enquiry; and this must be * “ Other ways” ; as when the Prophet appears to speak from himself, or even of himself, as in the Psalms. See Lect. II. p. 41. com-= x. ith” Mier 268 Second Division of the Subject. ‘SERM. comprised in the three remaining Lec~ died tures. The account must be, of course, compressed, but I trust it may be made sufficiently distinct. 9, : Second Diviston of the Subject. Il. Vhis part of the subject it will also be convenient to arrange ina kind of chro- nological order; but a chronology: of a different species from the former. Before, we traced the regular series and succession of Prophets, all tending te one point; now, we shall trace the succession of va- rious events, as foretold and marked by different Prophets, These events, in order to fulfil the plan of the present Lectures, must contain the principal features of his- tory, having reference to the fate of Chris- tianity, from the departure of our Saviour into heaven, to the final close of things : and lest we should be lost or confused, in so wide a fteld of enquiry, I purpose to se- sis | lect ee ee a a a _ Ten gréat Periods of Prophecy. 269 lect a limited number of these points, and SERM.. to show how distinctly they have been. * foretold by Prophets of various times ; not meaning to assert that other predictions may not be found referring to the same general periods, or even to some of the particular events; but producing these as a selection of the most remarkable and most important. The periods which I shall select will be ten in number; and may be thus enu- ‘merated :— 1. The rejection of the Jews, and call of the Gentiles. 2. The preaching of the Gospel through- out the world. 3. The persecutions of the Apostles and their converts. 3 4. The 270 Ten great Periods of Prophecy. SERM. 4. The destruction of Jerusalem. 5. The fate of Rome, and its conver~ sion. 6. The rise of Mahomet and the Sara~ cenic power. 7. The rise and character of Antichrist. 8. The conversion of the Jews. | g. The general prevalence of the Gos- pel. 10. The universal Resurrection, and Day of Judgment. These topics it will be right to take ac- cording to the natural order of time, as they have been now enumerated ; but the prophecies relating to them shall be rather given according to their dignity or preci- sion ; Rejection of the Jews, Ee, 271 sion; in consequence of which the first serm,. place will usually be assigned to the pre- , dictions of our Saviour himself ; though the same events may have been also foreshown by. Prophets of the first Cove- nant. 1. First, then, let us observe what the word of prophecy has said concerning the rejection of the Jews, and the calling of the Gentiles. It was frequently declared, by our blessed Saviour, that his personal mission was directed to the Jews. -To the Syro- phoenician woman, who entreated him to relieve her daughter, he said expressly, ‘* Lam not sent, but unto the lost sheep of the House of Israel*’’, which he also figura- tively expressed by saying, “ it is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast © Matth. xv. 24. ; it 279. SERM. ee te ed Rejection of the ews, ‘it to dogs*.” Conformably to this doc- trine, when he first sent out the twelve Disciples, he charged them, saying, “ Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not ; but go rather to the lost sheep of the House of 32 Israel*.’ But, though such was the fixed and appointed order of Providence, the pre- science of our Lord well knew what would be the result; which he therefore pointed out in several of his parables. Thus, in the parable of the householder, who plant- ed a vineyard, related by three of the Evan- gelists’, the husbandmen, who evidently represent the Jews, are related first to have beaten and slain the servants of the house- @ Matth. xv. 24, St. Mark has only the-latter ex- pression: (vii. 27.) which might perhaps have been thought doubtful, had ‘not St. Matthew, in the parallel place, given the literal declaration. © * Math. x. 5, and Matth. only. ® Matth. xxi. 93. © Mark xii.1. Luke xx. g. holder, and Call of the Gentiles. 273 holder, and lastly his own son. The con- sERM.: clusion therefore is, that, when the Lord Ghee of the vineyard cometh, “ be will miserably destroy those wicked men ®”’, and “ shall give the vineyard to others*.” Nor was this al- lusion overlooked by the Jews; for St. Luke adds, “ and when they heard it, they said, God forbid.’ Jesus then reminded them of the prophetic saying of the Psalm- ist ', “© The stone WHICH THE BUILDERS RE- FUSED 15 become the HEAD STONE OF THE CORNER’, and he left them so enraged against him, that the leaders of the Jews, ‘* the same hour, sought to lay bands on him ; for they perceived that he bad spoken this parable agaist them‘. Nor can we won- der that the Jews understood this allusion, for their prophets were full of the same image ; and Isaiah even expressly says, « the * Matth. xxi. qi. “eLuke xx. 16, and Mark xii. 9. _ “Ps. exvill. 22, See above, Lecture. VI. p. 156. * Luke xx. 19 ; also St. Matth. and Mark. “9 T vineyard 27 4 Rejection of the Fews, SHAM: vineyard of the Lord is the House of Israel’. The noble allegory of the Psalmist also, beginning,” « Thou bast brought a Vine out of Egypt ™’, is too solemnly impressive to have been forgotten by any Israelite, who had ever heard it read. Nothin g¢ but the rejection of the Jews, and the call of the Gentiles, can be intended by theclose of the parable of the Wedding Sup- per: for the King is there related to have said to his servants, “‘ the wedding ts ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. Go ye, therefore, into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage*.” The Jews were the guests originally invited, but, as they rejected the boon, others were f Ree Vv. 7. * Pan. Ixxx. 8. ® Matth. xxil.8. Ina similar, but not exactly parallel parable, recorded by St. Luke, the persons invited only make excuses, and their rejection is simply stated, with- out their punishment, which St. Matthew relates. See Luke, xiv. 2%. called and Call of the Gentiles, 275 called in, a promiscuous multitude from sero. Ds various parts. Other intimations of a si- milar kind may be found in various dis- courses ‘of our Saviour; from which several more obscure prophecies of the ancient prophets may be understoed.. As where Moses says, ‘ J will move them to jealousy with those that are not a people, I will pro- voke them to anger with a foolish nation? ;’ an obscure prophecy in itself, but applied by St. Paul to this subject : who also adds words of another prophet to the same ef- fect, “ But Esatas is very bold, and saith, Iwas found of them that sought me not, I was made manifest unto them thai sought not after me?.” “ But to Israel be saith, all day long * See Rom. x. 19. Folly is usually imputed in Scrip- ture to infidels. * Inthe original of Isaiah, “ / sazd behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name.” \xv. 1. A distinct prophecy of the rejection of the Jews, or rather their refusal to be converted, and the adoption of the Gentiles, is in Isai. xlix. “4, &c. * though Israel be not T 2, '« gathered, 26 SERM. po ttl ed Fiejection of the "fews; long have I stretched forth my bands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.” But still the predictions of our Saviour were the most distinct. To the Pharisees he said, << Other sheep I have whieh are not of this fold; them also must I bring, and they shall hear my voice*”’ ; and, when he had healed the servant of the Centurion, he pro- nounced, that “ many should come from the east and west, and should sit down with |“ Abrabam, Isaac, and Facob, in the Kingdom of Heaven*.”’ The Disciples, after the ascension of their Lord, were, in like manner, enjoined to begin their preaching at Jerusalem‘; and it was not till the Jews had been fairly gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord”, « Twill also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.” 9 Rom. x. 19+. * John x. 16. * Matth. vill. a1. ‘ Luke xxiv. 47. | tried, and Call of the Gentiles. 277 tried, that these inspired teachers thought srrm. themselves fully authorized to address the eon? Gentiles, Thus at Antioch, in particular, when the Jews contradicted and_ blas- phemed, “ Paul and Barnabus waxed bold, and said, It WAS NECESSARY that the word of God should first have been spoken unto you ; but seeing ye put it from you, and judge your- selves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles*.”’. Thus were the pro- phecies above-mentioned fulfilled in the most literal manner: the Jews refused the proffered mercy; to the Gentiles it was then displayed, and by them was ons oma received. It can hardly be necessary to remark, that our Saviour, when he foretold these things, could not, from any human foresight, have the smallest reason to expect the events which thus ensued. Amon ¢ the people of the " Acts xiii. 46. T 3 Jews, 278 SERM. eee The preaching of the Gospel Jews, he was in general so revered and ad- mired, that a mere man would have been confident of success; and would by no means have anticipated the inveterate ma- lice of their rulers, and the consequent apostacy (as it might not improperly be called) of the body of the people. 2. Let us proceed then, in the second place, to notice the predictions which fore- told the preaching of the Gospel through- out the world, its rapid progress, and other particulars relating to it. Our Saviour, - whose prophecies are usually the most ex- plicit, said distinctly, * This Gospel- of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then THE END shall come*’ : which end was, as we shall soon'more fully see, the end of the le- gal establishment of Moses,—the destruc- tion of Jerusalem. The rapid and extensive diffusion of the Gospel, in comparison with x Matth. xxiv. 14. the ae ee @ Tl throughout the World. . 279 the smallness of its beginnings, is aptly sem. expressed by our Saviour, in the simili- _*: tude of the grain of mustard seed, which being among the smallest of seeds, grows up to a considerable size;-and the same was implied by comparing it to léeaven, a small quantity of which quickly affects the -whole mass. This wonderful prevalence of the Gospel was to precede the jud gments denounced against Jerusalem ; and conse- quently was ascertained by Christ himself to be within the life of some of the Apos- tles. We find accordingly, that as their preaching was continued, the word of God grew and multiplied, or mightily grew and prevailed ¥, according to the expres- sions of St. Luke (in the Acts of the Apostles) ; and that St. Paul, in writing to the Romans, was able to apply the pro- phetic words of the Psalmist to this sub ject: “ So then faith cometh by bearing, and ¥ Acts)xil. 24, xix, 20. T 4 bearing 280 The preaching of the Gospel sERM. hearing by the word of God. But I say, have xy they not beard? Yes, verily, their sound went out into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.’”’ When the Gospel had proceeded to Rome, it had, in- deed, in some sense, embraced the world, its progress having been first made through the vast space of continent which divides Je- rusalem from Rome, to that centre of empire and intelligence. St.Paul, therefore, in writ- ing to the Colossians also, speaks of the Gospel as having been preached to every creature under beaven*,”’ and as being come unto them, as it was “in all the world;’’ expressions which, if not litérally intended, denote at least a very wide diffusion. To this then, we are hereby fully authorized to apply various words of the Prophet Isaiah ; such as, “ Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, for more are the children of the deso- * Rom. x. 18, . * Col. i, 23, and x. 6. late, throughout the World. 281 late, than the children of the married wife >, sERM. ; ce 47? ae Xx. saith the Lord for thou shalt break forth on. the right band and on the left ; and thy seed shall inberit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.’ And again, ‘ So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth ; it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing where- to I sent it**.”’ Many intimations of this kind may be found, throughout the Pro- phets, which all received their completion in the rapid prevalence of the Gospel on the preaching of the Apostles. Thus also, « Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord ts risen upon thee. For be- hold darkness shall cover the earth, and gross ‘*» The union between God and his chosen people, is often spoken of by all the Propets, under the symbol of a marriage. Other nations were of course considered as desolate, having no husband. “© Js, liv. ly sve. darkness 282 SERM. D. ee Persecution of the Apostles. darkness ike people; but THE LORD SHALL ARISE UPON THEE, avd bis glory shall be seen- upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising**.” It must suffice at present to have pointed out a few of the more remarkable of these predictions, leaving the rest to the further enquiry of those, who shall be desirous to seek for them. g. But while our Saviour Christ fore- saw, from his own preseience, as well as from the light of the Prophets, the great and speedy extension of his Gospel, he was far from being uninformed respecting the difficulties it would have to encounter, and the persecutions his Disciples must undergo. These things were clearly and positively foretold, as every Chris- tian will recollect, even to the Disciples themselves. Such warnings were indeed Fils¥dx. “1; Bec. frequently Persecution of the Aposties. 283 frequently repeated by him. “ Beware of SERM. men, for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues, and ye ‘shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake®.” « If they bave perse- cuted me, they will also persecute you ee,” And again, “ they shall put you out of the synagogues, yea, the time cometh, that who- soever killeth you will think that be doeth God service ™.”* « Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you ; and ye shall be bated of all nations for. my name's sake*.” Every extremity of iniquity, which the divisions of men’s minds, on this subject, should produce, was also foreseen by our Saviour. « “ I come”, said he (speaking of the inevitable event, not of his own de- sign), “ to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughler against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against ber mother- € Matth. x. 07. 6 John xv. 20. » John xvi. 2. # Matth. xxiv. 9. in-law, 264, Persecution of the Apostles. SERM. i-law, and aman’s foes shall be they. of bis 3 ee own household**.’ Thus were his Dis- ciples fully warned of the treatment they were to encounter; but they were told, at the same time, of the blessedness by which those sufferings were finally to be rewarded. “« Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say,all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Re- joe and be exceeding glad, jor great is your reward in heaven.” Hence was it that the Apostles were enabled to meet these sufferings with minds. prepared for _the encounter; and actually rejoiced in those evils which human nature js the least inclined tobear. «St. Paul, in the fer- vency of his holy zeal, said with sincerity, “ [ take pleasure in injirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake™:"-And St. James ex- horted his Christian converts thus: « My ** Matth, x. 24..." Matth. v, 11.: ™ 2 Cor, xii. 10. brethren, Persecution of the Apostles. a85 brethren, count it all joy, when ye fall into sERM. X. divers temptations’ or trials from persecu- oye tion” ; and St. Peter also, ‘* Rejoice, in- asmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s suffer= ings: that when bis glory shall be revealed ye may be glad unto exceeding Joy.’ Again, « Tf any man suffer as a Christian, let bim not be ashamed ; but let him glorify God on this bebalf.” These early struggles of the Gospel do not appear to have been distinctly opened to the ancient Prophets; and the later per- secutions of Pagan Rome, and of the Anti- christian power, belong rather to a subse- quent part of our enquiry. Let us then, for the present, suspend our enquiry ; re~ serving for the two remaining Lectures the vast body of prophetic evidence which illustrates some of the ensuing periods of Christian history. What we have at pre- { ne Jam. 1. 2. °° 1 Pet.iv. 19-16. erpe ct os sent 286. Persecution: of the Apostles. SERM. sent noticed serves principally to demon- > strate the divine prescience of our Savi- our, which will appear also more amply hereafter in many wonderful particulars, such as my subject will lead me to unfold. Let us, in the mean time, remain im- pressed with this solemn truth ; that in the more ways the subject of prophecy is viewed, the more complete, and indeed demonstrative, will appear the evidence, that the whole system is divine ; and that its parts and periods were all arranged and. appointed, from the beginning, by the in- finite wisdom of God. Now 6 God, &c. SERMON SERMON XI. Preached Fanuary 22, 1804. f 1 ; } . at 4 a ahs 4 , He. te oh eg) % 5 ee Be hep amy poi nay ; w ! t J Y + As roa hee | ‘, *, . * d ¢ ae . a ; " ' ‘ 5 "0 "9 ere PPR? he yilsate “Ua ae a +0 ihe : f y, ‘ha i ® ag fy etal enti ia | hace eas ; 4 y sect) hay Wa Ceo ik) dae ake eS pe es Beive Shs Ue ah gaa a eR i Fl ie ee ‘ ag a aA ae hee P ; Feat oe eda” ih Blane rank RMA Ark Pop hi Bergin pi i F fi : ” Wicd crifices, and placing the abomination that : maketh desolate’, cannot well be under- stood of any other power ; and the less so, because these latter words were, by our Sa- viour himself, applied to the Roman attack of Jerusalem; with an express mention of the prophet Daniel. This being so un- derstood, the ensuing verses of that chap- ter, namely, the 32d to the end of the gsth, must be conceived to describe the assailing of the Christians in various ways, by favouring those who opposed or apostatized from them; and by persecuting the saints with severity ;—to point out the firmness of : those whe should be truly faithful,under all these trials ; and the treacherous adherence of false brethren, when they should have gained a degree of advantage, after their sufferings. ‘The words thus explained are these, in our established version, « And such ‘ ° / cee " Matth. xxiv. 15. Mark xiii. 14, Qs - Prophecies relating to the Romans. 809 as do wickedly against the Covenant”, that is, SERM. Sit the opposers or apostates, “ shall be corrupt =~, by flatteries ; but they that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. And they that understand among the people shall in- struct many’, make many converts ; “ yet ihey shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. Nov, when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help, but many shall cleave to them with flatteries,’ This latter verse, however, is more clearly rendered by a modern translator. “ But, after they shalt have fallen, they shall be relieved with a little assistance, when many shall be fastened upon them through flatteries.” This relief, after their persecutions, is understood to be the conversion of the ruling powers, the Em- perors, to the faith ; which, though it re- lieved them in temporal matters, intro- duced many spiritual evils, * Wintle. x 3 If B10, SERM. Prophecies relating to the Romans. If the degree of obscurity still attached to this part of Daniel’s prophecy, should ‘render it less satisfactory to some minds, we may turn to the Christian prophecy vouchsafed to the Apostle John, after the fulfilment of the judgments which had _ been denounced against Jerusalem. -In this inspired book, entitled Apoca-~ lypse, or Revelation, though there are va- rious things obscure, and that obscurity has been increased by the injudicious attempts of many to interpret the parts of it which are not intended yet to be understood, yet there is much on which the most learned and sagacious interpreters have in general agreed, On an attentive examination, there seems to be little, if any, room for doubt, that with the 6th chapter of that prophecy, where the sealed book is solemn- ly unfolded, by him only who was worthy to open it, THE Lams or Gop, begins a delineation of events, commencing soon after Prophecies relating \to ibe Romans. Qtr after the time of the Apostle, andexténded SERM~ for many centuries. Lhe - seven, séals, Hie which must be understood..as opening, so many sections of the book,- contain,! by very, general consent, the» History of the Roman ‘World, described under, general characters, as far as beyond’ the middle of the fourth ‘century; when the imperial throne was divided into two parts, under Valens and Valentinian. The seven trum- pets extend far beyond the ultimate fall of that empire, and the last of them, appa= rently, to times which even now. are fu- ture. I know not’ that it would be very useful, even if the extent of the present Lectures would, permit it, to go-into much. detail concerning) the particulars of these predic- tions. Lhese things, requiring the com- parison of an extensive line of history, with the words of Revtlation, are fitter for pri- vate study than.for public hearing, and . | X 4 will gi2 SERM. XI. ead Prophecies relating to the Romans. will be found explained at large in many wellknown books. My plan has been, rather to give a connected outline of prophecy, so far as it relates to the Saviour, and the Christian Church, than to expatiate upon many particulars. This sketch has been rapid, but it has been chronologically di- gested, from the beginning of the world, to the period of which I am now treating ; namely, that between the fall of Jerusa- lem, and the conversion of the Roman Emperors to Christianity. What remains must be, In some respects, still more ra- pid; but, by selecting a few points, or epochas, on which to fix our view, I trust it will be rendered sufficiently distinct. The first five seals, in the Book of Re- velation, are even there rather hastily passed over. They may be characterized generally as describing slaughters, mi- series, and persecutions. The sixth seal is that which, in the common interpreta- | tions, —— ee ee Prophecies relating to the Romans. — 313 tions, refers to the period of our presentsERM. | contemplation. It may be considered as aes containing two great features: the down- fall of the powers and establishment of Hea- thenism, and the confirmation and security of Christianity. The former is represent- ed by the convulsions of the earth and hea- venly bodies, and the terror of the wicked at the prevalence of the Lamb ; the latter, by the sealing of the twelve tribes, who are here understood to represent the con- verts, now publicly and securely baptized", and making an open profession of their re- ligion, instead of worshipping by stealth, and in secrecy, ‘They are arrayed in white robes, as purified by the atonement of the Lamb, and are said to be those ‘“‘ whoa have come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb™”.”” Many of the images here " Bishop Newton on Prophecy, vol. ui. p. 79. mm Ch. vil. 14. em ployed 314 * Prophecies relating to the Romans. sERM.employed seem to be applicable -also to their ‘final acceptance and happiness in heaven; but this secondary allusion, con- sidered with the other circumstances, will hardly be thought, iby: those who recollect what we have had occasion to remark in other instances, to throw any great ob+ scurity upon the prophecy. ‘The secure establishment of the Church might be re- garded as’ a. metaphorical heaven, com-- pared ‘with the ‘extreme misery and’ ill usage under which the Christian world had eroaned, through all the period of perse~_ cution. ~The seventh seal is then opened, with’ a solemn pause; during» which the prayers of the saints'ascend propitiously to Heaven, and to’the Throne of God him- self. IY sili then; is a natural period in the prophecy. The seven seals of the mys- tical book are disclosed; and the doc- trine Prophecies concerning Mabomet. , 315 trine of the Lamb is become triumphant serm. over its first opponents. 6. This leads me to the next remarkable period which I have enumerated, the Rise of Mahomet, and the Saracenic Power™, This was too remarkablea circumstance to be passed over by the Prophetic Spirit. It is depicted in the Revelation, «at the sounding of the fifth trumpet ; and it is pointed out also as the first WOE °° which fell upon the Christian world, after its triumph over external opposition. It is described as a vast smoke arising from the bottomless pit, out of which smoke pro- —™ Dr. Apthorpe sees not only the Saracens, but also the Goths and Vandals, and the corruptions of Rome, in Isaiah Ivi, g—-12. See his second vol... p. 186. But this, like some other applications hazarded by that learned writer, will convince few readers. - 9% Atthe end of this trumpet, it is said, ‘* One woe 2s past; and behold there come two woes more hereafter.” Ch. ix. 12, ceed 4s rye 316 Prophecies concerning Mabomet. SERM. ceed locusts, having power to sting as scors XT. pions. The warlike disposition pions e ke disposition of these enemies of Christianity is marked by the following images: “ and tbe shapes of the locusts were like unta horses prepared unte batile—and their faces were as the faces of men.’ The false prophet himself seems to be depicted as “a star which fell from beaven”’, having “the key of the bottomless pit ;’—and what can more aptly represent a false and delusive doctrine, than a smoke which » darkens the air, and obscures the sun it- self? If we consider the truth of the Gospel as represented by the light of the sun, in how many countries was this light violently obscured by the prevalence of this Tartarean smoke! Yet every thing conspires to mark that this interruption © was not peaceably introduced; but by the sword, and the force of arms. The Sara- cenic locusts had “ breastplates, as it were breastplales of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots, of many "horses Prophecies concerning Mahomet. 819 horses running to battle?” : and ‘ they bad asERM. XT. king over them’, who, for the distinguished iniquity of his undertakings, is termed the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is ABADDON, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apo.- LYON 19,”° The prophet Daniel, to whom, under the first Covenant, were indulged the re- motest prospects of futurity, seems to have delineated the same power, under the name of ‘ the King of the South.” He is said to come against the King of the North, whose picture we shall examine more particularly hereafter, “like a whirl- wind; with chariots and with horsemen, and ” He is described as ever-running many countries, among which is particularly mentioned, “ thé glorious and’, doubtless the land of Pales- with many ships". ® Rey. ix. 9. 44 Jb, 12. * Dan. xi. 40. 3 _ tine, 318 Prophecies concerning Mabomet. SERM. tine, with Edom, Moab; Ammon, Egypt; XI i. Libya, and /Xthiopia; all countries in which the Mohammedan power has since conspicuously prevailed... Concerning. his downfall also, or end, some things are mentioned by that prophet, but these are evidently at this time unfulfilled. His end is not yet come. | | The extent of this Discourse admonishes me now to-pause.: What remains of thesub- ject must be comprised inva single Lecture, | in which, though it will not be possible to expatiate greatly on any part, there will _ be sufficient space to point out many won- derful particulars; and, I trust, to leave upon the minds of the hearers a’ strong impression of the truth and certainty of those. prophetic writings, which’ ‘have given, in an anticipated view, ‘so large a portion of the history of mankind; and. particularly of those things which pertain to their redemption by the blood of the ! 2 Divine Prophecies concerning Mabomet. 319 Divine Saviour; and the trials throughsErm. ‘which he has determined to conduct the oie faithful, to a state of everlasting blessed- ness. Now to God, &c. SERMON } » | ¢, mr ¢ | a \ * r> 4 EO ie eit mre DY vA 34) a | Ve; rar ¥ a Ae reer DS Ae a . ws ) 5 , 40: : ‘ ; . et GNA . 5 aes oo sok i \ oe | Pe wie te ae see ster lm “women ; i EY ont “# "\@ ke a Z ‘ on, * ee! « SERMON XU, THE FOUR LAST PERIODS OF PROPHECY. reread 8 0 6S & HGS 0 00 0 @ aseqemesy; REV. XIX. PART OF VER. 10. Worship God : for the testimony of Fesusis the spirit of prophecy. Or this testimony, a general and cone sERM. nected view, deduced through all ages of a the world, has been the object of the present Lectures. We have already seen, in this mi- -raculous proof, much to admire : and much that is in itsown nature calculated to com- ¥ 2 | mand, 324 Prophecies relating to Antichrist. SERM. mand, and confirm, the belief of every XII. thinking person. The object of the whole is Jesus Christ, who is seen throughout ; either as coming TO SAVE, or as coming TO JUDGE: and we are now to conclude the predictions which lead to the latter period, It might perhapshave been expected, that a plan, which Omnipotence should vouch- safe to conduct, would proceed with uniform prosperity: but all must then have been mi- raculous, over-ruling even the natural pro~ pensities of men. Yet the expectation was so likely to arise, that, in leaving the passions and propensities of men to produce their spontaneous effects, the Almighty thought fit to silence the objector, and confirm the faith of the pious*, by marking, in vari- . : ous * “ Cujus quidem intelligentia miré facit ad fidem pio- yum sustentandam, qui videntes, in loco ubi olim flo. rebate Propbecies relating to Antichrist. B85 ous ways, his perfect foreknowledge of the SERM. eventual operation of those causes. Thus ods the sufferings of the Messiah were foretold before his birth; the persecutions, and divi« sions of his disciples, were anticipated by Christ himself; and a great apostacy, which was to make long inroads on the prosperity of his Church, was distinctly described by Prophets and Apostles. 7. The author and supporter. of this apostacy was to be the person of whose xise and character I have undertaken next to speak, under the name of ANTICHRIST. The expectation of this offender, as des tined to appear among Christians, was diffused even in the time of the Apostles. rebat Ecclesia, erectam esse monarchiam Christo adver- sam, que jam per multa secula Ecclesiam oppressit, graviter perturbaretur, nisi Spiritus Sanctus nos pridem monuisset hec eventura, ne malis improyisis épprimere- : Bue mur.”—Petri Molingi Vates, p. 395: ¥ 3 © Little 326 Prophecies relating to Antichrist: SERM. “ Little children”, says St. John, * ye have XII. heard that ANTicHRIST shall come.” He speaks of it as an opinion then current 5” and though he proceeds, in a style very common with the sacred writers, to intro- duce some general admonitions, founded on the literal meaning of the word Anti christ (i. é. an opposer of Christ), and therefore says, that already there were «¢ many Antichrists®’, yet we are not to consider him as thereby weakening the doctrine of one distinguished ANTICHRIST, or ANTICHRISTIAN POWER, Which he was afterwards to descfibe, with such distinct- ness, under a peculiar influence of the “Poly Spirit. The only scriptural autho- rity, for the use of the term Antichrist, is found in these paflages of St. John’s © Epistles ; but the attention of the Chris- tian world, to the person so prefigured, > John it. 18, © In which sense he again uses the name, 2 John, 7. must ee Sa ee en vr. Prophecies rélating to Antichrist. $27 kiust have been attracted with great force sERM. by the description of him, under the name *1!- of THE Man oF Sin, given by St. Paul, in the second Epistle to the Thessalonians. The day of Christ, he told them, will not come, until there shall have been first “ @ falling away”, a grand apostacy, and that Man oF Sin be revealed, whom he styles also, “ THE SON OF PERDITION.” When the sacred Code was completed; and opportunity was given for comparing: the several parts of Scripture with each other, it appeared that, in various pas~ sages, a Similar description had been intro- duced of sorhe unknown personage, whose appearance was to be attended with many pernicious consequences, Thus St. Paul, in his first Epistle to Timothy, almost in the same words as those already stated, speaks of an dpostacy to come ?; 4 Chap. ive 4s Gmosncovlal tives THs TiFews, Y 4 * some 328 SERM. MI. | Prophecies relaiing to Antichrist. | ‘« some shall depart’, or apostatize, ‘ from the faith” ; the most striking particulars of which apostacy are then mentioned. In the Revelation of St. John, many visions and descriptions tend evident- ly to the same purpose; and, looking back to the prophecies of Daniel, even there also are passages so entirely coinci- dent with those in the Apocalypse, that no teasonable doubt can be entertained of their alluding to the same persons and events. It cannot be denied that various inter pretations have been given to these Scrip- tures; the discussion of which may be seen in many authors‘: but a few leading considerations seem to me to fix the truth, beyond much chanee of error. If, for in * Particularly in Bishop Newton on the Prophecies, vol. ii. p. 374-391; and the eighth Sermon of Bishop Hurd at this Lecture, &c. stanee, Prophecies relating to. Antichrist. 329 stance, THE TIME and THE PLACE of this sERM. Malihy phenomenon be determined by the Pro- \o ytd phets, with sufficient clearness, it will re- main fot us to examine only whether the time be arrived; and whether, in the place assigned, any thing has happened which bears a strong resemblance to the thing foretold. 1. Tur time fixed by the prophecies is after the fall of the Roman empire. 5t. Paul, in the passage first cited, as address- ed to the Thessalonians, speaks of an im pediment which at that time prevented the ‘appeatance of the Man of Sin, and would prevent, till it should be removed. « And now’, he says, “ ye know what withboldeth, that be might be revealed im bis time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work, only be who now letteth, will let, until be be taken out of the way.” There is undoubtedly an obscu- “rity in these words ; but it is an obscurity, the cause of which appeared evident in very $39 SERM. ».@ Ow Prophecies relating to Antichrist. very early times. The apostle spoke of the Roman empiie, the future removal of which could not then be explicitly announced, without giving cause of real danger, and of obloquy apparently just, against those who should embrace and circulate the opinion. St. Chrysostom, writing in the fourth century, says that some understand the grace of God, as that which withheld; but, he argues, if the Apostle had meant that, he would not have spoken enigmatically ; but, since he meant the Roman empire, he wrote covertly, not being willing to encounter superfluous and unprofitable dangers‘. The opinion, however, * Enrsidn Ue wept ths Payainns apis todré Qnow, cinotws nvikaro, iat téws Oni ovvernieoutrws* ods yap iesArero aepitlas Px Opas 4, - Ne i) hs 4 t N/ > 8 t “ Sab A AVRVEXETURI, xas avoWNTOUS xivdureS. EL yap elarey Ors ELinpoy veEesdy nalarvOncslas 4 Pwujratwr apyns dn evdéws ay aurdy x2 xalopvEay, t ~ ‘ \ 4 €/ qa ¢ ? x ‘ ~ 4 Ws Auatava, Kai TES Tiss eravias, ws ini retTw Cdilas, xal span TEVOPEVES. Quoniam autem hoc dicit de Romano imperio, méri- ya : ton S ; a to Jat seniginaticé et adumbraté est focuttis, Nequée enim Propbecies rélaiing to Antichrist. 33% however, prevailed, that such was the se- SERM. d XII. cret meaning of the Apostle, and it ha ) been received even so early as the second century ; when it was alledged by Ter- tullian, as a reason why the Clifistians prayed for the continuance of the Roman power, that they considered it as keeping off a great evil, by which the world was then threatened ; namely, the appearance of the Man of Sin&. A cloud of witnesses has been produced to demonstrate, that such was the yeneral expectation of intel+ ligent Christians, while the Roman em- pire yet remained", The use of which enim volebat supervacaneas suscipere Inimicitias et ins utilia pericula, Nam si dixisset futurum jam ps paulo past Romanum ev erteretur imperium, eum potius tat. quam exitiosum et pestiferum hominem confodissent, ét fideles omnes, ut’ qui sub ¢o viverént et militaréfit. Homil. 4. Epist. 2. Thess. Edit. Montf, T. xi. p. §29- Tertull. Apol. c. 99. apud. Newt. 2. 413. * See Bishop Newton, vol. ii, p. 12-428. ; | testi- 932 Prophecies relaiing to Antichrist, SERM, testimony is to show, that the application XII. of this passage to a power which has:since alle passage to a p | been seen to succeed, with an authority not less extended, and, for some time; as absolute as that of the Roman Emperors, is not the effect of modern or partial opinions, but rises naturally out of the plainest and most obvious construction of the Apostles’ words ; since it occurred to those,.on whom nothing similar to that, which some will call our prejudices, could possibly have any operation; persons who lived before | the impediment was removed. After the downfall of the Roman empire then, and . if W hot before, nor probably long after, (since the existence of that power was the only obstacle) we are to look for the manifesta-" tion of Antichrist. Thus much, then, ig without difficulty determined, concerning the time of Antichrist, 2. The place is the next object of our enquiry, and this is still more easily ascer- tained. Prophecies relating to Antichrist. 333 tained. For in the various descriptions SERM. which are met with in the Apocalypse, re= reas lative to this enemy of truth, there happens to be one which is absolutely decisive. Both the Prophet Daniel and the Apostle John saw, among their prophetic visions, a beast having TEN norNs. In the for- yner vision, these were the horns of the fourth beast, which manifestly represented the Roman empire; but in the latter, the object seen was a distinct creature, which, with the same number of horns, Is described to have seven heads: and these heads are expressly explained by an An- gel to represent “ seven mountains’, on which the obnoxious power resided'. No- thing can be more perfectly known, to every one at all tinctured with ancient Jearning, than that its situation upon seven hills was the acknowledged charac- teristic of Rome. The City of Seven Hills i Rey, xvii. 9. The power is there called é7e oman, being the whore of Babylon. ; 1S 334 Prophecies relating to Antichrist. SERM. Is its appropriate title*; the seven. hills Be are well known by name, and frequently recounted ; nar can a more suitable desig- nation of any place be assigned or con-+ ceived. To be however; if possible,. still ' more explicit, the Angel also points out ta St. Jahn, as the object of his vision, « that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth}. The place then of the Anti- ' * Prudentius is perhaps the first writer who uses’ the word Sepiicolls, but the Sepirmontiale Sacrum, annually kept in honour of the seven mountains, is mentioned by Suetonius. The seven mountains are noticed as charac- teristic by the best Roman writers.— Virgil says of Rome, Septemque una sibi mura ¢circumdabit arces. —Pro- pertius, Septem urbs alta jugis, toto qux presidet orbi— Claudian, : Quz septem scopulis zonas imitatur Olympi; and similarly many others. It is true, that Constantinople also was said to stand upon seven hills, but they are less famous, and less characteristic. P. Gylli Const. i. 5: ' Here again the Woman is the object in question ; but the woman 1s clearly only another typification of the same thing. Rey. xvi. 18, ea christian 5 Prophecies relating to Antichrist. 39 christian power isundoubtedly Rome; and, sERM. putting together the two points thus a termined, Antichrist is clearly and de- cidedly the power which should prevail in Rome, after the downfal of the empire. ~ Inthe different prophecies of Daniel and St. John, upon these subjects, there is at once a similarity which marks that their views tend to the same purpose, and a di- versity which proves that the latter Pro- phet does not copy from the former. In ‘—Daniel, the four great empires of the world, the Assyrian, the Persian, the Grecian, and the Roman, are represented by four beasts ; the last of which has TEN HoRNS. Now, the explanation of this lat- ter symbol (though well known, in vari- pus ways, as denoting power™) was not left to human interpreters, but was given » Even in Greek and Roman authors, a similar use ig sometimes made of the words signifying a horn. by ww 336 Prophecies relating to Antiebrist. SERM. by an Angel to the Prophet himself. « The *IT- fourth beast’, said the Angel", comment- ing on the vision before related°, “ shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth’ ,—< and ihe ten borns out of this kingdom, are TEN KINGS that shall arise.” St. John, as he lived after the destruction of the three first em- pires, had no concern with any revelation relating to them; but he also saw a beast “ rise up out of the sea, having seven heads, and TEN HORNS’; and lest the latter symbol should yet be mistaken, “* upon bis horns TEN crowns?.” ‘The reader of Daniel would be prepared, by the interpreting Angel, to suppose that the ten horns must signify ten kings; but, for more distinct- ness, they’ are here actually crowned ; and the seven heads havealready been shown to designate Rome, as the seat of the original power. [rom both prophets then, weare a authorized to conclude, that the Roman * Dan. viii'ag.0° 0° Namely; vii. 7. ® Rev. xiii. 3. 3 empire Prophecies relating to Autiebeit 387 empire would be divided into ten king- SERM. doms, in the enumeration of which there te is a tolerable consent among interpreters 4. Clear it is undoubtedly, to every eye, that, from the ruins of the Roman domi- nion, several distinct kingdoms arose ; of which the principal still remain, and form _ the grand divisions of that terrestial space, over which the Romans had before pre- vailed. But among the ten kingdoms thus de- scribed by the prophet Daniel, arose an eleventh, which was at first small, but by degrees prevailed over others, and became a great and tyrannical power, “ speaking great words against the Most High, wearing out the Saints of the Most High, and thinking to change times and laws*.” Here, then, we shall particularly observe that diversi- 1 See Bishop Newton on the Prophecies, vol. i, p: 460, &c. * Dan. vii, 25. Zz ty, 338 Prophecies relaling to Antichrist. SERM, ty, which is mixed with the general simi- A's larity of these two prophets. For a little further examination may satisfy us, that this eleventh horn of Daniel is actually the beast with seven. beads and ten borns, which appeared to St. John in the Revela-. tion. It had seven heads, to mark that the seat of power was the same with that of the fourth beast, or fourth empire,.in Daniel; and it had ten horns, to show that it was already divided, as the Angel had foretold to Daniel it should be divided. This coincidence appears with most cer- tainty in the duration assigned to each power, which is precisely the same. Of the eleventh power in Daniel, it is said, that dominion should be given into his hands, for ‘* a lime and times, and the divid- ing of a time’: .. years, and half a year; or three years and 3) that is, for a. year, two a half. Now three years and a half com- * Dan. vii. 25. prise . "a |, sas. - a. ee a P Prophecies relating to Antichrist. 339 prise exactly forty-two months, which isszrm. XIf. the period given also to the Apocalyptic beast with seven heads and ten horns; “ and power was given unto him (says St. John) to continue forty and two months*.” If a further explanation of this period be required, it will be sufficient to recall to mind, that, in the prophetic style, days usually stand for years ; and that, there- fore, 1260 years, being equal in number to the days contained in the periods seve- rally mentioned by Daniel and St. John, may be supposed to be the duration assign- ed by the Spirit of Prophecy to the Anti- christian Dominion. Whence the begin- ning of this period is to be reckoned, can- not perhaps be known, with entire cer- tainty, till the termination of it shall have arrived. * Rev. xill.. 5. Z2 The 340 Prophecies relating to Antichrist. sERM. The principal circumstances relative to XIT, 22 Dan. vii. 20. this predicted personage, may thus be col- lected: from various prophecies. | The power of Antichrist was to be of such a nature, that it could »not prevail till the Emperors should cease to reign in Rome, where it was to be situated. Antichrist ‘was to arise, at first Imper- ceptibly ,. after the’ downfal of . the Emperors*, when ‘their empire should have béen divided into’ separate govern- ments’, three of tvhich he was to take to himself *, and exert an influence over the yest. °He was to assume honours and prerogatives due only to. God, within the * Dan. vil. 8. *@ Thess, it. 7, 8. » Dan. vii. 7, 8; also 20, 21, 24. Rev. Xk. 1. * Dan. ut supra. The three are explained to be, i. The Exarchate of Ravenna; 2. The Kingdom of the Lombards; 3. the State of Rome.—Bishop Newton, i. 481, &c. Church Prophecies relating to Antichrist. 941 Church of God himself», forbidding tosERM. marry “, making vain distinctions of meats spi and times, and boasting of feigned mira- cles “4, yet honouring false protectors “, and possessing a dreadful power of persecution against those who should refuse submission to him, The duration of his. influence was. to be. long, above twelve hundred years ®; consequently no single human being could be intended, but a long suCc= cession of persons, bearing the same cffice and power ; and that, specifically in Rome, ~° the city of seven hills. If these very striking circumstances, united in one picture, have led Protestant bb 9 Thess. ll. 4- 4 Tim. iv. 3. also Dan. xi. 37. “9 Thess. ii. 9. e Mahuzzim, Gods protectors ; apparently well inter- preted of the worship of Saints and Angels. Dan. xi. 98. * Rey. xiil. 7. © Dan. and Rey. as in page 339. hh Ut supra. Z 3° Divines 342 SERM, XII. re Prophecies relating to Antichrist. Divines to make an application of them very offensive to another division of the Christian world, from which, however, they thought themselves obliged in con- science to separate ; it will be necessary to prove, before they can or ought to be per- suaded to relinquish it, either that these prophecies have not yet been begun to be fulfilled (which, in the face of St. Paul’s declaration, of what was the only impedi- ment, will be extremely difficult), or that they are still more applicable to some other power, Till these things shall have been proved, decisively and clearly, I cannot * T have not noticed the threefold Antichrist, maintain- ed by avery eminent and learned divine, in the second vo- lume of Mr. Kett’s very useful work on Prophecy, because, though I by no means undertake to refute it, I consider it as at least in want of further confirmation, which can- not be said of a doctrine so long established in the Pro- testant Communion, as that Papal Rome isthe Antichrist of St. John, the Man of Sin of St. Paul. think Prophecies relating to Antichrist. 243 think that the present are times for conceal- SERM. ing or departing from the opinion held by Adks the firstReformers of Religion, and support- ed by the soundest and acutest theologians of the Protestant persuasion“; ; and particu- larly by the best divines of our own distin- guished Church. The Founder of, these Lectures, a man of no small powers of mind, was so persuaded of the importance of these truths, that he made the support- ing of them an express condition for his Preachers. Nor can any one with pro- priety undertake to give the Lectures, who is not so persuaded. With respect to what has now been said upon the subject, let it be observed, that the matter has been here in the closest manner compressed ; and that ample room k« The same sentiment is expressed by Mr. Zouch, ina valuable, though small book, entitled, ‘‘ An Attempt to ‘Mustrate some of the Prophecies”, &c. p. 229; published in 1800, 12mo. ZA for, B44 SER M. XII. tm A Prophecies relating to Antichrist. for meditation and enquiry concerning Antichrist remains, ‘particularly in the Apocalypse; where that formidable power appears to be revealed in various shapes, and with many characteristics, some of which time only can completely develope, when the period of its duration shall have arrived. God forbid ! that in such matters we should presumptuously deliver any sen- timents ; the best we can do is to examine, compare, and enquire; but, above all, to keep ourselves from every stain of such corruptions as are certainly condemned by Prophets and Apostles; being contrary to true religion, and even hostile to the name of Christ. The remaining subjects of which I have promised to treat, as completing the view of prophecy, in its particular relation to Christ and Christianity, are only three :— The Conversion of the Jews—the univer- sal prevalence of the Gospel—and the ge- neral Prophecies of the Conversion of the “fews. 845 neral Resurrection and Judgment. These, SERM« however, are points by no means intricate, 68g: and the clear and abundant manner in which they are prediéted precludes the ne- cessity of expatiating much upon them. 8. Of these three parts of our subject, it may be observed, that they are entirely future. They are therefore matters of ex- pectation only ; yet of an expectation so upheld, by a variety of promises, as to fix them beyond all possibility of doubt. With respect to the Conversion of the Jews, that’ people will not themselves deny, that they are all, at some time, to be called toge- ther under the dominion of David their King; that is, the spiritual David, their MesstaH. This i§ the voice of every pro- phet, from the first David himself, to the last whisper of inspiration under the old Covenant. In this they all agree, and to these promises they all turn, after the va- rious threats which they were commanded to 346 Prophecies of the Conversion of the Fews: sERM. to denounce. The Jews indeed maintain, >. 8 & wry that the Messiah, to whom those promises relate, has-not yet been revealed. But - we, who view, in the rejection and dis- persion of that people, for so many cen- turies, a proceeding totally different from the general indulgence of their Divine Ruler towards them, can conceive no pos- sible way of accounting for it, but by the supposition that they knew not the right hour.of their visitation ; and are punished, in the sight of all the world, for their offences against that Messiau, whom they ought with joy to have received. To col- lect, from the ancient prophets, those pas- sages, which it is next to impossible to open their pages without finding,. would be a very superfi uous labour ; let us turn rather tothe Prophets of the Gospel, the Messiah himself, and his Apostles. Our Saviour declared expressly, both the punishment of the Jews and their recall. “ They shall fall’, he said, “ i the edge of the sword, and Prophecies of the Conversion of the Jews. B47 and shall be led away captive into all nations, sERM. UNTIL THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES SHALL [Ps BE FULFILLED!!.” Very similar is the ex- pression of that chosen servant of Christ, ibe Apostle of the Gentiles. He writes to the Romans, that “ blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in™™.”” When this fulness shall ar~ rive, is yet among the hidden things of God ; but that the Jews will then renounce their errors, and embrace the Gospel, is as certain as the word of Prophecy can make it, It seems also to be promised, that they shall return in triumph to the land which was given originally to their fathers ;- but whether that return shall be prior or sub- sequent to their conversion is not clearly decided °° ; nor, indeed, is it by any means " Luke xxi. 24. =m Rom. xi. 25. ” See Kett, vol. ii. 297, et seqq. 2d edit. impos~ 348 Prophecies relating to the sERM. impossible, that the expressions employed XTT,. respecting their land may be altogether firurative. The material point of belief is, that their rejection, though it be long, shall not be perpetual ; and that an error, ‘fortified by so many prejudices, shall at _ jJength give way, to the irresistible evi- dences of truth. «og. Thatia time shall also arrive, when all mankind shall be united in one faith, appears to’be the subject of explicit pro- mise. Our Saviour, speaking to the Jews, said, “and other sheep I have which are not of this fold: ihem also I must bring, and they shall bear my voice, and there shall. be one fold, and one’ Shepherd’.”. ‘There are prophecies also, delivered under the first Covenant, which tend to the same object ; and among them, none more remarkable than this sublime prediction of Isaiah. ee John x. 16. Tt “< ———E— ee ee General Prevalence of thé Gospel. 349 ‘© Iz shall come.to pass, in the last days, that SERM«s THE Mountain oF THE Lorp’s House ot Shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the bills, and Aut Nations ‘shall flow unto it. And many people shail go and say, Come ye, and letius go up to, the Mountain of the. Lord, to othe House of the God of “facob®? ;” after which, immediately, follow words exactly similar to those which St. Paul also had quoted, to show that Israel was to have a part in this general call—* for out of bim shall go forth the Law, and THE WorD oF THE Lorp from “ferusalem 3.” , This going forth of the Word of the Lord is one of the most sublime images inthe Revelation of St. John. Heis described as having a name unknown to all but him- self; he is also styled Tuz Worp oF Gop, eR Se, 1519, Fe 11 See Rom. xi. 26, and Isaiah lix. 20, and 35° SERM.: ALITY aed Prophecies relating to, &ec. and on his vesture, and on his thigh is Written, as another name, Kinc oF KInGs AND Lorp or Lorps”™. How we are to understand that which immediately fol- lows, of the binding of Satan for a thou- sand years, and the reign of Christ with the Saints for the same period, after the first resurrection, is by no means clear or decided.. The doctrine of a Millen- nium, in some hands, has been uaa ex- travagant and dangerous: but the gene- ral persuasion that there will be such.a period upon earth, when the truth shall prevail among men, and the glory of the Redeemer shall be much more manifestthan it had ever been before, is assuredly con- sistent alike with sound doctrine and pro- bable conjecture. The words of the Apo- calypse, on this subject, appear peculiarly decisive *. 10, The 1 Rev. xix..13, &c. s<¢ And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them Prophecies of the General. Resurreciion. 35 10. The only scene therefore which re- SERM. mains, is the final Resurrection, and the general Judgment of Mankind. To quote authorities on this subject must be superflu- ous in any Christian Congregation "3 and this was only enumerated among the topics of the present Lectures, as the solemn and regularclose of the whole dispensation. For this was the whole preparation made, from the beginning to the end of time; and for them: that were beheaded for the witness of Fesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, nor his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands: and they lived and reigned with Christ ATHOUSAND. YEARS. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This 1s the first reswrrection. Blessed and holy 1s he that hath partinthe first resurrection; on suck the second death hath no power, but.they shall be priests of Godand of Christ, and shall reign with him A THOUSAND yEARS. And, when the thousand years are expired, we tan shall be loosed out of his prison... Rev. xx. 4—7. * See Matth. xxiv. 27, &c, Luke -xi.95, &c. this XII. nord 352 Prophecies of the General Resurrection. SERM. this cause were we washed from our inj- XI. a eee | / quities, in the blood of the Lamb, that we might be able to stand in THAT GREAT Day. If a picture be wanted to impress the mind, let it be taken from the words of the Saviour himself, than which no- thing can possibly be more solemn. « When the Son of Man shall come in bis glory, and all the holy Angels with him, then shall be sit upon the throne of his glory ; and before him shall be gathered all nations, and be shall se- parate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth bis sheep from the goats™.” Here we are, by the great Judge himself, trans- ported to the very scene of his tribunal, _ and torpid indeed must be that mind which does not thrill at such a representation !— Here, then, the work of Prophecy con- cludes. To be prepared to receive a fa- vourable Judgment on that day, is the best result that the most faithful disciple ™ Matth. xxv. 31, &c. 2 of - . ee ee ee ee : Final Retrospect, Ec. 358 of Christ can obtain, through the merits srr. | one, of his blessed Master. Be this the odject >", of our labour, of our thoughts, of our wishes, and our prayers ! On looking back upon the ground that we have gone over in these Lectures, it will appear that we have traced, in one uniform and unbroken line, the prophetic history of Revelation. Through all this line, ex- tending from the fall of Man to a time as yet, probably, far distant in futurity, the light of prophecy has been seen to shine ; giving at first a faint glimmering of dis- tant hope, but growing continually more and more bright; till rz Sun of Ricurr-— ousNEss himself arose, with healing in his wings. From him new rays burst forth, - which extend even tothe final hour of the world, and the great Day of Retribution. We have already observed, that a fulfilled prophecy partakes of thenature ofa miracle; such foresight not being among the na- Aa tural 354 Final Retrospect of SERM. tural powers of man, every ascertained in- XII. stance of it is a direct proof of divine in- eee! terposition. What then can be said of this continued series of prophecies? Nothing less assuredly, than that it proves the whole administration of this world to be miraculous ; its destinies to be appointed, and all its great events to be conducted by the hand of Providence. The contemplation of these subjects, if, through the fatal force of prejudices, it be | seldom found sufficient to convert the un- believer, isat least admirably calculated to confirm the faith of the Christian ; and to give him just and dignified views of his re- ligion. That the time will arrive, when these proofs shall be so increased in num- ber and in strength, by the clear fulfil- ment of the prophecies which at present still regard futurity, that the most inve- terate obstinacy shall not be able to resist them, is an expectation which naturally arises ta i i i i i the Subject of the Lectures. 355 arises out of this knowledge. Then will ser. come the Triumpn of FAITH, at present nm its TRIAL subsists; under-which it. is necessary for us to fortify our minds against all assaults, and every tendency to wavering. “ Ye therefore, beloved’, to conclude with the words of St. Peter, “ see- ing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with ibe error of the wick- ed, fail from your own stedfastness. But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour ‘fesus Christ. To bim be glory, both now and for ever. Amen **.”" To him, therefore, with the Father and Holy Spirit, be ascribed, as are most due, all honour, power, praise, might, majesty, and dominion, now and for evermore. Amen. | * 9 Pet. iii, 17, 18. Aag. ARGU- errr rae e | mi) eo ” 4s Oe he: fe nt sie Al socalled: abuse ae ‘saelailnlad i elaine te piano Meee 108 9 28 Ce eine suk: A eas ce Ob ceeaiag eo Ey ne Jatsaae the sane a ee baat abvecidn este itive obulatio ae Ne aug Shsyouead ndipdaynadt unc pane | ea * kgs adh \anotren sd Gtiay pam boi eats ae xg ied “dannlaslyaiet Hite ot anes eh he Tae nits, e Mie TEs i es BS ee ue peek ayy Axel bealaseinh, wth a8 ilove, soma, iC. Cig sc SI A to — ole eat eye Peter an eb Pibaalie 9 aanda id aS seh, Cagtiixowe’ il : | areas ied ds tang A GLa vane ial vy e ay b - 3 8s sid : BON ee is " rere a ae sh sie att aie ie ys hentads “ . ea nree eet © Been OS a aa a Pov: ‘ | abe toot orm. an! ih sbi it 2 eae asian: dibgien palmer Moy. word fe, a i pA Sto pmeNRI 40>: bom: weet 00 | 4 » Bee : pia ya id ia Ab AG 7 r oy is ii aaa ARGUMENTS OF THESE LECTURES. rrr? 26 O93GQO®0e 0 asm SERMON I. Text, Isaiah xlvi. 9, 10. _ General Introduction, p. 1—On the Nature of Pro- phecy ; and the Contrast between the false Arts of DIVINATION and the true Spirit of Prophecy, p. 7— The strict Laws against false Prophets among the Jews, p. 9—Conduct cf the Heathen Oracles. p- 12—Their Arts, and yet their Failure, p. 14— Evil Spirits supposed to conduct them, p. 17— True Prophecies given without Solicitation, and preserved in public Writings, p. 18—Sibylline Oracles, p. 20--Mahomet, p. 22—True Prophecy characterized, p. 24—Continued throughout the Scriptures, p. 25. SERMON I. Text, Luke xxiv. 44. Our Saviour’s own Interpretation of the Prophecies, p- 3i—Extremes of Error, between the Judaizing Christians who thought the first Covenant still ne- cessary, p. 35, and those of later Times, who would xashly disjomn the two Covenants, p. 38—Prophecy | the $58 the great Bond of Connection between them, p. 40— General Plan of these Lectures, p. 41, compre- hending, Ist, the Prophecies relating to Christ ; 2dly, to his Disciples and Church. Even this Plan omits many Branches of Prophecy, 2+.—Sketch of those omitted, p. 42—I. The first Division entered upon, and the View of Prophecy begun; from that to Adam, p. 42—to Abraham, p. 46—to Isaac, and earried to the end of the Life of Jacob. SERMON III. TESTE, *1' Pen 10: Continues the View of the Prophecies concerning Christ, from the Death of Jacob, to the Journey in _ the Walderness. | Further Remarks on Jacob’s Prophecy, p. 61—Brief Noticeof his Prophecy to Joseph, p. 64—Establish- ment of the Theocracy (p.67), in which the supreme Governor of Israel was CHRIST, p. 68—Institution of : the Passover; p. 69—Typrs explained, 2b.—that of : the Passover in particular, p.71—Israelites, Zypes of | Christians, p. 74—Connection of the two Cove- : nants, p. 75—The Divine Government of Israel in the Wilderness, and the Symbol] of the Brazen Ser- pent, p. 76.—Too prevalent disregard of Types, p. 81—Rules respecting them, p. 83—The whole Polity of Israel typical, p. 85. SERMON IV. TEXT, Acts xxvill. 23. St. Paul’s preaching resembled that of his Divine Master, in opening the Will of God respecting him, out of the Law of Moses, and the Pro- phets, 309 phets, p. $9. —The Plan of these Lectures an At tempt to imitate those Instructions, p- 90—Re- sumption of the Plan, 2b.—Typss characterized again, p. 91, which lead to SECONDARY SENSES, p- 92—They arise sometimes by necessary Connec- tion out of Types, p. 93—Instance in a Prophecy of Balaam, to which our Enquiry now brings us, 2. —His Circumstances and Character conjectured, p- 94—Prophesied various Things, 96—but ulti- mately of David and the Messiah, p. 97—Confir- mation of this Interpretation, p. 98—Conclusion respecting the Books of Moses, p. 101.—2west. Did not Moses himself personally prophesy of Christ ? _ Answered in the Affirmative, 7b.—In the famous Prophecy, Deut. xviii. 15, and xix. 16, &c. p. 102 —Punishment of Jews for not believing it, p. 105— Testimony of Moses to Jesus in the Substance of the Law itself, p. 106—In the Passover, 7.—In the Sacrifices, p. 107—The Writer to the Hebrews _ principally explains these Resemblances, p. 108— Ritual Law full of Christ, p. 112—The Establish- ment of the Israelites in Canaan, p. 113. | SERMON V. TEXT, Heb. iv. 8, 9. Subject of Types resumed, p.117—The first Covenant altogether typical of the second, p. 118—Canaan a Type of Heaven, p. 119, and Joshua of Jesus, p.120 —Caution in the Use of Types, p. 121—General Rules, p. 122—Connection between Types and Double Senses further illustrated, p. 124. Historical View resumed, p. 125—Scanty Intimations of the Messiah for some Time after the Arrival of ‘a the 360 the Israclites in Canaan, p. 126—Causes of this, 25. et segg.—Not revived till David, p. 129—His De- sign to build a Temple, p. 130—Prophecy given to him of the Messiah, p. 131— Proofs of the Intention of this Prophecy from the New Testament, p. 134, and from the Psalms, p. 135—State of Religious Knowledge in Judea, after the Mstablishment of Da- Vidyip. 13s. SERMON VI. TEXT, Luke i. 32, 33.—These Words a Comment on the Prediction given to David, of the Duration of his Kingdom, p. 143—The Prophecy not first in- terpreted by the Angel, for David himself under- stood it, p. 144—Hence the Son of David the estab- lished Title of the MEssIAH, p. 145—David con- sidered, first, as a Type of the Messiah ; secondly, as a Prophet, p. 146—David synonymous with the : Messiah among the Prophets, p. 147—Rashness of those who reject Double Senses, p. 149—The Psalms considered in a prophetical View, p. 151—Quota- tions from. Bishops Lorne and Lowth, concerning their double Reference, p. 152—All that refers to Christ in the Psalms cannot be cited, p. 154—It may be prudent to take only the passages so applied in the New Testament, 155—John xiii. 18, cited, &c, Matth. xxiv 42, p. 156; also Matth, xx. 42, PD, 151, Se — Christ and his Apostles thus give us a Rule of Interpretation, p.163—A History of Christ may be drawn from the Psalms, p. 164—The Psalms thus interpreted of the Messiah by the Jews, ib.—The Devil himself acknowledged the same, p- 165—Last Words of David, p. 166. -*e Qe ee lone ~ | | 7 : SERMON 361 - SERMON VIL Text, John i. 45.—No Doubt was made, at that Period, that the Messiah was then to come, p. 171— We have the same Documents as they have, and may prove the same, p. 172. Chronology of Prophecy continued from the Psalms, in this Sermon, 20. SOLOMON,—he knew what was revealed to David— Pss. 45 and 72 addressed to him, and full of that Prophecy, p. 173—45 is an Epithalamium, and in that resembles Solomon’s Song, 7b.—View of the 72d Psalm—On the Inauguration of Solomon, p. 176. Solomon himself a Prophet and Psalmist, p. 178— View of his three known Psalins, 127, 128, and 132, p- 179—OF his other Works, Proverbs, Ecclestastes, Canticles : only the last prophetical, p. 180. View of Israel at the Close of his Reign, p. 181— Beginnings of Apostacy, <4. and Consequences of it, p. 182—the manifest Interposition of God in . the sudden Downfal of the Jewish power, p. 183— Nearly two Centuries without further Promise of the Messiah, p. 185—Rise of the sixteen Prophets, p- !86—These noticed in chronological Order— 1. Jonah, p. 189—2. Amos, p. 190-3. Hosea, p. 191 —4, Isaiah, p. 192—After him the Promise may be considered as fully revealed, p. 196—The Capti- vity a Reason fora Continuation of Prophecies, 2b. SERMON 362 4 SERMON VIII: Text, Matth. xr 13. ‘The Law full of the Image of Christ, p. 201—The Prophets continued chronologically. 5. Joel: a Prophet of Judah, p. 202. 6. Micah, p. 206—spoke of Bethlehem, p. 207, 7, Nahum, confined to nearer Transactions, p. 209. 8, Zephaniah, alludes only to Prosperity after Con- version, 20. i 9. Jeremiah, p. 210-——-The various Contents of the Prophecies contributed to their Preservation, p. 211 —Jeremiah prophesied of THE Brancu, p. 214—A new Law promised, p. 215. 10. Habbakuk relates chiefly to impending Captivity, &e. p. 218. alsin 11. Daniel, p. 219—Conduct of Josephus respecting his Prophecies, 2b.—Expectation derived from them, : p, 220—Prophesied of three great Empires, after Babylon, p. 221—Daniel limits seventy Weeks for the Fulfilment of the Prophecy respecting the Mes- siah, p. 222. 12, Obadiah, p. 224. 13. Ezekiel, 2.—Much of his Prophecy allegorical, p. 225. i 14, Haggai prophesied after the Return from Cap- tivity, to console the Israelites, p. 226. 15. Zechariah, p.- 227—foretold of the Brancu, 2b. 16. Malachi, p. 228—Prophesied at the Time ap- pointed for the sealing of the Vision, &c.—His concluding Words, a last Legacy of Inspiration, p. 222, SERMON ; ‘ 1 { ‘ } P ‘ » : 563 SERMON IX. TExT, Galat. iy. 4: Pause of four hundred Years without Prophecy, after Malachi, p. 236—Jesus appeared at once both as a Prophet, and Worker of Miracles, %/.—Other pro- bable Reasons for this Interval, p. 237—Reasons for their Continuance till. then, p. 238—Revival of Pr ophecy inimediately before Christ’s Birth, p- 2453. How remote all this from Imposture : while there were no real Prophets, no pretended ones arose, p. 244— The Jews rather incredulous than the contrary, at that Period, p. 245. With respect to the Fulness of the Time, we may here suppose it, p. 247—Several Points in which it was full, briefly touched, p. 248. Splendour of Christ’s Advent, 7b6.—Visions, of Le- chariah, &e. p. 249—Others, p. 252. John the Baptist, the last Prophet under the old Co- . venant, p. 254—QOur Saviour himself a Prophet, p. 255—He fulfilled ancient Prophecy in a new Sense, p.256—Brief View of his Prophecies, p. 257 —Pause here, p. 259—and Recapitulation, 7b. SERMON X. TEXT, Hosea xii. 10. View of the Modes of Prophecy, p. 265—Retrospect of the preceding Lectures, p. 267—Second Division of the Subject, p. 268—Ten Periods of Prophecy subsequent 364 subsequent to our Saviour, p. 269—1l. Rejection of the Jews and Call of the Gentiles, p. 271—Our Sa- viour could not have foreseen these Things by any human Sagacity, p. 277. . The rapid Diffusion of the Gospel, p. 278. 3. Persecution of the Apostles, and the first Converts to Christianity, p. 282—The more Ways Prophecy is viewed, the more demonstrative the Evidence, p- 2386. SERMON XI. TEXT, Matth. xxiv. 35. These Words particularly applicable to our Saviour’s S) Prophecy of the Fall of Jerusalem, of which we are now to speak, p. 289. - Prophecies of the Fall of Feoiealents p. 290—The i-xactness of our Saviour’s Prediction very remark- able, p..293—-The Romans foretold by Moses, p. 295——-Other Prophets, p. 297—That St. John should survive this Visitation, foretold, p. 299. Prophecies relating to the Fate of Rome, p. 300— The Kingdom of the Messiah to arise in their Time, p- 303—Daniel’s Vision of the four Beasts, p. 305, and other Visions, p. 306—Conversion of Rome, p- 309—The Apocalypse characterized, p. 310— ‘The sixth Seal, p. 312. Prophecies respecting Mahomet and the Sara- cens, p. 315—Under the fifth Trumpet, 75.—Fore- told by Daniel, as the King of the South, p. 317. SERMON... OO EE EE + 365 SERMON XII. On the four last Periods of Prophecy. Text, Rev. xiv. Part of Ver. 10. Providence did not over-rule the Propensities of Men, p- 324. 7. Prophecies relating to Antichrist, p. 325—The Name illustrated, p. 326—TZhe Time for his Ap- pearance, after the Fall of the Roman Empire, Pp. 329—The Place, Rome, p. 332—Similarity be- tween Daniel and St. John, on these Subjects, p. 335 _-—The ten Kingdoms into which the Roman Em- pire was divided, p. 337—The Man of Sin, 75.— The Beast with seven Heads and ten Horns, p. 338 —Power of Antichrist described, p. 341—Pro- testants ought not to relinquish this Interpretation of the Prophecy, p. 349. 8. The Conversion of the Jews, p. 345—It seems promised that they are to return to their own Land, p- 347. 9. The universal Prevalence of the Gospel, p. 348— Notions of the Millennium, p. 350. 10, The final Resurrection, p. 351—Retrospect of the Lectures, p. 352—The future Triumph of Faith, Pp. 354. | PASSAGES Sg stay sarge 5 nae er eae: SSE, +h a Aes ebsianaghs resi BYP ‘ene h. it ei im oi efit geen ee ¥ eng nach cen Ae sabi es Seve *: * e j Bee ff aeons donee wiht Keni Poul wig “pth ‘aaa ae reves erin gs GN aad ‘ey . Roe Re BER. ap bo pisnily; tee : ; ay Bis cin Foe thats 8 crane ae ea ‘te i Be pore at FO sigue asin iA hy Be he ‘iT oe On Oe tea sett wid ras tite cern soi a rm Sip | a AL pes ae * eh agit nN: } ve sp te bie y, ARe Moe a fi 1 De » * Saal a hi a she Hs PASSAGES OF SCRIPTURE CITED*r, Chap. Ver. Page. Genesis,- iii. 15. 43 ———— | ivi) 25. 46 xv. 9-11. 48 Xvi. 18. 47 MxTi re, 67 XVI.» 4: 49 ———- ca 50 KKVIli. 3,4. 51 xlviii. 4, 55 ——— xlix. 10. 52, 61 22-26. -64 Exodus, vi. 3-9. 67 — 7-8 68 Numbers, xiv. 28. 119 xk 4, -&e--79 — 8, Sl oan LO ii 90 RAT Abo," TH 6. 95 XxXH1. 9. 96 XX1V.17: 97 ————————. X XX1. 8-16. 100 Deut. Vill. 4. 16 XVills 9-12. 8 me Pas 102 —— —- 19. 105 ie 93, 24, 9 —— xXx. 16-19. 103 —— xxiv.’ 10. 104 XXVIN. 45-58. 296 Chap. Ver. Page. Joshua, xiii. 23, 100 — XXiV. 31. i2g Judges, ties 65115 046. . ris 5. 128 ) Samuel, ii. 10. 16, © XV 132 183 2 Samuel, viis «2. ~ 130 ——— — 11,&e.131 —— 14, LOS || 293 133 kr ee Xi. phe 174 —-- XXML. os 4166 1 Kings, i. 392-40. 196 ——— il. |, 174 ——— — 21, 22.103 Sear erraras onseem 1V. a2. 178 ———-) Vl. 23. 179 ——- x. — 174 nvey 9. 118i | a 26, 182 Sten. 185 ——— xij. 28. 184 Sere XIX 94 ———- —- 1-32.185 —-—— xiy. 2. ab. ——-— XVll. 1. 20. ——— xx. 16-25. 76. + KX. 8-11... 4b. [* N, B, Those marked with Asterisks are used as Texts. 3 2 Kings, 3638 Chap. Ver. Page. Chap. Ver. Puge. 2 Kings, xvii. 4. 71 Isaiah, xliv. 25,26. 1 —— xlvi. 9,10. 1* 1 Chron. xvit. 14. 133° ———- “slix. 4. 275 Se KK TH L010 ee i 2 at 7] 73 16. ..135 —-. —) -7. . -——- _ liv.) 1, &c. 281 1 2:Chron.\ EVAL, 49-47% tem aly ab. — XXil. 10. 132 ——— _Iix. 20. 349 . —— xiv. |. 275 Psalm . xiv. 173 12-15. 297 Ixxii. P627 —- l|xxx. 8 974. Jerem. Weld 4 295 -—— ]Xxxix. 3, 4.136 x1. 19. 73 —— ——_ 35, 37.187 ———. xv. 10. 213 xculeLdi 119 --—— .xvill. 18,&c. 20. a Cvit. 20. 81 ——-- xxl. 2. 20 eee CX 4 146 ——— xxvi. 18. 207 exviil. 22. 275 — XXXV111.15. 20 CXXV11. 178 m-~— xxx. 9. 147 CXXVill. 26, —— I+. O15 CXXXil. 179 ———— XXxl. 29. 225 wees lH8i 536. Sr — 31-34. 215 XXX. 14. 214 21,22. 216 Cebinics cat larces be 96 te Tsaiah, 1i3<.--7° 949. Lexekrel,y Xie Bheiedd 2. Se — Vide nih 97 ——-— XVill. 225 vit. 14. 193 ——— Xx. 67 — 16. 19 ————— XxxI1v. 23,24.148, Mites: Vz 1b. 225 ———.—s xi, 24.194 ——-—xxxvil.25. 148 ——— xi 1-6. 195 —— — 24~26.225 ———-—— —-Xxii, 15, 20 Ht —— XXVIII AW14e-50 Daniel, .¢ 1A. 221 wma XXXV. OS: 194 —_— — 34. 303 —-—— xl. -1,&e.282 —— — 44-45. 304 —— 3B, 193. Se Vii & 18.305 a——— xii. 22,23. 4 ——— — 723.336 ——— xlili. 2-4. 194 ——— — 19-27. 306 | 8-9. 4 —— —8,21, ke. 340 we Xibiv. 6-7. 10. ———— — 25. 337-8 Daniel, Chap. Ver. Page. Chap. Ver. Page. Daniel, viii. 9-11. 306 Matth iii. 17. . 260 —— 24, SUDa: See IO se a OS ix, 24,&c. 22929: ——— yw. 11. 28 4 ——— xi. 30,31.307,9 — 17. 202 — 40, 317 Vili. Ll. 276 MeO. 272 Hosea, iin 5. 147 -— 17. 283 — 45. 191 — 24. 284 —— xl. 10.* = 266 -—————__ xi. 13.201 * 254 ——_- =— 14. 229 Joel, ii, 23, 28,29.204 ——-— xii. 40. 190 — 31,32. 206 ———— xi. 32. 295 Va Bde Qh. Anas, wey 27. 190 ——— xvi. 27. 299 vill. Ll. 191 ———— —- 28. 2b. XVli. _5. 260 Obadiah, 17-24. 224 ——— Lz 243 Xx. 42. 159 Micah, iv. 1,2, 208 ——— xxi. 9, &c. 145 —— ov. 2. 207 ——— — 22. 293 ——— vi. 5. 208. ———- _ — 33. 272 ———- — 41... 273 Habakkuk, ii. 3, 4-14. 218 — 42, 157 ns -—————— X¥xil. _8. 274 cephantah iii. 9-17. 210, ——— xxiii. 36. 292 _ XxXive 9. 29h Haggat, ii. 9. ho) ae me 9, 283 —— 14. 278 SCChaY.” G1. 1/8. 2t4, 92%) eee eS 308 ——— vi. 8,10, i Re ge 351 , Nie “84. 292 —— — 12. DAs np ee SE OBO Sip mex ey. 8h. SC. Boo Malachi, iii. 1. 99 8a) aa x Kya. Ga 292 SGN: 12. 229 + a+— xkWH. 34, 162 —— — 5,6. 241 ‘oo 8 ; Pie 7 Mark, yi.’ 3lye" B56 Giesi. Vor 2G, Eb BET. ae eee eee Ts, dee — 10. 157 atthe. 8a. SB, Gace Qh epee XBB YD: 291 | Bh Mark, 369 os ~J few , Chap. Ver. P age. Chap. Ver. Page. Mark, xiii. 14. °° 308 ate Ie Ab ok OP SN ™,. om w liens jas ~~. to Gr es — Oy bo ee ve Vii t57 Luke, 1, 15-172" 250". —— — 25. 162 ie 143° Vii. 37. 103 ca 52,33. ST So si oa ag — 46. © 259 —— xi. 23. 135 — 76. ib, —— —— 35, 162 xi. 28. 254 —— —— 46. QTT —~ 30. 190 —— xix. 20. 279 xl. 35. 351 —— XXvVill. 23.* 89 xix. 43,44. 291 Romans, x. 18. 280 ———~ xx, -9 B12 — 19. 275-6 —— — 16 273 xie 9,10. 162 enemas — 17 17 —-_—_—sS@ —-_ 225. Q4T —_—— — 19. 313. — 26 S49 —— ss XXi. «6G. 291 — — 24. 347 1 Corinth. v.. 7. 72 — i —— 33. 2989. ————- x. 9. 81 —— Xxiv. 27. 320 ———+———- xy. 55. 192: cae ye Ash 2 5M bog Sea — — 47. 216 2Cortnth. xii. 10. © 284 — — 49. 33 Galatians, ili. 21. 112 John, | 203 730 ——— iv. 4.*% 235 — 45.* ijt oe -_ yy... 1-4. 37 a Ben i i | 162 . lil, 14. ° 98 Ephesians,ii. 10. © 158 Ve. de. 34 ) — 46. TOM “Colosss@ns, 1. 6. .. 280 vil. 56. 47 — — 23. 26. — Al. 255 2 Thess. i - 3,4. 327-9. xi. 18. 156 — 4-9. 342 xv. 20... 983 Thi 8 £4, 8-s940 Xvi -' 23 26. xix. 28% 162 Ved tae «i¥- 1 327 Xx1l. 22. 299 ——— — 3. 340 PEEP ETT Acts, I | 20. 162 Hebrews, 1. 5. 134 . Hebrews, Chap. Ver. Hebrews, . is ii. James, I. } Peter, 1. ll. 6y 1 371 Page. Chap ES (ReeLeT so hn a i la ill. 129 : FT ick Fofitt gyn Ae 120 108/22 JOR S75 oN 109 106 Rev. Vil. SATO in. DAB Ap a TTS, ean, Xi. 52 .— ~— Xi. 285 NER —— XVil. 59 —— XIX 168 -—< soo - 266