proclaim, faying; "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Chrift; and he fhall reign forever and ever." "Though Ifrael," therefore, "be not gathered," Meffiah "fhall be glorious in the eyes of the Lord:" for he faith of him; it is a light thing that thou fhouldef be my fervant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to reftore the preferved of Ifrael: I will alfo give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayeft be my falvation unto the end of the earth." And as the ancient difpenfation contained many intimations of favour to the Gentile world, fo the Gospel contains and difclofes a dawn of hope to the Jewish nation. "Blindnefs in part is happened to Ifrael, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And fo all Ifrael fhall be faved; as it is written, There fhall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and fhall turn away ungodlinefs from Jacob." "O the depth of the riches both of the wifdom and knowledge of God! How unfearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding Qut !"

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Some interpreters of note have remarked a coincidence between the duration of the great famine which afflicted Ifrael, in the days of Elias, and that of our Saviour's miniftry from his baptifm to his death, namely three years and fix months. As during the former period, at the word of the prophet, heav en was fhut up, and all elementary influence fufpended, to the inexpreffible diftrefs of the whole land; fo during the latter, through the mediation of a greater than Elias, full communication was opened. In the one we have displayed the severity of the Law, in the other the grace of the Gofpel; in Elias, the minifter of wrath and condemnation; in Jefus, the minister of mercy and reconciliation; the one inflicting a temporary curse; the other calling down an everlafting benediction; there the clouds bound up, and the dew reftrained; nere a " doctrine dropping as the rain, and speech diftilling as the dew; as the fmall rain upon the tender herb, and as the fhowers upon the grafs." The prophet reprefents, in beautiful language, the bleffedness of an open communication between earth and heaven : " It shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, faith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they fhall hear the earth; and the earth fhall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they fhall hear Jezreel. And I will fow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will fay to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they fhall fay, Thou art my God." But the contraft is dreadful!" She did not know that

I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her filver S

and

and gold, which they prepared for Baal. Therefore will I re-turn, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine! in the feafon thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax; and I will deftroy her vines and her fig-trees." The prayer of faith is the channel of this interefting communication.

It is humiliating to obferve, and to reflect on the uniform and unrelenting malignity of the human heart. That greatness, power, wealth fhould be envied, and the poffeffor hated and, thruft at, is not fo much an object of furprize. But that fimplicity, innocence, kindness, beneficence fhould provoke haf. tility, would exceed belief, were not the proofs too numerous and too ftubborn to be refifted. We juftly deteft the wicked ness, injuftice and ingratitude of the Nazarenes, in attempting to deftroy their unaffuming, unoffending townfman: but is the angry, the lofty fpirit of man now fubdued to the obedience and love of Chrift?. Has not a daring attempt lately been made by a great nation, once denominated Chriftian, to obliterate the name, and overwhelm the caufe of Chrift? Wherefore change the ancient measurements of time? It was in the hope of fwallowing up the distinction of days, and thereby of finking the ob fervance of the Lord's day in the mafs. With the abolition of the Sabbath the service of the fan&tuary is fwept away; and the spirit of Chriftianity, it was prefumed, would not long furvive its forms and rites. Are there none among ourfelves who exprefs rancorous animofity against the worthy name which they fo unworthily bear ? Is not the Lord's day profaned and the temple deferted; and, in defiance of the law of the land, to lay nothing of the obligations of decency and religion, are not efforts made by perfons high in place and ftation, to dif credit and difufe the ordinances of the Gofpel, and thereby to bring the Gospel itfelf into difrepute? We fay, however, concerning fuch men, in the spirit and words of the wife Ga maliel Refrain from thefe men and let them alone: for if this counfel, or this work, be of men, it will come to nought: but if it be of God, they cannot overthrow it; left haply they be found even to fight against God."

To this fell fpirit in man, what a ftriking, what an amiable" contrast have we in the temper and conduct of our bleffed Lord! To withdraw himfelf from among thefe ingrates is the only mark of difpleafure expreffed by him. He defifted from teaching perfons who were determined not to learn; "He did not many mighty works there," because they were liable to mifapprehenfion, to mifrepresentation. "He, paffing through the midst of them, went his way." Thus men grieve the Holy Spirit of God, and he departs from them, And thus, the A

poftless

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poftles of the Lord, Paul and Barnabas, when "the Jews, filled with envy, fpake against them, contradicting and blaf pheming," they faid; "It was neceffary that the word of God fhould firft have been spoken to you: but feeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlafting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles." And is it no punishment to be forfaken of a friend; a friend whom we have grieved and offended, who feels himfelt conftrained to retire, but retires filently, Howly, reluctantly? Little do men reflect what forrow, what remorfe they are treasuring up to themselves, in flighting, in neglecting a day of merciful vilitation. It drew tears from the eyes of the compaffionate friend of mankind: "And when he was come near he beheld the city, and wept over it, faying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at leaft in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.” "For if we fin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more facrifice for fins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which fhall devour the adversaries.”

We conclude with pointing out the Saviour as a pattern of perseverance in well-doing, Nazareth is no longer a theatre of teaching and working. Does he therefore fullenly, refentfully cease from discharging the duties of his high office? No, other cities will gladly receive him. He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the fabbath days.” And what a courfe of active, unwearied beneficence did the remainder of his earthly pilgrimage exhibit! through evil report and good report, through oppofition and discouragement, through forrow and fuffering, by night and by day, till, bowing his head, he could fay, "It is finished." "Arm yourselves,' therefore, Chriftians, "with the fame mind:" "Let us run with patience the race that is fet before us, looking unto Jefus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith:-confider him that endured fuch contradiction of finners against himfelt, left ye be wearied and faint in your minds." "And let us not be weary in well-doing; for in due feafon we shall reap, if we faint not." "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye fteataft, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forafmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."

LECTURE

LECTURE XIV.

MATTHEW, IV. 12-22.

Now, when Jefus had heard that John was cast into prifon he departed into Galilee and leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the fea-coaft, in the barders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: that it might be fulfilled which was fpoken by Efaias, the prophet, faying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the fea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; the people which fat in darkness faw great light; and to them which fat in the region and Shadow of death light is fprung up. From that time. Jefus began to preach, and to fay, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And Jefus, walking by the fea of Gali lee, faw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, cafting a net into the fea: for they were fishers. And he faith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they ftraightway left their nets, and followed him. And going on from thence, he faw other two brethren, James the fon of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a fhip with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called unto them. And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.

AMONG the other means of arriving at certainty, respect

A

ing the things wherein we have been inftructed," it may be of importance to compare the prefent ftate of Chrif tianity with its origin; to contraft the fmallnefs of its beginnings with the greatnefs of its fuccefs; to confider the real influence which a cause so unpromifing has had on human affairs, and the changes which it actually has produced on the face of the Globe. Who is its Author? A mighty potentate, armed with fovereign power and authority? An invincible conqueror travelling in the greatnefs of his ftrength, at the head of triumphant legions, from victory to victory ? An experienced ftatesman skilled in every art of intrigue, and amply furnifhed with all commanding gold, to gain over credulous, or 40 purchase the fuffrages of corruptible multitudes? The re

verfe of all this is the faft. The Author of our Faith, Chrif tians, as has frequently been repeated, was the reputed fon of a carpenter; he was brought up in an obfcure village of a re gion proverbially contemptible, of a conquered country; he was deftitute of means, of friends, of worldly wifdom; he was a penfioner on the bounty of others, and frequently without a place where to lay his head.

Will any one prefume to allege that he affociated with the great of this world, that he infinuated him elf into the favour and counfels of the princes of the earth, hat he went forth armed with their commiflion, and advanced in their name conquering and to conquer ? No, hiftory contradicts all this. He lived up to the age of thirty in the very depth of obfcurity; his affociates and coadjutors were few in number, men of mean parentage and parts, in the very lowest ranks of Society, fithermen, the fons of fishermen. Did he employ, then, the arts of infinuation, addrefs and flattery to captivate the vulgar:? Did he teach an eafy, palatable, pliant morality, and attract the countenance and fupport of the million, by gratifying their pallions, by conniving at their vices, or by humouring their prejudices ? No fuch thing. His life and doctrine were quite the reverte. He preached and exemplified mortification, and self-denial, and patient fubmiffion to painful and unmerited fuffering, and renunciation of the world. Undoubtedly then his followers could not be numerous, nor his reputation extenfive; nor his power of long duration, This too is contradicted by matter of tact. No teacher can boast of so many disciples; no name is fo widely diffufed; and after a lapfe of eighteen centuries, the field of his triumph is extended and extending, and his outstretched arms are expanded to embrace a globe.

How is all this to be accounted for? Who fhall explain this accumulation of mystery? Consult, on the subject, the learned Jewith doctor of laws, whom we formerly quoted with respect. His reafoning upon it is as found, and as conclufive now, as it was near two thousand years ago. "If this counsel or this work were of men, it must have come to nought; but because it is of God, it cannot be overthrown." Chriftianity is the cause of heaven, and therefore it hath profpered, and hall con tinue to profper.!

We have hitherto beheld our bleffed Lord fingie and unconnefted; gradually fhewing himself to the world as a Teacher fent from God. In the paffage which has now been read, we find him laying the foundation of his church, forming and modelling his household, beginning to provide a fucceflion of pub