Sivut kuvina
PDF
ePub

venant between Me and thee, and I will multiply thee exceedingly." And Abram fell upon his face; and God talked with him, faying, "As for Me, behold My covenant is with thee, and thou fhalt be a father of many nations: neither fhalt thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name fhall be called Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee; and I will make thee exceeding fruitful; and I will make nations of thee, and kings fhall come out of thee; and I will eftablith My covenant between Me and thee, and thy feed after thee in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy feed after thee. This is My covenant which ye fhall keep between Me and you, and thy feed after thee: every man-child among you fhall be circumcifed; and ye shall circumcife the Refh of your fore-fkin; and it fhall be a token of the covenant betwixt Me and you : and he that is eight days old fhall be circumcifed among you, every man-child in your generations; he that is born in thy house, or bought with money of any ftranger which is not of thy feed. And the uncircumcifed manchild whofe flesh of his fore-fkin is not circumcifed, that foul fhall be cut off from his people; he hath broken My covenant and God faid, Sarah thy wife fhall bear thee a fon, indeed and thou shalt call his name Ifaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlafting covenant, and with his feed after him." On the fame day was Abraham circumcifed, and Ifhmael his fon, and all the men of his

houfe,

houfe, born in the houfe, and bought with money of the ftranger, were circumcifed with him. It is therefore evident that the firft co venant dates its epoch from the day aforementioned; and as I obferved above, throughout thefe communications betwixt the Creator and his creatures, not a fingle mention is made of the legislation of Mofes, but the whole force and bleffings are immediately referred and car ried to the Meffiah. We find your law-giver, who was the facred pen-man of these prophecies, referring you to your Meffiah, where you are to receive life, and a curfe if you refufe to obey.

Mofes. The prophecies are full that a Meffiah was promifed, to whom we are referred, and from him we expect all bleffings; the circumftances and figns of his coming are prophefied to us by our father Jacob, in his last bleffing to Judah, from whofe tribe he was to be born: The fceptre fhall not depart from Judah, nor a law-giver from between his feet; until Shi> foh come, and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. The fceptre commenced with David, and continued in his defcendants until Judea became a Roman province, when the fceptre was granted to an alien (King Herod) by Auguftus the Roman Emperor: this alien not only intruded himself on the throne, but alfo difmiffed the legal line of priesthood, and intruded obfcure perfons, which custom was followed by his fucceffors, fhutting up the holy robe of the high prieft, under their privy feal; fo that the priest had no longer the pri

L

vilege

vilege of keeping or being intrufted with his own robe. Here it will be proper to bring for ward the prophecy of Daniel's feventy weeks, which two prophefies will illuftrate each other, and fhew us the truth.

Boy. 9th chapter Daniel. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and upon thy holy city, to finish the tranfgreffion, and to make an end of fins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteoufnefs, and to feal up the vifion and pro phecy, and to anoint the most holy before we proceed it will be proper to draw fome conclu fions from this verse.

Mofes. Seventy weeks, taken each day for a year, is 490 years; to make reconcilement for fin, there must be a facrifice of an equal value; that is, a facrifice equal in fanctity, as the offence is in fin; capable of making atonement to the Divine Majefty for crimes committed; everlafting righteousness, free from fin, never being stained, but always pure; and to feal up the vifion and prophecy, and to anoint the moft holy. Here is the Meffiah, the great Prophet, under and from whom Ifrael expects all bleffings.

Boy. The feventy weeks were accomplished, acknowledged by Jews and chriftians, when Jefus Chrift entered into the next life, or state of glory.

Mofes. The middle of the feventieth week. Boy. The time the Meffiah was to be cut off.

Mofes

Mofes. I have often repeated the agreement of Jews and chriftians, as to time, but not the person of their Meffiah.

Boy. What are the expectations of Ifrael in the person of the Meffiah?

Mofes. A great Prince and Prophet, who will restore and enrich Ifrael with every grandeur, and grant them their full wishes, and restore them and reinftate them in their promised everlasting poffeffions, infured to Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob.

Boy. We agreed that the whole flock of Adam was involved in the guilt of their first parent's fin, and as it was a fin of equal magnitude with the crime of the angels that fell, being against the deity, and which has entailed an eternal reprobation on the angels, not being capable of making reftitution to the divinity, the nature of a creature not being adequate to an offence againft its Creator; of what nature. or quality, therefore, does Ifrael hold the Meffiah?

Mofes. Ifrael holds and esteems her Meffiah the great and fupreme prophet, a great and powerful Prince, who will rule all nations, and place Ifrael in her own country and privileges, know no grief, but enjoy every felicity without abatement.

Boy. The fummit of Ifrael's felicity confists purely in gratifying the fenfes, terrestrial pleafures. This fums the chief accufation against Jefus Chrift, whose poverty was his crime, and rock of offence to Ifrael.

[blocks in formation]
[ocr errors]

Mofes. Let us proceed in the examine of the prophecies, where we may fearch out truth.

Boy. It will be in vain to seek or expect celeftial bleffings in the odour or fragrancy of terreftrial perfumes. This does not correfpond with the malediction pronounced against our culprit original, with their pofterity, which de-fcended even to the mould from whence we were produced, and its productions, being thorns and briars. Genefis 3d chapter, The Lord God faid unto Adam, Cursed is the earth for thy fake in forrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life: thorns also and thistles fall it bring forth to thee: and thou shalt eat the herb of the field. In the fweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou return to the ground: for out of it waft thou taken, for dust thou art, and there return thou shalt.

Mofes. All these maladies will be taken from us, this is the promife when we fhall act in fubordination to his will, which will be the will of God, whenever he is manifested to Ifrael. The reign of the Meffiah will be a time of all bleffings, truth and happinefs. A voluptuous life was never my paffion, as my meagre carcafe gives teftimony; but my God and his divine truths have ever from my youth been my defire.

Boy. And to feal up the vifion and prophecy, and anoint the most Holy.

Mofes. The most Holy is agreed by all to be the Meffiah; but the words feal up the vifion and prophecy, is, I confefs, a dark paffage. What can it mean, but that vifion and pro

phecy

« EdellinenJatka »