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to the immaculate Lamb, and upon what accusation Pilate did at last proceed to pass the sentence of death upon him. It was not any opposition to the law of Moses, not any danger threatened to the temple, but pretended sedition and affectation of the crown objected, which moved Pilate to condemn him. The Jews did thus accuse him; "We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar, saying, that he himself is Christ a king, Luke xxiii. 2. And when Pilate sought to release him, they cried out, saying, "If thou let this man go, thou art not Cæsar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Cæsar," John xix. 12. moved Pilate to pass sentence upon him, and because that punishment of the cross was by the Roman custom used for that crime, to crucify him.

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Two things are most observable in this cross-the acerbity, and the ignominy of the punishment: for of all the Roman ways of execution it was most painful and most shameful. First, the exquisite pains and torments in that death are manifest, in that the hands and feet, which of all the parts of the body are most nervous and consequently most sensible, were pierced through with nails; which caused, not a sudden dispatch, but a lingering and tormenting death: insomuch that the Romans, who most used this punishment, did in their language deduce their expressions of pain and cruciation from the cross. And the acerbity of this punishment appears, in that those who were of any merciful disposition would first cause such as were adjudged to the cross to be slain, and then to be crucified.

As this death was most dolorous and full of acerbity, so was it also most infamous and full of ignominy. The Romans themselves accounted it a servile punishment, and inflicted it upon their slaves and fugitives. It was a high crime to put that dishonor upon any free-man, and the greatest indignity which the most undeserving Roman could possibly suffer in himself, or could be contrived to show their detestation to such creatures as were below human nature. And because, when a man is beyond possibility of suffering pain, he may still be subject to ignominy in his fame; when by other exquisite tor

ments some men have tasted the bitterness of death, after that, they have in their breathless corpses, by virtue of this punishment, suffered a kind of surviving shame. And the exposing the bodies of the dead to the view of the people on the cross, hath been thought a sufficient ignominy to those who died, and terror to those who lived to see it. Yea, where the bodies of the dead have been out of the reach of their surviving enemies, they have thought it highly opprobrious to their ghosts, to take their representations preserved in their pictures, and affix them to the cross. Thus may we be made sensible of the two grand aggravations of our Saviour's sufferings, the bitterness of pain in the torments of his body, and the indignity of shame in the interpretation of his enemies.

It is necessary we should thus profess faith in Christ crucified, as that punishment which he chose to undergo, as that way which he was pleased to die; first, because by this kind of death we may be assured that he hath taken upon himself, and consequently from us, the malediction of the law. For we were all under the curse, because it is expressly written, "Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them;" and it is certain none of us hath so continued; for the " scripture hath concluded all under sin," which is nothing else but a breach of the law; therefore the curse must be acknowledged to remain upon all. But now "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us;" that is, he hath redeemed us from that general curse, which lay upon all men for the breach of any part of the law, by taking upon him that particular curse, laid only upon them who underwent a certain punishment of the law; for it is written, "Cursed is every one that hangeth on à tree." Not that suspension was any of the capital punishments prescribed by the law of Moses: not that by any tradition or custom of the Jews they were wont to punish malefactors with that death: but such as were punished with death according to the law or custom of the Jews, were for the enormity of their fact oftimes after death exposed to the ignominy of the gibbet; and those who being dead were so hanged on a tree, were

accursed by the law. Now though Christ was not to die by the sentence of the Jews, who had lost the supreme power in causes capital, and so not to be condemned to any death according to the law of Moses; yet the providence of God did so dispose it, that he might suffer that death which did contain in it that ignominious particularity to which the legal curse belonged, which is, the hanging on a true. For he who is crucified, as he is affixed to, so he hangeth on the cross: and therefore true and formal crucifixion is often named by the general word suspension; and the Jews themselves do commonly call our blessed Saviour by that very name to which the curse is affixed by Moses; and generally have objected that he died a cursed death.

Secondly; it was necessary to express our faith in Christ crucified, that we might be assured that he hath "abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments;" which if he had not done, the strength and power of the whole law had still remained: for all the people had said "Amen" to the curse upon every one that kept not the whole law; " and entered into a curse and into an oath, to walk in God's law, which was given by Moses the servant of God, and to observé and do all the commandments of the Lord their God, and his judgments and his statutes;" which was in the nature of a bill, bond, or obligation, perpetually standing in force against them, ready to bring a forfeiture or penalty upon them, in case of non-performance of the condition. But the strongest obligations may be cancelled; and one ancient custom of cancelling bonds was, by striking a nail through the writing; and thus God, by our crucified Saviour, blotted out the hand-writing of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross," Col. ii. 14.

Thirdly; hereby we are to testify the power of the death of Christ working in us after the manner of crucifixion. For we are to be "planted in the likeness of his death;" and that we may be so, we must acknowledge," and cause it to appear, that "our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed;" we must confess, that "they that are Christ's have crucified

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the flesh, with the affections and lusts;" and they who have not, are not his, Rom. vi. 5; Gal. v. 24. We must not glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ:' nor can we properly glory in that, except "by it the world be crucified unto us, and we unto the world," Gal. vi. 14.

Fourthly; by the acerbity of this passion we are taught to meditate on that bitter cup which our Saviour drank; and while we think on those nails which pierced his hands and feet, and never left that torturing activity till by their dolorous impressions they forced a most painful death, to acknowledge the bitterness of his sufferings for us, and to assure ourselves that by the worst of deaths he hath overcome all kinds of death; and with patience and cheerfulness to endure whatsoever he shall think fit to lay upon us, with all readiness and desire suffered far more for us.

Fifthly; by the ignominy of this punishment, and universal infamy of that death, we are taught how far our Saviour descended for us, that while we were slaves and in bondage unto sin, he might redeem us by a servile death; for he made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant; and so he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross;" teaching us the glorious doctrine of humility and patience in the most vile and abject condition which can befall us in this world, and encouraging us to imitate him "who, for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame;" and withal deterring us from that fearful sin of falling from him, lest we should crucify unto ourselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame," and so become worse than the Jews themselves, who crucified the Lord of life without the walls of Jerusalem, and for that unparalleled sin were delivered into the hands of the Romans, into whose hands they delivered him, and at the same walls in such multitudes were crucified, till there wanted room for crosses, and crosses for their bodies.

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Lastly; by the public visibility of this death, we are assured that our Saviour was truly dead, and that all his enemies were fully satisfied. He was crucified in the sight of all the Jews, who were made public witnesses

that he gave up the ghost. There were many traditions among the heathen, of persons supposed for some time to be dead, to descend into hell, and afterwards to live again; but the death of these persons was never publicly seen or certainly known. It is easy for a man that liveth to say that he hath been dead; and, if he be of great authority, it is not difficult to persuade some credulous persons to believe it. But that which would make his present life truly miraculous, must be the reality and certainty of his former death. The feigned histories of Fythagoras and Zamolxis, of Theseus and Hercules, of Orpheus and Protesilaus, made no certain mention of their deaths, and therefore were ridiculous in the assertion of their resurrection from death. Christ, as he appeared to certain witnesses after his resurrection, so he died before his enemies visibly on the cross, and gave up the ghost conspicuously in the sight of the world.

And now we have made this discovery of the true manner and nature of the cross on which our Saviour suffered, every one may understand what it is he professeth when he declareth his faith, and saith, I believe in Christ crucified. For thereby he is understood and obliged to speak thus much-I am really persuaded, and fully satisfied, that the only-begotten and eternal Son of God, Christ Jesus, that he might cancel the hand-writing which was against us, and take off the curse which was due unto us, did take upon him the form of a servant, and in that form did willingly and cheerfully submit himself unto the false accusation of the Jews, and unjust sentence of Pilate, by which he was condemned, according to the Roman custom, to the cross; and upon that did suffer that servile punishment of the greatest acerbity, enduring the pain; and of the greatest ignominy, despising the shame. And thus I believe in Christ crucified.

Dead.

THOUGH Crucifixion of itself involveth not in it certain death, and he who is fastened to a cross is so leisurely to die, as that he being taken from the same may live; though when the insulting Jews in a malicious derision

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