ill 
 
Srom f^e £i6rarg of 
 
 (profe00or ^iffiam differ (]()a;rton, ®.®., fe£. 
 
 (preBtnW^ fig Oftre. (J)a;rton 
 
 to f^e &i6rftrg of 
 
 (]()rtnceton C^eofo^icaf ^minarj 
 
A GLANCE 
 
 INTO THE 
 
 KINGDOM OF GRACE, 
 
 &c, ike, , 
 
"For j'e are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in 
 God. When Christ, who is our Life, shall appear, 
 then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.'' — 
 Col. iii. 3 4. 
 
A GLANCE ( MAR 12191 
 
 INTO THE ^ --^ 
 
 KINGDOM OF GRACE 
 
 EIGHT SERMONS 
 BY F. W. KRUMMACHER, D.D. 
 
 AUTHOR OF "ELIJAH THE TISHBITE." 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN 
 
 BY THE REV. MAXIMILIAN GENESTE, M.A. 
 
 INCUMBENT MINISTER OF HOLY TRINITY CHURCH, 
 WEST COWES, ISLE OP WIGHT. 
 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 
 LONDON : 
 JAMES NISBET AND CO. BERNERS STREET ; 
 
 JOHN JOHNSTONE, EDINBURGH ; AND 
 
 W. CURBY AND CO. DUBLIN. 
 
 MDCCCXLI. 
 
LONDON: 
 
 JOHNSTON AND FAUUETT. PRINTED?, 
 MATIIC T,ANE. 
 
THE AUTHOirS PREFACE 
 
 Sermons are a species of reading held in little 
 estimation by the world. Among literary produc- 
 tions, by far the lowest place is assigned them, as 
 a light and airy commodity by which knowledge 
 cannot be promoted or extended ; and an Author- 
 ship which is limited to Sermons, is regarded as 
 of no value, and in the award of fame and merit 
 is deemed but as dust in the balance. Collections 
 of Sermons are nevertheless showered down upon 
 us, and every successive season threatens a new 
 flood, by which an inundation may at length be 
 apprehended, not, however, of serious consequence ; 
 since, almost without exception, they descend with 
 rapid haste into the deep and silent pit of oblivion, 
 soon enough — alas, in few cases can it be said too 
 soon — to find their grave, and terminate their 
 ephemeral existence. 
 
 Under such circumstances, and amid the loud 
 complaint of the reading community, made without 
 intermission respecting the multitudes of religious 
 
VI THE AUTHOR S PREFACE. 
 
 compositions with which, like a swarm of locusts, 
 they are visited and overwhelmed, the Author of 
 the accompanying volume, which, moreover, makes 
 its appearance in the despised form of Sermons, 
 does not find himself under the least concern to 
 justify its publication. To use the hackneyed 
 pretence, and say, that he published it by " par- 
 ticular request," his conscience will not allow ; 
 and of the value of his productions, to say the 
 truth, he has no very great opinion : at the same 
 time, he would have it understood, that the well 
 known tenets contained therein are to him beyond 
 all worth, " better than gold and fine gold," and 
 more precious than life itself. 
 
 The Author is perfectly sensible, that these 
 Sermons little accord with the form and standard 
 of the modern school, nor would they pass the 
 ordeal of critical acumen. The sapient mother, 
 Didactic Wisdom, if she should deign to look 
 upon these productions, would see them, for the 
 most part, so inartificial, so disconnected and 
 irregular, that she could not possibly acknowledge 
 them as her offspring, but would pronounce over 
 them " Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin ; " Exposi- 
 tory Wisdom would with displeasure observe, in 
 certain parts, the absence of the literal meaning ; 
 another school would complain of the want of 
 good taste ; while Critical Philosophy would find 
 fault with the deficiency of sound reasoning. 
 
THE AUTHORS PREFACE. VU 
 
 The fuiihor !io^)es, by this self-condemnation, 
 to propitiate those woithy gentlemen who sit in 
 judgment, and he would give utterance to the wish, 
 that they Vv'ould admit, as an excuse fur the publica- 
 tion of these discourses, that he both preached 
 and committed them to writing, not for the wise 
 men after the flesh, nor for the mighty, nor for 
 the noble, of whom the apostle in one place speaks, 
 and whose applause he must be content to forego ; 
 but for those whom man despiseth, but whom God 
 hath chosen, for the sojourners in Mesech, and 
 especially for the babes among them, to whom 
 these sermons may perhaps convey a little honey 
 from the slain lion ; as it is written, '* Out of 
 the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong, 
 sweetness." 
 
 As it respects the title of the publication, " A 
 Glance into the Kingdom of Grace," it may 
 be observed, that it is designed to point out the 
 subject treated of, since the sermons refer, for 
 the most part, to the daily experience and inward 
 state of the children of grace in the way of salva- 
 tion. That respecting Issachar would have been 
 omitted in this collection, if the Author had been 
 aware that it had already made its appearance in 
 another place. 
 
 The Sacred Writings, his own heart, and the 
 people who surround him, constitute together, the 
 
Vlll THE AUTHOR S PREFACE. 
 
 Volume of instruction to which the preacher of 
 the gospel should especially direct his studies and 
 inquiries, and from which he should borrow the 
 materials of all his Discourses. 
 
 If, therefore, this publication should be recog- 
 nized by the eisperienced as genuine gleanings 
 from that living and inexhaustible Volume ; and 
 if, here and there, a hungry soul should receive 
 from these crumbs any comfort and refreshment, 
 then all the desires will be accomplished with 
 which the Author, with great diffidence, sends 
 them forth into the world. 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE. 
 
 The name of Krummacher is now familiar to 
 the English ear ; and the satisfaction with which 
 some of his works have ah'eady been received, 
 might alone be deemed a sufficient apology for 
 adding to their number : but there is another rea- 
 son, of still greater force — the intrinsic merits 
 of his writings are such as cannot fail to re- 
 commend them to the lovers of scriptural sim- 
 plicity and truth. 
 
 It has been the endeavour of the Translator, in 
 presenting the Author to the public in another 
 garb, to produce, as far as possible, the same 
 impression on the English mind, which the 
 
X THE TRANSLATOR S PREFACE. 
 
 original work is calculated to make on the Ger- 
 man. 
 
 He is fully sensible of the difficulty of transla- 
 tion, and conscious of the great loss which a 
 writer must sustain in having his ideas trans- 
 ferred into a different language ; but if, with the 
 absence of his elegance and power of expression, 
 the meaning of the Author has in any case not 
 been conveyed, it must be attributed to the fault, 
 not to the intention of the Translator. 
 
 This small volume comprises the whole of that 
 to which Dr. Krummacher refers in his Preface, 
 with the exception of one discourse, namely, 
 " The Temptation of Christ in the Wilderness," 
 which he states to be a short abridgment of a 
 course of Sermons delivered to his people in the 
 vale of Barmen.' That brief Treatise, as it may 
 be termed, does not appear necessarily to form a 
 part of his design as expressed in the title-page, 
 and, from its nature and construction, it differs in 
 various respects from the rest of the work. 
 
THE TRANSLATOR S PREFACE. XI 
 
 Should this etFort be made effectual, through 
 the blessing of God, for the spiritual good of 
 any of those to whom Dr. Krummacher can 
 speak only through the medium of a translation, 
 the highest wish and earnest desire of the trans- 
 lator, with regard to the publication, will be 
 abundantly gratified. 
 
 THE TRANSLATOR. 
 
 West Cowes, 
 September, 1837. 
 
NOTICE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 
 
 The Translator has gladly availed himself of the 
 opportunity afforded by the demand for a New 
 Edition of this Work, carefully to revise the 
 whole : he has in some instances endeavoured to 
 elucidate and otherwise improve the text. "The 
 Temptation of Christ in the Wilderness," omitted 
 in the former impression, but subsequently pub- 
 lished by itself, is included in the present Volume. 
 Some passages have been altered, in which a 
 degree of speculation was indulged, the result of 
 a luxuriant imagination, but which might not 
 be deemed suitable for general readers in this 
 country. 
 
 West Cowes, 
 December, 1837. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON r. 
 
 A MOTIIETl's LOVE OR THE TENDER COBIPASSION OF 
 OUR GOD. 
 
 Pago 
 But Zion said, the Lord hath forsaken nic, and my 
 Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her 
 sucking child, that she should not have compassion 
 on the son of her womb ? Yea, they may forget, 
 yet will I not forget thee. Behold I have graven 
 thee upon the palms of my hands ; thy walls arc 
 continually before me. — Isaiah xlix. 14 — 10 - 1 
 
 SERMON II. 
 
 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 And on the east side, towai'd the rising of the sun, 
 shall they of the standard of the camp of Judah 
 pitch tliroughout their armies ; and Nahshon, the 
 son of Amminadab, shall be captain of the children 
 of Judah. — Numbers ii. 3. - - - - - 18 
 
 SERMON III. 
 
 ISSACHAR, OR THE COUCHING BETWEEN TWO 
 BURDENS. 
 
 Issachar is a strong ass, couching down between two 
 burdens : and he saw that rest was good, and the 
 land that it was pleasant, and bowed his shoulder 
 to bear, and became a servant unto tribute. — Gen. 
 xlix. 14,15. .----_- 40 
 
XIV CONTENTS. 
 
 SERMON IV. 
 
 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 Page 
 I saw by the night, and behold, a man riding upon a 
 red horse, and he stood among the myrtle-trees that 
 were in the bottom ; and behind him Avere there 
 red horses, speckled and white. — Zechariah i. 8. - G4 
 
 SERMON V. 
 
 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 For it is impossible for those who were once en- 
 lightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, 
 and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and 
 have tasted of the good word of God, and the 
 powers of the world to come, if they shall fall 
 away, to renew them again unto repentance ; 
 seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God 
 afresh, and put him to an open shame. — Hebrews 
 vi. 4—6. - - 85 
 
 SERMON VI. 
 
 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 will be as the dew unto Israel, that he shall flourish 
 
 as the rose. Lutheran Version. — Hosea xiv. 5. - 109 
 
 SERMON VII. 
 
 THE saviour's JOY. 
 
 Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth, and my 
 delights were with the sons of men. — Prov . viii. 31 . 1 26 
 
CONTENTS, XV 
 
 SERMON VIIT. 
 
 THE TEMPTATION OF CIUilST IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 Page 
 Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilder- 
 ness, to be tempted of the devil. And when he 
 had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was 
 afterward au hungered. And when the tempter 
 came to him, he said, If thou he the Son of God, 
 command that these stones be made bread. But 
 he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not 
 live by bread alone, but by every word that pro- 
 ceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil 
 taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him 
 on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, 
 ■If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down : for 
 it is written. He shall give his angels charge con- 
 cerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear 
 thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against 
 a stone. Jesus said unto him. It is written again. 
 Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again 
 the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high 
 mountain, and shewetli him all the kingdoms of 
 the world and the glory of them, and saith unto 
 him. All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt 
 fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto 
 him, Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written. 
 Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him 
 only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth 
 him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto 
 him. — Matt. iv. 1 — 11. - - - ^ _ 147 
 
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A GLANCE 
 
 THE KINGDOM OF GRACE. 
 
 SERMON I. 
 
 A MOTHER'S LOVE, OR THE TENDER COMPASSION 
 OF OUR GOD. 
 
 Isaiah xlix. 14 — 16. 
 ButZion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath 
 forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child, that 
 she should not have compassion on the son of her womb ? 
 Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold I 
 have graven thee upon the palms of my hands : thy walls are 
 continually before me." 
 
 Truly, the Lord loveth the gates of Zion. Glorious 
 things are spoken of thee, city of God. Behold 
 a fruit tree near a fountain, from whence thousands of 
 weary pilgrims in every age, have gathered golden fruits, 
 and it flourishes, and blossoms, and is still richly laden. 
 O let every troubled soul draw near, and partake of this 
 heavenly manna. 
 
 B 
 
■Z A MOTHER S LOVE, OR THE 
 
 Three things here demand our attention — 
 
 I. The building of Zion. 
 
 II. The mournful complaint of the daughter of 
 
 Zion, and 
 
 III. The assurance of God's love to his afflicted 
 
 children. 
 These shall be the subjects of our meditation. 
 
 I. 
 
 THE BUILDING OF ZION. 
 
 Go round about Zion, mark well her bulwarks, and 
 consider the towers thereof. Zion is the city of the 
 living God, — the church, the tabernacle, or building of 
 which St. Peter speaks, when he addresses those that 
 are bom of water and of the Holy Ghost, and says. " Ye 
 also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house." 
 (1 Pet. ii. 5.) Such is a full and comprehensive repre- 
 sentation of the church of God. 
 
 Do you inquire respecting the Great Master Builder ? 
 The Creator of all things is the founder of the church. 
 Its builder and maker is God. Before the world was 
 called into being, its design was minutely pourtrayed, 
 in all its beautiful proportions, in the counsels of the 
 Eternal. The height, and breadth, and length of 
 God's building were accurately defined ; the period 
 within which it should be perfected was determined ; 
 the stones were all numbered, and the places specified 
 whence they should be obtamed. Nearly six thousand 
 years have elapsed since God begun the spiritual building, 
 and 3^et it is still in progress, and in perfect accordance 
 with the original design. It is the work of God alone. 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. O 
 
 We are only instruments which he employs ; all the 
 glory is his. He shall build the temple of the Lord ; 
 and he shall bear the glory. (Zech. vi. 12, 13.) He is 
 jealous for the honour of his name. 
 
 Do you ask respecting the foundation of the church I 
 St. Paul has furnished us with the answer : " Other 
 foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is 
 Jesus Clirist." (1 Cor. iii. 11.) The incarnate God is 
 the foundation. If trust be reposed in any other Saviour 
 than " the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of 
 the world ;" (John i. 29,) if the suretyship of blood be 
 wanting, it is " no house of the Lord." The true church 
 is based upon Christ ; but not upon him with whom the 
 world can find no fault ; nor iipon him whom an infidel 
 and atheistical philosophy can tolerate ; but it rests upon 
 that crucified Saviour who is to the Jews a stumbling- 
 block, and to the Greeks foolishness, but to them that 
 are called, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of 
 God. (1 Cor. i. 23, 24.) 
 
 And what is f/t« building itself ? It consists of stones, 
 yea, of living stones. (1 Pet. ii. 5.) Stones, indeed, are 
 we all by nature, gravitating earthwards, cleaving to the 
 dust, hard, cold, lifeless. How many of you have sat 
 for years, unmoved alike by tenderness or wrath ! The 
 rain and dew have fallen from heaven ; the sun has 
 shone in his brightness ; the awful storm of thunder and 
 lightning has passed over you ; and yet you remain 
 unfeeling, obdurate, unchanged. Is not this like the 
 stone, like the rock of flint I But, thanks be unto God, 
 there is one who can, of these stones, raise up children 
 unto Abraham. (Matt. iiL 9.) 
 
 It is even these hard and unyielding materials that 
 God has selected for the building of the spiritual tern- 
 
4 A mother's love, or the 
 
 pie, that the greatness of his power may be made mani- 
 fest. He chose not the angels and the heavenly host ; 
 He chose not the legions of devils, and the fallen morn- 
 ing stars ; but the spiritually dead, miserable, and help- 
 less children of Adam ; these are the quarry from Avhence 
 he collects the stones, with which to raise the walls of 
 Zion. 
 
 And as the building is the Lord's, so is the separation 
 of the stones from the quarry. His servants, the minis- 
 ters of the Gospel, have power to loosen no stone ; for 
 he speaks the word by their mouth ; he directs the stroke 
 where it shall fall. " My word," saith the Lord, " is as 
 the hammer, and as the fire which breaketh in pieces 
 the rocks." 
 
 God's methods in effecting this great work are not 
 uniform, but various. Some are loosened gradually and 
 gently, after long preparation, as Mary, Lazarus, and 
 Martha. Others are forcibly severed ; then is the work 
 more speedy, and also more perceptible, as Peter, and 
 Nicodemus. Others are rent as by a flash of lightning, 
 like Paul on his way to Damascus, or the jailor at 
 Philippi : there is a clap of thunder, and at once the stone 
 is set free. 
 
 But when may it be said that the stone is loosened ? It 
 is at that moment, my brethren, when the man, by 
 the Spirit of God becomes conscious that he is a miser- 
 able sinner, utterly lost, and is led to repentance. 
 Then is he separated from the q[uarr3^ God has taken 
 him thence, and he is altogether changed ; differing 
 from the stones which remain in the quarry, he has 
 become a living stone, and is awakened to recol- 
 lection and calling upon God. He is now formed and 
 polished by the hand of the builder, and laid upon the 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. O 
 
 wall of the spiritual temple, being united to Christ 
 the foundation, by a living faith, by a faith of the ope- 
 ration of God. (Col. ii. 12.) 
 
 If we examine the building more narrowly, we shall 
 discover a remarkable similarity in the living stones of 
 which it is composed. Collected from the various na- 
 tions of the earth both savage and cultivated, and diverse 
 from each other in kind and quality, as soon as they 
 occupy the place assigned them in the spiritual temple, 
 all diversity ceases, and they severally form a constituent 
 part of that magnificent edifice, which is distinguished 
 for uniformity of execution no less than unity of design, 
 and in the harmony and beauty of whose several parts, 
 the glory of the Lord is specially made manifest. They 
 are all sprinkled with the same blood, all i-enewed by 
 the same Spirit : and though to themselves they appear 
 utterly unworthy, they are, in the eyes of God, pure 
 as the lily, and whiter than the snow. They are a 
 lowl}', contrite people, sojourners in Mesheck, (Ps. cxx. 
 5.) pilgrims of God, who have here no continuing city, 
 but seek one that is to come. (Heb. xiii. 14.) In the 
 world they have tribulation, but in Christ they have 
 peace: (John xvi. 33.) they long and "wait for the 
 adoption, to wit, the redemption of their body," (Rom. 
 viii. 23.) and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 
 They have " one faith, one hope, one baptism, one 
 God and Father of all, who is above all, and through 
 all, and in them all. (Eph. iv. 5.) Herein is the unity 
 of the true church. Jerusalem is a city that is at iinity 
 in itself. (Psalms cxxii. 3 ; cxxxiii. 1.) 
 
 One in spiritual life ; the gifts and graces of the mem- 
 bers of Christ are manifold and diversified. "Behold," 
 saith the Lord, to his church, " I will lay thy stones 
 
6 A mother's lote, or the 
 
 with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sap- 
 phu-es ; and I will make thy windows of agate, and 
 thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant 
 stones." (Isaiah liv. 11.) They are all precious stones ; 
 but one, in whom hope predominates, may be compared 
 to an emerald ; a second is distinguished for love ; he is 
 a ruby : in a third we are struck by the prevalence of a 
 child-like simplicity and humility ; he is a sapphire ; a 
 fourth is a transparent crystal, shining in wisdom and 
 knowledge. One is contemplative and intellectual ; 
 another active and laborious. One is a babe, another 
 a young man, a third is a father in Christ. Various as 
 are the means by which they are brought nigh to God, 
 yet they are all one in Christ Jesus. And "all this 
 worketh that one and the self-same Spirit, dividing to 
 every man severally as he will. For as the body is one, 
 and hath many members, and all the members of that 
 body, being many, are one body ; so also is Christ. For 
 by one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether 
 we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free ; 
 and have been all made to drink into one Spirit." 
 (1 Cor. xii. 1—13.) 
 
 One Spirit works in all, and, as He wills, 
 
 Gives varied gifts on either hand ; 
 But when each stone its place allotted fills. 
 The temple shall completed stand ; 
 
 Glorious amidst the city of our God ! 
 
 There shine those gems of many a hue. 
 Thus shall his church appear — his saints' abode. 
 
 Who seemed so mean to mortal view. 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. 
 
 IL 
 
 THE MOTJRNFrL COMPLAINT OF THE DAUGHTER 
 OF ZION. 
 
 The Lord loveth the gates of Zion. But how deeply 
 and how tenderly he loves her, she appears not to 
 know ; or why does she utter this mournful com- 
 plaint, " The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord 
 hath forgotten me." O Zion, weep rather for thyself. 
 If thou wouldst believe, thou shouldst see the glorj- 
 of God. 
 
 Visitations of calamity or of judgment may indeed he 
 isent, under which nothing would be more appropriate than 
 such a complaint. When, at the time of Noah, the 
 whole world stood in hostile array against the Lord and 
 against his anointed, and all, Avith the exception of a 
 single family, wei-e overwhelmed in one common and 
 universal destruction ; or when, both in Israel an<! 
 Judah, the seed of Abraham revolted from Jehovah, and 
 the knees of his elect people bowed before the altars 
 of Moloch and of Baal ; or when the haughty king 
 of Babylon trampled with, the iron shoe of war the 
 ruined fragments of Salem's towers, and the abomi- 
 nation of desolation was set up by Antiochus, on the 
 altar of the Lord, and the holy book of God was torn by 
 profane hands, and cast into the flames ; or when, i)i 
 later days, papal darkness brooded over the church, anc! 
 obscured the light of heaven ; or when, yet darker still, 
 a godless illuminator dared to mock, as " the crucified, ' 
 
8 A mother's love, or the 
 
 the Lord of lords — ah ! "who then would chide the 
 daughter of Zion because she hung her harp upon the 
 willows, and clothed herself in mourning as a widow, 
 and gave utterance to that melancholy cry, " The 
 Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten 
 me r' 
 
 And what is thy state in these our days, thou daughter 
 of Israel ? Thou standest upon thy watch-tower, and 
 lookest round upon thy palaces, and behold they are 
 rich and glorious. On all sides thou hearest again 
 the loud acclamations of Hosannah, Hosannah to Him 
 that Cometh in the name of the Lord. Again, there is 
 a witness and a testimony awakened in the land, where 
 there was silence and sorrow — the witness of Him 
 whom thy soul loveth. The blood-red banner of the 
 cross is again unfurled ; and showers of blessings descend 
 from the Lord. take then thy harp from the bough 
 of the willow and ^tter a song of praise to the Lord, 
 and of defiance to his enemies. But should any one 
 inquire of thee, " What of the night ?" then mayest 
 thou answer, not, indeed, without tears, " The morning 
 Cometh, and also the night ; if ye will inquire, inquire 
 ye, return, come." Thou regardest th3'self still as vile, 
 even as the woitu Jacob, and sittest solitary, as a 
 lonely cottage in a vineyard. Thou seest that in a 
 thousand places the ways of Zion mourn, and all her 
 ways are desolate, and her priests sigh and her virgins 
 are afflicted. Thou castest thine eyes upon the count- 
 less host of hirelings who continually cause the people 
 to err, and lead them through Golgotha to everlasting 
 destniction. Thou beholdest the millions of wandering 
 sheep which heai- not the voice of the good Shepherd, 
 and perish, eternally perish, and no man layeth it to 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. SJ 
 
 heart. At tlie contemplation of this darkness around 
 thee, thy heart is well nigh broken, and the bitter cry 
 bursts from thee aga' i, " The Lord hath forsaken me, 
 and my Lord hath forgotten me." 
 
 But if Zion doth not collectively thus complain, 
 yet do I well know that in the hearts of many of the 
 individual citizens of Zion, this lamentation is not 
 silenced. I hearken to you, and hear, O children of 
 God ; and ! on every side of me, the heavy sigh 
 escapes from many a heart, " The Lord hath forsaken 
 me, and my Lord hath forgotten me." 
 
 There sits a poor weeping penitent, and he smites 
 upon his breast and cries, '* God be merciful to me, a 
 sinner ! " As yet he knows not how to find the arms 
 and heart of the Saviour, and he thinks " the Lord 
 hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.' 
 
 Yonder, behold a warrior in the hard conflict against 
 sin and the devil, and as he deals his blows around 
 him, he cannot overcome that creeping serpent, whose 
 heads, when wounded, are continuall}'^ renewed ; and 
 at length the poor soldier of the cross sinks upon the 
 earth, and exclaims, " j\ly God, my God, why hast 
 thou forsaken me ! " 
 
 Here lies a poor soul in the darkness of heavy temp- 
 tation, agitated and oppressed with fearful doubts, 
 alarming forebodings, and thoughts which cause all his 
 bones to tremble. He doubts respecting his state, he 
 doubts respecting Christ and his love, and the cry 
 impetuously bursts from his heart, " The Lord hatii 
 forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me." 
 
 There languishes another, who has now, for a long 
 iong time, been in the fire of outward tribulation, and 
 b3 
 
10 A mother's love, or the 
 
 the Lord comes not down to deliver liim, and his 
 enemies rejoice over him and say, " Where is now thy 
 God I " and alas ! his God does not reveal himself. 
 The footsteps of the Lord are in the great waters, and 
 his head is veiled in the clouds, so that even the friends 
 of this troubled soul begin to say, " If thou wert 
 righteous, God would not thus deal with thee ; " and 
 the poor sufferer is dismayed, and cries out in the anguish 
 of his soul, " The Lord hath forsaken me." 
 
 And whatever other causes may be assigned, is it not 
 true, beloved heirs of the kingdom, that the melancholy 
 plaint is not unfrequently heard among us, " The 
 Lord hath forgotten me ? " From many a heart does 
 it arise, in many a chamber does it become vocal, and 
 on the beds of multitudes of the children of Zion is it 
 uttered, with bitter cries and tears, in the night, when 
 the world is still, and the inhabitants thereof are at 
 rest. 
 
 Gather yourselves together, then, ye godly troubled 
 souls, for I speak not to those who have the sorrow of 
 the world ; gather yourselves together. Think not 
 that I mean to rebuke you for your unbelief. No ! 
 That belongs not to me : for the Lord himself doth not 
 rebuke you. Would you then comfort us ? No beloved, 
 not I ; for how would that relieve you ? But I would 
 direct you to One who is both able and willing to 
 comfort j^ou. Behold ! He is none other than the Lord 
 God himself. He has heard your cry ; he knows your 
 sorrows ; and is come down to deliver you. The bowels 
 of his mercy yearn over you, his weeping children. 
 Behold ! Behold him ! See the light of his counte- 
 nance lifted up upon you ; the outstretched arms of a 
 
TENDEll COMPASSION OF GOD. 11 
 
 merciful God and loving Father. He has a word to say 
 to you ; fear not. It is a word by which the darkness 
 of your souls shall at once be converted into the bright- 
 ness of the day. 
 
 Ill, 
 
 THE ASSURANCE OF GOD's LOVE TO HIS AFFLICTED 
 CHILDREN. 
 
 *' Can a woman forget her sucking child, that slie 
 should not have compassion on the son of her womb ? 
 yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold 
 I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands, thy 
 walls are continually before me." 
 
 O, brethren, what grace, what comfort is here! 
 Lay these words near your heart : let not one be lost, 
 and say whether they are not full of comfort I 
 
 Is it not a great and distinguished privilege to be 
 permitted to fall down before the Almighty in trembling 
 reverence, and to call him our God l And it is yet a 
 greater blessedness to have boldness of access, through 
 Christ, and to be enabled to cry to him in the spirit of 
 adoption, " Abba, Father." 
 
 And mark this well. It is as if God AVDuld encourage 
 us to approach him with the confidence which we repose 
 in a mother, and freely, and openly, without any fea?' 
 
12 A mother's love, or the 
 
 or reserve, to communicate our inmost thoughts and 
 feelings to himself. 
 
 A mother's love is therefore set before us, and vv'e are 
 assured that it is but a faint and imperfect emblem of 
 the love of God. 
 
 Think, brethren, of the tender care and anxious 
 solicitude of a mother ! In whose arms does an infant 
 love to rest I In whose heart is the helpless babe en- 
 shrined \ By whose watchful care is his every want 
 supplied I Is it not a mother's \ Who has borne, and 
 (Carried, and nourished, and fed you 2 Is it not a 
 mother ? Who, my dear little ones, who is it that pro- 
 vides for you, and clothes you I Who corrects you, 
 when needful, and herself suffers more, at such times, 
 than the corrected child ? Who comforts you, and 
 gently lays you to rest ? ! is it not a mother ? 
 What more dost thou desire, thou happy child ? Softly 
 lay thy head on the bosom of thy mother, and repose 
 in peace. 
 
 And, is it by a mother's love that the Lord describes 
 his own \ It is my brethren ; and it is to you he speaks, 
 and his voice is to the children of men. Then, then, 
 I have enough. What more do I need to hear? It 
 is enough. — No ! my beloved. God has yet more to 
 say to you. He would tell you further how it is that he 
 loveth you. 
 
 " Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should 
 not have compassion on the son of her womb ? " Such 
 is the inquiry which the Lord makes. And mark the 
 rising force of the words, which is noticed by many 
 ancient commentators. 
 
 Can a woman forget — can she who is pre-eminently 
 
TENDER C05IPASSI0N OF GOO. 13 
 
 endowed with feeling and affection — can she forget 
 her child ? The child may be ungrateful and re- 
 bellious, but will she, on that account, forget him, 
 withdraw from him her love, and banish him from her 
 heart I Never ! never — I confidently appeal to you who 
 are mothers. 
 
 But, admitting that she may forget her grown-up 
 son, and far distant daughter, will she therefore forget 
 her infant, her tender, helpless, sucking child, that she 
 should not have compassion on the son of her womb ? 
 O no ! A tiger may forget her young, but not a tender 
 mother. 
 
 But to suppose possible that which we acknowledge 
 to be an impossibility — a mother may forget her little 
 child : does it then, of necessity, follow, that she will 
 not have compassion on the son of her womb ? that 
 she can, without pain, see him languish, and pine 
 away, and die \ Ah, no ! A mother's eyes that had 
 never wept, would at such a sight become a fountain 
 of tears. And where is the mother that would not, 
 from the heart, cry out, " Alas I my poor, poor child ! 
 would that I could suffer for thee, and ease thee of 
 thy pain ! " 
 
 When, therefore, the Lord inquires, " Can a mother 
 forget her sucking child \ " are not all of you, who are 
 mothers, ready with the answer ? and do you not 
 reply, with one voice, " No, no ! it cannot be ! " And 
 so, saith the Lord, will I not forget you, my beloved 
 children. Thus he loveth you with the tenderness of 
 the most tender mother. 
 
 But, yet more. Here is not only a mother's tender- 
 ness, but a love beyond that of a mother. For the 
 Lord does not merely say, I Avill not forget thee : but 
 
14 A mother's love, or the 
 
 he says, "yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget 
 thee.^^ If that which appears impossible, should in- 
 deed take place — a mother may forget her sucking 
 child — yet will not I, the unchangeable, the eternal 
 God, yet will not I forget thee. This is strong lan- 
 guage. Here is opened before us the deep abyss of love, 
 which the eye of man can never penetrate. And as 
 we hav« no means to fathom it, so we can form no 
 conception, much less can we give any adequate 
 expression thereof. 
 
 daughter of Zion, canst thou now complain, " the 
 Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten 
 me 1 " Ah ! such a cry is not right, it is sin, it is 
 blasphemy. Away with such unworthy complaint. 
 Down in the dust and praj''. 
 
 And how does the Lord close these words of heavenly 
 comfort 2 " Behold I have graven thee on the palms 
 of my hands ; thy walls are continually before me." 
 How precious this assurance to Zion at large, as well as 
 to each individual believer ! 
 
 As an architect who is about to build a city, first 
 lays down the outline, and marks out the spaces re- 
 quired for houses, streets, squares, and palaces, so 
 also hath the Lord delineated his whole plan of the 
 spiritual Zion : and it is upon tJie palms of his hands 
 that he hath graven it. There, in his eternal purpose, 
 doth it stand, finished and adorned in all its splendour : 
 and who can hinder Him from perfecting his great 
 and mighty design ? Though the war-cry of the 
 Canaanite and Samaritan may be, " Down with it ! 
 Down with it ! even to the ground !" yet will the 
 flag of Zion ever wave on its towers of glory. For 
 the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. lo 
 
 Lord loveth the gates of Zion. Her walls are continually 
 before him. With his favour doth he compass her as 
 with a shield. 
 
 And as Zion is herself graven upon the palms of 
 His hands, so are each of the citizens thereof. O that 
 every one of you could realize this for yourselves. 
 You are gi-aven there, not in the form vrhich you 
 now bear, not in the body of sin and death which still 
 cleaves to you, (Rom. vii. 24.) but in the similitude 
 of that perfect body in which you shall hereafter be 
 raised in power. (1 Cor. xv. 43.) And whilst you are 
 here suffering in the church militant, and groan, being 
 burdened, (2 Cor. v. 4.) God beholds you already 
 invested with the robes of righteousness, and bearing 
 on high the palms of triumph, and shining in the spot- 
 less purity and surpassing brightness of eternal glory. 
 (Rev. vii. 9.) Such as you stand engraven upon his 
 hands, such you shall assuredly be before the throne 
 of the Majesty on high. Nor is there a moment in 
 which, wherever you are, his eyes are not upon jom. 
 Know, thou daughter of Zion, that thou art ever before 
 him. 
 
 Shouldst thou retire into soUtude to weep — shouldst 
 thou water thy couch with thy tears — shouldst thou lie, 
 with Elijah, under the lonely juniper tree — or withdraw 
 into the deepest shades of the dark and dreary forest, the 
 tender heart of God is near thee, his watchful eye of love 
 is over thee, and his right hand, though unseen, upholds 
 and strengthens thee. 
 
 In whatever state or circumstances thou mayest be, 
 as often as thou sayest, " The Lord hath forsaken me, 
 and my Lord hath forgotten me," thou speakest not 
 
IC A MOTHER'S LOVE, OR THE 
 
 aright, thou doest thyself much wrong, God knoweth. 
 Ah ! brother, if thine eyes were but once opened, as 
 were the eyes of the servant of the prophet, to see the 
 angels of God that encamp around thee, thou wouldat 
 indeed be astonished. 
 
 Awaj^ then with needless care ! Who should be 
 careful that knows the tender love of God ! He for- 
 getteth not his child, his little one, his helpless babe. 
 O no. The child of God may take this comfortable 
 assurance home to his heart. 
 
 But are we his children ? You are, brethren, if 
 you can say, that with weeping hearts you seek his 
 grace : tliat you inwardly delight in the fruit of his 
 Cross ; that, with a contrite spirit, you desire nothing 
 more earnestly than to be washed in the blood of 
 Jesus. Then are you the children of God : and, 
 though you are not yet able to rejoice in the full 
 assurance of your adoption into the family of heaven, 
 and as yet are not conscious of being the objects" of 
 the tender love of your God ; nevertheless, believe 
 in that love. The time for sensible experience is not 
 far distant. God would delight to lead us in a 
 smoother and more pleasant path than he is ordinarily 
 wont to lead us, did not our salvation demand it other- 
 wise. 
 
 But, look well to it, dear bi'ethren, each for himself, 
 that you do not groundlessly trust in the love and mercy 
 of our God. It is to Zion only that God speaks in my 
 text. And it is not fasting and prayer, it is not works 
 and deservings, which bring us within the bonds of this 
 covenant of grace and love ; it is a poor, broken, and 
 contrite heart, a troubled spirit, and a soul sighing and 
 looking to the Cross of Jesus. 
 
TENDER COMPASSION OF GOD. 17 
 
 The " Lord, remember me," of the thief upon the 
 cross — the "God be merciful to me a sinner," which 
 bursts from the heart of the penitent, as, led by the 
 Spirit, he bends in lowly reverence before the Lamb 
 of God offered in sacrifice — such a prayer alone rends 
 the heavens, such a prayer finds its way, through our 
 Advocate, to the heart of the Father ; it is the key of 
 the sanctuary. that God may give it to 3'ou all for 
 Jesus Christ's sake. 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON II. 
 
 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 Numb. ii. 3. 
 
 ' And on the east side, toward the rising of the sun, shall tliey 
 of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch throughout their 
 armies : and Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, shall be 
 captain of the children of Judah." 
 
 This chapter is entitled the order of the tribes in 
 their tents. It informs us how they encamped on 
 their way to Canaan ; but it has also a further signi- 
 fication. For this people was a type of the spiritual 
 Israel, and all God's dealings with them had a refer- 
 ence to greater things to come. All were allegorical 
 prophetic, significant — shadows of those things of 
 ^vhich tlie substance is to be fi)und in the kingdom of 
 Christ. 
 
 This remark applies not onl}^ to the whole multitude 
 collectively, but, individually, to the tribes of which 
 it was composed. Thus, in the words before us, we 
 are taught the manner in which the people of God are 
 encamped in the present day. 
 
 Let us draw near, that we may behold more clearly 
 this lovely sight. We will observe, 
 
The camp of judah. 
 
 19 
 
 I. The tribe of Judah. 
 II. His camp. 
 
 III. The position of his camp. 
 
 IV. His standard. 
 V. His army. 
 
 VI. His captain. 
 
 And may the Spirit of the Lord direct our medi- 
 tations aright. 
 
 I. 
 
 THE TRIBE OF JUDAH. 
 
 It is generally understood that the tribe of Judah 
 was a representation of the New Testament Church, 
 which is not unfrequently designated by the term 
 Judah. Thus it is said by the Prophet Joel, " Judah 
 shall dwell for ever." (Joel iii. 20.) And Zechariah 
 foretells that " the Lord shall inherit Judah, his portion 
 in the holy land." (Zech. ii. 12.) A similar allusion is 
 contained in the blessing of Jacob, " Judah, thou art he 
 whom thy brethren shall praise." (Gen. xlix. 8.) 
 
 And indeed, Judah possesses every qualification re- 
 quisite to set forth the reality of the spiritual church. 
 Was Judah the most distinguished tribe which gave to 
 all Israel a race of kings ? Behold here is an elect people, 
 a people who are all kings and priests, and whose sceptre 
 shall govern all the inhabitants of the earth. (Rev. 
 ii 6.) Was Judah the tribe in Avhich the second Adam 
 was bom ? Behold, here is the woman clothed with the 
 Sun, who by the power of the Spirit, and the witness of 
 the word, bringeth forth a man-child, even Christ, who 
 is to rule all nations with a rod of iron. (Rev. xii. 
 1 — o.) Was Judah the tribe which dwelt on Mount 
 
20 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 Zion, in Jerusalem, and, Iwre in its bosom the sanctuary 
 of God I Behold, here are the royal priesthood, the 
 citizens of the heavenly Zion, themselves the habitation 
 of God by the Spirit. The holy fire is preserved among 
 them, and the glory of the Lord filleth the house. This 
 then is the true Judah. 
 
 The name Judah signifies praise. Now, said his 
 mother at his birth, Avill I praise the Lord, and thence 
 his name. So also is the sijiritual Judah appointed 
 and ordained for the praises of Him, who hath called 
 him out of darkness into his marvellous light. Even 
 when silent, there ascends from his tabernacles the 
 sacrifice of pi-aise. For what was once the state of 
 those who are now so highly honoured 1 Were they 
 not as firebrands snatched from the burning, and 
 though now a holy nation, and peculiar people, were 
 they not once without God and without Christ in the 
 world l 
 
 The golden harps which they bear in their hands, 
 were placed there by the God of Jacob, and though 
 fellow heirs with the holy angels, and inheritors of the 
 glory that shall be revealed, their desert was the 
 misery and despair of the devil and his angels, in the 
 blackness of darkness for ever. 
 
 Well may this people be called Judah, a praise to 
 the Lord, for it is a living monument of the power and 
 grace of Christ, more glorious than the fabric of the 
 world, a people that he hath formed for himself, they 
 shall show forth his praise. (Isa. xliii. 21.) He esteems 
 them as his peculiar treasure. They are a " crown of 
 glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in 
 the hand of their God." ( Isa. Ixii. 3.) " They shall be 
 mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 21 
 
 make up my jewels ; and I will spare them, as a man 
 spareth his sou that serveth him." (Mai. iii. 17.) 
 
 Their names are borne on the breast-plate of the 
 Great High Priest into the Holy of holies, and when 
 at length the Son of Man shall come in his glory, and 
 every eye shall see him, he shall come attended by this 
 people, they shall encircle him as a guard of honour, they 
 shall sit on his throne, and with him judge the world. 
 They are made for the praise of the glory of his grace, 
 and thence they are termed Judah, that is, praise. Such 
 are the people of whom we speak. 
 
 But let it be observed, that we have not here to do 
 with that Judah who dwelt at peace among the hills 
 of Zion, and on the shores of the Jordan, and sat 
 beneath his own vine and fig-tree, none daring to make 
 him afraid ; but our text refers to that Judah, who, 
 abroad upon his march, amid the sound of trumpet 
 and the clang of war, pitched his camp in the barren 
 wilderness, and thought of battle and of strife. 
 
 And the spiritual Judah in this world has much 
 more resemblance to a people so circumstanced, than 
 to such as were in the full enjoyment of peace within 
 the borders of the promised land. For they are en- 
 listed under the banner of the cross, nor shall their 
 warfare be accomplished till they at length attain the 
 crown. (Rev. ii. 10.) 
 
 Truly they have more adversaries than Midian and 
 Amalek. Many are the principalities and powers 
 which stand opposed to them in hostile array. They 
 have enemies in the air, (Eph. ii. 2; vi. 12.) and on 
 the earth; (Eph. iv. 14.) enemies in the house, 
 (Matt. X. 36.) in the heart, Mark vii. 21—23.) and 
 in the members; (Jas. iv. 1.) enemies in the tumult 
 
22 THE CAMP OF JUDAH, 
 
 of the world, (Mark x. 17—25 ; Acts iv. 25—30.) 
 and in the solitary chamber ; (Matt. iv. 1.) and on all 
 sides they are beset with ambuscades and snares, and 
 hidden mines. Thus, therefore, of necessity, must 
 they ever stand ready armed. (Psal. Ivii. 6 ; Prov. 
 xxix. 5.) 
 
 The Judah of former days was divided into several 
 companies, each of which had its peculiar equipments. 
 And it is the same in spiritual things. 
 
 As there is a diversity in form and outward circum- 
 stance, in conplexion and character, and spiritual 
 experience, so is there a difference in the weapons which 
 they wield. 
 
 The defence of some are tears, as it is with a child, who, 
 on the appearance of danger, runs weeping to his mother. 
 This is a band of combatants, who, when they are 
 weak, then are they strong, and so one victory is followed 
 by another. 
 
 Others protect themselves after the manner of a virgin, 
 with holy shame-facedness and modesty. Scarcely is 
 the temptation presented, wlienthe heart starts back with 
 trembling apprehension ; " How shall I do this great 
 wickedness and sin against God?" (Gen. xxxix. 9.) 
 and Joseph is rescued. 
 
 A third class is skilled in the Word of God. " It 
 is written," is their sword and shield under every 
 assault ; and then, " Get thee hence, Satan, for thou 
 savourest not of the things that be of God." ( Matt. 
 iv. 10.) 
 
 With sighs and cries to God do others prevail, as 
 Moses, in the conflict with Amalek, when Aaron and 
 Hur stayed up his hands towards heaven, and Amalek 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 23 
 
 and his people were discomfited with the edge of the 
 sword. (Exod. xvii. 12. 
 
 Or the cross is lifted up on high, and one look is directed 
 to the bleeding victim hanging on the tree, and the 
 stonn in the members is hushed, and Satan launches his 
 weapons in vain. 
 
 The spiritual combatants are strong in the Lord 
 and in the power of his might. They put on the 
 whole armour of God, that they may he able to stand 
 against the wiles of the devil. For they wrestle not 
 against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against 
 powers, against the rulers of the darkness of tliis world, 
 against spiritual wickedness in high places. Where- 
 fore they take unto them the whole armour of God, 
 that they may he able to withstand in the evil day, 
 and having done all to stand. They stand, therefore, 
 having their loins girt about with truth, and having on 
 the breast-plate of righteousness, and their feet shod 
 with the preparation of the Gospel of peace ; ahove 
 all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith they are able 
 to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And 
 they take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of 
 the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying always 
 with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and 
 watching thereunto with all perseverance (Eph. vi. 
 10—18.) 
 
 The Lord himself is their rock and then- fortress, and 
 their deliverer ; their God, their strength, in whom 
 they "will trust ; their buckler and the horn of their 
 salvation, and their high tower. (Psal. xviii. 2.) 
 
 Relying on the thousand promises which are graven on 
 the Rock of ages, they know and are fully assured that 
 no enemy can do them harm. 
 
24 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 Wherever they encounter the adversary, they resist 
 him with firmness, and deride his power, and they rejoice 
 in the fuifihnent of the promises of God, which are all 
 yea and amen in Christ Jesus. (2 Cor. i. 20.) 
 
 As the weapons are various which are used against the 
 flesh and the devil, so are those also which are opposed 
 to scorners and blasphemers. 
 
 In the camp of Judah one fights with the transfixing 
 arrows of meekness and love, blessing him that curses, and 
 heajjing coals of fire upon his head. 
 
 To another is given a holy conversation and heavenly 
 example, to stay the tongue of slander. 
 
 A third ensui'es success by a simplicity and gentleness 
 which confounds and perplexes the enemy. 
 
 And thus, by such-like weapons, taken from the 
 spiritual armoury, we prevail ; though we walk after the 
 flesh, we do not war after the flesh. For the weapons 
 of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God, 
 to the pulling down of strong holds ; casting down 
 imaginations and ever}'' high thing that exalteth itself 
 against the knowledge of God. (2 Cor. x. 3 — 5.) Nor 
 is there a sword, or shield, or spear, or other instru- 
 ment of war, found in the camp of Judah, which is 
 not furnished by Him who is given for a leader and com- 
 mander to the people, the Captain of the Lord's host, 
 the Captain of our salvation. (Isa. Iv. 4 ; Jos. v, 15 ; 
 Heb. ii. 10.) 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 26 
 
 II. 
 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 '" On the east side, toward the rising of the sun, shall 
 thej' of the standard of the camp of Judah pitch through- 
 out their armies." 
 
 Behold, then, this people in their camp. The Lord of 
 Hosts is with them ! the God of Jacob is their refuge. 
 (PsaU xlvi. 7.) And underneath are the everlasting arms ; 
 and he shall thrust out the enemy from before them, and 
 shall say. Destroy them. (Deut. xxxiii. 27.) 
 
 But v/as it always so ? Did the spiritual Judah, at 
 all times, dwell in the secret place of the Most High, 
 and abide under the shadow of the Almighty ! (Psal. 
 xci. 1.) No, brethren. A time was when they were 
 without ; {1 Cor, v. 13.) and though exposed to dangers 
 and destitute of help, they thought that they were safe. 
 In fancied power, and imaginary goodness, they boasted 
 of their state. But now the hand of grace has subdued 
 their haughty spirit, and bowed to the earth their crown 
 of pride. Now they lie in the dust, weak, and poor, and 
 destitute, and say, " In the Lord have I righteousness 
 and strength." flsa. xlv. 24.) They encamp ; they 
 march ; they fight ; they conquer. Poor in spirit, and 
 ever deeply sensible of their own unworthiness, they 
 cast themselves at the feet of Jesus. And should any 
 one of them attempt to quit the camp of Judah, to lift 
 up or exalt himseL^ he hears the voice of Jesus, calling 
 him to return, and his former position is resumed. (Isa. 
 XXX. 21 ; John xii. 23.) 
 
 Down, therefore, to these depths must you all come who 
 trust in a righteousness of your own, and boast in a crown 
 ichich your own hands have formed, (Jer. ix. 24; 1 Cor. 
 c 
 
26 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 i. 81.) There are no such vain confidences m Judali- 
 They do, indeed, glory ; but it is in the Lord they 
 glory. (2 Cor. x. 17.) Their crown is the crown of 
 thorns, which encircled the brow of their King in the 
 common hall of Pilate. (Matt, xxvii. 27.) Their robe 
 of righteousness is the garment dyed with blood, which 
 their Lord was content to wear for their salvation. 
 (Isa. Ixiii, 1.) 
 
 And ye who weary yourselves in the pursuit of human 
 merit, that you may be your own saviours, and seek, by 
 good works, to atone for your past transgressions ; O 
 come down from your heights, and take your station 
 with the princely but lowly Judah. For Judah casts 
 his crown upon the ground, the crown of life Avhich the 
 Saviour gives him ; he lays his forehead on the footstool 
 of the throne of grace, land is accepted in the Beloved. 
 (Rev. iv. 4, 10; Eph. i. 6.) 
 
 The camp of Judah is pitched. It is not pleasing to 
 the Lord that this people should consume their time in vain 
 and fruitless labours. It is his will that they should 
 rest in the enjoyment of the blessings which were pur- 
 chased by the agony and bloody sweat, by the cross and 
 passion of the Saviour. The feast is prepared for them ; 
 the time is come ; all things are ready ; nothing is re- 
 quired but to partake of the bounties so amply provided. 
 (Matt. xxii. 4.) 
 
 Happy then is our state in the camp of God. We may 
 rest in peace, for thou. Lord, only causest us to dwell in 
 safety- Do we hear from afar the rushing of the storm I 
 We learn to rejoice more in the serenity which pervades 
 the camp of Judah. Do we hear, without, the war-cry 
 of the enemy I Our souls are thus taught to delight in 
 the voice of peace, (Eph. ii. 13 — 15.) which pro- 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 27 
 
 ceeds from the cross of Jesus, (Heb. xii. 24.) Do 
 we hear at a distance the raging of hell ? We com- 
 pare it with the quiet of our own habitations, and give 
 praise to God. Are we roused in our contemplation 
 of future things by the voice of the archangel and the 
 trump of God, summoning the world to judgment I 
 We hear it with joy, for the more dreadful the things 
 that must be hereafter, the sweeter our feeling of secu- 
 rity in the knowledge of reconciliation. For, whoever 
 has prostrated himself on the ground with Jesus in 
 Gethseraane, and with the Avorm has become a worm, 
 shall certainly also partake with him of this rich and 
 abiding portion. 
 
 But how is Judah encamped ? In the form described 
 by the wave-offering, namely, the form of the cross^ ( See 
 Numb. viii. 11. marginal reading.) A most significant 
 emblem ! For the people of God are saved by the cross. 
 They cling to the cross of the Redeemer, as to the plank 
 which can rescue them from shipwreck. They rest 
 upon the cross as the alone foundation of their spiritual 
 life, of their hopes, their joys, and prospects. And who- 
 soever is without the cross can claim no place in the 
 camp of Judah. 
 
 But where are the resting places of this favoured 
 people \ They dwell in a camp. In camps there are no 
 fixed habitations, but only tabernacles and tents, wliich 
 are speedily and without difficulty pitched and taken 
 down. And it is well that it is so, for the children of 
 Judah must always hold themselves in readiness to 
 march. They are but wanderers and sojourners in the 
 world. The feeling that they are such, should ever 
 pervade their soul, and direct and control their plans 
 and operations. Theirs is the most happy condition 
 c 2 
 
28 THE CAMP OV JUDAfi. 
 
 npon earth. Occupying for a season a temporary habi- 
 tation, with hearts set free from earthly entanglements, 
 the}'- confess that they are strangers and pilgrims on 
 the earth, and declare plainly that they seek a better 
 country, that is, a heavenly. (Heb. xi. 18 — 16.) 
 Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their 
 God, for he hath prepared for them a city. (1 Cor. ix. 
 29 — 31.) And thus those that have wives are as though 
 they had none, and they that weep as though they 
 wept not, and they that rejoice as though they rejoiced 
 not, and they that buy as though they possessed not, and 
 they that use this world as not abusing it, for the fashion 
 of this world passeth away. And they know that the 
 sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be com- 
 pared with the glory which shall be revealed in them. 
 (Rom. viii. 18.) And though weeping may endure for a 
 night, joy cometh in the morning. (Psal. xxx. 5.) Here 
 they have no continuing city, but they seek one to come. 
 (Heb. xui. 14.) 
 
 0, how happy are they who have learnt, as travel- 
 lers, to press onward to their much loved home, only 
 seeking shelter for the night under a transient covert 
 by the way ! This is acquired only in the school of 
 Christ. 
 
 And as external objects affect so little the follower of 
 Jesus, (for he looks not at the things which are seen and 
 temporal, but at the things which are not seen and eter- 
 nal) so is it not to be expressed how firm is the hold 
 wliich the anchor of his hope takes within the veil. One 
 only knows, He who will shortly conduct liis people 
 to their rest, to the haven where they would be. 0, 
 happy art thou, Judah in thy tents, and in thy dwell- 
 ings by the way ! 
 
TilE CAMP OF JUDAH. 29 
 
 III, 
 
 THE POSITION OF THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 Judah pitched "on the east side toward the rising 
 ■K)f the sun." There is something animating and joyous 
 in this description — on the east side, toward the rising 
 sun — the evening behind them, the morning full in 
 view. And observe, that from the child upwards to the 
 grey-headed, aU in Judah look to the east, to the sun- 
 rising. Where the Rose of Sharon blooms, where the 
 Root of David sends forth its shoots out of a dry and 
 thirsty ground, and the chief of the host of stars arises 
 in splendour over the night, thither do they direct their 
 looks — their thoughts. 
 
 Now the hill of Bethlehem is tipped before them 
 from afar with glowing light, and they hear, with trans- 
 ported soul, the song of the angels. Now they stand 
 upon the shore, and rejoice in Him, to whom the 
 wind and the waves yield a ready obedience. At one 
 time, they build a tabernacle with Peter on the moun- 
 tain of the transfiguration, and dream dreams, and see 
 visions of glorious things which shall be hereafter. At 
 another time, they visit Jesus in the lowly cabin of 
 the carpenter, their brother, in the form of a servant, and 
 they adore His condescension in becoming so closely 
 related to them, and exclaim with tears, " Brother ! 
 my Brother !" And now they enter into the darkness 
 of Gethsemane, and with trembling reverence eagerly 
 catch the bloody sweat which drops from the forehead 
 of their Lord and Saviour, and the wounds of their 
 souls begin to feel its healing power. Then the mount 
 
30 THE CAMP OF JUDAH, 
 
 of the crucifixion arises before the view. The soul 
 expands its wings, and on the cross of the dying peni- 
 tent, adopts his prayer, " Lord, remember me when 
 thou comest into thy kingdom," and draws upon itself 
 the same blessing, " Verily, I say unto thee, to-day 
 shalt thou be with me in paradise." (Luke xxiii. 42, 
 48.) Behold, the stone is rolled back from the se- 
 pulchre in the garden of Joseph ! Praise, praise the 
 Lord. The Lion of the tribe of Judah hath pre- 
 vailed. He hath arisen victorious over death and the 
 grave. death, where is thy sting I grave, where 
 is thy victory I Thanks be to God who giveth us the 
 victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. And now the 
 glories of the rising morn are shed on the heights of 
 Olivet. The soul mounts upwards. She sees heaven 
 opened, and God is gone up with a shout ; the Lord 
 with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, 
 sing praises, sing praises unto our king, sing praises. 
 (Psal. xlvii. 5, 6.) She breathes the air of paradise. She 
 spreads abroad her wings, and would fain ascend with 
 the bridegroom to the chamber where the marriage feast 
 is prepared, and would leave for ever the earth and 
 earthly things. 
 
 Thus, my brethren, doth Judah fix liis gaze upon 
 the opening glories of the morning. Thus is he en- 
 camped towards the east. Soon will the Sun of Righ- 
 teousness arise as a bridegroom out of his chamber^ 
 with healing in his wings. Already on every side, 
 among Christians, the heathen, and the Jews, has the 
 harbinger of day announced His near approach. Already 
 the dawn appears and the eastern heavens are tinged with 
 red, and the vapours which foretel the coming day, the 
 mists of uproar aiid confusion which arise from the 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 31 
 
 -camp of the enemy, are dispersed as with the breath of a 
 wlxirlwind. 
 
 He will come. The day-star fi-om on high will 
 visit ns. The bride longs for his appearing I " Come, 
 Lord Jesus, come quickly." He will come. — Tlie 
 prince of the kings of the earth in the clouds of 
 heaven, and will soon bi-ing to an end the rage of hits 
 embittered enemies, and will establish the mountain 
 of the Lord's house in the top of the mountains, and 
 exalt it above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto 
 it. (Isa. ii. 2, 5,) house of Jacob, come ye and let 
 us walk in the light of the Lord. For our camp is 
 pitched on the east side toward the rising of the sun. 
 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. We ah-eady 
 inhale the air of the morning, hoping, believing, looking 
 Rip wards. 
 
 Behold then, on the east side, toward the rising sun, 
 is Judah encamped. Thither tends his soul, and as he 
 gazes with longing and intense delight, his eyes fill vrith 
 tears, they fail with looking upward, and oppressed with 
 the exceeding weight of glory, he sighs for the time v/hen 
 mortality shall be swallowed up of life. 
 
 Walk about Zion, and go round about her, tell the 
 towers thereofj mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her 
 palaces, alllook toward the east. (Psal. xlviii. 12, 13.) 
 Glorious as is the dwelling-place of the Lord among 
 men, it bears no comparison to that which shall l)e 
 hereafter. If there was a glory, in tlie earthly temple, 
 when the brightness of the Messiah was concealed by 
 the veil of mortality, will it not be more strikingly 
 made manifest in the world to come ? And may not 
 a further accomplishment of the promise be yet anti- 
 iiipated I " For thus saith the Lord of hosts, Yet 
 
32 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens^ 
 and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land, and I 
 will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall 
 come, and I will fill the house with glory, saith the 
 Lord of hosts." (Hag. ii. 6, 7.) " The glory of the 
 latter house shall be greater than that of the former, 
 saith the Lord of hosts." (Hag. ii. 9.) The great 
 Melchizedec, the king of Salem, the king of peace 
 shall reign there. For there shall be a new heaven and 
 a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth 
 shall pass away. And the holy city, the new Jeni- 
 salem, shall come down from God out of heaven, 
 prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And 
 a great voice out of heaven shall say. Behold the 
 tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with 
 them, and they shall be his people, and God himself 
 shall be with them and be their God. And God shall 
 wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be 
 no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall 
 there be any more pain ; for the former things will have 
 passed away, and, behold, he that sitteth upon the 
 throne will make all things new. And he said unto 
 me, write, for tliese words are true and faithful. (Rev. 
 xxi. 1—5.) 
 
 The pilgrim looks, therefore, towards the rising of 
 the sun. He waits for the morning. To behold this 
 is his desire in this dark and desolate world. He longs 
 for his peaceful home, among the dwellings of the 
 blessed. He thinks upon the morning of the eternal 
 sabbath, and cries with David, "as the hart panteth 
 after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O 
 God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God : 
 when shall I come and appear before God r'(Psal. xlii. 1.) 
 
THE CAMP OF Jl'DAH. 33 
 
 Some in the camp of Judah are children of sorrow. 
 They are encompassed by doubts, and sit in darkness, j-et 
 their window is ever open towards the east, hoping that 
 the morning will quickly appear, that morning whose 
 brightness and splendour no night can obscure. Others, 
 beset by a thousand obstacles, would never know 
 another happy hour, did they not perceive with the 
 eye of expectation, through the confused imagery around 
 them, the dawning of that day of which the poet 
 speaks. 
 
 As dreams shall seem the pilgrim's fears; 
 Great day ; when thy bright morn appears. 
 
 Others, whilst bowed down with grief they follow the 
 remains of a beloved one to the grave, though weeping, 
 may rejoice for their eye, rests upon the dawning of that 
 morning which will unite all the saints in one indissolu- 
 ble bond of union. 
 
 Yes ; go to the chambers of the afflicted children of 
 God ; visit their bed of suffering ; see the brother of 
 Job, the sister of Lazarus, and you may w-ell ask, how 
 they are capable of sustaining their calamities, and 
 whence are derived the peace and serenity which beam 
 in their ey&s. But know, that to the upright tiiere 
 ariseth a light in the darkness, there shineth ovei' them 
 from afar the effulgence of a morning, such as the 
 world never saw ; an eternal Sabbath, a blessed jubilee, 
 with thousand crowns and thousand glories ; and by 
 faith they behold Jesus himself, the Light of the world, 
 the source of their present and everlasting joy. They 
 are encamped on the east side, toward the rising of 
 the sun. And it is as though they already heard the 
 cheerful notes of the herald of the day, and as though the 
 c3 
 
34 THE CAMP OP JUDAH. 
 
 morning breeze Avafted its freshness through their win- 
 dow, and the early davni gladdened their chambers. O, 
 praise, praise the Lord. The night is far spent, the day 
 is at hand. 
 
 Judah is pitched on the east side, toward the rising 
 sun. Such also is the position of the Saints, who, having 
 been called to their rest, are sleeping in Jesus. The 
 sacred dust of those who were once the temple of the 
 Holy Ghost, the habitation of God, through the Spirit, 
 is precious in His sight, and He guards it as bis treasure. 
 Whilst the bodies of the just lie in the silent tomb, their 
 souls are happy Avith Jesus ; but ere long, when tlie 
 morning of the Resurrection will dawn, the Spirit of the 
 Lord will breathe upon them, and the voice of the 
 Archangel and the trump of God will awaken them 
 from their long night of slumber. At length they 
 shall arise, invested with a radiance and glory inex- 
 pressible, and the soul and body again being united, they 
 shall enter as the blessed of the Father into the joy of 
 their Lord — ^a praise to the Redeemer throughout the 
 ages of eternity. " Thy dead men shall live ; together 
 with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, 
 ye that dwell in dust, for thy dew is as the dew 
 of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead." ( Isa. 
 xxvi. 19.) 
 
 Yes, thou people of Judah, thou art indeed blessed. 
 Wait patiently but a little. Thy morning sun will soon 
 arise. O sing, tlien, one of the songs of Zion. 
 
 I sigh for home, and feel a stranger 
 
 Here, where all is drear and cold ; 
 Shelter me soon from storms and danger 
 
 In thy warm and peaceful fold. 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. OO 
 
 Soon, very soon, thy mourning will be turned into jo3% 
 The sighs which issue from the tabernacles of the Pil- 
 grims to Zion are heard in heaven. 
 
 I sigh for home, in twilight pining ; 
 
 Grant me soon, thou Prince of Light, 
 Thy face to see, in glory shining, 
 
 In those realms where all is bright. 
 
 Thy mansions are already prepared in thy Father's 
 Jiouse above. Tarry but a while on the hiU of expecta- 
 tion. Behold the Lord will come quickly. He will not 
 disappoint thy hope. 
 
 I sigh for home — my spirit panteth 
 
 After Thee, God of Love ; 
 Give me the joys for which it fainteth, 
 
 Unite me to thyself above. 
 
 Silent and unobserved, the dawning of the day will 
 speedily appear, and, before thou art aware, that Sun will 
 arise which at once and for ever will turn thy darkness 
 into light. 
 
 IV. 
 
 THE STANDARD OF THE CAMP OP JUDAH* 
 
 *' Every man of the children of Israel shall pitch liis 
 ■own standard with the ensign of their father's house." 
 (Numb. ii. 2.) 
 
 After the position of the Camp of Judah is stated, 
 mention is made of his standard. 
 
36 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 Judah had his own peculiar bannei', cruciform, with a 
 transverse piece of wood above. His colour was red, as 
 ancient tradition relates, with the figure of a Lion on the 
 field. It was, therefore, the type of the Christian stand' 
 ard, the cross of a crucified Saviour. 
 
 Flags were used to give signals to the host for the pitch- 
 ing of the camp, and other military operations. They 
 were wont to be set up on the mountains and hills, that 
 they might be seen afar, and forthwith the army collected 
 around them. 
 
 And it is even so with the banner of the cross. It is 
 that which the Father makes use of to draw all men unto 
 Him. Wherever it is unfurled, there is a moving, there 
 is a going to and fro, there is a rushing and a hastening 
 forward, and the elect of God flow to it with rejoicing or 
 with tears. 
 
 Here we behold men, whom the humiliation of 
 the manger could not affect, and the throne of the 
 Majesty on High failed to alarm, whom the considera- 
 tion of their everlasting welfare could not allure, nor 
 the thought of eternal destruction impel to seek the 
 salvation of their soul — And behold ! the cross of 
 Christ in a moment breaks their heart, and the crown 
 of thorns pierces their soul, and the reed given in 
 mockery to the Son of God strikes them to the ground, 
 and the blood, which trickles from the accursed tree, 
 softens and dissolves, as with the power of fire, the 
 heart of stone. 
 
 And tell me, where do the Rahabs and the IMagdaleus 
 become the chaste spouse of Christ ; where do the aged 
 Simeons and Hannahs rejoice in the vigour of youth ; 
 where are the Sauls breathing out threatenings and 
 slaughter against the saints of the Lord, converted into 
 
*afi CAMP of JCDAit. 57 
 
 devoted priests of the Most High ; and where do the 
 strong ones become a prey to the Lord ? Is it not 
 where the woi'd of the cross is proclaimed, and the 
 banner of the cross is unfurled, and the power of the 
 cross is experienced ! 
 
 This is the standard which is lifted up, and draws all 
 men unto it. Yea, it is the centrCj around which 
 myriads of happy spirits in heaven and on earth are 
 day and night collected in holy love and brotherhood. 
 For here alone, beneath this banner, is life. 
 
 When an army is deprived of its standard, it is in^ 
 deed a great loss, it is a disgrace, and almost worse 
 than a defeat. Our enemies are aware of this, and what 
 is there that they more desire, than to wrest the ensign 
 from our hands. A holy Saviour, a divine Saviour, 
 a princely Saviour, an exalted and glorified Saviour 
 — such an one they would leave with us a thousand 
 times, could they but rob us of Him that was cruci- 
 fied. It is against Him that all their arrows of scorn 
 and derision are directed. To cause us to discsteem 
 and contemn such a Saviour — this is all their endea- 
 vour. Brethren, they would tear from us the banner of 
 our faith, the flag to which we have sworn fidelity ; need 
 I exhort you to die rather than suffer this, and lose 
 your hope of heaven. 
 
 The ensign precedes the host, and so does the cross 
 conduct the army of God in their heavenward progress. 
 It is a crucified Saviour whom they follow, and a look 
 to his cross is their strength and security. Should 
 they, in following him, encounter the storms and fury 
 of the elements — they look to the cross. TJiat look 
 inspires courage and confirms the heart in patient 
 endurance. Is their pathway dark and dreary I They 
 
38 THE CAMP OF JUBAH. 
 
 look to the cross. The rays of the Saviour's glory shine 
 to them from thence. Darkness is made light before 
 them, and crooked things straight, and they are re- 
 freshed and comforted. Are they exposed to the 
 covert and insidious attacks, or to the more vigorous 
 and determined onset of their numerous enemies ? 
 They look to the cross. And whether the power of 
 temptation he from without or from within, from a cor- 
 rupt and evil nature, or from the world, the flesh, and 
 the devil, they are at once assured, by the eff^ects which 
 follow, that the battle is the Lord's, and he will 
 give them the victory. Should sin alarm, or their 
 heart condemn them — they look to the cross. God 
 is greater than their hearts, and knoweth all things. 
 He knoweth that they trust in that Saviour who 
 finished the transgression and made an end of sin, and 
 brought in everlasting righteousness ; that they repose 
 their faith on Him who died and rose again, and ever 
 liveth to make intercession for them. And they con- 
 fidently adopt the language of the apostle, and say, 
 " who can lay any thing to the charge of God's elect ? " 
 since God, the triune Jehovah, acquits and justifies. 
 Who can condemn whom God hath not condemned ! 
 There is no condemnation to tliem that are in Christ 
 Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Sphit. 
 And when to triumph over their last, their dreaded 
 enemy, they pass through the valley of the shadow of 
 death, amid the gloom and silence of tlicir dreary 
 pilgrimage, (for no human friend is near to help or 
 encourage them,) they look to the cross. That friend 
 is near, who sticketh closer than a brother. They fear 
 no evil, his rod and his stafi^ they comfort them. 
 And finally, when they stand before the awful seat of 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH, S'J 
 
 judgment — they look to the cross, and because that 
 banner has gone before them to notify their approach 
 as soldiers of the cross, the king will hold out to them 
 the golden scejitre, and the glorified saints and angols 
 will welcome their arrival. Such is the power of the 
 banner of the cross. It brings us safely through, where 
 without it there is no way. It breaks the brazen bolts 
 and iron doors, and cuts a path through the flinty 
 rocks, and over the hills which touch the heavens. 
 
 When a warrior falls on the battle field, it is a mark 
 of distinguished honour if the flag is thrown over him, 
 and he is covered in its sacred folds. And thus it is 
 with thee, Judah. Shouldst thou be stricken to the 
 ground and faint in the conflict, the bloody banner 
 shall float over thee and protect thee, and bring thee 
 to honour. And when at length thou shalt die, 
 die beneath the shade of this ensign, die under the 
 covering of this red-stained standard of the camp. 
 Thus abide as a good soldier. Be thou faithful unto 
 death, and He will give thee a cro\\'n of life. 
 
 V. 
 
 THE ARMIES OF JUDAH. 
 
 0, beloved brethren, how should we be astonished, 
 what trembling delight would seize upon us, if but 
 once the protecting host, by which the spiritual Israel 
 is surrounded, should burst the veil which hides them 
 from our view, and render themselves visible. To some 
 it has been permitted to behold, with their mortal eyes, 
 these unseen attendants of the heii-s of salvation, 
 Jacob beheld them, after his departure from Laban. 
 As he went on his way, the angels of God met him. 
 
■iO TliE CAMP 01* JUDAlt. 
 
 And when Jacob saw them, he said this is God's host ; 
 and he called the name of that place Mahanaim, that 
 is, two hosts or camps. ( Gen. xxxii. 1, 2.) The ser- 
 vant of Elislia was enal)led to see the armies of hea- 
 ven, when the king of Syria sent horses and chariots, 
 and a great army to Dothan ; " and they came by night 
 and compassed the city about, and when the servant 
 of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, 
 behold an host compassed the city, both with horses 
 and chariots, and his servant said unto him, alas, my 
 master, what shall we do I And he answered, fear not, 
 for they that be with us, are more than they that be 
 with them. And Elisha prayed, and said. Lord I pray 
 thee, open his eyes that he may see ; and the Lord 
 opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw : and 
 behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of 
 fire round about Elisha." (2 Kmgs vi. 14 — 17.) 
 
 The army of Judah is the heavenly choir of guar' 
 dian angels, all ministej'ing spirits sent forth to minis- 
 ter to them who shall be heirs of salvation. They 
 are the mighty ones, who with golden harps surround 
 the throne of the Majesty on high, and behold the 
 face of the Ancient of Days in glory. They are the 
 blessed messengers which wing their way from heaven, 
 and visit the habitations of the children of men on 
 earth, and take back a report of their deeds to the 
 presence of the Father. They are the holy angels 
 who, around the throne of Jehovah, await his high com- 
 mands, hearkenmg to the voice of his word ; who, 
 swifter than the rushing storm or flash of heaven, urge 
 their impetuous flight to help and protect the elect of 
 God. 
 
 These blessed visitants are present in the congrega- 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 41 
 
 tion of the saints, and go in and out of the city of 
 God in this lower world, to mingle with our children in 
 their simple pleasures and keep them from harm ; to 
 warn our j'ouths of their danger, and conduct them in 
 the right way ; to encourage and excite those of mature 
 age, to faithful and active services in the things of 
 God, and refresh them in their labours ; to convey 
 cheering messages to the grey-headed, from their 
 home which is now not distant, and permit them to 
 hear before-hand, the first low murmurings of their 
 heavenly harps. 
 
 Ah, what sweet but awful sensations must we expe- 
 rience at the thought, that such a band of angels 
 invisibly surrounds us ; and who knows how near we 
 may be to that great cloud of witnesses, who before us 
 have entered into rest, and of whom the world was not 
 worthy 1 Or should the gates through which a Samuel, 
 a Moses, and Elias came back, though but for a 
 moment, from the kingdom of everlasting rest to this 
 globe of mortality — should those gates, since they 
 passed through, have been closed, entirely closed. Who 
 can declare it ? Enough — we live already in the midst 
 of the invisible world. The inhabitants of heaven are 
 our friends an,d companions, spirits are our ministers 
 and guides. Let us then comfort ourselves with the 
 recollection of this unseen army which surrounds us 
 day and night, the horses and chariots of fire in count- 
 less number. And if there be any one here that is 
 dispirited, timid, or easily dejected, at the thought of 
 the multitude of his foes, let me remind him, that 
 "they that be with us, are more than they that 
 be with them." Take this to thy comfort, and be at 
 peace. 
 
42 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 VI. 
 
 THE CAPTAIN OF THE CHILDREN OF JUDAH. 
 
 " Nahshon, the son of Amminadab, was captain of 
 the children of Judah." The interpretation of his 
 name is experience, a term in every respect applicable 
 to Jesus Christ our Saviour. For who has more expe- 
 rience in battle, than He whose bloody track is seen 
 fi-om the slaughter-field of Gethseraane and Golgotha, 
 and from that sacred spot in the garden of Joseph, 
 where he overcame the grave and swallowed up death 
 in victory I And who has more skiU in conflict than 
 He who spoiled principalities and powers, and made a 
 show of them openly, triumphing over them in himself ! 
 (Col. ii. 15. See the marginal reading.) Or who is more- 
 inured to the toils and pains of war, than He who now 
 for nearly 2000 years, has never slumbered nor slept on 
 his post, but by the power of his sword has safely con- 
 ducted his weak and feeble church through millions of its 
 foes, conquering and to conquer I Or who is more ac- 
 quainted with the tumult of the camp, than He against 
 whom an infatuated world has waged a ceaseless war- 
 fare, through every stage of time, without one moment 
 of respite I And who is more accustomed to victoi'y 
 and triumph, or laden with the spoils of glory, than He 
 who has made all his enemies his footstool ? He may 
 well, therefore, be called Nahshon, an experienced and 
 valiant captain. And happy art thou, Israel ; ■who 
 is like unto thee, people saved by the Lord, the 
 shield of thy help, and who is the sword of thy excel- 
 lency ! and thine enemies shall be found liars unto 
 thee ; and thou shalt tread upon their high places. 
 (Deut. xxxiii. 29.) 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 43 
 
 Nalishon was the son of Amminadab, which is, 
 being interpreted, he hath bestowed a people. In 
 this also is typified the Savioiir of sinners, to whom 
 God, who is rich in mercy, hath before the foun- 
 dation of the world, bestowed a lost and ruined 
 people, that, being quickened together with Christ, 
 and raised up together, and made to sit together in 
 heavenly places in Christ Jesus, they might in the ages 
 to come show forth the exceeding riches of his grace, 
 in liis kindness towards us, through Christ Jesus. 
 (Eph. ii. 4.) 
 
 And hear the gracious words which express his 
 divine commission and the greatness of his power and 
 love. '' All that the Father giveth me shall come to 
 me, and him that cometh unto me I will in no wise 
 cast out." (John vi. 37.) And again, "This is the 
 Father's will which hath sent me, that of all whom 
 he hath given me, I should lose nothing, but should 
 raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will 
 of him that sent me, tliat every one which seeth the 
 Son and believeth in him, may have everlasting life, 
 and I will raise him up at the last day." (John vi. 
 39, 40.) 
 
 Blessed are they who are privileged to hope that 
 they are of the number of those who were given to 
 the Saviour. They are safely kept in the hands of 
 Him, who, in order to effect their redemption, will- 
 ingly suffered himself to be offered up in sacrifice 
 on the altar of the cross. In his name is their ever- 
 lasting security. Through Him they are citizens of 
 heaven. 
 
 Be thou thus ^ncamped, O Judah of God ; be 
 thou encamped in peace. Let otliers vainly confide 
 
44 THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 
 
 in their imaginary powers. Be thou humbled in the 
 conviction of thy own helplessness and poverty. Lie 
 low in the dust of self-abasement. Confess the power 
 of divine grace. Be thou nothing, and let Christ be 
 all and in all, and repose on the merits of thy Surety. 
 Abide under that Banner to which thou hast sworn 
 allegiance, and which is thy glory and thy trust, 
 thy triumph and thy freedom. Let thy looks ever 
 be directed to the east, to the morning. Let those 
 that are without, look to the evening, to midnight, 
 where for them also the sky is red, but terrible, 
 and fearfully lowering ; thunder-clouds, laden with 
 their curse and everlasting destruction, are gathering 
 blackness. 
 
 Fix thy gaze, Judah, upon the opening glories 
 of the east, brighter, and yet brighter every moment. 
 Breathe the sweetness and the fragrance of the morn- 
 ing. This is the good pleasure of thy God, who ere 
 long will give thee the kingdom in the regions of eter- 
 nal day. Thou must not regard the night which now 
 surrounds thee. Onwards direct thy view to the Sab- 
 bath of eternal rest and peace, which now opens its 
 lovely dawn. Thou must not suffer thine eyes to 
 linger on the dark and troublous vision of thy sins, thy 
 weaknesses, and infirmities, which still cling to thee — a 
 body of death. Direct thine ardent glance beyond 
 unto the morning, and feast thine eyes with that great 
 and glorious day of freedom, which is thine even now 
 in promise, a high and holy jubilee. Soar on hope's 
 expanded pinions through the air, and leave behind the 
 darkness and desolation of this lower world. Immor- 
 tality and light, and crowns of glory, robes of surpassing 
 splendour, palms of victory and triumph, joy and eternal 
 
THE CAMP OF JUDAH. 46 
 
 gladness — these, all these, await thee in the presence 
 of thy God and Saviour in thine everlasting rest. 
 
 Judah, be thou comforted, as well thou mayest be. 
 Though as yet in the dark valley through which thy 
 brightening course conducts thee, sing aloud the 
 praises of thy God. 
 
 Yes, onwards, my brethren. For he who is our 
 leader is called Immanuel, God with us. 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON III. 
 
 ISSACHAR, OR THE COUCHING BETWEEN TWO 
 BURDENS. 
 
 Gen. xlix. 14, 15. 
 " Issachar is a strong ass, couching down between two burdens : 
 and he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was 
 pleasant, and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a 
 servant unto tribute." 
 
 In the blessing of Jacob, from which the words just 
 read are taken, there are many hidden wonders. Its im- 
 mediate application had respect to the ontward condition 
 of the ten tribes, and the things of this world : but if 
 we penetrate somewhat deeper, by the aid of the 
 Spirit of God, and pierce through the outer surface, 
 we shall discover a rich vein of spiritual truth and 
 knowledge which we greatly stand in need of, and 
 which demands, and will repay our closest investigation. 
 When, a short time ago, we dwelt upon a few words 
 of this remarkable prophecy, namely, that portion 
 which relates to Judah, we already suspected that a 
 mine of wealth lay concealed here, and that the 
 ground sounded, as it were, hollow beneath our feet. 
 And it is upon the self-same ground that we meet 
 to-day, prepared, by the help of the Spirit, to dig 
 silver and gold, where there is only the appearance of 
 hay and stubble. 
 
ISSACHAR, &C. 47 
 
 If we look at Issachar after the flesh, the fifth son of 
 Jacob, the meaning of the text is very evident. It is 
 liere foretold that he should dwell in an inland situa- 
 tion, and that his tribe should be agricultural. But 
 the prophecy refers also to the spiritual Issachar. 
 Would to God that his tent were never pitched in the 
 midst of ourselves. 
 
 It is to the spiritual application of this prophecy, so 
 strikingly pourtrayed in our text, that we would now 
 direct your attention. 
 
 We see here, 
 I. The position of Issachar. 
 
 II. How he came into that state. 
 
 III. The toil and danger to which he is subjected in 
 the same. 
 
 I. 
 
 THE POSITION OF ISSACHAR. 
 
 " Issachar is a strong ass." There is nothing 
 prepossessing in this comparison. Judah is a lion's 
 whelp. Naphtali is a hind let loose. Joseph is a 
 fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a vv'ell, 
 whose branches run over a wall. Jonathan is an eagle ; 
 the Shulamite a dove ; Israel is a rose. In all these 
 figures there is something agreeable to the mind. But 
 — a strong ass — the name is in itself sufiicient to deter 
 us from seeking a near acquaintance with the person 
 
48 ISSACHAR, OK THE 
 
 whom it designates. And yet who can tell how many 
 of us may come under this description in the book of 
 God! 
 
 On what account Issachar is so named we shall better 
 understand when his spiritual state, as contained in the 
 figure, is unveiled to us. 
 
 Where do we behold Issachar ? " Between two bur- 
 dens." In these words the patriarch gives no pleasing 
 representation of his son. If he had described him 
 as moving onward between two burdens, or borders, 
 (as by some the word is rendered,) we should have 
 said " Onlj' wait a little ; his present difficulties will 
 be surmounted, and the glorious land will be found!" 
 But no, he is couching down, and therefore his case is the 
 worse. 
 
 To be so circumstanced is always dangerous. How 
 alarming is the denunciation of God against the luke- 
 warm ! " I know thy works, that thou art neither cold 
 nor hot. I would that thou wert cold or hot. So be- 
 cause thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I 
 will spue thee out of my mouth." (Rev. iii. 15, 16.) See 
 how God condemns the wavering and undecided, who are 
 neither faithful to his own colours nor to those of the 
 world ; who do not, indeed, reject him, yet they choose 
 not his service, and thus vacillate between both their 
 friends and foes. He distinctly declares that they are his 
 enemies, and shall be treated as such. " He that is not 
 with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with me 
 scattereth abroad." (Matt. xii. 30.) 
 
 And if we suppose the Lord in these our days to 
 examine his church, and see how many thousands of 
 those who wish to be regarded as his faithful ministers, 
 halt in their preaching between the pure gospel and 
 
COUCUING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. 40 
 
 their own Avisdom, we may well imagine liim to saj-, 
 *' I would that ye were either believers or unbelievers ; 
 but ye are neither one nor the other." Yes, unbelief 
 itself would seem to be better than this unholy inde- 
 cision, this uncertainty and want of determination in a 
 matter of infinite moment. 
 
 But Issacliar does not properly belong to fho^se who 
 are neither cold nor hot, neither for nor against Christ 
 — ^neither Christians nor heathen. He is for Christ, 
 and so far, in a certain sense, may be said to believe ; 
 he appears to belong to the kingdom of God, and 
 yet it is far from being well with him. He lies be- 
 tween Canaan and Egj'pt, between the state of a con- 
 verted and unconverted man. We cannot account him 
 one of the men of this world, much less can we 
 esteem him a child of God. We dare not say that he 
 still belongs to the ranks of the crooked and perverse 
 generation of the ungodly, nor yet can we number 
 him among the elect, who are kings and priests unto 
 God for ever and ever. The position which he occupies 
 is a middle one, between the kingdom of grace and 
 that of Belial. And, remaining there, the lot which 
 will hereafter be assigned him, will not be to sit 
 down with the citizens of Zion, in the kingdom of 
 their God, but to be cast into outer darkness, with 
 the workers of iniquity, where there is weeping and 
 wailing, and gnashing of teeth. 
 
 Let us consider our Issachar more closely, and exa- 
 mine both his spiritual and external condition. His 
 outward circumstances, his life, and course of conduct, 
 appear really commendable, and produce a very favour- 
 able impression on the mind. 
 
 Do you think that you will find him walkhig in the 
 
 D 
 
50 ISSACHAR, OR THE 
 
 counsel of the ungodly, or standing in the way of sin- 
 ners, or sitting in the seat of the scornful 2 (Psal. i. 1.) 
 No. You do him great wrong in seeking for him there. 
 He has left this spiritual Sodom, and separated him- 
 self far from it. He no longer burns incense on the 
 high places and in the groA^es, and the assemblies of 
 those who drink iniquity like water, are his abhorrence 
 and aversion ; he hates and opposes their evil courses. 
 You can never discover him among the haunts of the 
 ^^■ine-bibber, or in the public assemblies, where a blind 
 and deluded world, as if possessed by a spirit of giddi- 
 ness and infatuation, madly rages and tumultuates in 
 unbridled pursuit of the phantom pleasure, and where 
 the people dance to the sound of the pipe, Satan him- 
 self conducting their orgies. He has nothing in com- 
 mon with those who use as their watch- word " Let us 
 eat and drink, for to-morrow we die ;" and he wallows 
 not with the swine in the mire. Nor can you find him 
 among the folloAvers of a fond and flattering morality, 
 who walk indeed uprightly, and conduct themselves 
 with propriety, but desire to know nothing of a godly 
 or God-fearing life, being fully satisfied with the recti- 
 tude of their intentions ; who cast away from them 
 the word and the sacraments, the commandments and 
 the kingdom of God, as old and tattered garments, or 
 who despise them as the playthings of the childish 
 and the weak. No. Among the quiet in the land, 
 among them that fear God doth Issachar abide. Where 
 the gospel is faithfully preached ; where the banner 
 of the cross is unfurled ; where men confess that 
 Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father ; 
 where the word of Christ dwells in men richly in all 
 wisdom, and they teach and admonish one another in 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. 51 
 
 psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and holy hands 
 are lifted up to heaven; (Col. iii. 16.) where they lie 
 down in the green pastures of the everlasting gospel, 
 and drink from the living fountains of the sure mer- 
 cies of David, life and fulness of joy ; there is Issachar 
 to be found ; there hath he pitched his tabernacle and 
 tent. He dwells among the saints, unto their assembly 
 is he united. 
 
 What ! /* Issachar, then, a hypocrite, and a deceiver ? 
 By no means. That cannot be said of him. Hypocrites 
 are altogether a different class. This generation of 
 Pharisees do not couch between two boundaries, but 
 are still in the midst of Egypt. 
 
 What then I If Issachar attaches himself to the 
 church and people of God, of whom the world is not 
 worthy, and that with uprightness and sincerity, what 
 lacketh he then I Alas ! much, very much ; yea, all 
 that is essential to a state of grace. He dwells in the 
 congregation of the righteous, but only outwardly, not 
 in spirit and in truth. He is no living member of that 
 holy body of which Christ is the head ; united, indeed, 
 externally, but not really incorporated into the body 
 of Christ. He is no fruitful branch of the tree of God ; 
 nor a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree. 
 (Rom. xi. 17.) He is not so engrafted in it, as to 
 bloom and flourish by the communication of its sap 
 and life. The bond which unites him to the church 
 of God is human only, and corruptible, not spiritual 
 and divine. 
 
 Do we look at his state ? It is no longer tliat of 
 
 Egyptian darkness, arising from the prevalence of 
 
 strong delusions. No. He is rich in the knowledge 
 
 of salvation ; he knows the catechism by memory, 
 
 d2 
 
52 ISSACHAR, OK THE 
 
 is well read in the Bible, and familiar with multitudes 
 of sweet and animating hymns, and nianj' accounts of 
 awakened sinners and establislied saints. 
 
 What then is his state I It is one of proud self- 
 sufficiency, of reliance on supposed merit and righte- 
 ousness of his own, a condition of fancied security, 
 attained by efforts which he has put forth alone and 
 unaided. In hearing and reading, in his separation 
 from the world, and in all his experience and attain- 
 ments, all his hopes and dependences have centred in 
 self. The Holy Ghost has no part in his illumina- 
 tion. He is not taught of God. What he has thus 
 acquired remains crude and undigested, administering 
 neither to his nourishment nor strength ; or it is as 
 ill-gotten wealth, locked up in coffers, and making no 
 return ; or as costly ointment, which yields no per- 
 fume. 
 
 Do we observe Jns course of life? Here there is 
 nothing particular to be remarked. Issachar maintains 
 an irreproachable conduct in the eyes of mankind. He 
 lives in quiet, is domestic, retiring, well-conducted, 
 active, honourable. He chooses the society and friend- 
 ship of Christians, and despises the pleasures of the 
 world. But is tliis the walk of which God speaks, when 
 He says, " I am the Almighty God ; walk before me, 
 and be thou perfect?" (Gen. xvii. 1.) and to which Isaiah 
 refers in the exhortation, " house of Jacob, come ye, 
 and let us walk in the light of the Lord ;" (Isa. ii. .5.) 
 and of which the apostle makes mention, "Our con- 
 versation is in heaven ;" (Phil. iii. 20.) and, again, "If 
 we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." 
 (Gal. V. 25.) 
 
 Can we recognize in Issachar the operation of 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN T VO BURDENS. 53 
 
 the Spirit of God ? Can we perceive in him indications of 
 the presence of that well of water, which springeth np 
 unto everlasting life ? Alas ! what can he be ? He is 
 partly the child of good education, and good habits ; 
 partly of a self-sought spirituality, which the Holy 
 Ghost never wall own, since he has indeed no share 
 in effecting it. 
 
 Do we regard Issachar, as it respects the peculiar duties 
 of religion ? Here, too, is the appearance of that which 
 is good and right ; but are those prayers and praises 
 which he daily offers up, either at home or in the great 
 congregation, acceptable to God \ Are they a sweet 
 smelling savour, which ascends before the throne, from 
 gifts which have been first received from heaven \ Are 
 they incense kindled by the Spirit of God, and arising 
 from the censer of a broken and a contrite heart, which, 
 in God's sight, is of great price ? Oh no I he has, on 
 the contrary, prepared his offering himself, having first 
 obtained it from his own resources. Issachar prays when 
 he will pray, not when he is moved and constrained to 
 pray. It is Issachar that prays, not Christ and His 
 Spirit praying within him. 
 
 How unhappy is his state between the two burdens. 
 He is a Christian, without the new birth ; he knows 
 the lost state of man, without himself having felt it ; 
 he is learned in spiritual things, without being en- 
 lightened, and believes in Jesus, without reposing con- 
 fidence in His merits ; he esteems himself righteous, 
 and yet is not so ; he speaks of the evidences of a 
 state of gi-ace, while he is not in that state himself; 
 he imagines that his life and conversation accord with 
 the requirements of the gospel, and yQi he is nothing 
 
oJ: ISSACHAK, OR THE 
 
 snore than a natural man, one who lias experienced no 
 real change within, nor can show even the smallest 
 work which bears the impress of the Spirit of God, but 
 only that which his own hands have effected. The new- 
 man is not created in him, but the old man has put on 
 the garb of piety. 
 
 Such is the state and condition of Tssachar, no longer 
 in Egyjjt, nor yet in Canaan. He has come out of the 
 world, in a certain sense at least, but has not approached 
 tlie kingdom of grace. He bears the Christian form, and 
 is evangelical in his notions and in his course of conduct ; 
 but he does not possess that life which is the gift of God 
 alone — a new heart. 
 
 II. 
 
 THE MOTIVES WHICH SWAYED TSSACHAR. 
 
 Issachar couches between two burdens. But hoic 
 has he come into this situation ? Our text informs 
 lis briefly, but pointedly. " He saw that rest was 
 good, and the land that it was pleasant." Issachar 
 attained his position not by the drawing of the Father 
 and the call of grace, or the powerful operation of the 
 Holy Spirit ; but by the impulse of his OM'n natural 
 heart. 
 
 Did the painful sense of sin drive him to the 
 Saviour ? Did the thick clouds and darkness of 
 Sinai, the thunder of Ebal, the earnest desire of re- 
 demption, the anxious solicitude for the salvation of 
 his soul, impel him to flee for refuge, to lay hold oi" 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. {')t) 
 
 the hope set before him in the gospel ! no ! far 
 different were his motives and feelings in assuming t)ie 
 profession of religion. 
 
 " He saw that rest was good." What kind of rest ? That 
 which is vouchsafed \is in Christ ! Peace with God \ 
 Deliverance from the curse and the power of sin, and 
 from the miserable bondage and tyranny of the law \ 
 No, brethren. The rest which he sought was entirely of 
 another description. 
 
 " He saw the land that it was pleasant." What land \ 
 Was it that land of beauty and of brightness in the 
 world on high, to vi'hich Jesus is himself the way ] or 
 was it the kingdom of grace watered by the dews of 
 heaven, and on which the Sun of Righteousness ever 
 sheds his invigorating rays \ Did his thoughts and desires 
 tend thither I Did he feel a secret longing after that as 
 his home J No ; this cannot be said of Issachar. The 
 goodness of the rest, and the pleasantness of the land 
 which Issachar desired, were quite of another kind. And 
 what were they ? 
 
 The causes, brethren, which move men to enter upon 
 so dubious and unsanctified a state, are various. 
 
 One man feels himself attracted by witnessing the 
 concord and brotherly love which prevail among the 
 quiet in the land. He has, perhaps, had bitter expe- 
 rience of the falsehood and treachery of the world, 
 and has thus learned that it can neither be trusted nor 
 believed, and that it is, moreover, full of rancour and 
 animosity. He has confided in friends, and been griev- 
 ously betrayed. Deeply pained, he looks around him 
 for rest. His eyes fall upon the congregation of the 
 saints. He perceives that they are of one heart and 
 one mind, and are united to each other by the sacred 
 
56 ISSACHA9, OR THE 
 
 ]jonds of love, and dwell together as brethren. This 
 pleases him well. He sees that it is good, and his reso- 
 lution is fixed. He joins himself to the society of the 
 pious. 
 
 Another man has, by nature, a tender disposition ; he 
 is easily moved, and loves affecting sights and sacred 
 solemnities, and the pleasing emotions which they are 
 calculated to excite. The occupations of the children of 
 God, therefore, their zeal and ardour in the service of 
 religion, and their fervent devotion, present to him no 
 inconsiderable attractions. He sees the land that it is 
 pleasant, and says, " it is good to be here. Here will I 
 build my tabernacle, and seek mj rest." 
 
 A third has a mind of a contemplative and thoughtful 
 character. He meets with the word of God. Here he 
 finds food in abundance ; here he can exercise his intel- 
 lect and powers of thought, and give them full scope. 
 With lively interest he applies himself to reading and 
 diligent investigation. It is his delight henceforth to 
 dwell among those who make the Bible the rule of 
 their lives, and he takes pleasure with them in a mutual 
 commimication o-f Christian ideas and hopes, and in 
 scriptural researches. It is from choice tliat he asso- 
 ciates himself with the people of God, without being 
 Lorn again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, 
 by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever, 
 n Pet. i. 23.) 
 
 A fourth, gifted with a quick perception of the sub- 
 lime and beautiful, is delighted with the glowing visions 
 and delineations, with the attractive similitudes, with 
 the lovely and affecting representations, and the splendid 
 imagery with which tlie word of God abounds. He 
 leads tlie inspu-ed volume with the warm enthusiasia 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. 5" 
 
 with which he takes up a brilliant production of 
 an earthly poet ; and he professes the religion of the 
 Bible from the intellectual pleasure and mental gra- 
 tification which it affords. There is no conversion 
 here. 
 
 A fifth observes, that in the houses of the Just infi- 
 nitely more order prevails than in those of the children 
 of this world. The peace which is found here, and the 
 quiet, the love, and the continual cheerfulness ; the 
 blessing also of the Lord, which ever rests upon them, 
 and their prosperity — O, how do all these things com- 
 mend themselves to his notice, especially if he considers 
 the great difference which there is between his own house 
 and theirs. "He sees this rest that it is good." "I 
 am wearied, he thmks, with incessant noise and bicker- 
 ing. It shall hereafter be otherwise. I will erect an 
 altar in my house." And he does erect one. He reads, 
 and sings, and prays. The noise and tumult cease, and 
 behold the house is changed and renewed. Yes, brethren, 
 the house only, alas ! not the heart. The body is there, 
 and the exterior of religion, but the Spirit and the life 
 are wanting. It is the form of godliness, without the 
 power thereof. The man draws nigh unto God with 
 his lips, but his heart is far from him. He has gone out 
 of the worlds but the world has not gone out of him. 
 The garment is changed, but the person remains the 
 same. 
 
 Behold, my brethren, such is Issachar, couching 
 between two burdens. " He sees that rest is good, and 
 the land that it is pleasant." He is not conscious of 
 the longing for salvation, and the hunger and thirst 
 after righteousness, nor of the Holy Ghost moving him 
 to the gospel ; but the privileges of this present life, 
 d3 
 
58 ISSACHAR, OR THE 
 
 in wliich the children of God rejoice, excite his desire 
 to partake of them. He becomes pious in his own way, 
 quiet retiring, observant of the duties of religion by 
 his own endeavours. He applies himself to religion 
 as he would apply himself to a business, a study, or 
 one of the liberal arts, and appropriates to himself 
 Avhatsoever belongs to the life and being of the Chris- 
 tian. Two things only are wanting, and with them all 
 that constitutes spiritual existences, that marks and dis- 
 tinguishes the character of the child of God ; namely, 
 the broken and contrite heart, in which alone the Lord 
 will dwell, and the Holy Spirit, respecting whom it is 
 said, " If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is 
 none of his." 
 
 Issachar ! ah ! unhappy Issachar, who couches be- 
 tween two burdens, and seest that rest is good, and the 
 land that it is pleasant, — the land that is beyond the 
 Jordan shalt thou never inherit, nor enjoy the eternal 
 Sabbath, that rest which rernaineth for the people of 
 God! 
 
 III. 
 
 THE TOIL AND DANGER OF ISSACHAR. 
 
 We have seen the position of Issachar, and we know 
 also the motives by which he was influenced. Let us 
 now glance for a moment at the toil and danger to which 
 he is subjected. His pain and misery are set forth in the 
 text, " He bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a 
 servant to tribute." 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. 59 
 
 He bowed his shoulder to bear. There lies a heavy 
 ■weight upon him, under which he sighs and pants ; and 
 this burden is — his sins perhaps ? 0, Avould to God that 
 they were felt as such, then would he soon be in a 
 better state I It is, on the* contrary, the religion whicli 
 he has assumed that is his burden. Our Saviour says, 
 indeed, " My yoke is easy, and my burden is light ;" but 
 of this Issachar is not sensible. 
 
 Let me request you to turn to the tenth chapter of 
 the prophecy of Isaiah, and the twenty-seventh verse. 
 It is there said, " and it shall come to pass in that day," 
 the day of the New Testament, — " that his burden shall 
 be taken away fi'om off thy shoulder, and his yoke from 
 off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed, because 
 of thy anointing." The yoke falls off, when the neck is 
 bathed with oil. And when we are anointed with the 
 Holy Ghost, and made partakers of his grace, then is the 
 burden taken off our shoulder ; then are the law and the 
 service of God no longer an oppressive yoke, a heav}' 
 burden, but easy and pleasant, our comfort and our joy. 
 We stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath 
 made us free, and are not entangled again with the yoke 
 of bondage. Christ having made us free, we are free in- 
 deed. (Gal. V. 1.) 
 
 But Issachar is not anointed, and therefore his shoul- 
 der is bowed down to bear, and sinks under the weight. 
 He has not gone to the Saviour with a heart deeply 
 sensible of its need, and moved to repentance, to receive 
 out of his fulness, and grace for grace. Issachar has 
 changed and renewed himself, and would, by his own 
 endeavours, walk in the path of the true Christian. He 
 would assume the character of a child of God ; he would 
 
00 ISSACHAR, OR THE 
 
 soar upwards, but has no wings ; lie would sing and 
 pray, but has neither the spirit by which believers are 
 actuated, nor their delight in holy exercises ; he would 
 run and Avalk on the way to Zion, but is lame, and has 
 not applied to the good Physician to be healed ; he would 
 keep tlie law, but ahis ! he is destitute of power and love, 
 of joy, and of strength! 
 
 O how hard is the service in which he is engaged, 
 how grievous the bondage under which he is oppressed, 
 how vainly does he weary himself in the course which 
 he has chosen ; in the hopeless endeavour to save liim- 
 self by works and righteousness of his own ; in labour 
 without fruit, toil without reward ! 
 
 Issachar bowed his shoulder to bear ; and what is he ? 
 .4 servant unto trbute. What a striking representation ! 
 His praj-ers and services, both in public and private, 
 are but as tribute, which he knows that he must pay ; 
 and he brings it, not as a child, willingly and joyfully, 
 but as a servant, by compulsion, as though it were 
 extracted with reluctancy from his hard earned pittance. 
 The Spirit of grace and supplication has not been poured 
 out upon him. He has no real union with Him in whom 
 is life. From the children of God, the tribute of prayer 
 and praise flows freely, as water from the fountain ; but 
 Issachar is a dry well ; how can it flow from thence \ 
 When the hour arrives for the payment of his tribute, he 
 feels that he is compelled to lay down the sum required, 
 and, with much labour, it is produced and cast down 
 before God ; but the coin is base, and will not be accepted, 
 for since it bears not the image of the second, but of 
 the first Adam, it will never be received into the 
 treasury of God. 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN! TWO BURDENS. 61 
 
 Behold, such is Issachar ; not a child of the house, but 
 a poor " servant of tribute," who has nothing, and yet 
 must pay, and who, moreover, discharges his debt, with 
 base coin, which, as such is rejected. Since he is the 
 bearer of such a burden, and groans under the galling 
 yoke of self-imposed services, and bends beneath the 
 severe rod of the law, without vigour and animation, he 
 is thence called " a strong ass." 
 
 And, O, it is painful and distressing to think of his 
 misery and danger. The man imagines, in his blindness-, 
 that he really belongs to the kingdom of God ; but, alas ! 
 he ranks as much with " them that are without," as the 
 careless and unthinking world. He has apparently suc- 
 ceeded well in conforming his life to that of the children 
 > of God, and therefore cherishes the vain delusion, that he 
 is one of their number ; and as he is frequently regarded 
 and treated as such by true believers, his blindness 
 becomes the more hopeless, and he is confirmed in his 
 carnal security. The poor, pitiable man ! He thinks 
 that he dwells in Canaan, but his tent is near to Tophet, 
 and on the brink of the pit of destruction. He dreams 
 that he is in Jerusalem, but, alas ! he couches not far 
 from the Dead Sea, near Adma and Zeboim. And when 
 the Lord shall come with fire and brimstone, He cannot 
 spare Issachar ; and when his heart within him would 
 almost break with compassion towards that unhappy one, 
 couching between the burdens, He must consume him in 
 his wrath, and sweep him away together with the rest 
 of the ungodly, with the besom of destruction. (Isaiah 
 xiv. 23.) 
 
62 ISSACHAR, OR THE 
 
 let every one of iis, therefore, who believes liimself 
 to he in Jerusalem, conie now before God with the earnest 
 supplication of David, " Search me, God, and know 
 my heart ; try me, and know my thoughts, and see if 
 there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the 
 way everlasting." (Psal. cxxxix. 23, 24.) Be assured, 
 that in the last daj"- nothing will avail but that which 
 the Holy Ghost has witnessed and wrought in us, and 
 enabled us to do. All that is our own will be burned 
 up as hay. All self-sought spirituality and self-imposed 
 service ; all self-wrought piety and holiness, will be 
 deemed of no value, and committed to the flames. 
 Then no inquiry will be made after the knowledge 
 which you have attained, merely by catechisms and 
 preaching, but only after Avhat you have learned 
 of the Holy Spirit in the school of Christ. It will not 
 then be asked how often you have prayed and given 
 thanks : but whether your prayers and thanksgivings 
 were uttered in the Spirit, in the name of Jesus. No 
 examination will then be instituted with regard to your 
 communion with believers upon earth, but respecting 
 your union with him who is the life — whether you are 
 one with Christ, who is the Living Head. 
 
 Alas ! many are the unhappy Issachars in the world, 
 who couch between two burdens, who assume the 
 profession of religion from some unhallowed motive, 
 receiving no sanction in the word of God, and who 
 are not indebted to the Spirit of God for the least 
 portion of their religion. God be merciful unto them, 
 and open their eyes, that they may see their real 
 state. Many, no doubt, are self-deceived and dazzled 
 by the gospel form and complexion of the religion which 
 
COUCHING BETWEEN TWO BURDENS. (Jo 
 
 they have assumed. It is but an outward appearance ; it 
 is no reality. The covering is there ; but where, under 
 the covering, is the broken heart, the contrite spirit, the 
 seed of the heavenly birtli, the new creature ? Where is 
 the thirst after the living water, after the cleansing effi- 
 cacy of the blood of Jesus I Where are all these things 
 which are of the operation of the Holy Ghost, and 
 wliicli alone constitute a Christian ? They are wanting. 
 
 O may a God of mercy preserve us from such a fearful 
 delusion, which must eventually overwhelm the deceived 
 soul in everlasting destruction. May he terrify us with 
 the thunders of his power and with the voice of the 
 trumpet, from couching down, in this unholy state, 
 between the borders of Egypt and Canaan, and conduct 
 us all to that blessed rest into which they that believe 
 have already entered, that we may say in truth, " The 
 Spirit of God hath created me, and the inspiration of 
 the Almighty hath given me life." 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON IV. 
 
 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 Zech. i. 8. 
 
 *' I saw by the night, and behold a man riding upon a red 
 horse, and he stood among the myrtle-trees that were in the 
 bottom; and behind him were there red horses, speckled, 
 and white." 
 
 The prophecies of Zecliariah are esteemed as some of 
 the sweetest and most pleasant fruits which grow on the 
 tree of the Old Testament. 
 
 This prophet has much resemblance both to Isaiah and 
 Ezekiel. Glowing as the latter, and rich as he in sub- 
 lime descriptions, and grand, striking, and mysterious 
 visions, he sheas with the former the name of Evange- 
 lical prophet. 
 
 The Anointed of God, with his kingdom, forms the 
 central point and axis around which the fire- wheel of all 
 his flaming imagery of visions and revelations continually 
 revolves. All the glory is given to the Messiah. Thus, 
 in the picture before us, the most prominent object in the 
 foreground, which leaves all the rest in the shade and 
 in the distance, is the long expected Saviour of the 
 world, the testimony of whom is the spirit of prophecy. 
 (Rev. xix. 10.) 
 
THE VISIOX OF THE NIGUT. 65 
 
 It is a beautiful and consoling representation. Let us 
 examine it more closely. We will consider, 
 
 I. The time in which the vision was beheld. 
 II. The vision itself, in its consolatory signification. 
 
 I. 
 
 THE TIME IN WHICH THE VISION WAS BEHELD. 
 
 Zechariah expressly states, that it was a vision of the 
 night. 
 
 He means in the first place, the mitural night ; when 
 the wearied children of men repose themselves in sleep. 
 The Lord then came to him and opened the eyes of his 
 mind, and permitted him to see manifestly depicted 
 before him, in all their brilliant colouring, the forms 
 which he describes. The Lord would effectually imprint 
 upon his mind that great truth, that He who keepeth 
 Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps. It is therefore put 
 forth, not as a mere statement, but illustrated by a pal- 
 pable representation, and revealed to him, not in the day- 
 time, but in the shadows of the night. 
 
 Of such a nocturnal visitation from God, almost all 
 the saints, both of the Old and New Testament, v)ere 
 enabled to testify; and Elihu speaks of it to Job as 
 though it were of ordinary occurrence. " In a dream, 
 in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon 
 men, in slumbering upon the bed ; then he openeth the 
 
GG THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 ears of men, and sealeth their instruction, that he may 
 withdraw man from his purpose, and liide pride from 
 man" — (Job. xxxiii. 15 — 17.) O how many are there, 
 who like Nicodemus, trace their first acquaintance with 
 Jesus to that silent hour. 
 
 When our wearied body is at rest, and when sur- 
 rounded by darkness, we are freed from the agitating 
 occupations of the day, our souls are more quick in their 
 perception, our thoughts more free and unrestrained, 
 our reflections more deep and penetrating, our conscience 
 more powerful in its operations, more unchecked and 
 pointed in its appeals. Then does the trumpet of the 
 word give a clear and certain sound ; then peals around 
 us the thunder of the curse ; then does the call to re- 
 pentance shake and alarm our inmost souls ; and if the 
 sight of our sins be vouchsafed us, of our base and 
 unprofitable life, of our broken vows and resolutions, 
 of our defilement and dissimulation — if that death 
 which awaits us, that final judgment to which we are 
 hastening, and that bleeding Saviour whom we despise ; 
 if these awful visions pass before us, and invade the 
 solitude of our chamber, and stand around our bed — 
 O how terrific, how appalling the spectacle 2 Whither 
 can we fly from such dreadful sights 1 To the gay and 
 thoughtless company of our friends 1 They are buried 
 in sleep. To the distractions of daily occupation ? 
 They are at an end. To the places of concourse and 
 the busy haunts of men ? They are forsaken. It is 
 night, and there is no sound to afi^ect the ear, nothing 
 to engage the eye, or restrain the vigour of the 
 mind. 
 
 At such a time your little bark of the soul is driven 
 out upon the restless wave. You cast anchor once 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT 67 
 
 and again ; . but the anchor takes no hold. You 
 anxiously look around for a haven of rest. But, 
 behold in every haven the tempest rages as in the 
 open sea, and the abyss is yawning beneath. You 
 seek to appease the storm within, and say to youi*- 
 self, " Be at rest ; there is no danger. Why art thou 
 anxious I" But no consoling thoughts can at such 
 a season avail. Your perplexity and distress increase, 
 till at length you find Hini who said to the sea, 
 " Peace, be still ;" and then there is a great calm. 
 Your danger is passed, your fears are gone ; you are 
 now secure and happy in the haven where you would 
 be. 
 
 Multitudes of Christians can number, in -their own 
 experience many such painful, but not the less 
 salutary, night scenes, and can say, in a certain 
 sense, with the Temanite, " In thoughts from the 
 visions of the night, ■when deep sleep folleth upon 
 men, fear came upon me, and trembling which made 
 all my bones to shake. Then a spirit passed before 
 my face ; the hair of my flesh stood up. It stood 
 still, but I could not discern the form thereof : an 
 image was before mine eyes ; there was silence, and I 
 heard a voice saying, Shall mortal man be more just 
 than God I shall a man be more pure than his Maker ?" 
 (Jobiv. 13—17.) 
 
 There are some, perhaps, present, who, absorbed by 
 day in the cares of the world, or hurried into the 
 vortex of its dissipations and pleasures, hear not the 
 call of God to consider their ways. 0, that such 
 visions of the night, such communications from heaven, 
 may soon be vouchsafed you ; and that the voice of 
 the Almighty may «reach your inmost soul. God 
 
68 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 grant that it may be this very night, for we know 
 not that another shall be added to your number. May 
 it not already be said to some one, who now hears me, 
 to-morrow thou shalt die I Let this thought be with 
 you, brethren, when next you retire to rest upon 
 your beds. 
 
 " I saw by the night," saith the prophet, and he 
 appears to intimate by that expression, the circumstances 
 under which he beheld the vision. Zechariah lived 
 about five hundred years before the first Advent. 
 Together with his parents, he AA'as carried by Nebu- 
 chadnezzar to Babylon, and afterwards, in consequence 
 of the decree of Cyrus, returned, with the first of the 
 captivity, who sought the land of their fathers ; and 
 he assisted in laying the foundation both of the city 
 and temple. 
 
 It was then a happy time, a season of rejoicing and 
 of cheerful hope. The covenant God of Israel had 
 made manifest His care for his people, in a way which 
 could not be misunderstood, and all things were full 
 of joyful expectation of the golden age that was about 
 to return. It was not then night to the people of 
 Israel, but bright and shining day. But this was 
 not of long continuance. The Samaritans sought to 
 interrupt the harmony which prevailed. For scarcely 
 were the walls of the city and of the temple com- 
 menced, with alacrity and gladness, when these 
 strangers, who were more heathen than Jews, proposed 
 to associate themselves with the children of Abraham 
 in the work, and thus to acquire a right in the temple 
 of the Lord, and in the administration of its services. 
 This could never be allowed. Hence arose implacable 
 hostility, for the Samaritans sent letters to Babylon, 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. Cf) 
 
 calumniating tlie Jews engaged in the undertaking, 
 representing them with great bitterness as a faithless 
 and rebellious race, who might endanger the peace of 
 the Persian monarchy. Credit was given to these base 
 accusations, and a royal edict issued, by which the 
 building of Jerusalem was forbidden, and permission 
 given the Samaritans to compel the Jews, by fire 
 and sword, to desist from the work. Then followed a 
 time of tumult and distress to the people of God, and 
 their hopes perished. Their brightest prospects were 
 in a moment overclouded, and God seemed to have 
 again forsaken His inlieritance. The most lovely morn- 
 ing was unexpectedly converted into a night of gloom. 
 
 Allusion, no doubt, was made to these painful circum- 
 stances, when the prophet said in my text, " I saw by 
 the night." It seemed as though this external obscurity 
 inwardly prevailed in his soul, as if the day had de- 
 clined within him, and was succeeded by the night. 
 And how should it be otherwise ] Every thing 
 around him tended to produce such oppressive sensa- 
 tions ; his gloomy forebodings enveloped his soul in 
 thick clouds of doubt and despondency. No indica- 
 tions of the watchful and protecting care of the Al- 
 mighty were visible. Yet, notwithstanding, dark as it 
 appeared both outwardly and within, Zechariah was 
 enabled to say of himself, " I saw by the night, and 
 behold ! " 
 
 " I saw by the night.'' Some can speak of the night 
 who have passed through it, and are now rejoicing in 
 the blessings of the morning. It is night, in spiritual 
 things, in proportion as our eyes are darkened. Then 
 the hand which has assigned our pain and suffering is 
 unperceived, we are' lost in the wilderness of un- 
 
70 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 certainty, and no outlet can he found either on the right 
 hand or on the left ; or a fire falls upon our spiritual 
 building, and we know not whence the flames have been 
 kindled, by which our honour, our name, and domestic 
 happiness are destroyed, whether they are derived from 
 heaven or from hell. 
 
 It is night, when the icorld misunderstands and 
 calumniates us, and we ciy to God to interpose in our 
 behalf, and there is neither voice, nor any to answer, 
 nor any that regardeth ; or wlien we lie sunk in the 
 deepest need, and stroke upon stroke is laid upon us, 
 and our prayer cannot reach the clouds, but is dis- 
 sipated and lost in the air around us, no help appears, 
 no aid is at hand, no prospect of deliverance opens 
 before us, no explication is given of our embarrass- 
 ments, and our wanderings in the dark valley remain 
 an incomprehensible dispensation, a deep mystery, the 
 meaning and intention and final issue of which are 
 altogether hidden from our view. When it is thus 
 with any poor soul, he is enveloped in darkness. The 
 greater light which rules the day has set before his 
 eyes. He is the man of whom Job speaks, when he 
 says, that his way is hid, and that God hath hedged 
 him in. (Job iii. 28.) 
 
 how great, how blessed the change, when God 
 says respecting a soul, " let there be light, and there 
 is light." The darkness is past, and the tnie light- 
 now shineth. Thus it was with Job, when the scope 
 and intention of all his afflictions were made known 
 to him ; and with Ilagar, when the angel pointed out to 
 her the well of water in the wilderness ; and with Abra- 
 ham, when a voice came to him from heaven, " lay 
 not thy hand upon the lad," and his fiery trial was 
 
THE VISION OF THE WIGHT. 71 
 
 at once terminated ; and with Jacob, wlien tliat testi- 
 mony was borne him, " tliou hast power witli God, and 
 with man, and hast prevailed ;" and the Lord blessed 
 him in the night, after his severe conflict. And many 
 such visitations from on high are vouchsafed the cliil- 
 dren of God, even in our own days. Salvation comes 
 to their house as an unexpected guest, their trials melt 
 away and disperse as a veil of mist upon the mountains, 
 or a bright light from heaven suddenly illuminates their 
 path. 
 
 But my brethren, this can scarcely be termed, to see 
 by the night. It is rather the day-break shedding its 
 lovely rays, its opening glories, into the cave of Adul- 
 1am. (1 Sam. xxii. 1 ; Micah i. 15.) The Saviour then 
 manifests himself to us as he doth not unto the world, 
 and our unbelieving doubts and fears are at once dis- 
 pelled ; and whilst we acknowledge the power and pre- 
 sence of the Godhead, we exclaim with grateful heart. 
 Lord thou hast changed my night into day. (John xiv. 
 22; XX. 27, 28.) 
 
 But when the sun remains hidden behind the clouds, 
 and the footsteps of Jehovah are in the great waters, 
 and men, without seeing their way plainly, follow the 
 guidance of their God, and rest in naked faith on the 
 Divine assurance, " what I do thou knowest not now, 
 but thou shalt know hereafter ;" and, believing in oppo- 
 sition to human reasonings, and hopmg against hope, 
 repose simply upon him who has said, " When thou 
 passest through the waters, I will be with thee ; and 
 through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee : when 
 thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; 
 neither shall the flame kindle upon thee" — (Isa. xliii. 2.) 
 When, entrenching themselves in such promises, as in 
 
72 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 a strong hold, and looking by ftxitli to that Angel of 
 the Lord who said to Manoali, " Why askest thou thus 
 after my name, seeing it is secret or wonderful ?" 
 and by this name, " The Wonderful," they are re- 
 fi'eshed as with milk and honey in the desert — When, 
 without tasting, or seeing, or feeling, they rejoice in the 
 very present help of that God who delivered Daniel 
 from the jaws of the lion, and preserved the three 
 children in the burning fiery furnace, and commanded 
 a ^fish to take up Jonah, and keep him as in an ark of 
 safety in the deep waters — WJien they rely on that 
 God who sent dogs to Lazarus, that they should lick his 
 sores and mitigate his pain, and who appointed ravens 
 to minister to Elijah, and feed him in the Avilderness 
 — Then, brethren, then may it be said, that they see 
 visions in the darkness, that they perceive God through 
 the thick and lowering clouds ; and in the words of 
 Zecliariah they may exclaim, " I saw by the night and 
 behold !" 
 
 There is another description of night of a yet more 
 troublous kind, which David had in view when he said, 
 " Hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them 
 that go down into the pit." But even then we are 
 not left without hope. We have that most precious 
 promise, that while we trust in the Lord and stay our- 
 selves upon our God, a light shall rise in obscurity, 
 and our darkness shall be as noon day. (Isaiah Iviii. 
 10.) 
 
 When Satan assaults me with his fearful allure- 
 ments or his fiery darts, and I am left without 
 help or succour, then has the sun set beneath my 
 horizon. But I see by the night, and behold, mine 
 eye rests upon Him, who to death is its plague, and 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 73 
 
 to the grave its destruction ; and that great trutli is 
 brought home to my mind, that in Him I have ah-eady 
 *' overcome the wicked one," and he can no more put 
 me to shame, 'i'hen it is given me, at tlie sight of 
 my victorious Head, to triumph in the conflict, and 
 to enjoy peace in the midst of tumult and alarm. 
 What is this but a vision of the night I 
 
 When, after a painful fall, I am alarmed with a 
 sense of my sin and misery, and almost overwhelmed 
 with despair, then I sit in darkness, the light shineth 
 not about me, my sins are greater than I can bear. At 
 length I am enabled to think of that grace, which 
 recovers the children of God from the horrible pit 
 and from the mir}^ day, and sets their feet upon a rock, 
 and orders their going. I call to mind the good Shep- 
 herd, who left the ninety and nine sheep in the wilder- 
 ness, and came to seek and to save that which was lost, 
 and did not desist until he found it, and laid it on his 
 shoulders, and carried it home rejoicing. how cheer- 
 ing the sight ! As yet the Lord has not manifested 
 himself to me, nor can I rejoice ; but mercy has again 
 visited me, and though confidence and hope have not 
 returned, yet " my soul waiteth for the Lord, yea, more 
 than they that watch for the morning." ( Psal. cxxx. 6.) 
 When the Lord takes from me the sense of His in- 
 dwelling through the Spirit, and withdraws from me 
 the light of his countenance, and leaves me to the 
 experience of my utter sinfulness ; when the vigour 
 of my spii'itual life fails, and the indications of 
 my state of grace lose their special character ; when 
 faith, which before could rejoice, gives utterance only 
 to a poor compressed and feeble cry, " O God, be not 
 severe to me ; " when love is withered by the wintry 
 
 E 
 
74 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 blast, or chilled and fi-ozen, so that I am compelled to 
 exclaim, with David, " I am like unto one appointed 
 to die," and I can no longer dare to regard myself as 
 of the camp of Judah ; when I transgress without 
 tears, and stumble and fall without contrition, and 
 read the w^ord without delight, and pray without ear- 
 nestness ; Oh, this is indeed a season of spiritual dark- 
 ness. 
 
 But there is a faith tvhich can dissipate even such a 
 darkness as this, and under the full conviction of our 
 spiritual poverty, needs not the aid of sensible percep- 
 tion. He who is " the Amen, the faithful and true 
 witness," (Rev. iii. 14.) stands before me in this my 
 low estate, and I hear him saying in the spirit, " In a 
 little wrath I hid mj'' face from thee for a moment, but 
 with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, 
 saith the Lord, thy Redeemer. For the mountains 
 shall depart and the hills be removed, but my kind- 
 ness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the 
 covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord, that 
 hath mercy on thee." ( Isa. liv. 8, 10.) By faith I 
 behold a covenant God in Chi-ist Jesus ; I look to 
 "Him that justifieth the ungodly," that requireth only 
 empty vessels, that he may fill them with his glory. 
 (Rom. iv. 5.) The mystery of righteousness opens 
 itself before me ; I see that I am justified and saved, 
 not by works of my own, but only through the merits 
 of Jesus ; that my faith, hope, and charity must be 
 derived from Him : that His intercession alone can 
 make my approach acceptable unto the Father ; and 
 while the senses are dead within me, and my heart is 
 sunk in wretchedness and misery, it is given to me by 
 the Holy Ghost to cast myself by faith on that Saviour, 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGUT. 75 
 
 who hath said, "my grace is sufficient for thee, my 
 strength is made perfect in weakness." Then is the 
 night turned into day. The sun has not indeed dis- 
 persed the overhanging clouds, and his bright beams have 
 not yet penetrated my inmost soul ; but I can by faith 
 enter within the veil, and I behold the sun, though many 
 are the clouds which intervene. Then can I say that I see 
 by the night, and give praises to Him who hath opened 
 mine eyes to behold. 
 
 IT. 
 
 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 What was the vision which our prophet beheld ? 
 Truly it was a lovely sight, and it remained stationary 
 before his wondering eyes in all the brightness and 
 freslmess of its colouring. Ah angel also talked with 
 him, and showed him what these things were, but we 
 need not refer to his words, because even the vision 
 itself speaks to us " good words and comfortable words." 
 It is full of the richest consolations, the most cheerhig 
 promises. 
 
 Let us now turn aside and see this great sight. The 
 place whereon we stand is holy ground. (Exod. iii. 8,5.) 
 The man who stands among the myrtle-trees, seems to 
 be clad in bright and glittering armour, and as appears 
 in the sequel, is the Angel of the covenant, the man 
 Christ Jesus. 
 
 Our Lord reveals himself to his people under different 
 characters, suited to their various wants and cu'cum- 
 stances. 
 
 E 2 
 
76 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 Is any one of them timid and distrustful? he nm- 
 veils his face, beaming with a love beyond that of a 
 mother, and exclaims, " Can a woman forget her 
 sucking child, that she should not have compassion on 
 the son of her womb I Yea, they may forget, yet will 
 I not forget thee." (Isa, xlix. 15.) Behold "as one 
 whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you." 
 (Isa. Lxvi. 13.) 
 
 Have any wandered from the fold ? The good Shep- 
 herd leaves them not to perish upon the mountains, 
 and upon every high hill, but seeks them out, that 
 he may deliver them out of all places where they have 
 been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. (Ezek. 
 xxxiv. 12.) 
 
 Is any sick ? he reveals himself as the good physician, 
 who healeth all our diseases. (Psal. ciii. 3.) 
 
 Is any one dispirited and alarmed ? instantly he 
 stands before him with his sword drawn in his hand. 
 As Captain of the host of the Lord is he now come. 
 (Josh. V. 13, 14.) 
 
 Does any trembling sinner feel oppressed under a 
 sense of the wrath of God? the Saviour manifests him- 
 self as coming from Edom, Avith dyed garments from 
 Bozrah ; glorious in liis apparel, travelling in the great- 
 ness of his strength. And to the inquiiy, who is this, 
 and wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy 
 garments like him that treadeth in the wine fat ? the 
 incarnate God replies, " I that speak in righteousness, 
 mighty to save. I have trodden the wine-press alone, 
 and of the people there was none with me ; for I wiU 
 tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury, 
 and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, 
 and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of ven- 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 77 
 
 geance is in mine heart, and the j^eav of my redeemed is 
 come." (Tsa Ixiii. 1 — 4,) 
 
 Or is any tied and bound with the chain of his sins? the 
 Lord Jesus makes liimself known, as sent " to bind \ip 
 the bi-oken hearted, to prochiim liberty to the captives, 
 and the opening of the prison to them that are bound," 
 (Isa. Ixi. ].) as the miglity deliverer, who bears " the 
 keys of hell and of death." (Rev. i. 18.) 
 
 Now in the days of Zechariah a warrior was, of all 
 men, held in chief estimation, for there was then war in 
 the land. And behold, the Keeper of Israel reveals him- 
 self as such ; " I saw by the night, and behold a man" 
 Our Lord is a man. This is a truth full of comfort, for 
 it reminds us that our own nature is united to the 
 Godhead, that it is borne by Him who sitteth upon the 
 throne. Christ is a man ; how sweet the assurance. 
 The Chvxrch is his bride ; she bears His name. This 
 blessed privilege applies equally to every individual 
 believer. (Isa. xlix. 14 — 16.) He will not deny us, 
 but acknowledge us for his own. 
 
 Our Saviour a man ! O blessed truth. It is in the 
 form of man that we are best enabled, that we love 
 most to contemplate him. In that form he lives in 
 our thoughts, he stands before us as our Advocate witli 
 the Father, when we kneel at his footstool. We think 
 of his wounds, we trace with wonder and adoring 
 gratitude the prints of the nails in his hands and feet. 
 We here behold the fountain of every blessing, the 
 source of our peace. And is it not as man that the 
 Son of God was enabled to suffer in our behalf, to be 
 wounded for our transgressions, to die that we might 
 live ? Is it not thus that he makes manifest to saints 
 and angels a love which is stronger than death ? Well, 
 therefore, may we rejoice, when we can say respecting 
 
/ o THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 CUV visions of the Almighty, " I saw by the night, and 
 behold, a man." 
 
 The man vrhom Zechariah beheld, rode upon a horse. 
 In the Song of Solomon the church is represented 
 under the figure of horses ; " I have compared thee, 
 my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh's 
 chariot." (Cant. i. 9.) And in the tenth chapter of 
 the prophecy from vehich my text is taken, it is said, 
 " The Lord of hosts hath visited his flock, the house 
 of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in 
 the battle." We may therefore conclude that it is the 
 Chui'ch which is represented by the red horse in the 
 vision, that it is ourselves who are sprinkled with the 
 blood of Jesus. 
 
 We are led and directed hy his Spirit and his word, 
 and his hand nourishes and supports us. At first we 
 bear the yoke of the law, and are oppressed with that 
 grievous bondage which neither we nor our fathers could 
 bear. Then, being delivered from the law, we become 
 the servants of righteousness, and walk abroad in the 
 green pastures, and by the still waters of grace and com- 
 fort, and rejoice in the liberty wherewith Christ has made 
 us free. 
 
 The battle-horse of Job is an apt emblem of the 
 confii-med Christian, who is strong in the Lord and 
 in the power of his might. " He paweth in the 
 valley, and rejoiceth in his strength, he goeth on 
 to meet the armed men. He mocketh at fear, and 
 is not affrighted, neither tumeth he back from the 
 sword. The quiver rattleth against him, the glittering 
 spear and the shield. He swalloweth the ground with 
 fierceness and rage, neither believeth he that it is the 
 sound of the trumpet. He saith among the trumpets. 
 Ha, ha. He smelleth the battle afar off, the thunder 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 79 
 
 of the captains, and the shouting." (Job xxxix. 
 21 — 25.) But if at any time he is elated by the 
 thought of his own imaginary power and glory, the 
 Lord takes eiFectual means to humble him. He passes 
 the yoke over his beautiful neck, and sends him witli 
 Judah to plow, or with Jacob into the valley to brealc 
 the clods. (Hos. X. 11.) 
 
 It is through the man Christ Jesus that we are made 
 more than conquei-ors. He fighteth for us, and by the 
 arm of His power every enemy is put in subjection 
 under our feet ; and when at length He shall come 
 again in his glorious majesty, to judge both the quick 
 and the dead, we shall accompany his chariot of victory, 
 and participate in the sjilendours of his triumph. 
 
 There is another truth which is intimated by the 
 appearance of the man on horse in the vision, namely, 
 the speedy help and deliverance which the Lord affords 
 to his church in every difficulty or distress. If the 
 Saviour of mankind still walked upon the earth in tlie 
 garb of mortality, the faith of many a child of sorrow 
 would be greatly exercised whilst He was administering 
 relief to a fellow-sufferer, and often would be heard the 
 cry of the sister of Lazarus, " Lord, if thou hadst 
 been here, my brother had not died." But now He 
 is a very present help to his people wherever his aid 
 is sought. In places the most remote from each other, 
 it may at the same moment be said, in the language 
 of the church of old, " The voice of my Beloved I 
 Behold he cometh leaping upon the mountains and 
 skipping upon the hills. My beloved is like a roe or a 
 young hart. Behold he standeth behind our wall, he 
 looketh forth at the windows, showing himself through 
 the lattice." (Cant. ii. 8, 9.) 
 
80 THE A'ISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 In the hour of need his presence is manifested both 
 by day and by night, and even when the doors are shut, 
 He stands in the midst, as He visited the disciples at 
 Jerusalem, and says, " Peace be unto you." When 
 we may suppose him far distant, " Behold, He stands at 
 the door and knocks ; if any man hear His voice and 
 open the door, He comes in to him and sups with him, 
 and he with Him." (Rev. iii. 20.) To the righteous 
 there arise th a light in the darkness. Tlie bright shin- 
 ing of the Savioui-'s countenance beams through their 
 habitation and refreshes their soul. They can say with 
 Habakkuk, " Thou ridest upon thy horses and thy 
 chariots of salvation." (Hab. iii. 8.) 
 
 The horse beheld in the vision was red, as repre- 
 senting the church, which is covered with the blood 
 and righteousness of the Saviour, and thereby obtains 
 deliverance from sin and guilt, and from the power and 
 dominion of the wicked one. 
 
 And whence cometh He that sitteth upon the horse ! 
 Is it not from the Red Sea, where the enemies of the 
 spiritual Israel were signally overthrown by the arm 
 of the Almighty 1 Is it not from Gethsemane and 
 Golgotha, where he triumphed over principalities and 
 powers, and made a show of them openly ! Thus 
 was bruised the head of the serpent ; thus was the 
 prey taken fi-om tlie mighty, and the lawful captive 
 delivered ; thus was peace made by the blood of the 
 cross. 
 
 And he stood among the myrtle-trees. These, my 
 brethren, are the trees of righteousness, the planting 
 of the Lord, that he may be glorified. Under the 
 influence of the heavenly dew their branches spread, 
 and they cast forth their roots as Lebanon. (Hos. xiv. 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 81 
 
 lo, 10.) Supported by the grace, power, and fiiith- 
 fulness of Jehovah, they flourish in unfading verdure, 
 and yield the sweetest fragrance, through the imme- 
 diate operation of the Holy Ghost. The true church, 
 the children of God on earth, are here represented. 
 They are as the lovely myrtle, wherewith the King 
 of kings entwines a wreath of glory for his head, as he 
 says by his prophet, thou shalt be a crown of glory in 
 the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand 
 of thy God." (Isa. Ixii. 3.) For they are " predestinated 
 by Jesus Christ to the praise of the glory of his grace, 
 wherein he hath made them accepted in the JJeloved." 
 (Eph. i. 5, 6.) 
 
 And as branches of myrtle were emblematic of joy 
 among the Jews, and were borne with songs of gladness 
 before the bridegroom ; so do the children of God cause 
 joy to abound in the kingdom of heaven. God himself 
 rejoices over them. (Isa. Ixii. 5.) For thus saith the 
 Lord, " Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken, neither 
 shall thy land any more be termed Desolate, but thou 
 shalt be called Hephzibah, (that is, my delight is in 
 her,) and thy land Beulah, (or, married) for the Lord 
 delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married." 
 (Isa. Ixii. 4.) 
 
 And where gi-ew the myrtle-trees 2 " In the bottom y" 
 that is, in a low ground. In such a situation they 
 flourish to the greatest advantage : their leaves assume 
 the richest verdure, and there they yield the sweetest 
 fragrance. And so it is in spiritual things. In the 
 valley of humiliation and lowliness of mind, of self- 
 renunciation and poverty of spirit, there will you find 
 the most rapid gi'owth, the greatest conformity to the 
 will of God, the most perfect transformation into the 
 e3 
 
82 THE VISIOX OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 likeness of Him who calls us into the valley, that he 
 may teach us heavenly wisdom, and confer upon us the 
 blessing of peace. " At that time Jesus answered, 
 and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and 
 earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise 
 and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even 
 so. Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight. Come 
 unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I 
 will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and 
 learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and 
 ye shall find rest unto your souls." (Matt. xi. 25, 
 26, 28, 29.) 
 
 The man stood between the myrtle-trees. So Christ 
 abides with his church. He " dwells with him that is of 
 a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the 
 humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.'' 
 (Isa Ivii. 15.) He is in the midst of his church and 
 people to employ them as seemeth good unto him, and 
 to protect them by his power. " Yea," exclaims the 
 prophet Zephaniah, " the Lord thy God in the midst of 
 thee is mighty ; he will save, he will rejoice over thee 
 with joy ; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee 
 with singing." (Zeph. iii. 17.) 
 
 And behold, " behind him were there red horses 
 speckled and white." And what are these ! Our 
 prophet himself made the same inquiry, and has re- 
 corded the answer. " The man that stood among the 
 myrtle-trees answered and said, These are they whom 
 the Lord hath sent to walk to and fro through the 
 earth." (ver. 10.) Are they not then the hosts of 
 Mahanaim, ministering spirits " sent forth to minister 
 for them who shall be heirs of salvation !" May they 
 not also be regarded as the perfections of the Godhead, 
 
THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 83 
 
 which surround us for our comfort and deliverance, 
 his grace, his trutli, his mercy, his almiglity power i 
 or as the precious promises, resting on which, neither 
 the Red Sea, whicli seems to shut us in, and keep us 
 in the power of the enemy, nor the cloud-capped 
 mountains, with their inaccessible summits, nor the 
 deepest gulfs yawning at our feet, nor the darkest 
 night, with aU its fearful horrors, can move us or 
 obstruct us in our onward progi'ess toward the hea- 
 venly Zion ! The promises, tlie attributes, and the 
 angelic messengers of Jehovah, these ever accompany 
 him who was seen among the myrtle-trees, and wherever 
 he is, there are also the hosts of God around him ; and 
 wherever Christ gains admittance into a house or heart, 
 the glory of the Lord filleth the same. 
 
 Tills, then, was the vision of Zechariah, Avhich lie 
 saw by the night to his comfort concerning Jerusalem, 
 and it is a personification of truth. Even now may 
 it be seen among us. think of this heavenly vision ; 
 think of it as you lie upon your bed at night, whenever 
 care spreads her heavy wing over you, and Satan hurls 
 against you his fiery darts ; think of it by day, as often 
 as darkness pervades your soul ; and when all sense 
 and feeling are gone, lift up the eye of faith, and 
 behold that which was seen by Zechariah by the night, 
 and be comforted. 
 
 I well know, that in every affliction and distress 
 of the beloved children of God in these days, as well 
 as in former times. He is near at hand to comfort and 
 to bless them. Only take courage, brethren, be com- 
 forted ; before another sun has set, many, perhaps, 
 who now think that the Lord hath forsaken them, and 
 their God hath forgotten them, ashamed of their un- 
 
84 THE VISION OF THE NIGHT. 
 
 belief, will exclaim with Jacob, " Surely God is in this 
 place, and I knew it not !" Many such, perhaps, may 
 have their eyes opened, as the servant of EUjah, to 
 behold the mountain covered with chariots of fire and 
 horses of fire, and feel constrained to cry aloud with 
 the prophet. My father, my father ! the chariots of 
 Israel and the horsemen thereof." But yet, beloved 
 brethren, if this consolation should be absent, and if 
 darkness should for a time be left to hang over you, 
 then may God grant, in his mercy, that you may at 
 least be enabled to exclaim with Zechariah, at such a 
 time and under such circumstances, 
 
 I saw by the night, and behold ! behold I — 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON V. 
 
 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 Heb. vi. 4 — 6. 
 
 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and 
 have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of 
 the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God and 
 the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away to 
 renew them again unto repentance ; seeing they crucify to 
 themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open 
 shame." 
 
 These, my brethren, are well known and important 
 words, of which I would speak on the present occa- 
 sion. And who is there among you, that is not aware 
 of the reason why they are so well known, and of their 
 deep importance I 
 
 Many of you are, no doubt, curious to leam how 
 the passage before us will be now treated. But you 
 are greatly mistaken, my brethren, if you imagine that 
 I have selected this text, for the purpose of displaying 
 my skill and wisdom. No ; for that would very ill 
 accord with my present design, and justly expose me 
 to censure. 
 
 Nor let any one suppose, that it is my intention to 
 afford new matter for speculation at home, or that I 
 
86 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 mean to pamper the lust of disputation and contro- 
 versy, and pour oil into the fire of party disquisition. 
 The former is indeed superfluous ; for so much of nice 
 distinction and refinement, so many vain and fruitless 
 inquiries every where abound, that here and there the 
 realities of life seem to be almost overlooked and for- 
 gotten. And as to the latter, there is no need that the 
 fire of conflicting opinions should burn still brighter 
 among us, rather than smoulder beneath its expiring 
 ashes. And how could I, by fanning such a flame, 
 forward the cause of truth, or remain consistent with 
 myself, or with the sentiments which I have recently ad- 
 vanced on xmity I No, no ; my design is far otherwise. 
 For since this portion of Scripture, as well as every 
 other, is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable 
 for doctrine, for reproof, for coiTection, for instruction 
 in righteousness, that the man of God may be per- 
 fect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works — (2 Tim. 
 iii. IG, 17.) — And since it appears to me especially 
 suitable for a day such as this, when many weary and 
 heavy laden souls, oppressed under a sense of sin ; 
 many sons and daughters, who in a state of spiritual 
 declension, having erred and strayed like lost sheep, 
 Stand apart, and deem themselves guilty of covenant 
 breaking, and would gladly, if it might be, renew their 
 covenant with God — I have, therefore, selected the 
 words before us, looking upwards in hope that the 
 Lord may enable me, by his grace, to speak a word 
 in season to him that is weary. O may it appear that 
 not I only have chosen this passage ; but that He, in 
 whose name I speak, has appointed it for our present 
 consideration, and will bless it to the edification of 
 many. 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 87 
 
 There are three points in this passage of Scripture 
 which demand our attention. 
 
 I. The persons who are spoken of. 
 II. The fall of which they are susceptible. 
 III. The warning which is given them. 
 
 THE PERSONS OF WHOM THE APOSTLE SPEAKS. 
 
 Are they the children of God or not ? — A most im- 
 portant inquiry, and one which has caused many a head 
 to throb, many a heart to ache ! 
 
 There are some, as you are aware, who suppose St. 
 Paul to refer, in this passage, not to sxich as have been 
 born of the Spirit ; but to persons who have possessed 
 what has been termed a temporary faith — to men in 
 whose emotions, expressions, and desires there appears to 
 have been a kind of change, but who have not been 
 really renewed and converted, and are, therefore, to be 
 regarded as of the number of " those that are without." 
 This interpretation is far fetched, and evidently arises 
 from an over anxiety to uphold, by our text, one of the 
 most consolatory and precious doctrines of our holy 
 faith ; namely, the doctrine of free grace and final 
 perseverance. But whether such anxious solicitude 
 be well founded or not, it is in no case right, nor in 
 accordance with the truth, for men to accommodate the 
 word of God to their o^vn peculiar systems, and wrest 
 and pervert it after their own pleasure. This cannot 
 be called, to " tremble at God's word.'' (Isa. Ixvi. 2.) 
 The word vas^j bear rule and our systems be in subjec- 
 tion, but not the reverse. 
 
Ho SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 St, Paul speaks of the children of God. Of the 
 children of Godi you exclaim ; and can they fall 
 from grace, can they perish out of the right way, can 
 they in the end be lost ! Have patience, brethren ; 
 do not forestall that which in due course will come 
 before you. Every part of our subject shall receive 
 its distinct and separate investigation. I will first of all 
 prove to you, that St. Paul does speak of the children 
 of God. 
 
 You will observe, that the Apostle describes the persons 
 he has in view by various characteristics, which plainly 
 indicate that they are partakers of spiritual life. 
 We will consider these marks in due order. And 
 do you, my Christian brethren, as we proceed in the 
 inquiry, institute a close and searching self-examination, 
 and see whether you do not discover in yourselves these 
 signs and seals of the true Israel. 
 
 The first part of the description which the apostle 
 gives of the persons to whom he refers is, that they 
 were once enlightened. Light is conveyed by various 
 means in the natural world, as by the reflected bright- 
 ness of the moon, the brilliant ray of the sun, the 
 burning of a torch or taper. And so it is also in 
 spiritual things. 
 
 Thea'e are some who understand all mysteries and 
 all knowledge ; and attract the attention of their fellow- 
 men and command their admiration, but their acquire- 
 ments have been made by human instrumentality, or 
 by the exertion of their natural powers. Their light is 
 not immediately from heaven. It is the light of the 
 moon, wliich neither warms nor fructifies, which neither 
 restores the dead to life, nor makes the withered shrub 
 again to flourish. A man may be thus enlightened. 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 89 
 
 and yet as far from the kingdom of God and his rigli- 
 teousness, as the poor henighted heathen. 
 
 There are others who appear to be in a some- 
 what better state. The}^ possess light, accompa- 
 nied by a certain degi-ee of warmth. These are sus- 
 ceptible and easily excited souls, who, when they 
 speak of Christ and liLs salvation, and the riches of 
 his grace, or when they hear them described or dis- 
 coursed of, are conscious of certain pleasing mental 
 sensations and emotions, and also under such cir- 
 cumstances are penetrated by the thought, that these 
 things must indeed be realities, and perhaps even 
 give honour to the gospel, and so partake, in some 
 degree, of the stream of living water, which flows 
 through the church of God ; but shortly their position 
 being altered, and the influence which is made to bear 
 upon them being different, their feelings and affections 
 are changed vi-ith their new position, and " their good- 
 ness, like the morning cloud and early dew, soon 
 passes away." " The cares of this world, and the de- 
 ceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things, choke 
 the word, and it becometh unfruitful," or " persecution 
 and affliction arising, because of the word, by and by 
 they are offended." 
 
 These are the foolish virgins who have no oil in their 
 vessels with their lamps. The source of their light is soon 
 exhausted, and they are again enveloped in darkness. 
 Neither these, nor the others mentioned above, are, in 
 the language of Scripture, said to be enlightened ; for 
 tliis description belongs only to those who have received 
 their light, not by secondary or more remote means of 
 communication, as from the moon, which conveys but 
 a reflected brightness, or the flame of an expiring lamp ; 
 
90 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 but they are enlightened by the immediate rays of the 
 " Sun of Righteousness, which arises upon them with 
 heahng in his Avings," which " shines into their heartf^, 
 and gives them the light of the knowledge of the glory 
 of God, in the face of Christ Jesus." They hear the 
 cry, " Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, 
 and Christ shall give thee liglit." They hear and obey. 
 " Once they were darkness, but now are they light in 
 the Lord," even to the inmost recesses of their souls. 
 They not only see their misery, but also feel it, and 
 like Saul, on his way to Damascus, are stricken to the 
 ground. 
 
 When so enlightened, we are no longer satisfied 
 with theory and speculation, but our knowledge is 
 intimately connected with the life and practice, and 
 our tongue is loosened. From the depth of our 
 souls, the cry bursts forth, " What shall I do to 
 1)6 saved 1 " The Saviour is not only known, but 
 also loved and revered. *' To us who believe, he is 
 precious," and we long to expei'ience more and more of 
 his quickening power. A thorough and entire change 
 has taken place. The heart and life testify the reality 
 of our reljgion. The fruits of righteousness are brought 
 forth to the praise and glory of God. The work of 
 the Spirit of God is apparent. " Old things are passed 
 away, and behold, all things have become new." Here 
 assuredly a work of grace is manifest. 
 
 And what is the second mark by which the indivi- 
 duals referred to in the text are distinguished I They. 
 have tasted of the heavenly gift. There is also another 
 characteristic of the people of God. It is that of which 
 our Lord spoke to the woman of Samaria, " If thou 
 knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 91 
 
 Give me to drink ; thou wouldst have asked of him, and 
 he would have given tliee living water : " (John iv. 10.) 
 It is that for which St. Paul gave thanks in writing to 
 the Corinthians ; " Thanks be unto God for his unspeak- 
 able gift." (2 Cor. ix. 15.) Christ himself is the heavenly- 
 gift. And can this gift be " tasted,'' that is, partaken 
 of, as " the bread of God, which cometli down from 
 heaven, and givetli life unto the world ; " be received by 
 faith in his name, and with the delight of a pardoned 
 sinner ; be enjoyed- as his own, and yet the man be not 
 a partaker of saving grace? (Acts iii. 16.) No, no ; 
 this description belongs not to the natural man. I do 
 not say, that we may not know something of Christ, 
 that we may not malce a flaming profession, -with no 
 small degree of self-satisfaction, that we may not be 
 moved by some of the gracious acts of the Lord, and 
 feel a species of pleasure in the contemplation of the 
 glories of his Person — I do not say, that this may not 
 take place without our being in reality the children of 
 God, partakers of a new and divine nature. But, to 
 receive the whole gift of Christ himself, in all his 
 offices, as the Atonement, the Saviour of the lost ; to 
 enjoy Him in the soul with lively confidence as the 
 Saviour from death, as the bread of life — this, brethren, 
 is the experience of God's dear children, for it manifests 
 a sense of need, hungering and thirsting after righteous- 
 ness, and many other things which imdoubtedly belong 
 to such as have tasted and seen that the Lord is gra- 
 cious, and who know the blessedness of those that trust 
 in Him. 
 
 The persons under consideration are further de- 
 scribed as having been made partakers of the Holy 
 Ghost, an expression, I conceive, which admits of no 
 
92 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 doubt as to its import. For, observe, the apostle does 
 not say that the Spirit has knocked at the door of 
 their hearts, soliciting admittance, but he expressly 
 declares that they were made partakers of the Holy 
 Ghost. The Spirit of God dwells within them. He 
 enlightens their understandings, elevates their affections, 
 and rules in their hearts. He is their teacher and 
 comforter, which the world cannot receive, because 
 it seeth him not, neither knoweth him. He moves 
 them to prayer, and makes intercession within them 
 with groanings which cannot be uttered. He lifts 
 up their souls to the high praises of their God. He 
 carries on the conflict within them against the flesh, 
 with its affections and lusts, which they are thus 
 enabled to mortify. He makes them more than con- 
 querors over every enemj^, through him that hath 
 loved them. In one word, he glorifies the Saviour, 
 taking of the things of Jesus, and showing them unto 
 his people, sanctifying and sealing them unto the day 
 of redemption, and making them meet for the king- 
 dom of heaven. Thus have they been made partakers 
 of the Holy Ghost. They have drank into one and 
 the same Spirit, who carries on a work of grace within 
 them, by which God is glorified. This is the meaning of 
 St. Paul ; who then can doubt that he referred to such 
 as are really the people of God I 
 
 And that we may know for a certainty that he 
 speaks of those who have received the Holy Ghost as 
 the means and pledge of their salvation, and the earnest 
 of their inheritance, he further adds, and have tasted 
 the good word of God. They know by their own ex- 
 perience that the word of God is good, that, under all 
 the varying circumstances of life, it is near us, to 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERV. 93 
 
 counsel, and direct, to administer its friendly aid, wliether 
 of light or consolation. They can say with David, 
 " How sweet are thy words unto my taste, yea, sweeter 
 than honey to my mouth." (Psal. cxix. 103.) And 
 again, "The law of thy mouth is better unto me than 
 thousands of gold and silver." (Psal. cxix. 72.) To 
 taste the good word of God can be the portion only of 
 those that have fellowship with the Holy Ghost, who 
 inspired the word, and applies it to the hearts and con- 
 sciences of believers — who unfolds its hidden meaning, 
 and makes it effectual, " for doctrine, for reproof, for 
 correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man 
 of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all 
 good works." (2Tim.iii. IG, 17.) They who taste 
 the good word of God must assuredly belong to His 
 family. 
 
 And now we come to their last distinguishing cha- 
 racteristic. They have tasted " the powers of the world to 
 come.^' And here, brethren, you may give full scope to 
 your imagination. Think of tlie abundant effusions of 
 grace from on high, by which the child of God is enabled 
 to overcome this world, and the prince thereof ; think 
 of the lively foretaste of everlasting joys, and a trans- 
 porting anticipation of heavenly blessedness ; think 
 of the vision of the things that shall be hereafter, the 
 second advent of the Son of God, in power and majesty 
 unspeakable ; think of the assured expectation, the ani- 
 mating hope, the joyous realization of the believer, to be 
 ever with the Lord ; think of the victory, the exultation, 
 the triumph, the everlasting jubilee, when death, and 
 hell, and sin, and every enemy, shall be put under our 
 feet, and sorrow and sighing, and all the evils of morta- 
 lity, shall flee away ; think of these things, and of what- 
 
94 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 ever else of gloi-y and of beauty the most lively imagina- 
 tion can possibly pourtray ; and all — all will fall infi- 
 nitely short of that Avhich is conveyed by the expression 
 of the apostle, " to taste of the powers of the world to 
 come." And need I inquire whether they are the chil- 
 dren of God, or not, to whom these things belong ? 
 
 O that every one of you, brethren, could trace these 
 marks of the true believer in yourselves. We should not 
 hesitate a moment longer to pronounce you " the blessed 
 of the Lord, who made heaven and earth." We should 
 stand upon the mountain with him " which heard the 
 Avords of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, " 
 and should take up his parable and say, " How goodly 
 are thy tents, Jacob, and thy tabernacles, Israel. 
 As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by 
 the river's side, as the trees of lign-aloes, which the Lord 
 hath planted, and as cedar-trees beside the waters. 
 Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that 
 curseth thee." (Numb. xxiv. 5, C, 9.) 
 
 II. 
 
 THE FALLING AWAY OF WHICH THE CHILDREN OF GOD 
 ARE SUSCEPTIBLE, 
 
 St. Paul speaks of the children of God, and not, indeed , 
 of mere novices and babes in spii-itual things, but of those 
 who have made considerable progress in the way to 
 heaven ; and he refers to the fall, of which they are sus- 
 ceptible; " if they shall fall away." Fall away? Yes, 
 brethren, that is what he says, and nothing else. And 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 95 
 
 who is there that ought not carefully and earnestly to 
 lay it to heart ? for here j'awns an abyss beneath our 
 feet, which threatens to swallow up two of the most 
 cherished tenets of our holy faith, and with them our 
 dearest comforts ; yea, the whole of our rest and peace 
 — I mean the doctrines of free and unmerited grace 
 and favour, and of our perfect safety under the pro- 
 tection of Jehovah ; so that we " shall never perish, 
 neither shall any man pluck us out of his hands." 
 (John X. 28.) For, in truth, the thought that our 
 salvation is entirely dependent on our own power, is 
 the grave of peace, and the source of never-ending 
 anxiety. 
 
 But is it really said that we may fall away? Has 
 not the word some other signification? No, dear 
 brethren ; none whatever. Nor does it alter the case 
 that St. Paul, instead of expressly stating, in so 
 many words, the possibility of such an event, only 
 supposes it, " if they shall fall awaj'-," as though he 
 would intimate, this, indeed, never can fee. He has 
 no such intention. His meaning is obvious ; that the 
 falling away of the children of God is possible. It 
 is not, indeed, of frequent occurrence, but it may take 
 place. 
 
 Yet every fall is not a falling away — a forgetfulness 
 of Christ, and turning away from following him. For 
 the word of God makes a distinction between a fall and 
 falling away. Of the former, occasioned by the weakness 
 and infirmity of our nature, we read in Proverbs, " For 
 a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again." 
 (Prov. xxiv. 16.) Of this, which is frequently the 
 means of great and special benefits to our souls, the 
 apostle does not speak. In this matter let us judge 
 
9G SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 110 man, for he is judged of the Lord. (Col. ii. 16.) 
 And " who art thou that judgeth another man's ser- 
 vant ? To his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, 
 he shall he holden up ; for God is able to make him 
 stand." (Rom. xiv. 4.) It is not, however, with the 
 fall of the children of God that we have now to do, 
 hut with their falling away ; and our subject demands 
 a close and patient investigation. 
 
 Let me refer you to the fifth chapter of the Epistle 
 to the Galatians, and the fourth verse. The persons 
 whom the apostle addresses he characterizes as really 
 awakened, as truly converted unto God, as having run 
 well in the path of righteousness, and enjoyed the 
 liberty wherewith Christ had made them free ; and yet 
 he tells them that Christ is become of no effect unto 
 them ; that they are fallen from grace. From grace, 
 you will observe, is his expression, not out of a state 
 of grace. And I would remai-k, by the way, that this 
 latter expression, or any thing equivalent to it, I have 
 never found in the word of God. 
 
 In what, then, consisted the falling away of these 
 Galatians \ It was in this, my brethren, as you will per- 
 ceive by the context, that they had departed fi-om a state 
 of Gospel liberty, and become entangled again with the 
 yoke of the Law. They no longer regarded themselves 
 as mere recipients of grace, which wrought in them 
 mightily, but imagined that they were themselves 
 possessed of power, of which they had only to make 
 use ; rejecting the thought that they were but poor 
 sinners, who must be saved only through the merits 
 and righteousness of another, they supposed they 
 could attain life by their own good works and de- 
 servings. They had lost the lively sense of their weak- 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND IlECOVERY. 97 
 
 ncs9 and unprofital)leness, and instead of abiding 
 under the cross, and living on grace and mercy, they 
 had adopted the miserable expedient of being their own 
 saviours, and askmg in their own name, whilst they re- 
 jected the name and the advocacy of the only Mediator 
 between God and man, the man Christ Jesus : and 
 instead of being judged and condemned in their own 
 consciences, on account of their sins, and resorting 
 with earnest importunity to a throne of grace, and 
 fountain of mercy, that they might wash their robes, 
 and make them white in the blood of the Lamb, they 
 sought to heal their infirmities, and by legal observances 
 to set up a righteousness of their own, and to establish 
 a claim upon God by some fancied worthiness which 
 their own hearts devised, and their own hands effected. 
 So that St. Paul felt constrained to say to them, " O 
 foolish Galatians, Avho hath bewitched you, that ye 
 should not obey tlie truth, before whose eyes Jesus 
 Christ hath been evidently set forth crucified among 
 you ? This only would I learn of ' you, received ye the 
 Spii'it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of 
 faith ? Are ye so foolish ? Having begun in the Spirit, 
 are ye now made perfect by the flesh ] Have ye suffered 
 so many things in vain, if it be yet in vain I " (chap. iii. 
 1 — 4.) " Ye did run well ; who did hinder you that 
 ye should not obey the truth I This persuasion cometh 
 not of him that calleth you." (chap. v. 7, 8.) 
 
 This was a falling away — a falling from grace — a 
 departure from the path of the child of God, to 
 walk in that of the self-rigliteous natural man. It 
 was a renunciation of Christ ; a silent, but not the 
 less significant declaration, that they needed Him not ; 
 that they Avould not have Him to rule over them. This 
 
98 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 was a treading under foot the Son of God, and counting 
 the blood of the covenant, wherewith they were sancti- 
 fied, an unholy thing, and doing despite unto the Spirit 
 of Grace. (Heb. x. 29.) And, therefore, St. Paul 
 justly charges them, in my text, with crucifying to 
 themselves the Son of God afresh, and putting him to 
 an open shame. See here, my brethren, the falling 
 away of the true Christian, and such, alas! as is some- 
 times to be seen in our own days. 
 
 But there is a falling away which is still worse than 
 this, not merely from grace to the law, hut from God to 
 idols : from the kingdom of heaven to the world, and 
 from the path of the Spirit and of light to that of the 
 flesh and darkness. It is scarcel}'^ to be believed, and yet 
 we have manifest proof of its reality. 
 
 You think, perhaps, that I allude to David at a cer- 
 tain period of his life . No, brethren : David's was a 
 fall, not a falling awa3\ But look at Solomon, that 
 beloved servant of God, and accompany him through 
 his whole course of life ; an impression of dread and 
 alarm must necessarily come over you. Behold the 
 glowing writer of the Canticles, the master of wisdom 
 in proverbs, the man full of faith and zeal — O, how 
 greatly has he fallen \ His queens and concubines 
 have enslaved and perverted his heart, and he bows 
 down before the idols of the surrounding nations. 
 He forsakes the Lord, and worships Ashtoreth, the 
 goddess of the Zidonians, and Chemosh, the god 
 of the Moabites, and Milcom, the god of the chil- 
 dren of Ammon. (1 Kings xi. 33.) He does that 
 which is evil in the sight of the Lord, and builds 
 idol-temples and altars, and goes with his wives to the 
 high places to bum incense and offer sacrifices to 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 99 
 
 Moloch. Twice did the Lord appear unto him, com- 
 manding him not to walk after other gods, but he 
 regarded not the voice of warning ; so that at length 
 the Lord came against him with the lightning of his 
 displeasure, and with a louder and more alarming 
 call. 
 
 And alas ! have not some of the children of God 
 been guilty of a similar defection. Are there not those 
 to whom the world vi^as once crucified, that have 
 gone back unto the world — have not some who, for 
 a long time, have been serving the Lord, now sunk 
 into their former sinful state of life, which they had 
 apparently for ever forsaken, and returned like the sow 
 that was washed, to their wallowing in the mire. 
 
 Perhaps, there are some such unhappy ones among 
 ourselves — some who formerly clave unto the Lord ; but 
 the bond is now broken and dishonoured ! who once 
 stood beneath the cross weeping, but now themselves 
 crucify the Saviour ; who once were ranked with 
 the humble penitents of the Scripture, with Peter, 
 with the thief on the cross, and Mary Magdalene, 
 but now they shed not a tear for their sins, and 
 their hearts are as insensible as steel or iron ; who 
 once delighted in singing the songs of Zion, the praises 
 of the Lamb, but now have forgotten the Lamb and 
 his precious blood, and mingle in the pleasures and 
 occupations of the world and of Belial ; who once were 
 the planting of the Lord to his honour and glory, but 
 now are like the withered tree in the forest, dried up 
 and bare, without blossoms, sap, or fruit. Alas ! per- 
 haps such are to be found, even in our own congre- 
 gation ; so that we have not far to go to seek for 
 F 2 
 
100 SPIRITUAL BECLINE AND KECOVERT. 
 
 them. And, if it, indeed, be thus, then we point at 
 such among lis, and say, " Behold in these is the 
 proof that the falling away of the children of God is 
 possible." 
 
 HI. 
 
 THE WARNING. 
 
 And now, ye who have fallen away, hear the warn- 
 ing loMch is given you ; hearken to the voice of 
 thunder which proceeds from the mouth of the apostle ; 
 " It is impossible for those who were once en- 
 lightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and 
 were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have 
 tasted the good word of God and the powers of the 
 world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them 
 again unto repentance, seeing they crucify to them- 
 selves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open 
 shame." how terribly do these words sound I They 
 seem almost like that fearful sentence, " Depart from 
 me, ye cursed, into evei'lasting fire, prepared for 
 the devil and his angels." (Matt. xxv. 41.) They do 
 not, however, denounce a sentence of condemnation, 
 but forcibly set before us how painful, how difficult, 
 must be the restoration of those, who, having been 
 rooted and gi-ounded in the faith, and blessed with 
 the sweetest manifestations of love from God, have 
 afterwards relapsed into sin. Whoever, therefore, are 
 guilty of such sin, may well fear and tremble. The 
 word " impossible," in our text, is calculated to fill them 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AKD RECOVERY. 101 
 
 ■W'ltli horror and alarm. Let him that thinketh he 
 standeth take heed lest he fall. O, watch and pray, and 
 abide under the shadow of the cross. There lay you 
 down to rest ; there awake in the morning. Let that be 
 the spot of your daily employments, the scene of your 
 active and careful preparation for eternity. There wait 
 for the coming of the Lord ; there draw your last sigh ; 
 then are ye safe. 
 
 I perceive an intense anxiety among you, my 
 brethren, and many a heart heaves a heavy sigh. I 
 think I am not mistaken. And what is the cause ! 
 Ah, I know it well. Some of you deem yourselves 
 guilty of this sin, and the word " impossible," as with 
 the weight of a mountain, presses down your souls. 
 Indeed, brethren, I feel acutely for you ; I mourn 
 over your case. But have you really fallen away ? 
 Yes, you think ; yes, we have indeed. And are you 
 distressed on account of it I Alas ! you exclaim, deeply, 
 deeply distressed. And do you desire to be restored ? 
 O, most earnestly, is your cry ; but it is in vain. 
 We are lost for ever. We are unfaithful ; we are 
 base sinners ; we have crucified the Lord of glory. 
 It is impossible, impossible. This is the language 
 of your soul. But stop : we know enough to say 
 to you. Take courage ; be not dismayed. Your 
 apprehensions are not well grounded. For you there 
 is nothing but comfort in our text. Comfort ? Yes, 
 brethren, comfort ; for observe what the apostle says. 
 It is this ; that it is impossible " to renew them again 
 unto repentance." But you, I conceive, are renewed 
 unto, repentance ; for what else is this your anxiety 
 and trembling apprehension ? what else are these your 
 
102 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 sighs, and cries, and tears, and this judging of your- 
 self before the Lord ? what are these but repentance 
 and contrition of heart I There is no need, therefore, 
 for you to number yourselves among those that have 
 fallen away. Look at this obvious conclusion, con- 
 sider its truth, and be comforted. In the name of God 
 and his word I say, ye are in a state of grace. Is it 
 not so, beloved, that you who are affected by over- 
 much sorrow on this account, may hope in God's 
 mercy ! But many among us still continue oppressed 
 with anxiety. That word " impossible " presses down 
 their souls as an intolerable burden, perhaps less on 
 their own account than on that of others. A father 
 mourns over his fallen son ; a brother thinks of his 
 brother that has grievously gone astray ; a friend calls 
 to mind his friend who is under spiritual declension ; 
 and, alas ! the word " impossible " so affects their souls, 
 that they gaze, as it were, into the bottomless pit, and 
 behold their brother, son, or friend, given a prey to the 
 merciless, the everlasting flames. 
 
 Wherewith can we speak peace to these, or what can we 
 say to those whom we may have robbed of the delightful 
 feeling of their security, or whose confidence we have 
 shaken I The latter we Avould exhort to be the more 
 diligent in watching and prayer ; and to the former we 
 would say, if those beloved ones, whose falling away you 
 mourn, were the children of God, they are not lost. 
 God will not cast away His people ; and though your 
 eyes and mine may not perceive it, though they them- 
 selves may scarcely be conscious of it, the loving-kind- 
 ness of the Lord is not utterly taken away from them, 
 (Psal. Ixxxix. 33.) the Holy Ghost has not forsaken 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 103 
 
 them, for the promise made to the }3eople of God is, that 
 He shall ahide witli them for ever. (John xiv. 16.) 
 
 The word of God cannot be at variance with itself, nor 
 are we at liberty to take a pai'tial view of divine truth, 
 and to rest upon one portion to the neglect of another. 
 That which our Lord says in the tenth chapter of the 
 Gospel according to St. John, still holds good ; " My 
 sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow 
 me : and I give unto them eternal life ; and they shall 
 never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of 
 my hand. My Father which gave them me, is greater 
 than all ; and no man is able to pluck them out of my 
 Father's hand ;" (ver. 27 — 29.) And also in the sixth 
 chapter, " All that the Father giveth me shall come to 
 me ; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast 
 out. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, 
 that of all which He hath given me I should lose 
 nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day." 
 (ver. 37, 39.) And that which the Holy Ghost says 
 in our text is not opposed to these gi-eat truths. This I 
 must briefly show 3'ou. 
 
 And let me call your attention to the exact word- 
 ing of the text. It is not said that it is impossible for 
 them to be renewed agam, but it is impossible to renew 
 them again unto repentance. You can easily appre- 
 ciate the difference between the two modes of expres- 
 sion. A physician may say respecting a patient who is 
 dangerously ill, " it is impossible to restore him," 
 by which expression he would intimate that it is a 
 case beyond the power of his skill to remedy. Should 
 he presume to say that it is impossible for the man to 
 be restored to health, he would say too much ; for 
 
104 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 God, who possesses all power, can raise up and 
 restore, even from the gates of death. In like manner, 
 the apostle, in the expression before iis, does not deny 
 that there is any possibility of recovery, but he asserts 
 that the means which at other times are made use of for 
 the spiritual good of men, namely, the admonitions of 
 love, the voice of warning, and the preaching of the 
 word, are to those, who have fallen away, unavailing. 
 The earnest call to repentance, the remonstrances of 
 friends, and the promises and threatening of Scripture, 
 fall upon these souls as dew upon the beaten path, and 
 as rain upon the hard stone. 
 
 When, therefore, St. Paul speaks here of impossibility, 
 we must regard him as havmg in view the means which 
 are usually blessed in the awakening of sinners, " the 
 word and doctrine," in the administration of which he 
 was diligent, as the servant of Christ, but that he did 
 not intend us to understand that God himself could not 
 bring back one who was guilty of spiritual declension. 
 No, brethren. The word which excites so much alarm 
 is to be understood precisely in that sense in which it 
 is explained in the tenth chapter of St. Mark's gospel. 
 Our Lord there says, " It is easier for a camel to go 
 through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to 
 enter into the kingdom of God." And when the dis- 
 ciples were astonished out of measure, saying among 
 themselves, who then can be saved I Jesus looked 
 upon them, and said, " With men it is impossible, 
 but not with God ; for with God all things are pos- 
 sible." (ver. 25—27.) 
 
 But why does not St. Paul make a similar express 
 reservation ? He would warn us against security and 
 
SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY, 105 
 
 falling away, and therefore he uses strong language. 
 But he is not at tlie same time unmindful of the weak 
 and timid among the flock of Christ : and that he 
 might not make the heart of him sad whom God hath 
 not made sad, he more than once, in the immediate 
 context, intimates that with God there is no impossi- 
 bility to renew again to repentance his beloved children 
 who may have fallen away. 
 
 And first, he does so in the third verse. He feared 
 that some whom he addressed had fallen away, and 
 gave them distinctly to understand it. He was therefore 
 apprehensive lest his proclaiming the great m3'steries of 
 the gospel of which he desired to treat should be of 
 no avail, that his words should fall as seed upon a soil 
 that is utterly barren and fruitless. And yet he adds, 
 tliat it was his wish to preach these great doctrines to 
 them, and this will he do, he says, if God permit. 
 But Paul knew that their hearts were closed against 
 him ; he had just said that they had need of milk, and 
 not of strong meat, and to be taught the first principles 
 of the doctrines of God ; but he meant that what he 
 could not do, God could bring to pass, namely, that 
 he could move and restore - the hardened and unfeeling- 
 souls of those who had faithlessly' departed from him, 
 and remained insensible under the preached word. 
 This, his belief, he expresses covertly, indeed, but 
 very significantly in the words, " This will we do, if 
 God permit.!' 
 
 But does he not openly declare, in the eighth verse, 
 that those who have fallen away are hopelessly lost I He 
 there compares them to the earth, which receiveth not 
 blessing from God, and which beareth tliorns and 
 tliistles. And what does he say respecting this earth i 
 F 3 
 
106 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND KECOVERT. 
 
 That it is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose 
 end is to be burned. These indeed are strong expres- 
 sions, but to be nigh unto cursing does not mean to be 
 really cursed, as to be near death is quite a different 
 thing from being actually dead. The words, " whose 
 end is to be burned," are unquestionably fearful, but 
 these again are not so alarming as they appear to be. 
 It would be far otherwise, were those who have fallen 
 away compared to the dry stubble, which is cast 
 into the fire to be burned. But they are said to be 
 like the earth. And why do men in eastern countries 
 apply fire to fields which are unproductive I Cer- 
 tainly not to destroy them and make them desolate, 
 but on the contrary, to free them fi-om weeds, to render 
 them arable and fruitful. Even so, as the apostle 
 intimates, does God deal with his dear children who 
 have fallen away. They shall again be renewed to 
 repentance, but as by fire, like the fearful judgment 
 of dreadful visitations, like the flame of wrath and 
 the torments of the lost, as it was with David and 
 Solomon, and others, who have fallen away. Yes, 
 with God nothing is impossible. 
 
 Are you still dismayed, my brethren ? If it is yet 
 a matter of doubt with you, whether the everlasting 
 covenant of God, which is well ordered in all things 
 and sure, remains fixed and unbroken, then read the 
 remainder of the chapter. The apostle there treats of 
 the truth and faithfulness of God, in a way which fills 
 the heart with gladness and rejoicing. It seems as 
 though it were his desire to raise up and exalt to 
 heaven those whom he had first, by the thunder of his 
 warnings, levelled with the earth. It is impossible, 
 he says, for God to lie. Has he once spoken to us. 
 
SPIRITCAI, DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 107 
 
 by the Spirit of his grace ; has he really promised to 
 us poor criminals the joys of paradise ! then may we 
 have strong consolation. These two things — his oath 
 and his once promised word — can never foil. In these 
 we have at all times an anchor of the soul, both 
 sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within 
 the veil. 
 
 Behold, tlius doth the apostle express himself respect- 
 ing these great things. 
 
 For whom is this discourse designed ? For the 
 «areless and secure, in the first place ; and next for 
 those who ai'e of little faith and fearful. To the former, 
 it addresses the voice of warning, to excite them to 
 watch and pray, and abide under the cross, lest, before 
 they are aware, they should wander far from God ; for 
 it is a fearful and a bitter thing at last, as a field, to be 
 burned, and by such a painful process to be renewed 
 again to repentance — and for the latter it is designed, 
 as a means of confirmation and establishment in the 
 faith, that they may be comforted and encouraged, 
 though they may have been unfaithful, and guilty of 
 declining from God. For the foundation of God 
 standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them 
 that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name 
 of Christ depart from iniquity. (2 Tim. ii. ID.) Yes, 
 he knoweth them that are his. 
 
 Come then, ye citizens of heaven, however tattered, 
 and torn, and disfigured, by your long wandering from 
 the right way — come to a God, reconciled to man in 
 Christ Jesus. As long as He shall see j'our names 
 written on the tablet of the covenant, he will " earnestly 
 
108 SPIRITUAL DECLINE AND RECOVERY. 
 
 remember you still, (Jer. xxxi. 20.) and though months 
 and years may have passed away since you departed 
 from him, He will, when you turn and repent, welcome 
 you as friends, and you shall yourselves testify that 
 you really had nothing to fear, for the love of God 
 to his people is unchangeable. Faithful is he that hath 
 called you, who also will do it. let the faithfulness 
 of God melt and subdue your soul, and so draw nigh 
 to Him. His heart yearns over you to embrace you 
 in love, to restore, to refresh, and comfort you. 
 
 Then let them come who weep, but yet believe, 
 For contrite sinners Jesus will receive. 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON VI. 
 
 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 HosEA xiv. 5, 
 
 " I will be as the dew unto Israel — that he shall flourish as 
 the Rose."* 
 
 " Israel, return unto the Lord thy God, for thou 
 hast fallen by thine iniquity." — Such are the gracious 
 words of the Lord to his people ; and the promises 
 which he annexes to this call of merc}^, and by which he 
 allures them to himself, are sweeter than honey and the 
 honey-comb ; (Psal. xix. 10.) He will heal their back- 
 slidings. He wiU love them freely, for his anger is 
 turned away from them. Yea, he will be as the dew 
 imto Israel — that he shall flourish as the rose. 
 
 At this last promise to the spiritual Israel we will 
 pause, to inquire into its import, and to refresh our- 
 selves with the hidden manna which descends in this 
 heavenly dew. (See Exod. xvi. 14.) 
 
 * The Lutheran version — which is retained, because the 
 nature of the Sermon requires it. 
 
110 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 Let US contemplate, 
 I. Christ under the similitude of the dew on Israel ; 
 and then, 
 II. The Church, as represented by a blooming rose. 
 
 I. 
 
 CHRIST THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 / will be as the dew unto Israel. How beautiful the 
 comparison ! Many, doubtless, in this assembly, are 
 now breathing the silent prayer — " 0, my Lord and 
 Saviour, be unto me as the dew of the early dawn." 
 
 Frequent allusion is made to dew in the sacred writ- 
 ings. Sometimes it represents great and special benefits ; 
 " Therefore," saith the aged Pati-iarch to Esau, " God 
 give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the 
 earth." (Gen. xxvii. 28.) Spiritual blessings are also 
 thus described ; " The fountain of Jacob shall be upon 
 a land of corn and wine, also his heavens shall drop 
 down dew." (Deut. xxxiii. 28.) The fruitfulness and 
 quickening power of the word of God is moreover set 
 forth by this similitude ; " My speech shall distil as 
 the dew." (Deut. xxxii. 2.) Sometimes grace is sig- 
 nified; ** The king's favour is as dew upon the grass." 
 (Prov. xix. 12.) At other times, it is expressive of 
 peace and brotherly union of spirit ; " Behold, how 
 good, and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell 
 together in unity. It is like the precious ointment 
 upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even 
 Aaron's beard ; that went down to the skirts of his 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL 111 
 
 garments. As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that 
 descended upon the mountains of Zion ; for there the 
 Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore." 
 (Psal. cxxxiii.) 
 
 The morning dew, copiously diffused over the face of 
 nature, brilliant, from the reflected light of heaven, as 
 diamonds of the purest water, communicating fresh- 
 ness to the herbage, is an apt and beautiful emblem 
 of the children of God, — the converts of Zion, who 
 are born from above, numerous as the drops of morn- 
 ing dew. (Psal. ex.) The beauty of the Lord their 
 God is upon them, and they are valued by Him as his 
 precious jewels. (Mai. iii. 17.) The blessings vouch- 
 safed to the places where they dwell, in answer to their 
 fervent and constant prayers, descend as the small rain 
 upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the 
 new mown grass. " The remnant of Jacob," it is said, 
 " shall be in the midst of many people, as a dew from 
 the Lord." (Mic. v. 7.) The Holy Ghost, also, with 
 His manifold powers, gifts, and operations, is frequently 
 represented by the same similitude. "Whenever the Lord 
 is described as watering his vineyard, and causing clouds 
 to pass over it, and sending rain from heaven ; whenever 
 we read of a river the streams whereof make glad the 
 city of God, and refresh the wilderness and solitary place, 
 the allusion is to the Holy Spirit, who is to the soul that 
 which dew and rain are to the face of nature. " Awake 
 and sing, ye that dwell in dust ; for thy dew is as the 
 dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead." 
 (Isa. xxvi. 19.) 
 
 When therefore, as in my text, the Lord thus speaks 
 of Himself, we cannot mistake the meaning. He is 
 Himself the dew ; for he is one with the Spirit. " The 
 
112 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 Lord is that Spirit," says the apostle ; and again, " We 
 are changed into the same image from glory to glory, 
 even as by the Spirit of the Lord ;" or of the Lord the 
 Spirit. (2 Cor. iii. 17, 18. See the marginal reading.) 
 When Christ enters into a soul, the Spirit enters ; and 
 has fellowship with us ; and so also has Christ, who is 
 glorified in us, and gives himself to us with quickening 
 power. 
 
 " I will be as the dew unto Israel." How deep is 
 the condescension which is intimated by this comparison. 
 It is as if the great design of the existence of God 
 were the life and well-being of his people. And the 
 same grace was manifested in the humiliation of Jesus 
 during his sojourn upon earth. " The Son of man," 
 said our Lord, " came not to be ministered unto, but 
 to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." 
 (Matt. XX. 28.) And again, "I lay down my life 
 for the sheep." (John x. 15.) He laid it down once 
 upon the cross, and in another, and spiritual sense, he 
 lays it down daily for us now. He lives for us, to 
 make us partakei-s of his hfe, that we may live in 
 him. The Lord of heaven and of earth, under whose 
 feet are put all things, even He will be to us a dew 
 — a refreshing shower poured upon the withered field 
 of fallen nature ; O think, brethren, of this conde- 
 scension, this love. 
 
 The Lord will be as a dew. This also intimates, that 
 there is a thirsty and fainting land, which he will render 
 fruitful. And such are we, till we have received 
 life from on high. In vain shall we seek for any 
 fruit in a soul, before Christ has given it life. How 
 is the beautiful garden laid waste, the planting of the 
 Lord within us. The fire of rebellion against God 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 113 
 
 has devoured the green foliage. It is a desolation, a 
 dry and dreary desert, where only dragons and vipers 
 dwell — thoughts and desires opposed to tlie God of 
 heaven. Let any one seek there for the beauteous 
 plant of heavenly love ; it is utterly destroyed. Let 
 him search for the luxuriant growth of filial confidence, 
 of ardent devotion, and heart-felt delight in prayer ; 
 let him ask for the fragrant but lowly floweret of 
 humility, whether it yet blooms? for the little plant 
 of patience, whether it now grows ? for communion 
 with God, whether it is still cherished ? Let a man 
 inquire for power, and zeal, and inclination to do the 
 will of God ; for heavenly-mindedness ; for the uj)\vard 
 soaring of the soul. — Alas ! how have we become a 
 wilderness ! That is fulfilled in us, which is spoken 
 of by the prophet, "Thou daughter that dost inhabit 
 Dibon, come down from thy glory and sit in thirst." 
 (Jcr. xlviii. 18.) Our strength is withered awa}', as 
 in the drought of summer. There is no verdure, no 
 life in us. 
 
 And should any one seek to restore the lost verdure, 
 as long as the wonder-working dew of God is with- 
 held, his efforts are imavailing as water poured upon 
 the burning sand. Let a man form good resolutions ; 
 let him preach or hear the word ; let him read and 
 pray ; let him retire into solitude, or seek the society 
 of the pious ; it is all to no purpose, unless the Lord 
 be with him : it is as when the rain or dew falls upon 
 the paving-stones of the streets. But the Lord can even 
 of stones raise up children to Abraham. He can make 
 the wilderness blossom as the rose. 
 
 I, saith the Lord, I will be as the dew unto Israel. 
 — Blessed be God that He will be as the dew. The 
 
114 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 dew is wont to fall, in the sultry night of summer, 
 when the fields are dry and languishing ; and, in like 
 manner, doth Jesus visit the thirety soul. Go abroad 
 into the fields on an early summer's morning. See 
 how the dew sparkles in the valleys, how it lies upon 
 the meadows as a sea of pearls ; but none has fallen 
 upon the lofty hills. Thus, whosoever would receive 
 Christ must first he brought low ; must, like David, 
 cry unto God out of the Depths. (Psal. cxxx. 1.) 
 " Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto 
 the lowly, but the proud he knoweth afar off.'' (Psal. 
 cxxxviii. 6.) " To this man will I look, saitli the Lord, 
 even to him that is poor and of a contrite heart, and 
 that trembleth at my word." (Tsaiah Lxvi. 2.) God is 
 wont to make a man lowly before he visits him with 
 his cLuickening and refreshing power. Every mountain 
 and hill shall be brought low before Him. The Saviour 
 of men loves the valley of humiliation. — How well did 
 He know how to bring down the pride in the woman 
 of Samaria ; " Thou hast had five husbands, and he 
 whom thou now hast is not thy husband." (John iv. 
 18.) At once she was convicted of sin ; and sensible 
 of her poverty and wretchedness, she looked around 
 for a deliverer from among the people. Then it was 
 that Jesus said unto her, "I that speak unto thee 
 am He ;" (verse 26.) and from that time she was 
 renewed in the spirit of her mind, and changed both in 
 heart and life. She was the planting of the Lord, that 
 He might be glorified. 
 
 And it is ever thus. The dew of God falls from 
 above. He opens the clouds of heaven, and wherever 
 he finds valleys and depths among the hills, empty, 
 and helpless souls, there he sheds abroad his sacred 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 115 
 
 influences. " The hungry he fiUeth with good things, 
 but the rich he sendeth empty away." As Joseph was 
 a tj'pe of Christ in his wliole life, so was he also in 
 this, that he was cast into a pit which was empty. 
 
 It is in the stillness of the night that the dew de- 
 scends from heaven. "We hear no sound, we see no 
 brightness ; but in the morning it is suspended from the 
 leaves, and we know not whence it came, nor how 
 it was placed there. So is it also with Christ. The 
 manner of his coming is hidden in darkness ; who can 
 lift up the veil I His approach is also, for the most 
 part stUl and noiseless ; not with sound and ceremony, 
 not with visions and wondrous manifestations, not with 
 a voice from heaven, and pomp and parade apparent to 
 the senses. Or ever the sighing and waiting sinner 
 is aware, He says to him. Behold, I am He. No 
 host of angels has entered his chamber, no audible 
 voice has been heard through his window : he has 
 seen no vision, nor has any light from heaven shone 
 around him, as around the shepherds on the field of 
 Bethlehem ; but within his soul he has heard the 
 gracious announcement, " Behold, I bring you glad 
 tidings of great joy, for to you is born this day the 
 Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." The Spirit beareth 
 witness with his spirit ; and this is the witness that 
 God hath given unto us eternal life, and that this 
 life is in his Son. His conscience also testifies that 
 he has partaken of the fountain of grace opened to the 
 house of David and inhabitants of Jerusalem : he knows 
 that Christ is his Saviour. The dew has gently fallen 
 in the calm and silent season of the night ; but in what 
 manner we know not ; yet tlie sinner feels that it is 
 there : and we also perceive, in the whole course of liis 
 
116 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 life and conversation, that Divine grace has descended 
 on his soul. 
 
 The dew upon the tender grass is distinguished for 
 its brightness. It reflects the light of heaven. And 
 thus also, when Christ has found admission into our 
 soul, amidst the deepened sense of our sinfulness, He 
 appears glorious in our eyes ; and the more close our 
 communion with him, the more do our misery and 
 utter helplessness become apparent. Hence the cry of 
 the believer : " Alas ! what am I, my Saviour : I daily 
 discover more evil in my state." But thanks be to 
 God, as the dew adorns and beautifies that on which 
 it falls, so does Christ cover our misery with his 
 righteousness, which is glorious like the curtains of 
 Solomon. (Cant. i. 5.) There is no condemnation, 
 saith the apostle, to them which are in Christ Jesus, 
 who walk not after the flesh, but after the Si^irit. 
 (Rom. viii. 1.) 
 
 And how fertilizing is this dew ! It gives life to 
 the dead soul. It makes the wilderness to rejoice and 
 blossom as the rose. How great is the change which 
 is eff'ected, when, after a long and sultry summer's day, 
 the morning dawn unfolds itself, and sheds abroad its 
 blessings upon the fields. We see nothing then faint 
 and withered ; the flowers and herbage lift up their 
 heads ; all things are adorned with beauty, as in the 
 season of spring, and the fragrance of life is wafted 
 through the air- But yet greater and more glorious 
 is the change, when Christ, the dew of God, descends 
 upon a heart, or upon a whole household, as in the 
 case of Cornelius. 
 
 How wretched and barren the heart of man, till 
 Christ is there. How unhappy and lifeless its condi- 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 117 
 
 tion. The world possesses all — the inind, the will, 
 the affections. The thoughts are winged only toward 
 the flesh-pots of Egypt. The desires and hopes go 
 upon the ground, like the serpent, and eat the dust. 
 The mouth speaks only of the gratifications and em- 
 ployments of time. The whole life and being of man 
 — his joys and griefs, his hopes and sorrows, are esti- 
 mated by this world and its vanity ; his entire state is 
 mean and grovelling, without God, without light, des- 
 titute of heavenly mindedness, full of sin. Angels 
 cannot endure such a sight. 
 
 But, behold ! Salvation conies to this house. The 
 Saviour sheds his blessings from on high. Now come 
 and see what a change has been effected. " The 
 glory of the Lord fiUeth the house." How sacred has 
 the place become ; v.orldly mindedness is expelled, and 
 the gentle spirit of humility and love occupies its room, 
 and the conversation is in heaven ; earthly inclinations 
 are dislodged, and the thoughts, wishes, and desires 
 are now wings, wherewith to fly upward. The trea- 
 sure is now elsewhere, the heart is elsewhere also. 
 Other bread and water are now known, and other is 
 the thirst and liunger. The man has attained another 
 state and condition, and his language and course of 
 life are consequently different. He is spiritual, and all 
 things are now spiritually discerned and estimated ; 
 and his chambers are pei'fumed with the frankincense 
 of prayer and praise, ascending day and night as a 
 sweet smelling savour before the Lord. His state was 
 before drear}', and void, and desolate, and darkness 
 was upon the face of the deep : but the Spirit has 
 now moved upon the face of the waters, and light 
 has broken in, and the soul stands glorious in the 
 
118 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 bloom and beauty of the new creation. This is the 
 Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes. This 
 is the work of Him who says, in my text, I will 
 be as the dew unto Israel. that he were such to all 
 of us ! 
 
 But observe, my brethren, ^that dew, precious as it 
 is, may become injurious to the fields. This is the 
 case, when it falls on a cold and chilly atmosphere. 
 Then, congealed into frost, it destroys, vegetation. 
 And thus has Christ been unto many the savour of 
 death unto death. So, for example, did he become to 
 Judas a chilling fi-ost. Of this the wintry atmo- 
 sphere of opposition and obstinacy in Judas was the 
 cause. All that Jesus did by word or example, by 
 gentle allurements or by warnings, to gain an entrance 
 into the heart of Judas, hardened his heart more and 
 more, and accelerated his destruction. Christ was not 
 the cause of this, but Judas himself. 
 
 May God preserve every one of us from such a 
 state ! God forbid that that which alone can give life 
 eternal, should in the evil atmosphere of our soul be 
 changed into a withering frost ! 
 
 let him who has received this refreshing and 
 fructifying gift, rejoice and give thanks to God. 
 But some of you, perhaps, mourn the absence 
 of the dew after which you thirst. For many days 
 and weeks, it may be, you have not been able to 
 perceive its sweetness, nor rejoice in its communica- 
 tions from on high. See that, under such circum- 
 stances, you mistake not your state. For the dew is 
 not unfrequently withheld from the souls of God's 
 dear children. Then do the plants of love and peace, 
 of confidence aud joy, droop and hang down their 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 119 
 
 heads. There is no life for prayer, praise, or giving of 
 thanks. But only wait awhile. God would now show 
 you the value of the dew. When his hour is come 
 He will return again to you, and give you inwardly 
 to experience its gracious effects. 
 
 And how great the joy when the treasures of 
 heaven are poured forth after a long, sultry season ! 
 Then you first learn rightly how to estimate the mercies 
 conferred on you, and by faith perceive and acknow- 
 ledge in your own soul, that the Lord alone is as the 
 dew unto Israel. 
 
 II. 
 
 THE CHURCH A BLOOMING ROSE. 
 
 As Christ represents himself in my text under the 
 similitude of the dew, in like manner does he com- 
 pare the church, and also each individual believer, to 
 a rose. " I will be as the dew unto Israel — that he 
 shall flourish as the rose." This expression is also highly 
 significant. 
 
 The rose is a lovely flower, second to none in 
 sweetness and beauty. As the nightingale among 
 birds, the rose is among flowers, the most eloquent in 
 the praises of the Creator. It utters no vocal sound, 
 nor does it rustle, as the palm of Elias, or the cedars 
 of Lebanon, and yet it seems to be formed to give 
 glory to its maker. Thus, too, Israel, whose seed 
 shall live for ever, a rose in the great wilderness of 
 
120 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 man, created for God's honour and glory. " The Lord 
 hath redeemed Jacob," saith the prophet, "and glori- 
 fied hhnself in Israel." (Isa. xliv. 23.) And St. Paul 
 declares, that God hath " predestinated us unto the 
 adoption of children, by Jesus Christ, to himself, 
 according to the good pleasure of liis will, to the 
 praise of the glory of his grace, Avherein he hath made 
 us accepted in the Beloved." (Eph. i, 5, 6.) Believers 
 are his workmanship, born of his Avater and his Spirit. 
 His is the light which enlightens them ; His the grace 
 which is made manifest in their conversation. Yes, all 
 that is bright and lovely in their character is from God, 
 the darkness only belongs to themselves. The Urim and 
 Thummin, which they bear upon their breast, has 
 been placed there by God ; and the language of their 
 hearts is, " Not unto us, Lord, but unto thy name 
 give glory, for thy mercy and for thy truth's sake." 
 (Psal. cxv. 1.) The power of His grace is displayed in 
 all who are born again to his honour and glory. " We 
 have this treasure," it is said, " in earthen vessels, that 
 the excellency of the power may be of God, and not 
 of us." (2 Cor. iv. 7.) 
 
 How wondrous, how mysterious, arc the ways of God. 
 For observe who are they that shall flourish as the 
 rose. Poor, contrite sinners, who are conscious of 
 nothing good in themselves ; miserable outcasts, such 
 as took refuge with David in the cave ; weak, dispirited 
 men by nature, who have neither power nor will of 
 their own to make any efFort — the lame, the blind, the 
 destitute, who lie in the street at the threshold of His 
 door, and live on the crumbs of bread which fall from 
 His table. And the great and the rich, the honour- 
 able and the powerful, (namely, those who deem them- 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 121 
 
 selves as such) are but as weeds. A believer, however 
 deep may have been the dye of his sins ; a poor 
 Lazanis lying in his leprosy ; a publican pricked to 
 the heart, and crying, God be merciful to me a sinner ; 
 a penitent thief upon the cross — Such sinners He re- 
 ceiveth (Luke xv. 2.) From these he ordaineth praise. 
 Such is the wonder-working power of God. But, truly, 
 they are not saved by Him for the sake of any thing in 
 themselves, nor for any humility or piety they may be 
 supposed to possess ; but He regards them as his own, 
 because they are found in Christ, and are clothed with 
 the garment of his perfect righteousness. By his grace 
 he hath made us accepted in the Beloved. 
 
 The rose has a delightful fragrance. Thus the 
 Lord says [by Ezekiel, " I will accept you with your 
 sweet savour, when I bring you out from the people, 
 and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have 
 been scattered, and I will be sanctified in you before 
 the heathen." (Ezek. xx. 41.) And it is said, respect- 
 ing the church, in the Song of Solomon, "the smell 
 of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon." (iv. 
 11.) This reminds us of Jacob, when, by subtletj', 
 he obtained the blessing. He clothed himself in the 
 " goodly raiment " of Esau, and drew nigh unto his 
 father ; (Gen. xxvii. 15.) then, it is said, Isaac smelled 
 the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, 
 " See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field 
 which the Lord hath blessed." (ver. 27.) And thiis 
 is it with regard to ourselves. We are as a sweet 
 savour unto the Lord, only when clothed m the beau- 
 tiful garments of our elder brother ; we are accepted 
 in the Beloved. 
 
 The rose is red; in this respect also is it an 
 
122 THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 emblem of the spiritual Israel. St. Paul speaks, Ik 
 the tenth chapter of the epistle to the Hebrews, of 
 our " boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood 
 of Jesus ;" and again, in the twelfth chapter, he makes 
 mention of " the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh 
 better things than that of Abel." As Moses sprinkled 
 all the people with the blood of the sacrifice, so are the 
 children of God sprinkled with the blood of Christ, 
 their passover, that the destroj'ing angel may not 
 touch them. (Heb. Lx. 19, 23; 1 Pet. i. 3.) Their 
 faith looks to liis atoning blood. " The shield of the 
 mighty men is made red," saith the prophet Nahum. 
 (ii. 3.) This may be regarded as applying to the 
 shield of faith. Their hope springs out of the obe- 
 dience of the Saviour, his obedience unto death. 
 Their prayers and praises are sprinkled with his 
 blood, for thus only do they draw nigh unto God. 
 The fountain of their love is the bleeding cross. 
 They would glory in nothing else, save Jesus Christ 
 and hun crucified. He is their all and in all. All 
 their works are done in the believing apprehension 
 of the blood of the cross. Thus do they possess the 
 colour as well as the fragrance of the rose. 
 
 When a rose has lost its lovely hue, it is a sign that 
 it is hastening to decay. This holds good also with 
 reference to the Christian. If he cease to cry, with 
 David, "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, 
 wash me and I shall be whiter than snow ;" (Psal. li. 
 7.) if he neglect to have recourse to the fountain opened 
 for sin and for uncleanness ; if he begin to think 
 lightly of the offering of the Mediator, and venture 
 without it to approach the Father, it is an evil 
 token— a sign that the worm of pride is gnawing at 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 123 
 
 tlie root. The more rich the colouring, the greater is 
 the indication of life ; the more indispensable appears 
 to us the blood of the covenant, the better is the 
 state of our soul. 
 
 The rose is seldom without a thorn. And what says 
 the bridegroom in the Song of Solomon I " As the 
 rose among the thorns so is my beloved." But what 
 are the thorns I They are the many afflictions, both 
 external and within, to which the cliildren of God 
 are subjected in this world. And thus must it needs 
 be. They are hedged in, that they may not wander 
 out of the right way, and that they may be protected 
 from many dangers. Without his sufferings the graces 
 of Lazanis would not have shone forth so brightly ; 
 and Paul, without a thorn in his flesh Avould have 
 been exalted above measure. Whenever the church 
 of God has been subjected to severe persecution, the 
 beauty of the Lord has been most upon her, and her 
 comeliness unfolded to the view. 
 
 And now observe, in the last place, the source 
 whence the rose derives its loveliness and growth. It 
 toils not, neither does it spin, but it waves gently in 
 the sun-beam, and opens its cup to the dew of the 
 early dawn ; thence its fragrance and beauty, in which 
 it surpasses every flower of the field. Solomon, in all 
 his glory, was not arrayed like one of them. Here 
 do we receive instruction. Our toils and labours are 
 of no avail : we cannot change and renew ourselves. 
 In this consists our life ; that we walk in the light 
 of Jacob ; that the day-star from on liigh visits us ; 
 that we "lift up our eyes unto the hiUs from whence 
 cometh our help ;" (Psal. cxxi. 1.) that we repair 
 g2 
 
12'! THB DEW OF ISRAEL. 
 
 to no fountain but that which is opened to the house 
 of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, (Zech. 
 xiii. 1.) and daily and hourly draw from thence 
 living water. (John iv. 10.) Happy are they who 
 have no other care than every moment to abide 
 under the beams of the Sun of Righteousness, and 
 be moistened with the dew which distils from heaven. 
 Happy are they whose eyes rest continually on the 
 good Shepherd, that he may give them their portion 
 of meat in due season ; that he may open his hand 
 and satisfy them with good things. They shall never 
 be permitted to want. Their bread shall be given 
 them, and their water shall be sure. 
 
 Wouldst thou, Israel, flourish and blossom as the 
 rose ? Unfold thine heart under a deep sense of thy 
 need to Jesus, the Sun of Righteousness, and to the 
 dew of heaven which descends gently from on high. 
 So wilt thou be, as the rose in the season of spring, 
 lovely, fresh, and fragrant ; and in thy words and 
 actions, in thy prayers and praises, and thy holy con- 
 versation, will men recognize the brightness and the 
 glory of the heavenly dew. 
 
 O come, then. Lord and Saviour, be imto us as the 
 dew ! On all those who are stUl as withered plants, 
 and, continuing such, must at length be cast into the 
 fire and burned, let the power of thy Spirit be mani- 
 fest, as once on the rod of Aaron, which though dry 
 and lifeless, yet, in one night, "brought forth buds, 
 and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds." (Numb. 
 Jvvii, 8.) May we all flourish as the rose. And when- 
 
THE DEW OF ISRAEL. 125 
 
 ever Thou slialt come to us to call a soul hence to thy 
 eternal mansions, may it be said in heaven, " Behold, 
 my Beloved is gone down into his garden to the beds 
 of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather roses." 
 (Sol. Song vi. 2.) 
 
 Amen. 
 
SERMON VII. 
 
 THE SAVIOUR'S JOY. 
 
 A SERMON FOR CHRISTMAS DAY. 
 
 Peov. viii. 31. 
 Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth ; and my delights 
 were with the sons of men." 
 
 There can be no great difficulty in finding the 
 solution of this mysterious subject. The chapter from 
 which our text is taken furnishes it amply. It shows 
 us plainly that the allusion is to essential Wisdom, or 
 the Son of God. Our Lord bears, in many passages 
 of Scripture, the name of *' Wisdom." He says of 
 himself, (Matt. xi. 19,) Wisdom is justified of her 
 children ; " and again, (Luke xi. 49.) " Therefore, also, 
 said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and 
 apostles." And Paul declares, that " God hath made 
 Christ unto us Wisdom." (1 Cor. i. 30.) In our text, 
 also, something is stated respecting Christ, the Wisdom 
 of God, which, especially in the light of the joyous 
 season of the nativity, it is not difficult to understand. 
 Let us proceed, then, to consider the subject thus 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 127 
 
 brought Ijefore us. And first let us observe the latter 
 clause of our text. 
 
 L 
 
 *=' MY DELIGHTS WERE WITH THE SONS OF MEN." 
 
 how bright and rich the meaning wliich flashes 
 from these words upon our minds. They are like a 
 costly jewel, which, however you may turn and examine 
 it, is on all sides beautiful, and ever sends forth new rays 
 of life and lovely colouring. 
 
 Our Lord here informs us, that He had delights — 
 peculiar and special enjoyments. And where had He 
 these delights ? Where else, you say, than where the 
 tree of life flourishes, and the streams of living water 
 flow ; (Rev. xxii. 1, 2.) where the crown of glory en- 
 circles his brow, and ten thousand times ten thousand, 
 with their golden harps, stand around his throne. 
 (Rev. xiv. 2.) But no ; his heart is elsevvhere ; " My 
 delights were with the sons of men." You think, then, 
 that he speaks of the beginning of time, and the last 
 day of the creation. Aye, then was it indeed good to 
 dwell among men ; for it was pleasant to walk amidst 
 the trees of Eden, when the inhabitants of the earth were 
 pure and undefiled. (Gen. ii. 8.) Nor yet, brethren, 
 is this the tune of which our Lord speaks ; but he alludes 
 to a period when all the foundations of the earth were 
 out of coarse ; (Psal. Ixxxii. 5.) when the imagination of 
 man's heart was only evil from his youth, (Gen. viii. 
 21.) and the whole human race dead in trespasses and 
 
128 THE saviour's joy. 
 
 sins, (Eph. ii. 1.) tied and bound by the fetters of the 
 wicked one, (2 Tim. ii. 26.) and, bending under the 
 wrath and curse of the Almighty, (Eph. ii. 3.) had 
 sunk in deep mire, where there was no standing, (Psal. 
 bdx. 2.) and the pit was about to swallow them up. 
 (Psal. Ixix. 15.) Well, therefore may we be astonished 
 that, under such circumstances, the Lord of Glory 
 should say, " My delights were with the sons of men." 
 
 " My deh'ghts " — What, then, is implied in this ex- 
 pression ? Many things, beloved ; and, in the first 
 place, that which, from the beginning, was His chief 
 joy, His highest and most exalted pleasure. And 
 what was that 1 It was Jesus himself; for he alone 
 is lovely, and worthy to be loved ; and every thing 
 else is beautiful, only so far as it partakes of his 
 beauty, and is derived from him. (Ezek. xvi. 14.) For 
 he is the chief among ten thousand, and altogether 
 lovely. (Cant. v. 16.) The rays of his own perfections 
 dehghted his eyes. 
 
 And these delights " were with the sons of men." 
 Yes, where else should they be ! — With the angels, 
 perhaps l They have their own glory, but the glory 
 of Christ is among sinners. Wondeiful as it may 
 appear, it is, nevertheless, a reality ; and still more 
 wonderful that it is so. He has disrobed himself of his 
 kingly purple, (Phil. ii. 7.) and given it to his flock. 
 (Rev. i. 6.) He would not retain liis wliite linen for 
 himself alone, but presented it to his bride, (Rev. vi. 
 11 ; vii. 14.) for her beautiful garments ; (Isa. lii. 1.) 
 he has decorated the "worm Jacob" (Isa. xli. 14.) 
 with His splendid attire, with His jewels, and chain, 
 and crown. (Ezek. xvi. 10 — 13 ; James i. 12.) 
 
 How, indeed, could we have such confidence, if His 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 129 
 
 righteousness did not cover our sins ? How coxild we 
 dare to lift up our eyes to Him, before whom the 
 heavens are not clean, if we did not know that we are 
 clothed with the purity of the most pure, and with the 
 holmess of the alone holy I How could we, who are as 
 weak as bruised seeds, with so much boldness, encounter 
 the devil and all the powers of darkness, were we not 
 assured that we are enrolled among the kin'gly hosts 
 of the Saviour ? How could we calmly anticipate the 
 fiery tempest of coming judgment, were we not, from 
 the crown of the head to the sole of the foot enveloped 
 with His perfect obedience? (Rom. v. 19,) and could 
 we not draw near to God, relying on His wisdom. His 
 love, His glory — as if it were our own I 
 
 There are manjr, perhaps, who may think that to be 
 arrayed in the merit of another, and to shine in bor- 
 rowed light, is altogether easy. It may be ; and yet 
 how few are content to be saved in this way — the only 
 ^vay of salvation. This privilege is, however, ours. 
 Father, says our blessed Saviour, briefly, but in words 
 which cannot be misunderstood, "The glor}^ which 
 thou gavest me I have given them." (John xvii. 22.) 
 
 As the great delight of the Lord Jesus is in his own 
 perfections, so is the pleasure not less which he derives 
 from the operations of Ms hands. "Tjie Lord," says 
 David, " shaU rejoice in his works." (Psah civ. 81.) But 
 where are his works manifested? — with the devils in 
 hell ? God forbid. Their state has been determined by 
 themselves ; their condition is the result of their own 
 unhallowed devices. — With the angels in heaven? By 
 no means. The crown has not fallen from their head, 
 nor has the lustre of their original glory been sullied. — 
 With the virtuous and righteous according to the flesh ? 
 g8 
 
130 THE SAVIOUR'S JOT. 
 
 Far otherwise. They have acquired their fancied good- 
 ness of themselves, and must depend on themselves for 
 its preservation. — 
 
 But, where a publican strikes upon his breast, " God 
 be merciful to me a sinner," and a Bartimeus cries out 
 by the way-side, " Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy 
 on me ;" where a woman of Canaan speaks of herself as 
 a dog desiring the crumbs under the table, and a poor 
 Magdalene would weep day and night at the feet of 
 Jesus ; where a Paul exults in that he has obtained 
 mercy, and a Peter professes with trembhng lips, " Lord, 
 thou knowest that I love thee,'' and a Job declares, 
 " Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him" — Behold ! 
 where such things come to pass, and similar emotions are 
 manifested ; where stony hearts are made as potter's 
 clay in the hand of God, and brazen brows become as 
 wax, that he may impress his mark upon them ; and 
 glassy eyes are changed into a gushing fountain, the 
 waters whereof flow towards the East ; where the righte- 
 ous begin to rejoice over the ruin of their righteousness, 
 (Isa. Ixiv. 6 ; Pliil. iii. 8, 9.) and the wise over the 
 destruction of their wisdom ; ( Jer. ix. 23, 24.) where poor 
 sinners acquire a heart to love Him, and the workers 
 of iniquity are changed, and with joyful lips are enabled, 
 before these accusers, to make mention of Christ as 
 their Advocate, and Spiritual Head — there, there be- 
 loved brethren, is his work, and where his work is, 
 there is his delight. Thus are his delights with the 
 sons of men, and especially with his poor penitents. 
 On them his eyes rest with pleasure. That which 
 a beautiful prospect is to a lover of nature, or an 
 exquisite painting to the admirer of the arts ; the same 
 is the new creature in a sinner to our Lord and Saviour, 
 
THE saviour's JOT. 131 
 
 He is never weary of beholding it, for it is tlie workman- 
 sliip of his hands. 
 
 Have we novv'' seen the full meaning of the first words 
 tmder consideration 1 No, bretlu'en ; more is contained 
 in them. The Lord expresses himself with brevity ; but 
 such is his ordinary method, to say much in a few words, 
 whilst we are wont, with many words, to say but little. 
 *' My delights," he says, " were with the sons of men ;" 
 but he withholds one word, viz. " to dwell." And why 
 does he withhold it ? Is he ashamed to give expression to 
 all his love towards poor sinners I No ; you know not 
 our Saviour. What does Paul declare concerning him ? 
 " He is not ashamed," he says, " to call us brethren." 
 Nor is he ashamed to dwell among us, for that is his 
 delight; "For thus saith the high and lofty one, that 
 inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy ; I dwell in 
 the high and holy place, with him also that is of a 
 contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the 
 humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." 
 (Isaiah Ivii. 15.) 
 
 But, blessed Saviour, how can thy pleasure be in 
 that world which is the scene of thy greatest displea- 
 sure I How canst thou delight to dwell where no man 
 seeks his delight in thee I — no man, certainly, of him- 
 self — and how canst thou rejoice in those who cannot 
 but distress and grieve thee ? It must, however, be so ; 
 for he again repeats, " My delights were A\"ith the sons of 
 men." 
 
 And that this is not a transient emotion, but a 
 deeply rooted and eternal affection, hundreds and 
 thousands of years without intermission, from the 
 beginning of the world to this very day, abundantly 
 declare. 
 
132 THE SAVIOUR'S JOY. 
 
 For consider, the tender concern which a God of love 
 manifested towards man before He had yet created him ; 
 for He called not into being in a moment this lord 
 of creation by a word of his mouth and an act of power, 
 as he did all other creatures ; but as a potter maketh 
 a vessel unto honour, and with great care and close 
 attention fashioneth it ; so the Lord God formed man 
 of the dust of the ground in his own image, and breathed 
 into his nostrils the breath of life, the breath of the 
 holy and ever-blessed God ; then man became a living 
 soul. 
 
 Arid scarcely were our first parents placed upon the 
 earth when the Saviour was also with them, walking 
 in their company among the trees of the garden. 
 Then you think, then all was well. Nothing that 
 was opposed to God at that time existed among men ; 
 nothing that could disturb the harmony. But if I 
 tell you that it was through our fall and our sin, that 
 his delight to dwell among us gained strength and 
 warmth, how wUl you give credence to the assertion ! 
 yet it was so in reality. For then the bowels of his 
 mercy began to yearn towards us ; and then first did 
 that which Zechariah says bear its full sense and 
 meaning ; *' Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord : 
 for he is raised up out of his holy habitation." (Zech. 
 ii. 13.) 
 
 And now, dear brethren, / would go back with you 
 to the period of the old covenant, and show you how 
 the Saviour, from the beginning, went in and out 
 among sinners, and erected his habitation among men 
 who are dust and ashes. (G«n. xviii. 27.) I would 
 accompany you into that wilderness where He found 
 Hagar, an Egyptian maid, and addressed to her words 
 
THE SAVIOUR'S JOY. 133 
 
 of tenderness. (Gen. xxi. 17 — 21.) I would conduct 
 you further, into the plains of Mamre, and disclose to 
 your view the wondi'ous sight of the Lord of Hosts sit- 
 ting, in tlie heat of the day, under the shade of the trees 
 with our father Abraham. (Gen. xviii. 1 — 8.) I would 
 go with you to Bethel, (Gen. xxviii. 19.) and thence to 
 Penuel, (Gen. xxxii. 30.) and to Horeb, where the Lord 
 revealed himself to Moses in the burning bush. (Exod. 
 iii. 1 ; xvii. 6.) Then I would open, if it might be, 
 for a moment, the pillar of cloud and of fire, that you 
 might there behold His face. (Neh, ix. 12 ; Psalm 
 xcix, 7.) Forty years long did He thus conduct them, 
 as their guide and protector, though they were a stiff- 
 necked people. 0, is it not wonderful ? What is 
 there wanting here of delights with the sons of men ? 
 And now I would pass onwards with you to Ophra, 
 where with Gideon, you might behold the Saviour of 
 men sitting under an oak. (Judges vi. 11.) Then I 
 would repair to Jerusalem, where, over the mercy seat 
 in the temple, He dwelleth between the cherubim. 
 (Exod. XXV. 22 ; Psal. Ixxx. 1.) 
 
 This would I do — But, dear brethren, what need of 
 journeying so far ? He is near at hand. Where are 
 we to-day ? Are we not at Bethlehem 2 ( Luke ii. 
 4 — 7.) look then into the stable a,nd the manger. 
 What do you behold there \ " A child." Yes, a 
 child ; and indeed the same that has said, " My de- 
 lights were with the sons of men." God incarnate — in 
 a manger — in swaddling clothes — at a mother's breast 
 — " Great, great, is the mystery of godliness !" Here 
 the mind can proceed no further : the knees tremble, 
 and the heart is filled with amazement ; the wonder is 
 too great for the weakness of human nature. It is 
 
134 THE saviour's joy. 
 
 well that our eyes are dim-siglited ; it is well that we 
 behold it only from afar, and scarcely understand the 
 thousandth part thereof: it would otherwise deprive 
 us of our lives ; it would overpower us ; we could not 
 endure it. 
 
 Yes, though the intercourse of the Son of God with 
 Israel was sweet and refi-eshing, it cannot be con- 
 sidered, in the full sense of that expression, as His 
 dwelling among men : it was, as a relationship, too 
 distant, too cold a friendship. He, the God of heaven, 
 and they poor sinners — the disparity was too great. 
 He thence became incarnate, a child, our kinsman, 
 our brother. Yet all that we can say respecting this 
 great mystery is as nothing ; for even the seraphim, 
 who now for nearly two thousand years since this great 
 event have looked into this abyss of love, and vainly 
 tried to fathom it, and who never cease from their 
 astonishment, and the matter of all whose hallelujahs 
 is derived from the cleft rock of the living fountain — 
 even they cannot fully declare it. 
 
 But what moved the great God to humble himself 
 thus? Nothing but his love to man. "My delights 
 were with the sons of men." But whence were they 
 derived? Whence but from Himself? Here we have 
 traced love to its source. Higher we cannot ascend. 
 
 And now, brethren, I would briefly observe to you, 
 that though the Saviour is no longer cradled in a 
 manger, yet he still bears the human form,, and is our 
 Brother, even to the present hour, though he again sits 
 upon his throne ; and he has the same tender heart, 
 having been tempted in all points like unto his 
 brethren, that he might be touched with a feeling of 
 our infirmities, and sympathize with us, and succour 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 135 
 
 US in our distress. And though we cannot take up in 
 our arms the holy child Jesus, as did Mary and 
 Simeon, yet his deUght to dwell with the sons of men 
 has not diminished, and his communion with us is 
 equally near ; yea, much nearer and more intimate. 
 And he does not merely tarry for the night, but he 
 dwells with us as one of the household ; and therefore 
 he says, that though he is ever in the high and holy 
 place, yet he is also continually among his people 
 upon earth. He taketh up his abode with us. — 
 let us praise the Lord. 
 
 And how doth he dwell with us ? Is it as a superior 
 
 in rank, who deems it a sufficient honour to mingle in 
 
 our society, that we may oflfer him our services, and 
 
 from whom we are to expect no service in return? 
 
 Far otherwise. He has himself said, that He is as one 
 
 that serveth. (Luke xxii. 27; John xiii. 4 — 17.) 
 
 how precious is the Saviour, how worthy of our love ! 
 
 Doth He then dwell with us as a counsellor, whose 
 
 advice we may ask in matters of great moment I But 
 
 why only in such \ He would that we should regard 
 
 him as one of the family, and He gladly receives us 
 
 and resolves our doubts, in little as well as in great 
 
 things. You should lay all your concerns unreservedly 
 
 before him, and not think that you are permitted to 
 
 communicate with him only respecting spiritual things. 
 
 I say unto you, that he will be careful of the meal in 
 
 the barrel, and the oil in the cmse. (1 Kings xvii. 
 
 14.) He will inquire after the provision which is 
 
 made for your wants; (John xxi. 5 — 13.) and no 
 
 good thing will he withhold from them that walk 
 
 uprightly. (Psalm Ixxxiv. 11.) 0, if you would 
 
 believe, you should see the glory of God. " What 
 
136 THE saviour's joy. 
 
 nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto 
 them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call 
 upon him for?" (Deut. iv. 7.) He is about our bed 
 and about our path ; He would have us take no 
 thought what we shall eat or what we shall drink, nor 
 wherewithal we shall be clothed, for He careth for us, 
 and knoweth that we have need of these things. ( Matt. 
 vi. 31, 32.) His delights are with the sons of men. 
 — And yet more, for He is described in my text, as, 
 
 II. 
 
 ** REJOICING IN THE HABITABLE PART OF HIS EARTH." 
 
 The Son of God here expresses the joy which he 
 received from dwelling among men. And why should 
 we doubt that the Saviour literally rejoiced among the 
 inhabitants of the earth ? Was he not once a child, 
 like other children, in all things the same, sin only 
 excepted I Was there not a time when his heart had 
 never been oppressed with any burden, nor his eyes 
 suffused with tears ; when his infant feet were not 
 wounded and bleeding by the thorns and thistles, 
 which grow on the path to the altar of sacrifice ; and 
 the cross, and shame, and death, and all that was 
 before him, were concealed within the veil of futurity l 
 He was no wayward or fretful child, but serene and 
 affable, hnd therefore, as we are informed hy St. 
 Luke, he grew in favour, not only with God, but also 
 with men, and the mutual endearments between a 
 child and his mother must have been exquisitely en- 
 joyed by him. And the angels of God may be sup- 
 
THE saviour's JOT. 137 
 
 posed to have come down, not only to witness, but 
 also to participate in these joys. 
 
 We may well imagine the existence of such 
 delights, when the aged Simeon took up the little 
 child in his arms, and his soul was so transported, 
 that the old man became hunself almost a child 
 again, and embraced the Holy Babe, and leaped, 
 and wept, and smiled, at the same moment, feeling 
 that nothing more was left for him to desire, for his 
 eyes had seen God's salvation. 
 
 But more is contained in the expression. It leads 
 us to think also of the day of creation. In the verses 
 preceding our text, it is said, " When he gave the sea 
 his decree, that the waters should not pass his com- 
 mandment ; when he appointed the foundations of the 
 earth ; then I was by him, as one brought up with 
 him, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always 
 before liim." What would the Son of God teach us 
 here ? What else, than that He created the world 
 not only with wisdom, but also with love ; not alone 
 for the use and benefit, but for the happiness and joy 
 of the children of men, of whom even then He thought 
 with tenderness. 
 
 Yes, dear brethren, as the Lord clothed the flowers of 
 the field, and decked the liUes with their festal garment 
 — as He suspended the azure canopy in the heavens, and 
 beautified the fields with living verdure — as he lifted up 
 on high the lofty mountains, and formed the peaceful 
 valleys among the hills — the quiet lonely dales with 
 their cool and shady brooks ; as He gave their cheerful 
 notes to the songsters of the grove, and to those which 
 fly heavenward with the voice of praise — as he adorned 
 and diversified the workmanship of his hands, with 
 
138 THE SAVIOUR'S JOY. 
 
 such, decorations and embellishments, with such lovely 
 hues, and sweet and melodious sounds, and goodly 
 prospects ; — in all this we see the Saviour's delight and 
 rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth. And since 
 He has so determined, that the external objects of 
 nature should be as a sacred volume, which we can only 
 partially understand ; since He has made the creatures 
 to be as shadows and representations of invisible and 
 spiritual things, and comprehended all high and eternal 
 . truths therein, as in pleasing emblems and pictorial 
 delineations, which it is our privilege to read, even in 
 the present day ; since He has appomted the sun to be 
 an image of himself, and set forth in its effects his own 
 operations in the kingdom of grace ; since He has de- 
 creed tliat the corn of wheat, in that it dies, and piits 
 forth its tender blade and fi'uit-bearing stem, should 
 teach us that, " except a man be born again, he can- 
 not sec the kingdom of God ; and since He has made 
 the butterfl}'', which, with beautifully painted wing, rests 
 upon the rose, to be a joyful herald of the resurrec- 
 tion from the dead, and of the future glorious liberty 
 of the children of God : — in tliese things, brethren, 
 in all these, which are His own works, is the Son of 
 God made manifest, as rejoicing in His habitable part 
 of the earth and delighting with the sons of men. 
 
 And that which we behold in his works, we are 
 taught also by His dealing with the children of men. 
 See how he condescends to our ideas, desires, and ex- 
 pressions. Thus, in liis word he is not ashamed to 
 accommodate himself to our weakness, but employs 
 language adapted to our infantine condition. " For 
 whom shall he teach knowledge, and whom shall he 
 make to understand doctrine ? Is it not them that are 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 139 
 
 weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts I 
 And therefore precept hath been given upon precept, 
 precept upon precept ; line upon line, line upon line, 
 here a little and there a little. And with stammering 
 lips and another tongue doth he speak to this people." 
 (Isa. xxviii. 9 — 11.) 
 
 Behold how He stoops to our conceptions and modes 
 of life. He draws near to us. He comes down to the 
 level of the comprehension and understanding of poor 
 blind sinners who are but dust and ashes. Observe 
 how in one place he speaks of " repentmg ;" and yet 
 he cannot in reality repent ; in another place, he 
 assures us that his heart yearns towards us as that of 
 a tender father ; and again, to reveal to us our future 
 glory, the representations are taken from the sources 
 of human delight and pleasure, from banquets and 
 marriage feasts, and beautiful houses and palaces ; 
 from brilliant stones of varied hue, and precious 
 metals ; from green trees and pleasant fruits. Is not 
 this condescending accommodation to our thoughts 
 and imaginations an illustration of our text, that the 
 great God rejoices in the habitable parts of his earth, 
 and his delights are with the sons of men i And 
 truly, whoever has not found God thus revealed in 
 his word, is ignorant of the God of the Bible. 
 
 And now recall to mind the manner in which God 
 is wont to bring near to us the mysteries of his will, 
 and how he strengthens our faith in his word and 
 promises. He places before us, as is our custom 
 with children, all kinds of beautiful pictures, and 
 figures in various colouring, to attract and fix our 
 attention, and thereby he enlightens our mind, and 
 enables us to consider and understand that which 
 would othermse be beyond our apprehension. Thus, 
 
140 THE saviour's JOY. 
 
 for instance, that we may retain with freshness in our 
 memories the promise which he gave to Noah, and be 
 assured of its certainty, he has suspended in the 
 clouds a lovely bow, painted with seven colours, to 
 which we may dii-ect our eyes ; and he teUs us, that 
 as often as he shall look upon this bow, he will re- 
 member his promise that he will no more destroy the 
 earth by a flood ; as though God must needs place a 
 memorial before his eyes, lest he should forget his 
 word of promise. But he knew that this would minis- 
 ter to our comfort, and tend to confirm our faith. 
 Thus, again did our Lord very graciously condescend 
 to the weakness of Gideon, when He acceded to his 
 request, and so quickly and readily performed that 
 strange mystery which Gideon besought of Him, as a 
 new sign under the promise he had received from the 
 Lord. First, the dew was to be upon the fleece alone, 
 the earth around it remaining dry ; and then the fleece 
 Tvas to be diy, and all the ground covered with dew. 
 (Judges vi. 37 — 39.) And God did both these tilings, 
 just as Gideon requested. How much tenderness and 
 kindness is here ! 
 
 But the things of God have all a deep signification. 
 Thus, as the Lord in the rainbow of Noah, depicted 
 with fine touches for spiritual perception, an emblem 
 of the promised Mediator, so did he intimate, by pro- 
 phetic representation, in that miracle with which he 
 pleased Gideon, how He would, in after ages, visit 
 mankind with the heavenly dew of his appearing, 
 and of the out-pouring of his Spirit. Eu-st, the dew 
 of his grace was upon Israel alone, whilst the whole 
 of the earth beside was dry, and afterwards, the dew 
 was diff^used over jthe whole of the earth, Israel alone 
 being dry, as it is to this day. 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 141 
 
 Look again at the tabernacle and temple of Solomon. 
 There, by multitudes of allusions and shadows, and 
 cunning works of certain signification, did wisdom 
 bring near to the Jews all the great and blessed mys- 
 teries and truths of God. And to us also, she speaks, 
 in like manner, by the sacraments of Baptism and the 
 Supper of the Lord, and by the rite of Confirmation. 
 Is there not, in this, evidence of the delights of the 
 Lord with his weak children, who have need of some- 
 thing sensible and perceptible that they may be able to 
 know and believe ? And how much grace and loving- 
 kindness is manifested therein ! 
 
 Let me now remind you of God''s daily dispensations 
 towards us. By them he designs to teach us im- 
 portant lessons, the attainment of which should rather 
 be sought than the indulgence of superfluous sorrow or 
 distress, whenever we are brought into painful circum- 
 stances. Thus, for instance, the Lord sometimes hides 
 himself from our view ; we are then ready to think 
 that he has forsaken us and forgotten us ; but He 
 would teach us our entire dependence upon himself, and 
 when he hears our voice entreating his return, he 
 lifts up the light of his countenance upon us, and gives 
 us peace. 
 
 Again, our former sins, which we have long thought 
 to be buried in the depths of the sea, arise before our 
 view in fearful array, and we tremble, as at first, when 
 awakened to repentance. Our first love has, perhaps, 
 grown cold, and He would thus rekindle it in our souls. 
 
 Now, He sets before us the greatness of our mis- 
 deeds, and we become fearful of liis wrath ; but his de- 
 sign is to manifest more fuUy the sweetness of his grace, 
 and the aU-sufficiency of his merits and righteousness 
 
142 THE saviour's joy. 
 
 At another time, He permits our enemy to stretch 
 forth his hand as if he -would seize our croA\Ti, and 
 also suffers him to attempt to shake the foundation of 
 our comfort and our hope beneath our feet. We cry- 
 in the agony of the disciples in the storm, " Lord, help 
 us, we perish." But the danger is not so great as 
 we apprehend. He has brought us into such a state, 
 that we may grasp more firmly that which we have, not, 
 as we imagined, that we should lose it. 
 
 And when, by various means. He gives us counsel in 
 dark parables for our conduct, that thereby, as also by 
 reason of use, our spiritual senses may be exercised to 
 discern both good and evil ; (Heb. v. 14.) and Avhen 
 He makes use of apparently the least important cir- 
 cumstances in our life, that by means of them he may 
 speak to our heart something consolatory, instructive, 
 or profitable ; when He selects ordinary subjects, 
 arising from our every-day conversation, and, with 
 Divine wisdom and skill, makes them the channel for 
 conveying a rich and full supply of manifold spiritual 
 mercies, or converts them into tablets on which he 
 inscribes a doctrine, or warning, an encouragement, 
 a promise or historical incident of his word ; when 
 He so tenderly has respect to our most trifling desires, 
 and in the most minute circumstances surprises us by 
 the ready communication of his counsel and blessing ; 
 and, in our reading the Holy Scriptures, when He 
 takes, if I may so say, the least significant passages, 
 and by them instructs us in the deep and mysterious 
 things of God, conveying them to our souls with lively 
 apprehension and quickening power — when such is the 
 method of God with us, we are furnished with ad- 
 ditional proof of His rejoicing in tlie habitable part of 
 
THE saviour's JOY. 143 
 
 his earth, and that his delights arc with the children 
 of men. 
 
 To allude, in conclusion, to the lovely tones which 
 issue from the tabernacles of the righteous — He, who 
 is the Wisdom of God is the source of all harmony. 
 All music upon earth, but that which proceeds from 
 Him, is dissonance in his ears, and like the hoarse 
 croaking of the raven. As it was He who gave the 
 harp of David its heavenly sound, and touched its 
 strings upon the hill of Bethlehem, and sang the 
 pleasant Psalms with the voice of the royal Psalmist ; 
 so is it He who, even in these days, opens the lips of 
 the spuitual choir, and gives the full tone and sweet 
 expression to their voice ; it is He who awakens the 
 melody in their hearts, and moves the hidden chords of 
 their soul with the breath of his mouth. He is in 
 their soft and solemn sounds, and in their lofty songs 
 of praise. He speaks within them in psalms, and 
 hymns, and spiritual songs. He is in their loud cry 
 to the cross, and their rejoicing on the hUl of the 
 sealed ones; (Rev. vii.) yea, He is in every Alpha 
 and Omega of the new heart, in every Hosannah of 
 sacred homage, in every Hallelujah of heavenly joy, 
 and in the great universal temj^le- chorus of his sacred 
 worshippers ; " Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. 
 Amen." In all this the Lord himself is manifest — the 
 Lord and his Spirit. It is He that plays and makes 
 melody on the harp of our souls ; and only those songs 
 to which He himself gives utterance within us, fall 
 harmoniously on his ear, however weak and imperfect 
 they seem to ourselves. 
 
 Behold, my brethren, thus doth the Lord rejoice in 
 the habitable part of his earth, thus are his delights 
 
144 THE saviour's joy. 
 
 with the children of men. Happy, truly happy, are the 
 people who have the Lord so nigh unto them, and to 
 whom he manifests himself in such tenderness and love ! 
 Of such is the kingdom of God. Forget not that the 
 great and the wise, namely, they that consider them- 
 selves such, are not of that number. Hear the voice 
 of Christ himself, " VerUy, I say unto you, whosoever 
 shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, 
 shall in no wise enter therein." (Luke xviii. 17.) 
 Let us then be children, dear brethren, little children. 
 Towards such is the desire of Immanuel ; only among 
 children will he dwell. And wherever He dwells, 
 surely it is good to be there, it is already a heaven in 
 the wilderness ; and therefore has it been said. 
 
 And be my home a sti-aw-built cot, 
 Yet happy will I deem my lot, 
 
 If there Thou dwell'st with me ; 
 Or bid me go through deserts waste, 
 E'en to the stake, I'll joyful haste, 
 
 If guided there by Thee ! 
 
 How sweet tliis little verse ! When will the Lord 
 enable us to adopt it as our own 1 May it be very 
 shortly ! May the name of Jesus become more pre- 
 cious to us, more loved and honoured every day ; and 
 may we know and possess, more and more, the joys 
 and delights which He shares on earth with his dear 
 children, his adopted ones ; and, finally, may we 
 participate in the glories of His kingdom. 
 
 Amen. 
 
THE 
 
 TEMPTATION OF CHRIST 
 
 IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 We stand to day on that memorable battle-field 
 where those laurels were won which encircle our brows, 
 and that triumph was achieved which makes us victo- 
 rious before the conflict, and even in death more than 
 conquerors, through him that hath loved us. (Rom. 
 viii. 37.) 
 
 Never was there a battle fought more wonderful in 
 its nature, more important in its consequences, nor 
 one which so deeply affects our everlasting interests. 
 
 It is good for us to sit down awhile, and give our- 
 selves to the absorbing contemplation of this great 
 sight. 
 
I. 
 
 THE LEADING INTO THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 Together with the consecration and anointing of 
 our Lord to the mediatorial office by the water of the 
 Jordan, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost, did Jesus 
 receive from heaven the divine testimony that he was 
 the only begotten Son of God in whom the Father was 
 well pleased. (Matt. iii. 16, 17.) 
 
 The Sonship of our Lord, and his essential unity 
 with the Father, appear to have been to him, in the 
 days of his flesh, more an object of faith than of sight, 
 perception, or feeling. At moments, at least, he could, 
 in such a manner, conceal his Godhead from his view, 
 and hide it in the back ground, that he apprehended 
 it only in simple faith on the bare word of the Father. 
 
 It was not for the disciples only, but for himself also, 
 that the voice was heard on different occasions from 
 heaven, "This is my beloved Son" — for himself, to 
 strengthen his faith, which, sometimes, as for instance, 
 when he was forsaken of the Father on the Cross, was 
 bare and simple trust in the Father's love, without 
 any sensible experience of that endearing relationship. 
 (Matt, xxvii. 46.) 
 
 Consecrated and divinely invested with his priestly 
 office, Jesus immediately hastened into the depths of 
 
THE LEADING INTO THE WILDERNESS. d 
 
 the wilderness. He who led him, was, according to 
 the evangelists, the Holy Ghost. (Verse 1. Mark 
 i. 12.) 
 
 Was the Saviour aware for what purpose the Spirit 
 led him into the wilderness ? Perhaps only in part ; 
 the great and special cause the Father may have con- 
 cealed from him. We learn also from our own expe- 
 rience, that it is not always the will of the Holy Ghost 
 to make known to us beforehand his designs in leading 
 us. 
 
 He not unfrequently conducts us in entire darkness. 
 We are conscious of his inward call, " Arise, and depart 
 to such a place, or in such circumstances, or at such 
 a time." We ask, "why? for what purpose?" but 
 receive no answer. The command is only given yet 
 louder, and with more urgency in our heart, *' Go, 
 haste, delay not." We inquire again, what can be 
 the meaning of this internal impulse, but it remains 
 a mystery. We must proceed in darkness, and should 
 we object, the probability is a tumult in the conscience, 
 and a bitter feeling of the divine displeasure in our 
 soul. We must go, we are obliged, and not till after- 
 wards is made known to us the reason. (John xiii. 7.) 
 
 Here, Philip finds a chamberlain who has been 
 awaiting his exposition of the Scriptures, (Acts viii. 27.) 
 and there, Elijah meets a widow, whose soul he should 
 enrich with heavenly treasure. (1 Kings xvii. 10.) At 
 one place a disconsolate brother cries to us, even when 
 yet we are a great way off, "Ah, you come to me as an 
 angel sent from God ;" and in another place it is made 
 manifest to us, in a different way, wherefore the Spirit 
 hath called and sent us : either the sun arises upon our 
 path, and all becomes clear and bright around us, or 
 
 b2 
 
4 THE LEADING INTO THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 the Spirit gives us some slight intimations of his pur- 
 pose ; but all beyond this, and that which is most 
 important, he keeps back, hidden from our eyes. 
 
 One says, I must retire to my chamber to pray, or 
 go to such a house to succour and assist an afflicted 
 brother, or to a particular place to render some special 
 service ; but of all that which is designed for us in such 
 places, more than the service, assistance, or prayer — 
 that we shall wrestle with God, (Gen. xxxii. 24.) or 
 become humble and contrite in spirit, (Isaiah Ivii. 15 ; 
 Ixvi. 2.) or pass through the purifying furnace, (Mal. 
 iii. 3. Isai. xlviii, 10.) or meet the hosts of Mahanaim, 
 (Gen. xxxii, 1,2.) or whatever it may be — of all this no 
 mention has been made to us. It shall become known 
 to us hereafter in the way of experience. 
 
 It seems to have been thus with our Saviour. He 
 went into the wilderness half in light and half in dark- 
 ness. Perhaps he knew only generally, that he must 
 go into the wilderness to fast, suffer'want, and endure 
 hardship, and in the depths of extreme humiliation 
 and poverty enter upon the work of his priesthood. 
 So much the Spirit unfolded to him, but the severe, 
 the fearful temptation which awaited him appears, ac- 
 cording to the counsel of the Father, to have been 
 carefully hidden from his view. The unexpectedness 
 of the assault would add severity to the conflict, that 
 the triumph might be the greater and more glorious. 
 
II. 
 
 THE FAST. 
 
 Jesvs went ittto the xuilderness to fast. So far ex- 
 tended his light at that time, and yet farther — to its 
 great design, its mysterious signification. Was not 
 then the fast of Jesus in the special plan of him who 
 led him into the wilderness ? By all means. That 
 he should be so tried was according to the purpose of 
 God, but only a part of it. 
 
 Do you ask, then, on what account it was necessary 
 that Jesus should fast, and why in such a dreadful 
 solitude so painfully, so long — forty days and forty 
 nights ? In reply, I would remark, that it was of a 
 very different description from that of Moses on Mount 
 Sinai, and other saints. 
 
 The fast of Jesus was something more than a devo- 
 tional exercise and preparation for the priestly office, 
 it was an initiatory work of sacrifice. The key, not 
 only of the temptation, but of the fast of our Lord, is 
 to be found behind the gate of a lost paradise. It is 
 an expiation for Adam's eating of the forbidden tree, 
 (Gen. iii. 6.) an atonement for his guilt, a satisfying 
 passion. 
 
 Did the progenitor of the human race dwell in the 
 
6 THE FAST. 
 
 happy plains of paradise ? We behold the second 
 Adam in the desolate wilderness. Did the first man, 
 who was of the earth, earthy, (I Cor. xv, 47.) live 
 amidst lovely trees and delicious fruits in the garden 
 of Eden? The second man, who is the Lord from 
 heaven, must endure hunger in a wilderness, amid 
 stones and rank weeds, where not an ear of corn 
 grew to relieve the extreme necessity of his na- 
 ture. Did our forefather enjoy the most delight- 
 ful communion with God and the holy angels, and 
 the society of his spotless wife? Jesus, on the con- 
 trary, was banished into the most glooniy desert ; 
 he was with the wild beasts, as Mark informs us, 
 (Mark i. 13.) and with the old serpent, with Satan and 
 his angels. 0, how great the contrast ! But thus it 
 was ordained of God. 
 
 Our Surety and Representative, by fasting and suffer- 
 ing want in the dreary and inhospitable wilderness, 
 viade atonement in the sinner s stead, for the sififul pre- 
 sumption with which Adam, in the face of an express 
 divine xoarning and threat, stretched forth his hand to 
 the fruit of the forbidden tree. This he did for his 
 people, and they have no farther atonement to make 
 to all eternity. 
 
 But you by whom the everlasting satisfaction of the 
 Lamb of God is not estimated aright ; you see in the 
 circumstances of our Lord in the wilderness, a true 
 portrait of your own coming destiny. Thus must you 
 ever dwell in the eternal wilderness, and when you 
 are an hungered, they shall thrust a stone into your 
 mouth instead of bread ; and when you shall suffer 
 thirst, you must swallow flames instead of water, and 
 you shall live as though among wild beasts and hissing 
 
THE FAST. / 
 
 serpents, and you shall be alone, in solitude, amidst the 
 multitudes of the damned, for in hell there is no en- 
 dearing intercourse nor friendship ; there, hate and 
 selfishness bear sway, and each one is too much en- 
 grossed with his own pain and suffering to sympathize 
 with another. And the duration of this misery is called 
 Eternity. 
 
 With this truth one would suppose we could make 
 rocks leap from their everlasting beds, and hills 
 tremble. But your hearts do not tremble. Alas ! 
 they are harder than the stony rock. 
 
 Fasts are also observed in the kingdom of God; 
 bodily and spiritual fasts, of various kinds, painful and 
 joyous. 
 
 The most joyous are celebrated in the spring-time of 
 the new life, at the beginning of conversion, after the 
 first assurance of divine grace, after the first manifes- 
 tation of love from the heavenly bridegroom, when 
 God calleth the young child out of Egypt. Then 
 it is not needful to urge us to self-denial. All this is 
 done at once and without solicitation. How does 
 the man fly as with wings from the scenes of plea- 
 sure and dissipation of an infatuated world ; how 
 can he " fill his belly with the husks that the swine 
 do eat," (Luke xv. 16.) after he has drunk of the 
 wine of the " goodly land," and partaken of the 
 " milk and honey" with which it flows ? (Deut. iii. 25. 
 Exod. iii. 8.) How can he take pleasure in the sounds 
 which control the dance, or in the song of the volup- 
 tuary, after he has heard the harp of David struck by 
 his kingly hand ? How can theatrical representations 
 and the tricks of the juggler afford gratification to any 
 one, after he has seen heaven with all its glory opened 
 
8 THE FAST. 
 
 before him ? and how can he any longer recline upon the 
 couch of ease and of revelry, when he has beheld Him 
 whom his soul loveth suspended on tlie accursed tree, 
 bleeding and crowned with thorns ? Away, then — 
 away quickly with the shadow of your pitiful delights, 
 and with the tinsel of your vanities. This is our day 
 of fast. 
 
 It is often a subject of debate and inquiry, whe- 
 ther certain pleasures or enjoyments are compatible 
 with Christianity or not. Let us cease to ask such 
 questions, and become Christians, then shall we know 
 what is consistent and what is not, and how far one 
 that is born again, an heir of God and his kingdom, 
 may proceed in such things. 
 
 There is yet another fast in a state of grace, and one 
 of a more painful description, when the soul is led, not 
 from the field of the world to the green pastures of the 
 Lamb, but from the latter into the wilderness, and this 
 is a very bitter reverse. We were — ah ! how unspeak- 
 ably happy, in the bosom of Jesus. Such sweet sen- 
 sations and emotions, such tender delights and plea- 
 sures, such touching and affecting apprehensions of 
 the grace and nearness of our Saviour, pervaded and 
 filled our souls, that we earnestly desired, from this 
 blessed foretaste of heavenly joys, to pass at once 
 into their full fruition in paradise. 
 
 The south wind blew upon our garden, and the 
 spices thereof flowed out; (Cant. iv. 16.) the grapes 
 of Canaan refreshed our lips, and the pleasurable 
 sensations of love distilled like the dew of the early 
 dawn upon our soul. O, how abundantly were we 
 satisfied — the sorrows of this world were utterly for- 
 gotten. But, before we were aware, a fast was ap- 
 
THE FAST. 9 
 
 pointed, and the bridegroom was taken from us. 
 (Matt. ix. 15.) The fountains of milk and honey 
 were dried up, and the soul, deprived of her refresh- 
 ment, sat motionless, with her harp unstrung, upon 
 the glowing sand, thirsting for the dew of heaven 
 to fall upon the parched ground. 
 
 These are tha fast-days of the child of God in 
 the wilderness. Happy is he whose comforts are de- 
 rived from Christ and his word, and not from feelings 
 and emotions. '• Bread shall be given him, his waters 
 shall be sure," (Isaiah xxxiii. 16.) If he has not sensible 
 perception, he has, at least, faith ; and if he is desti^ 
 tute of feeling, yet the ground of his confidence is 
 secure. He shelters himself beneath the rock of the 
 sure promise of his God, and he knows that though 
 the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed, 
 yet God's kindness shall not depart from him, neither 
 shall the covenant of his peace be removed. (Isa. 
 liv. 10.) 
 
 And this fast in the wilderness, when it is of God's 
 appointment, is good and ivholesome. The same love 
 which dispenses our food to-day, leaves us to-morrow 
 to suffer hunger, and keep a day of fasting and absti- 
 nence. What more do we need, if only to the hand of 
 grace we look for guidance? Let it lead us as it will. 
 
 b3 
 
III. 
 
 THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 Jesus went into the wilderness to fast, but yet more 
 than this was designed in the purpose of God. What 
 says the evangelist? " Then was Je.sus led up of the 
 Spirit into the wilderness to he tempted of the devil." 
 These are fearful words. The Holy Ghost leads the 
 Son of God into the presence of the devil, and for 
 what purpose ? In plain and unequivocal words it 
 is written, that he might be tempted of the devil. How 
 remarkable. But this dark and wondrous event speaks 
 comfort to you, O ye heirs of the kingdom. It would 
 encourage your hearts, ye troubled souls. It is re- 
 corded for your instruction. 
 
 Let none among you suppose that he who goeth 
 about as a roaring lion is free and unrestrained, and 
 can fall upon you when he will ; that he can launch 
 his darts according to his pleasure; and lay his snares 
 unperceived by the captain of the hosts of the Lord. 
 (Jos. v. 14.) 
 
 Far otherwise. Our leader has him ever in his sight, 
 and holds him firmly bound by his strong word. 
 Even Satan himself has found what the Preacher 
 
THE TEMPTATIONS. 11 
 
 declares, that " the race is not to the swift, nor the 
 battle to the strong." (Eccles. ix. 11.) In vain does 
 he attack any respecting whom Jesus has said to him, 
 *' touch not mine anointed." A wall of fire encircles 
 such an one by that word of his Master ; a protecting 
 wall over which the fiery darts of the wicked one can 
 find no passage. (Zech. ii. 5.) But every assault of 
 Satan is by the express permission of the Lord Jesus, 
 (Job i. 11, 12,) and consequently for the spiritual 
 good of the believer ; and the line is pointed out by the 
 kingly sceptre, with minute exactness, how far he may 
 go, and no farther. What power, then, doth the wicked 
 one possess ? He is led forth and made a show of 
 openly, and Immanuel triumphs over him in himself. 
 (Col. ii. 15. marginal reading.) Henceforth he is among 
 those principalities in heaven, on earth, and under the 
 earth, which must bow to the sceptre of Jesus. (Eph. 
 i.21 ; Phil. ii. 10.) The Lord employs him as he did a 
 Nebuchadnezzar, a Korah, and other outcasts, as a rod 
 in his hand, for the good of his people ; and when he has 
 made a sufiicient use of this terrible scourge, he will 
 break it in pieces— he will lay hold of the dragon, that 
 old serpent, which is the devil and satan, and shut up 
 and seal him in the bottomless pit. (Rev. xx. 2, 3.) 
 
 Rejoice then, ye little flock of God, that the devil 
 is under the direction and control of the Good Shep- 
 herd, and is made use of only for your benefit. 
 
 As often as the fiery darts of the wicked one hiss 
 around you, remember, beloved, that it is the Lord, 
 even the Spirit, who has led you into the wilderness, 
 who has placed you in the conflict, and who is himself 
 your strength and shield. 
 
 All the temptations of the children of God are 
 
 b4 
 
12 THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 permitted for one great purpose, they shall make 
 manifest the graces concealed in their souls. 
 
 Sometimes it is pleasing' to the Lord himself to be- 
 hold these hidden things brought to light. For he de- 
 lighteth in his work. 
 
 It was when our father Abraham had, in every re- 
 spect, completed the preparations for his painful offer- 
 ing on Mount Moriah, that the angel of the Lord called 
 unto him out of heaven, and said, " Now I know 
 that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld 
 thy son, thine only son, from me." (Gen. xxii. 11, 12.) 
 This our Lord well knew, but he wished to make 
 manifest the fear of God which he had wrought in his 
 heart, and which it was his delight to behold. 
 
 And so must many of the children of grace, in our 
 own day, be tried and tempted, that the Lord Jesus 
 may witness their perseverance in prayer, and hearing 
 of the word; the storm is sent, that the Lord may 
 behold them believingly pass onward over the troubled 
 waters in their right course, and himself conduct 
 them to the haven of peace. (Mark vi. 47, 48.) It is 
 this that gives him joy. 
 
 We ought not, perhaps, to speak thas to those 
 afflicted ones. They would think that we were mock- 
 ing, for they perceive in themselves no graces in which 
 the Lord should delight; but they are seen and ac- 
 knowledged of him. 
 
 Frequently doth the Lord suffer his children to fall 
 into temptation, not so much himself to behold that 
 which is concealed in their hearts, as to make it mani- 
 fest to their brethren and sisters. 
 
 For this end he reveals to us the faith of Abraham, 
 the patience of Job, the love of Moses, the zeal of Elijah, 
 
THE TEMPTATIONS. 13 
 
 the humility and ardour of the woman of Canaan, that 
 we may give glory to his power, which has wrought so 
 mightily in the feeble children of men. 
 
 But are we disheartened, and do we think, that such 
 holy ones may well expect an entrance into the king- 
 dom of God, but what hope is there for us? Then he 
 brings at one time a David, at another a Peter, before 
 our view — grapes from which, in the wine-vat, were ex- 
 tracted not only wine, but the bitter waters of sin ; 
 and such a sight restores our confidence, especially 
 when we hear that Simon is not the less called " a 
 stone," and David " a man after God's own heart." 
 
 And so has it often been, that men, from whom holi- 
 ness beamed forth with especial splendour, and who, 
 beyond others, have enjoyed the high estimation of the 
 church, have yet at length, under the power of tempta- 
 tion, been so shorn of their beams and goodly colour- 
 ing, and their weakness and sinfulness have become 
 so manifested ; or, to change the figure, from a noble 
 stream they have dwindled into an insignificant brook, 
 which loses itself in the sand; that when compared with 
 that which they once were, we can scarcely recog- 
 nize the same individuals. 
 
 This the Lord permits to take place, that mortal 
 man may beware of idols, may keep his graces bright, 
 and give honour to Him only to whom it is due. 
 
 One great benefit of the temptations to which we are 
 subjected is, that we may learn more of ourselves, that 
 we may see the sin that dwelleth in us, and humbly lie 
 in the dust. (Rom. vii. 17.) 
 
 We children of men too easily deem ourselves righ- 
 teous, but Jesus calls the ungodly and sinners to re- 
 pentance. We too quickly ascend the mountain, but 
 
14 THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 Jesus would see us in the valley. He would humble 
 our pride. And therefore it is, that he suffers the devil, 
 for a little while, to stij up the sink of our corrupt na- 
 ture, that the noisome odour may invade our senses, 
 and the brood of serpents and vipers, which lay lurking 
 beneath, may crawl upon the surface before our eyes. 
 The Lord permits the wicked one at times to arouse 
 tumultuously the swarm of unrighteous thoughts and 
 desires which slumber in the inmost recesses of our 
 souls, that we may be sensible of the evils with which 
 the temple of God is infested, and never think of pride 
 or boasting more. He suffers the devil sometimes to 
 invade us, and to blow the trumpet to awaken the evil 
 propensities within. How do we wonder that they are 
 there. We had thought that we had long ago banished 
 them by our holy exercises, and that the house was 
 rendered clean. But now we find it quite otherwise. 
 
 When so humbled, the bride is again conscious that 
 the false colouring has faded from her cheeks, and is, 
 in her own estimation, as at first, black and without 
 comeliness, and lies low in her first repentance, and 
 loves with her first love. (Cant. i. 5. Rev. ii. 4.) 
 
 There, breaks at once beneath our feet the topmost 
 step in the ladder of our sanctity, and not even the lowest 
 will serve to support us any longer, but we lie upon the 
 ground, and are conscious that we are poor sinners, such 
 as, perhaps, we had never seen ourselves before. 
 
 Robbed of our decorations and ornaments, we hide 
 ourselves with shame out of sight, and again rejoice 
 from our inmost soul that another will clothe us with a 
 wedding garment, that a cross was erected on Gol- 
 gotha, and that one sits upon the throne who is not 
 only called Righteousness, but Grace. 
 
IV. 
 
 THE DESIGN OF OUR LORD S TEMPTATION. 
 
 We have already seen why God permits his children 
 to be tempted. 
 
 The inquiry then arises, on what account did he suffer 
 the Lord Jesus to be so tried ? And here do we most 
 solemnly protest, on the outset, against that most de- 
 grading doctrine, which irreverently declares that Jesus 
 was placed in the fire of temptation, that he might, by 
 wrestling and praying, overcome the sins which he bore 
 in his flesh and in his members. No, we cannot en- 
 dure to hear this of our Saviour. 
 
 That he appeared in the likeness of sinful flesh, we 
 allow ; but it was only in the likeness, not in the sinful 
 flesh itself; (Rom. viii. 3.) and if he was in all points 
 tempted like as we are, yet was there one point ex- 
 cepted, namely, sin. (Heb. iv. 15.) 
 
 Blessed be God, that his word does not leave us 
 in doubt as to this matter. With our Mediator's per- 
 fect and entire freedom from sin stands or falls the 
 whole building of our Gospel hope. Were the white 
 linen of his righteousness stained with the smallest 
 speck of ungodly emotions, could any one prove this 
 to us, then might the churches be closed, the Bible 
 burnt, our confidence cast away, and despair prevail. 
 
16 THE DESIGN OF 
 
 For then would Jesus not be our Saviour, and the 
 price which he has paid would be inadequate and 
 unsatisfying. 
 
 The temptations which hefel our Lord were very diffe- 
 rent from those which we are wont to experience. He 
 encountered them, not for himself, but for us, and 
 in our stead. They belong to the sufferings connected 
 with his offering as our substittde. 
 
 We saw Adam tempted by the serpent, but he wan- 
 tonly permitted himself to be hurried along by the 
 overwhelming torrent. The second Adam, to atone for 
 this, sustained a more painful assault, broke the spears 
 of the enemy, signally overcame the adversary, and 
 yielded to the Father a perfect obedience. 
 
 Adam, through disobedience, became the prey of 
 the devil ; the second Adam bore for him the curse, 
 descended from the throne of the majesty on high, to 
 mingle with wicked spirits in the regions of the lost. 
 Unexampled humiliation ! The Almighty God touched 
 by the murderous hands of Satan ! the King of the 
 Universe hissed at by the old serpent ! the Most Holy 
 beset and surrounded by the powers of darkness ! and 
 the Lord of Hosts a sport for the cursed spirits of hell, 
 and tempted and challenged to that which is most 
 sinful ! Most horrible situation for the Son of God ! 
 the most appalling that we can imagine : for we are 
 placed by nature nearer to the devil, who, as our 
 Lord declares, is, in our natural state, our father, 
 (John viii. 44.) we bear his likeness, and therefore 
 liis foulness is not so abhorrent to us as it must be 
 to him who dwelleth in light, and is himself the light. 
 (1 Tim. vi. 16. John i. 9.) 
 
 Truly no small anguish must it have been to him 
 
OUR lord's temptation. 17 
 
 thus to dwell in the midst of devils. But even to this 
 pool and pit was the Son of God obliged to come 
 down, and thus the wild boars of Belial encompassed 
 him with their terrors, that a payment might be made 
 for the enormous guilt that man had heaped up ; and 
 amid such resisting powers and obstacles was he ne- 
 cessitated, alone, in strife and battle to do the will of 
 God, and with the glories of his perfect obedience to 
 cover the disobedience of Adam and his seed. 
 
 Another design of the temptations of Jesus was, that 
 he might become for us a High Priest touched with the 
 feeling of our infirmities. Such, indeed, he could 
 have been without experiencing the assaults which we 
 must endure ; but now that he has made such a dis- 
 play of his love, we poor children of men can more 
 easily believe in his sympathy, and we can with the 
 greater freedom pour out our heart before him, and 
 show him all our complaint. 
 
 When two men meet who can speak of the same 
 trials and of the same buffetings of Satan, O what 
 better preparation can there be for an intimate union, 
 for a free communication, and tender sympathy? They 
 pour out their souls to each other. Their hearts over- 
 flow, and the time passes rapidly. 
 
 In the presence of one, on the contrary, who has 
 never felt as we have, we are mute. We have no in- 
 clination to communicate to him our state, since we 
 fear that he can neither understand us nor feel for our 
 case. And we should certainly have felt much more 
 distance with our heavenly friend, if he had not become 
 a partaker of our sorrows. 
 
 But now the thought affects us deeply that he 
 himself was tempted in all points like as we are, and 
 
18 
 
 THE DESIGN OF 
 
 knows by his own experience the most bitter anguish 
 of our souls. If then no man understand us, we 
 have a friend near at hand to whom we need only 
 unfold our state and circumstances, and he knows at 
 once how to encourage our souls. 
 
 His fellow-feeling extends even to the darkest night 
 of the soul, the most fearful depths of internal suffer- 
 ing and distress. 
 
 You can sit under no juniper-tree beneath which He 
 has not already sat ; no thorn can wound you which 
 has not made His heart to bleed ; no fiery dart can 
 strike you which has not first been hurled at His sacred 
 head. Why then should we doubt of his compassion. 
 
 Yes, believe it only, beloved, whenever you lie in the 
 furnace; the eyes of the refiner are upon you, (Mai. 
 iii. 3,) and the heart of the High and Holy One, whose 
 love is more tender than a mother's, bleeds over you 
 for sympathy in heaven. (Isa. xlix. 15; Heb. iv. 15.) 
 
 These then, with respect to the world of sinners, 
 were the great designs of mercy and love, in subject- 
 ing the Son of God to the fire of temptation. 
 
 But it may be inquired, whether God had not some 
 reference to the tempter himself? and this we shall 
 be able to answer the more readily, when we clearly 
 understand the position which that fallen prince of 
 angels sustains in the kingdom of spirits. 
 
 That satyr-like figure, with horns and hoofs, which 
 is assigned him by popular tradition, has no reality : 
 it is far from the truth, and partakes more of the ridi- 
 culous and contemptible, than of that which is great 
 and terrific. 
 
 But read and compare together the several scattered 
 notices which the Scriptures in many places afford 
 
OUR lord's temptation. 19 
 
 respecting these fallen morning-stars, these first of 
 created beings ; observe their character and features, 
 which the word of God incidentally depicts, and there 
 is a certain awe and wonder, which, at the sight of 
 the prince of hell, you cannot shake off. 
 
 He is that leviathan of whom the Lord speaks, 
 (Job xli.) " Canst thou draw out leviathan with a 
 hook? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest 
 down ? Canst thou put a hook into his nose ? or 
 bore his jaw through with a thorn? Will he make 
 many supplications unto thee ? Will he speak soft 
 words unto thee ? Will he make a covenant with 
 thee? Wilt thou take him for a servant for ever? 
 Wilt thou play with him as with a bird ? or wilt 
 thou bind him for thy maidens? Shall thy com- 
 panions make a banquet of him ? Shall they part 
 him among the merchants? Canst thou fill his skin 
 with barbed irons, or his head with fish spears? Lay 
 thine hand upon him, remember the battle, do no 
 more. Behold, the hope of him is in vain. Shall not 
 one be cast down even at the sight of liim ?" 
 
 He is that powerful one of whom testimony is given. 
 '* None is so fierce that dare stir him up. Who can 
 discern the face of his garment ? or who can come to 
 him with his double bridle ? Who can open the doors 
 of his face ? His teeth are terrible round about. His 
 scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close 
 seal. One is so near to another, that no air can come 
 between them. They are joined one to another ; they 
 stick together, that they cannot be sundered. By his 
 neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the 
 eyelids of the morning. Out of his mouth go burning 
 
20 THE DESIGN OF 
 
 lamps, and sparks of fire leap out. Out of his nostrils 
 goetli smoke, as out of a seething-pot or caldron. 
 His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of 
 his mouth. In his neck remaineth strength, and 
 sorrow is turned into joy before him. The flakes of 
 his flesh are joined together ; they are firm in them- 
 selves, they cannot be moved. His heart is as firm as 
 a stone, yea, as hard as a piece of the nether millstone. 
 When he raiseth up himself the mighty are afraid. 
 By reason of breakings they purify themselves. The 
 sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold, the spear, 
 the dart, nor the habergeon. He esteemeth iron as 
 straw, and brass as rotten wood. The arrow cannot 
 make him flee, sling-stones are turned with him into 
 stubble. Darts are counted as stubble : he laugheth 
 at the shaking of a spear. Sharp stones are under 
 him ; he spreadeth sharp pointed things upon the 
 mire, he maketh the deep to boil like a pot, he maketh 
 the sea like a pot of ointment. He maketh a path to 
 shine after him : one would think the deep to be 
 hoary. Upon earth there is not his like, who is made 
 without fear. He beholdeth all high things. He is a 
 king over all the children of pride." 
 
 Behold, these are the features of this powerful Spirit, 
 who, with regard to his original glory, is nothing more 
 nor less than the idol of the rationalists. 
 
 In these great and wondrous ruins of his former 
 glory doth Salmi give praise to him who created 
 him. For who is his equal in knowledge and wisdom ? 
 who in perseverance, and energy, and power ? And 
 yet that which we perceive in him is but the remains 
 of his original splendour. He is set forth in the Scrip- 
 
OUR lord's temptation. 21 
 
 tures as possessing a certain majesty, not only because 
 he is called a lord, a powerful one, a prince, but also 
 the God of this world. (2 Cor. iv. 4.) 
 
 Observe how the apostle Jude speaks of him. — 
 " Michael, the archangel, when contending with the 
 devil, he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not 
 bring against him a railing accusation, but said, * the 
 Lord rebuke thee.' " (Jude 9.) 
 
 In the Book of Job we see Satan standing among 
 the angels and spirits, around the throne of God. 
 (Job i.) And the Lord speaks to him, and inquires 
 whether he had considered his servant Job, and after 
 the subtle insinuation of the accuser; " Doth Job fear 
 God for nought?" the Lord gives him power over all 
 that Job had. And thus the devil learned, by this 
 trial of the servant of God, how the strength of tlie 
 Almighty was made perfect in Job's weakness. 
 
 We might almost say, that it was important to God 
 that even this prince of darkness should acknowledge 
 him, and give him honour. And it was so in reality. 
 For it is written, that every knee should bow to him, 
 and every tongue confess that he is God. (Phil. ii. 11.) 
 
 And thus, by the temptations of Jesus, was the devil 
 enabled to glance at the sources of the atonement, 
 to see the Lamb of God in his purity, without blemish, 
 to behold the surety in his power, to discharge our 
 debts. Thus also would he learn that Zion is redeemed 
 with judgment, and her converts with righteousness, 
 and not by an arbitrary act; and that no well grounded 
 objection can any more be made against the salvation 
 of sinners. 
 
22 THE DESIGN OF OUR LORD's TEMPTATION. 
 
 When the most wise and acute of all the spirits is 
 constrained to admire the wisdom of God — is silent 
 before his counsel — is compelled unwillingly to praise 
 his mighty acts, then doth it redound not a little to 
 the majesty and glory of the Eternal. 
 
 In the great day of judgment, and of the manifes- 
 tation of God, that must be one of the most sacred 
 and solemn moments in which Satan will be compelled 
 openly to acknowledge that honour and praise are 
 due to the Lamb ; and when one God, if we may so 
 express it, with trembling reverence shall bow the knee 
 to another. It will be an utterance of praise to God 
 of no less power and greatness than the Hallelujahs of 
 the heavenly host. 
 
V. 
 
 THE TEMPTER. 
 
 Forty days and nights had the Lord spent in the 
 lonely desert, fasting, and afterward he was an hun- 
 gered. 
 
 Then came the devil to him openly, but clothed as 
 an angel of light. 
 
 He had a two- fold object in view ; first, clearly to 
 ascertain whether Jesus were really the Son of God : 
 and, if he should prove to be so, he meant, if possible, 
 to hurl a rock upon him in the way, and for ever mar 
 his work of saving souls. 
 
 I am greatly disposed to believe that which has al- 
 ready been advanced by others, that the tempter was 
 as yet in doubt as to the identity of the Messiah. 
 
 Jesus had now passed thirty years in the deepest se- 
 clusion. The son of a carpenter, he had learned his 
 father's trade ; " in the sweat of his face did he eat 
 bread ;" (Gen. iii. 19.) he lived plainly, and did and 
 said nothing beyond that which other children of men 
 might have said or done. No one supposed that he 
 was more than an amiable person ; and, perhaps, Mary 
 and Joseph were not a little tried in their expectatiorts 
 respecting him, and awaited a voice from heaven. 
 
 God veiled his Son so completely, that even the 
 
24 THE TEMPTER. 
 
 piercing eyes of Satan might not recognize him in this 
 plain carpenter. Yet the devil could not altogether 
 overlook him. 
 
 Among men, no one thought that this simple work- 
 man at Joseph's bench could be the Messiah. But 
 Satan was prudent enough not to trust too much to the 
 external appearance of lowliness and poverty. He 
 thought it possible that this carpenter, notwithstanding 
 his outwardly low condition, might, nevertheless, be 
 the Lord; and many things seemed to indicate that 
 thus it was. 
 
 He found nothing inconsistent in the supposition 
 that the Redeemer, in such a state of poverty, should 
 commence his task; and many circumstances appeared 
 plainly to indicate that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son 
 of God. Something of this kind he suspected. As 
 yet he knew nothing certain. He longed for the time 
 when all doubt would be removed. 
 
 Had Satan known that Jesus of Nazareth was in 
 reality the Messiah, there would be many things in- 
 explicable in his method of proceeding towards him, 
 as we shall hereafter perceive. 
 
 Thoroughly to ascertain this point, whether Jesus 
 were the Christ, was the Jirst aim of the tempter. And 
 so cunningly, at the same time, did the subtle spirit 
 plan his temptation, that if Jesus should prove to be 
 the Messiah, he hoped the redemption which he was 
 about to effect should thereby, on the outset, receive 
 such a shock that it might for ever be frustraled. 
 
 The second object of the prince of darkness was, as by 
 the dextrous thrust of an experienced fencer, to push the 
 Saviour from his mediatorial path, arid establish his own 
 dominion over mankiiid for ever. 
 
THE TEMPTER, 25 
 
 To effect these purposes, he assumed the character 
 of a well-wisher and friend. He professed that he 
 desired nothing so much as that the work of redemp- 
 tion should be accomplished, and would only show a 
 shorter way to its attainment, and he formed all his 
 projects with as much skill as we might expect to find 
 in one who fell from the greatest height of wisdom and 
 knowledge to the lowest abyss of wickedness. 
 
VI. 
 
 THE APTITUDE OF THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 Armed with extreme craft and subtlety, the tempter 
 drew near to Jesus. He hoped that the fearful soli- 
 tude in which our Lord had been, in the dry and barren 
 wilderness, would facilitate his victory. 
 
 The fact that Jesus hungered, served to direct his 
 Jirst assault — so well does this murderer of souls know 
 how to turn his weapons against us. 
 
 When we are solitary, and apart from the inter- 
 course of men ; when no human eye is upon us, no 
 dear brother near to warn and awaken us, no par- 
 taker of the same salvation to strengthen our souls ; 
 when our thoughts roam freely abroad — then doth 
 the wicked one put forth his strength, and bend his 
 bow with might to speed the poisoned barb to our 
 hearts : and when we hunger or thirst ; when our mind 
 is inwardly moving us towards earthly riches or ho- 
 nour, towards ease or enjoyment; then is he at hand, 
 with friendly aspect and professions of devotedness : 
 he respectfully submits one good counsel after ano- 
 ther ; he unfolds means without number of fulfilling 
 
THE APTITUDE OF THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 our desires ; and however unhallowed these sugges- 
 tions may be, he so well knows how to disguise and 
 recommend them, and secure them a plausible sanc- 
 tion from holy Scripture, that we think surely an angel 
 of God, has met us — yet it is none other but Satan 
 himself in the form of an angel of light. 
 
 The unfathomable mystery of his iniquity has 
 perhaps never manifested itself more fully than in the 
 temptations with which he assaulted our Lord. 
 
 Can Christ then be tempted? Undoubtedly he can, 
 for St. Paul says. He was, in all points, tempted like as 
 we are. (Heb. iv. 15.) Luther translates it (allentljalbEn,) 
 " on all sides." The hand of that venerated man might 
 well have trembled, when he was about to write down 
 the expression " in all points." With holy shame and 
 sacred reverence he selected, in preference, the phrase 
 *• on all sides." 
 
 Our Lord appeared " in the likeness of sinful flesh ;" 
 (Rom. viii. 3.) that is, in the nature of man. All the 
 consequences of sin came upon him, but not sin itself. 
 He was tempted, yet without sin. 
 
 The sinless propensities and weaknesses of our nature 
 were also the portion of Christ. He hungered and 
 thirsted ; he was sensible of fatigue, of rest and re- 
 freshment, of joy, and of sorrow. 
 
 Of these sinless infirmities, therefore, Satan pur- 
 posed to make use, in attempting to withdraw the 
 Saviour from the path divinely marked out for him. 
 He presented before him unlawful means of satisfying 
 the desires of nature. 
 
 Had the Redeemer yielded even in thought to the 
 base insinuations of the wicked one, then would suc- 
 cess have crowned the turpitude and villany of Satan. 
 
 c2 
 
28 THE APTITUDE OF THE TEMPTATIONS. 
 
 The Lamb would not have been without spot or blemish, 
 the Priest would not have been undefiled, the sacrifice 
 would have been unavailing, the whole plan of salva- 
 tion for ever marred, and the entire race of man would 
 have been irrecoverably lost. 
 
 How much, then, depended upon that single event 
 which took place in the wilderness ! 
 
 How immensely important, how intimately con- 
 nected with our highest destiny, was the temptation of 
 Jesus. Ought we not, therefore, with all the intensity 
 of which our souls are capable, to watch the develop- 
 ment and the issue of this wondrous scene ! 
 
VII. 
 
 THE FIRST TEMPTATION. 
 
 The tempter awaited a favourable opportunity for his 
 Jirst attack. It was when Jesus hungered that he came 
 to him, and said, " If thou be the Son of God, com- 
 mand that these stones be made bread." (ver. 3.) 
 This was the first assault by which Satan endeavoured 
 partly to arrive at a certainty respecting the person of 
 Jesus ; partly, in the event of his really proving to be 
 the Lord from heaven, to bring to nought the great 
 work of the atonement. 
 
 He applied himself, in the first place, to defile the 
 immaculate soul of the Redeemer, by infusing into it 
 the sin of distrust. 
 
 As he opened his attack upon our first parents, by 
 deceiving them with respect to the divine command, 
 (Gen. ili. I.) so also here, " If thou be the Son of 
 God," was nothing else, in reality, than a covert 
 suggestion of the doubt, " Yea, hath God said," a 
 temptation to lead him to question the testimony 
 which, at his baptism, he had received from heaven. 
 
 And mark the monstrous and unexampled craftiness 
 of the tempter. In these few words, " If thou be the 
 
30 THE FIRST TEMPTATION. 
 
 Son of God, command that these stones be made 
 bread," under one temptation he concealed numberless 
 snares. 
 
 Jesus shall either, as the wicked one supposed, if he 
 be the Son of God, be brought into perplexity respecting 
 his Sonship and the divine testimony — (Matt. iii. 17.) 
 It will appear to him improbable that God should suffer 
 his Son to perish with hunger amidst the stones and 
 barren thorns of the desert, and then his soul will be 
 defiled with unbelief; or he will lay aside the veil, 
 and, by a miracle, give proof, at once, of his God- 
 head, and then he will act in opposition to the counsels 
 of heaven, which have assigned him poverty and suf- 
 fering, and the hiding of his glory, that he may make 
 atonement for Adam's guilt. (Isa. liii.) 
 
 But should this not take place, thought the tempter; 
 should I fail in my endeavour to induce him to leave the 
 patli of humility and lowliness, and to make manifest to 
 myself and others the dignity of his nature, yet his ex- 
 treme sufferings from hunger will, perhaps, impel him 
 to adopt my suggestion. It will seem to him allowable 
 to save himself from starvation, through the power 
 which God has given him. He will make the stones 
 bread, by an act of his own, to satisfy his hunger, and 
 thus put away from himself the cup of bitterness, with- 
 out the drinking of which to the dregs a propitiation 
 for sin cannot be made. (Rom. iii. 25.) 
 
 These were the thoughts of the prince of darkness. 
 He hoped that if Jesus should haply escape one snare, 
 yet he would be entangled in a second, or a third. 
 And, indeed, no more subtle or skilful plan could have 
 been imagined. 
 
THE FIRST TEMPTATION. Bl 
 
 Without a miracle put forth in his behalf, the most 
 holy of the children of men would, in such circum- 
 stances, have fallen. 
 
 Had there been the smallest vein of sin in Christ, 
 it would have been apparent. But no ; not one atom 
 soils the purity of his holiness. 
 
 He stands alone in the field; no guards protect 
 him. Yet, behold, He triumphs — Satan is defeated. 
 
 The temptation to 7nake stones into bread is one of 
 frequent occurrence. Something of it has been ex- 
 perienced by all the children of God. 
 
 There are brethren among us, (I speak of brethren in 
 the Lord,) to wJiom a fast also has at the same time 
 been appointed. They have no work nor wages, and yet 
 have need of daily bread. 
 
 Brethren, you sit down in the wilderness, amidst 
 stones and thorns, and you are an hungered. It 
 would, indeed, be surprising if the tempter did not 
 present such an idea as this; — " Can you really be 
 children of God, when He leaves you to starve?" 
 and then add, " Command that these stones be made 
 bread." It would be a wonder if he did not furnish 
 you with all sorts of counsels, such as " Be mean 
 and flatter, and you shall find favour and gain em- 
 ployment ;" or, •' deceive and lie, that you may 
 procure wealth ;" or, " steal, and save yourselves from 
 famine ;" or, " unite yourselves with the enemies of 
 the cross, and they will provide for you ;" or, " have 
 recourse to gamblirtg," or whatever it may be. 
 
 This is, in fact, " Command that these stones be 
 made bread." 
 
 But, my brethren, let the stones remain stones, and 
 expect your bread from Him who has not only promised 
 
32 THE FIRST TEMPTATION. 
 
 to provide it, but also to do for you greater things 
 than this. 
 
 Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 
 
 Is it not much better to hunger and fast in the name 
 of God, than to possess abundance in the name of the 
 devil ? 
 
 Your fast-days will cease when they shall have 
 worked out that for which, in the purpose of God, they 
 were designed. 
 
 Be not dismayed, you are walking in the wilderness, 
 in order that you may see the truth and glory of the 
 Lord, which are beheld better in the dry and thirsty 
 land than in the rich and fertile fields. 
 
 There are some among us rvho derive from their pro- 
 fession of religion ignominy and shame, and know but 
 little joy and comfort. It would be strange if Satan 
 did not present himself, and endeavour to persuade 
 you to suspect the whole of your religion, or to seek 
 that joy which you cannot find in God, in the world, 
 and the things thereof. 
 
 My brethren, it is the devil who gives you such 
 counsel, and who would move you in a manner incon- 
 sistent with the religion of Jesus, to change into bread 
 the stones of your suffering and sorrow. 
 
 We should, I think, prefer, if needs be, to pass the 
 time of our sojourning here in the wilderness with 
 Jesus, to suffer with him, and then participate in his 
 glory ; and should cheerfully leave those poisoned 
 viands which the devil delights to prepare for us, to 
 those who shall burn and howl for ever with the prince 
 of darkness in the lake of fire. 
 
 " The Lord rebuke thee," be our cry, whenever we 
 perceive this serpent crawling near our feet. 
 
THE FIRST TEMPTATION. 33 
 
 Thanks be to God, ever since the true Michael con- 
 tended with Satan, and cast him to the ground, his 
 power over us has been destroyed. (Jude 9; Col. ii. 
 15.) 
 
 In his buffeting he may attack us with hand and 
 foot, so that we may totter and fall, but we shall not 
 be utterly cast down, for the Lord upholdeth us with 
 his hand. (Psalm xxxvii. 24.) 
 
 Should the roaring lion prowl around our tents, 
 seeking whom he may devour; (1 Pet. v. 8.) the 
 Prince of Peace, the Captain of our Salvation, holds 
 him by the power of his might, and assigns him the 
 limits beyond which he cannot pass. 
 
 Let us hide ourselves only in the wounds of Christ. 
 (Exod. xxxiii. 22.) In this strong tower we are safe, 
 and may well rejoice. (Prov. xviii. \0.) 
 
 c3 
 
VIII. 
 
 THE WEAPONS AND THE VICTORY OF CHRIST. 
 
 The weapons tuith which our Lord achieved the vic- 
 tory, ivere the Word of God — " It is written" — and 
 Satan was overcome, his purpose was frustrated. 
 
 The Bible is the arsenal of the heroes of God, the 
 spiritual armoury, whose walls are thickly studded with 
 shields and coats of mail, and rich with swords and 
 glittering spears. Whoever has triumphed in the spiri- 
 tual conflict, equipped himself here. Hence were 
 taken the sling-stones, which felled the Goliaths to the 
 ground. 
 
 He that has access to this spiritual armoury is 
 powerful in the camp. 
 
 Of these weapons Satan is afraid, and it has been his 
 unremitting endeavour, either to despoil or conceal 
 the word of God, or to destroy its effects. 
 
 To what expedients has not this cunning sophist 
 resorted; what has he not brought forward and indus- 
 triously circulated, to throw suspicion on the word or 
 render it ambiguous, and thus to rob men of the pure 
 unadulterated Scriptures of truth I 
 
 What false assertions has he not made under the 
 high-sounding title of exposition, to impugn the 
 
WEAPONS AND VICTORY OF CHRIST. 35 
 
 authenticity and genuineness of the Bible ! There is 
 not a single book in the Scriptures, the authority of 
 which this malicious fiend has not attempted to shake, 
 not a miracle which he has not stamped as a fable, 
 not a promise which he has not endeavoured to weaken 
 and nullify. 
 
 And he is still always employed, either through 
 his instruments and servants, false prophets, pro- 
 fessors, and others; or in his own person, by his 
 immediate influence — ever is he doing his utmost to 
 bring into question the purity of the word of God ; 
 for this word is his stumbling-block. But spurn him 
 with abhorrence, turn your back upon him whenever 
 he opens his accursed mouth, for he is a murderer of 
 souls, and has been so from the beginning, a liar, and 
 the father of lies. (John viii. 44.) 
 
 But in what way, you ask, can the word of God 
 afford such important service in the hour of temptation? 
 1 will inform you. 
 
 Whenever the devil would lead us astray, his first 
 and chief concern is to confuse our ideas. That 
 which is perverted he sets before us as right, that 
 which is human as divine, and evil he calls good, 
 and good evil. Truth he represents as falsehood, 
 and falsehood as truth. And when he has so de- 
 ceived and dazzled us, we become subservient to his 
 will, perhaps, when we think that we are doing what is 
 right. 
 
 But these villanous spells and deceptions can pro- 
 fit him little, when we rest in faith on the word of 
 God, which then secures us from deception and mis- 
 apprehension. For it declares to us most distinctly 
 v,'hat is right and wrong, true and false ; what, under 
 
 c4 
 
36 THE WEAPONS AND 
 
 all circumstances we should do, or think, or say, 
 in accordance with the will of God. Examples will 
 illustrate my meaning. 
 
 Salan wotild mar the labour of a preacher of the Gos- 
 pel, and weaken its effect. He sets about his design 
 with subtlety. He suggests to him that he should 
 preach a little more smoothly, that he should not make 
 the way so narrow, nor the gate so strait — and thus he 
 may gain the friendship of the whole congregation. 
 Yes, and many whom he has now only made refrac- 
 tory, he may then easily win to the truth. 
 
 When once this pleasing commencement has been 
 made, the wicked one knows well how to back his 
 counsels. 
 
 Does the preacher now take this matter into con- 
 sideration, and has he no other shield than his own 
 good thoughts, then is he soon ensnared. The proposi- 
 tions of the devil appear most reasonable and good, 
 for Satan is wiser than he. 
 
 But let him rest by faith on the word of God, 
 and believingly reply, ** It is written," * Strait is the 
 gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life,' 
 (Matt. vii. 14.) " It is written," ' Though we, or an 
 angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you 
 than that which we have preached unto you, let him 
 be accursed.* (Gal. i. 8.) What can the devil do 
 now? This confidence in the word of God, this faith, 
 is to him as the fire of artillery, which he cannot sus- 
 tain — it compels him to retreat. 
 
 Take another example. Satan would have yon be- 
 lieve, that ike religion of Jesus is not the only way of 
 salvation. And how does he go to work ? With con- 
 summate skill. He carries you in spirit to a high 
 
THE VICTORY OF CHRIST. 
 
 37 
 
 place, and shows you the millions of souls who, 
 both in the Christian and heathen world, live without 
 Christ; and thus he begins his discourse: " Tell me, 
 shall all these be lost? To such a supposition neither 
 your reason nor your heart will assent. But they do 
 not believe in Christ, at least, as you and persons of 
 your stamp believe in him. Can Christ then really 
 be the only way of salvation ? Can that which you call 
 the new birth, be necessary, without any limitation, for 
 the salvation of mankind ? Have you not then been 
 accustomed to entertain too contracted, too confined 
 views respecting salvation ?" 
 
 Thus doth he speak. Are you, with your reason, 
 alone upon the battle-field, you cannot escape from 
 this snare. His illusions will prove successful, he will 
 assuredly triumph over you ; the ground on which 
 you stand will easily be made to rock beneath your 
 feet. 
 
 But if you can wield the weapons of heavenly tem- 
 per, if you can boldly oppose to the evil one the word 
 of God, and in faith say to him, " It is written," 
 • Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born 
 again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.' (John iii. 
 3.) — •' It is written," ' I am the way, and the truth, 
 and the life, no man cometh unto the Father, but by 
 me' — " It is written," * few there be that find this 
 way,' (Matt. vii. 14.) ' few are chosen.' (Matt. 
 XX. 16.) — If you can believingly hold fast by these 
 divine declarations, then is the devil stricken to the 
 ground, his net is broken ; he will desist from his 
 endeavour to persuade you that Christ is not the only 
 ground of salvation. His remaining hope then, is to 
 
38 THE WEAPONS AND 
 
 throw suspicion upon llie word itself, on wliicli you 
 rely. 
 
 Again, Satan would draw you back to the world. 
 And what is his method of proceeding? He gently 
 approaches you, and insinuates that it is not right to 
 seclude yourself from the world, and apparently desire to 
 shun so completely the society of others, it does not 
 well accord with the brotherly love which should 
 obtain among Christians. You must sometimes repair 
 to worldly circles, to let your light shine there, and 
 men will see that the religion of Christ by no means 
 converts its possessors into morose monks and hermits, 
 but makes them cheerful, that they may thus win 
 men to Christ. Yes, and for your own sake also, to 
 exercise and confirm yourself in holiness, you must not 
 withdraw altogether from the world, for to be holy 
 where there are no solicitations to sin is an easy mat- 
 ter; but to walk in the sight of the wicked, and to 
 refuse compliance with their evil courses, this is indeed 
 to be righteous. 
 
 So doth the subtle one reason, and it pleaseth the 
 old man well. (Eph. iv. 22 ; Col. iii. 9.) 
 
 Do you venture to dispute with him, you are not his 
 equal; he will soon bring you under, and gain the 
 field. For no doctor or professor is more skilled 
 in disputation than he. He can make the most ab- 
 surd things appear to be plausible and excellent. 
 
 But should you be able, meet him in faith with the 
 word of God; should you, for instance, in such a case, 
 say, " It is written," " Love not the world." (1 John ii. 
 15.) then can he do no more. You have cut off the 
 hands of Dagon. (1 Sam. v. 4.) 
 
THE VICTORY OF CHRIST. 39 
 
 Thus is the word of God, when grasped and wielded 
 in faith, the all-powerful sword of the Spirit, by which 
 we may subdue the wicked one. (Eph. vi. 17.) 
 
 " Yes, tiie ten commandments" says one, " if 
 written in our heart, and we give utterance to them 
 against him, will speedily repel him." They are like 
 the clubs of Sampson, tenfold, or ten swords of 
 Michael against the roaring lion. 
 
 How then did the Lord obtain the victory? Satan 
 counselled him to command that the stones should be 
 made bread, and that thus, by an act of his own power, 
 he might appease his litmger. This was a cunning 
 and ensnaring device, as he well knew. 
 
 There were (to speak after the manner of men) 
 many things which tended to move the Lord Jesus to 
 consent to this advice, and in that case, as we have 
 remarked, the work of redemption would at once have 
 been destroyed. But he hearkened not to the sugges- 
 tion. He left the stones to remain stones, and con- 
 tinued to hunger. 
 
 What did Jesus make use of in delivering himself from 
 the snares which were laid for him ? It was the ivord of 
 God. On that word his eye rested. It is written, in the 
 eighth chapter of Deuteronomy, and the third verse, 
 •* Man doth not live by bread only, but by every word 
 that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man 
 live." This he grasped in faith, and opposed to the 
 tempter. And in this promise he found abundant 
 ground of confidence. 
 
 Better to suffer hunger forty days and nights more, 
 and even longer, than by a distrustful act of power of 
 his own to forestall the aid of the Father. God can 
 
40 THE WEAPONS AND 
 
 sustain me without bread, he has led me into the 
 wilderness, 1 hope in him. This was his thought — 
 in truth, an impenetrable breast- plate. 
 
 The devil was now obliged to devise other projects. 
 The hope he had entertained to persuade Jesus to an 
 act of compliance, that he might avoid the sufferings 
 connected with the atonement for the transgression of 
 Adam, had now at once and for ever vanished. For 
 Jesus believed the declaration of the word, that God 
 could, even in the bitterest season of want, without 
 bread feed him, and without water give him drink, 
 and, through the bare word of his mouth, could 
 support and maintain him. Against this faith must 
 all the darts of the devil be shivered, as against an 
 iron bulwark. 
 
 The words with which Jesus prevailed are written, as 
 it has been said, in the book of Deuteronomy, Moses 
 spake them to the children of Israel, on the borders 
 of the pleasant land, when he recalled to their minds the 
 faithfulness and truth with which God had led them 
 for forty years through the wilderness. " And thou shalt 
 remember," he said, " all the way which the Lord thy 
 God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to 
 humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in 
 thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his command- 
 ments or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered 
 thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou 
 knewest not, neither did thy fathers know, that he 
 might make thee know, that man doth not live by 
 bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out 
 of the mouth of the Lord, doth man live." (viii. 23.) 
 
 Yes, the Lord needs not the mill or the oven for the 
 
THE VICTORY OF CHRIST. 41 
 
 supply of his children ; he can rain upon them bread 
 from heaven, as he did in the wilderness. He can give 
 it them in the night, when the little ones are at rest. 
 
 He did so at Cherith, (1 Kings xvii. 5.) he did so at 
 Zarephath, (1 Kings xvii. 9.) by means of a widow- 
 woman, and in many other places. It is a small thing 
 to him. 
 
 It is not the bread we eat, for the support of our 
 bodies, that is essential to our life, but it is that spiri- 
 tual food which his word, his will, and his blessing, 
 supply through the outward means. It is only when God 
 wills that bread can nourish us ; otherwise it is of no 
 benefit, we are poor and weak in the midst of abun- 
 dance. 
 
 Since, therefore, the quality of sustaining life does 
 not belong to the bread, but depends on the will of 
 God alone, we can easily understand how, with five 
 loaves and two fishes, Jesus could feed and satisfy 
 five thousand men; (Matt. xiv. 17 — 21.) and, with a 
 cake of barley bread, could give his servant strength 
 for forty days and forty nights ; (I Kings, xix. 8.) yea, 
 how he supports so many poor families. 
 
 The Lord ?ieeds not any bread to sustain us when it 
 pleases him. His word only is enough, and we live. 
 Without bread did Moses subsist on Sinai, and 
 Jesus in the wilderness, and so have many, many 
 others. 
 
 It needs but his word, and the air which we breathe 
 is changed into milk, and wine, and we eat the 
 richest fare, and drink only strength and refreshment, 
 without opening the lips — without sitting at table, or 
 moving tlie hand. This is meant by the expression — 
 
42 THE WEAPONS AND 
 
 " Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every 
 word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." 
 
 In times of persecution thousands of the children of 
 God have experienced this, in its literal sense ; the 
 believing poor continually do so, and it is true — as 
 true as that the living God dwelleth in heaven. 
 
 Let all of us, therefore, who suffer need, lay hold of 
 this truth, that it may preserve us from fear and dis- 
 couragement, and tliat it may protect us against the 
 assaults of the wicked one. 
 
 It has pleased God, in his providence, to reduce 
 many among us to great necessity. They have begun 
 to suffer want in every thing — in labour and its re- 
 compense, and perhaps also in prospect and credit. 
 They are deep in the wilderness among the stones, and 
 there is sighing among them by night and by day. 
 Steal and defraud they will not ; God will graciously 
 preserve them from such crimes. 
 
 But Satan would obtain much advantage, if the 
 thought only gained place in your breasts — " God has 
 forsaken us ; now must we see, how we can provide for 
 ourselves ?" Satan would be well pleased if you only 
 yielded to the distrustful care and anxiety — " What 
 shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal 
 shall we be clothed?" or if you adopted the notion that 
 God has given you a sign, by the necessity which 
 presses upon you, that you may endeavour to free 
 yourselves from distress, by having recourse to some 
 venturous speculation, or by the chances of play, or 
 by some artifice, or any other improper means. Yes, 
 then would the tempter have already succeeded 
 well. 
 
THE VICTORY OF CHRIST. 43 
 
 ■ Brethren, though much embarrassed, permit not to 
 the adversary such a triumph. Meet him with the 
 weapons which your Master bore against him, and 
 which thus, as by special consecration, have acquired 
 holiness and strength ; and say in faith, " It is written, 
 man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word 
 that proceedeih out of the mouth of God." 
 
 This is the word of him that is faithful and true. 
 Hold fast this word, build thereon, and wait — wait 
 only a little in the wilderness. He will never leave 
 you nor forsake you. (Jos. i. 5 ; Heb. xiii. .5.) 
 
 There are some, I could mention them by name, 
 who have been in greater straits than you. They 
 have believed that word with unshaken confidence. 
 Whenever the wicked one has harassed them with 
 his cursed counsels, they have, in this faith, with 
 resolution and firmness, repelled him, and trusted in 
 the Lord. Now is their mouth filled with laughter, 
 and their tongue with singing. The Lord hath done great 
 things for them, whereof they are glad. (Ps. cxxvi. 
 2, 3.) They would not exchange for mountains of 
 gold and silver the experience which they then ac- 
 quired in the wilderness. They have seen the glory of 
 the Lord, and have themselves become living witnesses 
 that " man doth not live by bread alone, but by every 
 word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.*' 
 
 " If thou be the Son of God, command that these 
 stones be made bread." So said the tempter. He 
 required that Jesus should give proof of his Sonship. 
 But our Lord chose rather to leave this demonstration 
 to the Father. 
 
 O, my brethren, may it in every case be the same 
 
44 WEAPONS AND VICTORY OF CHRIST. 
 
 with you. God will make it manifest that you are his 
 children, not, perhaps, by causing you to live in houses 
 of affluence, but by enabling you with confidence and 
 joy to sing praises among the stones and juniper.trees 
 in the wilderness, and supporting you by the word 
 which proceedeth out of his mouth. 
 
IX. 
 
 THE SECOND TEMPTATION. 
 
 The first temptation of our Lord was a total failure. 
 Whether Jesus were the Son -of God, Satan could not 
 yet decide ; and if he were so, the tempter had not 
 succeeded in moving liim a finger-breadth from his 
 mediatorial path. 
 
 The devil makes preparation for a second assault. 
 " He taketh him up into the holy city, and sitteth him 
 on a pinnacle of the temple." Perhaps only in vision ? 
 No, corporeally, as the scriptural account compels us 
 to believe. 
 
 Our Lord was borne through the air in a moment, by 
 supernatural power, and conveyed to the holy city, and 
 then hurried with the swiftness of lightning upwards to 
 the flat roof of one of the projecting wings of the tem- 
 ple, on the declivity of the mountain. The same power 
 with which " the Spirit of the Lord caught away 
 Philip" from the desert of Gaza, was here granted to 
 the evil spirit for the occasion. (Acts viii. 39.) 
 
 As an eagle with his prey, so fled the prince of dark- 
 ness with the Lord of Glory. This was awfully ter- 
 rible ; but Jesus was willing to endure the most horrible, 
 and encounter the most fearful things, that he might 
 drink for us, to the dregs, the cup of trembling, and 
 
46 THE SECOND TEMPTATION^ 
 
 leave nothing of our ransom unpaid, even to the utter- 
 most farthing'. 
 
 He was willing to be tlie sport of the evil spirit in 
 his accursed hands, that the angels of God might bear 
 us sinners in the arms of tenderness to Abraham's 
 bosom. 
 
 Did our Lord know that it %oas the angel of darkness 
 with ivhom he had to do? I think not. It appears to 
 have been hidden from him by tlie sacred counsel of 
 God, that the temptation might be the more severe, 
 and the victory the greater and more glorious. 
 
 Behold our Saviour now, upon the pinnacle of the 
 temple, with Satan at his side. A giddy abyss is 
 beneath their feet. Deep under them lies the city ; 
 yet deeper in the valley, as a little streak, flows with 
 rapid course the brook of Kidron. 
 
 Satan assumes the mien and aspect of the best in- 
 tentioned friend, who, if Jesus were indeed the Son of 
 God, had with him one and the same purpose, and 
 desired nothing so earnestly as that the work of re- 
 demption should be speedily accomplished. 
 
 He points down to the fearful abyss, and says unto 
 Jesus, " If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down." 
 Perhaps he added still more, " Behold, I earnestly 
 desire to know whether thou art the Son of God ; I 
 await only for the certainty, to bow my knee imme- 
 diately, and pay my homage. I am not the only 
 one who, with intense eagerness, awaits the unveil- 
 ing of thy person and glory. Thou shalt be a king 
 and ruler over a great people as soon as it shall 
 please thee to unfold thy kingly majesty and power. 
 See, here is an opportunity, cast thyself down from 
 this eminence. This miracle will astonish the world ; 
 
,THE SECOND TEMPTATION. 47 
 
 no more doubt will then be entertained as to thy God- 
 head, and every knee shall be bent in the dust. Thou 
 shalt be as God. And not others only will be con- 
 vinced, but thyself also wilt arrive at perfect certainty 
 that thou art the Messiah, and that God has not 
 forsaken thee, as he appears to have done since the 
 commencement of thy suffering from hunger in the 
 wilderness." 
 
 Something of this kind might the devil represent to 
 him ; and with the more certainty, to attain his pur- 
 pose, he quotes that blessed promise in the ninety- first 
 Psalm, " He shall give his angels charge concerning 
 thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest 
 at any lime thou dasli thy foot against a stone." 
 
 The plan is well conceived, and the trial severe. 
 Yes, the seducer appears to be an angel of light, and 
 his counsel good, and well suited for the purpose. 
 
 Behold, then, our Lord upon the fearful summit of 
 the temple. How will he act ? One step forwards 
 and he treads the air — the angels bear him gently to 
 the ground ; the people cry aloud, " Hosannah !" he is 
 the object of their wonder, astonishment, and wor- 
 ship — but shipwreck is made of the work of our re- 
 demption for ever ; for the Priest has then forsaken 
 the path of poverty and abstinence — the Mediator 
 has acted in opposition to the plan and counsel 
 of God — the Lamb is not without blemish — it is pol- 
 luted with sin, it is unfit to be presented as the 
 offering of atonement. 
 
 O moment big with the destiny of a world ! Yet, 
 thanks be to God, Jesus detected the deep artifice. 
 He well knew, indeed, that the angels would bear him 
 up. But should he, therefore, call in question the 
 
48 THE SECOND TEMPTATION. 
 
 faithfulness and power of God ? No, no; never. His 
 holy soul shrunk back from the snare which Satan 
 had laid for him. 
 
 One word of the Bible suffices to discomfit the wicked 
 one. A second brings him to a stand, to shield and 
 spear — " It is written again, thou shalt not tempt the 
 Lord thy God." The command is uttered. The Lord 
 hath said it; and the devil is again smitten to the 
 ground. 
 
X. 
 
 SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 
 
 The holy city, the spiritual Jerusalem, is ever the 
 scene of Satan's subtlety and most cunning assaults. 
 It is also the field of his most splendid conquests. O, 
 may it soon be otherwise ! 
 
 Temptations are always at hand, and men are even 
 now, through the devices of Satan, placed in cir- 
 cumstances, as to spiritual things, which greatly re- 
 semble the trial of our Lord on the pinnacle of the 
 temple. These are spiritual heights. 
 
 The best and most happy condition upon earth is 
 unquestionably this, to abide, ' as a worm,' at the feet 
 of Jesus, poor in spirit; with Lazarus to lie at the rich 
 man's door; and with the woman of Canaan to desire, 
 as a dog, only the crumbs that fall from the Master's 
 table. 
 
 And it is well to be thus, for then shall we become 
 rich. Here alone are we secure. No wonder then 
 that the wicked one is intent on nothing more ea- 
 gerly than to entire the children of God from this 
 state of humility and spiritual poverty. And many 
 are the devices to .vliich he has recourse to effect his 
 
 D 
 
50 SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 
 
 purpose. Let me place before you one or two of 
 them. 
 
 Clothed as an angel of light, he comes to you, and 
 carries you into the holy city, that is, he sets before 
 your spiritual vision all the gifts, and graces, and 
 privileges, of which you may become partakers in the 
 kingdom of heaven, so that you imagine it is a holy 
 angel who enables you to see these glorious sights. 
 
 And now the enemy brings forward one of these gifts; 
 for example, that of the Holy Ghost, and begins to ex- 
 plain to you all that you may gain by this gift ; how 
 the Holy Ghost will sanctify (Rom. xv. 16.) and en- 
 lighten you ; (John xvi. 14.) how he will guide you 
 into all truth ; (John xvi. 13.) reveal unto you the deep 
 things of God; (1 John ii. 27.) will lead and move 
 you ; (Rom. viii. 14.) will speak and witness within 
 you; (1 John v. 6.) and so on, in accordance with 
 that which is written. 
 
 But the devil proceeds farther, and seeks to persuade 
 you that the Spirit will reveal new things unto you, 
 which the Bible only incidentally or partially contains, 
 or perhaps not at all. He goes farther, and teaches you 
 to regard your own thoughts as those which are sug- 
 gested by the Spirit ; and yet still farther, and declares 
 that you are inspired, one who has no more need 
 for the outer light from the letter, since you have such 
 inward illumination; and, alas! before you are aware, 
 you are transported to the pinnacle of the temple. 
 
 You feel yourself exalted on high, above the word 
 and the testimony of God, above the church and mi- 
 nistry of the gospel ; you behold all these things, 
 together with the whole of Jerusalem, all other believers 
 lying deep at your feet ; and if you are not seized with 
 
SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 51 
 
 dizziness on this painful elevation, and finish your 
 course in the horrible abyss of madness, it is to the un- 
 bounded grace of God alone that you are beholden 
 for your preservation. 
 
 And such wiles as these have before now succeeded 
 in ensnaring the souls of some, who would no longer 
 conform to any prescribed order, or permit themselves 
 to be ruled by the word of God, conceiving that they 
 were led by the Spirit, which had testified to them of 
 liigher and better things. Truly, there may have been 
 those among them, who were in reality pious men, and 
 who would again be recovered to the right path, but 
 still it is a melancholy and distressing misconception. 
 May God preserve us from such illusions. 
 
 But to proceed, " It is written" — "Though we, 
 or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto 
 you than that which we have preached unto you, let 
 him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now 
 again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you 
 than that ye have received, let him be accursed." 
 (Gal. i. 8, 9.) " It is written" — " Thy word is a 
 lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." (Psalm 
 cxix. 105.) Such an appeal to the word of God puts 
 to flight the wicked one. 
 
 If Satan gains not his point in one way, he tries an- 
 other, and he does not desist till he has had recourse to 
 all his expedients. 
 
 We see many standing on the piiinacle of the temple, 
 and various are the means by which they have been 
 transported thither. 
 
 One indulges the pleasing fancy, that he rinderstands all 
 mysteries, that he is gifted with a spiritual illumination 
 beyond others, that he carries about him the keys of 
 
 D 2 
 
O'J SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 
 
 David, The devil has made a prey of him through the 
 abundance of his knowledge, and with wicked enchant- 
 ment has persuaded him to believe that he hath the 
 anointing and knoweth all things. (1 John ii. 27.) 
 
 Another regards himself as the man who, with the 
 sword of his mouth, shall slay the wicked, who, with 
 the sceptre of his word, shall sway the minds of men, 
 and after whom no one dares to speak. His ability in 
 teaching and preaching has become, by the subtlety of 
 the wicked one, a trap and a snare. 
 
 A third arrogates to himself the proud pre eminence of 
 being, with reference to God, far apart from others, 
 as if he sat on a seat in the kingdom of Christ twice 
 as high as other poor sinners. Perhaps it was the 
 gift of prayer he possessed, from which the enemy 
 prepared him the sweet poison. 
 
 In a fourth the notion has firmly fixed itself, that with- 
 out him the kingdom of God cannot stand. He is a pillar 
 without his equal on earth; an apostle, an Elijah 
 of his day. The blessing which God granted to his 
 word and testimony, has been made, through the 
 artifice of the devil, into a lime-twig, on which he has 
 been caught. 
 
 The dreams and chimeras of a fifth has Satan mag- 
 nified into pure visions and manifestations from heaven. 
 Now the poor creature deems himself a seer and a 
 prophet. 
 
 Before the eyes of a sixth the devil holds his magic 
 mirror, in which the weak mortal sees himself with 
 a halo of glory round his head; or the deceiver sends to 
 him friends, who represent that his meekness and pa- 
 tience, his faith or his love, must be extolled and 
 admired, and even idolized by men ; and then the poor 
 
SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 53 
 
 deluded soul enters into the full persuasion that God 
 most certainly intends to set him forth as an example 
 of holiness. 
 
 Behold, these are the heights, the pinnacles of the 
 temple, to which Satan conducts men. 
 
 And the evil does not stop here ; for let the deceived 
 souls but once stand upon these heights, and ima- 
 gine themselves apostles, saints, and prophets, then they 
 sometimes step higher. It is not all of them who come 
 down again without having first Sustained injury. 
 Alas ! some fall from these heights down into the 
 depths of mental aberration. 
 
 Of such unhappy ones, who at length have sup- 
 posed themselves to be God, or Christ, or the Holy 
 Ghost, every age has afforded instances, and that 
 even in the midst of the holy city. 
 
 Brethren, abide in your strong tower, and lie in the 
 dust; above all, those of you who are rich in gifts, 
 and apt to teach ; those who are held in reputation 
 among the brethren, and who publicly instruct in the 
 congregation ; those of you who lead the assembly 
 of the pious, and whose light shines with especial 
 splendour in Zion. Such things readily present to the 
 dragon that which he can seize, and by which he can 
 rapidly transport you to the heights. 
 
 Gird as a breast-plate on your bosom the words of 
 Christ, " Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is 
 the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. v. 3.) 
 
 Place as a helmet on your head that truth, " Who- 
 soever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a 
 little child, he shall not enter therein." (Mark x. 15.) 
 
 Take as a sword in your hand that word, " God 
 resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the lowly." 
 (James iv. 6.) 
 
04 SPIRITUAL HEIGHTS. 
 
 And never forget that the golden rose of Jesus does 
 not bloom upon the heights, but in the deep vallies. 
 
 And should the devil urge you into a presump- 
 tuous and perplexing speculation with regard to the 
 unsearchable mysteries of God, should he hurry you 
 into vain and profitless investigations, respecting 
 the Trinity, or eternity, or the two natures of Christ, 
 or whatever else it may be of this description ; 
 now collect all your powers, and cry aloud to him, 
 " It is written," ' We know in part, and we prophecy 
 in part ; but when that which is perfect is come, then 
 that which is in part shall be done away.' (1 Cor. xiii. 
 9, 10.) Declare to him, in the name of Jesus, that 
 you desire to know nothing more than that which 
 is necessary for your salvation, and thus you will drive 
 him away. 
 
XL 
 
 " IF THOU BE THE SON OF GOD, CAST THYSELF DOWN.' 
 
 That the devil eagerly makes use of our relation 
 to God, to move us the more readily to all kinds of 
 wicked compliances, is an acknowledged truth. 
 
 Has Satan learned, for instance, that you have 
 yet a sin that is dear to you, and which has not been 
 renounced and overcome; he brings you into circum- 
 stances which not only supply incentives to that sin, 
 but also the opportunity of indulging it. Then you 
 stand on the brink of a precipice. " Cast thyself 
 down," whispers the devil, " thou shalt escape." You 
 hesitate. He adds, "it is so pleasant below." You 
 are still reluctant. " Cast thyself down," he cries yet 
 louder. You tremble at the danger, and yet cannot 
 withdraw from the spot, and are as one enchanted. 
 "Cast thyself down," proceeds the wicked one: 
 " thou art a child of God ; thou canst again find 
 grace." He so speaks, and if God do not hold you 
 back, the leap is taken. 
 
 You are by nature of an irascible disposition. Some 
 one in your household disturbs you. You are greatly 
 stirred up to yield to anger and revenge, but you know 
 
56 ** IF THOU BE THE SON OF GOD, 
 
 not whether you dare. You are on the edge of a pit. 
 " Cast thyself down," cries the devil, " Thou art a 
 child of God, and between the children of God and 
 the world there should be no peace, but a sword and 
 division. (Matt. x. 34.) Give scope to thy passions." 
 Thus he counsels, and before he has spoken, you are 
 boiling, perhaps, with wrath, and heaping sin upon 
 sin. 
 
 You are in great straits, and are weary of life. 
 The devil sets you upon the top of your house, or 
 upon the edge of a cliff, or on the shore of the deep 
 sea. 0, how dreadful is your position ! " Cast thy- 
 self down," whispers the evil one. You are inclined 
 to do so, yet you shrink from such a plunge. " Why 
 dost thou linger ?" cries the tempter. " ' Cast thyself 
 down.' In the arms of death there is sweet repose, 
 and all suffering will cease. ' Cast thyself down.' Thou 
 standest by grace, and grace never is lost, even though 
 the mountains should depart and the hills be removed. 
 (Isa. liv. 10.) ' Cast thyself down.' Hasten to thy 
 home." Thus the serpent. — O frightful ! you waver — 
 you cast your eyes downward : the desire is great, the 
 impulse strong, the means before you ; and O ! if the 
 hand of divine mercy do not interpose to save you, 
 you rush into eternity. 
 
 Satan tempted the Lord Jesus, that he might, in a 
 way not approved of God, namely, by a voluntary leap 
 from the pinnacle of the temple, give evidence that he 
 was the Son of God. And thus also does he draw 
 near to believers. 
 
 Doubts are entertained as to your state of grace. He 
 whispers to you, *' Men hesitate to reckon you one of 
 the children of the kingdom. Prove to them what you 
 
CAST THYSELF DOWN." o7 
 
 are." Now it is high time to wield the sword of the 
 Spirit against the tempter, to meet him with the word, 
 "The Lord knoweth them that are his;" (2 Tim. 
 ii. 19.) and to let that suffice. 
 
 But in such circumstances some fall into grievous 
 errors. 
 
 One is guilty o^ shameful falsehood, inasmuch as he 
 boasts of spiritual experiences which he has not really 
 attained. 
 
 Another yields to crirninal impulses, since he 
 speaks of frames of mind, in his own case, which 
 God alone can produce, and which he does not 
 possess. 
 
 This man acts with scandalous dissimulation, whilst 
 he hypocritically arrogates to himself the anointing 
 which has not yet been granted him, even for a 
 moment. 
 
 That man is srained with black impurity, because he 
 endeavours to make men believe that the works which 
 he has done by his own act have been wrought in him 
 by the Spirit of God. 
 
 And what abominations can be greater in the eyes 
 of God than these ? 
 
 Well may the devil insultingly laugh, when he 
 succeeds in casting the children of God into such a 
 sink as this. 
 
 " Cast thyself down," said Satan, and would add 
 the reason, viz. that thereby he might carry forward 
 the purposes and the counsel of God. And earnestly 
 did he desire to excite in the mind of Jesus any 
 degree of impatience as to the slow progress of his 
 work of redemption. 
 
 D 3 
 
58 " IF THOU BE THE SON OF GOD, 
 
 And ! how gladly ivould he stir up in believers the 
 moliotis of impatience ; how eagerly does he spur them 
 on to self-imposed exercises, in order to perfect their 
 holiness, and urge them to endeavour, by rapid strides, 
 to mount to the highest step of the ladder in the at- 
 tainment of their individual glory. With what impor- 
 tunity does ho call to them to " leap down and choose 
 the shortest way;" for the base deceiver is well aware 
 that such a hurrying forwards is only a falling back, 
 since it is a turning away from the throne of grace 
 and the blood of the Lamb, and he knows that in £uch 
 ways, of our own choosing, no angels will bear us in 
 their hands, but that we shall only dash our feet against 
 the stones, and that we shall fall into darkness, pride, 
 and self-sufficiency. 
 
 Are they witnesses and ministers of the word whom 
 he thus deceives ? O, how doth he rejoice wheyi they 
 think the time long till God shall crovm their labours, 
 and how sedulously doth he cherish this impatience 
 in their souls, and with what delight doth he cry, 
 " Cast thyself down from the pinnacle of the temple." 
 And with what exultation doth he look on when they 
 obey his voice, and endeavour, with their own ^vild- 
 fire, to kindle the desires of the congregation, and 
 with fleshly tumult to excite the people, so to speak, 
 to take the kingdom of heaven by storm, and whilst 
 God doth it not, to gird themselves, to anoint and 
 equip themselves for the war. 
 
 This is a day of rejoicing to the devil, for he knows 
 that now at least he has succeeded, and that under 
 such dark and earthly impulses the Holy Ghost will 
 not make himself known. 
 
CAST THYSELF DOWN," 50 
 
 Those by whom the Lord will execute his purposes 
 ot" mercy are broken instruments, and are submissive 
 to the will of their God, and are cheerfully led and 
 directed by the Saviour. And this is as it should be. 
 Violence and precipitation can effect nothing in this 
 great work. 
 
 d4 
 
XII. 
 
 S'iTAN AUMED WITH TJIE AVOKD OF GOD. 
 
 " If tliou be the Son of God, cast thyself down." 
 So spake the devil to Jesus — a most difficult task. 
 
 But the children of God have dared to attempt 
 deeds of greater peril. Peter ventured, notwithstand- 
 ing its rage, to walk upon the stormy sea; (Matt. xiv. 
 29.) and the three children recorded in Daniel, en- 
 countered the burning fiery furnace; and they suffered 
 no injury. (Dan. iii. 27.) 
 
 In all things is it given in command to the angels of 
 God, to bear us up in their hands. They are attached 
 to us, as a body-guard and safe-conduct, on whose 
 guidance and protection, in all the way in which God 
 has commanded us to go, it is our privilege joyfully to 
 reckon. 
 
 Relying on that promise, Jesus might have cast him- 
 self from the pinnacle of the temple; but he did it not. 
 And why ? Because God had not expressly directed him. 
 Scarcely was the satanic suggestion made, when proba- 
 bly the divine promise presented itself to the soul of 
 Jesus. " No, thought the pure Lamb, for such self- 
 chosen way is the promise not given," and if Satan said, 
 
SATAN ARMED WITH THE WOKD OF GOD. 01 
 
 "The Lord will give liis angels cliarge concerning thee," 
 our Lord repelled him with weapons taken out of the 
 heavenly armoury of the word ; " Jesus said unto him, 
 it is written, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God ;" 
 and again was Satan vanquished. 
 
 But luhat is meant by tempting God ? It is that which 
 we have described, namely, voluntarily to go into danger, 
 thai God may deliver us. 
 
 To such unworthy courses would the devil endea- 
 vour to lead us, and for this purpose he has committed 
 to memory the most striking promises of God, that he 
 may take us by surprise. Therefore, when some word 
 of God is presented to us, to induce us to take some 
 daring step, let us ask, whether this word is suited to 
 our case, and whether we also have a warrant to rest 
 upon it in such circumstances. Thus it will become 
 clear, who has presented to us the word, and Satan 
 will not so easily seduce us. 
 
 If a man comes to you, and says, "Steer out into those 
 furiouvS breakers, and rescue a brother out of the surge, 
 for it is written, ' When thou passest through the 
 waters, I will be with thee ; and through the rivers, 
 they shall not overflow thee.' " (Isa. xliii. 2.) If he 
 says to you, " Go into that house on fire, and snatch 
 that screaming child out of the flames, for God has 
 said, * When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt 
 not be burned ; neither shall the flame kindle upon 
 thee.' " (Isa. xliii. 2.) Do you hear a voice within you, 
 saying, " Give to that poor hungry soul your last 
 penny, for it is written, ' Inasmuch as ye have done it 
 unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have 
 done it uqto me.' " (Matt. xxv. 40.) Then, my friend, 
 
62 SATAN ARMED WITH 
 
 gird yourself in the name of God, and do so. A good 
 angel speaks to you, and you may reasonably expect 
 all help. 
 
 But should another approach you, and say, " Come, 
 friend, into this or that gay society, for it is writ- 
 ten, ' He will keep the feet of his saints.'" (1 Sam. 
 ii. 9.) Is it said to you, " only go — venture it once — 
 take delight in it, without any care as to the conse- 
 quences, for it is written, ' he giveth to his beloved 
 sleeping.'" (Ps. cxxvii, 2. German version.) Then 
 know that it is a crafty devil, with whom you have to 
 do ; and answer him, " It is written, again, ' thou shalt 
 not tempt the Lord thy God.' " 
 
 There are many snares of the devil, such as these, 
 taken from the word of God. To this class belongs 
 that accursed temptation, by which he entices tis to 
 make trial of this or that divine declaration, v;hether it 
 holds good, and thus to bring under examination, as it 
 were, the faithfulness and truth of the Lord. 
 
 So once, for example, did a villanous device of his 
 succeed with three ministers of the word. He placed 
 before their eyes, the eighteenth chapter of Matthew 
 and twentieth verse, " Where two or three are gathered 
 together in my name, there am I in the midst of them;" 
 and then, that other passage in the preceding verse, 
 " Again, I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree 
 on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it 
 shall be done for them of my Father which is in hea- 
 ven;" and then he asked, " Is it indeed so?" " Ah," 
 thought the preachers, *' we will put it to the test;" 
 and they appointed an hour for the purpose of praying 
 that the Lord would personally appear. And they 
 
THE WORD OF GOD. G3 
 
 came together and prayed, " O Lord, manifest thyself. 
 Lord appear among us;" but he did not appear, and 
 the devil cried out " victory !" His mah'cious design 
 succeeded. Afterw^ards the Lord did indeed appear to 
 them, but in a very different manner from that which 
 they had expected. He became unto them as a moth, 
 and as a worm, (see Hos. v. 12. marginal reading,) 
 and to the end of their lives they received no more 
 light, nor joy, nor peace, and a spiritual decline took 
 place, which they could not avert. 
 
 May God in mercy preserve us from such attempts 
 to prove his faithfulness and truth ! 
 
 Let the least inclination of the kind, that moves 
 within us, be a token, that we are in an evil case, 
 and let us cry as loud and earnestly as we can, " It 
 is written, thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." 
 
 One of the common devices of Satan is, to shake, 
 if possible, our confidence in the word of God by means 
 of the word itself. Wonderful are the things which we 
 live to behold ! 
 
 He sets before us, at a glance, a multitude of un- 
 important things from the Bible. As that Paul wrote to 
 Timothy, desiring him to bring the cloak, which he 
 left at Troas, (2 Tim. iv. 13.) and many other circum- 
 stances equally trivial. And whilst he is holding them 
 before our view, he asks us, with malicious purpose, 
 " Are these words also inserted by the Spirit?" And 
 then immediately afterwards, " Is not then the whole 
 of the Bible inspired ?" And he proceeds further, 
 " What is from the Spirit, and what is not ?" And 
 then his conclusion — " The Bible is an unsafe foun- 
 dation. And indeed occasionally, by such jugglers' 
 artifices, he causes, for a moment at least, the whole 
 
G4 SATAN ARMED WITH 
 
 Bible-edifice to fall upon our heads, so that all is 
 uncertain and wavering for a time, till at last we 
 recover our recollection. 
 
 For the purpose of rendering suspected the v.'ord of 
 God, he not unfrequently makes a passage of Scrip- 
 ture stand prominently before our eyes, when some- 
 thing occurs in our life, which that word seems to falsify. 
 
 Are you lying, for example, almost in despair, in 
 great need and bitter trial, and help is as yet afar off? 
 it is probably that word, which he recalls to your 
 memory, " Like as a Father pitieth his children, so 
 the Lord pitieth them that fear him ;" (Ps. ciii. 13.) 
 and then with a fiendish grin, he asks, " Where then 
 is the Father, where is his pity, and why tarries this 
 boasted help?" And what would please the wicked 
 one better, than to pollute your soul with distrust, 
 impatience, and unbelief? 
 
 Whcnybr a long time you have been entreating some 
 mercy, and wrestling with God, be it for bread for your 
 hungry children, for counsel under some pressing em- 
 barrassment, or for some alleviation of your pain, or 
 a little comfort in the cup of your anxiety, and 
 you do not receive it — Satan is again near. " Be- 
 hold," says he, " is it not written," ' Whatsoever 
 ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the 
 Father may be glorified in the Son V (John xiv. L3.) 
 Now, pious worshipper, is your lap already full of the 
 gifts of God ?" So mocks the accursed one, and 
 truly, if the Lord hold not his hand over your faith, 
 you cannot escape these fiery darts unwounded. 
 
 The most dangerous method in which the devil uses 
 the word of God as a weapon against us, is this — He 
 dissevers single passages of Scripture from their connec- 
 
THK WORD OF GOD. 65 
 
 tion, and instead of interpreting them according to the 
 rule of faith, he presents them apart by themselves, 
 perverts their meaning, and endeavours to show them 
 to us in the same light. Here, certainly, if any where, 
 it is important to encounter him with the weapons 
 of the word, to enter with the sword of the Spirit 
 into the conflict. 
 
 " It is written," he says, " ' Where sin abounded, 
 grace did much more abound;' (Rom. v. 20.) there- 
 fore, let loose the reins, you have full liberty." Say to 
 him in reply, " It is written again, ' Shall we con- 
 tinue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid ! 
 How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer 
 therein?'" (Rom. vi. I, 2.) 
 
 " But," cries the devil, " It is written, ' It is no 
 more I that do it, but sin that dwelletli in me ;' (Rom. 
 vii. 17.) therefore, compose yourself, and be not so 
 distressed about your faults." Say to him in reply, 
 " It is also written," ' wretched man that I am, 
 who shall deliver me from the body of this death?* 
 (Rom. vii. 24.) The children of God mourn over their 
 sins," 
 
 " It is written," rejoins Satan, " * that it is not of him 
 that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God, that 
 sheweth mercy;' (Rom. ix. 16.) therefore, remain in 
 the world and in the enjoyment of pleasure, till God 
 call you." Let your answer be, " I know it, but ' it is 
 written again,' ' work out your own salvation with fear 
 and trembling, for it is God which worketh in you, 
 both to will and to do of his good pleasure.' " (Phil. ii. 
 12.) 
 
 The devil is not backward with a rejoinder — " It is 
 written," ' known unto God are all his works from the 
 
66 SATAN ARMED WITH THE AVORD OF GOD. 
 
 beginning of the world,' (Acts xv. 18.) therefore, de- 
 sist from your supplications and prayers, your portion 
 is assigned you ; whatever has been decreed to you, 
 you shall certainly receive." Give him this reply, " It 
 is written again, 'Ask and ye shall receive, for every 
 one that asketh, receiveth.' " (Luke xi. 9, 10.) 
 
 " But," says the dragon, " It is written," ' this is the 
 Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he 
 hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it 
 up again at the last day.' (John vi. 39.) Live then as 
 you like, and do whatsoever your heart desires. What 
 have you to do with Moses and his laws ? Your salva- 
 tion is secured for eternity." Thus cry to him, in 
 reply, " It is written again," ' My sheep hear my voice, 
 and I know them, and they follow me.' " (John x. 27.) 
 
 Behold, my brother, thus shouldest thou disarm the 
 devil, and in the strength of thy God triumph over 
 him, and make a shew of him openly. 
 
XIII. 
 
 THE MAGIC VISION. 
 
 The scene of action is changed. With the rapidity 
 of lightning was the Son of God hurried from the 
 pinnacle of the temple, and borne by magic power to 
 the summit of an exceeding high mountain, (ver. 8.) 
 Then did he, in mental vision, behold himself placed, as 
 it were, on the highest elevation of a lofty tower, and 
 a boundless prospect, filled with every charm and 
 dazzling beauty lay extended before his eyes in the 
 mirror of a wondrous manifestation. And what fol- 
 lowed ? 
 
 In a moment stand forth, within the circle of vision, 
 in brilliant relief, all the kingdoms of the world, with 
 all their glory, delights, and embellishments, in all 
 their alluring forms. Time and space have no longer 
 any limits. That which is distant draws nigh ; that 
 which was closed opens itself wide ; that which was 
 veiled is exposed to view ; and yet it was, as Luke 
 says, (Luke iv. 5,) in a moment of time — an unheard 
 of delusion of the senses ! 
 
 In this splendid picture, as it is probable, lay the 
 most lovely regions of the earth spread out before him, 
 and around him the most charming prospect of mag- 
 
68 THE MAGIC VISION. 
 
 nificent cities and gorgeous palaces — On this side 
 haughty Rome, the victorious mistress of the world, 
 and the ruler over a hundred kings ; on the other 
 side the spicy groves of the east, and the lovely rose- 
 gardens of Persia — Here Ophir, with its rich mines of 
 gold and of diamonds ; there India, that land of won- 
 ders, abounding with the varied charms of an unfading 
 spring, and flowing with milk and honey. 
 
 But not kingdoms merely and cities — yet other 
 things presented themselves to the view of Jesus. 
 
 Tlie devil showed him, besides the kingdoms of the 
 world, also their glory. 
 
 Whatever this world possesses that is attractive 
 and alluring, whatever delights the senses and com- 
 mands admiration, and whatever the children of the 
 world call their paradise and their heaven, at once 
 did he behold spread before him — Here towering 
 castles and pleasant villas, with their lawns and gar- 
 dens ; there chariots and horses, princely trains and 
 equipages — On one spot, galleries of the fine arts and 
 temples of wisdom ; on another, monuments of fame 
 and laurel-crowns of honour — Yonder, courtly society 
 in golden chambers ; nearer at hand the festive 
 throng, amid the alluring tones and seductive power of 
 symphony and song. In short, all that makes the 
 heart leap within the children of this world, and suf- 
 fuses the cheek, and causes the eyes to glisten with 
 joy and delight, passed then before the view of Jesus — 
 a picture that fixed and rivetted the attention ; and no 
 exhibition calculated to please and excite the feelings 
 would Satan at that time conceal from his sight. 
 
 Something similar to this do we also at times expe- 
 rience. Those, namely, among our brethren who pos- 
 
THE MAGIC VISION. 69 
 
 sess by nature a lively temperament, an easily excited 
 mind, and a strong imagination, can no doubt speak 
 of such magic visions. Such persons the devil is wont 
 especially to approach with snares like these, since 
 even their susceptible nature itself, and their quick sen- 
 sibilities, appear to him already to promise a certain 
 victory ; at least, he the more easily succeeds in car- 
 rying persons of this description to the summit of his 
 magic mountain. 
 
 For the purpose of effecting this, the tempter generally 
 makes use of outward means. Such means he finds, for 
 example, in the kingdom of the fine arts, in so far as they 
 are made subservient to the world and to sin. At one 
 time he makes use of an exquisite painting or beau- 
 tiful poem ; at another, of sweet and harmonious tones 
 or moving melody, in the midst of which he carries on 
 his enchantments. 
 
 So, for instance, is there often need only of some 
 chord, or single tone of a flute, to be wafted in tender 
 undulations from afar into the solitude of our quiet 
 chamber, where it is scarcely audible, and his magic has 
 already begun. As by the creating word of the Almigh- 
 ty, Satan produces in an instant before our view a para- 
 dise full of intoxicating joys, and the obstructing veil, 
 as it were, being removed, the eye roams abroad 
 through an earthly elysium. 
 
 The joys of our youth, of which we long had taken 
 leave, present themselves before us in the most attrac- 
 tive form ; and earthly pleasures which, perhaps, years 
 ago we had crucified and slain, appear to us again 
 in the most seductive shape and colouring. Here 
 hang crowns of perishable honour, but how highly 
 do we value them. There opens to our view the 
 
70 THE MAGIC VISION. 
 
 tumultuous assembly of worldly society and frivolous 
 intercourse ; but how many charms does this circle 
 again present to us ? The poor soul finds itself power- 
 fully drawn back. 
 
 Now open to our view the splendid halls of the 
 great, filled with sound and song, with stringed instru- 
 ments and the votaries of pleasure, reeling in the dance. 
 And again, the eye rolls over the deceitful rose-beds 
 of human art and sweet poetry. 
 
 In a word, all things that are beautiful and precious 
 which the world can offer, high in dignity and attrac- 
 tive in grace, as by a stroke of enchantment, stand 
 forth in living images and scenes in the mirror of our 
 imagination ; and however vain in themselves, and 
 worthless and pitiful, a magic spell is over them ; they 
 are seen in beauteous colouring and adornment, and 
 richest enamelling, as if we really looked into Para- 
 dise; and an ocean of sensibility, and languishing, 
 and desire begins in a moment, as we gaze at such a 
 spectacle, to move and to heave within our souls, as if 
 a storm were about to burst forth from their depths. 
 
 Behold ! it is at a moment like this that you are 
 standing upon the high enchanted mountain, and the 
 devil shows you all the kingdoms of the world and 
 their glory iti a moment of time. 
 
 And therefore it is, that the music of the present 
 day, as it is now constituted, is so dangerous a thing, 
 since the devil succeeds so easily in raising, by means 
 of it, the most sinful of the passions. 
 
 In the operas and concerts of this world does Satan 
 find a means of powerful enchantment, to make the 
 vain glory of the world to outshine that of heaven. 
 
 Experienced Christians have acknowledged that, for 
 
THE MAGIC VISION. 71 
 
 a moment at least, by means of sucli wicked and 
 worldly music, they have been so irresistibly hurried 
 along by the devil, as if under the influence of wine, 
 that they have regretted their departure from Egypt, 
 and have envied the children of this world, if not their 
 scenes of rioting and intemperance, at least their higher 
 and more refined pleasures. 
 
 Yes ; not unfrequently is this most efficacious of all 
 his artifices, one of the wings on which, by the power 
 of the tempter, we are transported to the summit of 
 that mountain whence the kingdoms of this world, and 
 the glory of them, pass before the eyes of our fancy in 
 a sea of light and golden vapour, and so charm and 
 captivate the senses, that the very elect would be de- 
 ceived and led aside, were it not that with his favour 
 doth the Lord compass them as with a shield. (Psalm 
 V. 12.) 
 
XIV'. 
 
 THE DARING PROPOSAL OF THE WICKED ONE. 
 
 At the very moment when the kingdoms of this 
 world and their glory lay before the eyes of Jesus, in 
 the glare and dazzling splendour of this wondrous vi- 
 sion, did Satan, laying aside his deceptive guise, make 
 known himself, and say, " All these things will I give 
 thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me." (Ver. 9.) 
 St. Luke says," All this power will I give thee, and the 
 glorv of them, for that is delivered unto me, and to 
 whomsoever I will, I give it. If thou, therefore, wiit 
 worship me, all shall be thine." (Luke iv. 6, 7.) He 
 claims all as his own — what daring presumption ! 
 
 And yet, alas ! here hath the Father of lies spoken 
 the truth. Through the sentence of a holy God the 
 world for which the great High Priest doth not pray, 
 has been made the portion of Satan. (John xvii. 9.) 
 He is their prince, (John xii. 31; xiv. 30; xvi. 11.) 
 their ruler, (Eph, vi. 12.) their Lord. (Isai. xxvi. 13. 
 1 Cor. viii. 5.) The great nations of the earth are his, 
 and the great bulk of mankind bear his yoke. The 
 inhabitants of this world pay him tribute, and on the 
 walls of their cities float his sable banners. Who 
 can number the countless millions whose souls he 
 
DARING PROPOSAL OF THE WICKED ONE. 73 
 
 holds in severest bondage, tied and bound with the 
 chains of sin and darkness, and in spiritual prisons and 
 cells, whether Mahometan or heathen, whether Jewish 
 or papistical, whether those of self-sufficient rationalism 
 or daring infidelity. 
 
 Yes, without any arrogant pretensions, was he able 
 to say, all these are mine. For the few who are not 
 his, those who are left as a lodge in a garden of cucum- 
 bers, (Isai. i. 8.) the worm Jacob, (Isai. xli. 14.) the 
 despised house of Israel, (Jer. xxxiii. 24.) all these 
 are lost, as nothing among the giant-cities of the fallen 
 prince of angels ; they are as the drop in the unfathom- 
 able ocean. 
 
 And what is there in the world, which the devil has 
 not seized and laid under contribution for the purpose 
 of extending and strengthening his kingdom ; what has 
 he not made subservient to the furtherance of his 
 wicked plans, especially in the present day? Has he not 
 already in his service the liberal sciences, and their 
 professors, the periodical press, associations, and assem- 
 blies in the great world ? Have not all these been readily 
 enlisted in his cause ? Who has turned the stream of 
 poetry into that flood of romance and drama, which 
 overflows the world with its thousand falsehoods and 
 ungodly imaginations ? Who acts so powerful a part in 
 the representation of opera, and in the wanton melo- 
 dies in which the powers of tone, which ought to be 
 employed in the praises of God, are perverted for the 
 destruction of souls, and to pour into the heart the 
 most subtile poison ? Who has pitched his camp among 
 the high-flown systems of new-fangled philosophy, and 
 from these bulwarks and bastions hurled his javelins 
 against the gospel of peace ? Who has raked up and 
 
 E 
 
74 THE DARING PROPOSAL 
 
 and exposed to public gaze that grovelling system of 
 the present day, that sweet and effeminate scheme of 
 ^Esthetics, a corrupt code opposed to the gospel of 
 Christ, and which, as an intoxicating potion, drowns 
 the souls of men in a fatal slumber, from which, it is 
 to be feared, they will awake, alas ! only by the thun- 
 ders of the judgment ? Is it not the father of lies, the 
 old serpent, the dragon from the bottomless pit? 
 
 And let no one be surprised that satan speaks of a 
 gift which is actually in his own power — " All these 
 things tvill I give thee, if thou M'ilt fall down and wor- 
 ship me." 
 
 There are favours conferred bi/ ike ivichedone, as there 
 are blessings from heaven, and the world swarms with 
 those who are indebted to him for their enjoyments 
 and honours, their titles and distinctions. Yes, he 
 has his gold, and his rewards for those who thus follow 
 his banners, and know that their zeal in his service will 
 be repaid in many ways ; and not unfrequently does 
 God permit these reprobate men so exceedingly to in- 
 dulge in the pomps and pleasures of this wicked world, 
 and they so feast and fatten in the rich pastures of 
 fleshly enjoyments, that at length the last trace of 
 man is lost in these vessels of wrath, and they go 
 down like beasts into hell. 
 
 " All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall 
 down and worship me." Thus spake the tempter to 
 our Lord. That the Son of the living God should 
 bow the knee in worship to the old serpent ! Oh, it is 
 the most daring, the most frightful proposition that 
 ever has been made. Indeed, it seems as if it were the 
 advice of a maniac, utterly inconsistent with the craft, 
 and subtlety, and unworthy the giant intellect of the 
 
OF THE WICKED ONE. 75 
 
 prince of darkness. But let any one examine the 
 critical situation in which Satan was then placed, and 
 his shameless accursed suggestion will cease to be a 
 matter of surprise. 
 
 The mask is now laid aside, for the devil conjec- 
 tures, with increasing assurance, who it is that stands 
 before him. The glorious triumphs which, notwith- 
 standing his most subtle devices, our Lord had already 
 achieved over him, left him scarcely the shadow of a 
 doubt that Jesus was the Christ. 
 
 Irritated to the utmost, by the failure of his plots 
 against the great opposer of his kingdom, and moved 
 no less by the danger which threatened his dominion 
 over the souls of men, he meditated, in hatred and rage, 
 a last and decisive stroke ; but reflection was now 
 chained by the power of passion, and all prudence and 
 discretion were swallowed up in the fiery waves of 
 distracting doubt, which rolled throngh his soul in 
 wild and horrible confusion. 
 
 When he became certain as to the person of his an- 
 tagonist, and not till then, did Satan perceive, in its 
 full extent, the great and vital importance of the con- 
 flict ; and it was not concealed from him that one 
 or other of them must fall. 
 
 Nevertheless, his last attack, however great the 
 skill and power which he had hitherto displayed, is 
 the most ill contrived of all, and with the desperation 
 and impetuosity of a warrior who has given up all as 
 lost, he rushes blindly upon his adversary, and is 
 transfixed by his sword. 
 
 This blow, which Sata?i now aimed against Jesus, 
 was the last effort of desperation ; by which we per- 
 ceive, that relinquishing the endeavour to ensnare 
 
76 THE DARING PROPOSAL 
 
 the Son of God, and drive Him from the field, which 
 was now evidently hopeless, he meant oftensively to in- 
 timate, by a contemptuous blow, as it were, with the 
 foot, that Jesus must not suppose He could compel all 
 His enemies to bow their necks before Him. 
 
 With such desperate intentions, and foaming with 
 fury, the devil began his magic jugglery, placed his en- 
 chanted mirror before the eyes of Christ, displayed to his 
 view one sight after another of the most lovely regions of 
 the earth, and their glory; and cried to him with grin- 
 ning scorn and wild satanic derision, " Behold all 
 these things: these delights and enjoyments shall be 
 thine, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Away 
 then, take the rich booty. Down in the dust, and do 
 homage to thy Lord and Master." 
 
 The supposition may also be entertained, that from 
 the circumstance of our Lord's refusing to give him the 
 desired evidence, Satan had come to the conclusion that 
 Jesus was not the incarnate Son of God, but only a great 
 saint, yet still a man, against whom, as such, he 
 might, unmasked, press other suggestions, more bold 
 and gross. 
 
 This Satanic suggestion was, as has been said, an 
 act of desperation, and more an outbreak of vicious 
 rage and satanic scorn than a temptation. 
 
 Believers also have frequently the same to suffer from 
 the devil which their Master encountered in the wilder- 
 ness, whilst he tempts them with the most abominable 
 propositions, and infuses such blasphemous and de- 
 testable thoughts into their souls, that they shudder 
 at their enormity. 
 
 But be comforted and undismayed, ye oppressed 
 souls. That the wicked one thus buffets and spurns 
 
OF THE WICKED ONE. 77 
 
 you, arises from pure vexation and disappointment, 
 that he is not able to swallow you up. Look upon 
 these temptations as the revengeful vapouring of a 
 powerless enemy, who, since he cannot prevail with 
 sword and sling, throws mire and filth, to irritate 
 you, at least; and if he cannot succeed by other 
 means, endeavours, in this way, to give vent to his 
 raire. 
 
 e2 
 
XV. 
 
 THE ISSUE OF THE CONFLICT. 
 
 Scarcely had Jesus received the blasphemous 
 counsel — scarcely had he glanced into the mirror of 
 earthly glory and pleasure, which the devil had the 
 insolence to hold before him — when it was fully mani- 
 fest with whom he had to do. " These are thy pos- 
 sesions, thy kingdoms," thought he, " and thou re- 
 quirest to be worshipped ? Thou art detected, thou 
 foul spirit, the mask is fallen oiF, I know thee." 
 
 With horror and disgust, the pure soul of the great 
 High Priest turned away from the images of vanity 
 and lust which Satan had conjured up before him. 
 He grasped the iron shield of the word of God, against 
 which all the fiery darts of the wicked one are 
 quenched, and spake with the majesty of the first-born, 
 to whom is given all power, both in heaven and in 
 earth — " Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, thou 
 shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt 
 thou serve." (ver. 10.) Then did not the devil dare a 
 a second time to arrogate to himself divine honour — 
 he was stricken to the ground — the battle was ended ; 
 and the Lamb of God stood pure, without spot, victo- 
 
THE ISSUE OF THE CONFLICT. 70 
 
 rious — the triumph achieved. With the sword of the 
 Spirit, the written word — in the obedience of faith — 
 did Jesus lay the dragon completely in the dust. 
 
 The temptation over jvhich our Lord here came off 
 victorious, not unfrequently is presented to his beloved 
 children. 
 
 We have already remarked how Satan is able some- 
 times to show us, in his magic mirror, the kingdoms 
 of this world, and the glory of them, in a moment of 
 time. O yes ; even the most holy upon earth must 
 be conscious, that in the experience of the children of 
 God, either hours or moments may sometimes occur, 
 when the enjoyments and seductive allurements which 
 they supposed to have been long before, by the grace 
 of God, utterly dead, are again exhibited in the 
 most attractive light before the eye of their ima- 
 gination. Then does the sea of their senses and de- 
 sires become impetuous and raging, and Satan leaves 
 nothing untried, that he may drown the poor soul in 
 this flood. 
 
 At such moments it is said to us quickly, unex- 
 pectedly, before we can recollect ourselves, *' All this 
 will I give thee if thou fall down and worship me." 
 Behold, we have only to do some little thing to gain 
 all those golden mountains; it is only a little turning 
 aside, of which, perhaps, no man may be aware ; 
 only a momentary prostration before the tempter ; only 
 a transient homage, and all is ours. 
 
 And 0, my beloved, David and Solomon are not the 
 only ones among the children of God who have been 
 guilty of such a fall, that they might once more drink 
 of the intoxicating cup of earthly pleasure. 
 
 Yet, in whatever way these falls may have taken 
 
80 THE ISSUE OF THE COXFLICT. 
 
 place, we feel deeply for our brethren who have been 
 so surprised, and we contemn them not. No, we do 
 not despise them ; for we know our hearts, and are 
 aware what we are, and how the tempter can paint 
 the world so beautifully before the eyes of man, and 
 give such enchanting colouring to its vanities. We 
 are aware of this, and our prayer is, every moment, 
 " Lead us not into temptation."' 
 
 The wicked one, indeed, cannot be concealed when 
 he draws near to us with such visions and shame- 
 less propositions. The enjoyments and treasures which 
 he presents to us, and describes so glowingly, and the 
 means wliich he proposes, by which we may become 
 possessed of the same, betray him. 
 
 In such temptations as these he approaches us, not as 
 an angel of light, but without the mask, and boldly. 
 We then soon know who is our adversary, and this 
 renders the struggle more easy. 
 
 We cannot, indeed, retire from the scene of conflict 
 unwounded as Jesus ; and seldom, without any motions 
 of sinful inclination, can we withdraw from the sight 
 of those seducing enchantments. And well is it for us 
 if we only escape before that lust hath conceived and 
 brought forth sin, (James i. 15.) and if unscathed, we 
 can quit the field. 
 
 The loeapons iv'ith wkich our Lord so easily repelled 
 the last onset of the tempter are ours also, under similar 
 circumstances — " It is written, thou shalt worship the 
 Lord thy God, and liim only shaltthou serve." 
 
 This word, when uttered in faith against the devil, 
 will break his strongest darts, as though they were 
 stubble. And as often as he sees this armour flashing 
 upon our breasts, his hopes will languish, and he can 
 
THE ISSUE OF THE CONFLICT. 81 
 
 only attempt to move us to do him reverence, and 
 fall down for a moment at his feet. 
 
 " Then the devil leaveth hitn, atid behold angels came 
 and ministered unto him." (ver. 11.) This was the ter- 
 mination of this great and most important conflict ; 
 and never has Satan fled from any field of battle 
 with such feelings of discomfiture ; never has he, 
 with a soul so torn and distracted, quitted an antagonist 
 as at that time he must have left the fearful opponent 
 of his kingdom. For to be so bruised upon the head, 
 and to be compelled to lay down his weapons with so 
 much shame, was as insupportable as it was strange 
 to him. (Gen. iii. 15.) 
 
 As a dark cloud of the night, which the stormy 
 wind drives, he hurried away, his fiery eyes rolling in 
 desperation, and gnashing his teeth ; and gladly would 
 he cry to the mountains and hills to fall upon him, 
 and cover him both from heaven and hell, that 
 he might not hear the triumph of the angels over 
 him, nor be upbraided by the hollow murmurings and 
 howling cries of the spirits of hell at such a shameful 
 overthrow. 
 
 But our Lord is safe. O how pleasing must it have 
 been for him, after having been left, most fearfully, 
 forty days, with the powers of darkness ; (for Luke tells 
 us, ch. iv. 2, that he is forty days tempted of the 
 devil,) now suddenly to find himself in his own element 
 again amid the blessed angels of God, who had come to 
 pay their homage, and to minister to the mighty con- 
 queror. 
 
 Then was fulfilled that which, in prophetic antici- 
 pation, the dying Jacob spake, " Judah is a lion's 
 whelp; from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he 
 
82 THE ISSUE OF THE CONFLICT. 
 
 Stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old 
 lion ; who shall rouse him up ? (Gen, xlix. 9.) 
 
 Yet this cessatio7i from strife was not the end of the 
 battle, hut onhj a short respite. Satan, says Luke, de- 
 parted from him for a season. (Luke iv. 13.) It was 
 not long before he again stood before Jesus in full 
 array, in the plain, and he continued to follow him 
 with his slings and other missiles, till the great Samp- 
 son vanquished him by his own death on Golgotha, 
 and tore for ever the sceptre from his hands. (Judges 
 xvi. 30; Col.ii. 15.) 
 
 When the blood of the Lamb of God stained the 
 accursed tree, then was the head of the serpent 
 bruised according to the promise. (Gen. iii. 15.) 
 
 Our life, also, beloved children of the cross, will prove 
 a scene of coiiflict even to the end. Days of repose 
 and rejoicing will not be wanting to us in the wilder- 
 ness, but the full unbroken Sabbath awaits us in the 
 heavenly Canaan, in that rest which remaineth to the 
 people of God. (Heb. iv. 9.) 
 
 As long as we dwell in these pilgrim-tents, the devil 
 will not suffer his sword to rest in the scabbard — the 
 roaring lion will not cease to go about seeking whom 
 he may devour. 
 
 And when he shall cease to triumph over us, yet 
 will he not desist from his attempts, nor suffer his 
 wrath to cool ; but, by buffeting and otherwise as- 
 saulting us, he will cause us to feel his hatred and his 
 scorn. But let us not fear. " Thanks be to God," we 
 may joyfully exclaim with St. Paul, " Thanks be to 
 God, which giveth us the victory, through our Lord 
 Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. xv. 57.) 
 
 The victories of our Surety are all ours throwjh 
 
THE ISSUE OF THE CONFLICT. 83 
 
 faith. We have already triumplied before the con- 
 flict — and when also the dust of our strife with the 
 powers of darkness covers the battle-field, and the 
 fiery darts by thousands hiss around our heads, even 
 when we fall in death, we remain victorious, and be- 
 come more than conquerors through him that hath 
 loved us. 
 
 Thrice blessed truth ! inestimable faith ! Whoso- 
 ever walketh by this faith, his courage will never fail, 
 and though he may fall in the struggle, yet shall he 
 rise again, and stand erect, for the Lord upholdeth 
 him with his hand. (Ps. xxxvii. 24 ; Micah vii. 8.) 
 
 " Happy art thou, O Israel : who is like unto thee, 
 O people saved by the Lord, the shield of thy help, 
 and who is the sword of thy excellency! and thine 
 enemies shall be found liars unto thee, and thou 
 shalt tread upon their high places." (Deut. xxxiii. 29.) 
 
 FINIS. 
 
 J. Dennett, Union Buildings, Leather Lane. 
 
• Just published, 
 BY THE SAME AUTHOR, 
 In 12iuo. neatly clone up in cloth boards, and lettered, 2s. 6d. 
 
 A GLANCE 
 
 INTO 
 
 THE KINGDOM OF GRACE. 
 
 Translated from the German, 
 BY THE REV. MAXIMILIAN GENESTE, M.A. 
 
 Also, 
 
 BY THE REV. G. U. KRUMMACIIEH, OF ELBEKFELD, 
 
 Fourth edition, ]2mo. cloth boards and lettered, 6s. 
 
 ISRAEL'S WANDERINGS 
 
 IN THE 
 
 WILDERNESS. 
 
 From the German, 
 BY THE TRANSLATOR OF " ELIJAH THE TISHBITE." 
 
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