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carnal ordinances, ceremonies, shadows, and beggarly ele ments, upon the coming of Christ, and the pouring out of the Spirit in the days of the apostles. The church of Christ, in the times of the Old Testament, was in its minority, and was a babe; and the apostle tells us that babes must be fed with milk, and not with strong meat; but when God weaned his church from these carnal ordinances, on the ceasing of the legal dispensation, a glorious gospel feast was provided for souls, and God fed his people with spiritual dainties, and filled them with the Spirit, and gave them joy in the Holy Ghost. Ishmael, in mocking at the time of Isaac's feast, by the apostle's testimony, represented the carnal Jews, the children of - the literal Jerusalem, who, when they beheld the rejoicings of Christians, in their spiritual and evangelical privileges, were filled with envy, deriding, contradicting and blaspheming..... Acts ii. 13, and chap. xiii. 45, and xviii. 6. And therefore were cast out of the family of Abraham, and out of the land of Canaan, to wander through the earth. 2. This weaning of Isaac seems also to represent the conversion of sinners, which is several times represented in scripture by the weaning of a child; as in Psal. cxxxi, and Isa. xxviii. 9. Because in conversion, the soul is weaned from the enjoyments of the world, which are as it were the breast of our mother earth; and is also weaned from the covenant of our first parents, which we as naturally hang upon, as a child on its mother's breasts: And the great feast that Abraham made on that occasion, represents the spiritual feast, the heavenly privileges, and holy joys and comforts, which God gives souls at their conversion. Now is a time when God is in a remarkable manner bestowing the blessings of such a feast. Let every one take heed that he does not now shew himself to be the son of the bond woman, and born after the flesh, by standing and deriding, with mocking Ishmael; lest they be cast out as he was, and it be said concerning them, these sons of the bond woman, shall not be heirs with the sons of the free woman. Do not let us stumble at the things that have been, because they are so great and extraordinary; for if we have run with the footmen, and they have wearied us, how shall we contend VOL. III. X

with horses? There is doubtless a time coming when God will accomplish things vastly greater and more extraordinary

than these.

And that we may be warned not to continue doubting and unbelieving, concerning this work, because of the extraordina ry degree of it, and the suddenness and swiftness of the accomplishment of the great things that pertain to it, let us consider the example of the unbelieving lord in Samaria; who could not believe so extraordinary a work of God to be accomplished so suddenly as was declared to him: The prophet Elisha foretold that the great famine in Samaria should very suddenly, even in one day, be turned into an extraordinary plenty; but the work was too great, and too sudden for him to believe; says he, If the Lord should make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And the curse that he brought upon himself by it, was that he saw it with his eyes, and did not eat thereof, but miserably perished, and was trodden down as the mire of the streets, when others were feasting and rejoicing. 2 Kings, chap. 7.

When God redeemed his people from their Babylonish captivity, and they rebuilt Jerusalem, it was, as is universally owned, a remarkable type of the spiritual redemption of God's church; and particularly, was an eminent type of the great deliverance of the Christian church from spiritual Babylon, and their rebuilding the spiritual Jerusalem, in the latter days; and therefore they are often spoken of under one by the prophets: And this probably was the main reason that it was so ordered in providence, and particularly noted in scripture, that the children of Israel, on that occasion, kept the greatest feast of tabernacles, that ever had been kept in Israel, since the days of Joshua, when the people were first settled in Canaan; (Neh. viii, 16, 17) because at that time happened that restoration of Israel, that had the greatest resemblance of that great restoration of the church of God, of which the feast of tabernacles was the type, of any that had been since Joshua first brought the people out of the wilderness, and settled them in the good land. But we read of some that opposed the Jews in that affair, and weakened their hands, and

ridiculed God's people, and the instruments that were improved in that work, and despised their hope, and made as though their confidence was little more than a shadow, and would utterly fail them: What do these feeble Jews? (say they) Will they fortify themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they make an end in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? Even that which they build, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. Let not us be in any measure like them, lest it be said to us, as Nehemiah said to them, Neh. ii, 20. « We his servants will arise and build; but you have no portion, nor right, nor memorial in Jerusalem." And least we bring Nehemiah's imprecation upon us, chap. iv. 5. « Cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee; for they have provoked thee to anger, before the builders.

As persons will greatly expose themselves to the curse of God, by opposing, or standing at a distance, and keeping silence at such a time as this; so for persons to arise, and readily to acknowledge God, and honor him in such a work, and cheerfully and vigorously to exert themselves to promote it, will be to put themselves much in the way of the divine blessing, What a mark of honor does God put upon those in Israel, that willingly offered themselves, and came to the help of the Lord against the mighty, when the angel of the Lord led forth his armies, and they fought from heaven against Sisera? Judg. v. 2, 9, 14, 15, 17, 18. And what a great blessing is pronounced on Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite, for her appearing on the Lord's side, and for what she did to promote this work? ver. 24. Which was no less than the curse pronounced in the preceding verse, against Meroz, for lying still: Blessed above women, shall Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite be, blessed shall she be above women, in the tent. And what a blessing is pronounced on those which shall have any hand in the destruction of Babylon, which was the head city of the kingdom of Satan, and of the enemies of the church of God? Psal. cxxxvii. 9, "Happy shall he be, that taketh, and dasheth thy little ones against the stones." What a particular and honorable notice is taken, in

the records of God's word, of those that arose, and appeared as David's helpers, to introduce him into the kingdom of Is rael, in the xiith chap. of 1 Chron. The host of those that thus came to the help of the Lord, in that work of his, and glorious revolution in Israel, by which the kingdom of that great type of the Messiah was set up in Israel, is compared to the host of God, ver. 22. "At that time, day by day, there came to David, to help him, until it was a great host, like the host of God." And doubtless it was intended to be a type of that host of God, that shall appear with the spiritual David, as his helpers, when he shall come to set up his king. dom in the world; the same host that we read of, Rev. xix. 14. The Spirit of God then pronounced a special blessing on David's helpers, as those that were coworkers with God, ver. 18. "Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the captains, and he said, thine are we David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse; peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers, for thy God helpeth thee. So we may conclude that God will much more give his blessing to such as come to the help of the Lord, when he sets his own dear Son as king on his holy hill of Zion; and they shall be received by Christ, and he will put peculiar honor upon them, as David did on those his helpers; as we have an account, in the following words, ver. 18. "Then David received them, and made them captains of the band." It is particularly noted of those that came to David to Hebron, ready armed to the war, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him, according to the word of the Lord, that "They were men that had understand. ing of the times, to know what Israel ought to do." ver. 23 and 32. Herein they differed from the Pharisees and other Jews, that did not come to the help of the Lord, at the time that the great son of David appeared to set up his kingdom in the world, whom Christ condemns, that they had not understanding of those times, Luke xii. 56. "Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky, and of the earth; but how is it, that ye do not discern these times? So it always will be, when Christ remarkably appears on earth, on a design of setting up his kingdom here, there will be many that will not understand

the times, nor what Israel ought to do, and so will not come to turn about the kingdom to David.

The favorable notice that God will take of such as appear to promote the work of God, at such a time as this, may also be argued from such a very particular notice being taken in the sacred records; of those that helped in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, upon the return from the Babylonish captivity. Nehem. chap. iii.

At such a time as this, when God is setting his king on his holy hill of Zion, or establishing his dominion, or shewing forth his regal glory from thence, he expects that his visible people, without exception, should openly appear to acknowl edge him in such a work, and bow before him, and join with him. But especially does he expect this of civil rulers : God's eye is especially upon them, to see how they behave themselves on such an occasion. If a new king comes to the throne, when he comes from abroad, and enters into his kingdom, and makes his solemn entry into the royal city, it is expected that all sorts should acknowledge him; but above all others is it expected that the great men, and public officers of the nation should then make their appearance, and attend on their sovereign, with suitable congratulations, and manifestations of respect and royalty: If such as these stand at a distance, at such a time, it will be much more taken notice of, and will awaken the prince's jealousy and displeasure much more, than such a behavior in the common people. And thus it is, when the eternal Son of God, and heir of the world, by whom kings reign, and princes decree justice, whom his Father has appointed to be king of kings, comes as it were from far, and in the spiritual tokens of his presence, enters into the royal city Zion; God has his eye at such a time, especially upon those princes, nobles, and judges of the earth, spoken of Prov. viii. 16, to see how they behave themselves, whether they bow to him, that he has made the head of all principality and power. This is evident by the 2d Psalm ver. 6,7, 10,11, 12. "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree; the Lord hath said unto me, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee. Be

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