Suffered these things? fays our Lord himself, Luke xxiv. 26. However innocent he was in himself; yet our fins, which were laid upon him, deferved to be thus treated; and therefore he, as our Surety, who had the guilt of the world lying upon him, fays, Pfal. Ixix. 5. O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my wickedness is not bid from thee: Thefe are the words of Chrift, of whom David was a type. He had enough of fin imputativly; and our fins had never been expiated, our judge never atoned, our fouls never faved, our state never fecured, juftice never fatisfied, the bond never cancelled, if the fword had not awaked against him. Ought he not then to have fuffered the ftroak of the fword? Yea, he gave his oath for it to his Father from eternity; and all the promifes, prophecies, types, and facrifices of old pointed out this. God was ready to come down with fury in his heart, and red-hot ' thunder-bolts in his hand, to fink all mankind to hell and ought not Chrift to fuffer and interpofe? yea, glory to God, that he did. But more particularly,

1. The Lord of hofts, the Rector of the universe, defigned by this method to rectify what was out of course, by the fin of man, and to bring all things to rights. By the fall, the univerfal frame fuffered a convulfion: the covenant of works was broken; the devil was reigning and raging in the earth; and all the honour of God's workmanfhip, in the first creation, was like to be loft. Now, the fupreme Rector comes with the fword of justice to rectify thefe diforders, by drenching his fword in the blood of his eternal Son. Was the covenant of works broken? behold here is the condition of it fulfilled, by his active and passive obedience; yea, both the two covenants of works, and of grace, were at once fulfilled in his obedience to the death: this is the proper condition of each of thefe covenants.Was the devil reigning and raging on the earth? Behold! by this blow of juftice's fword, given to Chrift, the devil and all our fpiritual enemies are destroyed; For this caufe was the Son of God manifefted, that he might destroy the works of the

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devil. Hence, when Chrift is lifted up upon the cross, receiving the firoak of juftice's fword, it is faid, Now is the judgment of this world; now is the prince of this world caft out, John xii. 31. By death he deftroyed him that had the power of death; that is, the devil. By the bruise of his heel, his human nature, he broke the ferpent's head, and his power.-Again, was all the honour and beauty of God's workmanship like to be loft? Behold, the man that is God's Fellow, sustaining the ftroak of Jehovah's fword, restores all; Pfal. Ixix. 4. Then restored I that which I took not away. What was taken away? why, the devil, Adam, and Eve took away the glory due to God, the obedience due to the law, and the happiness that belonged to man in his first creation. Well, fays Chrift, it is much to bring them all back again; but I will do it, though I took them not away, I will restore to man his happinefs; he has loft the favour of God, I will restore it in juftification; he has loft the image of God, I will restore it in regeneration; he has loft the fellowship of God, I will restore it, being God's Fellow: I will bring them to fellowship with God, by fuftaining the ftroak of the fword which they should have sustained for ever. I will restore to the law its due obedience; yea, I will magnify the law and make it honourable, by my obedience to it, in fo much that the Lord of hofts fhall be well pleased for my righteousness fake; and fo I will restore to God the honour and glory that he loft by the fin of man. And this leads to a

2. Reason, why the Lord of hofts made the fword of justice to awake and fmite his Shepherd, the man that is his Fellow? Why, that thus he might get all his divine attributes glorified to the higheft. Glory to God in the higheft, was the fong of angels when he appeared in our nature, to receive this awful ftroak. God's honour was not more impaired and embezzeled by the fin of man, that it was reftored and repaired by the death of Chrift. If all mankind, and all the angels with them, had fallen a facrifice to the fword of divine justice, it could not have repaired the honour of God for one fin: though they had all been offered

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up in one whole burnt-offering, it could not have fatisfied infinite justice; yea, though they had all been damned in hell, to all eternity, juftice could never have got full fatisfaction. But here is justice glorified to the highest; By one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are fanctified; and at the fame time vindictated the spotlefs holiness and rightcoufnefs of God, that it may be known that God is holy and juft, who will needs avenge fin in his own Son, the holy and innocent Cautioner, when he interpofes in the finner's room. This is the declared design of God's awakening the Sword of justice against Christ; Rom. iii. 25. Whom God hath fet forth to be a propitiation for fin, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Fefus. If God had exacted the fatisfaction of the finners themfelves, by fending them to hell, it might have declared his justice and righteousness much; but here it is more gloriously declared, and glorified to the highest for, if we confider Chrift in himself, and the elect in themselves, his death and fufferings are more than if all the elect had fuffered eternally in hell. Here is mercy alfo and free grace glorified to the highest, while the finner is liberate and not put to pay the debt in his own perfon. Here is divine power glorified to the higheft; in the crucifying Chrift, whom the power of God fupported under that load of wrath that would have crushed ten thousand worlds. Here is wisdom glorified to the higheft; The manifold wisdom of God, that there fhould be two natures, yet but one perfon; that mercy fhould be fully magnified, and yet juftice fully fatisfied; that fin fhould be punished, and yet the finner unpunished; that the finner fhould eicape, and yet God fhould take vengeance upon fin. O the wisdom of God in a mystery!

3. Reason why the Lord of hofts ordered the fword of justice to awake and fmite the Shepherd, the man that is his Fellow; it was even for the honour of the Shepherd, and the glory of the Man his Fellow. God defigned that for his fuffering of death, he fhould be crowned with glory and honour, Heb. ii. 9. That for H 2

his humbling himself, and becoming obedience to the death, he fhould be highly exalted above all, and have a name above every name, Phil. ii. 9. That for drinking of the brook in the way, he should lift up his head; that after he had drunk of the brook of divine wrath in our room, he should lift up his head above all principalities and powers, and have all power in heaven and earth given to him, and a number of elect to praise him for ever. O it is a wonderful thing to think, what he gave and what he got! What gave he? His body, his foul, his blood, his life: What got he? Even fome of the black, ugly race of Adam to embrace him he makes his foul an offering for fin, and then he fees his feed, he fees the travel of his foul, and is fatisfied. He thinks all his pains well beftowed, when he gets his bride in his arms. O here is love! behold incarnate love! bleeding love! dying love! Shall not this glorious Lover be exalted of God for ever, and exalted by all the redeemed with the highest praises, for opening his breast to receive the wound of the awakened fword of juftice? yea, more, the fong will be, Worthy, worthy is the Lamb that was flain. Thou waft flain, and haft redeemed us to God by thy blood. And this leads to the

4. And laft reafon, why the fword of justice was ordered to awake and fmite the Shepherd, the man that is God's Fellow, viz. That a fountain of blood might be opened for the benefit of the fheep. The Shepherd was fmitten with the fword of juftice, that the ftroak might open a fountain for the watering of the fheep: Zech. xiii, 1. There fhall be a fountain opened for fin and for uncleanness. A fountain for watering and washing of the fheep. And how is it to be opened? even with the sword of justice; Awake, O favord, against the man, My Fellow. Now, the Shepherd's blood, fhed by the fword of juftice, is for the benefit of the sheep many ways: Why?

(1.) It is peace-fpeaking blood; it fpeaks better things. than the blood of Abel: It fpeaks peace and reconciliation with God, which is founded upon the blood of Chrift: this is the wine that cheers the heart of God

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and man. The justice of God took a drink of this blood till it was cheered and fatisfied; and when the foul of the finner gets a drink of this blood, O but this red wine rejoices his heart.

(2.) It is heart-cleansing blood; the blood of the Shepherd, fhed by the sword of justice, is for the washing of the fheep; The blood of Chrift cleanfes from all fin. It cleanses meritoriously from the guilt of fin, in juftification; it cleanfes efficacioufly from the filth of fin, in fanctification: it cleanses only; for no means, no duties, no tears, no prayers, no fermon, no facrament, no ordinances, no communion-table, will cleanfe you from fin, but only the blood of Christ. It cleanfes infallibly; for all the devils in hell, and all the evils in the heart, shall not be able to mar the efficacy of this blood, if it be sprinkled on you by the hand of the Spirit. The whole company that are standing about the throne, have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

(3.) This blood, which the fword of juftice draws from the Shepherd, is healing blood; for the healing of his fheep: By his ftripes we are healed. Were your diseases never fo defperate, here is a healing medicine for them: it can heal the hardness of the heart; They fhall look on him whom they have pierced and mourn: Ít can heal the barren foil of the heart, and turn it to a fertile ground; Hof. xiv. 6. From me is thy fruit found: from my Spirit, as the efficient; and from my blood, . as the procuring caufe.

(4.) It is a fweet-fmelling blood; it has a fweet-fmelling favour in the noftrils of the Lord of hofts; and perfumes the prayers and duties of the believer; We are accepted only in the Beloved. Our perfons, our prayers, our preaching, our communicating, would all ink, unless they be dipt in the blood of the Lamb.

(5.) This blood of the Surety, fhed by the fword of justice, is bliss-purchafing blood; and one of the grand bleffings purchased is the Holy Ghoft: the Spirit is one of the greatest inftances of the love of God in Christ, Whenever Adam finned, the holy Spirit

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