bound his sacred temples with a crown of thorns; now this was not only extremely painful, as we have observed above, but likewise implied a most abusive mockery. For, by this thorny wreath, the soldiers ironically signified, that Christ had deserved no better by his extraordinary atchievements, &c.

2. They put on him a purple mantle, or a scarlet robe. Every common soldier among the Romans anciently wore a mantle or upper garment over his whole armour. But the colour of this robe, which according to St. Matthew was scarlet, and, according to St. Mark and St. John, purple, sufficiently shewed that it had belonged to none of the common soldiers, but to some general officer. Now purple, under which general name scarlet was also comprehended, was a colour used only by kings and of the highest distinction. Thus the soldiers intended a further insult on the kingly dignity of our blessed Saviour, by clothing him in an old cast-off robe that had belonged to some person of distinction, as Herod had before clothed him in a gorgeous robe.

persons

3. Instead of a sceptre or truncheon, which the generals among the Romans also usually bore, they put a reed in his hand; to denote that his kingdom, which he boasted of before Pilate, and which St. Paul justly terms a kingdom which cannot be moved, (Heb. xii. 28.) was a weak and unstable kingdom, and that for his subjects to expect any protection from him was to lean on a broken reed,' (Isa. xxxvi. 6.)

4. After the soldiers had thus dressed him up as a mock-king, they bow the knee before him, pretending to him homage, according to the custom of the Orientals, &c. when they approached sovereign prin

ces.

These insulting mockeries were accompanied with ridiculing words and taunting reflections, which were likewise levelled at Christ's kingly dignity. For as the Romans used to say to their emperors, Hail Cesar; so these miscreants, with a ladicrous tone and

gesture, cried out, Hail King of the Jews!' a title which they had borrowed from Pilate, who, in his expostulations with their chief Priests and people, had often called Jesus the King of the Jews.'

Thanks be to thee my Saviour, may a pious Chris tian say, for suffering thy sacred head to be disgraced with a mock-crown of thorns, that my head might be adorned with the wreath of victory over sin, death, and the grave, and my temples surrounded with a crown of glory that fadeth not away!

Thanks be to thee for permitting thyself to be dis guised in the mock pageantry of a purple robe, that I might be arrayed in the white robe of innocence, and be clothed with immortality.

Thanks be to thee, who didst permit a reed to be put into thy hand, instead of a sceptre of righteousness, which is the sceptre of thy kingdom, to denote that thou wilt not break the bruised reed that is com, mitted to thy care, and wilt suffer no man to pluck it out of thy hand, (John x. 28.).

Thanks be to thee for suffering thyself to be mocked by an ironical salutation, and bowing of the knee! What they did in railing I will do out of a religious awe to the divine majesty. I throw myself prostrate at thy feet. I adore thy glorious majesty, to which every knee shall bow. I willingly do homage to thee, thou King of kings! I kiss thy righteous sceptre. Hail King of saints and Lord of Glory!

III. We come, in the last place, to consider the contemptuous indignities which were offered to our blessed Lord; and these were as follows:

1. They stripped the Lord of glory of his garments, and exposed his holy, pure, and undefiled body, the tabernacle of the Deity, naked before such an insolent and profligate rabble. For it was a custom among the Romans, previously. to strip those who were to be scourged. Here, alas, was verified that mournful prophecy concerning the Messiah in the Psalms, (Psalm Ixix. 20.) Reproach hath bre

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ken my heart, and I am full of heaviness: I looked for some to take pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none.'

When a pious Christian reflects on this, he cannot fail to give' vent to his gratitude in these or the like words: Eternal thanks be ascribed to thee, O my Saviour, who did thus expiate the disgrace of my nakedness, and again obtain for me the robe of innocence which I had lost by the fall. Grant that I may not suffer thee to wander about naked in thy poor members, by refusing to clothe them when it is in my power to do it.

2. Another reproachful abuse was, that they spit in our Saviour's face. The same indignity had already been offered him in Caiphas's house, where some of the members of the Sanhedrim, after Jesus had declared himself to be the Son of God, had spit on him; and their wicked example had been immediately followed by the officers of the court. This was such. a base insult as could scarce be exceeded. O how must the amiable benign countenance of the Lord Jesus have been disfigured with streaming blood, cruel bruises, and the nauseous spittle of this insolent rabble.

O my Redeemer, may a pious Christian here say, did it cost thee so many indignities to obtain for me the favour of lifting up my face before God, with confidence and joy? O thou express image of the father, thou corporeal representative of the invisible God, hast thou, for my sake, suffered that glorious face to be spit on, whose effulgence shone like the meridian sun on the mount of transfiguration? How shall I sufficiently adore thy stupendous love, and amazing condescension! May that face, which was then covered with shameful spitting, present itself to me in the hour of death; and do thou comfort and animate my soul at that dark crisis with the light of thy countenance. Let it be to me a pledge that, however my face may be fallen and disfigured in death,

on the day of resurrection it shall shine like the sun, and be made like to thy glorious face, which now beams forth heavenly radiance in the mansions of bliss. How then can I sufficiently praise thee for all the marks of thy love, patience, and long-suffering, which, for the atonement of my sins, and as a pattern for my imitation, thou didst shew under all these painful abuses, and contemptuous indignities!

THE PRAYER.

ETERNAL thanks and endless praise be to thee, O Lamb of God, who in obedience to thy heavenly Father, and out of thy unspeakable love to our souls, -didst enter on such a series of sufferings, which we, at this distance of time, cannot contemplate without shuddering. How should we have behaved had we, in thy stead, been destined to endure such pains, such mockery, such insults, and abuses? How should we have opened our mouths, and poured forth invectives and threatenings? But thou didst stand like a Lamb, that openeth not his mouth. No threatenings or railings came from thy sacred lips. Every one was allowed to vent his malicious rage against thee, every one was allowed to insult and to strike thee; yet all the pains, all the insults and mockeries, thou didst patiently endure as from the hands of thy righteous Father. The outrageous waves of insults and indignities thou didst permit to pass over thy tranquil heart; being certain that the Father would deliver thee from this hour, would crown thee with praise and honour, and command every knee to bow at thy sacred name. Grant, O Lord, that this part of thy sufferings may not only occasion a mere transitory emotion in our minds, that will vanish at the first pearance of temptation; but that it may make an indeliable impression on our hearts. Bless this part of thy sufferings to all our souls. May it be a terror to the secure, the licentious, and impenitent, that they may hence learn what sin is, and how severely it has

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been punished in thy sacred person. Let it be also a comfort to the humble, contrite, and troubled spirit, that it may in faith lay hold on the merits of these thy manifold sufferings, and be made willing to follow thee through reproach and insults. Grant this for the sake of thy love. Amen.

CONSIDERATION XIII.

A FARTHER ATTEMPT OF PILATE TO RELEASE CHRIST.

'PILATE therefore went forth again, and saith unto the Jews, Behold, I bring him forth unto you, that ye may know that I find no fault in him. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! When the chief Priests therefore and officers. saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him! crucify him! Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him; for I find no fault in him. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God,' (John xix. 4—7.)

In these words we have an account of a new attempt made by Pilate to release the Lord Jesus. We shall

First, Consider the means he used to compass it.
Secondly, The effect produced by those means.
I. The means Pilate made use of were as follows.

First, He again gives testimony of the innocence

of Jesus.

Secondly, He presents the Lord Jesus to the Jews in a very deplorable condition, in order to move their pity.

First, Pilate gave a repeated public testimony of our blessed Saviour's innocence. For this end, Pi Jate goes out of his hall of judgment; for it is said