own due time; died for the ungodly. He loved us so as to give himself for us. O what manner of love is this! What was Jacob's love to Rachel, in comparison of the love which

- JESUS bore to a perishing world! He became a curse for us. For it is written, " Cursed is every man that hangeth upon a tree." What Zipporah said to her husband improperly, JESUS may say properly to his spouse the church, " A bloody wife - hast thou been to me, because of the crucifixion.". For he has purchased her with his own blood. And having once loved his people, he loves them unto the end. His love, - like himself, is from everlasting to everlasting. He hates putting away: though we change, yet he changeth not: he -abideth faithful. When we are married here, there comes int that shocking clause, to use the words of holy Mr. Boston, "Till death us doth part;" but death itself shall not feparate a true believer from the love of GOD, which is in CHRIST JESUS

- his Lord: for he will never cease loving his Bride, till he has loved her to heaven, and presented her before his Father, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing. Nay, his love will, as it were, but be beginning, through the endless ages of eternity:

And now, Sirs, what say you? Shall I put that question to you, which Rebecca's relations, upon a proposal of martiage, put to her? " Will ye go with the man?" With the God-man, this infinitely great, this infinitely powerful, this all-wife, all-holy, altogether lovely, ever-loving JESUS? What objection have you to make against fuch a gracious offer? One would imagine, you had not a single one; but it is to be feared, through the prevalency of unbelief, and the corruption of your desperately wicked deceitful hearts, you are ready to urge several. Methinks I hear some of you say: within yourselves, "We like the proposal, but alas! we

are poor." Are you fo? If that be all, you may, notwithstanding, be welcome to JESUS: " For has not GOD chosen the poor of this world, to make them rich in faith, and heirs of his everlafting kingdom?" And what says that Saviour, to whom I am now inviting you? " Bleffed are the, poor in Spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." And what says his Apostle concerning him?" Though he was tich, yet for our fakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich. But say you, "We are not only

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only poor, but we are in debt; we owe God ten thoufand talents, and have nothing to pay;" but that need not keep you back: for God the Father, from the LORD JESUS, his dearly beloved Son, has received double for all believers fins: the blood of Jesus cleanseth from them all. But you are blind, and miferable, and naked; to whom then should you fly for fuccour, but to Jesus, who came to open the eyes of the blind, to seek and save the miferable and loft, and cloath the naked with his perfect and spotless righteousness. And now, what can hinder your espousals with the dear and everblessed Lamb of GOD? I know but of one thing, that dreadful fin of unbelief. But this is my comfort, JESUS died for unbelief, as well as for other fins, and has promised to fend down the Holy Spirit to convince the world of this fir in particular: "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go away, I will send the Comforter, and he will convince the world of fin." What fin? of unbelief; " because they believe not on me." O that this promise may be so fulfilled in your hearts, and JESUS may fo become the author of divine faith in your fouls, that you may be able to fend me the same message as a good woman in Scotland, on her dying bed, fent me by a friend : "Tell him, (fays the) for his comfort, that at such a time he married me to the LORD JESUS." This would be comfort indeed. Not that we can marry you to CHRIST: No; the Holy Ghoft must tie the marriage knot. But fuch honour have all God's ministers; under him they espouse poor finners to JESUS CHRIST. " I have espoused you (fays St. Paul) as a chafte virgin to JESUS CHRIST." O that you may fay, We will go with the man; then will I bow my head, as Abraham's servant did, and go with joy and tell my Master, that he has not left his poor servant destitute this day: then shall I rejoice in your felicity. For I know, my Master will take you into the banqueting-house of his ordinances, and his banner over you shall be love. That this may be the happy cafe of you all, may the glorious God grant, for the fake of JESUS his dearly beloved Son, the glorious bridegroom of his church; to whom, with the Father, and the Holy Spirit, be all honour and glory, now and for evermore. Amen, and Amen.

SERMON

SERMON XIII.

The Potter and the Clay.

JER. Xviii. 1-6.

The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arife, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hands of the potter, fo be made it again another veffel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, faying, O house of Ifrael, cannot I do with you as this potter? faith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, Sa are ye in mine band, O house of Ifrael.

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T fundry times, and

in divers manners, GOD was pleased

to speak to our fathers by the prophets, before he spoke to us in these last days by his Son. To Elijah, he revealed himself by a small still voice. To Jacob, by a dream. To Mofes, he spake face to face. Sometimes he was pleased to send a favourite prophet on some especial errand; and whilst he was thus employed, vouchsafed to give him a particular message, which he was ordered to deliver without reserve to all the inhabitants of the land. A very instructive instance of this kind we have recorded in the paflage now read to you. The first verse informs us that it was a word, or message, which came immediately from the LORD to the prophet Jeremiah. At what time, or how the prophet was employed when

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when it came, we are not told. Perhaps, whilst he was praying for those who would not pray for themselves : Perhaps, near the morning, when he was slumbering or mufing on his bed. For the word came to him, saying, " Arife." And what must he do when risen? He must " go down to the potter's house" (the prophet knew where to find it) " and there (fays the great Jehovah) I will cause thee to hear my words." Jeremiab does not confer with flesh and blood, he does not object that it was dark or cold, or defire that he might have his message given him there, but without the least hefitation is immediately obedient to the heavenly vision. "Then (fays he) I went down to the potter's house, and behold he wrought a work upon the wheels." Just as he was entering into the house or workshop, the potter, it seems, had a veffel upon his wheel. And was there any thing fo extraordinary in this, that it should be ushered in with the word BEHOLD? What a dreaming visionary, or fuperftitious enthufiaft, would this Jeremiah be accounted, even by many who read his prophecies with foeming respect, was he alive now? But this was not the first time Jeremiah had heard from heaven in this manner. He therefore willingly obeyed; and had you or I accompanied him to the potter's house, I believe we should have seen him filently, but intensely waiting upon his great and all-wife Commander, to know wherefore he fent him thither, Methinks I fee him all attention. He takes notice, that "the vefiel was of clay," but as he held it in his band, and turned round the wheel, in order to work it into Fome particular form, "it was marred in the hands of the potter," and coniequently unfit for the use he before intended to put it to. And what becomes of this marred vetiel? Being thus matred, I tappole, the potter, without the leaft imputation of injustice, might have thrown it aide, and taken up another piece of clay in its room. But he did not. He mave it ag-in another vetiel." And does the power cali a council of his domeftics, to enquire of them what kind of were they would advise him to make of it ? No, in no wife. Ee mede again another wolfel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.”

Therade Seremiah, whilft he was in the wee of duty hermark he was mentally crying, LORD what wonloft thou have me to do?" Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, O house of Ifrael, cannot I do with you as this potter? faith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the hands of the potter (marred, and unfit for the first designed purpose) so are ye in mine hand, O house of Ifra l." At length, then, Jeremiah hath his fermon given to him: short, but popular. It was to be delivered to the whole house of Ifrael, princes, priests, and people: short, but pungent, even sharper than a two-edged sword. What! says the fovereign LORD of heaven and earth, must I be denied the privilege of a common potter? May I not do what I will with my own? "Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hands, so are ye in mine hands, O house of Ifrael. I made and formed you into a people, and blessed you above any other nation under heaven: but, O Ifrael, thou by thy backslidings haft destroyed thyself. As the potter therefore might justly have thrown aside his marred clay, so may I justly unchurch and unpeople you. But what if I should come over the mountains of your guilt, heal your backslidings, revive my work in the midst of the years, and cause your latter end greatly to increase? Behold, as the clay is in the hands of the potter, lying at his

- disposal, either to be destroyed or formed into another vessel, so are ye in my hands, O house of Ifrael: I may either reject, and thereby ruin you, or I may revisit and revive you according to my own sovereign good will and pleasure, and who shall say unto me, what dost thou?"

-This seems to be the genuine interpretation, and primary intention of this beautiful part of holy writ. But waving all further enquiries about its primary design or meaning, I shall now proceed to shew, that what the glorious Jehovah here says of the house of Ifrael in general, is applicable to every individual of mankind in particular. And as I presume this may • be done, without either wire-drawing scripture on the one hand, or wresting it from its original meaning on the other, not to detain you any longer, I shall, from the passage thus explained and paraphrafed, deduce, and endeavour to enlarge on these two general heads.

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First, I shall undertake to prove, that every man naturally engendered of the offspring of Adam, is in the fight of the all-feeing, heart-searching God, only as a " piece of marred

clay."

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Secondly,