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according to the prophet, all these changes were wrought in the converts to the Gospel; "That they

may be called Trees of righteousness, the planting "of the Lord, that he might be glorified." The "Rod," the " Branch of Jesse," the "righteous "Branch of David," were the known titles of the Messiah, or Son of David; and it was his glory, while he lived upon earth, to make others, like himself, "Trees," or "Plants of righteousness." This expression, as it standeth here joined with others plainly descriptive of evangelical benefits and comforts, unfoldeth to us the true nature of those wonders which Isaiah foretold should be wrought in the wildernes, and which he hath represented under so rich a variety of poetical imagery; such as streams of water breaking forth in the deserts, causing them to blossom as the rose; myrtles coming up, instead of briars; cedars, firs, and olive trees, instead of thorns, &c. The purport of these figurative predictions appears, by the passage before us, to be this; that the dry and barren places of Judea, where John baptized, and preached repentance, should, in the days of the Messiah, become a fruitful nursery of a new kind of plants, prepared for the celestial paradise. These were men of humble, peaceable, contrite hearts; such as poverty and disease had rendered those who came to be healed by Christ; such as the consideration of our sins and infirmities should render us all. To such is the Gospel of the kingdom preached, and they with joy receive it. "Blessed "are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of "heaven. Blessed are the meek; for they shall in

"herit the earth. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted."

To these beatitudes let us add one more, with which our Lord concludeth his answer to the question asked by John's disciples: "Blessed is he whoso"ever is not offended in me." In other wordsAnd now, blessed, thrice blessed are all they, who shall so consider the wonderful works done by me, as not to be offended at my poor and lowly appearance, during the time of my humiliation and suffering here on earth; or at the seeming harshness of my salutary doctrines to flesh and blood. For I well know, that many, though they have beheld me giving sight to the blind and vigour to the impotent, cleansing lepers, making the deaf to hear, and raising the dead to life again; yet, because the truths which I deliver are contrary to their interests, their pleasures, their pride, their prejudices, which they are determined not to quit, even for the kingdom of heaven; many, I say, will reject what they cannot but acknowledge to be the counsel of God, and put away the word of salvation from them. Let a man only suppress his inordinate desires of things temporal, and he will be disposed to hear what I shall tell him of things eternal. Let him cease to love the world, and he will cease to have any objection to the Gospel. Let but his heart be open to conviction, and when the evidence hath been once fairly laid before him, he will never again ask the question, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for " another ?"

VOL. IV.

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322

SECTION VIII.

Considerations on the Circumstances of St. John's Death.

We have now accompanied St. John through the several stages of his life. We have rejoiced with his parents and kinsfolk at his birth, and spent some time in contemplation with him in the deserts; we have stood by him, as a preacher and a Baptist, at the river Jordan, and have been made acquainted with the repeated testimonies borne by him, at different times, to the Messiahship of Jesus; we have heard him, like another Elijah, reproving another Ahab, and have visited him in prison, where the glory of his great Master, and the salvation of those committed to his care, still continued to be the objects of his attention. It remains only, that we behold him paying that debt to nature, from which the greatest of them that are born of women are not exempted. And here our acquaintance with him must end, till we meet him in the kingdom of God. Thus do scenes of real life pass swiftly away, and, when looked back upon, appear like those which are described within the compass of a small volume like this. In the course of a few years, the child, at whose birth we made merry, is become a man; he sickens, and dies, and we mourn at his funeral. Some gleams of success and prosperity, perhaps,

brighten and adorn certain parts of his life, as the sun gilds the edges of a dark cloud, or imprints upon it the still more beautiful colours of the rainbow. But while we gaze, the sun sets, the colours fade, the bow vanishes, and "the place thereof knoweth "it no more."

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Of prophets, as well as of kings, it may be observed, that there is generally but a short interval between their imprisonment and their death; the enmity which occasioned one, seldom leaving them till it have accomplished the other. And "more "bitter even than death itself is the woman whose "heart is snares and nets, and her hands bands." Herod had thrown John into prison; but this would not satisfy Herodias. Even there she heard him still preaching upon the old text, and reproaching her with her crimes. "She had a quarrel against

him; eveixey autw, she fastened upon him, and would "have killed him, but," for some time, she "could

not." For though Herod had not religion enough to produce in him the fear of God, he had policy enough to produce the fear of the Jews, among whom John's reputation as a prophet ran very high. Herodias, however, in her heart, had determined to effect her purpose by procuring, sooner or later, the execution of him whom she falsely deemed her enemy: as if sin could not be committed with impunity, while John was living to hear of it; as if his blood would not cry louder than his voice had done; or the head of the prophet could

y Eccles. vii. 26.

2 Mark, vi. 19, &c.

enter the palace, without reproving the adultery of the tetrarch. But an imperious lust, in the height of its career, can brook no obstruction; and were it possible, as well as necessary, the world itself would be blown up to make way for it.

Sin being once resolved on in the heart, an opportunity of committing it is seldom long wanting; and the mind is upon the watch, to embrace the very first that offers. "When a convenient day was

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come, that Herod's birth-day should be kept, he "made a great supper to his lords, high captains, "and chief estates of Galilee." It is certainly no sin in a prince to keep his birth-day, or to make a great supper upon it. But how much it behoveth a man, at such times of rejoicing, to be upon his guard, lest unawares he be induced to sacrifice truth and conscience to mirth and gaiety, the melancholy catastrophe of this banquet may serve to show us; since neither Herod, nor any of his guests imagined, when they sat down to table on that fatal evening, how horribly their great supper would conclude. But so it happened, that, before the night was out, a deed was done, which displayed to all succeeding generations the malice and cruelty of Herodias, with the weakness and wickedness of Herod; teaching us, at the same time, that the greatest of prophets and the best of men are not more secure from violence than from natural death, but rather more exposed to it than the rest of mankind, if with fidelity and fortitude they execute the trust committed to them.

Herodias, by her lawful husband Philip, had a daughter named Salome, who condescended to grace

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