him, as the great repository of the church, and the source of all spiritual blessings. Advert, then,

1. To the glorious constitution of the Redeemer's person. I shall not spend any of your time in adducing proofs of the Divinity of your Redeemer-his essential Deity; not because they are wanting, but because they are unnecessary. You know the magnificent titles by which he is described, the Divine attributes which are ascribed to him as his indefeisible rights. You know the wonders he hath wrought in creation, providence, and redemption. You know the worship which he receives from saints on earth, and saints and angels in heaven. You know that he is the true God, and eternal life. Neither shall I take up any of your time in proving the humanity of your Redeemer; for this is equally unnecessary. You know that he is styled "the Seed of the Woman,"—" the Seed of Abraham,”"the Son of David," and yet "David's Lord." You know that he is called "the Man whom God made strong for himself,"-" the Man whose name is The BRANCH,"-"the Mediator between God and man,"" the Man Christ Jesus." You know that he is bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh, blood of our blood; that he is truly and properly God, truly and properly man; God and man in one person.

From this union of the Divine and human natures in the person of our Redeemer, or in this union rather, you behold an assemblage of the most opposite perfections, singular and unexampled. Behold, on the one hand, his meekness, purity and innocency, and all the virtues of his humanity; behold, on the other hand, his consummate holiness, his perfect justice and his almighty power, and all the glories of the Godhead. Contemplate, then, the glory that arises from the union-the perfect union of these opposite perfections in the same individual. If the virtues of his humanity soften the awful glories of his Godhead, the awful glories of his Godhead impart a peculiar majesty to the virtues of his humanity. If his meekness, gentleness and love, rendered his holiness, justice and power less terrible, his holiness, justice and power rendered his meekness, gentleness and love more awful and venerable, and altogether form an assemblage of perfection before which all created glory is lost in midnight darkness. Hence the various relations which he sustains, the various offices which he executes, and the diversified images under which he is represented by the inspired writers. He is a rock on which we build for eternity, and also a stone of stumbling which shall grind the impenitent to powder. He is "the Lion of the tribe of Judah," and yet " the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world ;" a Lamb enthroned; gentleness combined with infinite majesty, and, amidst the glories of his

throne, wearing the marks of a lamb that has been slain. David describes him as breaking the nations in shivers with a rod of iron, like a potter's vessel, and swaying a sceptre of love and righteousness over a happy and enlightened world. Isaiah describes him as returning from the field of slaughter, travelling in the greatness of his strength, speaking in righteousness, and saying, "Mine own arm hath brought salvation, and my fury it upheld me. For the day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come." St. John describes him as going forth for the salvation of the church with a garment dipped in blood, and amidst the wrecks of nations pushing on his conquests until "the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God and of his Christ, that he may reign for ever and ever." Such, then, are the glories of our Redeemer. What a venal orator once said to the master of the Roman world, though disgusting adulation when addressed to a worm, who, amidst all his splendour was crumbling to dust, is but just and lawful praise, when ascribed to our Immanuel: "Whoever, mighty Prince, dare speak to thee must be ignorant of thy greatness; and whoever, mighty Prince, dares not speak to thee, must be alike ignorant of thy clemency."

Turn to this mirror, and behold the glory of the Lord. Those that have seen him in this glass know his name, and put their trust in him. They see that he is altogether lovely-that in him perfect loveliness and perfect majesty are united;-whatever can endear or dignify the character, whatever is calculated to engage their best affections or command their deepest reverence. He is, therefore, the object of their highest love and their profoundest admiration, and they have none in heaven or upon earth that they desire beside him. Advert,

2. To the glorious harmony of the Divine perfections in the great work of redemption which he has accomplished. In order to advance the glory of God it is necessary, not only that his perfections be displayed, but that they be displayed in harmony; and the more this harmony is maintained, the more God is glorified. We see this end, this great end, this ultimate end of all the counsels of Infinite Wisdom, accomplished in the redemption of a ruined world by the vicarious sacrifice of our Redeemer. Never did an hour elapse, since time began, so full of wisdom, power, holiness, justice, grace, mercy, and love, as that which revolved during the agony and crucifixion of our Redeemer. Never did these attributes appear under such an awful, yet attractive form as amidst the scenes that Gethsemane and Golgotha exhibited. Zion was redeemed in mercy, but in righteousness, and her converts in judgment. Mercy and truth

met-throw out the word in italics, it has no business there; it is not "they met together," it only destroys the abrupt sublimity of the prophet" mercy and truth met;" righteousness and peace kissed; and mingling their gentle and their more awful glories, they shine with united, with eternal spendours. Mount Tabor, where he was transfigured, was bright with glory ;-but on Mount Calvary, where he was crucified, there was a brighter glory still. The wisdom that contrived the wonderful expedient;-the holiness that cannot look upon sin, but with intense indignation;-the perfect justice-and inflexible because it is perfect-that cannot remit the punishment of sin without an adequate satisfaction;—the amazing love that sacrificed an only begotten Son for the redemption of the sinner;-the almighty power that supported the sinner's Surety under a weight of woe that would have depressed a world to everlasting perdition ;-the grace that delights to shower down its favours without regard to present merit or future compensation;—the mercy which compassionately relieves the miserable, as well as the undeserving, were all displayed, and displayed in the most beauteous harmony, and hovering round the sacrifice of the cross, smiled upon a guilty world with infinite complacency.

Turn then, brethren, to this mirror, this specular, and on its bosom see reflected the glory of the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the invisible and visible world look into the glass, and there see, when God is disposed to pardon sin, and save the sinner, what is the satisfaction which his justice demands. There, also, let them behold the heights and depths, the lengths and breadths of the love of God, that passeth knowledge. In this glass Jehovah appears in his completely amiable character, a just God and yet a Saviour-a God infinite in holiness and infinite in love. Advert,

3rdly, and Lastly, To the fulness of grace and truth which is laid up in the Lord Jesus, as the repository of the church, and the source of all spiritual blessings. "In the beginning," says the apostle John, before time itself commenced, " was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And without him was nothing made, that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us," as in a tabernacle, "and we beheld his glory," the Shechinah must ever attend the true sanctuary," the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace, and full of truth. And out of his fulness have we received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." The contrast here stated by the Evangelist, between the law of Moses, and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, or the fulness of his grace

and truth, which reflect his glory as the only begotten of the Father, is very striking and worthy of our attention. The law that came by Moses condemns; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, pardons. The law that came by Moses, discovers our danger; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, open before us a city of refuge to which we fly, and are safe. The law that came by Moses, requires a perfect righteousness; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, provides a righteousness commensurate to all its demands. The law that came by Moses, lays open the guilt and the pollution of the heart; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, open a fountain to take away sin and uncleanness. The law that came by Moses, prescribes the rule of obedience; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, furnish strength to render that obedience. The law that came by Moses, is the transcript of the Divine perfections, a fair and beautiful copy of the holiness, justice, and benevolence of the lawgiver; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, restore the soul to the image that the lawgiver impressed upon the moral law, in knowledge, righteousness and holiness. The law that came by Moses, was a system of types and shadows; a prefiguration of heavenly things; the grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, are the realities of those types, and the substance of those shadows. He is the true priest, the true altar, the true sacrifice. His priesthood supersedes the Mosaic priesthood, and abolishes the law by which it was established. Him bare Moses and all the prophets witness, and in him is found that which stamps eternal authority on all their predictions, since the promises both of the Old and New Testament are sealed with his blood, and are therefore," Yea and Amen in him," to the salvation of his church.

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Turn then, once more, and look into this mirror. Behold in this glass a glory especially adapted to the condition of ruined man, and which alone can raise him from his apostate state, into the image and the enjoyment of his God. The Redeemer's fulness is inexhaustible; it is from everlasting to everlasting; deep as our guilt, boundless as our miseries. It cannot be diminished, even by the most liberal communications. Myriads now in heaven have received out of his fulness, and grace for grace; millions now on earth, pressing home to God, have received out of his fulness, and grace for grace; and countless myriads yet unborn shall rise up, and receive out of his fulness, "wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption:" and when every want is supplied, when every desire is satisfied, his fulness will be still unimpaired; "for it hath pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell." "In

him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." And St. Paul tells us that all the heights, and depths, and lengths, and breadths of the love of God, which he calls all the fulness of God, are found in Christ Jesus our Lord. We must now advert,

III. TO THE REMOVAL OF THOSE VEILS BY WHICH THE GLORY OF CHRIST WAS CONCEALED FROM THE JEWISH NATION, AT THE TIME OF HIS APPEARANCE, AND BY WHICH IT IS STILL CONCEALED, AWFULLY CONCEALED, FROM AN UNBELIEVING WORLD;" We all, with an open, or unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord."

The apostle here refers to an expression which he employed in a preceding part of the chapter; "For if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance, which glory was to be done away, how shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious? Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech. And not as Moses, which put a veil over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished." Here the apostle refers to a very remarkable transaction, which took place at the promulgation of the law on Mount Sinai: when Moses was engaged in close converse with his God amidst the splendours of the Shechinah, his face shone with such radiance, that upon his descent from the mount, with the tables of stone in his hand, the children of Israel shrunk with terror and alarm from his appearance. He therefore drew a veil over his countenance, to attemper the borrowed radiance to the weakness of their condition. This veil was symbolical,

1st. Of the comparative obscurity of the Mosaic dispensation. The glories of the gospel did not break forth all at once in full splendour; the meridian of the day was preceded by the duskiness of the morning. Revelations were granted at the first, comparatively obscure indeed, but in the eye of Infinite Wisdom deemed sufficient. To these were added clearer discoveries, as the purposes of God and the condition of man rendered it necessary. The glory brightened as it shone; star after star was kindled in the heavens, and a grand arrangement of prophetic lights was gradually formed to shed their effulgence on the church, until the day-spring from on high visited us, and the Sun of Righteousness arose with healing under his wings. The types and shadows, while in one respect they revealed, in another might be said to conceal the glory of the Lord, and the whole of the Mosaic dispensation was a wide extended veil, through which the glory had to force its way, as the radiance of the face of