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to himself, and was himself related to them in a covenant relation, and took this title to shew what he was to them; so his being called in the new testament, the "God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," is to point out that the covenant of grace was made with Jesus Christ, Godman, our head and hope: he is the Mediator of it; his blood is the seal of it; and through his finished righteousness and sacrifice, all the blessings of it will be communicated to us in earth and heaven.

May the Holy Ghost fix your minds on the appearance and manifestation of Christ to Moses, in a flame of fire, as the sent of Jehovah. And may you see such evidences in the scriptures which have at this time been opened and laid before you, of his being the very and essential Jehovah, and of his love to his church throughout all past ages and generations, as may lead you to worship him, with the Father, and the Spirit, the co-equal and co-eternal Three in One infinite Godhead, to whom be everlasting and undivided praise. Amen, and amen, and amen.

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ON THE INSTITUTION OF THE PASSOVER; SHEWING HOW THE PASCHAL LAMB, IN VARIOUS PARTICULARS, BORE A RESEMBLANCE, AND WAS A SOLEMN MEMORIAL, FIGURE, AND TYPE OF CHRIST, HIS SUFFERINGS, AND DEATH; WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE DEPARTURE OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL OUT

OF EGYPT.

EXODUS xii. 42.

It is a night to be much observed unto the Lord, for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the Lord to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.

THOUGH the Angel Jehovah had appeared unto Moses, and given him a call to go into Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from thence, yet Moses has a great deal of unbelief and mistrust in his mind; to remove which, the Lord is pleased to work a miracle, by turning his rod, or shepherd's staff, into a serpent, and

turning his clean hand into a leprous one, and then restoring both the staff and hand into the same condition they were in before. Which signs Moses was also to perform before the elders of Israel, to the intent they might believe that the Lord God of their fathers had appeared unto him. He was also to turn water into blood before them, for the same reason.

Moses still makes excuses, and the Lord manifests his displeasure at his want of faith, and joins Aaron in commission with him, who receives a call from the Lord to go into the wilderness to meet Moses, which he obeyed, and they met each other at Horeb, which is called the mount of God, because of the appearance of the Lord there to Moses in a flame of fire. Moses and Aaron being called and commissioned by the Angel Jehovah, and properly instructed to address Pharaoh, and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt, enter on their office, and work those miracles in the sight of the elders of Israel, and of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, which were testimonials of their call from God, to lead the Israelites out of the land of Egypt.

Moses was fourscore years old, and Aaron was fourscore and three, when they went in to speak unto the king of Egypt, who being an idolator, rejected their message with the utmost contempt. They, then, in the name of the Lord God of the Hebrews, intreat the dismission of

Israel, but as yet in vain. So far was the tyrant from being disposed to comply, that he imposes fresh burdens on the people. This leads Moses to lay the case before the Lord, who is pleased to open more of his mind and will unto him: he gives a full account of the hardness of Pharaoh's heart; declares that he would work marvellous acts in Egypt, and bring out his people from thence; and that he would be known by his glorious and incommunicable name Jehovah, in the performance of his promise, which he had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; which ineffable name, as it expresseth God's being, life, and blessedness, to be of himself alone, by a necessity of nature; so also it expresseth his giving being to his promises, and his almighty power and allsufficiency to perform the same. The patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, knew the essential and covenant Three by this incomprehensible name, expressive of their incomprehensible unity in the self-existing Godhead; but as their des cendants were about to receive the accomplishment of the promises beyond what they had, hence it is the Lord is pleased thus to express himself, to suggest that his incomprehensible and incommunicable name would be most illustriously displayed. Thus being afresh strengthened and encouraged, they go in again unto Pharaoh, and the Lord God proves his eternal

power and Godhead in the land of Egypt; and they, as his ministers, in the space of about two months, bring ten plagues, which brought down the pride and power of the Egyptians, and made way for the deliverance of the Israelites.

The first is, turning the waters of the river Nile into blood, so that the fish die, the river stank, and the Egyptians loath to drink the water of it: this lasted seven days, or a whole week. The Israelites having joined with the Egyptians in their sins, partook, it is likely, with them in some of their plagues; for we do not read of their being exempted until the plague of the swarm of flies is sent. The Egyp tians had caused the male children of Israel, i.e. the first-born of them to be cast into this river, and now the Lord turns it into blood.

The second plague is that of frogs, which came in such quantities, as to cover the land of Egypt; the rivers, streams, and ponds, were full of them, they came into the bed-chambers, were in the ovens and troughs in which they kneaded their dough; they came up upon the very beds, so that the sight of them must have been very distressing. Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, to intreat the Lord to remove them, which was done, yet the land stank with the dead ones; this proves the reality of the judgment.

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