Look, therefore, you that come into the Temple of God to worship, that you ftay not at the foot of thefe turning ftairs, but go up thence, yea, up them, and up them, and up them, till you come to the view of the Heavens; yea, till you are poffeffed of the highest chambers. How many times has God, by the fcripture, called upon you to turn, and told you, you must turn or die; and now here he has added to his call a figure, by placing a pair of turning stairs in his Temple, to convict your very fenfes, that you muft turn, if you mean to go up into his holy chambers, and fo into his eternal manfion-houfes. And look that you turn to pur pofe, for every turning will not ferve. Some turn, but not to the Most High, and so turn to no purpose.

CHA P. XXXVI.

Cf the molten Sea that was in the Temple. THERE was alfo a molten fea in the Temple,

it was made of brafs, and contained three thou fand baths, 2. Chron. iv. 2.-9.

This fea was for the priests to wafh in, when they came into the Temple to accomplish the fervice of, God, to wash their hands and feet at, that they might not, when they came thither, die for their unpreparablenefs. The laver alfo which was in the, wildnernefs, was of the fame use there, Exod, xxviii,,

1. It was, as may be fuppofed, called a fea, for that it was large to contain, and a fea of brass, for, that it was made thereof. It is called in Revela. tions, a fea of glafs, alluding to that in the wilder nefs which was made of the brazen looking-glaffes, of the women that came to worship at the door of the tabernacle, Rev. iv. 6, xv, 2. Exod. xxviii. 8.

It was alfo faid to be molten, because it was made of that fathion by fire, and its antitype therefore faid to be a fea of glafs mingled with fire; Rev xv. 2.

2. This fea was a figure of the word of the gof

pel, in the cleansing virtue of it; which virtue then it has when mingled with the fire of the Holy Ghoft. And to this Chrift-alludes, when he faith,' "Now ye are clean through the word which I have fpoken unto you," John xv. 3.

2. It was a figure of the word, without mixture of mens inventions. Hence it is called pure water; having your "bodies wafhed with pure water;" and again, he fanctifies and cleanfeth his church with the washing of water by the word," Ephef. v. 26. Tit. iii. 5:

All these places are in allufion to the molten fea, at which of old they wathed when they went into the Temple to worthip. Therefore, faith he, being washed, "let us draw near to God," Heb. x. 22.

3. This fea, from brim to brim, was complete ten cubits, perhaps to shew there is as much in the word of the gofpel to fave, as there is in the ten words to condemn.

4. From under this fea round about, appeared oxen," ten in a cubit did compafs it round about," 2 Chron. iv. 3. Understand by these oxen mini. fters, for to them they are compared in 1 Cor. ix. 9. And then we are taught whence true minifters. come, to wit, from under the power of the gofpel; for this fea breeds gofpel minifters, as the waters

breed fish.

5. It is alfo faid in the text, that these oxen were caft when the fea was caft; infinuating, that when God ordained a word of grace to fave us, he alfo in his decree provided minifters to preach it to us to that end. Paul tells us, that he was made a minister of the gofpel, "according to God's eter. nal purpose, which he purposed in Christ Jefus our Lord," Ephef ii. 9. 10, 11. Col. i. 25.

6. This fea is faid to have a brim, like the brim of a cup, to invite as well to drink of its grace, as to wash in its water for the word and Spirit, when mixed, has not only a cleansing, but a faving quality

in it, Chron. iv. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. 1 Cor. xv. 1, 2.

7. This brim was wrought with lilies, or was like a lily flower, to fhew how they fhould grow and flourish, and with what beautiful robes they fhould be adorned, who were washed and did drink of this holy water; yea, that God would take care of them as he alfo did of 1lies, and would not fail to bestow upon them what was neceffary for the body, as well as for the foul, Matth. vi. 28.-34.

Upon what the Molten Sea food in the Temple. 1.THIS molten fea stood upon the backs of twelve brazen bulls or oxen, 2 Chron. iv. 4. 2. These oxen, as they thus ftood, "looked three towards the north, three towards the weft, three towards the east, and three towards the fouth,"

3- Thefe twelve oxen were types of the twelve apoftles of the Lamb, who, as thefe beafts, stood looking into the four corners of the earth, and were bid to go preach the gofpel in all the world,

4. They were compared to oxen, because they were clean, for the ox was a clean beaft. Hence the apoftles are called holy. They were compared to oxen, because the ox is ftrong, and they alfo were mighty in the word, Prov. xiv. 4, 2 Cor. xii,

12.

5. The ox will not lofe what he has got by drawing; he will not let the wheels go back; fo the apostles were fet to defend, and not let that doctrine go back, which they had preached to others; nor did they, they delivered it pure to us.

6. One of the cherubs, of which you read in the vision, had a face like an ox, to fhew that the apo. fles, these men of the first order, are most like the angels of God, Ezek. i. 10.

7. In that they stood with their faces every way, it was, as I faid, to fhew how the apostles fhould

carry the gospel into all the world, Matth. xxviii. 19. Mark xvi.

8. And obferve, juft as these oxen were placed, looking in the temple every way, even fo ftand open the gates of the New Jerufalem, to receive thofe that by their doctrine fhould be brought into it. "And they fhall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the fouth, and shall fit down in the kingdom of God," Rev. xxi. 13, 14. Luke xiii. 29.

9. Thefe oxen bare this molten fea upon their backs, to fhew, that they fhould be the foundation workmen of the gofpel, and that it ought not to be removed, as was the molten fea of old, from that basis to another..

10. It is alfo faid concerning thefe oxen that: thus did bear this moken fea, that all their hinder. parts were inwards, that is, covered by that fea that was fet upon their backs; their hinder-parts, or,, as the apoftle has it, our uncomely parts, 1 Cor.. xiii. 23, 24

11. And indeed it becomes a gofpel-minifter to. have his uncomely parts covered with that grace: which by the gospel he preacheth unto others. As. Paul exhorts Iimothy, to take "heed unto himself,. and to his doctrine, 1 Tim. iv. 6..

12. But, alas! there are too many, who, can they but have their heads covered with a few gofpel notions, care not tho' their hinder parts are feen of all the world. But fuch are falfe minifters, the prophet calls them the tail. "The prophet that Ipeaketh lies, either by word, or with his feet, he: is the tail, Ifa. ix, 15. Prov. vi. 12, 13.

13. But what a fhame is it to hide his head under this molten fea, while his hinder parts hang out.

Such an one is none of Chrift's oxen; for they,, with honour to their Mafter, fhew their heads before all the world, for that their hinder parts are inward, covered.

14. Look to thy hinder parts, minister, left, while thy mouth doth preach the gofpel, thy nakededness and fhame be feen of thofe which hear thee. For they that do not observe to learn this leffon themselves, will not teach others to believe the word, nor to live a holy life; they will learn of them to fhew their fhame, instead of learning to be holy.

CHAP. XXXVIII.

Of the Lavers of the Temple.

Beides this molten fea, there were ten lavers in the Temple. Five of which were put on the right-fide, and five alfo on the left, 2 Chron. iv. 6.

1. Of their fathion and their furniture, you may fee 1 Kings vii. Thefe lavers, as the molten fea, were veffels which contained water, but they were not of the fame ufe with it. True, they were both to wash in; the fea to wafh the worshippers, but the lavers to wafh the facrifice. " He made the ten lavers, to wash in them fuch things as they offered for burnt-offering, but the fea was for the priest to wash in," 2 Chron. iv. 6.

2. The burnt offering was a type of the body of Christ, which he once offered for our fins, and the fire on which the facrifice was burned, a type of the curfe of the law which feized on Chrift when he gave himself a ranfom for us. "For therefore that under the law was called the burnt-offering, because of the burning upon the altar, Lev. vi. 8.

But what then mult we understand by thefe lavers, and by this facrifice being washed in them, in order to its being burned upon the altar?

I anfwer, Verily, I think, that the ten lavers were a figure of the ten commandments: in the purity and perfection of Chrift's obedience, to which he became capable of being made a burnt-offering, acceptable to God for the fins of the people, Chrift was made under the law, and all his acts of obedi ence to God for us, was legal; and his living thus