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world, and St. Paul,' the Saviour of all men.' Another name assumed by the Almighty, is that of a Shepherd. Thus saith David in the Psalms, The Lord (Jehovah) is my Shepherd, I shall not want.' 'We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.' So Isaiah, speaking of the Messiah saith, He shall feed his flock like a shepherd, he shall carry the lambs in his bosom and gently lead those that are with young.' But all this is applied to the Saviour by his own lips. I am the good Shepherd,' saith he, 'the good Shepherd layeth down his life for the sheep; and other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also Į must bring, that there may be one fold and one Shepherd ;' and when to this we add the affecting passage where we read, that he lifted up the little children in his arms and blessed them,' we see him actually carrying the lambs of the flock in his bosom,' and we behold a correspondence of the whole which is equally close and beautiful.

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Another name, frequently assumed by the Deity, is 'the husband of the Church.' This is set forth at great length by Ezekiel; it is frequently adverted to by the other Prophets, and is most expressly declared by Isaiah, 'Fear not Israel, thy Maker is thine husband, the Lord of Hosts is his name.' Now this title is applied to Christ by John the Baptist, He that hath the bride, is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice; this my joy, therefore, is fulfilled.' Our Lord himself assumes the same name, where, being asked why his disciples did not fast, he replied,Can the children of the bride-chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days shall come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast.' And St. John again applies the same language in the book of Revelations, where he speaks of

the redeemed Church as the bride, the Lamb's wife coming down from heaven.'

With regard to those titles which more plainly import Divinity, the very highest are claimed by Christ, and confirmed by the testimony of his Apostles. Thus Isaiah saith, Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be laid upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.' All these names, thus applied by the Prophet to the Messiah, are confirmed by the evidence of the New Testament. That he was Wonderful, is manifest in his birth, in his miracles, in his life, in his death, and in his resurrection. That he was the Counsellor with the Father, is intimated by the Apostle Paul, where he asks, Who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his counsellor?' Far more clearly does St. John declare that, ' In the beginning was the Word' which was made flesh, (that is, Christ,) that the Word was with God, and the Word was God,' and that 'without him was not any thing made that was made,' which clearly shows him to have been of the Divine Counsel; and still more decided, perhaps, is his own declaration, that No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.' With respect to the third of these Divine appellations, the Mighty God,' we find St. Paul calling him in the text, 'God manifest in the flesh;' in another place, 'Christ, who is over all, God blessed foreyer;' and in another place he saith expressly, that, ‘In Christ dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.' The next title, 'The Everlasting Father,' is one of most peculiar majesty, and yet, this is clearly and emphatically assumed by our Lord, when Philip saith unto him, 'Shew us the Father

and it sufficeth us.' For he replied, 'Have I been so long time with thee, Philip, and yet hast thou not known me? Whoso seeth me, seeth the Father. The Father and I are one.' And the last of this remarkable list of Divine names, the Prince of Peace,' is as clearly applied to Christ, by his own words, on the night before his crucifixion, when he said to his disciples, 'Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth, give I unto you.' So the Apostle Peter preached 'peace by Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all ;' and St. Paul saith, that 'Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ.' And again, the same Apostle saith, that, 'Christ is our peace, having abolished in his flesh the enmity-so making peace.' If it be required of us to show, in addition, that the epithet 'Prince' belongs to him, this is abundantly easy, for St. Peter calls him the Prince of Life;' and again, a Prince and a Saviour;' and again, in Revelation, he is called the 'Prince of the kings of the earth.' This branch of the evidence might be increased fifty fold, but even in so brief a selection, nothing seems wanting to prove the Divinity of the Redeemer, so far as the titles of the Almighty can determine the question.

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We are next to examine the assertion, that the peculiar works of God are performed by Christ and attributed to him as the immediate agent. Thus, creation, which none but the Deity can possibly perform, is repeatedly ascribed to Christ, of which one remarkably full declaration of St. Paul furnishes decisive testimony; 'By Christ,' saith he, 'were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by him and for him, and he is before all things, and by him all things consist.' Language cannot exceed the precision

and the grandeur of expression by which this great Apostle here establishes the creative power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If, from creation, we pass on to redemption, we find this work particularly specified in the Old Testament, as the work of God. 'I know,' saith Job, 'that my Redeemer liveth. The children of Israel,' saith the Psalmist, 'remembered that the Most High God was their Redeemer.' 'As for our Redeemer,' saith Isaiah, 'the Lord of Hosts is his name.' 'None,' saith David, 'can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him, for the redemption of their souls is precious.' But with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.' Now this very work, which is here declared to belong to God alone, is ascribed to Christ in various places of the New Testament. Thus, the prophetess Anna spake of the infant Saviour 'to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.' So saith St. Paul to the Galatians, 'Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law;' to the Corinthians he declares, 'Christ is made unto us, sanctification and redemption;' to the Ephesians he saith, In Christ we have redemption through his blood;' to the Romans he asserts, that 'we are justified through the Redemption that is in Christ;' and to the Hebrews he declares, that 'Christ, not by the blood of bulls and goats, but by his own blood, entered into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.' St. John carries the same doctrine from earth to heaven, for in the Revelations we read, that "The four and twenty elders sung a new song to the Lamb, saying, Thou art worthy, for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.' On this point, therefore, the evidence of Christ's Divinity is equally conclusive. The Psalmist expressly saith, that

'None can by any means redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom for him, for the redemption of their souls is precious;' and as for our Redeemer,' saith the Prophet, 'the Lord of hosts is his name.' But Christ Jesus is this Redeemer. Therefore, Christ Jesus is the Lord of hosts.

If, from creation and redemption, we proceed to the third great work of Divine Omnipotence, preservation, we shall arrive at the same result. This, in its highest exercise, is an unquestionable prerogative of Deity. The Patriarch Job, thus addresses the Lord, 'What shall I do unto thee, O thou Preserver of men.' 'Preserve me, O God,' saith the Psalmist, for in thee do I put my trust.'

"The Lord

shall preserve thee from all evil,' 'the Lord shall preserve thy soul.' The Lord preserveth the faithful,' 'the Lord preserveth all them that love him.' But St. Paul declares that Christ will preserve him to his heavenly kingdom,' and St. Jude calls the saints, the sanctified and preserved in Jesus Christ;' and elsewhere the great Apostle of the Gentiles saith expressly, that 'Christ, the Son of God, being the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person, upholds all things by the word of his power.' What plainer evidence can be asked, to prove that in this, also, the Saviour is shown to be Divine ?

When, from the general ascription of the works of God to Christ, we come to the details of particular miracles, it is most unquestionable that the testimony of Scripture multiplies upon us in every shape and form. These wonders had been expressly foretold by Isaiah, where he proclaimed, 'Be strong, fear not, behold your God shall come with vengeance, even God with a recompense, he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped; then shall the