fuch injurious treatment; that a perfon claim ing the dignified title of the Son of God, and proving with indifputable evidence, his origin from God, fhould have, without resistance, and without complaint, fubmitted to contradiction; to perfecution; to a painful, an infamous, an accurfed death; this is a phenomenon in the moral world, for which the wisdom of man could never have accounted.

To investigate this fubject by the lights of divine revelation; to trace the death of Chrift to its proper caufe; to afcertain its great defign; to illustrate its neceffity, and to vindicate its wisdom and juftice; thefe are the objects to which I propose at present to direct your atten

tion.

The prosecution of them will open an extenfive field for pleasing and useful meditation; for meditation, too, that will not, I hope, be found unfaitable to the particular occafion on which we are affembled.

Firft, I begin with premifing that the death of Christ is here expreffed by giving himself; a mode of fpeech which the apoftle, in different inftances, employs to denote our Lord's obe

dience in general; and in particular, his voluntary fubmiffion to the cross.

This indirect method of expreffing that event, fome have fuppofed the apostle adopted, in order to avoid the offence which the direct mention of the cross might have given to the Jews: to whom, amidst the haughty pretenfions to excellence and fuperiority which they founded on their external relation to God, and the high expectations of temporal deliverance and aggrandifement which they connected with the appearance of the Meffiah; the humility, and ftill more, the fufferings of Chrift; were a "rock "of offence," almost infurmountable. This fuppofition, however, we are constrained to reject, as not only arguing a falfe delicacy, a mean compliance unworthy of the apostle's character, but exprefsly contradicting his general practice: For to those who are converfant in his writings, it is obvious that he fuffers no opportunity to escape him of making the most open and unequivocal mention of the crofs. Nay, he is forward to mention it. He exults; he "glo"ries in the cross of Chrift;" regardless of the prejudices which a blinded nation had unjustly and foolishly conceived against a fuffering Saviour.

fuch injurious treatment; that a perfon claim ing the dignified title of the Son of God, and proving with indifputable evidence, his origin from God, fhould have, without resistance, and without complaint, fubmitted to contradiction; to perfecution; to a painful, an infamous, an accurfed death; this is a phenomenon in the moral world, for which the wisdom of man could never have accounted.

To investigate this fubject by the lights of divine revelation; to trace the death of Chrift to its proper caufe; to afcertain its great defign; to illustrate its neceffity, and to vindicate its wisdom and juftice; these are the objects to which I propofe at prefent to direct your atten

tion.

The profecution of them will open an extenfive field for pleasing and useful meditation; for meditation, too, that will not, I hope, be found unfaitable to the particular occafion on which we are affembled.

First, I begin with premifing that the death of Christ is here expreffed by giving himself; a mode of fpeech which the apoftle, in different inftances, employs to denote our Lord's obe

dience in general; and in particular, his untary fubmifion to the crai.

This indirect method of expreling that w

fome have fuppofed the apoille adonte a fe

to avoid the offence which the first ne...

of the crofs might have

re

whom, amidst the haughty breenland cellence and fuperiority which

their external relation to 1 E

expectations of temporal de

grandifement which her m

pearance of the Mafia:

more, the fuffering A

" of face."

Some other reason, then, must be affigned for the use of this expreffion. And if we take it as it is introduced in the text, it will appear to have been defigned to reprefent to us the proper cause of the death of Chrift; to lead us to refer that great event to the fpontaneous cooperation of his own choice with "the will of "God and our Father." This is the radical caufe to which the death of Christ must be afcribed. All thofe external circumftances which confpired to promote it, were but fecondary to this; they were but means by whose inftrumentality it operated and produced its effect. So extenfively doth this obfervation hold, that to every outward agent in the sufferings of Chrift; to the falfe difciple who betrayed him; to the malicious Jews who were inftant with "loud voices, requiring that he might be cru"cified, and whofe voices prevailed;" to the executioners who nailed him to the crofs; and to the foldier who pierced his fide; to each of these we may apply his own language to his partial judge: "Thou couldst have no power "at all against me, except it were given thee "from above." For how eafily could he have defeated the counfels of his enemies, and made

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