from this, he is frequently in fcripture called falvation; which fignifies the happiness of being rescued and delivered from all kind of evil; as peace fignifics all kind of good, If. xlix. 6. I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayft be my falvation unto the end of the earth. And Luke ii. 30. when Simeon had our bleffed Saviour in his arms, when he was firft brought into the temple, he calls him the falvation of God; Mine eyes (faith he to God) have feen thy falvation; and John iv. 22. Salvation is of the Jews; that is, the Meffias was to be of that nation. But, which is more exprefs, Christ is called our peace, Eph. ii. 14. Nay, he is exprefsly called peace, or the peace, Micah v. 5. And this man (fpeaking of the Meffias) fhall be the peace; that is, one of his names or titles fhall be peace. So that I make little doubt, but that in this expreffion in the text of giving peace, is meant giving the Meffias and that this is rendered as the reafon why the glory of the fecond temple fhould be greater than of the first, because in that place the Meffias fhould appear, and remarkably fhew himfelf. God could have given this fecond temple, if he had thought fit, as much outward glory and beauty as that of Solomon's building; for filver and gold are his, and all the riches of the world are at his command: but he chofe to put a far greater honour upon it than that of filver and gold, and to make it much more glorious in another refpect; The glory of this latter houfe fhall be greater than of the former; becaufe in this place I will give the Meffias, the peace, and happinefs, and falvation of mankind, and incomparably the greatest bleffing that ever was given to the world.

;

The words being thus explained, it will now be more eafy to fhew how the feveral parts of this prediction do agree to our blessed Saviour, and to no other.

I. That there fhould be great changes and commotions in the world before his coming: I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the fea, and the dry land, and I will fake all nations; and then he should come.

2. That about the time of his coming, the world fhould be in a general expectation of him: And the expectation of all nations shall come.

3. That he fhould come during the continuance of

the fecond temple; for it was his coming that should fill that houfe with glory, and in that place the Meffias, who is called peace, is promifed to be given: And in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord of hofts.

4. That this coming of the Meffias fhould be the last difpenfation of God for the falvation of men, and confequently fhould be perpetual and unalterable: Yet once more, and I will shake the heavens and the earth. Yet once more; from whence the Apostle to the Hebrews argues, that the gofpel fhould be a perpetual and unalterable difpenfation. Of these I shall speak feverally, and as briefly as I can.

I. Here is a prediction of great changes and commotions in the world before the coming of the Meffias : Thus faith the Lord of hefts, I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the fea, and the dry land and I will shake all nations, and the defire of all nations fhall come; plainly fignifying hereby, that before the coming of the Meffias, who is here called the defire and expectation of all nations, there should be very great commotions and changes in the world; that the empire of the world fhould be overturned for fo I have told you, that this expression of fhaking the heavens and the earth is explained, y 21. of this chapter, I will shake the heavens and the earth, and will overthrow the throne of kingdoms. And this was fulfilled in a most remarkable manner, between the time of this prophecy, and the coming of our bleffed Saviour; during which time (though it was but four hundred years) there happened greater commotions and much more confiderable revolutions in the great kingdoms of the world, than had done in above two thoufand years before, and in almoft one thoufand feven hundred years fince: fo that it is no wonder that the prediction of these things is by God himself expressed in so very folemn a manner, as I obferved before.

At the time of this prophecy, the empire of the world was newly tranflated from the Affyrians to the Medes and Perfians; and not long after, the Grecians, under Alexander the Great, quite overthrew the Persian empire, and that by as fudden a change as was ever perhaps made in the world, poffeffing themselves by fo fwift and fpeedy a conqueft of a great part of the then known world,

world, as if to pass through it, and to conquer it, had been all one.

After the death of Alexander, the empire of the Grecians was fhared among his great captains; whom the Romans by degrees conquered, befides a great many other kingdoms which Alexander never faw, and some of them perhaps had never heard of. And at laft the empire of the world, in all its greatnefs and glory, was poffeffed by Auguftus, in whofe time our bleffed Saviour was born.

So that here were mighty commotions in the world, wonderful changes of kingdoms and empires, before the coming of the Meffias; far greater, and of much larger extent, than thofe that were in Egypt and Paleftine, at the bringing of the children of Ifrael out of Egypt, and -the giving of the law from Mount Sinai. And these did not only go before the coming of the Meffias, but they made way for the more eafy propagating of his doctrine and religion for the Grecians, and efpecially the Romans, fettled their conquefts in fuch a manner, as in a good measure to propagate their language among the nations which they conquered; and particularly the Romans did make the ways for travel and commerce much more eafy and commodious than ever they were before, by employing their armies, when they had no other work, to make high-ways, for the convenience of paffage from the station of one legion to another; the benefit and effect whereof we in England enjoy to this day, (a pattern to all princes and states that have neceffary occafion for armies how to employ them): and this very thing proved afterwards a mighty advantage for the more eafy and speedy fpreading of Christianity in the world.

II. Another part of this prophecy is, that, about the time of the coming of the Meffias, the world fhould be in a general expectation of him: And the expectation of all nations fhall come. And I doubt not but this character of the Meffias is taken out of that famous prophecy concerning him, Gen. xlix. 10. The fceptre fhall not depart from Judah till Shiloh ce, (and by Shiloh the ancient Jews generally undertood the Meffias), and to him shall the gathering of people be; or, as it is rendered by the Septuagint, and everal other translations, and he shall be

the

the expectation of the nations. In allufion to which ancient prophecy concerning him, he is here in the text called the expectation of all nations; and fo by the Prophet Malachi, chap. iii. 1. And the Lord whom ye expect, (or look for), fhall fuddenly come into his temple. Now, this part of the prediction in the text was most eminently fulfilled in our bleffed Saviour. For about the time of his coming, the Jews were in a general expectation of him; as appears not only from that ancient and general tradition of theirs, from the school of Elias, that at the end of the fecond two thousand years of the world the Meffias fhould come, (and our blessed Saviour's coming did accordingly happen at that time); but likewife from that particular computation of the Jewish doctors, not long before our Saviour's coming, who, upon a folemn debate of the matter, did determine that the Meffias would come within fifty years. And this is farther confirmed from the great jealousy which Herod had concerning a King of the Jews, that was expected to be born about that time; and from that remarkable testimony in Jofephus, who tells us, that "the Jews rebelled against

the Romans, being encouraged thereto by a famous pro46 phecy in their fcriptures, that about that time a great prince fhould be born among them, that should rule "the world." And Jofephus flattered Vefpafian fo far, as to make him believe that he was the man; and thereupon perfuaded him to deftroy the line of David, out of which the tradition was, that the Meffias fhould spring; as if the accomplishment of a divine prediction could be hindered by any human endeavour.

And this was not only the general expectation of the Jews about that time, but of a great part of the world; as appears from thofe two famous teftimonies of two of the most eminent Roman hiftorians, Suetonius and Tacitus.

The words of Suetonius are thefe: Percrebuerat oriente toto vetus & conftans opinio, effe in fatis, ut Judæa, profecti rerum potirentur: "There was an ancient and " general opinion, famous throughout all the Eastern 16 parts, that the fates had determined, that there should "6 come out of Judea those that should govern the "6 world; " and he adds what I quoted before out of Jofephus, Id Judai ad fe trahentes, rebellarunt: "That

"the

the Jews taking this to themselves, did thereupon re"bel." Now, it is very remarkable, that the very words of this tradition feem to be a verbal tranflation of that prophecy in Micah, That out of Judah fhould come the governor: Ut Judæa profecti rerum potirentur. The other teftimony is out of Tacitus; and his words are thefe, (lib. 21. § 13.), Pluribus perfuafio inerat, antiquis facerdotum libris contineri, eo ipfo tempore fore, ut valefceret oriens, profectique Judæâ rerum potirentur: "A great 66 many (fays he) were poffeffed with a perfuafion, that "it was contained in the ancient books of the priests, "that at that very time the East should prevail, and that "they who fhould govern the world were to come out "of Judea." By the ancient books of the priests, he, in all probability, means the ancient prophecies of fcripture; for the laft expreffion is the fame with that of Suetonius, taken out of the Prophet Micah; and the other, that the Eaft fhould prevail, does plainly refer to that title given to the Meffias by the Prophet Zachary, chap. vi. 12. where he is called the man whofe name is TZEMACH, which fignifies Oriens and Germen, both the East and a Branch; our tranflation hath it, the man whofe name is the Branch; but it might as well be rendered, the man whofe name is the Eaft. Thus you fee this character of our Saviour in this prophecy moft literally fulfilled, that he was the expectation of all nations. I proceed to the

III. Third circumstance of this prediction, that he who is here foretold fhould come during the continuance of this fecond temple; because it was his prefence that fhould fill that houfe with glory; and it was in that place that the Meffias, who is called the peace, is promifed to be given; And in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord of hofts. And this is likewife molt exprefsly foretold by the Prophet Malachi, chap. iii. 1. Behold, I will fend my meffenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord whom ye look for, shall fuddenly come into his temple; even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: bebold, he shall come, faith the Lord of hofts. And accordingly Jefus our bleffed Saviour came during the fecond temple; he was prefented there by his parents, and owned by Simeon for the Meffias; he difputed there, and taught frequently there, and by his pre

fence