This fearful truth renew'd my pain, The finner must be born again, And whelm'd my tortur'd mind. 4. Again did Sinai's thunders roll, And guilt lay heavy on my foul, A vaft, unwieldy load; Alas! I read, and faw it plain, The finner must be born again, Or drink the wrath of God. 5. The faints I heard with rapture tell, How Jefus conquer'd death and hell, And broke the fowler's fnare ; 6. But while I thus in anguish lay, 7. To heaven the joyful tidings flew, The angels tun'd their harps anew, And loftier notes did raise; All hail the Lamb, who once was flain; And all our grateful paffions rise, 6. Here Lord, our livelieft thanks we pay, And faft in holy friendship join, I. CORNELIUS. A prayer for Divine Grace. H God, forever good and kind, A lowly feat, a humble place, 2. This fading world has loft its charms, The work of God perfect. (Continued from page 21.) NUMBER IV. AVING already adverted to the perfection of God's work in the difpenfation of his grace to man, in three particulars, in the events of his common providence-in the objects of divine mercy-and in the difcipline which God has chofen to train up his people for the heavenly inheritance; I proceed to trace the fame perfection, 4. In the inftruments divine wildom has employed, in fome of the remarkable falvations wrought out for his people, at various periods, which were intended as types of the great falvation of the gofpel; and, efpecially, in that great falvation. What I have chiefly in view is to fhow, that "Out of weakness they were made Strong," as the apostle Paul teftifies of fome of them in the xi. chapter of his epiftle to the Hebrews. Jofeph was hated by his brethren, who fold him as a flave to the Ihmaclites, and they to Potiphar, VOL. III. No. 2. an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian. He fuf fered a long imprisonment. in Egypt, through the ftratagems of a wanton and cruel woman, his mafter's wife, and a train of other miferies incident to a state of flavery, in a strange land, exiled from his country and friends. At length, however, Pharaoh was led, by the mysterious operations of divine providence, to advance Jofeph over all the land of Egypt, and to place him next to his own perfon; in which elevated station, he preferved to his family a pofterity in the earth, and faved their lives by a great deliverance. Mofes was expofed in his infancy, in an ark of bulrufhes, and left to perish. He was exiled into a barbarous land, from the land of his nativity, and from his nation and kindred, forty years; and was, as he himself teftifies, flow of fpeech and of a flow tongue; but, by appointment and commiffion from God, he was a most eminent type of Christ as a Saviour and as a lawgiver, and as a Mediiator between God and his people, in all the offices of prophet, priest and king; and there arofe not a F prophet like unto Mofes, whom | prevailed against the champion of the Lord knew face to face, until Gath, with a fling and a stone, and his great antitype appeared. cut off his head with his own There were many circumftan-fword, and obtained for Ifrael a ces of apparent weaknefs in the glorious victory. Saulbeing ftung expedition of Deborah and Barak, with envy at the praise given to with the ten thousand men of the David, by those who fang to their children of Naphtali, and of the harps, and anfwered one another, children of Zebulon, against the saying, "Saul has flain his thouhoft of Jabin king of Canaan, "fands and David his ten thouwith nine hundred chariots of iron; but they waxed valiant in fight, their victory was glorious, and their deliverance complete. Gideon's family was poor in Manaffeh, and himself the leaft in his father's house; yet, being commiffioned of God, he, with This three hundred men armed with trumpets, empty pitchers and lamps, vanquished the hoft of the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the children of the Eaft; flew the two princes of the Midianites Oreb and Zeeb, and their two kings Zebah and Zalmunna. He alfo effectually taught the princes of Succoth with thorns of the wilderness and briers, and brake down the tower of Penuel, and flew the men of the city, for their unbelief and cruelty. David was the youngeft in his father's house, and while his brethren were employed in the army, he was occupied in the humble bufinefs of a fhepherd, and kept his father's fheep. Being fent by his father to the army, on an office of kindness to his brethren, and making fome enquiry of what fhould be done to the perfon who fhould kill Goliath of Gath, who had defied the armies of Ifrael, he was defpifed and sharply reproved by his eldest brother, for his fuppofed weakness and impertinence; but, animated with zeal in the caufe of God who had been defied, and in the exercise of faith, he accepted the challenge, and "fands,' ever after fought his life, and never ceafed perfecuting him, till he had driven him from the inheritance of God. But the Lord preferved David whithersoever he went. The kingdom of Ifrael was his from the Lord; and after the death of Saul, the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker, and the houfe of David ftronger and ftronger. Many eminent men were raised up to be helpers of David, to turn the kingdom of Saul to him. And there came to him, from day to day, to help him, until it was a great hoft, like the hoft of God. Being establifhed in his kingdom, he fought and prevailed against all his enemies, until he had recovered his border at the river Euphrates, and had extended his dominion from fea to fea. Add to this, he was a great prophet; and the sweet pfalmift of Ifrael; he made great preparations for building the temple; was a fecond lawgiver of the Jewish church and people; added to the ritual of divine fervice, and fet in order the future temple worfhip.. Chrift chofe for his conftant attendants and companions, during his public ministry, certain illiterate fishermen of Gallilee an obfcure part of Palestine, and afterwards commiffioned them to bear his name among the Gentiles and kings and the children of Ifrael: And we can be at no lofs for the reasons of his choice, so contrary us, was through life compaffed with infirmity. He was defpifed and rejected of men; a man of forrows and acquainted with grief. He bore our griefs and carried our forrows, yet he was esteemed ftricken, mitten of God and afflict ed. His vifage was fo marred more than any man, and his form more than the fons of men. Though he was the heir of all things, yet he had not where to lay his head; and during his public miniftry he was fupported principally by the charity of a few pious friends. His laft fcene of fufferings was extreme; he was falfely accufed by the rulers and principal men of his nation before the Roman governor, was arraign ed and condemned, tho' acknowledged to be innoncent by the judge who pronounced fentence; he was fet at nought by the foldiers, clothed in mock majefty, crowned with thorns, fcourged, to all the maxims of human wifdom, fince the fcriptures have told "That this treasure was put in earthen veffels, that the excellency of the power might be of God." The great apostle of the Gentiles was fubject to more and greater infirmities and afflictions than any other apostle or minifter of Chrift ever was, fince the first promulgation of the gofpel, which, in the xi. Chap. of his 2d epiftle to the Corinthians, he recounts, with fome amplification. He adds to these in the xii. chapter what he calls a thorn in the flesh, a meffenger of Satan, given to buffet him, left he should be exalted above measure, through the abundance of the revelations made him; which he befought the Lord, thrice, that it might depart from him, and received for anfwer," My grace is fuffi"cient for thee: for my ftrength "is made perfect in weakness." This confideration completely fat-fpit upon, compelled to bear his isfying his mind, he adds, "Moft gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Chrift may rest upon Above all, the man Chrift Jefus was born in a low condition; he fprang indeed from the ancient and honorable stock of David, but at a time when the family of David was become obscure, and his tabernacle was fallen down. He was born in a ftable and laid in a manger, though his birth was announced by a choir of angels, and by the vifit of the eastern Magi, who paid their homage to the newborn king. His reputed father Jofeph worked at the trade of a carpenter, and he is thought to have followed the fame employ. ment. In his infancy he was compelled to fly into Egypt from the perfecution of Herod, and own cross to the place of execution, crucified between two thieves, and in his expiring moments, he was reviled as an impoftor, and his thirst was mocked with vinegar mingled with gall. But his fufferings and death were voluntary, he fubmitted to them in obedience to the will of his Father; being found in fashion as a man he became obedient unto death, the death of the crofs; he was wounded for our tranfgreffions, he was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed. He was made fin for us, who knew no fin, that we might be made the righteoufsnefs of God in him; and being made perfect through fufferings, he became the author of eternal falvation unto all them that obey him. Though this man was made a curfe for us, He and was compaffed with infirmity wife in their own craftinefs, and through his whole life, yet the the counfel of the froward is carfecond perfon in the adorable ried headlong. He is the king Trinity took him, from his mirac- anointed of God, like fpiritual ulous conception in the womb of David, whom God had decreed his virgin mother, into a perfonal | to fet, and in fpite of the vain im union with himfelf. God repeat-aginations and impotent rage of edly bore witness, by a voice from his enemies, hath fet upon his hoheaven, that he was his beloved | ly hill of Zion ; and who, by the fon, in whom he was well pleased: his miraculous works bore witnefs to the fame truth, and he was declared to be the fon of God with power, according to the fpirit of holinefs, by the refurrection from the dead. He is the great teach- | er who came from God. He is the great prophet like unto Mofes, whom, according to his prediction, God hath raifed up. He is the great high-prieft after the order of Melchifedec, who has-entered into the holieft through his own blood, having obtained eter nal redemption for us. He is the fcope of the Mofaic ritual. He is the perfon to whom all the prophets bear witness from the beginning; fo that the fpirit of prophęcy is but the fame thing as the teftimony of Jefus. He is the antitype of all thofe worthies whom God in former ages had raised up to accomplish any great and excellent things in favor of his people. He is the promised feed of the woman deftined to bruife the head of the ferpent. In his fufferings and death, in which nothing was visible but weakness and wretchednefs, he vanquished him that had the power of death, that is the devil ; and as David killed Goliath with his own fword, he overthrew the devil with the crofs the fuppofed fatal inftrument of his own triumph. Thus the weaknefs of God is ftronger, and the foolishness of God is wi-ed the nature and counfels of God, fer, than his foes, whether men and hath unfealed the book of his or devils; and thus he taketh the eternal decrres: and he is the Lamb . immutable purpose of God, fhall reign, until he has fubdued all his enemies under his feet. He is the Lord of angels and of men. is the head of all principality and power, and might and dominion and every name that is named. He is the conftituted judge of the quick and the dead; in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead, bodily. He is the heir of all things. He is the brightnefs of God's glory and the exprefs image of his perfon. He is the beginning, the firft begotten from the dead, who in all things hath the pre-eminence. He is the Saviour of the body the church, the mediator between | God and man, and the interceffor with the Father for all whom the Father hath given him, and by whom alone they have access to God. He is formed in the fouls of all who love him, there he maintains his kingdom of truth, peace and righteousness. He is in himself, by the Spirit the Com| forter, the principle and earneft, and will be the confummation of eternal life within them. He is the eternal word, by whom all things were created and in whom they fubfift. He is the Wonderful, the Counfellor, the Mighty God, the Everlafting Father, the Prince of Peace. He is the me dium of divine communication to creatures. He alone hath declar | |