the crown fhall ftand on the Redeemer's head, and the govern ment lie upon his fhoulder.

2. With the folemnity of a covenant transacted betwixt him and his eternal Father, when the council of peace was between them both. And what is the iffue of that grand council, which was held in heaven, from the ancient ages of eternity? It was juft, that the man, whofe name is the BRANCH, fhould come out of his place, that he fhould bear the glo ry, and that he should fit and rule upon his throne, Zech. vi. 12. 13.

3. With the folemnity of an oath, ratifying the determination of the council of peace in this matter: Pfal. xxxix. 3. 4"I have made a covenant with my chofen; I have sworn unto David my fervant. Thy feed will I eftablish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations." And you fee, ver. 35. that in his oath he impignorates his holiness, the most orient and dazzling jewel of his crown, for the greater fecurity, "Once have I fworn by my holiness, that I will not lie unto David," i. e. I will as foen ceafe to be a holy God, as turn my Son out of the government; no, it shall lie upon his fhoulder, as long as I am holy, and that is for ever and ever. The government is committed to him by a folemn election and investiture; he was elected to the government by his own Father, and the joint concurrence of all the fubjects: If. xlii. 1. He is "mine elect in whom my foul delighteth." Pfal. lxxxix. 19. 20. “I have exalted one chofen out of the people. I have found David my fervant: with my holy oil have I anointed him." And the whole family of heaven and earth concur in the choice, without a contradictory voice: hence when he mounts the throne, and afcends up on high, they all clap their hands, faying, as Pfal. xlvii. 5. 6. "God is gone up with a fhout, the Lord with the found of a trumpet. Sing praifes to God, fing praifes: fing praises unto our King, fing praifes." That palage, Rev. v. 11. 12. is thought by fome judicious interpreters, particularly the great Owen, to have a refpect unto the reception Christ met with, when he returned to heaven, and fat down on the throne in our nature: " And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne, and the beafts, and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thoufands;" and what fay they? how cordially do they give their vote, that he should reign? "Saying with a lould voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was flain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and ftrength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.'

IV. The fourth thing was, to give the reafons of the doc

trine. Why is the government laid upon his fhoulder? I, anfwer,

1. Because his fhoulder alone was able to bear the weight of the administration and government of the church. They who ufurp the administration, take too much upon them : it is a burden too heavy for angels or archangels; how then should finful worms bear it? God the Father faw that none in heaven or earth but his own eternal Son was match for such a province; and therefore commits it to him, with a promise of his own affiftance in the government, Pfal. lxxxix. 19-21. "I have laid help upon one that is mighty.-I have found him ;-I have anointed him.-With whom my hand fhall be established: mine arm alfo fhall ftrengthen him."

2. It is laid upon his fhoulder, or committed to him, that he might be in better capacity for accomplishing the salvation of his people, and bringing many fons and daughters unto glory; hence we find his kingdom and falvation frequently joined together; "Thou art my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth;" and Zech. ix. 9. "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; fhout, O daughter of Jerufalem: behold thy King cometh unto thee; he is just, and having salvation. Let his kingdom be never fo low, his fubjects in the worst of bondage and mifery, whether as to the external or internal man, if their Governor and King give but the word of command, immediately deliverance comes; Pfal. xliv. 4. "Thou art my King, O God, command deliverances for Jacob." His command dried up the Red Sea, divided Jordan, and brought Ifrael into the promised land.

3. The government is laid upon his fhoulder, that he may "ftill the enemy and the avenger," that he may refent his Father's quarrel against Satan, and entirely bruife his head, for his defacing and ftriking at his and his Father's image in our firft parents, and disturbing his government, which he had established in innocence. Chrift's great bufinefs, when he appeared in this world in perfon, and when he appears in the difpenfation of the gofpel, and power of his Spirit, is to destroy the works of the devil, to rear up his own kingdom, in the ruin of the old ferpent and his feed. Hence it is, that when he takes the field, he gives the shout of war against that enemy and all that join him, If. lxiii. 4. "The day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my Redeemed is come."

4. The government is laid upon his fhoulder, or committed unto him, because he hath a just title to it. As,

, He has a title to it by birth. He is God's first born,

and therefore he will make him "higher than the kings of the earth" yea, he is "King of kings, and Lord of lords."

2dly, He has a title to it by purchase. He hath redeemed his church by his own blood, and therefore. has the best right to govern her: his cross was the way in which he came to the crown; he fuffered, and then entered into his glory.

3dly, He has a right to it by his Father's promise and charter, granted him upon the footing of his death and fatisfaction; If. liii. 12. "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he fhall divide the fpoil with the strong: becaufe he hath poured out his foul unto death;" and, Phil ii. 8. 9. 10. we are told, that " because he endured the cross, and despised the shame, therefore God alfo hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name."

4thly, He has a title to it by conqueft. He invades the ter ritories of the god of this world, fets up his ftandard within his dominions, and spoils principalities and powers, fets the captives of the mighty at liberty, he travels in the greatness of his ftrength, fhewing himself mighty to five, fubduing finners, and bringing every thought into captivity to his obedience; and because he doth so, therefore the government is committed to him, and laid upon his shoulder.

V. The fifth thing was, the Application of the doctrine. The firft ufe may be of Information in the following particulars. Is it fo, that the government is laid upon the shoul ders of the Redeemer by the ordination of the Father? See hence,

1. The wonderful love of God which he bears to his church and people, in providing fuch a Ruler and Governor for them. I remember the queen of Sheba, 1 Kings x. 9. in her address to Solomon, she fays, "Because the Lord loved Ifrael for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgement and juftice." So, well may we fay here, Because the Lord loved his church and people, therefore he made his own eternal Son King in the midst of her, and laid the government upon his shoulders. O what a wonderful evidence of his love is this! And fhould not this make the under-governors of the church very tender, and take head of ruling with rigour, and, to be aware of what rulers they fet over her?

2. See hence what a happy government and administration believers, the faints of God, are under, viz. the government of the child born, and the fon given to us, whofe name is the Wonderful, Counsellor, &c. The queen of Sheba, in the place now cited, 1 Kings x. 9. when the faw the glory of Solomon, VOL. II.

C

and

and the wisdom of his administration, her fpirit fails her; and, ver. 8. fhe cries out, "Happy are thy men, happy are these thy fervants which ftand continually before thee, and that hear thy wifdom." But "behold a greater than Solomon is here." Solomon, and all his wifdom and glory, was but a faint type of the glory and wisdom of the Lord Jefus Chrift, and the glory of his perfon and adminiftration; and therefore upon far better ground we may fay of the fubjects of Chrift's kingdom, as Mofes did of Ifrael, Deut. xxxiii. 29. "Happy art thou, O Ifrael who is like unto thee, O people faved by the Lord, the fhield of thy help, and who is the fword of thy excellen Cy!"

3. See hence the mifery of a wicked unbelieving world, who will not have him to rule over them, on whose fhoulders the government is laid, but break his bands, and caft away his cords from them; why, he that fits in heaven fhall laugh at their impotent attempts against the government of his Son, and he hath authorised him to break all that will not bow to his government : "Thou shalt break them as with a rod of iron, thou shalt dafh them in pieces like a potter's veffel." Even the great potentates, who will not stoop unto him, he will cut them off; for "he cuts off the spirit of princes, and is terrible to the kings of the earth, and ftrikes them through in the day of his wrath," &c.

4. Is it fo that the government is laid upon his fhoulders? Then fee the nullity of all acts, laws, and conftitutions, that do not bear the stamp of Christ, and that are not confiftent with the laws and orders he has left for the government of his church. They cannot mifs to be null, because Zion's King never touched them with his fceptre, they want a foundation in the word of God; and unless acts and laws are founded there, they have no foundation at all, because there is no church-authority but what is derived from him.

5. See hence that they run a very dangerous risk who do injury to his fubjects, or ftrip them of any of the rights, privileges, or immunities he has granted them, and purchased for them with the price of his blood. Among other privileges which Zion's King hath allowed his fubjects, this is none of the leaft, that they fhould have the choice of their pastors; for which cause he hath required them to try the fpirits and gifts minifters are endowed with, whether they be calculate for the edification of their fouls, 1 John iv. 1. It is a command not given unto heritors and elders only, but even to little children, young men and fathers; "Beloved (fays he), believe not every fpirit, but try the spirits," viz. of minifters and preachers, "whether they are of God" and the reafon he

The

gives is remarkable, in the clofe of the verfe, "Because many falfe prophets are gone abroad into the world." And in a fuitableness to this trying of the fpirits of the prophets, we find, Acts vi. that it was "the multitude of difciples," that by exprefs order are commanded to choose out from among them "men full of the Holy Ghoft and wifdom.” apostles, the extraordinary officers in the church, and who, one would think, were the most competent judges of men full of the Holy Ghoft and wisdom; yet they would not take that power upon them, which is now lodged in heritors and elders. I fear, the partiality shown in our public acts, in preferring the great, the noble, the rich man with the gay clothing, before the poor of this world, whom generally God hath chofen, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom, lay a foundation for a controverfy between God and this nation, which will not foon be at an end. Chrift's little ones are but little regarded nowa-days; but they who maltreat them, to gratify the greatest upon earth, will smart for it in the iffue. It is an awful word uttered by him upon whose fhoulders the government is laid, Matt. xviii. 6. 7." But whofo fhall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a mill-ftone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the fea. Wo unto the world because of offences: for it must needs be that offences come: but wo to that man by whom the offence cometh."

6. If the government be upon his fhoulders, then hence I infer, that they have a hard taik to manage, who attempt to justle him out of his government, and take it upon their own fhoulders.

Quest. Who are these?

I anfwer, f, Papifts, who fet up the man of fin to be the head of the church, calling him Chrift's vicar, He is Antichrift, whom Chrift will deftroy with the breath of his mouth, and the brightnefs of his coming. '

2dly, Prelatifts, who fet up archbishops, and diocefan bishops, in the church of Chrift; officers whom Christ never ordained in his kingdom, or never were warranted by his word. We read of no officer under the New Teftament fuperior to a prefbyter; and therefore archbishops and bithops have no warrant in the word, and can be none of the officers of Chrift's kingdom.

3dly, Eraftians, who take the government off Chrift's shoul ders, and lay it upon the civil magiftrtate, putting it in his power to caft the government of the church of Chrift into what mould and fathion is moft agreeable unto his worldly intereft. What an affont is it done unto the Son of God, to