ends of the earth." "In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory." Isaiah xlv. 22, 25. Such passages, however, did not lead the Jews to turn the eyes of their minds to the Messiah, and the great work which he was to finish. There was a vail upon their hearts in reading Moses and the Prophets. The law of their revered leader was quite perverted. They rested in the law itself, without looking to him who is the end of it for justification to every one that believeth. Rom. x. 3, 4. Acts xiii. 15. Their minds were blind to the important fact, that the leading design of the Scriptures was to testify of the person and sacrifice of Christ; and to direct them, as guilty and helpless sinners, to his atonement for pardon and acceptance. The consequence was, that when the Saviour appeared," they would not come to him that they might have life ;" and when his apostles preached him as the substance of the typical economy," they contradicted and blasphemed." John v. 40. They totally misunderstood the important lessons taught on the subject in the passover, the daily sacrifice, and the unceasing flow of blood in the sanctuary. Almost all things were purged by blood; and without shedding of blood there was no remission of sins. Heb. ix. 22. These rites were explained by the promises and prophecies respecting the Messiah. It was declared that he should make his soul an offering for sin, and should bear the sin of many; and that, on these grounds, he should, by the knowledge of himself, justify many. Isaiah liii. 10, 11, 12. It was likewise predicted, that he should finish transgression, and make an end of sin-make reconciliation for iniquity, and bring in everlasting righteousness. Dan. ix. 24. To him, in a word, gave all the prophets witness, that through his name whoever believed in him should receive remission of sins. Acts x. 43. To all these precious statements, in which were written, in legible characters, the Divine

plan of justification through a propitiation, the pride and self-righteousness of their hearts had completely blinded them.

The Gentiles, who had not the benefit of the written revelation of the will of God, and who pursued not after the blessing of justification, but were living in a state of utter carelessness about it, when they heard the Gospel, were not influenced towards it as the Jews were. No doubt the principle of self-righteousness, which is deeply rooted in the hearts of all men, was in them as well as in the Israelites; but it had not been cherished by them in relation to the Scriptures, as it had been by the Jews. The latter imagined that they already understood them, and had the blessings which they unfold; but this the former could not for a moment suppose. The result was, that when the Gentiles heard the Gospel, they were not so prejudiced in relation to this subject as were the chosen people; and, by the blessing of God," they attained justification, even the justification which is by faith." On the other hand, the Jews, who were busy in pursuing after the law, or the rule or principle according to which justification was to be obtained, did not attain to the knowledge of that principle, and, of course, did not attain to the blessing itself. Rom. ix. 30, 31. The very natural question, How did the Israelites fail of obtaining the knowledge of the Divine plan of justification, seeing they had in their hands the revelation of Heaven upon the subject, and were employed in the study of it? is thus satisfactorily answered. In searching this revelation, they did not examine it with a mind unfettered by prejudice, and open to whatever it might teach. On the contrary, they read the Scriptures with a firm conviction that they were designed to answer the question, "What shall I do that I may obtain life everlasting?" They accordingly sought the knowledge of the divine method of justification, not

by looking simply to the testimony of God, but by converting every part of Scripture into a system of directions how best to merit the favour of Heaven. They of course "sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law;" and so stumbled at the doctrine of salvation through faith in the finished work of the Redeemer.

The Scriptures, it is true, are designed to inform us of the whole of our duty, both to God and to man. They set before us the extent and obligation of the Divine law, and declare that every instance of transgression exposes to its curse. Gal. iii. 10. They do so for the purpose of vindicating e character and government of God, to convince us of sin,-to persuade us of our need of a Saviour,-and to teach us the nature of salvation. They exhibit our state as a state of disease, in order to show the suitableness of the remedy which they reveal. They do not tell us, then, that we are diseased, and call upon us to be well, without setting before us the means of recovery. What are exhortations to duty without exhibiting scriptural motives to obedience, but doing this foolish thing? Had the Jews understood this, they would not have viewed the Bible as a system of directions to obedience, by which, without regard to the Redeemer, they were to "enter into life." The more clearly they saw, as they imagined, the directions an question, the better did they deem themselves acquainted with the plan of justification; and the more that they followed their fancied instructions, the nearer did they think themselves to the blessing of which they were in quest. No wonder that such characters stumbled at the doctrine of the cross. Rom. ix. 32, 33. Such was the character of Paul when a Pharisee, and such was the character of those who, as he says, had a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. Being ignorant of the Divine plan of justification, they went about to

establish their own self-righteous plan, and would not submit to that of God. Rom. x. 1, 3.

Not that their object was purely religious, for they mixed with it the pursuit of earthly things. We wonder at the gross absurdity of the idolater, whom the prophet represents as taking a tree, and employing one part to kindle a fire, and of another part of it making a god, and falling down and worshipping it. Isaiah xliv. 10-20. But what better or wiser were the Jews, who observed the same ordinances of religion, partly to establish their reputation among men and to promote their worldly interests, and partly, establish a ground of confidence before God? Wh better or wiser are men still, when they attend to the forms of religion from a regard to reputation, or to promote some worldly and selfish design; and yet will trust to the very observances which spring from such motives as a ground of hope for eternity? It is not for such to smile at the sottish conduct of the man who makes a god of the very tree with which he had made a fire to warm himself, and to roast flesh for food. Truly, there is nothing new under the sun; we see but different modifications of the same principles.

Many, alas! are still in the same error as that of the Jews. They come to the Scriptures under the persuasio. that it is their great design to tell them by what deeds and sacrifices of their own they may procure the favour of God and eternal life. This pernicious sentiment blinds their minds to what is there said of the character of Christ, as the only medium of access to Jehovah, the sole foundation of hope to a sinner,-and the only medium through which the blessing of redemption can be communicated to man.

Sometimes the error I now speak of is defended, by a reference to the case of the young man in the Gospel. Luke xviii. 18-23. On this I have to remark, that

the young man imagined that our Lord had come to teach men some new rules, by obedience to which life was to be obtained. Our Lord, in reply, spoke to him on his own principles; and the spirit of his reply is, "If life is to be had by obedience, there is no need that I should give any new commandments,-those already given are quite sufficient; for they include love to God and our neighbour, which is the sum of all that can be required." The young man answered, that he had kept them all; and asked what he yet lacked? The Saviour then called him to give all he had to the poor. Now, had the young man really loved God, he would have been ready to do so, when called to it by Divine authority. The call was therefore fitted to bring his fancied obedience fully to the test. The covetousness of his heart was thus detected, and consequently his want of that love which is the fulfilling of the law. But while the Saviour endeavoured to convince him of the real state of his heart, he at the same time called him to come to him, and to follow him bearing the cross. The call to come to him, was a call to believe in him; and the call to sell his all and follow him in the path of tribulation, was a call to confess him with the mouth,-to love him supremely, and, like the soldier at the word of his commander, to be ready to renounce, without delay or reluctance, even what he might love most, and cheerfully to endure the most painful afflictions. The command to sell all and give to the poor was not meant for a general rule, but was given to try the character of this individual. The spirit of the precept is, that our will must implicitly bow to the will of our God. This case, then, exhibits no warrant for the notion I now speak of.

. They who hold this sentiment read the perceptive parts of the word of God with this idea in their mind,