and public manner, could be read, or heard like the "form of found words" -mentioned by St. Paul, which Timothy was directed to "bold faft;"t that fo he might hand it down to the Chriftian church, as a model of what was to be profeffed and believed in that church, to the end of the world. Accord ingly it is by such a fummary of the Christian faith, that the church to which we belong continues, and I truft, will continue, to profefs her belief in the adorable THREE who fubfift, with equal power, majefty and eternity, in the unity of the Godhead, and bear record in heaven to the merciful scheme of man's falvation. By fuch a concife and well-composed form of found words, we are taught to afcribe our creation to "the Father Almighty," our redemption to "his only Son Jefus Christ our Lord," and our fanctification to "the Holy Ghost;" adding alfo our faith in "one holy, catholic church," that mystical body, of which Chrift is the glorious Head, and in which is enjoyed "the communion "of faints," bleffed with the promise of "forgive"nefs of fins" in this world, and of the "refur "rection from the dead, and everlafting life" in the world to come. This is undoubtedly the faith, which Chrift established in his church, and which he authorised his apoftles to deliver from him, as a facred privilege or bleffing to his people, to be re ceived and preferved as fuch, whole and entire, till he fhould come again to give a

*2 Tim. i. 13.

66 crown of

righteousness,"

"righteousness," to all them, who fhall thus "have "kept the faith, and love his appearing."

For the preservation therefore of such a bleffing, the fum and fubftance of all the good things which Christ has made over to his church, and in the hope of that glorious reward, which he has promised to fuch fidelity, it is furely the intereft, as much as the duty of all Chriftians, to contend in the most earnest manner; and they cannot do fo more effectually, than by holding out the end and object of their faith in the fame uniform light, in which it has ever been reprefented, as the effect of that divine immutable counsel, which admits of no change or variation, and fo makes the volume of revelation fpeak a clear, confiftent language from beginning to end. It begins with the creation of the world, and the formation of man, and it ends with the last judgment, and confummation of all things; and thro' the whole period described in the Old Testament, we fee a regular chain and feries of well connected events, all leading on to the incarnation of the promised Redeemer, and directing the attention of God's faithful people to that great mystery of godlinefs, God manifested in the flesh. It was to this mysterious accomplishment of the Divine counsel, that the law and the prophets looked forward; and what was fo long fhadowed out in their typical rites, and figurative language, was at last most happily exhibited in all its fubftance, under the dispensation of the gospel; which is therefore to be confidered

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as fulfilling the law, juft as the law was predicting the gospel, and both are to be viewed as confti. tuting one beautiful and consistent scheme of falvation.

It is by adhering to this unity of defign, and placing things in their proper form and order, that the faith of a Christian is built on fuch a firm and folid foundation, as man cannot lay; but which was graciously laid for him in the will and counsel of his God before the world began, and gradually manifested in all the outlines of the marvellous plan, according to the wisdom of its Almighty contriver. When things are thus traced back to their proper fource, we can eafily perceive the inftructive defign of those facred emblems, under which the knowledge of God's merciful purpose, and goodwill towards men, is fo beautifully conveyed to us : And it is in this view, that we are taught to behold the ancient patriarchs, prophets, priests and kings, as typical characters, and their feveral offices, and the more remarkable paffages of their lives, as forefhewing Him, who was to arise, as the Head of the holy family, the great Prophet, the true Priest, the everlasting King.* Thus the events which happened

* See this subject admirably illustrated in the preface to Bishop Horne's excellent Commentary on the book of Pfalms, which his biographer justly calls the greatest work of his life, and of which the author himself gave this account, foon after it was begun. "The work delights me greatly, and seems, “so far as I can judge of my own turn and talents, to suit me the best of any "I can think of. May he, who hath the Key of David, profper it in my

pened to the ancient people of God, were defigned to point out, as in a figure, parallel occurrences, which should afterwards take place in the accomplishment of man's redemption, and the rife and progrefs of the Chriftian church: And as we are to view in the fame light the various provocations and punishments, captivities and restorations of the tribes of Ifrael, which we are affured, "happened unto "them for enfamples," "types or figures," and were written for our admonition; so we are to understand in the fame figurative sense, what is faid of the law, and its ceremonies; of the tabernacle and temple, with the services therein performed, and of the whole economy of the priesthood of Aaron. All this the well inftructed Chriftian will eafily transfer to the new law of the gofpel, to the obla tion of Chrift, to the true tabernacle or temple not made with hands, and to what was done therein for the falvation of the world, by Him, who was in one refpect a Sacrifice, in another a Temple, and in a third, a." High Prieft for ever after the order CC of Melchizedek ;" after a certain order, form, or regulation, which was to be the rule, and model of the Christian priesthood for ever.

That the Chriftian church was to have a priesthood, duly and regularly ordered, according to a form

N

"hand, granting me the knowledge and utterance neceffary to make it fer"viceable to the church!" Let any person of judgement peruse the work, and he will fee how well the author has fucceeded, and kept up the spirit of it to the end.

form appointed for that purpose, is abundantly evident from the whole of St. Paul's reafoning on this fubject, in his Epistle to the Hebrews; in which the figurative economy of the law is reprefented as brought to perfection under the gofpel, and the fervice of the temple as furnishing a typical refemblance of that of the Chriftian church. If the faithful Jews: were allowed to draw near to God, through the appointed ministrations of the tabernacle; "we have "an altar," fays the apostle, "from which they "had no right to eat, while they ftill adhered to "that unavailing fervice:" And if as Chriftians, we have an altar, we must alfo have a priesthood to minister at the altar; for these are correlative terms; and St. Paul certainly confidered them as fuch, when he was at fo much pains to point out the analogy in this respect between the law and the gospel, and laid it down as a fettled rule, that "no man

ever taketh this honour" (of the priesthood)" un"to himself," or can ever receive it, but from the hands of those who have power to give it," thofe "that are called of God as was Aaron." The apostle, it is evident, meant to fhew, that the Chriftian and Jewish churches were not two different difpenfations, as to their original plan and purpose, but a continuation of the one church of God, and one Divine economy for the falvation of man: And things were thus regularly ordained, and uniformly carried on, because it is of infinite importance to man, that he fhould always be able to know, if he