Among the caufes which rendered the Saviour of man. kind a fubject of forrow and continual grief, in the days of his flesh, his natural constitution, as a man, may be first confidered. With a view to fhew the fuitablenefs of the man Christ Jefus for the office of high priest, the apoftle to the Hebrews is particular in the following statement, chap. 2d, 16, 17, 18 verfes. "For verily he took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on him the feed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren; that he might be a merciful and faithful high prieft in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the fins of the people: for in that he himfelf hath fuffered, being tempted, he is able to fuccor them that are tempted." By this and concurrent paffages we are fupported in the belief that the Saviour was poffeffed of all thofe natural paffions which are common to mankind; that he inherited from his natural conftitution, as a man, a due proportion of that fenfibility which ferved as an open avenue, through which the afflictions and miferies of mankind found constant accefs to his heart; and that this, fo far from rendering him unfit for the high office to which he was appointed, was neceffary to his being, what the world needed, a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the fins of the people. The forlorn condition into which fin and rebellion against God had brought the world of mankind, and the innumerable and inconceivable miferies which were continually preying on the rational offspring of God, who were originally conftituted, and still continued the members of his mystical body, may be placed among thofe caufes which we are now noticing. But that which gave to the foregoing particulars their agency and force, and without which the miferies of mankind could never have produced a mental pain, in the breast of Jefus, was the great love wherewith he loved the world.

By this love his natural fenfibility was refined, and improved to the fuperlative degree; refined from all improper affections, and improved to an impartial participation of the fullness of human fufferings and infirmities. Moved by thefe important caufes, our bleffed Saviour may be traced.

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through all his forrows, from the manger to the crofs. By their united influence he dropped the fympathetic tear at the tomb of Lazarous, mingling his forrows with weeping fifters and participating the grief of mourning relatives and friends. When he looked cn Jerufalem, and anticipated the righteous judgments of God which were foon to be executed on its finful inhabitants, he wept over it in the prefence of a vaft multitude who witneffed the full tide of his bitter grief, which correfponded with the forrowful profpect which caufed it. The wild beafts of the wilderness and that folitary place were witneffes of his forrows in the days of his temptation, and the garden of Gethsemane was the chofen place for the enduring of that agony which caufed him to fweat, as it were, drops of blood.

How difmal was that memorable night in which our Redeemer was betrayed into the hands of finners! Forfaken of those whom he had honored with the facred and endearing appellation of friends, with whom he had lived, during his public ministry, in habits of the strictest intimacy and friendship, whom he had chofen to compofe his confidential family, and to whom he had preached and particu larly explained the great fubjects concerning the gofpel of his kingdom; betrayed by one whom he ordained to preach the Gospel, and empowered with a divine authority to caft out devils, to open the eyes of the blind, heal the fick, to raife the dead, and to execute all things which appertained to the high office of an apoftle.

He was alone, and of the people there were none with him. Let no pen attempt to "describe the gaul and wormwood with which the cup of our Saviour's fufferings was mingled, by his being forfaken and hated by thofe he loved. He had done for his country all that love could do; he was touched with the infirmities of the people, and he bore their fickneffes. He had made many to rejoice in the bleffings of his mercy, having healed the fick, given fight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, feet to the lame, and life to the dead. He had even taken their young children in his arms, like a kind fhepherd the tender lambs of the flock, and bleffed them and pronounced them of the kingdom of heaven. Nor did his love diminifh, or grow cold, as per

fecution increased and as he drew nigh unto death. He ftill thought more of others than of himself, and turned and faid to the tender hearted women, who bewailed and lamented him, daughters of Jerufalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they fhall fay, bleffed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave fuck. Then fhall they begin to fay to the mountains, fall on us; and to the hills, cover us. For if they do thefe things in the green tree, what fhall be done in the dry?" Falfe and grievous accufations, fhameful mockings and painful fcourgings he bore without a murmer; he was led as a lamb to the flaughter, and as a fheep is dumb before her fhearer, fo he opened not his mouth. When the rage of his enemies was exaufted in adminiftering torture, and the cup of his indefcribable fufferings was full, he still ftood firm to his love and his pity, and having finished his labours in the flesh, and provided for the wants of an af flicted mother, he addressed a folemn and an availing prayer to his father for his enemies and gave up the ghoft.

Secondly. In a fubordinate degree, the faithful minifters of Chrift are men of forrow and acquainted with grief.

Poffeffed of all the natural paffions common to mankind, and by no means free from thofe infirmities which too frequently divert them from the path of life, their travel, thro' this vale of good and evil, is marked, with many forrows, and diftinguifhed with much grief. Having been favoured of God with an acquaintance with the glorious gofpel of falvation, by a Redeemer, and with a participation of the fpirit of their divine mafter, they thereby learn to love their fellow men, though not fo ardently or impartially as did the Saviour, yet fo much as to be deeply affected with the fcenes of human mifery which are conftantly paffing before their eyes, or coming to their knowledge. Like their divine mafter, they feel more difpofed to pity, and to relieve mankind from fin and mifery, than to condemn, or add to their afflictions. The Apoftle of the Gentiles is remarkably pathetic on this fubject, in the following paffage to the Ro"I fay the truth in Chrift, I lie not, my confcience alfo bearing me witnefs in the holy ghoft, that I have great

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heaviness and continual forrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accurfed from Chrift for my brethren, my kinfmen according to the flefh." Thus Mofes, the fervant of God, in his love and pity for the finful houfe of Ifrael, puts himself in their place, and faith, in his prayer to God for them, "yet now, if thou wilt forgive their fin; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou haft written." Similar feelings exercifed the prophet Samuel, when the people of Ifrael had finned against God; he was faithful to reprove them, but adds thus, "Moreover, as for me, God forbid that I fhould fin against the Lord in ceafing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way." Of the afflictions of the prophets, who were faithful to the caufe of righteousness, a very compendious account is given in the following paffage, to the Hebrews; fome "were tortured not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better refurrection: and others had trial of cruel mockings and fcourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment; they were ftoned, they were fawn afunder, were tempted, were flain with the fword: they wandered about in fheep-fkins and goat-skins, being deftitute, afflicted, tormented; (of whom the world was not worthy they wandered in deferts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth." Such were the forrows, the griefs and the fufferings of the minifters of Chrift, before he came in the flesh, and greater than these, were endured by the great Redeemer on earth, and fimilar ones bequeathed to his apoftles. To the Corinthians St. Paul obferves, as follows; for I think that God hath fet forth us the Apoftles laft, as it were appointed unto death; for we are made a fpectacle unto the world, and to angels, and unto men. We are fools for Chrift's fake, but ye are wife in Chrift; we are weak, but ye are ftrong; ye are honourable, but we are dispised. Even unto this prefent hour we both hunger, and thurst, and are naked and are buffited, and have no certain dwelling place; and labour, working with our own hands; being reviled, we bless; being perfecuted, we fuffer it; being defamed, we entreat; we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day."

The Apoftles of our Lord were fent forth "as lambs in the midst of wolves," and they were certified, before hand, of the perfecutions which they were to fuffer. The popular doctrines, of the Jewish Church, were fuch as could not fail to enrage their bigoted votaries against the gofpel and those who propagated it; nor were the opinions maintained among the gentiles lefs hoftile to divine truth. Thus in all countries where the word was declared, perfecutions were practised against thofe who preached Jefus and the refur rection.

The fpirit of the Lord Jefus being with them, the minifters of the word were conftantly exercised with much carefulness for the fpiritual welfare of the churches, and they encountered every kind of hardship for their promotion in the knowledge and grace of the gospel.

St. Paul may be accepted as a pattern of the chofen com. pany who were appointed to plant and nourish the word of truth. "To the Corinthians he makes the following statement. "Of the Jews five times received I forty ftripes fave

Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I ftoned, thrice I fuffered fhipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep in journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen; in per ils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the fea, in perils among falfe brethren; in wearinefs and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Befides thofe things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. Who is weak and I am not weak? who is offended and I burn not."

It is an acknowledgment due to the merciful parent of mankind, that the gofpel of his fon has greatly meliorated the condition of human fociety, generally, where its light has been received; and that by this means the faithful ministers of Jefus Chrift are fpared from thofe cruel perfecutions which were practifed against them, in former ages of the Church: however, the faying of the Saviour remains true, that "fufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." And the faying feems to apply in an appropriate manner to the concerns of those who faithfully adhere to the doctrine of Chrift.