signified any thing else than that principal object for which he came into the world, his death for the redemption of man. Abraham must therefore have seen the prophetic reference of his offering, for in none of the other revelations granted to him did he see the day of Christ in this sense. He saw that by means of his posterity all the families of the earth should be blessed; but these promises gave him no insight into the plan of redemption, no view of the sacrifice of the cross of Christ.

Such is the argument brought to prove that by the sacrifice of Isaac information was given to Abraham of the great sacrifice of Christ. It rests, we must observe, on the interpretation of the word

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day." If any other interpretation be admissible, the argument will fail of producing the desired conviction. And notwithstanding all the ingenuity and learning by which it has been supported, it still seems probable that the words of our Saviour may. have their full meaning in the many promises and revelations granted to Abraham.

If it be said, that the explanation of the sacrifice must have been unfolded to Abraham, in reward of his faith and obedience; let us turn to the Bible; in the words which follow immediately the history of the transaction, we find an express declaration of the manner in which God rewarded Abraham 1.

1 Gen. xxii. 16: "By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy

If the alleged interpretation of the “ day of Christ" were the true one, we should have in the words of our Saviour, a prophetic declaration of the resemblance between his own death and the sacrifice of Isaac. But we have been constrained to lay it aside as doubtful. The words of John the Baptist', and the wonderful correspondence itself, are better grounds, and sufficient to convince us of the designed typical reference. To Abraham were given the most glorious promises of the Messiah; to Abraham also was it given, to foreshadow in the most exact typical resemblance, the giving of the Son of God to be a sacrifice for the sins of the world2.

son, thine only son, that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven-and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed my voice."

'John i. 29: "Behold the Lamb of God."

For an account of the Phoenician custom, probably derived from the offering of Isaac, see Abp. Magee on Atonement, Vol. I. p. 381. "It was an established custom among the ancients (Phoenicians) on any calamitous or dangerous emergency, for the ruler of the state to offer up, in prevention of the general ruin, the most dearly beloved of his children, as a ransom to avert the Divine vengeance. And they who were devoted for this purpose, were offered mystically."-Euseb. Præp. Evang. Lib. I. cap. x.

THE BRAZEN SERPENT.

In all the history of the people of Israel, and particularly in the narrative of their wanderings in the desert, a wonderful similarity is traced out to the history of the Christian Church, and the spiritual warfare of the followers of Jesus. Nor are there wanting circumstances, which distinctly pourtray the great events of the Gospel history. Among these the Brazen Serpent lifted up by Moses in the wilderness is one, which, by the marks of typical design expressed in it, forms a strong confirmation of our faith in the cross of Christ.

In the journey from Mount Hor, by the way of the Red Sea', "the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way. And the people spake against God, and against Moses. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, and much people of Israel died." Then they confessed their sin, and entreated Moses to pray for deliverance to the Lord; and Moses prayed for the people. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of

1 Numb. xxi. 4.

brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived."

In all this history there is no intimation of a reference to any future event. Nor do we find any further mention of the brazen serpent in the Old Testament, except where it is recorded that Hezekiah "brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made; for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense unto it."

But in the fulness of time, Jesus appeared on earth, and talking with Nicodemus 2, a ruler of the Jews, spoke these prophetic words: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life." On two other occasions did Jesus make use of the same phrase, foretelling that he should be "lifted up" from the earth. And this he said, "signifying what death he should die."

3

We need not relate here the fulfilment of this prophecy; we know both from the Apostles, and from the heathen historian, that Jesus was lifted up upon the cross. But the fact that He was so lifted up, is in itself remarkable. For the Jews had accused him of blasphemy, and upon this charge, he

1 2 Kings xviii. 4. See Prideaux, Connect. Vol. I. p. 14. 2 John iii. 14.

John viii. 28: "When ye have lifted up the Son of Man." Also, xii. 32.

ought by their law to have died, as St. Stephen died, the death of stoning. Crucifixion was a Roman punishment; and the course of events was so ordered, that Judea had at that time a Roman governor; that the Jews delivered our Saviour to him upon a charge which fell under his jurisdiction; that in spite of Pilate's entreaties, the Jews persisted in demanding that Jesus should die by the Roman law. Had Pilate prevailed with them to punish Jesus by their own law, or had he refused to comply with their demands, Jesus would not have been lifted up.

Looking then at the two facts, we find that each of them bears a remarkable character; the one was by the command of God, and the other was brought to pass contrary to all probability. We find a correspondence between them; as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so was Jesus lifted up on the cross. There is a further similarity, in the effects of each. "It came to pass that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass he lived." And Jesus was lifted up, "that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." This is the great Christian doctrine, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved 1."

1

But what evidence have we that the two facts were designed to correspond? How do we know

1 Acts xvi. 31.