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of himself by his servants the prophets and apostles: Thy Maker is thine husband, the Lord of Hosts is. "his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; "the God of the whole earth shall he be called." "Look "unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for "I am God, and there is none else." "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last, the Almighty*.'

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Amidst the variety of testimonies which might be adduced to this purpose, there are two which are peculiarly observable. The Psalmist expresses the majesty, power, and immutability of God, in these sublime terms: "Of old thou hast laid the foundations of the earth, and "the heavens are the work of thine hands. They shall "perish, but thou shalt endure; yea, all of them shall "wax old like a garment; as a vesture thou shalt change them, and they shall be changed: but thou art the

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same, and thy years shall have no end." Surely none can deny, but this ascription must be incommunicably due to the Almighty; yet the author of the epistle to the Hebrews applies these words directly to the Son of God. The other passage I intend is the vision of Isaiah, recorded in his sixth chapter; which not only proves the point in hand, but irrefragably establishes the doctrine of the Trinity. For the Lord of hosts, whom Isaiah saw and heard, is affirmed by St. John to have been the Song, by St. Paul to have been the Holy Ghost. Isaiah, therefore, had a manifestation of what was afterwards in explicit words set forth to the faith of

* John, i. 1.; Matth. i. 23.; Jer. xxiii. 6.; Isa. ix. 6. ; Isa. liv. 5.; Isa. xlv. 22.; Rev. i. 8. 11.

Psalm, cii. 25–27.

Heb. i. 10-12.

John, xii. 41.

Acts, xxviii. 25.

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the church, that "there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost; " and these three are one*."

Secondly, His works upon earth were such as necessarily suppose a divine power. Who can control the elements, raise the dead, command the devils, search the heart, and forgive sin, but God alone †? If it should be said, that many of his servants and followers wrought miracles equal to his, by a delegated power, and therefore this argument is not conclusive; I answer, There is an apparent difference in the manner of their working which proves the disparity between them and him. They could do nothing but in his name, and by his power; they usually addressed themselves to him by prayer, and always ascribed the praise and glory to him. But his power was independent, sovereign, and unlimited: "He spoke, and it was done; he commanded, and it "stood fast." At the breath of his rebuke, the raging tempest and the boisterous seas were instantly hushed into a perfect calin. The deaf heard his voice, and the dead came forth from their graves, at his first call.

Thirdly, His works of office can be performed by none but God. This might be proved concerning each of the offices he exercises in consequence of his high character as Mediator between God and man; but I shall speak only of two.

(1) It is his office to keep his believing people in this present evil world, to act the part of a shepherd towards them, to supply their wants of every kind, to direct

1 John, v. 7.

+ Mark, iv. 39.; John, xi. 43.; Luke, iv. 36.; Mark, ii. 10.

Acts, iii. 12-16,

Matth. ii. 6. TOLUOVEL.

their steps, to control their enemies, to over-rule all things for their good, and to be a very present help in every time of trouble. To execute this important charge, it is necessary that his knowledge, his compassion, his power, and his patience, must be boundless. His eye must be every moment upon all their cases at once; his ear must be incessantly open to receive the prayers of all people, nations, and languages; his arm must be continually stretched out to support so many that stand, to raise up so many that fall, to afford seasonable and suitable supplies, at the same instant, to the distresses and temptations of millions. If this is the office he has undertaken, and if he is acknowledged sufficient and faithful in the discharge of it, what more undeniable evidence can be given, that he has all the attributes we can conceive as essential and peculiar to the godhead? The provocations, defects, and backslidings of his people, are likewise so numerous, so often repeated, and attended with such black aggravations, that if he was not God, invincible in goodness, unchangeable in purpose, if his mercy was not, as his majesty, infinite, he would be wearied out, and provoked to cast them off for ever. The great reason why he bore with his people of old holds equally strong with respect to us: "I am the Lord, "I change not, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not con"sumed*.

(2) The like may be said of the high office, character, and appointment he has received, to be the judge of the world, of angels and of men. For, besides that it is quite incredible that God, who is jealous of his glory, should intrust this most illustrious prerogative to any mere creature, it seems evident at first sight, that no

* Mal. iii. 6.

creature can be possibly qualified for the discharge of it. To the great and final Judge all hearts must be open, all desires known, and every secret disclosed. He must be intimately acquainted with the counsels and plans that lay hid in God from eternity; he must have a sovereign, comprehensive, intuitive view of every event, of every design, that took place within the limits of time and creation; he must have unlimited authority to pronounce the decisive sentence which will fix the everlasting state of all intelligent beings, and uncontrolled power for the immediate and irrevocable execution of his supreme decree. And what higher than this can our most laboured conceptions reach of the Almighty God? If it be said, that Christ will act by a delegated authority; we answer, It is a contradiction to say, that God can delegate his omniscience to a creature; and without this attribute, any assignable measure of wisdom or power would be insufficient. The power and fulness of the godhead must so reside in the judge, as justly to denominate him to be "God over all blessed for ever*." And this the Scripture assures us is the case in fact. The man Christ Jesus, who is appointed the Judge of quick and dead, is so intimately and essentially united to and inhabited by the 'Deity†, that he is the proper object of our faith, as the true God, and eternal life.

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Fourthly, The honours he claims from us afford a further argument for his proper divinity. He challenges our supreme love, obedience, trust, and worship: "Ye "believe in God, believe also in me.” Except ye eat "the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye "have no life in you." "That all men should honour "the Son as they honour the Father."

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My sheep

"know my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; " and I give unto them eternal life.” "I am the light "of the world." "I am the resurrection and the life*." If we could suppose an apostle or an angel speaking of himself in terms like these, requiring our unlimited dependence, and directing our hope and love to centre wholly on him, we might justly reject him as a blasphemer. How the apostles understood these expressions, and that they did not mistake our Lord's meaning, is evident from the behaviour of Thomas. He saluted his risen Saviour, My Lord, and my Godt." Had his transport of joy carried him too far in giving this ascription to Jesus, he would doubtless have corrected him, and provided us with a caution against committing the like fault. For who that has tasted his love, and been made partaker of the power of his resurrection, can avoid adoring him with the utmost homage their words can express, or their hearts conceive!

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From hence we may take occasion to observe,

1. His wonderful condescension; that, for us and our salvation, he stooped so low, drew a veil over his eternal glories, and appeared in the form of a servant, to suffer and to die: "Though he was rich, for our sakes he be

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came poor, that we through his poverty might be made "richt." This was love passing knowledge, to pour out his blood, his life, his soul, for those who by nature and practice were enemies and rebels, disobedient to his government, and averse to his grace!

2. What a blessed and glorious hope is set before awakened sinners! Add to the consideration of his per

* John, xiv. 1.; vi. 53.; v. 23.; x. 27, 28.; viii. 12.; xi. 25. + John, xx, 28.

2 Cor. viii. 9.

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