Secondly, The fubject, or the perfors that approach unto God in his worthip; "His faints, and all that are about him." By faints, many interpreters do (in this place) understand the angels, called faints, from the purity and holiness of their nature; and fo make the next clause exegetical of this. Those that before were called faints in respect of their nature, are, in the next words faid to be fuch as are round about him, his fatellites, attendants, or thofe that stand as fervants about him, to do his pleasure; where they are defcribed by their office. Both thefe feem to be grounded upon the precedent verfes: "Who in heaven can be compared to the Lord? Who a mong the fons of the mighty," (or of God, fo the angels are called, Job i. 6.) "can be likened to the Lord ?" And though it be true, that the angels worship, and ferve the Lord with the greatest rever ence and dread (for these are his nigh ones, or fuch as are round about him; (yct there is no neceffity to limit this feripture fo narrowly, by excluding the people of God on earth; they alfo are his faints, and more frequently fo ftiled, though they be faints of a lower clafs and order: and they alfo are round about him, as well as the angels; and when they worship him, he is in the midft of them, Matth. xviii. 20. And the place where they affemble to worship, is called the place of his feet, Ifa. Ix. 13. But if we find not the faints on earth in the direct and immediate fenfe of this text, yet we muft needs meet them in the rebound and confequence. For if creatures fo much above us, as the angels, do perform their fervice, and pay their homage to the highest Majefty with fo much fear and reverence; fhall not inferior creatures, the poor worms of the earth, tremble at his prefence? And this brings us to the third thing; namely,

Thirdly, The mode, or manner, in which the worship of God is to be performed; viz. with great fear and reverence: God is greatly to be feared." Pifcator tranflates it, Vehementer formidandus, to be ve hemently feared; and oppofes it to that formal, carelefs, trifling, vain fpirit, which too often is found in thofe that approach the Lord in the duties of his worthip. The obfervation from hence will be this:

Obfervation. That the greatest compefedness and seriousness of spirit is due to God, from all those that draw nigh unto him in his worhip.

And this is no more than what the Lord exprefly requires at our Hands; Lev. x. 3. "I will be fanctified in them that come nigh unte me." So Heb. xii. 28, 29. "Let us have grace, whereby we may ferve God acceptably, with reverence, and godly fear. For our God is a confuming fire."

And as this difpofition and temper of fpirit is due to every act and part of God's worship; fo (to accommodate this general to our particular occafion) it is especially due to this great and folemn ordinance of the Lord's fupper.

It is the obfervation of the Cafuifts, that facramentum et mortis aṛticu•

lus aquiparantur: The facrament of the Lord's fupper, and the very point of death, require equal ferioufnefs: a man's fpirit should be as deeply folemn and compofed at the Lord's table, as upon a death-bed. We fhould go to that ordinance, as if we were then going into ano101 ther world.

The primitive Chriftians ufed to fit up whole nights in meditation and prayer, before their participation of the Lord's fupper; and thefe nights were called Vigiliæ, their watches. Such was the reverence the faints had for this ordinance (which they usually called myfterium tremendum, a tremendous mystery,) that they would not give "fleep to their eyes, or flumber to their eye-lids," when fo great and folemn a day drew near. Chryfoft. lib. 3. de facerdot.

And that all this folemn preparation is no more than needs, will convincingly appear to us, upon the following grounds and reafons. Reafon 1. From the folemn nature and ends of this ordinance. For what is the exprefs defign and use of it, but a lively representation of the Lord's death? 1 Cor. xi. 26. As often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do fhew the Lord's death till he come." Jefus Chrift is therein fet forth crucified before us; and not to make a bare reprefentation of it to us, as a thing wherein we have no perfonal intereft or concernment, but to represent his death lively, and feal our title to it firmly: "This is my body, which is broken for you,” verfe 24.

Now, which of these is to be attended with a dead, careless, and flight fpirit? Is it the reprefentation of Chrift's death? God forbid ! Oh! if there be any fubject of meditation in the world, able to drink up the very fpirit of a man, this is it!

The fun fainted, the heavens mourned in black, the very rocks rent in pieces, when this tragedy was acted; and shall our hearts be more fenfelefs and obdurate than they, at the representation of it? But, lo! here is more than a reprefentation: Chrift is fet forth in this ordinance, as crucified for you; as fuffering, and enduring all this, in your room and ftead. Now,

Suppose, reader, thyfelf to be juftly condemned to the torture of the rack, or strappado; and that thy father, brother, or dearest friend, preferring thy life to his own, would become thy ANTIPSYXOS, ranfemer, by undergoing the torment for thee; and all that is left for thee to fuffer, were only by way of fympathy with him: fuppofe now thyfelf standing by that engine of torture, and beholding the members of thy dear friend distorted, and all out of joint; hearing his doleful groans, extorted by the extremity of anguifh; and under all these torments, ftill maintaining a conftant love to thee; not once repenting his torments for thee; couldst thou stand there with dry eyes? Could thy heart be unaffected, and stupid at fuch a fight? Write him rather a beast, a stone, than a man, that could do fo.

But this is not all; the believer's intereft in Chrift is fealed, as well as the fufferings of Christ reprefented, in this ordinance.

And is a fealed intereft in Chrift fo cheap or common a thing, as that it should not engage, yea, fwallow up all the powers of thy foul? Oh! what is this? what is this?

The feal of God, fet to the foul of a poor finner, to confirm and ratify its title to the perfon of Chrift, and the ineftimable treatures of his blood. Surely, as the fealing up of a man to damnation, is the fum of all mifery; and that poor creature that is fo fealed, hath caufe enough to mourn and wail to eternity; fo the fealing up of a foul to falvation, is the fum of all mercy, and happinefs; and the foul that is fo fealed, hath caufe enough to lie at the feet of God, overwhelmed with the fenfe of fo invaluable a mercy.

Reafon 2 As the nature and ends of this ordinance call for the greatest compofedness of fpirit; fo the danger of unworthy receiving, fhould work our hearts to the most ferious frame: for if a man be here without his wedding garment, if he eat and drink unworthily it is at the greatest peril of his foul that he doth fo; 1 Cor. xi.27. "Wherefore, whofoever fhall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily, fhall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord."

To profane and undervalue that body and blood of the Lord, is a fin above measure finful; and the punishments of fuch fins, will be the most dreadful: for ftill the more excellent the bleffings are that come by any ordinance, the more dreadful the curfes are, that avenge the abuse of such mercies. How foon may a man draw fearful guilt upon his foul, and dreadful judgments upon his body, by an heedless management of fuch facred myfteries? For this caufe many are weak and "fickly among you, and many fleep;" verse 30.

It is a moft weighty note, that a worthy pen fets upon this fcripture: They difcerned not the body of his Son Jefus Chrift, in his ordinances; but inftead of that holy, reverend and deep-dyed beha viour, which was due to it, both from their inner and outward man, as being a creature of the higheft and deepeft fanctification, that ever God fanctified; fanctified not only to a more excellent and glorious condition; but also to many ends and purposes, of far higher and dearer concernment, both for the glory of God, and benefit of men themselves, than all other creatures whatfoever, whether in heaven or earth: They handled, and dealt by it in both kinds, as if it had been a common unfanctified thing: Thus they difcerned not the Lord's body.'

And as they difcerned not his body, fo neither did God (in fome fenfe) difcern theirs: but in thofe fore ftrokes and heavy judgments which he inflicted on them, had them in no other regard or confideration, than as if they had been the bodies of his enemies, the bodies of wicked and finful men; thus drawing the model and platform of their punishment (as ufually he doth) from the ftructure and propor

tion of their fin.

* Mr Thomas Goodwin's epistle to Mr Fenner's fermons.

Thus the juft and righteous God builds up the breaches that we make upon the honour belonging to the body of his Son, with the ruins of that honour which he had given unto ours, in health, ftrength, life, and many other outward comforts and fupports.

O then what need is there of a moft awful and compofed fpirit, when we approach the Lord in this ordinance?

Reafon 3. As the danger of unworthy receiving fhould compofe us to the greatest seriousness, fo the remembrance of that frame and femper Chrift's Spirit was in, when he actually fuffered those things for us, fhould compose our fpirits, into a frame more fuitable and agrecable to his. When we fee his death, as it were acted over again before our eyes, was his heart roving and wandering in that day? Did he not regard and mind the work he was going about? Was his heart, like thine, ftupid, and unaffected with these things? Look but upon that text, Luke xxii. 44. and you shall see whether it were fo, or not. It is faid (when this tragedy drew nigh, and his enemies were ready to feize him in the garden) That being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly; and his fweat was, as it were, great drops of blood falling to the ground.' And Matth. xxvi. 38. he faith, My foul is exceeding forrowful, even unto death.' His foul was full of for row: And is thine full of ftupidity? God forbid !

If thy heart be cold, Chrift's was hot: If thou canst not fhed a tear, he poured out clods of blood from every part. O, how unfuitable is a dry eye, and hard heart, to fuch an ordinance as this!

Reafon 4. As the frame Chrift's Spirit was in at his death, should command the moft folemn frame upon our fpirits, at the recognizing of it; fo the things here represented, require, and call for the highest exercise of every grace of the Spirit in our fouls: For we come not thither as idle fpectators, but as active inftruments, to glorify God, by exercifing every grace upon Chrift, as crucified for us. Behold here are, among the rest,

First, The proper object of faith.

Secondly, The flowing fpring of repentance.

Thirdly, The powerful attractive of love.

Firft, The proper object of faith is here.. This ordinance, as a glass, represents to thine eye that glorious Perfon, of whom the Father faid, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleafed,' Matth. xvii. 5. Of whom he faid, I have laid help upon one that is mighty.' This was he that was made fin for us, who had no fin, that we might be made the righteoufnefs of God in him,' 2 Cor. v. 21. Who trode the wine-prefs alone, and is here to be seen in his red garments. Every drop of his precious blood hath a tongue, calling for faith to behold it, poured forth as a facrifice to God for fin. This (faith he) is the cup of the New Teftament in my blood, which was shed for many, for the remiffion of fins."

And what footing could thy faith find for pardon and falvation any VOL. VI.

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where elfe? It is Chrift crucified that faith clafps, as the laft and on ly hope and refuge of a poor finner: Here all believers drop anchor. This is that bleffed object, on whom they take the dead gripe, or laft grafp, when their eye-ftrings are breaking. When you fee the blood of Chrift flowing forth, how can faith be filent in thy foul? When he bids thee, as it were, to put thy finger into his fide, thews thee his hands and his feet there; it will cry out in thy foul, My Lord! and my God!

Secondly, The flowing fpring of repentance is here. If there be any fire that can melt, or hammer that can break a hard heart, here it is; Zech. xii. 10. They fhall look upon me, whom they have pierced, and mourn.' Nothing lays a gracious foul lower in itself, than to fee how low Chrift was laid in his humiliation for it.

Here the evil of fin is alfo reprefented in the clearest glass, than ever the eye of man faw it in. The fufferings of the Son of God discover the evil of fin, more than the everlafting torments of the damned can do. So that, if there be but one drop of spiritual forrow in the heart of a Chriftian; here, methinks, it fhould be feen dropping from the eye of faith.

10.

Thirdly, The most attractive object of love is here. Put all created beauties, excellencies, and perfections together; and what are they but blacknefs and deformity, compared with the lovely Jefus ? My beloved (faith the enamoured fpoufe) is white and ruddy, Cant. v. Behold him at the table, in his perfect innocency, and unparalleled fufferings This is He who was rich, but for our fakes became poor; that we, through his poverty might be rich,' 2 Cor. viii. 9. This is he that parted with his honour first, and his life next; yea, he parted with his honour in his incarnation, that he might he capable to part with his life for our redemption..

Behold here the degrees of his fufferings, and by them measure the degrees of his love. Behold in his death, as in the deluge, all the fountains beneath, and the windows of heaven above, opened; the wrath of God, the cruelty of men, the fury of hell, breaking in together upon him, and his foul furrounded with forrow; and how can this be reprefented, and thy foul not aftonifhed at this amazing, matchlefs love of Chrift? Surely one flame doth not more naturally produce another, than the love of Chrift, thus reprefented to a gracious foul, doth produce love to Chrift, and that in the most intenfe degree.

Ufe 1. How naturally doth this doctrine fhame and humble the beft hearts, for their finful difcompofures, vanity, and deadnefs; for the rovings and wanderings of their hearts, even when they come near the Lord in fuch a folemn ordinance as this is?

The holiest man upon earth may lay his hand upon his breaft, and fay, Lord, how unfuitable is this heart of mine, to fuch an object of faith, as is here prefented to ine? Doth fuch a temper of fpirit fuit thine awful prefence? Should the reprefented agonies and fufferings