bear the wrath from which it hath

delivered us.-HOPKINS.

HYMN.

с

Behold the man! how glorious He!

Before his foes he stands unaw'd;
And, without wrong or blasphemy,

He claims equality with God.
Behold the man! by all condemned
Assaulted by a host of foes;
His person and his claims contemn'd
A man of suff'ring and of woes!
Behold the man! he stands alone,

His foes are ready to devour;
Not one of all his friends will own
Their Master in this trying hour,
Behold the man! so weak he seems,
His awful word inspires no fear;
But soon must he who now blasphemes
Before His judgment seat appear.
Behold the man! though scorn'd below
He bears the greatest name above;
The angels at his footstool bow

And all his royal claims approve.

36 And sitting down they watched him there;

Mark xv. 22. Luke xxiii. 33. John xix. 17. a Psalm. lxix. 21. See ver 48. 6 Mark xv. 24. Luke xxiii. 34. John xix. 24. c Psalm xxii. 18. d ver. 54. e Mark xv. 26. Luke xxiii. 38. John xix. 19. f Is. liii. 12. Mark xv. 27. Luke xxiii. 32, 33. John xix. 18.

READER. And they crucified him. -The eternal Son of God, the only begotten of the Father, of one substance with the Father, God blessed for ever, having taken our flesh upon him, and made it one person with himself,-in that nature was fastened to the cross, with nails driven through his hands and feet. There he hung three long hours together, not for himself, but for us and for our sins there he "his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree." 1 Pet. ii. 24. There he "redeemed us from the curse of the

law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree." Gal. iii. 13.

There "he was wounded for our

transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his

sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." Isa. liii. 5, 6. There "he laid down his life for the sheep." John x. 15. There "he gave himself a ransom for all." 1 Tim. 2, 6. There "he put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." Heb. ix. 36. That was the altar upon which he, our true high priest, offered up himself a sacrifice for the sins of the world; "who needed not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for his own sins, and then for the people's; for this he did once when he offered up himself," Heb. vii. 27, when he offered up himself upon the cross. There he "tasted death for every man,” Heb. ii. 9. There the Lamb of God took away the sin of the world, John i. 29. There he was made "the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world," 1 John ii. 2. All this our Lord Jesus Christ did upon the cross, this he did there for us, for us his creatures, for us his servants, for us his enemies, for us vile dust and ashes. How can any of us consider this, and not cry out with the Apostle, "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!" Gal. vi. 14.

Who can express the inestimable benefits which we receive by the reconciliation which Christ there made for us! What can be desired, what can be imagined, more or greater, than to have the supreme

for our friend;-to have him reconciled to us, and well pleased with us, and always manifesting his special favour and kindness to us! In his favour is life, and health, and strength, and liberty, and all the good things we are capable of, following directly upon it. By this we are delivered from a thousand dangers, which we ourselves could never have prevented, nor so much as seen. By this we are protected from our spiritual enemy, and from all the temptations and snares that he lays for us. By this all our other enemies are at peace with us, and whatsoever their mind may be, they can have no power to hurt us. By this the holy angels minister to us, and keep us in all our ways. By this we are sure to have whatsoever we ask in the name of Christ, so far as is good for us, and no further. By this all the good works which we sincerely endeavour to do, though imperfect in themselves, yet are acceptable to God, through our Lord Jesus Christ. By this we are preserved from all evil, and have all things working together for our good. By this our very "afflictions, which are but for a moment, work for us a far more abundant and exceeding weight of glory." By this we have a kingdom prepared for us in heaven, where we shall perfectly behold and enjoy his love, and live with him, in "whose presence is fulness of joy, and at whose right hand there are pleasures for evermore." All these unspeakable blessings we have, or may have, by the favour of

Almighty God, through the merits of that most precious death, which our Lord Jesus Christ was pleased to suffer upon the cross. In short, it is to that we are beholden for all the good things that we either have or hope for at the hands of God.BEVERIDGE.

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And sitting down they watched him there.-Let us now, for a few minutes, suppose ourselves at the foot of the cross, and Jesus Christ speaking to us, after this manner,-'It is for you, and on your account, that I undergo these pains and these indignities, to make an atonement for your sins; to obtain your pardon, that you may not suffer eternal torments, and that, being again reconciled to God and restored to his favour, you may for ever enjoy that happiness for which you were at first created.'-Let us consider what ought to be the answer of every Christian that has any sense of gratitude, and any concern for his soul, -'I abhor that sin for which thou art so kind and merciful as to die. I am astonished at the love of God who did not overlook lost mankind, (for ever blessed be his holy name) and has sent thee his only Son, to redeem us, to redeem and save us from ruin, even when we were the enemies of God. I shall be the most ungrateful creature, if I do not abhor and forsake those sins which could not be forgiven without so great a sacrifice. And, the sacrifice being so infinitely great, I will depend upon it for the pardon of all my sins, though never so many and great.'-WILSON.

And set up over his head his accusution written, This is Jesus, the King of the Jews. How doth God concur with the actions of sinful men, contrary to their designs and purposes ! Pilate, when he wrote this title over the cross, in various languages (Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, Luke xxiii. 38.), perhaps did it only to gratify his humour; but God so directed it that all nations intimated by those languages might read there that this Jesus was the Saviour of all the world; and that no nation was excluded from a title to the merits of his cross and passion. O Jesus! thou art no respecter of persons; but in every nation whosoever serves thee and works righteousness is accepted of thee! But to men that knew not God, these things were of no value.

Our sins were the cause of that death. It is true that the love of God was the impulsive cause, but our sins were the instrumental cause, these brought him to the cross; and whoever remembers his death must necessarily remember that whereby this death was effected and procured; and this was our sin and the infection that attended it. But then, if I remember my sins in the remembrance of Christ's death, how can I remember them without detestation? How can I remember them without abhorrence? How can I remember them without arming my soul with resolution and arguments to fight against them? Can I look on my neglects, and not charge them with his death? Can I remember my love to the world,