SERMON XVI. 2 PETER i. 20, 21. Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not at any time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. - THIS period hath already been the subject of one discourse, in which it hath been my endeavour to explain its meaning, and to show the coherence of its parts. Its meaning, that it propounds a maxim for the interpreta. tion of the prophecies of holy writ, which is this negative proposition, that no prophecy is its own interpreter ; and alleges the principle upon which that maxim is founded, that all prophecy came from God. The coherence of its parts,-inasmuch as the maxim, by necessary and obvious consequence, rises out of the principle alleged as the foundation of it. I now proceed, as I proposed, to instruct you in the use of the apostle's maxim, by examples of its application. I would not fatigue your attention with unnecessary repetition; but it is of importance that you should recollect that the apostle's negative maxim, "that no prophecy is of self-interpretation," has been shown in effect to contain two affirmative rules of exposition,—that every single text of prophecy is to be considered as a part of an entire system, and to be interpreted in that sense which may best connect it with the whole; and that the sense of prophecy in general is to be sought in the events which have actually taken place. To qualify the Christian to make a judicious application of these rules, no skill is requisite in verbal criticism-no proficiency in the subtleness of the logician's art-no acquisitions of recondite learning. That degree of understanding with which serious minds are ordinarily blessed-those general views of the schemes of Providence, and that general acquaintance with the prophetic language, which no Christian can be wanting in, who is constant, as every true Christian is, in his attendance on the public worship, and gives that serious attention which every true Christian gives to the word of God, as it is read to him in our churches, and expounded from our pulpits, these qualifications, accompanied with a certain strength of memory and quickness of recollection, which exercise and habit bring-and with a certain patience of attention in comparing parallel texts, these qualifications will enable the pious though unlearned Christian to succeed in the application of the apostle's rules, so far at least as to derive much rational amusement-much real edification-much consolation -much confirmation of his faith-much animation of his hopes-much joy and peace in believing, from that heedful meditation of the prophetic word, which all men would do well to remember an inspired apostle hath enjoined. The first instance to which I shall apply the apostle's rules, is the very first prediction which occurs in the Bible-the prophetic curse upon the serpent, which we read in the third chapter of the book of Genesis. "Thou art cursed above all cattle of the field. Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: it (or rather "he") shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel." To judge of the illustration that this prophecy may receive from the apostle's rules, it will be proper previously to settle what may be the full meaning of the words, taken by themselves. For this purpose, let us suppose that the passage were recited to some uninstructed heathen, who should be totally unacquainted with the Bible, and with every part of its contents: suppose him quite ignorant of the story of the fall-ignorant upon what occasion the words were spoken, or by whom: suppose that he were only told, that once upon a time these words were spoken to a serpent;-think ye he would discern in them any thing prophetic ?-He must have more than the serpent's cunning, if he did. He would tell you they contain a few obvious remarks upon the condition of the serpent kind, upon the antipathy which nature has established between men and serpents, and upon the natural advantages of man over the-venomed reptile. "The serpent," says he, "is told, that, for the extent of his natural powers and enjoyments, he holds his rank with the lowest of the brute creation,that serpents, by the make of their bodies, are necessitated to crawl upon the ground,-that, although they have a poison in their mouths, the greatest mischief they can do to men is to bite them by the heels; whereas men, by the foresight of their danger, and by their erect posture, have greatly the advantage, and knock serpents on the head wherever they chance to find them." This would be our heathen's exposition; nor could the most subtle criticism draw any farther meaning from the terms of this denunciation. But, now, let our heathen be made acquainted with the particulars of the story of the fall; and let him understand that these words were addressed to the individual serpent which had tempted Eve, by the Omnipotent Creator, when he came in person to pronounce the dreadful doom upon deluded ruined man;-our heathen will immediately perceive that this was no season for pursuing a useless speculation on the natural history of the serpent; nor was so obvious a remark upon the comparative powers of the serpent kind and man better fitted to the majesty of the great Being to whom it is ascribed, than to the solemnity of the occasion upon which it was introduced: and he could not but suspect that more must be meant than meets the ear. He would observe, that the words were addressed to the serpent, in the character of the seducer of our first parents,that the denunciation made a part of a judicial procedure, in which a striking regularity appears in the distribution of the several branches of the business.-Three delinquents stand before the Maker of the world, to answer for a crime in which each had borne a part. Adam, as first in rank, is first questioned. He acknowledges his crime, but imputes the blame to Eve's persuasions, Eve is next examined. She confesses the truth of her husband's accusation, but she taxes the serpent as her seducer. The Creator proceeds to judgment. And in this part it is remarkable, that the person who had been first interrogated is the last condemned: for the first words spoken by the Judge, after he has received the confession of the human pair, are those in which he ac. costs the serpent; then he addresses himself to Eve,to Adam last. The words addressed to Eve are the sentence of the Judge, denouncing the penalties to be sustained by her, for having listened to the serpent, and made herself the instrument of the man's seduction. The words addressed to Adam are the sentence of the Judge on him, for having yielded to Eve's solicitation. -From the plain order of the business, our heathen would conclude that these words, addressed to the serpent, are a sentence upon him as the first seducer. He would observe, that as, in the narrative of the temptation, contrivance, design, and speech, are ascribed to the serpent, so, in these words, he is accosted as the object of animadversion and punishment. He would say, "This was no common serpent of the field, but some intelligent and responsible agent, in the serpent form; and, in the evils decreed to the life and condition of the serpent, this individual serpent solely is concerned. The enmity which is mentioned, between the serpent and mankind, must express some farther insidious designs on the part of this deceiver, with resistance on the part of man; and in the declaration, that, while serpents should have no power but to wound the heels of men, men should bruise the heads of serpents, it is certainly intimated, by metaphors taken from the condition and powers of the natural serpent, that the calamities which the stratagems of this enemy in disguise should bring on man, would prove light, in comparison of the greater mischiefs which man shall inflict on him. It is intimated, that man's wound, although, like the serpent's bite, it might be fatal in its consequences if it were neglected, was however curable. The reptile's tooth had lodged its malignant poison in the heel. Considerable time must pass, before the blood and juices could be mortally infected;—in the interval, remedies might be applied to prevent the threatened mischief. Again, the declaration that God himself puts this enmity between the serpent and mankind, implies, that the merciful though offended God will yet take an interest in the fortunes of man, and will support him in his conflict with the adversary." You see, that, by considering this denunciation of the serpent's doom in connection only with that particular story of which it is a part, without any knowledge of later prophecies and revelations, our heathen has been able to dive into the prophetic meaning of words, which, taken by themselves, he did not know to be at all prophetic. The particular events, indeed, which may correspond to the images of the prediction, he hath not yet |