the delighted view; at that august period, saints and angels, the redeemed and the unredeemed (but both elected, the one as well as the other) spirits that were always unembodied, and saints whose souls were for a time dislodged from the body in consequence of original sin, but who shall receive their bodies again in their resurrection of the just; all these, when they stand and shine above, shall join in casting their crowns, and in striking their golden lyres to the praises of him who has loved his people, and redeemed them unto God by his blood (a). Time will not allow me to consider, as I designed, all the preliminary verses which lead to the text. Enough, I hope, has been observed, to justify the declaration with which the text begins: Blessed are the people that know the joyful sound! awfully intimating, that there are some, who sit within the sphere of this joyful sound, but who know it, feel it, and enjoy it not. It is to them, à vox, et prætereà nihil: a sound, and no more than a sound. But the blessedness results to those who know the joyful' sound; and whose believing souls can say, the free blessings of the gospel are all our salvation, and all our desire. It is a very common thing, when we talk of knowing the things that belong to our spiritual and eternal peace, for unconverted people to cry out, Oh, how presumptuous you are! I totally deny the charge. It is not presumptuous to take God at his word, and to believe and be sure that there shall be a performance of the things which are spoken and promised by the Lord (b). Thus when God avers to the penitent sinner, I even I am he that blotteth out thy transgressions, for my own sake, and will not remember thy sins (c); it is not humility, but presumption itself, and the very quintessence of unbelief, that bids us put a negative on God's solemn asseve(a) Rev. v. 9. (b) Luke i. 45. (c) Isai. xliii. 25. ration, and induces us to question whether he will indeed make good his promise. I am firmly of opinion, that the man, who reads and professes to believe the Bible, must have a large stock of assurance, in the worst sense of the word (i. e. of audaciousness and effrontery), if he ventures to deny, that assurance, in the best sense of the word, or a clear perception and conviction of interest in God's pardoning love, is the possible privilege of Christ's converted 'people. These will certainly concur with David, in pronouncing them blessed, who know the joyful sound; who know it when they hear it, and who know it for themselves: whose hearts have been ploughed up by the Spirit of God, to receive the gospel-seed; and in whom it springs into righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost (a). This, and this alone, comes up to the full idea of knowing the joyful sound. Hence we may learn, who the persons are that know it indeed. Not church of England people, in exclusion of others; not Romanists; not members of the church of Scotland; nor, in short, the partisans of any one denomination in particular. But the many individuals, who, through grace, are enabled to know the joyful sound, are those whom God takes out of all these and other denominations, to be a people for his name (b): to wit, the elect, of every age, place, and party. All God's converted, all his repenting, all his believing, all his obeying people, through the whole extent of the earth, from under one end of the heavens to the other; all whose hearts are touched by the attractive power of his divine Spirit, are the people that know the joyful sound. The joyful sound of what? Of that free grace, which it is the business of God's ministers to proclaim, saying, Peace, peace, to him that is far off, and to him that is near (c). That joyful sound, (a) Rom. xiv. 17. (b) Acts xv. 14. (c) Isa. Ivii. 19. which says, Ho, every one (without exception of time or place, or person) Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters (a) of life, joy, and salvation. But observe, that even this is not an universal call. God forbid, that I should be misunderstood, by any who hear me this day. Do not imagine, that I am hoisting the Arminian colours, and hanging out the false Arminian flag. No, by no means. I suppose there is hardly a more indefinite call, in all God's word, than that which I quoted last. But then, take notice, it is addressed only to those, that thirst i. e. to those, who so far know the joyful sound, as to wish for an experimental participation of the blessings it proclaims. It would be frivolous, to call them to the waters, who do not thirst. It would be ridiculous mockery, should we invite the dead to sit down at table, and lay a plate and knife and fork before them, and ask them why they will not eat? The plain fact is, they cannot eat, or drink. They must be made alive, ere they can have so much as an appetite to either. There is a passage, very frequently, but very idly, insisted upon by the Arminians; as if it were an hammer, which would at one stroke, crush the whole fabric of free grace to powder. The passage is, Why will ye die, O house of Israel (b)? But it so happens, that the death here alluded to, is neither spiritual death, nor eternal death: as abundantly appears from the whole tenor of the chapter. The death, intended by the prophet, is a political death; a death of national prosperity, tranquillity, and security. And the sense of the question is, fairly and precisely, this: What is it that makes you in love with captivity, banishment, and civil ruin? Abstinence from the worship of images, might, as a people, exempt you from those calamities, and once more render you a respectable nation. Are the miseries of public devastation so (b) Ezek. xviii. 31. (a) Isa. lv. 1. very alluring, as to attract your determined pursuit? Why will ye die? die as the house of Israel; and considered as a political body? Thus reasonably did the prophet argue the case. Adding, at the same time, this no less reasonable declaration: As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth. Wherefore, turn yourselves, and live ye. Which imports these two things: 1. That the national captivity of the Jews added nothing to the happiness of God. It brought him no accession, either of profit or pleasure. And I should wonder much, if (philosophically speaking) any thing whatever could add to the divine felicity, which is already infinite; and consequently insusceptible of augmentation.-2. That, if the Jews turned from idolatry, and flung away their images; they should not die in a foreign hostile country, but live peaceably in their own land, and enjoy their liberties as an independent people. And now what has all this to do with the blessings of grace and glory! No more than it has to do with Gog and Magog. Would it not be very absurd, if I were to stand in a church-yard, and say to the dead bodies there interred, why will ye die? Nor, in my idea, would it be less so, were I to ask a spiritually dead'sinner, why wilt thou die? Alas, he is dead already (a): and to put such a question to one in such (a) An ingenious pen has lately exposed, with equal strength and delicacy, the impertinent application, which Arminianism makes, of the prophet Ezekiel's question and exhortation. "Arise, ye dead," Arminius cries; unstop your ears, unseal your eyes, Why will ye die, ye wretched souls? ye dead, why will ye die? Quicken and make your spirits whole; 66 'to life eternal fly." As Baal's worshippers of old, begg'd, pray'd, and cry'd aloud; every man is), why wilt Arminians rant in this They shall for me, have a state, would be, in reality, to ask a man, who is already fallen in Adam (as thou fall in Adam? Let manner, if they think fit. all the ranting, unenvied and unrivalled, to themselves. I think it will not bear water. Quite a different thing is the joyful sound of gospel grace. It imparts life to the dead, and health to the living. You hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins (a). And, says God, concerning his quickened church, I will [not tantalize her with an empty offer; but actually] bring it health and cure (b). Regeneration gives spiritual life, and sanctification gives spiritual health to the soul. How is spiritual health evidenced to ourselves and others? Not by lolling in the elbow chair of sloth; but by abounding in the work of the Lord. For, however some people may call us Antinomians (as Christ himself and the apostles were so (c) called before us, by the unblushing Pharisees of that age), and falsely accuse our good conversation (d), as cutting their bodies, as we are told, to move a fancied god; So on the idol man he'll call, though slightly damaged by the fall, "Rise, noble creature! Man, arise! prepare yourself to mount the skies; by God's free-will, not thine, to quicken both, and make his love See Serious Ryland, junior. VOL. III. Essays, in verse, p. 104. by the Rev. Mr. John (b) Jer. xxxiii. 6. (c) Matth. xi. 19. with P |