fuppofe, though far inferior, to that with which Chrift was invested. Like him they were probably clothed in raiments of unusual whiteness and fplendor; and the fash ion of their countenances might also be changed to fomething more bright and illuftrious. Now this would be a juft representation of the glorified ftate of faints in heaven, of those who had been rewarded according to their works. For we find those holy men, who have paffed victoriously through their Chriftian warfare, defcribed by St. John as clothed in white raiments*; and by St. Matthew, as fhining forth like the fun in the kingdom of their Fathert.

The glory of Christ therefore on the mountain, was a symbol of his exaltation to be the judge of the earth; and the glory of Mofes and Elias was an emblem of the rewards given to the righteous in heaven.

When all these circumftances are put together, they throw confiderable light over the concluding part of Christ's converfation, which has not yet been noticed. Verily I fay unto you, there be fome standing here which shall not taste of death till they fee the Son of man coming in his kingdom. This has commonly been fuppofed to refer to the fignal manifestation of Christ's power in the destruction of Jerufalem. But we know of no one of Chrift's disciples that furvived this event except St. John; and our Saviour here fpeaks of more than one. But befides this, in the 27th verfe of this chapter, we are told that the Son of man fball come in the glory of his Father, to reward every man according to his works. This, undoubtedly, relates to Chrift's final advent to judge the world. When, therefore, it immediately follows in the very next verfe, Verily, I fay unto you, that there be fome standing here, which fhall not taste of death till they fee the Son of man coming in his kingdom; is it not moft natural, is it not almoft neceffary to understand these fimilar expreffions as relating to the fame great event?

* Rev. iii. 5. + Matth. xiii. 43.

Matthew, xvi. 28.-St. Mark fays, "Till they have feen the kingdom of God come with power."St, Luke, "till they see the kingdom of God."

But did Chrift then mean to fay here that fome of his difciples fhould live till the day of judgment? Most assuredly not. He meant only to intimate that a few of them fhould before their death, be favored with a reprefentation of the glorious appearance of Chrift and his faints on that awful day. And this illuftrious scene was actually dif played to three of them, about fix days after, in the tranffiguration on the mountain. Indeed St. Peter himself, who was present at the transfiguration, plainly alludes to it, in a manner which powerfully confirms this opinion. "We have not," fays he, "followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." That is, our Lord's coming in his kingdom with power and glory and majesty, to judge the world. And how does St. Peter here prove that he will fo come? Why, by declaring that he and the two other difciples, James and John, were eye-witnesses of his majefty; that is, they actually faw him on the mount, invefted with majefty and glory fimilar to that which he would affume in his kingdom at the laft day. "For," continues the apostle," he received from God the Father, bonor and glory, when there came fuch a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; and this voice, which came from heaven, we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount* ”

This is St. Peter's own comment on the transfiguration, in which he expressly compares Chrift's glory and majesty on the mount, to that which he will display in his final advent; and confiders the former as an emblem, an earneft, and a proof of the latter.

It is then evident, I think, from the foregoing obfervations, that the scene upon the mountain was a Symbolical reprefentation of Chrift's coming in glory to judge the world, and of the rewards which shall then be given to the righteous, topics which had been touched upon in Christ's discourse with his difciples fix days before; and that one great object of this expreffive action, as well as of that converfation, was to reconcile the minds of his difciples to the fufferings which both he and they were to undergo, by fhew

* 2 Pet. i. 16, 17. 18.

ing that they were preparatory and fubfervient to his future glory, and their future rewards.

The other great purpose of the action on the mount was, I apprehend, to fignify, in a figurative manner, the ceffation of the Jewish, and the commencement of the Chriftian dif penfation.

It appears to have been one prevailing prejudice among the difciples, that the whole Mofaical law, the ceremonial as well as the moral, was to continue in full force under the Gospel; and that the authority of Moses and the prophets was not, in any respect, to give way on the establishment of Christianity, but to be placed on an equal footing with that of Chrift.

To correct this erroneous opinion, no less than to vanquifh their prepoffeffion against the fufferings of Christ, (as already explained) was the scene of the transfiguration prefented to the three chofen difciples, Peter, James, and John.

There are feveral remarkable circumstances attending that event, which lead us to this conclufion.

Mofes and Elias muft certainly be allowed to be very natural and proper representatives of the law and the prophets.

When the three difciples faw these illuftrious perfons converfing familiarly with Jefus, it probably confirmed them in their opinion, that they were to be confidered as of equal dignity and authority with him; and under this impreffion, Peter immediately addreffed himfelf to Jefus, and faid, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; and if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Mofes, and one for Elias." The full meaning of which exclamation was, "What greater happiness, Lord, can we experience than to continue here in the prefence of three fuch great and excellent perfons! Here then let us for ever remain! Here let us erect three tents, for thee, for Moses, and Elias, that you may all make this the con

ftant place of your abode, and that we may always.continue under the protection and government, and UNITED EMPIRE of our three illuftrious lords and masters, whose fovereign laws and commands we are equally bound to . obey!"

The answer to this extraordinary proposal was inftantly given both by action and by words. "While he yet: fpake, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them; and behold a voice out of the cloud, which faid, This is my.. beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: HEAR YE HIM,"

The CLOUD is the well-known token of the divine pre fence under the law: many inftances of it occur in the Old Testament, but more particularly at the giving of the law on Mount Sinai. On the mountain where our Saviour was transfigured, a new law was declared to have taken place; and therefore God again appears in a cloud. But there is one remarkable difference between these two manifestations of the divine prefence. On Mount Sinai the cloud was dark and thick: "and there were thunders and lightnings, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud, and all the people that were in the camp trembled " At the transfiguration, on the contrary, the cloud was bright, the whole scene was luminous and transporting, and nothing was heard but the mild paternal voice of the Almighty expreffing his delight in his beloved Son. These striking differences in the two appearances evidently point out the different tempers of the two difpenfations, of which the. former, from its severity, was more calculated to excite terror; the latter, from its gentleness, to infpire love.

This circumftance alone, therefore, indicated a happy change in the divine œconomy; but the gracious words! which iffued from the cloud, most clearly explained the meaning of what was paffing before the eyes of the difci-. ples, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleafed: HEAR YE HIM." "This is my Son, not as Mofes and all the prophets were, my fervants. Him, and him

* Exod. xix. 16.

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only, you are now to hear. He is from henceforth to be your lord, your legislator, and your king. The evangel ical law being established, the ceremonial law must ceafe; and MOSES and the PROPHETS must give way to CHRIST." With this declaration the conclufion of the whole scene on the mountain perfectly harmonizes. Mofes and Elias in-ftantly disappear, and "when the difciples lift up their eyes, they fee no man fave Jefus only." The former objects of their veneration are no more. Chrift remains alone their unrivalled and undisputed fovereign.

In fupport of this interpretation it may be further ob ferved, that there was reason to expect, about that time, some such declaration as this respecting the ceffation of the Mofaical law. For St. Luke informs us, that the "law and the prophets were until John;" that is, they were to continue in force till John the Baptist had (as our Lord expreffes it) restored all things, had preached thofe great doctrines of repentance and redemption by the blood of Chrift, by which men were restored to a right state of mind, and the favour of God; till he had thus prepared the way for the Meffiah, and publicly announced the kingdom of God; and then they were to be superfeded by the Christian difpenfation. Accordingly, not long after the death of John, the fcene of the transfiguration took place; and this great revolution, this fubftitution of a new fyftem for the old one, was made known in that remarkable manner to the three difciples. This fecondary meaning here affigned to the vifion on the mount, will affist us in explaining an injunction of our Lord to his difciples, for which, though other reafons have been affigned, yet they are not, I think, altogether fatisfactory.

In the 9th verfe we are told, that as they came down from the mount, Jefus charged the difciples, faying, "Tell the vifion to no man, till the Son of man be risen again from the dead."

If the only intent of the transfiguration had been to reprefent, by an expreffive action, our Lord's refurrection and exaltation, and a future day of retribution, it is not eafy to affign a fufficient reason why this injunction of fe

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