ing the sacrifice and propitiation: and here is retributive justice illustriously declared, in the sinner's being rewarded, justified, saved, upon the blood and sacrifice, the obedience and righteousness of Christ; yea, all the perfections of the great God shine gloriously in the face of Christ, as in a beautiful and bright constellation, 2 Cor. iv. 6. And for this reason he gave him for a

covenant.

3. Why is he given for a covenant of the people, of the Gentiles? Why, not only to shew his displeasure at the unbelief of the Jews, as we see, Acts iii. 46, 47. Rom. xi. 11. 19, 20.; but also to shew his sovereignty, That he will have mercy, on whom he will have mercy; and to shew his truth, in fulfilling the ancient prophecy concerning the calling of the Gentiles. It is long since God promised to Noah, saying, " God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem," Gen. ix. 27. Now of Japheth came the Gentiles, Gen. xii. 5.; and of Shem came the Jews. By the posterity of Japheth were the isles of the Gentiles divided. The isles were solemnly by lot divided among them, (and probably this isle of Britain among the rest ;) so that as Japheth's dwelling in the tents of Shem, is a clear prediction of the conversion of the Gentiles, and their succeeding to the Jews in their church-privileges; so this directs us to understand the promise in the context, "The isles shall wait for his law." He is given for a covenant of the people, a light of the Gentiles. In a word, he is given for a covenant of the people, to shew the extent and allsufficiency of his grace, and the intrinsic value of his blood. Suppose a prince were setting up a sanctuary, or city of refuge, the privileges whereof are not restricted to any sort of men, but extended to all, Gentiles as well as Jews; would not this declare, that the privileges of the place are full and ample, so as whosoever comes to this sanctuary, might be safe? Here also, in like manner, the sufficiency of the merit of Christ, and the fulness of his righteousness is declared, insomuch that none can, with any shadow of reason, exclude themselves, be what they will, People, Gentiles, Dark, Blind, Imprisoned; seeing all Gentiles, who are called Dogs, Aliens, Hea

thens, Uncircumcised, are included; and seeing the motto written on the outside of the door of the sanctuary, is, "Whosoever will, let him come:" all comers are welcome and refusers left inexcusable.

VI. The Sixth thing proposed was the application of the whole. This doctrine would admit of a vast improvement, which we must confine to as narrow bounds as possible; and we may improve it,

1st, For Information. If it be so, that Christ, by divine ordination, is thus the covenant of the people; in the glass of this doctrine, we clearly see, many precious gospel-truths. And,

1. Hence we may see, in what way it is, that the ruin we brought upon ourselves, by the breach and violation of the covenant of works, is reparable. We have brought ourselves into a most lamentable state by sin; and we are irrecoverably lost indeed, as to all that we can do for our own help; "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself." Who can repair that ruin? There is a glorious ME that says, "In ME is thy help," Hos. xiii. 7. Who that ME is, is explained in our text, even a God in Christ, the glorious I and THEE: "I will give thee for a covenant of the people." There is no help, no justification for them now by a covenant of works; but, "I will give thee for a covenant to them:" which, though it be all works to thee, yet it shall be all grace to them, The world is busy casting the law of works into this and the other handsome shape, and pleasing themselves with a fancy, that in this way of works, they may have righteousness and life, to the disparagement of the way of grace, to the destruction of their own souls, and to the dishonour of Christ, who alone is the covenant of the people.

2. Hence we see the greatness of the love of God towards poor sinners, in giving such a great and glorious person as Christ, and that for such a great and glorious end, as to be a covenant of the people; "God so loved -the world, as to give his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish, but have everlasting life." Christ came not to be a covenant of the people without a commission, call, and ordination from

his Father. He had authority from the Father to do all that he did about the covenant; I will give thee for a covenant." Let not our notions of God be so gross, as to think, that God the Father is of an implacable nature, full of severity; and that the Son only is of a pleasant, meek nature, full of lenity towards sinners. Nay, God the Father was the first in order of nature, that made the motion concerning man's redemption; Christ was appointed, authorized, and given of him: behold, the love of God hath gone to its utmost height in giving Christ, for he cannot give a greater gift; and the love of Christ hath also gone to its utmost, in consenting hereto, and giving himself, and all this to be no less than a complete covenant of the people. Because the people can do nothing, therefore he leaves them nothing to do of themselves: "I will give thee for a covenant of the people."

3. Hence we may see a test of the true religion. All schemes that centre not in Christ, are to be rejected; and all schemes of the covenant, that make not Christ to be the all of it, are to be renounced: If I can find nothing in the covenant but Christ, surely I find enough, and I find all that my text makes of it; and if the world make it a new scheme, at their peril be it. But this I say, that every scheme, that leads to self, and takes off from Christ, is a false and ruinous scheme; yea, every doctrine that advances any thing to be a rival with him, and mingles our filthy rags with his excellent robes, is of a soul-ruining nature, and utterly to be detested. The second Adam came not to patch up and amend old Adam's coat, as some express it, but to give us a wholly new garment of his own making, and dyed with his own blood: "I will give thee for a covenant." Our chief business, as ministers of the gospel, is to trumpet forth the transcendent excellency of Christ, and desire to know nothing but Christ, and him crucified, and as the ALL of the covenant, for making people both happy and holy.

4. Hence we may see the believer's freedom from the law as a covenant of works: he is not under the law, but under grace; having closed with Christ, Christ is

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now all the covenant that he is under: he is freed both from the Do and the Die, the command and the threatening of the covenant of works; they are made void to him through Christ, for he is not under it, either to be justified or condemned: he is not under its command, to be justified for his obedience; nor under its threatening and sanction, to be condemned for his disobedience, as it is a covenant; for, "There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ." It is true, as the law is a rule of obedience, he remains under it, as much and more than ever, and stands obliged thereby to study perfection; and his disobedience may bring upon him rods and stripes, and all the terrible effects of God's fatherly displeasure upon soul and body; but as it is a rule of acceptance, a condition of life, or a covenant of works, he hath nothing to do with it, nothing to expect from it, nothing to fear by it: he hath nothing to do with it any more than a wife hath to do with a dead husband. Rom. vii. 4. "Ye are dead to the law, by the body of Christ, that ye might be married to another, even to him that is raised from the dead, that ye might bring forth fruit unto God." He is not to bring forth fruit any more to the dead husband, to the law but to Christ, the living husband. He hath nothing to expect from it; no life, no righteousness, no happiness, no holiness by his own legal obedience, but only by Christ, a better covenant. And he hath nothing to fear by it; no hell, no death, no damnation, no condemnation, no liableness thereto. And hence,

5. We see what place the believer's obedience hath in the covenant of grace: His obedience hath no place here, in point of casuality, or proper federal conditionality; for this were to turn it into the same place it had in the covenant of works, where, though there was no merit of condignity (I know few will dare to say so), yet there was a merit by paction; that is to say, there was a promise of life made to works and obedience, “ Do, and live." But, in the covenant of grace, we assert, against all popish doctrine whatsoever, that there is no such reward of work, obedience, or personal holiness, upon compact and promise; because the tenor of this

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covenant runs upon the condition of Christ's obedience and righteousness, apprehended by faith. Gospel-holiness, is of manifold necessity in the new covenant; but the promise of life is not here made to the work, but to the worker; and to the worker, not for his work; but for the merit of Christ: As for instance, "Be thou faithful unto the death, and I will give thee the crown of life;" the promise is not made to fidelity, but to the faithful person, whose fidelity is a sign that he is in Christ, "In whom all the promises are yea, and Amen." If the law had now the promise of life to our obedience, we should not have life and salvation any other way but by the law, and by the works thereof; Gal. iii. 21. "If there had been a law given, that could have given life, verily, righteousness should have been by the law;" therefore our obedience now is not a cause or condition, but a necessary effect of the covenant, and qualification of all that are within the covenant; yea, all whom this covenant takes hold of, it makes them holy: And therefore, "Without holiness no man shall see God;" because without holiness no man hath this effective evidence of his being within this holy covenant.

6. Hence we may see, what are the motives that now should influence the believer in his obedience. If Christ be the ALL of the covenant, and that he is loosed from all his former relation to the covenant of works, he is not to obey either from a legal hope of heaven, or slavish fear of hell. Not from a legal hope of heaven; for the covenant secures the purchase of that by Christ's perfect obedience: not from a slavish fear of hell; for the covenant hath secured freedom from that by Christ's complete satisfaction. The principal motive is the love of Christ constraining; the love of a God in Christ, who, is given for a covenant of the people. God deals not. with believers now according to the covenant of works, neither ought they to deal with him as if they were under it. They ought to mourn for sin, to repent, to confess, to beg pardon, but not in a legal way, as if they had to do with a wrathful judge, but as having to do with a merciful Father in Christ: they are to yield obedience to the law, not out of a servile fear of hell and wrath,