had faid, You think to be justified by the deeds of the law; but, how is that poffible, feeing by the law is the knowledge of fin? Rom. iii. 20. If ye will ftand close to thefe old covenant terms with God, then let the law itfelf catechife you. Where is your righteoufnefs of nature and practice, that the law requires? Where is your righteoufnefs of thought, word, and deed, that it requires? Where is your righteoufnefs of affection and action that it requires? Where is your perfect, perfonal, and perpetual obedience; your righteoufnefs internal in heart, external in life, and eternal in duration which the law requires ? for," Curfed is every one that continues not in all things written in the book of the law to do them," Gal. iii. 10. The law will tell you, that though you keep it wholly, and yet offend in one point, you are guilty of all, James ii. 20. Now, is there no point wrong in your flate, nature, heart, or thought, all your days, not to fpeak of your words and actions? If there be, then you are guilty of all; and feeing by the law is the knowledge thus of your fin and guilt, how can you be juftified by the law? Can that holy, righteous law, pronounce you juft and righteous? No, no: in vain do you think of righteoufnefs by the law: therefore, what think ye of Christ the Meffias, who is called JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU; the Lord our righteousness, Jer. xxiii. 6. It is he that came to fulfil the righteoufnefs of the law in his own perfon, really and actively, that the righteoufnefs of the law might be fulfilled in us, imputatively and paffively, Rom. viii. 4. Is not this the only righteoufnefs that magnifies the law and makes it honourable? You magnify your own righteoufnefs, which does but difgrace and difhonour the law; but, What think ye of Chrift? Do you magnify and honour him, as the Lord your righteoufnefs? Ought not you to magnify that righteousness that magnifies the law, feeing it is more than an angelical righteoufnefs? It is not the righteousness of a man only, or of David's fon; but the righteoufnefs of God, and of David's Lord. If you think no more of Chrift bút that he is David's fon, no wonder than you be relying upon and following after the law, and a poor pitiful righteoufnefs of your own; you have never feen the glory of Chrift's righteoufnefs;

but

but if you think duly of Chrift, you will fee him to be the LORD JEHOVAH, and his righteousness to be a glorious divine righteoufnefs, fo as you will count all things but lofs and dung for the excellency of the knowledge of him, and to be found in him, not having your own righteousness that is after the law, but the righteoufnefs which is of God in Chrift, by faith, Phil. ii. 8, 9. Let all your questions about the law then, might Chrift fay, give way to this great question, What think ye of Chrift, and his law-biding righteoufnefs? Your righteousness will not abide the first fire of the law, when it comes to be dif charged against you, and to exact obedience and fatisfaction; but Chrift's obedience and death anfwers the whole charge of its precept and fanction both to the full: therefore, What think ye of Chrift? and what think ye of his righteoufnefs? This is the first thing imported in this question, as it ftands here.

[2] What think ye of his pedigree? That this is imported in the queftion, appears from the connexion alfo, Whofe fon is be? What think ye of his pedigree ? They thought it was easy to answer that question, by faying only, He is David's fon. They might have known it was not fo easy to answer that queftion, if they had confidered the queftion of the prophet Ifaiah, chap. liii. 8. Who fhall declare bis generation? And the defcription which that prophet gives of him, Ifa. ix. 6. that the name of the Meffias, the child born, and fon given to us, fhould be, Wonderful, Counsellor, and the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace.-What think ye of his pedigree as he is man? No doubt this was partly implied in the queftion; for Chrift did not difprove their answer, though it was but to the least part of the question: He is David's fon, say they; and it is right to think of him as the fon of David, cloathed with our nature: here was the great myftery of godlinefs, God manifefted in the flesh. It was no myftery for the Pharifees to think only that he was the fon of David; David had other fons, and a numerous feed and if that be all, that he was the son of David, they might thus think of Chrift, and yet think nothing of him. But it is another thing to think of him as God in our nature. If

we

we think duly of Chrift as the son of David, or in human nature, then, muft we not think that God is come very near to us, fo as there is a natural fibnefs betwixt him and us, he being bone of our bone, and flesh of our flefh? Muft we not think, that he wonderfully emptied himself of his divine glory, and humbled himself unto death? Tho' he thought it no robbery to be equal with God, yet he fuffered himself to be denuded of his glory, cloathed with rags of our flefh: God calls him the Man that is his Fellow; yet he was made a fellow to thieves and malefactors, and a murderer preferred before him. Tho' he was the Prince of life, yet, as the word may be rendered, he EVACUATED or EMPTIED himself unto death; and yet, to them that know him, he is most lovely, even in his greatest abafement. What think ye of Chrift as man, as the fon of David, the fon of man, a man of the fame infirmities with us, except finful infirmities?" He was made in all things like unto us, fin only excepted." He became a poor man, in all outward refpects; a diftreffed man, A man of forrows, and acquainted with grief;" a tempted man, toffed and tempted of the devil sometimes, he going through all the ages of a man, firft conceived, then born, then a babe, then a youth, and at laft the perfect ftature of man: He became a mortal man, and accordingly was put to a painful and fhameful death; yet a holy man, a wonderful man, a God-man: What think ye of the man Christ Jefus? But the main thing imported in the queftion here with relation to his pedigree, is, What think ye of his pedigree, as he is God? What think ye of Christ, in this refpect? For to separate Chrift from God, is to make him no Chrift; therefore, the queftion is, What think ye of Chrift, whofe fon is be, with refpect to his divine nature, as well as his human nature? That this was the import of the question, appears from his reply to their anfwer, How then does David call bim Lord? He is Lord JEHOVAH, the only begotten Son of God, John i. 18.; The brightness of the Father's glory, and the express image of bis perfon, Heb. i. 2.; By whom all things were made, John i. 3. It is the Arian blafphemy, to affirm him to be no more but Omoiufius patri, but not Omoufius: that

is, like unto the Father, but not the fame effence and fubftance with him. He is, according to his Godhead, arrayed with all glory. All the creatures are to him as the drop of a bucket: yea, as nothing, and lefs than nothing and vanity; he hath a name above every name; and all the creatures are but fhadows to him, who is the fubftantial image of God. He is the eternal Son of God, by an ineffable generation; whatever Arians and Atheifts think of Chrift; yet Chrift himself thought it no robbery to be equal with God, Phil. ii. 6. Therefore, What think ye of Chrift? is he no more but the fon of David? The Jews looked upon Chrift, as an ignorant clown, or filly perfon, will look upon the fun; and, it may be, will think it no bigger than his bonnet; or at moft, no larger than a milftone : fo did the Jews. The Pharifees looked upon the Son of God, faying, Is not this the carpenter's fon? but their utmost was, that he was the fon of David; they did not fee him to be the Son of God. What think ye of Chrift? Do ye fee all the attributes of God to be in him? and all his actions, as Mediator, to be dignified with infinite virtue and value? that he was able to fatisfy infinite juftice? that he is able to fave to the uttermoft? that he is the adequate object of divine worship, and a full fuitable portion for an immortal foul, because he is the Son of God, as well as the fon of David? All this is imported in the question, What think ye of Chrift?

[3] What think ye of his perfon? This queftion is also plainly imported in that, What think ye of Chrift? namely, as he is God-man in one perfon, and the fecond perfon of the glorious Trinity? It is plain, that Chrift fpeaks of himself here as perfonally confidered, and as having two diftinct natures in one perfon. Now, the human nature of Chrift is not a perfon diftinct from the divine; though the natures are diftinct, the perfon is one. But the answer of the Pharifees to this queftion, fhewed they had no diftinct knowledge of this mystery; for they answer, He is the fon of David; without knowing that he was the Son of God, as well as the fon of David, in one perfon; which made Chrift here to declare his fovereign Lordfhip and Godhead, as well as VOL. III.

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his

his manhood. The mystery of the queftion then, which they did not understand, was, What think ye of that wonderful perfon God-man, in whom the human nature is advanced to fuch an unfpeakable dignity, as to be united to, and of the fame perfonality with the Son of God? Here is matter of thought to an intelligent mind; What think ye of the wonderful manner, in which finful men may come to be partakers of the divine nature, even by the holy Son of God, his being a partaker of the human nature? Here is a glorious fubject for thought and contemplation. What think ye of the wonderful way, that God, in his infinite wisdom, hath taken, to bring God and men together, even in and through him, who is both God and man, and partaking of both natures in cne perfon, is fit for bringing both God and man into one, and to lay his hand upon both parties? What think ye of fuch a glorious perfon as finite and infinite, time and eternity, Creator and creature joined together?" The word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth," John i. 14.

:

[4.] What think ye of his unction or anointing? This, I fuppofe, muft alfo be the import of the question objectively confidered, as it is here generally proposed; for, Chrift fignifies Anointed: in the Hebrew it is Messias; in the Greek, it is Cbrift, and in our language it is the Anointed and this being the main word, on which the weight of the general queftion itself lies, it is the more neceffary that this be particularly opened.-The queftion then comes to this in general, What think ye of his Father, the Anointer? John vi. 27. For him bath God the Father fealed: How? See Pfalm xlv. 7. God, thy God, bath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. How much pains is Chrift at, in the gofpel, to recommend his Father, as fending and authorizing him to his mediatorial work?—Again, What think ye of his office, to which he is anointed? He hath not taken the honour of the mediatorial office upon him, without being called of God, and anointed of God thereunte, Heb. v. 5. We do not think honourably enough

of