Page images
PDF
EPUB

fire thy Beauty: For be is thy Lord, and worship thou bim. Hearken, O Daughter, and confider what great things I have promis'd to you, and will do for you in that Day: Forget thy People, and all that may be near and dear to thee, befides me; or that may ftand in the way as a Hindrance to thy Enjoyment of my Prefence: Let thy Heart, Mind, and Affections, be upon me, who only deferve to have it, in confideration of my great Love to thee, and what I have done for thee. So fhall the King greatly defire thy Beauty, who loves to fee his Children appear before him, in that Beauty and Excellency which he hath put upon them.

[ocr errors]

And the Daughters of Tyre fl all be there withGifts: Even the Rich among the People fall intreat thy Far vour. This looks, with fome other Texts of Scripture, as if the Converted Jews would have thePrecedence of the Gentiles, in that Day of the Meffah's Kingdom: And they fhall be there with Gifts; that is, the Rich among the Gentiles: They whofe Hearts God hath touched, fhall come and intreat thy Love, Favour, and Kindness, to be fhewed unto them. The King's Daughter (that is every Convert or true Believer, may be understood) is all glorious within; her Cloathing is of wrought Gold. The Church of God is all glorious, in refpect of the Imputation of Righteoufnefs, and Implantation of Grace: Glorious within; becaufe God the Father, Son, and Spirit, dwell there: Glorious without; because fhe is clothed with the Righteoufnefs of God. She fhall be brought unto the King in Raiment of Needle-work: The Virgins, ber Companions, that follow her, fall be brought unto thee; with Gladness and Rejoicing fall they be brought, they hall enter in

to the King's Palaces. This Raiment of Needle-work doubtless does refpect the pure and fpotlefs Robe of Chrift's Righteoufnefs, imputed by Grace, received by Faith But yet I humbly conceive that the Garments of Glry and Immortality, are fignified, which fhall be put upon the Saints in that Day, when he fhall be brought to the King. Oh with what Joy and Gladnefs will fhe enter the King's Palace, or the Gates of the New Jerufalem; when the fhall thus fhine in Chrift's Glory. This can be no less than the perfect Kingdom-State, at Chrift's perfonal Appearance, when bis Wife the Bride hall bave made her felf ready.

The 145 Pfalm is full for the Proof of this: You may read the whole, and confider how it treats upon this bleffed Time. But I muft not take notice of fo many Verfes, left I exceed the Bounds that I have defigned: Therefore I fhall begin at Ver. 10. Al thy Works fhall praise thee, OLord, and thy Saints fball bless thee. All thy Works; not only the Works of Creation, Redemption, and Divine Providence, but the Works that Ccd will do, when he comes to fet up his Kingdom: And that is to deftroy Antichrift, to convert the Jews, and bring them again into their own Land, by drying up the River of Euphrates, or deftroying the Turkish Power, and bringing in the Fulnefs of the Gentiles, the Accomplishing of all the Latter Day Prophefies. Thefe are. fome of the Works which God will do in that Day; which indeed will declare and wonderfully fhew forth his Praife; for which the Saints all of them will blefs and magnifie the Lord, that they fhould be thus deliver'd from all their Enemies, for ever, and be Partakers of that Glory, which then they shall be in full poffeffion of.

It

It follows in the 11, 12, and 13th Veries, They Shall fpeak of the Glory of thy Kingdom, and talk of thy Power, to make known to the Sons of Men his mighty Als, and the glorious Majefty of his Kingdom. Thy Kingdom is an Everlasting Kingdom, and thy Dominion endureth throughout all Generations. This is not to be limited to the Kingdom of his Grace, under the Difpenfation of the Cofpel; but must certainly have a refpect to the Kingdom-Glory of Chrift, with his Saints, in the Latter Days. Then it is that the Children of God fhall speak to each other of the Glory of his Perfon, of the Glory of his Righteoufnefs, and the Glory of his Kingdom, far beyond whatever they have yet done, or were capable to do, because of Sin, Weakness, and Mortality, which doth attend the Beft of the Children of God, in this Life. But when all these Imperfections come to be removed from the Saints, as they fhall in that Day; then the Myfteries of the Kingdom will be opened, and Enlargement of Hearts given. Then it is that they fhall fpeak, in a wonderful manner, without Offence, of the Glory of Chrift, and his bleffed Kingdom; whofe Kingdom is faid to be everlafting, or throughout all Generations.

CHAP.

14

CHA P. III.

CHRIST will reign amongst his
Saints in Jerufalam.

1. Great Men, if ungodly, whether Kings of the Earth, or cthers, will be ashamed or confounded. 2. The Lord will perfonally reign with his People, confifting both of Jews and Gentiles.

Shall take notice of 2 or 3 Places in Isaiah, which hath a Reference to this Time, tho' indeed the whole Prophecy is full of them. And the First is in the 24th Chapter, Verfe 23. Then the Moon fhall be confounded, and the Sun afhamed, when the Lord of Hofts fhall reign in Mount Zion and in Jerufalem, and before his Ancients gloriously. What a Text is this; which if duely confider'd, one would think none could have a Word to fay against Chrift's having a vifible Kingdom in this World! Then the Moon, &c. Then! When? When thofe dreadful Judgments and Calamities fhall come upon the Wicked, which you read of in the preceding Verfes :

Verfes: Then it is that the Moon fhall be confounded. By the Moon I understand in this Place may be meant the World, or Wicked and Ungodly Men, that are ruling in it, be they in never fo great Pofts and high Offices; they hall then be confounded to a purpofe. By the Sun, carthly Princes and great Potentates may be fignify'd, as they are fometimes call'd in the Scriptures. Thefe will be both afhamed and confounded in that Day, to their eternal sorrow, who fhall be found ungodly, when the Lord Jefus Chrift fhall come to take the Power of Government into his own Hands. But I fee no Abfurdity, if we take the Word in the very Letter of the Text; and fo understand by it the two great Luminaries of the Heavens, that do enlighten the Earth, both by Day and Night; for they will, as it were, draw in their Beams, when the Sun of Righteousness begins to arife: They will be afham'd and confounded, when Chrift comes to appear in his Glory; he will fo far exceed, as a thousand times to outfhine their Brightness which will fo eclipfe their Light, as that they may be faid to be afhamed.

But when is this to be? When the Lord of Hofts frall reign in Mount Zion, and in Ferufalem. before bis Ancients gloriously. By the Lord of Hofts muft be understood the Lord Jefus Chrift. By Mount Zion, and ferufalem, is fometimes meant fpiritually the Church of God, under the Gospel; metimes literally for Zion, that was in Jerufalem, where the Temple ftood; and I fee no Reason why it may not be fo taken in this Place; because it is faid he fhall reign before his Ancients. by the Word Ancient is generally meant the Peo

Now

ple

[ocr errors]
« PreviousContinue »