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Peter speaks in the Acts, chap. ii. verse 23, he says, They crucified him;" but this is his comfort, that they did nothing but according to the determinate counsel of God. And the godly know that all comes from him, and for his glory; and thou that wilt not glorify him, he shall be glorified in thy destruction, and shame everlasting. Now, to this glorious and blessed God be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

THE THIRTY-EIGHTH LECTURE.

OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

LUKE, CHAP. XXIV.

21. But we trusted that it had been he that should have delivered Israel: and as touching all these things, to-day is the third day that they were done.

22. Yea, and certain women among us made us astonied, who came early unto the sepulchre.

23. And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive.

24. Therefore, certain of them who were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said; but him they saw

not.

25. Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!

26. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

WE continue yet, brethren, in this history concerning the two disciples of Christ, who, that same day of his resurrection, not knowing of it, went out from the rest of the disciples, that were convened at Hierusalem, to a village called Emmaus, not far from Hierusalem. We have heard of their outgoing, and of their meeting with Christ. Howbeit he knew them, yet he let them not know that he knew them; but he bound up their senses, their eyes, and their cars, that when they looked to him, and heard him

speak, they knew him not, but they took him to be a passenger; and, no question, he appeared unto them in the habit and weed 1 of a passenger. And meeting with them, he asks, what was their communication, and wherefore they were so sad and discomforted? One of them, named Cleopas, takes the speech in hand, and begins to speak roughly unto Christ, that he was come from Hierusalem, and knew not these things which were fallen out within few days. It is half a refusal of an answer. Yet the Lord will not leave them off, but he asks, "What are these things which have fallen out?" He answers, " Of Jesus of Nazareth;" of him is the whole sum of their talk. Then he comes on, and he makes it more clear to the passenger as he thought; and, first, he lets him see what a man Jesus was. There was never such a man: "He was a prophet, mighty in word and deed. No man ever spake as he spake, and no man ever wrought such miracles as he wrought; so that he had an approbation both of God and man." Then, next, he comes to these things which had befallen so worthy a person, such indignity as never was seen: he says, "Our high priests and rulers have condemned him to die, and have dispatched him by the most vile and ignominious death that could be they have crucified that prophet, that was mighty in word and deed, like a villain." Thus far hitherto.

Now, the rest of this narration that follows contains three parts. The history is plain, and, therefore, we shall go shortly through it. Cleopas gathereth a sore and a comfortless conclusion upon the crucifying of Christ, a conclusion of despairing that Jesus should have redeemed the world: it is said, "We hoped that he should have redeemed Israel from their sins: but now he is taken away, and he is dead, and, therefore, our hope is gone, and we can look no more for him to be our Redeemer."

Mark this, if he reasons well or not: Jesus is crucified, and, therefore, he cannot be our Redeemer, we cannot hope that ever he shall redeem the world. By the contrary, he should have

1 i. e. Garment.

reasoned, Jesus is crucified, and, therefore, he is the Redeemer;— for, as the apostle, Heb. ix. and twenty-two verse, says, "Without shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins ;"—for if he had not suffered, he could not have been the Redeemer and have redeemed us. But Cleopas and the other knew not what the Redeemer should have suffered. They knew not what the Redeemer meant, and, therefore, being1 deceived with the false opinion that the people had concerning the Messias, that he should be like a king, Julius Cæsar, the emperor, by an earthly power, to deliver them from the tyranny of the Romans.

This false opinion made them to gather this, that he could not be the Redeemer, seeing that he was crucified. And, indeed, if this ground that they laid had been true, he could not have delivered them, being crucified. I spake of this the last day, if thou followest the multitude, and believest (as the Papists bid thee) as the multitude believe, and close thine eyes, thou shalt perish with the multitude. They will say, "What ado hast thou with the Bible? thou hast no more ado but believe as the Church believes." But I say unto thee, it shall happen unto thee as it happened unto Cleopas. That thing that should be the matter of hope, it shall cut thee from hope, as it did this poor man Cleopas; yea, I say further, if thou believest with the multitude, thou shalt perish with the multitude. Fy, is not that rabble ashamed of this light, fy upon them! No, the vengeance from heaven shall light upon them, except they repent.

Now, to come to the second part of the narration that he makes. Ye have heard his conclusion: "But now," says Cleopas, "this is the third day since he was crucified and dead, yet we hear nothing;" as he would say, " Once dead and ay dead." Mark what he would gather of this: "It is the third day since he died, and we have not seen him; alas! I fear we shall never see him again; alas! he will never redeem Israel." out, but he keeps it in his mind.

He dare not speak this right Is this a good conclusion, "It

1 So in orig.

is the third day since he died; therefore, he cannot redeem Israel ?” He should have concluded, "It is the third day since he died; therefore, he is risen in glory to be the Redeemer of Israel." But the ignorant man knew not the Scriptures of God, as Christ says to him hereafter; for Christ had foretold, "that he would rise the third day," and yet he had forgotten it: and so he concludes, "I shall never see him, and he cannot be the Redeemer." Then ye see what it is to be ignorant of the Scriptures of God and to forget them. There is nothing concerning Christ but it is fully set down in the Old and New Testaments. So that if an angel would come down from heaven, he can tell no more in substance. Yet if thou wilt not look to them, but close thine eyes that thou see not, and stop thine ears that thou hear not, and so forget them again before thou be well out of the kirk,—it is a wonder that thou shouldst get any matter of hope. No, thou shalt find nothing but matter of desperation. Whosoever, therefore, would have matter of joy in the heart, and have joy in their distress, let them always have the Scriptures before their eyes. What needed these men to have been troubled, if they had kept the Scriptures before their eyes? So, in a word, as thou wouldst have joy in trouble, keep the Scriptures in thy memory, for there is no joy but in these Scriptures.

Now, to go forward to the third part of this narration of Cleopas concerning Christ. Before he comes to it, he makes a rehearsal of these same things which had happened that same day in the morning: "For, on the third day in the morning, there went out some women," (he himself was not so ready; it had been better for himself to have said, "I went out to the grave, and I saw and I heard this,") "and they have made us" (the disciples of Christ) "all astonied: for they told us, that they found not the body of Christ. But they told us that they found angels, and that the Lord was risen and alive; but for all this we believed not. Then some of us, who were men, namely, Peter and John, who went out and they found this, that the Lord was out of the grave." But, mark his last words, "But none of them saw the