ham, that in his seed all nations should be blessed, have as yet been accomplished in their full extent, by the invisible reign of Christ in heaven over his church; which contains but a small number of christians, compared with the great majority of man+ kind that yet remain without, and a small portion of true christians, amongst the mass of men generally so denominated. In the eighty ninth Psalm God says of David, "My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him, and in my name shall his horn be exalted," &c. Then comes an intimation of a reverse of the fortunes of his family,-" But if his children forsake my law, &c. I will visit their transgression with the rod.-Nevertheless my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. Once have I SWORN by my holiness, that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne (be perpetual) as the sun before

me."*

* See the mournful account of their rejection which imme diately follows, and therefore must be understood in a manner consistent with these promises, now at least lying dormant.

The seventy second Psalm, in which universality of dominion and eternity of his throne, is attributed to Christ in the highest degree, may be understood in a spiritual sense of the gospel state in its utmost advancement, to which we still look forward; but a great many of the prophetic promises of this nature, which God has given in favor of the seed of Abraham, cannot be interpreted in any other than a literal sense. "Thus saith

the Lord, if my covenant be not with DAY and NIGHT, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant. For I will cause their captivity to return." (Jer. xxxiii, 20, &c.)

They may be brought to a very low state and a small REMNANT, but can never be wholly exterminated; the promise, and even the oath of God stands recorded to the contrary. The attachment is still as strong as ever which the jews shew to their ancient institutes, although scarcely the shadow of them is left, since the abolition of the temple service. And though they have been driven sometimes to the verge

K

of despair, such promises as theirs have still kept alive their hope, "even against hope," of still seeing Messias come as their deliverer. "Zion said, the Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me! Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion upon the son of her womb? -yea, they may forget, yet will not I forget thee!" (Isaiah xlix. 14.)

St. Paul, alluding to Isaiah's and our Lord's prophecies of the obstinacy and unbelief of the jews, says, "Blindness in part hath happened unto Israel, (according to the prophecies) until the FULNESS of the gentILES be come in, and so (then) all Israel shall be saved, as it is written, (Isaiah lix. 20.) "There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." (Rom. xi. 25.) By St. Paul's application of this prophecy to a period long after Christ, and quite late in the latter days, it is evident that the incarnation or first coming of our Lord, was not the sole

object of this, and other similar passages in the prophets; although it was in part undoubtedly a fulfilment of them. The conversion of the jews, and the putting away the sin of their long continued rebellion against their Messias and King, is the declared object of it. And this is not to take place till the fulness of the gentiles be first This is further evinced by the apostle's own comment upon the passage. "As concerning the gospel, (rejected by them) they are enemies for your sakes," (that an overture of grace might be offered to you gentiles,) "But as touching the election (of them in Abra¬ ham,) they are (still) beloved for the Father's sake."

come in.

SECTION III

The blindness of the Jews.-Its causes.Its punishment by a spiritual imprisonment -Their state since Christ a standing miracle.-Christ will yet become their glory, as now he is their reproach,

THE fate of the people of Israel hath been very singular and wonderful, which is the reason of those uncommon epithets applied to them in the eighteenth chapter of Isaiah. -"A people scattered and peeled, a people terrible from their beginning hitherto, a nation meted out and trodden underfoot, whose land the rivers have spoiled." This people has been scattered in all countries, and their land overflowed and spoiled, by floods of saracens and turks, the most barbarous of the gentiles; whose appointed time of treading down Jeru