SERMON I. JEREMIAH'S MINISTRY. JEREMIAH xvii. 12. A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary. THIS verse is found in one of the many discourses delivered by the prophet Jeremiah to warn the Jews of their approaching captivity; the result of which, however, seems to have been but little satisfactory to the anxious mind of this servant of God. The present discourse begins with the sixteenth chapter, in which he forewarns them of their utter extirpation, with circumstances of peculiar wretchedness: and this on account of their sins-such, he observes, as were manifest and undeniable, the effects of which were to be traced in numerous particulars, written in their history, and portrayed in their manners and conduct, in characters that could not be mistaken or expunged: ch. xvii. ver. 1. "The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars." Against this the fierce anger of God was kindled, and for this the many judgments were proclaimed by the prophet. But all these denunciations were disregarded; or, if danger was apprehended, safety B was not sought where it ought to have been, from the offended God, but from man-from their allies, and not from the strength of the Lord. This was the refuge to which they fled under those calamities threatened by the just judgment of God; but hither, also, the curse of God should follow them: ver. 5. "Thus saith the Lord; cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord." If any confidence could be placed in a mode of relief so contrary to the divine will, the prophet ascribes it to the deceitfulness of the human heart: ver. 9. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Through the influence of the treachery of the heart the natural man is continually having recourse to devices of his own, in which he trusts rather than in the counsel of God, and in spite, too, of the warning of God to the contrary. And with this inclination in ourselves we should ever rememberand the recollection should humble us, and bring us with real simplicity to a throne of grace-that God judges every man by this inward state of allegiance to him: ver. 10. "I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings." One of the main features in the character of the nation of the Jews at this time, seems to have been, their eagerness of amassing wealth, or of attaining the honours and splendour of worldly rank. This was the source of their defection from God, and the main spring of those carnal schemes and purposes, which led them to turn a deaf ear to the prophet's warning. The hope of retaining-by other means than by humble submission to the goodness and mercy of God-their rank and wealth, kept alive their vain speculations; but God assured them they should be disappointed: ver. 11. "As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and in the end shall be a fool." The view of approaching calamities, and from such a cause, could scarcely fail seriously to affect the mind of the prophet-and that from a consideration which, while it heightened the condemnation of the unbelieving Jews, opened to the believer a hope of mercy and a refuge: ver. 12. "A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary." It is the temple to which, in the first place, these words seem to refer us, as being the visible emblem of the divine presence among them, the pledge of his covenant of mercy, and the palladium of their privilege as a nation chosen and protected of God; by whom they had been separated from all other nations on the face of the earth. But the description includes within it a reference to the spiritual kingdom of God, the privilege of drawing near to him in spiritual communion, and the enjoyment of all those advantages which are bestowed in the exercise of divine grace. This spiritual kingdom was owned by the faithful in every age; and the import of my text is still fulfilled in us, though we have not any visible representation of divine glory: we have, nevertheless, a throne of grace, to which we may come with boldness, and from which we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. I purpose to enter more particularly into the meaning of my text in another discourse; for the present I shall confine myself to the exposition of the remainder of the context: it is a remarkable intermixture of public fear, and of private experience. The prophet was overwhelmed with a sense of the approaching calamities, and humbled before God, in order to individual security; he mourned for the sins of the nation, and confessed his own; he was earnest and zealous in warning the people, but his ministry was attended by peculiar trials and distressing sensations; he was exceedingly harassed by persecution and contempt, but he could make the strongest appeals to God; and to his authority, as his warrant: he was conscious, that to comply with this had been his main object, and the chief endeavour of his prophetic office. In the true spirit of a faithful prophet he appeals to the temple as the throne of God-of him whom he served. The presence of God dwelling among them was an aggravation of their guilt; but it was the consolation of the true Israel: ver. 13. “O Lord, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed." By Israel we are to under |