c. But we should also descend to ourselves. 1st, That we may learn to fear and venerate the great Creator. "Fear ye not me, saith the Lord? Will ye not "tremble at my presence, who have placed the sand for "the bound of the sea?"y All creatures are in his. hand, to employ them either for us, or against us, according to his sovereign pleasure; and it is in him alone, too, that we ourselves live, move, and have our being.z

ci. 2dly, That we may render the worship and service due to Him, whom every kind of animals both in the earth and in the sea obey. When we behold all creatures hearkening to his word according to the laws

“handle the spade and the plough, and whilst we partake of our "food? Great is that God, who has afforded us those implements, "with which we cultivate the ground. Great is that God, to whom "we are indebted for hands, and for the power of swallowing and digesting our food; who causes us to grow imperceptibly, and to "breathe when asleep.' These instances of the Divine goodness ought to be particularly celebrated; and we should praise him in "the noblest and most sacred songs, because he has given us facul"ties by which we perceive them, and are capable of employing "them aright. What then? Since we are generally blind and stu"pid, ought not some one to discharge this office, and to celebrate "the praises of God on behalf of all? And what else can I do, who "am old and lame, but show forth his praise. Were I a nightin"gale, I would act the part of a nightingale ; were I a swan, I would "act the part of a swan. But since I am a rational creature, I ought to praise God. This is my work; this I will perform; nor shall "I desert this honourable employment, while I am permitted to pursue "it. And I invite you to unite with me in the same song.”

To this remarkable quotation, Witsius adds the following reflexion. "O how well calculated is this devout discourse, this pious "counsel of a heathen, to make us ashamed of our backwardness " and indolence! Doth a pagan philosopher speak and act in this "manner; and how do we Christians conduct ourselves?" T. Acts xvii. 28.

y Jer. v. 22. Ps. xxxiii. 6-9.

of nature, truly we ought to be ashamed and blush, if we who are enriched and distinguished above the rest by so many benefits, and who alone, in common with angels, are privileged with reason, are found rebellious against him, without whom we can do nothing; and against whom, in consequence, it is highly criminal for us to form one hostile purpose or thought. Hence God frequently makes use of the irrational creatures, to reprove and put to shame the rational.b

CII. 3dly, That whilst we sincerely discharge these duties of piety, we may comfort ourselves, in various ways, in God our Creator. 1. If that God, who is the omnipotent Creator, be our God, he will certainly provide for us all that is necessary to our welfare.

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"The

"earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the "world, and they that dwell therein." Since "he giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens "which cry," how much less will he suffer men who so far excel other creatures, and who call upon him as their Father, to lack what is necessary?e

CIII. A memorable instance of this care of Providence occurred to me to-day, when reading the Monody of Gregory Nazianzen upon Basil the Great.* He relates, that when Maximian's violent persecution was raging with its utmost fury, the ancestors of Basil escaped with a few servants to a certain cave in a mountain. Continuing there upwards of seven years, and dwelling in the open air, they lived on bread alone; nor did they, like the Israelites in the wilderness, utter any complaint on that account. God, who fed the Jews

* Monodia Gregorii Nazianzeni in Basilium Magnum.

a Ps. cxlviii. 8.

c Ps. xxiv. i.

b Is. i. 2. 3. Jer. viii. 7.
́d Ps. cxlvii. 9.

e Ps. xxxvi. 7. Mat. vi. 26-34.

in the desert with manna and with quails, supplied them with provisions which they neither prepared nor expected-deer in good condition, which came of their own accord, no man pursuing them; and of which they killed what were immediately necessary, and dismissed the rest, reserving them as in a storehouse, ready to appear when required for future use. "The young lions "do lack, and suffer hunger; but they that seek the "Lord shall not want any good thing."f

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CIV. 2. If the Almighty Creator be our God, nothing is so wonderful but he is able and willing to effect it on our behalf. Jeremiah, accordingly, reasons thus: "Ah! Lord God, behold thou hast made the heaven " and the earth by thy great power and stretched out 'arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee;" or, as ́our Dutch translators have well rendered the expression," there is nothing too wonderful for thee,*-nothing which thou canst not easily perform in favour of thy people. He will govern all the creatures, too, in such a manner that none of them can hurt his people,1 but all of them, on the contrary, shall serve to promote their salvation.i

cv. 3. To conclude, how great is this felicity of the saints, that it is given them to inherit not merely the creatures, but also the Creator himself! "The For"mer of all things is the portion of Jacob ;" and our "Maker is our Husband;" in whom we are not only

* Nulla res mirabilis tibi erit.

f Ps. xxxiv. 11.

.17 .Jer. xxii לא נפלא ממך כל דבר 8

h Is. xliii. 2. Dan. iii. 17, 27, 28, 29. vi. 22, 23.

allowed to repose our confidence through the whole course of our lives, but to whom, also, in our dying moments, we may "commit our souls as to a faithful "Creator."n

DISSERTATION IX.

ON THE NAME JESUS.

I. HAVING considered with some attention what we are to believe in relation to the FIRST PERSON of the Adorable Trinity, we now proceed to speak of the SECOND; to whom four titles are ascribed in the Creed, to wit, JESUS, CHRIST, the ONLY SON of God the Father, and OUR LORD. The two first of these titles are names of office; the third indicates his nature; the fourth points out his dignity, and the relation in which he stands to us.

II. Some have ingeniously remarked with respect to his official names, that the one of them is Hebrew, and the other Greek; because the Son of God is given to be a Saviour alike to Hebrews and Greeks, to Jews and Gentiles; "a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the

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glory of his people Israel."a Others add, that the first name is Hebrew, and the surname Greek; because "salvation is of the Jews," and because to them it was first announced and exhibited. "To the Jew first," says the Apostle, "and also to the Greek."

VOL. I.

a Luke ii. 32.

I shall