ceeding ages, and its important meaning illuftrated by many additional declarations, which all pointed to the bleffed Redeemer.

A character fo fingular and eminent, ought to be fully afcertained by every mark of distinction. His church must know at his coming for what end he appeared, and be able to discriminate him from all others. To answer this purpose, the wisdom of God is confpicuous, in feparating Ifrael as a particular nation, to preserve the truths of revelation, and be the peculiar people from whom the Saviour, as to the flesh, was to spring, who is God over all, blessed for ever more.

But to fet apart a nation, in such a manner as to prevent a mixture with the rest of mankind, and answer the great defigns refpecting the Meffiah, it was neceffary a government should be conftituted of a very fingular kind; a government which would bind the confcience in religion, as well as the conduct in civil affairs; a government in which the church and ftate would be perfectly incorporated, and the members of both focieties become united under the fame code of laws. This could only be done by a theocracy. No human conftitution could poffibly effect it. The facred rights of confcience can never be delegated by any people to their rulers; nor can the magiftrate affume the prerogative of enforcing uniformity in doctrines or worship, without injuftice and tyranny.

Fifty days after the departure of the children of Ifrael from Egypt, they arrived at Mount Sinai. There the covenant was formally ratified between God and them, and their government completely organized. On that occafion an auguft difplay of the Divine presence was made, fuperior to any that was ever before exhibited on earth, or will probably be again, until the Lord fhall defcend from heaven with a fhout, with the voice of the

archangel,

There were

archangel, and with the trump of God. thunderings and lightenings and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud, and Mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke; because the Lord defcended upon it in fire, and the smoke thereof afcended as the fmoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.

From the midst of this tremendous fcene, the fum of the moral law was aloud proclaimed to Ifrael. The remaining parts of the legislation, at the express request of the people, were communicated to Mofes firft, and by him brought down to them. The words of the text, which follow fhortly after the ten commandments, are a promise annexed to the law which refpected the altar. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt facrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, thy sheep and thine oxen: In all places where I record my name, I will come unto thee, and bless thee. A gracious promife! calculated to direct the Ifraelites to an acceptable fervice, and encourage them to persevere in their faith and worship; but a promise which refers to the church under the New-Teftament difpenfation as much as to that under the Old.-There is but one Saviour, and one covenant of grace, whereby finners can obtain eternal life.-There is alfo but one church, founded on that covenant, however various it may have been in its outward forms. Whatever was, therefore, an effential promise of that covenant to Ifrael, is equally fo to us; and, in this extent, I fhall now confider the text.

There is, perhaps, no paffage in the Sacred Oracles more applicable to our prefent fituation, or better fuited to excite in your minds proper exercifes upon this folemn occafion. Inall places where I record my name, I will come unto thee and bless thee. Words replete with instruction, and comfort! Words which clearly determine what conftitutes

Hh 3

stitutes a true church, and what bleffings we may hope to obtain in the sanctuary! Confident as I am of your usual attention, I need not fear trefpaffing upon your patience, while I discuss a subject, in which you are deeply interested, and for meditating upon which, with eager expectations, you are now exprefsly come. The Lord bear witnefs to his own word, and make it the first-fruits of a plentiful harvest in this house! To understand the text, it will be neceffary to know,

I. What is meant by recording the name of the Lord in any place. And then,

II. The import of the promise, I will come unto thee and bless thee. Both these, in a humble dependence upon Divine aid, I purpose to explain and apply.

First, I muft fhew you what is meant by the Lord's recording his name in any place. GOD has not left himfelf without a winefs. The invisible things of bim, from the creation of the world, are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even bis eternal power and Godbead. The brightest evidence of his existence and attributes, are engraven on every object around us. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth forth his handywork. But fomething particular is defigned in the text. The name of the Lord is mentioned with fingular emphafis; and some places are distinguished from others, by their relation to that name.

1. With respect to the former; by the NAME OF THE LORD is often understood God himself, or the display of his infinite perfections in those works, whereby he makes his being and nature known. Thus, Pfalm xx. 1. The Lord bear thee in the day of trouble, the name of the God of Jacob defend thee. So, Pfalms xxix. 2. xxxiv. 3.—

1 Tim, vi. 1. And thus alfo in the third precept of the decalogue :-Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain. But the NAME of the Lord, when used in a particular reference to the covenant of grace, always refpects God confidered as a REDEEMER; and expreffes his divine perfections, as they are gloriously displayed in the falvation of finners. This is afcertained from that memorable paffage in the 34th chapter of Exodus, where the Lord is faid to have proclaimed his name to Mofes. And the Lord defcended in the cloud, and flood with him there, and proclaimed the NAME OF THE LORD; and the Lord paffed by before him and proclaimed, the LORD, the LORD God merciful and gracious, long-fuffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, and tranfgrefssions, and fins, and will by no means clear the guilty.

This was the blessed name implied in the first promise of a Saviour in paradife, and was the only foundation on which the worthip of finners could be built. In the earliest ages of the world it was thus understood, Then began men to call upon the name of the Lord. As foon as their numbers were fufficiently increased, they began, as a church, in a public manner, to worship the Lord as a GOD OF SALVATION, through the promised Meffiah.

The knowledge and profeffion of this facred name continued in the world, until infidelity and wickedness had gradually effaced the truths of revelation, and threatened, at laft, wholly to extirpate the worship of God. Noah, who was a preacher, and heir of the righteousness which is by faith, preferved the treasure. He conveyed it to his pofterity, who furvived the flood; and revealed religion was univerfally acknowledged, until ignorance and enmity a second time made a formidable oppofition, and mankind

Hh 4

kind began again to degenerate into idolatry and profanenefs.

The calling of Abraham, and entailing the promise upon his family, fecured the doctrines of grace, and perpetuated the true worship of God. To that patriarch the Lord confirmed his name-Fear not Abram, I am thy Shield and exceeding great reward.—I am GOD ALMIGHTY, a God unto thee and to thy feed after thee. Upon the feparation of Abraham to a special interest in the promise, two great privileges were granted to him, the first was, that, according to the flesh, he fhould be the father of the Meffiah, who was the life of the covenant, the origin and cause of all the bleffings contained therein. The second was, That the faith of Abraham, whereby he became perfonally interested in the covenant, should be a pattern of the faith of the church in all generations; fo that none fhould ever be real members, or partake of its bleffings, but by the fame faith which Abraham exercised. It is upon account of this, that he is the father of all them that believe, and the heir of the world. It is in this respect that, in the covenant made with him, the bafis of the church, for all future ages, was fixed. Wherever that covenant is established, and with whomfoever it is confirmed, there is a church, and to them all its effential privileges appestain.

It was the distinguished happiness of Ifrael to enjoy these privileges. Notwithstanding the frequent inftances of depravity in that nation, there were always fome, and often many among them, who poffeffed the faith of their father Abraham, and inherited the bleffings of the covenant. Previous to the departure of the people from Egypt, the NAME OF THE LORD was exprefsly made known and explained. as the foundation of the whole Mofaic economy. And Mofes faid unto God, Behold, when

I