time Jesus began to preach, and to say, repent; for the king. dom of heaven is at hand." This kingdom, now so near at hand, and which John had just before proclaimed to be so, was and is inward and spiritual; for our Lord himself declares, "The kingdom of God is within you," Luke xvii. 21. And it is clear that he waited for John's course to be first fulfilled, before he ever began publicly to preach it. See also Mark i. 14, 15, "Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God; and saying, the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe the gospel." The gospel is not sign or figure, but life and substance, the "power of God to salvation," free from all types and shadows, being the last and lasting dispensation; and which was not to commence in its general fulness, till after all others. Christ is often spoken of as coming after John; and John, as going, or coming, or being sent before Christ and therefore, as John's course in the very last of the shadows, water baptism, was now completed, the great minister of the sanctuary very pertinently, at the very beginning of his own gospel preaching, proclaimed, "the time is fulfilled." I know not what words he could have used more proper and significant, to introduce the glorious gospel, and teach mankind that all signs were to end in the substance. And from a sincere wish for the real good, and solid information of mankind, I desire this one word," fulfilled," in this and divers other places, may be specially noticed, and deeply considered. It is of vast impor

tance.

And why did Jesus wait till John's course was fulfilled? why then, immediately on hearing of his imprisonment, did he begin to preach the gospel of the kingdom as then just at hand? and why was he so careful, at his very entrance on this great work, to make this special declaration," the time is fulfilled?" There is deep instruction in it all. He knew the times and seasons, though many who could discern the face of the sky, and had understanding in the forebodings of change in regard to the weather, were and are ignorant of the signs of the times; and thre gh this ignorance many did, and many still do, retain the shadow out of all proper season. But Christ, as he knew, so

he carefully observed, the right time. He would have all things pertaining to his kingdom, especially his own immediate transactions, take place in their proper seasons. He would not hasten his first great miracle in Cana, of turning water into wine, even though his own mother solicitously prompted him to that glorious exertion of his divinity. He would not go up to the feast till the right time. So neither would he begin his own public ministration, (which was for the ending of all shadows, the abolition and blotting out the hand-writing of ordinances,) till John's, which was much in the shadow, was fulfilled. "The law and the prophets prophesied until John." John was himself both a prophet, and under the law, yet he and his ministration were until Christ. His coming after the rest of the prophets, being sent immediately before the face of the Lord, and to prepare his way, in no wise hindered his being a prophet himself. Christ testifies, among them that are born of women, there hath not risen a greater. Mat. xi. 11. He also says, Mat. v. 17, 18, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil; for verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle, shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled."

Here we see he came to fulfil both the law, and the predictions of the prophets. Accordingly, we read of divers things said to be done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, or spoken aforetime. Hence, though John came after the others, and as it were reached from them to Christ, yet he too came under the law, and was one among the prophets, which Christ came not to destroy, but whose predictions and forerunning dispensations he came to fulfil. John's prophetic declaration was eminently pertinent, in regard to the great work of Christ in gospel baptism, the sanctification of souls; and so was his figurative immersion: and Christ, in his saving baptism, amply fulfils both the prophecy and the sign. Christ was " made under the law" himself, Gal. iv. 4.; then surely so was John. And seeing John's watery ministration was to prepare Christ's way, and lead to his saving baptism, Christ having thus carefully deferred his own public ministration till John's was fulfilled, as soon as this was done, and John cast into prison, the

right time being now exactly arrived, he went forthwith, on hearing of John's imprisonment, into Galilee, and there and "from that time began to preach," and proclaim the word and gospel of that unshadowy dispensation and kingdom, which ends and fulfils all mere signs and figures, and is to increase and remain of perpetual continuance. Hence Peter declares the word "was published throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached." Acts x. 37. And may we not safely conclude, from Peter's so particularly mentioning this, as being after John's baptism, and from the evangelist's mentioning it as after his imprisonment, that they had heard our Lord express his acting on special principle in thus deferring his own public ministry, till his forerunner's, in that forerunning baptism, was fulfilled; and especially as his going into Galilee, to begin his said public ministry, is expressly said to be, "that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet?" Mat. iv. 14.

Thus it seems he acted with special design, both as to the place where, and the time when he began the open publication of the glorious gospel. It was therefore with divine pertinency, that as he began this gracious publication, he first of all announced the time is fulfilled." His hour was now come. For well knowing when it was, and when it "was not yet come," he had now waited till John had first preached, according to Paul's testimony, "the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel;" and so had "fulfilled his course." See Acts xiii. 24, 25. All this tends forcibly and beautifully to open both the necessity of his being baptized of John just then when he was, and the meaning of his answer, when John forbade him. John knew his own baptism was not saving, was not Christ's; but was to decrease and end in Christ's, being only designed for our Lord's manifestation to Israel, and to prepare the people for his saving baptism. And knowing this, John plainly and honestly testifies," that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water." John i. 31. This plain and full testimony, from the mouth of John himself, at once evinces that his baptism, being but with water, was far different from Christ's, and inferior to it; and that it was to introduce, or, as a

sign, to assist in turning the minds of the people to look for, receive, and submit to the burning, purifying baptism of the gospel. In short, water baptism and Christ's, are plainly type and antitype: and accordingly Peter, speaking of the baptism which now saves, uses the Greek word antitypon, 1 Pet. iii. 21.

Peter doubtless knew the type or figure could not save. It is "the ingrafted word which is able to save" the soul. James i. 21. Christ sanctifies and cleanses the church," with the washing of water, by the word." Eph. v. 26. This "ingrafted word," this sanctifying "washing of water by the word," is all inward and spiritual. It is the antitype of the divers washings under Moses, and equally so of water baptism, in every form. This cleanses the soul, as outward water does the body, and puts away the filth of the spirit, as that does the filth of the flesh. Hence, and hence only, it is saving: herein is the alone propriety of Peter's words, " baptism doth also now save us." As Christ came to fulfil the law of commandments, contained in outward ordinances, and to end every dispensation of signs and shadows, he had many things to submit to, on purpose to fulfil the typical righteousness of those dispensations. Hence he was circumcised, kept the law, celebrated the passover, &c. On the same ground, it behoved him to be baptized in water, the last lively typical representation of his own great work of sanctification; that is, the last in the course of time preceding his beginning the publication of the gospel word from Galilee. But when he came to John to be baptized of him, John not knowing his design in it, nor why it must be so, forbade him, saying, "I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?" Mat. iii. 14. It is not at all strange that John forbade him; for he knew his own baptism, being outward, typical, and preparatory, was to decrease and give place to Christ's. It was "unto repentance." By a total outside immersion, it pointed out the necessity of the removal of all sin, and bringing "forth fruits meet for repentance." It was used for his manifestation to Israel, whose fiery baptism alone could effect this inward cleansing from all sin. Christ was neither ignorant of himself, nor guilty of sin. Hence he could not receive John's figurative immersion upon the same grounds as

others did, neither in order to repentance and remission of sin, nor in order to be made manifest to himself. John doubtless marvelled, therefore, to see him come to his baptism. For though it seems he did not, before this, so fully know him to be the Christ as he did afterwards, yet on his now coming to him, it seems he had some sense and knowledge of it, and marvelled at his coming. But our Lord graciously condescended to show on what grounds it was now necessary: that it was neither in order to repentance in him, nor to a manifestation of him to himself, nor yet to perpetuate a symbolical institution under the gospel; but, on the contrary, to fulfil it. Christ knew the sign must precede the substance. He knew the many symbols of the law were but "a shadow of things to come," Col. ii. 17; that the law, with all its figurative offerings, cleansings, and divers washings, was a school-master, for a season, to lead to himself, the substance. See Gal. iii. 24. He knew "the baptism which John preached" was the peculiar sign or representation of his own, and was used to prepare the people's minds for it, and thereby prepare in their hearts the way of the Lord, and lead forward to his saving manifestation to Israel. Therefore, had he begun the publication of the gospel of that spiritual kingdom, which is without signs and shadows, and cometh not with outward observation, before John, the administrator of a baptism figurative thereof, had first fulfilled his course in that figurative administration, it would by no means so fully, strikingly, and instructively have answered and illustrated the designs of Eternal Wisdom, as his deferring it till afterwards; for, how then could John's work have been strictly according to God's design in sending him; that is, to prepare the way of the Lord; to go before him; and make ready a people prepared for him? See Luke i. 17.

before

Hence it was necessary, that in the course of God's divine providence and divers dispensations, he who had to go our Lord in the power and spirit of Elias, thus to prepare his way, should be sent seasonably to begin and " fulfil his course," in that ministration and baptism which was in order to the manifestation of the great gospel baptizer, before the publication of that word which began from Galilee, after his baptism. VOL. II.-56