could swear by no himself, 43 Heb. For when he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself. made promise to A- pare one spiritual object with another, and are SECT. braham, because he better skilled in the method of interpreting the vii. greater, he sware by sacred oracles, on principles which I am going to lay down. For I may in the first place lead vi. 13 you to observe, that when God made the great and comprehensive promise to Abraham, (Gen. xii. 2, 3, and xvii. 1-6,) on which so much of our hope as Christians doth also depend, the promise that he would be a God to him, and that all nations should be blessed in his seed; seeing he had no greater [a person] to swear by, he swore by himself, even by the honours of his 14 Saying, Surely own sacred and Divine name; Saying, by 14 blessing, I will bless an audible voice from heaven when he repeated thee, and multiply the promise, while Abraham stood with Isaac ing, I will multiply before that altar on which with humble sub thee. mission to the Divine appointment he had just before laid him, (Gen. xxii. 16, 17,) "By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, that blessing I will assuredly bless thee, and multiplying I will assuredly multiply thee; I will bless and multiply thee remarkably, so as to make thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which 15 And so after is upon the sea shore." And thus having 15 he had patiently en- waited long in humble faith and patience, he dured, he obtained the promise. obtained in due time the accomplishment of the promise, first in the birth of Isaac, and then, after a much longer attendance, the consummation of a better hope. And we whose circumstances so happily resemble his in this respect, may well follow the example of his faith, 16 For men verily when we survey the foundation of it. For men 16 swear by the great- truly swear by a [being] greater than themconfirmation is to selves, to whom they ascribe that knowledge and power, which is supposed to render him the object of their veneration and worship; and an oath, when thus taken for confirmation [is] to er: and an oath for Multiplying, I will multiply thee.] That part of the promise to Abraham which immediately follows the clause here quoted, in Gen. xxii. 17, most certainly relates to the Gentiles; and therefore had the apostle intended ver. 12, of this chapter in the sense in which Mr. Peirce exVOL. 6. 7 plains it, of the Gentiles converted to Christianity, I cannot think he would have stopped short at multiplying, I will multiply thee, and omitted what follows, of making his seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand on the sea shore, and, in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. 44 SECT. Reflections on God's fidelity to his promises. them an end of all farther strife and contention. them an end of all vii. On which account, the blessed God, in humble strife. vi. 17 17 Wherein God, condescension to our infirmities, being willing willing more abunHeb. in the most abundant manner to manifest to the dantly to show unto heirs of the promise, the immutability of his coun- the heirs of promise sel, and his determinate resolution of bestow- his counsel, confirmthe immutability of ing upon them the blessings he engaged, inter- ed it by an oath : 18 posed with the solemnity of an oath. That by 18 That by two two immutable things, in each of which [it is] immutable things, in impossible for God to lie, even his word and his which it was impossible for God to lie, oath, we might have strong consolation, even we we might have a who in humble obedience to the gracious de- strong consolation, signs of his gospel, have fled for refuge to lay who have fled for hold on the hope laid before us, the noble prize refuge to lay hold upon the hope set which that gospel proposes as the great object before us : 19 of our ambition and pursuit; I speak of eter 19 Which hope we nal life, the hope of which through the Divine have as an anchor of goodness we have, and I trust we shall reso. the soul, both sure and steadfast, and lutely retain it, as an anchor of the soul, both which entered into secure and steadfast, and as entering into the that within the vail, place within the vail, the holy of holies, where God dwells, and where we hope to dwell for 20 ever with him. This anchor will indeed be 20 Whither the sufficient to enable us to outride all the storms Forerunner is for us of temptation, being fixed in that glorious, made an High Priest entered, even Jesus though invisible world, whither Jesus as the for ever after the orForerunner is entered for us, to take possession der of Melchizedec. of glory in our name, and prepare all things necessary for our admittance into it: even he, [who is] made an High Priest for ever, according to the order of Melchizedec; as we are going more largely to show. verse IMPROVEMENT. WITH What amazing condescension doth God, by his apostles, 10 speak of those works and labours of love, which the persons who have performed them with the greatest simplicity of heart, know to be most undeserving of his regard! How kindly hath he made himself a debtor to us, or rather to his own promise and oath, so that it would indeed be unrighteous in him to fail those expectations which nothing in ourselves could possibly raise ! Let us then be animated to the greatest diligence, by a full as11 surance of hope. There are those who inherit the promises, of which we are the heirs, and they have passed to that glorious 12 inheritance by the exercise of faith and patience. Let us chide our sluggish souls into a more resolute imitation of them. And when they are ready to sink into indolence again, let us again The apostle having mentioned Melchizedec, 45 verse awaken them by viewing those promises, and the fidelity of that sECT. God who hath made them, and who hath added, by a conde- vii. scension that can never be sufficiently acknowledged and adored, the sanction of his path to that of his word. Behold the strong 13 consolation which he hath given. And given to whom? To 16, 18 those who fly for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before them in the gospel. Thither let us fly for our lives; fly, as if we heard the footsteps of the avenger of blood just behind us, and our lives depended upon the speed of the present moment. Happy the souls that have found this refuge! Whose faith and hope like a strong and steady anchor, hath entered into heaven, hath fixed on 19 that blessed Redeemer who lives and reigns there, who appears as an Intercessor for his people, and intercedes with such efficacy and success, that he is also to be regarded as their Forerunner, as gone to prepare a place for them. Let us constantly retain that view of him; and while we continue exposed to all the 20 labours and sorrows of mortality, let us seek our safety and our comfort by fixing our regards upon him, waiting continually the aids of his grace, till he shall see fit to call us to fill the place he hath provided, and receive the inheritance he hath secured for us. SECT. VIII. The apostle enters into a parallel between Melchizedec and Christ, as agreeing in title and descent; and from various respects, in which the priesthood of Melchizedec was superior to the Levitical priesthood, infers also the superior glory of the priesthood of Christ. Heb. VII. 1-17. HEBREWS VII. 1. HEBREWS VII. 1. viii. Heb FOR this Melchi- HAVE again and again mentioned that SECT. king of scripture, in which the Messiah is spoken Salem, priest of the of in prophecy, as made a priest for ever after most high God, who the order of Melchizedec. Now I think, it vii. 1 may be worth our while to dwell a little more intently on the contemplation of this subject; and then we shall find, that without straining the allegory, it holds in a variety of instructive particulars: for this Melchizedec, of whom Moses speaks in that celebrated history, (Gen. xiv. 18, &c.) to which David refers, [was] king of Salem, and priest of the most high God: in both which offices he was a remarkable type of our blessed Lord. And it is well known, he was the celebrated and holy person who met that illustrious patriarch, our father Abraham, 46 Explains his title, King of righteousness and peace. SECT. when returning from the slaughter of the kings, met Abraham re. viii. who had taken Lot prisoner, with the king of turning from the Sodom, Gomorrah, and the neighbouring cities kings, and blessed slaughter of the vii. 1 of the plain. And we are expressly told, that him; he blessed him on this occasion, that is, he pronounced on Abraham himself a blessing in the Heb. a 2 name of God to whom he ministred. To 2 To whom also 3 3 Without father, mother, Now if we come to compare this Mel- Abraham divided the tenth.] The objection which Mr. Chubb has brought against this from Gen. xiv. 23, as if it were Melchizedec who paid tithes to Abraham, and not Abraham to Melchizedec, is really trifling; a change of person, without express notice given of it, being usual in the sacred scriptures, and in all writers, and languages; not to observe, that the version of the Seventy in the common editions, and in that copy which is printed in the polyglot, instead of He, expressly reads Abraham. But Mr. Chubb's particular exceptions have been so abundantly answered by the author of the case of Abraham and Melchizedec, Jacob and Esau, &c. considered, published anno 1746, against Chubb's four Dissertations, that Í need not particularly enlarge. This may however be a proper place to observe, that the relative must evidently refer to the remote antecedent in the following passages, Luke xvii. 16. Acts xxiii. 23. 2 Kings xviij. 29. Psal. cv. 37. Acts vii. 5. Deut. xxxi. 22, 23, Gen. xiv. 20, &c. Without father, without mother.] It has been observed by many, and it is not unfit the reader should be reminded of it To whom Abraham gave the tenth of his spoils : 47 without descent, father nor his mother are mentioned in scrip- sect. having neither be ture; and he is without pedigree or any writ- viii. ginning of days, nor end of life; but made ten account of his genealogy, by which it may like unto the Son of be traced up to more distant progenitors of the God, abideth a priest priestly order; and herein he answers to continually. of the spoils. Christ, who with respect to his human nature, Heb. vii. 3 4 Now consider Now, I doubt not, my brethren, but that as I pro- 4 how great this man ceed in this argument, you see and reflect, how was, unto whom even great a man this Melchizedec [was,] to whom, the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth as I hinted above, even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of all the spoils he had recovered 5 And verily they from the king of Shinar and his allies. And this 5 that are of the sons will be farther illustrated, by considering that of Levi, who receive truly they of the descendants of Levi who receive the office of the the Aaronical priesthood, have according to the priesthood, have a commandment to law by which they are constituted, a commandment; and in consequence of that, a right here that several ancient writers of by the evangelists Matthew and Luke, character among the heathens, speak of there may seem here to be a failure in the persons being born of no father, or without resemblance : I therefore added the a father, when they mean only to express words which determine it to the idea of by it that their father was unknown. See some priestly ancestors, which will render Harris on the Messiah, Serm. ix. p. 262. the propriety very conspicuous, and is Elaner likewise, (Observ. Sacr. Vol. II. p. agreeable to Elsner's interpretation men347,) hath some remarkable quotations to tioned in the note above. shew that it was usual among the Greeks, to say of a person that he was analog Burnet would transpose this clause, He a Remaineth a priest for ever.] Bishop aurug, without father, without mother, when his parents were unknown. And was a priest of God for ever, made like unto accordingly several of the fathers imagine, the Son of God. I cannot forbear observing, that this is here asserted of Melchizedec, that I think his interpretation and illusbecause there is no mention made of his tration of this Scripture, (4 Dis. p. 69— parents in the sacred scriptures. But the 71,) the best I remember to have seen. reason, in Elsner's opinion, is, that there was no trace of his parentage in the sacerdotal genealogies, he being without priestly descent, ageviancyulos, as it immediately follows, not enrolled among the priests. Without pedigree. As the genealogy of our Lord is so distinctly delivered both How great a man.] This is a severe stroke upon the Jews, not only as it proves the superior dignity of Christ above the Aaronical priesthood, but shews also that God had of old a people among the Gentiles, and that there was a person among them superior to Abraham himself. |