institution of men, but was really sent by the divine authority and commission.

"For these persons, therefore, I now pray, that as thou hast begun the work of their salvation, by my preaching and revealing to them thy will, while I have been present with them here upon earth, so also that thou wouldst preserve them when I am departed from this world, and complete the work of their salvation by my resurrection and ascension into heaven, after my death. I do not pray for the unbelieving impenitent world, but for those who have embraced that most holy doctrine, which thou hast taught them through me by my preaching; for those who have glorified, and will glorify my name, by their ministry, and who consequently are to be esteemed as thine own, in common with me. I am now about to leave the world, in order to return to thee, but these my disciples, who continue after me, I recommend to thy divine protection, when I am gone: endue them with powers to persevere in preaching and practicing the truth, and to deliver the same holy doctrines which I have given to them, that so they may remain inseparably united to me, as I am to thee. So long as I have been with them in the world, I have watched over them, and kept them from falling away, both by example, preaching, and continual admonition, according to the power and authority which thou didst commit to me; nor has any one of my apostles miscarried under my care, except that per fidious traitor, who, as the Scripture foretold, has ungratefully conspired with my enemies to destroy me, and will perish according to his deserts. While I have continued with my disciples, I have watched over them and preserved them under mine own eye; but now, as I am going to leave the world, I beseech thee to keep and assist them by thy good Spirit, and let the expectation of their continuing under thy special care and protection, be their comfort and support in my absence. The world, indeed, will persecute and hate them on this account, as my doctrine is repugnant to their lusts and appetites, the passions, designs and inclinations of worldly men; it must necessarily be that the vicious and incorrigible world will oppose and persecute them, as it has before persecuted me. I beseech thee, therefore, take them under thy particular care, to support them against the violence and oppression of an evil world. I do not desire that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but preserve them in it to be instruments of thy word, thy glory, and to be teachers of thy truth; nor suffer them to be either destroyed by the malice and violence, or corrupted by the evil customs and opinions, of a perverse and wicked generation.

"They are of a temper and spirit very different from the cur rent affections and common dispositions of the world, according to the example of purity which I have set before them. Do

thou preserve and increase in them that moderation and candor of mind, cause them to be thoroughly affected and impressed with that true doctrine so frequently recommended to them from my mouth, so as to express it visibly in their lives and practice, and to promote it zealously in their preaching, that they may, both by word and good example, become worthy and successful ministers of my Gospel.

Neither

"For as thou hast sent me into the world to reveal thy will to mankind, so send I these my apostles to continue preaching the same doctrine begun by me. And the principal design of my exemplary life, constant teaching, and now voluntary offering myself to death for it, is, to sanctify and enable them to preach with success and efficacy for the salvation of men. pray I for these my apostles only, but for all others, who shall, by their preaching and practice, promote thy true religion; and being converted from the world, may, by their sincere endeavors, go on to reform others, convincing the world of the excellency of their religion, and consequently enforcing men to acknowledge the truth and divine authority thereof. For promoting which great end, I have communicated to my apostles the same power and authority of doing mighty works for the confirmation of their doctrine, and the evidence of thy truth, as thou didst communicate to me: that so I working in them, as thou hast done in me, and thus confirming with great efficacy and demonstration of the spirit, they may establish the same doctrine which I published in person, the world may, by this evidence, be convinced that I was really sent by thee, and that my disciples act by the same divine commission.

"Holy and Almighty Father, all those whom thou hast thus given me, who have heartily embraced my doctrine, and sincerely obeyed it, I desire that thou would est make them partakers of the same happiness with myself, and exalt them to behold the imcomprehensible glory wherewith thou didst originally invest me, in thy eternal love, before the foundation of the world. The generality of mortals, O righteous Father! have not known thee, nor been willing to embrace and obey the revelation of thy will. But I have known thy will, and have made it known to my disciples, men of simplicity and honesty; and they have embraced and obeyed it. And I will continually make it known to them more and more, that they may grow up and improve in faith, in holiness, and in all good works, so as finally to arrive, and cause others to arrive, at that eternal happiness, which is the effect of thy infinite love towards me, and through me towards them."

This pious and benevolent prayer being ended, Jesus and his disciples came down from the mount of Olives into a field below, called Gethsemane, through which the brook Cedron ran, and in it, on the other side of the brook, was a garden, called the

garden of Gethsemane. Here he desired his disciples to sit down, till he should retire to pray, taking with him Peter, James, and John, those three select disciples, whom he had before chosen to be witnesses of his transfiguration, and now to be eye witnesses of his passion, leaving the other disciples at the garden door, to watch the approach of Judas and his band.

The sufferings he was on the point of undergoing were so great, that the very prospect of them terrified him, and made him express himself in this doleful exclamation, "My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death; tarry ye here, and watch." On this great occasion he sustained those grievous sorrows in his soul, by which, as well as by dying on the cross, he became a sin offering, and accomplished the redemption of mankind.

He now withdrew from them about a stone's cast, and his human nature being overburdened beyond measure, he found it necessary to retire and pray, that if it was possible, or consistent with the salvation of the world, he might be delivered from the sufferings which were then lying on him. It was not the fear of dying on the cross, which made him speak or pray in such a manner. To suppose this would infinitely degrade his character. Make his sufferings as terrible as possible, clothe them with all the aggravating circumstances of distress; yet the blessed Jesus, whose human nature was strengthened by being connected with the divine, could not shrink at the prospect of sufferings, or betray a weakness which many of his followers, who, though mere men, were strangers to. He addresses his divine Father with a sigh of fervent wishes that the cup might, if possible, be removed from him: in the Greek, it is, "O that thou wouldest remove this cup from me!" And having first kneeled and prayed, he fell prostrate on his face, accompanying his address with due expressions of resignation, adding, immediately, "Not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Having prayed, he returned to his disciples, and finding them asleep, he said to Peter, "Simon, sleepest thou? couldest thou not watch one hour?" Thou, who so lately didst boast of thy courage and constancy in my service, canst thou so soon forget thy Master?

But in his greatest distress he never lost sight of that kind concern he had for his disciples. "Watch ye," said he, "and pray, lest ye enter into temptation." Neither was he, on those extraordinary occasions, in the least chagrined with the offences which they had committed through frailty and human weakness; on the contrary, was always willing to make excuses for them alleging, in their defence, "that the Spirit" truly "was willing, but the flesh was weak." It seems, from these particulars, that he spent some considerable time in his addresses; because the disciples fell asleep in his absence, and he himself retired again

to pray; for the sorrows of our Lord continuing to increase upon him, affected him to such a degree, that he retired a second time, and prayed to the same purpose, saying, "O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done:" after which he returned again to them, and found them asleep, "for their eyes were heavy."

He returned thus frequently to his disciples, that they, by reading his distress in his countenance and gesture, might be witnesses of his passion, which proves that his pains were beyond description intense, and complicated; for he went away the third time to pray, and notwithstanding an angel was sent from heaven to comfort and strengthen him, yet they overwhelmed him, and threw him into an agony: upon which he still continued to pray more earnestly.

But the sense of his sufferings still increasing, they strained his whole body to so violent a degree, that his blood, as it were, was pressed through the pores of his skin, which they pervaded, together with his sweat, and fell down in large drops on the ground. "And he left them and went away again. And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed the more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were of great drops of blood falling down to the ground." Thus did he suffer unspeakable sorrows in his soul, as long as the divine wisdom thought proper.

At length he obtained relief, being heard on account of his perfect and entire submission to the will of his heavenly Father. And when he arose up from prayer, and was come to his dis ciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow." This circumstance shows how much the disciples were affected with their Master's sufferings. The sensations of grief which they felt on seeing his unspeakable distress, so overpowered them, that they sunk into sleep.

Our blessed Saviour, for the last time, came to his disciples, and seeing them still asleep, he said, "Sleep on now, and take your rest; behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; behold he is at hand that doth betray me.' Matt. xxvi. 45, &c. The event will soon be over, which causes your sorrow: I am betrayed, and ready to be delivered unto death.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

The blessed Redeemer is taken by a band of Soldiers, at the information of the traitor Judas. - Heals a wound given the High Priest's servant, by Simon Peter.

JUDAS, who had often resorted to the garden of Gethsemane, with the disciples of our Lord, knowing the spot, and the usual time of his Master's repairing thither, informed the chief priests and elders that the proper time for apprehending Jesus was now come. They therefore sent a band of soldiers with him, and servants carrying lanterns and torches to show them the way, because, though it was always full moon at the passover, the sky might be dark with clouds, and the place whither they were going was shaded with trees. At the same time a deputation of their number accompanied the band, to see that every one did his duty.

Judas having thus received a band of men and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, they went thither with lanterns, and torches and weapons; for they were exceeding anxious to secure and get him into their hands: and the soldiers having, perhaps, never seen Jesus before, found it necessary that Judas should distinguish him, and point him out to them by some particular sign.

The treacherous Judas went before the band, at a small distance, to prepare them for the readier execution of their office, by kissing his Master, which was the token agreed upon, that they might not mistake him, and seize a wrong person. "And he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near unto Jesus, to kiss him." at the horrid engagement into which he had entered, and not Stung with remorse being now able to retract from the execution of it, he determined to make use of art in his vile proceedings, and weakly imagined he could deceive him whom he was about to betray, on a supposition, that when he should give the kiss, it might be considered by his Master as a singular mark of his affection. When, therefore, they approached near the spot, Judas, (who was at the head of the band,) suddenly ran forward, and coming up with Jesus, said, "Hail, Master! and kissed him. And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?" Before, however, Judas could make any reply, the band, (who had fixed their eyes on the person he had kissed,) arrived immediately, and surrounded Jesus.

The artifice and wicked designs of the base and perfidious