the superstructure of his dealing with us in the Scripture, is founded and built. And thus it is said of our high Priest, that he is able to be affected with a sense of our infirmities, because in his human nature he is capable of such affections; and, as he is our high Priest, he is graciously inclined to act according to them.

Tais ardesiais newv; our infirmities.' Aoderua, imbecillitas, debilitas, infirmitas, is used both in the Scripture, and all Greek authors, for any debility, weakness, or infirmity of body or mind. Frequently bodily diseases are expressed by it, as by the adjective arms, and the verb areve, to be sick, to be diseased with respect unto the weakness or infirmity that is introduced thereby,' Matt. x. 8. ch. xxv. 43. Luke iv. 40. John v. 3. 5. And sometimes it expresseth the weakness of the mind or spirit, not able, or scarcely able, to bear the difficulties and troubles that it is pressed withal, 1 Cor. ii. 3.; weakness of judgment, Rom. xiv. 2.; spiritual weakness, as to life, grace and power, Rom. v. 6. ch. viii. 26. So that this word is used to express every kind of imbecillity or weakness that doth, or may, befal our natures, with respect to any difficulties, troubles or perplexities, that we have to conflict withal. And whereas it is here mentioned generally, without a restriction to any special kind of infirmities, it may justly be extended to all weaknesses of all sorts, that we are, or upon any pressures may be, sensible of. But whereas, in the following words, the reason of the ability of Christ our high Priest, to be affected with a sense of our infirmities, is placed in his being tempted; it is manifest that the weaknesses here chiefly intended, are such as respect afflictions and temptations, with persecution for the gospel. Our infirmities and weaknesses under these things, to wrestle with them or remove them, and consequently our trouble, sorrow, suffering and danger, by them and from them, our high Priest is intimately affected withal. He takes himself to be concerned in our troubles, as we are members of his mystical body, one with him. He is inclined from his own heart and affections, to give in unto us help and relief, as our condition doth require; and he is inwardly moved during our sufferings and trials, with a sense and fellow-feeling of them.

Obs. I. The church of God hath a standing, perpetual advantage, in the union of our nature to the person of the Son of God, as he is our high Priest.-We all acknowledge that so it is with us, upon the account of the sacrifice that he was to offer for us. He had thereby somewhat of his own to offer. Thence it was that God redeemed his church with his own blood, Acts xx. 28. and that he laid down his life for us, 1 John iii. 16. But we are apt to think that this work being well over, we have now no more concern in that nature, nor advantage by it; but VOL. IV. Ff

that what yet remains to be done for us, may be as well discharged by him who is only God, and absolutely so in every respect. For since he dies no more, what profit is there in his flesh? It is true the flesh of Christ, carnally and sensually considered, profiteth not, as he told the men of Capernaum of old, John vi. And they will find his words true, who in their own imagination turn bread into his flesh every day. Yea, and our apostle tells us, that though he had known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth he knew him so no more, 2 Cor. v. 16.; that is, though he had known Christ in the days of his flesh here in the world, while as a mortal man he conversed with mortal men, yet all the privilege thereof, and advantage thereby, which some in those days boasted of, were past, and of no longer use. He was now to be known after another manner, and under another consideration, as exalted at the right hand of God. Yet doth not all this in the least impeach our assertion, of the greatness of our concern in the continuation of his human nature, in the union of his person. If, when he had finished his sacrifice, and the atonement which he made for sin, by the offering up of himself, he had then left off his human nature which he had for that end taken on him, notwithstanding that offering, we could not have been delivered nor saved. For besides that he himself had not been sufficiently manifested to be the Son of God for us to have believed on him, seeing he was declared to be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection from the dead, Rom. i. 4.; so our apostle declares, that without his resurrection from the dead, we could neither be delivered from our sins, nor been ever raised again unto glory, 1 Cor. xv. 12-21.

It is therefore confessed, that many and great are the advantages of the resurrection of the body of Christ, and therein of his human nature. For this was the way and means of his entrance into glory: he "revived, that he might be Lord of the quick and the dead," Rom. xiv. 9. And this was the testimony, that he was acquitted and discharged from the penalty of the law, and from the whole debt he had undertaken to make satisfaction of unto God for sinners, Acts ii. 24. Rom. viii. 33, 34. without which, we could have said of him only as the disciples did when they knew not of his resurrection, "We trusted that it had been he who should have redeemed Israel," Luke xxiv. 21. And hereby had he an illustrious and uncontrollable testimony given to his being the Son of God, Rom. i. 4. As also he laid the foundation, and gave an infallible pledge of the future blessed resurrection, which all that believe in him shall by him obtain. But this being also past and over, what farther concern hath the church in the continuation of the union of his Batures? I might mention many, and those of the greatest im

portance. For there yet remained some parts of his mediatory work to be discharged, which could not be accomplished without this nature; for he had not yet appeared in the holy place with his own blood whereby he had made atonement, that the whole sacrifice might be completed. And the exaltation of our nature in glory, was needful for the support and consolation of the church. But I shall mention that alone which is here proposed by our apostle, namely, his ability from thence to be affected with a sense of our infirmities and sufferings. This, as I have shewed, is appropriated unto him on the account of his human nature. And on this account we may consider his compassion four ways.

1. As it is an eminent virtue in human nature as absolutely innocent.-So was the nature of Christ from the beginning. For therein was he holy and undefiled and separate from sinners. Now, though in that blessed estate wherein we were created, there was no actual object for us to exercise compassion upon or towards, seeing every thing was at rest in its proper place and order, yet was there no virtue more inlaid in our rational constitution, as being absolutely inseparable from goodness and benignity, upon a supposition of a suitable object. Hence they are justly esteemed to be fallen into the utmost degeneracy from our first make, frame and state, and to be most estranged from our common original, who have cast off this virtue, where it may and ought to have its actual exercise. Nor are any more severely in the Scripture reflected on, than those who are unmerciful, and without compassion, fierce, cruel and implacable. None more evidently deface the image of God than such persons. Now, our nature in Christ was, and is, absolutely pure and holy, free from the least influence by that depravedness which befel the whole mass in Adam. And herein are the natural virtues of goodness, benignity, merey and compassion, pure, perfect and untainted. And he hath objects to exercise these virtues on, which Adam could not have; and those such as are one with himself, by their participation in the same common principles of nature and grace.

2. This compassion is in him as a grace of the Spirit. For besides the spotless innocence and purity of our nature in him, there was a superaddition of all grace unto it, by virtue of its union with the person of the Son of God, and the unction it had from the Spirit of God. Hence there was an all-fulness of created grace communicated unto him, for he "received not the Spirit and his graces by measure," John iii. 34. Of this fulness, compassion is a part, and that no mean part. For of this rank and kind, are all the principal fruits of the Spirit, Gal. v. 22, 23. And in and by these, did he make a representation of God's nature unto us, which he hath described as full of pity, compas

sion and tender affections; whence he compares himself unto those creatures, and in those relations which have the most intense and merciful affections. And hereby doth the compassion of Christ our high Priest in our human nature, receive an eminent exaltation.

s. He was peculiarly furnished with graces, virtues, habits of mind, and inclinations, suited to the good and useful discharge of his office in our behalf. The Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and peculiarly anointed him to that end, Isa. xi. 2-4. chap. Ixi. 1-3. Now unto the office of a high Priest it is in especial required that he should be able to have compassion, chap. v. 2. The reasons whereof we shall see afterwards. He had therefore in his human nature an especial provision of compassion inlaid by the Holy Ghost by whom he was anointed, for the due discharge of this office. Thus was he every way framed in his nature unto mercy and compassion. And whereas there seems nothing now wanting but an outward object of weakness, infirmities and temptations, to excite and occasion the exercise of this virtue and grace; that this might be the more effectual to that purpose,

4. He took an experience of such sufferings in himself, as are the proper objects of compassion when they are in others. This the next words declare, which we shall afterwards consider.

By these means is the nature of our high Priest filled with tenderness, compassion or sympathy; the foundation of the exercise of which towards us, lies in the oneness of his nature, and ours. And these things belonging to the pure constitution of his nature, and receiving their improvement by the unction of the Spirit, are not lessened nor impaired by his present glorification. For they all belonging unto him on the account of his office, continuing still in the exercise of the same office, their continuation also is necessary. And hence it is, namely because of our concern therein, that he gave so many particular instances, of his retaining the same human nature wherein he suffered. For he did not only" show himself alive to his disciples after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, speak ing of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God," Acts i. 2. providing particularly that they should not think or take him now to be a mere spirit, and so to have lost his natural human constitution, saying unto them, "Behold my hands and my feet that it is I myself; handle me and see me for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have," Luke xxiv. 39. So when he left the world with that body of flesh and bones, the angels wit nessed that he should come again in like manner as he then went away, Acts i. 11. For the heavens must in that nature receive him until the time of the restitution of all things, Acts iii. 21. And to confirm our faith in this matter, he appeared afterwards

in the same nature to Stephen, Acts vii. 56. and to our apostle, telling him that he was Jesus whom he persecuted, Acts ix. 5. All this to assure us that he is such an high Priest, as is able to be affected with a sense of our infirmities. And those who by the monstrous figment of transubstantiation, and those others who feign the Lord Christ to have an ubiquitarian body, both of them by just consequence destroying the verity of his human nature, do evert, as far as lies in them, a main pillar of the church's consolation. Much more do they do so, who deny him to re-' tain the same individual body wherein he suffered in any sense. Herein lies a great advantage of the church, a great encouragement and support unto believers under their infirmities, in their trials and temptations. For,

First, It is some relief to be pitied in distress. The want hereof, Job complained of, and cried out pathetically about it, chap. xix. 21. Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends, for the hand of God hath touched me." It went unto his heart to find, that his friends were not affected with a sense of his sufferings; and it added exceedingly to the weight of them. And such was the complaint of David, as a type of Christ, Psal. Ixix. 20. Reproach hath broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness; I looked for some to take pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none." It is a representation of the state of our Saviour when all his disciples fled and left him, and he was encompassed with fierce and reproaching enemies. This is a high aggravation of the sorrows and sufferings of any that are in distress. And there is relief in compassion. Some going to the stake, have been much refreshed with a compassionate word whispered unto them. And it cannot but be a cause of great refreshment unto believers in all the hardships that befal them, and their weakness under them, that they have the compassion of their high Priest accompanying of them. He is in himself exceedingly great and glorious; nearly allied unto us, able to relieve us, being far above all those persons and things that occasion our troubles, for they are all under his feet; all which considerations render his compassion, as before described, refreshing and relieving.

Secondly, Herein lies a great encouragement to make our addressess unto him in all our straits and weaknesses. For if he be so concerned in us and our troubles, if he be so affected in himself with a sense of them, and have in his holy nature, and upon the account of his office, such a propensity to relieve us, which also he is so able for, as hath been declared; what should hinder us from making our addresses unto him continually for help and supplies of his assisting grace, according as our necessi ties do require? But this being the peculiar use, that the apose