JEHOVAH GOD fell there upon me (Ezek. viii. 1); I say this was the same Being who consecrated John to office. It matters not whether we are captives in Mesopotamia, upon the banks of the river Chebar, or prisoners in the Isle of Patmos, the JEHOVAH GOD, the JEHOVAH and Saviour Jesus Christ is there, "the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever." He ever stands a mighty Monitor, to apprise of sin, to warn of danger, to acquaint of duty. A Judge, a Friend, a Saviour still. Let the second, third, fourth, and sixth chapters be read here, and the sinful nature. of the family of man will be apparent. But there is a peculiar feature in this book, I would have my readers well observe. The commission was given to Ezekiel under the emphatic name, "The Son of Man," under this form of expression, "The word of the JEHOVAH came unto me, saying, Son of Man." This, more than a hundred times repeated, was a prophetic type of the humanity of the God-man. I have shown how Christ took up the theme, and connected them in the New Testament. Let us do the same, for the Anointed One, Christ, was God. His commission was to the human race, to " a rebellious house. Most rebellious." "Thus saith the JEHOVAH GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake."

"I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

"And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

"And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. I will also save you from all your uncleannesses" (Ezek. xxxvi. 26).

This was Christ's commission: no human system of reform, but spiritual regeneration, sanctification, and redemption. Sinner, do you know these great truths, that our redemption does not stand in ourselves, but in the blood of Christ? "None can

by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: for the redemption of the soul is precious" (Psa. xlix.). Doubtless St. Peter spoke from this passage when it was fulfilled: "Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things; but with the precious blood of Christ" (1 Pet. i. 19). Neither does our salvation stand in ourselves, but in the blood of Christ. It was the blood upon the posts of the houses that saved the Israelites. "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the JEHOVAH." Our regeneration does not stand in ourselves, but in the blood of Christ, in the blood that bought back to us the Spirit of God. Our justification does not stand in ourselves, but in the blood of Christ: "Being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him" (Rom. v.). Our sanctification does not stand in ourselves, but in the blood of Christ: "We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all " (Heb. x.). Our eternal life and glory do not stand in

ourselves, but in the blood of Christ: "Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the. veil" (Heb. vi. 19). The summary of the teaching is this: "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John i. 7). And this was taught by Himself, the JEHOVAH, by the ancient Prophet, by the whole of the Old Testament writings: the name governed the teaching, and shadowed forth all grace and glory. Reader, can you grasp, can you apply the unique, stupendous fact? Do you live in humble love and gratitude in the presence of your Saviour and Redeemer? Do you live each day realising the moment when you shall see Him? Are you happy in the thought of death ? You can never be so, but by perfected faith in Christ. Self-complacency, or self-righteousness, is a delusive

meteor.

Could anything more truly set forth the weakness, nothingness, corruption, and destitution of our nature, than the likeness of a wretched infant to the Church of Christ, described in the sixteenth chapter? He passed by, saw her polluted in her own blood, and said, LIVE. Yea, He says, "I said unto thee in thy blood"-in thine own native self, LIVE. Still, after regeneration, and the persistence of His grace and love, she rebels, serves vanities, and other gods; and evoked judgment. "How weak is thine heart, saith the JEHOVAH GOD, seeing thou doest all these things."

"Thus saith the JEHOVAH GOD; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the

oath in breaking the covenant." Still the grace of the covenant overreached all declension, all sin. "Nevertheless I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant.

"And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the JEHOVAH." Who will venture to deny the doctrine of grace, of Christ? It was God in Christ, in the name JEHOVAH.

The thirty-seventh chapter is one of the most striking chapters of prophecy, if not of the Bible. We must read in it a prophecy of the ingathering of the Jews from their dispersion at that time; of their ingathering from their present dispersion; a prophecy of their spiritual resurrection, and of the resurrection of the dead-the first as much a miracle of Almighty power as the other. Also there is a prophecy of the reign of Christ; and all in language so plain, that I repeat, it is a striking page of prescience. I shall extract some part of it, to exhibit to my reader the presiding Deity.

"The hand of the JEHOVAH was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the JEHOVAH, and set me down in the midst of the valley, which was full of bones.

"And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.

"And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, JEHOVAH GOD, Thou knowest.

"Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these

bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the JEHOVAH.

66 Thus saith the JEHOVAH GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live.

"So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.

"Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the JEHOVAH GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.

"So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

"Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the JEHOVAH GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.

"And ye shall know that I am JEHOVAH, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,

"And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the JEHOVAH have spoken it, and performed it, saith the JEHOVAH."

Here was the Omnipotent, Omniscient God, dealing with life and death; with the body dead in