398 The Gofpel ofthe Table of Shew-bread in the Temple. 6. Chrift thus feeding and fafaining his Church, gives us fome inti- mation of bis Kingly Office : For he is this Bread of Life by which their Lives are fultained and upheld. And fo look as the Candleftick points efpecially to his Prophetical Office, in teaching and enlightning us ; and the Altar and Veffels of Incenfe to that great Work of his PrieftlyOffice, mediating and interceding for us : So the Table of Shem-bread fpeaks his Kingly Office, in fuffaining and upholding of us. 3. A third Myffery of the Shea) bread is this : It Teems to have been a Sacrifice unto the Lord, namely, a Meat-offering. And confequently all the Gofpel-myfteries of the Meat-offering do belong to the Shew- bread, as being one Species or Kind thereof. For the Rule is this in. Lev. 24. 7. Thou (halt put pare Frankincenfe upon each Row, that it may be on the Bread for a Memorial, even an Offering made by Fire unto the Lord : and accordingly it was to he eaten, as other Fire - offerings were, by Aaron and his Sons in the Holy Place. For it is molt holy unto him of the Offerings of the Lord made by Fire, verf. 9. The Incenfe was burnt upon the Altar as a Memorial for the Bread ; or (as fome think) an handful of the Flower whereof they were made, was burnt with the Incenfe for the whole, Now the Meat- offering did purge away Sin, as typifying theRighter oufnefs of Jefus Chrift , both his aaive and paffive Obedience, a Sam. 3. 14. Purged by Sacrifice, or by Meat-offering. It fignified alto the Perfons and Services of the Saints, and the Acceptance of both be- fore the Lord. All which may be applied to the Shew-bread under the notion of a Meat-offering. Therefore I Ihall not here infift upon thefe Confiderations, but refer them to that place to which they dobelong; namely, to the Legal-offerings and Sacrifices, where the Meat - offering comes to be confidered. But as to the two former Notions of the Shew- bread, to improve them a little more pra&ically ;-we may apply them both for Comfort and for Tryal. r. For Comfort. As the Church is this Shew-bread, they ftand before the Lord continually, his Eye is ever upon them. Though thou art one whom Man defpifeth, and whom the Nations abhor, as ufually the belt of God's People are molt hated and leaft beloved in the World.; yet if the Lord regard thee, what though Men de- fpife thee? Pfal. 4o. ult. 1 am poor and needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me. Qeft. But hoar may 1 know that 1am one of thole that are under the 4ye, and Care, and Love of God ? Anfay. The fecondNotion of the Shew-bread fpeaks to this.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=