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422

THE WRATH

OF

THE

LAMB.

inrsc.

V-.

the greatest, and

the best

of

creatures,

joined

to

the

wrath

of

an

offended

Creator

*.

But let

us

enter

á

little

into particulars

.

1.

It

is

righteous wrath,

and

just

and deserved ven-

geance,

that

arises from the clearest discoveries

of

the

love

of

God

neglected,

and

the

sweetest

messages

of

di-

vine

grace

refused.,

All

the former

discoveries

of

the

love

of

God

to

men,_

both

is

nature and providence,

as

well as by divine

revelation, whether made

by

men

or

by

angels,

whether

in

the days

of

the

patriarchs, or

in

the

days

of

Moses, and the

Jews, were far inferior

to

the

grace

which was

revealed

by

Jesus Christ

;

and therefore

the

sin

of

rejecting

it

is

greater

in

proportion, and the

punishment

will be

more

severe.

"

If

the word spoken

by

angels.

was

stedfast,

and

every transgression

and

dis-

obedience received a

just

recompence

of

reward,--.----

Vow

shall

we

escape,

if

we

neglect

so

great salvation, as

this

which

began to

be

spoken

by

our Lord

?"

Heb.

ii..

e

-4.

Moses had many

true

discoveries

of

grace made

to

him,

and

intrusted

with him for

sinful

men

:

But the

scripture

saith

;

Jahn

i.

17.

"

The

law

came by Moses,

and

grace and

truth

came

by

Jesus Christ

:"

that

is,

in

such

super

-

abundance,

as

though grace

and

truth

had

never appeared

in

the world

before.

The

forgiving

mercy

of

God, under

the

veil

of

ceremonies and sacri

-,

fices,

and

the mediation

of

Christ,

under

the type

of

the

high

-

priest,

was

but

a

dark

and imperfect

discovery, in

comparison

of

the free, the

large,

the

full forgiveness,

which

is

brought

to

us

by

the

gospel

of

Christ. Learn

this doctrine

at

large

from

Heb.

x.

1

-14.

This

is

ama,

*

Here let it

be observed,

that,

when

the

holy scripture speaks

of

"

the

wrath and indignation

of

the

blessed

God,"

we

are not

to

understand

it,

as

though God

was

subject

to

such

passions

or affections of

nature,

as

wiTé

feel

fermenting

or working

within ourselves, when our anger

rises

;

But

because the

justice,

or

rectoral

wisdom of

God, inclines him

to

bring na-

tural evil, pain, or

sorrow

upon

those, who are

obstinately guilty

of moral

evil or

sin,

and

to

treat them,

as

anger

or

wrath inclines men to

treat

those

that

have offended

them, and therefore

the

scripture, speaking after the

manner of men,

calls

it

the

"

wrath and indignation of

God."

And

it

is

hard

to

say,

whether

or no

the "wrath

of

the Lamb

;"

that

is,

of

the

man

Christ Jesus,

in whom

Godhead

dwells, be

any thing

more

than

the

calm, dispassionate, rectoral wisdom of the human nature of Christ,

inclining

him

to

punish rebellious

and impenitent

sinners, in conformity to

the

will

of God

his

Father,

or

in concurrence with the godhead which

dwells

in him.