48 SOD'S ELECTION. Andbesides all this, heconsented to take upon him the sins of men, that is, by way' of imputation, as a sacrifice, to bear our sins in his body, on the cursed tree, to be made a sin-offering for us, and to expose himself to painful sufferings, and a bloodydeath on that account, that he might make a proper atonement for sin ; 2 Cor. v. 21. 1 Pet. ii. 24. Ileb. x. 5-12. Rom. iii. 25. The good Shepherd came to lay down his life for his sheep; John x. 15. And in John xiv. 16. when he was about to leave this world, he promised to intercede or pray for them. And when the Fa- ther should exalt him to the kingdom, andput all pòwer into his hand, he engaged to call them by his word, to bestow on them re- pentance, and forgiveness, to send down the sanctifying Spirit upon them, and in general to rescue them from every evil; to bear them through all the difficulties and dangers of life, and to convey them safe to the possession of the appointed inheritance. It would not be possible, in this short discourse, to cite at large all the scriptures that reveal and support these truths. Whatsoever our blessed Saviour performed in the execution of his mediato- rial office, we may justly suppose it was an article and agreement in that original covenant made betwixt him and hisFather : And in many of the instances whichI have mentioned the scripture expressly teaches us, that he performed them as the appointment of his Father. In the next place, let us take a brief survey of the articles of thiscovenant on God the Father's side. Whatsoever powers, or honours, or employments he bestowed on his Son, we have reason to suppose, it was inpursuance of this original covenant of grace and salvation. First then, we may justly conclude, that God engaged to employ him in the work of creation, as a foundation of hisfuture kingdom amongmen ; by him God made angels, and they shall be his ministering spirits, for the men who shall be heirs of his salvation ; by him God created mankind, and he shall be Lord of them all ; by him theblessed God made his own people, and he shall 'save them. He spread abroad the heavens, and he laid the foundations of this earth ; even all theprovinces of his future vast dominion, with all their inhabitants, are of his own making; for without hinz was nothing made that was made; John i. 3. and Col, is 14, 15. Again, we may suppose it was agreedby the Father, that he should be the kingof Israel, which was the visiblechurch of God as a type of his kingdom, and the government of his invisible church ; that he should fix his dwelling in a cloud of glory in his holy hill of Sion ; Ps. ii. 6, 7. and should govern theJewish na- tion by judges, or priests, or kings, as his deputies till he himself should appear in the flesh.
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