the earth and worshipped. Thefe difplays of divine goodness and glory left a divine impreffion on the countenance of the man of God; his face fhone fo tranfcendantly glorious, that the children of Ifrael were afraid to come nigh him; and he was obliged to put a veil upon it, before he could converfe with them. Though this appears very extraordinary, the apostles inform us, that what happened to the countenance of Mofes, happens to the fouls of all believers. By faith they behold the Lord through the glafs of gofpel promifes, and beholding him they are made partakers of the divine nature; they are changed into the fame image from glory to glory.

Jofhua, Mofes's fucceffor, was bleffed with many. fuch manifeftations, each of which conveyed to him new degrees of courage and wifdom. To inftance in one only: "When he was by Jericho, he lift up his eyes and looked, and behold, there ftood a man over against him, with his fword drawn in his hand. And Jofhua went to him, and faid, Art thou for us, or for our adverfaries? And he faid, nay, but as Captain of the Lord's hoft am I come. And Jofhua (fenfible it was Jehovah) fell on his face to the earth, worshipped, and faid to him, What fay's my Lord to his fervant? And the Captain of the Lord's hoft faid to Jofhua, Loofe thy fhoe from off thy foot, for the place whereon thou ftandeft is holy ground; and Jofhua did fo."* Every true discovery of Christ hath a similar effect. It humbles the finner, and makes him worship in the duft. He fees holinefs to the Lord written upon every furrounding object: he is loofed from earth and earthly things, and the towering walls of fin fall before him, as thofe of Jericho, foon after this manifef tation, did before Joshua.

When that chief was dead, the fame heavenly Perfon, called the angel of the Lord, came from Gilgal to Bochim and fpake fuch words to all the children of Ifrael, that the people were univerfally melted; they

Joh. v. 13.

*

lift up their voice, wept, and facrificed. Nothing can fo effectually make finners relent as a fight of him whom they have pierced. When they have it, whatever place they are in becomes a Bochim, a valley of tears and adoration.

Not long after the Lord manifefted himself to Deborah, and by the wisdom and fortitude communicated to her in that revelation, fhe was enabled to judge Ifrael, and lead defponding Barak to certain victory through nine hundred chariots of iron.

The condefcenfion of our Emmanuel appears in a ftill more ftriking light, in the manifeftation, which he, vouchfafed to Gideon. This mysterious "Angel of the Lord (again and again called Jehovah) came and fat under an oak in Ophrah, appeared to Gideon and faid, The Lord is with thee and thou fhalt fmite the Midianites as one man. And the Lord looked upon him, (what a courage-infpiring look was this! as powerful no doubt, as that which met curfing Peter's. eye, and darted repentance to his heart!) and he faid, Go in this thy might; have not I fent thee? And Gideon faid, Alas! O Lord God, for because L have seen the angel of the Lord face to face. And the Lord faid unto him, Peace be unto thee, fear not, thou shalt not die. Thus ftrengthened and comforted, he built an altar to Jehovah-Shalom, and threw down the altar of Baal.t Hence we learn, that, when Jefus manifefts himself to a finner, he fills him with a noble contempt of Baal, an effectual refolution to break down his altars, and a divine courage to flake off the yoke of the fpiritual Midianites. He imparts to him a comfortable affurance, that the bitterness of death is paft, and that Jehovah Shalom, the God of peace, even Chrift our peace, is with him; and the finner, constrained by the love of Chrift, gives him his believing heart, and offers facrifices of thankfgiving on that best of altars. Here begins fuch a free intercourfe between the Redeemer and the redeemed, as † Judg. vi. 11. &C.

* Judg. ii. 1.

we find began between the Lord and Gideon, only of a far more spiritual and delightful nature.

९

Some years after, the fame Angel of God appeared to Manoah's wife and promised her a fon. Her hufband prayed for the fame manifeftation. God hearkened to his voice. The heavenly Perfonage manifefted himself a fecond time. Manoah asked him his name, and the "Angel faid to him, Why askest thou after my name, feeing it is fecret :" I am not yet called JESUS. Manoah offered a burnt-offering, the Angel received it at his hands; and, while he afcended in the flame of the altar, Manoah fell on his face to the ground, knew that he was the Angel Jehovah, and faid to his wife, We fhall furely die, because we have feen God. She comforted him under his fears; and the birth of Sampfon, inftead of their death, was the confequence of this twofold manifeftation.

There was a time when Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord, that Word which was afterwards made flesh, yet revealed unto him. The devoted youth worshipped in the dark, till "the Lord appeared again in Shiloh, came, flood, and called, Samuel, Samuel; for the Lord revealed himself to him there, by the Word of the Lord." From that memorable time, "the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground." The intercourfe between God and his prophet foon grew to fo great a degree, that the facred hiftorian fays, "the Lord told him in his ear" what he wanted him to be informed of.t

David had many manifeftations of Chrift, and his pardoning love; and, far from fuppofing this bleffing peculiar to himself as a prophet, he declares, that "for this every one that is godly fhall pray to God, when he may be found." He knew his Shepherd's inward voice fo well, that, without it, no outward meffage, though ever fo comfortable, could reftore peace to his When he had been convinced of his

troubled mind.

crimes of adultery and murder, by the clofe application of Nathan's parable, the prophet affured him the Lord had put away his fin, he thould not die. This report would have contented many of our modern penitents; but nothing fhort of an immediate manifeftation of the forgiving God could comfort the royal mourner. "Wash thou me, fays he, and I fhall be clean." Nathan's words, though ever fo true, cannot do this ; fpeak thyfelf merciful Lord," make me hear joy and gladness, that the bones which thou haft broken may rejoice."

Exceedingly remarkable was the revelation his fon Solomon was favoured with. "In Gibeon, where he was gone to facrifice, the Lord appeared unto him, in a dream by night, and God faid, Afk what I fhall give thee." Confcious of his greatest want, "he asked an understanding heart. The fpeech pleafed the Lord, and God faid, Because thou haft asked this thing, I have done according to thy word; lo, I have given it thee; and that alfo which thou haft not afked, both riches and honour." Though this promife was made to him in a dream, he knew by the change, which he found in himfelf, when he awaked and by the powerful evidence, which accompanies divine manifeftations, that it was a glorious reality. Fully perfuaded of it he fcrupled not to offer peace-offerings, and make a feaft to all his fervants on the occafion.* Nor was this the only time Solomon was thus favoured. When he had built the temple, and prayed for a bleffing upon it," the Lord appeared to him a fecond time, as he had appeared to him in Gibeon, and faid I have heard thy prayer."'+

Elijah is fo famous for the power he had to obtain divine manifeftations by the prayer of faith, that, St. James, who had feen him on the mount with Christ and Mofes, propofes him to the church for a pattern of fuccefsful wrestling with God. And who is the Lord God of Elijah, but the God that manifefts himself t Kings ix. 2.

2 Kings iii.

to his worshippers, in oppofition to Baal and other falfe Gods, from whom neither vifits nor answers can be obtained? the Lord answered him by fire at the foot of mount Carmel, and by fhowers on the top; and "when he lodged in mount Horeb in a cave, behold, the Word of the Lord, (Jehovah Jefus) came to him and faid, What doeft thou here Elijah? Go forth, ftand upon the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord paffed by ;" and in his still small voice comforted, fupported, and directed him.*

Micaiah, another man of God, " faw the Lord fitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left."t Elifha was not only bleffed with frequent manifeftations of the Lord and his power, but of his heavenly retinue alfo. He faw in an hour of danger, "the mountain full of horfes and chariots of fire," ready to protect him ; and at his request, the Lord condefcended to open his fervant's eyes, that his drooping fpirits might revive at the fight.‡

Eliphaz, one of Job's friends, related to him, that "in thoughts from vifions of the night, when deep fleep falleth on men, fear and trembling came upon him. Then a Spirit paffed before his face; it food fill, but he could not difcern, i. e. clearly diftinguish the form thereof. An image was before his face, and he heard a voice faying, Shall mortal man be more pure than God?", As for Job when he had long contended with his friends, the Lord answered him out of the whirlwind, and manifefted himfelf in a manner, to which that good man was before a stranger. “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye feeth thee; wherefore, I abhor mylelf, and repent in duft and afhes." Hence we learn, that nothing but a difcovery of the Lord can filence the vain reafonings of felf-righteous pleas and unbelieving fears this alone makes us to lie in deep proftration at our Maker's feet.

Kings xix. 9.

tKings xxii. 19.

2 Kings vi. 17.