God has made ufe of for our Redemption. It behov'd that in all things he should be made like unto his Brethren.

Whether God could have found out any Other means of restoring Loft Man, befides this of making Himself the Son of Man, is not only an Unneceffary, but a Prefumptuous Enquiry; tho' fome have ventur'd to go thus far, from the Natural Inherent Juftice of God, and his perfect and immutable Hatred to Sin, and his inflexible Regard to the Honour of his Law, which was violated; and the Vindication of his Truth, by which he stood oblig'd to punifh the Violation of it, with the Death which he had threaten'd; To conclude, that without fo full a Satisfaction, as that of the precious Blood of his Only and Entirely beloved Son, he could not have releas'd us from the Curse, to which we were all juftly Subject by our Difobedience. But forbearing thus rafhly to Shorten his Arm, or to Limit his Wisdom, we may yet boldly affirm, that fince He has been pleas'd to make use of this Way, it is, for That very Reafon, to be believ'd the most fitting of all Others, and moft Wife. And that in respect of his Own Glory, and the Benefit of Mankind.

1ft, Of his Own Glory. This was the Ineffable Contrivance of the Divine Coun

cil, that God and Man fhould be join'd in One Perfon; that fo, as Man, he might become a Sacrifice for Sin; and, as God, make his Sacrifice worthy to be Accepted; His Manhood giving Him a Capacity to fuffer, and his Godhead giving a Value to His Sufferings. Thus is God magnify'd in all his Excellencies; having, to the Triumph of His Mercy, out of the hidden Treasures of his Wisdom, excited by his Love, found an Expedient, how, both Sin should be punish'd, and the Sinner pardon'd; His Juftice at the fame time fully fatisfy'd, His Majefty undiminish'd, his Truth preferv'd entire and inviolate, by a Perfon of Infinite Dignity interpofing in the Offenders room, answering the ftrictest Demands of offended Omnipotence, and doing not only Right, but Honour to every One of his Effential Attributes and Divine Perfections.

2dly, In respect of the Benefit of Mankind, and the fingular Ufes which we may, and should make of this gracious Method, which his Wifdom has pitch'd upon for our Redemption.

ift. For firit, God has not only hereby fecur'd his Own Honour, and Vindicated the Authority of His Law, by exacting fo High and Full a Satisfaction for the breach of it; but has publickly alfo given the greatest Discouragement to Sin, that can poffibly

be

be conceiv'd, by fo illuftrious a Manifestation of his irreconcilable Averfion and mortal Hatred to it, in punishing it fo feverely, in the Bitter Sufferings and Death_of Him, in whom He was ever well - pleased. In that He spared not Him, God has openly declar'd, and convinc'd the World, that He hates Sin, if Infinity were capable of Degree, even more than He Lov'd his Own Son.

2dly, By this Means of Chrift's being made in Every thing like to us, and in this likeness familiarly converfing with Us, and fulfilling all Righteoufnefs, God has both given Us a perfect and imitable Example of Holiness and Obedience; and by this means also taken away all manner of Excufe, that we might pretend to,from the Inequali ty or Impoffibility of HisCommands. By the Man Chrift Jefus, without Sin, he has convinc'd us, both of the Goodness and the Easynefs of his Law, which commands nothing, but what God himself, when he was made Man, thought it became Him to Do: Is not the ready and Perfect Obedience, which Chrift in Our Nature paid, a full Demonftration how reasonable a Service God requires at Our hands, while he Exacts from Ús no other Duties, but what are fo Excellent in Themselves, that the Son of God was willing, and fo Poffible to Us, that

the

the Son of Man was able to perform them? 3dly, It behov❜d Chrift to be made like unto Us, for our great Comfort and Encouragement. In all things like unto Us: For he did not only take Our Nature, but all the Infirmities of it, and having been Subject to all the Evils and Temptations of Our frail Mortality, cannot but have a fellow-feeling of all Our Sufferings, remembring his Own; and be ready, in all Our Afflictions and Temptations, to fupport and deliver us, to fupply Our Wants, and affift Our Weakness, and to fhew Mercy, and to afford Grace to help in time of need. And this is the particular Ufe, that the Apostle here makes, of this Gracious Difpenfation in the words immediately following the Text: Wherefore in all things it behov'd him to be made like unto his Brethren, that he might be a Mercifull and Faithfull High-Prieft in things pertaining to God: For in that He himself fuffer'd, being Tempted, he is able to fuccour them that are Tempted.

Lastly, We have hence a comfortable affurance of an Equal and Mercifull Judg. ment at that great Day, when God fball Judge the world, by the Man whom he hath Ordain'd: For,for this Reason,God hath given him Autho rity to execute Judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Had it been allow'd to Us, to have chofen Ourselves a Judge, who could we

have rather wish'd for, from whom could we expect a more favourable Sentence, than from a Man like Ourselves? one, who has fbewn the greatest kindness, that can be posfibly conceiv'd, for Human Nature; who is fenfible of the Follies and Infirmities, and Temptations of it; who will not require in Us the Purity of the Angels, or Unbody'd Spirits, for He experimentally knows, whereof we are made, and remembers that we are but duft. And surely we may conclude, God has not defign'd, that Sentence fhould pass upon us, according to the rigour of the Law, but the mildness and mercies of the Gospel; fince he has appointed him to be our Judge, who is our Redeemer, who is our High-Prieft, who is our Interceffor, who is our Advocate, who is our Brother.

Thus we fee, that upon many great Accounts, and important Confiderations, it be hov'd, it was highly fitting and reasonable, and advantageous; it was an Appointment of Infinite Wisdom and Goodness, that the Saviour of the World should, in all things, be made like unto his Brethren.

I fhall now draw fome few practical Inferences from what has been faid, and fo conclude.

ift, Then, it is very meet and right, and our bounden Duty, that we should at all