did, in his life, in this world, endure the greatest and most dreadful fufferings. His whole life was one continued track of the heavieft fufferings of which human nature is capable. Ifa. liii. 3. He is de• fpifed and rejected of men, a man of forrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid, as it were, our ⚫ faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed • him not!' This, my brethren, is a'known subject, yet it is the fubject which we ought, by faith, to dwell upon this day; and, indeed, the benefit and comfort of believers does not depend on things new and engaging to the fancy, but on the Spirit of God fetting home known truths with force and efficacy on the heart. Let me therefore beg your attention to two or three obvious remarks on the fufferings of Christ. 1. His afflictions began early, with his first entrance into the world. No fooner did the man Christ Jefus fee the light of this world, but presently did affliction falute him. Immediately after his contemptible birth, did Herod, that bloody tyrant, feek to destroy him; so that we may allude to that expreffion, Rev. xii. 4. And the dragon food be'fore the woman which was ready to be delivered, to devour her child as foon as it was born.'

2. His afflictions were conftant and perpetual, without interruption. It is recorded, not only by Christians, but even by heathens, who had heard of his life, that he was never obferved to laugh, but frequently feen weeping; fo that he well accomplished that prophefy, A man of forrows, and acquainted with grief.' It is probable, from several passages in the prophetical writings, that he was of a very

tender and fenfible frame; and therefore his afflictions had a great and powerful effect upon him. They fo deeply touched him, that his body was wafted, and his ftrength melted and decayed, which is the ufual effect of lafting and continued forrow. Ifa. lii. 14. As many were aftonied at thee; his 'vifage was fo marred more than any man, and his 'form more than the fons of men. Pfal. xxii. 14,

15. I am poured out like water, and all my bones ⚫ are out of joint: my heart is like wax, it is melted in the midst of my bowels: my ftrength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth 'to my jaws: and thou haft brought me into the 'dust of death.' So that we may also apply to him what Job fays of himself, Job xvi. 8. And thou

6

haft filled me with wrinkles, which is a witness a

gainft me and my leannefs rifing up in me, bear⚫eth witness to my face.

3. His afflictions were of the feverest kind. This I might show you, at large, from the history, by particularizing them all: I only mention four, poverty, reproach, temptation, and sympathy with others. He was fo poor, as to depend upon the charity of others for his fubfiftence; and could fay, Luke ix. 58. Foxes have holes, and birds of the

air have nefts, but the Son of man hath not where

to lay his head.'-Reproach was thrown upon him without measure, and of the worst kind. He was called a glutton and a wine-bibber, a deceiver, a blafphemer, a Samaritan, and one that had a devil. Now, my brethren, all that know any thing of human nature, know that reproach and contempt are

perhaps the hardest to bear of any sufferings to which we are exposed; and the authors of thefe calumnies were fuch whofe circumstances rendered them most fharp and fevere; for they were the Scribes and Pharifees, or the minifters of thofe times, who ferved in the temple, as the whole history fhows, and his own natural relations, as appears from Mark iii. 21. John vii. 3, 4, 5.-Another remarkable affliction our Lord endured, was temptation, and that of the groffest kind, as is plain from Matth. iv. 3,—11. We are told, he was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without fin' What was the precife nature and influence of fuch temptations on him, we cannot know; only it deferves notice on this particular, that whereas fome of the other afflictions he endured, were fuch as his perfect purity could not but render more tolerable than otherwise they would have been, this on the other hand, was fuch, that by how much the more pure and holy he was, fo much the more distress would he feel on being affaulted with the vile temptations of the devil, and having his horrid and abominable fuggestions prefented to the fancy.I only further mention his fufferings, from fympathy with others. The most excellent and worthy of the human kind are fuch as have the tendereft feeling of the fufferings of others. Now, fince he was a perfect man, fince tenderness seems to have been his ruling character, and his errand into the world a meffage of love flowing from infinite compaffion as its caufe, we must suppose him liable to the fevereft fufferings of this kind. I know the hard-hearted, felfifh world, will find it difficult

to conceive this as a source of fevere suffering, espe cially fuch as have no regard to any thing beyond this world. But this is not the cafe with all; for I am certain there are fome whofe fharpeft pangs have been occafioned by the fufferings of others, especially when of a spiritual kind. To form fome conception of this, let us imagine, what must be the anguish of a pious and affectionate parent, on the death of a wicked child, who apparently trode in the path of the deftroyer, and of whom he hath the greatest reafon to fear, that he no fooner clofed his eyes on the light of this world, than he lifted them up in the torments of hell. Now, as compaffion was ftronger in none than in the man Chrift Jefus, fo none could have fo clear a view of the misery of those who were the objects of it; and therefore, no doubt, this was a fource of the deepest affliction to his foul.

4. In the last place, the afflictions of our Lord not only continued, but increased, through his life, till they, at laft, iffued in an extrordinary conflict with the powers of darkness, and an immediate fubjection to the wrath of a fin avenging God. Let it be observed, that though I here mention particularly his enduring the wrath of God, as the laft and finishing part of his fufferings, I do not mean to confine his fufferings from the hand of God to this season. Without all queftion, every part of his humiliation was fatiffactory to the divine juftice, and contributed to appeafe the wrath of God. This cup was put to his mouth fo foon as he affumed our nature; he continued to drink of it daily, and was therefore juftly

ftiled a man of forrows; but, in the close of life, he came to drink off the very bittereft dregs of it. The waves of divine wrath went over him; and he waded still deeper and deeper in this troubled ocean, tilk he was well nigh overwhelmed. That Chrift fuffered under the wrath of God in an eminent degree, is manifeft both from the prophecies of the Old Teftament, and the relation given of the event in the New. Ifa. liii. 5,-10. But he was wounded for our ⚫ tranfgreffions, he was bruised for our iniquities: ⚫ the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and • with his stripes we are healed. All we, like sheep, ⚫ have gone aftray; we have turned every one to 'his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the ⚫ iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was ⚫ afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought ⚫ as a lamb to the flaughter, and as a fheep before

her fhearers is dumb, fo he openeth not his mouth. • He was taken from prifon and from judgment: and • who fhall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the tranfgreffion of my people was he ftricken. And he made • his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his ' death, because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the • Lord to bruise him: he hath put him to grief:

when thou fhalt make his foul an offering for fin, he fhall fee his feed, he fhall prolong his day's, and • the pleasure of the Lord fhall profper in his hand.' See the relation of his fufferings in the garden, Matth. xxvi. 38, 39. Then faith he unto them, my foul is exceeding forrowful, even unto death: tarry ye