by the glorious rewards reserved for them hereafter.

When therefore we put together all these considerations, they can leave no doubt on any unprejudiced mind, that the account given in this chapter of the first commencement of our Saviour's ministry, and the reasons of his astonishing success, are perfectly accurate. and true; namely, "that he went about all Galilee, teaching in the synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness, and all manner of disease among the people." And our conclusion from this must necessarily be the same with that of the great Jewish rulers, who, with a laudable anxiety to know the truth, came to Jesus by night, and addressed him in these words: "Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him*"

* John, iii. 2.

LECTURE VI.

OUR

MATT. CHAP. V.

UR blessed Lord having by his miracles established his divine authority, and acquired of course a right to the attention of his hearers, and a powerful influence over their minds, proceeds in the next place to explain to them in some degree the nature of his religion, the duties it enjoins, and the dispositions it requires. This he does in what is commonly called his sermon on the mount; which is a discourse of considerable length, being extended through this and the two following chapters; and we may venture to say it contains a greater variety of new, important, and excellent moral precepts than is any where to be found in the same compass. At the same time it does not pretend to give a regular, complete, and perfect system of ethics, or to

lay down rules for the regulation of our conduct in every possible instance that can arise. This would have been an endless task, and would have multiplied precepts to a degree that would in a great measure have defeated their utility and destroyed their effect*. Our Lord took the wiser and more impressive method of tracing out to us only the great outlines of our duty, of giving us general principles and comprehensive rules, which we may ourselves apply to particular cases, and the various situations in which we may be placed.

He begins with describing those dispositions and virtues which mark the Christian charac ter, in which the gospel peculiarly delights, but which the world despises and rejects.

"Blessed, says he, are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God,

Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted,

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled,

Vid. John, xxi. 25.

Blessed

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall ob

tain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peace-makers, for they shall be called the children of God.

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are ye

when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake; rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is

ward in heaven*."

the

your re

It is evident that our Lord here meant at

very outset of his public instructions, to mark at once in the strongest and most decided terms the peculiar temper, spirit, and character of his religion; and to shew to his disciples how completely opposite they were to all those splendid and popular qualities which were the great objects of admiration and applause to the heathen world; and are still too much so even to the Christian world. "There are (as a very able advocate for Christianity well observes) two opposite characters *Matth. v. 3-12. + Dr. Paley, V. ii. p. 30.

under which mankind may generally be classed. The one possesses vigour, firmness, resolution, is daring and active, quick in its sensibilities, jealous of its fame, eager in its attachments, inflexible in its

in its resentments.

purposes, violent

The other, meek, yielding, complying, forgiving; not prompt to act, but willing to suffer; silent and gentle under rudeness and insult; suing for reconciliation where others. would demand satisfaction; giving way to the pushes of impudence; conceding and indulgent to the prejudices, the wrongheadedness, the intractability of those with whom he has to deal."

The former of these characters is and ever has been the favourite of the world; and though it is too stern to conciliate affection, yet it has an appearance of dignity in it which too commonly commands respect.

The latter is, as our Lord describes it, humble, meek, lowly, devout, merciful, pure, peaceable, patient, and unresisting. The world calls it mean-spirited, tame, and abject; yet, notwithstanding all this, with the divine author of our religion, this is the favourite character; this is the constant topic of

his