repentant offender, who has perceived the time of his visitation! How gladly will he deliver him from all that he has incurred, and all that he is fearing! As he had before complained concerning Jerusalem, "How often would I have gathered thy children together, and thou wouldest not!"— so is it his merciful desire that his blood should rather save the souls of all, than that his tears should lament over the condemnation of any sinner.

45. And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;

46. Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves.

47. And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him.

48. And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him.

LECTURE LXXV.

JESUS SILENCES THE SCRIBES AND ELDERS.UTTERS AGAINST THE JEWS THE PARABLE OF THE REBELLIOUS HUSBANDMEN.

LUKE XX. 1-18.

(Matt. xxi. 23-46. Mark xi. 27—33; xii. 1—12.)

1. And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel,

the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,

2. And spake unto him, saying, Tell us, By what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that giveth thee this authority?

3. And he answered and said unto them, I will also ask you one thing: and answer me :

4. The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?

5. And they reasonea with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then believed ye him not?

6. But and if we say, Of men; all the people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was a prophet.

7. And they answered, that they could not tell whence

it was.

8. And Jesus said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

Enough of evidence had been given to these chief priests and scribes, to show the authority which Jesus bore. When there is honest, reasonable doubt, God will clear it: nothing shall be wanting to satisfy the conscientious inquirer. But again, nothing shall be granted to "the disputer of this world," who shuts his eyes against the light he has. "Whosoever hath not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him."1 John had testified that Jesus was the Messiah. They could not deny that John was sent and taught of God: why then did they not believe him? For the same reason that some would not believe, "though one rose from the dead." They "loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."

1 Matt. xiii. 12.

9. Then began he to speak to the people this parable; A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it forth to husbandmen, and went into a far country for a long time.

10. And at the season he sent a servant to the husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard: but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty.

11. And again he sent another servant: and they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty.

12. And again he sent a third: and they wounded him also, and cast him out.

13 Then said the Lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son: it may be they will reverence him when they see him.

14. But when the husbandmen saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.

This parable applied, in the first case, to the Jewish nation, the vineyard which God had planted in the world, and from which he expected fruit: expected an example of national piety, of spiritual worship, of righteousness and holiness. He "fenced it," as the prophet shows: (Isa. v. 2:) he separated it from an idolatrous neighbourhood. He "gathered out the stones thereof," forbidding all that was impure and unjust :-"he planted it with the choicest vine," establishing a law which was "holy, just, and good:"-he "built a town in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein :"-" at Salem was his tabernacle, and his dwelling in Sion :"-and "he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes." He might justly ask, "What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not

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done in it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?"

Isaiah, who uttered this remonstrance, was one of those servants who were sent to the husbandmen that they might give him of the fruit of the vineyard and the history tells us of many more, who were neglected, and ill treated, and sent away empty.

At last the Son is commissioned, for whom the whole inheritance had been prepared: and God is represented as speaking after the manner of men, It may be they will reverence him when they see him.

Now this come more nearly home to ourselves. "To us also are the words of this salvation sent." "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son." And surely it is a just demand, that men reverence him when they see him.

"This is the re

For consider the offer made. cord that God hath given unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son, hath life, and he that hath not the Son of God, hath not life." 3

Consider the mercy displayed in such a message. "Herein is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

"4

Consider the authority with which he came invested. "God so loved the world, that he gave

2 Heb. i. 1.

3 1 John v. 11, 12.

4 Ib. iv 10.

his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Consider the mighty works by which his authority was established: the excellent doctrines, wor thy of him who taught them, by which he corrected the errors of the people, and instructed all future ages, and raised the moral standard of mankind.

Consider the beings who are the subjects of this offer beings who are entirely dependent upon him who made them, who cannot add a cubit to their stature, or make a single hair white or black: beings uncertain of a day: uncertain whether before the morrow's dawn they may not be summoned into the presence of their Creator, "to give an account of the things done in the body."

Surely of such we might say beforehand, they will reverence the Son of God when they see him.

But it has not proved so. Of the Jewish nation, we know that they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. And amongst ourselves, how many of those who live within the reach of his mercy and the sound of his word, reject him as entirely from their thoughts, as the Jews did from their city? How many more, who would not refuse in words to "call him Lord," "in works deny him;" "crucify the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame!" As a people, indeed, we style ourselves a Christian people, and many blessings, incalculable blessings, belong to the national profession of the gospel: and many more are presumed upon, as the Jews presumed upon being the children of Abraham. But as Jesus said to them,

5 John iii. 16.