39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged, railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. 40 But the other answering, rebuked him, saying, Dost thou not fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. 42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

Here we have a further aggravation of our Lord's sufferings upon the cross, from the company he suffered with, the two thieves who reviled him with the rest. St. Matthew and St. Mark say, they both reviled him; St. Luke says one of them reviled; possibly both of them might do it at first, and one of them repent; which, if so, increases the wonder of the penitent

fering the pains of death, and seemingly deserted by his Father: he proclaims him Lord of paradise, and disposer of the kingdom of heaven, when the Jews had condemned him, and the Gentiles cruci. fied him as the vilest of impostors. He feared God, owned the justice of his punishment; was solicitous, not for the preservation of his body, but for the salvation of his soul; yea, not for his own only, but of his brother's that suffered with him; so that he glorified Christ more at the moment of his death, than some do in the whole course of their lives. 6. This was a miracle, with the glory whereof Christ would honour the ignominy of his cross: so that we have no more ground to expect such another conversion, than we have to expect a second crucifixion. This converted person was the first fruits of the blood of the cross. From whence we learn, That God can, and sometimes doth, though very seldom, prepare men for glory, immediately before their dissolution by death. His grace is his own, he may dispense it how, and when, where, and to whom he pleases; yet this is no more warrant to neglect the ordinary, because God doth sometimes manifest his grace in an extraordinary way. True, in this conversion, we have a pattern of what free grace can do; but it is a pattern without a promise: where we have not a promise to encourage our hope, our hope is nothing but presumption.

thief's conversion. From the impenitent || thief's reviling of Christ, when he was at the very point of death, and even in the suburbs of hell, we learn, That neither shame nor pain will change the mind of a resolute sinner; but even then, when he is in the suburbs of hell, will he blaspheme. From the penitent thief's confessing of Christ, and praying to him, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom; we learn, both the efficacy and freeness of divine grace. 1. The efficacious power of it: O how powerful must that grace be, v ich wrought such a change in an instant, which supplied that heart in a moment, which had been hardening in sin for so many years. 2. The freeness of it; which takes hold of his heart, when he was at the height of sin, and was not only void of grace, but seemed past grace. O the powerful efficacy and adorable freeness of the heartchanging grace of God in this vile person; it disposed him to own his sin; to confess the justness of his punishment, to justify Christ's innocency, to reprove his fellow companion, to pray to a crucified Christ, and to intercede with him, not for present deliverance from death, but for a place in Christ's kingdom. Where we learn, 1. That true conversion is never too late for obtaining mercy and salvation. 2. That true conversion, how late soever, will have its fruits: the fore-mentioned fruits of faith and repentance were found with this penitent thief; yet must not this extraordinary case be drawn into example. This extraordinary and miraculous grace of God is not to be expected ordinarily : we have no warrant to expect an over- These words are our Saviour's gracious powering degree of God's grace to turn answer to the penitent thief's humble prayour heart in an instant at the hour of er, Lord, remember me in thy kingdom, death, when we have lived in forgetful- says the thief; To-day shalt thou be with ness of God, and in a supine neglect of me in my kingdom, says our Saviour. our soul's concerns all the days of our life; Where note, 1. The immortality of the for it is evident as to this case of the peni- souls of men is without all doubt: our detent thief's conversion at the last hour, 1. sires after, and hopes for, immortality, de It is an example without a promise. 2. prove our souls immortal, and capable of It is but a single example. 3. It is an ex- that state. The souls of men die not with ample recorded but by one evangelist: their bodies, but remain in a state of senthe Spirit of God, foreseeing what an ill sibility. 2. That there is a future and use some would make of this instance, eternal state, into which souls pass at leaves one example upon record, that death. Death is our passage out of the none might despair; and but one, that swift river of time, into the boundless and none might presume. 4. This thief proba- bottomless ocean of eternity. 3. That the bly had never any knowledge of Christ souls of all the righteous at death are im before. 5. This thief improved his time mediately received into a state of happi at last, as never did any before or after; ness and glory; This day shalt thou be for he believed Christ to be the Saviour with me; not after the resurrection, but of the world; when one disciple had be- immediately after thy dissolution. That trayed, another denied, and all had for- man's soul is asleep, or worse, that saken him; he owned him to be the Son dreams of the soul's sleeping till the re of God, the Lord of life, when he was suf-surrection: for why should the believers'

43 And Jesus said unto him, Veri

ly I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

happiness be deferred, when they are im- || be a righteous man; yea, the Son of God. mediately capable of enjoying it? Why should their salvation slumber, when the wicked's damnation slumbereth not? How do such delays consist with Christ's ardent desires, and his people's vehement longing to be together?

death, and accordingly here is nothing || ing the spices which they had prelike it. Observe, 4. The grave or sepul- pared, and certain others with them. chre in which our holy Lord lay; it was 2 And they found the stone rolled a sepulchre hewn out of a rock; that so his enemies might have no occasion to say, away from the sepulchre. 3 And that his disciples stole him away by se- they entered in, and found not the cret holes, and unseen passages under body of the Lord Jesus, 4 And it ground. It was in a new sepulchre, came to pass, as they were much perwherein never man was laid before, lest his plexed thereabout, behold, two men adversaries should say, it was another that was risen, who was buried there be- stood by them in shining garments: 5 fore him. And he was buried in a garden, And as they were afraid, and bowed as by the sin of the first Adam we were down their faces to the earth, they driven out of the garden of pleasure, the said unto them, Why seek ye the earthly paradise, so by the sufferings of living among the dead? 6 He is not the second Adam, who lay buried in a here, but is risen: remember how he garden, we may hope for entrance into the heavenly paradise. Observe, 5. The spake unto you, when he was yet in manner of our Lord's funeral; it was Galilee, 7 Saying, The Son of man hasty, open, and decent. Hasty, because must be delivered into the hands of of the preparation for the Sabbath; open, sinful men, and be crucified, and the that all persons might be spectators, and third day rise again. And they renone might say, he was buried before he membered his words, 9 And returnwas dead; decent, being wrapped up in fine linen, and perfumed with spices. Ob- ed from the sepulchre and told all serve, 6. The reason why our Lord was these things unto the eleven, and to all thus buried, seeing he was to rise again in the rest. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, as short a time as other men lie by the and Joanna, and Mary the mother of walls; doubtless it was to declare the cer- James, and other women that were tainty of his death, to fulfil the types and with them, which told these things unprophecies which went before him: as Jonas's being three days and three nights to the apostles. 11 And their words in the whale's belly. He was also buried, seemed to them as idle tales, and they to complete his humiliation. This was believed them not. 12 Then arose the lowest step to which he could descend Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre, in his abased state. In a word, Christ de- and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.

scended into the grave, that he might conquer death in its own territories and dominions. Observe, 7. Of what use our Lord's burial is to his followers; it shows us the amazing depths of his humiliation, from what, and to what, his love brought him, even from the bosom of his Father, to the bosom of the grave. It may comfort us against the fears of death, and the terrros of the grave: the grave could not long keep Christ, it shall not always keep Christians it was a loathsome prison before, it is a perfumed bed now: he whose head is in heaven, need not fear to put his feet into the grave. Awake and sing, thou that dwellest in the dust, for the enmity of the grave is slain by Christ.

CHAP. XXIV.

The last chapter of St. Luke's Gospel contains the History of our Saviour's resurrection, and gives us an account of what he did upon earth, between the time of his glorious resurrection and triumphant ascension.

The Lord of life, who was put to death upon the Friday, was buried in the evening of the same day; and his holy body rested in the silent grave all the next day, being the Jewish sabbath, and some part of the morning following. Thus rose he again the third day, according to the scriptures, neither sooner nor later; not sooner, lest the truth of his death should have been questioned that he did not die at all; not later, lest the faith of his disciples should have failed. Accordingly, when the sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene getting the other women together, she and they set out very early in the morning, to visit the holy sepulchre, and about sunrising they get to it, intending with their spices and odours farther to embalm the Lord's body. Observe here, 1. That although the hearts of these holy women did burn

NOW upon the first day of the with an ardent zeal and affection to their week, very early in the morning, crucified Lord; yet the commanded duties hey came unto the sepulchre, bring-of the sabbath are not omitted by them;

divine nature or Godhead of Christ, which raised the human nature from death to life; others were raised from the grave by Christ's power, but he raised himself by his own power. Note, 4. The persons to whom our Lord's resurrection was first declared and made known; to women, to the two Marys. But why to women? and why to these women? To women first, because God sometimes makes choice of weak means for producing great effects; knowing that the weakness of the instrument redounds to the greater honour of the agent. In the whole dispensation of the gospel, God intermixes divine power with human weakness. Thus the conception of Christ was by the power of the Holy Ghost; but his mother, a poor woman, a carpenter's spouse. So the crucifixion of Christ was in much meanness and outward baseness, being crucified between two thieves; but the powers of heaven and earth trembling,the rocks rending, the graves opening, show

they keep close, and silently spend that || passion. Hence learn, That it was the holy day in a mixture of grief and hope. A good pattern of sabbath sanctification, and worthy of our imitation. Observe, 2. These holy women go, but not empty handed she that had bestowed a costly alabaster upon Christ whilst alive, prepares no less precious odours for him now dead; thereby paying their last homage to our Saviour's corpse. But what need of odours to perfume a precious body, which could not see corruption? True, his holy body did not want them, but the love and affection of his friends could not withhold them. Observe, 3. How great a|| tribute of respect and honour is due and payable to the memory of these holy women, for their great magnanimity and courage they followed Christ when his cowardly disciples left him; they accompanied him to his cross, they attended his hearse to the grave, when his disciples did not, durst not appear, and now very early in the morning they visit his sepulchre, fearing neither the darkness of the night, nor the presence of the watched a mixture of divine power. Thus men, though a band of rude soldiers. Learn hence, That courage and resolution is the special gift of God: if he gives it to the feeble sex, even to timorous and fearful women, it shall not be in the power of armed men to make them afraid. But to a close consideration of the several circumstances relating to the resurrection of our holy Lord: Note 1. With what pomp and triumph our holy Lord arises; two men, that is, two angels in the shape of men, ver. 4. are sent from heaven to roll away the stone. But could not Christ have risen then without the angels' help? Yes, doubtless he that raised himself could easily have rolled away the stone himself; but God thinks fit to send an officer from heaven to open the prison door of the grave; and by setting our Surety at liberty, proclaims our debt to the divine justice fully satisfied. Besides, it was fit that the angels who had been witnesses of our Saviour's passion, should also be witnesses of his resurrection. Note, 2. Our Lord's resurrection declared, He is risen, he is not here. Almighty God never intended that the darling of his soul should be left in an obscure sepulchre. He is not here, said the angels, where you laid him, where you left him; death has lost its prey, and the grave has lost its prisoner. Note, 3.|| It is not said, He is not here, for he is raised; but He is risen; ver 6. The original word imports the active power of Christ, or the self-quickening principle by which Christ raised himself from the dead, Acts i. He showed himself alive after his

here, God selects women to declare, that he will honour what instruments he pleases, for the accomplishment of his own purposes. But why to these women, the two Marys, is the first discovery made of our Lord's resurrection? Possibly it was a reward for their magnanimity and masculine courage. These women clave to Christ, when the apostles forsook him: they assisted at his cross, they attended at his funeral, they waited at his sepul||chre; these women had more courage than the apostles, therefore God makes them apostles to the apostles. This is a tacit rebuke, a secret check given to the apostles, that they should be thus outdone by women; these holy women went before the apostles in the last services that were done for Christ, and therefore the apostles here come after them in their rewards and comforts. Note, 5. The quick message which these holy women carry to the disconsolate disciples, of the joyful news of our Saviour's resurrection; they returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things to the eleven, ver. 9. And the other evangelists say, That they were sent and bidden to go to the apostles with the notices of the resurrection, Go tell the disciples, says the angel, Matt. xxviii. 7. Go tell my brethren, says Christ, ver. 10. A most endearing expression. Christ might have said, "Go tell my apostate apostles, my cowardly disciples, tha left me in my danger, and durst not own me in the high-priest's hall, that durst not come within the shadow of my cross, not