of JESUS, every knee should bow, of things in hea ven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confefs that Jefus Chrift is LORD, to the glory of God the Father. Christ hath glorified the Father, and therefore the Father glorified him, John xiii. 31, 32. And now is the Jon of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. And, if God be glorified in him, God fhall also glorify him in bimfelf. Him that honoureth me, I will honour, fays God. And in whom does this take place to perfection? It is in Chrift: God is honoured moft highly by him; and therefore he is honoured most highly of God. Amen, fo let it be, and fo it fall be. And therefore it is concerted in that meeting, that all the faints fhall glorify him: Hence that royal edict comes forth, He is thy Lord, worship thou him, Pfal. xlv. 11. And fo we find them doing, Rev, v. 9. Thou art worthy to take the book, and open the feals; for thou waft flain, and haft redeemed us to God by thy blood. It is concerted in that meeting, that all the angels fhall glorify him: Hence that edict comes forth, Let all the angels of God worship him, Heb. i. 6. And fo we find them doing, Rev. v. 11, 12. I beard the voice of many angels, and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thoufands, Jaying with a loud voice, Worthy is the lamb that was flain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and bleffings. It is concerted in this meeting, that all the creatures in heaven and earth, fea and land, fhall glorify him; as we fee, ver. 13. But, left the finful creatures upon earth, like you and me, fhould not glorify him, or fee his glory, it is concerted in that glorious meeting, that the Holy Ghoft, the eternal Spirit, one God equal in power and glory with I 4 the the Father and the Son, fhall be fent down to the earth to glorify him, John xvi. 14. He shall glorify me; for he fall receive of mine, and fhew it unto you. O, hath the fpirit of God been fhewing any thing of Chrift among you this day? Any thing of his grace, fulness, righteoufnefs, fo as to glorify him, and make him glorious above all things to you? Why then, we may reckon that you have found fomething of the faving fruits of this glorious meeting; for the grand defign of it was to glorify God in Chrift, by the Spirit. They met to concert all things relating to the glory of the Father, in the Son, by the Holy Ghoft. They met to confult their own glory in Chrift, that mercy and truth might be glorified in him. 2. They met together to concert their proper work, in carrying on this great end, of the glory of God, and his perfections. They do not meet together to fit idle, and do nothing; no, they meet together to concert each of them their proper bufinefs: As Chrift faid to his friends, Wherefore was it that ye fought me? Wift ye not that I must be about my father's bufinefs? So may I fay here, the attributes of God met together, that they might go about God's bufinefs. What bufinefs? What work belongs to each of them feverally? Why, mercy and truth meet together, that they may be fent upon an embaffy together, Pfal. lvii. 3. God fhall fend forth his mercy and his truth; his mercy to give in the promife of the gospel, and his truth to make out the fame: Thus mercy and truth meet together, that they may be fent forth upon fome gracious expedition, particularly both to be leaders and followers to the remnant, whom God appointed unto life. On the one hand, to be leaders; hence the Pfalmift cries, Pfal. xliii. 3. O fend forth thy light and thy truth; let them lead me, and bring me to thy holy bill, and to thy tabernacle. Then will I go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy. Behold the wonderful business of mercy and truth, and the work they are fent out upon, even mercifully to lead blind fouls to a God in Chrift. On the other hand, it is to be, not only leaders, but followers, Pfal. xxiii, 6. Surely goodness and mercy fhall follow me all the days of my life. If the child of God, under any temptation, refufe to be led by mercy and truth, and give up with them as his leaders, yet, for all that, he shall not hinder them to be his followers: he may run out of God's way, but mercy will follow and bring him back; and, when mercy follow, it is ever in company with truth: And O, what think you of this wonder! mercy and truth meet together, that they might go forth together, like two pages, to follow you, believer, through all the fteps of your wilderness-journey; goodness and fball follow me all the days of my life. Here is a piece of work, that mercy and truth have met together for, even to be fent forth, as leaders and followers of poor elect finners, till they be out of all hazard, in Emmanuel's land where glory dwells: See Pfal. lxi. 7. But then, as mercy and truth have met together, to pursue their proper work; fo rigbeeousness and peace have kiffed each other, for pursuing of theirs. Well, fay you, what is the work of righteousness and peace? You have a word in the last verfe of this Pfalm where our text lies; righteousness fhall go before him, and fet us in the way of his fteps. Divine righteoufness, displaying itself in Christ Jesus the fun of righteoufnefs, goes before him to prepare his way, and to bring us to God, and to our mercy duty. duty. And to be fure, whenever righteousness goes before, peace will follow after; for the fruit of righteoufness is peace, whether it be imputed or implanted. Here then the work of righteousness and peace kiffing each other, is to bring in these bleffed effects in their order: We confider them as divine perfections in the text; and, in these effects, righteousness leads the van, and peace comes up with the rear. 3. These attributes confpire harmoniously, they meet together, and kifs each other, for this reafon, that, by their meeting together, they may concert the diffolving of fome unhappy meetings. These oppofite-like attributes of God meet together, that fome intimates may be feparate, and fad and finful agreements may be broken up. Ifa. xxviii. 15. there is a fad meeting and agreement we read of; We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at an agreement. Why? Is not this the cafe of all men by nature? Yea; but how is this fad and miferable meeting diffolved? See verfe 16. Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a flone, a tried Alone, a precious corner-flone, a fure foundation : Judgment alfo will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet. Well, when judgment and righteousness mercifully meet in Chrift, the fure foundation, what will be the effect? It follows, ver. 17, 18. The hail fhall fweep away the refuge of lies, and your covenant with death fhall be difannulled, and your agreement with hell fhall not fland. Whatever fad afpect this fcripture may have to the defpifers of Chrift, yet it hath a merciful afpect to all the chofen of God, and all that defire to cleave to the Lord Jefus; yea, there is here a foundation of faith laid for all that hear the joyful found, that whatever finful and miferable meetings and agreements there are are betwixt hell and them, betwixt death and them, yet it cannot ftand before this glorious meeting, which was defigned to break up and diffolve the oppofite meetings that ftand in a contrariety thereto. There are many black unions which this bleffed union does diffolve, and there is no diffolving of them but by this bleffed meeting. There is the black union betwixt the finner and the law, which is the foundation of the black union betwixt the finner and his fin: For, when the union betwixt him and the law is diffolved, then the union betwixt him and his fin is diffolved; according to Rom. vi. 14. Sin fhall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Now, what is the covenant of grace? Why, mercy and truth meeting together, righteousness and peace kiffing each other in Chrift Jefus, is the fubftance, the marrow, the kernel of the covenant of grace; and it is this bleffed meeting that diffolves the union betwixt the finner and the law, and fo betwixt the finner and his fin. O view the glorious defign of this meeting! They met together, that you might be separated from your fad affociates. By nature you and the devil had met together, and you was a flave to him; and it is the virtue of this meeting in Chrift, that diffolves that; The feed of the woman fhall bruife the head of the ferpent. The world and you had met together, and you took pleasure in your wicked companions, or elfe was wholly drowned in worldly affairs; O it is the faith of this meeting that diffolves that! This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. The curfe of God and you had met together, and you lie under that curfe, till, in the faith of this meeting, you shall fee, that Chrift hath become a curfe for us. This meeting |