fering was by the shedding of his blood. So the beast was the sacrifice, when the blood alone, or principally, was offered on the altar. For it was the blood that made atonement. So it was by his blood that Christ made atonement, but it was his person that gave it efficacy to that end. Wherefore, by himself,' the whole human nature of Christ is intended. And that,

1. Not in distinction or separation from the Divine. For although the human nature of Christ, his soul and body, only was offered, yet he offered himself through his own eternal Spirit. This offering of himself therefore, was the act of his whole person, both natures concurring in the offering, though one alone was offered.

2. All that he did or suffered in his soul and body when his blood was shed, is comprised in this offering of himself. His obedience in suffering was that which rendered this offering of himself a sacrifice of a sweet smelling savour to God.

And he is said thus to offer himself, in opposition to the sacrifices of the high priest under the law. They offered goats and bulls, or their blood; but he offered himself.' therefore was the nature of the offering of Christ, It was a sacred act of the Lord Christ as the high priest of the church, wherein, according to the will of God, and what was required of him by virtue of the eternal compact between the Father and him, concerning the redemption of the church, he gave up himself in the way of most profound obedience, to do and 'suffer whatever the justice and law of God required to the ex'piation of sin, expressing the whole by the shedding of his blood, in answer to all the typical representations of this his sacrifice, in all the institutions of the law.' And this offering of Christ was proper sacrifice;

(1.) From the office whereof it was an act: it was an act of his sacerdotal office; he was made a priest of God for this end, that he might thus offer himself, and that this offering of himself should be a sacrifice.

(2) From the nature of it; for it consisted in the sacred giving up to God the thing that was offered, in the present destruction or consumption of it. This is the nature of a sacrifice; it was the destruction and consumption by death and fire, by a sacred action, of what was dedicated and offered to God. So was it in this sacrifice of Christ. As he suffered in it, so in the giving himself up to God in it, there was an effusion of his blood, and the destruction of his life.

(3.) From the end of it, which was assigned to it in the wisdom and sovereignty of God, and in his own intention, which was to make atonement for sin, which gives an offering the formal nature of an expiatory sacrifice.

(4.) From the way and manner of it. For therein,

1st, He sanctified or dedicated himself to God to be an of fering, John xvii. 19.

2dly, He accompanied it with prayers and supplications, Heb. v. 7.

3dly, There was an altar which sanctified the offering, which bore it up in its oblation, which was his own divine nature, as we shall see immediately.

4thly, He kindled the sacrifice with the fire of divine love, acting itself by zeal to God's glory, and compassion to the souls of men.

5thly, He tendered all this to God, as an atonement for sin, as we shall see in the next words.

This was the free, real, proper sacrifice of Christ, whereof those of old were only types and obscure representations; the prefiguration hereof was the sole cause of their institution. And what the Socinians pretend, namely, that the Lord Christ offered no real sacrifice, but only what he did was called so metaphorically, by the way of allusion to the sacrifices of the law, is so far from truth, that there never would have been any such sacrifices of divine appointment, had they not been designed to prefigure this which alone was really and substantially so. The Holy Ghost doth not make a forced accommodation of what Christ did to those sacrifices of old, by way of allusion, and by reason of some resemblances, but shews the uselessness and weakness of those sacrifices in themselves, any farther than as they represented this of Christ.

The nature of this oblation and sacrifice of Christ is utterly overthrown by the Socinians. They deny that in all this there was any offering at all: they deny that his shedding of his blood, or any thing which he did or suffered therein, either actually or passively, his obedience, or giving himself up to God therein, was his sacrifice, or any part of it, but only somewhat required previously thereunto, and that without any necessary cause or reason. But his sacrifice, his offering of himself, they say is nothing but his appearance in heaven, and the presentation of himself before the throne of God, whereon he receiveth power, to deliver them that believe in him from the punishment due to sin. But,

[1] This appearance of Christ in heaven is no were called. his oblation, his sacrifice or his offering of himself. The places wherein some grant it may be so, do assert no such thing, as we shall see in the explanation of them, for they occur to us in this chapter.

[2] It no ways answers the atonement that was made by the blood of the sacrifices at the altar, which was never carried into the holy place: yea, it overthrows all analogy, all resemblance and typical representation between those sacrifices and this of Christ, there being no sim litude, nothing alike between

them. And this renders all the reasoning of the apostle not only invalid, but altogether impertinent.

[3.] The supposition of it utterly overthrows the true nature of a proper and real sacrifice, substituting that in the room of it which is only metaphorical, and improperly so called. Nor can it be evidenced wherein the metaphor doth consist, or that there is any ground why it should be called an offering or a sacrifice. For all things belonging to it are distinct from, yea, contrary to a true real sacrifice.

[4] It overthrows the nature of the priesthood of Christ, making it to consist in his actings from God towards us in a way of power; whereas the nature of the priesthood is to act with God, for and on the behalf of the church.

[5.] It offers violence to the text; for herein Christ's offering of himself is expressive of the way whereby his blood purgeth our consciences, which in their sense is excluded. But we may observe to our purpose,

Obs. IV. This was the greatest expression of the inexpressible love of Christ :-he offered himself. What was required thereunto, what he underwent therein, have on various occasions been spoken unto. His condescension and love in the undertaking and discharge of this work, we may, we ought to admire, but we cannot comprehend. And they do what lies in them to weaken the faith of the church in him, and its love towards him, who would change the nature of his sacrifice in the offering of himself, who would make less of difficulty or suffering in it, or ascribe less efficacy unto it. This is the foundation of our faith and boldness in approaching unto God, that Christ hath offered himself for us. Whatsoever might be effected by the glorious dignity of his divine person, by his profound obedience, by his unspeakable sufferings, all offered as a sacrifice unto God in our behalf, is really accomplished.

Obs. V. It is hence evident, how vain and insufficient are all other ways of the expiation of sin, with the purging of our consciences before God.-The sum of all false religion consisted always in contrivances for the expiation of sin; what is false in any religion, hath respect principally thereunto. And as superstition is restless, so the inventions of men have been endless, in finding out means unto this end. But if any thing within the power or ability of men, any thing they could invent or accomplish, had been useful unto this end, there would have been no need that the Son of God should have offered himself. To this purpose, see ch. x. 5-8. Micah vi. 8, 9.

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Secondly, The next thing in the words, is unto whom he offered himself, that is, Taw, to God.' He gave himself an offering, and a sacrifice to God. A sacrifice is the highest and chief act of sacred worship; especially it must be so, when one offereth himself according unto the will of God. God as God,

or the divine nature, is the proper object of all religious worship, unto whom, as such alone, any sacrifice may be offered. To offer sacrifice unto any, under any other notion, but as he is God, is the highest idolatry. But an offering, an expiatory sacrifice for sin, is made to God as God, under a peculiar notion or consideration. For God is therein considered as the author of the law against which sin is committed, as the supreme Ruler and Governor of all, unto whom it belongs to inflict the punishment which is due unto sin. For the end of such sacrifices is, averruncare malum, to avert displeasure and punishment,' by making atonement for sin. With respect hereunto, the divine nature is considered as peculiarly subsisting in the person of the Father. For so is he constantly represented unto our faith, as the Judge of all, Heb. xii. 23. With him, as such, the Lord Christ had to do in the offering of himself; concerning which, see our exposition on ch. v. 7. It is said, If Christ was God himself, how could he offer himself unto God? That ⚫ one and the same person should be the offerer, the oblation, ' and he unto whom it is offered, seems not so much a mystery, as a weak imagination."

Answ. 1. If there were one nature only in the person of Christ, it may be this might seem impertinent. Howbeit there may be cases, wherein the same individual person, under several capacities, as of a good man on the one hand, and a Ruler or Judge on the other, may, for the benefit of the public, and the preservation of the laws of the community, both give and take satisfaction himself. But whereas in the one person of Christ, there are two natures, so infinitely distinct as they are, both acting under such distinct capacities as they did, there is nothing unbecoming this mystery of God, that the one of them might be offered unto the other.

But, 2. It is not the same person that offereth the sacrifice, and unto whom it is offered. For it is the person of the Father, or the divine nature, considered as acting itself in the person of the Father, unto whom the offering was made. And although the person of the Son is partaker of the same nature with the Father, yet that nature is not the object of this divine worship as in him, but as in the person of the Father. Wherefore the Son did not formally offer himself unto himself, but unto God, as exercising supreme rule, government and judgment, in the person of the Father.

As these things are plainly and fully testified unto in the Scripture, so the way to come unto a blessed satisfaction in them, unto the due use and comfort of them, is not to consult the cavils of carnal wisdom, but to pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, would give unto us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, in the knowledge of him, that the eyes of our understandings being enlightened, we may come

unto the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledg ment of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ. Thirdly, How he offered himself is also expressed: it was by the eternal Spirit. By,' die, denotes a concurrent operation, when one works with another. Nor doth it always denote a subservient instrumental cause, but sometimes that which is principally efficient, John i. 5. Rom. xi. 34. Heb. i. 2. So it doth here: the eternal Spirit was not an inferior instrument whereby Christ offered himself, but it was the principal efficient cause in the work.

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The variety that is in the reading of this place, is taken notice of by all. Some copies read, by the Пvivaтos vie, eternal Spirit,' some, by the holy Spirit; the latter is the reading of the Vulgar translation, and countenanced by sundry ancient copies of the original. The Syriac retains, the eternal Spirit,' which also is the reading of most ancient copies of the Greek. Hence follows a double interpretation of the words; some say, that the Lord Christ offered himself unto God, in and by the acting of the Holy Ghost in his human nature. For by him were wrought in him that fervent zeal unto the glory of God, that love and compassion unto the souls of men, which both carried him through his sufferings, and rendered his obedience therein acceptable unto God as a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savour; which work of the Holy Spirit in the human nature of Christ, I have elsewhere declared. Others say, that his own eternal Deity, which supported him in his sufferings, and rendered the sacrifice of himself effectual, is intended. But this will not absolutely follow to be the sense of the place upon the common reading, by the eternal Spirit.' For the Holy Spirit is no less an eternal Spirit, than is the deity of Christ himself.

The truth is, both these concurred in, and were absolutely necessary unto the offering of Christ. The acting of his own eternal Spirit, was so unto the efficacy and effect. And those of the Holy Ghost in him were so, as unto the manner of it. Without the first, his offering of himself could not have purged our consciences from dead works. No sacrifice of any mere creature could have produced that effect. It would not have had in itself a worth and dignity, whereby we might have been discharged of sin unto the glory of God. Nor without the subsistence of the human nature in the divine person of the Son of God, could it have undergone and passed through unto victory, what it was to suffer in this offering of it.

Wherefore this sense of the words is true. Christ offered himself unto God, through or by his own eternal Spirit, the divine nature acting in the person of the Son.

For, 1. It was an act of his entire person, wherein he discharged the office of a priest. And as his human nature was the sacrifice, so his person was the priest that offered it, which