because they are fpiritually difcerned. The men of the world take it for granted that the children of GoD have no other covering than what appears to them; but, alas! they are miftaken; for they have a covering from CHRIST which they know nothing of, tho' they appear black in themtelves, like the Tabernacle in badgers-fkins covering, yet they are in CHRIST fair as the curtains of Solomon, Col. ii. 10. and they are compleat in him.

Third, The infide covering of the Tabernacle, which was of fine linen, blue, purple, and fearlet, with cherubims of cunning work. The fine twifted linen may denote, the purity of divine grace upon the mind, or the enamelled inwrought work of the HOLY GHOST upon the foul; and the linen being blue, purple, and fcarlet, points out, that the HOLY GHOST'S work upon the mind, is always in the virtue of the purple, fcarlet blood of JESUS, as redemption is through his blood, Eph. i. 7. Peace is by his blood, Col. i. 20. So juftification is through his blood, Rim. v. 9. and likewife accefs is by his death, Heb. x. 19. By its being made of cunning work, it may denote, its being a work of infinite wifdom, to find out this way to accomplish our falvation, which makes the church all glorious within, fit and meet for Heaven, Pfal. xlv. 13. The King's daughter is all glorious within, and her cloathing of wrought gold. The cherubims being made in the infide covering of the Tabernacle, points out to us, how attentive the angels are, to hear the mysteries of redeeming love opened by the minifters of the gospel, Eph. iii. 10. To the intent that now unto the principalities, and powers in heavenly places, might be known by the church the manifold wifdom of God. Little do the minifters of CHRIST think what a glorious invifible auditory attends the miniftration of the word, as a church may be (and I do not doubt often is) full of angels; for what were the cherubs and cherubims that were carved upon the door-pofts, and upon the walls in the temple, but typical of liftening angels to the word preached, when often the faints are dull and heavy, if not afleep? For it is evident, that the angels have great knowledge of the tranfactions of redeeming love, inafmuch as they knew where CHRIST was born, Luke ii. 11. and could tell Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of James, that they were feeking JESUS of Nazareth, Mark xvi. 6. They likewife knew of CHRIST's fecond coming, Acts i. 11. Which alfs faid, ye men of Galilee, why ftand ye gazing up into Heaven? this fame Jefus, which is taken up into Heaven, fhall fo come in like manner as ye have feen him go into Heaven.

Fourth, I would obferve, That the righteoufnefs of CHRIST is fo glorious and immaculate, hath fuch brightness and perfection contained therein, that it not only covers thoufands of thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand fins and pollutions, but it renders the believer infinitely fair and lovely, Thou art all fair, my love, there is no spot in thee: It attracts and draws forth the love of GOD to his people with complacency and delight; nay, with greater delight than though they had never finned; because CHRIST's righteouf nefs is a foundation as firm as his nature, it is never fading, it cannot wither or decay; fo the love of GOD unto his people, upon this foundation, can never wither, fade or decay, for CHRIST's glorious righteoufnefs makes the church glorious, as fhe fhines in his perfections, Eph. v. 27. That he might prefent it unto himself, a glorious church, not having Spot or wrinkle, or any fuch thing; but that it should be holy, and without blemish.

Fifth, This should engage the faints to a holy walk, and heavenly obedience; to have their affections fet upon things above, to ruminate and extend their ideas and contemplations upon the glories and excellencies of that love that adorns and delights them, that fupports and supplies them, and will, at laft, crown them with glory, and make them fine in the kingdom of their heavenly Father more bright than the fun in the firmament! The thoughts of which thould infpite their hearts with love, their lips with praife, and their feet with exemplary obedience before GoD, Angels, and men, that they might appear to be the children of GOD, without rebuke, in the face of a crooked and perverfe generation; which is the only way to maintain communion with God, and the eulogiums of a good confcience; as it fpreads life and luftre upon the ways of GOD, and commands commendation from men and angels.

Fiendly. Pardon my curious freedom in making fome digreffion, as to order, in our prefent converfation, What was the fpiritual fignification of the fnuffers and of their being made of pure gold? Exod. xxxvii. 23.

Truth. I anfwer, The fnuffers were made to trim the lamps: now thefe lamps as I before obferved) were typical of the minifters of CHRIST, the oil that fupplied them points out, their fupply of grace from CHRIST, and the lamp burning continually before the LORD, denotes, their hearts burning with zeal for GOD, and flaming with love to fouls. So the fnuffers to these lamps, I humbly conceive, may be typical of

the nipping difpenfations of divine providence; for the more the lamp is trimmed, the brighter it fhines, and the greater light it gives: So the afflictions, and trimming difpenfations of divine providence make the lamp of zeal burn with the more life and vigour, and give the greater evidence of love to GOD and concern for fouls. But, the lamps being made of pure gold, denotes the worth and value that there is in the nipping difpenfations of providence, as a frowning providence has always (to a child of GoD) a smiling mercy in its bofom, therefore faith one, it is good for me that I have been afflicted. We often fee many of the minifters of the gofpel, though they are fuch that carry with them criterions of being the true minifters of CHRIST, yet having a large opulency, joined with plentiful falary from their people, they are like a lamp that has too much wick, a fuperfluity that burns dim for want of trimming; whilst others of the godly minifters of CHRIST (it may be) have their lamps of faith and love trimmed by fome tharp trial every morning, and renewed every evening, which makes them thine as burning lights in the church of GOD, and fay, with the apoftle, Acts xx. 23, 24. Bonds and afflictions abide me, but none of those things move me, neither count I my life dear to myself To that I might finish my course with joy, and the miniftry which have received of the Lord Jefus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. And indeed without thefe trials, thefe inuffers to trim their lamps, they would scarce fee to pick up a promise in their way to heaven. But their lamps being trimmed by the fnuffers of afflictions, they thereby fee the dealings of GOD with them, the love he bears towards them, and that he will bring them forth as gold feven times purified.

It is a question here (as Mather obferves) whether the lamps did burn night and day, or only by night? Some think there was need of them in the day-time, in the temple, because the windows of the temple were fifteen cubits from the ground; but it should rather feem that the lamps burned only from evening until morning, as in Exod. xxvii. 21. Aaron and his fens fhall order it from evening until morning before the Lord. It is evident that the lamps went out, from 1 Sam. iii. 3. Before the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. It should feem that the LORD appeared unto Samuel at the break of day; for the priests were wont, if they found any lamp out, to light them again, and those that burned but dim, they trimmed afresh, of which the Jews gives us the

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following account: "When the pricft cometh to trim the "candlestick of every lamp that is burnt out, he taketh away "the wick, and all the oil that remaineth in the lamp, and "wipeth it, and putteth in another wick and other oil, by "measure half a log, (that is about a quarter of a pint) and "that which he taketh away he cafteth into the ashes by the "the altar, and lighteth the lamp that was out, and the lamp "that he findeth not out he dreffeth it; the lamp which is "middlemoft when it is out he lighteth not (after it is made "clean) but from the altar in the court; but the rest of the "lamps he lighteth from the next lamp. He lighteth not "all the lamps at one time; but lighteth five lamps, and doth "the other fervice, and afterwards cometh and lighteth the "two that remaineth. He whofe duty it is to drefs the can"dlestick, cometh with a veffel in his hand, (which is called "Cuz, and it is of gold like to a great pitcher) to take away "in it the wicks that are burned out, and the oil that remaineth in the lamps, and leaveth the veffel there before the can"dleftick, &c. and goeth out: afterwards he cometh and lighteth the two lamps, and taketh up the veffel in his "hand, and boweth himself down to worship, and then goeth "his way."

Laftly, I would obferve, That the trimming of the lamps may denote the vivifying work of the HOLY GHOST upon the hearts of God's people, as the work of grace may, and often does decay and decline as to its life and exercife, burns dim like a lamp that is ready to expire, infomuch that they often ftand in need of having their lamps trimmed, their graces revived, their fouls enlivened, of ftrengthening the things that remain and that are ready to die, Matt. xii. 20. He will not quench the fmoaking flax.

Friendly. I fhould now be glad to enter upon an elucidation of the two altars which were placed in the tabernacle?

Truth. The two altars which were placed in the tabernacle had their eminent usefulness; the one was to offer facrifices upon, the other was to burn pure incenfe on, both prefiguring the marrow and quinteffence of the gofpel. We will begi first with the altar that was to offer facrifices upon, whic was made of hittim wood, and overlaid with brass, Exod xxvii. 1, 2.

The altar was made of the wood of fhittim, or the wood the shittah tree, mentioned in Ifa. xli. 19. which is though o be a kind of cedar, the Greeks ufually tranflate it, Afept That is, wood that never rotteth; which denotes the incorru

tion and eternal duration of the human nature of CHRIST, in union with the divine. Its being overlaid with brafs, pointed out the strength and stability of Chrift to go through the fea of wrath, the ponderous labour of fufferings for our redemption, and therefore he is reprefented by the prophet Ezek. xl. 3. as a man whofe appearance was the appearance of bras. The altar being made four-fquare (which is a form of ftrength) may be confidered as a type of the heavenly Jerufalem, which is four-fquare, Rev. xxi. 16. The ufe of this altar was to offer burnt-offerings before the LORD, Exod. xxix.' 36, 37. And thou shalt offer every day a bullock for a fin-offering, for atonement, and thou shalt cleanfe the altar when thou hast made an atonement for it; and thou shalt anoint it to fanctify it; feven days fhalt thou make an atonement for the altar and fanctify it; and it shall be an altar most holy, whatsoever touches the altar fball be holy. The offering of the flain beaft upon this altar was to make an atonement, expiation or propitiation : the word in the original fignifieth the pacification of God's wrath, and his merciful covering of tranfgreffions; which with luftre points out to us the facrifice of the LORD JESUS CHRIST, Eph. v. 2. as Chrift bath also loved us, and given himself for us, a facrifice to God. But obferve, it was not only a facrifice, but an atonement, a pacification of wrath, which prefigured the atonement, propitiation and pardon procured by the facrifice of CHRIST, Rom. v. 14. by whom we have received the atonement; as it points out the compenfation of his blood, the fatisfaction of his death, and redemption thereby.

Friendly. But why is it called a fin-offering?

Truth. I answer, That it might, in the most lively manner, typify CHRIST being made a fin for us, 1 Pet. ii. 24. who in his own body bare our fins upon the tree: Our fins were, by covenant agreement, transferred unto him, charged upon him, imputed to him, Ifa. liii. 6. and the Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all; on which account, his facrifice was a fin offering for his people: It is likewife called a burnt offering, Exod. xxix. 42. And the fire that kindled upon the burntoffering was no ordinary or culinary fire, but celeftial and divine, 2 Chron. vii. 1. which points out, that the flames of divine wrath took hold of the human nature of CHRIST, as a facrifice for fin, which made his foul exceeding forrowful, even unto death; and being in an agony he prayed the more earnestly, and his fweat was as the drops of blood falling to the ground, until he cried out, Pfal. xxii. 15. my ftrength is dried