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fource of inftruction to the Chriftian church. While we are affured that "whatsoever things "were written aforetime, were written for our

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learning," this holds true with refpect to the Ifraelites in a peculiar fenfe. It was the will of the all-wife God to give a national existence to this people, to caft them into fuch a mould, and to regulate every thing concerning them in fuch a manner, that they might prefigure that true Ifrael which he hath gathered out of "every kin"dred, and tongue, and people, and nation." Thus, the names by which they were distinguished as a nation, are transferred to the New-Teftament Church. Were they called Ifrael, and Judah, and the feed of Jacob? These defignations, in their higheft and most proper sense, are appropriated to the church of Chrift under the gofpel. Concerning her it is foretold, as expreffive of her bleffednefs under the government

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government of the antitypical David; " In his days, Judah fhall be faved, and Ifrael fhall dwell fafely m." "In the LORD fhall all the feed of "Ifrael be juftified, and fhall glory "." The fpiritual kingdom of Chrift is that "houfe of Ja"cob" over which he "fhall reign for ever." Its true members are "the Ifrael of God," who are partakers of his " peace and mercy p," mercy P," as contradistinguished from Ifrael after the flesh "." In comparison with them, these peculiar names are denied to the literal pofterity of Abraham." For "he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither "is that circumcifion which is outward in the "flesh but he is a Jew, who is one inwardly; "and circumcifion is that of the heart, in the fpirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not "of men, but of God." To fhew that the church of Chrift is the antitype of God's ancient people; her faithful members, in a time of general apoftacy, are reprefented as an hundred and forty-four thousand, fealed out of the twelve tribes of Ifrael. For this very reafon indeed, all the reprefentations which are given of the true church of Chrift, in the fymbolical book of Revelation, are borrowed from the temple fervice, or from the history of the Old-Teftament Church.

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Such characters were conferred on literal Ifrael, as were meant to have their full accomplishment only in the New-Teftament Church. Thus God faid to his ancient people: "If ye will obey my

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voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye "fhall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people and ye fhall be unto me a kingdom "of priests, and an holy nation t." In them we fee a delineation of that peculiar people, who are not of the world, but are chofen out of it"; of those spiritual priefts, who by Jesus Christ "offer "the facrifice of praise to God continually v;" of" them that are fanctified in Chrift Jefus, called

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to be faints w." The language, therefore, originally applied to literal Ifrael, is by the Holy Spirit transferred to them, as adopted inftead of that carnal people, who " ftumbled at the word, being difobedient." Hence it is faid to the fpiritual, as contradiftinguished from the literal, Ifrael: "But ye are a chofen generation, a royal "priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; "that ye fhould fhew forth the praises of him, "who hath called you out of darkness into his "marvellous light *."

The typical character of this people appears from many other confiderations. The divine conduct towards them was a ftriking figure of his conduct towards the New-Teftament Church. The matter of her faith and obedience, her mercies and judgments, are delineated in their hiftory. A type properly fignifies a more rude and imperfect expreffion of any thing, in order to a more accurate and complete delineation of it. In this respect the Ifraelites were types. In their conftitu VOL. I.. tion,

t Exod. xix. S, w & Cor. i. 2.

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v Heb. xiii. 15.

tion, as a fociety, partly political, and partly ecclefiaftical, we have an image of the fpiritual kingdom of the Meffiah. In their privileges as church-members, we have a representation of the ftate of an heir, who, " as long as he is a child, "differeth nothing from a fervant, though he be "lord of ally." Their ordinances are called "elements" or "rudiments of the world;". because they were of a carnal nature, and confifted of emblems borrowed from the things of this world, containing a dark reprefentation of fpiritual bleffings, by means of which the church, in her infant ftate, was prepared for a clearer revelation, and a more full enjoyment of these bleffings. They are alfo denominated "weak and

beggarly elements;" because the foul could derive no benefit from them, except in as far as they fhadowed forth that "better thing which "God hath provided for us." In this refpect, God's ancient people " without us could not be "made perfect a". For the law had only " a "fhadow of good things to come, and not the

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very image of the things b." The body is of "Chrift." The priests. " ferved unto the ex"ample and fhadow of heavenly things " The tabernacle, with its ordinances," was a figure for ⚫ the time then prefent, in which were offered "both gifts and facrifices, that could not make "them that did the fervice perfect, in things pertaining to the confcience "

The temporal mercies, which the Ifraelites received, were typical of thofe that are fpiritual. In the general tenor of their conduct, we have a picture of our own. The judgments procured by their fins, prefigured those which we deferve. Hence it is faid; "Thefe things were "our examples ;-All these things happened un"to them for enfamples; and they are written "for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the "world are come." The things immediately referred to, according to fome, are only the judgments inflicted. But as the apoftle, in the preceding verses, enumerates feveral of the privileges of the Ifraelites, others apprehend, that in ver. 6. he particularly refers to thefe; as afferting, that the fathers, in being under the cloud, and paffing through the fea, &c. " were our examples ;" and that in ver. 11. he has his eye principally directed to the judgments mentioned in the verfes immediately preceding. Whatever be the particular fcope of this paffage, we are affured from other places, that the Ifraelites fuftained a typical character, both as to privileges and judgments.

It is the fame word in the original, which is used in both verfes. It properly denotes fuch exe amples as were meant, not merely for inftruction in general, according to the intention of all the examples recorded in Scripture, but fuch as were exprefsly defigned to be emblems or figures. The word may be moft literally rendered types. It has been obferved, that the apoftle, in the ufe of