"He is

He is fent to be the defire of the people; therefore it is faid of him, "The defire of all nations fhall come."He is fent to be the Propitiation of the people; the propitiation for our fins," I John ii. 2.-He is fent to be the falvation and confolation of the people: "Behold thy falvation comes :" And he is called the Confclation of Ifrael.-He is fent to be the Door of the people; "I am the door, by me if any enter in, he fhall be faved," John x. 9.-Again, he is fent to be the Way of the people; "I am the way: No man comes to the Father but by me."-He is fent to be the Ladder of the people; he is the true Jacob's ladder, that reaches from earth to heaven, by which alone we can afcend up to glory. And, O fhould not the gathering of the people be to him! And because they cannot of themfelves enter in at this door, nor walk in this way, nor climb this ladder, therefore he is fent to be the Leader of the people; "I will lead the blind in a way they know not, and in paths which they have not known." Yea, and to be the Strength of the people, that the people may gather to him, and trust in the Lord JEHOVAH, in whom there is everlafting ftrength. He is fent to be the wifdom, righteoufnefs, fanctification, and redemption of the people, 1 Cor. i. 30. He is made of God unto us, all thefe things; even he who is the Lord our righteoufnefs.-And, that he might be a perfect law-biding righteousness of the people, behold with wonder! he fent him to be the fin of the people, and the curfe of the people; "He hath made him to be fin for us, that we might be the righteoufnefs of God in him, 2 Cor. v. 21. To redeem us from the curfe of the law, he was made a curfe for us," Gal. iii. 13.-What fhall I fay? He is the Redeemer of the people, the Surety of the people, the Advocate of the people, and the Ranfom of the people.-Shiloh is come, and he is fent of God, to be all relations, and all things to the people, that the gathering of the people may be to him.--God hath put all the privileges of the people into his hands, that he may be the Light and Life of the people; who is therefore called, the Light of the world, and the Life of the world. He hath put all gifts, and graces, and fulness in his hand, for the peoples ufe and behoof; "He hath

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received gifts for men, even for the rebellious, that God the Lord might dwell among them."-And is there nothing in all this to be a motive or argument for gathering the people unto him? Is he fent for all these ends to the people, and fhall not the people be gathered to him? O may the people come to him, who is the All of the people!

7. Confider what houfe-room there is in him, for the people to gather unto: And,

(1.) He is a hiding-house for the people to gather to;. "A man fhall be as a hiding-place from the ftorm, a covert from the tempeft; as the fhadow of a great rock in a weary land," Ifa. xxxii. 2. Behold, he is a hidinghouse, a fhelter-house, a refuge for the people, a fanctuary for the people, that the people may flee to him, faying, with the pfalmift, "I flee to thee to hide me."

(2.) He is a dwelling-houfe for the people to gather to; "He that dwells in the fecret place of the moft High, fhall abide under the fhadow of the Almighty," Pfalm xci. 1. And, O they that dwell in him, they dwell on high, and the place of their defence is the munition of rocks. They that are once gathered to him, he and they do mutually inhabit one-another, in the communion of the Holy Ghost; " Hereby we know that we dwell in him, and he in us, by his Spirit which he hath given us," 1 John iv. 13.

(3.) He is a working-house for the gathering of the people to: not one fpiritually good work can be performed cut of him; for, "Without him we can do nothing," John xv. 5. But when one gets in to this houfe, then he is like a man in his working-house, that hath all his working inftruments and tools at his hand, without which he could not work at his trade; yea, then he hath Chrift himself for his working hand; "I can do all things through Chrift ftrengthening me." He performs all my work for me, his ftrength being made perfect in my weakness.

(4.) He is the bathing-house for the gathering of the people to: "The blood of Chrift cleanfeth from all fin," 1 John i. 7.; "If I wash thee not, thou haft no part in He himself is the fountain open to the house of

David for fin and for uncleannefs: Here alone it is, that the filthy leprous people can get their fouls bathed and purged, and must gather to him for that end, faying, Purge me with hyffop, and I fhall be clean; wafh me, and I fhall be whiter than the fnow," Pfal. li. 7.

(5.) He is the treasure-houfe for the people to gather unto. Where muft the gathering of the people be, but to the only ftore-houfe? Poor people may be here fupplied, out of his unfearchable riches; for, "In him are hid all the treafures of wifdom and knowledge," Col. ii. 3. "It hath pleafed the Father, that in him fhould all fulnefs dwell, that out of his fulness we might receive grace for grace."

(6.) He is the pleasure-houfe for the gathering of the people to. He is a pleafure-houfe, both for God, and for the people of God; fuch a pleafure-houfe for God to dwell in, that as God is well-pleafed in him, reconciled and fatisfied in him, in whom his foul delights; fo he is infinitely well-pleafed with all that gather in to him, they are accepted in him, and that with pleafure: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleafed." And when once finners are gathered in to him, O they are well-pleafed alfo; yea, abundantly fatisfied with the fatnefs of his house, Pfalm xxxvi. 8. "In whom believing, we rejoice, with joy unfpeakable, and full of glory. In his prefence there is fulnefs of joy." There is no house of pleasure in the world like this.

(7.) He is the magazine-house for the gathering of the people to. All our magazines for military provifion are in him: he indeed is "like the tower of David, built for an armoury, where there hangs a thousand bucklers, all fhields of mighty men," Song iv. 4.; for all the believer's fpiritual armour, whereby he must fight against the devil, the world, and the flesh, is hang ing in this houfe; and therefore, whenever he is for fight. ing, he is to put on the whole armour of God; and to be ftrong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Never will a foul get a happy ftroak given to the devil, or corruptiou, without armour got out of this maga zine-houfe. Here lies all the powder and ammunition, VOLA IV. where

whereby the most subtile engines of hell may be blown up, and broken.

(8.) He is the banquetting-house for the gathering of the people to; "He brought me to the banquettinghouse, and his banner over me was love," Cant. ii. 4. It is remarkable and ftrange, that there fhould be need of a banner in a banquetting-house. A banner is for war; and indeed his people, when they are fed in his houfe, they are fitted for war: but, O a banner of love is good provifion for war; the manifestation of the love of God in Chrift, encourages and ftrengthens the foul, both for work and warfare. He fights beft, when he feeds beft upon the love and favour of God in Chrift, who himself is both the banquetting-houfe, the banner, and the feaft; he is the food," His flefh is meat indeed, and his blood is drink indeed."-There he feeds them with his pardon and peace; he feeds them with his righteousness and fulness; yea, there he fups with them, and they with him: and this feast of fat things is provided for all people, Ifa. xxv. 6. that they may gather in to the banquetting-houfe. He only is the victual-house, the true Bethlehem, the house of bread.

(9.) He is the praying-houfe for the gathering of the people to; the true temple, and house of prayer for all people, Ifa. lvi. 7.-Would you have a house for praying acceptably in, fo as to be always heard and anfwered, whenever you pray? Here it is; there is no houfe of prayer like it: and where-ever you go, be it to a corner or a clofet, this houfe is at hand for you to run in to, that you may be accepted in the Beloved: and when you go in to this houfe of prayer, you fhall have whatever you afk, that the Father may be glorified in the Son, John xiv. 13.

(10.) He is the praifing-houfe for the gathering of the people to: "Bleffed are they that dwell in thy houfe, they will be still praifing thee," Pfalm lxxxiv. 4. And, indeed, the farther you go into the houfe of prayer, the more will you find it to be the house of praife. Much praife, and honour, and glory in the higheft, does God get in this house; whereas, people out of this houfe, do nothing but difhonour and affront him.

But

Bat, O may all the people praife him, by gathering in to this houfe! O what notable houfing is there here for the people! Therefore, let the gathering of the people be to him.

(11.) In a word, he is the meeting-houfe with God; "There will I meet with thee, even on the mercy-feat,. between the cherubims," Exodus xxv. 22. Here is houfe room for all the people. There is a fign hung up over the door of the houfe, with this infcription," Whofoever will, let him come," Rev. xxii. 17.

8. Confider there is a gathering-place for the people in the Lord Jefus, with a wHAT THOUGH Written below the infcription.

(1.) What though you have never come in to this day, yet now you are welcome to come in, though you have been ftanding without all your days till now; it is come to the eleventh and laft hour; "Why stand ye here all the day idle?" Matth. xx. 6. He calls you in to his working-houfe.

(2.) What though you have played the harlot with many lovers, yet there is place in him for your gathering to; Jer. iii. 1. "Yet return unto me, faith the Lord." Yea, Ifa. i. 18. " Though your fins be as fcarlet, they fhall be white as fnow; though they be red as crimson, they fhall be as white as wool." Have you been a drunkard, a fwearer, an unclean perfon, &c.? Why, "Such were fome of you, but you are wafhed, juftified and fanctified," &c. Read 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10, II.

(3.) What though you have been untoward and untractable hitherto, yet there is place in him for your gathering to "For the iniquity of his covetoufnefs was I wroth, and fmote him; I hid me and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his own heart; yet I have feen his ways, and will heal him," Ifa. lvii. 17.

(4.) What though you have been making God to ferve with your fins, and wearying him with your iniquity, yet there is place in him for your gathering to him; for, behold what he fays, even with refpect unto fuch," I, even I, am he that blotteth out thine iniquity for mine own fake, and will not remember thy fins.Put me in remembrance," Ifa. xliii. 25, 26.