it is the avowed purpose of the divine counsels, that of the increase of it there shall be no end. The Lord hath said unto me, thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee; ask of me and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. *

Now, concerning this King, this then expected Messiah, it is said in the text that He shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment; that is, His government shall be just and equitable throughout the whole extent of His dominions. It is the fate of earthly sovereigns, that however pure their intentions and however just their laws, they cannot ensure the righteous execution of them. The benevolent purposes of the supreme power have often been perverted by those who were appointed to carry them into effect. But in the kingdom of the Messiah it is not so: His Spirit shall be every where present: His princes shall rule in judgment.

This righteousness of the Messiah, or the equity of his government, may be explained in reference to the enemies of His church, to the church itself, and to the individuals who compose it. Every act of His interposition is founded in

* Psalm ii. 7, 8.

justice, and is consistent with the purity of His holy nature.

Shall we speak of the enemies of His church and people? It is said to the Messiah in relation to them, Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron: thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.* Although the Son of Man came not to destroy men's lives but to save them:† although in the exercise of His personal ministry He endured the contradiction of sinners against himself, and exhibited to His followers a pure pattern of meekness and of love, yet in the government of His kingdom He visits determined hostility with awful retribution. Under the old dispensation, the realms which resisted the will of God were swept with the besom of destruction: § He gave the word, and entire armies were cut off by the destroying angel; and who shall say that the distress of nations, which we often witness in later days, may not probably be traced to the impenitence of the people and their unwillingness to submit to the yoke of Christ?

To what cause shall we ascribe the miseries, which even in this world

*Psalm ii. 9.

+ Luke ix. 56.

Heb. xii. 3.

§ Isa. xiv. 23.

F

have pursued the persecutors and oppressors of the church, the enemies of Christ and His gospel, but to the purpose of Him who reigns in righteousness? The same passages which tell of His mild and peaceful government assure us that He shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked.* The effect may be less visible, but it is not less awful, when sinners are left to the hardness of their own hearts; when God's Holy Spirit is withdrawn, and conscience, reposing in deceitful security, is a stranger to serious apprehension. The famine of the word of the Lord, and a determined carelessness about the welfare of the soul, are in many cases to be regarded as indications of righteous judgment, not less than the most afflictive external appointments of Divine Providence.

Shall we speak next of the church of Christ, and of those who compose it? The Messiah is represented as ruling over His kingdom, with a special reference to the church; to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. It is with a view to the increase and stability of it that He

* Isa. xi. 4.

+ Amos viii. 11.

↑ Isa. ix. 7.

controls the course of this world, and every event, whether in our estimation prosperous or adverse, which befalls His church, is wisely directed, and tends to the consummation of His righteous counsels. Such is the vigilance of the Messiah for His kingdom; such the care with which He watches over its interests; and, sometimes by trial and discipline, and sometimes by outward prosperity, demonstrates the righteousness of His reign. In the confidence of that protection, the church of old, amidst all its vicissitudes, greatly rejoiced; and the church in every age may adopt their language of exultation; God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble; therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.* Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness : God is known in her palaces as a sure refuge.† And this care is exercised over every part of His kingdom. With righteousness, it is said, shall He judge the poor: the poor in spirit, the meek in heart, these He will regard with favour and watch over them for good; they acknowledge Him as their Sovereign; and whatever be

* Ps. xlvi. 1, 2. + Ps. xlviii. 1-3.

Isaiah xi. 4.

their condition in this world, surely it shall be well with them.

And if we should confine ourselves merely to this general view of the kingdom of Christ, and of the manner in which it is administered, there is much to excite apprehension in one class of men, and much to inspire confidence and hope into another. Who that reflects upon the severity of His judgments would willingly provoke His anger? Who that contemplates His delight in His people, His readiness to hear, and His power to protect them, would not say with the Psalmist, Blessed are they that put their trust in Him?*

II. But the Prophet does not leave us with a general declaration concerning the reign of the Messiah, however instructive; he goes on to describe, by very beautiful imagery, and by some very striking particulars, the happiness of His subjects. And a man, or the man, shall be as a hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest: as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

The purport of this figurative language is to represent to us the Lord Jesus Christ, as a refuge to His people, from the evils and dangers to

*Ps. ii. 12.