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the original Hebrew or Greek. The addrefs of this verfe as it ftands in the Meffiab is, O thou that telleft good tidings, &c. as the Bishop of London has lately translated it. Zion and Jerufalem are confidered by the prophet, not as bringing, but as receiving good tidings; and the publisher of these good tidings is written with a feminine conftruction. The fense may be thus expreffed, "Let her that bringeth good tidings to Jerufalem and Zion, get up into the high mountains and lift up her voice." But the apoftrophe is more animated. That it was the custom in Ifrael for the women to publish and celebrate good news with fongs and inftruments is well known. We have an early instance in the book of Exodus. When the Lord had delivered them from the power of Pharaoh, and they faw their enemies, who had fo lately threatened them, dead upon the fea-fhore, Miriam, the fifter of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances; and Miriam anfwered them, Sing ye to the Lord for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider bath he thrown into the fea*. Sa afterwards,

Exod. xv. 20, 21.

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when David returned from the flaughter of the Philistines, the women came out to meet him and Saul, with tabrets and inftruments of mufic; and they answered one another as they played, Saul bath flain his thousands, and David his ten thousands*. Thus likewife, Deborah, in her fublime fong, represents the mother of Sifera†, and her women, finging alternately, from a confident, though vain expectation, that Sifera would return a conqueror. In my text, the prophet, in profpect of MESSIAH's appearance, fpeaks of it as an event fuited to excite a general joy. The gofpel (as the word imports) is good news, glad tidings indeed! the best news that ever reached the ears, or cheered the heart of man. The women are, therefore, called upon to proclaim his approach, on the tops of the hills and mountains, from whence they may be seen, and heard to the greatest advantage, for the fpreading of the tidings throughout the whole country. Zion is as a befieged city, but let her know that relief is at hand; say unto her, Bebold your God! The Lord God will come with a strong hand, or against the strong one,

* 1 Sam. xviii. 6, 7.

↑ Judges v. 28, 29. and

and his people shall know him as their shepherd, full of care, kindness, and power.

The promife of Immanuel, God with us, is now to be fpread like the morning from the tops of the mountains. The day is breaking, and this paffage prepares for the following, Arife, fhine, for thy light is come! The welcome news is to be difperfed from Jerufalem to Samaria, from Jew to Gentile, from one kingdom to another people, till all the nations and ends of the earth shall see the falvation of God*.

The caufes of this exultation arises from the character of MESSIAH, compared with the defign of his appearance, and this is anfwerable to the condition in which he finds mankind.

The deplorable state of fallen man by nature, is largely described both in the Old Testament and in the New. It may fuffice to take notice of three principal features, which characterize our whole fpecies, and apply to every individual of the race of Adam, until the grace of God, which bringeth falvation, affords relief. These are guilt, alienation of heart, and mifery.

Pfal. xcviii. 3.

1. Guilt.

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1. Guilt. All have finned. We are the creatures of God. He made us, and he ferves us. Our life, faculties, and comforts are all from him. He is therefore our great Lord, our fupreme benefactor. Of course we belong to him. His we are, and not our own. It follows that dependance, gratitude, fubmiffion, and obedience, are incumbent on us, as they must be upon all intelligent creatures, from the very nature of things. The relation which fubfifts between an infinitely wife and good Creator and his creatures, if capable of knowing him, neceffarily implies this fubjection. And the obligation is indiffoluble. But we have evidently broken this law of our creation. We have violated the order of God's government. We have implicitly, if not formally, renounced our allegiance, difowned his right over us, and fet up for ourselves. A dependant creature affecting independance; a worm prefuming upon its own power, making itself its own end; a rebel against the divine government, boafting of morality and goodness, and trusting to his own conduct to recommend him to the favour of his Maker; a being

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formed for immortality, propofing his whole happiness in things which he feels to be unfatisfying, knows to be uncertain, and from which he is confcious he muft, in a few years at most, be finally removed; these are folecisms which strongly prove the depravity, degeneracy, and demerit of man. It is poffible, that had we been wholly left to ourselves, we fhould never have been aware, while in this world, of the just and inevitable consequences of our rebellion. Having loft all right thoughts of God, and conceiving of him, as if he were altogether like ourselves, we might have felt neither fear nor remorfe. there is a revelation, by which we are informed of his determined purpose to avenge difobedience, and to vindicate the honour of his government; and we are affured, that he is not an indifferent spectator of our oppofition to his established order. His justice and truth are engaged to punish tranfgreffors, and our obnoxiousness to punishment, is what we mean by guilt. If the fcripture be true, there is no way of escape, unless he himself be pleased to appoint one. This he has done, and the declaration of this appointment is a of the good-tidings contained in my text.

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