7. Such as do not hallow God's name, but profane and dishonour it, God wdll pour contempt upon them ; though they be ever so great, and though clothed in purple and scarlet, yet they are abhorred of God, and their name shall rot. Though the name of Judas be in the Bible, and the name of Pon- tius Pilate be in the creed, yet their names stand there for infamy, as being traitors to the crown of heaven, Nahum i. 14., " I will make thy gi'ave, for thou art vile." It is spoken of Antiochus Epiphanes, he was a king and his name signifies illustrious, yet God esteemed him a vile person. To shew how base the wicked are in God's es- teem, he compares them to things most vile ; to chaflF, Ps. i. 4. ; to dross, Ps. cxix. 119.; and the filth that foams out of the sea, Isa. Ivii. 20. And as God doth thus vilely esteem of such as do not hallow his name, so he sends them to a vile place at last. Vagrants are sent to the house of correction : hell is the house of correction which the wicked are sent to when they die. Let all this prevail with us to hallow and sanctify God's name.
Quest. ff7iat may we do to honour and sanctify God's name ?
Ans. Let us get, 1 st. a sound knowledge of God ; 2d. a sincere love to God.
1. A sound knowledge of God; take a view of his superlative excellencies, — his holiness, — his incomprehensible goodness. The angels know God better than ^ve, therefore they sanctify his name, and sing hallelujahs to him. And let us labour to know him to be our God, Ps. xlviii. 14,, " This God is our God." We may dread God as a judge, but we cannot honour him as a father, till we know he is our God.
2. Get a sincere love to God, — a love of a])i)reciation, and a love of complacency to delight in him, John xxi. 15., " Lord, thou knowest I love thee." He can never ho- nour his master who doth not love him. The reason God's name is no more liallow- ed, is because his name is no more loved. So much for the fust petition.
OF THE SECOND PETITION IN THE LORD'S PUAYEll.
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OF THE SECOND PETITION IN THE LORD'S PRAYER.
Mat. vi. 10. Thy kingdom come.
A SOUL truly devoted to God joins liear • tily in tliis petition, adveniat regnum titum, — "thy kinfjdom come ;" in wliicli words this great truth is iiTij)lied, tlmt God is a kinj^. He who hath a kingdom, can be no less than a king, Ps. xlvii. 7., " God is the king of all the earth." And he is a king upon liis throne, Ps. xlvii. 8., " God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness." 1st. He hath a regal title, high and mighty, Isa. Ivii. 15., " Thus saith the high and lofty One." 2d. He hath the ensigns of royalty : his sword, Deut. xxxii. 41., " If I whet my glittering I sword." He hath his sceptre, Heb. i. 8., " A sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom." — Sd. He hath his crown royal, Rev. xix. 12., " On his head were many crowns." He hath his Jura regalia, — his kingly prerogatives ; he hath power to make laws, to seal pardons, which are the flowers and jewels belonging to his crown. Thus the Lord is king.
And, 2dly, He is a great king, Ps. xcv. 3., " A great king above all gods." He is great in, and of himself; and not like other kings, who are made great by their sub- jects. That he is so great a king appears, (1.) By the immcnseness of his being, Jer. xxiii. 21., "Do not I fill heaven and earth? Kaith the Lord." His centre is every where ; he is no where included, yet no where ex- cluded ; he is so immensely great, that " the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee," 1 Kings viii. 27. (2.) His greatness appears by the effects of his power, " Who made heaven and earth," Ps. cxxiv. 8., and can unmake it. God can with Ji breath crumble us to dust; with a word he can unpin the world, and break the axle-tree of it in pieces ; " he pours contempt upon princes," Job xii. 21., " He shall cut off the spirit of princes," Ps. Ixxvi. 12. He is Lord paramount, who doth whatever he will, Ps. cxv. 3., " He weigheth the moun- tains in scales, and the hills in a balance," Isa- xl. 12.
?ri/?/ God is a crlorious Kinor p^. xxiv