' Melchizedek was a king and a priest ; Christ was more — a priest, a prophet, and a king ; Samuel was a priest and a prophet ; David was a king and a prophet : but never met all three in any but in Christ aloue.
374 THE COVENANT OF REDEMPTION
and set apart to that function ; and thus was our Lord Jesus Christ made a high-priest. He had never undertaken that office had he not been ordained to it by his Father. But, that you may see Christ's threefold commission to his threefold office, consider,
[1.] First, that God the Father promiseth to Jesus Christ an ex- cellent, royal and eternal priesthood : Heb. vii. 21, ' For those priests were made without an oath ; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec ;' Heb. ii. 17, 18 ; Ps. ex. 4. Among the Jews, in the times of the old testament, they had a high-priest, that was in all things to stand between God and them ; and in case any sinned, to make an atonement for them. Now look, as the Jews had their high-priest, so the Lord Jesus Christ, he was to be, and he is, the apostle and the high-priest of our Christian profession, as Aaron was of the Jews' profession. The priestly office of Jesus Christ is erected and set up, on purpose for the relief of poor distressed sinners.i The work of the high-priest, is to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. In the times of the old testament, the high-priest made an atonement for the people. In case any man had sinned, he brought a sacrifice, and his sins were laid upon the head of the sacrifice. Once every year, the high-priest did enter into the Holy of holies, and with the blood of the sacrifice, did sprinkle the mercy-seat, and laid the sins of the people upon the head of the scape-goat, and so made an atonement for the people, as is clear in that, Lev. xvi. 14, ' He shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger, upon the mercy-seat eastward : and before the mercy-seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times ;' and at ver. 21, ' Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, and all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness ; and so he shall make an atonement.' This was the work of the high-priest, in case any had sinned, to make an atonement and satisfaction, by the way of type, for the sins of the people The main scope of the apostle in that, Heb. vii., is to advance Christ his priest- hood above the Levitical priesthood, in order to which he premiseth this, that those ' priests were made without an oath,' ver. 20. The apostle's third argument to prove the excellency of Christ's priesthood above the Levitical, is taken from the different manner of instituting the one and the other. Christ's institution was more solemn than the
^ Heb. iii. 1. By the way, you may take notice that the whole body of Antichristianism is but an invasion upon the priestly office of Christ. What is the popish mass, that unbloody sacrifice, but a derogation from the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, once upon the cross ; and so a derogation from his priestly office ? What are all those popish penances and satisfactions enjoined, but a derogation unto the satisfaction of Christ; and so unto the priestly office of Christ ? What is all their praying to saints and angels, but a dero- gation unto the intercession of Christ; and so unto the priestly office ? God deputes Christ to his priestly office, as God and man ; yet papists say that Christ is a priest only in his human nature. God saith to his Son, ' Thou art a priest;' yet they make many priests. God makes his Son a priest for ever ; yet they substitute others in his room. God gave Christ to oflfer up but one sacrifice, and that but once; but they every day offer up many sacrifices in the mass. God gave Christ to offer up himself; but they offer up bread and wine, upon pretence that it is the body and blood of Christ. Christ's sacrifice was a bloody sacrifice; but they style theirs an unbloody sacrifice.
VERY CLEARLY AND LARGELY OPENED. 375