334 AN EXPOSITION OF THE [CHAP. Iv.
must suffer no more, die no more, but only continue the work of his grace, in the preservation of the new creature, and orderly in- crease and propagation of it by the Spirit: (2.) In his delight and satisfaction which he taketh in his works, which Jesus Christ hath to the utmost. “ He sees of the travail of his soul, and is satisfied,” and is in possession of that “ glory which was set before him” whilst he was at his work.
From what hath-been spoken, I suppose it will appear plainly, to unprejudiced and impartial minds, that it is the person of Jesus Christ that is the subject here spoken of; and we shall confidently allow a supposition thereof to regulate our exposition of this verse. And there is considerable in it,—
First, The person spoken of, 6 cicerdwv, “ He that is entered into his rest;” that is, the Lord Jesus Christ, the builder of the church, the author of the new creation. And this gives an account of the causal connection, “for:” “There remaineth a sabbatism now for the people of God, for Christ is entered into his rest,”
Secondly, There are the works that this rest of his respects, which
it is said he hath “ceased” or “rested from.” These Ne Saeed ** words have been fully opened and declared on the third
and fourth verses of the third chapter, whither we re- fer the reader. All that he did and suffered, from his incarnation to his resurrection, as the mediator of the new covenant, with all the fruits, effects, and consequents of what he so did and suffered, be- long to these works.
Thirdly, There is the rest that he entered into to be considered.
Hereof we have seen before in general that there are EAE, two parts:—l. A cessation from his works; he hungered
no more, was tempted no more, in a word, ‘died no more. 2. A satisfaction in his works and the product of them. ‘This Christ had in his; whence he says, upon a view of their effects, “The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, 1 have a goodly heri- tage,” Ps. xvi. 6.
Fourthly, His entrance into his rest is in like manner proposed unto us. Now this was not his lying down in the grave. His body, indeed, there rested for a while; but that was no part of his media- tory rest, as the founder and builder of the church. For,—1. It was a part of his humiliation; not only his death, but his abode or con- tinuance in the state of death was so, and that a principal part of it. For after the whole human nature was personally united unto the Son of God, to have it brought into a state of dissolution, to have the body and soul separated from each other, was a great humilia- tion, And every thing of this sort belonged to his works, not his rest, 2. This separation of body and soul under the power of death
*O ticsrAbay.
VER. 10.] EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 335
was penal, part of the sentence of the law which he underwent, And therefore Peter declares that the pains of death were not loosed but in his resurrection, Acts ii, 24: “ Whom God,” saith he, “hath raised up, loosing the pains of death; because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.” Whilst he was held of it, he was under it penally. This therefore could not be his rest, nor any part of it; nor did he in it enter into his rest, but continued his work. Nor, secondly, did he first enter into his rest at his ascension. Then, in- deed, he took actual possession of his glory, as to the full public manifestation of it. But to enter into rest is one thing, and to take possession of glory another. And it is placed by our apostle as a remote consequent of the Lord Christ’s being “justified in the Spirit,” when he entered into his rest, 1 Tim. iii. 16. But this his entrance into rest was in, by, and at his resurrection from the dead. For,— 1. Therein and then was he freed from the sentence, power, and stroke of the law, and discharged of all the debt-of our sin, which he had undertaken to make satisfaction for, Acts ii. 24. Then and therein were all types, all prophecies and predictions fulfilled, that econéerned the work of our redemption. 3. Then indeed his work was done; I mean that which answered God’s creating work, though he still continueth that which answers his work of preservation, Then was the law fully satisfied, Satan absolutely subdued, peace with God made, the price of our redemption paid, and the whole foundation of the church gloriously laid in and upon his own person. Then “the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy.” 4,.Then and therein was he “declared to be the Son of God with power,” Rom. i. 4; God manifesting to all that this was he concerning and to whom he said, “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee,” Acts xii. 33. This might be further confirmed, but that, as I know, it is not much questioned. There- fore did the Lord Christ enter into his rest, after he had finished and ceased from his works, “on the morning of the first day of the week,” when he arose from the dead, the foundation of the new creation being laid and perfected.