To sum up the substance of this whole controversy: The sacrifice or offering of Christ was, 1. By hemself alone, through the eternal Spirit. 2. Was of his whole human nature, as to the matter of it. He made his soul an offering for sin. 3. Was by death and blood- shedding ; whereon its entire efficacy as unto atonement, reconcilia- tion, and the sanctification of the church, do depend. 4. Was once only offered, and could be so no more, from the glory of his person and the nature of the sacrifice itself. 5. Was offered with such glorious internal actings of grace as no mortal creature can com- prehend. 6. Was accompanied with his bearing the curse of the law and the punishment due unto our sins; which were taken away
392 AN EXPOSITION OF THE [CHAP. IX.
thereby. And in all this the human nature was supported, sus- tained, and acted by the divine in the same person; which gave the whole duty its efficacy and merit. - That pretended in the mass is, 1. Offered by priests, without him, or those which call themselves so; who therefore rather represent them by whom he was crucified than himself who offered himself alone. 2. Is only of bread and wine, which have nothing in them of the soul of Christ, allowing their transubstantiation. 3. Can have no influence into the remis- sion of sins, being confessedly wnbloody, whereas “without the shedding of blood there is no remission.” 4, Is often offered,—that is, every day; declaring a greater imperfection in it than was in the great expiatory sacrifice of the law, which was offered only once a year. 5, Requires unto it no grace in the offerer, but only an in- | tention to do his office.. 6. Doth in nothing answer the curse of the law, and therefore makes no atonement. Wherefore these things are so far from being the same sacrifice, as that they are oppo- site, inconsistent, and the admission of the one is the destruction of the other.
Some observations we may take from the text.
Obs. I. Such is the absolute perfection of the one offering of Christ, that it stands in need of, that it will admit of no repetition in any kind. Hence the apostle affirms that if it be despised or neglected, “there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin.” There is none of any other kind, nor any repetition to be made of itself, as there was of the most solemn legal sacrifices. Neither of them is con- sistent with its perfection. And this absolute perfection of the one offering of Christ ariseth, 1. From the dignity of his person, Acts xx, 28. There needs no new offering after that, wherein he who offered and who was offered was God and man in one person. The repetition of this offering is inconsistent with the glory of the wis- dom, righteousness, holiness, and grace of God, and would be utterly derogatory to the dignity of his person. 2. From the nature of the sacrifice itself: (1.) In the internal gracious actungs of his soul; He “offered himself unto God through the eternal Spirit.” Grace and obedience could never be more glorified. (2.) In the punish- ment he underwent, answering and taking away the whole curse of the law; any further offering for atonement is highly blasphemous. (3.) From the love of the Father unto him, and delight in him. As in his person, so in his one offering, the soul of God resteth and is well pleased. (4.) From its efficacy unto all the ends of a sacrifice. Nothing was ever designed therein but was at once accomplished by this one offering of Christ. Wherefore,—
Obs. II. This one offering of Christ is always effectual unto all the ends of it, even no less than it was in the day and hour when it was actually offered.Therefore it needs no repetition like those of
VER. 25.] EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 393
old, which could affect the conscience of a sinner only for a season, and until the incursion of some new sin. This is always fresh in the virtue of it, and needs nothing but renewed application by faith for the communication of its effects and fruits unto us. Wherefore,—
Obs. III. The great call and direction of the gospel is to guide
faith, and keep it up unto this one offering of Christ, as the spring of all grace and mercy.—This is the immediate end of all its ordi- nances of worship. In the preaching of the word, the Lord Christ is set forth as evidently crucified before our eyes; and in the ordi- nance of the supper especially is it represented unto the peculiar exercise of faith. * Secondly. But we must proceed to a brief exposition of the re- mainder of this verse. The one offering of Christ is not here pro- posed absolutely, but in opposition unto the high priest of the law, whose entrance into the holy place did not put an end unto his offering of sacrifices, but his whole service about them was to be annually repeated. This sacrifice of the high priest we have treated of before, and shall therefore now only open these words wherein it is expressed :—
1. The person spoken of is “the high priest;” that is, any one, every one that is so, or that was so in any age of the = “auwep é a church from the institution of that priesthood unto the *«F#* expiration of it. “As the high priest;” in like manner as he did.