What if, by means of it, God's salvation be made known, and his name be glorified? What if many who have immortal souls, now sunk in ignorance and sin, " be turned by means of it from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God ?" What if, by the erection of an altar here, there be in this place some- what effected towards the accomplishment of that promise, " In that day shall there be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord : and it shall be for a sign and for a witness to the Lord in the land of Egypt ; for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a Saviour, and a Great One, and he shall deliver themg?" Should God so honour this place, and so testify his acceptance of the sacrifices that shall here be offered, how will they bless him, who have been born to God in this place ! and how will they bless him, who have been his honoured instruments of erecting an altar here, and of consecrating it to his service !
What now remains, but that I endeavour to im- prove this joyful occasion for the benefit of those who hear me ?
Are there any here who are bowed dozen under a sense of sin ? Peradventure, though you may have come hither only to witness a novelty, God has brought you hither to speak peace unto your souls, and to anoint you to the possession of a kingdom, when you have no more contemplated such an event than Saul did, when he was in the pursuit of his father's asses. Know ye of a truth, that God is in this place, though ye may not be aware of it. Know, that he is a God of love and mercy, as much as ever he was in the days of old. Know that he has still the same right to dispense his blessings to whom- soever he will, even to the very chief of sinners. Know that he has not only the same communication with men as ever through the instrumentality of angels, but that he has access to the souls of men by his Holy Spirit, who is ready to impart unto you all
s Isai. xix. 19, 20.
45.] Jacob's pillar at beth-el. 237
the blessings of grace and glory. Know that the Seed promised to Jacob has come into the world, even the Lord Jesus Christ ; and that he has fulfilled all that is necessary for our salvation. He has expi- ated our guilt by his own blood upon the cross ; and has made reconciliation for us with our offended God ; so that through Him all manner of sin shall be forgiven unto men, and " all who believe in him shall be justified from all things." O Beloved, only look unto Him, and whatever were the load of guilt under which you groaned, you should find rest and peace unto your souls : " Where sin had abounded, His grace should much more abound :" and " though your sins were as scarlet, they should be as wool ; though they were red like crimson, they should be white as snow."
It may be that some one may have come hither, who, though not particularly bowed down with a sense of guilt, is oppressed with a weight of personal or domestic troubles. Who can tell ? God may have brought such an one hither this day, in order to fill his soul with heavenly consolations. O that, if such an one be here, God may now appear unto him as a reconciled God, and " say unto him, I am thy sal- vation ! " O that by the word now spoken in God's name, there may this day be " given unto him beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the gar- ment of praise for the spirit of heaviness ; that he may become a tree of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, and that God may be glorified !" You have done well that you have come hither; for it is in the house of prayer that God pours out more abundantly upon men the blessings of grace and peace : " He loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob." Thousands and millions of afflicted souls have found in God's house such discoveries of his love, and such communications of his grace, as they before had no conception of: and you at this hour, if you will lift up your soul to God in earnest prayer, and cast all your burthens upon him, shall say before you go hence, " This is the house of God : this is