THE PERPETUITY AND EXCELLENCY OF CHRISt's KINGDOM.
Ps. Ixxii. 17. His name shall endure for ever : his 7iame shall he continued as long as the sun : and men shall he blessed in him : all nations shall call him Messed.
NONE of the Prophets, except Isaiah, have writ- ten so copiously and so plainly respecting Christ as David. His prophecies are very frequently referred to in the New Testament ; and their accomplishment in Jesus is frequently asserted, incontestably proved, and copiously illustrated. The psalm before us was most probably the last that David penned. It was written at the close of his life, on occasion of Solo- mon's coronation. The dying monarch hearing tliat
G21.1 PERPETUITY OF CHRISt's KINGDOM. 541
his son Adonijah had usurped his throne, gave imme- diate orders that Solomon should be anointed with the holy oil, and placed upon the throne, and be proclaimed king throughout all his dominions ; that by this means his oath to Bathsheba, respecting the succession of Solomon, might be fulfilled, and the nation be rescued from the calamities in which a disputed succession might involve if*. The psalm begins with a prayer for Solomon, and proceeds to foretell the peace, glory, extent, duration, and hap- piness of his government. But beyond, a doubt, a greater than Solomon is here : the Messiah himself is manifestly referred to : and the words of our text must be considered as describing his kingdom :
I. Its perpetuity —
[The names, not of the Jewish monarchs only, but also of many heroes of antiquity, have been handed down to us, and probably will be transmitted to the latest generations. But there are several points of view in which the remembrance of Jesus' name differs widely from that of any other person whatever.
It is transmitted to us in a ivay of filiation. — Other names come down to us by means of historic records : but that of our blessed Lord " is continued," or propagated (as the word means) in the same way as the name of a father is continued in his children. Children were born to him by the preaching of his Gospel ; and, after him, were called Christians : from that period, others have risen up, in constant succession, to perpe- tuate his name : nor shall the line ever be broken : " instead of the fathers there shall be children, who shall make his name to be remembered in all generations'*."
It is heard ivith the same regard that it ever zvas. — There was a time when the name of Ctesar or of Alexander made whole nations tremble : but who fears them now ? What is their love or their hatred unto us ? Wliat is Solomon himself to us ? We admire his character ; but for his person we have no regard. But it is not thus with the sacred name of Jesus. We tremble at it with a holy awe ; we love it, as expressing all that is amiable and endearing. We dread his displeasure above all tilings, and covet his favour more than life itself. And as long as the sun shall continue its course, so long shall the name of Jesus be venerated and adored.
It " endures" in spite of all the endeavours that have been
a 1 Kings i. 33—35. ^ Ps. xlv. 16, 17. and cxlv. 4—6.