was God®;" that " He made all things ; and that without him nothing was made that was made," Here then we have the precise language of oiir text applied to the Son of God, who was from all eternity " in the bosom of the Father V' concur- ring with him in all that ever he planned or executed s.
How he was occupied in the concerns of men, is familiar to all our minds. Truly " his delights were with the sons of men," whom he determined to rescue from perdition, and to " redeem unto God by his own blood." This was " the joy that was set before him, for which he engaged to endure the cross, and despised all the shame that should ever be poured upon him''." No sacrifice was too great for him to make. Was it necessary that satisfaction should be made for all the breaches of God's law ; and that the very nature that had sinned should suffer? He willingly engaged to lay aside his own glory, and to assume our nature, in order that he might suffer, and, by suffering in our stead, " make reconciliation for our iniquities."
In ?/ndersfnndinq this mysterious office, he was filled, as his Father also teas, with ineffable delight. What joy the thought of ransoming our fallen race excited in his bosom, we are told by the Psalmist : for when it v/as declared by the Father, " with whom the council of peace was held'," that all creature- sacrifices would be insufficient for the occasion, he instantly replied, " Lo, I come ; (I, thy co-equal, co-eternal Son, come :) I delight to do thy will, O my God ! yea, thy law is within my heart''." A corresponding joy sprang up also in the Father's breast ; as the prophet Isaiah tells us ; for in the con- templation of the future accomplishment of this mystery, the Father, looking with infinite complacency on his Son who had undertaken the office, and on his people as accepted in and through him, said, " Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth' !" And, at the time when he bore an audible testimony to his Son from heaven, it was in these words, " This is that my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased™." Thus, in reference to this great event, it is said in our text, " I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him :" and in reference to the same we mvist understand that declaration of our Lord himself, " Thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world "."]
Thus, whether we understand the address as made to us by IVisdom persomjied, or Wisdom incarnate, we cannot but feel a deep interest in all that it has spoken to us, and set ourselves carefully to ascertain,
" John i. 1—3. with Hcb. i. 10, f John i. 18.
g Jolm v. 19. and x. 38. ^ Heb. xii. 2.
i Zech. vi.l3. k Pg. xl. G— 8. with Heb. x. Tj— 9. ' Isai. xlii. 1. ^ Matt. iii. 17. See the Greek. » Johnxvii.24.
770, J wisdom's address to men. 83
II. Our duty in reference to it —
Doubtless we should " hearken to its voice," and with child-like simplicity receive its loving instruc- tions. We should,
1. Delight ourselves in the contemplation of wis- dom—
[Wisdom generally, wisdom universally, should be the object of our continual pursuit : " through a desire of attain- ing it, we should separate ourselves, and seek, and intermeddle with all wisdom"." The works of creation should, as far as we have a capacity for such subjects, be investigated by us, in order to excite our admiration of that wisdom by which they were framed. The order and harmony of the heavenly bodies, the beauty and richness of this terraqueous globe, the exquisite workmanship) of the human frame, together with the powers and faculties of our immortal souls, all open to us such inex- haustible stores of wisdom and knowledge, as, if duly explored, will strike with reverential awe the humble inquirer, and fill with devoutest gratitude the admiring soul. The works of Providence also, if once we are enabled to view them in their mutual relation and dependence, will transport the soul with wonder, and overwhelm it with the deepest sense of gratitude. No book in the universe, except the Bible, will convey half so much instruction to the mind, as may be gathered from a man's own experience of God's dealings with him, especially in the concurrence of his providence with the operations of his grace: and the man who has learned to read this book, and become conversant with its contents, has accjuired " secrets of wisdom, which are double p," yea, which are tenfold greater than any which are known to the merely natural man. God has said, that " he has abounded towards his people in all wisdom and prudence 1;" but " his secrets are with those alone who fear him*':" none others are at all able to appreciate his love : that " knowledge is plain only to him that vulderstandeth^"