god's faithfulness to his covenant engagements.
Isai. liv. 6 — 10. The Lord hath called thee as a ivoman for- saken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I for- saken thee ; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little ivrath I hid my face from thee for a moment ; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of Noah unto me : for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be ivroth ivith thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed ; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
THE covenant of grace, as securing to the believer all the blessings of time and eternity, is not con- sidered by any means so much as the importance of it demands. There is in the minds of the generality, a jealousy respecting it, so that they can scarcely bear to hear the subject stated as it is in the Holy Scrip- tures. But we must not conceal any thing ; and least of all should we keep back from you that which is the fountain and foundation of all the other bless- ings which you either have or hope for. Certain it is that there is a covenant, called in my text, " The co- venant of God's peace ;" the provisions of which are here set before us with singular force and clearness.
The whole passage may be considered,
I. In reference to the Jewish Church —
[To them it primarily refers. The Jewish Church is here represented as a repudiated wife, put away for her unfaithful- ness to her Maker, who calls himself "her husband8." Great and manifold were her offences against him : and most justly did she merit the displeasure with which on different occasions
a ver. .">.