this evil, he would submit to any thing to deliver them from it. He calls God to witness, that he had nothing more sincerely at heart, than that, as they had already possessed, so they should ever continue to possess, the most distinguished tokens of God's love and favour.
In the words which we have just read, we may see,
I. The distinguished privileges of the Jewish people —
In setting these forth, the Apostle addresses them, not as strangers, but as " his brethren, his kinsmen, according to the flesh ;" and then records the dis- tinctions that had been conferred upon them ; specify- ing both those which had been bestowed for their own personal benefit, and those which had been conferred for the be?iefit of the whole world.
[They were " Israelites," descended from Jacob, who, in remembrance of his wrestling with the angel, and prevailing with God in prayer, was honoured with the name of Israel. " To them pertained the adoption," they, as a nation, being regarded as " God's first-born." To them had been vouch- safed " the glory," even that bright cloud, which was the symbol of the Deity ; which guided their forefathers through the wilderness, and afterwards abode both in the tabernacle and the temple, resting upon the ark, and residing between the cherubims, till the temple itself was destroyed by the Chaldean army. Theirs also were " the covenants;" both the covenant of grace, which was given to Abraham, and the national covenant, which was made with them in the time of Moses. To them had God also " given the law," proclaiming it with an audible voice from Mount Sinai, and delivering it to them written with his own finger upon tables of stone. To them also was vouchsafed the ceremonial law, comprehending every minute particular respecting " the service of God;" so that in no case whatever were they left in doubt how they should approach him with acceptance. The promises also were theirs, both those which related to the sending of the Messiah, and those which related to the possession of Canaan. " Theirs too were the fathers," Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, than whom none of the children of men had ever been more highly favoured with divine and heavenly communications. But to these benefits, which may be considered as personal, we must add that which infinitely exceeds them all, and in which the whole world are interested, namely, that " of them, as con- cerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for
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