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devil's service; it was a great aggrava- ever ready to discover and forewarn dantion of Peter's sin, that the voice of a poor ger; he must have the voice of the cock, maid that kept the door should be of to cry aloud, to tell Israel of their sin, to more force to overcome him, than his terrify the roaring lion of hell, and make faith in Jesus to sustain him. But what him tremble, as they say the natural lion shall we say? small things are sufficient does; in a word, he must observe the to cast us down, if God doth not help us hours of the cock, to crow at all seasons; up; we sink under any burden, if God to preach the word in season and out of sustain us not; and yield to the least season. Again, 2. The more principal temptation, if he leaves us to ourselves; a means of St. Peter's recovery were damsel shall then make a disciple shrink, Christ's looking upon Peter, and Peter's and a door-keeper shall be able to drive remembering the words of Christ. an apostle before her. This is the ac- Christ's looking upon Peter; our Saviour count, in short, of St. Peter's fall, consi- looked upon Peter, before either Peter dered in itself, and with the circum- looked upon our Saviour or upon himself. stances relating to it. Now follows his re- O wonderful act of love and grace towards covery and rising again by repentance; this fallen disciple. Christ was now and here we have observable, The sud- upon his trial for his life, (a time when our denness of his repentance, the means of thoughts would have been wholly taken his repentance, and the manner of his up about ourselves,) but even then did repentance. Observe, 1. The suddenness Christ find leisure to think upon Peter, to of St. Peter's repentance: as his sin was remember his disconsolate disciples, to sad, so was his repentance speedy; sin turn himself about and give him a pitiful committed by surprise, and through the but piercing look, even a look that melted prevalency of a temptation that suddenly and dissolved him into tears. We never assaults us, is much sooner repented of, begin to lament our sins till we are first than where the sin is presumptuous and lamented by our Saviour; Jesus looked deliberate. David's murder and adultery upon Peter, that was the first more princiwere deliberate acts of sin, in which he pal means of his repentance. But, 2. lay almost twelve months, without any The other means was Peter's remembersolemn repentance for them. St. Peter'sing the words of the Lord, Before the cock denial was hasty and sudden, under a violent pang and passion of fear, and he takes the warning of the cock's crowing, to go forth speedily and weep for his transgressions. Observe, 2. The means of his repentance, which was two-fold: the less principal means was the crowing of the cock: the more principal means were Christ's looking upon Peter, and Peter remembering the words of Christ. The less principal means of St. Peter's rising and recovery by repentance, was the crowing of the cock: as the voice of the maid occasioned him to sin, so the voice of the cock occasioned him to reflect. That God who always can work without means, can ever, when he pleases, work by weak and contemptible means, and open the mouth of a bird or a beast for the conversion of a man. But why does our Lord make use of the crowing of a cock, as a means of bringing St. Peter to repentance? There is ever some mystery in Christ's institutions and instruments; the cock was a preacher, to call St. Peter to his duty, there being something of emblem between a cock and a preacher; the preacher ought to have the wings of the cock, to rouse himself from drowsiness and security, and to awaken others to a sense of their duty; he must have the watchfulness of the cock, to be

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crow thou shalt deny me. Now this remembrance was an applicative and feeling remembrance; he remembered the prediction of Christ, and applied it sensibly to himself; teaching us, that the efficacy of Christ's word, in order to sound repentance, depends not upon the historical remembrance of it, but upon the close application of it to every man's conscience. Observe, 3. The manner of St. Peter's repentance; it was secret, it was sincere, it was lasting, and abiding. 1. It was secret; he went out and wept, Vere dolet, qui sine teste dolet; he sought a place of retirement, where he might mourn in secret; solitariness is most agreeable to an afflicted spirit; yet I must add, that as St. Peter's sorrow, so probably his shame, might cause him to go forth and weep. Christ looked upon him, and how ashamed must he be to look upon Christ, seeing he had so lately denied that he had ever seen him! 2. St. Peter's repentance was sincere; he wept bitterly: his grief was extraordinary, and his tears abundant; there is always a weeping that must fol low sin; sin must cost the soul sorrow, either here or in hell; we must now either mourn awhile, or lament forever. Doubtless St. Peter's tears were joined with hearty confession of sin to God, and smart reflections on himself, after this manner:

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Observe here, The vile affronts, the horrid abuses, the injuries and indignities, which were put upon the holy and innocent Jesus in the day of his sufferings: the rude officers and servants spit in his their hands, and, in contempt and scorn, face, blindfolded his eyes, smote him with bid him prophesy who it was that smote him. Verily, there is no degree of contempt, no mark of shame, no kind of suffering, which we ought to decline for Christ's sake, who hid not his face from shame and spitting upon our account.

"Lord, what have I done! I a disciple; I 63 And the men that held Jesus an apostle; I that did so lately acknowledge mocked him, and smote him. my master to be Christ the Lord; I that And when they had blindfolded him, spoke with so much assurance, Though all men deny thee yet will not I: Ithat pro- they struck him on the face, and asked mised to lay down my life for his sake; him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that yet have I denied him, yet have I, with smote thee? 65 And many other oaths and imprecations, disowned him, things blasphemously spake they and this at the voice of a damsel, not at the sight of a drawn sword presented at against him. my breast! Lord, what weakness, what wickedness, what unfaithfulness, have I been guilty of! O that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep all my days for the fault of this one night." Thus may we sup pose our lapsed apostle to have bemoaned himself: and happy was it for him that he did so; for blessed are the tears of a converted revolter, and happy is the misery of a mourning offender. Observe, 3. St. Peter's repentance was not only secret and sincere, but lasting and abiding; he retained a very quick sense and lively remembrance of this sin upon his mind all his life after. Ecclesiastical history reports, that ever after, when St. Peter heard the crowing of the cock, he fell upon his knees and wept. Others say, that he was wont to rise at midnight and spend the time in prayer and humiliation between cock-crowing and day-light. And the Papists, who delight to turn every thing into folly and superstition, first began that practice of setting up what we call weathercocks upon towers and steeples, to put people in mind of St. Peter's fall and repentance by that signal. Lastly, St. Peter's repentance was attended with an extraordinary zeal and forwardness for the service of Christ, to the end of his days. He had a burning love towards the holy Jesus ever after, which is now improved into a seraphic flame: Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee, says he himself, John xxi. 17. And as an evidence of it, he fed Christ's sheep; for in the Acts of the Apostles, we read of his extraordinary diligence to spread the gospel, and his travels in order thereunto, are computed by some to be nine hundred and fifty miles. To end all; have any of us fallen with Peter, though not with a formal abjuration, yet by a practical denying of him, let us go forth and weep with him, let us be more vigilant and watchful over ourselves for the time to come: let us express more fervent love and zeal for Christ, more diligence in his service, more concernedness for his honour and glory: this would be an happy improvement of this example; God grant it may have that blessed effect!

66 And as soon as it was day, the elders of the people and the chief priests and the scribes came together, and led him into their council, 67 Saying, Art thou the Christ? tell us. And he said unto them, If I tell you, ye will not believe: 68 And if I also ask you, ye will not answer me, nor let me go. 69 Hereafter shall the Son of man sit on the right hand of the power of God. 70 Then said they ali, Art thou the Son of God? And he said unto them, Ye say that I am. 71 And they said, What need we any further witness? for we ourselves have heard of his own mouth.

Observe here, 1. Christ was judged and tried before a court that had no authority to judge or try him, ver. 66. They led him into their council. This was their great Sanhedrim or ecclesiastical court, which, according to its first constitution, was to consist of seventy grave, honourable, and learned men, who were to judge impartially for God, according to Numb. xi. 16. But this, alas! consisted of a malicious pack of scribes and Pharisees; men full of malice and revenge, and over these Caiaphas now presided; an head fit for such a body. But though there was at our Saviour's trial a face of a court amongst them, yet their power was much abridged by the Romans, so that they could not hear nor determine, neither judge nor condemn, in capital matters. Observe next, The indictment of blasphemy is brought in against him: What need

we any further witness? we have heard his blasphemy. Abominable wickedness! It is not in the power of the greatest and most unspotted innocency to protect from slander and false accusation. Observe

farther, The great meekness of our Saviour under all these ill suggestions and false accusations: as a lamb before the shearers, so is he dumb, and openeth not his mouth. Learn thence, That to bear the revilings, contradictions, and false accusations of men, with a silent and submissive spirit, is an excellent and Christ-like temper. Though a trial for his innocent life was now managed most maliciously and illegally against him, yet when he was reviled, he reviled not again: when he suffered, he threatened not. O may the same meek and humble mind be in us, which was also in Christ Jesus, who instead of reviling his accusers, prayed for his murderers, and offered up his blood to God on the behalf of them that shed it! Lord Jesus, help us to set thy instructive example continually before us, and to be daily correcting and reforming our lives by that blessed pattern. Amen.

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CHAP. XXIII.

nothing. 10 And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused him. 11 And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate. 12 And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity be tween themselves.

In this chapter we have a relation of the blackest and saddest tragedy that ever was acted upon the stage of the world, namely, the barbarous and bloody murder of the holy and innocent Jesus, by the Jews his own countrymen; the best of kings put to death by his own subjects. And the first step towards it is his arraignment before Pilate and Herod; they post him from one to another; Pilate sends him to Herod, and Herod having made sufficient sport with him, remands him back to Pilate: neither of them find any fault in him worthy of death, yet neither of them would release him. Here observe, That our Saviour being before Pilate, answers him readily and cautiously: Art thou the King of the Jews? says Pilate, Thou sayest it, says our Saviour. Art thou the Christ, the Hence, says the apostle, 1 Tim. vi. 13. Son of the Blessed? He replied, I am. That Jesus Christ before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession. Teaching us, That though we may, and sometimes ought to hold our peace when our reputation is concerned, yet we must never be silent when the honour of God and his truth may be effectually promoted by a free and full confession; yet it is farther observable, That our Saviour being before Herod, would neither answer him to any question, nor work any miracle before him. This was an instance of our Lord's great ha mility, in refusing to work miracles before Herod, who desired it only to` gratify his

ND the whole multitude of them arose, and led them unto Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King. 3 And Pilate asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? and he answered him and said, Thou sayest it. 4 Then said Pilate to the chief priests and to the people, I find no fault in this man. 5 And they were the more fierce, saying, He stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry, beginning from Galilee to this place. 6 When Pilate curiosity. Thus do vile men abuse the heard of Galilee, he asked whether the holy power of God, desiring to see it exman were a Galilean. 7 And as soon erted for admiration and pastime; not to as he knew that he belonged unto He- be convinced or converted by it, but only rod's jurisdiction, he sent him to He- to please their foolish fancy. And as adrod, who himself also was at Jerusa-mirable was the patience as the humility lem at that time. 8 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he had heard many things of him: and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him. 9 Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him

neither at Herod's request, nor at the of Christ, and his present silence, who Jews' importunity and false accusations, could be moved to answer anything. Observe farther, That though Herod had murdered Christ's forerunner, John the Baptist, and our Saviour's own life was in danger by Herod heretofore, yet now he has him in his hands, he lets him go; only he first abuses him, and mocks him,

and arrays him in a gorgeous robe, like all of them and of the chief priests, premock-king. Thus were all the marks of vailed. 24 And Pilate gave sentence scorn imaginable put upon our dear Re- that it should be as they required. 25 deemer; yet all this jeering and sportful shame did our Lord undergo, to show what And he released unto them him that was due unto us for our sins; and also to for sedition and murder was cast into give us an example to bear all the shame prison, whom they had desired; but and reproach imaginable for his sake; he delivered Jesus to their will. who for the joy that was set before him, deObserve spised the shame, Heb. xii. 2. lastly, The wicked accusation brought in against our blessed Redeemer; We found (say they) this fellow perverting the nation, O forbidding to give tribute to Cesar. hellish untruth! How directly contrary to the whole course and tenor of Christ's life was this accusation! By his doctrine he preached up subjection to governors and government; saying, Render to Cesar the things that are Cesar's. And by his practice he confirmed his own doctrine, working a miracle to pay tribute to Cesar. Satan could help them to draw up an indictment as black as hell, against the innocent Jesus; but all the powers of hell and darkness could not prove a tittle of it.

13 And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, 14 Said unto them, ye have brought this man unto me as one that perverteth the people and, behold, I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man, touching those things whereof ye accuse him: 15 No, nor yet Herod for I sent you to him: and, lo, nothing worthy of death is done unto him. 16 I will therefore chastise him, and release him. 17 (For of necessity he must release one unto them at the feast.) 18 And they cried out all at once, saying, away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas: 19 (Who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for murder, was cast into prison.) 20 Pilate, therefore, willing to release Jesus, spake again to them. 22 But they cried, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. 22 And he said unto them the third time, Why, what evil hath he done? I have found no cause of death in him I will therefore chastise him, and let him go. 23 And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. And the voices

Observe here, 1. How unwilling, how very unwilling, Pilate was to be an instrument of our Saviour's death. One while he expostulates with the chief priests, saying, What evil hath he done? Nay, St. Luke here declares, that Pilate came forth three several times, professing that he found no fault in him. Where note, How much more justice and equity Christ met with from Pilate, a heathen, than from the chief priests and people of the Jews, professing the true religion. O how desperate is the hatred that grows upon the root of religion! Learn hence, That hypocrites within the church may be guilty of such tremendous acts of wickedness, as the consciences of infidels and pagans without the church may boggle at and protest against. Pilate, a pagan, absolves Christ, whilst the hypocritical Jews, that heard his doctrine and saw his miracles, do condemn him. Observe,

2. How Pilate at last suffers himself to be overcome with the importunity of the Jews, and delivers the holy and innocent Jesus, contrary to his judgment and conscience, to the will of his murderers. It is a vain apology for sins, when persons pretend that they are not committed with their own consent, but at the instigation and importunity of others: for such is the frame and

constitution of man's soul, that none can make a man wicked without his own consent; it was no extenuation of Pilate's sin, no alleviation of his punishment, that to please the people he delivered our Saviour, contrary to the directions of his own conscience, to be crucified. Observe, 3. The person whose life the wicked Jews preferred before the life of the holy Jesus; Barabbas; we will that thou release Barabbas, and deliver Jesus. Mark these hypocritical high priests, who pretended such a zeal for God and religion; they prefer the life of a person guilty of the highest immoralities and debaucheries, even murder and sedition, before the best man that ever lived in the world. But whence sprang the malice and hatred of the high priests, and people of the Jews, against our Saviour? Why, plainly from hence, Christ interpreted the law of God more stricty than their lusts could bear; and he lived a more holy, useful, and excellen.

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life than they could endure. Now nothing || enrages the men of the world more against the professors, but especially the preachers of the gospel, than holiness of doctrine, and strictness of life and conversation. Such as preach and live well, let them expect such enmity and opposition, such malice and persecution, such sufferings and trials, as will shock an ordinary patience and constancy of mind. Our Master met with it; let his zealous ministers prepare for it.

26 And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus.

The sentence of death being passed by Pilate, who can with dry eyes behold the sad pomp of our Saviour's execution! Forth comes the blessed Jesus out of Pilate's gates, bearing that cross which was soon after to bear him. With this cross on his shoulder, he marches towards Golgotha; and when they see he can go no faster, they compel Simon of Cyrenia, not out of compassion, but indignation, to bear his cross. The Cyrenian being a Gentile who bore Christ's cross, some think thereby was signified, that the gentiles should have a part in Christ, as well

as the Jews, and be sharers with them in the benefits of the cross.

your sorrows for the calamities coming upon yourselves and your children.” It is very probable, that the tears and lamentations of many of these mourners were but the fruits of tender nature, not the effects of faith, and flowing from a principle of grace. Learn thence, That melting affections and sorrows, even from the sense of Christ's sufferings, are not infal lible marks of grace. The history of Christ's sufferings are very tragical and pathetical, and may melt ingenuous nature, where there is no renewed principle of grace. These motions of the affections may rather be a fit and mood, than the very frame and temper of the soul. There are times and seasons when the roughest and most obdurate heart may be pensive and tender; but that is not its temper and frame, but only a fit, a pang, a transient passion. There is no inferring or concluding then a work of grace upon the heart, simply and barely from the movings or meltings of the affections. Nature will have its good moods, but grace is steady: Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, says Christ.

32 And there were also two others, malefactors, led with him to be put to death. 33 And when they were come to the place which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors; one on the right hand, and the other on the left.

Here we see the infamous company

that our holy Lord suffered with; fwo thieves. It had been a sufficient disparagement to our blessed Saviour, to be sorted with the best of men; but to be number

indignity as confounds our thoughts: this was designed by the Jews to dishonour

27 And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. 28 But Jesus, turning unto them, said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for your-ed with the scum of mankind, is such an selves, and for your children. 29 For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps that never gave suck. 30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us, and to the hills, Cover us. 31 For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?

and disgrace our Saviour the more; and to persuade the world, that he was the greatest of offenders: but God overruled this, for fulfilling an ancient prophecy concerning the Messiah, Isa. liii. 12. And he was numbered with the transgressors.

34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

There were four sorts of persons which attended our Saviour at his crucifixion; the executioners that tormented him, the Christ had often preached the doctrine Jews that mocked him, the spectators and of forgiving enemies, and praying for lookers on, that marked him, and sympa- them; he practises it here himself in a thizing friends which lamented him: these most exemplary manner. Where note, 1. last Christ bespoke, Weep not for me, but The mercy desired and prayed for; and for yourselves; that is, "Weep rather up- that is, forgiveness. 2. The person desion your own account than mine: reservering that mercy, Christ, the dying Jesus.