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is the foundation of his fitness to be an undertaker on their behalf, and of the equity of their being made partakers of the benefits of his mediation,

4. That notwithstanding the union of nature, which is between the Son of God incarnate the sanctifier, and the children that are to be sanctified, there is in respect of their persons an inconceivable distance between them, so that it is a marvellous condescension in him to call them brethren,

5. That which was principally upon the heart of Christ in his sufferings, was to declare and manifest the love, grace and good will of God unto men, that they might come to an acquaintance with him, and acceptance before him,

6. That the Lord Christ as the Captain of our salvation, was ex-
posed in the days of his flesh unto great difficulties, anxieties of
mind, dangers and troubles,

7. The Lord Christ in all his perplexities and troubles, betook
himself unto the protection of God, trusting in him,
8. He both trusted and suffered as our head and precedent,

VERSES 14, 15.

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ib.

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1. That all sinners are subject unto death, as it is penal,
2. Fear of death as it is penal is inseparable from sin, before the
sinner is delivered by the death of Christ,

3. Fear of death as penal, renders the minds of men obnoxious un-
to bondage,

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4. That the Lord Christ out of his inexpressible love, willingly submitted himself unto every condition of the children to be saved by him, and to every thing in every condition of them, sin only excepted,

5. It was only in flesh and blood, the substance and essence of human nature, and not in our personal infirmities, that the Lord Christ was made like unto us,

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463

ib.

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6. That the Son of God should take part in human nature with the children, is the greatest and most admirable effect of divine love, wisdom and grace,

468

7. That the first and principal end of the Lord Christ's assuming human nature, was not to reign in it, but to suffer and die in it,

469

8. All the power of Satan in the world over any of the sons of
men, is founded in sin, and the guilt of death attending it,
9. All sinners out of Christ, are under the power of Satan,
10. The death of Christ, through the wise and righteous disposal
of God, is victorious, all-conquering and prevalent,
11. One principal end of the death of Christ, was to destroy the
power of Satan,

471

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475

VERSE 16.

1. The Lord Jesus Christ is truly God and man in one person,

433

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2. The redemption of mankind by the taking of our nature, was a work of mere sovereign grace,

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VERSES 17, 18.

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1. The promised Messiah was to be the great high priest of the
people of God,
2. The assumption of our nature, and his conformity unto us there-
in, was principally necessary unto the Lord Jesus, on the ac-
count of his being an high priest for us,

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3. Such was the unspeakable love of Christ unto the brethren, that he would refuse nothing, no condition that was needful to fit him for the discharge of the work which he had undertaken for them,

1. The principal work of the Lord Christ as our high priest, and from which all other actings of his in that office do flow, was to make reconciliation or atonement for sin,

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ib.

505

2. The Lord Christ suffered under all his temptations, sinned in none,

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3. Temptations cast souls into danger,

510

4. The great duty of tempted souls, is to cry out unto the Lord Christ for help and relief,

ib.

CHAPTER III.

VERSES 1, 2.

1. All the doctrines of the gospel, especially those concerning the person and offices of Christ, are to be improved unto practice in faith and obedience,

515

2. Dispensers of the gospel ought to use holy prudence in winning upon the minds and affections of those whom they are to instruct,

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3. Believers are all related unto one another, in the nearest and strictest bond of an equal relation,

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4. All true and real professors of the gospel are sanctified by the Holy Ghost, and made truly and really holy,

521

5. No man comes to an useful saving knowledge of Jesus Christ
in the gospel, but by virtue of an effectual heavenly calling,
6. The effectual heavenly vocation of believers is their great pri-
vilege, wherein they have cause to rejoice, and which always
ought to mind them of their duty unto him that hath called
them,

522

ib.

7. The spiritual mysteries of the gospel, especially those which concern the person and offices of Christ, require deep, diligent, and attentive consideration,

524

8. The business of God with sinners, could be no way transacted but by the negociation and embassy of the Son,

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9. Especial privileges will not advantage men, without especial grace,

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10. The Lord Christ is all in all in and unto his church, the king, priest and apostle, or prophet of it, all in one,

ib.

11. A diligent attentive consideration of the person, offices, and
work of Jesus Christ, is the most effectual means to free the souls
of men from all entanglements of errors and darkness, and to
keep them constant in the profession of the truth,
12. The union of believers lies in their joint profession of faith
in the person and offices of Christ, upon a participation in the
same heavenly calling,

543

13. The ordering of all things in the church, depends on the sovereign appointment of the Father,

14. The faithfulness of the Lord Christ in the discharge of the trust committed unto him, is the great ground of faith and assurance unto believers, in the worship of the gospel,

15. All things concerning the worship of God, in the whole church or house now under the gospel, are no less perfectly and completely ordered and ordained by the Lord Jesus Christ, than they were by Moses under the law,

VERSES 3-6.

1. Every one who is employed in the service of God in his house, and is faithful in the discharge of his work and trust therein, is worthy of honour: so was Moses,

553

ib.

ib.

ib.

562

2. That the Lord Christ is worthy of all glory and honour, upon the account of his thus building his church, the house of God, 573 3. The honour and glory of all that ever were, or ever shall be employed, in the work and service of the house of God, jointly and severally considered, is inferior, subordinate, and subservient to the glory and honour of Jesus Christ, the chief builder of the house,

that are

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4. The building of the church is so great and glorious a work, as that it could not be effected by any, but by him who is God, 591 5. The greatest and most honourable of the sons of men, employed in the work of God in his house, are but servants, and parts of the house itself,

593

6. The great end of all Mosaic institutions, was to present, or prefigure and give testimony unto, the grace of the gospel by Jesus Christ,

595

7. It is an eminent privilege to be of the house of Christ, or a part
of that house," whose house are we,"
8. The greatness of this privilege, requires an answerableness of
duty,

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9. In times of trial and persecution, freedom, boldness, and constancy in profession, are a good evidence unto ourselves that we are living stones in the house of God, and are duties acceptable unto him,

597

ib,

Doctrine
10. Interest in the gospel, gives sufficient cause of confidence and
rejoicing in every condition,

11. So many and great are the interveniences and temptations that
lie in the way of profession, so great is the number of them that
decay in it, or apostatize from it, that as unto the glory of God
and the principal discovery of its truth and sincerity, it is to be
taken from its permanency unto the end,

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PREFACE.

TRE general concernments of this Epistle, have all of them
been discussed and cleared in the preceding Exercitations and
Discourses. The things and matters confirmed in them, we
therefore here suppose, and take for granted. And some of
these are of such a nature, that without a demonstration of
them, a genuine and perspicuous declaration of the design of
the author, and of the sense of the Epistle, cannot be well
founded or carried on. Unto them therefore we must remit the
reader, who desires to peruse the ensuing Exposition with pro-
fit and advantage. But yet, because the manner of the hand-
ling of things in those Discourses, may not be so suited to the
minds of all who would willingly inquire into the Exposition
itself, I shall here make an entrance into it, by laying down
some such general principles and circumstances of the Epistle,
as may give a competent prospect into the design and argument
of the apostle, in the whole thereof.

First, The first of these concerns the persons whose instruc-
tion and edification in the faith is here aimed at. These in ge-
neral were the Hebrews, the posterity of Abraham, and the
only church of God before the promulgation of the gospel,
who in those days were distributed into three sorts, or par-
ties.

1st, Some of them believing in Christ through the gospel, were
perfectly instructed in the liberty given them from the Mosaic
law, with the foundation of that liberty, in the accomplishment
of that law, in the person, office, and work of the Messiah,
Acts ii. 41, 42.

2d, Some with their profession of faith in Christ as the pro-
mised Messiah, retained an opinion of the necessity of observ-
ing the Mosaic rites; and these also were of two sorts.

1. Such as from a pure reverence of their original institu-
tions, either being not fully instructed in their liberty, or by
reason of prejudices, not readily admitting the consequences of
that truth wherein they were instructed, abode in the observ-
VOL. III.

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