Jesus, The Messiah; Or, The Old Testament Prophecies Fulfilled In The New Testament Scriptures, By A Lady

JESUS, THE MESSIAH; OR, THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES FULFILLED IN THE NEW TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES.

The Profits will be devoted to Charitable Purposes. LONDON: PUBLISHED BY R. B. SEELEY AND W. BURNSIDE; AND SOLD BY L. B. SEELEY AND SONS, FLEET-STREET. MDCCCXXVIII. MILLS, JOWETT, AND MILLS, PRINTERS, BOLT-COURT, FLEET-STREET....

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DEDICATION.

TO THE RIGHT REV. CHARLES RICHARD, LORD BISHOP OF WINCHESTER. My Lord , I have been induced to solicit the honour of dedicating this little work to your Lordship from the conviction that its contents are not only consonant with the Doctrines and Articles of that Church of which your Lordship is so bright an ornament, but that they are in unison with the truths of Divine Revelation, that perfect standard by which all Theology and Morality must be judged. My object in presenting it to the Public i

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PREFACE.

Custom demands a preface; and though the public is generally uninterested in the reasons which influence an author to appear before its tribunal, yet an introductory notice is usually expected. This little work was the employment of many a retired moment. In turning over the pages of the sacred volume, the writer was struck with the exact fulfilment in the person of the Messiah, as narrated in the New Testament, of the numerous predictions recorded of him in the Old. These were collected for her

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CHAPTER I.

I will put enmity between thee and the Woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.—Gen. iii. 15. This is the first intimation we meet with of the promised Messiah, and within this one verse is contained, as in the bud, the embryo flower, that goodly plant of renown, [1] which the Lord hath planted, and not man; he who is the rose of Sharon and the valley's lily. [2] It is an epitome of the whole plan of Redemption, and contains truths of th

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CHAPTER II.

And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.—Gen. xxii. 18. We now meet with a prophecy of the family from which Christ, after the flesh, should spring. The lineal descent from Abraham to Joseph, the husband of Mary, is given us by Matthew, [12] through forty-two generations; and Luke [13] gives the genealogy of Jesus back to Adam, through Abraham, in the whole seventy-four generations, showing at once that the seed promised to Adam and Abraha

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CHAPTER III.

The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.—Gen. xlix. 10. The Holy Ghost, by the mouth of the dying patriarch, Jacob, has pointed to the epoch when he, of whom Moses and the prophets did write, should appear. It is worthy our particular attention, that, at the period of time when Jesus came, Judea was still governed by a Jewish king. It is true the power of the royal Asmonean or Maccabean ra

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CHAPTER IV.

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And in that day, there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.—Isaiah xi. 1. 10. The Jews, from these prophecies, expected the Messiah would spring from the family of David, the son of Jesse; and this led them to preserve, with unusual attention, the genealogy of his descendants. We have abundant testi

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CHAPTER V.

Thus saith the Lord, remove the diadem and take off the crown, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.—Ezekiel xxi. 26, 27. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim. Afterwards shall the children of Israel return, and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the latter days.—Hosea iii. 4, 5. The

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CHAPTER VI.

The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken.—Deut. xviii. 15-19. This is one of the many precious promises given by God to Israel. Moses is a character justly deserving our regard and veneration. The Jewish nation held him in high estimation, and almost idolized his memory. Perhaps our time may not be misemployed in searching for proofs of the fulfilment of this prophecy, and in examining the character of one

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CHAPTER VII.

The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.—Isaiah xl. 3. The Prophets Isaiah and Malachi [22] were commissioned to inform the church, that when the period should arrive for the coming of the Messiah, a messenger would be sent to announce his near approach. This promise was most strictly fulfilled: Jesus, the Son of the Most High God, did not visit this our world, without first directing an herald to proclaim

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CHAPTER VIII.

Therefore, the Lord himself shall give you a sign, behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.—Isaiah vii. 14. The portion of scripture now before us is highly interesting, and demands serious attention. About seven hundred and eight years before the birth of Jesus, the prophet Isaiah was commissioned to tell the church, a virgin should conceive and bear a son, and should call his name Immanuel. For proofs of the fulfilment of this prophecy, we would refer to

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CHAPTER IX.

But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto me, that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.—Micah v. 2. We find Boaz (the husband of Ruth) was of Bethlehem, a small city belonging to the tribe of Judah, situate about five or six miles from Jerusalem, and his posterity continued to possess it for some time, for it was the birth-place of David, the son of Jesse the Bethlehe

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CHAPTER X.

Thus saith the Lord, a voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.—Jeremiah xxxi. 15. It will not be difficult to discover the mourning prophet referred to the murder of the infants of Bethlehem, when it is remembered that Rachel the beloved wife of Jacob, was the mother of Benjamin, which tribe, with that of Judah and the family of Levi, after the revolt of the ten tribes, formed the ki

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CHAPTER XI.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.—Isaiah ix. 6, 7. These words, like numerous other passages in the word of God, are far too sublime to be attached to a mere creature; at the same time, they certainly express ideas which cannot be attributed to Deity. "Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given," is language improp

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CHAPTER XII.

And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.—Daniel ii. 44. The book of Daniel contains some very striking prophecies. The chapter from which this is selected, is not amongst the least interesting. The interpretation given by him to the king of Babylon's dream, demands our particular attention. He

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CHAPTER XIII.

When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.—Hosea xi. 1. We cannot entertain a doubt that this verse alludes to the call of the children of Israel from Egypt, yet we are not to suppose it refers exclusively to that event, but we are to behold it pointing to Israel's Lord. Christ is said to be the husband of his Church, and they are both called by the name of Israel; [34] and this verse is only one amongst the many instances which occur in the Old Testament. The pat

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CHAPTER XIV.

Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than rubies, their polishing was of sapphire: Their visage is blacker than a coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaveth to their bones; it is withered, it is become like a stick.—Lamentations iv. 7, 8. In the Old Testament we find a description of the order of the Nazarites and their laws; we discover a Nazarite to be one set apart or separated for the Lord, either for a given time, as

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CHAPTER XV.

The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek: he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn.—Isaiah lxi. 1, 2, 3. This is one of the many descriptions we meet with of the Messiah, who is represented as being especially anointed to his

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CHAPTER XVI.

For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.—Psalm xci. 11, 12. The psalm from which this is taken, describes, in glowing language, the blessed state of those who have God for their refuge; but we are not to limit the entire application of these verses to the sons of men. We find they have a reference to the God-Man, Christ Jesus. At his first entrance on the great work of his mission

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CHAPTER XVII.

And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts; and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of Hosts.—Haggai ii. 7, 9. Haggai prophesied at that period of the Church's history, when, after the return from the Babylonish captivity, the Jews built the second temple: on which occasion, we are told the young men s

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CHAPTER XVIII.

And the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come saith the Lord of Hosts.—Mal. iii. 1. The coming of the Messiah was anticipated with much impatience and pleasure by the Jewish nation, and particularly about the time Augustus Cæsar was Emperor of Rome, in whose reign, it will be remembered, Jesus was born. The period according to Daniel's Prophecy being arrived, the attention of all classes of the people

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CHAPTER XIX.

Nevertheless, the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness, have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.—Isaiah ix. 1. 2. From the days of Malachi, the last of the prophets, until the coming of John

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CHAPTER XX.

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.—Zechariah ix. 9. We have so striking an accomplishment of this prophecy, that it is scarcely possible to imagine one can be found, who is unwilling to point to Jesus and exclaim, Zion behold your King. Was it ever known that any other king, except Jesus, made such an humble entry into the city

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CHAPTER XXI.

Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the Lord.—Jeremiah vii. 11. An attentive reader of the New Testament, will easily discover the correspondence between these words, and the circumstance of Jesus driving the buyers and sellers from the temple; which action deserves to be carefully considered. It may appear extraordinary, that persons should have dared to make the temple of God the seat of commerce, for it was still

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CHAPTER XXII.

Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength, because of thine enemies; that thou mightest still the enemy and avenger.—Psalm viii. 2. The manner in which this prophecy was fulfilled is very interesting. When Jesus drave out the buyers and sellers from the temple, we are told the children shouted hosannas to the Son of David. The Chief Priests and Scribes were filled with indignation to hear even children confess a truth they wished buried in eternal silence; and, coming t

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CHAPTER XXIII.

I have preached righteousness in the great congregation; I have not refrained my lips, O Lord, thou knowest.—Psalm xl. 9. It is said, to the immortal honour of Noah, that he was a preacher of righteousness to the Old World: [52] but as the glory of the latter dispensation far exceeds that of the former, [53] so is its founder greatly distinguished from all the prophets and teachers under the Jewish economy. We find Jesus actively engaged in preaching his own gospel, whenever opportunity offered,

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CHAPTER XXIV.

I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old.—Psalm lxxviii. 2. We hear Balaam, the son of Beor, from the heights of Moab, attended by an idolatrous king and prince, taking up his parable on the multitudes of Israel. We also find many of the prophets of the Lord in the different ages of the Church, presenting their Master's message in the dress of parable. The sweet singer of Israel is here said to open his mouth in a parable, and utter dark sayings, which have been kept s

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CHAPTER XXV.

He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.—Isaiah xl. 11. The Messiah is here, and in several other parts of the old Testament, held forth to our view under the character of a shepherd. He is called, "Jehovah's shepherd," and to his care is committed the safeguard of God's flock. He is described as "seeking out and delivering his sheep from all places where they have been scattered

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CHAPTER XXVI.

And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears.—Isaiah xi. 3. The deceptions practised by the human race are many and various. With no other clue to discover the real character of individuals than their professions and conduct, men are often led to form the most unjust opinions; and frequent and lamentable are the mistakes that arise. Falsehood often lurks beneath the warmest pro

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CHAPTER XXVII.

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.—Isaiah xxxv. 5. Is it not highly proper, that those who profess to be intrusted with offices of authority, should be able to exhibit the credentials of their appointment, in order to be accredited? The prophet Isaiah was commissioned to proclaim many of the marks by which the Messiah should be distinguished. Amongst other signs "the eyes of the blind were to be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped." Je

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CHAPTER XXVIII.

Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.—Isaiah xxxv. 6. Blessed Jesus, we behold thee surrounded by the diseased and wretched. We see thee attend that seat of misery, the pool of Bethesda, whose cloisters oft resounded the plaintive voice of sorrow; for within its porches were assembled many of the sons and daughters of affliction. Amidst the group was one, who, for thirty-eight long years,

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CHAPTER XXIX.

Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.—Psalm xl. 7, 8. The psalm from which these words are selected, was written by David, king of Israel, but never can they with justice be applied to him. We dare not venture to imagine he acted agreeably to the will of his God, in the matter of Uriah the Hittite; nor was the law of his God ruling in his heart, when his pride led him to number the children of

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CHAPTER XXX.

I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.—Psalm lxix. 8. Ah, my Lord, I know this to be thy voice of lamentation, at the unfeeling conduct of those, from whom thou oughtest to have received the kindest attentions. Thou wast as "a stranger unto thy brethren, and as an alien unto thy mother's children;" "for even thy brethren, and the house of thy father, even they dealt treacherously with thee." They cried "depart hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples

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CHAPTER XXXI.

They also that seek after my life lay snares for me; and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long.—Psalm xxxviii. 12. Where shall we find the person to whom these words are so applicable, as to Jesus. From the manger to the cross, he was constantly encircled by men who were plotting his destruction. If we trace the line from Herod, the Tetrarch of Galilee, to Pilate, the Governor of Judea, we find that the enemies of Jesus were neither few nor weak. W

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CHAPTER XXXII.

For I have heard the slander of many; fear was on every side; while they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life.—Psalm xxxi. 13. It is not infrequent that the envious and the profligate are found speaking in terms of reproach of characters whose public and domestic conduct are a beautiful portrait of all that is honourable, amiable, and truly worthy of commendation. Yet persons will never be wanting who can truly appreciate and highly esteem the fair edifice of moral

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CHAPTER XXXIII.

Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the days of his fierce anger.—Lamentation i. 12. These words are in some degree applicable to the mournful prophet Jeremiah, but it will do no violence to consider them as referring to Jesus, and to him they apply with tenfold force. Let us not pass him by unnoticed, but let us "behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto his s

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CHAPTER XXXIV.

Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.—Psalm xli. 9. And I said unto them, if ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price, thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said unto me, cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prized at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the House of the Lord.—Zechariah xi. 12, 13. Surely every one acquainte

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CHAPTER XXXV.

When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.—Psalm xxvii. 2. The Psalm from which this verse is selected, was written by David king of Israel, when under the teachings of the Holy Spirit. David unquestionably proved himself a mighty man of valour; and by the help of his God did he overcome troops of foes; indeed, as a warrior, he is surpassed by none. But still these words are not strictly applicable to David; though he slew many by the

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CHAPTER XXXVI.

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed.—Psalm ii. 1, 2. The whole of this Psalm is descriptive of the Messiah, and we are not destitute of strong proofs to warrant our applying it to Jesus. We find persons of different denominations and rank in society, even kings, priests, scribes and pharisees, Jews and Gentiles, in league to persecute and destroy an in

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CHAPTER XXXVII.

False witnesses did rise up: they laid to my charge things that I knew not.—Psalm xxxv. 11. Where shall we find one more unjustly accused, than Jesus. They falsely declare him to be a blasphemer and seducer of the people. His enemies, in order to give an appearance of justice to their proceedings, (for they were determined to destroy him) proceeded to call witnesses against him; a mock trial ensues before Caiaphas the High Priest; but, though the witnesses are perjured, their testimony agrees no

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CHAPTER XXXVIII.

But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. Thus, I was as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs. Psalm xxxviii. 13, 14. Does not the perusal of these words lead the mind back to the palace of Caiaphas, and the hall of Pilate, when Jesus appeared there, surrounded by his blood-thirsty persecutors, who, in the bitterness of their malice, vehemently and unjustly accuse him of crimes his soul abhorred. But, the meek and lowly Jesus heard

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CHAPTER XXXIX.

My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore, and my kinsmen stand afar off.—Psalm xxxviii. 11. How forcible and just the remark of the wisest of men, "that every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts." But, in the day of adversity, how few are treated with kindness and attention by their former acquaintance and professed friends. At one time we see five thousand, and at another four thousand persons, partaking of the bounty of Jesus. Afterwards we behold a multitude following him; but,

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CHAPTER XL.

I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; I hid not my face from shame and spitting.—Isaiah l. 6. For the fulfilment of this prophecy, we have only to go back to the hall Prætorium, where we behold the blessed Jesus surrounded by a band of Roman soldiers, who treat him with every species of indignity. Not content with having scourged him, (a punishment considered too ignoble to be inflicted on a free born Roman) [73] they proceed to insult his Kingly Office.

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CHAPTER XLI.

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid, as it were, our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.—Isaiah liii. 3. Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.—Isaiah xlix. 7. Here a

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CHAPTER XLII.

But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.—Psalm xxii. 6. Do we not here instantly recognise the language of the despised Nazarene? And is not the whole Psalm a striking description of his unparalleled sufferings, of his unprecedented degradation and humility? He whose will formed the universal law of nature; he who marshalled the stars, and called them all by name; who bid the planets roll, and the sun to shine; who gave the orb of day his splendid rays, and len

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CHAPTER XLIII.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.—Isaiah liii. 7. It is scarcely possible not to see that it is Jesus who is here held forth to our view. Who so oppressed and afflicted as he? Who so patient under insult and tyrannical cruelty? Who so silent under the voice of calumny? What lamb so patient under the hand of the destroyer? He did not resist, he did n

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CHAPTER XLIV.

He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living, for the transgression of my people was he stricken.—Isaiah liii. 8. Here the Prophet presents us with another sketch, which so exactly corresponds with many features in the sufferings of Jesus, that we cannot well mistake, if we consider him as the person intended. What supinness do we behold in the cause of truth, how faint are the exertions to promote the Glory of

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CHAPTER XLV.

For dogs have compassed me; the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me; they have pierced my hands and my feet.—Psalm xxii. 16. We cannot with any degree of consistency, apply these words to David. It is true he was often surrounded by foes, and encompassed by adversaries; but, never were his sorrows and sufferings of the kind here described. By the spirit of Prophecy, he spoke of the sufferings of Jesus, and to him alone can we with truth apply these words, or indeed, the whole Psalm. We see J

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CHAPTER XLVI.

My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?—Psalm xxii. 1. If we would know whose language this is, we must by faith ascend the hill of Calvary; there, taking our stand at the foot of the cross of Jesus, we hear him utter the dolorous cry, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me." We do not find a word of complaint of the pains and sufferings of his mangled body escape his lips. They are borne in patient silence, the cruelt

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CHAPTER XLVII.

Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered; and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.—Zechariah xiii. 7. This verse, at the first reading, may appear involved in difficulty, but a little attention will enable us to discover to whom it refers. We hear a solemn call for a sword to awake. What sword? Surely it can be none other than the sword of divine justice, which had so long dela

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CHAPTER XLVIII.

They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.—Psalm xxii. 18. The circumstances attending the disposal of the garments of the crucified Jesus, are in themselves trifling and insignificant, but when viewed in connexion with this prophecy, it is no longer a matter of little importance. It is equally necessary that the small, as well as the great and conspicuous parts of prophecy should be fulfilled; and it is highly satisfactory to trace, amid the more minute events connected wi

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CHAPTER XLIX.

They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.—Psalm lxix. 21. It was not unfrequent that cordials or opiates were given the unhappy objects sentenced to crucifixion, to blunt the severity of their agonies, and shorten the period of their sufferings. But, at the crucifixion of Jesus, no friendly hand presented the soothing draught. When faint from loss of blood, and parched by burning fever occasioned by excessive pain, the dying sufferer exclaimed "I thirst;

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CHAPTER L.

With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth.—Psalm xxxv. 16. All they that see me, laugh me to scorn; they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.—Psalm xxii. 7, 8. This prophecy is so exactly in accordance with the event, that one could readily believe the royal psalmist had stood on Calvary's mount, and literally recorded the insulting taunts and ironical re

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CHAPTER LI.

Therefore, will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death; and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.—Isaiah liii. 12. To whom but Jesus can we apply this. Do we not find him reckoned with Barabbas, a traitor and murderer, and were not two thieves crucified with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst? Thus we behold him num

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CHAPTER LII.

He keepeth all his bones, not one of them is broken.—Psalm xxxiv. 20. The soldiers (at the request of the Jews, and the command of Pilate) go forth to execute their last act of cruelty on Jesus and his companions, having broken the legs of the two malefactors, they approach the body of Jesus, but here they pause, hesitate, retire, and leave his bones unbroken. Whence this mark of respect, toward the object of their scorn and abhorrence? Why did not those voices, which a few hours before rent the

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CHAPTER LIII.

And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced.—Zechariah xii. 10. One of the soldiers, with a spear, pierced the side of Jesus, and forthwith came thereout blood and water. "He that saw it bare record, and his record is true". [97] And we know that he saith true, that ye might believe, that it is Jesus of whom the scripture saith, they "Shall look on him whom they have pierced." There is another and higher use to be made of this circumstance. Simple as the fact at first sight may appear, ye

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CHAPTER LIV.

I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering.—Isaiah l. 3. Isaiah, or, as he is generally called, the Evangelical Prophet, (from his writings referring more frequently to the person and offices of Christ, than those of the other prophets,) when speaking of his sufferings declares, that "The heavens shall become black as sackcloth of hair." This figurative description was realised at the crucifixion of Jesus. The sun at mid-day was eclipsed, darkness covered the land,

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CHAPTER LV.

And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he hath done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.—Isaiah liii. 9. It is usual, amongst many nations, for the bodies of those who fall by the hand of the public executioner, not only to be denied the rites of burial, but to be exposed to marked contempt. Though Jesus made his grave with the wicked, yet it was also with the rich in his death. Crucified at Golgotha amidst two thieves, he shall receive an hon

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CHAPTER LVI.

The days of his youth hast thou shortened: thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.—Psalm lxxxix. 45. Blessed Jesus! we behold thee cut off in the prime of thy days, in the meridian of thy strength, and in the vigour of manhood. Thy body was not worn by disease, nor decrepit by age; but thy bones were full of marrow, and thy bow abode in strength, when, little more than thirty-three years old, thou didst cheerfully resign thy body to the cold arms of death! The periods of the incarnation and cru

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CHAPTER LVII.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.—Isaiah liii. 4, 5, 6. "I pray thee, of whom did the Prophet speak these words?" was the in

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CHAPTER LVIII.

For thou wilt not leave my soul in Hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.—Psalm xvi. 9, 10. These words are not applicable to David, for after he had served his generation, he fell asleep, and his body, interred in the royal sepulchre of the kings of Judah, which was in the city of David, saw corruption. The sentence "dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return," has, for many a generation, been accomplished on Jesse's Royal Son. The remains of this mighty monarch ca

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CHAPTER LIX.

Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive; thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell amongst them.—Psalm lxviii. 18. We find amid the records of the Old Testament, very distinguished honour was conferred by God on two illustrious personages, whom he was pleased to exempt from the common lot of humanity, and admit into the Celestial City, by a new, and, till then, untrodden path. Their way led not across the dark valley of the

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CHAPTER LX.

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.—Joel ii. 28, 29. That part of the prophet Joel from which this verse is selected, is highly interesting; and although not strictly prophetical of the person of the Messiah, yet it is so closely connected t

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CHAPTER LXI.

And I will pour upon the House of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplications; and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his first born.—Zech. xii. 10. The Prophet Zechariah here presents to our view one of the richest jewels in the treasury of God's promises. It sparkles clear and bright amid the records of divine

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CHAPTER LXII.

The Lord hath sworn and will not repent, thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek.—Psalm cx. 4. In the Old Testament, we find but little recorded of Melchizedek, that venerable priest of the most High God, who met and blessed the patriarch Abraham as he returned victorious from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer and the confederate kings. But from that little, we are led to regard him as a person of distinction. To him, the great father of the faithful and friend of God presented th

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CHAPTER LXIII.

Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know, therefore, and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem, unto the Messiah, the Prince, shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks: the street shall be built

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CHAPTER LXIV.

And after three score and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.—Daniel ix. 26. This vision of Daniel appears involved in considerable obscurity, by the diversity of time alluded to in the several parts of the prophecy, and renders it difficult to prove its exact accomplishment. But we hope we h

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CHAPTER LXV.

And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.—Daniel ix. 27. Some writers consider this verse prophetical of the desolate state of Jerusalem under Antiochus Epiphanes, that sacrilegious monarch who impiously profaned the sanctuary of the God of Israe

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CHAPTER LXVI.

For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.—Zechariah xiv. 2. Imperial Rome, to whom the world once bowed, and whose power could command armies from "all nations," had conquered Judea, and received from her the yearly tribute of her subjection: [138] but, through the oppression of the Roman

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CHAPTER LXVII.

The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; a nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favour to the young.—Deut. xxviii. 49, 50. And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, if thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. Fo

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CHAPTER LXVIII.

Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of the forest.—Micah iii. 12. "Walk about Zion, and go round about her, tell the towers thereof, mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces," are they still "beautiful for situation?" Is Jerusalem yet the "joy of the whole earth?" Within "her walls peace once reigned, and prosperity within her palaces." But how changed the spot! desolation and dismay re

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CHAPTER LXIX.

And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.—Isaiah viii. 14. These words are not prophetical of the person of the Messiah, yet they describe, in striking language, the effects that would follow his appearance and ministry upon earth. They foretel the opposition and enmity that would arise, in the minds of the Jewish nation, to the Christ of God. If the whole Israel

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CHAPTER LXX.

And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.—Isaiah xlix. 6. The descendants of Abraham, the friend of God, were treated as the Lord's peculiar people; singled out from other nations as the favourites of heaven, the Lord was their lawgiver and king. No other nation had God "so nigh unto them i

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