Conco. 4.}
6. April. 1690
53. Isa. 5.
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. (Doctr.) Our transgressions & our iniquities, were the causes why Christ the Son of God was wounded & bruised. (1.Q.) What is meant by wounding & bruising? (An.) One of the words signifys to pierse, or bore, or make a hole through; the other signifies to break, bruise or crush to pieces. (2.Q.) Wo was thus wounded & bruised See? (An.) Christ Jesus the only & eternall Son of God. (3.Q.) Who did thus wound & bruise Christ Jesus? (An.) Divels and men yea God ye Father & Christ himself also had a holy hand in all his wounds & bruises. (4.Q.) What were Christs wounds & bruises? (Answ.) They may be referred to his life & death. (1) The life of our Lord Jesus was a life of wounds & bruises. Christs life was a life of abasement & most deep humiliation. (1) His life before he was born. His conception & his Birth.
To proceed
- 2) Christs Life after he was born, was a Life of wounds & bruises, or abasement & deep humiliation. And that may appear if we consider both his Private & his Publick Life.
- 1. Then Let us consider Christs Private Life. Before Christ lived a Publick life, he lived a private life: & that for these reasons
- 1. Reas: Because that humane condition to which Christ had subjected himself did require that it should be so. If Christ, to be a Mediatour for us, would condescend to take the humane nature upon himself, & become man, he must according to the Law of nature, become a man, or become mankind in a private capacity, before he become such a one in a publick capacity. He must first become an Infant, & yield Subjection to others: before he arrive to Man-hood, & justly demand obedience of others.
- 2. Reas: Because the Law of God the Father did so require that it should be. 24. Luke. 26. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things & to enter into his glory? Ne sesum quidem audias gloriosum, nisi videris crucifixum. Luther.61
- 3. Last: Reas: Because the condition of fallen man, in whose stead Christ came to stand, did also require that it should be so. Man before the Fall stood in a Publick capacity, & had authority as Gods vice-gerent in this lower world. But now upon his Fall, he lost that publick & authoritative station, & therefore it was needfull for Christ, whose designe was to restore us to our primitive publick capacity, that he himself should first lower & stoop to a private capacity. Now in Christs Private life there were two things wch are to be considered, as being parts of his deep humiliation: viz His Infancy, & His Subjection to his Parents.
- 1. In Christs private life is to be considered Christs Infancy. Christ became a child: & in Scripture is called a child, yea a babe. 2. Luke. 12. The babe wrapped &c. Now in Christs Infancy are two things to be considered wherein Christs humiliation did appear viz Christs Circumcision & oblation: And his Flight into Egypt.
- 1. Christs Circumcision & Oblation. 2. Luke. 21. 22. Now Christ was circumcised & offered up to God (as the first born were to be) because he subjected himself to the Law of God, & that not only to the eternal & morall Law, but also to the ceremoniall Law, & to every divine appointment. Those ceremoniall observations were so many confessions of Sins. It was therefore meet that the Lord J. Christ, wo was made a curse for us, for our sins, should conforme to those ceremonies whereby our sins were owned & acknowledged.
- 1. Now to give a few reasons more particularly why Christ was Circumcised. Why
- 1. Negatively. Christ was not Circumcised for himself. That was one thing for which Circumcision was instituted of God, to be a signe & Seal of the pardon of sin. Now Christs Circumcision was not a signe & Seal of the pardon of Christs sins, for he had no sins to pardon. Therefore he is called most Holy, or the Holy-thing. 1. Luke. 35. Therefore Circumcision could not signify the pardon of his sins
- 2. Affirmatively. Christ was circumcised & that for us. He would be circumcised & that for our sakes, as is imported by the Name that was given him at his circumcision viz: Jesus. 2. Luke. 21. Yet a little more particularly there are these reasons why Christ would be circumcised.
- 1. R. Christ would be circumcised for our assurance that he was in very truth the promised Seed of Abraham in whome all the families of the earth should be blessed. Circumcision was first given to Abraham, & it was given to him as a pledge & Seal of Gods blessing of him & his posterity & from his loins according to the flesh to raise one that all nations should be blessed in according to that promise. 12. Gen. 3. compared wth 3. Acts. 25. 26.
- 2. R. Christ would be Circumcised to testifie to us that he did freely & voluntarily subject himself to the Law that he might ransom & redeem us from the Law. 4. Gal. 4. 5. God sent forth his son made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the Law. Circumcised the eighth day, & so made a Debitor to do the whole law: which he perfectly fulfilled, & yet for us suffered the curse.
- 3. R. Christ would be circumcised that he might confirm that sacrament given to the Fathers & testify that it was lawfully used hitherunto, & also sanctify it in his own person, even as afterwards for the like causes he received the Sacrament of baptism, 3. Matth. 16. sanctifying that ordinance in his own person, & hereby signifying that he was the Saviour both of Jews & Christians: circumcised & baptized
- 4. R. Christ would be Circumcised to show that he it is who dos work & effect a Spiritual circumcision in the hearts of his Elect. 2. Col. 10. 11—In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands &c
- 5. R. Last. Christ would be Circumcised to teach us by his own Example, that we are not in the least wise to neglect, or contemn the use of the Sacraments, which God hath appointed to be attended in his Churches. Herein, as in every other duty, he hath set us a copy to write after, & an example to imitate. Was Christ circumcised, because it was an ordinance of God? Well then we are not to neglect, or despise baptisme, or the Lords Supper, because God the Son, Christ Jesus hath appointed them, for his Churches
- 2. As Christ was circumcised so he was also offered up unto God. Of old the first-born were offered up unto God: And that
- 1. By a common right: for as we find God exacted the first fruits of the earth, & also the first-born both of beasts & of men, so hereby was signifyed that all the fruitfulness both of the earth, beasts, & man-kind, was meerly from the grace & blessing of God, & so in these offerings was virtually owned &. acknowledged.
- 2. By a Speciall right with respect to the Israelites: for when God Slew all the first born of Egypt both of men & beasts, & spared all the first-born of Israel, in remembrance hereof all the first born of Israel were dedicated & offered unto God. 13 Ex. 2. 12. 13. 14. 15. And the first born had many priveledges above others hince Christ was most meetly offered unto God because by his own blood he confirmed the covenant of Salvation, & among all the first-born he alone became perfectly holy unto God, & all the other first-born were but types of this first born. 1 Heb. 6. When he bringeth in the first-begotten into the world, he saith, Seiet all the Angels of God worship him. Now Christ is the first-begotten or first born in a fourfold respect
- 1. In respect of temporall birth or Generation. He was the Virgin Marys first-born. 1. Matth. ult. 2. Luke. 7.
- 2. In respect of Eternall Generation by God the Father. Hince he is said to be the first-born of every creature. 1. Col. 15.
- 3. In respect of Resurrection from the dead. 1. Col. 18.—The first-born from the dead. i.e. that rose to eternall glory. He was the first that in the nature of man arose from the dead & ascended into Heaven. Others rose from the dead; but they dyed again.
- 4. Last: In respect of dignity & authority. 8. Ro. 29.—That he might be the first-born among many brethren. The first-born had many excellencies above his Brethren, much more has the Lord Jesus, our blessed elder Brother: He is the Captain of our Salvation. But so much may suffice for that point Christs Circumcision & oblation.
- 2. An other thing to be considered in Christs Infancy, was his Flight into Ægypt, & return thence: concerning which we read. 2. Matt. 13. 14. 15. Christ Jesus the Son of God, & equall with God, before whose angry countenance there is no standing but every Island & Mountain fly away from it. 16. Rev. 20. Yet condescending to our low condition, he abased himself in his flying into Egypt, from Herod. And that for these reasons.
- 1. R. That he might show that from the very beginning of his dayes he was born to undergo misery. Man is become a miserable person, all the world, that before his fall were his freinds, are now become his enemies. Yea men are great enemies to one another. Now Christ Jesus to deliver from our enimies, he is pursued as an enemie, & somtimes withstands enemies somtimes flies from them as here: & that betimes in his Infancy. He was an early Sufferer. Man was a sinner betimes &c
- 2. R. That he might take care for the preservation of his life in a humane manner, as he had subjected himself to a humane state & condition. Christ being man, & that but an infant, & now persecuted by a mighty King if he would now save his life in a humane manner, he must fly: for the world did not so espouse his interest as by power to defend him from Herod. Therefore he could not be saved & preserved in an ordinary way but by Flight.
- 3. R. Last: That he might also hereby show that he was the person who was to bring us out of Spirituall Egypt (our sinful captivity) into the promised Land: The Canaan above. Christ was banished betime, & that into Egypt, that he might bring back his banished from Egypt, to the Paradise above, a Countrey that he hath purchased mansions of glory, or State-rooms of dignity, for them in. Thus we see Christ was abased and humbled (which is all one in generall with the woundings & bruisings mentioned in our text) in his very Infancy: & that in his Circumcision & Oblation & Flight into Egypt. So much in short for that part of Christs Private life which respects Christs Infancy.
- 2. In Christs Private life there is an other thing to be considered & that is Christs Subjection to his parents. Concerning which we read 2. Luke. 51.—He came to Nazareth, & was subject to them i.e. his parents. He was full of business for his heavenly Father, but yet he neglected not obedience to his Parents. And by this obedience which belongs to the fifth commandment, he showed that he did subject himself to the whole morall law.
- 1. Because the same reason which binds to obedience of one com̄andment, binds also to obedience to every com̄andment. He that is bound to obey the fifth com̄andment is also bound to obey the sixth, seventh, first, second & all the rest, so was Christ, & so much he signifies in this Obedience. Man is a Dr to the whole Law, & Christ in his behalfe therefore subjects to the whole Law.
- 2. Because there is no part of morall obedience, which might seem more Aliene & unsuitable for Christ the Lord of Heaven & earth to subject unto then obedience to men. But now seing he would subject to this, much more to all other. But so much in short for Christs Private-life consisting of his Infancy & Subjection to his Parents. We should now (2) speak of Christs Publick-life. But of that if the Lord please herafter.