my

they be broken to shivers; even as I received of Father. It seems hardly necessary now to proceed to prove that Christ will not dispossess himself of his possession, and that he will not make his own inheritance, which his Father gave him, eternally miserable. The words of the blessed Saviour on this subject will, however, be considered as not only important, but acceptable and edifying. See St. John vi. 37, 38, 39. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me: and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will. of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day."

The saints noticed in the 149th Psalm were armed with a two-edged sword, and had the honor of executing on the heathen the judgments written, of binding their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron. St. Paul, in Eph. vi. 17, speaks of this sword as being the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. The conquest obtained by the saints over the nations and kings of the earth, is noticed in Psalm lxxii. 11. "All kings shall fall down before him; all nations shall serve him." And this corresponds with a vast multitude of passages of scripture, particularly with Psalm lxxxvi. 9, 10. "All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone."

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PARABLE XXIV, XXV, and XXVI.

"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten vitgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept, And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil, for our lamps are gone out, But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came: and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage; and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, say ing, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." MAT. XXV. 1-13.

for

THIS chapter contains three parables, by which are communicated different circumstances of the same event, viz. the change of the dispensation. On the paragraph above written, I observe,

1st. The time when the kingdom of heaven was likened unto wise and foolish virgins, I learn from the word then, which, being an adverb of time, has reference to a time before designated, which I find in the chapter preceding, verse 34. "Verily, I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled."

2d. The kingdom of heaven here meant, I understand to be the house of Israel under the law; and the Jews, under that dispensation, are repre sented by virgins, on account of their professing to worship one God.

3d. By lamps, I understand those figurative rites

observed in the law and its priesthood, which contained or gave all the light which the people received under the law.

4th. The oil, which the wise took in their vessels with their lamps, and which was necessary therewith, was the knowledge of what those types in the priesthood signified; which enabled those who were wise to look forward to the great antitype, who was Christ.

5th. The folly of the foolish, who were destitute of the oil, or knowledge, of which I have spoken, consisted in depending on the righteousness of the law, which consisted in the observance of those shadows of which mention has just been made; not being acquainted with the righteousness of Christ, which alone is acceptable with God: And such were justly called foolish.

6th. The circumstance in which the Jews were before the coming of Christ, is represented by vir gins sleeping..

7th. The mission of John the Baptist, as the voice of one crying in the wilderness in so dark a time with the people of Israel as he came in, is meant by a cry at midnight, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him."

8th. By bridegroom, is intended Christ himself, whom I have before represented in this character, in notes on the parable of a marriage which a king made for his son.

9th. The need in which those self-righteous pharisees stood of that wisdom which the wise pos sessed, is meant by the foolish asking the wise for their oil; and the impossibility or impropriety of the wisdom of one answering for another, is shown in the answer of the wise to the foolish virgins.

10th. That part of Israel who received the Saviour, and entered into the bride-chamber with the bridegroom, I understand by those who were ready, who went in to the marriage.

11th. The door that was shut, was the door of the law, and was shut by him who hath the keys of David, who openeth and no man shutteth; and shutteth and no man openeth. He closed the dispensation of law, and no man can open it; he opened the door of gospel hope and salvation, and no man can shut it. Those Jews who are signified by foolish virgins in our text, are also spoken of in St. John's gospel i. 11. "He came unto

his own, and his own received him not." And those who are represented by wise virgins, are spoken of in the verse following, "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them who believe on his name." Again, they are observed by St. Paul to the Romans xi. 7. "What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for, but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded.” Again, verse 25. "For I would not, brethren that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, (lest ye should be wise in your own conceits) that blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in."

The endeavors of that part of Israel which was broken off through unbelief, to obtain acceptance with the Messiah in whom they believed, is meant by the foolish virgins' coming to the door and asking for admission. But they endeavoring still to enter by their own works, or oil which they had purchased; and also expecting to enter by that door which was already shut, were answered by

the bridegroom, "I know you not:" By which I understand, that after the law dispensation was closed, and the gospel, as a dispensation, introduced, Christ would know no man after the law; or, as St. Paul says, "We know no man after the flesh; though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet, henceforth know we him no more."

Christ then closes this parable, by showing the necessity of watching, as they know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man should come. I take no notice of the custom of marriages among the Jews, as I conceive it to be of no particular importance to the reader.

"For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one: to every man according to his several ability, and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents, went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. After a long time, the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came, and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained besides them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. He also that had received two talents came, and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold I have gained two other talents besides them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed ; And