of this world, corn, wine, and the like; goods of this world chosen from the mass as a specimen of all, as types and means of seeking, and means of obtaining, the unknown spiritual blessings, which eye hath not seen nor ear heard." And these special goods of nature, so set apart, are more frequently than any thing else, corn or bread, and wine, as the figures of what was greater, though others are mentioned also. Now the first of these of which we read is the fruit of the tree of life, the leaves of which are also mentioned in the prophets. The tree of life was that tree in the garden of Eden, the eating of which would have made Adam immortal; a divine gift lay hid in an outward form. The prophet Ezekiel speaks of it afterwards in the following words, showing that a similar blessing was in store for the redeemed :— By the river, upon the bank thereof, on this side, and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed. It shall bring forth new fruits according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine"." Like to which is St. John's account of the tree of life, "which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations "." And hence we read in the Canticles of the apple-tree, and of sitting down under its shadow, and its fruit being sweet to the taste. Here then in type is signified the sacred gift of which I am speaking; and yet it has not seemed good to the gracious GIVER literally to select fruit or leaves as the means of His invisible blessings. HE might have spiritually fed us with such, had He pleased—for man liveth not by bread only, but by the word of His mouth. His word might have made the fruit of the earth His sacrament, but He has willed otherwise. The next selection of gifts of the earth which we find in Scripture, is the very one which He at length fixed on, bread and wine, as in the history of Melchizedek; and there the record stands as a prophecy of what was to be: for who is Melchizedek but our LORD and SAVIOUR, and what is the Bread and Wine but the very feast which He has ordained? Next the great gift was shadowed out in the description of the promised land, which was said to flow with milk and honey, and in all those other precious things of nature which I have already recounted as belonging to the promised land, oil, butter, corn, wine, and the like. These all may be considered to refer to the Gospel feast typically, because they were the rarest and most exquisite of the blessings given to the Jews, as the Gospel Feast is the most choice and most sacred of all the blessings given to us Christians; and what is most precious under the one dispensation is signified by what is most precious under the other. Now let us proceed to the prophets, and we shall find the like anticipation of the Gospel Feast. 9 For instance, Hosea says: "It shall come to pass in that day, I will hear (that is, answer), saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth, and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and they shall hear Jezreel. And I will sow her unto ME in the earth "." By Jezreel is meant the Christian Church; and the Prophet declares in GoD's name, that the time was to come when the Church would call upon the corn, wine, and oil, and they would call on the earth, and the earth on the heavens, and the heavens on GoD; and God should answer the heavens, and the heavens should answer the earth, and the earth should answer the corn, wine, and oil, and they should answer to the wants of the Church. Now, doubtless, this may be fulfilled only in a general way; but considering ALMIGHTY God has` appointed corn or bread, and wine, to be the special instruments of His ineffable grace; HE, who sees the end from the beginning, and who views all things in all their relations at once, HE, when He spoke of corn and wine, knew that the word would be fulfilled, not generally only, but even literally in the Gospel. Again the prophet Joel says, "It shall come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim'." How strikingly is this fulfilled, if we take it to apply to what God has given us in the Gospel, in the feast of the Holy Communion! Again the prophet Amos says: Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes, him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt2;" that is, with GOD's marvellous grace, whereby He gives us gifts new and wonderful. And the prophet Isaiah : In this mountain shall the LORD of Hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees; of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined." And again: "Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies, and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured; but they that have gathered it shall eat it, and praise the LORD, and they that have brought it together shall drink it in the courts of My holiness." And again: "Behold My servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; behold My servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty 3. Again the prophet Jeremiah says: They shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of the LORD, for wheat, and for wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd; and their soul shall be as a watered garden, and they shall not sorrow any more at all . . . And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, saith the LORD'.' ... And the prophet Zechariah: "How great is His goodness, and how great is His beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids "." And under a different image, but with the same general sense, the prophet Malachi: " From the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same, My Name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto My Name, and a pure offering, for My Name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of HOSTS "." Further, if the Psalms are intended for Christian worship, as surely they are, the Prophetic Spirit, who inspired them, saw that they too would in various places describe that sacred Christian feast, which we feel they do describe; and surely we may rightly 2 Amos ix. 13. lxv. 13. 3 Isa. xxv. 6. lxii. 8, 9. 6 Mal. i. 11. 12 Jer. xxxi. 12—14. call this coincidence between the ordinance in the Christian Church and the form of words in the Psalms, a mark of design. For instance: "THOU shalt prepare a Table before me against them that trouble me. THOU hast anointed my head with oil, and my Cup shall be full." "I will wash my hands in innocency, O LORD, and so will I go to Thine Altar." "O send out Thy light and Thy truth, that they may lead me, and bring me unto Thy holy hill, and to Thy dwelling; and that I may go unto the Altar of GOD, even unto the GoD of my joy and gladness." "The children of men shall put their trust under the shadow of Thy wings. They shall be satisfied with the plenteousness of Thy house, and THOU shalt give them drink of Thy pleasures as out of the river. For with THEE is the well of life, and in Thy light shall we see light." "Blessed is the man whom THOU choosest and receivest unto THEE; he shall dwell in Thy court, and shall be satisfied with the pleasures of Thy house, even of Thy Holy Temple." My soul shall be satisfied, even as it were with marrow and fatness, when my mouth praiseth THEE with joyful lips... because THOU hast been my helper, therefore under the shadows of Thy wings will I rejoice "." "" 66 The same wonderful feast is put before us in the book of Proverbs, where Wisdom stands for CHRIST. "Wisdom hath builded her house," that is, CHRIST has built His Church; she hath hewn out her seven pillars, she hath killed her beasts, she hath mingled her wine (that is, CHRIST has prepared His Supper), she hath also furnished her table (that is, the LORD's Table), she hath sent forth her maidens (that is, the priests of the LORD), she crieth upon the highest places of the city, Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither; as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him, Come, eat of My Bread and drink of the Wine which I have mingled ","—which is like saying, "Come unto ME all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will refresh you." Like which are the prophet Isaiah's words : Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money, come ye buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price "." And such too is the description in the book of Canticles: " The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, 7 Ps. xxiii. 5. xxvi. 6. xxxvi. 7—9. xliii. 3, 4. lxv. 4. lxiii. 6—8. VOL. V. s Prov. ix. 1-5. 9 Is. lv. 1. K and the vines with the tender grapes give a good smell "Until the day break and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh, and to the hill of frankincense ... "I have gathered My myrrh with My spice, I have eaten My honeycomb with My honey, I have drunk My wine with My milk; eat, O friends, drink, yea drink abundantly, O beloved 1!" In connexion with such passages as these should be observed St. Paul's words, which seem from the antithesis to be an allusion to the same most sacred ordinance: "Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess, but be filled with the SPIRIT," with that new wine which GOD the HOLY SPIRIT ministereth in the Supper of the Great KING. GOD grant that we may be able ever to come to this Blessed Sacrament with feelings suitable to the passages which I have read concerning it! May we not regard it in a cold, heartless way, and keep at a distance from fear, when we should rejoice! May the spirit of the unprofitable servant never be ours, who looked at his lord as a hard master instead of a gracious benefactor! May we not be in the number of those who go on year after year, and never approach HIM at all! May we not be of those who went, one to his farm, another to his merchandize, when they were called to the wedding! Nor let us be of those, who come in a formal, mechanical way, as a mere matter of obligation, without reverence, without awe, without wonder, without love. Nor let us fall into the sin of those who complained that they have nothing to gather but the manna, wearying of GOD'S gifts. But let us come in faith and hope, and let us say to ourselves, May this be the beginning to us of everlasting bliss! May these be the first fruits of that banquet which is to last for ever and ever; ever new, ever transporting, inexhaustible, in the city of our GOD! 1 Cant. ii. 13. iv. 6. v. 1. |