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and showed that, though Gentile believers were truly a spiritual seed of Abraham," they were not on that account a "spiritual Israel;" for, instead of one including the other, when scripturally understood, the one excluded the other. He then asked, What constitutes an uncircumcised Gentile believer in Jesus a spiritual child of Abraham? God made a covenant of faith with Abraham at seventy-five years of age, and a national covenant at ninety-nine; so that, for the first ninety-nine years of Abraham's life, he was as much a Gentile as a Jew: for he was neither the one nor the other, any more than Adam or Noah was. Circumcision was the initiatory rite into the privileges of the national covenant, the interests of which are confined to time; whilst the interests of the covenant of faith affect the soul's destiny throughout eternity. Speaking of the latter interests, Paul asks, in the fourth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, having just spoken of the blessedness of forgiven sin,"Cometh this blessedness upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness. How was it then reckoned? When he was in circumcision or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision." Why? "That he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised, that righteousness might be imputed unto them also." According to verse 12 of the fourth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, Abraham is to be a father in a two-fold sense to the believing Israelite. (1st.) According to natural descent and national covenant; and (2nd.) According to the covenant of faith.

Mr. W. contended that, if God made the covenant of faith with Abraham in an uncircumcised state on purpose "that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised," and that Israel was a term applied to Jacob after he was circumcised, the fact that Gentile believers in Christ are spiritual children of Abraham, excludes them from being spiritual

Israelites: the term Israelite belonging exclusively to the natural descendants of Jacob, and all promises made to Israel, primarily if spiritual blessings, and exclusively if national, belonging to that people.

Mr. W. then expressed his deep obligation to his friend Dr. Margoliouth, for his able and interesting paper, and although he could not yet clearly see the three betrothals proved from the passage in Hosea, nor yet the clear identity of the prophetic and the apocalyptic Bride, he nevertheless felt quite sure that the Israelitish nation had been married to Jehovah, that she is now divorced, and that she will again be married. "I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, not like the former covenant .. which my covenant they broke, although I was a Husband to them." "For your iniquities are ye put away, and for your transgression is your mother divorced." "For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy Restorer marry thee, and as the Bridegroom rejoiceth over the Bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee." These points, to his mind so clear and scriptural, together with the promises of blessing to the world still good to the natural seed of Abraham; and the natural Israel. Mr. W.'s present position was that while the Israelitish nation would assuredly be the earthly bride of Christ, the Church, it seemed, would be His bride in manifested resurrection life.

We eschew, as we have intimated, all sorts of dogmatism. The arguments of our dear friends have not convinced us that our position is untenable. We are not without hope of convincing our readers that it is impregnable.

Notes.

THE PERSONAL REGAL REIGN OF MESSIAH.

BY J. G. SPARKES.

PERMIT me, dear brethren of the house of Israel and seed of Jacob, to address myself to you once again on a subject of some importance, and favour me with your patient attention, whilst I

endeavour, under God, to open it up before you. May He incline your wills to receive the truth, and your hearts to believe and understand it, in order that it may have a saving effect on your minds.

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It may be asked by some, what, then, is the subject you wish to bring under our consideration? It is this, viz., the Personal Regal Reign of Messiah. Surely you will readily admit it is one of the deepest moment, and therefore worthy of your prayerful meditation. I shall take as the groundwork of my remarks to you on this subject the words of John the Baptist. Note, that your Messiah pronounced him to be the greatest of prophets. (Matt. xi. 11.) If so, then his prophecy is of great weight and worthy of belief. But what was the burden of his prediction? The reign of Messiah. It is true that he made use of, in so doing, a figurative expression, rather than a literal one, and yet one capable of elucidation. In the desert of Judæa he announced the coming of Messiah; and was not his prophecy fulfilled to the very letter? Did not Messiah come as predicted, not by John only, but by other prophets? "Repent!" he cried to his countrymen ; Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" The term "kingdom of heaven," as I understand it, is to be rendered in three ways: 1st, the reign of glory in heaven; 2nd, the reign of grace in the heart; 3rd, the reign of Messiah upon earth. It is in in this latter sense I now use the phrase. You will, no doubt, be ready to say, Why, we never denied the reign of Messiah; but what we contested was that there were two Messiahs, one to reign, the other to suffer; and that He whom you believe in was not the Messiah; and that He has not yet come, and we therefore are still looking for Him. Be it so. Tell me, my brethren, which of your own prophets ever said there were to be two Messiahs, either to suffer or to reign? Investigate thoroughly their writings; point out any of them who declared that such would be the case. On the contrary, have they not all with one mouth spoken of but one Messiah? And have they not all, under the inspiration of one Spirit, foretold both the sufferings and the reign of but one Messiah? Do not all their prophecies point to Jesus as that Messiah? Have not all their prophecies been fulfilled in Him? Lay aside your prejudices for a moment; give up your fond con

ceived opinions, and take the prophetical records in your hand and search diligently for information on this allimportant topic; and then, I think, you will clearly perceive that you are in error in supposing that there are two Messiahs-one to suffer and another to reign. Let us see what each of your own prophets have got to say on each of these points, for "they testify of Jesus," and their testimony is on all hands to be received as credible. 1st, What do they affirm of Messiah? 2nd, His suffering. 3rd, His reigning.

A word first about your late invention of conceiving of two Messiahs. I say late invention, because I have read nothing about there being two Messiahs in your prophetical writings, so I imagine you have adopted the idea of two instead of one for the purpose of helping you out of a difficulty; but I do not see how it does so. It has been well remarked that your nation in our Saviour's time, even the apostles themselves till after His resurrection, had not the true notion of the sufferings of the Messiah, much less of His death. When He spake of it, His disciples rebuked Him (Matt. xvi. 22) and understood nothing of it. (Acts i. 6; John xii. 34.) They (the Jews) were looking out then, as you are now, for a temporal fighting Messiah, who should restore again the kingdom to Israel. (Acts i. 6.) They thought not then of the sufferings of the Messiah (Luke xxiv. 26); far less did they dream of two Messiahs, one to suffer, the other to conquer. You can show no footstep of any such doctrine amongst your ancestors before Christ came.

His

1. The sufferings of Messiah. sufferings were predicted. Proceed we now to notice some instances of his sufferings both before and on Calvary's cross. It were wrong to suppose, however, that He only endured extreme agony, both mentally and bodily, on the cross. What, I ask, was His whole life on earth but one continued scene of sufferings from His birth to His grave? Was he not born to suffer and to die? and yet, not for Himself, for He had no sins for which to atone : it was for others-even for guilty man. Yes, it was for thee, the polluted sinner, that thy Saviour shed out His blood,-laid down His life,-expired on the accursed tree! A sight enough to make angels weep! A spectacle at which the sun stood abashed, and clad himself in the curtains of night! And wilt thou, O man, remain un

moved and not shed one single tear of affection?

To return, we said that the sufferings of Messiah were foretold. His being rejected by His brethren, Psa. lxix. 8; Isa. liii. 3; fulfilled, John i. 11; John vii. 5. Hated by the Jews, Psa. vi. 4; cxviii. 22; Isa. xlix. 7; fulfilled, John xv. 24, 25. Betrayed by a friend, Psa. xli. 9; lv. 12-14; fulfilled John xiii. 18-21. Mark the intensity of His sufferings, Psa. xxii. 14, 15; fulfilled, Luke xxii. 42-44. They were endured not for Himself, but for others, Isa. liii. 4, 6, 12; Dan. ix. 26; fulfilled, Matt. xx. 28. Smitten on the cheek, Micah v. 1; fulfilled, Matt.

xxvii. 30. Spitted on and scourged, Isa. 1. 6; fulfilled, Mark xiv. 65; John xix. 1. And finally, His hands and feet being nailed to the cross, Psa. xxii. 16; fulfilled, John xix. 18; xx. 25. Pierced, Zech. xii. 10; fulfilled, John xix. 34-37. We think it will be unnecessary to prove to you that the Messiah died an ignominious death, because the fact has not been denied by the opposers of Christianity.

Pass we on, then, to notice our next point, viz., that Messiah should reign as King, both over the house of Israel and Judah. The reign of Messiah is twofold:-1, spiritual; 2, personal. It is both present and future.

We say present, because He does now unquestionably reign over the hearts of a willing and believing and obedient people. Yes, a nation, though as yet not strong and powerful, but who acknowledge Him "Lord of all," and bow not their knees in outward homage, but their hearts in deep humility of soul. What is every convert to Christianity from among your own nation but an evidence of it? For, first being made the subjects of His grace, they then become the loyal, loving, and obedient subjects of His spiritual kingdom. Nor is this all; for if they are now owned by Him as the subjects of His kingdom here, they shall be acknowledged by Him before an assembled world as such, and shall reign with Him as "kings and priests" for 66 ever and ever."

2. His personal and eternal reign over the whole earth. This is future. That He should reign as the King "of the Jews," and also of the Gentiles, is predicted in more than one place of Holy Scripture. Read Num. xxiv. 17. and following passages; Psa. ii. 6; viii. 45; Isa. ix. 7; Jer. iii. 5; Micah v. 2. His reign will be glorious. Psa.

xxiv. 7-10; 1 Cor. ii. 8; James ii. 1. Perhaps the peaceful reign of King Solomon might be regarded as a type of the reign of King Jesus; but it falls far below the lustre and grandeur of the reign of Messiah. His court will be composed not of princes, but archangels, angels, and the whole company of heaven and Church of the firstborn, "redeemed from amongst men." He sits now in the throne of God. (Rev. iii. 21.) His kingdom is a righteous and everlasting kingdom. (Psa. xlv. 6; Jer. xxiii. 5; Dan. ii. 44; vii. 14; Luke i. 33.) Your nation shall seek unto Him. (Hosea iii. 5.) Mark the declaration of Hosea : " 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." May the following be the burden of your song in the house of your pilgrimage and whilst in the land of your captivity :

"Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,

Born to set Thy people free ; From our fears and sins release us, Let us find our rest in Thee : Israel's strength and consolation, Hope of all the earth Thou art; Dear desire of every nation,

Joy of every contrite heart." May it be yours to sing a yet nobler and happier song in the kingdom of your Father; yea, to join in singing that new song, saying, "Thou art worthy to take the book," &c. (Rev. v. 9, 10.)

A word more ere we part on the deeply interesting theme which we have now brought before your notice. Surely enough has been said by us to convince you of the folly and danger of any longer rejecting King Jesus as your promised Messiah, and of not rendering Him that allegiance which He demands of you. Throw down, we pray you, your arms of hostility against Him; resist no more, confess your offence, sue for mercy at His hands. But doubt not his willingness to receive you and His readiness to pardon you; yea, to multiply pardons upon you. Hear Him now speaking to you by the mouth of your own prophet Isaiah : "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat of the good of the land; but if ye refuse and rebel,

tical science; and however much we may regret that it has never been done before, we may rejoice that it is now in progress, and that it never could have been done so accurately and so thoroughly as now.

So far the survey. But this is only one part of the work of the Palestine Exploration Fund. Our object is not only with the surface, but with the bowels of the land. Deep beneath those hills and valleys, if anywhere, lie the relics and records of the race which for centuries inhabited it, and of whose modes of life so few material traces have yet been discovered. This is peculiarly true of Jerusalem. Under the rubbish which during nearly 3,000 years has accumulated on the slopes of Zion and Moriah, and lies dozens of yards thick over the ancient city, are the soil, the streets, the market-places, the sacred spots on which the feet of Christ trod day by day, and hidden from view by the modern counterfeits that have so daringly and so falsely usurped their places. The discoveries already made for the Fund by Major Wilson and Captain Warren are urgent witnesses to the existence of much more still lying hid under the veil of that protecting rubbish. The great wall, so familiar to all who have visited the Holy City, was found to go down 60, 70, and in one place as much as 120 feet below the apparent surface, and at that depth the ancient foundations were found reposing in all their primitive majesty, the surface of the masonry still sharp and clear, the very print of the masons' marks as fresh as the day when these monstrous primæval stones were deposited. The enclosing wall of Ophel; the great arch known as Wilson's between Moriah and Zion; the curious subterranean vaults and arches unearthed by Warren in the same valley; the remains of Herod's bridge, with its two layers of debris, the upper one dating from the siege of Titus, and the under one probably centuries older; the strange tell-tale aqueduct still further beneathwhen such remarkable objects as these have rewarded a first search, it is impossible to doubt that much of more direct interest still remains behind.

Where were the walls of the city at its various periods of growth? Where were the exact site and what the limits of the temple? Where was the sepulchre of Christ? Where is the tomb of David and the other kings of Judah? Where the Pool of Bethesda, and the many other spots whose names ring in the ears of the students of the sacred story? Where are they? Why, all, without any reasonable doubt, hidden below the modern city, and all recoverable by energy, tact, and perse

verance.

It is the discovery and the determination of these which form the second part of the work of the Palestine Fund. Now, in such a quest, fully as much as in the survey, the right man is everything. Get

the wrong man, and good-will, money, labour, go for nothing; get the right man, and everything falls into its right place. We believe that we have got the right man. M. Clermont Ganneau, for many years attached to the French Consulate at Jerusalem, though young, has already taken a high place among the Oriental archæologists of his and our own country. The Moabite stone and the Notice stone from Herod's Temple (now so well known), and both to be seen in our Exhibition in the Dudley Gallery, are specimens of the results of his research. He speaks ver nacular Arabic with the ease of a native, and is well and favourably known in the town, where he has been long accustomed to mix among the natives of all ranks without suspicion, At the same time, he is well versed in classical Arabic'and in Hebrew, as well as in the ordinary languages of a scholar's education. M. Ganneau is remarkable for his tact and intuition, which he has shown in many instances: his heart is thoroughly in the work-in fact, he has every qualification for an explorer. His views as to the site of some of the most desirable discoveries in Jerusalem and its neighbourhood are at once new and founded on solid grounds of reading and observation, and promise to yield good results. M. Ganneau has been temporarily detached from his own service by the French Minister of Foreign Affairs specially for this mission; and I take the opportunity of expressing the deep obligations of my Committee both to the Duc de Broglie and to M. le Comte de Vogue, the Ambassador at Constantinople, himself a most distinguished Oriental explorer, for so valuable a recognition of the serious nature of our enterprise.

And now for the question of money. The annual subscriptions are sufficient to continue the survey, to issue the quarterly statements free to all subscribers, and to keep the Society going; but to undertake the exploration of Jerusalem fresh funds must be raised. Fortunately, the amount required is not great. The expenses of one year, including pay, transport, and maintenance of M. Ganneau and his assistant, will be covered by £1,500. A modest sum. But without this modest sum the researches cannot be touched. The time is approaching when M. Ganneau must go out or the matter be postponed for a year. I appeal once more with confidence to your readers for support in this matter. Surely it is not much to ask for the continuance of a work, so reverently undertaken, so ardently persevered in, so admirable in intention, so promising in results, so peculiarly English in its practical bearing on the Bible and the grounds of our religion. Comfort and luxury were never at a higher pitch than they are now in England. We all live better, dress better, travel more, spend more money on ourselves, take pleasure more freely, than we