Thus have I spoken something concerning Christ's being the Messenger of the new covenant; but because I am not willing to cut too short of what shall come after, I shall pass by these things not half touched, and come to the other which I promised even now; which was to show you, that as there were Levitical ceremonies in or belonging to the first covenant, so these types, or Levitical ceremonies, did represent the glorious things of the new covenant. In those ceremonies, you read of a sacrifice, of a priest to offer up the sacrifice, the place where, and how he was to offer it; of which I shall speak something.
Christ the sacrifice of the new covenant.
THIRD. [A third office of Christ, about is the new covenant, was His becoming the sacrifice]. As you touch the sacrifice, you find that it was not to be offered up of all kinds of beasts, such as lions, bears, wolves, tigers, dragons, serpents, or such like, to signify that not all kind of creatures that had sinned, as devils, the fallen angels, should be saved. Still, the sacrifice was to be taken out of some sort of beasts and birds, to signify, that some of God's creatures that had sinned He would be pleased to reconcile them to Himself again; as poor fallen man and woman, those miserable creatures, God, the God of Heaven, had a good look for after their fall; but not for the cruel devils, though more noble creatures by creation than we. Here is grace.
Then, we will. Though these sacrifices were offered, they were not provided to the end. They should make the comers to, or offerers thereof, perfect. Still, the things were to represent to the world what God had in after ages to do, which was even the salvation of His creatures by offering the body of Jesus Christ, of which these were a shadow and a type for accomplishing the second covenant. Christ was by covenant to provide a sacrifice, and that an effectual one too, if He intended the salvation of sinners—"A body hast Thou prepared for Me; I come to do Thy will" (Heb 10:5). I shall therefore show you, First. What was expected by God in the sacrifice of this type? Then, we will show you how it was answered in the antitype. Second. I shall show you the manner of the offering of the kind and so answerable thereto to show you the fitness of the sacrifice of the body of Christ by answering some questions.
First. For the first of these, [What was expected by God in the sacrifice in the type, and how answered in the antitype]—1. God did expect that sacrifice He had appointed, and not another, to signify that none would serve His turn but the body and soul of His appointed Christ, the Mediator of the new covenant (John 1:29). 2. This sacrifice must not be lame nor deformed; it must have no scar, spot, or blemish to signify that Jesus Christ was to be a complete sacrifice by covenant (1 Peter 1:19). 3 This sacrifice was to be taken out of the flock or herd to signify that Jesus Christ was to come out of the race of mankind, according to the covenant (Heb 10:5). Second. As to the manner of it [The offering of the types, and so answerable thereto, to show the fitness of the sacrifice of the body of Christ]—1. The sacrifice, before it was offered, was to have all the sins of the children of Israel confessed over it; to signify, that Jesus Christ must bear the sins of all His children by covenant (Isa 53:4-7; 1 Peter 2:24). "As for Thee also, by the blood of Thy covenant," in His own body on the tree (Zech 9:11). 2. It must be had to the place appointed—namely, without the camp of Israel; to signify that Jesus Christ must be led to Mount Calvary (Luke 23:33). 3. The sacrifice was to be killed there to signify that Jesus Christ must and did suffer without the city of Jerusalem for our salvation. 4. The sacrifice must not only have its life taken away but also some of its flesh burned upon the altar; to signify that Jesus Christ was not only to die a natural death but also that He should undergo the pains and torments of the damned in Hell. 5. Sometimes there must be a living offering and a dead offering, as the goat that was killed, and the scapegoat, the dead bird and the living bird, to signify that Jesus Christ must die and come to life again (Lev 19:4-6). 6. The goat that was to die was to be the sin-offering; that is, to be offered as the rest of the sin-offerings, to make atonement as a type, and the other goat was to have all the sins of the children of Israel confessed over him, and then let go into the wilderness, never to be caught again (Lev 16:7-22). To signify that Christ's death was to make satisfaction for sin, and His coming to life again was to bring in everlasting justification from the power, curse, and destroying nature of sin (Rom 4:25). 7. The scapegoat was to be carried by a fit man into the wilderness to signify that Jesus Christ should both be fit and able to carry our sins quite a way from us so that they should never be laid to our charge again. Here is grace. 8. The sacrifices under the law, commonly part of them, must be eaten to signify that they that are saved should spiritually feed on the body and blood of Jesus Christ, or else they have no life by Him (Exo 12:5-11; John 6:51-53). 9. This sacrifice must be eaten with unleavened bread to signify that those who love their sins, that devilish leaven of wickedness, do not feed upon Jesus Christ.
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