THE

COMMENT.

"His Portion of Scripture contains fo exact a Defcription, of the barbarous Indignities our Bleffed Saviour fuffered, and of his Meek Deportment under them; as looks more like an Hiftorical Narration of Facts already pass'd, than a Prediction of Events then feveral Hundred Years to come. Had Ifaiah been prefent at the High-Prieft's Palace and the Judgment-Hall; What fuller Reprefentation could He, what indeed do the Evangelifts themfelves, give, more punctual, than that, which the Holy Ghoft hath here infpired him with? They, who attend to the Connexion of This, with the Chapter next before, will fee reafon fufficient to conclude, that the Prophet, in both, perfonates the Meffiah. And They, who compare the account here, with that of our Lord's Paffion in the New Testament, must be utterly Blind, or extremely Perverfe, if they can any longer fuffer themselves to doubt, whether JeJus of Nazareth were that Meffiab.

In regard then, that this Prophecy is fo plain, as to afk no Enlargement, either for the Interpreting, or the Applying it: We may very well join it with the Gofpel of the Day, as partly Introductory, and partly Parallel, to it. The Affronts and Injuries, committed upon our Blessed Saviour, at the Palace of the HighPrieft, make the Subject of this Epiftle; which leads him, as it were, from the Garden, thro' all the painful Steps of Rudenefs, and Violence, Infult, and Scorn, and Reproach, till it fets him at Pilate's Bar. There the Gospel takes him up, and carries him on to Crucifixion and Death. So that Both together, proceeding in fo regular a Method, and making one continued Relation, I chufe to treat upon them together. Not forgetting, in the mean while, fome Particulars, which Ifaiah here fuggefts proper Matter for, and fit to be Hh 2 obferved,

COMMENT.

F ever fuffering Innocence and injured Virtue had power to move Compaffion, and melt us into Tears; If ever the Barbarity and Infolence of Bafe and Wicked Men could provoke our juft Indignation and Abhorrence; let it appear at this time. At this, I fay, the Service whereof prefents us with a Scone of the blackcft Villany, that ever malicious and enraged People were Guilty of; and at the fame time too, with the brigheft, the most unfpotted Virtue, the meekeft, the most invincible Patience, that ever fuffer'd in human Flefh. Had fome very vile Impoftor been expofed, abused, tormented, as the Evangelifts relate; yet the Cruelty, even to fuch a Man, would have been thought great, and the foulnefs of his Guilt would fcarce have extinguifh'd all our Pity. But when a Perfon was fo ill treated, whofe only Meffage into the World was to lead Men into the Truth, who was himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life; Who can be fo Inhuman, as not to refent it, with a quick and tender Sense of what he endured, and with the greateft Deteftation of thofe Merciless, Malicious Wretches, that inflicted it upon him? All this, I fay, is due to our Lord's Innocence, and injured Virtue. But, when we confider farther, that thofe Sufferings had a fecret End, unfeen to the Beholders of them at that time; that they were directed and designed by Almighty God, to the moft glorious Purposes of redeeming Mankind from Sin and Hell, and making this Juft and Holy Perfon a Sacrifice, and Atonement for the whole World; When we obferve that he fuffered for Us, in Our Stead, and for Our unfpeakable Benefit; Then Pity is too low, too cold a Paffion; and it is neceffary we should be tranfported with Wonder, and inflamed with Gratitude and Love. The Dying for Us, though in all thofe alleviating Circumftances, that

might

might have softened Death, and made it the most easy and tolerable, that it could be made; is what most of Us, who are fond of Life, for the mere fake of Living, have reason to Magnify, as an unparallell'd Inftance of Kindness. But, to fubmit to all those Aggravations, which add to the Terrors of Dying, and are infinitely more Grievous, than the thing it felf; fhews plainly, that there was nothing thought too much for compaffing our Happiness: And, that His Kindness and Zeal for our Redemption knew no Bounds. Nay, which is yet more; This Person was not under any Natural neceffity of Dying, as We all are; but God Bleffed from all Eternity, God, above the reach of Suffering, or Pain, or Corruption: And yet, Bleffed and Impaffible as he was, he made that his Choice, which could not be his Fate. He took a Body capable of Mifery and Death, and he took it on purpose, that he might Suffer and Die in it. So free, fo amazing was this Goodnefs: So little did the Eternal Father spare his own Son, fo far was the Son from sparing himfelf, for Us.

To have his Blood fet to fale at a Price, and that but avery low and poor one too: That Blood, which was a Purchase more than equivalent to the whole World, rated at thirty Pieces of Silver: To be Betrayed and Sold by one of his own Servants, his Friend and contant Companion; One, who was honoured with the Dignity of an Apostle, with the power of working Miracles, with a Commiffion of Preaching his Gofpel, and (to free him from the Temptation of fuch bafe Avarice) was intrufted with the Bag, and made Distributer of the Stores of his Mafter: To be Affaulted with Swords and Staves, and Apprehended as a common Robber, and Peft of Mankind: To be haled from one High-Prieft to Another, and there Blindfolded, Spit upon, Buffeted, and Infulted over: To be expofed to the Mercenary Tongue, of False Witnesses, and, in the midst of all this Diftrefs, Hh 4

left

pofed, every way that was poffible. And therefore He, who had no Sin of his own, but took Ours upon himself, muft fuffer all that was any way due to it, all that could be confiftent with his Nature to fu.ier. The King of Heaven and Earth was therefore arrayed in Purple, and made a Spectacle to the People, as if he had pretended to a Royalty, which belonged not to him. A mock Crown and Scepter is given him, and Obeyfance made to him in Jeft and Wantonnefs; that he might be the gazing and the Laughing-Stock of the Beholders. Royal Salutations, feconded with Spittings in his Face, and his Scepter broke about his Head, to render him more Ridiculous and Contemptible. Malice was then let loofe, and all the Inftruments of Hell fet on work, to make the Injury more black and deteftable. This was Satan's Hour, and the Power of Darkness; and it appeared to be fo, by fuch unrelenting Cruelties, as could never have been exercised, had not the Committers of them been carried beyond the common Corruptions of Nature, and for that time ceased to be Men. For, tho' the Nature of Government and Civil Conftitutions require great Severities, upon fuch as are found, or fuppofed, to have grievously Offended; yet no Laws pretend to countenance Barbarity and Infolence, and we can scarce forbid our felves pitying the worft of Criminals. But here was a Perfon declared wholly Blamelefs; None of the Courts, before whom he ftood, could convict him of the leaft Fault; The very Judge, who partially condemned him, washed his Hands publickly, and difclaimed the having any thing to do in taking him off. And yet this Juft Man found no Bowels, but all poffible Industry was ufed to add to his Torment, and to render him more Vile and Odious, and more unworthy of Compaffion.

But, tho' Infolence and Cruelty be deteftable upon all Occafions, and more fo yet to the Innocent and Injured, yet is there fomething of Difference, with regard

to

to the Dignity of the Perfon, against whom it is exercifd; And, the more exalted his Character is, the more cutting it is in Him that endures, and the more villanous in Them that commit, it. Our own Nation hath feen (and Woe unto us that we have seen) an excellent Prince, inhumanly expofed, murthered with wicked Triumph; and all Good Men, I think, muft needs look back upon that Fact with Grief, and Horror, and great Indignation. But alas! though This were fuch a Wickednefs, as hath feldom been feen under the Sun; yet, how vaftly fhort does it come of the Affronts and Indignities put upon our Blefied Lord? The best and holieft of the Sons of Men are not pure in His Sight; nor ought to be compared with his Innocence, even as Man; And the Greatest, and moft Glorious Monarchs are yet infinitely more beneath his Divine Majefty and Perfections. Yet even this unblemish'd Virtue, even this Almighty King fuffered the Rudeness and Infults of a blind and enraged Multitude. He permitted himself to be made, as it was written of him long before, a Worm and no Man, a very Scorn of Men, and the Outcast of the People; all they that faw him, laughed him to Scorn. They entertained themselves with reproaching and ridiculing him; and, when they had ended this infolent Farce, they then proceeded to act the last part of their intended Tragedy, and refolved to glut their Fury with his Blood. Yet ftill they proceed to observe their former Method, of giving Scoffs and Stripes together; to wound his Soul, as well as bruife his Body. For, after they had mocked him, they led him away to crucify him. A Death, the moft dreadful of all Others, both for the Shame and for the Pain of it.

Pfal. xxii. 5.

First, Crucifixion was a Death full of Shame. So fcandalous, that it was inflicted, as the laft Mark of Deteftation, upon the vileft of People. Peculiar to the meaneft Condition, and to the most heinous Offences. It was the Punishment of Robbers and Murtherers, pro