greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice." (Exod. xix. 18, 19.) From out of that pitchy darkness and fiery flame came forth the voice of the LORD Himself, in the utterance of His holy law. Of this Moses afterwards reminds the Israelites, when he recalls the awful scene:—

66 And ye came near and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the Lord spake unto you out of the midst of the fire; ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." (Deut. iv. 11-13.) And then, after reciting the ten commandments in the fifth chapter, he adds, "These words the Lord spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice; and He added no more. And He wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me." (Deut. v. 22.)

What a law that was, thus uttered by the voice of God Himself! How brief, yet how comprehensive! How perfect and how pure! setting forth, as it did, the demands of infinite holiness upon the obedience of His creatures; reaching, as no human law ever

did or can, to the thoughts and purposes of the heart; a law from which there can be no escape, no evasion, no concealment !

Now, what was the impression left by this solemn scene upon those who heard the voice of God? Just what we would ourselves have experienced under like circumstances-alarm and dismay! Here they were face to face with God-sinners confronted with the holiness and majesty of the Most High! Terror and conviction filled their hearts, and "so terrible was the sight that even Moses said, I do exceedingly fear and quake;" (Heb. xii. 21;) "And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die." (Exod. xx. 18, 19.)

They felt the need of some mediator to interpose; some one to stand between them and this Holy God. And if ever our eyes are really opened to see and understand the just and infinite requirements of the law of God, and our own exceeding sinfulness and vileness, we shall feel as they felt, that if brought face to face with the Almighty and All-Holy One, we must die. Oh! if this law of God be thus terrible in its proclamation, and searching in its operation, what will it be in the day of its great assize, when He that proclaimed it upon Sinai shall come to administer it at the judgment-day!

But how did Jehovah meet the feeling of alarm thus awakened in the hearts of Israel? By showing Himself in another and more gracious aspect; by accepting Moses as a mediator on their behalf; by directing them to build an altar, and promising to bless them and accept their sacrifice. "And Moses said unto the people, Fear not; for God is come to prove you, and that His fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not. And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was. And the Lord said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold. An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen; in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee." (Exod. xx. 20-24.) Nothing short of this could have calmed their fears, and delivered them from the consternation which a sense of guilt on the one side, and a persuasion of God's holiness on the other, had inspired. The altar, the sacrifice, the mediator, the promise, all spoke of mercy; and God was pleased to give them still further tokens of His grace and favour, by making additional revelations of His will to Moses, and causing them to be written in a book, and then directing that both the book and all the people should be sprinkled with atoning blood. (Ex. xxiv. 4, 8, and Heb. ix. 20.)

Nor did these tokens of mercy terminate here. The Lord invites Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, with seventy of the elders, to come up with Moses to the Mount, (which hitherto had been fenced against all intrusion,) and to enjoy the privilege of nearer and closer communication with Himself; thus declaring that He was willing in His covenant of love to accept those who came to Him in His appointed way"Then went up Moses, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel: and they saw the God of Israel: and there was under His feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not His hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink." (Exod. xxiv. 9-11.)

What a contrast have we here! instead of being commanded to stand afar off, they are permitted to draw near; instead of darkness, and fire, and smoke, they see the beauty of the sapphire light, and the body of the heaven in its clearness; instead of terror and dismay, they feast as it were in the presence of the Almighty; instead of death and destruction, behold! they see God and live!

Was not this the Gospel on the confines of Mount Sinai ?-a clear declaration that it was not by a covenant of works, but by a covenant of grace that they were to be saved?-and that the righteous condemning law, which made them tremble, was intended to teach them their need of the coming Mediator and His

great atonement? How far they realized this divine intention we cannot tell; but with the New Testament in our hands we at least should not mistake its meaning. For what saith the Scripture ?—“Ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (for they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: and so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake :) but ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfeet, and to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews xii. 18-24.)

Let us learn therefore to look away, my fellowsinners, from the condemning law, as a means of life, to the perfect Mediator, and the blood of sprinking. Imagine not that this fiery law from Sinai was given to save you, for it proclaims you guilty, and demands your death. But it is your schoolmaster to bring you unto Christ; it shuts you up by its very