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thizes both with Mary and her weeping friends! "When JESUS faw her weep, and the Jews alfo weeping, he groaned in his Spirit, and was troubled." Troubled: Not with any finful perturbation we may be affured: nothing of that nature could poffibly be in his finlefs foul. And, therefore, fome have judiciously enough compared the trouble our LORD now felt, to fome chryftal water fhaken in a glafs or bottle; you may shake it, but there will be no fediment: it will be chryftal water fill. "He groaned in his fpirit." I do not fee why this may not be understood of his praying in the fpirit, which maketh interceffion for the faints, with anaλntois Tεvay μols,"groanings that cannot be uttered." Methinks I fee the immaculate Lamb of GoD, fecretly, but powerfully agonizing with his Father; his heart is big with fympathy! At length, out of the fulness of it, he faid, ver. 34. "Where have ye laid him? They (I fuppofe Mary and Martha) fay unto him, LORD, come and fee." He came, he faw, "He wept," ver. 35. It is put in a verfe by itself, that we might paufe a while, and afk, why JESUS wept?

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He wept, to fhew us, that it was no fin to shed a tear o love and refignation at the grave of a deceased friend; he wept, to fee what havock fin had made in the world, and how it had reduced man, who was originally little lower than the angels, (by making him fubject to death) to a level with the beafts that perifh; but above all, he wept at the forefight of the people's unbelief; he wept, to think how many then prefent, would not only not believe on, but would be hardened, and have their prejudices increased more and more against him, though he should raise Lazarus from the dead before their eyes. Well then may minifters be excufed, who, whilft they are preaching, now and then drop and then drop a few tears, at the confideration of their fermons being, through the perverseness and unbelief of many of their audience, a favour of death unto death, instead of a favour of life unto life. Upon a like occafron JESUS wept. What an affecting fight was here! Let us for a while fuppofe ourselves placed amidft thefe holy mourners let us imagine that we fee the fepulchre juft beføre us, and the Jews, and Mary, and the bleffed JESUS weepingtround ing round it. Surely, the moft obdurate of us all must drop a tear, or at least be affected with the fight; we find that it affected those who were really by-ftanders: for then faid the

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Jews, yer, 36. "Behold, how he loved him." And did they fay, Behold, how he loved him, when JESUS only thed a few tears over the grave of his departed Lazarus? Come then, O finners, and view CHRIST dying and pouring out his precious heart's blood for you upon an accurfed tree, and then furely you must needs Is cry out, Behold, how he loved usos But alas, though all were affected, yet, it feems, all were not well affected at feeing JESUS weep! For we are told, ver. 37. that fome of them faid, "Could not this man, whỏ opened the eyes of the blind, have caufed that even this man fhould not have died?" One would imagine, that Satan himfelf could fcarce have uttered a more perverfe fpeech: every word is full of fpite and rancour. Could not this man, this fellow, this deceiver, who pretends to fay, that he opened the eyes of the blind, have caufed that this man, whom he feems to love fo, fhould not have died? Is hot this a fufficient proof that he is a cheat? Have we catched him at last? Is it likely that he really helped others, when he could not help his own friend?-O how patient ought the fervants of our LORD to be! And how may they expect to be cenfured, and have their good deeds queftioned, and leffened, when th their blessed Mafter has been thus treated before them!`` However, JESUS will do good, notwithstanding all thefe Rights put upon him, and therefore, again groaning in himself, he cometh to the grave; it was a cave, (or vault, as is customary in great families and a tone lay upon it; Jesus faid, Liversed. ver. 39. Take yeaway the ftone. How gradually does our Lord blow proceed, in order to engage the people's attention the more! Methinks I fee them all eye, all ear, and eagerly waiting to

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aith unto him, (ver. 39.) LORD, by this time he flinketh for he hath been either dead or buried four days." "O the difmal effects of carnal reafoning! How naturally do we fall into doubts and fears, when we have not our eye fimply directed to the bleffed JESUS! Martha, inftead of looking up to him, looks down into the grave, and poring upon her brother's ftinking corpfe, falls into a fit of unbeliefs. By this time he flinketh;" and, therefore, a fight of him will only be offenfive. Perhaps the might think our LORD only wanted

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to take a view of her brother Lazarys; Jesus, therefore, to give her yet a further hint, that he intended to do something extraordinary, faith unto her, ver. 40" Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldst believe, thou shouldst fee the glory of Gop?" Our LORD fpeaks here with fome degree of warmth: for nothing difpleases him more than the unbelief of his own difciples. Said I not unto thee, if thou wouldst believe, thou fhouldft fee the glory of GoD?" When CHRIST fost fpoke these words unto her, we are not told; it might be, this was part of their conversation upon another occasion some time before: however, he checks her openly for her unbelief now for those whom JESUS loves, must expect to be rebuked harply by him, whenever they difhonour him by unbelief. The reproof is taken.

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ved Without making any more objections, “They took away the ftone from the place where the dead was laid." And now behold, with what folemnity the holy JESUS prepares himself to execute his gracious defign!, " And JESUS lift up his eyes, and faid, Father, I thank thee that thou haft heard me and I knew that thou heareft me always but because of the pedple which ftand by, faid it, that they may believe that thou haft fent me," Who can exprefs with what fervor and intenfepefs of fpirit, our glorious High-prieft uttered thefe words! They are a thanksgiving arifing from an afsurance that his F his Father had heard him; for CHRIST, as Mediator, was inferior to the Father. I knew that thou heareft me always (and to may every believer in his degree fay too), but because of the people which stand by, I faid it."-Said what? We do not hear that JESUS faid any thing by way of prayer before; and that is true, if we mean vocally, but mentally he did fay fomething, even when he groaned in the spirit once and again, and was troubled, There is a way of praying, even when we do not, and cannot fpeak. "Why cryeft they," faid God to Mofes; though we do not hear that he fpoke one fingle word but he cried in his heart. And I obferve this for the comfort of fome weak, but real chriftians, who think they never pray, unless they can have a great flow of words but this is a great mistake: for we often pray beft, when we can speak Jeaf. There are times when the heart is too big to fpeak and the fpirit itfelf maketh interceffion for the faints, and that too according to the will of God, with

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groanings that cannot be uttered. Such was Hannah's prayer for a fon," She spake not, only her lips moved?" and fuch was our LORD's way of praying at this time. And perhaps the foul is never in a better frame, than when in a holy ftillness, and unspeakable ferenity; it can put itlelf as a blank in JESUS's hand, for him to stamp on it just what he pleases. And nowother hour of our Saviour's Jong expected miracle, is come. had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, forth." With the word there went an irresistible power? he fpake, and it was done: he cried, and behold, "He that was dead came forth bound hand and foot with grave cloaths; and his face was bound about with a napkin." What a fight was here! Methinks I fee furprize fit upon each fpectator's face as the body rifes, their wonder rifes too. See how they gaze! See how their looks befpeak the language of aftonished hearts; and all with a kind of filent, but expreffive oratory, ready to fay, What manner of man is this? Surely this is the Meffiah that was to come into the world. How did the hearts of Martha and Mary, as we may very well fuppofe, leap for joych How were they afhamed of themselves, for charging JESUS foolishly, and taxing him with unkindness, for no coming to prevent their brother's dying! It is true, CHRIST fuffered him to die, but behold he is now alive again! JESUS never denies us one thing, but he intends to give us fomething better in the ftead of it. Think you not that Martha and Mary were now the most officious to obey our blessed LORD's command, "Loofe him, and let him go? That fame power that Taifed Lazarus from the dead, might have also taken the grave-cloaths from him but JESUS CHRIST never did, and never will work a needlefs miracle. Others could unloofe his grave-cloaths, but JESUS alone could unloose the bands of death.

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And now, perhaps, fome may be ready to afk, What news hath Lazarus brought from the other world! But flop, O man, thy vain curiofity! It is forbidden, and therefore ufelefs knowledge. The fcriptures are filent concerning It. Why fhould we defire to be wife above what is written It becomes us rather to be wholly employed in adoring the gracious hand of that mighty Redeemer who raifed him from the 1 of gabr9394 003 jadi Las estais dead,

dead, and to fee (now we have heard the hiftory) what improvement we can make of such a remarkable and instructive tranfaction.

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Would to God that my preaching upon the refurrection of Lazarus to-day, may have the fame bleffed effects upon you, as the fight of it had upon fome of the ftanders-by: For we are told, ver. 45. “Then many of the Jews who came to Mary, and had seen the things which JESUS did, believed on him." A profitable vifit this! The best, no doubt, that they ever paid in their lives. And this was in answer to our Saviour's prayer, "But because of the people who stand by, I faid it, that they may believe, that thou haft fent me," One would imagine, that all who saw this miracle, were induced thereby, really to believe on him: But alas! I could almoft fay, that I can tell you of a greater miracle than raising Lazarus from the dead. And what is that? Why, that some of these very persons who were on the spot, instead of believing on him," went their way to, the Pharifees, and told them what JESUS had done. ver. 46. It was fo far from convincing them, that it only excited their envy, stirred up the whole hell of their felf-righteous hearts, and made them, from that day forward," take counsel together," to execute what they had long before defigned, to put the innocent JESUS to death. See how busy they are, ver. 47. "Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharifees a council, and faid, What do we? For this man doeth many miracles. Envy itself, it seems, could not deny that. And need they fay then, "What do we," or what should we do? Believe in, to be fure, and fubmit to him; take up the crofs, and follow him. No; on the contrary, fay they, ver. 48. " If we let him thus alone, (which they would not have done fo long, had not God put a hook in the Leviathan's jaws) all men will believe on him." And suppose they did? Then all men would be blessed indeed, and have a title to true happiness. No, fay they,

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then the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation." But were not the Romans come already? Were they not at this time tributaries to Gafar? But they were afraid of the church as well as the ftate: "They will come and take away our place.", our place of worship: and confequently, they look upon JESUS CHRIST and his proceedings, and adherents, as dangerous both to church and state.

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