I might have mentioned Melchisedec, Tamar, etc., but I forbear. Thus the church of God, from the morning of creation, “looked forth as the morning,” in her dawns of grace and glory, and worshipped God in the beauties of holiness. And the church in the days of gospel light is a pattern and copy of that, when God, as then, is worshipped in spirit and in truth. Hence Christ is the person of whom Adam was figure; Christ’s priesthood is taken not after Aaron’s order but from the order of Melchisedec, after which order He is consecrated for ever more. In Abraham’s loins, Levi pays tithes; and the father of the faithful who had the promises, is blessed by Melchisedec, who is the greater both in dignity and office; the one being a king of righteousness, the other a prince; the former a priest of the Most High God, the other a prophet. The one received tithes, the other paid them; the former blessed in God’s name, the other received it in faith. Hence it is that we are commanded to look to Abraham our father, and not unto Moses; and to Sarah that bare us, and not to the Jewish synagogue in her moonlight state, but to Abraham and Sarah, because their religion is a copy of ours, and not that under the law; and because our call, faith, justification, blessing promised and devotions, are like theirs; I mean in the beauties of holiness; and not scented and trained with will worship or a specious form of godliness as theirs was. But the most remarkable of all is, that God, as a God in covenant, takes His eternal name and memorial from the church in this her morning state. “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; this is my name for ever, and my memorial to all generations.” And the very blessings, and the blessed seed, that was promised to Abraham, is the same which is now come upon the uncircumcision through faith, which reaches to all generations to the world’s end; promised to Abraham, and to his mystic seed for evermore. The next appearance is, “That she is as fair as the moon,” which has much borrowed light, but no heat, many spots, but not much transparent brightness; never in one state always waxing and waning; to which the church is compared from the times of giving the law to the coming of the Son of God (under all their new moon observations of feasting and fasting;) at which time the true light of the Sun of righteousness (not of the borrowed light of the moon) appeared, when life and immortality was brought to light; then the day broke, and the shadows fled away. The national church of the Jews which were God’s people by national adoption (as God says to Pharaoh, Israel is my son, my first born), had, like the moon, little or no heat, full of spots; their light was borrowed from the letter not from the shining into the heart; they had a form of knowledge out of the law, not the knowledge of Him by perfect love casting out all fear; they were always in the wax or wane. God had a peculiar treasure in this sand, a remnant in this roll of national genealogy; a few berries on the top of the utmost boughs of this olive tree; a few good figs in this garden, a gleaning after the harvest was done; a few clusters, with a blessing in them, upon the degenerate and strange vine, that bears so many wild grapes; a holy seed in this deciduous oak, an ox and an ass (I mean the apostle) to send forth from Jerusalem, when that city was low, in a low place; which the Saviour calls the light of the world, and the salt of the earth. The next appearance of the church is “clear as the sun.” She began to put on this appearance,” as soon as “the day spring from on high visited her,” when those that sat in darkness saw a great light, “and those who sat in the shadow of death, upon them the light shined.” The church in this glorious state was enlightened with knowledge, experience, purity, doctrines, discipline, and worship; and she has so continued, more or less ever since: and the church in that glorious time was expressly called “a woman clothed with the sun,” with the moon (the shadowy appearance of the former church state under the law) under her feet, with a crown of twelve stars upon her head; that is, with the crown of loving kindness, knowledge, spiritual virtue, and glory; which twelve stars are those shining lights (I mean the twelve apostles) by whom Christ diffused and spread the light of life in the Gentile world. The next appearance of the church is “terrible as an army with banners,” which appearance is altogether military, in which the national church of the Jews often appeared but the remnant, according to the election of grace, never cut so formidable a figure, for they were so hid in Elijah’s day as not to be known, and, therefore, called ones, a solitary family, sparrows upon the house top, owls of the desert, pelicans of the wilderness, a very small remnant, faint, and feeble; without this small remnant the Jewish church had been as Sodom or Gomorrah. This formidable and military appearance of the church has never taken place in the world as yet, though it was prefigured in the times of Constantine, therefore, it is a prediction of a singular appearance yet to come, which will commence when the witnesses, who have longed prophesied in sackcloth, will throw it off, and rise upon their feet as a cloud of witnesses for Christ; when the kings of the earth will be converted, and come to the brightness of Zion’s rising, and have their hearts turned to hate the whore, eat her flesh, and burn her with fire; when the vials of wrath will be poured forth upon anti-christ, and the whore of Babylon, by the army of saints upon white horses, and the King of kings and Lord of lords at the head of them; when eternal majesty will appear on His robes and victory on His sword; and it will be manifest, to all who can read either providence of grace, justice or mercy, “that He has a name written on His vesture, and on His thigh, King of kings, and Lord of lords.” For this will be taught them by His omnipotent power and just judgment. Now will the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord, even Christ; who will destroy anti-christ in the east, and in the west, both soul and body, branch and root; the one by the ministry of the Word, the other by the force of the sword. When the greatest kingdom under the whole heavens shall be given to the saints of the Most High; greater than the Babylonian, the Midian, and Persian, the Grecian, or the Roman; “for this will extend from sea to sea, and from the river Euphrates to the ends of the earth; when all that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before Him, and His enemies shall lick the dust.” Now shall all rule and all authority of the wicked be put down and those kings only shall reign who come to the light of Zion, and to the brightness of her rising; who shall be nursing fathers, and their queens nursing mothers, to the church; yea, all kings shall bring their glory and honour to Zion. Oh what a time must this be, when none but saints are on the throne, none but saints in the council! “When the officers shall be peace, and the exactors righteousness;” when Christ will break in pieces the oppressor; when violence shall be heard no more in her, neither wasting nor destruction within her borders, when she shall call her walls salvation, and her gates praise! Now shall the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of Christ, and none but His saints shall fill the thrones, “for the nation and kingdom that will not serve Him shall perish, yea, those kingdoms shall be utterly wasted;” yea, the kings shall bring their gold and their silver, their glory and their honour, into Zion; and all their gain shall be consecrated to the Lord of the whole earth, for the God of the whole earth He be called. Oh, could my hand keep pace with my heart! could my pen run like my thoughts! Oh, could I describe what I see, and express what I feel! But, alas! I can think what I cannot write; I can see what I cannot express; and triumph in future prosperity of our family, although I see one of the most dreadful nights before us that ever beclouded the horizon of mount Zion since the dawn of immortal light cast the first radiance upon her. Having shewn that the church is called or compared to the morning and described her morning state, her moon light state under the law, her sunshine state under the gospel; and her formidable appearance and her triumphant state yet to come, I shall proceed to offer a few thoughts upon “The womb of the church,” which is compared in my text to the womb of the morning.
The Womb of the Morning
The womb of the morning is the darkness that covers the hemisphere; which covers, conceals, and hides, the day from our eyes, as the womb of a woman conceals an infant. When the beams of the sun, which brings day, and which is the light which rules the day, shoot forth, this vail of darkness opens and gives way, and day breaks forth with the beams of the sun, which is called day-break, and day-spring. But what is the church’s womb? Some say it is the church herself, where saints are converted and born again with the incorruptible seed, the Word of God; but some are born out of the church (visible) as I was; and some out of due time, as Paul was. The womb is not the church. It may be said that the womb of Zion is the Mediator, because He is called Shiloh, which signifies the secundine, in which the infant is wrapped, and because we are chosen in Christ, hid in Him, and God give us life in Him before the world was made, which is true. Christ is called the husband of the church, and the everlasting Father of the family in whom they lay in embryo, in non-existence, from everlasting. Nor is the purpose of God in election or His decree of predestination to adoption, the church’s womb; for this is called the Lord’s secret, and “secret things belong to God;” but, when revealed to the elect in effectual calling, then “the secret of the Lord is with the righteous.” Isaac is the pattern of us all. Now as Isaac was so are we; and where did he lie? Why in Sarah’s womb. True: but he lay in the womb of the morning before he lay there; and that is the promise of God. Sarah shall have a son; Abraham shall have a seed. And I believe Isaac lay in the promise forty years before his conception, Ishmael was born after the flesh, but Isaac after the promise. You read of children of the flesh; but we, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. Zion’s offsprings are spiritual; and what can cause her to labour and travail, in expectation of a family, if no spiritual family is promised to her? “Thou shalt break forth on the right, and on the left, and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, a little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation, I the Lord will hasten it in His time.” Here they lay. And shall I make such promises to Zion, and not perform them? Shall she labour in hope and expectation, “and bring forth nothing but wind?” Shall no deliverance be wrought in the earth? “Shall I cause to travail and not cause to bring forth?” Shall I raise thy hope and expectations, and shalt thou be disappointed of thy hope, and all thy expectation cut off? “Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth?” saith thy God. Shall the children struggle, being quickened, and then die in the place of breaking forth of children? No; I, that give them life to labour, will give them love to cast out fear. “Before she travailed she brought forth,” before the Apostles began to form churches, and they to labour in hope of increase, numbers of children appeared in the world: “before pains came she was delivered of a man child,” of a strong manly family, who were young men, who were strong, who overcame the wicked one, and the Word abode in them. I go now to consider “The youth” which is to spring from the womb of the morning.
The Youth
The “youth” which is to spring from the womb of the morning, which is to be as numerous as the drops of dew, seem to be at a time yet to come; when popery shall be discovered by the brightness of the Lord’s coming, and be destroyed by the breath of His lips (the above statement does not mean the personal reign of a thousand years, but gospel “brightness”) when the earth shall be covered with the knowledge of the Lord as the water covers the sea; when there shall be such a wonder performed as never was heard of till God revealed it—”who has heard such a thing? shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day?” Yes, it did at the creation, when God commanded it—”let the earth bring forth abundantly.” “But shall a nation be born at once?” Yes—”When the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; when the spiritual seed of Abraham shall be as the stars of heaven, and as the sand upon the sea shore innumerable. Now, that this is a promise yet to come appears in my text, and in the whole Psalm out of which it is taken. “In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, thou hast the dew of thy youth.” But then why are they called youth? when the spiritual family is said to consist of babes, little children, young men and fathers? Why, because of a nation being born at once; the Gentiles’ fulness and the Jews’ call and conversion coming in together; for if the earth is to “bring forth in one day,” if a nation is to be born at once, if a little one is to become a thousand, and a small one a great nation, and if God will hasten this in His time, then it cannot be supposed that there will be one old man in faith in a thousand, on which account it appears plain that the family will consist chiefly of youth and so saith the Spirit, “instead of thy fathers shall be thy children,” whom, “thou mayest make princes in all the earth (Ps. xlv. 16).” Now, the offspring of the womb of the morning being called youth, this text mentions nothing but children; and the birth of this family is to be all over the world, “for these children are to be made princes in all the earth:” this must be when the greatest kingdom under the whole heavens is given to the saints, and they shall take it, and when both kings and subjects shall be the saints of God, kings nursing fathers, and queens nursing mothers, the officers peace, and the exactors righteousness; “when spears shall be beat into plough-shares, and swords into pruning hooks; when nations shall learn war no more, but the abundance of peace shall be enjoyed as long as the moon endures.” But then it may be asked why the womb of the church at this time is called or compared to the womb of the morning? Answer: When the church shone forth in the antediluvian world, soon after the creation, soon after the morning stars had sang their hymns of creation together (Rev. iv. 11). Soon after the songs of grace began, when the church shone first forth, when men began to call on the name of the Lord. Under the law, when she was compared to the moon, then they were called children in nonage, under tutors and governors, under a schoolmaster shut up to the faith which should afterwards be revealed; in which state they were said to grope as the blind for the wall, wishing the day to break, and the shadows to flee away, but, when Christ the day-spring visited them, and the dawn of the gospel day began to shine then the saints bore a name suitable to the state of their mother, who then looked forth clear as the sun; then her family bore another name, a name which they never bore before, being called by Christ Himself the children of light, and God the Father of lights; and, as the church was then said to be clothed with the sun, so her family, says Paul, are the children of light, and of the day; not of the night, nor of darkness. Hence it appears that, in this future time to come, the church’s womb will be the womb of the morning, her offspring the children of light and of the day, in a glorious sense; “her watchmen will see eye to eye; the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun as the light of seven days, when the Lord shall bind up the breach of His people, and heal the stroke of their wound;” when the teachers of the saints shall be hid in a corner no more, but their eyes shall see their teachers. Now, that this time is yet too come will appear by the contents of the Psalm out of which my text is taken; and the first is putting down all idolatrous kings, Popish, Turkish, and Pagan, “He shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath (Ps. cx. 5).” Secondly, the judgment shall be executed upon the heathen, and their death, and the wounding the head, Satan, in Popish, Heathen, and Mohometan countries—”He shall judge among the heathen, He shall fill the places with dead bodies, He shall wound the head over divers countries (Verse 6) which leads me to consider—”The dew of thy youth,” which shall spring from the womb of the morning.
The Dew of Thy Youth
The “dew of thy youth,” which shall spring from the womb of the morning; which I think is not so much expressive of the number of the saints though they are some times compared to stars, to sand, and here to drops of the dew; though in that sense it may be true, yet I think their flourishing state and abundant refreshing, is signified by the dew more than their number. Sometimes the poor and needy seek water, and there is none; at other times the ministers of Satan speak so much villany, that they make empty the soul of the hungry, and cause the drink of the thirsty to fail, then there is a famine not of bread nor of water, but of hearing the Word of the Lord; at which times the Lord promises that He will hear them, and that He, the God of Israel, will not forsake them; but pour water on him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground.” The dew, principally the flourishing state of the church, at the time that this prophecy alludes to; when the everlasting gospel shall be preached, stripped of human forms, and unadulterated with human inventions, human traditions, and carnal ceremonies; when the pure doctrines of Christ shall drop as the rain, and distil as the dew; when there shall be no complaining of leanness, dryness, and barrenness; when the sun (of persecution) shall no more smite them by day, nor the moon (of legal devotions) by night, when Zion shall call her walls salvation, and her gates praise. in those days the Lord shall be as the dew unto Israel; they will thrive as the corn, and grow as the vine, and send forth their roots as Lebanon. All which is expressive of the gentle distillations of grace and the abundance of it; when hard hearts will be softened, barren souls revived, parched souls refreshed; the sun of persecution, and the flames of carnal lust, shall be allayed; and both the floor of the Lords harvest, and the fleece of the Lord’s sheep, will be wet with the dew of heavenly grace. The morning mentioned in my text, the womb of it, the innumerable progeny, the universal ruin of the wicked, the spread of the gospel, the wonderful increase of Zion, and the universal call of her family, are all mentioned in one Psalm, which is as follows: Ps. lxxii. The first, is committing all judgment into the hands of Christ, and the execution of all righteousness by Him—”Give the King thy judgments, O Lord, and thy righteousness unto the king’s son (Verse 1). The next particular is, the justification of His people and the avenging their wrongs by executing the righteous sentence of God upon them—”He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment” (Verse 2). Next comes the free publication of the finished work on mount Calvary, the sweet reconciliation by the preaching of peace and imputed righteousness upon every little hill of Zion, or in every little assembled flock of the chief Shepherd—”The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness (Verse 3).” The next branch of His work at this future time is, to execute true judgment on behalf of the poor in spirit, to proclaim and save them that feel the need of salvation, and to execute vengeance and eternal damnation on the covetous, over reachers, defrauders, and oppressors—”He shall judge the poor of the people, He shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor (Verse 4). When this is done all the world will fear Him, and every generation will share in the benefits of His reign till time is no more—”They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations (Verse 5).” And now comes in the dew of His youth mentioned in my text—”He shall come down like rain on the mown grass; as showers that water the earth; in His day shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth (Verses 6, 7).” All this alludes to the time when all the kingdoms of the world shall become His, from one end of the world to the other; for so it follows—”He shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth; they that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before Him; and His enemies shall lick the dust; yea, all kings shall fall down before Him, all nations shall serve Him (Verses 7, 12).” I must now conclude this subject, having said what I can of the beauties of the Lord Jesus Christ; of His beauties on Zion by the manifestations of Himself to her, of the beauties of holiness in the worship of the saints, of the mystery of it, of the womb of the morning, of the youth, and of the dew of grace that is to appear upon these youths, and of the dew of grace upon the saints, and of the glory of these children of light, which are to spring from the womb of the morning. Amen.