the rule of the political government of the people, wherein many sins, such as adultery and murder were to be punished with death, and the sinner was to be cut off, there was in such cases no sacrifices appointed, nor admitted; but in the sacrifice of Christ there is no exception made of any sin, in those that repent, believe and forsake their sins; particularly, not of those which were excepted in the law of Moses, Acts xiii. 39. So that as the sin-offering was provided for all sin that disannulled not the covenant made at Horeb, which allowed no life nor interest in its blessings to murderers, adulterers, blasphemers, and the like, in the typical land; so the sacrifice of Christ is extended to all sinners who transgress not the terms and tenor of the new covenant, for whom no place is allowed either in the church here, or heaven hereafter.

§ 38. Of the matter of this offering, see Lev. iv. 2. As it differed very little from the matter of the burnt-offering, I shall not particularly insist upon it.

As to the persons that were to bring this offering, there is a general distribution of them in the text comprehensive of all sorts of persons whatever. For it is applied to 1st, The priest; 2d, The whole congregation jointly; 3d, The ruler; and 4th, To any of the people of the land; so that none were excluded from the privilege and benefit of this sacrifice.

$39. The first person mentioned, is w nan the anointed priest, Chap. iv. 3. that is, say the Jews generally, and our expositors also, 1721 the high priest, Aaron and his sons that ministered in his room in their succession; for those only, say they, were anointed. But this seems not to be the truth. For if the high priest alone be intended, there is no provision made for any other priest to have an interest in this sin-offering. For the priests are not comprised in any other class of the distribution of characters before mentioned, particularly not in that in which with any colour they might be looked for, namely, the * D, ver. 27. The people of the land, that is, the common people, from whom the priests were always distinguished. Any priest therefore is intended; and TW, anointed, is no more but dedicated, separated to the office of the priesthood, or it respects that original anointing which they all had in their forefathers the sons of Aaron, when they were first set apart to God; Ezod. xxiv.

if he sin according to the ; וחטא לאשמת העם if

The case of the priest wherein this sacrifice was allowed him, is expressed in the same place, with words somewhat ambiguous: sin of the people,' so we; Castalio renders the passage, si Sacerdos inunctus deliquerit in noxiam populi, if the anointed priest so

sin, as to bring guilt upon, or damage unto the people.' As Achan did, and David also. Vulg. Lat. delinquere faciens populum; causing the people to sin; which is another sense of the words. And this sense the Jews generally embrace. For they apply this sinning of the anointed priest, to his teaching the people amiss; causing them to err thereby, so Aben Ezra, and others on the place, who are followed by many of ours. But if this be so, the priest was not allowed the benefit of this sacrifice of the sin-offering, for any sin of his own, but only when he caused the people to sin also, which would render his condition worse than theirs, and is contrary to that of our apostle; that the priest was to offer for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. I would there, in we take for and render it with our translators, according to; when he sinned as another man of the people; their place and office, not freeing them from the common sins of other men. And so our apostle seems to expound this place; Heb. v. 2, 3. The priests of the law were compassed with infirmities, and by reason thereof, had need to offer sin-offerings for their own sin, as well as for the sins of the people; seeing he also sinned

On, according to the sin of the people. But it is otherwise now, saith he, with the people of God, Ch. vii. 26, 27. Our High Priest being holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners, that is, not sinning according to the sins of the people, as the priests did of old.

§ 40. Secondly, The whole congregation jointly had an interest in this sacrifice, when any such sin was committed as might reflect guilt upon it, Lev. iv. 13. For the observance of the law being committed in an especial manner to the whole congregation, there were many transgressions in the guilt of which the whole body of it might be involved.

Thirdly, the ruler (or rulers) had this privilege also, Lev. iv. 22. with respect, as appears by this peculiar institution, to his miscarriages in his office, God graciously providing a relief against the sins of men in their several conditions, that they might not through a consciousness of their infirmities be deterred from engaging in any necessary employment among the people, when called to it.

Fourthly, Any one of the common people had the same liberty, and were obliged to the same duty, Lev. iv. 27. And this distribution of the people, as to their interest in this sin-offering, comprising them all of all ranks, even all that belonged to the congregation of Israel, had its accomplishment in the sacrifice of Christ, from which none are excluded that come to God by him, for he will in no wise cast them out.

$41. For the time and season of this sacrifice, it may be

As

briefly observed, that there were solemn and set occasions, some monthly, some annual, wherein it was to be offered for the whole congregation by special command and institution. 1. On every new moon. 2. On the fifteenth day of the first month, and seven days together during the feast of unleavened bread. 3. At the feast of first fruits. 4. At the feast of trumpets. 5. On the day of expiation. 6. On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, and for eight days together during the feast of tabernacles. And the frequent repetition of this sacrifice was to intimate that nothing was accepted with God, but on the account of what was prefigured thereby, namely, that perfect sacrifice which took away the sin of the world. There were also especial occasions of it, with reference to the persons before enumerated, which have been collected by others.

§ 42. The principal ceremony in the manner of its oblation, was the disposal of the blood. For the blood of this sacrifice was disposed of in three ways. The greater part of the blood was poured out at the bottom of the altar of burnt offerings, in the court before the door of the tabernacle. A part of it was taken and carried by the high priest into the sanctuary, and put upon the horns of the altar of incense, that was therein, Lev. iv. 7. The third part, (which was first disposed of) was to be carried into the most holy place, as it was done accordingly on the day of expiation, Lev. xvi. But because it was not lawful for him to enter in thither but once in the year, namely, on that day, at all other times he dipped his finger in the blood, and sprinkled it seven times towards the veil, that parted the most holy place from the sanctuary, Lev. iv. 6. So that every place of the tabernacle, and all that pertained to it, were sanctified with this blood; even as Jesus Christ who was represented in all this, was dedicated unto God in his own blood, the blood of the covenant, Heb. x. 29. That seven is the number of perfection, greatly used and variously applied in the Scriptures, many have observed. And the perfect cleansing of sin by the blood of Jesus, was evidently represented by this sevenfold sprinkling, Heb. ix. 13, 14. ; and therefore in allusion hereunto, it is called the blood of sprinkling, Heb. xii. 24. even that which was prefigured by all the blood of the sacrifices, that was sprinkled towards the most holy place, and the mercy seat there.

§ 43. The next sort of fire-offerings, was the W, Asham, whose laws and ordinances are directed, Lev. v. and the particular occasion of it, Chap. vii. We call it the trespass-offering. And it differed very little from that which we have just described. For it is not only said concerning them; OWN NOT on' nnx min; as is the Chataath, or sin-offering, so is the Asham, or trespass-offering, there is one law for them, Lev. vii.

7. but also that he who had sinned or trespassed, should bring his us, his trespass-offering unto the Lord, for his sin which he had sinned, a female from the flock, or a kid of the goats, naunt, for a sin-offering. Some think that there was a difference between them, and that it lay in this, that the Chataath respected sins of omission, and the Asham, sins of commission. But that this will not hold, is openly evident in the text. Some think that whereas in both these offerings there was respect unto ignorance, that the ignorance in the Chataath, was Juris, of the right or law, that in the Asham was Facti, of the particular fact, But this opinion also may be easily disproved from the context. This to me seems to be the principal, if not the only difference between them; that the Asham provided a sacrifice in some particular instances, which seem not to be comprised under the general rules of the sin-offering. And hence in a peculiar manner it is said of Jesus Christ, that he should give a DWN, his soul, an Asham, or piacular sacrifice, as for all, so for such delinquencies and sins, as seem to bring a destroying guilt on the soul, Isa. liii. 10. And this kind of offering also was p Dp, most holy, Lev. vi. 20,

§ 44. The last sort of fire-offerings were the oɔ, which are reckoned as a distinct species of sacrifices, Lev. vii. 36. that is, plenitudinum, impletionum, consecrationum, sacrifices of consecration, or that were instituted to be observed at the consecra tion of priests. Its name it seems to have taken from the fil ling their hands, or their bringing their offering in their hands, when they approached to the Lord when set apart to their of fice. And thence was the expression of him that came to be consecrated a priest; an, 2 Chron. xiii. 9. He that came to fill his hand with a bullock. The rise of this expression we have marked before, on Exod. xxviii. 41. The Lord giving directions to Moses for the consecration of Aaron and his sons, he tells him, on ns, thou shalt fill their hand, that is, put the flesh of the sacrifice, with the bread and its appurtenances, into their hands, which being the initiating ceremony of their investiture with office, gave name afterwards to the whole. And hence the sacrifices appointed then to be offered, although they differed not in kind from those foregoing; yet are accounted to be a distinct offering, and are called

or fillings. And this may suffice as a brief account of the fireofferings of the law of Moses, in the use of which we are fully instructed in this epistle to the Hebrews.

$45. There was also under the law a second sort of Corbans, or offerings to God, which were of things, or parts of things, not burned on the altar, but one way or other consecrated to God and his service. These were the niin, Terumoth, which we