he to suffer, we to triumph; and on Communion Sabbath we come, not to make a sacrifice, nor to make an atonement, but to commemorate one already made, and to express with joyful, loving, and believing hearts, the depth of our gratitude to Him who thus loved us and gave himself for us; and to say in the midst of the congregation that we will not hide our faces from him, nor despise him, nor reject him, but count all but loss for the excellency of him, and not fail or shrink to say so by this silent act in the hearing and sight of all men.

CHAPTER II.

THE CHURCH AND ITS FOUNDATION.

THE aged apostle Peter lays down certain practical duties resulting from the doctrinal truths which he had enunciated in the last chapter. He tells his people, If these truths be so, they ought to make a difference in you. Believing magnificent doctrines, you ought to be characterised by distinctive graces. "Wherefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby." An infant comes into the world, and finds provided for it the only nutriment on which it can grow up to strength, maturity, and manhood; that infant takes that nutriment which Providence has provided, seeks nothing to be added-it desires it just as it is. So a Christian is a new-born babe, born again; and therefore a spiritual infant, even if born again in riper years, if a believer, he will desire the simple truth of the gospel, without any admixture of human rhetoric or any of the stimulants of human speech.

Then he represents our blessed Lord under the figure of a living stone. He evidently alludes to the language of Isaiah, where he says, "Behold, I lay in

Zion a foundation, a living stone, precious; and he that believeth shall not make haste.” Now Peter, echoing the very words of the prophet, says, "To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as lively" (literally "living") "stones, are built up a spiritual house;" here is the Church of Christ; it is composed of living stones, laid upon Christ, the living rock; and all Christians, of every name, sect, and party, are component members of that true Church. "Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner-stone." Now recollect, if I may here introduce a controversial idea, who it was that wrote this Epistle. It was an apostle who certain divines say was the first pope, and on whom, as such, the Church of Christ is built. Now if Peter was really the first pope, if he was the vicar of Christ, if he was the foundation of the Church, how singular that he does not seem himself to have known it. He speaks of Christ as the foundation, of the Church as built upon him; and never mentions himself as the foundation at all. What is the natural inference? That Peter never was the foundation; that Christ alone was the Rock of Ages; and that the text, therefore, which our Roman Catholic friends so often quote, they quote perversely: "Thou art Peter." But what is the meaning of Peter? The Greek word for a stone is Térρos; a stone that can be moved with the hand, that may be thrown from the hand. The Greek for a rock is érρa. Now in that text, which is often quoted, the language is exquisitely precise; and if the Roman Catholics knew Greek as well as they know Latin-and they know Latin well-they never

would, except under the influence of partisan purposes, so misinterpret a plain and obvious passage.

"Thou art a stone;" a living stone, one of these living stones; for if you look at the fifth verse of this chapter, you will find it said of Christians, "Ye also as living stones." Now if I were to translate this fifth verse exactly as we have translated the passage in the gospel, I might translate it thus, "To whom coming, ye also, as living Peters." So our Lord says to Peter, "Whom do men say that I am?" Peter said, "Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus said to him, "I say unto thee, Thou art a living stone," one of the living stones that are laid upon the foundation; "and upon this rock which you have just now confessed to be the Son of the living God, I will build up the walls which are composed of these living 'Peters,' of these living stones; and these living stones, thus built upon me, the everlasting Rock, the gates of hell shall not be able to prevail against it."

If our blessed Lord had meant to teach that Peter was the rock, he would not have varied the phrase; he would not have said, on this Térpa; but he would have said, on this Térрos. But he purposely changes the word.

I have been collecting the passages in Greek classic writers, and I have a good many, wherein these words are used. What is the result of all my researches ? It is this, that where the word Téτpos, which we translate Peter, or a living stone, is used, it generally means a stone which a person can take into his hand and throw to a distance. We read in Homer of "showers of stones, [TÉTρwv];" we read of a person "stoned with stones [πérpoiσw];" that is, stones thrown at him.

But when we come to Téтpa, the word which our blessed Lord applies to himself, we find a totally different usage of the word. For instance, Homer speaks of the army in marching to battle discovering water in a hollow rock [πérрa]. He also speaks of the ships being dashed to pieces upon the rocks [πέτραις].

Peter was a stone, that is, small, and that may be thrown; and Jesus is the Rock.

And Peter, therefore, recollecting what Christ had said to him, gives the most Protestant commentary in the world when he says, "To which living rock ye come as living stones, and are built up a spiritual house."

Then he proceeds to describe the people of God as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood." What a magnificent thought! all true Christians are priests; the minister in the pulpit is not one whit more a priest than the Christian in the pew. "Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light."

In the close of the chapter he inculcates afresh those personal and practical duties which devolve upon Christians in every country and under all circumstances. "Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake." If you are called upon to live under a tyrannical despotism, by lawful means try to dilute and modify it; but if you can neither dilute nor modify it, the law of Christianity is, submit to it; not because you love it, for you hate it; but submit to it for the Lord's sake. So you are also to submit

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