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OUR RELATION TO THE DEITY.

[Part I.

tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Who-soever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments ,and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the king-dom of heaven ; but whosoever shall do and teach them, shallbe called great in the kingdom of heaven.” * Now it can scarcelyadmit of doubt, that the law here referred to, which was to standfast for ever, is the law of the ten commandments; and, if so,the perpetual obligation of the Sabbath is fully established. Itis incredible, that the strong language of our Saviour was intend-ed to refer to the ceremonial law, called by St. Paul “ the yokeof bondage,” and in regard to the passing aioay of which , heexhorts Christians to “ stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christhath made them free.” f Besides, as if to show, that the law andcommandments of which he was speaking, were distinct from theceremonial law, he proceeded to assure his audience, that, unlesstheir righteousness exceeded that of the Scribes and Pharisees,who were extremely exact in their observance of the Jewishritual, (the ceremonial law,) they should in no case enter into thekingdom of heaven ; and it merits notice, that, throughout thewhole sermon, our Saviour dwells on the importance of the mor-al virtues, and comments upon several precepts of the Decalogue,but in no instance touches upon the obligation of the ceremo-nial law.

If we understand him, therefore, as referring to the morallaw, every difficulty and apparent contradiction immediately van-ishes. Far from abolishing this law, he fulfilled it by his ownperfect obedience ; and his assertions respecting its continuedobligation are in entire consistency with the doctrines of hisown inspired apostles. The law, therefore, which was to beperpetual, and of which not one of the least commandmentsmight be violated by any man with impunity, was no other thanthe Decalogue, —■ that law which was uttered by the voice, andwritten by the finger of God, over which the symbol of thedivine presence had rested for ages in the Holy of Holies.

If this argument is supposed to need confirmation, it may befound by consulting those passages of the New Testament, in

Matt. v. 18,19.

t Gal. v. 1.