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THE
PLANT OF RENOWN:
TWO
SERMONS,
PREACIIED BY TIIB
EEV. EBENEZER ERSKINE,
LATE MINISTER OF TIIE GOSPEL IN STIRLING.
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�T H E
PLANT OF RENOWN.
SERMON I.
EZEKIEL, xxxiv. 29.
And I will raise tip for them a Plant of Renown.
I we cast our eyes back upon tlie foregoing part
F
of this chapter, we shall find a very melancholy
scene casting up; we shall find the flock and heritage of God scattered, robbed and peeled by tho
civil and ecclesiastical rulers that were in being in
that day ; a day much like to the day wherein we
live: the ruin of the church of Christ in all ages
and periods of the world, has been owing to combinations betwixt corrupt churchmen, and corrupt
statesmen ; and so you will find it In the preceding part of this chapter there is a high charge
brought in against the Shepherds of Israel, and ft
terrible and awful threatening denounced by tho
great and chief shepherd against them, for the bad
treatment that the flock of Christ had met with in
their hands : However the sheep of Christ may be
fleeced, and scattered, and spoiled, yet the Lord
looks on them ; and many great and precious promises are made for their encouragement in that
evil day ; you may read them at your own leisure,
for I must not stay upon them just now, But
�4
among all the rest of the promises that are made,
Christ is the chief; Christ is the To-look of the
church, whatever trouble she be in. In the 7th
chapter of Isaiah, the church had a trembling heart,
God's Israel was shaken as ever you saw the leaves
of the wood shaken by the wind, by reason of two
Kings combining against them: Well, the Lord
tells them, " A Virgin shall conceive and bear a
Son* and call his name IMMANUEL." But, might not
tbs Church say, what is that to us ? What encouragement doth this afford in the present distress ?
hy, the Messiah is to come of the tribe of Judah
and the family of David ; and therefore that tribe
and family must be preserved, in order to the
accomplishment of that promise. Whatever distance of time, suppose hundreds or thousands of
years, may intervene before the actual coming of
the Messiah ; yet the promise of his coming, as it
is the ground of your faith for eternal salvation, so
it is a security for the present, that the enemy
shall not prevail, to the total ruin of Judah and
the royal family of David. In all the distresses of
the church, Christ is always presented to her, in
the promise, as the object of her faith, and the
ground of her consolation ; and accordingly," They
looked to him," in the promise, and were lightened ; and their faces were not ashamed." He is
here promised under the notion of God's Servant;
audi in the words of the text, he is promised as a
Renowned Plant, that was to rise in the fulness of
time. And, blessed be God, he has sprung up,
and is in heaven already, and has overtopt all his
ernemies, and all his enemies shall be his foot-stool.
jFirst, Here then, you have a comfortable promise
of the Messiah ; where, again, you may notice the
prom iser; /, / will raise up, <&c. It is a great
�indeed; it is JEHOVAH, in the person of the
F a t h e r : It was he that in a peculiar manner,
sent him ; " God so loved the world, that he gave
his only begotten Son, that whosoever belie ve'th in
him should not perish, but have everlasting life.—
In the fulness of time he sent forth his Son, made
of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them
that were under the law, that we might receive
the adoption of Sons." God promised to send
him, and accordingly he has actually fulfilled his
promise. Again,
Secondly, We may notice the blessing promised,
and that is, a Plant of Renown.—Christ gets a great
many metaphorical names and descriptions in
Scripture :—Sometimes he is called a Rose, sometimes he is called a Sun, and sometimes he is
called a Door ; sometimes he is called the Tree of
Life ; sometimes he is called one thing, and sometimes another ; And he is content to be called
any thing, to make himself known to us; and
here he is called a Plant, and a Renowned Plant;
but more of this afterwards. But then.
Thirdly, We have the production of this Plant,
I will raise him up. Hell will endeavour to keep
him down ; the Devil and his Angels will endeavour to smother him, when he sets his head above
ground : So we find Satan sends Herod, and Herod
sends the Bloody Dragoons to murder him, when
he came into tlie world• But let hell do its utmost,
as it hath done in all ages, and is doing this day,
to smother that plant, up it will be ; I ivill raise
him up, and therefore he shall prosper. But then
again,
Fourthly, We may notice here, for whom, or
for what end, for whose use and benefit it is: I
will raise up for them a Plant of Renown. Who
�tliese are, you will sco by casting your eye on the
former part of this chapter; it is for the Lord's
flock, his oppressed heritage, that are borne down
by wicked rulers, civil and ecclesiastic : I will
raise up for them a Plant of Renown, and ho will
be their deliverer.
The doctrine that naturally arises from this first
clause of the verse, is in short this, That Christ
is a Plant of Renown, of God's raising up, for the
benefit and advantage of his people, or for their
comfort and relief in all their distresses; he is a
Renowned Plant of God's raising up."
Now, in discoursing this doctrine, if time and
strength would allow, I might,
First, Premise a few things concerning this
blessed Plant.
Secondly, I might enquire, why ho is called a
Plant of Renown ?
Thirdly, Speak a little to the raising up of this
Plant.
Fourthly, For whom he is raised up.
Fifthly, For what end. And then,
Lastly, Apply.
As to the first of these, namely,
First, To premise a few things concerning this
blessed Plant.
First, I would haye you to know what is here
attributed and ascribed to Christ: It is not to be
understood absolutely of him as God, but officially
as he is Mediator and Redeemer. Considering
him absolutely as God, this cannot be properly
said of him, that he was raised up: for he is God
co-equal and co-essential with the Father; But
viewing him as Mediator, he is a Plant, as it wero
of God's training. You will see from the context,
all that is said of Christ has a respect to him as a
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Mediator, that ho was to bo God's Servant to do
his work: In that consideration he is here called a
Plant, and, a Plant of Benown. Hence, Zacharias,
when speaking of him, has a phrase much to the
same purpose ; " He hath raised up a Horn of
Salvation for us in the house of his servant David*
Again,
Secondly, Another thing I would have you to
remark, is, That this Plant is but small and little
in the eyes of a blind world. He was little looked
upon when he sprung up in his Incarnation ; and
when he was here in a state of humiliation, men
looked upon him " as a Root sprung up out of a dry
ground; they saw no comeliness in him why he
should be desired." And to this day, though he
be in a state of exaltation at the right hand of God,
yet he is little thought of, and looked upon, by the
generality of mankind, and the hearers of the
gospel; He is despised and rejected of men. But
then,
Thirdly, Another thing I would have y<ra to
remark, is, That however contemptible this Plant
of Renown is in the eyes of a blind world, yet he
is the tallest Plant in all God's Lebanon, there is
not the like of him in it, " He is fairer than the
children of men and, " He is as the apple-tree
among the trees of the wood,' If ever you saw
him, you will be ready to say so too, and with David*
" Whom have I in heaven but thee ? and there is
none upon the earth that I desire besides thee."
Again,
Fourthly, Another thing I remark, is, That this
blessed Plant of Renown, he was cut down in his
death, and sprung up gloriously in his resurrection ;
the sword of divine justice hewed down this Plant
upon Mount Calvary, but within three days he
1
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sprung up again more glorious and more beautiful
and amiable than ever ; arid He was declared to
be the Son of God with power, according to tho
Spirit of holiness, b j his resurrection from the
dead."
Lastly, I would have you to remark, that all
the little plants in the garden are ingrafted in this
Plant of Renown: " I am the Vine, ye are the
branches; he that abideth in me, and I in him,
the same bringeth forth much fruit: For without
me ye can do nothing—I am a green fir tree, from
me is thy fruit found." If you be not ingrafted
firs, in this Plant, you will never grow; and all
the trees that are not planted in him, they are all
but weeds. There is a time coming when all the
weeds will be plucked up, and therefore take heed
that you be ingrafted in him by a faith of God's
operation. So much for the first thing I proposed.
The second thing was to shew, that he is a
Renowned Plant. He is renowned in heaven, and
he is renowned on earth, and will be so, For his
name shall endure for ever, Psal. lxxii. 17. 0 he is
renowned!
For what, say you, is he renowned ? I might
here enter upon a very large field ; I shall only
tell you,
1. That he is renowned in his Person, There
was never the like of him ! The two natures, God
and Man, are joined together in one, in him : Did
you ever see that ? If you have not seen that, you
have not seen the Mystery of Godliness : lie is the
most renowned person in heaven ; but he is I M
God manifested in the flesh.—Then he is,
2. Renowned for his Pedigree: Who can declare his Generation ? Considering him as God,
his eternal generation from the Father cannot be
44
MANUEL,
�9
told. We can tell you he is the only begotten of
the Father, but we cannot tell you the manner o
his generation ; it is a secret that God has drawn
a vail upon, and it is dangerous to venture into a
search of it; and they that have attempted it,
have commonly been boged into Arian, Arminian, and Sabellian errors. Considering him as
man, he is sprung of a race of ancient Kings, a
famous catalogue of them you read of in first
of Matthew.—And who can declare his generation
even as man ? For he was born of a Virgin, and
conceived by the overshadowing power of the
Highest. Then,
3. He is renowned for his name.— He hath a
Name above every name that can be named,
whether in this world or that which is to come."
4. He is renowned for his Wisdom.—For, All
the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in
him."
5. He is renowned for his Power.—For he is
not only the Wisdom of God, but the Poicer of God«
He is the Man of God's right hand, even the
Son of Man, whom he hath made strong for himself."
6. He is renowned for his Veracity and Fidelity.
For, Faithfulness is the girdle of his loins."
Have you got a word from him ? Depend upon it,
it is a sicker word, it does not fail: The word of
the Lord endures for ever, when heaven and earth
shall pass away
7. He is renowned for his Righteousness. For,
He hath brought in an everlasting Righteousness, whereby the Law is magnified and made
honourable ;" and by the imputation of which, the
guilty transgressors are acquitted : He was made
sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be
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made the Righteousness of God in h i m T h a t is
liis Name, The Lord our Righteousness.
8 He is renowned for his fulness.—For, " All
the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily in him
He is full of grace and truth ; full of all created
and uncreated excellencies.
9. He is renowned for his Love.—What but
love brought him out of the bosom of the Father
to this lower world ? What but love made him lay
down his life for his people ?
10. He is renowned for his Liberality. He has
a full hand and a free heart, as we use to say ; he
gives without money, and he invites all to come
&nd share of his fulness.
11. He is renowned for his Constancy. He is
Jesus Christ, the same to-day, yesterday and for
ever." The best of men, will fail us when we trust
them ; they will run like splinters into our hands,
when we lean upon them: But, sirs, you will find
Christ always the same, to-day, yesterday and for
ever. And then,
12. He is renowned for nis Authority and Dominion. It is great, and extends far and wide,
whether in heaven above, or in the earth beneath:
And his dominion reaches "from sea to sea, and*
from the river unto the ends of the e a r t h A n d
all the kings of the earth are but his vassals
Thus, I say, Christ in every respect is renowned.
But here, to keep by the phraseology of the text,
He is a renowned Plant: Wherein is he renowned ?
First, I say he is renowned for his Antiquity:
I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was," &c. All the plants
in the higher and lower gardens of God, they are
but just upstarts in comparison of him: Angels
a&d Arch-angels, and the greatest Seraphims are
�11
but of yesterday, in comparison of this Plant. He
is renowned for his Antiquity, for he is, " The
Ancient of days, and the Eyerlasting Father,"
Isaiah, 9th chapter.
N.B.—Here he was desired to conclude his Discourse, in respect the Work in the Church was
over, and that he might give way to another
Minister that was to preach the Evening Sermon,
SERMON II.
xxxiv. 29.
And I will raise up for them a Plant of Renown.
I had occasion, upon a solemnity of this nature,
not long ago, to enter upon these words, but had
not time to go far into the import of them. After
I had traced the connection of the words a little, I
took them up in the few following particulars.
1. We have here a great blessing promised unto
the church ; and that is none other than Christ,
under the notion of a Prince, and A Plant of Renown.
2. We have the Party by whom this promise is
made, in the pronoun /,—I JEHOVAH, the Eternal
GOD, I will raise up for them a Plant of Renown.
EZEKIEL,
�12
3. We have tlie way how this Plant of Renown
is raised ; And I will raise him up. I that am the
great Husbandman of the vineyard, I ivill raise up
for them, &c. Then,
• 4. I noticed the persons to whom the promise is
made, I will raise up for them ; that is, for his
Church, for his people that are brought into a very
low condition ; as you will see by reading the preceding part of the chapter. The flock of Christ
were scattered by the shepherds of Israel; they
were torn, they were devoured, and under manifold
trials ; Well, what will the Lord do for his flock in
that condition ? He says, I will raise up for them
a Plant of Renown, and they shall hunger no more.
The observation is much the same with the
words themselves, namely, " that our Lord Jesus
Christ is a Plant of Renown of his Father's upbringing I will raise up for them a Plant of
Renown. In prosecution of this doctrine, I proposed to observe the order and method following.
First, To premise a few things concerning this
blessed Plant.
Secondly, To shew that indeed he is a Plant of
Renown. And then,
Thirdly, To speak a little concerning the raising
up of this Plant.
Fourthly, For whom he is raised up.
Fifthly, For what good, or for what benefit and
advantage he is raised up. And,
Lastly, To apply the whole.
As to the first, I spoke to it, and premised a few
things concerning this blessed Plant; therefore I
shall not stay to resume what was said on that
Head. I likewise entered upon the second, and
shewed that Christ is A Plant of Renown in several
respects: I mentioned eleven or twelve particulars
�13
wherein Christ is renowned, but I shall not resume
these neither: I shall only tell you a few things
wherein this blessed Plant is renowned.
1. In the first place, this blessed Plant, he is
renowned for his antiquity. There are many
other plants in God's garden, as angels, seraphims,
cherubims, saints militant and triumphant, they
are all but upstarts in comparison of him ; for he
was set up before ever the earth was. You will
see that one name of this Plant of Renown is, The
Everlasting Father, or, " The Father of Eternity,"
as it may be rendered.
2. As he is renowned for his antiquity, so for
his Beauty: he is the most beautiful Plant in all
the garden of God ; " I am the Rose of Sharon,
and the Lily of the valleys.—He is the apple-tree
among the trees of the wood." He is renowned I
say, for his beauty and his glory ; for the glory of
a God is in him. Is there any glory in his eternal
Father ? Why, that glory shines in our
in the very brightness of it, Heb. i. 3. " He is the
brightness of the Father's glory, and the express
image of his person." Now, sirs, if ever your eyes
were opened by the Spirit of God, to take up the
glory of this Plant, his glory has just dazzled your
very eyes ! You that never saw any glory in him,
you never saw him to this very day: Pray that
the light of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus
Christ, may yet shine into your hearts. It would
make a heartsome Sacrament, if this Plant were
displayed in his glory among us. Sirs, have you
come to see him in his glory ? O give God no rest
till he make a discovery of himself to your souls.
Then,
3. He is renowned for his verdure, for his perpetual greenness. Other plants are fading; you
IMMANUEL,
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and 1 are fading plants ; " All flesh is grass, and
all the jjoodliness thereof is as the flower of the
f i e l d H e is a Tree ever green, he never fades,
summer nor winter, and shall be ever a green
Plant to the Saints as it were to eternity ! When
millions of ages, yea, myriads of ages are past in
heaven, he will be as fresh and green to the believer, as when he first saw him, or the first moment the saint entered glory : therefore it is, that
the songs of the redeemed in glory are always new ;
and throughout eternity, will be new, because they
will constantly see matter of a new song ; and the
more they see, they will wonder the more at him
throughout eternity! Again,
4. This Plant is renowned not only for his
verdure, but for his virtue. We read, Rev. xxii,
" That the leaves of the Tree of Life were for the
healing of the nations." That Tree of Life is the
very same with this Plant of Renown; the leaves
of this Plant are for the healing of the nations ;
and we that are ministers are come this day to
scatter the leaves of this Tree of Life, of this Plant
of Renown ; try if you can get a leaf of it applied
and set home upon your souls. Depend upon it,
there is virtue in every word of his. Sirs, mingle
faith with a word, and you will find that it will
jiave the same efficacy with you as it had with
the poor woman with the bloody issue, that was
healed with a touch of the hern of his garment,
who had spent all her living on doctors. 0 see if
you can find him! I assure you he is here ; he is
behind the door of every man's heart: Behold I
stand (says lie,) at the door and knock! If any
man hear my voice, and open the door, I will
come in to him, and' sup with him, and he with
mo." And 0 let him in! there is virtue in him
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for curing you all, though there were ten thousand
millions of you more than there are ; there is
virtue in him for healing every one of you. But
then,
5. This blessed Plant is not only renowned for
his virtue, but likewise for his fertility. He is
not a barren Plant; he would not be renowned if
he were barren: He brings forth all manner of
fruit every month; yea, I may add, every day,
every moment. You read in Rev. xxii. of the
Tree of Life that brings forth twelve manner of
fruits every month ; that is to say, he brings forth
all fruit that is necessary for a poor soul: whatever
thy soul stands in need of, is to be found in him ;
see then and gather, see if you can gather some of
it. There is the fruit of his incarnation ; there is
the fruit of his death ; there is the fruit of his
resurrection ; there is the fruit of his ascension ;
there is the fruit of his intercession, and sitting at
the right hand of God ; there is the fruit of his
prophetic office ; there is the fruit of his priestly
office; there is the fruit of his kingly office ;
there is the fruit of his appearing within the
vail ; there is the fruit of what he did without
the vail, and without the camp. 0 what fruit is
here! Here is wisdom for fools; here is justification
for the condemned soul; here is sanctification for
the polluted soul, and clothing for the naked;
riches for the poor, bread for the hungry, drink for
the thirsty. All manner of fruit is here, and we are
trying, sirs, to shake the Tree of Life among you ;
and blessed be God, they may be gathered : O
sirs ! they are dropping among you ; 0 gather,
gather, for salvation is in every word that drop3
from him ; for his words are the words of eternal
life. But, in the
�16
C. Place, this blessed Plant is renowned for his
scent and pleasant savour. O sirs! there is such
a blessed savour in this Plant of Renown, as has
cast a perfume through all the Paradise above !
He has cast a perfume through the church militant,
which in Isaiah v. is called God's vineyard. 0
sirs! do you find any thing of the scent of this
Plant ? 1 can tell you, if ever you, have been mado
to know him, it will bo so : "because of the savour
of thy good ointment, thy name is as ointment
poured forth, therefore do the Virgins love thee."
The believer he finds a scent about him, he draws
a savour from him. What is the deisgn of us
ministers, but to cast abroad his scent, and it is by
this we win souls ; and they that cast out and drop
the Plant of Renown out of their sermons, no
wonder their sermons stink, and they shall stink
to eternity, that throw Christ out of their
sermons. The great business of ministers is
to cast forth the scent of Christ to the people.
I shall read you a word to this purpose, in 2
Cor. ii. 14,—16, " Now, thanks be unto God,
which always causeth us to triumph in Christ."
The apostle triumphs in him, and all other honest
ministers will triumph in him too; and all christians
that know him, triumph in him. And maketh
manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in
every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour
in Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that
perish. To the one we are the savour of death
unto death ; and to the other, the savour of life unto
life ; and who is sufficient for these things ?" Who is
able to tell the sweet savour that is in him ? Again,
7. This blessed plant in my text, is not only renowned for his savour, but likewise for his shadow.
Song, i. 3. " I sat down under his shadow with great
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delightthe shadow of the Plant of Renown, You
are all sitting there or standing, but are you sitting
under the Plant of Renown ? Jonah s gourd did him
service against the scorching heat of the sun, that
was like to take away his life ; but alas! that soon
failed him, for God sent a worm and smote it that
it withered ; and the worm of death will soon
smite and wither you and me : 0 get in under the
shadow of this Plant of Renown, and ye are secured
against death and vindictive wrath for ever. Get
in under his shadow ; the shadow of his intercession,—the shadow of his power,—the shadow of
his providence,—the shadow of his faithfulness:
0 sit under his shadow, and you will find shelter
there against all deadly ; whatever blasts come,
you will find safety there. Would you be shadowed
from the king of terrors ? Death is a terror to many,
0 if you be shadowed against the awful terrors of
death and God's vengeance, get in under this
shadow, and you are safe.
8. This Plant is renowned for his stature. He
is a high Plant, he is a tall Plant: you see the
heavens above you, but they are but creeping things
in comparison of him ; for this glorious Plant is,
The high and lofty One that inhabits eternity., You
can never see his height; your eye will look high,
and your thought will reach higher, but neither
your eye nor thought will reach unto him; he is
taller than all the cedars in the Lebanon of God:
" Eye hath not seen, nor hath ear heard, neither
hath it entered into the heart of man," to think ol
the height and glory of this Plant of Renown!
And
Lastly, This Plant is renowned not only for his
stature, but for his extent also : he is a broad
Plant, he was planted in the first promise in Par-
�18
adise; he spread through the old testament church j
he came the length of filling the land of Judea ;
and, at length, this Plant has spread itself among
us: And 0 that I could open the leaves of this
f*lant to take you in ; he is a broad Plant, he will
serve you all. We read of the Tree of Life being
on every side of the river : there is a great river
betwixt us and heaven, and that is death ; and we
are all running into this river of death. As one
well observes on the place, this Tree is in the
middle of the river ; he is on this side of time, and
he is on that side of time. Now, this Plant is on
both sides of the river ; though you were going to
the wastes of America, you will find him there as
well as here, if you have but the art of improving
him. And this Plant will spread himself through
all kingdoms, " The earth shall be filled with the
knowledge of the Lord, just as the witters cover
the sea." He will not only fill the earth, but the
whole heavens throughout eternity ! 0 but he is
a. broad Plant, that will extend himself both to
heaven and earth! And this shall serve for the
second thing proposed, namely, To show that this
Plant is indeed a most Renowned Plant.
The third thing I proposed in the prosecution of
this doctrine, was, concerning the raising or upbringing of this Plant. You see it is no other
than the Great G D that raised up this Plant.
O,
find the Great
glorying in his skill
and wisdom in the raising up of this Plant for the
use of the church. In Psalm lxxxix. 19. says the
Lord, I have laid help upon one that is mighty ;
I have exalted one chosen out of the people ; I
have raised up David my servant; with my holy
oil have I anointed him." Here he glories in it,
that he had raised up this glorious Plant of Renown.
I
JEHOVAH
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I will tell you a few tilings with reference to the
raising up of this blessed Plant.
1. He was raised up in the counsel of God's
peace from eternity. The Ti'inity sat in council
anent the upbringing of him; " The counsel of
peace was between them both/' Zech. vi. 13. The
Father and the Son agreed upon it, that in the
fulness of time the Son should come into the world,
2. He was raised up in the first promise to Adam
and Eve. Till this Plant was discovered to them,
they were like to run distracted: Aftd indeed, sirs,
if Christless sinners saw where they were, and the
wrath of God that is hanging over their heads,
they would be ready to run distracted, till a revelation of Christ was made to them,' All the promises, all the prophecies, all the types, and all the
doctrines of the old testament, they were the
gradual springings of this Plant: but it was under
ground until,
3. His actual manifestation in the flesh, when,
in the fulness of time he appeared: " In the fulness of time, God sent forth his Son, made of a
woman, &c."
4. This Plant was raised up even in his death
and resurrection, by which he was declared to be
the Son of God with power, by the spirit of holiness. And,
Lastly, This Plant of Renown will be raised up
in the songs of the redeemed thro ugh endless eternity. Thus you see, Christ is a Plant of Renown,
and what way ho is raised up.
The next thing I proposed was, for whom is it
that this Plant is raised up ? 01 may some poor
thing say, Was he ever raised up for me? I tell
you, sirs, he was never raised up for the fallen
angels; " For he took not on him the nature of
�20
angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham."
Our nature was highly honoured at first, but it soon
sunk below the beast that perisheth ; but the
second Adam took our nature upon him, and raised
it to a higher dignity than the very angels ; for to
which of the angels did this honour appertain, to be
united to the eternal Son of God ? So that, I say,
this Plant of Renown is raised up for mankindsinners, not for angel-kind sinners ; and every
mankind-sinner that hears tell of him, they should
lay claim to him, as in Isaiah, ix. 6., "To us a
Son is given, to us this Child is born ; and the
government shall be upon his shoulder : And his
name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the
Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince
of Peace." To us he is given, unto us he is born.
I thought to have gone through what I designed
on this subject, but time will not allow. The
Lord bless his word.
A DYING CHRISTIAN'S PRAYER.
" Receive my spirit," was tne prayer of Stephen
to Jesus Christ, to receive his departing soul; and,
brethren, I think you will feel in a dying hour,
that your departing soul needs a Divine Saviour.
You have one in Jesus Christ. You may call upon
liim then, even as now. Ilis ear will not be heavy,
though yours may, when death is sealing up your
faculties. Ilis eye will not have lost its power of
gazing affectionately on you, when yours is becoming dim and closed. His hand will not be shortened, in the hour when yours will have become
�21
tremulous and feeble. But lift up the hand, tho
heart, the eye, the soul, in prayer to him then,
and you will find him a very near and present help
in that your time of trouble.
Brethren, a Christian should die praying. Other
men die in different ways, according to their character and temper. Julius Cesar died adjusting
his robes, that he might fall gracefully. Voltaire,
with mingled imprecations and supplications;
Paine, with shrieks of agonizing remorse. Multitudes die with sullenness, some with blasphemies
faltering on their tongue. But, brethren, the
humble Christian would die praying. Well says
the poet:
" Prayer is the Christian's vital breath,
The Christian's native air;
His watch-word at the gates of death,
He enters heaven with prayer I"
But, observe for what Stepnen prayed. Lord
Jesus receive my spirit!" This is the prayer of
faith, commending the immortal spirit to the
covenant care of Jesus. The spirit does not die
with the body. None but God, who gave, can
take away the soul's existence, and he has declared
that he never will. Would that bad men would
think on that! You cannot get rid of your soul's
existence : you cannot cease to be : you may wish
it; though the wish is monstrous and unnatural.
But there is no annihilation for any soul of man.
Oh, come to our Saviour! give him your guilty
soul, to be justified through his atonement, washed
in his blood, regenerated by his Spirit. Make to
him now that surrender of your soul, for which he
calls. Renew this happy self-dedication every
day, very especially every Sabbath, and most
solemnly, from time to time at the Lord's Supper.
And then, when you come to die, it will only be,
44
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to do once more, wliat you have so often done in
former days,—again to commend your soul very
humbly, believingly, and affectionately, under the
faithful care of Jesus Christ.
THE HOUSE OF GOD,
T E church was pleasantly situated 01 a rising
H
1
bank, at the foot of a considerable hill. It was
surrounded by trees, and had a rural retired appearance. In every direction the roads that led to
this house of God, possessed distinct but interesting
features. One of them ascended between several
rural cottages from the sea-shore, which adjoined
the lower part of the village-street. Another
winded round the curved sides of the adjacent hill,
and was adorned, both above and below, with
numerous sheep feeding on the herbage of the
down. A third road led to the church by a gently
rising approach, between high banks, covered with
young trees, bushes, ivy, hedge-plants, and wild
flowers*—From a point of land, which commanded
a view of all these several avenues, I used sometimes, for a while, to watch my congregation gradually assembling together at the hour of Sabbath
worship. They were in some directions visible for
a considerable distance. Gratifying associations
of thought would form in my mind, as I contemplated their approach and successive arrival within
the precincts of the house of prayer.—One day as
I was thus occupied, during a short interval
previous to the hour of divine service, I reflected
on the joy, which David experienced at the time
he exclaimed, " I was glad when they said unto
�23
me, Let us go into the house of the
Our
feet shall stand within thy gates, 0 Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is built as a city that is compact together ; whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the
Lord, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks
unto the name of the Lord." I was led to reflect
upon the various blessings, connected with the
establishment of public worship. " How many
immortal souls are now gathering together to perform the all-important work of prayer and praiseto hear the word of God—to feed upon the bread
of life ! They are leaving their respective dwellings, and will soon be united together in the house
of prayer," How beautifully does this represent
the effect produced by the voice of the " Good
Shepherd," calling his sheep from every part of
the wilderness into his fold! As those fields, hills,
and lanes, are now covered with men, women, and
children, in various directions, drawing nearer to
each other, and to the object of their journey's end ;
even so, «many shall come from the east, and
from the west, and from the north, and from the
south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.'
Who can rightly appreciate the value of such hours
as these ?—hours spent in learning the way of holy
pleasantness, and the paths of heavenly peacehours devoted to the service of God, and of souls ;
in warning the sinner to flee from wrath to come ;
in teaching the ignorant how to live and die; in
preaching the gospel to the poor; in healing the
broken-hearted ; in declaring " deliverance to the
captives, and recovering of sight to the blind."
" Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound;
they shall walk, 0 Lord, in the light of thy countenance. In thy name shall they rejoice all the
day, and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.'
?
�2i
This train of reflection, at intervals, occurred powerfully to my feelings, as I viewed that very congre
gation assembled together in the house of God,
whose steps, in their approach to it, I had watchei
with prayerful emotions.— Here the rich and
poor met together," in mutual acknowledgement
that the Lord is the maker of them all," and
that all are alike dependent creatures, looking up
to one common Father to supply their wants, both
temporal and spiritual.—Again, likewise, shall
they meet together in the grave, that undistinguishing receptacle of the opulent and the needy,—And
once more, at the judgment-seat of Christ, shall
the rich and poor meet together, that every one
may receive the things done in his body, according
to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad."
How closely connected in the history of man, ait
these three periods of a general meeting together
The house of prayer—the house appointed for all
living—and the house not made with hands eternal
in the heavens.—May we never separate these
ideas from each other, but retain them in a sacred
and profitable union! So shall our worshipping
assemblies on earth be representative of the general
assembly and chuicb of the first-born, which are
written in heaven.
44
44
44
v
FINIS,
�
Dublin Core
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Title
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Woodcut 023: Title-page illustration in triple ruled border of a portrait of a man in a wig and dressed in a coat with a lace collar.
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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The plant of renown: being two sermons, preached by the Rev. Ebenezer Erskine, late minister of the gospel in Stirling.
Extent
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24 pages
16 cm
Identifier
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<a href="https://ocul-gue.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01OCUL_GUE/mrqn4e/alma9934228253505154">s0585b28</a>
Description
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135 printed at the foot of title page
Woodcut #23: Portrait on title-page of a man wearing a wig and dressed in a coat and lace collar.
Contributor
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Archival and Special Collections, University of Guelph Library, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
Rights
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In the public domain; For high quality reproductions, contact Archival & Special Collections, University of Guelph. libaspc@uoguelph.ca, 519-824-4120, Ext. 53413
Date
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1840-1850 per National Library of Scotland
Format
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JPEGs and PDF derived from master file, which was scanned from the original book in 24-bit color at 600 dpi in TIFF format using an Epson Expression 10000XL scanner.
Publisher
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Glasgow: Printed for the Booksellers
Source
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Archival & Special Collections, University of Guelph Library, Guelph, Ontario
Subject
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Chapbooks - Scotland - Glasgow
Religion and Morals
Creator
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Erskine, Ebenezer, 1680-1754
Type
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sermon
religion
# of Woodcuts: 1
Bib Context: title-page
Chapbook Date: 1841-1850
Chapbook Genre: religion & morals
Chapbook Genre: sermon
Chapbook Publisher - Glasgow: Printed for the Booksellers
Fashion (Clothing): religious
Gender: man/men
occupation: clergy
Portrait: Ebenezer Erskine