2d. Baptism is very holy, because God's name, which is in it, is holy. God's name, though one, yet it is also three ; hence it is thrice holy. The six-winged seraphim, in their reciprocal harmony, cried, ' Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts ; the whole earth is full of his glory.' Isa. 6, 2, 3. The heavens are glorious, and the angels are holy ; but what are they in comparison to the glorious, thrice-holy Jehovah ? They are created ; hence are not the authors of their glory and holiness, which they only possess in a limited manner by the will of their creator. But God is self-original ; the origin of himself is in himself : his holiness, like himself, is uncreated ; a lovely beauty and excellence, incomprehensible, enshrined in light inaccessible. This holiness is joined to water, and with it constitutes Christian baptism ; for God's name is in it, and this name is the same as himself, the thrice-holy God, the mysterious great I AM. Thus baptism is infinitely more holy than all the winged hosts of angels, and more glorious than the heavens, because God's name is in it. With what holy awe ought we to think of our baptism ! We stand on holy ground, like Moses, to whom, in a burning bush, the Lord appeared, and said unto him, ' put off thy shoes, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.' Exodus 3, 5. God's name being inseparable from the water in baptism, it must follow that when this water is poured on us, God's name is also put on us ; for in baptism Christ is put on. Gal. 3, 27. God already, under the law, commanded Aaron and his sons to bless the children of Israel, saying, 'The Lord bless thee, and keep thee; the Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee ; the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.' Numb. 6, 22–27. Thus the high-priest pronounced a three-fold blessing, a blessing from the holy Trinity, on the people, and put God's name on them. When this was done, the Messiah was not yet manifested in the flesh. The high-priest who thus put the name of God upon the people, was only a type of him. The benediction under the gospel is not less. Jesus, the great High-Priest over the house of God, is come, and fulfilled the law and the prophets, and procured our eternal redemption. He puts God's name, with his prolific mediatorial blessings, in baptism, which are poured out upon the people. Now if in baptism God's name is put on us, what can it be for, otherwise than that we should be his children, 'his offspring.' Acts 17, 28. His name on us only can make us his children, for by nature we are sinners. We thus, being his children, are called gods. ' I have said ye are gods, and all of you are children of the most high,' Ps. 82, 6, compared with John 10, 34, 35. Not that we are supreme beings, because there can be but one supreme God ; but we are gods, because we having put on Christ, we are one with him, of his flesh and of his bones. Eph. 5, 23–32. Even as he prayed to his father, ' That they all may be one ; as thou, father, art in me and I in thee, that they also may be one in us,' &c. John 17, 21. Because we are ' a chosen generation, an holy nation, a peculiar people,' &c. I. Pet. 2, 9. Because we may partake of the divine nature, II. Pet. 2, 4. Because ' we are washed from our sins in the blood of Jesus, and who has made us kings and priests unto God and his father ; to him be glory and dominion, for ever and ever. Amen.' Rev. 1, 50.

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