he had accustomed himself to bear the redundant blaze? Or suppose ten thousand noon-day suns should now unite their splendors, and burst instantaneously upon us who enjoy but one, would not our weak organs be wholly overpowered, and all things around us be lost in darkness visible and sensible? And yet what are these compared to the immediate breaking in of the presence of God's glory, before one single ray of which ten thousand noon-day suns themselves would hide their diminished heads, and be lost in total obscurity? Could mortal eye look at this and live? Even the burning Seraphims cover themselves before it, and "with both wings veil their eyes!"

The wise Solomon, on this occasion, having either more presence of mind than the astonished priests, or rather being the instrument whom God had chosen to proceed with the remainder of this solemn service, cries out-" The Lord hath said that he would dwell in thick darkness;" and no man can behold his Glory without a veil. Be not afraid ye Priests and Ministers of God, at what has now happened! Do you not know, from the book of your own Law, that the high Priest durst not approach the Mercy-seat, without making a cloud of incense before him, lest he should be struck blind, or lose his life with the splendor of the divine Glory? Know ye not that at the* consecration of the tabernacle, in like manner as now, the majesty of the divine Glory broke out so strong, beyond whatever it had done before, filling the whole house, that "Moses was not able to enter into the

Exod. xl. 35.

tent of the congregation?" Look therefore on this sudden and alarming appearance, that drove you from the Altar, as a sure token of God's immediate presence, overwhelming with light that cannot be beheld, accepting our solemn dedication of this house, and acknowledging it to be the place where his Glory will dwell forever!

Triumphing in this idea, and raised almost into raptures divine, the pious monarch now turns his speech from the priests and people immediately to Jehovah himself, in that sublime apostrophe of my

text.

"I have surely built Thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for Thee to abide in forever!"

Now do I assuredly know, O Thou holy One of Israel, that my labours of love to Thee are not in vain! Now am I convinced that I enjoy that honour which I have long wished for-that supreme honour of building Thee an house (not a temporary tabernacle, like those of former times, in which Thou wilt sojourn only for a season) but a fixed place, an house of ages, in which, I trust, Thou wilt abide forever!

Then turning himself back to the people, he began to bless them, and to give Thanks to God, and to recount before him the many instances of his kindness, in the carrying on this work for the reception of his Glory.

But suddenly recollecting himself, and being struck with the vanity of thinking that the tremendous majesty of Heaven could be confined to time or place; he breaks out into a second Apostrophe more grand than the former still, and exceeded by

nothing that is to be found in all the volumes of the world!

"But will God indeed dwell on the earth?" Will He at whose footstool ten thousand worlds hang and are as nothing-will He who walks on the whirlwind's wing, and passes from one end of creation to the other, swifter than the lightning's glancewill He be limited to any particular abiding place? How vain the thought, O thou Being superlatively raised above all Beings! Behold! the whole immensity of space, nay the 66 very Heaven, and Heaven of Heavens, cannot contain thee; how much less this House that I have builded?" Yet, though in a literal and local sense, thou wilt not be confined here, we know that thou wilt nevertheless in a special manner be present" to have respect to the supplication, and to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer which thy servant and thy people shall make towards thee in this place."*

Convinced, therefore, of this, the rest of the chapter and service dedicatory, is chiefly Supplication and Prayer; two verses of which I have also taken into my text as a model for us on the present occasion.

Having thus laid before you the design and occasion of the text, with as much brevity as circumstances would admit, I come now to make an application of the whole to the purpose of this day's solemnity.

We too, my brethren, have been building a House to the Lord; not a superb and magnificent one, fitted

1 Kings VIII. 28, 29.

to the ostentatious worship of the Law; but a House decently neat and elegantly plain,* fitted to the simplicity of that Gospel-worship which must be performed in "Spirit and in Truth." We too are here assembled, in the presence of Almighty God, and in the sight of men and angels, to make a solemn Offering of this House to the name of the Lord; and to set it apart to the purposes of religion forever.

By this work of ours, we pretend not to confer any peculiar sanctity on particular places, or portions of inanimate nature. What we do is only declarative of our own fixed intention of endeavouring, through God's Grace, to sanctify ourselves in this place, in the full hopes of meeting the spiritual consolation of his Divine Presence therein; and entering into a solemn engagement, for ourselves and our posterity, of keeping it forever sacred to these pious uses, agree. ably to the pure model of that most excellent Church, whereof we are members.

This labour of our love, however unworthily performed, and by however mean instruments, we hope will be accepted in and through the mediation of Christ Jesus. A sign from heaven to confirm this hope, we must not expect! A Cloud of Glory, declaring the immediate presence of God among us, we look not to see! Types and shadows and the burden of ceremonies are done away. But behold, a greater evidence is here! The son of God himself

* The House here spoken of well deserves the above character, being a very elegant building, executed in the best taste. Its dimensions are ninety-one foot by sixty-one.

hath been among us, and hath left in our hands the Gospel of salvation, the words of eternal truth, declaring that" Where two or three are gathered together in His name, there will He be in the midst of them." By the eye of Scripture-faith, that fast anchor of the Soul, we can see Him, we can feel Him vitally present with us! we can enjoy union and communion with him; and, in our most holy places, we can behold him seated on another Mercy-seat than that of the Temple and the Law, and hear him speaking in another manner than from within the veil! We can behold him seated on the Mercy-seat of Redeeming Love, and hear him speaking in the comfortable overtures of the Gospel of Peace!

These interesting Truths being premised, and having the well-grounded assurance that "God will indeed dwell on the Earth"-even in the midst of the truly religious Meetings or Societies of his people; it behoves us next to consider what conduct such Societies ought more especially to observe, in order to expect so great a blessing.

And first, then, if we, as a religious Society, would hope that God would continue among us in this place which we have dedicated to his name, we must be careful to improve ourselves in "all manner of holy conversation and godliness, not forgetting the Assembling ourselves together, as the manner of some is."*

And here, as this neglect of " Assembling together," in the place where God's honour more imme