offering, and whose blood was sprinkled as an atonement, represented Christ, who was slain for our iniquities; who is the propitiation for the sins of the whole world"; through whose blood we have redemption and forgiveness of sins"; and through whom "we have now received the atonement." The scape-goat represented Christ (who was "made sin for us," who "bare our sins in His own body," and upon whom was laid the iniquity of us alla), loosed from death", and presenting Himself before God as our atonement, ever living to make intercession for us. Thus the goat that died, and the goat that remained alive, each afforded a figure of Christ, who "in that He died, He died unto sin once; but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God."

So, when the leper was to be cleansed, the priest took "two birds alive and clean," one of which he killed" in an earthen vessel over running water," and with its blood he sprinkled him that was to be cleansed, while he let the other bird loose into the open field for an atonemente. The bird which was killed, appears to have represented Christ, who was killed in an "earthen

u 1 John, ii. 2.

W

Eph. i. 7.

x Rom. v. 11.

y 2 Cor. v. 21.

* 1 Peter, ii. 24.

a Isaiah, liii. 6.
b Acts, ii. 24.

c Hebr. vii. 25.

d Rom. vi. 10.

e Lev. xiv. 4-7, 49, 53.

vessel," and through the sprinkling of whose blood we are cleansed; while the " running water" may have been a figure of the living water which the death of Christ procured for mankind; and the bird which was let loose, was, like the scape-goat, a figure of Christ, freed from death and become our atonement.

The bodies of those beasts, whose blood was brought into the sanctuary for sin, were burnt without the camph; " wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered without the gate i."

Thus it appears, that all the sacrifices appointed under the Mosaic law, were figures of the sacrifice of Christ.

During the feast of the tabernacles, all the Israelites dwelt in booths made of thick boughs of trees. By so doing, they appear to have afforded a figure of the "righteous Branch1" who "tabernacled among menm" in the tabernacle" of flesh.

The Israelites were numbered, and those who were "from twenty years and upward" were required" to give an offering" of half a "to

f 2 Cor. iv. 7.

1 Peter, i. 2.

h Exod. xxix. 14. Lev. iv. 12, 21; vi. 11, 30; viii. 17; ix. 11; xvi. 27. Numb. xix. 3.

*Lev. xxiii. 40, 42. Nehem. viii. 15.

1 Jere. xxiii. 5.

m John, i. 14.
n 2 Cor. v. 1.

i Hebr. xiii. 11, 12.

shekel unto the Lord, as a ransom for their souls; this was called "atonement money," to make an atonement for their souls P. The rich were not to give more, nor the poor less ; this was to show, that "GoD regardeth not persons"," for there is no respect of persons with God3. And the money so collected, was cast, so as to furnish materials for parts of the tabernaclet. Thus the ransom-money, both of rich and poor, equally contributed toward the furnishing the tabernacle; and rich and poor have, through Christ their common ransom, an equal share in that better tabernacle "not made with hands, eternal in the heavens"."

The tabernacle consisted of two portions divided by a vail; the outer portion being the common place of worship, while the inner portion was called the Most Holy, or the Holy of Holies; and, into this last portion, the high priest alone went, and he once only in the year. In the most holy place were kept, the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant (on which was the mercy-seat, made of pure gold) containing "the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the

covenant; and over it the cherubims of glory, shadowing the mercy-seat," between which God appeared in the cloud upon the mercy-seat; there He displayed His presence, and thence He delivered His commands. These holy places made with hands, were figures of the true tabernacle. The most holy place represented heaven, the abode of the Deity. "The way into the holiest was not yet made manifesta;" a vail was set up, through which no one but the high priest was permitted to pass. The high priest who entered this most holy place once a year, to make an atonement with blood for the people, represented Christ our "High Priest who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched and not man"." The vail through which the high priest went, represented the incarnation of Christ, by means of which, we gain admittance into the real holy of holies; for we "enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us through the vail, that is to say, His flesh." No one but the high priest could pass into the holy of holies; and, through Christ only, have we

* Hebr. ix. 4, 5.

y Lev. xvi. 2.

z Hebr. ix. 24.

a Hebr. ix. 8.

b Hebr. viii. 1, 2.

c Hebr. x. 19, 20.

access to the Father; He by passing through the vail of flesh, has made an atonement with blood for all people.

In the holy of holies was placed the ark of the covenant; so we read also in the Apocalypse, "The temple of GOD was opened in heaven, and there was seen in His temple the ark of His testamente:" that covenant was the covenant of Christ. Upon the ark of the covenant was the mercy-seat, shadowed by the cherubims of glory. The symbol of the covenant of Christ was placed in that portion of the tabernacle which was a figure of heaven, and the mercy-seat of GOD rested upon it; for the covenant of Christ was then, as it is now, registered in heaven, and it was then, as it ever must be, the foundation of God's mercy to mankind.

The golden censer which was used for offering incense, that the cloud of incense might cover the mercy-seat that was upon the testimony, that the high priest died not, was placed in the most holy place. The incense was a figure of prayer, which ascendeth to the dwelling of the Deity. "An angel stood at the altar having a golden censer, and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne, and the smoke of the in

d Eph. ii. 18.
e Rev. xi. 9.

f Lev. xvi. 13.