Ezech. xliii. 1, &c.  “Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the East; and behold the glory of the Lord came from the way of the East, and his voice was like the noise of many waters, and the Earth shined with his Glory.—­And the Glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate, whose prospect is toward the East.  So the Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court, and behold the Glory of the Lord filled the house.—­And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my Throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name shall the house of Israel no more defile,” &c.

Towards the end of the same chapter we read an account of the dedication of this new Temple by sacrifices; and particular directions are given in the succeeding chapters for the Priests, and for the Prince.  If, therefore, there be any truth in these prophecies, the Jews are not only to return to their own country, and to be distinguished among the nations, but are to rebuild the Temple, and to restore the ancient worship.

Having proved that the Old Testament declares the perpetuity of the Mosaic Law, I proceed, 2dly, to prove that it is declared to be perpetual by Jesus himself.

But before I adduce my proofs, I beg leave to premise, that when any Law is solemnly enacted, we expect that the abrogation of it should be equally solemn, and express, in order that no room for dispute may remain upon the subject.  Accordingly, it is the custom, I believe, in all countries, not to make any new Law, contradictory to another before subsisting, without a previous express abrogation of the old one.  And certainly it appears to me a strange notion to suppose, that the elaborate and noble Law given from mount Sinai amidst circumstances unexampled, awful, and tremendously magnificent, and believed to have been declared by the voice of God to be a perpetual and everlasting Code, should vanish, perish, and be annihilated by the mere dictum of twelve fishermen!!

But the fact is otherwise, for Jesus was so far from teaching the abrogation of that law, that he expressly says—­” Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the Prophets, I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.  For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”  This is a most explicit declaration that not the smallest punctilio in the law of Moses was intended to be set aside by the Gospel.  Nay more, he expressly commanded his disciples to the same purpose—­“The Scribes and Pharisees (says he,) sit in Moses’ seat; all therefore whatsoever they command you, that observe, and do.”

It is said in answer to this by Christian Divines, that his discourse relates to things of a moral nature, and that he only meant, that no part of the Moral Law was to be abolished.  But besides that the expression is general, there could be no occasion to make so solemn a declaration against what he could not have been suspected of intending, viz. of abolishing the moral law.  He seems in his discourse to have had in view the additions that had been made to the law.  These he sets aside, but no part of the original law itself.