V. 16.— For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham, Angels as well as men had fallen, but Christ took not hold [In our version “ the nature of” is supplied, but it is unnecessary and improper; both angels and men had fallen into a fearful pit He who is mighty to save passed by the former and took hold of the latter; not, indeed, of all the natural seed of Adam, but of the seed of Abraham, as the father and representative of all the faithful.] of angels, they are reserved in everlasting chains under darkness to the judgment of the great day; but the Lord hath showed light to the seed of Abraham. It has arisen from the sacrifice being bound to the horns of the altar, from the atonement of Jesus Christ. He took not hold of angels, but of the seed of Abraham. Why is there this limitation? Why is it said the seed of Abraham instead of the seed of Adam? Because He took part in flesh and blood only for the sake of the heirs of salvation, the children whom God had given Him, whom He is not ashamed to call brethren. Others, it is true, were also partakers of flesh and blood, but He never knew them. They belong to another family. He calls them not brethren. Abraham was chosen that in his seed a multitude, whom no man should be able to number, might be eternally blessed. The Savior sprang from Abraham; and in God’ s dealings with Abraham’ s descendants he exhibited a pattern of His dealings with his spiritual children, with those who are of faith, who are blessed with faithful Abraham. Israel after the flesh were redeemed from bondage, were taken into covenant, guided through the wilderness, fed with the emblem of the body of Christ, made to drink from the smitten rock, which the Apostle tells us was Christ, 1 Corinthians 10:6, and were brought to the promised land flowing with milk and honey. And thus God’ s love and care of the true Israel, who are Christ’ s and heirs according to the promise, Galatians 3:29, were strikingly exhibited. The whole plan of salvation is embodied in the history of the descendants of Abraham. Every doctrine of the Gospel is exhibited in God’ s dealings with them. God’ s chosen Israel sprang from an idolater; they were a perverse and crooked generation. They were separated from all other nations by the blood of their covenant; God's Spirit remained among them. He chastened them as a man chasteneth his son; and, at length, wrath came upon them to the uttermost, and God cast them off. But they have not stumbled that they should fall; they shall be restored to the favor of God, and serve Him in the land He gave to their fathers. Such is the parable. The interpretation of it is God’ s unchanging love to the true Israel, whom He hath loved with an everlasting love, and with lovingkindness hath drawn unto Himself; whom He guides by His counsel, and will afterwards receive to glory. The wisdom of God is apparent in representing spiritual and eternal things in types and figures, thus bringing the truth down to our capacity. By the folly of mankind this has been the grand means of corrupting the Gospel and carnalizing the doctrine of Christ. The spiritual ordinances of the New Testament have been changed into a system of external observances, which give an utterly fallacious view of the character of the religion of Christ.