Page:Spiritual Reflections for Every Day in the Year - Vol 2.pdf/343



HE blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, in its spiritual signification, is pure divine truth; and divine truth is that which nourishes the understanding, and, as it is appropriated, gives the mind increased desire or thirst for the wisdom which cometh from above, and prepares the soul for those heavenly enjoyments and angelic associations which impart true life and blessedness. Destitute of divine truth, man may be considered as spiritually dead; his mind is overspread with darkness, his will and affections are cold and powerless: hence the truth of the divine words, "Unless ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." The blood of the Lord, or the truth of the Lord, is that which giveth life to the understanding. Now the Lord is also called "the Word of God." Hence divine truth, or the sacred Scriptures, must be considered in the same light as the blood of the Lord Jesus; and he that appropriates this truth in his understanding, and suffers it to be his guide and counsellor, lives by it. For the same reason, the prophets and priests, as teachers of truth, represent the truth itself, and hence are called by the name Son of Man. Zacharias was a priest; he instructed the people in their duty, reprehended them for their idolatry, and shewed them its fatal consequences; and as evil and falsehood can-