10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests, and we shall reign
on the earth.

Vs. 9, 10.--"They sung a new song." They all agreed in the matter, as
well as in the divine object of worship. "Now will I sing to my well
beloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard." (Isa. v. 1.) Agreed
as to the object and matter of the song none is silent in Immanuel's
praise,--no _select choir_, not one who _worships by proxy_. Such belong
to a different fellowship. This is the "song of the Lamb," which joined
to the "song of Moses," constitutes the whole of the "high praises of
the Lord," leaving no place for the vapid, empty, bombastic, amorous and
heretical effusions, of uninspired men, whether of sound or "corrupt
minds."--The burden of the song is the same as the "Song of Songs" and
the forty-fifth Psalm,--"Christ crucified,"--Christ glorified, "the
praises of him who hath called them from darkness into his marvellous
light." The key-note among them all is the work of redemption. "Thou
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood,"--_us_, and not others in the same
condition. Others may talk of a ransom that does not redeem: but these
dwell with emphasis upon the price and power that brought them "out of
every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation." This happy and
joyful company never conceived the idea that, in order at once to
vindicate Jehovah's moral government and give the most impressive
demonstration of his opposition to sin, he subjected his beloved Son to
untold sufferings, which should be equally available by all his enemies,
but _specially intended for none in particular_! They never imagined
that their adorable Creator was under a natural necessity of "seeking
the greatest good of the greatest number," that he might thereby escape
the just imputation of _partiality_. Such impious conceptions imply
distributive injustice on the part of God, when he "spared not the
angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell." (2 Pet. ii. 4.) Neither