The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek: he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn.—Isaiah lxi. 1, 2, 3.

This is one of the many descriptions we meet with of the Messiah, who is represented as being especially anointed to his office.[39] We cannot be at a loss for a satisfactory proof of the fulfilment of this prophecy, in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. He did not come forth unsent or unanointed. When he publicly entered on the great work of his mission, he was anointed to the office by the visible outpouring of the Spirit. We are told, that immediately after his baptism in the waters of Jordan, the heavens were opened, and the Spirit of God, as a dove, descended and lighted upon him; and a voice was heard from heaven, saying, "this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Thus we hear the Father bearing testimony to the person of the Son, and we see the Holy Spirit descending and resting on Jesus. Thus, did the three persons of the glorious Trinity, at one time, distinctly manifest themselves, and that at the entrance of Jesus on his great work. It may be proper to observe that, as God, he needed not the anointing of the Spirit, for in him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. It was the human nature of the God-man, Christ Jesus, that was anointed to the great office of mediator, which work he had before, by covenant, engaged to perform. To him, the Spirit was not given in a limited measure; he is the "Wonderful Counsellor;" in "him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." It would be a recapitulation of a great part of the New Testament, to shew the exact method in which this prophecy was fulfilled. When the disciples of John came to Jesus, to inquire if he really was the Messiah, he, as one confirmation of the fact, told them that to the poor he preached the gospel. Yes, we find Jesus, when on earth, spending a great part of the three years and a half of his public ministry in journeying to the towns and villages, publishing the "glad tidings of great joy," of which angels were once the honoured messengers, namely, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men." The common people, we are told, heard him gladly. Jesus can, with much propriety and justice, proclaim "liberty to the captive, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;" he can say, with authority, "deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom." Jesus is also King in Zion, whose mourners he will never fail to comfort; they can celebrate their Lord's mercies in the language of the Church of old, "Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted." We cannot find an instance on record of any persons who in their trouble fled to Jesus when on earth, but whatever was the nature of their distress, he always removed it. We also hear him proclaiming the "acceptable year of the Lord," saying, Come now; even to-day, if ye will hear my voice; "now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." While he proclaims "the year of his redeemed," he does not neglect to publish "the day of vengeance of our God." Though he delight in words of mercy and of comfort, he does not shun to declare the whole counsel of God. As a faithful monitor, we repeatedly hear him urging sinners to flee from the wrath to come, and solemnly warning them of the fearful punishment awaiting those, who reject the counsel of God against their own souls.[40] Nor did he fail to speak in the strongest language of the miseries which will be the portion of those, in another world, who, in this, reject and disobey him. When Jesus read aloud this prophecy in the Jewish synagogue, and declared it was that day fulfilled; we are told "all the people bear him witness, and wondered at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth." Every one who reads the history of Jesus with a candid mind, must be constrained to acknowledge that through every part of his active and eventful life, his conduct manifested, that the "Spirit of the Lord rested upon him;" that his was "the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and of might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord."