Chapter VIII: Front Matter (8)

This, some think to be the method of speaking which our Saviour makes use of, when he reproves his disciples for that fond conceit that they had, that his kingdom was of this world; and contending sometimes among themselves, who should be greatest therein: Upon which occasion he bids them make provision for war; and take care to secure those two things that are necessary thereunto, money and arms: Thus he says, in Luke xxii. 36. ‘He that hath a purse, let him take it; and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one;’ they did not, indeed, immediately perceive that he spake in an ironical way; and therefore replied, in ver. 38. _Lord, behold here are two swords_: Upon which he says, still carrying on the irony, _It is enough_. So that, whether they understood his meaning or no, it seems to be this; if you are disposed to contend who shall be greatest, as though my kingdom were of a temporal nature, and to be erected and maintained by force of arms, do you think you have sufficient treasure to hire forces to join with you, or buy arms for that purpose? or, do you imagine that you have courage enough to attack the Roman empire, and gain it by force? You say, you have two swords, can you suppose that these are enough? what a ludicrious and indifferent figure would you make, if you expected to come off conquerors by this means? No, they that take the sword shall perish with the sword; for my kingdom is not of this world: So that all the advantages and honours that you are to expect therein, are of a spiritual nature. This seems rather to be the meaning of this scripture, than that which the Papists generally acquiesce in, namely, that by the _two_ swords, are meant the civil and ecclesiastical; both which, as they pretend, are put into the Pope’s hands.

9thly, The scripture often makes use of a figurative way of speaking, generally called an _hendyadis_, whereby one complex idea, is expressed by two words, which is very common in the Hebrew language. Thus in Jer. xxix. 11. when God promises his people, that he would _give_ them _an expected end_, intending hereby their deliverance from the Babylonish captivity; the words, if literally translated, ought to be rendered, as it is observed in the margin, _an end and expectation_; whereas, our translators were apprized that there is such a figurative way of speaking contained in them, and therefore they render them, _an expected end_: And this figure is sometimes used in the New Testament; as when our Saviour tells his disciples, in Luke xxi. 15. _I will give you a mouth and wisdom_; that is, I will give you ability to express yourselves with so much wisdom, _that all your adversaries shall not be able to gain-say_ it. And some think, that there is the same way of speaking used in John iii. 5. ‘Except a man be born of water, and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God;’ that is, except a man be born of the Holy Spirit, or regenerated, which is signified by being born of water, he cannot, &c.

_10thly_, Nothing is more common than for the Holy Ghost, in scripture to make use of metaphors, which are a very elegant way of representing things, by comparing them with, and illustrating them by others, and borrowing such modes of speaking from them, as may add a very considerable beauty to them. Thus repentance and godly sorrow, together with the blessed privileges which shall hereafter attend them, are compared to sowing and reaping, in Psal. cxxvi. 5, 6. ‘They that sow in tears, shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.’ And the prophet sets forth the labour and pains which Israel had taken in sin; and exhorts them, by a metaphor taken from husbandry, to be as industrious in pursuing what would turn to a better account, in Hos. x. 12, 13. where he speaks of their having _plowed wickedness, and reaped iniquity_; and advises them to _sow to themselves in righteousness, and reap in mercy_; which, as he farther adds, they should do by _seeking the Lord_; and _it is time_, says he, _to seek_ him, _till he come and rain righteousness upon you_; which is necessary to a plenteous harvest of blessings, which you may hope for in so doing. And, in chap. vii. 4. he reproves their adulteries by a metaphor, taken from _an oven heated by the baker_; and their hypocrisy by another, taken from _a cake not turned_, ver. 8. and their being weakened, and almost ruined hereby, he compares to the _gray hairs_ of those who are bowed down under the infirmities of age, ver. 9. and for their cowardice and seeking help from other nations, and not from God, he calls them _a silly dove without an heart_, ver. 11.

And we may observe, that there is oftentimes a chain of metaphors in the same paragraph. Of this kind is that elegant description of old age, sickness, and death, which Solomon gives, in exhorting persons to _remember their Creator in the days of their youth_, Eccl. xii. 1-6. _while the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars be not darkened_; by which, it is probable, he intends the impairing the intellect, the loss of those sprightly parts which once they had, or, of the memory and judgment; upon which account men are sometimes said to, out-live themselves. And he speaks of _the keepers of the house trembling_; that is, the hands and arms, designed for the defence of the body, being seized with paralytic disorders; _the strong men bowing themselves_; that is, those parts which are designed to support the body being weakened, and needing a staff to bear up themselves; _the grinders ceasing because they are few_, signifies the loss of teeth; _and they that look out of the windows being darkened_, a decay of sight; their _rising up at the voice of the bird_, implies their loss of one of the main props of nature, to wit, sleep; so that they may rise early in the morning, when the birds begin to sing, because their beds will not afford them rest: _And the daughters of music being brought low_, denotes a decay of the voice and hearing, and being not affected with those sounds which were once most delightful to them. _The almond-tree flourishing_, plainly signifies the hoary head; _the grashopper_ being _a burden_, is either a proverbial speech, importing a want of courage, strength, and resolution to bear the smallest pressures; or, as others understand it, their stooping, when bowed down with old age. _The silver cord loosed_, or, _the golden bowl broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern_, signifies a decay of the animal spirits, a laxation of the nerves, the irregular circulation of the blood, or the universal stoppage thereof; and then the frame of nature is broken, and man _returns to the dust_[45].

In the New Testament there are several metaphors used; some of which are taken from the Isthmian and Olympic games, practised by the Greeks and Romans. Thus the apostle Paul compares the Christian life to _a race_ in which _many run_; but they do not all _receive the prize_, 1 Cor. ix. 24. And, in ver. 25. he alludes to another exercise, to wit, wrestling; and recommends temperance as what was practised by them, as a means for their obtaining the crown. And, ver. 26. he uses a metaphor, taken from another of the games, to wit, fighting, in hope of victory; by which he illustrates his zeal in the discharge of his ministry. And in Heb. xii. 1. he speaks of the Christian _race_, and the necessity of _laying aside every weight_, to wit, allowed sins, which would retard our course, or hinder us in the way to heaven. And in Phil. iii. 13, 14. he speaks of himself both as a minister and a Christian, as ‘forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,’ and, ‘pressing towards the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus;’ where he plainly alludes to the purpose, industry, and earnestness of those who run in a race. And, in Eph. vi. 11-16. he speaks of the difficulties, temptations, and opposition that believers are exposed to, in the Christian life; and advises them, to _put on the whole armour of God_; and so carries on the metaphor or allegory, by alluding to the various pieces of armour, which soldiers make use of when engaged in battle, to illustrate the methods we ought to take, that we may come off conquerors at last.

(6.) It will be very useful, in order to our understanding scripture, for us to know some things, relating to the different forms of civil government, and the various changes made therein, among the Jews, and other nations, with whom they were conversant. At first we find, that distinct families had the administration of civil affairs committed unto them, and the heads thereof were, as it were, the chief magistrates, who had the exercise of civil power, in some instances; especially if it did not interfere with that of the country wherein they lived. Some think, indeed, that it extended to the punishing capital crimes with death; and that Judah, who was the head of a branch of Jacob’s family, when he passes this sentence concerning Tamar, in Gen. xxxviii. 24. _Bring her forth, and let her be burnt_, does it as a civil magistrate: But, if it be not deemed a rash and unjustifiable expression in him, when he says, _Let her be brought forth, and burnt_, we must suppose the meaning to be, let her first be confined till she is delivered of her child, and then tried by the civil magistrate, the consequence whereof will be, her being burnt, when found guilty of the adultery that was charged upon her. So that it does not appear that the heads of families, when sojourning in other countries, had a power distinct from that of the government under which they lived, to punish offenders with death; though, I think, it is beyond dispute, that they had a government in their own families, that extended, in many respects, to civil affairs, as well as obliged them to observe those religious duties which God required of them.

It may be farther observed, that this government extended so far, as that the Patriarchs, or heads of families, had, sometimes, a power of making war, or entering into confederacies with neighbouring princes, for their own safety, or recovering their rights when invaded. Thus when Lot and the Sodomites, were taken prisoners by the four kings that came up against them, we read, in Gen. xiv. 13, 14. that Abraham called in the assistance of some of his neighbours, with whom he was in confederacy, and _armed his trained servants, three hundred and eighteen, born in his house_, and rescued him, and the men of Sodom from the hands of those that had taken them prisoners.

We have little more light as to this matter, so long as the government continued domestic, and the church in the condition of sojourners: But, when they were increased to a great nation, their civil, as well as religious government, was settled, by divine direction, under the hand of Moses, in the wilderness. The first form thereof, was a theocracy, in which God gave them laws in an immediate way; condescended to satisfy them, as to some things, which they enquired of him about; gave them particular intimations how they should manage their affairs of war and peace; and appeared for them in giving them victory over their enemies, in a very extraordinary, and sometimes, miraculous way. But, besides this great honour that God put on them, he established a form of government among them, in which they were divided into _thousands_, _hundreds_, _fifties_, and _tens_, Exod. xviii. 31. Deut. i. 15. each of which divisions had their respective captain or governor; who are, sometimes, styled the _nobles of the children of Israel_, Exod. xxiv. 11. And these governors were generally heads of considerable families among them; which were also divided in the same way, into thousands, fifties, and tens, in proportion to the largeness thereof; thus Gideon, speaking of his family, in Judges vi. 25. calls it, as the Hebrew word signifies, his _thousand_. And, in the same manner, their armies were divided, when engaged in war; thus when Jesse sent David with a present, into the army, to his brethren, he bade him deliver it to the _captain over their thousand_, 1 Sam. xvii. 18. and chap. xviii. 13. And we read, that Saul made David his _captain over a thousand_; which is the same with what we, in our modern way of speaking, call a commanding officer over a regiment of soldiers. Again, when David’s soldiers went out to war against Absalom, it is said, _They came out by hundreds and by thousands_, 2 Sam. xviii. 4. each distinct company, or regiment, having their commanding officer.

Thus the government was settled as to civil and military affairs, in such a way, that the head of the respective division, had a power of judging in lesser matters. But since there were some affairs of the greatest importance to be transacted in the form of their government, by divine direction, God appointed seventy men of the children of Israel, to assist Moses in those matters, in which they had more immediately to do with him; and accordingly he _gave them the Spirit_, Numb. xi. 16, 17. that is, the extraordinary inspiration of the Spirit; whereby he communicated his mind and will to them. This was the first rise of the Sanhedrim; and these had a power of judging in civil matters, throughout all the ages of the church till the Jews were made tributary to the Romans; and after that, this body of men were as vile and contemptible as they had before been honourable in the eyes of just and good men, as appears by their tumultuous and unprecedented behaviour in the trial of our Saviour, and the malicious prosecutions, set on foot by them, against the apostles, without any pretence or form of law.

After the death of Joshua, and the elders that survived him, there was an alteration in the form of government, occasioned by the oppression which they were liable to from their enemies, who insulted, vexed, and sometimes plundered them of their substance. Then God raised up judges, who first procured peace for them, by success in war; and afterwards governed them; though without the character or ensigns of royal dignity. And, this government not being successive, they were, on the death of their respective judges, brought into great confusion, every one doing that which was right in his own eyes, till another judge was raised up, as some future emergency required it. Thus the posture of their affairs continued, as the apostle observes, _about the space of four hundred and fifty years_, Acts xiii. 20. and then it was altered, when, through their unsettled temper, they desired a king, in conformity to the custom of the nations round about them; which thing was displeasing to God: nevertheless, he granted them their request, 1 Sam. viii. 5-7. and so the government became regal. And then followed a succession of kings, set over the whole nation, till the division between Judah and Israel; when they became two distinct kingdoms, and so continued, till their respective captivity. These things being duly considered, will give great light to several things contained in scripture; especially as to what relates to the civil affairs of the church of God.

And, for our farther understanding thereof, it will be necessary that we take a view of the government of other nations, with whom they were often conversant. We read almost of as many kings in scripture, as there were cities in several of those countries which lay round about them; thus, in Gen. xxxvi. we read of many dukes and kings, (whose power was much the same) who descended from Esau. These had very small dominions, each of them being, as it is probable, the chief governor of one city, or, at most, of a little tract of land round about it; and, indeed, besides the Assyrian, and other monarchies, that were of a very large extent, and had none who stood in competition with them, under that character, while they subsisted; all other kingdoms were very small; therefore four kings were obliged to enter into a confederacy, to make war with Sodom, and the four neighbouring cities, which a very inconsiderable army might, without much difficulty, have subdued, Gen. xiv. 1, _&c._ One of them, indeed, is called king of nations; not as though he had large dominions, but because he was the chief governor of a mixed people, from divers nations, who were settled together in one distinct colony; and the king of Shinar, there spoken of, is not the king of Babylon, who was too potent a prince to have stood in need of others to join with him in this expedition; but it was a petty king, who reigned in some city near Babylon, and was tributary to the Assyrian empire. These four kings, with all their forces, were so few in number, that Abraham was not afraid to attack them; which he did with success.

Again, we read, that in Joshua’s time, the kings in the land of Canaan, whom he subdued, had, each of them, very small dominions, consisting of but one capital city, with a few villages round about it. Thus we read of thirty one kings that reigned in that country, which was not so big as a fourth part of the kingdom of England, Josh. xii. And afterwards most of these kingdoms were swallowed up by the Assyrian empire. Thus the king of Assyria, as Rabshakeh boasts, had entirely conquered the kings of Hamath, Arphad, Gozan, and Haran, with several others, 2 Kings xix. 12, 13. these had very small dominions, and therefore were easily subdued by forces so much superior to any that they could raise. Egypt, indeed, was more formidable; and therefore we often read in scripture of Israel’s having recourse to them for help, and are blamed for trusting in them more than God: And, in Arabia, there were some kings who had large dominions, as appears by the vast armies that they raised: Thus _Zerah the Ethiopian came forth against Asa, with a thousand thousand men_, 2 Chron. xvi. 19. Nevertheless, the church of God was able to stand its ground; for, whether the neighbouring kings were many of them, confederate against them, or the armies they raised, exceeding numerous, like the sand on the sea shore; they had safety and protection, as well as success in war, from the care and blessing of providence; of which we have an account in the history of scripture relating thereunto.

(7.) It will be of some advantage, in order to our understanding the sense of scripture, for us to enquire into the meaning of those civil and religious offices and characters, by which several persons are described, both in the Old and New Testament. Concerning the Priests and Levites, we have had occasion frequently to insist on their call and office: Among the former of these, one is styled _high-priest_; who was not only the chief minister in holy things under the Jewish dispensation; but presided over the other priests in all those things that respected the temple-service. There was also another priest, who had pre-eminence over his brethren, that was next to the high-priest in office, who seems to be referred to, in 2 Kings xxv. 18. where we read of _Seriah, the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest_. This office is not often mentioned in scripture, but is frequently spoken of by Jewish writers: They call him, who was employed therein, as the author of the Chaldee paraphrase does on that text, the Sagan: And, some think, that this office was first instituted in Numb. iii. 32. in which Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest was to be _chief over the chief of the Levites, and to have the oversight of them, that kept the charge of the sanctuary_: And elsewhere, we read of Zadok and Abiathar, being, by way of eminency, _priests at the same time_, 2 Sam. xv. 35. by which, it is probable, we are to understand, as many expositors do, that one was the _high priest_, the other the _Sagan_; who was to perform the office that belonged to the high priest in all the branches thereof, if he should happen to be incapacitated for it.

Besides these, there were others who were styled _chief-priests_, as being the heads of their respective classes, and presided over them when they came to Jerusalem, to minister in their courses. There was also the president of the Sanhedrim, who is generally reckoned one of the chief priests. Moreover, when any one was by the arbitrary will of the governors, in the degenerate and declining state of the Jewish church, deposed from the high-priesthood, barely to make way for another favourite to enjoy that honour, he was, though divested of his office, nevertheless called chief priest. This will give light to several scriptures in the New Testament, in which we often read of many chief priests at the same time, See Luke iii. 2. Mark xiv. 53.

Again, as to the Levites, these were not only appointed to be the high priest’s ministers in offering gifts and sacrifices in the temple; but many of them were engaged in other offices; some in instructing the people, in the respective cities where they dwelt, who were to resort to them for that purpose, or in synagogues, erected for this branch of public worship. Others were employed as judges in determining civil or ecclesiastical, matters.

Again, we often read, in scripture, of Scribes: These were of two sorts; some were employed only in civil matters; and we sometimes read of one person, in particular, who was appointed to be the king’s scribe. Thus in David’s reign, we read of Shemaiah the scribe, and in Hezekiah’s of Shebna, 1 Chron. xxiv. 6. 2 Kings xviii. 18. This seems to have been a civil officer, not much unlike a secretary of state among us; and we seldom find mention made of more than one scribe at a time, except in Solomon’s reign in which there were two, 1 Kings iv. 4.

But besides this, we often read of scribes who were engaged in other works; thus it is generally supposed, that many of them were employed in transcribing the whole, or some parts of scripture, for the use of those who employed them therein, and gratified them for it; which was necessary for the propagating religion in those ages, in which printing was not known.

There were others who explained the law to the people. Thus Ezra is styled, _a ready scribe in the law of Moses_, Ezra, vii. 6. This was an honourable and useful employment, faithfully managed by him and many others, in the best ages of the church. But, in our Saviour’s time, there were scribes who pretended to expound the law, and instruct the people; but the doctrines they propagated, were very contrary to the mind of the Holy Ghost in Moses’s writings; and their way of preaching was very empty and unprofitable: Upon which occasion it is said, that our Lord _taught as one having authority, and not as the scribes_, Matt. vii. 29.

Moreover, we sometimes read in the New-Testament, of Lawyers, against whom our Saviour denounces woes, for opposing him and his gospel. This is supposed by some, to be only a different name given to the scribes; inasmuch as they practised the law in public courts of judicature, and pleaded causes in the Sanhedrin, or taught in their schools or religious assemblies; both which the scribes did. And the evangelist Matthew, speaking concerning a lawyer, who asked our Saviour a question, _Which is the great commandment_, chap. xxii. 35, 36. Mark mentioning the same thing, calls him _one of the scribes_, Mark xii. 28. So that the same thing, for substance, seems to be intended by both of them; or if there was any difference between them, as others suppose there was, from what is said in Luke xi. 44, 45. that when our Saviour had been reproving the scribes and Pharisees, _One of the lawyers said unto him, thus saying thou reproachest us also_, where they speak as though they were distinct from them: yet it is evident from hence, that however they might be distinguished from them, in other respects, they agreed with them as engaged in expounding the law, and herein are said to lade _men with heavy burdens and grievous to be born_; which they themselves would _not touch with one of their fingers_.

As for those civil officers which we read of in the Old Testament before the captivity, especially in David and Solomon’s reign, they were either such as were set over the tribute, the principal of which was at the head of the treasury, 1 Kings iv. 6. and others were employed under them, to see that the taxes were duly levied and paid: These are called receivers, Isa. xxxiii. 18. Others were employed in keeping and adjusting the public records, of which, one was the chief; who, by way of eminence, is called the recorder: And others were appointed to manage the king’s domestic affairs, of which, the chief was _set over the household_, 2 Kings xviii. 18. Another is said to be _set over the host_, 1 Kings iv. 4. who either had the chief command of the army, or else was appointed to muster and determine who should go to war, or be excused from it. And there is another officer we read of once in scripture, _viz._ he that _counted the towers_, Isa. xxxiii. 18. whose business seems to have been to survey and keep the fortifications in repair; but these not being so frequently mentioned in scripture as others, we pass them over, and proceed more especially to consider some characters of persons we meet with in the New Testament.

There was one sort of officers who were concerned in exacting the public revenues, after the Jews were made tributary to the Roman empire: These are called publicans; the chief of which were generally persons of great honour and substance, who sometimes farmed a branch of the revenue, and they were, for the most part, Romans of noble extract, of whom we have an account in Cicero[46], and other heathen writers; but there is no mention of them in scripture. This honourable post was never conferred on the Jews; nevertheless, we read of Zaccheus, who is said to have been one _of the chief among the publicans_, though a Jew, Luke xix. 2. the meaning of which is, that he was the chief officer in a particular port, who had other publicans under him; whose business was, constantly to attend at the ports, and take an account of the taxes that were to be paid there, by those of whom they were exacted. Of this latter sort was Matthew, who is called the publican, _i. e._ one of the lowest officers concerned in the revenue, Matt. x. 3. compared with chap. ix. 9. These were usually very profligate in their morals, and inclined to oppress those of whom they received taxes, probably to gain advantage to themselves; and were universally hated by the Jews.

There was another sort of men often mentioned in the New Testament, that made the greatest pretensions to religion, but were most remote from it, and justly branded with the character of hypocrites, to wit, the Pharisees, who made themselves popular by their external shew of piety. There is not, indeed, the least hint of there being such a sect amongst the Jews before the captivity; though, it is true, the prophet Isaiah, Isa. lxv. 5. speaks of a sort of people that much resembled them, which said, _Stand by thyself, come not near to me, for I am holier than thou_; from whence, it seems, that there were some of like principles in his day; unless we suppose that this scripture had its accomplishment when the sect of the Pharisees appeared in the world in a following age; which was not long after the reign of Alexander the great[47], between two and three hundred years before our Saviour’s time. They are generally described in scripture, as pretending to be more expert than all others in the knowledge of the law; but, in reality, making it void, by establishing those oral traditions, which were contrary to the true intent and meaning thereof, and, as setting up their own righteousness, and depending on the performance of some lesser duties of the law, as that from whence they expected a right to eternal life. These were the greatest enemies, in their conduct, as well as their doctrines, to Christ, and his gospel.

There was another sect that joined with the Pharisees, in persecuting and opposing our Saviour; though otherwise they did not, in the least, accord with one another; and these were the Sadducees, who appeared in the world about the same time with the Pharisees: These were men generally reputed as profligate in their morals, and for that reason, as much hated by the common people, as the Pharisees were caressed by them. They adhered to the Philosophy of Epicurus; and took occasion, from thence to deny the resurrection, angels, and spirits, as they are said to do in scripture, Acts xxiii. 8. It is true they did not desire to be thought irreligious, though they were really so; yet our Saviour describes them, as well as the Pharisees, as _hypocrites_, and inveterate enemies of the gospel.

There was another sort of people sometimes mentioned in the New Testament, _viz._ the Samaritans, who separated from the Jews, out of a private pique, and built a distinct temple on mount Gerizzim[48]; and for this they were excommunicated by the Jews, and universally hated, so that there was no intercourse between them, John iv. 9, especially in those things in which one might be said to be obliged to the other: These did very much corrupt the worship of God, so that Christ charges them with _worshipping they knew not what_, ver. 12. and it is observed concerning them, after the ten tribes were carried captive into Assyria, and they who were left in the land _feared not the Lord_, that he _sent lions amongst them_, 2 Kings xvii. 25. upon which occasion a priest was dismissed by the king of Assyria, under pretence of _instructing them in the manner of the God of the land_; and he erected a strange medly of religion, consisting partly of those corruptions therein, which had been practised by the Israelites for some ages past, and partly of the Heathen idolatry, which they brought from Assyria; upon which account it is said, _They feared the Lord, and served their own gods after the manner of the nations whom they carried away from thence_, 2 Kings xvii. 33.

There is another sort of men, mentioned in the New Testament, who are called Herodians: These seem to have been a political rather than a religious sect. Some of the Fathers, indeed, think that they were so called because they complimented Herod with the character of the Messiah[49], who, as they supposed, would be a very flourishing prince, who was to reign over them, according to the ancient prediction of the patriarch Jacob, after _the sceptre was departed from Judah_: But this seems to be a very improbable conjecture; for _Herod the Great_ was dead, before we read any thing of the Herodians in scripture: And the Jews had an opinion, about this time, that the Messiah should never die, John xii. 34. Therefore, the most probable opinion is, that these Herodians were, in their first rise, the favourites and courtiers of Herod, and disposed to give into any alterations that he was inclined to make in the religious or civil affairs of the Jews[50]. By what is said concerning them in scripture, it is supposed, that they were, for thy most part, Sadducees; for if we compare Matt. xvi. 6. with Mark viii. 15. our Saviour warns his disciples upon the same occasion, to wit, their having _forgot to take bread_, to _beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees_; as the former evangelist expresses it, and _of the leaven of Herod_, viz. the Herodians, as it is in the latter: Now, though these Herodians, or court-parasites, might take their first rise in the reign of Herod the Great; yet there was a party of men succeeded them, who held the same principles, and were disposed to compliment their governors with their civil and religious rights; but they more especially distinguished themselves, by their propagating principles of loyalty among the people: And, whereas the Jews, under a pretence that they were a free nation, were very unwilling to give tribute to Cesar, (though they would not venture their lives as Judas of Galilee, and some others had done, by refusing it;) these Herodians laid it down as an article of their faith, that they ought to pay tribute to Cesar; and therefore, when they came with this question to our Saviour, _Is it lawful to give tribute to Cesar, or not?_ Matt. xxii. 17. he soon discovered their hypocrisy, and knew the design of that question as he might easily do from their being Herodians. Thus concerning the various characters of persons mentioned in scripture, as subservient to our understanding thereof.

(8.) After all these helps for the understanding the sense of scripture, there is one more which is universally to be observed; namely, that no sense is to be given of any text, but what is agreeable to the analogy of faith, has a tendency to advance the divine perfections, stain the pride of all flesh, in the sight of God, and, promote practical godliness in all its branches.

_1st_, Scripture must be explained agreeably to the analogy of faith. It is supposed that there is something we depend on, which we can prove to be the faith of scripture, or demonstrably founded upon it: This we are bound to adhere to; otherwise we must be charged with scepticism, and concluded not to know where to set our feet in matters of religion. Now, so far as our faith herein is founded on scripture, every sense we give of it must be agreeable thereunto; otherwise we do as it were suppose that the word of God in one place destroys what, in another, it establishes, which would be a great reflection on that which is the standard and rule of our faith. I do not hereby intend, that our sentiments are to be a rule of faith to others, any farther than as they are evidently contained in, or deduced from scripture: Yet that which we believe, as thinking it to be the sense of scripture, is so far a rule to us, that, whatever sense we give of any other scripture, must be agreeable to it; or else, we must be content to acknowledge, that we are mistaken in some of those things which we called articles of faith, as founded thereon.

_2dly_, No sense given of scripture, must be contrary to the divine perfections: Thus, when human passions are ascribed to God, such as grief, fear, desire, wrath, fury, indignation, _&c._ these are not to be explained, as when the same passions are ascribed to men, in which sense they argue weakness and imperfection. And when any phrase of scripture seems to represent him defective in power; as in Jer. xiv. 9. ‘Why shouldst thou be as a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save?’ we are to understand it as a charge that would be unjustly brought against God, if he did not appear in the behalf of his people, by those who are disposed to reproach and find fault with the dispensations of his providence: But, since we have taken occasion, in explaining many scriptures and doctrines founded upon them, to apply this rule; I shall content myself, at present, with the bare mentioning of it.

_3dly_, We are to explain scripture in such a way, as that it may have a tendency to promote practical godliness in all its branches; which is the main end and design thereof. Many instances might be given, in which this rule is to be applied; as when we are said, in Rom. vii. 14. _not_ to be _under the law, but under grace_; we are not to understand this as though we were discharged from an obligation to yield obedience to whatever God commands; but either, as denoting our being delivered from the condemning sentence of the law; or, from the ceremonial law, to which the gospel-dispensation, which is a display of the grace of God, is always opposed. And when it is said in Eccl. vii. 16. ‘Be not righteous overmuch, neither make thyself overwise: Why shouldst thou destroy thyself?’ We are not to understand thereby, that there is any danger of being too holy, or strict in the performance of religious duties; but as forbidding an hypocritical appearing to be more righteous than we are, or entertaining a proud and vain-glorious conceit of our own righteousness, because we perform some duties of religion.

Again, there are other scriptures which are sometimes perverted, as though they intimated, that prayer, or other religious duties, were not incumbent on wicked men; as when it is said, in Prov. xxi. 27. _The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord_: And, chap. xxviii. 9. that his prayer is so, or that he has nothing to do with those duties; because it is said to such, in Psal. l. 16. _What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or, that thou shouldst take my covenant in thy mouth._ But these scriptures do not imply, that they are not obliged to perform religious duties; but, that it is contrary to the holiness of God, and a great provocation to him when they regard not the frame of spirit with which they perform them, who draw nigh to him with their lips, when their heart is far from him, or lay claim to the blessings of the covenant of grace, while continuing in open hostility against him. To apply this rule fully, would be to go through the whole scripture, and to shew how all the great doctrines of religion which are founded upon it, are conformed thereunto; But this we have endeavoured to do in all those instances in which we have had occasion to give the sense thereof; and therefore shall content ourselves with this brief specimen, and leave it to every one to improve upon it in his daily meditations, in enquiring into the sense of scripture, in order to his being farther established in that religion which is founded thereon.

Footnote 32:

_Many instances of this might be produced, viz. Gen. iii. 15. instead
of, it shall bruise thy head, they render it she; by which they
understand the Virgin Mary, shall bruise thy head, that is, the
serpent’s. And, Gen. xlviii. 16. instead of, my name shall be named on
them, which are the words of Jacob, concerning Joseph’s sons; it is
rendered, my name shall be invoked, or called upon by them; which
favours the doctrine of invocation of saints. And, in Psal. xcix. 5.
instead of exalt the Lord thy God, and worship at his holy hill, they
read, worship his footstool; which gives countenance to their error of
paying divine adoration to places or things. And, in Heb. xi. 21.
instead of, Jacob worshipped leaning on the top of his staff, they
render it, he worshipped the top of his staff. And, in Heb. xiii. 16.
instead of, with such sacrifices God is well pleased, they render it,
with such sacrifices God is merited; which they make use of to
establish the merit of good works._

Footnote 33:

_There is indeed, one verse in Jeremiah, chap. x. 11. that is written
in Chaldee; which, it is probable, they did not, at that time, well
understand; but the prophet, by this, intimates to them, that they
should be carried into a country where that language should be used;
and therefore the Holy Ghost furnishes them with a message, that they
were to deliver to the Chaldeans, from the Lord, in their own
language. The gods, that have not made the heavens and the earth, even
they shall perish from the earth, and from these heavens._

Footnote 34:

_See Vol. I. Quest. IV. p. 69, & seq._

Footnote 35:

_See Quest. CLIX, CLX._

Footnote 36:

Θεοῦ και ἐσμεν συνεργο.

Footnote 37:

Vide T. Williams on the Song of Solomon.

Footnote 38:

Vide Table of the Order of the Prophecies. Vol. I. p. 55.

Footnote 39:

_The word is שלו, which being neither a root to any other word, nor
derived from any other root, by which the sense of Hebrew words is
generally known, nor found any where in scripture, excepting in those
two or three places which refer to this particular dispensation of
providence; it is an hard matter to determine the sense of it, without
comparing these two scriptures together.—It occurs Numb. xi. 31, 32.
Exod. xvi. 13. Psa. cv. 40._

Footnote 40:

_See the epistle to the Hebrews, chap. v. to the x. inclusive, and 2
Cor. x. 1-6._

Footnote 41:

_See Vol. I. p. 78._

Footnote 42:

_See Lightfoot’s Harmony of the Four Evangelists. And his Harmony of
the New Testament, Vol. I. p. 268._

Footnote 43:

_This is called Synecdoche._

Footnote 44:

_This is called a Metonymy._

Footnote 45:

_See more of this in an ingenious discourse on this subject by Smith
in Solomon’s portraiture of old age._

Footnote 46:

_Vid. Cic. in Orat. pro Planc. florem equitum Romanorum ornamentum
civitatis, firmamentum reipublicæ publicanorum ordine contineri. And
in his oration, ad Quintum Fratrem, he has many things concerning the
dignity of the publicans, and their advantage to the commonwealth:
accordingly he says, Si publicanis adversemur ordinem do nobis optime
meritum, & per nos cum republica conjunctum, & a nobis, & a republica
disjungimus. And, in his familiar epistles, Lib. xix. Epist. x. he
calls them, Ordinem sibi semper commendatissimum; & ad Atticum, Lib.
vii. Epist. vii. he says, Cæsari amicissimos fuisse publicanos._

Footnote 47:

_See Joseph. Antiquit. Lib. xiii. Cap. ix. And we have an account of
their pride and insolence in the same author, chap. xviii. and of the
great disturbance that they made in civil governments, if chief
magistrates did not please them._

Footnote 48:

_See Joseph. Antiquit. Lib. xi. Cap. viii._

Footnote 49:

_See Tertull. in præscrip. adv. Hær. Cap. xlv. and Epiphanius, in Hær.
Cap. xx._

Footnote 50:

_That Herod was disposed to make alterations in the Jews religion, by
adding to it a mixture of several rites and ceremonies, taken from the
Heathen, is affirmed by some. See Cunæus de Rep. Hœb. Lib. i Cap. xvi.
who quotes Josephus as saying, that he altered the ancient laws of
their country._

Quest. CLVIII., CLIX., CLX.

QUEST. CLVIII. _By whom is the word of God to be preached?_

ANSW. The word of God is to be preached only by such as are
sufficiently gifted, and also duly approved and called to that
office.

QUEST. CLIX. _How is the word of God to be preached by those that
are called thereto?_

ANSW. They that are called to labour in the ministry of the word,
are to preach sound doctrine, diligently; in season, and out of
season; plainly, not in the enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in
demonstration of the spirit, and power, faithfully, making known the
whole council of God; wisely, applying themselves to the necessities
and capacities of the hearers; zealously, with fervent love to God,
and the souls of his people; sincerely, aiming at his glory, and
their conversion, edification, and salvation.

QUEST. CLX. _What is required of those that hear the word preached?_

ANSW. It is required of those that hear the word preached, that they
attend upon it with diligence, preparation, and prayer, examine what
they hear, by the scripture, receive the truth with faith, love,
meekness, and readiness of mind, as the word of God; meditate, and
confer of it; hide it in their heart, and bring forth the fruit of
it in their lives.

Having considered, what method we are to take, in our private station, or capacity, to understand the word of God; we have great reason to be thankful, that he has ordained that it should be publicly preached, or explained, as a farther means conducive to this end. And accordingly we are led, in these answers, to shew, who they are that God has called to this work; and how such ought to perform it; and with what frame of spirit we ought to attend on it.

I. The persons by whom the word of God is to be preached; and these are only such, whom he has qualified with gifts sufficient for it; and they ought also to be duly approved of, when called hereunto, by those among whom the providence of God directs them to exercise their ministry.

1. Concerning the qualifications which are necessary, in those that are employed in preaching the gospel. Here it is to be observed in general, that they must be sufficiently gifted for it; which is so evident, that it would be unreasonable for any one to deny it, since no one is to attempt any thing that he is not able to perform; especially if it be a work of the highest importance, and the unskilful managing thereof may have a tendency to do prejudice to, rather than advance the interest of Christ. It would be a reflection on the wisdom of a master, to employ his servant in a work that he has no capacity for, or entrust him with an affair that is like to miscarry in his hands. In like manner, we are not to suppose that God calls any to preach the gospel, but those whom he has, in some measure, furnished for it; though, it is true, the best may say, as the apostle does, _We are not sufficient of ourselves, to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God_: Yet he adds, that they who are employed by him in this work, are made _able ministers of the New-Testament_, 2 Cor. iii. 5, 6. It is, indeed, a difficult matter to determine who are sufficiently gifted for it; the work being so great and our natural and acquired endowments very small, if compared with it. But that we may briefly consider this matter, it may be observed,

(1.) That some qualifications are moral, without which, they who preach the gospel, would be a reproach to it. These respect, more especially, the conversation of those who are engaged in this work, which ought to be blameless and exemplary; not only inoffensive, but such as they, whom they are called to instruct, may safely copy after. Thus the apostle makes a solemn appeal, when he says, _Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily, and justly, and unblameably we behaved ourselves among you that believe_, 1 Thess. ii. 10. And he advises the Corinthians to be _followers of him_, 1 Cor. iv. 16. and commends the church elsewhere, for conforming themselves to his example, so far as it was agreeable to that of our Saviour, 1 Thess. i. 6. in which respect alone the best of men are to be followed, 1 Cor. xi. 1. Now this supposes that they have that which we call the moral qualifications, necessary to the work of the ministry, without which, a person will do more hurt, by his example, than he can do good by his doctrine; inasmuch as he will lay a stumbling-block in the way of Christians, who would be ready to say, as the apostle does to some of those who were teachers among the Jews; _Thou which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself?_ Rom. ii. 21. or, dost thou live in the practice of those crimes, which thou condemnest in others, and exhortest them to avoid? This qualification therefore, must be supposed to be necessary; and, indeed, an experimental knowledge of divine truths, will greatly furnish them to communicate the same to others, and spirit them, with zeal, in using their utmost endeavours, that they may be made partakers of the same experiences which they themselves, have been favoured with. Nevertheless, we are not to suppose that this alone will warrant a person’s engaging in the work of the ministry; for then every one who has experienced the grace of God, might attempt it, how unable soever he be to manage it to the glory of God, and the edification of the church. Therefore,

(2.) There are other qualifications more directly subservient hereunto. These the apostle speaks of, when he describes a gospel-minister as one who is _apt to teach_, 1 Tim. iii. 2. and able _rightly to divide the word of truth_, 2 Tim. ii. 15. and, by _sound doctrine_, to exhort and _convince gainsayers_, Tit. i. 9. They who take upon them to explain scripture, and apply it to the consciences of men, ought, certainly, with great diligence and hard study, to use their utmost endeavours to understand it. And to this we may add, that they ought to be able to reason, or infer just consequences from it; whereby they may appear to be well versed in those great doctrines, on which our faith and religion is founded. This, indeed, must be confessed to be a work of difficulty; and, they who think themselves best furnished in this respect, will have reason to conclude, as the apostle says, that they _know but in part, and prophesy in part_, 1 Cor. xiii. 9.

To this we may add, that there are various parts of learning, that may be reckoned, in some respects, ornamental, which would tend to secure him that preaches the gospel from contempt; and others, that are more immediately subservient to our understanding scripture, namely, a being well acquainted with those languages, in which the Old and New Testament were written, and able to make critical remarks on the style and mode of expression used in each of them, and a being conversant in the writings of those, whether in our own or other languages, who have clearly and judiciously explained the doctrines of the gospel, or led us into the knowledge of those things that have a tendency to illustrate them. And, inasmuch as preaching contains in it an address to the judgments and consciences of men, I cannot but reckon it a qualification necessary in order hereunto, that all those parts of learning that have a tendency to enlarge the reasoning faculties, or help us to see the connexion or dependence of one thing upon another, should be attended to, that we may hereby be fitted to convey our ideas with judgment and method. These qualifications are to be acquired. We pass by those that are natural, to wit, a sufficient degree of parts, and such an elocution as is necessary for those who are to speak to the edification of an audience, without which all other endeavours to furnish themselves for this work, will be to very little purpose.