pompous and glorious: by all which they so possessed the minds of the church, that very few saw clearly into the use, intention, and end of them. But in this Epistle the "veil" is taken off from Moses, the mystery of his institutions laid open,—a perfect clue given unto believers to pass safely through all the turnings and windings of them unto rest and truth in Jesus Christ. Those hidden things of the old testament appear now unto us full of light and instruction; but we are beholden for all our insight into them, and benefit which we receive thereby, unto the exposition and application of them made by the Holy Ghost in this Epistle. And how great a portion of gospel wisdom and knowledge consists herein all men know who have any spiritual acquaintance with these things. (4.) The grounds, reasons, causes, and manner, of that great alteration which God wrought and caused in his worship, by taking down the ancient glorious fabric of it, which had been set up by his own appointment, are here laid open and manifested, and the greatest controversy that ever the church of God was exercised withal is here fully determined.

There was nothing, in the first propagation of the gospel and plantation of Christian churches, that did so divide and perplex the professors of the truth, and retard the work of promulgating the knowledge of Christ, and the worship of God in him, as the difference that was about the continuation and observation of Mosaical rites and ceremonies. To such a height was this difference raised, so zealously were the parties at variance engaged in the pursuit of their various apprehensions of the mind of God in this matter, that the apostles themselves thought meet for a season rather to umpire and compose the controversy, by leaving the Jews free to their observation, and bringing the Gentiles unto a condescension in things of the greatest exasperation, than absolutely and precisely to determine the whole matter between them. And, indeed, this being a difference wherein the will, authority, and command of God were pleaded on the mistaken side, they being all of them clear and full as to the matter by them pleaded for, nothing but an immediate declaration of the mind of God himself, as to his removing and taking off the obligation of his own law, could put such an end unto it as that the spirits of men might acquiesce therein. Now, the will of God to this purpose before the writing of this Epistle could only be collected from the nature and state of things in the church upon the coming of the Messiah, and conclusions from thence, which the believing Jews were very slow in the admittance of. Add hereunto that many prophecies and promises of the Old Testament, setting forth the glory and beauty of gospel worship under the names and condition of the worship then in use, as of priests, Levites, sacrifices, offerings, feast of tabernacles, and the like, lay

directly, in the letter, against that cessation of Mosaical rites which the Jews opposed.

Now, who was fit, who was able, to determine upon these different and various institutions of God, but God himself? To declare positively that all obligation from his former commands was now ceased, that his institutions were no more to be observed, that the time allotted unto the church's obedience unto him in their observance was expired, this was no otherwise to be effected but by an immediate revelation from himself. And this is done in this Epistle, and that in this only as to the Jews; whereby it became the main instrument and means of pulling up their old church-state, and translating it anew into the appointments of our Lord Jesus Christ. Neither is this done by a bare declaration of God's authoritative interposition, but, in a way of excellent and singular wisdom and condescension (with a manifestation of God's love and care unto his church, in the institutions that were now to be removed, and the progress of his wisdom in their gradual instruction, as they were able to bear), the whole nature, design, and intendment of them are evidenced to be such, as that, having received their full end and accomplishment, they did of themselves naturally expire and disappear. And hereby, in that great alteration which God then wrought in the outward worship of his church, there is discovered such a oneness and unchangeableness in his love and care; such a suitableness, harmony, and consonancy, in the effects of his will; such an evidence of infinite wisdom in disposing of them into a subserviency one to another, that they should nowhere in any thing cross or interfere, and all of them to his own glory, in the promotion and furtherance of the light, faith, and obedience of his church; as sufficiently manifest the original and fountain whence it doth proceed. For my part, I can truly say that I know not any portion of holy writ that will more effectually raise up the heart of an understanding reader to a holy admiration of the goodness, love, and wisdom of God, than this Epistle doth. Such, I say, is the subject-matter of this Epistle,—so divine, so excellent, so singular. And in the handling hereof have we not the least occasional mixture of any matter, words, sentences, stories, arguments, or doctrines, so unsuited to the whole as to argue the interposure of a fallible spirit. Thus we know it hath fallen out in all the writings of the Christians of the first ages after the sealing of the canon of the Scriptures. Many things in them appear to proceed from a holy and heavenly spirit breathing in their authors, and most of what they contain to be consonant unto the mind of God; yet have they all of them evident footsteps that the authors were subject unto errors and mistakes, even in and about the things written by them. And the continuance of their failings in their writings, capable of

an easy conviction, is no small fruit of the holy, wise providence of God, and his care over his church, that it might not in after ages be imposed upon with the great and weighty pretence of antiquity, to admit them into a competition with those which himself gave out to be its infallible, and therefore only rule. That nothing of this nature, nothing humanitus, merely after the manner of men, befell the writer of this Epistle in his work, we hope, through the assistance of its principal Author, to manifest in our exposition of the several parts of it. And the subject-matter of this Epistle, thus handled, further secures us of its original.

25. The design, aim, and end of the Epistle, with the purpose and intention of its writer, which belong to the poaípears, which the ancients made a characterism of writings given by divine inspiration, are consonant unto the general argument and peculiar subject-matter of it. That the whole Scripture hath an especial end, which is peculiar unto it, and wherein no other writing hath any share, but only so far as it is taken from thence and composed in obedience thereunto, is evident unto all that do seriously consider it.

This end, supremely and absolutely, is the glory of that God who is the author of it. This is the centre where all the lines of it do meet, the scope and mark towards which all things in it are directed. It is the revelation of himself that is intended, of his mind and will, that he may be glorified; wherein, also, because he is the principal fountain and last end of all, consist the order and perfection of all other things. Particularly, the demonstration of this glory of God in and by Jesus Christ is aimed at. The works of God's power and providence do all of them declare his glory, the glory of his eternal perfections and excellencies, absolutely and in themselves. But the end of the Scripture is the glory of God in Christ, as he hath revealed himself and gathered all things to a head in him, unto the manifestation of his glory: for "this is life eternal, that we know him, the only true God; and Jesus Christ, whom he hath sent." The means whereby God is thus glorified in Christ, is by the salvation of them that do believe; which is therefore also an intermediate end of the Scripture: "These things are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing, ye might have life through his name," John xx. 31; 1 Tim. iv. 16. Moreover, whereas this eternal life unto the glory of God cannot be obtained without faith and obedience according to his will, the Scripture is given for this purpose, also, that it may instruct us in the mind of God, and "make us wise unto salvation," 2 Tim. iii. 15, 16; Rom. i. 16; 2 Pet. i. 3. These, in their mutual subserviency and dependence, complete the characteristical end of the Scripture. I confess Plato, in his Timæus, makes it the end of philosophy, that we may thereby be "made like unto God." But that philosophy of his, having its

rise and spring in inbred notions of nature, and the contemplation of the works of God's providence, could have no other end but conformity unto him as his perfections were revealed absolutely; whereunto the Scripture adds this revelation in Christ Jesus, John i. 18, which gives them, as I said, their special and peculiar end. It makes God known as all in all; and man to be nothing, as to goodness or blessedness, but what he is pleased to do for him and communicate unto him; and Jesus Christ to be the great and only way and means whereby he will communicate of himself, and bring us unto himself. The more clearly any portion of Scripture discovers and makes conspicuous this end, the more parts of the series and order of things whereby the last and utmost end of the glory of God is produced, in their mutual connection, dependence, and subserviency, it manifesteth,-the more fully doth it express this general end of the whole, and thereby evince its own interest therein.

Now, herein doth this Epistle come behind no other portion of Scripture whatever; for as the exaltation of the glory of God, as he is the first cause and last end of all things, is expressly proposed in it, so the relation of the glory of God and of our obedience and blessedness, whereby and wherein it is declared, unto the person, offices, and mediation, of Jesus Christ, is in an eminent manner insisted on and unfolded in it. And whereas some parts of Scripture do exhibit unto us most clearly some one part of this general end of the whole, and other portions or books of it some other parts, this expresseth the whole and all the parts of it distinctly, from the very foundation of calling men to the knowledge of God and obedience, unto the utmost end of his glorifying himself in their salvation by Jesus Christ. Neither is there herewithal the least alloy or mixture of any by, particular, or proper [personal], end of the writer,—nothing of his honour, reputation, advantage, self-pleasing, in any thing; but all runs evenly and smoothly to the general end before proposed. And this also hath deservedly a place among the rexhpra of writings by divine inspiration.

26. The style, also, of the sacred Scripture, or ppá oss xapaxrp, as it is termed by Eusebius in this argument, is of deserved consideration. By the style of any writing, we understand both the propriety of the words, with their grammatical construction, and that composition of the whole which renders it fit, decorous, elegant, and every way meet to be used in the matter about which it is used, and for the effecting of the end which is proposed in it. I know, some bold, atheistical spirits have despised the style of the holy writers, as simple and barbarous. Among these, Angelus Politianus is generally and deservedly censured by all learned men; who was imitated in his profane contempt of it by Domitius Calderinus. And of the like

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temper was Petrus Bembus, who would scarce touch the Scripture; while his own epistles are not one of them free from solecisms in grammar. Austin also confesseth that while he was yet a Manichee he had the same thoughts of it: "Visa est mihi indigna quam Tullianæ dignitati compararem;""The Scripture seemed to me unworthy to be compared with the excellency of Cicero." But it must be acknowledged that these spake of the common translations of it; though they used that pretence to reject the study of the books themselves.

I do confess that though some translations may and do render the words of the original more properly, and better represent and insinuate the native genius, beauty, life, and power, of the sacred style, than some others do, yet none of them can or do express the whole excellency, elegancy, and marvellous efficacy of it, for the conveyance of its sense to the understandings and minds of men. Neither is this any reflection upon the translators, their abilities, diligence, or faithfulness, but that which the nature of the thing itself produceth. There is in the sacred Scripture, in the words wherein by the Holy Ghost it was given out, a proper, peculiar virtue and secret efficacy, inflaming the minds of the readers and hearers, which no diligence or wisdom of man can fully and absolutely transfer into and impress upon any other language. And those who have designed to do it by substituting the wordy elegancies of another tongue, to express the quickening, affecting idiotisms of them (which was the design of Castalio), have, of all others, most failed in their intention.

Neither doth this defect in translations arise from hence, that the original tongues may be more copious and emphatical than those of the translations,-which possibly may be the condition of the Greek and Latin, as Jerome often complains, but it is from the causes before named; and therefore it is most evident in the translations of the Old Testament, when yet no man can imagine the Hebrew to be more copious (though it be more comprehensive) than the languages whereinto it hath been translated. But it is of the originals themselves, and the style of the sacred penmen therein, concerning which we discourse. And herein the boldness of Jerome cannot be excused (though he be followed by some others of great name in later ages), who more than once chargeth St Paul with solecisms and barbarisms in expression, and often urgeth (upon a mistake, as we shall see) that he was "imperitus sermone,"-"unskilful in speech." But as neither he nor any else are able to give any cogent instance to make good their charge, so it is certain that there is nothing expressed in the whole Scripture, but in the manner and way, and by the words wherewith, it ought to be expressed, unto the ends for which it is used and designed, as might easily be manifested both from the Confess. lib. iii. cap. v.