93 Yet it became him to be made perfect through sufferings: SECT. pursuit of the great and important design he glory, to make the ii. had formed, of conducting many whom he is Captain of their salvation perfect through Heb. pleased to adopt as his sons, to the possession of sufferings. II. 10. that inheritance of glory he has intended for them, to make and constitute Jesus his first-begotten and best-beloved Son, the Leader and Prince of their salvation; and to make him perfect or completely fit for the full execution of his office, by a long train of various and extreme sufferings, whereby he was, as it were, solemnly consecrated to it. 11 11 For both he that sanctifieth, and they who are sanctified, are all of one for which cause he is not ashamthren. ed to call them bre 12 Saying, I will de. clare thy name untą my brethren, in the 19 And again, I will put my trust in him. Now in consequence of this appointment, Jesus, the great Sanctifier, who engages and consecrates men to the service of God, and they who are sanctified, that is, consecrated and introduced to God with such acceptance [are] all of one family; all the descendants of Adam, and in a sense, the seed of Abraham: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them whom he thus redeems and presents to Divine favour, his bre 12thren; Saying (Psal. xxii. 22, 26.) in the person of David, when representing the Messiah in his sufferings and exaltation, I will declare thy midst of the church name to my brethren; in the midst of the as- will I sing praise upto sembly of thy people, the great assembly, which thee. by way of eminence shall be called the church, will I praise thee for thy gracious interposition 13 in my favour. And again, speaking as a mortal man, exposed to such exercises of faith in trials and difficulties as others were, he says in a psalm which represents his triumph over his enemies, I will trust in him as other good men have in all ages done; and again, elsewhere in the person of Isaiah, (Isa. viii. 18.) Behold I and the children which my God hath given me, are 14 for signs and for wonders. Seeing then those whom he represents in one place and another as the children of the same family with himself, are partakers of human flesh and blood, he himself in like manner participated of them, and assumed all their sinless infirmities, that thereby becoming capable of those sufferings to which without such a union with flesh he could not have been obnoxious, he might by his own voluntary and meritorious death, abolish and depose himTM, h Depose him.] The original word xTagynan, properly signifies to deprive of all power, Rom. vi. 6. When applied to the law, it siguifies abolition. To suppose who And again, Behold, I and the children which God hath given me. 14 Forasmuch then as the children are blood, he also himself partakers of flesh and likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him with Archbishop Tillotson, that it chiefly means, that Christ might give mankind the hope of immortality, when they actu ally saw one risen from the dead and ascend For which cause he was a partaker of ftesh and blood. 99 bim that had the pow- who by Divine permission had the empire of death, SECT, er of death, that is, the and led it in his train, when it made its first devil: who through fear of ii. invasion on mankind, that is, the devil, the great Heb. artificer of mischief and destruction; at the be- 11. 14. ginning the murderer of the human race, who still seems to triumph in the spread of mortality which is his work, and who may often by God's righteous permission be the executioner of it. 15 And deliver them But Christ the great Prince of mercy and life, 15 death were all their graciously interposed, that he might deliver those life-time subject to his miserable captives, who through fear of death bondage. were, or justly might have been, all their lifetime obnoxious to bondage; having nothing to expect in consequence of it, if they rightly understood their state, but future misery; whereas now changing their Lord, they have happily changed their condition, and are, as many as have believed in him, the heirs of eternal life. 16 For verily he took not on him the nature on him the seed of of angels, but he took Abraham. We the sinful children of Adam, though the 16 heirs of death, are thus delivered by him; but not the infernal powers, who were the first authors of their seduction; for truly he took not hold of the angels, to save them from plunging into the abyss of misery; but he took hold of the seed of Abraham, and hath made a gracious provision for the salvation of all who shall by true faith approve themselves the genuine children of 17 Wherefore in all that holy patriarch. From whence, and in con- 17 things it behoved him sequence of which design, it behoved him to be unto his brethren; that made in all things like unto those whom he conhe might be a merci- descends to call [his] brethren, that so he might ful and faithful High- be a merciful and faithful High-Priest, in things Priest, in things per- [relating] to God, that he might in the most efreconciliation for the fectual manner make atonement for the sins of the people; which he could not have done if he 18 For in that he had not assumed our nature. But now, in 18 being tempted, he is consequence of that, he has not only provided able himself with something to offer, but has by the him to be made like taining to God, to make sins of the people : himself hath suffered, experience of our infirmities, contracted that ing to heaven, is, I think, sinking the interpretation a great deal too low. i The empire of death.] Some have inferred from hence, that the devil is the executioner of the sentence of death both on good and bad men. But I think the VOL. X. sense in the paraphrase less obnoxious and k Faithful High-Priest.] Mr. Fleming 100 Reflections on the character of Christ as our High Priest, &c. SECT. assaults and sorrows, he can, in the most ready able to succour them ii. and endearing, as well as effectual manner, that are tempted. Heb. help those that are tempted, and are making their 11. 18. way through those scenes of difficulty which he passed through with such fortitude and honour. Ver. IMPROVEMENT. ETERNAL praise to our compassionate High-Priest, who put on 18 our infirmities that he might know how to pity and relieve them! Eternal praise to him, by whom are all things and for whom are all things, that he has concerted the merciful scheme of 10 bringing many sons unto glory, in a manner so well worthy of his Divine perfections, and so full of instruction and comfort to us; appointing his own Son the Captain of our salvation, and making him perfect through sufferings! Let us daily reflect upon it with 11 pleasure and gratitude, that he is not ashamed to call us his brethren, 16 though so highly exalted above the angels of God; and that he took not hold of the superior nature of angels, which was sunk into apostacy, guilt, and ruin, but took hold on the seed of Abraham. How venerable, as well as amiable, is that condescension with which he made himself a little lower than the angels, that by the 9 grace of God which was to owe its highest honours to his cross, he might taste death for every man! He hath effected his merciful purpose by death he hath deposed and abolished the tyrannical prince of death, that is, the devil, and delivered from the fears of death, those who, had they known and considered their real circumstances, might have been continually in bondage to it. We see our great enemy deposed; we see life and immortality brought to light by his gospel: let us see it with gratitude and pleasure. And let us learn from all, if we would not charge ourselves with the most inexcusable guilt, and the basest ingratitude, if we would not plunge ourselves into the lowest gulf of perdition, not to neglect so great a salvation. Let the doom, which the law 3 of Moses passed upon the presumptuous transgressor, deter us; and 2 let the grace of the gospel allure and invite us to attend to the salvation spoken by the Lord, and to take the most earnest heed to it, lest we let slip that golden opportunity, which, if neglected, will never return. 1 SECT. They ought to regard the High-Priest of their profession ; 101 SECT. III. The Apostle farther takes occasion to manifest Christ, as superior to Moses, the great legislator of the Jews; and begins to caution them from the sentence passed on the rebels against the authority of Moses, of the danger of despising the gospel promises. Heb. III. 1-13. HEBREWS III. 1. WHEREFORE, holy on, Christ Jesus; HEBREWS III. 1. SECT. iii. brethren, partak-HAVE just pointed out to you the Son of God,, Heb. ers of the heavenly under the endearing character of a compas-1. calling, consider the sionate and faithful High-Priest. And therefore Apostle and High- suffer me to address you my dear and holy brePriest of our professi thren, whom he hath brought near to God, and graciously made partakers of the heavenly cal ling, by which he animates his people to aspire to the noblest views and pursuits; and let me intreat you frequently to direct your eyes and hearts to him: attentively regard this gracious Saviour, who hath condescended to become the apostle of God to us, that he might bring us the messages of his will, and who is also constituted the High-priest of our profession, by whom our guilt is expiated, and our happiness secured even Christ Jesus, so well known to us under this great and honourable character. Let 2 that illustrious Person be daily familiar to your minds, even he who was faithful to him that ap pointed him to his office, as Moses [was] also faithful for all his house; according to that testimony with which God himself was pleased to honour him. (Numb. xii. 7.) But I design not by applying these words, to insinuate, that there is room for a complete comparison be. 3 For this man was tween them. On the contrary, it is very appa- 3 rent, that as for him of whom I now speak, he 2 Who was faithful to him that appointed faithful in all his house. him, as also Moses was counted worthy of more a Holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling.] Mr. Pierce thinks, when they are called holy brethren by the apostle, it is in allusion to what was said of their being sanctified, chap. ii. 11. that when he speaks of their calling, he means their being called his brethren; and that when he stiles them partakers of this calling, it is to intimate that they do not ingross it. But all these interpretations seem to me more refined than solid. The calling, generally signifies the call that is given us by the gospel to pursue immortality and glory, was b Apostle and High-Priest.] Both are 102 SECT. iii. Heb. Who was counted worthy of more honour than Moses. d hath builded the house, was esteemed worthy of far more honour than more glory than Moses, Moses, in proportion to the degree in which the inasmuch as he who builder of a house hath more honour than the hath more honour than 111. 3. house itself. For Christ laid the plan of the Mo- the house. saic dispensation, and Moses who was himself his creature, evidently acted as his delegate in the revelation which he made to the people of Israel; so that whatever excellencies that dispensation can boast, they reflect an honour ultimately on the Divine Person from whom he re4 ceived it. For every house has some builder, by whom its several parts were modelled, but he that built all raised and disposed, and every thing well ad- things is God. justed in it displays the skill of its Architect and Disposer; now he who built and adjusted all things [is] God, whose works of creation and providence are worthy their great Author, and proclaim that power, wisdom, and goodness, which set him infinitely above the most excellent of creatures. 5 4 For every house is builded by some man ; 5 And Moses verily was faithful in all his house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after : And that Christ is incomparably more to be honoured than Moses, appears even from this consideration, though inferior to the former, that Moses [was] indeed faithful in all his house, as a servant, who was appointed to act in an inferior œconomy, for a testimony of things afterwards to be mentioned; the evangelical design of which we shall in some measure discuss in the following parts of this epistle, according to their relation and connection. But Christ was 6 faithful in a far superior character, even as a Son in his own housef, that is, over the church, in Son over house: c More honour than Moses.] As it was their attachment to the Mosaic law, and the writings of the Old Testament, that hindered so many Jews from embracing Christianity, it is with the utmost propriety of address that the apostle here undertakes to shew that Christ was superior to Moses; and by a necessary consequence to the rest of the prophets and sacred authors, whom they acknowledged to be inferior to this great Prophet. d Builder of a house.] Both Mr. Pyle and Dr. Whitby would render xalaoniva?w not to build, but to order or govern, as the word house signifies not a building, but a family. e Hath some builder.] So I think the words xalacuiva ilai uno rivs may be rendered, the word man not being in the original, nor here being properly inserted. Dr. Calamy has argued from hence the su which 6 But Christ as a his own preme Deity of Christ, in consequence of his being the Creator of all things. (Calamy on Trin. p. 44.) But Mr. Pierce pleads, that if it had been the intent of the apostle here to assert, that Christ was the Creator of all things, it would have been sufficient to have stopped here, and that what follows would sink the argument lower; therefore he would translate it as the vulgar Latin does, The builder of the house, that is, the head and founder of the family, has the greatest honour of any person in the house; and by consequence they must have the next honour who are most nearly related to him. So Christ who is his Son must have greater honour than Moses, who was no more than a servant. f In his own house.] Mr. Pierce brings many arguments to prove it should be in his house, that is, God's, in which sense the |