376

St. John wrote, that they might believe the Son of God.

name of the Son of

God.

SECT. rating to produce the substantial fruits of ge- eternal life, and that ix. nuine and universal obedience, ye may yet more ye may believe on the 1 John fully and stedfastly believe on the mighty and V. 13. Divine name of the Son of God. Then you may be assured of the certain truth of his religion, in proportion to the degree in which you inwardly experience its noble effects; and may in consequence of this, keep your hearts continually fixed upon him, in the many important

confidence that we

heareth us.

15 And if we know

that he hear us, what

soever we ask, we

14 views in which faith exhibits him. And this is 14 And this is the the confidence which we have towards him, as our have in him, that if prevalent Intercessor and mighty Saviour at we ask any thing acGod's right hand: that if we ask any thing ac. cording to his will, he cording to his will, he heareth us graciously; that he observes and takes notice of all our peti15 tions. And we are sure his is not an ineffectual notice; for if we know that he heareth us, whatsoever we ask, we know as a farther consequence, know that we have the since he is ever able to carry all his gracious petitions that we de purposes into immediate execution, that we shall sired of him. certainly have an accomplishment of those petitions which we have asked of him; supposing, as I said before, they are agreeable to his will; and it is always his will, that his people should be truly happy, and be supplied with every necessary good.

16

And let me now add one precaution, with regard to the cases, in which it may be proper to remember offenders in our prayers: if any one see his brother commit a sin, [which is] not unto death, that is, any sin, but that which is marked

a That ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.] It is manifest, the apostle does not in this epistle, to establish their faith, produce the evidences of christianity, and argue upon them. But the good dispositions, which his whole discourse has a tendency to promote, would certainly have a strong influence to confirm their faith; as such dispositions would appear to be the effect of the gospel; and as an ardent zeal in the teachers of the gospel to promote them, was a strong confirmation of their being faithful witnesses to the great facts which had before been received upon their credit. I look upon this as a strong text to prove, in opposition to what Dr. Whitby has advanced, that Christians are urged in the New Testament, to believe in Jesus Christ.

h That if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us.] Archbishop Tillotson supposes this refers particularly to the apostles. (Compare Mat. xviii. 18,

out

16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he

19; John xiv. 13, 14; xvi. 23, 24.) But so few of the apostles could be concerned in this advice of St. John, and there are so many promises of the answer of prayer scattered up and down in the Old and New Testament, (see Dr. Clark, on the Promises, cap. iii. vi.) that I would by no means thus confine the interpretation.

c If we know that h: heareth-we shall have the petitions.] Hearing cannot, in the preceding verse, signify mere'y knowing that we say; for then there would be no reason to limit the assertion to our asking any thing according to his will: and it may seem, that if we take it for answering our petitions, it is a mere tautology: it is therefore necessary to interpret the former clause of taking notice of us, the other of operating in consequence of that notice. The almighty power of God to fulfil all his gracious purposes in favour of his people,

seems to be the medium on which the inference is grounded.

There is a sin unto death, not to be prayed for.

3.77 he shall ask, and he out in the awful words of our Lord Jesus Christ SECT.

them that sin not unto

ix.

shall give him lie for as unpardonable; he shall ask, and may hope death. There is a sin that, through the Divine goodness, he shall give 1 John unto death: I do not him life: he may cheerfully expect, that God V. 16. say that he shall pray will return in mercy to those who sin, not unto

for it.

death. There is indeed a sin, [that is,] unto death, I mean such an apostacy from Christianity, as is attended with blaspheming the operations of the Spirit of God, and ascribing them to Satan; and I say not, that he, whose aid may be requested on such a sad occasion, should pray concerning that; for Christ has told us it shall never be forgiven in this world, or the next. And as nothing but a miracle of Divine grace, never to be expected, can recover a person in such circumstances, it is better to wave the petition, how much soever we may be disposed to lament the misery of the unhappy creature who is fallen into it. Every instance of un-17 righteousness is indeed sin, and every breach of his law must be displeasing to God, and be esteemed matter of just censure and lamentation; but there is a sin, not unto death, in the sense just assigned. There are indeed many, from which it evidently appears, that persons may be recovered; and in all such cases, Christian charity will require you to pray for your 18 We know that brethren. And from this dreadful evil Divine 18 God, sinneth not; but grace will preserve every good man; for we he that is begotten of know that whoever is born of God, does not sin, God, keepeth himself, in this terrible and ruinous manner; but he who and that wicked one is born of God, diligently keepeth himself from

17 All unrighteousness is sin; and there

is a sin not unto death.

whosoever is born of

toucheth him not.

it, and Satan the wicked one, who is the great
abettor of all evil, doth not touch, or come near
him, but is immediately repelled in his first as-
saults.

d I say not that he should pray concerning that.] It seems to be intended as a brand set on a person who had been guilty of the sin here specified, that he was not to be prayed for by his converted fellow-Christians. Some indeed would interpret this sin of the more heinous kind of offences punishable with death by human laws: but I can see no sort of reason for refusing the charity of our prayers to persons in such circumstances. Others think it refers to the case of illness; but there is no express mention of it here; and it seems to have been taken for granted without reason, that this text is parallel to James v. 14, 15. It is certain, that illness in case of

a capital crime, would not delay the execu
tion. The popish distinction between mor-
tal and venial sins will however appear to
have no foundation in this text upon the
interpretation we have given, or indeed
upon any we have mentioned. The chief
difficulty remaining is, how it could be
known, that the apostacy in question was
attended with such circumstances as made
it the unpardonable sin? Where it was
most difficult to distinguish, the gift of dis-
cerning spirits, might infallibly decide;
where it was dubious, charity would incline
to the milder extreme; and conditional
prayer might however be offered.

e The

378

ix.

And there is a sin not unto death.

19 And we know

that we are of God,

and the whole world

lieth in wickedness.

20 And we know

that the Son of God is
come, and hath given
us an
an understanding
that we may know

SECT. saults. We Christians do indeed know, that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness it is in subjection to the wicked one, and 1 John V. 19. lies wounded and slain under him. But we 20 know, that when the whole human race was in this helpless and miserable condition, the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true; and we are in him that is true, even in the Father, and in his Son Jesus Christ: he is the true God and Jesus Christ. This is eternal life; he partakes with the Father in the true God, and eter proper deity; and our immortal life is supported by union with him.

21

him that is true: and we are in him that is

true: even in his Son

nal life.

idols. Amen.

See to it, therefore, my dear little children, 21 Little children, that you adhere to the worship of this true God keep yourselves from alone, and keep yourselves from idols of every kind; whom the jealous God will not suffer to share with him, either in the offices of religious worship, or in the supreme affection of the mind. Amen, may you be so kept and preserved to eternal life!

IMPROVEMENT.

LET us thankfully own the Divine goodness, in giving us so many helps for the confirmation of our faith; and learn the importance of its being thus confirmed, from that variety of provision made

e The world lieth in wickedness: o opos OROS BY TW WOVNOW xala.] The whole world here, as the whole creation, Rom. viii. 12, signifies that part of the world in which Christianity was not received.-Some imagine, that by the world's lying in wickedness, Ev Tw wornpw, the apostle refers to the abandoned wickedness of the Roman emperors, by whose means the most enormous impiety and immorality was propa. gated through the whole empire by prefects, officers, and soldiers. Gosp. Truth Vindic. p. 174. Mr. Reynolds, who supposes that hell is situated in the air, observes, that the earth, on that hypothesis, lies, as it were, in the suburbs and frontiers of it. See his Enquiries concerning the Angelic world, p. 191. But I rather think the word xal alludes to the circumstance of a body which lies slain; in which sense it is often used by Homer; and on this interpretation it gives us a most compassionable idea of the great misery and helpless state of mankind, fallen by the stroke of this formidable enemy, the wicked one, (o ovos,) and insulted over by him as his prey.

f This is the true God.] To paraphrase this of the true religion, as a very celebrated divine does, is quite enervating the force of scripture, and taking a liberty with plain words by no means to be al lowed. It is an argument of the Deity of Christ, which almost all those who have wrote in its defence have urged; and which, I think, none who have opposed it, have so much as appeared to answer.

g Keep yourselves from idols. ] Archbishop Tillotson, (Vol. II. p. 488, who interprets the sin unto death, as signifying total apostacy from the Christian religion to the heathen idolatry, urges this clause, the connection of which with the context he thinks not else to be accounted for, as proof of it. But a man might commit the sin unto death by falling back into Judaism, though guilty of no idolatry; and the caution here suggested, may be very well accounted for, from the general circunstances of the church near that time, even though there should be no such immediate connection between this clause an i the preceding context, as the Archbishop sup

poses.

Reflections on the helps given to confirm our faith.

ix.

379

made for its establishment. The declared end of the apostle in SECT. writing this epistle was, that they who believed in the name of the Son of God, might more firmly believe in it. Lord, increase our Ver. faith, and with it our zeal for him, in whose name we believe, and 13 our love to each other, for his sake: then shall we have eternal life the gift of God, in Christ Jesus our Lord; and in the mean time 14, 15 may address the throne with chearfulness, and present our petitions in a pleading and confident hope, that asking what is agreeable to his will; and all that he knows to be subservient to our truest interest is so, he will hear us, and we shall receive the things that we ask. Encouraged by this promise, with what boldness may we come to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and grace to help in every time of need! (Heb. iv. 16.) Let his compassion to 16 us teach us to have compassion on our brethren, on our afflicted brethren; yea on those, whose miscarriages have evidently brought their afflictions upon them. Let us not too soon pronounce the case of a sinner hopele ss;but rather subject ourselves to the trouble of some fruitless attempts to reclaim him, than omit any thing where there may be a possibility of succeeding. May Divine grace awaken all to stand at the remotest distance, not only from the un- 17 pardonable sin, but from whatever might dishonour God, and endanger our own souls: for every sin is deadly and malignant, though every one be not the sin unto death. May we keep our selves, and be kept by Divine grace, in such a manner, that the 18 wicked one may not touch us; but all his attempts be turned into his own shame and confusion!

19

And O, may God excite our pity to a world which lies in wickedness; and animate us to use our utmost endeavours, to recover those out of the snare of the devil, who are led captive by him at his pleasure. (2 Tim. ii. 26.) May we be made sensible of the rich and distinguishing grace of God, if we can say that we are, not only by an external profession, but an inward union, in him that is true in the Lord Jesus Christ. Him let us adore, as with the 21 Father, and the Holy Spirit, the true God. Him let us seek, as eternal life; and let us keep ourselves from all those idols, which would alienate our regard from God, and by the pursuit of which our eternal life might in any degree be endangered.

THE END OF THE FAMILY EXPOSITOR ON THE FIRST CATHOLIC