"YE shall bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven; "and whatsoever YE shall loose on earth, shall be "loosed in heaven." Thus all were invested with authority to state the obligations which were binding, and those which were repealed; and to declare as the accredited ambassadors of Christ, what was lawful and what was unlawful. Facts recorded in the history of the primitive Churches, clearly illustrate the nature and extent of this apostolic prerogative. In consequence of the appeal from the Church of Antioch, to the Apostles at Jerusalem, it was necessary to ascertain, how far certain obligations which had obtained under the Mosaic economy were binding on the Gentile converts. The occasion and subject of that inquiry are minutely detailed in the xvth. chapter of the Acts of the Apostles; and the result of their deliberation is related by the Evangelist-" It "It "seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us, to "lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; that ye abstain from meat offer"ed to idols, and from blood, and from things "strangled, and from fornication; from which if "ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well." (Acts xv. 28, 29.) These prohibitions are represented, as "the decrees that were ordained of the Apostles "and elders at Jerusalem:" and they shew how the Apostles exercised their power of binding and loosing. It is also particularly worthy of remark, that this apostolic rescript makes no special mention of Peter. He, indeed, after some time had been spent in "considering the matter,” delivered the first recorded address on the occasion; but it was by the "sentence" of the Apostle James, that the final decision was arrived at. It was by him, the particular prohibitions, afterwards recorded in the apostolic decree, were first distinctly specified (XV, 19, 20.) And in the decree itself, we find no

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reference to Peter as possessing or exercising, any authority above the other members of that apostolic convention.

But though this eminent Apostle possessed no supremacy of power or authority over the other Apostles, I most frankly acknowledge that he obtained distinguished honour, from the full and explicit confession he delivered in answer to the inquiry of our Lord. This was the honour of priority in first" opening the door of faith"-in first preaching the gospel both to Jews and Gentiles; in first admitting the converts of each class to the privileges of the Christian dispensation. It was Peter who delivered that memorable discourse, by which three thousand Jews were added to the number of the disciples. It was Peter whom God directed by a special vision to preach to the Gentiles. To this the Apostle refers in the address just alluded to, Acts xv. 7,-" Peter rose up and "said, Men and brethren' ye know how that "God, a good while ago made choice among us, "that the Gentiles, by my mouth, should hear the "word of the gospel and believe." While the

keys," or the privilege of first admitting persons to the Christian Church was conferred only on Peter; all were afterwards invested with the power of "binding and loosing."

"The kingdom of heaven" is the Church of God." Formerly," says the eloquent and learned Bishop Horsley, "the Jewish Church was that

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kingdom; it is now-the Christian Church."The true Church is represented in this text, "(Matt. xvi. 18, &c.) as in many passages of holy "writ, under the image of a walled city, to be "entered only at the gates. Under the Mosaic "economy these gates were shut, and particular "persons only, could obtain admittance-Is"raelites by birth, or by legal incorporation.

"The locks of these gates were the rites of the "Mosaic law, which obstructed the entrance of "aliens. But after our Lord's ascension, and the "descent of the Holy Ghost, the keys of the city "were given to St. Peter, by that vision which "taught him, and authorised him to teach others, "that all distinctions of one nation from another "were at an end. By virtue of this special com"mission, the great Apostle applied the key, push"ed back the bolt of the lock, and threw the gates "of the city open for the admission of the whole "Gentile world, in the instance of Cornelius and "his family. To this, and to this only, our Lord prophetically alludes, when he promises to St. "Peter the custody of the keys-No authority over "the rest of the Apostles was given St. Peter, by "the promise made to him, in either, or in both "its branches; nor was any right conveyed to him, which could descend from him to his "successors in any See. The promise was simply "a prediction, that he would be selected to be "the first instrument in a great work of Provi"dence, which was of such a nature as to be "done once for all; and being done, it cannot be repeated. The great Apostle fulfilled his com"mission in his life time. He applied his key"he turned back the lock, he loosed and he "bound. The gates of the kingdom of heaven "are thrown open-the ceremonial law is abro"gated-the moral is confirmed, and the suc"cessor of St. Peter can give neither furtherance "nor obstruction in the business."*

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6.

This opinion of the privilege of priority, not supremacy, conferred upon the Apostle Peter, as the reward of his enlightened and explicit con

*

Horsley's "Sermons." Vol. I. p. 286-289. See Appendix. NOTE M.

fession is not peculiar to the Protestant Church ; nor is it adopted to meet the exigencies of a system. It accords with historic fact; and is con firmed by the interpretations of several ancient Fathers. Jerome and Origen sanction this exposition; but the most satisfactory agreement with the views here brought forward is to be found in the writings of Tertullian. He expressly asserts that it belonged to Peter to be " the first man” in preaching the gospel, and conveying the benefits of salvation to believers; and he remarks, "so "the event teaches the Church was built on “him, that is, by him; he introduced the key“he, in the administration of Christian baptism, "did first unlock the entrance into the kingdom * of heaven."*

The other passage adduced in favour of Peter's supremacy is in John xxi. 15-17. It is the common opinion of Roman Catholic writers, that the charge "feed my lambs-feed my sheep" was given exclusively to Peter; and that by virtue of this charge, he was invested with supreme pastoral authority over ALL the flock of Christ; not only over Christians in general, but over the rest of the

Apostles themselves. But I will give you a specimen of modern declamation on this subject. After citing the passage from St. John, a learned divine of their Church remarks, " in the first place, "Jesus immediately and personally, points out "the individual to whom he addresses his discourse. Simon, he says; and to prevent the possibility of conceiving that he might perhaps "mean Simon the brother of Thaddeus, he adds, "Simon son of Jonas (or John as the preacher

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✦ "Sic enim exitus docet, in ipso ecclesia extructa est, id est per ipsum; ipse clavem imbuit; ipse primus, in Christi baptismo reseravit aditum cœlestis regni, &c. Tertul. de Pud ; 21.

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"renders it.) It is consequently plain, that he "does not here intend to address himself to all "the Apostles. This also is plain from Peter's "answers; for just as the questions were put to "Peter only, so Peter only answers them in his "own name.-Jesus, then asks Peter whether he "loved him—or rather whether he loved him "more than the rest of the Apostles who were 66 present: Lovest thou me more than these? Now, "whence so singular an interrogation-whence "this demand of a love superior to that of the "other Apostles-unless that the nature of the "office or dignity which he was going to confer upon him, was of a nature also superior to "theirs? Ingenuity can conceive no other cause "for such difference of love, but such difference "of office, or such super-eminence of dignity. "And then too, he three times puts to him the "question, if he love him? Why so singular a question for Jesus already knew, as Peter remarks, the sincerity of his love?-And above all, why so singularly repeated-for nothing "similar occurs, in the whole series of the sacred "text? Without doubt, as the whole conduct of "Jesus is here uncommon, it could not be de'signed to express merely the common commis"sion to teach and reform the world. But, ob"serve now the answers of Jesus. In reply to "the two first assurances of Peter, that he loved "him, he said, on each occasion, Feed my "lambs.' After the third assurance, he added, "Feed my sheep.' In the holy scriptures, the "faithful are, frequently designated under the figure and appellation of a flock. Jesus em

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ploys this figure, on this occasion; but he di"vides the flock into two distinct and separate "parts-into lambs, by which he means the ordinary faithful-and sheep, by which he means