fick; and their hopes deferred, inftead of being any comfort or support to them, became an addition of grief, and filled them with fears and fufpicions, lest they had believed in vain. Many of them, worn out with diftrefs and perfecution, began to give way, and willingly liften to the corrupt teachers, who inftructed them to keep fair with the world, and to keep their faith to themselves; by means of which wicked doctrine they were led away, and fell from their fleadfastnefs, 2 Pet. iii, 17. and, to avoid suffering, denied the Lord that bought them, ch. ii. 1. In this state of things, and at the distance of five or fix years from the writing of the first epistle, the Apoftle fends his fecond letter; and it anfwers in every point to this account. In the first chapter the Apostle endeavours to reeftablish and confirm the hopes of believers; but he does it with the air of one who had been reproached for his doctrine; We have not, fays he, followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known to you the POWER and COMING of the Lord Jefus, chap. i. ver. 16: You fee here again the true point upon which St. Peter placed the hopes and expectations of true believers. In the fecond chapter he takes notice of the falfe teachers who brought in damnable herefies, denying the Lord that bought them; these he threatens with fwift deftruction, ver. 1. and tells them, that, however they might conceive of the promise of Chrift's speedy coming, yet they would affuredly find, that their own judgment did not linger, nor their own damnation Slumber, ver. 3; that it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy com

mandment delivered to them, ver. 21. In the third and last chapter he confiders the fcoffers, and their irreligious infult, Where is the promife of his coming? ver. 4. He enters into their argument, and fhews them, from what had already happened in the world, how perverfely they reasoned about future things. He concludes the whole with proper cautions to Chrif tians, when they confider and endeavour to underftand the times and feasons of God's judgments; and guards, not only his own, but St. Paul's doctrine upon this article, the coming of Chrift, (fo much was his mind bent to clear this one point,) against the perverse use of the unlearned and unftable, ver. 15, 16.

You fee now what is the main, the only great point, in this fecond epiftle; it is the coming of Christ in power and glory, to deliver the faithful, and to take vengeance of the ungodly and unbelievers, as foretold by the prophets under both teftaments. But this coming of Chrift was future and at a diftance; and depended entirely (as to any knowledge that could be had of it) upon the authority of prophecy for which reafon St. Peter refers, in his first epiftle, to the ancient prophets, and to the infpired preachers of the Gospel, to juftify the hopes he raised; of which falvation, or deliverance, fays he, the prophets have inquired and fearched diligently, who prophefied of the grace that should come unto you, chap. i. 10; which things are now reported unto you by them that have preached the Gospel unto you, with the Holy Ghoft fent down from heaven, ver. 12. And for the fame reason in his fecond epiftle he refers again to

prophecy, as being of all others (and in things of futurity it needs must be) the most fure evidence.

This account of St. Peter's epiftles is indeed not. mine, but his own: for he tells us exprefsly, that his intention in both his epiftles was, to make them, to whom they were fent, mindful of the words which: were spoken before of the holy prophets, he adds, and of the commandments of us the Apofiles of the Lord and Saviour: 2 Ep. iii. 1, 2. That this latter part relates to the fame fubject as the former, will appear by comparing it with the paffage juft before quoted,. 1 Ep. i. 12. where St. Peter confiders the Apostles, as prophets, or expounders of the prophets, under the affiftance of the Holy Ghoft, preaching those very things which the ancient prophets had teftified beforehand.

Take this key along with you, and fee how it will open this fo much perplexed paffage of Scripture now under confideration: the Apostle's reasoning to the faithful believers is this, We have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the POWER and COMING of our Lord Jefus Chrift, but were eye-witnesses of his MAJESTY. For he received from God the Father HONOUR and GLORY, when there came fuch a voice to him from the excellent glory; This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleafed. And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount, We have also a MORE SURE word of prophecy, 2 Ep. i. 16, &c.

It is evident that the POWER and COMING of our Lord Jefus Chrift is the only point here in quef

tion; not a word is there relating to any other fact or doctrine of the Gospel. To prove this point, the Apostle tells them he had been an eye-witness of his MAJESTY or GLORY. Whilft our Saviour lived on earth, his condition was mean, and his fortune low; this was a great prejudice against him in the opinion of the Jews, who expected greater things from their Redeemer, and could not easily hope to fee, him return in glory and power, who lived and died fo meanly and fo miferably. It is a fufficient answer to all fuch prejudices to prove, that, mean as he appeared, he had a real majefty, and was actually invested with honour and glory from God the Father.

But this evidence manifeftly extends but to one part of the point in queftion, to fhew that Chrift had himself been glorified; what is there then to fhew that he will ever return again in this glory and power? For allow all this to be true, might an objector fay; yet how does it prove the hopes you would raise of his fpeedy return in power and glory to deliver his fervants, and to take vengeance of his foes? For what is paft we willingly take your word; you are a competent witnefs of what your eyes beheld, and of what your ears heard: but will your seeing him in glory on the mount, fome years ago, neceffarily infer, that he fhall come again in glory fome years hence; and that too, to execute the very purposes you declare? Can any certainty, as to future events, be collected from paft events? or, can any thing we fee this year affure us what will happen to us the next?

It is true, (we may fuppofe the Apoftle to answer,) all future events are in the hands of God; to him

only are they known, and from him only can they certainly be learned. All other arguments in this cafe can amount only to probabilities and prefumptions, and a great prefumption it is that Chrift fhall come in glory, that we have already seen him glorified; and it is a further evidence of his power to deliver his fervants, fince God has openly declared him to be his well-beloved Son: but, to affure us that he will indeed fo come, and fo ufe his power, we have a more fure word of prophecy: i. e. we have the very word of God, (speaking by his prophets,) to whom all futurity is known, to affure us of the certainty of this future event.

This interpretation, as it is eafy and natural in itfelf, and renders to every expreffion in the text its proper and usual fignification; fo it is neceffary, I conceive, to the Apostle's argument, and plainly enforced by the context, and ftands clear of all difficulties. Here is no pretence to say, that prophecy is a better argument for the truth of the Gospel than all the miracles of Chrift and his Apoftles; for the truth of the Gospel is not the point here in queftion. St. Peter fpeaks only of the coming of Chrift in power, and of a falvation ready to be revealed; which being yet to come, admitted of no furer evidence than the word of prophecy; which yet, he tells us, was only as a light fhining in a dark place: but the Gofpel was not a thing ready to be revealed, it had long fince been revealed; the Gospel was not a light Shining in a dark place, but, as he himself exprefsly calls it, a marvellous light, into which they had been called out of darkness, 1 Ep. ii. 9.

One word more, and I have done with this fub