might gain some." Moreover, if for no such end, but merely out of a Jewish prejudice to be so over-zealous about ceremonies, truly, saith he, I am afraid of you, that my labours are bestowed in vain. Nevertheless, if a weak brother have a high opinion of a day, or of a ceremony, we are not to be violent with him, but let him peaceably follow the dictates of his own conscience till he becomes better informed. "Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.”

1 COR. X. 33.

I please all men in all things.

XXXV.

GAL. i. 10.

If I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

To reconcile these passages we have only to distinguish between that holy wisdom which would not wilfully offend any man, and that evil policy which would humour every wicked man in his sins for base ends.

Paul commends his own practice to us, who are to follow him as he followed Christ in this thing, to please all men in all indifferent things.

Christ did many things which he might have chose whether he would or not; as when he paid more custom than was justly due, or the receivers could justify in exacting; yet, rather than offend, in this he pleased the people for the sake of peace. In this sense Paul commands servants to obey their masters in all things, not answering again (TITUS, ii. 9); meaning, all things belonging to that economical service, otherwise there can be no peace in the family.

As for the other men-pleasing mentioned to the Galatians, which Paul condemns under so great a penalty, that, if we do it, we cannot be the servants of Christ; he means that hypocritical flesh-pleasing sin of humouring the times, to preach such doctrine as the world best approves, in order to gain preferment and applause, laying aside all conscience of the glory of God, or the salvation of the soul.

GAL. vi. 2.

XXXVI.

GAL. vi. 5.

Bear ye one another's burdens. Every man shall bear his own

burden.

How is it possible that another can bear my burden, when I must bear it myself; or for me to bear another's, when he must bear it himself?

To reconcile these texts we must distinguish between burden of account, and burden of infirmity.

The former is a burden which cannot be exchanged with any body, for every one of us must give account of himself to God. ROM. xiv. 12. The latter burden we are to bear for one another.

XXXVII.

EPH. ii. 19.

Ye are not strangers and foreigners.

1 PET. ii. 11.

I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims.

Strangers in respect of glory is one thing; strangers in respect of grace is another.

Every true Christian is an heir of two kingdoms; the kingdom of grace and the kingdom of glory. In respect of the former we are now made free, and are not strangers to the covenant, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God in regard of the latter, we are yet from home.

1 JOHN, i. 8.

XXXVIII.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

1 JOHN, iii. 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

In the latter passage is meant wilful, allowed, habitual sin, and not every offence against the laws of God. The true Christian frequently sins through infirmity, and the violence of temptation; but not deliberately, determinedly, and habitually.

CONCERNING THE WORDS AND PHRASES USED BY THE SACRED WRITERS.

If two or more evangelists on any occasion ascribe to our Lord the same words, we may safely believe they have preserved the words which he uttered on that occasion. However, when they introduce him speaking, they do not always mean to repeat the precise words, but to give the sense of what he said; nothing more being intended, oftentimes, by those who undertake to relate what was spoken by another. This seems plain from ACTS, x. 4, compared with ver. 31. In the former of these passages, the angel says to Cornelius, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God; in the latter, Cornelius, rehearsing the angel's words to Peter, delivers them thus-Thy prayer is heard, and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God. Wherefore it is evident both Cornelius and the historian thought the angel's words were repeated when the sense of them was delivered.

This observation reconciles all those passages in the Gospels wherein our Lord is introduced expressing his sentiments in different words on the same occasion. Nevertheless, where different expressions are found, it is possible that all of them may have been uttered by him, especially if they convey different thoughts, and, when joined together, make a connected discourse. In most cases, however, the former is the more

natural solution; because, if the evangelists have given the true meaning of what our Lord said on every occasion, they have expressly delivered what may be called the words of Christ, though the expressions in each Gospel should be different, or, even to appearance, contradictory. A remarkable example of this we have, MAT. x. 9, 10, where Jesus is introduced speaking to his apostles thus-Provide neither shoes, nor yet a staff; but in the parallel passage, MARK, vi. 8, which exhibits the repetition of those instructions, he commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, save a staff only: words in sound contradictory to the former, though in sense perfectly the same. Such of the apostles as had staffs in their hands might take them; but those who were walking without them were not to provide them; for, as the promise of God was to supply them with all necessaries, to have made the least preparation for their journey would have implied a disbelief of their Master's promise. In like manner, the words of the voice at Christ's baptism, MAT. iii. 17, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; though different as to sound from the words, MARK, i. 11, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; yet being the same in sense, they are truly repeated. So likewise are the words of institution in the history of the Lord's Supper, and the words of the title that was affixed to our Lord's cross. It may be remarked, that these principles afford an easy solution of the difficulties which arise upon comparing the citations in the New Testament with the passages of the Old from whence they are taken; for, if the meaning of the passage is truly given, we must allow that the quotation is justly made. Hence, though the words, He shall be called a Nazarene, MAT. ii. 23, are not to be found in the writings of the prophets; yet, as the thing meant by these words frequently occurs in them, the application is made by the evangelist with sufficient propriety.

But farther, it ought to be considered, that our Lord's discourses were all delivered, and his conferences managed, in a language different from that wherein they are handed down to posterity, viz. the Syro-Chaldaic, called the Hebrew tongue. ACTS, xxi. 40, because it was a dialect thereof; for which cause, though all the evangelists had remembered the precise words of every person introduced in their histories, when they related them in a different language, they could hardly avoid making use of different expressions.

CONCERNING THE FACTS, AND CIRCUMSTANCES OF FACTS, WHICH THE SACRED WRITERS HAVE MEN. TIONED.

It is certain the sacred historians have recorded nothing but what is strictly true; yet it was not their intention to relate

all the things they might with truth have told. Each of them, indeed, has delivered as much of Christ's doctrine and miracles as is necessary to salvation. Nevertheless, many important sermons and actions are omitted by each; which if the rest had not preserved, the world must have sustained an unspeakable loss. We have even reason to believe that it is but a small part of our Lord's history which is preserved among them all; for the Evangelist John has said expressly, That there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. JOHN, xxi. 25. The other evangelists affirm the same thing in the summaries which they give of such discourses and miracles as they did not think proper to relate particularly. Thus, LUKE, Xxiv. 27: And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. See ver. 45. Mar. iv. 23, 24: And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them. See also MAT. xiv. 35, 36. do. xv. 30. do. xix. 2. JOHN, ii. 23. do. iii. 2.

As the evangelists did not intend to relate all the sermons and actions of Christ, so it was not their purpose to mention every circumstance of those they undertook to relate. Each evangelist made his own choice. This circumstance is mentioned by one, and that by another, as they judged most proper. If so, we must by no means urge omissions, whether of facts, or circumstances of facts, in such a manner as to fancy that the authors rejected all the things they have omitted, or even that they were ignorant of them. From the summaries above mentioned, it is plain they have passed over many particulars which they were well acquainted with; besides, the things omitted are sometimes implied in the form of their narration itself. But had the evangelists, in those instances, formed their accounts so as not to have implied the particulars they have omitted, which they might easily have done, we should have been mistaken if for that reason we had imagined they were ignorant of them. Wherefore we may be mistaken if, in other instances, we should think they were ignorant of every thing they have not mentioned or hinted.

The sacred historians have sometimes omitted things of importance, while they have taken notice of particulars which, to appearance, are not so material. Thus (MARK, Xiv, 51).

the cure which our Lord performed on the High Priest's servant, whose ear Peter cut off, is omitted; while the young man, who followed him with a linen cloth cast round his naked body, is mentioned. The evangelists relate every thing as it occurred to their minds, without making choice of those particulars only which might have prejudiced their readers in favour of their Master, or led them to form a high idea of him; which is evidently the character of people who have no distrust of their cause, but who tell the truth as it presented itself, without artifice or disguise.

THE FOLLOWING ARE EXAMPLES OF REFERENCES TO · PARTICULARS OMITTED BY THE EVANGELIST WHO MAKES THE reference, AND BY ALL THE REST.

MAT. xi. 22: Chorazin is mentioned by our Lord as having been the scene of miracles, which would have converted Tyre and Sidon from their idolatry. Yet none of the evangelists speak so much as of one miracle wrought there: they do not even say that Jesus was ever in that town. JOHN, iv. 42: The inhabitants of Sychar, with whom Jesus tarried two days, say, We have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world. These words imply that our Lord had preached much during the two days he stayed in Sychar, though none of the sermons which he then delivered are recorded. do. ii. 3: At the marriage in Cana the mother of Jesus told him of the wine having run short, to hint that it would be very acceptable if he would provide some. It seems she had formed a just notion of his miraculous power; and, though he declined her request, she ordered the servants to do whatever he should bid them. We may therefore believe that afterwards, by some sign or other, or by something he said to her which is not recorded, he gave her reason to think he would do what she desired. do. xi. 41, 42: Before Lazarus was raised Jesus thanked the Father that he had heard him; which implieth that he prayed for Lazarus's resurrection in the hearing of the by-standers, for he declares that he had prayed for their sakes; yet John has not mentioned this circumstance. do. 49, 50: Caiaphas makes a speech in the council; the propriety of which cannot be understood but on supposition that some of the members present had been opposing the resolution which the rest were forming, namely, to destroy Jesus, however innocent he might be. Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. do. xx. 19, 26: We are told that Jesus came at two different times after his resurrection, and stood in the midst of his disciples, notwithstanding the doors had been fast shut, for fear of the