ciples had infinuated themselves and acquired influence among the Chriftians of Corinth. Well aware that the admiffion of fuch principles in any degree tended in an equal degree to uproot Chriftianity from its foundations, the apoftle ftrenuously advances forward to contend for the genuine faith, the faith originally delivered to the faints. He recalls to the remembrance of his converts that gofpel which he had preached to them at the beginning; that gofpel which they had embraced; that gofpel by which they were to be faved: a gospel, built on the ground-work of Chrift's refurrection from the dead; and establishing by infallible proofs his repeated appearances after his return from the grave, separately to St. Peter, afterwards to St. James, more than once to all the apoftles collected together, then to an affembly of above five hundred difciples, most of whom were ftill alive, and, last of all, to St. Paul himself. He warns them that the reality of the refurrection of Chrift was infeparably connected with the affurance of their own future refurrection: that if the dead were not to rife, Chrift was not rifen; that if Chrift were not rifen, the apostles who had promulgated a gofpel proclaiming His refurrection had teftified falfely concerning

God;

God; that their preaching had in that case been in vain, an impofture and a delufion; that the Corinthians had believed in vain, and were yet in their fins, had placed reliance on a falfehood, and were deftitute of pardon and without a poffibility of falvation; and that all who had fallen afleep in Chrift, all who for His fake had encountered perfecution and mifery, all who had died in His faith and in full affurance of life eternal through Him, had perished. Having thus fully fet before them the confequences which would neceffarily enfue, if the peftilent doctrine with. which they were affailed were founded in truth: a doctrine which would prove that Chrift had not rifen from. the dead; that He had wrought no atonement for fin; that He was unable to perform his promifes; that no hope remained for the righteous; that the whole fabric of the Chriftian religion was a human contrivance, the production of deliberate fraud and unexampled hypocrify: he cheers them in the words of the text with a folemn ftatement of the real fact as to the refurrection of their Lord, and the bleffed refult of His refurrection with regard to all those who trufted in Him. But now is Chrift rifen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that Лlept. "Be not fhaken in mind,"

for

for thus we may conceive the apostle addreffing his beloved followers; " Be not fhaken " in mind, nor carried about with every wind "of doctrine. Hold faft without wavering "the profeffion of your faith, and especially "of that most important article, on which "the truth of the gospel and every promise "which you cherish of pardon and future

happiness depend, the refurrection of your "Saviour from the dead. Regard not thefe "unrighteous deceivers, who are come among

you, fubverting your fouls, ministers of "the prince of darkness transforming them"felves into apoftles of Chrift; the chief "of whom, Hymeneus, I am constrained "to deliver unto Satan, I am compelled to fubject to the penal infliction of a mira"culous and fevere difeafe, that he may "learn not to blafpheme; and that, being "thus driven by the punishment of the flesh to conviction of his guilt, his foul may per"chance be faved in the day of the Lord (b).

a

Chrift is rifen from the dead. He rofe on "the third day, according to the Scriptures. "God did not leave his foul in hell, in the "abode of separate fpirits; neither did He "fuffer His Holy One to fec corruption. And "He is become the firft fruits of them that fept.

"He is the firft-born from the dead, that in "all things He might have the pre-eminence.

For it pleafed the Father that in Him "fhould all fulness dwell. As by the oblation of the first fruits, the divine bleffing was drawn down upon the whole harveft: "fo has Chrift fanctified all the people of "God, for whofe fins He died, for whofe "juftification He arofe. If you believe that "Jefus died and rose again; bélieve that them "alfo which fleep in Jefus will God bring with Him.”

By eftablishing the fact of the refurrection of Chrift, the apoftle had provided a conclufive answer to every objection which could be urged against the future refurrection of the dead, on whatever principle the objection might be founded. Was the refurrection of the dead pronounced impoffible? The reply was at hand. "Chrift is rifen. The fame

power which raifed Him is able to raise "all men." Was the refurrection defcribed, in the language of profane defpifers among the heathen, as an unworthy and undefirable hope? The reply was ready. "Chrift is

rifen. Can that hope be unworthy; can "that hope be undefirable to men; which, "when the Son of God became man, was "perfected in Him?" Was the resurrection

6

repre

reprefented as an uncertain event? The Christian was prepared to anfwer, "Chrift is rifen; and is become the firstfruits of them that

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lept. He, who hath proved Himself to "be the Son of God by rising from the dead, "hath declared that all who are in the grave "fhall hear his voice and fhall come forth." So deeply however was St. Paul impreffed with the importance of the fubject, that he labours with extreme earnestnefs in the remainder of the chapter to confirm and illuftrate the truth of the doctrine that all men fhall be raised from the dead; and to explain the bleffedness of the change, which shall then be experienced by the righteous.

For fince by man came death; by man came also the refurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die; even fo in Chrift fhall all bemade alive.

Death came by man: in Adam all die. Adam, tranfgreffing the divine command, by obedience to which he was to hold his happy ftate, was expelled from Paradife, left by continuing to eat of the tree of life he should live for ever. Barred by the flaming sword of the cherubim from all access to its vivifying fruit, he was abandoned to his natural mortality. His mortal nature defcended to his children: from them it has defcended to us: from us it fhall defcend to the lateft generation