CXXIV. "baptized, shall be faved; but he that believeth SER M. 66 not, fhall be damned." And then it follows, "these figns fhall follow them that believe; in 66 my name they fhall caft out devils, and fhall "speak with new tongues." And Luke xxiv. 49. instead of "lo, I am with you," it is faid, " be"hold, I fend the promise of my FATHER upon "you," that is, the miraculous gifts of the HOLY GHOST; for it follows in the next words,. "but tarry in the city of Jerufalem, until ye be "endowed with power from on high." This St. Luke himself interprets of the promise of the HOLY GHOST, Acts i. 4, 5. "He commanded them that they should not depart from Jerufalem, "but wait for the promife of the FATHER, which, faith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water, but ye fhall be baptized "with the HOLY GHOST, not many days hence." And ver. 8. "Ye fhall receive power after that the "HOLY GHOST is come upon you, and ye fhall be witneffes unto me, both in Jerufalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the ut"termoft part of the earth." So that no man that compares these texts together, can doubt, but that this was the primary meaning of this promife, as it was made to the apostles. But then it is as plain likewife, that this promise is to be extended farther than to the perfons of the apostles, even to all those that should afterwards fucceed them in this work of preaching the gospel, and baptizing, because our SAVIOUR adds, that he would be with them to the end of the world;" which words, because they reach far beyond the apostles times, (as I fhall fhew by and by) must neceffa SER M. neceffarily be extended to fuch perfons in after-ages, CXXIV. as fhould carry on the fame work. There are two famous controverfies about the fenfe of thefe words, in which this promife is expreft. The firft is, concerning the circumftance of time mentioned in this promife, "alway, to the end of "the world." The other concerning the substance of the promise itself, what is meant by our SAVIOUR'S " being " with them." In the first we have to deal with the enthusiasts, in the latter with the papifts. I fhall examine the pretences of both these, as briefly and plainly as I can. First, concerning the circumftance of time expreft in these words, "alway, to the end of the world." The enthusiasts would perfuade us, that the meaning of thefe phrases is not to be extended beyond that age, and that this promife is to be limited to the apoftles perfons, and that the fenfe of it is, that CHRIST would be with the apoftles, πᾶσας τὰς ἡμέρας, 211 their days fo long as they fhould live, and that would be, ἕως τῆς συντελείας τὸ αἰῶνα, to the end of that age; thus they tranflate it, and with no worse defign than to take away the neceffity of a gospelminittry. all But this pretence will vanifh, if we can make good thefe two things. 1. That the letter of this promife extends farther than the perfons of the apoftles, and the continuance of that age. 2. However that be, it is certain that the reafon of it extends to all that should fucceed them in their ministry, to the end of the world.j that CXXIV. 1. The letter of this promife extends farther than S ERM. the persons of the apostles, and the continuance of age. I will eafily grant that the phrafe näras Tas nupas fignifies only continually; "I will be "with you continually," but then the other phrase, ἕως τῆς συντελείας τὸ αἰῶνΘ, until the end of the world, is feveral times in fcripture undeniably used for the end and diffolution of all things, and cannot with any probability be fhewn to be ever used otherwife. In this fenfe it is unquestionably used three times, Matth. xiii. "The harveft is the end " of the world." Ver. 39. "So fhall it be at the "end of the world." Ver. 40. and ver. 49. it is faid, that at the end of the world, the angels fhall "come forth, and fever the wicked from the just, "and caft them into the furnace," which muft either be understood of the end of the world, and of the day of judgment, or there will be no clear text in the whole bible to that purpofe; and it is very probable, that this phrafe is used in the same sense, Matth. xxiv. 3. where the difciples afk our SAVIOUR, "what shall be the fign of thy coming, and of the "end of the world?" as will appear to any one that confiders our SAVIOUR'S anfwer to this queftion; the latter part whereof cannot, without too much violence, be accommodated to any thing but the final diffolution of the world. Now if this phrase be every where else in fcripture used in this sense, there is no reason why it should be taken otherwife in the text, only to ferve the purpose of an unreasonable opinion. I know there are phrafes very near a-kin to this, which are used in a quite different sense, namely, for the expiration of the Jewish ftate, and that we may know SERM, know how to diftinguifh them, it is obfervable, that CXXIV. when the fcripture fpeaks of the end of the world, it is called ouvréha Tal, the end of the age, in the fingular number; but when it fpeaks of the times before the gofpel, it always expreffeth them in the plural; the reafon of which is, that famous tradition among the Jews, of the houfe of Elias, which diftributed the whole duration of the world into three ages; the age before the law, the age under the law, and the age of the MESSIAS; and this last age they looked on with great difference from the reft, as the famous and glorious age, which was to be as it were the beginning of a new world: and therefore the Jews in their writings conftantly call it the faculum futurum, the age, or the world to come: and. therefore the apoftle in this epiftle to the Hebrews, calls the state of the gospel by that name, as best known to them, Heb. ii. "But unto the angels. "hath he not put in subjection the world to come, "whereof we now fpeak;" that is, the law was given by the difpofition of angels; but the difpenfation of the gofpel, which is call'd the world to come, was managed and adminiftred by the SON of GOD. So likewife Heb. vi. 5. thofe miraculous powers which accompanied the first preaching of the gofpel, are called δυνάμεις το μέλλοντα αἰῶν, "the powers of the world to come," that is, of the gospel-age. 5. So that this laft age of the gofpel, is that which the fcripture by way of eminency calls "the age;" those that went before are conftantly called aiS, the ages in the plural number. So we find, Eph. iii. 9. the gospel is called "the difpenfation of the "mystery that was hid in GoD," and Twy a¡úver, ❝ from CXXI "from ages;" and you have the fame phrafe, Col. SERM. i. 26. Upon the fame account, the expiration of the Jewish ftate, is in fcripture called "the laft times, "and the last days," Heb. i. 2. "But in these last days, God hath fpoken to us by his Son." I Cor. x. II. "These things are written for our admoni“tion, upon whom τα τέλη τῶν αἰώνων, the ends of "the ages are come." In the fame fense the apostle, Heb. ix. 26. fpeaking of CHRIST, says, that “he 66 appeared, ἐπὶ συντελείᾳ τῶν αἰώνων, at the end of "the ages," to take away fin; that is, at the conclufion of the ages which had gone before, in the laft age. So that if we will be governed in the interpretation of this text, by the conftant use of this phrase in fcripture, the letter of this promise will extend to the end of the world. 2. But however this be, it is certain that the reafon of this promife does extend to all those that fhould fucceed the apoftles in their miniftry to the end of the world; I will fuppofe now (to give the adverfaries their utmost scope) that which we have no reason to grant, that the letter of this promise reacheth only to the apostles and their age, and that Our SAVIOUR'S meaning was no more but this, that he would fend down the HOLY GHOST upon them in miraculous gifts, to qualify and enable them for the speedy planting and propagating the gospel in the world, and that he would be with them 'till this work was done. Now fuppofing there were nothing more than this intended in the letter of it, this ought not much to trouble us, fo long as it is certain, that the reafon of it does extend to the fucceffors of the apoftles in all ages of the world. I do not mean, that the reafon of this promife does |
