A Paraphrase on the New Testament, John · Chapter 17
CHAP. XVII.
THeſe words ſpake Jeſus, and lift up his eyes to heaven, and ſaid, Father, the hour is come; glorifie thy Son, that thy Son alſo may glorifie thee.
1. This Prayer Chriſt made to his Father, lifting up his Eyes to Heaven, to teach us to look thither as the place whence God appeareth in Glory, Father the hour of my death undertaken, for Mans Redemption is at hand: Glorifie thy Son by thy Atteſtation and his Reſurrection, that his Glory may be the Glory of thy Power, Wiſdome and Love to Man.
2. As thou haſt given him power over all fleſh, that he ſhould give eternal life to as many as thou haſt given him.
2. As thou haſt advanced him to this Power, to be the Owner and Lord of all fleſh, for Diſpoſals, Legiſlation, Judgment and Execution, to order all things, ſo as may ſecure the Poſſeſſion of an Eternal Life, of Happineſs, to all that thou haſt given him by effectual Decree to be certainly eventually ſaved: All things being for the good of thine Elect.
3. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the onelyonly true God, and Jeſus Chriſt whom thou haſt ſent.
3. And what is Life Eternal, but that perfect knowledge of thee, which fills the Soul with Love and Joy and the knowledge of thy Glory, ſhining forth in thy Son Jeſus Chriſt with his Body the Heavenly Society. And the beginning of this knowledge is the beginning and way to Perfection.
4. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finiſhed the work which thou gaveſt me to do.
4. My Doctrine, Example and Miracles have here ſhewed forth thy Glory: I am neer the end, and have almoſt finiſhed that work on Earth for Mans Redemption, which I undertook.
5. And now, O Father, glorifie thou me with thine own-ſelf, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
5. As I have almoſt performed my part perform thou thy part of the Covenant of my Mediation; and give me the Son of Man a due participation of that Glory, which my Divine Nature had with thee from Eternity. Note, This Text is by divers diverſly Expounded. Firſt, Some ſay that▪ Chriſts humane Soul was Glorified before the Word was. Secondly, The Arians ſay that he had a ſuperangelical Nature only before the World was, which united it ſelf to a humane Soul (ſay ſome) or only animated a humane Body, (ſay others;) Thirdly, Others of late ſay he hath three Natures uniting it ſelf to the Prime Created Superangelical Nature; And this uniting it ſelf to a humane Soul and Body (ſay ſome) or to a humane Body alone (ſay others) Fourthly, But the plain Paraphraſe which I have given, is the Doctrine of the Orthodox univerſal Church.
6. I have manifeſted thy name unto the men which thou gaveſt me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gaveſt them me; ad they have kept thy word.
6. I have made known thee and thy Will, to them whom thou gaveſt me out of the World, to be my peculiar Diſciples: They were thine as their Creator, and thou gaveſt them me to be their Redeemer, and I have taught them thy word and they have kept it.
7. Now they have known that all things whatſoever thou haſt given me, are of thee.
7. They have known this Fundamentally, that I and my Doctrine and Works are all of thee.
8. For I have given unto them the words which thou gaveſt me; and they received them, and have known ſurely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didſt ſend me.
8. Note that Chriſt inſiſteth ſo much on this, becauſe to believe that he and his doctrine and Works are all of God, is virtually to believe, that they are all true without ſearching after any other Reaſon of yours. For he is mad that believeth not that there is a God, and he believeth not a God who believeth him not to be perfect, and therefore to be Juſt, Good and True, and not the Deceiver of the World.
9. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou haſt given me, for they are thine. 10. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine, and I am glorified in them.
9, 10. It is out of ſpecial Love to them, for the Salvation and welfare of theſe, that I now pray to thee, and not for the meer Worldlings and Enemies of thy Kingdom, (though for them alſo I have ſuch deſires and Prayers as ſignifie my common Love; and the Elect among them yet unconverted, I have ſuch requeſts for, as are ſuited to their ſtate.) But theſe that thou haſt given me peremptorily to ſave, are the People of of thy peculiar Love as well as mine. And all that I ſo Love thou loveſt alſo, and it is in them that I am glorified and my Perſon, Office and Grace is honoured, which others do but Swiniſhly deſpiſe.
11. And now I am no more in the world, but theſe are in the world and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name, thoſe whom thou haſt given me, that they may be one, as we are.
11. And now I am leaving the Word, but muſt leave them in it to Tryals and Perſecutions, while I am with thee. And ſeeing their Union, by one Faith and Love is their Character ſtrength and ſafety, without which they will fall into Scandal and diſſolution, O keep them by Concentring in thee and thy Will (and not diſtracted by humane Devices and Intereſts) that they may be one in Faith, Hope and Practice, as we are one,
12. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: thoſe that thou gaveſt me I have kept, and none of them is loſt, but the ſon of perdition: that the ſcripture might be fulfilled.
12. All that thou gaveſt to be my adherent followers, I have kept in thy Name, ſave the Son of Perdition, in whoſe Revolt and Treachery the Scripture is fulfilled.
13. And now come I to thee, and theſe things I ſpeak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themſelves.
13. I Come to thee, but I leave them my Word, to fortifie them with that joy which they will need in their Afflictions.
14. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, becauſe they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
14. It is not all the World that will be ſaved by me, but a ſelect People to whom I effectually give thy Word, and the World hateth them, becauſe their Doctrine, Mind and Life do differ from the World, and they are of another Spirit and Society of which I am the Head.
15. I pray not that thou ſhouldeſt take them out of the world, but that thou ſhouldeſt keep them from the evil. 16. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15. They have work to do in the World, from which I do not pray thou ſhouldeſt take them, but that thou keep them pure from the ſins. Temptatations and Malice of the World, as thoſe that are ſepara-from it to obey thee, as I their Leader am.
17. Sanctifie them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
17. Qualifie and ſeparate them by thy Truth, to propagate thy Truth, even thy Word which is Truth.
18. As thou haſt ſent me into the world, even ſo have I alſo ſent them into the world.
18. As thou ſenteſt me for the work of a Redeemer into this ſinful World, ſo have I ſent them, for the work of Apoſtleſhip.
19. And for their ſakes I ſanctifie my ſelf, that they alſo might be ſanctified through the truth.
19. For their ſakes I become a Sacrifice offered to thee, that they may by my Doctrine, Example, and Spirit, be alſo totally devou…ed to ſerve thee.
20. Neither pray I for theſe alone, but for them alſo which ſhall believe on me through their word:
20. But it is not for them only that I pray, but for all that by their Miniſtry ſhall become true Chriſtians.
21. That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee; that they alſo may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has ſent me.
21. And the ſum of my Prayer for them is, that as I am ſo united to thee, that what thou ſpeakeſt I ſpeak, and what thou Loveſt I Love, and thy Works are my Works, wrought by thee, ſo they may be one in us (and not in any uncapable Center of humane Invention and Uſurpation) and may all ſpeak the ſame thing which they have heard from thee by me, and may Love what we Love, and do our work and not their own: That by their concord in Faith, Love and Practice the world may be won to Chriſtianity and not ſcandalized by their Diſcord and Fractions, or by forſaking the true Unity, and combining for wordly Intereſt on worldly terms.
22. And the glory which thou gaveſt me, I have given them: that they may be one, even as we are one.
22. And as thou has glorified me in the World by the Power of working Miracles, and gathering Sinners home to thee, I have glorified them by giving them the ſame Power to work Miracles and to call and convert the World: that they may be one Body, of one Mind and do one work, as I have done thy work alone.
23. I in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that thou haſt ſent me, and haſt loved them, as thou haſt loved me.
23. That while I work in them, by my Word and Spirit, as thou workeſt in me, they may be perfected into one concordant harmonious Body, united in Faith and Love, that this Luſtre of their Excellency and Concord may convince the World, that thou haſt ſent me to reſtore them that are ſo much reſtored, and that thou loveſt them as thy Redeemed Sanctified ones, as thou loveſt me their Redeemer.
24. Father, I will that they alſo whom thou haſt given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory which thou haſt given me: for thou lovedſt me before the foundation of the world.
24 Father as it was thy Covenant with me as my Reward for Redemption, it is now my Will and Deſire, that all that thou giveſt me by Converſion as true Chriſtians, to be ſaved, may be after death with me where I am, that they may ſee the Glory which thou giveſt me, the ſight of which is part of their glorification: For thou loveſt me before the Foundation of the World, and wilt communicate Glory to them by me.
25. O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee; but I have known thee, and theſe have known that thou haſt ſent me.
25. O Righteous Father, that world of Men whom thou haſt Created have not known thee, but I that have known thee have declared thee to them, and theſe my Diſciples having known that thou haſt ſent me, have believed my word concerning thee.
26. And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou haſt loved me, may be in them, and I in them.
26. And I have by my Word and Works made thee and thy will known to them, and will do ſo yet more; that the Holy Spirit of Love with which thou haſt filled me, may be in them, and by that Spirit I may be in them.