A Paraphrase on the New Testament, Luke · Chapter 17
CHAP. XVII.
1. THen ſaid he unto his diſciples. It is impoſſible but that offences will come, but wo unto him through whom they come. 2. It were better for him that a milſtone were hanged about his neck, and he caſt into the ſea, than that he ſhould offend one of theſe little ones.
1, 2. It is a thing that will certainly come to paſs, and muſt be expected, that divers hinderances and oppoſitions will meet men to keep them from Faith and Holineſs, and that by divers ſorts of perſons: But the ſin of ſuch hinderers is heinous, tending to oppoſe the Goſpel of Salvation, and to damn Souls; and woe to them, that by their malignity do thus ſerve Satan againſt Chriſt. 2. They may blindly flatter themſelves by malice, or falſe reaſoning, or worldly intereſt; but their caſe is more miſerable, than if they were drowned in the depth o… the Sea.
3. Take heed to your ſelves; If thy brother treſpaſs againſt thee, rebuke him: and if he repent, forgive him. 4. And if he treſpaſs againſt thee ſeven times in a day, and ſeven times in a day turn again to thee, ſaying, I repent; thou ſhalt forgive him.
3, 4. Take heed that you hinder not any man in the matters of his Salvation, by perſuaſion, example, or perſecution: But if any man offend you by ſin, or injury, reprove him; and if he repent, forgive him.
Note 1. The meaning is not that the mock-repentance of one that will ſeven times a day commit groſs ſins, or injury, and ſay, I repent, when it is notorious that he doth not, ſhould be forgiven for an hypocritical word: But that True Repentance ſhould be accepted, how oft ſoever men offend.
Qu. Muſt we not forgive men, unleſs they confeſs and repent? Anſ. There are ſeveral degrees of forgiveneſs: 1. We muſt ſo far forgive the impenitent, as to love them as men, and deſire and endeavour their good, without revenge. 2. But we muſt forgive none but the penitent ſo far, as to take them into the ſpecial Love, which belongeth to Chriſtian Friends. But then it ſuppoſeth that the fault be groſs ſin, and not an injury by tolerable Errour, which he is not convinced of, nor can be.
5. And the apoſtles ſaid unto the Lord, Increaſe our faith.
5. Seeing it is by Faith that we muſt do Miracles, and muſt be ſaved, Give us more Faith.
6. And the Lord ſaid, If ye had faith as a grain of muſtard-ſeed, ye might ſay unto this ſycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the ſea, and it ſhould obey you.
6. If your Faith be true, though but ſmall, no difficulty ſhall prevail againſt it, nor any Miracle be too hard, when God by his Spirit ſhall move you to it, who will be the chuſer of Miracles.
7. But which of you having a ſervant plowing, or feeding cattel, will ſay unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and ſit down to meat: 8. And will not rather ſay unto him, Make ready wherewith I may ſup, and gird thy ſelf, and ſerve me, till I have eaten and drunken: and afterward thou ſhalt eat and drink. 9. Doth he thank that ſervant becauſe he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10. So likewiſe ye, when ye ſhall have done all thoſe things which are commanded you, ſay, We are unprofitable ſervants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
7, 8, 9, 10. But ſee that neither your Faith nor Miracles puff you up, or make you think too highly of your ſelves: Nor muſt you deſire it to make you conſpicuous in the World, but for your Maſters ſervice, which is your duty, and by which you muſt not think that you are profitable to him, but obedient to him for your own and other mens good. If you have Servants your ſelves, you will not let them prefer themſelves and their own intereſt, before you and your commands: So you, when you have preacht and caſt out Devils, and done your beſt, think not that you have profited God, and thereby deſerve to be dignified for the merit of your work; but ſay, we did but our duty, and the priviledge and benefit is our own and others.
Note 1. It's hard to Analize Luke's words, becauſe it is uncertain when he ſets them together that were ſpoken together; and when he joyneth words ſpoken on divers occaſions.
2. When Chriſt judgeth the unprofitable Servant to utter darkneſs, and yet here calleth all unprofitable; the ſenſe is, that no man can add any thing to God, or profit him; nor is he a Receiver, but a Giver; no Angel can merit of him in Commutative Juſtice. But we muſt be Profitable to one another, and our ſelves, by improving God's Mercies: And Chriſt ſo loveth his own, as that he will reward this, as if it profited himſelf.
11. And it came to paſs, as he went to Jeruſalem, that he paſſed through the midſt of Samaria and Galilee. 12. And as he entred into a certain village, there met him ten men which were lepers, who ſtood afar off: 13. And they lifted up their voices, and ſaid, Jeſus, maſter have mercy upon us. 14. And when he ſaw them, he ſaid unto them, Go ſhew your ſelves to the prieſts. And it came to paſs, that as they went, they were cleanſed.
11, 12, 13, 14. Note; He intimated thereby a purpoſe to heal them: (And he bid them uſe the ill-called corrupt Prieſts:) But whether he ſent them to the Prieſts, as thoſe that were to judge of Leproſies before the cleanſing, or to ſhew that they were cleanſed, is doubtful; though the firſt ſeems to me moſt probable.
15. And one of them, when he ſaw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God. 16. And fell down on his face at his feet giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan.
15, 16. He judged it no breach of Chriſt's command to return firſt to him, and glorifie God, and give him thanks.
17. And Jeſus anſwering, ſaid, were there not ten cleanſed? but where are the nine? 18. There are not found that returned to give glory to God, ſave this ſtranger.
17▪ 18. This one man, accounted a Heretick by the Jews, is the only man of ten that returneth to glorifie God for his Cure.
Note; Many receive Mercies, but few glorifie God with true thankſgiving.
19. And he ſaid unto him, Ariſe, go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole.
19. Note; This oft-uſed word of Chriſt, is againſt them, that ſay, that becauſe it is Chriſt that healeth, or juſtifieth, it is not Faith: As if the Office of Chriſt, and of Faith, might not concur hereunto.
20. And when he was demanded of the Phariſees, when the kingdom of God ſhould come; he anſwered them and ſaid, The kingdom of God cometh not with obſervation. 21. Neither ſhall they ſay, Lo here, or lo there: for behold the kingdom of God is within you.
20, 21. You know not what the Kingdom of God is: It is not Chriſt's apperance in viſible pomp, as earthly Princes reign: It is a Moral Spiritual Kingdom, oppoſite (not to Monarchs, but) to the Kingdom of Satan: As Satan reigneth not viſibly by himſelf, but by corrupt Princes and Teachers, to do his works, and by his inviſible ſuggeſtions and his baits; ſo the Kingdom of God is to deſtroy Satan's Kingdom, and to ſanctifie and ſave men, not by Chriſt's viſible pompous reign, but by holy Rulers and Teachers, and by his Word and Spirit, and promiſes and bleſſings to work on Souls.
22. And he ſaid unto the diſciples, The days will come when ye ſhall deſire to ſee one of the days of the Son of man, and ye ſhall not ſee it.
22. Days of ſuffering are not far off, when you will wiſh for my preſence to deliver you (or, as ſome, when you ſhall wiſh for days, as eaſy and quiet, as theſe are now,) or others think, though he ſpake to his Diſciples, it is the Phariſees or the Jewiſh Nation that he ſpake to them of.
23. And they ſhall ſay to you, See here, or ſee there: go not after them, nor follow them. 24. For as the lightning that lightneth out of the one part under heaven, ſhineth unto the other part under heaven: ſo ſhall alſo the Son of man be in his day.
23, 24. Believe not them that tell you a Deliverer or Chriſt is in ſuch or ſuch a place. For my Kingdom ſhall not be managed by my perſonal appearance, but by the Light of my Word and Spirit, which ſhall ſhine from one part of the World to another, as Lightning from Heaven; [or, my laſt coming will be like Lightning, ſudden, and glorious to all mens ſight.]
25. But firſt muſt he ſuffer many things, and be rejected of this generation. 26. And as it was in the days of Noe; ſo ſhall it be alſo in the days of the Son of man. 27. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, untill the day that Noe entred into the ark: and the flood came & deſtroyed them all.
25, 26, 27. See Matth. 24. Whether the day of Chriſt be the day of his juſt Deſtruction of the Jews, or of his Reign by the Goſpel, joyned with the Fall of them and other Enemies, or his laſt coming, is doubted of by Expoſitors.
28. Likewiſe alſo as it was in the days of Lot, they did eat, they drank, they bought, they ſold, they planted, they builded; 29. But the ſame day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimſtone from heaven, and deſtroyed them all: 30. Even thus ſhall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
28, 29, 30. Chriſt's coming, (whether to deſtroy his Enemies, or to judge the World,) will be ſudden, unexpected, and terrible.
31. In that day, he which ſhall be upon the houſe top, and his ſtuff in the houſe, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewiſe not return back. 32. Remember Lot's wife.
31, 32. Let all go, and be glad to ſave your lives: Look nor back with grief for your loſſes, leſt you ſpeed as Lot's Wife did.
33. Whoſoever ſhall ſeek to ſave his life, ſhall loſe it; and whoſoever ſhall loſe his life, ſhall preſerve it.
33. Self-ſaving, by forſaking the Truth, will prove ſelf-deſtroying; and venturing and loſing life for me, ſhall prove the ſureſt ſaving way.
34. I tell you, In that night there ſhall be two men in one bed; the one ſhall be taken, the other ſhall be left. 35. Two women ſhall be grinding together; the one ſhall be taken, and the other ſhall be left. 36. Two men ſhall be in the field; the one ſhall be taken, the other ſhall be left.
34, 35. I will carefully ſeparate my own from the reſt, and ſave them when unbelievers periſh, (whether at the end, or ſooner.)
37. And they anſwered and ſaid unto him, Where, Lord? And he ſaid unto them, Whereſoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.
37. Where ſhall all theſe things be done? He ſaid, where thoſe deſigned to deſtruction are, thither God▪s Juſtice will ſend his Executioners. And where his choſen are, there ſhall be deliverance. See Matth. 24.