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and by the prince of the devils cafteth he out devils. 23. And he called them unto him, and faid unto them in parables, How can Satan caft out Satan? 24. And if a Kingdom be divided against it felf, that Kingdom cannot stand. 25. And if a houfe be divided against it felf, that house cannot ftand. 26. And if Satan rife up against himself, and be divided, he cannot ftand, but hath an end. 27. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and fpoil his goods, except he will firft bind the ftrong man, and then he will spoil his houfe. 28. Verily I fay unto you, All fins fhall be forgiven unto the fons of men, and blafphemies wherewith soever they fhall blafpheme: 29. But he that fhall (1) blafpheme

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b See on Mat. 12. 29.
See on Mat. 12.31.

(1) I am inclined to make fome Obfervations concerning the Sin a gainft the Holy Ghoft, becaufe good Chriftians have been much perplexed and terrified with the Apprehenfions that they have committed this Sin, when indeed they have not, and because fuch as have lived wickedly may not be difcouraged from fetting about a true Repentance by any Fears that they have been guilty of this Sin, and that therefore their Cafe is defperate.

Firft, The Sin here fpoken of feems to be, the Sin of the Jews, particularly of the Pharifees, who afcribed the miraculous Works our Lord did by the Power of the Holy Ghoft, to prove himself to be the Son of God, and Saviour of the World, to a Power derived from the Devil. For the very next Verfe runs thus, Because they said he hath an unclean Spirit. And St. Matthew, Chap. 12. 22, 23. records that our Lord having healed one poffeffed with a Devil, blind and dumb, the People were amazed, and faid, Is not this the Son of David? that is, the Meffiah, or the Chrift. But to prevent their believing in him, the Pharifees, Ver. 24. faid, This Fellow doth not caft out Devils, but by Beelzebub the Prince of the Devils. This Calumny our Lord refutes; and then follows what he delivered concerning the Sin against the Holy Ghoft,

Secondly, The Sins which come nearest to this against the Holy Ghost, feem tobe the Renouncing of and Apoftatizing from the Chriftian Religion,after Men have been baptized, and had clear Convictions of its Truth and Certainty; and an obftinate Continuance in a Course of Sin to the End of their Lives without Repentance, notwithflanding all that God and Chrift have done to reclaim and reform them. I have often wondred to find People under great Fears left they should have committed this Sin, when at the fame time they have had no Fears about their living in a Course of Sin, and dying without Repentance; which, confidering the mighty uncertainty of Life, all who live in the Commission of any known and wilful Sin, have great Reafon to do.

Thirdly,

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pheme against the holy Ghoft, hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: 30. Because they faid, He hath an unclean Spirit. 31. There came then his d Brethren and his Mother, and ftanding without, fent unto him, calling him. 32. And the multitude fat about him, and they faid unto him, Behold, thy Mother and thy Brethren with out feek for thee. 33. And he answered them, faying, Who is my Mother, or my Brethren? 34. And he looked round about on them which fat about him, and faid, Behold my Mother and my Brethren. 35. For whofoever fhall do the Will of God, the fame is my Brother, and my Sifter, and Mother.

a* See on Mat. 12.46.

CHAP.

Thirdly, It deferves to be confidered, whether there is not here, as well as in other Cafes, a tacit Condition to be fuppofed, unless they Repent. Is it not exprefly and pofitively declared, that Adulterers, Fornicators, Drunkards, &c. fhall not inherit the Kingdom of God? Is it not as plainly faid, that all Liars fhall have their Part in the Lake which burneth with Fire and Brimftone? Do not all Divines acknowledge notwithstanding, that Repentance will fave Men from thefe Evils? Since therefore Repentance is not expreffed in thefe Places, (Gal. 5. 19,&c. and Rev. 21. 8.) but only fuppofed,why may not the like Condition be here fuppofed? If we confult the 2d and 3d Chapters of the Hiftory of the Acts, we fhall find that many of thofe who did blafpheme the Holy Ghoft were not only called upon to repent, but actually did repent, and were pardoned; fuch I mean as denied the Holy One and the Juft, and delivered him up to be

crucified.

The chief Objection against this Suppofition, is taken from the 28th Verfe, All Sins fhall be forgiven to the Sons of Men, &c. That is, fay fome, any manner of Sin fhall be forgiven, but the Blafphemy against the Holy Ghoft fhall not be forgiven. But as Mr. Hales obferves in his Paraphrafe on Mat. 12. this is not the Meaning of thefe Words; for here is an Hebraim, frequent in Holy Scripture. Thus, Mar. 13.31. Heaven and Earth fhall pass away, but my Words shall not pass away. That is, (as St. Luke exprefles it, Chap. 16. 17.) It is cafier, or Heaven and Earth fhall fooner pafs away; not that Heaven and Earth fhall pafs away, but that if it were poffible. they fhall fooner pass away than his Word fhall. So here, all manner of Calumnies and Slanders are heavy Sins, and fhall hardly be forgiven to thofe who commit them, but they will more eafily be forgiven than this Calumny against the Holy Ghoft.

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CHA P. IV.

ND he began again to teach by the fea-fide: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, fo that he entred into a fhip, and fat in the fea, and the whole multitude was by the fea, on the land. 2. And he taught them many things by parables, and £ faid unto them in his doctrine, 3. Hearken, Behold, there went out a fower to fow: 4. And it came to pafs as he fowed, fome fell by the Way-fide, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. 5. And fome fell on ftony ground, where it had not much earth, and immediately it fprang up, because it had no depth of earth. 6. But when the fun was up, it was fcorched, and because it had no root, it withered away. 7. And fome fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that fprang up and increafed, and brought forth fome thirty, and fome fixty, and fome an hundred. 9. And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 10. And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve, asked of him the Parable. 11. And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in Parables.

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Mar. 12. 38. And he faid unto them in his Doctrine, Beware of the Scribes, &c.

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Joh. 15. 5, 16. I am the Vine, ye are the Branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the fame bringeth forth much Fruit; for without me ye can do nothing. 15 I have chofen you, and ordained you, that you fhould go and bring forth Fruit, and that your Fruit fhould remain.Col. 1. 5. For

12.

(1) That

in Heaven, whereof you heard before in the Word of the Truth of the Gospel.

h Mat. 13. 1o. And the Difci ples came and faid unto him, Why Speakeft thou unto them in Parables?

II.

k

i See the Note on Mat. 13.

IO +1 Cor. 5. 12. What have I to do to judge them alfo that are Without? Do not ye judge them that are within? + Col. 4. 5. Walk in Wifdom toward them that are without. ti Thef. 4. 12. That ye may walk honeftly toward them that are without. t1 Tim. 3. 7Moreover, he [a Bifhop] muft have a good Report of them which the Hope which is laid up for you 20 are without.

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(1) That feeing they may fee, and not perceive, and hea ing they may hear, and not understand ; left at any tim they should be converted, and their fins fhould be forgive them. 13. And he faid unto them,Know ye not this Parable and how then will ye know all Parables?

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14. TH Sow

dom, and understandeth it no then cometh the wicked one, an catcheth away that which wa Sown in his Heart: this is b 5 which received Seed by the Way fide.

(1) We fhould entertain unworthy Thoughts of the blessed Jefus, the great Lover of Souls, fhould we put füch an Interpretation on thef Words as implies, that the great or only Reason why he fpake to the Jews in Parables was, that they might not perceive, or understand, or be converted; for this would be to fuppofe our Lord to act contrary to that which he declares to be one main Design of his Coming into the World; namely, to teach us the Knowledge of his Father's Will, and to turn us from Darkness to Light, &c. Parables are Comparisons borrowed from Things already known by thofe to whom they are fpoke, and intended to explain fomething which is more difficult. Therefore our Lord's fpeaking to them in Parables did not proceed from his unwillingness to inftruct them, but it was because they were not fo well fitted to receive Inftruction in any other Way. Accordingly we read, Ver. 33. that with many fuch Paras bles fpake be the Word unto them as they were able to hear it.

St. Matthew relates this matter more fully than either St. Mark or St. Luke, and he, Chap. 13. 15. exprefly afcribes their Blindness to themselves: This Peoples Heart is waxed grofs, and their Ears are dull of Hearing, and their Eyes they have closed, left at any time they should fee with their Eyes, and hear with their Ears, and should understand with their Hearts, and should be converted, and I should heal them. And this no doubt was the Cafe.

We are mightily in the Wrong, when we go about to faften fuch Con Sequences on the wife, holy, juft and good God, as make him wanting to his Creatures, or to be the Caufe of their Deftruction; for he hath affirmed in the most folemn manner, that he defires not the Death of a Sinner, and that he would have all Men to be faved. If any difficult Places of Scripture feem to look another Way, it will better become us to fay we do not understand them, than to fix fuch Confequences upon God, as we are af fured, both by the Principles of natural Religion and Scripture, are inconfiftent with his infinite Perfections, and contrary to his revealed Will. Is it not more reasonable to think, that our being unacquainted with the Eaftern Language and Phrafe makes them difficult to us, than to under ftand them in a Senfe which contradicts a great Part of the Bible?

It is a great Aggravation of our Sins, when we attempt to lay them up on God, and to make him to be the Author or the Caufe of them. If any perifh everlaftingly, it is becaufe they flight or defpife the Means of Sal vation, and will not be made wifer or better by them. Of the Mea ing of the Word that, fee the Note on Joh. 12. 38.

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Sower foweth the Word. 15. And these are they by the Way-fide, where the Word is fown, but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the Word that was fown in their hearts. 16. And these are they likewife which are fown on ftony ground, who when they have heard the Word, immediately receive it with gladnefs: 17. And have no root in themselves, and fo endure but for a time: afterward when affliction or perfecution arifeth for the Words fake, immediately they are offended. 18. And these are they which are fown among thorns: fuch as hear the Word, 19. And the cares of this World, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lufts of other things entring in, choke the Word, and it becometh unfruitful. 20. And these are they which are fown on good ground, fuch as hear the Word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, fome thirty-fold, fome fixty, and fome an hundred. d 21. And he faid unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a (1) bufhel, or under a bed? and not to be fet on a candlestick? 22. For there is nothing hid which shall not be manifefted: neither was any thing kept fecret, but that it fhould come abroad. 23. If any man have Ears to hear, let him hear. 24. And he faid unto them, Take heed what you hear: with what h measure ye mete, it fhall be measured to you: and unto you that hear fhall more be given. 25. For he that hath, to him fhall be given:

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1 Joh. 2. 16. All that is in the World, the Luft of the Flesh, the Luft of the Eyes, and the Pride of 10 Life, is not of the Father, but is of the World.

d

See

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Ears to hear, let him hear.

8 A&t. 17. 11. These were more noble than thofe of Theffalonica, in that they recived the Word with all readiness of Mind, and fearched the Scriptures daily whether thofe things were fo. 1 Joh. 4. 1. Beloved, believe not every Spirit, but try the Spirits whether they be of God: becaufe many falfe Prophets are gone out into the World. h + Luk. 6. 38. * See on Mat.

7. 2.

† Luk. 8. 16. † Luk. 11. 33. 72 See the Note on Luk.

on Mat,

5. 15.

See on Luk.12.2.

Mat. 11. 15. He that hath

i *

15 19. 26.

(1) The Word in the Original signifieth a Measure containing about Pint lefs than a Peck.

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