it pleased the Lord Christ to appoint such as in distinct offices should be associated with them, for the discharge of sundry parts of their duty. So were deacons ordained to take care of the poor, and the outward concerns of the church, without any interest in rule or right to teach. So were, as we shall prove, elders ordained to assist and help in rule, without any call to preach or administer the sacraments. And so were teachers appointed to instruct the church and others in the truth, who have no right to rule or the administration of other ordinances. And thus, although the whole duty of the edification of the church be still incumbent on the pastors, yet being supplied with assistance to all the parts of it, it may be comfortably discharged by them. And if this order were observed in all churches, not only many inconveniences would be prevented, but the order and edification of the church greatly promoted.

2. He who is peculiarly called to be a teacher, with reference unto a distinction from a pastor, may yet at the same time be called to be an elder also, that is, to be a teaching elder. And where there is in any officer a concurrence of both these, a right unto rule as an elder, and power to teach, or preach the gospel, there is the same office and office-power, for the substance of it, as there is in the pastor.

3. On the foregoing supposition there yet remains a distinction between the office of a pastor and teacher; which, as far as light may be taken from their names and distinct ascriptions unto them, consists materially in the different gifts which those to be called unto office have received, which the church in their call ought to have respect unto; and formally in the peculiar exercise of those gifts in the discharge of their office, according unto the assignation of their especial work unto them, which themselves are to attend unto.

Upon what hath been before discoursed concerning the office of pastors and teachers, it may be inquired, Whether there may be many of them in a particular church, or whether there ought only to be one of each sort? And I say,

1. Take teachers in the third sense, for those who are only so, and have no farther interest in office-power, and there is no doubt, but that there may be as many of them in any church as are necessary unto its edification; and

ought so to be. And a due observation of this institution would prevent the inconvenience of men's preaching constantly, who are in no office of the church. For although I do grant, that those who have once been regularly or solemnly set apart or ordained unto the ministry, have the right of constant preaching inherent in them, and the duty of it incumbent on them, though they may be separated from those churches wherein and unto whom they were peculiarly ordained; yet for men to give themselves up constantly unto the work of teaching by preaching the gospel, who never were set apart by the church thereunto, I know not that it can be justified.

2. If there be but one sort of elders mentioned in the Scripture, it is out of all question, that there may be many pastors in the same church. For there were many elders in every church; Acts iv. 22. xx. 28. Phil. i. 1. Tit. i. 5. But if there are sundry sorts of elders mentioned in the Scripture, as pastors, who peculiarly feed the flock, those teaching elders of whom we have spoken, and those rulers concerning whom we shall treat in the next place; then no determination of this inquiry can be taken from the multiplication of them in any church.

3. It is certain that the order very early observed in the church, was one pastor, ó πρоέσrwe, ' præses,' quickly called 'episcopus' by way of distinction, with many elders assisting in rule and teaching, and deacons ministering in the things of this life, whereby the order of the church was preserved, and its authority represented. Yet I will not deny, but that in each particular church there may be many pastors with an equality of power, if the edification of the church doth require it.

4. It was the alteration of the state of the church from its primitive constitution, and deviation from its first order, by an occasional coalescency of many churches into one, by a new form of churches never appointed by Christ, which came not in until after the end of the second century, that gave occasion to corrupt this order into an episcopal preeminence, which degenerated more and more into confusion under the name of order. And the absolute equality of many pastors in one and the same church is liable unto many inconveniences, if not diligently watched against.

5. Wherefore, let the state of the church be preserved and kept unto its original constitution, which is congregational, and no other; and I do judge, that the order of the officers, which was so early in the primitive church, namely, of one pastor or bishop in one church, assisted in rule and all holy administrations with many elders teaching or ruling only, doth not so overthrow church-order, as to render its rule or discipline useless.

6. But whereas there is no difference in the Scripture, as unto office or power, intimated between bishops and presbyters, as we have proved, where there are many teaching elders in any church, an equality in office and power is to be preserved. But yet this takes not off from the due preference of the pastoral office, nor from the necessity of precedency for the observation of order in all church assemblies, nor from the consideration of the peculiar advantages, which gifts, age, abilities, prudence, and experience, which may belong unto some, according to rule may give.

CHAP. VII.

Of the rule of the church; or, of ruling elders.

1. THE rule and government of the church, or the execution of the authority of Christ therein, is in the hand of the elders. All elders in office have rule; and none have rule in the church but elders: as such, rule doth belong unto them. The apostles, by virtue of their especial office, were intrusted with all church-power; but therefore they were elders also; 1 Pet. v. 1. 2 John i. 3 John i. See Acts xxi. 17. 1 Tim. v. 17. They are some of them, on other accounts, called bishops, pastors, teachers, ministers, guides, but what belongs unto any of them in point of rule, or what interest they have therein, it belongs unto them as elders, and not otherwise; Acts xx. 17. 28.

So under the Old Testament, where the word doth not signify a difference in age, but is used in a moral sense, elders are the same with rulers or governors, whether in offices civil or ecclesiastical; especially the rulers of the church

were constantly called its elders. And the use of the word, with the abuse of the power or office intended by it, is traduced to signify men in authority ('signiores, eldermani') in all places.

2. Church-power acted in its rule, is called the keys of the kingdom of heaven, by an expression derived from the keys that were a sign of office-power in the families of kings, Isa. xxii. 22. and used by our Saviour himself to denote the communication of church-power unto others, which was absolutely and universally vested in himself under the name of the key of David;' Rev. iii. 7. Matt. xvi. 19.

3. These keys are usually referred unto two heads, namely, the one of order, the other of jurisdiction.

4. By the key of order, the spiritual right, power, and authority of bishops or pastors to preach the word, to administer the sacraments, doctrinally to bind and loose the consciences of men, are intended.

5. By jurisdiction, the rule, government, or discipline of the church is designed, though it was never so called or esteemed in the Scripture or the primitive church, until the whole nature of church-rule or discipline was depraved and changed. Therefore, neither the word, nor any thing that is signified by it, or which it is applied unto, ought to be admitted unto any consideration in the things that belong unto the church or its rule; it being expressive of, and directing unto, that corrupt administration of things ecclesiastical, according unto the canon law, by which all churchrule and order is destroyed. I do therefore at once dismiss all disputes about it, as of things foreign to the gospel and Christian religion, I mean as unto the institutions of Christ in his church. The civil jurisdiction of supreme magistrates about the externals of religion, is of another consideration. But that these keys do include the twofold distinct powers of teaching and rule, of doctrine and discipline, is freely granted.

6. In the church of England (as in that of Rome), there is a peculiar distribution made of these keys. Unto some, that is, unto one special sort or order of men, they are both granted, both the key of order and of jurisdiction; which is unto diocesan bishops, with some others under various canonical restrictions and limitations, as deans and archdeacons.

Unto some is granted the key of order only, without the least interest in jurisdiction or rule by virtue of their office; which are the parochial ministers, or mere presbyters, without any additional title or power, as of commissary surrogates, or the like. And unto a third sort, there is granted the key of rule or jurisdiction almost plenipotent, who have no share in the key of order, that is, were never ordained, separated, dedicated unto any office in the church; such as are the chancellors, &c.

7. These chancellors are the only lay elders that I know any where in any church; that is, persons intrusted with the rule of the church, and the disposition of its censures, who are not ordained unto any church-office; but in all other things continue in the order of the laity or the people. All church rulers, by institution, are elders. To be an elder of the church, and a ruler in it, is all one. Wherefore, these persons being rulers in the church, and yet thus continuing in the order of the people, are lay-elders; whom I wonder how so many of the church came so seriously to oppose, seeing this order of men is owned by none but themselves. The truth is, and it must be acknowledged, that there is no known church in the world (I mean whose order is known unto us, and is of any public consideration), but they do dispose the rule of the church, in part, into the hands of persons who have not the power of authoritative preaching of the word, and administration of the sacraments committed unto them. For even those who place the whole external rule of the church in the civil magistrate, do it, as they judge him an officer of the church, intrusted by Christ with churchpower. And those who deny any such officers as are usually called ruling elders in the reformed churches to be of divine institution, yet maintain that it is very necessary that there should be such officers in the church, either appointed by the magistrate, or chosen by the people, and that with cogent arguments. See Grot. de Jure Potestat. cap.

8. But this distribution mentioned of church-power, is unscriptural; nor is there any footsteps of it in antiquity. It is so as unto the two latter branches of it. That any one should have the power of order to preach the word, to administer the seals, to bind and loose the conscience doctrinally; or ministerially to bind and loose in the court of conscience,