14 But their minds were blinded: a for until this day remained! the same vail untaken
to state that the vail to the view of the Jews of his time was not removed; that th?y still looked to the obscure types and institutions of the Mosaic law rather than on the glory which they were designed to adumbrate; as if they should choose to look on the vail on the face of Moses rather than on the splendour which it concealed. ^ Of that ivhich is abolished. Or rather to be abolished (tou x.'j.rct^ywy.tvcu'), whose nature, design, and intention it was that it should be abolished. It was never designed to be permanent; and Paul speaks of it here as a thing that was known and indisputable that the Mosaic institutions were designed to be abolished.
14. But their minds were blinded. The word here used (pmctmi means rather to harden; to make hard like stone; and then to make dull or stupid. It is applied to the heart, in Mark vi. 52; viii. 17; to persons, in Rom. xi. 7; and to the eyes, in Job xvii. 7. Paul refers here to the fact that the understandings of the Jews were stupid, dull, and insensible, so that they did not see clearly the design and end of their own institutions. He states simply the fact; he does not refer to the cause of it. The fact that the Jews were thus stupid and dull is often affirmed in the New Testament. % For until this day, &c. The sense of this is, that even to the time when Paul wrote, it was a characteristic of the great mass of the Jewish people, that they did not understand the true sense of their own Scriptures. They did not understand its doctrines in regard to the Messiah. A vail seems to be thrown over the Old Testament when they read it, as there was over the face of Moses, so that the glory of their own Scriptures is concealed from their view, as the glory of the face of Moses was hidden. ^ Of the Old Testament. Greek, " of the old covenant." i See this word " testament," or covenant, |
away in the reading of the Old Testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
15 But even unto this day,
explained in the Notes on 1 Cor. xi. 25. This, I believe, is the only instance in which the Scriptures of the Jews are called the "Old Testament," or covenant, in the Bible. It was, of course, not a name which they used, or would use; but it is now with Christians the common appellation. No doubt can be entertained but that Paul uses the terms in the same manner in which we now do, and refers to all the inspired writings of the Jews. 1 Which vail is done away in Christ. In the manifestation, or appearance of Jesus the Messiah, the vail is removed. The obscurity which rested on the prophecies and types of the former dispensation is withdrawn; and as the face of Moses could have been distinctly seen if the vail on his face had been removed, so it is in regard to the true meaning of the Old Testament by the coming of the Messiah. What was obscure is now made clear; and the prophecies are so completely fulfilled in him, that his coming has removed the covering, and shed a clear light over them all. Many of the prophecies, for example, until the Messiah actually appeared, appeared obscure, and almost contradictory. Those which spoke of him, for illustration, as man and as God; as suffering, and yet reigning; as dying, and yet as everliving; as a mighty Prince, a conqueror, and a king, and yet as a man of sorrows; as humble, and yet glorious: all seemed difficult to be reconciled until they were seen to harmonize in Jesus of Nazareth. Then they were plain, and the vail was taken away. Christ is seen to answer all the previous descriptions of him in the Old Testament; and his coming casts a clear light on all which was before obscure.
1 5. But even unto this day. To the time when Paul wrote this epistle, about thirty years after Christ was put to death. But it is still as true as it was
when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
1 6 Nevertheless, when it shall in the time of Paul; and the character and conduct of the Jews now so entirely accords with the description which he gives of them in his time, as to show that he drew from nature, and as to constitute one of the strong incidental proofs that the account in the New Testament is true. Of no other people on earth, probably, would a description be accurate eighteen hundred years after it was made. \ When Moses is read. When the five books of Moses are read, as they were regularly and constantly in their synagogues. See Note on Luke iv. 16. ^ The vail is upon their heart. They do not see the true meaning and beauty of their own Scriptures — a description as applicable to the Jews now as it was to those in the time of Paul.
16. Nevertheless. This is not always to continue. The time is coming when they shall understand their own Scriptures, and see their true beauty. «f When it shall turn to the Lord. When the Jewish people shall be converted. The word "it" here refers undoubtedly to "Israel" in ver. 13; and the sense is, that their blindness is not always to remain; there is to be a period when they shall turn to God, and shall understand his promises, and become acquainted with the true nature of their own religion. This subject the apostle has discussed at much greater length in the eleventh chapter of the epistle to the Romans. See Notes on that chapter, f The vail shall be taken away. They shall then understand the true meaning of the prophecies, and the true nature of their own institutions. They shall see that they refer to the Lord Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, and the true Messiah. The genuine sense of their sacred oracles shall break upon their view with full and irresistible light There may be an allusion in the language here to the declaration
turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. a
17 Now the Lord a is that
in Isa. xxv. 7: "And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations." This verse teaches, (1.) That the time will come when the Jews shall be converted to Christianity; expressed here by their turning unto the Lord, that is, the Lord Jesus. See Note, Acts i. 24. (2.) It seems to be implied that their conversion will be a conversion of the people at large; a conversion that shall be nearly simultaneous; a conversion en masse. Such a conversion we have reason to anticipate of the Jewish nation. (3.) The effect of this will be to make them acquainted with the true sense of their own Scriptures, and the light, and beauty of the sayings of their own prophets. Now they are in deep darkness on the subject; then they will see how entirely they meet and harmonize in the Lord Jesus. (4.) The true and only way of having a correct and full meaning of the Bible is by turning unto God. Love to him, and a disposition to do his will, is the best means of interpreting the Bible.
17. Now the Lord is that Spirit. The word " Lord" here evidently refers to the Lord Jesus. See ver. 16. It may be observed in general in regard to this word, that where it occurs in the New Testament unless the connexion require us to understand it of God, it refers to the Lord Jesus. It was the common name by which he was known. See John xx. 13; xxi. 7. 12. Eph. iv. I. 5. The design of Paul in this verse seems to be to account for the " liberty" which he and the other apostles had, or for the boldness, openness, and plainness (ver. 12) which they evinced in contradistinction from the Jews, who so little understood the nature of their institutions. He had said (ver. 6), that he was a minister " not of the letter, but of the Spirit;" and he had stated that the Old Testament was not understood by the Jews who adhered to the literal interpretation of the Scriptures. He here says, that the Lord Jesus was " the Spirit" to which he referred, and by which he was enabled to understand the Old Testament so as to speak plainly, and without obscurity. The sense is, that Christ was the Spirit; i. e. the sum, the substance of the Old Testament. The figures, types, prophecies, &c. all centered in him, and he was the end of all those institutions. If contemplated as having reference to him, it was easy to understand them. This I take to be the sentiment of the passage, though expositors have been greatly divided in regard to its meaning. Thus explained, it does not mean absolutely and abstractly that the Lord Jesus was " a Spirit," but that he was the sum, the essence, the end, and the purport of the Mosaic rites the spirit of which Paul had spoken in ver. 6, as contradistinguished from the letter of the law. K And where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. This is a general truth designed to illustrate the particular sentiment which he had just advanced. The word "liberty" here (i\ivd-t^iu) refers, I think, to freedom in speaking; the power of speaking openly, and freely, as in ver. 12. It states the general truth, that the effect of the Spirit of God was to give light and clearness of view; to remove obscurity from a subject, and to enable one to see it plainly. This would be a truth that could not be denied by the Jews, who held to the doctrine that the Spirit of God revealed truth, and it must be admitted by all. Under the influence of that Spirit, therefore, Paul says, that he was able to speak with openness, and boldness; that he had a clear view of truth, which the mass of the Jews had not; and that the system of religion which he preached was open, plain, and clear. The word "freedom," would
18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass a the
perhaps, better convey the idea. 'There is freedom from the dark and obscure views of the Jews; freedom from their prejudices, and their superstitions; freedom from the slavery and bondage of sin; the freedom of the children of God, who have clear views of him as their Father and Redeemer, and who are enabled to express those views openly and boldly to the world.'
18. But we all. All Christians. The discussion in the chapter has related mainly to the apostles; but this declaration seems evidently to refer to all Christians, as distinguished from the Jews. Tf With open face. Comp. Note on 1 Cor. xiii. 12. Tindal renders this, " and now the Lord's glory appeareth in us all as in a glass." The sense is, " with unvailed face," alluding to the fact (ver. 13) that the face of Moses was vailed, so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look on it. In contradistinction from that, Paul says that Christians are enabled to look upon the glory of the Lord in the gospel without a vail — without any obscure intervening medium. 1 Beholding as in a glass. On the word glass, and the sense in which it is used in the New Testament, see note on 1 Cor. xiii. 12. The word here used (kxtottt^-, juiva) has been very variously rendered. Macknight renders it, "we all reflecting as mirrors the glory of the Lord." Doddridge, " beholding as by a glass." Locke, "with open countenances as mirrors, reflecting the glory of the Lord." The word K*.ri7rrgi£as occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It properly means to look in a mirror • to behold as in a mirror. The mirrors of the ancients were made of burnished metal, and they reflected images with great brilliancy and distinctness. AnJ the meaning is, that the gospel reflected the glory of the Lord; it was, so f speak, the mirror — the polished, bur nished substance in which the glory o* glory of the Lord, are changed into the same * image from b glory the Lord shone, and where that glory was irradiated and reflected so that it might be seen by Christians. There was no vail over it; no obscurity; nothing to break its dazzling splendour, or to prevent its meeting the eye. Christians, by looking on the gospel, could see the glorious perfections and plans of God as bright, and clear, and brilliant as they could see a light reflected from the burnished surface of the mirror. So to speak, the glorious perfections of God shone from heaven; beamed upon the gospel, and were thence reflected to the eye and the heart of the Christian, and had the effect of transforming them into the same image. This passage is one of great beauty, and is designed to set forth the gospel as being the reflection of the infinite glories of God to the minds and hearts of men. % The glory of the Lord. The splendour, majesty, and holiness of God as manifested in the gospel, or of the Lord as incarnate. The idea is, that God was clearly and distinctly seen in the gospel. There was no obscurity, no vail, as in the case of Moses. In the gospel they were permitted to look on the full splendour of the divine perfections— the justice, goodness, mercy, and benevolence of God — to see him as he is with undimmed and unvailed glory. The idea is, that the perfections of God shine forth with splendour and beauty in the gospel, and that we are permitted to look on them clearly and openly, t Are changed into the same image. It is possible that there may be an allusion here to the effect which was produced by looking into an ancient mirror. Such mirrors were made of burnished metal, and the reflection from them would be intense. If a strong light were thrown on them, the rays would be cast by reflection on the face of him who looked on the mirror, and it would be strongly illuminated. And the idea may be, that the glory of God, 6*
to glory even as ■ by the Spirit of the Lord.
the splendour of the divine perfections, was thrown on the gospel, so to speak, like a bright light on a polished mirror; and that that glory was reflected from the gospel on him who contemplated it, so that he appeared to be transformed into the same image. Locke renders it, " We are changed into his very image by a continued succession of glory, as it were, streaming upon us from the Lord." The figure is one of great beauty; and the idea is, that by placing ourselves within the light of the gospel; by contemplating the glory that shines there, we become changed into the likeness of the same glory, and conformed to that which shines there with so much splendour. By contemplating the resplendent face of the blessed Redeemer, we are changed into something of the same image. It is a law of our nature that we are moulded, in our moral feelings, by the persons with whom we associate, and by the objects which we contemplate. We become insensibly assimilated to those with whom we have intercourse, and to the objects with which we are familiar. We imbibe the opinions, we copy the habits, we imitate the manners, we fall into the customs of those with whom we have daily conversation, and whom we make our companions and friends. Their sentiments insensibly become our sentiments, and their ways our ways. It is thus with the books with which we are familiar. We are insensibly, but certainly moulded into conformity to the opinions, maxims, and feelings which are there expressed. Our own sentiments undergo a gradual change, and we are likened to those with which in this manner we are conversant. So it is in regard to the opinions and feelings which from any cause we are in the habit of bringing before our minds. It is the way by which men become corrupted in their sentiments and feelings in their contact with the world; it is the way in which amusements, and the company of the gay and the dissipated possess so much power; it is the way in which the young and inexperienced are heguiled and ruined; and it is the way in which Christians dim the lustre of their piety, and obscure the brightness of their religion by their contact with the gay and fashionable world. — And it is on the same great principle that Paul says that by contemplating the glory of God in the gospel, we become insensibly, but certainly conformed to the same image, and made like the Redeemer. His image will be reflected on us. We shall imbibe his sentiments, catch his feelings, and be moulded into the image of his own purity. Such is the great and wise law of our nature; and it is on this principle, and by this means, that God designs we should be made pure on earth, and kept pure in heaven forever. 1 From glory to glory. From one degree of glory to another. " The more we behold this brilliant and glorious light, the more do we reflect back its rays; that is, the more we contemplate the great truths of the Christian religion, the more do our minds become imbued with its spirit." — Bloomfield. This is said in contradistinction probably to Moses. The splendour on his face gradually died away. But not so with the light reflected from the gospel. It becomes deeper and brighter constantly.— This sentiment is parallel to that expressed by the psalmist: " They go from strength to strength" (Ps. lxxxiv. 7); i. e. they go from one degree of strength to another, or one degree of holiness to another, until they come to the full vision of God himself in heaven. The idea in the phrase before us is, that there is a continual increase of moral purity and holiness under the gospel until it results in the perfect glory of heaven. The doctrine is, that Christians advance in piety; and that this is done by the contemplation of the glory of God as it is revealed in the gospel. Tf As by the Spirit of the Lord. Marg. "Of the Lord of the Spirit." Gr. "As frorr the Lord the Spirit."
So Beza, Locke, Wolf, Rosenmiiller, and Doddridge render it. The idea is, that it is by the Lord Jesus Christ the spirit of the law, the spirit referred to by Paul above, ver. 6. 17. It is done by the Holy Spirit procured or imparted by the Lord Jesus. This sentiment is in accordance with that which prevails everywhere in the Bible, that it is by the Holy Spirit alone that the heart is changed and purified. And the object of the statement here is, doubtless, to prevent the supposition that the change from " glory to glory" was produced in any sense by the mere contemplation of truth, or by any physical operation of such contemplation on the mind. It was by the Spirit of God alone that the heart was changed even under the gospel, and amidst the full blaze of its truth. Were it not for his agency, even the contemplation of the glorious truths of the gospel would be in vain, and would produce no saving effect on the human heart.
1. The best of all evidences of a call to the office of the ministry is the divine blessing resting on our labours, ver. 1, 2. If sinners are converted; if souls are sanctified; if the interests of pure religion are advanced; if by humble, zeal ous, and self-denying efforts, a man is enabled so to preach as that the divine blessing shall rest constantly on his labours, it is among the best of all evidences that he is called of God, and is approved by him. And though it may be true, and is true, that men who are self-deceived, or are hypocrites are sometimes the means of doing good, yet it is still true, as a general rule, that eminent, and long-continued success in the ministry is an evidence of God's acceptance, and that he has called a minister to this office. Paul felt this, and often appealed to it; and why may not others also?
2. A minister may appeal to the effect of the gospel among his own people as a proof that it is from God. ver. 2, 3. Nothing else would produce such effects as were produced at Corinth, but the power of God. If the wicKed are reclaimed; if the intemperate and licentious are made temperate and pure; if.he dishonest are made honest; and the *coffer learns to pray, under the gospel, »t proves that it is from God. To such effects a minister may appeal as proof lhat the gospel which he preaches is from heaven. A system which will produce these effects must be true.
3. A minister should so live among a people as to be able to appeal to them with the utmost confidence in regard to the purity and integrity of his own character, ver. 1, 2. He should so live, and preach, and act, that he will be under no necessity of adducing testimonials from abroad in regard to his character. The effect of his gospel, and the tenor of his life, should be his best testimonial; and to that he should be able to appeal. A man who is under a necessity, constantly, or often, of defending his own character; of bolstering it up by testimonials from abroad; who is obliged to spend much of his time in defending his reputation, or who chooses to spend much of his time in defending it, has usually a character and reputation not Worth defending. Let a man live as he ought to, and he will, in the end, have a good reputation. Let him strive to do the will of God, and save souls, and he will have all the reputation which he ought to have. God will take care of his character; and will give him just as much reputation as it is desirable that he should have. See Ps. xxxvii. 5, 6.
4. The church is, as it were, an epistle sent by the Lord Jesus, to show his character and will. ver. 3. It is his representative on earth. It holds his truth. It is to imitate his example. It is to show how he lived. And it is to accomplish that which he would accomplish were he personally on earth, and present among men — as a letter is designed to accomplish some important purpose of the writer when absent. The church, therefore, should be such as shall appropriately express the will and desire of the Lord Jesus. It should resemble him. It should hold his truth; and it should devote itself with untiring diligence to the great purpose of advancing his designs, and spreading his gospel around the world.
5. Religion has its seat in the heart. ver. 3. It is engraven there. It is written not with ink, or engraven on stone, but it is written by the Spirit of God on the heart. That professed religion, therefore, which does not reach the heart, and which is not felt there, is false and delusive. There is no true religion which does not reach and affect the heart.
6. We should feel our dependence on God in all things, ver. 5. We are dependent on him, (1.) For revelation itself. Man had no power of originating the truths which constitute revelation. They are the free and pure gift of God. (2.) For success in saving souls. God only can change the heart. It is not done by human reasoning; by any power of man; by any eloquence of persuasion. It is by the power of God; and if a minister of religion meets with any success, it will be by the presence and by the power of God alone. (3.) We are dependent on him for the power of thought at all; for clearness of intellect; for such a state of bodily health as to permit us to think; for bright conceptions; for ability to arrange oui thoughts; for the power of expressing them clearly; for such a state of mind as shall be free from vain fancies, and vagaries, and eccentricities; and for such a state as shall mark our plans as those of common sense and prudence. On such plans much of the comfort of life depends; and on such plans depends also nearly all the success which men ever meet with in amy virtuous and honourable calling. And if men felt, as they should do, how much they are dependent on God for the power of clear thinking, and for the characteristics of sound sense in their schemes, they would pray for it more than they do; and would be more grateful that such a rich blessing is so extensively conferred on men.
7. Religion has a living power, ver. 6. It is not the letter, but the spirt. It is not made up of forms and ceremonies. It does not consist in»cold, external rites, however regular they may be; nor in formal prayer, or in stated seasons of devotion. All these will be dead and vain unless the heart is given to God, and to his service. If these are all, there is no religion. And if we have no better religion than that, we should at once abandon our hopes, and seek for that which does not kill, but which makes alive.
8. The office of the ministers of the gospel is glorious, and most honourable, ver. 7 — 9. It is far more honourable than was the office of Moses; and their work is far more glorious than was his. His consisted in giving the law on tables of stone; in the external splendour which attended its promulgation; and in introducing a system which must be soon done away. His was a ministry " of death" and of " condemnation." Theirs is a ministration by which the Holy Spirit is communicated to men — through them as channels, or organs by which the saving grace of that Spirit is imparted; it is a work by which men are made righteous, justified, and accepted; it is a work whose effects are never to fade away, but which are to live amidst the splendours of heaven.
9. The responsibility and solemnity of the work of the ministry. It was a solemn and responsible work for Moses to give the law amidst the thunders of Sinai to the children of Israel. It is much more solemn to be the medium by which the eternal truths of the gospel are made known to men. The one, imposing as it was, was designed to be temporary, and was soon to pass away. The other is to be eternal in its effects, and is to enter vitally and deeply into the eternal destiny of man. The one pertained to laws written on stone; the other to influences that are deeply and forever to affect the heart. No work can be more solemn and responsible than that through which the Holy Spirit, with renewing and sanctifying power, is conveyed to man; that which is connected with the justification of sinners; and that which in its effects is to be permanent as the soul itself, and to endure as long as God shall exist.
10. We see the folly of attempting to be justified by the law. ver. 7. 9. It is the ministration of death and of condemnation. It speaks only to condemn. Law knows nothing of pardon. It is not given for that purpose; and no perfect law can contain within itself provisions for pardon. Besides, no one has ever complied with all the demands of the law; no one ever will. All have sinned. But if all the demands of the law be not complied with, it speaks only to condemn. James ii. 10. If a man in other respects has been ever so good a citizen, and yet has committed murder, he must die. So says the law. If a man has been ever so valiant, and fought ever so bravely, and yet is guilty of an act of treason, he must die. The question is not what he has been in other respects, or what else he may, or may not have done, but has he committed this offence 1 If he has, the law knows no forgiveness; and pronounces his condemnation. If pardoned, it must be by some other system than by the regular operation of law. So with the sinner against God. If the law is violated, it speaks only to condemn. If he is pardoned, it can be only by the gospel of Jesus Christ.
11. The danger of grieving the Holy Spirit, ver. 8. The gospel is the field of the operations of the Holy Spirit in our world. It is the ministration of the Spirit. It is the channel by which his influences descend on man. To reject that gospel is to reject Him, and to cut off the soul from all possibility of being brought under his saving influence and power forever. He strives with men only in connexion with the gospel; and all hope, therefore, of being brought under his saving power, is in attending to that gospel, and embracing its provisions. The multitudes, therefore, who are rejecting or neglecting that gospel, are throwing themselves beyond his saving influences; and placing themselves beyond the possibility of salvation.
or rejecting the gospel. It is the scheme, and the only scheme for pardon, ver. 8 — 10. It is a far more glorious manifestation of the goodness of God than the law of Moses. It is the glorious and benevolent manifestation of God through the incarnation, the sufferings, and the death of his Son. It is the only plan of pardoning mercy that has been, or that will be revealed. If men are not pardoned through that, they are not pardoned at all. If they are not saved by that, they must die forever. What guilt is there, therefore, in neglecting and despising it! What folly is there in turning away from its provisions of mercy, and neglecting to secure an interest in what it provides!
13. The gospel is to spread around the world, and endure to the end of time. ver. 11. It is not like the institutions of Moses, to endure for a limited period, and then to be done away. The cloud and tempest; the thunder "and lightning on Mount Sinai which attended the giving of the law, soon disappeared. The unusual and unnatural splendour on the countenance of Moses soon vanished away. All the magnificence of the Mosaic ritual also soon faded away. But not so the gospel. That abides. That is the last dispensation; the permanent economy; that under which the affairs of the world are to be brought to an end. That is to pervade all lands; to bless all people; to survive all revolutions; to outlive all the magnificence of courts, and all the splendour of mighty dynasties, and is to endure till this world shall come to an end, and live in its glorious effects forever and ever. It is, therefore, to be the fixed principle on which all Christians are to act, that the gospel is to be permanent, and is to spread over all lands, and yet fill all nations with joy. And if so, how fervent and unceasing should be their prayers and efforts to accomplish this great and glorious result!
14 We learn from this chapter the duty of preaching in a plain, simple, intelligible manner, ver. 12. Preaching should always be characterized indeed by good sense, and ministers should show that they are not fools, and their preaching should be such as to interest thinking men — for there is no folly or nonsense in the Bible. But their preaching should not be obscure, metaphysical, enigmatical, and abstruse. It should be so simple that the unlettered may learn the plan of salvation; so plain that no one shall mistake it except by his own fault. The hopes of the gospel are so clear that there is no need of ambiguity or enigma; no need of abstruse metaphysical reasoning in the pulpit. Nor should there be an %ttempt to appear wise or profound, by studying a dry, abstruse, and cold style and manner. The preacher should be open, plain, simple, sincere; he should testify what he feels; should be able to speak as himself animated by hope, and to tell of a world of glory to which he is himself looking forward with unspeakable
15. It is the privilege of the Christian to look on the unvailed and unclouded glory of the gospel, ver. 12, 13. He does not look at it through types and shadows. He does not contemplate it when a vail of obscurity is drawn designedly over it. He sees it in its true beauty and splendour. The Messiah has come, and he may contemplate openly and plainly his glory, and the grandeur of his work. The Jews looked upon it in the light of prophecy,• to us it is history. They saw it only through obscure shadows, types, and figures; we see it in open day, may survey at leisure its full beauty, and contemplate in the fulness of its splendour the gospel of the blessed God. For this we cannot be too thankful; nor can we be too anxious lest we undervalue our privileges, and abuse the mercies that we enjoy.
16. In reading the Old Testament, we see the importance of suffering the reflected light of the New Testament to be thrown upon it, in order correctly to understand it. ver. 13, 14. It is our privilege to know what the institutions of Moses meant; to see the end which he contemplated. And it is our privilege to see what they referred to, and how they prefigured the Messiah, and his gospel. In reading the Old Testament, therefore, there is no reason why we should not take with us the knowledge which we have derived from the New, respecting the character, work, and doctrines of the Messiah; and to suffer them to influence our understanding of the laws and institutions of Moses. Thus shall we treat the Bible as a whole, and allow one part to throw light on another — a privilege which we always concede to any book. There is no reason why Ghristians in reading the Old Testament should remain in the same darkness as the ancient, or the modern Jews.
17. Thus read, the Old Testament will be to us of inestimable value, ver. 14. It is of value not only as introducing the gospel; as furnishing predictions whose fulfilment are full demonstration of the truth of religion; as containing specimens of the sublimest and purest poetry in the world; but it is of value as embodying, though amidst many types and shadows and much obscurity, all the great doctrines of the true religion. Though to the Jews, and to the world, there is a vail cast over it; yet to the Christian there is a beauty and splendour on all its pages — for the coming of Christ has removed that vail, and the sense of those ancient writings is now fully seen. True piety will value the Old Testament, and will find there, in the sweetest poetry in the world, the expression of feelings which the religion of the Messiah only can produce; and pure and elevated thoughts which could have been originated by nothing but his anticipated coming. It is no mark of piety or of wisdom to disparage the Jewish Scriptures. But the higher the attainments in Christian feeling, the more will the writings of Moses and the prophets be loved.
18. Men may have the Bible, and may read it long, and much, and yet not understand it. ver. 1 5. So it was, and is with the Jews. The Scriptures were attentively read by them, and yet they did not understand them. So it is still. There is a vail on their heart, and they are blinded. So it is often now with others. Men often read the Bible, and see little beauty in it. They read, and they do not understand it. The reason is, the heart is not right. There should be a correspondence of feeling between the heart and the Bible, or a congeniality of view in order to appreciate its value and its truth. No man can understand or appreciate Milton or Cowper who has not a taste like theirs. No man can understand and appreciate a poem or an e^say on patriotism, who is not a lover of his country; or on chastity, who is impure; or on temperance, who is intemperate; or on virtue in general, who is a stranger to virtue in every form. And so in reading the Bible. To appreciate and understand fully the writings of David, Isaiah, Paul, or John, we must have their feelings; our hearts must glow with their love to God and the Redeemer; we must feel as they did the guilt and burden of sin; and we must rejoice as they did in the hope of deliverance, and in the prospect of heaven. Till men have these feelings, they are not to wonder that the Bible is to them a dead letter, or a sealed book, and that they do not understand it, or see any beauty in its pages.
19. This chapter furnishes an argument for the fidelity and truth of the statement of Paul. ver. 15. The argument is, that his description is as applicable to the Jews now as it was in his own time — and that, therefore, it must have been drawn from nature. The same vail is on their hearts now as in his time; there is the same blindness and darkness in regard to the true meaning of their Scriptures. The language of Paul will accurately express that blindness now; and his description therefore is not drawn from fancy, but from fact. It is true now in regard to that singular people, and it was true in his own time; and the lapse of eighteen hundred years has only served to confirm the truth of his description in regard to the people of his own nation and time.
20. That veil is to be removed only by their turning to God. ver. 16. It is only by true conversion that the mind can be brought to a full and clear understanding of the Scriptures; and that event will yet take place in regard to the Jews. They shall yet be converted to the Messiah whom their fathers slew, and whom they have so long rejected; and when that event shall occur, they shall see the beauty of their own Scriptures, and rejoice in the promises and glorious hopes which they hold out to the view.
?l. The duty of meditating much on the glory of the gospel, ver. 18. It is by that we are purified. It is by keeping it constantly before the mind; dwelling on its splendour; thinking of its glorious truths, that we become transformed into the same image, and made like God. If the character is formed by the objects which we contemplate, and with which we are familiar; if we are insensibly moulded in our feelings and principles by that with which we constantly associate, then we should think much of the truths of the gospel. We should pray much — for thus we come in contact with God and his truth. We should read the Scripture much. We should commune with the good and the pure. We should make our companions of those who most love the Lord Jesus, and most decidedly bear his image. We should think much of a pure heaven. Thus shall we be moulded, insensibly it may be, but certainly, into the image of a holy God and Saviour, and be prepared for a pure and holy heaven.
This chapter is intimately connected with the preceding, and is indeed merely a statement of the consequences or results of the doctrine advanced there. In that chapter, Paul had stated the clearness and plainness of the gospel as have received a mercy, we famt not;
contrasted with the institutions of Mcses, and particularly that the Christian ministry was a ministration more glorious than that of Moses. It was more clear It was a ministration of justification (ver. 9), and of the Spirit (ver. 8), and was a ministration where they were permitted to look upon the unvailed and unclouded glories of God. ver. 18. In this chapter he states some of the consequences, or results of their being called to thii* ministry; and the design is, to magnify the office of the ministry, to show the sustaining power of the truths which they preached; the interest which the Corinthian Christians arid all other Christians had in the ministry, and thus to conciliate their favour; and to show what there was to comfort them in the various trials to which as ministers they were exposed. Paul states therefore in this chapter,
1. That these clear and elevated views of the gospel sustained him; kept him from fainting; preserved him from deceit and all improper acts; made him open and honest; since he had no necessity for craft and guilt, but proclaimed a system of religion which could be commended to every man's conscience, and be seen to be true. ver. 1, 2.
2. That if any persons were lost, it was not the fault of the gospel, ver. 3, 4. That was clear, open, plain, glorious, and might be understood; and if they were lost, it was to be traced to the malign influence of the god of this world, and not to the gospel.
3. That the great purpose of Paul and his associates was to make known this clear and glorious truth of the gospel, and that, therefore, the apostles did not preach themselves, but Christ Jesus, the revealer and source of all this glory, ver. 5, 6. Their sole object was to show forth this pure and glorious light of the gospel.
4. That it was so arranged by God's appointment and providence that all the glory of the lesults of the ministry should be bis. ver. 7 — 11. He had taken especial care that they should have no cause of self-exultation or glorying in preaching the gospel; and had taken effectual means that they should be humbled, and not lifted up with pride from the fact that they were commissioned to make known such glorious truths, and had a ministry more honourable than that of Moses. He had, therefore, committed the treasure to earthen vessels; to frail, weak, dying men, and to men in humble life (ver. 7), and he had called them to submit to constant trials of persecution, poverty, peril, and want, in order that they might be humbled, and that God might manifestly have all the glory, ver. 8 —11.
5. All this was for the sake of the church, a fact which was adapted to conciliate the favour of Christians, and excite their sympathy in the sufferings of the apostles, and to lead them to honour the ministry in a proper manner, ver. 12 — 15. It was not for their own welfare, happiness, honour, or emolument that they endured these trials in the ministry; it was that the church might be benefited, and thus abundant praise redound to God.
6. These considerations sustained them in their trials, ver. 16 — 18. They had comfort in all their afflictions. They felt that they were doing and suffering these things for the salvation of souls, and the glory of God (ver. 16); they had inward strength given them every day, though the outward man perished (ver. 16); they knew that the result of this would be an eternal weight of glory (ver. 17); and they were enabled to look to another and a better world; to keep the eye on heaven, and to contemplate by faith the things which were unseen and eternal, ver. 18. These things supported them; and thus upheld, they went cheerfully to their great work, and met with calmness and joy all the trials which it involved.
1. Therefore (Aia tovto). On account of this. That is, because the light of the gospel is so clear; because it reveals so glorious truths, and all obscurity is taken away, and we are permitted to behold as in a mirror the glory of the Lord. ch. iii. 18. Since the glories of the gospel dispensation are so great, and its effects on the heart are so transforming and purifying. The object is, to show the effect of being intrusted with such a ministry, on the character of his preaching. ^ Seeing we have this ministry. The gospel ministry, so much more glorious than that of Moses (ch. iii. 6); which is the ministry by which the Holy Spirit acts on the hearts of men (ch. iii. 8); which is the ministry of that system by which men are justified (ch. iii. 9); and which is the ministry of a system so pure and unclouded, ch. iii. 9 — 11. 18. % As we have received mercy. Tindal renders this, " even as mercy is sure in us." The idea is, that it was by the mere mercy and favour of God, that he had been intrusted with the ministry, and the object of Paul is doubtless to prevent the appearance of arrogance and selfconfidence by stating that it was to be traced entirely to God that he was put into the ministry. He doubtless had his eye on the fact that he had been a persecutor and blasphemer; and that it was by the mere favour of God that he had been converted and intrusted with the ministry. 1 Tim. i. 13. Nothing will more effectually humble a minister, and prevent his assuming any arrogant and self-confident airs, than to look over his past life; especially if his life was one of blasphemy, vice, or infidelity; and to remember that it is by the mere mercy of God that he is intrusted with the high office of an ambassador of Jesus Christ. Paul never forgot to trace his hope, his appointment to the ministerial office, and his success, to the mere grace of God. ^ We faint not This is one of the effects of being intrusted with such a ministry. The word here used (ixxuitovfAfv) means properly, to turn out a coward; to lose one's courage; then to be faint-hearted, to faint, to despond, in view of trial, difficulty, &c. — Robinson. Here it means, that by the mercy of God, he
2 But have renounced the hidden things of \ dishonesty, not
wis not disheartened by the difficulties which he met; his faith and zeal did not flag; he was enabled to be faithful, and laborious, and his courage always kept up, and his mind was filled with cheerfulness. See Note on ch. ii. 14. He was deterred by no difficulties; embarrassed by no opposition; driven from his purpose by no persecution; and his strength did not fail under any trials. The consciousness of being intrusted with such a ministry animated him; and the mercy and grace of God sustained him.
2. But have renounced (dTra^-a^eS-a, from tiro and uttov). The word means properly to speak out or off; to refuse or deny; to interdict or forbid. Here it means, to renounce, or disown; to spurn, or scorn with aversion. It occurs nowhere else in the New Testament; and the sense here is, that the apostles had such a view of the truth of religion, and the glory of the Christian scheme (ch. iii. 13 — 18), as to lead them to discard every thing that was disguised, and artful, and crafty; every thing like deceit and fraud. The religions of the heathen were made up mainly of trick, and were supported by dec eption practised on the ignorant, and on the mass of men. Paul says, that he and his fellow-labourers had such views of the truth, and glory, and holiness of the Christian scheme, as to lead them solemnly to abjure and abhor all such dishonest tricks and devices. Truth never needs such arts; and no cause will long succeed by mere trick and cunning. \ The hidden things of dishonesty. Marg. shame. The Greek word most commonly means shame, or disgrace. The hidden things of shame here mean disgraceful conduct; clandestine and secret arts, which were in themselves shameful and disgraceful. They denote all underhanded dealings; all dishonest artifices and plans, such as were common among the heathen, and walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, a such probably as the false teachers adopted in the propagation of their opinions at Corinth. The expression here does not imply that the apostles ever had any thing to do with such arts; but that they solemnly abjured and abhorred them. Religion is open, plain, straight-forward. It has no alliance with cunning, and trick, and artifice. It should be defended openly; stated clearly; and urged with steady argument. It is a work of light, and not of darkness, f Not walking in craftiness. Not acting craftily; not behaving in a crafty manner. The word here used (jrwovgyix., from irav, all, i§yw, work, i. e. doing every thing, or capable of doing any thing) denotes shrewdness, cunning, and craft. This was common; and this was probably practised by the false teachers in Corinth. With this Paul says he had nothing to do. He did not adopt a course of carnal wisdom and policy (Note, ch. i. 12); he did not attempt to impose upon them, or to deceive them; or to make his way by subtle and deceitful arts. True religion can never be advanced by trick and craftiness. "J Nor handling the word of God deceitfully (Joxovvrt;). Not falsifying; or deceitfully corrupting or disguising the truth of God. The phrase seems to be synonymous with that used in ch. ii. 1'*', and rendered "corrupt the word of God." See Note on that verse. It properly means to falsify, adulterate, corrupt, by Jewish traditions, &c. (Robinson, Bloomfield, Doddridge, &c); or it may mean, as in our translation, to handle in a deceitful manner; to make use of trick and art in propagating and defending it. Tindal renders it, " neither corrupt we the word of God." ^ But by manifestation of the truth. By making the truth manifest; i. e. by a simple exhibition of the truth. By stating it just as it is, in an undisguised and open manner. Not by adulterating it with foreign mixtures; not by mingling it with philosophy, or traditions; not by blunting its edge, or concealing any thing, or explaining it away; but by an open, plain, straight-forward exhibition of it as it is in Jesus. Preaching should consist in a simple exhibition of the truth. There is no deceit in the gospel itself; and there should be none in the manner of exhibiting it. It should consist of a simple statement of things as they are. The whole design of preaching is, to make known the truth. And this is done in an effectual manner only when it is simple, open, undisguised, without craft, and without deceit. ^ Commending ourselves to every man's conscience. That is, so speaking the truth that every man's conscience shall approve it as true; every man shall see it to be true, and to be in accordance with what he knows to be right. Conscience is that faculty of the mind which distinguishes between right and wrong, and which prompts us to choose the former and avoid the latter. John viii. 9. Note Rom. ii. 15. 1 Cor. x. 25. 27—29. 2 Cor. i. 12. It is implied here, (1.) That a course of life, and a manner of preaching that shall be free from dishonesty, and art, and trick, will be such as the consciences of men will approve. Paul sought such a course of life as should accord with their sense of right, and thus serve to commend the gospel to them. (2.) That the gospel may be so preached as to be seen by men to be true; so as to be approved as right; and so that every man's conscience shall bear testimony to its truth. Men do not love it, but they may see that it is true; they may hate it, but they may see that the truth which condemns their practices is from heaven. This is an exceedingly important principle in regard to preaching, and vastly momentous in its bearing on the views which ministers should have of their own work. The gospel is reasonable. It may be seen to be true by every man o whom it is preached. And it should be the aim of every preacher so to preach it, as to enlist the consciences of his hearers in his favour. And it is a very material fact that when so preached the conscience and reason of every man is in its favour, and they know that it is true even when it pronounces their own condemnation, and denounces their own sins. This passage proves, therefore, the following things. (1.^ That the gospel may be so preached as to be seen to be true by all men. Men are capable of seeing the truth, and even when they do not love it, they can perceive that it has demonstration that it is from God. It is a system so reasonable; so well established by evidence; so fortified by miracles, and the fulfilment of prophecies; so pure in its nature; so well-adapted to man; so fitted to his condition, and so well designed to make him better; and so happy in its influence on society, that men may be led to see that it is true. And this I take to be the case with almost all those who habitually attend on the preaching of the gospel. Infidels do not often visit the sanctuary; and when they are in the habit of doing it, it is a fact that they gradually come to the conviction that the Christian religion is true. It is rare to find professed infidels in our places of worship; and the great mass of those who attend on the preaching of the gospel may be set down as speculative believers in the truth of Christianity. (2.) The consciences of men are on the side of truth, and the gospel may be so preached as to enlist their consciences in its favour. Conscience prompts to do right, and condemns us if we do wrong. It can never be made to approve of wrong, never to give a man peace if he does that which he knows to be evil. By no art or device; by no system of laws, oi bad government; by no training or discipline, can it be made the advocate of sin. In all lands, at all times, -and in all circumstances, it prompts a man to do what is right, and condemns him if he does wrong. It may be silenced for man's conscience in the sight of God.
a time; it may be * seared as with a hot iron" and for a time be insensible, but if it speak at all, it speaks to prompt a man to do what he believes to be light, and condemns him if he does that which is wrong. The consciences of men are on the side of the gospel; and it is only their hearts which are opposed to it. Their consciences are in favour of the gospel in the following, among other respects, (a) They approve of it as a just, pure, holy, and reasonable system; as in accordance with what they feel to be right; as recommending that which ought to be done, and forbidding that which ought not to be done. (Z>) In its special requirements on themselves. Their consciences tell them that they ought to love God with all the heart; to repent of their sins; to trust in that Saviour who died for them; and to lead a life of prayer and of devotedness to th* service of God; that they ought to be sincere and humble Christians, and prepare to meet God in peace, (c) Their consciences approve the truth that condemns them. No matter how strict it may seem to be; no matter how loud its denunciation against their sins; no matter how much the gospel may condemn their pride, avarice, sensuality, levity, dishonesty, fraud, intemperance, profaneness, blasphemy, or their neglect of their soul, yet their consciences approve of it as right, and proclaim that these things ought to be condemned, and ought to be abandoned. The heart may love them, but the conscience cannot be made to approve them. And the minister of the gospel may always approach his people, or an individual man, with the assurance that however much they may love the ways of sin, yet that he has their consciences in his favour, and that in urging the claims of God on them, their consciences will always coincide with his appeals. (3.) The way in which a minister is to commend himself to the consciences of men, is that which was pursued by
3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them a that are lost:
Paul. He must (a) Have a clear and unwavering conviction of the truth himself. On this subject he should have no doubt. He should be able to look on it as on a burnished mirror (Note, ch. iii. 18); and to see its glory as with open face, (b) It should be by the simple statement of the truth of the gospel. Not by preaching philosophy, or metaphysics, or the traditions of man, or the sentiments of theologians, but the simple truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Men may be made to see that these are truths, and God will take care that the reason and consciences of men shall be in their favour, (c) By the absence of all trick and cunning, and disguised and subtle arts. The gospel has nothing of these in itself, and it will never approve of them, nor will God bless them. A minister of Jesus should be frank, open, undisguised, and candid. He should make a sober and elevated appeal to the reason and conscience of man. The gospel is not " a cunningly devised fable;" it has no trick in itself, and the ministers of religion should solemnly abjure all the hidden things of dishonesty, f 1>1 the sight of God. As in the immediate presence of God. We act as if we felt that his eye was upon us; and this consideration serves to keep us from the hidden things of dishonesty, and from improper arts in spreading the true religion. See Note on ch. ii. 17.
3. But if our gospel be hid. Paul here calls it his gospel, because it was that which he preached, or the message which he bore. See Note, Rom. xvi. 25. The sense here is, 'if the gospel which I preach is not understood; if its meaning is obscure or hidden; if its glory is not seen.' It is implied here, that to many the beauty and glory of the gospel was not perceived. This was undeniable, notwithstanding the plainness and fulness with which its truths were made known. The object. o Paul here is, to state that this fact
4 In whom the god a of this world hath blinded the minds of
was not to be traced to any want of clearness in the gospel itself, but to other causes, and thus probably to meet an objection which might be made to his argument about the clearness and fulness of the revelation in the gospel. In the language which Paul uses here, there is undoubted allusion to what he had said respecting Moses, who put a vail on his face. ch. iii. 13. He had hid, or concealed his face, as emblematic of the nature of his institutions (Note, ch. iii. 14.); and here Paul says that it was not to be denied that the gospel was vailed also to some. But it was not from the nature of the gospel. It was not because God had purposely concealed its meaning. It was not from any want of clearness in itself. It was to be traced to other causes. 1 It is hid to them that are lost. On the meaning of the word here rendered "lost," see Note, ch. ii. 15, there rendered " perish." It is hid among them who are about to perish; who are perishing (tv T6?f djroxxu//4v«c); those who deserve to perish. It is concealed only among that class who may be designated as the perishing, or as the lost. Grotius explains this, " those who deserve to perish, who foster their vices, and will not see the truth which condemns those vices." And he adds, that this might very well be, for, " however conspicuous the gospel was hi itself, yet like the aun it would not be visible to the blind.'' The cause was not in the gospel, but jn themselves. This verse teaches, therefore, ( 1.) That the beauty of the gospel may be hidden from many of the human family. This is a matter of simple fact. There are thousands and millions to whom it is preached who see no beauty in it, and who regard it as foolishness. (2.) That there is a class of men who may be called, even now, the lost. They are lost to virtue, to piety, to happiness, to hope. They deserve to perish; and they are hastening to merited ruin. This class in the time of Paul was large; and it is large now. It is composed of those to whom the gospel is hidden, or to whom it appears to be vailed, and who see no beauty in it. It is made up in- ' deed of all the profane, polluted, and vile; but their characteristic feature is, that the gospel is hidden from them, and that they see no beauty and glory in it (3.) This is not the fault of the gospel. It is not the fault of the sun when men shut their eyes and will not see it. It is not the fault of a running stream, or a bubbling fountain, if men will not drink of it, but rather choose to die of thirst. The gospel does not obscure and conceal its own glory any more than the sun does. It is in itself a clear and full revelation of God and his grace; and that glory is adapted to shed light upon the benighted minds of men.
4. In whom. In respect to whom, among whom; or in whose hearts. The design of this verse is to account for the fact that the glory of the gospel was not seen by them. It is to be traced entirely to the agency of him whom Paul here calls " the god of this world." ^ The god of this icorld. There can be nc doubt that Satan is here designated by this appellation; though some of the fathers supposed that it means the true God, and Clarke inclines to this opinion. In John xii. 31, he is called "the prince of this world." In Eph. ii. 2, he is called " the prince of the power of the air." And in Eph. vi. 12, the same bad influence is referred to under the names of " principalities, and powers," " the rulers of the darkness of this world," and "spiritual wickedness in high places." The name " god" is here given to him, not because he has any divine attributes, but because he actually has the homage of the men of this world as their god, as the being who is really worshipped, or who has the affections of their hearts in the same way as it is given to idols. By " this world" is meant the wicked world; or the mass of men. He has dominion over the world. They obey his will;
them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of they execute his plans; they further his purposes, and they are his obedient subjects. He had subdued the world to himself, and was really adored in the place of the true God. See Note on 1 Cor. x. 20. " They sacrificed to devils and not to God." Here it is meant by the declaration that Satan is the god of this world, (1.) That the world at large was under his control and direction. He secured the apostasy of man, and early brought him to follow his plans; and he has maintained his sceptre and dominion since. No more abject submission could be desired by him than has been rendered by the mass of men. (2.) The idolatrous world particularly is under his control, and subject to him. 1 Cor. x. 20. He is worshipped there; and the religious rites and ceremonies of the heathen are in general just such as a mighty being who hated human happiness, and who sought pollution, obscenity, wretchedness, and blood would appoint; and over all the heathen world his power is absolute. In the time of Paul all the world, except the Jews and Christians, was sunk in heathen degradation. (3.) He rules in the hearts and lives of all wicked men — and the world is full of wicked men. They obey him, and submit to his will in executing fraud, and rapine, and piracy, and murder, and adultery, and lewdness; in wars and fightings; in their amusements and pastimes; in dishonesty and falsehood. The dominion of Satan over this world has been, and is still almost universal and absolute \ nor has the lapse of eighteen hundred years rendered the appellation improper as descriptive of his influence, that he is the god of this world. The world pursues his plans; yields to his temptations; neglects, or rejects the reign of God as he pleases; and submits to his sceptre, and is still full of abomination, cruelty, and pollution, as he desires it to be. \ Hath blinded i he minds of them 7* which believe not. Of all who discern no beauty in the gospel, and who reject it. It is implied here, (1.) That the minds of unbelievers are blinded; that they perceive no beauty in the gospel. This is often affirmed of those who reject the gospel, and who live in sin. See Note on ch. ii. 13. Matt, xxiii. 16, 17. 26. Luke iv. 18. John ix. 39; xii. 40. Rom. xi. 7. The sense is, that they did not see the spiritual beauty and glory of the plan of redemption. They act in reference to that as they would in reference to this world, if a bandage were over their eyes, and they saw not the light of the sun, the beauty of the landscape, the path in which they should go, or the countenance of a friend. All is dark, and obscure, and destitute of beauty to them, however much beauty may be seen in all these objects by others. (2.) That this is done by the agency of Satan; and that his dominion is secured by keeping the world in darkness. The affirmation is direct and positive, that it is by his agency that it is done. Some of the modes in which it is done are the following, (a) By a direct influence on the minds of men. I do not know why it is absurd to suppose that one intellect may, in some way unknown to us, have access to another, and have power to influence it; nor can it be proved that Satan may not have power to pervert the understanding; to derange its powers; to distract its attention; and to give in view of the mind a wholly delusive relative importance to objects. In the time of the Saviour it cannot be doubted that in the numerous cases of demoniacal possessions, Satan directly affected the minds of men; nor is there any reason to think that he has ceased to delude and destroy them, (b) By the false philosophy which has prevailed— a large part of which seems to have been contrived as if on purpose to deceive the world, and destroy the peace and happiness of men. (c) By the systems of superstition and idolatry. All these seem to be under the control of one master mind. They are so well conceived and adapted to prostrate the moral powers; to fetter the intellect; to pervert the will; to make men debased, sunken, polluted, and degraded; and they so uniformly accomplish this effect, that they have all the marks of being under the control of one mighty mind, and of having been devised to accomplish his purposes over men. (d) By producing in the minds of men a wholly disproportionate view of the value of objects. A very small object held before the eye will shut out the light of the sun. A piece of money of the smallest value laid on the eye will make every thing appear dark, and prevent all the glory of midday from reaching the seat of vision. And so it is with the things of this world. They are placed directly before us, and are placed directly between us and the glory of the gospel. And the trifles of wealth and of fashion; the objects of pleasure and ambition, are made to assume an importance in view of the mind which wholly excludes the glory of the gospel, and shuts out all the realities of the eternal world. And he does it (e) By the blinding influence of passion and vice. Before a vicious mind all is dark and obscure. There is no beauty in truth, in chastity, or honesty, or in the fear and love of God. Vice always renders the mind blind, and the heart hard, and shrouds every thing in the moral world in midnight. And in order to blind the minds of men to the glory of the gospel, Satan has only to place splendid schemes of speculation before men; to tempt them to climb the steeps of ambition; to entice them to scenes of gayety; to secure the erection of theatres, and gambling houses, and houses of infamy and pollution; to fill the cities and towns of a land with taverns and dram-shops; and to give opportunity everywhere for the full play and unrestrained indulgence of passion; and the glory of the gospel will be as effectually unseen as the glory of the sun is in the darkest night.
f Lest the light, &c. This passage states the design for which Satan blinds the minds of men. It is because he hates the gospel, and wishes to prevent its influence and spread in the world. Satan has always hated and opposed it, and all his arts have been employed to arrest its diffusion on earth. The word light here means excellence, beauty, or splendour. Light is the emblem of knowledge, purity, or innocence; and is here and elsewhere applied to the gospel, because it removes the errors, and sins, and wretchedness of men, as the light of the sun scatters the shades of night. This purpose of preventing the light of the gospel shining on men, Satan will endeavour to accomplish by all the means in his power. It is his grand object in this world, because it is by the gospel only that man can be saved; by that that God is glorified on earth more than by any thing else; and because, therefore, if he can prevent sinners from embracing that, he will secure their destruction, and most effectually show his hatred of God. And it is to Satan a matter of little importance what men may be, or are, provided they are not Christians. They may be amiable, moral, accomplished, rich, honoured, esteemed by the world, because in the possession of all these he may be equally sure of their ruin, and because, also, these things may contribute somewhat to turn away their minds from the gospel. Satan, therefore, will not oppose plans of gain or ambition; he will not oppose purposes of fashion and amusement; he may not oppose schemes by which we desire to rise in the world; he will not oppose the theatre, the ball-room, the dance, or the song; he will not oppose thoughtless mirth; but the moment the gospel begins to shine on the benighted mind, that moment he will make resistance, and then all his power will be concentrated. ^ The glorious gospel Gr. ' The gospel of the glory of Christ,' a Hebraism for the glorious gospel Mr. Locke renders it, " the glorious brightness of the light of the gospel of Christ," and supposes it means tho
5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the
brightness, or clearness, of the doctrine wherein Christ is manifested in the gospel. — It is all light, and splendour, and beauty, compared with the dark systems of philosophy and heathenism. It is glorious, for it is full of splendour; makes known the glorious God; discloses a glorious plan of salvation; and conducts ignorant, weak, and degraded man to a world of light. No two words in our language are so full of rich and precious meaning, as the phrase " glorious gospel." If Who is the image of God. Christ is called the image of God, (1.) In respect to his divine nature, his exact resemblance to God in his divine attributes and perfections. See Col. i. 15, and Heb. i. 3; and, (2.) In his moral attributes as Mediator, as showing forth the glory of the Father to men. He resembles God, and in him we see the divine glory and perfections embodied, and shine forth. It is from his resemblance to God in all respects that he is called his image; and it is through him that the divine perfections are made known to men. — It is an object of especial dislike and hatred to Satan that the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on men, and fill their hearts. Satan hates that image; he hates that men should become like God; and he hates all that has a resemblance to the great and glorious Jehovah.
5. For we preach not ourselves. The connexion here is not very apparent, and the design of this verse has been variously understood. The connexion seems to me to be this. Paul gives here a reason for what he had said in the previous parts of the epistle respecting his conduct in the ministry. He had said that his course had been open, and pure, and free from all dishonest arts and tricks, and that he had not corrupted the word of God, or resorted to any artifice to accomplish his designs. Ch. ii. 17; iv. 1, 2. The reason of this he here says is, that he had not preach- ed himself, or sought to advance his own interest He regarded himself as sent to make known a Saviour; himself as bound by all means to promote his cause, and to imitate him. Other men — the false teachers, and the cunning priests of the heathen religion — sought to advance their own interest, and to perpetuate a system of delusion that would be profitable to themselves; and they therefore resorted to all arts, and stratagems, and cunning devices to perpetuate their authority, and extend their influence. But the fact that Paul and his associates went forth to make known the Lord Jesus, was a reason why they avoided all such dishonest arts and artifices. *. We are merely the ambassadors of another. We are not principals in this business, and do not despatch it as a business of our own, but we transact it as the agents for another, i. e. for the Lord Jesus, and we feel ourselves bound, therefore, to do it as he would have done it himself; and as he was free from all trick, and dishonest art, we feel bound to be also.' This seems to me to be the design of this passage. Ministers may be said to preach them selves in the following ways. (1.) When their preaching has a primary reference to their own interest; and when they engage in it to advance their reputation, or to secure in some way their own advantage. When they aim at exalting their authority, extending their influence, or in any way promoting their own welfare. (2.) When they proclaim their own opinions and not the gospel of Christ; when they derive their doctrines from their own reasonings, and not from the Bible. (3.) When they put themselves forward; speak much of themselves; refer often to themselves; are vain of their powers of reasoning, of their eloquence, and of their learning, and seek to make these known rather than the simple truth of the gospel. In one word, when self is primary, and the gospel is se- condary; when they prostitute the ministry to gain popularity; to live a life of ease; to be respected; to obtain a livelihood; to gain influence; to rule over a people; and to make the preaching of the gospel merely an occasion of advancing themselves in the world. — Such a plan, it is implied here, would lead to dishonest arts and devices, and to trick and stratagem to accomplish the end in view. And it is implied here, also, that to avoid all such tricks and arts the true way is not to preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ. K But Christ Jesus the Lord. This Paul states to be the only purpose of the ministry. It is so far the sole design of the ministry that had it not been to make known the Lord Jesus, it would never have been established; and whatever other objects are secured by its appointment, and whatever other truths are to be illustrated and enforced by the ministry, yet, if this is not the primary subject, and if every other object is not made subservient to this, the design of the ministry is not secured. The word " Christ" properly means the anointed, i. e. the Messiah, the anointed of God for this great office (see Note, Matt. i. 1); but it is used in the New Testament as a proper name, the name that was appropriate to Jesus. Still it may be used with a reference to the fact of the Messiahship, and not merely as a proper name, and in this place it may mean that they preached Jesus as the Messiah, or the Christ, and defended his claims to that high appointment. The word "Lord" also is used to designate him (Mark xi. 3. John xx. 25); and when it stands by itself in the New Testament, it denotes the Lord Jesus (Note, Acts i. 24); but it properly denotes one who has rule or authority, or proprietorship; and it is used here not merely as a part of the appropriate title of the Saviour, but with reference to the fact that he had the supreme headship, or lordship over the church and the world. This important passage, therefore, means, that they made it their sole business to make known Jesus the Messiah, or the Christ, as the supreme head and Lord of people; i. e. to set forth the
Messiahship and the lordship of Jesus of Nazareth, appointed to these high offices by God. To do this, or to preach Jesus Christ the Lord, implies the following things. (1.) To prove that he is the Messiah so often predicted in the Old Testament, and so long expected by the Jewish people. To do this was a very vital part of the work of the ministry in the time of the apostles, and was essential to their success in all their attempts to convert the Jews; and to do this will be no less important in all attempts to bring the Jews now or in future times to the knowledge of the truth. No man can be successful among them who is not able to prove that Jesus is the Messiah. — It is not indeed so vital and leading a point now in reference to those to whom the ministers of the gospel usually preach; and it is probable that the importance of this argument is by many overlooked, and that it is not urged as it should be by those who " preach Christ Jesus the Lord." It involves the whole argument for the truth of Christianity. It leads to all the demonstrations that this religion is from God; and the establishment of the proposition that Jesus is the Messiah, is one of the most direct and certain ways of proving that his religion is from heaven. For (a) It contains the argument from the fulfilment of the prophecies — one of the main evidences of the truth of revelation; and (b) It involves an examination of all the evidences that Jesus gave that he was the Messiah sent from God, and of course an examination of all the miracles that he wrought in attestation of his divine mission. The first object of a preacher, therefore, is to demonstrate that Jesus is sent from God in accordance with the predictions of the prophets. (2.) To proclaim the truths that he taught. To make known his sentiments, and his doctrines, and not our own. This includes, of course, all that he taught respecting God, and respecting man; all that he taught respecting his own nature, and the design of his coming, all that he taught respecting the character of the human heart, and about human obligation and duty; all that he taught respecting death, the judgment, and eternity — respecting an eternal heaven, and an eternal hell. To explain, enforce, and vindicate his doctrines, is one great design of the ministry; and were there nothing else, this would be a field sufficiently ample to employ the life; sufficiently glorious to employ the best talents of man. The minister of the gospel is to teach the sentiments and doctrines of Jesus Christ, in contradistinction from all his own sentiments, and from all the doctrines of mere philosophy. He is not to teach science, or mere morals, but he is to proclaim and defend the doctrines of the Redeemer. (3.) He is to make known the facts of the Saviour's life. He is to show how he lived — to hold up his example in all the trying circumstances in which he was placed. For he came to show by his life what the law required; and to show how men should live. And it is the office of the Christian ministry, or a part of their work in preaching " Christ Jesus the Lord," to show how he lived, and to set forth his self-denial, his meekness, his purity, his blameless life, his spirit of prayer, his submission to the divine will, his patience in suffering, his forgiveness of his enemies, his tenderness to the afflicted, the weak, and the tempted; and the manner of his death. Were this all, it would be enough to employ the whole of a minister's life, and to command the best talents of the world. For he was the only perfectly pure model; and his example is to be followed by all his people, and his example is designed to exert a deep and wide influence on the world. Piety flourishes just in proportion as the pure example of Jesus Christ is kept before a people; and the world is made happier and better just as that example is kept constantly in view. To the gay and the thoughtless, the ministers of the gospel are to show how serious and calm was the Redeemer; to the worldly-minded, to show how he lived above the world; to the avaricious, how benevolent he was; to the profane and licentious, how pure he was; to the tempted, how he endured temptation; to the afflicted, how patient and resigned; to the dying, how he died: — to all, to show how holy, and heavenly-minded, and prayerful, and pure he was; in order that they may be won to the same purity, and be prepared to dwell with him in his kingdom. (4.) To set forth the design of his death. To show why he came to die; and what was the great object to be effected by his sufferings and death. To exhibit, therefore, the sorrows of his life; to describe his many trials; to dwell upon his sufferings in the garden of Gethsemane, and on the cross. To show why he died, and what was to be the influence of his death on the destiny of man. To show how it makes an atonement for sin; how it reconciles God to man; how it is made efficacious in the justification and the sanctification of the sinner. And were there nothing else, this would be sufficient to employ all the time, and the best talents in the ministry. I or the salvation of the soul depends on the proper exhibition of the design of the death of the Redeemer. There is no salvation but through his blood; and hence the nature and design of his atoning sacrifice is to be exhibited to every man, and the offers of mercy through that death to be pressed upon the attention of every sinner. (5.) To set forth the truth and the design of his resurrection. To prove that he rose from the dead, and that he ascended to heaven; and to show the influence of his resurrection on our hopes and destiny. The whole structure of Christianity is dependent on making out the fact that he rose; and if he rose, all the difficulties in the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead are removed at once, and his people will also rise. The influence of that fact, therefore, on our hopes and on our prospects for eternity, is to be shown by the ministry of the gospel; and were there nothing else, this would be ample to command all the time, and the best talents of the ministry. (6.) To proclaim him as " Lord." This is expressly specified i* the passage before us. " For we preach
Christ Jesus the Loiid;" we proclaim him as the Lord. That is, he is to be preached as having dominion over the conscience; as the supreme Ruler in his Church; as above all councils, and synods, and conferences, and all human authority; as having a right to legislate for his people; a right to prescribe their mode of worship; a right to define and determine the doctrines which they shall believe. He is to be proclaimed also as ruling over all, and as exalted in his mediatorial character over all worlds, and as having all things put beneath his feet. Ps. ii. 6. Isa.ix.6,7. Matt xxviii. 1 8. John xvii. 2. Eph. i. 20. Heb. ii. 8. ^ And ourselves your servants, &c. So far as we make any mention of ourselves, it is to declare that we are your servants, and that we are bound to promote your welfare in the cause and for the sake of the Redeemer. That is, they were their servants in all things in which they could advance the interests of the Redeemer's kingdom among them. The doctrine is, that they regarded themselves as under obligation not to seek their own interest, or to build up their own reputation and cause, but to seek the welfare of the church; and promote its interests, as a servant does that of his master. They should not seek to lord it over God's heritage, and to claim supreme and independent authority. They were not masters but servants. The church at large was the master, and they were its servants. This implies the following things. (1.) That the time of ministers belongs to the church, and should be employed in its welfare. It is not their own; and it is not to be employed in farming, or in speculating, or in trafficking, or in idleness, or in lounging, or in unprofitable visiting, or in mere science, or in reading or making books that will not advance the interests of the church. The time of the ministry is not for ease, or ambition, or self-indulgence, but is to promote the interests of the body of Christ. So Paul felt, and so he lived. (2.) Their talents belong to the church. All their original talents, and all that they can acquire, should be honestly devoted to the welfare of the church of the Redeemer. (3.) Their best efforts and plans, the avails of their best thoughts and purposes, belong to the church, and should be honestly devoted to it. Their strength, and vigour, and influence should be devoted to it, as the vigour, and strength, and talent, and skill of, a servant belong to the master. See Ps. cxxxvii. 5, 6. The language of the ministry, as of every Christian, should be:
I love thy church, O God, Her walls before thee stand,
Dear as the apple of thine eye, And graven on thy hand.
If e'er to bless thy sons
My voice or hands deny, These hands let useful skill forsake,
This voice in silence die.
If e'er my heart forget
Her welfare or her wo, Let every joy this heart forsake,
And every grief o'erflow.
For her my tears shall fall, For her my prayers ascend,
To her my cares and toils be given. Till toils and cares shall end.
And it implies, (4.) That they are the servants of the church in time of trial, temptation, and affliction. They are to devote themselves to the comfort of the afflicted. They are to be the guide to the perplexed. They are to aid the tempted. They are to comfort those that mourn, and they are to sustain and console the dying. They are to regard themselves as the servants of the church to accomplish these great objects; and are to be willing to deny themselves, and to take up their cross, and to consecrate their time to the advancement of these great interests. And they are, in all respects, to devote their time, and talents, and influence to the welfare of the church, with as much single-mindedness as the servant is to seek the interest of his master. It was in this way eminently that Paul was favoured with the success with which God blessed him in the ministry; and so every minister will be successful, just in proportion to the single-mindedness with which he devotes himself to the work of preaching Jesus Christ thb Lord.
6 For God, who commanded °
6. For God, who commanded, &c. The design of this verse seems to be, to give a reason why Paul and his fellowapostles did not preach themselves, but Jesus Christ the Lord. ver. 5. That reason was, that their minds had been so illuminated by that God who had commanded the light to shine out of darkness, that they had discerned the glory of the divine perfections shining in and through the Redeemer, and they therefore gave themselves to the work of making him known among men. The doctrines which they preached they had not derived from men in any form. They had not been elaborated by human reasoning or science, nor had they been imparted by tradition. They had been communicated directly by the source of all light — the true God — who had shined into the hearts that were once benighted by sin. Having been thus illuminated, they had felt themselves bound to go and make known to others the truths which God had imparted to them. \ Who commanded the light, &c. Gen. i. 3. God caused it to shine by his simple command. He said " let there be light, and there was light." The fact that it was produced by his saying so is referred to here by Paul by nis use of the phrase (o tlvrlv) " Who saying," or speaking the light to shine from darkness. The passage in Genesis is adduced by Longinus as a striking instance of the sublime, t Hath shined in our hearts. Marg. "It is he who hath." This is more in accordance with the Greek, and the sense is, ' The God who at the creation bade the light to shine out of darkness, is he who has shined into our hearts; or it is the same God who has illuminated us, who commanded the light to shine at the creation.' Light is everywhere in the Bible the emblem of knowledge, purity, and truth; as darkness is the emblem of ignorance, error, sin, and wretchedness. See Note, John i. 4, 5. And the sense here is, that God had removed this ignorance, and poured a flood of light and truth on their minds. This passage teaches, therefore, the following important truths in regard to Christians — since it is as applicable to all Christians, as it was to the apostles. (1.) That the mind is by nature ignorant and benighted — to an extent which may be properly compared with the darkness which prevailed before God commanded the light to shine. Indeed, the darkness which prevailed before the light was formed, was a most striking emblem of the darkness which exists in the mind of man before it is enlightened by revelation, and by the Holy Spirit. For (a) In all minds by nature there is deep ignorance of God, of his law, and his requirements; and (b) This is often greatly deepened by the course of life which men lead; by their education; or by their indulgence in sin, and by their plans of life; and especially by the indulgence of evil passions. The tendency of man if left to himself is to plunge into deeper darkness, and to involve his mind more entirely in the obscurity of moral midnight. " Light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." John iii. 19. (2.) This verse teaches the fact, that the minds of Christians are illuminated. They are enabled to see things as they are. This fact is often taught in the Scriptures. See 1 John ii. 20. 1 Cor. ii. 12 — 15. They have different views of things from their fellow-men, and different from what they once had. They perceive a beauty in religion which others do not see, and a glory in truth, and in the Saviour, and in the promises of the gospel, which they did not see before they were converted. This does not mean (a) That they are superior in their powers of understanding to other men — for the reverse is often the fact; nor (b) That the effect of religion is at once to enlarge their own intellectual powers, and make them, different from what they were before in this respect. But it means that they have
1 hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge
clear and consistent views; they look at things as they are; they perceive a beauty in religion and in the service of God which they did not before. They see a beauty in the Bible, and in the doctrines of the Bible, which thoy did not before, and which sinners do not see. The temperate man will see a beauty in temperance, and in an argument for temperance, which the drunkard will not; the benevolent man will see a beauty in benevolence which the churl will not; and so of honesty, truth, and chastity. And especially will a man who \& reformed from intemperance, impurity, dishonesty, and avarice, see a beauty in a virtuous life which he did not before see. There is indeed no immediate and direct enlargement of the intellect; but there is an effect on the heart which produces an appropriate and indirect effect on the understanding. It is at the same time true, that the practice of virtue, that a pure heart, and that the cultivation of piety ail tend to regulate, strengthen, and expand the intellect, as the ways of vice and the indulgence of evil passions and propensities tend to enfeeble, paralyze, darken, and ruin the understanding; so that, other things being equal, the man of most decided virtue, and most calm and elevated piety, will be the man of the clearest and best regulated mind. His powers will be most assiduously, carefully, and conscientiously cultivated, and he will feel himself bound to make the most of them. — The influence of piety in giving light to the mind is often strikingly manifested among unlettered and ignorant Christians. It often happens, as a matter of fact, that they have by far clearer, and more just and elevated views of truth than men of the most mighty intellects, and most highly cultivated by science and adorned with learning, but who have no piety; and a practical acquaintance with their own hearts, and a practical experience of the power of religion in the days of temptation and trial is a better enlightener of the mind on the subject of
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
religion than all the learning of the schools. (3.) This verse teaches, that it is the same God who enlightens the mind of the Christian that commanded the light at first to shine. He is the source of all light. He formed the light in the natural world; he gives all light and truth on all subjects to the understanding; and he imparts all correct views of truth to the heart. Light is not originated by man; and man on the subject of religion no more creates the light which beams upon his benighted mind than he created the light of the sun when it first shed its beams over the darkened earth. " All truth is from the sempiternal source of light divine;" and it is no more the work of man to enlighten the mind, and dissipate the darkness from the soul of a benighted sinner, than it was of man to scatter the darkness that brooded over the creation, or than he can now turn the shades of midnight to noonday. All this work lies beyond the proper province of man; and is all to be traced to the agency of God — the great fountain of light. (4.) It is taught here that it is the same power that gives light to the mind of the Christian which at first commanded the light to shine out of darkness. It requires the exertion of the same Omnipotence; and the change is often as remarkable, and surprising. — Nothing can be conceived to be more grand than the first creation of light — when by one word the whole solar system was in a blaze. And nothing in the moral world is more grand than when by a word God commands the light to beam on the soul of a benighted sinner. Night is at once changed to day; and all things are seen in a blaze of glory. The works of God appear different; the word of God appears different; and a new aspect of beauty is diffused over all things. — If it be asked in what wax God thus imparts light to the mind, we may reply, (1.) By his written and preached word. All spiritual and saving light to the minds of men has come through his revealed truth. Nor does the Spirit of God now give or reveal any light to the mind which is not to be found in the word of God, and which is not imparted through that medium. (2.) God makes use of his providential dealings to give light to the minds of men. They are then, by sickness, disappointment, and pain, made to see the folly and vanity of the things of this world, and to see the necessity of a better portion. (3.) It is done especially and mainly by the influences of the Holy Spirit. It is directly by his agency that the heart becomes affected, and the mind enlightened. It is his province in the world to prepare the heart to receive the truth; to dispose the mind to attend to it; to remove the obstructions which existed to its clear perception; to enable the mind clearly to see the beauty of truth, and of the plan of salvation through a Redeemer. And whatever may be the means which may be used, it is still true that it is only by the Spirit of God that men are ever brought to see the truth clearly and brightly. The same Spirit that inspired the prophets and apostles also illuminates the minds of men now, removes the darkness from their minds, and enables them clearly to discover the truth as it is in Jesus. See Notes, 1 Cor. ii. 10 — 15. t To give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. This shows the object, or the effect of enlightening the mind. It is that Christians may behold the divine glory. The meaning is, that it is for the purpose of enlightening and instructing them concerning the knowledge of the glory of God. — Bloomfield. Doddridge renders it, " the lustre of the knowledge of God's glory." Tindal, " to give the light of the knowledge of the glorious God." The sense is, that the purpose of his shining into their hearts was to give light {jr^z ipurtcrjuov) i. e. unto the enlightening; and the purpose of that light was to acquaint them with the knowledge of the divine glory. \ In the face of Jesus Christ. That is, that they might obtain the knowledge of the divine glory as it shines in the face of Jesus Christ; or as it is reflected on the face, or the person of the Redeemer.— There is undoubted allusion here to what is said of Moses (ch. iii. 13) when the divine glory was reflected on his face, and produced such a splendour and magnificence that the children of Israel could not steadfastly look upon it. The sense here is, that in the face or the person of Jesus Christ the glory of God shone clearly, and the divinity appeared without a vail. The divine perfections, as it were, illuminated him, as the face of Moses was illuminated; or they shone forth through him, and were seen in him. The word rendered " face" here (^ot^ttoi') may mean either face or person. See Note, ch. ii. 10. The sense is not materially affected whichever translation is preferred. It is, that the divine perfections shone in and through the Redeemer. This refers doubtless to the following truths. (1.) That the glory of the divine nature is seen in him, since he is " the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person." Heb. i. 3. And it is in and through him that the glory of the divine perfections are made known. (2.) That the glory of the divine attributes are made known through him, since it is through him that the work of creation was accomplished (John i. 3. Col. i. 16); and it is by him that the mercy and goodness of God have been manifested to men. (3.) That the glory of the divine moral character is seen through him, since when on earth he manifested the embodied divine perfections; he showed what God is when incarnate; he lived as became the incarnate God — he was as pure and holy in human nature as God is in the heavens. And there is not, that we know of, one of the divine attributes or perfections which has not at some period, or in some form, been evinced by Jesus Christ. If it be the prerogative of God to be eternal, he was eternal. Isa. ix. 6. Rev. i. 8. 18. If it be the prerogative of God to be the creator, he was also the creator (Joh» i. 3); if to be omniscient, he was omniscient (Matt. xi. 27 Luke x. 22); if to be omnipresent, he
7 But we have this treasure
is omnipresent (Matt, xviii. 20); if to be almighty, he was almighty (Isa. ix. 6); if to raise the dead, to give life, he did it (John v. 21; xii. 43, 44); if to still waves and tempests, he did it (Mark iv. 39); if to be full of benevolence, to be perfectly holy, to be without a moral stain or spot, then all this is found in Jesus Christ. And as the wax bears the perfect image of the seal — perfect not only in the outline, and in the general resemblance, but in the filling up — in all the lines, and features, and letters on the seal, so it is with the Redeemer. There is not one of the divine perfections which has not the counterpart in him, and if the glory of the divine character is seen at all, it will be seen in and through him.
7. But we have this treasure. The treasure of the gospel; the rich and invaluable truths which they were called to preach to others. The word " treasure" is applied to those truths on account of their inestimable worth. Paul in the previous verses had spoken of the gospel, the knowledge of Jesus Christ, as full of glory, and infinitely precious. This rich blessing had been committed to him and his fellow-labourers, to dispense it to others, and to diffuse it abroad. His purpose in this and the following verses is, to show that it had been so intrusted to them as to secure all the glory of its propagation to God, and so also as to show its unspeakable value. For this purpose, he not only affirms that it is a treasure, but says that it had been so intrusted to them as to show the power of God in its propagation; that it had showed its value in sustaining them in their many trials; and they had showed their sense of its worth by being willing to endure all kinds of trial in order to make it every where known, ver. 8 — 11. The expression here is similar to that which the Saviour uses when he calls the gospel "the pearl of great price." Matt. xiii. 46. ^f In earthen vessels. This refers to the apostles and ministers in earthen vessels, that the ex of religion, as weak and feeble; as having bodies decaying and dying; aa fragile, and liable to various accidents, and as being altogether unworthy to hold a treasure so invaluable; as if valuable diamonds and gold were placed in vessels of earth of coarse composition, easily broken, and liable to decay. The word vessel (a-KiZo^ means properly any utensil or instrument; and is applied usually to utensils of household furniture or hollow vessels for containing things. Luke viii. 16. John xix. 29. It is applied to the human body, as made of clay, and therefore frail and feeble, with reference to its containing any thing, as, e. g., treasure. Comp. Note on Rom. ix. 22, 23. The word rendered earthen, (ctn^a/yc/?) means that which is made of shells (from iVT£*jc/vcy), and then burnt clay, probably because vessels were at first made of burnt shells. It is fitted well to represent the human body; frail, fragile, and easily reduced again to dust. The purpose of Paul here is, to show that it was by no excellency of his nature that the gospel was originated; it was in virtue of no vigour and strength which he possessed that it was propagated; but that it had been, of design, committed by God to weak, decaying, and crumbling instruments, in order that it might be seen that it was by the power of God that such instruments were sustained in the trials to which they were exposed, and in order that it might be manifest to all that it was not originated and diffused by the power of those to whom it was intrusted. The idea is, that they were altogether insufficient of their own strength to accomplish what was accomplished by the gospel. Paul uses a metaphor similar to this in 2 Tim. ii. 20. 1 That the excellency of the power. An elegant expression, denoting the exceeding great power. The great power referred to here was that which was manifested in connexion with the labours of the apostles — the power of healing the sick, raising the
cellency a of the power may be of God, and not of us.
dead, and casting out devils; the power of bearing persecution and trial, and the power of carrying the gospel over sea and land, in the midst of danger, and in spite of all the opposition which men could make whether as individuals or as combined; and especially the power of converting the hearts of sinners, of humbling the proud, and leading the guilty to the knowledge of God, and the hope of heaven. The idea is, that all this was manifestly beyond human strength; and that God had of design chosen weak and feeble instruments in order that it might be everywhere seen that it was done not by human power but by his own. The instrumentality employed was altogether disproportionate in its nature to the effect produced. ^ May be of God. May evidently appear to be of God; that it may be manifest to all that it is God's power, and not ours. It was one great purpose of God that this should be kept clearly in view. And it is still done. God takes care that this shall be apparent. For, (1.) It is always true, whoever is employed, and however great may be the talents, learning, or zeal of those who preach, that it is by the power of God that men are converted. Such a work cannot be accomplished by man. It is not by might or by strength; and between the conversion of" a proud, haughty, and abandoned sinner and the power of him who is made the instrument, there is such a manifest disproportion, that it is evident it is the work of God. The conversion of the human heart is not to be accomplished by man. (2.) Ministers are frail, imperfect, and sinful, as they were in the time of Paul. When the imperfections of ministers are considered; when their frequent errors, and their not unfrequent moral obliquities are contemplated; when it is remembered how far many of them live from what they ought to, and how few of