24

Reflections on the captivity of the sinner.

SECT. ready to teach the ignorant, and instead of hurt- unto all men, apt to iv. ing [and] injuring any, be willing to endure teach, patient;

Tim. evil from those who, instead of receiving his
II. 25. doctrine, repay his kindness with outrage. In

25 In meekness instructing those that op

meekness instructing opposers, if by any means pose themselves; if God may perhaps, in his own due time, conquer God peradventure will their savage prejudices, and give them repentance give them repentance to the acknowledgment of the truth; of which, to the acknowledging of the truth; through the riches of Divine grace, we see some instances, even where there had been a long and 26 inveterate struggle against it. And surely it will be worth while to try every method on such unhappy souls, that they may awaken and of the devil, who are recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, taken captive by him who have lain sleeping, and as it were intoxicat- at his will.

ed in it, having been taken by that subtile fow.
Jer, and, like a living prey, detained captive by
him at his cruel pleasure, while perhaps they
have been dreaming of liberty and happiness, in
the midst of the most shameful bondage and the
extremest danger.

26 And that they recover may themselves out of the snare

IMPROVEMENT.

Ver. How affecting a representation is here made of the wretched 26 state of sinners! they are described as sleeping in Satan's snare, like birds in a net, taken alive, and at the fowler's mercy; while they imagine they can spring up whenever they please, and range at full liberty. Alas! they will soon perceive their fatal captivity: but they will perceive it too late, if Divine grace do not quickly awaken them. Who would not wish to do something for their 25 recovery? Let the ministers of the gospel pity them. Let us 24 pray that God, whose work it is, would give them repentance to the acknowledgment of the truth. Let us try every gentle method which the sincerest compassion can dictate toward effecting so happy a design, and not suffer ourselves to be transported to undue severities of language, or of sentiments, even though we should receive

In the last days perilous times shall come ;

25

receive the greatest injuries where we intend the most important SECT. kindness.

iv.

Let those that have the honour to bear the most holy character, Ver.

which any office can devolve on mortal man, avoid with the greatest care, every thing that would bring a stain, or even a suspicion, upon it. Let them revere the voice of the great apostle, 22 while it animates them to pursue righteousness and faith, love and peace, with all their fellow-Christians of every denomination, with all that invoke Christ and that trust in him. So shall they 21 be vessels of honour, so may they humbly hope that their Lord will condescend to make some special use of them, for the purposes of his own glory, and the salvation of their fellow-creatures.

To conclude, let ministers and people be daily reading, with all 19 possible care, this double inscription on the foundation of God; and while we rejoice in the one, let us be admonished by the other. For what is it to us, that the Lord knows, distinguishes, and favours his own, that his almighty power protects them, and that his infinite mercy will for ever save them, if we are ourselves found among the wicked, with whom he is angry every day, among the workers of iniquity, whom he will publicly disown, and to whom he will say, I know not whence you are. To name the name of Christ with dispositions like these will be to injure and profane it; and our profession itself will be interpreted as an act of hostility against him, whom we have presumed so vainly to call the Foundation of our hopes, and the Sovereign of our souls.

SECT. V.

Paul cautions Timothy against that great declension and apostacy which was to prevail in the Christian world, and against those false teachers who were rising up in it; reminding him of the example he had seen in him, in the midst of such persecutions as were still to be expected. 2 Tim. III. 1-13.

2 TIMOTHY III. 1.

IT is the more necessary thus to

urge thee to

SECT. v.

every precaution, and every effort, which may preserve the purity and honour of the Christian church, as, after all we can do for this pur- 11.1. pose, such sad scenes are to open in it. We are indeed acquainted with our duty, and we shall find our own highest account in attending to it. But this know, O Timothy, that in the last days, under the evangelical dispensation, which is to wind up the economy of Providence, and is to remain in full force even to the end of the world, difficult

26

v.

When men shall sink into the utmost degeneracy;

2 For men shall be lovers of their own

SECT. difficult times and circumstances shall arise, in which it will be hard to discharge our consciences, 2 Tim, and at the same time maintain our safety. For III. 2. men shall be lovers of themselves, in the most selves, covetous, boastabsurd and excessive degree; lovers of money, so ers, proud, blaspheas to be impelled to the basest practices by the mers, disobedient to unthankful,

parents,

hopes of obtaining it; boasters of what they have, unholy.
and proud pretenders to what they have not ;
blasphemers of God, and revilers of their fellow-
creatures; disobedient to parents, notwithstand-
ing all the obligations they are under to their
care and tenderness; unthankful, and ungrateful
to other benefactors; unholy, though they pro-
fess themselves devoted to God, and consecrated

3 Without

notu

breakers, false ac

3 to his service by the most solemn rites: They
will be destitute of natural affection, even to their ral affection, truce-
own children, as well as of piety toward their cusers, incontinent,
parents; implacable where enmities have been fierce, despisers of those
commenced, and treacherous in their mutual that are good,
engagements, when there has been a pretence
of making them up; false accusers, in which
they will imitate that diabolical malignity
which renders the great enemy of mankind so
justly odious; intemperate in their pleasures,
fierce in their resentments, cruel in their re-
venge; destitute of all love to goodness, though it
so naturally extorts a tribute of veneration and
affection from every human heart which is not
sunk into the last degeneracy. They will be
traitors to those that place the greatest confidence
in them, such base traitors, as even to give up

4

4 Traitors, heady, high

Being corrupted in their minds, and resisting the truth : bigh-minded, lovers of their brethren into the hands of persecutors; pleasures more than lo- heady and rash in enterprising things, which yers of God;

5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, from

such turn away.

6 For of this sort are

they which creep into tive silly women laden with sins, lead way with divers lusts;

houses, and lead cap

27

SECT. v.

can only issue in the disturbance of society, or 2 Tim.
the ruin of those that undertake them. In the III. 4.
mean time, they will be puffed up with such in-
solence and self-sufficiency, as to despise any re-
monstrance which can be made to bring them
to a wiser and more decent conduct; and, upon
the whole, will prove lovers of pleasures rather
than lovers of God; who will therefore sacrifice
all considerations of religion to the gratification
of their appetites. And yet, in the midst of 5
all these enormities, they will still profess them-
selves Christians, having a form of godliness,
and observing with exactness the rituals and ex-
ternals of religion, but at the same time deny-
ing and opposing the power of it in their lives,
and demonstrating that it has no real influence
upon them. From such therefore, even from all,
in whom thou discernest a temper like that
which I have here described, turn away; avoid
all intimacy with them, lest they should avail
themselves of the friendship to which thou
mightest admit them, as an advantage for doing
further mischief; let it therefore evidently ap-
pear, that thou givest them no countenance.

This temper, as I have intimated before, has 6
begun to appear in many of our contemporaries,
of which [number are those artful deceivers, who
insinuate themselves into houses, and are espe-
cially successful in their attempt to captivate in-
considerable women, of low rank, and mean un-
derstandings, yet easily inflamed with passionate
zeal; being indeed, whatever pretences they
may make to sanctity, laden with sins, and led
aside by various lusts, which these seducers know

how to flatter in such a manner as to make

7 Ever learning, and them their own property. These foolish crea-7 never able to come to tures are always learning, they pretend to hear the knowledge of the with great eagerness, and are charmed with every appearance of novelty and fervour; but they are tossed about with every gale of doctrine and never able to come to the acknowledgment of the truth, or to attain any fixed and steady principles

e Insinuate themselves, &c.] This character, as we hinted above, seems rather to suit disaffected and seducing Christian teachers, than infidel Jews, who no doubt

VOL X.

carried it with an high hand, and would
scorn to think of crouching to the leaders
of so contemptible a sect as they called
that of the Nazarenes.

D

d Jannes

28

v.

But Timothy knew Paul's doctrine, conduct, and sufferings.

the faith.

SECT. ciples. And these designing wretches, of whom 8 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood I have been speaking, seize on such as their pro- Mosesmo do these al 2 Tim. per prey, and just as Jannes and Jambres d, the so resist the truth; III. 8. Egyptian magicians, withstood Moses when he men of corrupt minds, came to Pharaoh with a message from God, so do reprobate concerning these men also withstand the truth of the gospel. I speak of persons whose minds are utterly corrupted, who with respect to the faith are disapproved, and worthy of being rejected as enemies to it, and unworthy to know it, though 9 they pretend so much zeal in its defence. But I foresee, that they shall not proceed much far ther in these artifices, for their folly shall be manifested to all, as theirs also was, when God sent upon the Egyptians plagues, which far from being able to remove, or mitigate, they could not, as in former instances, so much as imitate.

10

9But they shall pro

ceed no further; for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.

10 But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, pur

But thou hast exactly traced, and been accurately acquainted with my doctrine, and my con. versation, the steadiness of my aim, purpose, and pose, faith, long-sufresolution in the cause of God; that firm and fering, charity, pauniform fidelity which I have always strenuously tience,

11 Persecutions, af

maintained, without yielding up any the least article of it; my long-suffering, when I had been treated in the most injurious manner; my love to all, however different in opinion, not excepting even mine enemies and persecutors; and 11 my patience under such pressing trials. Particularly under the persecutions [and] sufferings flictions which came which befel me in the Pisidian Antioch, Acts unto me at Antioch, at Iconium at Lystra; xiii. 45, in Iconium (xiv. 2) in Lystra (xiv. 19) what persecutions i where thou hast not only heard, but seen, what endured; but out of persecutions I endured; but the Lord Jesus, them alte whom I serve, was still with me, and rescued me

12 out of them all. Yea, and all who are resolutely determined upon it, that they will live godly in Christ Jesus, that they will conduct themselves by

them all the Lord deli

12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ