popular applause and favour that others have. But be. caufe in this fenfe you are not of the world, but I have chofen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

20. Remember alfo what I said to you on a former occafion; viz. that the fervant is not greater than his mafter. If, therefore, they have perfecuted me, you cannot expect more favour at their hands. They will certainly, for the very fame reafon, perfecute you also ; and you cannot expect that the world in general will be perfuaded and governed by you any more than they have been by me. 21. Indeed all the ill treatment that from the world is only on account of your relation to me, and the foundation of the whole is a general ignorance concerning God, and of his real defigns in my miffion.

you will meet with

22. he fins of the Jews, our present perfecutors, have been greatly aggravated by my perfonal intercourfe with them. Without this they would comparatively have had no fin, but now their conduct will admit of no apology. 23. For the hatred they have fhewn to me proceeds from fuch a malignant difpofition of mind, as may be deemed a hatred and oppofition to my father himself. 24. The miraculous works that I have performed are fo evidently done by the power of God himfelf, that they may be faid to have feen, and to have hated him, as well as myfelf. 25. But this is another inftance in which the ancient prophecies concerning me, and my reception in the world, are fulfilled; for it is written, Pfalm xxxv, 19, concerning David imme

diately,

diately, but what is much more eminently true of my. felf, They hated me without a cause.

26. But befides this evidence of my divine miffion, which refults of my own miraculous works, I fhall also have another witnefs in the Holy Spirit, which I fhall fend to you from the Father. For the works that you will be enabled to perform by that fpirit will be a farther atteftation of my miffion. 27. And you yourselves alfo, in your proper characters, as men, and as credible witneffes of what you have heard and seen, will ftrengthen this evidence by your own direct teflimony; because you have been with me from the beginning, and therefore are fully acquainted with my doctrine and mi racles.

SECTION LXXXI.

The Promise of the Holy Spirit.

John XVI. 1. -33.

THI

HIS chapter contains a continuation of the difcourfe that Jefus held with his apoftles as they went from Jerufalem to the garden of Gethsemane. It is well calculated to prepare them for his feparation from them; giving them fome idea of the hardships to which they would be expofed, and of the noble recompence that was referved for them. This was the great object of Jefus in the whole of this addrefs, appears from the conclufion of it v, 33, these things I have spoken unto you that ye might have peace. In the world,

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ye

ye shall have tribulation but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.

2. How unlike is this to the language of an impoftor, who could not have expected any followers but from the hope of wealth, power, and diftinction in this world. Leaft of all could he have any other profpect from Jews, who expected a Meffiah who would be prince, and who would give them wealth and pow. er, and not one in whofe cause they were to fuffer and die.

a

4. There was, therefore, nothing particularly difcouraging in their cafe, and whatever might have occurred, he himself was at hand, to advife and comfort them.

7. While Jefus continued with his difciples, that divine power, by which his miffion was confirmed, refi. ded with him, tho' it was occafionally imparted to the apostles. When he fhould be removed from them, that power would remain with them, and thereby give them the fullest conviction of his divine miffion, and of theirs in connection with it. This power is figuratively fpoken of as a person, because, with refpect to the apoftles, it was to come in the place of Jefus, who was a proper perfon, and to be the same to them that he had been. But, divefted of figure, the Spirit of God always means the power of God or God himself, whofe power it is, just as the spirit of a man, is a man, and nothing fo reign to him.

11. There is much obfcurity in thefe verfes. I hall endeavour to explain them in the paraphrafe.

13. It is evident that at the death of Jefus the apof tles were very ignorant of many things relating to his kingdom, and their prejudices prevented them from underflanding what he faid to them on that fubject, During his death they were in a ftate of utter confternation; but after his refurraction they expected, as before, that he would restore the kingdom to Israel. His afcenfion, and the defcent of the (pirit upon themselves, removed all their prejudices; but not perhaps by any direct inftructions that were given them, but their miftaken ideas would be corrected of course, by the facts, by reflecting on what Jefus had faid to them, and by comparing one thing with another. Seeing their mas ter actually removed from the world, they must clearly fee, without any information, that he was not to reign here.

The ancient chriflian writers, who were advocates for the pre-exiflence and divinity of Chrift, always faid that these were the doctrines which the apostles were not then prepared to receive for that having expected a mere man for their Meffiah, fuch fublime tenets as thefe would have fhocked all their prejudices. They fuppofed therefore that he was confidered in no higher character than that of an eminent prophet, till the defcent of the fpirit upon the day of pentecoft; and alfo that, tho' from that time the apoftles were acquainted with the true character of their maler, they did not think proper to divulge the fecret to many others, left they fhould offend the fame prejudices by which themfelves had been influenced. In confequence of this,' they always faid that thefe doctrines were never taught

with clearness and effect till the publication of the gofpel of John, which they fuppofed to have been written after the deftruction of Jerufalem. In the mean time, they acknowledged that the fimple unitarian doctrine was taught to all the chriftian world.

On thefe principles they endeavour to account for its general prevalence in the early ages, and for its continuance till their own times. But nothing can be conceived more improbable than that the apostles should have acted fuch a part as this. It was utterly unfuitable to the fimplicity of their characters, nor does the fact at all correfpond to this hypothetis. For the publication of John's gofpel made no change whatever in the fentiments of chriftians on this fubject; and all the christian world were fimply unitarians, knowing nothing of the pre-existence or divinity of Chrift, till long after this time, when thofe doctrines came in from the Platonic philofophy.

15. i. e. By the gift of God the father, as he elfewhere fays, All things are given unto me of my Father, and again, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. He was far from claiming any thing as of himself, and not given to him by God, whatever others have injudiciously afferted for him.

19. This little while which our Lord speaks of com. prehends the whole time between his departure from his apoftles after his afcenfion, and his coming again to judge the world and receive them to himfelf. The exact time of this greatest of all events, Jefus himself fays he was not acquainted with, but he might call it a little time, in order to exprefs the certainty of it. And

tho'