110 çpheliana,Cbap.t, VER,Ip,' wouldcall & gather to his Chrift,an Univerfall Church inearth,is fuch a point,in whichmen made wife to falvation,were long ignoranr,as Peter himfelf.Nos,,rthen ifitbe noexplanation,then mutt it depend on the for- mer,as an effectintended,and flowing from fomthingbeforementioned. Now the matters in the verfe precedent,are but two: Firft the revealing of the Gofpel to Paul, with fomeothers. Secondly, the graciousgood will which God did purpofe within himfelfe, concerning thisbenefit of opening his hidden favingwifedome to the tonnes ofmen: Some joyne it with the former, God did open to us the Jewes and Gentiles the Gofpell, that thus he might in that full time which he had appointed, gather to all things now inheaven whenhe wrote,all the things in earth alfo, even a Church univerfall : But neither would I fubfcribe to this expofition. For, first it taketh theperfons to whom God is faid to have opened the myftery, to be both Jewes and Gentiles, yea Gentiles prit. cipally ; whereas Paul verfe 12. fèemeth to apropriate this paffage of his Ep file, from the 7. verfe, to the a3.verfe, unto the Jewes onely, Se. condly,this takeththat fulneffeoftimes,tonote thefulnefs ofthat parti- cular feafon, wherein God had purpofed to publifhhis faving wifedome tothe Gentiles ; but the Text bath it not the fulneffeofany certaine time, as in Gal.4.3.butthe fulneffeoftimes indefinitelyand univerfally. Thirdly, thepublifhing of the Gofpell to all Nations, didnot gather thofe juft fpirits before in heaven, but here they are as properly faid to be gathered into Chrift their head, as the thingson earth ; aswhen God is Paid to reconcile all things in the blondofChrift, as well the things in heaven, as the things inearth, reconciliation doth asproperly agree to the heavenly things, as earthly, fo here by proportion ; for otherwife he would have fait, that he might gather to all things Which were now joyned to theirhead in heaven, all the things in earth aìfo.Laflly, allin earth, through all times and places were notgathered by that first publifhing the Gofpell to Jew and Gentile, but all who then were ordained to life through the whole world : Now thefe are not all abfolutely, but refpecìively in comparifon of that few and fmall remnant which out ofone Nation,God fometime gleaned. It remaineth then that thofewords come in, as (hewing the intended', effect which God did ayme at, inhis gracious purpofe ofopening the hidden faving wifdome to thefonnesofmen, viz.- that thushe might in thefulnefl'e ofthofe feafons, which himfelfein wifdomefore- appoin- ted, have gathered to a head in his Chrift , all things ; both thofe who now were, by having this revelation, gathered in heaven, andall the things which are in earth, through allplaces and times, to theend of the world. This I take to bethe trueft coherence, both becaufe gathe- ring to ahead in Chrift, is the effect to which God doth delinate this gracious purpofe of Opening the Gofpell, and alto for that this pùr pore ofopening theGofpell,outwardly and inwardly,orat lealinward- ly,ts extended to every one, throughall ages oftheworld, who isto be united,as a member,toChrilt thehead : fothat no more,nor fewer have beene, are, or !hall be gathered, then thofe whom God did purpofe to teach.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=