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çpheliana,Cbap.t,
VER,Ip,'
would
call & gather to his
Chrift,an
Univerfall
Church
in
earth,is
fuch
a
point,in which
men made
wife to falvation,were long ignoranr,as
Peter
himfelf.Nos,,rthen
if
it
be
no
explanation,then mutt
it
depend on the
for
-
mer,as
an
effect
intended,and flowing from
fomthingbefore
mentioned.
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
of
men:
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
in
heaven
when
he
wrote,all the things
in earth
alfo,
even
a
Church
univerfall
:
But
neither would I fubfcribe to
this
expo
fition.
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
a
3.verfe, unto the Jewes onely, Se.
condly,this taketh
that
fulneffe
oftimes,to
note
the
fulnefs
of
that
parti-
cular
feafon,
wherein
God
had purpofed to publifh
his
faving wifedome
to
the Gentiles
;
but the
Text
bath it not the
fulneffe
of
any certaine
time,
as in
Gal.4.3.butthe
fulneffe
of
times indefinitely
and univerfally.
Thirdly,
the
publifhing
of
the Gofpell to all
Nations,
did
not
gather
thofe juft
fpirits
before
in
heaven,
but
here
they are
as
properly
faid
to be gathered into Chrift their head,
as
the things
on earth
; as
when
God
is
Paid
to reconcile
all
things
in
the blond
of
Chrift,
as
well
the
things
in
heaven,
as
the things
in
earth,
reconciliation
doth
as
properly
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 their
head
in
heaven,
all
the things
in
earth
aìfo.Laflly,
all
in
earth, through
all
times and places were
not
gathered
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
thofe
words come in,
as
(hewing
the
intended',
effect
which God
did ayme at,
in
his
gracious purpofe
of
opening the
hidden faving wifdome
to the
fonnes
of
men,
viz.-
that thus
he
might
in
the
fulnefl'e
of
thofe
feafons,
which
him
felfein wifdome
fore- appoin
-
ted,
have
gathered
to
a
head
in his
Chrift
,
all
things
;
both
thofe
who
now were, by having this revelation, gathered
in
heaven,
and
all
the
things which are
in
earth, through
all
places and times,
to
the
end
of
the world. This I
take to be
the
trueft
coherence,
both
becaufe gathe-
ring
to
a
head
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
the
Gofpell,outwardly and inwardly,or
at
leal
inward-
ly,ts extended
to
every one,
through
all
ages
of
theworld, who
is
to be
united,as
a
member,to
Chrilt
the
head
:
fo
that
no
more,nor fewer
have
beene,
are, or
!hall
be
gathered, then thofe whom God
did purpofe
to
teach.