146 METAPHORS FROM GENERALrTms oF LIVING CREATUREs. Book I. ' Meraphors takm from fome Generalities of living Creatures. LIVING CREATURES that are Brtttes are difl:inguifhed into terrejfrial, volatile, and aqrtatile. As to what concerns terreflrial generally, 01•n Fera, Bejfia, a wild Beafl: fomerimes ftgnifies, a Convention, meeting or gathering togcLher; which (Sehind/er ·fays) is fpoken by a Metaphor taken from Beafls gathered together, 2 Sam. xxiii. It, of the Philijlines, garhered together in a Troop. By wild Beafts of the Field, Pfa/. lxxx. '3· the unmerciful Enemies of the Church are metaphorically denoted. The Heb•·ew Word here lignifies a llrong and fierce Beafl:. The Apoflle Pant (citing the Poet Epimenides) calls the Cretans "~"~ ~hi'"• evil Beafts. For this Verfe is found in his Works which he intituledDeOraculis, asJerome in his Commentary upon the Place notes. Paul calls him a Prophet, eirher ironically or from the Argument of his Writing, or becaufe the Cretans, his Countrymen, thouuh; l1im to be fo, &c. See Pfal. xlix. 1 o. lxxiii. 22. and xcii. 6. Prov. xii. 1. and xxx~ 2. Pfal. xciv. 7• 8. Jer. x. 8, 14, &c. See alfo Gen. xvi. 12. The Apoflle Paul fays r Cor. xv. 32· that he did (~"l"l'~x·~~·) fight with Beajls at Ephejus-His Words arc, £, ~a.rct a\1.9-gt.J?rOII E-9-nelof"Ct.?(.'lO"IZ ~~~ EI/>Ea-w, &c. Sifecundmn hominem adverfus Bejlias pugnavi Epheji, &c. that is, if after the Manner of Men (or to fpeak after the Manner of Men, or according to Man) I have fought with Beajls at Ephefus; that is, as fomc fay, with bcaftly Men. Scaliger in his Notes fays,feros & pr£jrafli in– genni viros quibufcum illi negotium& contentio fuit, vocal ~"I'"' that is, the Men he had to do withal being of a ftubborn and of an ungovernable Mind, he calls them Beafrs. .And therefore, for xo:.T etv.9-ew?rov, as it is in our Copies, fhould be read xo:.7 o:v.Sew1rwv in this Senle : If I hove fought in Ephefus againft Men, as if againjl Beafts, & c. And whereas he makes an expre's Mention of Ephefus, fome underfland thefe Words. of the Tumult and Uproar there mentioned, Afls xix.- Others expound it of the Dif– putes which he had for three Months with the unbelieving and fl:ubborn ]t"&s at EphejiiS, .Afls xix. 8, 9· 1 Cor. xv. 29. When he fpeaks of the Refurrecrion of the Dead, and fuch as deny it (yet profeffing themfelves Chriflians) he argues (in order to confute them) '" TH ~TO"''" from their own Topic or Maxim; If the Dead rife not at all? In vain was the Bap– tifm for the Dead, that is, if there be no RefurreB:ion, that Baptifm is idle which is made upon the Graves of the Dead for the Confefnon of that Article, viz. theRefur· reCtion, &c. in vain are all my Sufferings in Chrifl, Verfe 30, 31. in vain is all our Controverfy for the Chriflian Religion with the Adverfaries of Truth (who are like Beafl:s for Fiercenefs and Unrulincfs) Verfe 32. with Verk: 14, 15, &c.-Such as un– derfland thefe Words of Paul properly, that is, as if he had really fought with Beafl:s, may be confuted by what he recites, 2 Cor. xi. 23. and the following Verfes, where he gives a Narrative of his-great Sufferings, in which Ennumeration there is no , Mention of this Fight with Beafls. And certainly if it had been really fo, and that he had been cxpofed to fuch an extraordinary cruel Treatment, more inhuman indeed than any he relates, he would n<:>t forget to reckon it amongfl: his Sufferings. Now if the Verb AEyw (l fay) be underflood, (an E!lipjis we meet with, 2 Cor. ix. 6. !fa. v. 9· Ho f. xiv. 9·) as doubtlefs it is, the Senfe mull: be, as if he had faid, ji loquar fecundum ho– minem, that is, if I fpcak according to (the Manner of) Men, viz. when they ufe Si– militudes, Gal. iii. •5· Rom. vi. I 9· then this Speech muft be taken metaphorically, and fo all is well. A certain Mixture of diverfe Animals is propofed, !fa. xi. 6, 7, 8, 9· and lxv. 25. by which the Calling of the wild and barbarous Nations and the Gathering of the Church from diverfe Sorts of People is denoted, which elegant meraphorical Hypotypojis, with divine Affiflance fhall under its proper Head be expounded. To IIUN'l", is almofl: every where taken in an ill Senfe, and is put for to infnare, contrive or devife Mifchief, Exod. xxi. 13. 1 Sam. xxiv. 12. Prov. vi. 26. Jer. xvi. 6. Lam. iii. t;2. and iv. 18. Ezek. xiii. 18, 20. Micah vii. 2. The Reafon of the Meta· phor is e~ident, for the various Devices, Traps, lnflruments, and Arts that are made ufe of by Hunters to catch the Beafts they feek for. He is called a migbty Hunter, Gen. x. 9· who abules his Power violently to opprefs and fubdue Men, or is a Tyrant, 11/yrims *, Venatio habet.fimile qniddam bello, &c. Hunt· • ltt Clarr;e Script, Col. 12 J9· ing
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