71 I SERMO NXCV® The Patience of God, 2PET. III. 9. The Lord is notflack concerning his Promifey as fume Men count flack- nefs ; but is long-fuffering, not willing that any fhould perifh, but that all fhould come to Repentance. IN the beginning of this Chapter, the Apoftle puts the annuls, to whoni he writes, in mind of the Predictions of the Ancient Prophets and of the Apoftles of our Lord and Saviour, concerning the general Judgment of the World, which by many (and perhaps by the Apoftles themfelves) had been thought to be very near," and that it would , prefently follow the deftruaion of sterufalem ; but he tells them, that before that, there would arifea certain Sea, or Sort of Mena that would deride the expectationof a future Judgment, de- figning probably the Carpocratians (a Branch of that large Sea of the Gno/ücks) of whom St. Auflin exprefly fays, ` That they denied the Refurreaion, andcon- ' fequently a future Judgment. Thefe St. Peter calls Scoffers, v. 3, 4. Knowing this fir/1, that there (hall come in the laß days fcoffers, walking after their own lufls, andPaying, Where is the promifeof his coming i The word is i7rri»T ta, which lignifies a Declaration in general, whether it be by way of Promife or Threatning. What is become of that Declaration of Chrift fo frequently repeated in the Go- fpel, concerning his coming to Judgment ? For fine the Fathers fell afleep, or, fiz- zling that the Fathers are fallen afleep, except only that Men die, and one Gene- ration fucceeds another, all things continue as they were from the creation of the world; that is, the World continues Rill as it was from the beginning, and there is no fign of any fuch change and alteration as is foretold. To this he anfwers two things. e. That thefeScoffers, tho' they took themfelves to beWits, did betray great Ignorance, both of the condition of the World, and of the Nature of God. They talk'd very ignorantly concerning the World, when they faid, All things continued as they were from the Creation of it, when fo remarkable a change had already happened, as the deftruaion of it by Water ; and therefore the Predi- etion concerning the deftruaion of it by Fire, before the great and terrible day of Judgment, was no ways incredible. And they !hewed themfelves likewife y ignorant of thePerfeaion of the Divine Nature, to which, being eternally e fame, a thoufand years and one day are all one ; and. if God make good his . word foine thoufands of Years hence, it will make no fenfible difference, confi- dering his eternal duration, it being no matter when a duration begins, which is never to have an end ; v. 8. Be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thoufand years, anda thoufandyears as one day. This, it feems, was a common faying among the yews, to fignifie, that to the Eternityof God, no finite duration bears any proportion ; and therefore with regard to Eternity, it is all one whether it be a thoufand Years or one Day.. The Pfalmift hath an Ex- preffion much to the fame purpofe, Pfal. 9o. 4. For a thoufand years in thy fight are but as yeflerday when it is pall ; and as a watch in the night. And the Son of Sirach likewife, Eccluf. r 8. to. As dropof water to the fee, and as a grainoffend to the feafooe, foare a thoufand years to the days ofeternity. The like expreffion we meet with in Heathen Writers .; To the Gods no time is long, faithPythagoras : And Plutarch, The whole fpace ofaMan's life to theGods is as nothing. And in his excellent Difcourfe of the flownefs of the Divine Venge- ance,
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=