of t. cv Jble Church of Chriji. 57 For to eject an Elder doth not belong to Elders as fuch There is no Rule for it, there is neither Precept nor Pre- cedent for it : And that which hath neither Precept nor Precedent for its Practice, is not of Divine Inílitution. Objecê. Paul did call out by his own Power, i `Ism. i. 20. Of rwhom is Hymeneus and Alexander, ,whom 1 have delivered unto Satan to learn them no more to hlafpheme. Why then may not ordinary Elders of other Churches do the like ? I anfwer (t.) It doth no where appear that Hymeneus and Alexander were Elders. And it is much but it would have been noted if they had. If this muff be made a Prece- dent for ordinary Elders to ac} by, this is the Way to take the Power of dealing withMembers out of the Hands of the Church, as well as the Power of dealing with Elders; and fo the Church Ihall have no Power of dealing left them. (z.) It doth not follow that thefe were dealt with by. a' Tingle Hand ; though he fpeaks in the fingular Number, he might be laid to do it, in that he did order or exhort the Church to do it, and there is much Reafon to carry it fo, when we confider how he managed the Bufinefs with the Church at Corinth concerning the Inceftuous Perfon ; z Cor. v; 3. For I verily as abfent in Body, but prefint in Spi- rit, havejudged already, as if I were prefent. If he had been prefent with them, he would have made no other De- termination than what he had made being abfent : Well but what was his Determination being abfent? I anfwer, it was this, that when they (that is the Church) were ga- thered together, and his Spirit with them, that in the Name of our Lord Jefus Chri ft, and with the Power of our Lord, they lhould deliver him to Satan, E.'c. ver. 13. Put away from among ycurfelves that ,wicked Perfcn. This was his Determination, being abfent, that the Church íhould do it : For there lay the Power of our Lord Jefus Chriil, and he would no otherwife have determined ; if he had been prefent, he would not have taken the Power out of the Churches Hand : And in this Manner I apprehend he delivered Hymeneus and Alexander unto Satan. I cannot think that Paul would take that out of the Churches Hands, that he knew Christ long before had put into their Hands ; that
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