nent dispensation than the law.-The third fact is, that the author of the gospel, in consequence of his having made the worlds, is Heir or Lord and Governor of all. And although, after becoming man, he died, yet being raised from the dead, he had the government of the world restored to him in the human nature, ver. 2, 3.-To the faithful, this is a source of the greatest consolation; because, if the world is governed by their master, he certainly hath power to protect and bless them; and every thing befalling them, will issue in good to them. Besides, being the judge as well as the ruler of the world, he hath authority to acquit them at the judgment, and power to reward them for all the evils they have suffered on his account.-The fourth fact treated of in this epistle is, That the author of the gospel laid down his life a sacrifice for sin, and by that sacrifice made an atonement, of which, when offered, God declared his acceptance, by setting Jesus at his own right hand, ver. 3.—The gospel, therefore, hath a priesthood and sacrifice, more efficacious than the priesthood and sacrifices of the law taken together. For, an expiation made by a person so great in himself, and so dear to God as his own Son, and made by the appointment of God, could not but be acceptable to him; consequently it must be a sure foundation for that hope of pardon, by which the gospel encourages sinners to repent. The authority of the gospel being supported by these four facts, the apostle judged it necessary to establish them on a solid foundation; and for that purpose wrote this learned letter, which he directed to the Hebrews, because being the keepers of the former revelations, they were the fittest judges, both of the facts themselves, and of the proofs brought from the ancient revelations to support them. With respect to the first of these facts, namely that the Jewish and Christian revelations were spoken by the same God, let it be observed, that the apostle did not think it necessary to set forth a separate proof thereof. For as the whole of the epistle was to be employed in shewing, that the doctrines of the gospel, which the Jews considered as contrary to the former revelations, were all taught by Moses and the prophets, it was such a clear proof of the two revelations having proceeded from the same original, that there was no occasion to offer any other. With respect to the second fact, on which the authority of the gospel, as a revelation from God, is built, namely that the man Jesus, by whom it was spoken, is the Son of God, the apostle in stead of proposing the direct proofs whereby that fact is ascertained, judged it more proper to answer the objections advanced by the doctors for disproving it. And the rather, because the particulars of which the direct proof consisted, had all been exhibited in the most public manner in Judea where the Hebrews dwelt, and were well known to them, Acts x. 36.-42. Namely, that God himself in the hearing of many witnesses, had declared Jesus of Nazareth his Son, by a voice from heaven at his baptism; and by a like voice at his transfiguration; and by a third voice in the hearing of the multitude assembled in the temple. Also, that Jesus had proved himself the Son of God, by many miracles performed in the most public manner, during the course of his ministry, and had often appealed to these miracles, as undeniable proofs of his pretension. Above all, that his resurrection from the dead, after the rulers had put him to death, as a blasphemer for calling himself Christ the Son of the Blessed, demonstrated him to be the Son of God. Farther, these proofs had often been appealed to by the apostles, Acts x. 38, 39. And to their appeals God himself continually bare witness, by signs, and miracles, and distributions of the Holy Ghost. The Hebrews, therefore, being well acquainted with the direct evidence on which our Lord's claim to be the Son of God rested, when the apostle affirmed, that in these last days God had spoken by his Son, he in effect told them that he had spoken by Jesus of Nazareth, and at the same time called to their remembrance all the proofs by which Jesus of Nazareth's claim to the dignity of God's Son was established. Nor was it necessary to enter into that matter more particularly, for the sake of others who might read this epistle as these proofs were soon to be published to all, in the evangelical histories. In short, if the Hebrews in Judea were not convinced that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, it was not owing to their ignorance of the proofs by which his claim to that dignity was established, but to the objections urged against it, which it seems had much more influence to make them reject Jesus, than the multiplied miraculous attestations above described, had to make, them acknowledge him as the Son of God. Of these objections, the most weighty arose from the lofty descriptions, given in the scriptures, of the nature and dignity of the Son of God. For by these the Hebrews were led to conclude, that the Son of God could not possibly be a man; far less could he be born of a woman, or die. This, with other conclusions of a like nature, being extremely plausible in themselves, and strongly urged by the doctors, the apostle rightly judged that he would more effectually convince the unbelieving Hebrews, by confuting these arguments and objections, than by repeating the direct proofs above mentioned, with which they were perfectly well acquainted already. Accordingly, this is what he does in the second chapter. Only, as these objections were all founded on the accounts given in the Jewish scriptures, of the nature and dignity of the Son, the apostle with admirable address, before he attempted to confute them, introduced in this first chap. ver. 5.-14. the principal passages of the Jewish scriptures, which the doctors and people applied to the Son of God. For, by thus displaying his transcendant greatness, he gave the objections of the Jews their full force. At the same time, by applying these passages to Jesus of Nazareth the author of the gospel, he not only affirmed him to be the Son of God, but raised his dignity and authority to the highest pitch. See chap. ii. 1.—3. His account of the dignity of the Son, the apostle begins with telling us that he is superior to the highest angels, because no where is it recorded in scripture, that God said to any of the angels, as he said to his Son, My Son thou art; to day I have begotten thee, ver. 5.-Instead of speaking to them in that manner, when he brought his Son a second time into our world, in the human nature, by raising him from the dead, he ordered all the angels to worship him, ver. 6. So that although he became man and continues to be so, he is still superior in nature to the highest angels. Farther, the apostle observes, that the greatest thing said of angels in the scriptures is, that they are spirits, and God's ministers, ver. 7.-Whereas by saying to the Son, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever, he hath declared him the Governor of the world, ver. 8.-Also, by saying, Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated wickedness, therefore—God hath anointed thee; he hath declared the Son worthy of that dominion, ver. 9. And, by saying to him, Thou Lord in the beginning foundedst the earth, and the works of thy hands are the heavens, the Psalmist hath taught us, that the dominion of the Son is originally founded in his having created the material fabric of the world, ver. 9.And, by adding in the same passage, They shall perish, but thou dost remain, and they all as a garment shall grow old, he hath ascribed to the Son eternal existence, ver. 11, 12.-Morcover, God having never said to any of the angels, Sit thou at my right hand &c. it is evident, that none of the angels ever received from God any proper dominion over the world, ver. 13.-What interference any of them have in human affairs, is merely that of servants, who, under the government of the Son, minister for the benefit of them who shall be heirs of salvation, ver. 14. As the conclusion of this illustration it may be proper to remark, that some of the most pernicious errors that ever disturbed the Christian church, took their rise from the sublime display of the greatness of the Son of God, which is made in the Jewish scriptures. For, certain false teachers in the Christian church, probably converts from Judaism, holding the doctrine of their unbelieving brethren, fancied that the greatness of the Son of God was inconsistent with the nature of man. They therefore affirmed, that Jesus Christ had not come in the flesh; that his body was nothing but the appearance of a body; and that he was crucified only in appearance. Of these pernicious tenets we have clear traces in the epistles of John, where they are expressly condemned; and the teachers who maintained them, are called, antichrists, or opposers of Christ. See Pref. to 1 John, sect. 3. OLD TRANSLATION. CHAP. I. 1 God, who at sundry times, and in divers manners, spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; GREEK TEXT. 1 Πολυμερώς και πολυτροπως παλαι ὁ Θεος λαλησας τοις πατρασιν εν τοις προφηταις, 2 Επ' εσχάτων των ἡμερων τούτων τούτων ελαλησεν ἡμιν εν διῳ, όν έθηκε κληρονομον παντων, δι' ἡ και τους αι ωνας εποιησεν. 3 Ὃς ων απαυγασμα της δόξης, και χαρακτηρ της ποςάσεως αυτού, φέρων τε τα παντα τῷ ρηματι της δυναμεως αυτου, δι ̓ ἑαυτου καθα ρισμον ποιησάμενος των ἁμαρτιων ημων, εκάθισεν Εν δεξια της μεγαλωσύνης εν ὑψηλοις· Ver. 1. 1. In sundry parts. Πολυμερώς. Peirce saith this word, according to its etymology, signifies, "That God discovered his will anciently in seve“ ral parts or parcels; so that one part was to be learned from one prophet, "and another from another."-The apostle made this observation to teach us, that the gospel being spoken all at once by Christ and his apostles, no addition is ever to be made to it in after times. 2. And in divers manners. This clause doth not refer to the different manners in which God revealed himself to the prophets; such as dreams, visions, audible voices, inspirations of his Spirit, &c. but it refers to the dif. ferent ways in which the prophets communicated the different revelations which they received, to the fathers. They did it in types and figures, significant actions and dark sayings, as well as in plain language. Whereas the gospel revelation was spoken by Christ and his apostles, in one manner only; namely, in plain language. Ver. 2.—1. Hath in these last days. The apostle means, either the day's which were last, when he wrote this passage; or the last days of the Mosaic dispensation. 2. Spoken to us by his Son. God, speaking to us by his Son, being oppos. ed to his speaking to the fathers by the prophets, overthrows the opinion of |