nothing but death and defolation all about him. The love of our neighbour is God's fufficient general commiffion in that case. But St. Paul did receive particular orders to go and teach. For he is faid to be filled with the Holy Ghost at his first converfion; and I believe all that received the Holy Ghoft did take that as a commiffion to exercise the gifts they had received, in chriftian affemblies, women as well as men: how much more thofe that were filled with it? as I believe no particular perfon is faid to be that was not a prophet. I do not remember that that expreffion, when applied to any particular perfon, does ever denote any one under that degree; and is often ufed concerning Zacharias and Elizabeth, John Baptist, and Barnabas'. And that Saul was a prophet and a teacher before he was an apostle, we expreffly read: "And there were certain prophets and teachers in the church of Antioch, as Barnabas, and Simeon that was "called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with "Herod the tetrarch, and Saul" And St. Paul fays, that when Chrift, or the glory of Chrift, appeared to him in the way to Damafcus, that Chrift faid to him, 46 66 66 y Acts ix. 17. Luke i. 42, 67. "he Ver. 15. b Acts x. 24, Ibid. xiii. 1. "appeared to him, to make him a minifter, "and a witnefs, both of those things which "thou haft feen, as well as of thofe in the " which I will appear to thee ." d And in this, by the way, the wisdom of Providence deferves our notice. For by his being firft a prophet and a teacher of the christian faith to the Jews, and afterwards to the profelyted Gentiles, in all for about eight or nine years (in which time he was received and owned as fuch by the Jewish believers), the way was prepared for his becoming an apoftle of the Gentiles, and many of those prejudices against him, and his office as the apoftle of the Gentiles, were foftened or removed; which might otherwise have operated much more ftrongly against him, in the minds of a people fo bigoted to their own law, and fo prepoffeffed against the idolatrous Gentiles, as the Jewish believers were. 66 After he had been a prophet and a teacher about eight or nine years, he is fent “as an apoftle to preach to the Gentiles" (that is, the idolatrous Gentiles), by Chrift; from whom he had then a special commiffion, in a vifion to himself, namely, the latter end of ann. 43; which he seems to hint to Timothy, when he tells him, that he was "appointed a "preacher, an apoftle, and a teacher of the "Gentiles "." • Acts xxvi. 16. e 2 Tim. i. II. This commiffion was afterwards declared or notified to the church, by the prophets in the church of Antioch, the beginning of ann. 44; "Separate me Barnabas and Saul to the work "to which I have called them;" agreeably to the words St. Paul fays Christ used to him, faying, " Depart, for I will" (namely, fhortly at Antioch, not now) "fend thee far "hence to the Gentiles f" which notification has been fuppofed by fome to be his fecond or his apoftolical ordination, from fome word' ufed on this occcafion; which I will confider prefently. And the church faft and pray for a bleffing on the particular work which he and Barnabas were going upon; and lay their hands on them. But, on both thefe occafions, he received his commiffion from Jefus Chrift, either by the means of Ananias, or of the Holy Ghoft filling him with thefe gifts, to be a preacher; and to be an apostle, immediately and perfonally from Chrift, at the time of the vifion in the temple; as I have proved before. And let those who think an apostle must have any other ordination from men than this, namely, praying for a bleffing (or, in other words, that he muft have a conveyance of power from fome other that had it), confider whether Ananias a disciple could ordain a preacher; and prophets,men of an inferior order, could ordain an apostle, who was of the highest order in the church? 66 What has led perfons to think that this was an ordination of Paul and Barnabas is, that the terms are here used of " feparating, fafting, praying, laying on of hands, and fending them forth," which are the circumftances that attend ordinations in modern times, and the expreffions that are often used to denote them; though I think little stress is laid on fafting, at least among fome, 66 Now "feparating" fignifies no more than either appointing a perfon to any particular work that God thinks fit to employ him about; or to declare and publish him to be fo appointed. So God called or separated Bezaliel and Aholiab to work all manner of work of the "weaver, carver, engraver, em"broiderer, and perfumer ;" and afterwards Mofes published it. So alfo God separated the priests and Levites, the ark, the temple, and the utenfils of both, for his fervice. "Solemn prayer" was made by the church on divers important occafions. They prayed', when nobody ordained Matthias; but he was chofen by the hundred and twenty, and appointed or ordained by God. They prayed, on the report that Peter and John made of their treatment by the high prieft and rulers, after they had cured the lame beggar at the Beautiful gate of the temple. Prayer was Exod. xxxi. 2-12. Ibid. xxxiv. 30-35 * Ibid. iv. 24. made made without ceafing of the church unto God for Peter, when Herod had put him in prifon!. As to "the laying on of hands," it was a ceremony that attended prayer or benediction, or other folemn actions. So Jacob bleffed Ephraim and Manaffeh ". So the children of Ifrael laid their hands on the Levites, when they were to be feparated to the fervice of Aaron and his fons ". So our bleffed Saviour, "when children were brought, that he should "put his hands on them, and pray"" (which fhews that this was a common ufage), "he "put his hands on them, and bleffed them "." Laying on of hands was so far from being a peculiar circumftance of ordination, or of any thing that had the least relation to it, that it was frequently ufed by our Saviour in healing. Thus it is faid in Luke, that "he laid "his hands on all the fick that were brought "him, and healed them." Sometimes he did this by touching only. And in the paffage cited from St. Mark it may also be obferved, from their defiring our Saviour to put his hand upon the deaf and dumb man, that it was a common practice in conferring 1 Acts xii. 5. ^ Numb. viiì. 10.. P Ver. 15. m Gen. xlviii. 14, • Matt. xix. 13. 9 Luke iv. 40. See Matt. viii, 3. Luke vii. 14. Matt. ix. 29. Mark vii. 32, 33. |