those in whom the Spirit of God dwells are members of the church which is the body of Christ. And by parity of reason- ing, those in whom the Spirit does not dwell are not members of Christ's body. They may be members of the visible or nominal church, but they are not members of the church in that sense in which it is the body of Christ. This passage, therefore, not only teaches us the nature of the church, but also the principle of its unity. It is one, not as united under one external visible head, or under one governing tribunal, nor in virtue of any external visible bond, but in virtue of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in aU its members. And this in- ternal spiritual union manifests itself in the profession of the same faith, and in all acts of Christian fellowship.
And have all been made to drink into one /Spirit. This is a difficult clause. To drink into is an unexampled phrase, whether in English or Greek. The text varies. In some MSS. it is ets eV 7rv€v/Aa, i?ito one /Spirit, in others, eV Trv^vfxa, one Spirit. The latter is adopted by Lachmann and Tischendorf. If this be preferred, the sense is, 'We have all drank one Spirit.' That is, we have all been made partakers of one Spirit. Compare John 7, 37, and other passages, in which the Spirit is compared to water of which men are said to drink. The meaning of the passage according to this reading is sim- ple and pertinent. ' By the baptism of the Holy Ghost we have all been united in one body and made partakers of one Spirit.' If the common text be preferred, the most natural interpretation would seem to be, ' We have all been made to drink so as to become one Spirit.' The words (eis ev Tn/cv/Aa) unto one Spirit, would then correspond to (ei? %v o-w/^a) unto one body. The allusion is supposed by Luther, Calvin and Beza to be to the Lord's Supper. ' By baptism we become one body, and by drinking (of the cup, i. e. by the Lord's Supper) we become one body.' But this allusion is not only foreign to the context, but is not indicated by the words. How can the sinaple word cTroTio-^T^/Acv, made to drink, in such a connection, mean to partake of the Lord's Supper ? Besides, as the modern commentators all remark, the tense of the verb forbids this interpretation. It must express the same time with the preceding verb. ' We were all baptized (ifSaTrTia-Sr]-- fiev), and we were all made to drink (c7roTia-.^r//Aev).' It is something done in the past, not something continued in the present that the word expresses. If any thing is to be sup- plied it is not the word cup, but the Sjnrit, i. e. the water of