actions. The case of Oliver Cromwell and many of his followers will naturally occur to some readers.
The examples of men who were raised up to do special works in the times of the Old Testament must not be followed in all things. The man who presumes to imitate Joshua and Elijah in all their dealings with the enemies of God, must furnish proof of his call and commission to walk in their steps.
55. — \_He turned and rebuked them, do.] Our Lord's entire disap- proval of all persecution for religion's sake is very plainly taught in this passage. Whatever we may think of men's doctrines or practices, we are not to persecute them.
Poole says, " Christ did not approve of the Samaritan worship, yet he did not think that the way to change their minds was to call for fire from heaven against them. It is not the will of God that we should approve of any corrupt worship, and join with those who use it. But neither is it his will that we should by fire and sword go about to suppress it, and bring men off from it."
Quesnel remarks, " It often happens that the ministers of the Church, imder pretence of zeal for her interests, offend against Christian meekness. The Church knows no such thing as re- venge, and her ministers ought not to know it either. Their wrath should be incensed against sin, not against the sinner. The fire of heaven is one day to come down to purify the world by destruction. At present it comes down only to sanctify it by edification."
[What manner of spirit ye are of.] The disciples were forget- ting the nature of that Spirit by whom they professed, as Christ's disciples, to be guided. They were forgetting that He was a Spirit of love and meekness and gentleness, and that all acts of a revengeful and violent character were grievous to Him. " The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness." (Gal. V. 22.) Their own Master had taught them that if any man smote them on one cheek they were to turn to him the other also. (Matt. V. 39.) But all this for the time was forgotten. A fierce temper and a sense of injured dignity make men bad reason ers, and drive good instruction out of their memories.
Bengel remarks, that we should compare with the conduct of these two disciples " the fact that when Jesus prayed on the cross, employing the very words of the twenty-second and thirty- first Psalms, he did not pray against his enemies, but for them."
It is an interesting fact, that the apostle John, at a later period in his life, came down to Samaria in a very different spirit. He came with Peter on a special mission from Jerusalem, to confer spiritual blessings on Samaritan believers. And we are told that he " preached the Gospel in many villages of the Samaritans." (Acts viii. 25.)