These considerations, as also those that follow, may seem jejune and contemptible unto such as have another frame of church rule and order drawn in their minds and interests. A government vested
OF THE RULE OF THE CHURCH, OR OF RULING ELDERS. 115
in some few persons, with titles of pre-eminence, and legal power, exercised in courts with coercive jurisdiction, by the methods and processes of canons of their own framing, is that w^hich they suppose doth better become the grandeur of church-rulers and the state of the church than these creeping elders with their congregations. But whereas our present inquiry after these things is only in and out of the Scripture, wherein there is neither shadow nor appearance of any of these practices, I beg their pardon if at present I consider them not.
We shall now make application of these things unto our present purpose. I say, then, — 1. Whereas there is a work of rule in the church distinct from that of pastoral feeding ; and, 2. Whereas this work is to be attended unto with diligence, which includes the whole duty of him that attends unto it; and, 3. Whereas the nninistry of the word and prayer, with all those duties that accompany it, is a full employment for any man, and so, consequently, his princi- pal and proper work, which it is unlawful for him to be remiss in by attending on another with diligence; and, 4. Whereas there ought to be many elders in every church, that both the works of teaching and riding may be constantly attended unto ; and, 5. Whereas, in the wisdom of the Holy Ghost, distinct luorks did require distinct offices for their discharge (all which we have proved already), our inquiry hereon is, —
Whether the same Holy Spirit hath not distinguished this office of elders into these tivo sorts, — namely, those who ai^e called unto teaching and ride also, and those who are called unto rule only ? which we affirm.
The testimonies whereby the truth of this assertion is confirmed are generally known and pleaded. I shall insist on some of them only, beginning with that which is of uncontrollable evidence, if it had any thing to conflict withal but prejudices and interest; and this is 1 Tim. V. 17: O/ xaXus vpo^aruTig 'rpssQvripot brnXrig rtiL-rig a^iouaduaav, (jjCLkiGra 01 KO'Tiu^vng sv Xoyw xai bibaexaXia. Tlpo'iarruMi, or vpoisra'jjai, is " praesum, prsesideo," to preside, to rule : " President probati seniores," Tertul. And the bishop or pastor in Justin Martyr is 6 TpoigTug. So is the word constantly used in the New Testament: Rom. xii. 8, 'o -xpo'ierdii.ivog, — " That ruleth; " 1 Thess. v. 12, lipo'/ara- fisvovg v/Muv, — " That are over you,'' that is, in place of rule; 1 Tim. iii. 4, 5, 12, it is applied unto family rule and government; as it is also unto care and diligence about good works, Tit. iii. 8, 14. UpoffTudia is the whole presidency in the church, with respect unto its rule. Translators agree in the reading of these words: so the Hebrew of Munster, in^^ D^n^p^o n^'S.nnyn->jpT,_" The elders of the congi-egation who well discharge their iiile or conduct; " so the Syriac, P.?"'* i^^y\^, — "Those elders;" "Qui bene praesunt presby-
116 TRUE NATURE OF A GOSPEL CHURCH.
teri," Vulg. Lat. ; " Seniori che govemano bene," Ital. All agree that it is the governors and government of the church in general that are here intended. MaX/ora is the word most controverted; all transla- tors esteem it distinctive: Heb. npyi^ "eminently;" Syr. n''xn''n^.^ "chiefly, principally;" " maxime;" oi Komuvrsg- Ci''Pi'nj — "who labour painfully," labour to weariness, travail in the word and doctrine.
" The elders, or presbyters in office, elders of the church, that rule well, or discharge their presidency for rule in due manner, are to he counted worthy, or ought to be reputed worthy, of double honour, especially those of them who labour or are engaged in the great labour and travail of the ivord and doctt'ine."
And some things may be observed in general concerning these words : —
1. This testimony relates directly unto the rides and principles before laid down, directing unto the practice of them. According unto the analogy of those principles these words are to be interpreted ; and unless they are overthrown, it is to no purpose to put in excep- tions against the sense of this or that word. The interpretation of them is to be suited unto the analogy of the things which they re- late unto. If we consider not what is spoken here in consent with other scriptures treating of the same matter, we depart from all sober rules of interpretation.
2. On this supposition, the words of the text have a plain and obvious signification, ^yh[ch&t first view presents itself unto the com- mon sense and understanding of all men; and where there is nothing contrary unto any other divine testimony or evident reason, such a sense is constantly to be embfaced. There is nothing here of any spiritual mystery, but only a direction concerning outward order in the church. In such cases the literal sense of the words, rationally apprehended, is all that we are concerned in. But on the first pro- posal of this text, " That the elders that rule well are worthy of double honour, especially those who labour in the word and doctrine," a rational man who is unprejudiced, who never heard of the contro- versy about ruling elders, can hardly avoid an apprehension that there are two sorts of elders, some that labour in the word and doctrine, and some who do not so do. The truth is, it was interest and pre- judice that first caused some learned men to strain their wits to find out evasions from the evidence of this testimony. Being so found out, some others of meaner abilities have been entangled by them ; for there is not one new argument advanced in this cause, not one ex- ception given in unto the sense of the place which we plead for, but what was long since coined by Papists and Prelatists, and managed with better colours than some now are able to lay on them who pre- tend unto the same judgment.