~ SECT. 26, 27. | EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 89
required. He whose heart is cast into the mould of the doctrine by him delivered will receive quick impressions, from his spirit exert- ing itself, in any of his writings. He that is thus prepared will find that heavenliness and perspicuity in unfolding the deepest evangelli- cal mysteries; that peculiar ewaltation of Jesus Christ, in his person, office, and work; that spiritual persuasiveness; that transcendent manner of arguing and reasoning; that wise insinwation and pathe- tical pressing of well-grounded exhortations; that love, tenderness, and affection to the souls of men; that zeal for God and authority in teaching, which enliven and adorn all his other epistles,—to shine in this in an eminent manner, from the beginning to the end of it. And this consideration, whatever may be the apprehensions of others con- cerning it, is that which gives me satisfaction, above all that are pleaded in this cause, in ascribing this Epistle to Paul.
26. The testemony of the first churches, of whose testimony any re- cord is yet remaining, with a successive suffrage of the most knowing persons of following ages, may also be pleaded in this cause. Setting aside that limitation of this testimony, as to some in the Latin church, which, with the grounds and occasions of it, we have already granted and declared, this witness will be acknowledged to be catholic as to all other churches in the world. A learned man of late hath reckoned up and reported the words of above thirty of the Greek fathers and fifty of the Latin reporting this primitive tradi- tion. Ishall not trouble the reader with a catalogue of their names, nor the repetition of their words; and that because the whole of what in general we assert as to the eastern church is acknowledged. Amongst them was this Epistle first made public, as they had far » more advantages of discovering the truth in this matter of fact than any in the Roman church, or that elsewhere followed them in after ages, couldhave. Neither had they any thing but the conviction and evidence of truth itself to induce them to embrace this persuasion. And he that shall consider the condition of the first churches under persecution, and what difficulties they met withal in communicating those apostolical writings which were delivered unto any of them, with that special obstruction unto the spreading of this unto the Hebrews of which we have already discoursed, cannot rationally otherwise con- ceive of it but as an eminent fruit of the good providence of God, that it should so soon receive so public an attestation from the first churches as it evidently appears to have done.
27. The Epistle itself several ways discovers its author. Some of them we shall briefly recount :—
(1.) The general argument and scope of it declares it to be Paul’s. Hereof there are two parts:—[1.] The ewaltation of the person, _ office, and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, with the excellency of the gospel and the worship therein commanded, revealed by him. [2.]
90 AUTHOR OF THE [EXERC. 11.
A discovery of the nature, use, and expiration of Mosaical institu- tions, their present unprofitableness, and ceasing of their obligation unto obedience. The former part we may grant to have been equally the design of all the apostles, though we find it in a peculiar way in- sisted on in the writings of Paul; the latter was his special work and business. This, partly ex instituto, partly occasionally, from the opposition of the Jews, was he engaged in the promotion of, all the world over. The apostles of the Circumcision, according to the wis- dom given them, and suitably to the nature of their work, did more accommodate themselves to the prejudicate opinion of the Jewish professors; and the rest of the apostles had little occasion to deal with them or others on this subject. Paul in an eminent manner in this work bare the burden of that day. Having well settled all other churches which were troubled in this controversy by some of the Jews, he at last treats with themselves directly in this Epistle, giving an account of what he had elsewhere preached and taught to this pur- pose, and the grounds that he proceeded upon; and this not without great success, as the burying of the Judaical controversy not long after doth manifest.
(2.) The method of his procedure is the same with that of his other epistles, which also was peculiar unto him. Now, this in most of them, yea, in all of them not regulated by some particular occasions, is first to lay down the doctrinal mysteries of the gospel, vindicating them from oppositions and exceptions, and then to descend to exhor- tations unto obedience deduced from them, with an enumeration of such special moral duties as those unto whom he wrote stood in
*need to be minded of. Thisis the general method of his Epistles to the Romans, Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, and the most of the rest. And this also is observed in this Epistle. Only, whereas he had a special respect unto the apostasy of some of the Hebrews, oc- casioned by the persecution which then began to grow high against them, whatever argument or testimony in his passage gave him ad- vantage to press an exhortation unto constancy, and to deter them from backsliding, he lays hold upon it, and diverts into practical in- ferences unto that purpose, before he comes to his general exhorta- tions towards the end of the Epistle. Excepting this occasional difference, the method of this is the same with that used in the other epistles of Paul, and which was peculiarly his own.