6. A blessed intercourse, society, communion, and fellowship ts maintained and kept wp between the several parts of the family of God,—that of angels above, and this of believers below. It hath been formerly declared how the angels in heaven and all elect be- lievers were reduced into one family, when God reconciled the things in heaven and earth unto himseif, and brought them all into sub- jection unto and dependence upon one common head, Christ Jesus, Eph. i. 10. From hence are angels and men reduced into one family, the family in heaven and earth; the angels by transition, men by adoption. Now it is the will of God, that, for the honour of our Lord Jesus Christ, the immediate head of this family, there should be an intercourse and a helpful communion between the several parts of it; for to this end are we brought into the society of the “innumerable company of angels,” Heb. xii. 22. Now, be- cause our goodness, our usefulness, our helpfulness, are confined and
248 AN EXPOSITION OF THE [CHAP. I.
limited unto the “saints that are on the earth,” Ps, xvi. 2, 8, not extending itself unto God, or any of his holy ones above, we cannot help, assist, counsel, nor advise the angels; nor do they in any thing stand in need of our aid or assistance. And since the communica- tion of our minds unto them, by way of religious subjection, adora- tion, faith, trust, afliance, is absolutely forbidden unto us, it re- maineth that this fellowship and society must be maintained by the aid, help, and assistance which they are able to afford unto us, and which we stand in need of. And on this account doth God employ them about the affairs and concernments of believers, that so a be- coming fellowship may be kept up in the family of Christ, and a usefulness between the several parts thereof.
7. God makes use of the ministry of angels in the service of the church to reproach, awe, restrain, and torment the devil. Itisa continual reproach cast upon Satan, when he sees those unto whom he is like in nature, and with whom he was some time a companion in glory, willingly, cheerfully, triumphantly obeying the will of God in the service of Christ; having by his wickedness cast out himself from the same honourable employment, and mancipated himself to the vilest services that any part of the creation of God is cast down unto. The whole work of the angels is a continual reproach unto Satan for his sin and folly. It cries unto him, ‘This might have been thy work, this might have been thy condition; the gnawing of which consideration is no small part of his torment and present restless vexation. They also put an awe upon him in all his at- tempts. He knows well their power, their authority, their commis- sion, and that it is not for him to contend with them. With one word they can at any time defeat him: “The Lord rebuke thee, Satan; the Lord rebuke thee.’ And he knows not where he may meet with them in his attempts. And this keeps him in continual awe and perpetual uncertainty of success in all that he undertakes or goes about. And hereby God also in many things frustrates his endeavours, restrains his power, and disappoints his malice. It is inconceivable what havoc he would make of the lives, and liberties, and estates of the saints, did not these watchers from the Holy One disappoint him. And all these things add to his torment. Much of his present punishment consists in the endless workings of wrath, envy, malice, blood-thirstiness, and rage. Now, as these, wherever they are found but in the least degree, are tormenting passions, so where they are all in their height, rage, and fury, and are not by any considerable vent abated or slacked, what can be worse in hell itself but only the immediate wrath of God? But thus it is with Satan from this ministry of angels. He sees the church and every member of it, all whom he seeks to devour, encamped about, pro- tected, and defended by this heavenly host, so that he cannot in any
VER, 14.] EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 249
measure have his will of them; nay, that he cannot touch the soul of any one of them, nor cause a hair of the head of any one of them to perish. This fills him with self-devouring rage, envy, and wrath. And thus doth God by this way accomplish his judgment upon him.
And these are some of the reasons which the Scripture intimates unto us why the Lord is pleased thus to make use of the ministry of angels; which may suffice for an answer to the first question be- fore proposed.
The sECOND is, Unto what ends and purposes doth God make use of the ministry of angels for the good of them that do believe ?
The thing itself we suppose in both these questions. It is so directly asserted in the words of the apostle, and so many instances are given of it elsewhere in the Scripture, that it needs not any especial confirmation. It will also be further declared in our enume- ration of the ends and purposes of it ensuing; as,—
1. In general, God doth it to communicate by them the effects of his care and love unto the church by Jesus Christ. This God repre- sented unto Jacob in the vision that he gave him of the ladder which stood upon the earth, and whose top reached unto heaven, Gen. xxvill. 12,13; for although the Jews say somewhat to the purpose when they affirm this ladder to have denoted the dependence of all things here below on them above, under the rule of the providence of God, yet they say not all that was signified thereby. Our Saviour tells us, John i, 51, that hereafter his disciples should see “ heaven open, and angels ascending and descending upon the Son of man,” —plainly alluding unto this vision of Jacob: for these words éx) riv Lidov rod dvdpdrov, “upon the Son of man,” cannot denote merely the object of angelical ministration, that they should be exercised in their work about his person; but also that by him, by means of his mediation, the angels ascend and descend in the work of ministering unto the saints. It is true, the great instance of their ministry was given in and about the person of Christ, as head of the church, They declared his conception and nativity, Matt. i. 20, 21; Luke 1. 35, ii, 10-14;—they ministered unto him after his temptation, Matt. iv. 11;—+they strengthened him in his agony, Luke xxi. 43;—they were witnesses of his resurrection and ascension, Luke xxiv. 4, Acts i. 10, 11. But by him and on his account they perform the offices of their mission towards others also, even all the heirs of salvation, but this still wpon the account of Christ. They ascend and descend on his mediation, sent by his authority, aiming at his glory, doing his work, carrying on his interest, as in the following particulars will appear: for,—