1 Flesh and Spirit do not denote strictly the human and divine nature of Christ respectively ; but either of the two, according as it is His state of life among men, or as it is His glorified state with God. — ED.
" afar off/' Eph. ii. 17). And the foundations of this preaching, and of the faith existing in the world, were laid before Christ was taken up (" received up") into heaven ; John xvii. 18. The preachers and first believers were as it were the seed of the rest. — sffiffrsvQq) He was believed on. — sv KOG/AU) in the world, i.e. the whole world. [A circumstance calculated to Jill us with astonish ment. — V. g.] The world, or globe, is opposed to heaven, into which He, being God, was taken up. He fills all things. — dveXypdr) sv do^p) was taken up in glory [" received up into glory" Engl. Vers.]) Supply, And He is now in glory, and comes in glory. The first thing is, manifest in the flesh ; the last, He was received up in glory. These things even, especially refer to the greatness of the mystery. Even this single expression, He was taken, or received up, confutes what Artemonius has on this pas sage, Pref. p. 27.
1. As, [now] but) The antithesis is between sdpaiupa, the ground, ch. iii. 15, and aKoarfawrai, shall depart or fall away; as also between " the mystery of godliness," and " the mystery of iniquity," of which the apostle speaks here by description, and by name at 2 Thess. ii. 7. — farue) expressly, as of a thing of great importance, which will speedily come to pass, in a set form of words. — Xiyg/, speaketh) by the prophets in the time of Paul, or by Paul himself, who also was a prophet ; hence he says, " This know," 2 Tim. iii. 1. — tv bffr'spois xaipoTs, in the last times) Paul shows that these times, following after the ascension of the Lord, ch. iii. 16, were then already in existence, inasmuch as he uses a present remedy for the then existing evil, ver. 5, 6 ; comp. 2 Tim. iii. 1, et seqq. vsr'epos is used comparatively (lat ter), for vararos expresses a different idea (the last times of all). — dKocrriffovrai nveg r%g viorsuc, some shall depart, or fall away, from the faith) Comp. 2 Tim. ii. 18 ; shall depart, viz. by denying what is true and adding what is false. — rivzg) some, i.e. many,