the highest Faculty of Medicine in the Church, as in 1 Cor. vi. we have its highest Judicial order. O happy simplicity ! interrupted or lost through unbelief (dmor/uv). For inasmuch as the Latin Church has its extreme unction / and the Greek Church its sv^sAa/ov, from the force of experience, they assign much less efficacy for the restoring of health to this mystery or sacrament, as they
term it, than James does to the apostolic usage. Whitaker says with great force against Duraeus, Let them use oil , who are able by their prayers to obtain recovery for the sick : let those who are not able to do this , abstain from the use of the empty sign. For the only design of that anointing originally was miraculous healing : and in the failure of this result, it is nothing but an empty sign. But the laying on of hands is also a holy outward rite, although it does not by the mere act confer the Holy Spirit. For not even in the be- ginning was it always used with this one design. — h, in) This is certainly not less connected with the verb, let them pray , than with the participle, anointing ; whence there follows (ver. 15), the prayer of faith. — rov Kvp/ovj the Lord) Jesus Christ.
15. 'H T7)c more cog, the prayer of faith) [_He does not say the oil shall save. — Y. g.] When some of the faithful pray, the whole power of faith is spread and exercised through the whole body of the Church. James would have complained that he was greatly misrepresented, if any one were to say, that he attributed the remis- sion of sins to works. — ;cav, and if) It may happen that a man is sick, even though he has not committed [special] sins. — apexes r«/, it shall be forgiven him) the having committed sins.
16. ’e ^oyoXoyeTo&e, confess) The sick man, and whoever has com- mitted an offence, is ordered to confess : the injured party, to pray. The things to be confessed are those 'which especially burden the con- science: he to whom the confession is made, knows better how he ought to pray, and is more stirred up to prayer. — to one another , mutually) Confession may be made to any one who is able to pray. — o<7rug iuQrire, that ye may be healed) Diseases therefore were prevalent. — koXv, much) even to the restoration of health. — icyfei, avails) even
1 This word (as its derivation shows) appears at first to have de-
noted the prayers which were used at the consecration of the oil with which the sick were to be anointed, but it has generally been applied to the act of extreme unction. For a full account of the word, see Suicer’s Thesaurus.
The Greek Church practises the rite of extreme unction, though its usage in this respect does not entirely correspond with that of the Church of Rome. See Riddle’s Christian Antiquities, and Willetts’ Synopsis Papismi. — T.