mav obſerve, 1. That the Devil may in ſome fort, and degrec, be caſi out of rerſons and places,whilc yet in other reſpe&s,they may be his hauſe, and he may dwell in, and amongſt them. Their bo- dics, their Country may be in great meaſure delivered from his Power, and hc may yet keep poſſcttion of their Souls. This ordina- cily happeneth in places where theGoſpel is faithfullyPreached,tho there remain abundance of Men whoſe lives evidence, that the De- vil hath a teo great poſſeſſion of their Souls, yet thoſe places, and Perſons inhabiting in them,are more freed from Witchcraft,and the power which the Devil exerciſcs (by God's permiffion)upon Men, and Womens bodies, and Cattel,75c.than other more Paganiſh and ignorant places. He may alfo' in a ſcnic be faid to be caſt out of Perſons, that are reclaimed from vicious, and debauched lives,yet are not brought home to God, only are more enlightned, and more under the Power of reſtraining Grace, yet their Souls may be his houſe. 2. The Devil caſt out in any Degree, is unquiet till (if poſſible) he hath recovered as ful! a Power over,and potletfion of
S LUKE Chap, y liekt, lphr, eive+ oc.
Qs &,
27 And it came to paſs, as he ſpake theſe things, a
certain woman of the company lift up her voice, and ſaid unto bim, Bleſſed # the womb that bare thee,and the paps which thou haſt ſucked.
28 But he ſaid, Yea, * rather bleſſed are they that
hear the word of God, and keep it.
We are very prone to bleſsPerſons from external priviledges,and
the favours of Divine Providence which do not at all change,or at- fe& the hearts of thoſe to whom they are given ; but God looketh with another Eye upon Perſons. Chriſt doth not here deny his Mo- ther to have been Bleſſed, her Couſin Elizabeth, ch, x. 42.had pro- nounced her Bleſſed amongſt Women,and the Angel had before called her Highly favoured, and told her that ſhe had found fawur with God. But our Saviour here declarcth that her Bleſſing did not ſo much lye in that her Womb bare, and her Paps gave ſuck to him,as in that ſhe was one who heard and hept the Word of God;for he pro- nounceth all ſuch as did ſo,principally Bieſſed. Nor muſt we ſepa- rate what God hath put together,the Bleſſing is not pronounced to thoſe who barely hear the Word of God,the Bleſſed and the un- bleſt, pariter adeunt, pariter andeunt, they may go to Church to- gether, and hear the Word together, but the Bleffing is to thoſe that hear the Word of God, and keep it. See Fames 1, 22, 23. The VVord to ſome that hear it may be a Savour of Death unto Death. The Soul that through Grace is made obedient to the VVill of God, is a more happy Soul than the Virgin Mary was, conſidered meerly as the Mother of Chriſt, without the confide- ration of her Faith, and Holincſs.
29 And when the people were gathered thick toge-
ther he began to ſay, This is an evil generation, they ſeek a ſign, and there ſhall no fign be given it,bur the ſign of Jonas the prophet.
30 * For as Jonas was a ſign unto the Ninevites,
1-.& 2. 10. ſo ſhall alſo the Son of man be to this generation.
31 * Thequeen of the ſouth ſhall riſe up in judg-
ment with the men of this generation, and condemn them: for ſhe came from the utmoſt parts of the earth to hear the wiſdom of Solomon ; and behold, a greater then Solomon # here.
32 * The men of Nineve ſhall riſe up in judg-
ment with this generation, and ſhall condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonas,and behold, a greater then Jonas # here.
See the Notes on Matth. 12, 39, 4o, 41, 42. Matthew ſaith,theY
were the Phariſ2es that came to him,defiring to ſee a ſign ſrom Hea- ven ; they did the ſame again, Matth. 16. 1. Chriſt was very ready to work Miracles,toencourage and confirm his hearers Faith, but not to ſatisfie unvelievers curioſity. Inſtead therefore of ſhewing them Signs from Heaven, he denounceth the juſt judgment of God againſt them for their not believing in him. See further the Notes upon the aforementioned parallel Texts.
33 No man when he hath lighted a candle,putteth
t in a ſecret place, neither under a buſhel ; but on a candleſtick, that they which come in may ſee the light.
VVe met with this fimilitude, ch. 8. 16. and Matth. 5.15. Sce
the Notes on thoſe Texts. It was a kind of Proverbial Speech, and to applicable to divers Subjefts. Some think thet our Saviour bringeth in theſe Words as a reaſon why he would ſhew the Phar:ſees no Sign, viz. becauſe he knew it would do them no good, it had been like the lighting of a candle, and to put it un- der a buſhel, which no Man doth. Others think that by it he defigns to give an account, why he v. 28. pronounced thoſe bleſ- ſed who heard the Word and did it, becauſe prattice, and giving light to others 1s the end of all hearing.
-4 The light of the body is the eye: therefore
when thine eye is ſingle, thy whole body allo is full of light ; but when thine eye is evil, thy body alſo is fult of darkneG.
35 Take heed therefore, that the light which is in
thee be not darkneſs.
36 If thy whole body therefore be i! of having no part dark, the whole ſhall be tull of} as when the | bright ſhining of a candle Corh thee light.
See the Notes upon Mit. 6. 22. Our Saviours ſpecc| verſes,is plainly both Elliptical(ſomething being in it ſelf tg, 1 derſtood )and alſo Metapborical, The ſenſe is this, what th- » -
to the Body, that the Soul, the Mind and affc&tions arc og whole Man. Now look;as the Eye 1s the Organ by which light i; ws ceived to guide a mans ſteps,fo that if that be perfect without ay, direftion how to move and att 3 butif that be vitiatcd by ji,
mours,the man knows not how to dire his bodily ſteps. *$9 ;+ mansSoul( which anſwereth the bodilyEye)more elpecially a baſs underſianding, or judgment be darkened, perverted, prejudices .. his affetions be debauched or depraved, he will not kno how c.. move one ſtep right in his duty 3; but if his underſtang;ys þ gs right notion of Truths, and he judgeth aright concerning th. things, and ways of God, and his affe&tions be not deprive then the whole man will be in a capacity to receive the Light 2nd Revelations of Truth, as they ſhall be communicated to him, cy;; as he who hath a perfe& Eye receiveth, and js able to make ij. of the bright ſhining of a Candle. 4
37 Andas he ſpake, a certain Phariſee beſonght him to dine with him - And he went in and fat down to meat.