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; In the niean white his Diſciples prayzd him, fay- - aſter, eat
ing, Mz the =-m_> fetching her Cirizens to cone and ſee, and hear Chriſt, bis Diſciples knowing rhat he muſt be weary and hungry with his Journey, and having hrought him ſome Food out of the Ciry, where they had been to ferch ir, they pur him upon re- treſhing himſelf with the Food they had brought.
22 Bur ne ſaid unto them, I have meat to cat that
c know not of g. X Fe
Bar our bleſſed Lord was more intent upon Goſpellizing the Samaritans, than ſatisfying his Hunger 3; whar this Meat was, he opens himſelf, 9+ 34. DE
23 Therctore ſaid the Diſciples one to another, Hath any man brought him cugbr to eat þ ?
þ Kis Diſciples beinz yer Carnal, did not underſtand him, bur thought that he had ſpoke of Bodily Nouriſhmenr. See the like [n- fances, Mat. 16. 7+ and Ch. 11. 11. they were wondring how he came by Meat, and who ſhould bring it lim: So hard are we to conceive of Spirirualthings, nll God openerh our Eyes.
Jeſas faith unto chem , My meat isto do the will ofhim chat ſent me f, and to finiſh his work 5.
+ Our Lord, withcur any Reproof of them for their Dullneſs in underſtanding, and having Compaſſton on their Infirmiry and Ipnorance, tells them what he meant by his former words, that the doing of his Fathers 14/31, and the finiſhing of his Work, was that which he more hungred after, and took more delight in, than in Rating and Drinking ; this 1s what he ſought, Fohn 5. 30. that which he came down from Heaven for, Fohn 6, 38. As the Law of God was ſweeter to Davie, than the Hony or the Hony-comb, ſo the publiſhing of rhe Goſpel was to Jeſus Chriſt. 5 The calling Sinners to Repentance.and publiſking the glad Tidings of che Meſſiah; that was his Work, which he reils bis Father he had finiſhed, Fohn 17, 4. Hereby reaching Miniiters and People alſo, ro prefer Spiri- tual things before Temporal, and the Mimiters of the Goſpel eſpeci-
ally to prefer the publiſhing of the Goſpel (which is their Work ) to |
any other Employment whatſoever. | 5 Say -not ye, There are yet four Months, and cher cometh Harveſt & : Behold, I ſay unto you, lift up your i, Eyes, and look on the Fields, * for they are white al-
ready to Harveſt ms.
k There was in thoſe Countries, but four Months ſpace betwixt Seed-time and Harveft : Yer they feed themſelves (as ſoon as they had ſown) with the expectation of it /. My Harveli, faith our Saviaur, isthe gaining of Souls for my Father ; look yonder what a Troop of the Citizens of S:chem are coming to me, upon my Revelation of my ſelt ro the Woman of Samaria: I have but juſt ſown my Seed mn, and the Fields are white to this Spiritual Harveſt, Mar. 9. 37. In the judgment of the beſt Interpreters. our Saviour in this Verſe ufeth a Compariſon, and paſſeth: irom his Similitude uſed in the for- mer part of the Verſe, ferched from a Worldly Harveſt, to diſ. coucſe of that Spiritual Harveit, which he by and by Reaped of the Cirizens of £:chem coming to him ; ir is of that he ſaith, that the Fields were already white, by which ( as will appear from the fol- lowing Verſes ) he quickneth his Diſciples ro pur in their Sickles. Some Critical Authors, underitanding both the formes and latter part of the Text of a Worldly Harveti, have uſed their Wirs to determine how the Fields ſhould be white ro HarveFt four Months before it came ; but rhe n:oft and beſt Interpreters interpret the latter part, of a Spiritual Harvyett, and that will be alſoJultitied by what tolloweth.
36 And he that reapeth receiveth Wages », and ga- thereth fruit unto lite eternal o, that both he that ſow-
«h, and he that reapeth, may rejoyce together p.
» You that are the Lords Inſtruments, to reap what the Prophets of old, and Fob Baptiſt lately have ſown, ſhall not loſe your la- our, you ſhall receive Wages 0, and your Wages ſhall not be ſmall, t ſhall be no leſs than eternal Life, Dan. 12+ 3. They that tyrn ma- 7 to Rigbteonſr:cſs, ſhail ſhine as the Stars for ever and ever p. Thus the Prophets and Fobn the Baptist, who ſowed the Seed of the Goſ- p*l, and you that {ucceed them, and reap the Fruit of what they did ſos, ſhall have the fame Reward in Glory, and rejoyce together. The Plough man ſhall overtake the Reaper, and the treader of Grapes, him that ſoweti> the Seed \(as Amos ſpeaks) Amos 9+ 13. This Text is of great ule to thoſe Godly Minitters which fairhfully ſow the Seed of the Word, bur do not in rhelr\Life-rime ſee any great effects of it ; it may beit comes up when theyre in their Graves ; the Reward of a faithful Preacher doth nor depend upon his fucceſs in his Labours, but upon his fairhful diſcharge of his Work ; tho' one ſoweth and another reaperh, yer both he rbar ſoweth, and he rhat reapeth, ſhall re50yce together,
37 And herein is that ſaying true, One ſoweth,and another reapeth g.
q It was a Proverbial expreſſion, moſt commonly uſed with re- ference to thoſe who unjuitly invaded the Rights and Poſſeflions of ther men, bur as applicable unto thoſe, who by the diſpoting Provi- dence of God rightly inherit the Fruit of other mens Labours, as the Jews Inherited the Land of Canaan, Joſh.24. 13. A Land for which Je ad not Labour, and Cittes which ye built not. This ſaying (faith Our Saviour } is fulfilled in YQUs
35 11ent youto reap that whereon you beſtowed no abour x ; ther men laboured, and ye are entred into their labours [.
% . bave fent you to reap rhat which you did nar firſt labour for ſ; ans opbers, and Fohn the Bapti.and my ſelt have ſown the Seed, = 07 thei Doctrine prepared tor the Lord a People ; you ente» up-
r Labours, gathering them into a Goſpel-Church. gy And many of t he Samaritans of that City believ-
0N him for the ſaying of che woman, which teſtified,
H N.