rence to the Gnofticks, a ſort of Hereticks in the firlt Age (of which ſee Dr. Hammond ins Locam,) and that the meaning of the Words is this: That they aſſuming the Title of Gneſticks, of Knowing men, and of Men wiſer than others, have proved more Sottiſh than any. Others think the words refer to the Heathen Philoſophers, who though they were Learned and W iſe in ſecular and natural Things, yet they became Fools in Spiritual and Heavenly Matters ; though chey well underſtood the Creature, yet they err'd concerning the Creator. And as Fools delight in Toys, negleGing things of great Value; ſo they fet up Puppits and Idols of their own deviſing, in the room of rhe.true God ; which the Apoſtle gives ls in the next Verſe, as a Demonſtration of their Folly. Socrates, who was ac counted one of the Wiſeſt amongſt them, deſired his Friends, when he was about to Die, to Offer for him a Cock to E#ſculapins, which he had vow'd.
22 And chang'd 2 the glory of the uncorruptible
and robirds, and four-footed beaſts, and creeping things a. ; 2 You have the ſame phraſe, Pſal. 106, 20. and Jer. 2. 11. and as The Apoſtle proceedeth from the more worthy, to the leſs worthy Creatures,that the groffnels of their livls:ry might the better appear; and theſe four are put for all other Kinds, T his groſs 1dolatry of the Heathen in Worſhipping ſuch Imiges as are here ſpoken of, was praQtiſed by the 1/raclites, wid. Exh, 8. 10, 11, And fo it is by the Romaniſts to this day : Ner doth it avail them to ſay, They do not Worſhip Images, but the True-God in or before thoſe Images ; for the ſame Plea was made by the 1dolaters of old. Symmachas ina learned Oration, wherein he crav'd of the Emperors Yalentinian and Theonoſius the Reſtitution of the Roman Gods, affirms, That they had reſpect only to One God; but they had divers ways to bring them to that God : They
did not hold ſuch things as they Worſhipped to be God, but in them Þþ
they ſaid they W orſhipped the True God. That Worſhip which is intended to God by an Image, is notthe Worſhip of God, but of the Image. Compare Pſal. 106. 15, 20. with Exod. 32. 4, 5. 24 Wherefore þ God alſo gave them up c to unclean- nels, + through the Juſts of their own hearts, to diſho- #nour their own bodies between themſelves e. b Their impiety was the cauſe of what followed : This is repeated # agzin, that it may be the better obſerved ; The Contenipt of God indof Religion, is the cauſe of all Wickedneſs. c This Phraſe is thrice uſed in this Context, wiz. wer. 24, 26, 28. it ſeems to be taken out of Pſal. 81, 12, Some think, His giving them up, is only his vithdirawing his Grace from them, and permitting them toSin ; but there ſeems to be more in it than a bare SubſtraQtion or Per. milion, He did not only leavethem to themſelves, but in a judi- cial way He pur them into the harids of Satan, and of their own Luſts; as tis aid, Pſal. 69. 27. He added iniquzty to their iniquity, making the latter iniquity a puniſhment of the former. d Some Iead 1t in chemſelves, and ſome read it one amongſt another ; ſo the lame Word is rendred, Eph. 4. 32. Col. 3.13. The Apoſtle here ſpeiks more generally of all kind of Pollution and Uncleanneſs tt was committed by them, whether natural or unnatural. 25 | Who changed the truth of God into a lye e, and worſhipped and ſerved the creature more than the
Creator f, who is bleſſed for ever. Amen g.
ez, e, The God of Truth, or the true God into an Ido], which is a Lye, which ſeems to be that which it is not ; or elſe by the Truth f Gid, underſtand thoſe true Sentiments and Notions that they had > Grd, and were taught them as before, by the Light of Nature, ndthe Book of the Creature ;/ theſe they changed into Lying Maginatzons and Conceits. f Or, beſides the Creator : Some un- LWQrſtand it comparatively, they Worſhipt one more than the other ; Chers exclufively, they Worthipt one and not the other . They Vere guilty of two great Errors, one was in their Minds, they Clanged the Truth of God into a Lye; the other in their Wills, oy ierved the Creature more than the Greator. g When the ; mg of old made mention of the True God, they were wont to a d theſe words, Les hims be bleſſed for ever. 26 For this cauſe þ God gave them up unto * vile af- tions ,, For even their women did change the natural
lc into that which is againſt nature &,
L A e. For their Idolatry and Uncleanneſs both, for now their viitry 18 aggravated by the Uncleanneſs accompanying it. i Gr,
ROM
176 Divine Excellencies and PerfeCtions, vid: Pſal. 29. 2. not own _ _ the __ and _ = all n ings they enjoyed, and return him thanks accordingly ; but were to / ute and Fortune, there own Prudence and TS is
f Reſpett to the Conceprtions and Opinions that the Hea- then framed to themſelves of the Divine being. For though ſome denyed there was a God, and others doubted thereof; Yer general- acknowledged by them; yea ſome owned a multiplicity Others ac- knowledged but one God, as Plato, Ariſtotle, &c. but then they either denied lis Providence, as the Peripateticks or tyed Him to
AN S.
themſelves and their own Bodies, vid. 1 Cor. 6. 18. if they, as this Scripture tells us, thar commic Fornicaticn, diſhonour rheir own
odies; then much more do they thar praQiſe the unnatural Un. cleanneſs hereafter mentioned. © & 5. e. 20131145 avdeiGorrad, to Clem, Alexandr. 4d prepeſteros & Sodomiticos concubitus ſeſe maribus pro« flituerunt, See Pareus: A filthy PraQtice not to be named. Eh.
+ 3»
27 Andlikewiſe alſo the men, leaving the natural uſe of the woman, burned in their luſt one towards another ; men with men working that which is + unſeemly /, and receiving in themſclves that recompence of their error which was meet m.
] This was the Sin of the Sodomites of old, for which they were deſtroyed, Gen. 19. 5. wid. Levit. 18. 22. m How meet was it that they who had forſaken the Author of Nature, ſhould be given up, Not to keep the Order of Nature: That they who had chan- ged the Glory of God into the ſimilitude of Beaſts, ſhould be left to do thoſe things which Beaſts themſelves abhor'd. God only concurred as a Juſt Judge in Puniſhing foregoing with following Sins, vid. wer, 55,
28 Andeven as they did not like to + retain God in
mind, to do thoſe things which are not convenier: .