{ Thar you ſhould reſtore him ro Communion with you i your Church-Afſemblics, and rake him into the boſom gf Sh. Church again, and be ( as hefore ) friendly rowards him M word which we tranſlate confirm, 1S zuewoazs which finifierh w thoritatively to eſtabliſh or confirm. Some obſerve, Thi ra Apoſtle (peaks ro them as Judges to gain their good opinion and make them more pliable, whereas he might authoricatzet have abſolved him, Ir 1s hard to ſay, what Authority the 4g, had or had nor, ro excommunicate 3 bur we want a Precedenr - holy Writ of the Apoſtles, or any of them, exerciſing fach + Power, as being abſent; and ſo in no capacity to hear the Proof ot any Fact againſt ſcanda'ous perſons. Paz, 1 Cor, s, Write to the Church of Corinth to do it, and doth only himſ.1t commany them to do their dury; and he:e ag.in he writcth co them ty fg. give him and reſtore him. There being no mention, «ither jn the former Epiſtle, or here, of any Command thac the in;;,y,, perſon ſhould pur aw.y his Wite taken unliwtuily, or that he gig any ſuch thing in teftification ot h's Repenrance, make it ye probable, thar his crime was not uſing his Fachers Wite, as his Wiie but as his Harlotz had it been ccherwile, we ſhou'd very p:0%9ly have read of ſomething in the one or the other pl:ce, lipnilying \uch a Command of the Apoſtle, or the thing done by him,
9 Fcr to this end alſo did I] write, that I mizhr know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in l things m.
m As for other ends, fo for this alſo I wrote my former Fyj. ſtle ro you, and I now write this ſecond Epiſtle ro you, alſo, tha I might have an experiment of you, wht regard you would _ to that Apoſtolical Authority wherewtth God hath inxf ed me,
10 To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgire al.
.#n The word fo often repeated in this Verſe, and tranſlated jr. give, is yeeiCounr, which ſiguifies to give, or gratifie, or da kindneſs, as well as to forgive. So as it needeth nor alwaystobe Interprered of any judicial a& of Abſo/ution. If you ſee reaſon ty remic any thing of the puniſhment inflited upon the inceſſuous perſon, I am ſatisfied with what you do, I ſhall take nocffnceat you for it. It I have ſhewed any tavour ro any perſon amonyſt zou
; That hath fallen under my reproof and chaſtiſemenr, ir hath been
for your ſake, for the good and advantage of your Church, or up-
| on their motion and interceflion ; and I have done it fincerely 1n
the ſighr of Chriſt (the Greek is, in the face of Chriſt.) 11 Leſt Satan ſhould get an advantage of us»: for
we are not ignorant of his devices p. : 0 As I have done it in kindneſs to you, . ſo I have alſo done 1t for the advantage both of chat perſon, who is ſo forgiven, and of your whole Church, which is concerned in the welfare, 0 miſcar- riage of every irdividuai Member. Leſt Satan ſhould git :9uariag! of us 5 The Greek is, That we be not overcome by Satan : n14wTHY properly ſignifies to ger gain, or to gain a Supectority, t0 8ft the upper hand, The advantage Satan was like to get by rhezr con- tinuing ſeverity to this offender, was .cicher by his 0zer-10 0019) or by the hardning of his Heart, fo as he ſeeing no provability t0 be reſt.red again ro his Communion of the Church, ſhould be exp.ſed, either to temprations ro ſome deſperate courſes (which are often the effets of minds full of ſorrow and diſcorcent) or elſe to courſes of Idolatry, or looſneſs in giving up himielt c the Devils Kingdom in the Worl.i, becauſe he could not be admirred in- to the Church, which is the Kingdom of Chriſt. Wt res 11S £1307 and counſels, how he continually walketh abour both like a 704/- ing Lion, ſeebing whom he may devour ; and like an old $17" leck- ing whom and how he may deceive, This lets us know, vith how much Prudence, thoſe who are truſted with the Souls 0! orhers ? ought ro manage their Reproofs, or ſevere dealings with 0! rs the end of all theſe is the amendment and reformation of 1% perſons, not their ſpiritual ruine and deſtru&ion : and all Re9"99" and Cenſires muſt be given, - and made, and managed wit! Fe rence to that end. We have nor only the concern of Gods _ (which is the main) to be looked ar, but the good allo of their Sou 5, whom we ſo reprove, cenſure, or alienate our ſelves _ _ indeed, without conſulring this, we cannot conſul G9ds 010ry5 who hath told us, Thar he de/ireth not the death of 4 but Fes ther that he ſhould tury from his wickedneſs, and 13 © and there = h us to the Devil, a5 we") as above us to God 3 and prudenrly judg how ſuch affliciive an pms ations may be ſo done by us, thar in che mean ime $ap4s Y advantage, and we loſe the Souls of thoſe with whom we 0 ; inſt "67" ay Y . d rincipal Eni ead of gaining them to God; which is the main and P Tim, I. 20. we ought in all choſe aQions to aim ar, 1 Cor. 4+51 9! TY
P. 1]
briſti.
ing Heathens ; one caſt out of the Communion of the Chun be.
ſo: for if I forgave any thing, to whom [I forgare | 'zt, for your ſakes forgave T ir, * in the perſon of*6,
"7h
Chriſt », tt,
, -
12 Fur- :
30:
ARs.
1 COT AP
|
ARs. 16,
{6s
hap
. II,
12 Furthermore, * when I came to Troas to preach Chriſts goſpel, and F a door was opened upon me of the Lord 9,
Il CORINTHIANS
|
This Tr0as was either the City, or the whole Country called | T10y or 1{ium, or the leſſer Phrygia. We read of Pails going thi- |
cher by Sea from Philipp, Adts 20.6,7, and of his having been there, 2 Tim. 4. 13. He tells us, Thar the buſineſs why he went thither, was co preach che» Goſpel ; for 1t was nor the Apoſtles bu- fineſs ro ſtay, as fixed Miniſtcrs, in any one place, bur to carry
' the Goſpel up and down the Wor'd to ſeveral places; which they
did by virtue of their general Commiſſion to Go, preach and baptize all Nations; though ſomerimes they had a more ſpecial Call and Commiſſion, as Pau! had to go into Macedonia, The door ozened, either ſigmfieth the free Jibercy he had there to preach, or the great ſucceis wh:ch God gaye him in his work; which he clſewhere caileth an Effe&ual door,
13 I had no rcit in my Spirit, becauſe I found not Titus my brother ; but taking my leave of them, 1
went from thence into Macedonia r. 7 He relis us, That when he came there, he waz much trou- bled, becauſe he did nor find his Brother Tit44, where the humili-
ry of th's grear apoſtle is confiderabe, in that he gdiſdained not ro