A UL, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto t Church of the Thellzlonians * ia God our Father, and the Lord Jeſus Chrift.
2 Grace unto you, and peace from God our Father. and the Lord Jeſs Chriſt. |
Theſe two Verſes are the lame as !n the former Epiftle,
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2 * We Ne bound to thank God always for you bre-
thien, as 17. is meet þ, becanſe that your faith groweth * exceedinaly c, and the charity cf every one of you all to-
wards cach other ahonnderh @«. | | re Apotile bevins this Epiſtte as the former, with Thanſgiving 3 only, thee he gives thanks for ther Faith, Hope and Love; here he went ions their L21!h and Love; theic tor the efRcacy . of their for the orowth of it : There he ſaid only, Ie grve this; = bourd, ani as it is meer, AS if he was oblized 42> thank tor them now ſomewhat more than before, perceiving
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th Grace dil not only yet abide, notwithſtanding all their Perſecu- tions, but increalt an grow. ©c But the Apoſtle's Thankſgiving here ver oedts variety the Theflaloniars growth. Not only the begin-
no. bt £:owth of Grace 13 from God, elſe why doth the Apoſtle give banks for it, as Phil, 1.6 ? Rence he 1s filed rhe God of all Grace, 2. <, 15, weak and firong, firſt or ſecond. he manner of its wih, whether bv infution of new degrees, as the firit Grace 15 infu- 1 ;- or by co-operating only with it,and {o it's encrealecd by Exerciſe. a queſtion T leave to the School-men. However growth 1s a Duty, 4nd commendable in Churches, And the Apoſtle mentions particular- ty, 2 Lhcir growth in Faith 3and that to a great degree, vaFavte vel, 4)
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3; orews exceedingly, It grows cw and above, above the ordinary
rare of growth, or the common PItCH of Faith, Their Progreſs was from Faith to Faith, their Affent to the Dottrine of rhe Goſpel grew more firm and rooted. and the perſwation of their happy ſtate in Chriſt was much confirmed and ftrengthened, with a more cofident reliance on him. Or their Faith was extended to more Objetts by the Increaſe of their Knowledre, 4 2. Their increaie in Love $3 which he alſo expreii th by an emphatical word, EWA EH, which ſignifies in- ereafre to more and more; their Love yiew in the Habit, and a- bounde! in the Eru!'s of it : and this Love he ſcts forth by the Univer- {aticy of it, and the Reiprocalnets of it, it was the Igve of all to each 0- ther, Ther ail4;d leve, and were all beloved of one another ; there was no Schiſm among them, as in ſome other Churches, Faith and Love are two Sifter Graces,and are always more or leſs together : on- Iv in the Order of Nature, Faith is firft, and worketh by Love ; but not rft in 159me: and then afrerward when it brings forth, Love is Files forniate, Faith formed, as the Papifts ſpeak. Hence ſome have A'd. that there was not one Hypocrite or falſe Chriſtian in this whole Cnrb, Now the Apoltle and his Fellow Miniſters hereupon judged 1c eives hoond to give thanks, Chriſtians are obliged to give God tanks for the Grace of God in others as well as in themſelves; and e-
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+ 56 that * weour ſelves glory in you e 1n the churches
e In the former Verſe the Apoſtle gare thanks for them z in this he iories in theme
OL " joined with him herein. Glory7g includes in it high eſtima- 62 of 2 thing, rejoycingin it, high commencation of it, and applau- din or ſires in it, And it muſt be ſome great thing either really, or in opinion, and in which ſome way or other we Our our ſelves are con-
-d, And:lorving is zood or evil, according to the matter or obectofit. To glory in our Wiidom, Strength, Riches, Fer. $.23. io cory in Men, x Cor. 2. 21. In our own Works, om. 4. 2. In
what we have received as if not received, 1 Cor. 4. 7. Aiter the fleſh, > Cor. 11.18, Or in our ſhame, #51. 3. 19, all this glorying 1s evil.
But to clory in God, 7/., 41. 16. In his holy Name, 1 Chroyz, 16. 10, With God's Inheritance, Pal. 106. 5, In the knowledge of the Lord, F=:. 5. 24. In the Croſs of Chriſt, Gal, 6. 14. In Tribulation, Rom,
5. 3. In Chriſt Jelus, 1 Cor, 1.3. In Hope, #:6.3.6., And of the ſucces of the Miniftry in the Churches growth, and their Faith and Patience, as here in the Text, all this glorying 1s good ; as elle- where he boaſted or gloried in the Cormmrbians Liberality, 2 Cor. g. 2.
but his glorying in them was not to exalt himſelf, but to magnifie the
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Grace of God, and p:ovoke other Churches to :mitate thei,
the excellency of Grace is known, and the commendation of it will
be received, and imitated,and not amongſt carnal men who ſcoff at true Goodneſs, And it was the Apoſtle himſelf, and SiJuarus and Timo- th-ns that thus gloried in them. Tt adds to perſons commendation, when 1t is by men of great Knowledge, Wiſdom and Goodneſs, And It was by ſuch 2s well knew them, and underſtood their ftate : And be- inz Inftruments in their Converfion, were more concerned to glory in them than any other Apoſtles or Miniſters, g And their glorying in them, as it reſpects what he ſaid of them in the former Verſe, ſo what he further adds in this, which is rherr faith and patience in all their per-
fſecutions and ribulations, Perſecutions are properly Sufferings for