before,chap.2. 7. and as this ſhews how much they were in his heart; (0 the frequent mingling ofPrayers with his exhortations,ſhews they could not be cttettual without God, And he prays for two things, 1. 70 have r*eir hearts diretted into the love of God 3 which is either meant paſſiv*ly for God's love to them, to have their hearts, that is their whole Soul ingaged in the ſtudy, contemplation and admiration of this love; or rather attively, tor their love to God ; to have their hearts ſet ſtrait into the love of God, as the Gregk word imports; drawn out towards him as a ftrait line to its Center, or as an arrow
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5 Andthe Lord dire& your hearts into the love of 0c, 1 mence ( 4 Here the Apoſtle prays for them again, as he had done a little Chrj},
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tions of the heart are crooked and irregular, As the ways of men are calld crooked ways, P/al. 125.5, and F)bn Baptiſt's Miniftry was to make crooked things ftraight, //2, 4o. 4. The turning man's heart and ways towards God makes them ftrait, David prays, Pſal, 119. 36. Incline my heart to thy Teſtimonies ; 19923, Or, bend my heart, As
we bend a crooked ftick to make it ſtraight, Or as he prays God to u- nite his heart to his fear, Pſal. 86, 11, ſo here Paul, to dire theirs to his Love,by which ſome underſtand all Religion, We learn hence,that to dire& mans heart to the love of God is the work of God,and beyond our power. And the Hearts of the beſt Saints ſtand in need of a more perfeR and conſtant dire&tion unto the Love of God. e Patient ſuffer- ings for Chriſt's ſake ; as the Apoſtle calls his ſufferings forC hriſt's ſake, the ſufferings of Chrift often, 2 Cor. 1. 5. Phil, 3. 10, &c, and pati- ence for his ſake, is call'd the patience of Chriſt,Fev. 1.9, In this ſence, the Apoſtle prays they may have hearts ready to ſuffer,and patiently to ſuffer for Chriſt's ſake, Heb. 10. 36. Fam. 5. 11, and ſuited to a ſuffer- ing ſtate, which the heart is naturally averſe and difinclin'd unto, And the word is often uſed in this ſence for patience under the Croſs, And ſo the Apoſtle hath his Eye in his prayer upon the ſuffering ſtate theſe Believers were in for Chriſt's ſake. If the ſenſe be render'd as in our Tranſlation, he prays for their hearts to he fixed upon the coming of Chriſt,to look towards it,and patiently to wait for it. The Greek word being often taken for the patience of expeQation as well as of ſuffering, Kom. $. 25. Heb, 10. 36. andſo it is the ſame as waiting for the Son of God from Heaven, mentioned 1 The/. 1. laſt, and looking for the Saviour, Phil, 3. 20. that hereby they might not faint under their ſufferings, nor be ſurpriſed by his coming. And becauſe the hearts of the-beft are apt either to be remiſs or ſecure upon the delay of Chriſt's coming,he therefore prays their hearts might be direted to a patient waiting for it, as the Apoſtle Peter upon the ſame account exhorts Believers to the girding up the Loyns of their Mind, 1 Per, 1. 13.
mas, 6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of 14. our Lord Jeſus Chriſt f, * that you withdraw your ſelves .12-2-from every brother g that walketh * diforderly, and 90 not after the tradition he received of us h.
{ M16 f Here the Apoſtle proceeds to a diſconrſe of another kind, which is "** about their carriage to diſorderly.Members in the Church, And having before declared his confidence, ver. 4. that they did, and would do the things be commanded them, he now tells them what he commands; and becauſe either 'tis a matter of great importance, or that which they would be backward in,he therefore ſpeaks with the greater vehemence, when he ſpake in the former Epiftle, chap. 5. 14, of warning the un- ruly, he then ſpake with greater mildneſs, We exhort you brethren, &c. but now to withdraw from them is an harſher Duty ; or they having firſt warned them, if they reform not, next they are to proceed to withdraw from them, And this he now commazds as that which he ſuppoſeth they might be backward to. Maggyumouer. The word properly ſignifies a command conveighed from another, ſo the Apofile commands here in the Name of the Lord Jeſus, Though he had Au- thority to command as an Apoſtle, yet it was derived to him from Chrift, and therefore uſually conjoins Chriſt with his Exhortations and Commands ; or, to 4void as the word fignifies,and is ſo rendred, 2 Cor. $.20. The word is uſed alſo, Gal. 2. 12. of Peters withdrawing him- ſelf from eating with the Gentiles. And rendred drawing back, Zeb.1o. 38.atluding as ſome think there to a Souldier that draws back from the Battle, But here in the Text to a Marriner that ſteers his Ship from the Rocks,and ſd it implies the danger of not withdrawing,which may be the reaſon of the Apoſtles ſo folemn command about it. And it is not from an Heathen man, but a Brother. One that is of the Church, and it is every Brother, let him be rich or poor, high or low, &c, As he writes to the Corinthians, 1 Cor. 5. 11. If any man that is call'd a Bro- ther be a Fornicator, &c, þ Alluding as ſome think to Souldiers who keep
I. THESSALONIANS.
For we * behaved not our ſelves diforderiy among you i; * 27/%2-
7 Whereby the Apoſtle intimates the aggravation of their crime who *-* did walk diſorderly, and ſo juſtifies the withdrawing from them. -For they would be reproved not only by his Doctrine, but Exaripie ; what: he required of others he praQiſed himſelf, and that in ſome caſes for this end alone,. that he might be an Example. Examples teaching more than Precepts, eſpecially in Miniſters, And they did not only know how the Apoſtle and his fellow Miniſters walked among them,but their end therein, whereby they knew they ought to follow them, and how tro follow them 3 being guided as well as excited by their Example. And this is expreft more generally, Firſt, Negatively, We have behaved our ſelves not diſorderly among you, which he ſpeaks not in a way of (c1f- commendation, but for their imitation ; and he uſeth here the ſame word to expreſs his own prattice which he did in theirs; being propcrly a mi- litary word, as was ſaid before. He went before them as a Captain be- fore the Army, and taught them Order by his own Example ; for in the Negative the Poſitive is included.