Q. What is the Gate into that Entrance? Q. What is Death? Q. Why doth be call this Flef of ours a Tabernacle ? A. Because we dwell therein, as Strangers, not for ever, but for a certain Time. Q. How doth St Peter confirm the Doctrine of Faith? A. By fhewing it is no deceivable Fable, but the Truth itself defcending from Heaven, ver. 17, 18. Q. Who are Impugners of this Truth? A. Hypocrites and Athiefts. Q. What are Hypocrites? A. Wells without Water, fuch as pretend an outward Holinefs, but inwardly are corrupt and venomous, chap. ii. 13, 17. Q. When fhall these Men appear? A. In the latter Times, chap. iii. 3. Q. How will they be difproved? A. The Heavens fhall melt, and the Earth be confumed with Fire, and the Lord appearing in Glory, fhall give them the Wages of Unrighteousness, ver. x. 13. Q. Is there no Hope of efcaping? A. No; for he that fpared not the Angels when they finned, will not fpare them, ch. ii. 4. Q. What is the Condition of counterfeit Repentance? A. To be worfe at the End than at the Beginning. Q. Is it good for them to have known God, and the Means of Salvation? A. It is not: It had been bet ter for them not to have known the Way of Righteousness, than to turn from it, ver. 21. Q. By what doth he fitly exprefs them? A. By the Dog returning to eat what he vomited, and the Sow wash'd re-wallowing in the Mire. Q. Doth St Peter mention St Paul's Epiftles? A. He doth; adding, that there are in them Things hard to be understood. Q. Doth be for that deny the reading of them? A. No; but blames the Unlearned and Unftable, that wrest them to their own Deftruction, chap. iii. 16. and therefore exhorts them to beware left they fall from their Stedfaftness in the Knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift, to whom be Glory now and for ever. Amen. Obf. This Epiftl was written a little before Peter's Martyrdom, ch. i. 14. The Defign whereof is much as in the former, viz. to exhort the Chriftians 'to continue in the Faith, not turning from the holy Commandment. He affures them that he himself was a Witness to Chrift's Transfiguration on the Mount, and that he heard the Voice declaring him to be the Son of God. The 100 The First Epiftle General of St JOHN Q. What is here fet down? Q. What is it to love our A. Two forts of Love. Neighbour? Q. Which be they? A. Love of the World, and Love called Charity. Q. In what confifts the Love of the World? A. In three Things, viz. Concupifcence of the Flesh, Luft of the Eyes, and Pride of Life, chap. ii, 16. Q. What is Concupifcence of the Flesh? A. An Inclination of the Heart to enjoy the Pleasures of the Body; as Wantonnefs, Chambering, Sloth, Drunkenness, and fuch like. Q. What is the Pride of Life? A. In all Things, as in Meat, Drink, Apparel, Houfe-room, 85%. to bear an arrogant, contemptuous Mind, ftriving to excel others, &c. Q. What doth the Apoftle fay to fuch Livers? A. That God is not in them, nor they in him, ver. 15. Q. What is Charity? A. A Motion of the Heart, whereby we love God, and in him our Neighbour. Q. What is it to love God? A. To keep his Commandments, chap. v. 2. A. To esteem him as ourself. Q. How many kinds of Love are there? A. Two, true and feigned. Q. What call you true Love? 4. Not only to help our Brother with all we have, but, if Need require, to offer our Life for him, chap. iii. 16. QWhat call you feigned Love? A. To love in Word and not in Deed, ver. 1. Q. What faith St John concerning true Lovers? A. That they dwell in God and God in them, chap. iv. 17. Q. What is it to dwell in God? A. To be Partakers of his Grace, to the Mortification of the Flefh, and lively Demonftration of our Faith, by fhewing our good Works. Q. How shall we know that God dwelleth in us? A. If we fee our Brother want this World's Good, and do not fhut up our Compaffion from him, but willingly relieve him, chap. iii. 17. Q. But what is faid of him that bateth his Brother? A That he walketh in Darknefs, chap. ii. 11. Is the Child of the Devil*, ch. iii. 10. Abideth in * By the Devil's Works, ver. 8. is meant all Sin and Vice; and for this Purpofe the Son of God was manifefted, that he might destroy the Works of the Devil. Altho' here fome particular Works may be understood, wherein the Power, Subtilty or Malice, of that evil Spirit, are more fignally exerted, in Death, ver. 11. Is a Man- A. Having affured us of the layer, and barred from eternal indwelling holy Spirit, in OppoLife, ver. 15. fition to the falie Spirit of ErQ. How doth this Epiftle ror reigning throughout the conclude? World, the Apoftle tell us, that it exerted, according to the Frailty of Man's Nature; and therefore are emphatically here called the Works of the Devil. Chrift manifefting himself to the World, yea, fometime before he actually appeared, the Oracles of the Heathens were generally fupprefs'd and quafhed. [See Plutarch's two Treatifes on this Subject, Tully's fecond Book of Divination, &c.] It is a known, but remarkable Paffage in Plutarch, that the Demons complain'd aloud that their great God Pan was dead. That was the lamentable Voice which was heard in the Gracian Sea, in Tiberius's Reign, when our Saviour was crucified. Then Chrift, thro' Death, detroy'd him who had the Power of Death, the Devil; then the Prince of this World was judged, then our Saviour, having spoiled Principalities and Powers on the Crofs, triumphed over them in it. In a fhort Time, as other Writers inform us, this diabolical Trade was clearly put down in the most confiderable Countries in the World. Thefe, and the like Works, the diabolical Obscessions of Mens Bodies, our Saviour alfo did defeat and destroy He ejected the evil Spirits out of those poor Wretches, who were thus poffeffed by them; in whofe Time great Numbers of Perfons laboured under this grievous Calamity, as we may read in the Books of the Evangelifts. The merciful Jefus came to refcue and redeem Mankind, to knock off their Fetters, and to fet them at Liberty; who before were shut and locked up in the Prifon houfe, under the Power of Satan and Dominion of Sin. He came to effect a Thing of great Moment, even that univerfal Concern, the faving of Souls; that which is more noble and glorious than all worldly Empire and Sovereignty. He came to free his People from the Tyranny of Satan, to vanquish the Prince of Darknefs, who had enfiaved all Mankind. For the Devil had corrupted Man, had been the great Inftrument at firft of depraving his very Nature; and ever fince he hath made it his Work to debauch Mens Minds and Manners, and by all Ways imaginable, to render them like unto himself. Hereupon the Son of God was fent, that he might diffolve, defeat, and undo, thefe Works of the Devil. This is the fhort and plain Account of the grand End of Chrift's being manifefted in the World, of his Incarnation, Doctrine, Life, Sufferings, Death, and all his Undertakings whatsoever; it was no other than this, to undo, to annul all that the Devil had done in the World Chrift's Talk was to pull down what Satan had built up, to untie, to untwist all his Knots and Intrigues, to baffle all his Plots and Contrivances, to unravel the Inchantments of the evil Spirit, to break the Snares of Satan, and to deftroy the Destroyer. Obf. This John was one of the twelve Apoftles, and the Author of the Gofpel of John. This Epifle was defign'd to inftruct, comfort, and en соц it is his Spirit that beareth Wit- this Chapter that we have a full nefs, because the Spirit is Truth, Teftimony of the glorious Trichap. v. 8, 9, &c. And it is in nity? courage the primitive Chriftians; who, in that Age, were in danger of being feduced by fome Deceivers, the Spawn of Simon Magus, that pretended a bare Faith would fave without Holiness, denying the Trinity, and al-lowing themselves in many enormous Sins. [See Ireneus, lib. i. c. 1 and 20. cum notis Grabii.] Therefore the Apostle gives an illustrious Proof of the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity, chap. v. 7. and cautions the Church againft them; for every one who rightly hopes in Chrift purifieth himself, and whofoever is born of God, or formed into a new Creature, and endued with his Spirit, doth not commit Sin; i. e. doth not go on in an habitual way of Sin; for his Seed, the holy Spirit, remaineth in him, and in a Manner he cannot commit Sin, because he is born of God, 1 John iii. 9. being become a new Creature, and thereby having, as it were, a new Nature, his Mind, Temper and Inclinations, being quite changed for the better; fo that now to commit wilful Sin is loathfome, and contrary to the Genius and Temper of his Soul, to his Inclination and Difpofition, bent in his very Nature to pleafe God. But he that committeth Sin, or that liveth and walloweth in the Practice and Stench of any wilful habitual Sins, and feeks not for Pardon by holy Resolutions and Repentance, through the Merits of Chrift, is of the Devil, ver. 8. fo that all true Chriftians must abandon and avoid all evil Courses, and fhew their Love to Chrift, by keeping his Commandments, especially by maintaining true cordial Love one towards another, chap. iv. 7, 8, 9. The Second Epiftle of St JOHN. QWHat doth this Epistle contain? A. It being written to a certain honourable and zealous Lady, the Apoftle exhorts her and her Children to continue ftedfast in the Faith, for fear of lofing the good Work; and the Reward to them, to all that are found Believers; and gives a Caution to avoid all Deceivers. Q. What doth be commend in this Lady? A. The virtuous bringing up of her Children. Q. Who are the Deceivers ? A. Such as would not confefs that Chrift was come in the Flefh. Q. How muft they entertain them? A. They must not receive them Obf. The Apostle, in this Epiftle, ftiles himself the Elder, partly, because he was then above 90 Years of Age, as Beza on the Place obferves; and also because he prefided over all the Churches of the Leffer Afia. The Per them into their Houfes, nor bid doing they would be Partakers them God fpeed, because in fo of their evil Deeds. Perfons to whom it was written was a Lady of Quality and her Children, and whofe Sifter, with her Children, were known to the Apostle, and annexed to the Conclufion, The Third Epiftie of St JOHN. Q. What Hat are the Contents of Diotrephes blamed for his Ama this third Epiftle bition in the Church; and Demetrius applauded for his Kindnefs. A. It is directed to Gaius, an holy and hofpitable Man; for which Virtues he is commended; Obf. John wrote this Epiftle to encourage Gaius in the true Faith, and to continue his Hofpitality and Charity, for he was a kind Friend and courteous Entertainer of the diftreffed Brethren, who were Strangers, espe-. cially those who went forth to publish the Gospel among the Gentiles, and would take nothing of them, ver. 7. The General Epiftle of St JUDE. Q.To whom is this Epistle written? 1 A. To all Chriftian Churches. Q. What doth be exhort them unto? A. To contend for the Maintenance of their Faith. Q. Against whom? A. Against Sectaries. A. To murmur, complain, and walk after their own Lufts. Q. Whom do they murmur againft? A. Governors. Q. How doth be reprove them? A. By the Example of Michael the Arch-angel, who, when he ftrove with the Devil about Q. What is the Condition of the Body of Mofes, blamed him Sectaries? not Obf. This Jude, or Judas, was one of the twelve Apoftles called Lebbeus and Thaddeus, Mat. x. 3. which St Ferom says, denotes a Perfon zealous in praifing God. He was a Man of Wit and Understanding, and Brother to James the Lefs. [See the Life of Jude, and Notes of the Epiftle of James.] This Epiftle is placed laft of thofe feven which are called catholick, general, or univerfal Epiftles. It hath no particular Infcription, as the other fix, but is fuppofed to be chiefly defigned for the Chriftian Jews in their feveral Difperfions, as St Peter's Epiftles are. He fays, that at first he de fign'd |