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A. D. 62. as a Perfon now exceeding dear to me: For remember, I had the Pleafure to make him a Convert in my Bonds, and the Son of my Old Age.

13 Whom I would
have re ained with me,
that in thy ftead he
might have miniftred
unto me in the bonds
of the gofpel.
14 But without thy

mind would I do no-
thing, that thy bene-
fit fhould not be as it
15 For perhaps he
therefore departed for
a feafon, that thou
fhouldeft receive him
for ever:

Servant, for his

13 & 14. Indeed I could willingly have kept him here, to do me thofe good Offices, in my Confinement, which I know your Self would gladly perform, if you could: But, as you have a Right to him, I would reap the Benefit of no one's Servant, without his Master's Leave. were of neceffity, but willingly.

15. And I think, you may well look on it as an Act of Providence, that his leaving you, for a while, fhould prove fo happy an Occafion of improving him into a faithful whole Life after.

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16. Entertain him, therefore, now, not only in the Character of a good Servant, but also of a Chriftian Brother. Confider how dear he is to Me in that Relation; and look upon him not only as your Domeftick, but as a Fellow-Member of the fame Chriflian Church with us both.

17. And fhow the Refpect you bear to Me, by the generous Reception you give Him.

18 & 19. As to any Damage he has done you, though I could ballance that Account, by remembring you owe your very Salvation to Me, as the Inftrument of your Converfion; yet I wave that at present, and here give you, under my own HandWriting, + to make good whatever you have loft by him.

20. Do

*Receive him again for ever. αιώνιον. -A Servant for Life. + With my own Hand. 2 Theff. iii. 17.

See Rom. xvi. 26. 1 Cor. xvi. 21.

20 Yea, brother, let me have joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my bowels in the Lord.

21 Having confidence in thy obedience, I wrote unto thee, knowing that thou wilt alfo do more than I fay.

22 But withal, prepare me alfo a lodg. ing, for I trust that through your prayers I fhall be given unto you.

23 There falute thee Epaphras, my fellowprisoner in Chrift-Je

fus:

20. Do not, therefore, dear Bro- A. D. 62. ther, deny the Christian Pleasure and Comfort you will do me, by your Forgiveness and Compaffion to one fo near and dear to Me.

21. The great Opinion I have of your dutiful Respect toward me, fuffers me not to doubt of Compliance from you, even beyond what I have requested.

22. I must defire Lodgings at your Houfe, intending to vifit you, when my Trial is over; in which I doubt not but to be cleared, by the Concurrence of yours, and other good Christians Prayers.

23 & 24. Epaphras, my FellowPrifoner for the fame Caufe of Christ, as alfo Mark, Ariftarchus, Demas and Luke, that labour with me in prochus, Demas, Lucas, moting the Gofpel in these Parts, fend their hearty Chriftian Love to you.

24 Marcus, Ariftar.

my fellow labourers.

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A

PARAPHRASE

On the EPISTLE to the

HEBREW S

The PREFACE.

HE Teftimony of all Ancient Copies and Tranflations, with the concurrent Suffrage of the best Writers, both Ancient and Modern, give fuch Evidence for St. Paul's * being the Author of this excellent Epiftle, that the Objections, or rather Scruples, brought to the contrary are of no Weight. His mentioning himfelf as lately a Prisoner, Cap. x. 34. and in Italy, Cap. xiii. 24. with Timothy's Enlargement, and a Promife to vifit the Hebrews along with Him, Cap. xiii. 23. do fufficiently clear the Time of its Date to have been juft after his Deliverance from his firft Tryal at Rome, viz. Anno Domini 63. as both Bifhop Pearfon and Dr. Mill have adjusted it. All therefore that will be further needful to let the Reader into the main Spirit of this Writing is, To observe fomething concerning the Perfons to whom, and the Occafion upon which it was written.

§. 1. I

* See Dr. Mill's Prolegom. §. 83, &c. and Mr. Hallet's Introduction to his Supplem. to Mr. Peirce on the Hebrews.

§. 1. I have formerly obferved the Hebrews to fignify Hebrews the Native Inhabitants of the Jewish Land, as diftinguished who? from the Foreign Jews difpers'd in other Countries; who went under the Name of Hellenifts, or Greeks; though, moft properly, the Converts or Profelytes to the Jewish Religion were called by this Name. (See Acts x. 2. and vi. 1.) With thèse Believing Jews of Palestine, St. Paul held a conftant Intimacy and Correfpondence, had a free Access to them in his Writings and Arguments, from the Obligations he had laid them under, by the Charitable Collections he had made, and the conftant Care he took for their Poor, Acts xxiv. 17. 1 Cor. xvi. 2 Cor. viii. and ix. So that though it be no Question but that this Epistle was intended for the Conviction of the Jews of All Nations, and the Confirmation of the Jewish Converts, wherever difperfed; yet it was thus prudently directed to them of the Holy Land: to Them firft who were the immediate and conftant Attandants on thofe Religious Ordinances and Ceremonies, the Infufficiency and Abolishment whereof was the chief Argument of this Letter, and to that Place that was the Centre of the Circumcifion, from whence his Epistle might, the fooner and better, be communicated to the whole Circumference of their Difperfion. (See Sir Ifaac Newton's Obfervations on the Apocalypfe, Cap. 1.)

*The Oca

§. 2. St. Paul in his fecond Epistle to the * Theffalonians had foretold a great Apoftacy, which, fo far as is related to cafion of it, the Jewish People, may be Interpreted, either of the geneCap.ii. 3. ral Revolt of their Nation from the Roman Government, or of their Chriftian Converts from the Religion of Chrift, agreeably to our Saviour's Prediction, Matth. xxiv. 12. In the Latter of these Senfes, it began now to be fulfilled by a too general Defertion of the Jewish Chriftians, frighted from their Profeffion by the furious Perfecution of the Infidel Jews. To arm fome, and to recover others from this Apoftacy, was the Purpose of this Epiftle: The Subftance whereof may, I think, be reduced to the following Arguments.

First, The Superlative Excellency of Chrift's Perfon, not only above that of Mofes, but above the very Angels too, by the Miniftration of whom the Jewish Law was deliver'd. This is the Argument of the Two First Chap

ters.

Secondly,

220

The Preface to the Epistle to the HEBREWS.

Secondly, The Dignity and perfect Efficacy of Christ's Priesthood, and the Infufficiency of the Levitical one, together with the Wisdom and Advantage of his being not a Temporal Monarch, but a Suffering Meffiah, make up the Difcourfe from the Third to the Ninth Chapter.

Thirdly, The mere figurative Nature, and utter Infufficiency of the Legal Ceremonies and Sacrifices, and the perfect Sufficiency of Chrift's Death, for the Redemption and Pardon of Mankind, is the Purpose of the Ninth and Tenth Chapters.

And Fourthly, To obviate that Prejudice and bold Affertion of the Jews, That to forfake the Mofaical Religion was to Apoftatize from God, the Eleventh Chapter is fpent in fhowing, the Faith of Chriftians to be the Exercise of the fame virtuous Principle, whereby all Holy Men of old rendered themselves acceptable to God, and stand upon Record as his true and eminent Servants.

These are severally intermixed with their proper Inferences and Exhortations, all tending to fhow the Jewish Chriftians the Unreasonableness, Folly and Danger of falling off again from the Chriftian Faith to the Jewish Religion; and to fupport and spirit them under the Perfecution that tended to draw them from it.

S. 3. It is of no great moment to know the true Reafon, why the Apostle thought not fit to prefix his Name to this Epiftle: The most probable one feems to be, That he might give the lefs Offence to the Infidel Jews of that Country, who were enraged at him as a Preacher to the Gentiles; or that, having owned himself the Apostle of the Circumcifion, he concealed his Name, to give the less Difguft to fuch Jewish Chriftians as were not fully weaned from their Prejudices in that Matter. (See Dr. Mill's Prolegom. §. 99, 100.)

§. 4. I fay nothing concerning the original Language in which this Epiftle was written by St. Paul. I reft myself contented in the Opinion of thofe who, upon the Support of the best of ancient Tradition, conclude it to have been written in the Syriac (commonly, at that time, called the Hebrew) Language; and tranflated into Greek by St. Luke. In confirmation of which Sentiment, I cannot do better than refer my Reader to the ingenious and learned Mr. Hallet's Introduction to his Supplement to Mr. Pierce on the Hebrews. СНАР.

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