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Gofpel of Chrift become a Stone of Stumbling, or Occafion of falling either to the Jews or Gentiles. It commanded too great a Purity of Mind to be confiftent with any Favourite Vices, and the Sufferings attending the Profeffion of it required extraordinary Degrees of Courage and Conftancy, and they were therefore offended at it; that is, the Love of their Lufts, or the Fear of Perfecution, made them reject it, and they chofe rather to refuse the Offers of everlafting Salvation, than embrace them on the uneafy Terms of repenting and fuffering.

While, on the other hand, it is as certain, that in fome other Parts of the facred Writings Offences fignify criminal Temptations to Sin. When our bleffed Saviour calls St. Peter Satan, and fays, he was an Offence unto him, (Matt. xvi. 23.) after he had privately reproved him, and probably endeavoured to perfuade him not to fuffer; it can imply no lefs, than that the Disciple acted the Part of the Adverfary of Mankind on this Occafion, and in a ftrict and proper Senfe became a Tempter to his Master. St. Paul could not forbid the Romans (xiv. 13.) to caft a Stumbling-block, or Offence, in the Way of their Brethren, in the Senfe that Chrift crucified was fo to the Jews; but in fuch a one as fhould make them Acceffaries or Accomplices in the Sins of their Brethren, and involve them in the Guilt of the Crimes which fhould be the Confequences

of

of thofe Offences. And when Balak is faid (Rev. ii. 14) to have caft a Stumbling-block, or Offence, before the Children of Ifrael, that Offence was the Invitations the Moabitifh Women gave the Ifraelites to their idolatrous Feafts, whereby they wickedly tempted them to commit the greatest Crimes, even, as the Text expreflès it, to eat things facrificed to Idols; i. e. become Partakers of their Idolatry, and commit Fornication.

In like manner, to be offended, in the Pasfive, is very frequently, in Scripture Language, to be guilty of great Sins, and particularly of Apoftafy and Infidelity. Our great Lawgiver explaining the Parable of the Sower (Mat. xiii. 21.) fays, He that received the Seed in ftony Places, is he that heareth the Word, and receiveth it with Joy, but having no Root endureth only for a while, and, when Perfecution or Tribulation cometh because of the Word, he is presently offended; that is, he apostatizes from the Faith and denies it. When the Fews heard the Wisdom, and faw the mighty Works, which the Son of God did in his own Country, and had nothing to object to such astonishing Proofs of his Divine Miffion, but the Meanness of his Birth, Is not this the Carpenter's Son? &c. the Text adds, and they were offended in him, (Matt.xiii. 57.) that is, they obftinately refifted the Evidence of his Miracles, and would not believe him to be the Meffiah. For thus the Evangelift immediately

remarks,

remarks, That he did not many mighty Works there, because of their Unbelief. After recapitulating to John Baptift's Difciples the Evidences he gave of his Authority, Blessed, fays our Lord himself, is he whofoever shall not be offended in me, (Matt. xi. 6.) that is, who shall not withstand this mighty Evidence, and, under the Influence of any unreasonable Prejudices, refufe to believe in me. And in the like Sense his zealous Apostle St. Paul exclaims, (2 Cor. xi. 29.) Who is weak and finks under Perfecution, and I am not weak and afflicted by it? Who is offended, that is, who denies the Faith, and I burn not with the utmoft Grief and Sorrow for it?

Thus our bleffed Lord tells his Difciples on the Approach of his Sufferings, that all of them fhould be offended because of him that Night, i. e. fhould defert and forfake him: and he gives this as the Reafon for his Confolations and Promises to them just before his Apprehenfion, These things have I spoken unto you, that you should not be offended; i. e. to fupport under the Trials and Perfecutions you will foon undergo, lest you fhould faint and deny the Faith, and be tempted to apoftatize from

you

me.

And lastly, agreeably to all this, to offend, or give Offence, in the Active, is in the Senfe of the holy Penmen to draw or lead others into Sin, either by Temptation, Violence, or Example.

In

In the former Senfe, as fignifying to become Accomplices in the Sins of others, by being their Seducers, our great Mediator very frequently applies this Word to the Eye, the Hand, and the Foot, as the Inftruments, Occafions, or Temptations to Sin. In whatever Sense we understand the cutting off the right Hand or Foot, and plucking out the right Eye, whether in a literal or figurative, whether applied to those bodily Organs, or, as it is most properly understood, of those beloved Lufts and Paffions, which are as dear to us as an Hand or an Eye; I fay, in either Sense they can no otherwise offend us, than as they tempt and feduce us to tranfgrefs our Duty.

The fecond Senfe of offending, as fignifying to become an Acceflary in the Crimes of others, by offering Violence to them, is evidently the Meaning of thofe Paffages where our bleffed Lord forewarns the Jews against treating his Disciples ill, and endeavouring to deter them from adhering to his Gofpel. Whosoever (fays he in the Verfe before the Text) fhall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a Mill-ftone were banged about his Neck, and he were drowned in the Depth of the Sea: That is, whoso ever fhall perfecute and ufe with Indignity any of my Difciples, whofe Profeffion it is to become as little Children in Humility, Docility, and Obedience, and shall endeavour by Threatnings or Sufferings to terrify him from

his Profeffion, that Man will be deemed guilty of the Crimes he would compel others to commit, and be configned over to fuch Punishments in another Life, as will be abundantly more grievous than any thing he can fuffer in this.

And that to offend does alfo import, in Scripture-Language, to lead others into Sin by our Example, is very clear from the known Cafe stated by St. Paul in his first Epistle to the Corinthians, and from our great Master's own Expreffions when he is called upon to pay Tribute. St. Paul's Cafe was this: The primitive Christians were frequently invited by their Heathen Friends to Entertainments which confifted of Meats which had been offered to Idols. The eating these Meats was therefore thought criminal by fome, by others not; and the Solution of the Difficulty was referred to the Apostle, who gives it this Determination: We know, fays he, (1 Cor. viii. 4.) that an Idol is nothing in the World, and cannot alter the Nature of indifferent Actions; and that therefore to eat, or not to eat, is a thing indifferent in itself, and is at the Liberty of him who hath this Knowledge; fince Meat commendeth us not to God, (v. 8.) nor does it leffen his Favour to us. But to him who thinks it a Crime to eat, and with Confcience of the Idol eats it as a Thing offered unto an Idol, (v.7 to him it is Sin. And with regard to those who have that Knowledge and that Liberty,

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