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as his proxy, the president of their assembly, to be convened for the punishing that criminal.

4. It may further be suspected, from what St. Paul says, ch. vi. 1, that the opposite party, to stop the church-censure, pretended that this was a matter to be judged by the civil magistrate: nay, possibly, from what is said, ver. 6. of that chapter, it may be gathered, that they had got it brought before the heathen judge; or at least from ver. 12, that they pleaded, that what he had done was lawful, and might be justified before the magistrate. For the judging spoken of, chap. vi. must be understood to relate to the same matter it does, chap. v. it being a continuation of the same discourse and argument: as is easy to be observed by any one, who will read it without regarding the divisions into chapters and verses, whereby ordinary people (not to say others) are often disturbed in reading the holy scripture, and hindered from observing the true sense and coherence of it. The whole 6th chapter is spent in prosecuting the business of the fornicator, begun in the 5th. That this is so, is evident from the latter end, as well as beginning of the 6th chapter. And therefore, what St. Paul says of lawful, chap. vi. 12, may, without any violence, be supposed to be said, in answer to some, who might have alleged in favour of the fornicator, that what he had done was lawful, and might be justified by the laws of the country, which he was under: why else should St. Paul subjoin so many arguments (wherewith he concludes this 6th chapter, and this subject) to prove the fornication, in question, to be, by the law of the gospel, a great sin, and consequently fit for a christian church to censure, in one of its members, however it might pass for lawful, in the esteem, and by the laws of gentiles?

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There is one objection, hich, at first sight, seems to be a strong argument against this supposition; that the fornication, here spoken of, was held lawful by the gentiles of Corinth, and that, possibly, this very case had been brought before the magistrate there, and not condemned. The objection seems to lie in these words, ch. v. 1, "There is "fornication heard of amongst you, and such fornication, "as is not heard of amongst the gentiles, that one should "have his father's wife." But yet I conceive the words,

duly considered, have nothing in them contrary to my supposition.

To clear this, I take the liberty to say, it cannot be thought that this man had his father's wife; whilst, by the laws of the place, she actually was his father's wife; for then it had been Max and adultery, and so the apostle would have called it, which was a crime in Greece; nor could it be tolerated in any civil society, that one man should have the use of a woman, whilst she was another man's wife, i.e. another man's right and possession.

The case, therefore, here seems to be this; the woman had parted from her husband; which it is plain, from chap. vii. 10, 11, 13, at Corinth, women could do. For if, by the law of that country, a woman could not divorce herself from her husband, the apostle had there, in vain, bid her not leave her husband.

But, however known and allowed a practice it might be, amongst the corinthians, for a woman to part from her husband; yet this was the first time it was ever known that her husband's own son should marry her. This is that, which the apostle takes notice of in these words, "Such a forni"cation, as is not named amongst the gentiles." Such a fornication this was, so little known in practice amongst them, that it was not so much as heard, named, or spoken of, by any of them. But, whether they held it unlawful, that a woman, so separated, should marry her husband's son, when she was looked upon to be at liberty from her former husband, and free to marry whom she pleased; that the apostle says not. This, indeed, he declares, that, by the law of Christ, a woman's leaving her husband, and marrying another, is unlawful, ch. vii. 11. and this woman's marrying her husband's son, he declares, ch. v. 1. (the place before us) to be fornication, a peculiar sort of fornication, whatever the corinthians, or their law, might determine in the case: and, therefore, a christian church might and ought to have censured it, within themselves, it being an offence against the rule of the gospel; which is the law of their society and they might, and should, have expelled this fornicator, out of their society, for not submitting to the laws of it; notwithstanding that the civil laws of the country, and the judgment of the heathen magistrate, might acquit him.

Suitably hereunto, it is very remarkable, that the arguments, that St. Paul uses, in the close of this discourse, chap. vi. 13-20, to prove fornication unlawful, are all drawn solely from the christian institution, ver. 9. That our bodies are made for the Lord, ver. 13. That our bodies are members of Christ, ver. 15. That our bodies are the temples of the Holy Ghost, ver. 19. That we are not our own, but bought with a price, ver. 20. All which arguments concern christians only; and there is not, in all this discourse against fornication, one word to declare it to be unlawful, by the law of nature, to mankind in general. That was altogether needless, and beside the apostle's purpose here, where he was teaching and exhorting christians what they were to do, as christians, within their own society, by the law of Christ, which was to be their rule, and was sufficient to oblige them, whatever other laws the rest of mankind observed, or were under. Those he professes, ch. v. 12, 13, not to meddle with, nor to judge: for, having no authority amongst them, he leaves them to the judgment of God, under whose government they are.

These considerations afford ground to conjecture, that the faction, which opposed St. Paul, had hindered the church of Corinth from censuring the fornicator, and that St. Paul showing them their miscarriage herein, aims thereby to lessen the credit of their leader, by whose influence they were drawn into it. For, as soon as they had unanimously shown their obedience to St. Paul, in this matter, we see his severity ceases, and he is all softness and gentleness to the offender, 2 Cor. ii. 5-8. And he tells them in express words, ver. 9, that his end, in writing to them of it, was to try their obedience: to which let me add, that this supposition, though it had not all the evidence for it, which it has, yet being suited to St. Paul's principal design in this epistle, and helping us the better to understand these two chapters, may deserve to be mentioned.

TEXT.

21 What will ye? shall I come unto you, with a rod, or in love, and in the spirit of meekness?

V. 1 It is reported commonly, that there is fornication among you, and such fornication, as is not so much as named amongst the gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

2 And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed, might be taken away from among

you.

3 For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him, that hath so done this deed.

b

PARAPHRASE.

21 I purposed to come unto you: But what would ye have me do? Shall I come to you, with a rod, to chastise you? Or with kindness, and a peaceable disposition of 1 mind? In short, it is commonly reported, that there is fornication among you, and such fornication, as is not known ordinarily among the heathen, that one 2 should have his father's wife. And yet ye remain puffed up, though it would better have become you to have been dejected, for this scandalous fact amongst you; and in a mournful sense of it, to have removed the of3 fender out of the church. For I truly, though absent

NOTES.

21 He that shall carefully read 2 Cor. i. 20.-ii. 11, will easily perceive that this last verse here, of this 4th chapter, is an introduction to the severe act of discipline, which St. Paul was going to exercise amongst them, though abnt, as if he had been present. And, therefore, this verse ought not to have been separated from the following chapter, as if it belonged not to that dis

course.

1 ↳ Vid. chap. iv. 8, 10. The writers of the New Testament seem to use the Greek word opveia, which we translate, fornication, in the same sense that the Hebrews used, which we also translate, fornication; though it be certain, both these words, in sacred scripture, have a larger sense than the word, fornication, has in our language; for, amongst the Hebrews, signifed,Turpitudinem," or "Rem turpem," uncleanness, or any flagitious scandalous crime, but more especially, the uncleanness of unlawful copulation and idolatry; and not precisely fornication, in our sense of the word, i.e. the unlawful mixture of an unmarried couple.

[Not known] That the marrying of a son-in-law, and a mother-in-law, was not prohibited by the laws of the Roman empire, may be seen in Tully; but yet it was looked on, as so scandalous and infamous, that it never had any countenance from practice. His words in his oration pro Cluentio, § 4, are so agreeable to the present case, that it may not be amiss to set them down: "Nubit genero socrus, nullis auspiciis, nullis auctoribus. O scelus incredibile, " et præter hanc unam, in omni vita inauditum!"

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TEXT.

4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,

5 To deliver such an one unto satan, for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

6 Your glorying is not good: know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

7 Purge out, therefore, the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ, our passover, is sacrificed for us.

8 Therefore, let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with

PARAPHRASE.

in body, yet as present in spirit, have thus already judged, as if I were personaily with you, him that committed 4 this fact; When, in the name of the Lord Jesus, ye are assembled, and my spirit, i. e. my vote, as if I were present, making one, by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, 5 Deliver the offender up to satan, that, being put thus into the hands and power of the devil, his body may be afflicted, and brought down, that his soul may be saved, 6 when the Lord Jesus comes to judge the world.

Your glorying, as you do, in a leader, who drew you into this scandalous indulgence in this case, is a fault in you: ye that are knowing, know you not that a little leaven 7 leaveneth the whole lump? Therefore, laying by that deference and veneration ye had for those leaders you gloried in, turn out from among you that fornicator, that the church may receive no taint from him, that you may be a pure, new lump, or society, free from such a dangerous mixture, which may corrupt you. For Christ, our 8 passover, is slain for us. Therefore let us, in commemoration of his death, and our deliverance by him, be a

NOTES.

6 Glorying is all along, in the beginning of this epistle, spoken of the preference they gave to their new leader, in opposition to St. Paul.

e If their leader had not been guilty of this miscarriage, it had been out of St. Paul's way here to have reproved them, for their glorying in him. But St. Paul is a close writer, and uses not to mention things, where they are impertinent to his subject.

f What reason he had to say this, vid. 2 Cor. xii. 21-“ Grex totus in agris "Unius scabie cadit, et porrigine porci.”

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