was feen by many, and even after his afcenfion he was seen by Paul, if not by Stephen; and he is probably in this world at present, attending to the affairs of his church; and therefore may even be literally with his disciples, upon important occafions, even to the end of the world; and the notion of a local heaven, above the clouds, is altogether fanciful.

John v. 13. No man hath afcended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the fan of man, who is in heaven. This language is evidently figurative; but if Chrift could be in heaven at the fame time that he was on earth, converfing with Nicodemus, it is plain that his being faid to have come down from heaven cannot neceffarily imply that he had ever been any where but on the earth. In fact, the phrafes being in heaven, being with God, or in the bofom of God, &c. express a state of very intimate communication with God, fuch as qualified Chrift to speak of heavenly things, as he expreffes himself to Nicodemus, and to make his Father known to us. John i. 8. No man hath feen God at any time: the only-begotten fon, which is in the bofom of the Father, he hath declared him.

The omniprefence, and confequently the proper divinity of Chrift, could not be meant by his being faid to be in heaven at the fame time that he was visible on earth, because he is, on this occafion, called the fon of man, which is always allowed to

denote

denote his humanity, and which certainly could not be present in two places at the same time.

John vi. 51. I am the living bread, which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread, he fhall live for ever, and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. Verily, verily, I fay unto you, except ye eat the flesh of the fon of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. By thefe and other expreffions of a fimilar nature, our Lord staggered not only those who followed him for the fake of the loaves with which he had fed them, but even many of his other difciples; and perceiving this, he says unto them, ver. 61. Doth this offend you, what and if ye shall fee the fon of man afcend up where he was before? It is the spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you, they are fpirit, and they are life. In this our Lord feems to be reproving the ftupidity of his disciples, in not understanding that by himself, and his flesh and blood, he meant his doctrine, which came down from heaven. For if it was his body that was to be of fuch benefit to mankind, what would they fay if they fhould fee it taken from them, afcending into heaven, from whence he had spoken of its defcending to be the life of the world? They must then be satisfied that his flesh could profit them nothing, and therefore muft conclude that his doctrine must have been the fpirit, and the life, of which he fpake. Or we may, perhaps, understand

understand our Saviour, in this place, as referring to his afcenfion, which was an ocular proof of his having had that intimate communication with God, and having been fent of God concerning which he had been speaking. Befides, if this paffage be interpreted literally, it will imply that the body of Christ came from heaven, which is not pretended.

Col. i. 15. Who is the image of the invisible God, the firft-born of every creature. For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, vifible and invifible, whether they be thrones or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by him, and for him, and he is before all things, and by him all things confift: and he is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the first-born from the dead; that in all things he might have the pre-eminence. For it pleafed the Father, that in him fhould all fulness dwell.

In this paffage we have a view given us of the great dignity and dominion to which Chrift is exalted by his Father, and of the great and happy change that was made in this world by his gospel; for by creation we are to under and the new creation, or renovation, in which fenfe the fame word is used by the apostle, when he fays, We are his workmanfbip created in Christ Jefus unto good works. Eph. ii. 10. So great a change is produced in the world, in the tempers and conduct of men by the gospel, that both the terms creation and regeneration are made

ufe of to express it. Verily, verily, I fay unto thee, except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God, John iii. 3. fo that by regeneration, or new creation, we are to understand a new-modeling, or new-conftituting. We fhall fee less harshness in this figure, when we confider, that what is called the Mofaic creation was probably fimilar to this; fince, for any thing we know, it was only the re-making or re-conftituting of the world, out of a former chaos.

I

There are several paffages in which the words, which we generally render to create, or creation, fignify only a renewal or restoration. Eph. ii. 10. To make in himself, of twain, one new man, so making peace. 2 Cor. v. 17. If any man be in Christ he is a new ercature. In 1 Pet. ii. 13. the fame word is rendered ordinance. Be ye fubject to every ordinance of man for the Lord's fake. The places in which the influence of the gospel is termed a new creation are illuftrated by the following prophesy of Isaiah, in which it is described in the fame language, If. lxv. 17, &c. Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad, and rejoice for ever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerufalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.

The word all muft neceffarily refpect the subject concerning which the affirmation is made, and be limited by it. Thus when all the world is faid to be taxed, Luke ii. 1. it is plain that nothing but the

Roman

Roman empire could be understood. In like manner, when all things are said to be created by Christ, or for him, and alfo when all things are faid to be fubject to him, or put under his feet, nothing can be meant but fuch things as can properly come under his government as the Meffiah, and be fubfervient to him in the conduct of it, including probably the vifible powers and kingdoms of this world, and the invifible adminiftration of angels; and therefore the. apostle, with great propriety, concludes and fums. up the whole of Chrift's authority, by saying that he is the head of the body the church.

Before often fignifies before in point of rank, and pre-eminence, and not in point of time; fo that when Chrift is faid to be before all things, the mean. ing is, that he is the chief, or most excellent of all. And when it is faid that in him all things confift, wei are to understand that in him all things are completed, and compacted; fince the chriftian difpenfation is the laft, and moft perfect of all, compleating one great and regular scheme of revelation, continually advancing from the more imperfect to the more perfect. I would further obferve that the things here faid to be created by Chrift are not material things, as the heaven and the earth, but things in heaven and earth, as thrones, principalities, &c. and therefore are naturally interpreted, of that power and dignity to which he is advanced, and