I Will have mercy and not sacrifice That is to say If the Sabbath were broken by sacrifice how much rather might it be broken by mercy which is more pleasing to God than sacrifice Behold my servant in whom I am well pleased For as much as he assumed the likeness of a servant to wit his humane nature he is called a servant by the Prophet Esay Neither shall he cry That is to say Furiously or in wrath for otherwayes he did constantly cry and preach as saith St. John In the last day of the Feast he stood up Every idle word That is to say Every lying word An evil and adulterous generation That is to say A people which followeth after Idols But the sign of the Prophet Jonas That is to say Of my Sepulchre and Resurrection So shall the Son of man be in the heart of the earth three dayes and three nights Some compute from part of the whole dayes of the Friday Saturday and of the first day of the Week and so reckon three dayes and it is clear that there were not so three dayes and three nights but peradventure we may say That the first day was that wherein he was Crucified and the night thereof was those hours wherein the Sun was darkned and the second day was the remainder of Friday and the night thereof was the whole night until Saturday morning and the third day was the whole Saturday and the night thereof was part of the night before the morning of the first day of the Week for it is not known at what hour our Lord arose CHAP. XIII TO him that hath That is to say A good Will and Diligence It shall be given That is to say The understanding of the Gospel And to him that hath not That is to say Much. Even that That is to say That little which he hath Shall be taken from him That is to say It shall be lost through his negligence Every Scribe That is to say Who interprets the two Testaments and knows the sense of Holy Scripture The Son of the Carpenter That is of Joseph Mark saith Was not this the Carpenter the Son of Mary And it is possible That they saw him in some such like action CHAP. XIV HErod the Tetrarch heard That is to say One of the Four Potentates who govern'd in the Land of Israel The first was this Herod who Ruled in Galilee and this was he who cut off the Head of John the Baptist and he was the son of Herod who slew the Children and the Son of Herod who was sirnamed Agrippus who is mentioned in the Acts. The second was Philip who governed in Ituria and he also was the son of Herod who put the Children to death The third was Pontius Pilate who governed in Judaea The fourth was Lysinius who governed in Abilene These four governed after the rejection of Archelaus Grandchilde of Herod who put the Children to death Told Jesus That is to say Herod thinks that thou art John risen from the dead and therefore he departed thence into the Wilderness When Jesus heard of it viz. what Herod said CHAP. XV. WHich my Father who is in Heaven hath not planted shall be rooted out viz. The Traditions of the Elders which God hath not set down are to be rooted out CHAP. XVI AND upon this Rock That is upon thee Will I build my Church That is the Congregation of the Faithful And he began to rebuke him That is He said unto our Lord if thou shalt suffer and shalt be slain our Preaching will cease For whosoever will save his life That is in the World to come Shall lose it viz. In this World There are some standing here viz. Peter James and John Who shall not taste of death until they shall see the Son of man That is to say in Mount Tabor Coming in his Kingdom That is cloathed in glory and majesty CHAP. XVII AND after six dayes viz. After he promised and said That they should see his glory Luke saith After eight dayes reckoning the day wherein he discoursed of these things with his Disciples and the day wherein he ascended to Mount Tabor with the six intermediate dayes And led Peter Because he was chief of the Apostles And there appeared unto them Moses That is to say From the dead And Elias viz. From among the living and they appeared not bodily but by representation Ye shall say to this mountain He calls Satan by the name of mountain according to what the Prophet Zachary said What art thou great mountain before Zarubabel Faith as a grain of mustard-seed That is which doth not doubt at all and it is certain that such a Faith as this is not found in every man Take and give for me and thee Hence it appears that Simon also was a first-born Son for every first-born son was to pay yearly two Didrachma's or Souzes to the High-priests and whether this piece of money were newly created or whether the Fish had found it and swallowed it God onely knows CHAP. XVIII AND Jesus called a little Boy It hath been said That Ignatius the fiery was this Boy But woe to the man by whom scandals shall come Some say that this is meant concerning Judas Iscariot But if thy hand or thy foot That is thy servant or thy wife Doth not leave the Ninety and Nine That is to say the Angels In the Mountain That is in Heaven above Wherefore That is to say because it is fit to forgive much CHAP. XIX AN Eunuch for the Kingdom of Heaven He praiseth those who cut off their lascivious thoughts and not those who abscind their prolifick members for this is forbidden by the Apostles Canons Every one is not sufficient for this thing Every one cannot conserve Virginity Easier for a Camel St. Cyrell expounds this of a thick Cable but Moses Bar Cepha takes it for a great Animal The Master of the House That is God CHAP. XX. VVHO went out early in the Morning That is to say in the beginning of the Creation he was careful of this that the house of Adam should do good things And he went out the third hour That is when the Children of Israel went out of Egypt And he went out the sixth and the ninth hour That is in the time of the Judges and Kings of Israel And about the eleventh hour That is the later times when the Gospel of our Lord began to be Preached Who have born the burthen of the day That is to say Persecution in Egypt Tribulation in the Wilderness and Captivities and Banishments CHAP. XXI HE came to Bethphage The Greek reads it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is a place where that bituminous matter groweth wherewith Women paint the hands and feet of themselves and their Children Others say That Phagi is interpreted over against Others A place where several wayes meet Others A wild Fig-tree Phagi in the Greek Tongue is expounded Lintels And sitting on a Foal This signifieth
beginning of the Evangelium which is good Tydings is the Baptism of Christ as blessed Mark saith and inasmuch as he saith The Beginning of the Gospel he sheweth that he was the first that gave the name of Evangelium to a Book Moreover forasmuch as Evangelium or Gospel is by interpretation good Tydings and Christ before his Baptism did neither Preach nor Evangelize but after he was Baptized and Tempted he immediately Preached Repent the Kingdom is at hand as Matthew and Mark have written Moreover from his Birth to his Baptism he was governed by the Law and from his Baptism by such a new Administration as comported with the New Testament Again before his Baptism he performed no Miracle nor delivered any Doctrine otherwise than by Question and Answer in the Temple when he was Twelve years old as Luke sayes Moreover those things which were from his Birth to his Baptism are not to be reputed as of the Gospel though they have relation thereunto and are compiled therewith that we might be taught after what manner were his Conception and Birth Nor were it possible that we should be capable of receiving the Doctrine of the Gospel if we had not first learned where and how he was born whereas in those Years from his Birth to his being Thirty Years of Age he satisfied the Obligation of the Law of Nature and the written Law then he applied himself to frame a Module of a new World in his Baptism and to Preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God And forasmuch as Mark knew that Baptism was the Beginning of the Gospel and that our Lord thence took his Commencement in the new Administration he wrote in the beginning of his Book thus The Beginning of the Gospel And if it shall be Objected Wherefore did the other Evangelists begin higher than his Baptism It is plain that Matthew wrote so that he might make it appear unto the Hebrews to whom he wrote That as the Prophets had before written that Christ should spring from the Lineage of David so he did then spring thence and Luke that he might bring them into Contempt who unskilfully undertook to write the Histories of deeds and John that he might write concerning the Divinity of Christ for that the other three omitted it lest it should be concealed and Christ be reputed but a meer man for these three causes they took their rise so high and not for that his Conception his Birth his Circumcision c. were of the Gospel The Son of God He calls Jesus Christ the Son of God and not the Son of Grace as say the Nestorians for we are the sons of grace and that Mark doth not here call Jesus Christ the Son of Grace but the Natural Son of God is evident from that which the Apostle said to the Philippians in an Epistle Let this mind be in your selves which was also in Christ Jesus who being the likeness thought it not robbery to be equal with God but evacuated himself of reputation and assumed the likeness of a servant and was made in the likeness of the sons of men and in fashion was found as man and humbled himself and became obedient even to death even the death of the Cross wherefore God hath exceedingly exalted him and given him a Name more excellent than all names That at the Name of Jesus every knee should how c. Let the Nestorians and Calcedonians be demanded Who is he who so evacuated himself and assumed the likeness of a servant Man or the word God Divine Nature or Nature Humane for Man and Humane Nature were already evacuated and servants wherefore this is the sense of the words that the word God evacuated himself and observe that the word God who evacuated himself and assumed the likeness of a servant doth he call Jesus Christ and to him is attributed Subjection Obedience and Death and the Cross and to him is attributed Exaltation and the giving of the Name of God which is more excellent than all Names And forasmuch as the Apostle said concerning the word God that he evacuated himself these are evident Demonstrations First That he being God by Nature was incarnate and made Man of his own will without being changed from being God Secondly That being equal in Nature with the Holy Ghost and Giver thereof and having a natural Holiness he took upon him to be anointed and sanctified by the Holy Ghost as he was Man for being made Man he suffered natural and animal Passions but not culpable Hunger and Thirst Sleep and Death did he taste for us And Thirdly That being called by eminent and exalted Names to wit Lord and God and Omnipotent and other the like so that whatsoever he had did as naturally belong unto him as to the Father and the Holy Ghost as having life of his own nature having power over all things and having glory due unto him from all things yet it is said That it was given him of the Father and that he received it from the Father And this moreover for that he was evacuated and made man And these were Demonstrations of his Exinanition that he vouchsafed to be called by humble and inferiour names as of Man Son of Man and a Stone Moreover it is certain That the word God who was the natural Son of God the Father is called Christ and not the Son of man who was of Mary for David saith That thy Throne O God is for ever and ever a right Scepter is the Scepter of thy Kingdom thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity wherefore God thy God hath anointed thee with the oyle of gladness above thy fellows It is therefore clearly understood that he whom he calls God and of whom he saith Thy Throne O God for ever is the same whom God the Father anointed and not the Son of Man who was of Mary Furthermore forasmuch as he saith That he anointed him above his fellows that is to say more than all they who were anointed by the Holy Ghost because they stood in need of anointing and were anointed by the Holy Ghost but the word God was anointed and sanctified by the Holy Ghost not being in want thereof because he was equal with the Holy Ghost and had a natural Holiness and was full as St. John saith of his fulness have we all received but because he was made man he received the Spirit and his anointing and his holiness that by his Mediation he might give us the Spirit to anoint and sanctifie us for that this word was anointed and sanctified by the Spirit because he was sent into the World and was made man is manifest from that which he saith of himself Say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world thou blasphemest because I said unto you that I am the Son of God for it is certain that he who was sent from God the Father into the world was God the word and he who was sent was
sanctified by the Spirit that the word God is called Christ because he was made man St. Paul saith But to us there is one God the Father of whom are all things and one Lord Jesus Christ by whom are all things and one Holy Ghost in whom are all things Moreover he saith of Christ that all things were made by his hands by whose hands therefore saith Paul that all things were created whether by the hands of the Son of man who was begotten of Mary or by the hands of the word God as John saith All things were made by him and the same word by whom all things have been created doth Paul call Jesus Christ It is evident therefore from these premises that Mark calls the Natural Son of God the Father who was incarnated and made man by the Name of Christ and not the Son of man who was born of Mary who was the Son of Grace as say the Hereticks As it is written in Isaiah the Prophet behold I send my Angel That is to say he produceth this Testimony to prove That the Beginning of the Gospel is the Baptism of Christ for this Allegation Behold I send my Angel is written in Malachi and not in Isaiah but others say that it was also written in Isaiah and that it is lost Others say That this Gospel was Translated out of the Roman Language into the Greek and out of the Greek into the Syriack and that the Interpreters mistake put Isaiah in the place of Malachi Others That in the Book of Diateseron which is preserved in Alexandria and was written by Tatianus the Bishop as also in the Greek Gospel and the Harkalian it is written in the Prophet without expressing what Prophet Others say that this Quotation hath reference to the voyce of one crying in the wilderness Prepare ye the way of the Lord make his paths strait for Isaiah speaks after that manner but not to this Behold I send my Angel for the Evangelist was not curious as to the exactness of his Narrative according to the custom of a Book wherein a Subject is Treated of at large but wrote after an ordinary manner according as other Divine Writers have done after this sort all the people saw the Voyces and the Lightnings whereas it is known that Voyces cannot fall under the sense of sight Again a Bullock or a Lamb whose Ear is cleft or wants a Tayle whereas a Bullock hath no Tayle In like manner it is said My hand kissed my mouth whereas the mouth did kiss and not the hand So Mark sets down that of Isaiah then this I send my Angel and after this The voyce of one crying not distinguishing to which of the two sayings he referred the Quotation out of Isaiah The voyce of one crying Wherefore is John called a voyce because Christ is called the word and a word without a voyce or writing is not known therefore very aptly is John called a voyce because with his voyce was Preached the onely Word Prepare the way of the Lord. The way and path he calls the coming of Christ Prepare your minds and thoughts against the coming of Christ John was in the wilderness He calls the Wilderness the desolate passage from Earth to Heaven By Baptising and Preaching he signified that the destruction of Mortality was to be destroyed By his cloathing of Hair he signified Repentance By the Girdle about his Loyns and the Band upon his Bowels he denotes the sensitive and intellectual Faculties and Continency from an exorbitant Appetite which in Prosperity is exuberant By the winged Locusts the seed of the Just to meet the Lord. By the sweetness of Honey the sweetness of the Blessings which come from our Lord of higher value than Jewels Moreover Honey signifieth the purging of the World from the rust of sin for Honey is of a cleansing Nature 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Region of Judaea That is to say a place of Towns or Villages The Garment of Camels Hair signifies the meanness of his Apparrel and his Poverty for he was not cloathed with Wooll but with course Hair The time is accomplished and the Kingdom is at hand That is to say the time of the shadows of the Law and the fulfilling of Mysteries and Types is at hand the Kingdom of God he ealls here the Gospel and Grace A certain man with an unclean spirit He calls the Devil unclean by reason of the unclean deeds he frequently acted by him in whom he dwelt Art thou come to destroy us He hints two things First Their fear of our Lord which possessed them from the victory had against them in the Wilderness Secondly Their wickedness in respect that the delivery of that man out of their power who was their Captive was reputed their loss I know thee who thou art the Holy One of God He speaks unto him as unto a holy man and not as persuaded that he was God And when they had found him they said unto him all men seek thee This saying all in this place is like to this Jesus looked upon her with all the Earth and all the Nations round about me and all they who came were Thieves and Robbers See thou say nothing to any man He prohibited them who were cured to publish the same lest he might be suppressed by the Jews as a vain-glorious person for he knew that the Miracles which he did were not to be concealed When he performed Miracles before the multitude he gave no command that they should not publish them as in Kotna and when he multiplied the bread but as touching the matter of Lazarus he forbade his own followers to publish it as he did also concerning this Leprous man the Paralytick and the blind men And we say that among the Multitudes he openly wrought Miracles to the intent that he might draw them to faith in him and did not praerequire from them faith in him as he did amongst his own followers for when he changed Water into Wine he did not first of all take the Suffrages of the company to acknowledge whether he were able to do it or no as he did in the case of the Leprous person the Paralitick and the blind men whom he did not cure until they had confessed that he was God As Moses commanded for a testimony unto them He commanded the Leprous person to offer an Oblation that he might manifest the agreement of both Testaments Secondly That he might shew that there was one giver of them both although the first was the Doctrine of Babes and ours of Perfection Thirdly That he might declare that this of God was not contrary to that of the Law so that they needed not to suppress this for the other CHAP. II. THey lifted up the Roof By Art they found out a way to lift up the Roof of the House and easily to let down the Bed in such manner that neither the Timber nor Dust might fall upon them as many in these dayes
souzes She cast in more than all the men cast in And how did she cast in more than all whereas they cast in twice as much as she He presently explains the difficulty and saith For all they cast in of their abundance Christ here teacheth us two things First That this gift which was made out of her penury was more abundant and greater in God's esteem than that which proceeded from Redundancy Secondly That God doth not regard the greatness or smallness of a gift but the will and mind wherewith it is given and it is certain That if it be given with a chearful will it is accounted much and great with God although it be small but if otherwise it is meanly esteemed by God though much in quantity CHAP. XIII BVt of that day and hour knoweth no man no not the Angels neither the Son but the Father The Hereticks to wit the Arrians when they are desirous to vilifie the Son they produce this Argument To whom we answer For inasmuch as he is God he knew all things that are before they were made but inasmuch as he was man he saith he knows not and the very same that is God is man and no other as he is life by nature and became death for us forasmuch as he was man so though he doth know all things as being God he said that he did not know as man And as he was before Abraham in respect of his Godhead according as he said Before Abraham was I am yet he was after him as being man for if he had said I know he had been like to the Father onely and not at all like unto us but he said I know not that he might be likened unto us and that there might be no place left for mistakes or to say that he was not made man for this property of man not to know things in futurity was common to him for he communicated in our want of knowledge even as in other humane infirmities and this is manifest from hence that he did not say Neither the Son of God knoweth but neither the Son simply as he was the Son of God so was he a so the Son of man and in that respect wanted knowledge though he knew all things as God Moreover it is certain That as he was man he said he did not know forasmuch as he did not say concerning the Holy Ghost that he did not know Again we say That God the Father is greater than the day of the coming of the Son and is more hidden and concealed than that day and yet the Son saith Even as the Father knoweth the Son the Son knoweth the Father If therefore he knoweth the Father who is high and exalted above all things and is more hidden and concealed than this day how much more then doth he know this day And if any one shall object That the Father knows the Son perfectly but that the Son knoweth the Father but in part let him know That for the same reason he might conclude that the Father knoweth not the Son but in part for the same knowledge is attributed to the Father and the Son as the Father knoweth the Son c. We say further That if the Father knows this day and hour the Son must necessarily know it because there is one knowledge of the Father and of the Son and of the Spirit for they are of one and the same nature the same will the same power and operation and therefore necessarily have they one and the same knowledge Moreover for that the Son created the Worlds and Times and Years and Months and Hours and Dayes it is manifest That he knows the day and hour of his appearance but if any one shall object That he hath not yet created the day of his coming he may be convinced by the force of two reasons First From this which is written That he finished the heaven and the earth and all that was in them and God finished his works on the seventh day Secondly Let it be granted That it were so though it be not a Truth yet he knew as God before hand those Things which are not and he knows every thing before hand Again How doth he know the Prognostications and the Signs which are to be at the day of his coming and yet not know the day for he declareth how that there shall be lightning and that the Sun shall be darkned and other such like things and the Stars shall fall from Heaven and the powers of Heaven shall be shaken and the sign of the Son of man shall appear and other the like things which are to happen in that day and hour and how is it possible That one should know what things are in the House and not know the House or how doth a man know the thing that is within a City or a Ship without knowing the City or the Ship And how can he who knoweth what things are without and within a Wall say that he doth not know the Wall in the middle Moreover as he knew the hour of his Birth and the day of his first coming in Bethlehem so doth he know his second coming Furthermore Paul saith That Christ is the power and wisdom of the Father and in this that he saith the power he sheweth That there is nothing out of his Jurisdiction and Providence and by that of wisdom he declares That there is nothing out of the reach of his knowledge but that all things which are and are to come are comprehended within the compass of his knowledge for if he can err in any thing he is not perfect wisdom especially since that he is the Divine wisdom of the Father and in him is hidden all wisdom and he it is that gives wisdom to the wise as saith the Son of Syrach All wisdom is of the Lord and Christ is the Lord whence it was that the Angels said to the Shepherds there is born unto you a Saviour who is Christ the Lord. Neither the Angels In this which the Angels said unto the Shepherds viz. To you is born c. which neither the Angels knew did he forbid them to declare that day and by this That neither the Son that is to say my self he stopt their mouths from asking him for in like manner they asked him after the Resurrection Art thou at this time about to restore the Kingdom And he stopt their mouths saying It doth not belong unto you to know the times and seasons which the Father hath appointed c. But the Father Inasmuch as he spoke of the knowledg of the Father he prevented them that they might not ask him and it is like to that of the mother of the sons of Zebedee for being unwilling to answer whether he would grant the request or no he answered It is not mine to give when assuredly it was he who was to place the Sheep on his right hand and the Goats on his left and to call Come ye
blessed of my Father he did not answer I will do it that his Disciples who were there might not be offended who yet were so much distasted that he spoke unto them and pacified them even as a Father having Sons and they ask him for somewhat that is hidden where he hath put it and he being unwilling to let them know saith I know not and wherefore did he not reveal it because it was not for their advantage nor their Successors for if he had declared it unto them they had been careless and remiss and had not been diligently constant in prayer and that this was so is known from what he said Watch and pray But of the day and hour And it is necessary to know in the first place That the Scriptures are not alwayes to be taken according to the outward sound of words nor when they say That God is a consuming fire are we to think That he burns or flameth nor that he is of Kin or a Watchman or corporeal or compounded of differing Natures or that he is subject to Passions that he is angry that he sleeps or wakes or is sorrowful or that he erred or was ignorant and according to that He who is not born of water and of the Spirit shall not enter into the Kingdom whereas many have been made famous for Martyrdom who have not been baptized the Thief also entred into Paradise And no man can say That Jesus is Lord but by the Spirit yet the Manichees the Mercionites the Gentiles and the Jewes are well pleased with the word and use it without the grace of the Spirit and like it is to this All of them have declined together and are become reprobate and all they who came were Thieves and Robbers So also is this expression for if he did not know this day and this hour how was this said That I and my Father are one for if in knowledge he be not one wherein is he one And if he did not know the day as well as the Father how said he That all whatsoever the Father hath is mine And if the Father hath any thing which the Son knoweth not how is it said That no man knows the Father but the Son And this is objected and how do these agree Is he one and the Father knoweth nothing which the Son doth not know and this there is nothing high and exalted but it is little in comparison of other things and thus saith the Apostle In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and how the Son and neither the Son but the Father And if he knows the Father it is certain that he knows him with all his knowledge Again If he knows the Father how doth he know the Father and knows not this day therefore this day is greater than the Father and if the Father knows this day of necessity also doth the Son know it and if it be not so the Father seems not to know or else how much greater is the knowledge of this day than the knowledge of the Father And if he be maker of all things how doth he not know his own Works or is this day not reckoned amongst his Works nor in the number of the dayes of the year And if so let them shew what it is or where it is for every compleat day is made up of a day and night and hours are the course of vicissitudes and an hour according to the opinion of the Philosophers is not at all for that which is past is not nor that which is to come for it is not yet and if he who had all things in his hand knoweth not the day how did he create any thing which he knows not how do these agree And if the Spirit searcheth out every thing even the profundities of God and this is the Spirit of Christ how is it that he doth not know those things which were made by him And how doth he know that the consummation of the World shall be in the night That two shall be in a Bed and one shall be led away and yet not know the day for because of the long interspace of time they thought that the end of the World was at hand and that his appearance should have been in their dayes as Paul said unto some Wonder not behold the day of the Lord cometh He governs them as Children for they had reapt no advantage from the knowledge of this day nor the Generations after them neither did he reveal the time of our death and by this Declaration he teacheth us That if we be ask't by any one an unprofitable question we should prudently shift it off as it were for want of knowledge lest instead of a Fish we should hold forth to our Neighbours a Serpent Moreover If these passages viz. He knows not that day I know ye not as he said unto the foolish Virgins and I never knew ye as he said should be understood according to the outward sound of words many of the like are spoken of the Father as this God remembred Noah as if he had recovered himself out of forgetfulness Again I will go down and see whether they have acted and done according to the cry that hath ascended up And the like again They did what I commanded them not and it came not into my mind And again Adam where art thou Where is Abel thy Brother And if the Father who is not cloathed with a Body is attended with Attributes of Infirmity how much rather should not he who is cloathed with a Body for us speak after the manner of men and as a Tree that is remote and at a great distance and unseen is known by the fruit which are presented to view and brought nigh so is our Lord made known by his signs and by his Works and by the Prophesies which have been made concerning him and not by words which sound of infirmity and if he being cloathed with a Body there were those who denied that he was born of the Virgin and said that he was not begotten but that he was a stranger and that he appeared onely in fancy how much the rather would they have said so had it not been for these Attributes of Infirmity Moreover He did not reveal this day because it would not have advantaged them to have known it and many would have been remiss in the exercise of vertue until the last hour but now forasmuch as the coming to Judgment is concealed from us we stand alvvayes in danger and fear Moreover It seemed good unto God that knovving it he should not reveal it and to man it vvas a reproach that he should have done it therefore forasmuch as he vvas deemed onely to be a man it vvas not a matter of odium to conceal from them the day but if any one had promised them who knew and would not have revealed it he had been thought wicked and envious and if he had revealed itit had produced remisness
this exactly He departed from them about a stones cast he did not pray before them that he might not be thought proud or vain-glorious and that he might Teach them to pray privately nor did he depart to a great distance that they might hear the words of his prayer what they were and might learn by that pattern But not my will He doth not say so as if his Will were contrary to the Will of his Father but by way of submission he used this expression Moreover He did it for instruction to others that we should not be troubled for those Things which befall us from enemies which oftentimes hapneth not from our Will but from the infirmity of Nature for he was pleased to Teach this to all men in his own person That what passions we suffer by reason of those who vex us is not blameable by reason of the infirmity of Nature yet ought we to take a care if we be not cleared of them by the love of God that we shun natural commotions Whomsoever I kiss the same is he Judas because it was night lest as they went they might take another and leave our Lord he gave this sign unto them Whomsoever I shall kiss take And it is probable That it was usual with our Lord to kiss any of the Disciples when they came from a remote place A certain young man followed him Some say That it was John the Evangelist Others say no and it is known from hence That John did not walk naked with our Lord nor any other of his Disciples Others say He was none of the Twelve but some other man and the Jewes by reason of their Wickedness apprehended him and taking hold of the linnen cloth vvherein he vvas vvrapped he left the same behind him and fled Others say That it vvas this Mark the Evangelist and therefore he did not make express mention of his name Sought for testimony against Jesus Wherefore did they seek Witnesses for this that he said Destroy this Temple and I will raise it up in three dayes And if he did not build it he vvas a Lyar for this vvas no greater a vvork than to raise him vvho had been dead four dayes The servants That is to say The Souldiers or Executioners Seditions 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That is to say Wars and Contentions The Souldiers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That is to say Those vvho vvere sent to guard him The vvay is in Greek called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Praetorium That is to say The Court of Justice CHAP. XV. SImon a Cyrenian He was of the Gentiles the Father of Alexander and Rufus he who was chosen by our Lord he called him an Apostle and in respect of the love he bore him he esteemed his Mother as his own when our Lord went out of the Court of Justice he bore his own Cross but when they saw Simon coming from his Town they pressed him and laid the Cross upon him And they led him to Gogulta It is called Gogulta by reason of its roundness Which is by interpretation a skull That is to say by reason of its figure which is high and rising a little from the ground And they gave him to drink wine mixed with myrrhe That is to say That he might be Transported beyond the use of Reason and Intoxicated and might not be sensible of what they were to do unto him but he did not drink it for two Reasons First None of the Prophets prophesied that he was to drink Wine Secondly That he might not deviate out of the way which the Prophets had strewed for him not that he did so because the Prophets foretold it but because he was to fulfill his office or dispensation and myrrhe is that which they join with aloes That is to say tsaboro and it is another kind of Fruit and it is not so bitter as tsaboro And he received it not That is to say He drank it not Once they gave him Vinegar and another time Wine mixed with Myrrhe that they might add asperity and bitterness to his Passion and that as a Token of the exceeding-great Hatred towards him And when they had crucified him they divided his garments In Matthew we have expounded these Things What every man should have That is to say To which of them such a part should fall and which of the Souldiers was to take such a part his Under-Coat was glorious having never a seam from the upper side and they did not divide it but put a price thereupon and divided the price into four parts and then they cast lots amongst themselves and agreed That he unto whom the lot fell should have the Coat and pay the other three parts of the price to his Comrades and this is that which Mark saith What every man should have That is to say what every one of the Souldiers should have whether the Coat or part of the price And the occasion of his death was written That is to say That he was Crucified because he designed to usurp the Kingdom And with him they crucified two thieves First Because he was found guilty of Rebellion against God and the King as they were Secondly That the Psalm might be fulfilled in his being reckoned with transgressors They crucified them together thereby to hide their Envy and Arrogancy And one ran and filled a sponge with vinegar That is to say instead of Wine they gave him Vinegar that they might dry his Tongue so that he might not cry any more And when the evening of the preparation was come The setting of the Sun and the end of the preparation he calls Evening and it may allude unto him who that day cryed out to him Go and prepare thou Christ everlasting blessings and which are to come Came Joseph who was of Ramatha He calls him honoured because he was not by descent a Counsellor but by bribing and money obtained the place of a Counsellor In like manner there was a Family or Tribe in the land of the Romans and it was highly honoured and if there were not any to be found of the Progeny of Kings they set up Kings out of that Tribe and when any of them Transgressed they whipped his Horse instead of him with white handgripes of Wooll Amongst the Persians also was a Tribe called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gondi namiran that is to say Immortal Tribe And it was not lawful to instruct or correct them when they offended He was confident and went in unto Pilate That is to say That he durst ask him who was Crucified as a Rebel against the Kingdom and was reputed as an Enemy to God Again It was a bold Act because he knew that he was to be accounted an Enemy to the Jewes for honouring the body of our Lord he was confident That is to say because it was a Festival and the Law did not permit it And Pilate marvailed if he were already dead He marvailed because he thought the time of his
one Kingdom and Glory and Honour of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost And our Lord helped them and confirmed their words by the signs which they wrought That is to say He shewed that their words were true by the Miracles and Cures and Signs which he wrought by their hands for those who saw the Apostles and Disciples that they cured Lepers and raised the Dead and other Miracles they confirmed their words and entertained their Preaching and believed whatsoever they Preached Through the prayers of the Holy Apostles pardon unto us O God for the love of thy Humanity our Trespasses whether willingly or unwillingly of knowledge or ignorance And also O Lord have mercy on the sinner and weak person who wrote through thy abundant mercies Amen Here ends the Exposition of the Gospel of Blessed MARK his Prayer be with us Amen MATTHEW the Son of JOHN wrote This He who Reads it Let him pray for him in our Lord. Finished Anno 1058. according to the Computation of the Grecians DIONYSIVS SYRVS HIS EXPOSITION OF THE Ten Beatitudes Pronounced in the Fifth Chapter of St. Matthew c. Translated out of the SYRIACK LANGUAGE BY DVDLEY LOFTVS J. U. D. BEfore our Saviour pronounced the Beatitudes he ascended a Mountain that he might thereby shew that it was he who descended on Mount Sinai and gave the Ten Commandments Furthermore That he might raise the Disciples and the Multitude to the Contemplation of heavenly Things and that he might shew that his Doctrine was high and superior to Things that are earthly and that it is not overcast with a Lye but shineth forth unto all men for he appeared as a man and ascended the Mount because the children of Israel desired that they might not see that fire lest they should dye Moreover He said thus The Lord shall raise unto them a Prophet of their Brethren because he was a Mediator between God and men as Moses between God and Israel And he foretold Things to come and Taught Ten Commandments as Moses did and as the Ten Commandments comprehend the Law so the Ten Beatitudes contain the whole Gospel And how are the Beatitudes said to be Ten since there are but Nine of them We say That Luke added another And blessed are they who weep now for they shall rejoyce Signifying by him that weeps him who lamenteth for his sins and our fall from Paradise and that he freed them from dissolute Laughter and vain Mirth and that he who freed them from dissolute laughter and vain mirth will cause them to rejoyce in the world to come who flie therfrom but if they say that Luke deliver'd that which Matthew said Blessed are they who mourn Let them know that it is another Beatitude i.e. The Assumption of the Body and Blood when he gave these blessings as yet he had not communicated the Mysteries and therefore there is one of the Beatitudes wanting that it might be fulfill'd in the receiving of his Body and Blood Moreover Also there are Nine Commandments yet are they called Ten. I. The First I am the Lord thy God II. The Second Thou shalt not swear by the Name of the Lord. III. The Third Keep the Sabbath day IV. The Fourth Honour thy Father and thy Mother V. The Fifth Thou shalt not commit Murther VI. The Sixth Thou shalt not commit Adultery VII The Seventh Thou shalt not Steal VIII The Eigth Thou shalt not bear false Witness IX The Ninth Thou shalt not covet the House nor Wife of thy Neighbour And wherefore then are they called Ten being but Nine Because the number of Ten is a perfect number and Perfection is not to be found in the Law but in the Gospel and therefore there was a defect in the Commandments that Perfection might be found in the Gospel according to the letter Jud which is the first letter of Jesus which signifieth Ten. Moreover The Doctrine of the Beatitudes is applicable unto all men in general and not to the Disciples onely and that is manifest from hence That he saith Not Blessed are ye but Blessed are they speaking as to many The name therefore of the Beatitudes comprehendeth all joy and exultation even as the name unhappy comprehendeth whatsoever is sad or grievous I. Blessed are the poor in spirit Poor he ' calls those who enjoy wealth and of their own accord become poor scattering it among the poor according to that Sell thy possession and give to the poor Again Poor he calls those who are able to acquire wealth and do not acquire it by reason of the Kingdom of Heaven as Monks and Votaries Again Those who possess Riches and yet are not affected with them or which have them but yet are poor in spirit notwithstanding and dispense them honourably as did Job and Abraham Moreover He doth not call them poor in opposition to wealth because they if they offend are condemn'd but the poor in spirit i. e. Those who are void of sin and empty of sin and iniquity and as the poor want the wealth of this World so these are void of sin and iniquity Again The poor he calls those who are not puft up in their minds either in respect of Justice or Wealth or Wisdom but are meek and humble according to this With whom shall I walk but with the meek and humble For the inchantment of pride was the first-born of Satan in the beginning and therewith he lifted up his Heel against his Creator and thereby caused man to fall justly therefore doth our Saviour purge this passion giving a blessing unto the Righteous who are free from pride The Kingdom of Heaven The Kingdom he calls the Bliss which the Saints enjoy after the Resurrection II. Blessed are they who mourn Mourning may be said in two senses Worldly Mourning whereby a man mourneth for that he is not rich or that he is unable to revenge himself on his Enemy or for the separation of Lovers This Mourning begetteth Death according to that worldly sorrow worketh Death but Mourning for God's sake is the cause of life and gaineth comfort and doubleth blessings Not to those who mourn for Poverty or the Death of others but to those who mourn for their sins being afraid of Judgment according to that I have watered my Bed all the night Again He calls him a Mourner who being free from sin mourns for the evil of other men as Samuel for that of Saul and David who said Sadness hath seized on me for the sins of those who have left thy Law Or when we compute the Happiness from which Adam fell or the Infelicity wherein we are left according as it was said of one of the Saints That whensoever he was willing to eat did weep and when he was asked the Reason answered I remember what we were in the beginning and how low we are cast to eat the grass as the Beasts These therefore are Mourners who mourn for their sins Again Mourners are those who
an horn for us He calls Christ an horn according to that then I will raise an horn unto David Psal 132.17 An horn is taken from the similitude of wiâ—d Beasts which fight and help themselves with their horns In the house of David his servant For in respect to him were the promises made That of the seed of David Christ should arise Severus de Gebulo God is the horn of the Righteous and Saints wherefore is he called an horn as an horn is one of the integral parts of the body and hath nothing like the body for it is not flesh specifically nor bones nor nerves nor veins nor any of the entralls though it be of the body So Christ though he be of men yet hath he not in him any thing like unto men of those things which are of sin As he spake by the mouth of the Holy Prophets That Christ should arise from the seed of David That he might redeem us from our Enemies That is to say from the Devil and his ministers and from sin and death And hath remembred his Covenant That he remembred is as much as to say he performed viz. The agreement which he made with Abraham this day hath he performed for Covenants are the Agreements which he made with Abraham swearing That of his seed one should arise in whom all Nations should be blessed By my self have I sworn said the Lord because thou hast done this thing and hast not with-held thy Son from me c. And the Oath which he sware That is to say That which I sware by my self saith the Lord of lords He calls his seed which sojourned in the Land of his Enemies the children of Israel and the seed wherein all Nations were to be blessed he calls Christ And that they might serve him without fear He therefore delivered us that we might worship him and not Idols without being afraid of the Devil In Justice and Righteousness That is to say in Holiness and not in Sacrifices of dumb Beasts Thou Childe the Prophet of the Highest That is to say If Christ be the Highest he hath Prophets also as hath his Father It is manifest That the Word is the most high from that which John said That he who came from on high is above all therefore it was the most High God who was incarnated and his Prophet was John not far off but neer at hand for he said Behold there cometh one after me For thou shalt go before the face That is to say To prepare the way before him in the minds of men who are sunk in sins Again He went before his Face for he said Behold there cometh after me one who is more powerful than I. That he might give knowledge of salvation to his people To give unto the Faithful knowledge of salvation by remission of sins he calls his people those who believe in him that he might give them the knowledge of God the Father who is the true God and that they might lead their lives as Christ said This is life that they may know thee the true God By the tender mercies of God That is to say By the mercies and favour of God He sent unto us from on high a branch According to that Behold a man and his name was a branch Others call the Star which declared unto the Wise men a branch which came from on High and preached unto the Wise men who sate in sin To give light unto them who are in darkness He calls sin darkness and the shadow of death for to this end he came from on High that he might expiate our sins and iniquities which are darkness and death because he is the light of the World To guide our feet in the way Feet and the way he calls Conversation and Actings In the way of peace That is in the way of the Gospel according to that Your feet shod with the blessing of the Gospel And he made peace between us and his Father THE EXPOSITON OF DIONYSIVS SYRVS ON THE MAGNIFICAT Translated by D. L. MY Soul doth magnifie the Lord. That is to say My Soul gives Thanks and glorifies him who hath magnified me and made me the Mother of his Son It is a Query Whether the Lord magnified Mary or whether Mary magnified the Lord And it is certain That the Lord magnified Mary Again Magnifie here is like that of the Scripture which saith Give Majesty unto God And my Spirit hath rejoyced in God Because he hath sent down his Son unto me and hath preserved me from that Curse In sorrow shalt thou conceive Regarded the lowliness of thy Hand-maiden That is to say He hath beheld my Humility and hath exalted me and made me the Mother of his Son Moses also by reason of his Humility was made a Prince And he saw that she obscured her self in the low condition of a Maid-servant though she was to be the Mother of his Son Behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed That is to say From this time that she conceived the Word of God And this she spoke by Prophesie For behold all generations of the earth called her blessed according as she said Hath done great things to me That is to say That she conceived him without the Society of Man and bare him with the Conservation of Virginity He that is mighty and holy is his Name Because he is Mighty and Omnipotent he hath done great things for me And his mercy is to generations Because he poureth forth his mercies upon those who are of a righteous and vertuous Conversation And she took of those Things which were her own and conferr'd them upon others i. e. because she feared God he multiplied his mercy on her in Virginity He hath gotten the victory with his arm i. e. his Dominion and Kingdom he calleth Victory In time past the Victory the Arm and Dominion of the Lord was seen in the Wonders which he wrought by the Prophets but in this time forward by the Revelation of his Son He hath scattered the proud In time past the Proud and Vain glorious but in the time to come the Crucifiers He hath put down the mighty i. e. In times past the Kings who rose up against the Hebrews but at this time the Gentiles and the Jewes and the Hereticks who have risen against the Church And exalted the humble i. e. In the time of Abraham and Isaac and afterward the Apostles and Faithful The hungry he hath filled with good things i. e. Really he satisfied and will satisfie and spiritually he satisfieth and will satisfie those who hunger after vertue and in the world to come will fill them with good Things and Rewards The rich he dismist i. e. Those who gloried in their Riches he vomited out and drove away from him He hath holpen his servant Israel i. e. In Egypt and in the Wilderness and in that he gave him the Land of Promise and freed him from his Enemies He hath
of the Kings there were Forty and four to wit Ahazia and Joash and Amotsia and Eliakim who was Jehoiakim being added CHAP. IV. HE departed from him for a season That is to say until the time of the Passion when he incited the Jewes to apprehend him The acceptable year of the Lord. That is to say The year wherein Repentance for sin was to be accepted by the Lord. Naaman the Oromojan That is to say the Syrian The Nestorian reads the Syriack word with Pathocho over Olaph and a quiescent R. That is to say the Gentile but that reading is not to be approved of because the Greek reads it o 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Syrian CHAP. VII OR expect we another Some say That this disjunctive particle beareth in this place the sense of a negative and that John did not say thus interrogatively but positively as if he would have said Thou art he and we do not expect another but this is not the meaning of the words CHAP. IX AND a returning spirit That is to say on certain dayes it left him and then Tormented him as an ague CHAP. X. THen to this City That is to say and not to this City Peradventure they had repented in sackeloth and ashes The Nestorians read the word repented in the masculine plural but not rightly because the Greek reads it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And behold a certain Scribe arose to tempt him The Commentators of Cineria are of Opinion That this was the same who is mentioned in Matthew and Mark to have said to our Lord Good Master What shall I do to inherit eternal life And that this was not he is certain from this consideration that there is mention made of him by Luke hereafter in the paragraphy of the tenth Sabbath Thou art sollicitous about many things That is to say more than are necessary But one thing is requisite That is to say The exigency of the day CHAP. XI TEach us to pray The prayer Our Father which art in Heaven Matthew and Luke onely mention it and Luke doth not add For thine is the Kingdom c. The Queen of the South The Sarakians say That the name of this Queen was Balkis CHAP. XII COmmand my brother to divide inhèritance with me This man was covetous and because his brother followed our Lord he hoped that our Lord would have said unto him Leave whatsoever thou hast unto thy brother and come after me But when he discovered the evil intention of his Covetousness which made him forsake the secular Judges to come unto him he did not vouchsafe to answer his request The Baptism wherewith I shall be baptized That is to say I am to dye a voluntary death wherein I am to rise from the Earth as out of the Water CHAP. XIII TO day and to morrow That is to say This year and the next Out of Jerusalem That is to say it was necessary that the Jewes the sons of Jerusalem should partake in the murther of the Prophets for though Jeremy was slain in Egypt yet was he stoned by those Jewes of Jerusalem who fled from the Chaldeans and Daniel dyed a natural death in Babilon CHAP. XVI AND taketh another committeth adultery That is to say he who without a lawful cause puts away the first There was a certain rich man Because he was wicked his name is not mentioned according to that I will not remember their name with my lips And moreover That he might shew that he was to blot the names of the wicked out of the Book of Life and many of the Doctors say That this rich man was not in any real subsistency neither Lazarus the Beggar but that it was onely a Parable and it is certain That as yet the wicked have not received Torment nor the Righteous Bliss as Paul saith They received not the promise that they might not be perfected without us Saint Cyril saith That this Rich man was in very deed and that his name was Naphtali of the Tribe of Dan and that Lazarus was descended from the Gibeonites and behold his Water-pot is preserved hitherunto and whosoever is ulcerous or lame in his Feet is Cured thereby And was cloathed with fine linen That is to say pure white Cotten which by reason of the exceeding fineness thereof is like to the air CHAP. XVII MIght say unto this Sycamore tree be thou plucked up by the roots and be planted in the sea He brought this Tree for an instance by reason it hath more Roots than other Trees CHAP. XVIII AND was not restrained by shame of men Who adored the fire which is insensible But I fast twice in the Week That is to say The Pharisees fasted the second and fifth day of the Week CHAP. XXII HE who is greatest amongst you It is likely that they did not remember what was said unto Peter That thou art Cephas and on thee will I build my Church and I will give thee the Keyes of Heaven Here are two Swords St. Junnis saith That they were Knives for the Passeover which were prepared there CHAP. XXIII AND they gave him vineger That he might drink thereof and dye the sooner CHAP. XXIV AND from Jerusalem sixty furlongs In some of the Greek copies it is an Hundred and sixty Peace be with ye amen The word amen is not found in all copies And he took and did eat before them He did eat that he might remove from them the Opinion of a Phantasm and not that he stood in need of meat And he lifted up his hands and blessed them That is to say he made them Bishops and when he sent them two and two he made them Deacons to wit purifiers from evil spirits and when he breathed on them and gave them power to forgive sins he ordained them Priests JOHN wrote his Gospel in the Greek Tongue at the Request of those of Asia And Eusebius saith That Peter and Paul came unto him to Ephesus and did perswade him to write JOHANNIS CHAP. I. The Word was made flesh and dwelt in us HE here declares his natural union and personality with humane nature and not the change of his nature And of his fulness have we all received This is the saying of the Evangelist and not of the Baptist And grace That is to say new for grace that is to say old Truth and grace was by Jesus Christ He doth not say That the Law of Moses was false but that it was the shadow of this body These things were done in Bethany beyond Joâ—dan In ancient Copies it is written These things were done in the passage of Jordan And this is to be approved for Bethany was not in the Wilderness where John baptized for it was about Twelve miles from Jordan One of those who heard That is to say Andrew and John himself was the other but he would not express his name being restrained by humility Can any good thing come out of Nazareth He saith this as having read that
death was not yet come At the Third hour he was Crucified and at the Ninth hour he dyed and from the Third to the Ninth are but six hours for it was thought that one who had been Crucified but six hours would not have dyed and when he heard that he was dead he wondred And this Testifieth for Christ That he dyed of his own Will and not by constraint for that he dyed truly as to his Body we say but that he admitted death of his own Will and not by constraint as we the Thieves were not dead but he because of his own accord he permitted death to approach unto him therefore he dyed at the Ninth hour Again He marvailed as at something that was not customary for every one that is Crucified remains a day or two but he failed in the Ninth hour of the day and whatsoever was done there was a miracle CHAP. XVI AND when the Sabbath was past Mary Magdalene and the other Mary bought sweet spices that they might anoint him That is to say according to the custom of Women who on the Sabbath or the Third day of the Week or on Friday and on Festivals went in honour of the dead to the Sepulchre with perfumes and sweet oyntments And they saw a young man sitting on the right hand They called the Angel Gabriel a young man because he appeared in the likeness of a young man That he might signifie that he who was risen did restore our nature to its Youth And that he appeared on the right hand sheweth That he was to Preach glorious and prosperous Things unto the Women But go tell his Disciples and Cephas He distinguished and singled out Cephas as him who had carried himself defectively in respect of Faith for Behold he came twice to the Sepulchre And that he might fill him with consolation inasmuch as he was terrified and confounded with shame by reason of his denial and that he might know that his repentance was complete And he calls him Peter to shew the strength of his love though he was somewhat lyable to humane failing and that he was restored by Repentance to his former Honour so as to be the foundation of the Church And in the morning the first day of the week he arose and appeared In the Greek Copy and the Harkalian it is thus written When he arose in the morning of the first of the week he appeared first of all to Mary Magdalene This sense is apt and it is apparent That first he said when he arose and then made a distinction by interposing a point and afterwards added the other words viz. in the morning of the first of the week he appeared to Mary Magdalene Whence we understand That our Saviour first arose at a time unknown to any but the Father and the Holy Ghost for no Creature knew it for if we do not know our own Resurrection at what hour or time it shall be so no man knoweth at what time Christ arose That he arose truly we know but at what time or hour of the night we know not but whil'st it was the time of the morning of the first of the week he appeared to Mary Magdalene as John hath said and written Again The words morning and appeared are annexed to Mary and not to the time when he arose yet here the word arose is interposed though in congruity of sense it goes before the word morning because he spoke briefly of the Resurrection and in what manner he appeared to Mary he rendred the sense confused St. Severus saith That there are many Copies of the Gospel of Mark which want from the morning of the first day of the week he arose unto the end of the Book so that the Gospel ends with these words Neither said they any thing to any man for they were afraid Afterwards he appeared to the eleven That is to say He laid before them their want of Faith and hardness of Heart saying That they did not give credit unto them who had seen that he was risen He that believeth and shall be baptized shall be saved That is to say He who believes in the Father and in the Son and in the Holy Ghost Three persons and one God and shall be baptized in the Name of these three persons shall be saved from sin which is the death of the foul Moreover He shall live a life Immortal whereunto shall be joined inseparably joyes which shall never fail He that believeth He sheweth That first a man gets Faith and then worketh Miracles according to this If ye have Faith ye shall remove Mountains As these signs have been wrought amongst them so if Faith shall be found in them they shall work Miracles according to what is said He who hath Faith can do every thing He that doth not believe That is to say Unbelievers shall have a life mixed with torments without end In my name shall they cast out Devils That is to say the Apostles and Disciples cast out many Devils and spoke the Languages of the Nations They shall take up Serpents There are two kinds of Serpents the one proceeds from the earth the other from Devils and neither kind saith he shall be able to hurt the faithful who keeps his Commandments And if they shall drink any deadly poyson They say That the Gentiles made one of the Seventy two Disciples to drink deadly poyson and he did not dye therewith and that they cast poyson into the Cup of the Mysteries wherein was the blood of Redemption and made a Saint drink thereof and he did not thereof dye and many others there were who drank poyson and it hurt them not And they shall lay hands on the sick This we have seen done even to this day by many Priests But the Heathens object If these words of Christ are true wherefore do not they cast out Devils and take hold of Serpents c We answer according to the judgment of Philoxenus That Christ doth not use the word by way of a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That is to say for a determinal and universal term but an indefinite for he doth not say That these Things shall belong to every one that believeth in him but to those who believe in him for he did not use the word all or every of them in his Proposition Therefore it is not said of every one of them but that there are many who shall be attended with these signs as Apostles and Saints He ascended into Heaven and sate on the right hand For the right hand denotes Honour According to this He shall place the sheep on his right hand That is to say He shall associate them with himself in glory for the Father is not corporeal that he should have a right and left hand neither have the Angels a right and left hand for this belongs to Bodies but the right hand of God the Father signifieth equality of Session of Majesty with him for there is but