heart*. Again, it seems, some of them taught only a partial obedience to the commandments, as if there were no danger in transgressing some of them; whence Christ assures, Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. They were also generally mistaken in being very punctual in performing the externals of religion, or the outward carnal rites, relying wholly upon the very doing the work, and esteeming a mere bodily service as meritorious, by a bare observance of the letter of the law, without attending to the inward and spiritual righteousness", which was most acceptable to God: but Christ declared, The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth; which does not suppose that God, under the Gospel, requires only a spiritual, and not an external worship; for this last is according to the ordinances of the Gospel, which appoints the holy sacraments, prayer, and thanksgiving; and encourages, by the example of our Saviour and the Apostles, a worshipping with the proper and reverend gestures of the body, as bowing or falling down, kneeling, &c. but the worshipping the Father in spirit and in truth, is to worship him, not in types, and with the carnal sacrifices under the law, (which were now to cease, and in the outward performance of which the Jews chiefly confided,) but according to the truth of things which were only shadowed in the law, but manifested in Christ; and according to the spiritual worship under the Gospel, that is, with a pure heart, and by devout prayers and

y Matt. v. 19.

x Matt. v. z The same which Justin Martyr laid to their charge, Dial. cum Tryph. p. 44. edit. Jebb.

Lond. 1719.

a John iv. 23.

book i. disc. 12.

b Grot. in loc. and Mede,

praises, and a holy conversation. This appears to be the meaning of this passage, from the occasion of Christ's mentioning it, in answer to the Samaritan woman's question, concerning the true place of the Jewish worship, and their outward typical sacrifices, whether at Jerusalem, or mount Gerizimʻ.

Again, besides the written laws, the Jews, especially the Pharisees, (a great sect among them,) had "oral and unwritten traditions d," that is, interpretations of the law, and many customs, which they pretended Moses had not written down, but, being instructed by God therein, taught by word of mouth ; and so they were conveyed first by Joshua, then by the elders of the Sanhedrim or council, and others, from age to age, down to their time, as so many fences of the law; such as washing their hands before meat, washing pots and cups, &c. and this they were taught to do, not so much for cleanliness, as upon the score of conscience and religion, for fear of any legal defilement that might have happened to such parts or things: for they had taken up an opinion, that any thing which was touched by a person unclean by the law, did communicate such an uncleanness to their bodies, and then to their souls; but that this ceremonial washing did purify both body and soul, and therefore was pleasing to God. In the performance of these, and such like, they put most confidence, and taught them to be necessary and good in themselves," and of "equal force" with the written law; nay, they esteemed such traditions above the law, it being a maxim amongst them, that "it is a greater sin to act in contradiction to the words of the Scribes, than of

،،

© John iv. 10, 21. See the first part, chap. 20. concerning this mount Gerizim in Samaria. d Maimon. Porta Mosis, p. 5, 33, &c. and 35. Hottinger. Thesaur. p. 560. 1. ii. c. 3. §. 3. Lightf. Hor. in Matt. xv. 2. et in Mark viii. 12. Grot. in Matt. xv. 2. Hottinger and Lightfoot, ibid.

e

the written law; and that the former ought to be more attended to than the latter, the written law being as the body or clothing, but the unwritten as the soul" directly contrary to the instructions of the old prophets, who, on all occasions, refer the people to the written law of Moses. This remark will explain a great part of Christ's sermon on the mount, and of his discourses with the Scribes and Pharisees, who were much bent against him, for exposing their hypocrisies and corruptions of the law, and for preaching down their traditions.

This remark does also explain what our Saviour means by this, In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men; not that all commandments of men, or of the governors of the church, (in things indifferent, and tending to decency, order, and edification in religious worship,) are here condemned; on the contrary, St. Paul enjoins such orders to be observed"; but such commandments, or traditions, which our Lord is here speaking of', which the Jewish Scribes and Pharisees taught for doctrines, imposing them as necessary, as if they were of equal authority with God's laws, and good in themselves, as we observed before the Jews esteemed their traditions; and also whereby they made the commandments of God of none effect

By the two last remarks, we also see how it came to pass, that, although Christ did so much good, and fulfilled all prophecies, and wrought so many wonderful works, yet he was so hated by many of the Jews, especially the Scribes and Pharisees, and not owned as their Messiah, namely, because his outward appearance was so mean, and yet he professed himself to be the Son of God; and because he

f Matt. v. vi. vii. and last verse.

8 Matt. xv. 9.

i Verse 2. k Ver. 5, 6.

h 1 Cor. xiv. 26.

was so free in laying open their hypocrisies and abuses of the law, and reliance on their traditions: so that even truth itself, because it was unacceptable, and against their inclinations and former persuasion, could not gain a consent; but was stifled and overpowered by the prevailing force of their affections and prejudice, which indisposed them for an equal judgment of things; insomuch, that they consulted to put Lazarus to death, on whom Christ had shewn so signal a miracle, by raising him from the dead, in order to stifle the belief in him1; and at length became so obstinate and malicious, that they would rather attribute the most convincing miracles to the prince of devils, than the power of God. So truly did the Jews, by hardening their hearts, and shutting their eyes, fulfil the prophecy of Isaiahm; and so much reason had Christ to charge them with their prejudice and obstinacy", till they were abandoned by God, and given up to their own hardness and impenitency; which however made way for the execution of what God had purposed, to save mankind by the death of Christ; in procuring which they would never have been instrumental, had they known and heartily believed in him.

Further, such was the veneration they had for the law and their traditions, that it occasioned their resolutions to put Christ to death; for, since there was then a general expectancy of the appearance of the Messiah, whom they fancied to be a temporal prince, they were apprehensive that so many people following Christ, he should set up for such an one, and that might raise the jealousy of the Romans, to whom they were in subjection, and so far incense them, as to come and take away their place and nationo, that is, destroy their temple, with their religion and

m

1 John xii. • John xi. 48.

r Chap. vi. 9, 10.

n Matt, xiii. 14, 15.

government, and bring them to perfect slavery; to prevent which, they would put Christ to death; which very action brought that judgment on them, as hath been seen before.

To what has hitherto been said, concerning the cause of the unbelief of the Jews, viz. their misapprehensions of the appearance of the Messiah, as if it were to be like a temporal prince, and also their veneration for their law and traditions; we may further add their prejudice against the doctrine of the Gospel, because it equalled them (who were the posterity of Abraham, and God's peculiar people) with the other nations and people of the world, as to their title in God's covenant and promises P. Against all these strong prejudices, Christ opposes his miraculous works, without which the unbelieving Jews would have been more excusable: If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin; but now have they both seen and hated me and my Father.

Fourthly, There were in Christ's time, among the Jews, several orders and conditions, with divers sects and parties. Those whom they called Gentiles, were all the people of the world who were not Jews, or not of the posterity of Abraham: these are also called Greeks. Those of the Gentiles who worshipped the God of Israel were termed proselytes.

A proselytet (which signifies one that came over", and joined himself to the Jews) was twofold, either a proselyte of the covenant, or else a proselyte of the gate.

A proselyte of the covenant was one, who being a Gentile, no Jew by birth, yet, when instructed in

Of this see the account given of the Acts of the Apostles, on chap. x. q John xv. 24. r En, Matt. iv. 15. • Ελληνες, Acts xviii. 17. t Casaubon. Exercit. 1. §. 3. num. v. p. 24, 25, 26. Mede, book i. disc. 3. Hottinger. Thesaur. 1. i. сар. i. §. 3. p. 16, &c. Prideaux's Connect. part ii. book v. sub Ann. 129. * Α. προσηλυθέναι,