which alone, without any fupernatural agency of God upon the mind, has been fufficient for the purpose.

14. The apoftle proceeds to ufe farther arguments to diffuade the Corinthians from eating meat facrificed to idols, and particularly urges that of their partaking of the Lord's fupper, as a thing in its nature inconfiftent with it.

15. The apostle frequently alludes to the boafted knowledge of the Corinthians, and sometimes in an iro

nical way.

17. It was the custom of the primitive christians to bring one loaf of bread to the Lord's fupper, and divide it among them all, to denote their perfect unity, as the difciples of one mafter, at whofe table they were equally guests.

18. In all facrifices the meat was confidered as the provifion of the idol's table, the priests as the fervants, and those who brought the facrifice, and who partook of the meat that had been offered, as the guests.

21. The argument of the apostle in this place is, that we cannot have communion with two perfons fo oppofite to one another as Chrift and the heathen deities.

22. Becaufe God has faid, I will not give my glory to another nor my praise to graven images; and in the Old Testament, he is always reprefented as a jealous God, not bearing any rivalfhip with the gods of the heathens.

23. This is what the apoftle had faid before, and might have been retorted upon him. He, therefore, explains himself farther on the fubject; obferving that, VOL. IV.

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tho'

tho' the eating of this meat that had been offered in facrifice to idols might be lawful in itself, yet fince it might be offenfive to others, it ought to be refrained from.

29. If the perfon who is eating with me has fcruples about eating that meat, tho' it is not in the idol's temple, and therefore the eating of it may not be confidered as communicating with the idol, and on that account I may not have any fcruple about it, I fhould refrain from eating, left he should be induced by my example to do the fame, notwithstanding his fcruples.

3.3. From this particular cafe the apostles takes occafion to give this excellent general rule of conduct, not to confider ourselves fo much as others; and to confult the honour of that God, who is alike the father and the friend of us all.

THE PARAPHRASE:

I cannot be too earnest in my persuasion to abstain from any practice that favours of idolatry; and with this view I will urge another argument, the force of which, as you pretend to superior knowledge, you will eafily perceive. Confider the Lord's fupper, and the elements of bread and wine of which we then partake. Are they not called the body and blood of Christ? For as, in the celebration of this rite, we make ufe of one loaf, and divide it among us, it represents the unity of the church; and in partaking of it, we acknowledge ourfelves to be one body with Chrift. Do not they who partake of the Jewifh facrifices hold communion with the God whofe altar it is, by eating, as it were, at his ta

ble? How, then, does this agree with your partaking of the facrifices of the heathens.

Not that I fay their idols are of any account, or that their facrifices are not in themselves perfectly contemptible, but they are understood to be facrifices to demons, and not to the true God; and, as chriftians, you ought not to have any communion with thofe demons. You cannot confiftently have communion, or fellowship, with both. This would be to provoke the jealoufy of God, who has declared that he will not give his glory to another. Shall we enter into a contest with him, as if we could prevail against him.

You may reply, in my own words, that this action is lawful in itself, tho' perhaps not expedient. But tho it fhould be lawful to me, it may obstruct the edification and good of others; and we are in duty bound to confult not our own advantage only, but that of others alfo. If any meat be exposed to sale in the open market, it may, no doubt, be bought, and eaten without fcruple. For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof, and the fruit of his bounty to man, which I will not reject. Alfo, if any of you be invited to an entertainment, and be disposed to go, eat whatever is fet before you without fcruple. But if any fcrupulous brother who is prefent obferve to you, that the meat with which you are served has been offered in facrifice to an idol, and on that account think it unlawful to eat of it, in that cafe do you refrain ; and that on his account who has fcruples, and not on your own, who have none, but confider that meat in no other light than any other of the gifts of God to his creatures. In this case

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you

you refpect the consciences of other men, not your own. For, exclufive of this circumftance, my confcience is not affected by the fcruples of any other man.

If I give thanks to God for the provifion of which I partake, and thereby confider it as his gift, and not as any thing belonging to the idol to which it may have been confecrated, what just cause of offence do I give ? But even in eating or drinking, or any other indifferent acion, we should confult the glory of God, and the edification of others; avoiding the giving of offence to Jew or Gentile, or any part of the church of God. This is my general rule. I wish to avoid giving cause of of. fence to any perfon, and would not confult my own fatisfaction fo much as that of others, especially in what refpects their moral conduct and future happiness.

Ch. XI 1. In this part of the epiftle the apostle gives directions with refpect to the decency of public worship, and the different manner in which it became men and women to appear there.

4. It is, and ever was, the custom in the East, exprefs reverence by putting off the fhoes, and not by Thus when Mofés uncovering the head, as with us. approached the burning bush, the voice from it faid (Ex. ii. v.) Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground, Alfo the priests in the temple ferved barefooted. The Mahometans always leave their fhoes at the door of the mofque when they go in to worship.

5. Tho' men kept their heads covered, it was always reckoned indecent for women to appear fo, or even without a veil. And this cuftom the apoftle directs

that

that they fhould obferve, tho' they fhould pray or fpeak in the prefence of men, which, though he did not approve in general, they might be called to do on parti-' cular occafions.

7. The man, in fome meafure, reprefents God, who is fupreme, and is inferior to him only; whereas the woman was appointed to be subject to the man.

9. Here the apostle argues from the Mofaic account of the creation, on which, however, for reasons which I have given elfewhere, I would not lay much strefs.

10. To have power over the head, the antients fay, meant to cover the head. The claufe because of the angels, is very varioudly interpreted. On the whole it seems to me most natural to fuppofe that it referred to angels, whom the apofile might fuppofe to be prefent in chriftian affemblies, as well as in other places, tho' invisible; and that out of refpect to them, as well as to men, women should have their heads covered.

11. Notwithstanding the fuperiority of the man to the woman, they are neceffary to each other; and both bear the fame relation to God, and are subject to him.

15. By nature in this place the apofile could only mean established customs, according to which it was deemed indecent in men to wear long hair, bu: proper and graceful in women.

16. Whatever fome might abject to the regulations here prefcribed by the apoftle, he replies that, fuch was the custom in all chriftian churches, and to this they eught to conform."