cles, shall, on resisting these good resolutions, and relapsing to unbelief, become more obdurate and abandoned than before; which was the case before the destruction of Jerusalem. See Josephus. The connexion of the Gentiles and the "dry and barren places seems overstrained. Macknight.' Annot. in loc.

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5. DUTCH ANNOTATIONS. By this similitude Christ teacheth, that when a man by the knowledge of the gospel is freed from his natural ignorance, and notwithstanding lives not according to it, but keeps it under, he is much worse than before, see 2 Pet. ii. 20, 21.' in loc.

Annot.

6. MACKNIGHT. This parable is designed to teach men in every age the danger of resisting their convictions, and of breaking through their resolutions, the effect being commonly to render them much more obdurate and abandoned than before, see 2 Pet. ii. 20. Harm. Evan. § 48.

7. WYNNE. The Jews, instead of growing better, will grow seven times worse than before, as a natural and judicial consequence of their rejecting the Messiah and his offers of grace. We find by Josephus, that this was remarkably the case.' Note in loc.

SECTION XXV.

Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servant said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.'-MATT. xiii. 24-30.

THE explanation which Jesus gave of this parable to his disciples, is as follows:

'He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that soweth them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.'-MATT. xiii. 37–43.

Inasmuch as both the parable and the explanation, particularly the last, contain certain highly figurative expressions, which were often used, and well understood by the Jews, many, who are less acquainted with the original import of this kind of language, suppose that Jesus must have intended to teach the doctrine of torment in the future life. It will appear, however, from the quotations I shall offer, that there is authority, sufficiently orthodox, for understanding all these figurative phrases as descriptive of events which should occur on the earth, during the natural life of man.

1. PEARCE. Ver. 40. End of this world: Rather end of this age, viz. that of the Jewish dispensation.'

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Ver. 41. Shall send forth his angels: This is spoken, not of what shall happen at the end of the world, but of what was to happen at the end or destruction of the Jewish state."

'I have explained this and the foregoing verse, as relating, not to the end of the world, but to that of the Jewish state, which was to be destroyed within forty years after Jesus' death; for the same manner of expression is made use of, where it is more certain, that not the time of the general judgment, but that of the visitation of the Jews is meant; viz. in chap. xvi. 27, 28. This last verse, accomplished in one of the apostles at least, (I mean John,) plainly shows that all the phrases used in the first verse were designed to express only the destruction which was to befal the Jewish state; at which time the Christians, who endured to the end, were to be saved, chap. x. 22, and xxiv. 13. These are called the elect in chap. xxiv. 22, 24. And ecclesiastical

history informs us, that by a divine admonition, the faithful christians retired from Judea, before the ruin of it by the Romans, and were preserved. See chap. iii. 12, and Luke xxi. 18, 36, and especially note on Matt. xxiv. 13.' Com. and note in loc.

2. HAMMOND. The phrase sunteleia tou aionos, ver. 39, (end of the world,) Dr. Hammond translates conclusion of the age; and sunteleia tou aionos touto, ver. 40, (end of this world,) he renders, conclusion of this age. In his paraphrase he seems to interpret the parable in a twofold sense: he applies it, (1,) literally to the temporal destruction about to come on the Jewish nation, and the deliverance of believers from that destruction; and (2,) by accommodation, to the day of future judgment. But whatever he might have supposed to be its remote, or mystical allusion, he evidently interprets its literal sense as having relation to temporal concerns. His paraphrase follows:

"The field is this world, the place of our living here; that part of the parable that concerneth the good seed, signifies the christians; but that of the tares, signifies the wicked seducers; such were the Gnostics, and other heretics of the first times, such are all heretics and scismatics since. The time when believers and unbelievers (and seducers) shall be called to account, is, to this people, that solemn approaching time of their visitation, as to all other people, the time of final excisions, and especially the day of judgment. So shall it be at God's times of eminent discrimination, such as his judgments on the Jews, and such the last dreadful day of doom. Christ by his messengers and instruments of his justice, shall destroy all heretics and scismatics, that any way keep others from the christian religion, and all that live professedly in any unlawful course of contrariety to christian purity. Then shall the true, pure christian professors shine eminently in the church here, and after in glory.' Par. in loc.

3. CAPPE. All the terms of this parable deter

mine it to relate to the catastrophe of the Jewish state: the sower is the Son of man; the period of the event that is spoken of, is the accomplishment of the age, which in scripture language relates, uniformly, I believe, to the end of the Mosaic economy, and the solemn admonition with which the parable is closed, "who hath ears to hear, let him hear," "does itself yield a presumption, that the parable was particularly interesting to the people of that generation; and it is upon such occasions only, as were nearly interesting to the hearers of our Lord, that it is commonly or indeed ever applied in his discourses. The sense therefore is this: Then, when the son of man, by his messengers, in the end of this age, shall have destroyed the tares, the children of the wicked one, who disgrace the profession, or debase the purity, or obstruct the progress of his truth, when he shall have put down authority and power, subdued his enemies under him, he shall reign; and the children of the kingdom, they who are faithful to practice and to teach what they have learnt of me, delivered out of the general desolation, shall be served and exalted by that which has been the fall and the destruction of the Judaizing persecutors, hypocrites, and unbelievers. They shall shine as the lights of the world "a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle," holding forth the word of life, and rejoicing in the patronage of God, and the deliverance he has wrought for them.' Crit. Rem. i. 179, 180.

SECTION XXVI.

'Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind. Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, And shall cast them into the furnace of fire there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.' Matt. xiii. 47-50.

THIS parable was manifestly spoken with the same

design which is embraced in the passage last noticed. The imagery is somewhat different, yet the object appears to be the same; and the same rule of interpretation should be applied to both. Such is the course pur

sued by the writers quoted below.

1. PEARCE. Ver. 49, End of the world: rather age; See Com. on ver. 40, and note on ver. 41.' Com. in loc.

By thus referring to what he has said on the preceding verses, for an explanation of this passage, it is manifest that he understood the two to be of similar character. By examining his remarks on ver. 40, 41, of this chapter, (already quoted,) the reader will discover the manner in which these passages should be interpreted.

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2. HAMMOND. Ver. 49, So shall it be, at the time wherein Christ shall come to work his revenge upon his enemies, not only at the destruction of the Jewish state, (wherein that discrimination shall be made betwixt believing and unbelieving Jews, reformed and unreformed,) but especially at the final day of every man's doom, at the conclusion of the world.' Par. in loc.

Dr. Hammond explains this parable, like that of the wheat and tares, in a twofold sense, alluding (1,) to the circumstances of the Jewish nation, at the time of the great calamity, then near at hand; and (2,) to the general judgment. It should be observed, however, that the first appears to be given as the natural import of the parable, the second as the spiritual: in other words, the first is given as matter of fact, obviously indicated by the text itself; the second is superadded as matter of opinion.

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