example of the Lord Jefus, and the greatness of their engagement to follow him.

In the two first verses, we have the inscription and falutation, in the ufual ftyle of the apoftolic epiftles.

The infcription hath the author and the addrefs, from whom, and to whom. The author of this epiftle is defigned by his name, Peter, and his calling, an Apostle.

We fhall not infift upon his name, that it was impofed by Chrift, and what is its fignification; this the Evangelifts teach us, St John i. 42. St Matt. xvi. 18. &c.

By that which is spoken of him in divers paffages of the Gospel, he is very remarkable amongst the Apostles, both for his graces and his failings; eminent in zeal and courage; yet ftumbling oft in his forwardness, and once grofsly falling: And these by the providence of God being recorded in Scripture, give a check to the excefs of Rome's conceit concerning this Apostle. Their extolling and exalting him above the reft, is not for his caufe, and much lefs to the honour of his Lord and Mafter Jefus Chrift, for he is injured and dishonoured by it; but it is in favour of themselves, as Alexander diftinguished his two friends, that the one was a friend of Alexander, That preferment the other a friend of the King. they give this Apoftle, is not in good will to Peter, but in the defire of Primacy. But whatsoever he was, they would be much in pain to prove Rome's right to it by fucceffion. And if ever it had any fuch right, we may confidently fay, it has forfeited it long ago, by departing from St Peter's footsteps, and from his faith, and retaining too much thofe things wherein he was faulty, namely,

His unwillingness to hear of, and confent to Chrift's fufferings,-his Mafter fpare thyfelf, or Far be it from thee,-in those they are like him: For thus they would difburden and exempt the Church from the Crofs, from the real crofs of afflictions, and, instead

of

of that, have nothing but painted, or carved, or gilded croffes; these they are content to embrace, and worship too, but cannot endure to hear of the other. Inftead of the cross of affliction, they make the crown or mitre the badge of their church, and will have it known by profperity and outward pomp, and fo turn the church militant into the church triumphant, not confidering that it is Babylon's voice, not the church's, I fit as a queen, and shall fee no forrow.

Again, they are like him in his faying on the mount at Chrift's Transfiguration, when he knew not what he faid, It is good to be here: So they have little of the true glory of Chrift, but the false glory of that monarchy on their feven hills, It is good to be here, say they.

Again, in their undue ftriking with the fword, not the enemies, as he, but the faithful friends and fervants of Jefus Chrift. But to proceed,

We fee here Peter's office or title, an Apoftle not chief Bishop. Some in their gloffing have been fo impudent as to add that befide the text; though chap. v. 4. he gives that title to Chrift alone, and to himself only fellow Elder, and here, not Prince of the Apoftles, but an pofile, reftored and re-established after his fall, by repentance, and by Chrift himself after his own death and refurrection, John xxi. Thus we have in our Apoftle a fingular inftance of human frailty on the one fide, and of the fweetness of divine grace on the other. Free, and rich grace it is indeed, that forgives and fwallows up multitudes of fins, of greateft fins, not only fins before converfion, as to St Paul, but foul offences committed after converfion, as to David, and to this Apoftle; not only once raifing them from the dead, but when they fall, ftretching out the fame hand, and raifing them again, and restoring them to their station, and comforting them in it by his free Spirit, as David prays. Not only to cleanfe polluted clay, but to work it into veffels of honour, yea of the most defiled fhape to make the moft refined veffels, not veffels of honour of

the

the lowest fort, but for the highest and most honourable services, veffels to bear his own precious Name to the nations; making the most unworthy and the moft unfit, fit by his grace to be his meffengers.

Of Jefus Chrift.] Both as the Beginning and End of his apostleship, as Chrift is called Alpha and Omega, Rev. II. chofen and called by him, and called to this, to preach him, and falvation wrought by him.

Apofle of Jefus Chrift.] Sent by him, and the meffage no other but his Name, to make that known. And what this apoftleship was then, after fome extraordinary way, befitting thefe first times of the gofpel, that the miniftry of the word in ordinary is now, and therefore an employment of more difficulty and excellency than is ufually conceived by many, not only of those that look upon it, but even of thofe that are exercised in it, to be ambaffadors for the greatest of Kings, and upon no mean employment, that great treaty of peace and reconcilement betwixt Him and mankind, 2 Cor. v. 20.

This Epiftle is directed to the elect, who are defcribed here, by their temporal and by their Spiritual conditions. The firft hath very much dignity and comfort in it; but the other hath neither, but rather the contrary of both: And therefore the Apoftle, intending their comfort, mentions the one but in paffing, to fignify to whom particularly he fent his Epiftle. But the other is that which he would have their thoughts dwell upon, and therefore he profecutes it in his following difcourfe. And if we look to the order of the words, their temporal condition is but interjected; for it is faid, to the Elect firft, and then to the Strangers fcattered, &c. And he would have this as it were drowned in the other, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.

That those difperfed ftrangers that dwelt in the countries here named, were Jews, appears, if we look to the foregoing Epiftle, where the fame word is ufed,

and

and expressly appropriated to the Jews, St James i. 1. And Gal. ii. St Peter is called an Apostle of the circumcifion, as exercifing his apoft lefhip moft towards them; and there is in fome paffages of the Epiftle fomewhat, that, though belonging to all Chriftians, yet hath, in the ftrain and way of expreffion, a particular fitnefs to the believing Jews, as being particularly verified in them which was fpoken of their nation, chap. ii. ver. 9, 10.

Some argue from the name, ftrangers, that the Gentiles are here meant, which feems not to be: For profelyte Gentiles were indeed called ftrangers in Jerufalem, and by the Jews. But were not the Jews ftrangers in thefe places, Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Atia and Bithynia? Not ftrangers dwelling together in a profperous flourifing condition, as a well planted colony, but frangers of the difperfion, fcattered to and fro; and their difperfion was partly, firft by the Affyrian captivity, and after that by the Babylonish, and by the invafion of the Romans; And it might be in thefe very times increafed by the believing Jews flying from the hatred and perfecution that was raised against them at home.

Thefe places here mentioned, through which they were difperfed, are all in Afia. So Alia here is Afia the leffer. Where it is to be obferved, that some of thefe who heard St Peter, Acts ii. are faid to be of thofe regions. And if any of thofe then converted were amongst thefe difperfed, the comfort was no doubt the more grateful from the hand of the fame Apoftle by whom they were first converted; but this is only conjecture. Though divine truths are to be received equally from every minifter alike, yet it must be acknowledged, that there is fomething (we know not what to call it) of a more acceptable reception of those who at first were the means of bringing men to God, than of others; like the opinion fome have of phyficians whom they love.

The Apostle comforts thefe ftrangers of this dif

perfion

perfion by the spiritual union which they obtained by effectual calling, and fo calls off their eyes from their outward, difperfed and defpifed condition, to look above that, as high as the fpring of their happiness, the free love and election of God. Scattered in the countries, and yet gathered in God's election, chofen or picked out; ftrangers to men amongst whom they dwelt, but known and foreknown to God; removed from their own country, to which men have naturally an unalterable affection, but made beirs of a better, as follows ver. 3, 4. and having within them the evidence both of eternal election, and that expected falvation, the Spirit of Holiness, ver. 2. At the beft a Chriftian is but a ftranger here, set him where you will, as our Apoftle teacheth after: And it is his privilege that he is To; and when he thinks not fo, he forgets and difparages himself, and defcends far below his quality, when he is much taken with any thing in this place of his exile.

But this is the wifdom of a Chriftian, when he can folace himself against the meanness of his outward condition, and any kind of difcomfort attending it, with the comfortable affurance of the love of God, that he hath called him to holiness, given him fome measure of it, and an endeavour after more; and by this may he conclude, that he hath ordained him unto falvation. If either he is a stranger where he lives, or as a stranger deserted of his friends, and very near ftripped of all outward comforts; yet may he rejoice in this, that the eternal unchangeable love of God, that is from everlasting to everlasting, is fealed to his foul. And O! what will it avail a man to be compaffed about with the favour of the world, to fit unmolested in his own home and poffeffions, and to have them very great and pleasant, to be well monied, and landed, and befriended, and yet eftranged and fevered from God, not having any token of his fpecial love? To the Elect.] The Apoftle here denominates all the Chriftians to whom he writes, by the condition of

true