fo here they are called, fufferings of this prefent time. III. It is the little looking unto the other fide of the fea, and confidering of the fhortness of the duration of our present afilictions, and how foon the blaft will go over us, that makes us fo ready to faint under, and unwilling to take on handfomely the yoke of affliction which God carves out for us, and fo ready to take finful courfes to put it off; therefore to encourage them, he calleth their fufferings, fufferings of this prefent time. IV. Such as get a right look of the rich reward which is kept in fure cuftody cuftody for believers, will not think their afflictions long, tho' they were of the fadeft fort, and of the longeft continuance; and a right view of that heavenly inheritance of the fons of God, will much lighten their afflic tions; for Paul, a man as much acquainted with afflictions as any, concludes, that the fufferings of this life, are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed. V. Tho' believers have many fweet and excellent days of communion with God, even in this world; yet their best days are in reverfion; the eye hath not feen, nor the eye heard, what God has laid up for them, Ifa. Ixiv. 4. Pfal. xxxi. 19. 1 Cor. ii 9.; as it is hid from their eyes, fo it is fure, and kept in fure cuftody, being laid up for them, John iii. 2. Their glory is a glo ry which is to be revealed. VI. Tho' this excellent state of glory, which believers fhall one day be put into, be now hid, for the most part, from their eyes, and the eyes of the world, and that fo much the more, becaufe of the fad and heavy afflictions under which they groan many a day; yet the day is coming when it fhall break forth from under the cloud; and how defpicable foever believers feem now, yet their glory fhall be made manifeft one day, and that day is certainly coming: The glory, fays he, which shall be revealed in us. VII. Would we live more by faith than we do, and take up the inheritance, which is to be had in poffeffion one day, aright;, and confider, how tranfcendently it goeth beyond the fufferings in this earth; to that they being but for a moment, and light too, cannot be laid in the balance with that glory which is eternal, and whofe weight is exceeding great, 2 Cor. iv. 17. we would not be fo timorous of fuffering as we are, nor fo affraid of the yoke: this is his argument, whereby he preffeth them to a willingness to receive the yoke of affliction, For I reckon, that the fufferings of this present time, are not worthy to be compared with that glory which is to be revealed. VIII. It is the height of delufion and madnefs for any to dream or imagine that there can be any worth, dignity, or merit in their fufferings, how fad foever they be, as if thereby they could purchase a right to the crown; feeing the apoftle fays, that the fufferings of this time, are not worthy of (and thus the words may be read) the glory which is to be revealed. by would farther encourage believers unto patience and willing fubmiffion under croffes and fufferings. In these verses he brings in the creature, that is, the fabric of the world, heaven and earth, and the rest of the infenfible and irrational creatures, and makes ufe of them in a figurative manner, and fpeaketh of them in borrowed expreffions, that hereby he might incite believers the more, both to expect certainly that glory which is to be revealed, and to wait for it patiently under croffes; all which he applieth particularly, verfes 23. 24. and 25. So then, 1. he fays, The whole fabric of the world waiteth for the day in which the children of God fhall fhine in heavenly glory, and their heavenly estate shall be made manifeft; and this is fet down most emphatically, The earnest expectation, fays he, of the creature waiteth, &c. that is, the creature is, as it were lifting up its head, and ftretching out its neck, or feting out its eyes with earnest obfervation, and geteth up to fome high place, to fee if it can efpy that day dawning, or that long wifhed for falvation coming; and this it doth continually, and hereby fheweth, that this glory is fo much worth as may ravish any body's defire, when the fenfelefs creatures are fo defirous of that day. 2. He fets down the grounds of this in two particulars; (1.) The firft is their prefent condition now fince the fall of Adam; The creature, fays he, was made fubject to vanity; that is, they are not now as at the firft, but obnoxious to corruption, and fubject to changes and alteration, as alfo to the abufes of finful men, who make them ferve to the fatisfying of their own finful lufts: But how? Not willingly, that is, according to its natural inclination, or that ufe for which it was at first created; but by reafon of him who fubjected the fame; that is, by reafon of his will and command who created them at the first, that hereby he might declare how much displeased he was with the fin of man. (2.) The other ground is, that they were thus fubjected in hope, because the creature itself fhall also be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the fons of God; that is, as for man's fin, these innocent creatures were punished and made liable to corruption; fo when the glory of the fons of God thall appear, that the fame may be the more famous and remarkable, all the creatures fhall be put into a new condition, not as if they were, or could be partakers of the glory which the fons of God fhall have, but they shall be renewed in their own kind, Acts iii. 21. 2 Pet.iii. 10. and brought into an happy eftate of incorruption, when the fons of God fhall be made manifeft. 3. All which he confirmeth and cleareth, by fhewing what is, and what hath been their deportment fince the fall, and will be until the day of the manifestation of the fons of God; and that in two expreffions, (1.) We know that the whole creation groneth, as preffed with a weighty burden, defirous of eafe; and (2.) Travaileth in pain, having great and vehement grief, and withal a hope of outgate. OBSERVATIONS. I. Though, at the begining, all things which God created were good for God's glory, and for man's good, yea, and very good in themfelves, and for ufes for which they were created, Gen. i. 4. 10. 12. 18. 21. 25. 31.; yet now fince the fall, their condition is altered, and made worse than it was: for they are now fubject to vanity, and under the bondage of corruption, under which they grone, and travail in pain; so that now they are tied to ferve the neceffity of wicked folks, and muft of neceffity meet with uncouth alterations and changes for the worse, and at length corrupt. II. This fad and lamentable alteration which is upon the face of the universe at this day, did not flow from its natural inclination and difpofition, (feeing before the fall man was in that capacity, that he might not have died, and therefore the creatures being created for his ufe, as is probable, would have continued in the fame ftate of perfection in which they were created) fo much as from man's fall: This horrible confufion and diforder which is in the world, is the fruit and native effect of fin, and hereby man is the more punished;, feeing they were created for man's ufe, and God would difcover how heinous a thing fin is, fo as we cannot be reasonably ignorant of the greatnefs and heinoufnefs of fin, if we open our eyes, and look either to the heaven above us, or to the earth beneath us; The creature was made fubject to vanity, not willingly, but by reafon of him who buth fubjected the fame; that is, by the fovereign appointment and determination of God, who fo ordered the matter, that fin might feem more odious, and man might be more punished, and bear the marks of his folly all his days, or by reafon of Adam, who by his fin and rebellion did procure the fame; for fo the words may be alfo underfood. III. This heavy bondage of corruption, under which the creation groneth, being a part of the curfe inflicted for man's fake, Gen. iii. 18. Ifa. xxiv. 4. 5. 6. Jer. xxiii. 10. is not to lie on continually; the elect them felves being at length to be delivered from all the parts of the curfe and malediction of God, they will at length be delivered therefrom: for it is fubjected in hope, that it fhall also be delivered from the bondage of corruption. IV. This day of reflitution of all things, as it is called, Acts iii. 21. wherein the creature itself fhall be delivered from the bondage of corruption and vanity, is not until the laft day, when the children of God fhall hine forth in glory and excellency; it is referved unto that day, that the open acknowledgment or coronation of the fons of God, may be the more folemn; therefore they are waiting for the manifeftation of the fons of God, and then when the marriage is folemnized, all the fervants of the family fhall, according to their feveral ca pacities, be glorious, or partakers of the glorious liberty of the fons of God, the more to illuftrate the glory of the bride, and fons of God. V. This liberty which the creation fhall at that day enjoy, fhall not be by its annihilation, or being reduced to nothing, as if all that glorious liberty of the fons of God to which it fhall be redeemed, were nothing elfe but a ceafing to be used by finners as now it is; feeing we hear of a new heaven and a new earth, 2 Pet. iii. 13. and that these shall only be changed, Píal cii. 27. Heb. i. 10. fee Ifa. lxv. 17. and Ixvi. 22. and however the heaven and the earth that fhall then be, fhall not have the fame ufe which this hath; yet, tho' we cannot particularly tell the ufes thereof, (as we are to feek often-times in finding out the ufe of many things which we fee with our eyes) it will not follow that they fhall not be; for man after the refurrection fhall be complete in all his members; and yet we cannot tell what ufe many of these will have at that time; and may they no be a monument of God's power and greatnefs, and of the full and final abolition of fin, when all its effects are removed, even off the earth, which fuffered therefore? Nor is this change which fhall be of thefe creatures, a substantial change, fo that the heaven and earth that now is fhall fubftantially be destroyed, and out of its alhes another be created; Because 1. Then the fame creatures which are fubjected to vanity and bondage, fhould not be delivered into the glorious liberty of the fons of God, and fo needed not earneftly look for the manifeftations of the fons of God if there were a fubftantial change; which is contrary to the apostle's doctrine. No 2. could it then be true that this creation viz. which now is, was fubjected in hope Nor 3. that it fhall fhare in its ow kind of the liberty of the fors of God, for they fhall not be changed fubftantially, the body being fill the fame fubftantially. Bu this change is only in refpect of qualities th the fubftance abiding the faine, after the fire, as it did after the flood: yet fuch a change will it be, as it may be well called another; as indeed it is, 2 Pet. iii. 13. Ifa. lxv. 17. and lxvi. 22. and hence they are faid to abide for ever, Pfal. cxlviii. 6. because they shall be the fame fubflantially, and yet to perifh, 2 Pet. iii. 11. Heb. i. 11. Pfal. cii. 26. Ifa. li. 6. because they fhall ceafe to be the fame which they are now, being made partakers of a greater accidental perfection, in refpect of fpiritualnefs, purity, incorruptiblenefs, and glory; and fo they are faid to be changed, Heb. i. 1. 2. and the fashion of them paffeth away, 1 Cor. vii. 31.. VI. By this creature which is faid to be delivered into the glorious liberty of the fons of God, we do not mean hell, or the place of the damned, which is no way to be bettered, but fhall be the fade then with what the reprobate, who are dead, are in now: nor under it can we comprehend the glorious place of the bleffed, called heaven, nor the angels in it, because it being an excellent piece of work, in making whereof he gave a rare proof of his art and skill; it is not, nor ever was fubject to vanity, nor is it now groning under any bondage, and fo needs no change: nor do we understand by it the children of God, as if thefe fpoken of, verfe 23. were apoftles, and none elfe, feeing it is not peculiar to the apostles only to have the first fruits of the Spirit. 2. The creation here mentioned is waiting for the manifeftation of the fons of God, verfe 19, and to be delivered into the glorious liberty of the fons of God, verfe 21. But under it we comprehend this fabric of the univerfe, excluding thefe parts formerly mentioned, the ftarry heavens, and the reft of the elements: for it is only that creature which was made fubject to vanity, that is to ferve finful man, which shall be delivered, &c. little believed or valued, and tho' oftentimes they are ill-hampered in a world, and their head holden down with corruption and temptation; yet the day is coming, when the riches of their glorious and excellent inheritance fhall be manisefted, and they fhall have glorious liberty; for we hear of the manifestation of the fons of God, and of the glorious liberty of the children of God, verfe 19. 21. VIII. As this day of the glorious maninifestation and liberty of the fons of God, fhall certainly dawn; fo it fhall be fuch an excellent and tranfcendently glorious day, that the very fenfelefs creatures in their own kind, by a natural inclination, are greedily gaping after, and earnestly expecting, and vehemently defiring to fee that day: which fhould fhame believers themfelves, who come fhort of this earnestnefs, ferioufnefs, and frequency, in looking for this glorious day: They are not fo folicitous nor anxious in expecting, or vehemently defiring the dawning of that day; tho' the benefit which is to redound to them be infinitely more than what the creatures can expect the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the fons of God. IX. Tho' man be most infenfible of the heavy weight of the curfe inflicted for fin; yet fo heavy and unfupportable is it, that the very dead creatures, who lie under little of it in comparison of what man lieth under, do grone and travail in pain, and that inceffantly without intermiflion, the whole creation groneth and travaileth in pain until now; in their own kind they are more fenfible of it and grieved with it, than the wicked are who are endued with reafon, and may more eafily perceive the fame; yea, fo fad and heavy is it, that all the creatures who are made subject to vanity, do all of them jointly figh and grone under it, and cry out for pain, as VII. Albeit believers be often times little with one voice: therefore it is faid, the regarded by men in a world, and the glo- whole creation groneth together, and trary which they fhall one day partake of bevaileth in pain together. Pp2 VERSE VERSE 23. And not only they, but ourselves alfo, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves grone within ourfelves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. After the apostle has the groan and look for the dawning of that day; and therefore it is a foul fhame to think that believers fhould be outstriped by thefe, efpecially confidering, 2. how they have received the first-fruits of the Spirit; they have already tafted of the good of glory, having grace begun in their foul, and fome glorious blinks of God's loving countenance, perfuading them of his love, calming their fpirits, and making them to rejoice: And feeing the arles are fo fweer, thould not the bargain be longed for? and feeing the firft fruits are fo defirable, how much more thould the full harvest be defired. And, 3. he tells what it is they fhould look for, even that which is of near concernment to them; it is their adoption, and the redemption of their bodies, and fo the benefit of that day will be more theirs than the creatures; and thus he flireth them up to a patient way of suffering. OBSERVATIONS... I. To be taking a right lift of fin and corruption, under which we ly, and to be mourning and groning under the famedaily, is an exercife well becoming the children of God: Even we ourselves grone. Fter the apoftle has thus fhown the deportment of the fenfelefs creatures, in reference to the day of the manifeftation of the fons of God, he next fhews what the carriage of God's children ought to be; and becaufe it was a duty which all reafon would fpeak for, and which none could contradict, therefore he fpeaks of it as a thing done already by them; the grounds and reasons of it were fo clear, that in a manner is were a fhame once to fuppofe, that believers, efpecially having tafted of the firft-fruits of the Spirit, and fo having been participant of the arles of glory, fhould come behind the very fenfelefs creatures, in looking and longing for the marriage day, and fo come fhort in this duty: therefore fays he, and not only they, but ou felves alfo; as if he felves alfo; as if he would fay, If they do fo, much more we fhould do fo. So that the duty, which he tacitly, and yet very forcibly is preffing here is twofold, t. Groning, as under a heavy burden of fin and corruption, and the fad confequents thereof: and 2. Waiting, expecting, and looking for the adoption; that is, the day wherein believers fhall be fully put in poffeffion of all the privileges of, and good things promised to them, as the adopted children of God; of heaven and everlasting communion with III. Tho' this groning under fin and the Father in glory, which is the inheri-corruption, and under a distance from our tance purchased for them; and the redemption of our bodies, when they fhall alfo be partakers of glory with our fouls, being fully delivered from a body of death, and the flavery of fin, and alfo from corruption, and all the fruits of fin, being raised out of the grave again. Now this exhortation he ftrongly preffeth by thefe reafons; 1. From the example of the fenfelefs creatures, who II. This groning and mourning, which floweth from a real fenfe and feeling of the oppreffion and flavery of a body of fin and death, and of the daily trouble we meet with from our fpiritual enemies, fhould be real, and reach our hearts and inward parts; therefore fays he, we grone within ourselves.. Lord, be great, yet it fhould not mar our hope and expectation of a day of deliverance; yea, when it runeth in the right channel, it will be fo far from juftling out our hope, and blinding our eyes that we cannot fee an outgate, that it will rather heighten our expectation; and the hope of a day of redemption fhould not extinguish all forrow for our prefent condition, "but thefe |