the Greatness of their Works, and shall gather together fincere and good Men not only of the Jews, but also out of all the Nations of the Gentiles, into the Communion and Profession of his true Religion. (And in like manner at the End of the World, of which the Destruction of Jerufalem is a proper Type; after many Strange Revolutions and great Calamities and Distresses, and almost univerfal corruptions of Religion, Chrift shall appear in the Clouds of Heaven, with Power and great Glory, to judge Mankind; and he shall by the Ministry of his Angels gather out of all Parts of the World his true and fincere Servants, who have believed God and obeyed his Commandments, to save and reward them; but the Wicked he shall destroy, finally and for ever.)

28 & 29. And now observe this Similitude, which I am about to tell you. As, when you fee the Trees shoot forth their tender Buds and be

gin to be covered with Leaves; ye know certainly that Summer is coming on: So, when ye shall see these many Signs, which I have foretold you, come to pass; know that That great Destruction of the Jewish Nation, whereby the Kingdom of the Meffiab shall be established upon Earth, approaches very near.

30. Assuredly I tell you, all these Things shall be fulfilled in this present Age, even in the Sight of fome who are now alive, and shall be Eye-witneffes of them.

31. † And doubt not but every Tittle of what I have told you, shall punEtually come to pass: For God hathir reversibly determined to do all these Things; and sooner may Heaven and Earth perish, than any one of my Words fail of being accomplished.

32. Only as to the precise Time when this great Desolation shall happen, [and in like manner, when the laft Judgment shall be,] God has never revealed that, neither to Man nor Angel, nay, nor to me myself. But as Daniel prophefied of it at a Distance, without determining exactly when it should come to pass; so I, though I tell you more clearly and distinctly the Fore-runners and Signs and Circumstances of it, yet neither have I commission to declare the exact Time when it shall be.

33. Be careful therefore, and watchful, and diligent; that ye may be always ready, and in a holy and pious Disposition worthy of Deliverance, when ever your Lord shall appear: Because ye know not the Time when this great Destruction [or when Death or Judgment] will come.

34. For as a Man travelling into a far Country, leaves his Goods in charge with his Servants, and appoints to every one his particular Bu

31 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

+ Some have conjectured, and indeed very ingeniously, that this Verse is a Transition from the Description of the Destruction of Jerufalem, to that of the Day of Judgment. And then it must be thus paraphrafed: What I have told you about the Destruction of Jerufalem, shall all be fulfilled in the present Age: But I have a greater Thing to declare to you, and that is the End of the World and the General Judgment, which shall also as certainly came to pass; but the Time when it shall be, is not revealed.

whe

siness, wherein he expects to find them diligently employed at what time soever he shall think fit to return: So Christ revealing the Will of God to Men, has declared to every one his particular Duty, wherein he expects to find them exercised, whenever he shall please to call them to an Account.

35 & 36. Wherefore as Servants thus entrusted with their Master's Business, ought to be very careful, that at what time soever their Master comes home, whether early or late, in the Morning or at Night, he may find them not lazy and negligent, but diligent and employed in their Business: So ought ye to be careful, that whenfoever Christ shall come, either in any Temporal or in the Final Judgment, he may not furprize you viciously or foolishly employed, but wisely and patiently doing your Duty.

37. And what I now say unto you my present Disciples, I would be understood to speak to all Men in all Ages: That they may prepare themselves by a holy and pious Conversation, so as never to be surprized in a finful State by Death and Judgment.

CHAP. XIV.

* Matt. xxvi. 2.

The Occa-
Jesus eats

The Jews conspire to apprehend Jesus, ver. 1.
fion of Judas's resolving to betray him, ver. 3.
the Passover with his Disciples, and foretells who should
betray him, ver. 12. Providence brings Good out of the
evil Actions of bad Men, ver. 21. Jesus institutes the Sa-
crament of the Lord's Supper, ver. 22.
Foretells Peter's
Denial, ver. 27. His Agony, ver. 32. He is betrayed
by Judas, ver. 43. and apprehended, ver. 46. and tried
by the High-Priest, ver 53. and condemned, ver. 64.
Peter's Denial, ver. 66. and Repentance, ver. 72.

I.

THESE Things Jefus * fpake, Two Days before the Feast of the Passover. About which time the chief Priefts and Teachers of the Jews, having before refolved to destroy Jesus, held a Confultation which way they might apprehend him privately, fo that the People, who admired his Doctrine and Miracles, might not have an Opportunity of refcuing him.

2. In this Consultation, there were several who advised, not to apprehend Jefus at all at a Time of such general Concourse as the Passover; left, when they had feized him though never so privately, the People should afterwards come together and rescue him. But Judas offering to betray him into their Hands, the Opinion of others to take that Opportunity of apprehending him forthwith, prevail

ed.

3. Now the immediate Occasion of Judas's offering to betray him, was

I AFTER two days, was the feast of the paffover, bread and the chief and of unleavened priefts and the scribes fought how they might take him by craft, and put him to death.

2 But they faid, not on the feast-day, left there be an uproar of the people.

house of Simon the
leper, as he fat at
meat, there came a
woman, having an
alabafter-box of oint-
ment of spike nard,
very precious; and
she brake the box,
and poured it on his
head.

4 And there were
some that had in-

dignation within

themselves, and
said, Why was this
waste of ointment
made?

5 For it might
have been fold for

more than three
hundred pence, and
have been given to
the poor. And they
murmured against
her.

a

6 And Jesus faid,
Let her alone, why
trouble ye her? she
hath wrought
good work on me.
7 For ye have the
poor with you al-
ways, and whenso-
ever ye will ye may
do them good: but
me ye have not al-
ways.

8 She hath done
what she could:
she is come afore-
hand to anoint my
body to the burying.

this. Jesus having been * fome Days
before at Bethany, at the House of
one Simon who had been cured of the

Leprofie; there came a Woman behind
him, as he was fitting at Meat, and
poured upon his Head a Pot of very
precious Ointment, and anointed him
therewith.

4 & 5. Whereupon + Judas who + See Note was of a covetous Disposition, and on Matt. thought this Prodigality of the Wo- xxvi. 8. man deserved a Rebuke, faid in difcontent; Wherefore was all this good Ointment suffered to be wasted, which might have been fold for a great deal of Money, enough to have relieved several poor People?

6. But Jefus, knowing his Heart, and that he spake this not out of Charity, but Covetousness, replyed: Nay, do not disturb the Woman, who has done a very good Work in testifying her Respect, and paying this last Honour to me before my Death.

7. For, as to what you say about the Poor; you have them always with you, and you may relieve them whenever you please: But I have only a very little while to continue among you; so that you need not grudge what is spent upon me in this short time.

8. 'Tis but a very little while, I fay, that I shall tarry with you: For within Six or Seven Days I shall be dead and buried: And therefore

* Not, Two days before the Passover, as if this were to be connected with ver. 1. but about a Week before, as in John xii. 1. And thus this History, (the Time whereof is much perplexed by Dr. Lightfoot and some others,) may well be the fame with that in John xii, as the other Circumftances of it plainly show it to be.

1

a

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