is agreeable to Pf. viii. 6. He hath fubjected all things under his feet. For when the pfalm faith, that all things are fubjected, manifeft it is, that he is excepted, who hath fubjected all things to him; confequently, that God always was, and is, and will remain the fupreme governor.

28 Now, when all things are made subject to Chrift, and there is no longer need of a prophet to teach, nor of a prieft to make atonement, nor of a king to rule under God, the Father will refume the government; and then even the Son himself fhall be fubjected to God, who fubjected all things to him, that God may be the immediate governor over all beings, in all places: and the immediate object of their worship and obedience.

two questions will occur: Firft, How the apoftle came to speak of the Son's fubjection to the Father, feeing he is to reign in conjunction with the Father? Next, How the Son under the government of the Godhead can be subject to himself? To remove thefe difficulties, it is generally faid, that the Son is to be fubject to the Father, in his human nature only. In the prefent ftate of mankind, it is fuitable to the majefty and purity of God, that all his intercourses with them, whether in the way of conferring bleffings on them, or of receiving their worfhip, be carried on by the intervention of a mediator. But after finners are completely reconciled to God, and made perfect in holiness, and are introduced into heaven, God will bestow his favours on them, and receive their worship, immediately, without the intervention of a mediator. And thus the offices of mediator and king becoming unneceffary, fhall ceafe. Yet even in this ftate, the Son in the human nature, though no longer king, will ftill retain the glory of having created all things, defcribed, Col. i. 15. Heb. i. 2, 3. and the glory of having faved mankind, and of having deftroyed the kingdom of Satan, and Satan himself. So that in refpect of perfonal perfection, and of the veneration due to him for the great things he hath accomplished, he will continue fuperior to the highest angels, and be acknowledged by them as their fuperior through all eternity. Now this fuperiority being confidered as a kind of reigning, it is perhaps what the apostle meant when he told Timothy, 2 Ep. ii. 12. If we fuffer with him, we fall alfo reign with him. See alfo Rev. iii. 21.

Ver. 29.

29 Elfe what fhall they do, which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not

at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?

30 And why ftand we in jeopardy every hour ?

31 I proteft by your rejoicing which I have in Chrift Jefus our Lord, I die daily.

32 If after the manner of men I have fought with

beats at Ephefus, what ad vantageth it me, if the dead

29 Επει τι ποιήσεσιν δι βαπτιζόμενοι ὑπερ των νεπρων, ει όλως νεκροι εκ εγειρονται ; τι και βαπτίζονται υπερ των νεκρών;

30 Τι και ἡμεις κινδυ νευομεν πασαν ὡραν.

31 Καθ' ήμεραν αποθνησ σκω, νη την ύμετεραν και χησιν, ἣν εχω εν Χρισῳ Ιησε τῷ Κυρίῳ ήμων.

32 Ει κατα ανθρωπον Eθηριομαχησα εν Εφεσῳ, τι μοι το όφελος, ει νεκροι εκ

Ver. 29. Baptised for the refurrcdion of the dead ? That the meaning of this pallage may be attained, let it be obferved, First, That as the phrafe, ver. 18. Fallen afleep for Chrift, evidently fignifies, Fallen afleep for believing and tefiifying that Jefus is Chrift the Son of God; fo here, baptized for the dead, may lignify, baptized for believing and testifying the refurrrection of the dead-Next, as our Lord termed the fufferings he was to undergo at Jerufalem, a baptifm with which he was to be bap rized, Luke xii. 5o. and declared, that James and John bould be baytized with the baptifm he was to be baptized with, Matt. xx. 23. that is, fhould undergo like fufferings with him ending in death: in reprefenting the fufferings which the firft Chriftians endured, under the idea of a baptifm, the apoftle adopted his Mafter's phrafology; and reafoned ftrongly, when he asked the Corinthians, What fall they do who are baptized for believing and teftifying the refurrection of the dead, if the dead rife not at all?-Others underftand the word baptifm here in its ordinary meaning. For baptifm being an emblematical reprefentation of the death and burial and refurrection, not only of Chrift, but of all mankind, Rom. vi. 4. it was fitly made the rite of initiation into the Christian church: and the perfon who received it, thereby publicly profeffing his belief of the refurrection of Chrift and of the dead, might with the greatest propriety be faid to have been baptized for the dead, that is, for his belief of the refurrection of the dead. -Ellis in his Fortuita Sacra, p. 137. tranflates the claufe, Οι βαπτιζόμενοι ύπες των νεκρών, Baptized in room of the dead, that is, brought into the church by baptifm, in place of thofe who have fallen in the perfecution. But although he hath established his tranflation very well by the following paflage from Dionyf. Halicar. Ant. Rom. lib. viii. p. 553. They decreed to snif other foldiers, ύπες των αποθανόντων, in place of ihofe who had died

died in the war: his interpretation weakens the force of the apostle's argument. The fame objection lies against the second interpretation.. Some are of opinion, that ύπερ των νεκρων, is put here for ύπερ τε νεκρά, for the dead man; for Jefus, who if there be no refurrection, is dead, and will continue dead for ever. See Eff. iv. 22. But I doubt whether this change of the number can be admitted here—Many ancient MSS. have weg avтwy, for them, for the dead. But that reading does not improve the fenfe of the paffage. Upon the whole, the first mentioned, feems to be the most probable interpretation of this difficult elliptical paffage.

Ver. 31. By the boafting concerning you which I have. So the claufe, νη την ύμετεραν καυχησιν ἦν ἔχω, fhould be tranflated For ὑμετεραν καυxo, is the accufative of the object, boasting concerning you, as is plain from the apostle's adding nexw, which I have on account of Chrift Fefus.-It was the custom anciently to fwear by fuch things as were the objects of men's greatest affection. The apostle, therefore, on this folemn occafion, fware by what was the fubject of his continual boasting; namely, the converfion of the Corinthians, of which God had made him the inftrument.

Ver. 32.-1. If, Engiopaxnoa, I have fought with wild beafts. Pyle would have this tranflated, If I had fought, What would it have profited

rife not? let us eat and εγείρονται; φαίωμεν και πιο drink, for to-morrow die.

we

ωμεν αυριον γαρ αποθνησκο

μεν.

me? &c.-That this was a real, not a metaphorical combat with beafts, may be collected from what the apoftle told the Corinthians, 2 Cor. i. 8. and from the phrafe manner of men, which means the barbarous cuftom of the men of that age. See Pref. fect. 5. p. 10.— For the difference of fighting with, and the being expofed to wild beasts, fee chap. iv. 9. note 1.

2. Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die. This, which may be called the Epicurean's manual or creed, hath been the favourite maxim of the fenfual and profane in all ages. Accordingly Ifaiah tells us, that the wicked in derifion of his prophecy concerning the deftruction of Jerufalem by the Chaldeans, faid to one other, chap. xxii. 13. Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die. The author of the Book of Wifdom likewife, hath very well expreffed the fentiments of the wicked in his time, chap. ii. 1.-9. from which it appears, that by dying they meant their own utter annihilation.

Ver. 33. Evil communications corrupt good manners. It is commonly fuppofed, that this is taken from the Thais of Menander, the celebrated Athenian poet, because it is found among the fragments of his works, p. 178. And Tertullian remarks, that in quoting, the apoftle hath fanctified the poet's fentiment; by which he feems to infinuate, that he had made it a part of infpired fcripture. But I rather think it is a proverbial expreffion, which need not be referred to any particular author, having been commonly used. The Greek word as, fignifies not only difcourfes, but every kind of familiar intercourfe. And therefore, as Alberti observes, the phrase oμiai nazaı, might be translated bad company. The perfons whofe company the apoftle defired the Corinthians to fhun, were those who reasoned against the immortality of the foul and a future state.

ατε

Ver. 34-1. Awake as is fit. So Exmare dixas literally fignifies. ExnQv, is to become sober after having been drunk. The figure is

ftriking.

fus, what IS the advantage to me, if the dead rife not? let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die.'

33 Be not deceived: Evil communications corrupt good manners.'

34 Awake as is fit," and do not fin; for fome OF YOU are ignorant of God: (gos, 289, EvTpoway iμi, XEYW) for fhame to you I fpeak THIS.

35 But fome one will fay, (TWS EYEigOUTα) How can the dead be raised up? and with what kind of body do they come ? '

What is the advantage of that combat to me, if the dead rife not? It had

been better to have followed the maxim of the wicked, let us enjoy every pleafure, for we are foon to die, and after death there is nothing.

33 Shun the company of the wicked, that ye be not deceived by their falfe reafonings. Profane dif courfes and vicious examples corrupt even those who are virtuously difpofed.

34 Awake, as is fit, and do not fin any longer in the fancy that there is no future ftate. For fome of you, by denying the refurrection, fhew that ye are ignorant of the character and perfections of God. For fhame to fuch I fpeak this.

35 But fome one will fay, how is it poffible that the dead can be raised up, whofe body is eaten of worms, or confumed by fire, or converted into the bodies of other men? And if it is poffible to raise them, with what kind of body do they come out of the grave?

ftriking. It reprefents the corrupt part of the Corinthians as intoxi. cated with falfe doctrine and fenfual indulgences. For which reason the apoftle called on them to awake as was fit, out of the deep fleep occafioned by that intoxication, and to recover the use of their reason.

2. Some of you are ignorant of God. Such of the Corinthians as denied the refurrection and a future ftate, fhewed great ignorance both of God's character as moral Governor of the world, and of his perfections, especially his power and goodness set forth in the works of creation.

Ver. 35. How can the dead be raised up? And with what kind of body do they come? Here, as in ver. 12. the prefent of the indicative, is ufed for the prefent of the fubjunctive: How can the dead be raifed up? See Eff. iv. 9. According to this tranflation, the apoftle mentions two queftions which were put by the philofophers, for the purpose of overthrowing the doctrine of the refurrection. The firft, How is it pof fible that the dead can be raifed up? The fecond, If it be a thing poffible, With what kind of body do they come out of the grave? But if the indicative fenfe of the verb is retained in the tranflation, there will be one question here twice propofed. For the queftion, With what kind of body do they come? is in meaning precifely the fame with, How are the