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and fellowship of the profession of the Gospel; and have so continued, from the first day that you heard of it, until now.

I. 7 Ye are all partakers of my grace.

Ye are all partakers with me, of the same grace and mercy of God, in your effectual calling and election to life.

I. 10 That ye may approve things that are excellent, that ye may be sincere, and without offence till the day of Christ.

That ye may see and acknowledge the difference, between the truth of God and the vain fancies of men, and may approve of these excellent mysteries of salvation, &c.

I. 12, 13 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the fur therance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places.

So that my bonds and sufferings, which I endure for Christ, howsoever they were by Satan and his complices intended to the disgrace and hinderance of the Gospel; yet quite contrarily, by the providence and goodness of my God, are turned to my great honour and the advancement of religion; as being famous to this purpose, both in Nero's Court, and in all other places.

I. 15 Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will.

Some, indeed, hearing how famous I was over all Asia for preaching the Gospel, envying this glory of mine, and, in an emulatory desire to reach and outstrip me in it, preach Christ out of envy and contention; others, sincerely.

I. 16 Supposing to add affliction to my bonds.

Supposing and purposing by this means, to stir up Nero so much the more against me, as the man that first broached this news of the Gospel amongst his subjects.

I. 19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

For I know, that this advantage which the Gospel shall receive by the emulous labours of my adversaries, and this persecution which they do thereupon raise against me, shall turn to the furtherance of my salvation, through the help of your prayers, and the powerful assistance and working of the Spirit of Christ.

I. 20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed.

According to my firm confidence and earnest expectation, that, in nothing they can do, or that can befal me, I shall be ashamed, and have cause of dejection and discouragement.

I. 21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

For Christ is to me, as the author of my life, so the only end and scope of my life; it is that I only live for, that I may preach Christ, and glorify him thereby; and to die is so far from being terrible to me, as that it is my gain and advantage.

I. 22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.

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But howsoever, while I live here, this is the fruit of my labour, that Christ is glorified by me; yet whether of the two I should choose, life or death, I cannot resolve.

I. 23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:

For I am much straitened, and distracted in the choice: having, in respect of my own glory and happiness, a great desire to depart hence and to live with Christ my Saviour, in rest and bliss, which is much the better for me:

I. 24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. But yet, on the other side, I see that for me to abide here still in this mortal life, it is more needful for you, and more behoveful to the Church of God.

I. 25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith.

And, out of this persuasion, that my life shall be of so much ne cessity and use for you, I am fully assured, that I shall abide and continue with you all; and that God will protract my life for a time here upon earth, for the furtherance of your faith, and the increase of your joy and comfort.

I. 27 That ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.

That ye do unanimously hold together, in the profession and defence of one and the same truth; joining your forces to fight together, for the defence of the doctrine of the Gospel.

I. 28 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.

And, in all your sufferings, put on an undaunted courage and resolution; being in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which confidence and fortitude of yours bodes nothing but foil and perdition to your opposers, but unto you nothing but victory and salvation, and that from God.

II. 1 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels, and mercies,

Let me not entreat you only, but adjure you, brethren, as ever ye would receive any comfort in Christ, as ever ye would reap benefit by his love and your own; if ye have any tual communion which is between the saints of God, if ye have any sense of that spiricompassion and mercy on me and God's Church;

II. 2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

Do ye herein make up the full measure of my joy, in that ye be peaceably and lovingly affected one towards another.

II. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

Do not ye so much bend your eyes upon your own good parts, admiring them and priding yourselves in them; as upon the more ex

cellent graces of other men neither be so much intent upon your own private commodities, as upon the good of others.

II. 5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Je

sus:

Be ye so humbly and charitably minded, and so respect the good of others, with neglect of your own, as ye see Christ Jesus your Saviour did:

II. 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

Who, being very God, and knowing it to be no presumption in him to equalize himself to God the Father;

II. 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Yet voluntarily humbled and abased himself, and took upon him a mean and contemptible condition, here on earth; and, as he stooped so low as to become man, so he framed himself to the state and yielded to the infirmities of man:

II. 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. And, being found in the nature and form of man, he did, in that his humanity, humble himself so far as to become obedient even unto death, and that the most painful and ignominious death of the cross.

II. 9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name :

Upon which wonderful humiliation of his, it hath pleased God the Father to advance him, in his human nature, to an answerable height of glory; having given unto him both that title and that state and power, which is far above any title or state or power of whatsoever finite creature; having publicly to the world declared and approved him to be God Almighty:

II. 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; That, in the acknowledgement of this just title and divine power of his, every creature should bow and stoop unto him, both the angels of heaven, and men on earth, and the very infernal spirits which are most averse from his kingdom;

II. 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

And that every tongue should be forced to confess, that even that Jesus, who was thus abased, is the God and Lord of all.

II. 12 But now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

But now, much more, in my absence, since ye shall want the help of my counsels and incitements, stir up yourselves earnestly, to do all that is requisite on your part, for the attaining of salvation; not in a bold and secure presumption of your own abilities, but in an humble fear and awful trembling at the consideration of the greatness of the work and your own insufficiency.

II. 13 For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

For it is not any power or ability in yourselves, that can avail ought this way; but it is God only, who gives you both to will that which is good, and to do the good which ye will, of his mere good will and pleasure.

II. 14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings. Frame yourselves to all peaceable carriage, one towards another; and do all things without heart-burnings and quarrels.

II. 17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.

Yea, if I do not only labour amongst you, but even die for you, it shall be my joy: you have, by your holy and lively faith, offered yourselves unto God, as a living and reasonable sacrifice; if I may die for the confirmation of this faith of yours, it shall be that whereof I shall rejoice together with you.

II. 20 For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state.

For I have no man so heartily affected, both to you and me; who will so carefully mind and tender your estate, as if it were his own.

II. 26 And was full of heaviness, because that ye had heard that he had been sick.

It much troubled him, to think how much you would be afflicted with the rumour of his sickness.

II. 30 Because for the work of Christ he was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack of service toward

me.

Because, for the work of Christ, through his labour in preaching, and the toil of his journey hither for my comfort and tendance, and his watchings and pains-taking in ministering to my necessities, he was nigh unto death; not regarding his own life, in a zeal to supply your lack of service toward me.

III. 2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

Beware of those profane and impure men, which open their unhallowed mouths against the truth of God: beware of those false teachers, which, under pretence of edifying God's Church, pull it down, by their life and erroneous doctrine: beware of the Judaizing opposers of the Gospel; who, while they talk of circumcision, do indeed make a concision and rent in the Church.

III. 3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

For, whatsoever they may pretend, we are indeed of the true and spiritual circumcision, and not they; we, who worship God inwardly in the soul, and stand not upon an outward cutting of the flesh; we, who place the confidence and joy of our hearts upon Christ Jesus, and not upon these external acts and privileges which concern the outward man.

III. 4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any

other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh,

I more.

Although I dare boldly say, if these outward privileges were to be stood upon, there is none of them all, who could find more cause of confidence and boasting herein, than I might.

III. 6 Concerning the righteousness of the law, I was blameless. I was so strict and punctual in the observation of the prescriptions of the law, as that no man could tax me for the breach or violation thereof.

III. 7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for

Christ.

But those things, which, while I was a Jew, I accounted as rare and excellent prerogatives, those now, since that I was converted to Christ, I have made no reckoning of; but have slighted them, as not only worthless, but even rather prejudicial to my better calling.

III. 9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness. That I, who was but a lost man in myself, might be found in him, not having, &c.

III. 10, 11 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

That I may know him, both in speculation and in practice; and may both know and feel the power of his Resurrection, raising me from the death; and that I may experimentally find, what a comfort and happiness it is, to suffer for him and with him, that thereby I may be made conformable to him in his death; That so, by this means, I may attain to that eternal life, which follows upon the happy Resurrection of the just; and, in the mean time, that full measure of mortification and newness of life, which he hath ordained me unto.

III. 12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

:

Not that I have as yet already attained it: let no man misconstrue me, as boasting of my perfection:no; I come as yet short ; but I strive and labour towards it, and follow hard, that I may reach it at the last : yet can I not do it, as of myself; it is Christ's laying hold on me, that will and must enable me thus to lay hold on Christ.

III. 13, 14 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ

Jesus.

As those, that run in a race, forget how much ground they have already passed, and mind only that part of the way which yet remaineth to the goal ; so do I, in this course of my Christian pro

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