seen God and his goodness, and I have tasted of it; but I can scarce give an account of him in a rational way, as a man may do by the knowledge he hath of God in a way of wisdom. Both together therefore make perfect Christians.

And so much for the opening of this, which I have been the longer about because I desired to finish this 17th verse; and it was necessary also to insist so long, for the explaining these things.

SERMON XX.

The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.-VER. 18.

THIS is part of one of Paul's prayers; for the words just before are, 'Making mention of you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,' &c.

In the prayer that he makes, which reacheth to the end of this chapter, there is first the person he prayeth to, it is God the Father, under two considerations, as he is the 'God of our Lord Jesus Christ,' and as he is the 'Father of glory.' And, secondly, here are the things that he prayeth for unto this God; he prayeth for spiritual knowledge, that is the general; and that in these four particulars :

1. In the knowledge of himself, in communion with God; and that by two ways, a way of wisdom, and a way of revelation; as I have already shewn in the 17th verse.

2. That they may know what is the hope of his calling?

3. What are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.'

4. What is the exceeding greatness of his power,' that works in the saints, and that will bring them to this glory. The Apostle enlargeth his heart, according to the utmost experience himself had, what was requisite and necessary for sealed and grown Christians, and accordingly frameth his prayer for these Ephesians.

I have opened to you the meaning of the first petition, "That he would give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him.' By knowledge of him, I shewed, was meant an excellency of knowledge, as the Apostle calleth it, Phil. iii. 8, which consisteth in communion and fellowship with God. The way of which knowledge is, either in a way of wisdom, or in a way of revelation. I despatched this in the last discourse.

Now I come to the 18th verse, where there is a new petition. Our translators read it, 'The eyes of your understanding being enlightened, that you may know what is the hope of his calling,' &c. But I read it otherwise, and I shall give you an account of it afterward. I read it thus, 'And that he would give you eyes of your understandings enlightened, for you to know what is the hope of his calling,' &c.

To open these words, 'To give you eyes of your understandings enlightened,' I shall but mention to you how others would interpret the coherence of these words with the former.

They would make this and the former to be but one entire petition; and so indeed our translators carry it: "That he would give unto you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him; the eyes of your understandings being enlightened, that you may know,' &c. They would make it, I say, but one entire petition or sentence, both this in the 18th verse and that in the 17th. And their meaning is this, 'That in the knowledge of God and Christ, their eyes being enlightened by a Spirit of wisdom and

revelation, all these being means by which we come to knowledge,' they might know what is the hope of his calling.' To such a purpose or sense as this do many interpreters usually read it.

But I rather cut it off from the former, and make it a new and distinct petition. He had finished one petition, when he prayed that God would give them a Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, or communion with him. And now he prayeth for knowledge of the hope of his calling; for a taste and prelibation, or foreknowledge, of the greatness of that glory they were ordained unto. And as he prayed they should have a Spirit of wisdom and of revelation given them to know God, so now he prayeth God to give them eyes of their minds enlightened, to know the hope of his calling, and the riches of his inheritance.

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Only I yield thus much to the other interpretation, which I desire you to observe that of the two, the Apostle putting knowledge of God, and communion with God, the 'knowledge of him,' as the text hath it, before the knowledge of what is the riches of his inheritance,-I say, I yield thus much to it, that communion with God, and knowledge of God, is the highest way to come to know what heaven is, and what the riches of his inheritance are; and therefore it is a meaning agreeable to the analogy of faith to read it thus, That in the knowledge of him their eyes might be enlightened to know what heaven is. It is, I say, a meaning agreeable to the analogy of faith: the knowledge of God, and communion with God, is the high way to know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of his inheritance are.

But yet, my brethren, that interpretation of theirs is certainly to me not the meaning; and my reason is this, because they would make the knowledge of God but as a way and means only subordinate to the knowledge of what heaven's glory is: In the knowledge of him, the eyes of their understandings being enlightened,' say they, that they may know what is the hope of his calling, and what are the riches,' &c. But though it is true that by the knowledge of God, and communion with him, we come to know what heaven is; yet of the two, communion with God is the greater. I shall explain myself to you thus:

There are two things to be considered in heaven. There is either the happiness that the saints themselves shall enjoy, which is 'in the saints,' saith the text, their happiness and their blessedness. And there is, secondly, communion with God, which is the cause of this happiness. Now of the two, communion with God is the greater. There is beatitudo objectiva, the thing possessed, which is God himself; and there is beatitudo formalis, which is the fruition of him; the happiness by enjoying God, and by knowing God. Now of the two, the knowing of God, communion with God, is more than our happiness; and therefore, if you mark it, the Apostle putteth that first, 'That you may have a Spirit of wisdom,' saith he, and of revelation in the communion and knowledge of him;' and then cometh, 'That you may know what happiness you shall have, what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in you,' in the saints: there is beatitudo formalis, your fruition of it. Of the two, my brethren, it is the greater, therefore it is put first here, and therefore is not meant as a means only of knowing the other, but as a distinct thing from the other. You shall find as much to this purpose in Rom. v., comparing the 2d and the 3d verses with the 11th. The Apostle speaks there of faith. By faith, saith he,' we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God,'—that is, of that glory we shall have from God, and not only so, but we glory in tribula

tion also.' Though for the present we are miserable, yet through faith we see so much glory to come that the soul shall have, as it upholdeth us, we rejoice in the hope of glory, notwithstanding tribulation. Now mark the 11th verse, 'And not only so, but we also joy in God.' He riseth higher; to rejoice in hope of glory is a great matter; and not only so, but to do it in affliction too, that is more. But will you have the highest saith he. 'Not only so, but we joy in God too.'

These words, 'Not only so, but we joy in God,' have an aspect, have a look to what is said in the 3d verse, where he bringeth in the same phrase, 'Not only so, but we rejoice in afflictions.' Not only so, saith he, but we rejoice in God. We do not only rejoice in our afflictions, in the hope of glory, but we rejoice in God too. Not only in the hope of our happiness, the inheritance in the saints, as the text saith, but in the knowledge of him. So that, in the knowledge of him,' is not the means only or simply whereby we come to know what heaven is, but it is a greater matter, for the top of heaven lieth in communion with God, and not only in your being made happy.

And so you see now why it is preferred here. So that here beginneth— this is all I have contended for-a new petition in these words, and I read them thus, and he that consulteth the original will find it will bear it: 'That he would give you eyes of your mind enlightened, to know what is the hope of his calling,' &c.

The words in the original are, πεφωτισμένους τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς τῆς διανοίας, 'eyes of your understanding enlightened,' in the accusative case, to give you the grammatical coherence of the words; it is not in the dative case, 'the eyes of your understanding being enlightened.' But take the words simply, and they lie thus, 'that God would give you eyes of your understanding enlightened.'

There are some that would make the words before, 'the Spirit of wisdom and revelation,' to intimate and import the causes of spiritual knowledge; and these words, 'the eyes of your understanding being enlightened,' the act of spiritual knowledge, which is the effect of those causes; and they would make that to be the coherence of these words with the other; and they open it handsomely thus. Say they, unto spiritual knowledge by way of causation, there are two things required. There is, first, a Spirit of wisdom, which is a Spirit of faith; and, secondly, of revelation, which is bringing light to that faith. They express it well by this similitude, which I shall afterward make use of. To bodily sight, say they, there are two things required. There is first an eye to see with, a faculty of seeing, that is meant by the Spirit of wisdom;' the Holy Ghost giving a power, an inherent principle, a habit, a disposition of spiritual wisdom. For you know he is a wise man, not that hath wise thoughts sometimes, but that hath wisdom habitually in him; as we use to say, he that is wise of himself, that hath a principle of wisdom in him, is properly wise. So now by a Spirit of wisdom, they mean that inherent principle of faith which makes a man wise, that infused habit which the Spirit works, that is as the new eye in the soul. And then, by the Spirit of revelation is meant, the light that the Holy Ghost acts this principle of faith by; and as the effect of both these, he mentioneth the eyes of their mind being enlightened to know him.' The one noteth out the causes, the other noteth out the effects.

But, my brethren, I will give you a reason or two against this interpretation, and so I will go on; for the coherence of these words is the greatest difficulty in this text; the rest will go on more easily.

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If his meaning were to pray only for the principle of spiritual knowledge in the former words, and the act of knowledge in these latter words, 'the eyes of your mind being enlightened, to know,' &c., first, he would not have terminated the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in an act, in the 17th verse, as he doth; 'in the knowledge of him,' saith he. Then he cometh with a new business, the eyes of your mind being enlightened to know.' Here is a new cause of a second act; therefore certainly we must part them. Here is a Spirit of wisdom and revelation produceth one act, 'the knowledge of him.' Here are eyes enlightened, which produce a second act, 'that you may know,' saith he, &c. Certainly, therefore, the one doth not note out the causes and the other the acts; but here is an act answering the cause of knowledge in the one, and an act of knowledge, answering the cause of knowledge in the other.

So now, having shewed the coherence of the words, I come to the parts of the text.

The parts of this 18th verse are two.

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I. Here is, first, a new expression of spiritual knowledge; that they might have enlightened eyes to know.'

II. Here is, secondly, new objects to be known, the knowledge of which would make them complete Christians. Which objects are three :1. What is the hope of their calling.

2. What is the glory of their inheritance.

3. What the power is that is engaged to bring them to this inheritance. I. To begin with the first, what is meant by spiritual knowledge, as it is set forth to us here by giving them eyes of their mind enlightened, enlightened to know. As I take it, here are four things held forth to us :

1. Here is the subject of spiritual knowledge, the mind, the understanding; 'the eyes of your understanding.'

2. Here is a double gift-1. Of eyes unto the understanding. 2. Of light unto these eyes; for so I read the words, 'that he would give you the eyes of your understanding enlightened.'

3. Here is the act; to know.

4. Here are the persons; ye, saith he, siç rò sidivas iuas, 'that ye may

know.'

I will open all these in order.

1. Here is, first, the subject of spiritual knowledge; it is the understanding, 'the eyes of your understanding.' Some copies read it rs xagdías, 'the eyes of your heart.' There are varia lectiones of the New Testament, as well as of the Old; that is, various readings. The king of Spain's Bible readeth it, the eyes of your heart.' Ordinarily we read it, 'the eyes of your understanding. The truth is, the Hebrew word ?, which signifieth heart, the Septuagint usually translated it diavoía, understanding; as Gen. xxiv. 45. We use to call wise men cordati; and fools in the Latin are called men without a heart, that is, without understanding; and it is called applying a man's heart to wisdom. Understanding, and a man's heart, in the Scripture phrase, are put both for one; they are both joined, diavoía nagdíaç aùtwv, Luke i. 51, the understanding of the heart.' So indeed the words may be read there, which are translated 'the imaginations of the heart.'

Now, then, from hence the observation is but only this, That the heart followeth the understanding. They are put one for another, whether in a man's corrupt estate; when they err in their understandings, they are said to err in their hearts; for if their understandings err, their hearts will certainly do so. Saith our Saviour Christ, Matt. vi. 21, Where the treasure