1 PET. I. 11.

Searching what time, or what kind of time, the spirit of Christ veuμa xeo which was in them fignified, &c.

THE word πveuμa here has been differently ex

THE

πνευμα

plained by commentators. But all the versions, both ancient and modern, which I have seen, render Xg78 here Chrift; and all the explanations that I have seen, interpret it of the Meffiah.

Χριστο

The Latin tranflation of the Ethiopic verfion of TVEUμa X7 in this paffage is, Spiritus qui locutus eft in eis de Jefu Chrifto. This meaning of the expreffion is adopted by L'Enfant in his note, and by Mr. Lindsey in his Sequel &c. p. 283.

Dr. Whitby replies to it," but in this sense he "might as well have been styled the spirit of Anti"chrift, or the falfe prophets, because he also spake "of them." Dr. Benfon coincides with Whitby, and both of them follow the opinion of fome of the ancient christian fathers, that Christ inspired the prophets of the Old Teftament.

Were it granted, however, that Jesus Christ was then in existence, yet afcribing the predictive power of the ancient Jewish prophets to his infpiration does not accord with what the fame Apostle affirms, 2 Pet. i. 21, Prophecy came not at any time by the will of man, but holy men of God (i, e. prophets) fpake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

I

The prophets themfelves, alfo, under the Old Covenant, who are the perfons referred to in 1 Pet. i. 11, afcribe their infpiration to Jehovah, the Almighty Creator of the heavens and the earth, whom they' clearly distinguish as a different being from the Meffiah, whofe appearance they foretold. For inftances of this, felected from one whofe prophecies concerning the Meffiah are inferior to none in fublimity, number, and diftin&tnefs, fee Ifaiah xlii. 1, 5, 6 to 9; liii. 4, 6, 10; xl. 1 to 25; lix. 20; Ixi. 1; xliv. 24, 26; xlv. 11, 12, 18, 21, 22, 23. The author of the Epiftle to the Hebrews, likewife, exprefsly fays, i. 1, 2, God, who in feveral parts, and in feveral manners, formerly spake to the fathers by the prophets, in these last days hath spoken to us by a Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom alfo he constituted the age (i. e. the chriftian age.) In ver. 3, 4, 9, and in other paffages, this Son is farther diftinguifhed from the great Creator of all things.

I

Again, Mofes is declared to be the mediator of the Law. After his death the Jewifh difpenfation was carried on by prophets fent by the Moft High.

Whereas Jefus is always defcribed as the mediator and conductor of the New Covenant only. See John i. 17; Gal, iii, 19; Colofs. i. 12 to 23; Acts vii. 35 to 40; Heb. xii. 24; ix. 15; viii. 6.

The arguments which we have alleged manifeft that veuμa x78, in 1 Pet. i. 11, cannot be understood of Christ as infpiring the Jewish prophets; because this is not reconcileable with an affertion of the fame Apostle, nor with many other paffages of Scripture. Let us, then, inquire after fome other interpretation of this phrafe that is fuitable to the proper meaning of the words, to the connection in which they are here introduced, and to the general purport of the facred writings:

The word xolos, frequently as it occurs in the New Testament, is there feldom applied to any one befides the Meffiah. On this account chriftians have ufually understood the term in this fenfe, even where it was unsuitable to the connection. But the Scriptures of the Old Teftament ufe the words TVD and Kolos to denote any thing fet apart by divine appointment to a particular ufe, especially a religious purpose. The affociation of fo general an idea with thefe terms would naturally lead the Apostles, whọ were Hebrews, though they wrote in Greek, fometimes to use Xplos in this fenfe.

An attention to a few inftances of the manner in which the Jews employed the words and Xolos in this general fignification, will tend to fhew this, and to remove that idea of impropriety which

christians ufually annex to the application of them to any other perfon than the Meffiah. In 1 Sam. xxiv. 7, David, fpeaking of King Saul, fays, the Lord forbid that I fhould do this thing unto my mafter the Lord's anointed rw xugow μ8 TW Xp60700 zug, feeing he is the anointed of the Lord xplos xug18. In 2 Chron. vi. 42, Solomon applies XITOS to himself. The high priest is termed 8 LEGEUS 8 xolos in Levit. iv. 5, 16, and vi. 22. In Habak, iii. 13, the people of Ifrael in general are

ιερευς

called τον χριστου σε, i. ε. θεα. And Ifai. xlv. 1.

e.

Thus faith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, κύριος ὁ θεος τω χριστω με Κύρω, Sept. whom I hold fast by the right hand: that I may fubdue nations before him; &c. In Levit. xxi. 10, it is commanded that he who is high priest, upon whose

head the anointing oil re λa 78 201078 was τε έλαιο το

poured, fhall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes. Ver. 12. Neither fhall he go out of the fanctuary, nor profane the fanctuary of his God; for the crown of the anointing oil of his God To ayon ελαιον το χριστόν χριστόν τε θε8 is upon him. In thefe quo

tations I have tranfcribed the Greek verfion of W, as both words have the fame meaning, in order to meet more directly that appropriation of the term Xeojos to the Meffiah alone, to which christians in general have been habituated.

From the above obfervations, then, it appears that Xeos may, with propriety, be understood to denote a prophet of God in paffages where this meaning

fuits the connection. For by the connection in which it occurs xolos, like every other word, must be interpreted. Now in Pet. i. 10, 12, the writer discourses of the prophets under the Old Testament. In ver. 10, he styles them gopa predictors. In ver. 12, prophets are included in the term ayyɛλo8 meffengers and in ver. 11, they are denoted by the word xolos anointed. Prophets have all these appellations in other paffages of Scripture. Пgopas is the term by which they are most frequently defignated. Ayyeλos, in feveral inftances, has the fame fignification; for which fee Eff. iv. on Angels, ch. ii. fec. 2, subd. 2, p. 356. 'O xgolo, is also used as fynonymous with prophets, in 1 Chron. xvi. 22; and Pfa. cv. 15, Touch not mine anointed Twv x107 χριστων με, and do my prophets τοις προφήταις με no harm. See Eff. x. p. 131-2; and Efs. xiv. ch. iii. sec. 16.

Пvuμa often fignifies afflatus divinus, revelatio, oraculum divinum. Schleufner. Numb. 16. VEUμa fignifies divine inspiration in general, Numb. xi. 25, 26, 29; 1 Sam. x. 6, 10; xix. 20, 23. It denotes prophetic infpiration in the following texts: Acts ii. 17, 18; xi. 27, 28; xxi. 4; Rev. xix. 10; Numb. xxiv. 2 to 9; 2 Kings ii. 9, 15; 2 Chron. xx. 14, read to 17; Ezek. xi. 5 to 13; Joel ii. 28, 29; Hofea ix. 7; Zech. vii. 12; Sept. Comp. 1 Cor. xiv. 32; Rev. xix. 10; xxii. 6.

We have fhewn, then, that in Scripture πveuμα often fignifies prophetic inspiration, and that xolos and in the Old Teftament frequently denote