528 Peter miraculously cures a man lame from his birth. SECT. then to be displayed in the illustrious miracle to with John, said, Look vi. be wrought by his means: and turning there- on us. Acts fore to the poor man, and looking stedfastly upon III. 5. him, he said, Look upon us. And accordingly 5 And he gave heed he fixed his eyes upon them, as expecting to receive unto them, expecting something from them for the relief of his neces- them. to receive something of 6 Then Peter said, Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. 7 And he took him by the right hand, and 6 sities. But Peter, under the divine impulse, Silver and gold have I 9 8 And he leaping up, entered with them into the temple, walking, 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God. 10 And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the And all the people who were there present, saw him thus walking in the court of the temple and the cloyster adjacent to it, and heard him praising God with this uncommon ecstasy of de 10 light: And they knew him perfectly well, that this was he who had sat so long at the Beautiful gate of the temple, to beg for alms of those that entered in and came out: And they were filled with awful astonishment, and felt in themselves likewise a kind of joyful ecstasy, something resembling his, at that miraculous event which had unto him. befallen him. d Silver and gold I have none.] This was after the estates were sold, (chap. ii. 45,) and plainly shews, how far the apostles were from enriching themselves by the treasures which passed through their hands, as Mr. Reynolds well observes in his Letters to a Deist, No. iii. p. 242. And Beautiful gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and which had happened amazement at that By his mentioning gold as well as silver, (which a beggar like this could not expect to receive) he probably meant to speak of himself as continuing still a poor man, and not merely to say, that he had no gold about him. e Kept 11 And as the lame ed, held Peter and called Solomon's greatly wondering. Reflections on the cure of the blind man. vi. 529 And, upon this, while the lame man who was SECT. man which was heal, thus wonderfully healed, full of the tenderest John, all the people sentiments of gratitude, still kept his hold of Peter Acts ran together unto them and John, and walked on between them, some- III. 11. in the porch that is times taking them by the hand, and sometimes embracing them as his great benefactors and the means of his deliverance; all the people in the neighbouring parts, alarmed with so strange a story, ran together to them in great amazement, to the spacious and celebrated portico of the temple, which (for reasons elsewhere assigned) was called Solomon's portico. And Peter observing the great concourse of people, and finding that they were exceedingly affected with the miracle. which had been wrought, took that opportunity of making a very instructive discourse to them, which will be recorded in the ensuing section. IMPROVEMENT. HAPPY are those souls, who are so formed for devotion, that Ver. the proper returning seasons of it, whether public or private, 1 are always welcome! Doubly delightful that friendship, which, like this of Peter and John, is endeared not only by taking sweet counsel together, but by going to the house of God in company! (Psal. Iv. 14.) If we desire this devotion should be acceptable, let us endeavour not only to lay aside all the malignant passions, and to lift up holy hands without wrath; (1 Tim. ii. 8.) but let us stretch out our hands in works of benevolence and kindness. To our piety let us 3, add the most diffusive charity which our circumstances will permit ; and there are none, whose circumstances will forbid every exercise of it. As for those that have neither silver and gold, such as 6 they have let them give. These holy apostles, we see, had not enriched themselves by being intrusted with the distribution of those goods which were laid at their feet; but had approved themselves faithful stewards: The members of Christ were far dearer to them than any temporal interest of their own and fatally, sure, would the church in all ages have been mistaken, if it had measured the worth of its pastors by their wealth. They bestowed nevertheless a much more 6 valuable e Kept his hold of Peter and John.] Perhaps fearing his lameness should return, if he lost sight of them, as Beza and others have observed. The portico called Solomon's.] The reason why it was so called, and what a sort of building it was, may be seen in note b 4 530 vi. Peter's discourse on this occasion to the people. SECT. valuable bounty: And if it be more desirable to heal men's bodies than to enrich them, how much more advantageous is it to be the Ver, instrument of healing their souls? which, if it be ever accomplished, must surely be in the same name, even that of Jesus of Nazareth. May he strengthen the feeble powers of fallen nature, while we are attempting to raise men up; and may spiritual health 7 and vigour, when restored, be improved, like the cure wrought on 9 this lame man, in the service of God, and a thankful acknowledg8 ment of his goodness. We are not to wonder, that, as the name of Jesus, their great deliverer, is incomparably precious to all that truly believe, such have also some peculiarly tender friendships for the persons, by 11 whose means he has wrought this good work upon them. May many such friendships be formed now, and be perfected in glory; and, in the mean time, may the ministers of Christ be watching every opportunity of doing good, and especially when they see men under any lively impressions which tend towards religion! May they have that holy mixture of zeal and prudence, which taught the apostles how to speak a word in season; a word which proved so remarkably good, and was owned by God in so singular a manner, for the conversion and salvation of multitudes that heard it! SECT. VII. SECT. vii. Acts Peter makes a most affectionate discourse to the people assembled in the temple, on occasion of the cure of the lame man. Acts III. 12, to the end. THE ACTS III. 12. HE miraculous cure of the lame man at the Beautiful gate of the temple was presently reported in the city, and occasioned (as we have III. 12. seen before) a vast concourse of people, who ran together to the temple, and gathered in crouds about Peter and John, astonished at so marvellous a cure, and eager to behold the persons who had wrought it. And Peter seeing [this] was ready to improve it as a proper opportunity of renewing his address to them, upon that important errand with which, as an apostle of Jesus, he was charged; accordingly he answered those of the people who were there assembled, and were earnestly inquiring into the circumstances of the fact, in the following manner. -Ye men of Israel, Ye men of Israel, why do ye wonder so at this which has now happened, when so much greater why marvel ye at this? miracles or The cure of the lame man was wrought by faith in Christ. nestly on us, as though by our own power or this man to walk? 13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers hath glorified his son Jesus; and denied him in the 531 SE T. vii. Acts or why look ye so ear- miracles have lately been performed among you? or why do ye fix your eyes so earnestly on holiness we had made us, with that astonishment which your looks express, as if it were by our own power, or by III. 12. any peculiar piety and holiness of ours, that we had made this poor man able to walk? We 13 would by no means take the honour of this miracle to ourselves, but would direct your views unto the great original of all, even the God of whom ye delivered up, Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, whom we presence of Pilate, adore and reverence as the God of our fathersa ; when he was deter and would have you to consider what has now mined to let him go. happened, as a signal proof that he hath glorified his Son Jesus, and given all power into his hands, even that Jesus whom you, kind as his design and exemplary as his life was, ungrate fully delivered up to the Roman power as a criminal, and treated with such vile contempt, as that you openly renounced and refused to accept of him in the presence of Pilate, when he was sa tisfied of his innocence, and determined to release 14 But ye denied the him. But you, say, renounced the Holy and 14 Just, and desired a Righteous One, declaring that you would not murderer to be grant- own him as your king, nor even be contented unto you: ed to admit of his discharge, when it was offered by the Roman governor, and pressed upon you; and were so set against him, that with outrageous clamour you desired rather that Barrabbas, one of the most infamous of mankind, a robber and a murderer, might be granted and released unto you: And while you asked for the deliverance of so vile a wretch, you inhumanly and insolently killed him who is the great author and Prince of life, the only person who had power to conduct you to it b; Whom nevertheless God has amply vindicated, having raised him up from the dead; of which we his apostles are witnesses, upon a repeated testimony of our own senses, in circumstances in which it was impossible that they should be deceived. Holy One, and the 15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. a The God of our fathers.] This was wisely introduced here in the beginning of his discourse, that it might appear, they taught no new religion, inconsistent with the Mosaic, and were far from having the least design to divert their regards from the God of Israel.-For the force of the word ngmosos, which we have rendered renounced, see Heins. Exercit, Sacr. p. 254, 255. VOL. VII. b Killed the Prince of life.] Even him, to whom the Father had given to have life in himself, (John v. 26.) and whom he had appointed to conduct his followers to life and glory. The contrast between their killing such a person, and interceding for the pardon of a murderer, a destroyer of life has a peculiar energy. 3 X c And 15 532 vii. Acts Times of refreshment would come, if they repented. 16 And his name, name, hath made this SECT. deceived. And God is still continuing to heap new honours upon him, whom you have treated through faith in his with so much infamy; for be it known unto you, man strong, whom ye III. 16. it is by faith in his name that he hath strengthen- see and know: yea, ed this poor man, whom you see here before the faith which is by him, hath given him you, and whom you know to have been unable this perfect soundness from his birth to walk: [Yea] I repeat it again, in the presence of you as what highly concerns you all to know ad all. regard, It is his name, and the faith which is centred in him, and which derives its efficacy from his power, that has given him this perfect strength and soundness, which he now manifests before you all. 17 bre 17 And now, thren, I wot that rulers. And now, brethren, while I am urging this for your conviction, that I may lead you to re- through ignorance ye pent of your great wickedness in crucifying so did it, as did also your excellent and so divine a person, I would not aggravate the crime you have been guilty of beyond due bounds, so as to drive you to despair; as I know that it was through ignorance of his true character that you did [it,] as [did] also your rulers, by whom you were led on and prompted to it: For surely, if the dignity and greatness of his person, and his divine authority and mission had been known, both you and they must have treated him in a very different 18 manner, (Compare 1 Cor. ii. s.) But God which God before permitted this that you have done, and over- had shewed by the ruled it for wise and gracious purposes; and mouth of all his prohath thus fulfilled those things which he so plain- phets, should suffer, he hath ly had foretold by the mouth of all his prophets in so fulfilled. the various ages of the world: even that Christ should suffer, as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of his people. (Compare Acts xiii. 27.) 19 18 But those things that Christ 19 Repent ye there-. fore, and be converted, See to it therefore, that it be your immediate. care to secure an interest in the benefits purcha- that your sins may be sed by his death: And to this purpose let us blotted out, when the exhort you to repent of your iniquities, and times of refreshing with a sense of what you have done amiss to shall come from the turn to God in the way of sincere and universal presence of the Lord. obedience, that so your sins may be blotted out, c And by faith in his name he hath strengthened, &c.] The construction of the original as it is commonly pointed, is so exceedingly perplexed, that Heinsius's manner of pointing seems greatly to be preferred. He places a period after 59 wat, referring that verb to in the preceding verse, and To oro to dwxe in the latter clause of this. and d Through ignorance you did it, &c.] Probably, if it had not been so, they would have been immediately destroyed, or reserved to vengeance without any offer of pardon. Yet it is plain, their ignorance, being in itself highly criminal amidst such means of information, did not excuse them from great guilt. e That |