Aaron's Rod Blossoming, Or, the Divine Ordinance of Church-Government Vindicated

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1844 Excerpt: ... take from Heb. xiii. 7, " Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: " ver. 17, " Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves; for they watch for your souls, as they that must give an account." Bullinger and Gualther refer this verse both to magistracy and ministry; and so far they are ours, in sharing the rule and government between both, and in making obedience due to both. But Calvin and many others do better expound the text of ecclesiastical rulers or governors only: wherein Salmasius followeth the Greek scholiasts, who expound the text of bishops or elders who did in common govern the church. See Walo Messed. p. 137, 138. That it is not spoken of civil but of ecclesiastical rulers, may thus appear: beside that it were hard to take fiyov/xevos in the 17th verse in another sense than it hath ver 7, or the rulers that watch for the soul, ver. 17, to be any other than the rulers that had spoken the word of God, ver. 7, it is further to be noted, that the Apostle speaks of such rulers as the believing Hebrews had at that time, as is evident by ver. 24, "Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints," and those rulers did watch for their souls. But they had no Christian or godly magistrates that watched for their souls, or whom the Apostle would thus salute with the saints. But the word is fiyovfiivav, saith Mr Hussey, p. 18, which is ducum, --them that lead you. The Apostle hath indeed chosen a word free of ambition; yet, saith Beza, auctoritatis maximce, it is a word of the greatest authority. The Syriac hath the same word here, by which he rendereth Kvtpv-qnen, 1 Cor. xii. 28; and if you consult the Septuagints, the word fiyovfieios, --except very ra...