The works of the Reverend and learned John Lightfoot D. D., late Master of Katherine Hall in Cambridge such as were, and such as never before were printed : in two volumes : with the authors life and large and useful tables to each volume : also three maps : one of the temple drawn by the author himself, the others of Jervsalem and the Holy Land drawn according to the author's chorography, with a description collected out of his writings.

ACTS Chap. II.

THE expectation of the Nation grounded from Dan. 9. that the Messias should ap∣pear about this time, Luke 19. 11. had brought multitudes of Jews out of all Na∣tions to see the issue: And Pentecost having brought up also all the Country of Judea to celebrate that Feast; in this double conflux of people, the holy Ghost is given and com∣eth down upon the hundred and twenty Disciples, in the likeness of fiery tongues: At which very time of the year, and in fire, the Law had been given 1447 years ago. The Jerus. Gemarists in Taanith. fol. 65. col. 3. have a saying, That as Jerusalem was destroyed by fire, so should it be rebuilt by fire. And in Jom tobh fol. 61. col. 3. and Chagigah fol. 78. col. 1. they say that David died at the Feast of Pentecost. Both passages regardable at this place.

As the confusion of tongues at Babel had caused the casting off of the Gentiles, ▪by severing them from the participation of the true Religion [which was only professed and known in the Hebrew tongue] so was the gift of tongues, to be a needful means, to bring them in to Religion again; when every one may hear of the things of God in his own language. The Disciples were doubly indowed by this gift, as to the matter of lan∣guage; for they were hereby inabled to speak to every Nation in their own tongue: and not that only; but they were inabled to understand the Originals of Scripture, which they understood not before. Their birth and breeding had not allowed them so much learning as to understand any Bible that was then extant, either Hebrew or Greek, but here is the first operation of this gift of the Spirit upon them, that they are first made able to understand the Originals of Scripture, and then able to unlock them to any one in their own tongue. And here should they begin that take on them to expound the Scriptures by the Spirit, namely to unlock the difficulties of the Original languages, [for therein the mainest difficulty of the Scripture lodgeth] according as was the method of the Spirits o∣peration in the Apostles.

Pentecost was a time of rejoycing, and at all such festivities the Jews had ever good store of wine stirring: so that these men conclude that they had drunk too much and spake as men distract: which Peter confutes by telling them it was not yet the third hour of the day, or nine a clock. For upon their Sabbaths and holidaies they used not to eat or drink till their Synagogue service was done. Maym. in Schab. per. 30. which was not of a good while after nine a clock.

His alleadging of Joel, In the last daies I will pour out my Spirit, &c. teacheth us how to construe the phrase, The last daies, in exceeding many places both of the Old Testa∣ment and the New, as Isa. 2. 1. 1 Tim. 4. 1. and 2 Tim. 3. 1. 1 Pet. 4. 7. 1 Joh. 2. 19, &c. namely for the last daies of Jerusalem and the Jewish State. For to take his words in any other sense [as some do for the last daies of the world] is to make his allegation utterly impertinent and monstrous.

Three thousand converted, are Baptized In the Name of the Lord Jesus, ver. 38. which no whit disagreeth from the command, Baptize in the Name of the Father and of the Son, &c. Matth. 28. 19. For the form of Baptism in those first daies of the Gospel, of which the New Testament giveth the story, may be considered under a threefold condition. 1 John the Baptist baptized in the Name of Messias, or Christ that was then ready to come, but that Jesus of Nazareth was he, he himself knew not till he had run a good part

of his course, Joh. 1. 31. as was observed before. 2. The Disciples baptizing the Jews, baptized them in the Name of Jesus: upon this reason, because the great point of contro∣versie then in the Nation about Messias was, Whether Jesus of Nazareth were he or no. All the Nation acknowledged a Messias, but the most of them abominated that Jesus of Nazareth should be thought to be he: therefore those that by the preaching of the Gos∣pel came to acknowledge him to be Messias, were baptized into his Name, as the critical badge of their imbracing the true Messias. But 3. among the Gentiles where that que∣stion was not afoot, they baptized in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. And so that baptizing in the Name of Jesus, was for a season for the setling of the evidence of his being Messias, and when that was throughly established, then it was used no more, but Baptism was in the Name of the Father, and Son, &c. Of the same cognizance were those extraordinary gifts of the Spirit, evidences of Jesus his being the Messias, and means of conveying the Gospel through the world, and when both these were well established then those gifts ceased for ever.

All that believed were together and had all things common, ver. 46. The Children of those that believed, must come under the title of Believers too, or they must famish. For this community of goods being for the relief of the poor, as we shall shew at the fourth Chap∣ter, the Children, Babes and Infants of believing Parents that were poor, must be taken in under this expression, All that believed, &c. or how did they for support? if the com∣munity of goods reacht them as well as their Parents, the title must reach them too: When a Master of a Family was baptized, his Children were they never so young were baptized with him, and hence the mention of baptizing whole housholds Act. 16. 15. 33. They that pleading against Infants Baptism, do cavill, that it may be, there were no Infants in those Families that are mentioned, bewray that they little understand the manner of ad∣ministring Baptism in its first use. For the stress of the business lies not in this, whether it can be proved that there were Infants in those Families, where it is recorded, that whole housholds were baptized, but the case is this, that in all Families whatsoever, were there never so many Infants, they were all baptized, when their Parents were baptized. Thus was the constant custom among the Jews for admission of Proselytes, and thence this Ca∣non, That a Woman proselited and baptized when she was great with child, her Child needed not then to be baptized when it was born. Maym. in Issure biah per. 13. For if he had been born before she was baptized, he must have been baptized with her. And the New Te∣stament gives so little evidence of the altering this custom, at those first baptizings under the Gospel, that it plainly on the contrary shews the continuance of it, when it speaketh of the Apostles baptizing whole households.