Annotations upon all the New Testament philologicall and theologicall wherein the emphasis and elegancie of the Greeke is observed, some imperfections in our translation are discovered, divers Jewish rites and customes tending to illustrate the text are mentioned, many antilogies and seeming contradictions reconciled, severall darke and obscure places opened, sundry passages vindicated from the false glosses of papists and hereticks / by Edward Leigh ...

CHAPT. II.

Vers. 5. BEholding your order] That is, your outward beauty.* 1.1

And the stedfastnesse of your faith in Christ] 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, the firmament of your faith, so the vulgar renders it; it is as firme as the firmament it selfe. See 1 Pet. 5.9.

Vers. 7. * 1.2 Rooted and built up in him] He alludeth to a tree well rooted in the ground; and to an house well set upon a good foundation. Calvin and others. He signifies that Christ is the root, in which he would have them firmely rooted; and the foun∣dation upon which he would have them built.

Vers. 8. Spoile you] * 1.3 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, That is, make a prey of you. The Speech is taken from theeves, who come secretly to carry away a sheep out of the fold; to whom the Apostle compareth vaine teachers. Doctor Taylor.

Through Philosophy] The Apostle speakes not absolutely of Philosophy, but of vaine deceiving by Philosophy as the Text implies.* 1.4 Omnes adulterinae doctrinae quae nas∣cuntur ex humano capite, qualemcunque habeant rationis colorem. Calvinus. Some say vaine deceit is here added interpretatively.

Vers. 10. And ye are compleat in him, which is the head of all principality and power] As though he had said, because in himselfe he hath the wel-head of glory and Maje∣sty; the which becommeth ours in that he is also the head of his Church.

Vers. 11. In whom] That is Christ, of whom vers. 8, 9, 10. Yee] That is all you Colossians and others that have truly beleeved in Christ.

Are circumcised with the circumcision] That is, made partakers of the spirituall good whereof circumcision was anciently to the Jewes a signe and seale.

Made without * 1.5 bands] That is, not performed by any externall act of any man upon the body, but spiritually upon the soule; by a spirituall and inward act of Gods Spirit.

In putting off the body of the sinnes of the flesh] That is, which inward circumcision consists in this,* 1.6 that a man is inabled to cast aside, mortifie and overcome those ma∣nifold corruptions, and disorders of the soule, which come unto us by our fleshly generation; and doe shew themselves in our flesh, our outward man.

By the circumcision of Christ] By merit and vertue of all those things which Christ hath done and suffered in his humane nature; among which this of his circumcision was one.

* 1.7Vers. 13. Having forgiven you all trespasses] The word imports, that he hath free∣ly forgiven us all our sinnes. Rom. 3.4. The word rendred trespasses usually, is understood of actuall sinnes,* 1.8 either it is a Synecdoche, and so one sort of sinnes is named instead of all; or else he speakes according to the feeling of many of the god∣ly, who even after forgivenesse are troubled with a wicked pronenesse to daily sinnes.* 1.9

Vers. 14. Blotting out the hand writing of Ordinances] Beza and Calvin understand it of the ceremoniall Law; it is meant not onely of that, but of the morall Law as a Covenant of workes, say Chrysostome, Oecumenius, Ierome; this is spoken (saith Zan∣chie) to comfort the Colossians, who were never under the ceremoniall Law.

Vers. 17. Which are a shadow of things to come] Ceremonies are called shadowes, be∣cause that as the shadow carries though a dark, yet some resemblance of the body, whose shadow it is, so Ceremonies of Christ.

Vers. 18. Beguile you, of your reward] It referres to prizes in the Olympick games, as that in 8. v. to spoiles in warre. He meanes their salvation.

In a voluntary humility, and worshipping of* 1.10 Angels] The worshipping of Angels which Paul condemnes arose from a pretence of humility. For such making a shew of humility, that they could not goe directly to God neither were they worthy to goe by Christ, therefore they taught that they must use the mediation of Angels; so Chrysostome, Theodoret, Theophylact, and the Greeke Scholiast in loc.

Vers. 21. Touch not] A woman, 1 Cor. 7.1. Taste not] Meat; handle not] Money, meddle not with secular contracts. Doctor Sclater.

Some observe that the rest of the words without copulatives, notes their eager∣nesse, in pressing these things, and perswading men to the care of them.

Vers. 22. Which all are to perish with the using] The words signifie, are to corruption in the use.] That is they come to, no such use or end as is aimed at in them; those were such observances (as Zanchie sheweth) as men devised or used with an estimati∣on of worshipping God in them ex se as of themselves.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Ordinis nomine tam consensum, quam mores ritè compositos, & totam disciplinam intellige. Calvin. vide Bezam.
• * 1.2

  Duplex me∣taphora est; al∣tera à plantis bene radicatis, altera à domo bene fundata. Estius. vide Bezam.
• * 1.3

  Verbo utitur admodum proprio; a••ludit enim ad praedones, qui dum violenter rapere gregem nequeunt, fraude abigunt pecudes. Cal∣vinus. Estius.
• * 1.4

  Non verum usum syncerae philosophiae, sed abusum, qui est confusio philoso∣phia cum Evangelio prohibet, vel potius Sophisticen illam rejicit, quam falsò aliqui Philosophiae titulo venditant, cum sit (ut eo ipso loco Apostolus ait) inamis quaedam deceptio. Pezel tract. de coena Domini.
• * 1.5

  In Graeco una composita dictio est, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Estius.
• * 1.6

  There were many ceremo∣nies in Bap¦tisme used in the Primitive Church, viz. Putting of old clothes, dren∣ching in water, so as to seeme to be buried in it; putting on new cloathes at their comming out, to which Paul al∣ludes in these two verses, 11, and 12. and 3 Col. 9, 10. and Rom. 6.4, 5. Thornedikes discourse of the Right of the Church in a Christian State. Chap. 4.
• * 1.7

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.8

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.9

  Vehementius obligat syngratha autographo, There are two wayes of can∣cell••ng a bond, laceratione & litura; here it is blotted out and can be read no more then if it had never been; the obligatory power of the Law, as a Covenant is taken away. Glassti. Rhetor. Sac. Vide Bezam.
• * 1.10

  See 23. v. This the Pa∣pists due, as though it were too much boldnesse, to goe, directly to Christ. Vide Calvi∣num.