Whereas there are among the people of God some, nay many, that are ignorant and out of the way; the compassion of the High Priest is to be extended to them all; yea, this qualification doth respect them chiefly, so that they need not to be discouraged, but may boldly make use of his gracious aids in every time of distress. But properly it is the "chole people of God," who are thus described, as they lie under the care and eye of their High Priest. But because also it is their duty to make application to him for their relief, which they will not do without a sense of their want; it is required, moreover, in this description, that they be burdened with an apprehension of the guilt and danger of their "ignorance and wanderings." (Tois arvoei) "To them that are ignorant;" not the mere affection of the mind, or ignorance itself, but the consequence and effects of it in actual sins, are principally intended. To such as are obnoxious to sinning, and actually do sin, through the ignorance and darkness of their minds. There was under the law a sacrifice provided for them who sinned, (a ) through ignorance, or error, Lev. iv, Num xv, 27-30, "If any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a she-goat of the first year for a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly; when he sinneth by ignorance before the Lord, to make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him. But the soul that doth ought presumptuously, with an high hand, the same reproacheth the Lord, and that soul shall be cut off from among his people." And it is so also under the gospel; for after men profess an interest in the sacrifice of Christ for their justification and sanctification, there are sins they may fall into presumptuously, and with an high hand, for which there is no relief. "For if we sin wilfully

after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins; but a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries," Heb. x, 26, 27. All other sins whatever come within the rank of them which are committed by "ignorance," or error of mind. Of these there is no man that liveth, and is not guilty, Eccl. vii, 20, 1 Sam. ii, 2. Yea, they are so multiplied that no man living can understand them, Psal. xix, 13. By sins of ignorance then are not understood merely those which arose (ex ignorantia juris) "from ignorance of the law," doing what it forbade, as not knowing it was forbidden, and omitting what was commanded, as not knowing it was commanded; but sins of ignorance are also committed when the mind, or practical understanding (being corrupted or entangled by the power of sin, and its apparently advantageous circumstances) doth not attend to its duty, or the rule of all its actions, whence arises actual sin. And this is the principal cause of all the sins of our life. He adds; (na Thavapevois) "them that wander out of the way." This epistle mentions the error of the heart, "they err always in their hearts;” and the error of our ways, as here. The former is the heart's dislike of the ways of God, and voluntary relinquishment of them, which answers to the presumptuous sinning before mentioned, and is no object of compassion either in God, or our High Priest, see chap. iii, 11. A wandering in men's ways may be, when yet their hearts are upright with God; so it is said of Asa, that his heart was perfect all his days, 2 Chron. xv, 17, yet his great wanderings from the ways of God are recorded, chap, xv, 7-12. Who then are these (& Traveμevo) wunderers? Even those who, by the power of their temptations, have been se

duced and turned from the straight paths of holy obedience, and have wandered in some crooked paths of their own.

$4. (III.) The special reason of the qualifications is,-"for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity." (Exe, quoniam) seeing it is so, (na avlos) "that even he himself; his own state and condition will mind him of his duty in this matter (περικείται ασθενειαν) is compassed with infirmity: this is more than if he had said that he was (aobevns) weak and infirm. He is beset, and "compassed about on every hand with infirmity." Nothing hinders but that we may take the word here in its most comprehensive signification, for infirmities of all sorts, natural, moral, and occasional. For the first sort do naturally attend the condition of human nature, and therefore are inseparable from him that would discharge aright the office of a priest. And the following verse affirming, that "for this cause," it was necessary for him to "offer a sacrifice for himself," declares directly, that his moral or simple infirmities are included. The high priest himself was subject to sin as the rest of the people. Whence there were peculiar sacrifices appointed for the anointed priest to offer for himself and his own sin. And for the last, or infirmities in bodily distempers, sickness, and death, it is a necessary consequent of the former. Wherefore, as these words respect them that go before, or yield a reason why the high priest is such a one as can have compassion on the ignorant, they express the infirmity of nature, which inclined him thereunto from a sense of his own weakness and sufferings. As they respect what ensues, ver. 3, they intend his moral or simple infirmities, with their consequences, from whence it was necessary that he should offer sacrifice for himself. And in the latter sense, the things intended be

long intirely to the real High Priest; that natural infirmity whereof our Lord Christ had full experience, is every way sufficient to answer the ends of the priestly office. And this alone was that which qualified the legal high priest with due compassion; for his moral infirmity was of no advantage to him, so as to help his compassion towards the people, which was, as all other graces, weakened thereby: it is therefore mentioned by the apostle only, as a reason why he was appointed to offer sacrifice for himself, which Christ was not to do. Now Christ being absolutely free from this kind of infirmity, yet made sensible of one by the other, doth in a most perfect manner perform all that is needful to be done on our behalf.

§5. (IV.) Obs. 1. "Compassion," and meek forbearance in those from whom we expect help and relief, is a great motive and encouragement to faith, affiance, and expectation of those favors. No man will expect any good or kindness from one whom he looks upon as severe, incompassionate, and ready to lay hold on occasions of wrathful anger. Wherefore God himself doth not more properly, or in a more engaging manner, set forth any property of his nature, than he doth his compassion, long suffering, and forbearance towards sinners. And as he proposeth them to us for our encouragement, so he declares his approbation of our faith in them. "He delighteth in them that hope in his mercy," Psal. xxxiii, 18. Wherefore the great recompense that God gives to sinners from first to last, is from his compassion and forbearance. And for our Lord Jesus Christ, as mediator, we have evinced, that all things were so ordered with respect to him, that he might be filled with tender compassion and forbearance towards sinners, which we greatly stand in need of, and which is the greatest encourage

ment of which we are made partakers. Considered either as to our sins or sufferings, we cannot maintain a life of faith without a due apprehension of it.

§6. Obs. 2. Wherefore the life of our souls is principally maintained upon this compassion" of our High Priest: being able to bear with us in our provocations, and to pity us in our weakness and distresses. To this purpose is the promise concerning him, Isa. xl, 11. What believer is there that doth not constantly admire how the Lord Jesus Christ hath patiently borne with him in the frequency of his daily failings? There is not a day wherein we make good the engagements of our own hearts. And that we are yet accepted with him, is wholly owing to his being able to bear with us in all patience and gracious moderation.

$7. Obs. 3. Though every sin hath in it the whole `nature of sin, rendering the sinner obnoxious to the curse of the law, yet there are several degrees of sin, some being accompanied with a greater guilt than others. The papists have a distinction of sins into mortal and venial, which is the foundation of one moiety of their superstition. The former, they say, are such as in their own nature deserve death eternal, so that there is no deliverance from the guilt of them without actual contrition and repentance: but the latter are slight and small sins, such as are easily expiated by an observance of some outward rites of the church, at least they endanger no man's eternal salvation, whether repented of or not. The worst is but a turn in purgatory, or the expense of a pardon. Because this distinction is rejected by Protestants, they accuse them for teaching that all sins are equal. But this they do unjustly; for we maintain that there is a distinction of sins with respect to the persons that commit them.