und doth Chemnitius condemn them,(799) _Quod vero
praetenditur_, &c. "But, whereas (saith he) it is pretended that by those
rites of men's addition, many things are probably signified, admonished
and taught,--hereto it may be answered, that figures do properly belong to
the Old Testament, but those things which Christ would have to be taught
in the New Testament, he would have them delivered and propounded, not by
shadows, but by the light of the word; and we have a promise of the
efficacy of the word, but not of figures invented by men."

Upon the same ground Junius(800) findeth fault with ceremonies used for
signification: _Istis elementis mundi (ut vocantur Col. ii.) Dominus et
servator noluit nec docuit, ecclesiam suam informari_.

Lastly, We will consider the purpose of Christ whilst he said to the
Pharisees,(801) "The law and the prophets were until John: from that time
the kingdom of God is preached." He had in the parable of the unjust
steward, and in the application of the same, spoken somewhat contemptibly
of riches, which, when the Pharisees heard, they derided him, and that for
this pretended reason (as is evident from the answer which is returned
unto them), because the law promises the world's goods as rewards and
blessings to the people of God, that by the temporal things which are set
forth for types and shadows of eternal things, they might be instructed,
helped, and led, as it were by the hand, to the contemplation, desire and
expectation, of those heavenly and eternal things which are not seen. Now
Christ did not only rip up the hypocrisy of their hearts, ver. 15, but
also gave a formal answer to their pretended reason, by showing how the
law is by him perfected, ver. 16, yet not destroyed, ver. 17. Then will we
observe how he teacheth that the law and the prophets are perfected, and
so our point shall be plain. "The law and the prophets were until John,"
_i.e._, they did typify and prophesy concerning the things of the kingdom
until John; for before that time the faithful only saw those things afar
off, and by types, shadows, and figures, and the rudiments of the world,
were taught to know them. "But from that time the kingdom of God is
preached," _i.e._, the people of God are no longer to be instructed
concerning the things of the kingdom of God by outward signs, or visible
shadows and figures, but only by the plain word of the gospel; for now the
kingdom of God {~GREEK SMALL LETTER EPSILON WITH PSIL