me, among whom
they who were cast out, and excommunicate from the synagogue, were
accounted as heathens and publicans. And so when he saith, "Let him be
unto thee as an heathen man and a publican," he presupposeth that the
church hath excommunicated him for his contumacy, which he hath added to
his disobedience. For, as Pareus saith,(1070) "If by me, and thee, and
every one, he is to be accounted for such a man, it must needs be that the
judgment of the church be, by public declaration, made known to me, and
thee, and every one. And this meaning is thoroughly drawn out of the
following verse--'For whatsoever ye shall bind on earth,' &c.; therefore,
the church ought first to bind him before he ought to be accounted by me
or thee for one bound, that is, excommunicate." Now, what meaneth Christ
by the church, to which he giveth the power of binding and loosing? Not
the church universal, sure; for I cannot tell the church universal
(whether it be understood _collective_ or _representative_) whensoever my
brother trespasseth against me, and will not be reformed. He meaneth,
therefore, the particular church, whereof, for the time, it shall happen
one to be a member. "The power of the keys (saith Perkins(1071)) is given
to all ministers, churches, and congregations." Neither could there,
otherwise, an ordinary, perpetual, and ready course be had, for the
correcting of all public contumacy and scandal, by the means of
ecclesiastical discipline. But it will be said, when he biddeth us tell
that particular church whereof we are members, he meaneth not that we
should tell the whole body of that church _collective_, but that we should
tell the governors of the church, who are the church _representative_.

How, then, is this place alleged to prove that the whole church
_collective_ hath power and authority to bind and loose?

_Ans._ Christ meaneth, indeed, that we should tell those governors who
represent the church; but whilst he calleth them by the name of the
church, and sendeth us to them as to those who represent the church, he
plainly insinuateth that they exercise the power of the keys (as in his
name, so) in the name of the church, and that this power and authority
pertaineth to the whole church, even as when one man representeth another
man's person, whatsoever power he exerciseth _eo nomine_, doth first of
all agree to the man who is represented.

4. The Apostle, in his own proper person, writing to the whole church at
C