of ye commandment is charity.'--Ordaines
Mr. Hew Binnen to handle his controversie this day fifteen dayes, De
satisfactione Christi."--_Ed._]

1 Tim. ii. 5.--"Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a
pure heart, and a good conscience, and faith unfeigned."

In this chapter the apostle, after the inscription of this epistle,
repeats a former commandment that he had given to Timothy, how he should
both teach himself, and by authority, committed unto him by an
extraordinary commission, see that other ministers teach so also. Paul
almost in all his epistles, sets himself against legal preachers, and
false teachers. It was a common error in the primitive times, to confound
the law and grace, in the point of righteousness, or to make free
justification inconsistent with the moral law. Therefore our apostle makes
it his chief study to vindicate the doctrine of the gospel. He preaches
the gospel, and yet is not Antinomian. He preaches the law, and yet is no
legal preacher. He exalts Christ more than the Antinomian can do, and yet
he presses holiness more than the mere legalist can do. He excludes the
law in the point of justification and pardon, and then brings it in again
to the justified man's hand. If these words were rightly understood, and
made use of, it would put an end to the many useless controversies of the
present time, and reform many of our practices.

There are as many practical abuses among Christians concerning the law and
the gospel, as there are speculative errors among other sects. In the
former verse, he more particularly directs him what to take a care of,
that men may neither spend their own, or their neighbour's time, in
foolish, unnecessary, or impertinent questions, that tend nothing to the
edification of the body of Christ, or in building them up in our most holy
faith, the doctrine of Christ Jesus, and faith in it. And in this verse,
he shows the true meaning and purpose of the law, and commandment, when he
meets these doctors, and draws an argument against them from their own
doctrine. They boasted of the law, and were counted very zealous of it,
but as it is said of the Jews, they had a zeal of God, but not according
to knowledge, because they did not submit unto the righteousness of God.
They were also zealous for the commandment, but neither God nor the
commandment would give them thanks. Why? Because they wholly mistake and
pervert the meaning and purpose of the law. As lo