shed on Jewish altars was a prophecy and promise of propitiation by the blood of Christ; and the whole New Testament is the record of the Son of God offering himself up as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. This, according to the faith of the church universal, is the sum of the Gospel-the incarnation and death of the eternal Son of God as a propitiation for sin. There can, therefore, be no doubt as to the sense in which the apostle here declares Christ to be an offering and a sacrifice.

There is some doubt as to the construction of the words, "to God." They may be connected with what precedes, "He gave himself as a sacrifice to God;" or with the following clause, "For a sweet savour to God," i. e. acceptable to him. The sense of the whole would then be, 'He gave himself, tapédwkev čavtÓv, (unto death, eis Jávarov,) an offering and sacrifice well pleasing to God.' The reasons in favour of this construction are-1. That Tapadidóval means properly to deliver up to the power of any one, and is not the suitable or common term to express the idea of presenting as a sacrifice. The word almost always used in such cases is πроopépew, to bring near to, to offer. 2. With Paul the favourite construction of mapadidóval is with els and not with the dative. 3. In Hebrew, from which the phrase eis ooμǹv evwdías here used is borrowed, the expression is in? - (a sweet smelling savour to Jehovah), which the Septuagint render, doμǹ evwdías Tô Kupiw. It is not probable in using so familiar a scriptural phrase Paul would depart from the common

construction. The Hebrew phrase properly means a savour of rest; that is, one which composes, pacifies, or pleases. The last is what the Greek expresses, and therefore the equivalent expression is εὐάρεστος τῷ Oe, well pleasing to God. Rom. 12, 1. Phil. 4, 18. It was in the exercise of the highest conceivable love, which ought to influence all our conduct, that Christ delivered himself unto death, an offering and sacrifice well pleasing unto God.

CHAPTER V.

SPECIFIC EXHORTATIONS, VS. 3-20.-RELATIVE DUTIES OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES, VS. 21-33.

SECTION I.-Vs. 3-20.

3. But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it 4. not be once named among you, as becometh saints; neither

filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not con5. venient: but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that

no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ 6. and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for

because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the 7. children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with 8. them. For ye were sometime darkness, but now are ye light 9. in the Lord: walk as children of light; (for the fruit of the 10. Spirit is in all goodness, and righteousness, and truth;) prov11. ing what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove 12. them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which 13. are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved, are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make 14. manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

15. See that ye walk circumspectly; not as fools, but as wise, re16. deeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye 17. not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. 18. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled 19. with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart 20. to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

ANALYSIS.

It becomes saints to avoid not only the sins of uncleanness and covetousness, but also all impropriety of conduct and frivolity of language, vs. 3-4. Because uncleanness and covetousness not only exclude from heaven, but, whatever errorists may say, bring down the wrath of God, vs. 5-6. Christians, therefore, should not participate in those sins, seeing they have been divinely enlightened and made the recipients of that light whose fruits are goodness, righteousness and truth. They are bound to exemplify this in their conduct, avoiding and reproving the deeds of darkness, vs. 7-10. Those deeds are too shameful to be named; still they may be corrected by the power of that light which it is the prerogative of believers to disseminate. Therefore the Scriptures speak of the light which flows from Christ as reaching even to the dead, vs. 12-14. Christians therefore should be wise, making the most of every occasion for good, in the midst of the evils by which they are surrounded, vs. 13-16. They should seek exhilaration not from wine, but from the Holy

Spirit, and give expression to their gladness in psalms and hymns, praising and thanking God through Jesus Christ, vs. 17-20.

COMMENTARY.

V. 3. But fornication and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints.

In the preceding section the apostle had spoken of sins against our neighbour; here from v. 3 to v. 20 he dwells principally on sins against ourselves. Not only fornication, but every thing of the same nature, or that leads to it, is to be avoided-and not only avoided, but not even named among believers. The inconsistency of all such sins with the character of Christians, as saints, men selected from the world and consecrated to God, is such as should forbid the very mention of them in a Christian society. With the sins of uncleanness the apostle here, as in the preceding chapter, v. 19, connects Teoveţia, covetousness. The word is to be taken in its ordinary sense, as there is nothing in the context to justify any departure from it. The assumption that sins of sensuality are alone mentioned in this and the following verse, leads to very forced interpretations of several of the terms employed.

V. 4. Neither filthiness. The word aioxpórns, is not simply obscenity, but whatever is morally hateful. The adjective aioxpós means deformed, revolting, what excites disgust, physical or moral. It is the opposite of kaλós, which means both beautiful and good; and