The Apostle reports, God speaking at sundry times, and in divers manners in times past, unto the fathers by the Prophets, (Heb. 1.1.) The Greek text hath two very significant words,1 the former most properly implying how God gave out his mind in divers measures, or how he parcelled it out, the other implying the several ways in which he gave it out. As the measures were various, sometimes more sometimes less of his mind about divine matters and mysteries being dispersed, so the ways manners and forms of this dispensation were very various; yet the most usual way was by dreams and visions (Numb. 12.6.) If there be a Prophet among you (saith the Lord) I the Lord will make my self known unto him in a vision, and speak to him in a dream. Yea we find that in the first days of the Gospel, dreams and visions were frequent. The Apostle falling into a trance had a vision (Acts 10.10.) He saw heaven opened and a certain vessel descend, &c. And when Christ would have the Apostle Paul carry the Gospel into Macedonia, a vision appeared to him in the night (Acts 16.9.) There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, come over to Macedonia and help us. The same Apostle saith (2 Cor. 12.1, 2.) I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord, whether in the body I cannot tell, or out of the body I cannot tell. Pauls soul was wrapped up in such high and intimate converses with God, that he even forgot how it was with his body, or had little to do with it. Which suites well with that description which the Apostle John gave of himself, when he had the whole mind of God concerning the state of his Church to the end of the world, revealed to him in several visions, I (saith he Rev. 1.10.) ⟨p. 288⟩was in the spirit on the Lords day, &c. That's is a famous promise, which was first reported by the Prophet Joel (Chap: 2.28.) and after repeated by the Apostle Peter (Acts 2.17.) I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, &c. and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Thus it is every where clear in Scripture, that dreams and visions were frequent both in the Old Testament times, and in the beginning of the New;
The Apostle reports, God speaking at sundry times, and in divers manners in times past, unto the fathers by the Prophets, (Heb. 1.1.) The Greek text hath two very significant words,1 the former most properly implying how God gave out his mind in divers measures, or how he parcelled it out, the other implying the severall wayes in which he gave it out. As the measures were various, sometimes more sometimes lesse of his mind about divine matters and mysteries being dispersed, so the wayes manners and formes of this dispensation were very various; yet the most usuall way was by dreams and visions (Numb. 12.6.) If there be a Prophet among you (saith the Lord) I the Lord will make my self known unto him in a vision, and speak to him in a dreame. Yea we find that in the first dayes of the Gospel, dreames and visions were frequent. The Apostle falling into a trance had a vision (Acts 10.10.) He saw heaven opened and a certain vessell descend, &c. And when Christ would have the Apostle Paul carry the Gospell into Macedonia, a vision appeared to him in the night (Acts 16.9.) There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, come over to Macedonia and help us. The same Apostle saith (2 Cor. 12.1, 2.) I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord, whether in the body I cannot tell, or out of the body I cannot tell. Pauls soul was wrapt up in such high and intimate converses with God, that he even forgot how it was with his body, or had little to doe with it. Which suites well with that description which the Apostle John gave of himself, when he had the whole mind of God concerning the state of his Church to the end of the world, revealed to him in severall visions, I (saith he Rev. 1.10.) ⟨p. 288⟩was in the spirit on the Lords day, &c. That's is a famous promise, which was first reported by the Prophet Joel (Chap: 2.28.) and after repeated by the Apostle Peter (Acts 2.17.) I will poure out my Spirit upon all flesh, &c. and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Thus it is every where clear in Scripture, that dreames and visions were frequent both in the Old Testament times, and in the beginning of the New;
- 1[Greek or Hebrew],〈non-Latin alphabet〉,
