A59665:51
The Parable of the Ten Virgins Opened and Applied
The parable of the ten virgins opened & applied being the substance of divers sermons on Matth. 25, I-13 wherein the difference between the sincere Christian and the ... hypocrite ... are clearly discovered ... / by Thomas Shepherd ; now published from the authors own notes ... by Jonathan Mitchell ... Tho. Shepherd, son to the reverend author ...The parable of the ten virgins opened & applied being the substance of divers sermons on Matth. 25, I-13 wherein the difference between the sincere Christian and the ... hypocrite ... are clearly discovered ... / by Thomas Shephard ; now published from the authours own notes ... by Jonathan Mitchell ... Tho. Shephard, son to the reverend author ...
London: printed by J. Hayes for John Rothwell, 1660
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
SECT. I.
1. THE place where this preparation to meet Christ shall be made, and that is not in the Kingdoms of this world (earthy Kingdoms) but in the Kingdom of Heaven, and therefore 'tis said, The Kingdom of Heaven shall be like, &c.
1. THE place where this preparation to meet Christ shall be made, and that is not in the Kingdoms of this world (earthy Kingdoms) but in the Kingdom of Heaven, and therefore'tis said, The Kingdom of Heaven shall be like, &c.
I will not trouble you with telling you how many ways the Kingdom of Heaven is taken in Scripture; by Kingdom of Heaven here, is not meant the Kingdom of Glory in the third Heaven, for there shall be no foolish Virgins at all there, no unclean thing shall enter thither; nor by it is meant the head of this Kingdom, viz. ⟨p. 4⟩Christ Jesus, for how can he be like to ten Virgins; nor by it is meant the Gospel of the Kingdom, (which Mat. 13. is called the Kingdom of Heaven, and compared to a draw-net) for how can it be like unto ten Virgins? nor yet the internal Kingdom of grace set up in the heart of every believer (which is called a grain of Mustard seed, Mat. 13.) for how can any foolish Virgins be there? or what share have they in that? Therefore I conceive 'tis clear, that by the Kingdom of Heaven here, is meant the external Kingdom of Christ in this world: that is, the visible Church, or the estate of the visible Church, which is frequently called in Scripture, the Kingdom of Heaven, as,