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1 TIMOTHY CHAPTER 4
1Ti_4:1-5 Paul foretelleth and describeth a great apostacy to
happen in the latter times.
1Ti_4:6-11 He directeth Timothy what doctrines to teach,
1Ti_4:12-16 and by what rules to regulate his conduct, so as to
save both himself and his hearers.
It was usual with the prophets, when they declared the oracles of God, to assert in the beginning of their revelations, that the Lord hath spoken, Isa_1:2 Jer_1:2 Joe_1:1. The apostle in the same manner, in the beginning of his prediction of things future, declares
the Spirit speaketh expressly, that is, either clearly revealed it to me, as Act_10:19, and Act_13:2, thus expressly is opposed to obscurely; for sometimes the revelations given to the prophets were under shadows and figures in divers manners, but the Spirit discovered in a most intelligible manner what seducers should come in the church, &c.
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly; either hath inwardly revealed it to my Spirit, as Act_10:19 13:2, or, (which is more probable), because the verb is in the present tense, legei, it saith it in the written word, which must be in the Old Testament, for the New was not at this time written: but then the question is, where the Holy Ghost hath expressly in the Old Testament spoken of the apostacy of the latter times. Our famous Mede answers, in Dan_11:1-45, where from Dan_11:30 is a plain prophecy of the Roman empire, and Dan_11:35-39, of antichrist, where it is said: Some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, & c.; and he speaks of a king, that shall do according to his will, and shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods.—Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god, but magnify himself above all. Where that learned man thinks is an excellent description of the Roman empire, their various victories, successes, declinations, and mutations, and amongst other things, Dan_11:36, that they should cast off their old pagan idolatry, and after that make a defection from the Christian faith, and not regard marriage, (called there the desire of women), nor indeed truly regard any god. This the apostle saith should be in the latter times. The last times (saith the afore-mentioned famous author) are the times of Christ’s kingdom, which began in the time of the Roman empire; during which time this Epistle was written, where the apostle speaking of time yet to come, the
latter times by him mentioned must needs be the latter part of the last times, which he saith began in the ruin of the Roman empire, upon which followed the revealing of antichrist, that wicked one, mentioned 2Th_2:7. Concerning these times, the Spirit said expressly,
that some should in them depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits; by which some understand the devils themselves; others, false teachers, or false doctrines, which are afterwards mentioned, called doctrines of devils, by which some understand doctrines suggested by devils, or published by the cunning and art of devils. But others think that by doctrines of devils here are not to be understood doctrines so published, but doctrines concerning devils; and that the meaning is, that in the last times the pagan doctrine concerning demons should be restored. The pagan demons were an inferior sort of gods, a kind of middle beings between their highest gods and men, whose office was to be advocates and mediators between men and the highest gods, because they judged it was not lawful for men to come to the highest gods immediately; these they worshipped by images, even as the papists at this day make use of and worship angels and saints. See more fully what Mr. Mede saith upon this argument in his own book, and in Mr. Pool’s Latin Synopsis upon this text; and what he saith seems very probably the sense of this text, especially considering the two doctrines mentioned 1Ti_4:3.