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Having shown the typicalness, weakness of the Mosaical covenant administration; in respect of the tabernacles, services, and ordinances, he closeth his description of them in this verse, by showing their carnality and mortality. As they were external things, they could reach no further than the flesh only, as appears by particular instances, and therefore could not quiet the conscience, considered without Christ, nor justify, sanctify, or save the sinner. For meat and drink offerings, and meats clean and unclean, and drinks prohibited by God, in which the Jews placed much of their religion, separate from what they signified, commended no man unto God, 1Co_8:8.
Which stood only in meats and drinks: as to meats, see Lev_11:1-47 Deu_14:3-21. As to drinks, forbidden the priests, Lev_10:9, and the Nazarites, Num_6:2,3; the jealousy water, Num_5:24, and the paschal cup, Psa_116:13, and cup of thank-offerings; see Lev_1:1-17 and Lev_2:1-16.
And divers washings, which were many for the priests in their services, and for others in performing theirs by them; some by sprinkling with blood, Exo_29:20,21, with water, Num_8:7 19:9-19; some by washing at the brazen laver, as the priests, Exo_29:4 30:17-21; so the sprinkling of healed lepers, Lev_14:4-9, and the purification of the unclean. All these were of God’s own instituting, but still reach no further than the flesh or body of the sinner: see Heb_9:13.
And carnal ordinances: other carnal rites and ceremonies, such as could not reach the conscience, as they used them, yet were to be used by them in obedience to God’s will, and to discriminate them from others, which were various in the ceremonial law.
Imposed on them; epikeimena, imposed, may agree with dwra, Heb_9:9, gifts imposed; or may have the whole sentence for its substantive, as, being matters imposed or settled in meats and drinks. All these things were not the inventions of Moses, but God’s own institutions, enjoined by his own authority on the Jewish church, to lead them by a regular use of them to life by Christ, but by their own corruptions were made burdens to them. The Divine precept obliged them to an observation of them, and to the serving God in, by, and through them.
Until the time; as they were outward, bodily, and carnal things, so they were mortal; as to their being and continuance enjoined by God, they were mecri kairou until is a term settled and limited, and not indefinite, and its limit is a singular time, even that point of time wherein Christ, having finished the work of redemption, ascended and sat down on the right hand of God, and powerfully thence breathed forth the Spirit, of infallibility on his apostles, for guiding them in laying the foundation of his church, by preaching the gospel throughout the world, and perfecting of it, and no other. This the Jews and others expected from the Messiah, Joh_4:25, in his time. All the New Testament perfecting was by them, and therefore they give a charge against the least alteration of the gospel, truth, and law, which they left as a rule for ordering of Christ’s church to his last coming: see Mat_28:20.
Of reformation; diorywsewv, of putting things to rights by the law, rule, and ordinance of Christ, the work of this special point of time. He, the great church reformer, thoroughly righteth things to God-ward, by removing and taking away what was faulty, not in itself, but by man’s abuse of it, even all the Mosaical economy and church-frame, which carried men about to God, by opening and making that to be seen with open face, which was well veiled, and so mistaken, even the mystery of Christ hid from ages, by manifesting and establishing that which was the truth itself, instead of the shadows that did but represent it; even that true churchframe intended first by God, and now fully revealed and settled by his Son as a standing rule and pattern to all for ever; which unmovable kingdom of his is described further, Heb_12:22-28.