The Works of John Bunyan, vol 3, John Bunyan [ebook reader color screen TXT] 📗

great business in this place will be to show you the garnishing of these foundations, and also the mystery and order of the lying of the foundations, for their glory lieth in both.

As for the garnishing of these foundations, it is, and will be at the day of New Jerusalem, two-fold, and the first is with beautiful gifts and grace. Thus were the apostles of old adorned, and thus shall their doctrine again be garnished. I know that the doctrine of the twelve hath been always accompanied with goodly gifts and grace, from the first churches quite down, that is, according to the measure of light they appeared in, and according to the dispensations of God in the times of antichrist. But yet the glory that this doctrine had in these latter days, I mean since the apostacy, it was nothing in comparison of the glory and splendour that will be in them in the day when this city is built and complete.

Wherefore you find, that though all along in antichrist’s reign, the gospel of grace hath shone, and given light to the saints and people of God in all their travels and afflictions; yet the shining of it at that day was much opposed and eclipsed by the smoke of the bottomless pit: as he saith, ‘There arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit’ (Rev 9:2).

In which days, I say, abundance of the light, heat, and operation of the gospel was diminished and taken off, so that but little of the power or glory of it hath been either felt or seen from that time to this very day. This is that God spake of by the prophet Amos, saying, ‘I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day; and I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.’ All which he explaineth in the next words, for ‘Behold the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord; and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it’

(Amos 8:9-12). In those days Eli’s sons were become varlets (1

Sam 2:12-15). Indeed there was here and there a little child, like Samuel in his minority, that now and then would speak most goodly things. But ‘the word of the Lord was precious in those days, there was no open vision’ (1 Sam 3:1). This is that which David in the Spirit of prophecy complaineth of, saying, ‘They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course’ (Psa 82:5). Thus in the days of the eclipsing of the glory of these foundations. But now, behold, they recover their light, and put on, as of old, their former glory, and are again garnished as in the former days. Now will all the doctrines of the gospel spangle and sparkle; out of every text will the ministers of God make to issue exceedingly most precious and heavenly fire; for these stones are indeed the stones of fire (Eze 28:16). And in them is contained that which would set the whole world on a flame with love and delight in the things of God and another world, had but men the spirit of wisdom, and the authority of God in their ministry, as the apostles and the primitive Christians had. Well this doctrine of the twelve shall be again adorned with gifts and graces as in the days of old: by which it shall also be made to shine, and to cast forth its golden rays before the nations to their salvation. Behold, saith God, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, that is, thy apostolical doctrines shall again be garnished as at the first (Isa 54:11).

Truth shall appear in its old and mature colours, and as such shall be embraced, and lived and delighted in, both by Jews and Gentiles, as I have showed.

But secondly, The twelve foundations that here you read of, they are the same with those twelve stones that long before were set in the breastplate of judgment, in which were engraven the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel, the names of which tribes did comprehend the whole body of the house of their fathers (Exo 28:16-21,29; 39:14). Now then, seeing these twelve are the same with those on the breastplate of judgment; and seeing also, that those on the breastplate did comprehend the whole of the twelve tribes, I conclude that for these foundations to be garnished with all manner of precious stones, it is as much as to say, they shall be garnished with abundance of converts; multitudes, and that of all sorts, both of Jews and Gentiles, Moors, Tartars, Turks, and those in the utmost parts of the world, shall now be entangled with the light and truth, with the glory and goodness of the doctrine of the twelve. And I the rather take it thus, 1.

Because, as the foundations themselves are said to be precious stones; so also the saints in general, they go under the same names too. As Jeremiah saith, the precious stones of the sanctuary are the precious sons of Zion (Lam 4:1-3). As Peter also saith, in alluding to the precious stones of the temple; the saints are lively, or living precious stones, built up a spiritual house, &c. (1 Peter 2:5). And the foundations of the wall were garnished with all manner of precious stones (1 Chron 29:2). That is, the doctrine of the twelve was garnished with all manner of precious souls; that is, converted by it, by which they become a glory and a garnishing to it. 2. I take it to be the conversion of the precious ones of God; because that thus to understand it, is most like the phrase of the apostle Paul himself, saying, ‘What is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are our glory and joy’ (1 Thess 2:19,20). Mark, in the text he saith, The foundations were garnished with all manner of precious stones, and here those precious stones, Paul accounts to be those that are converted by the Word: for what is our hope, or joy, or crown?

are not even ye that have been converted by us? Ye are our joy, ye are our crown, ye are our glory; it is with you that we shall be crowned, adorned, and garnished in the presence of our Lord Jesus. Mark, John saith, They are garnished, Paul saith, they are crowned; John saith, they are garnished with precious stones, and Paul saith, they are crowned with the conversion of sinners. Thus therefore as God will lay these stones with fair colours, so also he will lay these foundations with sapphires (Isa 54:11). That is, as he will beautify the doctrine of the twelve with its former glory, sweetness, and authority; so he will crown and garnish it with the conversion of many sinners. The elect are the jewels of God, and this is the day of his binding them up, even then when the antichrist falls, and the gospel breaks out in its primitive glory (Mal 3:16-18).

‘And the foundations of the wall were garnished with all manner of precious stones.’ In these words, there are yet two things considerable.

First Consideration. That all who go to the adorning of these foundations, they must be precious stones, not a common stone shall here be owned. And indeed what should pebbles do among the pearls and the diamonds of New Jerusalem; or the stones of blackness and emptiness, among the saints of light (Job 28:3). I tell you, that those which God doth reckon the adorning-stones, they are all and every one, precious stone; they must be all lively, glistering, and curious stones, though stones of divers colours (1 Peter 2:5; 1 Chron 29:2). Antichrist counts anything sufficient enough to garnish his apostles with, even the empty stones of confusion, the sinners that have no more grace in their souls then there is sap in a post that hath been this twenty years without either sap or water (Isa 34:11). But God will not count such for the beauty of his word, nor for the garnishing and beautifying of the doctrine of the twelve, they are garnished with PRECIOUS STONES.

Second Consideration. As he saith the foundations are garnished with precious stones only, so he saith it is with ALL MANNER of precious stones: by which he would have us understand that all saints have not the same degree either of precious grace or gifts and virtue in them. There are some that excel and differ from the rest, even as one star differeth from another in glory (1 Cor 14:12). Some saints, as they have both more grace and also gifts than others; so too they are more laborious and painful in the work of God than their fellows, and therefore he saith, ALL MANNER of precious stones (Pro 31:29; 1 Cor 15:10,41).

[The Foundations, what they are, with their order of placing.]

Ver. 20. ‘The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite’; &c. Thus having showed you the garnishing and beautifying of the twelve foundations, he now comes to discover the foundations themselves, with reference to their order of placing and lying.

[The First Foundation.] Touching which order, he saith the first and bottom foundation is a jasper.

I have hitherto said that this jasper in both the two afore-mentioned places, both as to the light of this city, and also of the wall, it was Jesus Christ: Christ illuminating, and Christ defending.

But here the jasper is said to be one of the twelve foundations, even one of those foundations in which are writ the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, which one would think did put this jasper now into another state, even to be a representation of one of the twelve apostles, and not of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ himself. To which I shall yet say, that the jasper here in the order of the foundations, is to be understood of Christ, as well as in the other two places in this discourse; I say it is yet to be understood of representing the Lord Jesus, though it also doth bear the name of one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And in this very thing there is an infolding mystery wrapped up and inclosed. For,

First. In that the name of an apostle is writ in this stone, and yet that this jasper should represent Christ, it showeth unto us the agreement that is between the doctrine of the apostles and Christ himself, to wit, that they are one and the very same; and hence it is that the apostle saith, ‘We preach Christ crucified’

(1 Cor 1:23,24). Christ in all his benefits is the very marrow, life, and sum of all their teaching. ‘Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ’ (1 Cor 3:11).

Wherefore the doctrine of the apostles being Christ itself, no marvel