into one Church:  “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether bond or free,” 1 Cor. xii. 13.  Now this union or conjunction of Jews and Gentiles into one body, one Church, is only done under the New Testament; see Eph. ii. 11, to the end of the chapter. 2.  The officers here mentioned to be set in this Church, are only the New Testament officers, ver. 28. 3.  The scope of the whole chapter is to redress abuses of spiritual gifts in the church of Corinth, which was a church under the New Testament; and therefore it would have been too remote for the apostle to have argued from the several distributions of gifts peculiar to the officers or members of the Church under the Old Testament.

2.  The governments here mentioned are officers set in this church as governors, or rulers therein:  “Hath set some in the Church, first, apostles—­governments.”  For clearing of this, consider the enumeration here made; the denomination of these officers, governments; and the constitution or placing of these governments in the Church. 1.  The enumeration here made is evidently an enumeration of several sorts of church officers, some extraordinary, to endure but for a time, some ordinary, to continue constantly in the Church; to this the current of interpreters doth easily subscribe:  and this the text itself plainly speaks; partly, if we look at the matter, viz. the several officers enumerated, which are either extraordinary, these five, viz. apostles, prophets, powers, or miracles, gifts of healing, and kinds of tongues:  these continued but for a season, during the first founding of Christian churches:  (the proper and peculiar work of these extraordinary officers, what it was, is not here to be disputed.) Or ordinary, these three, viz. teachers, (there is the preaching elder,) governments, (there is the ruling elder,) helps, (there is the deacon;) these are the officers enumerated; and however there be some other officers elsewhere mentioned, whence some conceive this enumeration not to be so absolutely perfect, yet this is undoubtedly evident, that it is an enumeration of officers in the church:  partly, this is evident, if we look at the manner of the apostle’s speech, which is in an enumerating form, viz. first, secondly, thirdly, afterwards, then:  and partly, it is evident that he intended to reckon up those officers that were distinct from all other parts of the mystical body of Christ, by his recapitulation, “Are all apostles, are all prophets?” &c., ver. 29, 30, i.e. not all, but only some members of the body are set apart by God to bear these offices in the church.  Now, if there be here a distinct enumeration of distinct officers in the church, as is evident; then consequently governments must needs be one of these distinct church officers, being reckoned up among the rest; and this is one step, that governments are in the roll of church officers