William Perkins,
Commentary on Hebrews 11:40,
Works III, pp. 394-397

“God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11:40).

“For us”—that is, for the church in the New Testament, where note that God’s church and the state thereof in the New Testament is better than it was in the Old before the coming of Christ. The Holy Ghost here speaks this plainly, and therefore we need no further proof thereof.

Question. How should it be better with the church now than it was then?

Old & New Covenants Are Both Administrations of the Covenant of Grace.

Answer. True it is that God gave the Covenant of Grace in the beginning to our first parents in paradise, the sum whereof was this: “The seed of the woman shall break the serpent’s head.” And this covenant did God renew and revive unto His church from time to time in all ages, unto this day. Both circumcision and the Passover were seals of this covenant, as well as our sacraments be, so that in substance they differ not. The free gift of grace in Christ belonged to them as well as unto us. The believing Jews in their sacraments did eat the same spiritual meat and drink the same spiritual drink with us (as the apostle witnesses in 1 Cor. 10:3), and believers then obtained the same eternal life that we do now by faith.

And yet if we regard the manner of administering the Covenant of Grace in God’s church unto the people of God, herein does the church of the New Testament far surpass the church of God in the Old; and indeed herein conflicts the preeminence of the church under the gospel, which stands in five things especially:

Five Ways the New Covenant Surpasses The Old.

First, in the Old Testament, spiritual and heavenly things were propounded unto the church under temporal and earthly blessings. This is plain by God’s dealing with the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for the Lord promised unto them the temporal blessings of the land of Canaan under which He signified the gift of life everlasting in the kingdom of heaven. But in the New Testament life everlasting is plainly promised to the believer without any such type or figure.

Secondly, in the Old Testament Christ was shown and signified unto them in ceremonies, rites, and types, which were in number many and in signification some of them dark and obscure. But now these types and ceremonies are abolished, the shadow is gone, and the substance come (Col. 2:17). And instead of dark signs and figures, we have two most plain and sensible sacraments. More plainly, the Covenant of Grace in the Old Testament was sealed by the blood of lambs as signs of the blood of Christ, but now to His church in the New Testament Christ Himself has sealed His testament by His own blood (1 Cor. 11:25).

Thirdly, in the Old Testament all the knowledge they had was in the law, and their understanding in the gospel was obscure and very slender. But in the New Testament not only the law is made manifest but also the supernatural knowledge of the gospel.

Fourthly, the law was only committed and published to one nation and people, but the gospel is spread and preached to all the world.

And lastly, the church in the Old Testament believed in Christ to come, but now the church believes in Christ which is already come and exhibited, in all which respects the church in the New Testament does exceed the church of the Old.

Now, where the text says, “God provided a better thing for us,” we must not understand it of all these prerogatives, but only of the first and last, touching the actual exhibiting of Christ in the flesh, as Christ also imports, “Blessed are the eyes which see that that ye see; for, I tell you, many prophets and kings have desired to see those things ye see, and have not seen them” (Luke 10:23–24). Which things we must understand of the incarnation of Christ. And that this is such a prerogative to the New Testament appears by old Simeon, who when he had seen Christ in the temple, as it was promised to him, sang unto God this song: “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for, mine eyes have seen thy salvation” (Luke 2:29)—as if he should say, “I have now Lord lived long enough; let me now depart in peace, seeing now I have seen thy Christ, my Savior (where see he makes it a matter of full contentment unto his soul), which the believers under the law saw not.”

A Greater Responsibility.

Hence we must learn our duty; for if our state be now better than the state of the Old Testament was, and if we enjoy privileges denied to God’s ancient servants before and under the law, then undoubtedly we ought to strive to go before them in grace and obedience—for every man’s accounts shall be according to his receipts. He that receives five talents must make account to return more than he that receives two. Where God is more abundant in His mercy, there He looks for answerable thankfulness and obedience. We go beyond the ancient church in five things, and therefore we must stir up our hearts to be answerable in grace and obedience going beyond them. But if for all this we come short of them in these things, then surely our case is fearful, and our punishment shall be the greater; for they that had less prerogative shall be witnesses against us, if they go beyond us in obedience.

“That they without us might not be made perfect”—that is, might not be fully glorified. Here is the reason why Christ was not exhibited in their days. Indeed, all true believers before Christ were justified and sanctified and in soul received to glory before us; yet perfected in soul and body both they must not be before us, but we must all be perfected together. Now His will herein He brings thus to pass. All must be perfected in Christ, but He will not have Christ to come and suffer till the fullness of time came “in these last days” (Heb. 1:2), as the apostle speaks, that the believers living in these days might have time of being in the church to be called, justified, and sanctified, that so they might be glorified with them that lived before. For put the case that Christ had suffered in the days of Abraham or David or thereabout, then the end of the world must needs have come the sooner, for so it was foretold that Christ should come in the latter ages of the world (1 Peter 1:20). Now, if the world had been sooner cut off, then had there not been time of birth and calling for the elect that now live and shall live. Therefore, for their sakes was Christ’s coming deferred till the fullness of time. And this I take to be the meaning of the words.

Now, in that the Holy Ghost here says, “The members of Christ in the New Testament must be perfected, with all the ancient believers in the Old,” we must hereby be admonished to conform ourselves unto these ancient fathers in the participation of grace and practice of obedience in this life. For how can we look to be glorified with them after this life, if here we be not like them in grace? Christ tells His followers “that many should come from the east and from the west, to sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven (because they were followers of these Patriarchs in the faith), when as the children of the kingdom (that is, many Jews by birth born in the church) should be cast into utter darkness” (Matt. 8:11-12). Now if Christ deny to glorify the children and posterity of these ancient believers because they did not follow them in grace and in obedience, how can we which are by nature sinners of the Gentiles look to be glorified with them, unless in grace and obedience we conform ourselves unto them?