affections. In other words, when used to refer to spiritual things, it includes all that is meant by spiritual discernment. It is the apprehension of the spiritual excellence of the things of God and the affectionate response to them. Therefore, it is not merely an outward revelation that the apostle speaks of here. The wisdom and understanding which God has so abundantly communicated includes both the objective revelation and the subjective understanding of it. This is the third great blessing which