PROPOSITION I. Of Man's misery by his fall.

MAN being lapsed and fallen from God into a state of sin and misery, beyond all pos­sibility of recovery, either by means of his own, or the assistance of any created Power, it then pleased Di­vine Goodness to take up thoughts, not only to restore, but to advance him to a more sta­ble and transcendent felicity, than that in and to which he was at first created. This [Page 2] we have most emphatically represented in the Prophet, by the resemblance of a new-born Infant cast out in the open field, in its men­struous blood and uncleanness, having nei­ther hand to help, nor eye to pity it, Ezek. 16.3, 4, 5, &c. These words, I confess, are spoken with a particular reference to the Pri­mitive state of the Jews, at which time they were Heathen and Idolaters, being not yet called out of the World, and brought into the Bond of the New Covenant. But since they were then in no worse condition, than the rest of the degenerate Sons of Men; there being at first no distinction betwixt Jew and Gentile, till Free Grace stept in and made the difference, this Text commonly is, and with­out any violence offered to it, may be taken in a more large and extensive sense, and so be applyed, not only to the Sons of Heber, the Jews; but to the whole Seed of Adam, Man universally considered. When they and we, and all Mankind, lay wallowing in their blood and uncleanness, then God passing by, and beholding us in this miserable and for­lorn condition, he was pleased to make it a time of love. Joh. 3.16. God so loved the World (not only the Jews) that he gave his only begotten Son, &c. At the same time when God passed by apostate Angels, and left them in Chains of Eternal Darkness without relief, he then casts his skirts over degenerate Man, [Page 3] and covers his nakedness, and in conclusion not only washeth him from his blood and pollution, but anoints him with Oyl, and cloaths him with broidered Work, and sets a Crown of Glory upon his head, and makes him (by the Ornaments he at last puts upon him) exceeding beautiful, as the Prophets expression there is, concerning the Jewish Na­tion, to which I here allude.

PROPOS. II. Of Man's recovery by Jesus Christ.

THAT this great Design of Man's Re­demption might be carried on, and ef­fected in a way most agreeable to the just and righteous Nature of God, and most for the honour and advancement of his Divine Per­fections, his Holiness, Justice, Truth, Good­ness, &c. as also, that might lay the surest foundation for the Faith and Hopes of a guil­ty and despondent Creature; God was plea­sed to send his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, the second Person in the Deity, to assume the Humane Nature, that so he might become a fit Mediator and Surety for Man, who by his obeying and suffering in his stead, might make attonement and satisfa­ction [Page 4] for sin, and propitiate God to Sinners▪ This we have every where declared in Scrip­ture, as the only way and medium by which God designs to save degenerate Man: Joh. 3.16. Esa. 53.6. and 10. ver. Gal. 4.4, 5. Eph. 5.2. Gal. 3.13. 2 Cor. 5.21. Math. 20.28. 1 Tim. 2.6. 1 Joh. 4.10. Rom. 3.24, 25, 26.

From these several places 'tis plainly evi­dent, that God, being moved by his own es­sential Goodness, did so far compassionate the case of fallen Man, as to give his own Son to be a Ransom and Propitiation for their sins, by being made under the Law, and bearing the Curse and Penalties threatned by it, there­by declaring to the world, that he was a righ­teous God, loving Righteousness and hating Iniquity, as the Psalmist hath exprest it, Psal. 11.5.7.

And thus God having made sufficient pro­vision, by the Obedience and Sufferings of his own Son, that his Soveraign Authority over the Creature might be owned, and the Equity and Goodness of his Law acknow­ledged; and the Threatnings therein denoun­ced fulfilled, and his Holiness vindicated, and his Hatred against sin, and vindictive Justice upon offenders declared, and Man for ever discouraged from sin by hopes of impunity: This, I say, being effected by the undertaking of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, he may now [Page 5] freely pardon the guilty Creature, and read­mit him into his favour, and advance him to the fruition of an Eternal Happiness and Glo­ry, without either offering any violence to his own Righteous Nature, or weakning the order and foundations of his Government over the World, or eclipsing the Glory of any of his sacred Attributes. And as God hath hereby abundantly secured his own Ho­nour, so hath he also by the same means most effectually relieved the Creature against his guilty Fears, and laid a sure and firm foun­dation for Faith and Hopes in his Mercy. Man having sinned against God, 'tis impossible but the sense of his own guilt and danger should affect his Soul with amazing fears and jealou­sies, especially when he should entertain any serious thoughts of the holy Nature of God, (his Majesty, Power, and Justice) or of the strictness and severity of his Laws. No soon­er had Adam sinned but he runs away from God, and seeks to hide himself from his pre­sence. I, but when the guilty offender shall now be assured from the mouth of God him­self, that he hath found a Ransom, and re­ceived full and abundant satisfaction at the hands of Jesus Christ, his Surety, for all that wrong that sin had done him, so that now he may at the same time be merciful to the sinner, and yet take full vengeance upon his sin; or as the Apostle speaks to the same pur­pose, [Page 6] that he may be just, and yet the justifier of them that believe in Jesus, Rom. 3.26. Yea that he may now reap as much Glory to him­self, in pardoning humble and repenting sin­ners, as if he had executed the Curse and Pe­nalties of his violated Law upon them: When the sinner, I say, shall be well assured of this, his despondent fears and jealous thoughts of God must needs vanish, as Clouds and Darkness before the rising Sun, and his Soul be quickened and encouraged to address it self with Faith and Confidence to the Throne of Grace, for Pardon and Acceptance. 1 Pet. 1.18.21. Heb. 4.15, 16. For if God the only party offended and concerned will acquit the humble sinner, who then shall con­demn him? as the Apostle argues, Rom. 8.33, 34.

PROPOS. III. Of the Covenant of Redemption.

THIS glorious Contrivance and Design for the recovery of fallen Man, was transacted between God the Father and the Son, by mutual stipulation and agree­ment: The Father promising to his Son a rich recompence of reward upon his under­taking [Page 7] to satisfie for Man's offence by his death and sufferings; and the Son likewise engaging to the Father, upon these terms, to make satisfaction. And this is that which by Divines is now called the Covenant of Redemption, to distinguish it from the Co­venant of Grace, or the New Covenant, as most commonly stiled in Scripture, made with Believers through Christ. A distinction highly necessary, and consequently not to be past by without a due observation, in order to our better understanding the Nature and Obligation of this Gospel Covenant, which is the main thing intended in this whole Dis­course: But where doth Scripture, without whose warrant we ought not to admit any Ar­ticle into our Creed, mention any such thing as God's covenanting with Christ for his Re­deeming of the World? For this some refer us to Psal. 89. v. 3, 4.28. &c. to v. 38. The main Contents of this Psalm, do, I confess imme­diately relate to David and his Natural Seed. Nor can this be questioned, since the substance of what we have here recorded, was by Na­than the Prophet expresly delivered to him from the Lord, upon his declared intention to build an House to his Name, 2 Sam. 7. 1 Kings 17. All which is afterwards particu­larly applyed to Solomon his Son, who next succeeded him in the Throne, 1 Chron. 22.10. 1 Kings 6.12. And therefore the literal sense [Page 8] of this place, so far as the words will bear it, ought not to be excluded. But yet, this be­ing granted, 'twill not therefore follow but that the former interpretation of the words may also be admitted. Immediately they may respect David and his Seed, and yet ul­timately they may refer to Christ, as prefigu­red by him. Jesus Christ we know, in the prophetick stile of the Old Testament, is fre­quently called by the name of David, Jer. 30.9. as Believers also are called his Seed. 'Tis not unusual therefore, in this Book of Psalms, to ascribe such things to David and Solomon, being eminent Types of Christ, as are either proper only to Christ the Antitype, or appli­cable to them only as they were some way or other representative of him; which is a thing so commonly known, and evident in it self, as that I shall not need to give my self or o­thers the trouble to prove it. And why may not the Psalmist be allowed to speak here in the same dialect, principally intending Christ, by what he relates of himself and natural seed? Especially if it be considered that se­veral expressions here used in this Psalm are such as signally belong to Christ, as some of his Royal Titles, and Jewels of his Crown. As for instance, his being The elect and chosen of the Lord, Math. 12.18. Luke 23.35 His Holy One Acts 3.14. His First-born, Heb. 1.6. His Mighty One, Esa. 9.6. Higher than the [Page 9] Kings of the Earth, Phil. 2.9. Upon which account Calovius is positive in his assertion, that the 19. verse of this Psalm is spoken uni­cè de Christo, of Christ alone, and not at all of David and his literal seed. Besides, many of the priviledges here mentioned were ne­ver in a literal sense made good either to Da­vid or Solomon, or any of their succeeding Race; though all to Christ: As that his seed should be established for ever, and his Throne to all Generations, ver. 4. That his hand sh [...]uld be in the Sea, and his right hand in the mighty Rivers, v. 25. That he should be higher than the Kings of the Earth, v. 27. That his Seed and Throne should endure as the days of Heaven, ver. 29.36, 37. But when was David or So­lomon, or any of their Successors higher than the Kings of Assyria or Persia, by whom they were carried Captives? Or when did they rule from Sea to Sea, from the Mediter­ranean to Euphrates? Or how was his Throne and Seed established as the Sun and Moon in the Heavens for ever? When not long after this Promise here recorded, Coniah, the Son of Jehoiakim, and in him the whole Race of David, were, for their violating of God's Covenant, finally rejected, from sitting up­on his Throne, Jerem. 22.28, 29, 30. And by the succeeding Prophet 'tis more than in­timated, that all this was but to make way for the Messiah, who was principally inten­ded [Page 10] in the Promise made to David, Ezek. 21.25, 26, 27. in whom we find a punctual accom­plishment of all here promised, both as to the establishment of his Throne, Heb. 1.8. and the extent of his Government, Zech. 9.10. and the subjection of his Enemies, Psal. 110.1. and the exaltation of his Name and Power, Rev. 17.14. and 19.16.

To all which it might be added, that the Pen▪men of the New Testament, who best understood the meaning of the Spirit speak­ing by the Prophets in the Old, do apply this Psalm, at least several passages of it, to Jesus Christ, as may be seen by comparing these places following; ver. 3, 4. with Acts 13.23. ver. 26, 27, 28, 29. with Heb. 1.5.8. ver. 28.33, 34, 35. with Acts 13.34. ver. 36, 37. with Luke 1.32, 33. If this then (which is the judgment of most Interpreters upon the place) may be admitted to be the Pro­phets meaning and intendment in this Psalm, we have here an evident proof of a Covenant made with Christ, represented to us by that made with David and his Seed. But not to insist further upon this, Scripture is not want­ing elsewhere, though not in express terms, yet in words to the same import, to bear witness to this Truth. Hence we read of the Counsel betwixt them both, Zech. 6.13. of a Command received from the Father for Christ to lay down his life for his sheep, which [Page 11] were given to him, Joh. 10.18. of his finish­ing the work which his Father gave him to do, Joh. 17.4. of a promise of eternal life before the world began, Tit. 1.2. of Grace given to Believers before the Foundations of the Earth were laid, 2 Tim. 1.9. of his en­during the Cross and despising the shame for the joy that was set before him, Heb. 12.2. and to name no more, of his coming to do the will of his Father, and having his Law within his heart, Psal. 40.8. And what was that but the mediatory Law, which past be­twixt him and the Father, for his assuming the Nature of Man, in order to his making satisfaction for him by his death and suffer­ings? And therefore 'tis said in the forego­ing words, a body hast thou prepared me, for so the Author to the Hebrews renders those words of the Psalmist, mine ears hast thou bored, Heb. 10.5. of which more afterwards. But if what hath been already said, be not thought sufficient to demonstrate the truth of this Proposition, let but these following Scriptures be consulted, and weighed in an equal balance, and I cannot doubt but they will abundantly satisfie the mind of the most scrupulous in this point, excepting they be resolved, contrary to the clearest evidence to adhere to their own mistaken sentiments. Psal. 2.7, 8, 9. Phil. 2.5. to the 12. 1 Joh. 10.15, 16, 17, 18.27, 28, 29. and to name [Page 12] no more, Esa. 53. The very word Covenant 'tis acknowledged doth not here occur. But that's not the thing in question, whether this transaction betwixt the Father and the Son be here or elsewhere (though that hath been already proved) expresly called by that name; for if nothing were to be owned for Divine Truth, but what is so delivered to us in Scripture, we must then give a Bill of di­vorce to many of the grand Articles of our Faith: But whether it be not exprest by such terms and phrases as do necessarily sig­nifie and import all that which is essential to and is commonly meant and understood by the word Covenant. For the proof of which, two things we learn from the Scriptures be­fore mentioned, that are naked and open to every observan [...] eye: First, That Jesus Christ engageth in the behalf of those whom the Father had given to him, to take their Na­ture, to bear their Infirmities, to be woun­ded for their transgressions, and make his Soul an Offering for their sins, &c. And on the other hand, that the Father thereupon promiseth to him, by way of reward, that he should see of the fruit of his soul and be satisfied, that he would divide him a portion with the great, and the spoil with the strong, and that he would exalt him, and make him head over all Principalities and Power, and give him a Name above every Name, that [Page 13] every knee should bow and every tongue con­fess him to the glory of God the Father, &c. And as upon this consideration he was com­fortably supported under, and joyfully tri­umphed over all his sufferings▪ Heb. 12.2. So likewise having perfectly accomplish [...] the work he undertook upon these terms▪ he pleads it with his Father as the reason why he should be exalted and reassumed to Glory, Joh. 17.4, 5. And what can all this signifie less, than what we commonly understand and express by the word Covenant? And when the thing it self is so evidently declared in Scripture, why should we scruple to call it by that name? any more than we do to call that original sin which we derived from Adam; or the Law given to him, the natural Covenant; or the union of the Divine and Humane Nature in the person of Christ, the Hypostatical Union; or the three Persons in the Godhead, the Trinity; or the Lords Sup­per, a Sacrament, &c. which are words no where to be found in Scriprure? Yet since the things themselves which ar [...] signified by them, may be found there, 'tis thought sufficient to justifie the use of them.

I have the rather insisted upon this Argu­ment, because the confounding of these two Covenants, this I mean of Redemption with that of the Gospel, and making them but one, which, as will afterwards be made more [Page 14] fully to appear, are vastly different, and con­sequently to be distinguisht, hath been the fundamental cause of those several Contro­versies and Mistakes, that have been concern­ing the Gospel Covenant.

PROPOS. IV. Of Christ's actual Satisfaction by his Obedience and Sufferings.

JEsus Christ, according to the tenour of this Eternal Covenant, did in time assume the Humane Nature, and therein, as Man's Sure­ty, actually do and perform all that the Law of Righteousness required at the hands of the guil [...]y Creature, and consequently all that was any way requisite, either to the repairing of his Fathers Honour, or effecting the Crea­tures Redemption and Happiness. Psal. 40.6, 7, 8. God had for some while taken his Sons word, and saved souls upon his single pro­mise of making satisfaction in their behalf, and in the interim accepted of typical Sacri­fices and O [...]lations, the blood of Bulls and Goats, as daily memorials of what he ex­pect [...]d from the hands of h [...]s own Son, though not as things pleasing and acc [...]pt [...]ble in them­selves: Yea, but now God will no longer ad­mit [Page 15] of these Shadows, or be satisfied with Bonds or Promises, but requires the actual payment of the Debt, and therefore now Christ comes, according to his engagement, to discharge it: Then said I (that is Christ) Lo I come, in the Volume of thy Book it is writ­ten of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God! And for the full accomplishment of this great Undertaking, he cloaths his Divinity with the Humane Nature; A body hast thou prepa­red me, (for so the Author to the Hebrews, chap. 10.5. renders those words of the Psal­mist ( ver. 6.) Mine ears hast thou digged) as was before observed, or as the Apostle expres­seth it, Gal. 4.4. He was made of a Woman, made under the Law: Yea, and being found in fashion as a Man, and in the form of a Ser­vant; subject to the Law of a Creature, he al­so humbled himself, and became obedient, saith the same Apostle, Phil. 2.8. and that not on­ly in some more signal and momentous in­stances of Obedience, but even to the least tittle and Iota commanded by the Law, Math. 5.17, 18. He fulfilled all Righteousness, and he tells you it behov [...]d him so to do, Mat. 3.5.

Nor yet did he only thus render himself subject to the Commands of the Law, and pay a perfect active obedience to them, but he also undertook and suffered the most ri­gorous penalties, that were therein threat­ned against sinners. He was a man of sorrows, [Page 16] and acquainted with our griefs: He was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities, and the chastisement of our peace was upon him, Esa. 53.3, 4, 5. He was in all things tempted, or afflicted, even as we are tempted, sin only excepted, Heb. 4.15. He loved us, and gave himself for us an Offering and a Sacrifice to God, for a sweet smelling sa­vour, Ephes. 5.2. He humbled himself, and be­came obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross, Phil. 2.8. He was made sin for us, who knew no sin, &c. 2 Cor. 4.18, 19. Yea a Curse, that we might be blessed, Gal. 3.13. And all this that he might ransom our souls, Math. 20.28. and propitiate God to sinners, 1 Joh. 2.2. and vindicate his Fathers Autho­rity, Law, and Justice, his Truth and Holi­ness, that he might, consistent with his ho­nour, pardon the guilty Creature, and reac­cept him into favour, Rom. 3.25, 26. And thus Jesus Christ by his active and passive Obe­dience (which here are not to be separate, or distinguished, since both were paid solely upon the sinners account) finished the whole work which his Father gave him to do, in order to Man's recovery, Joh. 17.4. and so being made perfect through sufferings, he became the Author of eternal salvation to all them that obey him, Heb. 5.9.

PROPOS. V. Of the application of Christ's Merits to sinners.

THE saving fruits and benefits intended to sinners by the Obedience and Suffer­ings of Jesus Christ, they do not actually and of necessity become theirs, immediately up­on the Satisfaction thereby given, and the Purchase made in their behalf: But before they can be admitted to any actual interest in, or reap any comfortable advantage from either, there is yet somewhat further on their part to be done and performed by them. The Merits of Christ, in dying for sinners, do not necessarily save any, but only as God the Fa­ther, Son and Spirit shall think meet to com­municate, and dispense with the issues of them to the Vessels of Mercy. For all that proper­ly results from the satisfaction of Christ is only this, that the grand obstacle which stood in the way of Mercy, and obstructed its communications to the guilty Offender, that this being removed, God might now be at liberty to pardon and reaccept him unto fa­vour in what way, and upon what terms he pleased, such as he in wisdom should judge most for the honour of his own Being and [Page 18] Perfections. Yea, but not that therefore God must of necessity pardon the sinner what ever come on't, as one well expresseth it. That is, whether he repented or believed or not, or still continued in his Rebellion and Impe­nitency.

Christs Sufferings they were not in a strict sense the Idem, i. e. the very thing which the first Covenant required at the hands of Man, but the tantundem, or an equivalent compen­sation: Not properly solutio debiti, the pay­ment of the debt, but an equitable satisfa­ction for a criminal offence. And according­ly God in this whole transaction is to be con­sidered, not so much as a Creditor, as an offended Magistrate or Governour of the World, that admits (as Seleucus did the put­ting out of one of his own eyes, for the re­demption of his Sons) the suffering of one for another (though of somewhat a different kind and manner) for the maintaining of the honour of his Laws and Government. And therefore God could not be obliged thereby immediately to acquit and discharge the Offender, (since the satisfaction gi­ven in his behalf was refusable) but may in Justice, and for the vindicating of his own Holiness, and retaining the Creature in his due subjection, bring him to terms and con­ditions, before he remit the offence, and be­come actually reconciled to him: Much less [Page 19] was God obliged to this by his own essential goodness: for though the issues and outgoings of his love be most natural and agreeable to his Being: upon which account he is stiled in Scripture a Sun and Fountain; yet are they not like the ebullitions of water from their Fountain, or emanations of light from the Sun, absolutely necessary and involuntary. No, they are still free, though most natural. Else how comes it to pass, that Apostate An­gels were not redeemed from their Chains and Darkness? and the Spirits now in Prison set at liberty, and freed from torments? And the Inhabitants of the Earth that still sit in dark­ness and under the shadows of death, have not the Sun of Righteousness arising upon them with healing in his Wings, as well as we in these Northern Islands? What ever acts by constraint and necessary impulse of Nature, 'tis uncapable of setting any bounds or limits to its own actions, but imparts it self and in­fluences universally, at all times and alike to all. The same Sun shines not to some parts only of the Earth, but equally to both the Hemispheres. And the same Sea and Foun­tains scatter their streams, not only to some few Passengers, but indifferently to all that pass by without exception. And if such were the egress and communications of Divine Love and Goodness, then tell me whence it is, that there is any difference betwixt fallen [Page 20] Angels and degenerate man? Betwixt Jew and Gentile? the Christian and Pagan World? Why is not the whole Earth, India and Ame­rica, as well as Europe, turned into a Goshen, a Land of light, and made as Eden the Gar­den of the Lord? Why is so great a part of it yet left to be as a darksom Egypt or barren Wilderness? Doth not all this sufficiently ar­gue, that the bequeathments, and applicati­on of Christs satisfaction and purchase, with all the rich Fruits that spring from both, are made not by necessity, but ad placitum, ac­cording to the meer good will and pleasure of God to sinners? as the Apostle speaks, Ephes. 1.5. and 9.

PROPOS. VI. Of Gods freedom to prescribe the terms upon which sinners shall be saved.

SInce all the communications of Grace and Mercy to the Creature, even to those that Christ hath redeemed with his blood, are ab­solutely free, and issue forth only according to the Prerogative of the Divine Will and Pleasure, God may therefore give out, and apply the merits of his Sons obedience and sufferings to whom, and in what way and [Page 21] method, and upon what terms he in wisdom shall think meet. He that cast the skirts of his love over the lost Sons of Adam, when he saw them polluted in their own blood, might also, if he had pleased, have made it a time of love to the Apostate Angels, and have put them with Man (since Christs Me­rits were intrinsickly sufficient for both) into the same Act of Grace and Indemnity. And he that hath chosen only some few to be Heirs of Glory, out of the common Mass of Man­kind, might likewise have extended the same mercy and favour to all the rest. Judas as well as Paul might have been an Elect Vessel to the Lord. Yea but one is taken and the other is left, to shew that God hath mercy upon whom he will have mercy, and that whom he will he hardneth, Rom. 9.18.

And as God freely makes choice of the persons whom he will effectually pardon and save by his Son Jesus Christ, so also of the me­diums and ways in and by which this salva­tion shall be dispensed to them, First only in a dark and mysterious Promise, so to Adam, Gen. 3.15. Then more explicitely by actual Covenant, so to Abraham, Gen. 17. After this by Types and Shadows, so to the Jews: And last of all by open and manifest Revelati­on, through the ministration of Christ and his Apostles, so to all under the Gospel Di­spensation, Heb. 1.1, 2. Thus Jesus Christ, [Page 22] and in him salvation, is first promised, then typified, and then exhibited; and that first to the Jews only, but afterwards to the Gen­tiles also: And he surely that makes choice of whom he will, to be the Objects of Mercy, and freely determines in what way and or­der they shall have salvation dispensed to them; he cannot but be alike free to appoint the terms and conditions upon which they actually may be saved. He that hath power to appoint the End, must also have power to appoint the Means by which it may be ob­tained. God in this whole transaction is to be considered, not only as Lord and Gover­nour, but as the offended party and our great Benefactor, and upon all these accounts the Right of prescribing the terms upon which the guilty and condemned Creature shall be admitted to pardon and happiness, properly and solely belongs to God. As he is abso­lute Lord of all, so he may do whatsoever he pleaseth with the Works of his own hands. And as he is rightful Governour over the World, so he may prescribe what Laws he thinks meet for the due government of his Creature. And as pars laesa, the party wrong­ed and offended by Man, he may say upon what terms he will be reconciled to him: And as our great Benefactor, that designed and contrived the way of Mans pardon and salvation, by the death and sufferings of his [Page 23] only begotten Son, he must dispense these be­nefits according to the pleasure of his own Will, Math. 20.15. To save a sinner upon any terms is an act of Grace; but Grace is not Grace unless it be free. He that pardons an Offender, a Traytor, a Rebel, he may bring him to terms, before he pardon him; and he that dispenseth Crowns and Scepters to un­worthy Persons, Beggars, and Miscreants, he may require homage and observance from them, without fear of rendring it no act of Grace.

The truth is, all that Jesus Christ obtained, or can in reason be supposed to design by his undertaking to obtain, at the hands of his Father in the behalf of sinners, was only this, that pardon and salvation might be dispensed to them, upon such terms and in such a way, as might be consistent with the Honour of God, and most for the good and interest of the lapsed, yet reasonable Creatures, whose perfection and happiness lay in his likeness and conformity to his Maker.

That therefore which we are to consi­der, is not so much what is the intrinsick worth and price of Christs blood, or how far it might have been available to the saving sinners, but rather to what ends and purpo­ses God hath accepted it, and in what way, and upon what Conditions 'tis made over to us, that it may become ours. God might [Page 24] by virtue of his Omnipotency have made many Worlds, and yet he hath made only one: and according to the judgment of some, he might by virtue of his absolute Prerogative have pardoned the sinner, with­out the death of his Son, and yet he would not do't without it. And possibly he might upon the account of his Sons undertaking, have saved sinners by other means, and up­on other terms than those he hath now decla­red in the Gospel, and yet these he hath only made choice of, as they by which they shall be saved. And therefore the actual determi­nations of his Will in this particular (which he hath fully made known to us by his Word) are the things which we are concerned to ob­serve and attend to, if ever we expect to have any lot or portion in the Grace and Glory that Jesus Christ hath purchased.

PROPOS. VII. Of God's transacting with Man by Covenant.

THE particular way, and medium, that Divine Wisdom hath been pleased to make choice of, in, and by which to interest sinners in the saving benefits of his Son's un­dertaking, [Page 25] 'tis per modum Foederis, by way of Covenant, or mutual Compact betwixt himself and the Creature. What this Cove­nant is, and whether a Covenant in a proper sense, that is afterwards to be enquired in­to; that which now I have to make good, is to shew in general, that 'tis by Covenant that the Fruits of Christ's death are made over to us. And here it is to be observed, That this is the way in which God hath ever treated Man, both before, and since his fall. For though God, by virtue of his absolute Sove­raignty and Dominion over the Creature, might have imposed what Laws he thought meet upon Man, and have exacted perfect and perpetual Obedience at his hands, with­out ever giving, much more without obli­ging himself to give, any thing by way of reward for his obedience: And though Man, by virtue of his necessary and essential depen­dance upon God, from whom he received his all, was thereupon indispensably obliged to obey, and serve him so long as he had a Be­ing; yet such hath been the particular good will and bounty of God to Man, that he ne­ver yet dealt with him stricto jure, or in a way of absolute Right and Dominion, but rather hath chosen to encourage him to obe­dience by the promises of reward. That God indeed should give Man a Law, that, suppo­sing him a reasonable Creature fit for Govern­ment, [Page 26] seems no less than necessary; yea, but that God should turn his Laws into a Cove­nant, and thereby make himself a Debtor to his Creature, as Augustine speaks; that is, become ingaged to Man, to reward him for that service, which was antecedently due to him, this is to be deemed an act of meer Grace and infinite condescension. But thus was God pleased from the first to treat Adam, whilst yet he was in his primitive state of in­tegrity. This generally is conceived to be the meaning of those words, Gen. 2.16, 17. And the Lord God commanded the Man, saying, Of every Tree of the Garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the Tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat of it, for in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely dye.

In these words, we have first an express command given to Adam, that he should not eat of the Tree of knowledge of good and evil, together with a free and gracious con­cession to eat of the Fruit of every Tree of the Garden, excepting that; as also a severe commination annexed to this Grant and Command, assuring him that if he should dare to eat of the forbidden Fruit he should certainly dye; and in this threatning there is a promise also necessarily implyed (since all Negatives are judged to include their contra­ry Affirmatives) that if he continued in his obedience to the Law of God, he should not [Page 27] dye but live, and so we find the Apostle com­menting upon the words, Rom. 10.5. and Gal. 3.12. And a Positive Law requiring obedience of the Creature, to which there is annexed a promise of some good, provided he continue to pay and perform the homage and duties required of him, together with a threatning of evil and punishment in case of default, this according to the proper meaning and import of the word, is no other than a Covenant, supposing only that both parties do mutually agree, and yield their consent to the terms, which in the case in hand is sufficiently evident: First on Gods part, since he made and propounded this Law, with its respective immunities and conditions to Man. And on Man's part also 'tis necessary to be supposed, since he being but a Creature essen­tially depending upon his Maker, is thereby essentially obliged, to give his consent to whatever he shall please to propose to him. But however we shall please to call this, whe­ther a Law or Covenant, no sooner was this primitive institution made void by Man's transgression in eating of the forbidden fruit, but God is pleased to erect a Covenant of Grace for life and salvation with fallen Man; the first foundations of which we have laid in that first Evangelical promise, Gen. 3.15. The Seed of the Woman shall break the Ser­pents head. The Promise indeed is absolute, [Page 28] and nothing therein is mentioned, more than that God would raise up a Saviour unto Man, from the Seed of the Woman, by whom he fell. But who knows, how far God might or did further discover himself to Adam, and the Primitive Ages of the World, either as to this or other concerns of his and their du­ty and reward; since 'tis abundantly evident, that in the Revelations made to Moses, God's design was not to make known all the trans­actions that had before past betwixt himself and the Creature, but only such as were most requisite for the People of Israel, and the suc­ceeding Generations to be acquainted with? Besides 'tis impossible, that the particularities of all transactions for so many hundreds of years, should all be recounted and summed up in so short an History, as that of Genesis. Yet this we find, that the Sons of Adam, im­mediately upon the giving out of this graci­ous promise, offer Sacrifice to the Lord, which is a sufficient testimony, (1.) Of their own guilt, that they had sinned, and deserved to dye, acknowledged in the death of the Sacri­fice. (2.) Of their Faith in a Messiah, and ex­pectation of salvation by his death and suffer­ings, typified in those of the Beasts they of­fered. For as the Apostle argues in his Epi­stle to the Hebrews, chap. 10.4. 'Tis impossi­ble that the Blood of Bulls and Goats should take away sin: And yet without shedding of [Page 29] blood he also tells us there is no remission, chap. 9.22. and therefore by necessary con­sequence, only by the blood of Jesus Christ, which he also infers, chap. 9. v. 10.14. (3.) Of their obedience, and entire resignati­on of themselves to the Divine Will. And in these three you have the substance of all that the Covenant requires on the Creatures part to be performed.

But what ever were the methods (not par­ticularly made known to us) in which God treated the first Ages of the World, yet so soon as ever he began to frame a peculiar Peo­ple to himself, and to make any inclosures, wherein to plant an holy Seed, he then more expresly engageth them to himself, and makes them his by way of Covenant. Thus he treats with Abraham, Gen. 15.18. And afterwards with the Israelites, the multiplyed Seed of Abraham, Exod. 24. And because there were certain Shadows, and temporal Appendices annext to this Covenant, which were only suited to the infancy of the Church, the pre­sent State of the Jews, and therefore to be abolished, at the appearance of the promised Messiah; he further declares by his Prophets, that when this should be done away, he would yet make another Covenant with them, and all his Saints, comprehended under the name of Israel, Jer. 31, 32, 33, &c. Ezek. 34.25. and 37.26. which the Author to the Hebrews [Page 30] applies expresly to the Gospel times, Heb. 10.16.8.9, 10, 11, 12, 13. As all our Mercies are purchased for us by the blood of Christ, so they are given and conveighed to us only by the Covenant founded in his blood. From first to last all's by Covenant. Doth he give Adam an earthly Paradise? Abraham a blessed Seed? Israel the Land of Canaan? and the Saints in all ages a Crown and Kingdom of Life and Glory? 'tis still by Covenant. Yea, our very temporal Blessings become ours, not by virtue of any absolute grant and donati­on, but by a federal right, 1 Tim. 4.8. And therefore 'tis no good plea to argue thus, Je­sus Christ hath given full satisfaction to the Father, and fulfilled all righteousness, and purchased eternal life and glory, and there­fore there's no doubt but our sins will be par­doned, and our Souls saved. No, Whatever Jesus Christ hath done and suffered, or pur­chased by either, we for our parts can expect no more advantage by it, than what the new Covenant makes over to us, nor upon any o­ther terms than what are therein propounded, nor yet, without presumption, lay claim to any right or propriety in any of the benefits resulting from it, unless we can first prove our selves to be within the Bond of the Co­venant. For though the satisfaction that Jesus Christ hath made be the foundation of our general hopes in God, and incourage­ment [Page 31] in our addresses to him for mercy, yet 'tis the Covenant only that gives us interest and propriety.

PROPOS. VIII. Of the Nature of the New Covenant.

THIS New Covenant, or Gospel Con­veyance, by which pardon of sin and eternal life, the fruits of Christ's Pur­chase are dispensed to sinners; 'tis not a meer Will and Testament, as some have imagined, but, in the true and proper sense of the word, a formal Covenant.

By Covenant, I mean a mutual agreement and stipulation betwixt God and the Crea­ture, whereby as he freely engageth himself to us, to be our God, i. e. to do us good, and bless us, and give us an everlasting happiness; so we also on the other hand oblige our selves to God to be his People, i. e. his Subjects, to pay him, as far as in us lyes, that homage and observance which he requires of us, that we may be partakers of the mercies promised. This is properly a Covenant, which will yet further appear, when we come to speak of the terms of it.

But a Will or Testament is the act or in­strument [Page 32] of some one single person, whereby he gives, according to the pleasure of his own will, certain Boons and Legacies to some par­ticular persons, to be enjoyed after his de­cease, without any stipulation made or re­quired on their part, in order to their having a right to, or their receiving of them.

By this you see there's a vast difference be­twixt a Covenant and a Testament, both in regard of the subject, and terms, and formal notion of both: That's the joint act of two or more: This only of some one single per­son. That stands upon certain terms and conditions to be performed; This is, at least may be, absolute, without any terms at all. That is by mutual consent and stipulation; This requires neither, at least they are not necessary and essential to its Being. No, Goods or Lands we know are given at will (and therefore called, a Will) without the consent of the Legatee thereto required, nay many times without his knowledge. And the Donations of the Testator however makes them his, and gives him an undoubted right to them, nay though he should despise them, and ever after hate and revile the name of him that gave them. But who will say, that the great blessings of the Gospel, pardon of sin, and the favour of God, and eternal happi­ness, are thus dispensed to sinners? That the Grant which God hath made of them is so [Page 33] wholly absolute, as that it admits of no terms, but that they may become ours without our knowledge, or consent, or professed willing­ness to accept them; nay though we should hate and blaspheme that God that bequea­thed them to us?

It's true, the Covenant it self was first framed by Divine Wisdom and Goodness, be­fore we had any intimations of it. God did not ask the Creature whether he were willing that he should make a Covenant with him, or how it should be made, or what the terms should be. No, but being thus made, and pro­pounded to us, we are now bound to give our own personal consents to the terms of it, or else the blessings of this Covenant can ne­ver actually become ours: I know no such Grant in Scripture made to any, that whe­ther they are willing or not to accept it, and to promise obedience to their Maker, he will yet remit their sins, and save their Souls. On­ly he here declares, that upon his Son's ac­count he will do this for us, provided we will take them upon his terms, and entirely yield our selves up in subjection to him, that hath purchased them for us.

But is it not frequently in Scripture called a Testament, and the New Testament; and doth not the Author to the Hebrews argue it to be so, from the death of Christ, whom he there expresly terms a Testator? Heb. 9.16, 17. [Page 34] 'Tis true, 'tis here called a Testament, and Christ a Testator. But who knows not, that the same thing may have different denomina­tions, according as it relates to different ob­jects? Thus Jesus Christ himself he is called a Prophet, a Priest, a King, a Surety, an Ad­vocate, &c. But will it therefore follow, that he's no Advocate because a Surety, or no King because a Priest and Prophet?

And so again, the same Gospel Dispensa­tion 'tis exprest by several names; 'tis called a Gift, a Promise, a Royal Law, a Testament, a Covenant: but we cannot thence infer, that 'tis no proper Covenant, because term'd a Testament, any more than that 'tis no Law, because a Gift and Promise. All therefore that can rationally be deduced from hence, is only this, That there is some analogy or resemblance betwixt this Evangelical Convey­ance, and those Things the names of which it bears. Thus, as the Good Things therein dispenced are freely given to us, so 'tis a Gift: As God therein becomes engaged to give them, so 'tis a Promise: As we thereby are commanded and directed to obedience, so 'tis a Royal Law: As 'tis founded in the blood of Christ, and became of force to our ad­vantage upon his Death, so 'tis a Testament▪ But still so, as that our actual consent to the terms therein propounded are required, in order to enjoying the Blessings promised, and therefore still a Covenant.

[Page 35]And if we cast but our eye back upon the place before mentioned, Heb. 9. we shall there find, that the Mosaical Dispensation, under which the People of Israel were, is there al­so, as well as that of the Gospel, called a Te­stament, which yet was, and must by any that reads Exod. 24. be acknowledged to be a Covenant in a proper sense, i. e▪ as before ex­prest, a mutual stipulation betwixt God and the Creature.

I, but 'tis not only called a Testament, but the original word, saith a Reverend Divine, in the Hebrew and Greek Language, which we translate Covenant, signifies no more in the judgment of some learned Criticks, than a Will or Testament.

Who these Criticks are is not mentioned, nor shall I here stand to enquire. The ori­ginal word, which we commonly translate Covenant, in the Hebrew is [...], in the Greek [...]; that 'tis well known comes from [...] which signifies either to chuse, or to kill and eat, which is the more usual signi­fication of the word. In the former it de­notes a thing, which two make choice of, and mutually agree about. In the latter it evi­dently relates to the usual manner of making Covenant in those days, which was by Sacri­fice, the Parties passing through the midst of it, being divided, and thereby declaring their consent, and confirming the Agreement. [Page 36] Thus we read, Jer. 34.19. And long before this, the like observance we find in God's first covenanting with Abraham, Gen. 15.10. which was also (as appears from the Testi­mony of their own Prophets, and possibly by derivation from the Jews) in use amongst the ancient Heathen. So that take the word in what sense we please, either as it signifies to chuse, or to kill and divide, it is so far from being appropriate to a Testament, as that 'tis most properly applicable to a Cove­nant. And therefore commonly rendred by those best skilled in the Hebrew Language, by Foedus and Pactum.

And as for the Greek word, which we translate Covenant, though according to its etymology, it may signifie to dispose, or or­der any thing in general, whether it be by Free Gift, or Promise, or Testament, or Co­venant, or any other way; yet it also signi­fies to bargain or agree, or Covenant with another, as is well known to such as are skil­led in that Language.

But suppose after all, that the original words should import no more than a Will or Testament, yet 'twill not therefore follow, that they are not to be taken in any other sense. Since words, we know, receive their principal stamp and authority from common use, which not rarely gives them a various, yea sometimes a far different sense from that [Page 37] which they received at their first birth and pri­mitive institution.

The great thing therefore to be considered, is not what these words may, or according to their original notations ought to signifie; but rather what is the true and most proper Scriptural use of them: for from thence espe­cially we must take the signification of all such words as are expressive of revealed Truths. But, besides what hath been already said upon this Argument, take these follow­ing Considerations, which will more abun­dantly evidence, that the Gospel Dispensati­on is properly Foederal, and not meerly Te­stamental; and that both the Hebrew and Greek words import as much.

1. This is the most frequent use of these words in Scripture. As for the Hebrew word [...] 'tis almost every where in the Old Te­stament made use of to signifie a Covenant, but rarely, if at all, to signifie a meer Will and Testament. For the proof of this it were easie to produce a cloud of Witnesses, but these few following may be sufficient to shew us the true use and meaning of it. Deut. 4.13. and 18. ver. Levit. 26.9.14, 15, and 16. verses. Josh. 24.25. And for the Greek word [...], though it sometimes be ren­dred a Testament, yet to any one that shall but peruse these following Texts, instead of many more, which might be alledged, 'twill [Page 38] be sufficiently evident, that 'tis also used to express a formal Covenant, Acts 7.8. Rom. 9.4. 2 Corinth. 3.15. Gal. 3.15. and 17. ver. Eph. 2.12. Besides, 'tis here to be noted, that this Greek word, which the Writers of the New Testament so frequently make use of, is borrowed from the Septuagint, who con­stantly render the Hebrew word [...] by [...]. So that if that, according both to its notation and use, signifies a Covenant, so must this also, being always put for it in the most authentick translation of the Old Testa­ment, whence 'tis taken.

2. The account which Scripture gives us of the way and method, in which God hath been pleased to treat with Man, concerning eternal life and happiness, doth necessarily in­fer, that 'tis by Covenant in a proper sense, that these Blessings are made over to us: Con­sult but those two famous places, before men­tioned, Gen. 17. where God treats with A­braham, and Exod. 24. where God again treats with Israel, (both, for the main, upon the same account) and you will there find, that there's somewhat more than a meer granting or bequeathing of Blessings and Mercies only by way of Legacy, or absolute Donation. Doth God first promise to Abra­ham, to give him a Numerous Issue, a Blessed Seed, a Land flowing with Milk and Honey; and under these Shaddows, blessings of an [Page 39] higher nature, Grace and Glory? Yea. But what must Abraham now do nothing in or­der to his fruition of them? Yes. He must walk before the Lord, and be upright, Gen. 17.1. He must keep the Covenant, v. 9, 10. and he must circumcise every Male Child in his Family, v. 11, 12, &c. and he must com­mand his Children, and his Houshold after him, to keep the way of the Lord, to do ju­stice and judgment, Gen. 18.19. and the rea­son is there also given, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham, that which he had spoken of him, which is again more expresly declared, Gen. 26.3, 4, 5. Whence 'tis evi­dently manifest, first that there were Com­mandments, Statutes, and Laws annexed to this Covenant made with Abraham; and then in the next place, that he must keep and ob­serve them, that the blessings promised might come upon him.

Again, Doth God engage to Israel to put them in possession of the Promised Land? and to bless them there? Yea, but then they must come before the Lord, and publickly declare their consent to the Covenant, and engage to be obedient to it, Exod. 24.3.7, 8. Deut. 28.1, 2.15.

3. The several acts that are expresly either required of, or ascribed to Man, with refe­rence to this Covenant, speak it to be some­what more than a Testament. As for in­stance, [Page 40] we are said to enter into Covenant with God, Deut. 29.12. And to make, or (as the original there signifies) to cut a Covenant with him. Psal. 50.5. And to join our selves to the Lord by Covenant, Jer. 50.4, 5. And to be brought into the Bond of the Cove­nant, Ezek. 20.37. and to keep or observe his Covenant, Psal. 25.10. and to obey the words of the Covenant, Jer. 11.2, 3, 4, 5. and to perform and stand to the Covenant, 2 Kings 23.2, 3. As also to transgress it, ( Josh. 7.11.) and to break, ( Esa. 24.5.) and not to continue in ( Heb. 8, 9.) or be stedfast in the Covenant, Psal. 78.37. But are these ex­pressions any way applicable to a Will and Testament? or what tolerable sense can we possibly make of them, if so applyed? To make or enter into Covenant with another, is proper language, which every one under­stands: But to join our selves to another by Testament, or to enter into, and make and cut a Will with him, or to be stedfast in it, is a mode of speaking no where to be found. No, all this necessarily implies somewhat of engagement, and duty on our part to God, and not only his bequeathment of Mercy to us, by way of absolute Grant and Dona­tion.

4. But suppose we should after all admit, that 'tis a Testament? Will it therefore fol­low, that its Donations are so absolute, as to [Page 41] be without all Conditions? not so much as requiring our actual consent to them, that they may be ours? May not a Father by Will give and bequeath his Lands or Moneys to his Children, or Friends, with these or the like Priviso's, That they discharge the Debts he owes, and pay the several Legacies he hath given, and allow such Pensions and Annui­ties for charitable uses, as he hath therein ap­pointed, and set apart for that purpose? And are not the parties hereupon obliged (in case they expect any benefit by his Will) to assent to, and perform the Conditions there­to annexed? And if not performed accord­ing to appointment, do they not thereby for­feit their claim to the whole? or rather they never had any legal plea, or title to it, since they accepted not of the terms, upon which it was given to them. Why, all for the main that I am arguing for, is no more but this, viz. That the great Blessings of the Gospel are by the Father, through Christ, made over to sinners, not by any meer absolute Grant or Bequeathment, but upon certain Terms and Considerations, which on their part are to be consented to, and accordingly to be per­formed, that they may be actually interessed in them. And that whoever refuseth to ac­cept of these Terms, and shall not sincerely endeavour the performance of them, they can neither be instated in, or have any lawful [Page 42] claim to any part of that eternal Salvation, which is the fruit of Christ's Satisfaction and Purchase.

In this sense if any one will call the Gospel Grant a Testament, there's little to be said against it, since though the name be different, yet in reality 'tis but the same: Which for­mally comprehendeth in it all the essentials of a Covenant. 'Tis therefore, if you will, a Testament in a Covenant form; or, a Te­stamental Covenant. It partakes of the na­ture of both, but principally of the former. But all this will yet be more amply made to appear by that which follows in the next Pro­position.

PROPOS. IX. Of the Parties with whom the New Covenant is made.

THIS Evangelical Covenant, by which repenting and believing sinners are readmitted to the favour of God, and the fruition of eternal life, 'tis made, not immediately with Christ, for and in the be­half of Believers, but with Believers them­selves, in their own persons, through the mediation of Jesus Christ with the Father. [Page 43] That there is indeed an eternal Covenant esta­blished betwixt God the Father, and God the Son, in order to Man's Redemption, hath already been asserted: but besides this Cove­nant of Redemption (as 'tis now fitly called by our Divines) there is also another Cove­nant; that I mean which the Author to the Hebrews calls the New, and Second Cove­nant, which being of a far different nature from the former, ought accordingly to be di­stinguished from it; and this is that which I say is made betwixt God and Believers. In short, The Covenant of Redemption was made with Christ: The Covenant of Grace with Believers in Christ. To make this more evident, 'tis to be considered, that in every Covenant there must of necessity be two or more persons mutually stipulating and enga­ging to each other. One promising to give or grant somewhat that may accrue to the be­nefit of the other; and another also, that may not only accept of what is so granted, but further engage to return somewhat by way of homage or acknowledgment. Thus in the Legal Covenant the Persons engaging were God and Adam: In the Covenant of Redemption God and Christ: In the Cove­nant of Grace, God and Believers.

Not that our consent was required, or is any way necessary to the framing and draw­ing up this Covenant, as before was hinted: [Page 44] No, that was made without us: Only to the Conditions therein propounded 'tis necessary. Betwixt Man and Man indeed, supposing them to be equals, and each to be sui juris, there no Covenant can be drawn up, or made, at least so, as to be obliging, unless it be by mutual consent and agreement, thereto de­manded and obtained, since betwixt equals there can be no Dominion or Soveraignty, and consequently no right to impose terms upon each other. But betwixt Superiors, and such as are in a state of subjection and depen­dence, the case is far different. The Supreme Magistrate, if he intend to confer Honours or Preferments upon any of his Subjects, or to pardon such as have been disloyal, and have rebelled against him, he may draw up, and propound to them what Conditions or Articles of Agreement he thinks meet; pro­vided they be not unjust and unreasonable, and not to their prejudice: He may require them to make publick acknowledgment of their fault, and to promise homage and subjection to all his Laws and Government, without asking their leave to do it, and they notwith­standing are thereupon obliged to yield their consent thereunto, at least i [...] they expect any benefit by his Act of Grace and Pardon. Now this is the case betwixt God and the Creature. Man he is not only as a Creature, necessarily subject to, and dependent upon [Page 45] God, but, as a degenerate Creature, he's fallen under his displeasure, and become liable to his anger and vindictive justice. And God on the other hand, he's our Soveraign Lord and Governour, that hath an absolute Dominion over us; yet being withall infinitely gracious and compassionate, he hath been pleased to draw up conditions of Peace betwixt himself and fallen Man (which is that we call the New Covenant) wherein he promiseth to pardon our sins, and give us eternal life, pro­vided we repent, and believe, &c. This he hath caused to be printed, and published by his Ambassadors to all the World, and be­sides, that this is a sufficient declaration of his own consent to it, he hath also confirmed it to us by his Oath; and now requires, that we also, each man for himself, should come and seal to these Conditions, (which we all do in Baptism) and solemnly profess our con­sent to them; upon which (but not before) we are actually instated in all the Priviledges and Blessings belonging to this Covenant. But withall let me add, that even they who withhold or deny their consent to it, and resolve never to perform the conditions of it, are notwithstanding necessarily obliged there­unto, not only as it is an act of Grace, in the benefits of which they hope to be parta­kers, but also as 'tis the Royal Law (as the Apostle calls it) of that God who is the Su­preme [Page 46] Governour of the World, from obe­dience to whose Authority 'tis impossible the Creature should be exempted.

But before I proceed to make this good by further proof, it will be necessary to make some short digression, for the clearing the sense of one place of Scripture, that seems at first view to bear open testimony against what I am now pleading for. The place we have Gal. 3.16. Now to Abraham and his Seed were the Promises made. He saith not, And to Seeds, as of many, but as of one, And to thy Seed, which is Christ.

Hence some infer, and they suppose with no less than unquestionable evidence, since 'tis in terms exprest, That the New Covenant is made with Jesus Christ, and not with Be­lievers personally considered, and consequent­ly, that he is the only party that stands en­gaged to the Father, and not they, for the performance of all such terms as this Cove­nant doth require. A strange and dangerous Position, which raseth the very foundations of Christianity, the great design of this be­ing to teach us to deny all ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live godly, righteously and soberly in this present world, Tit. 2.12.

To this it might be sufficient, by way of an­swer, to reply, That since this Text is of doubtful interpretation, it cannot in reason be thought sufficient to warrant an opinion [Page 47] of so great importance, especially since it not only stands alone without a second to confirm it, but that there is abundant evi­dence, both from Scripture and Reason a­gainst it, as is afterwards to be shewn. And 'tis a known and safe rule in interpreting Scripture, that doubtful and obscure places are (and not on the contrary) to be tryed and judged by the light and testimony of such as are more clear and evident.

1. But further, for the better understand­ing the true sense of this place, it is here to be noted, that such is the resemblance that Believers have of Christ, and that intimate union they have with him, as that they are sometimes called by his name, as for the same reason Magistrates are called Gods, Psal. 6.7. and the Children of Jacob are called Jacob, Psal. 44.4. and Israel, Rom. 11.2, 7. and Jerusalem the Lord our Righteousness, Jer. 33.16. and every man by the name of Adam, Psal. 144.3. and so upon the like account Be­lievers they are called Christ, because of that near alliance there is betwixt them. Thus we find this word used by the Apostle, 1 Co­rinth. 12.12. Eph. 4.13. Col. 1.24. Heb. 11.25, 26. compared, Acts 9.4. So that by Christ here we may understand not Christ personal, but Christ mystical, that is, the whole body of Believers, whether Jew or Gentile as jointly united and made one in [Page 48] Christ their head, as the Apostle expresseth it, Eph. 1.22, 23. and chap. 2.13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21. And this I take to be that one Seed to whom the promise is here said to be made.

2. But secondly, As the word may be thus taken, without imposing any new sense up­on it, since 'tis elsewhere so used by the Apo­stle, and Scripture delights to transfer the name of any common Head to those that are either derived from, or representative of it; so it ought also to be taken in this, and no other sense in this place, and that for these following Reasons, which to me render it abundantly evident. For,

1. This sense of the word here doth best suit with the Apostles design and main intend­ment in this, and the following Chapter; which is first to prove that we are justified by Faith in Christ▪ and secondly, that this pri­viledge, with the rest annexed to the Cove­nant of Grace, belonged not only to the Jews, but to the believing Gentiles also. 'Tis well known, that it was the common opini­on of the Jewish Doctors, that if a man lived in a due observance of the Law of Moses, and if, upon any moral miscarriage, he were but punctual in offering Sacrifices and Oblations in that case appointed, his sins were thereby expiated, and he assured of eternal life, and consequently that they were saved by their [Page 49] own righteousness and works of the Law. And because they were originally descended from Abraham, and had the Law and Ora­cles of God, and the holy Temple, &c. amongst them; therefore they rested in the Law, and made their boast of God, as ap­propriate to themselves, being, as they falsly apprehended, the only Seed of Abraham, to whom all the promises of the Covenant did belong, and consequently that the rest of the Nations (whom they termed Gentiles) could have no lot or portion in this matter, but were eternally excluded from all hopes of ac­ceptance with God, otherwise than by be­coming Proselytes to the Religion of the Jews.

These were the two great things in debate betwixt the Apostle and the Jewish Rabbies, viz. upon what account a sinner might be ju­stified and saved; and who were the persons, whether Jews or Gentiles, or both, to whom the Promises of the New Covenant did belong.

To the first, the Apostle makes this reply, Gal. 2.16. that a man is not justified by the works of the Lw, but by the Faith of Jesus Christ; which he makes good to them by se­veral Arguments (which I must not now in­sist upon) and particularly from the example of Abraham, in whom they so much boasted, He himself was justified by faith and not by works, Gal. 3.6.

And as to the second, he proves to them, [Page 50] First, That they were not therefore to repute themselves the blessed Seed of Abraham, and Heirs of the Promise, because they were na­turally descended from him, and so had Abra­ham to their Father, Rom. 9.7. The Seed of Abraham it was multiplex, not one, but di­vers, one by Ishmael, and another by Sarah ▪ Now if they were the Children of the Pro­mise, quà filii, as they were the natural Sons of Abraham, then Ishmael as well as Isaac, and Esau as well as Jacob, should have in­herited the Blessing. Yea, but the Promise was not made to Seeds, as of many, but to one Seed only, which he in this second place proves to be only such, whether Jew or Gen­tile, that should, as Abraham did, believe in Jesus Christ, and do the works of Abraham. Such, as elsewhere 'tis exprest, that were Jews inwardly, and whose circumcision was that of the heart, and in the Spirit, and not in the letter, Rom 2.28, 29. Such as were born of the Spirit and not of the Flesh, Gal. 4.29. Such as are not only of Israel, but Is­raelites indeed, Rom. 9.6. Such as walked in the steps of the Faith of Abraham, Rom. 4.12. These he tells them were truly, and only to be reputed the Children of Abraham, Gal. 3.7. and Heirs of the Promise, Gal. 3.29. and the Seed of Abraham; in the beginning of the same Verse, and the Seed to whom the promise was made, ver. 19. of the same [Page 51] Chapter: and therefore Children of the pro­mise, Gal. 4.28. Yea though they were Gen­tiles, and of the most vile and despicable a­mongst the Gentiles, Scythians and Barbari­ans, yet upon believing they were to be own­ed for the Children, and of the blessed Seed of Abraham, Gal. 3.26. for there is no diffe­rence saith the Apostle to the Romans, chap. 2.22. and 10.12. And if no difference, no distinction, and so still but [...], one Seed. And consequently all the Blessings and Privi­ledges of the Covenant made with Abraham did equally belong to them with the Jews. And 'tis observable how much the Apostle, both here and elsewhere, labours in this argument, v. 8. of this Chapter. The Scripture foreseeing that God would justifie the Heathen through Faith, preach­ed before the Gospel to Abraham, saying, In thee shall all Nations be blessed. And ver. 9. So then they which be of Faith, are blessed with faithful Abraham. And ver. 13, 14. Christ hath re­deemed us from the curse of the Law, &c. That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gen­tiles through Jesus Christ. And Rom. 3.29, 30. Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? yes of the Gentiles al­so, seeing it is one God, which shall justifie the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through Faith: which he prosecutes more at large, chap. 4. ver. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13.16, 17.

Thus you see, how much the Apostle la­bours, [Page 52] as his great design, to demonstrate to the Jews, that the Gentiles were included in the Promise made to Abraham, and were to be blessed in and with him: Yea but upon what account? Why because they also were Children of the promise, Gal. 4.28. and that Seed to whom the Promise was made, Rom. 4.13.16. But how come they to be of his Seed, being not of the stock of Israel? Why, by be­ing of the Faith of Abraham, Rom. 4.12.16. that is by believing in Jesus Christ, Gal. 3.26.

And from hence 'tis clearly to be inferred, that the Jews had no cause either to boast of their being the Children and Seed of Abraham, unless with him they did believe: or to ex­clude the Gentiles from being so, if they did be­lieve; since 'twas not Birth or Nation, but Faith that entitled them to be his Seed. Thus the Ar­gument runs clear, and is convictive: But if by Seed here we understand Christ personal, and not Christ mystical, that is Believers in Christ, his argument is neither proper, nor con­clusive, at least not so evident, and sutable to the Apostles main intendment in the words.

2. This sense of the word is most agreea­ble to that account, which we have here and elsewhere given of this Covenant made with Abraham. The great thing promised in this Covenant was the giving of a Messiah, in whom all the Nations of the World should be blessed, Luke 1▪68, 69, &c. And that by [Page 53] Faith in him, their iniquities should be for­given, Rom. 4.7, 8. and they justified, Gal. 3.8. and freed from the curse, ver. 13. and receive the Spirit, ver. 14. and be admitted to the inheritance, ver. 18. and have righte­ousness and life, ver. 21. All which is said to be confirmed of God in Christ, ver. 17. of the same Chapter. Now all these priviledges, which are but so many branches of the Cove­nant, they are here made expresly not to Christ but to Believers, as the Seed of Abraham. Nor can they any way possibly be applicable to Christ himself. For he is the person here promised, and therefore not the person to whom the promise is made. The Father did not Covenant with Christ to give him Christ, (that's a Position so absurd, that the Reason of man can never give entertainment to it) but to give him to Believers, they are with­out doubt the parties to whom God engageth to give the Messiah. And 'tis as evident also that the several Blessings of the Covenant be­fore mentioned were promised to them, and not to him. For had he any sins to be for­given? or was he to be freed from the Curse of the Law, who therefore came into the World, that he might bear the Curse for us? or did he stand in need of an inheritance, righteousness, and life? Since therefore the several particulars of this Covenant with Abraham, are made over to him, and to his [Page 54] Seed, and since by his Seed in this place can­not be meant Christ (the blessing therein pro­mised, being not compatible to him, but to Believers) it necessarily follows, that by Christ in the Text we are to understand not Christ personal, but Christ mystical; that is, the whole Body of Believers, both Jew and Gentile, united in one by Faith in Jesus Christ.

3. But thirdly, to name no more, the Apo­stle himself doth thus interpret his own mean­ing in the close of this Chapter, ver. 26, 27, 28, There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female, for ye are all one in Christ Jesus: and ver. 29. it follows, If ye be Christs, then are ye Abrahams Seed, and Heirs according to the Promise. And what can be spoken more ex­presly to instruct us, that by the one Seed, he meant both Jew and Gentile, as believing in Jesus Christ? They are all, he tells you, bapti­zed into Christ, they have all put on Christ, they are all one in Christ: They are Christ's, They are all the Seed of Abraham, and they are all joint-heirs of the Promise: Which we have yet in more direct terms exprest by the same Apostle in his Epistle to the Romans, where he treats of the self same argument, chap. 9. ver. 7, 8. Neither because they are the Seed of Abraham, are they all children, but in Isaac shall thy seed be called: that is, (as he [Page 55] expounds himself in the following verse) They which are the children of the Flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise (and who are they but Belie­vers?) are counted for the Seed.

And thus having cleared the Apostles sense and meaning in this place, and shewed how little it speaks in favour of that opinion, that the Covenant was made with Christ; I shall now proceed to make it good by further Ar­gument, that Believers, and not Jesus Christ, are the parties with whom God stipulates in the New Covenant.

And first, From those Names and Titles that are given to Jesus Christ with reference to this Covenant. He's called the Angel, or Messenger, that brought the glad tydings of it to the World, Mal. 3.1. The Prince, that is the Lord and Founder of it, Dan. 11.22. The Mediator, by whom it was procured for and conveyed to us, Heb. 12.24. The Surety, that stands bound for the performance of it, Heb. 2.22. And by his death he is said to ra­tifie and confirm it, Dan. 9.27. Upon which account it is by the Evangelist called the New Testament in his blood, Luke 22.20. Now that all these are spoken of Jesus Christ with relation to the Covenant of Grace, is so a­bundantly evident, that there shall need no other proof of it, than meerly to view the several places, whence they are cited. But [Page 56] are these consistent with his being a party in this Covenant? What? Did he as Prince frame and found this Covenant for himself? Or was he Messenger, and Mediator, and Surety to himself? Or did he dye to confirm it to himself? And if not to himself, to whom then, but to Believers? Was it not for them that he founded this New Covenant? And to them that he brought the glad tydings of it? And for them that he mediates? And for them that he dyed, that they might be confirmed, and assured in the truth of it? 'Tis they then, and not Jesus Christ, with whom this Covenant is made.

Yea, but is not he expresly by the Prophet called our Covenant? Isaiah 42.6. It's true, and so is Circumcision, Acts 7.8. Gen. 17.13. And so are the Saints themselves, Dan. 11.28.30.32. But who sees not, that these must of necessity be taken in a figurative and not a proper sense; An usual way of speak­ing to give the name of the adjunct to its proper subject, and of the thing signified to its sign, and of the Effect to its Cause and Author. And thus 'tis here, the Saints they are called the Covenant, as they are the pro­per Subjects of it, Isa. 55.3. And Circumci­sion as it is the Sign and Seal of it, Rom. 4.11. And Jesus Christ, as he is the Mediator and Founder of it, Heb. 8.9. But,

2. Where ever we read of the Sanction [Page 57] and promulgation of this Covenant, there we shall find, that Believers themselves (and not Christ) are still mentioned, as the Parties with whom God stipulates and agrees. When God covenanted with Abraham, who are the Parties there engaged? God and Christ, or God and Abraham? See Gen. 17. ver. 2. I will make my Covenant between me and thee: and ver. 4. Behold my Covenant is with thee: and ver. 7. I will establish my Covenant be­tween me and thee, and thy seed after thee: and again, ver. 10. This is my Covenant which ye shall keep between me and you, and thy seed after thee. And as God here promiseth to bless Abraham; so Abraham also he declares his acceptance of the terms upon which 'tis propounded, and seals to the Agreement on his part: ver. 23. of the same Chapter, And Abraham took Ishmael his Son, and all that were born in his House, &c. and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin, in the self same day, as God had said unto him. And this afterwards God himself gives as a reason, why he would bless his Seed, as he had promised. Gen. 26.5. Sojourn in this Land (saith God to Isaac there) and I will be with thee, and bless thee, for un­to thee and thy Seed, I will give all these Coun­tries, and I will perform the Oath which I sware unto Abraham thy Father, &c. Why? Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my Commandments, my Sta­tutes, [Page 58] and my Laws. But what was that charge? &c. Why; not only that he should circumcise Ishmael, with the rest of the Males in his Family, but that he should walk before the Lord and be upright, Gen. 17.1.

From all which we learn, (1.) That this transaction betwixt God and Abraham, it was not meerly a Testament but a Covenant: (2.) That this Covenant is mutual betwixt God on the one part, and Abraham and his Seed on the other: (3.) That as God promi­seth to bless Abraham, so he also accepts of the terms, and engageth to keep his Statutes and his Laws, and sets to his Seal for perfor­mance. For so the Apostle calls Circumcisi­on, Rom. 4.11.

Again, When this Covenant, with some further additions to it, is renewed with the Israelites, the Seed of Abraham, who are there mentioned as the Parties covenanting with God; Is it not the Israelites, each man for himself in his own person? It's true, the Apostle tells us, that it was ordained by An­gels in the hand of a Mediator, Gal. 3.19. that is, by the intervention of Moses, who was herein a Type of Jesus Christ, the Mediator of the New Covenant, as the Apostle stiles him, Heb. 8.6. Yea, but the Covenant for all that, it was made, though by the hands of Moses, yet with the Israelites themselves, and not with him, as Mediator in their behalf. [Page 59] But let's consult the place it self, since there we shall find the fullest account, I meet with, of the most solemn manner of entring into Covenant with God. First, Moses he goes up into the Mount, and there receives the Cove­nant from the mouth of God himself, Exod. 19.3, 4, 5, 6. The sum of which, as you there read, was this, viz. That if they would obey the voice of God indeed, and keep his Command­ments, that they should then be a peculiar trea­sure above all people, &c. This Moses upon his return propounds to the People from God, for their consent: ver. 7. And Moses came, and called for the Elders of the People, and laid be­fore their faces all these words, which the Lord commanded him. And the people hereupon declare their consent to these proposals, ver. 8. And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do: which Moses again reports back to God, in the close of that verse; And Moses returned the words of the People unto the Lord.

And then, having made a more particular rehearsal of the Laws and Statutes, which God had commanded them to observe: in the four following Chapters he again pro­pounds them to the people, and they again declare their acceptance of them: Chap. 24. ver. 3. And Moses came and told the People all the words of the Lord, and all the Judgments. And all the People answered with one voice, and [Page 60] said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. And thus the Covenant being mutually both on God's part and on the Is­raelites assented to, he immediately causeth an Altar and twelve Pillars to be erected: An Altar to the Lord, and twelve Pillars, as re­presentative of the twelve Tribes of Israel ( ver. 4.) who having offered Sacrifice there­on, ( ver. 5.) he takes one half of the blood thereof, and sprinkleth it upon the Altar, to signifie the Peoples sealing their part to God, ver. 6. and the other half he sprinkleth upon the People, to signifie Gods sealing on his part to them, ver. 8. which is therefore cal­led in the close of that verse, the Bloud of the Covenant, which God had made with them; that is, the Blood by which the Covenant was mutually ratified and sealed betwixt God and Israel: Upon which account Moses tells them, that they had avouched the Lord to be their God, and to walk in his ways, and keep his Statutes, &c. And that the Lord had avouched them to be his peculiar People as he had promised, &c. Deut. 26.16, 17, 18, 19. And thus you see in these two famous in­stances of God's covenanting first with Abra­ham, and then with Israel, that not Jesus Christ, but Abraham and Israel were the Con­federates, that became engaged to God for the performance of the terms therein requi­red. And were not they, for the main, under [Page 61] the same Covenant with Believers in the Go­spel? As to Abraham the case is evident, read Gal. 3. and Rom. 4. and then tell me whether he were not under a Covenant of Grace? And as to Israel, though there were several Appendices, Types, and Shadows superad­ded by Moses, which are now done away, yet is there any other difference betwixt that, and the Evangelical Dispensation? Are they not essentially, and for substance the same? Had not they the same Christ exhibited in Types and Sacrifices, which we have expli­citely revealed in the Gospel? And were not the same spiritual Blessings in him, as pardon of sin, justification, and eternal life, &c. pro­mised to them? And were not the same sub­stantial Duties, as Repentance, and Faith, and Obedience required of them? And was it not therefore the great business of Christ and his Apostles, in their frequent contests with the Jews, to demonstrate the conformity of their Doctrine with the Law of Moses, and that they taught nothing but what Moses and the Prophets had before revealed to them? For proof of this, let these following places be consulted. Joh. 5.45, 46, 47. Joh. 6.45. Joh. 10.34. Luke 4.17, 18, 19, 20, 21. Luke 16.29. Luke 24.27. and 44. Luke 18.31. and Luke 1.70. Acts 3.18, 19.21, 22, 23. Act. 10▪43. Acts 26.22. Acts 24.14, 15. Acts 28.23. 1 Cor. 10.2. Rom. 1.2. and 3.21. Eph. 2▪20.

[Page 62]And if Abraham and Israel were for the main under the same Covenant of Grace with us, 'tis evident that therein Believers themselves were the parties that stood en­gaged to God, and consequently that the Co­venant of Grace is made with them, and not with their Mediator in their behalf. This Argument is so clear and convictive, as that 'tis impossible to avoid the power of it, other­wise than by saying that they were not saved, as we, by a Covenant of Grace, which, as it openly affronts the testimony of Christ and his Apostles, as may be seen in the places be­fore mentioned, and more particularly from what the Apostle Paul hath delivered upon this Argument in his Epistles to the Romans and Galatians; so it necessarily infers this monstrous conclusion, that Old Testament Believers were saved, as never any man yet was, and as 'tis impossible that any since the fall of Adam should be; that is, by a Cove­nant of Works. For there is no medium be­twixt these two: If it be not of Works, it must be by Grace, as the Apostle argues Rom. 11.6.

However, they covenanted with God, each man for himself, and what reason can be gi­ven that Jesus Christ should undertake or stand engaged more for us than them? or that we (if saved as they, Acts 15.11.) should not lye under the same actual engage­ments [Page 63] to Faith and Obedience, especially since our duty is more plain, and our know­ledge more clear, and our reward more ex­press, and our assistance by the Spirit more influential, and our advantages and obligati­on to God every way greater and more per­swasive?

But to be short, doth not Scripture affirm the self same thing of Gospel Believers? Are not they still exprest as Parties, where­ever we find, either in the Old or New Testa­ment, any mention made of the New Cove­nant? Jer. 31.31. Ezek. 34.11.25, &c. Ezek. 37.24, 25, 26, 27. Isa. 55.3. Isa. 61.8, 9. Heb. 8.10, 11, &c. Heb. 10.16. That these Texts speak of the Gospel Covenant is unquestionable, or else we have no such thing revealed in Scripture. But with whom is it there said to be made? with David the Prince, and Shepherd, as Christ is there stiled by Eze­kiel? No, But with the Sheep and Flock, with the House of David, and the House of Israel, that is, with Believers, who are exprest un­der those Old Testament Names, of Israel and Jacob, and Seed of Abraham, &c. And whereas some object, that 'tis constantly cal­led in Scripture God's Covenant, and not ours, the reason is obvious, from what hath been already said, viz. That God as absolute Lord and Soveraign, he contrives and frames, and propounds this Covenant to us, and all [Page 64] that we have to do, is only to subscribe and seal to it. And therefore not properly our Covenant, but God's, because he made it, and not we: Though this also is to be here observed, that Believers are said not only to enter into Covenant, but also to make Cove­nant with God, which is given as a consti­tutive Character of a Saint: Psal. 50.5. Ga­ther my Saints together unto me (saith God there) But who are they? Why, those that have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice: Upon which account 'tis also by the Prophet called their Covenant, Ezek. 16.61. Then shalt thou remember thy ways and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy Sisters, thine elder, and thine younger, and I will give them unto thee for Daughters, but not by thy Cove­nant.

3. As the Covenant is expresly said to be made with Believers, so 'tis frequently spoken of in Scripture, as their proper act to stipu­late with God therein, and by their own consent to engage themselves to him. Hence they are said to make Covenant with God, 2 Kings 23.3. and to enter into Covenant, Deut. 29.10, 11, 12. and join themselves to the Lord by Covenant, Jer. 50.5. and sub­scribe with the hand to the Lord, Isa. 44.5. And give themselves to the Lord, 2 Cor. 8.5. and to avouch the Lord to be their God, and to walk in his ways, Deut. 26.16, 17. And [Page 65] what can all this signifie less than their actual consent and agreement to the Covenant? But there are yet two expressions more in Scripture, that deserve more particularly to be taken notice of, as speaking more fully to this purpose. The first you have Psal. 50.5. the place before mentioned, Gather my Saints together unto me, that have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice. That have made] so we render it, but according to the original it is, that have cut a Covenant with me: which phrase, upon the like account, is also used by the Prophets. A mode of speech taken (as before was observed) from the usual manner of making and confirming Covenant, which was by cutting and dividing the Beast then offered in Sacrifice, and passing mutually be­twixt the parts of it, whereby they did in effect say, Let it be done to me, as to this Sa­crifice, if I shall presume to violate this Co­venant: to which Christ seems to allude, Mat. 24.51. The Lord of that Servant shall come in a day, when he looketh not for him, and in [...]n hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him in sunder, and appoint him his portion with the Hypocrite, &c. Thus are God and Believers mutually engaged to each other. They make a Covenant by Sacrifice, and there­ [...]n they interchangeably set to their Seals: as God seals to them, Eph. 1.13. so they also [...]eal to God, Joh. 3.33.

[Page 66]The other place we have Ezek. 20.37. And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and [...] will bring you into the Bond of the Covenant▪ See here's a Covenant with a Bond and Obli­gation annexed to it, and into this Bond e­very Soul must enter, that covenants with God, and their entrance it must be by pas­sing under the Rod; which is a manifest al­lusion to what we find commanded in the Le­vitical Law, as to the manner of tything their Flocks and Herds: Levit. 27.32. And concerning the tythe of the Herd or of the Flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the Rod, th [...] tenth shall be holy unto the Lord, &c. The Jews were a carnal and selfish People, that were ready to put off God with the worst, the hal [...], the blind, and lame, and to keep the best to themselves, as God complains of them by his Prophet, Mal. 1.13, 14. and therefore God would not leave it to their choice, what should be his, but appoints, that every tenth, as it came in order out of the Fold, and so passed under the Shepherds Rod or Staff, by which he numbred them, as they came out, should be set apart for himself. This whe­ther it were good or bad, God would have it, it must not be changed, ver. 33. And thus must every Soul, that becomes holy and con­secrated to the Lord, pass into the Bond of the Covenant: They must all come under the Rod, that is, they must come one by one, and [Page 67] every one for himself, engage to be the Lords. And that which renders this place, with that also of the Psalmist, the more considerable, is this, that they are both spoken with refe­rence to Gospel-times, as might, were it need­ful, be sufficiently evidenced from the context of both those Scriptures. But besides the Testimony of Scripture, even that of Reason it self might be sufficient to evince the necessi­ty of our stipulating with God in the New Covenant, as they did in the Old. For who can possibly imagine, that God should oblige himself to the Creature, and in the interim leave the Creature at liberty, without being engaged to himself? What? God bound by Covenant to pardon our sins, and heal our backslidings, and take us into the relation of Friends, and Children, and make daily Provi­sions for us? To spread our Table, and fill our Cup, and take the care of and protect us, and after all receive us unto Glory? And yet we not bound to repent of our sins? And believe in him, and love him, and live in obedience to his Laws and Government? Who can entertain such unworthy thoughts of God, that believes him to be infinitely wise and holy? One that hath made all things for himself? Prov. 16.4. and hath also sworn, that every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess to the Lord? Isa. 45.23.

4. The Nature and Design of those two [Page 68] great Gospel Ordinances, Baptism and the Lords Supper, which Jesus Christ hath insti­tuted in his Church, do necessarily suppose this. That these are Seals, and Seals of the New Covenant, and mutual Seals, appoint­ed not only as Badges of our profession, but Bonds and Obligations by which we formally engage our selves to God, as he to us, are things avowed by all. But who now are the persons here sealing? Christ or Believers? 'Tis they that are baptized, and they that eat the Flesh and drink the Blood of Christ; and consequently they, and not Christ, that are the Parties engaged in this Covenant? For what hath any man to do to seal to any Co­venant, wherein he is not a person concern­ed?

First for Baptism, Do we not therein per­sonally every one for himself, promise to for­sake our sins, and deny our selves, and quit our carnal and worldly interests, and re­nounce the works of the Flesh and of the De­vil? Do we not solemnly dedicate, and give up our selves to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, in whose Names we are baptized? Do we not there professedly own God as our Crea­tor and Father, to love him, and to live in a dutiful and obediential observance of him? And to accept of Jesus Christ as our Media­tor and Redeemer, in all his Offices, to sub­mit to his Doctrine, Laws, and Discipline? [Page 69] And to receive the sacred Spirit as our Guide, to be led and governed by him in all the acti­ons of our lives? This Profession grown persons were ever required to make, upon their first admission into Church [...]Society. And though for Children this be done by their Sureties, yet 'tis no less obliging, than if it had been done in their own persons: For since Parents have an undoubted Soveraignty over their Children in their minority, they are thereby invested with a right to dispose of them at pleasure, provided it be not to their prejudice. If Hannah begs, and obtains a Son from God, she may give him back again to God, and devote him to his use and ser­vice. And if a Father settles an Estate upon his Child, he may oblige him to pay such lawful Debts and Annuities as he hath thought meet to charge upon it, and hereby the Child is no less engaged to performance, than if it had been his own act and deed. However, in the first and most pure Ages of the Church, such as were admitted to Baptism in their in­fancy, when they came to years, and were instructed, by Catechists particularly appoint­ed for that purpose, in the Principles of Chri­stianity, they then were brought into the Publick Congregation, and there in their own persons did own, and ratifie, and take upon themselves what their Sureties had pro­mised in their behalf. Upon which account [Page 70] Baptism is called by the Apostle the answer of a good Conscience towards God, 1 Pet. 3.21. In which words the Apostle hath respect to the questions, that were then by the Mini­ster propounded to the party to be baptized, and the answer he gave to them. Dost thou believe the Articles of the Christian Faith? Dost thou renounce the World? &c. Dost thou give up thy self entirely to Jesus Christ, and promise to be faithful to him? These were the Questions usually propounded to the Christian Converts at their Baptism, to all which they were to answer, I do believe, I do renounce, I do promise. And this is that (supposing it to be spoken sincerely, and from the heart) which the Apostle here calls, the answer of a good conscience. The true Baptism indeed, that saves us, as he there speaks, and not the putting away the filth of the flesh, by being either immerst in Water, or having that poured upon our Faces.

Again, When we approach to the Table of the Lord, and are there admitted to the sa­cred Communion of the Body and of the Blood of Jesus Christ, as the Apostle expres­seth it, 1 Cor. 10.16. Do we not then renew our Covenant with God, and solemnly de­clare that we take him to be our God, and give up our selves also to him to be his Peo­ple? Do we not engage to love him, and believe in him, and to walk in all ways of [Page 71] holiness and obedience well pleasing in his sight? Do we not then say with David, Psal. 119.94. Lord I am thine? His indeed we ever were, as made and redeemed by him, but now we become his by our own actual choice, and solemn dedication of our selves unto him.

How therefore any that are baptized, and admitted to the Lords Supper, should ima­gine, that they are not parties that stand en­gaged to God in the New Covenant, I un­derstand not, since thereby they do no less solemnly avouch the Lord to be their God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his Statutes and Commandments, than Israel did at Mount Horeb: To me 'tis an argument that these men were yet never duly instructed in the nature and use of these Gospel Institu­tions. As Christ told the Woman of Sama­ria, they worshipped they knew not what; so we may say to them, they know not what it is to be baptized, and to partake of the Table of the Lord.

5. Lastly, If Believers are not the parties, but Christ, that stand engaged to God by the New Covenant; how then comes it to pass that they are charged with the commission of any sin? or in any sense punisht for it? That Believers, as well as others, may and do be­come guilty of sin, is evident from express Scripture. For in many things, saith the Apo­stle [Page 72] James, we offend all, Jam. 3.2. And he that saith he hath no sin, he lyeth, saith John, and the truth is not in him, 1 Joh. 1.8. And why else did Jesus Christ instruct his Disciples to pray daily for the remission of their sins, ( Math. 6.12.) if they had no sins to be for­given? Sin then they do, that's unquestiona­ble, yea and upon their sinning they also be­come liable to temporal punishments, though exempted from those that are eternal. Was not Jacob punished for his lying to get the Blessing? And Aaron and Moses punished for their passion and disbelief, Numb. 20.12. And David punished for his Murder and Adulte­ry? And the believing Corinthians punished for their undue celebration of the Lords Sup­per? 1 Cor. 11.30. But how come they to be guilty of sin, or punishable for it? For where there is no sin, there no punishment can be due (and consequently it would be injustice in that case to punish) And where there is no Law, there can be no sin, as the Apostle argues; for all sin 'tis [...], the transgression of some Law, as he defines it, 1 Joh. 3.4. But what Law is that by which Believers become obliged to Obedience? The Old Covenant, or Law of Works? No. That's long since abrogated, and laid aside by the mediation of Jesus Christ, and therefore no more obliging or convictive to such as are in Christ, Rom. 6.13. For ye are not under the [Page 73] Law, but under Grace. By Grace there the Apostle means the Covenant of Grace, as by Law, the Covenant of Works. And such is the opposition betwixt these two, that he who is under one, cannot be under the other, any more than she that's married can be un­der the power of another Husband, till the first be dead. As he further argues in the fol­lowing Chapter, ver. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. The conclusion from all which is this, that being married to Christ, we are freed from the Law. But how then become Believers obliged to duty, or convict of sin? By what Law, since not by the Law of Works? What? By the Law of Grace, the New Covenant? Neither, according to the sentiments of such as say that the Covenant was made with Christ, and not with Believers. For if they be not the parties that stand engaged for service and obedience to it, neither can they be charged with guilt in not obeying it. Suppose that any one should covenant and agree with a third person in my behalf, that if I be put into the possession of such an Office, or Estate, I shall pay such a Rent, or homage, by way of acknowledgment, my consent and stipulati­on thereto being not required. Who now stands bound, he or I, for the performance of these Conditions? or who shall be char­ged with breach of Covenant, in case of non-performance? Gratitude indeed and Ingenuity [Page 74] may perswade me to use all possible endea­vours to perform what my friend in kindness hath promised for me. Yea, but in Law I am not bound thereto, but he only that en­tred into Bonds for me; and consequently, if I neglect or refuse to pay such Rents, and Ac­knowledgments, the default shall be char­ged not upon me but him. He's the only Offender in Law, not I: for where there is no obligation to obedience by Law, there can be no sin or offence against it.

And thus by affirming the New Covenant to be made with Jesus Christ, and not with Believers, they do not only acquit themselves from all sin, and possibility of sinning, which is flatly contrary to the express testimony of Scripture, but they also in effect charge Jesus Christ with their sins, and make him legally guilty of all the violations of the Covenant, which are Consequences of so foul and black a nature, as that no sober mind can entertain a thought of them, or of the Principles whence they spring without abhorrence.

I have been the more large upon this ar­gument, since this opinion, of the Covenants being made with Christ and not with Be­lievers, as it is of dangerous consequence, and evidently destructive to the power of Godli­ness, so it hath gained much upon the minds of men, partly from the corruption of Mans nature, that readily entertains what ever [Page 75] makes for liberty, and promiseth indulgence to the flesh, and gives a dispensation from the more strict observances in Religion: And partly from the Nature of the Doctrine, that tends to take Men off from the trouble of du­ty, and obedience, and to gratifie them in their desires of ease and pleasure: And partly from the worth and credit of some Seers in Israel, that have unwarily preacht and pub­ [...]isht this to the World, either by inadverten­cy, taking it up as a traditional Doctrine without due examination, or by mistake, not rightly distinguishing betwixt the Covenant of Redemption (which 'tis evident was made with Christ) and the Covenant of Grace, which is made with Believers.

But if Jesus Christ be the Author, Mediator and Confirmer of this New Covenant, by his death and intercession in the behalf of sin­ners: And if Believers themselves and not Christ are still mentioned in Scripture, as the party with whom God Covenants, as from the instances of Abraham, and Israel, and Go­spel Saints 'tis evident: And if it be made their act to stipulate with God therein, they enter into Covenant with the Lord, and they join themselves to him by Covenant, and they cut a Covenant with him, and they avouch the Lord to be their God, and they subscribe with the hand to the Lord, and they pass under the Rod, and come into the [Page 76] Bond of the Covenant, and give themselves to the Lord: And if they be the persons on­ly that seal with God in this Covenant, and that this be the proper use, and design of those two great Gospel Institutions, Baptism and the Lords Supper: And lastly, if they become guilty of sin in their non performance of the terms of it, and are punish [...]ble for their de­faults: Then 'tis no more to be doubted, but that Believers, and not Christ, are the sole parties with whom God transacts in the New Covenant, which was the thing to be demonstrated.

PROPOS. X. Of the terms of the New Covenant.

THIS New Covenant made with Belie­vers in Jesus Christ for life and glory, it is not only consistent with, but doth neces­sarily, as such, imply certain terms and con­ditions annexed to it, which we are indispen­sably obliged to accept and perform. The Covenant is made up of Promises and Com­mands, Priviledges and Conditions; the for­mer contain our happiness, the latter our du­ty, and these two they must not be separa­ted.

[Page 77]What a Condition is, every one, I suppose, understands, that hath but seen any ordinary Lease or Indenture. By that we know there [...]s somewhat demised and granted, as the [...]ree and peaceable enjoyment of the Premi­ [...]es, with all Emoluments and Appurtenan­ [...]es belonging to it: And there is also some­what therein required and enjoined, as the payment of the Rent reserved, and keeping the Premises in repair, &c. which if done and performed accordingly, the Tenant is conti­nued in possession. But if it so happen, that the said Rent be unpaid, or the Premises suf­fered to go to decay, then the Lease is forfei­ted, and the party may by Law be ejected. So that a Condition you see is that, which on our part is required, upon the performance of which some good, or emolument, is to be re­ceived, and enjoyed by us, but in case of non-performance the whole is lost, either by for­feiting our right, or by having at first no rightful claim to it. And thus we say that Faith and Repentance, &c. are Conditions of the New Covenant. God therein indeed gives and grants pardon of sin, and eternal life to sinners, but with this proviso, that they repent of their sins, and believe in Jesus Christ, &c. which if they do accordingly, the Blessings promised become theirs, and they are continued in the poss [...]ssion of them, but if they fail in the sincere performance of these [Page 78] duties, their sins shall not be pardoned, no [...] their souls eternally saved, as is afterwards to be shewn.

This is that which I call the condition o [...] the Covenant. Nor can I see any just reason why any should be offended with the word. For do we not in all contracts call that a con­dition to the performance of which we ar [...] by Covenant obliged upon penalty of for­feiture in case of non [...]performance? As if you shall pay such a Fee, or Homage to the Court, you shall enjoy such an estate, otherwise you shall lose the possession of it? And in all A­greements those are the conditions, which are the terms upon which the disagreeing parties mutually accord: As Luke 14.32. it's said of the King that was not able to war with him that came against him, that he sent his Embassadours, an desired conditions of Peace: And those in Logick conditional propositions upon which the consequent hath an evident dependance upon its antecedent? As if you forgive men their trespasses, your hea­venly Father will also forgive you, but if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive you your trespasses, Math. 6.14, 15. If we would judge our selves, we should not be judged of the Lord, 1 Corinth. 11.31. If ye keep my Commandments, ye shall abide in my love, Joh. 15.10. If thou seekest for wisdom, as silver, and searchest for her, as for hid trea­sures, [Page 79] then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God, Prov. 2.4, 5. If ye live after the flesh ye shall die, but if ye through the spirit do mortifie the deeds of the flesh, ye shall live, Rom. 8.13. If thou dost well, shalt thou not be accepted? Gen. 2.7. If we confess our sins, he is faithful to forgive, 1 Joh. 1.9. Are not all these conditional pro­positions? Doth not reason, and common language teach us to speak thus? And who ever yet called them by any other name? I have therefore the rather instanced in these Scriptures, that you might see how confessing our sins, and forgiving others are made con­ditions of Gods forgiving us: And judging our selves is made the condition of our not being condemned of the Lord: and a dili­gent seeking after wisdom a condition to our finding of it. And doing well a condition of our acceptance with God; and keeping the Commandments of Christ a condition of our abiding in his love. And mortifying the deeds of the flesh a condition of eternal life.

Again, do not all men distinguish the pro­mises (which are but so many several bran­ches of the New Covenant) into absolute, and conditional? And are not all acknowledged to be conditional, excepting such, as promise the first grace? As for instance, that the meek shall inherit the Earth, Math. 5.5. That if we humble our selves under the mighty hand of [Page 80] God, he will exalt us, 1 Pet. 5.6. That they that take the yoke, and submit to the burden of Christ, shall find rest and ease to their souls, Math. 11.28, 29. That they that hunger and thirst after righteousness shall be satisfied, Math. 5.6. &c. These and many more of the like nature, are commonly said to be conditional promises. And if meekness be acknowledged the condition of inheriting the Earth, and humiliaton of being exalted, and taking the yoke of finding rest, and hungring and thir­sting of being satisfied, why may not being pure in heart be also termed the condition of seeing God, and obedience the condition of eternal life, when they are all promised in the same way, and upon the like terms?

Besides is it not commonly said that one Grace may be the condition to an other? As sincerity to confidence, 1 Joh. 3.21. Humi­lity to spiritual growth and strength, Jam. 4.6. Faith and Hope to rejoicing in God, &c. 1 Pet. 1.

And may one Grace be the condition of an­other, and yet may they not be the conditi­ons of pardon of sin, and eternal life for fear of eclipsing the Glory of free Grace? Why, Is not second grace, notwithstanding its con­ditionality, as free as the first? And no more of debt than eternal recompenses? Why then may not conditions be allowed of with re­spect to the latter, as well as granted in the [Page 81] former, since both grace and glory are alike [...]he fruit of Christ purchase and donation? And why then should any one be offended at [...]he use of the word, since 'tis proper you see [...]o all compacts and agreements, since all propositions, that have any dependance upon [...]heir antecedent, are so termed: since the pro­mises of the Covenant are generally acknow­ [...]edged to be conditional, and one grace to be the condition of another? But this I have only promised to remove that scandal, which some have taken at the word condition; I shall now endeavour to make it good by se­veral demonstrative arguments, that the Co­venant of Grace doth necessarily suppose conditions, or which is all one, that the great blessings of the Covenat are promised and propounded to us upon certain terms and conditions in order to our being admitted in­to the possession of them.

1. And first from the very nature and de­finition of a Covenant. That Believers in the Gospel are under a Covenant-dispensati­on, according to the true intent and meaning of that word, hath already been demonstra­ted, and therefore I shall now take that for granted. But what is that then we call a Covenant in a proper sense? Is it not a mu­tual Compact, and Agreement betwixt two or more Parties, whereby they do, upon cer­tain terms and conditions therein specified, [Page 82] respectively oblige themselves to each other?

'Tis an Agreement, and that supposeth more Parties than one. For though a Man may be said to purpose with himself, yet not pro­perly to Covenant, but to and with another▪ And therefore when Job is said to make a Covenant with his eyes; His eyes there ar [...] spoken of as a different party distinct from his Soul, that Covenants with them. And as there must be more parties than one in e­very Covenant, one giving and granting▪ and another to receive and make returns o [...] what is granted; so the agreement, and stipu­lation betwixt them, it must be mutual: fo [...] no one properly can be obliged, but by his ow [...] consent. And therefore though the creatur [...] be indispensably obliged to consent to what­ever his Maker shall propound to him, yet h [...] will have our free, and personal consent and stipulation to the Covenant, that we may be bound by our own act and choice. Bu [...] besides this that there must be more partie [...] than one, and they mutually engaged to eac [...] other, there must also be some terms, and conditions specified concerning which the [...] agree and stipulate: somewhat that is de­mised, and granted, and somewhat that is t [...] be rendred by way of homage, or acknow­ledgment: somewhat that is to be received, and somewhat that is to be returned. An [...] this is necessarily implied in the very wor [...] [Page 83] agreement and stipulation: For if two agree together, it must be upon some terms, and certain considerations mutually to be perfor­med. E. g. One promiseth the quiet possession of such an estate upon the payment of such rent; and the other promiseth the payment of such a rent upon his quiet possession of it. And in this mainly lies the difference be­twixt a Gift, a Promise, and a Covenant. A deed of gift is when I do freely bestow some­what upon another without preengaging so to do. A promise is when I engage my self by word to do any act of kindness for ano­ther, without requiring any thing by way of engagement on his part. For if there be any condition affixed to my promise, it ceaseth properly to be a promise, and becomes a Co­venant, for every conditional promise is im­plicitely so: But a Covenant is a mutual en­gagement betwixt both parties, wherein as I promise to do somewhat for him, so he also promiseth to do somewhat that I require of him. So that in every Covenant there is ratio dati & accepti, somewhat promised and somewhat required. Some­what given, and somewhat to be received. Somewhat by way of privilege to be en­joyed, and somewhat by way of duty to be performed. And who ever consults his own thoughts, shall find that this is the most natural and express notion of a Cove­nant, [Page 84] that constantly represents it self to his mind, when ever he entertains any appre­hensions of it. For when you say such a one hath Covenanted and agreed with another, what do you mean by that expression? What? Only that he hath bequeathed him such lega­cies? or setled upon him such an inheritance? or made him Heir to such an estate: hundreds and thousands by the year? And under his own hand and seal hath confirmed all this to him? This I suppose you would call a donation, or deed of gift, but would you, were there nothing more, call it a Covenant? No, your own thoughts upon the very mention of that word, would im­mediately suggest this to you, that there was some mutual compact betwixt them, and cer­tain articles and conditions of agreement drawn up, to the performance of which they respectively obliged themselves. And there­fore to suppose a Covenant without condi­tions, is all one, as to suppose a Sun without light, or a Man without reason, which are no better than implicite contradictions. I may as well call that a gift, which is not given, or that a promise where my word is not en­gaged; as that a Covenant where there's no mutual stipulation, or conditions of agree­ment. They are things that eye hath not seen, nor ear heard of, nor can it enter into the heart of man to conceive what they are. No, [Page 85] I cannot possibly frame the idea of a Sun in my mind, without light: Nor entertain any formal conceit of a man, without including reason in that conception. No more can I conceive of a Covenant, without conditions; since these are essential to the nature, de­finition, and common notion of a Covenant.

2. The Gospel, which is little more but a comment upon the New Covenant, doth not only in general declare to us, that there are conditions affixed to it, but in particular ac­quaints us what they are. And here I shall only instance in these three, faith, repentance, and sincere obedience, as inclusive of all the rest: First for faith, doth not the Gospel ex­presly tell us, that we must believe, and that this is the great command of God? 1 Joh. 3.16. I but what if we do believe in the name of Christ, according to his command? What hath God thereupon promised to us? What? Why? that then we shall not perish but have eternal life, Joh. 3.16. I, but what if we be defective in this particular, and do not be­lieve? May we not yet hope to be saved by Jesus Christ? No: He that believeth not, is condemned already, Joh. 3.18. and the wrath of God abideth upon him, ver. 36. and he shall be damned, Mark 16.16. Here's one condi­tion you see plain and evident in the New Covenant: I but is not faith then the only condition? And may not that alone serve the [Page 86] turn without any thing else, to invest us in all the priviledges of the Kingdom? No, there must be also repentance towards God, as well as faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ, Act. 20.21. This is no less expresly com­manded than the former, Acts 17.30. Now God commandeth all men every where to re­pent: And the very first doctrine that Jesus Christ himself preached, after his most solemn consecration to his Prophetick Office was this of Repentance, Matth. 3.13, 14, 15, 16, 17. compared with Matth. 4.17. From that time began Jesus to preach and to say; Repent, for the kingdome of heaven is at hand. And as it is in terms no less than faith, commanded in the Gospel, so you have the same benefits of pardon of sin, and eternal life annexed to it. Repent, saith Peter to the Jews ( Acts 3.19.) and be converted; but to what purpose? Why? that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

And God is not willing, saith the same A­postle, that any should perish. I but how may they then escape it? How? By repenting and turning to God, and therefore he there adds, but that they should come to repentance, 2 Pet. 3.9. And for this reason 'tis called re­pentance unto life, Acts 11.18. And re­pentance unto Salvation, 2 Cor. 7.10. Yea, but what though we fail in the performance of this duty? May not our sins be pardoned, [Page 87] and our Souls saved upon the account of Christ for all that? No, except we repent we must perish, Luke 13.3, 5. Faith in this case will not save us. Well then, faith and re­pentance are conditions, that's manifest from what I have now said. I but is there any thing more yet required by the New Cove­nant, as necessary to eternal life? Yea, we must not only enter in at the strait gate, but we must also walk in the narrow way, if we would enter into life. Nor only be implanted into the true vine, but abide in it, and bring forth fruit to God, Joh. 15. Nor only re­ceive Christ Jesus the Lord, but walk in him as we have received him. Col. 2.6. By the former, faith and repentance, we enter in at the strait gate, and by holiness and obedience we hold on in the narrow way. By those we are ingraffed into the true vine, and by this we abide in the vine and become fruitful. By an humble faith we receive Christ Jesus the Lord, Christ in all his offices, and by a sin­cere obedience we walk in him according to the terms upon which we at first received him. And therefore though our actual obedience and holiness, which are the work of time, be not required to our justification, and initial instatement into life, only our turning to God and hearty acceptance of Christ as Lord and Saviour, to be taught, and governed, and saved by him in his own way; yet is our obe­dience [Page 88] vertually therein included, as all pra­ctical conclusions are in their first principles, and in order to our actual and compleat fru­ition of eternal life, our actual holiness and obedience is required in the Gospel. The for­mer gives us an initial right, and this jus ap­titudinale a legal fitness. That puts us into possession, as the delivery of the Key to the Tenant upon sealing the Indentures, gives him a legal possession of the House; and this continues us in it, as paying the rent doth the Tenant afterwards: And therefore in order to eternal happiness I know nothing, that is said of faith, or repentance in Scripture, but the same is also said of holiness, and obedi­ence. Are they positively commanded in the Gospel? So is this, we must deny all ungodli­ness and worldly lusts, and live godly, righte­ously, and soberly in this present world, Tit. 2.12, 13. we must be holy in all manner of conversa­tion; even as he that hath called us is holy, 1 Pet. 1.15. we must walk after his Commandments, 2 Joh. 6. we must perfect holiness in his fear, 2 Cor. 7.1. &c. 'Tis commanded. Again is the promise of eternal life made to them? So to this also: The obedient and holy, and pure in heart, they shall be blessed, Mat. 24.46. They shall be happy, Joh. 13.17. They shall see God, Matth. 5.8. They shall have right to the Tree of life, Rev. 22.14. They shall have eternal life, Rom▪ 2.7, 8, 9, 10. And eternal Salva­tions, [Page 89] Heb. 5.9. But what if we be wanting in point of holiness, and obedience? May not the righteousness of Jesus Christ here make supply and be accepted in the room of it, and so Heaven had without it? No, no more than without faith and repentance. For are the unbelieving, and impenitent expresly exclu­ded from having any interest in the eternal blessings of the Covenant, and laid under an immutable sentence of eternal death? So also are the impure, and disobedient. They shall die, Rom. 8.13. They shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven, Matth. 5.20. They shall not see God, Heb. 12.14. They shall be cast into outer darkness, Matth. 25.30. They shall have indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, Rom. 2.8, 9. They shall be pu­nished with everlasting destruction from the pre­sence of the Lord, and from the glory of his pow­er, 2 Thes. 1.7, 8, 9.

Now what can possibly be more plain, than that the great blessings of the New Cove­nant are made over to us upon the condi­tions of faith and repentance and sincere obedience? It tells us indeed that God will pardon our sins, and own us for his children, and admit us to be heirs of his Kingdom, and be our God. I, but still it is with this proviso, if we do repent: if we do believe, if we do obey the Gospel, and by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory, and [Page 90] honour and immortality: I but except we eat the flesh and drink the blood of Jesus Christ, i.e. believe in him, Joh. 6.53. And except we re­pent, Luke 13.3. And except we be converted and become as little children, Math. 18.3. And except we be born again of water, and of the Spirit, Joh. 3.5. And except our righteousness exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pha­risees, Matth. 5.20. And except we abide in the vine, Joh. 15.4. And except we strive lawfully, 2 Tim. 2.5. we shall not enter into life. And if these be not plain conditions, I would gladly know what then are to be ac­counted such: or how otherwise they may be exprest. But thirdly,

3. All this is necessarily implyed in that short Epitome of the New Covenant so often repeated in Scripture, I will be your God, and ye shall be my people. The first part I will be your God, contains all the priviledges, and the second, ( ye shall be my people) all the duties of the Covenant. First, God here promiseth to be our God: What's that? Why? That he will do all that for us, that a God can do, and be all that to us that a God can be to a Creature. He will pardon our sins, and a­dopt us into his family, and put his holy spirit into us, and dwell with us, and take care of us, so that we shall not need to take any thought, what we should eat, or what we should drink or wherewithal we [Page 91] should be cloathed. He will provide for us, and give his Angels charge over, and protect us in all our wayes, and turn all things to our good and never leave us nor forsake us. He will hear our prayers, and supply our wants, and deliver us from our temptations, and subdue our corruptions, and lead, and assist and comfort us by his spirit, and make us heirs of his eternal Kingdom. In a word, he will give us Grace, and Glory, and no good thing will he withhold from us▪ and after all, he will be more than all this to us, for he himself will be our reward and por­tion. Thus God promiseth to be our God, yea, but then we must engage to become his people. For those words, And ye shall be my people, are not only promissory, but pre­ceptive, and do as well declare what God re­quires of us, as what he will eff [...]ct in us, or do for us. Thus have we God himself often commenting upon and expounding this phrase: If you will walk in my statutes, saith God to Israel, and keep my Commandments and do them, Lev. 26.3. Then I will walk a­mong you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people, v. 12. And this thing commanded I them, saying, obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people, Jer. 7.23. And chap. 11.4. Obey my voice, and do ac­cording to all which I command you: So shall ye be my people, and I will be your God. And [Page 92] thou hast avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his wayes, and keep his statutes, &c. And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments: That thou maist be an holy people to the Lord thy God, as he hath spoken, Deut. 26.17, 18, 19. And come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch no unclean thing, and then I will receive you, and will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daugh­ters, saith the Almighty. 2 Cor. 6.17, 18. All which is Emphatically exprest by the Prophet Isaiah by subscribing to the Lord, Isa. 44.5. One shall say, I am the Lord: and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob: and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.

And therefore it is, that God first promi­seth to put his Law, and Fear, and Spirit in­to his chosen, and to cause them to walk in his wayes, and observe his Statutes, that so they may become his people, Je. 24.7. Ezek. 11.20. & 36.26, 27, 28. & 37.23, 27. Jer. 32.38. &c. That's the method in which God makes them his.

Now whoever is taken into Covenant with God, he seals to both these parts, that is, to take God to be his God, his portion and happiness, and also to list himself in the number of his people: but what's that, you [Page 93] will say? Why? 'Tis as you have heard, to cleave to him, to obey his voice, to walk in his wayes, to keep his judgments, to observe his statutes, to serve him with a pure heart, to touch no unclean thing. In a word, to carry and demean themselves in all things as those that are in a state of subjection unto God, and have subscribed with the hand to him, and avouched him to be their God, to love and serve him with all their hearts, and with all their strength, and with all their thoughts. This is indeed to be the people of God, according to the true intent and mean­ing of the Covenant, as before explained.

Nor is it possible for any whose notions of God are not monstrously degenerate and en­ormous, so much as to imagine, that an in­finitely wise, and righteous God, should e­ver engage himself to any people to be their God, unless they also were made willing to be his people, to love him, and live in a due acknowledgment, and observance of him: Nor is it to be supposed, that any reasonable, and ingenuous Creature, that understands himself, and the reason of his own actings should ever intend otherwise in his Cove­nanting with God. What? take God only to serve our selves of him, and yet not to serve him? What? That we may be pardon­ed, and protected, and delivered from eter­nal miseries, and yet not give up our selves [Page 94] to him, to be ruled and governed by him? What? only to shrowd our selves under his wings, and be fed at his table, and enjoy all the priviledges of his adopted ones, his pa­ternal love and care, and blessing, and yet continue prodigal Sons of Belial, and chil­dren of disobedience, and pay nothing of that love and reverence and obedience that is due to him as a Father? Is this your language or meaning when you take hold of his Cove­nant, and say, Lord be my God? Will not common ingenuity then teach you to take up the Psalmists words, and say: And Lord I am thine, I am thy servant. All relations we say are mutual, and so are also the respective duties appropriate to them. And therefore whoever puts himself into any relation, he doth by that very act, at least implicitely, bind himself to the performance of all the duties of that relation: He that sincerely owns any man to be his Father, or Master, doth thereby oblige himself to all the duties of a Son, and Servant.

4. I might add, that since the pirviledges and immunities of this Covenant are not e­qually, and alike imparted unto all, 'tis ne­cessary, that some conditions should be af­fixed to it, as marks, and evidences, whereby those to whom they do belong, might be assured of their legal interest in, and title to them, and all others excluded, that wilfully [Page 95] reject the tender of them, and unworthily prefer their carnal delights, and pleasures, and worldly interests before them. If the que­stion be asked, why have not all an equal share in, or rightful claim to pardon and life? The only answer must be, the one sincerely perform the conditions upon which they are promised, i. e. they repent and believe, &c. but the others continue in their impenitence and unbelief; But of this I shall have an oc­casion to speak more fully in the following proposition.

5. The everlasting benefits of the New Covenant are either promised conditionally, or else absolutely and without conditions. If absolute, then may all equally lay claim to the promises of pardon, and life, and alike partake of all the blessings of the Covenant. Then Esau as well as Jacob, and Judas as well as Peter, and Pilate that condemned Christ, as well as those that became his Di­sciples and suffered for him, might hope to be justified and made Heirs of the Kingdom. For what should hinder, or exclude them? What? you will say their impenitency, and unbelief. I but if the Covenant be absolute, and there be no such condition, or proviso added to it; how can their not repenting, and believing in Jesus Christ be legally pleaded against them? or become any bar to their Salvation? 'Tis absolutely promised without [Page 96] reserve that they shall be saved, and God is obliged by his own faithfulness to make good his promise to them. And if so, what becomes of his threatnings and comminations against the impenitent, and unbelieving world? And where is the truth of Christs doctrine, that strait is the gate, and narrow the way that leads to life? The entrance into Heaven is then wider, than the gates of Hell, and many there be that enter in thereat. Pu­blicans and Harlots, Scribes and Pharisees, and Hypocrites and Infidels, as well as Saints and Believers: None are excluded.

Suppose a King to set forth a Proclama­tion, wherein he positively declares that all such as have rebelled against him, or such a number of them, as he therein mentions by name, shall be pardoned, and accepted to favour, and accordingly that he doth hereby fully pardon, and accept them; can any thing possibly in this case debar them from reaping the full benefit of this Proclamation? No, but if the proposals of his Grace and Favour be conditional, and therefore only to such, as shall lay down their Arms, and come in and humble themselves, and engage to own him as their Soveraign, and to submit to his Laws, and Government, otherwise to be proceeded against as Rebels and Traitors a­gainst his person and Soveraignty; Here as whilst the door is held open to all that shall [Page 97] submit themselves, and return to their Al­ [...]egiance, so 'tis by the other hand, shut against [...]ll obstinate, and resolved offenders. They [...]ave no plea, or claim to any benefit by his [...]roclamation of grace, and acceptance. Why? Because they submitted not to the [...]erms upon which it was propounded. But will any one say that God hath made any [...]uch Declaration of Grace to Sinners as that [...]ll, or any particular number of them shall [...]e pardoned and admitted into his favour, [...]nd received into eternal Glory, though they [...]ever repent, or believe in Christ, but ob­ [...]tinately continue in their infidelity, and acts [...]f hostility against him? If so, to what pur­ [...]ose hath God appointed an Hell or day of [...]udgment?

For if the impenitent and unbelieving and [...]isobedient, have an absolute promise to be [...]ved, there is none then can be damned. Ba­ [...]am might then have spared his prayer, Numb. 23.10. Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my latter end be like his, [...]nce as dies the righteous, so dies the wicked, i [...] sure and certaine hopes of a resurrection unto eternal life. The Covenant then you see 'tis not absolute: 'tis not to all alike without exception: 'tis not to the obstinate, and re­solved sinner, that continues in his impeni­t [...]ncy and unbelief. And if it be not absolute, i [...] necessarily follows that 'tis conditional: for [Page 98] the opposition betwixt these two terms, is contradictory, and so cannot admit of any medium. That which hath no conditions, is absolute, that therefore which is not absolute must have conditions.

PROPOS. XI. Of our necessary obligation to perform the conditions of the Covenant.

AS the Covenant of Grace is made with conditions, so these conditions, they must actually be accepted and performed by us, before we can be admitted to any actual interest in, or have any lawful claim to the blessings of it. The Covenant, as before was said, is made up of priviledges and duties. Those are promised, and these commanded. Now the duties commanded, must first be performed, before the priviledges promised can be enjoyed, since the promise is only made to the performance of them. Plainly thus, We are not, first pardoned, and then repent; first justified, and then believe; first glorified and then made holy: But we must first repent and believe before we can be par­doned, and make good the sincerity of our resolutions in both (so far as we have op­portunity) [Page 99] by obedience, before we enter into life. Which is no more, than what is commonly said by Divines, viz. That faith goes before justification; and holiness before happiness. This is the unvariable order in which the benefits of this Covenant are to be dispensed, and in which they are only to be expected by us.

I do not say, that these duties, or condi­tions are to be performed by us in our own natural strength, but yet they must be per­formed by us, in our own persons. The work is properly ours, but the strength to do it, is from the Lord. He by his spirit inables us to repent, and believe and obey the Gospel. I but still so, that it is our act: we are the persons that must actually repent, and be­lieve, and obey, or else we cannot receive the remission of our sins, and an inheritance amongst them that are sanctified.

And shall I need to say much for the proof of this which is so manifest, partly from what I have already said, and partly from the evi­dence of reason it self? For first,

1. Hath not God positively, and in plain terms commanded us to repent, and believe and be holy? And that in order to our being happy▪ And hath he not finally excluded from life and happiness, all such that are impenitent, unbelieving and impure? Can there be any doubt concerning this, to him that reads the [Page 100] Gospel, and believes it to be of Divine au­thority? And is he not, do you think, serious in all this? What, shall the unchangeable God, that cannot lie, be deemed like degenerate Man, to speak one thing, and mean another? Or is he serious only in his promises, and not so also in his commands, and threatnings? Why? Are not both equally founded upon the same immutable nature, and veracity of God? And if you can perswade your selves to hope, that God will revoke his threatnings, and commands; Why should you not also doubt, whether he will make good his pro­mises? We have no other foundation, where­on to build our faith, and hopes, but the declared will of God, and if that be change­able, our faith's no better than opinion, and our hopes, presumption. We can then nei­ther be sure, that the wicked shall be turned into Hell, nor yet that the righteous shall be saved. If this then be the fixed and unchange­able order, and method of Salvation by the Covenant of Grace, that either we must re­pent, or perish, return, or die, believe, or be damned, be holy, or not see God, be obe­dient, or suffer the vengeance of eternal fire, as hath been shewn; how can we hope to be saved otherways than in repenting, and turning, and believing, and obeying of the Gospel? Otherways than in the actual per­formance of these duties?

[Page 101]2. Have we not more than once by our own voluntary act solemnly engaged our selves to the actual performance of all these conditions? When we were baptized; when we after this approached to the Lords Table, when we have at any time professedly hum­bled our Souls before the Lord, in any so­lemn ordinance; yea when we first enter­tained the tenders of Grace and Salvation, did we not then promise and engage to a­mend our evil wayes, and doings, and turn to God, and believe in Jesus Christ, and re­ceive him in all his offices, and keep his Com­mands, and walk in all holiness, and obe­dience well pleasing in his sight? Now either we were serious, and in good earnest, or not, when we thus engaged. If serious, 'tis mo­rally impossible, that we should indulge our selves in the wilfull neglect of these duties, since an intentional, and approved violation of our promise is inconsistent with sincerity: And therefore the conscience of our own ob­ligation will necessarily put us upon all possible endeavours to act conformable to our own engagements. And since the thing, to which we obliged our selves, was not meerly the profession, and acknowledgment, but actual performance of these duties, we shall accordingly study to perform them.

But if we say, we were not serious in these solemn engagements, we then plainly confess, [Page 102] that our design therein was only to play the Hypocrites with God, and to impose upon his omnisciency. But is it possible, that any rea­sonable creature should ever become so pro­digious a Monster? Or that ever it should enter into the heart of Man to imagine, that the all wise, and holy God: He that requires truth in the inward parts, Psal. 51.6. He that hath curst the deceiver, Mal. 1.14. He that hath denounced so many woes against the Hypocrite, Matth. 23. and hath senten­ced them to the lowest place in Hell, Matth. 24.51. That he I say should bind himself by Covenant to such Miscreants, to pardon them and bless them, and admit them to the best and choisest priviledges of his King­dom? What? such as design to mock God, and play the Hypocrite with him, and to be treacherous and unfaithful to him? Be not de­ceived, saith the Apostle, God is not mocked, Gal. 6.7.

Besides, if our stipulating with God in the Covenant, or as the Prophet expresseth it, our subscribing with the hand to the Lord, be necessary (as hath been demonstrated) in or­der to our rec [...]iving the blessings of it, then our actual performance of what we stipulated, and subscribed to, must needs be much more necessary, since our solemn engagement to the Covenant is r [...]quired not meerly for it self but only as a means to this end, that is, to [Page 103] bind us to a more punctual performance of the conditions of it.

3. How else shall we distinguish betwixt the righteous, and the wicked; the Heirs of Glory, and the Sons of perdition? They may all be baptized. They may all subscribe with the hand to the Lord. They may all eat, and drink at his table. They may all be professors in Religion, and make a fair shew in the flesh, as the Apostle speaks, Gal. 6.12. These things are common to both, and therefore can be no mark of distinction betwixt them. No, but herein lies the difference. The one break off their sins by repentance, and turn to God: the other not. The one come to the foot of Christ, take his yoak, and bear his burden, and sincerely believe in him: the others not. The one keep his Commandments, and obey from the heart his Laws, and Doctrine: the others not. The one love the Lord with all their Souls and thoughts and strength: the o­thers have not the same love of the Father in them; but love the world and the things of the world, as John speaks, 1 John 2.15. In a word, the one perform the Oath of the Lord, and act conformably to their Cove­nant engagements, but the other they draw back and are unfaithful. Like the Pharisees, they say, and do not: But the others they say and do. And thus they are mutually descri­bed and distinguished by the Apostle, 1 Joh. 3▪ [Page 104] 7, 10. Little children, let no man deceive you; he that doeth righteousness, is righteous, even as he is righteous: ver. 7. But whosoever doeth not righteousness, is not of God, ver. 10. And herein he tells us, the Children of God are manifest, and the Children of the Devil. Here­in they are differenced, and hereby they ma­nifestly may be distinguished. And the same Character and mark of distinction we have from Jesus Christ himself, Job. 8.31. & 15.8.

But if the actual performance of these con­ditions be not unchangeably necessary, all di­stinction betwixt good and bad, Holy and Prophane is taken away, and we cannot say of any, [...]owever visibly different in their lives and conversations, this Man is wicked, or that Man is righteous, since one is not this in observing, nor the other that in neglect­ing the observance of them, if not nece [...]sary to be observed; and so we have no Standard left whereby to judge of either. The obedi­ent and disobedient are alike, if obedience and disobedience be the same.

For whatever elective love God may have for any particular person, more than for o­thers amongst the degenerate Sons of Men, yet since that is only an immanent act in God, and that, which had an existence from all eternity, before we had any thing, and wholly lies hid in the secret counsel of Gods [Page 105] will, and so absolutely unknown to us, that cannot possibly either make any change of our state, or become any foundation for any real and forensick distinction betwixt Man and Man. 'Tis not that, which makes this Man a Judas, and that Man a Paul. The one actually wicked, and the other person­ally righteous. And therefore whoever God predestinates, saith the Apostle, th [...]m also he calls, before they are either justified or glo­rified, Rom. 8.30. He makes them to pass under the rod, and brings them into the bond of the Covenant, and pours clean wa­ter upon them, and puts his Spirit into them, and writes his Laws in their hearts, and cau­seth them to walk in his ways, and keep his Judgments, before he will own them to be his people, and dignify them with the name of Saints, and Children, and righteous ones, Ezek. 36.25, 26, 27, 28. Jer. 31.33. 1 Cor. 1.2. Take Paul for an instance. He was you know a chosen vessel to the Lord, Acts 9.15. Separated (in Gods predeterminate coun­sel) from his Mothers womb, Gal. 1.15. Yea, but was he therefore immediately ju­stified, and sanctified, and adopted, and owned for a Saint, a Child of God from his Mothers womb? No, for all that, he will tell you, that he was for some years a Pha­risee, an injurious person, a Persecutor, a Blasphemer, 1 Tim. 1.13. And as he speaks [Page 106] of the Ephesians, that he was dead in sins and trespasses, a Child of disobedience and of wrath, without Christ, having no hope, and without God in the World. Eph. 2.1, 2, 3▪ & 12. To this effect he speaks expresly of himself, Tit. 3.3. And may we not now truly say of Paul (however elected) that he was a wicked Man, during his continuance in this state? And consequently, that he was not righteous; since 'tis impossible for the same person to be righteous and wicked, dead and alive at the same time. But how then came Paul to be amongst Gods Jewels, his holy ones? How? God humbles him at the foot of Christ, Acts 9.5, 6, &c. and calls him by his Grace, Gal. 1.15. and makes him obedient to his call, Acts 26.19. and re­generates him by his Spirit, Tit. 3.3, 4, 5. and causeth him to believe, and obey the Gospel, Acts 24.14, 15, 16. and to live intirely to Jesus Christ, Philip. 1.21. Thus Paul obtain­eth Mercy as he tells you, 1 Tim. 1.16. and is listed into the number of the Saints, his name now is changed, Acts 13.9. 'Tis no more Saul, but Paul, no more a Persecutor, but an Apostle of Jesus Christ: and now he is justified, Gal. 2.16. and now he receives a Crown of righteousness, 2 Tim. 4.8. And thus you see what it is, that denominates a man righteous, or wicked, and what is the only note of distinction betwixt an Heir of [Page 107] wrath, and a Child of God, not baptism or profession, or being in the visible Church, or the elective love of God, but doing righte­ousness, as John speaks, which is nothing else, but the actual performance of the Con­ditions of the New Covenant, of which I am treating.

4. Why else hath God sent his holy Spi­rit into the World? Is it not plainly for this end, that he may help our infirmities, Rom. 8.26. and that he may assist us in the actual performance of those duties, which are by the New Covenant required of us? That we may look upon him whom we have pierced by our sins, and mourn, Zech. 12.10. that we may believe in Jesus Christ, 2 Cor. 4.13. that we may mortifie the deeds of the flesh, Rom. 8.13. that our hearts may be purified in obeying the truth, 1 Pet. 1.22. And that we may walk in the wayes and keep the Judgments of God, Ezek. 36.27. All this is said to be by the assistance of the Divine Spi­rit. And therefore it is, that the ministration of the Spirit is still necessary in order to our Salvation, notwithstanding that Jesus Christ hath fully discharged the office and perf [...]cted the work of a Redeemer and Mediator for us: Joh. 16.7. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you, th [...]t I go away: for If I go not away, the comforter will not come unto you▪ but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

[Page 108]The Spirit here is expresly promised to be sent in the room of Christ to supply his place and office, when he should leave the World, as that which should be of more advantage to them than still to enjoy Christs personal presence here on Earth: Nevertheless I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go away. But why expedient? For then the Spi­rit shall come. But when he is come, what shall he do? Why? He shall convince the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment, ver. 8. I, but if Jesus Christ hath so done all, as that we have nothing at all to do, and that his imputed righteousness alone be suffi­cient to save us, without our personal, and obediential righteousness, to what purpose is the administration of the Spirit? His work, and office is wholly superseded. For what needs a Spirit of mourning to be poured down upon us, if so be the Covenant of Grace require us not personally to repent? Or a Spirit of Faith (as the Apostle calls it, 2 Cor. 4.13.) if we are not bound to believe? Or a Spirit of holiness, if it oblige us not to be actually holy? Or a spirit of obedience, if we may be saved without obeying? If then our having of the Spirit, and being led, or acted by him, be indispensably necessary in order to our Salvation, so also is our repenting, and believing in Christ, and loving God, and do­ing of his will, and cleansing our selves from [Page 109] all filthiness of flesh and spirit, and perfecting holiness in the fear of God, and purifying our selves, as he is pure; since the effecting this in us, is the great errand for which he came into the World, and the main office he hath undertaken, during the time of Christ Media­tory Kingdom.

The truth is, we can no more be saved without the ministration of the spirit, than we can without the Mediation of Jesus Christ. This argument runs clear in Scripture, He that hath not Christ, hath not life, 1 Joh. 5.12. But he that hath not the spirit, hath not Christ, Rom. 8.9. And he that is not holy and obedient, hath not the spirit, Jude ver. 19. For where ever the Spirit is, he regene­rates and sanctifies the whole lump, Body, Soul and Spirit as the Apostle speaks, 1 Thess. 5.22. and so becomes in that Soul a Spirit of Faith, Holiness, and obedience.

5. How otherwise shall Believers attain to any evidence, or assurance of their Salvati­on? Or come to know that they more than othes are in a state of friendship with God, and made Heirs of the promise, and vessels of mercy, when so great a part of the World are Heirs of wrath, and Sons of per­dition? That they may be thus assured, since some undoubtedly have been so, and that they all ought to labour for this assurance, since God in Scripture hath expresly com­manded [Page 110] it, I here take for granted. But how is it possible, that this assurance should be raised in them, any other way than by their certain knowledge, that they have through Grace, been inabled to discharge those duties of the Covenant to which these blessings and priviledges are therein promised? As how shall any man know that he is secured in the quiet possession of the Lands he holds by lease, but by knowing that he hath truly performed Covenants, and discharged the Conditions of his Indentures, by which his title to, and pos­session of them were made over, and secured to him? This I am sure is the only foundation that Scripture lays whereon to build our evi­dence, 1 Joh. 2.3, & 5.1 Joh. 3.18, 19, 20, & 24. & 1 Joh. 5.18, 19. Hereby, saith the Apostle, we know, and hereby we assur [...] our selves, Of what? That we are in God, and that he loves us: But how? Why? [...] we love him, and keep his Commandments. And if we do these things, saith Peter, we shall never fall, 2 Pet. 1.10.

And doth not the very nature of the thing it self no less demonstrate this? For what is assurance? Is it not a reflect act of the Soul upon it self, and actions, whereby it comes to k [...]ow that its state and actions are, and have been such, as God by the Law of the New Creature doth require and will accept? I [...] knows (by the assistance of the Divine Spi­rit) [Page 111] that it hath sincerely repented, and that it doth believe, and is regenerate, and born of God, and made obedient to the heavenly call, &c. And that consequently all the bles­sings promised to such a state, as pardon of sin, and acceptance with God, and eternal life, do now undoubtedly belong to him, as his reward, and portion. This is properly as­surance, and not an unwarrantable perswasi­on, that we are elected, or that Jesus Christ died for us and rose again for our justifica­tion in particular, or that God loves us, we know not why, &c. For then the strongest presumption would be the best assurance.

'Tis therefore impossible, that any Soul should be truly, and with safety assured of its being saved, unless it first be assured of its own sincerity in having acted according to the tenor of the Covenant: Man may pre­sume indeed, and please themselves with plea­sant dreams, and delusions, and fondly per­swade themselves like drunken, or distracted men, that they are Kings, and Priests to God, and Heirs to a Crown of Glory, and shall sit upon Thrones in Heaven with the Lamb, and reign with him for ever: They may thus fancy indeed, but whatever they pretend, they can never be thus assured, till the truth of their repentance, and faith, and holiness be first assured to them.

The great business therefore of the Spirit [Page 112] in sealing, and witnessing, is to evidence and confirm the truth, and reality of these Graces to the Soul, and to raise it to a comfortable perswasion of its own sincerity. For this is that, which modest and humble souls do u­sually most question, and concerning which they are not easily satisfied, partly by reason of temptation, and partly from a sense of their own daily failings, and infirmities, and partly also from the great importance of the thing it self, their eternal woe, or happiness depends upon it. That they who sincerely repent, and believe, and are sanctified, shall infallibly be saved, that is not the thing they doubt of. No, this they will acknowledge they do believe: I but their great doubt lies here, whether their repentance, and faith, &c. be true and sincere. 'Tis their own sincerity, and not Gods faithfulness, that they com­monly call in question. And here now pro­perly comes in the witness of the Spirit. They are Saints, and Sons, but they cannot di­scern their Fathers image upon their Souls: they have Faith, and Repentance, &c. they have Grace, but they do not see it. As a man that may have good Evidences for his Lands, yet by reason of some weakness, or distemper in his eyes, he may not at present be able to read them. The spirit therefore he comes, and blows off the dust, if I may so express it, and draws the lines more clear, he enables them [Page 113] more powerfully to mortifie those sins, that weakned their evidences, and stirs up those languishing sparks, that are in them, and makes them more quick and burning, and so more visible, or as the expression is in the Canticles, he blows upon the Garden, and makes the Spices thereof to flow out, and their sweet Odors to be more fragrant and diffusive: He invigorates their Graces, and causeth them to act with more sensible life, and strength, and after all he shines upon his own Graces, and strengtheneth their visive and discerning faculties, and so enables them to see the truth, and reality of those Graces, which before they doubted of. And thus by witnessing together with our spirits ( Rom. 8.16.) He raiseth the Soul to a comfortable assurance of its being in a safe, and happy state. As when a Man is under any appre­hensions, that his Estate is forfeited for breach of Covenants, and that thereupon he may be liable to arrests, and actions if upon read­ing his indentures, and viewing his acquit­ [...]ances he conceives that the rent hath been paid, and the rest of the conditions have been kept, his fears are in a great measure allaid, but if the owner himself now come, and [...]oint him to that particular acquittance, which was before over laid, and acknowledge that 'tis his own hand-writing and that he hath faithfully discharged the several conditions [Page 114] of his Lease, the Man is now fully satisfied, and sufficiently assured, that he may still have, and hold his Lands without any let, or mo­lestation. This is, as I apprehend, the true Scriptural notion of the spirits sealing, which you plainly see, presupposeth our repenting, and believing, &c. according to the tenor of the Gospel Covenant. For can you imagine that the Spirit seals to a blank? Or witnesseth to a lie? What, teach us to cry Abba Father, before we are born of God? Or perswade us we are justified, when we are in a state of un­belief, and the wrath of God abides upon us? Or assure us, we are Heirs of the promise▪ when we are strangers to the Covenant▪ Or that our estate is safe, when a curse, and death, and hell, are denounced against us? Is this the Spirits witness do you think, or way of sealing? No, he first works Grace upon the heart, and then gives testimony to his own work. He sanctifies first and then he seals to the day of Redemption Eph. 1.13.

6. The personal performance of the Con­ditions of the New Covenant is therefore ne­cessary, because the promise of pardon, and acceptance, and eternal life is only made to our personal performance of them. This I have often hinted before, and presupposed as a foundation to several of the preceeding ar­guments, but now it may be necessary to en­large a litte farther upon it, to make it more [Page 115] clear and evident. This is certain, that who­ever receives an estate by grant, or Covenant from another, he can have right to nothing more, than what is therein by name expres­sed, nor upon any other terms, than those therein specified. Nor any longer maintain his claim to it, than those Conditions are done, and performed by him. So that if ei­ther he did not consent to, and accept of the terms, or not duely perform them, when accepted, he is no more de jure to be deemed the lawful possessor of it. The case is thus here betwixt God, and Man: God makes a grant of pardon, and acceptance, and eter­nal life to sinners. This grant is by Covenant. This Covenant is with certain terms, and conditions, and these conditions, they must be accepted, and performed, or else no right to any of the priviledges of this Covenant is con­ferred upon us. For since we have here no right (as was said) but what is given us, and since that right is expresly affixed to the per­sonal performance of the conditions of the Covenant, therein mentioned, where there is no such performance, there can be no right. That this right is thus affixed to the personal performance of the Conditions of the Cove­nant is evident, for we have no right, but by promise, 1 Joh. 2.25. This is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life. And therefore Believers are by the Author to [Page 116] the Hebrews called the heirs of promise, Heb. 6.17.11.9. The promise then only gives us right to life, yea but the promise is only made to the personal performance of these du­ties, Acts 3.19. Repent ye, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the days of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. Prov. 28.13. Who so confesseth, and forsaketh his sin shall find mercy. Rom. 10.9, 10. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe with thine heart, that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man be­lieveth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Rom. 8.13. If ye through the spirit mortify the deeds of the flesh ye shall live. Joh. 13.17. If ye know these things, happy are ye, if ye do them. And Matth. 7.21. not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

From all these Scriptures it evidently ap­pears that the promise of mercy, and pardon and life and blessedness (the great benefits of the Covenant) they are expresly made to the actual, and personal performance of repen­tance, and faith, and sincere obedience, which are the main duties and conditions of the same Covenant. 'Tis our personal perfor­mance therefore of the conditions of the Co­venant, [Page 117] that gives us a formal, and personal right to the blessings of it, and our non-per­formance only by which our right is forfeited. ▪Tis that which gives us right, Rev. 22.14. Blessed are they that do his Commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the City. Blessed are they; who? They that have eat, and drunk in his presence, and wrought miracles in his name? No, but they that do his will: but why blessed? Because, they have right, (not only the favour, and priviledge) but right to the tree of life: But what gave them this right? Their subscribing, and sealing, and promising obedience to Jesus Christ? No, but their performing Covenants; their keep­ing of his Commandments. Therefore bles­sed are they, that they may have right. And this right since 'tis founded in Grace, and not in merit, it may be humbly pleaded by Be­lievers, when their right to the promise is called in question, or any accusations from the old Law brought in against them. Through Grace they have been inabled to believe, and repent, &c. And therefore they are freed from the curse and from condemna­tion. And therefore the promise of pardon, and life is theirs. But because few are so well satisfied concerning their own sincerity as to be thereby enabled to make this Plea, there­fore the promises that are more absolute, in [Page 118] this case are to be pleaded by them. For as some promises are made to Grace, the con­ditions of which, being performed, are the foundation of our assurance: So there are o­ther promises of Grace, which are the im­mediate foundation of our encouragement to Faith and Prayer. However, the doubting Souls cannot alway plead their right, because they question their own performances; yet the sincere performance of the condition, for all that, gives an undoubted right, and laies a good foundation for a legal plea, and by such as are satisfied concerning their own sincerity may be pleaded against accusations from the Law and Justice, without either as­serting merit, or retrenching the free Grace of God. Since this right (as was said) ariseth from the gracious will and favour of God, and not from our own desert, or the in­trinsick value of the duties we perform. As suppose one to found a School, or Hospital, and to endow it with rich revenews, and priviledges, but with this condition, that they upon whom 'tis setled, shall once, or twice every year pay by way of acknowledg­ment, some few pence or half pence to one of his own name, that the memory of his name might be preserved, and they constantly be made to acknowledge from whom they re­ceived so liberal a donation. In this case, as his making this the condition upon which [Page 119] they hold it, shall not render it to be no act of Charity, or blot out his name from a­mongst their Benefactors: So neither shall their pleading, that this acknowledg­ment, if called in question, hath accordingly been made, and the conditions of the grant been constantly performed; the pleading this I say, shall not be deemed either any detra­ction from the freeness of the gift, or a plead­ing of your own desert, only an humble as­serting of their own right which was by grant conferred upon them.

But as our actual performance of the con­ditions of the Covenant gives us an undoubt­ed right (because founded upon the faithful­ness of God) to all the priviledges of the Covenant, so consequently, on the contrary the non-performance of them must needs null our right, and cast us out of possession, and actually expose us, and make us liable to all that wrath, and vengeance, to all those woes, and penalties that either this, or the Old Covenant hath denounced. For since it is attended with double guilt, it shall also be rewarded with double punishment, Heb. 10.29. Nor will it be sufficient in this case to plead, that we have subscribed, and sealed, and promised performance to the Gospel Cove­nant; no, all this, if it be not actually kept, will serve for no other purpose, but to wit­ness our own unfaithfulness, and to con­demn [Page 120] us for being false to our own engage­ments. You know what answer Christ re­turned to such as made the like plea, Matth. 7.23. Depart from me ye workers of iniquity, I know you not.

But lastly to sum up all. One of these three things must here be affirmed. Either that God will dispense with his Laws, and stated order of saving sinners, and save them in some other way, than what he hath declared; or else that these duties, and conditions are discharged, and performed by some other person as surety for us and in our behalf; or else that they are actually to be performed by us in our own persons.

But, first what reason have we to imagine, that God will change his laws, and alter [...]he fixed methods of his Grace, and rescind his Covenant, which is the contrivance of his infinite wisdom, and goodness; founded in the blood of his own Son, and confirmed by his death, and that every way so well se­cures the honour of God, and the allegeance and comfort of the creature? What? Do you think he will thus offer violence to him­ [...]elf, his wisdom are holiness, which he so much delights to honour? Or that he will contradict the great design of his Sons un­dertaking, which was to reduce the creature to his duty, and obedience to God? Or that he will affront his own truth, and faithfulness, [Page 121] and impeach himself guilty of a lie? What? The holy and wise God do thus, and only for this end, that he may gratifie sinners in their wilfull neglects of him, and of the du­ties they indispensably owe to him? And open a door to licentiousness, and all sorts of abominations, which his Soul hates? And all this to save the impenitent, and unbe­lieving, and impure, and disobedient, (for all Men are so that do not actually repent, and believe and obey) and make them Co­heirs with Christ, and set them upon his throne, and put Crowns of Glory upon their heads? What? those that are his enemies, whom he hates, and hath sworn in his holi­ness that they shall never enter into his rest, or see his face, or taste of his joyes, but be thrown into outer darkness, and suffer the vengeance of eternal fire, and be tormented day and night, and everlastingly drink of the wine of his wrath poured out without mix­ture, and lie for ever in an Hell of misery, weeping, and wailing, and blaspheming be­cause of their plagues, and torm [...]nts, where his eye shall not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy on them? What? Can any Man, that hath not wholly lost his reason, perswade himself to believe thus, or to hope for Salva­tion in this way? Or if you suppose it possible for any thus to believe, will his f [...]ith, this faith, do you think, save th [...]m? For whom then is [Page 122] Tophet prepared? Or for wh [...]m is the black­ness of darkness reserved, if none be vessels of wrath, and Sons of perditions? And none are such, if not the impenitent, unbelieving, disobedient and impure. If these expect Salvation from God, they must then shew us another Gospel, another Covenant, for by this I am sure 'tis impossible that any should be saved that doth not personally perform the conditions of it. Nor have we secondly any greater reason to believe, or hope that these conditions should be discharged for us by any other person in our stead and behalf. For are not the commands, that re­quire duty, expresly spoke to us? Ye shall re­pent and turn to God: ye shall believe in Je [...]us Christ: ye shall be pure in heart, and ho­ly in all manner of conversation, and ye sh [...]ll love God and keep his Commandments, &c. And are not the promises of pardon, and life, &c. particularly made to us and to our personal performance of the conditions upon which they are made, as hath been shewn? And are not the comminations of death, and wrath, and eternal torments denounced a­gainst us in case of personal disobedience? He that believeth not shall be damned, Mark 16.16. He that loveth not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be an anathema, maran-atha, 1 Cor. 16.22. And except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish, Luke 13.3. Now what [Page 123] foundation is here to imagine, that these can concern any one, but our selves? Or if any of them be acknowledged to be appropriate to our selves, why not the rest? If the promises, why not the commands and threatnings, since we are alike spoke to in all? Why should we charge these upon another, and take the pro­mises only to our selves? May we not with as good reason say, that another may be saved for us, or damned for us, as that he shall re­pent, and believe for us? And so Heaven should be ours only by a proxie, and Justifi­cation ours by a subtitute, &c. That is, in plain English, 'tis not we that are justified, nor we that are adopted, nor we that are admitted into eternal Glory; but some one else for us.

But who is this, that we suppose should perform these Conditions for us? Jesus Christ our Mediator?

'Tis true he hath fully satisfied the demands of the first Covenant, and taken Believers off from all obligation of duty to it. And he hath also by his Mediation obtained another, and better Covenant founded in his own blood, and attended with better promises, wherein pardon and eternal life are again offered, and assured to sinners upon the equi­table, and honourable terms of repentance and faith, and sincere, though not perf [...]ct obedience. Yea, but yet we must not say, that Jesus Christ repents, and Jesus Christ be­lieves [Page 124] for us, &c. No, this must still be our own Act, and 'tis impossible it should be the act of Christ. For consider but what is the proper object of these duties: The object of repentance is sin: and the object of faith and obedience is Jesus Christ: we are to believe in him, and to be obedient to him, Heb. 5.9. and be conformable to him, Rom. 8.29. and to keep his commands, Joh. 15.10. and to walk after his example, 1 Pet. 2.21. But can these any way be applied to Jesus Christ? What? shall we say, that Christ believes in Christ? Or that Christ is obedient to Christ? Or that Christ is conformable to Christ? Or that Christ walks in the steps of Christ? What sence shall we then make of Scripture? Or if any shall be so forsaken of their reason, as to cant thus, yet will any one say, that Je­sus Christ repents of Sin? Or breaks off his sins by repentance, and amends his evil wayes and doings, as we are commanded? If then it be not possible, that either God should violate his own Covenant, and con­tradict himself, or that Jesus Christ should perform the conditions of it for us, it necessarily follows that we our selves are personally obliged to the actual perfor­mance of them, in order to our obtaining eternal life. That is, as I have often said, we our selves are the persons, that stand bound, [...]ch Man for himself to repent, and believe, [Page 125] and obey and be holy; or else Salvation it self cannot save us.

PROPOS. XII. Of the consistence of a conditional Covenant with the sufficiency of Christs righteousness, and the do­ctrine of free Grace.

THis method of Gods saving sinners by way of Covenant, as is before explain­ed, is very well consistent with, and no way derogatory to, either the sufficiency of Christs satisfaction and righteousness, or to the do­ctrine of free Grace in Christ.

I add this, because 'tis the common for­tress to which Men of more loose, and de­bauched lives and principles in Religion are wont to retire, when by the evidence of Scripture and reason they are driven from all their other holds. Tell them, that they must repent, and turn to God, and amend their evil wayes, and doings, and bring forth fruits meet for repentance. Tell them, that they must come to Christ, and believe in him, and take his yoak, and bear his burden, and deny themselves, and be obedient to his Laws, and love him in sincerity. Tell them, that [Page 126] they must mortifie the deeds of the flesh, and deny all ungodliness and worldly lusts, and live godly, and righteously and soberly in this present world, and be pure in heart, and ho­ly in all manner of conversation, as he that hath called them is holy: Tell them, that there is an indispensable necessity of all this, or else their sins cannot be pardoned, or their persons accepted, or their Souls saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. And give them un­deniable reason, and plain and express Scri­pture for the proof of all these commands, and promises, and threatnings, all speaking the same language. And what is their answer to all this? Why? The righteousness of Christ is sufficient, and the Grace of God in Christ is free, and therefore they hope in his mercy, and doubt not of their Salvation, though they still indulge themselves in sin, and con­tinue in a manifest neglect of God, and the great duties of Christianity. And all that is said to the contrary, that might take them off from sin and vanity, and perswade them to any greater diligence, and exactness in Religion, that is immediately condemned, and decried for legal doctrine, that disthrones Christ, and takes the Crown from his head, and destroyes the free Grace of God, and tends to bring us again in bondage to the Law.

And that which makes it the more difficult [Page 127] to take Men off from these mistaken notions they have entertained concerning the righte­ousness of Christ, and free Grace, is this, that they are the only foundation and hold that these Men have for their hopes of pardon and Salvation. So that if you beat them off from these, you take away all their hopes, and confidence, yea their Heaven, and hap­piness from them. They have nothing then left whereby to stop the mouths of their own awakened consciences, or warrant their ex­pectations of Heaven, or to keep their Souls from sinking immediately into despair. Their hearts, they condemn them for their daily neglect of duty, and indulgencies to the flesh, and disobedience to the Gospel, and alas! they have nothing within, or from the word to witness for them. No broken, and con­trite spirit: no mournings in secret for their sins: no acts of self-denyal: no change of heart, or life: no spirit of faith, or fear, or love, or adoption to intitle them to the promise, and blessings of the Covenant. No, neither Sun, nor Star appears, that might encourage them in their way, but as it was with Paul in his voyage to Rome, all hopes that they should be saved, is taken away, and therefore 'tis, that they do with so much constancy and re­solution adhere to, and contend for these mi­staken notions, as their only refuge & security.

And thus, though they are not able to con­quer, [Page 128] or encounter those thundering Legions, that are brought against them, yet whilest they have this strong hold and fortress to retire to, they are little moved by the terrors of the Lord, but still apprehend themselves safe, and well secured against all that thun­der, and lightning, that is from Heaven poured out against them: All is but like the shooting of pointed Arrows against the walls of a Castle, which are presently beat back a­gain, without making any great impression upon the walls.

And therefore there is little hopes of ever prevaling with these Men, to surrender them­selves to the powers, either of Scripture, or reason, though on every hand besieged by them, unless this Fortress of theirs be demo­lished, and its Towers broken down, and consequently their refuge and defence taken away. That is, in more plain English, unless it be discovered, that their notions about the sufficiency of Christ's righteousness, and the doctrine of Free Grace, are false, and vain, and that neither the conditionality of the New Covenant, nor the necessity of our per­sonal performance of the conditions of it in order to eternal life, are any way inconsi­stent with, or prejudicial unto either. Grace notwithstanding is still free: And the satis­faction, and righteousness of Jesus Christ is nevertheless s [...]fficient. These are the two [Page 129] things, that I am now particularly to speak to, and to demonstrate.

The sufficiency of Christs satisfaction and [...]ighteousness is no way either contradicted, or prejudiced by asserting the Covenant of Grace to be made, not with Jesus Christ, but with [...]elievers themselves, upon certain terms and conditions: to the actual performance of which, they are personally obliged in order to their receiving, and enjoying the benefits [...]f it. That Jesus Christ hath fully satisfied the demands of the first Covenant, and ful­ [...]lled all righteousness, and finished his work, [...]s Mediator, and perfected our Redemption [...]y his death, and suffering: And that his sa­ [...]sfaction and merit is of infinite value, and [...]erefore abundantly sufficient for the ends [...]r which it was intended, hath been ac­ [...]nowledged, and proved in the foregoing [...]opositions: Propos. 2. and 4. And there­ [...]ore I shall need to say nothing here, for the [...]claring my assent to, or for the vindicati­ [...] of these particulars; That which I have [...]ow to do is only to shew in what sense [...]operly it may be said to be sufficient, and [...] remove those mistaken apprehensions, that [...]e concerning it. For which purpose it is, [...] the first place, to be observed, that by suf­ [...]iciency here we are not to understand the [...]rinsick worth, and value of Christs sa­ [...]faction, and righteousness; upon which ac­count, [Page 130] it may not untruly be said, if rightly construed, that 'tis sufficient for the Salvatio [...] of many worlds. And in this very particu­lar mainly lies the mistake. The satisfaction o [...] Christ, say they, is infinite, and his righteousness infinite, & therefore sufficient for the redemp­tion of this, and many worlds, if they had been made; which as to its absolute valu [...] and dignity is acknowledged. But what [...] then? Why? Therefore they hope, and be­lieve that they shall be saved by it. And [...] they build their faith, and hopes, immedi­ately upon the absolute worth and merit [...] Christs satisfaction. But will this foundatio [...] stand? or this argument hold good, whe [...] it comes to tryal? In this sense 'tis sufficien [...] to save the Infidels, Jews, and Turks: T [...] save the spirits now in prison; to save a [...] Apostate Lucifer, and his Angels. Yea a Be [...] zebub, the Prince of Devils: But will yo [...] yet say, that the unbelieving Jews, an [...] Turks, and damned spirits, and Aposta [...] Angels, shall or can be saved? Or that the [...] have any sufficient reason hence to believe it▪ This is much what as if when a poor man [...] arrested for a debt, he should say, the King Exchequer is full, and abundantly su [...] ­ficient to pay what I owe, and therefore go to him, and my debt shall be pai [...] ▪ But will the Creditor, do you think, acce [...] of this as sufficient? If the sufficiency of Chris [...] [Page 131] satisfaction and merit, as to its intrinsick value, were a sufficient warrant for our Faith, and hopes of Salvation, then I see no rea­son but why the Devils might as before was hinted, not only, as James speaks, believe and tremble, but also believe and hope. For they may also argue thus, Christs merit is infinite, 'tis sufficient, and therefore we be­lieve, and expect to be freed from these chains of darkness, and to be readmitted into eter­nal mansions, and enjoy those pleasures that are at Gods right hand for evermore. And thus men miserably delude themselves, first by their mis-understanding, and then by mis­applying the sufficiency of Christs satisfaction, and all by their not rightly distinguishing betwixt its intrinsick value, and its stated, [...]nd intentional sufficiency: That indeed is [...]he foundation of the New Covenant, but [...]his only of our Faith, and hopes.

But secondly by the sufficiency of Christs satisfaction, and righteousness, we are here, [...]o far as 'tis of concernment to us, to un­ [...]erstand its fitness and efficacy with respect [...]o its designed and intended end. For what­ [...]ver is taken up only as a means, or medium [...]o any end, its sufficiency is no otherwise to [...]e judged and determined, but by its fit­ [...]ess and ability, or its unfitness and ina­ [...]ility to the production of that end, for [...]hich 'tis made choice of, and unto which [Page 132] it is appointed. This is the only rule, and standard by which the sufficiency of all means is to be measured and decided. That there­fore which is not fit, and able to effect its end, we properly say 'tis insufficient: But that which is every way suited to, and doth [...]ffectually in all points obtain its end, that is truly to be de [...]med sufficient. As suppose (to make it yet more plain to every capacity) that one, who is poss [...]ssed of a great, and liberal estate, mortgage some part of his lands to another for his security, upon considera­tion [...]ith [...]r of moneys borrowed, or some Annuities to be paid, &c. What's that which a w [...]se Man would here look after for his se­curity? What? the intrinsick value of this Mans whole Estate, and incomes? No, that's not engaged to him, nor intended as a means for his satisfaction, and therefore he hath no sufficient ground from this to exp [...]ct to be sa­tisfied, only the mortgage, and what of his lands are therein mentioned, being intended, as a means for his security, the value of that he considers, and whether there be enough thence arising to pay the moneys owing, and to discharge such annuities; if so, 'tis judged a s [...]fficient estate, and sufficient security, and he [...]ests satisfied with it. Now to apply all this. The satisfaction of Christ, 'tis designed by God as a means for the accomplishment of certain divine ends, which have already [Page 133] been declared in the precedent discourse, as the vindicating of his wisdom, holiness, ju­stice, faithfulness, &c. and maintaining his authority and laws and government in the world. And laying a sure foundation for the readmission of fallen Man to the favour of God, and eternal life upon his returning to God, and accepting of the redemption offered, and living in a due acknowledg­ment of, and subjection to his Maker, and Redeemer, &c. These are the great ends (as hath been shewn more at large in several propositions) for which God intended his Sons satisfaction. And to these, 'tis every way sufficient, though not to all those ends that wicked men may fancy, and imagine to themselves, for their greater encouragement to vanity, and presumption. 'Tis sufficient to evidence the holiness and purity of Gods nature, and his irreconcileable hatred against sin: sufficient to declare his righteousness, that he might be just, and the justifier of them that believe in Jesus: sufficient to vindicate the authority of his Laws, and Government to the world: sufficient to obtain a New Co­venant from God with his Creature, for the pardoning of his Rebellion, and taking him again into friendship, and bestowing eter­ [...]al life, and Glory upon him, provided he will but humble himself and submit to God, [...]nd live in obedience to his righteous Laws [Page 134] and Government: To these wise, and holy ends, for which God hath designed it, it is suf­ficient. Yea but yet not sufficient for the re­demption of fallen Angels: or for the Sal­vation of the damned now in Hell, because not designed and intended for their Salvati­on and Redemption. And for the same rea­son we may also say, without detracting a­ny thing from its sufficiency, that 'tis not sufficient to save the impenitent, and unbe­lieving, and unholy here on earth: Why? Because it was never intended for this end. As I may without offence say, that the Kings treasury is not sufficient (though in it self more than sufficient) to discharge my debt, or satisfy my creditor, because it was never appointed for that purpose, but for higher, and more worthy ends: and therefore the as­ [...]rting the Covenant to be conditional, re­quiring our personal repentance, and faith, and obedience, without which we cannot expect to be pardoned, or saved by it, can be no diminution, or prejudice to the suffici­ency of Christs satisfaction, and righteousness, unless it be shewn, that God did purposely design it for the Salvation of such as would neither repent, nor believe, nor obey, that is, such as lived and died in open rebellion and defiance against him. Such as rend their pardon, and throw away the Physick that should cure them, and spit in the face of their [Page 135] Phisician. Such in a word, as blaspheme God, and do despite to the Spirit of Grace, and trample under-foot the blood of Christ, and put him again to open shame. If it can be shewn indeed, that God ever intended the satisfaction of his Son, for this end, to save such Monsters of iniquity whom he hath by an unchangable degree sentenced to eternal torments, then 'tis true, to say that Men can­not be saved by Jesus Christ, without repent­ing, and believing, and being holy, is to argue it of weakness and insufficiency, since it falls short of obtaining the end for which it was appointed. I but if it be evidently ma­nifest, that the satisfaction of Jesus Christ was never intended for this end (only to save such as humbly believe, and obey,) then 'tis no derogation to the sufficiency of his righteous­ness to say, it is not sufficient for their Sal­vation, since otherwise acknowledged suf­ficient to the ends for which it is intended. For since it hath only the place of a means, as was said, if you give it all that suffici­ency, and honour, that is of right due, and belonging to it, when I assert it sufficient to its designed end, though I deny it to be suf­ficent to many other purposes, for which it never was appointed. As he that saith [...]he mortgage given for his security, is well able to discharge the debt for which 'tis engaged, acknowledgeth all that is proper to be said [Page 136] of it▪ Nor would it be thought any dispa­ragement, this being granted, neither to the owner, or to the security given, to say that 'tis not sufficient to pay such other debts, and bonds, for the payment of which it never was, nor ever was intended, that it should be obliged. And so much by way of answer, to the first objection. But secondly,

2. As the method of Gods saving sinners by Covenant, in the sense before expressed, it no diminution, or prejudice to the all-suf­ficiency of Christs satisfaction and righteous­ness duely explained, and understood; so nei­ther is it (as pretended) any way destructive, or opposite to the doctrine of free Grace, right­ly stated according to the rules of the Gospel. There is indeed a Free Grace, which some Men vainly fancy to themselves, to which I confess this doctrine is diametrically oppo­site, but not to that, which we have recom­mended to us in and warranted by the Scri­ptures.

But that this may be the more clearly evi­denced, and made good, these five things must here be done.

1. We must in the first place rightly state the notion of Free Grace.

2. We must duely distinguish betwixt cau­ses and conditions.

3. We must take notice of that order in which the blessings of the Covenant are [Page 137] dispensed, and in what order the Conditions of it are to be applied for the obtaining of them.

4. We must inquire into, and inform our selves aright concerning the nature of Salva­tion, and happiness, and see how the duties of Christianity stand related to it.

5. And lastly we must not forget by whose strength, and assistance all our duties are per­formed.

1. We must here rightly state the notion, and limits of Free Grace. For herein lies the great errour of the World, and that from which also arise those many dangerous mi­stakes, that are concerning it. They have wild, and strange and unbounded concepti­ons, and ideas of Gods Free Grace in their minds, and therefore no wonder, that they give us so bad a Comment of it in their lives and conversations. For God to accept of their good wishes, and desires, as they call them, though their lives are still wicked, and un­reformed. And to pardon Sinners that have worn out all their dayes in carnal delights and pleasures, and manifest rebellion against God, only upon their crying out in the last moment of their lives, Lord have mercy on them, and receive their Souls. And to be so pitiful, and compassionate to his Creatures, as not to damn, or destroy them because he hath made them. And to give them Heaven, [Page 138] and Happiness for the sake of Christ, though they never truly believed in him, or seriously minded Heaven all their dayes, or regarded to please God, and live in obedience to his Law. And bestow eternal recompenses up­on them, Kingdoms, and Crowns of Glory, though they have sate still all their time, and never worked in the vineyard, or fought in the battle, or run in the race that was set before them. This is that, which generally Men call by the name of the Free Grace of God, and by which they hope to be saved, as well as others, as well as the best, as they commonly speak. But is this indeed the Grace of God? That which he assumes to himself, as his Glory; and which he hath revealed to us in the Gospel, as the founda­tion of our Faith? To pardon and save such, I confess, even the most impenitent, and un­believing, and impure Sinners in the world, the very Heirs of wrath and Sons of perditi­on, this I grant, would be Grace, and free Grace too. Yea but where have we any war­rant or encouragement from the word to be­lieve, that there is any such Grace in God, or Jesus Christ, whereby such sinners shall be saved? And yet might those be owned for the legitimate, and true born notions of free Grace, which the wild imaginations of Men may at [...]leasure create to themselves, it were easy to give a more large, and extensive de­scription [Page 139] of it. To proclaim liberty to the cap­tives now in Hell that are weeping, and wailing, and blaspheming God because of their torments: And the opening of the pri­son to the Devil and his Angels that are bound in chains reserved for the blackness of darkness for ever: And to proclaim the ac­ceptable year of the Lord, to all the inhabi­tants of the earth, that they all might be saved; Jews, and Turks, and Pagans, that none might perish: tell me, would not this be Grace, and free too with an emphasis? Yea but all Grace you see that we may f [...]ncy, is not saving Grace. Nor all that neither, the Grace of God, which we fondly imagine to be in God.

I have said all this to shew, how much the generality of the world are mistaken in their conceptions of free Grace, and what necessity there is to come to some stated, and limited notions concerning it, which must undoubt­edly be such, as may be worthy of God, and suitable to the nature of a reasonable Crea­ture.

Such as may be consistent with the infinite wisdom of God, and holiness of his nature, and truth, and veracity of his word. Such as may uphold the credit of his Laws, and Govern­ment in the world, and retain the Creature in his due subjection to, and d [...]pendance up­on his Maker. Such also as may be agreeable [Page 140] to his Sons great design in dying, and suffer­ing for M [...]n, which was to mend, and re­form the world, and to make Men holy and righteous and conformable to God, and not to encourage them to sin and wickedness by their hopes of mercy and impunity. These boundaries and limitations must necessarily be supposed to all the dispensations of Gods free Grace to the Creature, since for God to act otherwise, which is not to be imagined, would be both dishonourable to himself, and contradictory to the undertaking of his Son in redeeming the world. Where, by the way wee see, how greatly they are mistaken, who ascribe this free Grace to God, under a pre­tence of giving the more honour to him, when in truth nothing can be said more un­worthy of him. Suppose the Magistrate should set forth a Proclamation, wherein he declares it to be his Royal pleasure that all that have been guilty of any crime whatso­ever, Murderers, and Traytors, and Rebells, the worst, and vilest of malefactors should without distinction be pardoned, and set at liberty, though they never humbled them­selves to him, or reformed their lives, or promised allegeance to his person, and Go­vernment, but still persisted in their wicked­ness, and kept their weapons in their hands to fight against him. This you will grant would undoubtedly be an act of free Grace, [Page 141] and favour in the Magistrate, yea but would it do you think, be to his honour? Some few profligate persons possibly, who hoped for impunity by it, might cry him up, as wonderfully gracious and indulgent, but would any wise and sober Man commend him for it? Surely if he had had any love to justice, and righteousness, or any regard to his own credit, or any due care and respect for his Laws, and Governm [...]nt, he would never have been guilty of so imprudent, and unadvised an action. He would never thus have countenanced such impieties, and encou­raged Men to rebell against him, would not this be the plain sense, and interpretation of such an act of Grace? Just thus do these Men honour God, and Christ, that make his Grace to be so free, as to save impenitent and unbelieving sinners.

But if it be certain, that there is no such free Grace in God, nor no such righteousness in Christ, as may be sufficient to save such sinners as these, then 'tis also as certain that the conditionality of the Covenan [...] requiring our personal repentance, and faith and holi­ness in order to our Salvation, is no way in­consistent with or derogatory to that stated notion we have of both in the Gospel, though it be to those wild notions of them that wicked Men vainly fancy to themselves, which I shall yet more plainly demonstrate [Page 142] by shewing first what Grace properly is, se­condly what is absolutely necessary to make it free.

1. Grace properly signifies no more, than love and kindness, favour, and friendly ac­ceptance, or bounty and ben [...]ficence, Luke 1.30. Fear not, saith the Angel there to Ma [...]y, for thou hast found [...] ▪ f [...]vour with God; and ver. 28. thou art great­ly, or highly favoured, [...], which we render in the margin, graciously accepted, or much graced: So Luke 2.52. 'tis said of J [...]sus Christ, that he encreased in wisdom, and stature, and favour ( [...]) with God, and Man. Acts 2.46. They eat their meat with gladness, and singleness of heart, saith Luke there of those primitive converts, praising God, [...] and having favour with all the people. And Joh. 1.17. The Law came by Moses, but Grace, and truth by Jesus Christ, [...]: which is elsewhere rendred love and kindness.

And to name no more, 1 Cor. 16.3. Whomsoever you shall approve by your letters, them will I s [...]nd to bring your liberality: ( [...]) that is, your charity as we speak, or kindn [...]ss, in your liberal contributions for the relief of the poor Saints at Jerusalem. In which sense you have the same word taken, 2. Cor. 8.4.

And therefore wh [...]n the fruits of the [Page 143] Spirit, as Faith, and Love, and Hope, &c. are called Graces, as we say the Grace of Faith, and the Grace of Repentance, &c. this is not to be understood in a proper sense, for so they are not Grace, but metonymically, and by way of derivation only; either because they come from the special love and favour of God, and so are the effects of it, or because they render us acceptable to God, and so be­come the obj [...]cts of his love, upon which account 'tis called by the Schoolmen, Gratia gratum faciens: In the first sense th [...]y are [...] quia [...], in the second, quia—

By the Grace of God then we are here properly to understand his love and favour and kindness, and good will, and benefi­cence to the Sons of Men.

2. But secondly that all this may be truly said to be free, free love, and free kindness, and free beneficence, there is nothing more required, but that it be not deserved. For, if I cannot possibly by any thing that lies with­in the compass of my power to do, merit or deserve the least favour or kindness from the hands of another, then whatever I re­ceive from him, must be acknowledged due to his free love and bounty. This therefore I shall take for an undoubted axiome, that as what I deserve, is my due, so that also is un­doubtedly free, that is undeserved. And there­fore notwithstanding all that hath been said [Page 144] concerning the conditionality of the Cove­nant, and the necessity of our personal per­formance of the Conditions of it, that of the Apostle will still stand firm, Eph. 2.8. By Grace ye are saved, through faith; and not of your selves, it is the gift of God. Because it is not possible for any Creature to merit, or deserve any thing at the hands of God, much l [...]ss such transcendent favours, as to be made the Sons of God, and H [...]irs of Glory. For who ever merits any thing of another by any thing he gives, or doeth, that gift, or action of his, that it may become meritori­ous, or deserving, it must of necessity have these four qualifications, or properties an­nexed to it.

1. It must be de pr [...]prio. Somewhat that is his own. Otherwise he properly gives no­thing, but he rather from whom he received it. As he th [...]t takes an hundred pound from one Man, and gives it to another, deserves nothing for such a gift, since properly he gives nothing that is his own.

2. It must be ex indebito, somewhat that is not antecedently due to the party to whom 'tis given. And therefore no man is judged worthy of a reward, that pays no more than the debt he owes.

3. It must cedere in lucrum alteri, be some way or other beneficial, and for the advan­tage of another, and not only to my self, or else wherein do I oblige him?

[Page 145]4. There must be a due proportion betwixt the datum and acceptum, that which is done or given, and that which is received by way of reward for it. For which reason, we say he that gives a peny, cannot deserve a pound, much less he that gives a farthing deserve millions. Now upon all these accounts 'tis ab­solutely impossible, that any creature should merit or deserve pardon, or grace, or glory, or any thing from God, and therefore all still must needs be [...]: free­ly of his grace, as the Apostles phrase is, Rom▪ 3.24. For first,

1. 'Tis not properly our own but the Lords, whatever we render to him: What hast thou, that thou hast not received, saith the Apostle, 1 Cor. 4.7. 'Tis not only his corn, [...]nd his wine and his wool and his flax by [...]hich we are fed and cloathed, as the Prophet [...]peaks, Hos. 2.9. but his strength, & his assistance [...]y which we are inabled to perform all our works, 2 Cor. 3.5. 'Tis he that breaths up­ [...]n these dry bones, and causeth the spirit of [...]ife to enter into them, Eph. 2.1. 'Tis he [...]hat strengtheneth us with might in the in­ [...]er man, Eph. 3.16. And 'tis he that work­ [...]th in us both to will, and to do, of his good [...]leasure, Phil. 2.13. And therefore Paul [...]hen he had told the Corinthians that he had [...]aboured more abudantly than all the Apo­ [...]les, 1 Cor. 15.10▪ (A more particular ac­count [Page 146] of which he gives them, 2 Cor. 11.23, 24. &c.) Immediately he corrects himself, as having ascribed too much to his own en­deavours, and in the n [...]x [...] words adds, Yet not I, but the Grac [...] of God, which was with me, by which grace, saith he in the foregoing words, I am that I am. Thus Paul, from first to last, both as to what he was, and what he did, he acknowledgeth all to be o [...] Grace: So that upon this account we are you see so far from meriting any thing by our best endeavours, as that the more we do the more we are indebted to divine grace, for enabling us so to do. And therefore af­ter all must take up Davids words, and make the like humble acknowledgment as [...] did, after he had made so munificent pr [...] ­parations for the building of the Templ [...] 1 Chron. 29.11, 12, &c. Thine, O Lord, is t [...] greatness and the power, and the glory and [...] victory, and the Majesty: for all that is in [...] Heaven, and in the earth is thine: thine is [...] Kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted, [...] head above all, both riches and honour come [...] thee, and thou reignest over all, and in thi [...] hand is power, and might, and in thine hand is to make great, and to give strength unto [...] Now therefore our God, we thank thee, [...] praise thy glorious name; but who am I, [...] what is this people that we should be able [...] offer so willingly after this sort? For all thi [...] [Page 147] come of thee: and of thine own have we given thee. And as it follows, all this store that we have prepared cometh of thee, and is all thine own.

2. 'Tis no more than what we all owe to God, if not antecedent to his command, yet to any promise he hath made either to ac­cept, or reward us for our obedience. For since we all by our first creation received our beings and faculties by derivation from him, and still live in an essential dependance upon him, we are thereby indispensably ob­liged to render to him all possible homage, and service, and to improve both our facul­ties and beings intirely for his Glory. If we any way offend God by sinning against him, we are bound to humble our selves, and re­turn to him, and cease from offending of him: And if he lay any command upon us, we are bound to yield obedience to it, and to subject our selves to all his righteous Laws. And if he in kindness make any promise to us, we are bound to believe him, and relie upon him.

These are all natural duties, that imme­diately result from the creatures necessary de­pendance upon, and subjection to God, as he is the Lord our Maker. And though it be true that we are now fallen from God, and much disinabled by our fall from the due performance of these duties, yet this is to be [Page 148] considered that our inability cannot null Gods right. The debt is still owing, and may be demanded, though the debtor hath by his own default rendered himself unable to pay it. How then should Man, by any act of his, merit pardon, or life, when before these bles­sings were promised in the New Covenant for our encouragement, he was necessarily obliged to do and perform all that which is therein at present required of him? Can the payment of an old arrear, deserve a new grant of the inheritance it self? Put the case that the Father of a prodigal child, that had riotously mispent his portion should for his greater encouragement to repentance, tell him that he would freely forgive his re­bellion, and settle the whole inheritance up­on him, of which he had been justly disinhe­rited; provided only, that he would, as be­comes a child, humble himself, and return to his duty, and be obedient to him. Would any one now say, that this was no free act of Grace, or kindness in the Father, because propounded with these conditions? Or that the Son in accepting, and performing of them did therefore merit the inheritance? No, for all this the Father, you will say, freely pardon [...]d his Son, and freely settled the in­heritance upon him: Why? Because his Son was bound by the law of nature, thus to humble himself to his Father, and to return [Page 149] to his duty and obedience, though his Father should not have given him one farthing more of his estate. The Son it's true did his du­ty, in doing thus; yea but since he did no more he deserved nothing, Luke 17.10.

3. There is no real gain or benefit ac­crues to God, but to our selves, by any of our performances, Job 35.6, 7, 8. If thou sinnest, saith Elihu there to Job, What doest thou against him? Or if thy transgressions be multiplied, what doest thou unto him? If thou be righteous, what givest thou him? Or what receiveth be at thine hand? Thy wickedness may hurt a man, as thou art, and thy righte­ousness may profit the Son of man: God is too great to be obliged by any creature, and too powerful to be really prejudiced by them. He knows how to get the full revenues of his Glory out of the most rebellious, and im­penitent, by throwing them into chains of eternal darkness. And therefore Christ teach­eth his disciples to say, after they had done all that was commanded them, that they were unprofitable servants: yea, but he doth not say (observe that by the way) sit still, and fold your hands together with the Slug­gard, and take your own ease, and pleasure, and be not over solicitous, and diligent in obedience to the commands of God, lest by that means you should be thought to de­rogate from the sufficiency of his sons righte­ousness, [Page 150] or eclipse the glory of his free Grace. No, he doth not say, do nothing, that you may be said to deserve nothing, but he sup­poseth that to the uttermost of their abilities they were diligent, and industrious, in the business of religion, and did all that it was possible for creatures to do, in the keeping of the commands of God, and after all this it is, that they are to acknowledge their unpro­fitableness: When ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, we are unprofitable servants. Here's doing and doing the commands of God, and doing all things commanded, but unprofitableness joined to all.

4. There is no proportion at all betwixt the duties required, and the reward pro­mised, betwixt our work, and our wages. Rom. 8.18. I reckon, saith the Apostle there, that the sufferings (and we may also add the services) of this present time, are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be re­vealed in us. And where there is no propor­tionable worth, there can be no desert. The payment therefore of a small fee cannot de­serve a Kingdom, nor the giving of a single mite deserve millions by way of retribution, much less for the same reason, can any of our performances deserve eternal life, since here the disproportion is much greater: B [...] ­twixt a mite, and millions, a small fee, and a [Page 151] Kingdom, though the difference be very large and wide, yet there is still some proportion betwixt them, they are both finite, and so agree in the same common notion, and pre­dicament of beings, but here the different terms are so far distant, as not to admit of any comparison: There the difference lies only betwixt finite and finite, but here be­twixt finite and infinite. O [...]r obedience, that is only finite, but our reward infinite; that is temporal, but this eternal. We serve God only for a moment, but we are made happy for ever. Now betwixt finite and infinite, temporal and eternal there can be no pro­portion. And where there is no proportion betwixt the work and the reward, there can be no desert. For whatever we receive, ei­ther it must be an act of Justice, or an act of bounty that gave it to us. If an act of Ju­stice, there the only rule and standard is pro­portion: That every Man may have, as we say in our English Proverb, a peny-worth for a peny: wages agreeable to his work. This is the true and proper notion of Justice. But in acts of bounty there the rule and measure of acting is only the good will and pleasure of the Agent, and not the worth or merit of the person that receiveth. Since therefore the giving of eternal life to sinners upon terms of Faith and Obedience, cannot possibly, for the reasons already given, be [Page 152] deemed a meer act of Justice, it necessarily follows that 'tis still an act of free Grace and bounty. To make this yet more plain, take this familiar instance.

He that sets a poor Man to work, and at night pays him his ordinary wages, he is just you will say, but not bountiful, and there­fore upon this account, there is no great thanks owing to him, since the poor Mans sweat and labour was judged by common estimation to deserve it. But he that imploies an indigent person for some few moments in his service, and then gives him a thousand pound for his reward, this man is to be ac­counted not meerly just, but liberal, and therefore notwithstanding some moments, or hours service were required of him, yet you would call it an act of free Grace, and bounty, and not of justice, since so small a s [...]rvice could never deserve so rich a reward, there being so little proportion betwixt them. And surely then if we do but duly consider how much the disproportion is yet greater betwixt our obedience for a moment, and infinite happiness to all eternity, we cannot but acknowledge that notwithstanding all, that 'tis possible for any creature to do, yet it can be no less than an act of free Grace and bounty in God to give us these eternal recomp [...]nces.

Upon all these accounts then you see 'tis [Page 153] evident, that if the notions of free Grace and sufficiency of Christs satisfaction be rightly stated according to the Gospel, there is no­thing affirmed in any of the foregoing pro­positions, that is either inconsistent with, or really prejudicial unto either. Not to the sufficiency of Christs satisfaction, since not­withstanding all that hath been said it re­mains sufficent and effectual to all those ends for which it was by infinite wisdom design­ed and intended. Nor to the free Grace of God in Christ, since notwithstanding all our performances 'tis undoubtedly free because un­deserved. But secondly,

2. That we may further evidence the truth of this proposition, we must here distinguish betwixt causes and conditions, which if duly weighed will be found to be of very different considerations: A cause is that, by whose proper vertue and influence the thing is pro­duced; but a condition that without whose presence, or concurrence the principal cause cannot well obtain its end or produce its ef­fect as to some determinate actions. Thus (to make it plain by some familiar instances) the Sun 'tis the original cause, and fountain of light; but the opening of the windows, that is the condition, or medium by which the Sun transmits its light into the house: And fire is the proper cause of heat, but the air notwithstanding a necessary requisite without [Page 154] which it cannot burn. Or to instance in mo­ral concerns, which are more direct to the thing in hand. He that sells, and makes o­ver his estate to another upon the tender and receipt of a considerable sum of moneys, here the money, or valuable consideration given is the true and proper cause why this man parts with his estate, and setles it upon another person: But he now that makes over an estate, suppose of some thou­sands by the year, to some poor Man, with this proviso only that he pay quarterly some small fee, a Rose perhaps, or a pepper-corn, by way of acknowledgment of his bounty, or else that he have no right to the revenues and profits of it: Here the payment of this acknowledgment (being consequent upon the grant, and no way answerable to its just value) is not the cause, but the condition on­ly of this gift. The condition it's true must be accepted and performed by this poor Man, that he may be admitted to, and continued in the quiet possession of this estate, but still for all this, the Donors free love and boun­ty is to be acknowledged the sole cause, why this rich revenue and inheritance was setled upon him. And can it then be any deroga­tion to the free Grace of God, or merits of Jesus Christ in bestowing eternal life upon heirs of wrath, to allow faith and obedience to have the place of a medium or condition, in that [Page 155] Covenant by which this life is made over to them? Notwithstanding this, Jesus Christ may be, and is the only cause of our Salvation, Heb. 5.9. 'Tis by vertue of his satisfaction and merits, that we are acquit from the condem­nations of the old Law, and admi [...]ted to be heirs of Glory: Th [...]se were the valuable consideration, and pur [...]hase money (if I may so term them, 1 Pet. 1.18, 19.) upon which the Father makes a new grant, and conveigh­ance of an inheritance incorrup [...]ble and un­defiled and that fades not away, to the de­generate Sons of Adam. Y [...]a but so still, as that repentance and faith, &c. are to be ac­knowledged the conditions, the small fee and homage, upon the rendering of which, the possession of this inheritance is put into their hands, and secured to them, and this we may do, without fear of offering the least injury or prejudice either to the per­fection of Christs righteousness, or the free­ness of divine Grace. It's true indeed to admit of these or any thing else but Jesus Christ, to be the meritorious, and procuring cause of Mans Salvation, that is not only a little to eclipse, but totally to extinguish the Glory of free Grace, and plainly to deny the sufficiency of Christs satisfaction. But to make them only mediums, and conditions, without which they will not be effectual to save us, this may be very well consistent with [Page 156] both, the freeness of the one and sufficiency of the other. For is it thought any diminu­tion of the Suns radiency, and universal in­fluence, that it doth not enlighten the house unless the windows be opened? Or of the fires efficacy to warm, because it cannot burn without air? Or of the Benefactors kindness and bounty in setling a rich estate, millions by the year, upon a poor Man, because required to pay a rose, or pepper-corn by way of ac­knowledgment, without which he cannot en­joy it? Much less can it be any diminution to divine goodness, to make our repenting and believing &c. the conditions of the New Covenant, since the disproportion betwixt the good promised, and the duties to be per­formed, is infinitely greater, as hath already been demonstrated.

I grant 'tis possible for conditions to be of that nature, as to render what is tendered or granted upon them to be no act of kindness, and bounty. Such as those that Nahash the Ammonite propounded to the men of Jabesh Gilead, 1 Sam. 11.2. And such as are usual in the ordinary contracts betwixt man and man▪ But this is not meerly because condi­tions, but because they are either reproach­ful, and unreasonable, like those of Nahash to the Israelites, or at least equivalent in their value to the benefit promised, as those of common contracts. Neither of which can [Page 157] without manifest falsity be affirmed of the Conditions of the New Covenant. For first, the things therein required of us are highly rational, and most becoming both the na­ture of God and the Creature. For a guilty, and undone sinner to humble himself to his Maker whom he hath offended, and throw down his weapons, and quit his ways of rebellion, and be reconciled to him. For him also to accept of Jesus Christ the eternal Son of God, to be his teacher to instruct him in the things that belong unto his peace, and his Priest to satisfie, and interceed for him, and his King to rule and govern him, and in this way to relie upon him for his Salvation which he hath not only purchased, but sealed, and confirmed to us by his blood. And for him again to purifie himself as God is pure, and be holy in all manner of conversation, as he that hath called him is holy, and to live in a due observance of all his good and righteous Laws, and to approve himself to God in all things. What more reasonable or more be­coming of a guilty and dependent creature? Especially if it be in the second place consi­dered, that the conditions here required, as they are not unreasonable, so neither in worth and value equivalent to the good pro­mised to us upon the due performance of them, there being, as hath been once and a­gain demonstrated, an infinite disproportion [Page 158] betwixt them. And wh [...]re conditions are of this nature, though in a less degree of reason­ableness and disproportion, there they may be admitted without nulling, or detracting from the free Grace and bounty of the pro­poser, as might besides the instances already given be made good by many more of the like nature. As should a King, suppose, pro­mise to a poor indigent Begger, that he would cloth him with Scarlet, if he will but cast off his old and dirty rags: or adorn his fin­gers with Rubies and Diamonds, if he will but throw away the dirt he hath in his hands, and wash them: or load him home with bags of Gold, and Silver, if he will but come to his Palace, and fetch it: or pardon him the treason he hath committed, if he will but down upon his knees and humbly confess his fault, and promise for the future to be more Loyal. Here are manifest condi­tions you see affixed to each of these tenders, supposed to be made to this poor Man, and yet will any one say they are therefore no acts of Grace and favour? Or thereupon make this reply, No Sir, I will none of your offers upon these terms. I was told, that I had a friend at Court that had obtained all this for me, and that upon his account they should be freely bestowed upon me; but now it seems I must down upon my knees and beg pardon or I cannot be forgiven, and throw [Page 159] away my rags and dirt, or I shall not be a­dorned with Scarlet, and Jewels; and at­tend at the Princes Gate, or I must not have the Gold and Silver that was promised. This is not the free Grace, and kindness, that I expected, and should I take it upon these conditions, I should be guilty of disho­nouring my Soveraign, by detracting from the freeness of his favours, and mistrust the efficacy of my friends mediation with him. Should the poor Begger to whom these ten­ders were made, argue thus, would not the whole world gaze upon him, as they do up­on blazing Stars and Comets, with admira­tion? and record him as the greatest prodigy of folly and impudence, that hath been yet seen on Earth? For what would the Man have? Here is Gold and Silver, and Robes of Majesty, and orient Pearls, and Jewels, to­gether with the pardon of his rebellion and his Princes favour. And are not these desira­ble and inviting objects? And can it rati­onally be expected that ever they should be dispensed upon more easy, and honourable terms? What▪ be pardoned, and yet not ask forgiveness? What! Be loaded with bags of Gold, and yet not so much as reach out the hand to receive them? What! Be adorned with Diamonds, and Rubies, and all the glo­ry of both the Indies, and yet not part with that dirt with which his hands are filled, that [Page 160] he may be adorned? and be cloathed with Scarlet, and Robes of Majesty, and yet not put off, and lay aside his old and filthy rags? Surely he that expects to find any such free Grace as this in God, to be saved without parting with his dirt and rags, I mean his sins, I much question the possibility of that Mans Salvation: But thirdly,

3. We must upon the service of this design observe the order in which the several privi­ledges of the Covenant are dispensed, and in which the conditions of it accordingly are to be applied to each of them, that they may be­come ours. For as the former are not all actually given in the same moment, but suc­cessively, so neither are the other required to be all at once in act, and exercise, but gra­dually according to the successive administra­tions of the priviledges to which they are ap­propriate. It's true there is a necessary con­nexion betwixt the several benefits of the Covenant, so that he who hath any one link of this golden chain put into his hands, he is thereby assured, that all the rest will follow in their order, as the Apostle argues, Rom. 8.30. For whom he did foreknow he also did pri­destinate, and whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified them he also glorified. But though they are all thus mutually united both in their particular sub­jects, [Page 161] and Gods eternal preordination, yet they are still truly distinguishable in them­selves as to their formal notions (vocation being one thing and justification another) and also in the order in which they are gi­ven out to sinners. For first they are effectu­ally called, then justified, then adopted, and last of all glorified. Betwixt the three form­er there is at least a priority of nature, as the Sun we say is before its light, and the fire be­fore its heat: But betwixt them, and glori­fication there is a priority of time. Thus E­noch we know walked some years with God in a justified state, before he was translated: And Paul fought long after he was called be­fore he received his Crown. This is the un­variable order, that God hath fixed, where­in to dispense the great blessings of the Co­venant to such who are the objects of his e­lective love. He justifies none but the called, and adopts none but the justified, and glori­fies none but the adopted, Rom. 8.

In the next place (the order in which the priviledges of the Covenant are dispensed, being stated) we must consider in what order the several conditions of the Covenant (since [...]ot to all alike nor at the same time to all) are to be applied, for our being actually in­ [...]eressed in them. And first in order to our [...]ffectual calling no more is required of us, [...]han an humble, and diligent attendance up­on [Page 162] all such means, as God hath appointed for that end. Our waiting by the pool for the Angels moving upon the waters. Isa. 55.6. Prov. 2.4, 5. Heb. 2.1. Luke 11.9, 10, 11, 12, 13. Joh. 5.25. Act. 10.33. Acts 13.44, 48.

Our actual faith, and repentance, and ho­liness cannot here be supposed as a prerequi­site to our effectual calling (only our atten­dance upon the means) since these are the ve­ry things to which we are called. Act. 26.18. Rom 10.14. Rom. 1.7. Gal. 1.6. And he that is called to believe and be holy is upon that very account supposed before to be both unbelieving and unholy. But then in or­der to our being justified and adopted there both faith and repentance (as hath already been proved) are antecedently necessary. Or which is all one, our humble and peniten­tial acceptance, or receiving of Jesus Christ in all his offices, as Prophet, Priest, and King, and consequent upon this our reliance upon him for pardon and Salvation, Gal. 2.16. Joh. 1.12. and lastly in order to our being actually glorified, and made eternally happy in the immediate fruition of God, 'tis further requisite that we be not only penitent, and believing, but also actually holy and obedient as hath been said, Math. 5.20. Rev. 22.14▪ First, God in the use of means calls sinners to repent and believe, and then upon their re­penting [Page 163] and believing in answer to his call, he justifies and adopts them: And then upon their being further purified in obeying the truth, as 'tis exprest, 1 Pet. 1.22. and so made meet to be partakers with the Saints in the inheritance of light, they are as the con­summation of all their happiness eternally glorified. So that you see our repenting and believing necessarily presupposeth our effe­ctual calling, and our justification and adop­tion our repenting and believing, and our glorification not only our being justified and adopted, but also our being personally holy and conformable to Jesus Christ. When there­fore 'tis said, that obedience, as well as faith and repentance is a necessary condition in the Covenant of Grace, if we understand it as we ought according to the order before explained the great doctrine of justification by faith in Christ which the Apostle so much con­tends for with the Jews, especially in his Epistle to the Romans, and Galatians, this do­ctrine I say is hereby secured and preserved inviolable, since our obedience is made a con­dition only with reference to eternal life and not to our justification, being in order not [...]ntecedent to, but consequent upon that. We are still justified by faith in Christ without works as the Apostle speaks, but yet not sa­ [...]ed by faith alone without works▪ There is more required to make a Soul fit for Heaven, [Page 164] than meerly the pardoning of his sins, and ju­stifying of his person.

But is it not often affirmed in Scripture that we are saved as well as justified by faith, Joh. 3.16. Eph. 2.8. Mar. 16.16.? It's true, and so also we are said to be saved by hope, Rom. 8.24. And by calling upon the name of the Lord, Rom. 10.13. And to be blessed, and have a right to the tree of life by keep­ing of the commands of Christ, Rev. 22.14. If then the argument will hold good, that we are saved by faith alone without holiness and obedience, because 'tis said, he that be­lieveth shall be saved; we might also by the same rule argue, that we are saved by hope without faith, or by calling upon God, without hope, or by our obedience without all the rest, since Salvation and blessedness is ascribed to each of these, to hoping and cal­ling upon the Lord, and obeying, as well as believing. All therefore that can justly be in­ferred from hence is only this, that faith, as well as hope and obedience is necessary to our Salvation: And because there is an inse­perable connexion betwixt them, and a joint subserviency of both to the same end, there­fore it is that eternal life is sometimes ascri­bed to one, sometimes to the other. Some­times 'tis said, blessed are they that believe, Joh. 20.29. Sometimes, blessed are the pure in heart, Matth. 5.8. Sometimes, blessed is he [Page 165] that feareth the Lord, Psal. 112.1. Some­times again, blessed are they that keep his te­stimonies, and are undefiled in the way, Psal. 119.1, 2. All which 'tis evident must be ta­ken inclusive of each other, faith of fear, and fear of purity, and all as joined with actual obedience. That is, he that believes and acts sutably to his faith, in purifying his heart, and keeping the commands of Christ, he shall be saved. And so again, on the other hand, he that obeys, supposing also that he re­pents, and believes in Jesus Christ, he shall be blessed. But we cannot possibly without making Scripture to contradict it self, ap­propriate happiness to any one of these con­ditions, (not to faith any more than to obe­dience) either by way of opposition to or separation from the rest. The plain English of that would be this, that a disobedient faith, or an unbelieving obedience might be sufficient to qualify us for eternal life. Even in justification it self, though our actual obe­dience be not there required, yet 'tis vertually included in the very nature of that faith by which we are justified. But as to our being eternally glorified, there our actual obedience▪ together with faith and repentance are alike necessary to give us a perfect and com­pleat right to it: faith and repentance alone as to this are not sufficient. A compleat right I say; for there is, I grant, a certain right to [Page 166] life, that doth immediately result from faith it self. But then we must here distinguish of a double right.

There is first a primary and initial, second­ly a perfect and consummate right: or as the Civilians speak, there is jus haereditarium, and jus aptitudinale. Both which are in their re­spective order alike necessary, fully and com­pleatly to enstate us in one and the same pos­session. Thus for instance. He that is law­fully elected to any office of trust and dig­nity, his meer election gives him an initial right to that office; yea but for all that, be­fore he can receive the several insignia pro­per to it, or exercise any act of authority in it, or actually receive the profits, and emo­luments belonging to it, he must solemnly be installed, and take the Corporation Oaths, and perform such other ceremonies, as are u­sual in the case, and this gives him a con­summate right to his place and dignity. A­gain, he that seals to an Indenture, he thereby hath an incipient right, and title to the estate therein conveighed; But yet to compleat this, there must be seisin and delivery, and perfor­mance of Covenants, payment of rent and repairing the premises, and this gives him an actual right to it, and continues him in the quiet possession of it. Take one instance more. A Child in his infancy may have right to a Kingdom, as some have been Crowned in [Page 167] their Cradles. But yet notwithstanding he afterwards remains, as the Apostle speaks, un­der Tutors and Governours, and little dif­fers the Lord of all from a Servant until he come of age, and then his Kingdom and Government is put into his hand. Before he had an hereditary, and now an aptitudinal right to, or legal fitness for government. I have brought all these instances to shew, that there may be a different right to the same thing arising from different qualifications and conditions, and yet both subservient to the same end. And so here faith gives right, and obedience also gives right to eternal life, but in a different manner; that begins it, but this con­tinues, and compleats it. Plainly thus; Who­soever doth sincerely accept of Jesus Christ upon Gospel terms, which is truly faith, he is thereupon not only quit from all the de­mands of the first Covenant, which is pro­perly justification, but he also hath, by ver­tue of the Gospel-grant, an initial right to the eternal Kingdom purchased by Christ: But yet before he can enter into the actual posses­sion of it, and enjoy all the glories and bliss and joy that belongs to it, he must be pure and holy, cleansed from all filthiness of flesh and spirit; and this gives him an aptitudinal and compleat right to it. Faith is as our sealing to the Indenture, that first founds our right: and obedience is as the performance of Co­venants, [Page 168] that perfects and continues it. That by making us Sons, Joh. 1.12. makes us also heirs of the Kingdom, Rom. 8.17. and so gives us an hereditary right to it: But this being the means to make us holy, and like to God, and as Scripture speaks, perfect Men in Christ, that is men of ripe age, it thereby gives us a fitness or aptitudinal right to the e­ternal possession of it.

And thus I have shewn in what order the several conditions of the Covenant are to be applied for the obtaining the great blessings of it, according to the method in which they are dispensed, which being attended to will further evidence the consistence of free Grace with their being given out to sinners upon such terms. But before I conclude this par­ticular, it will be requisite (especially since it may add some further light to the thing in hand) to inquire into and evince the difference (which I have all along in this discourse sup­posed) betwixt faith and obedience; for I can­not wholly be of their opinion, that make them one and the same without distinction, nor yet apprehend them so vastly different as some imagine.

That they are not the same to me is evi­dent, since I find them frequently distinguish­ed both by different names, and effects in Scripture, Acts 15.9. Purifying their hearts by faith, Heb. 11.8. Acts 26.18. By faith [Page 169] Abraham obeyed. Tit. 3.8. These things I will, that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. Therefore also called the obedience of faith, Rom. 16.26. Here you see they are distinguished, and elsewhere they are opposed, Eph. 2.8, 9. By grace ye are saved through faith, and not of works. Phil. 3.9. That I may be found in Christ, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ. And more than once in the Epistles to the Romans and Galatians, where the Apostle treats de­signedly concerning justification, which he there once and again affirms to be by faith, and not by the works of the law. And can they possibly be the same that are not only distinguish but opposed?

I know 'tis said, that the opposition the A­postle there makes betwixt faith, and works, is only to be understood with respect to Jew­ish works, and that opinion of perfection, and merit that they had of them. But were the works of Paul, and the Ephesians, and Abraham of this nature? were they Jewish and Levitical? or have we any rea­son to think that they had any such opinion of their obedience as being perfect, and me­ritorious? And yet in all these instances we find that faith is opposed to works. And though Paul 'tis true doth in the third Chap­ter [Page 170] to the Philippians first instance in his le­gal priviledges and righteousness, yet after­wards he adds his Gospel services and suffer­ings for Jesus Christ, and whatever else you can imagine to make up his obedience, and righteousness perfect. Phil. 3.8. Yea doubt­less and I count all things but loss, for the ex­cellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things. And yet after all he tells us, that he desired to be found not in the righteousness of works, but of faith, ver. 9.

Again they are not only distinguished, and opposed, but also delivered to us under dif­ferent notions in the Gospel: As faith is expressed by receiving of Christ, Joh. 1.12. Obedience by walking in him as we have re­ceived him, Col. 2.6. That by coming to Christ, this by taking his yoak, and bearing his burden, Matth. 11.28, 29. That by look­ing unto Jesus, this by running with patience the race that is set before us, Heb. 12.1, 2. That by eating his flesh, and drinking his blood, Joh. 6.54, 56. this by growing up in him, Eph. 2.21. that as the principle of our filiation, Gal. 3.26. and this as our imi­tation of God, as dear Children, Eph. 6.2. And is there no difference betwixt receiving, and walking? coming, and taking? seeing and running? eating and drinking and grow­ing? Betwixt our being children, and per­forming [Page 171] the duties of Children? Even com­mon language, as well as Divinity teacheth us to distinguish betwixt the Creed and Ten Commandments, the credenda & agenda in Religion. Betwixt believing and doing. Be­lieving we ordinarily say, is one thing, and doing another.

But is not faith in God, and Jesus Christ expresly commanded in Scripture? And is not that properly to be called obedience which falls under an express command no less than any other duty in Christianity? And if faith be obedience, is not obedience then and faith all one? This is that invincible argument, that is brought to prove faith and obedience to be one, which Scripture you see before makes two. By this way of reasoning, repen­tance, and love to our neighbour, and so­briety, and godliness, &c. are all the same, and not to be distinguished. All duties but one duty, and all graces but one grace. All is faith, all believing, because all commanded. Nay our very engaging, and Covenanting to obey God in all things is also enjoined, and yet shall there be no difference betwixt obe­dience, and promising to obey? betwixt a bond and present payment? betwixt entering into Covenant, and performing Covenants?

'Tis one thing for a Wife to promise, as usually they do when married, to love, and honour and obey her Husband, and another [Page 172] thing actually to love, and honour and obey him. One thing for a rebellious Subject to submit himself to the mercy of his Prince, and engage himself by oath to be Loyal, and another thing for him to live in all due sub­jection to his Laws and Government. And in this mainly lies the difference betwixt faith and obedience. That is our entering into Co­venant with God, and this our performance of Covenant. That our taking Christ for our Husband, and this our loving and honour­ing and obeying of him, as we then engaged. That our submitting our selves to the clemen­cy and goodness of God, and this our living in a due observance of all the righteous Laws and Statutes of his Kingdom. And thus in­deed, faith it is the first entrance upon, or beginning of obedience, as a point is the be­ginning of a line, or unity of number, which yet no one takes to be the same but different things, and accordingly calls them by diffe­rent names. And indeed who knows not (if they may be allowed to know any thing that differ from these mens sentiments) that things which agree in their general notions, may yet be vastly different, as to their particular and specifick natures. Diamonds, and flints agree in this, that they are both stones? And Stars, and clods of earth, in this, that they are both natural bodies; And men, and beasts in this, that they are both animals, [Page 173] both living creatures. And yet who will say that a Diamond is a Flint, or a Star a clod of Earth, or Man a Beast? Are these therefore the same because they agree as faith and obe­dience in their common notions? and is there no difference betwixt them? Nay since that wherein they differ is more considerable than that wherein they agree, therefore in naming things we take little or no notice of their general agreement, but denominate them according to their specifick differences. We do not call Men animals, but reasonable creatures. Nor Diamonds stones, but Dia­nonds. Nor Stars bodies, but Stars. And for the same reason we do not call believing, obedience, but faith. And as things are most properly denominated from their particular not general natures, so also are all effects, and operations belonging to them, ever ascribed to them under the same notion. Thus dis­course and reason is appropriate to Man, not as he is an animal, but as he is a reasonable creature. And splendor and value to Dia­monds, not as they are stones, but Diamonds; and influence to the Stars, not as they are na­tural bodies, but as they are Stars. And therefore we properly say that the Star shines, and not the body, and the Diamond sparkles and not the stone, and Man discourses, not the living creature. And why may we not (without canting,) by the same rules of un­doubted [Page 174] reason, ascribe justification to faith, not as it is obedience, which is its general na­ture wherein it agrees with repentance, and justice, and love to our neighbour, &c. but as it is properly a believing in, or acceptance of Jesus Christ which is its specifick difference wherein it is distinguished from all other du­ties? And why may we not say, that fides quà fides, faith as faith, that is, as it is an act receiving Christ, and not as it is an act of obedience, justifies? As well as say, that homo quà homo, man as man speaks, and reasons, and not as he is an animal? Where's any thing of jargon, or non-sense, or mystical divinity in all this, unless all that must now be called so that speaks not in plain English the lan­guage of Crellius and Socinus? A Father, sup­pose, commands his Son to receive a sum of money for the payment of his debt, that he may be discharged from the suits and arrests that are against him. What is that now that properly pays the debt, and discharges the Son? Is it his act of receiving the money though commanded? or the money that is received? His receiving it indeed, is neces­sary, as a means, and his duty, as command­ed, but 'tis the money only, and not his re­ceiving for which he is discharged. So here our faith 'tis necessary, and 'tis commanded, but yet 'tis not that, but the satisfaction of J [...]sus Christ, for, and upon the account of [Page 175] which we are justified. That's the money by which our debt is paid, and we are discharg­ed, but faith is our actual receiving of it, without which it could not have been ours. In a word that is the cause, and this the con­dition of a sinners justification before God. But though faith, & obedience are not as hath been shewn so much the same, but that they may be distinguished, and differently consi­dered in the business of justification, neither are they so strangely different, as some Men have imagined. Since all our obedience is nothing else, but the actual making good of our engagement, and resolution in our first believing. By faith we take Christ, as offered in all his offices, as Prophet, Priest and King, and by obedience we demean our selves to­wards him, as those that have so taken him. We hear him in all things whatsoever he saith unto us, and make his word the rule and standard of our belief and practice, as he is our Prophet. And we go to God by him and seek for pardon, and acceptance with God upon his account as he is our Priest. And we fear and reverence him, and live in a due submission to his Laws and discipline, as hei [...] our King. By that we marry our selves to Christ, and by this we love and honour and obey him as our Husband. By that as was said before, we receive him, and by this we walk in him as we have received him. So [Page 176] that all our obedience 'tis vertually though not actually included in our first solemn act of believing, as all conclusions are in their prin­ciples, and all our performances of Covenant in our voluntary subscribing and sealing to it, and therefore 'tis impossible that these two however distinguished, should ever really be separated. Faith without works, saith James, is dead, Jam. 2.26: That is in truth 'tis no faith, as a dead Man properly is not a Man, but a meer carcass, and an apparent resem­blance only of a Man: 'Tis little better than an implicite contradiction, at the best, but an ens rationis, a meer figment, and Chimera that is no where to be found, existing but in the wild imaginations of some such whom the Apostle calls absurd, and unreasonable men: An impenitent faith, and disobedient faith, an unholy and unjust faith. What a strange con­junction would this be? Can any Man think this to be a justifying, a saving faith? It's true, if we do humbly and sincerely receive and give up our selves to Jesus Christ upon Gospel termes, God doth not suspend our par­don and acceptance till our holiness be com­pleat, and our obedience grown to its full sta­ture, but upon that very act acquit us from our obligation to the Old Covenant, and ad­mit us to an incipient right to all the privi­ledges of the New. As he that hath before witness sealed to Indentures is thereupon im­mediately, [Page 177] though the things therein required are not yet discharged, admitted to the pos­session of the premises. And he that humbly submits himself to his Prince upon his Pro­clamation of grace and pardon, is at the same time pardoned, and taken under the prote­ction of his government, though he have not yet demonstrated his loyalty by any signal acts of service to him. But then as sinners are thus justified, upon their first solemn and serious believing in Jesus Christ, (or else it will be hard to say when 'tis done) so they must, and if sincere in the first act, they will (otherwise in truth they never did believe, and consequently never were justified) they must I say, and will continue in all due obedience to him, according a they then promised, and resolved, or else their first act stands only for a cypher, and signifies no­thing in Gods account, nor in mans nei­ther, could he as God understand our hearts. There is no pardon sealed, nor right to life conferred, nor the least spiritual advantage to be expected from the Covenant of Grace, un­less our faith be such, as is justified by obe­dience. As he that seals to any Covenant, must also pay his rent, or he cannot expect [...]o be continued in possession and [...]reap the profits of it. And he that is pardoned upon submission, must also live in a dutiful subje­ction to his Prince, or otherwise h [...] cannot [Page 178] hope to enjoy the benefit of his pardon. By the former, I mean our believing, and sub­mission to Jesus Christ, we are, as I have al­ready said, justified and obtain an initial right to eternal life: And by the latter, i. e. our holiness and obedience, our right is con­tinued and compleated. But fourthly,

4. It may contribute somewhat to our bet­ter understanding the consistence of free Grace with the conditionality of the Covenant, and the necessi [...]y of our personal performance of the conditions of it, in order to our eternal Salvation, a little to consider the nature of Salvation and happiness, and how nearly holiness and obedience are allied to it. Hap­piness! Salvation! they are pleasing words. As light to the eye; musick to the ear. Eve­ry one is delighted with the sound of them. How beautiful are the feet of them that bring these glad tidings? But alas! how few are there of those that desire it, that rightly understand what it is? Ask them what they mean by being happy, and they will tell you▪ Oh! to be freed from sin, they mean no the sinfulness, but the punishment of sin, th [...] curse of the Law, and the wrath that is t [...] come. And to have all tears wiped fro [...] their eyes, and burdens taken from thei [...] shoulders, and to rest for ever from their la­bours. To be delivered from Hell, and ete [...] ­nal burnings, and to live in the midst of joy [Page 179] and delights in another world. In a word, not to be everlastingly miserable, but to be at ease for ever without care, and trouble, and anxiety. But what is there in all this more than in Mahomet's Paradise, or the Poets Ely­zium? If freedome from misery were pro­perly happiness, then non-entities might be happy, and the readiest way to make us so, would be [...]o annihilate us, and turn us into our first nothing. For that which is not, is at ease, and cannot be miserable. And if meer sensitive pleasures and delights were suffici­ent to create beatitudes, then the brute crea­tures might be numbred amongst the blessed, and the most effectual means to make Man so, were to change his nature, and turn him into a beast, since they are observed to have the quickest sense, and so most capable of en­joying the pleasures of it. And yet this is all, that the generality of the world understand by happiness, and indeed all that they desire. And according to these false conceptions of happiness are also their notions of free Grace framed, and modelled. To be created over a­gain in Christ unto good works, and be pure in heart, and holy in all manner of conversa­tion: To live the life of God, and be righte­ous, as he is righteous, and be followers of him as dear children, &c. These things are seldom instanced in, or taken notice of, either as any, much less as the most essential parts [Page 180] of our happiness, or any fruit and evidence of free Grace. But when they would set forth this arraied in her richest robes of glory, and greatest Majesty, they instance in God par­doning sinners, and blotting out their iniqui­ties, and justifying the ungodly, and casting their sins into the bottom of the Sea, and scat­tering them as a thick cloud, and redeem­ing them from the curse, and freeing them from Hell and condemnation, &c. This, they cry, is Grace, and wonderful Grace to sinners. And so indeed it is, and wonderful beyond what 'tis possible for any finite crea­ture to express, or comprehend. And therefore my design is not to shadow, or eclipse any part of that unspeakable glory, that ariseth hence to the free Grace of God. But yet, let me add, is there no free Grace but pardoning and justifying Grace to be admired? And may not men without offence be minded of it, and be desired to consider it? Tell me what greater favour and kindness (and that is pro­perly Grace as hath been shewn) can God possibly manifest to any creature, than to make it eternally happy? And what greater happiness can he possibly bestow upon him, than to make him like and conformable to himself? The true, and formal notion of happiness lies not in negatives, but positive fruitions. Not in being freed from misery▪ but in the enjoyment of all possible perfection [Page 181] of which a created nature is capable. And all the perfection competible to a creature, con­sists formally in his conformity and assimila­tion to God, the original fountain of being and perfection.

That creature that hath all excellencies, and perfections, proper and competible to its own nature, that creature is truly and formally happy. He is so well, that he can be no better, and therefore capable of no great­er felicity. But then, since mans being and perfections are not originally from himself, but borrowed and derived from God, as rayes of light from the Sun, and streams from the Ocean, it thence necessarily follows, that God, as Original, is the only rule and stan­dard by which all perfection is to be mea­sured, and consequently the more or less any creature is approximate, and conformed to God, the more or less perfect. As the excel­lency of a Picture lying in its exact resem­blance to the face by which 'tis drawn, the more like thereto, still the more excellent. And this is that which gives Man the pre­heminence above the rest of the creatures in this visible world. They are at a far more re­mote distance from him, and partake less of him; but Man is more nearly allied to him, and admitted to a more full participation of the divine nature. The rest, as 'tis common­ly exprest, have only some tracks and foot­steps [Page 182] of God, but Man his Image. And by this resemblance of Man to God, is his great­est happiness, both as innocent and glorified, described in Scripture, Gen. 1.26, 27. So God created Man in his own Image, and after his own likeness. There is the happiness of Man in his primitive state of innocency. And 1 Joh. 3.2. It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. There is the chief happiness of the Saints now in glory. And indeed nothing less than this can be the happiness of a rea­sonable creature. And to this all the duties of Christianity are so nearly related, as that that they really become an essential part of it. For either they are such wherein our like­ness to God doth formally consist; as the more patient, and just, and merciful, and ho­ly, and righteous we are, still the more like to God, since he is so. Or else such wherein we express our conformity to God, as humility, and reverence, and faith, and watchful­ness, &c. which hold a suteable correspon­dence to his greatness, Majesty, faithfulness, omniscience, &c. In the former we resemble God, as the picture doth the face it repre­sents: And by the latter, as the impression in the wax doth the stamp upon the seal that made it; as a late Author hath well exprest it, in his most ingenious and learned treatise con­cerning [Page 183] the blessedness of the righteous.

Did men therefore, as they ought, consider either what happiness is, or how great a correspondence and affinity their present du­ties have to it, they would be so far from thinking the performance of them any dimi­nution of Gods free Grace, as that they would rather esteem it as one of the most signal acts of his Grace and favour, that he hath provided such effectual means, and af­forded them so powerful aids and assistances, in order to the making them holy and obedi­ent. 'Tis doubtless an act of kindness and bounty to heal the wounded, and restore eyes to the blind, and strength and beauty to the maimed and deformed, no less than to for­give a poor Man his debt. In justification our debt's forgiven; but in sanctification the ruines of degenerate nature are repaired, and the Image of God restored. And which of these two, do you think, is the greater kind­ness? That frees us from prison, and arrests from misery, but this makes us truly and for­mally happy. But lastly,

5. Though our personal performance of the conditions of the Covenant be asserted, as indispensably necessary to our eternal Sal­vation, yet not by vertue of our own natural strength and power without the assistance of Divine Grace. That is no where affirmed, but the contrary. What remainders of natu­ral [Page 184] strength and ability there may be left in Man, and how far they may be improved by him with reference to his own Salvation, is not my business now to enquire or determine. He is now 'tis acknowledged in a state of de­generacy, and by his fall the several powers, and faculties of his Soul were impaired, and weakened, though not wholly lost. But yet his obligation to duty is not thereby rescind­ed, but remains intire, and therefore he is still bound as much as ever to render love and service to his Maker. For man's inability to obey cannot take away Gods right to com­mand, nor his Apostasie destroy the law of his creation. Man is still Gods creature though de­generate, and lives daily in a necessary de­pendance upon him, and therefore 'tis im­possible he should ever be absolved from his engagement to love, and honour, and obey him, since 'tis impossible for a creature to be­come independent. The great design there­fore of Gospel Grace is not, as some foolish­ly imagine, to exempt us from duty, and to dispence with our love to God, or obedience to his Laws, but to repair our strength, and assist our faculties, and every way to enable us to the performance of our duty: That we may repent, and return to God, and live in all due subjection and obedience to him as becometh creatures, Tit. 2.11, 12. For the Grace of God that bringeth Salvation, hath [Page 185] appeared to all men, teaching us that deny­ing all ungodliness, and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. The same Grace here that is said to bring Salvation, the same also teacheth us to deny all ungodliness, and worldly lusts, &c. And both are alike called by the name of Grace. Grace teacheth us this lesson, and Grace also assists us both in the learning and practice of it. For God is no hard Master, he doth not gather, where he hath not strewed, nor reap, where he hath not sown. Though he gives not succors to all alike, but to some more, to others less, ac­cording to the good pleasure of his will, yet he is wanting to none, but such as are want­ing to themselves. His promises are no less extensive, than his commands. No duty is required of us, but God himself is engaged for our assistance in the performance of it. Must we repent and turn to God? Acts 17.3. He then will give us repentance unto life, Act. 5.31. Must we come to Christ, and believe in him that we may have life, Matth. 11.28, 29? He then will draw us, ( Joh▪ 6.44.) and make us willing in the day of his power, Psal. 110.3. Must we cleanse our selves from all filthiness of flesh, and spirit, and perfect ho­liness in his fear, 2 Cor. 7.1? He then will pour clean water upon us, and cleanse us from our iniquities, Ezek. 36.25. and sancti­fie [Page 186] us throughout in Body, Soul, and Spirit, 1 Thes. 5.21. Must we run with patience the race that is set before us, Heb. 12.1? He then will increase our strength, that we may run and not be weary, and walk and not faint, Isa. 40.29, and 31. Must we work about our Salva­tion with fear and trembling, Phil. 2.12? He then will work in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure, ver. 13. Must we be stedfast and unmoveable always abounding in the work of the Lord, 1 Cor. 15.58. holding fast our confidence firm to the end, Heb. 3.6. being faithful unto death, Rev. 2.10. and not draw­ing back lest his soul should have no pleasure in us, Heb. 10.38? He therefore hath pro­mised, that he will establish us, 2 Thes. 3.3. and make us fruitful, Joh. 15.2. and per­fect his own good work in us untill the day of the Lord Jesus, Phil. 1.6. and keep us by his power, 1 Pet. 1. that we may not pe­rish but have everlasting life, Joh. 10.28. From first to last you see we are indebted to Divine Grace for what we do. All our works if good, are begun and carried on, and per­f [...]cted by the assistance of the Sacred Spirit. And therefore when we have done all, we cannot plead desert, or merit from any of our actions, but still are bound to make Paul's humble acknowledgment, 1 Cor. 15.10. By the grace of God, I am that I am: And not I (that laboured so abundantly) but the grace of [Page 187] God that was with me. Not I that repented, and believed, and became obedient, and ho­ly, and fruitful in every good word and work, continuing stedfast and unmoveable to the end. Not I, that did this, by vertue of my own natural abilities; no, but by the aid and assistance of Divine Grace: not by might, nor by power from nature and reason, but by the spirit of the Lord. And in this sense, I suppose, we are to understand that saying of some Divines, that God stands engaged for both parts of the Covenant. Engaged first by promise to justifie, and save sinners if they repent, and believe, &c. and next also to give repentance and faith by assisting them thereunto, that they may be justified, and have eternal life. And so it may be no con­tradiction to say, that the same thing may be both a benefit, and a condition of the same Covenant. As he that in the same Indentures, wherein he binds his Tenant to repairs, may also promise to furnish him with Brick, and Morter, and other materials for the work. Thus faith, and repentance are here commanded in the Covenant of Grace, and so they become conditions on our own part to be performed. But withal strength and assistance is promised enabling us to re­pent, and believe, and so they become be­nefits on Gods part to be given, and on ours to be received. But still it is to be remembred, [Page 188] that Gods promise doth not null our duty, nor his assistance supersede our endeavours, but necessarily suppose and more strongly en­force them. For as we can do nothing with­out God, so he will do nothing for us with­out our selves. 'Tis he, saith the Apostle, that worketh in us both to will, and to do, of his good pleasure, in the place before mentioned, Phil. 2.13. What then? Must we therefore sit still, and do nothing? Only take our ease and stretch our selves upon beds of Ivory, and dream our selves into Abrahams Bosom? No, we must therefore (so the Apostle in the same place argues) work about our own Salvation with fear and trembling. As 'tis still the Te­nants duty to repair the ruines of his house, though his Landlord hath (and indeed there­fore the rather because he hath) been so kind, as to promise sufficient supplies for the building.

Thus much I thought necessary to add up­on this argument, that I might vindicate the conditionality of the Covenant from such exceptions, as have been made against it, and evidence the amicable agreement there is be­twixt this doctrine and that of free Grace, and sufficiency of Christs righteousness and satisfaction: And would Men but be perswa­ded to lay aside their prejudices, and to weigh things in an even ballance: Would they as now instructed rightly state their noti­ons [Page 189] of Christs righteousness, and free Grace ac­cording to the rules and measures of the Gos­pel, and not by the imaginary, and unwarrant­able sentiments of the carnal and uncatechised world: Would they duly distinguish betwixt the causes, and conditions of their Salvation, which are vastly different, and ought not there­fore to be confounded, that Jesus Christ may still be owned, as the sole cause and Author of it, and faith and repentance, &c. only as the necessary means without which it cannot be had: Would they observe the order in which the several conditions of the Covenant are to be applied, first faith and repentance for the ob­taining of pardon, and then holiness and obedience for the compleating and continuing our right to eternal life, according to the or­der in which they are dispenced to sinners: Would they also duly inform themselves in the nature of true happiness, and what a near alliance holiness and obedience have to it, that formally consisting in our likeness and conformity to God, and these being that whereby we become actually like and con­formable to him: Would they in the last place to all add the assistance that God by his ho­ly Spirit affords us, for the performance of all these duties he requires of us, Nothing being done in our own, but all by his strength, and agency: Would Men I say thus distinctly [Page 190] weigh, and consider things before they pass sentence upon the Doctrine herein delivered, their objections against it would I am con­fident soon be answered, and their scruples removed, and their judgments convinced, that there is nothing said, that doth in the least, either contradict, or prejudice the Do­ctrine of Gospel free Grace, or derogate from the sufficiency of Christs righteousness. Nothing that doth (as some have said) speak the lan­guage of Bellarmine, or Socinus, or any way favour the opinions of any other who are justly censured as enemies to the Grace of God in Christ Jesus.

It is true, the Church of Rome pretends much to good works, and cries them up, as the E­phesians sometimes did their great Goddess Di­ana, and muchwhat upon the same design. But alas! what are those works they so zeal­ously contend for? A little bodily exercise, and superstitious will-worship. Masses, and Dirges, and Pilgrimages, and Ave-Marys, and abstinences, and whippings, and the like. But for that which the Apostle calls the power of godliness, and life of God, that is little preach­ed, and less practised by them. And yet these works as inconsiderable as they are, they call by the name of satisfactions, and make them both the matter of their justification before God, and the meritorious cause of their own Sal­vation.

[Page 191]For according to their Doctors, we are justified by works, confession, charity, gi­ving of alms, &c. as well as by faith in Jesus Christ, and may be saved, yea and by I know not what redundancy of desert in our good works, help to save others too, by our own merits. The improvement, say they, of our own natural abilities deserves Grace ex congru [...], and the improvement of Grace so gained, merits glory ex condigno. This in short is the Doctrine of Rome in this particular.

And as to same others who also plead for the necessity of holiness and righteousness, though they in great measure reject the Po­pish works, and wholly disclaim any merit by them, and possibly acknowledge Christs satisfaction, though since they speak (some of them) so darkly, and undervaluingly of it, that may be questioned: Yet the efficacious influences of the Sacred Spirit, for their assi­stance in the performance of those acts of righteousness they plead for, are not so much acknowledged by them, the creature being thought sufficiently instructed with power from nature and reason to repent, and be­lieve and obey, &c. according to the plea­sure of his own will. And though they seem much to advance the Soveraignty of God o­ver the creature, whilst they ascribe to God nine hundred ninety and nine degrees of power, and but one of an hundred only to [Page 192] Man, yet in conclusion the matter comes to this, that this one single degree of power in the creature may, and doth at pleasure baf­fle and defeat, and put to flight, and tri­umph over those 999. which are in God▪ i. e. The creatures weakness is stronger than Gods power. In short, if the question be asked them, who made thee to differ? The answer will be, Ego meipsum.

But is there any thing said in this whole discourse that lays any foundation for these opinions, or that doth so much as add one stone to the building?

Are our own works any where affirmed to be either the matter of our justification, or the meritorious cause of eternal life? Or that our duties are performed by our own natural strength without the effectual assistance of the Spirit of God? Where is nature and rea­son advanced above Grace, or our own righteousness set up to justle Christ from his Throne, and rob him of his Crown? Is it not more than once affirmed and proved that holiness and obedience are not the causes, but conditions only of our Salvation? And that 'tis impossible for any creature, much less one that is degenerate, to merit any thing at the hands of God? And that we are justified, not by works, not by our holiness and obedience, which follow justi­fication, as the payment of the rent doth seal­ing [Page 193] to the Indentures) but by faith in Jesus Christ; receiving him in all his offices? And that the several duties of the Covenant are performed not by the sole power of nature, but by strength received from the Spirit of God, and by the daily supplies of his Grace? So that we are doubly indebted to God, first to his command, to obey that, and then to his Grace for enabling us to obey. And will [...]ny one that is not profoundly ignorant call [...]his by the name of Popery, and Pelagia­nism? or have so much confidence, as to [...]ensure, and condemn it as a Doctrine in­ [...]onsistent with the Grace of the Gospel, and [...]hat righteousness that is by Christ? Is not [...]his, in Judes language, to speak evil of [...]hose things, which they know not? And [...]o proclaim themselves unskilled in the words [...]f righteousness, and that Doctrine which is [...]ccording to Godliness?

But suppose the agreement betwixt faith [...]nd works, Christs righteousness and our [...]wn, free Grace and the necessity of obedi­ [...]nce, in the business of Salvation, could not [...]fficiently be evidenced to our present rea­ [...]on, must they therefore be exploded, as ab­ [...]rdities, and untruths, and things absolute­ [...] irreconcileable? We must then throw a­ [...]ay not only some of the greatest mysteries [...] our Religion, but many of the most evi­ [...]nt phenomena, and appearances in Philo­sophy. [Page 194] The influences of the Load-stone▪ the ebbing and flowing of the Sea, &c. mus [...] be rejected as fables, and our senses no mor [...] be credited in what they see, since the man­ner how these things are done is not yet suf­ficiently understood, and explained. Thing [...] themselves, we know, are evident, but the modes and manners of things are almost e­very where latent and unaccountable. Tha [...] therefore which we have to do in all matter [...] of Divine faith and practice is only this duly to inform, and satisfy our selves, wha [...] God hath certainly revealed and made know [...] to us, as his mind and will concerning [...] which being done, and our minds being sa­tisfied, that God hath said it▪ and that [...] is the plain meaning of his words, we ar [...] then without any further debate to believe and do, according to his word, though pos­sibly at present we cannot so well discove [...] that mutual accord and agreement whic [...] there is betwixt those several truths reveale [...] by him. The positive and plain conclusion of Scripture are humbly to be believed, thoug [...] they cannot be reconciled by us. For this suppose will easily be granted by all, as un­questionable. That the will of God, if w [...] certainly know it to be his will, is the u [...] ­doubted rule, and standard both of faith an [...] practice. We must believe what 'tis certai [...] he hath revealed. And we must do, wha [...] [Page 195] 'tis certain he hath commanded. For the will of God is not to be disputed but obeyed. And doth not the Apostle expresly tell us that this is the will of God, even our sanctificati­on? 2 Thes. 4.3.

He that hath said, he will blot out our transgressions for his own sake, and remember [...]ur sins no more, Isa. 43.25. he hath also [...]id, th [...]t we must repent, and be converted, [...]hat our sins may be blotted out, when the days of [...]efreshing shall come from the presence of the [...]ord, Acts 3.19. He that hath said, that [...]e are justified freely by his grace, through the [...]edemption that is in Christ, Rom. 3.24. he [...]ath also said, we are justified by faith, ver. [...]8. and that we must believe, that we may [...]e justified, Gal. 2.16. He that saith, we [...]e made the righteousness of God in Christ, [...]ho was made sin for us, 2 Cor. 5.21. he also [...]ith, that except our righteousness (speaking [...]ere expresly of moral, and personal righte­ [...]usness) exceed the righteousness of the Scribes [...]nd Pharisees, we shall in no case enter into the [...]ingdom of God, Matth. 5.20. And he that [...]ith, we are saved by grace, and not of our [...]ves, Eph. 2.8. and according to his mercy, [...]d not by works of righteousness, which we [...]ve done, Tit. 3.5. he also saith, that we [...]ust work out our own salvation with fear, and [...]mbling, Phil. 2.12. and that without ho­ [...]ess, we shall not be saved, Heb. 12.14. [Page 196] Is not all this plain, and easy to him that will but understand? God hath said it. 'Tis his will, exprest in terms that we must repent, and believe, and be righteous, and work a­bout our own Salvation, and follow after holiness, that we may not perish but have everlasting life. Who then shall shall dare to argue and dispute against it? At least here is no ground, you see, for any humble and so­ber mind that is but sincerely willing to be governed by the Divine will, so to do, but rather seriously to apply himself to the per­formance of these duties, that God hath so expresly injoined, and made necessary to our Salvation.

The great reason therefore why men pro­fess themselves so much offended with this Doctrine 'tis not because it is, or because they in truth believe it to be an enemy to the Cross and Grace of Christ, but rather because it is an enemy to their lusts, and passions and presumptuous neglects of God. An enemy to their present ease and pleasure and worldly satisfactions, the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eye and the pride of life: An enemy to their false and carnal hopes, and em­pty professions of Christianity. Therefore it is, that they thus condemn this Doctrine, be­cause otherwise they cannot justifie their own faith and practice that are so manifestly condemned by it. They must have a cheap [Page 197] Religion: Faith without works, pardon with­out the trouble of repentance, an Heaven without holiness, and a free Grace to save them without obedience, or else they are mi­serable and undone to eternity.

But be not deceived, saith the Apostle, God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall be also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the spirit, shall of the spirit reap life everlasting, Gal. 6.7, 8. For if ye live after the flesh ye shall die, but if ye through the spirit, do mortifie the deeds of the body ye shall live, Rom. 8.13. For God will render to every man according to his deeds: To them, who by patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory, and honour, and immor­tality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth; but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribu­lation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gen­tile, But glory, honour and peace to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile; for there is no respect of persons with God, Rom. 2.6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. Be ye therefore steadfast and unmoveable, always a­bounding in the work of the Lord, for as much as ye know that your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord, 1 Cor. 15.58.