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<DATE>2010-12-30</DATE>
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<NAME>Alexis Jakobson</NAME>
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<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Infant Bapti&s;m OF <HI>CHRIST'S</HI> Appointment, OR A Di&s;covery of Infants Intere&s;t in the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> &s;hewing who are the Spiritual Seed and who the fle&s;hly Seed.</P>
<P>TOGETHER, With the Improvement of Covenant In+tere&s;t by Parents and Children.</P>
<P>By <HI>S. P.</HI> Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel.</P>
<Q><BIBL>Mark. 10. 14.</BIBL> Suffer little Chil|dren to come unto me and forbid them not.</Q>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for <HI>Edward Giles,</HI> Book&s;eller in <HI>Norwich,</HI> near the Market&punc;place. 1687.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>THE PREFACE TO THE READER.</HEAD>
<P><HI>I</HI> Am &s;en&s;ible, that many Books have been already written by others on this Subject of Infant-bapti&s;m, and it was formerly far from my thoughts to make an addition; but the irregu|larity of one, who left his Go&s;pel &s;ta|tion without previous declaring any &s;uch intention to me, (with what en|&s;ued) occa&s;ioned my fre&s;h &s;earch into the controver&s;y, and my drawing up the en&s;uing Sheets, wherein &s;ome Scri|ptures are cleared further than ever they were formerly to me. The Im|portunity
<PB REF="3">
of &s;ome friends of the &s;ame mind with my &s;elf, together with the mi&s;repre&s;enting of me by &s;ome others of the contrary per&s;wa&s;ion, have pre|vailed with me to let them be publi|&s;hed.</P>
<P>I am the more encouraged &s;eeing the Primitive Churches or Elders, did of|ten a&s;&s;ert controverted Truths, even when they had a Common Enemy the Pagans, and after the Arians again&s;t them. If the Lord may ble&s;s this &s;hort Tract, &s;o far as any who are wavering may be e&s;tabli&s;hed, and tho&s;e which have been otherwi&s;e minded may be convinced, I have my de&s;ign. It is the clearing of truth that I aim at, and not the reviving or continuing, much le&s;s the increa&s;ing of differen|ces.</P>
<P>I think they are mo&s;t guilty hereof, who will hold Communion with no other Churches, but tho&s;e who are of their own per&s;wa&s;ion in point of Bapti&s;m; if I may obtain their Conviction that
<PB REF="3">
&s;uch rigidne&s;s is ungrounded, this will then conduce to peace; and I have given &s;uch Scripture grounds for my judgment, as I hope will prevail fur|ther with tho&s;e which will read with|out prejudice. I can hold Communion with tho&s;e that differ from me about Infant Bapti&s;m, provided they live peaceably otherways, and be of a Go|&s;pel conver&s;ation.</P>
<P>If any &s;hall reply to this with viru|lency and pa&s;&s;ion: I &s;hall &s;pread it be|fore the Lord and &s;ay, the Lord rebuke thee; but if they do it with the Spirit of meekne&s;s, and with &s;uch Scripture evidence as I be convinced, that the &s;ub&s;tance of what I have here written is Errour, I do hereby promi&s;e, the Lord permitting to retract it, if I may be permitted to Print it: So as if I be &s;ilent Reader, thou maye&s;t know I find no cogent Scripture light for my Conviction.</P>
<P>I account Infants Covenant intere&s;t to be the grand argument for their
<PB REF="4">
Bapti&s;m, and &s;o have in&s;i&s;ted on the proof of it.</P>
<P>That eva&s;ion, that Infants of be|lieving Gentiles are not the Seed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> that will not hold; For, if the Infants of believing Jews be, then undeniably the Infants of believing Gentiles are &s;o.</P>
<P>And run it up to the Primitive Go|&s;pel times after the death of Chri&s;t, the Infants of believing Jews were the Seed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> unle&s;s any can prove that they were cut off by a repeal or otherwi&s;e, and &s;o that they were damnified by their Parents believing.</P>
<P>Yea &s;ome Jews did believe on Chri&s;t before his Death, and how could their Infant Seed then be cut off! the Co|venant with <HI>Abraham</HI> was undoubted|ly then in force after the Parents be|lieving, and &s;o their Infant Seed in it &s;till with their Parents after their believing.</P>
<P>Indeed it cannot be proved, that the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> was ab|rogated
<PB REF="4">
by the Death of Chri&s;t, though the Law in &s;ome re&s;pect was.</P>
<P>Nor can it be proved, that the Jews or their Seed were broken off, by a Re|peal of that Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> or any otherways then by their own de|generacy and po&s;itive unbelief, <HI>Rom. 11. 20.</HI> becau&s;e of unbelief they were broken off, and this I think not at the Death of Chri&s;t, but &s;ome time after, <HI>Act. 13. 46.</HI> and thus by degeneracy and rejecting the Covenant (as now &s;o) in preceeding Ages from the days of <HI>Abraham,</HI> Parents and Children might be cut off from Covenant inter|e&s;t, witne&s;s <HI>I&s;hmael</HI> and <HI>E&s;au, &amp;c.</HI> whil&s;t yet Infants Covenant intere&s;t &s;till continued where the Parents did not &s;o degenerate. And &s;eeing the In|fant Seed of the Jews remained in Co|venant in Go&s;pel times, till their Pa|rents were broken off, and e&s;pecially the Seed of believing Jews; hence the Infant Seed of believing Gentiles are the Seed of <HI>Abraham;</HI> for there is
<PB REF="5">
no difference between Jews and Gen|tiles in Go&s;pel times.</P>
<P>So that <HI>Abrahams</HI> Covenant being &s;till in force, unle&s;s any can prove a repeal of it, as to that part which con|cerneth Infants they &s;ay nothing con|vincing, and Infants mu&s;t be in it &s;till.</P>
<P>And ob&s;erve, this &s;eemeth to be the &s;pecial rea&s;on, why there is no expre&s;s particular command in the new Te&s;ta|ment for the Baptizing of Infants, as of Believers; becau&s;e there was no need of a new grant of what they had a right to ever &s;ince the days of <HI>Abra|ham,</HI> the &s;ign being entailed to the Co|venant Intere&s;t.</P>
<P>The work therefore was, to command the Parents to Repent and Believe on the <HI>Me&s;&s;iah</HI> already come, as the way to continue their own intere&s;t in the Covenant, upon which their Infant Seed had their Covenant Intere&s;t con|tinued al&s;o, and con&s;equently their right to Bapti&s;m the fir&s;t Sign of it;
<PB REF="5">
for Bapti&s;m is not barely by vertue of a Command, but with relation to the Co|venant as a &s;ign thereof. And let it be ob&s;erved, if Circumci&s;ion had &s;till continued as the token of the Covenant and Infants to pa&s;s under it, yet the <HI>Me&s;&s;iah</HI> being come, the Preaching mu&s;t have been (Repent and Believe and be Circumci&s;ed) as now it is (Re|pent and Believe and be Baptized,) yet no Jews would rationally have under|&s;tood that in Go&s;pel times, their In|fants had been excluded from Circum|ci&s;ion, without a Repeal of their An|tient Covenant priviledge, which we find not with reference to Bapti&s;m.</P>
<P>The two principal Objections of tho&s;e called Bapti&s;ts are, the one the want of a Divine Command expre&s;ly for Infant Bapti&s;m, which I have here enerva|ted; the other is concerning the two Seeds of <HI>Abraham,</HI> his natural or fle&s;hly Seed, and his Spiritual Seed, of which &s;ee in the Di&s;cour&s;e it &s;elf. It is the degenerate, adult natural Seed
<PB REF="6">
of <HI>Abraham,</HI> or others claiming In|tere&s;t even in &s;pecial ble&s;&s;ings by fle&s;hly de&s;cent, that is the Carnal Seed reje|cted; but that it is the Infant Seed is wholly without proof. Indeed if all the Infant Seed had been excluded, I doubt not but it would have been upon record, as an Objection and Stumbling block in the way of the captious Jews again&s;t Chri&s;t, and the di&s;pen&s;ation of the Go|&s;pel, that the Covenant with <HI>Abra|ham</HI> was violated as well as the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es.</HI></P>
<P>Weigh all in the ballance of the San|ctuary without prejudice, and the Lord give one heart and one way, and give thee under&s;tanding in all things. So prayeth he who is.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thine in Go&s;pel bonds. <HI>S. P.</HI></SIGNED>
<DATELINE><DATE>March. 29. 1687.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="1" REF="6">
<HEAD>OF Infant Bapti&s;m.</HEAD>
<P>IT is a matter of great Impor|tance rightly to determin, who are the <HI>Subjects</HI> and what is the <HI>form of Go&s;pel Bapti&s;m,</HI> to prevent error in that admini&s;tration, and the la|mentable Church-dividing Con&s;e|quences thereof.</P>
<P>It is the <HI>Covenant Intere&s;t and Ba|pti&s;m</HI> of the <HI>Infant Seed</HI> only of <HI>Vi&s;i|ble Believers</HI> that I plead for; and there are &s;uch va&s;t numbers (even Millions) of the&s;e, that if Men un|duly exclude and ra&s;e out the names of &s;o many out of that great <HI>Charter</HI> of Heaven, they will have
<PB N="2" REF="7">
a dreadful account to give thereof to God.</P>
<P>Tho&s;e who deny Infant Bapti&s;m often call upon us to give expre&s;s Scripture for it, and &s;peak &s;lightly of Con&s;equences.</P>
<P>But let them know that Scripture Con&s;equences (<HI>i. e.</HI> naturally dedu|ced) are valid arguments, for Je&s;us Chri&s;t proveth an Article of Faith <HI>viz.</HI> the re&s;urrection <HI>Mat. 22. v.</HI> 31. 32. from <HI>Ex. 3. v.</HI> 6. where is no ex|pre&s;s word of it, and &s;o the proof is only by con&s;equence. See others. <HI>Joh. 7. 38. Joh. 5. 46. 47. Luk. 24. 44, 45, 46. Act.</HI> 10. 43. and 28. <HI>v.</HI> 23. it would de&s;troy almo&s;t all preach|ing to deny Con&s;equences. Be&s;ides, what expre&s;s Scripture have they for admitting Women to the Lords Supper? as to 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11. 28. if <GAP DESC="foreign"> may rarely be extended to the female yet <GAP DESC="foreign"> [him&s;elf] li|mits it to the male. So what ex|pre&s;s Scripture have they for Bap|tizing
<PB N="3" REF="7">
again tho&s;e who were Bapti|zed as with us in Infancy? I con|clude, things may be forbidden by good con&s;equence; but to tho&s;e who are otherwi&s;e minded for ever to &s;ilence this weak Objection, I add, That there is nothing again&s;t Infant Bapti&s;m, but by con&s;e|quence, and that not good. If the Command to Baptize Profe&s;&s;ed Be|lievers did forbid to the Baptizing of Infants (as it doth not) yet it were only by con&s;equence. I argue thus,</P>
<P>There is no expre&s;s Sctipture a|gain&s;t Infant Bapti&s;m, if there were, the Controver&s;y were pre|&s;ently at an end.</P>
<P>Therefore Infants may be Bapti|zed, for <HI>where there is no Law, there is no Tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion,</HI> Rom. 4. 15.</P>
<P>Undeniably then, either Scrip|ture Con&s;equences mu&s;t be owned, or el&s;e Infants may lawfully be Bap|tized, for there is no expre&s;s
<PB N="4" REF="8">
Scripture or Law again&s;t it.</P>
<P>&sect; 1. <HI>The Proof of Infant Bapti&s;m.</HI></P>
<P>Po&s;ition. <HI>That Infant Bapti&s;m is an Appointment of Chri&s;t.</HI> Or,</P>
<P><HI>That it is the will of Chri&s;t that &s;ome Infants &s;hould be Baptized.</HI></P>
<P>Argument 1. <HI>Some Infants are Di&s;cipled &s;o as to have the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit upon them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore by the will of Chri&s;t they are to be Baptized.</HI></P>
<P>For that is the Commi&s;&s;ion, <HI>Mat. 28. 19. <GAP DESC="foreign"> Di&s;ciple ye all Nations, Baptizing them</HI>&mdash;</P>
<P>All then who are di&s;cipled by the Will of Chri&s;t, are to be Baptized; and they are Di&s;ciples, not only who actually learn, but who are in the School of Chri&s;t his Church in order to their future Learning: Saul <HI>made havock of the Church,</HI> Act. 8. 3. Which is expre&s;&s;ed, <HI>Act. 9. 1. by the Di&s;ciples of the Lord.</HI> So then, to be a Church-member, is
<PB N="5" REF="8">
to be a Di&s;ciple. Thus <HI>Act.</HI> 15. 10. The Yoke of Circumci&s;ion was laid upon the Di&s;ciples; <HI>Doctrinely</HI> im|po&s;ed upon the Parents; but <HI>Pra|ctically</HI> upon the Infant Seed at eight days old; for &s;o was the In|&s;titution, <HI>Gen. 17. v.</HI> 10, 12, 13. And &s;o they are Di&s;ciples. See al|&s;o <HI>Act.</HI> 21. 4, 5. where Children &s;eem to be numbred among Di&s;ci|ples.</P>
<P>And as to [the Name] of the Trinity, that of being [Holy] is attributed often to Father, Son, and Spirit, <HI>Lev.</HI> 19. 2. and 20. 7. 1 <HI>Pet. 1. 15. Heb. 7. 26. Eph. 1. v.</HI> 13. and 4. 30. 1 <HI>The&s;s.</HI> 4. 8. And it is given al|&s;o to the Church and its Members, <HI>Exod. 19. 6. Deut.</HI> 7. 6. and 14. <HI>v.</HI> 2. 21. and 26. 19. and 28. <HI>v. 9. Rom. 11. 16. 1 Pet.</HI> 2. 9.</P>
<P>And this very Name of the Lord [Holy] he hath impo&s;ed upon the Children of Believers, 1 <HI>Cor. 7. 14. El&s;e were your Children Unclean, but
<PB N="6" REF="9">
now are they Holy;</HI> i. e. Holy by a Se|paration unto God and his Service; which often in Scripture denomina|teth Per&s;ons, or Things Holy, as the Church&mdash;and it cannot be meant of Legitimation; for if both the Parents were Unbelievers, yet the Children might not be Illegiti|mate; <HI>For Marriage is honourable in all,</HI> Heb. 13. 4. Nor is it meant of being only Sanctified to u&s;e; for there is a va&s;t difference between be|ing Sanctified to, and being Holy, as Mr. <HI>Cotton</HI> &s;aith, Afflictions, Temp|tations, yea, Sin it &s;elf, is Sanctified to Believers: And yet none will &s;ay that Sin&mdash;is Holy.</P>
<P>Therefore it mu&s;t be meant of Relative Faederal Holine&s;s; and &s;o that Name of God is upon the Chil|dren of Believers, and con&s;equently, they are to be Baptized.</P>
<P>Arg. 2. <HI>If &s;ome Infants be vi&s;ibly or externally in the Govenant which God made with</HI> Abraham, <HI>then by
<PB N="7" REF="9">
the will of Chri&s;t they are to be Bap|tized.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But &s;ome Infants are vi&s;ibly or ex|ternally in the Covenant which God made with</HI> Abraham.</P>
<P><HI>Therefore by the Will of Chri&s;t they are to be Baptized.</HI></P>
<P>The Con&s;equence [that tho&s;e who are &s;o in <HI>Abraham</HI>'s Covenant are to be Baptized] I prove: For,</P>
<P>1. <HI>All the Seed of</HI> Abraham <HI>in their Generations, are expre&s;sly Com|manded to keep the Covenant, by ap|plying the Token of it, which is Bap|ti&s;m;</HI> Gen. 17. 9. <HI>Thou &s;halt keep my Covenant therefore, thou and thy Seed after thee in their Generations.</HI></P>
<P>So long then as <HI>Abraham</HI> hath a Seed (which undeniably he hath in Go&s;pel Times) even in all their Generations here is a &s;tanding Com|mand to keep the Covenant.</P>
<P>And how keep it? <HI>v. 10. 11. This is my Covenant</HI>&mdash;And mentioning Circumci&s;ion, he &s;aith,
<PB N="8" REF="10">
[<HI>It &s;hall be a Token of the Covenant between me and you.</HI>] So then the keeping it is by applying the <HI>Token</HI> of it. But he varieth the Phra&s;e, as Mr. <HI>Whi&s;ton</HI> excellently ob&s;erveth, an Intimation that he purpo&s;ed a change in the Token of the Cove|nant. It is not &s;aid, That the keep|ing of it in all their Generations, &s;hould be by Circumci&s;ion as the Token of it.</P>
<P>The Covenant in Go&s;pel Times cannot be kept by Circumci&s;ion, for that is abrogated, and cea&s;eth to be a Token of it; and therefore it mu&s;t be kept by Bapti&s;m, which now is the Sign or Token of it, that being <HI>for the Remi&s;&s;ion of Sins,</HI> Act. 2. 38, 39. which is a great Ble&s;&s;ing of the Covenant, <HI>Heb. 10. v.</HI> 16, 17. This then is a full Command to Baptize all in Covenant now, for the keep|ing it, as it did command of old to Circumci&s;e them when that was the Token of the Covenant. The
<PB N="9" REF="10">
alteration of the Sign is no hin|drance at all; as the Second Com|mandment of Old did require Cir|cumci&s;ion, Sacrifices, and Pa&s;&s;over, and now the&s;e are abrogated, it doth equally require the ob&s;erving Go&s;pel In&s;titutions, as Bapti&s;m, and the Lord's Supper, and is kept there|by: And the Fourth Command|ment required the Ob&s;ervation of the Seventh Day as a Sabbath, yet now is kept, by ob&s;erving, the Fir&s;t Day of the Week as a Sabbath. So the Command of keeping the Covenant, was ob&s;erved of old by Circumci&s;ion, but is now by Bap|ti&s;m, &s;ince that is become the To|ken of it, and cannot be obeyed otherwi&s;e.</P>
<P>2. <HI>Bapti&s;m is the fir&s;t Sign of the Covenant, and no Scripture Warrant is found to delay the applying of it to Per&s;ons vi&s;ibly in the Covenant:</HI> Some call it an Initiatory Sign&punc; which is &s;o far true, as that &s;peedi|ly
<PB N="10" REF="11">
after coming under the Covenant it is to be &s;ubmitted to, and is urged early. <HI>Act.</HI> 2. 38. and practi&s;ed. <HI>v. 41. Act. 13. 24. Act.</HI> 22. 16. &s;uch then who are <HI>faederatiare</HI> to be <HI>&s;ignati. Mat.</HI> 28. 19.</P>
<P>Yea Bapti&s;m followeth a being Externally and Vi&s;ibly in Covenant, as in <HI>Simon Magus. Act.</HI> 8. 13. Simon <HI>him&s;elf believed, and when he was Baptized,</HI> yet he was not internally and &s;avingly in the Covenant, for he was in the gall of bitterne&s;s &s;till <HI>v.</HI> 21. 22. 23. wanted faith and re|pentance, his heart was not right.</P>
<P>And let this ever be remembred, that &s;ome are <HI>internally, invi&s;ibly, and &s;avingly in that Covenant,</HI> &s;o as to partake of &s;pecial grace ble&s;&s;ings, and priviledges, as Ju&s;tification, A|doption, Sanctification <HI>&amp;c. Rom. 4. v. 2, 3, 13, 16, 17. Gal. 3. v.</HI> 16, 17, 18, 26, 29. and the&s;e &s;hall never totally and finally fall away, <HI>Jer. 32, 40, 41. Joh. 10. 28. Rom.</HI> 11, 2, 7.</P>
<P><PB N="11" REF="11">Others are <HI>Externally and Vi&s;ibly in that Covenant,</HI> and many of the&s;e are branches in Chri&s;t, that may be taken away, ca&s;t forth and burnt. <HI>Joh. 15. v.</HI> 2. 6. may be broken off. <HI>Rom. 11. v.</HI> 17. 20. thus the <HI>Jews</HI> for po&s;itive unbelief were broken off, which tho&s;e who are internally in it cannot be.</P>
<P>And hence though the Children of &s;ome Godly Parents may degene|rate and prove wicked, yet this is no more again&s;t their former vi&s;ible Covenant Intere&s;t and Bapti&s;m, then the &s;ame in Profe&s;&s;ed Believers, who may degenerate al&s;o as <HI>Simon Ma|gus</HI> did, who before was duly Bapti|zed, only upon a Vi&s;ible External Intere&s;t in the Covenant.</P>
<P>3. <HI>There is a Connexion between the Covenant and Bapti&s;m.</HI> Act. 2, 38, 39. whence I argue thus,</P>
<P><HI>Tho&s;e to whom the Promi&s;e is made are Commanded to be Baptized. [Be Baptized for the promi&s;e is to you.</HI>]</P>
<P><PB N="12" REF="12"><HI>But the Promi&s;e is to Repenters and their Seed.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore Repenters and their Seed are commanded to be Baptized.</HI></P>
<P>All that have the Promi&s;e to them are to be Baptized, &s;eeing the [for] doth intimate that to be the ground, motive and inducement to the ap|plying Bapti&s;m, that the promi&s;e is to them.</P>
<P>And undeniably they are the <HI>Jews,</HI> which he &s;peaketh to <HI>v. 36. Let all the hou&s;e of</HI> I&s;rael <HI>know</HI>&mdash;them he commandeth to repent and be Baptized. <HI>v.</HI> 38. and addeth [<HI>for the promi&s;e is to you and your Children</HI>]</P>
<P>So then, in Go&s;pel times there is a promi&s;e which the <HI>Jews</HI> and their Seed had a joynt Intere&s;t in, (before their rejection) which was &s;ufficient to entitle them to Bapti&s;m. All repenters and believers are noted by [<HI>you</HI>] but here are two, not only [<HI>you</HI>] but al&s;o [<HI>your Children</HI>] with|in the promi&s;e, it is &s;till double as
<PB N="13" REF="12">
it was of old, to <HI>Abraham</HI> and his Seed. <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. and it tended greatly to their Comfort, that &s;uch a pro|mi&s;e of antient date was &s;till to them and their Seed, although they had Crucified and Slain Je&s;us Chri&s;t, the Lord of Life; yea, if for the pre&s;ent they were but externally in Cove|nant, yet it might be a great &s;upport in their Soul di&s;tre&s;s, that yet it was hopeful that they might obtain the &s;pecial internal ble&s;&s;ings of it, as re|mi&s;&s;ion of &s;in&mdash;&s;eeing an exter|nal Intere&s;t is a great advantage that way, telling that their condition was not yet hopele&s;s.</P>
<P>And this promi&s;e extending to the <HI>Jews</HI> and their Seed, mu&s;t al&s;o reach to the Seed of believing <HI>Gen|tiles,</HI> el&s;e the <HI>Jews</HI> &s;hould have more priviledge then they, whereas there is no difference in Go&s;pel times.</P>
<P>And tho&s;e words [as many as the Lord our God &s;hall call] are not a li|mitation of the former part of the
<PB N="14" REF="13">
ver&s;e, but of the words immediatly foregoing [<HI>and to all that are afar off</HI>] if that be meant of the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> as <HI>Eph.</HI> 2. 13. 17. then it telleth us, that the promi&s;e is not to all <HI>Gentiles</HI> u|niver&s;ally and without exception, but only to &s;uch of them as &s;hall be called or believe, and their Seed, el&s;e they were le&s;s priviledged then the <HI>Jews.</HI></P>
<P>Or if as &s;ome think it referreth to the <HI>Jews,</HI> becau&s;e the calling of the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> was as yet a great my&s;tery unto <HI>Peter, Act.</HI> 10. and might have been a &s;tumbling block to the&s;e <HI>Jews,</HI> then the&s;e [afar off] mu&s;t be the po&s;terity of the <HI>Jews</HI> to &s;ucceed in ages to come, who were then a|far off in time; and if &s;o, then by [Children] mu&s;t be under&s;tood not the po&s;terity of the <HI>Jews</HI> which was to come after, but their pre&s;ent Children even Infants, to them be|longeth this promi&s;e.</P>
<P>And this Promi&s;e is not to them
<PB N="15" REF="13">
only in the tender or offer of it, for that may extend to all afar off, this is limited to tho&s;e of them which the Lord &s;hall call. This Promi&s;e is not ab&s;olute, ab&s;olute, it is &s;o far conditional as to individuals of the Seed, as all the Children of Believ|ers may not, and &s;uch as reject the Covenant &s;hall not be &s;aved; but it is ab&s;olute as to the Species, as they are in a Covenant-&s;tate with God, as the Seed of others uncalled are not, and are under a greater probability of obtaining &s;piritual ble&s;&s;ings as re|mi&s;&s;ion of &s;in and eternal Salvation, have higher advantages that way, than the Seed of tho&s;e who are out of Covenant. It is mentioned as a great priviledge, that the promi&s;e is to them and their Children, it is then to oppo&s;e God for any Man to &s;ay, he doth not make the promi&s;e any otherwi&s;e to them and their Children, then he doth to all others in the World, and e&s;pecially &s;eeing
<PB N="16" REF="14">
Bapti&s;m is here entailed to it.</P>
<P>I now &s;hall prove [<HI>That &s;ome In|fants are vi&s;ibly or externally in the Covenant, which God made with</HI> A|braham.] For</P>
<P><HI>Some Infants for many hundreds of years in all Old Te&s;tament times, were &s;o in that Covenant made with</HI> Abra|ham, <HI>and God hath never repealed it or cut them off.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore they are in it &s;till.</HI> That they were in it is undeniable, for at the Eighth day they were to be Cir|cumci&s;ed el&s;e the Lord &s;aith <HI>they have broken his Covenant. Gen. 17. v.</HI> 14. it could not have been broken by neg|lecting that token of it, if they had not been in it. It is impo&s;&s;ible to break that Covenant that they are not in.</P>
<P>And let any prove, <HI>that God hath repealed it, or cut Infants out of it in Go&s;pel times, if they can.</HI></P>
<P>To evade this they tell us, <HI>that the Infants of believing Gentiles are not the Seed of</HI> Abraham.</P>
<P><PB N="17" REF="14">I &s;hall prove,</P>
<P>Po&s;it. <HI>That the Infant Seed even of believing Gentiles, are vi&s;ibly and externally in the Covenant which God made with</HI> Abraham. For</P>
<P>1. <HI>The Infant Seed of believing Gentiles in the days of the Old Te&s;ta|ment, were &s;o in that Covenant with</HI> Abraham, <HI>and therefore they are in it &s;till, unle&s;s God hath repealed it.</HI></P>
<P>The Scripture witne&s;&s;eth that the <HI>Gentiles</HI> have greater priviledge in Go&s;pel times, then they had before <HI>I&s;a. 42. 6. Acts 10. 45. Rom. 11. 11, 12. Gal.</HI> 3. 14. and who dare &s;ay that it is dimini&s;hed? let them prove it.</P>
<P>Its clear, that not only the natu|ral fle&s;hly Seed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> but tho&s;e born in his hou&s;e, and bought with his money (which were <HI>Gentiles</HI>) were to be circumci&s;ed, even Infants at Eight days old, <HI>not of his Seed, Gen. 17. v.</HI> 12, 13, 14. and this is an everla&s;ting Covenant, and if they were not circumci&s;ed, the Covenant
<PB N="18" REF="15">
with <HI>Abraham</HI> was broken, <HI>v.</HI> 14. and therefore tho&s;e Sons of &s;trangers <HI>Gentiles,</HI> were within the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> how el&s;e could they be under circumci&s;ion, the to|ken of it and &s;o, as it was violated if it were neglected? Yet the&s;e <HI>Gentiles</HI> had no right to the Land of <HI>Canaan,</HI> which argueth, that <HI>Abrahams</HI> Co|venant was not meerly for the Land of <HI>Canaan,</HI> or meerly typical as &s;ome would have it, nor only for <HI>Abrahams</HI> fle&s;hly Seed, but extended to &s;ome <HI>Gentiles;</HI> Indeed the Church was then Dome&s;tical in <HI>Abrahams</HI> family, he would have none there but &s;uch as owned the true Religion, &s;uch only were to be in his hou&s;e and bought with his money, as were then Church members, for he com|manded not only his Children but his Hou&s;hold after him, <HI>Gen. 18. v. 19. and they &s;hall keep the way of the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>And afterward &s;uch of the Stran|gers <HI>Gentiles,</HI> who became Pro&s;elites
<PB N="19" REF="15">
and owned the Jewi&s;h religion were to be circumci&s;ed, <HI>Ex. 12. v. 44, 48. 49. when a &s;tranger &s;hall &s;ojourn with thee, and will keep the pa&s;&s;over to the Lord, let all his males be circumci&s;ed&mdash;one Law &s;hall be to him that is home|born and unto the &s;tranger.</HI> So then, upon a profe&s;&s;ion of faith or true re|ligion, &s;trangers <HI>Gentiles</HI> were in the Covenant with <HI>Abraham</HI> in that day and came under the token of it, Cir|cumci&s;ion and their Infant &s;eed, as well as upon a profe&s;&s;ion of the faith of the Go&s;pel, any are owned in Co|venant now, &amp; their Infant &s;eed mu&s;t be in it with them, unle&s;s any can &s;hew a repeal, or that they are le&s;s priviledged then they were. And me|thinks we have the contrary. <HI>Act.</HI> 2. 39. the promi&s;e is [<HI>to you &amp; your Chil|dren] i. e.</HI> to the <HI>Jews, [&amp; to as many as the Lord our God &s;hall call] i. e.</HI> of the <HI>Gentiles</HI> an&s;werable to the Pro&s;elites of old, &s;o <HI>I&s;a. 56. v.</HI> 5, 6.</P>
<P>2. <HI>The Ble&s;&s;ings of</HI> Abraham <HI>in
<PB N="20" REF="16">
Go&s;pel Times are come upon the</HI> Gen|tiles <HI>by Faith,</HI> Gal. 3. 14.</P>
<P><HI>Therefore the Infant Seed of the</HI> Gentiles <HI>are, in Go&s;pel Times, in the Covenant which God made with</HI> Abra|ham.</P>
<P><HI>For</HI> Abraham <HI>had no other to com|municate but Covenant Ble&s;&s;ings,</HI> and not the Land of <HI>Canaan,</HI> for that is not given to the <HI>Gentiles;</HI> and therefore the Ble&s;&s;ings are, <HI>Gen. 17. 7, 8.&mdash;I will&mdash;be a God to thee, and to thy Seed after thee in their Ge|nerations.</HI> And this for many Ge|nerations did extend to Parents and their Infant Seed, <HI>v.</HI> 9, 10, 11.&mdash;So as they pa&s;&s;ed under Token of the Covenant, and were intended thereby all the time of the Old Te&s;tament.</P>
<P>He &s;peaketh indefinitely and in general of the <HI>Ble&s;&s;ings of Abraham,</HI> not a parcel of them, but in the La|titude, and as amply as of Old: And therefore by Faith God is vi&s;ibly a
<PB N="21" REF="16">
God to the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> and to their <HI>In|fant Seed;</HI> unle&s;s any can prove that God hath repealed that part of the Covenant which concerns the In|fant Seed in Go&s;pel Times.</P>
<P>3. <HI>The Infant Seed of the</HI> Jews <HI>were in the Covenant made with</HI> Abraham <HI>in Go&s;pel Times, after the Death of Chri&s;t, after all Legal Ob&s;er|vations were aboli&s;hed.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore the Infant Seed of Be|lieving</HI> Gentiles <HI>are in the Covenant made with</HI> Abraham <HI>in Go&s;pel Times.</HI></P>
<P>For there is no difference be|tween <HI>Jews</HI> and <HI>Gentiles</HI> in Go&s;pel Times. <HI>Rom. 10. 12. For there is no difference between the</HI> Jew <HI>and the</HI> Greek (<HI>i. e.</HI> the Gentile) <HI>for the &s;ame Lord over all, is Rich unto all that call upon him.</HI> So <HI>Rom. 3. 22. Act. 15. 9. Putting no difference,</HI> Gal. 3. 8. The <HI>Jews</HI> and <HI>Gentiles</HI> then are equal in re&s;pect of Go&s;pel Privi|ledge; yea, there is no difference in re&s;pect of External Priviledge and
<PB N="22" REF="17">
Covenant Intre&s;t, for the Partition Wall is broken down that was be|tween us, and <HI>both made one,</HI> Eph. 2. 14. And the &s;ame <HI>Olive Tree</HI> which the <HI>Jews</HI> are broken off from, that the <HI>Gentiles</HI> are grafted into, <HI>Rom. 11. v.</HI> 17, 19, 23, 24. So that the <HI>Jews</HI> are not Priviledges above the <HI>Gentiles.</HI></P>
<P>Now that the Infant &s;eed of the <HI>Jews</HI> were in the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham</HI> in Go&s;pel Times, I prove.</P>
<P>1. From <HI>Act. 3. 25. Ye are the Children of the Prophets, and of the Covenants which God made with our Fathers, &s;aying unto</HI> Abraham, <HI>and in thy &s;eed &s;hall all the Kindreds of the Earth be ble&s;&s;ed.</HI> This was after the Death and Re&s;urrection of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, after the abrogation of all Legal Sacrifices and Ceremonial Ob&s;ervations; yet &s;till the&s;e <HI>Jews</HI> were within the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> Children of it; yea,
<PB N="23" REF="17">
before their repentance, for he &s;aith, <HI>v. 19. repent therefore &amp;c.</HI> and their being &s;till in Covenant is u&s;ed as an argument to it, they were not yet ca&s;t out of that Covenant, and that included not only the Parents but the Infant &s;eed, as I have proved al|ready, &s;o <HI>Act.</HI> 2. 38, 39.</P>
<P>2. <HI>The</HI> Jews <HI>and their Infant &s;eed were in the Covenant made with</HI> A|braham, <HI>the day before the Go&s;pel came to them, therefore they were in it in Go&s;pel times after,</HI> unle&s;s God repeal|ed it or ca&s;t them out, which let any prove who can.</P>
<P>I run it up to the Primitive times, to determine this que&s;tion thus. In the Apo&s;tles days immediatly before their Preaching the <HI>Jews</HI> and their Infant Seed were unque&s;tionably in the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> and under the token of it Circum|ci&s;ion; therefore the Infant &s;eed were in that Covenant after; or el&s;e un|deniably the coming of Chri&s;t, and
<PB N="24" REF="18">
the <HI>Jews</HI> believing on him and be|ing Baptized, was exceedingly to their damage, injury, and di&s;advan|tage. For this is to &s;ay, that the day or moment before a <HI>Jew</HI> did believe and was Baptized, his Infant &s;eed were in Covenant with God, the day or moment after the Infant &s;eed was out of that Covenant. Dare any &s;ay that to be out of Covenant with God, or to be ca&s;t out is no damage, no di&s;advantage? is it not mentioned as a my&s;tery, to be &s;tran|gers to the Covenants of promi&s;e, <HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 2. 12? it is the mi&s;ery of the <HI>Jews,</HI> to be broken off from being externally in Covenant, and a mer|cy to the <HI>Gentiles</HI> to be graffed into the Olive, <HI>Rom 11. v.</HI> 17, 19, 22, 24. as promoting a partaking of the fatne&s;s of the Olive.</P>
<P>If it was a priviledge to be in that Covenant, then it mu&s;t needs be a lo&s;s and damage to be out of it. When the que&s;tion was, <HI>Rom.</HI> 3. 1.
<PB N="25" REF="18">
<HI>What advantage then hath the</HI> Jew? <HI>or what profit is there of Circumci&s;ion?</HI> God by the Apo&s;tle an&s;wereth, <HI>v. 2. much every way</HI>&mdash;Is it not then great boldne&s;s for any Man to con|tradict God, and &s;ay, it is a mercy ra|ther than a mi&s;ery to be broken off from it? If any abu&s;e the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> and Circum|ci&s;ion to the denying that Chri&s;t is come, and to the &s;eeking Ju&s;tifica|tion by their own works or righte|ou&s;ne&s;s, on &s;uch a fal&s;e legal ground as Chri&s;t profiteth nothing, and &s;o, as they oblige them&s;elves or are bound to keep the whole Law, and hinder their being ju&s;tified; what is all this to the proving that it is no damage or di&s;advantage for any to be ca&s;t out of the Covenant with <HI>A|braham,</HI> even as to external Intere&s;t in it?</P>
<P>If after the <HI>Jews</HI> believing and being Baptized&punc; their Infant &s;eed re|mained in that Covenant, then con|&s;equently
<PB N="26" REF="19">
the Infant &s;eed of believ|ing <HI>Gentiles</HI> are in it al&s;o, for now there is no difference.</P>
<P>4. <HI>The Seed of</HI> Abraham <HI>are the &s;ame for &s;pecies or kind in all genera|tions, and therefore the Infant &s;eed of believing</HI> Gentiles <HI>are in the Covenant made with</HI> Abraham. Its true there is a numerical difference, <HI>Abraham</HI> hath a greater number than he had for his &s;eed in the Nations of the <HI>Gentiles, Mat. 28. 19. Galat.</HI> 3. 14. and in Go&s;pel times there are great alterations in the outward &s;tate and condition of the Church, and in the outward admini&s;tration of the Co|venant, but as the Covenant it &s;elf, &s;o the &s;eed in it are for &s;ub&s;tance the &s;ame in all ages of it.</P>
<P>The Seed internally in that Co|venant, &s;o as to obtain ju&s;tification and Salvation, they were and are the &s;ame. He &s;aith <HI>to</HI> Abraham <HI>and his Seed were the promi&s;es made,</HI> even one &s;eed 430 years before the Law,
<PB N="27" REF="19">
and &s;o the Covenant cannot be di&s;|anulled. <HI>Gal. 3. v.</HI> 15, 16, 17. the &s;tre&s;s of the Apo&s;tles argument is laid upon the &s;amene&s;s of the &s;eed, admit one of another kind and his proof would fail. Al&s;o as to external Intere&s;t in the Covenant the &s;eed is for kind the &s;ame. It is true, <HI>Abraham</HI> was &s;o far priviledged as to have a promi&s;e, that of his natural &s;eed concerning the fle&s;h, Chri&s;t &s;hould come. <HI>Rom.</HI> 9. 5. yet after <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7. when per|&s;ons rejected the Covenant, though they were of the fle&s;hly &s;eed of <HI>A|braham,</HI> yet they were ca&s;t out, and al&s;o &s;ome &s;trangers <HI>Gentiles</HI> becom|ing Pro&s;elites, and owning the Co|venant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> though not of his fle&s;hly &s;eed, yet were admitted to the external priviledges of his Co|venant. <HI>v. 12, 13. Ex.</HI> 12, 48, 49. and their Infant &s;eed came under the to|ken of it, and &s;o were Covenanters.</P>
<P>If any ra&s;e out the Subjects of any Covenant (without their forfeiting
<PB N="28" REF="20">
their priviledge) it is pre&s;ently null and void.</P>
<P>If the Infant &s;eed were ra&s;ed out of the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> who undoubtedly for many hundreds of years were Subjects of it, then the Covenant with <HI>Abraham</HI> were di&s;a|nulled, which the Apo&s;tle &s;aith it cannot be, <HI>Gal. 3. 17. but cometh upon the Gentiles. v.</HI> 14. &s;o as they injoy what the <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off from <HI>Rom. 12. v.</HI> 17, 19. and &s;eeing the pro|mi&s;e of being a God to <HI>Abraham</HI> and his Seed, by Divine Warrant inten|ded the Infant Seed with the Pa|rents, in all the time from <HI>Abraham</HI> to the coming of Chri&s;t, hence that mu&s;t be the meaning of it &s;till, if Je|&s;us Chri&s;t hath not repealed it, and con&s;equently the <HI>Gentiles</HI> being now in that Covenant, the Infant &s;eed of the believing <HI>Gentiles,</HI> mu&s;t be vi&s;i|bly and externally in the Covenant, which God made with <HI>Abraham.</HI></P>
<P>I omit other Arguments in&s;i&s;ted
<PB N="29" REF="20">
upon by others, lea&s;t I &s;hould <HI>actum agere.</HI> As to the antiquity of the practice of Infant Bapti&s;m, be&s;ides what <HI>Ju&s;tin Martyr</HI> and <HI>Irendus</HI> &s;ay, <HI>Cyprian</HI> who flouri&s;hed about <HI>Ann.</HI> 250. or 255. in his Epi&s;tle to <HI>Fidus,</HI> who que&s;tioned whether Infants might be Baptized before the <HI>8th.</HI> day; <HI>Cyprian</HI> with Sixty &s;ix Bi&s;hops in a Council unanimou&s;ly declared to <HI>Fidus,</HI> that they might be Bapti|zed before the Eighth day; which very que&s;tion pre&s;uppo&s;eth, that the Baptizing of Infants was then a thing granted, and unque&s;tionable only the particular day doubted of by &s;ome. Neither may any conclude <HI>Cyprians</HI> te&s;timony to be &s;purious &s;eeing he is cited and approved not only by <HI>Augu&s;t.</HI> but by <HI>Hierom. Contr. Pelag. lib.</HI> 3. and Chri&s;t &s;aith, out of the Law, <HI>Joh.</HI> 8. 17. the te&s;timony of two Men is true, <HI>i. e.</HI> is to be receiv|ed as true.</P>
<P>Neither doth the un&s;oundne&s;s of
<PB N="30" REF="21">
<HI>Cyprians</HI> judgment about Bapti&s;m o|therways invalidate this; for I do not alledge him to make his opinion an Argument for Infant Bapti&s;m, but only to prove matter of fact, that it was then a common practice in the Church, when they might as ea&s;ily know what was practi&s;ed in the Apo&s;tles days, as we may know what was a Cu&s;tom a 100 or a 150 years ago. And &s;eeing the doubt of <HI>Fidus</HI> was grounded on the antient Law of Circumci&s;ion on the Eighth day; hence the Antients then made the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> an Ar|gument for Infant Bapti&s;m, and al&s;o thought Bapti&s;m came in the room and place of Circumci&s;ion. It can|not be denyed that <HI>Origen Augu&s;tin, Theodoret</HI> and others were for Infant Bapti&s;m.</P>
<P>&sect;. 2. <HI>Objections again&s;t Infants Co|venant Intere&s;t and Bapti&s;m an&s;wered.</HI></P>
<P>That the Covenant which God made with <HI>Abraham</HI> was of grace,
<PB N="31" REF="21">
and in the Sub&s;tance of it continuing in Go&s;pel times is evident; for the Apo&s;tle e&s;tabli&s;heth Ju&s;tification e|ven of the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> the <HI>Romans</HI> by faith in a way of grace, by the exam|ple of <HI>Abraham, Rom. 4. 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, 12, 16, 17. and by his being the Father of many Nations;</HI> now if the Cove|nant with <HI>Abraham</HI> had been expi|red, his arguments had been ea&s;ily evaded; by &s;aying, that <HI>Abraham</HI> was ju&s;tified in one way, we in ano|ther, and that <HI>Abrahams</HI> Covenant was at an end; its true &s;ome appen|dixes relating to its admini&s;tration as Circumci&s;ion&mdash;are aboli&s;hed, but the Apo&s;tle from the date of it 430 years before the Law, concludeth peremptorily, that it cannot be di&s;a|nulled, <HI>Gal.</HI> 3, 16, 17. and carefully ob&s;erve that when the Scripture &s;peaketh of <HI>an old Covenant,</HI> which is di&s;anulled, it always is <HI>the Law at mount Sinai.</HI> Jer. 31. <HI>v.</HI> 32. Heb. 8. <HI>v. 9. it never &s;aith, that the Covenant made
<PB N="32" REF="22">
with</HI> Abraham <HI>is aboli&s;hed,</HI> but the contrary; declaring that the Law coming 430 years after could not di&s;anull it. Al&s;o in Go&s;pel times, they are &s;aid to be <HI>Children of the Cove|nant.</HI> Act, 3. 25. And hence all tho&s;e notions, that the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> was a Covenant of works, a legal temporal one, or mixt his natural &s;eed, having but tempo|ral promi&s;es by it in the land of <HI>Ca|naan,</HI> or a typical Covenant, I &s;ay the&s;e, as not true, vani&s;h and come to nothing. And it is very con&s;iderable that in that Covenant with <HI>Abra|ham,</HI> the Lord promi&s;eth <HI>to be a God to him and his Seed after him,</HI> Gen. 17. 7. and then a Second time, with that temporal promi&s;e of the Land of <HI>Ca|naan</HI> to his Seed, he twi&s;teth this, <HI>v. 8. and I will be their God.</HI> So that vi|&s;ibly he is a God to the &s;ame Seed, which he promi&s;eth the Land of <HI>Ca|naan</HI> too; and for him to be a God to any, is far greater than any tem|poral good what&s;oever.</P>
<P><PB N="33" REF="22">I &s;hall now con&s;ider what is obje|cted, to prove a repeal of the Infant &s;eeds Intere&s;t in the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> and al&s;o again&s;t their Ba|pti&s;m.</P>
<P>Ob. 1. Mat. 3. 9. <HI>Think not to &s;ay within your &s;elves, we have</HI> Abraham <HI>to our Father.</HI> Joh. 8. 33. <HI>we be</HI> Abra|hams <HI>Seed.</HI></P>
<P><HI>None be the Children of</HI> Abraham, <HI>but tho&s;e that do the works of</HI> Abra|ham. <HI>v. 39. if ye were</HI> Abrahams <HI>Children, ye would do the works of</HI> A|braham, <HI>and &s;o Infants are not the Seed of</HI> Abraham.</P>
<P>A. 1. <HI>The&s;e are &s;evere reproofs to a degenerate adult &s;eed, who tru&s;ted in their priviledge in having</HI> Abraham <HI>to their Father; but &s;peak nothing of cutting off all Infants from a Govenant Intere&s;t which they formerly had.</HI> All this might be &s;aid to &s;uch as were wicked and re&s;ted in birth priviled|ges, in any times of the Old Te&s;ta|ment, when yet Infants were un|doubtedly
<PB N="34" REF="23">
in the Covenant, both be|fore and after; and &s;o it is nothing to the purpo&s;e. Jer. 7. 4. <HI>Tru&s;t ye not in lying words &s;aying, the Temple of the Lord are the&s;e.</HI> Yet all this may be &s;aid to &s;uch per&s;ons in Go&s;pel times, of whatever per&s;wa&s;ion, Ba|pti&s;ts, Congregational Men, or any other, that own Infants in Cove|nant; think not to &s;ay you are Church members or Baptized, whil&s;t you do not the works of <HI>Abraham,</HI> and yet we may own Infants Cove|nant intere&s;t, where the Parents are Believers.</P>
<P>2. <HI>It is certain, that when that was &s;aid,</HI> Mat. 3. 9. <HI>and</HI> Joh. 8. 39. <HI>the Co|venant Intere&s;t of the Infand &s;eed was not repealed, nor they cut off from it;</HI> For this was &s;ome time before the Death of Chri&s;t; till which there was no abrogation or di&s;anulling of any legal ob&s;ervations, much le&s;s of priviledge by <HI>Abraham, Eph. 2. v. 14, 15, 16. Col.</HI> 2. 14. the <HI>Jews</HI> were not
<PB N="35" REF="23">
broken off till afterwards; and &s;o Infants yet were of the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham.</HI></P>
<P>Ob. 2. <HI>None but tho&s;e that are Chri&s;t's vi&s;ibly, and that are of the Faith, are</HI> Abraham's <HI>&s;eed,</HI> Gal. 3. v. 16, 26, 29. <HI>Infants then are not the &s;eed of</HI> Abraham.</P>
<P><HI>An.</HI> 1. Here is not a &s;yllable for a repeal of any priviledge, which In|fants of old undoubtedly had by the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> or as his &s;eed: here is nothing for cutting off any that were of the &s;eed, as Infants once were, <HI>Gen. 17. Deut. 29. v.</HI> 10. to 14. rather he a&s;&s;erteth the &s;ame|ne&s;s of the Covenant in re&s;pect of its &s;eed, and that it could not be di&s;|anulled, &s;ee <HI>Gal.</HI> 3. 16, 17. and as God claimed <HI>I&s;rael</HI> as his, <HI>Exod. 4. 22. Lev.</HI> 20. 26. So if Infants be &s;till in Covenant, why may they not vi|&s;ibly be Chri&s;t's?</P>
<P>2. <HI>The Apo&s;tle here &s;peaketh of a &s;eed of</HI> Abraham <HI>as to Ju&s;tification
<PB N="36" REF="24">
and Life, and it is they which are of Faith,</HI> v. 8, 9, 10. And this not in oppo&s;ition to an Infant &s;eed, but to an adult &s;eed, which &s;ought Ju&s;tifi|cation by works of the Law, as tho&s;e ver&s;es witne&s;s, and <HI>v.</HI> 24, 26, 29. And thus it was in all Ages &s;ince <HI>Abraham,</HI> when Infants were cer|tainly in Covenant; yet then the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> as to Ju&s;tification, were they of the Faith, and not of Works; and only real Believers are this &s;eed. What is this again&s;t In|fants being a &s;eed as to Ordinances, as well as un&s;ound Profe&s;&s;ors? This is confirmed to be the meaning in the next Chapter, <HI>Gal. 4. v.</HI> 24. to the end, where they that were born <HI>from Mount</HI> Sinai, from the Law and Works are &s;aid to be <HI>born after the Fle&s;h,</HI> they are in the Apo&s;tles &s;ence the <HI>fle&s;hly &s;eed,</HI> which with <HI>I&s;hmael,</HI> are to be ca&s;t out; and they by Pro|mi&s;e are tho&s;e <HI>of the Faith.</HI></P>
<P>What is all this again&s;t Infants
<PB N="37" REF="24">
being of <HI>Abraham</HI>'s &s;eed, as of old; and the le&s;s, becau&s;e they are of the Faith, as their Covenant Intere&s;t fol|loweth Faith, <HI>viz.</HI> of the Parent to whom the Promi&s;e is given for the &s;eed, as that Promi&s;e was directed to <HI>Abraham,</HI> Gen. 17. 7. for him to act Faith upon the Lord in it, for his &s;eed as well as for him&s;elf; and other Believers are to do the like.</P>
<P>Hence &s;ee the true meaning of <HI>Gal. 3. 16. To</HI> Abraham <HI>and his &s;eed were the Promi&s;es made: he &s;aith not unto &s;eeds, as of many, but as of one, and to thy &s;eed, which is Chri&s;t:</HI> i. e. Always <HI>Abraham</HI> had but one &s;eed, Chri&s;t, and tho&s;e that are Chri&s;t's, and are of the Faith as to Ju&s;tificati|on; he never had two &s;eeds for that end; in the times of the Old Te&s;ta|ment there was but one &s;eed, not two &s;eeds, one by the Law, and ano|ther by Promi&s;e, but only one in Chri&s;t by Promi&s;e: and that this is the intendment, is evident, &s;eeing
<PB N="38" REF="25">
he addeth, <HI>v. 18. For if the Inheri|tance be of the Law, it is no more of Promi&s;e, but God gave it to</HI> Abraham <HI>by Promi&s;e.</HI> So that the [one &s;eed] excludeth only a pretended &s;eed, &s;eeking Ju&s;tification by the works of the Law; &s;uch God never owned for the &s;eed.</P>
<P>And &s;o it is not in the lea&s;t men|tioned to exclude Infants, as a fle&s;hly &s;eed, from an eccle&s;ia&s;tical &s;eed, nor to repeal any priviledge or limit to cut them off from what they had before the coming of Chri&s;t, this is not in the lea&s;t the meaning; for all the time wherein Infants enjoyed &s;uch priviledges, yet there was but one &s;eed in the Apo&s;tles &s;ence: and which further cleareth it, ob&s;erve this, <HI>Gal.</HI> 3. 16, 17. intendeth that Promi&s;e to <HI>Abraham,</HI> which was 430 years before the Law, which can be only that, <HI>Gen.</HI> 12. 3. as any may find by computing the time, this was when <HI>Abraham</HI> was &s;even|ty
<PB N="39" REF="25">
five years old, <HI>v.</HI> 4. and &s;o they greatly mi&s;take who would have it expounded, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7, 8. where In|fants Covenant Intere&s;t is a&s;&s;erted, it is no repeal, no re&s;triction, or li|mitation thereof, no cutting them off from any priviledges granted or confirmed to them there; for that was not four hundred and thirty years before the Law; but when <HI>Abraham</HI> was ninety and nine years old. <HI>v.</HI> 1. which was twenty four years le&s;s.</P>
<P>4. <HI>Some Infants are vi&s;ibly Chri&s;t's, and &s;o are</HI> Abraham'<HI>s &s;eed:</HI> as <HI>Abra|ham</HI> had a natural <HI>fle&s;hly &s;eed,</HI> and a <HI>&s;piritual &s;eed,</HI> con&s;i&s;ting only of real Believers, which are ju&s;tified, and &s;hall certainly be &s;aved, <HI>Gal. 3. 8, 9, 11. Mark</HI> 16. 16. So al&s;o <HI>Abraham</HI> had, and hath an eccle&s;ia&s;tical &s;eed, he was, and is a Father of the vi&s;ible Church, and all in it are his &s;eed in this &s;ence, where are many fooli&s;h Virgins, <HI>Mat.</HI> 25. 1, 2. un&s;ound Pro|fe&s;&s;ors
<PB N="40" REF="26">
of Faith, which yet are duely baptized, as <HI>Simon Magus</HI> was, <HI>Act.</HI> 8. 13. Such as may be in Chri&s;t, and be taken away <HI>and ca&s;t forth, Joh.</HI> 15. 2. 6. and be broken off, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. which none of his &s;piritual &s;eed of real believers can be. Either then &s;uch Hypocrites are the &s;eed of <HI>A|braham</HI> or not. If they be, then he hath a &s;eed which are not his Spiri|tual &s;eed; If they be not, then we may Baptize &s;ome who are not the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> and then why not Infants? Neither need we call this a third &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> any more than of old, and e&s;pecially, &s;eeing that Church con&s;i&s;teth much of his Spi|ritual &s;eed, as &s;harers in highe&s;t pri|viledges in &s;pecial and eternal ble&s;|&s;ings, though it extendeth to others as &s;harers in inferiour ble&s;&s;ings; both are his &s;eed as <HI>I&s;hmael</HI> and <HI>I&s;aac</HI> were, though one had higher ble&s;&s;ings then the other, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 20. 21.</P>
<P>And undeniably many hundreds
<PB N="41" REF="26">
of years even from <HI>Abraham</HI> till the coming of Chri&s;t, an Infant &s;eed of <HI>Jews</HI> and Pro&s;elites were of <HI>Abra|hams</HI> Church-&s;eed, and mu&s;t be &s;o &s;till unle&s;s any can &s;hew a repeal; and this will hardly be found, &s;eeing Je&s;us Chri&s;t hath declared, that of &s;uch is the Kingdom of Heaven, <HI>Mat. 19. 14. Mark 10. 13, 14. Luk.</HI> 18. 15. And if Infants be of the Church, then are they Chri&s;ts, for that is his, <HI>Mat. 16. 18. Rom. 16. 16. 1 Cor. 12. 27. Joh.</HI> 15. 2, 6. Neither do &s;ome Cha|racters of the Church forbid their being members of it, &s;eeing they were undoubtedly &s;uch, and the&s;e Elogiums are given to it, in re&s;pect of its better part, or what they may, ought or hopefully will be after|ward; as it is the Kingdom of Hea|ven, <HI>Mat.</HI> 25. 1, 2. yet &s;ome fooli&s;h Virgins there, and tho&s;e are golden Candle&s;ticks, <HI>Rev.</HI> 1. 12, 13, 20. yet &s;ome dro&s;&s;y and lukewarm not pure gold.</P>
<P><PB N="42" REF="27">And further con&s;ider, the vi&s;ible Church was founded on the Cove|nant made with <HI>Abraham,</HI> not only as con&s;i&s;ting of <HI>Jews,</HI> but <HI>Gentiles</HI> in the Nations, Gen. 17. 4, 5. <HI>behold my Covenant is with thee, and thou &s;halt be a Father of many Nations;</HI> and that Covenant extended to Infants, <HI>v. 10, 11, 12, 13. and is &s;till continuing,</HI> Rom. 4. 17, 18. Gal. 3. 17. let any prove that Infants are cut out of it, el&s;e they are of his Eccle&s;ia&s;tical &s;eed &s;till. It is true, Ceremonial ob&s;ervations of ve|ry antient date, and Ordinances of of the Law are abrogated, <HI>Heb.</HI> 9. and 10. but the Covenant with <HI>Abraham</HI> is another thing, and from the date of it &s;o long before the Law, the A|po&s;tle proveth cannot be di&s;anulled by it, <HI>Gal.</HI> 3. 17. The cea&s;ing of Cir|cumci&s;ion doth no more aboli&s;h the Covenant with <HI>Abraham</HI> or Infants Intere&s;t therein, then the aboli&s;hing of Sacrifices, Pa&s;&s;over, and other Ce|remonial ob&s;ervations doth null the
<PB N="43" REF="27">
Second Commandment, which du|ring their continuance, commanded a wor&s;hipping God by them.</P>
<P>And al&s;o the Church before the Death of Chri&s;t, and after, are e&s;&s;en|tially the &s;ame, Eph. 2. 14, 15. <HI>Who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition be|tween us, having aboli&s;hed&mdash;the Law of Commandments</HI>&mdash;So then Je&s;us Chri&s;t by his Death did not pull down one Church, and erect ano|ther, but equalized <HI>Jews</HI> and <HI>Gen|tiles,</HI> made both one; <HI>that the</HI> Gen|tiles <HI>&s;hould be fellow heirs, and of the &s;ame body,</HI> Eph. 3. 6. Ordinances are altered in Wor&s;hip, but the Church is in E&s;&s;ence the &s;ame.</P>
<P>And once more, the &s;ame Olive-tree, the Covenant with <HI>Abraham,</HI> and vi&s;ible Church, which the <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off from, for unbelief. <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. the &s;ame the <HI>Gentiles</HI> were graffed into, <HI>v.</HI> 17. and the <HI>Jews</HI> &s;hall again be graffed into that, as in|to
<PB N="44" REF="28">
their own Olive-tree, <HI>v.</HI> 23, 24. and there could be no &s;uch graffing into the &s;ame, if the &s;tock the Covenant or Church were not the &s;ame. And hence <HI>Abraham</HI> hath an Eccle&s;ia&s;ti|cal &s;eed the vi&s;ible Church (for there is no breaking off from the invi&s;ible Church) and Infants being of old members of it, they are &s;o &s;till (el&s;e it were not the &s;ame) and &s;o they are vi&s;ibly Chri&s;ts and of <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;eed.</P>
<P>5. <HI>Some Infants are vi&s;ibly of the faith, and &s;o are Abrahams &s;eed:</HI> I do not &s;ay, that faith &s;eminal and habi|tual or actual, is in all Infants Bapti|zed or others, for then either all of them mu&s;t be &s;aved, which they are not; or el&s;e they might loo&s;e that &s;pecial faith; but they are vi&s;ibly in|tere&s;ted in the Covenant or promi&s;e, which is the word of faith and may bear that name; and the Lord being vi&s;ibly their God, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7. 8. they are &s;o under the promi&s;e of after faith and repentance, otherwi&s;e then
<PB N="45" REF="28">
others are. If they have not faith for the pre&s;ent, yet vi&s;ibly they are un|der a promi&s;e of it, it is hopeful for the future they &s;hall have it, which promi&s;e, Bapti&s;m may be a &s;ign and &s;eal of; it may &s;eal a doctrin of faith even where a principle of it is yet wanting, and by Bapti&s;m they are obliged to &s;eek it.</P>
<P>Al&s;o by the faith of the Parents, they may be deemed of the faith with them, as all <HI>Jews (Infants and all)</HI> were the Circumci&s;ion, for there are many promi&s;es given for the faith of &s;uch Parents to act upon, which no unbelieving Parents can claim for their &s;eed; as that he will Circumci&s;e the heart of their &s;eed, <HI>Deut.</HI> 30. 6. pour his &s;pirit on them, <HI>I&s;.</HI> 44. 3. that the word &s;hall not de|part out of their mouth. <HI>If. 59. 21. &s;ee al&s;o</HI> P&s;. 25. 13. &amp; 112. 2. Prov. 11. 21. the contrary of the &s;eed of the wicked, <HI>P&s;.</HI> 37. 28. but e&s;pecially that great and comprehen&s;ive promi&s;e is
<PB N="46" REF="29">
to believers, that he will be the God of their &s;eed, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7, 8. and the&s;e are fulfilled ab&s;olutely to the Colle|ctive body the Church, though not te every individual, but under limi|tation. And Parents by rejecting the Covenant and Unbelief, may forfeit this priviledge for their &s;eed as well as for them&s;elves, as the Infant &s;eed of the <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off by their Parents unbelief, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. El&s;e it mu&s;t be &s;aid that their &s;eed re|mained in Covenant after in Go&s;pel times; and if Parents forfeit, there may not be an uninterrupted Suc|ce&s;&s;ion of the Church in &s;ome of the po&s;terity of Believers, yet if the reje|cted &s;eed do after per&s;onally believe, they obtain the promi&s;es for them|&s;elves and &s;eed again. <HI>Act.</HI> 2. 39.</P>
<P>In &s;hort, <HI>Abraham</HI> was equally a Father of the <HI>Jews</HI> (called the Cir|cumci&s;ion) by faith, as he was and is a Father of the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> the circum|ci&s;ion by faith. <HI>Rom. 4. v.</HI> 10, 11, 12.
<PB N="47" REF="29">
there is no difference of his common fatherhood to both it is by faith; &s;o that the <HI>Jews</HI> were as much <HI>Abra|hams</HI> &s;eed of faith, even when they were the circumci&s;ion as the <HI>Gen|tiles</HI> are, and &s;o the <HI>Jews</HI> Infant &s;eed, were <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;eed of faith, exter|nally when circumci&s;ed of old, and as well then may the Infant &s;eed of believing <HI>Gentiles,</HI> be <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;eed of faith now; and the rather becau&s;e he received circumci&s;ion, as <HI>a Seal of the righteou&s;ne&s;s of that faith, which he had being uncircumci&s;ed v. 11. that he might be a father to believing</HI> Gen|tiles. And ob&s;erve, that the Cove|nant was made with him, and he circumci&s;ed as a vi&s;ible Believer, cir|cumci&s;ion was a Seal of the righte|ou&s;ne&s;s of faith, which is common to all Believers among <HI>Jews</HI> and <HI>Gen|tiles,</HI> not peculiar to him.</P>
<P>Al&s;o he received Circumci&s;ion, not meerly by vertue of a command or in&s;titution, but as a token of the
<PB N="48" REF="30">
Covenant. <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 9, 10, 11. So as the Covenant could not be kept after circumci&s;ion was In&s;tituted without it, <HI>v.</HI> 14. whil&s;t it continued; nor without Bapti&s;m now a token of the &s;ame Covenant, and connected with the promi&s;e, <HI>Act.</HI> 2. 38, 39. in like manner, and &s;o Infants being in Co|venant, as <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;eed of faith are to be Baptized.</P>
<P>Obj. 3. <HI>There is no kind of Cove|nant holine&s;s in the natural &s;eed of Be|lievers, more than in the &s;eed of Un|believers now under the Go&s;pel; for no per&s;on is to be accounted common or unclean by nature more than others, and &s;o no per&s;on to be accounted clean or holy by nature more than others.</HI> Act. 10. 28. <HI>God is no re&s;pecter of per&s;ons&mdash;Typical Ceremonial holine&s;s is aboli&s;hed of the &s;eed as well as of Bea&s;ts, Birds, Garments, Temple,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>A. <HI>The Typical ceremonial holine&s;s aboli&s;hed, is not &s;aid to be by Nature.</HI> Act. 10. 28. <HI>it was by the Law;</HI> &s;uch as
<PB N="49" REF="30">
of Birds, Bea&s;ts, Garments, Temple, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> and this is at an end, nothing now unclean or holy in that &s;en&s;e; but that is nothing again&s;t the rela|tive federal holine&s;s of per&s;ons long before the Law, by the Covenant with <HI>Abraham</HI> vi&s;ibly having God their God, and being his People. <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7, 8. otherwi&s;e then other People, being &s;eparated to the Ser|vice of God, and not afar off but nigh to him. <HI>Ezek. 16. 8, 9. Eph.</HI> 2, 3, 14, 19. and this is not meerly by nature, but as in the force of Gods Covenant. <HI>Galat.</HI> 2. 15.</P>
<P>As to <HI>Act.</HI> 10. 28. It declares that no per&s;on is <HI>common or unclean</HI> &s;o as to bar him from the Preaching of the Go&s;pel; the <HI>Gentiles</HI> are as clean and holy now as the <HI>Jews</HI> in that re|&s;pect; <HI>Peter</HI> might go in to <HI>Corneli|us,</HI> no difference of Nation or out|ward &s;tate or condition to hinder it (<HI>Col.</HI> 2. 11.) all on equal terms, and alike; the means of grace may be
<PB N="50" REF="31">
extended to the <HI>Gentiles;</HI> the offer is larger then it was; not &s;traiter here is no excluding or ca&s;ting out of Infants from any priviledge.</P>
<P>Indeed the <HI>Jews</HI> of old were for|bidden Marriage and Covenants with the <HI>Gentiles, Deut.</HI> 7. 3. but not keeping company with them, as <HI>Calvin</HI> &s;aith, we find no clear prohi|bition of the <HI>Jews</HI> going in to the <HI>Gentiles</HI> from the Law, but from the ob&s;ervation of the Fathers; Howe|ver, there can be no pretence for &s;uch uncleanne&s;s of Per&s;ons, as <HI>Peter</HI> meaneth till the Law, and the abo|li&s;hing this by the Go&s;pel, is nothing again&s;t the federal holine&s;s of Infants or others, long before the Law by the Covenant with <HI>Abraham.</HI></P>
<P>As to <HI>Act.</HI> 10. 34, 35. it importeth that God is <HI>no re&s;pecter of per&s;ons, as to acceptance with him;</HI> be he <HI>Jew</HI> or <HI>Gentile</HI> of what Nation &s;oever, he may be accepted of God, if he be a fearer of God, and a worker of right|eou&s;ne&s;s
<PB N="51" REF="31">
el&s;e not, whatever privilege he enjoyeth, Church-member&s;hip, Bapti&s;m, Lords Supper, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> what is this again&s;t the federal holine&s;s of their &s;eed, who are fearers of God and externally in Covenant with him?</P>
<P>2. <HI>In Go&s;pel times there is a relative federal holine&s;s, whereby &s;ome are dif|ferenced from other by a Separation from the world for God,</HI> Rom. 11. 16. 1 Pet. 2. 9. <HI>ye are a holy Nation,</HI> yea this reacheth Infants. 1 Cor. 7. 14. <HI>El&s;e were your Children unholy, but now are they holy.</HI></P>
<P>It cannot be meant of legitima|tion, for if both the Parents be unbe|lievers, yet the Children are legiti|mate. <HI>Heb. 13. 4. the marriage bed is undefiled in all.</HI> It is not barely a being &s;anctified to u&s;e, for &s;o are the unbelieving Husband or Wife to the Believer. <HI>v.</HI> 14. yet are not holy. <HI>Tit.</HI> 1. 15.</P>
<P>It is not qualitative holine&s;s, if it
<PB N="52" REF="32">
were to be &s;ure they may be Bapti|zed; it mu&s;t then be relative or fe|deral holine&s;s.</P>
<P>Obj. 4. <HI>If the Children of the fle&s;h are not the Children of God,</HI> Rom. 9. 8. <HI>then Infants are not the &s;eed of</HI> Abra|ham, <HI>they may be by Election, not by Calling.</HI> Abraham <HI>hath two &s;eeds, a fle&s;hly &s;eed, who had promi&s;es of the Land of</HI> Canaan; <HI>and a &s;piritual &s;eed Heirs of eternal Life, the Heavenly In|heritance, this was never given to the fle&s;hly &s;eed.</HI></P>
<P>An&s;. <HI>Children of the fle&s;h by dege|neracy and a legal Birth, are not the Children of God:</HI> Of the&s;e he &s;peak|eth, <HI>Rom. 9. v. 8, 31, 32. Gal. 4. v.</HI> 29, 30. This is nothing again&s;t Infants Priviledge.</P>
<P>Al&s;o Children of the fle&s;h, Infants or adult, are not internally and &s;a|vingly the Children of God, &s;o as to inherit the Heavenly Inheritance only by fle&s;hly de&s;cent; but Infants of Believers are externally and vi&s;i|bly
<PB N="53" REF="32">
the Children of God as well as others, <HI>Gen. 17. 7, 10, 11. Exod. 4. 22. Rom.</HI> 9. 4. To them pertaineth the Adoption, and &s;o they are exter|nally and vi&s;ibly Children, if not by regeneration, yet by dedication and &s;eparation for God from others. This rendreth it probable and hopeful they &s;hall afterwards &s;hare in the &s;pi|ritual and eternal Ble&s;&s;ings, until they evidence the contrary by re|jecting the Covenant, as <HI>I&s;hmael</HI> and <HI>E&s;au</HI> did.</P>
<P>Thus the Infant &s;eed of Believers are not the &s;piritual &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> only by fle&s;hly de&s;cent, but they are eccle&s;ia&s;tically and externally the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> with their Parents, by vertue of the Covenant.</P>
<P>But to clear this Text and Matter, I &s;hall add the&s;e things.</P>
<P>1. <HI>Here is no repeal of any Cove|nant Intere&s;t, which Infants undoubt|edly had before the coming of Je&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> without which, all &s;aid is no|thing&punc;
<PB N="54" REF="33">
to the purpo&s;e: it is not &s;aid, tho&s;e that of old were the &s;eed of <HI>A|braham,</HI> now are not &s;o any longer; but rather the contrary, for (till a|ctually ca&s;t out) he concludeth them highly priviledged, <HI>Rom. 9. 4. Who are</HI> I&s;raelites <HI>to whom pertaineth the Adoption and the Glory of [the Cove|nants]&mdash;and the Promi&s;es.</HI> So that &s;till in Go&s;pel times, till ca&s;t out for po&s;itive Unbelief, externally they had an Intre&s;t in the Covenants and Promi&s;es, as in former days, and &s;o their Infants &s;hared with them.</P>
<P>2. <HI>The Children of the Fle&s;h, which here are denyed to be the Children of God, are an adult, corrupt, degenerate &s;eed, &s;eeking Ju&s;tification by a Legal Righteou&s;ne&s;s.</HI> Rom. 9. v. 8, 31, 32. I&s;rael <HI>which followed after Righteou&s;|ne&s;s, hath not attained to the Law of Righteou&s;ne&s;s. Wherefore? becau&s;e they &s;ought it not by Faith, but as it were by the Works of the Law.</HI> Such are a fle&s;h|ly &s;eed, <HI>Gal.</HI> 4. 29. and ob&s;tinately
<PB N="55" REF="33">
erring in &s;uch a Fundamental in mat|ter of Faith, in any Age, were not the Children of God; they are adult ones that thus advance their own Righte|ou&s;ne&s;s, Infants do not &s;o, and there|fore are not the Children of the fle&s;h here intended.</P>
<P>Indeed the Parents may &s;o forfeit their Covenant Intere&s;t, and con&s;e|quently, their Infant &s;eed may loo&s;e it al&s;o, becau&s;e their Right was by their Parents.</P>
<P>3. <HI>The Children of the Fle&s;h, whether adult, or Infants, are not the Children of God &s;piritually, or are not the &s;piritual &s;eed of</HI> Abraham <HI>only by a fle&s;hly de&s;cent, &s;o as to be Heirs of Salvation, Eternal Life, the Heavenly Inheritance; but yet may be the &s;eed of</HI> Abraham <HI>eccle&s;ia&s;ti|cally and externally, as of old, and nothing is here again&s;t it.</HI></P>
<P>Mr. <HI>Strong</HI> doth well di&s;tingui&s;h <HI>A|braham</HI> as a Father; he is 1. a natural Father to the <HI>Jews</HI> only. 2. a &s;piritual Father to all true Believers. 3. an ec|cle&s;ia&s;tical, or church Father, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11.
<PB N="56" REF="34">
16, 17. an&s;werably he hath a natural fle&s;hly &s;eed, a &s;piritual &s;eed, and an ec|cle&s;ia&s;tical &s;eed. <HI>Paul</HI> ardently de&s;ired, that <HI>I&s;rael</HI> might be &s;aved, <HI>Rom.</HI> 10. 1. and <HI>Rom. 9. v.</HI> 3. mentioneth Election, calling Salvation <HI>v.</HI> 11, 24, 27. and in the&s;e re&s;pects it might be &s;aid in all a|ges of the Old Te&s;tament, the Children of the fle&s;h are not the Children of God, as to Vocation and Salvation, when yet Infants were unque&s;tionably external|ly in Covenant, and &s;o then they may be &s;till, and all this that is &s;aid is not a|gain&s;t it. They may be a &s;eed as to Or|dinances, though all of them be not &s;o as to Life and Salvation.</P>
<P>The &s;ame may be &s;aid of Go&s;pel Churches, all are not <HI>I&s;rael</HI> that are of <HI>I&s;rael</HI>&mdash;there being fooli&s;h Virgins there as well as wi&s;e, <HI>Mat.</HI> 25. 1, 2. how then can this prove, an alteration of the Covenant, or that the Infant &s;eed is now excluded, &s;eeing the &s;ame might have been truly &s;aid in all times?</P>
<P>4. <HI>That many of the fle&s;hly &s;eed of</HI> A|braham <HI>might be rejected, and yet the
<PB N="57" REF="34">
word or promi&s;e of God not be made void;</HI> the Apo&s;tle here and <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. is a&s;&s;ert|ing the rejection of the <HI>Jews,</HI> and now obviateth their objection, <HI>Rom. 9. v. 6. [Not as though the word of God hath tak|en none effect</HI>] i. e. Not that God doth violate his promi&s;e of being a God to <HI>Abraham</HI> and his &s;eed, for all are not true <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> nor of the &s;eed of <HI>Abra|ham,</HI> who are his fle&s;hly &s;eed, <HI>v.</HI> 6, 7. on|ly that did not render them the Chil|dren of God, and entitle them to the promi&s;es <HI>v.</HI> 8. this he proveth, becau&s;e <HI>I&s;hmael,</HI> who was of <HI>Abrahams</HI> fle&s;hly &s;eed of old was ca&s;t our, and where there was no di&s;parity or unlikene&s;s in birth or works, yet <HI>Jacob</HI> was loved, and <HI>E&s;au</HI> hated, <HI>v.</HI> 8. to 14. neither doth this preferring one before the other, where there was equality in them&s;elves, &s;peak any unrighteou&s;ne&s;s with God, <HI>v.</HI> 14. for his own will is the determining rule of his &s;hewing mercy, <HI>v.</HI> 15. to <HI>v.</HI> 24. This is the clear and true meaning of this Scripture, the&s;e in&s;tances &s;hew that being the Children of the fle&s;h of
<PB N="58" REF="35">
old, did not make them the Children of God, as to his love&mdash;when yet unde|niably the Infant &s;eed were externally within the Covenant, how then can this &s;peak now for the excluding of them? when the &s;ame might be &s;aid in all ages &s;ince <HI>Abraham, viz.</HI> that the Children of the fle&s;h, are not the Chil|dren of God &s;o as to obtain &s;piritual Ble&s;&s;ings, but may be rejected, when they bear upon that plea of fle&s;hly de&s;|cent, and yet highly degenerate as the <HI>Jews</HI> did. It proveth no alteration of the Covenant in re&s;pect of its antient ex|tent as to the &s;eed. What is &s;aid, is in|tended again&s;t an adult corrupt &s;eed, making a carnal plea or claim, not a|gain&s;t an Infant &s;eed. The &s;ame might be &s;aid now to a Church under a like degeneracy, and making &s;uch a carnal plea, even where there is an owning In|fants Covenant Intere&s;t and Bapti&s;m. The Que&s;tion here was not whither an Infant &s;eed were &s;till in Covenant as they were of old? but whither the pro|mi&s;e was void and of none effect (<HI>v.</HI> 6.)
<PB N="59" REF="35">
if a corrupt adult fle&s;hly &s;eed were re|jected?</P>
<P>5. <HI>The fle&s;hly Children of</HI> Abraham, <HI>were not the Children of God exclu&s;ively, or in oppo&s;ition to a Spiritual &s;eed, even of</HI> Gentiles <HI>by faith;</HI> the <HI>Jews</HI> often cryed out, we are the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> claim|ing Intere&s;t in the Covenant, and in|gro&s;&s;ing all promi&s;es and &s;pecial ble&s;|&s;ings, only by being his fle&s;hly &s;eed, hereby excluding the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> unle&s;s joyned with them turning to the <HI>Jew|i&s;h</HI> Religion; on the contrary the Apo|&s;tle declareth, that there is <HI>a &s;piritual &s;eed,</HI> even of the <HI>Gentiles</HI> by faith, and that hereby they obtain &s;piritual ble&s;|&s;ings before the <HI>Jews Rom.</HI> 9, 8, 30, 31, 32 who are denyed to be that &s;piritual &s;eed (though they were the fle<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="3 letters">y &s;eed of <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 word"></HI>) being without faith and not doing the works of <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 word">, Rom. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">. 10. 11. Gal. 3.</HI></P>
<P>What is this again&s;t tho&s;e, who pre|tend not to be <HI>Abrahams</HI> carnal fle&s;hly &s;eed, nor to be actually intere&s;ted in &s;pecial ble&s;&s;ings by fle&s;hly de&s;cent, nor
<PB N="60" REF="36">
tru&s;t in carnal priviledges? What is this for the excluding Infants out of a Covenant &s;tate&punc; an the re&s;ult of that promi&s;e to <HI>Abraham</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> I will he the God of thy &s;eed <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 7, 8. for many 100 years an Infant &s;eed had a Covenant Intere&s;t joyntly with their Parents, and this was no Typical promi&s;e, let any prove that Infants are cut off from their &s;hare in it, el&s;e their Covenant In|tere&s;t mu&s;t hold &s;till, whither Bapti&s;m may be applyed, or not without an ex|pre&s;s Command of which before.</P>
<P><HI>Abraham</HI> had a &s;piritual &s;eed all along by faith, who&s;e Infants were in Cove|nant with their Parents for many gene|rations, and why &s;hould not their pri|viledge continue &s;till to the &s;piritual &s;eed, though the carnal fle&s;hly &s;eed were ca&s;t out, and their priviledge ex|pired with it.</P>
<P>Infants Covenant Intere&s;t was not the peculiar priviledge of the fle&s;hly &s;eed of <HI>Abraham;</HI> for the Infant &s;eed of Pro&s;elites and tho&s;e &s;trangers, <HI>Gen. 17. 12, 13. Ex. 12. 48.</HI> were in the Co|venant
<PB N="61" REF="36">
made with <HI>Abraham</HI> and under the token of it, &s;o as that Covenant was broken if that was omitted, yet they were not of the fle&s;hly &s;eed of <HI>A|braham,</HI> and &s;o the&s;e may be in &s;till, though his fle&s;hly &s;eed be ca&s;t out.</P>
<P>And once more, if all the <HI>Jews</HI> at the fir&s;t dawning of the Go&s;pel day, had be|come the &s;piritual &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> by faith (as many of them did) none of them then had been rejected; for it was for unbelief, that they were bro|ken off, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. and what &s;yllable is there to prove, that there would have been an exclu&s;ion of their Infant &s;eed, from that Covenant Intere&s;t weh they had the day before their Parents believing. And hence it followeth.</P>
<P>6. <HI>That the expiring and cea&s;ing of &s;ome carnal priviledges of old, afforded to the fle&s;hly &s;eed of</HI> Abraham, <HI>hindreth not the Covenant Intere&s;t of the Infants of the &s;piritual &s;eed by faith;</HI> if the &s;e|paration of the fle&s;hly &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> to the bringing forth of the <HI>Me&s;&s;iah</HI> cea&s;ed and expired at his coming, that
<PB N="62" REF="37">
was but one priviledge of the <HI>Jews,</HI> that <HI>of them as concerning the fle&s;h Chri&s;t came,</HI> Rom. 9. 5. and yet Covenant In|tere&s;t continued &s;till [<HI>to them pertaineth the&mdash;Covenant, and the promi&s;es] v.</HI> 4. Act. 3. 25.</P>
<P>If the afore&s;aid &s;eparation and the priviledge thereby, as Dr. <HI>O.</HI> &s;aith was temporary having a limited &s;ea&s;on time and end, and upon his actual exhibition in the fle&s;h it was to cea&s;e, and if &s;ome carnal ordinances failed and be at an end, being abundantly &s;upplyed by his being come; yet what is all this to prove, that God no longer is vi&s;ibly a God to the Infant &s;eed of the Spiritual &s;eed of <HI>Abraham?</HI> that is not tempora|ry, but by an everla&s;ting Covenant, and faileth not.</P>
<P>Infants Covenant Intere&s;t is no branch of tho&s;e priviledges which he &s;aith are expired; but on the contrary Dr. <HI>O.</HI> mentioneth this as one promi&s;e to the Church [<HI>that God will be a God to them and their &s;eed for ever.] Exercit.</HI> 6. on <HI>Heb.</HI> Neither doth this make three par|ties
<PB N="63" REF="37">
in the Covenant [Abraham <HI>and his &s;eed, and their Infant &s;eed</HI>] any more than it did before the coming of Chri&s;t, when Parents and their Infants made one joynt Subject all along, as <HI>I&s;aac</HI> and his Children, and <HI>Jacob</HI> and his, and tho&s;e Circumci&s;ed, <HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 5. and theirs.</P>
<P>The <HI>Jews</HI> ungroundedly claimed all promi&s;es, by their being the fle&s;hly &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> but the &s;piritual &s;eed may duly claim that promi&s;e for their Chil|dren, there being nothing for the nul|ling of it.</P>
<P>Be&s;ides, Dr. <HI>O.</HI> once and again there declareth, <HI>that the Church is one and the &s;ame, not one Church taken away and ano|ther &s;et up in the room, the Olive-tree is the &s;ame, only &s;ome branches are broken off,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>Infants were of the Church, &s;hew when they were all ca&s;t out; the &s;ame that the <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off from the <HI>Gentiles</HI> were graffed into, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11.</P>
<P>Let any prove that the Church-&s;tate in the Sub&s;tance of it, was any part of that which was aboli&s;hed by the death of Chri&s;t.</P>
<P><PB N="64" REF="38">They were <HI>added to the Church,</HI> Act. 2. 47. i. e. to the Church under its new admini&s;tration. By breaking down the partition wall, the former confinement of the Church to the Natural &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> was taken off, and it hath en|largement by the acce&s;s of the <HI>Gentiles,</HI> but is not &s;traitned by excluding &s;o va&s;t a number as all the Infant &s;eed. The de|generate, ob&s;tinate, unbelieving <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off for the reformation of the Church, but it was not di&s;membred by cutting off all the Infant &s;eed, who had actually done neither good nor e|vil, nor had their Parents rejected the Covenant. Some ordinances of wor&s;hip expired, and new were appointed as D. <HI>O.</HI> well ob&s;erveth, but I cannot find that God ca&s;t out any who formerly were members of it (as Infants were) without a forfeiture of their privilege.</P>
<P>Obj. 5. <HI>Infants are not capable of en|tring Covenant with God, and if they were ab&s;olutely in it, then God did not perform his promi&s;e, becau&s;e many prove wicked; and if only conditionally then it is no more
<PB N="65" REF="38">
to them then others, and what advantage by it?</HI></P>
<P>A. 1. <HI>Infants were of old in Covenant, and &s;o are capable,</HI> Gen. 17. v. 10, 11, 12. Deut. 29. v. 10, 11, 12. <HI>ye &s;tand this day all of you&mdash;your little ones&mdash;that thou &s;hould&s;t enter into Covenant with the Lord thy God</HI>&mdash;So then little ones are in a ca|pacity to be engaged by Covenant for the Lord.</P>
<P>I may ask were they ab&s;olutely in it or conditionally?</P>
<P>2. <HI>Some an&s;wer, the Infant &s;eed of Be|lievers are in Covenant ab&s;olutely in the Species, conditionally in the individuals Cobbet.</HI></P>
<P>Many promi&s;es run to a Collective body, as the Church, and are accom|pli&s;hed there, and yet may not be made good to every member particularly; as it is promi&s;ed, that <HI>the gates of hell</HI> &s;hall not prevail again&s;t the Church, <HI>Mat.</HI> 16. 18. and yet <HI>Satan</HI> may prevail again&s;t particular Members or Churches.</P>
<P>So the Covenant of not drowning the World, doth not &s;ecure every par|ticular Man from drowning.</P>
<P><PB N="66" REF="39">3. <HI>As to advantages, there are many, as a Covenant-&s;tate is a &s;tate of greater near|ne&s;s unto God then others are in;</HI> is de|clared to be a priviledge, <HI>Rom.</HI> 3. 1, 2. and 9, 4. and it is a mi&s;ery to be &s;trangers from the Covenants of promi&s;e, <HI>Eph.</HI> 2. 12. many advantages I could di&s;co|ver of being externally in Covenant, and thus Men may be in it and may &s;o mi&s;carry, as to be rejected, as <HI>I&s;hmael, E&s;au,</HI> the <HI>Jews, Rom.</HI> 11. and yet God not break Covenant again&s;t Infants Bapti&s;m, it is objected thus.</P>
<P><HI>Obj. 6. Faith and Repentance are re|quired before Bapti&s;m,</HI> Mark 16. 16. <HI>He that believeth and is baptized, &s;hall be &s;a|ved,</HI> Act. 2. 38. <HI>Repent and be baptized.</HI>&mdash;<HI>If the</HI> Jews, <HI>the natural &s;eed of</HI> Abra|ham, <HI>might not be baptized without Faith and Repentance, much le&s;s others. And &s;uch affirmative Precepts have their ne|gative; and &s;o Infants not believing or repenting, may not be baptized.</HI></P>
<P>An&s;. 1. <HI>I freely grant, that tho&s;e which believe and repent are to be bapti|zed; but I deny the con&s;equence, that
<PB N="67" REF="39">
therefore Infants may not be baptized.</HI></P>
<P>Such Texts conclude affirmatively, that &s;uch may; they do not conclude negatively, that none el&s;e may: as for example, it is &s;aid, <HI>Act. 8. 37. If thou believe&s;t with all thy heart, thou maye&s;t,</HI> i. e. be baptized. This doth not con|clude negatively, that none el&s;e may; if any will &s;ay hence, none may be bap|tized who do not believe with all their heart, then they can baptize none; for they cannot know that another doth believe with all his heart; and <HI>Simon Magus,</HI> who did not &s;o, yet was duely baptized, <HI>Act.</HI> 8. 13.</P>
<P>If it could be proved that it is in|tended exclu&s;ively, then</P>
<P>2. <HI>It importeth, that none but tho&s;e who believe and repent of adult ones, may be baptized, it is not to be under&s;tood in oppo&s;ition to Infants:</HI> often affirmative Commands intend only capable Sub|jects; and the negative part extendeth no further. Thus, as believing and re|penting are commanded before Bap|ti&s;m, &s;o confe&s;&s;ion with the mouth is
<PB N="68" REF="40">
commanded before Salvation, <HI>Rom. 10. v. 9. 10. If thou &s;halt confe&s;s with thy mouth the Lord Je&s;us&mdash;thou &s;halt be &s;a|ved; and with the mouth Confe&s;&s;ion is made unto Salvation.</HI> Will any hence deny that any Infants can be &s;aved, be|cau&s;e they do not confe&s;s with their mouth the Lord Je&s;us? It is meant of adult ones only, who are capable &s;ub|jects. So labour, by a general term, is commanded before eating, 2 <HI>The&s;. 3. 10. We command you, that if any would not work, neither &s;hould he eat.</HI> Will any conclude thence, that Infants &s;hall not eat, becau&s;e they will not labour? So &s;ome commands about eating the Pa&s;&s;o|ver, as with &s;ower herbs&mdash;are intend|ed only for capable &s;ubjects, not &s;ick Per&s;ons or Infants. That of preaching the Go&s;pel to every creature, <HI>Mark.</HI> 16. 15, 16. is meant not to Infants, but o|thers. So as to Bapti&s;m, the command to <HI>believe and repent</HI> before it, concern|eth capable &s;ubjects only; and the ne|gative part only &s;aith, that adult Be|lievers and impenitent ones may not
<PB N="69" REF="40">
be baptized, it concludeth nothing a|gain&s;t Infant Bapti&s;m.</P>
<P>That new In&s;titution of Bapti&s;m was fir&s;tly to be received by the adult, be|ing given to a Church where many &s;uch are found, and &s;o it was proper to preach to them, <HI>believe, repent, and be baptized;</HI> and thus, we going to <HI>Turks, Indians,</HI> or others, where Bapti&s;m hath not come, we may preach in the &s;ame language, <HI>believe, repent, and be bapti|zed,</HI> without excluding Infants from it: Yea, of old the Pro&s;elites and Stran|gers mu&s;t own the <HI>Jewi&s;h</HI> Religion, make a profe&s;&s;ion of Faith and Love, as <HI>I&s;a. 56. v.</HI> 3. to 8. <HI>Exod.</HI> 12. and then had Circumci&s;ion for them&s;elves and their Infant &s;eed.</P>
<P>3. <HI>Faith and Repentance were then ne|ce&s;&s;ary even for the</HI> Jews, <HI>the natural &s;eed of</HI> Abraham, <HI>that they who were Pa|rents may have right them&s;elves unto Bapi&s;m and other Go&s;pel Priviledges, and &s;o their Infant &s;eed may have right al&s;o:</HI> For as in other ages of the Church, when the Lord gave forth new Reve|lations
<PB N="70" REF="41">
and Ordinances for the Taber|nacle and Temple, he required the re|ceiving of them by Faith and Obedi|ence, el&s;e they were to be cut off, <HI>Lev. 7&punc; v.</HI> 20, 21, 25, 27. and 17. 4, 9. and 19. 8&punc; and 23. <HI>v.</HI> 27, 29. And after great Apo|&s;tacies and Back&s;lidings, they were &s;e|verely threatned, if they repented not&punc; So at the dawning of the Go&s;pel day, Je&s;us Chri&s;t the promi&s;ed Seed being actually come, this made a great addi|tion to that important Article of Faith; now all were obliged under the high|e&s;t penalty to the Faith of this, that the Me&s;&s;iah was come, that <HI>Je&s;us Chri&s;t</HI> was the Son of God, <HI>Joh. 8. 24. If ye be|lieve not that I am he, ye &s;hall die in your &s;ins.</HI> This was the Te&s;t in tho&s;e times&punc; and for Unbelief the <HI>Jews,</HI> the natural &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> were broken off, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. On this account was the com|mand in that day to them, [<HI>Believe&punc; and be baptized</HI>] for by per&s;i&s;ting in po&s;itive, ob&s;tinate unbelief, as to his be|ing come, there was a rejection of the Covenant, and lo&s;ing their own right&punc;
<PB N="71" REF="41">
and &s;o their Childrens right, which re|&s;ulted from theirs mu&s;t needs be lo&s;t al&s;o. If Parents be ca&s;t out of Covenant, then I plead not for their or their In|fants Bapti&s;m. That faith then was in|di&s;pen&s;ibly nece&s;&s;ary to the continuing their Covenant Intere&s;t, as well as to their Bapti&s;m, yea if circumci&s;ion on the <HI>8th</HI> day had continued to this day, yet this faith of his being come, would have been nece&s;&s;ary thenceforth in the Parents, in order to their Childrens &s;haring in it. But where the natural &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> by &s;uch faith, laid hold on the Covenant and continued their In|tere&s;t in it, here is nothing to prove a|ny alteration or curtailing of the Cove|nant, &s;o as to cut off their Infant &s;eed from it, or to exclude them from Bap|ti&s;m.</P>
<P>Al&s;o the natural &s;eed of <HI>Abraham</HI> had then exceedingly corrupted them|&s;elves, and hainou&s;ly &s;inned; even &s;o as to Crucifie Chri&s;t the Prince of Life, on which account he commandeth to Repent and be Baptized, <HI>Act. 2. v.</HI> 36. 38.
<PB N="72" REF="42">
When they were under &s;uch tran&s;gre&s;|&s;ions, well might they be exhorted to repentance in order to Bapti&s;m, and to prevent their forfeiting all and utter rejection, and the Lords &s;aying to them <HI>Loami,</HI> ye are none of my People. Cer|tainly a Church which owneth Infant Bapti&s;m&punc; having members under &s;uch a horrid offence, may require a manife|&s;tation of repentance from the Parents before they do Baptize their Infants.</P>
<P>In &s;hort I have di&s;covered, that In|fant Bapti&s;m followeth Parents Faith; and Repentance is pre-required to Bap|ti&s;m of a degenerate adult &s;eed, but this is nothing again&s;t Baptizing Infants of a &s;piritual &s;eed by faith.</P>
<P>&sect;. 3. <HI>Of the validity of Bapti&s;m in In|fancy.</HI></P>
<P>Some &s;peak contemptuou&s;ly of the Baptizing of Infants and undertake to Rebaptize, but</P>
<P>Po&s;. <HI>Bapti&s;m admini&s;tred in Infancy is valid, is no nullity.</HI></P>
<P>I have proved there is Scripture war|rant for Infant Bapti&s;m, &s;ome Infants
<PB N="73" REF="42">
are the proper Subjects of it, and &s;o its no nullity.</P>
<P>Arg. 1. <HI>Our Bapti&s;m in Infancy hath all the E&s;&s;entials of Go&s;pel water Bapti&s;m, therefore it is valid is no nullity.</HI></P>
<P>For, if a &s;in in Circum&s;tantials and accidentals of an ordinance did null it, then none were valid; no per&s;on is &s;o Baptized, but &s;ome &s;in in it would ren|der it a nullity; &s;eeing there is <HI>not a ju&s;t man upon Earth that doth good and &s;inneth not,</HI> Eccle&s;. 7. 20. 1 Joh. 1. 8. and the contrary is clear, <HI>Zippora</HI> circumci&s;ed when <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;hould have done it, <HI>Ex.</HI> 4. 25. and yet it was valid for the Angel of the Lord was pacified, <HI>v.</HI> 26. So the high prie&s;ts were not of the right line but yearly, yet Chri&s;t owneth them, <HI>Joh.</HI> 11. 51. and 18, 13. and I ask if a per&s;on erreth in his pro|fe&s;&s;ion of faith, and yet they Baptize him, if he after be profane, will they &s;ay it is a nullity? will they if he repent Baptize him again!</P>
<P>Now our Bapti&s;m in Infancy hath all E&s;&s;entials of water Bapti&s;m, for it hath
<PB N="74" REF="43">
right matter and form; here is <HI>right matter, ex qua con&s;tat,</HI> viz. Water with|out undue mixture, here is the &s;ign, and the thing &s;ignified by it is evangelical; al&s;o the right matter <HI>circaquam,</HI> capable Subjects rational creatures, none el&s;e can be in Covenant, nor in a capacity to have the things &s;ignified, the graces and benefits of the Covenant. That Infants have right to it, I have evidenced, that they are capable is undeniable, as they were of circumci&s;ion, which had a &s;pi|ritual &s;ignification as well as Bapti&s;m, what hinders their receptivity? Infants are capable of a principle of faith and repentance, antecedently and of actual believing and repenting con&s;equently, and one end which Bapti&s;m obligeth to is after repentance, <HI>Mat. 3. 11. Act.</HI> 19. 34. Al&s;o it hath the <HI>right form,</HI> an application of water in a &s;olemn &s;igni|ficative way, <HI>in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.</HI> Mat. 28. 19. we u&s;e wa&s;hing tho not &s;ubmer&s;ion; it is &s;uch an applying of water, that is the &s;ub|&s;tance of the external form of Bapti&s;m,
<PB N="75" REF="43">
and if there were a &s;inful defect (which I think there is not) in the want of &s;ub mer&s;ion, yet it can be but an accidental one, and &s;o it can never be proved that it renders it a nullity. In Infant Bapti&s;m there is the <HI>Internal form,</HI> con&s;i&s;ting in the relation of the &s;ign and thing &s;igni|fied, and the External form the apply|ing water in a &s;olemn way with the words of In&s;titution <HI>in the name of the Father</HI>&mdash;which mu&s;t needs be more of the &s;ub&s;tance of the ordinance then &s;ub|mer&s;ion can be, and it is a principal part the face, which is is applyed to for the noting profe&s;&s;ion, as the fathers n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="1 letter">me in the forehead, <HI>Rev. 14. v.</HI> 1, and &s;o it is valid.</P>
<P>Arg. 2. <HI>Our Bapti&s;m in Infancy an|&s;wereth to the Scripture &s;ignification of the word, and to what is &s;ignified by that Ordinance, therefore it is valid and is no nullity.</HI> The word <GAP DESC="foreign"> is rendred <HI>mergo, lavo,</HI> it noteth a &s;mall u&s;e of wa|ter, as <HI>Luk.</HI> 16. 24. that he may [dip] &amp; it is not the whole finger, but only the tip of it. Al&s;o <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>mergo, lavo,</HI> it &s;ig|nifieth
<PB N="76" REF="44">
not nece&s;&s;arily to dip or plunge, but as well to wa&s;h, and this both in common and in &s;acred u&s;e, it cannot be confined to &s;ubmer&s;ion or overwhelm|ing in the water, and &s;o &s;uch dipping cannot be e&s;&s;ential to Bapti&s;m, &s;o as the not u&s;ing it &s;hould render it a nullity. &s;ee <HI>Mar. 7. 4. <GAP DESC="foreign"> except they wa&s;h, they eat not.</HI> Will any &s;ay, except they plunged their whole bodies under water they eat not, &s;urely no, but only wa&s;hed their hands, as <HI>v.</HI> 3. yet they, the per&s;ons by that &s;mall application of wa|ter are &s;aid to Baptize or wa&s;h, and <HI>v. 8. Luk.</HI> 11. 38. &s;o in a &s;acred &s;en&s;e. 1 <HI>Cor. 10. 2. and were all Baptized unto</HI> Mo&s;es <HI>in the Cloud and in the Sea.</HI></P>
<P>Who will &s;ay they were dipped in the cloud, or their whole bodies plunged in the Sea? but the cloud did &s;prinkle or pour water upon them.</P>
<P>So our pouring water on the face of an Infant in &s;uch a manner, is truly Wa&s;hing or Baptizing of it. And &s;eeing dipping or plunging is not pre&s;cribed by the Lord, only wa&s;hing, yea if it were
<PB N="77" REF="44">
&s;o as it were a &s;in to omit it, yet for any to lay &s;o great a &s;tre&s;s upon that moda|lity, placing &s;o much Religion in it as if all were hull without it, I fear cannot be excu&s;ed from Super&s;tition, which is ungroundedly charged upon others.</P>
<P>We an&s;wer, the Scripture &s;ignifica|tion of the word Baptize, and Con&s;cien|tiou&s;ly think that Chri&s;t hath left us to a liberty, as to that mode, hath not ob|liged us to &s;ubmer&s;ion, becau&s;e whate|ver might be done in hot Climates, yet in cold Countries &s;uch a u&s;age would make the &s;ervice of the Go&s;pel wor&s;e, then that of the Law, again&s;t <HI>Mat.</HI> 11. 28. it would without a Miracle hazard life; whereas God will have mercy ra|ther than Sacrifice, let us not then be cen&s;ured for the omi&s;&s;ion of it.</P>
<P>Yea further, the thing &s;ignified is an|&s;wered by our Bapti&s;m in Infancy, be it a &s;ign of regeneration, or of being bu|ried with Chri&s;t, <HI>Rom. 6. 4. Col.</HI> 2. 12. or both; for, either noteth Communion with Chri&s;t in his Death, and that is expre&s;&s;ed even by &s;prinkling, <HI>ye are
<PB N="78" REF="45">
come to the blood of &s;prinkling,</HI> Heb. 10. 24. &amp; Heb. 10. 22. &s;prinkling noteth the thing &s;ignified by Bapti&s;m, and &s;o may expre&s;s Bapti&s;m the &s;ign; but we u&s;e wa&s;hing by pouring water upon, and that is expre&s;&s;ive in both, Eph. 5. 25, 26. Rev. 1. 5. <HI>hath wa&s;hed from our &s;ins in his blood,</HI> Tit. 3. 5. no nece&s;&s;ity that Bapti&s;m &s;hould re&s;emble his death or burial in every thing, not in his being carried in|to the Sepulchre, and being there till the third day, they would not willingly be &s;o long under water; our being bu|ried with him in Bapti&s;m is a metapho|rical expre&s;&s;ion, noting Communion &s;haring in his death, which aptly is ex|pre&s;&s;ed by wa&s;hing.</P>
<P>Obj. 1. <HI>But the fir&s;t pure way of Bap|tizing was by dipping, they went into and came out of the water,</HI> Mark. 1. 9. Mat. 3. 15, 16. Act. 8. 38. 39. <HI>and</HI> John <HI>Baptized in</HI> Arnon <HI>becau&s;e there was much water there,</HI> Joh. 3. 23.</P>
<P>A. 1. <HI>If this was the mode or u&s;age in tho&s;e hot Climates, then it is lawful there, but it doth not follow that it is nece&s;&s;ary in
<PB N="79" REF="45">
cold Climates, much le&s;s &s;o as it were a nullity without it.</HI></P>
<P>2. <HI>Some u&s;ages in the fir&s;t admini&s;tra|tion of ordinances, being extra-e&s;&s;ential to them may lawfully be omitted afterwards in &s;ome ca&s;es:</HI> circum&s;tances much al|ter ca&s;es; as the Pa&s;&s;over mu&s;t be brought the tenth day, and kept till the 14th, and the blood of it mu&s;t be &s;truck on the door po&s;ts in <HI>Egypt,</HI> and be eaten in ha&s;t, with loyns girded <HI>&amp;c. Ex.</HI> 12. but all the&s;e things were not duty af|terward, let it be proved that they were u&s;ed by Chri&s;t and the Apo&s;tles. Bap|ti&s;m was applyed to Chri&s;t at above 30 years of age, to the Jaylor at midnight. <HI>Act.</HI> 16. 33. So the Lords Supper was at fir&s;t admini&s;tred only to Men, to the A|po&s;tles in an upper room at night; yet all the&s;e things are not nece&s;&s;ary duties for our imitation, &s;o as a variation is &s;inful.</P>
<P>3. <HI>The words do not nece&s;&s;arily note any more, than that they went to or unto and came from the water;</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> is often rendred not [into] but [to or unto] as
<PB N="80" REF="46">
Mat. 15. 24. <HI>I am not &s;ent, but <GAP DESC="foreign"> to or un|to the lo&s;t &s;heep, &s;o</HI> Act. 16. 40. Rom. 15. 16. And <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignifieth [from] <HI>as</HI> Mat. 1. 17.&mdash;<HI>from</HI> Abraham&mdash;Mat. 7. 23. <HI>de|part <GAP DESC="foreign"> from me ye workers of Iniquity, and</HI> 9. 15. Mark. 14. 2. Mat. 27. 45.</P>
<P>Thus [<GAP DESC="foreign">] <HI>Act.</HI> 8. 39. is rendred as well from as out of, Mark. 6. 14. [<HI>from] the dead,</HI> Mat. 19. 20. [<HI>from] my youth, not out of my youth.</HI></P>
<P>And thus the&s;e Texts nece&s;&s;arily im|port only, that they went to or unto &amp; from the water, and however they might go into and come out of the wa|ter without dowzing or plunging their whole bodies into the water; and its &s;aid as much of <HI>Philip</HI> as of the Eunuch, he went into and came out of the wa|ter, <HI>Act.</HI> 8. 38, 39. and will any &s;ay, that he which Baptizeth mu&s;t always plunge him&s;elf into the water?</P>
<P>4. <HI>None of the&s;e Texts &s;peak a word, that the Baptizing was in the form of Sub|mer&s;ton, Dipping, or Plunging;</HI> it might be only by pouring water on them by wa&s;hing, for ought is &s;aid here.</P>
<P><PB N="81" REF="46"><HI>As to</HI> Joh. 3. 23. the word <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>many waters</HI> may note, that there were many rivelets here and there where he came, which were not u&s;ual in tho&s;e parts; and however <HI>John</HI> having ma|ny hundreds perhaps thou&s;ands to Bap|tize, in tho&s;e hot Countries where he might go many miles for a little water, to &s;hew the conveniency of that place above others, it might well be &s;aid, he Baptized in <HI>Arnon,</HI> becau&s;e there was much water there, and I am informed, that <HI>Arnon</HI> is &s;o &s;hallow a water, that no per&s;on can be overwhelmed in it.</P>
<P>And now what remaineth, that can pretend to invalidate Bapti&s;m in In|fancy? if it be &s;aid, their not being pro|fe&s;&s;ed Believers, or their wanting faith.</P>
<P>I add, that God his declaring Infants vi&s;ible Covenant Intere&s;t, is as good an Evidence of their right to Bapti&s;m, as the vi&s;ible profe&s;&s;ion of faith can be. And if the want of faith would render the Bapti&s;m a nullity; then &s;uch as ap|pear to be but formal profe&s;&s;ors, they loo&s;e their Bapti&s;m, and if they become
<PB N="82" REF="47">
real Believers afterwards, they mu&s;t be Baptized again.</P>
<P>If they object again&s;t the Admini|&s;trator; it falleth heavy upon them|&s;elves; for according to their own principles, how is it po&s;&s;ible for them to find a regular Admini&s;trator! If In|fant Bapti&s;m be a nullity; and Bapti&s;m be that, which con&s;tituteth a Go&s;pel Church or any per&s;on a member there|of, as they affirm; then their own Bap|ti&s;m is a nullity, unle&s;s they can prove a lineal &s;ucce&s;&s;ion from <HI>John</HI> Bapti&s;t or the Apo&s;tles, or that he which began their Rebaptizing work had an imme|diate call, as <HI>John</HI> Bapti&s;t and the Apo|&s;tles had. For he that fir&s;t began this Baptizing work in their way, had no other Bapti&s;m but that in Infancy; if that were null, then was he an unbap|tized per&s;on and no Church member, neither could he make him&s;elf a Church member, wanting that which &s;hould con&s;titute him, &s;o <HI>viz.</HI> Bapti&s;m. I ask what Scripture is there expre&s;s or by con&s;equence for an unbaptized per|&s;on
<PB N="83" REF="47">
(and no Church member) to Bap|tize him&s;elf or others without an im|mediate call? without that (all Bap|ti&s;m and Church-member&s;hip) in their way is unattainable, impo&s;&s;ible to be attained, and &s;o the principles have a tendency to de&s;troy both Bapti&s;m and Churches.</P>
<P>I &s;hall from the premi&s;es, add two Corolaries.</P>
<P>1. <HI>That to Baptize again tho&s;e that being Children of Believers were Bapti|zed in Infancy is a great &s;in, &s;eeing Bap|ti&s;m in Infancy is valid;</HI> there is no Scripture warrant for Rebaptizing any with water, and &s;o it is a taking the name of the Lord in vain. As to <HI>Act.</HI> 19. 3, 5. To &s;ay they were Baptized in the name of Chri&s;t, therefore they were Rebaptized with water, is a plain <HI>non &s;equitur.</HI> If this were a &s;econd Bapti&s;m it was with the Holy Gho&s;t and with fire, <HI>v. 6.&mdash;the Holy Gho&s;t came on them.</HI> Or one of them may be figurative, and note the owning of the doctrin, as <HI>Mat. 21. 25. Act.</HI> 18. 25.</P>
<P><PB N="84" REF="48">2. <HI>That to admit as members, and &s;o Baptize again &s;uch who are known owned members of a rightly con&s;tituted Church, without its knowledge or con&s;ent is highly irregular;</HI> it is without Scripture war|rant, it ob&s;tructeth and di&s;ableth for tho&s;e mutual duties, which the mem|ber&s;hip in the fir&s;t Church required at theirhands; there are various duties omitted, which are charged in the Church where they are members, <HI>Rev.</HI> 7. and 3. it breaketh the peace by divi|&s;ion; it violateth all Go&s;pel order.</P>
<P>Neither will it be a <HI>Salvo</HI> to &s;ay, that Churches are not rightly con&s;tituted for want of their Bapti&s;m; this is ener|vated already, by proving the validity of Infant Bapti&s;m. And it is built upon a great mi&s;take, <HI>viz. That Bapti&s;m doth con&s;titute a Church, and make one a Mem|ber of it.</HI> Whereas it is not true, for at the fir&s;t In&s;titution of Bapti&s;m, <HI>John</HI> the <HI>Bapti&s;t</HI> admini&s;tred it to multitudes who were Members of the <HI>Jewi&s;h</HI> Church before, and &s;o were not made Church Members by it, the &s;ame
<PB N="85" REF="48">
Church which Je&s;us Chri&s;t was a Mem|ber of, and Baptized in, and &s;o of a Go&s;|pel &s;tamp. The Bapti&s;m of <HI>John</HI> was E&s;&s;entially the &s;ame with ours, being that which Je&s;us Chri&s;t (the head of Baptized ones) pa&s;&s;ed under, yet what Church was Chri&s;t made a member of thereby? If that did con&s;titute, then one member may be a Church, for where the form is, there is the thing formed, yea an excommunicate per&s;on an Apo&s;tate, one that renounceth the Go&s;pel and all Churches, yet his Bap|ti&s;m remaining he mu&s;t &s;till be a Church member, for where the form is, there is the <HI>formatum;</HI> and if &s;uch had lo&s;t their Bapti&s;m, then if ever they be reduced they mu&s;t be Rebapti|zed; whereas Patient one of the Bap|ti&s;ts &s;aith the <HI>Ordinance of Bapti&s;m is to be received but once, as a Man is to be regenerated but once, born but once, changed from death to life but once.</HI> To conclude, where Churches are of a Go&s;pel con&s;titution (which mu&s;t be by other means then Bapti&s;m) it is &s;inful
<PB N="86" REF="49">
to withdraw members from them un|der pretence of bringing them under Bapti&s;m; therefore <HI>follow after things which make for p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">ce,</HI> Rom. 14. 19. <HI>and as</HI> 1 Cor. 10. 32. <HI>Give none offence, neither to the</HI> Jews, <HI>nor to the</HI> Gentiles, <HI>nor to the Church of God.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="appendix">
<PB REF="49">
<HEAD>AN APPENDIX.</HEAD>
<P>HAving Evidenced the Covenant Intere&s;t, not only of Believers, but of their Infant &s;eed, I may add two other Inferences thence.</P>
<P>Inf. 1. <HI>Then it is of great concern|ment to own the high priviledge and glo|rious advantage of Believers and their &s;eed above all others in their Covenant Intere&s;t.</HI></P>
<P>Some would deny this external Co|venant Intere&s;t to be a priviledge, di|rectly again&s;t Rom. 3. 1, 2. <HI>What ad|vantage then hath the</HI> Jew? <HI>or what profit is there of Circumci&s;ion? much e|very way.</HI></P>
<P>It is then a high advantage, altho internal &s;pecial priviledges be wanted, or be not actually enjoyed, as Ju&s;tifi|cation, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> for in that re&s;pect he ex|pre&s;ly declereth the <HI>Jew</HI> was not bet|ter, <HI>v. 9&punc; 22. all are under &s;in, and there
<PB N="88" REF="50">
is no difference.</HI> There is un&s;peakable conde&s;cention in it, that God will ad|mit any of his creatures into Covenant with him&s;elf, when he might have dealt only in a way of Prerogative and Soveraignty with them.</P>
<P>There are many priviledges and ad|vantages of being even externally and vi&s;ibly in Covenant with God, as</P>
<P>1. <HI>The Covenant-&s;tate it &s;elf is agreat priviledge, above what others enjoy:</HI> for, it is a great mi&s;ery (<HI>Eph.</HI> 2. 32.) to be &s;trangers to the Covenants of promi&s;e. Being in Covenant, &s;peaketh &s;ome nearne&s;s to God when others are at a di&s;tance afar off, <HI>v.</HI> 13. argueth relation to him, <HI>Ex.</HI> 4. 21. and having the King|dom of God nigh, <HI>Luk.</HI> 10. 9, 11. and 11. 20. in Ordinances and influences from the fatne&s;s of the Olive. <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 17. 24.</P>
<P>2. <HI>Various Divine Promi&s;es believing Parents may act faith upon the Lord in for their &s;eed above others:</HI> Gen. 17. 7. 8. I&s;. 44. 3. I&s;. 59. 21.&mdash;whereas the &s;eed of the wicked are under threatnings, P&s;. 37. 28.</P>
<P><PB N="89" REF="50">If it be &s;aid, how doth God keep Covenant&punc; then, &s;eeing many of the &s;eed of Believers prove wicked?</P>
<P>This is an&s;wered before; <HI>Abraham</HI> had an <HI>I&s;hmael,</HI> and <HI>I&s;aac</HI> an <HI>E&s;au</HI>&mdash;who were vi&s;ibly in Covenant and un|der the token of it, yet God kept Co|venant; but the Lord rejecteth&punc; none till they ca&s;t them&s;elves out of Cove|nant, as <HI>I&s;hmael</HI> did and others may do, who are only externally in it, thus the <HI>Jews</HI> were externally in Covenant, as their priviledge, Rom. 9. 4. <HI>to them per|taineth&mdash;the Covenants,</HI> and many of them were bad and broken off, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. yet God kept his Covenant; &s;o if &s;ome of the &s;eed of Believers be wick|ed, yet God may keep Covenant.</P>
<P>And from the&s;e promi&s;es, Believers have a higher encouragement than o|thers can have, to hope that their &s;eed &s;hall afterwards &s;hare in Spiritual and Eternal Ble&s;&s;ings, tho they be not re|generated and &s;anctified for the pre&s;ent. As <HI>Monicha</HI> the Mother of that famous <HI>Au&s;tin,</HI> mourning for his &s;inful cour&s;es,
<PB N="90" REF="51">
[be of good cheer (&s;aid a Mini&s;ter) for it cannot be that a Child of &s;o many Prayers and Tears &s;hould peri&s;h.]</P>
<P>Al&s;o they may be &s;ecured and deli|vered from many evils and temporal judgments, which others lie open to; God remembreth his Covenant for his, <HI>Ex. 3. 6, 7. Lev.</HI> 26. 41, 42. they are &s;ealed. <HI>Rev.</HI> 7. 2&punc; 3. from hurt which others are expo&s;ed to.</P>
<P>Inf. 2. <HI>Then the Govenant Intere&s;t of Believers and their &s;eed, lay Parents and Children under powerful obligations to Duty and Caution.</HI></P>
<P>Indeed every priviledge is improv|able towards Duty e&s;pecially &s;uch as this.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>As to Parents.</HEAD>
<P>1. <HI>Beware of degenerating or forfeit|ing your Intere&s;t in the Covenant:</HI> for, you forfeit not only for your &s;elves but for your &s;eed al&s;o, their right re&s;ulting from yours. Thus not only the <HI>Jews</HI> were broken off, but their po&s;terity by their unbelief; and the &s;in of Parents often hath dreadful con&s;equences to
<PB N="91" REF="51">
their &s;eed; &s;aith the Lord, I&s;. 14. 21. <HI>prepare &s;laughter for their Children for the iniquity of their Fathers.</HI> Often a keeping the Covenant or Commands is required, as Deut. 4. 40. <HI>and 12. 25. 28. that it may go well with their Chil|dren after them.</HI></P>
<P>2. <HI>Be much in giving in&s;truction and Coun&s;el in the matters of the Covenant to your Children;</HI> leave not your po&s;te|rity ignorant thereof, Deut. 6. 6. 7. <HI>the&s;e words which I command and thee&mdash;thou &s;halt teach them diligently unto thy Children,</HI> Deut. 11. 19. <HI>and</HI> 32. 46. Eph. 6. 4.</P>
<P>3. <HI>Be much acting faith upon the Lord in the Covenant, and pleading that with him in Prayer for your &s;eed;</HI> &s;eeing he hath &s;aid he would be a God to them as well as to your &s;elves. Thus <HI>Abra|ham</HI> having a promi&s;e for his &s;eed, he acteth faith and poureth out his Soul to God, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 18. even for <HI>I&s;hmael,</HI> al|tho but externally in Covenant with him, and it was with good &s;ucce&s;s, <HI>v. 20. and as for</HI> I&s;hmael, <HI>I have heard thee</HI>&mdash;</P>
<P><PB N="92" REF="52">4. <HI>Be in a Submi&s;&s;ion to the will of God in the di&s;tinction, which he maketh in the di&s;tribution of Covenant ble&s;&s;ings;</HI> the Lord vouch&s;afeth to one, what he will not grant to another, Gen. 17. 19. <HI>My Covenant will I e&s;tabli&s;h with</HI> I&s;aac. i. e. in the &s;pecial ble&s;&s;ings of it, not with <HI>I&s;hmael.</HI> And afterward, when he was mocking, he was rejected, <HI>Gen.</HI> 21. 9. 12. yet God is quieting <HI>Abraham</HI> there; <HI>let it not be grievous in thy &s;ight.</HI></P>
<P>This is difficult work for Parents to acquie&s;ce and &s;it down without mur|muring complaints, when the Lord re|jecteth &s;ome of their &s;eed, who &s;in, whil&s;t he communicateth his grace to others.</P>
<P>5. <HI>Be good pre&s;idents and examples to your &s;eed that are in Covenant;</HI> they are apt to follow your cour&s;e, walk and conver&s;ation; and be good Copies or Patterns to them, for imitation in keeping the Covenant.</P>
<P>6. <HI>Lay your &s;eed as much as po&s;&s;ible under engagements for owning the Cove|nant: Eli</HI> a good Man reproved his
<PB N="93" REF="52">
Children, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 2. 24&punc; yet not doing his utmo&s;t to re&s;train them from &s;in, his hou&s;e is &s;everely threatned, 1 <HI>Sam. 3. 13. 14. I will judge his hou&s;e for ever.</HI></P>
<P>If Parents do not what they can to re&s;train their Children from &s;in it is greatly di&s;plea&s;ing unto God.</P>
<P>And God highly commendeth Co|venanting <HI>Abraham,</HI> for commanding his Children and his Hou&s;hold after him, <HI>to keep the way of the Lord,</HI> Gen. 18. 19. he would have us by Coun&s;el con&s;train Children unto duty, as a way to mercy.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>As to Children who are growing up.</HEAD>
<P>1. <HI>Beware of tru&s;ting in your privi|ledge, or in being externally in Covenant,</HI> neither Children nor adult ones, are to take up their re&s;t in any outward priviledge, Mat. 3. 9. <HI>&s;ay not we have</HI> Abraham <HI>to our Father</HI>&mdash;</P>
<P>2. <HI>Beware of a rejection of the Cove|nant, as</HI> I&s;hmael <HI>did, lea&s;t the Lord reject you as he did him;</HI> although your fir&s;t Covenant Intere&s;t is by your Parents,
<PB N="94" REF="53">
know this will not always la&s;t, your &s;tanding there afterwards, mu&s;t be in your own right by taking hold of the Covenant.</P>
<P>It is indeed a difficult que&s;tion. <HI>How long are the Infant &s;eed intere&s;ted in the Covenant, upon the account of their Pa|rents faith?</HI></P>
<P>I think it is, <HI>till either the Parent or the &s;eed do reject or ca&s;t them&s;elves out of the Covenant; I&s;hmael</HI> was circumci|&s;ed on his Fathers account, when Thir|teen years old, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17. 25. but a certain number of years cannot be a&s;&s;igned as the determining rule for all, how long they are in Covenant upon the account of their Parents. There may be a dif|ference herein as to years.</P>
<P>If early you reject the Covenant, you may early be ca&s;t out, or when you are very young. And the Covenant may be rejected various ways, not only by rejecting of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, through po|&s;itive unbelief as the <HI>Jews</HI> did, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 20. but by acting contemptuou&s;ly a|gain&s;t the matters of the Covenant, as
<PB N="95" REF="53">
<HI>I&s;hmael</HI> did mocking, <HI>Gen.</HI> 21. 9. how young &s;oever, if you come to &s;coff or mock at Religion or matters of the Co|venant, e&s;pecially if you be de&s;cended of Religious Parents, you are in emi|nent danger of being ca&s;t out. And &s;o by preferring carnal &s;en&s;ual enjoy|ments before Spiritual Ble&s;&s;ings, as <HI>E&s;au</HI> did, who in di&s;tre&s;s &s;old his birth|right for a trivial matter, even the gratifying a &s;en&s;ual appetite, <HI>Heb.</HI> 12, 16. as a profane per&s;on, he was reje|cted.</P>
<P>3. <HI>Set your Covenant Intere&s;t a|gainst all temptations to &s;in;</HI> God hath impre&s;t &s;omething of his name upon you, calling you holy; and then depart from Iniquity, 2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2. 19. Do not act again&s;t the name of God and Je&s;us Chri&s;t, which you are &s;o|lemnly engaged for the owning of <HI>Mat.</HI> 28. 19.</P>
<P>You that are the Children of Be|lieving Parents if you live in &s;in, know you &s;in at a higher rate than others, becau&s;e again&s;t the Covenant that you
<PB N="96" REF="54">
are under, as well as again&s;t your Re|ligious Education; your &s;in admits of higher aggravations than others, for you <HI>for&s;ake the God of your Fathers,</HI> 2 Chron. 7. 22. and 24. 24. to aggra|vate the evil of <HI>Nabals</HI> doings, it is &s;aid 1 <HI>Sam. 25. 3. and he was of the hou&s;e of</HI> Caleb. The excellency of the Forefather <HI>Caleb</HI> increa&s;ed the Sin of <HI>Nabal,</HI> he being a degenerate Plant.</P>
<P>4. <HI>Improve your Intere&s;t in the Cove|nant towards &s;eeking an Intere&s;t in Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and the Saving Ble&s;&s;ings of the Covenant:</HI> He urgeth attendance unto the voice of that Great Prophet Je&s;us Chri&s;t, <HI>Act.</HI> 3. 22. And it is from their being <HI>the Children of the Covenant,</HI> v. 25. Do not content your &s;elves with being externally in Covenant in Pa|rents Right, but &s;eek a Per&s;onal In|tere&s;t in the &s;pecial Ble&s;&s;ings of the Covenant.</P>
<P>5. <HI>Make your Covenant Intre&s;t a Pro|vocation to Repantance;</HI> Act. 3. 19. <HI>Re|pent ye&punc;&mdash;Why?</HI> v. 25. <HI>ye are the Chil|dren&mdash;of the Covenant,</HI>&mdash;Act. 2.
<PB N="97" REF="54">
38, 39. <HI>Repent&mdash;Why? for the Promi&s;e is to you.</HI></P>
<P>6. <HI>Walk &s;uitable to your Intere&s;t in the Covenant, in imitation of</HI> Abraham. When they pleaded they were the &s;eed of <HI>Abraham,</HI> Chri&s;t reflecteth on them, becau&s;e they did not the Works of <HI>Abraham,</HI> Joh. 8. 39. <HI>O walk in the &s;teps of the Faith of</HI> Abraham, <HI>Rom.</HI> 4. 12. Again&s;t Hope believe in Hope, that you may be ble&s;&s;ed with Faithful <HI>Abraham.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="postscript">
<PB REF="55">
<HEAD>A POSTSCRIPT.</HEAD>
<P>TO prevent Mi&s;takes, know that page 3. runneth not upon my Principle, but is an Argument <HI>ad hominem;</HI> and the meaning is only this, that <HI>Infant Bapti&s;m</HI> is not expre&s;ly forbidden, therefore either it is lawful, or el&s;e Scripture Con&s;equences mu&s;t be admit|ted, which is undeniable.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="errata">
<HEAD>ERRATA.</HEAD>
<P>IN the Preface, page 4. line 5. blot out <HI>that.</HI> In the Book, p. 4. l. 14. for <GAP DESC="foreign"> r. <GAP DESC="foreign">. p. 10. l. 5. for faederatiare r. <HI>faederati</HI> are. p. 24. l. 13. for my&s;tery r. <HI>mi&s;ery.</HI> p. 28. l. 12. r. <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. p. 34. l. 5. for yet r. <HI>yea.</HI> p. 38. l. 11. r. <HI>from being.</HI> l. 12. after limit for to r. <HI>and.</HI> p. 40. l. 16. for that r. <HI>the.</HI> p. 46. for te r. <HI>to.</HI> p. 69. l. 6. for are r. <HI>were.</HI> l. 22. 24. for may r. <HI>might.</HI> p. 78. l. 6. for in r. <HI>of.</HI> l. 22. for Arnon r. <HI>Aenon.</HI> &s;o al&s;o p. 81. In the Catalogue, p. 1. l. 4. for Definitive r. <HI>Defen&s;ive.</HI> p. 3. l. 21. for Sadbury r. <HI>Sudbury.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="catlogue">
<PB REF="55">
<HEAD>A Catalogue of Books Printed for, and are to be Sold by <HI>Edward Giles,</HI> Book&s;eller in <HI>Norwich,</HI> near the <HI>MAR|KET-PLACE.</HI></HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM>SEveral Di&s;cour&s;es concerning Actual Providence.</ITEM>
<ITEM>A Word in Sea&s;on.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Definitive Armour again&s;t four of <HI>Satan</HI>'s mo&s;t fiery Darts.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Sermons upon the whole fir&s;t and &s;econd Chapter of the <HI>Canticles.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Thirteen Sermons upon &s;everal u&s;e|ful Subjects, all Publi&s;hed by <HI>John Col|lins,</HI> D. D. of <HI>Norwich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The way of the Spirit in bringing Soul to Chri&s;t.</ITEM>
<ITEM>The Glory of Chri&s;t &s;et forth, with the nece&s;&s;ity of Faith, in &s;everal Ser|mons:
<PB REF="56">
both by Mr. <HI>Thomas Allen,</HI> late Pa&s;tor of a Church at <HI>Norwich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Enoch</HI>'s Walk with God and Chri&s;t, a Chri&s;tian's Gain: by Mr. <HI>Timothy Armitage,</HI> late Mini&s;ter at <HI>Normich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>A Di&s;cour&s;e of the preciou&s;ne&s;s of Chri&s;t, and of the preciou&s;ne&s;s of Faith.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Precious Promi&s;es the Portion of Overcomers.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Sermons on five &s;everal u&s;eful Sub|jects; all by Mr. <HI>John Longher,</HI> Mini&s;ter in <HI>Norfolk.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Saints <HI>Ebenezer,</HI> by Mr. <HI>Fran<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="apex" EXTENT="2 letters">s Engli&s;h,</HI> late Mini&s;ter in <HI>Norwich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Directions to &s;pell <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> right.</ITEM>
<ITEM>The Hi&s;tory of the <HI>Prote&s;tant Refor|mation,</HI> as it was begun by <HI>Luther.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Dead Saint &s;peaking, being a Sermon preached upon the Death of Mr. <HI>Newcomb</HI> of <HI>Dedham</HI> in <HI>E&s;&s;ex.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The <HI>Engli&s;h Presbyterian.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Miracles of Chri&s;t.</ITEM>
<ITEM>The ordinary matter of Prayer, drawn into Que&s;tions and An&s;wers.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two Treati&s;es, the fir&s;t, Rejoycing in the Lord Je&s;us in all Ca&s;es and Con|ditions:
<PB REF="56">
the &s;econd, Of a Chri&s;tian's Hope in Heaven, and Freedom from Condemnation by Chri&s;t: both by Mr. <HI>Robert A&s;ty,</HI> late Mini&s;ter of Je&s;us Chri&s;t in <HI>Norwich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Obedience to Magi&s;trates, recom|mended in a Sermon preached <HI>Septem|ber</HI> the <HI>9th.</HI> 1683&punc; being the 'Thank&s;|giving Day for his Maje&s;ties Delive|rance: by <HI>Jonathan Clapham,</HI> Rector of <HI>Wramplingham</HI> in <HI>Norfolk.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>A Pre&s;ent for Youth, and an Exam|ple for the Aged; Two Di&s;cour|&s;es, one of Spiritual Ble&s;&s;ings; the other, That God hath an high ac|count of the lea&s;t Grace in the Saints: by Mr. <HI>John Cromwell,</HI> late Pa&s;tor of a Church of Chri&s;t in <HI>Nor|wich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Infant Bapti&s;m of Chri&s;t's Appoint|ment: by Mr. <HI>Samuel Petto,</HI> Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel in <HI>Sadbury</HI> in <HI>Suf|folk.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the Conver&s;ion of Sinners to God in Chri&s;t, the nece&s;&s;ity, nature, means, and &s;igns of it, with a concluding
<PB REF="57">
Speech to the Unconverted: by <HI>Martin Pinch,</HI> a Servant of Chri&s;t in the Work of the Go&s;pel, in the City of <HI>Norwich.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Sincerity, or the upright Man's Walk to Heaven, delivered in &s;everal Sermons in the Pari&s;h Church of St. <HI>Michael,</HI> in <HI>Long-&s;tratton,</HI> in <HI>Norfolk&punc;</HI> by <HI>James Oldfield,</HI> late Mini&s;ter there</ITEM>
</LIST>
<TRAILER>The End of the Catalogue.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="57">
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
