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<DATE>2010-04-28</DATE>
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<NAME>John Pas</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<VID>169824</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Divinity-knots &V;nloo&s;ed.</P>
<P>OR A CLEARE DISCOVERY of truth; by re&s;olving many doubts, according to Scripture, Orthodox Di|vines, and &s;ound Rea&s;on, &s;o as weake capacities may re|ceive &s;atisfaction therein.</P>
<P>TO WHICH PURPOSE, A Number of Points are explained by familiar Simile's.</P>
<P>A TREATISE INTENDED &s;pecially for the in&s;truction of young Chri&s;tians in ROTHSTORNE pa|ri&s;h in CHESHIRE: But publi&s;hed for a further extent of the benefit thereof, to the I&s;rael of <HI>GOD.</HI></P>
<P>By <HI>Adam Martindale,</HI> one of the meanest Labourers in the LORDS Harve&s;t.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>2 Tim. 2.7.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Con&s;ider what I &s;ay, and the Lord give you under|&s;tanding in all things.</P></Q>
<Q><BIBL><HI>1 Pet. 5.10.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The GOD of all grace &mdash; make you per|fect, &s;tabli&s;h, &s;trengthen, &s;ettle you.</P></Q>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>John Hancock,</HI> in Popes head Alley, neere the Royall Exchange, 1649.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="second title page">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<P>Divinity-knots &V;nloo&s;ed.</P>
<P>OR A CLEARE DISCOVERY of truth, according to Scripture, Or|thodox Divines, and &s;ound Rea&s;on, &s;o as weake capacities may receive much &s;atisfaction and benefit.</P>
<P>Herein &s;eventy five Doubts are re&s;olved, drawne from the&s;e &s;everall heads mo&s;t in Controver&s;ie.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Viz.</HI> Touching the Scrip|tures, and God: his De|cree and Creation.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Providence.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the fall of man.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the Law of God, and the two Covenants.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Chri&s;t the Mediator,</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Free-will.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Calling, Ju&s;tification, A|doption, Sanctification, Faith, Repentance, and good Workes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Per&s;everance, and A&s;&s;u|rance.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Chri&s;tian Liberty, and Li|berty of Con&s;cience.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the Civill Magi&s;trate, and Church-Cen&s;ures.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Religious Wor&s;hip, and of the Sabbath day.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Oathes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the Church.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of Communion of Saints.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Of the Sacraments.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>By <HI>Adam Martindale,</HI> one of the meanest Labourers in the LORDS Harve&s;t.</P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>John Hancock,</HI> in Popes head Alley, neere the Royall Exchange, 1649.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="3">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>To my Deare and pre|cious Father, CAPTAINE JAMES JOLLIE: AND To my pre&s;ent, and <HI>quondam</HI> Hea|rers, at <HI>Rothstorne</HI> in <HI>Che&s;hire,</HI> and <HI>Gorton</HI> in <HI>Lanca&s;hire.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Dearely Beloved,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>THough the Title-page informs you for who&s;e &s;ake I was e&s;peci|ally induced to write this &s;mall Treati&s;e; it was neuer inten|ded by me, that any party of you &s;hould wholly monopolize my thoughts of love and Chri&s;tian re&s;pect; but how&s;oever my duty pre&s;&s;eth me more, in reference to the charge I daily undergoe, then to thru&s;t my Sickle into anothers Harve&s;t:
<PB REF="4">Yet &s;ince this comes on the publique Theatre, you may all challenge as well a &s;hare in it, as the Author whom all of you may ju&s;tly claime (though in different relations peradventure) to be your owne. Concerning the Booke it &s;elfe, it behoves me not to &s;ay much; To di&s;prai&s;e it beyond my owne judg|ment, were &s;infull mode&s;ty; to prai&s;e it above de&s;ert, un&s;ufferable arrogan|cy. <HI>Medio tuti&s;&s;imus, &amp;c.</HI> The be&s;t cour&s;e is to leave it to your Chri&s;tian peru&s;all, and charitable &s;urvay; and &s;o I doe; telling you onely, that no|thing, &s;ave the weakne&s;&s;e is mine owne. For the main &s;ub&s;tance (though the mo&s;t of it came immediately out of my memory in this forme you &s;ee it, without any con&s;iderable con&s;ulting of Authors) was of that &s;tore, which in reading the Scripture, and other Di|vinity Bookes, and hearing Sermons, conferences, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> I had before trea&s;u|red up. Some things indeed there be, which you &s;hall hardly meet with in
<PB REF="4">any VVorke yet extant; but tho&s;e I al&s;o di&s;claime as none of mine: For &s;o farre as the truth of GOD appea|reth in them, the &s;pirit of God, the guide to, and in all &s;aving truth (in who&s;e hand I am at the be&s;t but an In|&s;trument) may ju&s;tly appropriate it to him&s;elfe, as his right and due. Though &s;ometimes I am forced to cla&s;h with un&s;ound opinions, I haue concealed the Authors Names, as having a de&s;ire to vindicate the truth, not to provoke a|ny to vindicate him&s;elf: for which cau&s;e I have not onely declined all bitter|ne&s;&s;e of expre&s;&s;ion (which I think be|low a Chri&s;tian at all times) but al&s;o the recitall of their owne words formal|ly (contenting my &s;elfe with the mat|ter) lea&s;t it &s;hould too plainely appeare who owneth the Tenets I oppo&s;e. If notwith&s;tanding all this, any be di&s;po|&s;ed to wrangle with me, I &s;hall hardly trouble the VVorld, or my &s;elfe &s;o far, as to rejoyne to &s;uch replyes: But if I be rea&s;oned with in the &s;pirit of meek|ne&s;&s;e,
<PB REF="5">whether it be in this publique way, or any other, I dare with a &s;afe con&s;cience (and &s;hall be ready as my occa&s;ions will permit) to give an ac|count, in a brotherly way, to any that &s;hall de&s;ire &s;atisfaction, concerning a|ny thing herein a&s;&s;erted: Thus I com|met both you, and this &s;mall piece to the ble&s;&s;ing of GOD, remaining,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Yours in the affaires of the Go&s;pell, A: Martindale.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><HI>Strethill, <DATE>Aprill, the 9. 1649</DATE></HI></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="1" REF="5">
<HEAD>Divinity-knots unloo&s;ed.</HEAD>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. I</HI> Of the Scriptures, and by the way, of the light of Nature.</HEAD>
<P N="1">1. <HI>Doubt. _IF the</HI> Scripture <HI>be a per|fect rule</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">2 Tim. 3.16, 17. P&s;a. 19.7. Deu. 12.32 Pro. 30.6. I&s;a. 8.20. Revel. 22.18, 19.</NOTE>, <HI>how can the</HI> light of nature <HI>be of any u&s;e in &s;pirituall matters?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> A rule may be &s;ayd to be perfect, in three ca&s;es:
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. When there is a perfect enumeration of, and provi&s;ion for, all particulars that po&s;&s;ibly can fall under it,</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. When it runs in generall tearmes, and is comprehen&s;ive enough to include what|&s;oever is to be taken within it.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. When it particularizeth the princi|pall, and expre&s;&s;eth the re&s;t more gene|rally.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<PB N="2" REF="6">
<P>As for example:</P>
<P><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">This hom|ly Simile (though it may &s;eeme ridiculous to critick wits) is of great u&s;e, if well con&s;idered, for the clea|ring of this que&s;tioned truth, to the capacity of weak Chri|&s;tians, for who&s;e &s;ake this worke was under|taken.</NOTE><HI>In a Lea&s;e, we account the rules perfect, which a Tenant is to walke by, in occupying the ground which is letten him, if</HI> 1. <HI>it give him particular leave to pa&s;ture, mow, and &s;ow, or &s;econdly, &s;ay in generall tearmes, he is to have it to all tenantly u&s;es, or give way that the Te|nant &s;hall have it for tillage, and all other te|nantly u&s;es.</HI></P>
<P>Now the Scriptures are perfect in the la&s;t &s;en&s;e; they deliver particular rules for all the maine poynts of Faith and pra|ctice; but matters of circum&s;tance, and in|feri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ur alley are comprehended perfectly, though more generally: And therefore as he that holdeth his Living to all Tenantly u&s;es, had need of &s;o much judgement as to drawe this generall into particulars: So when the Scripture entreth not upon the particulars, but in the generall command|eth order, decencie, and edification<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 14.26.40.</NOTE>, we had need of <HI>the light of nature,</HI> a&s;&s;i&s;ted by the &s;pirit of God, to judge according to the generall dictates of Scripture, what in &s;uch a time, and &s;uch a ca&s;e, may make for order, decencie, or edifying.</P>
<P N="2">2. Doubt. <HI>How can Mini&s;ters tell us what the Word imports in the</HI> Originall <HI>of any text they quote, &s;eeing them&s;elves (as &s;ome with pro|bability
<PB N="3" REF="6">affirme) never &s;aw</HI> the Originall?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;olution.</HI> By <HI>the Originall</HI> we doe not meane the fir&s;t Copies that were written, but faithfull tran&s;cripts of them in the &s;ame language, and the&s;e none can deny us to have &s;eene, except they will deny withall, that our Bibles in Engli&s;h (which are tran&s;lations thereof) are the word of God, which the Objecter &s;eemeth not to doe. And yet, although we hold that no tongue can &s;o fully expre&s;&s;e the &s;en&s;e of &s;ome pla|ces, as that wherein it was written; nor is of the &s;ame authority, but as it agrees ther|with; we freely confe&s;&s;e, that in the Cha|racters and Printing, there may be errour (which may be rectifyed by comparing one Booke and place with another:) And without the &s;pirit of God to a&s;&s;ure us, no knowledge of the <HI>Originall</HI> is &s;ufficient to give us full a&s;&s;urance that it is Gods word<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 2.14.</NOTE>, but by the helpe of the holy Spirit<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">1 John 2.20, 27.</NOTE>, the Scriptures may &s;ufficiently informe an illi|terate man for his &s;alvation.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="4" REF="7">
<HEAD>CHAP. II. <HI>Of God.</HI></HEAD>
<P N="3">3. Doubt. <HI>IF God be unchangeable</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Jam. 1.17</NOTE>, <HI>how can he be &s;ayd to repent</HI><NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Gen. 6 6. 1 Sam. 15.11.</NOTE>.</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It is &s;poken according to our ca|pacity, for though God doe never repent<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Num. 23.19. 1 Sam. 15.29.</NOTE>, (that is, change his coun&s;ell) yet he doth as if he did repent, when he undoth what he had before done<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Gen. 6.6, 7.</NOTE>. Nor may God be charged with changeablene&s;&s;e, though the cour&s;e of his providence be turned, but the change is in us. You know the Sun by the &s;ame quality, and in the &s;ame &s;ea&s;on, will &s;often Wax and harden clay, yea, will &s;often the earth when it is frozen, and harden it at other times, and yet the Sun never altereth his quality, but is &s;till the &s;ame: So though God be gracious to &s;ome, and &s;evere to others<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Rom. 9.18. Ezek. 18.</NOTE> ; yea, &s;evere and gra|cious to the &s;ame per&s;on at diver&s;e times, and in different re&s;pects<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Ezek. 18 21, 22, 23, 24, &amp;c.</NOTE> ; yet he is one and the &s;ame for ever<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Exod. 3.14.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="4">4. Doubt. <HI>If God be a &s;pirit, how is hee &s;ayd to have hands, eyes, wings, &amp;c.?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> This is onely &s;poken, as the for|mer,
<PB N="5" REF="7">according to our capacity, that by the hand of God we may note his power<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 59.1.</NOTE>, by his eye, wi&s;edome<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 11.4.</NOTE>, by his wings, pro|tection<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 57.1.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="5">5. Doubt. <HI>If God be indivi&s;ible and &s;im|ple, how can the &s;acred e&s;&s;ence be di&s;tingui&s;hed into three per&s;ons?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> I &s;ee your skill in Logick is &s;mall, or el&s;e it were ea&s;ie to know how to di&s;tin|gui&s;h betwixt things, that cannot be divi|ded: I can di&s;tingui&s;h betweene the e&s;&s;ence and exi&s;tence of the &s;ame thing, betwixt in&s;eparable accidents, and their &s;ubjects, or (to &s;peake Common-road language) be|tween a body and its &s;ub&s;tance, forme fi|gure, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> and yet not divide them. So it is no repugnancie in rea&s;on it &s;elfe, that the God-head be one entire entity<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 8.4, 6.</NOTE>, and yet con&s;idered in a per&s;onall re&s;pect may be di&s;tingui&s;hed into the <HI>Father, Sonne,</HI> and <HI>holy Gho&s;t</HI><NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Mat. 3.16, 17. 1 Joh. 5.7.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="6">6. Doubt. <HI>I finde in the</HI> 45. <HI>of I&s;aich, Ver&s;.</HI> 21. <HI>that Chri&s;t &s;aith, there is no GOD but him&s;elfe, notwith&s;tanding wee heare him &s;aying as much by his Father, John</HI> 17.3. <HI>how can both be the onely true God?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol. GOD</HI> and <HI>CHRIST</HI> differ not e&s;&s;entially, but onely per&s;onally; the Father is GOD, &s;o is the Son; yet they
<PB N="6" REF="8">are not two <HI>Gods,</HI> but one: There is no o|ther <HI>God</HI> but that <HI>God</HI> which the <HI>Father</HI> is, nor any <HI>God,</HI> but that which <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> is, and this word <HI>(onely)</HI> is not exclu&s;ive of any per&s;on of the <HI>Trinity</HI> (for every per&s;on is the onely <HI>God</HI>) but of all others, whether reputed Gods, or Creatures<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 8.4, 5, 6.</NOTE></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="3" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. III.</HI> Of Gods Decree, and creation.</HEAD>
<P N="7">7. Doubt. <HI>TO what purpo&s;e &s;hould I &s;eek the good of my &s;oule? If I he elected I &s;hall be &s;aved, if not I cannot.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It is not for you to &s;earch the Ca|binet of Gods coun&s;ell<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Deut. 29.29.</NOTE>, but to beleeve<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">John 3.18.36.</NOTE>, and repent<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Luke 13.3, 5.</NOTE> ; which if you doe, you are not to que&s;tion your &s;alvation<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Eph. 2.8 2 Tim. 1.9 2 Cor. 7.10</NOTE>. Saving Faith (though it be not a cau&s;e) is a fruit of election<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Acts 13.48.</NOTE>, for God hath re&s;pect to the meanes, as well as the end, and conjoyneth them in his decree<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Eph. 1.4.5. &amp; 2.10.</NOTE> : and therefore we may conclude, that beleeving we are ju&s;tified<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Rom. 3.28.</NOTE>, which is an a&s;&s;ured argument we were pre|de&s;tinated<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8.29, 30.</NOTE>, and &s;hall be &s;aved<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Tit. 3.7.</NOTE>. But on the other hand, they that are hardened by &s;in<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 95.8. Heb. 3.13.</NOTE>, are rejected of God<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Rom. 9.18.</NOTE>, and &s;hall be damned<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 6.9, 10. Gal. 5.19, 20, 21.</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="7" REF="8">
<P N="8">8. Doubt. <HI>If God prede&s;tinate the meanes as well as the end, &s;eeing &s;in is the meanes ten|ding to damnation, whom he prede&s;tinates to damnation, doth not he prede&s;tinate them to &s;in? And if &s;o, how can he be free from it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> In Prede&s;tination two things are to be con&s;idered:
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. <HI>Gods preterition,</HI> pa&s;&s;ing by, or non<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">e|lecting of a per&s;on.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. <HI>Predamnation,</HI> or fore-condemning a per&s;on to perdition.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P>The former is of the meere plea&s;ure of God, for there can be no other rea&s;on gi|ven, why this man is cho&s;en, and that re|fu&s;ed. Now tho&s;e whom God thus pa&s;&s;eth by, through want of that a&s;&s;i&s;tance which he is not bound to give, fall finally from God, and &s;o con&s;idered, are pre-damned, or fore-ordained to de&s;truction. God doth not force, or cau&s;e men to &s;inne, but leave them to it: For &s;in being no po&s;itive thing, but a privation of what &s;hould be: <HI>Viz.</HI> of obedience, ari&s;eth from the in&s;ufficiency of the Creature, left to it &s;elfe: If a King by his wi&s;edome could fore&s;ee, that diver&s;e of his Subjects would prove Traytors, and be hanged, unle&s;&s;e he prefer them, and doth forbeare to gratifie them &s;o far, onely be|cau&s;e it is not his plea&s;ure &s;o to doe, can he
<PB N="8" REF="9">be ju&s;tly accu&s;ed of the Trea&s;on which af|ter they commit? I beleeve no polititian wil affirma it: Mu&s;t we then be &s;o bold as to charge him who is of purer eyes, then to behold iniquity, to be in any &s;ort the cau&s;e thereof, becau&s;e he doth not uphold us a|gain&s;t it?</P>
<P N="9">9. Doubt. <HI>If God doe not onely pa&s;&s;e by men, but predamne them to Hell al&s;o by this his decree (as you &s;hewed in the re&s;olution of the la&s;t Doubt) how can his ju&s;tice be clea|red, &s;eeing man had then not actually &s;inned?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Men &s;in in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word">, not from eterni|ty: yet are their &s;ins from eternity, and to eternity with God. For with him things are not pa&s;t, pre&s;ent, and to come, as with us, but alwayes pre&s;ent, in one infinite mo|ment. And therefore the Lord who &s;eath all the &s;ins of a reprobate by one pure, indi|viduall act, from, and to all eternity, may as well pi&s;&s;e an act of damnation again&s;t them, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> they were actually committed.</P>
<P N="10">10. Doubt. <HI>Might not God as well damne men in a capacity of holine&s;&s;e, as thus to leave them to &s;in, and then condemne them for it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It is a curious and unprofitable que&s;tion, to di&s;pute whether he might not without wrong to the Creature, have done &s;o: Perhaps <HI>Rom.</HI> 9, 20, 21, 22. will prove
<PB N="9" REF="9">he might, but &s;uch a ca&s;e never did, not will fall out: However to our capacity, the ju&s;tne&s;&s;e of God &s;hould not &s;hine &s;o per|&s;picuou&s;ly, if he &s;hould damne a Creature that never &s;inned; for then &s;hould he in|flict unde&s;erved puni&s;hment, whereas in the cour&s;e he now takes, he onely denyeth unde&s;erved &s;avours, and layeth on them de|&s;erved penalties.</P>
<P N="11">11. Doubt. <HI>But if Gods decree binde not men to a nece&s;&s;ity of &s;inning, how came &s;in into the World, &s;eeing Men and Angels were made holy, and the whole Creation is by GOD him|&s;elfe pronounced good</HI><NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Gen. 1.31</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> GODS decree doth no other|wi&s;e bind man to a nece&s;&s;ity of &s;inning, then the withdrawing of the upholding hand from a &s;taffe reared up, binds it to a nece&s;&s;i|ty of falling; <HI>Viz,</HI> in a privative way. I &s;hew|ed before, that &s;in is only privative; that is, a defect of &s;ome thing required, as dark|ne&s;&s;e is nothing el&s;e but a defect of light: and the&s;e privations doe not nece&s;&s;arily re|quire cau&s;es, or creation; light was in|deed created<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Gen. 2.3.</NOTE>, but darkne&s;&s;e was before on the face of the deepe<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Ver&s;. 2.</NOTE>. Now though God made Angels and Men holy, he made them not Gods, that they &s;hould &s;tand of them&s;elves without his help, which when
<PB N="10" REF="10">he withheld from man, and &s;ome of the Angels, they faltered in their obedience, and &s;o became &s;infull.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="4" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. IV. <HI>Of Providence.</HI></HEAD>
<P N="12">12. Doubt. <HI>HOw can God by his provi|dence di&s;po&s;e of &s;econd cau|&s;es that things can come to pa&s;&s;e contingently, freely, or miraculou&s;ly, when he hath fore-ordai|ned how they &s;hall be in his immutable will?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> There is a twofold nece&s;&s;ity. 1. <HI>In Gods decree,</HI> &s;o all things that are, fall out nece&s;&s;arily and cannot be otherwi&s;e, 2. <HI>In Naturall cau&s;es,</HI> &s;o fire nece&s;&s;arily burnes, water nece&s;&s;arily wets &amp;c. Now to us things are &s;aid to fall out nece&s;&s;arily, when we ap|prehend a &s;ufficient next cau&s;e. But this &s;ometimes is not, &s;ometimes appeares not before the effect, from whence the notions <HI>[Contingent free, miraculous]</HI> have their ri&s;e.</P>
<P>As for example.</P>
<P>When an Infant is formed in the wombe, though in re&s;pect of Gods decree, it is ne|ce&s;&s;arily a male, or nece&s;&s;arily a female, and
<PB N="11" REF="10">&s;o in time will prove: Yet to us from whom the next cau&s;e of this di&s;tinction in the womb is hid, it is contingent whether it be Male or Female.</P>
<P N="13">13. Doubt. <HI>How can God &s;trengthen and governe all Creatures in their actings, and be free from &s;inne, &s;eeing many actions are &s;in|full?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> You mu&s;t di&s;tingui&s;h betwixt the action, and the evill in it; &s;ome &s;ins are a|ctuall, but none actions. Therefore as a skilfull Min&s;trell playing on a jarring In|&s;trument cau&s;eth it to &s;ound, but its owne badne&s;&s;e cau&s;eth it to &s;ound jarringly: So God cau&s;eth us to act, but that we act &s;in|fully, the cau&s;e is in our &s;elves. To kill a man is not &s;imply evill, &s;ometimes it is not onely lawfull, but a duty<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Jer. 48.10.</NOTE> ; but killing a man upon &s;uch tearmes, without a ju&s;t cau&s;e or call. Sin lyeth in the morall cir|cum&s;tances, not the phy&s;icall &s;ub&s;tance of the action.</P>
<P N="14">14. Doubt. <HI>If God be perfectly glorious, how can he glorifie him&s;elfe in the workes of his providence, &s;eeing nothing can be added to that which is perfect?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> We may con&s;ider the glory of God the&s;e two wayes.</P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>As it is e&s;&s;entiall to him,</HI> and &s;o it is in|effably perfect.</P>
<PB N="12" REF="11">
<P N="2">2. <HI>As it is revealed to us,</HI> and this becau&s;e of our weakne&s;&s;e, is onely in part, and by degrees. A <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> can but view the back parts<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Exod. 33 23.</NOTE> ; a <HI>Paul</HI> but &s;ee in part<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 13 9, 10.</NOTE>, and dark|ly as in a gla&s;&s;e<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ibid.</HI> ver. 12.</NOTE> : And <HI>GOD</HI> is &s;ayd to glorifie him&s;elfe, when by the great works of his providence, he lets us &s;ee further into his glorious attributes.</P>
<P N="15">15. Doubt. <HI>If the providence of God offer to men occa&s;ions to &s;in, how is God free from the iniquity committed by rea&s;on thereof?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> As a King that executeth ju&s;tice, though he know &s;ome wicked fellowes will thereat, take occa&s;ion to be Traytours to him, is not to be blamed: So <HI>GODS</HI> workes being holy, though wicked men a|bu&s;e them through their owne perver&s;ne&s;&s;e, and make them occa&s;ions to &s;in, he is not unrighteous, but puni&s;heth them in ju&s;t judgement, &s;uffering them to fall by their owne folly.</P>
<P N="16">16. Doubt. <HI>When GOD by his provi|dence makes wicked men &s;courges to his people, how can they be blamed for doing what GOD would have done?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Though wicked men can doe no|thing to the people of GOD, but what he gives way to<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 124.6. P&s;al. 129.1, 2.3. Acts 4, 27, 28.</NOTE> : Yet foraimuch as they indeavour to exceed their Commi&s;&s;ion<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 83.4 I&s;a. 37.27, 28, 29, 33.</NOTE>,
<PB N="13" REF="11">and aime not at Gods glory, but their owne ends<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 10.6, 7, &amp;c.</NOTE>, &s;hewing ho&s;tility and not pitty to Gods people<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">P&s;, 137.7. Lam. 2.17.</NOTE> ; they &s;hall an&s;wer for their ambitious malice<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 10.12</NOTE> ; though God by his wi&s;edome will cau&s;e the wrath of man to prai&s;e him, and the remainder of wrath he will re&s;traine<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">P&s;. 76.10.</NOTE>.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="5" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. V.</HI> Concerning the fall of Man.</HEAD>
<P N="17">17. Doubt. <HI>HOw could ta&s;ting the forbidden fruit bee &s;o great an offence, as to de&s;erve damnation?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Some give this rea&s;on, that this act of our Parents, was a breach of each of Gods Commandements in particular, and indeavour to make it appeare by an in|duction, though for mine owne part, I think it holds in &s;ome, not in all, but this I de&s;ire to &s;peak with mode&s;ty and &s;ubmi&s;|&s;ion: However it cannot be denyed, but the breach of the lea&s;t of Gods Comman|dements maketh us guilt of all<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">James 2 10.</NOTE> : And the violation of his Law, who is infinite, de&s;erveth infinite puni&s;hment, which be|cau&s;e it cannot be in extent (we being fi|nite)
<PB N="14" REF="12">mu&s;t be in duration. Nor doth the &s;mall value of the fruit abate any thing, but rather aggravate it, for (as Ma&s;ter <HI>By|field</HI> &s;ayth well) their &s;in was greater, that upon &s;o &s;mall an advantage would adven|ture eternall happine&s;&s;e.</P>
<P N="18">18. Doubt. <HI>But how comes it to pa&s;&s;e, that</HI> Adams <HI>fault and puni&s;hment is derived to his whole po&s;terity?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol. Adam</HI> &s;tood in Covenant with God as <HI>Man,</HI> not as <HI>a Man;</HI> that is, as a publique, not a private per&s;on: and there|fore as he received the Covenant of works, and for a time &s;tood by it for him&s;elfe and all mankind, &s;o for him&s;elfe and all man|kinde he fell from it<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Rom. 5.12. to 20. 1 Cor. 15.22.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="19">19. Doubt. <HI>Would it not have made more for GODS glory to have kept men from &s;in, to &s;erve him in holine&s;&s;e?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> No: For by this meanes man is a fit object for the rich mercy or ju&s;t judge|ment of <HI>God,</HI> which by occa&s;ion hereof GOD manife&s;teth to his owne glory.</P>
<P N="20">20. Doubt. <HI>Some affirme that &s;in</HI> di&s;ho|noureth <HI>God, other &s;ay he cannot be</HI> di&s;honou|red; <HI>whether of the&s;e is true Doctrine?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> They may both be true in a diffe|rent &s;en&s;e; for the word <HI>(di&s;honour)</HI> may be taken two wayes:</P>
<PB N="15" REF="12">
<P N="1">1. To degrade or make one unhonoura|ble, that before was honourable; but in this &s;en&s;e it is rarely (if at all) found in Scripture.</P>
<P N="2">2. To di&s;re&s;pect ot &s;l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ight one that is ho|nourable, and &s;till remaines worthy to be honoured: In the former &s;en&s;e God can|not be di&s;honoured, but in the latter hee may<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Mal. 1.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter"> Rom. 2.2</NOTE> ; even as Children by their di&s;obe|dience doe not render their Parents di&s;ho|nourable<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 1 4, 5, 6,</NOTE>, but di&s;honoured<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Mic. 7.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="21">21. Doubt. <HI>How can men in ju&s;tice be|come lyable to eternall puni&s;hment for &s;in com|mitted in time, and it may bee in a &s;hort time?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> 1. They are committed again&s;t an eternall <HI>God,</HI> and therefore are alwayes (as it were) in committing before, and a|gain&s;t him.</P>
<P N="2">2. If men might live eternally, they would &s;in eternally; and God puni&s;heth accor|ding to the rebellion of their wils.</P>
<P N="3">3. Though puni&s;hed in Hell, thay &s;till retaine their enmity again&s;t God, and therefore ju&s;tly is their penalty continu|ed.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="6" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="16" REF="13">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VI.</HI> Of the Law of God, and of the two Covenants.</HEAD>
<P N="22">22. Doubt. <HI>IF the Covenant of workes be for &s;ub&s;tance comprehen|ded in the ten Commandements, how can Chri|&s;tians which are free from the Law be bound to ob&s;erve them?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The Law of the Ten Commande|ments containeth the matter of the Cove|nant of workes, but is not the Covenant formally, any more then the Copy of a Lea&s;e written by a private hand,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Simile,</NOTE> having ne|ver been &s;ealed and delivered according to Law, is the Lea&s;e it &s;elfe: The matter of the Covenant without the forme, cannot &s;ufficiently con&s;titute it. Now the forme of the Covenant of workes is the condition whereupon the duty is undertaken: <HI>Viz. Doe this and live;</HI> Life is promi&s;ed upon perfect obedience, damnation threatned upon the lea&s;t di&s;obedience. The Go&s;pell indeed requireth the &s;ame things, but not upon the &s;ame tearmes, for whereas the &s;ame Covenant of workes &s;aith, <HI>Doe this and live,</HI> the Go&s;pell &s;aith, <HI>Live and do this.
<PB N="17" REF="13">Chri&s;t</HI> hath freed us from the Law, as it is a compeller and condemner, but not as it is a directory, or (to &s;peake properly) we are freed from the Covenant of workes as it is &s;uch, but not from the things therein con|tained: even as a Servant which obeyed his Ma&s;ter out of &s;lavi&s;h feare, or for wages, if his Ma&s;ter adopt him, and make him his heyre, though he &s;till be bound to doe the &s;ame things, yet fora&s;much as he acteth from different Principles, <HI>Viz.</HI> of love, thankfulne&s;&s;e, and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> reverence, he is perfectly free from that Covenant which <HI>(as a Servant)</HI> he made with his Ma&s;ter. In like manner the adopted Sonnes of God, (though they are to act the &s;ame things that the Law of works required) yet in as much as they doe them not to be ju&s;tified and live, but becau&s;e they <HI>are ju&s;tified,</HI> and <HI>doe live;</HI> nor are bound to them under the pe|nalty of revenging wrath, but fatherly cha|&s;ti&s;ement) are perfectly &s;et at liberty from the Covenant of workes.</P>
<P N="23">23. Doubt. <HI>If the Covenant on</HI> Mount Si|nai <HI>was a Covenant of grace (as it mu&s;t needs be, becau&s;e in it was forgivene&s;&s;e of &s;ins) How can Chri&s;t be &s;ayd to be a Mediator of a better Covenant then</HI> Mo&s;es? <HI>better and wor&s;e &s;eeme to intimate there be two Covenants of grace.</HI></P>
<PB N="18" REF="14">
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> They are not called better and wor&s;e in re&s;pect of the matter or &s;ub&s;tance of them, but in the manner of di&s;pen&s;ation. When we compare two Bookes of the &s;ame nature together (as &s;uppo&s;e they treat of <HI>Grammar, Logick,</HI> or <HI>Phylo&s;ophy</HI>) the one treating in a prolix, darke, and confu&s;ed manner, the other in a briefe, methodicall, and plaine way, and &s;ay this is better then that, we doe not meane that the &s;ubject matter of the one is better then the other, but onely the excellency is in the method and expre&s;&s;ion. So when the Covenant <HI>of Grace,</HI> as it is handed to us by Chri&s;t, is pre&s;erred before the &s;ame, as it is &s;et forth by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> in types and &s;hedowes, we mu&s;t under&s;tand it of the per&s;picuity and com|pendiou&s;ne&s;&s;e of the admini&s;tration, toge|ther with the freedome from burden&s;ome Ceremonies, not of the Covenant it &s;elfe, for that is one and the &s;ame to them and us<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 10 1, 2, 3, 4.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="24">24. Doubt. <HI>How can the Jewes Covenant and ours, be all one, when as in theirs, forgive|ne&s;&s;e was not for every &s;in (namely, not for</HI> pre&s;umptuou&s;ne&s;&s;e<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Num. 15.30.</NOTE>, <HI>nor</HI> uncircumci&s;ion<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.14.</NOTE>) <HI>nor of all their &s;in at once, but by degrees &s;uc|ce&s;&s;ively, for when they had offered Sacrifice for one tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, they lay under the next till
<PB N="19" REF="14">Sacrifice was againe offered: But</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>hath at once payd a full price, and acquitted us from all our &s;ins?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> With reverence to the learned Au|thor from whom this doubt ari&s;eth, I be|leeve it is a great mi&s;take to &s;ay, the Jewes Covenant had not remi2&s;ion of all &s;ins. That the pre&s;umptuous &s;inner and uncircumci&s;ed per&s;on mu&s;t be cut off, the places forequo|ted prove, but this cutting off was excom|munication, or a lo&s;&s;e of their part in the externall Covenant of God, till the one re|pented, the other became circumci&s;ed, and cannot be under&s;tood of an unpardonable condition, for that either uncircumci&s;ion, or pre&s;umption (e&s;pecially this &s;ort of pre|&s;umption in the Text alleadged, being op|po&s;ed onely to ignorance) was unpardon|able, and therefore all damned that were defiled with them (as it mu&s;t needs follow) is not onely unproved, but di&s;proved by Scripture<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Jo&s;. 5.2, 3, 4, &amp;c. Rom. 2.26. 2 Sam. 12.13. 2 Chro. 33.10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.</NOTE>. Nor is there any more force in that which is alleadged concerning the gra|duality of forgivene&s;&s;e, for the Sacrifices did not of them&s;elves make the attonement, but as Ordinances typifying <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> they did (as it were) Sacramentally apply and &s;eale the pardon of &s;in to the con&s;cience, as they &s;hould from time to time offend and
<PB N="20" REF="15">&s;tand in need of pardon; but that <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> did at once beare the &s;ins of Beleevers, as well Jewes before his comming, as Gentiles &s;ince, is plaine by that clau&s;e &s;o much &s;tood upon by the reverend Author, <HI>The Lord hath layd on him the iniquity of us all</HI><NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 53.6.</NOTE>, and ma|ny other places<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Rev. 13.8 Gal. 4.4, 5. I&s;a. 53.5.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="25">25. Doubt. <HI>How could the Covenant on</HI> Sinai <HI>be a Covenant of grace, &s;eeing the Apo|&s;tle calls it a killing Letter, and a mini&s;tration of death and condemnation</HI><NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 3.6, 7, 9.</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> I conceive the Apo&s;tles meaning was not that the whole Covenant on <HI>Sinai</HI> beginning, <HI>Exod.</HI> 20. and ending with <HI>Levit.</HI> 26. was a killing letter, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> For the Sacrifices and Ceremonies typifyed <HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> and &s;ealed forgivene&s;&s;e of &s;ins, and reconci|liation to God<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">If you ob|&s;erve this di&s;tinction, you may ea|&s;ily an&s;wer to all argu|ments built upon any o|ther Scrip|ture, which &s;eems to a&s;|&s;ert that the Jewes lived under a Co|venant of workes.</NOTE>. But <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> is there to be con&s;idered, as he was the Mini&s;ter of the Decalogue, or ten Commandements, with|out re&s;pect had to the Types and Ordinan|ces whereby <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> was &s;ignified; and that this is not my private opinion, but the &s;en&s;e of the place, may appeare by two rea&s;ons.</P>
<P N="1">1. We are told (<HI>Ver&s;.</HI> 7.) that this mini&s;tration of death was engraven on &s;tones, but onely the ten Commandements were &s;o engraven<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Exo. 34.1.28.</NOTE> ; therefore he onely meaneth them.</P>
<PB N="21" REF="15">
<P N="2">2. The <HI>Apo&s;tle</HI> here &s;peaks of a mini&s;tra|tion about which <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> was imployed when his face &s;hone<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 3.7.13.</NOTE> : But this glory was vouch&s;afed him when he received the ten Commandements alone<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Exo. 34.28, 29, 30.</NOTE>, therefore them onely he meaneth; and to &s;peak the truth, the Contents of the two Tables being re|ceived alone, as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> brought them down in his hands, not as in &s;ubordination to <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> the Mediator, but as a &s;ervant of God the Creator, proclaiming his exact and rigid Law, mu&s;t needs be a Covenant of workes; though the &s;ame being received in &s;ubordination to <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> (which was truly (though more dimly) held forth in the&s;e Ceremoniall ob&s;ervances) hinders not, but that <HI>I&s;rael</HI> lived under a Covenant of grace.</P>
<P N="26">26. Doubt. <HI>When the</HI> Apo&s;tle <HI>blameth the</HI> Galatians <HI>for revolting from the Go&s;pell to the Law, what Law meaneth he, the morall or Ceremoniall?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> With &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion to better judge|ments, I beleeve he meanes the whole Co|venant on <HI>Sinai</HI> containing both the Mo|rall and Ceremoniall Law, which was a Covenant of grace, when Morall duties were pre&s;&s;ed in &s;ubordination and obedi|ence to <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> the King of the Church, and
<PB N="22" REF="16">Ceremoniall, as typifying him to come: But when their imperfect obedience of the morall Law<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Gal. 3.10, 11, 12, 18. &amp; 4.21.</NOTE>, and rotten Ceremonies long before aboli&s;hed<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.9.10. &amp; 5.6.</NOTE>, were cryed up, and re&s;t|ed in for ju&s;tification and life eternall, they became an un&s;upportable yok of bondage<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Gal. 5.1, 3 Acts 15.10</NOTE>, binding men under a Covenant of works<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Gal. 5.3.</NOTE>, and making the death of <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> (as to them) of none effect<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Gal. 2.21. &amp; 5.2.</NOTE>.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="7" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VII.</HI> Of Chri&s;t the Mediator.</HEAD>
<P N="27">27. Doubt. <HI>HOW could</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>be &s;ent by his Father, and yet be equall to him, &s;eeing the Scripture &s;aith, He is greater that &s;ends, then he which is &s;ent?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol. Chri&s;t</HI> as <HI>God</HI> is equall to his <HI>Fa|ther,</HI> but as Mediator (in which capacity, he was &s;ent) an inferiour to him<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Phil. 2, 6, 7.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="28">28. Doubt. <HI>If Chri&s;t payd a full price to his Father for the redemption of mankind, how can the &s;alvation of the Elect be attributed to the grace of God?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Had it not been for the grace and mercy of God, <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> had not been be&s;tow|ed
<PB N="23" REF="16">on us<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.16</NOTE> ; nor needed God to have given way that <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;hould be &s;urety for us, though he had been moved to that end, al|though when God had accepted him as &s;urety, and layd the whole debt upon him, till he was fully &s;atisfied; he is bound in faithfulne&s;&s;e and ju&s;tice it &s;elfe to forgive us our &s;ins<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">1 Joh. 1.9</NOTE>. A creditor needs not to take a Surety for a debt already due, unle&s;&s;e him|&s;elfe plea&s;e, and if he doe, it is a curte&s;ie to the Debtor (for if he will he may lay him by it, till he pay or rot) yet if he doe accept of a Surety, and lay the debt upon him, and be accordingly payd and &s;atisfi|ed, he cannot require it again, but is bound in ju&s;tice, Law, and con&s;cience to acquit the principall: In like manner, God with|out wrong to mankinde might have bound them over to eternall puni&s;hment in their owne per&s;ons, without accepting any other to be bound for them; but having accep|ted of <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> to enter bond with them, and received the whole &s;umme from him, ac|knowledging the receit thereof under his owne hand and &s;eale, he cannot in righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e charge it againe upon us.</P>
<P N="29">29. Doubt. <HI>If</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>have fully &s;atisfied his Fathers ju&s;tice for the Elect, &s;o that all (and onely) they that are in</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>have their
<PB N="24" REF="17">&s;ins pardoned, how can any man aske for give|ne&s;&s;e of &s;ins? If they be in</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>it &s;eems to be &s;uperfluous, if not, &s;infull; for what&s;oever one that is out of</HI> Chri&s;t <HI>doth is &s;infull.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Whether men be in Chri&s;t or no, they ought to pray for pardon of &s;in<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 6.12 Luke 11.4. Acts 8.22.</NOTE> : for although tho&s;e which are in Chri&s;t be free from damnation, yet not from correction for their failings<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">2 Sam. 12 14 P&s;al. 89.30, 31, 32, 33, 34.</NOTE>. And therefore have cau&s;e to pray that God would neither hide his face from them, nor afflict them for it. And though a man be in the &s;tate of nature, yet prayer being an Ordinance of God, and a duty incumbent to every one<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 79.6 Jer. 10.25.</NOTE>, in the u&s;e whereof God is plea&s;ed to let forth him&s;elfe and vouch&s;afe a di&s;covery of <HI>Chri&s;t</HI><NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Acts 10.30.</NOTE>, every one &s;hould beware of &s;leigh|ting it; for although the prayer of a wick|ed per&s;on be &s;infull, and therefore may be thought unprofitable, &s;o is their hearing of the Word without Faith<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Heb. 4.3.</NOTE>, and yet they mu&s;t heare that they may have Faith<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Rom. 10.14, &amp;c.</NOTE> : Yes its generally &s;ayd, what&s;oever is not of Faith is &s;in<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Rom. 14.23.</NOTE> ; and without Faith it is im|po&s;&s;ible to plea&s;e God<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Heb. 11.6,</NOTE>, in&s;omuch that the plowing of the wicked is iniquity<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Pro. 23.4</NOTE>. And yet I doe not thinke any man holdeth that faithle&s;&s;e men are to forbeare every thing, and wicked men plowing. No more mu&s;t
<PB N="25" REF="17">naturall men forbeare praying, becau&s;e they cannot pray as they ought, but ra|ther be more &s;erious and frequent that God in his owne Ordinance may meet with them, and work upon their hearts effectu|ally.</P>
<P N="30">30. Doubt. <HI>I can ea&s;ily grant that we may pray for a&s;&s;urance of pardon, but for the pardon it &s;elfe we may not, becau&s;e every Elect per&s;on (and reprobates are excluded from par|don) hath all his &s;innes pa&s;t, pre&s;ent, and to come, layd upon</HI> Chri&s;t: <HI>And therefore though be be in the height of his &s;innes, he &s;tands in no more need of pardon then a Saint in Hea|ven: Hence it is, that &s;ome Go&s;pell-Preachers of the&s;e dayes expound</HI> [forgive us our debts or &s;ins] <HI>to &s;ignifie no more but</HI> [manife&s;t to us that our fins are forgiven us] <HI>And when</HI> David <HI>begs pardon of &s;inne, it was ei|ther becau&s;e he lived under an imperfect Cove|nant, wherein remi&s;&s;ion was obtained &s;ucce&s;|&s;ively, as &s;acrifice was offered; or el&s;e he was under a temptation, as in another ca&s;e, when be charged</HI> GOD <HI>to have forgotten to be gra|cious</HI><NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 77.7, &amp;c.</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Tho&s;e which make this objection doe ordinarily di&s;tingui&s;h (in the pardon of &s;in) betwixt Gods decree to forgive, and the manife&s;tation hereof; but they
<PB N="26" REF="18">leave out a third thing, without which the enumeration is imperfect, to wit the execu|tion of this decree; from want whereof, all the&s;e mi&s;takes ari&s;e: For the actuall pardoning of &s;in con&s;i&s;ts neither in the de|cree nor manife&s;tation of pardon, but it is a thing di&s;tinct from them both, following the one, and leading the other in the order of nature and time.</P>
<P>For when a Malefactor is condemned, and his Soveraigne purpo&s;eth in his heart to pardon him, this intention of his (&s;up|po&s;e it be unalterable) is but a purpo&s;e to pardon, not to pardon formally; nor yet though the manife&s;tation thereof be added, except it be in a judiciall way, for though it be never &s;o well knowne that the King intends to forgive him, yet he is not for|given till his pardon be &s;ealed, and confir|med according to Law: and then his a&s;&s;u|rance and &s;elfe &s;atisfaction ari&s;eth from the &s;ight or knowledge thereof. In like man|ner, though God hath cho&s;en the Elect be|fore the World was, that they &s;hould re|ceive in Chri&s;t the forgivene&s;&s;e of &s;ins, and this his decree unalterable (and as to God before whom all things are pre&s;ent) they are already pardoned, in the &s;ame manner that Chri&s;t is called the Lambe &s;laine from
<PB N="27" REF="18">the beginning of the World for the certain|ty and efficacy thereof, though he was a|ctually put to death till the fulne&s;&s;e of time, yet (as to them) the pardon hath not actuall exi&s;tence, till God give them Faith in <HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> whereby they receive the actone|ment; but till they beleeve, they want not onely the a&s;&s;urance of forgivene&s;&s;e, but for|givene&s;&s;e it &s;elfe, for they are <HI>Children of wrath</HI><NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.36 Eph. 2.3.</NOTE>, and <HI>condemned per&s;ons</HI><NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.19</NOTE>. This con&s;idered, I cannot but greatly wonder, that any learned man &s;hould without war|rant of Scripture, and again&s;t the &s;treame of Commentators, expound <HI>[forgive]</HI> to &s;ignifie <HI>[declare forgivene&s;&s;e]</HI> (a thing va&s;t|ly different, though &s;ubordinate to it) up|on one &s;lender rea&s;on, not to be owned by &s;uch a man. For what though a man ought to pray in Faith, and this Faith demon|&s;trates that our &s;ins are already pardoned; (which is the &s;trength of the rea&s;on brought) &s;eeing I have proved before<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Doubt. <HI>30.</HI> an&s;wered.</NOTE>, that a Beleever is not free from correction, though from condemnation be is. As for <HI>David</HI> I have before<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">In the Re|&s;olution of the <HI>25.</HI> Doubt.</NOTE> overthrowne the pre|tended difference between the Covenant of Crace under which he lived, and that whereunder we live: Nor can I think that he was under any temptation when he writ
<PB N="28" REF="19">the 25. and 51. <HI>P&s;almes,</HI> in which he fre|quently beggeth pardon: I readily grant that &s;ome pa&s;&s;ages of the 77. <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> were &s;poken in &s;uch a temper, for him&s;elfe tells us &s;o<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Ver&s;. 10.</NOTE> : but that any thing in the&s;e P&s;alme<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Viz. 25. &amp; 51.</NOTE> was &s;o &s;poken, is impo&s;&s;ible to be proved, either by them&s;elves or any other Scripture, which is a &s;trong argument to me that he was him&s;elfe, and did not per&s;onate a Be|leever in his &s;infull doubtings, when he &s;poke thus; e&s;pecially con&s;idering that he &s;eldome or never leaves any Errour on re|cord without &s;ome da&s;h or brand to know it by: And therefore till &s;ome man &s;hew me as good ground to prove him under a temp|tation when he asked forgivene&s;&s;e, as when he &s;ayd, <HI>God had for&s;aken him;</HI> I &s;ee no rea|&s;on why the places &s;hould be parallel'd, and the one expounded by the other.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="8" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VIII.</HI> Of Free-will.</HEAD>
<P N="31">31. Doubt. <HI>HOw can any be &s;aid to have Free-will, where|as naturall men are taken captive by Satan at his will</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">2 Tim. 2.26.</NOTE>, <HI>and tho&s;e which come to Chri&s;t are drawne by the Father</HI><NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Joh. 6.44</NOTE>?</P>
<PB N="29" REF="19">
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The will of man may be depraved by corruption, or regulated by grace; but de&s;troyed or violently forced by neither: One may be &s;o powerfully per&s;waded by rea&s;ons and importunity that he cannot &s;ay nay, and yet not nece&s;&s;itated to yeild or deny, but acteth freely: So in the will of man, though corruption be &s;o forcible and prevalent in its in&s;tigations in the unrege|nerate, that they cannot but will and act iniquity, yet is not the will violently hur|ried and dragged (like a Beare to the &s;take, as we &s;ay) but complyingly, as when a blind man is led by another; and when as grace acts the will, it doth not take it pri|&s;oner, or carry it headlong, but per|&s;wades it; for when <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> draweth, his people become willing<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 110.3.</NOTE>, and run after him<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Can. 1.4.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="32">32. Doubt. <HI>Let mee under&s;tand you tho|rowly; Doe you meane that man &s;ince the fall hath Free will to good or evill, &s;o that he wants no power, but will onely, to beleeve and repent?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> By no meanes, no more then a mad, or po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed man can di&s;po&s;e of his owne &s;trength for his owne good: For though I hold that the will of man is not lo&s;t, nor ab&s;olutely determined this way,
<PB N="30" REF="20">or that, by any inevitable nece&s;&s;ity in cau&s;es purely naturally, yet withall I a&s;&s;erted, that by the fall of man, the will is wholly depraved, and as long as corruption is the guide, it mu&s;t needs act corruptly, and not otherwi&s;e. To make this plaine, con&s;ider one of the <HI>Simile's</HI> I u&s;ed concerning a blind man led by another: You know a blind man followeth his leader freely (that is, he is not haled or dragged away forcibly) which notwith&s;tanding I hope no man will &s;ay, that a blind man which relyeth whol|ly on the guidance of his leader, can goe whither he will, and e&s;cape all dangerous places of him&s;elfe, but according to his guide &s;o is his going. So the will of man acts freely, but it &s;eeth not by its owne eyes, but is guided by the under&s;tanding, which becau&s;e of corruption is a fal&s;e guide to it; and therefore untill God by his &s;pirit &s;an|ctifie the under&s;tanding, to be a faithfull guide to the will, it mu&s;t needs act perver&s;ly, though freely.</P>
<P N="33">33. Doubt. <HI>If a man in his naturall con|dition cannot doe good or evill as him&s;elfe wil|leth, why is he blamed for it, or exhorted to amend?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> If a man by his owne unthrifti|ne&s;&s;e make away his e&s;tate, is he not &s;till
<PB N="31" REF="20">&s;uable for his debts, though unable to pay them? And when God gave us ability to doe his will, and we lo&s;t it through our owne default, are we not &s;till debtors to his ju&s;tice? May not he blame us for mak|ing oure &s;elves uncapable? And whereas the Scripture calleth on us for amendment, it is to convince us of our wants and in&s;uf|ficiencie, that we may the more &s;eriou&s;ly &s;eek to him, that hath promi&s;ed to ea&s;e and heale them. The Prophet bids us make our &s;elves new hearts<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Ezek. 18 31.</NOTE>, and yet <HI>David</HI> de&s;ires God to doe it<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 51.10.</NOTE> : So then it mu&s;t be our aime, but Gods act<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Rom. 9.16.</NOTE>.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="9" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. IX</HI> Of Calling, Ju&s;tification, Adoption, Sanctification, Faith, Repentance, and good Workes.</HEAD>
<P N="34">34. Doubt. <HI>IF God love his people when they are in their blood</HI> (i. e. <HI>in the height of their &s;inne) what need they to be called ju&s;tified, adopted, and &s;anctified? For if God love them he will ever love them, and therefore they mu&s;t needs be &s;aved, though they were never called, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<PB N="32" REF="21">
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> I might aske you a like que&s;tion; If God loved the World<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Joh. 3.16</NOTE>, why &s;hould he give his Son for it, &s;eeing whom he once loveth he ever loveth? The truth is, the <HI>LORD</HI> loveth his Elect while&s;t they are finners, but not as they are &s;inners. A man may like a piece of Land, which as yet brings forth nothing but thornes and bry|ers, not becau&s;e &s;uch, or that of it &s;elfe it will grow better, but that by his owne worke he can make it fruitfull: So God loveth an Elect &s;inner, but it is with re&s;pect to his owne graces in time to be planted in them<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Eph. 1.4. &amp; 2.10.</NOTE> : And therefore it is nece&s;&s;ary that tho&s;e which God from eternity loves, be in time called by the Word and Spirit (ex|cept &s;uch as are incapable) they being created in Chri&s;t Je&s;us unto good workes, <HI>&amp;c.</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">See the Scripture la&s;t cited.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="35">35. Doubt. <HI>If we be ju&s;tified</HI> freely<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Rom. 32.4.</NOTE>, <HI>how can God have re&s;pect to</HI> Faith, <HI>in ju&s;tifying us?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> As a hand receiving a gift, hinders not but the gift may be free, though per|haps &s;uch a thing as cannot be received without a hand to take it; even &s;o <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> for our ju&s;tification is freely be&s;towed on us, though we cannot po&s;&s;ibly receive him without Faith, how&s;oever he may be ten|dered
<PB N="33" REF="21">to us. But that all cau&s;e of objection again&s;t the freene&s;&s;e of this worke on Gods part, may be abundantly removed, even Faith it &s;elfe (the hand which receiveth Chri&s;t and all his benefits<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Joh. 1.12.</NOTE>) is freely gi|ven us<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Eph. 2.8.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="36">36. Doubt. <HI>What need we &s;anctification, repentance, or good workes, if we be ju&s;tified by Faith alone</HI><NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Rom. 3.28</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Faith which ju&s;tifieth is not alone, though Faith alone ju&s;tifie (instrumen|tally I meane, el&s;e it is God that ju&s;tifieth<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8.33</NOTE>) for as the fruit-bearing tree is not without leaves, though the fruit &s;oring not from the leaves, either by intervention or concur|rence, but from the tree immediately: So a lively and ju&s;tifying Faith purifieth the heart<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Acts 15.9</NOTE> from which &s;anctification and good workes have their ri&s;e. And therefore that Faith which in due time doth not &s;hew it &s;elfe in workes, is not a &s;aving, but a dead Faith<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Jam. 2.17 18, 19, 20</NOTE> ; though they neither prevent, not a&s;&s;i&s;t Faith in the act of ju&s;tification.</P>
<P N="37">37. Doubt. <HI>If Chri&s;t and all his benefits belong to Beleevers, how can Heaven be con|ferred on per&s;ons as a reward for their good workes?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Heaven is not be&s;towed on any by way of ju&s;t recompence of his workes, for
<PB N="34" REF="22">the be&s;t are <HI>unprofitable Servants</HI><NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Luke 17.10.</NOTE> ; how then can their workes purcha&s;e Heaven? But God who can as well reward accor|ding to workes in mercy<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 62.12.</NOTE> : as Ju&s;tice doth abundantly repay them for all their paines and &s;ervice, by putting them in po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of that Kingdome which he ever intended them, without re&s;pect had to the worth of their workes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Simile.</NOTE> or repentance. <HI>A Father at his death doth abundantly reward his Sonne for his obedience, when be gives him his Lands, although he had long before, out of meere Fa|therly offection &s;tated them on him:</HI> So God u&s;eth to reward tho&s;e that &s;erve him with the &s;ame things which before he had freely promi&s;ed them. Upon <HI>Abrahams</HI> obeying of God, and non-re&s;u&s;ing to offer up his onely Son, God promi&s;ed him a large re|ward; and this is, that he &s;hall have a nu|merous and happy &s;eed, wherein al&s;o all Nations &s;hould be ble&s;&s;ed<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Gen. 22.15, 16, 17, 18.</NOTE> : And yet that which is here bequeathed to <HI>Abraham,</HI> as a reward of his obedience, was before this time &s;teated on him by free promi&s;e<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Gen. 12.2 &amp; 15.5.</NOTE>. In the &s;ame manner and order God rewards his people for their obedience and &s;ervice to him done, when he be&s;towes on them that heavenly Kingdome which hee purpo&s;ed &s;hould be their inheritance before the world was.</P>
<PB N="35" REF="22">
<P N="38">38. Doubt. <HI>What need we to beleeve, &s;ee|ing</HI><NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">2 Tim. 2.13.</NOTE> <HI>GOD will be faithfull though we beleeve not?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The Originall Word which is tran&s;lated [<HI>we beleeve not</HI><NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE>] is not only &s;uch a word as denotes the pre&s;ent time<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg"><HI>1</HI> Viz. being the pre&s;ent ten&s;e.</NOTE>, but al&s;o it, and another of affinity with it<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE>, are frequently u&s;ed for the he&s;itations and &s;taggerings of the faithfull; and doth not import a privation of the habit of Fiath by infidelity (for that is damnable<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Mark 16.16. Joh. 3.36. Mat. 17, 20 Mark. 9.24 &amp; 16.11, 14. Luke 24.11, 41.</NOTE>) But onely a negation (or rather a &s;u&s;pending) of Faiths acting in &s;ome juncture of time, which the Text quoted in the Margent will &s;ufficiently cleare, e&s;pecially to him that is able to peru&s;e the <HI>Greeke</HI> Copy: And there|fore I can &s;ee no more in the Text alleadg|ed but only thus much; If we beleeve not, that is, if for the pre&s;ent (or &s;ometimes) we by rea&s;on of weakne&s;&s;e, di&s;continue or intermit actuall beleeving, not being able to hold to a con&s;tant cour&s;e in acting Eaith on the promi&s;es of God, we mu&s;t not mea|&s;ure God by our &s;elves, as if he &s;tarted a&s;ide from us, as often as we from him, but will &s;till remaine faithfull, which if he &s;hould not doe, it could be no le&s;&s;e to him, who by an excellency is called faithful, and is faith|fulne&s;&s;e in the ab&s;tract, then a denyall of him&s;elfe.</P>
<PB N="36" REF="23">
<P N="39">39. Doubt. <HI>How can we be &s;ayd to have faith, and yet cannot worke miracles</HI><NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Mat. 17.20.</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The ordinary an&s;wer is (as I take it) that Chri&s;t in the place cited, meaneth not Faith in the generall, much le&s;&s;e ju&s;ti|fying Faith in &s;peciall, but a certaine &s;ort of Faith (&s;pecifically different from the &s;aving) who&s;e adequate and was miracle-working, whereof he was then treating; which di&s;tinction other Scriptures will &s;uf|ficiently warrant<NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">Mat. 7.22. 1 Cor. 13.2</NOTE> : But a learned man of the&s;e dayes hath a more &s;ubtile notion, which is, that Faith is a re&s;ting on a pro|mi&s;e, without which it is not Faith, but pre&s;umption: And &s;o the &s;en&s;e is, that what&s;oever God promi&s;eth, we may beleeve and hope for, and accordingly will the i&s;&s;ue be, how difficult &s;oever it appeare.</P>
<P N="40">40. Doubt. <HI>If the per&s;ons and actions of Beleevers be not perfectly free from &s;inne, how can either of them be accepted with God, which bates and abborres it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> God indeed hates and abhors the &s;ins of the Elect, yet their &s;ins being layd upon Chri&s;t, nothing hinders why their per&s;ons and actions may not be accepted through him.</P>
<P N="41">41. Doubt. <HI>If no &s;in can be &s;o great, but upon repentance it may be pardoned, how comes
<PB N="37" REF="23">the &s;inne again&s;t the</HI> holy Gho&s;t <HI>to he un|pardonable?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> No &s;in for the matter of it can be &s;o great but it may be pardoned, but that wicked action, which con&s;idered &s;imply, might be forgiven, may through the con|currence of aggravating circum&s;tances be|come unpardonable. Two men may be guilty of the &s;ame kind of tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion (if re&s;pect be had only to the materiality of it) and yet the one &s;in again&s;t the holy Gho&s;t, the other not. <HI>Paul</HI> bla&s;phemed and was for|given<NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 1.13.</NOTE>, the <HI>Scribes and Phari&s;ees</HI> bla&s;phe|med and could never be forgiven<NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Mat. 12.24, 31, 32. Mark 3, 22 28, 29.</NOTE>, for he did it of ignorance, they out of &s;pite and malice: So that as bad an act may be for|given, as forgivene&s;&s;e is denyed to: But the maine rea&s;on why this &s;in where it is found cannot be pardoned, is, that they being convinced of the truth, and yet &s;till re&s;i&s;t|ing it, are given up to delu&s;ions to beleeve lyes<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 2.10, 11, 12. <HI>Simile.</HI></NOTE>, and &s;o goe on to damnation. For as a wound which would be found curable enough, if good Salve were in due time ap|plyed thereto, may be the death of the man, if he be di&s;tracted and will &s;uffer nothing to be layd to it; &s;o though no tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion can be &s;o vile as to be &s;imply unpardonable, yet if it be accompanied with &s;uch circum|&s;tances,
<PB N="38" REF="24">that impenitency mu&s;t needs fol|low (as here it alwayes doth) it can never be forgiven.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deering on Heb. <HI>p.</HI> ult.</NOTE> But on the other &s;ide (as &s;aith learned <HI>Ma&s;ter Deering</HI>) he that carefully repenteth and trembleth at the thought of this &s;in, is farre from it is the <HI>Ea&s;t</HI> is from the <HI>We&s;t.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="10" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. X.</HI> Of Per&s;everance, and A&s;&s;urance.</HEAD>
<P N="42">42. Doubt. <HI>IS it not a ready cour&s;e to make men carele&s;&s;e of their wayes, when they are taught they can never fall away from grace?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> No, but rather a great encourage|ment to be diligent<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">1 Pet. 1.5 13. 2 Pet. 1.10</NOTE>, for he that would not &s;erve God out of love, though he no|ching benefited him&s;elfe thereby, is not yet in the &s;tate of grace, and then what have &s;uch to doe with per&s;everance? But he that is truely godly, finding him&s;elfe to be de|livered from his enemies, will &s;erve him without feare, in holine&s;&s;e and righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e before him all the dayes of his life<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Luke 1.74, 75.</NOTE> ; and if he falter herein (though God will
<PB N="39" REF="24">never utterly ca&s;t him off) he will be of|fended and cha&s;ti&s;e him, with corporall and &s;pirituall &s;courges.</P>
<P N="43">43. Doubt. <HI>I have heard &s;ome in the&s;e dayes &s;peake much again&s;t trying a mans &s;el&s;e by</HI> Scripture markes and &s;ignes, <HI>calling it a</HI> kindling of &s;parkes of our owne, <HI>and I much de&s;ire to know whether it be &s;afe &s;o to try my &s;elfe?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Under favour, it is (to &s;ay no wor&s;e) a great mi&s;take, to call the worke of the &s;pirit within us (or any arguments drawne from thence according to the te&s;ti|mony of the Spirit and word of Grace) <HI>&s;parkes of our kindling,</HI> for they are &s;parkes of Gods kindling; this &s;ort of teaching be|ing a Scripturall teaching<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 13.5. 1 Joh. 3.14 Jam. 3.17.</NOTE>, and (if right|ly u&s;ed) may be of &s;ingular u&s;e and com|fort; for they are as <HI>way-markes,</HI> di&s;cover|ing to us, whither our cour&s;es tend: And you know it is a great deal of &s;atisfaction to a Traveller, that he is in his way, when he findeth &s;uch a place of note, as his Map tels him he mu&s;t pa&s;&s;e thorow, before he arrive at his journeys end.</P>
<P N="44">44. Doubt. <HI>Yet I under&s;tand not the right u&s;e of the&s;e notes, or tryals; and therefore I be|&s;eech you proceed further?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> I &s;hall goe on in my la&s;t compa|ri&s;on,
<PB N="40" REF="25">and &s;hew you the rules. Suppo&s;e than a Chri&s;tian to be the Traveller, Heaven the place to which his way lyeth, &amp; the&s;e notes or &s;ignes remarkables in the way: Then,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As the remarkables (be they Hills, Rocks, <HI>&amp;c,</HI>) mu&s;t be &s;o fully and truely de&s;cribed, that the Traveller may know when he comes at them, neither doubting of them, nor mi&s;taking other things for them. So what&s;oever grace is pitcht upon, we mu&s;t have di&s;tinct know|ledge of it, what it is, and how di&s;cerna|ble from counterfeits, before we can a&s;&s;u|redly &s;ay we are come to it.</P>
<P>Secondly, A diligent Traveller com|ming to &s;uch a place as a&s;&s;ures him to be in his way, &s;tayes not there, but goeth on to|wards his journeys end: No more mu&s;t Chri&s;tians &s;tay becau&s;e they find they have gone aright &s;o farre, but proceed from &s;trength to &s;trength, and grow in grace.</P>
<P>Thirdly, A Traveller &s;hould not di&s;paire as if he were out of his way, though he find not his way-marke (which perhaps is a good di&s;tance off) as &s;oone as he &s;ets out; but hope that although it yet appeareth not, or very dimly; yet in due time, hee &s;hall perfectly di&s;cerne and recover it: So though one that de&s;ires to feare God, and
<PB N="41" REF="25">beleeve in him, doe not at fir&s;t &s;o clearely as he de&s;ireth di&s;cerne &s;ome graces in him|&s;elfe, he &s;hould not di&s;paire, but goe on ho|ping in the Lord till he be plea&s;ed to &s;peake peace<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">P&s;a. 85.8 I&s;a. 40.31. &amp; 50.10.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>Fourthly, If a Traveller have once at|tained to a cleare &s;ight of &s;uch a remarka|ble place as afterward he loo&s;eth the &s;ight of, by going through &s;ome valley (a moun|taine interpo&s;ed) he is &s;till to hope, and hold on, till he againe recover the &s;ight thereof: So though Chri&s;tians, which for|merly have found the precious fruits of the &s;pirit in them&s;elves, fall afterwards into temptation, or mountaines of difficulty a|ri&s;e, they are to remember how it hath been with them, hoping in God, and con|tinuing in the u&s;e of meanes, till they reco|ver their comfort againe.</P>
<P N="45">45. Doubt. <HI>If men be dead in &s;inne till they be regenerate, and alive ever after, what need is there of markes or &s;ignes? He that is alive, knowes that he lives, and a dead man can make no u&s;e of them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The compari&s;on halteth, for though the &s;pirituall life and death in ma|ny things re&s;emble the naturall, in many things they differ; e&s;pecially concerning the matter in hand: It is almo&s;t a miracle
<PB N="42" REF="26">of madne&s;&s;e, for a living man to think him|&s;elfe dead; and yet in ordinary experience, we find many weake Chri&s;tians in whom there is the life of grace, which cannot for a long time be a&s;&s;ured thereof: It is im|po&s;&s;ible that a dead man &s;hould either know him&s;elfe to be dead, or thinke he is alive; but we read of diver&s;e &s;piritually dead that have &s;o judged of them&s;elves, as <HI>Caine, Ju|das,</HI> and many in humane Stories<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Read the Story of Spira.</NOTE>, a|mong&s;t whom <HI>Julian</HI> the Apo&s;tate de&s;erves the fir&s;t place, who having in a Battell re|ceived his deaths wound, belched out this de&s;perate bla&s;phemy, <HI>Vici&s;ti Galilaee,</HI> mean|ing Chri&s;t as an enemy had vanqui&s;hed him. And too frequently to our griefe doe we meet with Hereticks, Hypocrites, Civilians, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> which have deaths brand upon them, and yet are confident their ca&s;e is as good as any mans; in&s;omuch that no arguments (without the &s;peciall a&s;&s;i&s;tance of Gods &s;pirit) are &s;ufficient to convince them of the contrary.</P>
<P N="2">2. Though life were ea&s;ie to be perceived, yet growth is many times more difficult, and this Doctrine of tryall doth as well enquire into the growth, as truth, of gr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ce.</P>
<P N="46">46. Doubt. <HI>How &s;hould there be any cer|tainty
<PB N="43" REF="26">in trying a mans &s;elfe by the&s;e notes, when an eminent Preacher of the&s;e dayes hath proved that neither</HI> univer&s;all obedience, <HI>nor</HI> love to the Brethren <HI>(which are accounted two of the plaine&s;t) have any certainty in them? Not the fir&s;t, becau&s;e there is no &s;uch thing in any meere man, as univer&s;all obedience: Nor the &s;econd, becau&s;e this love hath &s;uch qua|lifications as men &s;hall hardly finde in them|&s;elves</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>See</HI> 1 Cor 13. Ver. 4.5, &amp;c.</NOTE> : <HI>Or if &s;uch love can be found, yet we cannot know we love the Brethren, except we know that tho&s;e whom we love, are the Bre|thren; it is not &s;ufficient to love them under the notion of Brethren; for &s;o Papi&s;ts love one another &mdash; And therefore</HI> Love to the Brethren <HI>is rather a note to know others then our &s;elves, for the Apo&s;tle doth not &s;ay,</HI> Hereby I know, <HI>but</HI> Hereby we know, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> By <HI>univer&s;all obedience</HI> we doe not meane exact obedience to the Law in every part of it, without &s;werving or interrup|tion, but unblamable walking in a Go&s;pel|&s;en&s;e, which indeed is rather univer&s;all in will then act, for though <HI>When they would doe good, evill is pre&s;ent with them</HI><NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Rom. 7.21.</NOTE>, <HI>&s;o that they doe not the good which they would, but the evill which they would not</HI><NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Ver. 19.</NOTE> ; <HI>yet they delight in the Law of the Lord after the inward man</HI><NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Ver. 2<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE>. And this their obedience is called <HI>univer&s;all,</HI>
<PB N="44" REF="27">in as much, as a Chri&s;tian doth not pick nor choo&s;e among Gods Commandements, but hath re&s;pect to them all without exception or difference, indeavouring to walke up to them, or as neare as may be: Now &s;uch <HI>u|niver&s;all obedience</HI> as this mu&s;t be in a Chri|&s;tian<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Jam. 2.10</NOTE>, and where it is, mu&s;t needs be a good &s;igne of an happy e&s;tate<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">P&s;. 119.6.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>As for <HI>Love to the Brethren,</HI> methinke [1 <HI>John</HI> 3.14.] is &s;o plaine, that he which &s;aith, we cannot know our condition here|by, doth directly give <HI>John</HI> (or rather the <HI>holy Gho&s;t</HI>) the Lye: And what if love have &s;uch qualifications as are &s;poken of, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 13. Cannot the tree be knowne, un|till it beare fruit, it were ab&s;urd arguing to &s;ay (in the &s;ea&s;on when a plant is new &s;et) this is no Apple-tree, becau&s;e we &s;ee no Ap|ples on it. And when it appeares that we unfeignedly love the Brethren, in whom we apprehend the Image of God, &s;hining in the graces of his &s;pirit (not out of any by|re&s;pect, but love to the God they &s;erve) may we not conclude we love them, becau&s;e the fruits of this love doe not pre&s;ently ap|peare? Is it rea&s;on to &s;ay there is no love, becau&s;e it hath no fruits to our di&s;cerning, or rather to &s;ay here is love, and in Gods <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ime we &s;hall &s;ee fruits.</P>
<PB N="45" REF="27">
<P>Nor need we to know infallibly, that they are the Brethren whom we love; if they profe&s;&s;e and practi&s;e the true Religion, we are bound (till the contrary appeare) to take them for Brethren; and if we love them under that notion, though they be not &s;uch, our humane judgement indeed is mi&s;taken, but our love is neverthele&s;&s;e true: <HI>Charity hopeth all things</HI><NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 13.7.</NOTE> : But what thinke you did the reverend Author meane, when he tels us, Papi&s;ts love one another under the notion of Brethren? Doth he thinke it alone, to love him which (as farre as the judgement of man can reach) is a true Saint, and one which the Word of God proves to be an Idolater? Was it alone, to love <HI>Judas</HI> for his Ma&s;ters &s;ake, while he was undi&s;covered, and to love a bla&s;phe|mous Scribe or Phari&s;ee, under the notion of a Brother? The Papi&s;ts wilfully &s;hut their eyes again&s;t the truth, and therefore out of &s;infull ignorance, take tho&s;e to be the Brethren, which (for the pre&s;ent) neither &s;o are, nor can be, and love them under a wilfully-mi&s;taken notion of Bre|thren: But we, according to the rules of love, mode&s;ty, and prudence (neither condemning any without manife&s;t cau&s;e, nor prying into Gods &s;ecrets, nor blind|folding
<PB N="46" REF="28">our owne knowledge) take tho&s;e for Brethren, which for the pre&s;ent may be (and we hope are) the Brethren; and though we be mi&s;taken, it is no &s;in of ours, who were never made the judges of the heart, but are to re&s;t &s;atisfied in mens out|ward profe&s;&s;ion and conver&s;ation: Nor can this be a &s;igne to know others, and not our &s;elves; for we cannot know whether others love the Brethren except we knew their hearts. And though it be not &s;ayd (1 <HI>John</HI> 3.14.) <HI>I know I am, &amp;c.</HI> But <HI>We know we are, &amp;c.</HI> That makes nothing a|gain&s;t me, but rather for me: Had <HI>John</HI> &s;poken in the &s;ingular Number <HI>[I know]</HI> it might have been thought to be &s;ome &s;pe|ciall per&s;ons priviledge; but he &s;aith <HI>[We]</HI> that is <HI>[you and I]</HI> writing to ordinary Chri&s;tians, as is very probable: And the &s;ame per&s;ons are made the &s;ubjects al along; for &s;aith he, <HI>We know that we are tran&s;lated from death to life, becau&s;e we love the Brethren.</HI> So that the &s;ame per&s;ons that loved the Brethren, did thereby know that them|&s;elves were tran&s;lated from death to life.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="11" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="47" REF="28">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XI.</HI> Of Chri&s;tian Liberty, and Liberty of Con&s;cience: <HI>ALSO,</HI> Of the civill Magistrate, and Church|cen&s;ures.</HEAD>
<P N="47">47. Doubt. <HI>IF Chri&s;tians mu&s;t not be the &s;ervants of men</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 7.23.</NOTE>, <HI>how come Rulers to have any power over us?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The meaning is not, that we mu&s;t not &s;erve men at all (for that would con|tradict the Ver&s;es immediately &s;ore going<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 7.20, 21, 22.</NOTE> and almo&s;t infinite other places) but doe not &s;o &s;erve men, that it hinder you in the &s;ervice of God.</P>
<P N="48">48. Doubt. <HI>If every one mu&s;t beare his owne burden</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Gal. 6.5.</NOTE>, <HI>and be judged according to his workes</HI><NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Rom. 2.6</NOTE>, <HI>why &s;hould any man (Magi&s;trate, or other) trouble or interrupt him, though he be hereticall or bla&s;phemous, but leave him to God, and his owne con&s;cience?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The vile&s;t &s;inner on earth may
<PB N="48" REF="29">plead thus: But the truth is, that though the principall and ultimate judgement of every mans cau&s;e be left to <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> to be de|termined by him at the day of judgement: Yet God out of his &s;ingular wi&s;edome hath appointed, that open wickedne&s;&s;e (whe|ther it be matter of opinion or practice) be judged and puni&s;hed al&s;o by Authority Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall and Civill, and if either &s;ort neglect their duty herein, them&s;elves be|come culpable<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Neh. 13.16, 17, 18. 1 Kin. 9.22 1 Cor. 5. <HI>tot.</HI> Rev. 2.14.15, 20.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="49">49. Doubt. <HI>But what good is this re&s;traint like to worke, but to make men either more vio|lent, when they &s;ee their Tenet oppo&s;ed, or el&s;e Hypocrites (if they be re&s;trained) for God onely can change the heart?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> This al&s;o any notorious wretch may &s;ay for him&s;elfe; but tru&s;t repo&s;ed in men by God mu&s;t be di&s;charged, and the i&s;&s;ue left to him.</P>
<P N="50">50. Doubt. <HI>But if my con&s;cience be erro|nous, what cour&s;e can I take? If I go again&s;t the truth, I &s;in</HI><NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 2.10.</NOTE>, <HI>and if I goe again&s;t my con|&s;cience I &s;in al&s;o</HI><NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Rom. 14. <HI>ult.</HI> 1 Cor, 8.7. &amp;c.</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It is true, and therefore the way is to pray and &s;eeke for &s;atisfaction, that your con&s;cience may comply and clo&s;e with the truth.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="12" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="49" REF="29">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XII.</HI> Of Religious Wor&s;hip, and of the sabbath-day.</HEAD>
<P N="51">51. Doubt. <HI>TO what purpo&s;e &s;hould Chri&s;tians pray for any thing, &s;eeing God hath promi&s;ed they &s;hall want nothing? Can God forget his promi&s;e? Or needs he any remembrancer?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Prayer is a duty incumbent to all men, e&s;pecially Chri&s;tians, and the way wherein God is plea&s;ed to make out &s;uch promi&s;es<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Mat. 7.7.</NOTE> ; and therefore you mu&s;t not thinke that Gods ab&s;olute promi&s;es tye him to give &s;uch and &s;uch things, whether they will aske or no<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Jam. 4.2.</NOTE>, but that he will enable his people to pray, that they may receive the promi&s;ed mercies<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 51.9.</NOTE>? He having re&s;olved he will be &s;ought unto for the accompli&s;h|ment of his promi&s;es<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Ezek. 36.37.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="52">52. Doubt. <HI>Some &s;cruple the &s;inging of</HI> Davids P&s;almes, <HI>&s;aying they were onely penned for the pre&s;ent occa&s;ion, and conceive that the</HI> P&s;almes <HI>mentioned in the New Te&s;tament were not</HI> Davids, <HI>but &s;uch as men a&s;&s;i&s;ted by the &s;pirit
<PB N="50" REF="30">of God, compo&s;ed for the particular occa&s;ion</HI><NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 14.26.</NOTE> : <HI>But what thinke you of it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Though <HI>Davids P&s;almes</HI> were pen|ned for the particular occa&s;ion, yet the u&s;e of them &s;till remained, and &s;ome of them were &s;ung many Ages after<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">2 Chron. 20.21. &amp; 29.30.</NOTE>, nor can it be proved that they ever cea&s;ed to be Gods Ordinance.</P>
<P>As for the New Te&s;tament, we often read the word <HI>[P&s;almes]</HI> therein, and for the mo&s;t part in &s;uch a &s;en&s;e, that <HI>Davids P&s;almes</HI> mu&s;t needs be thereby meant<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Luke 20.42. Acts 1.20. &amp; 13.33. Eph. 5.19. Col. 3.16. <HI>and el&s;e|where.</HI></NOTE>, but never (to my remembrance) in the &s;en&s;e you &s;peake of; for &s;uch occa&s;ionall com|po&s;ures are rather called <HI>Hymnes,</HI> or <HI>Spi|rituall &s;ongs,</HI> and di&s;tingui&s;hed from <HI>P&s;alms</HI><NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Eph. 5.19. Col. 3.16.</NOTE>. To that place you cite, <HI>Viz.</HI> 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 14.26. I an&s;wer:</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The Apo&s;tle there &s;peakes of a|bu&s;es and d &s;orders, and therefore it is hard thence to prove a duty: It is rough Logick to &s;ay, the Apo&s;tle reproves them that they had each of them a P&s;alm; therefore Chri|&s;tians mu&s;t (or may) have each of them a P&s;alme.</P>
<P>Secondly, Admit that <HI>Paul</HI> reproves them not for any faultine&s;&s;e in the matter of their wor&s;hip, but the manner of per|formance (which I confe&s;&s;e is likely to be
<PB N="51" REF="30">his meaning) our opinion may well &s;tand with it; for he might well meane <HI>Davids P&s;almes,</HI> and &s;o the &s;en&s;e will be this, Every one choo&s;eth what P&s;alme him&s;elfe plea|&s;eth, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Suppo&s;e he meant any other kind of <HI>P&s;almes</HI> then <HI>Davids,</HI> yet he excludes not them, neither in this place, nor el&s;e|where.</P>
<P>Fourthly, If tho&s;e which had the ex|traordinary gifts of the &s;pirit, to compo&s;e &s;uch &s;pirituall Songs, as above&s;ayd, made le&s;&s;e u&s;e of <HI>Davids P&s;almes,</HI> by rea&s;on of their owne extraordinary abilities, it were no warrant to us, which pretend to no &s;uch gifts, to neglect, &s;uch excellent helpes as <HI>Davids P&s;almes</HI> are.</P>
<P N="53">53. Doubt. <HI>How doe you know that this day which we celebrate, is the fir&s;t day of the weeke which the Apo&s;tles kept, and is called the</HI> Lords day?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> As well as the Jewes in <HI>Chri&s;ts</HI> time, that they kept the <HI>&s;eventh,</HI> or you that you are baptized: We mu&s;t not think our Ance&s;tors were &s;o &s;illy, that they could not count &s;even.</P>
<P N="54">54. Doubt. <HI>I, but that is not all, let them account as well as they can, the time will vary much in the revolution of one thou&s;and,
<PB N="52" REF="31">&s;ix hundred, forty eight yeares; and therefore how can this be &s;ayd to be the &s;ame, con&s;idering with all, that in Countreys farre di&s;tant it may he night in one, when it is day in another?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol,</HI> I confe&s;&s;e, I am neither A&s;trono|mer, nor Geographer, nor doe I thinke we &s;tand in need of &s;uch Calculations: Let yeares revolve whither they can, the dayes of the week will &s;till follow one another in the &s;ame order they doe. The Jewes Sab|bath was above twice as old as ours is, when <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> was on the Earth, and the cour&s;e of the Sunne twice interrupted in the meane time<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Jo&s;. 10.13 2 King. 20.11.</NOTE> : Yet <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> never reproved them for ob&s;erving a wrong day, but he, and his, ob&s;erved it, till it was changed<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Luke 23.56.</NOTE>, which they would not have done, had there been any errour in the Jewes account. The di|&s;tance of place (I confe&s;&s;e) may alter the time much, yet I verily beleeve that hee, which in all his travells (or where&s;oever GOD placeth him) &s;hall ob&s;erve a day weekly, beginning with the fir&s;t, and &s;o holding on, keepes it &s;ea&s;onably: And if this be not allowed, I &s;ee not how the Pa|triarcks in their Pilgrimages, or Pro&s;elytes, which dwelt in all parts of the World<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Acts 2.9. &amp; 8.27.</NOTE> ; (to &s;ay nothing of the di&s;tance which &s;ome conceive, was between <HI>Canaan</HI> it &s;elfe, and
<PB N="53" REF="31">Paradi&s;e, where the Sabbath was in&s;titu|ted) could ob&s;erve the &s;eventh day Sab|bath in its &s;ea&s;on.</P>
<P N="55">55. Doubt. <HI>Might we not, as Ma&s;ter</HI> Cal|vin <HI>wi&s;hed, appoint a part of each day, or as o|thers think, any other day (&s;o it be one in &s;e|ven) in &s;tead of the fir&s;t day of the weeke, &s;eeing that day is not po&s;itively &s;et downe to be kept?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Though I reverence Ma&s;ter <HI>Calvin</HI> as highly as any man that was alive this hundred yeares; yet I cannot comply with him nor any men el&s;e, in judging another time &s;o fit for Gods &s;ervice, as that which by the Apo&s;tles them&s;elves was &s;et apart<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Act. 20.7 1 Cor. 16.2</NOTE>, who&s;e example (they being in&s;pired by the holy Gho&s;t) may as well in this, as many other things &s;upply the want of a precept<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Phil. 3.17</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="56">56. Doubt. <HI>How &s;hould I know when to begin and conclude the</HI> Lords day?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It it a great que&s;tion among Di|vines: For mine owne part (with &s;ub|mi&s;&s;ion) I thinke it begins at the dawning of the day, when Chri&s;t aro&s;e<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Mat. 28.1</NOTE> : I know it is &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.) <HI>The evening and the morn|ing;</HI> and not <HI>The morning and the evening;</HI> nor dare I &s;ay it is an <HI>Hi&s;tero proteron,</HI> for the often inculcating of it &s;eemes to point
<PB N="54" REF="32">at &s;ome My&s;tery: But this I &s;ay, that though it be granted that the naturall day and particularly the Sabbath, containing foure and twenty houres, had its revolution from evening to evening; yet nothing hin|ders why the <HI>Chri&s;tian Sabbath</HI> may not be from morning to morning; for &s;eeing the Lords day is kept in memory of <HI>Chri&s;ts</HI> re|&s;urrection, why &s;hould it not as well be|gin at the houre and minuite, as be cele|brated on the day that he ro&s;e from the dead?</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="13" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XIII.</HI> Of Oathes.</HEAD>
<P N="57">57. Doubt. <HI>HOw can &s;wearing by the Name of GOD be a &s;inne, &s;eeing it is not onely allowed, but com|manded</HI><NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Deu. 6.13 &amp; 10.20.</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Swearing by the Name of GOD, &s;o it be with reverence, and upon ju&s;t ground, is not a &s;in but a wor&s;hip of God, tending to his honour, by making him the Judge of &s;ecrets, but &s;wearing <HI>cu&s;tomarily, ra&s;hly,</HI> and <HI>vainely,</HI> is a breach of the third
<PB N="55" REF="32">Commandement; and the like may be &s;ayd of other wor&s;hips: But the meaning of the places you cite, is this, When thou &s;halt be lawfully called to &s;weare, thou &s;halt &s;weare by none other but God alone; for to him that wor&s;hip appertaineth.</P>
<P N="58">58. Doubt. <HI>But how can the&s;e pa&s;&s;ages &s;tand with flat prohibitions on the other &s;ide, SWEARE NOT AT ALL</HI><NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Mat. 5.34</NOTE>, and <HI>ABOVE ALL THINGS MY BRETHREN SWEARE NOT</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Jam. 5.12</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Very well, for the &s;en&s;e is, <HI>Sweare not at all by the Creature;</HI> Not by Heaven, Earth, Jeru&s;alem, or thine head, &s;aith Chri&s;t<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 9.34 &amp;c.</NOTE>. Not by Heaven, Earth, or any other Oath, &s;aith the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Jam. 5.12</NOTE> : The generall expre&s;&s;ion, Sweare not at all, mu&s;t be expounded by the particulars enu|merated: Others &s;ay, the <HI>Scribes</HI> and <HI>Pha|ri&s;ees</HI> taught, It was lawfull to &s;weare in their ordinary Communication, &s;o they were not perjured, and <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> heads him|&s;elfe again&s;t their Doctrine, forbidding &s;wearing in ordinary cour&s;e, to which <HI>James</HI> &s;ub&s;cribeth in the place quoted. Both expo&s;itions are agreeable to &s;ound doctrine though they cannot both be &s;en&s;e of the places. But that Chri&s;t &s;hould forbid all &s;wearing, cannot be the &s;en&s;e of it, for God
<PB N="56" REF="33">him&s;elfe appointed an Oath to decide con|trover&s;ies,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 22.7 &amp;c. 1 Kin. 8.31 Ezra 10.5. Nehe. 5.12 &amp; 13.25. I&s;a. 65.16. 2 Cor. 1.23 Heb. 6.16. 2 Cor. 11.31.</NOTE> which being neither typicall nor grounded on &s;peciall rea&s;on, peculiar to tho&s;e times, but of common equity, con|cerning us as well in the dayes of the <HI>Go&s;pell</HI> cannot be abrogated. Compare the Scrip|tures in the Margent.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="14" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XIV.</HI> Of the Church, and Communion of Saints.</HEAD>
<P N="59">59. Doubt. <HI>WHethr is there &s;uch a thing as an uni|ver&s;all vi&s;ible Church?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The Church wherein God hath &s;et Apo&s;tles (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 12.28.) can be no other. <HI>&V;niver&s;all</HI> it mu&s;t needs be, becau&s;e comprehending univer&s;all Officers; and it can neither be the invi&s;ible on Earth, nor the tryumphant; for Apo&s;tles (as &s;uch) belong to neither of them (though as Saints they doe) for <HI>Judas</HI> was an Apo&s;tle<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Mat. 10.2, 3, 4.</NOTE>, but appertained neither to the invi&s;ible Church on Earth, nor the tryumphant in Hea|ven<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Joh. 17.12. Acts 1.16.</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="57" REF="33">
<P N="60">60 Doubt. <HI>How is it po&s;&s;ible that Belee|vers through the World &s;hould hold Commu|nion, when they are of &s;o many different o|pinions?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Diver&s;ity of opinion is a great e|nemy to Communion, and therefore it &s;hould be our de&s;ire and endeavour to be all of one heart and judgement<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 1.10.</NOTE> : Yet it is po&s;&s;ible, Communion may be held in the maine, among&s;t tho&s;e which are not of one mind in all things<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Phil. 3.15, 16.</NOTE>.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="15" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XV.</HI> Of the Sacraments.</HEAD>
<P N="61">61. Doubt. <HI>HOw can Infants be ca|pable of</HI> Bapti&s;m, <HI>when the Scripture no where commands it, nor tels of any that were Baptized?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Though the Scripture lay downe neither Precept nor Pre&s;ident in expre&s;&s;e tearmes; a Doctrine that may be proved by undenyable Scripture-con&s;equence may not be rejected. <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> overthrew the opi|nion of the Sadduces by Scripture<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Mat. 22.29, to 34.</NOTE>, al|though he alleadged nothing expre&s;ly a|gain&s;t
<PB N="58" REF="34">their errour, but onely by way of con&s;equence: Howbeit the confutation was &s;o cleare, that the multitude under&s;tood, and admired it, his enemies were put to &s;i|lence, and a fre&s;h party prepared them&s;elves to give an on&s;et.</P>
<P N="62">62. Doubt. <HI>Yet methinkes a matter of &s;o great importance, and &s;o much contended for, &s;hould be proved by one place at lea&s;t of expre&s;&s;e Scripture?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Though the lea&s;t part of Go&s;pell-truth is worthy to be contended for, &s;o it be in love and mode&s;ty; and the delay of Bapti&s;me without ju&s;t cau&s;e, is a &s;leighting of Gods gracious tender, yet the di&s;pute being onely concerning a circum&s;tance of time, we account it nothing &s;o weighty as if it concerned the &s;ub&s;tance and e&s;&s;ence of Bapti&s;me. Neverthele&s;&s;e it cannot be deny|ed, but even weightier matter then Bap|ti&s;me it &s;elfe are not to be found in expre&s;&s;e tearmes in the Scripture: The My&s;tery concerning Trinity of Per&s;ons, in Unity of E&s;&s;ence is no where read, <HI>Totidem verbis</HI> (as we &s;ay) in the Word of God, howbeit it is &s;ufficiently proved, 1 <HI>John</HI> 5.7. and no le&s;&s;e then bla&s;phemy to deny it: Neither is it &s;aid in any place expre&s;ly, that the holy Gho&s;t is God, though undenyably proved,
<PB N="59" REF="34">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.16. <HI>Acts</HI> 5.3, 4. Or how doth it appeare that Women did, or ought to re|ceive the Lords Supper? Or that the Son of a Beleever, being a growne per&s;on, was (or ought to be) Baptized, which notwith|&s;tanding our oppo&s;ers hold and practice: They mu&s;t not an&s;wer me, that whole Fa|milies were baptized, among whom it is probable there were &s;ome &s;uch; for it may be ea&s;ily replyed, It is as probable, that in &s;ome of the Families mentioned, there was at lea&s;t one Infant, or per&s;on in minority, which if we &s;hall &s;uppo&s;e, &s;eeing the whole Family was baptized, it mu&s;t needs be bap|tized al&s;o, which they will in no wi&s;e grant, though it be the more probable of the two.</P>
<P N="63">63. Doubt. <HI>I &s;hall &s;ay nothing concerning the</HI> Trinity, <HI>or of the Deity of the</HI> holy Gho&s;t <HI>(your &s;elfe having proved them both &s;ufficient|ly, though (I confe&s;&s;e) onely by &s;trong con|&s;equence, not in expre&s;&s;e tearmes, which I ne|ver before ob&s;erved) but to me the Scripture is plaine enough, that Women may receive the Lords Supper, becau&s;e they may examine them|&s;elves</HI><NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 11 28.</NOTE>, <HI>and we read of Women that have had Faith, Repentance, Knowledge, and Charity, as well as men: And as ea&s;ie is it to prove, that a Beleevers Son</HI> (when him&s;elfe is a Belee|ver)
<PB N="60" REF="35"><HI>mu&s;t be baptized, &s;eeing Faith makes capable</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Mark 16.16.</NOTE> ; <HI>but I finde not the like proofe for Pe|dobapti&s;me?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol,</HI> Mi&s;take me not, I did not deny the things you plead for; onely I &s;ay they cannot be found in expre&s;&s;e tearmes, but mu&s;t be made out by con&s;equence, and this you &s;hall finde is equally &s;trong for Pedo|bapti&s;me as for them, which (to &s;atisfie your doubt) I &s;hall briefly &s;hew you in the&s;e few Arguments.</P>
<DIV3 N="1" TYPE="argument">
<HEAD><HI>1.</HI> Argument.</HEAD>
<P><HI>Di&s;ciples are to be Baptized, Beleevers Children are Di&s;ciples:</HI> Ergo, <HI>They are to be Baptized.</HI></P>
<P>That Di&s;ciples are to be Baptized, no man can doubt, that under&s;tands, <HI>Matth.</HI> 28.19. which Scripture is mo&s;t naturally ren|dred<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> : <HI>Go, di&s;ciple all Natinos, baptizing them, &amp;c.</HI> And tho&s;e which deny the law|fulne&s;&s;e of Childrens bapti&s;me, doe not onely acknowledge this, but urge it much again&s;t us, as &s;uppo&s;ing that Infants can|not be Di&s;ciples; And therefore all the &s;tre&s;&s;e of the argument lyeth in the proofe
<PB N="61" REF="35">of the Minor, which may be done thus. <HI>Peter</HI> blaming &s;uch as urged Circumci&s;ion, and ob&s;ervance of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> Law, hath this pa&s;&s;age<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Acts 15.10.</NOTE>, <HI>Why tempt yee God, to put a yoake on the neck of the Di&s;ciples, &amp;c.</HI> To the un|der&s;tanding whereof you mu&s;t note, that the fal&s;e Teachers taught the Brethren that they mu&s;t be Circumci&s;ed, becau&s;e of the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> commanding it<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Acts 15.1</NOTE> (for no other Law could bind them to it) and this Law did not onely require that adult per&s;ons, but that all their Males eight days old &s;hould be circumci&s;ed<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.12.</NOTE>. So that the&s;e Patrons of Circumci&s;ion mu&s;t needs lay this un&s;upportable yoak, as well on Beleevers Children, as Beleevers them&s;elves, and yet they are all called Di&s;ciples; I conclude ther|fore, &s;eeing Chri&s;t commands that Di&s;ci|ples mu&s;t be baptized, and <HI>Peter</HI> includeth Beleevers Children in the number of Di&s;ci|plet, <HI>Such Children are to be baptized.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="2" TYPE="argument">
<HEAD><HI>2.</HI> Argument.</HEAD>
<P>If Bapti&s;me be come into the roome of Circumci&s;ion, Infants may be as capable of it, as they were of Circumci&s;ion:</P>
<PB N="62" REF="36">
<P><HI>But,</HI> Bapti&s;me is come in the room of Cir|cumci&s;ion:<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Col. 2.12</NOTE> Therefore, &amp;c.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="argument">
<HEAD><HI>3.</HI> Argument. &mdash;</HEAD>
<P N="64">64. Doubt. <HI>Stay a little, before you pro|ceed to any other Argument, I de&s;ire you would vindicate the a&s;&s;umption of the la&s;t, from ju&s;t exceptions: How can Bapti&s;me be come in the place of Circumci&s;ion? When fir&s;t, they were both on foot together a long &s;ea&s;on: Secondly, Males onely were Circumci&s;ed, but Females are al&s;o baptized: Thirdly, Circumci&s;ion mu&s;t be admini&s;tred &s;trictly on the eight day; but no &s;uch rule is ob&s;erved in baptizing Children: Fourthly, Circumci&s;ion was to confirme</HI> Ca|naan, <HI>and certaine temporall ble&s;&s;ings to</HI> A|braham, <HI>and his &s;eed</HI><NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.8, 9, 10.</NOTE>, <HI>for &s;uch was the Co|venant of God with him</HI><NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.4, &amp;c. &amp; 15 18, &amp;c.</NOTE>.</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> To the&s;e your foure allegations I &s;hall &s;hape you out as many particular an|&s;wers.</P>
<P N="1">1.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>1</HI> Exception removed.</NOTE> They might be both on foot at once, and yet one &s;ucceed in the place of another. <HI>Solomon</HI> was anoynted King, his Father be|ing yet alive<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">1 King. 1 39, 43, 44, &amp;c.</NOTE> ; in like manner was <HI>Eleazar</HI> made Prie&s;t, before his Fathers death<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Num. 20.26.</NOTE> ;
<PB N="63" REF="36">yet who doubts but they were their Fathers &s;ucce&s;&s;ours? Go&s;pell-Ordinances came in the roome of typicall Ceremonies<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Joh. 4.22 23, 24. Heb. 10.1.</NOTE>, though they were in being at one time<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Act 16.2</NOTE>. So Cir|cumci&s;ion was in being, but even expiring, when bapti&s;me was in&s;tituted.</P>
<P N="2">2.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>2</HI> Exception taken away.</NOTE> Males onely were circumci&s;ed becau&s;e they onely were capable, but Women were al&s;o included in the Covenant, for it was made to <HI>Abraham</HI> and his &s;eed, whereof the Females were a very con&s;iderable part, and though they were not per&s;onally cir|cumci&s;ed (becau&s;e uncapable) they were not excluded from Circumci&s;ion, but in|cluded in the Circumci&s;ion of the Males. A Church or Family was accounted cir|cumci&s;ed, when the Males were circumci|&s;ed. The whole hou&s;hold mu&s;t eate the Pa&s;chall Lambe<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Exod. 12.3, 4.</NOTE>, and yet no uncircum|ci&s;ed per&s;on mu&s;t eate thereof<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">Ver. 48.</NOTE>, &s;urely then Women in <HI>I&s;rael</HI> were not reputed uncir|cumci&s;ed: But now for Bapti&s;me, Women are not onely virtually, and con&s;tructively, but actually, properly, per&s;onally, and for|mally capable thereof, as well as men: In a word, we read that <HI>Lydia</HI> (a Female) was baptized<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Acts 16.15.</NOTE> ; and that an Infant may be, it hath been (and by Gods help &s;hall be &s;ur|ther) proved: and then why not a Female Infant?</P>
<PB N="64" REF="37">
<P N="3">3.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>3</HI> Exception taken of.</NOTE> What&s;oever in the time of the Law was not e&s;tabli&s;hed on &s;uch grounds as con|cerne our times al&s;o, but was either typi|call, or grounded on &s;peciall rea&s;on, pecu|liar to tho&s;e times, we never judged our &s;elves obliged thereby: Of which fort of precepts, that concerning the preci&s;e ob&s;er|vation of the eight day is one.</P>
<P>Ma&s;ter <HI>Tombes</HI> him&s;elfe (if my memo|ry faile not, for I have not his Book now at hand) doth acknowledge that the eight day typ fied the re&s;urrection, which con|fe&s;&s;ion is indeed ingenious, but not all the proofe we have; for the Scriptures &s;hew that the eight day was exactly limited, be|cau&s;e of the Mothers Ceremonially un|cleanene&s;&s;e the fir&s;t &s;even dayes, which mu&s;t be pa&s;t ere the Child could enjoy this Or|dinance whereof we &s;peake<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Lev. 12. Ver&s;. 2. compared with ver. 3.</NOTE>. If any man &s;hall here reply, this can be no rea&s;on, be|cau&s;e &s;hee was uncleane three and thirty dayes<NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">Ver. 4.</NOTE> : I an&s;wer, fir&s;t, that though &s;hee was uncleane &s;oking, yet not with the &s;ame kind of uncleane&s;&s;e, for el&s;e the &s;pirit of God would not have divided them, but have &s;ayd, &s;he &s;hall be uncleane forty days, nor have called them by di&s;tinct names, the one, &s;eparation of infirmity<NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">Lev. 12.2.</NOTE> ; the other, blood of purifying<NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ibid.</HI> v. 4.</NOTE>. Secondly, though it
<PB N="65" REF="37">were the &s;ame uncleane&s;&s;e, it did not pre|judice the rea&s;on, becau&s;e the eight day was an intermi&s;&s;ion betwixt the &s;even, and three and thirty dayes, as the word <HI>[then]</HI> &s;hewes, <HI>And &s;hee &s;hall then</HI> (that is, after the eight day is over, and the Child Circumci|&s;ed) <HI>continue in the blood of her purifying, three and thirty dayes, &amp;c</HI><NOTE N="w" PLACE="marg">Ver. 4.</NOTE>. To conclude, there is good rea&s;on that as they were to take the fir&s;t opporrunity, wherein the Or|dinance of Circumci&s;ion could be orderly admini&s;tred (which in ordinary ca&s;es was the eight day) &s;o &s;hould we take the fir&s;t fit opportunity for the Bapti&s;me of our In|fants, and not defer it when it may be or|derly admini&s;tred, but the &s;trict ob&s;ervance of the eight day by &s;peciall rea&s;on concern|ed the Jews, but not us.</P>
<P N="4">4.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>4</HI> Exception an&s;wered.</NOTE> In the Covenant made with <HI>Abraham</HI> &s;ome things be peculiarly promi&s;ed to him, and his Seed, as tho&s;e you recited; but &s;ome things common to all the faithfull with him, as that pa&s;&s;age [<HI>To be a God to thee, and thy Seed after thee</HI><NOTE N="x" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.7</NOTE>.] Now Cir|cumci&s;ion confirmed both &s;orts of promi|&s;es to his Seed after the fle&s;h, but onely the &s;pirituall mercies to Pro&s;elytes, which were his Children onely by Faith and profe&s;&s;ion, not by generation: It is not to be imagined,
<PB N="66" REF="38">that every Circumci&s;ed bond-&s;ervant had an inheritance in <HI>Canaan</HI> be&s;towed on him: Neither rea&s;on nor Hi&s;tory make for &s;uch an a&s;&s;ertion (much le&s;&s;e that <HI>Pro&s;elytes,</HI> dwelling in farre Countreys, mu&s;t have po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions in the Land which God gave onely to the Sons of <HI>Jacob</HI><NOTE N="y" PLACE="marg">Gen. 28.3.</NOTE>) though they had right to their holy things<NOTE N="z" PLACE="marg">Exod. 12 48.</NOTE>. Under|&s;tand therefore, that when we &s;ay <HI>Bapti&s;me &s;ucceedeth Circumci&s;ion,</HI> we meane onely &s;o far as Circumci&s;ion was a &s;eale and argu|ment of a mans being in the &s;pirituall (though externall) Covenant of God, and not as it confirmed temporall rights and priviledges. Having thus vindicated the a&s;&s;umption according to your de&s;ire, I &s;hall proceed, and lay you downe more Arguments.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="argument">
<HEAD><HI>3.</HI> Argument.</HEAD>
<P><HI>All that belong to the externall Co|venant of God ought to be Bapti|zed:</HI></P>
<P>But, <HI>The Infant-&s;eed of beleeving and repenting Parents belong to the ex|ternall Covenant of God:</HI></P>
<P>Therefore, <HI>They ought to be baptized.</HI></P>
<PB N="67" REF="38">
<P>The Propo&s;ition is proved, <HI>Acts</HI> 2.39. where <HI>Peter</HI> urgeth the repenting Jewes to be baptized on this ground, becau&s;e <HI>the pro|mi&s;e</HI> (that is, the externall Covenant of grace, or rather the externall part of the Covenant of grace) <HI>was to them and their Children:</HI> If this was a good rea&s;on then, it is &s;o &s;till. And that <HI>the Infant-&s;eed of be|leeving and repenting Parents, belongeth to the externall Covenant of God,</HI> is as plain, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 7.14. To under&s;tand which place, con&s;i|der that there be onely three &s;orts or kinds of holine&s;&s;e, of which Children can be ca|pable, which we may call (till better names be found out for them) <HI>per&s;onall, conjugall,</HI> and <HI>federall:</HI> The fir&s;t cannot be here in|tended, for many a Beleever hath un&s;ancti|fied and gracele&s;&s;e Children, which could not be, if one beleeving Parent &s;hould &s;o &s;anctifie the other, that the Seed &s;hould be internally holy. Not the &s;econd, <HI>Viz.</HI> Con|jugall, or Marriage holine&s;&s;e, and if the Apo&s;tle had onely meant &s;uch Children were lawfully begot in Wedlock, not adul|terou&s;ly, or in Fornication; for he makes &s;uch an oppo&s;ition between uncleane&s;&s;e and this holine&s;&s;e as will not admit this inter|pretation: <HI>El&s;e</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>were your Chil|dren uncleane, but now they are holy:</HI> Unclean|ne&s;&s;e
<PB N="68" REF="39">and holine&s;&s;e are here oppo&s;ed; &s;o that if by <HI>[holy]</HI> he meane onely lawful|ly begotten <HI>[uncleane]</HI> mu&s;t needs &s;ignifie unlawfully begotten: And then the Apo|&s;tle &s;aith thus much in effect, that when neither party beleeveth, they live and beget Children in adultery, or fornication; but this cannot be his meaning, for it is not true, Marriage being honourable, and a bed undefiled, not to Belevers onely, but to all men<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Heb. 13.4</NOTE>. It remaineth then, that they be Covenant-wi&s;e, or federally holy, or &s;et apart to God. For the Lord having taken a beleever and his &s;eed, into Covenant with him&s;elfe<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Gen. 17.7 as before.</NOTE>, though his Wife be an unbe|leever, her infidelity cannot make Gods Covenant ineffectuall.</P>
<P>For further proofe, let us view againe that Scripture in the &s;econd of <HI>Acts, Ver&s;.</HI> 39. <HI>The promi&s;e is to you, and TO YO&V;R CHILDREN:</HI> This is &s;poken to Evangelicall repenting Parents, and agrees to all &s;uch.</P>
<P>Add hereunto, that many ab&s;urdities (and tho&s;e no &s;mall ones) will follow, if we deny Children (becau&s;e &s;uch) to be un|capable of the externall Covenant; as,</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Ab&s;urdity"> Fir&s;t, That we have lo&s;t by the com|ming of <HI>Chri&s;t:</HI> for before he came in the fle&s;h, if a Gentile had joyned him&s;elfe to
<PB N="69" REF="39">the Jewi&s;h Church, he had taken hold of the Covenant for him&s;elfe and his Seed, but now onely for him&s;elfe; and is not a mans tenure much wor&s;ned, if he formerly held to him and his heyres for ever, and now onely for terme of life: Surely the clearene&s;&s;e of di&s;pen&s;ation, and freedome from burden&s;ome Ceremonies appertaining to the Covenant of grace cannot make n|mends for this lo&s;&s;e: A man had better undergoe many inconveniences with his owne Land, then to have a morec ommo|dious piece for terme of life only.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Ab&s;urdity"> Secondly, The whole ble&s;&s;ing of <HI>Abra|ham</HI> &s;hould not then come on the Gentiles, according to <HI>Gal.</HI> 3.14. but onely part of it, for his priviledges were not per&s;onall on|ly, but hereditary, <HI>i.e.</HI> belonging to his Seed.</P>
<P><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Ab&s;urdity"> Thirdly, <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;hould be le&s;&s;e kind to his Church now then when he was on the Earth, for then he acknowledged, that In|fants were not debarred, for their infancy, from the Covenant; but &s;aith, <HI>Of &s;uch is the Kingdome of Heaven</HI><NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Mat. 19.13. Mark 10.14. Luk. 18.15</NOTE> : I know &s;ome may an&s;wer when <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;aith <HI>[of &s;uch]</HI> he meaneth not Children, but &s;uch as they are: <HI>Viz.</HI> &s;uch as are harmele&s;&s;e, humble, and meek, like them: But the reply is ea&s;ie, that he intended to take in both; for the
<PB N="70" REF="40">Originall word<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE>, which is here tran&s;lated <HI>[&s;uch]</HI> when it is referred to a patterne, doth not exclude, but include it.</P>
<P>I can give you many in&s;tances where the word mu&s;t needs be &s;o taken: where <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;ayth, Who &s;o &s;hall receive one <HI>S&V;CH</HI> Child in my Name, receiveth me<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Mat. 18.5</NOTE> ; were it not ridiculous to &s;ay, <HI>Chri&s;ts</HI> intent was to tell them, that if they received any o|ther Child like that, in his Name, they re|ceived him; but if they received that very Child which he &s;hewed them, they received him not: It is &s;ayd, <HI>John</HI> 4.23. <HI>That the true wor&s;hippers &s;hall wor&s;hip the Father, in &s;pirit and in truth; for the Father &s;eeketh S&V;CH to wor&s;hip him.</HI> Here the word <HI>(&s;uch)</HI> cannot &s;ignifie &s;uch as are onely like to them that wor&s;hip in &s;pirit and truth (for &s;uch counterfeits are hypocrites, who&s;e &s;ervice God abhors) but they that doe &s;o wor&s;hip. Compare al&s;o the fir&s;t Ver&s;e of the &s;econd Chapter to the <HI>Romans</HI> with the &s;econd Ver&s;e of the &s;ame, and you &s;hall &s;ee that &s;uch things are the &s;ame things. In the &s;ame &s;en&s;e this word is taken in &s;undry other places<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Mat 9.8 Act. 16.24 Gal. 5.23.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>Thinke withall what rea&s;on you can give, why <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;hould be &s;o angry as <HI>Mark</HI> telleth us he was<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg"><HI>Mark 10.14.</HI> The Greek word <GAP DESC="foreign">, importeth indignation, or grievous vexation of &s;pirit, and &s;o is u&s;ed, <HI>Mat. 20.24 &amp; 26.8. Mark 10.41 &amp; 14.4 Luk. 13.14</HI></NOTE>, when his Di&s;ciples re|buked
<PB N="71" REF="40">them that brought Children to him, that he &s;hould pray over them<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Mat. 19.13.</NOTE> : Was this the &s;ole cau&s;e, <HI>Viz.</HI> that they were like tho&s;e that belong to him in conditions? Then where&s;oever the like vertues are found, they that hold them forth mu&s;t al|&s;o be admitted, and <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> would have been di&s;plea&s;ed, had they been rebuked: And upon this ground (as <HI>Ma&s;ter Cotten</HI> rightly affirmeth) <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> might as well have &s;ayd, Suffer Doves and Lambs to come to me, for of &s;uch (that is, &s;uch meek and harmele&s;&s;e ones as they are) is the King|dome of Heaven. But &s;urely that opinion would &s;avour &s;trongly of the idle, that &s;hould &s;et Chri&s;t in a po&s;ture of readine&s;&s;e to receive Doves or Lambs, to pray over them, and to be di&s;plea&s;ed with his Di&s;ci|ples, had they rebuked &s;uch as brought them, which yet he mu&s;t have done had he been uniforme in his working according to rea&s;on<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">This is cleare to him that under&s;tands the axiome. A quateus ad omne va+let con&s;e|quentia.</NOTE>, and tho&s;e imitable vertues the &s;ole cau&s;e why he received them.</P>
<P N="65">65. Doubt. <HI>There is a great deale of rea|&s;on in that which you &s;ay, and I acknowledge my &s;elfe much engaged to you for condi&s;cending to my capacity, in avoyding tearmes of Art as much as may be: But I ob&s;erve, you made much u&s;e of</HI> Acts 2.39. <HI>and I doubt whether it can
<PB N="72" REF="41">carry all the weight you lay on it, for there be no le&s;&s;e then three &s;trong exceptions again&s;t it.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE N="1" UNIT="Exception"> Fir&s;t, <HI>All to whom</HI> Peter <HI>&s;pake were Jewes by Nation, to whom indeed this promi&s;e be|longed: Keepe you to Beleevers in</HI> Abrahams <HI>line, and you may &s;ay to them,</HI> The promi&s;e is to you and to your Children: <HI>but you cannot affirme the &s;ame of others, for there is no &s;uch promi&s;e.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE N="2" UNIT="Exception"> Secondly, <HI>Others expound the place thus; The promi&s;e is to you if you repent, and to your Children, and to tho&s;e that are afarre off (that is Gentiles) even &s;o many as the</HI> Lord our God <HI>&s;hall call, if they repent: Or thus, who|&s;oever</HI> God <HI>calleth (be it your &s;elves, your Children, or any of the Gentiles) to them the promi&s;e belongeth.</HI></P>
<P><MILESTONE N="3" UNIT="Exception"> Thirdly, <HI>Some affirme, this is no the pro|mi&s;e of</HI> Gen. 17. <HI>(as you &s;eeme to take it) but of</HI> Joel 2. <HI>which the &s;peech concerneth all along this Chapter; and the &s;en&s;e is,</HI> The promi&s;e <HI>(Viz. of extraordinary gifts of the &s;pirit, to &s;peake to people of &s;trange languages, in their Mother tongues, as wee doe this day)</HI> is to you, and to your Children, and to as many as are afar off; even as many as the Lord our God &s;hall call: <HI>to wit, to Preach to &s;uch people as he hath called us.</HI></P>
<PB N="73" REF="41">
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>1</HI> Exception taken off.</NOTE> Admit they were all Jewes by Na|tion (although I &s;ee no nece&s;&s;ity to grant it:) Is not the partition-wall yet broken downe?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Eph. 2.12, 13, &amp;c. Acts 10.34, 35. Gal. 5.13, 14. Rom. 2.26.27, 28, 29, &amp; 4.9. 1 Cor. 7.19 Gal. 6.15.</NOTE> What then &s;ignifie the&s;e Scriptures in the Margent? If it be, what mean learn|ed men to cumber us with &s;uch di&s;tinctions or re&s;trictions, as Beleevers in <HI>Abrahams</HI> line, and Beleevers out of his line?</P>
<P N="2">2.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>2</HI> Exception removed.</NOTE> The limitation, <HI>Even as many, &amp;c.</HI> limits onely the immediate clau&s;e, <HI>And to all that are afarre off:</HI> not the whole &s;en|tence; the &s;en&s;e being this, The promi&s;e is to you and to your Children (ab&s;olutely) but not to you and your Children alone, but to &s;uch al&s;o are afar off, if the Lord call them to repentance; nor doe I &s;peake this for mine owne advantage, but the &s;cope of the place proves it; for el&s;e <HI>Peter</HI> might better have &s;ayd, the promi&s;e is to all that repent, then to proclaime the Covenant of God to repenters and their Seed, and when all is &s;ummed up, there is no pro|mi&s;e to the penitents &s;eed at all; were not here a faire &s;louri&s;h about nothing, to &s;ay, &s;o much of mercy offered to their &s;eed, and yet their &s;eed receives no benefit at all? Yes (you will &s;ay) their &s;eed may al&s;o repent, and then have the priviledges the Parents had: But I would faine know under what
<PB N="74" REF="42">notion the Child of a Beleever becomes capable of the&s;e Covenant-priviledges, whether as a Beleever, or as the Child of a Beleever? If it be &s;ayd, as a Beleever; then it cannot be as the Son of a Beleever; for had all his kindred been Turkes, or Hea|thens, he might (yea ought to) be re|ceived when it appeareth that him&s;elfe be|leeveth: If as the Child of a Beleever, why may he not be received in infancy? For he can never be more the Child of a Be|leever, then he is the fir&s;t minuite of his life.</P>
<P N="3">3.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>3</HI> Exception replied unto.</NOTE> This promi&s;e cannot be that of the &s;econd of <HI>Joel</HI> (though I grant that is in|&s;i&s;ted on in this Chapter) for it runs not in the &s;ame tearmes: That in <HI>Joel</HI> is to the Sons and Daughters immediately; this to the Parents, and &s;ecundarily to the Chil|dren like, <HI>Gen.</HI> 17.7. Much le&s;&s;e will the coherence allow it. For when the poore creatures were pricked in their hearts, cry|ing out, <HI>Men and Brethren what &s;hall wee doe?</HI> Was it &s;uitable to tell them, the mu&s;t repent and be baptized all of them; and then if it &s;hould plea&s;e God to call them to be Preachers, they might expect the ex|traordinary gifts of the &s;pirit inabling them to Preach to people of &s;trange lan|guages,
<PB N="75" REF="42">or if he called their Children, or any of the Gentiles to the like worke, they might expect the like a&s;&s;i&s;tance? Were this &s;alve for a wounded con&s;cience, groaning under the burden of &s;in? If there were no Women among&s;t them (which yet is to me very doubtfull) we may neverthele&s;&s;e &s;up|po&s;e upon good probability: 1. that ma|ny of them (if not the mo&s;t) were never called to be Preachers: 2. On the other &s;ide, experience tels us, that in &s;ome places (as <HI>New England</HI> for example) Mini&s;ters that have been &s;ent to people of &s;trange tongues (as appeares by the ble&s;&s;ing of God upon their indeavours) have not attained to their &s;peech by immediate in&s;piration, but in time acquired the knowledge there|of, by indu&s;try and conver&s;ing among them: Nor 3. can mini&s;teriall abilities appea&s;e an awakened con&s;cience, but the revelation of free pardon; and &s;o mu&s;t <HI>Peters</HI> &s;peech be expounded, <HI>Repent and be baptized every one of you for the remi&s;&s;ion of &s;ins, and yee &s;hall receive the gift of the holy Gho&s;t</HI> (a gift fre|quently be&s;towed on ordinary hearers in tho&s;e dayes<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Acts 8.15 16, 17. &amp; 10.44, 45, 46. &amp; 19.2. <HI>cum</HI> 6.</NOTE>) and his maine argument to of grace) <HI>is to you and to your Children.</HI> Thus move them to repent and be baptized, is this <HI>The promi&s;e</HI> (<HI>i.e.</HI> the externall Covenant
<PB N="76" REF="43">I hope the&s;e objections have received their full an&s;wers: I would onely add this more concerning them; though they be brought by one party, and for one cau&s;e they doe vehemently interfere, and fight one again&s;t another, in&s;omuch that no two of them can &s;tand together: For the fir&s;t &s;uppo&s;eth the promi&s;e to be the Covenant of grace, &amp; advanceth Jews above Gentiles in the in|joyment of it, making the Priviledges of the Jews hereditary, but of the Gentiles meer|ly per&s;onall: The &s;econd likewi&s;e &s;uppo&s;eth it to be the Covenant of grace, but utterly qua&s;heth the pretended difference between Beleevers in <HI>Abrahams</HI> line, and Beleevers out of his line, which the fir&s;t exception urged: The third denyeth it to be a Co|venant of grace: So then take which you will, and it overthroweth the other two; and yet the&s;e multiformous creatures mu&s;t all be drawne in one yoak (though they looke &s;o many &s;everall wayes) to the pre|judice of the truth; but it is impo&s;&s;ible a cau&s;e &s;hould pro&s;per under &s;o many and manife&s;t contradictions.</P>
<P><HI>Serpentes avibus geminantur,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Horat.</NOTE> <HI>tigribus agni.</HI></P>
<P N="66">66. Doubt. <HI>How can an Infant be in Covenant with God, when as it doth not con|&s;ent
<PB N="77" REF="43">to its owne bapti&s;me; and a Covenant re|quires the con&s;ent of both parties?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> 1. It is a mi&s;take to thinke that bapti&s;me brings a &s;oule within Covenant, whereas it is an evidence of a mans being in Covenant with God (externall I meane all along) before he was baptized<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">Acts 2.38 39. &amp; 8.37. <HI>cum</HI> 38. &amp; 16.14, 15.</NOTE>, as Cir|cumci&s;ion al&s;o was<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Gen. 12.1, 2, 3. <HI>cum</HI> Chap. 17.7 Jo&s;h. 5.3. <HI>cum</HI> Jer. 31 32.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="2">2. Gods Covenants doe not need a re|&s;tipulation on the creatures part: He made a Covenant with <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;eed, while yet he had no child<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Gen. 12.15. &amp; 17. Chapters. Acts 7.5.</NOTE> ; yea he did not onely Covenant with <HI>Noah</HI> and his &s;eed, but with every living creature<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Gen. 9.9 10.</NOTE>, and yet the&s;e could not re&s;tipulate. When men Covenant both parties mu&s;t con&s;ent, becau&s;e el&s;e the one knowes not the others mind, nor hath power to worke him to his purpo&s;e: but God performes all; he becomes their God and makes them his people<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">Jer. 31.31, 32. Heb. 8.10.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="67">67. Doubt. <HI>How can Children be law|fully baptized, &s;eeing Faith is required</HI><NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Mark 16.16.</NOTE> <HI>which Infants have not?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Things mu&s;t be under&s;tood ac|cording to the capacity of the per&s;ons &s;po|ken to: <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, if any would not work neither mu&s;t he eate<NOTE N="p" PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 3 10.</NOTE>. Mu&s;t therefore In|fants, and they which are di&s;abled by &s;ick|ne&s;&s;e or age, either worke or peri&s;h? In like
<PB N="78" REF="44">manner, Chri&s;ts words which you quote &s;eeme to import, that he which beleeveth not mu&s;t not be baptized; but looke at the precedent Ver&s;e, and you &s;hall &s;ee &s;uch are pointed as, as can heare the Word Preach|ed, which Infants cannot: Infants be|leeve in their Parents, as <HI>Levi</HI> payd tythes in <HI>Abraham,</HI> and Parents bringin their Children to Chri&s;t, the children them&s;elves are &s;ayd to come to him<NOTE N="q" PLACE="marg">Mat. 19.1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">, 14. Mark 10.13, 14. Luke 18.1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">, 16.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>If you allow not this, con&s;ider what dangerous Doctrine, and uncharitable judgement, you mu&s;t needs by con&s;equence entertaine: <HI>Viz.</HI> that all which dye Infants are damned; for it you &s;ay an Infant can|not be baptized, becau&s;e it hath not faith; by the &s;ame rea&s;on you mu&s;t conclude al&s;o, that becau&s;e it wanteth faith it cannot be &s;aved; for the Text you alleadge, is farre more expre&s;&s;e for that, then the other: <HI>He that beleeveth not &s;hall be domned.</HI></P>
<P N="68">68. Doubt. <HI>Some conceive,</HI> 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 7.14. <HI>proveth a Child to be out of Covenant, except one of the next and immediate Parents be a Beleever? I pray you tell me your apprehen&s;ion thereof.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol,</HI> Truely I think it doth not;<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Nec &s;tan|tem a parte affirmativa cogit <GAP DESC="foreign">, locus, <HI>1 Cor 7.14.</HI> ubi Apo&s;tolus dicendo libe|ros cuju&s;vis parentis fide|lis (majo|ribus omni|bus ethni|cis) e&s;&s;e Sanctos li|beros ambo|rum paren|tum imme|diatorum (reliquis omnibus majoribus membris) <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2 words"> e&s;&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word">. <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 span"> Apollo|aium Ca. 2. p. 38.</HI></NOTE> for although in &s;uch a ca&s;e as theirs, when the Go&s;pell was newly &s;owne among&s;t them,
<PB N="79" REF="44">and all their Ance&s;tours had been heathens, one of the Parents mu&s;t needs be a Beleever, or the Child be de&s;titute of federall holi|ne&s;&s;e; yet I judge far otherwi&s;e, concern|ing the &s;eed of beleeving (though remote) Parents<NOTE N="r" PLACE="marg">Exo. 20.6 Gen. 17.7. P&s;a. 89.29. &amp; 103.17.18.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="69">69. Doubt. <HI>How may the Papi&s;ts be an|&s;wered, which contend for Chri&s;ts reall pre|&s;ence in the Ho&s;t, &s;eeing Chri&s;t &s;ayd expre&s;ly,</HI> This is my body, <HI>and his words mu&s;t needs be true?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> We confe&s;&s;e, he is pre&s;ent truely (though not corporally, but Sacramen|tally) in the &s;ame &s;en&s;e that <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, <HI>The Rock was Chri&s;t</HI><NOTE N="&s;" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 10.4.</NOTE> ; that is a figure of Chri&s;t.</P>
<P N="70">70. Doubt. <HI>If a man mu&s;t examine him|&s;elfe, and &s;o eate of that bread and drinke of that Cup</HI><NOTE N="t" PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 11.28.</NOTE>, <HI>why &s;hould any other examine him?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> It is not intended exclu&s;ively, as if none el&s;e might, but that him&s;elfe mu&s;t except he will be <HI>guilty of the body and blood of the Lord,</HI> and <HI>eate and drinke damnation to him&s;elfe</HI><NOTE N="u" PLACE="marg">Ver. 27, 29. <GAP DESC="foreign">,</NOTE> : The word which is tran&s;lated <HI>[&s;o]</HI> is an Adverbe of likene&s;&s;e, and there|fore it cannot be rendred, <HI>Let a man exa|mine him&s;elfe, and &s;o</HI> (that is, without more adoe) <HI>let him eate, &amp;c</HI> But thus, <HI>Let a man examine him&s;elfe, and &s;o</HI> (that is, in that
<PB N="80" REF="45">frame of &s;elfe-examination) <HI>let him eate of that bread, &amp;c.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="16" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. XVI.</HI> Of the state of Men after death, and withall, of the Re&s;urrection, and la&s;t Judgement.</HEAD>
<P N="71">71, Doubt. <HI>HOw can a man comfort him&s;elfe, in the death of his prophane kindred?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> He may quiet his heart with the&s;e confiderations following.</P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>God</HI> is ready to forgive tho&s;e which repent at the la&s;t moment, and for ought we know, may worke repentance, when the party is too far &s;pent to expre&s;&s;e it.</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>Gods</HI> decree is unchangeable, and therefore they either were elected and are &s;aved, or Reprobates and could never have been &s;aved, had they lived a thou|&s;and yeares.</P>
<P N="3">3. Had &s;uch as are rejected of God, lived longer, their impenitent hearts would have cau&s;ed them &s;till to have trea&s;ured more wrath to them&s;elves, by proceeding further in wickedne&s;&s;e<NOTE N="a" PLACE="marg">Rom. 2.5</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="81" REF="45">
<P N="4">4. Our relation to them (the maine cau&s;e why we are grieved for them) cea&s;eth after this life<NOTE N="b" PLACE="marg">Mat. 22.30.</NOTE></P>
<P N="5">5. However it is with them, God will di&s;po&s;e of all things for his onely glory, which &s;hould be more deare to us then our friends (yea our owne) &s;oules.</P>
<P N="72">72. Doubt. <HI>If the whole man (&s;oule and body) &s;inned, how can it otherwi&s;e be but the &s;oule mu&s;t dye as well as the body?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> Man in his actings is to be con&s;i|dered <HI>collectively,</HI> not <HI>di&s;tributively;</HI> and as &s;in is not acted by the &s;oule and body in a divided &s;en&s;e, but joyntly by the whole man, con&s;i&s;ting of &s;oule and body, as its con&s;titutive parts<NOTE N="c" PLACE="marg">Gen. 2.7.</NOTE> : So man dyes not in a di&s;tributive &s;en&s;e, as if the body dyed by it &s;elfe, and the &s;oule by it &s;elfe; but as a creature compact of both, he dyeth (or cea&s;eth to be what he was) when the &s;oule (which is the e&s;&s;entiall forme of a man) is taken away. A Parliament when di&s;&s;ol|ved, loo&s;eth its e&s;&s;ence (as &s;uch) though all the members be alive; &s;o doth an hou&s;e dimoli&s;hed, though all the materialls re|maine whole: So when the &s;oule and bo|dy are di&s;united, the man is dead. howbeit the &s;oule lives either in happine&s;&s;e, or woe<NOTE N="d" PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;. 12 7. Mat. 10.28 Luk. 12.4. &amp; 16.23. 1 Pet. 3.19 Revel. 6.9.10, 11.</NOTE>.</P>
<PB N="82" REF="46">
<P N="73">73. Doubt. <HI>If there be no &s;atisfaction of the ju&s;tice of God after this life, which men having given, &s;hall be forgiven and &s;aved, how is it &s;ayd,</HI> Till thou ha&s;t payd the la&s;t mite<NOTE N="e" PLACE="marg">Luke 12.59.</NOTE>, or uttermo&s;t farthing<NOTE N="f" PLACE="marg">Mat. 5.26</NOTE>?</P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> This word <HI>[till]</HI> is often found in Scripture, &s;ignifying (or at lea&s;t not ex|cluding) perpetuity<NOTE N="g" PLACE="marg">Gen. 8.7. &amp; 28.15. 1 Sam. 15.35. 2 Sam. 6.23 P&s;al. 110.1. &amp; 123.2. Mat. 1.25. &amp; 28.20. 2 Tim. 4.13 2 Pet. 1.19</NOTE>, and taken in that &s;en&s;e, the force of it is thus much; if thou be not reconciled to God in Chri&s;t before thy death, thou &s;halt be ca&s;t into the pri|&s;on of Hell, there to abide the exact ju&s;tice of God for ever, becau&s;e thou never can&s;t &s;o &s;atisfie his wrath, as to be acquitted from it.</P>
<P N="74">74. Doubt. <HI>If every &s;oule when it leaveth the body, goeth either to Heaven or Hell imme|diately, to what purpo&s;e is the re&s;urrection, or day of judgement.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> There is very great rea&s;on for them: a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That the whole creation may be purged, and delivered from the bondage of corruption<NOTE N="h" PLACE="marg">Rom. 8.19, 20, &amp;c.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>Secondly, That the &s;oule and body which &s;uffered or finned together, may in the righ|teous day of the Lord be crowned, or pu|ni&s;hed<NOTE N="i" PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 1.6, 7, &amp;c. 2 Tim. 4.7, 8.</NOTE>.</P>
<P>Thirdly, That all hidden things<NOTE N="k" PLACE="marg">Eccl. 12.14. Luke 12.2.</NOTE> ; yea
<PB N="83" REF="46">the &s;ecrets of hearts<NOTE N="l" PLACE="marg">Rom. 2.16.</NOTE>, may be di&s;co|vered, that thereby Gods righteous judge|ment may be al&s;o revealed<NOTE N="m" PLACE="marg">Rom. 2.5</NOTE>.</P>
<P>Fourthly, That he may publickly right his people upon their enemies<NOTE N="n" PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 1.6, &amp;c.</NOTE>.</P>
<P N="75">75. Doubt. <HI>Godly men, are men &s;till, and Chri&s;t avoucheth,</HI> That every idle word that men &s;hall &s;peake, they &s;hall give account thereof at the day of judgement<NOTE N="o" PLACE="marg">Mat. 12.36.</NOTE> : <HI>How then can they be &s;ayd to be di&s;charged from all &s;inne?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Re&s;ol.</HI> The meaning is not as if the god|ly &s;hall be called to account, for their idle words, or any other &s;ins; but onely thus much; that the judgement of God &s;hall be &s;o exact and &s;evere, that even &s;o much as an idle word &s;hall not pa&s;&s;e him without ful &s;atisfaction to his ju&s;tice, on the tran&s;gre&s;|&s;our, or his &s;urety; and that he which hath not his pardon already procured by Chri&s;t, &s;hall be found culpable at that day, and the &s;entence of condemnation pronounced a|gain&s;t him, though he had onely one idle word to an&s;wer for.</P>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="postscript">
<PB N="84" REF="47">
<HEAD>Po&s;t&s;cript.</HEAD>
<P>SOme Friends expected ere this time I &s;hould have publi&s;hed a Treati&s;e tending towards accommodation in Church di&s;cipline, which they know I have made a con&s;iderable procedure in: Others of a maligning &s;pirit, &s;coffe at me, as if to fini&s;h it, were either impo&s;&s;ible, or vaine: To both the&s;e I &s;hall onely &s;ay thus much: <HI>Viz.</HI> That however the peru&s;ing of many tracts, for the materials therein improved, together with multiplicity of imployment in an un&s;etled con|dition, and withall the want of a Book or two, which yet I cannot attaine, have hindred the perfecting thereof; I hope it will not be long ere it have its due from me: After which (if its prolixity hinder not, but that I mry have a faire opportunity to make it publick) I &s;hall &s;end it abroad, and my prayers after it, for a ble&s;&s;ing thereon: If not, though the fault will not be mine, I &s;hall make amends as farre as I can, either by Printing an Epitome thereof, or at lea&s;t, by &s;uffering &s;uch Friends to peru&s;e it in writing, as de&s;ire the &s;ame.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="imprimatur">
<OPENER><DATELINE><DATE>July, <HI>30. 1649.</HI></DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P><HI>Imprimatur,</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Jo&s;eph Caryl.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="Scripture index">
<PB N="85" REF="47">
<P><TABLE>
<ROW ROLE="label">
<CELL>The Texts of Scrip|ture.</CELL>
<CELL>Places in the Booke.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Gen. 1.5.8.13.19.23.31.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>12.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>56.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Gen. 6.6.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>2.</HI> Doubt. <HI>3.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Gen. 17.7.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Gen. 17.14.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>6.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>24.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Levit. 12.1.2.3.4.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. of <HI>64.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Numb. 15.30.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>6.</HI> Doubt. <HI>24.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Deut. 6.13. &amp; 10.20.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>13.</HI> Doubt. <HI>57.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Sam. 15.11.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>2.</HI> Doubt. <HI>3.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>I&s;aiah 45.21.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>2.</HI> Doubt. <HI>6.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Matth. 5.26.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>6.</HI> Doubt. <HI>73.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Matth. 5.34.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>13.</HI> Doubt. <HI>58.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Matth. 12.36.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>16.</HI> Doubt. <HI>75.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Mat. 17.20.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>9.</HI> Doubt. <HI>39.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Mat. 19.13.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Mat. 28.19.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>63.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Mark 10.14.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Mark 16.16.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>67.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="48">
<ROW>
<CELL>Luke 12.59.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>16.</HI> Doubt. <HI>73.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Luke 18.15, 16.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Acts 2.39.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Acts 15.10.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. of <HI>63</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Cor. 7.14.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>64</HI> and <HI>68.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Cor. 7.23.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>11.</HI> Doubt. <HI>47.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Cor. 11.28.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>15.</HI> Doubt. <HI>70.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Cor. 12.28.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>14.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>59.</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 Cor. 14.26.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>12.</HI> Re&s;ol. of <HI>52</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2 Cor. 3.6, 7, 8.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>6.</HI> Doubt. <HI>25,</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2 Tim. 2.13.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>9.</HI> Doubt. <HI>38.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>James 5.12.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>13.</HI> Doubt. <HI>58.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1 John 3.14.</CELL>
<CELL>Chap. <HI>10.</HI> Re&s;ol. to <HI>46</HI> Doubt.</CELL>
</ROW>
</TABLE> </P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="table of contents">
<PB REF="48">
<HEAD>The Capitall Contents of this &s;hort Di&s;cour&s;e.</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>CHAP. I.</HI> Concerning the holy Scriptures, and by the way, of the light of Nature. <HI>p. 1.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 2.</HI> Of God. <HI>p. 4.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 3.</HI> Of Gods Decree, and of Cre|ation. <HI>p. 6.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 4.</HI> Of Providence. <HI>p. 10.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 5.</HI> Of the fall of Man. <HI>p. 13.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 6.</HI> Of the Law of God and the two Covenants. <HI>p. 16.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 7.</HI> Of Chri&s;t the Mediatour. <HI>p. 22.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 8.</HI> Of Free-will. <HI>p. 28.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 9.</HI> Of Calling, Ju&s;tification, Sanctification, Adoption, Faith, Re|pentance, and good Workes. <HI>p. 31.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 10.</HI> Of Per&s;everance, and A&s;|&s;urance. <HI>p. 38.</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="49">
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 11.</HI> Of Chri&s;tian Liberty, and Liberty of Con&s;cience: and withall of the Christian Magistrate, and Church-cen&s;ures. <HI>p. 47.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 12.</HI> Of Religious Wor&s;hip, and of the Sabbath-day. <HI>p. 49.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 13.</HI> Of Oathes. <HI>p. 54.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 14.</HI> Of the Church, and Com|munion of Saints. <HI>p. 56.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 15.</HI> Of Bapti&s;me, and the Lords Supper <HI>p. 57.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chap. 16.</HI> Of the state of Men after death; and withall, of the Re&s;ur|rection, and last Judgement. <HI>p. 80.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
