Person from suffering those temporal evils which were threatned in this Covenant against those which did not continue in all things written in the Book of it Neither Sacrifices nor Legal Purifications Sanctified but unto the purifying of the flesh and to their temporal concerns only Heb. 9. 9 10 13. And here we may observe a five-fold difference in reference to Remission of Sin between the first Covenant and the Covenant of Grace 1. They differ in the nature of those Sacrifices by which Atonements were made and upon which forgiveness was promised The blood of the Sacrifice of the first Covenant was but the blood of Bulls and of Goats and the like Heb. 10. 4. But the Blood of the Sacrifice of the second Covenant is the Blood of Christ the Eternal Son of God So that the nature of the Sacrifices of the two Covenants upon which the Promise of the pardon of Sins was granted doth differ as much as the blood of Beasts and the Blood of the Son of God differ 2. Those two sorts of Sacrifices pertaining to two kinds of Covenants differ in the proportion of Efficaty and Virtue to accomplish their respective ends and effects There is a greater richness of proportion in the Blood of Christ to free the Consâ—ience from the guilt of Sin or obligation to Eternal punishment than there was in the blood of Beasts to free the Delinquent person from temporal punishments This is plainly intimated in Heb. 9. 13 14. For if the blood of Bulls and of Goats and the ashes of an Heifer sprinkling the unclean sactifieth to the purifying of the flesh how much more shall the Blood of Christ who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God purge your Conscience from dead works to serve the living God 3. They differ in the nature of the pardon promised in each of the Covenants respectively The Redemption granted in the first Covenant was but temporal as the Covenant it self was it was but from evils temporal But Christ Jesus by his Atonement hath obtained Eternal Redemption for us Hebr. 9. 12. 4. They differ in respect of the Sins made pardonable by each Covenant respectively There were many sins for which the first Covenant granted no pardon upon any terms whatsoever They that despised Moses Law died without mercy Heb. 10. 28. But the Covenant of Grace makes promise of the pardon of the greatest sins upon Repentance All manner of Sin and Blasphemy except the Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost are pardonable upon Repentance This difference is set down Acts 13. 39. And by him all that believe are justified from all things from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses We may well suppose that the first Covenant did finally condemn some which the Covenant of Mercy pardoned David in the matter of Vriah did that which was unpardonable by the first Covenant it was a Fact to have been punished with death by the Law but that there was none but God that could duly inflict it upon him in his capacity and yet upon his Repentance it was pardoned as to his Eternal concerns as well as temporal by virtue of God's Covenant of Mercy On the other hand a man probably might be so righteous in the Eye of the first Covenant as not to be visibly blameable and yet even then he obnoxious to the curse of the Everlasting Covenant Paul while he was Saul and in the state of unbelief was even then as touching the righteousness which is in the Law blameless as he himself saith Phil. 3. 6. So different were these two Covenants that him whom the one condemned the other might justifie and likewise justifie him whom the other condemned 5. They differed in respect of the Condition to be performed on Man's part for the obtaining of pardon Pardon was promised iâ— the first Covenant upon condition of doing only without reference to Faith but so are not the pardons of the New Covenant Gal. 3. 11 12. But that no man is justified by the Law in the sight of God it is evident for the Iust shall live by Faith And the Law is not of Faith but the man that doth them shall live in them So much concerning the first Part of the Sanction of the first Covenant Come we now to the second The other part of the Sanction of this Covenant did consist in the curse of it denounced against the breakers of it Though it 's true that every Man is under a condemnation that would be Eternal until he comes to be absolved by Virtue of the Law of Grace yet more than temporal death was not expresly threatned for breach of the Political Covenant as such 1. For first A violent death inflicted by the hand of the Magistrate for Capital Offences is called the Curse Deut. 22. 23. He that is hanged is accursed of God or is the Curse of God 2. Christ who did not suffer Eternal punishment for Man's Sin did yet suffer the curse of the Law in that he was hanged on a Tree Gal. 3. 13. It is true indeed that by that temporary suffering of his he redeemed us from Eternal punishment which we were obnoxious to 3. Those who Aposâ—atize from Christ and reject his Gospel merit sorer punishment than what was inflicted on them that despised Moses Law and yet sorer punishment for kind they cannot suffer if Eternal punishment had been the penalty of that Covenant as such Heb. 10. 28 29. 4. As the Promises of that Covenant when particularly expressed did appear to be but temporal so the curses of it appear to be no other in the particular enumeration of them As for instance a violent death inflicted by the hand of the Magistrate was the punishment threatned for many Capital Offences Such as was Idolatry Blasphemy Witchcraft working on the Sabbath invading the Priests Office and for being a false Prophet also for Murder Adultery Sodomy Buggery Man-stealing Cursing or Smiting of Parents or being stubbornly rebllious against them and some other And a cutting off from among the people whether by God's hand immediately or by Mans I determine not was the penalty threatned for eating leavened Bread within the time prohibited for not purifying ones self when unclean for profaning holy things for ones eating of the Sacrifice with his uncleanness upon him for offering Sacrifice any where but at the Tabernacle for eating of Blood and for eating of the fat of the Sacrifice for neglecting to keep the Passover and for not afflicting the Soul in the day of general Atonement and for several other Offences And those Offences for which cutting off from among the people is threatned being less criminous than the former we have no reason to think the penalty of cutting off from among the people to signifie more if so much than the suffering of a temporal death As we may observe how the Israelites various punishments are exprest for their manifold crimes in the Wilderness by God's overthrowing them
Circumcision if the great benefits of the Covenant of which Justification was one were suspended upon that as a necessary condition And yet that hâ— was justified when not Circumcised there is the express Authority of Scripture for This he asserts Rom. 4. 9 10. For we say that Faith was reckoned to Abraham for Righteousness How was it then reckoned when he was in Circumcision or in Vncircumcision Not in Circumcision but in Vncircumcision Afterwards he proceeds to undeceive them in the apprehension they had that the benefits of the Covenant were entailed upon Abraham's Natural Seed as such or at least as such with the addition of a literal observation of Circumcision and the Law without respect to the Spiritual and new Birth Rom. 9. 6 7 8. They are not all Israel which are of Israel as they thought they were neither because they are the Seed of Abraham are they all Children But in Isaac shall thy Seed be called That is those shall be called Abraham's Seed which are born as Isaac was by Faith in the Promise which are therefore called Children of the Promise For so the Apostle expounds it saying They which are the Children of the flesh these are not the Children of God but the Children of the Promise are counted for the Seed to wit such as are born after the Spirit as it is explained Gal. 4. 28 29. And this agrees to what he had said before Rom. 2. 28. He is not a Iew which is one outwardly c. Against which corrupt Opinion Iohn the Baptist did oppose himself when he admonished the Pharisees to bring forth Fruit meet for Repentance and think not to say within your selves we have Abraham to our Father Mat. 3. 7 8. The Apostle labours to cure this grand Error about Literal Circumcision as disjoyned from Spiritual in many other places and shews how that Circumcision availeth nothing but a new creature such as Spiritual Cirâ—umcision makes a man to be Gal 6. 15. Not Circumcision but Faith Gal. 5. 6. Not Circumcision but keeping the Commandments is that which would only reach those great ends which they sought after in Literal Circumcision 1 Cor. 7. 19. But I shall have occasion to improve these Scriptures further upon another Head of this Discourse And by the way we may observe that those who build their hopes of future happiness upon their having been Baptized and their being of the Church without the inward Grace signified by Baptism which is the washing of Regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost they are much a-kin to those miserable mistaken Iews 2. They not understanding the Typical and Spiritual use of the Legal Sacrifices as they did prefigure the death and suffering of Christ and the general Atonement which was to be made thereby nor yet the Predictions of the Prophets touching his death they ran into another gross Error and that was That the promised Messias should not by suffering death become a Sacrifice for sin And therefore they said to him when he spoke to them of his death We have heard out of the Law that Christ abideth for ever and how sayest thou the Son of Man must be lift up Joh. 12. 34. They did not dream of his dying but of his Reigning visibly as a mighty Monarch among them and subduing all Nations under them Because they knew him not nor yet the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath day they have fulfilled them in condemning him Acts 13. 27. Their ignorance in the meaning of the Types and Predictions touching the death of the Messias would have been the more excusable if they had not wilfully and obstinately persisted in that Error after those Types and Prophecies were fulfilled and explained to them Ignorance in this matter was found in Christ's own Disciples a great while but their slowness to believe those Types and Prophecies after they were fulfilled was a thing which our Saviour rebuked them for saying O fools and slow of heart to believe all that the Prophets have spoken Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory Luke 24. 25 26. But the unbelieving Iews were tenacious of this Opinion after they had sufficient means to have been convinc'd of their Error in it In opposition to which Opinion the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews argues at large the necessity of Christ's suffering by death As first he argues it from his Priesthood For having proved him according to Prophecy to be a Priest not after the Order of Aaron but of Melchizedeck and so a Priest of greater Dignity Chap. 5. and 7. He infers Chap. 8. that as a Priest he must have something to offer in Sacrifice and that of greater value than what was offered by Priests under the Law that were but of an inferiour Order and that he shews to have been himself and his own Blood as the Antitype of all those Legal Sacrifices Chap. 9. Secondly He proves his death necessary for the confirmation of the second and new Covenant as he was Mediatour of it As the first Testament was not dedicated without Blood so neither is the second For where a Testament is saith he there of necessity must also be the death of the Testator Chap. 9. 15 23. Thirdly His death was necessary for the obtaining of Remission of Sins a Benefit promised in the new Covenant For without shedding of Blood saith he there is no Remission of Sin Chap. 9. 22. with Chap. 10. 5 18. And indeed it was a good part of the Apostle's work to beat down this Opinion that the Messias was not to dye Acts 17. 3. St. Paul as his manner was went into them and three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures opening and alledging that Christ must needs have suffered and risen again from the dead Yea this Opinion had so generally obtained among them in our Saviours time that it seems the Apostles of Christ at first were not free from it For when our Saviour told them that at Ierusalem he should be delivered to the Gentiles and that they should scourge him and put him to death and that the third day he should rise again it 's said they understood none of these things and that this saying was â—id from them neither knew they the things which were spoken Though they were spoken plainly and in no Parable Luke 18. 32 33 34. Christ his being crucified became a stumbling-block to the Iews through this Error of theirs and that which they insisted upon as a Reason why they would not receive him as the Christ of God 1 Cor. 1. 23. 3. They held another Error which probably was Mother or Daughter of the former and that was That the Legal Sacrifices did expiate and take away Sin not only so as to free them from Legal penalties and temporal punishments as in many Cases they did but so also as to free them from all Obligation to Eternal punishment And so they did attribute to
and what else pertained to his Mediatory Office because these are the things by which the Nations of the Earth became blessed in him which was the thing expresly promised That such things were implyed in the promise appears not only by the reason of the thing but also from St. Paul's testimony Acts 13. 32 33. We declare unto you glad tidings how that the Promise which was made unto the Fathers God hath fulfilled the same unto us their Children in that he hath raised up Iesus again I do not say that Abraham from a Promise that was but so generally expressed as that was could apprehend in particular what the Messias should both do and suffer though they were wrapt up in it He apprehended so much by it in general that God would send the Messias into the World and that he would send him upon such terms as that his coming should be matter of great benefit to the world Abraham had such a prospect of this though at that distance as made him rejoyce and be glad So saith our Saviour himself Iohn 8. 56. Your Father Abraham rojoyced to see my day and he saw it and was glad And the promise to Abraham as it was a Promise of sending Christ to be the Saviour of the world was expressive of the greatest love For in this was the love of God manifested towards us because God sent his only begotten Son into the world that we might live through him Herein is love not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins 1 Joh. 4. 9 10. A Propitiation for our sins That is one that by his Death hath procured favour having taken off that sore displeasure which God by his Law had declared against all the transgressors of it For the wise and just God did not think the righteousness of his Government and the honour and reputation of his Law would be sufficiently salved and his great hatred of sin sufficiently manifested without some considerable satisfaction given for the dishonour done to Him and his Law by Mans transgression And yet that this might not be exacted at the hands of the guilty in executing the curse of the Law on them themselves he was most graciously pleased to accept of the sufferings of his own dear Son instead of what the sinners themselves were to have undergone He hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us Gal. 3. 13. Christ suffered for sins the Iust for the unjust or in their stead 1 Pet. 3. 18. Upon account of which undertaking of Christ for us all the benefits of the Covenant do accrue to Man What ever is required of Man by way of condition of his acceptation with God becomes accepted to that end upon account of Christ's suffering And His Intercession in Heaven through which all our sincere though otherwise imperfect performances become acceptable to God and rewardable by him is made in the virtue of it For the whole Covenant it self is founded in the Blood of Christ which he shed for the remission of sins Therefore it is called the New Testament in his Blood Mat. 26. 28. And his blood the Blood of the Everlasting Covenant Hebr. 13. 20. 2. It contained a Promise of Iustification or remission of sin through Christ unto all that should so believe as thereupon to repent of their former folly and become sincerely obedient for the future For that is necessarily implyed in the Promise of blessedâ—ess to the Nations in Abrahams Seed it being impossible men should be blessed without Remission of sin which consisteth in removing the curse of the Law in remitting the penalty Blessed is the man whose iniquity is forgiven and whose sin is covered Psal. 32. 1. St. Paul acquaints us that this blessing of the New Covenant was declared to Abraham in the Promise Gal. 3. 8. The Scripture foreseeeing that God would justifie the Heathen through Faith preached the Gospel before unto Abraham saying In thee shall all Nations be blessed 3. It contained in it tacitly a Promise of Divine assistance unto men in their endeavours to fulfil the condition of the Promise For God in promising blessedness to the Nations through Abrahams Seed therein promised all that was absolutely necessary for him to vouchsafe to make them blessed and without which they could not be blessed And if so then he therein implicitly promised to assist the endeavours of men to perform the condition of the Promise without the assistance of whose grace they cannot savingly believe repent and obey And so it should seem the Old Testament-Church understood Gods subduing of sin as well as his pardoning of sin to be comprized in the Promise to Abraham Mich. 7. 19 20. He will subdue our iniquities and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the Sea Thou wilt perform the truth to Iacob and the mercy to Abraham which thou hast sworn to our Fathers from the days of old And Christ his turning men from their iniquities which he doth accomplish by appointing them means by assisting them in the use of them to that end is part of the blessing contained in the Promise made to Abraham and was so reckoned by St. Peter Acts 3. 25 26. Ye are the children of the Prophets and of the Covenant which God made with our Fathers saying unto Abraham And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed Vnto you first God having raised up his Son Iesus Christ sent him to bless you in turning every one of you from his iniquities 4. It implicitly or somewhat obscurely contained in it a Promise of eternal Life I say implicitly For I do not find that eternal Life was expresly promised to Abraham But yet that was expresly promised him from which the hope of eternal Life might well be inferred As first Blessedness through his Seed the Messias And secondly That God would be a God to him and his Seed For blessedness is a happiness that runs parallel with the duration of Man's immortal Soul And God's Promise of being a God to Abraham carried in it a Promise of a happiness worthy of God to bestow such as everlasting Life or happiness is And therefore he was not ashamed to be called their God meaning Abraham Isaac and Iacob because he had prepared for them a City meaning that in so doing he had answered that title of relation of being their God and done like himsel Heb. 11. 16. And upon these and the like Revelatioâ—s of of God's mind to him Abraham looked for a City which hath foundations whose Builder and Maker is God and a heavenly Countrey Heb. 11. 10 16. If Abraham did but use his reason about these Promises as he did about reconciling God's Promise that in Isaac his Seed should be called with his command to sacrifice him Heb. 11. 17 18 19. he might discern eternal Life in them though but very obscurely in comparison of
those Sacrifices the same atoning virtue and purging efficacy as is proper only to the Blood of Christ. In opposition to this Opinion it is maintain'd 1. That those Legal Sacrifices were but Figures of the great Sacrifice Christ Jesus Heb. 9. 10 11 12. and 10. 1. 2. It was argued that it was impossible that the blood of Bulls and of Goats should take away Sin because these were offered year after year over and over in the day of general Atonement for the same sins And that if the former Sacrifices which were first offered had taken away sin the latter could not have been necessary to the same purpose Heb. 10. 1 2 3 11. The often repetition of Sacrifices for the same sins argues that the Worshippers had a secret sense in their Conscience that those Sacrifices were not of a competent value nor a sufficient price to redeem their Souls from Sin as it exposeth to Eternal punishment however they might sanctifie as to the purifying of the flesh yet they could not make any perfect as pertaining to the Conscience Heb. 9. 9. 10. 1 2. 3. It was argued from a Prophetical passage in Psal. 40. in which Christ is brought in speaking thus Sacrifice and Offering thou would ' st not but a Body hast thou prepared me In burnt Offerings and Sacrifice for sin thou hast had no pleasure Then said I Lo I come to do thy will O God From whence he infers that the first sort of Sacrifices were taken away as insufficient that the second might be established By the which will saith he we are sanctified through the offering of the Body of Iesus once for all Heb. 10. 5. 10. This Opinion of theirs that Legal Sacrifices did expiate all their Sins did keep up in them a hope of impunity here and hereafter under many immoralities and great transgressions in the course of their lives Though they multiplyed transgression yet if they multiplyed Sacrifices too they thought they should escape well enough Amos 4. 4 5. Come to Bethel and transgress at Gilgal multiply transgression and bring your Sacrifice every morning and your Tythes after three years and offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with Leaven and proclaim and publish your free-Offerings for this liketh you O Children of Israel saith the Lord God And much after this rate do carnal Christians bear up themselves in hopes that all their sins are done away by the Sacrifice of Christ the Lamb of God that taketh away the Sins of the World though they live from day to day in ungodliness Only indeed they sin at a cheaper rate for the present than the wicked Iews did The Iewish sinners were at the cost of many a Sacrifice to stop the mouth of Conscience but these are at cost only in making provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof and depend upon Christ to pay all their scores 4. Another of their Errors as consequent upon the former was this That without Circumcision and observing of the Law of Moses the Gentiles could not be saved This Opinion the Judaizing Christians retained after their Conversion to the Christian Profession Acts 15. 1 5 24. Certain men which came down from Iudea taught the brethren saying Except ye be Circumcised after the manner of Moses ye cannot be saved There rose up certain of the Sect of the Pharisees which believed saying that it was needful to Circumcise them and to command them to keep the Law of Moses In opposition to which Opinion St. Paul taught that the Righteousness of God by Faith without the Law is manifested unto all and upon all that believe whether Iews or Gentiles and that there is no difference Rom. 3. 21 22. And that a Man is justified by Faith without the deeds of the Law though never Circumcised And that God is the God of the Gentiles as well as of the Iews and that he doth justifie the uncircumcision and the circumcision those that had observed the Law of Moses and those that had not upon the same terms viz. of Evangelical Faith Rom. 3. 28 29 30. Whereunto agrees the words of St. Peter Acts 15. 9 11. He put no difference between us and them purifying their hearts by Faith i. e. us Iews and they Gentiles But we believe that through the Grace of our Lord Iesus Christ we shall be saved even as they and upon no other terms though we have observed the Law and they have not Gal. 2. 15 16. Upon the same account St. Paul again affirms Rom. 4. 5. That to him that worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his Faith is counted for Righteousness That is the Idolatrous Gentiles that never had observed the Law but lived without God in the World should yet have their practical belief of the Gospel imputed even to them for Righteousness And he further exemplifies this in Abraham Ver. 9 10 11 12. whose Faith was reckoned to him for Righteousness before he was Circumcised that he might be the Patern and great Example of Gods justifying the Heathen upon their believing and obeying as Abraham did in leaving his Idolatry and his Countrey upon God's Promise and Command though he never had been Circumcised And upon the like account he saith again Gal. 3. 8 9. That the Scripture foreseeing that God would justifie the Heathen through Faith preached before the Gospel unto Abraham saying In thee shall all Nations be blessed And from thence he concludes that those Gentiles that be of Faith that believe as Abraham did are blessed as Abraham was are blessed with faithful Abraham 5. Another Error which was held by some Judaizing Christians was this That Faith in Christ and Literal Circumcision with a Literal observation of the Law of Moses joyntly were the Condition of Justification Though they were such as believed yet they taught that except men were Circumcised and kept the Law of Moses they could not be saved Acts 15. 1 5. They seem to have retained the same false Opinion of Justification by the Law as the unbelieving Iews did but held the Death of Christ necessary to be superadded To convince them of which Error St. Paul sets before them the bad consequence of it in two respects 1. In that they hereby rendered the death of Christ needless in it self Gal. 2. 21. If righteousness come by the Law than Christ is dead in vain There would then have been no need of Christ's death to accomplish it as the unbelieving Iews indeed did hold 2. In that this Opinion of their's made Christ and his death useless unto them and cut them off from receiving any benefit by him Gal. 5. 2 4. Behold I Paul say unto you that if you be Circumcised Christ shall profit you nothing Christ is become of none effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are fallen from Grace And hereto agrees that in Hebr. 13. 10. We have an Altar whereof they have no right to eat which serve the Tabernacle Those
Faith to him for Righteousness that is that which in the eye of that new Law should pass in his estimation for Righteousness subordinate to Christ's Righteousness which procured this Grant or Law For otherwise Faith neither as it is the condition of the Promise of Remission of Sin through Christ nor as it works Repentance for sins past or sincere Obedience for time to come is Righteousness in the Eye of the Original Law For that accounts no Man that hath though but once transgressed it to be Righteous either upon the account of anothers suffering for his sin or his own Repentance or sincere imperfect Obedience but curseth every Man that from first to last continueth not in all things which are contained in that Law But it is as I said an Act of God's special Favour and by virtue of his new Law of Grace and as it is established in Christ that such a Faith as I have described comes to be reckoned or imputed to a man for Righteousness and through God's imputing it for Righteousness to stand a man in the same if not in a better stead as to his eternal concerns as a perfect fulfilling of the Original Law from first to last would have done Christ's Righteousness being presupposed the only Meritorious Cause of this Grant or Covenant And thus indeed the Faith which I have described is a Man's Righteousness in the Eye of this new Law because it is Summarily all that is required of him himself to make him capable of the Benefits promised by it which as it is now revealed is the Gospel Justification is a Law-term And no Man shall be justified in Judgment or upon Tryal but he that is just in the Eye of this new Law of Grace as every one that rightly believes repents and sincerely obeys is because that is all that it requires of a Man himself to his Justification and Salvation And yet every Believers Justification will be all of Grace because the Law by which they are Justified is wholly of Grace is wholly a Law of Grace and was Enacted in meer Grace and Favour to undone Man that was utterly undone by the fall There are two things which I conceive do constitute and make up the Righteousness of the Law of Grace presupposing all to be procured by the purchase which Christ hath made first the Righteousness which consisteth in the forgiveness of sins and secondly the Righteousness of sincere Obedience And in reference to both these Faith is imputed for Righteousness by virtue of the Law of Grace First Faith as practical is imputed to a Man for Righteousness as it is that and all that which is required of him himself by the Law of Grace to entitle him to the Righteousness which consisteth in the remission of sins through Christ. Now that remission of Sinnes is part of the Righteousness which is by Faith is evident from Rom. 4. 5 6 7 8. Where the Apostle to prove that a Man's Faith in God who justifyeth the ungodly is counted to him for Righteousness he citeth a passage out of Psalm the 32d Even as David also saith he describeth the blessedness of the man to whom God imputeth Righteousness without Works saying blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin The Righteousness imputed in this sense doth consist in the non-imputation of sin Not to impute sin is not to reckon a Man not to have sinned but it is to deal with him not according to the demerit of his sin it is to pardon him for Christ's sake upon his penitential Faith and not to punish him for his sin and this by vertue of a new Law or Act of Indemnity or Covenant of Grace For although pardon of sin is obtained for Man by Christ his suffering for sin In whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveneess of sins Ephes. 1. 7. and though God for Christ's sake doth forgive us Epes 4. 32. yet the actual collation of this great Benefit is not promised but upon condition of Man's Faith Him hath God set forth to be a Propitiation but it is through Faith in his blood Rom. 3. 25. By him all that believe are justified from all things from which ye could not be justified by the Law of Moses Acts 13. 39. and 10. 43. Although Christ is the Propitiation for the sins of the whole World 1 Ioh. 2. 2. yet that saying of Christ must and will will take place If ye believe not that I am he ye shall dye in your sins Joh. 8. 24. and that also Mark 16. 16. He that believeth not shall be damned So that Faith is imputed for Righteousness partly as it is the Condition upon which pardon of sin is granted Secondly That Faith is imputed for Righteousness which is practical or productive of sincere Obedience without which property it is not a fulfilling of the Law of Grace as a condition of the promised Benefits and consequently cannot justifie a Man in the Eye of that Law For First Repentance and likewise forgiving men their injuries for instance are such Acts of Obedience as without which a Man cannot be pardoned and if not pardoned then not justified And therefore Faith is not imputed for Righteousness unless it be productive of Obedience Secondly No Faith is available to justification but such as worketh by Love Gal. 5. 6. Which to say is all one as to say no Faith is imputed for Righteousness but such as worketh by keeping the Commandments of God and fulfilling the Law for that is the interpretation of love both to God and Men 1 Ioh. 5. 3. Rom. 13. 10. Thirdly Abraham who was set forth by God for a Pattern of his justifying Men by Faith was Justified by such works as were the fruits of his Faith and not only by his Faith which was the Root of them And therefore his Faith as practical was imputed to him for Righteousnss And such must be the Faith of all others that shall obtain Justification upon their believing as he did Iam. 2. 21 22 23. Was not Abraham our Father justified by Works when he had offered Isaac his Son upon the Altar Seest thou how Faith wrought with his Works and by Works was Faith made perfect And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith Abraham believed God and it was imputed to him for Righteousness Where note these four things 1. That Abrahams Faith wrought with his Works about the same end as a Condition of obtaining it to wit his Justification 2. That by his Works his Faith was made perfect to wit in its aptitude by God's Institution to justifie him without which it would not have reached that end 3. Note further that it was his Faith as it wrought with his Works and as it was compleated and made perfect by them that was imputed to him for Righteousness 4. Note that in the Imputation of his Faith for Righteousness as it was
the first Law he was put under would have been far from having any right to such happiness upon the terms here mentioned viz. of sincere though imperfect Obedience But seeing that a Right to Salvation doth accrue to Men upon a sincere keeping of God's Commandments notwithstanding their forfeiture of their first Right by Man's first fall it evidently follows that Evangelical or Sincere Obedience is part of the Condition of the Promise of blessedness in the new Law or Covenant and is here put for the whole of it as at other times Faith is put for the whole of the Condition And that Moses David Solomon Nehemiah and Daniel received it in this sense and understood all along that sincere Obedience flowing from Love was the Condition of God's Covenant of mercy when they styled him a God keeping Covenant and mercy with those that love him and keep his Commandments Deut. 7. 9. 1 King 8. 23. Neh. 1. 5. Dan. 9. 4. I have before shewed If it shall be here said that sincere obedience is indeed a Condition of Salvation but not of Justification and that it is so made here in this 22d of the Revelation I have I think sufficiently answered this Objection in the former Chapter but shall here add That such as thus say are morecurious and nice in distinguishing between Justification and Salvation than St. Paul was For he calls Justification the Iustification of Life Rom. 5. 18. Whom he justified them he also glorified Rom. 8. 30. and proves that men shall be justified by Faith because it is written that the Iust shall live by Faith Gal. 3. 11. Thus with him to be justified to be blessed are all one Gal. 3. 8 9. Ro. 4. 7 8 9. And to confirm this Righteousness or Justification and Life are used by him as Synonimous terms Gal. 3. 21. For if there had been a Law given which could have given life verily Righteousness should have been by the Law And Justification and Condemnation are put in direct opposition to each other Rom. 5. 18. 8. 33 34. And to be from Condemnation which is Justification and to be saved are as much one as not to dye is to live In short Salvation as well as Justification is promised to believing Ioh. 3. 16. Act. 3. 31. Heb. 10. 39. And therefore Salvation as well as Justification must needs be the immediate effect of Faith if we take Salvation as begun here in this Life as the Scripture represents it to be Ioh. 5. 24. 1 Ioh. 3. 14. 5. 12. From all which me may conclude that what is absolutely necessary to Salvation must needs also be necessary to Justification Add we hereto that to be justified and to be saved is the same thing with St. Iames as well as it is with St. Paul according to the tenour of his reasoning Chap. 2. from ver 14. to the end What doth it profit my brethren saith he though a man say he hath Faith and have not Works can Faith save him vers 14. This Interrogation implyes an Emphatical Negation and the meaning is that such a Faith can by no means save a man and he gives the reason of it twice over in vers 17 20. because Faith without Works is dead And then afterwards argues the necessity of Works together with Faith unto Justification or unto Salvation which was the thing he began with by God's justifying Abraham by Works together with his Faith who was the great Patern or Example of God's justifying all others If then to be juâ—tified and to be saved amounts to the same in St. Iames's Discourse here then by the way they do not rightly understand St. Iames who think he doth not speak of a Justification before God in this his Discourse about Justification by Works together with Faith but of a Justification before Men and to their own Conscience only Which supposition of theirs doth directly thwart the very Scope and Design of his whole Discourse which is to set forth what will and what will not avail a Christian-Professor in the sight of God to the saving of his Soul as abundantly appears So that the Scripture which saith Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for Righteousness and which St. Iames saith was fulfilled in Abraham's being justified by Works as well as by Faith was not fulfilled in Abraham's being justified to others and to his own Conscience but in his being justified before God and so St. Paul understood it Rom. 4. 3. Gal. 3. 6. But this was touched before in Chap. 1. The result then of what hath been argued in Answer to the Objection is this viz. That all that are justified are thereby put regularly into an immediate capacity of Salvation so that if they should dye the very next moment after they are once justified they would undoubtedly be saved And therefore Evangelical Obedience can be no more necessary to Salvation than it is to Justification and it is as necessary to the one as to the other And if to say Evangelical Obedience is necessary to Justification be injurious to Christ and to the Grace of God as some would pretend how comes it to pass then that to say Evangelical Obedience is necessary to Salvation is not so too For our final Salvation is as much the effect of God's Grace and of Christ's undertaking for us as our Justification it self is and of as much value And therefore if the one be not injurious in this kind neither is the other 8. As the Promise of forgiveness of sins by the Blood of Christ or the Promise of an interest in his Blood to the pardon of Sinne is sometimes made unto believing so sometimes again it is made unto Evangelical Obedience or a holy Life as in 1 Ioh. 1. 7. If we walk in the light as he is in the light that is endeavouring to be holy as God is holy then have we fellowship one with another and the Blood of Iesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all Sin but otherwise it doth not And so the Christians to whom St. Peter wrote were said to be elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through Sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the Blood of Iesus Christ 1 Pet. 1. 2. But they were not elect to the benefit of being sprinkled with the blood of Christ without obedience And therefore by this we see also that Evangelical Obedience is part of the Condition of the Promise of Justification by the Blood of Christ. 9. To forgive Injuries is an act of Evangelical Obedience to that Precept of our Lord Mar. 11. 25. And yet without this act of Obedience Men that have been injurious cannot be justified because they cannot be pardoned according to the Word of our Lord Mark 11. 26. Mat. 6. 15. 18. 35. Therefore Evangelical Obedience must needs be part of the Condition of Justification 10. Repentance is an eminent Act of Evangelical Obedience Acts 17. 30. and yet