As figure and shadow of his meaning herein 't is with many the whole design of all their Labours and Travels to heap up outward treasures to themselves and leave to their Posterity great Possessions call'd after their own Name as if they had any concern therein when deceased or any relief thereby when with Dives tormented in the flames of God's Wrath. And as to any advantage to Posterity how know they but their Successors will blot out and deface by their unwise and sinful practices what they got by their wise and honest labours though great things of that sort are seldom so gotten Such great things puff up and are oft the ruine of those that come after them This was Solomons own case in his foolish Son Rhehoboam who following the rash dictates of ignorant young 〈◊〉 and rejecting the sage counsel of grave Senators that stood before his Father disobliged the People lost ten parts of his Kingdom at first entrance on his Government and he and his Successors held the rest not without great confusions troubles and desolating Wars with the Kings of Israel their Brethren and from such Nations round about as were common enemies to both Moab Ammon 〈◊〉 Edom Philistines c. 1 King 12. Yet is this but the lowest and least part of Solomon's meaning in these and the following words Vers. XIX And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise Man or a fool Yet shall he have Rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured and wherein I have shew'd my self wise under the Sun This is also vanity Here is a deep mystical Truth The fading Laodicean Riches and great Possessions treasured up in and by the fruitful exercise of my own spirit in the restored first-covenant Life of the Law Who knoweth 〈◊〉 a wise Man or a fool shall get and rule over it Whether the supreamly wise man Christ himself by his Gospel-sicle Sword or Cross as freely and obediently surrendred to him or the Man of sin and Son of Perdition the greatest mystical Fool the Devil Those that give up themselves and all Christ's gifts to them of first-covenant Life Wisdom and Ornaments and second-covenant Light with all their fruits and effects brought forth therein mystical Corn Wine Oil Silver and Gold to Baal or Moloch the Lord or King and god of this World are willing he should reap and gather all and so use all Christ's own gifts to them and all the fruits of their own labours therein against Christ and God himself to their own destruction as qualified thereby to be the most gygantick opposers fighters against God Man walk's in a vain shew disquiets himself in vain heaping up Riches and not knowing who shall gather them Psal. 39. 6. Till Man come to a resolution whose Arms he will cast himself into with his changable Life and Riches Christ's or the Devil's in order to be fix'd in the unchangably good Spirit of the former or evil one of the latter He knows not who shall gather all or what will become of him and all he has gotten One of these will certainly gather all in conclusion All puffed up self-exalters against Christ give themselves and all they have into the hands of that Lucifcrian Head and King over all such children of Pride Job 41. 34. receiving his spirit of unchangable enmity to God for the Principle of their Life Desire Thought and Action All fixed first-covenant Kings are absolutely engag'd in Satan's reign in perfect opposition to Christ and his invisible Saints whose saintship or spiritual Life is hid with Christ in God till Christs second appearing and rendring it visible in himself and them which will be the Manifestation of the Sons of God Christ offers true freedom to all even the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God But multitudes of enlightned holy first-covenant Professors and no better whatever they reckon themselves chuse rather for self-preservation against the Cross to be slaves of the Devil the arrantest slave of all and so to have their eares boared as his servants for ever on their willful refusal of true Liberty This is figured out Ex. 21. 5 6. At last Christ by his Cross and spiritual Gospel-Sword or Sicle will reap down and gather or take from all evil Angels and Men all the Riches and Comforts all the fading Glory and Power they have used against him under Satan's reign and tread them all under foot in his reign From a sober Reflexion upon the whole matter in the Spirit of Truth discovering the vanity of all first-creation Life and things of Man with all his vain Labours and uncertain Riches and then the uncertainty as to who shall gather them to his everlasting damage or greatest gain he looks on all Man's Labours and Possessions in the confounded state of his own Nature corrupt or righteous on all these accounts put together to be but a hateful vanity and vexation of spirit So he farther declares Vers. XX. Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the Labour which I took under the Sun So should every one in union of mind with Christ hate his own Life with all his Labours and Fruits brought forth in the but restor'd natural Principle or Spirit of the first-covenant Law of Works for the Life Wisdom and Righteousness of God in the second the new-covenant spirit of the Gospel The former at best was but changably good and since the Fall enmity to God or filth of spirit is inseperable from it direct enmity to that creature-spirit or holy Ghost in the new Life whereof only 't is possible to please God or be saved A heart set to love that Life in which man hates and is hateful to God is a heart fixed in or set to do evil for ever Solomon therefore sets his heart to hate the whole Life and all the best works done in the single activity of his own nature at best under the twofold first-creation Sun litteral and mystical as abovesaid Of this he gives a farther account vers 21 -23. Vers. XXI For there is a man whose labour is in wisdom and in knowledge and in equity Yet to a man that hath not laboured therein shall he leave it for his portion This also is vanity and a great Evil. Solomon gives an account of himself in the Man here described by him travelling in Wisdom Knowledge and Equity that is in the wise and righteous actings of his own restored enlightned nature All this he finds vain and unprofitable yea a great grief and sorrow to him Here 's the sad result of all man's goodnes and fruitfulnes in his own nature All is vanity the 〈◊〉 tree of good and evil and since the fall of evil only filth of spirit at least which is the greater sort of evil with the Fruits the Root with the Branch Principle and Operations Desires Thoughts Counsels Purposes Words Actions all naught The loss of all as obediently surrendred to the sacrificing hand Gospel-cross Sword
all worldly riches wisdom and glory litteral and mystical by man's wilful madnes made an occasion of his everlasting grief sorrow torment and vexation of spirit Who can utter it what life treasure meats food clothing man should not seek and what he should Christ declar's and commandes nothing that 's liable to moth-eating rust corruption loss or death but heavenly unsubjected to any of these things above all dangers decayes deaths enemies or fears Mat. 6. 19 20. Joh. 6. 27. And by James he shew's what all that take not this counsel will come to at last as found possessed of no other riches litteral or mystical Gold and silver but what will be cankered and the rust thereof witness against them as guilty of inexcusable folly in neglecting all the faithful warnings of Christ against their trusting in such self-evidencing vanities for true hapines Jam. 5. 1-3 What they reckon a heaping up treasure for themselves for the last dayes they 'l find to have bin a treasuring up unto themselves wrath against the day of wrath Man's passive obedience to the death and loss of all his life wisdom and riches is the highest point of obedience God requires or he can perform in the right use thereof This makes way for the quickning and springing up of the incorruptible seed principle of a new and everlasting righteous life in which alone t is possible for man to bring forth 〈◊〉 unto God or perform such active obedience as shall be ever pleasing to God and 〈◊〉 to himself This is the counsel and method of Gods wisdom about man's salvation which all that 〈◊〉 reject will inevitably perish If they will follow the words of man's wisdom in perfect contradiction thereunto This will they have of God's hand they must lie down in sorrow CHAP. II. Vers. I. I said in my heart go to now I will prove thee with mirth therefore enjoy pleasure and behold this also is Vanity SOLOMON set his Heart to try what all Mirth Joy and Pleasure in all sorts of first-creation things amounts unto After the utmost Proof thereof he finds and declares this also to be vanity all worldly delight and desire of the same complexion with the desirables delighted in whether visible or invisible delights of bodily life and the corrupt spirit of nature therein or of the rectified intellectual rational powers more properly the delights of the Sons of Men. The other are for beasts brutified men drown'd in the lusts of literal Sodom where sensual Powers usurp dominion over rational using what should be their Masters and Rulers as Slaves to fetch in provisions for them by right or wrong Some are recovered out of this disorder and confusion towards a rectitude of their natural powers where the rational command and sensual obey But to shew the unstable slippery standing of Man here Solomon not onely restored into the right exercise of his naturals but under strong spiritual convictions of true wisdom was caught and miserably entangled in this lowest sort of worldly snares His suppressed sensual powers struggled for and recovered their formerly usurped dominion over his rational and intellectual The signal aggravation of this 〈◊〉 was that he was eminent in the restor'd first-covenant wisdom of his own spirit of nature and spiritual light of the second the self-discoveries and revelations of Gods wisdom in his own spirit of grace as his pleasing request to God and the gratious answer thereunto do evince 1 King 3. 5-14 And again ch 9. 1-9 where the Lord also threaten's him and his people in case of apostacy or turning from following him v. 6. After all this his sensual lusts after strange Women run him a-ground They turn his heart after strang Gods also from the true He not onely tolerated but himself went after the Gods of the Idolatrous borderers Zidon Moab Ammon c. whence he fetched his Wives 1 King 11. 4-8 The Lord takes notice of the aggravation of this folly and madness as after his remarkable appearing to him twice and solemnly commanding the contrary v. 9. 10. On this threaten's to rend the greatest part of his Kingdom from his Son 11-13 T is like his expences about Idols and his Idolatrous Wives occasioned such unreasonable taxes and oppressions as moved the people to capitulate with his Son for redresse of greivances which he refusing they refused him for their King Chap. 12. 'T was an amazing thing a double-portion'd saint and kingly Preacher when old and neer his exit out of this world should be found guilty of such gross enormities as many meer heathens in a long life avoid to their dying day To encrease the wonder under all the violent impetuous hurries of his own disordred spirit the wisdom of God's still remained with him Without this his foolish hurtfull lusts had drowned him in destruction and perdition A seed and principle of true wisdom was his powerful preservative from final apostacy And the want of this will be found no excuse to final apostate's from and haters of it when convincingly shewed and offered it Solomon exercised his brutish lusts for a season not onely in a flat contrariety to this but to the very light of his own reason also The unsubdued natural spirit or mystical Woman in himself carried him forth in lust after the literal who involved him in their gross Idolatries He allowed himself the full experience of all worldly desirables from the higher to the lower parts of the dust of this mortal first-creation worldly vanities He sent forth his heart on this errand to try what satisfaction the whole lump of this world's vanities from the Cedar to the Shrub intellectual delights to Husks among Swine would afford him and set's down at the foot of his account All is vanity In a union of mind with Christ by spiritual light he acknowledges all his ransacking the whole bulk of this world's desireables and roving up and down as thinking to pick up a satisfying food for his immortal Spirit amongst them direct madness So comes he from dear-bought experience to say as follow 's Vers. II. I said of Laughter it is mad and of Mirth what doth it Laughter and Mirth here signify the highest delight and satisfaction can be had in the fullest possession and enjoyment of all worldly desireables relating to the corrupt or righteous life of man in his own nature Solomon therefore in the al-discovering light of the spirit of God reflects upon his former foolish design therein judging his whole course and race there evil because his force or principle was not right but indeed a spirit of enmity to God All his delusive and destructive Joy he found Madness a making large and swift steps under the bewitching influence of the God of this world towards the chambers of death His words pleasing suggestions and gratifying offers to men are smoother then oil yet are drawn swords his method of wounding men to eternal death The spirit of man since the fall is a
all Experience of man and Warnings from God to the contrary is as Unpardonable as the Devils first sin must be the very way of Salvation What-else or less And then as to the second Adam Let his original Creature-nature or Spirit Set up by himself in Personal Union with his divine From Everlasting Prov. 8. 23. be denied and the very Creation in effect or rather in the cause of it is denied For this Living Creature or all comprehensive Creature-nature under the God of Israel Ezek. 10. 20. and in personal Union with him comprehending in it as a Polished shaft in God's Quiver the very man Christ that in the Fulness of time was made flesh was the very immediate hand by which God Made the Worlds By this Creature-Wisdom and word of God which is called God also were all things made Jo. 1. 1-3 and so by the very man Christ as comprehended therein were made both worlds natural and spiritual in a first and second Creation-workmanship of his passing upon them Heb. 1. 2. Col. 1. 13-16 The same WORD also by which all Angels and men were made was the provided means Mouth or Prophet of God to speak forth the whole Counsel of his Divine Mind to them when made and to Mediate between them and Infinite Divinity which without this Interposing Creature-Vail would have been a Consuming fire to them all This Word is also the Executer as well as Declarer to them of the whole Mind and Will of God from first to last on all Angels and Men as Obediently Submitting to the Methods and Terms of his New-Creating Workmanship or Incorrigibly Rebelling against it He is the 〈◊〉 Roll of Woes to the one the Book of Life and Mercy-Seat to the other in which are Treasured and Sealed up all the distinct Measures and Portions of Wrath for the one amongst the distinct Portions and Measures of Grace and Love for the other Deu. 32. 34 35. This Living Book in which all they do towards God and all God will do towards and with them are exactly Recorded and Registred the Living Stone that bear's and know's all on all hands God's Words to them and theirs to him Jos. 24. 26 27. by way of Covenant will be the Infallible Witness for or against them and Irresistible Executor of the Mind and Will of God towards and upon them all in Everlasting Love or Wrath. See then the case of those that deny any Creature-Nature or Spirit in the Mediatour of elder date then his being made Flesh. And then when in that Fleshy State Crucified they that narrow and consine his Crucisixion only to the Violent Death of his Body and Exclude or take no notice of the Death he put his natural Spirit to as to the Spotless but Changable earthy Law-Life thereof by kindling upon it and Offering it up in the Mystical Fire of his Eternal New-Creature Spirit Luk. 12. 49. Heb. 9. 14. What Conformity to his Death will they Preach If the principal thing he Crucified in himself be denied the principal thing that 's to be Crucified in us will be denied And what then Why then the Subduing the Vile Affections of the Corrupt Spirit of Nature must be Reckon'd Conformity to Christs Death whereas he had no such things in him to Crucifie And then Conformity to him in the but gradually restored Righteous First-Covenant Life of the Law Holy Flesh call it what else we will which he Crucified in himself at best must be reckon'd a State of true Salvation the SAINTS EVERLASTING REST. And then the Counter workings of in part restor'd nature and the Corrupt must pass for Flesh Warring against Spirit and Spirit against Flesh 〈◊〉 5. 17. when indeed all 's but Flesh. Paul when Eminent in Holy Flesh was a fierce Fighter against Christ's Gospel-Spirit Here 's your Divinity and Anti-Gospel Teaching in perfect Contradiction to the declared Methods and Words of God's Wisdom for Salvation in every point Some care is taken to Preach down and Subdue the Brutish Lusts of Litteral Sodom in the Corrupt Spirit of Nature but Mystical Sodomy more criminal then Litteral is Preach'd up for Salvation to wit such establishment in Righteousness as is unchangable enmity to God Gross sins in the dark ignorant corrupt Spirit of nature are cried down but all Mystical Uncleanesses Adulteries Idolatries Thefts Murders Sacriledg c. are preach'd up for Salvation A hard saying What is Truth Said Pilate to Christ not waiting the answer Jo. 18. 38. Christ had told him before-hand that he came into this world to Bear witness to the truth V. 37. What truth That ther 's nothing but vanity or vanishing shadow 's in this World the whole first-creation my Kingdom therefore say's he is not of this World or to be managed in my worldly law-spirit of nature Holy flesh where the Jews would fain have had him own himself a King Jo. 6. 15. but as is Implied of the next and to be manag'd in my new-Creation Spirit of truth All things in the first-Creation state of Angels and men are but vanishing shadows of the truth all Substantial durable Eternal things or truths in the second This is the good confession Negative and Affirmative Christ Witnessed before Pontius 〈◊〉 1 Tim. 6. 〈◊〉 as we find Jo. 18. 36 37. the former Expressed the other Implied in the Word Truth Christ Witnessed or Declared in his Infallible Spirit of Truth that there 's nothing of truth or substance in God's sight nothing unchangably good no Eternal good things or Truths but in the New-Creation State and World in and over which he owned himself a King They that will finally and conclusively be Reigning as Kings in the but worldly restored First-Covenant-Life Holy Flesh as 1 Cor. 4. 8. will be found Pseudo-Fift-Monarchists in direct Hostility to the true Reign of Christ and all true Spiritual Saints in his Holy Gospel-Spirit and so in a Flat contradiction to every tittle of his Gospel-Testimony Christ's witnessed good Confession to Pilate my Kingdom is not of this World gives the dash Solomon Proclaim 's on all First-Creation-Life of Man or Angel with all the things and fruits thereof as Vanities or but perishing Shadows of God's durable New-Creation substances things and truths the Everlasting Life Wisdom and Righteousness of God in his Spirit of Grace and Truth with the Blessed Fruits thereof in Men True Love Joy Peace c. to from and with God and all right Fruits brought forth by them therein unto God All these are Everlasting Incorruptible things the Spiritual Tree Root and Branch Fruits Leaves and all Psal 1. 3. In this Spirit of Truth have Men durable Riches Life Food and Cloathing In this Spirit of the Son only can they rightly Worship the Infinite Divine Spirit or Father He must be Worship'd in Spirit and in Truth in a Spirit of Everlasting Righteousness and Truth All Worshippers in any other Spirit Worship they know not what Jo. 4. 22-24 may be the Devil as God
knowledg of Christ after the flesh 2 Cor. 5. 16. in a righteous Law-Life for the knowledg of him after the spirit in his spiritual Gospel-life into which risen out of the Death of the former Phil. 3. 7-10 This according to his own advice in the Holy Ghost Rom. 7. 1-4 That which is born but of the Flesh of Christ the Fleshly First-Covenant Law-life is but holy flesh not Eternal Life But that that 's Born of his Gospel-Spirit only Jo. 3. 6. The former when taken by himself as made under the Law he Crucified as the only means and way of exalting our nature in himself into the second in which he Lives for evermore So must we As there was an appointed time for him and so for us by his mean's to be Born or have this Righteous Law-Life brought forth in him So was there an appointed time for the death and loss of it in him and is also in us By the fresh Gift and Birth of it from him is he the Healer Planter Restorer and Builder up of Man afresh out of the Shameful Bloody Polluted State of Nature dead in Trespasses and Sins into the Fading Glory Life Wisdom and Righteousness of Man the Goodliness of Holy Flesh which yet is but as a Flower of the Field Isai. 40. 6. This Restoring Healing-work of Christ as to the deadly Wound given to all Men by the First Sin of the First to the top-stone of this Renewed old Building by his comlines or perfect Righteousness of the Law imputed to or put upon them he warn's against the abuse of by an over-value of it over-considence in it and doating love to it so as to prefer it before his offered Spiritual Life and Everlasting Righteousness in the Image of the Heavenly the new Building For this is Mystical Adultery against him as their true Spiritual Lord and Husband worse then Litteral Yea and Murder also as a Murdering Mind of Enmity against him there is Interpreted for which they are to be Judg'd as the most Criminal Adulterers and Murderers All this we find Ezek. 16. 1-15 and v. 38. Man as Dead in Sin is figuratively Charactred by the helpless condition his Body is Born in as to any thing he can do for himself v. 3-6 These Expressions Represent the Dark Black Dismal Bloody Condition and Desolate State of his Spirit that none but Christ can help Let him look within without and round about him there 's none to Pity or have Compassion upon him that can help him This disconsolate State and Extremity God declares to be a motive and opportunity to him to help him restore Life to him Cleanse or Sanctify him and by Imputation of another's Righteousness justify him and render him fruitful in his Restor'd Naturals under the Fructifying Influences of Christ as a Fleshy Bride-groom and Husband who also puts the Mystical Ornaments Bracelets and Jewels of Supernatural Spiritual Enlightning Gifts upon him And he causes him to feed at his earthly First-Covenant Table on such Meats or Communications from him as tend to Nourish Strengthen and Build him up into a Fruitful Flourish in that Life to the Encreasing with the Encreases of Man not of God in the Wisdom aud Glory of his own Life not of God's So grows he exceeding Beautiful prospering into a kind of Kingdom State in his own Life and way consisting in a Ruling Power of his Restored Spirit over all the Inferiour Powers of Nature in him Such Kings Paul found amongst the Corinthians 1 Cor. 4. 8. Multitudes refuse this common Salvation love their Chains and Bondage under the Brutish Lusts of their fallen degenerate nature so as not to accept of deliverance there-from And Multitudes of First-Covenant Believers and Professors that receive this Common Salvation refuse the Special the Crowning benefit of Christ's Death his Spiritual New-Creation or New-Covenant Life his unspeakable Gift Their Restor'd Spirit of Nature or the Law is still a Spirit of Bondage under the Law and Curse Gal. 3-10 another State of Death by Filth of Spirit or Enmity to God's Spirit in which alone they can be finally saved Paul found his Holy Flesh or Restor'd Natural State a Body a Law of Sin and Death as Phil. 3. 6. and Ro. 7. 24. 8. 2 compared do Evidence Man's Rational Powers and Free-Will at best are the Living Holy Sacrifice God requires as their reasonable Service and true Gospel-Free-Will Offering unto him by the death of all Rom. 12. 1. Final refusing to do this renders men Conformable to this World v. 2. yea to the Devil the God of this World who has set up his Superiour worldly life wisdom and glory in unchangable enmity to God Thus fall first covenant Saints by refusing the second and crowning benefit of Christ's death under greater Guilt and sorer Condemnation then if they never had received the First They refuse to listen to Christ's Heavenly second voice and call to them out of the Fading Life and Earthly Freedom of the Sons of Men into the Everlasting Life and Glorious Liberty of the Sons of God Thus do Men sin away their First-Covenant Life and second Covenant Light again after the Similitude of Adam ' s Transgression by preferring such Life and Ornaments to the very Gospel New-Covenant more excellent Life and way 1 Cor. 12. 31. And so come they to a latter end worse then their beginning either in Innocency or as Born dead in Sin because now Irrecoverably Unpardonably and Unchangably dead This then is Solomon's meaning here God has appointed a time for the Birth and Death the Planting and Plucking up the Building and Pulling down the Healing and Wounding or Killing and Destroying Man as to this mortal first-covenant-life of his own nature The Birth of the Planting and Building him up therein is the ground and cause of his Laughing Dancing Exulting and Rejoycing in the Embraces of Christ as a fleshly Bride-groom The pulling down and destroying all this again by his Gospel-Cross or spiritual Sword is the cause of his Weeping and Mourning All this have we Vers. 2 3 4. Vers 5. A time to cast away Stones and a time to gather Stones together a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing Christ has a set time for gathering together the stones of Man's ruined desolated Building in his own nature and a time to pull down his rebuilt natural state and cast away the stoues thereof again uot leaving one stone upon another in this fleshly Church-building Thus serv'd he the first mystical Temple-building of our spotless nature in himself figured in his Prophecy of the downfal of the litteral Temple at Jerusalem in Answer to his Disciples Mat. 24. 1 2. Christ has a time to embrace Men as a fleshly Bridegroom to them and a time to refrain from embracing on his dying and departing from them there And he requires them to desire expect or look after him no more there for a knowledg of him after the Flesh but wholly fix
Levit's and a Plague on some others of the People Exod. 32. They said v. 4. and Jeroboam said after them in the like case behold thy Gods O Israel which brought thee up out of the Land of Egypt O Madness To the Egyptian God's that could not deliver their own People from them do they ascribe their deliverance from their Egyptian Bondage and Task-Masters So Ahaz Sacrificed to the God's of Damascus which were the ruine of him and all Israel 2 Chron. 28. 22 23. and 2 King 16. 10-13 So also Amaziah set up the Edomit's Gods to be his Gods and sought after them which could not deliver their own People out of his hands 2 Chro. 26. 14 15. and was destroy'd for his pains as threat'ned by the Prophet for not hearkning to his Counsell though against and contrary to the King 's Wicked Idolatrous Council v. 16. 27. And what became of Jeroboam for his Calf-worship erected on a self Interested Reason of State See 1 King 14. 10 11. I le cut of Jeroboam and take away the Remnant of his House as a Man takes away Dung till it be all gone Him that dieth of him in the City shall Dogs Eat and him that dies in the Field shall the Fowls of the Air Eat For the Lord hath spoken it Is not here enough When Christ shall take possession of and actually reign over all the Earth his right always Psal. 2. 8. all Visible and Invisible Principalities and Powers of this World Evil Men and Angels will be laid in the Dust. Nothing but Righteousness of one sort or other Man's or God's in Man will be found in the whole World his Holy Mountain or Kingdom by his Executing that Judgment and Justice in the Earth Jer. 23. 5. always all along his peaceable Righteous Reign that they allway's perverted Saints also that he will bring with him to Reign will do the like in Harmony with their Universal Fift Monarch Dan. 7. 18 -- 27. Jude 14 15. Rev. 5. 10. Solomon in Spiritual Light sees and mean's not only nor chiefly the oppression of the Body in the concerns thereof by Heathen Governments violating the Common Law or Light of rational nature in mankind but the Oppression and Violence exercis'd by first-Covenant Brethren against the second the only true Heirs and Saints of the most high The new Light and Life they are found in under the fructifying Influence and Beamings forth of the Mystical New-Creation Sun of everlasting Righteousness Christ as a Spiritual Bride-groom is Scorn'd Hated contradicted Blasphem'd and they Persecuted and kill'd for 't by none so much as by their envious Brethren in Holy Flesh restor'd Law-Life under the Mystical first-Creation Sun or First-Covenant Spirit wherein Christ has bin a sleshly Law-Bride-groom to them Thus are true Saints the Oppressed peculiarly and most properly here and Chap. 5. 8. meant by Solomon And then shall we find the vast number of Dead Heathens in the corrupt Life or Spirit of nature dead in Trespasses and Sins and the far smaller number of enliven'd first-Covenant Brethren professing Saints in Holy Flesh in all variety of Judgment Form or way in one kind or other Oppressours of the smallest number of all Christ's little Flock the few that are saved true Saints of the most High in God's Holy New-Creature-Spirit stripp'd and destitute of all Worldly Power or help All in this World against them No thing No body for them They are Men Wonder'd at Scorn'd Hated by all Men of Contention with the whole Earth The whole Earth or wordly party of Angels and Men fix'd in their earthy natural first-Creation-make and State despiteful Enemies to the Spirit of Grace and all in the second are their Implacable Adversaries in every thing The but first-Covenant Righteous Professour call himself what he will sometimes gets a considerable Share in the Civil Sword or Power and uses it with greatest fierceness against the new-Covenant professing Spiritual Saint who with Christ look's not after the Kingdom of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heavenly managable only in the Spirit of 〈◊〉 not the most enlight'ned righteous Principles or State of nature and not actually commencing till Man's and Satan's be at a Period Such a Kingdom such a King or Kings as Christ and his true Disciples lay claim to or own themselvs of right to be as Sons of God even Heathen Pilate was able to see and Judg carries no clash in it at all with Worldly Ceasars or Magistracies John 18. 36-38 True Saints are not for throwing down all Heathen Magistracies in the corrupt Spirit of nature that they may rule over all in the renew'd worldly spirit thereof They that design and drive at this are the Pseudo-Fift-Monarchists who in all their Zeal and high Pretences for the King Jesus are the highest and fiercest Enemies and Opposers of the very Jesus the very Christ in his very Gospel-reigning Spirit of Grace and Truth They are themselvs the most signal part and Branch at least of that little Horn with the Mouth speaking very great things Dan. 7 8. 11. 20 21. 24 25. Rev. 13. 3. 5 -- 8. 11 -- 17 which they would wholly fix upon and appropriate unto a corrupt and grosly Idolatrous Heathen party in the Fourth Roman Monarchy under the name Christian. These are they with the deadly Wound Healed given by the first Sin that laid all Mankind dead in Trespasses and Sins who with a great mouth speak great things blasphemous words against God and his new-name or Gospel-Spirit the Holy Ghost God's Heavenly Sanctuary or Tabernacle and them that dwell in it even the Saints of the most high that dwell or have their conversation in Heaven Christ's Heavenly Gospel-Spirit of Grace By the false Fift-Monarchist is to be understood not only a party peculiarly and apart from their Fellows at Munster or lately amongst us or in any former Generations and other Countries pretending this way by throwing down all corrupt Worldly Monarchies or Governments to set up themselvs but the whole fixed first Covenant-Spirited Generation and Party of Professours in all times and places found in the same uniform Spirit of unchangable Enmity to the true Spiritual Saint on the one hand and a self-confident Disturbing Traiterous Opposition to corrupt worldly Cesars on the other This troublesome Spirit is charactred by the Apostle in the Jewish Professours that both kill'd the Lord Jesus and their own Prophets and Christ's Apostles And therein please not but indeed highly displease and Provoke God and are contrary to all Men on their right and left hand Spiritual Saints and polluted Heathens For this Wrath came upon those Jews to the uttermost and will upon all in like case 1 Thes. 2. 15 16. These are they that speak great swelling Words of Vanity with their self-exalting Luciferian Master Satan the old great Bloody-minded Red Dragon against the most high himself and all his true Spiritual Saints These are they that said of Christ himself the Supream Preacher and
everlasting righteous spiritual Life set up in them to wit the death of their natural state Christ could do nothing of himself or in his fleshly Law-life and state Joh. 5. 30. nothing that his Father sent him about His errand and business was to put it to death Passive obedience to his own Gospel-cross Spiritual-sword or Circumcision-knife was the high duty of his natural spirit and whole Man There 's no other way of coming to do all things well in God's sight which can only be in his Gospel-spirit or principle of everlasting righteousness and active obedience but by the passive obedience and death of our Law-spirit or natural state in which we can do nothing well before God nor ever enter into his Kingdom Christ in his Gospel-spirit the true principle of active obedience to God for ever did and said alwayes what was well-pleasing to to his Father Joh. 8. 29. as found in exact harmony with the very mind and will of his infinite divine spirit He despised the shame and contempt of those that despised his Crucified natural man Heb. 12. 2. And those that do not so he will despise disown reject and be ashamed of when he comes in the Glory of his Father with the holy Angels Mark 8. 38. Christ's Doctrine was not his own but his that sent him Whoever does receive or despise and reject the words of his Gospel-spirit in himself or saints receives or despises the Father that sent him and him that sends them The four Gospels abound with words to this purpose especially John's First and second Covenant-Saints poor wise children in the second and Old doting foolish Kings in the first are in a perfectly cross constitution and thought about salvation absolute sools to one another The Cross on Man's wisdom is reckon'd the starkest arrantest folly and madness imaginable by natural Man and Angel But one broken contrite-spirited crucified Saint is of more esteem with God than millions of unbroken uncrucified Men and Angels in all the excellencies glories wisdom and righteousness of their first-creation humane and angelical natures Isai. 66. 1 2. Man's day or light and Judgment in first-covenant wisdom and God's day of Judgment in the second will be found in flat contradiction to each other in this grand concern of men about Salvation Whose Judgment whose word will stand His or theirs Think well on 't before too late Ther 's no speaking at present to the old self-deafned doting foolish King by the poor wise Child He scorns and rejects with a wry mouth Rhetorical mockings in utmost contempt all his words and warnings His whole Gospel-doctrine of the cross on all the foolish King rest's in for Salvation is rejected as absolute foolishness and madness 1 Cor. 1. 18 -- 23. and 4. 8. 10. Hos. 9. 7 8. These foolish self-confident first-covenant fifth-monarchists that tugge it out somtimes with worldly Caesars for the civil sword as that by which to manage the reign of Christ in this world are but at the same work the Jews desired to have Christ have been at by owning himself a King in his first-covenant law-life and righteousness of man which he refused them in 〈◊〉 6. 15. Refusing to be a King in the fading Law-principle of first-covenant life and operation and asserting his kingdom in the Gospel-spirit of the second they crucified their king Joh. 19. 15. They that would have set up Christ for their King in this world against Caesar say to rid their hands of him we have no King but Caesar in answer to Pilat's question This is the confusion and falshood found in man's shusfling wisdom on all accounts at every turn about and against his own Salvation When God not only by words but deeds in his blasting dispensations witnesses his displeasure against them and all their false confidences not suffering them to prosper in them 〈◊〉 2. 37. still they are at the same point When they find mystical gray hairs decays and old age convincing Harbingers and Messengers of the approaching Death upon them as to all that 〈◊〉 Life and Riches they have trusted in still there they 'l hold and hope for safety When God comes upon them in his beginning Judgments on that State they trust in so as undeniably to evidence to them that as six'd in 't is but the Mystical Land of their Nativity and Border of Wickedness and they therein the People against which and whom he hath Indignation for ever Mal. 1. 4. still they obstinately rest and trust for safety therein Here 's the case of these old foolish Kings that will not be brought to any happy obedient chang of mind by any thing the Lord either say's or does to them They obstinately persist in bringing forth Wild Grapes Gall and Worm-wood from a bitter Root of Enmity in them against God And they will still needs pass for his only Gospel-People and Saints when a downright Synagogue of Satan fix'd in unchangable Enmity and Rebellion against him This do they to their litteral Graves And to carry on the like destructive work on others that they leave behind them as their Counsel-Legacy to them in their dying words they 'l charg their hearers the pretended Gospel-Churches of Christ that they look not after regard or receive any other Gospel then that accursed false one they have Preach'd to them even the same the Old Serpent Preach'd to Eve that Eternal Life is to be found in the Old or first-Creation State of nature and that they shall not die at all and so that all Preaching the Cross and Death upon it is a Blasphemous fiction against the Law and that Holy place or State of Man Thus the Jews accused Stephen Act. 6. 13. The whole Gospel is reckon'd by them Blasphemy against the Law The whole current of Scripture in the Gospel-sense of all run's for the Poor Wise Child But the whole current of their false other Law-Gospel and short sighted Interpretation of all Scripture run's cleerly for the old Foolish King in exact Harmony with the Old Serpent that Bewitches Teachers and Hearers through self-love to the sading Life and Glory of their own nature into a state of unchangable Enmity to God and Death to themselvs with him Oh but say they that which you call Satan's and our accursed other Gospel is the very same you call Christ's You only come forth in an affected singularity of words but say all the same things we do We Preach and own the Cross of Christ. Upon what The corrupt Spirit of fallen nature with the vile affections and lusts thereof But what say you to the Cross on your enlight'ned restor'd righteous nature made Wise Strong and Honourable in Conformity to that Life of the Law or Holy Flesh Christ took as Born of a Virgin Is this the Subject of the Cross of Christ Are ye willing to part with all this in case ye had it to part with To despise your own righteous Law-Life or Living Soul for Christ's Gospel-Spirit
spirit CHAP. V. Vers. I. Keep thy Foot when thou goest to the House of God and be more ready to hear then to give the Sacrifice of Fools For they consider not that they do evil HEre 's the Result and Use of all declar'd in the fore-going Chapters as to the Vanity and vain Labour of Man under the Light of the Mystical first-Creation Sun or Spirit of the Law in and under which Man and Angel were at first Created and Christ Born Gal. 4. 4. Paul draw's the same useful Instruction from the doctrin of the 11 former Chapters to the Roman's Chap. 12. 1. for quitting or giving up the same earthly natural State the same thing with the Foot here when restor'd or made again Holy Flesh the righteous natural Body in Sacrifice to God as our reasonable Service and true free-will Offring even the Offring up of our free-will to good and evil that we may receive his free-will to Good only the Glorious Liberty of the Sons of God with which the Son makes free indeed all that are Born of his Gospel-Spirit of overlasting righteousness and truth First then consider what this Foot is or signifies and secondly what 's the House of God it 's to be kept out of as not fit to enter 1. This Foot 〈◊〉 the whole Man in a first-Covenant Life The Heel Satan is permitted to bruise Gen. 3. 15. is of the same extent and comprehensive significancy And so were the Shoes Moses was Commanded to put from off his Feet where the ground was Holy Exod. 3. 5. This Foot or natural Spirit of Man corrupt or righteous being found in Enmity to God at best as in Paul before his Gospel-Conversion can bear no part in the right Worshipping of God which is wholly to be perform'd in Spirit and Truth Christ's new-Creature Gospel-spirit of everlasting righteousness and truth The infinite Divine Spirit and Father requires all Men and Angels to Worship him in the Son's Gospel-Creature-Spirit of truth How can Man please him in duties of Worship or any other Performances towards him or Man in his own Spirit of Enmity Such Enmity as is no otherwise extinguishable but by 〈◊〉 death of nature being absolutely inseperable from the Life of it at best Christ's Gospel-Spirit of Love in unchangable Union of Mind and Will Desire and Thought with God when it becom's the sole Principle of Life Desire Thought and Action in Man will perfectly and compleatly fulfil all Law perform all duty to God and Man to God's well-pleasing and the Performer's certain and everlasting Salvation Man is not to come in his own Spirit of nature however Wise Strong Rich and Honourable in Christ by his first-Covenant-Communications to him as a fleshly Bride-groom and 〈◊〉 at his earthly Table into the new-Creation Sanctuary of God the everlasting Righteous Fountain Gospel-Spirit of Christ. The Courts of this Sanctuary are too Holy Ground for any thing that 's but changably good as Man and Angels before the fall or also positively evil as nature corrupt or righteous in all Men since the fall to tread on For a Man in a Spirit that 's a Root of Bitterness bearing Gall and Wormwood Briars and Thorns in a continued Enmity to God every Imagination Purpose Desire and Thought thereof being only evil continually the old World's case before the Flood Gen. 6. 5. to appear in the unchangably righteous new-Creation Sanctuary of God what a strang incongruous thing and sight would it be If any fill'd and Clothed by Satan's 〈◊〉 and their own consent or choice with a Spirit of unchangable Enmity to God do as 't were crowd in and appear at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb and his Bride in the Kingdom of his Father see what 's like to become of him Mat. 22. 11 12. Friend will the King Jesus say how cam'st thou in hither not having a Wedding Garment And he was Speech-less had nothing to say Then say's the King to his Servants the Holy Angels of his Power that excel in strength all fixed first-Creation Enemies of God and the second bind him Hand and Foot and cast him into outer Darkness where shall be Weeping and Gnashing of Teeth to all Eternity Let the fixed first-Creation Sinner and Enemy of God in his form of Godliness Righteousness of Man do what he can get where he will he is gone for ever No Stranger was to come into the Litteral Sanctuary under the Law the Type of this Spiritual Gospel-Sanctuary-Spirit of God in Christ's Person and in his Saints the lively stones of the House upon the Rock that Christ is the living head-corner Stone and Foundation of He spirit 's influences and enliven's all the rest hold's them fitly compacted together and firmly cimented in his one Gospel-spirit of new-Creature-Life that 's a Universal Bond of Love and Peace to and with God Christ and one other for evermore The Foot Heel or Shoe that 's to be kept back laid aside or put off that we may be shod with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace and so walk orderly with a right Foot according to the Gospel of the Grace of God or on a new foot of account in the single-ey'd discerning strength and Power of Christ's Gospel-spirit is that Flesh and Blood which cannot enter into and inherit the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 15. 50. or tread the Courts of his Heavenly Sanctuary Angels in the purity of their first-Creation-make and changable Life were to cover their Faces as not fit to appear before God to behold or be beheld by him therein And say's God to the Jews when ye come to appear before me who hath requir'd this at your hands to tread my Courts Isai. 1. 12. No right acceptable Worshipping God or doing any thing else but in the Gospel-spirit of Truth that spirit of Love that 's the compleat fulfiller of the whole Law even of all that God requires of us Sure the natural spirit at best that 's a spirit of Enmity to God and a bloody-minded Spirit against his true Saints can do no such thing It 's hands are full of blood It breath'd out Threatnings and Slaughters against the Disciples of the Lord even in Paul who had therein lived according to his light in all good conscience Act. 23. 1. exerciseable in the activity and restor'd Life thereof as a strict circumspect Opposer and Suppressor of the vile Affections and Lusts of his corrupt nature This Foot then is to be cut off cast away laid aside by us as not fit to perform any part in the true Worshipping of God Man is not to come alive into the House of God but be brought into it by the High Priest Christ himself dead as to his own Law-Life and principle of active obedience and quick'ned up into his Gospel-Life and Principle of active obedience wherein alone 't is possible to please God or be saved Passive obedience is the highest service performable in or with Angel's or Man's natural first-Creation Life
his own Spirit offer 's but the sacrifice of fools in God's judgment however highly he esteem the sacrifice or himself for it He does not rightly know what he does what he is whither he goes whom he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ospel things and truths the whole Counsel of God the 〈◊〉 and only way of salvation the methods of God's wisdom in order thereunto all the law's ordinances statut's and judgments of his new creation-sanctuary describ'd in the nine last chapters of Ezekiel all these things lie quite out of his sight How can Man in his own best Wisdom that 's foolishness to God's in his own Spirit that at best is enmity to God's perform do any thing or offer up any sacrifice acceptable to God any but the sacrifice of fools These fools consider not will not consider that they do evil Stiff-necked are they in their own self-confident understandings which are not only blear-ey'd and dimm-sighted but stark blind and wholly ignorant of all Gospel-things and truths yet on they will turning their deaf ear to or setting their mouth against the heavens Ps. 73. 9. all heavenly Gospel-doctrin and instruction They 'l listen to nothing that may induce them to consider the great mischief they are doing to themselvs and others by preaching promising and warranting peace with God in a spirit of direct enmity to him Ezek. 13. 6. 10. and decrying might and main that which is the only way of salvation and the only spirit in which any can be saved with all the words thereof This desperate work are these blind leaders with their self-confident followers at all reck'ning they are doing very pleasing and acceptable service to God Act. 26. 9. Having nothing of Christ's very Gospel-Spirit or doctrin in their Church do they with great indignation and scorn cast all that are wholly for the very Christ and his very Gospel out of their church Isai. 66. 5. Ps. 50. 20 yes and out of the world too when they can as not fit to live any longer in it Act. 22. 22. All this do these Gospel-Wolvs in Sheep's Clothing reckon to be a doing God service Jo. 16. 2. in a blind zeal for him and his law against every word of his Gospel Rom. 10. 2 3 for the first-covenant life of the law in their own restor'd spirit of nature against the second-covenant life of the Gospel in his own spirit of grace So think they do God service when they joyn with the Devil to do despite to the spirit of grace Heb. 10. 29 casting all the words thereof behind their backs and all contempt they can on all such words and all the speakers and right hearers of them as the worst of blasphemies and blasphemers What was Saul's Sin in letter and mystery too is their's in mystery They must be brought to acknowledg with Saul that what the wisdom of God and the words or commands thereof require to be destroy'd their foolish wisdom in the words thereof preaches keeps up and warrants currant for salvation The Spirit of nature in Man recovered and restored by Christ out of the fall into the life wisdom and ruling power thereof over all inferiour sensual brutish power of life and operation in him amounts to no more in mystery and truth then the Amalekite King Agag and best of the cattel The refuse of the cattel the vile affections the disorderly unruly lusts of the corrupt state of nature they have subdued yet not fully but the King and best of the Cattel the rational and sensual powers reduced to good order in the ruling authority of the former and due subjection of the latter these they judg fit to be spared And what are these both king and subjects All but still the Amalekite spirit of nature and Man therein the direct enemy of God and all his Gospel-Saints and truths Was not Paul in and with all these fighting against God when he thought his had bin fighting for him With Saul will all such self-confident justifiers of themselvs be condemn'd out of their own mouth even amid'st their self-justifying plea against the Lord's and his true spiritual Prophet's charge drawn up against them as Samuel's against Saul They 'l be found partial in God's Law The refuse things the vile affections of their polluted nature they are content should be subdued in obedience to it But the choicer things thereof nature at best in the Glory Wisdom and righteousness thereof that all this must go up in sacrifice by a just and holy death to God being an unholy life or state of enmity to God however in a sense holy as cleansed from filth of flesh though convinc'd God's Wisdom requir's this also do they with Saul under a self-condemning light refuse to obey c. and yet stoutly assert with him that they have obeyed the voice of the Lord. All this find we 1 Sam. 15. 18-23 This get men by setting up their own Wisdom and Spirit as judg or interpreter of the Oracles dictat's or words of God's in a known contrariety to the spiritual meaning and intendment of all In their restor'd righteous inlight'ned nature that 's God's required Gospel-sacrifice sigured out by all clean law-sacrifices in the old Testament do they presumptuously with Saul and King 〈◊〉 intrude or thrust themselvs into the priests office 1 Sam. 13. 8-14 2 Chron. 26. 16-21 In their own Foolish Wisdom and Spirit of Enmity to God and all the Words of his Wisdom do they pretend to the Office of Christ's Priestly Gospel-spirit of Infallible Truth and Everlasting Righteousness as the only true declarers of the Will and Words of God that rightly take not his meaning in any of his Words nor ever can understand them This Presumptuous course persisted and fix'd in will render the contagious over-spreading Leprosy the Sin of Enmity to God filth of Spirit that 's no otherwise curable then by the compleat and full death of nature absolutely incurable and mortal as the case was with the Litteral Leprosy on Uzzia's Body to his dying day though said for a season to have done that which was right in the sight of the Lord in his long Reign of two and fifty Yeers 2 King 15. 2 3. The true Priestly Gospel-Spirit of Christ offer'd up our nature in himself at best in Sacrifice to God When Samuel Reprov'd Saul for Sacrificing his answer was The Philistins were ready to come upon me to Gilgal and I had not made Supplication to the Lord so I forc'd my self and Offer'd a Burnt-Offring These 〈◊〉 Pleas and Apologies of nature go for nothing when thorowly search'd by the Spirit of Christ in his seers Thou hast done foolishly say's Samuel and shalt lose thy Kingdom Life and all for 't by those Philistin's through the fear of whom thou did'st Offer this Sacrifice of Fools And what befel Adam and all his Posterity with King Uzziah for Presumptuously setting or keeping up his Law-State or changable first-Covenant righteous Life of his own nature as therein
wisdom of man is nothing in the case The words of God's Wisdom his oracles whether given in Dreams Visions or by his true Prophets are too hard for that interpreter The new-creature wisdom of God in Daniel and the three Children was ten times better than that in all the Magicians or wise men in the Realm Dan. 1. 20. In this could Daniel tell both the oraculous dream of Nebuchadnezzar and the interpretation those wise men neither Dan. 2. The great prophetical Image of worldly Monarchy from that day to the end of this World Man's day and Satan's reign was the matter of the Dream Then the Dream of the great high Tree which more particularly related to Nebuchadnezzar himself was interpreted by Daniel also Dan. 4. 22. And after this in the reign of Belshazzar grandchild to Nebuchadnezzar did the same Daniel interpret the Mene Tekel on the Palace-Wall none of the wise Men of Babylon knew what to make of Dan. 5. 15. and v. 25 28 Daniel as an awakened spiritual Saint knew the interpretation of the thing or word no wisdom of Man could interpret Yet does the but restored righteous first-covenant Saint Wise Strong and Honorable in Christ there figur'd by the wise Men of Babylon Egypt and the King of Tyre presumptuously reckon himself wiser then Daniel or Paul Ezek. 28. 3. 1 Cor. 4. 10. The Queen recommending Daniel to frighted amaz'd King Belshazzar when she saw his thoughts trouble him and Countenance chang'd said there 's a man in thy Kingdom in whom is the Spirit of God an excellent Spirit having the light understanding and wisdom of God in it by which he had knowledge and understanding for interpreting dreams shewing hard sentences and dissolving doubts or untying knots as the Chaldee reads Daniel interprets the Mene Tekel and the execution was speedy For that night was King Belshazzar slain by the Medes and Persians who after two years siege then enter'd the Town by diverting the River Euphrates Dan. 5. 5 -- 31. Here 's the truly 〈◊〉 man His Wisdom consists in and is evidenced by a right interpreting of Parables and dark sayings of important concern in their significancy but too obscure and difficult for man's wisdom at best to deal with or unriddle Neither literal nor mystical Magicians Men or Angels in any first-creation understanding or learning can interpret them Such another as Daniel was Joseph long before Pharaoh had two Oraculous Dreams that by their impression upon his mind signified that they signified some important thing to him and his people but what he could not tell This was left for the true interpreting Spirit in Joseph to declare Nebuchadnezzar knew tho' his Dream was slipp'd from him that 't was an Oracle from God and had a concerning significancy so his spirit was troubled as Pharoah's in like case till they both knew what their Dreams meant Dan. 2. 1. Gen. 41. 8. They were both perfect puzzlers to the wisdom of man None of the wise men in Egypt or Babylon could interpret either of these Kings Dreams Pharoah's doubled Dream in two distinct Sleeps signified the same things seven years Plenty and then seven of Famine The fat and lean Kine coming out of the River Nile signified the same cause of the Plenty and Famine of the Plenty by its wonted overflowings and of the Famine by failing therein The two Kings for the signal benefits they received by the hand of these two choice Saints advanc'd them to great worldly dignities in their several Kingdoms and days The Reason given was because the Spirit of God was in them Gen. 41. 38. Dan. 2. 48. 5. 11. Is this a qualification for preferment with Kings now a-days tho' call'd Christian that these two Heathen Princes preferr'd Joseph and Daniel for Were there true Gospel-Saints in Heathen Cesars houshold Phil. 4. 22. in Paul's time Where are such now in Christian Cesars housholds The Wisdom then or Understanding that judges or 〈◊〉 all things 1 Cor. 2. 15. and so can interpret all words into those things signified by them as God's full intent and meaning in them this renders the happy 〈◊〉 thereof the wise man here meant It makes him a Seer of God one that can read understand and declare the whole Counsel of God about the Salvation of men Such Wisdom as reaches the deep things of God's very Divinity and most excellent spiritual creature-things of Christ and God sure natural the lowest general rank of things in Man and Angel's first-creation-make can't lie hid from The divine and spiritual things of God knoweth no Man or Angel in their single natural make or state but in the Spirit of God the new-Creature Gospel-spirit of Christ becoming the Principle of their Life and discerning by a new-Creation of them 1 Cor. 2. 10 15. Such Wisdom is not found in the first-creation Land of the living or State of Life Visible or invisible natural things first-creation Vanities are the bounding utmost immediately discernable objects of the highest Wisdom in that state No fowls of the Air Angels by their mystical Vultur's Eye or quickest clearest natural sight do so much as reach that place or spiritual state in Christ where true Wisdom and Understanding are found Job 28. 7 12 13 20 21. Spiritual Light darted on the natural Understanding of Man or Angel may convince them both that there are not only Divine but Spiritual new-Creature things which are quite out of the reach of their bare natural Understandings And that 't is in the awak'ned principle of spiritual Life only they can properly and fully see and enjoy such things All then that undertake to handle the written Oracles or Word of God without this only Key or true interpreting Wisdom of God communicated to them in his Creature-Spirit of Grace we may easily judg what work they are like to make on 't or what recompence they 'l have for their pains How Men that handle the written Word of God in a Wisdom and Spirit that 's foolishness and enmity to the living Word Spirit and Wisdom of God will be handled by that living Word at last may easily be guess'd Man in all first-Covenant Life Light Wisdom Righteousness Holiness is but holy flesh wise strong and honourable in Christ yet but the natural Man that can't receive the things of God for they are foolishness to him and Paul or any true Spiritual Saint is reckon'd a fool for owning or asserting any such things 1 Cor. 2. 14. 4. 8 10. They are not the objects of the natural understanding are only spiritually discern'd And he is offended and stumbles at the cross-doctrine of death to his natural state as undispensably necessary to his coming at true Wisdom or spiritual Understanding Such doctrine he reckons folly and madness 1 Cor. 1. 23. Joh. 10. 20. Hos. 9. 7 8. First then negatively where is true Wisdom not to be found not in the first-Creation Land of the living Then affirmatively where is it to be had
In the new-Creation Land of the living or spiritual Gospel-state of life The Wisdom of Man that can't discern spiritual Things or Truths how should it interpret the words of God's Wisdom that means only such things by all first-creation shadows figures and similitudes All Scripture as to the true spiritual intent and meaning of God is a Book seal'd to the highest natural Wisdom of Angel or Man Isa. 29. 11. All divine and spiritual things of God meant in the Scripture are mysteries fast lock'd up from that sort of Understanding in learned or unlearned Man Man then going to work with that which discerns no things of God shuts out all those things that are shut up from him out of his humane Divinity so call'd and so shuts up the Kingdom of Heaven in stead of opening it to his Hearers Let him read study and preach as long as 〈◊〉 lived he comes not one jot nearer the mysteries or Truths of God in the Scriptures then when he lay in his cradle Yea worse he is a direct enemy to all such Truths or Things when declared he hates and detests them as blasphemous Fictions So shutting up the Kingdom of God runs down himself and his blind Followers to the Chambers of death In a lying humane spirit of Divination back'd with Satan's lying evil angelical spirit do Men come forth to declare the Truths of God and say the Lord saith Ezek. 13. 6. God signifies his divine and spiritual things to Men which lie quite out of their natural discerning and reach by such earthly shadows and figures as are discernable to them and they lay hold on those shadows denying all allegorizing or interpreting them into God's Spiritual Heavenly truths or things God's things can be no otherwise spoken to man then in parables or by such things as are discernable to him Mat. 13. 34. The truly wise spiritual Saint only understands the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven or mysterious things of God signified in the Scripture v. 11. To others that stick in the letter all 's a parable a 〈◊〉 And thus do even Saints themselves before the incorruptible Seed or principle of Spiritual Life be actually waken'd up in them And after that also their natural Man so 〈◊〉 as unsubdued and untransform'd into harmony with their spiritual in life and light understands not such Mysteries No Man in his natural state receives Christ's Testimony of spiritual heavenly Truths or things Joh. 3. 31 32. Man's very Wisdom or understanding is the Vail on him the partition-wall between him and all spiritual things The exchange of that by the obedient death of nature for God's unspeakable gift of spiritual Life and Wisdom is his only possible way of coming at any right and full understanding of the Scriptures Man swells and puffs at any thing his understanding can't reach and his Will hates so scoffs at allegorizing the Scriptures or interpreting them into some other farther things then the literal shadow or figure lest something should by so deep dipping into it be turn'd up for Truth that 's above his understanding and not pleasing to his Will In love to his own Wisdom he denies there is any other but God's purely divine no spiritual Creature-Wisdom And if any pretend to that he censures them for Luciferian Presumption He denies that superiour Creature-wisdom Saints are partakers of which is call'd also the Wisdom of God and then most falsely taxes them with pretending to the very infinite divine Wisdom The spiritual Saint only has the seeing Eye hearing Ear and understanding Heart the senses suited to the divine and spiritual things of God All others 〈◊〉 see not and hearing hear not nor understand Mat. 13. 13 -15 From Isa. 6. 9 10. The spiritual wise Man in his new erected intellect and life sees all things divine and twofold creaturely spiritual and natural in their very hidden essences properties and naked evidence The natural wise Man does but conjecture guess at the hidden properties essences and occult qualities as he therefore call's them of the very visible or lower sort of natural things In the Apocryphal Wisdom of Solomon we find words to this purpose Chap. 9. 13 -- 18. What man knows the Counsel of God Or who can think what the Will of the Lord is The thoughts of mortal Men are miserable and our devices uncertain For the corruptible body presseth down the Soul the earthy Tabernacle weigheth down the Mind which museth on many things Hardly guess we aright at things on Earth that are before us but things in Heaven who hath searched out Thy Counsel who hath known except thou give Wisdom and send thy holy Spirit from above For so the ways of Men on Earth are reform'd as taught things pleasing to thee and saved through Wisdom Lo then the vast differences of natural and spiritual Wisdoms or Understandings The divine and spiritual creature-things of Christ and God are clearly discernable to the one and not the lower sort of natural things to the other Spiritual Wisdom that sees all the things of God can interpret all the words of God declare the very divine thought intent and meaning in all They that have this unction from the holy one know all things The said anointing teacheth of all things 1 Joh. 2. 20 27. That new-creature Gospel-spirit of Truth wherewith true Saints are anointed guides them into all Truth and shews them things to come even all that God will do with the obedient submitters to or incorrigible Rebels against the said Spirit for ever in eternal Life or Death This Spirit in the awaken'd-up seed thereof will bring to remembrance words or things past also what their natural Man in the days of their ignorance has receiv'd the report of by the hearing of the 〈◊〉 and give them the clear full sight or understanding of by the seeing of the spiritual Eye or new Intellect Joh 14. 26. Job came to the blessed experience of this by and after the sufferings of his natural Man under the Cross Job 42. 5. All things the Father hath are mine says Christ and this Spirit of mine in you shall shew you all Joh 16. 14 15. all the things of my new-creation Kingdom in the conjunctive Divine and Creature-glories of me the King thereof all which are Mysteries hidden and shut up from all natural first-creation understanding of Man or Angel They can be spoken to that only in Parables figuratively represented to it only by first-creation Shadows and Similitudes in dark sayings till open'd by the spiritual Remembrancer in Men. This is the Interpreter Messenger Apostle or sent-one of God as Elihu calls him that can shew to Man his Uprightness Job 33. 23. Yea make him unchangeably upright in God's sight He was not made so by the first-creation For then could he not have miscarried by his many inventions as 〈◊〉 7. 29. This Spirit makes the Saint wiser then all his first-creation Teachers in the words of Man's Wisdom who will yet pretend to
incident to Men under the wonder-working Power and Grace of God in the King of Saints Hos. 1. 6 10. God requir'd Israel to own him King submit to the Government of his Spirit in Samuel the same Spirit in which Christ is universal King All in that Spirit are his true obedient Subjects Any Person or any People that will not have this spiritual heavenly King reign over them and in them though his earthly Jerusalem Citizens or first-covenant People see how they 'l be handled by him Luk. 19. 14 27. This great universal King lately offer'd to set up his Theocratical Fifth-Monarchy amongst us His earthly-Jerusalem-Citizens in a first-covenant spirit pretended to it as the Corinthian 〈◊〉 in Paul's Gospel-time in a spirit nor Christ nor he could own for a reigning principle 1 Cor. 4. 8. and a huge noise they made of owning the King Jesus in but a knowledg of him after the flesh in a restor'd Law-life the very principle and state the Jews would have 〈◊〉 him King in Joh. 6. 15. Such first-Covenant first-Monarchists Kings or Princes of this World crucified the true King Jesus 1 Cor. 2. 8. They blasphem'd and crucified him for owning a Kingship and Kingdom not of this World in his Gospel-spirit of Grace and Truth that would have made him a King in that Law-life and spirit they were of and in They cry up their Heathen Cesar for their King rather then such a King Jesus Shall I crucify your King says Pilate We have no King but Cesar say they Joh. 18. 36 37. 19. 12 15. A plain case and our's just He that was for the right King Jesus in his true reigning Spirit must be shuffled out of the World with his great Master as an Enemy both 〈◊〉 Cesar and them 〈◊〉 and a first-covenant People are joyntly for the rooting Christ and his true spiritual Anointed Ones out of the World as not sit to live in it Psal. 2. 1 -- 3. Act. 22. 22. And what got Israel by refusing the King Jesus or Government of God in the said Spirit of true Prophecy grievances enow What help none to remove them God would not as he fore-threatned them when busie about their new choice of Government Ye shall cry because of your King ye have chosen but the Lord will not hear you says Samuel Fair warning See all this 1 Sam. 8. 6 18. The law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus comes to strike down the ruling Power of that spirit in Man that 's but a Law of Sin and of Death and so by setting up his own kingly Rule and Power in him frees him from all evil and bondage Those that willingly submit to this death-blow of Christ on their ruling Law-spirit cast down their Crowns or ruling Power at his Feet and set the Crown on his Head in the day of their new-covenant Espousals to him owning his true Kingly-Spirit for their Ruler Cant. 3. 11. Christ struck down the earthy Law-king in Paul to the Earth and instantly set up his Gospel-spirit King and Ruler in and over him Act. 9. 3 4. The Law-spirit at best in fallen man is but the Amalekite-Ruler the Agag which tho' Saul spared in favour to it in himself as was implied in his unpardonable sin Samuel in the true Kingly Spirit of Jesus hewed in pieces when he said or thought as Man when the corrupt spirit of Nature is subdued and a Righteous Law-spirit set up in ruling authority in him surely the bitterness of Death is past here 's no Cross or Death-work by a Spiritual Gospel-Sword behind to be brought upon this Righteous Law-life 1 Sam 15. 32 33. Spiritual Friends of Christ have the whole counsel and mind of God made known by him to them First-covenant Servants in their Law-spirit of bondage holy flesh form of Godliness Righteousness of Man tho' as busy as may be in reading hearing preaching and obeying the letter of their Lord's Command in the Scripture are wholly strangers to the spiritual design sense or meaning of their Lord in all They know not what he does Joh. 15. 15. or has now done himself with our nature at best in his own Person nor will consider their duty in following him therein by giving it up at best in whatever state in their persons as God's requir'd Sacrifice He that keeps the spiritual Command of Christ believes or obediently submits to the Law of his Cross shall feel hear see or know no evil thing or word against him from Christ at last day when on his Judgment-Seat But he that believeth not quits not his Law-spirit or principle of life and action under the Gospel-Cross or spiritual Sword of Christ for the Gospel-Life of that very Sword or living Word of God will be damn'd Mark 16. 16. t. And a wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment The spiritual wise man discerns an appointed time for the right use of a changeable first-Covenant Law-life and then as an antiquated Law-ceremony with the fading things and glory of it to be done away by a holy death as the Judgment and Command of God in Sacrifice to himself This Gospel-Sacrifice of Man at best was figured by the Law-Sacrifices of clean Beasts and Birds Spiritual Saints under the Law obediently gave up this Gospel-Sacrifice to God And all save a spiritual Seed refuse to give it under the Gospel When restor'd Law-life has serv'd its turn in man by his faithful performing Law-service to God therein suppressing the vile affections of the corrupt spirit of Nature 't is to give way to a better guide Christ's Gospel-Spirit or quicken'd up life thereof A Sentence or Judgment of Death upon the restor'd righteous Law-life of man must be submitted to by him with Paul 2 Cor. 1. 9. Law-life and the things thereof the Wisdom Righteousness Beauty Glory Fruits Works Duties Desires Thoughts Words Actions and all manner of performances therein kept up and finally preferr'd to Christ's Gospel-Life and things of God therein is the highest and most criminal Adultery and Murder Ezek. 16. 15 38. There 's an appointed time for Man and Angel too to die Heb. 9. 27. or lose that first-Covenant Law-life which was set up in them by creation The obedient loss of it under the Cross frees man from all guilt contracted by Sins past and all power of sinning any more for ever He thereby ceases from Sin and comes to be justified before God in a newness of life wherein he can never sin 1 Pet. 4. 1. Rom. 6. 7. 1 Joh. 3. 9. A change by the death of Nature of Law-life for Gospel under the working power of the Grace of God brings Men's matters to that blessed pass that no enemies will find any iniquity in them to charge them with nor will God himself Rom. 8. 33 34. Jer. 50. 20. The guilty sinner in the Saint that has committed innumerable 〈◊〉 is dead and gone and a spirit of everlasting Righteousness is become the single and sole principle