Barrenness, Adversity and Anguish, Croffes and Difappointments, to avenge their Violation and Contempt of it. Bleffings and Curfes, temporal and present AH; Of little value (in comparifon) to Men, who carry immortal Souls about them; and answering to thofe flender Confiderations we treat with Servants for; A little Wages paid down in Hand; A tolerable Subfiftence from Hand to Mouth; but nothing of a Settlement: Corrections, that follow immediately upon the Fault, and a Difcipline fuitable to the Sordidnefs of Their Temper, which looks no farther, than prefent Smart, and prefent Profit. It is made good especially, by that Terror and perpetual Confternation of Mind, neceffarily confequent upon a Law, Rigorous in exacting Works, without adminiftring Ability to perform them; Sufficient to inform Men of their Guilt, but not providing Remedies against it; Threatning Death to Tranfgreffions, (as the Condition of corrupt Nature then flood) not to be avoided, and not giving any comfortable Profpect of a Deliverance: As Slaves are contained in their Duty, by the Scourge held over them, or made to labour in fight of the Gibbet. Upon all which Accounts it is, that St. Paul most emphatically expreffes the Advantage of being freed from fuch a Law, by saying, that we bave not, in this new Covenant, received the Spirit of Bondage again unto Fear.

Rom. viii. 15.

The Gofpel, quite contrary, treats us as Free-men and Sons. It impofeth upon us nothing unfit for Men of generous Defcent and liberal Education. It requires perfect and fubftantial Holiness. Virtues of intrinfick Worth, anfwerable to the Dignity of Human Nature, fuch as adorn, exalt, and perfect it: Refts not in the outward Act, but carries thefe Virtues into our most fecret Parts; Enjoins Purity of Heart, Uprightness of Intention; fecures our Innocence, by tearing up Wickednefs by the Roots; Makes us of a Piece throughout, and Bb 4

fets

fets us above the little trickifh Arts of Diffimulation and Conftraint. Thefe Virtues it enforces with the nobleft Rewards; An Eternity of Joys; Joys worthy of, and agreeable to, an intelligent and immortal Spirit; The Pleafures of Knowledge, and Goodnefs, and Love; the Knowledge and Love of God, and every defirable Object: A Recompence worth our waiting for, worth all we can do or endure to obtain it, because the Recompence of Sons; Not our Hire but our Portion; A glorious Inheritance, an everlasting Settlement. And, Lastly, It infpires fuch tender and filial Affection, fuch a becoming Senfe of Gratitude, fuch affured Hope of being accepted in the Beloved, and confidered when we do well; fuch firm Perfuafion of Pardon, and kind Allowances, when we fail, and do amifs; fuch Dependence upon Grace and Strength feconding our Endeavours to do better; as fill and fupport us with inward Complacencies, fweeten all our Duty, take off the Edge of all our Sufferings, and render the fo reasonable Service of fo good a Father, Freedom, perfect Freedom.

Secondly, It is neceffary, for a right understanding the Apostle, to be rightly informed in what respect the Law of Mofes and the Gospel are faid to be Two Covenants. Strictly speaking, as the Church of God, fo likewife the Covenant of God with that Church, hath, ever fince the Fall of our firft Parents, been One and the Same. The Terms whereof, on God's part, are, Forgiveness of Sins, reftoring Mankind to Holinefs and Immortality, for the fake of his Son, and a View of His Sacrifice and Death for them: On Man's part, Belief in that Son, Dependance upon that Sacrifice, Repentance for past Offences, and fincere Obedience for the future. Thus did this (truly called the Second) Covenant, repair the Breaches of that First, which promifed Immortality to unfinning Obedience: Made with Adam in the time of his Innocence, but broken by Him, and impoffible to be difcharged by any Other Man ;

fince

fince all, defcending from Him, (after His Crime) par take in His Frailty and Corruption.

Gal. iii. 17.

I Pet. i. II.

I Pet. iii. 20.

Heb. xiii. 8.

The Foundation then of all the Comfort refulting from this Covenant, is the Redemption of the World by the Death of Chrift. The Promises made to Abraham and the Patriarch, were confirmed in Christ; The Spirit fpeaking by the Prophets was the Spirit of Christ; Nay, even before the Flood, it was Chrift, that preached to the old World, while the Ark was preparing in the days of Noah. In this refpect principally it seems to be, that the Author to the Hebrews ftiles him Jefus Christ, the fame yesterday, and to day, and for ever. So that these Covenants (the Law, and the Gospel) are not Two, with respect to the Subftance and principal Intent of them; but only in regard of the different Adminiftration, and the Terms upon which it pleafed God, at certain Periods, to apply and confer that General Promife of Salvation. The Promises of the Gofpel indeed, and the Covenant of it, are declared better than That of the Law; as they are propounded with greater Clearnefs, confirmed with ftronger Evidence, and are in part already accomplished. For this hath brought that Life and Immortality to light, of which Mankind before had but dark and doubtful Expectations. This hath taught us in exprefs Terms, what the Law taught in Shadows and Types; with an Obfcurity, under which carnal Minds (who, because they beft like, are not difpofed to look beyond, the Temporal) feldom difcerned the Spiritual and Heavenly Bleffings to be understood. It changes the Object of our Faith, from a Meffiah to come, to one already come. But ftill the Meffiah is the Salvation, ftill the Joys of Heaven the Reward, ftill Virtue, and Piety, and Faith, the Conditions of attaining it: Whether the fimpler Worship of the Patriarchs, or the Rites of the Mofaical Law, or the Faith and Sacraments of the

Gospel

Vol. II. Gofpel disburdened of thofe Rites, were the Method, which Almighty God, in his Wisdom, faw fit, each in their proper Seafon, to prefcribe, as a neceffary Qualification for them at that time. The fhort is this: That, altho' for wife Reasons, God hath changed the Inftances, in which he would be served, as to the outward Teftimonies of our Belief in, and Love and Reverence for him and, in this Senfe, the Law and the Gofpel are Two Covenants: Yet that Faith, and Love, and Reverence, were always indifpenfible Duties of Religion on Our part of the Covenant: As the Remiffion of Sins by Jefus Christ, and a Blessed Immortality, always continued the fame on His part. And thus the Law and Gospel, which, as to their difference in Modes and Circumstances, were perfectly distinct; Yet, in Effect, and as to the Effentials of Obedience and moral Virtue, the Reward aimed at, and the Ground of their Hopes, were One and the Same Covenant.

3. The Laft Particular, duly attended to, will help us rightly to interpret thofe many difparaging and feemingly hard, Reflections, caft upon the Law by St. Paul, in the Management of his Controverfy against Them, who still stood peremptory for the Neceffity of obferving it. Now these are not meant of the Moral Law, which was a Branch of Natural, and still remains part of the Chriftian, Religion: Nor of the Ceremonial Law, fo far as any of the Rites enjoined there, were understood to typify, and to be accepted for the Relation they bore to, Chrift; For in this Senfe that Law too belonged to the Gofpel. But they are all intended of that Ritual Law, as altogether feparate from, and independent on the Gofpel. In this Senfe the Jews took it, who deny'd altogether, and perfecuted, the Faith of Jesus. So allowing Salvation to be owing, in no degree to Him, but altogether to the Law. In this the Judaizing Chriftians took it also, who allowed Faith in Jefus Christ to be a partial Caufe of Salvation, but not fufficient and

and effectual, without the Works of the Law. Both these Errors this Apoftle oppofes; By proving Jesus Christ, against the Jews, and Jefus Chrift alone against the Judaizing Chriftians, to be the Author and efficient Caufe, and Repentance and Faith in him the conditional Caufe, of our Salvation. He fhews, that the Law thus taken, was not capable of juftifying the Obfervers of it at any time; but that at this time it added to their Guilt. The Former, becaufe all its Efficacy depended upon a Reprefentation of Chrift to come; The Latter, because the continuing to obferve it as neceffary, was a constructive Denial, at least a Disparagement, of Christ already come. And thus it is (when fet in Contradiftinction from, and Oppofition to, the Gospel and Faith,) and not otherwife, that the Law and Works are expofed, not only, as not justifying, but even killing thofe, who repofe their Confidence in them.

II. The Other remarkable Circumftance, which offers it felf to our Confideration, concerning the Two Sons of Abraham, relates to the manner of their Birth, and is contained in thofe Words, Ver. 23. But He, who was of the Bond-woman, was born after the Flesh; but He, of the Free-woman, was by Promife. In the Production of Ishmael there was only the fame common Providence, which concurs with, and gives Succefs to, Natural Causes, in ordinary Generations. A Mother in the Vigor of her Age, and a Father not yet abfolutely decayed, required no more. But in that of Isaac every

Rom. iv. 19.

Heb. xi. 12.

thing was miraculous. For a Mother dead, to all these Purposes, and (to use this Apoftle's Expreffion elsewhere) a Father as good as dead, to become fruitful, was an Effect altogether above, and out of the Power of, Nature. This argued an immediate Operation of Omnipotence; and 'tis urged as a noble Inftance of Faith, to believe the Promife of God. And Ifaac is therefore called the Child of Promife, because foretold as the chofen Seed,

and