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form of worship, or of an individual to some office. Exod. xix. 10. sanctify them to-day and to-morrow. xxxi. 13. that ye may know that I am Jehovah that doth sanctify you. See also

Ezek. xx. 12. Numb.

Jer. i. 5. before thou

xi. 18. sanctify yourselves against to-morrow. camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Luke i. 15. he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb.

The external cause of regeneration or sanctification is the death and resurrection of Christ. Eph. ii. 4, 5. when we were dead in sins, God hath quickened us together with Christ. v. 25, 26. Christ gave himself for the church, that he might sanctify and cleanse it. Heb. ix. 14. 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. x. 10. by the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ. 1 Pet. i. 2, 3. through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.... which hath begotten us again by a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 John i. 7. the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

Sanctification is attributed also to faith. Acts xv. 9. purifying their hearts by faith; not that faith is anterior to sanctification, but because faith is an instrumental and assisting cause in its gradual progress.

CHAP. XIX.

OF

REPENTANCE.

THE

HE effects of regeneration are REPENTANCE and FAITH.

REPENTANCE, or rather that higher species of it called in Greek μετάνοια, is THE GIFT OF GOD, WHEREBY THE REGENERATE MAN PERCEIVING WITH SORROW THAT HE HAS OFFENDED GOD BY SIN, DETESTS AND AVOIDS IT, HUMBLY TURNING TO GOD THROUGH A SENSE OF THE DIVINE MERCY, AND HEARTILY STRIVING TO FOLLOW RIGHTEOUSNESS.

THE GIFT OF GOD; namely, of the Father through the Son. Acts v. 31. him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel. Jer. xxxi. 18. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus......turn thou me and I shall be turned, for thou art Jehovah my God. Acts xi. 18. then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. Rom. ii. 4, 5. thinkest thou this......not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? but after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up, &c. 2 Tim. ii. 25. if God peradventure will give them repentance.

PERCEIVING WITH SORROW. Psal. xxxviii. 4. mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 2 Kings xxii. 19. because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before Jehovah, when thou heardest what I spake against this place......and hast rent thy clothes and wept before me. Psal. li. 3, 4. I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me: against thee, thee only have I sinned. Jer. iii. 13. only acknowledge thine ini

quity, that thou hast transgressed against Jehovah thy God. Ezek. xxxvi. 31. then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities. v. 32. be ashamed and confounded for your own ways. xliii. 10. that they may be ashamed of their iniquities. Rom. vi. 21. those things whereof ye are now ashamed. 2 Cor. vii. 10. godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of. v. 11. for behold this self-same thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what

revenge.

Deut. iv. 29-31. but

THROUGH A SENSE OF THE DIVINE MERCY. if from thence thou shalt seek Jehovah thy God...... with all thy heart. 2 Chron. xxx. 9. for Jehovah your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him. Psal. li. 17. the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. cxxx. 4. there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. Isai. xix. 22. they shall return even to Jehovah, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them. lv. 7. let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto Jehovah, and he will have mercy upon him. lxvi. 2. to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. Jer. iii. 12. return......for I am merciful. Dan. ix. 4, 5. I made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God. Hos. xi. 8. how shall I give thee up, O Ephraim?......mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled together. Jonah iv. 10, 11. thou hast had pity for the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured......and should not I spare Nineveh? James iv. 9. be afflicted, and mourn, and weep, turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness; the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso saketh them shall have mercy.

let your laughter be humble yourselves in Prov. xxviii. 13. he confesseth and for

and so return unto Jer. iv. 4. circumcise

HUMBLY TURNING TO GOD. 1 Kings viii. 48. thee with all their heart and with all their soul. yourselves to Jehovah, and take away the foreskins of your heart. Hos. v. 15. I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face. Acts iii. 19. repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.

DETESTS AND AVOIDS SIN, STRIVING TO FOLLOW RIGHTEOUSNESS. Psal. xxxiv. 14. depart from evil, and do good. Isai. i. 16, 17. wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good. Amos v. 14, 15. hate the evil, and love the good. Matt. iii. 8. bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance. Acts xxvi. 18. to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God. v. 20. that they should repent, and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

By a comparison of these and similar texts, we may distinguish certain progressive steps in repentance; namely, conviction of sin, contrition, confession, departure from evil, conversion to good: all which, however, belong likewise in their respective degrees to the repentance of the unregenerate.

Confession of sin is made sometimes to God: 2 Sam. xxiv. 10. David said unto Jehovah, I have sinned greatly in that I have done. Psal. xxxii. 5. I acknowledged my sin unto thee, &c. 2 Chron. xxx. 22. making confession to Jehovah, God of their fathers. Isai. lxiv. 6. we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. Dan. ix. 4. I made my confession, and said. Sometimes to men: and that either privately, as James v. 16. confess your faults one to another; or publicly, Neh. ix. 2. the seed of Israel stood and confessed their sins. Matt. iii. 6. they were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. Acts xix. 18. many that believed came and confessed, showing their deeds. Sometimes both to God and men: Josh. vii. 19. give, I pray thee, glory to Jehovah God of Israel, and make confession unto him, and tell me now what thou hast done, hide it not from

me.

Confession of faith, which is another kind, does not belong to the present subject.

Repentance is either general, which is also called conversion, when a man is converted from a state of sin to a state of grace; or particular, when one who is already converted repents of some individual sin. General repentance is either primary or continued; from which latter even the regenerate are not exempt, through their sense of in-dwelling sin. Particular repentance is exemplified in the cases of

David and Peter.

Repentance, in regenerate man, is prior to faith. Mark i. 15. repent ye, and believe the gospel. Acts xix. 4. John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe. xx. 21. testifying repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore that sense of the divine mercy, which leads to repentance, ought not to be confounded with faith, as it is by the greater number of divines.

Chastisement is often the instrumental cause of repentance. Job v. 17, &c. behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth; therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty. Psal. xciv. 12. blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O Jah. cxix. 71. it is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn thy statutes. Prov. i. 23. turn you at my reproof. iii. 11, 12. my son, despise not the chastening of Jehovah, neither be weary of his correction; for whom Jehovah loveth he correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. Isai. i. 25. I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin. xlviii. 10. behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. Jer. x. 24. O Jehovah, correct me, but with judgement; not in thine anger, lest thou bring me to nothing. Lam. iii. 27, 28. it is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. Dan. xi. 35. some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white. Hos. v. 15.

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