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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	gospel_n	new_a	testament_n	3,207	5	8.0875	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47399	[The ax laid to the root, or, One blow more at the foundation of infant baptism and church-membership containing an exposition of that metaphorical text of Holy Scripture, Mat. 3, 10].	Keach, Benjamin, 1640-1704.	1693 (1693)	Wing K48_pt2; ESTC R20690	57,342	56

it was his Liberty for some Reasons to do it But those Christians corrupted by false Teachers did not believe That Circumcision and other Legal Rites were abolished but that they were in full Force as ever and therefore he tells them granting it was as they believed if they were Circumcised they were obliged to keep the whole Law tho' his great Design was to take them off from seeking Justification by Works Therefore 3. 'T is evident Paul did not Circumcise Timothy in Obedience to the Law given by the Lord but for other Politick Reasons in complying with the weakness of some Jewish Christians After the same manner he submitted to some other Rites also of the Ceremonial Law as shaving the head and purifying himself which was then also abolished tho' not deadly say Expositors then though those Ceremonies were dead and so nothing in them Act. 21.24 Circumcision was alas dead and this Paul knew therefore could not hurt Timothy But those to whom he wrote thought it was alive and therefore it would not only hurt but destroy them or be destructive to them upon the Account of the Obligation it lay them under if it was as they conceived This being so What is become of Mr. Flavel's Argument which he makes such boast of as if unanswerable pag. 231. Obj. 10. The Root is Holy therefore the Branches that is as Abraham was Holy so were all his Seed and as Believers are Holy so are all their Children and as the natural Branches of Abraham was broken off for their Unbelief so the Gentiles are grafted in in their stead and succeed in their Privileges and so their Seed are Holy with an external relative Covenant Holiness Rom. 11.16 and therefore may be Baptized and have Right to Church Membership Answ. There is a Two fold Holiness spoken of 1 st An external foederal Holiness 2 d. A True spiritual inherent Holiness Now the Children of Believing Gentiles are not Holy with an external relative foederal Holiness nor have they a Right to Baptism nor Church Membership for Two Reasons First Because Baptism is of mere positive Right nothing but a Command Example or some well grounded Authority from Christ that can give them a Right thereto Secondly Because the Gospel Church is not constituted as the Jewish Church was 't is not National but Congregational it consisteth not of the carnal Seed as such but only of the spiritual Seed i. e. Adult Persons who believe Where do we find in all the New Testament That the Children of Believers as such were Baptised and taken into the Church as being in an external relative Covenant Holy Mr. Tho. Goodwin as I find him quoted by a Learned Writer in a Book called Two Treatises p. 6● saith In the New Testament there is no other Holiness spoken of but Personal or Real by Regeneration about which he challenged all the World to shew to the contrary I have shewed you The Ax is laid at the Root of all external relative foederal Holiness which qualified under the Law for Jewish Ordinances and Church Membership But 3 We will now come to examine this Text of Holy Scripture Rom. 11.16 There are various Interpretations of what is meant by the Root in this place 1. Some understand it of the Covenant 2. Some of Christ. 3. Some of Abraham Isaac and Jacob. 4. Some of Abraham only I now agree with the last and say Abraham is the Root spoken of here But pray observe as he was a Two-fold Father so he was a Two-fold Root First The Father or Root of all that believe Secondly The Father or Root of all his Natural Seed as such but this place referrs to him as he was the Root of all his True spiritual Seed and if so the Holiness of the Branches is real spiritual and internal and not external foederal Holiness for such as is the Holiness of the Root as meant here such is the Holiness of the Branches but Abraham was believingly personally spiritually and internally Holy Ergo such are all the Branches spoken of here And indeed for want of Faith and spiritual Holiness that was in the Root were many of the Natural Branches broken of from being any more a People in an external Covenant Relation with God for this is the Covenant I have shewed The Ax is now laid at the Root of viz. the External Covenant The Jews were broken off or cut down by their Unbelief their Old Church State and Covenant being gone they not believing in Christ and so united to the True Olive and the Gentiles by Faith were grafted in they having obtained the Fatness of the Root o● Faith and Righteousness of Abraham and of the Covenant of Grace made with him who is called The Father of all that believe A Learned Writer says 1. The Holiness here meant is First in respect of God's Election i. e. Holiness personal and inherent in God's intention 2. It is also a Holiness derivative not from any Ancestors but Abraham not as a natural Father but as a spiritual Father or Father of the faithfull and so derived from the Covenant of Grace made with Abraham From hence it appears There is nothing in this illustrious Scripture for what these Men bring it who think hereby to prove a Holiness which the New Testament knows nothing of applying the Holiness and Insection to outward Dispensation only in the visible Church which is meant of Saving Grace in the invisible and make every believing Parent like Root to his Posterity with Abraham to his Seed which we deny Let therefore the Jews Covenant standing before they were broken off from being any more a Covenant People be what it would I am sure no Gentile is graften into Christ nor Jew neither but by Faith nor can any be grafted into the Gospel Church without the Profession of such a Faith The Jews 't is true were broken off by their Unbelief and were also now no more a Church nor is there as I said once before any such kind of Church constituted under the Gospel Dispensation as theirs was viz. A National one For they amongst the Jews who were True Believers or the spiritual Seed of Abraham who receiving Jesus Christ by Faith were planted a new into the Gospel Church and between them and Gentile Believers there is no difference since the middle Wall of Partition is broken down Eph. 2.14 Jew and Gentile stand now by Faith and not by external relative Covenant Holiness Thou standeth saith Paul by Faith O Believer mark it not by Birth Privileges but by by Faith as worthy Mr. Gary observes Thy standing is by Faith yet not thy Seed by thy Faith But thou thy self by thine and they by their own Faith Faith is that by which thou standing and not thy Seed hast Right to stand in the Church and not thy Seed but if thy Seed have Faith and thou hast none then they have Right in this Church and thou shalt be excluded And although

a Minister of the Gospel but with what good Conscience a Man of his Function can give a Book such a Title I know not for if there is such plain Scripture Proofs that Iohu the Baptist did baptize Iufants as he positively asserts 't is strange none ever saw nor found out those Proofs neither Paedo-Baptists nor Antipaedo-Baptists till now but I will appeal to all thinking and impartial Persons whether or no this new and bold Attempt of this Man's does not give cause to all People to doubt of all the former pretended Arguments and Proofs for Paedo-Baptism since new ways are thought necessary to evince it but such who read over this Man 's plain Scripture Proofs c. will certainly conclude that his Title contains a grand Untruth to speak no worse it argues these Men are strangely left to themselves or to Blindness that shall undertake to affirm for Doctrine without Scripture Demonstration or solid Reasons such things which are nothing but their own Fancies but those who are willing to be mistaken or deceived let them be deceived but to undeceive them I shall make some short Reflections upon his Proofs and if any of my Brethren think it worth their while to answer either of these two new Asserters of Paedo-Baptism let them do it The Texts he builds all his Proofs from are these viz. And there went out unto him all the Land of Judea and they of Jerusalem and were Baptized of him in the River of Jordan Mark 1.5 Then went out to him Jerurusalem and Judea and all the Regions round about Jordan and were Baptized confessing their sins Mat. 3.5 6. From hence he inferrs if I can gather up his Sense 1. That by All every individual Person both Men Women and Children in Ierusalem and in the Land of Iudea went out to be Baptized of Iohn Or Secondly Some of all sorts Sexes and Conditions and then some Infants as well as some Adult p. 9. 2. He labours to prove That by Ierusalem is meant all both Young and Old Answ. Put does it follow because All sometimes doth include every one both young and old or else some of all sorts Sexes and Conditions of People that therefore All must be so taken in all places and consequently so here I am sorry he shews no better skill in Scripture Rhetorick where frequently by a Synecdoche a part is put for the whole and sometimes the far lesser part also 'T is said all the Cattle of Egypt dyed Exod. 9.6 that is all that were in the Field as Famous Glassius and other Tropical Writers note so Christ is said to die for all yet we know he dyed in a proper and true spiritual Sence but for a few i. e. for none but the Elect. Christ says when he was lifted up he would draw all men unto him Joh. 12.32 doth that import every Man or some of all degrees or sorts of Men see the late Learned Annotators on that place it signifies no more than many or some of all Nations see these Scriptures Exod. 32.3.26 Ier. 6.3 1 Cor. 10 7. so Isa. 2.2 3. Mark 9.23 Ioh. 10.8 Act. 2.5 Phil. 2.21 for all seek their own c. Mat. 10.22 Ye shall be hated of all men for my Sake Gen. 24.10 All the Goods of his Master was in his hand these and many other Scriptures are to be taken Synecdoccally and so is this see Glassius Ill●ricus also Philol●giae Sacra and our Annotators on Mat. 3.5 The term All say they here is twice repeated is enough to let us know that it is often in Scripture significati●e no further than many for it cannot be imagined that every individual person in Jerusalem and the Regions round about Jordan went to h●ar John the Baptist but a great many Joh. 3.26 behold the same Bap●●th and all M●n came to him that is to Jesus Christ. If Iohn baptized them all and Jesus baptized them all then they were all re●baptized all Iudea and Ierusalem come to Iohn and all Men are here said to come to Christ to be baptized in both places it is meant but some or it shews many came to them nor can it be supposed any that Iohn the Baptist baptized were re-baptized by Christ's Disciples and yet the Disciples of Christ baptized more Disciples than Iohn Joh. 4.1.2 when the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Iesus made and baptized more Disciples than John tho' Iesus himself baptized not but his Disciples c. he did it not personally with his own Hands and this shews he baptized no Infants and then not those he laid his Hands upon for if he baptized none he did not baptize them from thence I inferr that there is no ground to conclude from these Scriptures Mr. Exell has reason to affi●m that by all Ierusalem and Iudea c. must be intended either every individual Person both Men Wemen and Children or some of all Sorts Degrees Sexes and Conditions but only it shews that multitudes came to hear Iohn Baptist and many of them were baptized by him 2. I would have him consider tho' all Ierusalem may sometimes intend every individual yet 't is when the matter spoken of does equally referr to and concern all as when the Famine was in that City no doubt the Children were as much concerned in that matter as the Adult of which passage he would fain make great Improvement but when the Holy Ghost gives an Account of a great Prophet Preaching God's Word in the Wilderness of Iudea and of Multitudes going forth to hear him it is ridiculous to imagine there went or were carryed little Children to hear him or to be baptized by him unless either directly or indirectly the Scripture gave us any ground to believe the latter I am perswaded this Man from his Arguments will not make any Proselytes or confirm People in the Practice of Infant-Bap●ism 'T is said Paul Preached Christ to the Iayler Act. 16. and to all that were in his house can any suppose that he preached Christ to his In●ants if he had any do People carry their Infants to hear God's Word if some poor Women do bring such with them 't is because of necessity i. e. they can't leave them at home therefore there seemeth not the least shadow of Reason as far as I can see to believe that Children went or were carried to hear Iohn Baptist tho' it 's said all Ierusalem and Iudea went out to hear him and were many of them baptized of him in the River Iordan the Ministration of the Word belong not to Infants when God spoke to all Israel Deut. 11.1 by Moses That they should love and keep his Iudgments and Commandments always he adds vers 2. And know you this day for I speak not with your Children which have not known and which have not seen the Chastisements of the Lord your God What tho' Circumcision belonged to Infants under the Legal Church of I●rael so did the Passover c. and if