cause them to be so accounted also against Heathen Cesars and others of his Party under him Christ himself was condemn'd and murder'd on this Pretence Iohn 19. 12 15. Saints can discover him when sitting in the Temple of God shewing himself that he is God 2 Thess. 2. 4. to be the worst of all Creatures the Man of Sin and Son of Perdition ver 3. Will he quietly bear this Discovery will he not by his humane Instruments shew his utmost Rage against them and God permits But be it as it will the Sum of all true Gospel-teaching is a declaring the Mystery of Godliness for the Salvation of Men and preventing their Damnation and a discovering Satan's Mystery of Iniquity for the Damnation of Men and preventing their Salvation So only can Saints with Paul become free from the Blood of all Men Acts 20. 26. Ezek. 33. 7-9 as having no Share in that Guilt by which they bring that Blood upon their own Heads which will be found to amount unto no less than eternal Death to their whole Beings Spirit Soul and Body in a Resurrection of Damnation The experimental Knowers of the Mystery and Power of Godliness and faithful Discoverers of the Mystery of Iniquity will have a Resurrection of Life John 5. 29. above all Deaths temporal or eternal CHAP. IX The first Sin Fall and Punishment of many evil Angels and of all Mankind in Adam EVIL Mankind in Adam joyn'd with evil Angel-kind in Satan through a mutual Union of Love to themselves and one another electing or chusing for themselves their own earthly mortal First covenant Law-life of the Creature given by a First-creation in preference and opposition to the heavenly immortal Second-covenant Gospel-life of the Creator offer'd them by a second or new Creation The evil Angels herein did at first commit the unpardonable Sin against the Holy Ghost under the immediate Beamings forth of Christ's heavenly Creature-Gospel spirit the Son of everlasting Righteousness upon their highest single intuitive natural Understandings Secondly They had no superiour Rank of Creatures in the First-creation already fallen above them in Subtlety and Power to tempt them Thirdly They were all actually created and set up in their compleated personal Beings and Life at first Mankind receive their personal Beings successively Generation after Generation Fourthly Mankind's first Sin in Adam was not against such clear Knowledg of their own unspeakable Concern as well as Duty to God though in the same kind of First-covenant Law-life with Angels The inferiour Ingredients into Man's personal Constitution bodily Sensual-life tho created pure and incorrupt rendred his intuitive Discerning inferiour to that of Angels where 't was single and alone Hence what was immediately and more convincingly made known to Angels was represented to Adam by a figurative Tree of Life and himself in distinction from that by the Tree of Good and Evil. The former represented Christ to him in that heavenly Creature-life offer'd by a new Creation the latter represented himself to himself as but a mystical Tree of Good and Evil in his own Life given in his first Creation corruptible and changeable mortal and perishable with all the earthly things therein Will Understanding Righteousness Wisdom c. with all Works or Fruits ever possible to be done or brought forth therein By and under the superiour Subtlety and Power of the Devil the mystical Old Serpent was Adam in the primitive Purity of his whole Being and Mankind in him as their Head and Representative induc'd perswaded and deceiv'd so as to prefer Satan's self-pleasing Lie to God's Spirit of Grace and Truth So under and with the Serpent he chose his own earthly Life of the Creature in preference to God's own heavenly Creature-life of the Creator Many of Mankind when restor'd out of the Darkness and Death of their own Spirits into the Light Life and Righteousness of Man do sin again in their own Persons after the Similitude of Adam's first Transgression who at best in Innocency was but a Figure of the Second Adam who was to come in the Fountain-purity of our Nature and also full of the Holy Ghost Luke 4. 1. Iohn 1. 14. his heavenly Creature-spirit of Grace and Truth Rom. 5. 14. This Sin again in their own Persons after all sad Experience of fallen Mankind thereby in Adam and all Warnings and Counsels of God since is unrepentable by them Heb. 6. 4 6. and unpardonable by God Heb. 10. 26 27. This is the Case of any that conclusively and absolutely prefer their own restor'd earthly Life of the Creature and Righteousness of Man to the heavenly Creature-life of the Creator and everlasting Righteousness of God therein All that will not receive and have the heavenly Creature-life of God by submitting to the Death of restor'd Nature at best the Loss of all their own Life and things therein God will take away the said Life from them again and lay them down for ever under his unquenchable Wrath in eternal Death Luke 8. 18. This is that Christ says Mat. 16.25 Whosoever will save his Life shall lose it and whosoever will hate and lose his own Life for my Sake from Love to my heavenly Creature-life shall find it with unspeakable Gain as chang'd by Death and Resurrection into an eternal Life Satan was at it with Christ himself Matth. 4. 8 9. to stay and set up with and under him as a State of true Happiness in the mortal Life of our Nature and by his Apostle Peter was at the same Point to pity and spare himself there saying be the Death thereof far from thee this shall not be unto thee Christ discover'd and declar'd this Word of Peter to be Satan's Counsel in and by him Mat. 16. 21-23 As the first Sin of Angels was differing from Man's first Sin so was the Punishment The Punishment of evil Angels was the giving them their own evil Choice their own self-chosen earthly Life receiv'd in their First-creation with all the things thereof their own Wisdom Righteousness Subtlety and Power all natural Excellencies and Perfections therein as by them abus'd turn'd into and us'd in unchangeable Enmity to God and his heavenly Creature spirit of eternal Life God also permitted to them the Exercise of a ruling Power over sallen Mankind all along this World by which Satan carries on the same delusive Work as on Adam at first that the Life given in the First-creation is eternal no need of a second nor therefore of the Death of the first Ye shall not die Gen. 3. 3. This is Satan's uniform Lie all along this World that the Life given in the First-creation is eternal You must die or never live and reign with me in my heavenly Creature-life which is eternal This is Christ's Truth his faithful Saying 2 Tim. 2. 11 12. There 's nothing more pleasing to Man's Will in the restor'd earthly Life of the First Adam than Satan's Lie and nothing so universally contrary to it as God's Truth that
the Death and Loss thereof with all the things therein is indispensably neceessary to any Man 's receiving that Life which is eternal by a new Creation Man in the restor'd Life of the First Adam's living Soul and highest spiritual enlightning Gifts convincing him of the Life offer'd by a Second and of the Necessity of parting again with the restor'd earthly Life and things of the First Adam 's living Soul for the heavenly Life and Things of the Second Adam 's quickning Spirit under all this Mercy is Man liable through his own unspeakable Folly to be bewitch'd back from looking after Christ's heavenly Gospel-life shew'd and offer'd him and to set up for himself under and with Satan in his own earthly Law-life and Righteousness signified by Holy Flesh Gal. 3. 1 3. This may be call'd a Sinning after the Similitude of the evil Angels first Transgression under the clearest Discovery of the Life offer'd by a new Creation with the Terms of receiving it and their unspeakable Concern for submitting thereto as the only possible Means to find eternal Life or scape eternal Death That the Punishment of evil Angels for their first Sin by God's giving them up to their own self-chosen Life and their own Will and Way therein all along this World that this was a greater Punishment than Man 's for his first Sin which was the Death and Loss of his abus'd First-covenant Life and Things receiv'd by a First-creation may seem strange to Man's Wisdom who reckons Adam should have kept what he had in the primitive Purity of his First-creation the keeping of which in preference to the Life of the Creator offer'd by a Second was his Sin the Loss of it by God's taking it from him his Punishment At Man's rate of Judging the evil Angels were in the Right as keeping what they receiv'd in their First-creation all the Glories and Excellencies Wisdom and Power therein Quest. Could Mankind or human Nature at best in Adam chuse the heavenly Creature-life of God shewn and offer'd them by a New Creation Answ. No. Neither Man nor Angel had Power in their own earthly Life and Wills to choose the heavenly Creature-life of God offer'd by a New Creation for then they would have elected themselves The receiving from Christ as a Fruit of his meritorious Sufferings and Death in our Nature the renew'd Life and Righteousness of the First-creation is of him that willeth All may receive that if they will But the attaining and receiving of the Life God offers by a Second-creation this is not of him that willeth or runneth in his own Spirit and Will at best but of God who will shew this Mercy to whom he will only Rom. 9. 15 16. All that finally elect or chase for themselves their own earthly Life of the Creature reject the heavenly Creature-life of the Creator All that God has elected will be brought to hate and lose their own earthly Life at best from love to his heavenly as the only Way to receive it A third Part of Angels fell irrecoverably by their first Sin Revel 12. 4. The far greater part of Mankind the many in the broad Way will be found irrecoverably fallen for ever Yet will Christ's few in the narrow Way be an innumerable Multitude Revel 7. 9. CHAP. X. The second Sacrifice of Christ in our whole human Nature Spirit Soul and Body IN and by his first Sacrifice he became the immediately fitted Hand of God the living Word of God which is God Iohn 1. 1-3 for performing the whole Divine Will in both Creations of Angels and Men and in dealing with them all for ever in final Love or Wrath. This first Sacrifice related not to the Pardon of Sin in Angels or Men. They were none of them then extant in their own personal Beings A Preparation for preventing Sin in both and all was thereby made notwithstanding which many Angels sinn'd and fell irrecoverably All Mankind sinn'd and fell in and with Adam but recoverably both as to their Sin and Punishment and also to a being render'd capable of that true Salvation-life they at first refus'd This second Sacrifice of Christ therefore in our Nature related only to the Sins of Mankind The good Angels never sinn'd at all The evil were absolutely unpardonable In reference to Sin therefore Christ took on him the Nature of Man not of Angels Heb. 2. 16. and therein became a little lower than Angels even than evil Angels in the Glory of their First-creation chosen by them and granted them by God in his just Judgment on them with a ruling Power over Mankind therein all along this short-liv'd World and then to be stripp'd of all their worldly Power and Glory and laid down for ever in everlasting Burnings under his unquenchable Wrath in the lowest Hell-part of the eternal World to come In reference to this second Sacrifice of Christ we are to consider his Entrance into this World in our Nature The Virgin Mary was found with Child of the Holy Ghost Mat. 1. 18. An Angel appears to Joseph in a Dream telling him that what was conceiv'd in her was of the Holy Ghost and warn'd him that when born he should call his Name Iesus that would save his People from their Sins and Immanuel also was he to be call'd that is God with us ver 20-23 Isa. 7. 14. The like Account as to his wonderful Formation in the Womb of the Virgin we find Luke 1. 26-35 and his Birth Luke 2. 7. The good Angels rejoic'd thereat Luk. 2. 13 14. not in reference to a procuring their Pardon for Sin having never sinn'd but as knowing thereby the time drawing near for them with Old-Testament-Saints to receive the Holy Ghost which they waited for all along four thousand Years by a living spiritual Faith working by Love to God therein and amounting to an indissoluble Union with Christ therein But the Holy Ghost was not given to Angels or Saints till our Nature in Christ was ascended and glorified Iohn 7. 39. Both the said Angels and Saints obtain'd a good Report with God as well-pleasing to him by a living spiritual Faith therein though they had not receiv'd the promis'd Holy Ghost Heb. 11. 39. From the good Angels Concern herein did they with Old-Testament-Prophets desire to pry look into and diligently to search out what manner of time the Spirit of Christ in them did signify when it testified beforehand the Sufferings of Christ and the Glory that should follow 1 Pet. 1. 10-12 to our ascended glorified Nature in him and to them by the Holy Ghost's being sent down from Heaven into Angels with the Spirits of Old-Testament-Saints departed and New-Testament-Gospel Saints in the mortal Body Act. 2 1-4 This is the other better Comforter Christ told his Disciples the Father in pursuance and for accomplishing of his Free-Grace-Mercy to them would send than he had yet been to them as a fleshly Bridegroom in the but restor'd First-covenant Life and Righteousness of
Man therein Iohn 14. 26. This better Comforter he told them would teach them all things divine and spiritual and so bring to their Remembrance all that he had hitherto spoken to them in Parables earthly Figures and Similitudes in which the mystical divine and spiritual Truths lay hid from them as well as others The good Angels also rejoic'd at the Birth of Jesus on the behalf of Mankind in general and of Saints in special as the means for recovering all out of the Darkness and Death into which brought by their first Sin and Punishment thereof Gen. 2. 17. Iohn 1. 9. The World was made by him yet when he came into the World none in their worldly Life of the Creature at best either knew receiv'd or own'd him Iohn 1.10 The righteous First-Covenant professing Jews in Union of mind with evil Angels were the most signally enrag'd Contradicters Blasphemers and Murderers of him for his Gospel-Doctrine of Salvation Acts 3 13-15 The exalted Son and Branch was the immediate Former of himself in the Womb of the Virgin the Son of God on Earth remaining still what he was in the Beginning the Son of Man in Heaven John 3. 13. Evil Angels and Men were God's permissive Hand under his infinite over-ruling Wisdom and Power to finish the Death-work on all that was mortal about him in our Nature and so oft on Saints to their greatest Good and Enemies greatest hurt Hereby do they compleat Saints Conformity to Christ's Death freeing them from all that 's mortal about them while in the Body Isa. 57. 1 2. The Iews would have made Christ a King if he would have own'd his Kingdom in that mortal First-covenant Law-life they saw him in Iohn 6. 15. But witnessing his Kingdom not to be in that worldly Law-life but in his Gospel-life of Grace and Truth Iohn 18. 36 37. they murder'd him and so compleated the Death of him as to that mortal Law-life wherein they would have made him their King They chose rather to be Subjects to a Heathen King than such a King as he own'd himself to be Iohn 19. 12 15. who would have made him such a King as would have render'd them Traitors and Enemies to Cesar. Here 's the confounded Doings of Man at best in his own worldly Spirit and Life Some Corinthians Laodiceans and other Professors in but the First-covenant-life and Righteousness of Man all along since are of the same mind with them 1 Cor. 4. 8. Rev. 3. 17. The God of this World offer'd Christ a far larger Bribe than the Jews did all the Kingdoms of this World visible and invisible under him all worldly Power Human and Angelical in Case he would own his Kingdom to be in this First-creation Worldly-life Mat. 4. 8 9. Whoever are finally taken with his worldly Bribes the literal or mystical Riches of this First-creation World do fall down and worship him as God And by such Loyal Subjects of him does he murder true Saints that refuse so to do as they did Christ himself True Heaven-born Sons of God have the whole self-confident legal-spirited Generation of Professsors on the same Account universally in all times against them They mortally and irreconcileably hate them for owning the Death-work of Christ's Gospel-spirit of Grace on that Law-spirit of Works they confidently trust in for entring into the Kingdom of God Such become the highest Rank of Satan's Subjects and most serviceable Instruments for maintaining the Credit of his worldly Kingdom as the only true Blessedness to any God's Thoughts and Ways for true Salvation are not as Man 's and when he has declar'd his Ways in his holy Oracles let Man's highest Wisdom undertake the interpreting them all shall run on Satan's Side God's Thoughts therein remaining fast seal'd and lock'd up from Man's best Understanding in but a restor'd First-covenant Life Isa. 29. 11. CHAP. XI The Difference of Christ's Death in our Nature as to the intent and Extent thereof from Saints Conformity to him by the Death of Nature in them CHRIST's condescending to take our Nature and therein by the Grace of God to taste Death for every Man Heb. 2. 9. was in reference to the pardonable Sins of Mankind in Adam and also in their own Persons This was God's appointed Way for the redeeming and recovering them out of their fallen State wherein born dead in Trespasses and Sins Ephes. 2. 1. Col. 2. 13. into the Light and also Life receiv'd by them in their First-creation All may receive this general Redemption-Mercy the Common-Salvation-Work of Christ as a Fruit of his meritorious Sufferings and Death in our Nature if they will But as to the special eternal Salvation of the Elect in his new and everlasting Covenant Gospel-life this is not of him that willeth or runneth in the most fruitful Exercise of his own restor'd First-covenant Law-life but of God's Free-Grace Mercy which he will effectually and infallibly shew to whom he pleases only The ceasing from their own Life Will and Understanding is the only appointed Way for their receiving this special eternal Salvation-life of God Iude with others writ of both these distinct Salvations common and special temporal and eternal And when he had with all Diligence inform'd them of the former he found it needful to exhort them to contena earnestly in Prayer to God for a living spiritual Faith working by Love to him in the latter in which only true Saintship and Salvation ever could or will be found by any Man Iude v. 3. Thus is Christ the Saviour of all Men with a common or general Salvation but of them that believe in his Gospel-life and place all their Hopes of Salvation in that with a special 1 Tim. 4. 10. They trust in the living God that living Word of God which is God John 1.1 Those that wax confident in the common Salvation the restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man do trust in that Life for Entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven which Christ crucified in the Fountain-purity of it in himself God will not only that all Men should be saved with the common Salvation but has rendred them capable also of receiving the Knowledg of the Truth 1 Tim. 2. 4. his Gospel-spirit of Grace and Truth by the convincing Discoveries thereof to their natural Understandings But after all this are they liable to apostatize fall away and finally refuse so great Salvation as is thereby offer'd them and perish for ever Heb. 6. 4-6 The submitting in Passive Obedience to the Death and Loss of all receiv'd from Christ in the Common-Salvation-Benefit of his Death rendring them but holy Flesh is absolutely necessary to their finding the special eternal Salvation-life of his holy Gospel-spirit the Holy Ghost Otherwise after all receiv'd in the Common-Salvation they 'l find everlasting Destruction Conformity to Christ's Death by the Death of Nature at best in us is the appointed way to reign with him in the Life he is ascended into out of the Death thereof
2. The Three in the Divine Essence or Father singly and abstractedly consider'd will be absolutely invisible to Saints and Angels in Heaven to all Eternity And the Divine Form Son or Glory thereof in Christ's Person will never be the immediate Object of their Sight but be let down to them in the first Conjunction thereof with his Creature-root through the exalted Creature-Son and Branch in him the immediate Creator of all This is the Branch God made strong for himself Psal. 80. 15. to perform his whole Divine Mind in both Creations in this World and the eternal World to come This is the Branch that shall reign on Earth execute Iudgment and Iustice therein as the Lord our Righteousness Jer. 23. 5 6. 33. 15 16. By and through this exalted Branch the immediate Do-all in both Creations will the same Three in the Divine Essence that shin'd forth in the Divine Form from Eternity let down themselves to blessed Angels and Saints to Eternity All the Three in the Divine Essence and heavenly Creature-Glories are one Trinity and that Trinity one individual God Iohn 10. 20. The Three that are One in the Divine Nature are the immediate Object to the Sight and Enjoyment of the whole Creature-nature in Christ Root and exalted Branch that 's in personal Union therewith but never so to any meer Creatures blessed Saints or Angels 1 Tim. 6. 15 16. Iohn 1. 18. Mat. 11. 27. They are personally united with the exalted Branch in him as Members of his mystical spiritual Body to which he is Head But never so to his Creature-root and much less yet to his Divine Nature The Three in the Divine Nature shining forth to meer spiritual Creatures by and through the exalted Branch are no where in Scripture call'd a Trinity nor said to be three Persons If they be three Persons as three distinct individual Angels or Men in Angelical or humane Nature are would they not be three distinct individual Gods would not this be the asserting a Tritheism the lesser sort of Polytheism If they be call'd three Persons it must be as acknowledg'd in a Unity transcendently above meer Creatures who are so in one specifical humane or angelical Nature The three in God are three in one individual Divine Nature shining forth to Saints and Angels in the Mediator's one individual Creature-nature which in and with his Divine Nature is with his Divine Father or Essence one individual God In this Sense if any may they be call'd three Persons But the acknowledging three distinct Powers in God may justly secure any from the Imputation of Antitrinitarianism They are so three that the first is not the second nor second the third The Divine Form in Christ is not the Divine Essence nor his Creature-nature his Divine nor his Creature-root the Branch in him but all one individual incomprehensible God Iohn 10. 30. He that says knows and owns God the Father and his Divine and Creature-Son says all that God is or is God Man in the fallible Understanding and corruptible Will of his First-creation Life can never truly see rightly know and do the one Will of both All therefore that trust to their own Understanding deny both the Divine Father and the divine and heavenly Creature-Son Whosoever denies the Divine and Creature Son hath not the Father But he that rightly acknowledges the Son hath the Father also 1 John 2.22 23. Antichristian Deniers of both pass in reputed Orthodox Man's Day of Judging under Satan God of this World as the only true Christians excommunicating or casting out of their worldly Churches the true Owners of both as the arrantest Hereticks and Blasphemers in the World God the Son or Mediator in the Divine and Creature-glories of the Divine Essence or Father is call'd a Person 2 Cor. 2. 10. In his Creature-part he is call'd the Brightness of the Divine Glory in himself and therein the express Creature Image of God's whole Divine Person Essence and Form Heb. 1. 3. The Creature-root in the Mediator is God's Soul not immediately discernable to the highest spiritual Understanding of meer Creatures but in its first Conjunction with Divine Nature is let down to their Sight and Enjoyment in and by the exalted Creature-Son and Branch as God's Body or Visibility of all to them Of the Creature-root God's Soul himself says in reference to the unpardonably sinning Shepherds or pretending Teachers of the Way to Heaven and Peace with God in but the restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man my Soul loath'd them and their Soul also abhorred me Zech. 11. 8. Every individual Man in the three essential Ingredients into his personal Constitution Spirit Soul and Body 1 Thess. 5. 23. is a shadowy Image of the three in one God and of the Divine Spirit Creature-root or Soul and Creature-body or Branch in Christ's wonderful compounded Person Man in another Sense was in the primitive Purity of his whole Being a shadowy Image of God's Righteousness This was lost to all Mankind by their first Sin in and with Adam The Reason therefore of the threaten'd Death on Murderers that whosoever sheds Man's Blood by Man shall his Blood be shed for in the Image of God made he Man Gen. 9. 6. relates to Man's being the Image of God in the former Sense Gen. 1. 26 27. The Image of him in the latter being wholly lost the Murderers of him in reference to that might seem unaccountable The Spirit of Man singly and abstractedly consider'd may seem a dark Shadow of the very Divine Essence as comprehending in it a threefold distinct Life rational sensual and vegetable but all three invisible and unexercis'd till brought into hypostatical or personal Union with its fitly organiz'd Body And all the said three Lives when brought into Exercise are called a living Soul in distinction from the Spirit separately consider'd and from the Body that 's the personal Appearance or Visibility of the whole Man And in both and all the Man is but one Person CHAP. VII The Mystery of God in general of all that is truly called God and to be worship'd and in particular of God the Father or Divine Essence and of Christ the Divine and Creature-Son Col. 2. 2. both and all one incomprehensible God John 10. 30. IN general all are one individual God In particular the Divine Form or Son though most intimately one with the Divine Essence or Father in the one infinite Divine Nature became personally united with the Creature-form of God the Divine Essence or Father remaining ever single and uncompounded therewith Gal. 3. 20. A Mediator is not of one Nature but God in his Divine Essence is one God the Mediator as consisting of two Natures Divine and Creaturely in personal Union is fitted to mediate between infinite Divinity and finite Creaturality in blessed Angels and Saints for ever 1 Tim. 2. 5. The Divine and Creature-Son will remain a Mediator for ever in Heaven between infinite Divinity and elect Angels and
in himself Rom. 6. 5. 2 Tim. 2. 11 12. Nor Devil nor Jews could prevail with him to own his Kingdom in the Fountain-purity of his worldly Law-life but in that Gospel-spirit of eternal Life he was to ascend into out of the Death thereof Paul when a Gospel-Saint would no longer know or own Christ himself after the Flesh in but the restor'd fleshly First-covenant Law-life and Righteousness of Man but in his holy Gospel-spirit and Righteousness of God therein 2 Cor. 5. 16. As married to him therein only is it ever possible for any to bring forth Fruit unto God Rom. 7. 4. All fix'd by Satan and themselves in the Common-Salvation become the most irreconcileable Enemies to those in the special Those that own but the Form of Godliness Righteousness of Man in the Common-Salvation as a State of true Happiness and finally deny the Power of Godliness in Christ's Gospel-life they are mystical Infidels after all such temporary Faith in Christ by which they have receiv'd their own Life again from him the most criminal Sinners spiritual Sodom Egypt and Babylon such as crucified our Lord Revel 11. 8. and have been the Murderers of true Saints all along this World from Abel downwards and will so be to the ending thereof and reckon they do God Service therein John 16. 2. Literal Infidels vastly out-number these mystical Ones not believing in Christ at all so as to receive the Common-Salvation-Life and Righteousness of Man from him What a World of such is there now in this World Mahumetans other Pagans and Infidels and amongst all Varieties of such as are call'd Christians innumerable even of them not living in the Principle of rational Light that many meer Heathens walk in Obedience to What final eternal Benefit are all these like to find from the meritorious Sufferings and Death of Christ in our Nature Saints Conformity to Christ's Death as true Followers of him in the narrow unpleasing Way to Nature through the Strait Gate of Entrance into his eternal Gospel-life relates not at all to the peculiar Benefits of Christ's Death in our Nature for Mankind in general or Saints in special But 't is their unspeakable Advantage to follow him into the said Death by the Death of Nature at best or in whatever Condition as the only Way to find the Salvation of Heaven or scape the Damnation of Heâ—l The restor'd righteous Life of Man in his own Spirit of Works put him afresh upon his own personal Trial for the Right Use thereof as was the Case of Adam at first If from Self-love he finally chuse this in preference to the Gospel-life and Righteousness of God therein he sins again in his own Person after the Similitude of Adam's pardonable Transgression Rom. 5. 14. unpardonably and unrepentably Heb. 6. 4 6. 10. 26 27. Filth of Spirit Enmity to God's Divine and Creature-Holy-Ghost or Spirit lurking under all Righteousness of Man's holy Flesh will to all unchangeably fix'd therein be eternal Death The Surrender and Loss of the Life of our own Spirits at best and our own fallible Understandings and corruptible Wills therein is the only Way to arrive at the happy Experience of an infallible Understanding and an incorruptible Will in God's heavenly Creature-life the only Principle of everlasting well-pleasing active Obedience to him and Blessedness to us A ceasing from the best Works and fasting from the best Fruits performable or producible by us in our own Spirit Will and Way to live in God's Sabbath-Spirit of true Rest to us in him and him in us and Delight only in such incorruptible Fruits as can be brought forth by us in his Spirit only this is such a Fast and such a Sabbath as he has chosen Isa. 58. 5 13. And this will all whom he has chosen be brought unto by his infinite Free-Grace-Mercy All outward bodily Fastings and Sabbath-keepings never accompanied with this inward mystical Truth of all were an Abomination to God when his own literal figurative Appointments and Ordinances to the Jews Isa. 1. 10-15 66. 3. Gospel-life is the Wine of Christ's Kingdom which Saints with Christ can daink of only in his Kingdom-spirit as therein new Creatures Mark 14. 25. This was figur'd in Iotham's Parable cheering God and Man Judg. 9. 13. answering all Man can rightly desire of God and enabling him to answer all God requires of him No such true New Ierusalem-Saints shall ever have occasion to say we are sick Isa. 33.24 or need any thing and to say we fear no Danger of Repenting or Change from a mind of everlasting Obedience to God nor therefore of Condition from a State of unchangeable Blessedness in the Sight and Enjoyment of him in his infinite Divine Favour and Love This gets Man by a change from his own earthly continual sinning Life of Vanity to God's own heavenly never-sinning Gospel-life He will be enabled therein to say with Christ I was dead in my own Spirit and am alive for evermore in his Rev. 1. 18. Our own right Eye Hand and Foot the highest Light best Practice and walking in our own Spirit Understanding and Will must be pluck'd out cut off and cast away or we shall be cast into Hell-fire Mark 9. 43-48 They offend us as rendring the Cross or Death-work of Christ's heavenly Spirit on our earthly offensive and displeasing to us and us therein offensive to God and so standing in our Way to eternal Life so on all Accounts and in every Sense offensive to God and our selves We are to pray that God by his Spirit would do this to and for us pluck out our right Eye c. We ought also by his Spirit in us or a living spiritual Faith working by Love to him to be active in carrying on such Work in Obedience to his Command We are also to rejoice in what God suffers evil Angels or Men to do to us in their implacable Malice as knowing all over-rul'd by him in a constant infallible Conducibleness thereunto So only can we arrive at the happy Experience of an infallible spiritual Understanding for knowing all things and an incorruptible Will for doing all things to God's well-pleasing in the marvellous Light and glorious Liberty of the Sons of God in such a Free-will as is in unchangeable Harmony with the infinite Divine Will the Free-will of the second Adam The Light and Free-will of our own Spirit at best kept up in Opposition to his turns it into the greatest Darkness and Bondage of all Mat. 6. 23. The Will of our Nature in Christ found the full Death thereof so exceeding terrible as to pray saying O my Father if it be possible let this Death cup pass from me But he instantly renounc'd the Request of his natural Will so as in the same Breath to say nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt thy Will be done Matth. 26. 39 42 44. As to the Sufferings of Nature in Saints as the Will of God for their greatest
Purgatory cleansing them from all Filth of Flesh and Spirit and God's way of bringing them into the never-sinning Life and everlasting Righteousness of his Spirit of Grace and Truth Man in his own Spirit Will and Way at best has no right Knowledg of the true God or God of this World the Devil or what the Heaven or Hell-part of the eternal World to come amount unto so on he goes in the delusive Pleasures of this Mortal World and Things thereof literal or mystical within the reach of his natural Understanding without any looking after God for his Spiritual Heavenly Eternal New-Covenant Life and Things without which 't is impossible to find the Salvation of Heaven or scape the Damnation of Hell The Death of Man's Spirit at best in but the restor'd first-Covenant Life of the Creature is the only way to find the Life of the Creator in the second The living Soul of the first Adam has nothing but what Death will swallow up into Victory The Life of the quickning Spirit of the second Adam will swallow up all Deaths into Victory 1. Cor. 15. 53 54. The deepest Reason and highest Wisdom of Man in a first-Covenant righteous Life is by Death and total loss thereof the only way to find all again by way of Resurrection the very Reason Wisdom and Righteousness of God in the quickning Spirit of the second Adam Paul obediently parted with all the former for the latter Phil. 3. 6-11 God challenges the Disputers of this World standing up with Confidence in defence of their own Reason and Wisdom to produce their strong Reasons against him and see what all will amount unto Isa. 41. 21. 'T is Man's true Interest and greatest Reason to give up his own Reason and Wisdom for God's Iob was a while at this disputing Trade of Man against God as Elihu charges him Iob 34. 35-37 At this work we find him under the Cross challenging the Almighty to answer his strong Reasons in Self-defence and for his Justification in the Life wherein he had been eminently righteous Iob 19. 6-11 30. 1-10 31.35 When Christ told any that enquir'd after eternal Life the parting with all they have or can do in their own Spirit was necessary to the finding Eternal Life in his away they went and walk'd no more with him Mat. 19. 16-22 Mark 10. 17-22 Luke 10. 25. 18. 18-23 Iohn 6. 66. All Words of Man's Wisdom are without any true Knowledg a darkening the Counsels of God's Wisdom as to Man 's eternal Concerns Iob that had been confident in the former acknowledg'd what God charg'd him with Iob 38. 1 2. when in the latter Iob 42.3 I utter'd that I understood not things too wonderful for me which I knew not so darken'd the Counsel of God by Words without Knowledg He that contends with and reproves the Almighty can he answer it Job 40. 2. CHAP. XV. The Mystery of Cain and Abel Ishmael and Isaac Esau and Jacob. CAin Ishmael and Esau were sad Types of all those that with them follow Satan's whole Counsel in his Mystery of Iniquity preferring the Law-life of the Creature in the first Creation to the Gospel-life of the Creator offer'd by a second Abel Isaac and Iacob were the joyful happy Types and Patterns in their Persons and Principles of those that follow obey and declare the whole Counsel of God in the Mystery and Power of Godliness for the Salvation of Men and preventing their Damnation All fix'd in the former under Satan unchangably hate and persecute the latter In their holy Flesh Righteousness of Man they fight against God's holy Gospel-spirit and Righteousness of God in true spiritual Saints There 's for a time something of the Cain Ishmael and Esau even in Saints not only fighting and warring against the true Abels Isaacs and Iacobs Paul's Case before his Gospel-Conversion Acts 26. 9-11 but also against the Gospel-Spirit and Principle of Life Desire Thought and Action in themselves after This also Paul experienc'd after an eminent Apostolical Gospel-Saint Rom. 7. 15 19. And he warns other Saints to expect the like Civil War and Contests within them between their fleshly and Christ's spiritual Mind in them till Nature in the thinking and desiring Powers thereof their own fallible Understandings and corruptible Wills therein be fully crucified and silenc'd in order to their living and walking in the undisturb'd infallible Understanding and incorruptible Will of Christ's Gospel-Spirit of Grace and Truth Gal. 5. 17. Till this War be over and Victory over the Carnal Mind of Nature at best compleated are Saints to be continually fighting the Battels of the Lord against the Foes of their own House or Hearts the most dangerous Enemies within them tho not more subtle and potent than Enemies without evil Angels and Men till they come to live and walk wholly in the Spirit of God their Gospel-Principle and mean while to strive continually more and more so to walk ver 25. As to Enemies without the highest Rank of Professors in but First-Covenant Principles fix'd there in the restor'd Law-Life and Righteousness of Man with Confidence therein for entring into the Kingdom of God these Cains Ishmaels and Esaus are the fiercest Persecutors of true Gospel-Saints in the partaken of Life of Christ's Heavenly Creature-Spirit of Grace and Truth and verily think they do God Service therein Isa. 66. 5. Iohn 16. 2. So thought Paul once Acts 26. 9-11 Paul singles out the particular History of Isaac and Ishmael in this Point Gal. 4. 22-31 Self-confident First-Covenant Ishmaels mock and scoff at true Spiritual Isaacs all along this World Gen. 21. 9. And even Abraham Father of the Faithful was griev'd and loth to part with his Ishmael ver 11. when Sarah as Figure of the New-Covenant Spirit requir'd it and God in Confirmation of her most just Desire and Advice requir'd the same v. 12. Iohn declares the same thing figur'd in Cain and Abel and in them the murdering Mind of Enmity in a fix'd self-confident first-Covenant visible People of God in holy Flesh Law-Righteousness of Man against an invisible People of God in their Gospel-Life and Righteousness hid with Christ in God Col. 3. 3. Cain slew his Brother because his own Works were evil and his Brother 's righteous 1 John 3. 12. He was of that wicked one born of and in unchangeable Union with the Devil in the first Creation and with him in unchangeable Enmity to God and true Saints in the second Cain's Works in the Law-life of the first in his own Law-Spirit of Works are in Man's Day of Judgment the only good and righteous Works and his Words of Man's Wisdom the only right Words for Salvation and all true Abel's Works and their Words of God's Wisdom in his New-Covenant Gospel-Spirit contemptible and blasphemous Christ himself found this murdering Mind of Cain in the most enlighten'd righteous professing first-Covenant teaching and professing Jews unchangeable Enmity to his Gospel-Spirit and whole
Counsel of God by him declar'd to them therein On this account he tells them they with their Fathers in the like Cainish Spirit of Enmity were guilty of the Blood of all God's true Prophets shed from the Foundation of the World from the Blood of Abel to that day Luke 11 49-51 And so will it be to the end of this World under Satan's permitted Reign and Man's Day under him of judging in Matters of Religion and Worship of God so as nothing must pass for Gospel but what Man pleases to give his Approbation to The Jews built the Sepulchres of the Prophets under pretence of paying Honour to them and owning their Counsel when with their Fathers Murderers of all such and in unchangeable Enmity to all their Words rightly understood If they had been in the days of their Fathers they say they would not have been Partakers with them in the Blood of the Prophets Mat. 23. 29-31 Under all these Pretences and self-deceiving Imaginations Christ declares them fix'd in the self-same murdering Mind of Enmity with their Fathers against all true Prophets and himself also as soon appear'd and therefore ask'd them how they could think to escape the Damnation of Hell ver 33. Since all such dealings of the Jews with their own true Prophets and Christ himself with his Apostles in the foretold long Antichristian Day now near ending how have unchangeable idolatrous Haters of Christ and his Gospel-Truths and Saints been found under the Name Christian building stately Churches or Temples to the Honour of Paul Peter Iohn c. who would as certainly murder them for their Gospel-Doctrine were they now here as others did even in the Primitive Apostolical Gospel-day Let Men under Satan interpret their Gospel-Writings in a Sutableness to their own Wills and so in a universal Contrariety to the Words of God's VVisdom in them and all 's well and they with the Apostles in the way to eternal Life and true Salvation All void of a true living spiritual Faith in Christ's Gospel-life working by Love to him therein are the unreasonable and incorrigible Adversaries of true Gospel-Saints Paul shews the like Figurative Significancy in Iacob and Esau Rom. 9 10-13 Esau mortally hated Iacob and God hated Esau. Esau's murdering Mind of Enmity to Iacob is express'd by himself Gen. 27. 41 42. The like is notified in all his murdering-minded Followers against God Christ and his true spiritual Iacobs Obad. v. 8-10 Amos 1. 11. CHAP. XVI Concerning meer Creaturality in Angels and Men in their first and also in their highest spiritual second New-Creation Capacities with some account of all possible to be done by any in their first and the differing Ends of all at last HAving already spoken of the ready prepar'd Hand the exalted Creature-Son and Branch in the Mediator's Person the living Word of God as qualified and fitted for a first and second creating of Angels and Men come we now to consider what they both and all amount unto for ever as but meer Creatures not only in their natural Beings and Life of the Creature given them by a first but also spiritual Beings and Life of the Creator given by a second Creation of them Angels were all created at first in their compleat Personalities invisible immortal Beings without any innate Capacity of or connatural Tendency to the exercise of a threefold Souly or Animalish Life rational sensual and vegetable in and by a fitly Organiz'd Body As for Mankind they do gradually descend from one another in a continued Succession Generation after Generation for a compleating their Personal Beings from the beginning to the ending of this mortal World What became of Angels good and bad by the first well-pleasing Passive Obedience of the former and first unpardonable Sin of the latter has been above-spoken to Chap. 4. of this Treatise Man inferiour to Angels in their single intuitive natural Understandings tho in the same kind of Mortal Earthly First-Covenant Life is in his compleated Personality a much more comprehensive Being than an Angel He is the most compleat shadowy Image of God on all accounts in the whole Natural Mortal First-Creation World visible or invisible This is signified concerning him in distinction from Angels and all other Creatures therein created before him in a readiness for his Entertainment Of none thereof is it said by God as of him Let us make Man in our Image after our Likeness Gen. 1.26 as the Compend or Epitome of all other Creatures and something more peculiar to himself the rational Exercise of his Mind in and by a Body found in no Creatures above or below him So find we a peculiar Consultation of the three that are one to draw an earthly shadowy Image and Representation of themselves in every individual Man This Enlargement of Man's Personal Being beyond Angels expos'd and rendred him liable to vain sinful Desires and Thoughts so as to wallow in Mire among Satan's Swine feeding on Husks the lowest Dust of this World below any Palate in any evil Angels to savour any Belly Desire or Appetite in them to lust after delight in or feed upon being never link'd with mortal Bodies or sensual Life Pleasures in common with brute Beasts So the Enlargement of Man's Being beyond Angels was a Diminution to his intuitive Understanding in common with them and to the Exercise of his Natural Will as exposing him to a running out in his Desires after the lower sort of Desirables in the vast heap of vanishing Shadows in the visible Parts of this First-creation World And evil Angels tho they care not for such things themselves have Power through God's most wise Permission to shoot their fiery Darts into Mens Spirits and kindle in them evil Lustings after such visible things in which they keep the far greater part of Mankind wallowing in Mire as their Swine far from any looking after God at all The Soul or threefold animalish souly-Life of Man distinct from his Spirit ceases as to exercise at the Death of his Body The Spirit then retreats to the full Experience and Exercise of its supream intuitive Way of discerning and converse with Angels good or bad in a spiritual Intuitiveness with the good Gospel-Angels or natural with the evil Law-Angels Lawyers from the beginning on their First Sin and Fall setting up the Law-life of the Creature given in the First-creation against the Gospel-life of their Creator offer'd by a Second and so their Lie against God's Truth The Devil was a Murderer from the Beginning John 8. 44. and his fix'd Law-party of Mankind in the restor'd Law-life-Wisdom and Righteousness of Man have been under him the irreconcileable Haters and Murderers of Christ himself and his Gospel-Saints all along this World At the Death of the Body Man good or evil is dead His Spirit is for a time strip'd of the threefold Souly-life as to exercise that are essential Ingredients into his personal Constitution At last Saints will recover their Bodies in a