and not equality for the Gospel hath in all things the preheminence above the Law even as Christ above Moses So as it may be said as the Law to Moses so the Gospel to Christ and as Moses to Christ so the Type is to the Antitipe Again it is to be observed that the Similitude betwixt them is in a reversed order in many things one whereof as most material to our present occasion we shall instance which is in respect of Time and Order for what was first in one must be last in the other For as a pure Innocence in our first Parents began the Law in the Command of the forbidden Fruit so must the last perfection of Gospel-Righteousness restore to a new State of Innocency as far excelling the former as the second Adam excelled the first And as the Sin of the first Adam in the beginning of time brought in the Curse Sin and Death so in the last of days shall Christ swallow them up in victory and deliver the Kingdom up to the Father as the Apostle fully shews in 1 Cor. 15. the whole Chapter but especially ver 24. 54. But of these things much remains to be said only here I add that the Law began in Innocency but Sin breaking in it ended in Death and the Gospel began in Death and shall drive away Sin and end in Life Eternal And therefore because in the Law Mountain-Worship preceded and prepared the way to Tabernacle-Worship therefore under the Gospel that Worship in the Spirit which answers to the Tabernacle must precede and make way for that which is the Spiritual Mountain-Worship And perhaps this may be the cause why David in his Questions first mentioneth the Tabernacle namely as having respect to Gospel-Order which without doubt in the Spirit he understood And upon this seems the Blessing of Moses to the Tribe of Joseph to be grounded Deut. 33.15 Blessed of the Lord be his Land for the chief things of the ancient Mountains and the precious things of the everlasting Hills 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 two words of great mystery the first looking back at the Age when Time dropp'd out of the Bosom of Eternity the other at that when it shall return to Eternity again Now by these antient and everlasting Hills are meant the first and last Glory of the Church of God as begun in Adam's Innocency and again debauched to Death and lastly re-edified to a more sure and a greater Glory by Christ in the last of Times Also to the like effect The Blessings of thy desire have prevailed above the Blessings of thy Fathers namely the ancient Mountain-Worshippers unto the ends of the everlasting Hills Gen. 49.26 Now these two Blessings of Moses and Jacob are but one thing and sweetly sing in the same Melody And thus often by Hills and Mountains the great Glory of the last Times are signified as Isa 2.2 And it shall come to pass in the last days that the Mountain of the Lord shall be established in the top of the Mountains and shall be exalted above the Hills and all Nations shall flow to it And many People shall say Come ye and let us go to the Mountain of the Lord to the House of the God of Jacob and he will teach us of his Ways For out of Zion shall go forth the Law and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem and he shall judg c. Which again is assured Isa 11.9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy Mountain for the Earth shall be full of the Knowledg of the Lord as the Waters cover the Sea c. I for brevity's sake only recite a few words but the whole Chapters ought to be consulted both shewing the Glory of the last Days when contemplative Knowledg in the Spirit of Wisdom Understanding Counsel Fear and Knowledg shall flow like a River Look also Isa 25.6 7. 16. Now these things premised let us proceed to what was first in our intention namely to enquire how the Shadow answers to the Substance and to reduce David's Question to the Evangelical meaning whereon the great Interest of the Gospel-Professors depends in which we have a sure Guide namely the Apostle to the Hebrews who in the whole Epistle industriously strives to shew First their likeness and secondly the great Prerogative the Gospel hath over the Law And seeing the whole Epistle would be too long for this place we will only insist and that briefly too upon some few more plain Testimonies The first whereof is Heb. 3.5 And Moses verily was faithful in all his House as a Servant but Christ as a Son over his own House whose House we are if we hold fast the Confidence and rejoycing of the Hope unto the end In which Scripture we have two main points of this Parallel explained the one in the Institutors Moses and Christ the second in their Houses or Institutions Now concerning the Institutors the one was but a Servant the other a Son the first a Sojourner the second an Heir Again Moses was not able to bring the People of his House into the Land of Rest but Christ hath made all his Sons Co-heirs and Possessors with him of his Riches and Grace for of his Fulness have we received Grace for Grace Just as the sealed Wax receives the lines and impression of the Signet so the Faithful receive the efficacies of Christ the only difference being that our Gifts are in measure and his without ours cannot uphold us from Sin but must leave us light in the Ballance of Justice his is without measure and able to make up where our account is defective And hence it is written He was like us tempted in all things Sin only excepted Again Moses and Christ were both potent in Miracles but with this difference That Moses's Miracles were most-what for destruction of Enemies as in the Fields of Zoan and Christ's always to save oft-time Enemies he pulling down the pride of the Flesh this healing and comforting the broken in heart And this difference Christ himself asserts Mat. 5.43 It was of old Love thy Neighbour and hate thine Enemy namely in Moses's House But I say Love your Enemies c. It is also observable that the first Plague Moses miraculously brought upon Egypt was turning Water into Blood and the first of Christ's was turning Water into Wine John 2. Now by Blood is meant Legal Fear and Self-condemnation even unto Death which was the end of the Law for unto Death it brings all Men even the Elect which Death yet is of Mercy because in it lies the streight Gate leading to Eternal Life and by Wine is meant Joy and Consolation which are the end of the Gospel From whence in part appears the Parallel betwixt the Institutors the one a Servant the other a Son the one bringing down to that Death which all must pass before they can be new-born of Water and the Spirit and the other raising from
thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall 12. And now this doth bring us to that Combat which indeed is our Magnum Oportet our great Necessary where we must encounter with Spiritual Enemies with Satan in the appearance of an Angel of Light yea and also with our own perverse Perswasions cunningly trimmed and set forth by the old Serpent the Deceiver from the Beginning which we have hitherto esteemed as Children of Light So as this War is not only against Satan our Lusts and open professed Enemies but even against our Works and Ways which we once esteemed familiar Friends and had walked taking sweet counsel together in the House of God who now being deluded by Satan ignorantly become Enemies whilst they perswade the Soul That there is no entring into the Land of Rest but by its own Sword and Bow and so fight Satan's Battels So as a Man's Enemies are of his own Houshold the Father at variance with the Son and the Daughter with her Mother and which is most strange the Hand of Christ our Lord and Captain in all this even setting us at these variances in our selves Matth. 10.33 and sending the Sword into our inner parts so as our chiefest Friend our Preserver and Life sends the Sword and Divisions and our Enemy and Destroyer seeks Peace and Concord and yet is that of Love and this of Malice for indeed this is the Battel in which He that shall loose his Life shall save it and he that will save his Life shall loose it And our Wilderness State is for no other end than to prepare us for this Warfare by weaning us by little and little from Creature-Dependencies for our Captain wonderful in Wisdom and Goodness on set purpose leads the Armies of Israel into a dry and desart Place to the end he may bring them into Wants and Distresses and when they cry to him he gives them Bread from Heaven and Water out of the stony Rock thence teaching them that they cannot deliver their own Souls but that he both can and is gracious and ready to help in the time of need and so undermines natural Confidence inures them to hardship strengthens Faith and Grace drawing them by degrees into acquaintance with that Song of David If the Lord had not bin on our side may Israel say if the Lord had not bin on our side when Men rose up against us they had swallowed us up quick for as the Sons of Israel could not prevail in War against the Cananites until all that rebellious and faithless Generation was spent whom God had sworn If they shall enter into my Rest So is it impossible the Soul should overcome in this Warfare as long as any of these Principles or Perswasions remain that dare affirm either that it must prevail in its own Sword and Bow or yet despair that Free Grace can or will effect it so as under our Legal State our Lord like a wise and experienced Captain trains up and inures his Souldiers to such manner of straits and service before-hand as in the great Day he will call them unto 13. But now to come to the Crisis 't is every way miraculous in the Manner in the Power in the Effect for is not that manner of fighting strange where the safety depends in casting away all Arms Offensive and Defensive and is not that Power wonderful which converts the loss of the Field into Victory and makes them that are overcome more than Conquerors And is not that effect most admirable of all that makes Death Life and Life Death and yet most assuredly this is the success of this Warfare and though it must seem ridiculous in the Eyes of a Son of Pharaoh who can perceive no more of it than a Man born blind can of Colours yet is there none that hath fought the good Fight but can set his Seal to these things nor none that hath made good improvement of the Wilderness preparative Discipline but hath so express an Image thereof as he can consent with us neither let any of the Camp of Israel think of this as if some strange thing had hapned unto them for it must come upon all the Children of Election for if done to the green Tree shall it not be done to the dry for saith the Apostle We see Jesus made a little lower than the Angels for the suffering of Death that he might tast death for all Men for it became him in bringing many Sons unto Glory to make the Captain of their Salvation perfect through suffering and therefore as he suffered so must we as he was made perfect so we as he died so must we die and as he arose so must we as it is written Rom. 6.3 Know ye not that as many of us as are baptized into Christ were baptized into his death therefore we are buried with him by Baptism into death and if we have bin planted in his death together so shall we also be in his Resurrection knowing this that our Old Man is crucified with him namely that old Nature we brought out of Egypt and which so often murmured in the Wilderness Again buried with him in Baptism wherein ye are also risen with him through the operation of God who hath raised him from the Dead Whence it is manifest That as Christ fought this good Fight and died in it so must we and as he did it for the Universal Church as Lord and Saviour of all so must we every one in particular before we can arise with him into the glorious Birth of the New Creature And as the old Serpent took advantage of the Seed of Abraham in Christ and bruised his Heel that is his Body unto the death thereof so must it happen unto every particular Member of Christ's Body and as the bruising of his Heel was the bruising of the Serpent's Head to eternal Darkness so the bruising of Christ's Heel in his Members shall be the treading down of Satan under their feet and therefore blessed is he to whom it shall be given to lay down his Life as a good Souldier of Christ in this Combat without reproach to his Conscience Warfare or Captain wherefore altho the name of Death be terrible to the Soul as the natural death is to the Body yet seeing we have such an Exampler to follow let us not be afraid for if the God of Armies be on our side why should we fear any Enemies As long as the Lord of Life is with us we can have no cause to fear Death Nay rather let us rejoice that Christ hath called us to be his Companions in Suffering and Death knowing that we shall also be partakers of his Resurrection Life and Glory Were it not ignominious in a Souldier that after he had inrolled his Name promised Fidelity learned the use of his Arms and had long lived upon his Pay and done little for it should in the day of Battel the Prize even immortality set before him and Victory
We endâ—avoured to express by name 41. Now we shall conclude in summing up all within the compass of one prospect Lord who is he whom thou wilt to espouse in everlasting Love Him walking in Integrity by Consumption resisting his original corruption undermining the power and pride of the Arm of Flesh rejecting his own and laying hold upon the merits of Christ Him studying to find out the deceits of his Heart oft calling it under strict examination is allwayes jealous over it and especially when it with the Buyer cryes it is nought it is nought yet in private boasts and by this his diligence teacheth it to speak the Truth and to believe unto Righteousness And having thus subdued his affections takes his Tongue to task knowing it to be an unruly Instrument often set on fire by Hell cursing and blessing in one breath oft wounding others and not rarely it self And so bridleth it as it will not reproach any no not its Reproacher but will plead for the Innocent set forth the Goodness and Glory of God and confess unto Salvation Him not rending evil for evil but doth good to them that do him evil yet not casting his Pearls before Swine forgiving all men and a Brother though though he offend him seventy seven times Nor yet will offend him though he be impertinent in matters lawfull or indifferent but seeking to build up such in brotherly kindness according to the faithfull precepts of Gospel Unity Who being called unto his Spiritual Warfare meekly takes up his Cross following his Captain General wheresoever he leads without murmurringly saying Where goest thou Forsaking without regret whatsoever Righteousness by legal Merit or Works he had gathered patiently yeilding up every strong Hold that these or his own Wisdom or Education had erected And lastly resignes the Promise believing with Paul that his naked Lord is better than all these and with Abraham that he that hath promised is able to make it good unto him in a more excellent way than he could conceive still loving the Word and frequenting the Assemblies though in this Crisis he find no relish in them but believes that they are good and holy and profitable because commanded by him not commanding in vain and so enters the strait and terrible Gate Layes down his Life bringing no reproach upon his Warfare or Inwards And now having thus fought the good Fight and finding himself delivered and raised up from Death and not by himself concludes he is poor and miserable and writes upon the Tablets of his Heart in the point of a Diamond Vild and contemptible thou Saved by one that ought thee nothing and gave for thee a great Ransom yet required no Price or Recompence from thee and in the sence of this puts on Humility Meekness and Gentleness Love Mercy and Charity towards others and especially the poor needy and labouring Souls in the distresses he was in and so becomes a doer and not a hearer of the Word in that Religion which is pure and undefiled and girding the Loines of his Mind and Will fall's not under the sluggish Sleep of I cannot I cannot but renewing reverential Fear cutteth down with its twofold Edge such sordid ungratefull Allurements or Suggestions as draw back to ease and supine neglect and renders due Honour and Love to every candidate in the Fear of the Lord. And for as much as full Experience assuring that God is with him loves him and will never forsake him he freely nails his Ear to his Door-Post in an Everlasting Covenant of yea yea nay nay And that he so assisting will not be drawn into the seducing Doctrines of Anti-Christ or any Spirit Principality or Power in Heaven Earth or under the Earth that claimes rule with God or compartnership with Christ his Master in working Holiness and therefore carfully watches over the envyings pride lustings of his own Spirit and fearing the fawnings of Satan is allwayes suspicious least he should delude his Spirit into a twisting of Interest and him into a Perswasion that they together are the Spirit of God in him speaking and teaching in his Name and oft begging as verily the case urgently requires that God will enable him to discover the Frailties of his own and Forgeries of this old Deceiver now working in the depth of Satan yet disguised in the form of an Angel of Light And having done all this acknowledgeth himself an unworthy Servant no Wages or Usury due to him but will patiently wait for the Reward until he be made fit to receive it Nor yet when the Trial comes will think it some strange thing or murmur that it burns down his Wood Hay and Stubble but rejoyceth that he is made thereby conformable to Christ and that those counterfeit Riches he had gathered though upon the right Foundation shall not any longer deceive them with their outward Splendor but are consumed only the Foundation left and he upon it naked and empty saving a white Linnen Garment which he rejoycing well calls his Innocency and knows no other Righteousness he hath beside this outward covering and therefore does not upon it lay claim to the Reward nor is so hasty for it as it will awake her Beloved for it though sick of Love until he please Who so doth these things shall never be moved in his legal State he will find a City of Refuge from the Avenger in his Warfare whilest he walks in the Valley of the shadow of death he shall fear no evil but the next day he shall sing a new Song in the Land of Confession We have a strong City Salvation will direct the Walls and Bulwarks Open the terrible Gates of Hulam that a new born may enter in and to worship in Spirit and Truth Him will I keep in perfect Peace his mortal hush through the good Will of him that dwelt in the bush shall live in ease in the everlasting burnings of the hidden Ages and in that Mountain Isai 25.6 where God shall make a Feast of fat things and where our Lord shall swallow death into Victory his Innocency shall be cloathed upon with Immortality and his corruption shall put on incorruption O Death where is thy Sting O Grave where is thy Victory and he shall be ever with his Lord God shall give him Light and he shall Reign for ever and ever wherefore let us comfort one another with these things rendring to him who shall make us more than Conquerers All Honour Glory Praise Age and Age Amen FINIS