they dream on Suppose they should keep the Law as they vainly boast yet here 's a righteousnesse beyond it a righteousnesse beyond that of Adam in the state of Innocency nay beyond that of Angels it is the righteousness of God 2 Cor. 5.21 He hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him Not in our selves but in Christ not righteous but righteousnesse it self even the righteousnesse of God in him The Righteousnesse of God 1. Therefore the most absolute exact and perfect righteousnesse that can be imagined The righteousnesse which they speak on suppose it were as big as they boast yet it is but the righteousnesse of the creature and it hath its blemishes but this is the righteousnesse of God therefore without spot and without blemish Hence we read those high expressions Cant. 4.7 Thou art all fair my love there is no spot in thee And as the Spouse in the Old Testament so the Church in the New Ephes 5.27 That he might present it to himself a glorious Church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish 2. Therefore an unchangeable righteousnesse The righteousnesse of the creature is as the early dew which soon vanisheth Adam first in an estate of innocency but he fell away and the Angels kept not their first estate but left their own habitation and therefore saith St. Jude they are reserved in everlasting chains under darknesse to the judgement of the great day But Mal. 3.6 I am the Lord I change not And as is himself so is his righteousnesse unchangeable Dan. 9.24 Seventy weeks are determined upon the people and upon the holy city to finish transgression and to make an end of sin and to make reconciliation for iniquity and to bring in everlasting righteousnesse It must needs be unchangeable because everlasting This then is a sure rock that will never fail us Hence the Apostles triumph Rom. 8.33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect It is God that justifieth Who shall condemn It is Christ that died 3. Therefore a most acceptable and wel-pleasing righteousnesse God must needs own himself the righteousnesse which is of God Mat. 3.17 This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased Not with whom but in whom the meaning is that God in Christ is well pleased with us also Ephes 5.2 He hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour When Jacob appeared before his father in the garments of his brother Esau See saith Isaac the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed so when we appear in the righteousnesse of Christ those white robes of our elder brother then we are unto God indeed a sweet savour in Christ Jesus Righteousnesse belongeth unto thee saith Daniel but to us confusion and Daniel found favour in Gods sight The more that we take shame and confusion to our selves the more we give God the glory of his righteousnesse and the more that we give him the glory of his righteousnesse the more shall we finde favour in the sight of God So not to denude the people but to cloathe them with that absolute and perfect righteousnesse that everlasting and unchangeable righteousnesse that acceptable and wel-pleasing righteousnesse the righteousnesse of God which is my faith But to give it yet a further vindicaon from the standers of our foul-mouth'd Adversaries take notice The righteousnesse of Faith is no Doctrine of Licentiousnesse This Doctrine doth not open a door to profanenesse but on the contrary 1 Joh. 2.1 These things write I unto you that ye sin not This is the ingagement on our souls If any man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sins These words are recorded for us not to harden but to melt our hearts These things saith St. John write I unto you that ye sin not When Saul saw the goodnesse of David in sparing his life he lift up his voice and wept It is impossible for a man to believe that God hath done all this for him impossible I say truly and indeed to believe this that God hath wrought such a righteousnesse for us but it must needs melt us into godly sorrow that ever we should sin against so good a God It is the strongest tye that can be laid upon any rationall and ingenuous spirit This is the true Evangelical way Rom. 4.2 Know ye not that the goodnesse of God leads you to repentance This is Gods way Hos 11.4 I drew them with cords of a man with bands of love and I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jawes and I laid meat unto them These are as cords and bands as the strongest cords beyond those of Philistims Samson himself cannot break these bands if once they be laid on indeed 1 Joh. 3.3 Every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure And it must need be thus if we consider 1. The end of that great work by which our righteousnesse is wrought What was his purpose in it Luk. 1.74 He hath delivered us out of the hands of our enemies that we might serve him without fear in holinesse and righteousnesse before him all our daies This was his end therefore was it he delivered us that we might serve him as in righteousnesse so in the truth of holinesse Thus Tit. 2.14 He gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works He gave himself for us as to redeem us from our sins to justifie us so to purifie us to himself to sanctifie us that so we might be a special a peculiar people separated from the world a people zealous of good works Shall I give you a third Scripture And therefore is it that I multiply because I would have you to take notice of it Col. 1.21.23 You that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your minde by wicked works yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death to present you holy and unblamable and unreprovable in his sight Therefore was it that he took flesh upon him therefore was it that he suffered death this was his end as to reconcile us unto God so that we might be holy and unblamable and unreprovable in the sight of God And now do but seriously consider this Hath Christ thus suffered for us and will he be disappointed of that for which he suffered or do we think that we shall have our end of Christ and that Christ will lose his end of us That we shall be made the righteousnesse of God in him yet still continue in our wickednesse Be not deceived you cannot thus disappoint him of his purpose conclude rather that you have
and happiness both in this world and that which is to come It requires therefore as my greatest pains so your best attention And the rather because Satan is so busie The god of this world hath blinded the eyes of them that believe not lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ should shine unto them The understanding of this mysterie is the shining of this glorious Gospel Therefore he casts clouds upon it because he knowes that the right understanding of these things is that which sets open the gates of heaven to poor penitent sinners for this is life eternal to know Christ the Lord our righteousness Therefore he imployes his instruments and they raise up the mists of error to darken our understandings Our Adversaries of Rome tell us of a righteousness of works nor only in the way of precept but of counsel works of supererogation too a doing of more then the Law requires Hence their Pardons Indulgences and the like out of those overflowing merits of the Saints Nay the Jesuite hath exchang'd his poyson a generation of vipers there is amongst our selves not worthy the mention in this place O how they rend the bowels of their dear Mother the Church even denying the Lord that bought them The rather therefore let us give all diligence to search it and to finde it out And in this discovery I beseech you not to consult with your own sense and reason that is but to consult with flesh and bloud much lesse would I have you to take things upon trust because this or that man hath spoken it but because this is the foundation whereupon is built all our interest in the joy of Saints therefore consult we with the sacred Oracles the writings of the Prophets and Apostles those holy men who spake as they were moved by the holy Ghost Sure I am that here is the infallible truth which cannot deceive us The mouth of the Lord of Hosts hath spoken this To return therefore to our purpose By the light of Scripture to discover to you Who is this Righteous Man For the right understanding of this we must know that there 's a twofold Righteousness a Righteousness of works and a Righteousness of Faith 1. The Righteousness of Works This is when a man continues in all things that are written in this book to do them when we perform a perfect exact unsinning obedience to the whole Law of God This righteousness of the Law is the righteousness of Works Rom. 10.5 Moses describeth the righteousness of the Law that the man which doth those things shall live by them So it is a righteousness in the way of doing in the way of Works Now thus we say with Paul Rom. 3.10 There is none righteous no not one I know there are some say otherwise and we hear their brags they fulfill the Law nay more then the Law requires else why do they tell us of the works of supererogation or from whence should arise that treasure of Saints merits which the Pope dispenses to redeem souls out of Purgatory So the Pharisees trusted in themselves that they were righteous but the Apostle argues it Gal. 3.21 23. If there had been a Law given which could have given life verily righteousness should have been by the Law But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin that the promise by Faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe The Scripture hath concluded all under sin that therefore we might not seek for righteousness in the way of the Law but in the way of Faith It is the Apostles peremptory conclusion Gal. 2.6 By the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified And it is a clear truth For 1. Is there any that doth all things that are written in this book and continues in so doing It is a passage in the prayer of Solomon 1 King 8.46 If they sin against thee for there is no man that sinneth not and thou be angry c. If they sin against thee but lest some should question this because he speaks it with an if therefore he brings in this sad parenthesis There is no man that sins not Not any man whatsoever not the most holy the most righteous man The words are express Eccles 7.20 There is not a just man upon earth that doth good and sinneth not Though there be just men upon earth yet no man so just but sometimes he sins Nor is it the language of the old Testament but of the New Jâ—m 3 2. In many things we offend all Not in some things but in many things not they but we and all we he brings in himself amongst them though he was a servant of Jesus Christ and a Minister of the Gospel 1 Joh. 1.8 If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves And Christ himself hath taught us When ye pray say Our Father which art in heaven Forgive us our trespasses Why doth he teach us to pray daily for the forgivenesse of our sins but because we are daily committing of new sins even those that call God father 2. But suppose we now do all things that are written in this book and continue in so doing yet it hath been otherwise Saith Paul Before I was a persecutor a blasphemer and injurious And 1 Cor. 6.11 Such were some of you Nay not some but all Ephes 2.1 2 3. And you hath he quickned who were dead in trespasses and sins wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world according to the Prince of the power of the air the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience among whom also we all had our conversation in times past Not ye but we also and all we Suppose then we walk at present as Zachary and Elizabeth in all the Commandements and Ordinances of God blameless yet formerly we have gone astray and if we look upon time past we must needs acknowledge we are transgressors of the Law Now who shall expiate those sins for us or quit us from that former guilt in the time of our ignorance that so we may appear as righteous in the sight of God 3. But suppose we could clear our selves of actual transgression and say with the young man in the Gospel we have kept all the Commandements of God from our youth up yet we know that we are born in sin Ephes 2.3 We are by nature the children of wrath even as others All by nature in the same condition And why children of wrath but because born in sin Job 14.4 Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean Not one Adam begot a son in his own likeness as for nature so corruption of nature Such as the fountain is such are the streams therefore sinfull sons because descended from the loynes of sinful parents Rom. 5.12 As by one man sin entred into the world and death by sin so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned For that or in whom the word
them as love-tokens This beyond all saith David In the multitude of my thoughts thy comforts they delight my soul 3. Because they have right in these injoyments Others indeed injoy them by a common providence I will not say as some that they are usurpers God gives them their portion in this life The eyes of all wait upon him and he gives them their meat in due season But these have a more special interest Christ hath purchased a more speciall title and right for them And surely that man lives more comfortably that lives purely on his own Saith Paul Let no man glory in man for all things are yours 4. Because they have the right use of these injoyments whilest others are worse for them Eccles 5.13 There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun namely riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt As a sword in a mad mans hand so they endanger themselves with them or at the best they do but gather for themselves they live to themselves till they lose both themselves and that which they have gathered Thou fool this night shall thy soul be taken from thee and then whose shall these things be But the righteous they make themselves friends of that unrighteous Mammon they lay up for themselves treasures in heaven If rich in this world they are rich in good works ready to distribute willing to communicate laying up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come that they may lay hold upon eternall life What a world of difference there is between that man who hath the right use of his estate and him that wants it How comfortable is the life of the one beyond the other 5. Because their happinesse doth not depend upon these outward blessings They may take pleasure in them for a time as the scholar takes pleasure in his meat but findes a better relish at his book so they have fixed their affections upon higher matters If they be crost in these injoyments yet there is no interruption of their joy because it doth not depend upon them Rev. 12.1 They have the Moon under their feet By the Moon understand things sublunary all things under the Moon they are above these things As using the world saith Paul but not abusing it and I would have you without carefulnesse Therefore they injoy it with more comfort because they injoy it with lesse care Look upon a man whose happinesse depends upon it whose heart is set upon the world how he frets and grieves and when crost in his pursuits as Micah Ye have taken away my Gods how is it then that ye say unto me What aileth thee Whilest those whose hearts are centred upon God they sing sweetly with that holy Job The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away blessed be the name of the Lord. Lastly Because they look upon these things but as the Israelites on those clusters of grapes brought by the spies out of the land of Canaan so to put them in minde of the wealth and fertility of the Countrey to raise up their hearts to the meditation of those heavenly joyes Every mercy we receive it is as another step to mount up our thoughts upon Jacobs Ladder to celestiall glories These are but the Viaticum a refreshment by the way we look for another Countrey a City which hath foundations a building of God and hourly expect the call Come ye blessed children of my Father inherit ye the Kingdome prepared for you from the foundation of the world And if we finde this comfort in our Inne how much more then when we come at our own home Thus whilest others receive but the single comforts of these earthly blessings the godly have a double comfort whilest thus from these things below they are carried up unto the things above If others therefore can rejoyce in these things how much more cause have you to rejoyce with joy above other men Rejoyce ye Righteous 6. Whilest we look upon the left hand Many are the troubles of the righteous What crosses and afflictions what poverty and disgraces what reproaches and persecutions what bonds and imprisonments besides inward troubles that law in our member warring against the law of our minde that when we would do good evill is present with us Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death And then God himself drawing the black curtain between him and us withdrawing the light of his countenance from us Thou didst hide thy face and I was troubled Be not discouraged Psal 112.4 Unto the righteous there ariseth light in darknesse So a joy in sorrowing Nay let me tell you further you have more matter of rejoycing in the very depth of your adversity then others in the greatest height of their prosperity Therefore was it Moses his choice Heb. 11.24 He chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season He chose rather to suffer afflictions with the people of God then to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches then the treasures in Egypt Why art thou cast down O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me Look upon thy Saviour 1 Pet. 2.22 Christ hath suffered for us leaving us an example that we should follow his steps And shall we not rejoyce to be made like unto Christ This is that in comparison of which the Apostle accounts all things as nothing and worse then nothing as losse and dung Phil. 3.10 That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable to his death Thus we have a fellowship with Christ Nay further we bear a part of his sufferings And then saith St. Paul Col. 1.22 I rejoyce in my sufferings for you to fill up that which is behinde of the afflictions of Christ in my flâ—sh for his bodies sake which is the Church As Christ suffered in his natural so he must suffer in his mysticall body Our afflictions therefore they are Christs afflictions a filling up of that which is behinde of his afflictions Et quis non hic superbit saith Luther in his Consolatory to the Duke of Saxony who would not rejoyce to bear part with Christ So is it the Apostles triumph Rom. 8 35. Who shall separate us from the love of God which is in Christ shall tribulation or distresse or persecution or famine or nakednesse or perill or the sword As it is written For thy sake are we killed all the day long and are counted as sheep for the slaughter nay in all these things we are more then conquerors Conquerors and more then conquerors How 's that Not only bearing them with patience but with joy Act. 5.41 They went away rejoycing that they were count à worthy to suffer reproach for the Name of Christ Or if all this be not sufficient yet take notice of the benefit
in the blackest ignominy a comfort in the saddest misery Nay then when all other delights fail us when the evil daies come upon us and the years draw nigh wherein we say I have no pleasure in them When the keepers of the house begin to tremble and the grinders cease because they are few and those that look out at the window are darkned and the daughters of musick are brought low Can thy servant taste either what I eat or what I drink saith old Barzillai Can I hear any more the voice of singing men or singing women But then especially when we lie upon our death-beds what are all the Kingdoms of the world and the glory of them Ah miserable comforters are ye all In stead of rejoycing perhaps they affright us Ah woe worth the day that ever mine heart hankered after riches that ever mine eyes dazled upon honours that ever my teeth watered after pleasures these these are they for which I first wounded conscience and now they stare in my face worse then either hell or devil But our righteousness stands by us and an upright heart it speaks comfort to us and when we are to go out of the world 2 Cor. 1.12 This is our rejoycing even the testimony of a good conscience that in sincerity and godly simplicity we have had our conversation in the world In this way there 's joy both in life and death and at the day of judgement and your joy shall no man take away from you Rejoyce ye righteous 3. An Exhortation Be righteous and Rejoyce 1. Be righteous As you are made righteous through the righteousnesse of Christ imputed so exercise your selves in the waies of righteousnesse as ever you expect true joyes I have shew'd you before what this righteous man is As one that is cloathed in the righteousnesse of God through faith in Christ Jesus so one that receives this righteousnesse into his head he knows it into his heart he loves it and into his life he works it 1 Joh. 3.7 He that doth righteousnesse is righteous In a word he is a man of an honest and an upright heart So you have him in this verse the latter part explains the former Rejoyce ye righteous and shout for joy all ye that are upright in heart This is the man that hath solid and true joy And the more we exercise our selves in this way the greater is our rejoycing Oh what a sweet encouragement So let it stir us up to exercise our selves in the waies of righteousnesse righteousnesse toward God righteousnesse toward men It is that of the Apostle Act. 24.16 Herein do I exercise my self to have alwaies a conscience void of offence toward God and toward men 1. In the way of righteousnesse toward God that is in the way of his Commandements The way of Gods Commandements that is a right way and it is a heart-rejoycing way Psal 19.8 The statutes of the Lord are right rejoycing the heart Do ye not finde it by experience I appeal to your own consciences When ye have spent the day in Gods service and sit down at night and review the works that ye have done doth it not afford a more solid and sweet contentment to your souls then if you had surfeited your selves in the vain empty pleasures of the world Rom. 6.19 As therefore ye have yeelded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity so now yeeld your members servants to righteousnesse unto holinesse The Apostle presses it with arguments pro and con vers 21. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed for the end of those things is death But now being made free from sin ye have your fruit unto holinesse and the end thereof everlasting life It will be your eternal joy 2. In the way of righteousnesse toward men Nor can you indeed be righteous before God except ye make conscience of your waies with men Because God requires both Ps 15.1 Lord who shal dwel in thy tabernacle who shall rest in thy holy hill even he that leadeth an uncorrupt life and doth the thing which is right and speaketh the truth from his heart he that hath used no deceit with his tongue nor done evil to his neighbour That just and faithful servant it is he that shall enter into the joy of his Lord. Oh then do no wrong to any man neither by word nor deed Though you have it in your power and might be gainers by it yet what you get by fraud will it not be your sorrow in the end So will it breed a worm in your consciences that ever gnawing never dying worm yea a moth in your estates and a curse upon your posterity Psal 37.35 I have seen the wicked in great prosperity and spreading himself like a green bay tree yet he passed away and lo he was not yea I sought him but he could not be found But mark the righteous man and behold the upright for the end of that man is peace Oh what a joyful end Nay in the way when troubles come upon us what a brest-plate is righteousnesse to ward off the blow But think with your selves what a rejoycing it was to Samuel when the people had cast off his government that yet he could challenge them 1 Sam. 12.3 Behold I am here witnesse against me before the Lord and before his Anointed whose oxe have I taken or whose asse have I taken or whom have I defrauded This is our encouragement and so we shall finde it in the day of trouble at least when we lie upon our death-beds the rejoycing of our souls Learn we therefore not only not to wrong but to give every man his due even honour to whom honour is due nay to the very meanest nor only in a way of equity but in a way of charity for this also is a part of the righteousnesse of Saints So Daniel gives the counsel to Nebuchadnezzar Dan. 4.27 Break off thy sins by righteousnesse and thine inquities by shewing mercy to the poor The more we lay out our selves in the righteousnesse of charity the more shall be our joy at that great day Psal 112.9 He hath dispersed abroad he hath given to the poor his righteousnesse endureth for ever his horn shall be exalted with honour For we must know that our works they follow us not what we have gotten but what we have given I was hungry and ye gave me meat Come ye blessed And so will God judge us according to our works According to the measure of this righteousnesse so shall be our measure and degree of joy Thus to awaken us to the waies of righteousnesse both before God and man But 3. Whatsoever we do to do it with an honest and an upright heart This is that which gives us pure and unmixed joy when we do it in the integrity and uprightnesse of our souls Many are discouraged in the waies of righteousnesse because they finde not those joyes in them they expected
is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in whom all have sinned 4. But suppose we could quit our selves of that too that we could free our selves from all sin both actuall and originall yet then consider what must necessarily follow Surely to such a man there would be no need of Christ Mat. 9.12 They that be whole need not the physitian but they that be sick Christ is the great Physitian of the soul they that are righteous they need not a Christ only those that are sick those that are sinners If any man can be justified by the works of the law then in vain is it that Christ tasted death for every man in vain is it that he died for all men It is not mine but the Apostles inference Gal 2.21 If righteousness come by the Law then Christ is dead in vain Those that pretend to the righteousness of works they do what lies in them to make the death and passion of our blessed Saviour in vain and to no purpose They have no need of him 5. But suppose that they stood in need as our adversaries will acknowledge it in another way to merit for them that they may be able to merit for themselves yet whilest they think to be justified by their works Christ will have nothing to do with them Saith our Saviour to the Pharisees who trusted in themselves that they were righteous Mat. 9.13 I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance And Mat. 18.11 The Son of man is come to save that which is lost And in another place he tels us That he was not sent save to the lost sheep of the house of Israel Till therefore we finde our selves in a lost condition Christ hath no errand to us The Apostle shall conclude this point Gal. 5.4 Christ is become of none effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are faln from Grace The Churches of Galatia were exceedingly troubled with these Pharisaical Justiciaries and indeed his whole Epistle is nothing in a manner but a confutation of such proud and vain boasting and here he shewes them in few words what the issue of that was whilest they put confidence in works though they professed Christ yet thus indeed they made him of no effect they inslaved themselves to the bondage of the Law and so cast themselves out of the estate of Grace Beloved mistake me not I speak not this to remit your care and zeal of weldoing God forbid The Law must still be the rule of your holy walking Rom. 3.31 Do we make void the Law through faith God forbid yea we establish the Law And this we pray Col. 1.10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all wel-pleasing being fruitful unto every good work To this we exhort and charge you 1 Tim. 6.17 You that are rich in this world that ye do good that ye be rich in good works ready to distribute willing to communicate laying up in store for your selves a good foundation for the time to come that ye may lay hold upon eternall life Thus we presse you further Rom. 2.6 God will render to every man according to his works According to his works though not for his works as the meritorious cause According to our works so shall be the degree of glory Thus in the way of thankfulnesse in the way of obedience and that you may receive the crown of righteousness a greater measure and degree of glory no Papist in the world can more earnestly preach works then we do And it is observed that in lesse then one hundred years since the Reformation more works of charity have been done in England then in three hundred years before Wo is me that latter times are grown more barren in good works more fruitful in the works of darkness But so it was prophesied because iniquity shal abound the love of many shall wax cold Yet when all this is spoken it is not to merit heaven by so doing Ephes 2.8 By grace ye are saved through Faith and that not of your selves it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast For we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them We are created to good works yet not saved by them lest any man should boast Rom. 4.2 If Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory It is not of works therefore but meerly of free Grace Rom. 4.4 To him that worketh is the reward reckoned not of grace but of debt And Rom. 11.6 If by Grace then is it no more of Works otherwise grace is no more grace So not to discourage Works but to take you off from that self-justification in a legal way and to build your Faith upon the sure foundation I proceed to 2. The Righteousness of Faith This is that true Evangelical Righteousness by which we stand justified before God not the righteousness of Works but the righteousness of Faith Rom. 3.20 By the deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight for by the Law is the knowledge of sin But now the righteousness of God without the Law is manifested being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets even the Righteousness of God which is by Faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all that believe The righteousness of God without Works the righteousness of God which is by the Faith of Jesus There is a remarkable expression and it is worthy our observation Rom. 9.30 The Gentiles which followed not after righteousnesse have attained unto righteousnesse even the righteousnesse which is of Faith But Israel which followed after the Law of righteousnesse hath not attained to the Law of righteousnesse Wherefore because they sought it not by Faith but as it were by the Works of the Law The Gentiles which sought not after Righteousnesse they found it the Israelites which sought after Righteousnesse they found it not this is a strange mysterie but the Apostle shewes you the meaning of it The Gentiles sought not righteousnesse in the way of Works but in the way of Faith the Israelites sought it not in the way of Faith but in the way of Works The more we seek for it in this legall way the further we are carried from it Rom. 10.3 They being ignorant of Gods righteousnesse and going about to establish their own righteousnesse have not submitted themselves unto the righteousnesse of God It is not then the righteousnesse of Works but the righteousnesse of Faith which gives us interest in the Promises and intitles us to this rejoycing To discover therefore what this Righteousnesse is I shall shew unto you 1. That it is the Righteousnesse of Christ it is not our own righteousnesse but Christs righteousnesse Isa 45.24 25. Surely shall one say In the Lord have I righteousnesse In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall glory Not a righteousnesse wrought in us