sense of it The Lord speaketh those words Ironically Resp as before Quest 14. verse 15. It is said God put the man into the garden of Eden to dresse it and yet afterwards it is pronounced as a curse In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eate thy bread Gen. 3.16 Man should have laboured if he had continued Resp in his first estate but those irksome concomitants of labour paine sweat wearisomeness spending of the strength and spirits are the product of sinne Quest 15. verse 16 17. Here the Lord gives a Law to man Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eate but of the tree of the knowledge of good ond evil thou shalt not eate and yet the Apostle saies The Law is not made for the 1 Tim. 1.9 righteous The Law is not made to the righteous Resp 1 person so as he should be under the vindicative or punishing part of it he continuing in his righteousnesse and in this sense it may be applied to man in innocency man in innocency might be under the directive part of the Law though not under the vindicative part of it The Apostle speaks of Gospel-times when man was in another state his meaning is the law is not made to the beleever so as he should abide under the cursing condemning power of it the godly are under the desert of the curse of the Law but not the actual curse and condemnation thereof nor doth it follow as a Reverend Author very well observes that there is no Law because it doth not curse It is a good rule in Divinity A remotione actûs secundi in subjecto impediti non valet argumentum ad remotionem actûs primi From the removal of an act or operation the argument doth not hold to the removing of the thing it self As it doth not follow The fire did not burne the three Worthies therefore there was no fire God did hinder the act And if that could be in natural agents which work naturally how much rather in moral such as the Law is of condemnation which works according to the appointment of God Quest 16. verse 16 17. Why would God give man a positive 〈…〉 â—esides that natural Law that was 〈…〉 his heart 〈…〉 thereby Gods dominion and powâ—◠〈◊〉 man might be the more acknowâ—â—â—ged man might have submitted to the â—oral Law of God not so much in order â—o the command as because it was suitable to that principle which was within him for the Moral Law at first was written in mans heart Even as the Heathens do abstaine from many sinnes not because forbidden by God but as dissonant to their natural reason therefore God gives him a positive Law Ut nulla alia causa esset obedientiae nisi obedientia So that the forbidding to eat was not from any sinne in the action but from the will of the Law-giver As if a man forbid another to touch such an herb because it is poison this herb is contrary to a mans health whether it be forbidden or not and therefore he may abstaine from it not because of the command but because it is contrary to his health but to forbid the eating of something that is wholsome to the body and delightful to the taste here indeed is a triall of obedience Quest 17. verse 16 17. Whether sensitive creatures be capable of being under the obligation of a Law Neg. Inter bruta silent Leges for Resp 1. There can be no satisfaction to justice in inflicting an evil upon them no satisfaction to be had from such things as are not apprehensive of punishment Seneca Quà m stultum est his irasci quae iram nostram nec meruerunt nec sentiunt 2. A punishment inflicted upon them hath no power to mend brutes or to give an example to others amongst them 3. Nec turpe nec honestum among them no duty nor obedience to be expected from them no praise nor dispraise due to them no punishment nor reward to be distributed among them Levit. 20. 15. I a man lie with a beast Object he shall surely be put to death and ye shall slay the beast The meaning of that place is not this Resp that the beast was guilty of a crime or had violated a Law and therefore was to be condemned and put to death but it was in order to the happinesse and welfare of man bestia cum homine concumbens was to be stoned 1. Because it was the occasion of so foul a fact and so fatall punishment unto man 2. That the sight and presence of the object might not repeat so prodigious a crime in the thoughts of men Exo. 21. 28. If an Oxe gore a man or a Object woman that they dye then the Oxe shall be stoned This was ad poenam exigendam à domino Resp the putting of that to death was a punishment to the owner for not looking to it better Quest 18. verse 17. It is said In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely dye what is meant by death in that place Spirituall temporal eternal death 1. Spiritual death this is comprehended Resp in the very nature of sinne spiritual death is nothing else but a separation of God from the soule now the nearer the correspondence is between the soule and sinne the further the distance is between the soul and God 2. Temporal death for so the Spirit of God expounds his meaning afterwards In the Gen. 3.19 sweat of thy browes shalt thou eat thy bread dusl thou art and to dust shalt thou returne 3. Eternall death this is cleared by the Apostle Paul when he saies The wages of sinne is death and that he principally Rom 6.23 intends eternall death in that place is clear by the life to which it is opposed The gift of God is eternall life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Quest 19. verse 17. Whether Adam was created mortal or Whether Adam was mortall before his eating of the forbidden fruit Neg. As appears by the threat pronounced Resp against him In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt die the death 'T is said of God Who onely hath immortality Object 1 Tim. 6.16 A thing may be said to be immortall severall Resp wayes 1. Simply and independently immortall omni modo in every respect and so is that Scripture to be understood Who onely hath immortality 2. Immortal secundùm substantiam in regard of its substance there are some beings that are segregated from matter and corporeity and are not è potentiâ Materiae Educti as the Learned phrase it as Angels and rationall soules now these though they are not immortall simply and independently yet they are so as I may phrase it substantially 3. Immortal by the power and mercy of God or immortal by the power and justice of God the power and justice of God given immortality to the bodies of the damned in hel and the power and goodnes of God gives immortality to the bodies of the Saints in
when many neither labour nor sweat and yet have bread enough As for idle persons whilest they think Resp 1 to shake off that yoke that God hath put upon their necks they bind it faster and make it heavier To a person of any ingenuity idlenesse is a toyle nor is a man more weary then when he doth nothing We must distinguish of a three-fold labour 1. Labor Oeconomicus or mechanicus the labour of mechanicks as we call them or handicrafts-men of this the Apostle speaks Let him that stole steale no more Eph. 4.28 but rather let him labour working with his hands the thing which is good 2. Labor Politicus the labour of Magistrates and Governours so the Apostle speaking of the Magistrate He is the Minister of God to thee for good but if thou do Rom. 13.4 that which is evil be afraid for he beareth not the sword in vaine for he is the Minister of God c. 3. Labor Ecclesiasticus the labour of Ministers we may observe that whilest the world takes this to be an easie calling the Spirit of God in the Scripture frequently speaks of the labour and the work that doth attend it He that desires the office of a Bishop desires a good work And The workman is worthy of his hire And They that rule well are worthy of double honour especially they that labour in the Word and doctrine Ministers are called Starres now the Starres are in continuall motion for the good of the Universe they are to cry aloud and to lift up their voice like a Isa 58.1 trumpet Durante pugnâ non cessat Tuba The trumpet must be sounding all the while the battell is fighting The Church of God is Gods husbandry and the Ministers are his husbandmen Redit agricolis labor actus in Orbem The husbandman hath never done his work but the end of one task is still the beginning of another so it fares with the Ministers of the Gospel sometimes they are instructing poor ignorant souls then they are like Starres that shine in a cold winters night another while convincing gain-sayers then they are like those Starres that fought in their course against Sisera every man must be accountable for his idle words and a Minister for his idle silence Qui claves habent Ecclesiae ostia suorum labiorum aperiant A Minister had better be worne out with whetting then with rusting A way then with the fanatick Spirits of our dayes who call upon Ministers to work with their hands as if there were no other labour but hand-labour Consider 1. They confound those things that God would have distingushed there is the labour of the head and brain as well as of the hand 2. They overthrow as much as in them lyes the well-being if not the being of Kingdomes States Common-wealths in which they live for we stand in as much need of the Magistrate and Minister as we do of the Husbandman and handy-craftsman 3. Aaron with his posterity were Priests Ioshua David Iosias were Magistrates yet it might be said of them that they are their bread in the sweat of their browes Quest 46 vers 19. It is said here In the sweat of thy brows thou shalt eat thy bread and yet our Saviour hath taught us to pray Give us this day our daily bread If we earne our bread with our labour how is it a gift We earne it of man but not of God from man it is a debt but from God it is a Resp 1 gift It is an act of free grace that we have bread for our labour God might have said that we should labour and sweat and after all we should eat husks with hogs as the Prodigall or grasse with the Oxe as Nebuchadnezzar that in the sweat of our brows we eat bread is a mercy As the Scripture speaks of bread so of the staffe and stay of bread For behold the Lord the Lord of hosts doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the Isay 3.1 stay and staffe the whole stay of bread And the truth is a man is strengthened more by the staffe that is in his body then by the staffe that is in his hand it is not the corne and floure but the staffe of bread which supports the life and that is not any thing that comes out of the earth but the blessing of God which comes down from heaven The creature cannot hold up it selfe much lesse contribute to the subsistence of other things unlesse God continue the influence of his blessing upon it It is the observation of a Learned Author As soone as ever Christ cursed the figge-tree it withered and dried Ma. 11.20 up from the roots to shew that it was not the root alone but the blessing of Christ which did support the figge-tree it is pronounced Hos 4. 10. as a curse They shall eat and not have enough and again Ye shall eat and not Lev. 26. 26. be satisfied when I have broken the staffe of your bread ye shall eat and not be satisfied As good take a mouthfull of gravel as a mouthfull of bread and as able it is to nourish without Gods blessing The means by which we live are without life If they be living creatures as sheep and oxen and beasts and birds and fishes they must lose their lives before they can come to be helpes to ours so true is that saying mortibus vivimus we live by deaths now reason tells us Nihil dat quod non habet nothing can give that which it hath not How should food of it selfe preserve and further life which in it self is void of life the death of the creatures sheweth that our life is not from them but from something else By all which we may perceive how these Scriptures may be reconciled of Eating our bread in the sweat of our browes and yet to pray according to the forme our Saviour hath prescribed us Give us this day our daily bread Quest. 47. vers 19. Whether from this Scripture we have a command from God to labour To eat our bread in the sweat of our browes I conceive we have though some think that this was laid upon man after his Resp transgression rather as a curse which he must indure then a duty which he should performe for the clearing of this consider 1. It is granted that this was a curse laid upon man for his transgression 1. As some of Gods curses are promises as well as curses to set out his goodnesse so some of Gods curses are precepts as well as curses to set forth hâ—s justice Some of Gods curses are promises as well as curses so I will put enmity between thee and the woman It is a curse on he Serpent and yet a promise of the Messiah Some of Gods curses areprecepts as well as curses so Thy desire shall be to thy husband and he shall rule over thee this is Gen. 3.16 a curse and yet it is a precept Let our
Scripture of any truly holy that are branded for this sinne Once Noah was overtaken with the love of Wine never with the Love of the world Lot was twice incestuous never covetous once David was besotted with the flesh never bewitched with the world Peter denyed his Master but it was not the love of the world but the feare of the world that caused him to fall into that sin Zaccheus had been a covetous person but no sooner doth he take Christ by the hand but the first thing he doth is to shake hands with covetousness Halfe my goods I give to the poore Qest 27. vers 19. From this Scripture where it is said That Lamech tooke unto him two wives it may be demanded whether Polygamy was a sinne in the time of the Law or not This question hath more perplexities Resp twining about it then at first I thought it might have I shall give you the opinion of learned men concerning it 1. Some conceive that Polygamy was not a sinne in the time of the Law the reasons they render are these Because we finde a Law made by God as touching those who had more wives then Arg. 1 one as in that text If a man have two wives one beloved and another hated and they have borne Deut. 21 15 16. him children both the beloved and the hated and if the first borne sonne be hers that was hated then it shall be when he maketh his sonnes to inherit that which he hath that he may not make the sonne of the beloved first-borne before the sonne of the hated who is indeed the first-borne Now if the Lord makes a Law concerning those who had more wives then one how could it then be a sin This is a non sequitur we finde Laws Resp in Scripture concerning things sinfull as If a man strive and hurt a woman so that her Ex 21.22 23. fruit depart from her and yet no mischiefe follow he shall be surely punished c. And if any mischief follow thou shalt give life for life So concerning theft He that stealeth a man Exo. 21.16 and selleth him he shall be surely put to death So concerning the price of an harlot Thou shalt not bring the hire of an whore Deut. 23. 18. or the price of a dogge into the house of the Lord thy God for any vow Arg. 2 They urge those words of the Lord to David Thus saith the Lord I anointed thee 2 Sam. 12. 7 8. King over Israel and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul and I gave thee thy Masters house and thy Masters wives into thy bosome this the Lord reckons as one of the mercies he had bestowed on David and therefore it was not a sin That phrase say some I gave thy Masters Resp wives into thy bosome is not to be understood of Gods giving them in a way of marriage unto David but of giving them into his power To clear this consider 1. This phrase of giving into a mans bosome in Scripture doth not alwayes signifie a marriage-union Render unto Psal 1 our neighbour seven-fold into their bosome So in Esay Your iniquities and the iniquiâ— of your fathers together saith the Lord which have burnt incense upon the mountaines and blâ—sphemed me upon the Hills therefore will I measure their former worke into their bosome 2. David had married Sauls Daughter Miâ—hol so that Sauls wives were Mothers in Law to David now you have an expresse Law Thou shalt not uncover the Lev. 18. 15. nakednesse of thy Daughter in Law Now if a father ought not to uncover the nakednesse of his Daughter in Law then certainly a Sonne ought not to uncover the nakednesse of his Mother in Law 2. Others conceive that Polygamy was a sinne perswaded thereunto by these reasons From the institution of marriage in Paradise Argu. 1 Therefore shall a man leave his Father and Mother and shall cleave to his wife and Gen. 2. 24. they shall be one flesh 'T is not said they two shall be one flâ—sh Object the word two is not found in the Hebrew text Though it be not explicitely yet 't is Resp implicitely in the text and therefore see how our Saviour renders the words when he urges them Have ye not read that he Mat 19.4 5. that made them at the beginning made them male and female and said For this cause shall a man leave Father and Mother and cleave to his wife and they twaine shall be one flesh The word two or twaine doth not Object exclude plurality as you may see in other Scriptures At the mouth of two witnesses Deu. 17.6 or three witnesses shall he that is worthy of death be put to death So in Matthew saith Christ Mat. 18. 19. If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall aske it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven The word two or twaine is taken in Resp Scripture inclusively or exclusively in those places urged it is taken inclusively but here exclusively By those words two shall be one flesh Object is onely noted unto us the entire love that should be between man and wife that a man should love his wife as his own flesh But this doth not exclude plurality of wives A man may love his neighbour as himselfe and yet may love many neighbours There may be conjunctio animorum many Resp may be united in regard of their spirits but in marriage there is not onely conjunctio animorum sed corporum an union of spirits but of bodies God commends this unto us as that Object which is well pleasing to him that an Husband should have but one wife but he doth not command it Neg. For Matthew 19. 5. The Resp question was asked Is it lawfull for a man to put away his wife for every cause Christ urges in answer to this question Gen. 2.24 Lamech primus Polygamus Polygamy had Argu. 2 its rise from Cains wicked race therefore likely sinfull and displeasing to God 3. There is a third opinion which I finde some learned persons inclinable to close with viz. That though Polygamy was a sin under the Law that is to say to Lamech and to the rest of Cains wicked progeny yet it was not a sinne to the Patriarchs and that though there was a law from the beginning that one man should have but one wife as Gen. 2.24 yet as to the obligation of it God gave a dispensation to the Patriarchs The reasons that encline them to this opinion are such as these If there were a Law whereby plurality Argu. 1 of wives were forbidden either it was known to the Patriarchs or not If it were known to them then they lived and died in a known sinne without Repentance as far as we can gather from the Scriptures If any say it was not known to them then this will follow that holy men from one generation to another lived and died
except they did abide in the ship they could not be saved If I say to a Reprobate If thou beleeve thou shalt be saved this Proposition is true though that the Reprobate shall either beleeve or be saved is false 33. Rule To say this or that opinion is untrue because it doth in â—erminis contradict some place of Scripture will not hold For instance To say that Christ is not equall with the Father is expressely contrary to that Scripture He thought it no robbery to be equal with God yet agreeable enough to that of Christ himselfe My Father is greater then â— To say God cannot repent is in terminis to contradict some places of Scripture To say God can repent is in terminis to contradict other places of Scripture yet neither of these are unsound because in terminis onely to contradict the Scripture is not to contradict indeed the Scripture but when we contradict the meaning of the Scripture then and not till then we are justly said to contradict the Scripture For instance To deny Gods delight in the destruction of sinners is to contradict in terminis that place of Scripture I will laugh at your calamity and to say God doth delight in the Prov. â— 26 destruction of sinners doth in terminis contradict another place of Scripture As I live saith the Lord I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked And yet never a whit Ezek. 33.1 the more contradiction found in the Scripture for all this As for example it is both true that the Father is greater then the Son as touching the Sonnes manhood and the Son equall to the Father as touching the Sonnes God-head So of repentance it cannot be attributed unto God as it signifies a change of minde or counsell but it may be attributed unto God as it signifies change of sentence according to that Axiome Deus mutat sententiam nunquam consilium So as touching Gods pleasure or delight in the death of a sinner as it is the destruction of a creature he delights not in it but as it is the just punishment of a sinfull creature he delights therein God delights in the execution of justice as appeares in Jeremiah But let him that glorieth glory in Jer. 9.24 this that he understandeth and knoweth me that I am the Lord which exercise loving kindnesse judgement and righteousnesse on the earth for in these things I delight saith the Lord God delights in the exercise of judgement and righteousnesse as well as in the exercise of loving kindness In like manner we say that two Propositions may contradict each other in terminis and yet may agree well enough as to the sense and meaning of them For instance These two Propositions 1. Adam might not have sinned 2. It could not be but that Adam would sinne are both true That Adam might not have sinned is true of Adam in the sense of division considered as in himself It could not be but that Adam would sinne is true of Adam in the sense of composition being considered as subordinate to the decrees of God 24. Rule Pray unto God for the illumination of the Spirit Luther used to say Bene or are est bene studuisse he will study well that can pray well It is a singular comfort and priviledge to every godly man to see with his owne eyes It is a great comfort to a blinde man to meet with a faithful guide whom he may trust to lead him in his way but it comes nothing neer to the content which a man that hath eyes takes when with them he sees the way on which he walks 35. Rule Labour for true holinesse The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him Saint Iohn tels us That the anoyâ—ting 1 Joh. 2.27 which the people of God have received and have abiding in them shall teach them all things God will not reveal his will to those that will do their own So Paul Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind Rom. 12.2 that ye â—ay prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God 36. Rule Get an humble heart With the lowly is wisdome God will break Prov. 11.2 his minde to the broaken in heart Who am I saith Moses and yet who â—itter then he to go unto Pharaoh He that refused to be called Pharaohs daughters sonne was afterwards called to be Pharaohs God See faith the Lord to Moses I have made thee a God to Exod. 7.1 Pharaoh How shall that Christian be satisfied Quest who notwithstanding the heedful observing of these or such like Rules is in the dark as to many texts in the book of God These things may be said for the satisfaction Resp of such a Christian 1. That it is not necessary that a Christian should understand every Text in the Scriptures if he understands so much as is absolutely necessary to his salvation he is a good Scholar in Christs schoole 2. As often as thou meetest with any thing that is above the reach of thy capacity be humbled in the sense of thine owne weaknesse Thou art so farre carnal as thou doest not perceive the things of God which are spiritually to be discerned 3. Pray unto that God who hath the Key of David that he would open thy understanding that thou mayest rightly conceive of the great mysteries of Religion Christ hath told us if we knock he will open unto us he hath commanded us to knock that we may not be slothful he hath promised to open that we may not be distrustfull 4. The complete knowledge of Divine Mysteries is reserved for our heavenly state whilest we are in this world we know but in part Yea Irenaeus addes saith he In glory to all eternity the Saints shall be learning something of God that so God to eternity may be a Teacher and the Saint a learner There is such another like expression that the Schools make use of when they speak of our state in glory they say The Angels and glorified Saints are full vessels and yet are alwayes a filling FINIS Books Printed and are now to be sold by Nathanael Wâ—bb and William Grantham at the black Bear in St. Pauls Church-yard neer the little North-door of Pauls Church MAster Isaac Ambrose Prima Media Vltima first middle and last things in three Treatises of Regeneration Sanctification with Meditations on Life Death Hell and Judgement in 4. Mr. Nathanael Hardy severall Sermons Preached upon Solemne occasions collected into one Volume in 4. History Sorvey'd in a briefe Epitomy or a Nursery for gentry comprised in an intermixt discourse upon Historicall and Poeâ—icall Relations in 4. Dr. Stoughton's 13 Sermons being an Introduction to the Body of Divinity in 4. Dr. John Preston The Golden Scepter with the Churches Marriage and the Churâ—hes Carriage in three Treatises in 4. Mr. Walter Cradock Gospell-Liberty in the extension and limitation of it in 4. Mr. Thomas Parker The Visions and Prophecies of