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
glory now these though mortal and corruptible substantialy yet are immortal and incorruptible by the power justice and goodnesse of God 4. Immortal ex hypothesi when a thing may be said to be mortal in regard of its constitution yet immortall upon this supposition if it continue in its obedience and in this sense Adam was created immortal So that Adam in the state of innocency might be said to be mortal in regard of the composure of his body immortal because he had potentiam non moriendi a possibility not to die Yet we must consider there was a great deale of difference between the mortality of Adams body in the sense before mentioned before the fall and after the fall the one was natural the other contracted by sinne Before the fall he might be said to be mortal because he had a posse mori he might die after the fall he might be said to be mortal because he had a non posse non mori he must die The Arguments of the Socinians whereby they would prove Adam to be mortal in regard of his body and the composure of it we are ready to grant and yet keepto our principle that Adam was not created mortall The Arguments brought by the Socinians against this truth are these Adam dyed not the death of the body Arg. 1 or a naturall death when he had sinned therefore the death of the body was not inflicted upon his person for sinne but was the consequent of his nature Though Adam dyed not a naturall death Resp 1 yet he was presently made subject or liable unto death the sentence was past upon him though the sentence was not executed upon him We count a malefactour cast at the barre a dead man though reprieved the present stroke of death a man that hath received a deadly wound we account a dead man though he live for some time after Though death it selfe did not instantly seize upon him yet the symptoms of death did as feare shame pains distempers sweat wearinesse c. Adam and Eve before the fall were to Arg. 2 encrease and multiply but those that are immortall do not beget children as not suitable to their state of immortality Luke 20.35 They that shall be accounted worthy to obtain the immortal state and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage Our Saviour speaketh there of the Resp immortality of Glory not of the immortality of the state of Innocency That there is a difference between these two is easie to perceive the one is absolute the other conditionall An earthly man is a mortal man the first Arg. 3 man of the earth earthly 1 Cor. 15. 47 An earthly sinfull man and mortall are terms convertible not an earthly man and Resp mortall Adam was to eat and drink and this Arg. 4 was not suitable to a state of immortality This was not suitable to the state of immortality Resp in Glory but suitable enough to the state of immortality in innocency Positâ Causá ponitur Effectus now Composition Arg. 5 is the Cause of corruption There was the Cause of mortality in Resp mans body but of mortality in potentia remota not in potentia proxima for at present there was no consumption of the parts no fighting nor disorder among the Elements nor should this have been reduced into act had it not been for mans sin let it not seem strange that datur potentia quae non reducatur in actum There is a power in God to make ten thousand worlds which notwithstanding shal never be made and so his power not reduced into act Quest 20. vers 17. Whether death was inflicted on man as a punishment for sin Affir This appears by the threat pronounced Resp this verse In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely dye All punishment is from God But death Object is not from God but from man Death is not à Deo effectore Death is not Resp from God in regard of creation but it is God from in regard of ordination That which is homini naturale naturall to man that cannot be the punishment of Object sin man was compleat in regard of his naturals in the state of innocency Naturale or that which is naturall may be taken two manner of wayes Resp Propriè for that which is essentiale naturae essential to nature as to understand to will to desire now we say essentiale semper competit and therefore in this sense death is not naturall Impropriè for those things which do adhere to corrupt nature because of sin and are propagated with it as diseases death it selfe in this sense we say that death is naturall or we call it naturall death Christ hath delivered us from all that Object punishment which the sinne of Adam did contract and deserve but Christ hath not delivered us from death godly dye as well as ungodly beleevers as well as infidels therefore death was not inflicted as a punishment for sin Christ hath delivered his people from whatsoever is evil in death he hath taken away Resp 1 al that from death which is punishment or annoyance though death be not taken away death to believers is become gaine a sweet refreshing sleep the day-break of eternall glory He will take it away wholly at last Oh death where is thy sting Oh grave where is thy Victory Christ at present hath taken away the sting of death and hereafter he will take away its Victory Quest. 20. verse 18. How are we to understand that speech It is not good for man to be alone God creaed man alone and Moses saith that all that God made was very good We may answer it thus non bonum is not in Resp 1 this place as much as malum The meaning is not It is not good for man to be alone viz. it is evil dishonest or sinful for man to be alone but it is not good viz. 't is not expedient bonum est honestum utile jucundum We may answer it thus and advance further solitude was not onely good for man when he was first created but also expedient so long as it pleased God he should be in such a condition although it was not expedient he should continue in it because of the propagation of mankind and of the Church of God which God had determined from eternity for the advancement of his own glory Quest 21. verse 18. It is said here It is not good for man to be alone and yet 1 Cor. 7. 1. the Apostle sayes It is good for a man not to touch a woman In the one place Moses speaks of a specifical good or the good of the kinde in the Resp other place the Apostle speaks of a personal good of the good of some particular persons and in some speciall cases as in the case of persecution one in a single condition may better suffer persecution then one in a married condition But is not here a Scripture to justifie a Object
Ordinances against us and nailing it to his crosse 2. As he overcomes the plots the assaults the rebellions of this conquered and broken enemy In both senses we may say of the seed of the woman collectively considered it shall break the Serpents head It viz. Christ and his Church head and members In the first sense the Saints break the Serpents head in Christ in the second sense Christ breaks the Serpents head in and with his Saints In the first sense Christ breaks the Serpents head without the actual concurrence of his Saints it is true the Saints do it in him but they do not concurre with him in it as all of us sinned in Adam though we did not actually concurre with him in his sinne and in this sense he is said to tread the Wine-presse alone In the second sense Christ breaks the Serpents head with the actuall concurrence of his Saints not that Christ receives any help from them for to do it but because he is pleased to make use of them in the doing of it and in this sense is that Scripture to be understood The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly Rom. 16. 20. Christ hath throwen Satan down and wounded him and he will enable his people to keep him down and tread upon him As Ioshua caused the Princes of Israel to set their feet on the very necks of the five Kings They urge to break the Serpents head notes a Divine power and therefore it is Arg. 3 to be understood onely of Christ This Argument would be something Resp 1 against those that shut out Christ from this great work but not in the least against those who say the Church breakes the Serpents head but that power whereby it doth it is derived from Christ Since therefore besides what hath been already said according to the judgement of those who hold this first assertion the seed of the woman is to be taken collectively therefore I rather close with others as Learned who say that this particle it is to be expoūded collectively also for it being a pronoune relative and pointing to the seed of the woman which the Adversary saith is to be expounded collectively I conceive we cannot without straining of the Grammar of the Text interpret it otherwise Nor doth this detract from the honour of Christ the victory is Christs principally ours onely relatively and as his members Nor doth this advantage the Jew for according to this construction in this Scripture you have a Prophecy concerning the Messiah It is said here The seed of the woman shall breake the Serpents head now this being a work above the spheare of the activity of any creature it will follow that the Messiah is principally intended in this promise or Prophecy Quest 37. verse 15. Why we may not translate this verse according to the vulgar Latin she viz. the Virgin Mary shall breake the Serpents head Because according to the Hebrew text Resp 1 it is not she but according to our translation it Because this detracts much from the honour of Christ It was a rare saying of Seneca Similiter esse exprehensibilem nimiam laudationem et immoderatam vituperationem I but say the Romanists Christ did it by Object his own power the Virgin Mary by Christs If you say that of the blessed Virgin Resp as we have formerly concerning other Saints of God we have no cause to be offended but they intend more by it then this comes to Doth not the worth and eminency of a Object childe cast a shine of honour upon the Parents If it be said of Abraham In thee shall all Nations be blessed though it was not Abraham that made them blessed but his seed why not of the Virgin Mary In thee shall the Serpents head be broken though she did not do it but Christ It is one thing to say a parent is blessed in a child or to say that in a parent a Nation Resp is blessed because of a child and to attribute the worthy atchievements of the child to the parent as if a woman should beare a sonne who when he came to years ceserved worthily of the Common-wealth a shine of honour would be cast upon this woman because of her son but we could not with any sense nor indeed with honesty ascribe the worthy acts of the sonne to the mother Thus they endeavour to paint over their black and horrid blasphemies with the fairest colours they will take The chimney-piece is commonly the fairest part of the Roome and yet it covereth the foulest and blackest place Quest 38. verse 15. Why is it said I will put enmity between thee and the woman in the Abstract To note unto us the bitter inveterate Resp irreconcileable hatred of the wicked against the godly enemies may be reconciled but enmity cannot c. It is observable that profane persons Hereticks blasphemous Popish superstitious persons are more loving favourable each to other though vastly differing in their judgment then either of them to the people of God Edom and Ishmael Moab the Hagarens Gebal Ammon Amaleck the Philistines the men of Tyre Ashur had each several gods yet all conspired against the true God Ps 83. 5 6 7 8. They have consulted together with one consent they are confederate against thee The Tabernacles of Edom the Ishmaelites of Moab the Hagarens Gebal and Ammon and Amaleck the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre Ashur also is joyned with them they have holpen the children of Lot Darknesse and darknesse agree better together then light and darknesse Quest 39. vers 15. Whether man had any share in this curse pronounced in these two verses Man hath a share in that which was pronounced Resp against the Serpent but all his share is mercy for though it be a curse to the Serpent yet a blessing to man The truth is there seems to be spirituall checker-work in this 15. verse halfe white and half black much of judgement and terrour and much of mercy and consolation resembling Moses who saved the Israelites and slew the Egyptians In this verse you have the Sun in a cloud the Gospel with its masque on the day-break of that glorious mystery which was hid in God from before the foundation of the world the light whereof though it were faint and shadowy in regard of our Noon-day-brightnesse yet at that time through the help of the prospective of faith they might see thereby 1. Mans Redemption from the Tyranny of Satan and by consequence from sin death and hell noted in that expression of breaking the Serpents head 2. That man should be redeemed by a Mediatour viz. by the intervention of the seed of the woman 3. That this Mediator should be true man intimated by the seed of the woman and that he should have a divine power being able to break the Serpents head which is tantum mount to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God-man 4. That this Redemption should
bloody purpose of killing him that he might the better effect it Learn Foulest sins have oft-times fairest pretences Wo unto you Scribes and Pharisees hypocrites for ye devour widows houses Mat. 23.14 and for a pretence make long prayers Mark They devoured houses that shewed their covetousnesse and widowes houses that shewed their cruelty and all this under pretence of religion making long prayers this shewed their hypocrisy Herod colours over his cruel intention of murdering Christ with pretence of doing him homage Herod sent the wise men to Bethlehem and said Go search diligently for the young Mat. 2.8 child and when ye have found him bring me word that I may worship him Judas endeavours to dissemble his treason with a kisse Judas betrayest thou the Sonne of Luk. 22.48 man with a kisse What an Apostle of Christ a betrayer of Christ betrayest thou the Son of man and with a Kisse Any Treason is bad enough but for Judas to betray Christ and with a kisse Horrendum scelus who would have thought the very kisses and salutations of Christ to be murder We may observe that Jesus in one place calls Judas Devil and in another friend the reason may be because Judas played the Devil in the likenesse of a friend 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies both a player and an hypocrite as great men have their players so hath the devil his some play men in the shape of devils others play devils in the shape of men The roof of the mouth in Greek is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 heaven and the heart of man is called abyssus which signifies hell there are those that have an heaven of holinesse in their mouthes that have an hell of wickednesse in their hearts The Church of God hath two sorts of enemies the openly profane person the swearer the drunkard the uncleane person as also the carnal professor the hypocrite the pretender unto holinesse These oppose and persecute the people of God as well as the other The Ivie imbraceth the tree but withall eats out the heart of it and kills it there are many in the world that make a great profession of godlinesse who are Wens in the body of Christ not members of it A Wenne is skinned over with the same outside which the true members have and it seemeth to belong to the integrity of the whole body when indeed it is an enemy and a thief therein many pretend to be members of Christ when they are enemies unto Christ The Devil in these latter dayes hath been found in Samuels Mantle many a toad hath been found under the stones of the Sanctuary Religion hath been most opposed by the carnal and hypocritical professors of it Luther professeth A falsis amicis plus est mihi periculi quà m ab ipso toto Papatu I am in more danger of those that are my pretended friends then from the Pope and all his adherents The Gadarens besought Christ to depart but his own Countrey-men thrust him out of their Luk. 4.29 City and led him unto the brow of an hill that they might cast him down headlong Pretended friends do the greatest mischief to the Church of God poyson kills more surely then the sword Goliahs sword lies hid in an Ephod no sword to Goliahs no cruelty to hypocrites Quest 15. Vers 8. What may we learn from Cain's killing his brother Abel The bloody-mindednesse of wicked Resp men against the Church of God In the murder of Abel we may take notice of these particulars 1. Homo occidit hominem one man kills another 2. Frater occidit fratrem a brother kills a brother non homicida tantum sed fratricida 3. Injustus occidit justum a wicked man kills a good man 4. Propter sinceri cultum Dei this murder was committed upon the account of worshipping God in faith non homicida fratricida sed Justicida Cain was not only a killer of his brother but of his brother for righteousnesse sake 5. He killed not his brother in a passion or by chance-medly as we use to say but maliciously and with premeditation He talks with his brother after a friendly manner gets him into the fields and there rises up against his brother and slayes him 6. He kills his brother in the fields not in his house lest help might come in to save his life and that he might with the more conveniency at least as he conceived deny the fact when it was committed 7. Post admonitionem Dei after counsel given him by God to the contrary If thou dost well shalt thou not be accepted and if thou doest not well sin lieth at the door Learn There is no hatred so virulent and bitter as that which is occasioned by profession of the Name of Christ this makes people forget all natural affection The brother shall deliver up the brother to death and the father the childe and the Mat. 10.21 children shall rise up against their parents and cause them to be put to death When Christ was borne all Jerusalem was troubled and Herod cut the throats of all the children in Bethlehem when Christ is borne in the soul Satan and his instruments are in an uproare and are ready to kill though it be never so little the babe of grace No fire burns so hot as that which is kindled by the breath of religion And we may observe which truly should lie sadly upon our spirits the neerer men come to each other in their judgements if there be a difference the more desperate are their designes one against another The Persians and Turks are both Mahumetans and yet differing in some small points in the interpretation of their Alcoran the Persians burn whatsoever books they finde of the Turkish sect and the Jew can better brook an Heathen then a Christian The Pope will dispense with Jews but not with Protestants Lutherans will sooner joyne hands with a Papist then a Calvinist I could instance in others but I forbear Quest 16. Vers 9. What may we learn from the answer that Cain gives unto the question propounded unto him by the Lord And the Lord said unto Cain where is Abel thy brother And he said I know not Am I my brothers keeper We may learn That the Commission Resp 1 of one sinne makes way for another Cain offers up his sacrifice without faith in God then he kills his brother and here in this verse first he tells a notorious lie when God asked him where his brother was he said he knew not then he is guilty of high contempt against God as if the Lord had asked him an impertinent question Lord why doest thou ask me where is Abel my brother I am not my brothers keeper He doth not deny him to be his brother and yet doth deny that he should have any care of him There are some learned men that conceive I suppose the impudency of Cain's speech inclined them thereunto that this debate was between Adam and
in a grosse and heinous sin without having the least intimation of it from God which will be hard to affirme especially if you consider how David one of these holy men delighted in the Law of God and that it was his meditation day and night We do not read that any of the Prophets Argu. 2 whom God sent on purpose to tell his people of their sinnes gave them the least notice concerning the sin of having more wives then one Neither do ye read that Lat was reproved Object for his incest We may easily gather from the text that Resp it was known in those dayes that that kind of incest was a sin for else why did Lots Daughters make their father drunk and if Lot knew it to be a sinne we cannot from thence conclude the Patriarchs knew Polygamy to be so Jacob married two sisters and yet we Object do not read God reproved him for it The hand of God was upon Jacob for a Resp 1 considerable part of his life you know his complaint Few and evil are the dayes of the yeares of my pilgrimage A particular person possibly may commit a grosse sin ignorantly and dye without the knowledge of it but it is hard to say the same of the whole Church of God If having more wives then one were a sin to the Patriarchs then all their wives but one were harlots and all their children almost base borne which assertion sounds so harshly that a man can take little pleasure in the entertaining of it Thus I have given you the severall judgements of learned men concerning this point I shall now give you my own sense of it with submission to others in severall Propositions 1. Prop. That we finde not in the whole book of God at least in expresse words that God dispensed with his Law against plurality of wives as to the Patriarchs and whether or no it can be proved by consequence will appeare afterwards 2. Prap. That I conceive there can no reason be rendred why the Lord should be pleased with the Patriarchs having more wives then one but the same may be urged à fortiori why it should be so from the beginning God created but one man and one woman he could have created more but it did not please him so to do 3. Prop. That text in Malachi is worthy our consideration in this case where you have the Lord reproving his people thus Because Mal. 2. 14 15 16 the Lord hath been witnesse between thee and the wife of thy youth against whom thou hast dealt treacherously yet she is thy companion and the wife of thy covenant And did he not make one Yet had he the residue of the spirit and wherefore one That he might seek a godly seed therefore take heed to your spirit and let none deale treacherously against the wife of his youth for the Lord the God of Israel saith he hateth putting away c. I know the Lord urges this against a mans putting away his wife but marke from whence he takes his rise viz. from the primitive institution of marriage and God argues à fortiori If the Lord was pleased that one man should have but one wife at first and made a law to that end and purpose and if a man deales treacherously against his wife by marrying another though he lives with them both how treacherously hast thou dealt with the wife of thy youth in putting her away from thee you may be sure the Lord hates putting away 4. Prop. That that text of Scripture where God reckons it as a mercy that he gave David 2 Sam. 12. 7 8. his Masters wives into his bosome must not so be expounded as if it were a mercy in it self to have many wives but in regard of the concomitants of it I gave thee thy Masters wives into thy bosome viz. I gave thee the Kingdome For it was a custome among the Jews when a King died and another succeeded in his stead for the successor to have the deceased Kings wives which was the reason why Solomon was so exceedingly incensed against Adonijah for moving to have Abishag to wife because she accompanied David as his wife and it was the same as if he should aske the Crown and so by consequence was guilty of treason for marke what Solomon saith And King Solomon answered and said unto his Mother And 1 King 2. 22. why doest thou aske Abishag the Shunamite for Adonijah aske for him the Kingdome also There were two reasons why Achitophel perswaded Absalom to lie with his fathers wives on the house top in the sight of all Israel 1. That he might engage him into the commission of such a crime that David neither in honour nor justice could passe by and by consequence that himselfe and his party might not be brought to condigne punishment which might come to passe by a close between David and Absalom 2. Because by this act he did virtually proclaime himselfe King to all Israel And therefore by the way I crave leave to demurre to the two answers given by learned men to this argument urged formerly For the first 't is true this phrase of giving into a mans bosome doth not alwayes in Scripture signifie a marriage-union but for all that hath yet been said it may signifie so if the phrase will beare it and so it is in this case For the second Though the Law of God might be against marriage with Mothers in Law yet this might lye hid to the Patriarchs it being onely deducible by consequence and not expressely interminis in the text 5. Prop. That the holy Patriarchs might live and dye in the continuall practice of this sinne and yet be saved because known sins require particular repentance but if sinnes be unknown or unconsidered by reason that men are carried away with the sway of the times as the Patriarchs were then a generall repentance sufficeth as David Who can understand his errours cleans thou me from secret faults Psa 19.12 6. Prop. That which is a grosse sin under the Gospel when God hath clearly revealed unto us his minde in this Case might be a sinne of a lesser size under the Law yea even under the dispensation of the Gospel that which was an Errour of Infirmity in the time of the Apostles at the first promulgation of it viz. that the Messiah should not suffer death is now after a more full and clear discovery of the minde of God a most grosse and horrid blasphemy 7. Prop. That although the holy Patriarchs knew that there was such a Law that a man should leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife and they shall be one flesh yet it might not be cleare that the sense and meaning of that Law was that one man should have but one wife 8. Prop. That Polygamy under the Law being nothing near so heinous a sin as Polygamy under the Gospel the inconveniences following thereupon were not so great then