was formerly prefigurate to Adam and the Fathers by the shedding of the blood of sensitive beasts and fowles And therefore the figure of the promised blessed seeed by the sacrament of circumcision was more significant then all the former bloody figures by the sacrifice of the Altar By the sacrament of circumcision therefore Abrahams family was distinguished and divided from all the families of the earth till they were reunited by the fulfilling of the promise by the new covenant For by the new covenant all the families of the earth were called and united in one Church and family For the strengthening of Abrahams faith in this gracious promise the inheritance of the Land of Canaan was promised to Abraham and to his seed whereby it was prefigurate that Abraham and his seed by faith in the promise made to Abraham should be inheritors of the heavenly Canaan the Kingdome of heaven The Church of God therefore being established in the family of Abraham and of his posterity the protection of the Church and the preservation of the line of the promised blessed seed was committed to Abraham to this end God did enable Abraham with the power of wisdome valour and with such an admirable gift of spirituall faith as Abraham is styled in the Scripture the Father of the faithfull And though I must passe over the History of Abrahams continuall victories over the enemies of the Church and leave the Reader to inform himself by the sacred History yet I cannot omit four memorable points of Abrahams faith whereby he is most justly called the Father of the faithfull The first was though Abraham was above an hundred yeers old when this promise was made and Sara was old and barren and both as it were dead by the course of nature and past all such hope yet faithfull Abraham considered not the deadnesse of his own body or the deadnesse of Sara's womb but stedfastly believed the promise against all naturall hope in hope that God according to his gracious wood would perform his promise Secondly Abrahams faith did wonderfully appear to his obedience to the command of God by his Word Gen. 12.1 commanding Abraham to depart from his native soil and to leave his kindred friends and possessions where he was seated in such plenty and to go into a strange countrey inhabited with the power of such mighty men who were every way unknown to Abraham and where he had no earthly help to trust unto but did as it were expose himself and his family to be made a prey unto strangers yet faithfull Abraham setting all doubts fears kindred friends pleasures and possessions aside did give obedience to the command of God and marched boldly to the Land of Canaan Thirdly how admirably doth our Saviour commend Abrahams faith while as our Saviour told the Jews saying John 8.56 Abraham did see my day and was glad and rejoyced therein For Abraham with the eyes of his spirituall faith did see the Lords day in the eighth day of the Sacrament of circumcision for the child was circumcised upon the eighth day though the eighth day of the circumcision fell out upon the seventh day of the great propheticall Sabbath which was commanded long before the Sacrament of circumcision and so precisely commanded as no mannâ—r of work was to be done upon the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath much lesse the shedding of the blood of man for the only commanded works of the propheticall ceremoniall worship of God were to be done upon the Sabbath Abraham therefore observing with the spirituall eyes of faith that the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath did give place to the administration of the Sacrament of circumcision Abraham did apprehend that the eighth day should be worshipped in place of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath The reason was because the Sacrament of circumcision did prefigurate both Christs death and the day of his resurrection from the dead for as by the shedding of the childs blood the shedding of the blessed childs blood by the cursed death of the crosse was prefigurate So by the stenching of the childs blood upon the eighth day whereby the life of the child was preserved the day of our Saviours resurrection from the dead was prefigurate to wit the Lords day which was the eighth day from the last Jews propheticall Sabbath for the last Sabbath whereon our Saviour did rest in the grave was no wayes the Jews propheticall Sabbath neither was there any Jew or Gentile bound or obliged to fulfill the command of the seventh day of the last Sabbath For all men naturally descended of Adam the redeemed head of man were only obliged to the command of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath which did prophesie our Saviours rest in the grave by whose rest in the grave all the prophesies prophesied by the propheticall Sabbath were fulfilled The last Sabbath therefore whereon our Saviour did rest in his sacred grave was no wayes propheticall neither was there any man naturally descended of Adam obliged to fulfill the command of the last Sabbath Let us therefore leave the last Sabbath to the Lord of the Sabbath and adde seven dayes more to the last Jews formall propheticall Sabbath and we have the Lords day the day of his resurrection from the grave to be the just eighth day as the Lords day was prefigurate to Abraham by the eighth day of the circumcision But let us account the number of dayes from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath and begin the accompt at the first day of the week according to the Jews computation of the dayes of their Sabbaticall week as both Jews and Gentiles were obliged to the Law of God and the Lords day is the just seventh day from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath and the true seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of faith more satisfactory to be declared hereafter What an admirable faith was this in Abraham to see the Lords day so far off as it was prefigurate by the Sacrament of circumcision though the Lords day be the true seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of faith as all men naturally descended of Adam are obliged to the command of the seventh day of the Law for without the command of the seventh day of the Law there is no Law to command man The fourth memorable point wherein the excellency of Abrahams faith did appear was in Abrahams readinesse at the command of God to offer up in sacrifice his son Isaac his only hope and heir of the promise and his only comfort next to God For it may justly amaze the heart of a naturall man that Abraham against nature by forgetting of all naturall affection should be so forward to attempt such cruelty with his own bloody hands to cut the throat of his so dearly beloved childe the only hope and heir of the promise Though this command was out of the infinite love of God to Abraham for God did never intend that Abraham should commit
therefore being commanded immediatly by the literall command of the law though necessarily implying the spirituall command in the command of faith the works of truth love and mercy are necessarily commanded which are the works of faith without which faith is but a dead faith and man but a dead man dead in actuall sin though he doth live all the days of this life To the knowledge of which actuall sin as the naturall man is led by the literall light of the law implyed in the command of the Lords day So by the knowledge of death by actuall sin the naturall man is moved to morall repentance And by repentance to amendment of life by the works of truth love and mercy to which he is morally enabled by the power of the redeemed Word of truth love and mercy in his heart which are the works of faith whereby the Lords merit is morally apprehended Eighthly the new covenant made between God and man being established upon the immediat command of the Lords day the seventh day of the Evangelicall law of faith as the Lord doth oblige himself to man to conferre the actuall blessing of the Lords dayes eternall rest to the faithfull believer so the Lord by his covenant doth oblige the finall contemner of his infinit merit to the actuall mercilesse eternall curse of his Law The Lords merit of mercy therefore being infinit there is mercy for man all the day of this life For the new covenant is made to all men whatsoever and at what time soever For Mar. 13.13 whosoever shall endure to the end shall be saved This end to the naturall man is his finall perseverance in his morall obedience till the Lords prefixed time of his spirituall calling by the spirituall grace of faith whereby the naturall man being regenerate is saved who hath nothing to necessitate his morall disobedience And though he doth stumble and fall yet by the power of the redeemed word written in his heart the naturall man hath freedome to repent morally without necessitating of his impenitency for morall repentance must necessarily precede morall faith As the naturall man therefore is no wayes to dispaire of the Lords infinite mercy while there is day in this life for the dispairer of the Lords infinite mercy doth belie the Lords mercy and doth detract from the infinitensse of the Lords merit so the naturall man is no wayes by his presumptuous continuance in sin and wickednesse to contemn the Lords long patience leading him so graciously to repentance lest the Lord in his justice give him over to a reprobate minde that he cannot repent though he hath all the dayes of this life to repent by covenant Ninthly the law of God being eternall eternally obliging man as he is man and the reward of the law due by the law to the merit of man being according to the law eternall there must be therefore resurrection from the dead that man as he is man intellectuall and sensitive may receive the eternall reward of the law in the full extent to wit eternall life and rest to the faithfull believer in the merit of man Jesus Christ the eternall Son of God and the curse of the law by eternall death to the merit of man the proud finall contemner of the Lords infinit merit offered so freely to him in this life The reward therefore of the law in the full extent as the reward is eternall cannot be received by man till the last day Tenthly the Lord being the head of all men redeemed from the curse of the law for the sin of Adam as the Lord hath his universall redeemed Church in all the nations of the world who by the power of the redeemed word of truth love and mercy written in their heart are all morally united by one faith in one body and by that faith morally united to their head the gracious Redeemer of all men So the Lord being the mysticall head of his mysticall members the Lord hath his mysticall universall Church all united in one mysticall body by spirituall faith and by spirituall faith all spiritually and indivisibly united to their mysticall head These are the first ten fundamentall points of faith arising from the literall light of the Evangelicall sound of the word of the Lords day by the Lords rest and resurrection from the grave leading the naturall mans understanding by faith to apprehend the Lords merit to save him from the curse of the law of faith Next therefore of the fundamentall points of faith arising from the Lords resurrection from the earth by his ascention to the heavens to which his resurrection from his grave doth extend where the Lord sitteth at the right hand of the infinite power of the Father whence two fundamentall points of faith doth arise First the Lord according to his promise that the seed of the woman shall break the head of the old Serpent and the head of his cursed seed hath obliged himself by the new covenant that by his second coming from the heavens gloriously united to his mysticall members shall revenge the blood of man upon Satan and his cursed seed First the blood of man first betrayed by Satan to fall under the curse of the law Secondly the blood of man Jesus Christ the eternall Son of God by his redemption of man from the eternall curse of the law Thirdly the blood of the Lords mystical members persecute by Satan and his cursed seed for their valorous defending of his sacred truth in this life For the Lord as head united to his mysticall members is the mysticall man who must break the old Serpents head and the head of his cursed seed in the grat day afterwards more fully to be declared This breaking of the head of the old Serpent and of the head of his cursed seed is by the Lords judging condemning and by the actuall inflicting of the eternall curse and reward of the law in the full extent to the greâ—t glory of God the eternall comfort of the faithfull and to the finall eternall and utter confusion of Satan and his cursed seed in the great day The second fundamentall point of faith arising from the Lords resurrection from the earth by his ascention to the heavens is that the Lord hath graciously obliged himself by the covenant to send the Comforter John 16.7 the Spirit of truth by whose spirituall light enlightening the spirituall darknesse of the naturall man the Lords mysticall members are begot and by the spirituall power of whose spirituall life by that spirituall light the regenerate are enabled with the gift of patience to overcome all the afflictions and temptations of Satan and of his cursed seed in this life which is the Lords earnest of their incorruptible crown of glory in the life to come for their valor in their defence of his truth in this life In these twelve fundamentall points of faith as by the literall light of the sound of the word of the Lords day by his rest
Church are mystically signified First those who by the preaching of the Word are morally begotten by moral faith And secondly those whom God according to his eternall purpose doth spiritually enlighten by the grace of spirituall faith who by their morall and spirituall love are morally and spiritually united to their immediate head the Lord Jesus Christ the Word and Truth and by that morall and spirituall union members of his body which is the militant Church of God upon earth Though this enmity and hatred be inflicted upon Satan and his cursed seed as a curse whereby they are induced to hate the truth and to persecute the possessed of the truth yet this enmity is not inflicted upon the Church and upon the seed of the Church as a curse For the Church of God as they are members of the Lord Jesus Christ in whom they live move and have their being they do hate all the professors of his truth who are the Church of God By this enmity therefore put between these parties irreconcileable mortall and bloody wars is raised between Satan and his seed and the Lord Jesus Christ the Word of truth and his members the Church begot of the seed of the Word And from this irreconcileable bloody wars the Church of God upon earth is said to be the militant Church This enmity and hatred to which Satan by the curse is necessitate is not only a simple privation of the former love and amity between God and Satan for Satan as hath been formerly declared was created a most glorious Angel in the high love and favour of God untill such time as Satan for his foul ambitious sin was cast down into a most despicable and disgracefull manner from the heavens and from his conversment with the blessed Angels who are ministring spirits sent out by God for the safety of his Chuâ—ch upon earth against the power of Satan and of his seed and therefore the eternall blessing of the Word of the Lords Evangelicall seventh dayes rest is extended to the blessed Angels according to the eternall Decree of God by the immediate power of which blessing the blessed Angels do stand in their created perfection Satan therefore by this enmity is not only deprived of his former love to God and to his truth but likewise Satan for his betraying of man by his belying of the truth Satan is necessitate by a positive enmity and hatred to hate the truth and to persecute the Professors of the truth and so are his cursed brood whom Satan by the sowing of his seed begets to be bloody finall persecutors of the Church Here two Questions may be moved the first is this Are all those the cursed seed of Satan who are called the children and seed of Satan I answer The seed of Satan is taken in a two-fold sense First all men who are actually sinners as they do sin actually are called the children and seed of Satan for actuall sin is from the Devill and of these many being stung by Satans sting of enmity sweetned by his false deceiving light are stirred up to be persecutors of the Church for a time though afterwards they become pillars of the Church and such a persecutor was Paul before his spirituall darknesse was spiritually enlightned by spirituall faith Secondly the seed of Satan is taken for those whom Satan by his bewitching sting of enmity sweetned by his false pleasing deceiving darknesse hath induced to such a finall hatred of all truth and of all professors of the truth provoking the long patience of God leading them so graciously to repentance till for their finall contempt and impenitency God in his justice doth justly give them over to a reprobate mind whereby they do inherit the curse of their father Satan and these are the only cursed seed of Satan The parties therefore of this irreconcileable mortall bloody wars is first Satan and not only his cursed seed but likewise all those whom by his false deceiving light Satan hath stirred up for a time to be haters of the truth and persecutors of the professors of the truth who are the Church of God The other party of this irreconcileable war is the Lord Jesus Christ the Word and the seed of the Church of which sacred seed the morall and mysticall members of his body are begot who out of their love to their head Truth it self do necessarily and mortally hate all haters of his truth and all persecutors of the professors of his truth The second question may be moved what is the reason that this irreconcileable enmity and hatred is put by the Lord between the parties whereby his Church is so continually and so bloodily persecuted and afflicted in this life by Satan and his seed since the Church is more dear to the Lord Jesus Christ then his own life as he is man was to himself I answer The reason is first that the Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified by the redeemed valour of his militant Church in his continuall preservation thereof against the mighty power of Satan and his seed that the world may know that all their labour is in vain Secondly that his mysticall members in their mysticall head may victoriously revenge the blood of man upon Satan and his cursed seed in the great day by the finall breaking of their head to their eternall confusion Thirdly that in recompence of their valour for their couragious defending of the truth in this life they may be crowned with an incorruptible crown of glory in their mysticall head in the life to come For by the eternall Decree of God the victory of this irreconcileable war is decreed to the mysticall man Christ Jesus and his mysticall members The seed of the woman must break the head of the Serpent according to the second branch of the censure the mysticall sense whereof is next to be declared CHAP. XXI The mysticall sense of the second branch of the censure BY the mysticall sense of this second branch of the censure the victory of this irreconcileable war is decreed to the seed of the woman For as by the false suggestion of Satan the woman was first deceived by the Serpent so by the eternall Decree of God the head of the old murdering Serpent Satan and the head of his cursed seed shall be broke by the seed of the woman The mysticall woman therefore in this branch of the censure is the blessed Virgine and the mysticall seed of the Virgine is the Word who is promised to become man of the seed of the woman by whom the head of the Serpent must be broke In this second branch therefore of the censure the sacred generation conception birth death and resurrection of the Word as he is man of the seed of the woman is necessarily and mystically implied which is the meaning and sense of the promise of the blessed seed mystically set down in this second branch of the censure For the better conceiving of this sacred mystery first the
God is mystically signified by the woman the reason whereof is the twofold naturall conception of the woman which is as it were the embleme of the twofold conception of the morall and mysticall members of the Lord Jesus Christ which are brought forth by the Church For as the morall conception of the naturall man by morall faith by the preaching and sowing of the seed of the Word doth resemble the seminall and first conception of the woman So doth the spirituall conception of the regenerate man by the Church resemble the second conception of woman For though the regenerate man be spiritually enlightned by the immediate light of the holy Spirit yet that spirituall light is the spirituall light of the Word which is the seed of the Church and the regenerate man is enlightned thereby as he is a member of the Church which is the body of our Lord Jesus Christ The third main fundamentall point to be observed in this gracious promise is the immediate cause of the Lords love to his militant Church For the immediate sole efficient cause of his love to the Church is the essentiall union of this divine and humane nature of the Word As the immediate cause of this essentiall union is the Lords infinite love to all men eternally condemned to the curse of eternall death for the sin of Adam Whence the infinit joy and gladnesse of the sacred Trinity did arise to rest eternally upon the essential union of which essentiall union and unction doth arise the Lords love to his Church by his sacred Word as his Word by his love is the Image of this essentiall union For as by the literall light of his Word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse of faith proceeding from his love which is of one reall light with the redeemed word in the heart of man the naturall man is morally led to the Lords merit So by the Spirituall light of the Word proceeding from his spirituall love which is the spirituall light of his holy Spirit the regenerate man is spiritually led to the Lords merit and spiritually mystically and indivisibly united to his mysticall head For by this spirituall love all the regenerate are coupled and united joynt to joynt one to another and all indivisibly to their mysticall head whence the spirituall joy and gladnesse of the regenerate doth arise which is called the joy of the Holy Ghost for this spirituall union and unction is really one in the head and members but it is essentiall in the head and spirituall in the members spiritually flowing from the essentiall union and unction of the head and this is the reason that it is said by the Prophet David prophecying of this union and unction Psal 45.7 Thou hast anointed him with the oil of gladnesse above his fellowes Whose fellows are his mysticall brethren begotten of the same Father for both the head and the members are the sons of God the head essentially and therefore the naturall Son of God the members spiritually and therefore the spirituall and adopted sons of God in their mysticall head who are therefore predestinate to be made like to his Image that he might be the first born Son amongst many brethren And in this sense our Saviour is called Luke 2.7 The fiâ—st born Son of the Virgine the woman in respect of his mysticall members who are begot of the woman the Church Though the spirituall joy therefore of the regenerate doth many times ebbe and flow yet the spirituall love whereby they are spiritually united to their mysticall head whence this spirituall joy doth arise is indivisible in the head and members It is as impossible therefore for the regenerate to fall totally and finally from the grace of their spirituall love whereby they are indivisibly united to their mysticall head As for the humane nature of the word to fall from the divine nature and alone For the essentiall union of the divine and humane nature of the Word is the sole immediate efficient cause of this indivisible union and must mutually stand together By this spirituall union and unction whereby the regenerate are indivisibly united to the truth of the Lords merit the regenerate man is so armed with the spirituall valour of patience as he is enabled to resist the strongest temptation of the Devill and of his powerfull instruments and to stand to the Lords truth even the losse of his naturall life by which spirituall valour the regenerate man doth overcome the power of Satan and of all his cruell crue in this life For this spirituall valour doth proceed from the decreed victory of this irreconcileable bloody war to the seed of the woman For the seed of the woman must break the head of the Serpent and the head of the Serpents seed though the victory be not without temporall danger and afflictions as may appear by the mysticall sense of the third branch of the censure next to be declared CHAP. XXII The mysticall sense of the third branch of the censure SAtan and his cursed bloody brood by the mysticall sense of the first branch of the censure being necessitate to hate the truth and the professors of the truth who are the Church of God and to induce all others to his power to hate and persecute the Church Satan first by the mysticall sense of this third branch of the censure is limited how far his power shall extend mystically signified by the word Heel which is the lowest part of man as he is man intellectuall and sensitive whereby the sensitive power of man as he is man is signified Satan therefore by his cursed sting of enmity hath the power to sting and bite man as he is a naturall man intellectuall and sensitive but no wayes as he is a spirituall man For Satan with all his power cannot sting the regenerate man not so much as to induce him to commit the least actuall sin For the regenerate man is born of God 1 John 3.9 and cannot sin as he is a spirituall man And therefore the Apostle Paul Rom. 7.17 18. doth disclaim his actuall sins to be his to wit as he is a spirituall and a regenerate man but doth attribute his actuall sins to his rebellious flesh as he is a naturall man and the old man corrupted by Satan and his wicked instruments even in a manner from the cradle Secondly by the mysticall sense of this word His Satan and his cursed brood according to the eternall Decree of God is permitted first to sting the Word the blessed seed made flesh of the seed of the woman whom that old murdering blood-hound and his cursed bloody brood did sting most cruelly to the cursed death of the crosse Secondly by the word His Satan and his seed is permitted to sting and bite the heel of the Lords mysticall members who are predestinate to be made like to the Image of their mysticall head that they may taste of the cup of his afflictions in this
love And this was the greatest subjection of the wise to the husband in the state of perfection which was in this twofold union of mutuall love And therefore it is said Let no man separate whom God hath joyned together to wit in marriage This inseparable union of man and wife in the state of perfection as it was without any essentiall or spirituall reall difference so it was equall without all imperious authority either of naturall or spirituall subjection neither was it possible to be otherwise for the naturall and spirituall love of both being inseparably and indivisibly one as the love of the head to the body and of the body to the head Man the head could no otherwise command his body his wife but by a sweet pleasing regiment of love directing his body as head in all naturall and spirituall love And therefore woman was made neither of the lowest or highest part of man but of the rib equall in situation with the region of the heart Though this censure therefore was pronounced upon woman as she was the body of her husband for being the instrument to induce her head Adam to the transgression of the Law of God being first betrayed her self by Satans false deceiving bewitching light yet let man love and honour woman who was the happy instrument of the greatest blessing that ever came to man or Angel And therefore now in this state of Grace man is by a more strict union obliged to love his wife then if man had stood in the state of his created perfection For by his first estate man had been but an earthly creature for his perfection must have been eternally upon earth while as the woman is the happy instrument that man is advanced to be crowned with an incorruptible crown of glory in the kingdome of heaven eternally And this is the reason that the husband even now in the state of Grace is to love his wife as himself and to expresse his love Ephes 5.33 by his care in providing and cherishing his wife even as he doth his own naturall life and that she may be as dear to him as his naturall life And consequently to bear much with the weaknesse of her sex for otherwise man must manifest his base unthankfulnesse both to God and to woman whom God hath made the happy instrument of so great a blessing never to be forgotten by man Let no man therefore think that the woman is given him to wife to be made his slave but to love her as his own naturall body As the wife his body is to love her head as a mutuall help and comfort to her head to her full power with all submissive reverence in love to be directed by her head This subjection therefore is still in the sweet regiment of love without all usurping imperious authority or rigorous command Here it may be objected Gen. 3.37 Adam is punished for giving way to his wifes perswasion and consequently Adam had an imperious authority over his wife in the state of perfection I answer This Text doth necessarily inferre an equall and mutuall love between Adam and Eve and no wayes any imperious authority of command neither doth God punish Adam simply for being perswaded by his wifes love but because Adam did preferre the love of his wife to the command of his gracious God and Creator to whose infinite love both Adam and Eve were so infinitely obliged In which respect all the love and command of man and woman whosoever must be misregarded And so much for the two branches of the censure pronounced against the woman as she is the body of her husband her head Next therefore of the mysticall sense of the two branches of the censure CHAP. XXVI The mysticall sense of the two branches of the censure pronounced upon the woman as she is the body of man her husband BY the mysticall sense of this censure literally pronounced upon the woman as she is the body of her husband First by the woman the Church of God is mystically to be understood As by the husband the Lord Jesus Christ the head and husband of the Church Secondly by the concepon and the bringing forth of children by the woman the conception and bringing forth of the morall and spirituall children of the Church by the Ministers of the Word is mystically signified For by the preaching of the Word and by the Ministers exemplary instruction 2 Tim. 4.2 in season and out of season the children of the Church are first brought forth by morall faith to know and practise the works of faith that morall obedience may be given to the Word Thirdly by the sorrow and grief of the woman in conceiving and bringing forth of children the sorrow grief and pains of the Minister is mystically signified by his hard conceiving and bringing forth of the rebellious natural man nuzled up in the lusts and pleasures of the flesh by the continued temptation of Satan and his seed whereby the naturall man is led to all wickednesse of life to the sorrow and grief of the whole Church As by the joy of the woman that man is brought forth in the world the joy of the Church at the conversion of the penitent sinner is mystically signified Fourthly by the barrennesse of the woman in bringing forth of children not only the Ministers barrennesse in the neglect of his weighty calling but also the barrennesse of faith in the particular members of the Church is mystically signified Fifthly by the second conception of the woman while by the intellectuall information of the Infant in the womb by the immediate act of God man as he is man is conceived and brought forth man by the woman the spirituall conception of the regenerate man by the Church whereby he is brought forth a spirituall man is mystically signified For in the act of regeneration the naturall man having continued in his morall obedience to the preaching of the Word till Gods prefixed time of spirituall calling the naturall mans spirituall darknesse is enlightned by the immediate spirituall light of the Lords holy Spirit by spirituall faith whereby he is actually regenerate and so conceived and brought by the Church a mysticall indivisible member of his mysticall head to the great joy and comfort of the Church Sixthly by the strict naturall and spirituall union between man and wife the strict union of the Lord Jesus Christ to his body the Church is mystically signified which is both naturall and spirituall For as the Church his body is flesh of his naturall flesh and bone of his bones as he is man of the seed of the woman so the Church morally and spiritually brought forth is of the same spirit with the head whereby the head and body are spiritually mystically and indivisibly united arising of the essentiall spirituall union and unction of the divine and humane nature of the Word in the womb of the blessed Virgin Seventhly by the subjected desire of the woman to her
was a singular vertue in the tree of Life to maintain the sensitive natu e of man eternally by the eternall preservation whereof the union of the intellectuall and sensitive nature of man was eternall for by this eternall union man was to have continued eternally upon earth in the state and felicity wherein he was created It was therefore the infinite mercy of God to man to cast man out of the earthly Paradise For if man had had that freedome to eat of the tree of Life as he had formerly man must have lived in sorrow and misery subject to the continuall temptation and afflictions of Satan and of his wicked seed eternally in this life while as then by faith in the promised blessed seed Adam the redeemed head of man after this life should live in the heavenly Paradise eternally in all joy and happinesse For this cause by the fourth branch of this censure the Cherubims and the flaming sword were placed at the East of the Garden to keep the way of the tree of Life that man should not come to the tree of Life growing in the earthly Paradise by the way which he run before Next therefore of the mysticall sense of the censure The main mysticall point of this censure inflicted upon Adam as he is the head of the woman and the redeemed head of man is to let our first parents understand that the word the promised blessed seed to be made flesh of the seed of the woman is the second person of the blessed Trinity First therefore by the curse inflicted upon the earth the curse of the Law for the sin of Adam to which Adam and all men naturally to descend of Adam the created head of man were condemned is mystically signified To the end that all men might then and now know that all men were redeemed from that curse of eternall death and darknesse and that all men are concluded in temporall spirituall darknesse called unbelief and originall sin and that naturall death by the censure of God did follow that sin And therefore it is said Rom. 5.12.14 As by one man sin entred in the world and death by sin so death went overall men from Adam to Moses Secondly by the sorrow labour and pains and sweat of the face which ariseth to man by reason of the curse of barrennesse inflicted upon the earth whereby it doth produce Thistles and Thornes which are to be weeded out by the care and labour of man is mystically signified the sorrows labour sweaty pains and prickly thorny afflictions which our Saviour the promised blessed seed was to sustain by the curse of the Law for man to put man in continuall remembrance of the never to be forgotten love of God to man in his Son Christ Jesus Thirdly by the skins wherewith the Lord clothed and covered our first parents nakednesse the righteousnesse which is the skin of the promised Lamb of God to be sacrificed for the sins of man was mystically signified to the end that our first parents might understand that it was by their only faith in the merit of the righteousnesse of the blessed seed the Word to be made flesh of the seed of the woman that all their actuall sins and unrighteousnesse was covered Fourthly while as the Lord saith Behold man is become like one of us to know good and evill whereby our first parents did see the state which their desire to know good and evill had brought to the Lord would have our first parents understand that the promised Redeemer of man the blessed seed was one of us that is one of the distinct persons of the glorious Trinity Fifthly by the excluding of our first parents from the tree of Life growing in the earthly paradise is mystically signified that our first parents were admitted to the tree of Life growing in the Paradise of God which is the promised blessed seed Sixthly by the Cherubims and flaming sword the morall power and literall light of the sword of the Word is mystically signified by which only light â—ll redeemed men are morally enlightned to enter the way of the tree of Life planted in the heavenly Paradise which is the promised blessed seed By this flaming light of the sword of the Word First the flaming light of the redeemed Word of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith written in the heart of man is signified which is the flaming Light of conscience Secondly by this flaming Light of the sword the flaming literall light of the Word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse of faith is signified which is of one reall flaming light with the light of the word of the Law and life of Righteousnesse of faith writtten in the heart of man of the reall unity of which flaming light morall faith doth arise that by the morall hands of faith the redeemed man may lay morall hold on the word of promise shining with the same reall flaming light which was then the tree of Life growing in the Paradise of God to wit the promised blessed seed who is now our tree of life by his fulfilled promise And though the Cherubims and the flaming sword were placed at the East of the Garden of Eden pointing as it were to the Land of Canaan for the promise of the blessed seed was to be made afterwards to Abraham and to his seed in a more particular manner then it was made to Adam which promise was to be performed before the promise first made to Adam could be fulfilled yet the flaming sword turned every way that as by the power of the sword all men were barred from entring to the tree of Life growing in the earthly Paradise So that by the flaming light of the sword of the Word all redeemed men might be morally enlightned to enter the way to the tree of Life which is planted in the Paradise of God which is the promised blessed seed Here by the way the question may be moved whether this barrennesse whereby the earth was cursed for man doth still remain CHAP. XXVIII The first and second rain TO the Question moved in the former Chapter I answer Though the earth was cursed by a positive barrennesse for man that by his toil labour and pains he may eat the bread of sorrow and the bread of the thorny cares and afflictions of this life inducing naturall death in the end to put him in continuall remembrance of the continued sorrow and afflictions which the eternall Son of God the Word to be made flesh of the seed of the woman by making himself a curse for man did sustain in this life induring the cursed death of the crosse in end yet the curse of barrennesse is removed and the fruitfulnesse of the earth is restored by the morall and spirituall blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse of faith which morall and spirituall blessing of the Word Deut. 11.14 is called the first and second rain in the
Scripture But yet the earth is not restored to the measure of the former fruitfulnesse The reason is that the redeemed man by his continuall labour and care might be put in minde of his thankfull obedience to his gracious Redeemer by his exercise in the commanded works of faith that his faith may be watered with the dew of the morall and spirituall blessing of the Word This blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith then to the Fathers in the promise of the blessed seed and now to us in the fulfilled promise is twofold The first is the naturall blessing of the word to the naturall life of man as he is man The second is the morall and spirituall blessing of the word to the morall and spirituall life of man by the morall and spirituall grace of faith For without the blessing of the nature of the redeemed man his morall and spirituall life must perish in this life This naturall blessing of the word is freely extended to all redeemed men without all respect to the merit of their obedience or disobedience to the command of the Word And therefore it is said Mat. 5.45 That his Sun doth shine and his rain doth fall upon the just and unjust And this is to the end that as God doth freely confer the blessings of the earth without respect to some in great plenty which he hath denyed to many of his redeemed poor members So the plentiful redeemed man may out of his plenty relieve the wants of his redeemed poor brethren without all respect to their merit who are the Lords redeemed members whereby the plentifull man doth testifie his thankfulnesse to his gracious Redeemer by the works of mercy and charity which are the commanded works of faith For what is freely given to the Lords poor redeemed members who are disabled of all means to supply their necessities it is freely given to the Lord himself as may appear by his own words Mat. 25.40 When I was hungry ye fed me not when I was thirstie ye gave me no drinke when I was naked ye clothed me not For want of means for the preservation of the life is a sore temptation which many times is prevented by the charity of the plentifull For by such means the poor indigent wretched man is diverted from attempting unlawfull courses to supply his necessity Though I must confesse that plenty without the speciall dew of the blessing of the Word be the greater and more dangerous temptation of the two The second blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith is the morall and spirituall blessing of the word necessarily implying the naturall blessing of the word And this morall and spirituall blessing is due by the Law of faith to the morall and spirituall faithfull worship of the seventh day of the Law of faith For by the morall faithfull worship of the seventh day by the naturall man and by the spirituall faithfull worship of the regenerate man by faith in the Lords merit the whole Law of faith is morally and spiritually fulfilled in the seventh day of the Law And therefore the morall and spirituall blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest doth rest upon the naturall and regenerate man whereby the naturall man is enabled to bring forth the morall works of faith and to continue in his morall obedience till the time of Gods spirituall calling and the regenerate man is enabled to persevere and continue in his spirituall works of faith by his spirituall obedience to the spirituall command of the Law of faith And this is the first and second rain which is the dew of the Lords influence by the blessing of his Word to the grace of the morall and spirituall faith of man Thus have we briefly set down the literall and mysticall sense of the censure pronounced upon our first parents for the transgression of the Law of Righteousnesse and the second covenant established upon the immediate command of the word of the seventh dayes promised rest of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith then implyed in the propheticall Sabbath whereby Adam the redeemed head of man and all men naturally to descend of Adam were formally prophetically and ceremonially obliged to the command of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith in the promised rest of the blessed seed which is the last part of this second Book yet before we proceed a question is to be resolved which is this How long did this formall propheticall ceremoniall obligement of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith continue and how long were all redeemed men obliged by the propheticall ceremoniall Law of God CHAP. XXIX The continuation of the formall propheticall ceremoniall obligement of the Law of righteousnesse of faith in the promise of the blessed seed in the first age of the Church TO the question moved in the end of the former chapter I briefly answer The formall obligement of man by the propheticall ceremoniall Law of faith in the promise of the blessed seed did continue from the very period of the promise first made to Adam the redeemed head of man till the day of our Saviours resurrection from the grave whereby the promised rest of the blessed seed was totally and absolutely fulfilled The continuation whereof may be divided in these two points The first is the formall obligement of our Fathers by the promise before any part of the promise was fulfilled And this formall obligement did continue till our Saviours coming in the world by whom the promise was fulfilled by degrees which is to be declared in the third Book As for the continuation of the formall obligement of the Law obliging Adam and the Fathers in the promise it may be distinguished in the first three ages of the Church The first was from Adam to Noah the second from Noah to Abraham the third from Abraham to Moses which continued till our Saviours coming wherein my purpose is only to shew that the formall obligement of the propheticall ceremoniall Law by faith in the promise of the blessed seed and that the covenant was really one and the same in all the first three ages of the Church though the figures prefigurating the promise were more significant the more neer that the promise came to be fulfilled After the covenant in the promise of the blessed seed was entred with Adam the redeemed head of man and with all men naturally to descend of Adam Satan that old raging Lion fearing the breaking of his head by the promised blessed seed to be born of the woman did begin to roare afresh intending to devoure the line whereof the blessed seed was to descend as he had devoured all men formally by the betraying of our first parents to fall under the curse of the Law by eternall death For Satan knowing the severity of Gods justice whereof himself had such experience resolved to set the whole world in such a fire of
any such cruelty But that Abraham and all men of the faith of Abraham might understand that God spared not his only Son the Son of his love to sacrifice him as it were with his own hands for his love which he doth bear to man For all the created powers of God were not able to bereave our Saviour of his life without his own gracious permission who out of his infinite love and mercy to man did most lovingly and mercifully lay down his life for man Here the question may be moved Was the Church of God upon earth then only in Abrahams family and his posterity and no where else I answer As the Lord Jesus Christ is the head of all his redeemed members the Lord from the beginning had his universall Church through all the Nations of the earth though his particular Church according to his promise was then in Abraham and in the posterity of Abraham for the time And therefore though the Apostle did tell the Gentiles that they were not of the circumcision Ephes 2.12 but aliens from the common wealth of Israel and as it were without any Christ and consequently without God For Christ according to the flesh was to descend of the circumcised yet the Gentiles had the propheticall Sabbath and the altar and sacrifice as it was prescribed to Adam and the Fathers before the promise was made to Abraham and consequently the covenant and formall obligement of the Law really one from the beginning And the Apostle doth acknowledge that the Gentiles did do the things contained in the Law Rom. 2.14 which was the ceremoniall works of the Law though the Gentiles did them not in that precise manner as they were done by the Jews And through the Apostle saith that the Gentiles did do the things contained in the Law by the light of their conscience yet that light was the light of the redeemed word of the Law of Righteousnesse of faith written in their heart which was really one with the light of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath and with the ceremoniall light of the altar sacrifice whereby they were inabled to do the things contained in the Law And who should bar the free Spirit of God to blow where it listeth John 3.8 and to enlighten many of the Gentiles Did not the Lord commend the Centurions faith and say Luke 7.9 that he did not finde such faith in Israel And how greatly did our Saviour commend the faith of the Canaanitish woman Mat. 15.28 and the faith of one of the ten Lepers and Luke 17.19 yet the promise made to Abraham was not then fulfilled And did not Christ himself him according to the flesh descend of the Gentiles though immediately of the seed of Abraham Let no man therefore think but that the Lord had his universall Church in all ages though his particular Church was then in the family and posterity of Abraham And so much for the second age of the Church and for the reall unity of the covenant and formall obligement of the Law as the promise was made to Abraham which was really one with the covenant made with Adam CHAP. XXXI The continuation of the formall propheticall ceremoniall obligement of the Law in the third age of the Church THe third age of the Church from the beginning was in the time of Moses descended of Abraham whom God raised for the preservation of his Church then in the posterity of Abraham whose posterity the Lord according to his eternall purpose would not permit to be established in the Land of Canaan for the space of forty yeers to the end that God by the Ministry of his servant Moses might manifest the glory of his power in the protection of his Church against the great power of Satan and of his mighty instruments for which cause God inabled Moses with the power of wisdome valour and faith amongst the number of whose memorable acts I will only touch three leaving the rest to the Reader to be informed by the sacred History my purpose being only to shew that the covenant and the formall obligement of the Law was really one and the same from the beginning as it was made to Adam and to Abraham The first memorable act of Moses Ministry was in the delivery of the people from the Egyptian servitude who were the seed of Abraham of whom the promised blessed seed according to the flesh was to descend and were then miserably oppressed under the tyrannous hand of great King Pharoah the proud Egyptian King stirred up to that cruelty by the instigation of Satan and of his wicked seed For whose delivery God raised up his servant Moses To this end first God sent Moses to King Pharoah commanding King Pharoah that he would permit the people of Israel to depart from the Land of Egypt but God according to his eternall decree did harden the heart of Pharoah that he should not let the people of Israel depart from Egypt untill such time as God should make his continuall care appear in the preservation of his Church against the great power of Satan and the power of his mighty instruments in this life And therefore upon Pharoahs rebellious restraining of the people of Israel from time to time contrary to the Lords command God by the Ministry of his servant Moses from time to time did plague the proud Egyptian King and his kingdome and though plague after plague was with such fearfull miraculous and wonderfull judgements as did astonish the hearts of the whole world ye such was the obstinacy of Pharoahs rebellious heart stirred up by the inchantments of his Sorcerers whose power God did of purpose permit as Pharoah did resist the command of God with such a high hand thirsting after the destruction of the Church till Pharoah with his great army was overwhelmed in the red sea of Gods raging wrath which mighty act was done by the Ministry of Moses by stretching out his hand upon the red sea at the command of God By this miraculous overthrow of the Egyptians the mighty deliverance of the Church of God from the Egyptian servitude was wrought to the amanement of the world to the end that the Church of God in future ages might never distrust the Lords continuall care in the preservation of his Church against the power of Satan and against the power of his mightiest instruments upon earth In that night of the fearfull Egyptian plague of the born the sacrament of the Passeover was institute by God to remain in the Church with the sacrament of circumcision during the formall propheticall ceremoniall obligement of the Law by which ceremoniall sacrament of the Passeover the promise of the blessed was more significantly prefigurate then formerly For first by the sacrifice of the Paschal Lamb which was commandded to be eaten the Lamb of God the promised blessed seed was signified who was to be sacrificed for the sins of man Secondly by the bitter herbs Exod. 12.8 with which
whereby the faith of man is overthrown And this is the reason that all Imagery painted or carved of our Saviour as he is man implying his death and humility are condemned for Idolatry as hath been formerly declared No such surmised sacrifice therefore being offered by our Saviour in his institution of the Sacrament of his last Supper no command was given to the Apostles to offer any such fictious sacrifice and consequently the Apostles and the Apostolicall successors the Ministers of the Word and Sacraments no commanded Priests to offer any such fictious sensitive sacrifice at the materiall altar as is falsly pretended by the objection Next I answer to the affirmed reall unity of this pretended imaginary sacrifice with our Saviours sacrifice of the crosse Leaving the Philosophicall distinction of unity as genericall sperificall udomericall reall formall and such like In this encounter I take the two last distinctions of unity Theologically to wit one really and one formally This affirmed unity therefore of the two sacrifices cannot be formall and therefore it must be reall This affirmed reall unity therefore of the two sacrifice is all one to say as that our Saviour in the institution of the Sacrament of his last Supper by offering of his reall body and blood under the externall forms of bread and wine in a propitiatory sacrifice for the dead and for the quick did as really and in effect sustain the curse of the Law in the full extent by the cursed death of soul and body as he did by his cursed sacrifice of the crosse which fearfull assertion is repugnant to the truth of all Christian faith For by this affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices these subsequent inevitable conclusions must necessarily follow First by this affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices the first surmised propitiatory sacrifice pretended to be offered by our Saviour must be a cursed sacrifice For such was our Saviours sacrifice of the crosse Gal. 3.13 And consequently our Saviours sacrificed reall body and blood which is pretended to be given to the Apostles cursed which is highest blasphemy to affirm Secondly by the affirmed reall unity of these two sacrifices the pretended propitiatory sacrifice affirmed to be offered by our Saviour in the instituting of the Sacrament of his last Supper must be a sensitive reall bloody sacrifice for there is no propitiatory sacrifice for sin Heb. 9.22 without the sensitive blood of the sacrificed for such was our Saviours propitiatory sacrifice of the crosse But the propugnators of this surmised propitiatory sacrifice will acknowledge no sensitive reall blood in their sacrifice and therefore they must acknowledge this pretended propitiatory sacrifice to be no propitiatory sacrifice Thirdly by the affirmed reall unity of these two sacrifices this surmised pretended sacrifice affirmed to be offered by our Saviour must be a deadly sacrifice by the sensitive death of the sacrificed for such was our Saviours sacrifice of the crosse But the propagnators of this surmised sacrifice must acknowledge no such sensitive death of our Saviour by the institution of the Sacrament of his last Supper and therefore they must acknowledge their pretended sacrifice to be no sacrifice Fourthly by the reall affirmed unity of these two sacrifices the only one sacrifice of our Saviour by the death of the crosse as be is high Priest after the order of Melchisedeck once offered for all is plainly denied For by this affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices our Saviour died twice Fifthly by the affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices the first surmised pretended sacrifice is a false sacrifice For by the adoration of this imaginary sacrifice the truth of the Lords commanded worship by the Lords Day is contradicted which is commanded to be celebrate in spirit and truth and not in the adoration of such a false sacrifice Sixthly by the affirmed reall uniâ—y of these two sacrifices the first pretended sacrifice is a faithlesse sacrifice For by this pretended sacrifice the faith of man and the immediate object of faith which is the Lords merit are actually separate Seventhly by the reall affirmed unity of these two sacrifices the pretended sacrifice affirmed to be offered by our Saviour in the institution of the Sacrament of his last Supper is an Idolatrous sacrifice For by the adoring of this sacrifice the sensitive object doth interveen between the Lord and his immediate commanded worship Eighthly by the reall affirmed unity of these two sacrifices Christ was really dead before his last Will and Testament was sealed by the sacrament of his last Supper implying the whole Evangel and new Testament and consequently his last Will and Testament no Will. Ninthly by the affirmed reall unity of these two sacrifices man was actually redeemed from the curse of the Law for the sin of Adam and the Law was fulfilled for man by our Saviour before his death of the crosse before his bloody rest in the grave and before his resurrection from the dead Tenthly by this affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices all the prophesies prophcying of the blessed seed from the foundation of the world were fulfilled before our Saviours death by the cursed altar of the crosse and resurrection from the dead Eleventhly by this affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices all the types rites figures and ceremonies prefigurating the death of the blessed seed from the foundation of the world were actually determined by the first pretended sacrifice which all the sacrifices of all the creatures of God could never determine till they were all actually determined by our Saviours last breath upon the cursed altar of the crosse while as he said It is finished The twelfth conclusion doth necessarily follow from the former three For by the affirmed reall unity of the two sacrifices our Saviours death by the cursed altar of the crosse was superfluous Thirteenthly by the affirmed reall unity of these two sacrifices this first surmised sacrifice pretended to be offered by our Saviour in the institution of the sacrament of his last Supper must be a reall Holocaust sacrifice cursed and burnt up by the fiery consuming wrath of God for sin no part or portion whereof must remain to be given to the Apostles for such was our Saviours sacrifice of the crosse prefigurate by the Holocaust sacrifice of the brazen altar Hence I necessarily inferre that by this affirmed reall unity the Sacrament of the Lords Supper is falsly denied to be given to the Apostles for by this pretended surmised sacrifice our Saviours reall sacrificed body and blood which in this case profiteth nothing Joh. 6.63 is affirmed to be given to the Apostles as a sacrament while as in the sacrament of the Lords Supper by the sacramentall bread and wine given by our Saviour to the Apostles the bread of eternall life purchased by his sacrificed reall body and blood is signified to be given By the faithfull receiving whereof God in his Son Christ Jesus dwelleth in the heart of man by his
love and man by faith in the love of God which is the only means whereby a man knoweth himself to stand in the state of Grace whereof no man can be ever assured till he find his love such to the truth of the Lords love by his merit implying the truth of the whole Evangell and Law of God as neither all the hopefull preferments of this life nor all the threatned dangers of naturall death it self can move him to deny the truth of that merit and this is that faith which our Saviour saith is able to remove the greatest mountain of temptation By the reall affirmed unity therefore of these two sacrifices all Christian faith is rased from the foundation And so much for answer to the objection And for the declaration of our Saviours sacrifice by his death of the crosse we are next to return to the place where the Lord was laid But because the main point doth consist in the Declaration of the new covenant immediatly depending upon the Lords resurrection from the grave which we must no wayes interrupt We will therefore first briefly in a word set down the discharge of our Saviours kingly office upon earth prefigurate by Melchisedeck and then come to the declaration of the place where the Lord was laid Melchisedeck was the figure of Christ as he was Priest Prophet and King And though we reade not of any Prophesie of Melchisedeck yet Melchisedeck as he was Priest in discharging of the Priestly office did necessarily prophesie For by the Priests ceremoniall execution of the sacrifice of the altar and of the rites of the propheticall Sabbath the Priest did necessarily prophesie And this is the reason that Christ saith Luke 11.50 51. that the Law and the Prophets did prophesie from Abel which is chiefly meant by the Priestly office And therefore it is said that Caiphas did prophesie the death of our blessed Saviour as high Priest that yeer saying Joh. 11.49 50 51 52. Ye perceive nothing neither do ye consider that it is expedient that one man die then the whole nation should perish Though Caiphas did prophesie out of his fear of the overthrow of the Priestly preferment yet his prophesie was no other indeed then the prophesie of the propheticall Sabbath As Melchisedeck therefore did prefigurate our Saviour as he was Priest and Prophet so Melchisedeck did prefigurate Christ Jesus as he was King For Melchisedeck was king of peace and righteousnesse and so he was the true type and figure of our Saviour Exod. 25.11 whose regall authority was signified by the golden crown placed above the ark of the Covenant compassing the cherubims overshadowing with their wings the Mercy-seat The discharge of our Saviours Kingly authority upon earth was chiefly in these three respects First Christ Jesus by the infinite act of his own immediate power by his resurrection from the grave in his resting from the work of the redemption did as a royall King redeem his subjects to wit Adam and all men naturally descended and to descend of Adam from the captivity of sin Satan eternall death and darknesse from the curse of the Law to which all men were condemned for the sin of Adam Secondly our Saviour as he is King of Peace did reconcile all men to the love and favour of God by removing of the wrath of God from all men for the sin of Adam Thirdly Christ Jesus as he is King of Righteousnesse out of his Kingly authority did command all his subjects of the world thus redeemed to the obedience of his Law of righteousnesse of faith upon the twofold reward of his Law by his new covenant And so much briefly for the discharge of our Saviours Kingly office upon earth We do therefore now return to the Declaration of the second part of the sacrifice of our blessed Saviour the high Priest after the order of Melchisedeck and to the Declaration of the place where the Lord was laid after his cruell bloody death prefigurate by the ashes of the sacrifice and the clean place where the ashes were laid apart from the Altar CHAP. V. The mystery of the last Sabbath which was no wayes propheticall VVE are come to the Declaration of the most sorrowfull mournfull and most lamentable estate of the Church of God from the foundation of the world And likewise to the declaration of the most joyfull comfortable and Evangelicall estate that ever came to all the nations of the world arising from that sorrow For there could never come a sorer cut and temptation to the Church and children of God then to see the rock of their hopes thus troden under foot massacred despised and cast down to the ground Though for fear of the Priests Scribes and Pharisees they durst not shew their sorrow and passion And though by this tragicall bloody persecution of the Shepherd the sheep were scattered yet Joseph of Arimathea one of Christs Disciples and a man of note and worth with honest Nicodemus and others of that religious company out of the loyalty of their love to our Saviour did gracefully intomb his gracious body in a new tomb hewn out of a rock wherein no man was formerly laid And though for their great care and gracefull neatnesse in intombing of the body of our blessed Saviour they be only named yet out of all doubt there must be more at the carryiâ—g of the blessed body of our Saviour from the crosse to the place where the Lord was laid though the place was not far distant from the crosse But to the point of our purpose in hand In our Saviours rest in the grave and in his resurrection from the grave doth consist the very period of the mystery of all mysteries hid from the beginning of the world to wit the mystery of the Lords Day Aâ—d though the mysterie be plainly revealed yet because some men will have it a mysterie still we must use the help of our Theologicall Key to open this mysterie by the concealing of the truth whereof the glory of the Lords Day implying the command of the whole Evangelicall Law hath received for too long a time such great prejudice The declaration of the truth of this fundamentall point of faith doth consist in the twofold rest of the eternall Word The first was his bloody rest as he is man made flesh oâ— the seed of the woman by his resting in his sacred grave after his bloody cruâ—ll dâ—â—â—h for the full space and time of the last Sabbath from end to end Thâ— sâ—cond was his Evangelicall joyfull rest as he is the infinite eternall Word by the day of his resurrection from the grave whereby he did rest from the fulfilling of the promise of the blessed seed both which rests were mysticall The mysterie of his bloody rest is twofold The first mysterie is in the propheticall covenant and in the last Sabbath obliged by the covenant For as the eternall Word did oblige Adam and all men naturally to descend of Adam to
from the redemption of man from the curse of the Law and from his fulfilling of the Law for man by his bloody rest was likewise infinit By the power of whose infinit merit by the Lords daies Evangelicall rest as it is the word of the eternall life and rest of man the formall worship of the Lords day is commanded in spirit and truth And therefore the Lord told the Samaritan woman The houre commeth and now is when the true worshippers shall worship the Father and consequently the Son and holy Spirit in Spirit and truth For God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in Spirit and truth By which words the formall Evangelicall worship of the Lords day is both set downe and commanded by the Lord of the Lords day For first the Lord told the Samaritan woman commanding her to beleeve that the houre should come which is the houre of the Lords day which was then to come Secondly the Lord commanded the Samaritan woman to beleeve that God is a Spirit and must be worshipped in Spirit and truth that is in the Spirit of faith in the truth of his Evangelicall rest fâ—om the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed Which is the formall Evangelicall commanded worship of the Lords day which must be sanctified by man after that formall manner in the Spirit of faith in the truth of the Lords merit by his Evangelicall rest as he hath manifested himselfe to man by the day of his resurrection to wit Lord God and man in the three coessentiall distinct Persons of the glorious Trinity Thirdly whereas the Lord told the Samaritan woman that God must be worshipped in Spirit and truth and that the Father requireth such worship The formall Evangelicall worship of the Lords day is immediatly commanded by the Lord of the Lords day for Gods will and requiring of man by his word is the Lords immediate command to man Fourthly whereas the Lord said to the Samaritan woman the houre is in these words the Lords last will testament to be executed after the testators death is fully implied for in the commanded worship of the Lords day the whole Evangelicall morall Law of God which is the whole Evangelicall word is necessarily implied Fiftly while as the Lord saith to the Samaritan woman the houre cometh when ye shall neither worship the Father in this Mountaine or at Jerusalem By these words the formall ceremoniall worship of the propheticall Sabbath implying the whole propheticall ceremoniall Law is actually determined by the actuall immediate commanded Evangelicall worship of the Lords day to the great comfort of both Jewes and Gentiles in tâ—eir freedome from the sore yoake of the ceremoniall Law Conclusion 11. All propheticall ceremoniall worship is barred from the truth of the Lords commanded worship for by such ceremoniall worship the truth of the Lords fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed is belied and necessarily denied by the will worship of man Conclusion 12. All ceremoniall pretended worship of God by any maner of carved or painted Image objectively representing to the eyes of man the Son of God as he is man is contradictory to the truth of the Lords commanded worship by his Evangelicall rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed as he is God and man For first by this ceremoniall pretended worship God is immediatly worshipped as he is man Secondly by the intervening of the sensitive object between the Lord and his worship the Lords worship is necessarily interrupted and consequently the worship a false faithles idolatrous worship necessarily denying the truth of the Lords commanded worship Conclusion 13. All mediate pretended worship of God by invocation of Angels or Saints departed this life is repugnant to the Lords infinit merit by the truth of his Evangelicall rest For first by the immediate object of such worship intervening between the worshipper and the Lord as by his infinit merit he is eternall life rest the infinitnes of his merit is confined Secondly prayer being a most essentiall part of Gods immediate worship by such invocation of the object to which the prayer is directed the worship of God is necessarily interrupted while as man by the Lords owne immediate command is commanded to call upon the Lord himselfe immediatly in the day of trouble and neither upon Saint or Angel And consequently such mediate pretended worship of God equall idolatry with the former Conclusion 14. As all men for their first sinne in Adam as head were condemned to the curse of eternall death and darknes So by the infinit powâ—â— of the Lords merit all men were redeemed in Adam as head from the curse of eternall death and from eternall naturall and spirituall darknes shuâ— up its â—â—mâ—orall spirituall darknes called unbeleefe and originall sinne for â—he infinit good of man Conclusion 15. As by the perfection of the redemption of man by the power of the Lords infinit free merit all men are freed from the curse of eternall naturall morall and spirituall death and from the eternall curse of naturall morall and spirituall darknesse though shut up in temporall spirituall darknes So all men by the redeemed free power of the word in the heart as they are naturall men are restored to the free grace of naturall and morall life and light without any manner of necessitating the act of the understanding will or senses either naturally or morally Conclusion 16. All men redeemed from the curse of the Law by the eternall decree of predestination being concluded in spirituall darknes called unbeleefe and originall sinne all naturall men comming to actual morall understanding and action before they be regenerate are necessarily dead in actuall sinne by their transgression of the Law of faith Conclusion 17. By the redeemed word of the Law in the heart of man man is the Image of God in his Son Christ Jesus as he hath revealed himselfe by the light of the word of the Lords day truth love and mercy First therefore the naturall man by the power of the redeemed word of the Law written in his heart is enabled to produce the workes of truth love and mercy morally though not spiritually which are the workes of morall faith Secondly and consequently by the reall unity of the power of light and command of the word of the Law in his heart with the light and command of the Lords day the naturall mans heart is morally moved to assent and to beleeve the truth of the Lords day and to give morall obedience to the command of the Law implied in the Lords day Thirdly and consequently by the power of the redeemed word in the heart man is enabled to morall repentance which doth necessarily proceed the act of morall faith Conclusion 18. All tenents and assertions denying the universall grace of the redemption of all men from the curse of the Law for their sinne in Adam shut up in spirituall darknes called unbeleefe and sinne
Lord God and man And consequently the three coessentiall distinct Persons of the Trinity Lord God and man The second thing to be observed in the words is that by the things in Heaven the Saints departed this life and the blessed Angels are to be understood for as the Saints in Heaven doe with all humility acknowledge their glory and heavenly felicity to the only merit of the Lord Jesus Christ So doe the Angels with all humility acknowledge the conserved grace of their created perfection to the merit of the Lord Jesus Christ to whom his merit doth extend who are conserved as ministring spirits for man First for man Christ Jesus while he was personally upon earth that his fooâ—e should not dash against a stone Luke 4.10 and secondly they are ministring spirits for his mysticall members that the foot of their fayth shall not be dashed totally and finally against the stony temptation of Satan and his instruments in this life The third thing to be observed is that by things upon earth man and the sensitive and insensitive creatures created for man are to be understood and by things under or within the earth the waters mineralls and other things created for the use of man which as they were all cursed for man so they are all redeemed from the curse with man in whose behalfe man is to bend the knees of his heart with all thankefulnesse to the Lord Jesus Christ and to testifie his thankfulnesse by his thank-worship of the Lords day as the Lord hath revealed himselfe by the Lords dayes Evangelicall rest Lord Jesus Christ God and man in the three coessentiall distinct persons of the glorious Trinity And so much for the declaration or the Evangelicall Word as it is the word of the Lords day the seventh day of the Evangelicall Law Next according to our methode the Evangelicall Word is to be declared as it is the word of promise and new Covenant made by God with man CHAP. XIV The Evangelicall Covenant made by God with man in his Son Christ Jesus called the new Covenant The Evangelicall Word of the Lords day the seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of righteousnes of faith the Evangelicall Word of promise and new Covenant are really one but of a formall difference First of the reall unity of both and next of the formall difference The reall unity of both doth consist in this that the word of promise and new Covenant which is the Lords merit of eternall life by his resurrection and rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed is the blessing of the Lords day For by the Lords infinit merit by the Lords daies Evangelicall rest the Lords day is blessed sanctified and commanded for the seventh day of the Evangelicall Law implying the command of the whole Evangelicall Law of faith And consequently the word of promise and new Covenant and the word of the Lords day really one for the one is necessarily implied in the other as may appeare by the severall names of the new Covenant First the new Covenant is called the Covenant of grace because the Lords merit of eternall life by the Lords dayes Evangelicall rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed which is the blessing of the Lords day is freely offered to all beleevers by the new Covenant without all respect to the merit of any man naturally descended of Adam whereby all beleevers are saved from the second death which is the curse of the Law of faith And consequently the word of promise and the word of the Lords day are really one Secondly the new Covenant is called the Covenant of truth because the Lord by his Evangelicall resurrection and rest from the faithfull fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed upon his blessed day did manifest himselfe truth to man by the truth of whose infinite merit by his Evangelicall rest the Lords day is blessed sanctified and commanded Which blessing of eternall life is word of promise and new Covenant and consequently the word of promise and the word of the Lords day really one Thirdly the new Covenant is called the Covenant of mercy because as the Lord by his Evangelicall rest did manifest himselfe truth to man so in that truth the Lord by his infinite merit did manifest himselfe love and mercy to man for as by his cursed death of the Crosse our Saviour did merit the salvation of all men from the curse of the Law for the sin of Adam So by his bloudy rest in the grave by his fulfilling of the law in the seventh day of the last Sabbath the eternall life and rest lost by Adam from the first seventh day of the law was due to the Lords merit whereby all beleevers are saved from the second death extending his twofold love and mercy to all men by the new Covenant whose mercy according to the truth of his infinite merit being likewise infinite The Lords gracious armes of mercy are outstretched to the penitent sinner for all the daies of this life by the new Covenant And this is the reason that wretched men do so insult upon the Lords infinite mercy by their continuance in sin and wickednesse because they see the daily love and mercy of God extended to all men in this life whose Sun doth shine and his rain doth fall both upon the just and the unjust Mat. 5.45 And this is likewise the reason that many though most unjustly do grudge the temporall blessings of God to the wicked who though they do enjoy the temporall blessings of the Lords merit by his Evangelicall rest yet they are far from the spirituall blessing of the Lords merit whereby man is only saved But the Lord hath thus graciously obliged himself by the new covenant first that wretched man should not dispair of the Lords mercy while he hath all the dayes of this life to repent him of his actuall sins Secondly that the wicked may be excuselesse For though God willeth that all men should be saved 1 Tim. 2.4 by testifying of their thankfulnesse for their redemption by the works of truth love and mercy to which they are morally enabled by the redeemed word of the law written in their heart yet while the wicked man without any created power to necessitate his morall disobedience doth by his obstinate continuance in sin and wickednesse make himself the cursed seed of Satan The Lord doth justly give him over to a reprobate minde and doth most justly will his condemnation where by the way the difference between the first and second covenant is to be observed for the least transgression of the law by the first covenant was without all revealed hope of mercy or time of repentance but the second covenant both Prophetically and Evangelically is with all hope of mercy by repentance for all the days of this life Fourthly the new covenant is called the covenant of faith because the Lords merit of eternall life by his Evangelicall
rest which is the blessing of the Lords day is the immediate object of faith and therefore the Evangelicall law is called the law of righteousnesse of faith though the works of faith which are the works of truth love and mercy are equally commanded in the command of faith which is the necessary sole immediate efficient cause of the works of faith and therefore necessarily commanded in the command of faith while the Apostle therefore doth affirm that man is justified by faith without the works of the law we must understand that the works meaned by the Apostle are the ceremoniall works of the Propheticall law and not the Evangelicall works of faith to which works the Apostle doth exhort both the Jews and Gentiles and therefore the Apostle James saith shew me thy faith by thy works Now the Lords merit of eternall life which is the blessing of the Lords day being really one the word of promise and new covenant and the word of the seventh day of the Evangelicall law are really one and so much for the reall unity of both next of the formall difference The formall difference of both doth consist in this that by the new covenant God and man are mutually obliged in the Evangelicall word of the Lords day For as God by his new covenant doth formally oblige man to believe the truth of his fulfilled promise of the blessed seed by his Evangelicall rest So the Lord doth mutually oblige himself by the truth of his merit by his Evangelicall rest to save the believer from the curse of the second death obliging likewise the unbeliever and finall contemner of his free gracious offer to the mercilesse curse of the law of faith But by the Evangelicall word of the Lords day the seventh day of the Evangelicall law the Lord doth formally command man to testifie his beliefe to the word of eternall life as the Lords Word is his law to man The chief precept of whose law is the commanded worship of the Lords day in which commanded worship the whole Evangelicall law of righteousnesse of faith as formally and necessarily commanded commanding the faith of man in the originall which is the love of the heart where the redeemed word of the law is written really one with the Evangelicall word of the seventh day of the law the Lords day by the power of which redeemed word in the heart which is the Image of God in his Son Christ Jesus truth love and mercy it self all men are morally enabled by the works of truth love and mercy to give morall obedience to the command of the Evangelicall law which are the works of faith the chief work whereof is the truth of the commanded worship of the Lords day whereby the Lord by his Evangelicall rest hath manifested himself truth love and mercy to man The judicious Reader therefore may plainly perceive that though there be a formall difference between the word of the seventh day of the Evangelicall law and of the word of promise and the new covenant yet they are really one and the one necessarily implyed in the other For as hath been formerly declared God cannot morally command man to his new covenant but by the immediate command of the word of the seventh day of the law implying the command of the whole Evangelicall law which is the Evangelicall word of the Lords day For there is neither life light or the power of command in any precept of the Evangelicall law of righteousnesse of faith but by the only immediate commanded worship of the Lords day in that commanded worship implying the command of the whole law And therefore the blessing of the Lords merit by the Lords dayes Evangelicall rest is only and immediatly due by the law to the faithfull worship of the Lords day for the fulfilling of the whole law which is fulfilled by faith in the Lords infinite merit by whose infinite sanctified merit by his Evangelicall resurrection and rest from the fulfilling of his promise the Lords day is the word of eternall life and the immediate object of Christian faith without the command therefore of the Lord day as it is his law to man there is neither life or light for man or any law or new covenant or any object for the faith of man dead in actuall sin as all men freed from the curse of the law for the sin of Adam are before they be regenerate by their transgression of the law of faith And therfore as our Saviour by his bloody rest in the grave by his fulfilling of the command of the seventh day did fulfill the whole law as our Saviour was oblieged to the law for man to whose merit the eternall life and rest lost by Adam is due by the law so the Lord Iesus Christ eternall life and rest by his resurrection and rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed upon the day of his resurrection did obliege all men again to his new Covenant by the immediate command of the Lords dayes commanded worship blessed and sanctified by his merit to believe in his fulfilled promise of the blessed seed to whose faith the blessing of his merit of eternall life is due by the law which is commanded in the cōmanded worship of the Lords day as may appear by the word of promise new covenant Go and teach preach the Evangel to all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit Mar. 16.15 16. he that shal believe shall be saved but he that wil not believe shall be condemned The sense of the word of the covenant is this Go and preach the Evangel that is go and preach proclaim the glad tidings of my resurrection and rest this day from the fulfilling of my promise of the blessed seed which is the summe of the whole Evangel implied in the Lords day by the Lords Evangelicall rest go therefore preach the Evangel to all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit as my my resurrection and rest this day from the power of sin Satan hell eternall death the curse of the law and the power of the grave I have manifested my self by mine own infinit immediate power Truth to man by the fulfilling of my promise and in that truth love and mercy to man and in that truth love and mercy God and man in the three coessentiall distinct persons of the Trinity whosoever shall believe in me to wit eternall life and rest by the power of my infinit merit by my Evangelicall rest shall be saved from the curse of the second death for the transgression of the law of faith as by my bloody rest in the grave from the cursed death of the crosse all men are saved from the curse of the law for their transgression of the law in Adam which is the first death he that will not believe in me shall be condemned to
and light it selfe and in that power life and light Truth by his fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed and in that truth love and mercy Lord God and man in the three coessentiall distinct persons of the glorious Trinity All the Nations of the world therefore by the Lords immediate word of his new covenant are oblieged and commanded to the evangelicall worship of the Lords day 14. By the truth of the Lords merit by which dayes evangelicall rest necessarily implying his bloody rest all the Prophesies prophesying of the comming of the blessed seed and all the Altars sacrifices types figures and ceremonies prefigurating his death from the foundation of the world are actually determined All the Nations of the world by the Lords immediate word of his new covenant are obliged and commanded to the evangelicall worship of that day By the truth of the Lords merit by the Lords dayes Evangelicall rest necessarily implying his bloody rest all the Prophesies prophesying the comming of the blessed seed and all the Altars sacrifices types figures and ceremonies prefigurating his death from the foundation of the world are actually determined All the Nations of the world therefore by the Lords immediate word of his new Covenant are obliged and commanded to the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day 15. By the truth of the Lords resurrection from the dead upon which day all men condemned by the curse of the law to eternall death for the sin of Adam are raised and reconciled to the love and favour of God for that sinne All the Nations of the world are obliged to the joyfull worship of that blessed day By the truth of the Lords ressurection from the dead upon the Lords day all men condemned by the curse of the law to eternall death for the sinne of Adam are raised and reconciled to the love and favour of God for that sinne All the Nations of the world therefore are obliged to the joyfull worship of the Lords blessed day 16. That day which the Lord rested from the fulfilling of the law that day was blessed sanctified and commanded by the power of the Lords merit of eternall life due by the law to the Lords fulfilling of the law The Lord rested his owne day from the fulfilling of the law The Lords day therefore was blessed sanctified and commanded by the power of the Lords merit of eternall life due by the law to the Lords fulfilling of the law 17. By the Evangelicall sound of the word of which day all Jewes and Gentiles were called and united in one Church of God by the new covenant All the Nations of the world are obliged to the joyfull jubilizing and worship of that blessed day By the Evangelicall sound of the word of the Lords day all Jewes and Gentiles were called and united in one Church of God by the new covenant All the Nations of the world therefore are obliged to the joyfull jubilizing and worship of the Lords blessed day 18. Without the knowledge of which day no man can know that he is a sinner against the Evangelicall law of faith or that he standeth in need of the Lords merit to save him from the curse of the Evangelicall law That day commands all men to the Evangelicall worship of that day and in that day to the obedience of the whole Evangelicall law Without the knowledge of the Lords day no man can know that he is a sinner against the Evangelicall law or that he stands in need of the Lords merit to save him from the curse of the Evangelicall law of faith The Lords day therefore commands all men to the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day 19. By the only literall light of the sound of the word of which day all the Nations of the world are literally led to the blessing of the Lords merit by his Evangelicall rest By the power of that word all the nations of the world are commanded to the Evangelicall worship of that day By the only literall light of the sound of the word of the Lords day all the nations of the world are literally led to the blessing of the Lords merit by his Evangelicall rest By the power therefore of the word of the Lords day all the nations of the world are commanded to the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day 20. By the only command of which day necessarily implying the command of the whole Evangelicall law the heart of the naturall man is moved to give morall obedience to the command of the Evangelicall law that day commands all men to the Evangelicall worship of that day and in that day the obedience of man to the whole Evangelicall law By the only command of the Lords day nenecessarily implying the command of the whole Evangelicall law the heart of the naturall man is moved to give morall obedience to the command of the evangelicall law The Lords day therefore commands all men to the evangelicall worship of the Lords day and in the Lords day the obedience of man to the command of the whole evangelicall law 21. With the standing or falling of which day the blessing of the Lords merit and the whole evangelicall law of faith doth necessarily stand or fall That is the decreed seventh day of the evangelicall law by the Lords immediate word of his new covenant obliging and cōmanding all the nations of the world to the evangelicall worship of that day With the standing or falling of the Lords day the Lords merit and the whole evangelicall law doth necessarily stand or fall The Lords day therefore is the decreed seventh day of the evanglicall law by the Lords immediate word of his new covenant obliging and commanding all the nations of the world to his evangelicall worship of the Lords day 22. Whom the Lord Jesus Christ by his immediate word did command to preach and teach the Evangelicall blessing of his merit whereby the Lords day is blessed and sanctified them the Lord Jesus Christ by his immediate word did command the Evangelicall worship of the day to which the blessing of his merit is only due The Lord Jesus Christ by his immediate Word did command the Apostles to preach and teach to all the nations of the world the Evangelicall blessing of his merit whereby the Lords day is blessed and sanctified The Lord Jesus Christ therefore by his immediate word did command the Apostles to teach and preach the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day to which the evangelicall blessing of his merit is only due And now to conclude lest I weary my Reader 23. That day of dayes that decreed day sealed by the precious blood of the immaculate Lambe which no power time or day can determine but the second coming of the eternall day when the mysticall members of Christ Jesus shall rest in their head crowned with an incorruptible crown of glory in the heauen of heavens eternally that is the true evangelicall seventh day of the law of faith by the new
3.15 I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed it shall break thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel This censure hath likewise a literall and mysticall sense and doth divide it self into three branches The first is I will put enmity between thee and the woman and between thy seed and her seed The second is It shall break thy head The third is Thou shalt bruise his heel In the three branches of this censure as the censure doth concern the woman and her seed doth consist the foundation of all Christian faith from the first promise of the blessed seed made to Adam For in the second branch of this censure the second covenant is made by God with man in the promise of the blessed seed The Declaration therefore of this censure as it doth concern the Serpent and the woman shall be discharged in these two points First the literall and mysticall sense of the three branches of the censure shall be declared Secondly the second covenant in the promise of the blessed seed shall be set down After the declaration of which two points the censure of God upon the two last parties delinquents shall be followed according to the order set down by Moses First therefore of the literall sense of the thee branches of the censure and next of the mystall sense By the literall sense of the first branch of the censure a naturall enmity and hatred is put between the Serpent the woman who were formerly so loving and conversant one with another which enmity and hatred is put likewise between the seed of both By reason of this enmity and hatred mortall bloody irreconcileable wars are stirred up between the parties This was a miserable censure inflicted upon the Serpent not only to be cast down by the curse from the former estate to craul so despicably and loathsomely upon the belly and to eat the dust of the earth but likewise to be so necessitate by the curse to such a base condition as neither man or woman can abide the Serpent who were formerly so loving and familiar one with another which hatred according to the eternall Decree of God must continue till the worlds end This hatred is not only a simple privation of the former love between this sensitive creature and man but it is a positive enmity accompanied with such a necessitate fear of man in the Serpent as if the fire stand in the way while man doth pursue the Serpent the Serpent to flie the presence of man will craul thorow the fire it self Though this enmity be inflicted upon the Serpent and its seed as a curse yet it is no wayes inflicted as a curse upon the woman or upon her seed but doth naturally proceed from both to the Serpent for the Serpents betraying of man to fall under the eternall curse of the Law for whose redemption the sacred blood of Christ Jesus as he is man was so truly and necessarily shed though it be no small cut to man while man at whose frown the most cruell Lion did most submissively stoop must now be afraid of the sting of such a base crauling creature as the Serpent The second branch of the censuâ—e is It shall break thine head whereby the word it is to be understood man the seed of the woman as shall appear by the mysticall sense of the censure By the eternall Decree of God therefore the seed of the woman must break the head of the Serpent which is the most miserable curse of all to the Serpent For the head implying the brain which is the originall of the sensitive powers of the sensitive creature being broke and bruised as it were in pieces both the sensitive and vegetative life of the Serpent is extinguished in the originall and consequently the venemous power of the sting of the Serpent bruised and broken And by whom By man the seed of the woman and why because thou hast done this The victory therefore of this irreconcileable wars is by the eternall Decree of God decreed to man the seed of the woman But though the victory of this bloody irreconcileable wars be decreed to the seed of the woman yet the conquest is not without some fear and danger to wit Thou shalt bruise his heel that is the heel of man the seed of the woman By the heel the lowest part of man as he is sensitive is to be understood for neither the Serpent or Satan or any created power must enter the soul of man to sting man as he is a spirituall man The Serpent therefore by its sting must bruise the naturall man as he is sensitive and not as the man is intellectuall and a spirituall man By this power given to the Serpent to bruise the heel of man Numb 21.8 Eccl. 10 11. the Serpent is said to bite or sting man the seed of the woman And though by the sting of the Serpent being venemous the wound by the inflamation of the sensitive powers without speedy remedy doth many times prove mortall yet such mortality by naturall death is an advantage to the faithfull while thereby all the afflictions of this life by the old great Serpents sting are determined And though the Serpent many times having mortally stung man by subtilty nimblenesse doth scape the deadly wound yet die the Serpent must if not by man naturally descended of Adam yet by man spiritually begot of the seed of the woman by whose sacred blood the dead by the Serpents sting was redeemed and by whose câ—mmand the blood of man killed must be revenged For by whom mans blood is shed the blood of the shedder whether by man or any sensitive creature must be shed according to the Law of God And so much for the literall sense of the three branches of the censure inflicted upon the sensitive Serpent and its seed as the censure doth concern the woman and her seed Next of the mysticall sense of the three branches of the censure CHAP. XX. The mysticall sense of the first branch of the censure BY the mysticall sense of the first branch of this censure the enmity put between the sensitive Serpent and the woman is mystically put between the old murdering Serpent and the Church of God which is the body of our Lord Jesus Christ the head of the Church mystically signified by the woman For this mysticall woman is the blessed Virgine By the seed of the Serpent is mystically signified those whom Satan by the sowing of his seed of enmity even in a manner from the cradle doth beget to be haters of the truth of the word and persecutors of the Professors of the Word are called the children and seed of Satan By this mysticall woman therefore to wit the blessed Virgine the redeemed militant Church of God upon earth is mystically to be understood By the seed of the woman first Christ Jesus the Word secondly the children begot of the Word brought forth by the