Selected quad for the lemma: rest_n
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A26814
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The morality of the seventh-day-Sabbath disproved in answer to C.T. Tillam's book, entituled, A present from prison, dedicated to L.C. Hobson ... / written by the learned J.B., Master of arts, at the request of the said L.C. Hobson.
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J. B.
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1683
(1683)
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Wing B113; ESTC R32844
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17,167
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24
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THE MORALITY OF THE Seventh-day-Sabbath Disproved IN ANSWER To C. T. Tillam's Book Entituled A Present from Prison Dedicated to L. C. Hobson WHEREIN The most Material Points in another Book Entituled A Discourse of the Sabbath lately Published by Henry Sowrsby and Mehetabel Smith are succinctly discuss'd Written by the Learned J. B. Master of Arts at the Request of the said L. C. Hobson Col. 2.16 17. Let no man therefore judge you in Meat or in Drink or in Respect of an Holy-day or of the New Moon or of the Sabbaths which are a shadow of things to come but the Body is of Christ LONDON Printed by Francis Clark for L. Curtis 1683. The Morality of the Seventh-day-Sabbath Disproved c. Page 1. THE word Moral according to the Common usage is all one as to say Natural and is opposed to that which is Ceremonial or Positive or of meer Institution This being so as you cannot be ignorant of I wonder you should talk of removing the Veil of Obscurity lying upon the word Moral unless it were that wanting a solid Answer you had a Mind to Quibble upon words for you know that Aristotle and other Philosophers have written Books concerning Moral Duties by which I believe you your self will confess can be understood no other than those Duties that Natural Reason exacteth of all Men as they are Men. Page 2. In that you here barely say that the main thing in Question is undeniable namely That the Seventh day Sabbath is as Naturally Holy as the six days are Naturally Common This to me seemeth plainly to Argue that you had nothing material to alledge to prove your Assertion Otherways you know well enough that I and almost all other Christians whatsoever deny it Yea I for my part had brought many as I believe convincing Reasons to shew that I have good ground for the denyal thereof Neither doth it follow that because God in the production of Natural things did not act unnaturally neither was the Institution of the Seventh-day-Sabbath contrary to his Natural intention therefore the Law of Nature doth require of all Men to observe the Sabbath For to omit your own affirmation that God instituted the Sabbath which plainly sheweth it not to be Natural and so Moral but Positive I might by the same Reason Argue that for as much as God did not act unnaturally in producing the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil neither was it contrary to his Natural inclination to forbid the eating of the same therefore it was a Moral and Natural Duty to abstain from it which I think you your self will deny If you do not certain I am that as you will scarce find any man that will Second you so will it be altogether impossible for you to shew that Natural Reason setting aside the Commandments of God did dictate unto Adam that he ought to forbear the eating of that Tree above all the other Trees of the Garden Or why if it be a Natural and Moral Duty the same Tree is not set forth to us by God that we may shew our Obedience by abstaining from it These Expressions of yours that God did Celebrate and Observe the Seventh day Sabbath are unsound there being no such thing affirmed of God in the Scripture but only of Men see Levit. 23.32 From Even to Even shall you Celebrate your Sabbath And Exod. 31.16 The Children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath to observe the Sabbath throughout their Generations For to Celebrate and Observe such or such a time argueth that it hath been Commanded by some other Moreover when God is said to have Sanctified or Hallowed the Sabbath it was not that he himself but that Men should observe and keep it holy as appeareth by the Fourth Commandment Page 3. Your Comparison between a Wife in Relation to her Husband and the Sabbath in Relation to a Christian doth not hold For Marriage though in the beginning instituted of God is yet not of institution but of Nature the difference of Sects Naturally requiring it without such an Institution And this as I am told is acknowledged by Aristotle the best Naturallist that ever was who saith Eth. 8. Chap. 12. That there is naturally Friendship betwixt Man and Woman and that Man was Naturally made rather for Marriage than for Civil Society But no such thing as this can I believe be alledged out of Aristole concerning the Observation of the Sabbath Page 4. That other Similitude of yours between the Sun and the Sabbath being wholly of your own making without any hint of the Scripture is altogether frivolous and proveth nothing And whereas you Advise me to cease Polluting of the Sabbath in as much as I have say you acknowledged the Seventh-day-Sabbath to be Holy by Divine Institution I wonder you should so boldly impose on me when you know sufficiently even by this very writing of mine which you endeavour to answer that I deny the Seventh-day-Sabbath now to be Holy believing it as being a shaddow to be done away by Christ Neither doth that Passage Heb. 4.9 intimate the contrary For when that Divine Author saith there remaineth therefore a rest so I am told the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is rightly rendred as will appear by two passages of the Septuagint Exod. 16.30 Lev. 23.32 where the word is so used to the People of God he meaneth not the rest of the seventh-day-Seventh-day-Sabbath but the rest of the Kingdom of Heaven or as the Author stileth it Verse the 10. the rest of God into which whosoever is entred he also hath ceased from his own works as God did from his But to cease from our own works as God did from his is to cease from them as never to return again to them not to cease for one day and then to Labour again as before Again this rest is inferred from those words verse 6. and so are meant of such a rest into which the Israelites did not enter because of Unbelief But Moses testifieth that they kept the Rest of the seventh-day-Seventh-day-Sabbath Exod. 16.30 Moreover this is a Rest into which we should labour to enter but there needeth no labouring to rest on the seventh-day-Seventh-day-Sabbath Finally when it is here said there remaineth a Rest this plainly implyed that the Rest here spoken of is something that is reserved for the People of God and so not enjoyed at present and therefore not the Rest of the seventh-day-Seventh-day-Sabbath Thus much appeareth from the same word thus used in the 6th Verse foregoing Page 6. Your saying That the Seventh day is every way Moral both by Natural Production and by Primitive Institution sheweth plainly that you are mistaken in the true Notion of Moral and my use of the same For I as appeareth by my words which you cite page 1. distinguish that which is Moral from that which is of Institution esteeming that to be Moral which the light of Nature dictateth that it ought to be or at least may laudably be
adoption of Children through Jesus Christ unto himself according to the good pleasure of his will Neither will it be possible to prove that by the light of Nature setting aside the Commandment of God we are directed to believe in Christ and expect Salvation from him So that I retort the Adversaires similitude upon him and conclude firmly from thence that as the Mystery of Christ is not Moral but dependeth on the good Pleasure of God so neither is the observation of the Sabbath which he compareth therewith Pag. 25. In this Page the Adversary speaketh out and sheweth that though he often mentions the Name of Christ and Christians yet his design is by this Doctrine of the Seventh-day-Sabbath to bring us from Christ unto Moses for he expresly saith I know no newer Covenant than the Covenant of Life and Peace which was made with Levi Mal. 2.5 For is not Gods Covenant with Christ Jesus newer than his Covenant with Levi Or is not his Covenant with Levi that which he made by the hand of Moses the Levite when Israel came out of Egypt Why is Christ called the Mediator of a better Covenant and thereby opposed to the Levitical Priests Heb. 11.21 22. If there be no newer Covenant of Life and Peace than that which of Old was made with Levi Behold therefore O ye Brethren that love the Lord Jesus and his Gospel how the Adversary here doth cast off his Vizard acknowledging no new Covenant to be made with Christ but that the old Covenant with Levi is still in force For if this be so why do we not presently renounce the Gospel and take upon us the Observance of the Law which was received under the Levitical Priesthood Why do we not trun Jews For you see this is the Mark at which the Adversary notwithstanding his specious Pretences to the contrary doth indeed aim Pag. 27. That none before Moses time was under Reproof either from their own Conscience or from God that we Read of for breaking the Sabbath is an evident Proof that the Sabbath is not Moral else why should they not have been Reproved for the breach of that as well as of other Duties which are confessedly Moral Neither is it to the matter to say as you do that the Sabbath was in force before Moses unless you prove it to be therefore in force because the Law of Nature did suggest it unto Men which you have not yet nor ever shall be able to evince If you thereupon demand how it could be that God should have Commanded it from the beginning and yet the Patriarchs not be blamed for neglecting it I Answer because it was grown out of knowledge as that passage Neh. 9.14 sheweth where it is said Thou madest known unto them thy Holy Sabbath But none can be justly reproved for not observing a Ceremonial and Positive Law when it is once grown out of knowledge and forgotten and this is the Reason why the word Remember is prefixed to this and to no other of the Ten Commandments implying that the Sabbath being of Institution and no part of the Law of Nature as the other Nine Commandments are might in after Ages as well as it had formerly be utterly forgotten Page 34. Though the word Sabbath be not mentioned Exod. 16.4 5. yet is the thing it self there plainly intimated when God saith On the sixth day they shall prepare what they bring in and it shall be twice as much as they gathered daily For why should that which they brought in on the sixth day be prepared and be double to what they gathered daily but because they might not prepare or gather any Manna on the Seventh day but ought to keep it for a Sabbath of Rest So that it is truly affirmed by Moses ver 23. that the Lord had said to morrow is the Rest of the Holy Sabbath in that he had before Commanded them to gather on the sixth day twice as much as they did upon any other day and also to prepare it Wherefore it is undeniable that God Commanded the Sabbath in the fourth and fifth Verse of the sixteeth Chapter of Exodus Pag. 40. That Text Col. 2.16 17. is so directly opposite to the Adversaries Opinion and shineth with so full a Light that it is no marvel that he should strive might and main to raise up a whole Cloud of Dust to obscure it but all in vain seeing he may sooner darken the Sun it self For first when the Apostle here saith Let no man judge you in meat or drink doth he not thereby signifie that the difference of meats and drinks formerly enjoyned by God doth now cease Secondly when he addeth or in respect so I am told ought the words to be rendred as will appear by comparing 2 Cor. 3.10 and Chap. 9.3 where the same expression is so used of an Holy-day or Feast or New Moon or Sabbath Doth not this in like manner shew that neither the Feasts or New Moons formerly Commanded to the People of God do more bind Christians than the difference of meats and drinks aforesaid But if they be not obliged to observe them they are by the same Reason as little bound to keep the Sabbath which is here put in the same Rank with Feasts and New Moons Neither can it be denyed that by the Sabbath is here meant the Seventh-day-Sabbath For there is no place in all the New Testament where the word Sabbath in Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth signifie any other than the Seventh-day-Sabbath Yea being simply put so that it is not said such or such a time shall be to you a Sabbath or to the Land it doth always in the Old Testament denote the Seventh-day-Sabbath Again the Sabbath is here distinguished from Feasts and New Moons and therefore can be understood of no other than the Seventh-day-Sabbath For though as you Object the word Feasts when put by it self may comprehend the Seventh-day-Sabbath as perhaps it doth Lev. 23.23 yet when it is joyned with Sabbaths it cannot do so for then the same thing would be twice expressed and this is manifest from that Text Lev. 23.37 38. These are the Feasts of the Lord which you shall Proclaim to be Holy Convocations besides the Sabbaths of the Lord. As for other Sabbaths besides the Seventh-day-Sabbath they are comprehended under the word Feasts So that in the foresaid passage Col. 2.16 by Sabbath joyned with Feasts and New Moons can no other Sabbath be possibly meant but the Seventh-day-Sabbath as those instances which in my former Discourse I alledged out of the Old Testament do clearly prove neither shall so much as one instance be alledged out of the New to the contrary And whereas you further Object though as little to the purpose as before that we shall find one Sabbath so far from being a Feast that it is the day of severe Affliction Have I not here just cause again to tax you for Quibbling