of it are said to be borne after the Spirit So the seed of the Covenant of the Law is rightly called seed as that which leaveth men that are begotten of it more carnall then they were before For it either puffeth them up to a carnall confidence of their owne strength and righteousnesse or else sinketh them into an horrible pit of diffidence and desperation And therefore they that are begotten of it are rightly and fitly said to be borne after the flesh And that is the very true meaning of the Apostles words Gal 4.29 As it was then so is it now He that was borne after the flesh persecuted him that was borne after the Spirit Where by such as are borne after the flesh the Apostle doth not mean as you understand him such as are born by an ordinary course of nature in a way of a naturall generation but such as are bred and begotten of the carnall seed of the Covenant of the law which as it begot in Ishmael a carnall confidence of his own strength or else he would never have sleighted and mocked the promised seed so it begot in Cain and Saul and Judas an utter despaire of grace and salvation Thus then you see I hope at the length a true and just answer unto your first argument against the Baptisme of Infants taken from the supposed want of command or example of the baptizing of Infants in all the New Testament By that which you have heard it appeareth to the contrary that the Baptisme of Infants hath not wanted a commandement from Christ in the institution of Baptisme Mat. 28. nor a commandement from the Apostle joyned with an example in the first solemne administration of Baptisme Acts 2. nor a commandement and example from the Lord God in the institution of a proportionall seale of the same Covenant in the dayes of Abraham Gen. 17. which though you seem to undervalue because it is fetched out of the Old Testament yet be not you deceived by the equivocation of the name For the Old and New Testament is sometimes put for the Covenants of the Law and of grace as Gal. 4.24 25. sometimes for the Books of the Old and New Testament as 2 Cor. 3.14 Now true it is that the institution of the Covenant of grace and of the seale of the Covenant of grace Gen. 17. is found indeed in the bookes of the Old Testament but the substance of the New Testament and the circumstances of that Ordinance which are changed in the books of the New Testament they are not changed by way of abrogation or diminution but by way of accomplishment and enlargement The Covenant is inlarged from the stock of Abraham to all Nations the seal of the Covenant Circumcision is translated to another more easie and acceptable the time is inlarged in respect of the day the Minister is inlarged in respect of his publike place the subject is inlarged in respect of the sex and surely not diminished nor straitned in respect of the age It is therefore a needlesse pretence to plead That surely the New Testament and the Order Government and Administration thereof are no way inferiour to the old Testament where all things are directed by expresse rule For a great part of the New Testament or Covenant is expresly delivered in the bookes of the Old Testament Paul professeth publickly he taught nothing but what Moses and the Prophets did say should come Acts 26.22 And the greatest part of the bookes of the Old Testament hold forth the Doctrine Worship Order and Government of the New Testament to such who have not a vaile laid over their hearts in the reading of the Old Testament 2 Cor. 3.14 Let us therefore proceed to your other arguments against the baptism of Infants and consider if there bee any greater weight on strength in them CHAP. V. Silvester I Have met with this as a second argument against the Baptisme of Infants That in the Baptisme of infants there is an high contempt and injury offered to Christ as hee is the husband of the Church his holy Spouse to force upon him a naturall wife himselfe being spirituall and desireth the like associate whereas such a Church is founded upon the natural by th namely Infants because commonly to one that is born of the spirit there is twenty born of the flesh Silvanus Christ did not take it as such an high contempt or injury offered to him by Abraham Isaac and Jacob and the whole house of Israel that the infants of his people and of the Proselytes that joyned to them were received into Covenant with him and admitted to the seale thereof when as yet himselfe was as spirituall then as now he is You doe herein apparently charge Christ himself with folly and with indignity offered to himselfe that he should so much forget himselfe that he being spirituall should take so many thousand Infants into the Covenant with him who for the most part are naturall and as you say for one that is born of the Spirit there were twenty born of the flesh But againe let me tell you that though Christ in taking a company to be a Church unto himselfe doth enter into marriage Covenant with them both in the Old Testament Jer. 31.32 and in the New 2 Cor. 11.2 yet not into a marriage Covenant with each member at first Christ entred into a marriage Covenant with the Congregation of Israel in the wildernesse Ezek. 16.8 yet the children of this Congregation he calleth them not his Spouses but his children v. 20 21. Furthermore you shall doe well to observe what Spirit breaths in such a speech when you say That such a Church as receiveth infants of beleeving parents into the fellowship of the Covenant and seale thereof that such a Church is founded upon the naturall birth For the Lord himselfe speaketh of such a Church of Israel as founded upon his Covenant Ezek. 16.8 And the Apostle saith We are built upon the same foundation of the Prophets and Apostles Jesus Christ himselfe being the chiefe corner stone Ephâ— 2.19 20 21. See what a vast difference there is betweene the Spirit of your language and the language of the Spirit of Christ CHAP. VI. 3. I Finde this for a third Argument Silvester against the Baptisme of Infants That this practise overthroweth and destroyeth the body of Christ the holy Temple of God For in time it will come to consist of naturall and so a Nation and so a Nationall Generation and carnall members Amongst whom if any Godly bee they will bee brought into bondage and become subjects of scorn and contempt and the power of Government rest in the hands of the wicked This Argument â—utteth a feare where no fear is Silvanus or at least a causelesse feare For suppose all the Children of the Church bee baptized it is an unwonted and unexpected enlargement in thâ—sâ— dayes for one Congregation to grow so populous as to become a Nation
hold the Covenant on Mount Sinai to have been a Covenant of grace but onely vailed under types and shadowes as doe Calvin Bucer Bucan c. they would answer that circumcision did bind to the keeping of the whole Law not as it was given either to Abraham or to Moses but as it was urged by the false Apostles who expected justification from the observation of it To such indeed it is truly alledged that if they looke for justification by the observation of circumcision they are then bound to observe the whole Law For it is not the observation of one commandement of the Law that can justifie but the observation of the whole Law for hee that breaketh any one commandement of the Law is guilty of all James 2.10 Whence it is that Paul putteth the observation of circumcision to wit in the sense of the false Apostles as all one with justification by the works of the Law Gal. 5.3 4. And thereby proveth that if the Galatians be circumcised Christ should profit them nothing ver 2. they were fallen from grace ver 4. And yet Timothy who received circumcision not in the sense of the false Apostles as necessary to justification but for other respect to avoid offence hee did not thereby fall from Christ or lose his profit in Christ Jesus But to put it out of doubt that circumcision given to Abraham was a signe and seale not of the Covenant of works but of grace the Apostles words are evident Rom. 4.11 Abraham saith he received the signe of Circumcision a seale of the righteousnesse of faith Now righteousnesse of faith is not found in the Covenant of works but in the Covenant of grace onely The Covenant of works holdeth forth no righteousnesse but by the works of the Law Silvester I would not deny that the Covenant made with Abraham was a Covenant of grace to him and to his faithfull seed and consequently Circumcision was a signe and seale of the same Covenant of grace to them but to the carnall seed such as Ismael and Esau it was not a Covenant of grace to them for then as they fell away from that Covenant so they had fallen away from a state of grace which would too much countenance and cherish the Arminian and Popish error of Apostasie from grace Neither could circumcision be to them a signe or seale of the Covenant of grace nor of the righteousnesse of faith given in that Covenant for neither had they faith nor righteousnesse by faith before their circumcision as Abraham had nor after their circumcision as the elect seed had And how could then God set his seale to a falshood Silvanus What if that were granted you which you say which yet many good Divines will not admit that the Covenant of God with Abraham was a Covenant of grace onely to him and to his faithfull seed and to them Circumcision was a seale of the same Covenant but to the carnal seed the Covenant was a Covenant of works and circumcision a seale of the Covenant of works Though all this were granted yet still it remaineth good that all the seed of Abraham spirituall and carnall were in Covenant with God one Covenant or other either of works or grace and were all partakers of the seale of the Covenant to wit circumcision though in a different respect But then it will unavoydably follow that if the Covenant given to Abraham and his seed be given to beleevers and our seed then as all the seed of Abraham whether carnall or spirituall were in Covenant with God and so circumcised so all the seed of believers are in Covenant with God and should now be baptized If you say then Baptisme shall be a seale of the Covenant of works to the carnall seed of believers and that were an absurdity now in the dayes of the new Testament Answ No greater absurdity then to say that circumcision was a seale of the Covenant of works to the carnall seed of Abraham For Paul speaking of the two Covenants under which the twofold seed of Abraham lay hee saith As it was then so is it now As it was then in the old Testament so it is now in the New Gal. 4.29 Read from vers 24. to the end of that chapter As it was then so is it now not onely in this respect that he that was borne after the flesh persecuted him that was borne after the spirit But in this also that as then some of the seed of Abraham were born of Hagar that is born of the Covenant of works and born after the flesh and some were born of Sarah the free-woman that is born of the Covenant of grace and born after the Spirit so is it now in the days of the new Testament But to give you a further answer and safer and more generally accepted Let me shew you how the carnall seed of Abraham might then and may now partake after a sort in the Covenant of grace and in the seale of the Covenant of grace and yet fall away from grace and neverthelesse their falling from grace be no countenance to the Arminian error of apostasie from grace There is a double state of grace one adherent which some not unfitly call federall grace sanctifying to the purifying of the flesh Heb. 9.13 another inherent sanctifying of the inner man And of this latter there be two sorts one wherin persons in Covenant are sanctified by common graces which make them serviceable and usefull in their callings as Saul Jehu Judas and Demas and such like hypocrites Another whereby persons in Covenant are sanctified unto union and communion with Christ and his members in a way of regeneration and salvation In respect of adherent or federall grace all the children of a believing parent are holy and so in an estate of grace In respect of inherent common graces Saul Jehu and Judas and Demas were sanctified of God to their severall callings for the service of his people as Apostates may be Heb. 10.29 Now there is no doubt but men may fall away from adherent federall grace as also from inherent common graces and yet without any prejudice to the perseverance of sincere believers and without any countenance to the Arminian error of Apostasie from grace to wit from such grace as accompanyeth salvation And as for the circumcision of Ismael and such as he it was a sign and seale of the righteousnesse of faith not of that which hee had received but of that which God offered to apply to him in the use of the meanes of grace in Abrahams family which meanes as Abraham having circumcised him and so having set Godâ— seale and property upon him was bound to apply to him Gen. 18.19 to prepare him for grace So Ismael being circumcised was bound as he grew up to understanding to yeeld up himself in professed subjection both to the Lord and his father in receiving and following the meanes of grace applyed to him for God having by
therefore hee admits not of any dead plants to be set in his spirituall vineyard nor dead members to bee joyned in his mysticall body but onely such as are capable by faith to comply with the head Neither tooke he for himself a compound body consisting both of living and dead members which all are that have not a living principle of grace and faith in him which unbelievers have not no nor all the Infants of believers nor any at all untill they are born again of the Spirit Joh. 3.5 6. The Church of God which is the mysticall body of Christ is not a mixt company but onely one substantiall and royall substance suitable to her head and matter by which she was produced being the immortall seed of the Word And therefore one holy spirituall uniforme compacted body both for nature and forme Cant. 6.9 Mal. 2.15 Ephes 2.14 to 22. Job 4.23 All which considered proves the body of Christ or Church of God under the New Testament not to consist of unbelievers nor of Infants neither in whole nor in part and so the branches aforesaid not to be understood of unbelievers or infants but of believers onely That which you say Silvanus that the Jewes were the people of God in a twofold consideration First as a nationall people descended from the loynes of Abraham by naturall generation according to the flesh Secondly some of them owned in a more speciall manner with reference to his gracious Covenant made with Abraham and established with Isaac c. This is not rightly spoken according to the tenor of Scripture language For none of the Jews much lesse the whole Nation was the people of God as they descended from the loynes of Abraham by Naturall generation according to the flesh but onely with reference to his gracious Covenant made with Abraham and with his seed after him If you set aside the consideration of the Covenant the seed of the most holy of Gods Saints are children of wrath and not a people of God Neither let this seem to you of dangerous consequence that if God accounted the whole Nation of the Jewes to bee his people with reference to his gracious Covenant then all the whole Nation must have been in a true and saving estate of grace and so all of them either saved or fallen from a state of grace For this consequence will not follow as hath been shewed above But it is true that you say that God did in a speciall manner owne Isaac and so all the elect seed with whom he established his Covenant not so with Ismael And yet it may not be denyed that God did establish his Covenant to all the seed of Isaac by Jacob and that not onely to the elect seed but to the whole Nation till the ten Tribes rejected not onely the house of David and the Worship of God in the Temple where God had put his name but also the Ministery of the Prophets whom God sent to reclaime them as afterwards the two Tribes of Judah and Benjamin commonly called the Jewes rejected Davids Lord the Lord Jesus and his righteousnesse and the Ministry of the Apostles But before that rejection evident it is that in the wildernesse God did by his gracious Covenant even establish the whole Nationall posterity of Jacob to be a people to himselfe Deut. 29.10 11 12 13. And the Word used in the originall for the establishing of the whole Nation to become Gods people ver 13. is the very same which God used when he promised to establish his Covenant with Isaac Gen. 17.19 And therefore it is not true which you say That in the naturall children of Abraham God onely respected his chosen in Christ with whom he confirmed his Covenant with Isaac in reference to Christ For the words of the Text doe plainly expresse that God by Covenant did confirme or establish the whole house of Iacob to be a people to himselfe according to the Covenant which he had sworn to Abraham Isaac and Iacob Deut. 29.13 whence it was that as the Apostle saith to the Israelites one and other pertained the adoption and the glory and the Covenants and the law and the service of God and the promises c. Rom. 9.4 where he speaketh of such Israelites as for whom he had great heavinesse and continuall sorrow in his heart in respect of their unbelief vers 2. Neverthelesse this I willingly grant you that God had a speciall respect to the elect and faithfull seed as to whom hee reserved the effectuall application of the spirituall and sure mercies of the Covenant though the externall dispensation of the Covenant and of the seales of the Covenant and of all the Ordinances of Gods worship was generally granted to all the seed whether elect or non-elect faithfull or hypocrites But to passe by your generall discourse of the state of the people of the Jews in the Old Testament let us attend to that which commeth nearer to the argument in hand to wit to the generall scope of the Apostles discourse in the 11. Chapter of the Epistle to the Romans which you say is concerning the breaking off of the Jewes and the occasion thereof as also their calling by the Gospel wherein you tell me the Apostle ever defends the faithfull seed of the Jews against the generall rejection of that Nation And it is true he doth so in the former part of the chapter from ver 1. to 10. but that is not his generall scope throughout the whole Chapter For his general scope is to declare three things touching the rejection of the Jews First that it is not universall ver 1. to 10. Secondly that it is not unprofitable ver 11. Thirdly that it is not irrecoverable which he prophecyeth proveth and amplifyeth v. 12. to the end of the Chapter For the 1. That their rejection was not universall he proveth first from his owne example who was an Israelite ver 1. 2. From Gods fore knowledge which is immutable ver 2. 3. From the like reservation which God made of a remnant in the dayes of Elijah ver 3 4 5 6. And this reserving of a remnant he amplifieth by the cause the election of grace ver 5 6. And by the contrary the rejection of the rest which he proveth by the testimony of Isay 7.8 also of David ver 9 10. And thus farre he defendeth the faithfull seed of the Jewes against the generall rejection of that Nation 2. He proveth that their rejection is not unprofitable by giving an instance in an unspeakable blessing which thereby redounded unto the Gentiles to wit the salvation of the Gentiles ver 11. 3. That their rejection is not irrecoverable or finall but on the contrary that their restoring and conversion is to be expected He proveth first from the great benefit which hee prophecyeth shall thereby redound to the Gentile-churches which will be our riches and fulnesse and as it were our life from the dead And that he proveth by an
alive in Christ but partaketh of the sap and life of Christ and bringeth forth such fruit be they never so young and small whereby the same may bee discerned So it is here by these spirituall branches they cannot properly bee called branches in the Apostles sense but as they partake of the life and Grace of Christ Answer It is true There is no branch alive in Christ but partakes of the Sap and Life of Christ But it is not true that every such living branch in Christ bee it never so young and small bringeth forth such fruits whereby the same may be discerned For what discernible fruit of the life of Christ did Jeremy shew forth when he was sanctified from his mothers wombe Jer. 1.5 Yea Christ himselfe who was full of the spirit of life from his Mothers wombe what discernible fruits thereof did hee bring forth Doth the Gospell and story of his life expresse any or can your selfe imagine any Neither is it true that you say that the spirituall branches cannot properly be called branches in the Apostles sense but as they partake of the life and grace of Christ For the Apostle doth not call them spirituall Branches nor are they all such unlesse by spirituall you mean Metaphoricall But he expresly calleth them naturall branches and such as God did not spare but cut them off v. 21. And therefore they did not all of them partake of the grace and life of Christ but some of them were indeed dead and fruitlesse But say you nature it selfe teacheth no man will admit of dead plants to be set in his vineyard or Graffed into a stocke c. And so it is with Christ who cometh not short of Nature And th refore he admits not of any dead plants to be set in his Vineyard nor dead members to joyned in his mysticall Body Neither took he to himself a compounded body consisting of living and dead members And all unbeleivers be dead and all the infants of beleevers till they be borne again of the Spirit Iohn 3.5.6 Neither is the Church of God which is the mysticall body of Christ a mixt company but suitable to her head to the matter of which he was produced the immortall seed of the word one holy spirituall body Cant. 6.9 Mal. 2.15.22 Ephes 2.14 to Ioh. 4.23 All which proveth the Church of God under the New Testament not to consist of unbeleevers neither in whole nor in part Answer Nature it self sheweth that in a Vine many dead branches are found and many that have some kinde of life and yet are not fruitfull And therefore the husbandman in time cutteth them off and so is it in the spirituall Vine and therefore such dead and fruitlesse branches the Father who is the Husbandman cutteth them off Ioh. 15.1 2. though for a time he may spare them as he did the Barren Figge-tree foure yeares Luke 13. 7 8 9. And though no man will admit of dead plants to be seâ— in his Vineyard or graffed into a stock yet many plants set and graffed may prove dead Men indeed would not willingly admit dead plants to be set or graffed because they know not what to do with them when they are dead But if dead plants being set or graffed would grow either to be fruitfull and if not fruitfull yet to be good fire-wood it would be no bad husbndry to set or graff dead plants And so is it here God thinks it no bad husbandry in him to admit dead plants to bee set and grow in his Vineyard and if they grow fruitfull well if not to tolerate them there till they grow up to fulfill their iniquity as hee did the Iews Mat. 23.32 because then he knows how to illustrate the glory of his justice in casting them into the fire of Hell John 15.6 Mat. 3.10 It is true which you say Christ cometh not short of Nature but in this he exceedeth Nature Nature cannot make a dead plant set in a Vineyard or graffed in a stock to grow But Christ can make a dead plant set in his Church to grow living and fruitful For else how came John Baptists Ministry to turn the hearts of so many Publicans souldiers and other people to bring forth fruits meete for repentance Luke 3.10 to 14. But otherwise if Christ make not dead plants set in his Church to grow living and fruitfull he can make them grow up to yeeld more fewell to the fire of his wrath and to grow ripe for greater damnation Mat. 23 14. It is utterly therefore untrue which you say that Christ admits not of any dead plants to be set in his Vineyard or that he taketh not to himself a compounded body of living and dead members or that the Church of God is not a mixt company c. For who called Iudas to the Apostleship did not the Lord Jesus himselfe Did not hee plant him in his Vineyard And doth hee not hyre and send forth many labourers into his Vineyard who yet afterwards many of them prove murmurers Mat. 20.1 to 16. The Church of Christ is often in the Gospell called the Kingdome of Heaven and in Mat. 25.1 The Kingdome of heaven is given for the stile of such Churches as are most pure such as they will bee after the destruction of Antichrist and the calling of the Jews prophecyed of in chapter 24. wherein all the members are virgins none defiled with Antichâ—istian Whoredome All servants none enemies all as clean beasts whether sheep or goats the goates themselves being cleane for meate as chewing the Cud and dividing the hoofe and cleane also for sacrifice And yet are there not to be found amongst these Virgin-members of the Church some wise some foolish amongst these servants some thriving some unprofitable amongsts these clean beasts some sheep some goates who shall stand accursed at the left hand of Christ It is true the Church which is the mysticall body of Christ ought to be suitable unto Christ her head and to the immortall seed of the word of which shee is begotten and many times so shee is but not alwayes every member yea very seldome every member if at any time I cannot tell if at any time the King that made a Marriage for his sonne shall come in and not finde one guest at least that hath not on a Wedding garment Mat. 22.11 The plâ—câ— which you alledge to the contrary will not prove it as that in Cant. 6.9 proveth indeed that whereas Christ hath manay Queenes Churches marryed to him by Covenant and invested with Royall Authority and more concubines that enter not by Covenant nor are indued with authority in the house of God yet one or some few are chast and harmelesse and undefiled but so a Church may bee when the Doctrine and Worship and Government thereof is received and administred according to the pattern although some members have a name to live but are dead and have not as you speake a living Principle of grace and faith in
Kingdome under the whole heaven shall bee given to the people of the Saints of the most High A second thing which I would put you in minde of which also hath been mentioned above is that wee doe not stand upon Nationall Iewish priviledges but upon the Covenant of Abraham which was given with the Seale thereof to him and his seed before any of the Jewes and Israelites were borne when Abraham and his seed were confidered rather as a Domesticall Church then a as national And then the Covenant was given to him as walking before God in uprightnesse of heart Gen. 17.1.7 which cannot bee without faith and the signe of the Covenant was given him as a signe and seale of the righteousnesse of Faith Rom. 4.11 and both Covenant and seale were given to his infant seed for his faith sake Gen. 17.7 And in case his infant seede should grow up to riper yeares and then not take hold of the Covenant of Abraham but prophanely reject they were cast out of their Church Estate as was Ismael and Esau And so the seed of Abraham could never grow up to a Nationall Church unlesse when they grew up to yeares they should continue in a visible Profession of the Faith of Abraham or unlesse god should afterwards enlarge the wings of his Covenant to reach over the whole Nation as hee began to doe in the Testament of Iacob Gen. 49.26 and more fully and solemnely declared the same Exod. 19.3 to 8. and Deut. 29.10 to 13. But it is not the Covenant of Jacob to him and to all his Posterity during their lives that wee plead for But the Covenant and blessing of Abraham which the Apostle saith is co ue upon us Gentiles Gal. 3.14 which onely admitteth the faithfull and their infant seed not during their lives in case their lives should grow up to Apostasie or open scandall but during their infancy and so long after as they shall continue in a visible profession of the Covenant and faith and the religion of their fathers Otherwise if the children of the faithfull grow up to Apostasie or to any open scandall as Ismael and Esau did as they were then so such like now are to be cast out of the fellowship of the Covenant and of the seales thereof But you willingly take no notice here of the Covenant of Abraham to him and to his seed And because say you the Jews had a promise for the bringing forth the Messias the promised seed in whom all Nations should bee blessed therefore all of that Nation were admitted to the outward Priviledges as figures of him whom that Nation was to bring forth which made a fruitfull wombe accounted so great a blessing among the Jewes as not knowing who might bee so far honoured as to bring forth that blessed seed But Christ came of Abraham and of Isaae as well as of Judah the father of the Jews and yet that did not admit all the Nations which sprang of them to the outward Priviledges as you call them though very absurdly if you meane as you seeme to doe the Covenant and the seale thereof For the Covenant whereby wee and our seed have God for our God is not a meere outward Priviledge but a spirituall and heavenly Priviledge to such as know the worth of it Besides many Tribes of Israel were admitted they and their seed to the Priviledge of the Covenant and to the seale thereof of whom yet it was evident that Christ was not to spring of any of of them The Iewes who descended all of them of Iudah they were but one tribe of twelve And why should all the other eleven Tribes bee circumcised as well as the Jews in respect of their bringing forth their promised seed when yet old Jacob had limited the bringing forth of the Messiâ—h to the Tribe of Judah Gen. 49.10 Were all the children of the eleven Tribes figures of the Messiah as well as the children of the Jews Besides in Davids time there was a promise given to him that the Messiah should come out of his loynes 2 Sam. 7. Why then should any other families of the Jews injoy such a Priviledge that all their infants shuold bee circumcised with the Seale of the Covenant Doth any word of Scripture make all the Infants of all the Jews yea of all Israel figures of the Messiah And if no word of Scripture so doe shall any man forge such an imagination of his owne braine and be guiltlesse what though a fruitfull wombe was counted a great blessing among the Jews So it was also among the other Tribes who yet could not expect the Messiah to spring from them It was a cause just enough to account a fruitfull wombe a great blessing not onely because it was a blessing to the family but also because it was an inlargement of the Church In which respect the Elders and Peoples of Bethlehem blessed Ruth Chap. 4.11 and Boaz with her The Lord make this young Woman which commeth into thine house like Raechel and like Leah which two did build the house Israel How will you make it appeare That God honoured the Nationall birth among the Jews with such outward blessings and Priviledges that belongs not to the Gentiles at all You should have done well to have told us what those outward blessings and Priviledges were and to have cleared it that they belonged to the Jews and not to the Gentiles at all Otherwise it will not bee safe for you to take up doctrines of Religion upon trust of mans word The Gentiles say you are now to looke for our bringing forth of Christ according to the Spirit as the Jews did then according to the flesh and likewise their birth and seed and all things suitable to the same as John 3.3.5.6 Iohn 1.12 13. And therefore wee are said to know no man now no not Christ himselfe after the flesh 2 Cor. 5.16 And Circumcision was one Priviledge of the flesh Phil. 3.4 5. Answer It is not true that all the Jewes did looke to bring forth Christ according to the flesh For in Davids time they knew that Priviledge was peculiar to his family neither is it true that the Gentiles are now to look for the bringing forth of Christ according to the Spirit any more then the Jews were to looke then The Apostle Peter maketh us equall with the Jews and them with us in this Priviledge Wee looke saith hee to bee saved through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ even as they Act. 15.11 It behoved them as well as us to attaine a spirituall birth and to bee borne of an immortall seed suitable to the same as well as us for it was not to a Gentile but to Nicodemus a Jew that Christ spake unto Ioh. 3.3.5 6. Except a man be borne againe of water and the Holy Ghost he cannot see the Kingdom of God That which is borne of the flesh is flesh that which is borne of the Spirit is Spirit Where it doth not
THE GROVNDS and ENDS OF THE BAPTISME OF THE CHILDREN OF THE FAITHFVLL OPENED In a familiar Discourse by way of a Dialogue or Brotherly Conference By The Learned and Faithfull Minister of Christ JOHN COTTON Teacher of the Church of Boston in New-England LONDON Printed by R. C. for Andrew Crooke at the sign of the Green Dragon in Pauls-churchyard 1647. To the READER THe compiling of the ensuing discourse and in this familiar style was put upon mee by a more then morall inevitable necessity Paul acknowledgeth there is a constraining power in the love of Christ 2 Cor. 5.14 And surely the love which through Christ I bare to some gracious Saints in Lincolnshire now with Christ constrained mee to reserve a tender affection to their surviving children One of them being formerly well affected to the wayes of Christ and accordingly respected of the godly where he lived Hee comming over into these parts was received into fellowship in a Neighbour Church and well approved But falling into acquaintance with some who stood aloofe to the Baptisme of Children and receiving some Bookes from them against the same He withheld his child from Baptisme as others had done theirs to the offence both of the Lord and the Church whereof he was a member The Elders of that Church tooke much paines with him to convince him of the error of his way and I suppose some of their learned and elaborate discourses are sent over by this Ship for more publike satisfaction Withall they advised him to conferre with other friends and acquaintance in other Churches To mee therefore he came and acquainting me with some of his Scruples I thought what I said to him might have satisfied and so it seemed to me it did for the present But he told me other scruples he had which were all comprised in a printed booke the Author I forbeare to name but he was then reputed one of the chiefest note of that way for moderation and freedome from the leaven of other corrupt opinions which are wont to accompany the denyall of Infants Baptisme Since then other Bookes have beene published of the same argument but with more learning and better method But this Booke which hee brought me containing all his scruples he desired that it might bee answered and he should so rest satisfied I was then full of other businesse and could not possibly though I much desired it gratifie his desire In this strait a young Schollar but of pregnant gifts and parts Mr. Benjamin Woodbridge dwelling then in my house seeing me solicitous for the young man undertooke the answer of the Booke which God helped him speedily and acutely to perform But the young man tooke not that satisfaction from it he well might have done but excused himself it was so full of Scholarship and termes of Art that he could not well understand it and so could not satisfie his conscience with it Whereupon I was forced either to suffer an hopefull Sonne of gracious Parents and my deare friends to fall and lye under that burden or else I must Answer the booke my self and that in such a familiar language as might best suite with his capacity Which by the helpe of Christ having done other friends perusing it pressed mee to give way to let it passe to more publike use of other as well as of him I was very loth to hearken to them the Booke whereto I give answer being so immethodicall and confused and my self being forced to follow him in like confusion that the young man might not complaine as he did before of too much Art or of Omission of Answer to any thing materiall in his Booke Thus have you a short and plaine account of this present labour of Love You will receive I hope by other hands from hence more Elaborate Answers to more Elaborate discourses in the same and other Arguments Now the God of Truth and Peace accompany all the Labours of his Servants which beare witnesse to his Truth with a Spirit of Power to cast downe all false Imaginations and to bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ Iesus John Cotton To the READER THe due Application of Baptism to all those Persons Christ would have it administred unto cannot but be apprehended by all that have any insight into the Controversies of these times to be of a very high importance whether we respect the Ordinance it selfe the Persons right or the Consciences of those in Errour about it For the Ordinance it selfe as it was one of the first of those institutions of the Gospell so in respect of the things sealed up therein it is the Greatest our first Union with Christ the great promise of the Spirit the foundation of all grace and glory Our representation by and communion with Christ in his death resurrection being hereby at once sealed up by God to the persons that partake thereof as belonging to them and to have all these mâ—splaced to persons not capable through want of divine warrant of any benefit thereby cannot but be esteemed a great prophaning of it As on the other side the withholding it from such as Christ hath bequeathed this Legacy unto would bee found as highly derogatory to the great goodnesse and rich grace of the Testator And so withall an injury unto the Persons of Infants having right therunto in those whom Christ hath made Administrators of these his Mysteries Great also is the moment thereof to the Consciences of many good soules as in the consequents of the contrary Opinion of denying Infants Baptisme is in some I must not say of all too apparent The vindication therefore of this great Truth doth deserve and challenge the choicest abilities of the Divines of this age it being in the dayes of this second Reformation with us afresh if not as much controverted as in the times of the first Reformation it was in Germany And it is more light and less violence though in truths taken generally for granted that must end this and all other controversies of this elevation that are amongst us And it will surely be rewarded by Christ at the latter day as a worke of more then ordinary Charity to have pleaded and maintained the right of these poore members of his who want a tongue to speake for themselves In a manner half the Church of God and that purissima pars Ecclesiae the purest part of it elect Infants dye as well-nigh halfe the rest of mankind in their bud and infancy and grow not up to partake of the dewes and influence of any other outward Ordinance and were they deprived of this should goe out of this world into which God onely sent them to receive that which should make them meet for the common inheritance of the Saints without any outward owning them or visible way of blessing from him that hath blessed them and us with his choicest heavenly blessings in Christ Yea and the other half of those that grow up to glorifie God
in their riper years whereof many are also holy even from the womb these also should during their yeares of nonage want an outward badge and any outward acknowledgment of what they are even fellow heires of the Kingdom with their brethren which even in the infancy of the world it selfe whilst all were under Tutors and Governours was their priviledge To cleare therefore their evidences and set right their title to this Kingdome and to shew forth a writ and warrant for their enstallment and admission into it by Baptism is an act of the greatest Justice as of charity These and the lâ—ke weighty considerations have stirred up the Spirit of this learned grave and holy Man though full of other labours and employments and now therewith of yeares to bring forth of his rich Treasury things both new and old for the asserting this so important truth Of the Author himself what is said of Ezra his search into the Ordinances of the Law that his heart was prepared to seek the Law of the Lord and to doe it and to teach in Israel Statutes and Judgements The same I may say of him concerning the Institutions those heavenly things Heb 7. â—3 as in comparison of the other the Apostle speakes of the Gospel Much of his thoughts and attention have been spent thereon both to sever them from the additions and inventions of men and to preserve them in their Dignity from the disregard of others And he was a chosen instrument of God to hold forth the purity thereof in a great measure well-nigh from the first of his setled Ministry with much constancy and integrity and with an eminent blessing both of protection and successe upon his Ministry in those evill times which since hath been further crowned with further light herein Who continues still to esteem the clearing any part or portion thereof a sufficient reward of his choicest paines And yet he hath not made those lesser and more outward things of the Gospel the chiefest or first born of his strength but in a due proportion the greater matters of Faith and of the common salvation which hee hath more universally traversed even the whole circle of Theologie and in his Ministery gone over besides many select Bookes of Scripture opened by him therein then most Divines alive I shall adde nothing for the present about the subject matter of this Treatise I having already in my publique Ministry at large delivered my self of what I have to say in this Argument which though I have been provoked enough to make more publike yet hitherto through many what more urgent diversions what personall infirmities to deale in many things at once I have been hindered from casting that worthlesse Mite into the publike Treasury Tho. Goodwin The Grounds and Ends of Baptisme of the Children of the Faithfull Opened in a Familiar Discourse by way of a Dialogue or Brotherly Conference PREFACE Silvanus BRother Silvester for the love I beare to you and your godly Parents I have been much provokâ—d in Spirit to endeavour the pulling you forth of that error into which you are so deeply plunged I doubt not your Elders and others of your Brethren have not been wanting to use the meanes for your conviction and satisfaction But if the Lord espyed an Idol set up in your heart he might justly leave you to see nothing but according to your Idol If the heart be once taken with the love of an Error it is all one if not worse as not to be taken with the love of truth And in such a casâ— God is wont to give up the soule to strong delusions to beleeve lies 2 Thess 2.10 11. But besides your owne Elders and Brethren you wanted not other friends the Elders and Brethren of some other Churches whom you have bin wont to consult withall in lesse matters and them you acquainted not with your scruples which whether it were out of loathnesse to grieve them or out of loathnesse to be removed from your way I doe not know Silvester I am not so wedded to my way but I am willing to heare counsell from the word of God And therefore neither am I unwilling to acquaint your selfe with my scruples in this point The Grounds and Ends of Baptisme OF THE CHILDREN OF THE FAITHFVLL Opened in a Familiar Discourse by way of a Dialogue or Brotherly Conference PREFACE Shewing the occasion of the Conference BRother Silvester I feele your losse at my heart for the love I beare to you as to your godly Parents before you I heare God hath lately burnt your house over your head and most part of your goods with it And it troubleth me the more for your sake because I feare this hand of God is gone out against you to visit upon you and your family your breach of Covenant with the Lord and his People For though I know that all outward things fall alike to all the Sheepe and Servants of Job were burnt as well as your house and many a godly man hath been struck with sicknesse for his tryall as well as Moses for neglect of an Ordinance yet whilst Moses lay under the neglect of an Ordinance in suffering his child to lye by him uncircumcised Silvanus it had been no rash judgement in others nor want of holy wisedome in himselfe to think that God by making a breach upon his health did visit upon him his breach of Covenant with the Lord in delaying and neglecting though it may bee for his wives sake to bring his child under the Seale of the Covenant Wee may in brotherly love well conceive that God hath made this Bâ—each in your estate to try your faith and patience as hee did Jobs But surely it will be your wisest and safest course so to construe Gods meaning That your breach of Covenant with God did kindle a fire in his wrath which brake forth upon your house and burnt up so great a part of your Estate For even our God the God of the New Testament is a Consuming fire as well to Christians now as to Jewes of old And when doth the Iealousy of God most kindle but against the Violation of his Ordinances which being delivered to us in the 2. Commandement are ratified by a Sanction from the Iealousy of the Lord our God Exod. 20.5 You saw not long before a like fire of Gods wrath breaking forth in burning the houses of others of your brethren and neighbours who had a while before turned aside into the way same of error with your self which when you tooke no warning by the same fire burst for that last upon your selfe How wise and righteous was the hand of the Lord that when water was neglected to Baptize your child water should be wanting to quench the fire that consumed your house Silvester I cannot think that the delay of my childs Baptisme could kindle that fire that burnt up my house For if I know mine owne heart I was very
accounted of God as uncircumcised himselfe if his children were uncircumcised for so it is written in Exod. 12.48 that if a man will come and keepe the Passeover all the males in his house must be circumcised and the reason given is for no uncircumcised Person shall eate thereof which plainly argueth that a man is uncircumcised himselfe and as an uncircumcised person is to be debarred from the Passeover untill all his males be circumcised If then our Lords Supper come in the roome of the Passeover and our Baptisme in the roome of Circumcision looke as he that had not circumcised his males was accounted as one uncircumcised himselfe and so to be debarred from the Passeover so hee who hath not baptized his children is accounted of God as not baptized himselfe and so to be debarred from the Lords Supper If therefore you forbid Baptisme to children you evacuate the Baptisme of their Parents and so make the commandment of God and the Commission of the Apostles and the Baptisme of believers of none effect In the Apostles Commission by Disciples is meant beleevers Silvester for so when the Evangelist Marke recordeth the same Commission he rehearseth it thus Go saith Christ into all the world and preach the Gospel unto every creature He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved he that believeth not shall be damned Mark 16.15 16. So that unlesse children were believers they are not subjects capable of Baptisme no Faith no Baptisme If children have no Faith to be baptized Silvanus then have they no Faith to be saved For the words of the Apostles commission are as plaine and pregnant for the one as for the other He that beâ—ieveth and is baptized saith Christ shall be saved he that believeth not shall be damned Mar. 16.16 If therefore children as being unbelievers cannot be baptized then as being unbeleevers they cannot be saved Silvester It is very doubtfull to me neither hath the Scripture revealed it that such as dye Infants are in a state of salvation for without the hearing of the word no faith and without faith no salvation Silvanus See what uncomfortable and desperate conclusions these ways of error drive men unto Jacob while he was yet in his mothers womb was in a state of election Rom. 9.11.13 and therefore in a state of salvation though he had dyed then John Baptist was filled with the holy Ghost from his mothers wombe Luke 1.17 and if he had then dyed the spirit of life which dwelt in him had quickened him to immortality To what end were the children who dyed Infants in the old Testament circumcised what did their circumcision seale to them Canaan they did never live to see much lesse to inherit if it did not seal unto them spirituall and saving blessings it was to them a seale without a thing signified what though children do not receive faith by hearing of the gospel as the Nations of the Gentiles do of whom the Apostle speaketh in the place whereto you allude yet as children can see the light and be taken with it and turn their eyes to it so the Lord can shine into the dark hearts of children and give them faith to see his light and to be taken and affected with it though they never heard of it by the hearing of the eare Silvester What the Lord can doe in inlightening Infants is a secret known to himself the Lord can even of stones raise up children unto Abraham Matth. 3.9 In which sense children may also bee said to be capable of the Spirit to wit as well as stones But if children should be said to be capable of the spirit so as to comply with the Spirit in hearing receiving and beleeving the Spirits testimony and so to be capable of regeneration faith and repentance this I deny and to affirm this to be the way to bring persons to the faith by working so upon them by his Spirit in their infancy argueth some ignorance of the true nature and work of graces as the Gospel holdeth it forth Silvanus There is a middle way between both these two in which God can and doth convey the spirit of grace unto infants for neither are infants so uncapable as stones for stones must first have a reasonable soule conveyed into them before they can be capable of the spirit of grace whereas Infants have a reasonable soul already Neither yet are infants so capable of complying as you call it with the Spirit as to heare beleeve and repent yet nevertheless Infants being reasonable creatures they are also capable though not of apprehending yet of receiving the holy Ghost from their mothers wombe for even then John Baptist was filled with him Luke 1.15 It is one thing to be filled from the mothers wombe Silvester with the holy Ghost as John was another thing to believe Act. 6.5 and 4.31 Secondly all such so testified of as John was I shall acknowledge but to affirm that what God testified of John Baptist in the wombe holdeth true of all other infants likewise this indeed were weaker then infancy to affirm it and grosser then ignorance to believe it Iob is said to be a guide to the distressed from his mothers womb Iob 31.18 shall it thence be concluded that in his infancy he was a guide to such or if he were so must it needs follow that all infants are capable guides also because it was so said of him To be filled with the holy Ghost Silvanus doth always imply thus much at least as to be filled with the gifts of the holy Ghost or if men had received the gifts of the holy Ghost before yet when it is said againe they were filled with the holy Ghost it implyeth they were filled with a greater and fuller measure of those gifts then before And that is the meaning of those places which you quote out of the Acts whence it will follow that Iohn being filled with the holy Ghost from his mothers womb was therefore filled with the gifts of the holy Ghost as the gift of faith the gift of wisdome and zeale and patience c. Although he was no more able to exercise them or put them forth then he was able to put forth any act of reason and yet his soul wanted not the faculty of reason from his Mothers wombe There is no man so weak or ignorant as to beleeve or affirm that all infants are in the like sort filled with the holy Ghost as Iohn Baptist was But yet if you believe or affirm that none else were filled or sanctified with the gifts of the holy Ghost but Iohn Baptist onely or that all infants are not alike capable of those gifts as well as he I may say as Christ said in another case You erre because you know not the Scriptures nor the power of God David saith as of Christ in substance so of himselfe in type Thou didst make me to hope or trust at my mothers
Covenant offered himselfe to be a God to Abraham and his seed the Lord did thereby promise to afford both to him and his seed the meanes whereby they might come to enjoy the Lord for their â—od For he which promiseth the end promiseth also the meanes that lead to that end And Abraham for his part accepting the Covenant for himselfe and his seed and so having circumcised himselfe and them in token thereof he had now bound himself to traine up and educate all his seed in the meanes and wayes of grace whereby they might come to enjoy that great promise of the Covenant to have the Lord for their God which also Abraham was carefull to doe as the Lord testifieth of him Gen. 18.19 Yea and Ismael himselfe with the rest of Abrahams seed having been received into the Covenant of God and to the seale thereof he and they all were bound to yeeld up themselves to the Lord and to Abraham in attending to the meanes of grace dispensed to them in that Covenant that so they might come to enjoy the sure mercies of the Covenant to have the Lord for their God But now when Ismael rejected the meanes of grace as he did by mocking at Isaac and as did Esau also by selling the birthright of the Covenant for a messe of pottage now their circumcision was made uncircumcision as Paul speaketh in a like case Rom. 2.25 And so they did discovenant themselves and their posterity from the Covenant of grace and chose to be as the bewitched Galatians did Galat. 4.21 under the Covenant of works It is therefore a groundlesse and false collection which some of your way do make that because there was in Abraham when God made a Covenant with him a double seed the one a spirituall seed the other a fleshly seed and accordingly because there were in the Covenant some spirituall blessings and some outward and carnall blessings therefore they must be thus distinguished that the spirituall blessings belonged to the spirituall seed and the outward blessings to his carnall seed For all the blessings were promised to all the seede in the Covenant To the spirituall seede both spirituall and outward blessings were promised and given effectually To the carnall seede not carnall blessings onely but spirituall also were promised and offered So as that their falling short of the grace of God was not from the defect of the Covenant but from their prophane refusall of it and of the meanes of grace offered in it For it is an evident and confessed Truth and the Text is cleare for it That in the Covenant God offered himselfe to be a God to all the seede Now God is not an outward or carnall blessing but as himselfe is a Spirit so is he also a spirituall blessing to whomsoever he is dispensed Well then Silvester though it be granted that the Covenant which God made with Abraham and with his seed is a Covenant of grace and that circumcision was given as a seale of that Covenant unto his seed yet still this is not proved that God hath made a Covenant of grace now in the new Testament with the seed of believers especially our naturall and carnall seed Or that our Baptisme is given to us of God in stead of circumcision to confirm such a Covenant with such a seed Both these may be well proved rightly understood Silvanus rightly understood I say For if by carnall seed of believers be meant the children of beleevers walking after the flesh and carnally rejecting the Covenant of grace as Esau sold his birthright for a messe of pottage and the Jews rejected the righteousnesse of Christ to establish their own righteousnesse which are properly called by the Apostle the carnall seed and Israel after the flesh then we willingly grant you that the Covenant of grace is not extended to the carnall seed of believeâ—s Or if by carnall and naturall seed be meant the children of believers begotten of their bodies and considered as descending from them onely by power of nature and carnall generation then we consent unto you herein also that the Covenant of grace doth not extend to the children of believers considered as their naturall and carnall seed For the children of beleevers though begotten of their bodies yet are born under the Covenant not by any power of nature or any force of carnall generation but by the grace of Christ offering the Covenant to believers and to their seed and by the faith of believers receiving the Covenant for themselves and for their seed But that the Covenant of beleevers begotten of their bodies are borne under the Covenant of grace by the grace of Christ offering the Covenant to them and by the faith of their parents receiving the Covenant for them and for their seed may be proved from sundry testimonies of Scripture First from the testimony of Paul to the Galatians Gal. 3.14 15 16. where he teacheth us that by Christ his redemption of us from the curse of the Law the blessing of Abraham is come upon the Gentiles vers 14. This blessing is called the Covenant verse 15 17. And this Covenant he calleth the promises verse 16. And these promises he there telleth us were made to Abraham and his seed and by seed he meaneth Christ And by Christ he meaneth Christ mysticall that is Christ and all that are in Christ whether by election or by their owne faith as all the living members of Christ be or by adoption as all the Israelites were for whom Paul had continuall sorrow Rom. 9.4 Or which is of like extent by participation in the stocke of Abraham the stock of the faithfull as Paul calleth the Jews the children of the stock of Abraham to whom the word of salvation is sent Acts 13.26 And such are in Christ as branches in the true olive or in the vine till they come to cut off themselves by casting off the Covenant and the faith of their parents For the Apostle there in that place of the Galatians speaketh of the blessing of Abraham as come upon us Gentiles And the blessing of Abraham was the Covenant and promises of the Covenant made unto Abraham and unto his seed in Christ Now that seed in Christ was of such large extent as that Ismael at first partaked in the Covenant made to it and in the seale of it as being himselfe one of the seed and stock of Abraham as well as Isaac untill he rejected the Covenant in rejecting Isaac and the grace of Christ in him and so was cast out of the family of Abraham and out of the Communion of the body of the faithfull For Paul speaketh not there as some of your way would have it of a different dispensation of the Covenant of Abraham in the old Testament and in the new as if it were dispensed in the old Testament unto him and to his carnall seed and now in the New to him and to his seed in Christ no no such
Christ himself speaketh of branches in him the true vine the fat olive tree which yet bare no fruit in him and so are cut off from him cast out and wither John 15.2 6. And such branches though they were in Christ by the fellowship of the Church and by the Spirit conveying from Christ common graces to them yet they were never elect in him to everlasting life nor united to him by a lively faith For if they had been so in him they had never been cut off from him It is true the Covenant of grace was not to all the seed of Abraham without exception that is to such of the seed as rejected the Covenant or the faith of it as Ismael and Esau did in riper years But the Covenant was to all the infant seed of Abraham without exception and to all the infants of his believing seed And the seale of the Covenant was in like sort dispensed to them all without exception to Ismael as well as to Isaac to Esau as well as to Jacob. Yet neverthelesse it will not therefore follow that some of the seed of Abraham were comprehended in the Covenant and admitted to the seale thereof in one sense whom God excepted against in another sense For hee excepted not against the infant seed of Abraham or his family in any sense but onely against the seed apostate in elder yeares In respect of which Apostacy which God fore-knoweth all the non-elect seed of Abraham will fall into though God receive all the infant-seed of Abrahams family that is of the Church into the fellowship of the Covenant and of the seale thereof yet he giveth a peculiar blessing to the elect seed even the sure mercies of his Covenant Esa 55.2 And though you say that between these two seeds God ever held forth a distinction in all generations from Adam to Christ yet that distinction was onely this the seed of all the flesh and the seed of the promise Rom. 9.8 But he excluded neither of them in their infancy from the Covenant or from the seale of it Indeed the children of the promise being the elect of God God hath not onely given his Covenant to them and the seale thereof but hath also established it unto them for ever But the seed of the flesh though the Lord gave his Covenant even unto them also and the seal therof yet he hath not established it unto them for ever whence afterward it commeth to passe that they reject the Covenant and the faith of it But when you further say that Christ hath put an end to the type and to the flesh and to all priviledges thereunto belonging so that now all is laid up in Christ onely for such as believe and for that end quote 2 Cor. 5.16 Phil. 3.3 4 5. It is readily granted you that Christ hath put an end to all types and to fleshly Ordinances and to the purifying of the flesh by the Ceremonies of the Law Heb. 7.16 9.13 But that Christ hath put an end to all priviledges either of the Covenant or of the seale of the Covenant to the seed of believers there is no word in the New Testament that teacheth us any such doctrine the places alledged opened above by me prove the contrary and those alledged by you will not make good what you say for the place in 2 Cor. 5.16 that a man regenerate knoweth no man after the flesh argueth onely thus much that a man in Christ resteth in no outward priviledges no not in seeing and knowing Christ in the flesh nor in eating and drinking in his presence nor in hearing him preach in their streets but in the spirituall and lively fellowship of his death and resurrection which maketh him whosoever knoweth Christ a new Creature And so say we too and so it was with the faithfull in the Old Testament as well as in the New It was not the outward participation of the Covenant nor of the seale of it that a sincere Israelite could rest in but in the grace of the Covenant and Circumcision of the heart in the Spirit not in the Letter But this doth not at all argue that the children of the faithfull who are yet in the flesh are not partakers of the Covenant of grace nor of the seale of it now in the New Testament as well as they were in the Old But only argueth that though before regeneration men are apt to rest and boast in the outward Letter of priviledges and Ordinances yet after regeneration they doe not acknowledge such things as their comfort and confidence John Baptist endeavoured to beat off the Jews from resting in such outward priviledges Matth. 3.9 And so did the Prophets before Christ Jerem. 9.25 26. as well as Paul after him both in this place of the Corinthians and that other which you quote out of Phil. 3.3 4 5. When you say that now all is laid up in Christ onely for such as believe If you meane all spirituall blessings of life and salvation you say true but nothing to the question For so it was in the Old Testament as well as now But as it was then the seed of believers partaked of the outward dispensation of the Covenant and of the seale of it so is it still unlesse you could shew us some Scripture whereby they are more excluded now then in the old Testament Silvester Now first in Christ by faith and then to the Covenant and priviledges thereof Gal. 3.29 None by the Gospel are approved to be the seed of Abraham but onely such as walke in the steps of his faith For as none invisibly before God are by him approved at all to have right to any priviledges of grace but onely as he looketh upon them in his Son no more are there any before man visibly to be approved of so as to have right to the same but as they appeare to be in Christ by some effect of faith declaring the same And so much the more in that God excludeth all from his holy Covenant so as to have right in the outward dispensation thereof but onely such as believe Rom. 11.20 Heb. 3.18 4.1 2 3. 11.5 6. Rom. 9.7 8. Gal. 3.22 26 29. Silvanus Surely in the old Testament the children of believers had first Christ by Covenant and then faith also to receive him For in the Covenant with Abraham when God gave himselfe to be a God to him and his seed the Father gave himselfe to bee their Father the Son to be their Redeemer the holy Ghost to bee their Sanctifier when yet the children were unborn without life and therefore without faith And surely in the New Testament God hath not changed this order of his blessings For in rehearsing the Covenant which continueth in the New Testament he giveth the writing of the law in their hearts by Covenant Heb. 8.10 Amongst which laws surely the law of faith is one and indeed the chiefe of all other laws And therefore
onely to such as believe but also for their sakes to their children and housholds In the Old Testament God prospered Ismael for Abrahams sake Gen. 21.13 17 18 19 20. In the New Testament God visited with grace and salvation the Families of Zacheus and of the Jaylor for the housholders sake Luke 19.9 Acts 16.31 Silvester The holy Covenant consisteth of three essentialls for entrance thereinto First the word of God to reveale the same Secondly Christ to open the way and to enright the party therein Thirdly faith without which none can enter thereinto for as none can come unto God or into Covenant with him but by Christ so none can come unto Christ but by faith Job 14.6 with John 6.44 45. Heb. 11.6 Let all this be well considered and then see how infants can be discovered to be in the Covenant and what way of entrance hath God by his word appointed for them to come in and denyed the same unto other I will not straine at your word Essentialls Silvanus though all things that are necessary to the entrance or being of a thing are not straightway essentiall to it Gods providence is necessary to the being and entrance of sin but it is not essentiall to it But I willingly admit of your three necessary Ingredients for entrance into the Covenant and finde none of them wanting to enstate and interest the Infants of believing Parents into the Covenant First the Word of God revealeth such a Covenant of grace wherein God giveth himselfe to be a God to the faithfull Parent and to his seed So hee gave himselfe to faithfull Abraham and to his seed Gen. 17.7 This Covenant of Abraham the Scripture revealeth to be come upon the believing Gentiles and their seed as hath been shewed above Secondly Christ himselfe hath opened the way to enright the children of believing Parents into the Covenant by redeeming us Gentiles as well as Jews from the curse of the Law that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles Gal. 3.13 14. And the blessing of Abraham is to a believer and his seed Gal. 3.16 And this hath been further cleared above Thirdly faith is not wanting to enstate the seed of believing Parents into the Covenant seeing God hath promised upon the faith of the Parent salvation to his houshold Acts 10.31 Luke 19.9 It is a vaine exception to say that if infants bee entred into the Covenant by the faith of their Parents that then they who bee not naturally begotten and born in the Covenant are denyed the same way of entrance into the Covenant which is granted to infants For first wee doe not say that any man is naturally begotten and born in the Covenant For the children of believing parents are naturally the children of wrath as well as others Ephes 2.3 But yet neverthelesse though naturally they bee the children of wrath yet by vertue and grace of the Covenant they are holy 1 Cor. 7.14 Secondly though they who are not begotten and borne of faithfull Parents cannot plead right in the Covenant by the faith of their Parents yet they may claime it by their owne faith if God grant it to them If not it is no marvaile to a Christian heart that the faith of believing Parents conveyeth a greater blessing to their children then unbelieving Parents can expect to themselves or theirs Doth not obedience to the Law convey a farre greater blessing unto a godly man and his seed even to a thousand generations then a wicked carnall parent can expect to him and his Exod. 20.5 6. And if so then doubtlesse the obedience of faith may expect a far greater blessing to a beleever and his seed then an infidell or unbeliever can hope for in his naturall and carnall estate and course to himself or his Silvester If infants be in the Covenant of grace by vertue of their birth from believing parents then such infants are borne in a saving state of grace and were never out of the same Which doctrine maketh void many heavenly and divine truths which speake to the contrary which lay all under sinne and curse till Christ by his blood redeeme them and by his heavenly voice call them and by his Spirit beget them unto a lively hope who are therefore said to bee borne againe from above For none can be under grace and under wrath and curse at one and the same time in the outward dispensation of the same Silvanus It doth not follow that if infants be in the Covenant of grace by vertue of their birth from believing parents then such infants are borne in a saving state of grace For the Covenant of grace doth not give saving grace to all that are in the Covenant but onely to the elect Nor doth it give saving grace to them alwayes in their birth but in the season wherein the Lord in his purpose of election had fore-appointed to give it to the children whom God hath not elected The Covenant of grace doth not give them saving grace at all but onely offereth it and sealeth what it offereth Neither doth this make void any heavenly and divine truth at all For though all bee under sinne and wrath and curse til Christ by his blood redeem them and by his heavenly voice call them by his Spirit beget them yet Christ was a Lambe slaine in respect of the vertue and efficacy of his death from the beginning of the world And though elect vessels may bee under the curse till they bee called and regenerated from above yet are they at one and the same time under grace but in divers respects Under the curse and wrath by nature under grace by the election of God and the Covenant of their fathers At one and the same time Apiathar was a man of death by desert and yet by the Kings favour a man of life 1 Kings 2 26. The Israelites at one and the same time were enemies for our sakes and yet beloved for their fathers sake Rom. 11.28 And in very truth if the elect children of God were not under grace before Christ call them by his heavenly voyce or before hee regenerate them by his Spirit how is it possible they should be effectually called or regenerate at all For in the feare of God consider is not effectuall calling a regeneration a worke of Gods grace in Jesus Christ is it not a fruit of Gods electing and redeeming grace in Christ The one wrought for us before the world was made the other before wee were borne And can the sin of our nature which followed after extinguish or make voyd the rich grace of Christ which was before all causes in us If effectuall calling and regeneration bee the worke of Gods grace then it is the effect of Gods grace and if it be the effect of Gods grace then the grace of Christ is the efficient cause of our effectuall calling and regeneration and the efficient cause is alwayes in nature and ordinarily in
is to performe his Covenant and all that he promised to them in their father Abraham with reference to Christ in whom as the root God established his Covenant for these his holy branches Rom 11.12 verse 26. Now the lump generally considered comprehends all both the first fruits and the latter For except the first fruits were part of the lumpe it could not give testimony that the lumpe was holy which lumpe is Gods elect in Christ with reference to their believing in him and so the approved subjects of Gods gracious Covenant and heires aprarent to the Kingdome of Christ as were Abraham Isaac and Jâ—cob believing the first fruits of that lumpe They first appearing in the Covenant of grace in a visible way by faith they were holy And so that remnant which God had still among them was holy with reference to the same estate the first fruits were in The same consideration is to bee had of the lumpe with reference to that estate which God in his time shall call them unto by his Gospel and so are holy also for this must respect a visible holinesse suitable to that in the first fruits otherwise it maketh nothing to the thing in hand Now a word or two also of the root and branches the root here is that from which the Jewes were cut off and the Gentiles graffed in And that is not onely believing Parents and so the same with the first fruits but Christ mystically considered with reference to the rules of Order Ordinances and Government laid downe in the New Testament for all such to believe and submit unto whom God approveth true subjects of the same In which respect Christ is called a vine a root and the foundation Joh. 15.1 Rom. 15.12 Rev. 5.5 22 16. Isa 28.16 1 Cor. 3.11 Ephes 2.20 That the root is meant Christ as aforesaid appeareth First in that he is the root or olive tree out of which the Jewes are cast and the Gentiles graffed in Rom. 11.17 19 23 24. Secondly in that the Apostle chargeth the Gentiles that if they boast themselves against the Jewes they beare not the root but the root them vers 18. That is thou appearest not to have the truth of grace and so not the true nature of the truth and life of Christ in thy heart but onely an outward forme of the profession of him as John 15.2 Thirdly from the consideration of that which the Jewes refused and the Gentiles received which was Christ aforesaid Therefore it is Christ in his mysticall Order and Government amongst his Saints that is here the root and olive tree with his Spirit in his Ordinances issuing forth sap and fatnesse of life and comfort into every believing heart as a branch of the same This will yet more clearly appeare if we consider what was the Jews owne naturall root and olive tree whereof they were naturall branches onely by faith as the Apostle so declares them Vers 20 21 24. which was union and communion onely with God in all his Divine Ordinances and Worship which in the Old Testament was Mosaicall and typicall in which respect the Jewes were the first that ever God tooke in communion with himselfe in such an holy way of Worship and therefore called the first fruits of his love and naturall branches which order and manner of Worship but not the matter was changed at the comming of Christ in the flesh and a new forme and order set up by him called the Gospel or New Testament which order the Jews opposed and were rejected Christ the sure foundation laid in Zion becomming a stumbling stone and rock of offence to the Jews the Kingdome of God was taken from them that is they were cast out of fellowship and communion with God in respect of his Worship for their unbeliefe and the Gentiles that did submit to the Gospel were taken in by faith in Christ to bee his worshippers and heires both of grace â—â—d glory And when God pleaseth to call the Jews by the Gospel to beleeve in his Son and to submit to him as he is the Mediator of the New Testament then shall they be received in againe into their old fellowship and communion with God according to the order of Moses And thus the Apostle proves their first estate to be holy as the first fruits of thâ—t holy and blessed relation wherein they stood towards God by faith From which they for their unbelief are cut off and the Gentiles by faith admitted in of meere grace and not to boast And yet there is a remnant of them to be called as the Lumpe and a second fruit which are also holy in reference to the same holy root as aforesaid And as the root is holy so shall these branches be when they come to bee graffed in againe to their own root and olive tree as at the first which is union and communion with God in his holy way of Worship And so much of the root or olive tree which must bee understood of Christ mystically considered and not of beleeving Parents as aforesaid Now a word of the branches which being holy are believers onely in the Apostles sense First they are branches onely as they subsist and grow in the root or vine and so beare the true nature of the same by which they appear to be holy by the fruits therof Christ being the root or vine as aforesaid the branches can no way be said to subsist and grow in him as their root but onely by faith and hee in them by his Spirit without which there is no holinesse in the Apostles sense who speaketh of such an holinesse as is produced in the branch by the holy root in which it ingrows and so partakes of the nature of the root by vertue of union and communion which it hath with the same All which is by faith as the word revealeth Secondly there is no branch that is alive in the vine but partakes of the sap and life of the same by vertue of which the branch though never so young and small is discovered to be alive and inabled to bring forth in its season such fruit as whereby the same may be discerned So it is hereby the spirituall branches they cannot properly bee called branches in the Apostles sense but as they partake of the life and grace of Christ their true vine and olive tree by which they appeare at the least to bee alive in him by faith and enabled by the same to bring forth such fruits as may discover them to bee in Covenant of grace and so to be admitted â—â—to the priviledges thereof as John 15.1 7. Nature it self teacheth as much for no man will admit of dead plants to be set in his vineyard or graffed into a stock but onely such as are capable to comply with the same in the sap and nourishment thereof to the end it may grow and bring forth fruit and so it is with Christ who commeth not short of nature And
the Lords Sapper But this seemeth a double mystery to mee how persons are fit and capable of union in a state that are not fit and capable of Communion in the Ordinances of the same state And yet more mysticall how one should bee a capable subject of Baptisme and not of the Supper I can see no rule for such a practise in all the Book of God And it is against the rule of Nature that when a Childe is born it should bee kept from food It troubleth mee to hear you call such plain points both in Religion and Nature Mysteries Silvanus whereby you mean dark Riddles above your capacity It was a sad speech of our Saviour concerning such as to whom it was not given to know the mysteries of God Matth. 13.11 The Lord give you understanding in his heavenly Mysteries When you make it a mystery how persons can bee fit and capable of union in a state and yet not bee fit and capable of Communion in the Ordinances of the same state You know wee esteeme infants fit and capable Persons of the Covenant and of the seale of it Baptisme If you thinke otherwise then you doe expresly make Infants unfit and uncapable of Union with Christ or with his Church and so uncapable of the Kingdom of Heaven Which sometime you disclaime But if you speak of all Ordinances you speak against common sense and experience Infants are members of the Common-wealth and so are they also of the family and accordingly fit and capable of Union with both estates And yet they are neither capable of the Ordinance of Goverment nor of the Ordinance of obedience to the Laws and orders in either state And why should it seem more mysticall to you that Infants should bee capable of Baptism and yet not bee capable of the Lords Supper You have seen even now a reason of both both in Religion and Nature And therefore doe not say you can see no rule for it in all the Book of God and it is against a rule in Nature to keep a Childe born from his food For Baptisme holding forth the death and buriall and Resurrection of Christ if there bee food in these as there bee food indeed then children born that want not these as in Baptisme they are administred to them they want not food Yea children in the wombe before they bee born to see the light yet they want not food but are fed by the Navell from the blood that is gathered in the mothers wombe before they come forth to suck the brests And so is it with the Infants in the Church they are fed by the blood and Spirit of Christ in Baptism before they can suck the sincere milk of the Word Silvester The Church of the New Testament succeedeth the Old but it will not follow that the like subjects succeed each other also For no rejected Ishmaelite and Esau are to bee admitted either unto Union or Communion in the Church under the New Testament by Christs appointment therefore though Baptisme succeed Circumcision yet the same subjects doe not so Silvanus The Church of the Old Testament consisted of no other subject matter then such as professed the Faith of the God of Israel and their seed And the Church of the New Testament consisteth of the like Grounds and proofes whereof wee have given above Ishmael and Esau when they shewed themselves to bee rejected of God they were not admitted to any further Union or Communion with the Church in the Old Testament No more were Simon Magus Ananias and Sapphira allowed any longer Union and Communion with the Church of the New Testament after they once shewed themselves like Esau or Ishmael to bee rejected of God But before that time Simon Magus Ananias and Sapphira were as well admitted into Union and Communion with the Church of the New Testament as young Ishmael and Esau in the Old Silvester Yea but such were not admitted into the Church of the New Testament by Christs appointment Silvanus What say you then to Judas a man as bad or worse then any of them either in Old or New Testament Did not Christ himself appoint him to an Office yea to an high Office in the Church And can you then say he had no Union or Communion with the Church of the New Testament Silvester The two Testaments are as Wills containing certain Legacies given and bequeathed onely to such whose names are expressely set down in the same as Rev. 21.27 In the Old Testament as the first will a male of eight dayes old or a Proselyte Exod. 12.48 49. Gen. 17.10.14.23.25 Joh. 8 Phil. 3.4 5. In the New Testament as the last will of Christ the Legacies therein contained as the Priviledges and blessings of Abraham they are given only to such as beleeve and to none else Gal. 3.14.22.29 Rom. 8.17 and 4.11 12. and 9.7 8. Gal. 3.6 7. These are such as are begotten again by the immortall seed of the Word born of the Spirit and so children of God the onely true heires of the Kingdome of God with the prviledges thereof as Jam. 1.18 1 Pet. 2.23 Joh. 1.12 13. Joh. 3.5 6. 1 Joh. 3.9 10. Rom. 8.17 These are the holy seed which God so approves of in the Scriptures as Subjects of Grace and Heires of Life and being in Covenant they only have right to the priviledges thereof And their children and off-spring are such as succeed them in the same Faith and Truth and so are called the Generation of the Righteous succeeding each other in the way of Righteousnesse and not their Infants or personall seed proceeding from their loynes by carnall generation as Isa 43.5 and 44.3 and 54.3 and 59.21 and 66.22 and 61.9 and 65.23 Compare Rev. 12.17 Gal. 4.26 to 31. Silvanus I willingly acknowledge that the two Testaments are two Wills containing such Legacies as are bequeathed and given onely to such whose names are either expressely set down or whose condition is plainly described in them Otherwise if you stand upon expresse names are there any such names expressely set down as William and Rowland Richard and Robert Godfrey and Geoffrey or the like And would you exclude all such whose names are not expressely set down from any Legacies in either Testament But I take your meaning to bee by names to understand Natures or Conditions and by expressely set down to understand plainly described The place which you alledge out of Revel 21.27 is a part of the description of the pure Church of the Jewes after their last Conversion the New Hierusalem by the condition of such Proselytes as from among the Nations shall enter into fellowship with them They shall not bee prophane persons defilers and corrupters of others nor makers of images which are abominations and lies And thus far the description agreeth to Infants as well as to men of riper yeers As for the other part of the description that none shall enter but such
ver 5. yet by water may either bee understood the Spirit it self as washing the soule like water in Regeneration or if Baptisme bee understood yet it is not there considered as a necessary ingredient to Church-fellowship but as a necessary instrument of the Spirit unto the sealing up of Regeneration the carelesse neglect and contempt whereof would exclude from salvation Luk. 7.30 It would therefore seem a more reasonable matter Silvester to administer Baptisme to a person when the spirit is in hand with his Regeneration But to what end shall Baptisme bee administred to Infants when wee doe not discern that the Spirit is about any such work as the Regenration of them It is no unwonted thing with God Silvanus to give that for a signe of a thing which shall not bee accomplished of many dayes or yeers after God gave the Rainbow for a sign that hee would no more destroy the world with water The performance whereof remaineth still to bee accomplished to the end of the world God gave two sticks joyned together in Ezekiels hand to bee a signe of the joyning together of Judah and Joseph in one state Ezek. 37.16 to 22. which is not yet accomplished nor will bee till their last conversion God gave Circumcision to the Israelites as a signe that hee would circumcise their hearts and the hearts of their seed Deut. 29.6 And yet sometimes their own hearts sometimes the hearts of their seed were not circumcised of many yeers after It is enough that as in Circumcision so in Baptisme God sealeth up that promise and Covenant which hee hath made to beleevers to bee a God to them and to their seed For the present according to Covenant God preserveth and nourisheth the seed of the faithfull by his Fatherly providence God the Son as hee undertook to the Israelites so hee hath already performed it to us to shed his blood for us and our children The holy Ghost to whom it belongeth to work Regeneration hee may take his own good time sooner or later to performe that work in our Children which hee hath wrought in our selves God is as faithfull in the New Testament as in the Old and Baptisme which succeedeth Circumcision in sealing the same Covenant will undoubtedly bee accomplished in applying all the blessings of the Covenant to us and our seed as ever Circumcision found accomplishment to the Israelites and their seed Silvester Although Baptisme succeedeth Circumcision yet the difference is great both in matter and manner in persons and things Circumcision sealeth to things temporall and carnall as well as spirituall and so were the subjects and things to come as under types and shadowes and so in a cloud and darknesse wheras Baptisme hath for its subjects children of the light in the clear evidence of the Spirit with the face open and confirmes faith in things come and already done For Baptisme sealeth onely to faith in Christ and grace in the new Birth which cannot bee where there is not first a begetting by the immortall seed of the Word of Life for which end God hath ordained in the Gospel faith and beleeving to goe before Baptizing as Mat. 28.19 with Mark 16.15 16. And that way and order which hath not God for its Authour and found in the Records of Christ with his Image and superscription upon it let us say as sometimes hee did Give to Caesar that which is Caesars and to God that which is Gods So say I give to Antichrist his baptizing of Infants and to Christ his baptizing of Beleevers What advantage will it bee to Infants to come before they bee called to have a name to live and yet dead for ought any one knows and to come to the Marriage Supper without a wedding garment Shall the holy things of God bee forced upon such as neither beleeve know or once desire them Will men set a seale to a blanck Are Children capable to receive meat before they bee born Except wee make Baptisme the wombe of Regeneration as many doe who teach that Infants are regenerated and born againe of the Spirit of Grace in Baptisme Whose Doctrine is of the same stampe and authority as hee that sent them so to Preach What can be more naturall then the begetting or bringing forth of the Infant before feeding of it at the Mothers brests Is it not sacriledge to presse such upon the Wife of Christ the Church for her Paps with whom shee never travelled nor bare of her body Christ will deny himself to bee food and nourishment to any where hee hath not beene first seed to beget Let men take heed how they impute such folly to the wisdome of God as to give the milk of his brests unto any that are still-born or to set dead twigges in his heavenly and divine stock or naturall branches into his holy and spirituall Vine Let such beware how they fight against the God of Order lest instead of finding the brests to feed before the womb to beare they meet with a curse upon the single emptinesse of Christ with a double barrennesse that will admit of no conception or spirituall birth to succeed the naturall Not that I intend in the least to deny salvation unto Infants no I am so far from this that I testify against all such Doctrine nor yet affirm all Infants to bee saved neither doe I know among Infants which shall be saved and which not Therefore I leave it as a secret thing to God untill hee make the same appeare by some visible act of Faith which onely giveth a visible right unto any Ordinance of the New Testament And therefore I cannot see by the Gospel how Infants voyd of visible Faith should have visible right to the Priviledges of Grace neither ought they to bee admitted thereunto You have seen by the Gospel that the blessing of Abraham Silvanus is come upon the beleeving Gentiles and that the blessing of Abraham was that Covenant or Promise of Grace that God would bee a God to him and to his seed and that his seed was not only spirituall Christians for they are beleevers themselves but the seed of beleevers Now beleevers are one thing and the seed of beleevers is an other they are two distinct subjects of the Covenant And seeing the Covenant of God hath distinguished them who are you that you should confound them What if Infants bee void as you say of visible Faith yet their right to the Covenant and to the seale of the Covenant is or ought to bee visible to all men For it is visible they are the children of beleevers and it is visible that the Covenant is given to beleevers and to their seed whether they shall bee saved or no it is not required that it should bee visible but let it bee as you say it is a secret thing to God yet God hath made it visibly shall I say or audibly to appear that hee accounteth them holy 1 Cor. 7.14 and that
would answer Jesus himselfe baptized none Iohn 4.2 If you aske againe but why did not hee command his Disciples to baptiz them I answer because it may be both they and their children were baptized before Or because it doth not appeare that their Parents came to bee baptized of him or had themselves been baptized before though out of a godly affection they brought their children to him that he might blesse them Now it was not meet that the children should bee baptized when neither of the Parents of any of them were baptized nor brought their children to such an end Though we baptize children yet we doe not give them as you say a name to live when they bee dead For they may be truly said to live in that sense wherein the dead bodies of Abraham Isaac and Iacob are said to live to him Luke 20.37 38. For though they were then dead in their graves yet God being the God of Abraham Isaac and Iacob by Covenant hee will therefore raise up their dead bodies to life againe And so it is with the Infants of believers though they were by nature dead in sinne yet God the God of their Fathers being a God to them by vertue of the Covenant seeing God is not the God of the dead but of the living God will therefore according to his Covenant raise them up to newnesse of life that they may live in his sight If any of them fall short of that life it is because they make themselves twice dead by casting off the Covenant of their fathers I marvaile why you should call the baptisme of Infants a com ming to the marriage supper without a wedding Garment If you meane by comming to the marriage Supper partaking of the Lords Table you are not ignorant there is great difference in this case between the Lords Supper and Baptisme such may bee admitted to Baptism as may not be admitted to the Lords Supper We do not force as you call it the holy things of God upon such as nei ther believe nor know nor once desire them For if Parents doe not willingly offer their children to Baptisme we doe not force them And if they bring them and prefent them to Christ Christ accepteth the Parents bringing of them as much as the childrens comming in their own person Mar. 10.13 14. Why should you call the Baptisme of infants the settting of a seal unto a blank Is the Covenant of God to believing Parents and their seed become a blanke Is the promise of pouring out the Spirit of regeneration upon the seed and off-spring of believers a blank Isa 44.3 But it seemeth by your opinion if our children bee not full of themselves all the promises of God are a blanke and empty to them Though children be not capable to receive meat before they bee borne yet their Parents who are borne againe had need of some sign the sign appointed of God to feed and strengthen their faith in the Covenant that God will bee a God to them and their seed Besides the Baptisme which children receive before their regeneration is a seale and confirmation of the Covenant and of all the promises thereof to them after their regeneration The Circumcision which David received in his infancy did confirme his faith and confidence of victory against Goliah the uncircumcised Philistine after he was grown up to mans estate 1 Sam. 17 26. Signs given of God for future blessings are neither blanks nor preposterous We doe not make baptisme as you say the wombe of regeneration nor teach that Infants are regenerated and borne of the Spirit of grace in Baptisme Nor doe I finde that it was their judgement who compyled that book where such words are used men may thankfully acknowledge a benefit as received when they have onely received a promise of it and see it confirmed with a signe when Gedeon received a signe of the accomplishment of Gods promised victory over the Midianites though that signe was but a dreame and of a blessing to come yet Gedeon thankfully worshipped God for it and accepted the Victory as already granted him For so saith the Text Judg. 7.15 When Gedeon heard the telling of the dreame and the interpretation of the dreame hee worshipped and returned into the Host of Israel and said Arise for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the Host of Midian It is to no purpose to ask us as you doe what can bee more naturall then begetting and bringing forth of the Infant before feeding of it at the Mothers brests Is it not sacriledge to presse such upon the Pappes of the Wife of Christ his Church with whom shee never travelled or bare of her body For wee doe not look at the Sacraments neither doth the Scripture take them as the brests or Paps of the Church The wit of man can make an Image to it selfe and then play before it as the Israelites did before the golden Calfe Twice doth the Scripture mention the brests of the Church and never meaneth them for the Sacraments but for the Ministers of the Church full of the sincere milk of the Word equall in Office as the brests hoin bignesse and such as doe themselves feed among Lillyes Cant. 4.5 and 7.3 and 8.10 You must strain your wit farre to make the brests of the Church agree to the Sacraments Baptisme is rather the Navell of the Church whereby the Infant hath nourishment derived to it before it bee born Cant. 7.2 And as for the Lords Supper if it bee the other of the two brests of the Church the oldest and strongest Christians had still need to suck of that brest and so must become againe babes in Christ Yea Baptisme it self though it bee a seale of Regeneration whether past or to come yet it sealeth up also such deliverance from afflictions and persecutions 1 Pet. 3 21. and such sanctification and cleansing from all sin to present us to Christ without spot or wrinckle Ephes 5.26 27. that the strongest Christian will have need to feed upon his Baptisme as strong meat for strong men even when he is to lay down his body in the dust and to expect from his Baptisme the resurrection of his body 1 Cor. 15.29 But say you Christ will deny himself to bee nourishment to any where hee hath not been first seed to beget Answer Though none can take any nourishment till they bee begotten No Prince will deny to give a Charter to a Corporation of his Subject and a Charter sealed with the Great Seale of such and such Lands and inheritances for the maintenance and nourishment of them and their children and their childrens children for ever before any children bee yet born to them Your exhortations therefore for want of a ground-work of Truth doe fall of themselves to the ground like an house built upon the Sand. Let men take heed say you how they impute such folly to the wisdome of God as to give the milk of his brests to
establish their owne righteousnesse which is by the law And though some of them received Christ as did the false Teachers in the Churches of Galatia and did also acknowledge their freedome from the sacrifices and burnt offerings and from many other Leviticall Ceremonies of the Law yet so long as they looked to be justified by the works of the moral law and retained circumcision as still necessary by the law they still pertained to Hierusalem that now is as the Apostle calleth it and all of them were children of the bond-woman that is of the Covenant of the Law given on Mount Sinai It is therefore a grosse error and withall a notorious injury to the godly Saints that lived in the dayes of the Old Testament to account them the children of Hagar and to make it a part of their bondage that their Infants were received into the fellowship of the Church with themselves No no whilst themselves believed in the promised seed for righteousnesse and salvation and their children were circumcised into the grace of the Covenant the righteousnesse of faith they and their seed were accounted the children of the Covenant of grace the free-woman till any of them rejected that grace as Ishmael and Esau did By this which hath been said may easily bee understood what is meant by Sarah not the state of the Church of the New Testament as you confine it rather then define it but the Covenant of Grace by which God of his Grace gave himselfe to bee a God to beleevers and to their seed both in the Old and New Testament till any of them should afterwards grow up to renounce him and the Grace of his Covenant which if they doe then their Circumcision is made uncircumcision and they renouncing the Covenant of Grace fall under the Covenant of the Law and come to bee accursed by the Law But for the children of this Covenant of whom Isaac was a type they are not onely such as are Regenerate above the ordinary course of Nature by vertue of the Covenant of Grace and so doe beleeve in the promise of Grace for righteousnesse and salvation but also the children of such beleeving Parents whom their Parents doe beget in the Faith of the Covenant and Promise of Grace to themselves and their seed For Isaac himself when he was an Infant born hee was not as then born anew of the promise and spirit of Grace but his Father begot him in the Faith of the Promise And his Mother Sarah by Faith received strength to conceive seed because shee judged him faithfull who had promised Heb. 11.11 The second main pillar upon which your glosse on this Text is held up is that the two sons Ishmael and Isaac type out the different subjects of these two states of Churches Ishmael being a type of the estate in generall of the Church of the old Testament and Isaac being a type of the state of the Churches of the New Testament But neither will this glosse stand with the Apostles words For the Apostle maketh these two sons to bee the children engendred or bred of these two Mothers Now children as they are engendred or bred of their Mothers they are not properly the subjects of their Mothers though they bee subject to them but their effects The Mothers therefore being not the twofold state of the Churches of the Old and New Testament but the two Covenants of the Law and of Grace Ishmael the son of Hagar the bond-woman is the type of all those Members in the Church whether of the Old or New Testament as who look for righteousnesse and salvation by the works of the Law and doe therefore lye under the bondage and curse of the Law such were those in Micah 6. who thought God would be pleased and appeased with thousands of Lambs and ten thousand Rivers of oyle v. 6 7. Such also at that time was the whole body generally of the Priests and Rulers and People of Hierusalem in the Apostles dayes which hee calleth the Hierusalem that now is And such were all the false Apostles and false Teachers and their Disciples in the Churches of Galatia Philâ—ppi and Colosse who refused the righteousnesse of God by faith in Christ Jesus and sought to establish their owne righteousnesse by the works of the law on the other side Isaac being the sonne of Sarah the free-woman and Sarah representing the Covenant of Grace he is the type of all those members in the Church whether before Christ in the Old Testament or since Christ in the New as are begotten and bred of the promise and Covenant of grace wherby by God giveth himselfe to bee a God to the believer and his seed who therefore looke for all their righteousnesse and salvation to themselves and their seed not from the workes of the Law nor from all their outward priviledges but from the grace and righteousnesse of God in Christ Jesus Onely thus much further I will not stick to grant you That as the two Covenants are the two mothers that are represented by Hagar and Sarah so those Churches that are begotten and bred of either of these Covenants and so are themselves the children of the one or of the other of these Covenants they may be said to bee the mothers of those particular members which by their Ministery are engendred and bred whether of the carnall seed of the Covenant of the Law or of the spiritual seed of the Covenant of Grace For in the Hebrew language any whole Society is called a mother and the particular members thereof are called children sons or daughters And this may somewhat further help to cleare the words and meaning of the Apostle in this place For the Apostle here maketh the Covenant of the Law to answer to Hierusalem that now is v. 25. as if so bee the Covenant of the law and the Church of the present Hierusalem which stood for the Covenant of the law were both 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of one rank and either of them might be called an Hagar a mother ingendering their children unto bondage And indeed the Church engendereth and breedeth her children by dispensing and administring the seed of that Covenant of which themselves are begotten In like manner the Apostle maketh the other mother Sarah the Covenant of grace to be all one with the true Church of Christ which he calleth the Hierusalem which is above and maketh her the mother of us all v. 26. Because though shee bee her selfe begotten and bred of the Covenant of grace yet shee dispensing and administring the same spirituall seed begetteth children like her self partakers of the libâ—rty of the sons of God And yet to adde a word more which may tend further to clear the words and meaning of the Apostle as this seed of the Covenant of Grace dispensed and administred by true and pure Churches is rightly called spirituall seed in which the Spirit of grace delighteth to breath and worke and therefore they that are begotten