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A93852 The royal law contended for, or, Some brief grounds serving to prove that the Ten Commandments are yet in full force, and shall so remain till heaven and earth pass away. Also the seventh day Sabbath, proved from the beginning, from the law, from the prophets, from Christ, from his apostles, to be a duty yet incumbent upon saints and sinners. / By a lover of peace with truth Edward Stennet. Stennett, Edward, d. 1690? 1658 (1658) Wing S5402B; ESTC R184622 38,860 48

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THE ROYAL LAW CONTENDED FOR OR Some Brief Grounds serving to prove that the Ten Commandements are yet in full force and shall so remain till Heaven and Earth pass away ALSO The Seventh Day Sabbath proved from the Beginning from the Law from the Prophets from Christ from his Apostles to be a duty yet incumbent upon Saints and Sinners By a Lover of Peace with Truth Edward Stennet They that forsake the Law praise the wicked but such as keep the Law contend with them Prov. 28.4 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter Fear God and keep his Commandments for this is the whole duty of man Eccles 12.13 The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath therefore the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath Mark 2.27 28. Then shall I not be ashamed when I have respect to all thy Commandments Psal 119.6 LONDON Printed in the Year 1658. TO ALL That truly fear the LORD and tremble at his Word IT was not in the least my purpose to expose the ensuing discours to publique view but to communicate it onely to some private Christian friends as a reason of the hope that is in me in relation to the Law of the Lord. I being in a good measure sensible of my own weakness and unfitnes● for such a work but the Lord was pleased to bless these my weak endeavours with the successes of conviction to some and refreshment to others of his dear servants who were my encouragers after solemne waiting upon our Heavenly Father unto this which I can truly say I was dead unto although I was and am perswaded that the gates of Hell shall not prevail against the truth therein contained but my weakness in the management of it was the great obstruction But I am willing to press after a likeness to Jesus Christ who made himself of no reputation and to learn of him who was meek and lowly in heart I am not so conceited to present this Treatise as a thing that 's rare or new either to the Saints or World for if they will look about them they may see this truth in a better dress and lustre but it may be the tender Lambs and Sucking-Babes of Jesus Christ may better understand my stammering tongue then those that speak more distinctly and that 's one main encouragement to me I do profess in the presence of him who tryes the heart and reines Light hath broak forth since I wrote these papers about the Law in general and the Sabbath in particular it being five or six months since they were written yet notwithstanding I am now encouraged by the Lord I trust and by his people to speak this on the house top which was spoken to me in secret because so many of the Lords people are so deluded that they have rejected the Law of God and live in a weekly profanation of his Holy Sabbath thinking that Christ abolisht the whole Law at his death though Christ utterly denys it and would have none to harbour such a thought Mat. 5.17 although many of the men of this opinion may be good yet it makes their error not one Jote the better For this flows from their carnality and not their spirituality for the carnal mind is not subject to the Law of God neither indeed can be Rom. 8.7 But because truth springs up out of the earth and righteousness looks down from Heaven and the ancient honourable institution of Jehovah now begins to shine with such clearness that it cannot be razed out of the tables and therefore all is cast away together which is such an invention as would not have been thought on by many I am certain if Sabbath Light had been concealed The two ancient institutions of the Lord in Paradise were Mariage and the Sabbath both which are called and esteemed honorable Heb. 13.4 Marriage is honorable in all and in Isay 58.13 the Sabbath is called the Holy of the Lord honorable and Christ leads us to the beginning of them both when the question was whether men might put away their wives for every fault the answer is that Moses did but suffer it to be so because of the hardness of their hearts but from the beginning it was not so Mat. 19.34 35.36 37. and when the Pharisees were so ignorant that they thought works of mercy were not to be done upon the Sabbath day Christ leads them to the first institution of it and tels them it was made for man Mark 2.24 27. Both these institutions were made for the good and benefite of man in his Paradise estate which is sufficient proofe for their duration Paul saith that the man was not created for the woman but the woman for the man 1 Cor. 11.9 and our blessed Lord of the Sabbath saith that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath Then Christians be noble spirited and search the Scriptures with all readiness of mind and with hearts longing after truth get as remote from earth and earthly things as you can and into the secret chamber of your beloved and when you are the most transported from earth to heaven in near and close communion with him then try and judge by his word and spirit weighing Scripture with Scripture in an equal ballance and be as cautious in taking up objections against this truth as you are of being in the practise of it T' is sad to see and that which wounds my spirit much that persons professing godliness should be so inconsiderate as to catch at any thing that comes next to hand to strike at that which a differing Saint affirms is truth without considering the weight of what is offered or whither their own objections lead them I have seen more gall and wormwood at the bottom of those objections that have been made against the Sabbath then ever I saw in any objections against any other command and even some Christians are so weak that all passes for currant that flows from a man that 's good and able but where are those virgin spirits that are redeemed from the earth and from among men that lay persons interests customes by whilest they judge between truth and error where ever they are they are men which will follow the Lamb when others are left behind They will not be affrighted at the seventh day Sabbath because nicknamed called the Jews Sabbath no more then they are at the God of the Jews they will not refuse to keep the Sabbath because a man was stoned any more then they will refuse Jehovah to be their God because those that worship strange Gods were to be put to death and if they be told they go back to the Law they can answer blessed are they that do his Commandements that they may have right to the Tree of Life and may enter in through the gate into the City when the breakers of the Law are left without Rev. 22.14 15. Do you therefore that fear the Lord
break my Statutes and keep not my Commandements vers 30 31. Then will I visit their transgression with a rod and their iniquity with stripes vers 32. Neverthelesse my loving kindness will I not utterly take away nor suffer my faithfulnesse to fail Mark it this Covenant was with Christ though with David in the Type in the behalf of all the seed and chastisements must be the portion of the seed if they break the Law of God though his Covenant stand fast now as this Covenant reaches all the seed so doth the Law and the punishment for the breach of it and if so then what Law is it that reaches all the seed if not the Law of the Ten Commandements with those Laws which are comprehended in them 5. These Commandments are eminently distinguished and marked out from all the Ceremonial Laws both to shew their eminency and perpetuity they are said to be the work of God Exod. 32.16 and the Psalmist saith The works of his hands are verity and judgement and these works are called all his Commandments Psal 111.7 and they are Ten Deut. 4.13 Exod. 34.28 And therefore I conceive Wisedoms son is to bind them upon his fingers to shew the number of them there being for each finger one and that both hands might be active in them And Zachary and Elizabeth are said to walk in all the Commandments and Ordinances of the Lord Luke 1.6 They are distinguished from the Cerimonial Ordinances and called all the Commandments to set forth their number as before is said and their eminency and therefore they are so frequently called in the Scripture The Commandments of God distinct from the other Laws which were shadowy in the time of the Law of shadow ● As these places of Scripture besides many others do shew viz. Deut. 5.31 and 6.11 and 7.11 Deut. 8.11 and 11.1 and 30.16 1 Kin. 2.3 and 8.58 2 Chro. 19.10 Neh. 1.7 and 10.29 c. and distinct from the testimony of Jesus in clear Gospel times Rev. 12.17 Where note the dragons war is with the remnant of the Womans seed which keep the Commandments of God and the Testimony of Jesus and again here are they that keep the Commandments of God and the faith of Jesus Rev. 14.12 And when the man would know what he should do to be saved Christ told him that he knew the Commandments A cloud of witnesses would come in if need were for the confirmation of them But further observe what the Scripture saith to their duration the Psalmist saith All his Commandments are sure they stand fast for ever and ever and are done in truth and uprightnesse Psalm 111.7 8. Note it all his Commandments which are the works of his hands as aforesaid these all stand fast for ever and ever that is not only in the time of the ministration of the letter which was in a sense for ever but for ever and ever that is under both ministrations that of the letter and that of the spirit in Old Testament times and in the New and search and see if you can find any word that doth speak of any thing that is said to abide or stand fast for ever and ever which comes short of the time aforesaid And when God hides his face from the house of Jacob then is the time that the Testimony is bound up and the Law is sealed among the disciples Esay 8.16 17. Clearly relating to the time that the Jews rejected the Gospel and the disciples are commanded to make use of the Law as well as the Testimony to try the Doctrines of others by vers 20. all which shewes the perpetuity of this Law of God which will further appear if we consider What our Lord saith in Matth. 5.17 18. Think not that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets I came not to destroy but to fulfil But the question will be what Law this is To me it appears to be the Law of the Ten Commandments for these reasons 1. First because this comes in as the motive to provoke his disciples to let their lights shine in the world that men might see their good works and glorifie their Father which is in Heaven vers 16. Therefore it must be such a Law as the doing of it holds forth good works to publique view 2. It is such a Law as Christ professeth he came not to destroy but the Ceremonial Law he did destroy in this very sense so that none are to be in the practise of it he blotted out the hand-writing of ordinances that was against us and contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to his crosse Col. 2.14 3. Destroying of the Law is here put in direct opposition to fulfilling of it to destroy is to take out of the way or to blot out as before but to fulfil the Law is to do that which is contained in the Law therefore saith Christ to John when he went to be baptised It becometh us to fulfil all righteousness that is to perform it Matth. 3.15 and the Apostle saith That love is the fulfilling of the Law what Law why this Thou shalt not commit adultery Thou shalt not kill Thou shalt not steal and the like Rom. 13.8.9 Love worketh no evil to his neighbour therefore love is the fulfilling of the Law vers 10. So that to fulfil the Law of the Ten Commandments is not to blot them out or make them void that were to destroy them which Christ came not to do but on the contrary to do the things contained in them which he did exactly in his life and so was offered up a Lamb without spot 4. This is such a Law as must stand in force every jot and title of it till Heaven and Earth pass away Matth. 5 19. but Heaven and Earth are not yet passed away therefore this Law stands firm but because it is said in the Text Till all be fulfilled hence some affirm that all was fulfilled at the death of Christ and this fulfilling of it holds forth the abrogating of it But did Heaven and Earth pass away then or did Christ by his taking upon him all that guilt which was due to us and by his perfect fulfilling of it in his walk take us from our obedience God forbid because Christ fulfilled the righteousness of the Law must not we fulfill it Even as Archippus was to fulfil his ministry Col. 4.17 which would be absurd to think that that was to put it to an end The Apostle saith that for this end Christ dyed Rom. 8.3 4. saying For what the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh God sent forth his son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin condemned sin in the flesh that the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the spirit But what is the fulfilling of the righteousness of the Law First to do the righteous things contained in
goeth before the morning because the darkness was before the light vers 1 2 3. Obj. But some will say it is not said the evening and the morning was the seventh day Answ If the evening and the morning be the sixth day the evening and the morning must needs be the seventh day unless we should think that the seventh day hath no night belonging to it some think that the reason why no mention is made of the evening of the seventh day is because the Sabbath is a day of joy and delight or an earnest of the new Jerusalem state wherein shall be no night Rev. 21.25 Night doth frequently in the Scripture hold forth a stare of affliction but the Sabbath is a holy sanctified time on it the Creatour rested and was refreshed and commanded the observation of it that his creatures might be refreshed Nehemiah's practise is sufficient proofe for the beginning of the Sabbath at evening Chap. 13.19 who when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark he commanded them to be shut till after the Sabbath And if you would know when the evening begins the Evangelist doth inform you Mark 1.32 At even when the Sun did set they brought unto him all that were diseased when the Sun doth set then begins the evening then begins the holy rest or seventh day Sabbath and so the disciples of Christ began the Sabbath and so the Lords ancient people celebrate the Sabbath unto this day But what confusion are they in who say the Sabbath was changed from the seventh day to the first day and yet observe neither but pare of the first day and part of the second day for they begin their Sabbath at midnight when a good part of the first day is spent and they end at midnight when a good part of the second day is spent and yet they will have this to be a Sabbath yea and a first day Sabbath and will highly charge a man to be an offender if he work one hour upon the first day though themselves work five and thus we see how Antichrist hath changed times as well as Laws Dan. 7.28 a first day Sabbath in stead of the seventh day Sabbath in stead of from even to evening from midnight to midnight when most are fast a sleep being insensible of the beginning of their Sabbath or of the ending of it But blessed be the Lord that he hath revealed this his ancient useful honorable truth to wit the Holy seventh day Sabbath notwithstanding all the inventions of Antichrist to bury it in oblivion and that he is pleased to separate a remnant that are resolved to search and try their ways and to turn unto him to follow him in the wayes of his precepts notwithstanding the dragons wrath who will not take things upon trust nor go upon the legs of men but will try all things and hold fast that which is good for they are virgins and the Lamb they will follow though their company be small and their charges great they will not be afraid of the Sabbath because it was given to the Jews no more then they are afraid of the Adoption and the glory and the promises and the other nine lively Oracles which were all given to the Jews Rom. 9.4 And this I may modestly say to the praise of the Lord of the Sabbath and without boasting that if the Saints did know how the Lord delights to meet with his people in this way of obedience in celebrating the Sabbath they would soon call the Sabbath a delight the Holy of the Lord honorable and honour him by ceasing from their own works as God did from his and do those works which are suteable for the blessed season But I shall say no more at present save only this that who ever they are that would follow the Lord in this appointment of his they must labour much in the strength of his spirit to get this world under them for it stands in direct opposition to earthly men and earthly principles therefore pray with the Psalmist Psal 119.36 Incline mine heart unto thy testimonies and not to covetousnesse FINIS