viz. an Entail of a particular Enjoyment of the Worship of God amongst them for many Generations together But this will fall under Consideration when I come to treat of the New Testament Church Thirdly Where internal Grace did accompany these Ordinances of Circumcision and the Paschal Lamb with other parts of the Old Testament Worship the Elect Seed were brought to have spiritual Mercies convey'd to their Souls through it Abraham hath that Honour conferr'd upon him to be a Father not only to a numerous Offspring who did enjoy an Earthly Inheritance by Covenant-right as descending from him but likewise a Father of the spiritual Seed both Jews and Gentiles who should share with him in the same Faith and so come to share in those precious Promises made to him as a Believer through the Lord Jesus Christ That he stood as a Father to this twofold Seed doth appear from the words of our Lord Joh. 8.37 I know that ye are Abraham 's Seed but ye seek to kill me because my Word hath no place in you That is ye are only of that Seed who by virtue of descent from him do enjoy the Privileges of Earthly Enjoyments Ver. 39. They answered and said unto him Abraham is our Father Jesus saith unto them If ye were Abraham 's Children ye would do the Works of Abraham That is if you were of his spiritual Seed and of the same Faith with him it would shew it self by its Works as Abraham's Faith did who saw my day of appearance as a Redeemer and rejoiced Of his natural Seed as such I have already spoken and the Privileges they enjoy'd I now come to treat of his Spiritual Seed that did descend from him who did not come to their Right by being the Offspring of believing Abraham but by being of the same Faith with him Rom. 9.7 8. Neither because they are the Seed of Abraham are they all Children but in Isaac shall thy Seed be called That is They which are the Children of the Flesh these are not the Children of God but the Children of the Promise are counted for the Seed That is as Isaac's Birth was not by the natural strength of the Parents but by virtue of God's Promise which bound his Truth to set his Omnipotency on work to perform what he promised even so it is with all the spiritual Seed Without the moving of the same Power upon the Heart to subject the Heart unto him none could come into that state which will give its Evidence according to the Scriptures that they are of the spiritual Seed As it was by preaching of the Gospel unto Abraham or a renewing of the Promise of a Messiah to come which had been given out in the threatning against Satan Gen. 3.15 that Abraham was brought into Covenant so it was by the means which the Wisdom of God did think fit to make use of to convey the knowledg of the Messiah to come unto the Souls of these Israelites who were to be Abraham's spiritual Seed and the ordinary means was that Worship appointed by God in the Old Testament Church to these that were of years The way that God takes to convey Grace to elect Infants in all Ages being a Secret which he is pleased not to discover unto us I desire to leave them to his rich Grace which flows to Sinners through a dear Redeemer and to his own way to apply it unto their Souls and shall return to treat of the matter in hand As Abraham was a Father to a twofold Seed and the believing Israelites were to proceed from him by Generation as well as the Unbelievers and as both these were to be imbodied together into one Nation and Church for many Generations so the natural Seed having the things intended for them by the Covenant sealed unto them it was necessary that his spiritual Seed should have their Covenant-Mercies sealed to them Abraham received the sign of Circumcision a Seal of the Righteousness of the Faith which he had yet being uncircumcised that he might be the Father of all them that believe The outward part of the Ordinance was not the Evidence of the Israelites being Abraham's spiritual Seed but that which was figured out by it unto the spiritual Seed was the Evidence which was the having their Hearts circumcised Corruption removed and Grace planted in the Soul for altho an outward Ordinance be the means leading to the inward where the Spirit concurs with it it is from the inward that the Soul receives Comfort being thereby brought into a condition to enjoy Communion with God and through Faith to behold the Heavenly Canaan before it As the Paschal Lamb was appointed to figure out to the natural Seed that God was accomplishing his Promise in bringing of them to an Earthly Canaan so where the spiritual Seed were led by Faith to behold that the Paschal Lamb was but a Type of the Lord Jesus Christ the great Passover they through Faith were brought to behold that God was upon the accomplishing of his Promise in bringing of them to the Heavenly Canaan The Apostle in Heb. 9.9 10. shews us that the Old Testament Church-state was but a Figure for the time then present in which were offered both Gifts and Sacrifices that could not make him that did sacrifice perfect at pertaining to the Conscience which stood in Meats and Drinks and carnal Ordinances imposed on them until the time of Reformation Not that the Ordinances were carnal in respect of the things typified by them and apprehended through the help of the Spirit by the spiritual Seed But saith Mr. Hildersam such as carnal Men might perform and very sutable to the Disposition of a carnal Heart God by his Wisdom ordering his Worship in this manner that so the natural Seed and the spiritual Seed of Abraham from the first setting up or forming that People into a Church might remain imbodied together until the times of Reformation that is the New Testament Church-state Their Privileges by fleshly right do then end and the natural Seed ceaseth from being counted any longer a Church or People to God but as they fall in with the spiritual Seed of Abraham and receive the Qualification which the New Testament Church calls for in order to be a Member of it Rom. 11.19 20 21. Thou wilt say then The Branches were broken off that I might be graffed in Well because of Vnbelief they were broken off and thou standest by Faith be not high-minded but fear For if God spared not the natural Branches take heed lest he also spare not thee These words I think do comprehend the whole matter of which I have been treating in this Chapter the Branches that are broken off are the natural Seed of Abraham or as Paul calls them the Children of the Flesh such as tho destitute of spiritual Grace in their Souls yet by virtue of Birth-Privilege did enjoy as a Branch from Abraham a right of Membership in the Old Testament Church
come to partake of them the Promises run to him and fix in him as in an immoveable Rock that can never be shaken 2dly He is the Head of the Elect and the way through which electing Love doth pass to every elect Person because they are given to him as a Seed Psal 89.27 28 29. Also I will make him my first-born higher than the Kings of the Earth My Mercy will I keep for him for evermore my Covenant shall stand fast with him His Seed will I make to endure for ever and his Throne as the days of Heaven Compared with Heb. 2.13 And again I will put my Trust in him And again I and the Children which God hath given me As the first Adam conveys natural Defilement to all his Seed and that which causeth the loss of Communion with God so the Lord Jesus Christ that conveys to all the elect Seed which removes that which hinders Communion and restores Communion to them John 6.57 As the living Father sent me and I live by the Father so he that eateth me even he shall live by me Here is three Livers here is 1. The Life of the Godhead 2. Here is the Man Christ living upon the Godhead 3. Here is the Believer living upon the Lord Jesus Christ as God-man in one Person the Divine Nature putting Life into the Manhood and conveying of that Life to the Elect. Gal 3.16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the Promises made He saith not To Seeds as of many but as of one And to thy Seed which is Christ Is Christ mystical here meant saith Leigh then the Elect are comprehended in him To Abraham and his Seed were the Promises made to Abraham in Christ and not to Christ in Abraham saith Kendal against John Goodwin 3dly It doth appear that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the Elect and the way through which electing Love doth pass to every elect Person from the Experience of the Saints from Abel to this very day The Elect that were in the World before his appearance in the state of his Humiliation did all by Faith look at him and through him were brought to the enjoyment of God and upon him lay their hope of persevering with God Heb. 12.1 2. Wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a Cloud of Witnesses let us lay aside every weight and the Sin that doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the Race that is set before us looking unto Jesus the Author and finisher of our Faith This Cloud of Witnesses that look'd unto Jesus were the Saints from Abel's time in the 11th Chapter The Saints that have been and are in the World in the times of the New Testament through Jesus do go to God through Jesus do enjoy Communion with God 2 Cor. 4.6 For God who commanded Light to shine out of Darkness hath shined into our Hearts to give the Light of the Knowledg of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ To sum up this Chapter Was the Lord Jesus Christ comprehended in the Womb of the Decree of Election Was the Union of the two Natures in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ comprehended in the Decree as the Head of the Elect and by the Decree appointed to be the Conveyer of Grace to every elect Person Then whatever was acted and done by him was subservient to the Decree and proves the Covenant of Grace and Redemption to be but one Covenant Joh. 4.34 Jesus saith unto them My Meat is to do the Will of him that sent me and to finish his work CHAP. II. Of the Redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ in two parts First Perfect Obedience to the Law Secondly Satisfaction to the Penalty of it for the Elect subservient to the Decree of Election and leading to answer the great Designs of it THE great God that he might make good that threatning against Satan That the Seed of the Woman should bruise the Serpents Head doth by the incomprehensible Power of the Holy Ghost first sanctify that Matter of which the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ was made and then without the help of Man's Seed did create or form it into the shape of Man to which a living Soul was given that so he might appear to be like his Brethren the Elect. To this second Man so wonderfully made was the eternal Word the second Person in the Godhead united in the Womb of the Virgin Mary and brought forth into the World our Emanuel the Mighty God the everlasting Father the wonderful Counsellor the Prince of Peace His Divine Nature being the express Image of his Father's Substance and in respect of it it was no Robbery in him to be the Father's equal and one with the Father That he might be one with the Elect he is wonderfully united to their Nature in the Womb of the Virgin and that he might figure out the Misery that all the Elect were in by Generation he is born in a Stable and laid in a Manger typifying out that by reason of their natural Pollution they were like their first Father Adam who was driven from the Presence of God amongst the Beasts He is put under the first Covenant that he might fulfil the Righteousness of it Gal. 4.4 5. Made under the Law to redeem them that were under the Law that we might receive the Adoption of Sons And he is not only put under the first Covenant to give it a perfect Obedience that in that Obedience of his the Elect might appear before God but he is likewise put under the first Covenant to give Satisfaction to the Wrong done to it by the Elect as they successively come into the World Gal. 3.13 Christ hath redeemed us from the Curse of the Law being made a Curse for us as it is written Cursed is every one that hangeth on a Tree Compared with Heb. 2.14 Forasmuch then as the Children are partakers of Flesh and Blood he the eternal Word also himself likewise took part of the same that through Death he might destroy him that had the Power of Death that is the Devil Those that stood in the Decree of Election as Children coming into the World in such a way by Generation as brought them under the defilements of Sin and so under the Penalty of the first Covenant the eternal Word takes hold of their Nature and by sanctifying of it in Death perfuming the Sacrifice by his Divine Nature the Penalty of the first Covenant is removed and a Pardon laid in for the Children as they shall successively come into the World and have it applied to their Souls by the Spirit They being interested in this Satisfaction the Penalties of the first Covenant are removed and the executive Power of it taken out of the hands of Satan Having now by way of Introduction opened the door into the Work of Redemption wrought by the Lord Jesus Christ I come in the next place to consider this Soul-amazing
Work under these three Heads First In his perfect Righteousness by which he answered the Requirings of the first Covenant Secondly In his giving up himself voluntarily to Death to answer the Justice of God for the Elect. Thirdly How it was subservient to the Decree of Election and answers the Design of it And first I shall consider this perfect Righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ and that I may the more clearly behold it I shall consider him with the Apostle as a second Adam and as a second Adam brought to the trial of his Obedience given up into the hands of Satan to be sifted and tried whether he would yield to the Tempter or no Mat. 4. from ver 1 to 11. From v. 1 to 3. we have the preparatory Work that went before the Temptation And here we may view the great difference that is betwixt the Persons of the two Adams the first Adam assisted with all the outward Advantages that were possible to be afforded him that he might withstand the Temptation the other put under all the outward Disadvantages that might tend to make him yield to it Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the Wilderness to be tempted of the Devil And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights he was afterwards an hungred The first Adam was under no necessity of feeling that grievous Misery that Hunger brings upon Nature having always a furnished Table before him the Temptation was in a place where there was no moving Cause to draw the Creature from his Obedience to God but his Disobedience was a voluntary Act. But the second Adam in his Human Nature to prepare for the Temptation was brought to feel the bitter Pain of Hunger Nature having wanted Supplies of Food for forty days and forty nights together and besides the Temptation is brought in a place even in a Wilderness destitute of all outward Support The next step is to consider the Progress of the Temptation it self in its three several Assaults First From ver 3 to v. 5. Secondly From ver 5 to v. 8. Thirdly From ver 8 to v. 12. And first As to the first Assault from ver 3 to v. 5. And when the Tempter came unto him he said If thou be the Son of God command that these Stones be made Bread But he answered and said Man shall not live by Bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the Mouth of God Let us compare this Temptation with the Temptation brought against the first Adam and consider the difference that is betwixt the Matter contain'd in the Temptations In the Temptation that was brought against Eve and handed by her to her Husband there is a Discontentedness with the Bounty already bestowed and a seeking by indirect means to attain to a greater pitch of Glory wrapt up in the Temptation Ye shall be as Gods knowing Good and Evil. In the Temptation brought against the second Adam the Lord Jesus Christ the Matter contain'd in the Temptation is more closely laid together here is the supply of Nature's Necessities presented and here is the working of a Miracle propounded to supply the craving Necessities of his Human Nature If thou consent Nature will be supplied and the Power of thy Divinity will be manifested The first Adam looks not at what should be the issue of going out of God's way to attain that which the Temptation presented to him and so is taken in the Snare The Lord Jesus looks to the Event as appears in his Answer to the Devil Man shall not live by Bread alone It 's the Blessing of God upon the Bread that makes it tend to the satisfying of Nature and not Bread alone without his Blessing that can do it and so he overcomes the Tempter The Devil being overcome in this first Assault he prepares for the second ver 5 6. And the Devil taketh him up into the holy City and setteth him on a Pinnacle of the Temple and saith unto him If thou be the Son of God cast thy self down for it is written He shall give his Angels charge concerning thee and in their hands they shall bear thee up lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a Stone Ver. 7. Jesus said unto him It is written again Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God Not that another Scripture opposeth the true meaning of that Scripture cited by the Devil but his addition to it Cast thy self down for he is said to tempt God who presumptuously without necessity seeks an Experiment of the Wisdom Power Goodness and Truth of God The Devil being overcome in this second Temptation prepares for the third ver 8. Again the Devil taketh him up into an exceeding high Mountain and sheweth him all the Kingdoms of the World and the Glory of them Ver. 9. And saith unto him All these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me Here he appears as a Liar in saying that the Kingdoms of the World and the Glory of it were at his disposal and he manifests his Pride in requiring the Son of God to fall down and worship him which is implied in our Saviour's Answer ver 10. Get thee hence Satan for it is written Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve It appears from what hath been here laid down that the Lord Jesus Christ being required as the Head of the Elect to give a perfect Obedience to the Law or the first Covenant did notwithstanding the assaults of Satan persevere in his Obedience which Obedience of his is in Scripture call'd God's Righteousness because of the Union of the two Natures in his Person and because it was by the Power of his Divine Nature that his Human Nature was supported and inabled to withstand the Temptations But seeing I shall have occasion to speak further of this Righteousness when I come to shew how the Holy Ghost doth apply it to the Souls of poor weary heavy-laden Sinners who fly out of self-dependance unto him as to a Sanctuary I shall proceed to the second part of the Redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ which consisted in his free and voluntary giving up of himself to answer the Justice of God for the Elect. And first I shall take notice of the Sufferings of his Soul Isa 53.10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him he hath put him to Grief when thou shalt make his Soul an Offering for Sin He never had committed Violence neither was Guile found in his Mouth but having undertaken to make Satisfaction to the Justice of God for the Elect and to undergo the Penalty of the first Covenant how did he feel the weight of Divine Wrath upon his Soul as that bitter fruit which doth attend Sin Mat. 26.37 38. And he took with him Peter and the two Sons of Zebedee and began to be sorrowful and very heavy Then saith he unto them My Soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto Death
the Lord revealed things to us and our Children PART III. Setting forth the Publication of Gospel-Grace from the Fall to Abraham the State of the Church until that time the Covenant made with him the Nature of the Old Testament Church-State and the New Testament Church-State CHAP. I. Of the Publication of Gospel-Grace from the Fall to Abraham the Church-State during that Dispensation OUR first Parents Adam and Eve having by Disobedience brought themselves and all their Offspring being included in them under the Penalty of the first Covenant the great God whose Mercy Grace and Goodness is over all his Works doth in his threatning against Satan publish the glad Tydings of the Gospel and doth hold forth a Redeemer to come of the Seed of the Woman Gen. 3.15 And I will put Enmity between thee and the Woman and between thy Seed and her Seed it shall bruise thy Head and thou shalt bruise his Heel In which Threatning we may observe that in the Word It and His the Person of the Redeemer was held forth unto our first Parents and upon the performance of this Threatning against Satan which did carry Gospel-Grace in it did the Children of God that lived in the World before Abraham relie They by Faith beheld him that was to come and through that Grace which was granted to poor Sinners in him they were brought to walk with God and to enjoy him In the prosecuting of the third Part of this Book I shall by the Assistance of the Spirit of God make it appear That the Gospel as to the Matter of it is one and the same with what is contained in this Threatning against Satan and that what renewals of Grace God hath in a Covenant-way bestowed upon any of his Children as upon Abraham and David they were but as so many Confirmations of the Certainty of a Redeemer to come and tended to streng-then this first Threatning and to confirm the Faith of the Fathers in the certain Performance of it That the Publication of Gospel-Grace did not br with God that were under the found of it is very clear It is not the bare Performance of those Duties required by the Gospel that doth evidence Persons being in Covenant with God but the Principle by which they are enabled to perform them An Instance of which we have in the two Brothers Cain and Abel Gen. 4.3 4 5. And in process of time it came to pass that Cain brought of the Fruit of the ground an Offering unto the Lord. And Abel he also brought of the Firstlings of his Flock and of the Fat thereof and the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his Offering And unto Cain and his Offering he had not respect and Cain was very wroth and his Countenance fell We cannot think that these two Brothers as they were the Children of Adam and Eve could be ignorant of the Threatning against Satan That the Seed of the Woman should bruise the Serpent's Head But one of them offer'd a more excellent Sacrifice than the other by Faith having a view of this blessed Redeemer upon the account of whose Worthiness and in whose Name he offer'd up his Offering unto God Abel's Soul being led by Faith to the Redeemer and through him unto God meets with the acceptance of his Person and of his Offering Cain who wants Faith hath both his Person and his Offering rejected How small was the number of the Spiritual Seed yea into what a small compass was the outward face of the Church brought when God brought the Flood upon the old World the outward face of the Church confined to Noah's Family Gen. 6.11 12 13. And the Earth was corrupt before God and the Earth was filled with Violence And God looked upon the Earth and behold it was corrupt for all Flesh had corrupted his way upon the Earth And God said unto Noah The end of all Flesh is come before me for the Earth is filled with Violence through them and behold I will destroy them with the Earth Although wicked Ham lived in this religious Family whose Father hath this Character given him by God himself Gen. 7.1 And the Lord said unto Noah Come thou and all thy House into the Ark for thee have I seen righteous before me in this Generation And although he was preserved with his Father from the Deluge his Heart is not the least touched with it but he seems rather hardned in his Wickedness as appears by that brutish Act of his to his Father when he lay uncovered in the Tent. Although Christ had a Church in the World from Adam until Abraham's time and as far as Light can be afforded from the holy Scriptures the Church did remain privately in Families yet that all those that were in the Family were Members of the Church much less brought into the Covenant of Grace the Scripture gives us no ground to believe I cannot but a little wonder to behold the Confidence of some Men who do assert That there was no Covenant of Grace before Abraham and in publick in my hearing have affirm'd that to make the Threatning against Satan the Covenant of Grace is to make God covenant with the Devil And again That when God ever took any Person into Covenant with him he also took all the Offspring or all his Seed into Covenant with him To question the Reality of such Assertions is to bring one under the Reproach of being Deniers of the Covenant of Grace as if they had a mind to inhance a kind of Infallibility to themselves by making Persons believe things from their pare Assertions CHAP II. Of the Covenant made with Abraham and of the Old Testament Church-State what was required to be a Member of it THAT the Covenant made with Abraham had something in it peculiar to him as a Believer for the strengthning of his Faith and likewise relating to a numerous Offspring which were to proceed from his Loins is that which I hope to clear up in the following Discourse And first relating to him as a Believer for the strengthning of his Faith in the blessed Redeemer who then was to come He hath this exceeding great Favour bestowed upon him to have the Promise of the Redeemer's coming renew'd unto him and that by a new Promise with this additional Favour annexed to it that the Redeemer according to the Flesh should be of his Seed which must certainly bring a great deal of comfort with it to believing Abraham Gen. 12.3 And I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee and in thee shall all the Families of the Earth be blessed compared with Gen. 22.18 And in thy Seed shall all the Nations of the Earth be blessed The Apostle Paul recites the very Words of the Promise and calls it a preaching the Gospel before unto Abraham Gal. 3.8 And the Scripture foreseeing that God would justify the Heathen through Faith preached before the Gospel unto Abraham saying In thee shall all
when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the Land of Egypt because they continued not in my Covenant and I regarded them not saith the Lord. The Apostle in these words doth refer us to the bringing the Children of Israel out of Egypt the imbodying of that People into a Nation and God's setting up his Worship amongst them which the 17th Chapter of Genesis and the Covenant there mentioned carried in the Womb of it the Insufficiency of which Covenant lay not only in the unvailed Administration of Gospel-Grace which was darkly typified forth in the times of the Old Testament but chiefly in the want of internal Grace from having a share of which Grace the greatest part of the Seed of Abraham were excluded not the Elect who were of his Offspring but those which were put off with Earthly Enjoyments which they by their Rebellions in process of time forfeited the Forbearance and Patience of God being wearied out Having by way of Introduction opened the way to that which I intend to treat of in the following Discourse I shall lay down these three Heads to enlarge on First That the Seed of Abraham were in Gen 17. taken into Covenant with God unto which Covenant temporal Mercies were annexed and Circumcision given as a Seal of the performance of it on God's part Secondly That as the Covenant mentioned Gen. 17. carried in the Womb of it the imbodying of the Seed of Abraham into a separate Nation in order to have that Old Testament Church-state set up amongst them so their Deliverance out of Egypt and the appointing the Paschal Lamb was to shew them that God was actually on the accomplishing what was contained it the Covenant Thirdly Where internal Grace did accompany these Ordinances and other parts of that Old Testament Worship the Elect Seed were brought to have spiritual Mercies convey'd to their Souls through it First That the Seed of Abraham were in Gen. 17. taken into Covenant with God unto which Covenant Temporal Mercies were annex'd and Circumcision given as a Seal of the performance of it on God's part doth appear as it is laid down from ver 4 to v. 15. extending it self not only to all his Seed that should descend from him by Generation but likewise to those that were born in his House or bought with his Mony And the uncircumcised Manchild whose Flesh of his fore-skin is not circumcised that Soul shall be cut off from his People he hath broken my Covenant That all the Persons that were brought into this Covenant had inward Mercies convey'd to their Souls crosseth the words of Abraham ver 18. And Abraham said unto God O that Ishmael might live before thee If he had understood that this Covenant into which Ishmael was going to be taken by the initiating Ordinance of Circumcision had been the Covenant of Grace he needed not have doubted of that there being a sincere performance of what was required of Abraham's part on the behalf of Ishmael But we find by God's Answer that there was not that intended by that Covenant for him but as the Covenant promised an Earthly Canaan so Ishmael tho he had not that Land yet he should have other Earthly Greatness which should carry with it the performance of what was held forth by the Covenant unto the natural Seed of Abraham ver 20. And as for Ishmael I have heard thee Behold I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly twelve Princes shall he beget and I will make him a great Nation This is that which the Covenant intended for him and doubtless Abraham did so look upon it or otherwise he would have interceded farther for Ishmael Evident it is that Ishmael was taken into this Covenant contain'd in Gen. 17. for Abraham did circumcise him as the Covenant required yet we find the Apostle Paul making Agar and Ishmael to represent the Covenant of Works Gal. 4.22 23 24. For it is written that Abraham had two Sons the one by a bond-maid the other by a free-woman But he that was of the bond-woman was born after the Flesh but he of the free-woman was by Promise Which things are an Allegory for these are the two Covenants the one from the Mount Sinai which gendereth to Bondage which is Agar Mr. Edward Leigh in his Annotations upon the New Testament doth speak so fully to the Truth that I shall insert his words at large Ver. 23. Born after the Flesh That is by a bare natural Power of Generation By Promise That is not so much by the natural strength of Parents as by virtue of God's Promise which bound his Truth to set his Omnipotency at work above Nature Ver. 24. Which things are an Allegory That is being the things that they were signify the things that they were not a Figure of some other thing mystically signified by them that is they represent or signify the two Covenants For these are the two Covenants That is distinct Covenants of Works and Grace first and second Covenant not the Covenant of Grace differently administred in the Old and New Testament Ishmael was not under the Covenant of Grace in any sense Isaac and Ishmael represented all Men regenerate and unregenerate all which are under the Covenant of Works and Grace Mount Sinai Which came thence being there published and promulgated the Law and Covenant of Works To Bondage That is begets not Children of a free and ingenuous Spirit loving God and out of Love doing him Service and meerly of his Grace Love free Favour and Promise expecting their Reward but Bondslaves which out of a fear of Punishment or hope of Reward do Service and expect the Reward for the worthiness sake of their Works This Covenant is Hagar That is signified by Hagar so called for a double respect First For its Condition because it begets all Children to Bondage Secondly For Subordination Sarah's Maid the Law is a Servant to the Gospel and Gospel Ends. If as Mr. Leigh saith Ishmael was not under the Covenant of Grace in any sense I do wonder how he can as he doth in other places make it the Covenant of Grace and Circumcision the Seal of that Covenant for of it was Ishmael made a partaker Gen. 17.23 24. And Abraham took Ishmael his Son and all that were born in his House and all that were bought with his Mony according to the appointment of the Covenant ver 13. every Male among the Men of Abraham 's House and circumcised the Flesh of their fore-skin in the self-same day as God had said unto him A second Proof for the Confirmation of what I have laid down under this first Head that the Covenant mention'd in Gen. 17. did only hold forth Earthly Things to be enjoy'd by the Seed of Abraham by the Seed of Abraham I intend the great number of his fleshly Seed as separated from the Elect which were amongst them That this Covenant did only hold forth Earthly Enjoyments