Satan by the sensitive Serpent did first deceive the woman so the old Serpent Satans head shall be broke by man the seed of the woman This gracious promise was to be fulfilled First by the resurrection of the blessed seed the Word made flesh of the seed of the woman from the grave his last enemy to the face of the earth whereby he did manifest himself God and man by his rest from the fulfilling of the promise of the blessed seed Secondly by his resurrection from the face of the earth to the heavens from whence he came whereby he did manifest himself again by his infinite power God and man from whence he shall return again the second time in all glory and majesty united to his mysticall members who is the mysticall man that must break the head of the Serpent Satan and the seed of his cursed seed to their eternall confusion This last promised rest of the blessed seed the Word to be made flesh of the seed of the woman doth necessarily presuppose and imply his bloody rest in the grave from his cursed death of the crosse whose merit by his bloody rest as he is the eternall Son of God begot of the seed of the woman in time was twofold First by his rest from the cursed death of the crosse our Saviour was to merit the redemption of all men condemned to the curse of the Law of righteousnesse for the sin of Adam whereby all men in Adam their redeemed head were saved from the first death Secondly by his bloody rest in the grave upon the seventh day of the Law from end to end by his fulfilling of the Law in the seventh day as he obliged himself to man the eternall life and rest of the first seventh day lost by Adam was due by the Law to his merit that by faith in his merit all redeemed men might rest by faith till the promise was fulfilled whereby as all faithfull redeemed men were saved from the second death which is the curse of the Law of righteousnesse of faith for actuall sin So by the fulfilling of the promise of the blessed seed by his resurrection from the grave all faithfull believers are now saved from the second death which is the curse of the Evangelicall Law of righteousnesse of faith for actuall sin And this is the mysticall sense of this gracious promise which was made to Adam the redeemed head of man and to all men naturally to descend of Adam and was really fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ The benefit of which gracious promise was then actually to Adam and to all men to descend of Adam though the promise was to be fulfilled in time For by vertue of this promise the word of the Law and life of Righteousnesse first written in the heart of man was then the redeemed word of the Law of righteousnesse of faith whereby Adam was morally enabled to believe the promise and by believing in the promised rest of the blessed seed to have eternall life But before the second covenant can be declared whereby God doth oblige himself and Adam in this gracious promise first the word of the seventh dayes rest must be set down upon the immediate command whereof the second covenant was established between God and man For without the light of the word of this seventh dayes promised rest the second covenant can no wayes be known for the knowledge whereof we must necessarily understand that the day wherein this gracious promise was made to Adam was the seventh day of the Law from the creation by morall account as man naturally descended of Adam the head is obliged to the Law of God And this doth plainly appear by the words of the fourth Precept of the Decalogue set down to Moses where it is said Remember the Sabbath day be kept holy six dayes shalt thou labour and do all thy work but the seventh day to wit whereby Adam was obliged to the Law of righteousnesse by the first covenant in his state of perfection is now the promised rest or Sabbath of the Lord thy God to wit the promised blessed seed who hath promised to rest upon the Sabbath day in his sacred grave for the redemption of man from the curse of the Law for the sin of Adam and to rise from the grave to break the Serpents head for the betraying of man to fall under the eternall curse of the Law The reason is given For in six dayes the Lord made heaven and earth the sea and all that therein is Wherefore the Lord blessed the seventh day and hallowed it that is to say as the Lord by his rest from the works of the creation did blesse the first seventh day of his Law for man and did sanctifie the first seventh day for his worship by man So from his promised rest from the works of the redemption of man the Lord hath blessed the Sabbath day for man and hath sanctified the Sabbath day for his worship by man This day therefore wherein this gracious promise was made was the seventh day by morall account from the creation sanctified by the word of promise then by the name of the Sabbath of the Lord to Adam This gracious promise made to Adam being to be performed in time was formally propheticall and consequently the Sabbath day wherein this promise was made was likewise formally propheticall For by the literall light of the propheticall Sabbath day Adams faith was led to rest upon the promised rest of the blessed seed And this is the reason that our Saviour said Mat. 11.13 The Law and Prophets did prophesie to John For the Law did then prophesie by the Sabbath which did necessarily imply the whole Law of righteousnesse of faith in the promise of the blessed seed where it is to be marked that the Lord saith that the Law did prophesie to John lest the Jewes might conceive that the first seventh day of the Law obliging Adam did prophesie which did no wayes prophesie Now because this promised rest of the blessed seed upon the Sabbath was propheticall and mysticall therefore for the strenghthening of Adams faith and the faith of the Fathers in the promise the formall worship in the propheticall Sabbath was commanded to be celebrate by the ceremoniall Altar prefigurating the cursed Altar of the crosse and by the ceremoniall sacrifice of the altar prefiguraring the cursed death of the blessed seed that as Adam faith by the ceremoniall light of the Altar and sacrifice might be led to the cursed death of the blessed seed So by the literall light of the Sabaticall seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse of faith Adams faith might be morally led to the grave of the blessed seed and from the grave to his resurrection from the grave for the breaking of the head of the Serpent In which commanded formall worship by the ceremoniall altar and sacrifice all the rites and ceremonies of the ceremoniall Law are implied and immediately referred to the Altar and
sacrifice as the altar and sacrifice is immediately referred to the propheticall Sabbath as it is the great command of the Law implying the whole command of the Law of righteousnesse of faith in the promise of the blessed seed Thus having declared the word of the second seventh dayes promised rest of the Law of righteousnesse of faith upon the immediate command whereof the second covenant is established I come next to the declaration of the second covenant God therefore in this gracious word of promise doth first bind and obliged himself by covenant to Adam the redeemed head of man and in Adam to all men naturally to descend of Adam that the word should be made man of the seed of the woman by whom the old Serpents head should be broke by whose merit by his promised rest Adam should have eternall life And because this promise of eternall life was to be enjoyed by the blessing of the seventh dayes Sabaticall promised rest God therefore doth mutually bind and oblige Adam the redeemed head of man to believe the promise and by his faithfull morall and ceremoniall works of worship to worship God upon the Sabbath as God did reveal himself to Adam by his promised Sabaticall seventh dayes rest God of the Law of righteousnesse of faith in three distinct persons of the Trinity Creator and Redemeer of man And because Adam by the redeemed word of the Law and life of righteousnesse of faith in his heart was morally enabled to that formal commanded moral and ceremoniall worship God doth likewise bind Adam the redeemed head of man upon the finall contempt of his commanded worship to eternall death as if the word of the covenant were thus Whosoever shall believe in the promise of the blessed seed shall be saved from the second death as by my promised rest from the redemption of man he is saved from the first death whosover shall not believe shall be condemned Now as the formall commanded worship of the seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse of faith is obliged by the second covenant Adam is commanded to worship God upon the seventh day of the propheticâ—ll Sabbath by his propheticall and ceremoniall worship of God as God hath revealed himself by his Sabaticall rest both upon the eternall blessing of the Sabaticall seventh dayes promised rest and upon the eternall cuâ—se of the Law of righteousnesse of faith in which commanded formall worship as the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath was then the great command of the Law of faith all the morall and ceremoniall works of faith are necessarily commanded To the continuance of man in which works of faith till Gods prefixed time of spirituall calling the grace of spirituall faith is promised by covenant for Mat. 13.13 Whosoever shall endure to the end shall be saved which is the saving of man from the second death by spirituall faith By faith in this promised rest of the blessed seed of Adam and the Fathers before Moses and the Fathers after Moses till the promise was fulfilled were saved For the formall morall propheticall and ceremoniall obligement of the Law of righteousnesse of faith was really and formally one and the same till the promise was fulfilled For as the morall and ceremoniall Law given to Moses in distinct precepts was necessarily implied in the command of the word of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath to Adam and to the Fathers before Moses So the distinct precepts of the ceremoniall Law given to Moses were as necessarily implied in the ceremoniall command of the altar and sacrifice for all the rites and ceremonies of the ceremoniall Law and immediatly referred to the altar and sacrifice as the command of the ceremoniall altar and sacrifice is immediately referred to the formall commanded worship of the Sabbath Hence I inferre this necessary conclusion Adam and the Fathers before Moses having the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath implying the command of the whole Law of righteousnesse of faith in the promise of the blessed seed and the ceremoniall altar and sacrifice implying all the ceremoniall Law Adam and the Fathers before Moses had the morall and ceremoniall Law and were thereby as really obliged as after the morall and ceremoniall Law was given to Moses And therefore it is said 1 Cor. 10.3 4. that the Fathers did eat of the same spirituall bread and drink of the same spirituall Rock with us for that Rock was the blessed seed to Adam and the Fathers which is now to us the Lord Jesus Christ and therefore it is likewise said that the Evangel was preached to them to wit mystically and prophetically as it is preached to us cleerly and Evangelically To conclude the second covenant called the old covenant I inferre the second formall obligement of the Law of God by the old covenant As the first word of promise to Adam the created head of man in his state of perfection was eternall life by the rest of the Law of righteousnesse upon the first seventh day from the works of the creation So the second word of promise to Adam the redeemed head of man is eternall life by the promised rest of God of the Law of righteousnesse of faith the Redeemer of man by his promised rest upon the Sabbath from the works of the redemption First therefore this promised rest of the blessed seed upon the Sabbath being formally propheticall consequently the formall worship of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath obliged by the second covenant was formally propheticall and therefore typically and ceremonially commanded upon the performing of which commanded worship by Adam the second covenant is established Secondly the propheticall Sabbaticall seventh day of the Law as it is the great coÌ„mand of the Law implying the command of the whole Law of righteousnesse of faith being prophetically and ceremonially obliged the whole Law of righteousnesse of faith is prophetically and ceremonially obliged commanding Adam first and immediatly to the formall propheticall ceremoniall worship of the propheticall Sabbath of the Lord both upon the eternall blessing of the Sabbaticall seventh days promised rest to his faithfull worship and upon the curse of eternall death to his finall contempt of that commanded formall worship necessarily implying the contempt of the whole Law For as in the commanded worship of the seventh day of the Law as it is the great command of the Law necessarily implying the lesser command all the powers of man proceeding from his faithfull love to God are necessarily commanded So by the finall contempt of the formall commanded worship of the seventh day of the Law the whole Law is necessarily transgressed Hence I inferre these two Theologicall demonstrative conclusions First as necessarily as by the second covenant the faith of man was obliged to the faithfull propheticall and ceremoniall worship of the propheticall Sabbath upon the promise of eternall life to his faith and eternall death to his infidelity So the works of faith whereby the propheticall
the great propheticall Sabbath did necessarily give place wherby the Lords day was mystically prefigurate to succeed in place of the Jewes propheticall Sabbath The day of our Saviours resurrection therefore being the next day immediatly succeeding the last Sabbath wheron our Saviour rested in his sacred grave is the just seventh day of the Law from the last formall propheticall Jewes Sabbath As man naturally descended of Adam is obliged to the command of the seventh day of the Law of God implying the command of the whole Law The Lords day therefore the day of the Lords resurrection from the grave is the true seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of God decreed by God from all eternity Where three fundamentall points of faith are necessarily to bee observed by the Christian Reader First as the first seventh day of the Law was blessed sanctified by the Lords rest from the workes of the creation And as the next seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath was blessed and sanctified by the truth of the word of the Lords promised rest in the promise of the blessed seede to rest upon the last Sabbath from the redemption of man from the curse of the Law for the sinne of Adam So the Lords day the seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of faith is blessed and sanctified by the truth of the Lords fulfilled promise by his Evangelicall rest The last period of whose fulfilled promise was in his conquest of his last enemy by his resurrection from the power of the grave upon the Lords day Whereby the Lord rested from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed By the power of whose infinit merit by his Evangelicall rest the Lords day is the blessed and sanctified seventh day of the Evangelicall Law the word of eternall life rest and the immediate object of Christian faith Secondly as the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath was immediatly commanded by the power of the Lords word by his promised rest commanding Adam and the Fathers to beleeve in the truth of his merit by his promised rest which was then prophesied by the word of the propheticall Sabbath commanding the ceremoniall worship of the Sabbath immediatly as it was the seventh day of the propheticall Law and in the seventh day the obedience of man to the command of the whole propheticall Law by faith in the promise of the blessed seed to whose faith the eternall blessing of the Lords promised Sabbaticall rest was due by the propheticall Law So the Lords day is immediatly commanded by the power of his immediate word commanding all the nations of the world to beleeve the truth of his fulfilled promise by his seventh daies Evangelicall rest as the Lords day is the seventh day of the Evangelicall Law implying the command of the whole Law first immediatly commanding the seventh daies worship by faith in the truth of the Lords fulfilled promise to whose faith the blessing of the Lords merit by his Evangelicall rest is due by the Evangelicall Law of faith which is the blessing of the Lords day This is therefore the howre and blessed day which the Lord told the Samaritan woman should come when God should be worshiped In spirit and truth that is in the spirit of faith in the truth of the Lords fulfilled promise Thirdly as by the light of the propheticall Sabbath day Adam and the Fathers were literally lead to the blessing of the Lords promised rest So by the light of the Lords day all the nations of the world are literally lead to the blessing of the Lords merit by the truth of his fulfilled promise Whosoever therefore doth denie the light of the truth of the Lords day sealed by the precious blood of his blessed heart doth necessarily denie the Lord truth it selfe By this opening of the mystery of the Lords day blessed sanctified by his Evangelicall rest necessarily implying his bloody rest the judicious Reader may easily perceive the reason of the mistake of the lords day the only cause of which mistake is in the mistaking of the last Sabbath for the formall propheticall Jewes Sabbath which was no waies the Jewes propheticall Sabbath neither was either Jew or Gentile obliged to the command of this last Sabbath or had any hand in the fulfilling of the command of this last Sabbath being too hard and impossible a task for man as he is man Let us leave therefore the command of this last Sabbath to the Lord of the Sabbath who as he did in his great mercy oblige himselfe to the obedience of the command of this last Sabbath so in his love and mercy to man the Lord graciously fulfilled the command thereof for man Let us leave I say this last Sabbath to the Lord of the Sabbath who was only obliged to the command of this last Sabbath as it is the seventh day of the Law obliging the Lord himselfe as he is man and we shall have the Lords day the just seventh day of the Evangelicall Law as the Law of God obligeth man naturally descended of Adam And this is properly the Sabbath whereby the Lord is intituled Lord of the Sabbath And the Sabbath properly that the Lord saith was made for man For by the Lords fulfilling of this last Sabbath by his bloody rest the Lord rested from his cursed death of the Crosse for the redemption of man and by his bloody rest in the grave did merit the eternall rest lost by Adam By whose resurrection from the grave the Lord did triumphantly and Evangelically rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed This twofold rest of the eternall word arising from the last mysticall Sabbath was prefigurate by a twofold type and figure Of which twofold type and figure next CHAP. VI. The twofold type and figure whereby the last Sabbath was prefigurate THe last Sabbath according to the mysticall sense was prefigurate by a twofold type and figure First the fulfilling of this Sabbath was prefigurate by the blessed Virgin Secondly by the yeare of Jubile First therefore of the prefigurating thereof by the blessed Virgin As by the Arke with the word placed therein and the Cherubins overshadowing the Mercie-seat the blessed Virgin was prefigurate from her conception of the blessed seed till her delivery of the blessed Child So by the bessed Virgin the rest of Christ Jesus in the grave upon the last Sabbath till the day of his resurrection was prefigurate Wherein a threefold type most worthy of observation is to be marked First by the virginall conception of the blessed seed the virginall conception of the blessed body of our Saviour in the new hewen Tombe out of a Rocke wherein no man was ever laid was prefigurate Secondly by the Virgins going three quarters of a yeare with the blessed Child the three daies rest of the blessed body of Christ Jesus in the grave was prefigurate Thirdly as the renting the Vaile of the Temple did prefigurate the renting of of the sacred
know the externall sensitive object by the literal sensitive light of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse for the literall light of the Law which is by the sound of the word doth necessarily begin at the externall senses And therefore since the fall and redemption of man faith which is morall faith is said to bee the hearing of the word But because it is in the freedome of mans election by the act of his senses proceeding from the free act of his will to apprehend the externall sensitive object inlightened by what light soever therefore God by his Covenant doth only binde and oblige man to live this life of righteousnesse according to the literall light of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse As man is enabled to live the life of righteousnesse by the immediate power of the word written in his heart But God by his Covenant doth not formally command man to live the life of righteousnesse but leaveth it to the freedome of mans election by his obedience to the command of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law either to choose eternall life by his obedience or eternall death by his disobedience The reason is because the life of righteousnesse doth immediately proceed from the act of the will which is the act of the soule of man which cannot bee necessitate by any command whatsoever for the will of the soule is created with the perfection of such contradictory and specificall freedome as all the created powers of God are not able to necâ—ssitate or enforce the free act of the will by any meanes under the heavens though the act of the will as it is intellectuall and sensitive may be externally coacted for as the will cannot be killed so the will can neither bee necessitate by any command But as the Covenant is established upon the immediate command of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse the workes of righteousnesse according to the Law are commanded both upon the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes rest and upon the curse of eternall death the first and immediate command whereof as the seventh day is the great command of the Law is the seventh dayes commanded worship implying the command of the whole Law which doth both oblige and command man to worship God in the truth of his promise for by the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes rest the word of promise is alwayes fulfilled according to the obedience of man or by the inflicting of the curse of eternall death upon the disobedience of man to the command of his word his promise is likewise fulfilled for it is all one for God not to fulfill his promise by his Covenant as to be no God And this is the first reason of Gods essentiall attribute of truth and that his word which is his immediate image is called truth The literall command of the Law arising from the letter of the Law is called by the Theologs the morall command of the Law and therefore the word of the seventh dayes rest implying the command of the whole Law of righteousnesse is called the morall Law of God obliging and commanding as it were the manners of man to God and to his image man as the voluntary action of man doth concerne God or his image man and from this morall denomination of the Law the voluntary action of man whether by his obedience or disobedience to the command of the Law is said to bee formally morall for both are equally the exercite act of the Law and to both the reward of the Law is equally due by the Law according to the merit of mans obedience or disobedience to the command of the Law from this morall denomination likewise of the Law the literall light of the Law is called the morall light of the Law for a formall difference between the literall and morall light of the Law arising immediatly from the letter of the Law and the spirituall light of the Law which is the immediate light of the holy Spirit And from this morall denomination of the litterall light of the Law since the fall and redemption of man faith arising from the morall light of the Law is called morall faith for a formall difference of morall faith from spirituall faith which doth arise from the immediate spirituall light of the holy Spirit in the immediate act of regeneration CHAP. IV. Of the created spirituall perfection of man THe intellectuall and sensitive nature of man being thus essentially united in the heart by the immediate power of the word inabling man with the power of naturall life and with the life of righteousnesse God in and with the immediate act of the creation of man did inlighten the word of the Law of righteousnesse spiritually written in the soule of man with the spirituall light of his holy Spirit sanctifying the heart of man to which the soul is essentially united with the spirituall life of holinesse By the immediate power of this spirituall life and light really one with the spirituall light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse Adam was enabled with the perfection of the spirituall understanding of the command of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law and to frame his spirituall life of righteousnesse and holinesse according to the perfection of the command of the Law which is the spirituall command By this perfection of spirituall life and light Adam was the perfect image of righteousnesse and holinesse and a perfect spirituall man And this is the image of righteousnesse and holinesse which the Apostle exhorts to bee renewed in the Ephesians and Collossians which was lost by Adams fall Adam therefore being created in this state of naturall and spirituall perfection the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousnesse implying the command of the whole Law was objected to Adams externall senses by the power of the word of the first seventh dayes rest commanding Adam according to the spirituall light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law really one with the spirituall light and command of the word of the Law of righteousnesse in his heart to worship God upon the seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse As God did manifest himselfe by the word of his first seventh dayes rest from the workes of the creation And in that commanded spirituall worship commanding Adams spirituall obedience by his spirituall works of holinesse to fulfill the command of the Law of righteousnesse according to the spirituall light and command of the word of the first seventh dayes rest to whose perfect worship and obedience the eternall blessing of the word of the first seventh dayes rest was due by the Law of God By this light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of God from the workes of the creation Adam by the perfect act of
though Adam being created in the state of spirituall perfection by the spirituall light of his understanding of the word of the Law in his heart really one with the spirituall light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law Adam must needs understand that God was to be worshipped upon the seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse yet without the word of the first seventh dayes rest Adam could never have known the certain first seventh day of Gods commanded worship Secondly without the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the law Adam could neither have known the formall manner of Gods commanded worship to have worshipped God upon the first seventh day of the Law of God to whose perfect worship of God the eternall blessing of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law was due by the Law by which only immediate blessing the created state of man and the creatures were continued while Adam did stand in the perfection of his Creation Thirdly without the word of the first seventh dayes rest no Covenant could be made by God to binde himselfe to man in the word of his promise or man to God for the word of the seventh dayes rest and the word of promise of eternall life as hath been formerly delivered are really one for the word of promise whereby God doth bind himselfe by Covenant to the eternall continuation of the present estate of man is enjoyed by the eternall blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest Fourthly without the word of the first seventh dayes rest which is really one with the word of promise of eternall life as there is no covenant to bee made by God with man so there was neither any object for the faith of man to rest on for though the eternall blessing of the word of the first seventh dayes rest was not due by the law immediately to Adams faith but due by the Law immediately to the merit of Adams works of righteousnesse yet Adams workes of righteousnesse did necessarily proceed from his faith in the promise of God of the Law of righteousnesse for without faith it is impossible for Adam to have pleased God while he stood in his state of perfection Fifthly without the light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest Adam could never have understood that God was the Creator and Conservator of man the world and the Creatures created for man neither could Adam have known the formall worship of God whose worship is commanded to be after that formall manner as he did reveale himselfe by the word of his first seventh dayes rest according to which formall worship Adam by the command of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law as it is the great command of the Law implying the command of the whole Law was commanded to worship God upon the first seventh day of the Law for Adams solemn perfect worship of God upon the first seventh day of the Law was as if all the workes of the Creation had falne downe with Adam to worship God the great Creator for as Adam was the life ornament and perfection of the workes of the Creation so Adam was the sum and compend of the workes of the Creation for all the creatures of God are either of an intellectuall or corporeall nature which were essentially united in the nature of man Sixthly without the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the law of righteousnesse to our first parents there could have been no law of God to command the obedience of man to the command of his law for all the power of life light and command of every severall precept of the whole Law is immediately from the power of the word of the seventh dayes rest without the power whereof there is no power of any severall precept of the Law to command man or any light for man to know that it is a precept of the Law of God And therefore we see that in the Decalogue set downe to Moses the word of the second seventh dayes rest then by the name of the Sabbath of the Lord is placed in the end of the first Table of the Law uniting as it were both the Tables to the seventh day of the Law from whence all the severall precepts of the law receive the power of life light and command much like the last binding stone of an Arch whereon the strength and power of the whole Arch doth rely and depend for as the last binding stone of the Arch being removed the whole Arch as it is an Arch must fall to the ground so by the removing of the immediate command of God by his word commanding the whole law in the seventh day the whole law and the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes rest must necessarily fall and perish together which is necessarily removed while as the command of the seventh dayes worship is attributed to the immediate authority and command of man The writing of the word of the seventh dayes rest as it were in the heart of the Law in two Tables of stone to Moses is the true embleme of the word of the Law written in the two Tables of the intellectuall and sensitive nature of man in the heart of man for as from the immediate power of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the Law life light and power of command is diffused to all the severall precepts of the Law so from the immediate power of the word of the Law in the heart of man life and light is diffused to all the parts and powers of man as he is man And this is the maine reason that in the command of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the law the whole law is necessarily commanded which the Lord calleth the great command of the Law necessarily implying the lesser command which is like to the great command Seventhly without the command of the word of the first seventh dayes rest necessarily implying the command of the whole Law neither Adam or any man created in Adam as he was the created head of all men naturally to descend of Adam could have transgressed the Law Rom. 4.15 obliged by the first Covenant for where there is no Law there is no transgression of the Law And so much briefly for the declaration of the word of the first seventh dayes rest upon the immediate command whereof the first Covenant was established between God and man next to be declared CHAP. VIII GOD according to his eternall Decree of predestination having created man male and female in this state of naturall and spirituall perfection advanced to the high love and favour of God and to the soveraignty and dominion over the earth and over the creatures of the earth God entred his first Covenant with Adam not with Adam as he was a private person but with Adam as created man the head root and originall of all men naturally to descend of Adam to the end of the world and therefore God according
was formerly prefigurate to Adam and the Fathers by the shedding of the blood of sensitive beasts and fowles And therefore the figure of the promised blessed seeed by the sacrament of circumcision was more significant then all the former bloody figures by the sacrifice of the Altar By the sacrament of circumcision therefore Abrahams family was distinguished and divided from all the families of the earth till they were reunited by the fulfilling of the promise by the new covenant For by the new covenant all the families of the earth were called and united in one Church and family For the strengthening of Abrahams faith in this gracious promise the inheritance of the Land of Canaan was promised to Abraham and to his seed whereby it was prefigurate that Abraham and his seed by faith in the promise made to Abraham should be inheritors of the heavenly Canaan the Kingdome of heaven The Church of God therefore being established in the family of Abraham and of his posterity the protection of the Church and the preservation of the line of the promised blessed seed was committed to Abraham to this end God did enable Abraham with the power of wisdome valour and with such an admirable gift of spirituall faith as Abraham is styled in the Scripture the Father of the faithfull And though I must passe over the History of Abrahams continuall victories over the enemies of the Church and leave the Reader to inform himself by the sacred History yet I cannot omit four memorable points of Abrahams faith whereby he is most justly called the Father of the faithfull The first was though Abraham was above an hundred yeers old when this promise was made and Sara was old and barren and both as it were dead by the course of nature and past all such hope yet faithfull Abraham considered not the deadnesse of his own body or the deadnesse of Sara's womb but stedfastly believed the promise against all naturall hope in hope that God according to his gracious wood would perform his promise Secondly Abrahams faith did wonderfully appear to his obedience to the command of God by his Word Gen. 12.1 commanding Abraham to depart from his native soil and to leave his kindred friends and possessions where he was seated in such plenty and to go into a strange countrey inhabited with the power of such mighty men who were every way unknown to Abraham and where he had no earthly help to trust unto but did as it were expose himself and his family to be made a prey unto strangers yet faithfull Abraham setting all doubts fears kindred friends pleasures and possessions aside did give obedience to the command of God and marched boldly to the Land of Canaan Thirdly how admirably doth our Saviour commend Abrahams faith while as our Saviour told the Jews saying John 8.56 Abraham did see my day and was glad and rejoyced therein For Abraham with the eyes of his spirituall faith did see the Lords day in the eighth day of the Sacrament of circumcision for the child was circumcised upon the eighth day though the eighth day of the circumcision fell out upon the seventh day of the great propheticall Sabbath which was commanded long before the Sacrament of circumcision and so precisely commanded as no mannâ—r of work was to be done upon the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath much lesse the shedding of the blood of man for the only commanded works of the propheticall ceremoniall worship of God were to be done upon the Sabbath Abraham therefore observing with the spirituall eyes of faith that the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath did give place to the administration of the Sacrament of circumcision Abraham did apprehend that the eighth day should be worshipped in place of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath The reason was because the Sacrament of circumcision did prefigurate both Christs death and the day of his resurrection from the dead for as by the shedding of the childs blood the shedding of the blessed childs blood by the cursed death of the crosse was prefigurate So by the stenching of the childs blood upon the eighth day whereby the life of the child was preserved the day of our Saviours resurrection from the dead was prefigurate to wit the Lords day which was the eighth day from the last Jews propheticall Sabbath for the last Sabbath whereon our Saviour did rest in the grave was no wayes the Jews propheticall Sabbath neither was there any Jew or Gentile bound or obliged to fulfill the command of the seventh day of the last Sabbath For all men naturally descended of Adam the redeemed head of man were only obliged to the command of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath which did prophesie our Saviours rest in the grave by whose rest in the grave all the prophesies prophesied by the propheticall Sabbath were fulfilled The last Sabbath therefore whereon our Saviour did rest in his sacred grave was no wayes propheticall neither was there any man naturally descended of Adam obliged to fulfill the command of the last Sabbath Let us therefore leave the last Sabbath to the Lord of the Sabbath and adde seven dayes more to the last Jews formall propheticall Sabbath and we have the Lords day the day of his resurrection from the grave to be the just eighth day as the Lords day was prefigurate to Abraham by the eighth day of the circumcision But let us account the number of dayes from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath and begin the accompt at the first day of the week according to the Jews computation of the dayes of their Sabbaticall week as both Jews and Gentiles were obliged to the Law of God and the Lords day is the just seventh day from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath and the true seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of faith more satisfactory to be declared hereafter What an admirable faith was this in Abraham to see the Lords day so far off as it was prefigurate by the Sacrament of circumcision though the Lords day be the true seventh day of the Evangelicall Law of faith as all men naturally descended of Adam are obliged to the command of the seventh day of the Law for without the command of the seventh day of the Law there is no Law to command man The fourth memorable point wherein the excellency of Abrahams faith did appear was in Abrahams readinesse at the command of God to offer up in sacrifice his son Isaac his only hope and heir of the promise and his only comfort next to God For it may justly amaze the heart of a naturall man that Abraham against nature by forgetting of all naturall affection should be so forward to attempt such cruelty with his own bloody hands to cut the throat of his so dearly beloved childe the only hope and heir of the promise Though this command was out of the infinite love of God to Abraham for God did never intend that Abraham should commit
that day confounded Though the High Priest or any man that day without any feare might have entered the highest place and have touched and looked on the Arke but it was more then was then knowne to the high Priest Against this it may be objected Luke the Evangelist saith Luke 23 56. That the women according to the command of the Law rested from going to the sacred grave that day which command of the Law was the command of the propheticall Sabbath day I answer Luke the faithfull Historiographer of the sacred History doth faithfully relate the act of the religious women with the precise circumstance of the time of the act what the women then full of sorrow for the Lord of life were constrained to doe out of their respect to the command of the Sabbath which was that day in force for ought that the women did know But Luke doth not relate what the women might have done that day Neither had it been sitting for the Evangelist so to have done for the formall command of the Sabbath day as it was the formall propheticall Jews Sabbath day was not actually determined till it was determined by the next day the day of Christs resurrection from the grave to wit the Lords day though the prophesies of the Sabbath were then actually determined And so much for answer to the first Question To the second Question I answer That it had beene as impossible in any morall right by the command of the Law that the last Sabbath for the whole space whereof the blessed body of our Saviour rested in the sacred grave could have beene worshipped for the Lords day For first the mournfull sorrowfull and lamentable light of the sound of the word of the seventh day of the last Sabbath had been repugnant to the joyful Evangelicall sound light of the word of the Lords day Secondly the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day to have beene celebrate upon the last Sabbath had implyed a manifest contradiction in the command of the law for so the law should have commanded the day of the Lords resurrection to be worshipped in spirit and truth while as contrary to all truth the sensitive body of our Saviour did lye dead in the grave that day Thirdly by the commanded worship of that Sabbath to be celebrate by the Evangelicall worship of the Lords day had been contradictory to the sacred written Word of God by his eternall decree for the last enemy to be conquered by the Lord of life was the grave Fourthly the commanded Evangelicall worship of that day had been contradictory to Christs own prophesie which was that he should rise again the third day while by his Evangelicall worship he must have risen the second day Fifthly by such commanded Evangelicall worship of the last Sabbath the Apostles must have been false witnesses in preaching and proclaiming that the Lord was risen from the grave while his sacred body did rest in the grave Sixthly such Evangelicall worship of the last Sabbath had overthrown the chief Article of Christian faith For all Christians are obliged to believe that the Lord of life rose the third day from the grave and not the second day and so much for answer to the second question against this declaration of the Lords day three obejections are to be answered CHAP. XVI The reason that God is said to be Alpha and Omega the first and the last FIrst it may be objected that by the establishing of the Lords day for the Evangelicall morall seventh day of the law of faith there is one seventh day of the law implying the whole law lost in the account Now heaven and earth must perish before a jot or a tittle of the law shall perish Luke 86.17 For the law of God is eternall I answer By this account there is neither any jot or tittle of the seventh day of the law of God lost neither by this account is there my prejudice at all to the decreed six dayes work allowed by the law to man For the seventh day of the last Sabbath implying the whole law as Christ Jesus was obliged thereby as he is man was fulfilled by himself Now by the fulfilling of the law the law is established and not lost if man by his finall obstinate contempt of the law should escape the curse of the law at Christs second coming then the law we lost indeed Or if the Lord had not fulfilled the command of the seventh day of the last Sabbath as the Lord did oblige himself by the propheticall covenant the seventh day of the law implying the command of the whole law had been likewise utterly lost as man Christ Jesus the Son of God was obliged to the command of the law This objection therefore is easily answered by the former declaration For God and man being mutually obliged to the propheticall covenant by the seventh day of the law then by the name of the Sabbath of the Lord the obligement of man to the propheticall covenant was formally twofold First man to wit Adam and all men naturally to descend of Adam were formally obliged to the command of the seventh day as it was then the propheticall Sabbath obliging the faith of man to believe the promised rest of the blessed seed prophesied by the prophetical Sabbath untill the promised rest was fulfilled by the blessed seed Secondly man the Son of God Christ Iesus the blessed seed was formally obliged by the propheticall covenant to fulfill his promised rest by his obedience to the command of the seventh day of the last Sabbath as it was prophesied by the propheticall Sabbath who having fulfilled the command of the last Sabbath by his obedience even to the death of the Crosse by his redemption of man from the curse of the law for the sinne of Adam And by his rest in the grave after his death upon the last Sabbath haveing fulfilled the whole law in the command of the seventh day The eternall life and rest of the first seventh day lost by Adam was redeemed likwise for man and due by the law to our Saviours merit Now the eternall life and rest of man being in our Saviour The Lord by his resurrection from the grave did manifest himselfe truth to man by the fulfilling of his promised rest and in that truth Lord God Jesus Christ the eternall Son of God God equall with the Father and holy Spirit the eternall life and rest of man The day of whose resurrection being the just seventh day of the law as man naturally descended of Adam is obliged to the law of God the Lord by the power of his merit by his Evangelicall rest from the fulfilling of the law for man implying his bloody rest from the redemption of man from the curse of the law for the sinne of Adam doth command the day of his resurrection the Lords day to be worshipped by man for the seventh day of his Evangelicall law And therefore to conclude this answer The seventh
the law though eternall death be properly and immediately by the covenant for the law of God in its proper nature which is the image of his righteousnes doth command the obedience of man only upon the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes rest and not upon eternall death And therfore we see that the curse of the Law is not set downe in the Decalogue But because as the covenant is established upon the immediat command of the word of the seventh dayes rest of the law of righteousnes it is the image both of the righteousnes and justice of God rendring to man according to his merit For this cause the law commands man both upon the blessing of the word of the seventh dayes rest and upon the curse of disobedients and therefore though by covenant it be left to the freedome of mans election to live the life of righteousnes according to the command of the law of righteousnes and to merit eternall life by his obedience or eternall death by his disobedience yet as the covenant is established upon the immediate command of the words of the seventh dayes rest of the law of righteousnes the obedience of man is both obliged and commanded upon the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes rest and upon the inevitable curse of eternall death By the light of this Theologicall infallible ground arising from the light of the truth of the sacred word the judicious Reader is led in the knowledge of the three covenants made by God with man which are linckt together as it were in a chaine as may appeare by the subsequent declaration of this tractat First therefore of the first covenant made by God with man CHAP. II. Of the created perfection of the intellectuall nature of man and of the immortality of the soule BEcause the first covenant doeth necessarily presuppose the first estate of man with whom the first covenant was made This first Booke therefore shal be divided into these two parts The first shall contain the declaration of the first estate of man The second shall contain the declaration of the first covenant The first state of man was the created state of man the last created of all creatures whose creation doth presuppose the whole workes of the creation which is the very first period of the exercit act of the sacred decree of predestination exercit by the infinit essentiall word immediately As for the knowledge of the first estate of man it must necessarily arise from the light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest For the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the law of righteousnesse and the word of the law first written in the heart of man are of one reall life and light For as the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the law of righteousnes was the word of the eternall rest of righteousnes by the eternall blessing of the first seventh dayes rest so the word of the law of righteousnes first written in the heart of man was the word of the power of the life of righteousnes necessarily implying the power of the naturall life of the word For by the immediate power of the word thus written in the heart of man man was inabled to live the life of righteousnes to live the naturall life of man in his first state condition But as man of all creatures was last created so man was the ornament perfection and as it were the master piece of the workes of the creation For of all the creatures created by God the creation of man was the most rare and curious worke And though it be sayd That man was made a little lower then the Angels to wit in the perfection of glory yet the perfection of mans creation was superiour to the creation of Angels for all creatures were either intellectuall or corporall But that two so strange differing natures should be essentially united in the nature of man it is the wonder of nature it selfe All the creatures therefore being perfectly created man the ornament of the workes of the creation was created in the state of humane perfection This created perfection of man was the perfect life of righteousnes necessarily implying the perfection of the naturall life of man This perfection of man did arise from the perfection of the word of the law first written in the heart of man for in and with the immediat act of the creation of man as the word of the law of righteousnes was spiritually and immediatly written in the soule essentially united to the heart so by the same immediate act of the spirituall writer the word of the law as the law is spirituall was actually and spiritually enlightned by the spirituall light of his holy spirit in the soule of man By the power of which sanctifying light the heart of man to which the soule is essentially united was by the same immediate act sanctified with the spirituall action of holines By the immediate sanctifying power of the word thus actually and spiritually enlightned man was enabled to live the perfect life of righteousnes and holines wherby man was a perfect naturall and spirituall man and the perfect image of righteousnes and holines And this was the first state and condition of man with whom the first covenant was made by God Man therefore by the perfection of his creation was of a twofold perfection The first was the naturall perfection of man the second was his spirituall perfection Of this twofold perfection of man briefly so far as concerneth the subject in hand And first of the naturall perfection of man and next of his spirituall perfection The naturall perfection of man doth consist in the essentiall union of the intellectuall and sensitive nature of man First therefore of the created perfection of the intellectuall nature of man abstractly and next of the created perfection of the sensitive nature of man and of the essentiall union of the two natures The created perfection of the intellectuall nature of man is in the perfection of the soule of man and the perfection of the soule is from the perfection of the naturall power of the life of the word which the perfection of the spirituall life of the word doeth necessarily imply For the word is spiritually and immediately written in the soule of man as it is the image of the infinite word infinite power perfection life light righteousnes truth and eternity it selfe By the immediate naturall power of the word thus immediately written in the soule of man the soule doth live move intellectually and hath its perfect eternall state of intellectuall being as the word immediately written in the soule is perfect and eternall the soule of man therefore was created as perfect a true eternall spirit in the humane sphere as the Angelicall spirit in the Angelicall sphere for both as they are created spirits of a simple immateriall substance doe live move intellectually and have their eternall state of intellectuall being by
and therefore to conclude this Point As it had beene highest presumption in Adam in his state of perfection by his contemning of the revealed light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest to have attempted by any false light to search into the secret Councell of God to know what God had decreed concerning man So it is a most presumptuous attempt in men of this age by transcending and contemning the very foundation of the light of the whole Scripture of God which is the light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest and of the first Covenant established thereon and to obtrude the fearefull light of such a miserable absolute decree to the conscience of man as to affirme that God of the Law of Righteousnesse contrary to all righteousnesse out of his alone meere pleasure without all subordinate respect did decree to condemne all the world to the eternall torments of hell except a certaine number of men whom hee decreed to elect and save and that for the execution of this miserable decree God did decree from all eternity to necessitate Adams will by the irresistable power of this decree to fall under the eternall curse of the Law and that without any respect to his Covenant made with Adam without any respect to his Law or to Adams merit by Adams transgression of the Law Thus having removed from the perfection of mans creation the obtruded internall causes of the fall of man I come next to the declaration of the true efficient cause of the fall of man as it is set downe in the sacred Word CHAP. IV. The Angels bound and obliged to the Law of God AS Eve the woman man female was first in the transgression wee are to begin with the declaration of the efficient cause of Eves transgression of the Law of God which was meerly externall The externall efficient cause of Eves fall was principall and instrumentall The principall externall efficient cause as it will appeare by the subsequent declaration was Satan The instrumentall efficient cause of Eves transgression was first the Serpent secondly the objective fruit of the Tree of knowledge of good and evill thirdly the words of the first Covenant Gen. 2.17 dying thou shalt dye though the two last were but causes by accident The causes inducing Adams fall were these three and Eve her selfe which was the fourth cause Satan therefore that old crooked Serpent enemy to God and man was the principall efficient externall cause of the fall of man the rest Satan did use or rather abuse for his instruments The cause of Satans betraying of man was Satans malice against God and his envy to man advanced to such high honour of dominion over the earth and over the creatures of the earth in such high love and favour of God from whose love and glorious presence Satan was disgracefully cast downe from the Heavens for Satan by the infinite word being created a most glorious Angelicall spirit in the heighth of angelicall perfection by the power of the word of the law actually and spiritually enlightned as all Angels were created for by the immediate power of the word the Angels do live move intellectually and spiritually and have their intellectuall and spirituall being The Angels therefore according to the internall power of the word were obliged to the command of the Law of God as well as man and therefore it is affirmed by the Apostle 2 Pet. 2.4 that the Angels sinned and sinne being the transgression of the Law the Angels must be obliged to the command of the angelicall word of the Law and consequently and necessarily the Angels by the power of the word in the justice of God must be enabled with equall power to fulfill the command of the Law for as it may appeare by Satans fall the Angels are obliged to the command of the Law upon the curse of eternall death for there is but one reall word of the Law of God obliging all the intellectuall creatures created by the word though formally differing according to the differing sphere of the intellectuall creature man in the humane sphere is formally and humanely obliged to the Law of God the Angels in the angelicall sphere formally and angelically and both eternally obliged Now Satan by his proud contempt of God by his transgression of the Law having falne from the heighth of his angelicall perfection and felicity wherein hee was created under the eternall angelicall curse of the Law Satan was cast down like lightning from heaven to eternall darknesse Luk. 10.18 Eph. 6.12 without all hope of redemption eternally banished from the glorious presence of God and from the society of the numberlesse number of the blessed Angels who according to the eternall Decree of God do stand in the grace of their created perfection by the power of the Resurrection of the word made flesh of the seed of the woman as they were created by the power of the word for the Lords infinite merit by his rest from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed Seed doth descend to the Angels by whose infinite merit the Angels are conserved in their created estate as ministring spirits for the safety of the Elect. By reason of this shamefull and ignominious disgrace of Satan by such a high fall by the angelicall curse of the Law Satan became malitiously desperate against God for though Satan by the angelicall curse of the Law was deprived of all spirituall understanding and action yet the angelicall intellectuall power of his understanding and action which is so admirable did remaine for by this power Satan works all his mischiefe against God and man Satan therefore being puft up maliciously against God and knowing man to be the most beloved creature of God and seeing that man should hold such high soveraignty and such high favour and esteeme with God from whose favour Satan had so disgracefully fallen This did so aggravate Satans infelicity as that his malicious impatiency did carry him as it were headlong in contempt of God to work his malice upon innocent man and to induce man by the transgression of the Law of God by the word of his Law commanding man to fall into the like condemnation with himselfe for Satan no doubt did apprehend that it was as impossible for man to be redeemed from the eternall curse of the humane obligement of the Law as for himselfe to be redeemed from the angelicall curse of the Law By this meanes Satan thought to be revenged on God in the destruction of his darling man and to make the whole works of the Creation suffer in the destruction of man who was created the ornament and perfection of the works of the Creation Satan therefore knowing man to be created in such an admirable estate of naturall and spirituall perfection Satan did excogitate such a mighty temptation as was able to shake the perfection of the most perfect intellectuall creature of God as it is an intellectuall creature which may
and ceremoniall worship of the Sabbath was to be performed were as necessarily commanded by the command of the seventh day of the propheticall Sabbath both upon the eternall blessing of the Sabbaticall seventh dayes rest of the Law of righteousness of faith and upon the eternall curse of the Law of faith Secondly though the propheticall and ceremoniall works of faith were necessarily commanded by the Law yet the blessing of the eternall promised rest of the blessed seed was due by the Law immediately to faith and not to the works of faith The reason is because it was by the Spirit of faith that the merit of the promised rest of the blessed seâ—d was to be apprehended and not by the greatest works of faith which hath no spirit at all And therefore the eternall blessing of the seventh dayes promised rest of the blessed seed by the Law of righteousnesse of faith was not due by the Law to the greatest morall or ceremoniall works of Adam but immediately to the merit of man the promised blessed seed by the immediate power of whole redeemed word of the Law and life of righteousnesse of faith written in the heart of Adam Adam was morally enabled to believe the promise and to produce the morall and ceremoniall works of faith as by the spirituall grace of faith in Gods prefixed time Adam was spiritually enabled with the spirituall grace of faith by the hands of spirituall faith to apprehend the merit of the blessed seed by his promised rest by which spirituall union Adams faith and the merit of the blessed seed were really and indivisibly one whereby Adam was saved from the second death which is the curse of the Law of faith And so much for the literall and mysticall sense of the second covenant comprehended in the second branch of the censure as the censure doth concern the woman and her seed We proceed therefore next to the censure of God upon the two last delinquents for the transgression of the Law of righteousnesse obliged by the first covenant CHAP. XXIV The literall sense of the censure in particular upon the woman FOr the better conceiving of the censure of God upon the last two delinquents for the transgression of the Law of righteousnesse by the first covenant it is necessarily to be understood that Adam is said to be the head of man after a twofold manner First as under the name of Adam man male and female is comprehended For so Adam is the created head of all men naturally descended and to descend of Adam and in this sense as all men are said to have sinned in Adam the created head of all men Rom. 5.18 so all men are said to be redeemed in Adam the redeemed head of man from the curse of eternall death and darknesse by the promised rest of the blessed seed from the redemption of man from the curse of the Law and by the eternall decree of God shut up in temporall spirituall darknesse called unbelief and originall sin and temporall naturall death which followed that sin which was then according to the eternall decree of God pronounced upon Adam thâ— redeemed head of man by the censure of God in which censure of naturall death all the punishments inflicted by the censure are comprehended And therefore in the infinite mercy of God all the punishments by this censure pronounced upon man male and female are all temporall in this life to the end that all men and women might be put in continuall remembrance of the never to be forgotten love and mercy of God in his Son Christ Jesus for the redemption of man from the fearfull eternall curse of the Law for the sin of Adam which nothing could redeem but the only cursed death of Christ Jesus the eternall Son of God made flesh of the seed of the woman who therefore as he is man was made a curse for man Gal. 3.13 Secondly Adam is said to be the head of man as he is man male the head of the woman by matrimoniall union in which sense Adam is said to be the head of his wife the woman and the woman the wife is said to be the body of her husband To proceed therefore with the censure which is first pronounced upon the woman because she was first in the transgression to wit before Adam man male The censure upon the woman is set down by Moses in these words Gen. 3.16 I will greatly multiply thy sorrows and thy conceptions In sorrow shalt thou bring forth children and thy desire shall be to thy husband and he shall rule over thee The censure hath a literall and mysticall sense First of the literall sense of the censure which is pronounced upon the woman in particular as she is the wife and body of her husband The censure doth divide it self into two branches to wit sorrow in conception and child-birth and subjection to the husband First of the literall sense of the two branches and next of the mysticall sense As this sorrow in the infinite mercy of God at that time was not without greatest comfort to women so it is with no lesse comfort to women at this present For as 〈◊〉 in the bringing forth of children the promise of the blessed seed was confirmed to be born of the seed of the woman by whose cursed death the curse of the Law was removed from man the benefit whereof our first parents did then actually enjoy though the blessed child was afterwards to be born according to the eternal decree of God So there is great comfort at this time under the Law of Grace in the bringing forth of children by women For the child is brought forth actually freed from the curse of the Law for the sin of Adam by the first covenant and born a hopefull member of the Lord Jesus Christ And though it doth please God many times to take away the childe by temporall death yet it is no small comfort to the sorrowfull parents that the childe is a glorious Saint in heaven It is said here I will greatly multiply or increase thy sorrows because of the pronounced enmity between the old Serpent Satan and his seed and the woman and her seed of whose continuall afflictions the woman is never free while she is in this life And now her sorrows are increased by her conception and bringing forth of children which are inflicted upon women to the end that the woman in her greatest extremity by her sorrow in conception and childbirth should be put in mind of the eternall sorrows and pains of eternall death by the first covenant from which she was redeemed by the blessed childe then to be born and now born of the seed of the woman upon whose merit Eves faith may safely rest as upon a rock from any fear of the second death by the new covenant In which sense only the words of the Apostle are to be conceived to wit 1 Tim. 2.15 that women are saved through the bearing of children for
Lord that doth justifie them by his merit And therefore though it be the Lords pleasure for their triall to keep them in some measure under the yoak of affliction in this life yet they are enabled with patience to bear his hand till in his good time he determine their afflictions by calling them to himself where they shall be exalted to an incorruptible crown of glory and in their mysticall head enabled to tread on the neck of the old roaring Serpent and upon the neck of his cursed brood to their eternall confusion for betraying them by the pride of sin to the shame and afflictions of this life And now to conclude this point of Satans cunning by this tempting of man by the naturall sensitive object Of all the temptations of Satan his accusing of man whom he hath betrayed to such long continuance in actuall sin is the most fearfull And from this fearfull accusing of man Satan is called the Devill and in this diabolicall faculty stands the master-piece of the Devils cunning For when the Devill doth once begin to accuse wretched man for his continuance in unrepented sin the fearfull severity of Gods justice for the high contempt of the Law of faith and the impossibility of his mercy to such high continued contempt is so continually suggested by Satan as he never leaves night and day racking and torturing of the guilty conscience of the wretched sinner till his spirit be so insupportably wounded as he is induced to believe that all repentance comes too late and to despair of all mercy and unlesse by the Lords unexpected concursive grace the fearfull blow be prevented such is the insupportable wounded spirit of the wretched sinner by the Devils continuall accusation as the Devill doth easily induce the tortured restlesse desperate man to lay violent hands on himself as a present remedy for his torture and pain O that the wretched sinner would in time but by morall repentance accuse and condemn himself for his obstinate continuance in actuall sin as he is morally inabled thereto by the perfection of his redemption and then he shall prevent the Devils cunning For by that happy means the Devils fearfull accusation should come too late for there is alwayes such mercy in store to the least repenting sinner as there is no place for the Devill to plead at the barre of the Lords mercy and to accuse man for actuall sin I next proceed to the declaration of Satans cunning in his betraying of man by the morall object of mans understanding CHAP. XXXIII Satans cunning by his betraying of man by the morall object of mans understanding BY the morall object of mans understanding I understand the word of the seventh dayes rest implying the command of the whole Law whereby man from the beginning by every severall covenant is formally obliged to produce his action according to the formall command of the Law as he is actually enabled to produce that formall action by the power of the Word of the Law and life of Righteousnesse written in his heart This light of the word of Law in the heart Satan from the beginning hath and doth obscure by a false deceiving morall light contradictory to the light of the word of the seventh dayes rest By the obscuring of which light of the word of the Law written in the heart the light of the word of the seventh dayes rest is necessarily obscured and darkned by means whereof man doth produce his action without all respect to the formall command of the Law By this false morall deceiving light as Satan from the beginning did obscure the light of the Law of God totally and in generall so by his false deceiving morall light Satan doth now obscure and darken the light of the Law of faith in particular by his obtruding and suggesting false fundamentall particular points of faith whereby the Church of God hath been so miserably distracted in all ages So Satan by his false deceiving morall light did betray our first parents to transgresse the Law of God For while God by his first covenant had obliged man to fulfill the command of his Law by his Word commanding man to abstain from eating of the fruit of the tree of knowledge upon the curse of a dying death Satan by the Serpent did suggest a false morall deceiving light contradictory to the light of the command of God which was that by eating of the forbidden fruit our first parents should not only be freed from all fear of any dying death by covenant but that by eating of the fruit they should be equall to God himself by which false great suggested morall light the hearts of our first parents was so incensed to such a height of pride to be equall to God as they did greedily grasp the fruit without all respect to the command of God by his Word commanding man which was the command of the word of the first seventh dayes rest of the Law of Righteousnesse For by the foul incensed desire of our first parents to be equall to God flaming in their hearts the light of the Word in their hearts was obscured and darkned by obscuring whereof the light of the word of the first seventh dayes rest was so totally obscured and darkned as the whole Law was transgressed whereby Adam the created head of man and all men naturally to descend of the head were condemned to the curse of the Law of Righteousnesse by the first covenant So after the second covenant was made in the promise of the blessed seed by the promised rest of the propheticall Sabbath and after the word the blessed seed was born man of the seed of the woman and after he did manifest himself to the Jews by his glorious works wonders and miracles that he was that promised blessed seed of the woman and the eternall Son of God by whom they were to enjoy the promised rest of their propheticall Sabbath extending his love and mercy so generally towards all by curing of all sensitive diseases incurable by nature and the diseases of the souls of many whereby he did so ingage the reverend love and fear of all leading the world so by that glorious light that happy was he that could but touch the Lord of Life In so much that the glory of his light was such as the Jews began to be possest with a jealousie that by this great glorious light the glory of their great propheticall Sabbath should be obscured whereby they were so famous above all nations and that the honour and dignity of the Leviticall Priesthood and the great preferment which they did hold by the Priesthood should be quite taken away from them At this jealousie of the Jews the Devill takes occasion to suggest a remedy for this fear and that was that they should kill the Word which did so gloriously shine amongst them though this suggestion of Satan was but a cloak to colour his own fear lest the head of the Serpent should
end to end is nothing else but the light of the sound of the word of the Lords day For by the sounding of the word of the Lords resurrection by the Apostles what a world of wonders and miracles were wrought and how many thousands by the light of the sound of the word came by the hands of faith to lay hold on the Lords daies Evangelicall rest Thirdly the new Covenant is immediatly established upon the Evangelicall word of the Lords day by inseperable union Fourthly the Apostle doth affirme that the sound of the word to wit of the Lords day went to the ends of the earth Fiftly Iohn doth call the day of the Lords resurrection the Lords day Sixtly the Apostle to the Hebrews doth set downe the Lords day the Evangelicall Word of the seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse of faith most plainly saying first that after a long time which was the time of the promised rest of the propheticall Sabbaticall seventh day there was another certaine seventh day appointed in David that is in Davids seed Secondly that the Lord of life to wit the Son of David did enter this day into his rest from his resting from the fulfilling of his promise of the blessed seed which is his Evangelicall rest necessarily implying his bloody promised Sabbaticall rest from the worke of the redemtion As he did first rest from the workes of the creation Thirdly the Apostle proveth that this day appointed in David was for the people to enter into this seventh daies rest For saith the Apostle Hebrews 4.8 if Joshua could have given the people of Israel rest to wit by the promised rest of the propheticall Sabbaticall seventh day then bad not David bin appointed to speake of another day that sâ— another seventh day which the Apostle Hebrews 4.12 cals the lively powerfull word of God which is the word of the Lords day the true Evangelicall Word of the seventh day of the Law of righteousnesse of faith by the Evangelicall sound thereof sharper then any two edged sword dâ—viding and seperating the soule from the spirit where the soule is taken for the soule of man as he is a naturall man and the spirit is taken for the soule of man as he is regenerate and a spirituall man for by the spirituall sanctifying understanding of the wâ—rd the rebellious powers of the flesh of man as he is a naturall man are devided and subdued by the power of the Spirit though not totally in thâ—s life And therefore the Apostle Paul doth affirme that the sins pro eeding from his rebellious flesh are none of his to wit as he is a spirituall man Seventhly David doth prophetically affirme Psal 118 24. First that this is the day which the Lord hath made exhorting all men to rejoyce in this blessed day which day David did see with his spirituall eyes of faith for the Lord did fulfill this prophesie of David indeed for the Lord made this day with his precious bloud Secondly David doth prophetically affirme Psal 118.22 that it was the glorious light of this seventh dayes rest which David calls the corner stone which the Judaicall builders did refuse and now is made the head of the corner mounted above the heaven of heavens the Tabernacle not made with hands wherein the Lord of life Head of his mysticall members is entered to make continuall intercession as their Advocate at the Throne and Alter of righteousnesse by the merit of his fulfilling of the Law of righteousnesse whereby all the actuall sins of his mysticall members united to their mysticall head by his indivisible love are covered and freed from the curse of the Evangelicall Law of faith by the new Covenant As by his cursed death of the altar of the Crosse they are freed from the curse of the Law for their sinne in Adam by the first Covenant Eightly the Lord himselfe doth affirme John 8.56 that Abraham did see this his joyfull day to wit with his spirituall eyes of faith in the eight day of the Sacrament of circumcision wherein there doth lye no small mysterie for the child was to be circumcised upon the eight day though the eight day did fall upon the propheticall Sabbath day upon which day no worke was to be done under the paine of death much lesse the shedding of mans bloud The shedding of mans bloud therefore upon the Sabbath was onely lawfull by the command of the Sacramentall circumcision for both the propheticall Sacraments implying the whole propheticall ceremoniall Law were commanded in the Church of God before the Law was given to Moses to the end that the Jews might understand that the Law to the fathers before Moses and after Moses till Christs resurrection was really one and the same Law of God and one and the same formall obliegement of the Law The point of the mysterie lyeth in this That the Sacrament of circumcision which was the eighth day was preferred to the command of the Sabbath which was the seventh day of the Law implying the command of the whole Law Now the Sacrament of circumcision was but the shadow of the Sacrament of the Lords day which was the eight day from the last propheticall Sabbath reckoning the propheticall Sabbath inclusively for the first day in the accompt of the eight dayes though by beginning the accompt from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath exclusively the Lords day as man naturally descended of Adam is oblieged to the Law is the just seventh day from the last formall Jews propheticall Sabbath as hath beene declared What an admirable faith was this of Abraham to see this day so farre off which the Lord affirmeth that Abraham did see and that Abraham did rejoyce in the sight of this blessed day Ninthly the Lord of life the Lord of the Evangelicall law of the righteousnesse of faith the true eternall rest of the Evangelicall seventh day of the Law doth call this blessed day his owne day John 85.6 His owne day by all true title and right of righteousnesse it selfe his owne which in spite of the power of darkenesse must shine till the eternall day Tenthly this is the most joyfull day of dayes for by the Evangelicall sound of the Lords dayes Evangelicall rest the Jews and Gentiles were actually called to one Church and were made one fold to the joyous and thankfull jubilising of all the Nations of the world Eleventhly by the Evangelicall sound of the Lords daies Evangelicall rest arising from his bloudy rest all the propheticall Sabbaths all the jubilees of Sabbaths and all the prophesies prophesying from the foundation of the world of the comming and suffering of the Lord of life the promised blessed seed are actually determined Twelfthly by his bloudy Sabbaticall rest necessarily implyed in his Evangelicall seventh dayes rest of the Lords day All the altars and sacrifices the foundation of the partition wall of the ceremoniall Law and all the figures types rites and propheticall ceremonies from the foundation of