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Part I.

were the Precepts given to Noah prefently after the Chap. s. Flood, viz. One, Not to eat Blood; the Other, To put to death Murderers, Gen. 9.4-6. A third Precept was that of Circumcifion, which as it was given to Abrabam, fo had refpect only to Abraham's Family and Pofterity. Whereas the two former Precepts, as they were given to Noah, fo without doubt have refpect to All Mankind, forafmuch as All Mankind fince the Flood are the Defcendents of Noah. Laftly, to the three foremention'd Pofitive Precepts may well be added as a fourth, the Precept concerning Sacrifices, which, altho' it be not exprefly mention'd by Mofes, yet was given by God to Adam prefently after the Fall, as is molt highly Reasonable to Believe, according to what has been Afore obferv'd §. 8. of this Chapter.

XVII.

Of the feven Pre

the Jews.

The Jewish Doctors are wont to reckon befides Secepts of Noah, as ven pofitive Precepts, which they call the Precepts of they are call'd by the Sons of Noah. Of thefe they fay the fix firft were given to Adam and his Sons, and the feventh to Noah. They will have the first to be against Idolatry; the fecond against profaning the Name of God; the third against Murder; the fourth against Uncleannefs; the fifth against Theft or any Rapin and Injury; the fixth for Due and Right Administration of Justice; the fe venth against destroying the Species of any Living Creature, or as fome expound it, against eating Flesh with the Blood thereof Thefe are what the Jews call the Seven Precepts of Noah, and which they esteem to be pofitive Ones or exprefly given by God himself, whereas All, but the Laft, may rather be efteem'd the bare Dictates of Natural Reafon. Such of the Gentiles as oblig'd themfelves to the Obfervance of these feven Precepts, were efteem'd by the Jews as Profelytes of the lower Rank, (whom they call'd Profelytes of the Gate,) altho' they did not fubmit to Circumcifion, and the other Rites and Ceremonies of the Law of Mofes. And altho' fome of the Jews did deny Salvation to fuch Profelytes, as appears from Acts 15. 1. yet others had a more Favourable and Right Opinion of them, and readily Believ'd that fuch Pious Perfons among the Gentiles

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fhould be fav'd as well as Themselves. Whence by the way the Reader may observe, that not only fuch Chriftians but also Jewish Doctors, as were or are of a more found Judgment, embrace and maintain the fame Opinion concerning the Justification and Salvation of the Gentiles, as is here laid down as the True one.

I have now fufficiently fhewn, What was the State of the Golpel, during its First Age between the Fall and the Giving of the Law of Moses; of which Law I am next in Örder to speak.

CHAP. VI.

Of the Law of Mofes.

Part I.

Chap.

XVIII. The Close.

plain the Law of

HO' by the Fall of Adam the Natural Light of The Moral Law Reafon was render'd lefs Bright than it was Afore, given by God, yet it still continu'd fo Clear, as that by the Right ufe that it might exthereof Men might diftinguish Good from Evil, Things Nature nowCloud Honeft from Difhoneft, and the like. For which Rea- ed by Sin. fon God faw fit to give no other Law to the First Inhabitants of the World, but to let the Law of Nature or Dictates of Reafon be ftill unto them the Common and General Rule of Life. But in Progrefs of Time, and by the Progrefs of Sin, the Natural Light of Reafon became fo Clouded by Sin, that many things that were Sinful, were esteem'd Not Sinful, and Very heinous Sins were at most counted but Small Ones. Hence God having chofen the Ifraelites for his Peculiar People, gave them a Law written on two Tables of Stone, that it might be as it were an Interpretation of the Law of Nature now fo obfcur'd by Sin, and fo might explain and revive it; and that alfo by this Written Law, the Knowledge of Sin, and the Punishment that attended Sinners, might become much more Clear and Perfect. Such was the End of the Law or Decalogue written on the two Tables of Stone, and which is commonly call'd the Moral Law, forafmuch as it tends to the Right Ordering of Men's Manners, and Commands fuch things

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Part I.

as are in their own Nature Good, Righteous, and GodChap. 6. ly; and fo is of perpetual Obligation, as to the Right Ördering of Life.

II.

Of the Ritual

Law.

III.

The feveral Names given to the Law.

IV.

But now the Same can't be faid of the Ritual Law given likewife by God to the Ifraelites, but for a very different Reafon, (as will be fhewn §. 34, 35. of this Chapter, as alfo §. 12. of Chapter the feventh,) forafmuch as it enjoins only Rites and Ceremonies, which have Not in themselves any Natural Goodness, but are in their own Nature altogether indifferent, and fo were instituted only for a Time, viz. as St Paul speaks Gal. 3. 19. Until the Seed fhould come, to whom the Promife was made, i. e. till the Time fhould come, when the Gospel fhould be Fully promulg'd or preach'd.

Both the Moral and Ritual Law is often comprehended under One, and that Various, Name. In refpect of Mount Sinai in Arabia, at which it was given, it is fometimes ftyl'd the Sinaitical Law; in refpect of the Ifraelites, the Chief Tribe of whom was That of Judah or the Jews, it is frequently call'd the Jewish Law; laftly, in refpect of Mofes, by whom it was deliver'd from God to the Ifraelites, it is moft ufually call'd the Law of Mofes. And because the faid Law contains not only Precepts, but alfo Promises exprefly annext to the Obfervation of the faid Precepts, hence it is frequently styl'd the Sinaitical, Jewish, or Mofaick Covenant. Further it is call'd in the Holy Scripture the Firft or Old Covenant, and that in refpect of the Gofpel, which is therefore call'd in the Same Places the Second or New Covenant. On what account Each Covenant is diftinguifh'd by these Names, will be fhewn §. 38. of this Chapter.

I rather obferve here, that it is well to be RememThe Law of Mo- ber'd, that altho' the Law of Mofes is fometimes taken fes most properly denotes the Law in a larger Sense, yet ftrictly and most properly speakgiven at Mt Sinai, ing, it denotes only the Law given at Sinai; and fo

the Mofaick Covenant properly fignifies no more than the Covenant made at Mount Sinai. Whence it plainly follows, that Not All contain'd in the Writings of Mofes himself (much less in the other Books of the Old Teftament)

Teftament) do's properly belong to the Mofaick Law or Covenant.

To pass by Others, we have a very Remarkable Instance hereof in that Difcourfe of Mofes contain'd in Chap. 29 and 30. of Deuteronomy, which may fitly be call'd the Gospel of Mofes, forafmuch as what is con. tain'd therein, do's plainly belong to the Gofpel Covenant, as may be prov'd by many Arguments. For

1. It is exprefly faid Deut. 29. 1. that These are the Words of the Covenant, which the Lord commanded Mofes to make with the Children of Ifrael in the Land of Moab, BESIDE the Covenant which he made with them in Horeb, or Sinai. Whence it is Clear, that Such as understand this Text only of Renewing the Covenant made at Horeb or Sinai, do but trifle, and even contradict the plain Words of the Text. For the bare Renewing of the Covenant made at Horeb can in no Senfe, or not without the greatest Abfurdity, be faid to be the Making of a Covenant BESIDE That made at Horeb,

2. It is exprefly faid Deut. 29. 12, 13. that the Co. venant then made was the Same, which God had confirm'd by Oath or fworn unto the Fathers of the Ifraelites, viz. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But now that this Covenant was no other than the Gospel obfcurely reveal'd, appears from St Paul's Interpretation thereof, Gal. 3. 16, 17.

3. Some Words of this Covenant are cited by Saint Paul, as Words of the Gospel Covenant, which manifeftly contain in them the Righteousness which is of Faith, or the Gospel-righteousness. Thus Rom. 10. 5, 6. Mofes defcribes the Righteousness which is of the Law, that the Man that do's these things, fhall live by them. But the Righteousness which is of Faith, Speaks on this wife, Say not in thy heart, Who shall afcend into Heaven &c. It is manifeft and fo allow'd by All, that St Paul is here fhewing the Difference between the Law and the Gospel. The Righteousness requir'd by the Law is mention'd verfe 5. and defcrib'd by Words cited from Levit. 18. 5. The Righteousness requir'd by the Gospel

Part I.

Chap. 6.

V.

All in Mofes's Writings belongs not to the Mofaick

Law or Covenant.

VI.

Argument t

VII.
Arg. 2.

VIII.

Arg. 3.

Part I.

Chap. 6.

is mention'd v. 6. and fo on to v. 10 or II. and this Righteousness is describ'd by Words cited from Deut. 30. 12, 13, 14. Thefe Words are cited by St Paul, not all along Literally as they are in the Hebrew Bible, or at least as they were understood by the Jews, but according to the True Meaning intended therein by the Holy Ghost, i. e. according to their Gospel-meaning, or as they had regard to the Gospel here obfcurely preach'd by Mofes. Thus Deut. 30. 12. is cited thus in fhort by St Paul, Rom. 10. 6. Say not in thy Heart, Who fhall afcend into Heaven? which the Apostle interprets thus of Christ; That is, To bring Christ down from Above. In like manner Deut. 30. 13. is cited Rom. 10. 7. in fhort, and not Literally, but according to the true or chief Intention of the Holy Spirit, thus: Who fhall defcend into the Deep? which the Apostle interprets likewife of Christ, thus: That is, to bring up Christ from the Dead. Lastly, Deut. 30. 14. is cited Literally in effect by the Apostle, Rom. 10. 8. The Word is nigh thee, even in thy Mouth, and in thy Heart; which likewise the Apostle interprets of the Gospel, thus: That is, the Word of Faith, (or the Gospel) which we preach. This is fo Evident and Convincing a Proof in it self, that the Sermon or Difcourfe of Mofes recorded Deut. 29, and 40. was no other than a Preaching of the Gospel in an Obscure manner and Proper to that Age, according to that Method, which the Wisdom of God faw fit to make ufe of, as to making Known the Gofpel by Degrees, that whofoever will not be Convinced bereby of the Truth we are Afferting, will be Convinced by no Proof. And therefore I fhall not stand to Add here feveral other Proofs, which might be Added, but fhall content my felf to refer the Reader, if he defires to fee the other Proofs, to Bishop Bull's Treatife entitled Harmonia Apoftolica, pag. 77, 78. of his Latin Works The Law of Mo- publifh'd by Dr Grabe.

IX.

fes may be confider'd Carnally or

From what has been faid, it fufficiently or evidently Spiritually and appears, that All contain'd in the Writings of Mofes first of the Spi- do's not belong to the Law of Mofes, properly taken or ritual Confidera- in contradiftinction to the Gospel, and as it fignifies no

tion.

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