For 't is not made to faith's poor act,
But is the prize that faith does take;

And only as it takes the same,
It bears a great and famous name;
For self, and all its grandeur, down

It throws, that Christ may wear the crown.

But if new laws and threats were all
That gospel properly we call,
Then were the precept to believe
No better news than Do and live.

If, then, we wont distinguish here,
We cloud, but don't the gospel clear;
We blend it with the fiery law,

And all into confusion draw.

The law of works we introduce,

As if old merit were in use,

When man could life by doing won,

Ev'n though the work by grace were done.

Old Adam in his innocence

Deriv'd his pow'r of doing hence:
As all he could was wholly due;
So all the working strength, he knew,

Was only from the grace of God,
Who with such favor did him load:
Yet was the promise to his act,
That he might merit by compact.

No merit but of paction could
Of men or angels e'er be told;
The God-man only was so high
To merit by condignity.

Were life now promis'd to our act,
Or to our works by paction tack'd;
Though God should his assistance grant
"Tis still a doing covenant.

Though Heav'n its helping grace should yield,

Yet merit's still upon the field;

We cast the name, yet still 't is found
Disclaim'd but with a verbal sound.

If one should borrow tools from you,
That he some famous work might do,
When once his work is well prepar'd,
He sure deserves his due reward:

Yea, justly may he claim his due,
Although he borrow'd tools from you:

Ev'n thus the borrow'd strength of grace

Can't hinder merit to take place.

From whence soe'er we borrow pow'rs,

If life depend on works of ours;

Or if we make the gospel thus

In

any sort depend on us;

We give the law the gospel place,

Rewards of debt the room of grace;

We mix Heav'n's treasures with our trash,

And magnify corrupted flesh.

The new and gospel covenant

No promise to our works will grant;

But to the doing of our Head,

And in him to each gospel deed.

To godliness, which is great gain,
Promise is said to appertain:
But know, lest you the gospel mar,
In whom it is we godly are.

To him and to his righteousness
Still primar❜ly the promise is;

And not ev'n to the gracious deed,

Save in and through the glorious Head.

Pray let us here observe the odds,

How law and grace take counter roads,
The law of works no promise spake
Unto the agent, but the act.

It primar❜ly no promise made
Unto the person, but the deed:
Whate'er the doing person shar'd,
'T was for his deed he had reward.

The law of grace o'erturns the scale,
And makes the quite reverse prevail :
Its promise lights not on the deed,
But on the doing person's head;

Not for his doing, but for this,
Because in Christ his person is:
Which union to the living Prince,
His living works and deeds evince.

Good fruits have promise, in this view,
As union to the BRANCH they show ;
To whom the promises pertain,
In him all yea, and all amen.

Observe, pray; for if here we err,
And do not Christ alone prefer,

But think the promise partly stands

On our obeying new commands,

Th' old cov'nant-place to works we give,
Or mingle grace with do and live;
We overcloud the gospel charms,
And also break our working arms;

More honor to the law profess,
But giving more we give it less:
Its heavy yoke in vain we draw,
By turning gospel into law:

We rob grace of its joyful sound,
And bury Christ in Moses' ground:
At best we run a legal race
Upon the field of gospel grace.

PARAGRAPH III.

The Gospel no new Law, but a joyful sound of Grace and Mercy.

LAW precepts in a gospel mould,
We may as gospel doctrine hold;

But gospel calls in legal dress,

The joyful sound of grace suppress.