judging their enemies, and destroying them that led them into captivity, and held them in bondage and subjection: md lovag kladness,' a is pung them corn, wine, c. peace, and plenty and mercy' in partoning of faly sns and nfirmines; and "fainnfulness' le, he knoweth nct what Tis is made the sum of all; God by doing them good with outward mercies, and pardoning some was and adrnities, will mora..y try to get their affections to armse £ Virgula Pictons.' 1. It is not an expression of God's attempting to get their love, bat of the establishing and ccnding of his own. 2. That God should morally try and essay to do, and effect, or bring about any thing, which yet he doth not, will not, or cannot compass and effect, is not to be ascribed to him, without casting the greatest reproach of impoterey, ignorance, changeableness, upon him imaginable. 3. God promising to betroth us to himself, fixing his love on us, that we shall know him, so fixing our hearts on him; to say, that this holdeth out only the use of some outward means unto us, enervateth the whole covenant of his grace, wrapped up in these expressions; so that all things considered, it is not a little strange to me, that any sober learned man, should ever be tempted so to wrest and corrupt, by wrested and forced glosses, the plain words of Scripture: wherein, whatever is pretended, he cannot have the least countenance of any expositor of note, that went before him: although we are not to be pressed with the name of Tarnovius a Lutheran, a professed adversary in this cause; yet let his exposition of that place under consideration be consulted with, and it will plainly appear, that it abideth not in any compliance with that, which is here by our author imposed on us.

The promises we have under consideration, looking immediately and directly, only to one part of that doctrine, whose defence we have undertaken; to wit, the constancy and unchangeableness of the grace of justification, or God's 13:ding with his saints, as to his free acceptance of them, love unto them unto the end, I shall not insist on many Particulars.

zx. 27-29. closeth this discourse:

My sheep

ce, and I know them, and I give unto them eterey shall never perish, neither shall any man my hand; my Father, which gave them me,

is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.'

In the verse foregoing, our Saviour renders a reason why the Pharisees, notwithstanding all his preaching to them, and the miracles he wrought among them, yet believed not, when sundry others, to whom the same dispensation of outward means was afforded, did hear his voice and did yield obedience thereunto; and this he telleth us was, because they were not of his sheep: such as were given him of his Father, and for whom, as the good Shepherd, he laid down his life; ver. 14, 15. Upon the close of this discourse, he describeth the present condition of his sheep, and their preservation in that condition, from the power of himself and his Father, engaged thereunto. He layeth their abiding with him as his sheep, upon the omnipotence of God, which upon account of the constancy of his love towards them, he will exercise and exert as need shall be, in their behalf. There are many emphatical expressions, both of their continuance in the obedience of faith, and of his undertaking for their preservation therein. The latter I at present only intend. Saith he, 1. I know them.' 2. I give them eternal life.' 3. 'They shall never perish.' 4. No man shall pluck them out of my hand.' 5. My Father is omnipotent; and hath a sovereignty over all, and he taketh care of them, and none shall take them out of his hand.' It is not easy to cast these words into any other form of arguing, than that wherein they lie, without losing much of that convincing evidence that is in them. This you may take for the sum of their influence into the truth in hand: Those whom Christ so owneth, as to take upon him to give them eternal life, and his power, and the power of his Father, to preserve them thereunto, which power shall not, nor possibly can be, prevailed against, so that the end aimed at to be accomplished therein, should not be brought about, those shall certainly be kept for ever in the favour and love of God, they shall never be turned from him. Such is the case of all believers : for they are all the sheep of Christ, they all hear his voice and follow him.

Some few things to wrest this gracious assurance given believers, of the everlasting good-will of God and Christ unto them, by Mr. Goodwin, chap. 10. sect. 37. p.203. are attempted.

midst of them all. But now, what enemies, what opposition will there be, and arise against the saints in heaven? The Holy Ghost telleth us, The last enemy is death;' and that at the resurrection, that shall be utterly swallowed up into victory, that it shall never lift up the head; there they rest from their labours, who die in the Lord; yea, it is exceeding ridiculous to suppose, that the saints need assurance of the engagement of the omnipotency of God, for their safeguarding in heaven, against all opposition, when they are assured of nothing more, than that there they shall not be liable to the least opposition, or obstruction, in their enjoyment of God, unto all eternity.

2. Our Saviour here describeth the present condition of his sheep, in a way of opposition to them that are not his sheep his hear his voice, the others do not, and his shall be preserved, when the others perish: the Pharisees believed not, and, as he told them, they died in their sins;' his sheep heard him, and were preserved in their obedience. It is then, evidently, the deportment of Christ towards, and his care of, his sheep in this world, in a contradistinction to them, who are not his sheep, among whom they live, that is here set forth.

3. The very context of the words enforceth this sense: "They follow me, and I give them eternal life;' I do it, that is the work I have in hand. Take eternal life in the most comprehensive sense, for that which is to be enjoyed in heaven (though doubtless it compriseth also the life of grace, which here we enjoy ; John xvii. 3.) What is that which our Saviour undertaketh to give believers, and that they may be sure, that they shall be preserved to the enjoyment of? When he telleth them they shall not perish, is that not perishing, not to be cast out of heaven, when they come thither? Not to be deprived of eternal life, after they have entered into the fulness of it? Or rather that they shall not fail, or come short of it, and so perish? And this is that which the power of Father and Son is engaged to accomplish; namely, that believers perish not by coming short of that eternal life, which is the business of Christ to give unto m. If any one reason of weight or importance, that hath least pregnancy with truth, be offered to the contrary; hall renounce and shake off the power of the former

reasons, which we have insisted on, though without offering the greatest violence imaginable to truth itself, it cannot be done. It is said, that by these words, They hear my voice, and follow me,' Christ doth intimate, or include their perseverance to say a thing is intimated or included, is of small power against so many express reasons, as we have induced to the contrary; but will this be granted, that wherever the saints are said to hear the voice of Christ, perseverance is included? We shall quickly have a fresh supply of Scripture proofs, for the demonstration of the truth in hand: but what attempt is made for the proof hereof? It is so, because the words immediately following are, 'I give to them eternal life,' which presuppose their final perseverance; and this must be so, because it is so said: 'I will give to them eternal life,' is either an intimation of what he doth for the present, by giving them a spiritual life in himself, or a promise he will do so, with respect to eternal life consummated in heaven; which promise, is every where made upon believing and it is a promise of perseverance, not given upon perseverance. Neither is there any thing added in the words following, to confirm this uncouth wresting of the mind of our Saviour, but only the assertion is repeated, that God will defend them in heaven against all opposition.' Here, where their oppositions are innumerable, they may shift for themselves; but when they come to heaven, where they shall be sure to meet with no opposition at all, there the Lord hath engaged his almighty power for their safety, against all that shall arise up against them; and this is, as is said, the natural, and clear disposition of the context in this place; but, Nobis non licet,' &c.

There are sundry other texts of Scripture, which most clearly and evidently confirm the truth we have in hand, which are all well worth our consideration, for our consolation and establishment: as also, something of our labour and diligence, to quit them from those glosses and interpretations (which turn them aside from their proper intendment), that are by some put upon them. Amongst which, 1 Cor. i. 8, 9. 1 Phil. vi. 1 Thess. v. 24. John v. 24. ought to have place. But, because I will not insist long on any particulars, of our argument from the promises of God, here shall be an end.

CHAP. VII.

The consideration of the oath of God deferred. The method first proposed some what waved. The influence of the mediation of Christ into God's free and unchangeable acceptance of believers proposed. Reasons of that proposal. Of the oblation of Christ. Its influence into the saints' perseverance. All causes of separation between God and believers, taken away thereby. Moral and efficient causes thereby removed. The guilt of sin ; how taken away by the death of Christ. Of the nature of redemption. Conscience of sin; how abolished by the sacrifice of Christ; Heb. x. 3, 4. 14. Dan. ix. 24. opened; Rom. ii. 34. Deliverance from all sin; how by the death of Christ. The law innovated in respect of the elect. The vindictive justice of God satisfied by the death of Christ; how that is done. Wherein satisfaction doth consist. Absolute, not conditional. The law; how fulfilled in the death of Christ. The truth of God thereby accomplished; his distributive justice engaged. Observations for the clearing of the former assertions. Whether any one, for whom Christ died, may die in sin. The necessity of faith and obedience. The reasons thereof. The end of faith and holiness. The first argument for the proof of the former assertions concerning the fruit and efficacy of the death of Christ; Heb. ix. 14. The second. The third. The compact between the Father and Son about the work of mediation. The fourth. Good things bestowed on them for whom Christ died, antecedently to any thing spiritually good in them. The Spirit so bestowed, and faith itself. The close of those arguments. Inferences from the foregoing discourse. The efficacy of the death of Christ, and the necessity of faith and obedience, reconciled. Sundry considerations unto that end proposed. 1. All spiritual mercies, fruits of the death of Christ. 2. All the fruits of Christ's death laid up in the hand of God's righteousness. 3. The state of them for whom Christ died not actually changed by his death. 4. On what account believing is necessary. Christ secures the stability of the saints' abiding with God. What is contrary thereunto, how by him removed. The world overcome by Christ, as managed by Satan in an enmity to the saints. The complete victory of Christ over the devil. The ways, whereby he completes his conquest. The rule of Satan, in respect of sinners, twofold: 1. Over them. 2. In them. The title of Satan to a rule over men, judged and destroyed by Christ. The exercise of all power taken from him. The works of Satan destroyed by Christ, in and for his elect. The Holy Spirit procured by the death of Christ. The giving of the Spirit, the great promise of the new covenant, This farther proved and confirmed. The perpetual residence of the Holy Spirit with believers, proved by the threefold testimony of Father, Son, and Spirit; Isa. lix. The testimony of the Father proposed and vindicated. Our argument from hence farther cleared. This promise absolute, not conditional. No condition rationally to be affixed to it: the import of those words as for me. To whom this promise is made. That farther cleared: not to all Israel according to the flesh. Mr. G.'s objections answered. The testimony of the Son given to the perpetual abiding of the