An APPENDIX to a late BOOK INTITULED The Ʋnchangeable Morality of the Seventh-day-Sabbath.
OR, A Letter written to some Friends, for further satisfaction in that point:
MUch honoured and dearly beloved brethren in our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom we salute you kindly, blessing God for that measure of his good Spirit which some of us did perceive to be in you when you were at our meeting; since which time we have judged you meet persons to be conversed withall about the things of God, and therefore we do take the boldness to second our Conference with this present writing.
And first, for that Part of the discourse that seemed to some of you so knottie, as namely, the giving of the Sabbath to Adam in the state of innocency, to omit what was then Argued from Gen. 1.24. to [Page] [Page 1] [...] [Page 2]the end, and Gen. 2.2, 3. for the proof of this assertion, we shall offer these further considerations unto your i. e.
(1.) The Law of the ten Commandments is manifested in the Scriptures to be the first Covenant, and the old Covenant, Heb. 8.7, 8, 9. & 9.15. under which the whole world Was, and is, and are therefore guilty of Sin, and are under the penalty of death, being accursed by the Law, and therefore stood in need of a Redeemer, Rom. 3.19. & [...] .12, 13, 14. Gal. 3.10, 11, 12, 13.
(2.) The Scriptures do make it evident, that the New Covenant took no place till the old was broken; and if the Law or first Covenant had not been broken, the New Covenant had never been sought for, nor would have been needful, Rom. 7.10. & 8.3, 4. Gal. 3.21. Heb 8.7. & 9.15.
(3.) It is as plain in the Scripture, that the New Covenant took place long before the giving of the Law by a vocal voice upon Mount Sinai, and writing of it upon Tables of stone; as appeares from Rom Cap. 4. where the Apostle makes it his business to prove, that Abraham was an heire of the Promise by Faith and Grace: which termes do clearly relate to the New Covenant.
(4.) But farther, the new Covenant took place, to keep off the hevy wrath of God from falling on man in the Act of his first transgression, Gen. 3.15. where it is clear, that there is a promise of mercy to the seed of the woman; which could not be, but in and through a Covenant of grace. No surely, brethren, there is no way to keep the earth and the inhabitants thereof from sinking, when dissolved by sin, but only [Page 3]by our Lord Jesus Christ bearing up the pillars of it, Psal. 75.3. which we beseech you consider: for if these things be so, as we believe no man can deny, then is it most evident, that the Sabbath was given at the very first: for nothing is more evident then this, that the Seventh-day-Sabbath is one of the ten Commandments, Exod. 20.8. Deut. 5.12, 22. and this we judge to be beyond doubt or contradiction, that the ten Commandments is the old Covenant, the Covenant of workes, Heb. 8.6, 7, 8, 9. & 9.4. compared with Exod. 34.28 Deut. 4.10, 11, 12, 13. & 5.22. & 9.9, 10, 11. & 10.1, 2, 3, 4, 5. And if ever there were a time when this Law was Ordeyned unto life, as it was certainly, Rom. 7.10. surely it must be in an estate of Innocency: for when it was delivered in Mount Horeb, it was the ministration of death and condemnation, 2 Cor. 3.7, 9. and therefore when God delivered unto us the terms and conditions of this his Covenant thus; The man that doth these things, shall live by them, Rom. 10.5. Gal. 2.12. and, cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the Book of the Law to do them, Gal. 3.10. these we say must needs refer to the time of the Laws first institution, when man was in a capacity to keep the Law: otherwise it would be the greatest scorne of poor men in their misery, and cruelty, or both, that could be imagined, to offer them life upon terms of an absolute impossibility; this dealing can never agree with the Wisdom, Justice, and grace of God; for no man can have Life or Justification now by the Law, as is manifest, Rom. 3.20, 27, 28. & Gal. 3.11.
[Page 4] Now put all this together, and if the ten Commandments be the Covenant of works, and if we exclude the Sabbath, then they will be but odd Nine, and not even Ten, as Moses saith they are, in the forementioned texts, Exod. 34.24, 28. Deut. 4.13 & 10.4. And this Covenant to be the first and old Covenant struck with man, and broke by him, before the new either did or need come in for his relief; and yet he both stood in need of the New-Covenant, and had the help of it also, as soon as he had sinned: then it roundly followeth, that the Sabbath was given in the state of innocency, for a perpetual Law to all mankind.
In the next Place, we shall give you our Understanding of those two texts pressed by one of you, to prove the ten Commandments abolished, further and beyond what we have given you already in our late book afore-mentioned, Page 20, 21
And first, for that Text 2 Cor. 3.6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. we verily believe the scope and intent of the Apostle there, is to let us understand, that the Law as it is the Officer of Condemnation, is abolished; Christ having taken that Office out of its hands, so that it shall never have Power to keep one Son or Daughter of Adam for ever under the hatches of death, but all men shall rise from the grave through Christ Jesus, and the Law shall not come in any more to cast them again: but if they perish eternally, it will be for some disobedience to the Gospel. But as the Law is a rule of life, it is not abolished, and that for these further reasons more then we gave you in our forementioned book: i. e.
(1) If the Law of the Ten Commandments had [Page 5]been of that nature, that they might have been abolished; then from the time that they are abolished, the persons to whom they are so abolished can be guilty of no sin: Rom. 4.15. 1 John 3.4. therefore observe how neer this comes to Ranting.
(2.) If so, then from the time that the Ten Commandments are abolished, we shall not want the blood of Christ to wash away either the guilt or filth of Sin; and we know no way in the world how this can be shifted, but by saying that Christ hath given us Laws in the New Testament. But if those that say so, mean only such institutions as Baptism and the Lords Supper, we deny it not: but if they mean Moral rules of Righteousness, such as are of the nature of the Ten Commandments; we deny it, and that for these reasons.
(1.) In that it undervalues the Blood of Christ, and makes as if it were given but to remove the curse of such a Law as had no more equity, holyness, or worth in it, but that it might be abolished.
(2.) It makes as if Christ after he had by his death abolished the old Covenant of works, and brought us under a New-Covenant of grace, did again bring us under a third Covenant, even a Covenant of works: a thing strange and unheard-of in the Scripture. It is true, Christ and his Apostles did often warn us to mind the duties commanded in the the old Covenant; but we never heard from others, or saw ground from the Scripture, to judge that Christ had ever brought a third Covenant, and a Covenant of works too, upon the Necks of his people.
[Page 6] (3.) We conceive there is no reason to be given wherefore the Law of the Ten Commandments should be abolished in the sence before named, but what will grate as hard every whit upon all the Precepts of the old Testament. And indeed, both the consequences, and the evil of the Consequences of this opinion, are so obvious to every considering man, that we shall forbear to say any more Now.
And as to that which is Objected from Rom. 7. we say, that the Apostle goeth not there about to perswade us that the Law is abolished as unto obedience, as appears by the following discourse in the 7th vers. and so to ult. and the four first verses of Cap. 8. as also, for the reasons given before. But indeed, this we take to be the meaning of that place, i. e. That whilst a person remains in his Natural estate without Christ, having the Law for a Husband (to use the Scriptures Comparison) he hath no help by it, to enable him to bring forth fruit unto God: but when he is once Married to the Lord Jesus by a lively faith, he doth receive that strength from Christ to bring forth fruits of Sanctification and holiness; which although the Law taught him what he should doe, yet it did not afford him help to doe: but this cometh onely by union with this latter and better husband Christ. So commending you to God, and to the word of his grace, We remain