The Doctrine of the Sabbath, Chapter 7 – Chapter 8
CHAP. 7.
THE affirmatiue positions wherein J will shew how God sanctified the seventh day are three.1. Position affirmative First God did on that day reveale himselfe to man a most pure and holy God, more then in all the six daies of the creation. For in creating all things of nothing, he shewed his power: And omnipotencie in making al things good and perfect, in there kind. And in setting the heavens and the earth and all creatures in such an excellent & comelie order, hee shewed his wisdome and goodnesse. And in making man vpright in his owne image, & giving him dominion over all living creatures to order them according to his will, and to the law written in mans heart, he declared his righteousnes. But on the seventh day by promising Christ a perfect redeemer and Sauiour, he manifested and revealed his most perfect purity & holinesse diverse waies. First by his suffering of man to liue in his sight, and to approach to his presence when he was corrupted by his fall, and become filthy and abominable, and in the strictnesse and rigor of justice worthy to be destroyed with eternall death. God did plainly shew that he is a God infinitly holie and cannot receive the least spot and staine of mans corruption approaching to his presence, but appeares most pure and glorious, and shines forth bejond all measure, by making an holy vse of mans vncleannesse, and ordering and disposing it to the more full manifestation and communication of his glorie & goodnesse to his elect in Christ: For as the purity of gold doth more appeare by abiding most pure and perfect in the midst of consuming fire and a furnace of fire full of uncleane ashes, and after the touching of things most vncleane. Soe Gods perfect purity and holinesse appeares most infinit and vnspotted, in that he suffers vncleane man, made filthy and abominable by sinne to live in his sight and presence, & doth order & dispose his uncleannesse to an holy end, & doth meddle with it, & touch it, & yet is no whit diminished or obscured therby but made more bright and resplendent in the eyes of the world. Secondly God by his promising of Christ to become mā, & in mans nature to make a ful & perfect satisfaction to justice for mans sin, did shew his infinit purity & holy hatred of sin, more then by any worke of creation, In that rather then mās sin & filthines should not be punished to the full, & his justice fully satitisfied, he would giuegive his own Son, a person of infinit value to bear the cur…e & sufferedthe whole punishment of sin in mans nature and so to make full satisfaction for it.
Thirdly, the revealing of Christ and promising of him to be a second Adam, who is the Lord from heaven heavenly, and a quickening spirit, through whom he doth richlie shed his spirit on Adam, and all his elect seed in their generation; which holy spirit doth dwell in their frail earthly sinfull bodies, as in a Tabernacle & temple all the time of this fraile life, & is not stained nor defiled with their corruptions: but doth abide most pure and holy, and doth overcome, mortifie and kill by a long and lingring death the old man of sinne in them, and workes in them that spirituall purity, and holinesse, which though it be not like a grain of mustard seed; yet cannot bee destroied or defiled, but increaseth more and more, and prevaileth against all powers of darknesse, this doth aboue all shew the infinit puritie and holinesse of God and of his spirit. And therfore J conclude that God by promising and revealing Christ, on the seventh daie, did then first shew himselfe infinitly pure, and did manifest vnspotted holinesse, more then in all the six daies of the creation: and this is the first point of his sanctifying of the daie, to bee an holie Sabbath of rest, vntill the full exhibition of Christ, a perfect actuall redeemer, on the day of his resurrection.
CHAP. 8.
SEcondly, God on the seventh daie, did though Christ promised …ed the holie Ghost on our first parents,2. position affi…mative. begittēth of his immortal thē seed, sanctifie them and worke, faith and all saving graces in them; so that they bele…ved the promise and found rest in Christ. And so this was the daie wherein God did first make man actuall partaker of his spirit, and did make in him true holinesse, and conforme him to the Image of Christ, This appeares by three things.
First, by Adams words, chapt. 3.20. where not withstanding Gods passing of the sentence of bodilie death against him, and of his returning to dust in the grave, in the words next before: yet …e by faith laies hold on one eternall life in Christ the promised seed, and being strengthened with might by the spirit in the inner man, doth call his wife Chavah, which signifieth life, because by Christ promised to be come her seed, shee sh…uld bee the mother of all liuing, and not onelyonly all his naturall seed, should by Christ hauehave naturall life for a time, and being on earth continued vntounto them: but also after death his wife and al their elect seed should hauehave life eternall in him. This is a strong argument of a lively faith, and of the quickening spirit given to Adam vponupon the verie daie of the promise which was the seventh day.
Secondly, that our first parents had the holy spirit given them on that daie, & by faith were instituted & made partakers of the righteousnes of Christ, the coats of skins doe shew which God fitted to them, & put vponupon them. For undoubtedly these skins of cleane beasts, which God taught and commanded them to kill and offer in sacrifice as tipes, figures, and pledges of their redemption, by the death and sacrifice, of of Christ: and these coats made of the skins of beasts sacrificed, and put upon our first parents by God himself, did plainly forshew the covering and clothing of all the faithfull with the Robes of Christ satisfaction and righ…iousnesse, & were a token and pledge to them, that they were justified by faith in Christ to come, and cloathed with the garments of salvation. For all Gods works are perfect: he gives to no men by his own hand immediatly the outward pledg & seale without the inward grace.
Thirdly, Adams teaching of his sonnes, Caine and Abell to sacrifice, and to bring offerings & first fruits to God, which were tipes of Christ, and of Gods rest in his mediation and fulls satisfaction, and that, at the end of daies, that is the seventh which is the last of the week, & Gods holy weekly Sabbath, these J say doe testifie Adams faith in the promise,Gen. 4. his holy obedience to Gods commandment of keeping holy the seuēth day, and his holy care to teach his Children holy obedience also. Now this being manifest, that of the seventh day God did first sanctifie man by his holy spirit, and did bring in holinesse into the world among men. we must needs acknowledg this a second point of Gods sanctifying that day, and making it fit to bee his holy weekely Sabbath and the day, of his holy worship,