Brief Exposition of Galatians and Ephesians, Exposition 1 · Chapter 3 · Verse and explication 12
Vers. 19. Wherefore then serveth the Law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come, to whom the promise was made, and it was ordained by Angels in the hand of a Mediator. 20. Now a Mediator is not a Mediator of one, but God is one.
HEre is a second Objection, to wit, If the Law, or works done in obedience to the Law, do not justifie. Then it seemeth the Law hath been given by Moses upon mount Sinai in vain and to no purpose: which Objection is expressed in a Question, the meaning whereof, is, For what end was the Law at that time delivered, containing such a number of precepts, enjoyning so many moral, judicial and ceremonial duties, promising life unto the obedient? Lev. 18. 5. and threatning God's wrath and curse to the disobedient, Deut. 27. 26. wherefore was all this, if the inheritance of life eternal come not by the works of the Law? The Apostle answereth, shewing, first, one main end for which the Law was added to the Promise, and so much inculcated at that time, to wit, for the discovery (Rom. 3.—20.) and restraint of sin, Numb. 15. 39. and for the more throughconviction of the sinners lost and cursed estate in himself because of sin, Rom. 3. 19. He sheweth, secondly, that this servile and childish discipline, as having more of terror than love in it, was to continue only during the infant-state of the Church, until at Christ's coming in the flesh that spiritual seed of Abraham, to whom the Promise was made, should appear compleat in its principal parts, and both Jew and Gentile be gathered into one Body. But, thirdly, lest he should seem to debase the Law too much, he commendeth it, partly from the ministry of the Angels used therein, Heb. 2. 2. Act. 7. 38. and partly from the mediation of Moses, who did communicate the Word of the Law from God to the people, Deut. 5. 5. Which latter, as it serveth to commend the Law, so also to inforce the Apostle's main scope, to wit, That the precepts and threatnings of the Law were only added because of transgressions, and that God intended no such thing, as thereby to hold forth to the people of Israel a Covenant of life upon condition of obedience to what the Law required, seing there was a necessity to make use of Moses, as a mids-man, to speak between God and the people; which did argue them to be conscious to themselves of their own guilt, and therefore durst not approach unto God, Exod. 20. -18, 19. And therefore, fourthly, The Apostle proveth this consequence, (ver. 20.) from the office of a Mediator, which is not used but only betwixt disagreeing parties, whence he leaveth them to gather that it had been altogether in vain for God to have entred a Covenant for life, upon condition of works, with such a guilty sinfull people, as could not fulfill the condition required in that Covenant; and consequently could reap no advantage by it, especially seing, as he expresly affirmeth, God is alwayes one, consonant to Himself, and doth not dispense with one jot of that perfect, universal and constant obedience, required as the condition of obtaining Salvation according to the tenour of the Covenant of Works, Deut. 27. 26.
From Vers. 19. Learn, 1. So bent are men upon the abuse of things, in themselves good, (whether divine Ordinances, or any other gift bestowed by God upon them) that they cannot difference betwixt the right use and the abuse of these things, and are apt to conclude, if they may not abuse them to gratifie some one lust or other, that they can serve for no use to them, and so are given by God in vain: Thus the false Apostles concluded, that if the Law was not given to justifie, it was wholly uselesse; Wherefore then serveth the Law? say they. 2. As the Moral Law (Gen. 13. 8.) together with the powerfull working of Gods Spirit in the Regenerate, (Gen. 39 9.) and Gods restraining grace, (Gen. 20. 6.) the discipline of the Church, (Gen. 9. 25.) and the power of Magistracy which then was (Gen. 9. 6.) did serve to discover and restrain transgressions, and to convince sinners of their lost estate because of sin, before the Law given upon mount Sinai, and do yet serve for the same uses and ends to the christian Church: So the Lord was pleased in renewing the Covenant of Grace with His People upon mount Sinai, to cast it in such a legal mould, as that hereby He might bring down the pride of that stiff-necked people, and the more effectually convince them of sin, and of God's curse due to them for sin: which legal dispensation of the Covenant, did stand in this mainly, that the duties and curses of the Law were held forth frequently, fully and clearly, Exod. 20. 2, &c. Deut. 5. 6, &c. 27. 15, &c. and 28. 15, &c. and the Promises chiefly of eternal life; yea, and of Christ and remission of sins, but sparingly, and for the most part very obscurely under the vail of earthly shadows and ceremonies, 2 Cor. 3. 13. and under some dark prophecies, Isa. 53. 7, 8. compared with Act. 8. 34. And besides all this, there was a yoke of other duties, over and above the duties of the Moral Law, laid upon them, to wit, the duties of the Law both judicial and ceremonial, Exod. 24. Lev. 1. and obedience to them most strictly urged, and that under hazard of the same so much reiterated curse, Deut. 27. 26. for, saith he, The Law was added, to wit, on mount Sinai, and added to the Covenant-promise made to Abraham, because of transgressions. Now, he cannot mean the Moral Law, as to the substance of it; for, that did perpetually sound in the Church ever since it was a Church, even before Moses, Gen. 18, 19. and so it was not then added: neither doth he mean by the Law, that whole Doctrine, which was delivered from God upon mount Sinai; for, that Doctrine did contain in it a Covenant of Grace, the very promise of salvation and pardon of sin through the Messias to come, Luke 24. 29. which was formerly made to Abraham, only it was cloathed with a more legal dispensation; and so the Law taken so generally, cannot be said to have been added. It remaineth therefore, that by the Law, which was then added to the Promise because of transgressions, must be meaned that legal dispensation of the Covenant of Grace, set down in the body of this second Doctrine, whereby it did at the first view, and without very accurate inspection, appear to be a Covenant of Works, although it was really a Covenant of Grace. 3. This legal dispensation of the Covenant of Grace, was not to continue alwayes in the Church, but until the partitionwall being broken down at Christ's death (Eph. 2. 14, 15, 16.) the Gentiles should be called unto the fellowship of the Church, and, together with the Jews, make up one compleat seed unto Abraham: then was the yoke of judicial (Gen. 49. 10.) and ceremonial duties (Act. 15. 10.) to be taken off; the vail of shadows and dark prophecies, whereby Christ and free-grace were hid and covered, to be laid aside, 2 Cor. 3. 11, 12. And though the duties of the Moral Law are yet to be pressed (Col. 3. 18, &c.) and the curse of the Law to be denounced against all who are in their natural estate, Col. 3. 6. yet covenanted grace and furniture for duty, Joh. 1. 17. and Christ's becoming a curse for us, to redeem us from the curse of the Law, are more clearly held forth now in the dayes of the Gospel (ver. 13.) than they were formerly: for, saith he, It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come, to whom the Promise was made. 4. The Gospel is so to be commended and preferred unto the Law, as nothing of that honour and respect which is due unto the Law, be taken from it; and the Doctrine of the Law and Gospel are to be so bounded, as neither may encroach upon the other: for, left Paul in setting limits between the Law and the Gospel, should seem to vilisie the Law, he commendeth it from this, That it was ordained by Angels in the hand, or, by the ministry and service, of a Mediator. 5. Though Moses was the Mediator here spoken of, (Deut. 5. 5.) yet it followeth not, that Angels and Saints are Mediators in Heaven; for Moses was present with the people, and ordained a Mediator by God for this one act, which was to relate and report the Law from God to the people: now it can carry no shew of reason, from this to conclude, that therefore the Saints, who are absent in Heaven, and so are ignorant of us, (Isa. 63. 16.) or, that either Saint or Angel should be constituted Mediators to report our prayers and the secrets of our hearts unto God, especially seing no Scripture doth prove that any such office is put upon them by God; It was ordained in the hand of a Mediator.
From Vers. 20. Learn, 1. Conscience of guilt presenteth God as terrible, and taketh away all confidence from the guilty sinner to approach in a friendly manner by himself to a provoked God: for, no entercourse can be between God and His people, when they are not one, but differ by reason of His peoples sin: A Mediator is not of one, saith he: there was a disagreement through sin, which called for a Mediator. 2. The Covenant of Works, entred with Adam in the state of innocency, was immediate, no Mediator interveening to make them one, wherein it differeth from the Covenant of Grace, Heb. 8. 6. for, God and man, before the fall, were one, and no disagreement betwixt them because of sin; and so there was no use for a Mediator in the Covenant that was then made: for, A Mediator is not a Mediator of one, saith Paul. 3. No man can attain to Heaven, or reap, any advantage by a Covenant of Works, except he were perfectly holy, and as free of sin as Adam was before his fall: for, the Apostle, proving that God made no Covenant of Works with them upon mount Sinal, and that they could have reaped no benefit by such a Covenant, thinketh it sufficient to evince, that they were then a sinfull people; which he evinceth from this, that they stood in need of a Mids-man betwixt God and them; Now a Mediator is not a Mediator of one, saith he. 4. The Lord in all His dispensations is alwayes one, and like to Himself, without any shadow of turning, Iam. 1. -17. His work and way of dealing, may, and hath changed, even His way of dispensing the Covenant of Grace to His Church, Heb. 8. 8, 9. but He remaineth unchangeable, there being no change of that kind which He hath not fore-ordained by His unchangeable decree, Eph. 1. -11. Thus he saith, God is one, that is, with relation to the present scope; If any plead a right to Heaven, for the merit of their works, God will abate nothing of what He Himself did once prescribe and require of man in the Covenant of Works.