The Doctrine of the Sabbath, Thesis 40 – Thesis 43
Thesis 40.
The morall law contained in the Decalogue, is nothing else but the law of nature revived, or a second edition and impression of that primitive and perfect law of nature, which in the state of innocency was engraven upon mans heart, but now againe written upon Tables of stone, by the finger of God. For man being made in the Image of God, he had therefore the law of holines, and righteousnes, in which Gods Image consisted, written in his heart: but having by his fall broken this Table, and lost this Image, neither knowing or doing the will of God through the law of sinne now engraven on it: Hence the Lord hath in much pitty made knowne his law again, and given us a faire copy of it in the two Tables of stone, which are the copy of that which was writ upon mans heart at first, because the first Table containes Love to God in holinesse; the second, Love to man in righteousnesse: which holinesse and righteousnesse are the two parts of Gods Image which was once engraven upon mans soule, in his primitive and perfect estate, Ephes. 4.24. Nor indeed doe I see how that popish Argument will be otherwise answered, pleading for a possibility in man to keep the law perfectly in his lapsed and fallen estate in this life, for, say they, God makes no lawes of impossible things, it being unjust for God to require and exact that of a man which hee is not able to doe: to which it is commonly and truely answered, That man had once power to keep the law in his innocent estate, and hence though man be not able to keep it now, yet God may require it, because hee once gave him power to keep it; and that therefore it is no more unjust to exact such obedience which hee cannot performe, than for a creditor to require his money of his broken debtor, or spend-thrift, who is now failed (as they say) and not able to repay. Man therefore having once power to keep the law, and now having no power, this argues strongly that the law of the Decalogue contains nothing but what was once written as a law of life upon his heart in his innocent estate: for I see not how Gods justice can be cleared if he exacts such obedience in the Decalogue which is impossible for man to give, unlesse the very same law and power of obedience was written upon his heart at first: and therefore it is a wilde notion of theirs who thinke that the Covenant of works which God made with Adam, is not the same for matter with the Covenant of works exprest in the morall law; for wee see that there is the same Image of holinesse and righteousnesse required in the Tables of stone, as the condition of this Covenant, which was once written upon mans heart, and required in the same manner of him. Now this law thus revived and reprinted is the Decalogue, because most naturall and suitable to humane nature, when it was made most perfect, therefore it is universall and perpetuall; the substance also of this law being love to God and man, holinesse toward God, and righteousnesse toward man, Matt. 22.37, 39. Luke 1. Hence also this law must needs bee morall, universall and perpetuall, unlesse any should bee so wicked as to imagine it to be no duty of universall or perpetuall equity, either to love God, or to love man, to performe duties of holinesse toward the one, or duties of righteousnesse toward the other: Hence again, the things commanded in this law are therefore commanded because they are good, and are therefore morall, unlesse any shall think that it is not good in it selfe to love God or man, to be holy or righteous; and which is still observable, there is such a love required herein, and such a lovelinesse put upon these lawes, as that by vertue of these all our obedience in other things, which are not moral, becomes lovely; for there were many ceremoniall observances, in which and by which the people of God exprest their love to God, as Mr. Primrose truely concludes from Deut. 6.1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. and Matth. 22.37, 38, 40. but yet this love did arise by vertue of a morall rule,par. 2. cap. 6. l. 12. for therefore it was love to worship God in ceremoniall duties, because it was lovely to worship God with his own worship (of which these were parts) which is the moral rule of the second Commandment. And hence Master Primrose may see his grosse mistake in making one law of the Decalogue ceremoniall, because the summary of the Decalogue being love to God and love to man, and our love to God being shewne in ceremoniall as well as in morall duties, because our love is seen & shewn in our obedience to all the Commandments of God, ceremonial as well as moral. For though there be love in ceremonial dutys, it is not so much in respect of themselves, as in respect of some morall rule by vertue of which such duties are attended.
Thesis 41.
The ceremoniall law consisting chiefly of types and shadowes of things to come, Heb. 8.5. and therefore being to cease when the body was come, Col. 2.17. was not therefore perpetuall (as the law morall) but temporary, and of binding power onelyonly to the nation of the Jewes and their proselytes, and not putting any tie upon all Nations, as the morall law did. Every ceremoniall law was temporary, but every temporary law was not ceremoniall (as some say) as is demonstrable from sundry judicials, which in their determinations were proper to that Nation, while that Jewish polity continued, and are not therefore now to be observed.
Thesis 42.
The Iudiciall lawes some of them being hedges and fences to safeguard both morall and ceremoniall precepts, their binding power was therefore mixt and various, for those which did safeguard any morall law (which is perpetuall) whether by just punishments or otherwise, doe still morally binde all Nations:Pisc. pr…fat. on Exod. For as Piscator argues, a morall law is as good and as precious now in these times as then, and there is as much need of the preservation of these fences to preserve these lawes, in these times, and at all times, as well as then, there being as much danger of the treading downe of those lawes by the wilde beasts of the world, and brutish men (sometimes even in Churches) now as then; and hence God would have all Nations preserve these fences for ever, as hee would have that law preserved for ever which these safeguard: but on the other side these judicialls which did safeguard ceremoniall laws, which wee know were not perpetuall, but proper to that Nation, hence those judicials which compasse these about are not perpetuall nor universall; the ceremonialls being pluckt up by their roots, to what purpose then should their fences and hedges stand? As on the contrary the morals abiding, why should not their judicials and fences remaine? The learned generally doubt not to affirme, that Moses judicials binde all nations, so farre forth as they containe any morall equity in them, which morall equity doth appeare, not onelyonly in respect of the end of the law, when it is ordered for common and universall good, but chiefely in respect of the law which they safeguard and fence,Vid. Pisc. pr…f. in Exod. Vid Iun. de Pol. Mos. which if it bee morall, it's most just and equall, that either the same or like judiciall fence (according to some fit proportion) should preserve it still, because 'tis but just and equall, that a morall and universall law should bee universally preserved: from whence by the way, the weaknesse of their reasonings may bee observed, who that they may take away the power of the civill Magistrate in matters of the first Table (which once he had in the Jewish common-wealth) affirm that such civill power, then, did arise from the judiciall, and not from any morall law: when as it's manifest that this his power in preserving Gods worship pure from Idolatrous and prophane mixtures, according to the judiciall lawes, was no more but a fence and safeguard set about morall Commandments; which fences and preservatives are therfore (for substance) to continue in as much power and authority now, as they did in those dayes, as long as such lawes continue in their morality, which these preserve: the duties of the first Table being also as much morall as those of the second, to the preserving of which later from hurt and spoil in respect of their morality, no wise man questions the extent of his power.
Thesis 43.
If therefore the question be now made, whether the law of the fourth Commandment be morall or no, we must then remember that the true state of the question is not in this, to wit, Whether the law of the Sabbath be a principle of the light of nature, knowne and evident of it selfe, or at least such as every man that hath the use of reason may readily finde out, without some externall revelation (as Mr. Ironside injuriously states it wrastling herein with his own shadow,Irons. quaest. 2. cap. 8. with many others of his fellowship in this controversie.) For morality (as hath been declared) is of larger extent then such naturality. But the question is, whether it is one of those lawes which is therefore commanded, because it is holy, just and good in it selfe, whether man see it by any previous light of corrupt nature, I or no; and being thus commanded as such a law, whether it be not therefore of perpetuall and universall obligation, binding all Nations and persons in all ages, in their hearts, lives, manners, to the observance thereof, as a part of that holinesse we owe to God, and which God requires of all men according to rules of morall equity: or on the contrary whether it be not rather a typicall, ceremoniall, figurative and temporary precept, binding onelyonly some persons, or that one Nation of the Jews for some time, from the obedience of which law, Christians (in respect of any law of God) are now exempted?