A Wakening Call, Chapter 15
CHAP. XV. The Mystery of Cain and Abel, Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob.
CAin, Ishmael, and Esau were sad Types of all those, that, with them, follow Satan's whole Counsel, in his Mystery of Iniquity, preferring the Law-life of the Creature, in the first Creation, to the Gospel-life of the Creator, offer'd by a second.
Abel, Isaac and Iacob, were the joyful, happy Types and Patterns, in their Persons and Principles, of those that follow, obey, and declare the whole Counsel of God, in the Mystery and Power of Godliness, for the Salvation of Men, and preventing their Damnation.
All, fix'd in the former, under Satan, unchangably hate and persecute the latter. In their holy Flesh, Righteousness of Man, they fight against God's holy Gospel-spirit and Righteousness of God, in true spiritual Saints. There's, for a time, something of the Cain, Ishmael, and Esau, even in Saints, not only fighting and warring against the true Abels, Isaacs and Iacobs, Paul's Case, before his Gospel-Conversion, (Acts 26. 9-11.) but also against the Gospel-Spirit and Principle of Life, Desire, Thought and Action in themselves, after. This also, Paul experienc'd, after an eminent Apostolical, Gospel-Saint; Rom. 7. 15, 19. And, he warns other Saints to expect the like Civil War and Contests within them, between their fleshly and Christ's spiritual Mind in them, till Nature (in the thinking and desiring Powers thereof, their own fallible Understandings and corruptible Wills, therein) be fully crucified and silenc'd, in order to their living and walking in the undisturb'd infallible Understanding and incorruptible Will of Christ's Gospel-Spirit of Grace and Truth; Gal. 5. 17. Till this War be over, and Victory over the Carnal Mind of Nature, at best, compleated, are Saints to be continually fighting the Battels of the Lord, against the Foes of their own House or Hearts, (the most dangerous Enemies, within them, tho not more subtle and potent than Enemies without, evil Angels and Men) till they come to live and walk wholly in the Spirit of God, their Gospel-Principle; and, mean while, to strive continually, more and more, so to walk; ver. 25. As to Enemies, without, the highest Rank of Professors in but First-Covenant Principles, fix'd there, in the restor'd Law-Life and Righteousness of Man, with Confidence therein, for entring into the Kingdom of God, these Cains, Ishmaels, and Esaus, are the fiercest Persecutors of true Gospel-Saints, in the partaken of Life of Christ's Heavenly Creature-Spirit of Grace and Truth, and, verily think, they do God Service, therein; Isa. 66. 5. Iohn 16. 2. So thought Paul, once; Acts 26. 9-11.
Paul singles out the particular History of Isaac and Ishmael, in this Point; Gal. 4. 22-31. Self-confident First-Covenant Ishmaels, mock and scoff at true Spiritual Isaacs, all along this World; Gen. 21. 9. And, even Abraham, Father of the Faithful, was griev'd, and loth to part with his Ishmael (ver. 11.) when Sarah, as Figure of the New-Covenant Spirit, requir'd it; and God, in Confirmation of her most just Desire and Advice, requir'd the same; v. 12. Iohn declares the same thing, figur'd in Cain and Abel, and in them, the murdering Mind of Enmity in a fix'd, self-confident first-Covenant visible People of God, in holy Flesh, Law-Righteousness of Man, against an invisible People of God, in their Gospel-Life and Righteousness, hid with Christ in God; Col. 3. 3. Cain slew his Brother, because his own Works were evil, and his Brother's righteous; 1 John 3. 12. He was of that wicked one, (born of, and in unchangeable Union with the Devil, in the first Creation) and, with him, in unchangeable Enmity to God, and true Saints, in the second. Cain's Works in the Law-life of the first, in his own Law-Spirit of Works, are, in Man's Day of Judgment, the only good and righteous Works, and his Words of Man's Wisdom, the only right Words for Salvation; and all true Abel's Works, and their Words of God's Wisdom, in his New-Covenant Gospel-Spirit, contemptible and blasphemous. Christ himself found this murdering Mind of Cain, in the most enlighten'd, righteous, professing first-Covenant teaching and professing Jews; unchangeable Enmity to his Gospel-Spirit, and whole Counsel of God, by him declar'd to them, therein. On this account, he tells them, they, with their Fathers, in the like Cainish Spirit of Enmity, were guilty of the Blood of all God's true Prophets, shed from the Foundation of the World, from the Blood of Abel, to that day; Luke 11.49-51. And so will it be, to the end of this World, under Satan's permitted Reign, and Man's Day, under him, of judging in Matters of Religion and Worship of God, so as nothing must pass for Gospel, but what Man pleases to give his Approbation to. The Jews built the Sepulchres of the Prophets, under pretence of paying Honour to them, and owning their Counsel, when with their Fathers, Murderers of all such, and in unchangeable Enmity to all their Words, rightly understood. If they had been in the days of their Fathers, they say, they would not have been Partakers with them in the Blood of the Prophets; Mat. 23. 29-31. Under all these Pretences, and self-deceiving Imaginations, Christ declares them, fix'd in the self-same murdering Mind of Enmity, with their Fathers, against all true Prophets, and himself also, as soon appear'd, and therefore ask'd them, how they could think to escape the Damnation of Hell? ver. 33. Since all such dealings of the Jews with their own true Prophets and Christ himself, with his Apostles, in the foretold long Antichristian Day, now near ending, how have unchangeable, idolatrous Haters of Christ and his Gospel-Truths and Saints, been found under the Name Christian, building stately Churches or Temples to the Honour of Paul, Peter, Iohn, &c. who would, as certainly murder them, for their Gospel-Doctrine, were they now here, as others did, even in the Primitive Apostolical Gospel-day. Let Men, under Satan, interpret their Gospel-Writings, in a Sutableness to their own Wills, and so in a universal Contrariety to the Words of God's VVisdom, in them, and all's well; and they, with the Apostles, in the way to eternal Life and true Salvation. All, void of a true living spiritual Faith in Christ's Gospel-life, working by Love to him, therein, are the unreasonable and incorrigible Adversaries of true Gospel-Saints.
Paul shews the like Figurative Significancy in Iacob and Esau; Rom. 9.10-13. Esau mortally hated Iacob, and God hated Esau. Esau's murdering Mind of Enmity to Iacob, is express'd by himself; Gen. 27. 41, 42. The like is notified, in all his murdering-minded Followers, against God, Christ, and his true spiritual Iacobs; Obad. v. 8-10. Amos 1. 11.