Of Baptism, Chapter 14
CHAP. XIV. In which is conſidered that famous and much urged place of 1. Cor. 7.14. Elſe were your children uncleane, but now are they holy.
HAving thus largely vindicated this great Goſpel ordinance, from thoſe objections that the parallell of Circumciſion ſeeme to make againſt it, in the adminiſtration of it to an actuall beleever onelyonly, and by the way cleared divers places that uſe to be debated in this argument, & particularly that of 2. of the Acts 38.39. Reaſon & good manners require, that that famous and much urged place of 1. Corint. 7.14. ſhould have its turne for cōſideration, to it therefore we now addreſſe our diſcourſe, the words are theſe, For the unbeleeving huſband is ſanctified by the vvife, and the unbeleeving vvife is ſanctified by the huſband, elſe vvere your children uncleane, but novv are they holy.
The great drift of this place ſeemes to be to exhort beleevers to abide in that calling or condition, wherein religion finds them, & to informe them, that that laide no law or neceſſity upon them, of a change, verſ. 20. Let every man abide in the ſame calling vvherein hee vvas called; art thou called being a ſervant, care not for it, &c. In which verſes he gives an account and ſatisfaction to ſervants, which he had done before to maried perſons, concerning the communion of man and woman for the uſe of the bed; there were two thinges which ſeemed eſpecially to render it uncleane and unholy, both in reſpect of the parties themſelves, and of the iſſue of their bodies, one was the polluting of the marriage bed by adultery; therefore God made one man and woman, that there might be a holy ſeede, when he had abundance of the ſpirit, and could have made more, that the converſe might be holy, that is, within thoſe bounds & limits, and their ſeed holy, that is, not ſpurious and baſtardly, Mal. 2.15.
The other was the being unequally yoaked with unbeleevers and Idolaters, which amongſt the Iewes rendred the mariage and the fruit of the wombe ſo uncleane and unholy, that there was to be a ſeparation and devorce betweene the huſband and the wife, and the children alſo of ſuch births were to be put away as unholy, as appeares Ezra 10.2.3.
And that the courſe of the Apoſtles doctrine was againſt this unequall yoaking with unbeleevers, appeares by what he ſayes 2. Cor. 6.14. Be ye not unequally yoaked vvith unbeleevers, which intends particularly though perhaps not principally mariage, as ſome would have it; it was but therefore needfull to inlighten & cleare this great objection, which would lye as a barre in their way, to the comfortable enjoyment of that relatiō, in regard of their yoakefellowes and children; to thoſe people therefore that ſeeme to fall under ſuch a capacity and condition, the Apoſtle ſpeakes verſ. 12. to the reſt ſpeake I, &c. that is, to theſe which are of a different religion and worſhip (having conſidered others before) & what ſayes he to them? hee relieves them againſt a great evill, that they might feare would fall upon them, which is that they muſt part with their wives, or huſbands, that are unbeleevers, and by conſequence alſo with the births of ſuch a bed: Hee tells them there is no neceſſity of ſuch a parting, but that they may abide in the condition wherein they were called, ℣ſ. 20.21. Religion breaks no bonds, no civill contracts, tyes or ſubordinations, which in themſelves are not ſimply, and by the law of nature unlawfull. Adultery were a ſtate out of which religion would call you, as being ſimply unlawfull, and againſt the law of nature; but the ſtate of mariage, which is honorable amongſt all men, and holy in it ſelf, is not diſſolved, or rendred unholy, by the converſion of any party, but on the other ſide, it ſtill remaynes a holy and ſanctified ſtate, to the beleever (for to the pure all things are pure, that are not naturally and by themſelves ſinfull or impure) as on the contrary, even lawfull mariages, and the moſt juſtifiable things, are impure to the unbeleevers, to whom nothing is pure, their minds and conſciences being defiled, therefore ſayes he, the unbeleeving huſband is ſanctified in the vvife, or to the vvife: Sanctificatiō being here oppoſed to that which is impure & uncleane, that is, contrary to the law of God; ſo that the whole mariage converſe, is by the faith of the beleever rendred pure and cleane, as alſo are their children, though borne of an unbeleever on one ſide, which if the mariage converſe were uncleane, would be unholy or unſanctified, they alſo are holy, for ſo it followes, Elſe vvere your children uncleane, but novv are they holy.
Here ſeemes to be two arguments, though very much alike and neere of kinne, why there ſhould not be a putting away of the mans ſide, or a leaving on the womans, if either of them be a beleever, the one is from the holynes of the unbeleeving yoake-fellow, the other from the holynes of the births of ſuch a bed, which are both rendred ſo, that is ſanctified or holy to their uſe, by the faith of one party: where marke that the queſtion is not here of infants onelyonly, but of children in generall, though of age, which are as capable of being ſanctified by the beleevers faith, and to the beleever, though themſelves were unbeleevers, as the unbeleeving wife, or the unbeleeving huſband is; And as the word children, extends it ſelf beyond infants to all children, ſo the word holy (which is of the ſame kinde with that which in this verſe is attributed to the huſband or wife) is as applyable to a child of yeares, & not beleeving as to an unbeleeving huſband or wife; And of ſuch a holy child there will be no great cauſe to boaſt, as of a fit ſubject for Baptiſme.
This I take to be the genuine interpretation of this place, which ſeemes to exhort as much as may be, to an abiding in the condition, wherein religion finds them, as appeares by the 17.18.19.20. verſes, and anſwers the great objection, which might ariſe from unequall matches in reſpect of their yoake-fellowes and their children.
Another interpretation there is, which you may conſider alſo, which ſeemes to take its riſe from the words before, And ſhee be pleaſed to dvvell vvith him, ℣ſ. 12. And hee be pleaſed to dvvell vvith her, ℣ſ. 13. So as the reaſon why the beleever ſanctifies the unbeleever not ſimply, but in reſpect of mariage, is from the pleaſure and willingnes of the unbeleever to co-habite with the beleeving huſband or wife; for the Apoſtle would ſeeme to intimate, that ſuch a kinde of conſent to co-habite, by which the unbeleever ſeemes not to abhorre the faith of Chriſt, and a ſpirituall life in the beleeving wife or huſband, will cauſe or effect, that he ſhall not abominate alſo the Chriſtian education of their children, ſo as in this reſpect the unbeleevinge huſband or wife, and the children alſo though themſelves for the preſent unbeleevers, by reaſon of the willingnes of the one to cohabite, and the ſubjection of the other to Chriſtian education, may in that ſence be ſaid to be ſanctified, or made holy, being as it were deputed to it, and in the way of preparation for it, ſo as the unbeleeving parent & the childrē of that mixt birth, may be called as Tertullian ſayes, Candidati timoris; and as afterward by others, Candidati fidei, Probationers or compettitors, for feare and faith; the words following verſ. 16. ſeemes to favour ſuch an interpretation, For vvhat knovveſt thou O vvife, vvhether thou ſhalt ſave thy huſband, or hovv knovveſt thou O man, vvhether thou ſhalt ſave thy vvife; there being already wrought a good pleaſure, or willingnes to abide and cohabite on the unbeleevers part, huſband or wife, and the children in that reſpect being ſubjected to Chriſtian education, and to the beholding of holy examples, true cōverſion and faith, which brings them into eſtate of ſalvation, may be in time accompliſht in them, to which they ſeeme in ſome ſort deſtin'd by the providence of God, in ſuch a yoake-fellow, or ſuch parents. So ſanctification is predicated of thoſe who are deſtined, or prepared to ſuch an end; ſo God ſayes of the Medes and Perſians Eſay. 13.3. I have commanded my ſanctified ones, that is, ſuch as I have prepared, for ſo Calvin upon that place ſayes, that ſometimes ſanctification is referred to regeneration, which is peculiar to the elect of God; ſometimes it ſignifies to prepare or deſtine to a certain end; ſo thoſe unbeleeving parents by their willingnes to abide with beleevers, & their children in regard of the opportunity of a holy education, ſeeme to be as it were deſtined or prepared for regeneration, and for that ſtate which accompanies ſalvation; and in that reſpect as in a large ſence, may be called ſanctified or holy. Which conſideration, if it may give them a greater acceſſe to ordinances proper for them, or ſtirre up others to lay out themſelves in a more peculiar and particular manner for their converſion, I ſhall not hinder it; but on the contrary thinke that ſuch providences ſpeake much, and that as they give grounds of hope, and ſo of endeavour, ſo there may be much of duty towards them, in regard of the opportunity that families and churches, that parents, maſters & miniſters have to doe good to ſuch, who though ſtrictly they may not be called church members, no more then ſtrictly ſanctified, that is, regenerated by the holy Spirit, yet ſo farre as in the reſpects before mentioned, they may be tearmed ſanctified, that is, by a providence deſtin'd as it were and prepared for God, ſo farre the church within whoſe pole they ſeeme by a providence to live, and to be caſt, ought to have a more eſpeciall eye after them, and care of them, by vertue at leaſt of that generall injunction, As you have opportunity doe good to all men, eſpecially to the houſhold of faith; under the ſhadow of which theſe are come.
But whether you take either of theſe ſences, or both, for they may both ſtand in ſeverall reſpects, and regarding the text with a different aſpect, you will ſurely find nothing to ingraft Baptiſme upon.
For whether the children are ſanctified to the beleeving parents uſe, as all other things are (not unholy in themſelves) which to the unbeleever are not, or whether in the ſecond ſence they are ſanctified, that is, as it were deſtined for holynes, of which by vertue of a great providence, in reſpect of their education, they are made Candidati, that is, probationers or competitors, as when men ſtand for a place or office, and as the Catechumini of old were called, yet can they by no meanes in either of theſe reſpects be qualified for, or made the ſubject of Baptiſme, which preſuppoſeth, as hath formerly bene ſhewed, another kind of holynes proper to, and inherent in the party, namely regeneration and nevvnes of life; not ſuch an one as is competible to an unbeleever, either parents, or children.
It was but neceſſary to ſpeake ſomething to this place, which beares amongſt many the weight of ſo great a building as infant Baptiſme, though if I could find here ſuch a holynes for infants, as wee all wiſh to ours, namely juſtifying faith & regeneration, yet I ſhould no more judge it meete to baptize them, then to preach to them, or to adminiſter the Lords ſupper to them, they being as capable of the word as baptiſme, and of one myſterious ceremony as well as another; which hath bene a reaſon, I doubt not, why many formerly, and many at this day doe adminiſter the Lords ſupper to infants, by vertue of a parallell ordinance to Baptiſme: Nor doe I know the reaſon why the one ſhould be refuſed, where the other is deem'd a due. But enough I hope for this, which truely the conteſts of others, rather then any ſcruple, which hath fallen upon my ſpirit from theſe words, hath made me ſay ſo much of.