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a thousand, i. e. one Gentile a thousand If raelites; and two put ten thousand to flight, except their rock had fold them, and the Lord bad fout them up? ver. 30. They would alfo have confider'd their own end, or what must befal them in length of time; that as God had, cut off and destroy'd his people Ifrael for their fins, fo they might expect the fame destruction for iniquities of a like kind. Now fince this is the plain and obvious fenfe of the words, they cannot be ufed with any propriety in the controverfy about the doctrines of diftinguishing grace.

NUMB. VII. Pfal. lxxxi. 13, 14. O that my people had hearkened unto me, and Ifrael had walked in my ways: Ifhould foon have fubdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adverfaries.

HIS paffage is produced by the Re

T I monftrants, to prove the refiftibility

of the grace of God in converfion, in favour of the defectibility of the faints, and by a late writer, as irreconcileable with. God's decrees of election and reprobation, and the doctrine of particular redemption,

* In Coll. Hag. Art. iii, iv. p. 216, 219. Art. v. p. 15. Ed. Bert.

Whitby, p. 77, 181, 222.

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and as proving that men have a fufficiency of ability to do what God wishes they would do. But let it be confider'd,

I. That admitting the words contain a wish and defire of God for the fpiritual welfare and converfion of men, fuch a wifh can only be ascribed to him in a figurative fense, as has been obferved under the preceding number. Wishing cannot be attributed to God in fuch fenfe as it is to man, who often wishes for that which is not in his power to perform, and therefore defires it to be done by another; which cannot be faid of God, without impeaching his omnipotence. When God is faid to wish for and defire, as we will fuppofe here, the converfion and obedience of men, it only img that thefe would be grateful and well plea fing to him; and not that either to hidde power of man to convert themfelbes 2* obey the commands of God, determining will of Cad

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wish only declares what God approves of, and not what he determines fhall be.

II. The wish for the fpiritual welfare of the perfons here mention'd, fuppofing it to be one, is only for the people of Ifrael, God's profeffing people, and whom he calls my people, and not all mankind, or every individual fon of Adam; as it ought to have been, could it be thought to militate against the election, redemption, and effectual vocation of fome particular persons only; and befides, it will be difficult to prove that these perfons spoken of, notwithstanding all their perverfeness, rebellion and misconduct, were not chofen of God, redeemed by Christ, and favingly wrought upon by the power of divine grace, and finally faved.

III. The words, if duly examined, will appear not to contain any wish at all, but an hypothefis or fuppofition, being to be read thus; If my people had hearken'd unto me, and Ifrael had walked in my ways, I Should, &c. R. Sol. Jarchi interprets

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, and R. Aben Ezra by 15, and the Septuagint by &; all which fignify if; fo the Syriac, Arabic, Ethiopic, Vulgar Latin, Vatablus, Junius and Tremellius, read the words; therefore, as the Contra RemonIn Coll. Hag. Art. iii, iv. p. 232.

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frants have rightly obierved, it does not follow from hence, that these people could obey the commands of God, or that the performance of abedience depended on their will, no more than it would follow from fuch a propofition; If a man keeps the law of God perfectly, he fall be juftified by it, therefore it is in the power of man to keep the law of God perfectly; or from this, It a man believes, he thall be faved; therefore faith depends on man's will, or is in man's power. Befides,

IV. The words are not to be underfood of the internal work of grace and coverfion, and of fpiritual and evangelical dete ence fpringing from it, which would pass been attended with fpiritual and met w bleffings; but of an external mes de God's commands; wit no.: followed with temporal for fubduing their enemie proer them with the fret of me. fying them tour we the fame fee

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Tremellius; and neither the one nor
ther regard the fpiritual, but tempora
fare of God's people Ifrael; nor do
contain a wifh for that, but a decla.
or an affeveration of it, on condition of
obedience to God's commands. The
fage in Hof. xi. 8. which is fometimes jo-
with this, is an human way of speaking
R. Aben Ezra on the place, obferves;
expreffes God's compaffionate concern
the temporal welfare of Ephraim and
rael, and not tranfports of affection,
defire after the fpiritual welfare of a.
much lefs of all mankind.

NU MB. VIII. Pfal. cxxv. 3.

For the rod of the wicked shall not rest up the lot of the righteous, left the rightec put forth their hands unto iniquity.

HESE words are made ufe of a to

TH

prove, that " faints, or true believers, or men once truly good, may ceafe to be fo; for 'tis faid, that they feem plainly to infinuate, that great and long oppreffions might have this effect upon them, and furely that which God is thus careful to prevent, might poffibly befal the righteous;

• Whitby, F. 436.

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