tion of men, but of the temporal safety and happiness of the people of Ifrael, had they acted according to the advice given them; in returning and reft fhall ye be faved, h. e. if ye return from the evil counfel ye have taken, which is not of me, faith the Lord, ver. 1. and reft quietly in your own land, and do not walk to go down into Egypt, nor feek to Pharaoh for help, ver. 2, 3. ye shall be faved, you fhall be in fafety, no enemy shall break in upon you, or difturb you; in quietnefs and in confidence fhall be your firength; your ftrength is to fit ftill, ver. 7. quietly to abide in Jerufalem, in your own cities, and trust in my power and protection, then ye need not fear any enemy; and ye would not; but ye faid, for we will flee

by, unto

borfes, to Egypt for horfes, or upon horses, which we have had from thence; therefore fhall ye flee; we will ride upon the swift; therefore they that pursue you shall be swift, meaning the Chaldeans; one thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one, at the rebuke of five fhall ye flee, till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an enfign on an hill. Now as this appears from the context, to be the plain and genuine sense of the words, they can be of no use to prove what they are cited for, and ought to have no place in the controverfy about free-will, and efficacious grace.

NUMB. XV. Ifa. lv. 1.

Ho, every one that thirfteth, come ye to the waters, and be that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat, yea, come, buy wine and milk without money, and without price.

'T1

'HESE words are no call, invita tion, or offer of grace to dead finners, fince they are fpoken to fuch who were thirty; that is, who, in a spirituel sense, were thirsting after pardos dife juftifying righteoufoch at

Christ, after a greater knowledge of di communion with Lia, cen

and enjoyment of lum ini. which fuppofes then a se rade to for fuch whs aut eas in i

chafe any thing for themfelves; yet they fancy themselves to be rich, and increafed in goods, and ftand in need of nothing; whereas the perfons here encouraged are fuch, who not only have no money, but know they have none; who are poor in spirit, and fenfible of their spiritual poverty; which sense arifes from the quickning influences of the Spirit of God upon their fouls; nor are Ifa. i. 18, 19. Luke xiii. 3. John iii. 16. and viii. 24. any offers of grace as they are with this reprefented to be.

.

II. They do not exprefs any power or ability in unconverted perfons to come to Chrift, feeing they are not directed to fuch, as is before obferved; befides, neither Chrift, nor the grace of Christ, are defigned by the waters, but the ordinances; the allufion being, as is thought by fome, to maritime places, or fea ports, where fhips of merchandize unload their traffic, and people refort to buy things neceffary for them. Now where thould hungry and thirty fouls, and fuch that have no money attend, but on the ordinances, the means of grace? where they may expect to meet with Chrift, and of his fulness receive, even grace for grace. Nor,

Gataker in Poli Synopf. in loc.

III. Do

A

of a day of grace • 100 & De prove, they may ay te dvour of God; but if they leis, is once clapies, there is no more opportunity of meaning with him. For,

1. They

I. They are an exhortation to public worship fignified by feeking the Lord, and calling upon him; the time for which, with the Jews, was on the feventh day of the week, and with us Chriftians, on the first ; thefe being times in which he might be found, it became the Jews of old, and us now, to attend public ordinances, in expectation of meeting with God; fince he has promifed his people to be in the midft of them, when they are met together.

II. The words may be fo render'd, as that they may be understood of place, as well as time; Seek ye the Lord, sana, in his being found, call ye upon him, n, in his being near, h. e. in the place where he is to be found, and in the place where he is near. Now though God is every where, and in all places; yet in the Old Teftament difpenfation, there was a particular place for public worship appointed, where God vouchfafed his prefence, and where it was both the du

ty and interest of his people to attend; and though under the gofpel difpenfation, all places are alike, yet where the faints agree to meet together, there God has promised to be in the midst of them, and therefore there should he be fought and called upon.

III. The