Thus he does not with some, exclude the word condition from the new covenant, as if there were a hazard of making God's own terms of his covenant too necessary, and some danger of binding them too fast upon the souls of his people; but with our larger catechism, he frequently makes use of that word throughout the whole book, without apprehending any danger from it; and asserts oftener than once, in the plainest and strongest terms, that faith is the condition of the

new covenant.

This faith he does not place as some have done, in a firm persuasion that Christ died for us; nay, he refutes this as a most dangerous and absurd notion; but "in the stating of the heart upon God in Christ, as a full blessing and satisfying portion, in the soul's acquiescence in the way of salvation by Christ; it is to accept of, and close with God's device of saving sinners by Christ Jesus, held forth in the gospel; and to close with Christ in his kingly office, as he is anointed to be a king, to rule over a man in all things." A notion of faith, which, as it exalts free grace, so it excludes the presumption of hypocrites; and is fitted to prevent discouragements and despondency in the truly godly, and to excite holiness, by causing the soul to go forth towards God in Christ, and to follow hard after him as its chief good and happiness; whereas the other groundless notion of it leads to the very reverse of all these.

This pious and judicious author makes assurance of our interest in Christ to be attainable, and that too more easy than many serious chris

tians do imagine; yet he will by no means allow it to be of the essence of justifying faith, or inseparable from it; on the contrary, he teaches in the most express terms, that many are truly gracious, and have a good title to eternal life, who do not know so much.

He asserts the freedom and universal extent of the gospel offer in the fullest terms, declaring, that "peace and salvation is offered to all without exception; that a man is not to question God's willingness to receive men who go to Christ honestly;" but does not think it necessary, for laying a foundation for this offer, to affirin, that "Christ died for all men," as some others have imagined; nor torture himself to find out the ground of this general offer till he has almost wrought himself into the Arminian scheme. With him "it was for the sins of the elect that Christ satisfied," and this restriction of Christ's satisfaction he did not judge inconsistent with an universal offer; but, with other orthodox divines he judged that the universal offer was the means for applying Christ's satisfaction to the persons for whom it was specially made; and that this glorious end of converting an elect world, together with God's extensive command to his servants, Matt. xxviii. 19. was sufficient ground to preach the gospel to every man without perplexing matters with new schemes, which, as it often happens, involves matters, instead of explaining them.

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Another thing observable in this excellent and pious author, is his particular regard, throughout this whole treatise, unto God's holy law.

As the promoting of holiness, and a thorough conversion in christians, appears to be the great design of his work; so he does, throughout the whole of it, maintain an inviolable respect for God's law, which is the rule and measure of it. He does not lay out himself (as some innovating writers on the same subject have done) to find out subtle distinctions of the meaning of the word law, till he has almost distinguished away the obligation of it. He makes the law a schoolmaster to lead us unto Christ; but then he does not lay it aside, as an almanack out of date, when it has brought us to him; nay, he makes it one of the first breathings of the new nature, "to acknowledge the law to be good, holy, just and spiritual; to accept of Christ's whole yoke without exception; and to become a servant of rightcousness unto God." He makes "the genuine fruit of the new life to be faith working by love," which is the fulfilling of the law; and tells us, that "the promises are made to faith followed with holiness," which is the same with obedi.. ence to it.

Agreeably to this binding force of God's law, he every where excites and encourages christians to exert their most earnest and vehement endeavours in the work of their salvation: he not only encourages believers, whose powers are by their conversion made active,. to diligence and industry; but he calls even unconverted sinners, who are dead in trespasses and sins, to essay their duty, and diligently to apply themselves to . the practice of it, and gives them great encour-

D.2

agement to do so. He tells us, that "though no words will take effect till God pour out his spirit, yet ministers must still press men's duty upon them, and charge them that they give the Lord no rest till he send out that spirit, which he will give to them that ask it."

He teaches, "that though none do cordially close with God in Christ Jesus, and acquiesce in that ransom found out by God, except only such as are elected, and whose hearts the Lord doth sovereignly determine to that blessed choice; yet the Lord hath left it as a duty upon people who hear this gospel, "to close with his offer of salvation, as if it were in their power to do it :" and that the Lord, through these commands and exhortations, doth convey life and strength, and the new hearts to the elect; and that it is his mind, in these commands and invitations, to put people to some duty, with which he uses to concur for accomplishing that business between him and them."

Yea, further, answering the objection taken from our natural impotency to close with Christ, he positively affirms, "that if we essay to close with Christ, and rest on him for the offered salvation, God will not be wanting on his part; and that it shall not fail on his part, if we have a mind to the business." Thus he always takes care to keep up an harmony betwixt the freedom and power of grace on the one hand, and the necessity and usefulness of our own endeavours on the other; and while he owns our utter inability to do any thing that is spiritually good, he

gives all encouragement that can be desired to our own most earnest endeavours.

To this same purpose it may be observed, that he formerly exhorts to personal covenanting with God, and largely directs the management of it as a matter of great importance. He did not fear, as some it seems now do, that the soul shall be guilty of presumption in dedicating itself with all solemnity to God in Christ, and in embracing the offered privilege of sealing a sure covenant with him: he doubted not but that particular persons might do that acceptably, which bodies of men had so often done with great success, and glorious tokens of God's presence with them, in holy scripture.

Thus it were easy to enlarge in making many observations upon the excellency and soundness of this author's doctrine; but it is now time to conclude, with taking notice briefly of this excellent author's way and manner of managing his subject, and delivering his doctrine. It is obvious to every one who reads him with attention, that he speaks with a full understanding of his subject; he appears to have mediated deeply upon it, and to have digested fully the several particulars of it: all he says is of a piece and consistent; he seems to have had the last words, and all the intermediate parts of it, in view when he wrote the first. He does not write, as some others upon the same subject have done, loosely and incoherently; nor has he made up his book, as they have done theirs, of gathered scraps, put together with little connection, and as little consistency; nay, he speaks every where like one