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in that which they offer unto the Lord; neither shall it be broken, or blind, or maimed, nor have a wen or scab, &c. or any thing superfluous, or lacking any of his parts, or that was crushed, or bruised, or cut; they were not to offer any such things in all the land to the Lord, but what was whole and clean, and without blemish:' which was a type of Christ, who was clean and whole, and had all his parts, and not broken, but was a lamb without blemish, who, to establish the new covenant, offered up himself once for all these offerings in the old covenant. So he is both the peace offering and thanksgiving offering, and the offering also for the sins of the whole world, who abolished all the offerings of the old covenant, and ended them; and consumes all the false offerings, with their fat, in his fiery baptism.

And so, the lame, blind, blemished, broken, scurvy, scabbed offerings, were not accepted of God in the old testament and old covenant; and much less are they accepted in the new covenant of grace, light, and life; for in the new covenant, the children of the covenant of grace offer spiritual sacrifices.

So it is clear here, the new covenant and testament is not according to the old.

And whosoever of the seed of Aaron had any blemish, was not to offer the bread of his God in the old covenant and testament; and what man soever hath a blemish, he shall not approach. A man that is blind or lame, or scabbed, crushed, broken foot or hand, or crooked back, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or scurvy, or hath his stones broken, or any superfluity, or hath any blemish, of the seed of Aaron the priest, he shall not come nigh the offerings of the Lord. Nay, the priests were not to drink wine or strong drink, when they went into the tabernacle to offer. So perfect, whole, clean, and clear, without blemish, they were to be in the old covenant, that offered those outward things, in the outward tabernacle or temple. Then much more perfect, and more clean and clear, is Christ Jesus, the high priest, who offered up himself to God, without spot or blemish, for the sins of the whole world, and gave his holy flesh for the life of the whole world, and who abolished all those offerers and offerings in the old covenant.

And therefore all his believers, in the new covenant and testament, which are called a royal priesthood, must be much more clean and holy than they were in the old covenant and law of works, they that be in the new covenant of grace, and without blemish. For as Peter saith, 'Christ, the Lamb of God, who offered up himself, is without spot or blemish ;' and he sanctifies and cleanses, and washes his church, his people, with the water of the word,' that he might present to himself a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.' Ephes. v.

So he cleanses away the inward brokenness, crookedness, scurviness, scabbedness, blindness, deformities, lameness, and blemishes, that all the believers in the light, which is the life in Christ, might offer their spiritual sacrifices unto God. And so the children of the new covenant are called a holy nation, a royal priesthood, and do exalt Christ the substance, who hath abolished the old priesthood, and his offerings in the old covenant, which are not according to the new covenant and testament.

And there were to be no drinkers of wine nor strong drink, when they were to approach before God in the old covenant; and drunken priests were forbidden in the time of the law and old covenant, much more in the time of the gospel.

For whatsoever was blemished or evil-favoured, was not to be offered to the Lord in the old covenant. But in the new covenant, which is not according to the old, all that are the followers of Christ, who brings them up into the image of God, and the believers in the light, which is the life in him, and are called the children of light, and are born of God, and have passed from the death that blemishes them, and made them ill-favoured, and crooked, and scabbed, and blind, &c.: all these that are born of God and children of light, are very well favoured, like God, their Father, and he doth accept their spiritual offerings and sacrifices, and them also whom Christ doth present to God in the new covenant and testament, and new and living way, which is not according to the old testament and old covenant, the Jews' old way; for the one was outward, and the other inward; the one was carnal, (viz. in carnal ordinances,) and the other spiritual.

And the Jews in the old covenant and testament, they were to eat only of the clean fowls and clean beasts; and they were to put a difference between the clean and unclean beasts and fowls; and that which died of itself, or was torn, they were not to eat, nor to defile themselves withal. Levit. xxii. For ye shall be holy unto me, saith the Lord; ye shall not eat flesh that is torn of the beast of the field; ye shall cast it unto the dogs.' Exod. xxii. And Aaron and his sons, the priests, were to eat part of the sacrifice of the clean beasts in the holy place, Levit. x. that was, in the temple or tabernacle.

Now all these outward clean creatures, and they that eat of them, were to be clean also; for the priests were to be sanctified and cleansed before they eat of the sacrifice. I say, all these clean meats and offerings were a type of Christ Jesus, the offering, and of the heavenly clean food, that the children of the new covenant feed upon; for they were not to feed upon such outward things, as were torn or died of themselves; for they were dogs' meat in the old covenant. covenant, which is not according to the old, all the creatures of God are But in the new

clean unto them, and every creature of God is good, and they cannot feed upon any thing that is torn, nor that which dies of itself. I say, they cannot inwardly feed their souls with it; but their food is that which is living, and from him that is living, who did not die of himself, and is living, and dieth no more; and the spiritual food and things are not torn things, and do not die, which the Jews in the spirit feed upon.

So the new covenant and testament is not according to the old; for the Jews in the old covenant fed upon outward things, and upon that which was clean; and the priests were to eat part of the sacrifices in a clean place, in the temple. But the Jews in spirit and new covenant, unto them every creature of God is good and clean, and their food is spiritual, and they eat of the sacrifice Christ Jesus, their bread from heaven, all the royal priesthood of God in his new covenant eat of it in the clean temple and tabernacle, their hearts, of the clean heavenly food. So the new testament is not according to the old.

And the Jews had a high priest over the rest of the priests in the old testament and covenant, which could not continue by reason of death, but when one was deceased, they got another to offer their sacrifice, and he had the tenth of the tenths.

But Christ is the high priest in the new covenant, who hath offered up himself once for all the offerings of the priests in the old covenant; and so hath tasted death for every man, and is risen, and remains a priest for ever, and dieth no more; and is a high priest in his new testament and new covenant, and makes all his believers priests and kings to reign upon earth, and over the serpent, whose head he hath bruised. Glory to God for ever.

So our high priest is not according to the old, and his followers are not according to the old priests' followers; for they are all spiritually minded, and the spiritual cannot feed upon that which is torn or dies of itself, nor offer it, but upon that which is living, and holy, and heavenly, and spiritual in the new covenant; for that which dieth of itself, or is torn, is not spiritual, but carnal, and the royal clean priests in the new covenant cannot feed thereon.

And all the Jews in the old covenant and testament, the Lord said unto them, 'Ye shall sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy, saith the Lord, and ye shall be holy men unto me.' Exod. xxii.

So they did sanctify themselves, and wash themselves with outward water, and the blood of the outward clean beasts was sprinkled upon them; and Aaron the high priest was to bear the iniquity of the holy things, after that he was sanctified, which the children of Israel had hallowed, and all their holy gifts. Exod. xxviii. 38. And Aaron and his sons were to eat the sin offering, and to bear the iniquity of the congregation, and to make an atonement for them before the Lord. Levit.

x. And the priests' garments were all to be holy, and the temple, and tabernacle, and sanctuary were all called holy in the old covenant.

But the new covenant is not according to the old; for Christ in the new covenant he bears the iniquity and sins of the whole world, and was wounded for its transgressions, and bruised for iniquities, and the chastisement of our peace was laid upon him; he hath borne our griefs, and with his stripes we are healed, and the Lord hath laid upon him the iniquities of us all; whose soul was made an offering for sin, who saw the travails of his soul, and was satisfied. Isa. lv.

So he abolisheth all those outward holy garments, and tabernacle, and temple, and offerings, and gifts, which were called holy in the old covenant, but worldly in the new covenant.

So it is Christ, whom God the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world,' John x. that makes an end of sin, and finishes transgression in his new covenant, who through death destroys death, and the devil, who had the power of death, that made man and woman unholy. And it is Christ Jesus that makes all things holy and new, and sanctifies all things by his word, and all his gifts are holy; who changes the first priesthood with all the outward things, which were called holy in the old testament, which were figures of the holy spiritual things in the new testament, and the spiritual sanctuary, temple, and tabernacle, in the new covenant and testament. All the Jews in the spirit feed upon Christ, their sacrifice, which he gives for the life of the world; and so eat the bread from heaven, in the holy and heavenly sanctuary, tabernacle, and temple, that are not of the old covenant's building.

So Christ in his new covenant and testament, the high priest made higher than the heavens, in offering up himself once for the sins of the whole world, is not according to the Jews' high priests, and their offerings, but doth put an end to them all, and abolisheth them all, and establishes his new testament in the spirit, and new covenant of light, life and grace. I say, Christ, the high priest who was dead, and died for man, to fetch man out of death to life, and to destroy him that kept him in death, is alive again, and lives for evermore, and is a high priest for ever amongst all his royal priesthood, and reigns in his holy sanctuary, tabernacle, and temple of the sanctified hearts.

And the Jews in the old covenant and testament, they were not to touch any unclean thing, or creature, or unclean fowl, or beast, or creeping things that were outward; no, not to touch any vessel where any of those unclean things were in; if they did, they were to wash themselves with outward water. Levit. xi. And likewise, they were not to come nigh, nor touch the dead; if they did, they were unclean, and they were to sanctify and wash themselves with outward water, &c. Now the new covenant is not according to the old, which saith,

Every creature of God is good.' And God and Christ hath sanctified every creature; as Peter preached it from a voice he heard from heaven, when he saw four-footed beasts, and wild beasts, and creeping things let down from heaven, in his vision, which he was to kill and eat; and they were not to be called common nor unclean in the new covenant. For every thing that God had made was sanctified by the word, by which all things in the beginning were made good, yea, very good.

And so in this the new covenant and testament, and new and living way, are not according to the old.

And as they in the old covenant were not to touch the dead, nor the unclean creatures, so the Jews in the spirit are not to touch the unclean creeping spirits, which are like beasts and ravenous fowls. And those are the unclean spirits which the apostles would not have the saints to touch; for if they did, they must be washed with heavenly water, and the blood of Jesus, before they can be cleansed. And for eating, or touching of outward creatures, he told the saints in the new covenant, that 'whatsoever was sold in the shambles, that they might eat.'

And though it was the doctrine of the law in the old covenant to forbid several sorts of meat to eat; but in the new covenant it is the doctrine of devils to forbid meats and marriages, or to command to abstain from them, which God hath created, to be received with thanksgiving, by them that receive the doctrine of Christ Jesus in his new covenant and testament. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God, and prayer.' 1 Tim. iv. 4.

So here it is clear, the new covenant and testament is not according to the old.

And in the old covenant, when the outward Jews went to wars with their carnal weapons, and took any prize, every thing that could abide the fire, must go through the outward fire, and that was to cleanse it and purify it with the outward water and fire; and they were to abide seven days out of the camp, and to wash their clothes, before they came in again into the camp. Numb. xxxi.

But in the new covenant, which is not according to the old, every thing must be washed with the water of life, and cleansed by Christ, and come through his fiery baptism, before they can come into his treasure, and camp, and city, and be perfect. For the seven days that were to pass upon them in the old covenant, was the perfection of days. And that was outward fire and water, that was to cleanse and purify the Jews, and those outward things; but all the believers in the light must be washed with the heavenly water, and purified with heavenly VOL. VI.

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