m&&.
Milton,
Peterborough.
J
;
A N
EXPOSITION
O F T H E
Cburcb-Catechifm.
B Y
SAMUEL CLARKE, D. D.
lateRedtor of St James's Weftminfter.
Publljhed from the A u T H o &' s
B Y
JOHN CLARKE, D. D. Dean of Sarum.
LONDON:
Printed by W. Botham , for JAMES and
JOHN K N A p T o N, at the Crown in
St. Paul's Church-Yard. MDCCXXI*,
TO THE
READER.
|HE following Expofiti-
on of the C H u R c H-C A-
TECHISM was defigned
by the Author for the Prefs, and
was left entirely compleated by
himfelf, and is now printed ex-
a&ly from his own Manufcript,
without the leaft Addition, Di-
minution or Alteration whatfbever.
John Clarke.
AN
EXPOSITION
OF T H E
Church-Catechifm.
PARTI.
Of the Baptlfmal Vow.
& n c t pout
Anfw. Jjt 0? IB.
UPON Occafion of re-
.peating our Chriftian Name, the Cate-
chifm begins with reminding us of
the Nature of our Holy Profejjion ;
Which is perpetually fignified to us by
the very Name we bear, the Name of
Chriftiam.
E INTO
An EXPOSITION
INTO This Holy Profeffion we are in-
itiated or admitted by Baptifm ; And
therefore our Inftruttwn begins, with an
explication of the Nature of That Solemn
Covenant, and of the Obligations incum-
bent upon us from thence.
BAPTISM., as it has the nature of
a Sacrament^ will be confidered after-
wards in the latter part of the Catechifm.
But in This place 'tis confidered barely
as our Admittance or Entrance into the
Chriftian Church ; with the Privileges to
which we are thereby received, and the
Obligations we thereby take upon our-
felves.
THESE Privileges are exprefTed in the
Anfwer to the following gyejiion, and the
Obligations in the Anjkaer to the Queflion
next following after That.
pou
Anfw. i&p Ootefatfjcrtf aitti
m mil Saptifin, tuljmm 3
matie a li&mter of C$ua, tlje
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
of 5o&, anfc an 3Inf}tt to? of
tfje IStiugdam of fecafcm.
IN This Anfwer is contained an Ac-
count of the Privileges or Benefits to
which we are admitted by Baptifm. But
before I enter upon the explication of
T^hefe particulars, there are Two things
remarkable in the Introduction of this
Anfwer.
1. THE confideration of the Name
being Given at Baptifm.
2. T H E Perform who are here faid to
give us that Name.
i. CONCERNING the Name being
Given at Baptifm, 'tis to be obferved that
This is No part of the Sacrament itfelf,
nor at all of Divine inftitution, but of
Humane appointment only. Baptifm
therefore ought not to be lookt upon as
the bare Form or Ceremony of Giving a
Name : But on the contrary the Ceremo-
ny of giving the Name, is a mere exter-
nal Form, annexed without any neceffity,
and by mere Cuflom only, to the Solemn
B 2 dedication
Jn EXPOSITION
dedication of ourfelves unto God in Bap-
tifm. And it was prudently defigned, for
a perpetual Memorial of our Duty, that
our very Name {hould remind us of our
Holy Profeffion : And becaufe we recei-
ved our Own Name, at the fame time we
were baptized into the Name of our Lord.,
that therefore we {hould never hear our
own Name mentioned, without being put
in mind of our being dedicated to His.
Thus ought we always to remember,
that Baptifm doth reprefent unto us our
Profeffion. And the very Mention of a
Man's Chriftian Name is a perpetual Re-
proach to every one, who by his conver-
fation renounces what was folemnly pro-
mifed for him at his receiving That Title,
and who does not anfwer the Cbaraffier of
a Chriftian. Better had it been for all
fuch perfons, never to have been baptized
at all into the Name of Chrift ; than that,
by a Life unfuitable to that worthy Cha-
rafter, they mould difhonour both His
Name and their Own. Our Chriftian
Name is a perpetual declaration of our
being dedicated to the Service of Chrift ;
And
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H 1 S M.
And 'tis a fhameful Negligence and Want
of confideration, that makes us generally
feem fo entirely to have forgot the Thing,
while the Word is continually in our
Mouths.
2. T H E Perfons here faid to give us our
Name, are our Godfathers and Godmothers.
The reafon and defign of which appoint-
ment, is 3 that Thofe Perfons (houldgive
the Name, who undertake (as far as in
Them lies) to fee the Signification of it
anfwered ; that the fame perfons mould
confer the Title of a Chriftian, who take
upon themfelves (as far as they mall have
opportunity) to verify the Litention of it,
and (next after the more immediate
Care incumbent upon the Parents,) to fee
that the Perfon be brought up a Chriftian
in deed. For, the Promife made by the
Godfathers and Godmothers, is not a Pro-
mife for Them/ehes: Nor is it properly a
Promife of what Another perfon Jhall do,
(which is a Promife in no man's power to
make:) But 'tis only a Promife to remind
the baptized perfon of his future Duty , a
B 3 Promife
jin EXPOSITION
Promife to remind him what Obligations
his Baptifm lays upon him ; a Promife to
c all upon him, when at years of difcretion,
to take upon himfelf publickly thofe Obli-
gations.
ON E of the principal Objections againft
the Baptizing of Infants, is ; that One
perfon cannot enter into any Obligation
for Another, without his Otun Confent.
Which is very true. But the Anfwer to
this Objection, is plain : That the Obligati-
on upon the Infant, in This cafe, does not at
all arifefrom the Promife of the Sureties,
but was an original antecedent Obligation -,
equally fuch, whether the Sureties had
ever made any Promife or no. And the
Promife made by the Godfathers and God-
mothers is nothing more, than that they
will hereafter (as opportunity fliall offer or
neceffity mall require) put the baptized
perfon in mind of That which, without
any fuch Promife, would however equally
have been his Duty. As (hall more parti-
cularly be explained under the Anfwer to
That Qucftion, Dojt thou not think that
thou
Of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
cc thou art bound to believe and to do, as
" they have promifed for thee ? " and al-
fo in the latter part of the Catechifm, un-^
der the Doctrine of the Sacraments.
ALL young perfons therefore, as often
as they repeat the firft Principles of their
Religion in the Rehearfal of their Cate-
chifm, ought thereby to be put in re-
membrance, that as the Name of a Chri-
ftian is a perpetual obligation upon a per-
fon, to be in reality what he is called in
words; fo the confideration that This
Name was given him by his Sureties at
Baptifm, mould conftantly remind him
What thofe perfons were Sureties for ; and
what Solemn Obligations he takes upon
himfelf, if he profejjes himfelf to be a
Cbriftian ; fince, by That Profejjion, he ac-
knowledges that the things which They
promifed for him, he is indifpenfably bound
to perform for himfelf. For, not to regard
thofe Obligations, is to renounce- his
Baptifm; and .to renounce Baptifm, is
to renounce all the Privileges of being
a Ghriftian> both with regard to the Fa-
B 4 vour
An EXPOSITION
vour of God in This life, and the Hopes
of Salvation in That which is to come.
THIS being premijed concerning the
Giving of the Name by the Godfathers and
Godmothers; there follows in the next
place an Account of the Privileges or Be-
nefits, to which the perfon is admitted by
Baptifm. " Wherein 1 was made y
1. " A Member of Chrift :
2. The Child of God: 'And'
3. " An Inheritor of the Kingdom of
" Heaven. "
j. To be " a Member of Chrift, "
is a figurative expreffion taken from a Hu-
man Body, the Members of which are
erTentially united to the Head and to
each Other; fo that the Life and Vigour,
the Warmth and Motion, the Beauty and
Comelinefs of all the Members, depend
necefTarily on the communication and con-
nexion of them All with the Head. The
Signification therefore of this Expreffion,
is ; that as any Member cut off from the
Natural
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
Natural Body, has no Life or Motion ; fo
a perfon alienated from Chrift, has no Spi-
ritual Life, no Title to 'That Life which
is purchafed for us by Him. Life and Im-
mortality are the Gift of God; not due to
Mankind by Nature y not a Claim of Right;
no, not to Innocent and Sinlefs Creatures,
much lefs to Sinners. For God, by whofe
mere good pleafure it is that things exift at
all, is under, no obligation of Juftice to con-
tinue Any Creature in Being, longer than
he himfelf thinks fit. Life therefore it-
felf, and much more Eternal Life, is the
Gift, the Free Gift of God : And This
Gift he is pleafed to beftow upon men, in
and through Chrijl. 'Tis of mere Grace and
Favour, that God has at all given to Frail
Men the Promife of Immortality ; that he
has vouchfafed to admit them to the Cove-
nant of Repentance, for the remiflion of
Sins : Of which Covenant, Chrijl is the
Mediatour and the Minifter. He is the
Way, the Truth, and the Life , and by
Him only, have we Accefs to the Father.
Hence the Church of Chrift, is in Scrip-
ture compared to a Vine ; whofe Branches,
while
io An EXPOS If ION
while they are united to the Root, live
and bring forth Fruit ; but being feparated
from it, they are fit only to be burned.
iPet.iii< Hence alfo 'tis compared to the Ark,,
Z0f 2 *' wherein eight perfons iverefaved by Water :
T?he like fgure ^hereunto, even Baptifm
doth alfo now fave US ; not the putting a-
ivay of the flth of the Flejh, but the An-
fwer of a good confcience towards God.
Eph.v.30* Hence Chrift, is the Head of the Church ;
and the Church, the myflical Body of
Chrift. For we are Members of his Body,
Col. ii. 19. of his Flefi, and of his Bones. He is the
Head, from which all the Body, by joints
and bands hawig nourlfiment miniftred,
and knit together, increafeth with the in-
Eph.iv.i6. creafe of God. From him the whole body
fitly joined together, and compared by that
which roery joint fupplieth, according to the
effetfuall Working in the meafure of every
part, maketh encreafe of the Body, unto the
edifying of itfelf in Love.
Now this great Privilege of being
Members of Cbrift, is alfo very fignifi-
ant of our Duty. That we are to honour
him.
of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. II
him, as the perfon whom God has given Eph.i. 22.
us to be the Head over all things : That we
are to depend upon him, as the Author of
our Life towards God ; as the Only Lord
and Saviour, through whom the kindnefs Tit.iii.4,6.
and love of God our Saviour has appeared
toward Man, and is foe d on us abundantly.
That we are to imitate him, as our Ex-
ample 5 to obey him, as our Majier ; to fol-
low him, as our Guide ; and be in all
things fitbjeft to him, as the feveral Mem-
bers of the Body are to the Superiour Pow-
ers and Faculties of the Soul.
T i s alfo further to be obferved, that as
all the Members of the Body are fubjeft to
the Head, fo they are alfo fitly contrived
to be ufeful and helpful to Each Other.
And This likewife does, by a very hand-
fom fimilitude, reprefent to us our Duty,
as being fellow-members of the fame Body.
That we mould in all things be helpful
and beneficial one to another, as brethren,
and partakers of the fame common Salva-
tion. For as the Body is one, and hath ma- x cor.xii.
ny Members; and all the Members of that I2
one
An EXPOSITION
one Body, being Many, are One Body ; Jo
alfo is Chrift. That therefore we fhould
. have the fame care One for Another : And
whether One member fuffer, all the mem-
bers fuffer with it j or One member be ho-
nour ed^ all the members rejoice with it.
' Laftly : THIS Similitude of our being
Members of the fame Body, is Jti II further
fignificant of our Duty. That as, in the
ver - lt> natural Body, the Eye cannot fay unto the
Hand, I have no need of Tou ; nor again,
the Head to the Feet, I have no need of
You ; neither, on the other fide, can the
ycr.is- meaner parts, can the Foot Jay, becaufe I
am not the Hand, I am not of the Body :
So in the Body of Chrift, of which we
are All members, no man ought to dejpife
his meaner brother, nor envy his greater.
The Rich or the Learned, muft not defpife
the Poor or the Ignorant ; nor the Poor or
Ignorant envy the Rich or the Learned ;
fince God has made them All equally
Members of Chrift, and defigned them to
be ufeful and beneficial to each other.
2. THE
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 13
2, TH E Second Privilege to which a
perfon is admitted by Baptifm, is ; that
therein he is made " The Child of God. "
That is to fay : Whereas by Nature we are
only in general the Creatures of the Al-
mighty, and the Work of his Hands; and,
by Sin., were become Objects of his Wrath
and Dijpleafure j we are by Chriji reftored,
through the Covenant of Repentance, to
the Favour of God as of a tender Father :
And our Nature is raifed to fome fimilitude
with His, who was in a fingular manner
The Son of God, and yet condefcended to
become our elder Brother. As many as j oh . .
received him, to them gave he power to be- 13.
come The Sons of God, even to them that
believe on his Name. Who were born, not
of Blood, nor of the Will of the Flejh, nor
of the Will of Man, but of God.
A s the Jews of old, through the Obe-
dience of their Father Abraham, became
the peculiar, the eleff, the chofen people of
God ; the Standard of true Religion, and
of the Worjhip of the One True Gcd of
the Umverje, for a Teftimony againfl all
the
I 4 An EXPOSITION
the idolatrous Nations of the Earth : So
Chrijllam now, in a more excellent and
fpiritual manner, of which all the Jewijh
Privileges were but Types and Figures,
do, through the interpofition of Chrift, and
by their embracing the Terms of his E-
Rev. xiv. verlafting Gofpel, become T*he Sons of God
siiU$. and Children of the Covenant.
Gal. iv. 7. HENCEFORTH therefore we are m
more Servants, but Sons. That is : God
requires not of us any hard and burden-
fom Services, with the Severity of a rigo-
rous Mafter - y but only a rational and filial
Obedience, with the Indulgence of a ten-
Pf.dii. 14, der and compaffionate Father. He know-
eth whereof we are made, and remembreth
that we are but Duft : Like as a Father
pitieth his children, evenfo the Lord pitieth
them that fear him. He fupports us with
all NeceiTaries, he affifts us by his Spirit,
he pardons our Infirmities, and gracioufly
forgives us all our Sins, upon fincere Re-
pentance and real Amendment of Life,
through the Interceffion of Chrift.
i THIS
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. i
THIS is what the Scripture calls,
The Adoption of Sons-, and, the Spirit Gal.i?.j.
/ yf / it *i i T-. Rom.viii,
of Adoption, 'whereby we cry, Abba, Fa- J5 .
ther.
TH i s is the Privilege we are 'admitted
to by Baptifm, of being the Children of
God. And 'tis like wife no lefs fignificant of
our Duty. For every Relation whatfoever,
neceflarily fuppofes and implies the Duty
correfpondent to that Relation. If there-
fore we live not in Obedience to the Com-
mands of our Heavenly Father, it will
nothing profit us to have had the Name of
his Children. Nay, we mall be rejected
and puniihed with fo much the greater
Severity, for not having lived worthy of Eph.i v . i:
the Vocation wherewith we were called. He Rev.xxi-7.
that Overcometh, flail inherit all things j
and I will be his God, and He flail be my
Son.
3. THE tfhird Privilege to which a
Perfon is admitted by Baptifm, is ; that
therein he is made " anlnheritour of the
" Kingdom of Heaven. " For whereas
the
i6 An EXPOSITION
i Job v. the whole World lieth in Wickednefs, and
Coi.iii. 6. the Wrath of God cometh upon the children
of Difobedience, and the natural and pro-
Rom, vi. per Wages of Sin is Death ; God has, by
Chrift, not only redeemed us from this
Wrath, but moreover, of his free and
undeferved bounty, has exalted us to be
joint-heirs with Chrift in his eternal King-
Rom, viii.dom; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with
Eph. ii. 6. Chrift. He hath raifed us up together^
and made us Jit together in heavenly places
in Chrift Jefus. He hath prepared for us
iPct-ii.i9- disinheritance incorruptible^ and undejiled y
and that fadeth not away y referred in Hea-
Rom.vi.s- <uen for us. For if we have been planted
together in the likenefs of Chrift's Death,
we fiall be alfo in the likenefs of his
Refurrettion. Into This Covenant there-
fore, to the Hope and PoiTibility of This
Happinefs, to a Title to This Inheritance
upon our obeying the gracious Terms of
the Gofpel, we are admitted by Baptifmj
EpLii. 19. being made Fellow-Citizens with the
Saints, and of the houfiold of God ; being
Heb.xii. come unto Mount Sion t unto the City of the
Living
of tie C H tJ R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
Living God, the heavenly Jerufalem, and
to an innumerable company of Angels, to
the general Affembly and Church ofthejirft-
born which are written in Heaven, and to
GOD the Judge of all, and to the Spirits
ofjuft men made perfect, and toJES US
the Mediator of the New Covenant.
O UR Converfation therefore, our Citi-
zenjhip, our proper Country, is in Heaven. 10t
It remains only, that we take care to obey
the Laws of That country -, that we be not
c aft out as difobedient children, but walk
worthy of God who hath called us unto his
Kingdom and Glory. For into the City of
God there Jhall in no wife enter any thing Rev
that dejileth, neither whatfoever worketb* 7 '
abomination, or maketh a Lie.
THESE are the Privileges to which
men are admitted, by being Baptized into
.the Church vtChrift. As to Thofe among
whom the Gofpel of the Kingdom was ne-
ver preached, concerning 'Them it belongs
not to US to judge. TLO their own Mafter %
\hsyftand or fall. They are the Creatures
C of
,8 An EXPOSITION
Gen.xviii. o f God: And the Judge of all the Earth
pf.xcviii. will do what is right. With righteoufnefi
I0 - Jh all he judge the World t and the Nations
with Equity.
Qu. iBljat did pour <6>odfatljer
and <Dodmort)er0 tfjcn fi pon *
Anfw. C&ep bid pjomife and toota
tft^e tljing^ in mp $ame.
tljat 3! tpould renounce tfje
and ail St0 o?kjef, tlje pomp^ and
Dainties of t(]i0 toichtD IBojld, and
all t^e finful Huft^ of tfje ^leffr.
, tljat 3 fftould bchcDc all
3lrticle0 of tfje Cfitrifttan ipaitft.
Cfjirdlp, Cfiat 31 f fionld heep
golp i(i and Command^
.ment$, and toalk in tfte fame all
tfte ^apjg of mp life,
IN the Anfwer to the foregoing Quefti-
on, are fet forth the Privileges we are ad-
mitted to by Baptifm ; In the Anfwer to
efent %uejiion> are declared the Obli-
gations
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 19
gations we thereby take upon ourfelves.
And Thefe Obligations are ;
Firft, THAT we forfake what is
Wicked.
Secondly, That we believe (that is, wil-
lingly hearken to, without prejudice re-
ceive, and fteadfaflly embrace) what is
True.
Thirdly, T H AT we praftife what i$
Good.
THE Wickednefs to be forfaken, is,
" The Devil and all his Works, the Pomps
" and Vanities of this wicked World, and
allthefinfulLujlsoftheFlejh. "
THE Truth to be believed, are, <c The
" Articles of the Chriftian Faith. "
THE Good to be prafltfed, is, that we
Go^'.? holy Will and Commandments,
w^/^ 2w the fame all the days of our
". Lives. ':
C 2 I. THE
20 An EXPOSITION
I. T H E Wickednefs to be forfaken, is
here reduced under *Three Heads, i. *fhe
Devil and all bis Works. 2. The Pomps
and Vanities of this wicked World. 3. All
thefinful Lufts of the Flejh.
i. WE are to renounce the Devil, and
all his Works. And *fhefe in Scripture lig-
nify generally All Sin whatfoever: For
ijoh.iii.8 thisfurpofe the Son of God was manifejled^
that he might deftroy the Works of the De-
vil, that is, that he might root out Wick-
ednefs out of the World. The reafon why
AH Sin and Wickednefs is called the Work
of the Devil, isbecaufe the Devil^r^ Jin-
nedfrom the Beginning, and Jirftfeduced
men into Sin, and is the Head ofApoftacy,
and delights m promoting Sin, and tempting
men to it. But in This place, 'tis plain the
Works of the Devil do not fignify All Sin
in general, but Some Sorts of Sin in parti-
cular, diftinguifhed exprefsly from the
Vanities of the World and from the Lufts
of the Flejh. Wherefore for the clearer
nnderftanding of this matter, 'tis to be ob-
ferved
of^the CH u R c H-C AT E c H i s M. 21
ferved that the Devil is in Scripture repre-
fented to us, as Head or Prince of a num-
ber of Angels y who finned againft God>
(for probably All intelligent Creatures
have their State of Probation?) and were
c aft down out of Heaven. What their Sin
was in particular, is not clearly revealed,
and therefore 'tis to no purpofe to be curi-
ous in inquiring after it. Only this we
may be very fure of, that it was not a Re-
telling againfl God by way of open Force ^
as Some have weakly and injudicioufly re-
prefcnted it. For nothing can be more
abfurd, than to imagine that Any Creature
or number of Creatures can in This Senfe
poflibly rebel againfl God y who can with-
draw from them (when he pleafes) even
their very Being ; and in whofe hands the
whole Univerfe is as Nothing, But 'tis rea-
fonable to fuppofe They fell, as wicked
Men do, by prefumptuoufly and foolifhly
venturing to tranfgrefs fome of God's
Commands: Only with This difference,
that Their Sin was the greater and more
unpardonable, becaufe they had No Temp-
tfr a that we knew of; and their Nature
C 3 was
22 ^EXPOSITION
was left frail. Neither Now do they with-
ftand the Will of God, and fet up an op-
pofite Kingdom, by way of Force or Vio-
lence, as if they could do any thing abfo-
lutely againft or in oppolition to Him : But
as Criminals and condemned perfons, ha-
ving no Hope for Themfefaes, they malici-
oufly endeavour to draw Others likewife
into the fame Condemnation. When
therefore the Scripture fpeaks of War in
Heaven, and of the Dragon and His An-
gels fighting againft Michael and Hh An-
gels ; we muft by no means understand it
literally, as if evil Spirits could fight
againft God, or againft his Minifters* 9 but
only figuratively, that, in the moral fenfe,
they oppofe the Kingdom of Cbrift, by in-
deavouring tofeduce men into the Com-
miflion of Sin. The Devil therefore has
no Power over men, neither is his Force at
all to be feared: But he can tempt and
J'educe and deceive the unwary, as wick~
ed Men alfo tempt one another; and is in
the fame manner to be refifted.
THIS
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 23
THIS being premifed in general, con-
cerning the Devil who is to be renounced ;
it will eafily be underftood, that the
Works of the Devil, his Works properly fo
called, as diftinguimed from the Vanities
of the World and from the Lufts of the
FleJJj; are Such Sins in particular, of
which the Devil is principally an Exam-
ple, to which he more immediately tempts,
and which are more properly and ftrictly
called Diabolical.
F This fort is Lying, and efpecially
an matters of Religion, to deceive and im-
pofe upon men knowingly with Falfe
Doctrines. For the Devil is a Lyar, and Joh.viii,
the Father of it. And hence in Scripture ^
falfe Objefts of religious Worfhip are fre-
quently ftiled, Lies-, and the fetters of
them up, Lyars.
1 N the next place, Murder, Wars, De-
folations, and particularly Perfecution upon Rev.xii.
account of Religion. For the Devil is *fbe R e v 3 ix.
Deftroyer, and & Murderer from the begin- "^ ...
C 4 ALSO
24, An EXPOSITION
ALSO Pride, Hatred, Envy, Malice,
falfe Accufation, and the like. For the
Devil is (what the name Ai<toAo$ figni-
Rev.xii. fies) The Accufer of the Brethren.
JO>
THEN Witchcraft, Aftrology, Fortune-
telllng, and all unlawful Arts, either real
ex pretended. For all things of This fort,
whenever they have any reality in them,
are evidently diabolical. And when they
have no reality, they are Cheats and lying
Impoftures; andyo likewife they are ftilj
the Works of Him, who was a Lyar from
the beginning.
Lailly ; ID LATR T, is the prin+
cipal of all the Works of the Devil, and
the moft immediate and direft oppofition
to God. This was the great Enemy to
Chriftianity, at the firft planting of the
Gofpel. And though now, under the
name of Heathenifm indeed, it be abolifh-
ed in Thefe parts of the world ; yet there
are, even among thofe that call themfelves
Cbriftians, Some who (in dke# oppoiiti-
on to the Command of God) worfhip Ima-
ges of Wood and Stone> and conjecrated
Elements,
of the C H U R C H-C ATE C H ISM.
Elements, and Other Imaginations of their
own, inftead of the Maker and Preferver
of all things, even the One God and Fa-
ther of All, who is Above all, and Through
all, and In us all j and (in direcfl contra-
diction to the defign of the Gofpel) fet
up and pray to imaginary Inter cejjbrs,
Angels and Saints and the Ble/ed Virgin,
inftead of praying in the Name of Him
who is the One Mediator between God and
Man, even our Lord y?Jus Chrift. All
which Practifes, are manifefl Idolatry,
Worfhip paid to Idol-Gods, and Idol-
Mediators. And indeed every thing is
Faulty of this kind, befide the Worfhip
of Him alone, who created the world by
his Power, who redeemed mankind by his
Son, and who fan&tfies all good perfons
by his Holy Spirit,
2. W E are to renounce the Pomps and
Vanities of this wicked World. The-
Meaning of which, is 5 not that the
World which God hath created, or any of
its natural Injoyments, are Evil : But the
things to be renounced, are, the Evil Cu-
Jtems
46 An EXPOSITION
ftoms of the world, the vitious Fajhions,
and the corrupt Prattifes that prevail in
it.
IN the Primitive times, by the word
Pomps, were particularly meant certain
Heathen Shows and Proceffions, which, ha-
ving relation to the Falfe Deities of the
Pagans, were of an idolatrous nature;
and moreover, being frequently attend-
ed with Lewd Ceremonies, had a direct
tendency to debauch mens manners. By
the fame word now, are to be underftood
all Methods of Ambition and Grandeur,
inconfiflent with Integrity and Virtue;
and 2\\fuch Sorts of Diver/ions and Enter-
tainments, as plainly tend to corrupt good
Manners.
THE Vanities of the world, are,
Riches unjuftly gotten, or vainly and pro-*
fufely fquandered away in riotous living,
or purfued with infatiable Covetoufnefs,
iTim.Ti. which leads men into temptation and a
9- f?iare, and into many foolijh and hurtful
Lujls, which drown men in dejlruftion and
perdition.
3. WE
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. tj
3. WE are to renounce All the Sinful
Lufts of the Flefh. And thefe are better
barely named than explained. The works Gal.v.
of the Flefh are manifeji, which are thefe j
Adultery, Fornication, Unckannefs, Laf-
c ivioufnefs, - and fuch like: Of the
which I tell you before, as 1 have alfo told
you in time paft, that they which do fuch
things, foall not inherit the Kingdom of
God.
II. The Truths to be believed, are, The
Articles of the Chrijlian Faith. Thefe are
contained in the Creed vulgarly called The
Apoftlei Creed: Which fliall be explained
in its proper place.
III. THE Good to be prattifed, is,
that we keep God's holy Will and Command-
tnents, and walk in the fame all the days
of our Lives. And thefe Commandments
fliall likewife be explained in their proper
place.
'An EXPOSITION
Qu. <ott tfjou not tljinR tljat tgou
art bound to foeitcbc and to do as
tljep Ijaue pjomtfed foj tljee *
Anfw, |fe$ toerilp ; and ftp 5od'
pp fo toilL ffnd 31 fjeartilp
tijanfc our fieatoenlp jpatftet t&at Ijc
ijatg called me to $10 date of ^alUa^
tton, t^ougft giefus Cfcift our a^
utotm 3tnd 31 P?^P unto <0od to
0iUe me 1$ <5?ace, tftat 3 map am*
tinue in tge fame unto mp Hfes end.
THE Ground and Reafon of the O^//-
gation which the baptized perfon here ac-
knowledges incumbent upon him, to per-
form and make good what Of hers had pro-*
mifed for him ; is ufually fuppofed to be
This, that the Promife was made in His
Name> and that therefore he himfelf is
bound to perform it, But this is by no,
means a Satisfactory account of the matter.
For no perfon has a Right to promife
any thing for Another, without his own
Confent ; And no man is obliged to make
good any fuch Promife, if there lies upon
him no other Obligation^ but what arifes
merely
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
merely from fuch a Promife made for
him without his Knowledge andConfent,
Nor is it fufficient to fay, that the perfon
is therefore under obligation, becaufe the
things promifed are for his Own Advan-
tage. For every perfon, when he comes
to be in a capacity of Afting, has a Right
to judge What is for his Own Advantage.
And 'tis not what Another may think, but
what he himfelf is convinced to be for his
own Advantage, that muft finally deter-
mine him to chufe and acl:. To the
Queftion therefore here put, how comes
every baptized perfon to be " Bound to be-
" lieve and to do" as Others have promifed
for him? the true Anjwer, I think, is
contained in the 'Two following Obferva-
tions.
i. THAT every baptized perfon, who,
when he comes to years of underftanding,
is fatisfied of the Truth of the Gofpel of
Chrift, and proceeds regularly in his Duty;
does at Confirmation voluntarily take upon
Himfelf 'the Promife, which had by Others
been made for him at his Baptifm: And
then
30 An EXPOSITION
7/6^2, it being a Promife ratified by his
vwn Free Choice, he is clearly under obli-
gation to perform it. Wherefore, indeed,
the Promife made by Sureties, is not pro-
perly a Promife of what the perfon Shall
Do ; but only a Promife of what \\zjhall
be Inftrutted and called upon to Do, and
to take upon himfelf that he Will do
at the time of his Confirmation. Or if he
never be confirmed at all, yet, if he pro-
feff'es kimfelf a Chriftian, he does, by that
Profeffion, take upon himfelf all the Obli-
gations incumbent upon a Chriftian ; and
confequently undertakes to perform all that
. was promifed for him at his being admitted
by Baptifm into That ProfefTion. Indeed,
if a Perfon at years of difcretion renounces
his Baptifm, and declares himfelf to be no
Chriftian, and difclaims and rejects all
Hope in the Go/pel j In This Cafe, as the
Sureties have No other obligation remain-
ing upon *fbem^ but only to exhort and
prefs him to examine ferioufly and care-
fully the Grounds and Evidences of the
Dodtrine of Chrift; fo neither has He
properly Any obligation upon Him y mere-
i ly
of the CHURCH^CATECHISM.
ly on account of Their having promifed
for him what He himfelf is not willing to
confent to. But ftill he is under an obli-
gation no lefs flrong upon another ac-
count: Which is,
2. THAT the things themfehes are in
their own nature fuch, as the baptized Per-
fon would be abfolutely and indifpenfably
obliged to perform, whether the Sureties
had ever made any Promife for him, or
not. To believe what God declares, and
to Do what He commands, are things
which every perfon is neceffarify obliged
to, though no Promife had been made for
him at all : And the Promife of the Sure-
ties is not fo much the Ground of the obli-
gation incumbent upon the baptized per-
fon, as the necejjary obligation of the
things themfehes is that which makes Their
Promife to have any Validity. Wherefore,
indeed, Their Promife is not properly with
intent to lay any obligation upon us, or tie
us up to any thing we were not other-
'wife bound to do j but 'tis merely a Decla-
ration and Affurance of a kind intention to
remind
3 2 An EXPOSITION
remind us of our original and abfolute
gation to believe and obey the Will of God.
So that, when any one is taught to fay,
that he verily thinks he is bound to believe
and to do, as his Godfathers and God-
mothers promifed for him ; the Meaning is
not, that he Therefore thinks himfelf
bound, becaufe They Promifed ; but that
he acknowledges himfelf fatisfied that They
promifed nothing, but what was in itjelf
his Abfolute Duty to do : Which Promife,
he is therefore at all times willing to renew
and ratify.
ALL This, is very clear and plain, with
refpect to what we are to Do. But what
is meant by being bound to Believe, is more
difficult. For if Believing, does not, like
our Aflions, depend upon the Will j but
men muft neceffarily believe what they have
good Evidence for ; and cannot pojjibly be-
lieve what they fee no reafon to be con-
vinced ofj How then can Believing be a
Duty, which a man mould upon Any ac-
count be at all bound to perform ? Upon
This, 'tis to be obferved, mi*Tbat Belief 9
i which
^/^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 33
which is the Duty of a Chriflian, is not,
in the drift fenfe of the word, That bare
Affent of the Under/landing, which 'tis not
in our Power to with-hold j but it figni-
fies, in the Moral fenfe, That good difpo-
fition of the Mind and Will, by which a
man, laying afide all Vice and Prejudice
and corrupt Inclinations, chufes to attend
to and examine and conjider and receive
ivit/mg/y, whatever upon due Inquiry he
(hall find to be the Will of God : And
when he has fo received it, not carelefsly
and creduloiijl)\ but upon fober Reafon and
good Evidence ; he adheres to it ftedfaflly,
as a Principle or rational Ground? Action,
by which he is uniformly to be directed.
Wherefore Faith, confidered as a Chriftian
Virtue,always includes in itaNotion of Fide-
lity otFaithfulnefs.Qn the contrary,lfo^//V
confidered as a Fault, never fignifies mere-
ly the difbelieving of any thing for want
of fufficient Proof ; but it always fignifies
rejecting carelefsly and obftinately, with-
out due examination and without juft rea-
fon j or upon the Motives and Suggeftions
of Paffion or Intereft, in oppofition to
D Reafon.
S4 An EXPOSITION
Reafon. And This is evidently the Cafe of
all Profane, Debauched, and Loofe Infidels ;
who, under pretenfe of not being fatisfied
with the Evidences of Revelation, live in
direcYcontradi&ion to all the Principles of
Reafon and Virtue, and of the Natural
Knowledge of God.
AND thus much concerning the Ac-
' knowledgment contained in This Anfwer,
" Tex verily."
THE following words, " And by
God's Help fo I will, " are a declaration of
perpetually renewing wife and good Refolu-
tions, Refolutions of adhering to our Faith>
and perfevering in our Obedience. For
thefe things are very apt to flip out of the
minds of carelefs perfons ; whilft the Plea-
Mat.xiii, fures of Touth, and the Cares of this World,
and the Deceitfulnefs of Riches, choke the
Word, and it becometh unfruitful. Where-
fore 'tis very expedient for young perfons,
as often as the Principles of Religion are
rehearfed in the Catechifm, thus to con-
firm and eflablifh themfelves by new and
repeated Refolutions.
FURTHER:
of the CHURCH-CATECHIS
M.
FURTHER: Becaufe the things we are
obliged to perform, are no lefs our True
Intereft than our Plain Duty ; and living
in Obedience to the Commands of God,
is even at prefent a State of Salvation, a
State of Freedom from the Dominion of
vitious Habits and of bafe and unreafona-
ble Sins, a State which is even at prefent
juftly ftiled the glorious Liberty of the Sons
of God, as well as an AfTurance of Life
and Immortality hereafter ; therefore at
the fame time that we acknowledge our
Obligation, we are taught to declare our
Thankfulnefi alfo for fo excellent a Bene-
fit. " And I heartily Thank our Heaven-
" ly Father, that he hath called me to this
" State of Salvation, through Jefus Chrift
" our Saviour. "
OUR Thanks are to be returned, in the
firft place, to God, our Heavenly Father,
the Original Author and Supreme Lord of
All : Whofe Goodnefs it was, to Send his
Son for our Redemption. For 'tis a very
wrong and injurious notion of the God
and Father of All, to conceive of him as
D 2 Of
3 6 An EXPOSITION
of a Rigid and Implacable Judge, in
whom was naturally nothing but Wrath
and Severity, till he was appeafed by the
merciful interpontion of Chrift. For on
the contrary, even This very thing, the
Coming of Cbrift, was itfelf the Effett
of God's effential and eternal Goodnefs pre-
vailing over his Wrath ; and of his origi-
nal Mercy and Companion, in condefcend-
ing to find out this Method for our Re-
demption, confident with the Sanction of
his eternal Laws and with the Wifdom of
univerfal Government > and to Send his Son
into the World for our Recovery. God
Joh.iii. 1 6. jb Loved the world \ that he Gave his only
begotten Son, that wbofoever believeth in
him, Jhould not perijh, but have evcrlajling
Life.
IN the next place, all humble and
thankful Acknowledgment is to be made
likewife to Our Saviour himfelf-, who
was as willing to come and give himfelffor
us, as God was gracioufly pleafed to per-
mit and to appoint him to come. Wor-
Eph.v.z. . rr
Rcv.v. 12. thy is the Lamb that ivasjlain, to receive
Power
^/^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 37
Power, and Riches, and Wifdom, and
Strength, and Honour, and Glory, and
Bf effing: For thou waft JIain, andhajlre-w<9>
deemed us to God by thy Blood, out of every
kindred and tongue and people and nation.
THE Ground of this T'hankfulnefs to
Both, is by St Paul expreffed with the
greateft Accuracy and Exactnefs : The Tit.iii.4,6.
Kindnefs and Love of God our Saviour to-
ward Man,' .' ' which he fied on us a-
bundantly through Jefus Chrift our Sa-
viour.
I T follows : " And I pray unto God to
" give me his grace, that I may continue
" in the fame unto my Lives end. " Thefe
words exprefs, ift, the Senfe we ought to
have of our own FrailneJ's, and of our
continually {landing in need of the Di-
vine Affiftance and Support. 2dly, the
Neceffity of Perfevering by the Divine Af-
fiflance in that State of Salvation, to
which God hath called us. For Baptifm
and Faith and Refolutions of Obedience are
Nothing, unlefs they produce the real
Fruits of a virtuous and good Life. ^
D 3 jufl
Phil.iii.
14.
zCor.vii
i.
An EXPOSITION
juji fi all. live by Faith : But if any man
draw back^ my Sonlfljall have no pkafure
in him. The Meaning of which, is j not
that men, in this frail and mortal ftate,
can continue without Sin ; but that they
muft prefs toward the Mark, for the prize
of the high Calling of God in Chrift Je-
fus j conftan.tly indeavouring to keep all
God's Commandments; cleanjing them-
fel'ves from all jilthinefe of the Flejh and
Spirit , perfecting Holinefs in the Fear of
Gcd. And whenfoever they fall into any
thing that is amifs, they muft immedi-
ately by real Repentance and effettual A^
mendment ^ return to the State from
whence they were fallen.
PART
CHURCH-CATECHISM. 39
PART II.
Of the Creed or Belief.
<ftearfe tije ftvtitltg of
Anfw. g foelietoe in <Dod tlje
tfjer 2(ilmi0ljt|J, lI^aRer of
and <Cartlj: ^tnD in
onlp .Son out Ho?D,
of tge^irgmlliarp, pilfered
ponttu0 Ptlatr, tua$ crucified, bead
and buried, ^e defcended into J^ell;
Cfte tljitd ^ap fie tofe again from
tfie ^ead, J^e afccnded into Seafcen,
4uD ftrtctft at tlje rigftt Ijand of <^od
tge jpatfjet Hhnigfitp : jprom tjence
lit Hjall come to judge tfje (^utck and
tlie 5e)tad 3 fcelietoe in tfje
D ^ Cfie
40 An EXPOSITION
Cfje Communion of ^ainttf; Cfje
jr020iuettef of JMn ; 3je efnt^
rertton of tfje 23oDp ; &nd tlje 3life
etjerfafttn0. Amen,
trod rtjoti cgieflp learn
tn tfjcfe artitlr^ of t^p belief *
Anfw. jfirft, 3 bant to fceiiefet tn
fte jFatfter, tofjo Jat^ made ine
and ail tfie l@o^D. ^rcontiln, in
<5od tlje ^on, UD^O |jat^ retitcmeb
me and all JBanfctnd. Cfiirdlp, tn
<5od tlje Ijolp <5ftoft, tofjo fanctiftetir
me, anD all tlje <giert people of
THE whole Religion of a Cbriftian is
briefly comprehended in tfhree Particu-
lars ; Repentance, Faith, and Obedi-
ence.
REPENTANCE is, his renoun-
cing the Works of the Devil, the Vanities
of the World, and the Sinful Lujfs of the
Flejh. Faith is, his firmly believing and
embracing the Doftrine ofCbrift, as taught
in
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 41
in the Gofpel : Which Doctrine, for me-
mories fake, is briefly fummed up in the
Apojlles Creed. Obedience is, his keeping
the Commandments of Gcd : Which Com-
mandments are rehearfed in the Catechifm,
and are diftindtly and largely explained
by our Saviour in his Sermon upon the
Mount*
THE Reafon why This Faith, or
Believing the Doctrines of the Gofpel,
is ranked here in the Second place, be-
tween Repentance and Obedience > between
forfaking the Works of the Devil \ and o-
beying the Commandments of God-, is evi-
dent. Becaufe by Repentance we are led
to Faith, and by Faith to Obedience. A
man muft firft lay afide the Prejudices of
Errour and Wickednefs, before he can be
difpofed to receive the T'ruth : And he
muft firft know and believe what is Right ,
before he can praftife it. He that comet'h HeS.xi.6.
to God, muft believe that he Is, and that he
is a Rewarder of them that diligently Jeek
him* He that cometh to Chriji, muft
firft renounce the Evil One, that is, reject
the
An EXPOSITION
the Falfe Dotfrines of Atheifm, Idolatry ',
and Superftition ; he muft in the next
place ftudy to be inftru&ed in the True
Dottrine of Chrift ; and then he will be
qualified to obey his Commandments.
FAITH then being thus nece/ary, in
order to Obedience ; the Queftion will be,
What are the Dodtrines to be believed, or
What are the Articles of our Chriftian
Faith, and upon What Authority to be
received? The Catechifm tells us, that
the Articles of our Belief are the Apoftles
Creed-, And the Authority upon which
the Creed is to be received, is the Reve-
lation of God. But fince the Apoflles
Creed is not fo much as pretended to have
been compofed by the Apoftles themfefoes,
or to have been infpired of God into
thofc who did compile it ; upon What
Authority is it, that we are to believe it
contains fo Authentick an Account of the
Articles of our Chriftian Faith ?
Now
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 43
Now Here arifes the Great and Funda-
mental Difference between the Church of
Rome and the religion of Proteftants. The
Church of Rome teaches, (and 'tis the
Foundation and Support of all their Er-
rours and of all their Impieties,) that
whatever Creeds or Doctrines they fhall
think fit to impofe, are to be received and
believed upon the Authority of the Churchy
without any further Inquiry. Which if
it were true, it would be ImpoJJlble for
any reafonable man ever to know what
was required of him to be believed. For
what They call T^he Church, has fome-
times taught one thing, and fometimes
another j and Creeds have been made con-
trary \Q Creeds ; and Councils have deter-
mined one againft another ; and Great and
Learned men have difagreed among them-
felves, and been altogether inconfiftent
with each other. If therefore the Au-
thority of Man, or of any Number of Men,
how great, how learned focver, were in
this cafe the Foundation and Ground of
Belief; our Religion muft be taken up
merely by Chance, according to the Place
we
44 'An EXPOSITION
we, lived in, or the Perfons we happened
to converfe with. And, among fo many
Incon/iftencies, Who could know with any
certainty What to believe ? For not only
fingle Men, but one Church alfo has
taught contrary to another, and fometimes
contrary to itfelf: And the Church of Rome,
has in different Ages y made different
Creeds, and different Articles of Faith.
Here therefore is nothing but Darknefs,
and the utmofl Confufton: A groundlefs
and inconfiftent Prof effing to believe, what-
ever (hall at any time happen to be the
prevailing Doctrine.
THE Doctrine of the Protefiant Reli-
gion in this matter, of thofe who profefs
i Pet iii to k rea fy always to give an Anfwer to
*$. every man that asketh them a Reafon of the
Hope that is in them-, is, on the other
hand, very Clear and plain. Our Saviour,
by undeniable Miracles, proved himfelf
to be fent of God; and confequently that,
whatever he taught, was of neceffity to
be believed. The Apoftles in like manner
proved Their commifflon, by undeniable E-
vidcncwi
^^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 45
violences: And confequeRtly, whatever
tfbey preached, was likewife to be believed,
as the Preaching of Him that Sent them.
And becaufe the fame Spirit was continu-
ally with them, to guide them into <z//Joh.xvi;
T'ruth ; therefore what they Wrote,
was of the fame Authority as what they
Preached. Now thefe Writings of theirs,
are contained in the Books of the New C T<?-
flament. Thefe Books therefore, with the
Writings of the Prophets in the Old
Teftament, to which they continually
refer; are the only Rule of Truth, in
matters of Revealed Religion : And no-
thing can be required as of neceffity to be
believed by any Chriftian, that is not clear-
ly contained therein. The only remain-
ing difficulty then is, concerning the Senfe
and Meaning of thefe Scriptures. And
here, becaufe God has made This the on-
ly additional Rule, (befides the univerfal
Light of natural Reafon and Conscience,)
by which every man is to be judged j there-
fore in things fundamental, in things re-
quired as of neceffity to eternal Salvation,
'tis evident this Rule ought to be fo Plain,
that.
46 An EXPOSITION
that no honeft and careful mind, even of
mean capacity, to whom the Sermons of
Chrift and his Apoftks have ever been di-
jlinttly rehearfed, can be in any danger of
miftaking. Repentance from dead works,
and Faith towards God-, the hope of Re-
conciliation through Chrift, upon the
terms of real Amendment and Reformati-
on of Manners : the Refur reft ion from the
Dead, and Eternal Judgment, are Prin-
ciples of Doctrine , Fundamental Prin-
ciples, which no honeft Mind, even
of the loweft capacity , can poffibly
mif underjland. And more than This, they
who want capacity, cannot be bound to
underjland or receive ; cannot be bound,
either to underjland explicitly without A-
bilities, or to receive implicitly without
Under/landing. For the explication of
things more difficult, and to affift in the
more perfedl underftanding of the plain
ones, God has appointed the Miniften of
the Gofpel : Who are to teach, to inflrucl,
to exhort, to reprove. Not that any
thing is to be received upon Truft on
Authority, (which is the EfTence of
1 Popifh
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. **
Popijh Superjiition and tyranny ; ) But
tfbeir Learning and Study is to be im-
ployed in injlrufting the people^, that
the People themfehes may, with the Help
of That inftruction, fee and underftand,
with their own Underjiandings, the do-
ctrine of the GofpeL
N o w as Preaching and larger Inftruc-
tions are very ufeful for explaining of
Scripture, and for exhorting men to the
Praffife of their Duty j and yet are of no
other Authority, than as they are agreea-
ble to Scripture ; fo brief Summaries or
Heads of the Chriflian doctrine, are ufe-
ful for Memory, to keep in mind by few
words the mofl important Principles of
religion. Of This fort, is the Apoftles
Creed. And its Authority therefore is not
as being a Creed, but as being a True Sum-
mary of Apojiolical doctrine, or as contain-
ing the chief Heads of the doctrine of
Chrijl delivered authoritatively in Scrip-
ture. In like manner as the Contents of
the feveral Chaptirs in the Bible, are nei-
ther infpired, nor of Any direct authority,
and
48 An EXPOSITION
and yet may be very ufeful to aflift the
Memory in fhofe Particulars -, fo the A-
poftks Creed , though not of infpired
Authority like the Writings of the Apo-
ftles themfelves, yet is a very ufeful Help
to the memory, as being the Sum or Con-
tents of the Scripture-dodrine in general.
I mean, of tfhat Evangelical Doftrine
concerning the Method of bringing men
to Salvation, which is inculcated through
the Whole Scripture, and which is moft
univerfally neceffary to be underflood and
remembred. For there are alfo many o-
ther Hiftoricaly and there are fome Pbih-
fopbical parts of Scripture; which, not
being of equal importance to be under-
flood by All, are -therefore not taken no-
tice of in This Creed. Concerning fome
of thefe things, there have been made in
the ignorant and contentious Ages of the
Church, and during the Growth of Po-
pery, Creeds contrary one to another ; and
when they have not been contrary, yet
much more obfcure and^difficult to be un-
derftood than the Whole Scripture itfelf.
Into the Form of Baptijm, and into the
i Catechifm,
of the C H u R c H-C AT E c H i s M. 49
Catechifm, and into the Order for the Vi-
fit at ion of tie Sick, the Apoftles Creed only
has very wifely been put ; as being eafy
and clear and intelligible to All, and not
mixt with any matters of doubtful Difpu-
tation.
ART ic. i. 3| fceliete in <!5oD, tge
fat ijer 2Umt0gtp, lEafcer of Beaten
auD
To " believe in God, " is to believe
that there is a Being Eternal and Infinite,
Perfect and Self-fufficient, All-powerful
and All-wife, Juft and Righteous, Holy,
Merciful and Good. A Being, whofe
Duration no Time can exhauft, from
whofe Prefence no Swiftnefs can flee,
whole Power no Force can refift, from
whofe Knowledge no Secret can be conceal-
ed, from whofe Juftice no Art can efcape,
by whofe Goodnefs all things are fujlained.
A Being, who is every where prefent,
whofe Power caufes and directs every
thing, and his Kingdom ruleth over All.
This is the God of Nature j and Nature it-
E fdf
An EXPOSITION
fclf (of which ignorant men often fpeak
as of a real Being or Agent) is nothing elfe
but the unfoerfal and perpetual Efficaci-
oufnefs of His Will and Laws.
THE Grounds upon which we believe
fuch a Being, are numberlefs. For, in-
deed, every thing proves the Being of
God. The Imperfection of all other things,
and their abfolute incapacity to be the
Caufe or necefTary Reafon of their own
Being. The natural Co?ifcience y and uni-
verfal Apprehenfions of all Mankind. The
ftricteft Searches and Inquiries of the
Learjiedy and the moft obvious and una-
voidable Obfervations of the Unlearned.
The Greatnefs, the Variety, the Motions,
the Beauty, the Order and Harmony of
the World. The Fitnejs of every thing
to its proper End. The Growth of Plants ,
the Sagacity of Animals ; the Structure
of the Body,, and the Faculties and Acti-
vity of the Soul of Man. Whatever we
obferve in Nature, in the Heavens and
upon the Earth ; and whatever is Super-
natural^ as Miracles and Proprieties. All
thefe
df the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 5 I
thefe things confpire to prove to us, that
there is a God. So that mens neglecting
to infer the Being of God, from every
thing they fee or think of every day ; is
in reality zsftupid a thing, as if from the
conflant and regular continuance of the
day -light ^ men mould ceafe to obferve that
there is fuch a thing as the Sun in the
Heavens, from whence T^hat Light pro-
ceeds. Nor would it be more abfurd to
imagine that the Light would continue,
though the Sun, which caufes it, were
extinguifhed; than that theEffeffs of Na-
ture can regularly go on, without the Ee-
ing of Him who alone caufes thofe Effects.
FURTHER;, to " believe in God, "
fignifies moreover, to believe that there is
but One God, For fo the Antient Greek
Creeds always exprefTed it ; " I believe in
ic One God. " And This alfo is a Funda-
mental Truth of Natural Religion. For,
as it is fufficiently apparent even to ordi-
nary Capacities, from the univerfal har-
mony of Nature, that All things both in,
the Heavens and in the Earth are under
E 2 One
$ 2 An EXPOSITION
One direction, under the uniform direc"H-
on of One Supreme Willy fo to men of
Science and Ability 'tis moreover ftridly
demonftrable from the nature of Neceffary
Immenfity and Eternity ', that there can be
but One God, Supreme over AIL And
what Natural Reafon thus teaches, Reve-
Deut.iv. lation abundantly confirms. 'The Lord he
Exod xx. " God, there is none elfe bejides him. Thou
3- . jhalt have no other Gods but me. Hear, O
4 . ' Ifrael-, the Lord our God is One Lord.
i. Cor.viii. ^ Us fhere is but Qm Go ^ fhe p ather ^ Q f
Eph. iv. 'whom are all things. One God and Father
of all, who is above all, and through all y
and in you all.
THE reafon why God, in thefe Texts,
and accordingly in this frft Article of the
Creed, is ftiled " The Father j " is,
i. To denote that he is the original
Author or Giver of Life, to all the intelli-
gent Beings in the Univerfe. He is [Vct-
r>)g cr*i/Tay] the Father of All, the Fa-
ther of the Univerfe 5 the Father, of whom
the whole Family in Heaven and Earth is,
named. In Thisfenfe, Angels are in Scrip-
ture
CHURCH-CATECHISM. 53
cure ftyled the Sons of God, and Men de-
clared to be His Offspring. And This is
the fenfe Jirft and principally intended, in
this firft Article of the Creed.
2. IT denotes fecondarlly That Pater-
nal AfFectionj and tender Care and Love,
which God bears towards thofe who fin-
cerely obey him. Behold, what manner ijoh.iii.
of Love the Father hath beftowed upon us,
that we Jhould be called 'The Sons of God :
Having received the Spirit of Adoption, Rom.viii.
whereby we cry, Abba, Father-, and be-
ing taught to pray to him under the pe-
culiar denomination of Our Father which
is in Heaven. .
3. IT denotes, in the I aft place, his
being in a fingular and peculiar manner,
I'he God and Father of our Lord Jejiis ^ COT xi
cbrift ' %"
THE Next character, under which ,, >x
God is defcribed in this firft Article of the
Creed, is expreffed by the term, " Al-
" mighty. " And here the word in the
original [VavTo&gccTajg] fignifies, not bare-
54 At EXPOSITION
ly Omnipotence or Infinite Power ; which
is 0#? particular Attribute ; but it fignifies
properly Supreme Dominion, or That abfo-
lute Sovereignty, the notion of which in
its full extent includes All the divine Per-
fections or Attributes. It denotes That
Sovereignty which the Apoflle fpeaks of,
Rom. xi. w hen he fays, Of * him , and Through him>
and To him are all things ; and that he is
Eph.iv. 6. Above all, and Through all, and In alL
'Tis That Sovereignty r , by which the whole
inanimate and irrational World is in His
hand as a duft of the Balance ;. and he
does with it whatfoever he pleafes. That
Sovereignty, with regard to which All
created Intelligent Beings, Men and An-
gels, are his Subjects and Servants j and
he commands what he pleafes in the Ar-
mies of Heaven, and among the Inhabi-
tants of the Earth. That Sovereignty,
by which the Son himfelf, who is King of
Col.i 19. Kings and Lord of Lords, (in whom /'/
"; 9 - pleajed the Father that All Fulnefe Jhould
dwell, even the Fulnefs of the Godhead bodi-
ly $ was Sent forth to recover and bring
men back to the Father, and mall again
at
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H 1 S M. 55
at the End deliver up the Kingdom to God, Cor.xv.
even the Father, and be Himjelf Subjeft
unto Him that put all things under him ;
that God may be All in All
THE laft part of the defcription This
Article gives us of the God in whom we
believe, is, that he is the " Maker of Hea-
" ven and Earth. " That is: The Firft
Caufa&fr Creator of all things : For whole
Pleajure all things Now Are y and 'were at Rev - iv - u
firft created. Ignorant men, in times of
Heathen darknefs, worshipped the Hoft
of Heaven, the Sun, Moon 1 and Stars, as
the Authors of all Earthly Bleifings. But
We are diftin&ly taught, what Reafon al-
fo abundantly confirms , that all thefe
things are mere inanimate Injlruments,
and merely the Work of His hands, who
is the Real Author and Living God of Na-
ture.
ARTIC,
56 An EXPOSITION
ART ic. 2. ttfc in 3fenitf
onlp J>on, our Ho?D.
THIS Article very properly follows the
former ; According to That Direction of
job xiv. i. Our Saviour, Te believe in God, believe al-
iCor.viii./ in Me: And that of St Paul; To Us
there is but One God, the Father, of whom
are all things, and We in Him 5 and One
Lord, Jefus Chrift, by whom are all things,
and We by Him. The Firft Article is the
Foundation of all Religion in general,
both Natural and Revealed : The Second
is the Foundation of That Method of Re-
ligion inftituted in particular -, for the Re-
conciliation and Salvation of Sinners. As
we believe in the Firft place in the Crea-
tor, Father, and S ufr erne Lord of the Uni-
verfe ; fo we are to believe in the Next
place in the Saviour of Mankind, the only
Name given under Heaven, by which Sin-
ners may attain unto Salvation. An account
of whofe Perfonal Character and Proper
Offices, is briefly and yet emphatically laid
down
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 7
down in thefe Few words, " Jefus Chrift^
** bis only Son, our Lord, ".
His Perfonal character is, that he is
<Tbe Only Son of God. And his Proper
Offices are exprefTed in the fignification of
the Names, Jefus and Chrlft and Lord.
The Name, Jefus, fignifies a Saviour.
And the Name, Cbrift, is the fame as
Mejfiah or Anoint ed^i God: Anointed^ to
be our Great High-Prieft, or Mediator
and Interceflbr ; our Infallible Prophet, or
Teacher and Guide j our King, of whofe
Dominion there mall be no End; and
our Lord , at whofe Name every knee phil.ii. 10;
muft bow, to the Glory of God the Fa- * *
ther.
IN order to underitand diftindly the
Perfonal Charatter here given of Chrift,
that he is the Only Son of God-, 'tis to be
obferved that This phrafe, Son of God,
has in Scripture feveral different Significa-
tions. Angels are ftyled the Sons of God,
as having received from him their Being
and their Life -, and are under That deno-
mination reprefented as Jinging together j obyxxviii
and 7-
5 $ An EXPOSITION
and flouting for Joy, at the Sight of the
Creation of this viflble World. Adam is
Lukciii. upon the like account called the Son of
3 8 ' God, as having received Life immediately
from God himfelf, without the interpofi-
tion of any Human Parent. Good Chri-
Jlians are ftill in a further fenfe ftiled the
Rom. viii. Sons of God, as being Members of his
I4> ' 5 ' Church or Family, as having received the
Eph.iii.i5. Spirit of Adoption, the Principle of a Spi-
ritual Life, and the Promife of an Eter-
nal one. But Chrift is in a fingular, in a
higher and more peculiar manner than any
of Thefe, the Son and therefore the Only
Son of God. And Tfhat likewife upon
different Accounts. Firft, upon account
of his being conceived of the Holy Ghoft,
in a miraculous manner; and therefore
(fa id the Angel to the Blefled Virgin ) he
Uktl3J.J&# & called The Son of God. Then,
upon account of his being appointed to the
Johax.36- fpecial Office of the MeJ/iah : Say ye of
him, whom the Father hath fanftificd, and
fent into the World, thou blafphemeft, be-
caufe I/aid, I am the Son of God? Then
again, as being the Firft-begotten from the
Dead;
cf the C H U R C II-C ATECH1SM. J9
Dead ; God has fulfilled the Promife, A ^ *
in that be has raifed up "Jefus again ; as it
is written, -^fhou art my. Son, this day
have I begotten thee : And declared him to Rom - * *
be the Son of God with Power, by the
Refurrettion from the Dead. Then, as
having All Judgment committed to him, Jokv. 22.
and being inverted with All Power in M.viii
Heaven and in Earth \ ruling as a Son o- Heb. iii.
uer his Own hcufe, being appointed of the *
Father Heir of all things, by whom alfo he Heb J. ^.
made [rV ai5yx$] the Ages : Angels and Au- Pet -
thorities and Powers being madefubjeff unto
him : Himfelf being fat down on the right n e b, i. 3,
hand of the Majejly on high y and made fo 4 ' 5> 6 '
much better than the Angels, as he hath by
inheritance obtained a more excellent Name
than they : For unto which of the Angels
faid he at any time t Thou art my Son, this
day have 1 begotten thee? But when he
bringeth in the Firft-begotten into the
World, he faith, And let the Angels of
God worjhip him. Laftly, as having been
from the Beginning in the Bofom of the Fa-
ther, a Divine P erf on ; having had glory is, '
wtb the Father, before the world was ; be- xvu " 5 '
6o An EXPOSITION
Heb.i. 3. ing the Brightnefs of his Glory, and the ex-
Col.i. P re fe I ma g e f h* s Pe r f on ; even the Image
i$ J 9- of the invijible God, the Jirfl-born of every
creature : For by him \lv aVra, In or
Through him, or with regard to him,]
were all things created, [ God created all
things Byjefus Chrijl, Eph. iii. 9.] that
are in Heaven, and that are in Earth, vi-
fible and invifible, whether they be 'Thrones,
or Dominions, or Principalities, or Pow-
ers -, all things were created by him
[Jt J ttVrv, 'Through him] and for him:
<And he is before all things, and by him
all things conjtft : And he is the Head of
the Body, the Church : Who is the Begin-
ning, the Firji-born from the dead j that
in all things he might have the pre-emi-
nence : For it pleafed the Father, that in
Col it 9. bimjhould all Fulnefs [even all the Fulnefs
of the Godhead] dwell.
THE Proper Offices of Chrift, are ex-
preffed in this Article under the fignifi-
cation of the Names, " Jefus, " and
Shrift, " and Lord. "
i. THE
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. i
I. THE Name, " Jefus, " fignifies
a Saviour. For which reafon it was gi-
ven to Jojhua in the Old Teftament, as a
Type ; and to our Saviour by the Angel
before his Birth, tfhoufoalt call his Name Matt.i.
Jefus; for he fl:all Save his people from
their Sins. Now This Salvation from
Sin he obtains for us, by Teaching us the
Way to Life and Immortality which he
hath clearly and diftinclly brought to
Light in the Gofpel; by delivering us
from the Dominion of Sin, through SancJ-
ification of the Spirit; and by receiving
us finally into his everlafHng Kingdom of
Righteoufnefs in Heaven. But more par-
ticularly and especially he is our Saviour
in This; that, as our Great High-Prieft,
he offered Himfelf a Sacrifice to God, for
Expiation of the Guilt of Sins truly re-
pented of. and forfaken ; to purge our Con- Heb i
fcience from dead works to ferve the Living H-
God\ and by his own blood, obtained eter- ver.
nal redemption for us ; and is entred into ver 2
Heaven, to appear in the prefence of God
for us-, where he Ever Hveth, to make in-
terceffion for us. And becaufe he thus
lives
62 An EXPOSITION
Heb.vii. lives for ever y and has an unchangeable
ver. 24. Prieftbood; therefore he is faid in Scrip-
ture to be a Prieft, not after the order of
Aaron^ which was in many refpects an im-
Heb.vi. perfedt Priefthoodj but after the .order of
Melcbifedec, who was both Prince and
Higb-PrieJl, and of whom is recorded
neither Predeceffor nor SucceJJor , that he
might be an Emblem of our true ever-
living High-Prieft.
2* T H E Name, " Cbnft, " fignifies
Mrjjiah or Anointed. And This, as it
may have reference in general to All his
Office^ fo it more particularly denotes his
being Sent to us as an infallible Prophet,
Injlruftor and Guide y to reveal to us the
whole Will of his Father, and bring us
Lukciv. back unto God. 'The Spirit of the Lord
is upon me y becauje be has Anointed me to
Afisx. 38- preach the Gofpel to the poor. And ; God
Anointed Jejus of Nazareth with tjhe Ho-
ly Ghoji y and with Power j who went a-
bout^ doing good y &c. And upon This
Joh.i. i. Account He is called The Word, the Way^
13 e . x ' x the Truth) and the Life : viz. That Pro-
J* xiv - I fbet
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 63
phet that fiould come into the World r , to Job. vi. 14.
flew unto men the Way of Salvation, to Adhxvi.
bring men unto the Father, to give men joh.xiv 6
Under/landing that they may know . . ijoh,v.
the True God and eternal Life. zo -
3. T H E title, " Lord, " denotes his
having a Right of Dominion over us, by
virtue of his having redeemed and purcha-
fed us with hfs own Blood, and of his be-
ing; appointed Heir of all things. For All Kcb.i
D & **. . * . & rT j Ma
rower is given unto him, in Heaven ana ig.
in Earth : The God of our Lord Jefus Eph. i.
Cbrijl, the Father of glory, having I7 "" ix '
fe t him at his own right hand in the heaven-
ly places, Far above all principality and
power a?id might and dominion and every
name that is named, not only in This world,
but alfo in That which is to come. And he
hath put all things under his Feet, ( him
only himfelf always excepted, who dzWiCor.xv,
put all things under him,) and gave him to 27 '
be the Head over all things to the Church :
Having highly exalted him, and given him Phil.ii. 9,
a Name which is above every name j that I0> "'
at the Name ofjefus every kneejhould bow,
64 An EXPOSITION
of things In Heaven, and things in Earth,
and things under the Earth ; and that e-
very tongue JJjouId confefs that yefus Chrlft
is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father.
Luke i. jind fa fi a ll reign over the houje of Jacob
for ever, and of his Kingdom there Jh all be
Rev.xix. no End. For his Name is, Ki?ig of Kings
1 ' and Lord of Lords.
A R T i c. 3. lEijo Um0 conceited ftp
tlje l?olp <lj0ft, bo^t of tljc
I N This Article is to be confidered the
General Do&rine, that our Lord was
Conceived and Born : And the Particulars
of that dodtrine ; that he was conceived,
by the influence of the Holy Ghoft j born,
of a Virgin-, and of That particular
Per Jon, the Virgin Mary.
THE General doctrine, that our Lord
was Conceived and Born -, is a declaration
of our belief, that That Divine Perfon,
Job i. 1,1, who was in the Beginning with God, in
js-j .. 6 the Bofom of the Father, and in the Form
Gal. iv. 4. of God ; did in the Fulnefs of T^lme, in
i order
f //fo? CHURCH-CATECHISM. 65
order to redeem mankind by his Sufferings
and Death, voluntarily and in compliance
with his Father's good pleafure, conde-
fcend to become Man. T^he Word 'was Job. i; 14:
made FleJJ^ and dwelt among us : That is -,
That Divine Per/on, whofe Name is call- joh.i.r;
ed the Word of God, was made Man, was ? 3 ev '" x '
really made in the Likenefs of Men, and Philiii< 74
not merely defcended upon a Man and
dwelt in a Man, ( which was the doctrine
'of Cerinthus, that Jefus was not himfelf
the Chrift come in the Flejh, but that he , job ii.
was merely a Man upon whom the Chrift 22 j iv v 2 - j .
defcended from Heaven and united him- zjoh. 7-
felf to him :) This divine Per/on, I fay,
was really made Man, was conceived and
born ; became fubject to all the infirmities
of Humane Nature; was in all points Heb ^ ,
tempted like as We are, yet without Sin-, >4 I 7-
took part of flefi and blood, and was in all
things made like unto his brethren, that he
might be a merciful and faithful High-
Prieji in things pertaining to God, to make
reconciliation for the Sins of the people -,
For in that He himfelf hath fufered, be-
ing tempted, he is able to fuccour them
F thai
66 An EXPOSITION
that are tempted. This is That Humility and
Condefcenfion, which St Paul fo affe&io-
Phil.ii. nately defcribes : Let this (humble) Mind
be in You, which was a/fo in Chrift Jefus :
Who being in the form of God,
fiw iyflouTo TO won IffaL 3"fc&>>) ivas not ear-
neftly defirous to appear in that Form of
God, in which he might have appeared ;
But (txJyJer gcturov) devefted himfelf of
That Glory, and took_ upon him the Form
of a Servant, and was made in the Like-
nefs of Men j And being found infajhion as
a Man, he humbled himfelf, and became
obedient unto Death, 8f c.
THIS is the General Doctrine. The
Particulars, exprefTed in the prefent Arti-
cle, are j that he was conceived by the in-
fluence of the Holy Ghoft-, that he was
born, of a Virgin -, and of That Particu-
lar Per Jon, the Virgin Mary.
' I. H E was conceived, by the influence
of the Holy Ghoft. Some very Antient
Writers understand thofe words of the
Luke i. 3 5. Angel to the Blefled Virgin, The Holy
Ghoft Jhall come upon thee, to be meant of
Tbat
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 67
That Holy Spirit, which was Chrift him-
felf before his incarnation. But they are
more generally underflood to fignify his
being tniraculoujly conceived, by the in-
fluence of the holy Ghoft. And thVis ve-
ry agreeable to the Analogy of the whole
Gofpel-Difpenfation , which fuppofes All
Miracles under the New Teftament to be
'worked by one and the felf -fame Spirit '; r Cor x ~ ,
which from the Beginning infpired the *
Prophets under the Old Teftament, and
was in Them the Spirit of Chrift, teftifying x p e t.i.n;
before-hand the Sufferings of Chrift, and
the Glory that Jhould follow. Whatfoever
God does of This kind, from the Begin-
ning to the End of the Whole Difpenfati-
on; the Scripture generally reprefents as
being done by the Holy Ghoft fent down lpet j izi
from Heaven. And becaufe What God
does thus by his Holy Spirit, is in event
the Same, as if he had done it immediate-
ly by Himfelfin his Own Perfon ; hence
the fame individual Works are frequently
afcribed both to GodHimfelf, even to the
God and Father of all, who works them
by his Spirit j and at the fame time they
F 2 are
68 An EXPOSITION
are afcribed alfo to the Spirit, by which
God works them. The Prophetick Wri-
tings of the Old and New Teftament are
Ii- xlviii. inspired of God, becaufe infpired by his
\?t\..\.\z.Holy Spirit. Our Bodies are ftiled I'em-
Rev.i. i, pi es O f Q O ^ becaufe they are Temples of
i cor.iii. the Holy Ghoft ; and God dwells in us, by
lcor!v\?' his Spirit. Ananias and Sapphira * are
Eph ii ii charged with lying unto God, when they
*A6tsv.3, lied to the Holy Ghoft; and with lying to
the Holy Ghoft, when they lied to Men in-
Jpired with the Holy Ghoft ; becaufe Ly-
ing to the Spirit by 'which God fpeaks, is
in effeft and in reality Lying to God Him-
joh.xiv. Jelf. The Miracles which our Lord him-
Mat. xii. felf worked during the courfe of his Mi-
Tohn iii n ^ r y> a r e afcribed fometimes to the Fa-
34- ther which dwelt in him, and fometimes to
Rom. 1.4. the Spirit which God gave not by meafure
to him. By a not unlike manner of fpeak-
ing, Chrift is fometimes fpoken of as ha-
joh. i. 3 . ving created the World j (of which never-
L thelefs God, even the Almighty Father, is
Rev.iv.ii- the Creator, for tvbo/e Pleafure all things
Eph.iii 9. ^ re an ^ were reat ed :) Becaufe God cre-
Heb.i.2. ated all things by Jefus Chrift. And thus
therefore
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 69
therefore likewife concerning our Lord's
miraculous Conception: Becaufe the Holy L ke 1.3 $.
Ghojl (faid the Angel to the Bleffed Vir-
gin) Jhall O'verfhadow thee , THERE-
FORE alfo That Holy thing which Jhall
be born of thee, flail be called the Son of
GOD-, [not the Son of the Holy Ghoji : ]
God in This miracle likewife, as" generally
in Others, operating by his Spirit, even i Cor. xii.
by one and the felf-fame Spirit, by which "
he worketh all in all Ver. 6.
2. HE was born, of a Virgin. The
Reafon of this, feems to be j becaufe, not
being originally of our Nature, but a Per-
fon infinitely offuperiour Dignity to Men -,
and having praeexifted in the Form of God, Phil. ii. 6.
as the Angel of the Covenant , till the time
of his Incarnation ; this was the moft na- Mal : r -
tural Method, in which he could be made phil. ii.b.'
in the Likenefs of Men. And miraculous
as it was, there was ftill in this whole
tranfadion nothing impoj/ible, nor in the
nature of the thing itfelf at all more dif-
fcult^ than in the eftablifhed Courfe of
Nature,
F 3 3- HE
7 o An EXPOSITION
3. HE was born, of This Particular
Perfon, the Virgin Mary. The Reafon of
This, was, that by his genealogy he might
Lukci i. 4 . appear to be of the Houfe and Lineage of
David, according to the Scriptures.
T H AT the Elejfed Virgin was a Per-
fon emirient for her Virtue and Piety,
cannot be doubted ; and it plainly appears
in the Spirit with which her Magnificat,
or Song of Praife, is exprefled. So that,
Lukci. wit* 1 l ^ e g reate ft reafon, from thenceforth
4 8 - All Generations were to call Her Bleffed^
who was exalted to be [ x.ugior&Q' ] The
Ver 43> Mother of our Lord. But that me mould
therefore be adored and invocated after her
i Tim. ii. r>eath, as ^ S ^ e ^ ac ^ ^ een appointed Me-
5- diator between God and Men; this is fo
abfurd and profane, and fuch a manifeft
Departing from Chrift The One Mediator }
as if it had been invented on purpofe
by the Enemies of our Lord, to expofe
his Holy Religion to the Scorn and Ridi-
cule of Unbelievers. What St. Paul fays
C 9l jj , 8> concerning the Worshipping of Angels,
that a Man thereby beguiles himfelf of his
of tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 71
Reward, in a. Voluntary Humility, in-
truding into thofe things which he hath not
feen, vainly puff'd up by his flefhly Mind,
and not holding the Head which is Chriil ;
is, ftill much more, applicable to the Wor-
foip of the Blejfed Virgin. or Angels, we
know, Are miniftring Spirits, actually Heb.i. 14.
fent forth to minifter for them who flail be
Heirs of Salvation. Yet becaufe they mi-
nifter only, and have not Judgment com- John v. 12
mitted unto them j therefore they are not
at all to be applied to as Mediators. But
the Blejjed Virgin and Other Saints de-
farted, are not fo much as Miniftring Spi-
rits fent forth to mini ft er-, nor does it ap-
pear, that they have Any Knowledge at all
of our Affairs. Our Saviour forefeeing
the Madnefs, wherewith his pretended
Followers, in the latter Days would run
into This among other Species of Idolatry,
feems on purpofe to fpeak always of the
Bleffed Virgin with a peculiar and unex-
pected Slightnefs : Woman, what have I to
do with Thee? And: Tea RATHER
Bleffed are they that hear the word of God, *
and keep it* And: My Mother and my
F 4 Brethre?t zl '
72 4n EXPOSITION
Brethren are Thefe, which hear the word of
John xix. God, and do it. And : Woman, behold thy
Son. No other reafon can well be ima-
gined, why our Lord mould in fofur-
prizing a manner affect, as it were, to take
little Notice of fo extraordinary a Perfon.
And the Extravagancies of that Idolatry,
which men who call themfelves Chriftians,
have in this matter fallen into, without
any the leaft Shadow of Reafon, or Colour
of Scripture; is an amazing Inflance of
the Malignity of That Wilfulnefs, by
which the Blind choofe to follow the Blind.
St Pauls, quefhion may well be here put
Gal. Hi. i. with the greateft Emphafis : O foolijh
Galatians, who hath BEWITCHED
you, that ye Jhould not obey the Truth, be-
fore whofe Eyes yefus Chrift hath been evi-
dently Jet forth?
ART ic
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 73
A R T i c. 4. ^ufferefc un&er
u0 Dilate, toa$ crucified, DeaD and
buncD ; $t DcfccuDeD into
THE word, Suffering, though ufual-
ly applied in particular to the Crucifixion
of Chrift, yet ought generally to be un-
tferftood in a larger Senfe, as including
his Whole State of Humiliation, his Life
of Sorrow, and his Painful Death.
T H AT the MeJ/iah, before his Exalta-
tion, was to be a Perfon of Sufferings,
(notwithstanding the vain Expectation of
the Jews to the contrary,) was plainly
enough foretold in the Old Teftament.
The Spirit of Chriji which was in the Pro-
phets, tejtified beforehand the Sufferings of
Chriji, and the Glory that Jhould follow.
It was foretold, that he fhould be a man
of Sorrows, and acquainted with Grief', Dan.ix.z6.
that he fhould be cut off out of the Land
of the Living-, that His Soul fhould be if.iiii,6 ; io.
made an Offering for Sin, and on Him
fhould be laid the Iniquity of us all. Con-
cerning This therefore, our Saviour, be-
fore
74 'An EXPOSITION
fore his Death, frequently warned his
Difciples; And, after his Refurret1ion y
he confirmed their Faith by explaining it ;
And, after his Afcenfion^ the Preaching of
Aflsxvii, the Apoftks to the Jews was, that Chrift
3- miift needs have fuffered.
IN order to become capable of fulfill-
ing thefe Prophecies and undergoing thefe
Sufferings it was, that he was conceived of
the Holy Gbojl, and born of the Virgin Ma-
ry. He who, in his original State, was
not capable of Suffering ; condefcended to
lohni. 14 ke conceived and born, to be made Fle/b,
Phil ii 7. to ^ e mode * n the Likenefi of Men ; on pur-
pofe that he might Suffer. And the firft
part of his Sufferings, was That very In-
carnation itielf ; His laying afide the Glo-
ry which he had with God, and taking up-
on him the Form of a Servant. Then, in
that State of Humiliation, during the
whole courie of his life ; befides the na-
tural Wants and Infirmities of Humane
Nature, be was, in a particular manner,
poor and affliffed> and generally had not
where to lay his Head. He all along bore
the
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 7$
the contradiction of Sinners , and the
Weaknejjes of his Own Difciples. He
went about, doing good to Others ; but was
perpetually defpifed and affronted Him-
felf. And at laft, was betrayed by One of
his Difciples, zndforfaken by #// /& reft ;
Was accufed by the Jews, as a jR<?^/ a-
gainft the Emperour, and a Blafphemer a-
gainft Go^; Was abufed by the Roman
Soldiers, buffeted, fcourged, crowned
with Thorns, mocked, and fpit upon.
Then he underwent an Agony of Mind,
greater than can be exprefTed. And, af-
ter all, was put to a cruel and ignomini-
ous Death.
THE Reafon of his undergoing thefe
Sufferings, was, that he might put aisoay
Sin by the Sacrifice of himfelf-, that he Heb.ix.26.
might be a Propitiation for us through R om .iij.
Faith in his Blood-, that he might redeem ^- ..
us Jrom all iniquity, and purify unto him-
felf a peculiar people, zealous of good
Works. This is that great Myftery of the
Chriftian Religion, which is ufually by
Divines ftyled the Satisfaction of Chrift.
The
76 r An EXPOSITION
The whole nature of which, we do not
perhaps perfectly underftand. But that
which is both clear in Scripture, and a-
greeable to Rcafon ; is This. By the Na-
tui'e of Things, and by the Appointment
of God, the juft Wages of Sin is Death :
Death, both Temporal and Eternal.
Since therefore all men are Sinners, all
men are fubjecT: to Death, and juftly lia-
ble to the Divine Difpleafure. And
though all men are not equally Sinners,
yet they are all fo far Sinners, as that they
cannot be juftified in the Sight of Him,
Habakk.i. w n is of purer eyes than to behold evil,
*3- and cannot look on iniquity ; And therefore,
according to the natural courfe of Juftice,
Rom.iii. ^J mu ^ nee ds All come jhort of the GIo-
2 3- ry of God. Nay, they who have done all
that is their Duty to do, are ftill but un-
profitable Servants. And to Such as have
Never finned, Eternal Life and Happinefs
is ftill merely a Free Gift of God, and
which could not be in juftice claimed as
due of natural Right. For God, whofe
Free Gift our very Being is, can be under
no Obligation of Juftice, to make Any,
even
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 77
even the moft Innocent, creature Immor-
tal. But when men have finned r , they
have then not only no Right to eternal
Life, but are moreover liable to fuch Pu-
ni foment, as the Governour of the Univerfe
fhall think fit to inflict. And though up-
on true Repentance, natural Reafon
teaches and incourages Sinners to hope for
Mercy-, yet the Degree to which this
mercy mall be extended, arid the Manner
in which it mall be difpenfed, depend en-
tirely on the good Pleafure of him who
ruleth over all. Now here the Scripture
has revealed to us, that the Wifdom of
the Supreme Governour of the world, in
order to deter men the more effectually
from Sin, has thought fit to appoint that
without Shedding of Blood there mould be
No RemiJJion. By the Shedding of the
Blood of Chrlfl as a voluntary Sacrifice
for Sin, This Appointment of God was
fat isfied; and the Honour and Dignity and
Authority of his Laws, vindicated againft
Sin ; And yet room made for the Accept-
ance of Sinners unto eternal Life, upon
their fincere Repentance and Amend-
ment.
78 An EXPOSITION
ment. ThiHs the True Notion of the
Satisfa&ion of Chrifl.
THIS matter has fometimes been re-'
prefented otherwife j as if, in flri&nefs of
Jujlice, God could not abfolutely have for-
given Sinners, without fuch a complete
Satisfa&ion. But fmce God is Supreme
Lord of All, and may do what he will
with his Ow;z and (without Wrong to
Any) may remit of his own Right what he
pleafes, and gives no Account of his Do-
ings, and may punifh or forgive Sinners
upon what Terms and Conditions he him-
felf judges fit: It feems much more rea-
fonable to refolve this Whole Method of
Mans Redemption, (not into any abfolute
Neceffity in the nature of the 'Thing, as if
God could not have found out any other
means j Which 'it becomes not Us to pre-
fume to judge of: It feems much more
reafonable (I fay) to refolve this Whole
Method into the Wifdom and Good Plea-
fure of God, who chofe to vindicate the
Honour of his Laws and Government in
This Way rather than any Other.
1 UPON
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 79
UPON the fame ground may reafonably
be reproved the Prefumption of Thofe,
who, undertaking to explain beyond what
is written, have taken upon them to af-
firm, that the Sufferings of Cbrift were
exactly equal to thofe which the Damned
were to undergo. For, the Satisfaction
made to God, does not confift in This;
that the Sufferings of Him who makes Sa-
tisfaction, be exactly the fame with the
Puniihment due to Him for whom Satis-
faction is made : But it conilfts in This >
that God, who ruleth over All, is pleafed
to accept the voluntary Sufferings of our
Saviour, as a fufficient Vindication of his
Supreme Authority: So that upon the
Merit of That Sacrifice, he can, confift-
ently with the Honour and Dignity of his
Laws, accept the Repentance of return-
ing Sinners, and Freely forgive them their
paft Sins.
IF it be here further asked, bow This
Forgivenefs of Sin is Free, as the Scrip-
ture conftantly reprefents it; which yet
God would not grant without fo great a
8o. . An EXPOSITION
Satisfaction , as the Death of his Son :
The Anfwer is plain: That it was no lefs
truly a Free Gift of God, to accept and to
appoint That Satisfaction ; than it would
have been to have granted Remijfion,
without any Satisfaction at all. For he
who freely, and without any Obligation,
grants the Means; muft be acknowledged
as freely to grant the End, as if he had
granted it any other way. God was not
under Any Obligation to fend his Son for
our Redemption j Nor was our Saviour
obliged to undertake that Great Work.
But Sinful man, might juftly have perifh-
ed: And God could, if he had pleafed,
Matt.iii/9. cven out f ^ e Stones of the Street, have
raifed up Children unto Abraham. The
Forgivenefs of Sin therefore, through the
Satisfaction of Chrift j is, neverthelefs,
a Free Gift. And all poflible Thanks are
due to God, for thus extending to us his
Mercy in Chrift. And all humble Ac-
knowledgment is alfo to be made to our
Gal.ii 20, Saviour himfelf-, who loved us, and will-
ingly gave himfelf for us.
i AFTER
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 81
AFTER this Account of Chrift's Suf-
ferings in general^ are to be confidered
the Particulars here added, of the Time,
the Manner, and the Confequences of his
Suffering. He fuffered, " under Pontius
< Pilate ; *was crucified, dead, and bu-
" ried-, he defcended into Hell. "
THIS Circumftance, of his fufFering,
tc under Pontius Pilate, " that is, when
That Perfon was Governour of Judaa j is
inferted for the fake of fixing the Time of
his Suffering. And the Reafon of thus
afcertaining the Time, is This. As the
Prophet Daniel declares that he under/lood Dan ix.i.
by Books the number of the years that the
Lord would accomplijh In the Defolations of
yerufalem : So, in a matter of much
greater and more univerfal importance,
the Sufferings and Death of Chrift ; it was
very proper, the Time mould be kept up-
on Record ; that it might appear, he died
in the Fulnefs of Time-, at That precife Gal.iv.4.
Time, which had been antiently foretold ;
at the Expiration of Daniel's Seventy Danixz
Weeks of years, that is, feventy. times feven
G or
82 An EXPOSITION
or four hundred and ninety years. Which
Prophecy was, by This Event, punctual-
Ezra vii. ly accomplifhed. For from the Seventh
6> 7> 8 ' year of Artaxerxes the King (when Ezra
went up from Babylon : unto Jerufa-
lem y with a Commiffion to reflore the Go-
vernment of the Jews ;) to the Death of
Dan.ix. Cbrift, which was to jinijh the tranfgrejji-
on y and to make an end of Sins, and to
make reconciliation for iniquity ; were pre-
cifely 490 ( that is, leventy weeks of)
Years. And this Time of our Lord's Suf-
fering, is exprefled in this Article of the
Creed, not by the Date of the Tear,
which antiently was not fo known and
determinate a computation; but by the
Name of the then Roman Governour ; be-
caufe Records vf&Q kept at Rome, of the
A6ts of their Governours in their feveral
Provinces.
'T i s further obfervable upon This
Head, that by our Lord's fuffering under
Pontius Pilate, who was a Roman Gover-
nour ; is lignified the completion of Ano-
ther Prophecy, that the Meffiah fhould
appear
of the CH URCH-CATECHISM. 83
appear when the Sceptre was departed G * .xlix.
/row Judah; that is, when the 7<*zetf
were become fubject to the Empire of the
Romans.
'T i s alfo remarkable that by This
means, by his fuffering under a Roman
Governour, he was put to Death, not by
a Jewift, but by a Roman Punifoment ;
and Thereby likewife fulfilled fome parti-
cular Prophecies, relating to the Manner
and Circumftances of his Death : As,
that the Son of Man fliould be lifted up, joh.iii. 14.
like the Serpent in the Wildernefs, &c.
WHAT* that particular Punijhment
was , is fet forth in the next words ;
" Was crucified. " And This particular
kind of death, it was Therefore prophefied
our Lord Jhould undergo, and he There-
fore did undergo it j becaufe it was a moft
Painful Death j Which is exprefled in
Scripture by his enduring the Crofs. Alfo,
becaufe it was an Ignominious Death j fuch
as Thieves and Robbers, the vileft of Ma-
lefactors, ufed to be put to: Upon which
Account, our Saviour is declared to have
G 2 been
84 An EXPOSITION
If.liii. ii. been numbred with the Tranfgre/ors, to
d the Shame, and to have hum-
2. fci ( i himjelf an d become obedient unto
Death, even the Death of the Crofs.
Laftly, becaufe it was accounted an Ac-
curfed Death : For which reafon the A-
Deut xxi. poftle fays, Chrift has redeemed us from
4 3- the Cur fe of the Law, being made a Curb
Gal.iii.i3- J J J
jor us.
THE following Words, that he was
" Dead', " are added in this Article, in
oppofition to an erroneous Notion of Some
among the An dents, who imagined that
Chrift fufFered in appearance only, and
not in reality, or, that Jefus was not
himfelf the Chrift, but Compounded of
'Two Perfons, one of which Suffered,
whilft the other remained incapable offuf-
fering. In oppofition to which Errour,
the Creed declares that he Jo fufFered, as
really and truly to Die. Of which, One
Evidence was, his being pierced to the
Heart with a Spear, fo that out of his
Side came Blood and Water. And that
34. ' ' Chrift fhould indeed, not only Suffer, bu r
I
CHURCH-CATECHISM. 85
Die, ( befides that it had been exprefsly
foretold by the Prophets Ifaiah and Dani- OH.
el,) was nece/ary in order to his being a Dan - lx - 26 -
Sacrifice and Expiation for Sin. For
iince the Wages of Sin, is Death -, and Rom.vi.
God had been pleafed to appoint, that 2 "
without Jhedding of Blood there fhould be Heb. ix.
no remij/ion j it was neceffary, (not perhaps
abfolutely in the Nature of things, of
which it becomes not US to judge ; but,
in and by the Appointment of God in his
all-wife Government of the Univerfe, it
was necej/ary,) that He, who was to re-
deem Us from Death, muft, for the ac-
compliming of That redemption, die
Himfelf. Wherefore, when it has been
faid by Some of greater Zeal than Know-
ledge, that One Drop of the Blood of
Chrift was of fufficient Value to redeem
the whole World ; and that confequently
there might feem to be no abfolute necef-
iity that he mould actually Die ; 'Tis to
be obferved in Anfwer to This, that, lite-
rally and properly fpeaking, not the Blood,
but the Death of Chrift, is the Expiati-
on for Sin; and that therefore, when we
G 3 arQ
86 An EXPOSITION
i Pet. i. 1 8, are faid in Scripture to be redeemed with
his Blood, 'tis only a figurative Expreffion
for being redeemed by his Death. Which,
by the way, (hows the extreme Folly of
the Church of Rome ; Who if they had,
as they pretend, fome of the real Elood y
not only of Saints and Martyrs, but even
of Cbrift himfelf; yet from thence there
would arife No Benefit, or Indulgence to
Sin.
IT follows: " And was Buried. ij
Which is added principally as an Evi-
dence of his being really Dead, and in or-
der to the Demonstration of the Truth of
I'liii 9. his Refurreftion. He made his Grave with
the Wicked^ and with the Rich in his
Death.
THE Lajl part of this Article, " He
" descended into Hell, " has the greater!
difficulty in it. Some have underftood
this, as if Chrift really fuffered the Tor-
ments of the Damned. But This cannot
poflibly be True. For Defpair of the
Favour of God, the Worm that never di-
etb, 'tis evident could not potfibly lay hold
upon
of the CHURCH-CATECH ISM. 87
upon Him, Nor is it necefiary in the
Nature of Satisfaction, as I have before
ihown j that the Satisfier Should undergo
exactly the Same Punifhment, that was
due to the Guilty. But Satisfaction is
what God, who ruleth over All, is pleafed
to appoint and to accept.
OTHERS have taught , that Chrift
defcended into Hell, not Himfelf to fuffe^
but to deliver Others out of That Place
of torment. But This alfo, cannot be
True. For the Wicked, according to the
Declarations of Scripture, are not to be
delivered at all. Nor did Chrift preach in
Hell, to the dljbbedlent old World ; but he
f reached to them here upon Earth, before
the Flood, by His Spirit that was in Noah.
On the contrary, the Souls of the Righte- wifd jjj r
ous are In the hand of God, and there jhall
no torment touch them. They are defcri-
bed in Scripture, as being in Abrahams Lukexvi
Bofom; in a place of Refreshment, and^M-
not of Torment.
G 4 OTHERS
83 An EXPOSITION
OTHERS have imagined, that Chrift
defcended into Hell, to triumph over Satan
in his Own Kingdom. But neither are the
Devils yet confined to the bottomlefs pit,
before the day of Judgment: Nor, if they
were, is *fha t at all their Kingdom^ but their
Place of Punijhment. The only Kingdom
of the Devil, is the Dominion of Sin in
the prejent World. And Here Chrift tri-
umphs Qver him, by deftroying Sin, which
is the Work of the Devil.
THERE is ftill Another Opinion, of
thofe who conceive that Chrifl's defcend*-
ing into Hell,, or into the lower parts of
the Earthy may mean nothing more than
his being Buried. But This alfo muft
needs be a Miftake. For, according to
This Notion, the inferting of this latter
part of the Article, after the preceding
words, Dead and " Buried, " would
have been a mere Tautology,
THE true interpretation therefore of
the words, " he defcended into Hell; "
I think, js This. Tjiat, as his Body was
laid in the Grave, fo his Soul departed in-
to
C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 89
to the State of feparate Souls ; being re-
figned into the Hands of the Father who
gave it j where they, who die in the Lord,
refl from their Labours. In what particu-
lar Place this wasj or 'what our Lord did
there, 'till the time of his Refurrection J
as it is no where revealed, fo 'tis neither
pofjible nor of any uje for us to know.
THE only Ground and Foundation of
moft of the forementioned Miflakes con-
cerning this matter, is merely an erro-
neous Tranflation of a * Hebrew and *
f- Greek word ; which neither in the Old ,
Teftament nor in the New, nor confe-
quently in the Creed, ever fignifies the
4- Place of the Damned, but in general ,
only the In<vijible State of AH departed
Souls.
A R T i c,
An EXPOSITION
ARTIC. 5. Cfje tfjirfc ^ap ge rofe
again from rt)e ^eafc.
T H AT our Lord was buried on Fri-
day in the afternoon, and rofe again on
Sunday morning, that is, on " the Third
" day ; " is evident in the Hiftory of
the Gofpel. But it being elfewhere ex-
prefsly faid, that he mould continue three
Matt xii. days and three nights in the heart of the
Earth j for the reconciling of this, 'tis to
be obferved that the Jews, as We alfo
do, by the word ( Day ) understand the
Space of twenty four hours. Thus, when
we fay there are Seven days in the Week y
we by the word (Day) underhand the
fpace of a day and a night. Thus in Ge*
nejis, i fl the Hiftory of the Creation, the
word (Day) is ufed to fignify the like
Gen. i. 5. whole fpace : The evening and the Morning
were the Firft Day. Now nothing is
more ufual in common fpeech, than to
exprefs likewife a Part by the name of
the Whole,, as well as the Whole by the
name of a Part. Thus we fay, any
thing
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 91
thing was three Days in doing ; which
was begun on the jirji Day, and finifhed
on the third. Wherefore when 'tis affirm'd
our Lord fhould be three days and three
nights in the heart of the Earth 3 'tis to be
underftood, he was to be there before the
end of thejirft, and after the beginning of
the third y of thofc Spaces of Time, which
are ufually called Days, or Days and
Nights. But This perhaps may be thought
a matter of fmaller importance : Though,
indeed, it never can be without its jufh U/e,
to explain and reconcile any Texts of
Scripture, which at firft Sight may feem
not to agree exactly.
THE Reafon, why our Lord continued
fuch a determinate time in the Grave, be-
fore his Refurredtion j was to fulfill the
prtediffiion which he had exprefsly given
his Difciples concerning that Particular.
He had declared to them before, that he
muft faffer many things of the Elders and Mat. xvi,
chief Pr iefts and Scribes, and be killed, "*
and be raifed again the Third day : And
that, as Jonas was three days and three
nights
9& ^EXPOSITION
Matt.xii. nights in the Whales belly, fo Should the
4- Son of man be Three days and Three nights
in the heart of the Earth.
BUT becaufe the prediction itfelf
would not have been given, unlefs it had
upon other accounts been before appointed
that it mould fo come to pafs ; Another
reafon therefore, why our Lord conti-
nued fuch a determinate time in the Grave,
was to fhow that he was actually and really
Dead. The Evidence of which, would
not have been fo great, if he had revived
fooner,
THE Reafon, why he continued in the
Grave for That fpace of time only, and
no longer j was, that he might not fee cor-
ruption. It was fufficient, that he was
proved to be really Dead : But God did
not think fit to fujfer his Holy One to fee
corruption,
ONE thing further concerning the
Time of Chrifl's Refurredion, is remark-
able: That it was on the Day after the
Jcwifh Sabbath, that is, on the Firft day
of
Of tht C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
of the Week. From whence, in the
Chriflian Church, tfhat day has always
been obferved as the Lord's day. The
Jewijh Sabbath, in commemoration of
the old Creation, was the feventh or lajl
day of theJWeek : But Chrift's rifmg from
the dead, or the Beginning of the New
creation, being to Us of the greater im-
portance; hence the day of his Refur-
rection, the Firjl day of the Week, has
from That time been to Chriftians the
Lord's day. As, at the Coming out of
Egypt, God commanded that That Month
mould for the future be the Beginning of
months, thejirfl Month of the year to the z -
Jews : So, from the time of our Lord's
Refurrection, which was the Beginning
of a greater Deliverance ; the Day of his
rifmg, the Firft day of the Week, was
by the Apoftles obferved as the Lord's day.
Hence we read that they ufed to meet on
the Firft day of the Week, to preach and Ads xx. 7 .
to break Bread. And St Paul advifes;
upon the Firft day of the week, let every
one of you lay by him in Jlore, as God has ^.
projfered him, for charitable Ufes. And
ftjttr,
9 4 An EXPOSITION
Rev. i. 10. St Jobn y in his Revelation, calls That day
by Name, the Lord's day.
I N the Doffrine itfelf, the Particulars
principally to be confidered, are; The
Tejlimony we have of the 'Truth and Cer-
tainty of the Faff, that our Lord did re-
ally rife from the dead : And, the Defign
the End or Effeff, of this his Refur-
reclion.
THE tfeftimonies to the 'Truth and
Certainty of the Faff, are : The Evidence
Matt. of his Enemies, the Watchmen fet by the
Matt' "' J ews at his Sepulchre : TheTeftimony of
Women, to whom he firft appeared : The
34. i Cor. Witnefs of One, of Two, of All the A-
Luk 5 e xxiv pftk$-> to whom he mowed himfelf atfe-
'3 veral times, and converfed with them for
Luke xxiv
36. forty days together: The nngular and
John xx! extraordinary Teflimony of St Thomas :
26 The Evidence of above coo brethren at
i Cor. xv.
6. once, who all faw and converfed with him,
and many of them died for the Truth of
their Teflimony : The Evidence of
iCor. xv. St Paul, who faw him laft of all the dif-
Luke xxiv c ^ es: ^ e Witnefs of Angeh : And, in
$ i the
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
the laft place, the Teftimony of God him-
feif, bearing them witnefs both with Signs
and Wonders, and with divers Miracles
and Gifts of the Holy Ghoft, according to
his own Will.
THE Defign, the End or Effetf, of
ChrifVs Refurrection was,
i . T o declare his Victory over Death ;
God having raifed him up, and loofed the Ads 11.24-
pains of Death., becaufe it was not poj/ible
that he Jhould be holden of it. Neither
can he die any more : Death hath no more Rom.vi.g.
dominion over him. By this Victory over Rom.i.-f.
Death, he is declared to be the Son of God
with Power, according to the Spirit of Ho-
linefs. The Sufficiency of his Satisfaction,
and the Acceptablenefs of his Sacrifice of
himfelf to God, is hereby evidenced.
And our Juftification confequently , or
the Remimon of Sin upon true Repent-
ance and Amendment, is hereby allured
to us : God having begotten us again un- jpet. i. 3.
to a lively Hope, by the refur reft ion ofje-
fus Chriftfrom the dead,
THE
96 An EXPOSITION
THE only Queftion here arifing, is, how
and in what fenfe the Scripture in Many
Aas'ii. 24, places declares, that God raifed up Chriit
32.Etpaf- rom ^ e ^ ea( j . ^ y e ^ - n g ome pj acegj
he fpeaks of raifmg up himfelf, and of
having Power both to Asry down his Life,
and to take it again. But the explication
of this matter, is not difficult. 'Tis true
Joh.ii. 19, c ^ at Chrift raifed \up himfelf, becaufe he
" really had in himfelf That Power : And
yet 'tis true alfo that the Father raifed him
up, becaufe 'twas from the Father he re-
ceived even That very Power of railing up
himfelf. I have Power, faith he, to lay
job. x.i 8. d(nvh my life*, and I have Power to take
it again: This Commandment have I Re-
ceived of my Father. Thus in another
joh.v. 19,. place: The Son, faith he, can do nothing
z6 - of himfelf, but what he feet h the Father
do , for, what things foever He doth, thefe
alfo doth the Son likewife. For as the
Father hath life in Himfelf, fo hath be Gi-
ven to the Son to have life in Himfelf.
2. ANOTHER
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 97
2. ANOTHER End and Defign of
Chrift's Refurre&ion , was to allure us,
that, if we be planted together with him Rom.vi.
in the likenefs of his Death, we Jhall be al- {^ viii<
Jo in the likenefs of his Refurreftion : That, * '
if we be dead in Chrift, we flail alfo live
with him : That, if the Spirit of him that
raifed up Jefusfrom the dead, dwell in us ;
he that raifed up Chrift from the dead,
Jhall alfo quicken our mortal Bodies, by his
Spirit that dwelleth in us.
3. THE Refurre&ion of Chrifl teaches
us therefore, laftly, that 'tis abfolutely
neceflary in \hzfpiritual fenfe, in order to
our being quickened together with Chrifl ^ CoUii!5 .
that we firft become dead unto Sin ; That, Rom ' vi -
n.
like as Chrift was raifed up from the dead Rom.vi.4.:
by the Glory of the Father, even fo We alfo
Jhould walk in newnefs of Life.
H ART ic. 6.
9* An EXPOSITION
ART ic. 6. ^e afcmfcefc into
Ucu ; 2inD futetlj on tl)c rirjljt {land of
<ofc, tfje tfatfjet 2tlmiggtp. "
OUR Saviour, after his Refurre&ion,
Arts 1.3. having < /60w/ himfelf alive to his Difci-
ples ^y *#tf#y infallible Proofs, being feen
of them forty days, and f peaking of the
things pertaining to the Kingdom of God ;
Lukexxiy having opened their Under/landing, and
Luke xxiv expounded unto them in all the Scriptures
7 the things concerning himfelf; and having
Aftsi, 2. given commandments unto the Apojiles whom
he had chofen j He departed from them,
by afcending up vifibly into Heaven.
THE Manner of this his afcending,
was with Glory and Majefty. Such as is
pf. xxiv. 7. defcribed in the Prophecy ; Lift up your
heads, O ye Gates, and be ye lift up, ye
everlafting doors, and the King of Glory
Jhall come in : And referred to by the An-
AAsi. ir. g e k> when they faid to the Apoilles; He
Jhall So come, in like manner as ye have
Eph.iv. %J een b*m go into Heaven : And by St Paul,
in his application of thofe words of the
Pfalmift-'
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H 1 S M. 99
Pfalmifr, : When he afcended up on high, he Pf.lxviii.
led captivity captive.
THE Place he afcended to, is Heaven ;
That is, the place where God in a more
immediate and particular manner mani-
fefls his Prefence and Majejiy. Not that
God is or can be really prefent in any one
place, more than in another : But he can
manifejl his Glory, where and in what
manner he pleafes. And where he does
this in the moft conspicuous manner, That
Place is called his Habitation, his Throne,
his Prefence. Becaufe Heaven is higher
than the Earth -, becaufe Thence is derived
all Power and Influences upon Earth; be-
caufe There is the habitation of Angels at-
tending upon the Commands of God j for
thefe reafons, God who is really and ne-
ceffarily prefent every where alike, yet,
with regard to the Exercife of his Power
and the Manifeftation of his Glory, is
reprefented to Us as being particularly
in Heaven. To That Place therefore did
Chrift afcend unto his Father, even to the
higheji Place of Glory and Majefty, into
H 2 the
loo An EXPOSITION
the moil immediate Prefence of God ;
y^r above all Heavens, as St Paul ex-
preffes it.
THE Reafon of his afcending thither,
was, becaufe Many Ages were ftill to
come, before the general Judgment:
Him therefore the Heaven muft receive,
until the times of rejlitution of all things,
Befides: As, in the Jewifh Temple, the
HeVix.?, High Prieft Alone once every year entred
into the Holy Place, with Blood of Others -,
Hcb.ix.26. fb Chrift, having once in the end of the
'world put away Sin by the Sacrifice of
Himfelf, it was neceffary that H E, with
his own Blood, mould enter once likewife
ix. 12. into the Holy Place, having obtained eter-
nal Redemption for us : That is, it was
neceffary that he mould afcend into Hea^
uen, there to prefent his moft acceptable
Oblation before God, as a Propitiation for
. 14. ^ ^ ns of the World. For Chrift is not
entred into the Holy Places made with
hands, which are the Figures of tke true j
but into Heaven itfelf, now to appear in
the Prefence of God for us.
IT
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 101
IT follows ; " And fitteth on the right
" band of God, the Father Almighty. "
Now here, as the word Heaven fignifies
not fo much a Place, as a State of Happi-
nefs, Majefty, and Honour ; fo " the
" right hand of God " fignifies, not a
Situation, (for God has no Hands, no
Shape or Parts,) but it iignifies a State of
high Dignity, Power and Dominion,
next and immediately after God himfelf,
the Father of all. For which reafon,
'tis ilyled in feveral places of Scripture,
the right hand of tower, the right hand Mark xiv.
of the Power of God, the right band 0f Lukexxii.
the throne of God, the right hand of the 6 9-
Majefty on high, and the right hand of the HeM/3.'
throne of the Majejly in the Heavens. Vlu<l *
And the fame thing is elfewhere fet forth,
under the following Phrafes: That he
hath put all enemies under his Feet : That 25.
all Power is given unto him in Heaven and a
in Earth: That Angels and Authorities 'Pet.iii.
and Powers are made fubjefl unto him: Eph.i. 21,
That Jie is fet far above all Principality
and Power and Might and Dominion and
every Name that is named, not only in
H 3 fbh
102 ^ EXPOSITION
This world, but alfo in that which is to
* er - I 7- come; the God of our Lord Jefus Chrift,
vcr.2z. the Father of Glory, having put all things
under his feet, and given him to be the
Head over all things to the Church j and
PMLii.p, having given him a Name which is above
every Name, that at the name of Jefus
every knee Jhould bow, of things in Heaven,
and things in Earth, and things under the
Earth j and that every tongue Jhould confefs
that Jefus Chnft is Lord, to the Glory of
God, the Father. All which things are
emphatically contained in this One expref-
fion, that he " Jitteth on the right hand
Rcv.iii.2i'. " of God", " that he is fet down with his
Rev. xxii. Father in His Throne ; fo that the Throne
lf of God is now the Throne of God and of
the Lamb.
THE word, " Sitting, " is not to be
underload of a particular Pofture, (for
iii other places of Scripture 'tis exprefled
Rom.viii, that he Is at the right hand of God, and
Aftsvii. ^ at k e & tan &* at ^ e right hand of Gods)
55* S 6 - but the word, fating, is ufed in Scripture
the moft frequently, becaufe it moil pro-
perly
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 103
perly denotes a full Po/effion of Dignity,
and Perpetuity in retaining it. After he had Heb.x. 12,
offered One Sacrifice for Sins, he for ever I4>
fat down on the right hand of God, having
perfected for ever them that are fancJi-
fied.
His Office, during this his Sitting at
the right hand of God, till his Coming
to Judgment ; is to intercede for us. Thus
the Scripture declares, that he maketh in- IfaiahKii.
tercejjion for the T^ranfgreffoun ; That he Heb.ix.z4.
appears In the prefence of God for us, and vii.ij.
ever liveth to make inter cejfion for T^hem that
come unto God by him: That we have an ijoh.ii.i,
Advocate 'with the Father, Jefus Chrift
the righteous, and he is the Propitiation for
our Sins -, that is, for the Sins of thofe
who truly repent and amend. That he
Alone is the One Mediatour between God iTim.ii.j.
and Men, the Mediatour of the New fejla- Heb - ix - I 5*
ment, having purchafed to himfelf a As.*8.
Church with his own Blood, and given Gal i-4-
himfelf for our Sins, that he might deli-
ver us from this prefent evil World.
Wherefore all Thofe do greatly difhonour
H 4 him,
204 An EXPOSITION
Col.il, 23. him, who, by a Shew of Wlfdom in Will-
worjhip and Humility^ join with him O-
ther Mediators of their own appointment,
Col.ii. 19. fuch as the Blejfed Virgin or Saints or An~
gels. Which is, in St Paul's language,
not holding the Head,
Laflly; THE Perfon, at whofe right
hand Chrift fits, is " God y " even
" the Father Almighty. " Concerning
which , fee the firji Article of the
Creed,
ART ic. 7. jptom tljwce lyt fgall
tome to ju&0e tfte uirti miD tlj*
I N the words of This Article, there is
nothing difficult to be explained. Yet, of
all the Articles in the Creed, This is to
Us of the greateft importance. And there
are contained in it Many Particulars,
worthy of our mofl ferious coniidera-
tion,
cf the CHU R CH-CATE CH ISM. 105
IN the firft place, the Proof that there
flail be an univerfal Judgment, is both
manifold and clear ; founded in the Light
of Natural Reafon in Men, and confirmed
by exprefs Revelation from God. The
Probability of it, may very ftrongly be
collected j from the confideration of Mens
being in their Nature Accountable Crea-
tures, feeing and diftinguijhing necejjanly
between Good and Evil, chooling freely
and determining their own Aftions, and
confequently being worthy of Blame or
Commendation^ of Punimment or Rc~
ward: From the natural and unavoidable
Apprehenfions of Confcience, which all
men find hereupon arifing within their
own Breafts : And from our correfpondent
natural Notion of God y as fupreme Go-
vernour and righteous Judge of the
World. This Probability is confirmed,
by Many though obfcure intimations in
the Old Teftament. And in the New *Te-
flament the T^ruth is afcertained, by num-
berlefs clear and exprejl Declarations :
It being the whole Defign of almofl every
part of the Writings of the Evangelifls
io6 'An EXPOSITION
Aflmii. and Apoftles, to affure us that God hath
3 1 - appointed a day, in the 'which he 'will judge
the world in righteoufnefs, by That man
whom he hath ordained.
THE Defcriptions the Scripture gives
us of the Solemnity of This great day,
are very moving and affectionate. That
the Heavens flail pafi away with a great
Noife, and the Elements flail melt with
fervent Heat-, the Earth alfo, and the
works that are therein^ jhall be burnt up.
That the Lord cometh with ten thoufands
of his Saints, to execute judgment upon alL
Matt xxv. That when the Son of Man Jhall come in
3I< his Glory, and all the Holy Angels with him,
then Jhall he Jit upon the Throne of his,
Glory ; And before him Jhall be gathered
Matt. xvi. all Nations ; and then Jhall he reward eve-
z l' ry man according to his Works. That the
zTheff.i. Lord Jefus flail be revealed from Heaven
l- with his mighty angels, in faming Jire ta-
king vengeance on them that know not God,
iThcffiv. w& that obey not the GofpeL That the
6 - Lord himfelf flail defcend from Heaven
with a Shout , with the Voice of the Arch-
angel
of tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 107
angel, and with the Trump of God. That
all that are in the graves Jhall hear his Joh.v.x8.
voice, and jh all come Jorth ; they that have
done good, unto the refurreftion of Life ;
and they that have done evil, unto the Re-
jurreSlion of Damnation. See alfo^
Dan. vii. 9, 10. Rev.xx. 11, 12, 13.
THE exaft Time of this general Judg-
ment, being one of thofe Seafons which Aftsi. 7.
the Father has put in bis own Power ; it is
not for Us to know, or prie into it. O/'Markxiii.
That day and That hour knoweth no man, 3 '
no not the Angels which are in Heaven,
neither the Son, but the Father. One
thing the Scripture afTures us of, that it
(hall come fuddenly as a Thief in the iTheCv.
night-, as the Flood upon the old world, 2
or as the deftruttion of Sodom and (jomor- Luke >vii.
rba, when they were eating and drinking *
and fufpedted nothing. That it is very
near to every one of us, is alfo very evi-
dent : Becaufe, how many Ages foever
the World may continue, yet to every
particular perfon the time of his own
Death muft determine the Conditions,
upon
x.o8 'An EXPOSITION
upon which His fentence will depend at
the general Judgment.
THERE were Many in the Apoflles
times, who, by a mifapplication of cer-
tain Prophecies relating to the deflru&ion
of Jerufalem and of the Jewijh Sfate,
were led to think that the World would
come to an end in That Age. But from our
Lakexi; Saviour's own Prophecy, that Jerufalem
jhouldbe troden down of the Gentiles, until
the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled '-, which
js clearly a prediction of a long feafon :
. And from the Apoflles exhortation, Be not
foon fhaken in mind, as that the day ofChrift
is at hand-, let no man deceive you by any
means , for 'That day flail not come, except
there come a falling away Jirft, and That
man of Sin be revealed: 'Tis evident,
that not the End of the World, but only
the definition of the Jewijb State, was
to be expected in That Age. Neverthe-
lefs, whatever be the Time, how near or
how diflant foever, wherein the World is
to end ; 'tis (as I have faid) the fame thing
to Us ; feeing our particular Concern in
the
of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. ICQ
the general Judgment, will depend entire-
ly on the State wherein we ourfelves
leave the World, which we are very fure
we muft fpeedily do.
THE Perfon to be our Judge, is ouf
Saviour himfelf j The fame perfon, who
condefcended to take our Nature upon
him, to be made fubjecl: to all our Weak-
nefies and Infirmities, and to be in all Heb.iy.ij,
points tempted like as we are, yet without
Sin : Who therefore can be touched with
the Feeling of our Infirmities.
THE perfons to be judged, are all Man-
kind; " the %uick, and the Dead: "
thofe who (hall then be found Alive, and
thofe who have died in all foregoing A-
ges j all, both fmall and great, rich and
poor, from the higheft Prince to the
meaneft Beggar. In This Judgment
therefore, by Force or Power mail no man
prevail. Riches, mall find no place for
Bribery or Corruption. Learning and
Wit, mall be able to make no Evafions.
Poverty and Worldly confederations, (hall
move no Companion. As many as have Rom. :
famed IZ *
no ^EXPOSITION
Jinned without law., jhall perijh without
law, and as many as have Jinned in the
law, Jhall be judged by the law. The
Righteous alone {hall be exalted in That
Rcv.vi.itf. day. And the Wicked, how numerous,
how potent foever, mall fay to the Moun-
tains and Rocks, fall on us, and hide us
from the Face of him that fitteth on the
Throne, and from the Wrath of the Lamb.
THE Things men (hall \>t judged for, arc
all their Actions, Words, and Dejigns ; pub-
lick, or fecret. Nothing fhall bfe hid from
the Eyes of the All-feeing Judge. For God
Ecclef.xii.7^^ bring every Work into Judgment, with
J 4 4 . every fecret thing, whether it be good, or whe-
ther it be evil. He will bring to Light the
hidden things of Darknefs, and will make
manifeji the Counfels of the Hearts : and
then jhall every man have Praife of God. '
THE Manner of this final Judgment,
mail be with exaff Juftice, according to e-
Gen tvdi. very man's Defert. For the Judge of all the
pf xcviii. E arf k will do what is Right, and with
9- Equity Jhall he judge the Nations. 70
Rom.ii.7- them who by patient ~ continuance in well-
doing
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. in
doing, feekfor glory and honour and immor-
tality, he will give eternal Life : But tin-
to them that are contentious, and do not
obey the truth,, but obey unrighteoufnefs ;
indignation and wrath. And not only in
general will reward the Good, and punijh
the Evil; but moreover in particular,
each of thefe according to their refpeclive
Degrees. He which Jbwe thfparingly, Jhall * Cor.ix.6.
reap alfo fparingly j and he which foweth
bountifully, Jhall reap alfo bountifully.
They that be wife, Jhall Jhine as the bright-
nefs of the Firmament ; and they that turn
many to right eoufnefs, as the Stars for ever
and ever. And as one Star differ eth from i Cor. xv,
another Star in Glory, fo alfo is the Refur- 41 *
rettion of the Dead. One fhall be made
Ruler over *fen Cities, and another over Luke xix.
Jive, and another over two. One,Jha/Ire- jjj t j^
ceive a Prophet's Reward-, and another, **
Jhall receive a righteous mans Reward-, ^'
and a third, inferiour to Both of thefe,
yet Jhall in no wife lofe his Reward. In
like manner, in the diflribution of Punijh- Lufee
ments ; one Jhall be beaten with Many 47, 4 g. '
Stripes^ and another with Few. Some, ^ att - xxiu -
4n EXPOSITION*
Jhall receive a greater damnation : And
concerning Others our Lord declares, that
it jhall be more tolerable for the land of
Sodom and Gomorrha in the Day o
Luke xii menf > f ^ an f r Them- ^ or unt(>
48. Jbever much is given, of him foall be much
required-, and to whom men have commit-
ted much, of him they 'will ask the more.
ART ic. 8. 3 bciietoe in tije
THE Creed, being a Paraphrafe upon
the Form of Baptifm, is diftinguifhed un-
der Three principal Heads. Our Belief in
God, the Father and Maker of AIL Our
Belief in the Son of God, Jefus Chrift,
the Redeemer and Judge of Mankind.
And our Belief in the Holy Spirit of God,
the Infpirer of the Prophets and Apoftles,
and the SanStifer of the Hearts of all
good Men. For as there are diverfities of
Ver. 5. Operations, but it is the fame GOD, which
Vet. 4. worketh all in all-, And as there are Diffe-
rences of Admlmjirations, but the fame
i LORD-,
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
LORD-, fo alfo there are diver/if ies of
Gifts, but the fame SPIRIT.
WHAT the Metaphyfical Nature of
this Holy Spirit is, the Scripture has no
where defined. He is the Spirit of the Joh.xv.z6
Father, becaufe \\zproceedethfrom (or is
fent forth from) the Father. And he is
the Spirit of the Son, becaufe Chrift fends ib,id
him unto us from the Father.
THE Offices which the Scripture af
cribes to the Holy Spirit are : That in the i p c t.i.n
Prophets from the Beginning it tejlified be*
forehand to the Sufferings of Chrift, and
the Glory that Jhould follow : That after-
wards he was fent forth in a more Extra-
ordinary manner, to be the Comforter and job.xhr*'
Direftor of the Apojlles; To guide them joh*rf.
into all Truth, becaufe he fhould not J "peak ! 3-
of Hitnfelf, but ivhatfoever, he mould
hear, that fhould he/peak : To teach them joh.xirJ
all things, and bring all things to their re- * 6 '
membrance, ivhatjbever Chrift had faid
unto them : To fupport them againft the
Powers of the World : To inftrucl: them,
without premeditating, what they fhould
I anfwer
ii4 An EXPOSITION
i Job v.6.anfwer before their Perfecutors : To bear
Hcb.ii.4- W i tne j 3 to chrifi, with Signs and Wonders
and 'with divers Miracles and Gifts, ac-
cording to the Will of God : And finally,
job. xiv. to abide with Chrift's Followers for ever,
unto f ^ e en ^ f *&* ^ or ^y as the
20 - Great SancJifier of the Hearts of good
Rom. xv.
16. men.
iPet.i.i.
A<fbxiz4. OUR Duty, with regard to the Holy
Ghoft, is to pray to God our Father conti-
nually, for the Afliftance of this His Ho-
ly Spirit; whereby we may be enabled to
overcome all the Temptations of Sin,
We are to receive his Teftimony, as deli-
vered down to us in the Writings of the
Apoftles and Prophets : To obey his good
Motions ; be follicitous to obtain his
Gifts and Graces, which are the Habits of
Moral and Chriftian Virtues ; and be care-
iTheff.v. full, above all things, not to quench and
Eph.iv.3o. g 6 an d drive him from us, left we be
Hcb.x.z9. found to do dejpite unto the Spirit of
Grace.
THERE
of the CH u R c H-C AT E c H i s M. 1 15
THERE is one thing particularly
needful to be here taken notice of: That,
to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit,
i$ not, to follow Enthufiajlick- Tmaginati-
ons ; but to be guided by That Doftrine,
which the Holy Gho/t infpired the Apoftles
to teach ; and that we obey it in the Prac-
tife of all Moral and Chriftian Virtues,
which are the Fruits of the Spirit. The Gal v 12 ;
Apoftles were direded by a Miraculous af- Eph ' v -9-
fiftance of the Spirit, upon every extra-
ordinary occafip.n. But we have Now no
Promife of any fuch miraculous direction.
To obey the Spirit Now, is to obey his
Dictates as delivered down to us in the in-
fpired Writings: And to be a Good man,
is Now the only Evidence of being full ofA&sxi 24:
the Holy Ghoji.
: 01 bnr t ni.? /Dt^i iijui J .V,TO , :
I 2
'rlifw'
n6 'An EXPOSITION
ART ic. 9 Cfie fjolp <ffatl)olicft
cij; Cfje Communion of
THE " Catholick " Church, is the
univerfal or whole Church of God. But
the phrafe is ufed in a considerable variety
of Significations.
i. I N the firft place, the Scripture re-
prefents Mankind fo univerfally corrupt
Rom.iii. and degenerate, as that '-#//' 'have Jinned
*3* And come Jhort of the Glory of God; and
ver. 20. that no flefo can be juftified in His Jigbt^
Habak.i. who is of purer eyes than to behold evil-*
! 3- and cannot look on iniquity. Neverthelefs,
being eiTentially infinite in Goodnefs and
Companion, as well as in all other Perfecti-
ons j he fent his Son into the World, to re-
i Pet i io cover men f rom Sin, and to redeem them
Rev.v. 9. to God by bis Blood. That is j That
through the Merits of his Death, and
through his continual Mediation and. In-
tercejion, all true Penitents might, in a
Method confident with the Wifdom of
God's Government and with the Honour
.1 and
'of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 117
and Sacrednefs of his divine Laws, obtain
reconciliation with God, and have Accefi
unto the Throne of Grace*. Chrift ha-
ving thus died for the redemption of man-
kind j God raifed him from the dead, and
exalted him to his own right hand in die
heavenly Places, and gave him a Name a- phil.ii.p.
bove every Name, and a Kingdom which Dan.vu.
mould never be dejtroyed. Subjects of this
Kingdom, and Partakers of his Glory,
mall all thofe be, out of the whole bulk
of Mankind ; who, by fincere Repentance
and true renewed Obedience, become ca~
pable of applying to themfelves the Re-
demption purchafed by Chrift. And
Theje are, in the Largeft fenfe of the
word, his Catholick Church. All virtuous
and good men, who have feared God and
kept his Commandments, from the Begin-
ning of the World ; Whether under the
Law of Nature only ; as Enoch and Noah,
Melchifedec and Job, Abraham and the
Patriarchs, and Many who from the Eafl Lukexiii.
and from the Weft and from the North and 19>
from the South fhall come andyfr down with
Thefe in the Kingdom of God: Or, under
I 3 the
n8 An EXPOSITION
the jfewi/b Difpenfation j having obferved
Luke ii. the Law of Mofes, and looked for redempti-
l/ ' j8 ' on, and waited for the confolation of Ifrael :
Or, under the Gofpel-ftate j having belie-
ved in the name of Chrijl, and obeyed his
Laws as delivered in the Gofpel : Thefe
are, in the Largeft and Highejl fenfe of
the word, the true Catholick Church of
Chrift, his Spoufe and his Body, his Bre-
thren and tys Members, his Sheep, his /-
heritance, the Subjects of his eternal //-
Eph v.i 5 , <&/. This is That Church, which Chrift
' * 7 ' /0iW and gtfiv him (elf for it -, that he might
fanftijie and cleanfe it, and prefent it to
bimfelf a glorious Church, not having fpot
or wrinkle or any fuch thing, but that it
ftould be holy and without blemifJo, even un-
Rev.xiT.5- denied and without fault, before the throne
Heb. xii f ^^' This is that general Affembly
3- and Church of the jirft-born which are
written in Heaven; even the Spirits of
juft men made perf eft. This is the true
rcr.it. Mount Sion, the City of the living God,
the heavenly Jerufalem -, making one Blef-
fed and complete Society, with an innume*
rable company of Angels^ and with Jejus
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 119
the Mediator of the New Covenant, and
with God the Judge of All. This is the
Firft and Principal Notion of the Holy
Catholick Church.
2. T H E " Holy Catholick Church "
fignifies in the next place, and more ufual-
ly y the Chrijiian Church only, as diftin-
guiftied from the Jewijh and the Patriar-
chal ; The Church of Chrift fpread over
all the World, as diflinguimed from the
Jewijh Church which was particular to
cne Nation. This is That Church, which
being built upon the Foundation of the A- Eph.iUo
poftlesy among whom Peter was a Rock or Matt.xvi.
one famfoundation-Jtone, and Jefus Chrift l8 -
himfelf the Chief corner-ftone j is by their
Difciples and Followers propagated
through all generations, unto the End
the World: Chrift having promifed to be
always with it, and proted it, that the
Gates of Hell, that is, Perfecution and
even Death itfelf, fhould not be able to
prevail againft it. This is That Church
which though perfecuted by Unbelievers,
corrupted by [cugeW] worldly Factions,
I 4 diftratted
120 An EXPOSITION
diftratfed by Schifms, and moft of all de-
formed by temporal Profperity and the vi-
tious lives of its profeffed Members ; yet
mail finally prevail and be reftored in fuch
Purity, that the Kingdoms of the World
&cv.xli$.jhall become the Kingdoms of our Lord and
|foi.xi. 9 . of his Chrifl, and the Earth jhall be full
of the Knowledge of the Lord., as the Wa-
ters cover the Sea.
3. THE " Holy Catholick Church "
fometimes fignifies ftill more particularly
That Part of the univerfal Church of
Chrift, which in the prefent Age is Now
living upon Earth ; as diftinguifhed from
Thofe who have gone before, or fhall
come after. And Thefe are the prefent
True. Members of Chrift, wherefoever dif~
perfed, or howfoever diftinguifhed, over
the Face of the whole Earth. This is the
prefent Church militant 9 the Invifible
Church, known only to God the Searcher
of Hearts ; who, among Chriilians of All
Nations, and of different Rites, and great
Diverfity of Opinions, knows Who they
arc that worfhip him in Spirit and in
Truth,
of the CH URCH-C ATECHISM. 121
Truth, and obey him with Simplicity and
Sincerity of Heart.
4. T H E term, " Catholick Church, "
fignifies in the laft place, and moil fre-
quently of all, That Part of the univer-
fal Church of Chrift, which at any par-
ticular Time is Vlfible upon Earth, in an
outward Profejjion of the Belief of the
Gofpel, and an external Communion of the
Word and Sacraments. And This is that
Great Field, wherein grow together the Marr.xiii.
Corn and the Tares. This is the Net in
our Lord's Parable, wherein are inclofed
both good fiih and bad. This is the mixt ver.47,48.
Society of imcere Chriilians and Hypo-
crites, who mall not be feparated till the ver. 39,
end of the World.
THE Church of Rome pretends to be.
if/elf This whole Catholick Church, exclu-
five of all other Chriftian Churches.
Which is the fame Abfurdity, as for a
fingle Member, nay for a Member after it
has cut itfelf off from the Body, prefump-
tuouily to call itfelf d& Whole Body. They
pretend alfo to give feveral Marks or Note$
of
122 An EXPOSITION
of the true Catholick Church. Such as
are, Vtfibility j whereby they mean tem-
poral Grandeur and Profperity : Which i&
in Scripture, on the contrary , more gene-
rally a Mark of Errour. Universality -,
whereby they mean Extent of Country :
Jn which point, Mahometanifm and Pa-
ganifm far exceed them. Antiquity ;
whereby they mean, not primitive Anti-
quity, but a Succeffion of Many corrupt
Ages. Alfo Miracles, in proof of new Doc"l-
Mattxxiv. rines: Againft attending to which, our Savi-
* T 5 hefT ii our anc ^ kis Apoflles h ave gi yen us the moft
9. exprefs Cautions. In reality, Marks or
Afo/rt of the 7r* Church there poffibly
can be ;/5;z^, befides *fbat One which makes
it to be the 7r^ Church ; viz. its teaching
the fame unvaried Doctrine, which Chrift
and his Apoftles taught from the Begin-
ning. Which Doctrine is briefly and
clearly contained, in the Creed and in the
ten Commandments profefled by all Chrifli-
ans, in all Ages and in all Countries, at
their Baptifm. To This doctrine the
Church of Rome has not adhered, but has
Corrupted it with Manv Additions ; and s
by
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 123
by mixing the Authority of Popes and
Councils and vain Men with That of
Chrift, has, like the Jews of old, by the
Traditions of Men made void the Com-
mandments ff God.
THERE is one thing further to be ob-
ferved upon this Head : That the Catbo-
lick or Unherfal Church of Chrift being
difperfed over many Nations, who live un-
der various Laws and Forms of Govern-
ment ; therefore every Particular Church
muft of neceffity have a Power to appoint
its own Rites, Forms, and Ceremonies. In
which matter, the End being Order, De*
cency, and Peace ; the Rule is, to avoid
Contentioufnefs, and every thing, as far as
polfible, that is likely to give Off'enfe or
caufe Divijions.
THE Second part of This Article,
" *The Communion of 'Saints, " may like-
wife, as the Former, be taken in different
fenfes.
^EXPOSITION
I F the Holy Catholick Church be under-
ftood to lignify all good men, under all the
different Difpenfations of Religion, from
the Beginning to the End of the World :
Then the Communion of Saints confifts in
This ; that they are All, Servants of the
fame God ; all guided and fan&ified, after
divers manners, by the fame Spirit -, all
live in Hope of the fame divine Promifcs y
made known at fundry times, and in dif-
ferent ways and degrees j and fhall all fi-
nally be made Partakers of the fame Glo-
ry, according to their different Capacities
and Defer ts, in the eternal Kingdom of
God.
BUT if by the Holy Catholick Church, be
meant the Chrijiian Church only; Then
the Communion of Saints confifls further
in This ; that they are, not only Servants
of the fame God, and Heirs in general of
the fame Promifes -, but that they have
communion alfo in prof effing particularly
the fame explicit Faith in Chrift, of
whom the Antients had but an obfcure
expectation as of Him that was to come :
That
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 125
That they are Members of his peculiar
myftical Body, united under Him as their
Head; governed by the fame Laws, and
partaking of the fame Ordinances, of the
Gofpel. So that they, being Many, are Rom.xii,
One Body in Chrift ; and every one Mem- s>
hers one of another. There is One Body, Eph.iv.^
and One Sfirit, even as- they are called in
One Hope of their calling : One Lord, One
Faith, One Baptifm, One God and Father
of all, who is above all.
CONSEQUENTLY 'tis the Duty of
All Chriftians, living together at the fame
time, to endeavour to keep this unity of the Eph.iv.j;
Spirit in the Bond of Peace, by uniting in
a vijible and external Fellowfhip of Love
and Charity ; joining publickly in the fame
Worjhip of God -, mutually ajfifting, com-
forting, inftrutting each other j with all E . ^ ^
lowlinefe and meeknefs, with long-fuffering^
forbearing one another in Love : In a word,
doing all the good Offices, that it becomes
Members of one and the fame Body to do i Cor.xii,
for each other. 12-27^
As
126 An EXPOSITION
A s to thole who do hot live upon Earth
<it the fame time , the Communion of Chri-
ftians with Saints departed, confifts in our
Eph.H. 19. being fellow-citizens with the Saints, and
of the houfiold of God\ members of the
Heb. xii. ^ ame C*ty f God y the heavenly Jerufalem -,
" ... having our Converfation in Heaven, from
whence alfo ive look for the Saviour Jcjus
Chrift. It confifts, in fetting before us
their Examples y imitating their Patience
and all other Virtues > and praying to God
that His Kingdom may come- y when we,
together with Them, mall have our per-
fet confummation and blifs both in Body
and Soul, in His eternal and everlafting
Glory.
BUT for Us to diredt Prayers to de-
parted Saints, as the Church of Rome has
prefumptuoufly taught men to do ; neg-
letting the Only and All-fufficient Media-
tor whom God has exprefsly appointed to
That Office, or taking upon ourfelves to
join Others with him j is evidently un-
warrantable and finful. For neither is it
poflible for us, before the day of Judg-
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 127
ment y to know certainly Who Are Saints ;
neither, if we did know this, have we
Any reafon at all to believe they can hear
our Prayers ; nor, if they could, are they
at all appointed of God to be Mediators or
InterceJJbrs for us. If therefore praying
to Angels, who we are fure Are minift-
ring Spirits fent forth to minijler for them Heb. i.r^
ivhojhallbe Heirs of Salvation, is exprefs-
ly forbidden in Scripture j and the wor-
jhipping of Angels be a beguiling ourfelves
of our Reward, in a 'voluntary Humility ', Colii.i8
(in a Show of Wifdom in Wiil-ivorfkip and 2 3
humility ',) intruding into tkofe things which
ive have not Jeen, vainly puffed up by a
fejhly Mind, and not holding the Head y
which is Chrifl : Much more, the pray-
ing to Saints, who we do know certainly
not to be Miniftring Spirits, and do not
know certainly nor probably that they hear
us at all, nor generally whether they be
Saints or not j mufl be a departing from
Chrifl the "True Mediator, and a great de-
rogation from his Honour.
A R T i c,
128 An
ART ic. 10. Clje jfo&jtfcencftf of
I N the Reafon of Things, and in the
Nature and EfTence of a Law, men are
bound at all times to obey the Will of
God, and in no cafe knowingly to tranf-
grefs it. By Sin, men become liable to
the Penalty of the Law, and fubject to
the Divine Difpleafure. By Repentance
and Amendment after Tranfgreffion, ari-
fes a Hope of Pardon, founded upon our
natural Knowledge of God's eflential At-
tributes of Goodnefs and Companion. But
becaufe future Obedience, is the doing on-
ly what was our Duty to do ; and, proper-
ly fpeaking, makes no Expiation for Pafl
Tranfgreffions : Therefore the natural
Hope of Forgivenefs, is but Hope ; and,
at beft, leaves men under uncertain Ap-
prehenlions, upon what conditions, and in
what manner, and to what degree or ef-
fetf, their Sins fhall be forgiven them.
^^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 129
BY Revelation to the Patriarchs, in
the Appointment and Acceptation of Sa-
crifices-, by the whole tenour of the Mo-
faick law, in the inftitution of Expiations
and Atonements; and by all the Preach-
ings, and Exhortations, of the Prophets >
God from time to time incouraged and af-
fured this natural Hope of Pardon upon
Repentance, in various manners and de-
grees, and to the Expectation of manifold
both prefent and remote Bleffings.
A T length, by the Coming of Chrift,
the Dijpenfation of the Divine Mercy was
fully opened j Repentance and RemiJJion 0/*Luke xxiv
Sins was commanded to be preached in 47
His Name among all Nations ; The Me-
thod of Sinners finding Acceptance and
Reconciliation with God, through the
Interceffion of Chrift, and by the Terms
of the New Covenant in his Blood, was
diftindtly declared -, And Death was abo- a Tim j.
lifted, and Life and Immortality clearly o.
brought to light through the Go/pel. This
authoritative AfTurance of God's granting
men the liberty and benefit of Repentance
K unto ,
An EXPOSITION
unto life eternal, is the Glad Tidings cx-
prefled by the word [ eu&yyeAiov ] Gofpel.
And as it difcovers in the highefl manner
God's irreconcileable Hatred again ft Sin,
that he did not think fit to pardon it with-
out fo great an Expiation as the Death of
his Son j fo it mows at the fame time his
eflential Goodnefs and Companion towards
Sinners, that he was pleafed to find out
fuch a Method for their Recovery. For
the Ground and Foundation of God's Love
and Mercy towards Men, was not the /-
terpojition of Chrift : But on the contrary,
the Ground and Foundation of Chrift' s in-
terpojing on our behalf, was the original
and eflential Goodnefs of the God and Fa-
Joh.iii.i6. ther of all. God Jo loved the World, that
he gave his only begotten Son, that ivhofoe-
<ver believeth in him, Jhould not perijh, but
have everlajling Life.
THE external Means, by which this
Grace and Favour of the Goipel is ap-
Aasxxii. plied, isBaptifm. drife, and be baptized,
and wa/b away thy Sins^ calling on the
Name of the Lord.
THB
Vf ike CHiTRCH-CAtECHlSMi
THE Qualifications requifite for Bap-
tifm, or ( in thofe who have from the be-
ginning been educated in the Knowledge
of Chrift ) for the publick and 'worthy Pro-
feffionot Chrift's Religion) are Faith and
Repentance. Repentance towards God, and
Faith towards our Lord jfefus Chrift t
Repentance from dead works, and Faith Heb.vi.i.'
towards God : A fincere Defire of amend-
ing z\\pajl Faults, and a firm Refolution
of Obedience for the future. Hence
Baptifm isftyled We Baptifm of Repent- Ltlke ,-,,. ?
ancefor the remiffion of Sins-, the Wajhing Afts 11.38.
of Regeneration^ and renewing of the Ho-
ly Ghoji.
THE Effeft and Confequence of this
Regeneration, the Scripture always fup-
pofes to be True Virtue and Holinefs of life
for the future. We are buried with Chrift Rom vi j
by Baptifm into Death; that, like as
Chrift was raifed up from the dead by ih'e
glory of the Fat her, even fo We alfo Jhwld
in newnefs of Life.
K * Ta
1 3 2 An EXPOSITION
T o Apoftates who totally renounce this
Baptifm of Regeneration, the Effect and
Benefit of it is made void. The One Sa-
crifice of Chrift, being rejected by them
Heb.x.z6. and defpifed-, there remains no new Sacri-
fice for Sins.
IN thofe who do not totally apoftatizc
from religion, but yet ( contrary to their
Profeffion ) fall into any Great or Habi-
tual Vice; their Sins, after the Know-
ledge of the Truth, muft of neceffity be
more inexcufabh; their Hearts, more
hardened ; their Repentance, more diffi-
cult-, their Hopes, more broken. They
zPet.ii. are like /& 50w, that was wajhed, turning
21, 21. a g a i n to her wallowing in the Mire. And
it had been better Jor them not to have
known the way of Righteoufnefs, than, af-
ter they have known it, to turn from the
Holy Commandment delivered unto them.
NEVERTHELESS, fuch perfons as
Thefe, are ftill through the Goodnefs and
-forbearance and Long-fuffering of God
continually invited to Repentance ; and
exhorted, that they do not by Hardnefs
and
^//^ CHURCH-CATECHISM. 133
and an impenitent Heart treafure up unto
themf elves Wrath againft the day of Wrath,
and revelation of the righteous Judgment
of God. Such perfons are to be rebuked Tit. 1.13.
Jharply, but not driven to Defpair. That He b.xii.
which is Lame, is not to be turned out of l 3-
the way, but that it rather be healed.
St Paul delivered a Great Sinner to Satan iCor.v.$.
for the dejlruttion 'of the Flejh y that the
Spirit might be fayed in the day of the
Lord Jefus : And, upon his true Repen-
tance, gave an exhortation to comfort him, zCor.ii.^.
left perhaps fuch a one Jhould be fw allowed
up with overmuch Sorrow. He fpeaks alip
of many Others that had Jinned already, 2 Cor. xii.
even in the Inftances of Great Crimes ; *'
and complains of them feverely, for that
they had not repented. St James likewife
declares: Brethren, if any of you do err j amw y
from the Truth, and one convert him ; let 1 9>
him know, that he which convertetb the
Sinner from the Errour of his way, Jhall
fave a Soul from Death, and Jhall hide a
multitude of Sins. St Jude alfo, fpeak-
ing of different kinds of Sinners;
Some, fays he, have compajjlon^ making a
K 3 differ-
*34 4n EXPOSITION
difference ; and Others fave with Fear,
fulling them out of the Fire. And our Sa-
viour himfelf, threatning fome very
Great Corrupters of his Religion, that he
Rev. ii. would caft them into a Bed of Sicknefs,
* 1 ' * 3 ' and kill their children with Death 5 yet
adds, even concerning thefe Great Sin
ners, except they repent of their Deeds.
I N cafe of thefe Great Sins, the Re*
fentance muft indeed be alfo Great and
Rev.xi. Exemplary , fo as to give Glory to the Gcd
\ Cor. V m f Heaven. It muft be a Repentance not
19 to be repented of: A Repentance proceed-
ing from a true Senfe of the Evil of Sin,
and producing a real and effectual Changs
and Reformation of Life. But for the
fmaUer Failings, Infirmities^ and Surpri-*
zes, incident \Q fine ere and virtuous per*
fons in the whole courfe of their Lives ;
for the continual Forgivenefs of ^fhefe^
there is moft evidently provifion made
through the whole T'enour of the Gofpel,
Our Saviour directs us to pray daily for
the forgivenefs of Such tfrefpa/es, upon
condition pf our being ready to forgive
our
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 135
our Trefpafles againft each other. And by
commanding us to forgive one another,
not only until Seven times, but until fe- Mattxviii.
uenty times feven ; he plainly declares that
we may hope for proportionable Compaf-
fion at the hands of God.
THE Church of Rome , by their Do-
ctrines concerning ConfeJJion and Abfolu-
tion, concerning Contrition and fuperftiti-
ous Penances, concerning Indulgences and
the Power of the Keys ; have greatly con-
founded the Doctrine of the Gofpel con-
cerning the Forgivenefs of Sins, with
corruptions introduced merely by the Va-
nity and Ambition of Men. For the
Texts upon which they ground their pre-
tended Powers, do plainly mean, not to
appoint men to fit in God's Seat of Judg-
ment, but to authorize them from God
to preach and to affure unto men the
'Terms or Conditions, upon which alone
their Sins mail be forgiven them. Whofe
foe'ver Sins ye remit, not according to your
own Will and Pleafure, but ivhofe Jbever John x*
' K 4 Sins *?
136 An EXPOSITION
Sins ye remit by executing your Comifli-
on, by publifhing That Gofpel which I
have authorifed you from God to preach
to the World; they are remitted unto
them.
AMONG P rot eft ants alfo the Errour
is no lefs dangerous, if, conf effing their
Sins continually to God y as the Roma-
nifts do to the Prieft ; they return again
to the Pra&ife of them, as having been
abfohed in courfe. For all Such confeffi-
ons, whether to God or to the Priejl ;
are but Mockeries of Religion. With-
out real Amendment and Reformation of
Manners, there is no fuch thing as For*
givenefs of Sin.
^/^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 137
ART ic. n. Cfje ftcfuntction of
tlje 23ofcp,
T H AT in general there fhall be ano-
ther Life after This, is very flrongly pro-
ved from the confideration of the Nature
and Faculties of the Soul of man j from
all men's natural Conference and unavoid-
able Apprehenjion of what is to come ;
and from the fenfe we have of our being
accountable for our own actions ; compa-
red with the neceflary Attributes and
Perfections of God the Supreme Go'uer-
nour and righteous Judge of the World,
and with the exprefs declarations of the
Gofpel, whereby Life and Immortality
are now clearly brought to Light. I0
A N D if 'tis certain in general^ that
there fhall be a Future Life ; 'tis probable
moreover in particular, that the Soul,
which in the prefent State God has
thought fit to cloath with a Body of Flefh,
is in its Nature Such, as can bejl exert its
Faculties even in the future State like-
wife, when united to a Body fuitable to
That
138 An EXPOSITION
That State. And that therefore there
will be a RefurreStion of the Body.
T o the Jews there feems to have been
given fome Intimation of this Particular,
in the Hiftory of Enoch and Elijah's ha-
jobxix. ving been tr (inflated with their Bodies-, in
Ezek. jfb's Declaration of his Affurance that
iMo'il' * n his Fbfl ke mould y^ God > in Eze ~
Dan.xii.z. kiel's vifion concerning the Refurredtion
i 9 . " of the dry Bones ; and in Some Other
Hdbtiii. Paffagesof the Prophets.
BUT by the Gofpel at length is this
doctrine fo clearly and fully revealed,
that even upon This Account Chrift may
Toh ' bejuftly ftyled T'he Refurretfion and the
Life. By Him and his Apoftles it is now
Joh.v.28, djjtinSily declared, that All that are in the
2 9- Graves fiall hear his Voice, andjhall come
forth - unto the RefurreStion : That the
Rev xx
!3. and Death and the Grave {hall deliver up
i Cor xv. tke Dead that are * n ^ hem : Tllat ^"
54. ' corruptible jhall put on Incorruption, and
This mortal Jhall put on immortality.
As
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 139
A s to the Manner of the Refurrection,
How the Dead are to be raijed up, and ver - 35-
with What Body they Jhall come: The Scrip-
ture has told us, that it is fown in Cor- ver.42,43,
ruption, it is raifed in Incorruption : If is **'
fown in Dijfwnour, it is raijed in Glory :
It is fown inWeaknefs, it is raifed in Power :
It is fown a Natural body, it is raifed a
Spiritual body. In a word} Chrifl Jhall ^[u^i.
change our vile Body, that it may be
fajhioned like unto His glorious Body, ac-
cording to the working whereby he is abl$
even tofubdue all things unto him/elf.
THE Objections againft this Doctrine,
drawn from Philofophical Speculations con-
cerning the Samenefs of the Parts of the
Same Body ; are mere Trifling. Thou , Cor xv
Fool: That which thoufow eft, is not quick- 3 6 i 37.3 s -
ned except it die. And That which thou
foweft, thoujbwejl not That Body that Jhall
be, but bare Grain, fuppofe of Wheat or
of fome other Grain. But God giveth it a
Body, as it has pleafed Him j and to every
jSeed, his Own Body. The Body, at leaft
9. great Part of it, during the whole courfe
of
t 4 o An EXPOSITION
of our Natural Life, is in perpetual
Change: Yet the Perfon continues always
the Same. At the Refurreftion, every
man mall be as really and truly the fame
Perfon that died ; as in the morning he
that awakes, is the fame Perfon that went
to fleep at night.
ART ic. 12. 2Cnt> tyt life
lading.
THE Refurreffion of the Dead, is in
order to \hatjinal Judgment, which mall
pafs upon all Mankind as foon as they are
raifed. The Effeft of this Judgment, will
be the feparating of men according to
their Deferts, and appointing them their
different Portions in That eternal State,
which mail fucceed the Diflblution of this
prefent World. Which eternal State, is,
in the prefent Article, flyled The Life
cverlafting -, from that more excellent Part
of it, which is the State of Happinefs for
the Righteous. But it includes alfo, by
ncceflary Confequence, That State of
Punifi-
of 'the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 141
Punijhmtnt or Mifery, into which the
Wicked {hall be fent at the Great Day.
THE Profeffion therefore of This Arti-
cle, is in effect the profeffing our Belief,
that the Judge of the whole Earth will,
at the End of the World, render unto every
One according as his Work fhall be. The
Devil, who was the Head of Apoftacy ;
and his Angels, which followed him in
the Great Tranfgreffion ; and all wicked
Men, who have willingly been feduced
by the Temptations of Unrighteoufnefs ;
The impious and profane, the Blafphemer
and Idolater, the Unjuft and Fraudulent,
the Tyrant and Opprejfor, the unholy and
unclean, the Adulterer and Whoremonger \
and every worker of iniquity ; thefe He
fhall condemn to everlafling Deflruction
from the prefence of the Lord and from
the Glory of his Majefty, in the Lake that
burneth with Fire unquenchable. But all
Virtuous and Good men, z\\juft and right-
eous and religious perfons ; who either un-
der the Ijjght of Nature, with Enoch and
Noah arid Job and the Patriarchs $ or un-
der
I 4 2 An EXPOSITION
der the Law, with Mofes and the antient
Prophets; or under the Go/pel, with the
Apoftles and Followers of our Lord; have
fincerely indeavoured to obey the Com-
mandments of God, in the practife of Pie-
ty and Devotion, Jujiice and Truth, So-
briety and Holinefs ; either from the Be-
ginning of their Lives, or from the time
of their fincerely repenting and forfaking
their Sins ; Thefe he mall reward with
Glory unfpeakable, in the Kingdom of
Heaven; which is The Life everlaft-
ing.
THE Beginnings of this eternal Happi-
nefs or Mifery, may poflibly be in the in-
termediate State between Death and Judg-
ment. Where the Righteous may be very
happy, by a well-grounded and afliired Ex-
zTim.iv. pe&ation of That Crown of Righteoufnefs,
which the Lord the righteous Judge Jhall
give them at That day. And the Wicked
may, on the contrary, be greatly mifera-
ble, by the Expectation of their irrever-.
fible Sentence ; though it be not, before
the day of Judgment, actually executed
I upon
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 143
upon them. But the complete Eftablifl-
ment of That eternal ftate, the Belief
whereof is profefTed in This Article, mall
not take place till after the Refurretfion.
And therefore 'tis placed the very Loft in
the Creed: / believe- the RefurrecJ-
ion of the Body^ and the Life everlaft-
ing.
WHAT? the Condition of Wicked men
in particular will be in that everlafting
State, we are not able diflindtly to under-
hand or defcribe. But the Scripture, to
warn us againft Sin, reprefents their Pu-
nifhment in general under the moft terri-
ble expreffions : Calling it an everlafting Matt JXV
Fire, prepared for the Devil and his An- 41-
Mark is
gels : Where their Worm dieth not, and 44.
the Fire is not quenched: Where flail be Matt.viii.
Weeping^ and gnafiing of Teeth : Where I2<
^j flail drink of the Wine of the Wrath Rev.xiv.
of God, which is poured without mixture, I0> u *
into the Cup of his indignation ; and flail
be tormented with fire and brimjlone ;
And the Smoke of their Torment afcendeth
up
1 44 An EXPOSITION
up for ever and ever ; and they have n&
Reft, day nor night. Only This we arc
allured of, that the Punifhment of o
zTheff.i. ver y particular Sinner, even in That ever-
9- lofting Dejlruttion, mall be exadly pro-
portional to the Degree of his Deferts.
As is evident both from our Natural
Knowledge of the Divine Attributes;
Gcn ^uifiall not the Judge of all the Earth do
*5- Right ? And alfo from the exprefs Decla-
Lufcexii. rations in Scripture, that Some Jhall be
47 48. beaten 'with Few Stripes, and Others with
Many: That Some kinds of Sinners,
fuch as the hypocritical Pharifees, (hall
Markxii. receive Greater Damnation: And that
Matt s 1 5. ** ftxdl be more tolerable for the land of
Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of Judg-
ment, than for fome Other Cities.
IN like manner, What will be in par-
ticular the flate of Good men in That
heavenly Kingdom, which in this Article
of the Creed is by way of eminence call-
ed The Life everlajling ; This alfo at pre-
fent we are by no means able to defcribe,
For
cf the C tt U R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
For Now we know in part, and we prophe- \ Cor. xiii.
fy in part ; and we fee, as through a glafs, ^' l2
darkly: And it dotb not yet appear, what ijoh.iii.
we flail be: For Eye hath not feen t iCor.ii.p;
nor Ear heard, neither have entred into
the Heart of man, the things which God
hath prepared for them that love him. But
in general, the Scripture rcprefents this
State of Happinefs to us under the high-
eft Characters, of Fulnefs of Joy, and ^p^ 1 "
P/eaJurcs for evermore, of a Crown of
Glory, of a Kingdom that cannot be mo- Heb xii.
ved -, of a City which hath Foundations, HCO xi.
whofe Builder and Maker is God j of an | pet j
Inheritance incorruptible and undefiled,
and that fadeth not away: Where net- Nfatt.vi,
tber Moth nor Ruft doth corrupt , and zc
where Thieves do not break through nor
Jleal : Where the Righteous Jhall Jhine M . xiii.
forth as the Sun, in the Kingdom of
their Father : Where Errour and Sin and
Mifery (hall be no more : But the con-
verfation of them that fiall be accounted Luke xr.
worthy to obtain That world, fhall ^e 3S *
with an innumerable Compan^pf An&eh, Heb. xii.
L
146 An EXPOSITION
with the general Afjembly and Church of
the Firjt-born whhh are written In Hea-
ven, with the Spirits of Juft men made
perfeft, with Jefus the Mediatour of the
New Covenant, and with GOD the
Rev.xxii. Judge of All. And they jhall fee his
4> Face, and his Name Jhall be in their Fore-
Rev.vii. beads. And they fhali be before the
is.' 6 ' 1 ?- ffij rone O f Q d y and fhall ferue him day
and night in his Temple ; and he that fit-
teth on the Throne, flail dwell among
- VK them. They ft: a II hunger no more, neither
tbirft any more y neither ft all the Sun light
Rev.xxi.4. on them, nor any Heat. For God Jhall
wipe away all Tears from their Eyes : And
there Jhall be no more Death, neither Sor-
row nor Crying, neither Jhall there be any
more Pain ; for the former things are
pajfed away. And yet even in This un-
fpeakable Happinefs likewife, as well as
in the State of Punijhment for the Wick-
ed, there fhall be Degrees in proportion
to every man's Work : As has been fhown
above, in the latter part of the Explica-
tion of the Seventh Article of the Creed.
PART
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 147
PART III.
"Decalogue or Ten
Commandments.
N' E X T after the Cttft/, are in natu-
ral order placed the Ten Command-
ments. For he that cometh to God, muft Heb.xi.6.
believe that he Is, and that he is a Re-
warder of them that diligently feek him.
A man muft firft be perfwaded of the
great Truths of Natural and Revealed Re-
ligion; and then, in confequence of
That Belief, he muft live in Obedience to
the Commands of God.
THE Commands of God, are either
Moral in their nature, or merely Ritual
and Pojitive Inftitutions. Of the latter
kind are the Two Sacraments: Of the
former kind are the Ten Commandments
delivered by Mofes, and expounded by
our Saviour in the Gofpel.
L 2 Qu.
148 An EXPOSITION
u. JJou faid tljat pour
and 3odmotljer did pjomtfc
pou, tljat pou fljonld fteep
<ommandment& Cell me
manp tljeit Jje
Anfw.
Qu. Wtyfy he
Anfw. Clje fame toljicft <5oti fpafee
in tlje ttoenttetf) chapter of <jro&u,
faptng, 3 am tge Hotfi tftp <J5otr,
tugo b^ottgftt tljee out of t^e land of
<egupt, out of t^e ^oufe of
I N this Preface are contained the Mb-
fives to Obedience j drawn from the con-
lideration, jirft, of the Authority of Him
who gave thefe Commandments, " lam
"the Lord thy God: " And, fecondly, of
his Goodnefs and Mercy towards his people ;
" Who brought thee out of the land of
" Egypt, out of the Houfe of Bondage. "
-Tis NeceJJary that we obey God's Com-
mandments,
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 149
mandments, becaufe of his Supreme Do-
minion and Sovereignty over all : And we
have Incouragementtoobey them, becaufe
of his great Goodnefi and Companion to-
wards thofe that fear him.
THE Argument here urged, is direded
particularly to the Nation of the Jews :
Whom God " brought out of the land of
" Egypt \ out of the houfe of Bondage. "
Bjat the Commandments, as expounded to Us
by Chrift y are flill in fubflance the Same ;
and the Force likewife of the Motives to
Obedience, is ftill always the Same.
They are the Commandments of the Lord
our God, whofe Kingdom ruleth for ever
over All : They are the Commandments
of Him who hath delivered us from the
Bondage of Sin and Mifery, and who A-
lone is able to continue to us That Deli-
verance.
THE Matter of the Commandments,
may be diftinguimed under Two Heads:
Our Duty towards God, expreffed in the
Four firjl ; and our Duty towards our
Neighbour, in the Six laft Commandments.
L 3 They
150 ^EXPOSITION
They were originally delivered by God
himfelf in Two Tables. One of which
our Saviour calls the Firft and Great Com-
mandment, which is the Love of God :
Matt. xxii. And *&* ^ econ ^ ( fe"* 1 ^ e ) " ^ e unto * f *
$8, 39. Thou jhalt love tby Neighbour a$ thy
COMMAND. I. $OU ttjalt
no otjcr <>ODS but
FOR the right underflanding of
This Comrnandment , 'tis to be ob-
ferved,
ift, T H AT it Suppofes it as a thing
known by the Light of Nature and Rea-
fon, that there is but One God: -One Eter-
nal, Omnip relent, Self-fufficient Being;
of infinite Power, Knowledge, Wifdom
andGoodnefs; the Maker, Governour,
and Judge of the Univerfe ; the Author
and God of Nature ; the fame God ,
who, by his Works of Creation and Pro-
vidence, manifeffo himfelf to All Nati-
ons j who, under the Old Teftament, re-
vealed himfelf in a more particular man-
ner
c/*/^ CHURCH-CATECHISM. 151
ner to Adam, to Noah, to the Patriarchs,
to Mofes y to the Prophets ; and who, in
the New Teftament, is fet forth to us un-
der this flill more particular character,
that he is 'The God and Father of our * Cor xi.
3 I
Lord Jefus Chrift. For this is the pecu-
liar additional Revelation of the Gofpel ;
that, as there is One God, fo there is
One Mediator between God and Men. 5-
2. THIS Commandment requires us
to own and acknowledge This One True
God, or to have him for Our God.
Which implies, that 'tis our Duty to
" Believe in him, " and keep up in our
Minds a conftant Senfe of him, as of
our Omniprefent Governour and Judge ;
to '* Fear him, " upon account of his
Power and Juftice; to " Love him, "
upon account of his Goodnefs and Bene-
ficence j to " Worjhip him, " upon ac-
count of his Supreme Dominion and So-
vereignty over all ; to " give him
Thanks, " for all his Mercies and
Benefits ; to " put our whole Truft in
him, " upon account of his Veracity
L 4 and
152 An EXPOSITION
and Faithfulnefs; to " call upon him "
continually in Prayer, for the Supply of
all our Wants; to " honour bis Holy
" Name and his Word, " by a conftant
Study of his Will revealed in Scripture ;
and to " ferve him truly all the days of
" our Life, " by a regular and habitual
Obedience to all his Commandments.
This is the Acknowledgment and Worjhip of
the True God, injoined in This Firft Com-
mandment as delivered to MoJ'cs : And in
Matt. xxii. the Gofpel, the Firft and Great Command*
|ob.xvi. ment is declared to be the Worfhip of
ir'im^i ^ t ^ ie S ame God^ in the Name and through
Epb.iilis' t he Mediation of Jefus Chrift.
3. THIS Commandment exprefsly
forbids the Worjhip of any Other God,
either in ftead of or together with the
One True God. The Worjhip of any
Other Gcd y of any other real or imagi-
nary Being, in the place of the One True
God\ is direcl: Idolatry ', or the Worjhip
of an IdoL And the Worfhip of the
True God under any Falfc Reprefentation y/
or through any other Medium of Worfhip,
than
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 153
than through the One Mediator whom He
himfelf has appointed ; is an idolatrous
Manner of Worfhip. Which Sin, be-
fides the intrinjick Malignity of the thing
itfelf, in diminiming the Honour of God,
which is the Foundation of Religion ; has
moreover, in its effe&s, always led men
into endlefs Superftitions, attended natu-
rally with the higheft Corruption of Man-
ners. For the EJJencc of all Superflition,
and the natural conference of all Falfe
Worfhip, is the fetting up fome Equiva-
lent in the room of real Virtue and Holi-
nefs, which is effential in 'True Religion
towards GOD. In the Heathen World,
This Sin was attended with the vilefl Im-
moralities-, as StPWhas at large mown
in the^r/? chapter to the Romans : And it
was particularly the Caufe of God's root-
ing out the feven Nations of Canaan,
from before the children of Ifrael. A-
mong the Jews, God commanded it to
be punifhed with Death ; and when they
fell into it nationally, he delivered them
up for it into the Babylonijh Captivity.
Jn the New T^ejiament likewife, 'tis always
ranked
d* EXPOSITION
ranked in the Catalogues of the mod e-
normous Sins. And yet Churches which
call themfelves Chrijlian, have at diffe-
rent Times prefumed to fet up Methods of
Werjhip, and Reprefentatiom of God y not
Warranted in Scripture ; And have moreo-
ver taught men to apply themfelves to
Angel^ and to imaginary Saints ; to
Souk of men departed, and to the Eleffed
Virgin, whom by a profane Ambiguity
they affect to ftyle the Mother of God ;
and even to Relicks, and to Images of
Wood and Stone. All which Pradifes,
are a Departing from the One God, and
from the One Mediator which He hath
Col. 11.19. appointed; or, as St Paul expreffes it,
not holding the Head.
CoMMANDM.
of the CHURCH-CATECHI SM.
COMMANDM. II. CfjOU
not make to tf)p felf anp
3jma0c, noj tfje lifcenefg of anp
tiling tfjat i$ in ^eatoen afeotoe, o?
in tfje <artlj beaeatft, oz in tl^e mi-
ter under tfje <gatt(j : Cljou fftalt not
iboUa Dotan to tljem, noj loozrijip
tljem : jpo^ 3 tlje HojD tftp <i5od am
a jealous 5oD, and totTit tfie
of tfte jpatljetS upon t()e
unto tlje tljirD and fonrtlj
tion, of t!)em tfjat ^ate me, anti
fijotu mercp unto tfjoufands? in them
tfjatloue me and heep mp Command^
O F the Sin of Idolatry there are Two
Sorts: The Worfhip of a Falfe God,
forbidden in the Fir/I Commandment ;
And the Worfhip of the True God under
a Falfe Representation, or through any
unlawful Medium, forbidden more par-
ticularly in this Second Command-
ment.
THE
156 An
THE Firft and Great Commandment \
is the Worjhip of the One Vrue God:
And the Foundation of That Worfhip, is
the framing right and worthy Notions con-
cerning him ; Which is what in this Se-
cond Commandment we are injoined to pre-
ferve. God, is an Omniprefent Spirit ;
of infinite Knowledge, Power, and Good-
nefs ; the Maker and Lord of the Uni-
verfe: And 'tis a great Indignity to his
Divine Majefty, to reprejent him under
any corporeal Image or Similitude whatfoe-
ver. 'Tis an Indignity to imagine that
the Creator of Rational Spirits, that He
Aasxvii. whofe Offspring we ourfelves are, mould
J 9- be like unto Gold or Silver or Stone graven
by Art and man's device. Which unwor-
thy Notions of God, always withdraw
men from true Virtue and Holinefs, into
numberlefs Superfthious and Immoral
Praftifes.
THOU malt not make to thy felf " any
" Graven Image. " The Greek Writers
have fometimes diflinguimed here, be-
tween a Graven Image and a Piffure :
As.
of the CH UR CH-C ATE en ISM*
As if the Fault of making ufe of an /-
mage in religious Wprfhip, could con-
fift, not in its being an Image , but in
its being Graved rather than Painted.
Which is exactly fuch a kind of Diftinct-
ion, as Balak made to Balaam, when he
faid ; Come, I pray thee, I will bring thee Numb.
unto ANOTHER PLACE-, per-*'*
adventure it 'will pleafe God , that thou
mayfl curfe me them from Thence. Thefe
things fhow, how apt men are to deceive
themfelves with Diftintf ions' where there
is No Difference. The thing forbidden
in This Commandment, is not the Parti-
cularity of Graving an Image 3 But the
Prohibition is General, " Tboit foalt not
" make to thy f elf any graven Image
NOR " any other " Likenefs. "
FROM thefe words, " TLou flalt not
" MAKE to thyj'elf any graven I-
" mage -, " the Jews and many Antient
Chrijiians have thought, that the Making
.any Images at all, though without any in-
tention of wdrlhipping them,' was unlaw-
ful. And indeed thefetting up of Images in
Places
158 An EXPOSITION
Places of religious Worfiip, though with-
out any prefent intention of worfhipping
them ; has always been a great and dange-
rous Snare. But the Senfe of the Com-
mandment plainly is, only to forbid the
making of Images as Reprefentations of
God, or in any way as Objeffis or Medi-
ums of Wormip. " Thoujhalt not make "
them, " Thou foalt not bow down to
" them: " That is, Thou Jh alt not make
them in order to bow down to them.
MAKE not " the Likenefs of any
" thing that is in Heaven above:
Worfhip not the Hoft of Heaven, the
Sim, Moon and Stars j or any imaginary
invifible Powers in them. Neither repre-
fent God under the Similitude of any of
thefe things. For the Sun is His Sun,
and the whole Heavens are the Work of
bis Hands.
NEITHER make to thy felf the
Likenefs of any thing that is " in the
" Earth beneath, or in the Water under
" the Earth: " Wormip no Image of
Man, Eeaft, or Fijh : Neither reprefent
I God
of tie CHUR CH-CATECHIS M.
God under any of thefe Similitudes: As
did the Egyptians and other Heathen of
old, and the Worfhippers of the Golden
Calf in the Wildernefs, and Jeroboam
who made Ifrael to Jin.
HAD not the Experience of all Ages
mown it, it could hardly have been
thought poflible in nature, that men
fhould become fo ftupid, as to fall down IM
to the Stock of a Tree j or fo unreafona'ble, 1 9-
as to imagine that any divine Virtue or
invifible Power mould be annexed to an
Image of Wood or Sfone, or to the Place
where an Image ftands. Yet both Pagans
and Jews, and Chrijiians too, have been
exceedingly prone to fall into this Vice.
The Church of Rome has been fo palpa-
bly guilty in this point, that they have
been amamed to let this Commandment
(land, and have been forced to omit it in
many of their Books. And the Excufe
they make for their Ufe of Images in reli-
gious Worfhip, (that their original In-
tention was not that the Images themfehes
(hould be worfiipfed,) is as thin as a
Spider's
160 An EXPOSITION
Spider's web. For Corruptions of tills
kind, ever grow by degrees : And the Com-
mandment was given on purpofe to pre-
vent their Beginnings. God charged the
Deut. iv. jfe-ws, faying, Yefaw no manner of fimili-
tude on the day that- the Lord fpake unto
you in Horeb j left ye corrupt yourfehes,
and make the fimilitude of any Figure.
Yet in the Wildernefs they fet up the
Golden Calf, as an Image- or Reprefentati-
on of the True God. And afterwards
they fet up the Calves in Dan and Bethel',
ftiil directing their Worfhip, through
thofe Reprefentations, to the God of If-
rael. Then they proceeded to fet up the
Image of Baal, who was a Falfe God,
.one of the Idols of the Nations. And at
2 Kings ^ t ^ ie y went f & r > as even to ma & e their
xxiii. jo. children pafs through the Fire to Moloch.
In like manner Chrlftiam began to corrupt
themfelves, firft, with fetting up Images
in their Places of religious Worfhip,
merely as Hiftorical Memorials. Then
they imagined peculiar Favours, annexed
to Prayers offered to God in the Places
where fuch particular Images flood. Af-
ter
of the CH URCH-CATE CH ISM. 161
ter this, they began to direct Prayers to
the Saints whom the Images reprefented :
And, at laft, in the moft ftupid manner,
to the Images themfelves*. Towards
Saints and Angels they expreffed firft a
certain Honour or Reverence; and then,
they proceeded to idolize them, directly, as
Authoritative Mediators in 'conjunction
with Chrift. Towards the Bread and
Wine in the Sacrament they ftjowed firft
a certain awful Rejpeff, as to the Memori-
als of Chrift's Death : Then they pro-
ceeded to pay a Veneration to them, as
being the real Body and Blood of Chrift :
After this, they prefumed to worjhip them,
as Chrift's Living Perfon ; and, at laft,
abfolutely as Go d Himfelf.
THE Reafon and Inforcement of the
Prohibition of every fpecies of this Sin of
Idolatry , follows in the next words :
" For /, the Lord thy God y am a jealous
" God: " Jealous, not like Earthly
Princes, leaft their Authority fhould fuf-
fer any Diminution j For our Goodnejs ex- pf. xv i,:
tendeth not to Him, nor can our Wicked-
M nefs
162 An EXPOSITION
nefs do Him any Damage. But he is Jea-
Ifai.xlii 8 A^ for Owr fakes j leaft, by giving His
Honour to Others, and His Praife to gra-
ven Images, our Notions mould become
Corrupt, our Underflandings darkened,
our Wills and Affections biafled and incli-
ned to Evil. For all Idolatry (as I before
obferved) naturally leads to Other Immo-
ralities ; And when men like not to retain
God in their Knowledge, they are very apt
Rom.i.iS. to bt given over to a reprobate Mind.
THE Ejfetf of this divine Jealoufy, is
exprefled in the following words ; " And
" vifit the Sins of the Fathers upon the
" children, unto the third and fourth ge-
* f neration of them that hate me. " 'Tis
a Threaming of lafting Temporal Punifh-
ments, a Threatning of National Judg-
ment to be inflicted, on account of Natio-
nal Sins, upon a People under a particu-
lar Covenant, upon a People originally be-
Rom.xi. loved for their Fathers fakes : In confe-
quence of which National Judgments,
their Pofterity muft of neceffity fufer in
courfe, as to Many Temporal Regards.
Yet,
Of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S Jtf. 163
Yet, to (how that God extends not Pu-
nijhment^ properly fpeaking ; (for All Ca-
lamities brought upon Mankind by Pro-
vidence, have not always the nature of a
Punifhment ;) Tofhow, I fay, that God
extends not Punijhment^ properly fpeak-
ing, beyond the Perfom themfefoes who
fin ; he adds exprefsly, " of Them that
" Hate me. " Plainly intimating, that if
the Pofterity of the Wicked imitate not
the Sins of their Fathers, they mall either.
be delivered from the threatned Calamity,
or it {hall not finally have to Them the na-
ture of a Punifhment. And, tofhewhow
much more God delights in Bleffing, than
in Punifhing; he adds in a yet ftronger ex-
preflion, " And Jhew Mercy unto Thou-
" fandsy in them that love me and keep my
" Commandments. "
M 2 COMMAND.
164 An EXPOSITION
COMMAND M. III. CfjOti ffjalt
4tot tafce tl)e jftame of tty lojd tfjp
<odm twin; fo? t^Ho^d fcrili not
Jim guiltlefc?, tjjat taftetft
m tjatn,
AFT E R the Worjhip of the 0;^ True
God, which is the Firft Commandment ;
and the Worjhip of him in a right and
worthy manner , which is the Second Com-
mandment : Our w/ Care mufl be, to
behave ourfelves with a due Regard to
him in the whole Courfe of our Lives and
Atfions; as becometh the relation w
ftand in to Him y and He to l/i. A con-
ftant Senfe of God upon men's Minds, is
the Foundation and Support of Religion 5
and will mow forth itfelf not only in the
more folemn Acl:s of religious Worfhip,
but alfo in every part of common Life.
The antient Jews, whenever God was
mentioned, accuftomed themfelves to
add -, whofe Name be blejjed. The Modern
Jews have turned This expreffion of aw-
ful Reverence, into a Superfluous For-
bearance
of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. J &g
bearance of ever uttering the Proper
Name of God at all. Chriftiam in latter
Ages, feem to have fallen into the contra-
ry Extreme; indulging themfelves often
in loofe, carelefs, and irreverent ways of
arguing and difputing concerning the
Great Author of our Being.
THE Phrafe we here render , " In
*' vain -, " fignifies, flridly and proper-
ly, the fame as Falfely. Hence Idols, be- , c r. viii.
caufe in reality they are Nothing in the*'
World, nothing of what their foolifh
Worfhippers imagine them to be ; there-
fore in Scripture they are frequently fly-
led Vanities, and Lying Vanities ; Falf- Deut.
hoods; Gods, which by nature are 0jo" a h"g.
Gods$ having either no Being, or nothing Gai.iv. 8.
of That Authority and Power which their
Name denotes. And accordingly, to take
the Name of God " in 'uain ; " is, in
the original and primary ufe of the Phrafe,
to allege the Name of God in fupport of
fome Faljhood,
M i, T H s
,66 An EXPOSITION
r. T H E Firjt therefore and the High-
eft Degree of taking the Name of God in
vain, is Perjury. Which is a Sin of the
greatefl Malignity ; as fuppoling God ei-
ther to have no Being, or at leaf! to have
no Regard what Defpite profane men do
unto him. None therefore can be delibe-
rately guilty of T^bh Sin, but fuch as are
totally irreligious, and have caft off all
Hope and all Pretenfe to God's Favour.
Yet by means of vain and infignificant
Diftindtions, or by cuftomary Negligence
and Inattention, men have frequently di-
minifhed the Sacrednefs of an Oath, who
yet at the fame time feemed not to have
been Atheifls.
2. T H E next Breach of This Com-
mandment, is rafh Swearing in common
converfation. In which Pra<ftife 'tis evi-
dent there is continual danger of Perjury
through Negligence and Inattention. But
if This was not the cafe ; yet f tis notori-
ous Profanenefs, Irreverence, and Want
of the Fear of God t to be continually in-
voking him, carelefsly and wantonly up
on
of the CH u R c H-C AT E c H i s M. 167
m
on every light and trivial provocation of
Paffion. And This Sin is the more inex-
cufable, becaufe in nature there is no
Temptation to it. It arifes wholly and
folely from ill Cujlom and Habit ; or from
a direct Contempt of Religion ; or perhaps,
fometimes, from an Affectation of mowing
a fort of Courage in That Contempt.
Whereas, in Truth, 'tis not an^ Inftance
of Courage^ to defy the Almighty ; but on
the contrary a real Mark of Cowardije^
not to dare to mow a juft Regard to him
in the Prefence of Profane men.
NOR is it any juft Excufe, when men
Swear by other things, without exprefs
mention of the Name of God. For
This Cautioufnefs plainly mows, that 'tis
in their Power to forbear fwearing at all^
as well as to forbear any particular Forms,
of fwearing. And indeed, whatever a
man fwears by, it amounts in reality to
the Same thing. For, Swearing by Any
Creature , is, ultimately and in effect,
fwearing by the Name of God t whofe
Creature it is ; and who Alone can with
M 4 any
168 An EXPOSITION
any Senfe be conceived to be finally ap-
pealed to, for the Truth of the Fad, and
Mat.xxiii. for the Sincerity of the Intention. Whoft
** il ' 2 *'jhallfwear by the Altar, fweareth by It,
and by all things thereon; And whofo
Jhall Jwear by the Temple, fweareth by lt y
and by Him that dwelleth therein; And
he that foall-fwear by Heaven, fweareth by
the Throne of God, and by Him that fit-
Matt. v. teth thereon. Wherefore, our Saviour ex-
3437. ho,.^ Swearnot at all: Neither by Hea-
ven, for it is God's Throne ; nor by the
Earth, for it is his Footftool ; neither by
yerufalem, for it is the City of the Great
King : Neither Jhalt thou fwear by thy
Head, becaufe thou canft not make One
Hair white or black : But let your commit*
ni cation be yea, yea; nay, nay; For ivhat-
foever is more than thefe, cometh of Evz'/.
Simplicity and Plainnefs of Speech, be-
cometh Chriftians, who profefs to be void
of Fraud and Deceit ; And whatfoever is
inconfiftent with fuch Simplicity, pro-
ceedeth from fome evil Root.
FROM
ef the CHU R CH-CATE CH ISM. 169
FROM thefe Admonitions of our Lord
againft Common Swearing, fome have con-
cluded that #// Taking of Oaths, even up- .
on the moft Solemn occafions, is forbid-
den to Chriftians. But the contrary is
evident, from the Reafon of the thing ;
and from the Examples in Scripture, of
God's Swearing by Himfelf-, of our Savi- Gen xxii.
our's replying to the High Prieft, who Heb.vi , 3 .
adjured him by the Living God-, of the Mat.xxvi.
Angel in the Revelation, fwearing by Him ? ev x tf
that livethfor ever and ever ; of St. Paul's
afTeveration, God is my Witnefs-, and of R 0m .i. 9 .
the Apoftles exprefs declaration, that an
Oath for confirmation is : an End of Heb.vi 16.
all Strife.
3. ANOTHER Breach of This Com-
mandment, and very near akin to the fore-
mentioned Sin of Swearing in common
converfation 5 is That profane Cuflom,
of Cur/ing. For if, upon every fudden
Tranfport of Paffion, a man curfes his
Neighbour, with a real and malitious in-
tention of wifhing Evil to befal him;
this is irreligioufly making light of the
Curft
1 7 o An EXPOSITION
Curfe of God. And if he does it, with-
out wifhing any Evil to the perfon he
curfes ; then 'tis ufing the Name of God
trivially and with Contempt, as of one
who regards not, and to whom is owing no
Regard.
4. UNDER this Head of taking the
Name of God in vain, are included alfo.
all Blafphemous and Reproachful ways
of fpeaking concerning God and Reli-
gion.
. BY this Commandment may lite-
wife be underftood to be forbidden all
rafh Vows-, the matter of which, is ei-
ther impoflible, unjuft, or unprofitable.
Many Directions and Cautions have been
given by Chriftian Writers, upon This
Subject. But the plaineft and fafeft Ad-
vice, is, that men forbear to make any
Vows at all. For they are ufually nothing
but Snares. In the whole New Tefta-
ment there is no one Precept concerning
them, nor Incouragement to the making
of them, nor Example of Any at any
Ads xriii. time made ; except in Two Pajjages only ;
j
and
of the CH URCH-CATECU ISM. 171
and in Both of thefe, the Perfons who
had the Vow upon them, were Jews.
6. Lafllyj ALL light, irreverent \ and
trivial Ufa of the Name of God at all, in
common converfation; is prohibited in
the Senfe and full Intent of this Com-
mandment. The Defign of which is, to
preferve upon mens minds a eonffont
Senfe of God, as the Obferver and Judge
of all their A&ions. Which is the Great
Foundation of Religion.
To This Commandment there is, in
very particular words, a Sanffion or Pe-
nalty annexed: " For the Lord will not
" hold him guiltlefs, that taketh his Name
" in vain. " 'Tis a figurative and very
expreflive manner of denouncing a more
than ordinarily fevere Threatning: The
guilty perfon (hall by no means efcape un-
punijhed. Thus when Chrift fays, that
He who fhall Teach men to break any of
His Commandments, fhall be the Leajl in Matt.v.i?.
the Kingdom of Heaven ; the Senfe is very
emphatical, that fuch a perfon mail leaf
cf a.11 men enter into the Kingdom of Hea-
ven;
172 An EXPOSITION
ven; he, of all men, fhall be the Laft
that fhall enter ; he, of all men, {hall be
the furthefl from ever being admitted
There.
Co MM AN DM. iv. ffiementbtr tljat
rf?ou Ucrp ftoln t()t .abbatteDap :
^ijc ap f gait rtjou labour anD Do
all tfjat tljon Ijaft to Do : 25nt tlje ,e^
tlje ^abbat of tge
3Bn it tljou alt Do
no manner of IBojfc, tfrou, anD
^on, anD tljp ^ausgter
ferbant, anD tljp lEaiD^ferbant,
<Caml, anD tl)c Stranger tftat
UJitgin tl)p <5ate^ : jpo? in ft?
tfte Ho2D made {?cabcn anD
tfie Jvra, anD all tljat in tljtm 10,
anD refteD tlje^ebentg ^a
tge So?D bleffeD tlje
, anD gallotaeD it*
THE Threejirft Commandments dired:
us Whom we are to worfhip, and in
what manner : The Fourth Command-
ment appoints a particular Time for that
Purpofe.
r cf tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 173
Purpofe. And herein confifls the general
Morality of this Commandment. For. if
Religion, and the folemn Worfhip of God,
be neceflary ; there muft be Time fet a-
part for men to be inftru&ed in Religion,
and to celebrate God's Worjhip. But more
particularly ; the Ends and Reafons of
This Commandment are,
I. T H AT men may contemplate and
commemorate the Work of Creation.
" For in Jlx days the Lord made Heaven
" and Earth, the Sea, and all that in
" them is. " By the contemplation of Na-
ture, men are led to the Knowledge of
the God of Nature. For, the invifible Romlia;
things of Him, even his eternal Power and
Godhead, are clearly feen from the creation
of the world, being underftood by the things
that are made. This Knowledge of God's
Creation, is the great Prefervative againft
Idolatry : When men are allured, that the
Sun is His Sun ; and that the Hoft ofHea- M att>v-4s .
uen y which ignorant Nations have wor-
fliipped, the Moon and Stars and all the
Powers vifible and invifibk that are in
them,
174 ^EXPOSITION
them, are the Work of his hands, and that
Rev.iv.n.yor His Pkafure they Are y and 'were crea-
ted. For This Reafon, the Sabbath is
Exod xxxi a Perpetual Covenant, a Sign between me
l6> ' 7 ' and the children of Ifrael for ever : for in
fix days the Lord made Heaven and Earth.
And not to the children of Ifrael only, but
from the very Beginning of the World,
was This a Sign and a Covenant appointed
Gen.ii 3 o f Godj and is therefore of a moral na-
ture, through all generations.
A s to the particular Space of c Time, in
which this beautiful Fabrick of the world
Hcb xi 3. was formed out of a Chaos, and made of
things which do not appear j 'tis not in it-
felf at all material, whether it had been
performed in One moment or in Jix days.
For the doing of it mjix days is as mira-
culous, as in one Moment ; and in One mo-
ment as eafy, as in^# days. But for our
greater diftinftnefs of Perception, 'tis de-
fcribed to have been effe&ed in Jix days-,
and poflibly, moreover, as this might be
a typical reprefentation of fome Greater
iPct.iii.8. Periods; feeing One day is with the Lord
i as
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 175
as a T'houfand years y and a 'Thoufand yean
as One day. And when 'tis faid, God
" refted the feventh day ; " the Meaning
evidently is not, as if the foregoing Work
had been any Labour to the Almighty ;
but merely that the Work was then com-
plete, and needed no further Addi-
tion.
2. T H E inftitution of the Sabbath was
renewed to the children of Ifrael in the
Wildernefs, with a particular additional
reafon. And remember that thou waft a Deut T
Servant in the Land of Egypt ! , and that $
the Lord thy God brought thee out thence^
through a mighty hand and by aftretched
out arm ; therefore the Lord thy God com-
manded thee to keep the Sabbath-day. This
reafon was peculiar to the people of the
yews. And upon This account (of com-
memorating their deliverance from the
Egyptian Bondage) it feems to be, that
they had fojtrttf and rigorous a Command
to forbear abfolutely every fort of Work ;
infomuch that the man who did but ga-
ther
, 7 6 j
Numb. xv ther Sticks upon the Sabbath-day, was
3 *' 35 ' commanded to be put to Death.
3. ANOTHER reafon of this Com-
mandment is, that the Poor Labourer,
and the Servant, and even the Cattle,
Exod ma y kave a t * me ^ ^ft' n the feuenth
xxiii. 12. </jy thoufoalt reft; that thine ox and thine
ajs may reft, and the Son of thy handmaid,
. and the Stranger may be refrejhed. This
reafon likewife, as well as that of .com-
memorating the Creation, is of a moral
and perpetual nature. And 'tis here par-
ticularly remarkable, that God (without
Matt.* 19 whofe Providence not a fparrow falls to
the ground) condefcends to take care even
of Beafts and Cattle : To teach men hu-
manity, and a merciful Temper j and
Prov.xii. that a righteous man muft regard even the
lc ' life of bis Bf aft.
Now from thefe Obfervations it will
be no difficult matter to determine the
Queflion, how far This Commandment
continues obligatory upon Chrijiians. The
part inftituted to the Jews in the Wilder-
nefs, the rigorous, zndjiriff Reft incom-
i memoration
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 177
memoration of their deliverance from the
Egyptian Bondage, was impofed upon
Tihat Nation only j and is therefore by
St Paul joined with Meats and Drinks Co' ii. i<5.
and New-Moons and Holy days, which
were Laws not extending to the Gentile
Converts. And for the fame reafon our
Lord fays concerning the Sabbath, what
could not have been applied to any of the
reft of the Commandments ; Therefore Mark.ii.
the Son of man is Lord aljb of the Sabbath. 28<
But the Moral part, the afcertaining of
Time for the Solemn and Publick Worjhip
of God, 'who created all things, \hzinftru-
ttion of ourfelves and others in the Know-
ledge of God and of his Works, and the al-
lowing a Time of Reji to Labourers, Ser-
vants, and Cattle j is of eternal and un-
alterable reafon. And they who by the
habitual Pra&ife of Virtue, preferve daily
and c ontinually upon their Minds a Senfe
of God and Religion, in the whole Courfe
of their Lives ; may be truly faid, in the
Chriflian fenfe, to keep a perpetual Sab-
bath. Upon which account, both the
Land of Canaan, wherein the Israelites
N were
178 An EXPOSITION
Lukei. were to ferve God 'Without Fear, in holi-
nefs and righteoufnefs before him All the
Days of their lives j and the Heavenly Ca-
naan^ whereof the earthly was but a Type
and a Figure ; are by St Paul figurative-
ly reprefented, in a very elegant Allufion,
under the notion of an eternal Sabbath
Hcb iv. 3. or R e ft to the people of God.
8,9,11.
AND even as to the inftituted part ;
tho' the Sabbatical commemoration of
the deliverance out of the Egyptian Bon-
dage, was peculiar to the Jewiflj Nation
only ; yet, according to the Appointment
and Practife of the Apoftles, there has
constantly been obferved among. Chriftiam
a folemn weekly commemoration of the
Refurreftion of Chrift , our Deliverer
from Spiritual Bondage. And This, in
Rev.i. ro. the New Teftament, is flyled *fhe Lord's
Day.
THE Manner in which This Day
ought to be obferved among Chriflians y is,
m attending the Publick Worfhip of
God, in hearing the Word, in reading
the Scriptures j in inftrucling and affifting
thofe
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 179
thofe, over whom we have any Influence,
in the Knowledge and Practife of their
Duty. In a word , 'tis to be fpent in
works of NeceJJity, and in works of Cha-
nty ; and in whatfoever tends, without
Superftition and without Affectation, to
the real Honour of God, and to the true
Interefl and Promoting of Religion and
Virtue in the World.
THE Extremes to be avoided, are :
On the one hand, (and which in the Pre-
fent Age is by much the moil ufual and
dangerous Extreme,) That Habit of
fpending great part of the Lord's day in
Gaming^ and in other loofe and debauched
Pracliifes ; which has been incouraged by
Popery^ and which has to numberlefs per-
fons been the corruption of their Princi-
ples, and the entire Ruin of their Morals.
On the other hand ; an affedted Judaical
or Pbarifaical Precifenefs, which ufually
proceeds from Hypocrify, or from a want
of underftanding rightly the true Nature
of Religion. When the Pharifees accufed
our Lord for working a charitable and be-
neficent Cure upon the Sabbath-day, his
N 2 Anfwer
i8o An EXPOSITION
Joh.v.i7. Anfwer to them was, My Father ivorketh
hitherto, and I work. His Meaning is :
" Ye have a very wrong Notion of the true
" Sabbatical Reft, which God has com-
" manded : From his Work of Creation^
" God does indeed Now reft ; but in Acts
" of Providence, Prefervation, Govern-
" ment, and doing Good to his Creatures,
" in Thefe things My Father worketh hi-
" therto, and will work for ever - y And in
" thefe Inftances, /alfo work, and every
" good man works, both on the Sabbath-
** day and continually. "
COMMANDM. v. I)onotir tfjp
tl)tr auD ti)p mother ; tljat tijn
map fie long in tge Sand Ujjjtrjj tfte
THE F{?^r foregoing Commandments
are the Firft Table, containing our Duty
towards God : The Six following, are the
'Second Table, containing our Duty to-
wards our Neighbour.
ifu:j c-xSiTf^" r> v!W. ^ii?>( '!v
^-j in* 5y>,in te ..i j ^iLi^-io7f .10! fjit .
AND
4
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 181
AND here 'tis obfervable, that God is
pleafed to begin where Nature tffelfdoes;
requiring us in the firft place to make juft
Returns of Honour and Benevolence to
Thofe, by whofe Care and Tendernefs we
have been preferved and fupported in the
moft helplefs part of our Lives. The Ex-
tent of This and the like Precepts, is in-
deed much inlarged by the Gofpel;
wherein we are commanded to love All
Mankind, and to be ready to do good Of-
fices even to our Enemies themfelves. But
This is evidently to be underftood of That
Univerfal Good-Will, which muft of ne-
ceffity be exercifed in very different Man-
ners and Proportions, according to the dif-
ferent Circumftances a?id Relations where-
in different Pcrfons do Hand to Us; and al-
ters nothing of that particular Honour
and Regard, which we are here required
to pay in the Jirft place to our Parents
and Benefactors.
N 3 To
182 An EXPOSITION
T o This Commandment there is an-
Eph. vi.z. ftexcd a particular Promife ; that " /% days
/<?;? in the Land which the Lord
" thy God giveth thee. " And St PW
takes notice of it accordingly, as thejirft
Commandment ( the only one of the Ten )
with Promife. There feems to be in the
nature of the thing .itfelf a certain aptnefs
of congruity, in annexing the Promife of
long Life, to Them that honour the per-
fons by whofe Means God hath been
pleafed to give us Life, and by whofe
Care, he hath preferred us through the
moft helplefe part of it. How far and to
what degrees this Promife has been fulfilled
literally^ it is not eafy for us to judge.
But as the Land which the Lord their God
gave to the Ifraelites, was certainly a T*ype
Hcb.xi.i6. of a better country, that is, an heavenly-,
fo the Promife of long life in That Land,
is undoubtedly an Emblem of Eternity.
The cafe is the fame, as in Other Inftan-
ces in Scripture. The Prophecy, that
Ifai liv *^ e Foundations of yerufalem mould be
11,12. laid with Sapphires, and her Gates of Car-
Tobiuiii. / , . rr ' , r - r
,6. Qunclt* j is evidently a praefiguration of
the
of tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 183
the heavenly Jerufalem, the City of the Heb.xii.
Living God, ( rw rut S'efteA.utf e^souv TTO- Heb.xi.io
Aiv) the City which hath THE Founda-
tions (defcribed by Stjobn in the Apoca- Rev.xxi.
lypfe,} whofe Builder and Maker is God. I9>
In like manner, to be 'written in the wri- Ezek. xiii.
ting of the Houfe oflfrael, and 'written in Dan.xii.i.
the Book ; are Phrafes in the Old Tefta-
ment, certainly alluding to that clearer
Expreffion in the New Teflament, of be-
ing written in the Book of Life. ^_ ev< xx *
To " honour " our Parents, is, to make
them fuitable Returns of Love and Affetti-
on ; tQobey, refpeft^ zu&fubmit to them ; not
only to the gentle, but even to thefroward;
in all things juft, in all things lawful, in all
things honejl and of good report : And,
when perfons are grown up to years of dif-
cretion, ftill in matters of great Concern
in life, to confult and be advifed by them,
as far as Reafon and Piety and Gratitude
fhall require. But the Particular princi-
pally intended in this Precept, is, that
Children afford their Parents a reafonable
Support and Provifion, in the time of Age
N 4 and
184 An EXPOSITION
and Neceflity, The Jews of old, were
very faulty in This Particular ; difchar-
ging men from all Obligation to relieve
their neceflitous Parents, upon their con-
tributing a certain Sum to the Service of
Matt xv. tne Temple ; and fo making the Command-
4s 6 - went of God of none effett y through the
Markvii. _ ,/. . * f v
11,12,13. Tradition of Men.
THE Perfons here commanded to be
honoured , " thy Father and thy Mo-
" ther % " mufl be underftood to include,
not only Parents literally ', but figurative-
ly alfo 5 The Fathers of our Country j
Magiftrates, Supreme and Subordinate ;
Majiers and Miftrejfes in Families j Mi*
nifters and Teachers of Religion. To each
of thefe there is an Honour and Regard
due, proportional to the Nature and De-
gree of the Relation. To Magiflrates
there is due from Subjects, Obedience ac-
cording to the Laws of the Country, in
all things not oppofite to the Law of God.
To Majiers there is due from Servants,
E P h.vi.<. Diligence and Indujiry, Honejly and Fide-
t.ii.i8. according to t he
Advice
*f the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 185
Advice of the Apoftle ; Only with this
difference, that, whereas in the Apoftles
days the Servants fpoken of were Slaves
under abfolute Lords, Servants Now, be-
ing hired by Contract, are to pay fuch
Submiffion only, as is appointed by Law
or by Agreement. To Minifters and
Teachers of Religion, there is due from
the People fuch Rejpetf, as to Stewards >Cor.ir.
of the Myfteries of God-, A willingnefs to
hear and be inflrufted by them, and to
obferve and practife whatever they can
{how to be the Will of God. Laftly, to-
wards all Superiours in every kind and
degree, there is due, efpecially from
young Perfons, a Decent and Refpettful
Behaviour.
THERE is ftill one thing further to be
taken notice of, under this Command-
ment : That, as in Nature all Influences
and Operations are mutual, fo in all Re-
lations there is a Duty reciprocal. 'Tis to
be underftood that Parents are by this
Commandment required to love, fup-
port, inftrucl, and be gentle towards
their
i86 An EXPOSITION
their Children. Princes and Magiftrates,
to govern according to Law and Reafon ;
as having themfelves a Supreme Lord,
to whom they muft give account. Ma-
Jters, to exaft Service, not rigoroufly,
but with Mildnefs, and according to Con-
trad: j not as from Slaves, (nor even from
Them with Cruelty, ) but as from Servants
upon limited and agreed Terms. Gover-
nours in the Church, not to afTume Power
over the Confciences of men, as being
Lords over God's Heritage-, but to be
faithful and diligent in Teaching and in
iPet.v. 3. Exhortation, as being enfamples to the
Flock.
COMMANDM. vi. Cftou ffjaltbo
no JBurfcer.
THE/T/? Four Commandments, fet
forth our Duty towards God ; the Fifth,
expreffes the Duty owing to our Superi-
ours among Men ; and the/w loft declare
our Duty towards All men in general,
with regard to the Life, th&Property, the
Reputation
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
Reputation of our Neighbour, or what-
ever elfe may in any way affecl: him.
THE greateft and moft irreparable
Damage one man can do to another, is the
taking away his Life; and therefore the
Firji of the Commandments under This
Head, is, " Thou Jhalt not kill. '.' But
becaufe This phrafe has fome Ambiguity
in/ it, we choofe therefore to render it
more ftridly and properly, " Thou Jhalt
" do no Murder. " For there are Many
Cafes, wherein the Life of a man may
be taken away, without the Sin of Mur-
der.
A MAN may kill his Neighbour by
Chance, by fome wholly unforefeen Ac-
cident ^ when he had no Defign of hurting
him at all. And where there is no De-
fign or Intention in the Mind, the Action
has in it nothing of Morality or Immora-
lity. Yet any degree of Carelefsnefs, is a
Fault : And therefore, in the Law of
Mofesj God was pleafed to command,
that whofoever flew a man by Accident,
mould
188 An EXPOSITION
mould be at the Trouble of feeing to a
City of Refuge.
A M A N may be forced to kill Ano-
ther, in his own neceflary Self-Defenfe :
And then the Sin is, not in the Slayer,
but in him that is Jlain. For in all cafes
of Force, not he who is compelled to ftrike.
the Stroke, but he who is the Caufe of
Exod-xxii. the Evil, bears the whole Guilt. If a
Thief be found breaking up, and be fmitten
that he die ; there Jhallno blood bejhedfor
him. For the fame reafon, Enemies may
be flain in a juft and neceflary War ; and
'tis no Crime, but an Honour, to be fuc-
cefsfull in deftroying them. But Wars
of mere Ambition, are direct Mur-
ders.
A L s o in times of Peace, the Lives of
Malefactors may be juflly taken away,
for the Prefervation and Security of the
Publick. There is conferred upon the
Magiftrate, the Self-Defenfe of the whole
Society ; and God himfelf has approved
and given this Authority, that he mould
Rom.xiii. mt fa ar f fo Swordin vain.
THESE
cf tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 189
THESE are the Cafes, wherein the
Lives of men may be taken away without
Sin. And for the fake of dijlingmjhing
thefe cafes it is, that the words of the
Commandment are thus rendred, " T'hou
" jhalt do no Murder. " Murder there-
fore is the killing of a man, not by mif-
fortune, but with defign ; not for our own
defenfe and prefervation in neceffity, but
out of malice and hatred towards our
Neighbour ; not as deftroying a publick
Enemy, but one with whom we ought to
have lived under the natural Ties of
Friendftip and Humanity ', or at leaft of
mutual Forgivene/S} not as bringing a
Malefactor to Execution for the preferva-
tion of the Commonwealth, but as cut-
ting off an innocent Member to the Hurt
and Lofs of the Publick.
AND This, of all Crimes, is the moft
enormous j becaufe the Damage is moft
irreparable. For, what can be given a
man in exchange or in recompenje for his
Life ? Or what fatisfaction can He make
for deftroying the Image of God, who, far Gen.i,*
from
ipi An EXPOSITION
Matt.v.36. f r om reftoring Life, cannot make one Hair
vi. %]. white or black, or add one cubit unto his
feature ?
B Y the Law of Nature therefore, this
Crime was always judged worthy of the
Severeft Punimment ; the very Barbari-
ans reafoning among themfelves, that a
Murderer, whatever Efcapes he may
Aasxxviiimake, yet Vengeance fuffereth not to
4> live.
B Y the Laws of all civilized Nations
in the World, it has always been punim-
ed capitally ; and fometimes with the
moft Cruel kinds of Death.
B Y the Law of Mofes, God command-
ed that No Satisfaction mould be taken for
Numb, the Life of a Murderer j but the guilty
v ' 31 ' perfon was to be taken even from God's
Exod.xxi. -& tar that be might die. From whence,
'4- by the way, appears the Extreme Impiety
of thofe Superftitious Privileges or Immu-
nities of Churches, in Popijh Countries ;
whereby Places appointed for the Worjhip
* </
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 192
of God, are made Refuges for the vileft of
Malefactors.
'Tis obfervable alfo, that, in order
to guard againil this Crime more effedlu-
ally, God was pleafed to command (as I
before obferved ) in the Law of Mofes^
that whofoever killed a man even by mere
Accident only, mould be at the Trouble
of fleeing to a City of Refuge, and conti-
nuing there //// the Death of the High Numb:
Prieft. xxxv ' 32<
Laftly j W H AT has hitherto been faid
concerning the Killing of Another, muft
in proportion be underftood like wife con-
cerning Self-Murder. For no man has a
Right to anticipate the Call of God, or
to bereave the Publick of a Member, by
deftroying Himfelf.
THE true Nature and Notion of Mur-
der being thus explained ; 'tis to be ob-
ferved in the next place, that there may
be feveral Degrees of Aggravation in this
Crime, and alfo different Degrees of Ap-
proach towards it. The Higheft Degree
and
J9 2 An EXPOSITION
and deepeft Aggravation of the Crime, is,
when 'tis committed with deliberate and
contrived Malice. But whether it be
committed with a man's own hand, or by
the Hand of Another, or by means of
Perjury and Subornation of Falfe Witnef-
neffes; thefe Circumftances make no dif-
ference at all in the Nature, or in the
Degree of the Guilt.
THE next Degree of this Crime is,
when 'tis committed, not with praemedita-
ted Malice, but in confequence of fome
J'udden PaJJion and Quarrel. In which
cafe, Humane Laws have indeed frequent-
ly made the Penalty eafy. But in Reafon,
one man's Life ought not to be expofed
to another man's Paffion. And the Law
of God) ( which, for the preventing of
Carelefsnefs, required that whofoever
killed a man even by mere Accident only,
fhould be at the Trouble of fleeing to a
City of Refuge j) makes no Diftindtion
between facrificing the Life of a Friend,
to Paffion j and the Life of an Adverfary,
to Malice or Refentment. Duels delibe-
rately
0/* A CHURCH-CATECHISM. 193
rately appointed, want, even ^hat little
extenuation of fudden PaJ/ion. And no-
thing can be more dreadful, than to fee
men knowingly and deliberately die in
that manner, without any poffibility of
Forgivenefs towards each other, or of Re-
pentance towards God.
APPROACHES towards this
Crime, are All Great Mifchiefs and Loft-
ing Injuries, defignedly done ; which
may either haften men's Death, or make
their Life uncomfortable. Under which
Head may juftly be ranked^ deliberate
Frauds, and mifchievous Adulterations, in
things proper either for Food or Medicine,
or wherein foever the Lives of Men are
concerned.
OUR Saviour adds j Whofoever is An- Matt.v.2*.;
gry with his Brother without a caufe, Jhall
be in danger of the Judgment > That is,
Every degree of unreafonable Anger and
Wrathfulnefs, has its proportion of Guilt.
And St John tells us ; Whofoever Hateth his g j oh ^
Brother, is a Murderer. His Meaning is ; s-
not only that indulged Hatred and Ma-
O lice
I 94 An EXPOSITION
lice extend often from fmall Beginnings
to great and unexpected Effects, as in the
cafe of Cain ; but alfo that, in the nature
of the Thing, a maiitious, hateful, and
mtfcbieototi Temper, is altogether unchri-
Joh.viii. ftian, and is the Spirit of the D^u/7, who
'was a Murderer from the beginning.
T H E R E are ftill Other ways of incur-
ring Guilt in this matter ; which are all
of them proportionally criminal, as the
Confequences of the Actions are more or
lefs obvious and direct to be forefeen.
Thus all Debauching either of ourfelves
Or others, fo far as it has a natural and
proper tendency to lead men into mortal
Difeafes or into capital Crimes, is a real
Breach of This Commandment.
Laftly : A s every Prohibition or Nega-
five Precept fuppofes, and in its nature in-
cludes an Obligation to the contrary Poji-
tive Duty ; 'tis always to be understood,
that in This Commandment God requires
of us Peaceabknefs, Meeknefs, Goodnefs,
CharitablenefS) and whatever tends to the
univerfal
oj the C H u R c H-C AT E c H i SM. 195
univerfal Welfare and Happinefs of
Mankind.
CoMMANDM. VII. d)0tt
not commit ftDulterp.
A s to the Nature and Extent of the
Sin here forbidden : Since fome things are
better under flood, than explained -, and fome
Vices may be taught, even while they are
reproved-, and the beft Antidote againft
Some Sins, is never to think of them at
all -, It were to be wimed, there had never
been occafion once to name thefe things
among Chriftians', and that the original
natural Modefly of Humane nature, and
the Simplicity and Purity of the Chrifli-
an Profeflion, had been of itfclf a fuffici-
ent Reflraint upon men, without needing
any particular Arguments of Exhortation.
But fince the Cafe is not foj and men
frave y in faft, greatly corrupted them-
felves ; and have broken through the Re-
flraints of Nature, and the Laws of God ;
and have by Cuftom taken off much of
.the Scandal of fuch Vices, as ought not
Oa to
196 An EXPOSITION
Eph. v-3. to have been once named among Chrifli-
ans 5 and, by their ill Example, are per-
petually teaching Others to think fome of
the ivorft of Vices lefs dishonourable than
they really are ; 'Tis therefore abfolutely
necefiary to warn young perfons, with as
much caution as may be, of the Nature^
the Extent, and Danger of thofc Vices,
which it fo highly imports them to a-
void.
THIS Seventh Commandment, "
<e jhalt not commit Adultery^ " muft, ac-
cording to the Analogy of all the other
Commandments, be underflood to prohi-
bit, not only Adultery itfelf, which is the
Capital Crime in this kind ; but alfo all
Other Vices of the Same nature. For fo
the Apoftle ranks together All the Sins of
19. This kind: Tihe works of the Flejh are
manifeft, 'which are tbefe, Adultery ^ Forni-
Col iii 8 cat i n >*~ - an d> P ut awa y all //%
Communication out of your mouth. Fur-
ther; Our Saviour, in his explication of
This Commandment, does in a particular
manner require men to govern even the
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 197
Defires and Inclinations of the Heart. Matt.v.i?,
The Meaning of which, is not that Any
natural Appetite is in itfelf fmful ; but
that Every Intent and Defire of the Mind
towards an Unlawful Object, though
there be no opportunity of proceeding to
Action, is in its proportion and degree,
criminal before God. He therefore, who
would obferve This Law, as expounded
by our Saviour ; muft endeavour to regu-
late even his Deftres and Inclinations, by
the Rules of Reafon and by the Com-
mands of God. For there is no Security
againft falling into Sin, but by retraining
the Defires that would lead men to it.
Chriflianity therefore does in a moft Uriel:
and fpecial manner oblige us to all kinds
of Sobriety and Mod^fty ; injoyning us to
glorify Goo 1 , both in our Body and in our r car.vL
Spirit^ which are God's j to abftain from *p et ^
fefhly Lufts, which war again/I the Soul 5 "
to know bow topojjefs our Bodies inSantfi- iTh.iv.4:
Jlcation and Honour -, to avoid all Indecen-
cies of Behaviour, all Drunkennefs and
JLxceJjltSi which may prove Incitements
er Occafions to other Vices : In a word,
O3 TO
198 'An EXPOSITION
Eph. v. 3, to let all Unckannefs not be once named a-
mongji us, as becometh Saints , Neither
FUthinefs, norfoolijh Talking, nor (immo-
deft] jejling, 'which are not convenient
but rather giving of Thanks.
THE Bafenefs and Dijhonourablenefs
of the Sins forbidden in This Command-
ment, is excellently defcribed by Solomon.
Prov.vi. Whofo commit teth adultery, lackethUnder-<
Jlanding; He that doth it, dejlroyeth hh
own Soul : A wound and difionour Jhall he
get, and his Reproach Jhall not be 'wiped
Prov.vii. away. He goeth after theftrange woman,
as an ox goeth to thejlaugbter, or as a Fool
to the Correction of the Stocks : Till a
dart Jlrike through his Liver, as a Bird
hajieth to the Snare, and knoweth not that
it is for his Life.
OTHER ill Conferences of This Vice,
are j that it propagates SickneJ/es and In-
Jirmities, both upon men's f elves and their
Pojlerities; that 'tis deftru&ive of humane
Society, and of the publick Welfare j
that it feparates the neareft Relations j
lays the ground of inextricable Confufions,
and
of *&? CHURCH-CATECHISM. 199
an-d implacable DiJJenfons, in Families ;
and oftentimes occalions publick Contenti-
ons, Murders, and Seditions: So that
hardly from any other Caufe, have ifliied
greater and more tragical Events.
THERE are always Some loofe and
profligate perfbns, who will pretend they
cannot difcern the Immorality and heinous
nature of the Vices of *fbh kind, as they
will confefs they eafily do in Other Inftan-
ces of Injuftice and Unrighteoufnefs. But
though they are unwilling to perceive
wherein the Great Wickednefs of thefe
things confifts, when they are guilty
'Themfefoes ; yet they always eafily enough
fee it, when they themfelves are the per-
fons injured-, and they are fufficiently
fenfible of Every Difhonour of This
kind, done to their own Families, or e-
ven to remote Relations.
SOME even Heathen Nations, have
punifhed Adultery with Death: Which
plainly Ihows, how contrary it is to the
Law of Nature. And in the Law of Mo-
fes, God himfelf exprefsly commanded
O 4 that
200 "An EXPOSITION
Lcvit.xx. t hat tbe Adulterer and Adult erefs Jhould
furely be put to Death,
IN the New 'Tejlament, the Apoftles
conftantly declare with a particular Em-
Heb.xiii. phafis, that Whoremongers and Adulterers
Jpet.ii.p, Godwill judge. That the Lord knoweth
how to referve the unjuft unto the day of
judgment to be punifhed; But Chiefly them
that walk after the Flejh, in the Luft of
Eph.v.6. Uncleannefs. That, becaufe of Thefe
things, cometh the Wrath of God upon the
children of Difobedience, or of Unbelief ;
that is, even upon the Heathen nations
themfelves ; and therefore much more fe-
Eph.'v. 6. verely upon Chriftians. And let no man y
faith St Paul, deceive you with vain
words : For this ye know, that no whore-
monger^ nor unclean perfon^ hath any inhe-
ritance in the Kingdom of Chrift and of
God. And he repeats it with great Ear-
alv. 21, jieftnefs ; Of the which I tell you before,
as I have alfo told you in times paji y that
they which dofuch things, Jhall not inherit
the Kingdom of Qod. And the Author to
the Hebrews compares Fornicators to pro-
fane
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 201
fane Efau, who for one Morfel of Meat Heb. xii.
fold his Birthright.
THE Chriftian Religion lays alfo pecu-
liar Obligations upon us to Virtue and
Purity, from the confideration of our be-
ing an Holy Priejlhood, a chofen Generati- i Pet. 11.5.
on, an holy Nation, a peculiar People ; a 9 '
people feparated to the Service of God.
That our Body is the Temple of the Holy lCo r.vi.
Ghoft, 'which is in us, which we have from 1 9-
God; even the Temple of the Living God ; zCor.vi.
an habitation of God, through the Spirit. Eph.ti.ix.
Under which greater Advantages and
clearer Knowledge, we are obliged to
walk honeftly, as in the Day ; that is, as Rom. xiii.
becomes thofe who injoy the Light of the I3 '
glorious Gofpel of Chrift, the Light of the 4 .
Knowledge of the Glory of God. ver - *
Laftly: UNDER this Commandment,
muft be underftood to be contained the
whole Duty of Husbands towards their
Wives, and Wives towards their Hus-
bands, in every Circumftance of Life.
Husbands, love your Wives, and be not bit-
ter againft them. And the Wives adorn- f p et n 'j-| 9 '
ing, 3.4-
202 'An EXPOSITION
ing y let it be the Ornament of a Meek
and quiet ' Spirit y which is in the Jight of
God of great price.
COM MANDM. VIII. CljOtt
not teal
THE frfl and higheft degree of the
Sin forbidden in This Commandment, is
that of Robbing by Violence. Which in
the judgment of all men, even of the Guil-
ty themfelves, is fo capital a Crime,
that there needs no Inlargement upon it.
THE next degree, is Theft or Stealing,
not by violence and force -, but by fecrecy
and concealment. And This alfo is of
fuch univerfal infamy, that I think none
who are guilty of it, make any pretenfi-
ons to Religion. The only caution here
needful to be given, is, that young perfons
efpecially take heed of the Beginnings of
this Sin, of being tempted to do Wrong
in fmaller matters, in things which may
feem at firft of no great confequence, not
very highly injurious to the perfon wrong-
ed.
if the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 203
ed, nor very fhocking to the Conference of
him that does the injuftice. But This is of
all others the greateft and moft dangerous
Temptation. For few Sinners begin
with the very higheft of Crimes. Ufual-
ly, being feduced at firft into fmaller
Tranfgreflions, they become hardened by
degrees ; till at length they run into the
greateft and rnoft Capital OfFenfes.
THE otber Crimes forbidden in this
Commandment, are Fraud and Cheating^
of all kinds ; Neglecting to pay juft Debts,
or keeping back the Wages due to the
Poor for their Labour; Oppreffion, Extor-
tion, and making unreafonable Advan-
tage of other men's NeceJJities : Deceit
and Over-reaching in Trade or Bargains;
All Afliftance and Incouragement given to
Others, directly or indirectly, to do wrong.
All thefe are in reality, and in their pro-
portion, only fo many different forts of
f heft and Robbery. For, fraudulently to
with-hold from another That which is his
juft Due, is in effect the very fame thing,
as taking from him either by Stealth or
Violence
204 ^ EXPOSITION
Violence his prefent proper Poffeflion.
And if any of thefe things be done under
colour of Law, or in fuch manner as to
evade all Humane Laws ; the Crime is
not therefore the lefs y but rather really
the greater j becaufe to the Sin of /*
Jttftict, there is added Another Fault, in
perverting the Means by which publick
JulHce mould be preferved among Men.
Likewife, where any of thefe Offenfes
are committed in Breach of *fruft y which
is the cafe of Servants and any Others
who are intruded with other men's affairs;
howfoever the Law may in fuch cafes al-
leviate the Punifhment, yet in Conference
this is an Aggravation and Increafe of the
Guilt, as being a Breach both of ^uftice
%n.& Fidelity. Nor is it any diminution of
the Crime, when 'tis the Publick that is
wronged by any unjuft Act. For though,
in This cafe, 'tis not fo obvioufly and im-
mediately apparent upon whom the injury
falls, as in the cafe of private wrongs ;
yet the Uncertainty or the Number 0f the
perfons among whom the Damage may
chance to be divided, alters not at all the
nature:
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 205
nature of the Crime itfelf. And though
Injuries of This kind, mf mailer inftan-
ces, are not perhaps immediately felt and
complained of j yet when the Publick
comes to be wronged by perfons of large
and extenfive Power, then not only the
Crime itfelf, but the EJfetfs of it alfo be-
come greater and more apparent, than in
the cafe of Private Injustice. Laftly ;
Againft the full Intent and Meaning of
This Commandment, even great Uncha-
ritablenefs muft alfo be underftood to be
in fome degree an Offenfe : Withhold not Prov y..
Good from them to whom it is Due, ivben 2 7>
it is in the Power of thine hand to do
it.
THE Duties, on the contrary, injoyn-
cd in this Commandment; are Juftice
and Equity, Honefty and Fidelity, T^ruth
and Fairnefs, in men's Dealings one with
another. For the Practife of which, the
beft general Rule that can be given, is
That laid down by our Saviour himfelf ;
Wbatfoe'ver ye would that menftould do to
you, do- ye even fo to Them. For every w .
man
2 o6 An EXPOSITION
man well knows what Equity and Fair
Dealing is, when he experts it from 0-
tberi ; and in the fame Meafure ought
He therefore likewife to deal with
Them.
A N D for the fame reafon, that JufHcc
and Equity is necefTary to be pra&ifed at
all j for the fame reafon, whenever any
Failure has been made in the Practife of
thefe Duties, "Reflitution ought to be
made to the perfons who have been
wronged. For Repentance neceflarily
iuppoies a Defire that the OfFenfe had ne-
ver been committed. And the only pof-
iible evidence of the Sincerity of That
Defire, is the making of Reftitution,
where ever it can be done, in reality and
withEffed:.
AND becaufe whoever fincerely de-
fires to avoid Sin y will indeavour alfo to
avoid Temptation ; therefore he that would
HQt be tempted to defraud Others, muft
ttnderftand himfelf to be obliged by This
Commandment, to indeavour to get an
honeft livelyhood by his Own Labour and
Indujiry,
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 207
Induftry. Let him that ftole,fteal no more > Eph.iv z8.
but rather let him labour, working 'with
his hands the thing which is good, that he
may have to give to Him that needeth.
CHAR I ?r alfo (as I before obferv-
ed,) being the Means by which Providence
has appointed the Poor to be fupported,
is a Duty within the Intent of This Com-
mandment. But for the Proportions of
This, there is no certain Rule, as there is
in the matter of ftricT: Juftice ; And there-
fore the Meafure hereof mufl be left to e-
very man's own Prudence in the Know-
ledge of his own Circumftances, without
laying Snares or Scruples upon Any.
THE Obligations incumbent upon us
to avoid the Sins, and to praclife the Du-
ties, which This Commandment has re-
gard to ; are, in the^fry? place, the Reafon
and Necejfity of Things. For upon the fe-
curing of men's Properties, depends all
Humane Society ; and without Juftice y
there can be no Commerce. Take away
all fenfe of Juftice ; and ftraitways every
man's hand will be againft every man, and
c*fy
208 An EXPOSITION
every man's hand againjl Him ; nor will
mankind any longer be diftinguifhed from
the wild Beafts of the Foreft, who devour
each other according to their Strength,
and have no Title or Property in any
thing. In the next place ; fmce God has
endued men with Reafon and Confcience
and with an unavoidable Senfe of Right,
'tis plainly His Will made known by the
Light of Nature, that they mould make
Ufe of thofe Faculties to the prefervation
of Society : So that the Confounders of
Property, are Deftroyers of the Order of
God's Creation. Laftly, the Revealed
Will of God in Scripture, is moft exprefs
upon This Head. In the Law of Mofes 5
Deut.xvi. Tbaf which is altogether juft, faith he,
Levit.xix.yZ^ thou follow. Te Jhall not fteal, nel-
11 > '* ther deal falfely : Thou fialt not defraud
Prov.xL i. thy neighbour, neither rob him. A falfe
Balance is an Abomination to the Lord, but
Exod.xxii. a juft Weight is his Delight. If a 'Thief
be found breaking up, and be f mitt en that
he die ; there Jhall no Blood befhedfor him.
And, under the Gofpel; among the Un-
righteous, concerning whom it is exprefsly
declared
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
declared that they Jhall not inherit the
Kingdom of God, are by name reckoned
Thieves and Covetous and Extorti-
oners.
THE Benefit ariiing from that general
T*ruft and Confidence, which would follow
upon the Vniverfal Practice of Juftice and
Honefty amongft Men, would be incon-
ceivably great. It would be a Fulfilling
of That Prophecy, that the Wolf Jhall jfai, x i.6.
dwell with the Lamb, and the Leopard
flail lie down with the Kid, and the Calf
and the young Lion and the Fat ling toge-
ther, and a little Child Jhall lead them.
It would be an anticipation of the Happi-
nefs of that new Heaven and new Earth,
wherein Right eoufnefs is to dwell for 2p et.iii;
ever. ' 3 '
CoMMANDM,
210 An EXPOSITION
CoMMANDM. IX. CfjOU
not bear falft WitMtit agaittft
NEXT to the Life and Property of
our Neighbour, which are fecured to him
by the 6tb, jth, and %tb Command-
ments ; there is nothing generally dearer
to men, than their Reputation or Good
Name. Nay, in fome cafes, it has been
accounted more valuable even than Life
itfelf. And in many circumftances, to
defpoil a man of his good Name, is in a
manner the fame thing as robbing him of
his Goods 5 Becaufe in matters of Trade
and Commerce, and indeed in mofl other
ftates of Life, very much depends upon
men's characters and reputation. So much
reputation, is always fo much Power :
And according to men's Credit and E-
fleem in the world, fo much proportio-
nally is their Influence and the Weight
they have in it. For the fame reafons
therefore, that we are bound to take care
of the Life and Property of our Neigh-
l bour 5
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 211
bour ; for the fame reafons we ought to
be very tender like wife of his good Name
and Reputation : Always having a Regard
to Truth and Charity, and to the Benefit
and Advantage of the Publick.
WHO is here meant by our Neigh-
bour, our Saviour has told us in his Para-
ble of the Good Samaritan. Where, by
declaring Him to be the unfortunate man's
Neighbour, who took pity on him and
did him real kindnefs ; he mows us that
our Neighbours are not thofe only who
dwell near us, or with whom we happen
to have any particular acquaintance ; but
whomfoever among all mankind we have
Any dealings with, or whomfoever it hap-
pens at any time to be in our power either
to injure or do kindnefs to; In a word,
whofoever can in any refpect become the
better or the worfe, or receive any Hurt
or any Benefit, by our Behaviour towards
them,
P 2 THE
iI2 An EXPOSITION
THE Crime or Injury forbidden in
This Commandment, is that of bearing
Falfe Wltnefi. The bigbeft and moft e-
normous degree of which Wickednefs, is
the giving falfe Evidence in any Court of
Judicature, either in criminal or other
Cafes.
THE next degree of this Crime is,
when, not indeed folemnly before the Ma-
giftrate, but in common and private con-
verfation, falfe Reports are knowingly
fpread concerning any perfon, either out
of Malice and Envy towards him, or in
Revenge for fome imagined Affront, or
for fome private Intereft and Advantage
to ourfelves. This Sin is very feverely
condemned in Scripture. Our Saviour,
when the Pharifees fpread Falfe Accufati-
ons againft him, told them that they imi-
tated their Father the Devil ; who, when
Joh.viii. he fpeaketh a Lie, fpeaketh of his
44- Jbr he is a Liar y and the "Father of it.
BUT*
ef the C H u R c H-C ATECHISM. 213
BUT there are ftill lower degrees of
This Vice ; which as they are lefs fcanda-
lous, fo there is more danger of men's fall-
ing into them. Such are, the carelefsly
fpreading of Accufations, which we do
not certainly know whether they be true
or falfej Calumny, detraction, flander,
evil-fpeaking, back-biting, tale- bearing,
ram judgment, and the like. Among
things inconfiftent with the profeffion of
a Chriflian, the Apoftle always reckons
Malicioufnefs, Debate, Malignity, Whi
ferings, Back-bitings, Wrath, Strife, Ha- ^
tred, Variance, Emulations, Envying!, 10 -
Railings, evil Surmifings, Bitter nefs , An- iTim.vi.'
ger, Clamour, and evil Speaking. And Eph.iv.3r.
declares, that if any man feem to be reli- Jam. 1.26.
gwus, and bridletb not his ^Tongue, but de-
ceiveth his own heart -, this man's religion
is vain. Our Saviour likewife admo-
nifhes us : Judge nof t that ye be not Matt. vii.
judged.
P 3 UNDER
214 Jn EXPOSITION
UNDER fbfs head, men who profefs
eal for God, are very apt to be guilty;
when, in matters of \Religion, they de-
ftroy Charity, '"by fixing Names of Re-
proach upon each other, on account of
Differences in Opinion, concerning things
not clearly underftood, or concerning Do-
l rines of Humane Authority, or concern-
ing Rites and Forms and Ceremonies of Hu-
mane Inftitution.
THERE is ftijl a lower degree of this
Fault, in bearing witnefs againft our
Neighbour, notfalfely, but ncedlefsly and
unkindly, in fpreading and declaring with
'Truth his real Faults or Infirmities to his
difadvantage , when it cannot poffibly
ferve any publick good purpofe. This
Levitxix. was thus forbidden under the Law: I'hou
jhalt not go up and down as a ale-bearer
among thy people. And perfons of This
fort, are thus defcribed by the Apoftle :
i Tim. v. 7hey learn to be idle, wandring about from
houfe to houfe ; and net only idle, but Mat-
ters alfo, and bufy Bodies, fpieaking things
'which they ought not.
IN
ef the CH u R c H-C AT E c H i S'M. 215
Iwfuch cafes indeed, where the pxecu-
tion of Publlck Jujtice, or the Benefit
and Advantage even of Private good Chri-
ftians, clearly requires it; 'tis plainly
men's Duty to accufe Criminals, and to
bear Teftimony againft them in Righteouf-
nefs and Truth. But in Other cafes,
Charity requires that we mould not take
delight in fpreading even True Reports
needlefsly, to men's difadvantage.
Laflly : S i N c E an ungoverned Tongue
is (as St James defcribes it) an inftru- j am> iiit 5>
ment of great Mifchief, caufing much 6 -
Diforder and Confulion in the world ;
and yet difficult to govern, and full of per-
petual Temptation ; therefore this Com-
mandment, in its full extent, may well
be underftood as a Precept tofet a Watch Pf.cxli.3.
before our Mouths, and keep the door of our
Lips : To take heed to our Ways, that we Pf. xxxix.
effend not with our Tongue : Considering, ! '
that in the multitude of words there want- p rov .x,
etb not Sin-y but he that reframeth his lips, I 9-
is wife. He that will love Life, and fee rPet.iii.
good days j let him refrain hh Tongue from lc
P 4
*i6 "A EXPOSITION
Evil, and his Lips that they fpeak no
Matt.xii. Guile. For by thy words thou Jhalt bejuf-
tified, and by thy words thou (halt be con-
demned.
COMMANDM. x. CSou ffjalt not
totoet rtjp $eigpont# oufe ; tgou
ftjalt not cotoct tp$etgl)&ou
no? I)i0 ^ertoant, no? 61
no? I)t0 <)c, no? Iji0 ate, no?
rt)in0 tfjat i0 St0.
THIS Commandment is not fo much
the Prohibition of any particular Vice, as
a general Fence or Security for the more
effectual keeping of all the foregoing
Commandments. 'Tis a Prohibition of
all unjufl Dejires or Appetites.
Ou T of the abundance of the Heart ',
the M?/ fpeaketh; and from the
Strength of Paffions and Appetites, pro-
ceeds every kind of evil A5tion$. The
keeping therefore of the PaJ/ions and Ap-
petites under the Government of Reafon
ad true Religion, is laying the Ax to the
Root
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 217
Root of the Tree, and flopping the
Fountain from which all Temptations
flow.
THE Jews of old, under pretenfe of
making Fences to the Law, introduced
many Superfluous Pradlifes; fuch as the
wajhing of Cups and Pots, brazen vejeh, Markvii.
and of Tables, and the like. But thefe 4 *
Traditions, in ftead of being Fences and
Securities to the Law, fooh came to be
obferved as Equivalents inftead of obey-
ing the Law ; and fo made the word 0/\er. 13^
God, of none effect. Among Ckriftians,
thofe of the Church of Rome have in like
manner introduced grievous Super-
Jiitions. Under pretenfe of preferving
greater Holinefs in the Clergy , they
have forbidden lawful Marriage. Under
pretenfe of difcouraging Covetoufnefs, they
have eftablifhed Orders of profefled Men-
dicants or Beggars. Under pretenfe of
preventing Worldly-mindednefs, they have
fet up numerous Monafteries of perfons
idle and ufelefs to Mankind. But none of
thefe things have any proper Tendency to
cure
'An EXPOSITION
cure the Pajfions. The only real Guard
againft breaking God's Laws, is what
This Commandment directs ; the Govern-
ing of the Paffions and Defires, fo as to
cut of (as far as may be) the firft Occafi-
ons and Temptations to Sin ; and not the
laying upon men fuch needlefs Reftraints>
as do on the contrary tend to increafe their
Temptations.
THIS keeping of the PaJJions and Ap-
petites under flricl: Government, is evi-
dently reafonable and necejfary. Yet be-*
caufe mere Dejires aud Inclinations to evil,
are not properly Sins but Temptations on-
ly, till they either break out into AUtion^
or at leaft influence the Intention of the
Will y therefore men are not naturally apt
to be fenfible enough, of the Danger and
Rom vii. t$fcb* e f f ev ^ Dejires. I bad not known
* Luft, except the Law had f aid, tfbou Jhalt
not co-vef. The danger of indulging Any
evil Inclination, is well expreffed by So-
Prov. vi. lomqn : Can a man take Fire in his Bofom^
?7. 28. an( i fa s cioaths not be burnt ? Can one go.
upon hot Coals , and his Feet not be burnt?
So
of tie C H U R C H-C ATECHISM. 3 IQ
So it is very difficult for men who have
Jirong Appetites, to indulge them in Any
degree, and yet forbear Jinful Attions.
This Commandment therefore, " Thou
" foalt not Covef, " is given as a Guard
and Security to all the reft; to prevent the
Caufes and the Occafions of Sin,
" THOUftalt not Covet. " That is:
Be not eagerly and anxioujly defirous y of
what the Providence of God has not
thought fit to allot thee : J3e not envious,
at what others injoy : Be not dlfcontented
with thy own State and Condition in the
world. The Particulars therefore here
principally forbidden; are,
i. COrEfOUSNESS. By which
word, is to be underftood not (what it
moft commonly iignifies) a foolifh Delire
of Riches for Riches fake, and a penuri-
oufnejs in the life of what we already pof-
Jejs of our Own ; but fuch a Defire of in-
creafing our Pofleffions, as tempts us at
any time to ufe the irregular methods of
defrauding or incroaching upon our Neigh-
bours, For otherwife to defire any thing
that
An EXPOSITION
that belongs to our Neighbour, any thing
that is lawful for Him to part with,
and that he is willing fo to do ; any thing
that we can obtain of him either by free
Gift, or fair Pur chafe 5 in this there is
nothing blame-worthy.
2. ANOTHER thing here forbidden,
is Envy at what we fee Others injoy.
Which as 'tis a Reproaching of the di-
ftributions of Providence, and a perpetu-
al Temptation to do things that may be in-
jurious to the perfons envied; fo 'tis a
conitant uneafmefs and punilhment to
Provxir ^ e ^' 4- found Heart, is the Life of the
3. ' Flejh ; but Envy, the Rottennefs of the
Bones,
3. THE lafl Particular forbidden in
This Commandment, is Difcontenf with
our own State and Condition in the world*
In cafes indeed of any extraordinary Cala-
mity, 'tis fufficient that men refign them-
felves to the Will of God, and fuffer not
themfelves to be by Impatience driven in-
to Sin. But in all ordinary cafes, Thank-
fulnefe is plainly our Duty for what we
have ;
of ike CHURCH-CATECHISM.
-, and nothing can be more unreafo-
nable, than Difcontent for what we have
not. All that Any of us injoy, is of
God's free and undeferved Bounty. We
know not the Deferts of Others, in com-
parifon with Ourfehes. We know not the
various and wife Dejigns of Providence,
in the unequal Distributions of all Tem-
porary things. We know not how much
better, poflibly, our prefent ftate and con-
dition is for us, whatsoever it be - y than
any other ftate or condition, which we
through ignorance may be apt moil ear-
neftly to c ovet.
THERE is only one thing further to
be "obferved upon This Commandment :
That 'tis very abfurdly, and without any
Shadow of Reafon, that Thofe of the
Church of 'Rome have, in many of their
Books, divided this Commandment into
Two; merely to complete the Number - y
after having omitted the Second, which fo
plainly reproves their Ihameful Idolatries.
Ml
An EXPOSITION
u, Wljzt Doft rtjou cljiefip learn
tljtfe CommanDmentg *
Anfw. 31 learn ttoo
totoar&g 5o&, and mp
Qu. ii^gat i ti&p ^utp
Anfw.
to ftelittse in gtm, to fear ftfm, to
loue Jim tDtt all mp ^eart, tDitlj
all mp ll^inD, tDttlj all mp ^oul,
anti Uiitft all mp Jtoengtlj : Co
Ijim ; Co 0iue &tm
: Co put mp tofjole Crutt
in gim ; Co call upon fyim Co
ijonour tyi$ golp i^ame, and i
, an0 to ferfce ftim trulp all
of mp life.
6f the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 223
V:3a6*> '
Qu. n^ftat i tljp *utp totoardtf
t&P $eigl)bour >
Anfw. iBp ^utp totoardg mp
$eigf)bour i to (cue Ijtm a mn
feif, and to do tinto all Mtn a^ 3
toould tfjqj fliould do unto me. Co
lotoe, ftonour, and fuccout mp jpa^
tfter and l&otfjer, Co fjonour and
ofocp tl)t Utng, and all tljat are ptit
in ^utftojttp under Jtat Co fub-
mit mp felf to all mp <otiernour&
Ceacfterje?, Spiritual pafto?^ and
l&aftersi Co o^der mp ftlf lottrtp
and reutrentlp to all mp 25etter0.
Co fturt no bodp ftp I0o2d o^ ^eed.
Co be true and ;uft w all mp tDeal^
in0i0f Co bear no iBalice no? Iiatred
in mp feeart. Co toep mp ^and^
from picking and Gealing, and mp
Congue from euil (jpeaRing Iping and
flandcring, Co feeep mp odp in
Cemperance, ^obernefe and C^aftitp.
jjjot to rouet no^t defireot^er
224
An EXPOSITION
but to learn anfc labour
trulp to get mp otun Hitnng, and
to do inp Dntp in tljat ftate of
Hife tmto toftieli it C^all pieafe
to call me.
PART
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 225
PART IV.
LORD'J* PRAYER.
TV/T $ good <CfitlD, hnotu
-* v -^ tfjat tfiou art not able to do
tljefc tf)in0$ of tljp felf, no? to tnalit
in tfte Comman&mmtf of <5od, and
to fcrue fnnt tutt^out l|i^ fpectai
<jace, tDl^iclj t^ou muft learn at
all time.* to call fcu bp dtligmt
Het me gear tfjerefoje if tftou
Anfw. <ur jpatfjer, to^tcfi art in
^allotoed be tfjp j^ame.
fiin0dom come, Cfjp IBill be
done in <artij a0 it 10 in
our dailp
our CrefpaCTe^, as?
tue Conine t Jem t Jat trefpaK againd
w& Slind lead u^ not into Cempta*
ttftii 23ut ftelttoer tt from
Amen.
AFTER the Commandments, there na-
turally follows a Direction to /ray for
Ajfiftance to perform them. For, all na-
tural and zllfpiritual Powers being deri-
ved from God, it becomes us at all times
and in all things to acknowledge our De-
pendence upon him, and to apply to him
continually as the Author of whatever
Good we injoy or hope for. 'Tis in itfelf
a fit and moil reafonable Service, that we
who know we receive v&from nim, mould
acknowledge that we do fo, by Asking of
him. 'Tis a high Privilege, that Sin-
ners are permitted to approach the Father
of all things, and have Accefs to the
Throne of Supreme Glory. 'Tis in the
Natural confequence of the Thing itfelf,
a Means of promoting the Pradife of Vir~
tue y by putting the Mind habitually into
good Temper and Frame. And 'tis more-
Over, by the Appointment of God, a Con-
dition
^ /& CHURCH-CATECHISM. 227
dition requffie in order to obtain his Blef-
fing upon our Endeavours.
PRATER, is in itfelf a direct part
of our Duty towards God, and of the Obe-
dience injoyned in the Firji Commandment.
But becaufe 'tis moreover of general influ-
ence, and a Means to inable men to per-
form more acceptably all the Other parts
of their Duty towards him ; therefore the
Direction for Prayer, is properly placed
in order next after the Commandments.
As to the 'Time and Manner and C/r-
cumftances of Prayer, there cannot be gi-
ven any particular Directions, which will
exactly fuit the State and Condition of
different Perfons, Every one beft under*
{lands his own Circumftances : And if
his Prayers be not mere Forms, he will na-
turally of himfelf adjuft them to the Exi-
gencies of his own proper Affairs : And,
for exadtnefs or propriety of Exprejfion,
to This God has no Regard. The Scrip-
ture gives only general exhortations -, That
we pray, ( i/?,) with Under jianding y and
with Attention of Mind. Prayer without
Under-
i
IC
228 'An EXPOSITION
Under/landing, or in an unknown tongue,
(of which Folly the Church of Rome is
Cor.xiv. ridiculoufly guilty,) is fpeaking into the
Air by a Voice 'without Signification: And
Ifai.xxix. Prayer without Attention, is drawing near
unto God with our Lips, while our Heart
is far from him. That we pray (2.) con-
iTh.v. \j.ftantly, and without ceafing : The Mean-
LU * vih I . i n & f which is, not that men are to
ipend their whole Time in Prayers ; which
is the Monkifh Superftition ; or that En-
thufiafts who pride themfelves in the
Length of their Prayers, mail be heard
the better for their much Speaking; but
that 'tis needful for men, by conjlant and
periodical Returns of Prayer, to keep up
in their Minds a continual Senfe of God,
and of their Dependence upon him.
That we pray (3.) with Submiffion always
to the Will of God : For we often under-
ftand not, what will hurt or profit us:
Rom.viii. We know not what we fljould pray for, as
ifukexxii we ou S^ f : Ariel' not My Will, faid our
41. Saviour himfelf, but Thine be done.
That we pray (4.) with fteady Faith to-
Jaracs i, 6. wards God, nothing wavering: That is,
not
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 229
not having a vain enthufiaftical prefump-
tion, that we mall certainly obtain what-
ever we defire ; but a rational Perfwafion
and firm Belief, that God is Able to per-
form whatever he wills, and Willing to
do for us whatever is really fit and reafo-
nable. That we pray (5.) with pure hands
and with a clean Hearf, and particularly
with a Mind difpofed to Charity and For-
givenefs towards our Brethren : For God
will be worfhipped by Thofe only, who
fincerely defire to obey him. As to wick-
ed men, the Scripture exprefsly declares,
that even their Prayer foall be Abomina- Prov .
tion. And our Saviour particularly admo- xxviii. 9.
nifties us, that if we forgive not Men Ma tt.vi.
Their Trefpaffes^ neither 'will our Father I 5-
forgive Our Trefpaffes.
CONCERNING the Matter of Pray-
er, or the Things to be prayed for ; our
Lord himfelf has thought fit to give us
particular direction, by leaving a Form of
his own compofing; Which therefore
ought, without doubt, to be the Rule,
the
230 An EXPOSITION
the Ground-work, the Pattern of All
Prayer.
I N which Prayer of our Lord, we are
taught in general :
i. T H AT the Obje5l of Prayer, the
Perfon to whom our Prayers are to be di-
Eph.iv.6. redled, is God j even the God and Father
of all, who is above all, and through all,
and in us all. The Foundation of the
Duty of Prayer, is laid in the Attributes
of This Supreme Author and Governour
of the Univerfe; and Every Perfection
of his Nature, affords a diflincl: Ground
or Reafon for our applying ourfelves in
this manner to him. His Omniprefence
teaches us, that he is ever Near ; His Om-
nifcience, that he always knows our Peti-
tions ; His Omnipotence, that he is Able
to grant them j His Goodnefs, that he is
willing to give us whatever is for our real
Benefit and Advantage ; His T^ruth, that
he will not fail to perform all his gracious
Promifes: And his Mercy, that he will
not reject even Sinners when truly peni-
tent, but will hear and forgive them upon
their
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
their Sincere Humiliation and Amen dme nf.
Nor can it here reafonably be objected,
that God, by reafon of his Omnifcience,
knows already what we want, before we
ask for it j and, by reafon of his Good-
nefs, will do what is Fit, whether we ask
for it or no ; and that therefore, the put-
ting up of Prayers to him may feem need-
lefs. This (I fay ) is no jufl Objection.
For, the Defign of our putting up Petiti-
ons to God, is not for His Information,
but for a Teflimony of Our Acknowledg-
ment of our dependence upon him. We
do not ask of God, in order to acquaint
Him what things we fland in need of 5
but to exprefs the Senfe we ourfehes have,
of his being alone able to fupply our Wants,
and of his being the Only Author of every
good Gift. And though God will indeed
always do what is Fif, whether men pray
to him or no ; yet This alfo is no reafon
at all to neglect his Worfhip. For That
very Fitnefs of things, in the prefent
Cafe, arifes in great meafure from the
Qualification of Perfons : And one princi-
pal Qualification, which makes any per-
fon
232 An EXPOSITION
fon Fit to receive Bleffings from God, is
That difpofition of mind, from whence
proceedeth Prayer out of a pure Heart,
and with Lips unfeigned : So that, if men
refufe to pay him this juft and fmall tri-
bute, it will upon 'That very account be-
come a thing Jit and reafonable in itfelf,
that they {hould fall fhort of the divine
BleiTmgs. Nor is it any reafonable Ob-
jection againft the Duty of Prayer, that
in experience we fee things regularly go on
according to the Courfe of Nature : For,
in reality, Nature is nothing at all, but a
mere empty Word 5 and what we call the
Courfe of Nature, is, in truth, the conti-
nual operation of the Power of God, add-
ing generally with uniformity, but always
freely and according to his own good plea-
fufe. No reafonable man, inquiring af-
ter the Architect of a moft perfect Build-
ing, would take it for a fatisfactory An-
fwer, to be told that 'twas Natural for the
Fabrick to be built in That Form: Yet
the cafe is exactly the fame, when men
contentedly exclude confideration of God,
merely by ftyling His Operations the Ef-
fectl
JBOt
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 233
fe&s of Nature. The Supreme Power
therefore, and Perfections of God, are
jufi and unexceptionable Reafons of Pray-
ing to him, To pray to inferiour Beings,
to Angels or to departed Saints, (as has
long been the Pra&ife of the Church of
Rome,) is evidently needlefs j becaufe God,
we are fure, is always near, being him-
felf every where prefent. 'Tis moreover
Prefumption in men, and great Vanity -,
an intruding into thofe things which they CoJ ~ lg
have notfeen, vainly puft up by tkeirjiejkly
mind. For they do not fo much as pre-
tend, that praying to Saints and Angels
is any where commanded. Nor have they
any the leaft reafon to imagine, that An-
gels (who are mere miniftring Spirits)
have any Authority to regard their Pray-
ers ; much lefs departed Saints, whom
they do not know to be fo much as mini-
ftring Spirits, or that they hear their
Prayers at all ; nay, whom they cannot
poffibly know, before the day of Judg-
ment, whether they be Saints or no. Be-
fides: All thefe methods of Will-worjhip,
evidently derogate from the Honour of
Godj
234 ^ n EXPOSITION
God ; diftra&ing men's devotions j divi-
ding That affection and reliance of mind,
which ought to be placed upon God a-
I6ne ; and always leading to Superftitious
Equivalents in the ftead of 'True Virtue^
which alone can render men acceptable
in the Eyes of the All-feeing Judge of the
World. If it be alleged, that Sinful men
cannot of themfelves acceptably approach
the Supreme Throne of God ; We have,
by Divine Appointment, a fufficient Me-
tjoh.ii.i. diator and Advocate ivith the Father , Je-
fus Chrift the righteous ; who fitteth con-
tinually on the right hand of God, as our
Keb.iv. Great High-Prieft and IntercefTour, to
mediate for us, and to offer up our Pray-
Eph.iu 1 8. ers unto the Father, through him we have
accefs unto the Father. And our Lord's
job xv.i6. own dire&ion, is : Whatfoever ye Jhall ask
of the Father in my Name, he will give it
you. Prayer therefore is to be directed to
God through Chrift. And as praying to
falfe Gods, derogates from the Honour of
the One True God- t fo praying by or
through the interceffion of falfe and ficti-
tious Mediators, derogates in like manner
from
^/^CHURCH-CATECHISM. 235
from the Honour of Chrift y the only
True Mediator. For as there is One God, Tim.ii.
fo there is alfo One Mediator between God ^
and men. And they who hold not this
Head, (faith the Apoftle fpeaking of An-
gel-worjhippers who joyn Other Mediators
with Him whom Alone God has appoint-
ed to That Office J beguile themfehes 0/~Col.ii.i8,
their Reward. Z 9-
2. ANOTHER general Obfervation
taught us in this Form of our Lord's
compoiing, is, that Prayer ought to be
plain and perfpicuous, eafy and intelligible.
Our Saviour in this Prayer which he re-
commended to his Difciples, inferted no-
thing difficult and abftrufe j nothing that
requires Skill and Learning to underfland ;
nothing but what is fitted to the Ufe of
perfons of all Capacities, and of all Em-
ployments.
3. 'T i s obfervable, that this Prayer
of our Lord is very Jhort- y To mow us
that God needs not to be inftrutted, and
that he is not to be moved, by multiplicity
of Words*. 'Tis the Sincerity and Attenti-
on
236 An EXPOSITION
on of the Heart, that God chiefly re-
gards.
THIS in General.
IN Particular-, We are to obfervc,
that this Prayer begins with a moft pro-
per and inftructive Compellation or De-
fcription of God.
<>ur 5fatf)tr, tuifjicg art m &ea^
torn,
I N which words, we acknowledge
him, i/?, to be the Author and Creator
\ Cor. viii. of all things ; the Father, of whom are all
Eph iv 6 things ; the One God and Father of all,
'who is above all and through all and in w
all: Upon which account, Angels are in
Job Scripture ftyled the Sons of God-, and
/as^viJ Men are declared to be bis Of -spring.
We acknowledge him further to be the
Eph.iii.H. Father of our Lord Jefus Chrift, and
through Him, Our Father in a particular
manner, as being reconciled to us and re-
ceiving us as his Sons byfpirifual Regene-
ration and Adoption, according to the
gracious
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 237
gracious Terms of the Gofpel-covenant.
We acknowledge him our Father, with
refpect to his Care in preferving, his
Goodnefs in affifling, his Authority in cor-
recting, his Mercy in forgiving, his Love
in providing for our prefent and for our
future Happinefs. Alfo by ftyling him,
" Our Father, " not My Father, in a
Prayer compofed for the Ufe of every par-
ticular Chriftian ; our Lord has taught
us to look upon Charity and Good Will to-
wards our Brethren, as an effential Quali-
fication in Prayer to God.
2. B Y adding the words, " which art
" in Heaven ; " we declare our acknow-
ledgment of his Supreme Greatnefs and
Dominion over all. For, according to
the nature of the Jewifh language, to_$*
in Heaven, does not fignify limitation of
Place, but being High in Power. Thus
the Profperity of a City, is exprefled by
its being exalted to Heaven -, and the De- Luke x. '
ftruction of it, by its being thruft down to 5
Hell. The Omniprefent God, is every
where Prefent alike : Behold, the Heaven, , Kings
I and *7.
23 8 An EXPOSITION
and the Heaven of Heavens, cannot con-
tain thee. Yet he may be faid to be in
Heaven, as manifejling his Prefence There
after a peculiar manner by making it the
'Throne of his Glory, the place of Atten-
dance of Angels, the place of Happinefe
Rev. fi. to the Righteous, where they mail fee hh
Face, that is, mall have greater Difcove-
fies made to them of his Glory and Fa-
vour. And in fomewhat of the fame
fenfe, he is reprefented in Scripture as
dwelling formerly in the 'Temple of Je-
rufalem, and Now in Places of Divine
Worfiip, and Always in the Hearts of the
Righteous.
PETITION i. ^allOtDtD fee tl)p
As, in Praflife, the Love of God,
Matt.xxii. an( * a due Regard to Him, is the Firft
3 8 and Great Commandment j fo in our Pray-
ers, our Lord has taught us to ask in the
Jirft place for thofe things which concern
the Honour of God and of Religion in ge-
neral, and then for thofe things which
i more
Of tie C H U RC H-C AT E C H I S M.
more immediately and in particular re-
late to our own perfonal Wants. Of thofe
Petitions which relate to the Honour of
God and of Religion in general, the Firfl
is; " Hallowed be thy Name. "
To" hallow, " that is, to make My
orfantfify ; fignifies, in the Jewilh lan-
guage, to put a difference between things,
to feparaU, to Jet apart for religious
Purpofes, to exalt, to honour, &c. And
therefore its fignification is various, ac-
cording to the nature of the ether words
with which it is joined. When 'tis appli-
ed to God, it fignifies WorJJnpping or Ho-
nouring him, as the True God or Real
Governour of the Univerfe, and as diftin-
guijhed from all Idols or imaginary Pow-
ers. When 'tis applied to Men, employed
in religious affairs; it fignifies paying a
due Refpett to Them, and to their Office :
And Their hallowing or fanttifying Them-
felves, is their abftaining from things vile
and reproachful, from every thing that is
faulty and unbecoming their Office,
When 'tis applied to Places, Times, or
Things ;
24 o 'An EXPOSITION
Things ; as the Sabbath,, the Temple, the
Veffeh or Utenjih of the Temple j it figni-
fies, keeping them feparate from every
common or profane Ufe.
I N 7*j6 Petition, the phrafe is applied
to G<fc/: And therefore it fignifies, honour-
ing or glorifying him. Which may alfo
be done in different manners, according
to the different ufage of This Phrafe,
" the Name of God, " which we here
pray may be " hallowed. "
i. THE Name of Go d fignifies fome-
times in Scripture God himfelf-, much af-
ter the fame manner as, among Men,
" His Majejiy, " is a phrafe ufually ex-
preffing the Perfon of the Prince. Thus,
Pf.Ixir.jo. Praifing the Name of God, is, Praifing
Pf. cxvi. God : And, Calling upon the Name of the
Lord, is, Calling upon the Lord: And,
io. Ble/ed be the Name of God, is, Ble/ed be
: Ti;:ifr!? Yt>- - TLO'fl t \L^,.^:.oi^i hrr r :
^i.iiO 'iis, j -rao39<jnu Lnu ^'"i"'
10 ,'-.stv\i i. *'/ 1 O3 L ^ r> 5 c*j*-. Q*
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H IS M.
I N This fenfc of the phrafe ; hallowing
the Name of God, will fignify, adoring
the True Goo 1 , and adhering to the Wor-
Jhip of Him only, in oppofition to Idols.
According to which manner of fpeaking,
to forget the Name of God, is by the Pf.xliv.ao.
Pfalmift put as equivalent to ft retching
cut our hands to aftrange God. And, ma- Jofli.xxiii.
king mention of the Name of other Gods, ' '
5s, fwerving into Idolatry. And, walk- Micahiv.
ing in the Name of the Lord our God, is
adhering ftedfaftly to his Worfoip. And,
Santfify the Lord God in your Hearts, is i Pet.iii.
by St Peter oppofed to being afraid 0/'ye r . I4 .
their Terrour, that is, of their Falfe
Gods.
2. T H E Name of God fignifies fome-
times his peculiar Attributes, or Perfett-
ions, of Power, Wijdmn, Goodnefs, Mer-
cy and the like. Thus God proclaimed Exod.
before Mofes the Name of the Lord, xxxiv.s.6.
the Lord God, merciful and gracious,
long-fujfering, and abundant in Goodnefs
find Truth. Again : The Name (that is, pf.xx. i.
the Power) of the God of Jacob, defend
R thee.
242 An EXPOSITION
Pf.ix. 10. thee. And: They that know, thy Name
(that is, thy Veracity, Goodnefs, Mercy,
and other Perfections,) will put their
fruft in Thee.
I N 'This fenfe of the phrafe ; hallowing
the Name of God, will fignify, framing
right and worthy Notions concerning him,
and profeffing upon all occafions our ac-
knowledgment of his Divine Perfections ;
that (abfolutely fpeaking, and in the com-
plete fenfe of the words,) there is None
Powerful, None Wife, None Good, but
Matt.xix. One, that is God. That He is the Blejfed
iTim.vi. and Only Potentate, the King of Kings
15 ' and Lord of Lords-, Who only hath im-
mortality, dwelling in the Light which no
man can approach unto, whom no man hath
feen nor can fee-, to whom be Honour and
Power
3 SOMETIMES the Name of God
fignifies his Authority and Commiffion.
Thus concerning the Angel whom God
fent to lead the children of Ifrael ; My
Exod.xxiii Name, faith he, is in him. Again: lam
Jokv.43. ome > faith our Saviour, in my Father 's
x Name $
tf the C H u R c H-C AT E c H i s M. 243
Name ; that is, with His Commiffion.
And : By what Name, (that is, by whofc A&iiv.y.
Authority,) have ye done this ?
I N *Thh fenfe of the phrafe j hallowing
the Name of God, will fignify, paying
obedience to his Authority, wherefoever it
be found ; obedience to Magiflrates, to
Laws, in all things not inconfiflent with
Piety j obedience to the infpired Word of
God, and to the exhortations of the
Preachers of the Gofpel, in all things not
repugnant to the Gofpel itfel
4. SOMETIMES the Name of God
fignifies his *frue Religion. Thus, the Nehem i.
place that he hath chofen to fet his Name ^ eut xii ^
there ^ is the Seat of T^rue Religion, the 5- *
Place where he has appointed to receive
the Homage and Worfhip of his Servants.
Again : The Name of God, that is, his
True Religion, is blafphemed among the Rom.ii,
Gentiles, through Tou.
R z IN
244 An EXPOSITION
I N This fenfe of the phrafe ; hallow*
ing the Name of God, will fignify, conti-
nuing in the PracJife of True Religion^
and living fuitably to our Holy Profefli-
iTheffiv. on: Walking honeftly toward them that
^Tim.v. are without; Giving no occajion to the ad-
H- verfary to fpeak reproachfully : But, let-
16. ' ting our Light fo Jhine before men, that
they may fee our good Works, and glorify
our Father which is in Heaven.
5. Laftly i THE Name of God is
fometimes in Scripture taken literally,
to fignify men's making Ufe of the Name
of God in converfation, either upon So-
lefnn or upon Trifling Occafions. As, in
the Third Commandment ; Thou jhalt
not take the Name of the Lord thy God in
vain.
A N D in This fenfe of the phrafe ; hal-
lowing the Name of God, will fignify, be-
ing confcientioufly careful to avoid Perju-
ry, common Swearing, Curjing, and all
profane, rajh, unprofitable^ irreverent
Ufe of the Name of God, upon any oc-
cafion whatfoever. As has been at large
fee
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 245
fet forth, in the expofition of the Third
Commandment.
ACCORDING to all thefe federal
fenfes, in which the Name of God may
be faid to be hallowed; the full Meaning
of This Petition will be, to exprefs our
fmcere and hearty Defire, that all the
world may come to the Knowledge of the
True God; that every Mind may frame
juft and worthy Notions of him ; that eve-
ry Tongue may blefs and praife him ; that
every Creature may adore and obey him.
That all Nations, and we ourfelves in parti-
cular, may fear his Power, may admire his
Wifdom, may love his Goodnefs, may rely
upon his Truth^ may have a juft Senfe of
his Mercy and CompaJJion; in a word,
may embrace the True Religion, and
fuitably to it.
R 3 PETIT,
'An EXPOSITION
PETIT. 2. Cfjp $tw0&om come,
GOD is, by Nature, King and abfo-
lute Lord of the Univerfe ; and his King-
dom, in That fenfe, is always Prefent.
'Tis, by NeceJ/ity of nature, from ever-
lafting to everlafting j a Kingdom, of ab-
folute and irrefiftible Power ; that cannot
come at one time more than at ano-
ther.
BUT becaufe the true Greatnefs of e-
very Potentate, of every Moral Gover-
nour, conftfts chiefly in the Obedience of
thofe who are capable of Difobeying ;
therefore the Kingdom of God, in the
principal and moft eminent fenfe of the
phrafe, fignifies his Dominion over Ratio-
nal Creatures.
B Y the entrance of Sin into the World,
fbis Moral Kingdom of God began to
be oppofed ; (For to his natural Kingdom
of abfolute Power, no oppofition can ever
poflibly be made at all :) And, as Sin in-
cseafed, an oppofite Kingdom was fet up of
Idolatry
Of tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 247
Idolatry and Wickednefs, which is the
Kingdom of Satan, the Kingdom of the
Adverfary, the Kingdom of Darknejs,
the Kingdom of the Powers adverfe to
Virtue and Goodnefs.
IN order to deftroy thefe Works of the ijoh.iii.8.
Devil, that is, all idolatrous and immo-
ral Pradtifes whatfoever j not by Force,
(which is inconfiftent with the nature of
Virtue and Vice}) but by proper Motives
and Affiflances to Virtue ; God was pleaf-
ed to ftrengthen and inforce the Light of
natural Re 'afon, by different Revelations of
himfelf, at different times, to the Patri-
archs, to Mofes, and the Prophets ; and,
at laft, by the Preaching of his own Son ,
who, in the Go/pel, has made effectual Matt.vi.
provifion for reftoring the Kingdom of^'
God and His Righteoufnefs among Men.
FOR this caufe, the eftablijhment of
the Go/pet, the Religion ofChrift, the O-
bedience of Faith, that is, the Prevalency
of Virtue and Righteoufnefs founded upon
the Belief of the Gojpel ; is in Scripture
perpetually ftiled, " The Kingdom of Matt.vi;
R 4
248 An EXPOSITION
" God:" That Kingdom of God, which
i.43-our Saviour commands us to feek in the
Firft place, and threatens that the out-
ward Advantages of it Jhall he taken from
Them who intrinfically and really bring
not forth the Fruits thereof: That King-
dom of God, which, we are told, is
Lukexvii. Within us; and that it confifts not in
Rom.xiv. Meat and Drink, that is, not in external
J 7- Forms and Ceremonies, but in real Right-
eoufnefs and in the Joy confequent there-
upon.
A'ND becaufe this prefent imperfect
ftate here upon Earth, is at beji only in
i Cor. xv. order to a more perfeSt one to come ; when
24, z$> 26. Go d ma u ^ve put down All Rule and all
Authority and Power, and All Enemies
Jhall be dejiroyed, and his Saints Jhall
Rev. xxif. reign for ever and ever : Therefore to
Thztperfetf State it is, that " the King-
" dom of God " muft always be under-
flood to have reference, even when 'tis
exprefsly fpoken of the State of the Gof-
pel now prefent ; The one being the Begin-
ning, the other the End and Completion,
of
cf tie C H U R C H-C AT E C H I SM.
of one and the fame State : And 'tis That
Heavenly State, which ultimately and
properly is always meant by " T?he King-
" dom of God: " That Happy State,
wherein the Righteous ft> all Jhine forth as Matt.xiiL
the Sun, in the Kingdom of their Father : 43 '
Into which there Jhall in no 'wife enter a-
ny thing that dejiletb, neither wkatfoever *?
'worketh abomination, or maketh a Lie.
THERE are therefore *fhree fenfes,
in which this phrafe, the Kingdom of
God, may be taken. And thefe feveral
fenfes muft carefully be distinguished, in
order to understand rightly the Mean-
ing of the Petition, " Thy Kingdom
" come. "
i. IN the Fir ft place, there is God's
Kingdom of Nature, or his abfolute and
necejjary Sovereignty or Dominion over all
things. And in tfhh fenfe (as I before ob-
ferved) we cannot at all pray that his
Kingdom may came-, becaufe it is at all
times aftually, at all times nece/arily and
equally Prefent.
2, THERE
250 An EXPOSITION
2. THERE is his Kingdom of Grace,
or his Moral Dominion over the Wills and
Actions of Free Agents; by the Influences
of Reafon, by the Authority of his Com-
mands y and by the Motives of "Rewards
and Punijhments propofed. And This is
what is principally meant in This Petiti-
on. We pray that the Gofpel of Chrift,
the T^rue Religion and Worfhip of God,
may prevail and fpread over the whole
Ifai.xi.9. Earth, as the Waters cover the Sea : And
that all the Kingdoms of this world, may
Rt--.si.i5. become the Kingdoms of our Lord \ and of
his Chriji j that is, not by conqueft and
violence, but by perfwafion and force of
iCor.ii.4- Truth, by the power and demonftration
of the Spirit. And that all who embrace
Coliii.i5.and profefs the Truth, may let the peace
of God Rule in their Hearts, by living as
'worthy Subjects of his Kingdom. For 'tis
in the Subjection of Mind and Will to
him ; in the regulating of our Atfions>
Paffions, Appetites and Affections, ac-
cording to his Laws ; that This Kingdom
cfGod principally confiils.
3. THERE
a/" j& CHURCH-CATECHISM
3. THERE is his future Kingdom of
Glory. And tfhis alfo is intended in This
Petition. We pray, that Chrift may
come in his Kingdom ; and that We may Matt.xvi.
be preferred unto this his heavenly King- R ev .xxii.
dom, being delivered from every evil^ iy .
Work. Living foberly, right eoujly, and 8.
godly , in this prefent 'world ; Look- t ' U
ing for that bleffed Hope , and the glo-
rious appearing of the Great God, and
our Saviour Jefus Chrift. Or, as StPe- aPetiii.
ter expreffes it, looking for and Hajt- lz ' 1 *'
ing unto the Coming of the day of God,
wherein we y according to his Pro-
wife, look for new Heavens and a new
Earth, wherein dwelleth Right eouf*
nefs.
PETIT,
2 52 An EXPOSITION
PETIT. 3. Cfttl Will fce &OttC
in <artlr, a it i in Beaten,
Now here 'tis obvious to ask ; Is it
poffible his Will fhould not be done?
Can any thing rejtft His Will ?
To This QuefHon, the Anfwer is;
that, by his mighty Power, God can in-
deedy#^/zft? all things unto himfelf. For
the univerfal Syftem of Nature, depends
upon his Pleafure; and there is No Pow-
er, but of Him. But 'tis his Will and
Pleafure, that Intelligent and Moral A-
gents fhould not obey His Will, but by
their Own. 'Tis in confequence of this
Free Choice, that they are at all Moral
Agents; accountable for what they do;
worthy of blame or commendation ; ca-
pable either of Punimment or Reward.
He Jkows them what is Good and Evil ;
he commands them to purfue the one, and
to avoid the other ; he gives them Power,
and lays before them theftrongeft Motives
to incourage them fo to do ; but without
Comfuljion. This Tryal, this Probation^
he
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 253
he puts upon them : And 'tis the Perfect-
ion of their Nature, and the higheft Im-
provement of their Virtue, to choofe to o-
bey him cheerfully and readily. Inani-
mate Matter, is fubjedl to the Power of
God : But Rational Beings only, are fub-
je6t to his Laws.
THE more excellent the Nature, and
the more improved the Virtue of any rati-
onal Creature is ; the more does it delight
in imitating the Nature, and in obeying
the Will of God, who is Perfe&ion and
Goodnefs itfelf. Angels in Heaven,
thofe Servants of his, that do his pleajure -, Pf.cin. 21 ,
are the greateft Example of This kind.
And therefore in This Petition our
Lord has taught us to pray, that we
may be able to imitate Them-, to imi-
tate tfbeir conftant and ready Obedience, Lukexx,
in order to be made like them in their 3 6 -
Happinefs.
THE
An EXPOSITION
THE Meaning is ; not that the O-
bedience of frail and mortal Men can be
perfect 'in degree, like that of Angels*,
jam.iii.2. For, in many things we of end all; and
i Kings there is no man, that fmneth not -, and, if
i Job. i. 8. we fay that we have no Sin, we deceive
ourfeheSj and the Truth is not in us : But
we are to pray, and to indeavour, that
Our Obedience may b e complete in pro-
portion to Our nature and abilities, as
That of Angels is in proportion to
Theirs. We muft continually indea-
vour, to obey univerfally all the
Commands of God, to avoid all known
Sin, and to amend whatever we at any
time find amifs in ourfelves. And in
thefe Endeavours, whofoever are really
Lukei 6 J* ncere > tne Scripture, according to the
gracious Terms of the Gofpel-Covenant,
declares that, notwithftanding numerous
Infirmities, ftill they are righteous before
God> walking in all the Commandments
and Ordinances of the Lord blame-
THB
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM.
THE words of this Petition, " thy
|C Will be done in Earth, as it is in Hea-
" ven i " may likewife be underftood in
another fenfe, as zprofejjion of our Sub- Lukcxifi,
miffion to the Will of God in all things: 42 '
Not my Will, but thine be done. But the
True and principal fenfe of them, is ac-
cording to the foregoing Explication.
PE T i T. 4. <5itje u0 tJ)i fcap our
A F T E R the Petitions for things which
more directly and univerfally relate to the
Glory of God; our Lord teaches us to pro-
ceed in the next place, to pray for fuch
things as may in particular fupply our own
more immediate Wants. Not that God
needs to be informed what things we want ;
For he kncwcth what things we ha've need Matt vi
cf y before we ask him : But it becomes us
to exprefs continually the Senfe we have y
of our Dependence upon him for every
thing we injoy or hope for.
OUR
256 An EXPOSITION
OUR Wants which relate more parti-
cularly to the Body, are exprefied in the
prefent Petition : Thofe which relate to
the Soul, in \h& following ones.
BY this Petition, " Give us this day
" our daily Bread, . " we are taught in
general ;
i. To acknowledge That vniverfal
Providence, by which all things are direct-
ed. As God gave Being to all things, : fo
he preferves all things by Provifions and
and Supplies fuitable to their feveral na-
Attsxiv. tures. 'Tis He, that giveth us Rain from
17 ' heaven, and fruitful Seafons, filing our
Matt v. Hearts 'with food and gladnefs : Making
4S> his Sun to rife on the evil and on the good,
and fending Rain on the juft and on the
pf cxlvii. unjuft. 'Tis He, who maketh the Grafs to
8 9- grow upon the Mountains, and Herb for
the Vfe of Men : Who giveth Fodder unto
the Cattle, and feedeth the young Ravens
that call upon him : Nay, who clothes e-
ven the Lillies of the Field in fuch a
Matt v .j manner, that even Solomon in all hisglo-
18,29,30. r y^ ^0; nof ara y e( i Ufa one of thefe. Na-
&f the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 257
ture, which vain men are apt to talk of in
thefe matters, is nothing but an empty
word: And inanimate J'econd Caufes, are
nothing but mere Inftruments in the hand
of God* Our own Labour indeed, is
generally nece/ary>, Becaufe God hath
been pleafed fo to appoint, that the Earth
Jhall not ufually bring forth without La*
bour. But when we have done all we can,
the Effetf of our Labour will ftill depend
wholly upon His Blefiing. For He can
at any time deftroy with Famine, and
make a fruitful land barren^ for the wick* p c vii. 34;
ednefs of them that dwell therein He can
make the Heaven that is over our Head>
to be Brafs; and the Earth that is under xxviii *
us> Iron. He can fcorch with Drought, or
drown with Waters, or blaft with peftilen*
tial Winds : Or, even without with-hold~
ing any of the Blejpngs them) elves of Na-
ture, he can at any time withdraw the
whole Effetl and Fruit, the whole Bern-
ft and Injoyment of them. For, man Q eut
doth not live by Bread only y but by every 3
word that froceedeth out of the Mouth
8
25 g ^EXPOSITION
Pf.xxxix. of the Lord. And, when he with Rebukes
doth chaften man jor Sin, he maketh his
Beauty to confume away y like as it were a
Moth fretting a garment.
2. BY This Petition we are taught the
Lawfulnefs of dejiring temporal BleJ/ings.
Religion is fo far from depriving us of all
'Temporal Good things, that our Lord him-
felf here exprefsly directs us to pray for
them. Only our Delires after tfhefe things,
mufl always be in a due Subordination to
thofe of greater Importance. We mufl
Matt. vi. firft feek the Kingdom of God y and His.
Righteoufnefs ; and then we may lawfully
den* re, to have Thefe things alfo added un-
to us : For fo has Our Saviour taught us
to expert that they fball be, even in the
very fame fentence wherein he com-
ver. 34. mands us to take no Thought for the mor-
row.
b. iivHy/ r'j %l\kVJLJLwb feftSt'L f! '
THIS in general. In particular, we
may obferve,
I.. THAT
;>.
plalnefl
of the GkiTRCH-CATECHisM. 259
I. THAT by the word, " Bread, "
our Saviour here means, all the NecejJ'a-
fi'es, and all the Comforts of Life. No^
thing is more ufual, an, all Languages,
and upon all Subje&s, than to exprefs the
Whole by the name of fome principal
Part. Thus Right eoufnefs, or Faith, or
any other eminent Virtue, is frequent-
ly put for the Whole of Religion.
2. " BREAD " being the
and moft univerfally ncceffary Food ; it
may be obferved, that our Lord teaches
us to pray, not for fuperfuitics, for the
Supplies of Ambition, Pride, Vanity, orRom.xiii;
Luxury ; to make provifion for the Flejh, M
to fulfill the Lufts thereof-. But only for
the Necejfaries and Conveniencies of Life.
Having food and raiment, let us be there- Tim, y|,
'with content.
g. 'Tis obfervable, that our Saviour
adds the words, daily, and this day,
cl Give us this day our daily Bread, " or
(as it is in St Luke's Gofpel,) " give us
ff day by day our daily Bread j " to ad-
S 2 monifh
26o An EXPOSITION
monifh us, that our Life being fhort and
uncertain, and we having a greater Con-
cern upon our hands ; we ought not there-
fore to ialarge our Profpect, to extend our
Hopes and Defigns, beyond a convenient
Provifion for ourfelves and Families i but
to be content with what Providence fhall
enable us to obtain of This kind, in the
Matt.vi. ways of Integrity, Juftice, Goodnefs
34 ' andXIharity : Confidering, thatfufficient
unto the day is the Evil thereof; that it
needs not to be augmented with unrea-
fonable anxious care and follicitude for
the future : And having always in mind
That Admonition in the Parable of the
Luie xii. rich man, who had much Goods laid up
ip 20 - for many years; Thou Foot, this night
thy Soul Jh all be required of thef.
PETIT,
of the C H IT R C H-C AT E C H I S M.
.' J'VU fa*V;V$f **<
PETIT. 5. flnfc fbj0ifce Ottt
fixtgitoe Cfjem
tjat tttf*mf a0ainft 1^^.
THE foregoing Petition, relates to
things Temporal : Thepre/iwf and follow-
ing ones, to things Spiritual. In Thefe,
we are taught to pray, that God would
i>e pleafed to forgive us our paft Sins, and
to freferve us for the future from falling
into Sin and Mifery.
A N humble ConfeJJlon of paft Sins y and
a fincere Defire of Pardon > founded up-
on a jufl Senfe of the unreaforiablenefs of
Sin, and a real and hearty Defire of A~
mendment; is a qualification abfolutely
neceflary, in all our Prayers for future
Bleffings. For God hearetb not Sinners, joh.ijf.3i.
but Penitents only, whofe paft Sins he
firft forgives.
I N the cafe of Great and Prefumptu-
tuous Crimes, there muft be a more So-
lemn Humiliation and Repentance, and
fome fryal of the reality of the Change
S 3 *f
jte ' An EXPOSITION V
of a man's Heart and Z>//^, before he can
have within himfelf any j'atisfattory Hope
or Affurance of Pardon. But for the daily
infirmities and frailties, incident to thofe
who fincerely indeavour to live virtuoufly
and religioufly ; 'tis fufficient that we ask
Forgivenefs of them in our daily Prayers,
ijob.i.p. For if we confefs our Sim, God is faithful
and juji to forgive us our Sins, and to
clcanfe us from all unrigbteoufnefs.
THE Ground or Foundation of our ex-
pe&ing Forgivenefs of Sin, is the Mercy
and Goodnefs of God, the Inter cejjion of
Chrift, and the Suppojition of our own Re-
pen tance. The Mercy and Goodnefs of God,
is an eternal and effential Perfeftion. The
Intercejfion of Chrift, is the fffitf (not the
Caufe) of the Divine mercy : 'Tis the
Method, in which the Wifdom of God
thought it mofl Jit to convey his Mercy
3oh.iii,i6. to Sinners : God fo loved the World, that
he gave his only-begotten Son. And Repen-
tance on our part, is the Condition or Qua-
lification necefTary, in order to our be-
coming
tf tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 263
coming Obje&s of the Mercy of God
through the Mediation of Chrifl.
B Y Repentance, in Scripture and in the
Reafon of things, is always understood,
not only a Sorrwv for all known 'Sins,
but alfo an aftual Indeavour to forfake
them : And not T^hat only in particular ,
but moreover in general fuch a Dijpofition
of Mind, as becomes perfons really peni-
tent and forgiven : A mind delirous of
{bowing forth the Jincerity of its Repen-
tance, by univerfal Obedience ; and by
imitating of Him, whofe Mercy in for-
giving us we thankfully adore.
OF this imitation vi God, one Princi-
pal Part is Our forgiving Others, in like
manner as God hath forgiven Us. Which
Duty our Saviour thought to be of fuch
importance, that he not only here ex-
prefles it as a Condition of our own For-
givenefs, in the Body of the Prayer itfelf; Matt.vi.
but repeats it again at large, after the J I4t&
End of the Prayer; and inculcates it Mat.xviii.
with the addition of a particular Parable
on purpofe.
84 THE
4n EXPOSITION
THE Meaning of which Duty, of
'* forgiving tfbem that trefpafs againft
" Us, " evidently is; not that Magi-
Jlrates are to negleft to punijh Offenders j
o/ that private ferfons are to forbear
bringing Malefatfors to juftice ; not that
Chriftianity forbids us to recover our ^'w/?
Z)#tt from fraudulent Dealers, by courfes
of Law and Equity ; nor that we are in
fucb a fenfe to forgive thofe who continue
to wrong us, as to ^r#/? and tempt them
to wrong us more. But our Duty is, in
Matt xviii. matters of common Offenfe between man
Lukexvii. and man, to forgive, even until! feventy
M- times feven, thofe who do repent: And
thofe who do not repent, or have been
guilty of doing even Great Wrongs, we
are ftill to pray for them, and be willing
to do A&s of Charity and Humanity to-
wards them, if need requires ; and not to
be follicitous after Revenge, but to deiire
much rather their Amendment and Recon-
ciliation : And when we are forced at any
time to right ourfelvesby Law -, even Then
to defire only Equity for Ourfelves, and not
vexation and needkfs damage to the ed*
verfi
of ibe CHURCH-CATECHISM. 265
verfe party. In a word : Chriftians
ought to be in general of a kind and cha-
ritable Difpofition; dealing with Other \
as we defire and pray that God would be
pleafed to deal with Us.
THE Nature of the Duty of For-
givenefs being thus explained ; the Reafo-
nablenefs of the Practice of it will eafily
appear, not only by Arguments drawn
from the nature of the ^hing, from a
fenfe of the general Weaknefs and Infirmi-
ties of Humane Nature, from the Necef-
fty of Charity and Good-Will to the Sup-
port and Peace of Society, and from the
great Eaft and Quiet of Mind ariling in
particular from This Habit and Temper;
but principally and above all, if we confi-
cler how /// it becomes Thofe to be of re-
vengeful and unrelenting Spirits, to be
full of Hatred and Animojities among
'Themfehes , whom God hath forgiven
through the Redemption of Chrifl ; how
ill it becomes Thofe to be rigorous in exaff-
ing of their Brethren an hundred pence,
who
'An EXPOSITION
Mat.xviii.who have themfehe* received from God
24>28< the free Forgivenefs of ten thoufand ta-
lents.
PETIT. 6. Sfttfc lt& tl not ttfc
to Cemptatton: 25ut fcelitw: tig
from <Ctnl.
AFTER praying for the Forgivenefs of
what is pa/t, our Lord directs us to pray
that God would be pleafed to preferve us
from Sin/or the time to come. " Lead us
" not into Temptation. "
Now Temptation iignifies principally
Two things. Sometimes, barely Trying
a perfon: And, fometimes, perfwading
or J'educing him into Sin.
I. IN the/r/? fenfe of the word, 'tis
in the nature of things a neceffary and ef-
fential condition of a Probation-J$ate y that
there mould be fome Tryal of men's virtue-
And in This fenfe, the Scripture fcruples
not to affirm, that God himfelf tempts
en ( xxii. men: That God did tempt, that is, try,
x * Abraham ; That in the Wildernefi God
proved
of t&e CHURCH-CATECHIM. 267
proved Ifrael, to Know what was in their Deut.viii.
Heart, whether they would keep his Com-
mandments, or no: And that, as Gold in
the Furnace, doth he try the Souls of the wifdiii. 6,
Righteous. The Meaning is* not that,
in thefe cafes, God does not know before,
how men will behave themfelves ; But he
tries them, that They who have in them
a true Root of Virtue, may actually bring
forth the Fruit of it ; may be exercifed, l Cor ^
maybe approved, may be made manif eft, to 19.
the World here, and to Men and Angels
hereafter; and may be, in themfelves,
improved, eftablijhed, and ftted for the
ftate of Heaven. The trying of our Faith, j am< j. 3 .
worketh Patience, and Patience Experi- Rom.v.4-
ence, and Experience Hope. For This
Reafon we are exhorted, not to think it ip c t.iv.
flrange concerning the fiery Tryal (the va- l2 '
riety of Afflictions and Perfections) that
is to try us. Nay, on the contrary, we
are incouraged even to glory in Tribulati- R 0m .T.3.
ons-, and to count it all joy, when we fall Jam.i. 2.
into divers Temptations: Coniidering that
the Tryal of our Faith, is muck we f- i Pct.i. 7.
tious
268 'An EXPOSITION
tious than of Gold that perifheth j and that
Jam.i, 1 1. Ble/ed is the man that endureth tempta-
tion ; for when he is tried \ he Jhall receive
the Crown of Life.
NEVERTHELESS 'tis carefully to
be obferved, that when the Scripture
fpeaks in this manner concerning Rejoic-
ing in Temptations, it always considers
them under This view, as being experien-
ced, and already in great meafure overcome.
For otherwife, as to Temptations in general 9
Temptations unexperienced, and of which
we know the "Danger^ but not the Succefs j
our Saviour teaches us to pray, " Lead us
Mar. xiv. *' mt * nto Temptation : " And again, Watch
3 8 > and pray, leaft ye enter into Temptation*
Our Nature is frail, our Pajfions ftrong,
our Wills biaffed; And our fecurity, ge-
nerally fpeaking, confifls much more cer-
tainly in avoiding great Temptations,
than in conquering them. Wherefore we
ought continually to pray, that God
would be pleafed fo to order and direct
things in This Probation-ftate, as not to
t Cor.x. f u ff er us to be tempted above what we are
3 Me i
of tbe CHURCH-CATECHISM. 269
able i but that he would with the Tempta-
tion alfo make a way to efcape, that we
may be able to bear it. Our Lord directed
his Difciples, when they were perfecuted
in One City, to flee into another. And Matt. *.
they who refufe to do fo, when it is in 23 '
their Power ; lead Themfehes Into Temp-
tation, and tempt God.
2. IN the fecond fenfe of the word
Temptation, as it fignifies perfuading or
feducing men into Sin ; In This fonfe, as j am .i. 13,.
God cannot be tempted with evil, fo neither
tempteth he any man. He deceives, he
feduces no man ; but every man is tempt-
ed, when he is draw away of his own luft,
and enticed-, when he is drawn away by
the allurements of Pleafure, Covetoufnefs,
or Ambition, which he knows to be the
Snares of the Devil. Neverthelefs, be-
caufe nothing can be done without God's
Knowledge, nothing can come to pals
without His Permiffion, nothing can be
effeaed but by the Ufe or Abufe of thofe
Natural Powers that He has created j
therefore the Scripture frequently, in a
i figurative
2 7 o An EXPOSITION
figurative way of fpeaking, and in ac-
knowledgment of the Supreme Superin-
tendency of Providence over all Events,
afcribes the caufe of every thing to God.
Exod.xxi. Thus God is reprefented as delivering a
man, when he is (lain by Chance, into
the hand of his Neighbour ; as having
i Sam. moved David, by means of Satan's temp-
i Chi-'xxi tations, to number Ifrael and Judah ; as
V , .. having hardened Pharaoh's heart ; as ha-
/} ving hardened the Spirit of Sihon King of
Deut.ii. ji e jfrf on ^ an( i ma fa fo s Henrt objlinate ;
Jo(h xi 10 as having hardened the Nations, that they
might come againft Ifrael in battle, that he
i Kings might deftroy them utterly - y as having put
1x11.13. a lying -Spirit in the mouth of all Ahab's
ifai vi! ro. Prophets ; as making the Heart of the
people fat or ftupid, and their Ears heavy,
Rom. xi. *^ Jhutting their eyes ; as giving them the
fpirit of Jlum'b'er, eyes that they fiould not
fee, and ears that they jhould not hear ;
Rev.xvii. as P uttin g if in the Hearts of ; wicked
*7- Kings, to give their Kingdom unto the
iTh.ii. 1 1 . Beaft y as fending upon men Jtrohg Delu-
Jiort, that they Jhould believe a Lie \ and
as leading men into temptation. In all
which
ef the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 271
which expreflions, 'tis evident, the inten-
tion is not to affirm, (except poflibly in
fome very particular judicial cafes,) that
God aftually and efficiently does thefe
things; but only, that he juftly permit*
them to come to pafs.
THE Meaning therefore of the Petiti-
on, " Lead us not into Temptation, " (ta-
king the word Temptation now in the
latter of the Two fenfes I mentioned,)
will be This ; that God would not, judi-
cially and in anger ; give us up and leave
us to the Power of Temptation, and to
the Seducements of the Evil One j as he
did Pharaoh, and Ahab, and Judas, and
the Ifraelites in the Wildernefs, when (as
the Pfalmift exprefTes it) he gave them up pf.] xxx i.
unto their own Hearts Lufts, and let them J 2-
follow their own Imagination: But that,
on the contrary, he would either, by his
merciful Providence , keep us from the Rev.iii.io*
Hour of Temptation ; or, by his gracious z p et ii 9i
Support, deliver us out of it.
THE
272 An EXPOSITION
THE following part of this Petition,
" But deliver us from Evil ; " may e-
qually be underftood to fignify* ci-
ther, deliver us from the Evil One-, or,
deliver us from every Evil Thing, from
the Evil of Sin, and from the Evil of
Mifery. The fenfe, either way, a-
mounts to the fame. For as God is the
Fountain of all Moral and of all Natural
Good y the Fountain of Goodnefs and Hap-
pinefs : So in Scripture all Moral Evil is
G>! i 15. reprcfented as the Kingdom, and all natu-
ral Evil as the Power, of the Enemy.
From all which, our Lord directs us to
pray in general Terms, that God would be
pleafed to deliver us : The particulars of
what we ought moil to fear, or moft to
hope for, tejng beft left to Him, who
knows all our Dangers and all our Wants,
even before we ask him.
The
of the CH URCH-CAtECrt ISM. 273
The CONCLUSION.
tge fiingDom, tfje $otcer and tfte
for ruer and etoer, Amen.
A s our Lord teaches us to begin our
Prayers, with an acknowledgment of the
Dominion and of the Goodnefs of God -,
" Our Father, which art in Heaven; J)
So he direds us to conclude likewife with
a Profeffion of the fame j " For thine'
" w ^ Kingdom, the Power and the
" Glory, for ever and ever; Amen, "
I N This Doxology, we are taught di-
ilindlly to acknowledge ;
i. G o D'S abfolute Sovereignty and Do-
minion over AIL To Him belongs the
Kingdom, and the Power. He is the Firft
Caufe and the continual Difpofer of all
things, in the univerfal Syflem of the
Material World. He, the Maker, jpre-
ferver t Governour, and Judge of Men.
He, the Creator and Lord of Angels, and
of all the Principalities and Powers in
Heavenly Places, He, the Sender of the
T Holy
An EXPOSITION
joh.xiv. Holy Ghojl, according to his own Will. He,
4. the God and Father of our Lord Jgjus
Ej>h iv 6. who is Above ally the Father, of whom
i S P >l the whole * Family in Heaven and Earth
^*are " name d : Of whom, and through whom,
relative and To whom are all things : To whom
Rom . xi be glory and dominion for ever.
3 6 -
iPet.v.i i. 2 . W E are here taught to acknowledge
the Peculiarity of this Supreme Dignity,
as belonging to God Alone. The King-
and the Power and the Glory, is His ; His,
in a fenfe, in which it can be applied to
no one befides Him ; His, originally and
ultimately, and independent on Any.
Others have Kingdoms-, but, His King-
Pf.ciii. 19. dom ruleth over all. Others have Power
but derived from His Power. Of hers have
Glory ; but all terminating in His Glory.
3. BY This Doxology we are taught,
that as Prayer for what things we want,
is a natural Duty; fo is Praife and
Thankfgiving and Glorifying of God, for
whatever good things we receive. We
are to acknowledge with Thankfulnefs,
that
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C HI S M. 275
that we receive them from Him ; and we
are to ufe them to His Glory, in promo-
ting always the intereft of 'Truth and
Righteoufnefs and Sobriety and Piety in
the world.
T H E R E is one tiling further to be ta-
ken notice of upon this Head : That, as
the Compellation , " Our Father which
" art in Heaven, " wherewith our Lord
teaches us to begin this Prayer j is a Pre-
face both to the Whole Prayer, and to e-
very Petition in particular: So This
Doxology at the End of it, is not barely a
Conclufion of the Whole-, but alfo a
Ground or Reafon of every Part, a Foun-
dation for every Petition in particular.
We 'Therefore pray to Him, for whatever
is deferable either in This world or in That
to come ; becaufe His is the Kingdom,
from everlafting to everlafting ; His is
the Power, from infinity to infinity j Hw
is the Glory, of whatever G<W is in ti:e
Whole natural or moral World.
T 2 Qu,
276 An EXPOSITION
Qu. HMjat defireft tljou of 5od in
Anfw. 3f detfre mp 2ojd <5od our
fjeafcenljj jfatfjer, toljo is? tfie
of all <6oodnef$, to fenD l)i$
ttnto me anD to all people, t^at toe
map tuojffnp ftim, ftrbe ftim, an&
obtp fttm a0 tot ougijt to do. And
2E pjap unto <<3oD, tljat ge Urill fenD
us all tfjing^ tfjat be needful botlj
fo? our J>oul0 and 3odie '
tftat Ije toill be merciful unto
and fo20iue u$ our ^ttw? ; and
it totll plcaft dim to fatie and defend
u$ from all ^angertf sfioftlp and
fcodtlp : 3lnd tljat fie toould heep u^
from all &in and IBtrhedntft, and
from our 0ljoHlp ^ntmp, and from
tfcttfaftttts ^eat^. and tlji^ 0f truft
^e toill do of, ?ji .ttlercp and
t|ftou0Ij our lo?d
: ^tnd t^erefo^e 3[ fap, Amen.
be it
PART.
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 277
PART V. *&**
Of the SACRAMENTS.
manp J>acrammt
ijatfj C&uft oj&awcfc in
Anfw. ctoo otrln, a^ 0eneraIIi) ne^
reffarp to Valuation ; tljat t0 to
Cap, 25aptifm and tlje Cupper of
'T i & the peculiar Excellency and Ad-
vantage of the Cbriftian Religion, that
it is not burdened, as the Jeivifo was,
with a multitude of external Rites and Ce-
remonies. Nothing is Now required of
Us, but that by Repentance we forfake the
Works of unrighteoufnefs, as has been
above explained under the Quejlion con-
cerning the Promife made by the Sureties
in Baptiim : That we have Faith towards
T 3 God,
2? 8 An EXPOSITION
God and our Lord Jefus Chrift, as has
been fet forth in the Explication of the
Apoftles Creed: fbat we obey the Com-
mandments of God, as they have been
expounded by our Saviour in his Sermon
upon the Mount: that we exprefs our
Devotion towards God in conftant Pray-
er, after the manner of the Pattern which
our Lord has taught us : Tbat we enter
into a folemn Obligation at our firft ad-
mimon into ChrifVs Church by Baptifm,
to perform thefc Conditions: And tbat
we perpetually confirm and remind our-
felves of That Obligation, by communi-
cating in the Sacrament of the Lord's
Supper. Whofoever worthily performs
Thefe Duties of a Chriftian, ftands in
need of no additional Buildings upon
This Foundation : No arbitrary Penances,
to fupply the place of real Repentance
and Amendment : No additional Articles
of Faith, of mere humane invention : No
Supererogation of Obedience to the Super-
ftitious Commandments of Men, to com-
pleat or make amends for the want of
Obedience to the Laws of God: No new
Devotion
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 279
Devotion to Saints or Angels, different
from and oppofite to our Saviour's direc-
tion of praying to the Father in the
Name of Him only, our Alone Mediator :
No additional Sacraments by the Autho-
rity of the Church, to fupply any defeats
in thofe which our Lord himfelf has ap-
pointed,
THOSE appointed by our Lord him-
felf, are Two only: Baptifm, and the
Lord's Supper. By the One, we begin to
profefs our felves Chriftians ; by the O-
ther, we declare our Continuance in that
Profeffion. By the One, we are admitted
into the Church of Chrift ; by the Other,
we live in conjiant Communion both with
Chriil the Head, and with all the Mem-
bers of his Spiritual Body. By the One,
we folemnly vow and promife to give our-
felves up to the Guidance of the Spirit of
Holinefs, and to the Obedience of God's
Commands; by the Other, we perpetually
repeat and ratify, confirm and renew That
Vow ; and lay afrefh upon ourfelves the
moft folemn Obligations, to indeavour
T 4 conftantly
An EXPOSITION
conftantly with God's afliftance to per-
form it.
THESE two Sacraments are here fpo-
ken of as being " neceffary to Sahati-
" c on j " Becaufe concerning the One, our
Joh.iii.5- Saviour has affirmed, thatexceft a man be
born of Water and of the Spirit, be can-
not enter into the Kingdom of God. And
the Other is an exprefs Command to all
Lutcxiii. his Difciples, to do That in Remembrance
l9 ' of Him j which if they contemptuoujly
neglect to do, they feem to defpife their
Lukexxii- part of the New tfeftament in his Blood.
20.
YET 'tis well added, "generally"
neceffary to Salvation j to mow that the
Neceffity here fpoken of, is not abfolute
and rigorous. For though, with regard
to Baptifm, our Saviour's words may
feem abfolute and without exception ;
yet in the nature of the Thing, 'tis evi-
dent, there muft of neceffity be Excepti-
ons. Infants (for inftance) dying without
Baptifm, fince 'tis not Their Fault, but
to Them altogether unavoidable ; 'tis im-
poflible. to conceive they mail perifh, for
not
cf the CHU R CH-CATE CH ISM. 281
not doing what they could not do. And
there is in the Scripture itfelf an Example
of a Chriftian Convert, who was certainly
faved though \&&&unbaptized: Which
is the Thief upon the Crofs. And Many
Converts in the Primitive Ages, were
martyred fuddenly, before they could
have any opportunity of being baptized :
And yet no man ever doubted of their
Salvation. For They died with Chrift, and .
for Chrift * literally ; whereas Baptifm is ^
the dying with him, only -j~ in a Figure. ^ Tt ; T? .
3 Tis plain therefore, that abfolute and
univerfal Declarations of This fort, are
always to be underftood with necefiary
Exceptions.
WITH refpect to the Lord's Supper,
the declaration of our Saviour not being
fo abfolute, we ought by no means to
condemn Thofe, who abjiain through
Fear and Scruple and Tendernefs of Con-
fcience, with the like Severity as we have
reafon to do thofe who defpife God's Or-
dinance. Neverthelefs, fince the Com-
mand of Chrift is exfrejs and unfoerfal,
it
282 An EXPOSITION
it becomes all pious perfons to remove,
aflbon as poffible, the ground or occaiion
of the Scruple, whatfoever it be j and
prepare themfelves to comply with the
Command of their Lord. In the doing of
which, they are {till always to remember,
that This and all other pofitive Inftituti-
ons have the nature only of Means to an
End*, and that therefore they are never to
be. compared with Moral Virtues, nor can
ever be of any Ufe or Benefit without
them, nor can be in any degree Equiva-
lents for the Want of them.
WITH regard to the Number of the
Sacraments, which are here declared to
be 7W ; there are Two forts of perfons
juftly to be reproved : Thofe who dimi-
nifi from that Number, and thofe who
add to it.
"3 O F the former fort are the people com-
monly called Quakers ; who taking away
all Sacraments entirely, and changing
thefe moft plain and literal Commands in-
to a fort of Allegory only ; are evidently
in the way of too great a Tendency, to
turn
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 283
turn the whole Doctrine of the Coming
of Chrift in the Flefh, into a mere Fi-
gure.
I N the contrary Extreme, are thofe of
the Church of Rome. Who, to the 'Two
Sacraments, of our Lord's inftitution,
have without any reafon added Five
more of their own.
i. CONFIRMATION. Which is
not at all Another Sacrament, but merely
a Circumftance or Appendage of Eaptifm :
A Rite or Ceremony, by which Baptized
perfons folemnly and publickly declare
and take upon themfelves their Baptifmal
Vow.
2. P E NANCE. Which is nothing
but an arbitrary Difcipline , impofed
wholly and folely by mere Humane Au-
thority.
3. EXTREME Unflion. Which is
an abfurd Superftition, built upon a grofs
mifinterpretation of a Jingle Paflage in
St y
284 'An EXPOSITION
am.v.i^Sty^w^'s Epiftle: Where direction be-
ing given for anointing the Sick with Oil,
in order to a miraculous Recovery, that
the Lord may raife him up, and his Sins
be forgiven him ; the Church of Rome has
thence invented an extreme Unftion for
fuch as are Paft Recovery, in order to
their Salvation in the world to come.
4. ORDINATION. Which is
not a Sacrament, but merely a Defigna-
tion of certain particular Perfom to a
particular Office.
5. MATRIMONT. Which has
no other pretenfe to be called a Sacra-
ment, but only becaufe St Paul, in his
comparing it with the Union which is be-
tween Chrift and his Church, calls That
- Similitude a great Myftery. Which the
Latin Tranflator ignorantly and ridicu-
loufly renders, a great Sacrament.
AND This is all the Foundation of
the five Popim additional Sacraments.
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 285
Qu. HKjat meaneft tijou bp
Anfw. g wean an onttoard and
totftble Jttsn of an intoard and fpt^
ritual <!^ace, gitoen unto us, o^
.darned bn <ff^ift fjtmfelf, a0 a
I^ean0 tufjerebp toe teceiue tJje fame,
and a0 a pedge to atfiite 110 tgere^
of.
AFTER determining the Number of
the Sacraments, and in order to prove the
truth of that determination j follows the
Definition of a Sacrament, or what it is
that we mean by That Word.
i. I N a Sacrament therefore, there
muft be, firft, " an outward and vifibls
< Sign j " fuch as is Water in Baptifm,
and Bread and Wine in the Lord's Supper.
The Reafon is, becaufe, in the nature of
the thing, it muft be a Publick dedication
of ourfelves to the Service of Chrift, and
a Publick atteftation of our Communion
with him. Repentance from dead works,
and
An EXPOSITION
and Faith towards God, evidenced in a
new life of Righteoufncfs and HoUneJs y
are indeed always acceptable to God : But
they are not what we call a Sacrament ;
they are not a publick Covenanting with
God, but when declared and (ignified by
that " outward and vifible Sign, " of be-
ing buried with Chrift in the Baptifm of
Rom.vi.4. Water. In like manner, to commemorate
thankfully the Death of our Lord, is al-
ways an acceptable part of Devotion :
But it is not what we call a Sacrament,
unlefs That inward thankful Remem-
brance be publickly and folemnly repre-
fented by the outward Signs of breaking
Bread and pouring out Wine.
2. IN the conflitution of a Sacrament \
there muft be a Ground of expectation of
" an inward and fpiritual grace, " to be
tc given unto us, " correfpondent to the
intent of the outward and vifible Sign.
The Reafon is, becaufe hereby it is diflin-
guifhed fromfuch Rites and Ceremonies^
as are merely Jignifcant of our Obligation
or Duty, but have no Promife or AfTu-
ranee
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I SM.
ranee of any certain Blejjing or Benefit
annexed even to the moft due and regular
Ufe of them. Of this latter kind is the
Ufe of the Crofs in Baptifm : Which
therefore is never pretended to be a Sacra-
ment, but merely an arbitrary Memorial
of our own obligation, that we (hould not
be ajhamed to confefs the Faith of Cbrift
crucified, and manfully to fight under his,
Banner again/I Sin, the World, and the
Devil-, and to continue Chrift's faithful
Soldiers and Servants unto our lives end.
And of the fame nature are All Rites and
Ceremonies, of mere Humane Appointment.
For which reafon, 'tis rightly added in the
third place, that in a Sacrament the out-
ward Sign muft be fuch as is,
3. " Ordained by Chrijl himfelf. "
Outward Signs have not of themfehes,
and in the natute of -Things, any neceffa-
ry connexion with Inward and Spiritual
Advantages : But the Benefit muft be an-
nexed to the outward Signs, (not to the
Signs themfehes, as phyjical Efficients ;
but to the worthy UJe of them, as moral
i Conditions -,)
288 An EXPOSITION
Conditions^} by the Power and Will of
God. Confequently, without His exprefs
Appointment and Authority,, they can be
but empty Signs, or, at moil, accidental
Affiftances to remind us of our own Duty
and Obligation. And of This nature, as
I before faid, are all Rites and Ceremonies
of mere Humane Appointment. Baptifm,
even in the nature of the thing itfelf y
would be a very proper emblem and memo-
rial of our obligation to moral Purity :
But 'tis merely by virtue of the Command
and Promije of God y that 'tis efficacioufly
Lukeiii.s. the Baptifm of Repentance for The Remij-
fion of Sins.
4. " As a Means whereby we receive
" the fame y and a pledge to ajfure us
" thereof. " The outward Signs, are
Means whereby we receive the inward and
fpiritual Benefit; no.t in the way of phyfi-
cal Efficiency* (as I juft now obferved,)
but in the way of moral Qualification.
There is no Superflition whatfoever, more
mifchievous and deftructive of True Re-
ligion j than men's imagining, that, in a
i Sacrament,
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 289
Sacrament^ the inward and fpiritual Bene-
fit is necejjarily and in courfe conned: ed
with the outward Performance : Which is
the nature of a Charm, not of a Religious
ASlion. A Sacrament is effentially, as
every thing in Religion muft be, of a Mo-
ral Nature. The fpiritual Benefit is, by
the Appointment of God, fo annexed to
the Ufe of the Means j as that every one, not
who partakes, but who worthily partakes
of the outward Sign, fhall be alfo made
Partaker of the inward BleJJing. Baptifm,
if it be only the putting away of the filth ip e t.iii.
of the F lejh, a mere Ceremony or Wafhing al *
of the Body ; and be not followed with
a Virtuous Life, producing the Anfwer of
a good Confcience towards God; 'tis of no
Benefit at all, to the perfon who receives
it. And in like manner, whoever re-
ceives the Elements of Bread and Wine,
if at the fame time he difcerns not the t c r. x
Lord's Body, that is, if he be a profane *9>
and vitious perfon ; the Means of Grace,
are by him received to his own condem-
nation > and That which was defigned to
U be
290 An EXPOSITION
r Cor. ii. be a favour of Life unto Life, becomes to
l6 ' Him the favour of Death unto Death.
U. fcotu manp $art be tijere in
a ,$arramcnt}
Anfw. Ctoo: Clje outtoard totfiWt
and tlje intDarD fpmtual
Qu. a^ljat i]0! t(|e outtDard Uifiblc
in
Anfw. Heater, tDlierein t^e
10 fcaptt5e&, 3in tge ^ame of tlje
jr atfjec, and of tfte J>on, and of tfts
Qu. ll^gat 10 tfje tntoard and
ritual
Anfw. & ^eatlj unto J>in, and a
ncto Sirtft unto ftigfjteoufnefjs: jf oj
being ftp Mature ftojn in ^in, and
tije Children of i^atft, toe are ljere>
ftp made tfje Children of C^ace.
Qu.
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 291
QIK l$fjat i& required of $er^
fons to be baptised \
Anfw. Repentance, U>S*relm tljeji
fo?fafce <itt; and jfaitfj,
rtjep ftedfaftlp feelietoe tije
of <0ofc made to tftem in tfjat ,
AFTER declaring the Number of the
Sacraments, and the Nature of a Sacra-
ment in general, what it is; the Cate-
chifm proceeds to explain diftindly and
in particular, each of the two Sacra-
ments, Baptifm and the Lord's Supper.
I N the Sacrament of Baptiftn, there is
to be confidered,
I. T H E Matter: Which is " Water,
" 'wherein the per f on is baptized. " A-
mong Writers of needlefs curiofity, there
have fometimes been ftarted Queftions
concerning the Reafons of this Appoint-
ment, and what degree of neceflity there
is for the Ufe of 'This Element in particu-
lar. But all Queflions of This kind,
are vain and ufelefs. The Will and good
U 2 Pleafurc
292 An EXPO
Pleafure sof God, is, in matters of This
nature, Reafon fufficient. Yet it deferves
alfo to be taken notice of, that, before
our Saviour's time, the Jews manner of
admitting Profelytes, was by baptizing
them with Water. And 'tis, in itfelf, a
natural Emblem of Purity and Cleannefs :
Aptly reminding us, that as our Bodies
are cleanfed by the Warning of Water ; fo
Rom.iii. pur Sotf/s muft be purified by the Blood of
Chrift, that is, by the application of it in
j Pet.iii. tn Forgivenefs of Sim paft, and in the
Anjwer of a good Confcience towards God
Hcb x 22 for the future j Having our Hearts fprink*
led from an evil Confcience^ and our Bodies
wafted with pure Water.
2. T H E next thing to be confidered in
Sacrament, is the Form in which we
are baptized : " In the Name of the Fa-
-^ ther y and of the Son, and of the Holy
*' Ghoft. " By which Form, we make
folemn Profeffion of our Belief, in the
Eph.iv.6. One God and Father of all, who is above
i.^//. O f our Belief in the Qne Lordf j e _
Jus Chrift, who is the Redeemer, the Savi-
our
..s a
of the CHURCH-CA? E en ISM. 2:93
our, arid the Judge of All ; and of our
Belief in the One Holy Spirit of God, by
whom God mjptred the Prophets under
the Old Teftamerit, and the Apojlles un-
der the New. By this Form, we are bap-
tized into the Covenant of reconciliation
with God the Almighty Father and Maker
of all things; We are baptized into ^ Rom vi.3.
)eath ^ChrHl, in whom we have redemp- Col i. 14.
tio'n through his blood, even the forgivenejs
of Sins: We are baptized with the WaJb-Ttt.m. 5.
ing of Regeneration and renewing of the
Holy Ghoji, which God our Saviour (asf ver.4&6.
St Paul exprefTes it) hath Jhed on us abun-
dantly through Jefus Chrift our Saviour,
and by which we are fealed unto the day 0/*
Redemption. By This Form, we dedi-
cate ourfelves folemrily to the Service and
Worfhip of God our Father, who created
us ; To the Obedience and Imitation of
Chrift, the Son of God, who redeemed
us ; And to the Direction and Guidance of
the Holy Spirit, which Sanctifies us. And
accordingly all the Antient Baptifmal
Creeds, in the Primitive Church, were
Paraphrafes upon tfhis Form.
U 3 THE
A* EXPOSITION
3. T H E " inward and ffiritual
'* Grace " fignified by the " outward
" vifible Sign " in Baptifm, is " a Death
". unto Sin, and a new Birth unto Righte-
Rora.vi. 4 . " oufnefs, " We are buried 'with Chrijt
by Baptifm into Death, that like as Chrift
'was raifed up from the dead by the Glory .
of the Father, even Jo We alfojhould walk
in newnefs of Life. In the Primitive
times, the manner of Baptizing, was by
Immerfon, or dipping the whole Body in-
to the Water. And This Manner of do-
ing it, was a \zryjignificant Emblem of
the Dying and Rtfing again, referred to
by St Paul in the above-mentioned Simi^
litude. But in whatever manner the
outward Ceremony be performed, the
moral Obligation upon baptized perfons is
flill always the fame. For the Baptifm
i Pet iii which faves us, is not the putting away of
\\* the filth of the Flejh, but the Anfwer of a
good Confcience towards God. The Reafon
of the institution, follows: " For^ being
<c by Nature born in Sin, and the children
" of Wrath, we are hereby made the chiU
J< dren of Grace. " The phrafe, being
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 295
"by Nature children of Wrath, " is by
St Paul ufed only concerning idolatrous Eph.ii. 3.
and vicious Men, who, before their con-
verfion to the Belief of the Gofpel, had
their corruerfation in times paft in the Lufts
of the Flejh. It can here therefore be un-
derftood only by way of accommodation j
that as Wicked Heathens, the children ver 2 -
of Difobedience, were, upon account of
their unreafonable Vices, liable ii> the
Highefl degree, to the Wrath of God ; fo,
in proportion, all men, by their Frailty
and Aptnefs to Sin, always coming jhort Rom.iii,
of the Glory of God ; and thofe who are 23 '
as innocent as they were born, being ftill
void of Merit ; they are All of them Such,
as can have no Claim of Right to That
Eternal Life, that Kingdom of everlafting
Glory and Happinefs, which is the Free
Gift, the Free Promife of God in Chriji-,
and which he cannot be bound to give,
but to whom, and upon what Terms and
Conditions he himfelf fees fit, who is the
Alone Maker and Lord of All, and has a
Right to do what he pleafes with his own.
U 4 4. T H E
296 An EXPOSITION
4. T H E fourth and loft Particular to f
be conlidered in the Sacrament of Baptifm,
is; 'what Qualifications are requifite, in
order to receive it with Effect. And
dsii .38. thefe are Two: " Repentance, " and
viii.s?. Faith. " Repent, and be baptized - y
faid St Peter to the Jews. And : If
thou Believeft 'with all thine heart, thou
mayejl ; faid Philip to the Eunuch.
W H AT is here meant by " Repen-
11 tance, " has been fully explained in
the former part of the Catechifm, in the
Expofition upon Thofe words, " renoun-
" cing the Devil and all his Works, the
" Pomps and Vanity of this wicked World,
" and all the Jinful Lufts of the Flejh. "
And what is here to be understood by
" Faith, " has likewife at large been
mown above, in the Expofkion upon the
Apoflles Creed.
ALL that rejuains upon This Head,
is to anfwer an obvious Objection, which
muffc here arife naturally in every one's
mind. If Repentance and Faith are ne-
ceflary
Of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 297
cefTary Qualifications, to fit and prepare
perfons for Baptifm $
tfjen are 3fnfant$ fiaptk
3eD, tuljen fop reafou of tljeir tert&er
ftge tfjep Cannot perform thefe Con-
ditions ?
Anfw. 25ecaufe tjep p?omtfe tfjem
footlj fop tfteic u |>uretic : H3f)tc
mife, tofjen tgep come to ^t0e,
felt0 are fiounD to perform.
INFANTS cannot indeed
Believe, and O/^^y. Yet they may never-
thelefs be capable of being admitted into
the Church of Chrift by Baptifm ; Be-
caufe they have Innocency which is better Matt
than Repentance^ and of Such (faith our M.
Lord himfelf ) is the Kingdom of Heaven.
They can alfo be received into Covenant
on God's part, as well as the Jews were
by Circumcifton. And on their Own Parf t
a Promife of Faith and Repentance can
be made for them by Sureties. Which
Promife, they themfehes (when they come
to
jr 9 8 An EXPOSITION
*6 Age) mall for this Reafon be bound to
take upon Themfelves, becaufe the Condi-
tions are of fuch a nature, as it would
have been their indifpenfable Duty to per-
form^ though no fuch Promife had ever
been made for them. One perfon indeed
cannot by his Promife bring any Obliga-
tion upon Another, without his own Con-
fent. But any one may ingage to remind
Another, of fuch things as That Other
was originally obliged to , and which
would equally have been his Duty,
though no fuch Promife had been made
for him at all. As has at large been
fhown above, upon occafion of that Que-.
ftion at the Beginning of the Catechifm,
" Doji thou not think that thou art bound
" to believe and to . do as they have promt-
" fedforthee? "
TH^\T they who have been Baptized
in their Infancy, may the more folemnly
take upon themfelves their Baptifmal
Vow ; the Ceremony of Confirmation has
been inftituted. But whether they be
Confirmed, or no *, all men who make
Profeffion
of the CHURCH-CATECH ISM. 299
Profeffion of Chrijlianity, oughr. to un-
derftand and confider, that, by That
Profejjion, they are obliged to perform
the Conditions undertaken at Baptifm.
Otherwife, their Profeflion is vain.
QU. mfyv tua tfie ^actament of
tfjt Hojb'g Cupper o^fcamed *
Anfw. jf aj tge tontinuai
ft^ante of tlje Sacrifice of tl^e
of Cf|?tft, and of tfie
tofjtcfi me tecettje tfjercbp.
B Y the Sacrament of Baptifm, we are
initiated into the Profefllon of Chrifliani-
ty, and admitted to the Terms of the Chri-
flian Covenant. By the Sacrament of the
Lord's Supper, we declare our Continu-
ance in that Profeffion, and perpetually
renew and ratify Our part in the Cove-
nant of the Gofpel.
I N the Account here given of the Na-
ture, End, and Dejign of this latter Sa-
crament 5 the/r/? thing fuppofed, is
i. AN
3co An EXPOSITION
1. AN Acknowledgment that Chrift
died for the Sins of Mankind : The Lord's
Supper was inftituted for the continual
Remembrance of " the Death of Chrift. "
Goodnefs and Mercy, are indeed e/ential
Perfections of God. But the Method
wherein, and the Terms upon which,
God will extend his Mercy and Compani-
on towards Sinners ; this depends entirely
upon the Good Pleafure and Wifdom of
God. The original Ground of Forgivenefs
to Penitents, is the eternal effential Good-
nefs and Mercy of our Heavenly Father :
The Method, in which the Divine Wifdom
has thought fit to raanifeft this Mercy, is
Jbhaii. 16 by the Death of Chrift. Godfo loved the
world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, &c.
2. T H E next thing here declared, is,
that the Death of Chriil was a " Sacri-
" fee. " Inftead of the Life of the Sin-
ner, God was pleafed, under the Law,
to accept the Sacrifices of Beafts. Not
Hcb. x. 4. c ^ at * c was poffibh* f ke Blood of Bulls and
of Goats, Jhouldtake away Sins: But they
were accepted as 'I'eftimonies of Repent-
ance,
of tie CHURCH-CATECHISM. 301
^ and as types of Chrift. Chrift was
himfelf without Spot and finlefs: And
therefore his voluntary Offering of himfelf
was acceptable to God, and efficacious to
procure Pardon to Penitents. God's abfo-
lute Power and Sovereignty, might poffi-
bly have pardoned Sin otherwife : And he
could not have been faid to be Unjuft in
doing it. But he might alfo not have par-
doned it ; And there was no fecurity, that
infinite Juftice and Wifdom would not
think it more proper to punifh it. The ac-
cepting of the " Sacrifice " of Chrift upon
the Crofs, is an AJfurance to Sinners, that
* God will grant them Repentance (that is, will Atfs xi. 1 8.
mercifully allow them the Benefit of Re-
pentance) unto Life. And 'tis a Vindication,
in the beft and moft admirable manner, of
the Wij'dom of the Supreme Governour of
the Univerfe, in mowing at the fame time
his Hatred againft Sin, and his CompaJJion
towards Sinners : His Hatred againft Sin,
in permitting his Soar to fuffer rather
than Sin mould not be condemned in the
Flejh : And his Companion towards Sinners, Rom viii>
in permitting his Son to fuffer, rather *
than
2 An EXPOSITION
than not give them .AJjurance of their
Repentance being accepted. The Death
of Chrift therefore, was a true expiatory
" Sacrifice " and Satisfaction for the
Sins of the World : A Satisfaction, not
in the way of Equivalent, as obliging
God to forgive Sin j for then it would
notbeofGr^^, and of Free Pardon: But
it was a Satisfaction, as making Forgive-
nefs confident with the Honour and Digni-
ty of the Divine Laws. In which Satis-
-fa&ion it muft always be remembred,
that vifious and unrighteous perfons have
no part nor benefit. For as the Prayer
and the Sacrifice of the wicked, is an abo-
xv.S. 9> mination unto the Lord ; fo the " Sacri-
" Jlce " of Chrift himfelf, is neither ac-
cepted nor offered for Them. And no-
thing can be a greater and more pernici-
ous Corruption of Chriflianity, than wick-
ed Men's relying upon the Merits of Chrift.
3. 'T i s to be'obferved that the Sacra-
ment of the Lord's Supper is here decla-
red to be a " Remembrance" or Comme-
moration of tiw Sacrifice of the Death of
Chrift,
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 303
Chrifr., and not a Repetition of the Sacri-
fice itfelf afrefh. The Church of Rome
teaches, that the Lord's Supper is a per-
petual Repeating of the Sacrifice of Chrift,
an Offering of him again daily. But the
Apoftle exprefsly affirms on the contrary,
that Once in the end of the world, hath he
appeared to put away Sin by the Sacrifice
of Himfelf; and that, having been Once Heb. i*.
offered to bear the Sins of Many\ there re- l6 ' z8 '
mains Now no more Offering for Sin. X<l8<
And our Lord's own direction is no lels
exprefs, Do this in Remembrance of Me - y Lukexxii.
in Commemoration of That One Offering^ Hdj.x. 14.
which hath perfected for ever them that
are fanttified. As the Pafchal Lamb was
a Solemn Remembrance of the Deliverance
out of Egypf, fo the Sacrament of the
Lord's Supper is a Thankful Commemora-
tion of the greater Redemption purchafed
by Chrift. And in the fame fenfe as the
annual Pafchal Lamb was for ever The
PaJ/bver, the pajjlng over of the Firft-
born of the Ifraelites in Egypt ; in the
very fame fenfe, is the daily Sacramental
Bread
3 o 4 An EXPOSITION
Bread for ever the Body of Chrifl offered
upon the Crofs.
4. THIS Commemoration of the Sa-
crifice of the Death of Chrift, is here de-
clared to be " Continual. " That is;
*Tis not a Temporary inftitution, but Per-
rCor.xi petuaL As often as ye eat this Bread,
and drink this Cup, ye do Jhew the Lord's
Death, till he come.
5. 'T i s here worth remarking in the
Laft place, that the reafon why Antient
Chriftian Writers call the Lord's Supper
frequently a Sacrifice, and an unbloody
Sacrifice j is not becaufe they imagined it
to be at all literally a Sacrifice, but be-
caufe it was an Act of Chriftian Worjhip,
fucceeding in the place of Jewifli Sacrifices.
Heb xiii. ^ ^fame figure of Speech, Praife and
*j- Thankj giving are like wife called a Sacri-
Jice ; and the Bodies of virtuous and good
r Chriftians are faid to be a Living Sacri-
i. fee, My, acceptable unto God; and Cha-
philiv 1 8 r ^y Or M^&^ty ^ S %^ an Od ur f a
fweet Smell, a Sacrifice acceptable, njoell-
pleafing to God. And St Paul fcruples
i not
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 305
not to affirm, that We Chriftians are The
Circumcifion, circumcifed with the circurn*
cijion made 'without hands,
Qu. fjat 10 tfje outtoarfc part o
of tlje 2oj&' Cupper *
Anfw. %eafc and IBine, tofiicfi
jjatlj commanDed to I
I F any one here inquires after the Rea-
fon of the appointment of Tbefe elements
in particular ; the Anfwer is the fame,
as concerning the appointment of the Ufe
of Water in Baptifm ; that, in matters of
This nature, the Command of our Lord
is Reafon fufficient. For in things of ex-
ternal appointment and mere pofitive infti-
tution, where we cannot, as in matters of
natural and moral Duty, argue concern-
ing the natural reafon and ground of the
Obligation, and the original Neceffity of
the thing itfelf ; we have nothing to do,
but to obey the pofitive Command. God
is infinitely better able than We, to judge
of the Propriety and Ufefulnefe of the
X things
3 o6 . An EXPOSITION
things he inftitutes ; and it becomes us to
obey, with humility and reverence. Yet
This we cannot but obferve, that the
breaking of the Bread is a very natural
Refemblance of our Lord's Body being
broken for us ; and the pouring out of the
Wine, a very apt Reprefentation of the
Jheddingofbis Blood. And 'tis very remark-
able, that it is Such a reprefentation, as
is in itfelf naturally fignificant, and yet
at the fame time not apt, in the Matter
of it, to be abufed to Superftition. Where-
in appears a very particular inftance of
the Wifdom and Goodnefs of our Lord's in-
ftitution. For the Vanity of Men has
been ftrongly prone to imagine, that Pic-
tures and Images would be ufeful Remem-
brancers of our Lord and his Paflion, and
proper to excite perpetual Devotion. But
Experience has mown, how extremely li-
able to corruption fuch forts of Memori-
als have been ; and how, inftead of pro-
moting true Devotion, they have always
occafioned the moft grofs Idolatries and
abominable Superftitiom. Our Lord took
wife Care to prevent this Evil, by ap-
pointing
of the C H U R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 307'
pointing fuch plain Symbols as Bread and
Wine^ which might not eafily be liable
to fo great an Abufe. And though the
Church of Rome has indeed, by a won-
derful and incredible corruption, abufed
even Thefe plain and moft fimple Elements
to an Idolatrous ufage j yet this their A-
bufe is fo much the more grofsly notori-
ous, and the more eafy to be reproved,
and with lefs difficulty avoided.
THERE is one thing further to be
obferved upon This Head j that the out-
ward part or Sign in the Lord's Supper,
is Both Bread and Wine. And therefore
they of the Church of Rome are unpar-
donably prefumptuous, in taking upon
them to adminifter in One kind only. For
iince the Bread and Wine are Both of them
equally fignificant, the one to reprefent his
Body, and the other his Blood; And, if
there was Any difference, the Shedding
of his Blood> wherein confifted the Sacri-
fice of his Death, was, of the Two, the
the more neceffary to be commemorated :
And Iince our Lord himfelf admin ift red to
X2 his
308 An EXPOSITION
his Difciples in Both kinds, and exprefsly
commanded them to continue fo to do
in Remembrance of Him: And fince
i Cor. *. St Paul accordingly mentions the Cup of
Blejjing received by the Whole Church, as
well as the Bread broken being adminift-
red to them : There can no Excufe be in-
vented for with-holding the Cup from the
people, as the Church of Rome has moil
prefumptuoufly done. For if it be al-
leged, that Chrift gave the Cup to Priefts
only, becaufe all his Apoftles were fuch j
it will follow, that he gave the Bread alfo
to Priefts only : And then Both kinds muft
be with-held from the People, with the
fame reafon as One.
Qu.
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 309
t'0 tlj* intoard part, o?
tljing figmfied \
Anfw. Cpe 25odp and 23tood of
<Cfl.;tft, tuljirfj are Ueriln and
tafcen and received dp tlje
ful in tljellojd'0 Cupper.
HERE, had not the Church of
by a prodigious and incredible Supefftiti-
on, taught that the Bread and Wine were
changed into the Subftance of the Body
and Blood ofChrift; I fuppofe it would
never, upon reading the words of the In-
ftitution, have entred into the imaginati-
on of any perfon in his Senfes, that they
were to be underftood otherwife than fi-
guratively ; any more than Chrifl's ftyling
himfelf the Door y the Vine> or the like :
Which paflages no man ever miflmder-
ftood ; and yet the manner of expreffion is
the very fame, as when he faid, jTZw is
my Body. But when once men give them-
felves up to follow blindly and implicitly
Blind Guides, or ( which is ftill worfe )
Guides that are not Blind i there can no-
X 3 thing
3 io An EXPOSITION
nothing be invented fo abfurd, nothing fo
idolatrous, nothing fo profane, but may
zTheff.ii. by zjlrong Delufion be made a neceffary
IX - and fundamental part of Religion.
BREAD and Wine are the outward
and vifible Signs in the Sacrament of the
Lord's Supper -, And not thofe outward
Symbols themfelves, but " the inward
" fart or thing fignified " by thofe out-
ward Signs, is " the Body and Blood of
" Cbrift. " Juft as, in the other Sacra-
ment of Baptifm, the Water and the be-
ing immerfcd therein, is not itfelf the
Death and Burial either of Chrift or of
the perfon baptized, but only an Outward
Sign, the inward thing fignified whereby,
Rom.vi 4. is a being buried with Chrift unto Death.
And the Body and Blood of Chrift, is
<f verily and indeed taken and received by
the Faithful in the Lord's Supper ; "
juft as Perfons Baptized^ do verily and in-
deed die and are buried with Chrift. No
man ever was fo abfurd, as to underftand
the one literally j and there is no more reafon
tounderftand the other fo. But by Both, men
are
of the GkuRCH-CAf SCHISM. 311
areintitled, if they be worthy Receivers, to
the Benefits purchafed by Chriji's Death.
And This participation of thofe Benefits, is,
by a very proper Figure of Speech, in
One Sacrament ftyled a being buried with
Chrift and rifmg 'with him again ; and in
the Other, the receiving of his Body and
Blood. Which kind of Expreffions
ought the lefs to feem ftrange, becaufe,
even before the Inftitution of the Sacra-
ment, our Lord ftyled himfelf the Bread
of Life -, and when he was difcourfmg a-
bout men's imbibing, digefting, andprafl- j h.vi.3 5<
ifing his Dodlrine, he even then called it
eating his Flejh and drinking his Blood :ver.$6.
And long before our Saviour's coming in-
to the World, the very fame Phrafes were
ufed by the beft Writers, and well under-
flood by every rational Reader : They that Eccluf.
eat me, (fays frifdom of old,) jhall yet be'* 1 '
hungry ; and they that drink me, flail yet
be thirfly. What Perverfenefs is it, to
find no difficulty in thefe words, when ufed
by the Son of Sirach ; and to fuppofe the
fame Expreffions infinitely abfurd and un-
intelligible when fpoken by Our Saviour I
X 4
3 i2 An EXPOSITION
Queft. Wfat are tije SSenefitfc
totjereof toe are $artaher thereby,
Anfw. Cije Qren0tljmti0 anO re^
frefljtn0 of our J>ou!0 bp tge 230&P
and Stood of Cftfift, a our 29omej0f
are bp tlje 25?eati and t$ine,
A s Impenitency is the Death, and *S//w
are the Dtfeafesof the Soul ; So a /fo^V o/
F/>/^ is its Health and Life, and religi-
ous Afts are its Food and Nourijhment.
They are fo naturally, by improving and
eftablifhing men in virtuous Practice j
and they have moreover the Promife of
procuring Bleffing and AfMance from
God.
SOME men, from the Remains of that
Popifh Notion of the repetition of the
Sacrifice of the Death of Chrijl in the
Mafs 3 deceive themfelves with an Ima-
gination, that, at the receiving of the
Sacrament their Sins are in courfe pardon-
ed, to the Comrm'ffion of which they re-
turn regularly again, But This is
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 313
ly making Cbrift the Minifter of Sin, in- Gal.ii. 17.
ftead of Repentance; turning the Grace J ode 4-
,,^-v , . . . Rom.vi.i
ofGod y into an mcouragement to continue
in Sin-, and ufing the liberty of the Gof-
pel, for an occafion to the F/eJh. Gal.v. 13.
OTHERS, without carrying this
matter fo far, have yet a blind, fuperfti-
tious, and unintelligible notion, of a cer-
tain Grace or Virtue annexed to the Mate-
rial Elements, or to the mere external
Participation of them -, rather after the
nature of a Charm, than of a religious
Aftion. As if, by fome fecret neceflary
connexion with the outward Elements,
more than with the religious Difpofitiom
of a virtuous Mind-, fpiritual Advantages
were conveyed into, or operated upon, the
Receiver. But This alfo greatly tends to
hurt the true notion of Religion, and to
make men miftake the principal End and
Defign of theGofpel of Chrift.
THE
3 14 n
THE triie and real " Benefits " 6f
men's worthily receiving the Sacrament
of the Lord's Supper, are of a moral and
Lukcxxii. religious nature. By doing This conftant-
i Cor xi. ty an< ^ devoutly in Remembrance of Chrift y
l6 - and flowing forth the Lord's Death till he
come; we renew and confirm continually
our own part in the Chriflian Covenant :
We ilrengthen our Faith, by meditating
upon the Object, and upon the Grounds
and Motives of it : We increafe our Hope,
by commemorating thankfully the Love of
God in Chrift, and by exhibiting and ap-
plying to ourfelves thefe Memorials of the
Divine Goodnefs and CompaJ/ion towards
Sinners : We inlarge and ftrengthen, by
This Communion of Chriftians, that fa-
cred Bond of univerfal Love, Charity
iTim-i.5. and Good Will, which is the End of the
\6i' *' Commandment : For, the Bread which we
break, is it not the Communion of the Body
of Chrift, the Communion of all the
Members of Chriil's Body one with ano-
ther ? For we, being many, are One Bread
and One Body j for we are all Partakers of
That
of the CHURCH-CATECHISM. 315
*That One Bread. And by thus continu-
ally confirming our own part in the Chri-
flian Covenant, in obedience to our Lord's
Command ; we preferve to ourfelves the
A/urance of God's performing His part
of the fame Covenant, which is the New
Tejlament In Chrifts Blood. We intide LukexaL
Ourfelves to all the prefent BleJ/ings, 2C
which God has promifed to annex to the
due obfervation of his Ordinances. And
we fecure to ourfelves his continual Fa-
<uour, and Acceptance through Chrift;
unlefs by any Vitioufnefs in the Courfe of
our Lives, we contradict the Profejjwm
of our moil Solemn Devotion.
Qu.
3I 6 An EXPOSITION
Qu. HWjat t requirefc of tgetu
Utfjo come to tjje Ho?D' Cupper *
Anfw. Co gamine tijemfetoeg,
tufjetfjer tfjep repent tljem trulp of
tfjeir former J>in, ftedfaftlp pur*
pofmrj to leab a ncUi Hife : l>aue a
in <5ob'0 i^ercp
toitg a tfiankful
of fjtg tDeatfh andfte
tn Cgarttp tottg all
RELIGIOUS A6ls of Devotion, to
a Wicked man, are like fetting in order
the Garments upon a */<?dV/ Body, or 'wa-
tering a Plant whofe very Roots are w/-
thered. In order therefore to partake of
the Benefits and Blejjings promifed, there
are feveral Conditions or Qualifications
requifite in the perfons who Receive the
Sacrament of the Lord's Supper.
I. T H E firft is, that <c they repent
" them truly of their former Sins : "
That is, be truly fenfible of the Folly and
Guilt of Sin j earneftly and fincerely de-
liring
Of the C H R C H-C AT E C H I S M. 317
firing Pardon of God, and, if any injury
has been done to Men, asking Forgivenefs
alfo of Them; and making Rejiitution,
where poffible ; and fteadily refolving,
never to return to the Practife of the
fame Vices again. For without fuch Re-
pentance as This, fince men have no Part
in the Death of Chrift, 'tis evident it can
be to no purpofe for them to partake in
the folemn Commemoration of it.
2. THEY who, by communicating in
this Solemn Act of religious Worfhip,
profefs to repent them truly of their for-
mer Sins-, muft, in order to fecure the
Sincerity of their Repentance, " Jledfaft-
" ly purpofe to lead a new Life ; " in the
Practice of all Chriftian Virtues, in Obe-
dience to the Commands of God, for
the time to come. For otherwife, their
Sorrow for what is paft, is but an empty
Deceit ; and will do them no more real
Service, than the Death of Chrift would
have been efficacious without his Rifing
from the Dead,
3- A
3 i8 An EXPOSITION
3. A Third thing requifite, is, that they
* have a lively Faith in God's mercy
" through Chrift. " The Hope of Sin-
ners, is founded wholly in the Mercy of
God : And the Method of God's Mercy,
is made known to us by Chrift : And the
Holy Communion is a folemn Comme-
moration, of Ch rift's affuring and fealing
to us That Mercy by his Death. In or-
der therefore to do this worthily, 'tis ne-
cefTary that men firmly believe the Mercy
of God made known to them by Chrift ;
and that they carefully attend to thofe
Conditions of Faith, Repentance, and A-
mendment, without which they cannot be
Partakers of that Mercy.
4. THEY muft have a " Thankful
" Remembrance of Chrift's Death. "
He who believes Chrift to be the Savi-
Heb.vu. our of them that come unto God by him ;
as he will certainly endeavour to qualify
himfelf, to be Partaker of that Salvation ;
fo he will be very Thankful to God, whofe
original Goodnefs it was to permit and
Joh.iii. !$ fend his Son to die for our Sins 5 and he
will
of the CHURCH-CATECH ISM. 319
will be full of grateful Acknowledgment
alfo to our Saviour himfelf, who willing-
ly left the Bofom of his Father, and /o- Gal.ii.^
ved us, and gave himfelf for us.
5. 'T i s abfolutely necefTary, in order
to worthy Communion, that we " be in
" Charity with all men. " For fo our
Saviour exprefsly requires : If thou bring Matt. v.
thy Gift to the altar^ and there remembreft * 3> 2 *-
that thy Brother hath ought againft thee ;
leave there thy Gift before the altar , and
go thy way, Jirji be reconciled to thy Bro-
ther, and then come and offer thy Gift.
And very reafonable it is, that we mould
be obliged to forgive each other our hun-
dred pence, that is, light and trivial Pro-
vocations and mutual Caufes of Offenfe j
at That Time efpecially, when we are fo-
lemnly commemorating God's Mercy and
Companion towards us All, in forgiving
us ten thoufand talents.
Laftly : 'T i s requifite, that men fre-
quently " examine themfelves " concern-
ing thefe matters ; that they be not care-
/efs and negligent in any of the fore-men-
i tioned
3 20 An EXPOSITION
tioned Particulars. As to the Manner and
Circumftances of this Examination, we
have no Command; and therefore ought
not to fill .our f elves y or of hers, withneed-
lefs Scruples. They who live an habitu-
ally virtuous Life, are always prepared to
communicate, without any formal and
particular Examination of themfelves.
To fuch as live in the Praffiife of Any
known Vice y no Examination ivhatfoever
can be of any Ufe, till they actually a-
mend and reform their Manners. Others
are to direct themfelves by the Rules of
Prudence and Difcretion, according to
their various Circumftances ; Always re-
membring that the End of Religion, is
Tit.ii. iz. Sobriety, Right eoufnefs^ and Godlinefs.
FINIS.
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