faith into Jefus Chrift as into a stock. And as concerning the Jews, Its not once but conftantly reported by thofe in Germany among whom they live, that if they do but heare the name of Jefus Chrift, they fpit three times in indignation, and cry out, let that name be blotted out and forgotten. The Virgin Mary they cal a dunghil, and Chrift a Baftard, and the Trinity a Phantafy, and vanity. What fhal I fay of Rom. 11. 9. 10. Which tells you that they grow wild, and bring forth fruit unto the flesh, they bow down and are the flaves of al fin and Corruptions, The proudest people, the Earthyeft people, the uncleaneft people that the earth beares, and yet you fhal find that the Apoftle faith in Rom. 11. 24. 25. That God wil graft them in again because be is able. The meaning of it is this, That God wil do to his utmost, and if fo be the almighty power which he hath be able to pardon them, and to make them to beleeve upon him, their fins fhal not hinder. Whither the whole nation of the Jews fhal be converted (as fome doe imagine) or whither or no that fome of them only fhal be converted (because when Jefus Chrift fhal come, the Text faith be fhal not find faith on the earth, Luke, 18. 8.) Ifhal not difpute now. But their fin (which is the point in hand) al that diftance which their apoftacy and rebellion hath made from God, fhal not make them to be unpar-. donable. God here and there now plucks out a man,and afterwards wil pluck out greater numbers. Before Chrift came, Gods mercy was principally unto the Jews, his fweet ftreames did run al among them. If he did convert any, he did tranfplant them into that Church: They were an holy nation to him: But now God looks abroad: And however before the coming of Chrift he proceeded Le gally (If a man did wel, he was accepted, do this

Q 2

and

and live) yet now in the daies of the Gospel, he takes thofe that are not worthy to live, and thofe that have not Done,that are the greatest finners. And of thefe, Paul is a pattern.

CHAP. XI.

The Reasons of the Doctrine. 1. Otherwise no Flesh fhould be faved. 2. Unbelief is not the Sin against the Holy Ghost. 3. God gives even to Unbeleevers affurance of Salvation. 4. The pardon of this fin doth in a speciall manner redound to the glory of God. Application. Be perfwaded that unbelief is pardonable.

Nd the Reafons of the Point are thefe. That I fay which may further prove as a reafon that God wil pardon unbelief is this, Elfe no Flesh can be faved, for we are all by nature fhut up in unbeliefe. Unbelief works more or lefs in men as they have the means; but all men are by nature unbeleevers. As you may remember that explication which I gave of 2. Thef. 3. 2. which we tranflate AU men have not Faith, but it is in the Greek, Not of all is Faith, And the propriety of that language is, that when the negative doth go before the word that doth denote the fubject [Not] going before [Al] It's as much as if he fhould have faid, there is not any, none by nature have Faith. It's the gift of God And that not only fuch a gift of God as natural life is, which God hath beftowed on men, and left men to act according unto the things which do become it, but it's a fpecial gift of God, that which God doth infufe, there is no way in the world for any man to come unto falvation but by beleeving, there

is nothing keeps out beleeving but unbelieving; If therefore now unbeleeving fhould not be pardoned, as good fhut up the doore of life and falvation, as wel deny al the truth of the Gofpel, that there is no life nor immortality brought to light by the Gospel, if unbelief fhall not be pardoned.

REASON II.

But Secondly, which is a Reafon that I defire more to ftick upon. Our Lord Jefus hath made it apparent that unbelief is not the fin against the holy Ghoft, and al fins fhal be forgiven befides that. if you look into Matth. 12. 31, 32. when fome did not beleeve upon Jefus Christ, Chrift tels them that their fins fhould not be forgiven them, but withal tels them, that it is not because they had fpoken against him, Every fin fhall be forgiven faith he and every tranfgreffion that is done against the son of man; but the blafphemy against the Holy Ghoft: Whoever Speaks a word against the fon of man, it shall be forgiven him. Mark it, I fay our Lord labors to cleer by thofe words, that although men through unbelief had spoken against him, yet that doth not make their fate incurable, it is not the fin that is unpar donable; For the fin against the Holy Ghoft lies in the manner of doing of an Action. It may be done with any fin against the Gofpel,and there may be every fin against the Gofpel done without it. I fay it lies in the manner of doing an act. There was,one would think,no more dangerous thing than to speak against the Lord of life, bnt our Lord faith that is not the fin, except a man hate it revealed to him, and he being illuminated with a fufficiency of it, and be drawen by that towards him by the Holy Ghoft, and then afterwards fhal maliciously reject him. The fin against the Holy Ghoft, is a fin

that

that comes from malice. Now take unbelief either as it is in the understanding (for fo there is ignorance which quits him from that fin) Take unbelief as it's in the Wil,and fo it's a refufal of Jefus Chrift offered and made known, And in it there is Malitia as the Schools fpeak, that is a great deal of wickednefs, but in that formally there is no malice. Ifay there is a great deal of wickedness in the refufal of Jefus Chrift made known. Thereis a great deal of pride for a man not to fubmit to the righteoufnefs of God, or that way of falvation, although a man be at the point of death and brink of the pit of Hell. It's as much as if a man fhould fay I had rather perifh and be damned than to go to Jefus Chrift and to be beholding unto him. There is not only in unbelief a great deal of pride, but hatred of Jefus Chrift. Search the Scripture, faith he, for they teftifie of me, and in them ye think to have eternal life, but you wil not come unto me that you may bave life. Saith he if you loved the Father you would There may be an hatred of Chrift and yet no malice unto Chrift. Hatred there may be, becaufe we are contrary to him, and because he takes away all our glory in becoming our Mediator, and makes us as men that are not fit to plead our own caufe, or to do any thing for our own good. In every man naturally, yea in every man that is converted, there is an hatred unto Chrift, because Chrift is holy, and he is finful, he is wife, and he is foolish: All contraries we know do hate one the other. But unto malice there goes not only hatred but inveterate hatred, and irreconcilable hatred, and to unbelief there goes obftinacy. For when ever God gives a man Faith he takes away the heart of ftone. The heart of ftone is a stubborn heart. Therefore I fay there is obftinacy at the bottom of unbelief, but that obftinacy which is in

love me.

the

the fin against the Holy Ghoft arifeth from fcorn of Chrift, arifeth from a rage against the difpenfation of God through Chrift. It's fo defcribed by the Apoft le as you may fee in Heb. 6. 10. As a man tramples under foot the bloud of Jefus Chrift and counts it a vain thing after he hath found fome fweetness in it, and had his converfation to the fight of men fanctified by it. That therefore is the fecond Reafon. Every fin may be forgiven but the fin against the Holy Ghoft, and unbelief is not the fin against the Holy Ghost, because the fin againft the Holy Ghoft is a doing of things against jefus Chrift known and received out of inveterate Anger and Malice, and out of irreconcilableness of enmity unto him.

REASON III.

But then Thirdly, This may be an Argument to you that God wil pardon unbelief, becaufe that even unto Unbeleevers he gives affurance of falvation. Affurance of pardon is a higher degree of favor than pardon is. To make it known that our names are written in the Book of life is a further

degree of favor than to write it there. Now to men that have stood out against God, God hath given affurance, as you may fee in the Cafe of Paul, he could fay he obtained mercy at Gods hands although he was fo and fo. His ftate is cleer, his condition is evident, he can fee truth in what God hath done for him, and in what change God hath made in him, I was thus and thus,but now faith he I am thus and thus because I have obtained mercy in my unbelief. And the great reafon that he doth it is this you have heard: But here is a reason why God wil pardon an Unbeleever whofe unbelief hath thus broken forth.

REA