then there will be many fervants of Chrift, who may, in that refpect be compared with the Apostle Paul. See Thefes Amyraldi de vita æterna, § 34.

XLI. The Apostle John feems to have given a check to other things, which are too curiously made the matter of enquiry, concerning the condition or state of the future world, when he said. 1 John iii. 2. « Beloved, now are we the fons of God, and it doth not yet appear, what we shall be. It is then more prudent and pious to endeavour to become hereafter partakers of that glorious life, than to gratify an itch of curiofity with infipid and vain fpeculations. This, however, we may look upon as a certain truth, that, "Eye hath not feen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man to conceive, the things, which God hath prepared for them that love him," I Cor. ii. 9.

THE

ECONOMY

OF THE

DIVINE COVENANTS.

BOOK IV.

I.

CHA P. I.

Of the Doctrine of Salvation in the first age of the World.

WE

E have thus far confidered thofe benefits that are effential to the covenant of grace: let us now more particularly take a view of the two ECONOMIES, or the different difpenfations under which that covenant was administered. And here, according to the plan laid down, Chap. III. of the preceding book, we are more accurately to explain, first, the nature of the OLD TESTAMENT, and then that of the NEW. In the OLD, we will diftinctly confider four principal points. I. The doctrine concerning the common falvation, as there laid down. II. The benefits or privileges of that Testament. III. Its defects, or according to Paul, Heb. vii. 18. "The weakness and unprofitableness thereof," on account of which that covenant was not faultless, Heb. viii. 7. IV. Its abrogation. The DOCTRINE again, may be confidered, as expreffed by WORDS, figured by TYPES, and ratified by SACRAMENTS.

II. Divine compaflion published to wretched man, immediately upon his fall, the firft doctrine of grace; in fuch a manner, indeed, as in few words, and thofe almoft enigmatical, fummarily to contain the whole gofpel: we have that firft promife, Gen. iii. 14, 15. " And the Lord faid unto the ferpent because thou haft done this, thou art curfed above all cattle, and above every beaft of the field: upon thy belly fhalt thou go, and duft fhalt thou eat all the days of thy life. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy feed and her feed; it fhall bruife thy head, and thou fhalt bruise his heel."

Luther

Luther long ago complained, that none of the ancient fathers and bishops, who were men eminent for knowledge and piety, had explained this paffage as it deferved: their fucceffors ought to use the greater diligence to do it with the more care: which feveral learned interpreters have indeed happily effected. Treading in their footsteps, we fhall make it appear, that the principal articles of the gospel doctrine are fummarily contained in this text.

III. We fuppofe, that the devil is condemned by this fentence, to whom the Lord addreffes himself, under the appellation of the ferpent, because he had abused that animal, in order to deceive man. For, it is dull and trifling to restrict that magnificent fpeech of the Deity, as if it had its full accomplishment in that animal alone; for befides, that it might feem unbecoming the fupreme Being, to addrefs a brute beaft, void of all reafon, in fuch pomp of language, many things faid here to the ferpent, if interpreted literally, are natural to that beast: as to go upon his belly and eat duft. For, we are not to affirm without fcripture, that the ferpent, as the Jews vainly dream, went on feet or walked erect, or had other food formerly, different from what it has now: nor to imagine, that ferpents now feed only on duft; seeing Ariftotle reckons them among the Taupaya or omnivorous, that eat all kinds of things, and teftifies, that they eat both flesh and herbs, and that of all animals they are fond of the niceft delicacies. Duft is faid to be the ferpent's food; becaufe, fince it creeps upon the ground, it cannot but take duft into its mouth, along with its other food. Juft as David complains in his mourning, that he ate afhes like bread, Pf. cii. 9. for while he lay on his face in the afhes, he ate the bread, that was thrown to him on the ground. Moreover what is here faid of the ferpent going on the belly and eating duft, is common to many kinds of worms, as the very learned Bochart has fhewn, Hierozoic. 1. 1. c. 4. But how could that be a curfe to the ferpent, which is natural to other animals, whom Satan never abused in this manner? And then its being deteftable to man is owing to its dangerous poifon, which it has also in common with other beafts; who, after fin, became a horror and dread to man. But fome ferpents are commended for their philanthropy, or love to men. See Vofius de Origin. Idololat. Lib. 6. c. 58: fome alfo are fit to be eaten, and accounted a royal dainty, ibid. c. 62. In a word it is of no great confequence to man, whether any animal goes on its feet or on its belly; whether it feeds on herbs or fleth or duft. But certain it is, that by this condemnation of the

serpent,

ferpent, God intended to comfort our first parents in their wretched eftate. To what purpose then is it to interpret the words in fuch a manner, as to yield very little or no comfort at all to man, who now feriously deplored his own unhappinefs?

IV. But the principal confideration is, that the fcripture exprefsly calls the devil, ow, the ferpent, 2 Cor. xi. 3. and TOY ODLY TOV agyasov, the old ferpent, Rev. xii. 9. and his defeat is called the bruifing him under our feet, Rom. xvi. 10. And tho' we grant, that both these things were primarily and literally faid to the animal, the inftrument which Satan fpoke by; yet it is evident from the nature of the thing, that both might and ought rather to be faid to the principal feducer. For, as Chryfoftom argues well; if the inflrument experienced fuch a degree of indignation, what punishment can we probably imagine the devil incurred?

V. Nor can it be objected, that what is faid to the ferpent, all the days of thy life, cannot be applied to Satan, who, it is evident, is an immortal and never-ceafing fpirit. For even Satan has a peculiar death, referved for him; namely the judgment of the laft day in which he, together with death, will be thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, Rev. xx. io. The devil lives, when he works effectually in the children of difobedience, and thereby fhews himself to be Tov xorμongatoga the prince of this world. He fhall die when he will no longer be able, to ufe any of his inftruments in or against the kingdom of God. Thus the Lord Jefus fills the enemy and the avenger, Pf. viii. 2. and defroys him that had the power of death, Heb. ii. 14. The days therefore, of the devil's life, are thofe antecedent to the laft judgment which yields us an useful doctrine, as we shall prefently fee.

τον κοσμοκράτορα

VÍ. But God was pleafed to pronounce thofe words, (the fource of all confolation to wretched man) against the devil in the presence and hearing of man. 1ft, To mortify that wicked and arrogant fpirit, who was conftrained to hear his own condemnation, in the prefence of fuch weak feeble creaures, whom he had so easily brought under his power, and over whom he thought to domineer for ever. 2dly, That he might revive and charm our first parents, with the sweetest confolations, to whom not only that juft vengeance ought to be moft acceptable, which God promised to take of their enemy; but who alfo, in the condemnation of the devil heard their own abfolution. 3dly, To fhew that this fentence had the nature of a laft or unchangeable will. For, as God by a peremptory and irre

vocable

vocable fentence, condemns, without farther enquiry, the devil, when he was taken in the very fact, which hecould neither deny nor transfer to another; fo those bleffings or privileges, which are made over to the elect in this condemnation of the devil are made over to them, by the last and immutable will of God, which does not depend on any uncertain condition.

VII. Now let us take a more diftinct view of the things, contained in this fentence. And they are the following: I. The blefings or benefits promised to man. II. The author of thofe good things. III. Their meritorious caufe. IV. The manner of acquifition. V. The heirs. VI. The mean of acquifi

tion.

VIII. The evils which God pronounces against the ferpent, are fo many BENEFITS, or bleffings to man: and they are four, The first is the "curse of the serpent; because thou haft done this, thou art curfed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field." All beafts are fubject to deftruction: "natural brute beafts, made to be taken and deftroyed," 2 Pet. ii. 12. And it is for man's fin, that beafts, as the property of man, are made more miferable; for they cannot be excluded from being a part of this world, which is not willingly fubject to yanity, Rom. viii. 20. and among them there are thofe, called evil beafts. But the curfe threatened against the ferpent, is fuch as renders him inferior to, viler and more miferable than all beafts: importing, Ift, An invincible folly and malice; fo that he can be neither wife nor good: worfe than a "horfe or mule, which have no understanding," Pí. xxxiii. 9. 2dly, The very worst degree of vileness, whereby he, who impiously attempted to be equal to God, and feemed to have acquired a dominion over man, the nobleft of God's creatures, is depreffed below the beafts of burden. 3dly, A ftate of never ending mifery. The beafts die and perifh, and never come into judgment. But the ferpent accurfed above the beafts, cannot escape judgment; "everlafting fire is prepared for the devil and his angels," Matt. xxi. 41. It could not but be acceptable to man, to hear that sentence pronounced, by which that enemy, who had made him obnoxious, is himself doomed to be accurfed.

IX. The fecond benefit is the deftruction of his power; expreffed by three feveral phrases. The firft, " upon thy belly fhalt thou go" that is, thou shalt be constrained to creep on the ground, nor fuffered any longer to fly at man, twift thyfelf round him, and kill him with thy envenomed embraces. Pareus fays judicioufly: "He himself alfo is forced to creep on his breast; be

caufe