Page images
PDF
EPUB

for us till we arrive at Heaven it felf, of which this is only a Specimen, 1 S. Pet. i. 4. Therefore the Spirit is called an Earnest, 2 Cor. i. 22. and c. v. 5. an Earneft of our Inheritance, Eph. i. 14. which is an Inheritance with the Saints in Light, Col. i. 12. an eternal Inheritance, Heb. ix. 15. an Inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, referved in Hea ven for us, 1 S. Pet. i. 4. The Earneft of Hea ven must be of the fame nature with the Enjoyments to which it gives us a legal Title, and therefore must be heavenly alfo. The Spirit is alfo called an άasx, Rom. viii. 23. The Harvest therefore answering thefe Firft fruits, must be that mentioned by our Bleffed Saviour, at the end of this World, S. Matth. xiii. 39. which muft alfo make the Firft-fruits relate to the future State, and to be heavenly alfo. Herein therefore our new Covenant and our new Peculium excel the old ones, and it is very reasonable that they fhould do fo. The old Covenant with the Poft-diluvian Patriarchs, did not exprefly ftipulate for future and eternal Rewards. That is not the cafe with ours now. Ours does agree for them exprefly, and accordingly gives us that greater legal Security for our Hopes of them of a Specimen in band, which was not then fo reafonably to be expected when even these Promifes relating to the future ftate were not fo manifeft. This is plainly the Doctrine of the New Teftament, which accordingly affures us, that it is our Saviour who has abolished death, and brought Life and Immortality to Light through the Gospel, 2 Tim. i. 10. dicart is the word, taken (as I faid,) from our Baptifm in this place, and that very properly. For in our Baptifm there was a covenanting Symbol fignifying and ftipu

lating for our Refurrection, that was our r fing from under the Water wherein we had been immerfed. So the Apostle reafons, That, as we had been planted together in the likeness of his Death, fo we fhould alfo in the likeness of his Refurrection, Rom. vi. 5. That this relates to our Saviour's Death and Refurrection as reprefented in Baptifm, appears from v. 3. So alfo I understand the Apostle's Argument from the cafe of thofe who were baptized,

7 vençãv, I Cor. xv. 29. That they recei ved affurance of the Refurrection of their Bodies by that fymbolical reprefentation of their Refurrellion in their rifing from under the Water, and by the Spirit received there, which made their Bodies pneumatical, and confequent ly, by the Reuforings of that Chapter, intitled them to a Refurrection. Ovenes is the dead Carcass, even of a Woman, in Dionyfius Halicarnaffeus and Jofephus. Thus therefore, the Baptifm of the Apostle's Age gave Men an initial Heaven upon Earth. For this xó

or res was the Wing of the Soul, fo often mentioned by the Platonifts, when they described the degenerated ftate of the Soul as a leop púnois, a loss of the Wing by which they were enabled to mount above this World to their na tive and original Country in Heaven. The Holy Spirit was the fame thing with that which the Heathenish Traditions called xófor or ver, and performed the fame Office to the Soul, of enabling it to foar aloft to Heaven; and to the Body, of qualifying it for a Refurrection. Here then was the dialov to vous Apoftle ftiles it on another occafion. The Law made nothing perfect, but the bringing of a better Hope did, by the which we drato nigh unto

R 4

as the

God,

Leg. Alleg.
L. ii. p. 79.

God, Heb. vii. 19. 'Erhewoev is the word. And the meaning seems to be, that the Law dealt only with the Patterns of heavenly things, not with the heavenly things themfelves, Heb. ix. 23. This therefore could never compleat our reftitution to the heavenly State from whence we had fallen. The Allufion feems to be to the Language of Myfteries. It feems therefore to imply, that the Mysteries of the Law were of the lower fort, Cathartic only, not Teleiotic. The Thews was of the greatest Mysteries which were to let in the initiated Perfon to the

Jeia, the viewing of the Deity it felf to whom the Mysteries belonged, very fitly therefore here alluded to in our drawing near unto God. For this, the Baptifmal qalous was to perform the Office of the Saxo, who were to conduct the initiated Perfon in his admiffion to the God himself. And I have fhewn, that it was the Office of the Divine Spirit, to let us within the Veil, Heb. vi. 19. ix. 3. x. 20. like him who drew by the Siparium, and to difcover the Divine Myfteries, which were not otherwise to be difcerned but by the Spirit, the true Author of this Torleia. Thence it is, that the GoSpel is fo often called a great Mystery, Eph. V. 32. 1 Tim. iii. 16. Thefe uɛzára μvsheia are fo described in Philo, as that he makes them Cæleftial. He makes him that is initiated in them ὑποκύψαι το γυνητὸν, and ἔμφασιν ἐναργῇ τὸ ἀλυήτε λαμβάνειν. According therefore to the Doctrine of our Chriftian Religion, the Law did only prepare for Heaven, but could never bring its Difciple thither without this Second initiation into the greater Mystery of the Gofpel which does really effect it, by giving us the Spirit in this Life, which may, at our Death,

[ocr errors]

Death, raife our Souls to thofe heavenly Re gions, and may difpofe our Bodies, by making them alfo Pneumatical, for a happy Refurrection. Thus alfo we understand the Apoftle, when he tells us concerning the belieaving Patriarchs, that God provided that they, t without us, should not be made perfect, Heb. E xi. 40. Thewlo again is the word, and may as well be understood of the perfection of our Nature as of our State. Which notwith1. ftanding will infer, that they could not be qualified for entring into poffeffion of their Cæleftial Happiness till we were fo, because the perfection of their Nature was requifite to qualify them for the perfection of their State. Even thofe Patriarchs could not receceive their duala till our Bleffed Lord, after his Refurrection, was pleafed to communicate his Spirit to them. Till then they were not Téλe according to the perfection of Adam before his Fall, till they had received that fuperiour Adam, the Lord from Heaven, which was after the Image of God. Till then their Souls were difabled to rife to their heavenZy Station from whence they had originally fallen. Thus Chrift by referving his Spirit from them till he was pleafed to give it to us, made it impoffible that they could be conSummated, or reach Heaven without us. This the Apoftle in that place, extends alfo to the Antediluvian Patriarchs, to Abel, to Enoch, and to Noah. So that even the Spirit that was in them, though it might raise them above the Earth, yet was not fufficient to raise them to Heaven. This might give occafion to Hefiod and the later Platonifts for those Damons which they placed between Heaven

and

[ocr errors]

and Earth, and was very suitable to the Office of Angels as underftood by Platonical Chriftians, for maintaining the entercourse be tween God and Mankind, for conveying the Divine Favours to us and our Prayers to bim. This therefore might fix them in these lower Regions till the Refurrection. Abraham's Bofom is fo placed by the most celebrated Authors, under the Heavens, and yet above the furface of our Earth. I am therefore apt to think, that these Pneumatical Souls of the Patriarchs as well as other deceafed Saints, may be the Angels which the Apoftle mentions as prefent at our Christian Affemblies, 1 Cor. xi. 10. The reafon therefore does particularly concern thofe Angels of the Pofterity of Seth, whofe Fall was occafioned by Women. But the Apoftate Angels, to be fure, had no communication in thofe Affemblies. Therefore the Apoftle, to diftinguish them, calls thefe communicating Angels the elect Angels, 1 Tim, v. 21. Meaning, in all likelihood, fuch humane Angels as had been formerly of the Exxex/or, which is one of the Stiles of the Peculium. I know no other Election mentioned in the Scriptures, of Angels out of other Bodies of Angels, as there is of the Peculium out of other Nations and Societies of Mankind. And this might, agreeably enough, be thought difpleafing to Angels which had been the ruin of fo many of their own Rank. Yet I confefs, it might alfo be meant of the young Chriftians, who, by their Baptifmal Spirit had been advanced to a dignity of Equality with Angels. This Example of the Pofterity of Seth had made it appear, that even that dig

« PreviousContinue »