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Kingdom of Priests, or a Royal Priesthood, or of being Kings and Priefts, as the Author of the Book of the Revelations expreffes the fame thing by an Hendiadis, being afcribed to the whole Peculium in general, will imply that every individual Member of the Peculium was at leaft equal in Holiness to the holiest of the Gentile Priefts, on that very account of his being a Member of the true Peculium. So just a Title thefe Patriarchal Families (with whom thefe Covenants in the name of the Supreme Being were made) had to their being ftiled a HOLY SEED.

§. VIII.

in his Cove

ing Seed.

And indeed, this feems to have been the principal prospect of the Patriarchs in the Cove- Abram's imnants made with the Supreme Being, that their mediate defign Families might be multiplied into Nations de- nant with the fcended from them; and that thofe Nations fupreme Bemight be intitled to a more potent Patron than ing, was, to any of their Neighbour Nations who rivalled have a flourish them. And therefore it is alfo very agreeable, that God himself should also have this profpect in dealing with them, to answer their Expecta tions from him. When God promifes Abraham, that He would be his great Reward, his Answer is, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, feeing I go childlefs? Gen. xv. 1, 2. Plainly implying," that, till he had a Son, who might, by the Divine Bleffing, be multiplied into a Nation, he had as yet no Specimen of the Favour expected by him. His firft Faith therefore fo much celebrated in the New Teftament alfo, was, that he fhould have a Seed, notwithstanding the unlikelihood of it, as well in regard of his own Age as that of his Confort, Rom. iv. 19. The next degree of his Faith was, to believe fuch a numeroufnefs of his Seed, in fo great an unlikelihood of having any, as fhould not only equal, C 3

but

but exceed any of his neighbour Rival Nations. This would approve the prudence of his Choice above that of any of his Rival Patriarchs, and the Power of the Patron chofen by him, when that very unlikely Off-Spring fhould mul tiply in that wonderful proportion as to answer the Proverbial Eaftern Forms for expreffing great Numbers, of being like the Stars of Heaven, or the Sands of the Sea, or the Duft of the Earth, for multitude, Gen. xiii. 16. xv. 5. xxii. 17. Rom. iv. 18. ix. 27. Heb. xi. 12. And this from fo fmall a beginning, wherein they were the fewest of all People, Deut. vii. 7: So they were in the time of Abraham, wherein the Promife was made for their Multiplication. He had not Ifaac to begin with till he and Sarah were paft the natural hopes of having Children, when his Neighbouring Nations were every where so plentifully ftocked, as to make his travelling Condition very unfecure if his God had not protected him. Yet within fix Generations they either extirpated or fubdued thofe Canaanitish Nations which in Abraham's time had fo out-numbered them. Then they were fo fignalized by Providence, that in his Seed all Nations wre blessed; that is, all Nations of the fame kind, all that were Seeds, defcended from one common Patriarchal Extraction. No happier Wish could be made for fuch a Nation, than that it might profper and multiply like the Pofterity of Abraham. And indeed, confidering the Extent and prodigious Populousness of Paleftine, I do not think any one Patriar, chal Defcent could compare with them. So great things are fpoken of them, not only in the earlier Times of the Scriptures, but the later ones alfo of Jofephus. For we are not to compare them with thofe Bodies which were the. effects

effects of Conqueft and injurious Violence, and which comprehended great numbers of fuch Patriarchal Seeds and Nations. This Form of A Blefing in the Seed of Abraham, would not be unlike the Curfe fpoken of by the Prophet Feremiah: The Lord make thee like Zedekiah, and like Ahab, whom the King of Babylon roafted in the fire, Jer. xxix. 22. But the greatest Trial of all was, when God demanded Ifaac from this great Patriarch, who was the only hope of the numerous Pofterity promifed to him, to whom by name that Promife was confined, as the Apostle obferves, of whom it was faid, That in Ifaac fhall thy Seed be called: Accounting, that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, Heb. xi. 18, 19. Thus it appears,

that all the Tranfactions with Abraham related in the Old Teftament, and celebrated in the New, relate to this very defign, That he should have an Iffue which fhould multiply into a very great and numerous Nation. I need not now enlarge to fhew, that the Covenant with the other Patriarchs was of the fame nature. All thofe Covenants are reckoned for one Covenant, which is called the Old one in the Reasonings of the New Testament, as containing indeed nothing new in them; and therefore being only fo many Repetitions and Confirmations of the first Covenant for fettling a Peculium made with Abraham, the first Head of that Peculium, that they might receive the Bleffing of Abraham, Gen. xxviii. 4. Therefore the token of this Co venant was in the fore-skin of his Flesh, to figpifie the relation it had to his Defcendents. Therefore he makes his Servant fwear, laying his Hands on his Thigh, as engaging him by all the good will he bore to his Pofterity fo much hoped for, Therefore the new Pairon

C4

gained

S. IX.

Pofterity to

his Parental Authority.

gained by this Covenant, is called the God of t Abraham, and the People to whom this Patro-C nage was acquired, are called the People of the God of Abraham, Pfal. xlvii. 9. To let us fee that all that was afterwards tranfacted with the later Patriarchs, was only pursuant to this fame Covenant firft made, with the Perfon of Abraham. Whence it will follow, that the Reafoning will be the fame in all these Repetitions of the fame Covenant.

Now the defign of Abraham in this Covenant, Abraham was was to intitle his Family, and the Nation which alfo to oblige his was to defcend from it, to the Protection of fo performance on powerful a Patron; and to undertake for them. their part by that they fhould perform the Duties expected on their part, as Conditions of that Patronage, that they might qualifie themselves to receive the Bleffing of Abraham, Gen. xxviii. 4. That is, the Bleffing ftipulated on God's part in the Covenant made with Abraham, for himself and his Seed. Their Title to this Bleffing depended on their being his Seed. And as such he was concerned to ftipulate for them, according to the Power with which God had before invefted Ancestors for obliging their Pofterity to ratifie their Ads for the common intereft of their Families for future Generations. This God expected from him. I know, fays he, that he will command his Children and his Houfhold after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord to do Fustice and Judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he bath Spoken of him, Gen. xviii. 19. He plainly fuppofes this performance of Conditions on their part, to be the ground on which Pofterity could lay any claim to the Promises made and ftipulated to their Ancestor. And he fup. pofes an Authority in Abraham to lay his Pa

triarchal

Criarchal Commands on his Pofterity for all fuc Feeding Generations. This was a Provifion God had made for the good of Societies in general long before his Covenant, relating to the Peculium. To oblige particular Members to a sense of their Obligations to their respective Societies, He had given Governours fuch a Right in them as they had in their other Properties. The Faults therefore of Governours made their Subjects liable to capital Punishments, however otherwise innocent of the Faults, for which not fo much they, as their Governours, were punished in them. As none does think it hard for Proprietors to be punished by destroying their Cattel. So the Inhabitants of Fabefh Gilead were punished univer- Judg. xxi. 11. fally, the married Women not excepted, because their Superiours did not bring them to the War against the Men of Gibeab. This was done by the juft Ifraelites in cool thoughts, when the War was over, without any the leaft remorse for it, as a thing unfit to have been done by them. So far from that, that God himself has frequently practised it, who yet appeals to the judgment of Men for vindicating the Equity of Ezek. xviii. his Ways, even by the Rules which themselves 25,29. xxxiii. thought equal in dealing with each other. For 17, 20. Achan's Sacrilege firft, the whole Body of the Gen. xviii. 25. Ifraelites fuffered before they knew it: And after it was known by his own confeffion, his whole Family were punifhed capitally for it, by God's exprefs order. So for Saul's breaking Faith with the Gibeonites, feven of his Family after his death, were given to the Gibeonites, the Party concerned, to fuffer capitally, though too young to be concerned in the Guilt. So Seventy thousand of the Ifraelites were deftroyed by God's Angel for David's Elation,

though

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