1 three of us, to pray you to hear us, and judge of our differences. Evan. You are all of you very welcome to me: and if you please to let me hear what your differences are, I will tell you what I think. § 1 Nom. The truth is, Sir, he and I differ in very many things; but more especially about the law for I fay, The law ought to be a rule of life to a believer; and he faith, It ought not. Neo. And furely, Sir, the greatest difference betwixt him and I is this: He would perfuade me to believe in Chrift; and bids me rejoice in the Lord, and live merrily, tho' I feel never fo many corruptions in my heart, yea, tho' I be never fo finful in my life: the which I cannot do, nor, I think, ought to do; but rather to fear, and forrow, and lament for my fins. Ant. The truth is, Sir, the greatest difference betwixt my friend Nomifta and I is about the law; and therefore that is the greatest matter we come unto you about. Evan. I remember the apostle Paul willeth Titus to avoid contentions and strivings about the law, because they are unprofitable and vain,' Tit. iii. 9. And fo I fear yours have been. Nom. Sir, for my own part, I hold it very meet, that every true Chriftian fhould be very zealous for the holy law of God; efpecially now, when a company of these Antinomians do fet themselves against it, and do what they can quite to abolish it, and utterly to root it out of the church: furely, Sir, I think it not meet they should live in a Christian common-wealth. Evan. I pray you, neighbour, Nomifta, be not fo hot, neither, let us have fuch unchriftian-like expreffions amongst us; but let us reafon together in love, and with the fpirit of meekaefs, 1 Cor. iv. 21. as Chriftians ought to do. I confefs with the apostle,· It is good to be zealously affected always in a good 6 thing,' Gal. iv. 18. But yet, as the fame apostle faid of the Jews, fo I fear I may fay of fome Chrifti ans, ans, that they are zealous of the law,' Acts xxi. 20. yea, fome would be doctors of the law; and yet neither understand what they fay, nor whereof they 'affirm,' 1 Tim. i. 7. Nom. Sir, I make no doubt, but that I both know what I fay, and whereof I affirm; when I fay and affirm, that the holy law of God ought to be a rule of life to a believer: for I dare pawn my foul of the truth of it. Evan. But what law do you mean? Nom. Why, Sir? what law do you think I mean? Is there any more laws than one? § 2. Evan. Yea, in the fcriptures there is mention made of divers laws, but they may all be comprifed under these three, viz. The law of works, the law of faith, and the law of Christ (a); Rom. iii. 27. Gal. vi. 6 (a) Thefe terms are fcriptural, as appears from the whole texts quoted by our author, namely, Rom. iii. 27. Where is boafting then? it is excluded: by what law? of works? nay; but by the law of faith,' Gal. vi. 2. Bear ye one another's burdens, and fo ' fulfil the law of Chrift.' By the law of works is meant the law of the ten commands as the covenant of works; by the law of faith, the gofpel, or covenant of grace: for juftification being the point upon which the apoftle there ftates the oppofition betwixt thefe two laws, it is evident that the former only is the law that doth not exclude boafting; and that the latter only is it, by which a finner is juftified in a way that doth exclude boafting. By the law of Chrift is meant the fame law of the ten commands, as a rule of life in the hand of a Mediator to believers already juftified, and not any one command of the law on ly: forbearing one another's burdens is a fulfilling of the law of Chrift, as it is a loving one another: but, according to the fcripture, that love is not a fulfilling of one command only,but of the whole law of the ten commands, Rom, xiii. 8, 9, 10. He that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not fteal, Thou shalt not bear 'falfe witnefs, Thou shalt not covet and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended fay vi. 2. and therefore I pray you tell me, when you the law ought to be a rule of life to a believer, which of these three laws you mean? in this faying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyfelf: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. It is a fulfilling of the fecond table directly, and of the firft table indirectly and confequentially: therefore, by the law of Chrift is meant, not one command only, but the whole law, The law of works is the law to be done, that one may be faved: the law of faith is the law to be believed, that one may be faved; the law of Chrift is the law of the Saviour, binding his faved people to all the duties of obedience, Gal, iii, 12, Acts xvi. 31. The term law is not here ufed univocally: for the law of faith is, neither in the fcripture fenfe, nor in the fenfe of our author, a law properly fo called. The apoftle ufeth that phrafe on ly in imitation of the Jews manner of fpeaking, who had the law continually in their mouths. But fince the promife of the gospel propofed to faith is called in fcripture the law of faith,' our author was fufficiently warranted to call it fo too, See Chap. I. § 3. fo the law of faith is not a proper preceptive law. The law of works, and the law of Chrift, are in fubftance but one law, even Nome. the law of the ten commandments, the moral law, that law which was from the beginning (Chap. II. Sect. 3, note a) continuing ftill the fame in its own nature, but vefted with different forms, And fince that law is perfect, and fin is any want of conformity unto, or tranfgreffion of it; whatever form it be vefted with, whether as the law of works, or as the law of Chrift; all commands of God unto men muft needs be comprehended underit; and particularly, the command to repent, common to all mankind, Pagans not excepted, who doubtlefs are obliged, as well as other, to turn from fin unto God; as alfo the command to believe in Chrift, binding all to whom the gofpel-revelation comes; though in the mean time this law ftands und different forms, to these who are in a ftate of union with Chrift by faith, and to thefe who are not. So the law of Chrift is not a new proper preceptive law, but the old proper preceptive law, which was from the beginning under a new accidental form. The diftinction betwixt the law of works, and the law of faith, cannot be controverted, fince the apostle doth fo clearly diftinguish them, Rom. iii, 27. The diftinction betwixt Nem. Sir, I know not the difference betwixt them; but this I know, that the law of the ten command the law of works, and the law of Chrift, as above explained according to the fcripture, and the mind of our author, is the fame in effect with that of the law, as a covenant of works, and as a rule of life to believers, Weftm. Confef. chap. 19. art. 6. and ought to be ad mitted. For (1.) Believers are not under, but dead to, the law of works, Rom. vi. 14. For ye are not under the law, but under grace.' Chap. vii. 4. Wherefore, my brethren, ye alfo are 'become dead to the law. But they are under the law 'to Chrift; ye alfo are become dead to the law-'That ye fhould be married to another, even to him who is raifed from the dead,' ib. 1 Cor. ix. 21. Being not without law to God, but under the law to 'Chrift.' Some copies read here of God, and of Chrift; the which I mention, not out of any regard to that different reading, but that upon the occafion thereof the fenfe is owned by the learned to be the fame either way. To be under the law to God is without queftion, to be under the law of God; whatever it may be judged to import more, it can import no lefs: therefore to be under the law to Chrift, is to be under the law of Chrift. This text gives a plain and decifive anfwer to ments, the queftion, How the be liever is under the law of God? namely, as he is under the law to Chrift. (2.) The law of Chrift is an eafy yoke, and a light burden, Matth. xi. 39. But the law of works to a finner is an unfuppor table burden, requiring works as the condition of juftification and acceptance with God, as is clear from the whole of the apostle's reafoning, Rom. iii. (and therefore it is called the law of works, for otherwife the law of Chrift requires works too) and curfing every one that continues not in all things written in it to do them, Gal. iii. 10. The apostle affures us, that 'what things foever the law faith, it faith to them who ' are under the law,' Rom, iii. 19. The duties of the law of works, as fuch, are, as I conceive, called by our Lord himfelf heavy bur "dens and grievous to be born,' Matth. xxiii. 4. For they (viz. the Scribes and Pharifees) bind heavy 'burdens, and grievous to be born, and lay them on mens fhoulders; but they themselves will not move 'them with one of their fingers.' Thefe heavy burdens were not human traditions, and rites devised by men, (for Chrift would not have commanded the obferving and doing of thefe, as in this cafe he did, v. 3. What ments, commonly called the moral law, ought to be a rule of life to a believer. 'Whatfoever they bid you obferve, that obferve and do)' neither were they the Mofaic rites and ceremonies, which were not then abrogated for the Scribes and Pharifees were fo fa. from not moving these burdens with one of their own fingers, that the whole of their religion was confined to them, namely, to the rites and ceremonies of Mofes's law, and thofe of their own devifing. But the duties of the moral law they laid on others,binding them on with the tie of the law of works; yet made no confcience of them in their own practice: the which duties neverthelefs our Lord Jefus commanded to be obferved and done. .. "He who hath believed on Jefus Chrift, (though "he be freed from the curfe "of the law) is not freed "from the command and "obedience of the law, but "tied thereunto by a new "obligation, and a new "command from Chrift. "Which new command "from Chrift "importeth help to obey the com"mand." Practical ufe of faving knowledge, title, The third warrant to believe, fig. 5. What this diftinction amounts to is, That thereby a difference is conftitute betwixt the ten commands, as coming from an abfolute Evan. God out of Chrift unto finners; and the fame ten commands as coming from God in Chrift unto them: a difference which the children of God, fifting their confciences before him to receive the law at his mouth, will value as their life, however they difagree about it in words and manner of expreffion. But that the original indifpenfible obligation of the law of the ten commands is in any measure weakned, by the believer's taking it as the law of Chrift, and not as the law of works: or that the fovereign authority of God the Creator, which is infeparable from it for the ages of eternity, in what channel foever it be conveyed unto men) is thereby laid afide; will appear utterly groundless, upon an impartial confideration of the matter. For is not our Lord Jefus Chrift, equally with the Father and the Holy Spirit, JEHOVAH, the fovereign, fupreme,moft high God, Creator of the world? Ifa. xlvii, 4. Jerem. xxiii. 6. with Pfal. lxxxiii. 18. John i. 3. Rev. iii. 14. Is not the name (or fovereign authority) of God in Chrift? Exod. xxiii. 21, Is not he in the Father, and the Father in him? John xiv. 11. Nay, doth not all the fulness of the Godhead dwell in. him?' Col. ii. 9. How then can the original obligation of |