"covenant, or conftitution, of grace, given to Adam immediately after "his tranfgreffion.

This evidently fuppofes, that Adam was under Law with the penalty of death annexed, while he was in the garden, or before he tranfgrefled; and that the fame fevere conftitution was again revived by Mofes, after it had been suspended from the time of Adam's tranfgreffion till the Law was given by Mofes. Whence the Apoftle concludeth, that, as death reigned all that long period, while fin was committed in the world, and yet no pofitive Law fubfifted, making death the penalty of fin; he concludes, I fay, that men, in general, did not die for their own tranfgreffions, but in confequence of Adam's one tranfgreffion.

It must be observed, that the Apostle Paul doth not always ufe Law in the rigid sense, but sometimes for the whole Jewish Code, or the Old Teftament. Rom. iii. 19. Sometimes for any inward principle which influenceth and governeth a man-vii. 23. Sometimes for a rule in general -iii. 27. And fometimes for a rule of action with the penalty of death annexed. Rom. v. 20. vi. 15. vii. 4, &c.

СНА Р. X.

Of the INSTITUTION of MARRIAGE,

Gen. ii. 18, to the End.

DAM's calling all beafts and fowls by names doth not imply, A that he had a perfect knowledge of the natures and intrinfic quaxx lities of all animals; an opinion deftitute of all evidence; but that God gave him dominion over them, as a master over his bond-fervants, according to the force of the phrafe, to call things or perfons by name. Pfal. cxlvii. 4. Ifai. xl. 26. xliii. 1. God allowing Adam to give the creatures what names he pleased, was the form of conveying or making over to him the property of them and dominion over them. It hath alfo reference to the formation of woman; that Adam, our firft parent, having furveyed all other animals, and having obferved that they were created in pairs, for the propagation of their several kinds, might be fenfible of his own folitary, deftitute condition, and of the importance of his being also provided of a mate fuitable to his nature, (which, by reason of its fuperior excellency, could not be matched with any of the brutal kind) a companion in body and mind, fit to cohabit with him, for mutual converfe, delight, comfort, and affiftance, especially for propagating the human fpecies; without which the world would have been ftocked with only brutes.

And it was fiting, or agreable to the true nature of things, that the formation of the first woman fhould be attended with fome circumstance expreffive of the nearness of that relation, which was to be the fountain of

the

the existence of all mankind, and of all the near and dear relations, fo beneficial and comfortable to the life of man. And no circumstances could do that more fignificantly, than taking the woman out of a part of the man's body. Thus fhe became another felf; and this was intended as a document to all pofterity, that a wife should be regarded and treated as fuch. Ephef. v. 28. So ought men to love their wives, as their own bodies; be that loveth his wife, loveth himself.

Ver. 23. And [when the Lord God brought to him the woman, his wife, and informed him in what manner fhe was produced,] Adam faid, [with much fatisfaction and joy] this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh, the dearest to me of all creatures! fhe fhall be called, Wo

man, because she is taken out of Man. [A fign of Adam's property in her.] ver. 24. And the Lord God faid, (Mat. xix. 4, 5.) Therefore fhall a man leave his father and mother, and fhall cleave unto his wife, and they two fhall be one flesh. Thus marriage was inftituted; a facred and honorable ordinance, of high diftinction, as it is very nearly connected with the dignity and happiness of the human nature.

And by making only one woman for one man, God plainly declared, that this relation ought to fubfift between two; as the Prophet well argues, Mal. ii. 14, 15. And did not he, God, make but one couple, one man and one woman, as a rule to all mankind, that should defcend from them? yet had he the refidue of the fpirit, and could then have created more men and women, if promifcuous conversation had been for the greater happiness of the world. And wherefore did he make but one couple? That he might feek a godly feed, an excellent feed. That man and wife, in chafte wedlock, in fincere and undivided affection, might propagate a posterity to the honor and fervice of God. This is an argument against polygamy and divorce, confirmed by our Lord's wisdom and authority, Mat. xix. 3, 4, 5, 6. Thus mankind are brought into the world in a way fuitably to the excellency of their nature. For, confidering how weak and imperfect our infancy is, and in how great ignorance and diffoluteness of manners we must neceffarily grow up to manhood, without good discipline and instruction, it is evident, this world must have been the moft wild and diforderly scene imaginable, were the race of mankind propagated in a vagrant, licentious manner, without parents to own them, and by their tender care and affection to give them a good education. The production of an intelligent being, in the most helpless and exposed circumftances, and which grows up to a due degree of understanding, no otherwife than by good culture, ought to be attended with all the proper advantages in the propagator's power. And therefore the propagation of the human species, according to the true nature of things, ought to be guarded and directed by the best exercise of reason, and not left to be done in a loose, brutal manner. God did not create man in jeft; nor fhould the ordinary generation of a man be made a matter of lewd jeft, or of lawless paffion. This is the rationale of marriage, and of modesty and fobriety.

Adam had no choice, but his defcendents have great need to exercife prudence in the choice of a relation fo important and lafting. The advice and approbation of parents is, in this cafe, one of the beft rules. And

And as marriage leffens the interests of parents in their children, it is generally not dutiful to alienate it to another without their knowledge and confent. Nor fhould parents unreasonably oppofe the lawful inclinations of their children.

Ver. 25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not afbamed, being free from fin and guilt.

CERE Eve is deceived and tempted to tranfgrefs the law of God H by fome moral agent, who could fpeak and argue, called by Mo** fes when the Serpent; which, he faith, was more fubtil than any other beaft of the field, which the Lord God had made. But a beaft of the field, how fubtil or fagacious foever, could not speak and reason. Who then was the moral agent that deceived Eve? St. Paul, 2 Cor. xi. 3. fpeaks of this deceiver in the fame manner as Mofes doth; I fear, left by any means, as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his fubtilty, fo your minds fhould be corrupted from the fimplicity that is in Chrift. The Apoftle did not fuppose the Corinthians might be corrupted by the fubtilty of an irrational creature; confequently, he did not fuppofe that Eve was beguiled by the fubtilty of an irrational creature. But St. John comes nearer to the point in Rev. xii. 9. xx. 2. Where he speaks of the Serpent as a deceiver, and describes him after this manner, and the great dragon was caft out, that old Serpent; called otherwife in Scripture, the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world. A dragon is a huge overgrown ferpent. That old Serpent, means that Serpent, which of old, at the begining of the world deceived Eve, and ftill was deceiving the world. (And in feveral other places of Scripture, which we shall presently have occafion to take notice of, the Devil's temptation of Eve is plainly alluded to.) Therefore this Serpent, and the Devil and Satan, are fynonymous, and mean one and the fame being. Hence divines have juftly concluded, that it was the Devil or Satan, an evil or malignant spirit, which tempted Eve, in the body, or affuming the form and shape, of a Serpent; which then might be a very beautiful as well as fagacious animal, familiar with Adam and Eve, and much admired by them.

That there are wicked and malignant spirits, is undeniably true from Scripture. 2 Pet. ii. 4. For if God spared not the Angels that fined, but ougars Copy Tagragwoas caft them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darknefs, to be referved unto judgment. [Or rather, caft them down into a low, wretched condition, in chains of darkness, delivered them to be reserved VOL. I,

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unto

unto judgement.] Jude 6. And the Angels which kept not their firft eftate, but left their own habitation, he hath referved dio poss aidions & To Copov in everlafting chains under darkness, unto the judgement of the great day. Being caft down to hell, and delivered into chains of darkness, in St. Peter, is the fame as being referved in perpetual chains under darkness, in St. Jude; and may fignify no more than, that they are degraded from their former high and glorious ftate, and chained, or confined to, a much lower, narrower, and darker fituation, without any hope of favor, unto the day of judgment; when they, with all workers of iniquity, fhall be caft into everlafting fire, Mat. xxv. 41. Rev. xx. 10, 15. For any thing, therefore, advanced in those two places, thofe fallen angels may, at prefent, refide in our air, and be permited to wander about in the earth.

It must be observed, that there is an ambiguity in both the words, Satan, and Aabox the Devil. The former, Satan, fignifies any adverfary among men and good angels, as well as among evil fpirits. Num. xxii. 32. And the Angel of the Lord faid,behold, I went out to withstand thee, w's "y for an adversary, a Satan. So 2 Sam. xix.

22.Ye fons of Zeruiah are adverfaries. 1 Kin. v. 4. xi. 14. 23. 25. Pfal. lxxi. 13. cix. 20, 29. Peter was Satan, an adverfary, to our Lord, Mat. xvi. 23. And the unbelieving Jews were the Satan, or adverfaries, who hindered St. Paul's return to Theffalonica, 1 Theff. ii. 18. Aa60205 Devil, fignifies an accufer, flanderer. Joh. vi. 70. and one of you, Judas, is AaCones a Devil. 1 Tim. iii. 11. Their wives must be grave,

Aiabohus not Devils, i. e. accufers, flanderers. 2 Tim. iii. 3. falfe accufers, Tit. ii. 3. Thus it may be applied to any wicked perfons, who flander, accufe, and perfecute the people of God. And this ambiguity in the fenfe of those two words, and Aabon, may render it doubtful how fome particular paffages of Scripture are to be un

derstood.

That those two words are ufed to fignify one and the fame wicked fpirit, who, with many others his angels, or under-agents, are converfant in our world, and endeavour to draw men into fin, and do mischief is evident from revelation. As in the cafe of our firft among us, very parents, of Job, whofe children and fubftance were deftroyed, and his body afflicted with a grievous diforder by Satan, Job i. 12, &c. ii. 6, 7; of our Lord, who was tempted of the Devil, or Satan, Mat. iv. 1, 3, 10. Mark i. 13. Luke iv. 2. Which temptation, under all its circumftances, can never be refolved into an allegory; much lefs can it be fupposed to be all tranfacted within our Lord's own mind, as if the Devil, or Satan, was no other than the fuggeftions, or thoughts, that arofe in his own heart, which is very abfurd. Nor can the following texts be naturally understood of any other than a real Devil or Satan. Mat. xiii. 39. The enemy that fowed the tares is the Devil, [and his inftruments] Mark iii. 26. How can Satan caft out Satan? Joh. viii. 44. Ye are of your father the Devil. A&ts x. 38. Healing all that were oppreffed of the Devil. 2 Cor. xi. 13, 14. For fuch are falfe apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the Apostles of Chrift. And no marvel, for Satan himself is transformed into an Angel of Light, Heb. ii. 14. That through

death

death he might destroy him that had the power of [fubjecting our first parents, and their pofterity, to] death, that is, the Devil. 2 Tim. 2, 16. - recover themselves out of the fnare of the Devil. Jam. iv. 7. Refift the Devil, and he fhall flee from you. 1 Joh. iii. 8. He that commiteth fin, is of the Devil; for the Devil fineth from the begining [of the world, alluding to his tempting our first parents into fin;] for this caufe the Son of God was manifefted, that he might deftroy the works of the Devil. Jude 9. Yet Michael, the Archangel, when contending with the Devil, he difputed about the body of Mofes. And generally, Satan and Devil are thus to be underftood in the New Teftament, the few places before mentioned only excepted. Though where the Devil is principally intended, his inftruments, or wicked agents among men, may, at the fame time, be connoted.

Befides Satan, or the Devil, the Scripture frequently mentions other evil fpirits, called dapona, Saspores, Demons, which we tranflate Devils. That these Dæmons, however understood in prophane authors, do belong to the Devil's retinue, and may be his angels or under-agents, over whom he is chief or prince, will appear by comparing Mat. xii. 22, 24, 28. Luke. 17, 18. xi. 15, 18. Thofe who in the Gofpels are faid to be damono poffeffed by Dæmons, in Acts x. 38. are faid to be opprefed of the Devil, ύπο του Διαβόλου, as they were under the power of his agents. Thus we may conceive of the Devil and his angels, Mat. xxv. 41. the Dragon and his angels, Rev. xii. 7. He is the prince and head, and those dæmons are his fubjects. They are often fpoken of in the plural number, as being many; though Satan, or the Devil, is always in the fingular, as being but one fingle spirit, and chief over all the reft. But, as before obferved, his angels, or agents, may fometimes be included with him.

it.

The characters which the Devil or Satan fuftains in Scripture, are thefe, the great Dragon, or fierce Devourer, the old Serpent, full of villainous fubtilty, Rev. xii. 9. The Wicked One, Mat. xiii. 38. 1 Joh. iii. 12. A Murtherer and Liar, Joh. viii. 44. Ye are of your father, the Devil, and the lufts of your father will ye do, he was a murtherer from the begining, [in effecting the death of Adam and his pofterity; and thus he may be faid to have had the power of death, Heb. ii. 14.] and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he fpeaketh a lie, he Speaketh of his own, for he is a liar, [as he was to Eve,] and the father of The Accufer of the Brethren, Rev. xii. 10. [See Job i. 613. ii. 17.] A roaring Lion, [the lion roars only when he is hungry, Pfal. xxii. 13. Ezek. xxii. 25.] feeking whom he may devour. The Prince of the World, meaning, as it is corrupt and wicked, John xii. 31. xiv. 30. xvi. 11. The Prince of the Power of the Air, the Spirit that now worketh in the Children of Disobedience, the idolatrous heathen, Ephef. ii. 2. the Devil is reprefented as a prince, or sovereign, at the head of a kingdom, which stands in oppofition to, and is at war with, the kingdom of Chrift; who was manifefted as his antagonist, that he might destroy the works of the Devil, 1 John. iii. 8.

Here

The Dæmons are characterized as the Devil's angels, Mat. xxv. 41. As unclean Spirits, Mark v. 2, 8, 12. Luke iv. 33, 36. viii. 27, 29. Evil, wicked, Spirits, Luke viii. 2.

Thefe vicious fpirits, the Devil and his angels, when permitted, are

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capable