Christ, but what is notoriously vicious, if not barbarous. And if there be any part of America, that acknowledgeth not the life to come, it is those that are man-eating cannibals, or so savage as that they seem almost to have unmanned themselves.

9. Doth not your own conscience sometime stir and gripe you, and tell you that yet there is somewhat within you that beareth witness to your capacity of an everlasting state?

10. Lastly, should not the least probability of a matter of such moment as everlasting joy or misery is, persuade a man of reason to let go all the pleasures of sin, rather than lose but such a possibility of everlasting happiness, or venture on such a probability of everlasting misery? Are you sure that there is no such thing? Are you sure that you shall die as a beast? I do not think you dare say so. What then will become of you, if your conjectures prove false? as most certainly they will. What if there be a heaven to lose, and a hell to suffer; and you will not believe it till you feel it where are you then? You might have been sure that you could lose but little, if you had followed Christ, but a little sensual, transitory pleasure, which no man ever repented of losing, when he was dead. But you are not sure but you may lose everlasting felicity, and suffer everlasting misery, by your rejecting Christ: which of these two then is the wiser bargain, or better beseems a reasonable man?

*

To conclude, if you have not yet blasphemed the Holy Ghost, or so far forsaken God as to be quite forsaken of him, nor trodden under foot the blood of the covenant as an unholy thing, so far as that Christ will leave you to yourselves, I may hope to prevail with you to set seriously to the work, and make a more diligent and impartial inquiry into the grounds of the christian faith; and, among other means, that you will read, considerately, this book with that whereof it is a supplement, viz., the second part of the Saint's Rest,' and 'Grotius, of the Truth of the Christian Religion,' now translated into English ; and if any thing in the reading seem unsatisfactory, that you will debate the case with some that are judicious, and do not conclude inconsiderately and peremptorily against that which you never thoroughly understood; as, also, that you will beg, by earnest

6

* As to the nature of the sin against the Holy Ghost, besides the consent of the fathers, in the main expressed in the third part; see an Epistle of Phocion, fully to the same sense and purpose. Inter. Epist. ejus., p. 167, 168. Epist. 127. And against Julian's and other apostates' accusations of Christ's laws; see an excellent discourse, ib. p. 275. Epist. 187. Xeisopipw 'Aσmabapių.

prayer, the assistance of God, to acquaint you with the truth, for I suppose you yet to believe that there is a God. If you are given up to so much contempt of God and your own souls, that you will not be at thus much labour for your information, or while you read you will strive against the light, and rather proudly disdain than faithfully consider, and humbly learn the things which you understand not; I have discharged my conscience; take that you get by it.

A lamenter of the apostasies, non-proficiency, and contentiousness of these times,

RICHARD BAXTER,

August 14, 1655.

THE

THE SPIRIT'S WITNESS TO THE TRUTH

OF

CHRISTIANITY,

Gal. iii. 1, 2.

"Oh, foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?"

"This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith ?"

NOTHING is more necessary to the understanding of the apostle's meaning, than first to know the question that he disputes of; and to that end we must know whom he disputes against, which was those or such like false teachers which are spoken of in the fifteenth of the Acts, as many passages in this epistle would easily manifest, if we thought it needed proof. The doctrine which they taught, was, that it was needful to be circumcised, and to keep the law of Moses, and that to salvation. That they taught not only circumcision, but the whole law, is evident, verse 5. That they made it necessary to salvation, is plain, verse 1; yet these men did not deny Christ, nor teach men to do so directly. The converted Jews were so great honourers of their law, as knowing it was of divine ordination, and their fathers had been so severely chastised for the breach of it, and so many prophets had been sent to confirm it, that they thought that doctrine could not be true which taught them to reject the law, or maintained the abrogation of it: on the other side, they were so convinced by the miracles of Christ and his apostles, that the testimony of Christ was true, and that he came from God, that they could not disbelieve him, nor reject his doctrine. It must be confessed that their trial was great in this strait, seeing all loyal subjects of God should not rashly believe an abrogation of his law. In this great perplexity, not finding cut the right way, they resolve to join both together;

the law they thought they must keep, for they were sure God had ordained and commanded it: Christians they must needs be, for they could not resist the light of the doctrine and glorious miracles that were wrought; therefore, they would keep the law, and yet continue Christians. Their great mistake was in not understanding the nature, and meaning, and use of the law. They thought, that as it commanded them such a task of duty, so the doing of that duty must needs be pleasing to God; and consequently that man must needs be held most righteous that most exactly kept that law; for God could not choose but love and justify them that kept his own law. Where, note, that it was not, 1. Out of self admiration principally, or a conceit of any excellency of works as works, that was the root of their error, but it was an admiration and honouring of the law of God, thinking that it were a derogation from its perfection, to say either that it was useless as to justify men, or that it was not a way, yea, a perfect way to life and happiness: 2. You must note carefully, that it is not the law as delivered to Adam, which the apostle or these Galatians here spake of, which supposed the subject to be perfectly innocent, and, therefore, that it was not perfect obedience without any sin that these Jews did look to be justified by, for they could not be so blind as to think they had no sin, for then they would never have offered sacrifice for expiation of it, nor have confessed sin, nor prayed for pardon, which it is certain the Jews did use to do, but they thought, that though they were sinners, yet by the obeying this law of Moses God's wrath would be appeased: that is, partly by their sacrifices, which they thought did expiate sin of themselves, as being a sufficient means, through the virtue of God's ordination and mercy for that end, and partly by returning to obedience again: so that they took not this to be a law of perfect works made to perfect man, as the only condition of his salvation, as Adam's law was, but a law of perfect obedience for the future, yet not as the only condition of life, but prescribing a course, in the use whereof God would pardon their sins, if they obeyed sincerely; or, as Paul Burgens. ou Jam. saith of his countrymen, the Pharisees, that their opinion was, that he was righteous, whose obedience was more than his disobedience, and the contrary unrighteous. The root of their error, therefore, was, that they looked only at the task of duty prescribed by the law, as if it meant that the bare doing of it should justify them, and procure pardon, especially their sacri

fices and other ceremonies; and did not look at the promise, which was a thing distinct from the law; nor yet at the meaning of these sacrifices and ceremonies, which secretly directed them to look for pardon and justification by Christ: they took up with the letter and immediate sense of the law, and did not understand the end of it: they knew not that Christ was the end of the law to every one that believed. The justification that they looked for, did not consist in perfect obedience, as Adam's did, and should have done, (those mistake that think so,) but partly in their obedience to Moses's law, and partly in God's merciful pardoning them for and upon the mere use of sacrifices, and the like ceremonies. They did not look to be justified or saved without mercy and pardon, but to have mercy and pardon by their task of legal duties, as such, and as the only and sufficient means: so that their error lay in the excluding the use of Christ and faith. They saw not that these sacrifices were but types of Christ, and had all their virtue from the sacrifice of Christ, which was then undertaken, and in moral being, though not in natural being, or performed: not that these Jews that were before Christ should not use sacrifices and ceremonies; nor yet that they should not expect ever the more acceptance from God upon the use of them, for certainly God appointeth no duty or means in vain. But, 1. They should have understood, that Christ's sacrifice was the thing typified; 2. And that from hence they were to expect the pardon of all their sins, as the meritorious cause; and from these sacrifices and ceremonies, but only as the most inferior, remote conditions on their part, i. e. as the matter of the law, wherein they were required to be sincerely obedient; 3. And that faith in Christ, 1. As promised; 2. As typified in these ceremonies, was the principal condition on their part required for obtaining pardon and justification by Christ to come; and therefore they should have believed the more easily in Christ when he was come, in that they might see their law in him fulfilled; and they should have understood that it was but a temporary law, and was to cease when the Messiah was come. It scarce needed any abrogation, because there was a clear cessation when the end was accomplished, and the term expired, of which the Messiah did give them full assurance. Much less should they have been so tenacious of it, when the apostles had so fully cleared to them the cessation.

I have thought it necessary to open this the more carefully to you, because it is most necessary to the understanding of Paul's