scriptures of Jesus Christ are demonstrated in several chapters concerning him, which sufficiently shew the high honours that men and God himself gave to Jesus Christ; and such honours every true Christian ought to be ready to acknowledge. But, at the same time, it must be ever remembered, as will be shewn hereafter, that in his whole ministry he acted as God's teacher, as God's apostle, as God's prophet, as God's Christ: and when he had finished his ministry, and had been obedient to death, even the death of the cross, God highly exalted him,' and gave him a name above every name:' i. e. (rightly translated) 'he freely gave him a name above every name:' it was not a name or character he assumed, whether it be understood to signify, according to the present translation, that Jesus Christ was made lord or chief, or head of the new creation. Yet it is still to be observed, that these characters are all conferred by God; and the great end for which they were conferred, is always to be especially observed, for this very purpose, that all his followers should ever have in their view, to act in every instance by his instruction and example, to the glory of God the Father.

CHAP. XXXI.

God represented in the scriptures under the title of a lawgiver. ΝΟΜΟΘΕΤΗΣ.

James iv. 12, THERE is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy.'

The Alexandrian and several other copies read, 'There is one lawgiver and judge,' &c.

God, the all-perfect, and most perfect Being, the great author of the universe, hath set rules or laws for every order of created beings; according to their several ranks and the nature of their beings; which, as far as human understanding can reach, are observed in the inanimate part of the creation; and also has

provided for the intelligent part of the creation such `laws or rules as are altogether proper for them to observe as intelligent and free agents. As God only knew the nature and properties of every order of beings he had created, so he alone could appoint laws by which they were to be managed, under his all-wise government, proper and suitable to the great end which he had in view, of making his wisdom as apparent in all parts of the universe, as it is demonstrable in the original formation of all things.

Of a being formed with such faculties as all the intelligent creation are endowed with, it is necessarily required in the relation he bears to Almighty God as his maker, preserver, and governor, that he should regard him under all those relations with the highest reverence, duty, and obedience. By the light of nature, in the rational use of our faculties, we must discover and acknowledge him to be an infinite, allperfect Being who governs the world; and by the constitution of the human mind we are so framed, that we cannot but admire perfection of all kinds; and as we cannot but conceive God to be the most perfect Being, our admiration, consequently, of God, when he is the object, must rise to the highest degree. And when such a Being is considered as our maker, preserver, governor, benefactor, aud judge, from these characters we must necessarily conclude our entire dependence, obedience, gratitude and submission are due to him to obtain his favour, and avoid his displeasure. For which great ends, we must necessarily conclude, that there are certain rules by which we are to regulate our behaviour, by the observance of which we may become acceptable to God, as our governor and judge. These rules are in part discoverable by our rational consideration of the nature of God, and the nature of man; and these rules are more fully and plainly made known to us by divine revelation in the holy scriptures, i. e. by certain extraordinary discoveries of his will and laws, which he has thought fit to make known to the patriarchs; to Moses and the prophets; to Christ and his apostles.

Moses represents Adam and Eve, our first parents, under certain laws of government in two branches of their conduct. Gen. ii. 16, 17, And the Lord (Jehovah) God commanded the man, saying, Of every. tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.' In the first clause of this passage, as in all laws human and divine, there' is a preceptive part; and in the second clause a probibitory; i. e. he was directed what to do, and what not to do.

Note. The brief history of Moses doth not contain the particulars which might be included in the law above-mentioned: such particulars must necessarily come to the knowledge of Adam and his posterity. For God continued to govern him and his posterity by laws suited to their rational nature.

Noah, by Moses's account, had a more explicit revelation of God's will, under the universal characters of law: Thou mayest: thou mayest not. Under the first is the permission of all animal food except the blood. Under the second, the prohibition of blood, and the prohibition of murder.

The great and general rule Moses delivers of God's revelation to Abraham, Gen. xvii. 1, was in these most comprehensive terms: Walk before me, and be thou perfect' (sincere).

Moses is the next extraordinary person to whom God delivered a system of moral and ceremonial laws; the first of eternal obligation; the last delivered and published only to the children of Israel, and therefore did not oblige the rest of mankind. The moral laws of Moses delivered from God by the ministry of Moses, διὰ Μωσέως, contained in the decalogue or ten commandments, are explained in a truer and fuller sense by Jesus Christ, in the fifth, sixth, and seventh of Matthew, wherein he most strongly confirms their obligation. Chap. v. 17, 18, 19, I am not come to destroy' the law and the prophets but to fulfil: for

verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot, or one tittle (the smallest part), shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whoso

ever, therefore, shall break one of the least of these commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.'

All the prophets in the Old Testament, led by a divine spirit, in all their prophecies insist upon, in the strongest terms, the obedience due to the moral laws of God, with promises and threats and also most clearly distinguish the lesser obligation of the ceremonial law, when compared with the much greater obligation of the moral law. And the same is taught by our master Christ. Every reader will find passages to this purpose both in the Old and New Testa

ments.

Our great master Jesus Christ has reduced the moral law to two great branches; the love of God, and the love of our neighbour. Mat. xxii. 37---40, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind: this is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang (or depend) all the law and the prophets.' See also Mark xii. 30, 31, Luke x. 27.

Note 1. The true love of our neighbour includes a wise and true love of ourselves, and indeed supposes it, otherwise the wisdom of God's law would not prescribe us this rule, to love our neighbour as ourselves.' The true love of ourselves comprehends the avoiding of all hurt or damage to our own persons or our affairs, i. e. self-preservation and also includes all the good or benefits we can justly procure for ourselves, either in our persons or affairs. On the very same principles God obliges to act towards all mankind.

2. It is highly probable, that the most considerable laws concerning obedience to God, and duty to man

kind, were well known to Adam, partly by inspiration, and partly by rational collection, and that he conveyed his knowledge in both respects to his posterity; one whereof (Methuselah), living above two hundred years before the death of Adam, might convey, by oral tradition, what he learned from Adam, and many of his posterity, to Noah and others, who survived the flood. For during that great interval, from the creation to the flood, in reason it cannot be supposed that mankind acted towards God and themselves without a law or a rule. Almighty God having impressed original rules upon all the lower orders of beings upon our globe, by which he governs them; reason, I think, will certainly assure us, that he who made man a rational intelligent being, hath implanted in his nature rational powers, and inpressed on his mind such rules of action as were necessary for him to be governed by; and it would be absurd to suppose, that the principal being on this earth should be less under the care and providence of God, his maker and governor, than any of the inferior orders of beings. As God can influence the human mind, and direct its powers in all cases, so no doubt he actually does so, in all cases ordinary and extraordinary, suitably and consistently with the nature of human actions; and it is also unquestionable, that he may, and doth convey into the human mind, such notions, principles, or resolutions, as are requisite for the conduct of mankind, in the various changes and revolutions that happen in the several ages. God has not left one part of his creation to preserve or order itself; and where he principally employed his wisdom and goodness in forming, there these two divine perfections are chiefly employed in the government of such beings."

Of the laws of God, concerning our duty to him. Of the love of God.

See Matt. xxii. 37, Mark xii. 30, Luke x. 27, before cited.

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