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so A. Gellius defines it: "Pœnitere, tum dicere solemus, cum quæ ipsi fecimus, aut quæ de nostrâ voluntate nostroque consilio facta sunt, ea nobis pòst incipiunt displicere, sententiamque in iis nostram demutamus:" "To repent is, when those things which we have done, displease us, and we change our minds."-So that here is both a 'displeasure' and a change;' a displeasure and sorrow for the evil, and a change to better. And there ought to be no scruple in this; for by the first sorrow of a penitent man, is meant nothing else but the first act of eschewing evil: which whether it be by grief alone, or by fear, or by hope, or by all these, it is not without some trouble of mind, and displeasure; for if it were still in all senses a pleasure to go on, they would never return back. And therefore to suppose repentance without displeasure, is to suppose a change of mind without alteration, or a taking a new course without disliking the old. But then to suppose any other sorrow naturally necessary, than this which naturally is included in the change, is to affirm that to be true which experience tells us is not true; and it is to place self-affliction and punition at the head, which is to be looked for in the retinue of repentance; to make the daughter to be before the mother, and the fruit to be kept in the root, not to grow upon the branches. But the Latin words can no way determine any thing of question in this article; and the Greek words are used promiscuously; and when they are distinguished, they differ but as the more and less perfect, as the beginning of repentance and the progress of perfection; according to that saying; "Pœnitentia erroris magnus gradus est ad resipiscentiam," "To acknowledge and be sorry for our sin, is a great step to repentance;”—and both together signify all that piety, that change, and holiness, which are the duty of the new man, of the returning sinner: and we can best learn it by the words of him that revealed and gave this grace to all his servants; even of the Holy Jesus speaking to St. Paul at his conversion; from whose blessed words, together with those of St. Paul in his narrative of that story, we may draw this more perfect description. To repent is to "turn from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God, doing works worthy of amendment of life, for the forgiveness of sins, that we may receive inherit

b Noct. Att. lib. 17. c. 1.

e Aets, xxvi. 18. 20.

ance among them that are sanctified by faith in Christ Jesus."

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9. Upon this account, the parts of repentance are two; 1. Leaving our sins:' which is properly repentance from dead works. And, 2. 'Doing holy actions' in the remaining portion of our days; "actions meet for repentance;" so the Baptist called them. This is in Scripture, by way of propriety, called repentance; μerávou, so the Baptist used it; distinguishing repentance from its fruits; that is, from such significations, exercises, and prosecutions, of this change, as are apt to represent, and to effect it more and more; such as are confession, weeping, self-afflictions, alms, and the like. So St. Paul, using the same words before King Agrippa. But by way of synecdoche, not only the fruits and consequent expressions, but the beginning-sorrow also is signified by the same word: and all are under the same commandment, though with different degrees of necessity and expression; of which I shall afterward give account. Here I only account concerning the essential and constituent parts and definition of repentance.

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10. All the whole duty of repentance, and every of its parts, is sometimes called conversion. Thus godly sorrow is a conversion or change: and upon that account St. James calls upon sinners; "Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep, let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into weeping." This is the first change of our affections, which is attended with a change of our judgment: when we do no longer admire the false beauties of sin; but judge righteously concerning it. And of this the prophet Jeremy & gives testimony; "Surely, after that I was turned, I repented." And by this word on the Hebrews express the duty; which the LXX. indifferently render by μετάνοια and μεταμέλεια, and is best rendered conversion.' And then follows the conversion of the whole man, body and soul, mind and spirit; all are set in opposition against sin, and apply themselves to the service of God, and conformity to Jesus.

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SECTION II.

Of Repentance in general; or Conversion.

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1. 'REPENTANCE' and 'faith' in Scriptures signify sometimes more generally; and, in the federal sense, are used for all that state of grace and favour, which the holy Jesus revealed, and brought into the world. They both signify the Gospel for the whole Gospel is nothing else but that glad tidings which Christ brought to all mankind, that the covenant of works, or exact measures, should not now be exacted, but men should be saved by second thoughts, that is, by repentance and amendment of life, through faith in the Lord Jesus. That is, if we become his disciples (for that is the condition of the covenant), we shall find mercy, our sins shall be blotted out, and we shall be saved if we obey heartily and diligently, though not exactly. This becoming his disciples, is called faith;' that is, coming to him, believing him, hoping in him, obeying him; and consequent to this is, that we are admitted to repentance, that is, to the pardon of our sins. "For him hath God exalted on his right hand, to be a Prince and a Saviour δοῦναι μετάνοιαν καὶ ́äpεσiv åμapriov, to give repentance and remission of sins"." This is the sum total of the Gospel. That we have leave to repent, supposes that God will pardon what is past. But then that we have leave to repent, supposes us also highly bound to it. It is in mere pity to our infirmities, our needs, and our miseries, that we have leave to do it: and this is given to mankind by faith in Jesus Christ, that is, by becoming his disciples; for he hath power to pardon sins, and to ⚫ take them away, and to cleanse us from all unrightousness,' viz. which we have committed. This is that which all the world did need, and longed for; it was the кρуπтÒν άπò тшV alwvwv, the hidden mystery from all ages, but revealed in Christ;" whose blood (as St. Clement expresses it) Tavrl T κόσμῳ μετανοίας χάριν ὑπήνεγκεν, " brought to all the world the grace of repentance."

2. This is the Gospel. For the Gospel is nothing else but faith and repentance. The Gospel is called 'faith' by St. Paul, pò TOυ ¿X0εiv Tηv níoriv, " before that faith came,

h Acts, v. 31.

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we were under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterward be revealed;" that is, to the Gospel, or the glad tidings of repentance; which is called aкon wiσTεwc," the hearing of faith." For faith' being here opposed to 'the law,' that is, the covenant of mercy to the covenant of works, must mean, the covenant of repentance.' And therefore, although, if we consider them as proper and particular graces and habits, they have differing natures and definitions; yet in the general and federal sense of which I now speak, faith and repentance are only distinguished by relations and respects, not by substance and reality. "Repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ';" that is, repentance for having sinned against God; a repentance, I say, through faith in Jesus Christ; that is, a repentance procured, and preached, and enjoined, by Christ, being the sum of his discipline. And that it may appear faith and repentance to be the same thing, and differing only in name and manner of expression, St. Paul confounds the distinction. which he formerly made, and that which he called "repentance towards God, and faith towards our 'Lord Jesus," in his sermons in Asia; in his Epistle to the Hebrews, he calls repentance from dead works and faith in God." And the words are used for each other promiscuously in St. Luke; for that which the rich man in hell called μετανοήσουσιν, Abraham called onσovтal. "If one comes from the dead they will repent:" no, said Abraham, " if they will not hear Moses and the prophets, then if one come from the dead, they will not believe, or be persuaded." And St. Peter", giving an account of the delaying of the coming of the Lord for the punishment of the obdurate Jews and enemies of Christ, says, it is because God of his infinite goodness expects even them also to be converted to the faith, or becoming Christians, as the whole design of the place infers; and this he calls εἰς μετάνοιαν χωρῆσαι, “ a coming to repentance," that is, to the faith of Christ. And therefore the Gospel is nothing else but a universal publication of repentance and pardon of sins in the name of Christ, that is procured for all them who are his disciples: and to this we are baptized, that is, adopted into the religion, into that discipleship under which God requires holiness, but not perfect mea

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i Gal. iii. 23.

* Verse 2.

Acts, xx. 21.

m2 Pet. iii. 9. 15.

sures; sincerity without hypocrisy, but not impeccability or perfect innocence.

3. And as the Gospel is called faith, and faith is repentance, that is, it is the same covenant of grace and mercy, with this only difference, that it is called faith, as it relates to Christ who procured this mercy for us, repentance, as it signifies the mercy itself so procured: so baptism, by the same analogy, is called "the baptism unto repentance," βάπτισμα τῆς μετανοίας, ' the baptism of repentance ; so it is called in the Jerusalem creed; that is, the admission to the grace of the Gospel; which the fathers of Constantinople, in their appendage to the Nicene creed, thus express: "I believe one baptism for the remission of sins;" that is, to remission of sins we are admitted by baptism alone; no other way shall we have this grace, this title, but by being once initiated into the Gospel to be disciples of Jesus. Not that it is to be supposed, that our sins are only pardoned when we are baptized; but that by baptism we are admitted to the state and grace of repentance and pardon of sins. And this is demonstratively certain, not only upon those many instances of baptized penitents admitted to pardon, and baptized criminals called upon in Scripture to repent,― but upon the very nature of the evangelical covenant, and the whole design of Christ's coming. For if we were not admitted to repentance after baptism, then we were still to be judged by the covenant of works, not by the covenant of faith; and we should inherit by the law, or not at all, and not be heirs according to promise;' and then Christ were dead in vain, we are yet in our sins;' and all the world must perish, because all men have sinned, and so none should go to heaven but newly-baptized infants, or newly-baptized catechumens and how then could the Gospel be a new covenant, it being exactly the same with the law; for so it must be, if it promise no mercy or repentance to them that sin after our admittance to it. But baptism is a new birth, and by it we are ἀνακαινιζόμενοι εἰς μετάνοιαν, “ renewed unto repentance," unto that state of life which supposes holiness and imperfection, and consequently needs mercy all the way: according to that saying, "Justus ex fide vivet," "The just shall live by faith;" that is, all our righteousness, all our hopes, all our spiritual life, is conserved by, and is rely

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