or second, he was not able; or third, that they will be saved in sin without Christ and repentance; or fourth and lastly, they will be called to repentance, and saved from siu in another world, by him who is Lord of the dead as well as the living. Which supposes unhappiness in that world until called and saved from all their sing.

CHAPTER 2.

THE GOSPEL COVENANT AS GIVEN IN JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.

GAL. 4. 22. "For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.” Verse 23. "But he that was of the bond woman, was born after the flesh: but he of the freewoman, was by promise." Verse 24. "Which things are in allegory: for these are the two covenants." Verse 25. "For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children." Verse 26. "But Jerusalem which is above, is free, which is the mother of us all." Verse 28. “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was are the children of promise." i. e. They trusted in the gracious promises of God.Verse 29. "But as then, he that was born after the flesh, persecuted him that was born after the spirit, even so it is now." Those who are borp after the inward Spirit of divine grace, and consequently are made free from the law of outward ordinances, must expect persecution from those whose religion is in the flesh, consisting in a round of dead formal ceremonies, and carnal ordinances; for such persons are in bondage with their mother Agar, and cannot walk with the children of the freewoman above, but will, to the extent of their power show their envious malignant spirit by cruel pesecutions. Let it never be forgotten, that such characters once hung, whipt and banished the children of the freewoman called Quakers, in and about the city of Boston. Even now those vile accusers of the spiritual brotherhood, cease not to speak evil of the children of the freewoman, by charging them wi h infidelity, and of being destitute of religion, &c. And wherefore, do those outward people thus grudge and set at nought the followers of Christ? Why because those spiritual minded people

cannot run to the same excess in outward forms and dead ordinances. I am fully persuaded that no free born child can ever submit, willingly to be a bona slave in the house of carnal ordinances; ne will choose rather to suffer slander with the children of God.

Now it is of the first importance to us, that we should have a right understanding of the gospel covenant. Then let us take a careful view of its whole nature, for our best instruction. As Sarah being Abraham's wife was no bond woman, but perfectly as free as her husband was; even so the gospel covenant, which her condition prefigured, is perfectly free; And as in that case, the twain, male and female being lawfully united, were one flesh, even so the inward spiritual law of God and the spiritual covenant of grace are of one spirit in Jesus, from which circumstance the word atonement is taken, as derived from the words [at-one-meant] which is a compound of the words, signifying that which is meant to unite in one, both God and man, even in Christ. So that the law of the holy spirit and the cov enant of grace, as the spiritual twain, are one, or in other words, at one object in Christ, viz. the reconciliation of man to God. For while the law requires all that to be done in us which can possibly qualify man for a happy state in heaven, it is in the nature of the gospel covenant to fulfil all this divine demand. Hence St. Paul says Rom. 3--31. "Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law." Ob. serve, to the apostles was committed the ministry of reconciliation, "To wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself" 2 Cor. 5-18, 19. And Rom. 5-11. "But we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement." Therefore, in receiving the ministry of reconciliation, the apostles received the doctrine of atonement in the gospel covenant; by which covenant, God is in Crist, reconciling the world unto himself, in which work of grace in man, consisteth the atonement, and is the fulfilment of what the law demands, which establishes the law of God in us. As Sarah was Abra

ham's lawful wife, she was not like a bond woman, but was a free voluntary help meet to her husband; in like manner, the gospel covenant works a free and voluntary submission in us to the divine law.

Again, undoubtedly, Abraham wished for a true legitimate heir, but this demand his bond maid could not satisfy. But Sarah his wife as the freewoman prevailed, even so the inward law of the spirit of life, demands that man should be born again of a holy spirit; but this demand the ceremonial covenant could never fulfill; but the free woman above, that mother of us all, is fulfiling this important requirement.

Now while examining into the important import of this extraordinary allegory, let us reflect that Isaac was not born until Sarah had become an old woman, and to the expectation of worldly wisdom, was past the age of common child-bearing, and yet she bore a true heir; Even so, after the end of this world or age, when according to the wisdom which is from beneath, many people suppose it is past the day of grace, and too late for any to be born true heirs of the kingdom, even then, will the freewoman bring forth to the birth, her last fruits of the holy spirit with rejoicing, as the last freeborn members of Christ's mystic body and legitimate heirs of glory. Again, Abraham could not be the father of a great nation, unless Isaac should be born, as the medium through whose loins this numerous offspring of Abraham should flow into the world; so that Isaac, in this sense, was the first born, among the legitimate posterity of Abraham. And therefore a figure of Christ the seed of the freewoman above, "who is the mother of us all." And of every creature, Christ the Son of God, is her first born, as the promised seed of the woman to bruise the serpents head, and through whom as a medium, or mediator all mankind as the spiritual offspring of God, shall through the eternal spirit in Jesus Christ, be born again, and flow into the glorious kingdom of God our Heavenly Father.

The gospel covenant is called, "Jerusalem above," the freewoman and mother of us all, to signify the

genius of infinite wisdom in the glorious plan of divine grace, eternally dwelling with God.

Christ is the first born of this eternal plan, according to the predeterminate council and foreknowledge of God; hence Jesus is the promised seed of the woman, or in other words, to the same amount, he is the promised seed of the genius of infinite wisdom dwelling with prudence in the covenant of grace and mercy,

Sarah of old, was a figure of this plan, or covenant of wisdom, and her son a figure of Jesus the seed of the free woman above. Agar was a sign of the genius of that wisdom from beneath, which works a plan of bondage in the flesh. Ishmael, Agar's son, was a sign or fig ure of error or all falsehood in the world, which is always the seed of the genius of that wisdom which is from beneath, and in the fleshy mind of those governed thereby, which characterizes them children of the adversary, until a reformation takes place under the government of the truth, the seed of that wisdom which is aboye.

It was the will and pleasure of Abraham and Sarah his wife, to turn the bond woman and her child entirely out of their family, and it was done. Even so, it is the will and pleasure of both the divine law and the gospel covenant, that the carnal wisdom of this world should be brought to nought; and also that the first born seed of that evil genius, i. e. all error in man, should finally be destroyed out of the wide spread family of God: And it will be done, by the seed of the free woman, St. Matt. 15, 13. "Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up :" So that the twain have one and the same object in view, which answers to the term, atonement, or words, at-one-meant. Hence it will be observed, that while the divine law makes the demand, the Gospel covenant is fulfilling what it requires to be done in man, by an infusion of celestial light into the understanding through the medium of our Lord Jesus Christ. N. B. Jesus Christ is all the mediator there is between God and man, so that we receive all that is of a spiritual nature, through him, as the me