cleansed and healed, not only the sins which are now pardoned in baptism already, but also those which shall afterwards, by human ignorance or frailty, be contracted.' And the council of Nice, 'He that is baptized descends indeed obnoxious to sins, and held with the corruption of slavery, but he ascends free from that slavery and sins, the son of God, heir, yea, coheir with Christ.' But because it is here said that baptism is the sign of regeneration, and the word 'regenerated' so much carped at in our order for the administration of baptism, I shall next show how the primitive church did long ago not only hold the same assertion, but also use the same expression. So saith Chrysostom,' By water we are regenerated, by blood and flesh we are nourished.' Anathasius", He that is baptized puts off the old man, and is renewed, as being regenerated by the grace of the Spirit.' And so saith Basil, Being baptized in the name of the Holy Ghost, we are regenerated.' The second council at Milan, Infants, who cannot commit any sin as yet in themselves, are therefore truly baptized into the remission of sins, that what they contracted by generation, might be cleansed by them in regeneration.' To name no more, Justin Martyr himself, living long before any of these, said expressly', Afterwards they be brought by us to a place where there is water, and after the same manner of regeneration Descendit quidem is qui baptizatur peccatis obnoxius et servitutis corruptione detentus; ascendit autem ab eâ servitute et peccatis liber, filius Dei, hæres et cohæres Christi.— Concil. Nic. in ▲iatuwάon Baptismatis. 5. Δι' ὕδατος μὲν ἀναγεννώμενοι, δι' αἵματος δὲ καὶ σαρκὸς τρεφόμενοι. Joh. Hom. 85. - Chrysost. in . Ὁ δὲ βαπτιζόμενος τὸν μὲν παλαιὸν ἀπεκδιδύσκεται, ἀνακαινίζεται δὲ ὡς ἄνωθεν yovvndeis Tỹ Toũ IIveúμaros Xágiri.—Athan. in illud, ' Quicunque dixerit.' ་ · Καὶ οὕτως ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ ̔Αγίου Πνεύματος βαπτισθέντες, ἄνωθεν ἐγεννήθημεν. -Basil. de Baptismo, lib. i. cap. 3. * Parvuli, qui nihil peccatorum in semetipsis adhuc committere potuerunt, ideo in remissionem peccatorum veraciter baptizantur, ut in eis regeneratione mundetur quod generatione traxerunt.-Concil. Melivit. 2. cap. 2. 1 Επειτα ἄγονται ὑφ ̓ ἡμῶν ἔνθα ὕδωρ ἐστὶ, καὶ τρόπον ἀναγεννήσεως, ὃν καὶ ἡμεῖς αὐτὸς ἀνεγεννήθημεν, ἀναγεννῶνται. - Justin. Martyr. Apol. 2. Vide Concil. Milevit. 2. Can. 2. p. 118. that we are regenerated by, are they also regenerated.' And therefore, let such us carp at that word in our liturgy hereafter know, it is the primitive church itself, and the most ancient and renowned fathers, they carp at. But we must know withal, that though the ancient fathers do give so much as we do to baptism, yet [they give] not so much as the papists do. For they say baptism itself doeth all these things for us; whereas what the fathers still averred was, that it is the grace and Spirit of God in baptism that doeth them. For, saith Basil", "If there be any grace in the water, it is not from the nature of the water, but from the presence of the Spirit.' For remission of sins,' saith Cyprian", whether it be given by baptism. or other sacraments, it is properly from the Holy Ghost; for it is to him only the privilege of this work belongs.' And the water,' saith Cyril of Jerusalem, 'purges the body, but it is the Spirit that signs the soul.' And presently, When, therefore, thou art descending into the water, do not look upon the bare water, but lay hold upon salvation, by the working of the Holy Ghost.' But this benefit,' saith Gregory Nyssen", the water itself doth not afford us, for it is the weakest of all creatures; but the command of God, and the coming of the Holy Ghost, coming mystically to our redemption.' And to name no more, Augustine saith, The water of the sacraments is visible, m 'Ωστε εἰ τὶς ἐστὶν ἐν τῷ ὕδατι χάρις, οὐκ ἐκ τῆς φύσεως ἐστὶ τοῦ ὕδατος, ἀλλ ̓ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Πνεύματος παρουσίας. — Basil. de Spiritu S. cap. 15. n Remissio peccatorum, sive per baptismum sive per alia sacramenta donetur, propriè Spiritûs Sancti est, et ipsi soli hujus efficientiæ privilegium manet.-Cyprian. de Baptis. Christi. • Καὶ τὸ μὲν ὕδωρ καθαίρει τὸ σῶμα, τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα σφραγίζει τὴν ψυχὴν. Cyril. Hier. Cathec. 3. Méxλav Toívov siç rò lòng narabaíveiv, μù rộ fina τοῦ ὕδατος πρόσεχε, ἀλλὰ τῇ τοῦ ̓Αγίου Πνεύματος ἐνεργείᾳ τὴν σωτηρίαν ἐνδέχου. -Ibid. - Ταύτην δὲ τὴν ἐυεργεσίαν οὐ τὸ ὕδωρ χαρίζεται, ἦν γὰρ ἂν πάσης τῆς κτίσεως ὑψηλότερον· ἀλλὰ Θεοῦ πρόσταγμα, καὶ ἡ τοῦ Πνεύματος ἐπιφοίτησις, μυστικῶς ἐρχομένου, πρὸς τὴν ἡμετέραν ἐλευθερίαν. Greg. Nyssen Orat. de Baptismo Christi. • Aqua sacramenti visibilis est, aqua Spiritûs invisibilis; ista abluit corpus, et significat quod fit in anima; per illum Spiritum ipsa anima mundatur et saginatur.-Aug. in Epist. Joh. Tract. 6. but the water of the Spirit is invisible; that washeth the body, and signifies what is done in the soul; by the Spirit the soul itself is cleansed and fatted.' So that it is not to the water itself, but to the Spirit in the water, we are to ascribe these glorious effects; and therefore it is here said, that in baptism 'faith is confirmed, and grace increased by prayer to God.' We must pray for God's presence in the sacrament, for without that we can receive no blessing from it; but with that there is no blessing but we may have in it. THE BAPTISM OF YOUNG CHILDREN IS IN ANYWISE TO BE RETAINED IN THE CHURCH, AS MOST AGREEABLE WITH THE INSTITUTION OF CHRIST. Ever since it pleased God to enter into covenant with man, he hath been pleased also to seal that covenant to him by sacraments, outwardly representing what was spiritually promised. The covenant of works had a double sacrament annexed to it, the tree of life, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And the covenant of grace, according to the various dispensations of it, hath had various sacraments also annexed to it. Under the law, or the more imperfect expressures of the said covenant, the sacraments were circumcision and the passover; under the Gospel, or the more perfect expressures of it, they be baptism and the Lord's supper. Which several sacraments, though they do differ in several things, yet, as in other things, so in this they agree, that both under the law and Gospel, still one of them is an initiating, and the other a confirming sacrament. And so these of the Gospel do exactly answer those under the law, not only in being instituted by the same Lord, and representing the same grace, but also in entitling us to the actual enjoyment of covenant privileges, and then in confirming the same privileges to us. By circumcision then, and baptism now, are we made members of the churchf of God; and by the Lord's supper now, as by the paschal lamb then, the benefits of church membership are sealed and confirmed to us. And the evangelical thus coming into the place of the legal sacraments, the same persons that were to participate of the legal, are to participate also of the evangelical. Now, under the law it is plain that not only proselytes, but the children of Jewish parents, even of eight days old, were to be circumcised', that is, by circumcision were to be initiated into the church of God; and so God commanding children to be circumcised, or initiated into the church, the same command may well be looked upon as reaching to baptism too; for it is by this we are initiated into the church now, as it was by circumcision they were initiated then ". So that whosoever doth not baptize his children whilst children, seems to me to transgress the command of God, in not initiating them into the church according to his precepts. For though circumcision be only mentioned, yet it was therefore mentioned, because the initiating sacrament whereby children were invested with church-membership; and the same reason holds good still for baptism. And as where the reason of a law fails, the law itself is abrogated, so where the reason of a law remains, the law seems still to be in force, though some cir t Nec ob aliud credendum est hoc divinitus fuisse præceptum, ut octavo die circumciderent parvulos, [quàm] ad significandam regenerationem quæ fit in Christo, qui post diem septimum Sabbati, quo die jacuit in sepulchro, traditus propter delicta nostra, sequenti, id est octavo die in hebdomadibus, resurrexit propter justificationem nostram. Aug. contra Jul. Pelag. lib. vi. cap. 3. • Hence Augustine saith, that circumcision was but the type of baptism; and therefore to give place to it so soon as instituted by Christ. Quod sacramentum circumcisionis in figura præcessisse baptismatis, quis vel mediocriter sacris literis eruditus ignoret? — Aug. ibid. But here we must note also, how, though he saith it was as the type of baptism, yet he doth at the same time call it a sacrament,' sacramentum circumcisionis ;' to show that circumcision had then as truly the nature of a sacrament as baptism now, representing and offering the same grace to the Jews which baptism doth to us. That by circumcision the children were initiated into the church, and brought, as it were, into the covenant, the Jews themselves acknowledge and observe, as we may note from what is said at the circumcision of ,באי אמה אקבו להכניסו בבריתו של אברהם אבינו,a child., The father saith 'Blessed be thou, O God, the King of the world, who hast sanctified us with thy precepts, and hast commanded us to come into the covenant of our father Abraham.' Then the people that stand by, say, ,כשם שהכנסתו לברית כן הכנימהו לתענה ולחופה ולמרשים טובים 'As thou hast initiated or brought him into the covenant, so bring him to the law, to matrimony, and to good works.' cumstances of it be changed. But I would not be thought to speak this, as if I supposed there was no law commanding infant baptism in the New Testament, but only that for infant circumcision in the Old; for, questionless, the words of our Saviour are a law, when he saith, "Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," Matt. xxviii. 19. Where, though it be translated' teach,' yet the word in the original properly imports disciple,' and 'make disciples; as if he should have said, 'Go ye and disciple all nations, or bring them over to be my disciples, and baptize them.' So that all that are disciples are here commanded to be baptized; nay, they are therefore commanded to be baptized, because disciples. And seeing all disciples are to be baptized infants, the children of believing parents amongst the rest, must be baptized too; for that they are disciples is clear, from their being circumcised under the law. For that argued they were in covenant with God, otherwise they could not have had the seal of the covenant administered to them; and if they were in covenant with God, they must needs be disciples; to be a disciple, and to be in covenant with God, being one and the same thing. So that all that are in covenant with God are his disciples; and all that are his disciples are in covenant with him. And again; of children our Saviour saith, "Of such is the kingdom of God," Mark, x. 14. And therefore they must needs be disciples, unless such as are not disciples should be thought to belong unto the kingdom of God. But I need not insist any longer upon this, to prove little children to be disciples, if their parents be. For so long as children, they are looked upon as parts of their parents, and therefore, what their parents are, they must needs be if their parents be heathens, the children are heathens; and if the parents be Christians, the children are Christians too. And truly, unless this be granted, the children of believing parents under the Gospel will be brought into a worse condition than they were under the law; for under the law children were still ackowledged to be within the covenant, and therefore had always the seal of the covenant administered to them: and if the children of believing parents, I mean outward professors of faith, |