known; the true fenfe and meaning of in this ftate of fin,, until we find it tending the law is far off out of the reach of their unto death, and wreathing the fentence of understandings: Therefore the command-death about our necks, and puting us from ment is faid to come, as being far away out of fight. See 1 Cor. xii. 14. VI. Tho' fin be moft active and fliring in all natural men; yet fuch is their blockishness, ftupidity and. blindnefs, that this is no more felt nor feen, than if it were. dead and buried: and to be ftupid under, and unaffected with the active motions and firings of fin, argueth one to be in black nature, wanting the fpiritual fenfe of the law; for when the commandment comes, fin revives; and fo while finners are in nature, the commandment is away, and fin is dead.. VII. Before it can go well with a poor finner, he must once pafs a fentence against himself, and fee himself a gone man by the law, condemned and fentenced to death, because of guilt; before he can live the life of God, he must once die: for thus it was with Paul, he died when fin revived, he looked upon himfelf as condemned by law, and fo, as a dead man. From verfe 10. OBSERVE, I. Sin overturneth all things, and changeth the very nature of the law unto the quite contrary; of life, to become death: for it was by fin that the commandment which was unto life, became unto death. II. God at first ordained and appointed. the law to have been the way leading towards life; and had man ftood in his integrity, he had attained life by the law: for the commandment was ordained unto life, of its own nature it pointeth out the way to life, fo as the obfervers thereof fhall certainly find life thereby. III. Since man fell, the law which formerly did point out the way to life unto finners, is now binding on death and deftruction on their fhoulders; it being now broken, the threatening must take place, the commandment is now found to be unto death. IV. The law is never rightly feen by us now all hopes of life by it: for when the commandment came, then he found it to be unto. death.. From Verfe 11th OBSERVE,. I. Whatever evil. we meet with from the law as now broken, we should be loath to lay any blame upon the holy law. of God, which fhould mainly.ly upon ourfelves; fo tender ought we to be thereof,. feeing the proper caufe of any evil of that kind is corruption in us, whereby the law is tranfgreffed; for fo doth the apoftle, after he had faid, that he found the commandment unto death, prefently addeth, that it was fin that killed him. II. So fib is our nature unto Satan, that as he is a liar and a deceiver from the begining, fo it has been trained up in his fchool, and has learned his wiles, and thereby draweth away poor fouls out of the way of life which they ought to walk in, by prefenting the hook baited with pleasure or profit, and hiding the vileness and dangeroufnefs thereof; and complying every way, and at all times with our adverfary, who is ftill going about as a roaring lion, feeking whom he may devour; for fin is here faid to deceive: See Heb. iii. 12. 13. Eph. iv. 22. III. Our corrupt hearts are fo bent and wickedly fet to lead us aftray out of the paths of righteoufnefs, that they are rather ftired up by the law, which fhould have been a demur in their way, than fcared; which fhould make us, fo much the more bemoan and bewail our doolful condition while we are under the power and flavery of fuch corrupt hearts; for fin is faid here to take occafion at the law to deceive. IV. Tho' corruption promife fair unto poor deluded fouls, till it get them once enfnared; yet at length it will bring forth death unto the poor foul,, and will be found found the greatest enemy that ever it had, whatever friendship it pretend at prefent; for fin killed him. V. The main ground upon which fin doth thus prove a destroyer unto poor people, is the holy law of God, by which it is ftatuted and ordained, that tranfgreffors fhall die the death; thus it is, that the law (which is the rule of juftice, general and particular) is the ftrength of fin; therefore it is added, by it flew me; that is, by virtue of the law, which containeth the threatenings.. VERSE 12. Wherefore the law is holy; and the commandment holy, and juft, and good. TH His is the conclufion of his large vindication of the law, gathered from his former difcourfe, and following thereupon, as is clear by the particle, therefore; and in it is held out three: properties of the law, both in the general, and alfo in refpect of every particular command, chiefly that forbiding concupifcence, iz. that it is holy, just, and good and hereby the objection is abundantly anfwered, the law is not the cause of fin; yea, fo far is it from being the caufe of fin, that, on the contrary, it is holy, juft, and good. OBSERVATIONS. I. The law of God, in whole and in part, is holy, having the holy Lord for its author, being publifhed by the miniftry of holy angels, and containing nothing but duties of holiness, every precept breathing out holinefs, and not earthlinefs or carnality, and tending to make a man holy unto the Lord; this is one of its epithets, The law is haly, commanding nothing but holinefs and conformity unto God; fee Pfalm xix. 7. 8. 9. II. As the law is holy, fo is it juft and righteous; commanding what is juft, and forbiding what is unjuft, favouring no iniquity; containing juft penalties againit tranfgreffors, and juft rewards unto due obfervers; and therefore ought to be looked upon as the everlasting rule of righteoufnefs; for the law is also just. III. Not only is the law of God holy and juft, but alfo good in itfelf, and profitable unto us, however it be abufed by our vicious nature, feeing it holdeth forth the good and acceptable will of God, and the good way wherein we ought to walk, and holdeth forth large and ample promifes of good things; and fo pointeth our the way unto the everlafting fruition of God in glory, if it were perfectly keep-ed; and now in the ftate of fin, it is profitable for difcovering our loft condition in ourselves, that fo we may fly out of ourselves to Chrift, the end of the law: therefore it is alfo called good.'. IV. We fhould labour to have fuitable thoughts of God's law, even in respect of these particulars which croffeth our corruption moft, and which carnal reafon would contradict moft, as holy, and juft, and good;. for even the commandment, mentioned formerly, discharging the very first rife of finful thoughts, and inordinate motions towards any object forbiden, is holy, and just, and good.. VERSE 13. Was then that which is good, made death unto me? God forbid. But fin that it might appear fin, working death in me by that which is good; that fin by the commandment might become exceeding finful. Here is yet another objection, which the apostle forefaw would be made ufe of by cavillers in after times; he knew what fort of fpirits thofe cavillers were of, who would not foon be fatiffied, and fubmit unto the truth, but would ftill carp at and raife flanders against it; and therefore, as a faithful teacher, and one defirous to have them favingly inftruct ed, So then, in fhort, the apoftle takes all the blame of our death and destruction off the law, and lays it upon our innate corruption, which he affirméth to be most active and noxious, even in the best: and both these the apoftle further confirmeth and cleareth in the following verses. ed, he further infifts in clearing that ob- me, fays he, by that which is good. So jection, and in wipeing off the afperfion; thus the law was good and ufeful, difcoand therefore, first, he proposeth the ob- vering the inward natural corruption of jection, Was that then which is good, the heart to be fin, when it thus took ocmade death unto me? that is, as if they cafion, without ground; the law could would fay, The law is not good, because not be but useful and good, when it made it was made death unto you, as you faid, it appear, that fuch was the ftrength of verfes 10. 11. for that which is good can- our natural corruption, that it would bring not be made death, or that which is made forth fin and death, even by the law death unto any cannot be good. Unto which was good. This he further cleareth this he answereth, 1. by denying that that in the end of the verfe; as if he would was his meaning, when he faid, verfe 10. 1 fay, My meaning is, when I fay, that it That the command which was unto life, he might appear fin, that it might become, or found to be unto death, he meant not then appear to be, exceeding finful, exceedingly to lay the blame upon the law; for it was bent on fin, extremely hurtful and pestinot the law itself properly that did it, but ferous, when it groweth worse because of fin; therefore he fays, (as ufual in fuch the remedy, viz. the commandment. cafes, when the inference is abfurd and unchriftian like,) God forbid. 2. He fheweth pofitively what is that which we ought to look upon as the proper cause of death, by adding, but fin: It is fin and corrup tion within us which procureth death unto us; it was not, fays he, the good law, but fin. And then he cleareth, as before, how it was that fin and corruption was the caufe of death, and faith, that it wrought death in him, by that which is good; that is, by the law, or commandment, as he calleth it afterward; it was fo ftrong and mighty that it procured death, and broke out, taking occafion even at the law which is good and holy, and giveth no countenance nor approbation to fin in the least. And this he amplifieth, by fhewing the upfhot of this, (the particle rendered that, is fometimes meant of an event any way following, as well as of a final caufe) or what little advantage came thereby unto corruption within man; which alfo holdeth forth the profitablenefs of the law, even when fin is taking occafion thereat to bring forth death: Sin was hereby difcovered, this natural corruption bewrayed itself, and declared itself to be fin, by irritating and kindling up finful motions, and fo bringing death, even taking occafion at the law, that it might appear fin, working death in OBSERVATIONS. I. It is a most dangerous thing to be given to a spirit of cavilling and contradiction; fuch who are fo poffeffed, will not foon receive fatisfaction in particulars, but will ftill be multiplying exceptions, and inventing fhifts to oppofe truth, and even make use of fatisfactory answers gi ven to former objections, to ground new cavils and objections: Paul points out the nature of fuch men, by his thus perfonat ing them in propofing objections. Pau would not have anfwered fuch objections if he had not forfeen, that there would have been fome who would have bee ready to have framed fuch objections. II. As minifters ought to be clear i their doctrine, and leave no doubt in th hearts of their hearers, touching the trut of what they affert, but be at pains remove all fcruples; fo ought they to u much patience and longanimity toward contradictors, 2 Tim. ii. 24. 25. and co defcen defcend to fatisfy them in every particular, particuling fo far as is poffible; as Paul's example teacheth us here, who leaveth no objection unloofed. III. As it is no new thing to fee men and women laying all the blame of their fin and mifery upon God, who has appointed and made.fuch a law that he forefaw they would break, by which they ftand con demned and guilty of everlafting death, fo that the truth be loadened with never fo many malicious flanders, we ought not to quite it, feeing in end all will be found groundlefs: for it was here objected, that from Paul's doctrine it would follow that God and his law was to be blamed for the death that man is liable unto: Was that then which is good, made death, &c. IV. Such is our folly and madness, that unlefs the law fhould promife and hold forth life unto us, do what we pleafe, it can never be good in our eyes, and looked upon as profitable unto us; for the objecters would not have the law to be good, apon this ground, becaufe it was made death, tho' that was only because of their tranfgreffing of it. V. Whatever flanders wicked malicious enemies endeavour to raise against the truths of God, yet it becometh the fervants of the Lord to be diligent and faithful in wipeing thefe off, and to wipe them fo off, as all may be convinced their very foul abhoreth fuch flanderous untruths: therefore doth Paul wipe off this afperfion with a God forbid. VI. Whatever mifery befal men here or hereafter, that goeth under the name of death, it is wholly to be imputed unto fin, as the procuring caufe; therefore faith he, but fin; that is, it was fin that was made death, or did procure it. VII. As the law maketh fin known, fo the more actively corruption within rages, when oppofed by a law, the more it kyths in its own colours, and appeareth to be what indeed it is; and the ftiring of cor ruption at the occafion of the law's heming of it in, may abundantly convince us of its vile and finful nature; therefore is it added, that it might appear fin, working death in me, by that which is good. VIII. Corruption is never rightly taken up, nor feen in its own colours, until it appear unto the foul to be beyond meafure finful; for he addeth, by way of exegefis, That fin by the commandment might become exceeding finful. VERSE 14. For we know that the law is fin. B Efore we proceed farther, to avoid tedioufnefs, and to cut out our way fhorter in fpeaking to the following verfes,, there is a neceffity we ftay a little on the difcuffing of a great question, touching the meaning of the following verfes, viz.. Whether Paul fpeaketh of himfelf as regenerate, or not. Pelagians, Socinians, and Arminians, (who all fpeak too favourably of man's free will, now corrupted,) deny that he fpeaketh of himself as regenerate, and in the ftate of grace, and we purpose to clear the contrary; I. By clearing the grounds for what we hold; and then, II.. By difproving their grounds for the contrary. Only, to avoid repetition, we intend not to fpeak to the clearing of our main grounds, taken out of the following verfes, where we will find many particu culars which only must be meant of the regenerate, until we come to them in the explication; where alfo we fhall clear, how thefe things that our adverfaries fuppofe no way to agree to the regenerate, may well be meant of them. We fay then that the apoftle, in the following part of this chapter, fpeaketh of himself as regenerate: 1/t, Because it is clear, that he fpeaketh of himself always in the first person thro' thefe twelve verfes; and there is no thing in the text which will neceffitate us го to look upon him as perfonating another, which is always to be found when there is fuch a perfonating. And that he fpeaketh of himself as regenerate is clear, because he fpeaketh of himfelf now in the prefent time, and not in the bypast, as he did before; there is a clear change of the time here thro' this whole chapter, fpeaking ftill of fome prefent exercife, and fure it cannot therefore be meant of him while unregenerate, otherways why should he have used the preterite time when he was fpeaking of his unregenerate ftate, verfes 8. 9. 10. 11. might he not as well have fpoken what there is spoken in the present time, after this manner; I do not know fin but by the law; I do not know concupifcence; Sin works in me all manner of concupifcence; I am alive without the law ence, but when the commandment comes, fin revives and I die, &c. Doth not that once look back to fome time before? and how could Paul be both dead and alive at one time? how could fin be both dead and revive at one time? This argument will be farther ftrengthened, by confidering, (as we fhewed) that the apostle, in anfwering thefe objections from verfe 7. is ftill bringing forth his own experience, that he may be feen to speak nothing but what he knoweth to be truth from his own experience; and fo he cannot be thought to perfonate another, and then when there is a manifeft change of the perfon before fpeaking of himself, as while a Pharifee in the preterite time, and now ufing the prefent time all alongft, he must be understood to speak of himself as regenerate. 2dly, Becaufe the contrary opinion, as we fuppofe, doth much strain the analyfis, and thwart with the apostle's fcope; for they make this part of the chapter, from the begining of the 14th verfe, to be taken up in rendering a reafon; and of what? of that which is fet down verfe 5. that the motions of fin doth work in their members who are in the flesh; and that which is caften in, verfe 7.8.9.10. 11. 12. 13. fay they, ferveth to explain this propofition. Whereas, 1. We conceive there is no colour of reason to be given why we should take that which is fet down, verfe 4. as a propofition of fuch a nature as needeth fo large an explication and confirmation; feeing it is brought in as an undeniable medium by which he preffeth holinefs upon believers, to this purpofe: While you was under the tutory of another husband, unregenerate, you was bufy working and bringing forth fruit, and therefore it is reasonable you should be as bufy and fruitful under this new husband. Now, who in reafon could deny the first? 2. Beside that, we think it hard to imagine the apoftle to repeat the fame argument which he brought before, chapter vi. 14. which our adverfaries do, making this all one with what is couched in here, viz. that fin bath dominion over fuch as are under the law. 3. It is more clear to take these words, verfe 14. to have immediate connection with the words going before, than to caft them to thefe words, verle 5. feeing there is no hint in the text for fuch a thing. 4. By this means, these words, for the law is fpiritual, verfe 14. fhould not have the force of any reason, (the reason lying only in the end of the verse, according to their expofition.) whereas the very reading of the words will force us to the contrary. 3dly, Because our adverfaries themfelves are found to acknowledge, that verse last, where the apoftle fays, I thank God thro Jefus Christ, he fpeaketh in his own proper perfon, being now delivered from the body of death; and why may not we take the preceding verses to be meant so also, feeing there can no ground in the world be alledged out of the text, why these words in this verfe, must be fo taken, and no more; for always he fpeaketh of himself in the first perfon. 4thly, Because of that word, verfe last, I myself ferve the law of God, not only, fays he, I, but I myself; and it were hard to take the meaning to be this, the felf fame |