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ly, in that channel; the promises being all purchased at the full rate, but no part of the price advanced by us. Hence we obtain precious faith, with all other faving benefits, through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jefus Chrift; (or rather, the righteoufnefs of our God and Saviour Jefus Chrift), as the proper condition of them all, 2 Pet. i. 1. And in the mean time, God blotted out our tranfgreffions for his own fake, Ifa. xliii. 25.: all things that pertain unto life and godliness, are given, (or gifted) unto us, 2 Pet. i. 3.

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Of the Promifes peculiar to Chrift.

Aving spoken of the promises in general, we come now to take a more particular view of them and firft, of the promises peculiar to Christ himself. These are many, but may be all reduced to three heads; to wit, the promise of affiftance, of acceptance, and of reward of his work.

First, Our Lord Jefus had a promise of affiftance in his work: Pfal. Ixxxix. 21. Mine arm shall ftrengthen him. Having undertaken the work of our redemption, he had his Father's promise, that when it came to the setting to, he would ftrengthen and uphold him in going thro' with it: Isa. xlii. 1.—4. And in the faith of this covenanted affiftance, he went thro' the hardest pieces thereof: Chap. 1. 6. I gave my back to the fmiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from fhame and fpitting. Verfe 7. For the Lord God will help me. Accordingly in his heavyness in the garden, there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, trengthening him, Luke xxii. 43. And this promised affiftance was the token of his Father's good pleasure in, and liking of the work, while it was a doing.

Secondly, He had a promife of the acceptance of. his work, when once done; of the acceptance therë

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of as a full discharge and performance of the condition of the covenant, entitling him to the promised reward. Hence, in view of the fure performance of his work, the acceptance thereof was, at his baptifm, proclaimed by a voice from heaven, faying, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleafed, Matth. iii. 17. And it was renewed at his transfiguration, a little before his paffion, Chap. xvii. 5. Unto this promise of acceptance belongs the promise of his refurrrection, and of his justification.

1. The promise of his refurrection from the dead: Pfal. xvi. 10, Thou shalt not leave my foul in hell; neither wilt thou fuffer thine holy One to fee corruption; which is expounded of the refurrection of Chrift, Acts ii. 13. God, by raising Chrift from the dead, did in effect declare his acceptance of the work by him performed. It evidenced the debt to be fully cleared, that he who laid him up in the prison of the grave, did bring him out of it again; fending his angels to roll away the ftone from the door of it, and fo to difmifs him legally. For thus it was agreed in the covenant, that as Chrift fhould give himself to the death, for the fatisfaction of juftice; fo the Father should bring him again from the dead, in respect of that fatisfaction made by his blood, Heb. xiii. 20.

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2. The promise of his juftification: Ifa. 1. 8. He is near that justifieth me. The accomplishment of which is obferved by the apostle, Tim. iii. 16. God manifefted in the flesh, justified in the Spirit. Our Lord Jefus Chrift having ho perfonal fins to be pardoned, needed no perfonal justification: but as he was the furety of the elect, and had the iniquities of them all laid on him, it was provided in the covenant as juft, that the work he had undertaken being performed, he should have an official justification. Having paid the debt, he had by promise a full and ample difcharge thereof, under the hand

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and feal of Heaven. And here lies the great fecurity of the people against the law's demand of fatisfaction from them.

Lastly, He had a promife of a glorious reward to be conferred on him, as the proper merit of his work done. There was a joy fet before him in the promise, for which he endured the cross, defpifing the fhame, Heb. xii. 2. Never was there fuch a work wrought; and never was there fuch a reward promifed. Unto it there belongs a fivefold promife.

1. The promife of a new kind of interest in God, as his God and Father, Pfal. lxxxix. 26. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father, my God. Our Lord Jefus had God to his Father, by eternal birth-right; but there was a new relation conftituted between God and Chrift, as the second Adam, head of the covenant, founded on his undertaking and fulfilling the covenant-condition; whereby he became heir of God as his heritage, according to that of the apostle, Rom. viii. 17. Heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Chrift; namely, with Chrift as the primary heir. For by his obedience unto death, he purchased the enjoyment of God, as a God and Father. I do not fay, he purchased it for himfelf; the man Chrift needed not to do that, forafmuch as he had it, in virtue of the perfonal union of the two natures; but he purchased it for finners, who had loft all faving interest in God, but could not be happy without it.

2. The promise of a glorious exaltation, to be the Father's honorary Servant, prime Minister of heaven, as great Administrator of the covenant: Ifa. lii. 13. Behold my fervant fhall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high. Chap. xlix. 8. I will give thee for a covenant of the people. In fulfilling the condition of the covenant, he took upon him the form of a bond-servant, and humbled himself even unto the death of the cross; wherefore God alfo, according to the promise of the covenant, hath high

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ly exalted him to the prime miniftry of heaven, and given him a name as great adminiftrator of the covenant, which is above every name; that at the name of Fefus every knee fhould bow, Philip. ii. 7, 8, 9, 10. The nature, vaft extent, and importance of this promife, will afterwards be unfolded, when we come to treat of the adminiftration of the covenant, in virtue thereof, put in the Mediator's hand.

3. The promife of a feed and offspring, numerous as the ftars of heaven: Ifa. liii. 10. He fhall fee his feed. Gen. xv. 5. So fhall thy feed be; namely, as the ftars of the sky in multitude, Heb. xi. 12.: even the whole multitude of the elect, all of them to live by his death, and to bear his image, as a child doth that of his father. He confented to fuffer the pangs. of death: but they were travailing pains, to iffue in a numerous birth. He was as a corn of wheat to fall into the ground, and die; but the promife fecured to him, on that condition, his bringing forth much fruit, John xii. 24. It is in purfuance of the accomplishment of this promife the gofpel continues to be. preached from age to age; forafmuch as, in virtue thereof, as many as are ordained to eternal life, fhall, believe.

4. The promise of his inheriting all things, as primary heir Pfalm lxxxix. 27. I will make him my firft-born. So the apoftle fays, God hath appointed him heir of all things, Heb. i. 2. And Chrift himfelf declares his being put in poffeffion accordingly, Matth. xi. 27. All things are delivered unto me of my Father. Thus he hath, by promife, fuitable treafures for the fupporting of the dignity conferred on him. But of this alfo more afterwards.

5. Lastly, The promife of victory and dominion over all his and his people's enemies: Pfaim lxxxix. 23. I will beat down his foes before his face. He was to encounter with Satan, fin, and death, in the quarrel of the defigned heirs of glory; and no foon

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er was he engaged against them, but the wicked world of men began a war with him too; but he had his Father's promife, for victory and dominion over them all; that, howbeit he should get the first fall, and die in the battle, yet his death fhould be the deftruction of Satan's dominion, fin's power, and death's bands over his people; and that whofdever fhould go about to fupport that tottering intereft, fhould fall under him : Pfalm cx. 1. The Lord faid unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.

And thus far of the threefold promise peculiar to Chrift himself, in the covenant.

Of the Promife of eternal Life to the Elect, confidered in three Periods.

T HE promises common to the elect, made in and through Chrift unto them in the covenant, are alfo many. A particular enumeration of them I intend not, tho' every one of them is more precious than the gold of Ophir: but it would be profitable for ferious Chriftians, as they read through the Old and New Teftament, to mark them in their Bibles, for their spiritual treafure, ftored with fuch variety, as affords what is fuitable for every cafe they can be in. They are all comprehended in, and may be reduced unto this one, to wit, the promife of eternal life: for which the two following texts may be viewed.

Titus i. 2. In hope of eternal life, which God that
cannot lie, promised before the world began.
1 John ii. 25. And this is the promise that he hath
promifed us, even eternal life.

In which words, three things for our purpose offer themselves to be observed. 1. The great and comprehenfive promife of the covenant of grace, the

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