and means, as the Scripture in general is known to be God's

word.f

Prop. 3. It is not a thing which one cannot be saved without, to believe every particular book to be canonical; if we believe all that were generally received, yea, or but one book which containeth the substance of christian doctrine, though we doubt of those, that some formerly doubted of, it would not exclude from salvation. The books are received for the doctrine's sake. It is vain cavilling, therefore, for the papists, when they put us to prove the canon, they stick only on the questioned books; especially when those were but few and short. Matthew, and Mark, and Luke, and John, and Paul's writings, which are full, and contain the main body of christian doctrine, do, withal, contain the characters of their own canonical verity, which, seconded by the conveyance of universal, rational, infallible tradition, (not Romish authoritative tradition, or the judgment of the pope, or the present church,) may certainly be discerned; even with a saving certainty, by those that are specially illuminated by God's Spirit; and with an ordinary rational certainty, by those that have God's common help.

I conclude this as I began, with an earnest request to ministers that they would preach, and to people that they would study this subject more thoroughly; that while they firmly believe the truth of that word which promiseth them rest, and prescribes them the means thereto, they may believe, and hope, and love, and long, and obey, and labour, with the more seriousness, and liveliness, and patient constancy.

CHAP. VIII.

Rest for none but the People of God, proved.

SECT. I. It may here be expected, that as I have proved, that this rest remaineth for the people of God; so I should now prove, that it remaineth only for them; and that the rest of the world

f When Jerome proveth the Epistle to the Hebrews' to be canonical, he showeth how we must judge of the canon: Non per hujus temporis consuetudinem, sed veterum Scriptorum authoritatem plerumque utriusque abutentium testimoniis ; non ut apocryphis, sed canonicis et ecclesiasticis.-Hier. ad Dardan. tom. 4. fol. 29. Where then is the papists' judicial authority of the present pope or church?

"h

shall have no part in it. But the Scripture is so full and plain in this, that I suppose it needless to those who believe ScripChrist hath resolved, that those who make light of him, and the offers of his grace, shall never taste of his supper: "and that without holiness, none shall see God: and that, except a man be regenerate, and born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That he that believes not, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him: that no unclean person, nor covetous, nor railer, nor drunkard, &c., shall enter into the kingdom of Christ, and of God." (Eph. v. 4, 5.) "That the wicked shall be turned into hell, and all they that forget God: that all they shall be damned that obey not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness." (2 Thess. ii. 12.) "That Christ will come in flaming fire, to take vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.' And Christ himself hath opened the very manner of their process in judgment, and the sentence of their condemnation to eternal fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. (Matt. xxv.) So that here is no rest for any but the people of God, except will call the intolerable everlasting flames of hell a rest. And it were easy to manifest this also by reason. For, First, God's justice requires an inequality of men's state hereafter, as there was of their lives here. And, Secondly, They that walk not in the way of rest, and use not the means, are never likely to obtain the end: they would not follow Christ in the regeneration, nor accept of rest upon his conditions; they thought him to be too hard a master, and his way too narrow, and his laws too strict: they chose the pleasures of sin for a season, rather than to suffer affliction with the people of God: they would not suffer with Christ, that so they might reign with him. What they made choice of, that they did enjoy; they had their good things in this life; and what they did refuse, it is but reason they should want: how oft would Christ have gathered them to him, and they would not; and he useth to make men willing before he saves them, and not to save them against their wills.

you

Therefore will the mouth of the wicked be stopped for ever, and all the world shall acknowledge the justice of God. Had the ungodly but returned before their life was expired, and

1 Matt, xxii. 5—7; Luke xiv. 25; Heb. xii. 14; John i. 33, and iii. 18, 36; 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10; Gal, v. 21; Psal. ix. 17; 2 Thess, i. 8—10.

been heartily willing to accept of Christ for their Saviour and their King, and to be saved by him in his way, and upon his most reasonable terms, they might have been saved.

Object. But may not God be better than his word, and save those that he doth not promise to save?

Answ. But not false of his word, in saving those whom he hath said he will not save. Men's souls are in a doleful case when they have no hope of happiness, except the word of God prove false. To venture a man's eternal salvation, upon hope that God will be better than his word, that is, in plain English, that the God of truth will prove a liar, is somewhat beyond stark madness, which hath no name bad enough to express it.

Yet do I believe, that the description of God's people in England, and in America, must not be the same; because, as God's revelations are not the same, so neither is the actual faith which is required in both the same; and as the written and positive laws in the church were never given them, so obedience to those mere positives is not required of them. Whether, then, the threats against unbelievers be meant of unbelief privative and positive only, and not negative (such as is all non-believing that which was never revealed); or, whether their believing that God is, and that he is a rewarder of them that seek him, will serve the turn there; or, whether God hath no people there? I acknowledge again is yet past my understanding.

So that in what is said, you may discern not only the truth, but also the reason and equity, that none but God's people shall enter into his rest. Though God's will is the first cause of all things, yet all the fault lies in sinners themselves. Their consciences shall one day tell them that they might have been saved, if they would; and that it was their own wilful refusal, which shut them out. God freely offered them life, and they would not accept it on his own easy and reasonable conditions. They perish, because they would not be saved in God's way. The pleasures of the flesh seemed more desirable to them than the glory of the saints: Satan offered them the one, and God of

i The catholic verity neither denieth free-will either to a good life or a bad; nor yet ascribeth so much to it, as if it were able without God's grace, either to convert a man from bad to good, or to make him perseveringly proceed in good, or attain to that everlasting good where he need not fear falling away. -August. Epist. 47. The precepts of love were in vain given to men that have not free-will: but when they are given by the old and new law; and the law without grace is a killing letter, but in the grace of the Spirit it is quickening; whence, then, have men the love of God, but from God?-August. lib. de Grat, et lib, Arbit, c. 11.

fered them the other, and they had free liberty to choose which they would; and they chose the pleasures of sin for a season, before the everlasting rest with Christ. And is it not a righteous thing, that they should be denied that which they denied to accept? Nay, when God pressed them so earnestly, and persuaded them so importunately, and even beseeched them by his messengers, and charged us to compel men by importunity, and taking no denial, to come in; and, yet, they would not; where should they be, but among the dogs without? Though man be so wicked, that he will not yield, till the mighty power of grace do prevail with him, yet, still we may truly say, that he may be saved, if he will, on God's terms. And his disability being moral, lying in wilful wickedness, is no more excuse to him, than it is to a common adulterer, that he cannot love his own wife; or to a malicious person, that he cannot choose but hate his brother is he not so much the worse, and deserveth so much the sorer punishment? As, therefore, I would have all sinners believe this, so I would advise all ministers more to preach it. Pry not too much into the depths of God's decrees. Alas! how little know we of far lower things! lay all the blame on the wills of sinners; bend your speeches to persuade their wills. Is not that the business of our calling? Let me give you but one argument, which deserves to be considered. Sinners shall lay all the blame on their own wills in hell for ever, Hell is a rational torment by conscience, according to the nature of the rational subject. If sinners could but say, then, it was long of God, whose will did necessitate me, and not of me, it would quiet their consciences, and ease their torment, and make hell to be no hell to themselves. But to remember their wilfulness, will feed the fire, and cause the worm of conscience never to die.

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CHAP. IX.

Reasons why this Rest remains, and is not here enjoyed.

SECT. I. The next thing promised in the beginning, in my method, which in the first edition I forgot to perform, is to show

k I would that excellent treatise of Mr. William Fenner,' Of Wilful Impenitency,' published by Rev. Dr. Hill, were more imitated by some divines in their preaching. And that when they have done, they would not quite contradict their popular doctrine in their polemical.

you, why this rest must yet remain, and not be enjoyed till we come to another world. And I will speak but a little to this, because it may be gathered from what is said before; and because much is said to it in the first and second chapters of the fourth part.

And First, The main reason is the will of God, that it should be so. Who should dispose of the creatures, but he that made them; and order the times and changes of them, but their absolute Lord, who only also hath wisdom to order them for the best, and power to see his will accomplished? You may therefore as well ask, Why have we not the spring and harvest without winter? And why is the earth below, and the heavens above? And why is not all the world a sun, that it may be more glorious? &c.; as to ask, why we have not rest on earth?

2. Yet may you easily see satisfactory reason in the thing itself also. As first, God should subvert the established order in nature, if he should give us our rest on earth. All things must come to their perfection by degrees: nothing is perfect in its beginning, where the fall brought an imperfection. The strongest man must first be a child, and formed in the womb from small obscure principles. The greatest scholar must first be a schoolboy, and begin in his alphabet. In the best-ordered governments men must come to their dignity and authority by degrees, beginning at the lower, and rise as they deserve. The skilfullest artificer was first an ignorant learner. The tallest oak was once an acorn. This is the constant course of nature in the production of sublunary things; and I know none that deny it, but only some enthusiasts concerning the production of grace, who think they are taught of God fully in an instant; and think themselves perfect, as soon as they have learned the opinion of the perfectionists; when all knowing men about them discern their imperfections; yea, such horrid paganism and profaneness in some of them, as if they had almost renounced humanity and reason. Now, this life is our infancy; and would we be perfect in the womb, or born at full stature; must God overturn the course of nature for us?

3. And it were an absurdity in morality, as well as a monster in nature, if our rest and full content were here. For, First, It would be injurious both to God and to ourselves.

First, To God; and that both in this life, and in the life to come. 1. In this life it would be injurious to God, both in regard of what he is here to do for us, and in regard of what he is to receive, as it were, from us. 1. If our rest were here,