Of Eleflion. ~with their Husbands, the primitive Priviledge of Marriage !hall by a new Co– BooK V. vennr.t of Grace be contmued to them: And therefore, though this will no ~way warrant entring into fuch Marriages (for when out of cho1ce the Sons of God d1d fo, God curfed their Marriages (Gen. 6.) in their Iffue, ~nd all j!t{b became corr11pt) ) et when fo married before converfion, or repenting alter fuch a marriage, they may notwithflanding expect this privi,ledge !lill to con– tinue unto them and theirs: And unto this cafe only he fpeaks here, namoly when one already bath m1 unbelieving Wife, not that is to have, or is as ) c; to choofc and marry one, verje I I; I 2. and determines verj{ !aft ol this Chap· ter, thatwhentheyareft~fbfree, tbeyfhouldmarryill the Lord. One thing yet remains tote !poken unto, and will make up a fifth Head: And that is, What is tlle force, fcope, or purport of thefe two Particles, Io [•~~ Elfe) as it {lands 1n the firft Senrence .concerning Children , Elfe were J'ottr Chitdrm u11clean; and how it kmts th1s Sentence w11h the former, or what reference it hath to thofe words, .The tm6elitving Hu&btmd u {fmfltfied i11 the · Wife. And 2, of that other, [•.;;~, But now J in th•t latter claufe about them, BM now they are holy: And what connexion or afpect thefe two Particles have one with or towards each other, or the foregoing words. For the firfl. There ~re two !copes or meanings which that particle El{e will bear, whereof each may rationally fland and lerve either of them for the point in hand, Firll, Some do take the word l~tl, Elfo, (as here it comes in) Logica!iy, that is, as a Particle or Note of an evident Reafon, Argument, or a caufal Con· junction importing an evident proof, or Logical demon[lration, broughs to confirm and convince th.em of the truth of that fore&oing affertion, That the Husbcmdu fanilifiedby the Wife; For eifo(fays he] yot1r Childrm u:nenu– cleatt, but now they are holy: As if the Apo!lle meant to argue ab abji1rdo, from an 2pparent abfurdity that would follow upon the contrary, and which would crofs and conrraditl: a common received Principle among them, and in all the Churches, which he knew that therefore they would not deny, namely, [That I htir Chitdrmwtr~ holy.] And thus his Argument ftands from the grea– ter to the lefs, even from that which was a greater fruit and priviledge of their marriage, that their Children 1hould be accounted perfonally holy, (which truth was already known and acknowledged by them.) And therefore much more the Communion with an Unbelieve('s perfon in marriage mufl needs be fanctified to them, and undefiled to their ufe: It being more that their Chil– dren through the ordination of Grace fuould be truly fanctified, than that au Unbeliever fuould be fantl:ified to their u(e only; yea, if thofe very Children, begotten by fuch a Communion, be holy, notwithflandiog their natural de· filement and curfe they inherit by birth as Sons of Adam , then the marriage communion it felf mufl needs be holy unto them. For if the iffue and the fruit be fuch, then the Act of Generation, the means of deriving this, muft needs be thought to be lawful and fanctified. And tb~s the Particle •~,1, or Elfe, is ufed and taken in this Epif\le, Chap. 5· wher.e our Apollle !hewing the Iawful– nefs of converting with Idolaters io civil ways, as here with Unbehevers m Marriage, he in l<ke maAner argues, ab ab{urdo, Elfe (fays he) )'Oil mttfi go o11t of the wo..td. He mentions it as that which to reafon and common prin· ciples was an apparent abfurdit)'· And thisfenfe and conncxion ofthis Panicle cloth make a flrongconvincing demonf\ration of the point we have in hand : For it imports, that it was a commonly received Maxim in thofe times, and which thefe Cori11tbimts had not at all quellioned, but took for granted,name· Iy, that their Childrmwere holy: And that therefor~the Apof\le argues from it, as a thing taken for granted; in that accordiog to the ferried praCiice of thofc times they had feen, and had been themfelves eye-witncffes of their re· ceiving into communion with the Church by Baptifm, in their own and all other Churches, and that by warrant from the Apof\les, And we find by ex– perience, that fuch Principles in Religion arc as commonly received, and _ge– nerally acknowledged and pral.lifed, that we believe them without hcfit3tl0n, and do ufually take for granted, .'\.nd fo it might fall our, that thefe Corifl· - thtatJ! .
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