,2 The .Birth-Privileslge and Covenant-holine Ch,381 this ingra fj"ing muf% be by givingFaith, fith by Faith only the gentiles , are partakers of the root of Abraham and the fatni f fe of the Olive- tree ; the beleeving Church not by natural generation ofbeleeving Parents, nor by, outward adminiflrations; Ergo the ingraffing here into the inv,fible Church is by Eleilton and giving of Faith. If that of the Apofile be true, that the Goffiel was preached to Abra- ham, 1/al. 3, 8. then this cannot be falle. If the Rock and Man - nain the Wilderneffe be the fame,as that on which we feed, t (or. IO. 2. the outward priviledges of that people may well then be the fame with ours. Mailer Tombes fayes, it `repents him not to have taken paines throughly to examine what is meant by the root , which Mailer Geree calls making much flirre, pag. r 1. And afterwards addes, I jltll fay that Abraham ú the root there : And I am as glad of this . paines of his which he bath taken for his own full refutation. If Abraham be the root(as he is with Ifaac and 7acob)then the natu- rall poflerity of Abraham muff of neceifity be the natural'l, branches which were cut off. If 3effe be a root, then `David, and all of his line down to Chrift are branches; and fo the iaft Annotations He calleth them natural ; becattfe they were borne of them which the Lord had fet a part for hitnfelf from other Nations,, by his League and Covenant which he had freely made with them. But if neither humane authority nor reafon can be heard ; me thinks. the Apofile might be beleeved, who expreffely tells us that thofe that were thus cut off ( about which all the controverfie is held, 1 and for whom he had fo much forrow in the flefh) were his kinf t men according to the flefh, Rom. 9. z. Paul was of the feed of ' Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin , Rom. t 1. r. and they were his kinfinen according to the flefh , whole fall and rejefiion he bewailes, concerning which lie thus difputes ; Paul: kinfmen af- ter the fleth were the Church vifible, not invifible; but Paul! kindred according to the flefh , were the branches cut off It is flrange, that one who undertakes to interpret the Apofile, will I make it his bufineffe -by Drained, farre fetched interpretations, lfo apparently to contradi5t him ; I will not fay, put the lie upon him.. Argument..
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