throughNarurall impoffibifities. 1 153 Others, they anfwer it, by labouring to find out Tome my- ' fticall interpretation of thofe words , Shall a child be borne unto him that isan hundred years old ? and 'hall Sarah that U ninetyyears oldbeare? as if erlbraham ( faythey) had faid thus, Lord, thouhaft fome fecret meaning in thefe words, I pray thee (peak it out unto me, and tell me plainly thy meaning ; and therefore, ( fay they ) God anfwered to that purpofe in the 19. verfe , And godfaid, Sarah thy Wife beare thee afon indeed, I meane according tomy words, Sarah fhall beare thee a Son indeed. But we need not ftraine for any myfticall interpretation, or exprefrion : when Abraham fayes, Shalla child be born un- to him that is an hundredyears old? ( In that feventeenth of Genefis and the feventeenth) they are words not ofDoubting, but words ofInquiring: Abrahamdefiring to be further fa- tisfied , and rightly to underftand the meaning of the pro- mile , and rightly underftanding the meaning of the pro- mife , fayes the Apoftle , He did not much mind he did not tfiroughly mind , he did not Hand poring upon, or con- fidering the deadneffeof his own body , or the deadneffe of Sarahs wombe. There are three things ( efpecially ) confiderabie in thefe words. Firft of all , That Abrahams body and Sarah: body are dead, after God gives out a promife of a great feed of his, Secondly , That notwithftandingthis, yet Abraham be- leeved & is commended for it, He being not weakin the faith, confidered not his Oen body being nowdead. And thirdly , That in all this Fe had an eye unto Jefus Chrift, as I (hall thew you afterward ; Accordingly I would takeup three obfervations thus Firft , When God intends to fulfill his promife by givingany #eciall biding to the children of Abraham, he doesfirft of all put the fentence of death upon the biding, and upon all the means that do lead unto it. Secondly , That then, and then typecially it is the duty V 2
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