Chap. 30. An Expopion upon the Book! of 3 o a. Verf. 8. 69 their fathers exemplified. In one fence, every Child that comes into the world beares the Image of his father. It is Paid of /(d,. (Gel. 5 3. ) He begat a Son in his own lilenes, after his Image ; Having fallen and fin'd, he left the impreßi m of his fi iftll na- rure,contraéted by that fall,upon his fon : poffibly,Serh (the Son ofAdam) there fpokenof,was not very like his father in his fea- ture as a man, but certainly he was very like him in his feaylety as a (inner. Thus every parent whether good or bad conveighs his Image, and it is a black Image, to his Child; but as Tome pa. xents ( betides the firfulnes of their natures ) are tainted with fpeciall fins in their life, fo are their children ; Such a fon, Each a father ; the Ihild treads in the fleps of his father. And though no child derives Any thing naturally from his parents but their fin, ( even the childrenof the godly receive no godlines by their natural! birth) yet moftly the Children of godly parents beare their Image ingodlines, they prove and at godly. We cannot affirme univerfally either way, that all the Children of ungodly men are ungodly in their lives, or that all the Children of godly men are godly in their lives:That's often Croft,(Generation and regeneration proceed from quite diff'rent principles) holincs runs not in a blood and though fin doth,yet the power ofgrace can change the courfe ofnature : God makes exceptions to the generali rule as himfelfe pleafeth. Good parents haveevil( ch:!- dren, and Tome evil! parents have good children ; but for the molt part the Childrenof godly men, being under theCovenant ofgrace, hold forth the gracious Image 1 their parents; And theChildren ofwicked men, being Grangers from the Covenant, hold forth the Image of their parents,which is corrupt according to the deceitful! lutes. They were Children of bate men, They were viler then the earth. Or ( as we fay ) men unworthy to gee upen the ground; Thus lob heaps up feverall expreffions, to make their defcription full. Viler then the earth. It teemes , the earth id vile, elfe thefe men coupdnot be called viler then the ¿art! ? I enli.vsr The earth is vile, cot in it felfe, for the earth is the creature
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