II2 .dn Expoji.tion of the E:pijlle ''?;-~ find in Scripture it is afcribed to the firO: Man,namely, unto .Adam, as I lliall lliew '-~ you afterwards. . . 2. It is not !imply commg of Adam: for then, 1f you could fuppofe that God !hould have taken the Rib out of Ad.mt after that he had finned, and have made Eve thereof, it's true !he had been ofAdam, but yet !he had not been corrupted, !11c had not been finful ; becaufe It Is to be by Nature, and fo by Birth and by Generat!OJl. '"(hereforc Chnlt, thohc IS called the Son ofAda!JJ, L11fl,! 3· and the Seed of the Woman, Gw. 2. that IS, he was made ofthat matter which was pro– pagated from Adam, yet he was not corrupted, becaufe he had it not by the Law of Nature, he had it not by Birth. 3. It i~ not the Sin of the Parents in the act of _begetting that is. conveyed : For MarnageJshono17rable, as the Scnpture bath It. Adant did not convey, when he firO: begat h~s Son Cam, thefin ofthat AQof begetting, for the aClion 1t felf IS lawful ; but 1t was hiS firO: Sm, hiS eaung of the forbidden Fruit. _ Thefe were th~ Generals !gave you: Forall tbefe do but prepare a way for the openingofwhatJt IS, by vmueofwh~eh,Sm IS denvcd unto us. And I find it ex– ceeding hard to fpeak dil\inctly to it, to find out that original feed of Poyfon from whence it is diffufed,and the weight ofit. I !hall now thereforecome to Par– ticulars, whereby_ I de.!ireto explain it, and in them I !hall briefly give you my whole judgment m the thmg; and when I have done, I !hall refolve it into two or three Propo!itions, which !hall contain the fum of all, for your clearer under– fl:anding. It is evident, you fee by this Text, that it is by Nature; and therefore that it is by Birth, and by the Law of Nature. Now to proceed. In the fir({ place; Our God d!d put this difference between Angels and Men, that Angels were. created !ing!e; ·andtherefore when ~hey fell, they did fall ling· ly, each one for h1mftl£ They had thw mturc convey d to them by God's i '1me– diate creation, and therefore they ltood upon their own bottoms. But he ordJined that Men!houldallcomcofoneMan: Act. 17. 26. He hathmade of one blood all Nations ofMw,for todwell~~~ all the foce of the E.rth. Now then the Law of Na– ture that cloth conyey Blood (t)lat is, Manhood) to us, conveys alfo the Natural J>roperties that do accompany, and are in that Nature; in the fountain ofit, whe– ther they!hall be good or evil. Nowgood theywerebycreation,that'scertain. And the reafon is, becaufe that that Law of Nature did f.1ll upon the generation of all Creatures elfe, (J!ls upon Man's Generation alfo. Now you !hall find that it is not only the Law proper to Man, but to all things begotten of another, that they all bring forth in their kind. Ifyou look into GCII. 1. you !hall fee that ofthe very Herbs God f.1ith,Lcttkem bri11g forth in theil' kjnd; he f.1ith it alfo ofthe Bea!l:s,and it.holds ofMan too, that he is ro bring forth in his kind. Ifthere be a generation, and a begetting, he is to bring f9rth in his kind. Ifhis nature had remained holy and good, he had brought forth that which was holy and good: So the fame Pro· videlicc of God that would have accompamed Man to convey and propag~te an holy.Nature, had be remained holy, cloth alfo accompany him to convey·~ c<;Jrrupt Nature now he is corrupt and made evil. As the fame acts ofcommon Providence, which run on and a!lilt us ifj doing good, concur even in evil alfo: fo is it here. And that's the firO: thing. yet, in the fecond place, let me tell you this, That take our Birth and Genera· tion limply,and that is not the Cau_fe,the Phy!ical Caufe it_is but the Chanel; and becaufe it is the lnf'crument of makmg Men, therefore 1t IS the Inllrument alfo of making !inful men. Now that Generation is not the Caufe, is evident by this; becaufe if it were, then Men fhould beget Men !inful according to that degree of finfulnds the'y themfelves have. And therefore Parents more wicked, !hould beget Children more wicked ; Parents in their elder days, when tqey are more wicked, (as wicked Men m:e, for they grow worfe and W<;Jrfe) fi1oul~ then have Children more wicked than m thclt younger time; but fo ltts not. It IStherefore to be re· folved into the common Law that lies upon Generation, not limply into Genera· tion it felf, or what it conveyet h. Generation is but the Chanel,the Pipe, in which it runneth ; it is therefore, I fay, rather the Law that IS annexed unto Generat}OO. And the Law ofGe 0 eration cloth not reach to degrees of!inning, but only to the fubltamial Im"g~, not to the gradual~ In
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