r-.J\_/"\ Sertn.ll. ~ An Expojition of tbe Epiftle --Sit mifer; qtti Mi[er efie potrfl. Let him 6e m:jerabte that call be, for Icatmot, may a believer· fay to all o• thers in the World. For can that man be ever miferable, that is ble!l: with all bleJlings; whereof, even to 6e thtts b!effodfor ever, mull: needs be one, or he bath not all; and to whom all things areturned into bleJJings.J;:ven the evils that befal thee, if men curfe and revile thee, God will blefs; as 'Davidfpake, when Shimei cur!l: him; and if men envy thee for good, this lhall turn to thy Salvati– on, as 'Phi!. r. '9· if the Dovils fpight thee, God will blefs thee; there is no witchcraft again!l: lfrae!. He turned Baa!am's fociety and dealing with the Devil tocurfe into a bleJJing; it is an obfervation which Nehem. Chap. q. 2 . makes upon that paffage of Mofes !l:ory. Ba!ac hired Balaam agai11j/ them,that he lhould curfe them, Howbeit our God turnedthe C11r{e into a B!ejfing. God who was able and did make that !l:range change in our Perfons, of curfed Chil– dren to be Men of bleffednefs ; bleffed with all bleJJiogs, can much more ( as he doth ) change and turn all things that befal us, (though curfes in themfelves,) into bleJJiogs unto as. That man cannot be miferable, whom all paffages what ever do call,yea make blelfed; and who himfelfis called to nothing elfe butblef– fing, and Oh, if God thus turneth all things into Heavenly blelfmgs unto us, how engaged are we to be Heavenly in all things towards him? Spiritual Ble/Ji11gs, ] this openeth the my!l:ery of what was even now fpoken of; for why lhould fuch a limitation and confinement or eminent deugnation ra– ther be here fpecified: Hath not godlinefs all other Temporal Earthly blef– fings entailed upon it? This is fpoken in difference from the literal Difpenfation ofthe Old Cavenant, (which notion cloth !l:i!Land will all along accomparw us,) which ran in the let– ter, mofr in promifes of bleJlings Earthly and outward. The Apoflle 'Paul, in the third of theGalatians, treating of the bleJJiogs af Abraham, (or promis'd to Abraham, and in hirri to all Nations, ver. 8• .aod now come upon them, ver. 14.) hedoth clearly in the 14th. ver[c; explain and declare it to be ajpiritua! bteifing, or the promife of the Spirit, That the btrf flng of Abrahammight come 011 the Gentiles through Jefus Chrijl, That we might receive the promifos of the Spirit through Fait!i. The latter words, that we mitht receive the promifo of the Spirit , is a manife!l: Exegefls or explaflati· on of thofe former words, That the bte.ffi11g of Abraham might come on the Gmtiles. Thereby explaining what manner · or kind of bleiling that was, which was intended to Abraham,and comes upon the Gmtiles throug Chrifi.It is the Spirit, which if taken of the Holy Ghoft thatis given us, the promife ofthe Spirit imports all Spiriwa! bte{fit~gs, as in the Seed, the Root, the fountain of them. To fay we have the Spirit given us, orpromis'd to us, isall one as to ·fay,that we have all Spiritttal things conveyed. He is the immediate Author and Effecter in us of all Grace and Glory. And then what Chri!l: in one Evangeli!l: cal– lethgiving ofthe Spirit to them that ask hi171;in another he termethgivi11ggood things, that is, the things,which are trulygood, which the Spirit brings with him, who is the Author ofthings Spiritual, the bell: of blelfmgs.But Calvin and 'Parttls afterhimcoinmentingon thofewords, Gal.~· '4· are bold to interpret the pro– mife ofthe Spirit, the promife of Spiritual things, he fays not, fay they, the Spirit of promife, but the promi(e of the Spirit, which I take ( fays he) for jpiritw:l, more Hebraico. He {peaking in oppofltion ( fays he,) to things outward, and thofe words thro11gh Faith, confirm it. That is, whereof Faith is ~nfible and apprehenflve takes in , and receives, as it doth all Spiritual things, and is a principle fuited to them, and fo it is one and the fame kind of bleJJing, which comes on theGentilrs, (who had not the Promife of Canaan,) and upon the Jews, which is his fcope; ,that we ]fws mrght receive, ~c. as well as the G f1ttilrs, and both the fame, and alfo which A6raham himfelf received; who h.rd 11ot a f oot of La11d i1z Cmramr, Ac1. 7· 5'· and yet is fa id to have o6tai11'd poffefs'd the'Promifo, Heb. 6.r). · A11d (o, Rfter hihad patimt!y e11dured the .Promifo, which oqtaining the promife, or thing promifed, is evidently there fpoken of, as an actual enjoyment, or polfeilionof it, after tile making ofit; as the
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