174 / 504
CAP.V.4:>to.
A
double Promife
of
Perfeverance &c.
118
Promifes
doth
confiff,as
farre
as
they
are declarative
of
Gods i'urpofe
and
intendment. This
is
that,which (as
I
Paid
before,)
force obje&; Many
of
the
Promifes
ofGod
are
Conditional!,
and their truth
muff needs
depend
upon
the
Accomplifhment
of
the Condition mentioned
in
them:
if
that
be
not
ful-
filled,
then
they
alto muff faile,
and be
of
none
effe.
I
fay
then
that
even
the
Conditional!
Promifes
ofGod
, are
Abfolutely
made good.
The
truth of
any Promife
confrffs
in this,
that that whereof
it
fpeakes,
anfwers
the
Affirmation
it
felfe.
For
inftance;
He
that
believeth
fhallbefaved. This
Pro..
mir-
Both
not
Primarily
affirme
that
any one (hall
be faved, and
notwith(fan-
ding it,
no one might
fo be:
but
only this
it
affirmes,
that there
is
an infalli-
ble
connexion betweene Faith and Salvation: and therein
is
the
Promife
moff
true, whither
any onebelieve
or
no.
Breifely,
Conditional!
Promifes
are either
fimply
declarative
of
the
willof
God,
in
fixing
anexa& correfpon-
dency betweene
a
Condition mentioned and required
in
them,
and
the thing
prómifed
by
them,in
whichcafe
they have an Unchangeable
& infallible
veri.
ty
in
themfelves,as
there
is
in
all
the
Promifes
of
the
Moral] Law
to
this day;
for he
that
keeps
the Commandements
fhall
live.or they are alto the
difcove-
ries
of
the
Goodwill
ofGod,his intendrnents and Purpofes,that,whereof
they
make mention,
being
not the
Condition,whereon
his Purpofes
are
fufpended,
but
the
way
and meanes, whereby
the thing promifedis
to
be
accomplifhed:
and
in.the
latter
Acceptation alone
are they
(in
the
bufineffe
in
hand)
our
concernment:
4.1o
4.
That
the
Promifes concerning
Perfeverance
(
as
hath
been often
inti-
mated)
are
of
two
forts.
The
firft,
of
the
Continuance
of
the Favour
of
God
to
us; which
refpeas our
7uflification.
The other,
of
the
continuance
of
our
Obedience
unto God;
which refpe
&s
our
Santhfication. Let
us
confider both
ofthem,
and begin with
the latter.
a.
Of
them,
I fay
then,
they are
all
Abfolute,
not
one
of
them
Conditio-
nall(fo
as
to
be fufpended,
as
to
their
accompfifhment, on
any
Conditions)
nor
can
be
The
Truth
of
God
in
them, hath not
its
efficiency
and Accom.
pli(htnent, by
effablifhing
the relation
that
is
between one thing and another,
ór
the connexion;
that
is
betweene
duty and reward,
as
it
is in
Conditio-
nal].
Promifes
that
are purely and meerely fo:
but
inforceth
the
exa&
fulfill-
ing
of
the
thing promifed, and
that
with
refpe
unto, and for the preferva-
tion
of
the
Glory
of
that
Excellency
of
God,
He
cannot
lye.
Let
it
be
confi-
dered, what
that
Condition, or thofe Conditions be,
or
may
be, on
which
Promifes
of
thi
s
nature
(hould be fufpended, and
the
Truth of
the
former
Affertionswill
evidently appeare:
That
God bath Promifed unto
Believers,
that
they
(hall
for ever
abide
with him,
in
the
Obedience
ofthe
Covenant
unto
the
End,
hhall
afterwards be proved
by
a
cloud
of
Witneffes.
What
now
is
the
Condition,whereon
this
Promife doth depend?It
is(faies
Mr
Good-
win)
what they
perform
their
duty,
that
they
fufer
not themfelves to
be
feduced,
nor willinglycall
of
the yoake
ofChrifl;
But
what
doth
this
amount unto?rs it
not thus much,
if
they abide with
God, (for if they
performe their
Duty,
and not
fuffer
themfelves
to
be feduced, nor willingly depart from God, they
abide with
him) God bath promifed,
that
they
(hall
abide with him. Upon
Condition they abide with him,he bath promifed they
(hall;
egregiá vero
lau-
dem.Can
any
thing
more ridiculous be invented?Ifinen abide with God,what
need they
any
Promife,that they
(hall
fo
do?The whole virtue
ofthe
Promife
depends on
that
condition
&
that
condition,conteineth
all
that
is
promifed:
neither
is
it
poffible
that
any
thing
can
be invented
to
be
fupplyed
as
the con-
dition or conditions
ofthefe
Promifes,but
it
will
quickly appeare upon
confi-
deration,
that,
how ever it
maybe
differently phrafed, yet
indeed
it
is
coinci-
dent