204 IeT's Traditions about the comingof the Mefsiah. finite Gooduefs and Companiontowards you, O ye poor miferable Sons of Adam, to fend you a Saviour and a Deliverer, who at fuch a time (hall come and declare unto you the way of life .eternal, fhall open the door of Heaven, and fave you from' the . wrath thatyouhave deferved, but I will do it on this condition, that the Jews an obfiinate and. rebellious people, be good, holy, righteous and penitent ; forunlefs they be fo, theSaviour (hall not come, nor is it poffible he fhould, until! they be fo, This ofthemfelves they will never be; nor do I intend to make them fo. If they can perfwade us, that God hath thus placed them in his Throne, and given his Grace and truth into their hands to makeeffehuall, or fruftrate at their pleafure, and fufpend- ed his good will towards the refidue of mankind on their obedience, whom he tefii- fieth to have been alwayes flubborn and difobedient, they may alfö hope to prevail with us to believe, that they, only are men, and all other beaf#s, as fome of their 7almudicalMailers have affirmed. At prefent wefind it by bleffed experience, that their wickednefs hathnot made theTruth of Godof no effeá. 4, 19. Secondly, When God limited and foretold the time of thecoming of the Meliigh, he either forefaw what would bethe State and condition of the Jews as to their Repentance and Good Works, or he did not ? If they fay he did not, then befides that they deny him to beGod, by denying thofe Efntial Attributes of his nature which thevery Heathen acknowledged in their Deities, They altoutterly overthrow all the Prophecies and predi6tions ofthe Old Tefiatnent : for there is notany of them but depend on a füppofition bftheprefcienceofGod ; and this is nothing but tocoun- tenance their unbelief with perfefk Atheifm. If they fay he did forefee, that their conditionsand manners, would be fuch as the event hath proved them, whence he mull alto know that it was impoffible, that the Meßiab Mould come at the time limited and determined ; I ask to what end and purpofe he doth fo often, and at fo great a diflance*of time, promife and foretell, that he fhould come at fuch a time and feafon; fetinghe knew perfelly that he should not fo do, and fo, that not oneword of hisprediftions fhould be fulfilled ? why I fay, did he fix on a time ant feafon, foretell it often, limit it by figns infallible, give ouran exae`dcomputationofthe years, fromthe time of his prediétions, and call all men unto an expeótation ofhis coming accordingly, when by his forelìght of the Jews want of merit and repentance, no fuch thing could polfibly fall out? God who is d4I cle, doth not deal thus With the Ions of 'men. This werenot to promife and foretell in infinite veracity, but pur- pofely todeceive. The condition then pretended, cannot be put upon the promife of the comingof theMegiah without a dire& denyal of fame, and by jufi confequence of all thential properties of the nature ofGod. g. no. Thirdly, there is not in the whole Scripture, the leali intimation of any fuch con- dition, as that which they pretend the promife infifled on, to be clogged withall. It is no where !aid, nowhere intimated, that if the Jews repented, and merited well, the Meffiab fhould come, at the time mentioned ; no where threatned, that if theydid not fo, his coming should be put offunto an uncertain day. We know not, nor are they able to inform us whence they had thiscondition, unlefs they will acknowledge, that they have forged it in their own brains, to give countenance unto theirinfide- lity. Before the time allotted, was elapfed, and they had obftinately refuted him, who . was lent, and came according unto promife : Therewas not the lean rumour of any fuch thing amongfl them. Some of their Predeceffors invented it to palliate their impiety, which fo they maydo, they are not folicitous what reflection it may call upon the honour ofGod. Befides as theScripture as filent, as to any thing that may give the leaft colour unto this pretence, fo it delivers that which is contrary unto it, and dettruétive of it; for it informs us, that the feafon of the coming of the M.fiab (hall be a time of great fin, darknefs and mifery which allo their ownMailers, in other places, and on other occafions acknowledges. SoIll 52. 6- 53. Jet. 35. 32, 33. Dan. 9.24. Zach. 23. r. Mal. 3.4. .Hewas to come to turnmen from ungodlinefs, and not becaule they were turned fo beforehis coming. There can be no place then for this Condition. f. 21. Fourthly, The fuggeflion of this condition, overthrows the rife of the promife, and the whole nature dfthe thing promifed. We have before manifefted, that the rife and fpring of thispromife, was meer love and foveraign Grace : There was not shy thing in man, Jew nor Gentile, that fhould move theLord to provide a remedy and relief for them whohad deffroyed themfelves. Now to fufpend the promifeof this Love and Grace,on the righteoufnefsand repentance of them unto whom it was made,
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