Serro. II. The ExcellencyofAbraham's Faith andObedience. a 3 And there is no affedion more natural and ftrong than this ; for there are many Perfons that would redeem the Lives of their Children with the ha- zard of their own. Now that God bath planted fuch an affedtionin Nature, is an argument that it is good, and therefore it could not but feem ftrange' that he fhould command any thing contrary to it : And in this cafe, there were two Circumftances that encreafed the horror of the Fad ; that his Son was innocent; and that he was to flay himwith his own hands. I. That his Son was innocent. It would grieve the heart of any Father to give up his Son toDeath, tho' he were never fo undutiful and difobedient. So paffionately was David affected with the death of his Son Abfelom; as to with he had died for him, tho' he died in the very at of Rebellion, and tho' the faving ofhis Life had been inconfiftent with the Peaceof his Government. How deep then muff it fink into the heart of a Father, to give up his inno- cent Son to death ? And fuch a Son was Ifizac, for any thing that appeared to the contrary. God himfelf gave him this teflimony, that he was' the Son whom her Father loved, and there is no intimation ofany thing to the contrary. Now this could not but appear ftrange to a good Man, that God fhouldcommand an inno- cent Perfon to be put to death. But, z. That a Father fhould be commanded, not only to give up his Son to death, but to flay him with his own Hands; not only to be a Spectator, but to be the A&or in this Tragedy. What Father would not fhrink, and ftart back at fuch a Command ? What good Man, efpecially in fuck a cafe, and whereNa- ture was fo hard preft, would not have been- apt to have looked upon fuch a Re- velation as this, rather as the fuggeftion and illufion of an evil Spirit, than a Command of God ? And yet Abraham's Faith was not ftaggered, fo as to call this Revelation of God in rlueffion. Secondly, The grievous Scandal that might feem almoft unavoidably to follow ttpon it, was another great Obje&ion agauift it. The report of fuch an A&ion would in all appearance blemifh the Reputation, even of fo good a Man, amongst all fober and confederate Perfons, who could hardly forbear to cenfure him, as a wicked and unnatural Man. And this was a hard cafe, for a Man to put to Sacrifice at once two of the dearest things in the World, his Reputation and his Son : Nor could he have eafily defended himfelf from this imputation, by alledging an exprefs Revelation and Commandof God for it ; for who would give credit to it ? A Revelation to another Man is nothing to me, unlefs I be áffured that he bad fuch a Revelation, which I cannot be, but either by another immediateRe- velation, or by fome Miracle confirm it. The ad had an appearance of fo much horror, that it was not eafily credible that God fhould command it ; and if every Man's confident pretence to Revela- tion be admitted, the worst Actions may plead this in their excufe. So that this pretence would have been fo far from excufing his Faith, that it muff rather have been efteemed an high aggravation of it, by adding the boldeft Impiety to the molt barbarous Inhumanityy. But Abraham was not (tumbled at this, nor at the advantage which the Ene- mies ofhis Religion would make of fuch an .occafon, who would be ready to fay; Here is your excellent good Man, and likely to be a Friend of God; who was ¡o cruel an Enemy to his own Son ! :All this 'tis probable he might confider: But it did not movehim, being refolved to obey God, and to leave it to his Wif- dom to provide againft all the Inconveniences that might follow upon it. Thirdly, The ftrongeft Obje&ion of all was the horrible Confequence of the thing, which feemed to clafh with former Revelations, and to make void the Pro- tnife which God had before made to Abraham, Tbat in his Seed all the Nations ofthe Earth fhould be blefed, which Promife was exprefly limited to Ifaac and hisPoflerity, who had then no Son. And
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=