Planted by theHeavenlj Father. the led (hall both fall together. Now upon this account CbrIft tiling filch cutting, cauterizing words, can any won- der that they íhould be offended ? I, and deeply offended ; Hereupon It is,that, theChildren of the Letter and of the Bond- woman alwayes háte.and perfecute the Children ofthe Myflery and the Free-woman : As the Children of the New Jerufa- lem are Heavenly, Divine, and Spiritual, like their Motherfor they are born of theSecond Adam which is the Lord from Heaven, and they bear the very Image ofthe Heavenly, And as ir'the Heavenly, filch are they that are Heavenly : And as is the Earthy,fich are they that are Earthy : They are í}i11 car- ried out very zealoufly tooutward obfervations, and carnali things : And if any fhall in the leafs touch them, in them,they are presently offended, raging and mad : for ye touch their Abfolom, their very lives ; ThefleJb alwayes lufleth againfli the fpirit, and thefpirit againft theflefh for thefe are dire&ly contrary the one unto the other ; thefe two Principles are fo wi- reE?ly oppofite and contraryone to an other, that they can never agree, but ever were and (hall be at enmity, never to be reconciled. Thefe Pharifees are alwayes very much offended with the negle&offinal matters,and of things indifferent,which either the doing or leaving undone is no fign offincerity or in- fincerity : but they can negle& the weighty matters of the Law themfelves, and fuffer others to do fo, and never beoffended. As here in the fecondverfe of this chapter, the Scribes and Pharfees which were of Jerufalem, that is, they were the. chiefPreachers oftheNation, becaufe they were!Preachers at the Chief and Metropolitan City 7 E RVS ALE M: Yet thefe Great, andLearned, andSage D IVINE S (as they were efteemed) come toChrift : And what was the great bu- fineffe they had to offer to hint ? Why do thy Difciples tranf- greffe the tradition of the Elders? for they wajh not their hands when they eat bread : Jefus Chrift anfwers themvery perti- nently : Why doyou tranfgreffe the Commandement of God by your traditions? They were moreßriI inobferving the tradi- tions of their Churchand of Men, then of theCommandements of God, and the weighty matters of the Law: they were careful Aa 2 in Gal. 4.29. i Gor. 15. 47. &C. Gá1, $.17. Mata5. 2.
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