to be bleffed, was revealed in this promife. Hence the apoftle calls this the preaching of the gospel to Abraham. This was probably the period alfo referred to by our Lord, when he faid to the Jews, Your father Abraham rejoiced to fee my day, and he faw it and was glad. On the above, a learned commentator makes the following remark: "The apoftle quoteth the promife, Gen. xii. 3, where God tells Abraham, that in him all the nations (or families) of the earth fhould be bleffed. This is to be understood of thofe fpiritual bleffings which are in Chrift Jefus for all the nations of the earth were no other wife bleffed in Abraham.”+ This promife was made twenty-four years before the covenant of circumcifion exifted; and was as independent of that, as the covenant made with Noah respecting the drowning of the world. It did not depend at all upon the obedience of Abraham, or any other creaIt was in no fenfe conditional. The divine veracity was pledged for its fulfilment. And whether circumcifion had been inftituted or not, God would in the fulness of time have fent his Son into the world, and would have bleffed the nations in him. ture. That this promife was made to Abraham twentyfour years before the covenant of circumcifion, is proved from the following circumftances. 1. Abraham was feventy-five years old when he departed out of Haran, which was the time when this promife was made. He was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcifed. See the margin. 99 75 24 Abraham received this promife, believed in its accomplishment, faw by faith the day of the Lord Jefus, and was juftified through faith-all while he was in uncircumcifion. Not one of these circumstances could have ever been altered, had that never been inftituted. Nor does it appear that this promife was directly connected with, or included in that covenant. For notwithstanding it is there faid, a father of many natims will I make thee; and although this might in a metaphorical sense allude to his being the father of be 4 John viii. 56. + Pool's Contin. in loc. Vid. Rom. iv 9, 10. + Gen. xii. 4. iev ers in all nations; yet it must be observed, that it frands immediately connected with the following words; And I will make thee exceeding fruitful; and I will make NATIONS OF THEL, and king shall come of thy loins. Thefe expreflions, taken together, do not amount to a promife, that the nations which fhould fpring from Abraham's loins, or any others fhould be bleffed in him. It was not therefore defcending from the loins of Abraham, but poffeffing his faith, which gave a title to the promife. The promife that he fhould be the father of many nations, and that kings fould come of him, has been literally and fully accomplished. The promife which refpected the bleffing of the Gentile nations in Chrift, was renewed again to Abraham about twenty years after the covenant of circumcifion. This was under circumftances peculiarly foleni: it was when he was called to offer up his beloved fon Ifaac. We have much reafon to believe, that in this tranfaction, Abraham faw more of the myftery of redemption, through the incarnation and facrifice of the Son of God, than he had ever feen before. The Lord now graciously condefcended to comfort him, by repeating the promife which he made to him more than forty years before, with this variation; In thy SEED fhall all the nations of the earth be bleffed. 1. The apoftle is particularly careful to distinguish this promife refpecting the SEED in whom the Gentile nations fhould be bleffed, from that made in the covenant of circumcifion refpecting the pofterity of Abraham. The woman's SEID, who was to bruife the ferpent's head, was alfo the SEED, promifed to Abrahan, in whom the believing Gentiles fhould be bleffed. But primarily his natural feed, or at moft his fpiritual feed, and not Christ, was intended, by the feed in the covenant of circumcifion. The nations have never been bleffed in any other of Abraham's feed but Chrift. 2. The apoftle farther diftinguishes the promifeander confideration, in the fixteenth verfe. Now, faith he, to Abraham and his feed were the PROMISES made. He fpeaks in the plural, "promifes." In Gen. xii. 3, it is faid, In THER fball all families of the earth be bleffed. And in Gen. xxii. 18, it is faid, In thy SEED fall all the nations of the earth be bleffed. That we might not miftake the latter, as referring to the promife made in the covenant of circumcifion, and fo to Abraham's natural feed, the apostle adds, "He faith not, And to feeds, as of many; but as of ONE, and to thy SEED, WHICH IS CHRIST. The promises in the covenant of circumcifion were to many; to Abraham's feed generally. Will any perfon prefume to fay that thefe promifes referred to Chrift, or were made to him; or that he was the feed there intended? Were kings to come out of his loins, and nations to be made of him? Was the land of Canaan promised to Chrift for an everlasting poffeffion? Theie were fome of the promises made and fulfilled to Abraham and his natural feed. Christ claimed no intereft in the land of Canaan: no, not fo much as the foxes; for they had holes to burrow in, but the Son of Man had not where to lay his head. It will hence, we think, undeniably follow, either that the promises made to Abraham's feed in the covenant of circumcifion referred to Chrift, and had particular refpect to him, or elfe that the apoftle reafoned from a promise entirely diftinct from them. 3. That the apoftle did not refer to the promises in the covenant of circumcifion, is further evident, from what he has faid in the 17th verfe: And this I fay, that the covenant that was confirmed before of God in Chrift, the law which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot difannul, that it should make the promife of none effect. Here are feveral things worthy of confideration. 1. This covenant was confirmed of God in Chrift. It confequently food independent of the obedience either of Abraham or his pofterity. 2. This covenant, if confirmed in Chrift, could not be broken or difannulled. There could in the nature of things be no failure. Even a fufpicion of this kind, would be derogatory to the honour and veracity of Chrift. 3. This promife, which is the fame referred to in the 29th verfe, the apostle informs us was thus made and confirmed, four hundred and thirty years before the giving of the law. This will forever diftinguish it from the promifes in the covenant of circumcifion. For this was inftituted only four hundred and fix years before the giving of the law. The covenant in the xviith chapter of Genefis was in the year before Christ 1897. The law was given fourteen hundred and ninety-one years before the fame era, which leaves but four hundred and fix. See the margin. 1897 1491 166 But the promife quoted by the apoftle from Genefis xii. 3, which was made to Abraham twenty-four years before, when he was in uncircumcifion, exactly compares with this statement in the context, of four hundred and thirty years. This promife, according to the Bible chronology, was made to Abraham in the year before Chrift, 1921. The law, as obferved above, was given 1491, which makes exactly the time fpecified. See the margin. 121 191 480 Here the matter is reduced to mathematical certainty. Any perfon who will take the trouble to compare the dates in his Bible, of the xiith chapter of Genefis, and the xxth of Exodus, referred to above, will feel himself completely fatisfied The moft invincible preudice will find it difficult to refift the light of demonstration. If the observations which have now been made are correct, they will bring us unavoidably to this conclufion, viz. That Mr. Worcefter has totally iniftaken the promife in his text, and reafoned from one to which the apostle had no immediate reference. Hence the whole of his laboured fuperftructure is left without foundation! The fate of fuch a building may be feen in the close of the fixth chapter of Luke. In order to fet afide this conclusion, three things must be fairly proved. 1. That the apostle throughout this chapter did actually mean the promise in the covenant of circumcifion, although he has not mentioned a fingle paffage contained in it; but exprefsly quoted one clearly dif tinguished by the time of its being delivered, and alfo by the terms and import of the promife itself. 2. It must be proved, that the covenant of circumcifion was 430 years before the giving of the law, notwithstanding feripture chronology places it but four hundred and fix. 3. That the feed of Abraham, mentioned in the corenant of circumcifion, and the SEED in whom all the families of the earth fhould be bleffed, were the fame : or in other words, that the feed of Abraham, expreffed in that covenant, meant Chrift; for the apostle has exprefsly told us in the context, that he was the perfon to whom the promise, from which he was then reafoning, exclufively referred. Until these are fairly proved, we fhall infift upon the conclufion above ftated. We have too good an opinion of Mr. Worcester's candour, to think that he will deny that he has reasoned from the covenant of circumcifion throughout his difcourfes. If he can honourably extricate himfelf from the foregoing dilemma, he will undoubtedly do it; and in doing it he will inftruct the writer of thefe ftrictures, and probably relieve fome of his brethren, who have, it is thought, already felt the difficulty. We now proceed, SECONDLY, to fhow, That the application of this promife to believers and unbelievers, or to believing parents and their unbelieving children, is unfcriptural, and contrary to the apoftle's reafoning throughout the context. The apoftle predicates his reafonings upon two diftinct topics, viz. upon Abraham's faith, and the promife made to him respecting the Gentile nations. With regard to the firft, he faith, Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteoufnefs. Know ye, therefore, that they which are of faith, the fame are the children of Abraham. (Ver. 6, 7.) Here it must be obvious to every unprejudiced mind, that Gentiles, whether young or old, cannot claim this relationship to Abraham, unlefs they are of faith: that is, unless they believe God, as Abraham did. Viewed in this character, as the "father of the faithful," and the fame diftinction will alfo apply with refpect to his natural pofterity. None of his feed are confidered as his children in this fenfe, but fuch as are of faith. This distinction was made by |