Anfwer. That God inclined her to do this is not denied. -The queftion only is, whether he did this by an extraordinary and irrefiftible influence? And this it feems reafonable to deny; for either the alone was, dia, prepared, difpofed and fitted to receive this influence, and then fhe had done fome thing already towards her converfion; or if were abfolute ly neceffary that the might believe, and yet the alone though no more fitted or prepared for it than the reft, received it the other auditors for want of this extraordinary influence, muft lie under a neceffity of not believing, and fo it could not be blameworthy in them that they did not believe, vag

2dly. To open the heart, and to open the ear, are fcripture phrafes of like import; for the effect of both is the fame, viz. the rendering the perfon willing and inclined to do the thing. See 1 Chron. xvii. 15. Pfal. xl. 7. Now this God is fometimes faid to do when he awakeneth men by his afflicting hand; for thus fpeaks Elihu, (g) if they be bound in fetters, and holden in cords of affliction, he opens their ear to difei pline, he openeth their ears in oppreffion; and yet these things can only do it by awakening men to confider of their ways. And fometimes he doth it by the preaching of the word; for as they who are taught by the word, or the example of God, are faid to be taught of God fo they who have their hearts. affected with it, and inclined by it to what is good, may be faid properly enough to have their hearts opened by it. Thus our Lord reprefents himself as knocking at the door of men's hearts by the preachers of his word, and the fuggeftions of his Spirit; but entering only when men open their hearts to receive him. In fine, God is here faid to open the heart of Lydia, not to believe, but only, porée, to attend to the things Spoken by St. Paul; .. to weigh, and feriously confider of the greatnefs of the bleffings promifed to believers, viz. remiffion of fins, and eternal life; and that attention produced this faith in her.dk

SECTION V.Objection 14-15 God promifeth to circumcife the heart, Deut. xxx. 6. and Ephraim prays thus, turn thou us. O Lord, and fo fhall we be turned; he therefore only doth thefe works in us, and we are purely paffive. Jer. xxxi. 18.

Anfwer. Now in anfwer to fuch texts as thefe in general, I lay down this as a moft certain rule, that when God doth require us to do what he himself doth promife, and hath made it our duty to perform, his promife is only to perform what is requifite on his part towards the work, he certainly expecting we ourselves fhould do what he commands; and the tenor of

#thofe prayers is only to afford his affiftance to help our infirmities when we are truly willing and defirous to perform our duty by virtue of thofe inducements he hath already laid before us; for if in fuch cafes the whole was to be done by God immediately, not by way of perfuafion only, but by not unfruftrable influence, his command to us to do it, could only be to this effect: Do you upon your utmoft peril what I a lone can do, or be you Gods? For a command to men to do what divine power can alone effect, doth fignify no lefs; and we by praying he alone would do what he requires us to do, pray in effect to be excufed from obeying his commands, and that he would do himfelf what he expects from us.

ft. Then, feeing the fame God who promifeth to (a) cir cumcife the hearts of his people, requires them to (b) circumcife their own hearts, and calls upon the men of Judah to cir cumcife themfelves, and take away the forefkins of their hearts, left his fury break forth upon them, and threateneth to punith all the houfe of Ifrael because they were uncircumcifed in heart, and yet he cannot rationally be, fuppofed to punish and break forth in fury on them, because he had not performed his promife, it is demonftrably certain that promife could not fignify that he alone would do that work without their con currence, or their endeavor to do fomething towards it; fo that it is fuperfluous to add that this promife was apparently conditional, viz. If they would call to mind the bleflings and the curfings which he had pronounced, Ver. 1. and turn to the Lord their God, Ver. 2. or that it is a promife made to all that were brought back into the land from their captivity, and to all their feed,(and fo to many who were not elected to nas tions, not to particular perfons.

Objection 16-17. God promifeth to (c) write his law in the hearts of his people, and to put it into their inward parts; that he will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear him forever, and will make an everlasting covenant with them; that he will not turn away from them to do them good, but will put his fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from him. Jer. xxxii. 39, 40.

Anfwer, Thefe promifes are made exprefsly to the whole houfe of Ifrael, and to all the children of Ifrael and Judah, to

all the old covenant was made, and whom God

whom

T

brought out of Egypt, and would bring again out of captivity it therefore, by the fecond general rule, can be no promife made to, or covenant made with, the elect of the house of Irael and Judah. ft. Because then the whole nation of the Jews must have been elected and converted: 2dly. Because it is made with those who kept not his former covenant, and therefore he regarded them not; whereas the elect always per fift, fay thefe men, in their covenant with God, and he doth always regard them they always are his people, and he is ftill their God; this therefore can be no new covenant with them. And therefore,

Anfwer 2-2dly. Thefe words, I will put my law or my fear into their hearts, and write it in their inward parts, import two things: ft. That he would clearly make known his will to them, fo that they need not be at much pains to find it out, as in thefe words: (d) The commandment which I command thee this day is not hidden from thee, neither is it far from thee, the word is near unto thee in thy mouth, nai iv To napdig on, and in thy heart, that thou shouldft do it; fee, I have fet before thee life and death and fo, faith the apostle, is it with the word of faith which we preach, (e) it is nigh to the chriftian in his mouth to confefs, and in his heart to believe it. And the law written in the hearts of the Heathens, Rom. ii. 15. is the law fo plainly taught them, that their own confciences do inwardly condemn them when they do tranfgrefs it. Hence the effect of writing this law in their hearts here, and Heb. viii. 13. is this, that they should all know him from the leaft to the greatest to Ferom, Chryfoftom, Theo-. doret and Cyrel, of Alexandria. See the note on Heb. viii. 13.

2dly. An inculcating them on the foul by the holy fpirit, fo as that they may be ftill fresh upon the memory; fo Deut. vi. 6. These words that I command thee this day fhall be in thy heart; that is, faith Bishop Uriel, they shall be written, -(e) Rom. z. 8, 9

(6) Jer. xxxi. 33, 34.- -(a) Deut. xxx. 1, 14.

al luach lebbichun, upon the table of your hearts; fo Prov. iii. 1, 3. My fon forget not my law, but let thy heart keep my commandments, write them upon the table of thine heart. And again, Chap, vii. 1, 3. My fon keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee, bind them upon thy finger, write them upon the table of thine heart. Thus the fin of Judah is faid to be writ (f) upon the table of their hearts; as if their memory of, and affection to it could fcarce be obliterated; ry of and Clemens gives this commendation to the church of Corinth, that (g) the commandments of the Lord, πì тà пhaun Ts napδίας αυτῶν ἐγέγραπτο, were written upon the tables of their hearts. And feeing God fo exprefsly required of his people that they fhould lay up his words in their hearts and fouls, Deut. xi. 18. that they fhould write his commandments upon the table of their hearts, and by this prophet Jeremy, that his law fhould not depart from their hearts, 2 Macc. ii. 3. lt follows by the rule laid down in anfwer to the former objec tion, that these promifes cannot be fo under ftood as if God by them engaged to do that whole work which he hath engaged us fo exprefsly to perform. And therefore,

2dly. The promife made, Jer. xxxii. 39, 40. is plainly conditional. I will gather them, &c. Ver. 37. If they will diligently learn the way of my people, Chap. xii. 16. I will give them one heart, and one way that they may fear me, &c. Chap. xxxii. 39, 40. i. e. When they shall return to me with their whole heart, Chap. xxiv. 7. and not feignedly, as Chap. iii. 10. See Gataker there. And then they shall be my people, and I will be their God, ibid. And I'will make an everlasting tovenant with them that I will not turn away from them to do them good, Ver. 40. If they will call him Father, and not turn away from him, Jer. 11. 19. Incline your ear and come unto me, hear, and your foul fhall live, and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, Ifa. Iv. 3. I will put my fear in their hearts that they may not depart from me, Jer. xxxii. 40. This doubtlefs was God's end, as it was alfo of his punishments; for, faith he, they fhall bear the punishment of their iniquity, that the houfe of Ifrael may go no more aftray from me, Ezek. xiv. 10, 11. But this was not the event; for, God faith, in this very (h) prophet, I have caufed to cleave to me the whole houfe of Ifrael, and the houfe of Judah: but they would not hear.

adly. This text only contains a promife that when the Jew ination fhall be converted at the clofe of the world, they fhould never fall off any more from being his people, as

(f) Jer. xvii. 1. (g) Ep. ad Cor. Sec. z. -(b) Ezek. xiii. 11.

they had done before. See Gataker, and the note on Heb. viii. 13.

Objection 18-19. God faith concerning his people, (i) I will give you one heart, and I will put a new spirit in you, and take the ftony heart out of their flesh, and give them an heart of flesh, that they may walk in my ftatutes and keep my ordinances. And again, (k) I will Sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your filthiness, and I will put my Spirit within you, and caufe you to walk in my ftatutes, and ye shall keep my judgments to do them; where a new heart and fpirit are faid not only to be given, but put into them by God, and therefore they were to do nothing towards it.

Anfwer. The arguments taken from both thefe places have two of the general faults which render all arguments of this nature null, v. g. ift. That they fpeak of all the whole house of Ifrael, Chap. xi. 15. xxxvi. 21, 22. to all that were gath ered out of all countries, and brought to their own land, Ver. 24. And then it is certain from the fecond general rule, that it belongs not to the elect only. It is also certain from the event, if it refpect their return from the Babylonifh captivity, that it must be conditional; the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, and efpecially the complaints of the prophet Malachi, fhewing, that they were never fulfilled in many of them; and from Chap. xi. 20. which speaks of thofe whofe heart would still walk after their deteftable things; or else it relates to the converfion of the Jewish nation yet to come; of the whole houfe of Ifrael; and then it can relate to them alone, and all chriftians may as well expect to be exempted from famine, Ver. 30. and to have increase of corn, Ver. 29. and their wafte places and fenced cities built, Ver. 33, 35. as the other bleffings promifed here. Moreover, according to this expofition, it must follow that not one good man came out of the captivity, not one of them with a new, or a clean heart: but all of them with an heart of tone, which was to be taken away.

Anfwer 2. This objection is contrary to the other general rule laid down in anfwer to the 15th objection; for God exprefsly doth command them by the fame prophet, to make themfelves a new heart, and a new fpirit, Chap, xviii. 30, 31, and elsewhere faith unto them, wah ye, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes, Ifa. i. 16. O Ferufalem, wash thy heart from wickedness that thou mayeft be faved, Jer. iv. 14. And St. James fpeaks to the fame. people thus, wash your hands, e finners and purify your

(i) Chap. xi. 19, 20.k) Chap. xxxvi. 25, 27.