a New-devis'd, Simple, and Naked Kind of Repentance, without any Faith in the Redemption by Chrift, is the Whole of Chriftianity, and All that we want; fo that, according to this Doctrine we have, after all, Christianity without a Chrift; a Saviour without Redemption; Spiritual Graces without Influences, without Operations upon the Soul; and either need no Salvation; Or, if we do, are Sufficient of Our felves to Save Our felves: I fay, fince thefe Anti-Chriftian Tenets are Publifh'd and Spread, as it is my Business on fuch Occafions to Watch for, and give you Warning; I fhall now treat of this Subject of Repentance a new; the more to Establish your Hearts in the Faith firft deliver'd to the Saints, and that you may not, as Occafion fhall require, be without an Antidote against that Poifon. And,

In doing This, I fhall

I. First, Endeavour to fhew you, What the Virtue or Grace of Repentance, I mean that full and perfect Repentance, by which we do obtain the Divine Favour and Forgivenefs of our Sins, is. And then,

II. Secondly, In order to free the Doctrine of this Repentance from thofe Abuses and Mifreprefentations with which the Adverfaries of our Faith have attempted to Deface it, I fhall confider and refute fome of the chief Arguments offered by them in Support of their Doctrine of the Sufficiency of Simple Repentance to Salvation. After which,

III. Thirdly,

III. Thirdly, I fhall draw fome Inferences from the Whole, and Conclude. And,

I. First, I am to fhew, What that full and perfect Repentance by which we do obtain the Divine Favour and Forgiveness of our Sins, is. Now,

Repentance in General, as we in the Poverty of our Language are forc'd to use the Word, is put for feveral Acts and Affections very diverse from one another. For, fometimes it fignifies the Changing of one's Mind, Intent, or Refolution, with refpect of his own Conduct in Things indifferent or otherwife; as, for the Purpose, When a Person having defign'd to do or perform an Act One Way, finds Himself, on fecond Thoughts, induc'd to change His Purpose, and to do it Another; This is called Repenting. Thus GOD is faid to have led the Ifraelites from Egypt, not by the way of the Philistines country, though that was near, left they Should Repent, or Change their Mind with Respect to their Departure, when they fam War, and return to Egypt. Exod. 13. 17. In this Senfe GOD alfo fays of Himfelf,---I have purpofed and will not Repent, or Change the Course of my Difpenfations. Fer. 4. 28. And yet again, in the fame Sense, The Lord is faid to have Repented that He had made Man on the Earth. Gen. 6. 6. That is, GOD, for the wickednefs of the Ante-Diluvian World, Changed the Course and Order of His Providence with Refpect of the Race of Men that Then were, by deftroying Them with the Earth, and by re-fitting and re-peopling the Earth, as it

were

were, from a New Stock. Sometimes the Word Repentance is put for that weak, peevish, and deceitful Inconftancy which is every Day seen in Frail, Fallen Men; when, being Acted by their own rafh Humour or Wilfulness, they take up, and lay afide, Refolutions, without Reason, or against it; and fo are found Falfe to Others, and often to Themfelves. In this Senfe Holy Scripture tells us, Repentance cannot be in GOD; Howfoever (in that other Senfe of Changing the Courfe of his Fudgments with Refpect of Men, as they change their Ways and of Good and Virtuous do become Evil and Vicious, or the contrary) He be faid often to Repent. Thus Samuel tells Saul---And also the Strength of Ifrael will not lie, nor repent; that is, He will not from any weak Affections Act a fickle and deceitful Part: For He is not a Man that he fhould Repent; He is not fubject to any of our Frail and Uncertain Paffions, that He should Act any such fickle and deceitful Part. 1 Sam. 15. 20. In this Senfe, I fay, we are told, It is Impoffible the Omnipotent should Repent; though in the fame Chapter He is faid, in that other Sense, to have Repented that He had made Saul King over Ifrael. Again, This Word Repentance is put for that Vexation, Shame, and Sorrow that a Man upon Conviction of Confcience feels, for any Foolish or Wicked Thing, faid, or done, by Him. And this often happens, when he has Little or Nothing more than a bare Horror of his Conduct, but does not, or cannot, turn himself to do the leaft Act to Rectify, or Change, his Mind. In this Senfe Judas is faid to have Repented, when

he

be brought again the thirty pieces of Silver, the Price of Betraying our Lord, confeffed he had finned, in that he had betrayed the innocent blood, and went and banged himself. Matt. 27. 3, 4. The Traitor, in this Cafe, had an Horror of his Alt, a Remorfe of Confcience for his Sin; but could not Change or Rectify his Heart and Mind in that Refpect. But,

None of the above-mention'd Species of Repentance, though called in English by this Name, is by any means the Thing we are to understand by this Word, Repentance, according to the Text; I mean, as the fame is for Remiffion of Sins; But this will be found under the next Acceptation of the Word; in which it is put for that Turning, or Returning to GOD, thro' Faith in that Perfon, and by thofe Means, which God hath appointed in His Word, for Salvation to Man, that is, through Faith in His Son; with which also the Heart and Mind is understood to be at the same time Changed and Rectified by the Co-operation of the Holy Ghoft. For, without These, a Man may, in feveral Refpects be faid, as above, to Repent, and yet fhall, after all, have no Repentance, in the leaft to his Purpose, in the Senfe of the Text, that is, none in the leaft fitted to procure him the Divine Favour and Pardon for his Sins. And,

This is the Doctrine univerfally of the Holy Scriptures, of the Old Teftament as well as of the New. I will produce a few Paffages out of a vaft Abundance to this Purpose. And,

Firft, Repentance is with a Turning, or Returning to God by Faith in the Saviour. This of

Returning

Returning is indeed the primary Idea of that Act which we call Repenting; wherefore alfo the Verb which in the Original fignifies fimply to Return, when spoken of the Return of Man from his own evil Ways to Religion and to GOD, is render'd Indifferently by Returning or Repenting; True Repentance confifting properly in fuch Return, as aforefaid. Thus in one Text, Ezek. 18. 30. where the fame Word is repeated, it is render'd in our Verfion by both thofe Words---Repent, and Turn from all your Tranfgreffions; fo Iniquity fhall not be your Ruin. So, often when it stands fingle, always when it is join'd to the Names God, Lord, &c. or to their Pronouns Him, Me, &c. with the Particle To, it is put for the faid Act of Repenting, as expreffing the very Way and Manner of it. And thus God, the Saviour Himself, the Second Perfon in the Divine Effence speaks to his Spiritual Ifrael by the Prophet; expreffing at once the Manner of Repentance, with the Ground on which alone Man may hope to be Accepted in Repenting. I have blotted out as a thick Cloud thy Tranfgreffions, and as a Cloud thy Sins: Return unto me, for I have Redeemed thee. Ifai. 44. 22. You fee Redemption was provifionally Decreed for, and Proposed to, All that fhould Repent. How? By Turning, or Returning to God with Faith in the Redeemer. Thus, by the Prophet Jeremiah, Ch. 3. V. 22. He invites back Deferters---Return ye backfliding Children, and I will heal your Backfidings.