feed, it fhall bruife thy head, and thou shalt bruife his heel, we cannot doubt, that by the feed of the woman, one perfon only was meant; and that the bruising the head of the ferpent, fignified that'· one perfon's defeating the malicious fcheme which the devil (who, because he affumed the form of a ferpent when he deceived Eve, is called that old ferpent, the Devil and Satan, Rev. xii. 9.) had contrived for destroying the human race, and not the killing of ferpents by men; for that was too trifling an event, to be fo folemnly foretold on fo important an occafion. Befides, fuch an interpretation would imply, that Eve was deceived by a natural ferpent, which is not to be supposed. Wherefore the restorer of the human race, having been foretold at the fall, under the appellation of the feed of the woman, Abraham would naturally think of him, and of the purpose for which he was to be born, when God said to him, In thy feed fhall all the nations of the earth be blessed. And the apostle reasoned juftly when, from its being said to him, And in thy feed, he concluded, that the nations were to be bleffed in one perfon, who is Chrift. For if God had meant to tell Abraham, that the nations were to be bleffed in the Ifraelites, his natural feed, collectively, he would have faid, and in thy feeds, or fons, to prevent him from interpreting the promise of the person foretold at the fall, under the appellation of the feed of the woman, who was to bruise the head of the ferpent. This promise hath been fignally fulfilled in Christ, as the apostle hath affirmed; for, 1. In the prospect of Christ's coming into the world, born of a woman, and of his offering himself a facrifice for fin, Adam and Eve were refpited from death, and had a new trial appointed to them, under, a more gracious covenant than the firft; a covenant better adapted to their nature, now that it was weakened by fin. Their temporary respite from death, God intimated by faying to the woman, In forrow thou fbalt bring forth children; and to the man, In the sweat of thy face fhalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground. And their having a new trial appointed, was infinuated in the declaration, that the feed of the woman was to bruise the head of the serpent. For if they were ftill to live under the first covenant, the ferpent's contrivance for their deftruction would have taken effect inevitably. It could only be fruftrated by their having an op portunity, Sec. 6. portunity, under a new covenant, of regaining the life which they had forfeited by their first difobedience. Farther, that this gracious new covenant was procured for them by the death of the feed of the woman, was intimated by the bruifing of his heel at the time he bruifed the ferpent's head. For although they might not, in that dark expression, difcern the death of the feed of the woman as a facrifice for their fin, God may have revealed it to them, together with its happy confequences. And the important discovery being made to them, in order that it might be perpetuated among their pofterity, God may have appointed them to worship him by the facrifice of beafts. It is true, Mofes hath not faid, that God ordered our first parents to offer fuch facrifices; yet his telling us, that God accepted the facrifice of the firstlings of his flock, which Abel offered to him, implies, that such a command was actually given by God; otherwife, the worshipping him by the facrifice of beasts would have been will-worship, confequently it would not have been accepted by him. Farther, as the bruifing of the head of the ferpent by the feed of the woman, and the ferpent's bruifing his heel, were of all the discoveries made to mankind in the first age, the most important, may we not suppose, that to teach mankind the meaning of the ferpent's bruising the heel of the feed of the woman, namely, that it fignified his death as an atonement for the fins of men, God commanded Abraham to offer up his only fon as a burnt offering? That this was its meaning, Abraham might conjecture from the extraordinary nature of the command: Or if, by the ftrength of his own reafon, he could not difcover this, the angel who spake to him after Ifaac was laid on the altar, may have made it known to him. For our Lord himself affures us, that Abraham faw his day with joy, John viii. 56. Your father Abraham rejoiced to fee my day, and he saw it and was glad. 2. And in the view of Christ's coming and offering himself a facrifice for fin, all Adam's pofterity are included in the gracious new covenant under which he was placed, after he was refpited from death. For if Adam's pofterity were included in the coyenant under which he fell, so far as to be liable to death for his offence, it is reasonable to think, that they are likewise included in the new covenant which was made with him; and that that thereby they have an opportunity given them, of regaining that bodily life which Adam forfeited for them.- Befides, if the law under which, Adam's pofterity now live, be the law of works, to what purpose hath God allowed them to come into existence? By obedience to that law none of them can obtain life, but for the smallest act of tranfgreflion muft perifh. This, then, is one of the great blethings which are procured for mankind by Abraham's feed, Chrift. In the profpect of his dying as a facrifice for fin, they have obtained a trial under a more gracious covenant than the firft; and this favour is not confined to any one nation or race of men, but is extended to all the pofterity of Adam, without excepting any of them. So that, in refpect of this happy effect of his coming into the world in the human nature, he may truly be faid to have died for all. See 2 Cor. v. 15. note 1. 3. By dying as a facrifice for fin, Abraham's feed, Christ, hath obtained for all the nations of the earth deliverance from death, the curfe of the law which Adam brake: fo the apostle affures us, Gal. iii. 13. Chrift hath bought us off from the curse of the law, being made a curfe for us. His meaning, however, is not that any of Adam's pofterity is to escape temporal death, but that they are all to be raised from the dead by Christ, in order to their receiving reward or punishment according to what they have done in this life, whether it hath been good or bad. They who, by giving the obedience of faith, have fulfilled the gracious requifitions of the new covenant under which they were mercifully placed; and who, when they failed in particular inftances, have repented of these failures, fhall be pardoned and rewarded with eternal life; but they who have neither given this obedience, nor repented of their finful courfes, fhall be punished with everlafting deftruction from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. 4. As the reward of his dying for the fins of men, Abraham's feed, Chrift, after his refurrection, was exalted to the government of the world. Wherefore seeing he exercises that government with the greatest wisdom, and power, and goodness, for the benefit of mankind, all the nations of the earth have, by his government of the world, been greatly bleffed in him. And in particular, they have been bleffed in him with the influences of the the Spirit, to enable them to overcome the evil propenfities of their nature, and to fulfil the requifitions of the law of faith, under which he hath placed them. In one word, all the nations of the earth being indebted to Abraham's feed, Chrift, for every bleffing of providence and of grace which they enjoy, or hope to enjoy, they have been greatly blessed in him. 5. Many nations of the earth have been bleffed in Abraham's feed, Chrift, with the knowledge of the true God, and of the way of falvation, and of the rewards and punishments of a future state. For these, with the other doctrines of true religion, Christ made known to his holy apostles and prophets by inspiration; and through the fidelity and diligence with which they published these things to the world, the knowledge of them was given to many nations in the firft age, and hath been continued among them ever fince, and even spread in the world, by the stated ministry of the word. Nevertheless, all the nations of the earth have not as yet heard the gospel; nor have all obeyed it to whom it hath been preached. But the prophets have foretold, and we believe that in fome future period the whole earth shall be filled with the knowledge of God, by means of the gofpel preached every where, and received every where. So that, as was foretold, Pfal. lxxii. 17. His name, fhall endure for ever : his name shall be continued as long as the fun: and men fhall be blessed in him: all nations fhall call him blessed. These are the bleffings which were to come on all the nations of the earth, through Abraham's feed, Chrift, because Abraham obeyed God's voice in offering up his only fon Ifaac as a burntoffering. By this, however, God did not mean that Abraham's obedience procured these bleflings for the nations through Chrift; but that as the reward of his obedience in the affair of Ifaac, God promised that the perfon, through whom these bleffings were to come on the nations, fhould be one of Abraham's feed. This interpretation is agreeable to the plain meaning of the words, And in thy feed fhall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thou haft obeyed my voice. CON CONCLUSION. Having explained God's promises to Abraham, both in their literal and allegorical meaning, and having fhewed in what manner they have been already fulfilled, or are yet to be fulfilled to the heirs thereof, it will be useful to look back and take a view of the great difcoveries, which were made of God's gracious purposes refpecting mankind, in that ancient oracle which God himself hath dignified with the appellation of his covenant with Abraham. First then, in promifing to blefs Abraham exceed◄ ingly, it appears that God declared his intention to bestow on him the great bleffing of juftification by faith, that is, his intention both to pardon his fins, and to reward him as a righteous perfon for his faith. In confequence of his pardon, Abraham is to be delivered from death, the punishment of fin, by being raised from the dead. And with respect to his reward, it will confift in the everlasting poffeffion of that heavenly country, of which the earthly country promifed to him and to his natural feed, was the emblem and pledge.-2. By conftituting Abraham the father of many nations, God declared that he will confider all in every nation who imitate Abraham in his faith and obedience, as Abraham's feed, and perform to them the bleffings promised in the covenant to Abraham's feed; confequently, believers of all nations are like Abraham to be juftified by faith; they are to be pardoned, and to obtain the everlasting inheritance of heaven, after being raised from the dead. Also in heaven they are to have God for the object of their worship, and the fource of their happiness to all eternity. And these bleffings, which are all to come on them through Abraham's feed, Chrift, are in the covenant, declared to be the common privilege of believers of every age and nation, as Abraham's feed, whether they have lived in any visible church of God on earth or not. 3. But, which is of the greatest importance in this matter, it is exprefsly declared, that the bleffings promised in the covenant, are not to come on any, but on those whofe faith is accompanied with habitual obedience. This God declared concerning Abraham himself, Gen. xviii. 19. I know him, that he will command |