2. Of their fanctification, elect unto obedience.] It is easily understood to whom; when obedience to God is expreffed by the fimple abfolute name of obedience, it teacheth us, that to him alone belongs abfolute and unlimited obedience; all obedience by all creatures. It is the fhame and mifery of man that he hath departed from this obedience, that we are become fons of difobedience: But grace renewing the hearts of believers, changeth their natures, and fo their names, and makes them children of obedience, as afterwards in this chapter. As this obedience confifts in the receiving Chrift as our Redeemer, fo alfo at the fame time, as our Lord or King, an entire rendering up of the whole man to his obedience. This obedience then of the only begotten Jefus Chrift, may well be underftood not as bis actively, as Beza, but objectively, as 2 Cor. x. 5. I think here it is contained, yea chiefly understood to fignify that obedience, which the Apostle to the Romans calls the obedience of faith, by which the doctrine of Chrift is received, and fo Christ himfelf, which uniteth the believing foul to Chrift; he sprinkles it with his blood to the remiffion of fin, and is the root and fpring of all future obedience in the Chriftian life.

By obedience, fanctification is here intimated : It fignifies then, both habitual and active obedience, renovation of heart, and conformity to the divine will; the mind is illuminated by the Holy Ghoft, to know and believe the divine will; yea this faith is the great and chief part of obedience, Rom. i. 8. The truth of the doctrine is first impreffed on the mind, hence flows out pleasant obedience, and full of love; hence all the affections, and the whole body, with its members, learn to give a willing obedience, and fubmit unte God; whereas before they refifted him, being under the ftandard of Satan.

This obedience, though imperfect, yet hath a certain, if I may fo fay, imperfect perfection. It is

univerfal

univerfal three manner of ways: 1. In the fubject. 2. In the object. 3. In the duration, the whole man fubjected to the whole law, and that conftantly, and perfeveringly.

The first univerfality is the caufe of the other: Because it is not in the tongue alone, or in the hand,

c. but has its root in the heart; therefore it doth not wither as the grafs, or flower lying on the fuperfice of the earth; but it flourishes, because rooted; and therefore it embraces the whole law, because it arifes from a reverence it has for the Lawgiver himself. Reverence, I say, but tempered with love: Hence it accounts no law nor command little, or of small value, which is from God, because he is great, and highly efteemed by the pious heart. No command hard, though contrary to the flesh, because all things are easy to love; there is the fame authority in all, as St James divinely argues. And this authority is the golden chain of all the commandments, which if broke in any link, all falls to pieces.

That this threefold perfection of obedience is not a picture drawn by fancy, is evident in David, Pf. cxix. where he fubjects himself to the whole law. His feet, ver. 105. his mouth, ver. 13. his heart, ver. 11. the whole tenor of his life, ver. 24. He fubjects himfelf to the whole law, ver. 6. and he profeffes his conftancy therein, in ver. 16. and 33. Teach me the way of thy ftatutes, and I shall keep it unto the end.

2dly, We have the caufes of the condition above defcribed,

According to the foreknowledge of God the Father.] The exactest knowledge of things is, to know them in their causes; it is then an excellent thing, and worthy of their endeavours that are moft defirous of knowledge, to know the best things in their highest caufes, and the happiest way of attaining to this knowledge is, to poffefs those things, and to know them in experience: To fuch the Apoftle here fpeaks,

and

and fets before them the excellency of their fpiritual condition, and leads them to the causes of it.

Their eftate is, that they are fanctified and juftified: The nearest cause of both these is Jefus Chrift; he is made unto them both righteousness and fanctification, the sprinkling of his blood purifies them from guiltinefs, and quickens them to obedience.

The appropriating or applying caufe comes next under confideration, which is the boly, and boly making, or fanctifying Spirit, the author of their selecting from the world, and effectual calling unto grace.

The fource of all, the appointing, or decreeing cause, is God the Father; for though they all work equally in all, yet in order of working, we are taught thus to diftinguish, and particularly to afcribe the first work of eternal election to the first person of the bleffed Trinity.

In or through fanctification.] For to render it elect Ito the fanctification is ftrained: So then I conceive this election, is their effectual calling, which is by the working of the Holy Spirit, 1 Cor. i. 26, 27, 28. where vocation and election are used in the same fense: Te fee your calling, brethren, how that not many wife men after the flesh, &c. but God hath chofen the foolish things of the world to confound the wife. It is the firft act of the decree of election; the beginning of its performance in thofe that are elected; and it is in itself a real feparating of men from the profane and miferable condition of the world, and an appropriating and confecrating of a man unto God; and therefore, both in regard of its relation to election, and in regard of its own nature, it well bears that name, Rom. viii. 28. 30. Acts ii. 47. and xiii. 48. John xv.

19.

Sanctification in a narrower fenfe, as diftinguished from juftification, fignifieth the inherent holiness of a Chriftian, or his being inclined and enabled to obedience, mentioned in this verfe: But it is here more large, and is co-extended with the whole work of renovation,

novation, and is the severing and feparating of men to God, by his Holy Spirit, drawing them unto him; . and fo it comprehends juftification, as here, and the firft working of faith, by which the foul is juftified, through its apprehending, and applying the righteoufnefs of Jefus Chrift.

Of the Spirit.] The word calls men externally, and by that external calling prevails with many to an external receiving and profeffing of religion, but if it be left alone it goes no further; it is indeed the means of fanctification and effectual calling, John xvii. 17. Sanctify them through thy truth. But this it doth when the Spirit that fpeaks in the word works in the heart, and causes it to hear and obey. The spirit or foul of a man is the chief and first subject of this work, and it is but flight false work that begins not there: But the Spirit here, is rather to be taken for the Spirit of God the efficient, than the spirit of man the fubject of this fanctification; and therefore our Saviour in that place prays to the Father, that he would fanctify his own by that truth, and this he doth by the concurrence of his Spirit with that word of truth which is the life and vigour of it, and makes it prove the power of God unto falvation to them that believe. It is a fit means in itself, but it is then a prevailing means, when the Spirit of God brings it in to the heart; it is a fword, and sharper than a two edged fword, fit to divide, yea even to the dividing of foul and fpirit. But this it doth not, unless it be in the Spirit's hand, and he applies it to this cutting and dividing. The word calls, but the Spirit draws, not fevered from that word, but working in it and by it.

It is a very difficult work to draw a foul out of the hands and ftrong chains of Satan, and out of the pleafing entanglements of the world, and out of its own natural perverfenefs, to yield up itself unto God, to deny itself, and live to him; and in fo doing, to run against the main ftream, and the current of the ungodly world without, and corruption within.

The

The ftrongest rhetoric, the moft moving and perfuafive way of difcourfe, is all too weak; the tongue of men and Angels cannot prevail with the foul to free itself, and thake off all that detains it. Although it be convinced of the truth of those things that are reprefented to it, yet ftill it can and will hold out against it, and fay, Non perfuadebis etiamfi perfuajeris.

The hand of man is too weak to pluck any foul out of the crowd of the world, and fet it in amongst the select number of believers. Only the Father of fpirits hath abfolute command of fpirits, viz. the fouls of men, to work on them as he pleafeth, and where he will. This powerful, this fanctifying Spirit knows no refiftance, works fweetly, and yet ftrongly; it can come into the heart, whereas all other speakers are forced to ftand without. That ftill voice within perfuades more than all the loud crying without; as he that is within the house, though he fpeak low, is better heard and understood, than he that fhouts without doors.

When the Lord himself fpeaks by this his Spirit to a man, felecting and calling him out of the loft world, he can no more difobey, than Abraham did, when the Lord spoke to him after an extraordinary manner, to depart from his own country and kindred, Gen. xii. 4. Abrabum departed as the Lord had spoken to him. There is a fecret but very powerful virtue in a word, or look, or touch of this Spirit upon the foul, by which it is forced, not with a harsh but a pleafing violence, and cannot chufe but follow it, not unlike that of Elijah's mantle upon Elisha, 1 Kings xix. 19. How eafily did the difciples forfake their callings and dwellings to follow Chrift!

The Spirit of God draws a man out of the world by a fanctified light fent into his mind, difcovering to him, 1. How bafe and falfe the fweetness of fin is, that withholds men and amufes them, that they return not, and how true and fad the bitternefs is, that will follow upon it. 2. Setting before his eyes the VOL. I.

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