A just vindication of the covenant and church-estate of children of church-members as also of their right unto bastisme : wherein such things as have been brought by divers to the contrary, especially by Ioh. Spilsbury, A.R. Ch. Blackwood, and H. Den are revised and answered : hereunto is annexed a refutation of a certain pamphlet styled The plain and wel-grounded treatise touching baptism / by Thomas Cobbet.

CHAP. VIII.

7. THat the covenant priviledges of grace are even to bee ex∣pounded in the favour of the principall, or lesse principall counter-parties unlesse any exception bee made of persons or pri∣viledges by him, which was the covenant maker. It's so in all o∣ther royall patents, and grants of princely grace, and bounty, and so here in this, which is of that nature: unlesse any will say it was no priviledge of divine grace to have so peculiar and distin∣guishing covenant, to bee made with first reference unto that peo∣ple of Abraham, Isaac and Jacobs race; & that it was no priviledge to have the same visibly confirmed upon them, and theirs after them; the contrary whereof hath beene granted by some which oppose us and hath been before cleared: What though they many of them made no good use thereof, yet the priviledge was peculiar, and pre∣cious; Hence Exod. 19. 16. Deut. 7. 6, 7, 8. Amos 3. 2. hence such peculiar judgements brought on them, and theirs for grosse con∣tempts and rejectings thereof, Dan. 9. 12, 13. Rom. 11. 20. Matth. 21. 43, 44. and 23. 37, 38, 39. Acts 13. 40, 41, 42. 45, 46, 47. 1 Thes. 2. 15, 16. fulfilling that prophesie, Zach. 11. from 6. verse to the end. Hence that of such peculiar use, fruit and efficacy in many others of them, Rom. 3. 1, 2, 3, 4. and 2. 25. and 9, 4, 5, 6. Royall grants, patents, crownes, immunities and heritages may bee basely used, and forfeited and lost, yet are they peculiar priviledges; so here, but of this before. As touching exceptions, wee see if God will except Ishmael and his race, for being such a Church seed, as

with whom the covenant priviledge shall abide, hee is so excep∣ted: and it was accounted a sore punishment to him and his, as if the contrary were a choyse priviledge, Gen. 21. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13. with Gal. 4. 22, 23, 24, &c. by allusion; before that hee was ecclesiasti∣cally discovered, the covenant is sealed upon him personally, but before ever hee have children, hee is discovenanted, and dischur∣ched for his wickednesse, by Gods hand; &c. Gen. 21. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, &c. and that was his punishment that hee is a discovenanted, and externally dischurched and open excommunicate person when hee came to have children, and so they have no benefit. Caines exter∣nall discovenanting, and dischurching in a parentall as well as personall way, was his sore punishment, Gen. 4. 12, 13, 14. with 6. 1, 2. his posteritie have the common name of children of men, and not as those of Seth, children of God; such exceptions did God use some way or other, to expresse where hee intended not this covenant priviledge; Verily so long as Gods gracious cove∣nant made with Church reference, to inchurched confederate pa∣rents, and their generations to Abraham and his spirituall seed in their generations for an everlasting covenant, his mind of grace touching an externall initiatory sealing, establishing and ratifying the same to them, abideth: nor may any change, or repeale the same, or infringe, or curtaile the latitude of it, unlesse himselfe doe it, as it is in all other royall grants, and lawes standing in force, untill repealed by them, by whom granted and made; hence that signe is called by the name of the covenant, as virtually in it, and annexed ordinarily to it; extraordinary times as those before, infringe not the ordinary course, as before shewed; hence even that sealing said to be for an everlasting covenant; partly in that it was a seale of that covenant so induring, and partly because presidentially and in the genericall nature of it, to abide, the Church and covenant people of God combined, being never after to want an externall initiatory seale of the covenant. Hence also among other causes God instituteth baptisme, first for the Jewish Church, and so continued the use of it to, and amongst Gentile Churches; there was no interstitium, nor was it ever accounted a branch of the exhibition of New testament grace and a priviledge of covenant inchurched parents, to have their children want, and bee deprived of any externall covenant, and Church interest; but rather that initiatory sealing of inchurched parents, little ones have ever been accounted by all true visible Churches to bee an ex∣ternall

way of exhibition of the grace of God and Christ. Surely, there being so many passages mentioned formerly touching this part of Gods minde of grace once, if they were intended to bee invalid in any such way now, and yet God never expressed his minde for repeale of such substantiall branches of his minde of Grace, towards his people and Churches; there are so far stum∣bling blocks laid before them to occasion mistakes: For who will not take the same for granted, which considers the same advisedly, as indeed the Churches of old have done before? And when was it a fitter time to make exceptions of Infants, then when the in∣churching of the Gentiles is mentioned, Matth. 28. 19? Why should even then the old phrase of nations bee used, if no intent at least of the specificall parts of the nations to be inchurched? what though circumcision bee left out, yet the species of the persons cir∣cumcised are plainely included? If all nations bee to bee blessed in Christ, that sort of persons in the nations, scil. little ones, as well as that of adult persons are included: how else come any of either sort to bee blessed in Christ, or saved by him? so in this case, Matth. 28. 19.