This unbelief is again twofold — (1.) Reigning ; (2.) In part broken, though not wholly subdued.
[1st.] Reigning unbelief is in all natural men, who are not only guilty of unbelief, but described by the term unbelievers, as being persons never thoroughly gained to the obedience of the gospel, or the acceptance of Christ, and life and peace in him. It bewrayeth itself — (1.) By hardness of heart; they are not moved nor affected with their own misery, nor with redemption by Christ, and the great things of eternity depending thereupon ; nor the invitations of grace, calling them to the enjoyment of them : Acts xix. 9, ' And divers were hardened, and believed not/ &c. A hard heart is one of the devil's impregnable forts, not easily attacked by the force and power of the word : men are born with a hard heart ; we bring the stone with us into the world, and by positive unbelief, or by slighting offers of grace made to us, it increaseth upon us. Hardness of heart is known by the foolishness of it, when ' Seeing we see not, and hear- ing we hear not,' Acts xxviii. 26, 27, when we have a grammatical knowledge of things, but no spiritual discerning. It is also known by the insensibleness of it, when men have no feelings of terrors by the law, of peace, joy, and hope by the gospel ; no taste of the good word at all, but are as stones unmoved with all that is spoken. (2.) By a neglect of spiritual and heavenly things ; they do not make it their business and work to look after those things. Mat, xxii. 5, ' But they made light of it,^ and went one to his farm, another to his merchandise.' Your callings are not your epyov, your work and main business ; that is to look after an interest in Christ ; therefore when this is the least thought of, and the farm and the merchandise engrossetli all our time
^ 'AfjLeXrjaavTes, they would not take it into their care and thoughts.
184 AN EXPOSITION, WITH NOTES, [VeR. 5.
and care, men believe not. Could they slight Christ and holy things if they did soundly and thoroughly believe the Avord of God ? Would they not find some time to mend their souls ? Looking after the inward man, that is the main care ; and men would first regard it if they did believe that the soul were so concerned both in point of danger and hope. Surely when men take no heed to the great offers of the gospel, they do not look upon it as a certain truth. (3.) By secret suspi- cions in their own souls against the truth of the gospel. That pro- fane wretch said Hcecfabula Christi. They look upon it as a golden dream to make fools fond with it ; and that all opinions in religion are but a logomachy, a mere strife of words, or a doctrine to set the world together by the ears, as Gallio, Acts xviii. 15, or a fancy and fond superstition. Acts xxv. 19, and that we need not trouble our heads about it. These are the natural thoughts which men have of the gospel. Such thoughts may rush into the heart of a godly man, but they are abominated and cast out with indignation ; but in wicked men they reign and dwell ; they live by these kind of principles. 1 remember Christ saith of his disciples, aXi^Ooi'i ejvcoaav, John xvii. 8, ' They have known surely that I came out from thee.' The light of faith is an undoubted certain light; but in wicked men, their assent is mingled with doubting, ignorance, error, and sottish prejudices against the doctrine and wor- ship of God, Mat. iii. 14 ; natural atheism in them is not cured, and that faith which they pretend to and profess is but a loose wavering opinion, not a grounded and settled persuasion of the truth of the gospel. The ' assurance of understanding,^ as the apostle calleth it. Col. ii. 2, dependeth upon experience and an inward sense of the truth, and is wrought by the Holy Ghost, 1 Cor. ii. 4, and therefore, I suppose, proper to the godly. (4.) By rejecting the counsels of salvation ; see Acts xiii. 46 ; Luke vii. 31. All natural men are ' chil- dren of disobedience,' Eph.ii. 2, out of pride scorning either the messages of God — ' Folly to him,' 1 Cor. ii. 14, or the messengers — ' Is not this the carpenter's son ?' Mark vi. 3, foining and fencing with the word, and defeating the methods of grace used to gain them, Rom. x. 21, guilty of an obstinate frowardness : ' It is a people that do err in their hearts,' Ps. xcv. 11 ; not in their minds only, but their hearts;' as if they did say, 'We desire not the knowledge of thy ways,' Job xxi. 14. (5.) By the unholiness of their lives. The apostle saith, 2 Peter iii. 11, 'We that look for such things, M'hat manner of persons ought we to be in all holiness and god- liness of conversation ? ' from whence we may plainly infer that they which are not such manner of persons do not look for such things as faith inferreth — obedience ; where the prince is there his train will be ; so is unbelief known by disobedience ; when men live as carnally and carelessly as an infidel, there is not a pin to choose between them. (6.) When men hear the word and never make application, or convert it to their own use, it is a sign they are under the power of reigning unbelief. In faith there is assent or believing the word to be tlie word of God, or that it is ' a faithful saying,' 1 Tim. i. 15 ; and then consent or approbation of the word as a good word or worthy saying, and then application, or converting the word to our own