All Hypocrites bear up themſelves upon ſomething, up which they promiſe Good to themſelves , and a Freedom frm rhe Judgments of God. The Jews reſted much upon their Vc ſcent from 4braham, as appeareth alto trom oh, 8.39. By vi
Ws without
I, Buy be baprizs
4
1ey intituled themſelves tro the Covenant, Gen. 17. CX=
ded t0 his Seed, as well as to himlelt ; as allo ro the Name of rhe mw 4 Abraham's Poſtericy by Iſa. being a!l the viſible Church — had upon the Earth ar that time : Ir 1s the great = of Miniſters, to drive Hypocrites trom their vain Conti- vue This John dorh.here ; as it he ſhould ſay, I know what —— ro; you think with your ſelves, char, becauſe you are 9 " Church of God upon che Earth , Judgment ſhall nor = m_—_ you; God would then have no Seed of Abraham to as cy ro : and to keep his Covenant with : But miſtake nc God, of Stones, it he pleate, can raiſe up Abraham a Seed ro gn Covenant with. Papiſts and Frmaliſts have much the fame Prelumprion, tho' wich this difference, The Fews were the true, the only Church of God; theſe do bur arrogare rhe Name to
themlclves. : : 10 And now alſo the Ax is laid to the root of the
trees: * theretore every tree which bringerth nor forth
good fruit, is hewen down, and caſt into-the hre.
A PrediRion, as ſome think, of char dreadful DeſIru&ion which within a few years came by the Romans upon rae whole Fewiſh N:tiom, The Senſe is, The Vengeance of God is very near be revealed; - Men muſt Repent now or never , for every Tree woich bringeth not forth good Fruit , ſhall be bewen dawn, and caSt inz2 the Fire, Judgment now 1s as nigh unto Men, as che Tree 15 c9 falling , to the Roor of which the AX 15 already applied, wherher ir be ro be underſtood of the Judgment commen to all Unbe- lievers; all that know mt God, and obey not the Goſpel of Christ, as 2 Theſſ. x. 8, 9. or the particular Deſtruttion of this Nation of the Jews, I ſhall nor dercrmine, tho'I rather judge the Jarrer pro- bable. The latter part of the Text is made uſe of by our Saviour, chap. 7. 19. in rhe latter parc of his Sermon upon the Mountain. It lerrerh us know, that ir is not improper, nor diſior.ant tothe Style of John Bapti, and Chrift , and others, the mo?t eminent firſt Golp:l-Preachers , to preſs Repentance, Faith, and Hlineſs of Life, from Arguments of Terror.
11 1 indeed baptize you with water * unto re- Fs pentance : but he that cometh after me, is mighrier 4 than I, whoſe {ſhoes I am not worthy to bear, he ſhall
baptize you with the Holy Ghoſt, and with fire.
{ am nor the Chriſt, Mar. 1. 8. Luk. 3.15, 15. F 1.15, 26. Iam bur the Meſſenger and Fore-runner of Chriſt ſent betore him, ro baptize Men with the Baptiſm of Warer in Teſtimony of their Repentance;z bur there is one immediately coming atter me, who is infinitely to be preferred before me; ſo much,thar I am not worthy to carry his Shoes, or unlooſe his Shoe-Jatcher : He ſhall baptize Men with another kind of Baptiſm, the Baptiſm ot the Hily Ghoſ and Fire, With the Holy Ghot, inwardly waſhing away their Sins with his Blood, and ſan@itying their Hearts ; the Holy Ghoſt working in their Hearts like Fire, purging out their Luſts and Corruptions; warming and inflaming their Hearts wich the Senſe of his Love, and kindling in them all Spiricual Habits: Or, with the Hily Gh$ ;, as in the days of Penteco8t, there appearing to them cloven Tongues , like as of Fire; as Ads 2. 3. Thus the term Fire is made Exegerical of the term | the Holy Ghit :) Or, with the Holy Ghof, and with Fire; changing and renewing the Hearts of thole char belicve in him, by rhe Operation of the Holy Ghoſt; and conſuming and deſtroying others , that will nor believe, as wich Fire.
12 Whoſe fan 7s in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and garher his wheat into his garner :
but will burn up the chait with unquenchable fre. 7udea is at preſent God's Floor, the only Church he hath upon the Barth; bur there is Chaff upon this Floor, as well as Whear. Now he is come, who will make a Separation betwixt the Chaff and the Wheat ; who by his Preaching the Goſpel will diſtinguiſh berwixc Trae! , and choſe that are of Hrael, Rom. g. 6. Berwixr thoſe who living in the true ExpeRtarion of the eſſa, ſhall re- ceive him now he is come ; and thoſe that by their not own- ing and receiving him , ſhall declare thar rhey never had any true ExpeQation of him, ſhall ſeparate them into diſtin Hevps, raiſing up a Goſpel-Church ; and ſhall ar the Laſt Day make yer a ſtri& Diſcriminarion, and throughly purge his Floor, caking true Believers into Heaven, and burning Unbelievers with un- quenchable Fire z caſting them 1nco Torments like unquenchable Fire, » 12 * Then cometh Jeſus from Galilee to Jordan
{ Unto John, to be baprized of him.
Chriſt, who now was about Thirty Years of Age , Luk. 3. 23. cometh trom Nazareth , a City in Galilee , where Foſeph lived, > Cik.2, 4. and whither he went with 7oſepb and Mary, Luk. 2. 39. & And again, after he had Diſputed with the Do&ors at Twelve = TYearsof Ape, Lyk. 2, 46. cometh rom thence ro Fordan, the grear Kiver where John was baprtizing Diſciples, offering himſelf ro be Baprized of him. He ſhewed his Humility by going to him ; and alſo made the Aion publick. If any ask ro whar end Chriſt, who ud no Sin, was Baptized ? himſelf gives us an account, v. 15. I fulfil all Righteouſneſs, ( of which more in irs place.) He thus owned 7obn's Miniſtry and Miſſion to Baprize, and confirmed the Inlitution of Baptiſm by Water, and offered himſelf ro thar Teſti- mony, which he knew his Father would give of him. He thus | mated himſclf in the Ckriſtian Church, as by Circumciſimn he had
B made himſelf of the Fewiſh Church ; and fo was both the Head of "= Believing Fews and Gentiles : He was nor (as others) Baptized 0" Teſtimony of his Repentance , or for the Remiſſion of Sims ; for he Was without Sin,
Yap. IL.
means tO
<& Y
- it bs
14 But John forbad him, ſaying . I have need to : | be baprized of thee, and comeſt thou ro mz ? n | _ © did not abſolutely repel him, but modeſtly excuſed him-
St MATTHE W.
a more excellent Baptiſm chan he could Adminiſter wo him; fr God gave him the Spirit not by Meaſure, Joh. 3. 34.
15 And Jeſus anſwering. ſaid unto him, Suffer it zo be ſo now : tor thus it becometh us to tulfil all righreouſnels. Then he ſuftered him.