F4 2. e. In the Sight Or Eſteem of God He WiS nor the Father i IO of many N :tions by Carnal Generation in the ftchr of Men, but by RE lh Spiritual Cognation in the Sighr of God. Or, as it may be read, L424 © wiro God, after his Example ; and then rhe meining is, That God fo Honoured Abraham's Faith, that he made him a Father, in ome re- ſpeQts like himſelf : As God is an Univerſal Farber, nor 0f One, nc of all Nations, fo was Abraham. Again, As Cod 1s their Sp:rirua! Father, notby Carnal Generation, fo was Abraham allo. þ i. e. Abrge ham believed in him as Omnipotent. His Omniporency is deſcrit, d by two great Effe&ts of ir. The One ia makinv that to have a i2+. Ing again, which had ceas'd to be, as in the ReſwrreZion, The other, in cauſing that to be, which never was; or to make tl Thinss of Nothing, as in the Creariou : He exprefſerh this by calling Thinws, to intimate the great Facility of this Work to God. Hz: only ſpoke and it was done ; He commanded, and a!! was created. And is Jbrahay thus generally believed the Power of God, fo "tis likely he made 4 particular Applicaticn of it to his own State art preſent ; as he be- lieved that God could raiſe the Dead, to that he could raile him Seed our of his own dead Body, and Serab's dead Womb. And :5$ he believed, Thar God could create Things our of nothing, to he could give him Secd that had none ; yea, and make the Geariles a People, that were not a People.
+5 Who againſt hope believed in hope z, thathe || might | become the father of many nations ; according to that Which was {poken, So ſhall thy feed be &.
Here the Apoſtle Digreſſeth a little from his principal Argument, and falls into a Commendation of Abrahams Fiith, i Abraham, when he had no natural or rational Grounds of Hope, either in Re- ipect of himſelf, or Sara his Wite, did yet Belteve and Hope he ſhould have a Son; and fo be a Root or Stock, from whence ma- ny Nations ſhould ſpring : And this Faith and Hope of his, was Grounded upon the Power and Faithtulncſs of God & So as the Stars of Heaven tor Multitude, which muſt be ſupply*d out of the Promiſe, in Gen. 15. 5.
19 And being not weak in Faith, * he conſidered / not » Ge, ,8. his own body now dead, when he was about an hund:ed 1:.
years old, neither yet the deadneſs of Sarahs womb. Heb. 17,
I He regarded not the Impotency of his own Body, which was, as 11 12.
it were dead, becaule of his Age, in reſpe& of any Delires or Powers of Generation. Ab»aham ſeveral Years after married Rec. rar, by whom he had divers Children, How then doth the Apoſtle ſay his body was now dead, or vnable for Generation : Some [iy thar the deadnets of Abraham's Body was only in his own Op:nton, Auguſtine hath two Anſwers. 1. That his Body was not dead timply, bur in reſpe& of Sarah, he might be able ro beget Children of a younger Womin. 2. His Body was revived, and he receiv*'d anew Generative Faculty of God, Another queſtion may be mov*d, and that i s, How the Apoſtte could fay,that Abraham conſidered not lis own Boa being dead : ſeeing we read Gen. #7. 37. that Avraham upon tie Promiſe of a Son, fell upon his Face and laughed, and ſaid in his Heart,Shall a Child be born unto him thar is an Hundred Y:ars Old,&c. Some anſwer, that Abraham at firſt doubred, bur afterwards he re. colle&ed himſelf, and got ayer that unbelief, his Faith overcame all difhculties: Others tay,*that he doubred nor ar all of the truth of God's Promiſe, bur was uncertain only how it ſhould be un- derſtood; wherher properly or figuratively, vid. Gen. 17.19. O- thers ſay, that theſe words of Abraham are not words of doubting, but enquiring ; they proceed from a deſire to be further inſtructed, how that thing ſhould be. Ir was a Queſtion like thar of the Vir- gin Mary's, How jball theſe things be * Auguſtine /azs, That Abra- hams Lawghter was not like Sarah's, Hers proceeded from Difſtruſt, His from Joy and Admiration.
20 He || itaggerednot ar the promiſe of God through ; g; us: unbelief : but was ſtrong in faith, giving glory to God : eg or; che m Viz. in Gen. 15. 5. & 17. 16. » As all do that rely upon the word i; Power and Promiſe of God, letting to their Seals that he 1s True. renared, he 2i And bcing fully perſwaded, that what he had pro- doubred
miſed, * he was able alſo to perform 0. _
o He lookt upon God as one that was perfecQvly able ro do what Mat. 2+, ever he had promiſed, and as one that was moſt faithful and fure ne- \", - yer to fail in the performance ; collef&ting nothing elſe from the *** *2: difficulty and improbabiliry of the matter, bur rhar it was the fit- Re ter for an Almighty Power to eifect, LIM
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for Righte- # James ouſnels p. <4 p Yid.wv. z. By reaſon of bis Faith he was as ſufficiently diſpoſed rendred and qualified for the obtaining of the Promile,- as if he had had all MFaVErg. the Righteonſucſs required by the Law. *Pſal.115- 23 Now it * was not written for his fake alone, that *\, C6:
It was imputed to him: 19 6.11
24 But for v3 alſo, to whom it ſhall be impnted, it we believe on bim that raiſed up Jeſus our Lord from the
dead 79. | Here it may be enquired. If 4brah19; Fairh did juſtific him, and it was imputed to him for Righteoſn*ſs, what doth this concern us * The ApofMle anſwers. Ir awzs recorded of him for gr fikes, Vt
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