431 Name of God, and all things relating to or compriz'd under it This acquaints us with that portion of time which is to be fet apart and devoted to his more folemn Service, which we are here told is the Seventh Day.

That fome part of time is to be alloted to the Worship of our Maker, who is the Author and Giver of all time, is a moral Duty, dictated by the natural Reafon of Mankind; but what part, or how much of our time is to be fet apart for this purpofe, depends upon the pofitive determination of the Divine Will. Now God Almighty in this Law has fettled the proportion, and will'd us to devote the seventh part of our time to his Service; Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day, &c.

This Commandment being partly Affirmative, and partly Negative, I fhall confider firft what is requir'd, and next what is forbidden in it; and likewife being partly Moral, and partly Pofitive, 'twill be requifite to diftinguish and confider both. To which end we muft obferve in it,

First, A Precept, Remember to keep holy the Sabbath-day. Secondly, An Encouragement to it, partly from the liberal Allowance granted for our own Bufinefs; Six days halt thou labour, and do all that thou haft to do: and partly from the Propriety that God challenges in the feventh Day; But the feventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.

Thirdly, The manner of fanctifying and keeping Holy this Day and that is, partly by refting from all bodily Labour, In it thou shalt do no manner of Work, &c. and partly by employing it in the holy Exercifes of Religion: both which are inforc'd by the Example of God himself; For in fix Days the Lord made Heaven and Earth, and refted on the feventh: and likewife from his own Dedication of this Day to holy Purposes; Wherefore the Lord blef fed the feventh Day, and hallowed it. Thefe are the several Parts or Branches of this Commandment, which must be therefore particularly handled. And,

First, I must begin with the Precept, which is to keep holy the Sabbath-day: Where, by keeping holy we are not to understand any intrinfick or inherent Holinefs, as if one Day were in it felf more holy than another; but a relative Holiness, confifting in a Separation from common and ordinary, to divine and facred Ufes. For as fome Places are

faid to be Holy unto the Lord, by being fet apart and confecrated to his Service; fo are fome Times for the fame reafon ftyl'd Holy, by being apply'd and appropriated to holy Ufes.

But why is there a Memento prefix'd to this above all the other Commandments? for whereas all the reft are deliver'd in plain Precepts, Thou shalt do or not do this or that; this is ufher'd in with a Memorandum or Note of Attention, Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath-day: and is likewife back'd with more Reasons and Inducements to its Obfervation than all the reft. Why, of this a double account may be given: As,

1. This might proceed from Mens proneness to forget, and backwardness to obferve this Law, which might movethe Almighty to add this Memorandum to keep it in remembrance. The World is fo apt to infinuate, and take fuch firm hold of the Minds of Men, as to engross all their Time and Thoughts, and to drown the remembrance of divine things; and were it not for the return of this seventh Day, to call off their Minds from the Cares and Pleasures of this Life to attend higher and better things, they would fall into an utter forgetfulness of God, and drown themselves in Destruction and Perdition: To prevent which, this Memento was here given, Remember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy. Moreover,

2. This was added, becaufe Nature and Reason of itself not directing to any particular Day for publick Worship, 'twas but needful we fhould be call'd upon to remember and keep in mind the Day appointed by God himself for that purpose. 'Twas a Father's Obfervation, that the Sabbath is à Precept not made known to us by our own Confciences, as the other Precepts are; and therefore God gave Reafons and Remembrances for this, which were not needful for many others. Befide,

The Sabbath being a Memorial and Covenant between God and the Jews, to whom this Law was firft given, it was requifite to prefix this Note of Attention, to keep them always mindful of it, and careful to obferve it. But,

Secondly, What Reafon or Encouragement is there for the obferving of this Day? Why great, fundry ways: As, From that liberal Allowance of time which God hath given us for our own Business, in those words; Six days fhalt

I.

thou

thou labour, and do all that thou hast to do. He who is the Master of all Time, hath given us a liberal fhare, and referv'd to himself a very fcanty proportion, but one day in feven; and Gratitude, as well as Equity, fhould make us willingly return him that. Had he taken all or the greatest part of our time to himself, he had done us no wrong; yea, it had been kindnefs ftill to allow any: for being all his, he might do with his own what he pleafes, and one may fay, What doft thou? Whereas he has given us the largest share of what was all his, and allow'd us fix times more than he takes to himself. Sure none can complain of God as a hard Mafter, who exacts no unreasonable Tasks from us, but only wills us to do our own Bufinefs: nor does he abridge us in time, but affords fix days in feven for the dispatch of it; and it must be very ungrateful, as well as unjust, to deny him that: efpecially confidering,

2. The peculiar Right and Property which God Almighty challenges in this Day; But the Seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. Indeed, every Day may be faid to be his, he being the Author of all Time, and the number and measure of our Days being all in his hand; but he lays a more particular Claim to the feventh part of it, which he hath fet apart and referv'd for his Service. He hath given us the difpofal of all the rest, to be employ'd as we think fit on all lawful and neceffary occafions: but the Seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; this he hath confecrated to his own Lot, and fet apart for himself. But,

Thirdly, How is this Day to be kept holy unto the Lord? Why, chiefly thefe two ways.

1. By refting in it from all bodily Labours. And,

2. By fpending it in holy and religious Exercifes. 1. I fay, the Commandment requires it to be kept as a Day of Reft, and that not barely from the Works of Sin, which we are to abstain from every day; but likewise from the common and ordinary Works of our Calling, which may be well enough done at other times: In it thou shalt do no manner of Work, thou, nor thy Son, &c. that is, they were to rest from all bodily Labour of any kind, the better to attend the Service of their Maker. And this Reft was to extend not only to Parents and Mafters of Families, but to all their Children and Servants both Male and Female ; yea, to the very Cattle and Beafts of the Field, who were to partake of this Rest, and to find Eafe and Relief on that VOL. II.

Gg

day

Part II. day from all painful Drudgeries: befide which, it was to reach to the Stranger within their Gates, that is, to those of another Country or Religion, that were admitted within the Gates of their Houfe, or refided in their Families, who were likewife to receive the Benefit of this Rest, and to be exempted from all kind of Labour.

:

Now this Reft was made fo ftrict to the Jews, that they were to abftain not only from all hard Labour, but from all the ordinary Work and Business of a Family: for they were forbidden to kindle a Fire, or dress their ordinary Provifions on that day for fo we read, Exod. 35. 2, 3. where Mofes commands the Sabbath to be kept as a Day of Reft unto the Lord, and whosoever doth any Work therein, even to the kindling a Fire in their Habitations, Should be put to Death. Yea, they were fo far to reft from bodily Labour, that they were not to move from their own place: Exod. 16. 29. Abide ye every Man in his own place, let no Man go out of his place on the feventh day. Not that they were reftrain'd from the folemn Affemblies, where the Law was read and expounded to them, but from all unneceffary Walks and Journies, and likewife from going abroad to feek Provifions; for they were forbidden to gather Manna on that day, as we read, ver. 27, 28. and we find one for gathering Sticks on the Sabbath-day put to death by God's own Order, Numb. 15. 32, 33, 35. In fhort, they were reftrain'd not only from all fervile Work, but from doing their own Pleafure, thinking their own Thoughts, or Speaking their own Words; Ifa. 58. 1.

But our bleffed Saviour, who added to the Strictness of fome other Laws, hath relax'd the Severity of this: Being Lord of the Sabbath, he made a double Alteration in it; the one respecting the Time, the other the Manner of keeping it. The Jewish Sabbath, which was on the Last Day of the Week, and kept in memory of the Creation, is now chang'd to the First, in memory of Chrift's Resurrection, ftyl'd therefore the Lord's Day. Again, the Jewish Sabbath is by the Apoftle ftyl'd, A Jhadow of things to come, but the Body is Chrift, Col. 2. 16, 17. That ftrict Reft enjoin'd in it under the Law, reprefented a more fpiritual Reft from Sin under the Gofpel, and likewife that eternal Reft that remains for the People of God: Both which being completed in Chrift, who is the end of the Law for Righteoufnefs, the former Shadows vanifh'd and yielded to him as the Subftance. Hence we find him allowing of many Works

of

of Mercy and Charity on that day,, which the Rigor of the Law would not difpenfe with. When the Pharifees and others blam'd the Disciples for plucking a few Ears of Corn, and healing the Sick on the Sabbath-day; our Saviour tells them, that the Sabbath was made for Man, not Man for the Sabbath; and that it was lawful to heal and do all good Offices on that day, both to Man and Beast.

But ftill we are to make the Lord's Day a Day of Reft, and to forbear all the Work and Bufinefs of our Calling: not that these things are evil, but good in themfeives; nor is this Ceffation from Labour acceptable in itfelf, or any part of Divine Worship: but because earthly Employments are a distraction and hindrance to the more heavenly Duties of that Day, God Almighty hath will'd us to abftain from them, and hath taken us off from our own Work on that day, that we may the better attend on his.

2. We are to keep this Day holy, by devoting it to pious and religious Exercises, and by performing on it all the Acts of Piety and Devotion; for tho we are permitted and requir'd to reft from our Labours on this Day, yet we are not to make it a Day of Idlenefs and Loofenefs, but to imploy it in the religious Acts of Hearing, Praying, Reading of God's Word, and Receiving the Holy Sacraments. This we find was the Practice of the first Chriftians, who continued ftedfaft on that day in the Apostles Doctrine and Fellowship, in breaking of Bread and in Prayers, Acts 2. 42. And we read of St. John's being in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, Rev. 1. 10. meaning, that he was wholly imploy'd in the fpiritual Exercifes of Devotion and Piety; which things are to be done, not only publickly in the Congregation, but privately in the Family, and fecretly in the Clofet; this Day being to be fet apart for Holy Ufes.

Moreover, we are to employ fome part of this time in pious and heavenly Meditation, particularly on the wonderful Works of Creation, Providence, and Redemption. We are to fanctify this Day by Acts of Mercy and Charity, fuch as relieving the Poor, vifiting the Sick, and the like which as they are never unfeasonable, fo are they more especially the proper Work of this Day. Hence we find in the Primitive Times, the Collections for the Saints were generally on this Day; the Apoftle exhorting, On the first Day of the Week let every one lay by him in ftore, as God has profper'd him, 1 Cor. 16. 1, 2. And both our Saviour's Command and Example have warranted and recommended

Gg 2

the