THE DIVINE THEORY; > A SYSTEM OF DIVINITY, FOUNDED WHOLLY UPON CHRIST: WHICH, OF ALL THE WORKS OF GOD. BY JOSHUASPALDING, SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS, Ministfr of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. VOL. II. “ I applied mine Heart to know, and to search, and to seek out Wisdom, and the Reason of Things.” THE PREACHER, 66 Eternity lies open to my view; “ Here the Beginning and the End of All “ I can discover; Christ the End of All, “ And Christ the great Beginning; he my Head, “ My God, my GLORY, and my all in all." WATTS. Elizabeth-Town, Nen-Jersey, PRINTED BY SHEPARD KOLLOCK, NEARLI OPPOSITE THE ACADEMY.-1812. CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. Of the State of the Lord's People, as being set apart in a distinct Society, and taken to himself. Section i. The Covenant with Abraham, Section 2. The Right of Church Mem- Section 3. The more important Questi- on concerning Infants, Section 4. The Promises of the Covenant, Section 5. The Works of Abraham, Section 7. The Trial of Abraham, CHAPTER VI.. Of the Dispensation of the Section 1. The Reason for giving the Section 2. The Government by the Law, Section 3. Moral Obligation, as contain- ed in the Decalogue, distinguished from Section 4. Mediatorial Intervention, CHAPTER VII. Of the Kings and Prophets Section 1. The Kingdom of David, Section 2. The Spirit and Power of Eli- Section 3. Government by the Gospel, 209 CHAPTER II. Of the Enemies and Wars Section 1. The Adversary triplex,... 225 Section 2. The Opening of the Seals, 235 Section 3. The Sounding of the Trum- Section 5. The Number of the Beast, 268 Section 7. The Pouring of the Vials, 285 CHAPTER III. Of the Kingdom of Glory. THE DIVINE THEORY. CHAPTER V. OF THE STATE OF THE LORD'S PEOPLE, AS BEING SET A, PART IN A DISTINCT SOCIETY, AND TAKEN TO HIMSELF. SECTION 1..... The Covenant with Abraham. A s the Divine Ordinances, which were given to the world generally, were the principal means by which, in the early ages, men received the truth of Christ, and so enjoyed, through him, the grace and favor of God, it could not fail of becoming the first object of the policy of Satan to pervert these institutions, and utterly to suppress them as to their true meaning and design; and by his subtilty and power, operating continually upon the human mind, according to the grand scheme of founding society and empire among men, upon natural and worldly principles; which scheme was first disclosed in the building of Babel; he so far affected his object, that this ancient law of faith was either broken down and set aside, as to its instituted form, or evaded as to its true meaning and design; and the whole world was again, as it were, laid in commons before the enemy; insomuch, that it became necessary, for the preservation of the faith and the family of God in the world, to raise against him a new barrier. This was done by the Covenant with Abraham, in which God made |