Exercitations concerning the name, original, nature, use, and continuance of a day of sacred…

§. 23 In the Enquiry after the Causes of the Sabbath, the first Question usually insisted on, is concerning the Nature of the Law, whereby its Observation is commanded. This some affirm to be Moral, some only Positive, as we have showed before. And many Disputes there have been about the true Notion and Distinction of Laws Moral, and Positive. But whereas these Terms are invented to express the conceptions of mens minds, and that of Moral, at least, includes not any absolute determinate sense in the meaning of the Word, those at variance about them, cannot impose their sense and understanding of them upon one another. For seeing this Denomination of Moral, applied unto a Law, is taken from the subject matter of it, which is the Manners or Duties of them to whom the Law is given, if any one will assert that every command of God, which respects the manners of men, that is of all men absolutely as men, is Moral, I know not how any one can compel him to speak or think otherwise, for he hath his liberty to use the Word in that sense which he judgeth most proper. And if it can be proved, that there is a Law, and ever was, binding all men universally to the Observation of an Hebdomadal Sacred Rest, I shall not contend with any, how that Law ought to be called, whether Moral or Positive. This contest therefore I shall not engage into, though I have used, and shall yet further use those terms in their common sense and acceptation. My way shall be plainly to enquire, what force there is in the Law of our Creation unto the Observation of a Weekly Sabbath, and what is superadded thereunto by ⟨p. 154⟩the Vocal Declaration of the Will of God concerning it.

§. 23 In the Enquiry after the Causes of the Sabbath, the first Question usually insisted on, is concerning the Nature of the Law, whereby its Observation is commanded. This some affirm to be Moral, some only Positive, as we have shewed before. And many Disputes there have been about the true Notion and Distinction of Laws Moral, and Positive. But whereas these Terms are invented to express the conceptions of mens minds, and that of Moral, at least, includes not any absolute determinate sense in the meaning of the Word, those at variance about them, cannot impose their sense and understanding of them upon one another. For seeing this Denomination of Moral, applyed unto a Law, is taken from the subject matter of it, which is the Manners or Duties of them to whom the Law is given, if any one will assert that every command of God, which respects the manners of men, that is of all men absolutely as men, is Moral, I know not how any one can compel him to speak or think otherwise, for he hath his liberty to use the Word in that sense which he judgeth most proper. And if it can be proved, that there is a Law, and ever was, binding all men universally to the Observation of an Hebdomadal Sacred Rest, I shall not contend with any, how that Law ought to be called, whether Moral or Positive. This contest therefore I shall not engage into, though I have used, and shall yet further use those terms in their common sense and acceptation. My way shall be plainly to enquire, what force there is in the Law of our Creation unto the Observation of a Weekly Sabbath, and what is superadded thereunto by