A86531:169
The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. /…The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. /…
The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. / Delivered in several sermons: by that reverend divine, Thomas Hooker, late preacher in New-England.The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. / Delivered in severall sermons: by that reverend divine, Thomas Hooker, late preacher in New-England.
London: printed by G.D. for Francis Eglesfield, 1651
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
By Righteousness also must be meant the contrary to this. For howsoever righteousness is sometime in the Scripture taken strictly, for the observation of those duties that concern men, which the second Table enjoineth; yet sometime ⟨p. 52⟩it is taken largely, for the observation of the whole Law of God, and all duties concerning God and us; and thus it is usually taken, when as it is not joined with something else that doth restrain it. Here it is opposed to sin, and therefore as by sin is meant the going beside the Commandment of God; so by righteousness is meant the observation or doing of the Commandment of God. Thus you see what is meant by sin, and what by righteousness.
By Righteousness also must be meant the contrary to this. For howsoever righteousness is sometime in the Scripture taken strictly, for the observation of those duties that concern men, which the second Table injoyneth; yet sometime ⟨p. 52⟩it is taken largely, for the observation of the whole Law of God, and all duties concerning God and us; and thus it is usually taken, when as it is not joyned with something else that doth restrain it. Here it is opposed to sin, and therefore as by sin is meant the going beside the Commandment of God; so by righteousnesse is meant the observation or doing of the Commandment of God. Thus you see what is meant by sin, and what by righteousnesse.
But it is more difficult to know what is meant by the body, and what by the Spirit? The body is dead, because of sin; but the spirit is life, because of righteousness. I take it, here by the body is meant the body of corruption, the body of sin, that same Original corruption that is in all of us by nature. It cannot be understood of the natural body, because of the opposition to spirit; for by the spirit here cannot be understood our soul or our spirit, for it cannot be said, that any mans spirit or soul is life to righteousness, it may be said that it is enlivened to righteousness, but it cannot be said to be life to righteousness: therefore seeing by the spirit the soul of a man cannot be meant, I think it is clear that by the the body, the body of man cannot be meant. But by the body I conceive (as I said) is meant the body of sin, for so Saint Paul calleth it,