Jailor's, and that of Stephanas, if not the fame with the Jailor's, as fome think. As for Lydia's houfhold, or those in her house, they were brethren; whom, afterwards, the apostles went to fee, and whom they comforted; and so not infants. As for the Jailor's houshold, they were fuch as were capable of hearing the word preached to them, and of believing it; for it is said, be rejoiced, believing in God with all his house: and if any man can find any other in his house, befides all that were in it, he must be reckoned a very fagacious person. As for the houshold of Stephanas, (if different from the Jailor's) it is said, that they addicted themselves to the miniftry of the faints: and whether this be underftood of the miniftry of the word to the faints, or of the ministration of their substance to the poor, they must be adult perfons, and not infants. Seeing then there is neither precept nor precedent for Infant-baptism in the word of God, of which I defy the whole world to give one fingle precedent, we cannot but condemn it as unfcriptural, and unwarrantable. I proceed, II. To fhew that the ordinance of water-baptifm, being a divine command, it ought to be kept, and obferved, as directed to in the word of God. First, I fhall fhew, by whom it is to be kept and obferved. 1. By sensible, repenting finners. John's baptifm was called the baptifm of repentance; because repentance was previous to it; and the very first perfons that were baptized by him, were such who were sensible of their fins, repented of them, and ingenuously confeffed them; for it is faid, they were baptized of him in Jordan, confeffing their fins; and whereas others applied to him for baptifm, of whom he had no good opinion, he required of them, that they would first bring forth fruits meet for repentance; and not to think with themselves, we bave Abraham b Acts xvi. 40, 34. • 1 Cor. i. 16.-xvi. 15. to In his turn, the writer in the news-paper, "defies me to produce one scripture precept, or precedent, for delaying the baptifm of children of chriftian parents; or for baptizing adult perfons, "born of such parents. On this the controverfy hinges." It is ridiculous to talk of a precept for delaying that which was not in being; and of a precedent for delaying that which had never been practifed. If a warrant is required for baptizing adult perfons, believers, it is ready at hand, Mark xvi. 16. and precedents enough and we know of no precept to baptize any other, let them be born of whom they may; and as for precedents of the baptifm of adult perfons, born of chriftian parents, it cannot be expected, nor reasonably required of us; fince the As of the Apostles only give an account of the planting of the first churches; and of the baptifm of thofe of which they first confifted; and not of thofe that in a course of years were added to them. Wherefore, to demand inftances of perfons, born of chriftian parents, and brought up by them, as baptized in adult age, which would require length of time, is unreasonable; and if the controverfy hinges on this, it ought to be at an end, and given up by them. e Mark i. 4. Το to our father; fince fuch a plea would be of no avail with him; and the very first persons that were baptized after our Lord had given to his apoftles the commiffion to baptize, were penitent ones; for under the first fermon after this, three thousand were pricked in their heart, and cried out, Men and brethren, what shall we do? To whom the apostle Peter gave this inftruction and direction: Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ &; and accordingly, on their repentance, they were baptized. 2. This command is to be kept and obferved by believers in Chrift; be that believeth and is hap. tized, fhall be faved". Faith goes before baptism, and is a pre-requifite to it; as the various inftances of baptifm recorded in the scriptures fhew. Philip went down to Samaria, and preached Chrift there to the inhabitants of it; and when they believed Philip, preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jefus Christ, they were baptized both men and women'. The fame minister of the word was bid to join himself to the chariot of an Eunuch, returning from Jerufalem, where he had been to worship, and whom he found reading a prophecy in Isaiah; and faid unto him, Understandeft thou what thou readeft? which he answered, How can I, except fome man should guide me? And being taken up into the chariot with him: from that fcripture, Philip preached Jefus to him, his word, and ordinances, as the fequel fhews; for when they came to a certain water, the Eunuch faid, See, here is water; what doth binder me to be baptized? And Philip faid, If thou believeft with all thine heart, thou mayeft. Otherwise not, it feems; for notwithstanding his religion and devotion, without faith in Chrift, he had no right to that ordinance; He answered and faid, I believe that Jefus Chrift is the Son of God; upon which profeffion of his faith, he was baptized. The apoftle Paul preached the gospel at Corinth with fuccefs; and it is obferved by the hiftorian, that many of the Corinthians bearing, believed, and were baptized'. First they heard the word, then they believed in Chrift, the fum and fubftance of the word, and upon the profeffion of their faith, were baptized. 3. The ordinance of water-baptifm is to be attended to, and observed by fuch who are the difciples of Chrift; it is faid that Jefus made and baptized more difciples than John". First made them difciples, and then baptized them; that is, ordered his apostles to baptize them; with which his commiffion to them agrees, Teach all nations, baptizing them; make difciples, and baptize them that are fo made. Now, what is it to be difciples of Chrift? Such may be faid to be fo, who have learned to know Christ, and believe in him; who are taught to deny finful felf, righteous felf, and civil felf, for his fake, and to take up the cross and follow him, in the exercise of grace and in the discharge of duty: VOL. II. Matt. iii. 6-9. 3 T and, and, 4. Such as have received the Spirit of God, are proper perfons to obferve the ordinance of baptifm, and submit unto it: Can any man forbid water, that thefe should not be baptized, who have received the holy Ghoft as well as we"? as a Spirit of illumination and conviction, as a Spirit of fanctification, faith and confolation, and as a Spirit of adoption. 2dly, Next let us confider in what manner the ordinance of baptifm is to be kept and observed: and, 1. It should be kept in faith; for without faith it is impossible to please God; and whatsoever is not of faith, is fin, Heb. xi. 6. Rom. xiv. 23. 2. In love, and from a principle of love to Christ, and which is the end of every commandment, and of this; If ye love me, fays Christ, keep my commandments, John xiv. 15 3. It should be kept as it was at first delivered and observed: the manner in which it is to be performed and submitted to, is immersion, or covering the whole body in water; and which agrees with the primary sense of the word Carl, which fignifies to dip or plunge, as all learned men know °; and he must be a novice in the Greek language, that will take upon him to contradict what has been ingenuously owned by so many men of learning. Had our tranflators thought fit to have tranflated the word, which they have not in thofe n Acts x 47. The letter-writer makes me to fay, "All the world acknowledge Cal.gw, fignifies to dip or plunge, and never to sprinkle or pour water on any thing," which is a false representation of my words, and of the manner in which they were delivered; however, this I affirm, that in all the Greek Lexicons I ever faw, and I have seen a pretty many, I do not pretend to have feen all that have been published; yet in what my small library furnishes me with, the word is always rendered in the first and primary fenfe by mergo, immergo, to dip or plunge into; and in a secondary and confequential fenfe, by abluo, lavo, to wash, because what is dipped is washed; and never by perfundo or afpergo, to pour or sprinkle; as the Lexicon published by Conflantine, Budæus, &c. thofe of Had ian, Junius, Plantinus, Scapula, Schrevelius, and Stockius, befides a great number of critics that might be mentioned; and if this writer can produce any one Lexicographer of any note, that renders the word to pour or sprinkle, let him name him. This ignorant scribbler puts the following questions, Did the Jews plunge their whole bodies in water always before they did eat? Did they dip their "pots, brazen veffels and beds ?" He does not suffer me to anfwer the questions, but answers for me, "He knows the contrary." But if I may be allowed to answer for myself, I must say, by the tellimonies of the Jews themselves, and of others, I know they did; that is, when they came from market, having touched the common people, or their clothes, immerfed themfelves in water; fo fays Maimonides in Misn. Chagigah. c. 2. fect. 7. "If the Pharifees touched but the garments of the common people they were defiled, and needed immerfion, and were obliged to it." And Scaliger obferves, de Emend. Temp. 1. 6. p. 271. "That the more fuperftitious part of the Jews, every day before they fat down to meat, dipped the whole body; hence the Pharifee's admiration "at Christ, Luke xi. 38." According to the law of Moses, Lev. xi. 32. unclean vessels were washed by putting or dipping them into water; and according to the traditions of the elders, to which our Lo'd refers, Mark vii. 4. not only brazen vessels and tables, but even beds, bolfters and pillows unclean, in a ceremonial sense, were washed by immersion in water. So the Jews fay in their Misnah, or book of traditions, "A bed that is wholly defiled, a man dips it part by part." Celim, c. 26. fect. 14. See also Mikvaot, c. 7. le&t. 7. thofe places where the ordinance of baptifm is made mention of, for reasons eafily to be gueffed at, but have adopted the Greek word baptize in all fuch places; had they truly tranflated it, the eyes of the people would have been opened, and the controverfy at once would have been at an end, with respect to this part of it, the mode of baptism; however we have proof fufficient that it was performed, and ought to be performed by immerfion, as appears, 1. By the places where it was administered, as the river Jordan, where John baptized many, and where our Lord himself was baptized; and Ænon, near Salim, which he chose for this reafon, because there was much water there; now if the ordinance was administered in any other way than by immerfion, what need was there to make choice of rivers and places abounding with water to baptize in? 2. By the inftances of perfons baptized, and the circumstances attending their baptifm, as that of our Lord, of whom it is said, When he was baptized, he went up straightway out of the water; which manifeftly implies that he had been in it, of which there would have been no need, had the ordinance been adminif tered to him in any other way than by immerfion; as by fprinkling or pouring a little water on his head, as the painter ridiculously defcribes it. The baptifm of the Eunuch is another instance proving baptifm by immerfion; when he and Philip were come to a certain water, and it was agreed to baptize him, it is faid, they went down both into the water, both Philip and the Eunuch, and be baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip'. The circumftances of going down into the water, and coming up out of it, manifeftly fhew in what manner the Eunuch was baptized, namely, by immersion; for what reason can be given why they should go into the water, had it been performed in any other way? 3. The end of baptism, which Matt. iii. 6, 13. Acts viii. 38, 39. • The above letter-writer afks, "How often must I be told, that the particle and x are in "hundreds of places in the New Testament rendered unto and from?" be it fo; it follows not, that they must be fo rendered here. Greek particles or prepofitions have different fignifications, according to the words and circumstances with which they are used; nor is it as proper or a more just reading of the words, "they went down unto the water and came up from it;" it is neither proper nor just; for before this, they are expressly faid to come to a certain water, to the water-fide; wherefore when they went down, they went not unto it, if they were there before, but into it; as it must be allowed the prepofition fometimes, at leaft, fignifies; and circumftances require that it should be fo rendered here, let it fignify what it may elsewhere; and this determines the fenfe of the other prepofition, that it must and ought to be rendered out of; for as they went down into the water, when they came up, it must be out of it. What he means by the ftrange queftion that follows, "What will he make of Chrift's going into a mountain ?" I cannot devife, unless he thinks the tranflation of Luke vi. 12. is wrong, or nonsense, or both; but has this wifeacre never heard or read of a cave in a mountain, into which men may go, and properly be said to go into the mountain; and fuch an one it is highly probable our LORD went into, to pray alone; fuch as the cave in mount 3T 2 Horeb, Matt. iii. 16. which is to represent the burial and refurrection of Chrift, cannot be answered any other way than by immerfion; that it is an emblem of the burial and refurrection of Chrift, and of the burial and refurrection of believers in him, is clear from Rom. vi. 4. Colofs. ii. 12. buried with him by baptism, and in baptifm. Now only an immersion or covering of the whole body in water, and not pouring or fprinkling a little water on the face, can be a reprefentation of a burial; will any man in his fenfes fay, that a corps is buried, when only a little duft or earth is fprinkled or poured on its face? 4. The figurative baptifms, or the allufions made to baptifm in fcripture, fhew in what manner it was administered; the paffage of the Ifraelites under the cloud, and through the fea, is called a being baptized in the cloud and in the fea; and with great propriety may it be called a baptifin, as that is by immerfion; for the waters ftanding up as a wall on each fide of them, through which, and the cloud over their heads, under which they paffed, they were like perfons immerfed in water": likewife the overwhelming fufferings of Chrift are fitly called a baptifm, in allufion to baptifm by immerfion. I have a baptifm to be baptized with, fays he; and how am I ftraitened until it be accomplished? and which fufferings of Chrift, in prophetic language, agreeable to baptifm by immersion, are thus defcribed; I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me Once more; the extraordinary donation "of the Spirit on the day of Pentecoft, is called a being baptized with the holy Ghost; the emblem of which was a rushing mighty wind, which filled all the house where they were fitting; fo that they were as if immerfed into it, and covered with Horeb, into which Elijah went. But his tip-top tranflation of all is that of John's baptizing in Jordan, which he fuppofes might be rendered, by baptizing the people with the river Jordan. This is the man that reproaches me with very freely finding fault with the translators; my complaint is only of a non-tranflation, not of a wrong one; but this man finds fault with the translation as wrong, or however thinks it may be corrected or mended, and that in more places than one. I Cor. x. I, 2. "The letter-writer I have often referred to, affirms, that "the learned world universally maintain, that the Ifraelites were no otherways baptized in the fea, than by being sprinkled with the spray of the toffing waves, agitated by the wind that blew as they paffed through the channel." Who the learned world be, that maintain this whimsical notion, I own, I am quite iguorant of, having never yet met with any learned man that ever afferted it. It is a mere conceit and a wild imagination, and contrary to the facred fcriptures, which represent the waves of the fea, through which the Ifraelites paffed, not as agitated and toffed about, but as ftanding unmoved, as a wall on each fide of them, whatever was the cafe in that part where the Egyptians were; The floods, fays the infpired writer, food upright as an heap, and the depths were congealed in the heart of the fea, Exod. xv. 8. And if there was a continual fpray of the toffing waves, as the Ifraelites paffed through the channel, how could they pafs through the fea on dry ground? as they are faid to do, Exod. xiv. 16, 22, 29. What this man fcoffs at, the celebrated Grotius, who is univerfally allowed to be a man of learning and fense, expreffes in a note on 1 Cor. x. 2. "were baptized, that is, as if they were baptized; for there "was fome likeness in it; the cloud was over their heads, and fo water is over them that are bap"tized; the fea encompaffed the fides of them, and fo water those that are baptized." y Aas i. 5. z Acts ii. 2. w Luke xii. 50. ■ Pfal. lxix. 1, 2. |