could make his peace with God, when the Priest Samuel was not prefent; when he had waited and ftrove fo long, that he at laft forc'd himself to offer a Sacrifice to procure the Divine Favour. We fee, that all this NECESSITY and the ABSENCE OF THE PRIEST; this eager defire to obtain a Bleffing; was no excufe for his affuming the Prieft's Office; God would and did punish him for it, by rending the Kingdom from him, and giving it to another, as you may fee in 1 Sam. 13. This is a standing Example, upon which we fhould always fix our Eyes, and thereby learn, that however God may excufe in fome cafes of Neceffity, he will never do it in fuch great Inftances, as the taking upon our felves to Adminifter, or willingly concurring with those who do Minifter in the Prieft's Office, without being called of God, as was Aaron.

3. AS for that other Text, where 'tis faid I will have Mercy and not Sacrifice, it will as little ferve for the Validity of Lay-Baptism as the reft. For the occafion of our Saviour's ufing those Words, and the place of Scripture from whence he quoted them, do evidently prove, that the Defign of this Text is only to convince us, that fuch Pofitive Inftitutions as are here call'd by the Name of SACRIFICE, were never appointed to fruftrate and make void our Obligation to the Genuine Moral Duties of Natural Religion, particularly thofe of Justice and Equity, and of compassion and charity to the

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Neceffities

Neceffities and Wants of our Fellow-Creatures; but that on the contrary, our Want of fuch Excellent Moral Virtues, and our being of an unjust, uncharitable and cruel temper, will make thofe Pofitive Duties when perform'd by us, both loathfome and abominable in the fight of God.

THIS I fay is evident, Firft, from the occafion of our Saviour's referring the Jews to that Text, "I will have Mercy and not Sa crifice for the Difciples being hungry plucked the Ears of Corn on the Sabbath-Day, which the Pharifees obferving, affirmed, that it was a Breach of the Sabbath, and therefore unlawful for them to do at that time; but our Saviour (who very well knew the barbarous Cruelty of their temper) bid them remember the Cafe of David and his Men's Eating the Shew-Bréad, &c. and then tells them, "If ye "had known what this meaneth, "I will have "Mercy and not Sacrifice, ye would not have con"demned the GUILTLESS, St. Mat. 12. 7. Whereby he prov'd the Innocence of his Difciples, that they had not at all broken the Sabbath, by thus plucking the Ears of Corn to affwage their hunger; and that confequently, the Moral Duties of Mercy, and Works of abfolute Neceffity, were never intended by the Pofitive Inftitution of the Sabbath, to be reckon❜d as Breaches of the Duty of Reft, which God requir'd on that Holy Day.

2dly. THE Place of Scripture from whence our Lord quoted those Words is Hofea 6. 6. I

defired

defired Mercy and not Sacrifice. This does not mean that God did not require Sacrifice; for 'tis plain that he did require it, and all other Pofitive Duties fignified by that general Word; and the Jews at that very time were bound to obferve and obey all the Pofitive Institutions of the Mofaic Law, under no lefs penalty than that of "Curfed be he that confirmeth not all the Words of this Law to do them. Deut. 27. 26. So that the not Sacrifice here must mean [NOT ONLY SACRIFICE] or [NOT SACRIFICE ALONE] and therefore, the plain Paraphrase of this Text is, “I defir'd or Requir'd "NOT ONLY SACRIFICE, not only your "Obedience to my mere Pofitive Inftitutions, but "alfo your Obfervance of my Moral Law of Mercy "and Kindness. 'Twas the want of this and other Moral Virtues, together with their being guilty of cruel Murders, Robberies, and other Immoralities, that God complain'd of, almost throughout this whole Chapter, and for which he abhor'd their very Sacrifices, tho' they were of his own Appointment, and they were then bound and oblig'd to offer them to him: This is also confirm'd by Micah. 6. and Ifa. 1. 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, &c. All which be ing duly confider'd, fufficiently declares the fense and meaning of [I will have Mercy and not Sacrifice,] that the defign thereof is not to make void our Obligation to obey the Divine Pofitive Inftitutions; but to convince us, that the Moral Duries of Natural Religion, reinforc'd

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forc'd by Divine Revelation, are fo far from being inconfiftent with, that they must conftantly accompany and attend our Obedience to, fuch Pofitive Inftitutions, and that our Approaches to God in his Pofitive Institutions, without fuch Moral Virtues, are fo far from being accepted that they are hated and abhorr❜d by him.

AND therefore, all that (at most can be inferr'd from thofe Words of our Saviour is, that when a mere Pofitive Inftitution fiands in neceffary Competition with a Moral Duty of natural Religion, reinforc'd by Divine Revelation, then the mere Pofitive Inftitution must give way to the Moral Duty for that time and circumftance. NOW then, to try to apply this to the Cafe before us. There's a Divine Pofitive Inftitution, requiring Baptifm to be Admini fter'd by One who has Chrift's Commiffion for fo doing. This Baptifm is appointed to be a Means of conferring fuch merciful Graces and Benefits, as our milerable Nature could never have made any claim or title to, and which all the powers of Nature could never have beftow'd on us. It happens, that a Perfon wanting these ineftimable Benefits moft earneftly defires to obtain them by Baptifm but a Minifter with Chrift's Commiffion, is neither now, nor likely hereafter to be had; What then must be done in this extream Neceffity? Why, fays the Objector, God will have Mercy and not Sacrifice: "And therefore,

fince Sacrifice now ftands in competition with Mercy,the Sacrifice muft give way to Mercy; the Divine Authority of the Adminiftrator muit not now be infifted on; but the Mercies and Favours must be bestowed on the Perfon by a Lay-man's Adminiftring Baptifin to him. This feems to be well faid; but upon examination 'twill be found, that no fuch thing can be justly inferr'd from this Text, because, the Mercy there spoken of, is a Moral Duty of Natural Religion, and to be extended to the In digent and Neceffitous by Natural Means; but the Mercies to be receiv'd by Chriftian Bap tifm are infinitely above all Natural Religion, and confequently not to be convey'd by any Natural Means. The reason why we are oblig'd to perform thofe Natural Acts of Mercy, even when they seem to run counter to fome mere Positive Institution, is because Natural Confci ence dictates this Duty, and Divine Revelation has reinforc'd its Obligation; whereas we are bound to obferve a Pofitive Inftitution merely. upon the account of a Divine Law promulg'd, to us, without which we could never have been oblig'd to the Obfervation of it. But this Reason is wholly wanting in Lay-Bap tifm; for Natural Confcience dictates nothing to us about bestowing of Supernatural Mercies by means of any kind of Baptifm whatsoever; and as for Reveal'd Religion, that is wholly filent about a Lay-man's being ever capable of conveying fuch Mercies to us by Means