character affumed by God, of being the God of Abraham, and of his feed, occurs in Scripture, and it is evidently connected to the promise of the everlafting covenant. Which connection feems to be the true foundation of our Saviour's argument, from this expreffion, to prove the refurrection of the dead; as the connection of the promise of the land of Canaan to the everlasting covenant, feems to be the reason of treating the land of Canaan as a type or fign of heaven. This character of God, thus connected to the everlasting covenant, is likewise a plain intimation, that two diftinct covenants are mentioned in this place, and not the fame repeated again. Towards the close of this chapter, Abraham receives an exprefs promise that he should have a fon by Sarah his wife, within the compafs of a year, and that the everlasting covenant fhould be established with this fon, and his feed after him. Abraham had at this time a fon of thirteen years old, born of Hagar the Egyptian; to whom the angel of the Lord had appeared when she was with child of this fon, and promised to multiply her feed exceedingly, that it should not be numbered for multitude, Gen. xvi. 10. This promise therefore of a numerous pofterity flourishing in the earth, though part of the promise given to Abraham, as we have seen before, is no part of the everlasting covenant confirmed to Ifaac, exclufively to all the natural fons of Abraham. This appears likewise from the very paffage where this promife is limited to Ifaac: Abraham, when he received the promife of a fon by his wife, puts up a petition, whatever the occafion of it was, for his fon Ifhmael; that Ifhmael might live before thee! To which he

receives this answer; As for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly: twelve princes fhall he beget; and I will make him a great nation. Immediately it follows, But my covenant will I eftablish with Ifaac, whom Sarah fhall bear unto thee. Can any thing be plainer to fhew that the everlasting covenant, to be established with Ifaac and his feed, was of a very different kind from the covenant given to Ishmael, of multiplying his feed, of making him. father of kings and princes, and of raifing him into a great nation? And yet this very covenant was given originally to Abraham; he was to have a numerous pofterity, to be father of kings, and of a great nation. Ifhmael was admitted to the benefit of this covenant as well as Ifaac, and yet expressly excluded from that which God emphatically ftyles MY covenant, and the everlafting covenant; an undeniable evidence that God's covenant with Abraham was founded on better hopes than those of mere temporal profperity. This diftinction, of two covenants in the cafe of Ifhmael and Ifaac, made by God himself, is the foundation of St. Paul's argument to the Galatians: It is written, fays he, that Abraham had two fons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promife. Which things are an allegory; for these are the two covenants: and whoever is capable of confidering what is related concerning this matter in the book of Genefis, will evidently fee, that these are indeed two covenants; and two such covenants as fully juftify the Apostle's reasoning upon this point.

Since then the promises of temporal profperity, made to Abraham and his feed after him, are evidently distinct from the fubject-matter of the everlafting covenant, made with him, and limited to Ifaac and Jacob, and afterwards to the tribe of Judah, and laftly to the family of David; it remains to be confidered, what the fubject of the covenant fo limited is. If we look back to the call of Abraham, and the promises which attend it, there we shall find, that, after enumerating the temporal bleffings which were to defcend from Abraham to his pofterity, one bleffing is added, in which all the world has an interest, and which was to be conveyed to them through Abraham and his feed; In thee, fays God, shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Whatever Abraham understood by this, I think verily he could not understand it as his children at this day understand it; who expect, in virtue of the promises made to the fathers, to be lords of the world, and to have dominion over all people. A ftrange blessing this to all nations, that they fhould fall from their natural liberty, and become fubject to the dominion of one people! None but a Jew can see the happiness of fuch a ftate; the nations of the earth, if left to their choice, would all refuse this great bleffing for them. felves. But, before we inquire into the special meaning of this bleffing upon all nations, we must see whether this univerfal bleffing, to be revealed in due time, were truly the matter of God's fpecial, his everlasting covenant with Abraham. We have seen already, that Ifhmael was excluded from this fpecial covenant, and Ifaac admitted to it; we have the covenant of God with Ishmael, and the covenant of

God as renewed with Ifaac, both preferved in the book of Genefis; and it is obferved, that the two covenants, as to worldly profperity, are nearly the fame: but they differ in this; the covenant with Ishmael fays nothing of the blessing to all nations, the covenant with Ifaac exprefsly renews this very promife: In thy feed fhall all the nations of the earth be bleffed, Gen. xxvi. 4. A plain proof, furely, that the fpecial matter of God's covenant, limited from Abraham to Ifaac, exclufive of Ifhmael, confifted in the promise of this universal bleffing, to be conveyed through Abraham and Ifaac, and their pofterity, to all mankind.

We have the like evidence from a like cafe, which happened between the children of Ifaac; with this only difference, that Ifhmael and Ifaac were born, one of a bondwoman, the other of a free; but Efau and Jacob were twins of one birth, both born of a freewoman. The bleffing of Abraham was limited to Jacob, and denied to Efau: yet Efau received a temporal bleffing from his father, as well as Jacob. The Apostle to the Hebrews accounts it profaneness in Efau that he fold his birthright: it must be because he fold the bleffing of Abraham and the promifes of God; upon any other account there is no room for this charge, for it was never reckoned profaneness to sell mere temporal rights; nor was Efau E excluded from the benefit of the temporal promises E by this fcandalous bargain. If Jacob was bleffed

with the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine, Gen. xxvii. 28; Efau's bleffing in this respect was not inferior; Thy dwelling, fays his father, shall be the fatness of the earth,

and of the dew of heaven from above, ver. 39. If nations were to bow down to Jacob, ver. 29; Esau likewife was to live and prevail by his fword, ver. 40. If Jacob's brethren were to bow down to him, ver. 29; yet the time would come, when Efau should have dominion, and break even this yoke from off his neck, ver. 40. Thus the cafe ftands between them, if we interpret the whole bleffing given to Jacob of temporal profperity and dominion; but there is great reason to limit part of it to the peculiar bleffing of Abraham and Ifaac, which was undoubtedly conveyed at this time to Jacob. The conveying the birthright in the family of Abraham, was conveying the special bleffing of Abraham, which always attended upon the birthright. This birthright was evidently made over to Jacob, when it was faid, Be lord over thy brethren. The special bleffing was in time to be extended to all nations, as well as to the houfe of Abraham, for in his feed all the families of the earth were to be blessed; and therefore, in confequence of the birthright, it is said to Jacob, Let people ferve thee, and nations bow down to thee, ver. 29. It is very evident, from the whole ftory of Ifaac's bleffing his two fons, that the chief bleffing he had to bestow fell upon Jacob; and it is as plain, that there are no words to limit this particular bleffing to Jacob, but thefe now under confideration; and Ifaac himself understood that he had paffed away the bleffing of Abraham to Jacob in thefe words, and therefore he tells Efau, that the bleffing was gone beyond recovery; I have bleffed him, yea, and he fhall be bleffed, ver. 33. But Efau preffed his father for a bleffing on himself: Ifaac anfwered and