Of the creation, i bid
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism. to him that formed it, why haft thou made me thus ? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the fame lump to make one vessel to honour, and another to dish on our ?
Q. 6. What is the third instruction from the creation ?
A. That God only is the proper object of worship ; Jer.x.
11. Thus shall he say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens, and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens .
Q. 7. What is the fourth instruction from hence ?
A. That Christians should not fear the power of creatures, fincethey derive their being and power from God ; Ifa. liv.
16, 17. Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire,that bringeth for than instrument for his work; and I have created the wafter to destroy; no weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.
Q. 8 What is the fifth instruction from hence ?
A. That Atheism is a fin against natural light and reason; Rom. i. 20. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and godhead ; fo that they are without excuse.
Q.9. What is the sixth instruction from hence ?
A. That God's glory is the end of all being ; Col. i. 16.
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him and for him .
Q. 10. What is the seventh instruction from hence ?
A. That there is an unnatural rebellion in fin, smiting at him that made and preserves our being ; Isa. i. 6. I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.
Q. 11. What is the eighth instruction from hence ?
A. That God can in a moment revive and save the church when at the lowest ebb ; Isa. lxv. 18. Behold, 1create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.
Q. 12. What is the last instruction from hence ?
A. That it is easy with God to revive a dejected foul; Ifa.
Ivii. 19. I create the fruit of the lips ; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, faith the Lord; and I willhealhim.
Quest. 1.H Of Man's Creation .
OW did God create man ?
A. God created man male and female, :
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism.
after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures .
Q. 1. How didGodcreateman?
A. God createdmanin his own image ; Gen. i. 27. So God createdman in his own image, in the image of God created he him, male and female created he them .
Q. 2. What is meant by the image of God ?
A. Not a resemblance of God in any bodily thape or figure, but in holiness; Eph. iv. 24. And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Q. 3. In what graces did man resemble God ?
A. In such a knowledge of God himself, and the creatures, which made him happy ; Col. iii. 10. And have put on the newman, which is renewed in knowledge, after the image of him that created him.
Q. 4. In what other graces did this image consist?
A. In righteousness as well as holiness ; Eph. iv. 24. And thatye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness andtrueholiness.
Q. 5. What is the first inference from hence ?
A. The deplorable misery of the fall ; Rom. v. 12. Wherefore as by one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin, andfo death passed upon all men, for that all have finned.
Q. 6. What is the second instruction from hence?
A. The beauty of holiness, which is the image of God, and the excellency of man ; Psalm xvi. 3. But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight.
Q. 7. What is the third instruction from hence?
A. We have infinite cause to bless God for Christ, who repairs this lost image in his people ; Eph. iv. 23. And be renewed in the spiritofyourmind.
Q. 8. What is the fourth instruction from hence ?
A. That thedespisers of holiness are the despisers of God ; for holiness is God's image.
Q. 9. What is the fifth instruction from hence ?
A. The excellency of fanctification, which defaces the image of Satan, and draws the image of God upon the foul of man.
Quest.
11 .W Of Divine Providence.
HAT are God's works of providence ?
A. God's works of providence, are his
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism. most holy, wife, andpowerfulpreferving and governing all his creatures, and all their actions.
Q. 1. How doth it appear that there is a divine providence?
A. It appears by plain scripture testimonies ; Heb. i. 3 .
Upholding all things by the word of his power.
Col. i. 17.
By him all things consist. Luke xii. 6, 7. Are not five spar-_ rows fold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God ; but even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Q. 2. How else is providence evinced ?
A. By scripture emblems ; as Jacob's ladder, Gen. xxviii.
12, 13. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set upon the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; behold the angels of God ascended and descended on it: And Ezekiel's wheels,
Ezek. i. 20. Whitherfoever the spirit was to go, they went, thither was their spirit to go, and the wheels were lifted up over against them, for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.
Q.'3. What farther scripture evidence is there ?
A. The sure accomplishment of scripture predictions ; as Israel's captivity, and deliverance from Egypt and Babylon ;
Christ's incarnation ; the rife and ruin of the four monarchies ; Dan. ii. 31. Thou, O king, fawest, and, behold, a great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee, and the form thereof was terrible. Dan. vii. 3. And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from the other.
Q. 4. What is its first act about the creatures?
A. It sustains, preserves, provides for them ; Psalm cxlv.
15,16.
The eyes of all wait upon thee, and thou giveft them their meat indue season ; thou openestthine hand, and fatisfieft the desire of every living thing, anddefendeft them from danger.
Psalm xxxvi. 6. Thy righteousness is like the great mountains, thy judgments are a great deep ; O Lord, thou preferveft man and beast.
Q5. What is the second act of providence about the creatures?
A. It rules and governs the creatures and their actions ; Psalm lxvi. 7. He rulethby his power for ever, his eyesbeholdthe nations; let not the rebellious exalt themselves.
Q. 6. How manifold is divine providence ?
A. It is common and general over all, or special and peculiar to some men ; 1 Tim. iv. 10. Who is the Saviour of all men, especially of those that believe .
Q. 7. How is providence exercised about sinful actions ?
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism.
A. Inpermittingthem ; Acts iv. 16. Inrestrainingthem ; Psalm lxxvi. 10.
Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, and the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.
And overrulingthem to good; Gen. 1. 20. But as for you, ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Q. 8. What are the properties of providence ?
A. It is (1.) Holy; Psalm clv. 17. The Lord is righteous, in all his ways, and holy in all his works.
(2.) Wife; Psal. civ. 24. O Lord, how manifold are thy works ! in wisdom hast thou made them all.
(3.) Powerful ; Dan. iv. 35. And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing, and he doth according to his will, in the armies of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What dost thou ?
Q. 9. What is the first instruction from it ?
A. That God's people are safe amidst all their enemies and dangers ; 2Chron. xvi. 9. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to thew himself strong in the behalfofthem whose hearts are perfect towards him.
Q. 10. What is the second instruction ?
A. That prayer is the best expedient to prosperity and success of our lawful affairs; Psalm cxlv. 18. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
Q. 11. What is the third instruction from it ?
A. That God's people should rest quietly in the care of his providence for them in all their straits ; Matth. vi. 26. Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet our heavenly Father feedeth them : are not ye much better than they ?
Q. 12. What is the last instruction from it ?
A. That it is no small privilege to be adopted children of God, and the members of Christ ; for all is ordered for their eternal good ; Eph . i. 22, 23. And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
Quest. 12.WHAT special act of providence did God Of the Covenant of Works. exercise towards man, in the estate wherein he was created ?
A. When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of perfect obedience, forbidding
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism. him to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, upon pain of death.
Q.1 . What was God's covenantwithAdambeforethe fall?
A. It was to give life and happiness upon condition of perfect perfopal obedience ; Gal. iii. 12. The law is not of faith; but the man that doth them, shall live in them.
Q. 2. Was this covenant made only with Adam, or with him and his posterity?
A. It was made with him, and all his natural posterity, descending in the ordinary way of generation from him ; Rom. v. 12. Wherefore as by one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin, and to death paffedupon allmen, for that all have finned.
Ver. 14, and 18. Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not finned after the fimilitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come: Therefore as by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation ; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men untojuftification of life.
Q. 3. Was Adam able to performtheobedience required of him in that covenant?
A. Yes ; for he was made upright ; Eccl. vii. 29. God mademanupright; but they have fought out many inventions.
Q. 4. Had this covenant any Mediator ?
A. No ; he neither had, nor needed any Mediator for satisfaction, because no finwas in him; nor interceffion, for he wanted nothing.
Q. 5. Did this covenant admit of no repentance, nor ac cept any short endeavours ?
A. No, it did not; but sentenceth and curseth the tranf greffors of it, for the least breach; Gal. iii. 10. Cursed is e veryone that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them .
Q. 6. How was this threatening fulfilled, of dying the day he eat, seeing he lived 930 years ?
A. He died spiritually that day; and though the sentence on his body was respited in order to posterity, yet then his body received the death's wound, of which afterward he died.
Q. 7. What is the first inference from Adam's covenant ?
A. Miserable are all they that grow on the natural root of the firstAdam : Gal. iv. 21, 22. Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law ? For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bond-maid, the other by a free-woman.
An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism.
Q. 8. What is the second inference?
A. That God is just in all the punishments and miseries that come upon man; yea, infants that never finned after his fimilitude; Rom. v. 14. Nevertheless death reigned from A dam to Moses, even over them that had not finned after the fimilitude of Adam's transgression.
Q.9 What is the third inference ?
A. The glorious privilege of believers, who are under a better covenant, established upon better promises ; Heb. viii.
6. But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the Mediator of a better covenant, which is established upon better promises.
Q. 10. What is the last inference?
A. That we should pity the unregenerate, especially our own among them ; and lab our to plant them in the second
Adam:
Of the Fall of Man.
ID our first parents continue in the estate Quest. 13.D wherein they were created ?
A. Our first parents being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, byfinning against God.
Q. 1. How doth it appear that man is fallen ?
A. By the scripture history: An account of it is in Gen. iii.6, 7. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to bedefired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her, and he did eat.
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig-leaves together, and made themselves aprons ; and they heard the voice of the
Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day; and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God, amongst the trees of the garden.
And the sad experience we all have of it in ourselves ; Rom. v. 12. Therefore as by one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin, and so death passed upon allmen, for that all have finned.
Q. 2 How could man fall, since he was made upright ?
A Though he was upright, yet his will was mutable ; and by abusing that libertyhefell; Ecclef. vii. 29. Lo, this only have I found, thatGodhath made man upright,but they have foughtoutmany inventions.
VOL. VII.