which God had promised by his prophets in the holy scriptures,

or indeed that we may have mutual consolation from the faith which is in common to you and to me.

and the men unnaturally leaving the sex, were inflamed with mutual passions, which they shamefully indulged, and received in their own persons, the retribution that was justly due to such enormities.

but it is the Jew, who is so inwardly, and it is the circumcision of the heart, according to the spiritual, not the literal sense, which have the approbation, I do not say of men, but of God.

and why may we not do evil, that good may come?" which is slanderously reported to be our maxim, by some, whose condemnation is just.

that divine justification, which by faith in Jesus Christ is extended to all, that believe; for there is no distinction:

and he received the sign of circumcision, as a seal of the justification by that faith, which the uncircumcised have: that he might be the father of all those who believe, tho' they are uncircumcised, that it might be accounted to them also for righteousness:

and the father of the circumcised, that is of those who are not barely circumcised, but who imitate that faith which our father Abraham had, being yet uncircumcised.

who has given us access by faith to that degree of favour, we are in, by which we triumph in the hopes of divine glory.

now hope will not deceive us, because the love of God is diffused thro' our hearts, by the holy spirit which is given to us;

but now we are delivered by the death of the law, which held us in bondage: that we might serve according to the living spirit, and not in the dead letter of the law.

and the commandment which leads to life was instrumental to my ruin.

was it then good that brought death upon me? no, but it was sin, that sin might show it self by being able to bring death upon me by means of that which is good; that sin, I say, by the commandment might appear to be exceedingly destructive.

for I experience, that in the carnal part of me dwells no good: for it is familiar to me, to will, but not to execute that which is good.

for the good that I purpose to do, I do not: but the evil which I resolve against, that I do.

now if I do that which my mind is against, it is not meerly I that do it, but sin that dwells in me.

but I perceive in the animal part of me another law warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my animal part.

God having sent his own son invested with a body like that of sinful men, as a sacrifice for sin, thereby destroyed its power; which the law could not effect, human nature being in such a corrupted state.

for I consider, that the sufferings of this present life are infinitely over-ballanc'd by that glory which shall hereafter be discovered to us.

The spirit likewise softens our afflictions: for being at a loss to apply for the most proper relief; the spirit it self affects us with those pious ejaculations, which we can't well express.

for before they were born, and had done neither good or evil, that the distinction which God had purposed to make might appear to be, not in consideration of their actions, but of his own free call,

as he saith himself in Osee, "I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her, beloved, which was not beloved.

What shall we hence conclude? that the Gentiles who sought not after justice, have obtained justice, even to that which is by faith:

because being ignorant of the justice which is of God, and going about to establish a justification of their own, they have not submitted themselves to that which is of God.

but the justification which is by faith, speaks in this manner; "say not in thine heart, who shall ascend into heaven, in order to bring Christ down from above?

what does it say "more? the word is nigh thee, let it be in thy mouth and in thy heart:" that is the word of faith which we preach.

for if you were taken from the wild olive, which was natural to you, to be grafted into a good olive-stock of a different nature, with how much greater reason shall these who are the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive-tree?

Let love be without dissimulation. abhor that which is evil, adhere to that which is good.

Let us therefore pursue those things which tend to peace, and mutual edification.

that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea; and that the charitable service which I am employed about, for the converts at Jerusalem, may be acceptable to them:

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark those who cause divisions and revolts against the doctrine which you have learned; and avoid them.

your christianity is very well known in the world. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you as expert in that which is good, as unpractis'd in what is evil.

Now to him that is able to establish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, conformable to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret from antient times, but now is laid open,