22. But it must come so far with the penitent sinner, as here it did with Abraham and Isaac, where Isaac was laid, ready bound upon the wood, and Abraham took the knife to slay him. There must be a very real sincere earnestness in this matter. The sinful man must bind the sin with all his thoughts and mind, and give himself wholly into the process; that he will now die unto sin, and offer it up in faith and confidence to God, in Christ's death. He must take the knife with Abraham into the hand; that is, he must wholly take and fasten into his mind to do the work of earnest repentance in dying to sin. It must come to the real and effectual practice, and not only come before the altar and say, I am a sinner, God has offered Christ for me, and yet keep the sinful will; but he must bind sin in Christ's death, and lay himself wholly with all power and strength on the burnt-offering's altar upon the wood.
23. The evil earthly will must be bound, and resigned up with earnestness, and cast upon God's altar in Christ's death; and be also offered up in Christ's dying; and not only comfort the sinful man, and flatter it with Christ's death, saying, God takes away sin from us in Christ's satisfaction and merit; we need only comfort ourselves therewith, and apply it from without to ourselves. No, no; but we also ourselves must die to sin in Christ's death, and put on Christ's offering in his death; and as an obedient Isaac we must cast ourselves on God's mercy, in the spirit and will of Christ, and arise in Christ, in and with him, that God may justify us from the altar of sin-offering, with Isaac, in Christ, which is the true offering in the figure of Isaac.
24. Not as Babel teaches. There must be an entire and sincere earnestness, and not only a comforting [and applying promises of consolation], but we must with Abraham obey God, and then we put on Christ's suffering and death; and Christ's death avails only in us, and here 'tis truly said, You are saved by grace, in Christ's merit. The will of self attains it not, but that which enters into Christ's death, and dies; it must come to the death and mortification of the own selfwill: the soul's will must be an utter destroying enemy to sin in the flesh, viz. to the lust of the flesh; there must be an opposite enmity between them, else Christ's death is not at all profitable to any.
25. And Moses says, The angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham (Gen. xxii. 11): that is, when man resigns up his will wholly, and willingly desires to obey the voice of the Lord, having given himself into Christ's suffering, death, and reproach, that he now will in the cross and suffering hold still, and steadfast to God, under Christ's red banner,l then God calls man with a double2 voice; as here he did Abraham, where God said unto him, Abraham, Abraham. That is, he calls to him in his own voice in his word, and also in the voice of the human essence; that is, he opens to him the divine hearing in himself so that he hears God from without in his word of his servants, and also from within in his own life's word, viz. in the sensual voice, which was divided in Babel by the children of Nimrod, and formed into the spirits of letters, where the mental tongue was then compacted. Here it arises again in the uncompacted sensual tongue, so that man hears what the Lord speaks in him. Of which Babel knows nothing, nor can know, nor will know; but climbs up continually in the compacted tongue on the tower of Babel into a heaven of human selfhood; and has put Christ's garment outwardly upon itself; but it has not the twofold voice; therefore also it does not hear when God calls Abraham.
22. But it must come so far with the penitent sinner, as here it did with Abraham and Isaac, where Isaac was laid, ready bound upon the wood, and Abraham took the knife to slay him. There must be a very real sincere earnestness in this matter. The sinful man must bind the sin with all his thoughts and mind, and give himself wholly into the process; that he will now die unto sin, and offer it up in faith and confidence to God, in Christ's death. He must take the knife with Abraham into the hand; that is, he must wholly take and fasten into his mind to do the work of earnest repentance in dying to sin. It must come to the real and effectual practice, and not only come before the altar and say, I am a sinner, God has offered Christ for me, and yet keep the sinful will; but he must bind sin in Christ's death, and lay himself wholly with all power and strength on the burnt-offering's altar upon the wood.
23. The evil earthly will must be bound, and resigned up with earnestness, and cast upon God's altar in Christ's death; and be also offered up in Christ's dying; and not only comfort the sinful man, and flatter it with Christ's death, saying, God takes away sin from us in Christ's satisfaction and merit; we need only comfort ourselves therewith, and apply it from without to ourselves. No, no; but we also ourselves must die to sin in Christ's death, and put on Christ's offering in his death; and as an obedient Isaac we must cast ourselves on God's mercy, in the spirit and will of Christ, and arise in Christ, in and with him, that God may justify us from the altar of sin-offering, with Isaac, in Christ, which is the true offering in the figure of Isaac.
24. Not as Babel teaches. There must be an entire and sincere earnestness, and not only a comforting [and applying promises of consolation], but we must with Abraham obey God, and then we put on Christ's suffering and death; and Christ's death avails only in us, and here 'tis truly said, You are saved by grace, in Christ's merit. The will of self attains it not, but that which enters into Christ's death, and dies; it must come to the death and mortification of the own selfwill: the soul's will must be an utter destroying enemy to sin in the flesh, viz. to the lust of the flesh; there must be an opposite enmity between them, else Christ's death is not at all profitable to any.
25. And Moses says, The angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham (Gen. xxii. 11): that is, when man resigns up his will wholly, and willingly desires to obey the voice of the Lord, having given himself into Christ's suffering, death, and reproach, that he now will in the cross and suffering hold still, and steadfast to God, under Christ's red banner,l then God calls man with a double2 voice; as here he did Abraham, where God said unto him, Abraham, Abraham. That is, he calls to him in his own voice in his word, and also in the voice of the human essence; that is, he opens to him the divine hearing in himself so that he hears God from without in his word of his servants, and also from within in his own life's word, viz. in the sensual voice, which was divided in Babel by the children of Nimrod, and formed into the spirits of letters, where the mental tongue was then compacted. Here it arises again in the uncompacted sensual tongue, so that man hears what the Lord speaks in him. Of which Babel knows nothing, nor can know, nor will know; but climbs up continually in the compacted tongue on the tower of Babel into a heaven of human selfhood; and has put Christ's garment outwardly upon itself; but it has not the twofold voice; therefore also it does not hear when God calls Abraham.
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