40. Also it excuses itself towards the world, when the world will impute sins and blasphemies to it, as if it were guilty. Then it will needs die, or be put to death, or the like, as Joseph's brethren did who knew nothing of the theft, and did not understand either, that all their unrighteousness, and their stealing of Joseph, when they stole him from their father and sold him, stood in the sacks of Joseph's gifts, viz. were manifest before the eyes of Joseph, so that Joseph knew and understood their theft, and therefore caused them to be held for thieves, and caused them to be pursued as thieves, and fetched them back again, and set them before the judgement.
41. But instead of their thievery of their committed sins, whereby they had forfeited their lives, Joseph caused his silver cup to be laid to the gift in their sack, and caused them to be blamed for the cup: which they would not confess.
The figure stands thus:
42. When a man, as is above mentioned, becomes a true Christian, so that God gives him his grace, then he lays his grace hiddenly in the sack of his body, in the essences of life. And, moreover, lays therein the cup of the cross, and blames it no more in conscience in respect of its manifold committed sins; for he has utterly destroyed them with the grace of forgiveness, and filled the sack of his sins with grace for the hunger of the poor soul. But it lays now the cup of Christ to its charge, that it is guilty of that, viz. of Christ's being scorned, also of his suffering and death, that he has brought Christ to the cross with his sins, that it is verily guilty of the cup of Christ's cross, and not wholly righteous.
43. For when God by his grace forgives him the sins unto death, 1 then he causes this cup of Christ to be laid aloft in the sack; seeing Christ himself has the guilt of these sins laid upon him, and has taken them upon him; therefore now this man is guilty of the cup of Christ's cross (in which Christ must taste and drink out the anger of God in man): God's righteousness requires of him to enter into the suffering, scorn, and death of Christ, that he should die with Christ, and give himself up to his scorn, and suffer with Christ.
44. But seeing he cannot do that, and is too weak to enter into such sufferings in the anger of God, therefore has grace put this cup also into him, that he might drink of Christ's victory, and prophesy or divine of Christ's suffering and death, and make them known.
45. But God's righteousness, which now requires man to be in the process of Christ, viz. in Christ's sufferings and death, and yet finds him not always, in his conversation and will, therein, accuses him for a thief; who carries the cup of Christ's cross but as a thief in the sack of his life's essences, and charges him of theft, if he walk otherwise than in the process [and imitation] of Christ.
1 Mortal, deadly, or killing sins.
46. For Christ has received man into his sufferings and death, and turned away the righteousness of God's anger, and introduced him, with his guilt of eternal death, into his innocent death, and is dead from the sins and wickedness in himself; and in this dying of Christ God's righteousness, in the anger, requires a Christian man to be.
47. But if he walk out of this path, and not in it, then says righteousness, You are a thief, and has wrongfully got this cup of Christ in your sack, I will set you before my judgment and sentence, as Joseph did to his brothers, when he caused them to be fetched back to the sentence of his judgment.
40. Also it excuses itself towards the world, when the world will impute sins and blasphemies to it, as if it were guilty. Then it will needs die, or be put to death, or the like, as Joseph's brethren did who knew nothing of the theft, and did not understand either, that all their unrighteousness, and their stealing of Joseph, when they stole him from their father and sold him, stood in the sacks of Joseph's gifts, viz. were manifest before the eyes of Joseph, so that Joseph knew and understood their theft, and therefore caused them to be held for thieves, and caused them to be pursued as thieves, and fetched them back again, and set them before the judgement.
41. But instead of their thievery of their committed sins, whereby they had forfeited their lives, Joseph caused his silver cup to be laid to the gift in their sack, and caused them to be blamed for the cup: which they would not confess.
The figure stands thus:
42. When a man, as is above mentioned, becomes a true Christian, so that God gives him his grace, then he lays his grace hiddenly in the sack of his body, in the essences of life. And, moreover, lays therein the cup of the cross, and blames it no more in conscience in respect of its manifold committed sins; for he has utterly destroyed them with the grace of forgiveness, and filled the sack of his sins with grace for the hunger of the poor soul. But it lays now the cup of Christ to its charge, that it is guilty of that, viz. of Christ's being scorned, also of his suffering and death, that he has brought Christ to the cross with his sins, that it is verily guilty of the cup of Christ's cross, and not wholly righteous.
43. For when God by his grace forgives him the sins unto death, 1 then he causes this cup of Christ to be laid aloft in the sack; seeing Christ himself has the guilt of these sins laid upon him, and has taken them upon him; therefore now this man is guilty of the cup of Christ's cross (in which Christ must taste and drink out the anger of God in man): God's righteousness requires of him to enter into the suffering, scorn, and death of Christ, that he should die with Christ, and give himself up to his scorn, and suffer with Christ.
44. But seeing he cannot do that, and is too weak to enter into such sufferings in the anger of God, therefore has grace put this cup also into him, that he might drink of Christ's victory, and prophesy or divine of Christ's suffering and death, and make them known.
45. But God's righteousness, which now requires man to be in the process of Christ, viz. in Christ's sufferings and death, and yet finds him not always, in his conversation and will, therein, accuses him for a thief; who carries the cup of Christ's cross but as a thief in the sack of his life's essences, and charges him of theft, if he walk otherwise than in the process [and imitation] of Christ.
1 Mortal, deadly, or killing sins.
46. For Christ has received man into his sufferings and death, and turned away the righteousness of God's anger, and introduced him, with his guilt of eternal death, into his innocent death, and is dead from the sins and wickedness in himself; and in this dying of Christ God's righteousness, in the anger, requires a Christian man to be.
47. But if he walk out of this path, and not in it, then says righteousness, You are a thief, and has wrongfully got this cup of Christ in your sack, I will set you before my judgment and sentence, as Joseph did to his brothers, when he caused them to be fetched back to the sentence of his judgment.
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