First, in the pedagogie of the Law he restrained them from some free creatures, whereunto they had strange naturall desires, as meats and drinks; making some uncleane: as mothers lay Apples before the eyes of their children, which yet they must not touch upon paine of a frowne, chiding or whipping, to breake their wils, and traine them up in obedience.
Secondly, He laid before them some other indifferencies, which if they did adventure to use, they must undergoe such and such hardship as was not worth the while: their injoyment not worth the paiment, as we reade Levit. 15. in many washings and purifications.
Thirdly, He prescribed such duties about the free creatures, which were dangerous, painfull and costly for the present, if it were possible to bow their uncircumcised hearts: wherein he prevailed, and they profited aboundantly. In all which he increased their homage to God, more than at the first in the Covenant of works with Adam, or in any former manifestation of this Covenant. And in these respects the Law might well be called a burden unsupportable, Acts 15.10.which neither the Jewes, nor their Fathers were able to beare.
A good Schoolemaster will not scorne to teach rudiments to lesser boyes, every letter and syllable: so Moses and his successors taught all the rudiments and legall precepts to all the Jewes, wherein though some sticke as their furthest perfection, yet some went further to higher degrees, and all learned by them some partiall obedience to draw on them and theirs some partiall blessings. Of this sort were these, Col. 2.21.Touch not, tast not. It beseemes an able Schoolemaster so farre as he hath ability and authority to teach his Schollars Greeke, Hebrew, Logicke, principles of higher learning, especially when an university is not at hand: so Moses in this pedagogie did rise to teach higher things to the spirituall Israel, as the blood of Christ folded up in the blood of the sacrifice, for the purging of their hearts from dead workes, and the mortification of sinfull corruption in their burnt offerings, that so they might discover how they were delivered from the eternall curse of the Law. Now when his spirituall Schollars felt the bondage of the Law, and came to learne the remedy, the very thing learned was their motive and reward, that they did not so much need rods or nuts, that is, the promise of temporall bles-sings,
