Captivity, neither Judah nor Israel had either wandering Tabernacle or standing Temple:Jer. 23.6,7. But in this Covenant, God did so assist Zerubbabel in the building of the Temple, that heZach. 4.7. brought forth the head stone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, Grace unto it; He ver 9. laid the foundation of the house, and his hands also finished it: and the Lord so preserved it, that it continued untill Christ taking our nature upon him, came and dwelt amongst his people. IHag. 2.7,8,9. will shake all Nations, and the desire of all Nations shall come, and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of Hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of Hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater then of the former, saith the Lord of Hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of Hosts. And so we commonly find the promise of calling the Gentiles, and bringing them into the sheep-fold of Jesus Christ, is commonly annexed to this Covenant. OJer. 16.19. Lord, my strength and my fortresse, and my refuge in the day of affliction: The Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, surely our Fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. BeholdJer. 32.37,38,39.
Ezek. 11.17,18,
19.
Eze. 20.40,41,
42,43
Lam. 4.22. Thy punishment O daughter of Zion, is finished, he will not adde to give thee to be carried away, scil. after thou shalt return into thy Country out of present Captivity. I will gather them out of all Countries, whether I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath, and I will bring them againe into this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may feare me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them. And I will make an everlasting Covenant with them, that I will not turne away from them to doe them good: but I will put my feare into their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. And in these respects, this Covenant which pertained to the old Testament might be called an inchoation of the new: because the old ordinances distilling grace in some measure into the whole Covenant, were to continue, untill Christ should be incarnate, and erect a new Tabernacle, which should stand and continue for ever: when a new people should be added to the Lord, and the old ordinances, because of their weaknesse, being taken downe, a new forme should be set up, to abide for ever.
And from all this, we may briefly observe in what accidents the old and new Testament differ one from another, when for substance they be one and the same. They both flow from thefree-grace
