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Against A Legal Spirit

by Ralph Erskine (1685-1752)

The following selection is taken from Erkine's Gospel Sonnets as found in The Sermons and Practical Works of Ralph Erskine (Glasgow: W. Smith and J. Bryce Booksellers, 1778) vol. 10, pp. 82-85. The original title of this section of the Gospel Sonnets appears as follows: "A Caution to all against a legal spirit; especially to those that have a profession without power, and learning without grace." The electronic edition of this text has been newly type set and edited by Shane Rosenthal for Reformation Ink. In numerous cases antiquated characters have been replaced and the spelling has been modernized. In some instances sections have been edited for clarity. This particular version therefore is not in the public domain. It may be copied and distributed only for personal or educational use.

 

Why, says the haughty heart of legalists,

Bound to the law of works by nat'ral twists,

"Why, such ado about a law divorce;

"Mens lives are bad and would you have 'em worse?

"Such Antinomian stuff, with labor'd toil,

"Would human beauty's native lustre spoil.

"What wickedness beneath the cov'ring lurks,

"That lewdly would divorce us from all works?

"Why such a stir about the law and grace?

"We know that merit cannot now take place,

"And what need more?" Well, to let slander drop,

Be merit for a little here the scope.

 

Ah! many learn to lisp in gospel-terms,

Who yet embrace the law with legal arms.

By wholesome education some are taught

To own that human merit now is naught;

Who faintly but renounce proud merit's name,

And cleave refin'dly to the Popish scheme.

For graceful works expecting divine bliss;

And, when they fail, trust Christ for what's amiss.

Thus to his righteousness profess to flee;

Yet by it still would their own saviors be.

They seem to works of merit bloody foes;

Yet seek salvation, as it were, by those.

Blind Gentiles found, who did not seek nor know;

But Isra'l lost it whole, who sought it so.

 

Let all that love to wear the gospel-dress,

Know that as sin, so dastard righteousness

Has slain its thousands, who in tow'ring pride

The righteousness of Jesus Christ deride;

A robe divinely wrought, divinely won,

Yet cast by men for rags that are their own.

But some to legal works seem whole deny'd,

Yet would by gospel-works be justify'd,

By faith, repentance, love, and other such:

These dreamers being righteous overmuch,

Like Uzza give the ark a wrongful touch.

By legal deeds, however gospeliz'd,

Can e'er tremendous justice be appeas'd?

Or sinners justify'd before that God,

Whose law is perfect and exceeding broad?

Nay, faith itself, that leading gospel-grace,

Holds, as a work, no justifying place.

Just Heav'n to man for righteousness imputes

Not faith itself, or in its acts or fruits;

But Jesus' meritorious life and death,

Faith's proper object, all the honour hath.

From this doth faith derive its glorious fame,

Its great renown and justifying name;

Receiving all things, but deserving nought;

By faith all's begg'd and taken, nothing bought.

Its highest name is from the wedding-vote,

So instrumental in the marriage-knot.

JEHOVAH lends the bride, in that blest hour,

Th' exceeding greatness of his mighty pow'r,

Which sweetly does her heart-consent command

To reach the wealthy Prince her naked hand.

For close to his embrace she'd never stir,

If first his loving arms embrac'd not her;

But this he does by kindly gradual chase,

Of rousing, reaching, teaching, drawing grace.

He shews her, in his sweetest love-address,

His glory, as the Sun of rightousness;

At which all dying glories earth adorn

Shrink like the sick moon at the wholesome morn.

This glorious Sun arising with a grace,

Dark shades of creature-righteousness to chase,

Faith now disclaims itself, and all the train

Of virtues formerly accounted gain;

And counts them dung, with holy, meek distain.

For now appears the height, the depth immense

Of divine bounty and benevolence;

Amazing mercy, ignorant of bounds!

Which most enlarged faculties confounds.

How vain, how void now seem the vulgar charms,

The monarch's pomp of courts, and pride of arms?

The boasted beauties of the human kind,

The pow'rs of body, and the gifts of mind?

Lo! in the grandeur of IMMANUEL's train,

All's swallow'd up, as rivers in the main.

He's seen, when gospel-light and sight is giv'n,

Encompass'd round with all the pomp of heav'n.

 

The soul, now taught of God, sees human schools

Make Christless Rabbi's only lit'rate fools;

And that, till divine teaching pow'rful draw,

No learning will divorce them from the law.

Mere argument may clear the head, and force

A verbal, not a cordial clean divorce.

Hence many, taught the wholesome terms of art,

Have gospel-heads, but still a legal heart.

'Till sov'reign grace and pow'r the sinner catch,

He takes not Jesus for his only match,

Nay, works compete! Ah! true, however odd.

Dead works are rival with the living God.

'Till Heaven's preventing mercy clear the fight,

Confound the pride with supernat'ral light;

No haughty soul of human kind is brought

To mortify her self-exalting thought.

 

Yet holiest creatures in clay-tents that lodge,

Be but their lives scann'd by the dreadful Judge;

How shall they e'er his awful search endure,

Before whose purest eyes heav'n is not pure?

How must their black indictment be enlarg'd,

When by him angels are with folly charg'd?

What human worth shall stand, when he shall scan?

O may his glory stain the pride of man.

 

How wondrous are the tracts of divine grace?

How searchless are his ways, how vast th' abyss?

Let haughty reason stop, and fear to leap;

Angelic plummets cannot sound the deep.

With scorn he turns his eyes from haughty kings,

With pleasure looks on low and worthless things;

Deep are his judgments, sov'reign is his will,

Let ev'ry mortal worm be dumb, be still.

God and his counsels are a gulf profound,

An ocean wherein all our thoughts are drown'd.