A 1689/1677 Second London Baptist Confession Commentary

The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 9: Of Free-will, Section 2 of 5, the following: 2. Man, in his state of innocency, had freedom and power to will and to do that which was good and well-pleasing to God, but yet was mutable[1] [unstable][2], so that he might fall from it. ( [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 9: Of Free-will, Section 1 of 5, the following: 1. God hath endued the will of man with that natural liberty and power of acting upon choice[1], that it is neither forced, nor by any necessity of nature determined to do good or evil. ( Matthew [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 10 of 10, the following: 10. This number and order of offices is necessary; for in respect of our ignorance, we stand in need of his prophetical office; and in respect of our alienation from God, and imperfection of the [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 9 of 10, the following: 9. This office of mediator between God and man is proper only to Christ, who is the prophet, priest, and king of the church of God; and may not be either in whole, or any part [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 8 of 10, the following: 8. To all those for whom Christ hath obtained eternal [1]redemption, he doth certainly and effectually apply and communicate the same, making intercession for them; uniting them to himself by his Spirit[2], revealing unto them, [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 7 of 10, the following: 7. Christ, in the work of mediation, acteth[1] according to both natures, by each nature doing that which is proper to itself; yet by reason of the unity of the person, that which is proper to [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 6 of 10, the following: 6. Although the price[1]of redemption was not actually paid[2] by Christ till after his incarnation, yet the virtue, efficacy, and benefit thereof were communicated to[3] the elect in all ages, successively from the beginning of [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 5 of 10, the following: 5. The Lord Jesus, by his perfect obedience and sacrifice of himself, which he through the eternal Spirit once offered up unto God, hath fully satisfied the Justice [1]of God[2], procured reconciliation[3], and purchased an [...]

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 The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 4 of 10, the following: 4. This office the Lord Jesus did most willingly undertake, which that he might discharge he was made under the law, and did perfectly fulfill it, and underwent the punishment due to us, which we [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 3 of 10, the following: 3. The Lord Jesus, in his human nature thus united to the divine, in the person of the Son,[1]was sanctified and anointed with the Holy Spirit above measure, having in Him all the treasures of [...]

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 The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 2 of 10, the  following: 2. The Son of God, the second person in the Holy[1] Trinity, being very and eternal God, the brightness of the Father’s glory,[2] of one substance and equal with him who made the world, who [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 8: Of Christ the Mediator, Section 1 of 10, the following:  1. It pleased God, in His eternal purpose, to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus, his only begotten Son, according to the Covenant[1] made between them both[2], to be the mediator between God and man; the [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 7: Of God’s Covenant, Section 3 of 3, the following: 3. This covenant is revealed in the gospel; first of all to Adam in the promise of salvation by the seed of the woman, and afterwards by farther steps, until the full discovery thereof was completed in [...]

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 The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 7: Of God’s Covenant, Section 2 of 3, the  following:  2. Moreover, Man having brought himself under the curse of the Law by his fall,[1] it pleased the Lord to make a covenant of grace, wherein he freely offereth unto Sinners Life and Salvation[2] by Jesus [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 7: Of God’s Covenant, Section 1 of 3, the following:  1. The distance between God and the creature is so great, that although reasonable creatures do owe obedience to him as their creator, yet they could never have attained the[1] [any fruition of him as their [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, Of Sin, and Of the Punishment Thereof, Section 5 of 5 the following:  5. This corruption of nature, during this life, doth remain in those that are regenerated; and although it be through Christ pardoned and mortified, yet both itself, and [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, Of Sin, and Of the Punishment Thereof, Section 4 of 5 the following:  4. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil, do proceed all actual transgressions. ( [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, Of Sin, and Of the Punishment Thereof, Section 3 of 5 the following:  3. They being the root, and by God’s appointment, standing in the room and stead of[1] all mankind, the guilt of the[2] Sin[3] was imputed, and corrupted nature [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, Of Sin, and Of the Punishment Thereof, Section 2 of 5 the following:  2. Our first Parents,[1] by this Sin[2], fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them whereby death came upon all:[3] all becoming[4] [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 6: Of the Fall of Man, Of Sin, and Of the Punishment Thereof, Section 1 of 5 the following:  1. Although God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 7 the following: 7. As the providence of God doth in general reach to all Creatures[1], so after a more special manner it taketh care of his church, and disposeth of all things to the good thereof.(1 Timothy 4:10; Amos 9:8, 9; Isaiah [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 6 the following: 6. As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God, as the righteous judge, for former sin doth blind and harden; from them he not only withholdeth his grace, whereby they might have been enlightened in their understanding, and wrought [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 5, the following: 5. The most wise, righteous, and gracious God doth oftentimes leave for a season his own children to manifold temptations and the corruptions of their own hearts, to chastise them for their former sins, or to discover unto [...]

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 The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 4, the following:   4. The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in his providence, that his determinate Counsel [1]extendeth itself even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions both[2] of angels and [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 3, the following: 3. God, in his ordinary providence maketh use of means, yet is free to work without, above, and against them at his pleasure. ( Acts 27:31, 44; Isaiah 55:10, 11; Hosea 1:7; Romans 4:19-21; Daniel 3:27 ) The [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 2, the following: 2. Although in relation to the foreknowledge and decree of God, the first cause, all things come to pass immutably and infallibly; so that there is not anything[1] befalls any by chance, or without his providence;[2] yet by [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 5: Of Divine Providence, Section 1, the following:   1. God the good[1] Creator of all things, in his infinite power and wisdom[2] doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things, from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 4: Of Creation, Section 3, the following: 3. Besides the[1] law written in their hearts, they received a command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which whilst[2] they kept, they were happy in their communion with God, and had dominion [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 4: Of Creation, Section 2, the following: 2. After God had made all other creatures, he created man, male and female, with reasonable and immortal souls, rendering them fit unto that life to God; for which they were Created; being made after the image of God, [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 4: Of Creation, Section 1, the following: 1. In the beginning[1] it pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit[2], for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness, to create or make [out of nothing][3] the world, and all things therein, [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 7, the following: 7. [1]The doctrine of the high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special prudence and care, that men attending the will of God revealed in his Word, and yielding obedience thereunto, may, from the certainty of their [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 6, the following: 6. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so he hath, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained all the means thereunto; wherefore they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 5, the following: 5. Those of mankind that are predestinated to[1] life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in Christ [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 4, the following: 4. These angels and men thus predestinated and foreordained, are particularly and unchangeably designed, and their number so certain and definite, that it cannot be either increased or diminished.  ( 2 Timothy 2:19; John 13:18 ) In case [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 3, the following 3. By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men and angels are predestinated, or foreordained to eternal life through Jesus Christ, to the praise of his glorious grace; others being left to act [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, Section 2, the following 2. Although God knoweth whatsoever may or can come to pass, upon all supposed conditions, yet hath he not decreed anything, because he foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to pass upon such conditions. [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 3: Of God’s Decree, section 1, the following: 1. God hath decreed in himself[1], from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably, all things[2], whatsoever comes to pass; yet so as thereby is God neither[3] the author [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 2: Of God and Of the Holy Trinity, section 3 the following: 3. In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences, the Father, the Word or Son, and Holy Spirit[1], of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 2: Of God and Of the Holy Trinity, section 2 the following: 2. God, having[1] all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and of himself, is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not standing in need of any creature[s][2] which he hath made, nor deriving any glory [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 2: Of God and Of the Holy Trinity, section 1 the following: 1. The Lord our God[1] [There] is but one only living and true God; whose subsistence is in and of himself[2], infinite in being and perfection; whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but [...]

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We are now ready to embark on a very exciting chapter of the 1689 Confession on the doctrine of the Holy Trinity.  But before we do this we should prepare our heart and mind for the study of the Godhead.  In Louis Berkhof’s Systematic Theology, he states: “God communicates knowledge of himself to Man. Kuyper calls [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 10 the following: 10.The supreme judge, by which all controversies of religion are to be determined, and all decrees of councils, opinions of ancient writers, doctrines of men, and private spirits, are to be examined, and in whose sentence we [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 9 the following: 9. The infallible rule of interpretation of Scripture is the Scripture itself; and therefore when there is a question about the true and full sense of any Scripture (which is not manifold, but one), it must be [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 8 the following: 8. The Old Testament in Hebrew (which was the native language of the people of God of old), and the New Testament in Greek (which at the time of the writing of it was most generally known [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 7 the following: 7. All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves, nor alike clear unto all; yet those things which are necessary to be known, believed and observed for salvation, are so clearly propounded and opened in [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 6 the following: 6. The whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man’s salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down or necessarily[1] contained [or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 5 the following: 5. We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the church of God[1]to an high and reverent esteem of the Holy Scriptures; and the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, and the [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 4 the following: 4. The authority of the Holy Scripture, for which it ought to be believed, dependeth not upon the testimony of any man or church, but wholly upon God (who is truth itself), the author thereof; therefore it [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 3 the following: 3. The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine , inspiration, are no part of the canon or rule [1]of the Scripture, and, therefore, are of no authority to the church of God, nor to be [...]

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The 1689 Second London Baptist Confession states in Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures, section 2 the following: 2. Under the name of Holy Scripture, or the Word of God written, are now contained all the books of the Old and New Testaments, which are these: OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, [...]

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Note: Any text that is underlined in the actual wording of the 1689 Confession is for the purpose of pointing out where the 1689 Confession varies from the Westminster Confession.  If you follow the footnote at the end of the post you will see an explanation. If the source is not traced to the 1644 First London [...]

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Original Sources It is helpful to be aware of the original sources of the 1677/1689 Confession as we go through it.  The 1677/1689 Second London Baptist Confession made use of sources, but it was not just a cut and paste job from other documents.  The Elders, William Collins and probably Nehemiah Coxe (who died several months  before the 1689 adoption of the [...]

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 The History  I.  Baptists and Congregationalist emerge from the English Reformation  In the 1630’s to the 1640’s Congregationalists and Baptists emerged from the Church of England.  They suffered from cycles of persecutions of as they were not apart of the official state Church of England.  II. The 1644 First London Confession In 1644 the First London Confession [...]

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The Savoy Declaration is a Confession of the Congregationalists  “They agree substantially with the Westminster Confession, or the Calvinistic system of doctrine, but differ from Presbyterianism by rejecting the legislative and judicial authority of presbyteries and synods, and by maintaining the independence of the local churches. In the course of time the rigor of old [...]

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IV. The Westminster Assembly and the Westminster Confession of Faith  On June 12, 1643 Parliament passed an Act entitled: “An Ordinance of the Lords and Commons in Parliament for the calling of  an Assembly of Divines and others, to be consulted with by Parliament for the setting of the Government and Liturgy of the Church of [...]

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The Reformation in England had two distinct phases:  I.  Political II. Ecclesiastical     I. A Genuine Work of Grace  The publication of the Word of God in England was of foremost importance in the reformation of England. Erasmus published the Greek New Testament in Oxford on 1517, and Tyndale translated the Bible into English.  It was sent from Worms, [...]

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There are many Reformed Confessions; they substantially agree in the system of doctrine taught.        Those that are most highly regarded are:  1. The Second Helvetic Confession 2. The Heidelberg Catechism 3. The 39 Articles of the Church of England 4. The Canons of Dort 5. The Confessions and Catechisms of the Westminster Assembly [...]

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Remember in a previous post entitled, Why Should We Care About Creeds and Confessions, I defined symbols as:  Symbol: the Greek word for symbol is Eumbolon, (which means, a mark, badge, watchword, or test).  A symbol represents something that the symbol is not in and of itself.  A symbol in relation to our topic is a statement [...]

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In the last post, I indicated the schism that occurred between the western and the eastern churches.  It is from the western or Latin church that the Protestants came from.  Here is a graphical chart to show the two parts of the division, and the further division of the Protestants from the Western Latin Church [...]

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 The ancient church went through a schism (or division).  It divided into the Eastern and the Western Church.  This did not happen immediately but over time.  This occurred approximately A.D. 500  to 1000.     Division occurred:           Primarily for political and ecclesiastical reasons           Secondarily because of doctrine and ritual The Greek Church is often called the [...]

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      I. Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent      Pope Paul III called for the Ecumenical Council of Trent (1545-1563)      Highest doctrinal rule for the Roman Church      Contains:      Decrees-positive statements      Canons-explains the Decrees      Condemned Protestant Doctrine II. The Roman Catechism (1556)      Prepared and propagated by Pope Pius IV in 1556      It explains [...]

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I think it is helpful to see where particular creeds or confessions are historically placed; as well it is helpful to know where particular branches of Christianity fall in relation to particular confessions.  The post-reformation period (after the reformation) produced much more detailed theological statements than the prior period.  I am posting a very brief synopsis of the major branches [...]

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Here is a brief synopsis about the Athanasian Creed. The Athanasian Creed: The Athanasian Creed was named after the theologian Athanasius (A.D 293 to 373). The Creed was not composed by him. It was composed after his death. It was composed after the Council of Ephesus and the Chalcedon Creed. A possible date for this creed is around A.D. [...]

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In A.D. 451 the Council of Chalcedon condemned as heresy Eutychianism which held that the divinity of Christ and the humanity made one nature. This view could be summarized as: Divinity & humanity = 1 nature in two persons Here together are summaries of the heresies dealt with by the Council of Ephesus and the Council of Chalcedon: Nestorianism: [...]

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The Council of Ephesus- A.D. 431 The Council of Ephesus did not issue a Creed for heretical Nestorianism, but issued a statement reaffirming the Nicene Creed, reaffirming previously made statements by Church fathers, and condemning as heresy Nestorianism as well as Pelagianism.  It appears they were apprehensive to issue a new Creed or append to the Nicene Creed.  Here is [...]

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The Nicene Creed  It was composed in Greek.  It is an expansion of the Apostle’s Creed to further defend the Church against heresy. The following Councils added clauses to the Apostles Creed, expanding it to form the Nicene Creed: 1. A.D. 325 the Council held in Nice of Bithynia added clauses relating to the consubstantial divinity of Christ [...]

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The Apostle’s Creed One of the earliest and most used creeds  It was originally written in Greek.  It was not written by the Apostles. It was formed over time. It was formed from several church creeds. It was formed by common consent of the churches. Probably used to receive church members and/or possibly used as [...]

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 The several post that follow will introduce some of the most commonly used ancient creeds.  Each post will be a synopsis to introduce the ancient creeds to those who are not familiar with them. These are the creeds we will be looking at: Apostles Creed Nicene Creed The Council of Ephesus[1] Chalcedon Creed Athanasian Creed For further study, I have found helpful two resources: Phillip [...]

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Making use of a confession of faith is an excellent means and a useful tool to gain an understanding of the whole of counsel of God found in the Scriptures.  In this post, I’ll start by defining what a confession of faith is, and list some other terms used to describe confessional statements. Here is a general definition to describe these documents: “A Creed, [...]

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I am starting this blog in order to provide a commentary of the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession. Along with the commentary I will show in each paragraph where the 1689 Confession differs from the Westminster Confession of Faith and the source for those changes in the end notes of each post.  My source for the textual variations is [...]

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