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...................................................... peace
Of Conscience, which the Law by Ceremonies
Cannot appease, nor Man the moral part
Perform, and not performing cannot live.
So Law appears imperfect, and but giv'n
With purpose to resign them in full time
Up to a better Cov'nant, disciplin'd
From shadowie Types to Truth, from Flesh to Spirit,
From imposition of strict Laws, to free
Acceptance of large Grace, from servil fear
To filial, works of Law to works of Faith.
Paradise Lost, XII.296-306
This essay seeks to put to rest the notion that John Milton was an antinomian, by offering a concise summation of the relevant chapters of De doctrina Christiana that discuss his views on the covenants, the law and the gospel, and Christian liberty.1 Defining antinomian is a difficult task, as its manifestations throughout history have not been monolithic.2 During the seventeenth century in England, two kinds, broadly speaking, existed: 1) doctrinal antinomianism; and 2) licentious antinomianism.
Doctrinal antinomianism: Generally speaking, the majority of English divines in the seventeenth century held that Christ's sacrifice abolished the ceremonial and civil portions of the Mosaic law but left the moral part binding on Christians, the so-called "didactic" or third use of the law. 3 The first use consisted in its "political" function in society to restrain evil, while the second use focuses in on its "theological" role, which exposes sin, accuses sinners, and drives them to recognize their need for a savior.4
In England, we see men such as Tobias Crisp, John Saltmarsh, John Eaton, and Isaac Chauncy holding a slightly different line.5 This group stopped short of allowing the old Mosaic code any significant role in the life of the new covenant believer. They did this by stressing the second, "accusatory" use of the law for non-believers exclusively--that is, at the expense of the third, "didactic" use of the law, whereby the law supplies a rule for life to believers. But it goes even further: law and grace are not merely contrasted in scripture; they are absolutely antithetical, so much so that God relates to his creation either by way of law or by grace, with the two never mixing. This view led them to simply parcel...