Puritan theology came from two covenants. The Covenant of Work came from Adam. Adam was promised he would live forever if he kept God’s law. Adam broke the covenant when he ate the fruit and was expelled. All of Adam’s children are under the same covenant and would now all die because of sin. However, the second covenant was Grace, it made it possible for some to still be saved. God would save his chosen people while the rest were damned. The Covenant of Works cannot save anyone, so works did not matter. It was only those preordained for salvation that could be saved because by Grace.
Historically Speaking 