Dwisioa O C( ScttioQ I ^^ / EXPOSITION, CRITICAL, DOCTRINAL, AND PRACTICAL, assembly's shorter CATECHISM; DELIVERED IN A SERIES OP SABBATH-EVENING LECTURES, \ By MICHAEL ARTHUR, Minifter of the Gofpel, Edinburgh. IN THREE VOLUMES^'^ %^'i of 'Sli^/, VOL. L >, ^i^\%tX^ EDINBURGH: PRINTED BY WILLIAJV^ DARLING, ADVOCATES CLOSa MDCCLXXXVIII. CONTENTS . OF VOLUME FIRST. Introduction, Page I Mans Chief End ^ 7 The Sacred Scriptures, 27 Faith and PraBice, 69 God ' J Being and Perfedions, 85 The Onenefs of God, 121 The Sacred Trinity, 13' The Divine Decrees, ^7S The Execution of the Decrees, 191 Creation, 195 The Creation of Man, 217 Providence, 237 The Covenant of Works, 271 The Fall of Man, 307 Sin, Z^S Mans Firjl Sin, 33^ The Extent of the Fall, 345 Sin and Mifery ConneBed, 2>^3 The Sinfulnefs of the Fallen State, 37^ The Mifery of the Fallen State, 391 The Covenant of Grace, 415 Jefus Chrifl the only Redeemer, 491 INTRODUCTION. I T has been oblerved, that the book which needs an apology for the publication of it fhould never have been pubhfiied. Confcious of the propriety and force of this obfervation, I offer no apology for publiOving my Expofitory Le£lures on the Catechifin. May the bleffing of Heaven render them efFeftual for accom- pliftiing the falutary ends and purpofes for which they were delivered in the pulpit, and are now offered tq the pubhc ! The Shorter Catechifm, as is well known, was com- piled by the celebrated Affembly of Divines that fat at Weffminfter almoft a century and a half ago; an Af- fembly, perhaps, the moft judicious, learned, and godly, that has met fince the Apoftolic ages. It was intended, as its name indicates, to be a model of catechifing, cfpecially the young and the ignorani, in famihes and congregations. The catechetical method of inflru£lion, it is faid, has all along obtained in the world, not only among Jews and Chriftians ; but even among Pagans. This is called the Shorter Catecbifm, to diitinguilh it from the Larger. Written by uninfpired, and, there- fore, fallible men, it does not pretend to perfedion. But, for concifenefs, accuracy, and comprehenrivcnefs, it is, in ray opinion, an incomparable fyftem. Far is it above my commendation. Its praife is in the churches abroad, as well as in our ifland. The accuracy and prerifion v/ith which the compilers of this admirable Book exprefs the truth in oppofuion to error ancient and modern ; the natural order in which they arrange Vol. I. A f ihc ii I N r II O D U C T I O N. the numerous articles of our lioly religion ; and the perlpicnity with which they delineate both its doctrines ind it which alone we can ever be or do what the law requires. Wl.aL glorious views of God, of his wifdom and power, jullice and holinefs, efpecially his grace and mercy, arc here ! What ineffable fatisfaction has the devout mind in the contemplation of them ! We are to glorify God, 4. By a coafcionable performance of all the duties lacred and civil, perfonal and relative, incum- bent upon us, in the places and circumftances an all- difpofmg Providence has affigncd to us in the world, and the church. "What a variety of duties are obli- gatory upon us all in common ! Hov/ thankful ought we all to be for fuch mDttiplied opportunities of doing honour to our divine Maker and HedecT.er ! What dif- tinguilhed opportunities of glorifying him do the fta- tions of many afford them ! When fhall ihere be a holy emulation among us, who fhall go before another in this good work r Are we miniflers., mao^iHirates, pare^'ts, or maders ? Let us think what advantages attend our particular fituations ; in what inftanc fs, and by what means, we may feverally contribute to the advnicement of the glory of God in the world. Are wc in profpe- rity ? Let us glorify God, by a grateful acknowledg- ment of our obligations to him. In the day of profperity he joyful. Ecclef vii. 14. Are we in p'tntiful circum- ftances? May wc glorify God by r!b<^rall}' diftributing; efpecially for the fupply of Chrift's indigent members, and other pious ufes. Honour the Lord with thy fub- Jiancey and zuitb the fir/i fruits of all toine increafe. Prov. iii. 9. Are we in adverfu\ ? Let us glorify God by juflifying him in all that he does, and a patient refig- nation to his holy will An afflided lot affords fpccial occafion for fpiritual improvement to ourfelvcs, and glory to God. Glorify ye the Lord in the fires. Ifa. xxiv. (5. L-t the head of every Chriftian family glo- rify God, by adopting good Jofliua's exemplary rcfola- tion — A.\ for mc^ and my houfe, ive luill frve the Lord. Jofli. xxiv. [5 Let thofe who are young glorify God by devoting to hira, and his fcrvice^ their vigour and their 1 6 Mans Chief End, their flrength. "What a precious fcafon is youth ! Wha* a pity that fo many fhould fliamefuUy milptiid it ! Am- ple, indeed, is the encouragement the Redeemer gives to the young to enter into his fcrvice. How engaging and endearing his words — / love them that love me^ and thofe that feck me early Ih all find me! Frov. \'\\\. 17. Seco):dly^ What it is, according fo the import of the anfv.er under conlidcration, to enjoy Gccf. As it is man's chief end, in poinr of duty, to glorifj', it is his chief end, in point of felicity, to enjoy God. Of his fupporting power, the inferior as weU as the fupcrior creatures arc partakers. But the former csnnot be faid either to glo- rify or enjoy him as the latter do. A created fpirit, angelic or human, can only be happy in the fruition of him, who is the father of fpirits. Infmitely happy in hiaifelf, he is the fountriin of felicity as well as of being to his creatures. In inferior cbjedts, niany have fought fatisfaftion, but no one has found it. What egregious folly mufl it be, to fubflitute the empty creature in the Voom of the all-fufficient. Creator ! Of fuch folly, how- ever, have we all been guilty. Here is a portion commenfurate to the vaft capacities and defires of the human foul. Inveftigating ai:d con- templatmg the perfections and works of the infinite God, the mind has the molt rational and refined fatis- fadion. This, indeed, is a Ihidy worthy of our nobleft powers, and in which they will be inceiTantly and un- "wearicdly employed for ever and ever. He is the beff, as well as the greatefl of beings. What the fatisfadion is tliat refults from the fruition of him, he who has ex- perienced it can befh tell. It neither is of the manner, in which innocent man enjoyed God, in his paradifaical flatc, or the fpirits of juft men made perfcd enjoy liim, in the celedial world, that 1 here treat. Of boih i will have cccafion to fpeak in explaining \'omc fubfequcnt parts of the CrtcchifiUi It rather is of the enjoyment of him in a (late that '.n- icrvcnes bctv/een the two, I here fpeak. The Mans Chief End, ly The fruicion of God in the way of the old cove- riant man early forfeited. All friendly intercourfe be- tween heaven and earth, God and man, in the way of that covenant, was flopped. But, to the aflonilhmcnt of heaven and earth, a fuperior way of communication is opened. Amply does the Redeemer reftore what he took not away. From his mediation and interceffion the highcft glory to God, and felicity to man, refult. In and through him we recover our forfeited intcrefl in God, and the fruition of him, as his God and our God. How animating and comfortable his words to his difciplcs, / afcend unto my Father and your Father, my God and your God ! John xx. 17. Each member, militant as well as triumphant, of that myflical body, of which he is the glorious head, can adopt his fong, Jehovah is the ■portion of mine inheritance. The lines are fallen unto me in pleafctnt places^ Tea, I have a goodly heritage. Pfal. xvi. 5, 6. Militant faints are heirs, having the pro- fpeft, rather than the polTeflion, of their vaft inherit- ance. Heirs of what? Heirs of God ; the infinite, the all-fufficient, the immutable, the everlafting God. Rom. viii. 17. God is theirs ; his wifdom to dirtfl; in all dark, cafes ; his power to ftrengthcn for work and warfare, and to fupport under every trial j his holinefs to fandify them in foul, body, and fpirit ; his goodnefs to provide for them in time, and for ev&r ; his veracity to infure to them th.e accomphfliment of all his promifes, how- ever Jong it may be delayed, and whatever obflacles may lie in the way of it. This reminds me of one of the reafons for which faints may be ftiled Priefts, as they are. Rev. i. 6. When the typical Canaan was divided among the tribes of Ifrael, no part of it was allotted to the priefts ; and the reafon affigned is this, the Lord was their inheritance. Deut. x. 9. In two refpefts efpecially do faints on earth enjoy God differently from glorified faints in heaven. Vol. I. C t I. It 1 S Mans Ch'itf End. 1. It only Is in an imperfcft and partial manner militant faints enjoy God. Are the capacities of glo- rified faints equal to the objcd of which they have obtained the fruition ? Far from it. God is in every view infinite, and every creature is necelTarily finite. But the blifstul inhabitants of th;^ celeftial world enjoy him for ever, in as full a manner as is confiflent with the eilential difparity between the infinite God and his crea- tures. >^-ny thing niiiitant faints receive, is only a forc- tafte, pledge, or earnefl:. 2. It is mediately, or through the intervention of means, militant fainis erjjoy God. The immediate enjoyment of him, is the peculiar attainment of trium- phant, faints It is in the ufc of means they can either glorify or enjoy God on earth. In and by ordinances, fecrct and focial, private and public, he communicates himfeir to them, and they have fweet fellowship with ' him. To otb.ers ordinances may bo ufciefs and infipid. But of tiie utility and comfort of them faints are con- fcious. With what warmth does the devout Pfalmill fpeak. on this fubjsdl ! The God of ordinances and of all comfort-, lie addrclTeth thus — Lord! I ha-ve loved the hahitaihn cf thy houfey and the place where thine honour divellcth, Pfal. xxvi. 8. A day in thy courts is better to vie than a thoufand. I had rather be a docr-keepcr in the houfeofmyGod, occupying the loweft place, and pcrform- in^>- the meanefl: office in it, than diccll in the tcnts^ even the mofl fplendid palaces, of the wicked. Pfal. Ixxxiv. JO. I may take notice. Thirdly^ Of the conneclion between our glorifying and our enjoying God, and of the precedency of the one to the other. I'he fruition ever accompanies the glorification of God. They are infcparably connected. We cannot glorify God without enjoying him ; nor can we enjoy without glorifying God. In both creation r.nd redemption are«they conjoined. In both the cove- n.mt of works and the covenant of grace, has God gra- cioufly and wifely conncflcd them. So long as inno- cent Ma7i's Chief End. 19 cent man glorified God by the fulfilment of the condi- tionary part of the covenant of works, he, agreeably to the promiiTory part of it^enjored God. On the other hand, the moment he ceafed to glorify, he was deprived of the enjwyment of God. The happy perfon, who is by faith inflated in the covenant of redemption, in virtue of his inflatement In it, at once glorifies and enjoys God. As for the order in which thefe two pohits of the chief end of man are introduced, I mean the glorifica- tion, and enjovment of God, the former is purpofely prefixed to the latter. His glory is the primary, our felicity the fecondary, part of it. No higher end can God propofe to himfelf, in any of his works, than the advancement of his glory. I'o it nothing can be pre- ferred ; but every other thing fabordinated. Shall we prefer our good, temporal or fpiritual, to his glory ? Shall man, in anything, be exalted above God? But fo mercifully and wifely has he adjufled matters, that his glory and our felicity are promoted by the fame means. While, therefore, we are dutifully inflrumental in the advancement of the one, we happily promote the other. 1 need only to add here, that when I fpeak of the priority of our glorifying G^kI, and the potlerioritr oV our enjoying him, I do not mean a priority or poflc- riority of time. Man never did, nay, he never can, glorify without enjoying God. His glory, however, never is fubordinated to our good, but our good muft ever be in fubordination to his glory. In all riiings the pre-eminence is infinitely r ever. Man was C 2 maae> 20 Mans Chief End. made, and is redeemed for eternity. One of his con- ftituent parts is, in its nature, immortal. Of diflolution it is incapable. Might it not be reduced to nothing ? There is no reafon to think the Ahnighty Creator ever is to annihilate any thing he has made ; far Icfs the hu- man foul, one of the mo(l excellent of his vorki?. Chan- ged both foul and body may be ; but annihilated they viil not be. According to both covenants, man was to glorify and enjoy God in a twofold ftaie ; in an inferior ftate on earth, and a fuperior flate in heaven. However the covenants differ in other things, in this thty agree. In the firft covenant, man was to glorify God and ftnjoy him on earth for a feafon, the length of which we can- not afcertain ; and at the expiration of it, to be tranflatcd in foul and body to heaven, to glorify and enjoy God in it for ever and ever. The better covenant fuppofes alfo two different flates, a (late of imperfeftion on earth, and a flate of perfection in heaven ; in both which the redeemed, though differently, glorify and en- joy God. Of their feeing and ferving God and the i.amb in the celellial world, and the endlefs duration of it, the infpiicd writer of the Revelation gives us a glo- >ious account. "Iberejkoll be no more cttrfe \ but the 1 krone of God and the Lamb J}dall be in it^ and his ftrvants jhaliftrve him, And they Jhall fee his face. Rev. xxii. 3, 4, lb fcrve God and lee his face, in the fenfe of the words now cited, and to glorify and enjoy God in the fenfe of tie anfwer, only differ in expreffion, and in fig- iiificatian are fynonimous. What it is to have the fruition of that ineffimably precious privilege, the blifs- ful inhabitants of the celellial word could belt tell. May we all experience it in due time! . Alter a brief and plain confideration of what it is to glorify, and what to enjoy God ; of the refped in which the one is (aid to have the precedency of the other, and the eternity of both,- it remains that I, tinally^ Confider this as man's chief end. It is his end^ ^nd it is his ckuf ^w^. It Mails Chief End, ± I It is his end. To enumerate the acceptations of the word end in holy writ is not my defign. Although it be applied to time and place, it relates erpecially to an agent and an action, Novs^ the glory of God, includincr the fruition of him, may be faid to be man's end, in the few following inftances. I. In the intention of his Maker and Redeemer. God invariably ads in the moft rational manner. In all his works he has defigns, and defigns worthy of his uner- ring wifdom. He did not create, he does not redeem, man for nought. Often are we engaged in enterprifes of which we are able to give no proper account; for which we can aflign no fufficieni, no fatisfactory reafon. But infinitely do the thoughts and ways of Jehovah tran- fcend our thoughts and our ways. The Lord hath made all things for himfelf; yea, even the ivickedfor the day cf evil, Prov. xvi* 4. 1, In refpecl of man*s fitnefs for anfwering it. Let us confider man phyfically. With what excellent or- gans and powers are his foul and his body furnilhcd ! Let us view him morally, as an upright man. Such was he by creation. Such he now is by redeeming, fanclifying grace. How admirably adapted, how won- derfully fitted for ihe purpofes of both his creation and redemption. This people^ faith God, fpeaking of Jiis redeemed, have I formed for niyfelf. They jhall fJ)9ZU forth my praife. It is accordingly 3, The end both of man^s creation and redemption, 'ivhat God had in view, and for which man is adapted by the one as well as the other. Though between man's creation and redemption there is a manitcft dif- parity, in other inflances there is an analogy. Accord- ingly the infpired writers of the New Teltament, in 4 number of places, exprefs that landifying work of the Holy Ghoft, which commences in regeneration, and is confumm.ated in actual glorification, in terms evidently borrowed from the Molaic account of man's creation. 2 Cor. V. 17, Eph. iv. 24, Col. iii. io, compared wuh Gen. .22 Mans Chief End, Gen. xxvi. 27. The reafon is obvious. By this renew- ing work, man is reftored to a (late fimihr, though* in many refi^cQs, fuperior to that in which he was at firfl created. Thus in the new creation, as well as the old, all things arc of God, and to him. He is the glorions author, and he alfo is the ultimate end of our redemp- tion. So Tings the church of the redeemed in heaven and on earth, to her now glorified Redeen\er. 'Thou art ivorthy to take the book, and to open the finis thereof % for thou ivaft JJain. and hafi redeemed us to God by thy bloody out of every kindred, and tongue, and people^ and nation. Rev. v 9. To add no more, 4. It not only is his end as he is a man, and a new man, but is» or at Icaft (hould be, the end of ah his adions. In what particular inftances, and in how glo- rious a manner, God has difplayed his fupereminent perfcdions in bringing us into being, and particularly in our redemption, 1 will have an opportunity to fhow in the fcquel. Is it fo ? Are we indebted to God for our creation and redemption ? Had he his glory ulti- mately in view in both ? Then it ought to be our ulti- mate aim in all we as men, and as Chriflians, under- take and do. Did he give us exigence ? Did he ran- fom us from fin and death ? Did he all this in order to the advancement of his glory? And fliall we he indif- ferent whether it be promoted or not? Shall we not rather be emuloufly folicitous how, and by what means, we may contribute moll toward the j)romotion of it ? Tou are not your (Kon, O ye redeemed of the Lord ! 7~e are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body, and in your fpirit ; for both arc God's ; his by creation, and his by redemption, i Cor. vi. 19, 2c. This is man's chief end. 'Hiis has been underflood to imply inferior ends. As man ever was intended to fojourn, for a feafon, in this fubccleflial world, he all along has had employ adapted to his earthly Uation. For what end he was placed in EJen, and how he was employed in it, we all know. Mankind flill occupy difiercnt Mail's Chief End, 23 different places, and have a variety of employments in the world, for which there will be no occafion in the heavenly flate. But what others have called fub- ordinated ends, I would rather call means appointed, and calculated, for accouiplilhing the great end. Did not Adam, by performing the works affigned to hini in the terreftrial Paradife, glorify God ? And, while he glorified, did he not enjoy God ? Are not mankind, by diligence and fidelity in their civil callings, flill to aim at the glory of God, as well as when they are engaged in the duties of religion ? Let them ever recollect, that they hold fuch ftations in the world, by the appointment of ihat fuperintending Providence that regulate* and governs all perfons and events in it A chearful acqui- efcence in the difpofals of holy providence, relating to ws acd our fituation in the world, is our intereft as well as our duty. In cultivating the grounds, and in nier- cantiJe tranfa£lions, as well as in the clofet, and even in the gates of Zion, may we both glorify and enjoy God. Happy, indeed, is the man, how fcanty foever his cir- cumftances, who, like Enoch, day after day, when he goes out, and when he comes in, in the (hop as well as in the church, walks with God ! After an illullration fo much in the praftical ftrain, it is almoft fuperfluous to add any improvement. Is God fuch a fuperlativcly excellent being ? Are we indebted to him for fuch a boundlefs profufion of fa- vours ? The obvious refult is this important queftion — What returns of gratitude has he from us for fuch un- deferved munificence ? Confounding quellion ! Holy and humble Job's refolution fhall be mine. / will lay 7nine hand upon my mouth; for ^ behold^ I am vile ; and 'what Jhall I anfiver? Job xl. 4. Can we be happy in the enjoyment of God only ? Then, what a v/retched exchange has man made, in fub- flituting the empty creature in the room of the al!-iuf- ficient God ? Egregious madn*fs ! In this fenfe, how- ever, each of us has a<^ed the madman. Two capital evils 24 Uatis Chief End. evils have we ail committed ; forfaking the fountain of fiving waters^ ivc have hewed out to curf elves broken ci Herns that can hold no ivaier. Jer. ii. 13. In what a forlorn ftate do all the natural poflcrity of Adam come into the world ; the mod opulent prince, as well as the mod lowly peafant! The one, as well as the other, in refpeft of his fpiritual condition, is poor, and ^retched^andmiferahle ; and. to fay, in one word, all that can be faid, he is without God. Eph. ii. 12. Truly happy is the ftate of all believers. Their flate, jn point of (lability and permanency, is fuperior to that of Adam before the fall, btumble, indeed, they may. They may even fall ; but not totally or finally. In this fenfe they cannot poffibly fall. The enemy of their fe- licity and comfort each of them can befpeak thus — Rejoice not againfi me, 0 mine enemy. When I fall I /half arife. When I fit in darhncfs^ the Lord fhall be a light -unto me. Mic. vii. 8. Great, hovever, as the happinefs of the new flate of believers is. it only is introductory to a flate in all relpcds fuperior. Return, therefore, unto thy reft, O my foul I For whom haft thou in heaven but God ! Neither is there any in all the earth that thou ftiouldeft dcfire be- fide him. God is the flrength of my hearty and he is my portion /or ever and ever. Amen! Thcr ( 85 ) -M»' The Sacred Scriptures, xTiM. iii. 1 6. jill fcrlpturt IS given by infpiration of God, and is frofit-* able for dodrine^for reproof, for corre3ion,for inJiruQ" iion in righteoufnefs, THAT he may recommend the facred fcriptures to us, the infpired Apofllc reminds us of two things ; their divine original, and the many falutary purpoles which they arc intended to fubferve. They are the gift of heaven to the church on earth. The Spirit of God dilated them to the infpired penmen. They were only his amanuenfes in committing them to writing, for the behoof of the church to the end of the world. They are of Ipecial ufe to the church. Many, indeed, read, who reap no faving benefit from the fcriptures. This, however, is not owing to any defeft in them. This infpired writer, in another of his cpiftles, afligns the true reafon of it. The word docs not» it cannot profit, except it be viimi nvith faith, Heb. iv. 2. Various important purpofes, for which the fcriptures are intended, are here enume- rated. For doBrine, They contain manv capital dodrmes, relating to God and ourfelves. They teack u« thai God is, and what he is ; particularly as in Chrift. They difcover what wc lire as fmners, and our confequent peed of a Saviour, and falvation. You I. t D ^^'" 26 The Sacj'id Scriptures, For reproof. The word is the fpecial inftrument and mean which the Spirit, as a fpirit of r.onvidioQ, ufcs for difcoverin[; the intriiific evil, and awful demerit of fm ; in order to awaken and alarm the flecping and fecurc finncr. For corre^ion. Not only is a confcioufnefs of fin, but the actual reformation of the fmner, neceflary. It is not fufBcient ihat we fee fo many things in and about us to be wrong. All that is amifs muft be rcdificd and reformed. And, in fine, they are profitable For inflrufiion in ri^hteoufnefs. Clearly docs revelation difcovcr cbe indifpcnfiblc ncccffity of a perfed rightc- oufnefs, either pcrfonal or imputed, in order to our ju- flificarion in the fight of the iufiaitel? juft and holy God ; our utter want of fuch a righteoufncfs in ourfelves ; our abfoliitc ueed of the all-perfe^k furety-rightcoufnefs of Jefus Chrift ; and our accefs to it. They manifcll the Deccffity and utility of pcrfonal righteoufncfs, or inhe- rent hoiinefs ; holinefs internal and external, in heart aAd conveifation j how it may be obtained by a belie- ving tpplication of Chrift, as made of God to iis Jan6li{i- cation ; and, in a word, in what refpcdls, and for what piirpofcs it is ufcful, not at all as the foundation of our title to heaven, but to fit us for the poflfeflion of it. Such, my friends, is the heavenly origin, and falutary defign of the holy fcriptures. To this view of them agrees the account the Shorter Catecliifm gives in the anfwer to the fecond queftion ; for the confidcfation of which 1 have only been prepa- ring fhe way. It runs in the following terms — the "iVordofGod^ lubich is contained in ihe fcriptures of the Old and Neiu Te/iament, is the only ride to dircd us ho\f 'we may glorify and enjoy him. The propriety of the place afiigned to this amHver in the C.itechifin is nianifcft. The tranfition from the preceding to this is moft: na- tural. Is it the chief end of man to glorify and enjoy God ? Uow ncccflary then tliat be be furniflied with a rule fufficicnt to dirt<^ him how he may perform the one. The Sacred Scriptures. i^y •ne, and obtain the other ? Is any one felicitous to g!o- jify and enjoy God, and to know how he may do the one, and attain to the other ? Here is a rule, the all- fufEcient, the only rule, to dired him in relation to both. In order lo pave the way to the ehicidaiion of the anfwer, I niuft firit direft the attention of my reader? to a few preliminary obfervations. To every careful reader it mud be apparent^ that there are certain pr?ecognita, which, though not ex- prefTed, are neceffarlly implied in the anfwer ; without premising which, we cannot fee the propriety and im- portance of it. Such are the following confiderations. ///}'?, The great God who made, and who redeems man to glorify and enjoy him, and he only, is entitled to appoint and reveal the way in which this great end is to be accomplifhed. The way, as wie have feen, is twofold ; one adTipted to our original, another to our lapfed (late. Now, not only are we, without revelation, ignorant of the only way in which we can either glorify or enjoy God in the fallen ftate, but even upright Adam, great as the knowledge concreated with him was, did not at firft fully know rhe way in which he was to glorify and enjoT him. If we fuppofe an inter- val, as I think we muit, however fhort it may have been, between his creation, and the propofal of the covenant ol works to him, during that interval, he muif^ in part, have been ignorant of the way in which he was to glo- rify, and have the enjoyment of his Maker. From his creation he was under the moral law, which is of un:- verfal and perpetual obligation. What the difi'erence is between it, as written on the flefhly table of man's heart in his creation, and the federal form it afterwards affumed, the account which I am, in the fequef to give of the covenant o.'' works will lead me to lliow. Of the inter- diftion relating to the fruit of a particular tree, on which his duty and felicity were to depend, man mufl have been, at firft, totally ignorant. Was innocent Adam, for a time, ignorant of a particular inftance, on which D 1 his i$ The Sacred Script urtj, his glorifying and cnjo;fing God were mainly to turiv? Much more muft his poflerity be unacquainted with the onlf way in which they can either glorify or enjoy God in their now fallen ftate, till he be pleafcd, by the gof- pel, to reveal it to them. Secondly, Though we had, along with the rule inno- cent Adam had to direft him how he was to glorify and enjoy God, the knowledge of it, and the ability to fulfil it, he then had ; all this would be utterly infuf- ficient to diredt us how we are now to glorify and en- joy God, But who of all the pofterity of fallen Adam can, according to the tenor and terms of the covenant of works, either glorify or enjoy God? Even on fup- pofition that we could do all that Adam did, nay, all that was required of him before the fall, an infuperablc obflicle would ftill lie in the way of our obtaining eter- nal life. We are fmners, and for oor numerous and highly aggravated offences falisfaftion Miufl be made ; and fatisfadion adequate to the demerit pf our crimes, and tke dignity of the ofl'ended party. How (hall thii be effeftuated? Are ihoufands of rams, or ihoufands of nven of oil fufficjent ? No. ' But, may not human facrifices do it ? No. Evtn the fruit of the body is ut- terly nifufficient to atone for the fin of the foul, Bu^ \rhy do I talk either of our fulfilling the precept, or fa- tisfying the penalty of the law ? We are altogether with- out Jtrengihy tnd can do nothing. Rom. v. 6. The cotrnint of works was calculated for the meridian of the ftate of innocency ; not for the fallen ftate. If ever, therefore, we fmful men either glorify or enjoy God, it muft be in the way ef another and better covenant. Hence, < Thirdly, Immediately after the fall it was revealed to man, that he was both to glorify and enjoy God in a way, of which he was till then, and, without fuperna- lural revelation, hiuft for ever hare remained ignorant. The eternal fecret was difclofed. To the aftonifhment ^f angels and men k was difcovcrcd, that, previous to the ^he Sacred Scriptures, €^ the violation of the covenant of works, and confeqnent ruin of mankind, nay, previous to the produftion of the heavens and the earth, a better covenant had been made with one in all refpeds fuperior to the firft Adam. As man was undone by the breach of the one cote- nant, he was to be faved by the other. The original revelation of this wonderful expedient of Heaven for the recovery of our loft world, was granted to our fallen parents, prior to their expulfion from the garden. Gen. iii, 8, 15. Thus, before their exclafion from the ter- reftrial paradife, the way to the celeftial was opened to them. Paradife was loft, and it was regained. And is their not a pericd|approaching, at which the paradi^ faical ftate of the. earth is to be reftored ? Yes. We^ ac- cording to his -promife^ look for new heavens and a mw earthy wherein dwelleth righteoufnefs, or righteous men; the abftraft being put for the concrete, a thing not un- ufual in the facred writings. 2 Pct» iii. 1 3. At fo early a period was the gofpel preached in our world. It is natural to alk here— r Was the rule given to the firft human pair, immediately after their original apo- ftacy, to dire£t them how to glorify and enjoy God ; ox was the revelation which they received th*"" fame with that which we now enjoy? The fame in fubftancc it certainly was. For Adam himfelf, and his pofterity, there is one conimoTi Saviour and falvation •, one cove- nant of redemption for both, though differently admini- ftcred in the earlier and later ages of the world and the church. There are, however, two refpeds, in which the revelation of this covenant differs in earlier and later times. I , In point of perfpicuity and extent. The radical revelation, which our original progenitors received, was, during the ^matriarchal ages, and the times of the Mofaic , occonomy, in a gradual manner, amplified and enlarged. At laft, by the perfonal miniflry of our Lord, and of /his furviving Apoftles, it was completed, and the facred .canon clofed. This was certified with a folemn dccla- '-- ■ ratios .^o The Sacred Scriptures, ration that, as nothing is to be dirainiflied Trom it, nei- ther is any addition to be made to it. Ucv. xxii. i8, 19. 1. This revelation was, for many ages, verbal ; tranfmitted by tradition from generation to generation. It was, however, in due time, committed to writing. It is a received opinion, that no part of the facred books was written till the times of Mofes. TTiat he wrote the pentateuch, or firft five f'cred books, and the ninti#th plalm, we know; and it is the opinion of many that he alfo wrote the book of Job. Now, according to the befl Cbrcnologers, Mofes was born about the year of the world 243 5 ; and was fent to bring Ifrael out of Egypt about the year 2513 Thus did the world and the church fubfift for no lefs than two thoufand and five hu'idred years before any of the facred books was written. Revelation was handed down by the long- Jived patriarchs from one to another. The church, as well as the world, fubfifted for upwards of four thou- fand years before any of the books of the New Tefla- ment was written. So much have we, who live in the later ages of the world and the church, the advantage of thofe who lived in earlier ages. I fhall only add. Fourthly. That revelation is indifpenfibly necelTary to dircd man how he is to glorify and enjoy God in the now lapfed ilate. One of the many ftratagems the enemy of God and religion has ufed to difcrcdit revela- tion, and defeat the falutary defigns ot it, is a fpecious, but moft abfurd pretext that it is unnecefTary. It has been pretended that what is called the light of 7:aiure, is fufficient to dired man to everlalVmg felicity. But, if the light of nature be fufficient for one, muft it not be fufficient for all ? If it be fufficient, why is revelation granted to any ? Does God any thing in vain ? Can God be glorified and enjoyed in any other way than in Christ, or the covenant of grace ? Now, without re- velation, we cannot know that there is cither a covenant of works or a covenant of grace. From the light of na- ture "wc may learn, indeed, that there is a God> and that there The Sacred Scriptures, ^i there Is evil both moral and penal in the world. But us to the queftion, how fin entered our world, and how it is put away out of it, the light of nature is en- tirely filent. Fallen man ftill retains tkc faculties con- ititutive of human nature j and has fome inbred no- tions of right and wrong. But in regard to the true knowledge of his duty, and the important concerns of eternity, he is naturally as ftupid as he can be fuppofed to be, not to be altogether degraded from the rank of rational, to that of irrational animals. Nay, he often acts in a manner altogether unworthy of humanity. Ac- cordingly, he is compared to the dullelt and moft flupid of animals ; fuch as the ox, and the afs, even the wild afs, and the wild afs's cole. Ifa. i. 3. Job xi. 1 2. To the more provident and fagacious animals man is fcnt for inftrudion. Prov. vi. 6, — ii. Much indeed in re- lation to his bed intereds may he learn from them. But, that we may form a proper eftimate of ihtfiiffi- eiency, I fhould have faid infufficiency^ of the light of nature, and the neceffity of reTclatioo, let us take a view of the world unenlightened by the gofpel ; and at- tend to indifputable fads. We need not, in our pre- fent furvey, pafs the great Atlantic. We need not tra- vel as far as the eaftern verge of Afia, or the fouthern extremity of Africa. In what fituation were the inhabitants of Europe, nay the Britilh Ifle itfelf, previous to the coming of the gof- pel? Taking a retrofped view of them, do we find them walkmg, previous to the introduction of Chrifti- anity, in the way that leads to everlafling glory ? The very reverfe, alas, is the cafe 1 We find them a6ting in a manner which it is fliocking to relate. I need not, as I hinted already, to fay any thing of the Hottentots of Africa, or tiie inhabitants of New Holland. I may fpeajt of the wifeft, the moft learned, the politeft nations of Europe. Not only have the heavenly luminaries been deified ; but almofl every creature on the earth, and under it, worOiipped as a God. Not only the fruits of 3* The Sacred Scriptural of the earth and the more ufcful animals j but the ug- licft and niofl noxious creatures j ftocks and ftones ; jiay, lliameful to tell, proflitutes, and imaginary be- ings, which never did, nor ever will aftually exift, have had divine honours paid to them. To fuch a Shocking degree have imaginary divinities, nominal deities, been multiplied, that among one people, a pco- j)!e faracms for rcflneraent and literature, no lefs a num- ber than thirty thoufand have been found 1 An an- cient wri^cr informs us, that in one temple dedicated to Venus, in the city of Corinth, there were no lefs than a thoufand prieftefles who made proftitution a part of their devotions to that goddefs. Not only have human facrifices obtained in the world ; but, it is faid, that, in one Pagan temple, on a certain occafion, in the fpace of four days, no Jewer than fixty-four thoufand pcrlbns "ucre facrificcd, I (hould rather have faid murdered! Such, my friends, is the fituation of our world, un- enlightened by the gofpel. And, in fuch circumftances, is there no need for revelation? no need for the gof- pel to call men from darknels to light, and from the power of Satan unto God? What fay the infpired writer? on this head ? A prophet of the Old Teftament, in terms the mod exprefs, tells us that men may dream and fay what they pleafe ; but ivhcre there is no vifiorif or revelation, th^ people pcrijhi, Prov. xxix. i^. An A- pofile of the New Teflament, in terms no lefs unequi- vocal and plain, affirms, that there is no falvation for finful men in any other name but that of Jelus Chrift. liui what faith the Son of God himfelf on this fubject ? He fpeaks in a manner perfe<^ly confonant to his Pro- phets and Apoftles. Addreffing his heavenly Father, he fpeaks thus — T^his is life eternal, that they vii^ht know thee., the only true God., and Jefiis Chrijl ivhotn thou haji Jent. John xvii. i^. Is it life eternal to know the only true God, and Jefus Chrifl ? What can it be but detth eternal not to know the onl) aue God, and Jelus Cferift vhom he bath fcnt ? How nccclfary, then, and how ^he Sacred Scriptursi, a a how ineftimably precious the gofpel! It, and it aloncj reveals the only true God, and the only Mediator be- tween God and man. This is the dcfign and purport of that revelation which is the fubjrd of the aniwer that comes now under review. Having made theic prelimina'-y obfervations, I proceed to a more particu- lar confideration of the anfwer. I may coniider it under three heads ; the defignatiort given to revelation, the word of God; the extent of it, it is contained in the fcriptures of the Old and ISew Tejia- ment ; and the important ufe of it, // is the only rule ta dired us how we may glorify and enjoy God, I. The word of God. . This expreflion, in fcripture^ has a two-fold fignificationi It is applied to the perfo- nal word ; who, according to the myUerious order of fubfiftence, is the fecond perfon of the glorious Trinity. This title is afcribed to him by the Apoftle John cfpe- cially. John i. i, 14. i John i. 7. Why he, as di- (tinguifhed from the two other perfons of the Godhead, is called the Word, it would be a digreffion to fhow at prcfent. It may fuffice to mdntion one obvious rea- fon for it. As it is by our words we communicate our thoughts to one another, it is by Jelus Chrift God has revealed his vl^ill to us for our falvation and his glory. John i. 18. By the word of God in the anfwer is meant, that revelation of grace which God has vouch- ifafed to give us by his Son ; who, as a prophet, reveals to us, by his word and fpirit, the will of God for our falvation. For what reafons revelation is defigncd the word of God, it is eafy to fee. Of it God is the author, the fubj'rd, and the end* Firji^ The aithor. What is faid of the lafl of the facred books may be faid of them all — -'The revelation of Jefas Chriji, which God ^ave unto him^ as Mediator ; ta be by him, in the actual exercife of his prophetical of- VoL. h E t fice, 24 77j€ral meaning of infpi- ration is obvious. 1 am not in ttiis place to canvafs the different hypothefes and queflions concerning it, which have been agitated among theological writers. Of three different degrees, or rather kinds, of infpiration do they fpeak ; which are diftinguifhed by the names oi fuperintcndencyi elevation, and fuggejlion. The firfl denotes the lowcft degree or kind of infpi- ration that can be fuppofed. It means that the facred penmen, when tbey wrote the feveral parts of the fcrip- tures, were under the fuperintending power of the Holy Spirit, fo far, and only fo far, as was neceffary to pre- ferve from grofs errors and miftakes. The fecond fig- nifi;-s, that they were not only fuperintended by the Spirit, fo far as was neceffary to keep them from fatal miftakes, but elevated to a degree^ to which, without fuch aflillance, they never could have attained. The third, which is the hi^heft degree or kind of inlpiration, implies, that they were not barely allKled fo far as to avoid miftakes, and to write in an elevated manner ; but had immediately fuggefted to them, by the Holy Ghoft, what they were to write. Such are the general kinds The Sacred Scriptures » 41 kinds of infpiration, of which critics on this fubjed fpeak. Is it alked. Which of thefc kinds of it is intend- ed in the text ? Or, with ^^hich of them were the fa- cred penmen of the Old and New Teftament favoured? On this, as on almoft every other fubje£t, writers are divided. There are no lefs than four opinions. One infifts, that no more is meant than a mere fuperintendcney of the Holy Ghoft, by which the writers of the fcriptures were guarded againft grofs miftakes or blunders. Ano- ther pleads, that they were, on different occafions, favour- ed with different kinds of infpiration. For inftance, when the evangelifts wrote the hiftory of our Lord's life and miniftry, they had no occafion for any thing higher than the infpiration of fuperintendency, or, at moft, elevation ; for they only related fads of which they had a previous perfonal knowledge. But, in wri- ting the prophetical books, or forctelhng future events, the highefl degree of infpiration was neceflary, A third fuppofition is, that the divine Spirit fuggefted to the infpired writers the matter of what they were to write; but left them to their own choice of words. A fourth opinion, which I avow for mine, is, that the bleffed Bible, for manner as well as matter, fentiment and ex- preifion, is the word of God, didated to the facred pen- men by his unerring Spirit; and, therefore, it is our only rule to dired us how we are to glorify and enjoy God. As for the firfl fuppofition, according to it, the blef- fed Bible may be a mafs of leffer errors, and fmaller miflakes. Agreeably to the fecond, the truths contain- ed in the fcriptures, how important foever, may be ex- preffed in terms the moft improper. With regard to the difference which the fecond opinion fuppofes be- tween the inipiration of one part of fcripture and ano- ther, it may fuffice to obferve, that men of a fertile in- vention may multiply metaphyseal niceties without end ; but of fuch diltindions the Bible itfdf has faid nothing. Vol. I. f F That 42 The Sacred Scriptures, * That the blefled Bible, for matter and manner, fcntl- ment and (lile, is the word of God, diiflated by his di- vine Spirit to the infpired writers — that word itfelf, often and with fufEcient clearnefs, intimates to us. How often is the Lord faid to /peak to Moies ? How often is his u'orii laid to come to the prophets? Does not an Apoftle of the New Teflament fpeak exprcfsly of the luords, ivhich net man's luijdcm teacheth, but which the Holj Ghq/i ieacheth ? i Cor. ii. 13. It is objsdcd, that in the facred books there is a vi- fible diverfity of ftile and manner. The fa£l is admit- ted ; and the reafon is obvious. The Spirit of infpira- tion ufed, as his amanuenfes, men of different birth, education, and accomplishments. He did not fuperfede, but employ in his fervice, the diverfity of capacity and genius he found among them. The books received as canonical by Proteftants, and particularly among us, I need not enumerate. It is more material to remind my hearers of the manifold characters of divinity inftamped upon them. The di- vinity of the fciiptures is, indeed, a capital point. How necefiarv to our coir.fort is it, that we be eltablifhed and confirmed In it! 1 am not to deal with the avowed enemies of rcvelaiion. Bur, may not exercifed Chri- Itians be tempted to queltion the divine original and authority of the holy fcriptures ? They may, and often do labour under this heavy temptation. Manifold and unknown are the (Iratagems, and machinations, which the cruel adverfary ufes to overturn the faith, and mar the comfort of militant faints. How audacioully impu- dent is he! After the attacks which he made on their glorious Head, what may not the members exped from him.? Often, and justly, has it been faid, that it is no fin to be tempted ; fin lies In yielding to the temptation. For an enumeration of the many excellent marks of the divine original of the fcriptures, 1 refer my hearers to the Larger Catechifin. Confidering a foil difcuflior> of The Sacred Scriptures, 4-5 of the fubje£!: as unneceflary, I Ihali only Tuggeft a few things at prefent. Fir/i, Is there not apparent in the fcriptures a divine majefly peculiar to themfelves, which diftinguifhes them from all other books ? Does not God fpeak, as well as ad, in a manner becoming himfelf, and dcaionilrative of his infinite faperiority to all his creatures ? riow pro- per and how emphatic the queflion, Hq/t thou an arm like God? Or canji thou thunder with a voice like htm? Job xl. 9. Who ever heard the man Chrifl Jefus fpeak by the word, the word^ accompanied with the power of the Spirit, and was not conftrained to h^ , Never man /pake like this man ? Let me Secondly. Remind my bearers of the divine purity of the fcriptures. In this, as well as in every other view, they are fuperior to all other writings that can come in competition with them. What difparity between them and the moft celebrated compofitions of Pagan antiquity! What glaring indications of human depravity do we find in the latter ! Often are vices extolled for virtues. What vile impuricies do we find in the Alcoran of Mahomet ? Does it not tolerate, rather encourage. fenfuaUity befit- ting fwine rather than faints ? Do not the fcriptures, on the contrary, enjoin univerfal purity ? Do they not dif- cover purity as well as majefW worthy of God ? I may Thirdly, Call your attention to the uniform harmony and confiftency of fcripture. That we may fee the flrength of this argument, it mull be recolleded, that the fcriptures were not all written at once, or by one and the fame perfon. Far from it. In detached parts, and in difldnt periods, were they written ; yet as uni- form and confident as if all written by one hand. Is not this a ftrong proof that, though written by perfons far diflant frorr one another in place as well as in time, the fcriptures mull have been diclated by che Spirit - How often do the moft celebrated philolophers contra- dia each other, and even themfelves ? What palpable contradidions do we find in the Alcoran ? The fact is Fa io 44 The Sacred Scriptures. fo glaring, that Muflelmen, the votaries of Mahomet, themfdves are conftrained to admit it. For it, however, they pretend to account in a confiftency with the fup- pofed divinity of the book •, but in how flimfey a man- ner ! As Mahomet was employed in writing his Alco- ran for upwards of twenty years, during that long pe- riod revolutions happened, which obliged the Deity to repeal certain laws which he had formerly enafted, and enjoin others in contradidion to them. What ! A long period of twenty years ! Could not the deity, at the commencement of a period not longer than twenty years, forefee every event, the mod fortuitous, that could happen before the confummation of it ? What was a period of twenty years, in comparifon of the interval between the writing of the firft: and the lafl of the facred books ? Inftead of twenty, here is a pe- riod of many hundred years. From Mofes, who wrote the firft of the facred books, till the Apoftle John, who wrote the laft of them, was an interval of a thoufand and five hundred years. Numerous inconfillencies and contradictions, indeed, have the enemies of religion pretended to find in the facred books. But as often have the advocates of reli- gion fhown, to the conviction of the unprejudiced part of mankind, that all fuch contradidlions are only pretended, not real. For a fatisfa£lory folution of the many inconfiftencies which cavillers have pretended to find in the volumes of infpiration, 1 might refer you to our commentators and other writers. For a fpecimen, however, I ^all men- tion the following inflances. The period of the pere- grinations of Abraham's family, which ended in their coming out of Egypt, is, in Gen. xv. 13, faid to be four hundred years; but, in Exod, xii. 40,41, four hundred and thirty. Eafily are thefe two accounts re- conciled. !t was four hundred, or four hundred and thirty, according as the commencement ot it is dated, from Abraham's leaving his native country, or an after period. The account ia Exodus may reckon from his coming The Sacred Scriptures. 45 coming out of Ur of the Chaldces ; that in Genefis from about the birth of Ifaac. The number of Jacob's family that went down to Egypt is, in Gen. xlvi. 26, faid to be only threefcore and fix ; in verfe 47, threefcore and ten; and in Adts vii. 14. threefcore and fifteen. All thefe different accounts, however, are perfectly con- fiftent. The firft, which exprefsly excludes Jacob's fons wives, may alfo exclude himfelf, Jofeph, and his two fons. Thus the number of his pofterlty amounted only to fixty-fix. The fecond may include himfelf, Jofeph, and his two fons; and then his family confifted of levenry perfons. The third account may exclude Jofeph and his two fons, reducing the number to fixty-feven ; but may include the eight wives, who are not included in the former accounts ; and then the number is three- fcore and fifteen, as mentioned by the infpired writer* of the Ads. In 2 Sam. xxiv. 24. it is faid, that David bought the threfhing- floor, and the oxen for facrifice, from Arau- nah or Oman, for fifty (hekels of filver ; and, in i Chron. xxi. 2 5, it is affirmed, that he paid to Oman fix hun- dred Ihekels of gold. But thefe accounts are not at all irreconcileable. The writer of the book of Samuel means only the fpot called the threfliing-floor, on which an altar was at that time erected, and the oxen for fa- crifice. But the writer of the Chronicles intends the whole mountain or traft of ground on which the tem- ple was afterwards built, with all its courts and the ave- nues leading to it. On it, when David purchafed it, there might be feveral houfes, for which, as well as the ground, ic behoved him to pay an adequate price. Thus fifty fhekels of filver might be as fuflicient a price for the former, as fix hundred fhekels of gold for the latter. The infoired writers of the books of fecond Samuel and firft Chronicles, fpeaking of the duration of the fa- mine with which David and Ifrael were threatened, for his vanity in numbering his fubjeds ; the foroier, 2 Sam. xxiv. 13, calls it feven years; the latter, 1 Chron. xxi. 1 2, only three years. 1 Lis difSculty has been re- moved 46 The Sacred Scriptures^ moved by fuppofin^ an error to have crept into thff text in Samuel. What, perhaps, led feme to think fo is, the Greek tranflation of the Old Teftament, kno\vn by the name of the Septuagint, has in the text in Samuel three inrtead o^feven. But, for a folution of this difficulty, there is no neceflity for a fuppofition fo derogatory to the facred fcriptures. The famine, had it happened, was to lad only three years for the num- bering of the people. But there had already been a famine of three years, on account of the injuftice and cruelty of Saul in flaying the Gibeonires. 2 Sam. xxi. 1 .; and this famine had ceafcd only the year immediately preceding. This fourth, probably, was the fabbatical year, in which there was neither fowing nor reaping ; and, therefore, if three other years of famine had now commenced, there would have been no lefs than feven years of famine ; as ftatcd by the writer of fecond Sa- muel. « But it was for the laft three of thefe feven years only the famine was to be inflicted, for the fm of num- bering the people ; as expreffed in firft Clhrcpicles. Once more, in i Kings viii. 9. it is faid, that in the ark, which flood in the holy of holies, thcte was nothing but the t\ro' tables of ftone. But, in Heb- ix. 4, the Apoftle fcems to fay, that in it were the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, as well as the tables of the covenant. But, when the ^Apoftlc fpeaks thus, zuhere'm^ or in ivbicb, was the golden pot and Aaron's rod ; the queftion is, To what does he, by the phrafe in which, refer? Whether to the ark, the nearer antecedent, or the hoiiejl of all, the remoter ? That the golden pot and Aaron's rod were in the holy of holies is not, cannot be, doubted."* But, even admit- ting that the exprtfTion in luhich refers to the immedi- ate antecedent» the ark of the covenant, the Greek pre- pofnion tranflated in has an ambiguity in it, and admits of fuch a latitude as renders the Apofllc's words fully confiflcnt with thcfe of the Old Tcftament writer. That it often fjgnilies near a thing as well as in it, cannot bp The Sacred Scriptures, 47 be denied. Though the tables of the covenant only were actually within the ark, the golden pot and Aa- ron's rod, as well as the tables, and the ark. that con* tained them, were depofited in the holy of holies. Though they were not, along with the tables, aQually within the ark, they were near to it, probably as much fo as they could be, not to be actually v/ithin it. 1 his is all the Apoftle means ; and all that his words, in their moll natural conftrudion, can be underftood to carry in them. Thus, between the infpired wricers of the fir ft book of Kings and of the Epillle to the Hebrews, there is a per- feft congruity. In proof of the divinity of the fcrip- tures, let us Fourthly, Attend to the following confideration. The facred writers, in a variety of ilriking inflances, predict the- mod diftant and contingent events ; and predict them with as much punctuality and exactnefs, as if they had lived when they happened, and been on the fpoc to fee them accompiifhcd. I fpeak of contingent events, the accomplilhment of which does not depend on fscond caufcs ; and, therefore, cannot be calculated and ac- counted for by the laws of nature. Events there are, which the knowledge of the laws of nature may enable naturalifts, not onJy to defcribe, but to foretel ages be- fore they happen. The tranfit of a planet paiTiDg by a fixed ftar — an cclipfe of the fun, occafioned by the in- lerpofition of the moon between it and our earth — or, an eclipfe of the moon by the intervention of our at- mofphere between the fun and if — the alternate ebbing and flowing of the fea — and fimilar ev-nts, c:^n be cal- culated and predicted for ages to come. The reafon is obvious. They depend on what we call the laws of nature ; which are permanent and regular in their ope- rations. But occurrences of the moft cafual and fortui- tous kind, dependent on no fuch caufes, and of which, from fuch eilabliflied laws, no man can have any pre- vious knowledge, did the infpired writers foretel, hun- iJreds, many hundreds ©f vears before thcv happened. The 48 T^he Sacred Scripturei. The time, place, and perfons concerned in events t6 tome to pafs in futurity, did the prophets of God fpeci- fy with the utmoft precifion, and moft circumftantial nicety. Let me exemplify this important obfervation in a few inftances. About three hundred years before Jofiah, king of Ju- dah, was born, was it foretold that he, by name, fhould burn, upon an altar in Bethel, the bones of the idolatrous priefts whom Jeroboam had employed to offer facrifices upon it. This event is predicted with as much clear- nefs and perfpicuity as if the prophet had been writing the hiftory of it. Compare i Kings xiii. 2. with 2 Kings xxiii. I f;, — 18. Could a witnefs of the fatal end of Ahab and Jezebel liave defcribed it, in all its circumftances, fuch as dogs licking the blood of the former, and eating the flefh of the latter, in a more particular manner, than it was pre- dicted a conliderable time before it happened? With 1 Kings xxi. 17, — 24* compare 1 Kings ix. 30, — 37. . Not only did Ifaiah in his prophecy, foretel, the return of the Jcv^s from captivity, two hundred years before, but cxprefsly named the very monarch, who, in the hand of Providence, was to be the inftrument of it. Ifa. xlv I. In how circumftantial a manner did Daniel predict the rife and downfal of four great monarchies ; the Chaldean j the Perfian j the Grecian j and the Roman! Chap. vii. How minutely did the prophetic writers of the Old Teftament Ipeak of the molt important of events ; the atl^ual incarnation of the Son of God, and the iaiutary confcquences of it ; the time of it, at the expiration of the feventy prophetic weeks, or ^90 years ; the place, and feveral extraordinary circumftances attending it! How particularly do the inlpired writers of the New Teftament foretel the moft momentous events to be accompliflied in the church and the world from the afcenfion of our Lord till his fecond coming ! In how lively , The Sacred Scriptures, ^^ lively colours Is the chara£l-r of the Antichriftian power delineated in the apoc 'lyptic vifions ! Mu'l not the books which contAin fuch predidions be divinely infpired ? Muft not fuch predi6tions proceed from that omnifcient Spirit, to whom p.ift and cominj^ events are equally known? Mufl they not come froiii that Sapre;ne bein«:, who has the fovereij^n difpolal of all events; the mod cafual as well as (he mofl: necelfary ? I fli ill only add. Finally, The fignal interpofition and care of Provi- dence tor the prefervation of thofe facrcd books ; and the tranfmilTion of them uncorrupted to the Uteft times. Many books, once ufeful and adeemed, both amona- Jews and Chriflians, have gone into perpetual oblivion. But the holy Icriptures are prefsrved, and, though to many infipid, to the faints favoury and precious. Let us call to mind the great antiquity of the f-icred books. In this, as well as in all other refpeds, they merit the afcendency of all other books. The books of Mofes, in all probability, are the firfi: that ever were written. The famous Jewifli hiilorian, indeed, informs us, thit. the poflerity of Seth, many a^es |»rior to the birth of Mofes, wrote their difcoveries in the different fciences on two pillirs, one of ftone. another of brick ; the former for their prefervation in cafe of a flood ; the latter in cafe of a conflagration. But this is a fabulous ftory. Previous to the dilcovery of the ufeful art of printine, books mufl have been comparatively fcarce. On dif- ferent occafions have the facred books be m in apparent danger of becoming wholly extini!^. Such was the de- generacy of the Jcwifli church, previous to the accellioa of good kirig Jofiah to the throae, that the facred books then written feemed to be totally loll. But to his joy he I'bon founl tiiat, thr^u^h the interpofuion of au ever-watchful Providence, a copv of them had been, preferved. This is thought to have b-^en ihe ori^hial copy written by the hands of the infpired penmen them- felves. 2 Kings xxii. 8. Vol. L G t I: JO The Sacred Scriptures, It has been i»nagincd that all the facred books, writ- ten before the Babylonian captivity, were then loft; and reftored by Ezra. But this opinion has no foundation, and is, in the hipheft degree, improbable. Do we not find Daniel, during the captivicy, confulting the pro- phecies of Jeremiah, relating to the duration of it ? Dan. ix. 2. In the darkeft times of the New Teftament, when Popery was in its meridian, we find manuicript copies of the fcriptures in almolt every quarter; and tranfla- tions of them into different languages. Thus, though other books have periflied, the lofs of which we cannot but lament, this blefl'ed book, the Bible, never has, it never can be, loft. All paft inundations and conflagra- tions, elections and fubverfions of great empires and cities, it has furvived. The care of Providence has been in a fignal manner exercifed about it. As an invaluable dcpofiium has it been committed to the church, and continued in her from generation to generation. Un- adulterated has it come down from our forefathers to us. Indeed among the variety of manufcripts, no fmall di- vcrfity occurs. This may have been owing, in a great part, to the inattention of" the tranfcribers. But, it has been obferved, as an illuftrious proof of the fpecial care of Providence about this heavenly book, that none of thefe differences affcd any one article of the faith and comfort of Chriftians. 1 cannot difmifi this article, without recommending to your moft ferious attention an obfcrvation of the Com- pilers of our Larger Catechifm relating to it. It is ihis — " The Spirit of God bearing witncfs by and with *' the fcripiures in the heart of man, is alone able fully " to pcrfunde it that they are the very word of God." How conies it to pafs that there is io much fcepticifm among us ? ri>c reafon is obvious. The religion of many is wholly of tlic fpeculative kind. To vital and cxpcriuiental religion they remain utter ftrangers. Ihe great matter, my friends, is to feel, en our hearts, fu- pcrnatural The Sacred Scriptures. ^i pernatural power co-operating with the word. Happy are the preachers who can conEfratulate their hearers as the Apoftle did his — Our gofpel came not unto ycu in word only, but alfo in power ^ even in the Holy Ghojt^ ar:d in much ajfurance. i TheiT. i. 5. What wonderful efFcOs does the word, accompanied by the Spirit, produce ! To the ineffable fatisfaction of the foul does it evince itfelf to be of God. Of the va- rious and happy effefts of the word, in the great work of the falvation of finners, we have an account in the fequel of the Catechifm. How folicitous fhould we all be, that we may experience the efficacy of it on our own hearts ! The facrcd books are, in the anfwer, diflinguiflicd into the fcripturcs of the Old Teftarnent, and the fcrip- tures of the New ; the former beginning with Genefis, and ending with Malachi ; the latter beginning with Matthew, and ending with the Revelation. It may be afked, what the anfwer intends by Tejlament, what by an Old and a Nezu Teftament ; and why it calls the books written before the incarnation of the Son of God the Old Tedament ; and the books written poflerior to that evenr the New ? The word teftament here is equivalent to the term covenant. What, in the general, is intended by a cove- nant, and what by a teftament, almoft every one knows. By this covenant and this teftament, we underftand that myfterious conftitution, that glorious expedient, which God from eternity invented, and has in tim.e revealed to fallen man */)r his redemption. Of it, either under the notion of a covenant or a teftament, 1 muft not now give any particular account ; for of it, in both view^ I will have occaficn to fpeak in the fequel. In the wri- tings of both tie Prophets and Apoftles, it is defigi.ed a covenant. In the writings of the latter, it is alfo often Renominated a iejiament \ the Evangelifts and Apofties having exprefled it by a word, which is on one occafiort rendered covenant, and on another teftament, G 2 It 52 The Sacred Scnptures, It may fuflice to fay, that, rs tranfactrd from etfrnity between the Father and the Son, it is, with tl e utntolt propriety, called a covenant ; am', as it is adminifiered to us, it is a teftament, rather than a ccven.-.nt. All the rich bleifings of it are dilponed to us in a ttftamcntary, rather than a federal way ; not in a conditional, hut in ihc mod gratuitous'and freed manner. Here is every thing belonging to a proper teflament; a teftator. Je~ fus Chriji ; legatees, Jinners of mankind ; legacies, /;// the prccwus hlcjftn^s of grace and glory ; and the confir- mation of the teilament by the death of the glorious Teffator. But, why fpe.?ks the anfvver of the Old and Iseiv Tefbament ? Are there two covenants of grace ; one by which believers were faved before the coming of Chrift ; and another bv which thev are faved after it ? No. The covenant of grace, as we will fee afterwards, is in itfelf the fame in all ages of the church. There is, hovA'ever. a twofold adminiftrafion of it ; the jcwifli, I'.nd the Chriflian. Thnt difpenfation which preceded i\\t, coming of the Meflish is old and antiquated. The fuperior difpenfation, which he has introduced, is new, and continues till the end of the njilitant flate. For what reafon the prophetical fcnptures are called the -O/c/, and the npoflolical fcripturcs the l^eiv Teftap?ent, it is eafy to fee. The great defign of both is to reveal that one cverlafling covenant, by which the redemption of the church is cff'f cted. Now the proplietical writings may 1 e defigned the Icripturcs of the Old Teftament, for two obvious rca- fons. They contain the firfl edition of the evcrlafling co*'<"nant ; and they were written during the old ad- iTiiniftraticn of it. Accordingly, they conclude with a glorious predi^lion of the ?6tual incarnation and perfo- :r\ minifiry cf the Son of God ; and of the appearance snd n-.iniflry cf the Baptift, his immediate harbinger ; witi"* a folcf 'n i!ijun0.ion to the Jews, to rcminue in the obfcrvation oi the laws and cereir.ojjies which belonged to The Sacred Scriptures^ r^ to that typical difpenfation, till the arrival of the irr.pcr- tant period, at which a fuperior difpenfition was to fu- perfede and fucceed it. Mai iv. For nmiiar reafons may the apofioHcal writings bs fliled tie fcripturcs of the New Tcftament. They c mtain the fecond edition of the everiafting covenant ; and were written after the commencement of the new adminillration of it. The particular times of writing the feverai books cf the New Teftamcnt cannot be prccifeiy afcertained. Nor have we any fufficient ground to think that they were written according to the order in which they are row arranged. Hut, that they were all written poi'te- rior to our Lord*s afcenfion. and, of confcquence, after the ereclion of the Chriftian church, is inanifert:. Is any folictto'^s to know what the Jcwifh oeconomy was ? He muft confalt the writings of Mufes and the Prophets. Is any defirous to learn in what rcfpscls the Chnftian oeconoiny differs from the Jewifh, and is fup.^rit.r to it ? He muft apply, for information, to the writing*; of the Evangelifts and Apoftles. The Jews hjid the Redeem- er's firft tsfla^nent typically ratified by ihe blood of goats and calves. "We, Chriftians, have' his lad tfftament ac- tually confi'med by his ozvn mhmttls precious blood. The mofl: part of the Old Teftament, as is well known, was originally written in Hebrew, and the New ielta- ment in Grerk. The reafon of writing the former in Hebrew, and the latter in Greek, is obvious. The He- brew was the language of the Jews, to whom the pro- phetical oracles were originally committed. The Greek was moft univerfally known when the fcripiures of the New Teftament were written. Accordingly, previous to writing any part of the New lellament, the Icrip- tures of the Old had been tranflated into Greek. The tranflation. vhich goes under the name of the Soptuagirii^ is well -known. It has its name, which fignifies feventy, from the number of perfons fuppoied to have been em- ployed in it. Tile hiftory of this famous tranfiation of the Old Tei'lament is, in fliort, this. Pto!o:r.y Phibdel- phus. 54 ^'^^ Sacred Scriptures. phus, kiag of Egypt, having erefted a fine library In the city of Alexandria, was felicitous to fill it \rith the mofl curious and valuable books which he could col- left from all quarters ; and, having been informed that the Jews had a famous book, which contained the laws of Mofes, and the hiftory of their nation, applied to E- leazar, the Jcwifh high-pricfl, for a Greek tranilation of it. In order to induce the high-prieft to comply with his requeft, he liberated all the Jews whom his father, Pto- lomy Soter, had reduced to flavery. The Jewifh high- prieft fent to the Egyptian king an exad copy of the Mofaical law, written in letters of gold ; and along with it fix elders out of each tribe, in all feventy-two ; who are ufually filled the feventy interpreters j becaufe feventy is the round number. They were received with marks of great rcfped; by the king, and conduced into the ifle of Pharos, where they were lodged in a houfe prepared for their reception ; and furnifhed with every accommodation. They fct about the tranilation imme- diately ; and finifiicd it in feventy-two days. The whole being read in prefencc of the king, he admired the pro- found v/ifdom of the Jewifh law ; and fent home the elders loaded with prcfents for themfelvcs, for the high- prieft, and for the temple. Myfterious are the ways of holy Providence! The great Governor of all worlds, and Lord of the church, had other views than either the king of Egypt, or the high-pricfl of the Jews. The king of Egypt meant the en- richment of his library. God intended the enlargement of his church. Alexander the Great having, with afmall army, and in a fliort time, conquered almofl the then known world, the Greek language became common to all the countries which he fubducd. Now it was put into the heart of the king of Egypt to accomplllh a tranilation of the facred oracles into Greek, that they might be- come known to thoulands of thoufands, to whom in another language they were perfectly unintellijjible. Was not this tranflation of the Old Tcflaracnt fcrip- turcg ^he Sacrsd Scriptures, ^5 turcs into the language moft copious in itfelf, aad moft commonly underftood, a happy prelude, a joyful pre- fagc, of the approaching propagation of the glorious gofpel among mankind, in all quarters and countries of the inhabited world ? It has been obferved, that the Gentile profelytes to the Jewiih religion were moft numerous in the ages that immediately preceded the coming of Chrift in the flefli; and that this Greek tranilation of the Old Tellament was univerfally ufed by the Jews, who, in great num- bers, were difperfed in all the countries contiguous to Judea, is well known. This occafions the dilUndion between two words in the New Teftaraent, Greeks and Grecians ; which, though fimilar in found, differ in fig- nilication. Bv Greeks, we are to underftand the na- tives of Greece, a country on the fouth-eaft extremity of Europe ; and by Grecians, thofe who, though by birth Jews, ufed the Greek language. Were tke fcrip- turcs written originally in dlfferenc languages, the lan- guages of the different nations among whom they were at firfl publifhed "i Is not this a plain intimation, that they are to be tranflated into the various languages of the feveral quarters of the world, into which they may, either at an earlier or later period, penetrate ? How im- pious and how abfurd is the conduct of the Romifh church ! Why does ihe coniine the fcriptures to the Latin language ? If the ancient Romans, who under- ftood and ufed the Latin, might tranilate them into their language, why may not the inhabitants of any other country tranflate them into theirs ? How thankful ihould we be, that we have the fcriptures in a language we underfland ! How would our pious anceltors, at the commencement of the Proteftant Reformation, have va- lued fuch a privilege ! 1 fhall only add a word or two, in relation to the di- vifion of the facred books into chapters, and the fub- divifion of them into verfes. In the firft ages of Chri- ilianity, it is faid, they were divided inio fhort para- graphs. 56 The Sacred Scriptures, graphs. When they were firrt: (divided into rhaptersj it is difficuh to determine. IVIany fuy it was in the rhir- teenth centurv ; oiV^crs that it was as early as the rlc- venth, if not foon:;r. Soo^e have held- that the Oid Teitament was al'Anys divided into \tr{^i. But it hr;3 been obferved., that they were not nuiiibcred, as we have tliem, till, perh.lps, the fifteenth centurv. As for the Kew Teil.iment, it is fa'-d to have been fubdividcd into verfes only in the fixteenth. Great, indeed, are our advantage's. If we either do not read the fcriptures, or do not underfiand them, how inexcufable niuH: we be. Having confidered the extent of revelation 1 am, in. To fpeak of the itiiportant ufe of it. // is the ojihj rule to dire ft us how tve arc io glorify and enjoy Gcd. As to our gierfifying God, which is our bounden dutv, and our enjoying him, which is our highcil felicity, and the necefTuy of revelation to direct us how to do the one and obtain the other, I have no occafion to fay any thing here. 1 need now only to confider the fcriptures under the notion of a rule, and the only rule to direct us in the important matter of glorifying and enjoying God. 1 am to confider it, Firjl^ As a rule. The term here ufed by the Com- pilers of our Catechifm is, perhaps, taken from Gal. vi. i6. ; where the infpired Apofllc befpeaks the Gala- tian converts thus — As many as ivalk according to this rulc^ -peace he on ihcm^ and mercy ^ and upoti the Jfrael of God. Thefe words have, indeed, been differently inter- preted. The phrafe,//j/j rule, has been underflood to refer ro the prccc(]ing context, where the Apoftle fhews, that, though the Jews h?d greatly the advantage of the Gen- tiles under the Old Tedament, under the New it doeii not at all matter whether perlons be of Jewifli or Gentile extraction. Both are now on a level. The only thing that concerns both, is to be iavingly in Chrill, and thus to be new creatures. Or it relates to the general drain of this epiitlcr, which it to Ihow, that the falvation of , finners. The Sacred Scriptures, p'j finners, whether of Jewifh or Gentile defcent, is en- tirely of grace, through faith wbic/j is in Jefus Chriji, Or, in fine, it is to the general tenor of the facred fcrip- cures of both Teftaments. The great end and ufe of them is to be the rule, the only rule, to direfl finful man how he, in the now fallen ftat^, nvay glorify and enjoy God. The appofitenefs and fufficiency of divine revelation, as a rule to direct us in this weighty concern, mud: be, to every intelligent and unprejudiced perfon, abundant- ly manifeft. It is at once a copious and plain diredory. Does any carelcfs finner, who hitherto has been with- out fetious confideration, now begin to reflccl and be- think himfclf? Is he confcious, that hitherto he has lived without God and all reIi;Tious experience ? Is he aflumed of himfelf and his paft folly ? Does he v/ifh to begin to glorify and enjoy God ? Is he folicitous to know how he is to fet about this great and good v.'O'-k ? Here is a dirc«Slory for him. From it he may receive the mod 'authentic and the fulled infonnation. Every qualifi- cation of a rule, and a rule fufHcient to dire£l us in this mofl important of all concerns, does the blefl'ed Bible pofTefs ; efpecially the three following. 1. Authority. On this account it is defigned a lazu. Ifa. viii. 20. It is ena<5led by him who is the fupreme Ruler of the univerfe and Lord of the church, lo him all legiHative power originally belongs. It is, therefore, of the highelt authority. This law we mud obey. I his rule we mud obferve. It is upon our highed peril if we do not. Thus, if we do not, in conformity to this rule, glorify and enjoy God, we infult his authority, we defy his power ; and, who ever hardened himfclf ngainji the great God and profpered ? 2. Perfedio.:. All things necelTary to be believed or pradifed by us, in order to our glorifying and enjoying God in this preicnt date, are either expreffed or implied in the holy fcriptures. If, therefore, we come fl^ort ot our duty and our happinefs, it is noi owing to any de- VoL. 1. H + '^^^ !;S The Sacred Scriptures, fc'cl in the rule, but to our want of conformltv to ir. The imperrciflion is in us, not in the rule. Often in the fcriptures is their perfection afferted. As in Pfal. xix. 7. f /'c" laiA: of the Lord is pcrfe^^ converting the foul, "The tefciniony of the Lord is fure, making loife the fimplc. AnO, in the paflagc from which the text that introduced this difcourfc is takrn, j Tim. iii. 15, 16, 17. the A- poftlc befpeaks his fen. Timcrhy, thus — from a child thou hj/i kncnyn the holy fcriptures, luhich are able to vu2kc thee ivife unto fjlvaiior.^ through faith zvkich is in Chrifi Jefus, Xllfcripture is given by itifpiration rf God ; ar^ is profitable for doclrine^fcr reproof for correal ion, for in/tmSfton in ri%hieoufn:fs ; thjt the man of Ged may be perfccl^ thoroughly furmjhed unto all good luorks. And, 3. Infjl.'ibility. This is the nectfl'ary confequence of the divine infpiration cf the fcriptures. They were, indeed, written by imperfecl, atni^ therefore, fallible men. In other in(lar»ces they might err ; and did err. But, in wriiing- the facred books, they were under the ijnmediitc infmrntion, the infallible inipulfe, of that un- erring Spirit who cannot polfibly err. For, as the A- poiHe Peter teflifies, the prophecy came not in old time by the -^'ill cf man; but holy men cf God f pake, and alfo wrote, as they ivere moved, and guided,^/ the Holy Ghcjl, 1 Pet. i. 11, How many make their o\^ni reafon or comprehenfion, not revelation, the ftandard of their be- lief! When any thing in religion is propofed to them, either to be believed or pra(5lifiJ, the quellion with them is rot, whether the fcripture reveals and enjoins it? bu: it is immediatelv filled at the bir of their corrupt rea- fon ; andy as it appears to them fit or unfit, proper or improper, it is received or rejefted. This is a rock on 'which many have flruck, and which ha? proved fatal to them. It is net our own^comprehenfion, but divine revc- liticn, that is to be the rule, ns well as the reafon, of our faith. Were we to admit nothing into our creed but what we can compretiend and account for, how fiiort would it be ! Nay, wc would foon have no creed at all. Tell The Sacred Scriptures, rg Tell me an article of religion, 'm relation to which I cannot ftart diffi-'ulties, the fclution erf which u-oiild nonplus the ablcft divines in Chrifiendom. Mention any thing in nature, about which I cannot propofc r^ue- ftions, which the greateft naturalids on earth would find a difHculty in anfwering. To tranfcend reafon and to contradict it are two things eflcn ially difTcrcnt. 'I hat many things in revealed religion far tranfcend our leafon and comprehenfion is readily admitted. But that ariy thing in it contradicts found reiifon is denied. To every thing which the fcriptures reveal, we are indif- penfibly bound, on the authority of the divine reveafer, to give the fulleil credit. Every thing it enjoins, mte- reft, as well as duty, requires us to do. Many, indeed, who read the fcriptures err both in fentiment and con- duct. But this cannot be attributed to the fcriptures; which, with fufficient perfpicuiiy, point out the path of duty. That woful corruption of our intellectual and moral powers, which will come under confidcration in the fequel, accounts for it. Secondly^ This is our only rule. So the anfwer affirms with a particular view, ■ That the fcriptures are not merely a rule, but the only rule, to direct us how wc may glorify and enjoy God, is affirmed in oppofition to thofe, who, from an impious fuppofition of the imperfecVioa and infufficiency of the fcriptures. haveprefumed to add to them. That they are our rule, and only rule, iniglit be affbrted in oppofirion to Deiils, who, from a vain pretence of the fufficiency of natural religion, fet reve- lation entirely afide, as a thing ialtoget^iCr unneccfi":iry. it might be affirmed in oppofirion to Qjiakers, who are guided by an enthufiaftic I'ghi within them. 'I his re- ligious feet, as is vi'ell known, arofe from a layman ; and made iis fiiH: appearance in England about the mid- dle of the lafl century. They are io denominated from the unufual enthufiaftic commotions ^nd agitations that appeared among them ; and which, they pretend, were the effects of the operations of the divine Spirit. Ihis H 2 part 6o The Sacred Scriptures, part oF the anfwer, in fhort, refers efpecially to the con- troverfy long agitated between Papilts and Pretcftants, in relation to the fufHciency of the fcriptures. Ihe queftion between them is this. Is the word of God, which is contained in the fcriptures of the Old and New Teftament, without any additions, written or unwritten, not only a fufficient, but the only rule, to direct us how we are to glorify and enjoy God ? Or, is it in any in- ftance or inftances wanting, fo as to render tradition nec.flarv to inform us in relation to things about which it is filent ? Of the additions which Papifts have made to the facred oracles I have given a fhort (ketch already. It is of the manner in which they account for their conduft I now fpeak. For the neceflrty and warrant of their traditions they plead from a variety of confider- ations. A few of them may be mentioned. Ihus they plead — 1. Proteftants themfelves allow the authority and ob- ligation of unwritten traditions in the firft ages of the church. If they were neceffary then, why not now ? The anfwer is eafy. That the church, for a feries of ages, had only an unwritten and traditionary revelation, 1 have already admitted. But can Papifls pretend, that tradition is as necrflary pofterior to the writing of the facred books, as it was prior to it ? Was not the flate cf matters exceedingly different in the firft ages of the church from what it is now ? Then the prophetic fpirif ■was in the church. Then the Son of God frequently appeared to thc.Patriarchs in a human form, and con- veri'ed with them. Has not the prophetic fpirit remo- ved from the church ? Has not the higheft heaven re- ceived the Son of God ? Dots it not retain him till the final refliturion of all things ? 2. In the New Teflament are intimation?; of words fpoken by our Lord in the days of his humiliation on earth, which no one of the apoflolical writers has re- corded, and, therefore, tht y mull be handed down by tra- dition from one generation to another. An inflancc often The Sacred Scriptures, 6i often condefcended upon is in Acls xx. 35. ; In which the Apoftle, in his folemn charge to the elders of the Ephefian church, addrefleth them thus — I have Jhowed you all things, how that fo labouring ye ought to fupport the weak ; and to remember the words of the Lord Jefus, how he /aid ^ it is more bkffed to give than to receive. How inconclufive this argument is, in behalf of un- written traditions, any impartial reader will fee. That our Lord, either in exprefs terms, or in effeft, faid, as is here reprefented, cannot be doubted. But what is this to the purpofe ? That he fpake, as well as did, many things not recorded in the New Teflament is certain. The laft of the four Evangelical hiftorians has informed us, that there were many other things which Jefus did and faid on earth, that neither he nor the other Evangelifts had written. John xxi. 25. As for the words which the JVpoflle mentions to the Ephefian ciders, they are no more an unwritten tradition ; but, on the contrary, a part of the facred canon. Had the many unrecorded things which the Redeemer faid and did in our world been neceifary to be known, believed, and pradlifed by us, they alfo would have been written. Ihe Popifii chui'ch pleads, 3. That the Apoflle Paul recommends, rather incul- cates, the obfervation of traditions in the church ; for thus he befpeaks the ThelTa'oi/ian converts — ThereforCy brethren^ Jiand fq/i, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word or eur ep[ltle, 1 ThelT. ii, 1 5, Is not a repetition of this palTage a fufficient refutation of the Popirn interpretation of it? That the believing Thcf- falonians are here enjoined to hold traditions is a fact. But, what tradition? t Such traditions as are held in the Romifh church? No. But the traditions which the Apolllf* taught them when he preached among them ; and by his former epidle to them as well as this. The traditions which we have been taught by the Prophets ' and Apofllcs, it is our iiitcrefl, as well as our duty, to hold 62 The Sacred Scriptures, hold fall. Of fiich oral laws, or unwrkten traditions, as Papifls hold, the Apodlc fpeaks nothing. 4. It is pretended, that there is a neceffity of tradi- tions to fupply the place of fome parts of the facred fcriptures now loft. That there are, efpecially in the fcriptures of the Old Tcftament, intimations of books once known, and pro- bably ufcful, xvhich are now loft, we have fcen already. But the extinction of fuch books, not to mention other confiderations, is a certain proof that they were not given by infpiration. There is, however, one place in the NewTcftamcnt, in which, the Popifti church infifts, there is a plain intimation of r.n infpired book now loft. In Col. iv. 16. the Apoftle enjoins the members of the Coloffian church, not only to read the cpiftle which he was now writing to them, but to read an epi/ile from Laodkea. In relation to this epiftle, (aid to be from Laodicca, there is, indeed, among interpreters, fome diverficy of opinion. There is ftill extant an epiftle faid to have been fent from the Apoftle Paul to the Laodiceans. But the general opinion is, that this letter is fpurious. It is by many thought to have been writ- ten by fome of the heretical fed of the Manichees. Ac- cordingly, by the letter from Laodicea, which the Co- lollian converts are enjoined to read, may be intended one of the infpired epillles which the ApolUe had writ- ten to the churches \ of which, perhaps, the Laodiceaij converts had obtained a reading ; and which fome cir- cumflances in their cafe, unknown to us, might ren- der it highly neccfiary for them to perufe. In fhort, it muft cither have been one of the infpired epiftles contained in the fcriptures of the New Teftament, or one of the uninfpired productions of that age. It the latter, -rve have nothing to do with it as any part of the rule to dired us how we are to glorify and enjoy God. Thus the word of God, contamed in the fcrip- tures of the Old and New Teftaments, is the only rul^ xo direct us in the important concern of our glorifyin an The Sacred Scriptures. C% and enjoying him ; to which nothing is at any time to be added, whether by pretended new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men. This fubjed I fhall nov/ difmifs with a few refleclions, arifing naturally from the foregoing explanation of it. And, Firji of all, We fee whence the neceflity of revelation " originates. For fnpcrnaturai revelation, during the origi- nal ftate, there was no neceffity. Man then, indeed, both glorified and enjoyed God. But the knowledge which he had from his creation, including the fuperadded inti- mation relating to the forbidden tree, was fufficient to dired him, both how he was to do the one and obtain the other. Now, the ftate of matters is quite altered. Neither can we glorify or enjoy God, but through the mediation and interceffion of that blelVcd Mediator, whom the light of reafon never can difcover ; and whom Adam in innocency knew not. How infufficicnt is natural, and how neceflary reveal- ed, religion I The former,' indeed, difcovcrs that there is a God. And if there be a God, reafon, as w^U as revelation, teaches, that rational creatures are indifpen- fibly bound to acl conformably to his moral perfeftions. They muft be pious toward God. as well as jufl and merciful to one another. From reafon may we learn, that there is fuch a thing as moral evil in the world. But, can it inform us either how it entered, or how it caa be put away ? To revelation do we ftand entirely indebted for the important dilcovery, the interefling information, that the Son of God appeared once in the end cf the worlds to put away fin by thefacrifice ofhimfelf. With what veneration (hould we read, as well as hear, the word ! It is the word of God. What a profound veneration have the blinded votaries of Mahomet for their Alcoran ! If a Jew or a Chriftian but touch it, he incurs no lefs a punilhmcnt than immediate death. Nay, if a Muflelrian himfelf t^uch it with unwalhed hands, he mull be put to death. Blufh,' CiiriRians ! Mow 64 The Sacred Scriptures, How many baptized infidels have we among us ! They treat the blelFcd Bible with total negleft ; or, if they read it all, it only is that they may cavil, or turn it into burlefque. But, in proportion as others difefteem the Bible, let us efteem it. Precious and favoury is it to fa'nts. In how endearing a manner, in how high terms, do we find them fpeaking of it 1 / have ejieemed the words of his imiith^ faith Job, more than ?ny necejfary food. Job xxiii. 1 2. How neccffary is it that we be well edablifh.ed and confirmed in the belief of the divinitv of tlie fcriptures ! None of us can tell what winds of temptation may blow ; what trying times mav come upon us. From ■what teii.ptitien can we exped to be altcgtther exempt- ed ? Arc you folicitous to be well eftr.blifhed in the belief of the divine original of the fcriptures r Seek the happy experience of their faving efficacy on your own hearts. Such experience of their falutary efficacy v/ill be to you the moft fatisfying proof of their divine original. The accompliffiment of the ccconomy and work of redemption, appears to be the great object which God all along has in view in his government of this lower world ; to which the revolutions of empires, particu- larly the invention and improvement of the arts and fcieoces, are rendered fiibfervient. In a variety of in- flances might 1 exemplify this obfervation. A long feries of wonderful providential events, in which the defign of an over-ruling Providence to preferve and en- Targv the church, is mofl apparent, might 1 here re- count. Of one thing, on account of its immediate cun- neftion with the prefent fubjeft, I cannot but remind you. I mean the wonderful fubferviency of the art of printing to the propagation of the knowledge of the j'acred fcriptiirrs in modern times. Sadly, indeed, has the liberty of the prefs been abufcd. To the worft of purpofts has this excellent invention been proftituted. But, lor the accomplifhmcnt of the moft falutary pur- pofes, The Sacred Scriptures, 5r pofes, has the all-wife Ruler of the univerfe, in thefe later ages, led men to improvements in the moft ulcful art of printing, and other things that facilitate the prac- tice of it, which fcem to have been, in all former ages of the world, unknown. It has, indeed, been an opi- nion, that the art of printing has been known, in a great eaftern Empire in almoft all ages. But how in- ferior is their method of priming -to ours ? 1 fpeak of the art of printing as now pradlifed in Europe. This is known to have been an invention of the fifteenth century. Is it not worthy of particular obfcrvation, that this important difcovery immediately preceeded the Proteftant reformation ? Was it not granted to the world with a fpecial view to the propagation of the re- formed religion in it? In former times, books were not only comparatively fcarce ; but in a form far lefs com- modious than we now have them. They were in vo- lumes or rollsy written on one fide, and rolled on 2l ftafF or (tick. Books in this form are faid to be ftill ufed among the Jews. Thus, in the fcriptures, the. phrafe, the volume of the book, occurs. Pfal. xl. 7. The invention of proper materials for writing and printing, as well as the art of printing and binding books in the prefent form, has alfo contributed towards the fpread of fcripture-knowledge. Anciently it was ufual to write on pieces of lead, brafs, copper, wood, or Itone. The law, which Mofes received from God to deliver to If- rael, was written on two tables of flone ; which hss been fuppofed to be marble. Skins of aniraals were long ufed for paper. 'I his probably gave the hint for the invention and improvement of parchment ; which is faid to have been uf^d in writing for many hundred years before linen paper was known. We read of the parchments wLich Paul left at Troas, and which he de- fires Timothy to bring with him. 2 Tim. iv. 13. Bv which parchments, may be intended ehher the orifiinal Gooies of the Apollle's cpiilles, or a famous copy of the Vol. 1. i Old t 65 ^ *The Sacred Scriptures, Old Teflanient, on which he fet a high value ; and for the fatV-ry of which he was particularly felicitous. There arc fuid to be Indian books, written on the leaves of certain trees, extant to this day. The Egyptians are faid to have written, in ancient times, on the fine inner film or ikin of a kind of bulrufh or reed that grew on the banks of the Nile ; of which there is mention in the punilhment of Egyptj denounced by the Prophet, ^hc paper reeds by the brooks^ by the mouth of the brooks^ and every thin^ /own by the brooks Jhali ivithcr, be driven away^ and be no more. If i. xix. 7. The word paper in our language differs only in termination from the Latin name of that famous reed. That the invention of lincn- paper between five and fix hundred years ago, has been fubfcrvient to the increafe of the Chrilfian religion is obvious- For what important and manifold falutary purpofes has the glorious Mediator been entrufted with the actual adminiilration of the univerfil kingdom of providence! Is it not, that all events, profperous and adverfe, which happen in the world, may be over-ruled bv him, for the advancement and extcnfion of his fpiri- tual kingdom; which, though for a feafon in the world, is not of it ? Thus the great myftery of providence in the world, and the glorious myflery of grace in the church, go hand in hand.- How admirably are the different degrees of revelation, with vrhich the church in earlier and later times is fa- voured, calculated and adapted for anfwering the im- portant purpofes intended by them ! During the pa- triarchal ages, the church fubfifted in a kindof domellic flate, in a few detached families, the heads of which lived many hundred years. Thus was the true religion prtferved and tranfmitted by tradition from Adam to Moles. The vvorHiip of the patriarchal ages feems to have been exceedingly fimplc ; f^w ceremonies and orJinnnces belonging to it. When, in procefs of time, human life was conti acted within tlie narrow bounds of feventy or eighty years ; and, in the times of Mofes, the The Sacred Scriptures. Cy ihe church affumed a national form, and the rites oF religion were exceedingly multiplied, revelation was committed to writing. That polity of the church was fettled, which was to continue in it till the actual arrival of the important period which the Apoflle calls tbe time of reformation, when the Son of God introduced a new and fuperior difpenfation. How much was the revela- tion granted to the Jewifh church fuited to the confti- tution of it! How admirably is the revelation which the Chriftian church has received, adapted to the nature of it! How fit is it that the laft difpenfation of grace be the beft? Often is the gofpcl-flate, or New Teftament church, filled the kingdom of heaven. Nearefl in time, it is alfo nearefl: in nature to the celeflia! fl:ate. What high regard is due to the facred oracles ! Does a diftant friend write a kind letter to you, and fliall you fo far difregard him and it, as never once to read ii ? Mufl: he not, in this cafe, confider himfelf as aflVonted ? Shall he not relent the affront ? Has your beft friend in the heavenly world written fo long, fo confolatory, fo kind a letter to you on earth ? And fhall you not read it again and again ? Let me afk. Is this beft of books read in your families, and in your clofets, every morning and every evening ? But this is not all. There is ano- ther queftion no lefs neceffary than the former. Mow do you read it ? Do you read it as the word of the li- ving God, and his word to you ? Do you read it In faith ? The word whether read or preached profits only when it is mixed with faith. Do you read it with warm and grateful hearts \ Do you read a letter from a beloved friend at a diftance with indftcrence? You do not. May I not pofe each of yon in the words of Philip to the Ethiopian eunuch, UnderJianJe/i thou ivbat thou readejl? Do you retain wliat you read ? Are your me- mories repofitories of the oracles of God ? Do you, in ■fine, apply and praftife what you read ? Let me now, for a conclufion. exhort each of you, my dear friends, to the diligent perufal and daily ftudy of I 2 the 6S The Sacred Scriptures. the holy fcriptures. Has the great God vouchfafed to you fuch a copious revelation of his blefTed will for your falvation, in fubfervience to his glory ? Has your dear Redeemer, to whom you are under fuch ftrong and ten- der obligations, faid, Search thefcriptures^for in them ye think ye have eternal lifc\ and they are they which tejlify of me? It muft be your higheft intereft, as well as in- cumbent duty, immediately, and with alacrity, to comply with his gracious injunflion. Are you young ? Ponder, dny after day, your divine Redeemer's engaging words, / love all them that love me^ and thofe that feek me early Jloall find jne. Are you old? The period muft be at hand when you will fee this blefled book no more. Arc you parents, mafters, or governors ; having children, fervants, or pupils, committed to your care ? Enjoin, encourage them, to fearch the fcriptures. In this field a treafure of ineftimable value is hid. Do you wifli to find it ? You mufl: fearch, and again fearch, till you do find it. For a great variety of faving ufes and purpofes, "were the fcriptures written, and muft you read them. Are you confcious that, notwithftanding all you have heard in relation to the deformity of fm on the one hand, and the excellency of the Saviour on the other, the one as well as the other is to you. in a great mea- fiire, unknown ? Search the fcriptures, for they teftify of both. In what a frightful form is fin reprefented, and in what an engaging light is the Saviour exhibited in them ? Are you finners m a ftate of fpiritual death? or arc you faints in a ftate of fpiritual languiftiment ? Search the fcriptures, for they are the happy means of quickcniui' in the former cafe, and reviving in tne latter. Are you afilidcd and comfortlefs ? Search the fcriptures, for they are the fpccial means of fuch confolation to fouls, as nothing earthly can either give to the perfon that wants it, or take from the perfon that has it. Are you in profperity ? or are you in adverfity ? Search the i'ciipturcs. In the profped of lifcj and in the profpc«St pf death, fearch the fcriptures. ( 69 ) Faith and Praclice. Rom. xvi. 25, 26. Recording to the revelation of the myjiery, which was kept fecretftnce the world began, but now is made manifefl ; and by the fcriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlalling God, ?n^de knqwn to all nations for the obedience of faith. MYSTERIOUS are all the works and ways of God. Efpecially is the ceconomy of our redemption a myftery ,* which angels as well as men muft ever be unable fully to unravel. What the Apoftle immediately intends by myfiery, in the words which I have chofen to introduce this Ledurc, is the vocation of the Gentiles in the times of the New Teftament. This happy event, indeed, was in a gradual manner difcovered and pre- dided in the feveral ages of the Old Teftament. But there is reafon to think, that the Prophets were far from underflanding the full intent of the prophecies which they were infpired to utter. Even when the period ^commenced, in which their predictions were to be rea- lized, the proper defign of them was mifunderftood. The Apoflle^ themfelves did not at firfl properly under- ftand the extent of their commifiion. The partition-r wall, which, for a long ferics of ages, had feparated be- tween Jews and Gentiles, was now broken down. But, to the "JO Faith and PraBice. V the dlfcontinuation of the diRinftion between the two, the firft teachers of Chiiftianiiy did not fufficiently ad- vert. Accordingly, among the various orders of extra- ordinary and temporary minifters, with which the church in the firft ages of the New Tcflament was fa- voured, there were perfons ftiled Pro/>Z? Jehovah, art the mojl High aver all the earth, Pfal. Ixxxiii. 1 8. It has been obfer- vcd of fuch names as arc afcribcd both to God and hif creatures, that when they are applied to him,- in con- tradiftinftion to them, they have an emphatic particle affixed to them, to intimate the infinite pre-eminence which Almighty God has above all other beings. But the name Jehovah has no fuch afiix. l^he reafon is. It never is vo be applied to the creatures ; but ever is ^0 God V Bang a7id PerfiiJions, Sg to be appropriated to their great Creator. It has alfo been obferved, that, though other names of God have a plural number as well as a fmgular, this incoEnmunl- cable name has no plural. The reafon is obvious. It is the peculiar name of God, and God is one. Such was the veneration which the ancient Jews are faid to have had for this ineffable name, that they would not allow iherafelves, on any occafion, to pronounce it. It has alfo been an opinion, that, in the early ages of the Jewifli church, it never was expreffcd except by the high-priefi:. It is added, that when the form of bene- diction which had been prefcribed, obliged the high- pried to exprefs it, the people teftified their profound veneration for it by making a low bow, or proftrating themfelves on the ground. As for the title God, ufed in the anfwer, though, as^ we have feen, it be apphed boch to the Creator and his creatures, we can be at no lofs to know when it is to be underflood of him, and when we are to underftand it of theni. Not only the nature of the fubjed to which it is applied, but fomething cxpreffed or implied in the text or context, in which it occurs, (hows whether it is to be underftood of him or of them. In the forecited Ixxxii. Pfalm, for inltance, in which it is applied to civil rulers, we can be in no danger of miUaklng them for real Deities, or proper Gods ; for it is exprefsly afllimed in words addreifed to themfelves, Ye Jkaliall die like men^ and fall like one of the princes, verfe 7, When it is ap- plied to the idols of the nations, fuch epithecs accom- pany it, as evidently fhovv what tl-ey are in their origin and nature. They are defigned £;//Ar;rledge, immaculate purity, and unbounded felicity. It afferts that God is LOVE, t John iv. 16. This truly is an a.niable view of God. It evidently refers to the endearing difcoveries which he has made of hiir.felf in the aflonifhing oecono- my of our redemption. In the words which introduced this Lecture it is faid, God is a Spirit. This leads me to the more particular confider^tion of the Second member of the divifion of the anf\^'er ; to confi- der vvhat is predicated of Qodi—God is a Spirit^ infinite, eternal^ and unchangeable ; in his being, 'X'i/dom^pozverJjoH- fiefs ^ juHice^ goodnefs, and truth. This I may diftribute into two parts ; what I may call the nature of God, and his fupereminent perfections. Firfi^ His nature. He is a fpiritual Being. In order to affift us in forming fome faint notion of this infinite, eternal, and unchangeable Spirit, let us, in the entry, take a view of fpiritual natures of the created kind. The moft obvious diftinction of creatures is into two kinds, material, and immaterial. Of material beings, we know of a great variety of fpecies, and there are, no doubt, various fpccies, of which we know not. Of the immateri '1 kind, we know only, as I had occafion to pbferve in a former Lecture, of two fpccies, the angelic and the human. Aneels are (tiled fp'irits. Heb. i. h- The 94 God^s Being and P erf eilions. The human foul alfo is denominated zfpirit. Eccl. xii. 7. How difficult is it to form a diftinft idea, or give a pro- per definition, of a fpirit ? Notwithftanding that our -foul is a conftitucnt, and the principal part of our na- ture, how ignorant are "we of it? How unacquainted arc we with the myfterious union between it and the other conftituent part of our nature ? How unknown to us are the nature, the fociety, and the enjoyments of angelic fpirits ? What then can we pretend to know of that great Being, who is the Father of fpirits ? Between body and fpirit, matter and mind, there is an effcntial difFcrencc. Body denotes a compound being, refolvablc into the parts of which it is compound- ed. In a fpirit there is no fuch compofition j and, there- fore, it is incapable of diflblution. Thus, fpirit is fu- perior to body. Man is fuperior to the other creatures in this lower world. For, though he, in common with them, has a material part, he, in fuperiority to them, has an immaterial. Angels are fuperior to men. For they are wholly immaterial and immortal. The fupe- rior excellency and worth of the foul our Lord inti- mates when he afks, Whatjhall a man give in exchange for his foul? What in all the world is of equal value with it, or can be a fufficient equivalent for it ? Thus mind bears fuch a phyfical refemblance to God as mat- ter dose not. God is the former of our bodies ; but he ii the father c/" our fpirits. Between the divine Spirit, liowever, and every ether fpirit, there is the utmo(t dif- pariiy. Spirit, as applied to God, is to be under flood two ways. It denotes the third perfon of the myfteri- ous Trinity, as dillinguiflied from the firft and the fecond. In John v. 7, for inftance, the Holy Ghoft, or Holy ISpirit, is dillinguiflied from the Father and the Word. The Spirit, in the myflcrious order of fubfiflence, is the third pcrfcn, the Father the firfl, and the Son the fe- cond. But, in the text which uihers in this Lcdure, it God'^s Being and Perficl ions-, 95* i,t denotes that uncreated, underivcd, fclf-exlllent, inde- pendent Godhead, eflence, or nature, which is not peculiar to on« of the divine perfons, but common to all the three. God is affirmed in the anfwer to be a Spirit, according to the fcripturcs, and in oppofuion to an an • cient fedt of heretics, who, underftanding every thing fpoken of God in a literal fenfe, particularly what i» affirmed in relation to the creation of man, whom he is faid to have made after his own image, held that God has bodily parts and a human form. Thofc heretics are, in ecclefiaflical hiftory, called Audeans, from Au- deus their leader, and often Anthropomorphites, a name compounded of two Greek words, the one fignifying humariy and the other Jhape or form. That corporeal parts and bodily members, are in the fcripturcs afcribed to God, is certain. For this afcription of a humari form and bodily members to God, two reafons may be affigned. 1. It may have been occafioncd, in fcvcral inftances, by the appearance* of the Son of God in a temporary human form, efpecially in the patriarchal ages. Ther* his aftual incarnation was foretold. But it was not to happen till a diftanc period. In order, therefore, to confirm the ancient believers in the faith and cxpe£l:a- tion of it, they were, on various occafiong, favoured with vifible reprefentations and anticipations of it. We- read, for inftance. Gen. xviii. chapter, of three angels- appearing to Abraham in the fhape of men; and for this reafon exprefsly called men- That one of them was the uncreated Angel of the eternal covenant is manifeft ; for he is exprefsly ftiled Jehovah, which we have al- ready found to be the incommunicable name of the cverlafting God. 2. It is 'n accommodation and condefcenfion to our capacities and apprehenfions. Were the great God to fpeak of his cflence and attributes, as he is in himfelf, inftead of being informed, we would be confounded. He 9 6 God''s Bsing and Fcrp client. He fpeaUs, therefore, of his pcifeu'ons and operations in terms manifeftly alluding to huj:;an prop^aies. and aftioRs. On pcrfons whom we love, we look w'nh an evider.t air of complacence and fatisfaftion. Thus God's face denotes his favour. We become £cquair,ted with perfons and things by feeing or hearing of them. To in- timate that perfed knou'ledge God has of his creatures and their circum fiances, eyes and cars aic attributed. to him. It is chiefly by our arms and hands we exert our bodily flrength in performing the various aftions of life. Often do the fcriptnres apply arm and hand to God, to exprefs his irrefiflible power, and the glorious effcds of it in his works of creation, providence, and grace. Thus the attribution of bodily members to God, can be ac- counted for in the fullefl confiftency with the fpirituality of his ineffable nature. How different is the divine Spirit from every otlicr fpecies of fpirits ! He is an un- created, underived, independent Spirit. What he is, he is in and of himfclf. This phrafe, indeed, has an ambiguity in it. In one view it does, and in another it docs not, apply to God. It may, in ffiort, be under- ftood either poQtively or negatively. Pofitivdy under- flood, it does not apply to him. He xi not feli-pro- duced. No thing can give being to itfelf. It cannot be bcth the caufe and the effed. Negatively interpre- ted, it applies to God in oppofition to all creatures. He is not from any other. All other fpirits are from him. He has being in and of himfclf. 1 am, Scccfidiy^ To coufider the fuperemincnt perfeQions of the divine nature, according to the order in which the CompL'crfi of the Catechifni have here enumerated them. Properties of two kinds, ejfential and pcrfonaly arc attributed to God. Of the latter, by which the dif- ferent divine fubfiflencies arc diflinguifticd, a following anfwer fpeaks. It is of the eflential perfcftions of that divine nature, which is not peculiar to any one of the uncreated ihrce, but commca to them u!I, this anfwer treats. Cod^s Being and Pefficlions* qy treats. Thefe perfections are divided into two chff.-s, tl'hich have been dillinguilhed by different names. They have been called primary and fecondary^ negative and pojitive^ incGmmunicable and comniunicabley natural and moral. In whatever view tJt eonfider God, we muft ftriclly ad* here to tlie proper notion of a Spirit. Every idea of com- pofition muft be banifhed from our minds. Ihe per- fcdions of God neither are effentially different from himfelf, nor from one another. In various views, how- ever, has he difcovered himfelf to us. The reafons of the different appeilations given to the two claffes, into which his effenlial pcrfeftions are ufually diftributed, are obvious. Of the three attributes called incommu- nicable, I fhall give a brief account in order. The firft is infinily. To be infinite, according to the literal fignification of the word, is to be unbounded and unUmited. In every view muft creatures be limited and bounded. Of what aftonifhing extent rauft the great univerfe be ? Modern difcoveries in aftronomy open to the human mind profpeds and views, whicii give it fuch exalted ideas of the divine perfeQions. as aftonifli and delight in a manner no words can fully exprefs. Here are worlds upon worlds, unnumbered and unknown. But vaft even beyond imagination as th^ univerfe is, it cannot be abfolutely unbounded. It muft have limits and boundaries though to us unknown. Accordingly, the Supreme Being is faid to tranfcend, far tranfcend, the very utmoft liinits of creation. This is neceffarily implied in Solomon's words — Wul God in very deed dwell with men on the earth f Behold, hca^ 'uen, and ihe heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; hoiv much lefs this houfe which I have built f i Chron. vi. 1 8. The knowledge of thofe angelic beings, who have attended the throne of God, and have been em- ployed to execute his orders in all parts of his vaft em- pire for between five and fix thoufaod years, muft be very extenfive ; but it is not infinite. Vol. I. N t . In qS God'^s Being and Perfeclions, In every view is God infinite. A number of In^ ftances in which he is To, wc have in the fcqucl of thi^ anfwcr. In the Larger Catechirm, there is mention of other inftances, which, though not exprefied, arc im- plied here. Such is the perfeclion of God. A kind of perfedion the fcriptures afcribc to angels and to men. Not only the unfailcn angels, but triumphant faints arc faid to be pcrfeft. The pcrfedlion of creatures, how- ever, muiI ever correfpond to their nature. Limited is the latter ; and, therefore, bounded muft the former alfo be. When our divine Redeemer commands us to be perfe6l as our Father who is in heaven is perfeH, Mntth. V. ^8. he cannot mean an equality between his perfeclion and ours ; but only fuch a fimilarity as com- ports with the infinite liilproportion between God and all his creatures. God is faid to be infinite in felicity. Different degrees of felicity obtain among the creatures. I do not fpeak of the creatures iflcapable cither of feli- city or mifery. In a very low degree only can many creatures feel either pleafureor pain. But, as the hap- piefl of creatures are of a limited nature, their felicity alfo muft be circumfcribtd within cert?in boundaries. How happy ihe great God is, he himfelf only knows. Infinitely happy has he ever been ; and muff he ever t)e. An enhancement of his felicity on the one hand, and a diminution of it on the other, are equally incom- patible with his perfeclion and immutability. In per- fection and felicity, hftle of the Gentiles in his oration to the Athe- niaiis — In hitn we iive, and move-t and have our beings Afts xvii. 28. 2. In God they are eflential and ncceffary. He cannot but be ; and he cannot but be infinitely, eternally, and immutably wife, powerful, holy, jufl, good, and true. The being of all creatures depends upon his Sovereign will. Neither are thefe moral perfe^ions natural and eflential to rational creatures as fuch. Man, for inftancc, in his original ftate, was wife and holy, juil and good; but his original wifdom and holinefs, rightcoufnefs and goodnefs, were not eflential to hira as a man. For when he finned, he was deprived of them j but he did Hot ceafe to be a man. 3. Thefe perfedlions ngt only belong to God, but fubfift in him infinitely, eternally, and unchangeably. Many creatures are wife, powerful, holy, juft, and good ; but neither in wifdom, or power, or holinefs, or goodnefs, are they infinite, eternal, or unchangeable. Their being, »nd all the perfections of it, are not only circumfcribed and limited, but had a beginning; and, though they have no end, it is not becaufe they are in themfelves incapable of change, or neceflarily without xnd ; but becaufe God in fovereignty has decreed the continuation and perpefuit/ of them. No lefs than feven different infl:ances in which God is infinite, eter- nal, and unchangeable, arc here fpecified. Being is afcribed both to God and to men ; but in- finitely differenr is his being from theirs. Having al- ready confidered the nature of God as a Spirit, I need not now inuft on his being. His being is uncircum- fcribed and unbounded. Every where is he in point of operation ; upholding all the worlds and all the crea- ^res he bas mads. Every wl;iere is he in point of ob- fervation j 104 Cod'^s Bt'i7ig and Pcrftcliom. fervation; infpeding and fuperintcnding all his crea- tures and all their aclions. But this is not all. He hinifeif is every where. His eflence is no lefs unlimited than his povvcr. He is the omniprefent as well as the omnircient God. Between his iinmenfity and omnipre- fcnce metaphyficians have diflinguifhed thus — In rcfpedl of the latrtr, he fills the great univerfe — In rcfpe6t of the former, he tranfcerds the utmofl: boundaries of it. His omr/iprefence, therefore, is included in his immen- fity. Of this glorioos perfedion of Deiry the PlalmiH: has given us a majeflic defcription in the following words — Whither Jhall Igofromihy Spirit f or whither Jhall 1 Jlce fro^n thy prefeme? If I afccnd up into heaven^ thou art then? If I make my bed in hell^ behold, thou art there? If I take the ivin^s of the morring, and diuell in the utter ^ TKoft parti cf ihe fca ; e'vcn there JImll thy hand lead me^ a:rd thy right hand JJ^all hold me. Pfal. cxxxix. 7, — i o. How magnificently is his oninifcience defcribed in the following verfes ! — If Ifay^fureh the darknefs Jhall cover me \ even the night Jlmll be light about vie. Tea, the darknefs hideih not from thee', but the night Jhineth as the day. "The darknefs and the light are hoih alike unto thee* ver. 10, 1 1. Now, as the being of God is neceffary, it is not only "without beginning ojnd v.'ithout end * but in- capable of change. The fcripture, therefore, afcribes being to God, as if it belonged to him only, and to no other. And no wonder ; for he exifls as no other can exift. How emphatic and cxprelfive is the account he ^ives of himfclf to Moles! I am that i am. Exod. iii. 14. The import of which words no tongue, human or angelic, can fully unfold. It is, as if he had faid ; I am wtjat 1 ever was, and what I ever will be — What I am, I am in and of myfelf — And what I am, is known only to myfelf. When an ancicrit Patriarch afi^ed the uncreated Angel of the cverlaffing covenant — What is thy name ? He appeared as if he wiflied to wave the qucflion. He faid, Wherefore is it, that thou doft afk 0ftcr my namd? Gen. xxxii. 29. As God^s Being and Perfections, ioj As for the order in which the moral attributes are here arranged, it is. unneceflary to affign particular reafons for it. The propriety, however, of prefixinj]^ wifdom to power, is obvious. The great and glorious works which God, by an exertion of his Almighty power, produceth in the feveral ages of time, he, in the mod confummate wifdom, preconcerted from the unbe- ginning ages of eternity. In each of them he difcovers deep defign. They all refleft the higheft honour upon his infcrutable wifdom, as well as his refiftlefs power and boundlefs goodnefs. Let us now, in a very curfory manner, review the feveral attributes called conununi' cable^ in the order of the anfwer, I. Wi/liom. Neither of this, or of any other of the pcrfeftions of Deity here enumerated, need I give any logical definition. The general meaning of wifdom, as applied both to God and to creatures, is manitcft. In comparifon to the wifdom of God, the wifdom of men and angels is fooliHinefs. This may atccunt for an expreilion, the dsfign of which otherwife may not be fo obvious. It is faid, he chargeth his angels with folly. Of folly, angels as well as men are capable. But the perfedion of the divine Being excludes all poffibility ot folly. Infinitely fuperior is God in wifdom to all his creatures. Neceffarily limited is the wifdom of all crea. tures. It neither is without beginnina:, nor in itfelf in- capable of an end. But abfolutely unbounded, equally without beginning and without end, is the wifdom of God. His wifdom or his knowledge is not greater irt time than it was from eternity. In order that he might difplay this fhining perfedion of his nature, he purpofed in himfelf from the earlieft of ages to create all worlds j and particularly to redeem the church. How admirably are his worlis of creation, providence, and redemption, calculaied for the accomplifhment of this important de- fign ! Were we to take a furvey of creation, and to view the oeconomy of redemption, how would we be de- VoL. h O hghtedi + |o6 God'' s Being and Perfe^ions, lighted ! how would we be afloniOied ! Whether wc look upward to the heavens, or downward to the ground j whether we fearch the boAvels of the earth, or the bot- tom of the lea ; the mineral, the vegetable, or the ani- mal world, can we torbear to exclaim with the devout Pfalmifl; — 0 Lord, how manifejl are thy worki ! In ivif" dom haft thou made them all. Pfal. civ. 2d.. In the con- trivance of works o( fuch magnitude, and of fuch vaft variety, how confpicuons is wifdom ! On the general map of creation, our httle world is no more than a point merely perceptible. In the prefervation and govern- ment, as well as the creation of fuch aflonifhing worlds, what deep dcfign and confummatc wifdom do we dif- cern! In the furvey and contemplation of fuch ftupen- dous works we are loft in unutterable and evcrlalling wonder, Efpecially does this eminent perfedion of Deity fliine with diftinguifhed luftre in the hemifphcreof the church; in the grand ceconomy of our redemptio«. Into this fuperior difplay of wifdom do angels look with amaze- ment. From the church on earth, and the moft glori- ous of all works accomplifhed in it, thofe celeflial tntel- ligencies dcfire to learn the manifold wifdom of God. Eph. iii. lo. In the feveral ftages and flcps of redemption may we trace the manifold wifdom of God. How wor- thy of its infinite Author is this glorious fcherae ! What anarchy and difordcr did fm introduce into the moral world ! Did not even the divine attributes, in the view of its entrance, feena to be at variance among them- felves ? While mercy pied that fmners Ihould be fpared, juftice infilled for the intlidion of deferved punifhmcnt; and an adequate fatisfadion for the ofi'ence it had re- ceived. But wifdom, as a great umpire Interpofmg, to the aifoniflimcnt of all worlds, propofes an unexpected expedient ; in which mercy and juftice, with equal rea- dmels, acquicfce. In confequence of which, juftice has its utmoft demands anfwercd j and mercy has the moft copiou* Gocfs Being and PerfcBiom. loT copious egpefs to (inm-rs. How confpicuous is wifdoin in the choice of the Subflitute and Surety of finners ! How proper that he, who, in the myftcrious order of fubfiftenec, is the middle perfon of the Trinity, (hould be chofen to be the Mediator between God and men 1 So wifely are matters adjuftred, that, though an exchange of perfons is admitted, and fatisfadron accepted from the Surety in the place of (inners, the fame fpccific nature that fmned fuffers and fatisfies for fin. What a glori- ous difplay of incoraprehenfible wifdom have we in the conftitution of the Mediator's perfon ! Muft not he, who is a partaker of the natures of the offended and offending parties, be the fitteft to ad and bring about reconciliation between them ? In the applicatory part of redemption, as well as the impetration of it, how il- luftrious is wifdom ! Numberlcfs are the inftances here, in which the footfleps of wifdom may be traced. In the firfl ingathering of finners to Chrifl, the feafon, the means, and all the other circumftances of it, how ma- nifeft is the wifdom of God ! In the difpofal of them poflerior to their converfion ; in the manner of carry- ing on the good work in them, from the commence- ment to the confummation of it ; in their manifold and complicated afflidions and trials outward and inward ; in the various fignal fupports and deUverances which their redeeming God works for them ; what demon- ftrations have we of wifdom, which never can be non- pluffed, and never can err. When the myftery and work of grace and providence (hall be perfeded in them, and they look back on all the way the Lord their God leads them in the wiidernefs, with what unanimity and joy will they approve of his wife difpenfations and difpofals concerning them in the world ! 2. Power, This perfedion, as well the preceding, is afcribed, though very differently, both to God and to his creatures. To irrational creatures as well as ra- tional, is it afcribed. How magnificejit is the defcrip- Q 2 tion lo8 God^s Being and TcYfeElions, tlon of the ftrcngth of Behemoth P Job. xl. 15,— fi'34. Concerning this extraordinary animal, indeed, interpre- ters and critics arc divided in their fentiraents. It is by many underftood of the elephant ; which is the largcH:, tJM^ ftronucn:, and, at the fane time, the mofl: tradable of terreflrial quadruped?. This animal is well known both in Afia, and in Africa. Ihe Beljeraoth has been by others underftood of a fmgular fort of four-footed bcaft, known by the name of Hippopotamus, or ihc river-horfe. This animal is found about the Nile, and O'her rivers of Africa. Power is applied cfpecially to creatures of the rational kind. But what is the ftrength of an angel in comparifon of the power of Jehovah ? In power no Icfs than in wifdom is he infinite. What the extent of his power is, he himfelf only knows. Ever is a cjiftin^ion to be made between the extent of his power and the counfels of his will Never has he acled, nor ever will he work, according to the full extent of his power. Can any thing be impoflible with God ? No thing, to fpeak with ftrid propriety, can be too hard for the omnipotent God. There are, however, two forts of things, which it may be faid, he cannot confiftently do. But this inconfiftcncy or impoflibility of doing them, far from arguing any defect of power, arifes from his perfection and immutability. It may be faid, he cannot confiftently do any thing that he has not decreed to do. The reafon is evident. His perffdlion and his immutability require, that he ever exercife his power in conformity to the counfel and de- terminations of his Sovereign will. Eph. i. 1 1. It may be affirmed, that God cannot either decree or do any thing in itfelf abfurd or inconfiftent with his periC^ions. Accordingly, there are no lefs than three things, which, the fcripture exprefsly affirms, he cannot do. He cannot look with rpprobation on fin. Heb. i. 13. He cannot deny himfelf. 2 Tim. ii. 13. He cannot lie. 5|cb,vi.i8. Jlternal God^s Being and TerfeElions, 109 Eternal and unchangeable, as well as infinite, is the power of God. Glorious are the difcoveries and proofs which he in time gives of his power, as well as of his wifdom. What a lofty defcription has one of the firlt facred writers given us of the power of God, difplayed in his aftonifliing works ? He Jiretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon risthing. He bindeth up the ivatsrs in his thick clouds, and ths cloud is not rent under them. He holdeth back the face of his throne, and fpreadeth his cloud upon it. He hath compaffed the waters with bounds, until the day and night come to an end. The pillars of heaven tremble, and are aflonijhed at his reproof He dividcth the fea with his power, and by his underflanding he fmittcth through the proud. By his fpirit he hath garnijhed the heavens, his hand hath formed the crooked ferpent. Lo, thefe are farts of his ways ; but how little is known of him : but the thunder 0/ his power who can under/land\ Job xxvi, 7, — 14. With (till brighter fplendor does this great perfedion of the Godhead fhine forth in the work of redemption. How inftantaneoufly was that vafl mafs of matter, which wc call the great univerfe, produced out of nothing ? By the word of the Lord were the heavens made : and all iJje hofi of them by the breath of his mouth. For he f pake, and it was done ; he command' ed, and it flood faft. Pfal. xxxiii. 6, o» But. how hard a work is redemption ! Neither was it in fo eafy a man- ner, nor fo foon, accomplifhed. That divine perfon, who, with a word, and within the fmall compafs of fii^ days, created the heavens and the earth, was employed in this arduous work for no lefs than long thirty-three years. In order to the accomplifliment of it, it beho- ved the Lord of life and of glory to be brought to the dufl: of ceath. Numberlefs are the inftances in which Almighty power is requifite and exerted in the ap- plication of redemption. Signally is it exerted in the ^rft regener?Ltion and gradual faiidiflcation of f.nners. Qreqt lid God^s ITdlng and Perfcftions] Great is the ftrength of indwelling fin. Were it not for the power of God, it would he for ever invincible. But what a pleafing refledion is it, that how ftrong fo- cver fin and Satan may be, the Redeemer and his grace are infinitely ftronger ! 3. Holinefs. Tais truly is a darling perfeftion of Deity ; an attribute which efpecially he delights to ho- nour. Holinefs is, indeed, afcribed to creatures. But God is infinitely, eternally, and immutably holy, as well as wife and powerful. In the creation of angels and men, and in all his other works, providential and gracious, in the world and the church, has he mani- Jefted his holinefs, as well as his wifdom and his power. Not only is he infinitely removed from all moral impu- rity ; but in numberlefs inftances fliows how much he abhors every fpecies of it. '-The Lord is righteous in all bis ways^ and holy in all his luorks. PfaJ, cxlv. 17. As cur redemption is the chief of the ways and works of God, in it efpecially is his holinefs difplayed. Stri- kingly was it manifefted in the preternatural formation of the holy humanity of Jcfus Chrift in the womb of an unholy woman, IrrefragaHly was it demondrated in the extreme fuflerings the Redeemer underwent in the ftead of unholy finners. That it vas for the vin- dication and honour of the divine purity, as well as juflice and veracity, he fubmitted to fuch unparallclled fufferings, he himfeif intimates to us — My God, my God, nuhy haft thou forfakcn me ? Why art thou Jo far from helping me, and from the words of my roarirg ? 0 my God, I cry in the day-time^ but thou hear eft not ; and in the night feaf on ^ and am not ftlent. Having uttered this grievous complaint, he feems as if he would correft himfelf ; for he adds — But thou art holy, 0 thou that inhahitcjt the praifcs of IfracL Pfal. xxii. 1, 2, 3. It is as if he had faid — Why do I cortiplain of my unexampled fuffcrings ? Are they not inJiipenfibly requifite for the inanifellaticm and glory of thy immaculate purity j to vhich fin hath done fuch indignity and diflionour ? Eminently God*s Being and FerfcBlant, \%t Eminently is this bright perfeclian of the Godhead manifefted and gloriiied in that myfterious fanclifyino^ work of the Spirit, which at a very early period com- menced ; and, in all the feveral intermediate a^es of the world, has been going on in the church ! Myriads of myriads now in the better world, have had the happy experience of this iaward and hidden work, which no man knows bat he that is the diftinguilhed fubjed of it. On account of which works, we have, in the fcripturcs of both Teflaments, numerous afcriptions of holinefs to the glorious Author of thera. In thefe afcriptions angels join with faints. So the evangelical Prophet informs us* In the year that king Uzziah died, fays he, I faw al/b the Lord Jttting upon a throne high and lifted up^ and his train filled the temple. Above it ftood the feraphims : each one had fix wings / ivith tzuain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fiy. And one cried unto another ^ and f aid ^ Holy, holy, HOLY, is the [*ord of hojts^ the whole earth is full of his glory. And the pofts of the door mtyued at the voice of him that cried^ and the voice was filled withfmoke. The efFed which this vifion of the unfpotred purity of God, and the confideration of his own impurity, had upon this holy man, we learn from what follows. Then faid /, Wo is 7ne, for I am unchne ; becaufe I am a man of un- clean lips, and I dwell in the midft of a people of unclea/t, lips ; for mine eyes have feen the King, the Lord of hofis. Ifa. vi. 1,-5. Similar to the words of the evangelical Prophet, are thofe of the ApofHe John. And the four beafts had each of them fiix wings about him, and they were full tf eyes within, and they reft not day and nighty faying. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. And %vhen thofe beafts gave glory, and honour, and thanks, to him that fat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders fell down before him that fat on the throne^ and worfhipped him that liveth for ever and ever, and 115 God^s Being and Perfe^ionsi caft their crowns before the throne^ f^'J^^Z* Thou art worthy^ 0 Lord, to receive ^lory^ and honour ^ and power ; for thou haft created all things ^ and for thy pkafure they are and ivcre created. Rev. iv. 8, — 1 1. 3- J^'ftices -Infinitely, eternally, and immutably juft, as veil as wife, powerful, and holy, is God. Glorioufly docs his juftice appear in his moral government, and in all the feveral ads of it. Holy, he hates fin ; and juft, he pu- nifhes it. In the di(l?ibution of gracious rewards on the one hand, and the inflidion of juft punifhments on the other, is his juftice manifefted. In all the tempo- ral judgements which God inflids on pcrfons and fami- lies, rations, and churches, for fin, docs he difplay his juftice, as well as his hoUnefs. But the moft tre- mendous difplay of it is in the fufFcrings of the Son of God, in the capacity of our fulfilling Surety. How aw- ful the commillion given to the bloody fword ! Awake, Ofword^ againfi my Shepherd^ and againft the man that is my fellow^ faith the Lord of hofts ; fmite the Shepherd, Zech. xiii. 7. Such another fpedacle the fun never beheld. Nay, the fun bluftied, and was afliamcd to be- hold it.' Pe aftonifhed, O heavens ! Ilathcr than that finners fiiould not be faved ; rather than that the juftice of God fhould not be displayed and glorified in their falvation, he would fubjecl his own dear Son to a death, at once the moft ignominious and the moft ex- cruciating. Having thus received a vicarious fatisfac- tion for their fins from his Son, in the capacity of their fulfilling Surety, his juftice appears no lefs than mercy in their falvation. So fpcaks the great Apoftle of the Gentiles, in relation to their juftification ; and what he affirms with regard to it, is equally applicable to every other part of their redemption. Being ju/iified through the redemption that is in Jefus Chri/l ; whom God hath fct forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his rightcoufn^s \ that he might be just, %8 well as merciful, and the justifier of him that bclicveth in God *j Being and Perfe^ions^ i I j in Jefus. Rom. iii. 24, 15, 26. So far is juftice now from being an obltacle in the way of our falvation, that it» no iefs than the love and the faithfulnefs of God, affords the fuileft fecurity for it. Did juftice forbid the egrefs of mercy to fiuners without an adequate fatisfac- tion for fin ? No Iefs does it require the actual commu- nication of all the bleflings which the Surety has pur- chafed for fmners. The communication of thefe bene* fits is at once an aft of juftice and of mercy. Unwor- thy and needy are they. But infinitely worthy is the Lamb that was flain, and the blood which he fhed. So eminently is the fcheme of redemption concerted, that in it there is no Iefs a difplay of the moft tremen- dous, than of the moft confolatory attributes of Deity. Nay, in confequence of the interpofition of the Media- tor, inexorable juftice itfelf wears no longer an alarm- ing, bat, on the contrary, a moft encouraging afpeft. Is /*/ a righteous thing with God to recompenfe tribulation to tbeni who trouble the faints ? It is no Iefs a righteous thing with him to recompenfe reft to the now troubled faints. In other words, juftice is equally confpicuous in the diftribution of rewards to the godly, and punilh- ments to the ungodly. 2 ThelT. i. 6, 7. 3». Goodnefs. This, indeed, is an amiable perfec- tion of Deity. In goodnefs, as well as wifdom, power, holinefs, and juftice, is God infinite, eternal, and un- changeable. Innumerable are the inftances in which he has manifefted his goodnefs. What but goodnefs could prompt him to create the heavens apd the earth ? What but goodnefs could ftimulate him to redeem any of his finful creatures ? Good, indeed, as well as wife and pov/erful, did God appear in creation. What ho- nour does the Mofaic account of it reflect upon his goodnefs, as well as his wifdom and his power ? With great propriety does the infpired Writer conclude his account thus — And God f aw every thing that he had r.iade, and, behold, it was very good ; and the evening and Vol. I. P il^^ t 114 God''s Be'ntg and P erf c Allans. the morning were the ftxfh day. Gen. i. 31. On fhl* joyful occafion the morning Jlars fang together , and all the fom of God Jhouted for joy, ]oh-s.^-yiVni. y. Good, as well as wife and powerful, docs God appear in the prcfcrvatlon and government of this great univerfe. But the moft aflonifliing difplay of this, as well as all the other attributes of Deity, is in the redemption of the church. In the formation of the great plan, and in the execution of it from ftrfl: to laft; in the impetra- tion., and alfo the application of our redemption, he appears good in a manner, and to a degree, that afto- nifhcs the inhabitants, not only of our own, but like- wife of all other worlds. Whether we confult the an- nals of eternity, when the important plan was concert- ed, or the records of the pad ages of time, in which it has been carrying into execution, we are conftrained to exclaim with wonder and praife — Truly God is good to Jfrael! Pfal. Ixxiii. Lord! what it man, thai thou art thus jnindful of him ? Pfal. viii. 4. 0 bow great is thy goodnefs which thou hafl laid up for them that fear thee ! Pfal. xxxi. 19. O the unknown length and breadth, the un- known height h and depth of the undertaking, the dy- ing, the redeeming love of Jcfus Chrift to finners of mankind ! Thus, the goodnefs of God might be confidcred not only as efl'ential and relative, as it is in himfcif, and as it flows unto his creatures ; but as general and fpecial. Of it in the former view, all the creatures, as fuch, are partakers. Of it in the latter view, the faved, in an cfpecial manner, are partakers. The celebration of the fovereignty and riches of it, manifcfted in the feveral ftages of the great work of their redemption, will be their incefl'ant and unwearied employment for ever. 6. Truth. From this pcrfeftion, God is oftener than once denominated in the fcriptures. Thus Mofes fings — He is the rock^ his work is perfc6l ; for all his ways are judgment : a God o/" truth, and wiihout iniquity, ju/i and right Go^'j Being and PerfeSllons. up right is he. l)cut. xxxii. 4. In this, as v/ell as in each of his other perfections, he is infinite, eternal, and un- changeable. His truth, veracity, or faithfulnefs, re- fers efpecially to his proniifes and thrcatenirgs -, infu- ring the accomplifhment of the former, and the execu- -lion of the latter. But, though he both executes his threatenings and performs his promifes, he does both the one and the other at the time and in the way, which to his fovereignty and wifdom appear mod proper. A work either of mercy or judgment may be delayed, or it may be haftened. But what he hath faid^ in the way of promife or of threatening, he will, either at an earlier period or a later, infalUbly do. Often, indeed, has thp Divine veracity been arraigned. For an inftancc of the non-execution of his threatenings, the well known cafe of the Ninevites has often been urged. Not only was their deftrudion threatened, but the time of it fpe- cified. The Prophet was commiffioned to cry, and to fay unto them — let forty days , and Nineveh Jhall b^ over- thrown, Jon. iii. 4. But it is added, verfe i o, Godfaiv their ijuorksj that they turned from their evil way ; and God repented of the evil that he had f aid that he would do unto ihcm, and he did it not. But mud not a candid reading of the paflage fuggeft to every unprejudiced mind an anfwer to the groundlefs cavil ? Was there not, if not cxpreffed, at lead neceffarily implied, in the threatening and warning, an intimation that they were, or they were not, to be deflroycd according as they did or did not, repent and reform ? Thus, on the one hand, their non-repentance and deftrudion.^ and, on the other, their repentance and piefervation, were neceffarily conneQed. Is not this the plain purport of the warning ? And di4 not the event exadly correfpond to it ? , Of God's breach of promife, indeed, we read Numb, xiv. 34. He befpeaks Ifrael in the wildernefs thus — After the number cf the days in which yefearched the landy fven forty days, each day for a year, Jhali ye bear your JP 2 iniaiiities ; 1 1 6 God */ Being and Perfe^lons, iniquities ; even forty years ^ and ye jh all know my breach of proniife.- Strange exprcflinn ! Biu is it not one of the many exprcflions, in fcripture, accommodated to human capacity, and borrowed from human conduct ? The confiftency. the full confiftency, of it with the Divine veracity and immu'ability is (ufficiently manifeft. That there was a non-accompH(hment of the promife in rela- tion to the typical Canaan, to the greater part of the Ifraelites who came out of Egypt, is certain. But what was the caufe of this non-accomplifhment of it ? Was it owing to a want of veracity in God ? Was he unable, or was he unwilliftg, to do what he had faid ? No. An infpired Apoftle of the New Tcftamcnt develops and tinfolds the myfterious expreflion ; affigning the true caufe why Ifrael did not enter into the promifed land. For foiney luhen they had heard did provoke ; hoivbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Mofes. But with whom was he grieved J orty years ? Was it not with them thai had finned, whofe car cafes fell in the wildernefs ? And to whom [ware he that they fhould not enter into his refi^ but t9 them that believed not ? So we fee that they could not enter in becaufe of unbelief . Heb. iii. i6, — 19. The accomplifhment of the promifes to the church or to particular perfons, as well as the execution of the threatenings, may, indeed, be long delayed. Obftacles feemingly infurmountable may lie in the way. The ut- moft oppofiiion may be made to his work in the church and in the foul. Matters, to friends as well as foes, may feem defperate. But a delay with God is no de- nial. Often has the extremity of the church, and of her particular minifters and members been his opportu- nity. During the delay of the execution of his threat- enings. Tinners may become daring and prefuniptuous. Becaufe fcnicnce again fl an evil work is not executed Jpced^ ily ,• therefore the heart of the fans of men is fully fci in {hem I0 do evil, Eccl. viii. 1 1. During the non-tulfil- mcnt of the proiniics of Cod the faints are apt to be ^lifcouragcd God'*s Being anil Ferfecllom, 117 diicouraged and intimidated. What comfortlefs and dc- rponding words are thefe? Will the Lord cafi off for ever? and will he be favourable no more ? Is his mercy clean zonr forever? doth his promife fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious ? hath he in anger fliut up his ten- der mercies ? Pfal. Ixxvii. 7, 8. L5ut why docs God either poflpone the infliclron of threatened judgments ; or the communication of promifed. mercies ? For both he has re^fons worthy of himfelf. Sovereii;nty is a darling per- fection of his nature ; which, by his works both of mercy and judgment, he delights to honour. How fig- nally does he exercife his patience and forbearance toward unbehevmg and impenitent fmners ? Is it not fit that militant faints fliould ever have occafion for the exercife of/^?///j>, hope^ and patience? But the full and final accomplilhment of his promifcs, as well as the exe- cution of his threatenings, he has infallibly infured. Tor the vifion is yet for an appointed time ; but at the end it Jhall fpeak. and not lie: though it tarry ^ luaitfcr it\ becaufe it wiilfurely come^ it will not tarry. Hab. ii. 3. This is a fummary view of the being and pcrfedio?is of the great God. On fuch a fublinie fubjcd how ready are we to darken counfel by words without knowledge? Job xxxviii. 2 Agur's confellion Ihall be mine. Surely I am more brutif? than any man, and have not the under ^ Jlanding of a man. I neither lean id wifdoni^ nor havs the knowledge of the holy. Prov. xxx. 2, 3. I reckoned it the lefs neceffary to dwell on this moil important of all fubjeds, in the explication of this anfwer, as his works of creation, providence, and redemprion, from ■which we learn his being and perfections, will come under our review in the fequel. From what hath been fiid, we fee, the dengn which the great God h:is in all the difcoverics which he has made of himfelf to us ; and with what view, and for what end, we Ihould contempb.te and ftudy bath liis glo- f iQUS works fpecified i.a the fubfccjuent part of the Cate- chifm J 1 iS God'^s Being and PerfeEiions, chifm ; and his bleffcd word which is the fubjccl of the anfwers to two preceding qucflions. His defign in both, manifcftly, is to make himlclf known to his ra- tional and intelligent creatures. From both, therefore, let us endeavour to learn more and more of that Su- preme Being, and of his fupercminent perfections, in the inveftigation and contemplation of whom all created intelligences, of every fptcies, will be unweariedly cm- ployed lor ever and ever. Again, we may infer the abfurdity, as well as the impiety, of forming and entertaining, even in our minds, any reprefentation of the great God, fimilar to the idea which we have of a material being. What figure or image can polTibly reprefent an immaterial and omni- prefent Being? \Vhat unjuft, low, unworthy views of God do many entertain ? I do not fpeak of Pagans or Mahometans. Even by them, of whom better things might be expeded,. it has been pretended, that the fup- pofition of an immaterial being implies an abfurdity and contradiction. It is argued, That whatever exifts muft be material. Difficult, indeed, as 1 faid already, is it for us to form a proper and adequate conception of an immaterial being. But the difficulty does not ai all arife from the inconfiftency or contradiftion in the fup- pofition of fuch a being ; but from the imperfection of our capacity and apprehenfion. How has the great Jehovah been difhonoured and degraded by low con- ceptions, and moft injurious reprelentations of him ? Let us ai! be aware of internal and mental klolatry. How important and how neceflary is it to be well eftablifhed in the belief of the being and perfections of God ! AVcful, indeed, is the prevalence of Atheilm, infidelity, and fcepticifm in the world, and even among nominal Chriilians. How many modern Sceptics have we ? 'I he arcient Sceptics were a fed of philofophers well known in hiftory. 'Ihey have been known by the name of Pyrihoiiiits, from their founder Pyrrho. The God'*s Being and Perficfms. 119 The diflinguifliing tenet which they held, was, that, as we can only judge of things from appearances, and ap- pearances often are decsitful, every thing mud be to ws precarious and uncertain ; and, therefore, we muft ever remain in a ftate of fufpenfe and doubt. With thePyrrhonians, another feci of ancient philofopbers, known by the name of Academics, who were the fol- lo\vers of Socrates and Plato, moftly coincide in opi- nion. The pernicious tendency of fuch a fpirit of fcepticifm and infidelity is fufficiently evident. The neceffity of the firm perfuafion of the being and per- fections of God is obvious. If this foundation bs ds- Jiroyedj what can the righteous do ? Pfal. xi. 3. What a fufficient and fit objed of trurt: for this world, and alfo for that which is to corae, is God, and God as in Chrift! How empty and how uncertain are all creatures ? Infufficient is creation, all creation, to be a portion to one foul ? But on how firm a bottom do they reft, on what a permanent foundation do they build, who, by a fiducial recumbency, depend on God ? What a happy choice have they madel How great and glorious their profpedts and views 1 In the fruition of the all-fufficient God, how happy muft they be ! and what a blifsful eternity will they have ! Let perfons of every defcription, therefore, be luife and be injiruded^ Kifs the Son of God, the Sovereign, as well as the Sa- viour, of the world, leji he be angry ; for if his wrath be kindled hut a little^ hlejj'ed are all they, and they only, who put their trujl in him. Plal. li. 1 o, — 12. Is God a Spirit, and fuch a Spirit as we have de- fcribed ? Then let us not only worihip him, but take particular heed from what principles, in what manner, and with what views, we do it. Ever muft we worfhip him with our own fpirit, and under the influence of his Spirit. Jehovah feeth not as man festh ; for mart looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord lookcth §n the hsart* i Sam. xvi. 7. How juji his complaint ! Tut 1 2 o Cod V Being and PerfeSlioni, The Lord fiid. This people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour rm? ; but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men. Ifa. xxix. 13. Is God, in fine, fuch a bcirvg as wc have defcribed ? He muft be at once the beft friend, and the mod dan- gerous enemy. The Almighty God an enemy •' Tre- jaendous thought ! To whom is he an enemy ? He is zn enemy to hnners. So faith the fcripture. God is angry with the wicked every day. PfaL vii. 11. An angry God ! Awful thought ! How neccfiary then, and how faluiary the advice — Acquaint now thyflf with him^ and be at peace : and thereby good flmlt come unto thee* Job xxii. 21. \f God be for us, who can be againfi us ? llom. viii. 31. Happy, mdeed, is the people whofe God is Jehovah, iheir heart and their fiejh may fail them; but God ever will be the firength of ihtir heart and their portion for ever* The fig- tree may not bloffom^ nor may nny fruit be found in the vine ; the labour of the elive may fail., and the fields may yield no meat ; the flock may be cut off from the fold, and there may be no herd in the flails : yet even then fiiall they rejoice in the Lcrd^ they will joy in the God of their falvaiion* The ( 21 ) The Onenefs of God. 1 Tiu, ii. 5. T/jere is one Cod f^. THIS chapter is introduced with an apoftolical ex- hortation to the minifters and other ra embers of the church, to pray for men of all nations and defcrip- tions ; Gentiles, as well as Jews ; kings, as well as fubje6ls. The Jews of old, notwithftanding the pecu- liar and narrow difpenfation they were under, were required to pray for the profperity of the feveral cities and countries, in which they at any time fojourned- Explicit and full, to this purpofe, is the letter whicli the Prophet Jeremiah fcnt to the Jewish captives in Babylon, Thus faith the Lord of hq/is^ the God of Ifrael^ unto all that are carried away capffces^ zvhom £ have caufed to be carried away from Jerufalem unto Baby- lon^ Seek the peace of the city whither I have caufed yoil to be carried away captives., and pray unto the Lord for it ; for in the peace thereof Jhall ye have peace, Jer. xxix. 4, — ^7. Efpecially mud it be incumbent on the minifters, and the members of the New Tcftament church, to pray for mankind of all nations and condi- tions J the high as well as the low ; not only that they Vol. L (^ Kiay t 1 ii The Oncnefs of God. may be reflraincd from perftrcutirig Dnd molelling tbc church ; but that they may be converted to it, and be- come ufcful members of it. For God 'will now have all men. Gentiles and Jews ; the rich and the poor, t* he fared. There is one Gcd of both Jews and Gentiles. During the Old Teftament, he was in a peculiar man- ner the God of the Jews. But under the New, he is equally the God of Jews and Gentiles. For, as the text fpeaks. There is one, and only one God. So faith the anfwcr to the fifth quedion in the Catechifm -—T/jere is one only, the living and the true Gcd. To the preceding account of the being and attributes of Cod, the Compilers of this comprehenfive and well dcvifcd Syftem, with the mod evident propriety, im- mediately fubjoin an account of the unity of God. That God is one, is a fundamental truth in religion. It has the concurring fuffrages of reafon and revelation to fupport it. This fhort, but important, anfwer might be divided into three particulars — That God is one — that he is one only — and that he is the living and the TRUE Odd. I. God is one. The various attributes predicated of God, as I obferved already, neither are really diflinct from his effcnce, or from one another. Three different modes of perfonal fubfillence are afcribcd to the Godhead ; as it belongs to the firft, to the fecond, and to the third of the eternal three. But the God- liead is indivilibly one. There are three that bear re- cord in heaven., the Father, and the Word, and the Holy Ghojt ; and thcfe three are one. Now, that God is one, is afHrmed here in order to the eRabliflunent of a .adical, a primary article in religion, both natural and revealed ; and in oppoiition to the hcrefics both of earlier and laier times. Such is the wild hercfy of the Tritheifis, who, cp- pofm^ the didaics of reafon, as well as the dodrincs of Th£ Onencfs of God, 123 ^F revelation, hold, that there are three d*iftin£i: God- heads ; or that the one Godhead is, or, at lead, may- be, divided into three diilincl parts ; one belonging to the firll perfon ; another to the fecond ; and another to the third. Such was the abfurd herefy held by an ancient feet of Polythii/is of the third century, known in eccle- fiaflical hiftory by the name of Manichees ; denomina - ted from their leader Manes, by birth a Perfian. What they held in general is, that there are two Gods, or two firft caufes of all things, The one, they fay, is the caufe of all good — the other of all evil ; the latter, the author of the material creatures, confequently of our bodies, and the God of the Old Tcflament ; the former, the caufe of the immaterial creatures, confe- quently of our fouls, and the God of the New Tefta- nient. The infamous founder of this unhappy fed: feems to have borrowed his notions from the ancient Magi, a fed: of religious philofophers among the Pcr- fians, and other eaftern nations. From them the names Magic and Magicians, in ufe to this day, feem to have been derived. They held that there are two firfl principles, the one the origin of all good, and the o- ther of all evil. The former they called Oromajdes, the latter Arimanius, Light they confidered as the mod expreiFive emblem of the good God ; and darknefs as the fittcft fymbol of the evil. This fed is faid flill to fubfifl in Perfia. The fuppofition of two co- eternal Beings, indepen- dent Gods, or firft caufes, is no lefs repugnant to found rcafon than it is to ti^e facred oracles. It implies a conlradidion ; and what iinplies a contradidion, or is in itfclf abfurd, is irrational, no lefs tban antifcrip- turaL L-^t us attend to the jufl definition and proper idea of Deity. Does it not denote a felt-exiftent, in- depf-ndent Being, prior to all other beings, and the caufe of them ? is not this the true, the juft, the con- X:i^2 fiilent t24 ^^^ Onenefs of God, fiftent notion of Deity ? Such a being, and fuch a be- ing onlyy is God. Now let us for a moment fuppofe a plurality of gods, Eithf r thofc gods are, or they arc not, cqoal in duration and other rcfpeds. Are they in duration and all other refpects equal ? Then no one of them can be God. For the being that is not prior and fuperior to all orher beings is no God. Are they unequal, one fuperior and another inferior ? Then the latter, at leaft, cannot be God. If there be two Gods, either the one is, or he is not, the caule of the other. If the one be the caufe of the other, the latter cannot be God. If the one be not the caufe of the other, neither can the one or the other be God 5 for God not only exifts prior to all other beings, but is the caufe of them. Thus from natural principle* can we demonflrate the impoflibility of a plurality of gods. Irrefragably does reafon evince the important truth, that God is one. Accordingly, notwithflanding the many extravagant things which we find in the writings of the Heathens in relation to a multiplicity of gods, the wifer part of them have difcovcred, and admitted, that there muft be one and on!^ one Supreme Being. This has by fome been fuppofed to be intimated by the infcription on the Athenian altar — To the unknown God. Aftsxvii. 28, Athens, as is well known, was a celebrated city of are my ivitncjfes, faith the Lord — that ye may know and believe me, and under- Jiand that I im he ; before me there was ne God formed^ neither fh all there he after me, /, even /, am Jehovah, and befide me there is no Saviour. Fear ye not, neither be afraid : have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it ? Te are even my witnejfes. Is there a God btfides me? Tea, there is no God: I know not any. Ifa. xliii. 10, ii.andxliv. 8. As concerning, therefore, the eating ofthofe things offered infacrifice unto idoU, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, lifhether in heaven or on earthy as there be gods many, and lords many, but to us there is but one God. 1 Cor. viii. 4, 5, 6. A Mediator is not a Mediator of one ; but God is one. Gal. iii. 20. It was a faying of one of the fathers, " If God be not one, he is not at ♦' all.*' II. It is affirmed, that God is one only. For thus the anfwer runs— There is but one only, the living and true God. The word only is not introduced mere- ly as an expletive. It certainly has a defign and mean- ing. Each individual of mankind may be faid to be one. But in quite another fenfe is God one. Each of the individuals of mankind is numerically, but not fpe- cifically one. For there are myriads of individuals of the fame fpecies with him. But God is a being, 10 ^hom there neither is, nor can be, smother fimilar. Froiq 126 The Onenefs of Cod, From eternal ages did he exifl alone. Now, indeed, there are unknown millions of other beings. But there is not another God, or being of the fame kind with him. He made creatures ; not gods. A created god is a contradidion in terms. III. He is the living and the true God. Thefe terms the Compilers of the Catechifm have evidently borrowed from two places of the fcriptures ; the one in the Old Teftament, and the other in the New. But the Lord is the true God ; he is the living God, and an ever- lading king. Jer. x. lo. And the great Apoftle of the Gentiles befpeaks the Theffalonian converts thus — They ihemfehes Jhow of us what manner of efitering in %ue had unto you ; and how ye turned to God from idols ^ to ferve the LIVING and true God. i TheiT. i. 9. In the Firfi place. He is the living God. This high cha- rader belongs, and is attributed, to him on different accounts. 1. Life is eflential to him. The fuppofition of a dead God implies a Ihocking abfurdity. As foon may God ceafe to be, as ceafe to live. Life cannot be faid to be neceflary or eflential to creatures, as creatures. For there are inanimate or lifelefs, as well as animate or li- ving creatures. Eut in the idea of Deity, life is necef- farily included. What the divine life is, the divine Being, and he only, knows. 2. He has life in and of himfelf. A vafl: variety of creatures have life. But their life they have not in or of themfelves. They have it from God. In him was LIFE, and the- life was the li;ht of men. John i. 4. Hence 3. He is the origin and iountain of life to the crea- tures. The creatures are uiually diftributed into two clafTcs ; the former comprehending che living, the latter the iifdifs creatures. Of life, in general, 1 need not at- tempt any definition. It has been defmed to be a prin- ciple of motion jyid adlion. Different kinds, as well as degrees. ne Omuefs of God, 1 27 degrees, of life obtain among the various fpecie* of* creatures ; for all which they are indebted to the living God. We ufually fpeak of vegetable life, that belongs to plants and flowers, fluubs and ivce^—fenfithe lite, fuch as obtains among the beafts of the earth, the fowls of the air, and the fifhcs of the fea — and rational Ufe, which is peculiar to beings of a fuperior rank in crea- tion. Man in his primeval ftate poffeficd a twofold Ufe; that rational life which belonged to him as a man, and that moral life which was enjoyed by him as an uprigtit man. And as he had in pofleffion both natural and fpi- ritual life, he had the pleahng profped: of that eternal life, which confifts in the confummation and perfection of both. Death comprehends all the mifery threatened, and life all the felicity promifed, in the covenant man was then under. As he pofiefles Ufe which renders him fuperior to all the other inhabitants of our lower world, he, in fuperiority to the other creatures, has it in a fe- deral way. The life promifed in the firft covenant, man has, indeed, forfeited. But there is a fuperior covenant, by which the forfeited life is recovered. With the moft manifeft propriety, therefore, is the head of this better covenant filled our life. Through his mediation and interceffion, we derive from the original fountain of light and life, a hfe of grace in this world, and a life of glory in that which is to come. Happy, indeed, is the perfon that has the pofleffion of the former, and the be- lieving profped of the latter, 4. He may be (tiled the livin^^ God in oppofition to the dead, the deaf, and the dumb idols ; which the unhap- py inhabitants of the unenlightened parts of our world worfliip. In the fcriptures both of the Old Teftament and of the New, arc the high characters livirg and trug predicated of him ; not only to exprefs what he is in his being and efl'ential attributes, but to diltinguilh him from all prefumptuous pretenders to Deity. That it is with this view they ars applied to him, both in the paf- Tags llS The Onaufs of God. fage quoted from Jc:remiah, and in the quotation from the fird epiile to the Thcflilon'-ans, i. bare rcadinj^ of the two pain^^es, in their connection, will (how. The oppofition between the llvin? ard the true God- cr. the one hand, a".d all imaginary Deities, on the other, the Pfalmift ftatcs and illultrates in a mann'!r the mofl con- fpicuous and convincing. But our God is in the hea- vcns^ he hath dons tvhatfoevcr he plcafed. Their idols are/liver and gold, the work of metis hands. They have mouths, hut thty fpeak not ; eyes have they^ but they fee not ; they have ears^ but they hear not ; nofes have they^ but they fmell not ; they have hands y but they handle not ; feet have they^ but they walk not ; neither fpeak they through their throat. Plal. ex v. 3. 4, 6, 7. In the Second place. He is the true God. Others may be gods in name ; but gods they cannot be in nature. Such were the idols which the Galatians worftiipped previous to the coming of the gofpel to them, and their convcrfion from Paganifm to Chriftianity. Of this the Apoftle reminds them thus — When ye knew not God, ye did fervice unto them which hy nature are no gods. Gal. iv. 8. Arc angels, or are magiftrates, ftiled gods? In name, not in nature, arc they gods. Between the true God and all rival-gods, there is a neceflary, an in- finite, an everlafting difparity. Is it fo, that there is one only, the living and the true God ? Then Firfl, Howundutiful muft it be to allow any creature, for a moment, to come in competition with the great God ? What ! fhall a creature come in competition with the Creator ? No rival can he fuffer. It is not fufficient that we do not fubftitute any of the creatures in place of the great God. We mull not, in any inflancc, fet the one on a level with the other, or permit the former to come in competition with the latter. Let each of us adopt Afaph's words — WhoTn have I in the heavens bin thee, and there is none upon the earth that I defire befides ihee* Pfal. Ixiuii. 25. Sico7tdlyy The Onenefs of God. i2g| Secondly, We fee to whom we are indebted for our life, and to whom we ihould devote it. The living God is the author of it. He breathed into our noflrils the breath of hfe. Let it, therefore, be devoted to him. Let it be fpent in his fervice aad for his honour. The living, the Hving only have an opportunity to ferveGod in this world. They that dwell in the filent grave have no opportunity for it. So fpeaks pious Hezekiah — The grave cannot praife thee j death cannot celebrate thee : they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth. The living, the living, they JJ^all praife thee, as I do this day ; the father to the children jhall make known thy truth-* Ifa. XXX. 1 8, 19. How fhort and uncertain is fife ! Soon and fuddenly may we be deprived of it. O then im- prove time and talents! How important, how folemn, ihe Redeemer's injundion ! Occupy till I come. Luke xix. 13. Let the choice and refolution of the Apoflle be mine and yours — Whether we live, we live unto the Lord ; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live, therefore, or die, we are the Lords, Rom. xiv. 8. Thirdly, Sinners fpiritually dead mu(l be incapable of enjoying as well as of glorifying God. Can fpiritually Ati^ fmners enjoy the living God ? Such, however, were we all naturally. How nectfifary then muil it be that we enquire folemnly, as in the fight of our omni- fcient Maker, whether we have yet palfed from death \o life ? Are there not both fpiritually dead fmners., and lan- guifliing Chriftians among us ? Let the Pfalmift's prayer be theirs — Let myfoid live, 0 Lord, and it fhall praife thea Pfal. cxix. lyt;. Mankind are ufually con)prehended under two divifions, the quicks and the dead. Among thofe who are naturally alive, multitudes are flill fpiri- tually dead. But as there is to be, at an after period^ a refurreftion of the naturally dead, there now is a re- furredlion of the fpiritually dead. Ihe former our Lord foretels. John v, 28. And in relation to the latter he Vol. I. R Ip^aksi t 1 30 77?^ Onenefs of God. fpeaks thus — Verily, verily^ I fay unto you, the hour is coming, ctnd now is, when the dead Jhall hear the voice cf the Son of God: and they that hear jhall live, verfe 25. Bleffed indeed and holy is he that hath part in t\\\sfr/l refurrcclion : on fuch the fecond death hath 710 poiver, but i hey Jhall be priefls of God, and of Chri/i, and Jhall reign with him. Rev. xx. 6. Fourthly, How unworthy of God is all hypocrify and difiimulation in religion ! The God whom we profefs to worfliip, is the true God ; and ever muft be worfliip- ped in truth ! He requires truth in the inward parts. Pfal. li. 6. The heart, and the whole heart, does God demand. Often, alas 1 do his rivals occupy his place in th€ heart. Let us bew-^re of a divided heart ; of a heart divided between God and others. Inceflantly, and in faith, plead the accomplifhment of the ancient promife. Deut. xxx. 6^ — The Lord thy God 'will circum- cife thine heart, a?id the heart cf thy feed, to love the Lord •thy God with all thine heart, and with all thyfouL The { 13' ) The Sacred Trinity. I John v. 7. For there are Three that bear record in heaven^ the Fa- ther, the Word, and the Holy Ghoji ; and thefe Three are one. IN each period of the church there is one article of truth or another, which, in an efpecial manner, is controverted. On this account it may be termed, in the apoftolic ftile, the prefent truth, 2 Pet. i. 12. The great queftion in the firft ages of Chriilianity was, whether Jefus of Nazareth was the Son of God. and the Saviour of the world. Accordingly to this impor- tant truth the Apoftles give their unanimous and mod explicit atteftations ; efpecially the Apoflle John, the longed lived of the Apoftles, and the laft of all the infpired writers. That Jefus, the Saviour of the world, is the Son of God, not inferior, but equal, to his divine Father, is the cardinal jxiint in Chriftianity ; and, therefore, has numerous and glorious tefti monies ad- duced in proof of it in the fcriptures of both the Old and the New Teftaments. Here the Apoftle probably alludes to the manner in which any thing doubtful was afccrtained by the Jcwilh law. It was eiliibliihcd by R 2 th« 132 The Sacred Trinity, the concurring teflimonies of two or three witncffesl Here we have three concurring witnefles in heaven, and as many on earth. Of three pradical witnefles on earth verfe 8th fpeaks. Tht verfe read fpecifies three perfonal witnefles in heaven. Here we have the fulled revelation of the myfl:ery of the Trinity ; three pcr- fons, as fuch, difl:in6l one from another in one indivi- dual Godhead. Having fpoken of the being, of the perfections, and of the onenefs of God, I am now led to the confideration of the fublime myP.cry of the Trinity ; which, in the Catechifm, is ii.aied \.\\\i%— There are three perfons in the Godhead^ the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghojl ; and ihefe three are cnc God, the fame in fub/iance, equal in -power and glory. One God, and three difl:in6l perfons in one Godhead! 1 am now, my friends, entering ©n the confideration of a myflery, which neither feraphic fpirits nor glorified faints will undertake to unravel. "What then can I fay ? or what can you expect from me, on fuch a fubjeCt ? With the mofl: obvious propriety did the ancient Jews pall it the myjlery of myflefuis> That it is we know ; but hov/ it is we know not. .'No article of fupcrnatural religion, however, is more copioufly revealed. That there are three in one, and that there is one in three ; three diflind perfons in one undivided Godhead ; and one undivided Godhead fubfifling in three difliincl per- fons ; is the uniform declaration of all the facred writers, from the Prophet Mofcs to the Apoflle John. Hence, though v,'e never can comprehend it, we arc indifpenfibly bound to believe it. It is not our reafon, but divine revelation, that is the rule of our faith. In order to pave the way for an explanation of the anfwer, 1 am now to fugged to you a lew introdudory oblcr- vations relating to this glorious myflery. And, Firjly It is an article of fupernatural revelation. It is not difcoverablc by the light of nature. It can be known only by divine revelation. The knowledge \vhicli The Sacred Trinity, 133 which Adam in innocency is fuppofed to have had of it, lays no foundation for the fuppofition, that by the li^ht of nature his defcendents may difcover it. The diffe- rence between day and night is not fo great as that be- tween the date in which he then was, and that in whicli they now are. His underftanding was a lamp of light. Their underftanding is grofs darknefs, Eph. v. 8. It has, indeed, been pretended, that the myllcry of the Trinity was not akogether unknown to the Heathen philofophcrs, either prior or pofterior to the birth of Chrift. But even though we were to admit the fuppo- fition, that the Heathen philofophers had feme indiftinct notion or idea of the Trinity, it will not prove that it is. difcoverably by the light of uature. It is much more reafonable to fuppofe, that they might learn it from tradition. Some of them might have had inter - courfe with the^ Jews, or communication with others who had intercourfe with them, and thus might learn it from them. That God, who has the fovereign dif- pofal of all things, beft knows his own defigus, and has both wifdom and power fufficient to over-rule all providential events in fubferviency to the accomplifh- ment of them. Thus matters were fo wifely ordered, that, in the ages which immediately preceded the firft propagation of Chriftianity among the nations of the world, the Jews were in great numbers difperfed through ail neighbouring countries ; and this prepared the way for the introduction of the worlhip of the true God in- to places, in which, till then, it had been akogether unknown. Hence, when the Apoftles came to any city or country of the Gentile world, they preached firft to the Jews ; and the firft churches confifted partly of Jewifti and partly of Gentile converts. Secofidty, The myftery of the Trinity has been an article of the Creed of both Jews and Chriftians ; or, in other words, it has been known and believed in_thc church of God both under the Old and New Tefta- mcnts 134 '^he Sacred Trinity, iiients. That it is a doQrine of fupernatural revela- tion, and, ftridly fpeaking, known in the church on- ly, we have fecn already. Mahometans not only deny it, but treat it with contempt. As an awful token of the degeneracy of the modern Jews, and that they arc abandoned of God, they deny it ; calling it, in the way of derifion, a Chriftian novelty. But that it is a part of the earlier as well as the later revelations, with which the church has been favoured ; or, in other words, that it is revealed in the Old Teftament as well as the New, and was believed in the Jewifh as it is in the Chriftian church, I Ihall endeavour to prove in the fe- quel. That it was as clearly revealed to the Jews as it now is to Chriftians, and that they had as diftind views of it as we have, I do not affirm. But I faid, and I fay again, that in the fcriptures of the Old Tefta- ment, as well as the New, we have fufficient intima- tions of a plurality, and even a Trinity, oif perfons ia the one undivided Godhead, Thirdly, The glorious Trinity is an article, which it is neceflary for us all to know and believe. What God has not been pleafed to reveal to us, it neither is pofliblc or neceftary for us to know. But what he has revealed we are indifpenfibly bound to know and believe. The fecret things belong unto the Lord our God ; but thofe things which are re-oealed belong unto us, and to our children for ever. Deut. xxix. -29. Among the various articles of revelation, there arc certain points which arc of capital importance in the Chriftian fyftcm ; and which, for this rcafon, have been defigned fundamental articles, or foundation-truths. This mode of fpeaking fecms evi- dently to be borrowed from Heb. vi. i. Leaving the principles of the do6lrine of Lhrifi, let us go on unto perfec- tion'y not lajing the foundation, &c. As a builder fir ft lays the foundation, and then raifcs the fuperftrudurc upon it, perfons need firft to be initiated in the know- ledge of the primary articles or fundasicntal truths of revcltttiona The Sacred Trimty. 135 revelation, that they may advance in the ftudy and know- ledge of the other parts of it. Now, that the doctrine of the holy Trinity is a fundamental article in revealed religion is manifeft. The knowledge of it is indifpen- fibly requifite, in order to a diftind view of the oecono- my of redemption. In this important work, each of the divine Three performs his peculiar part, and dif- plays his proper perfonal glory. Without the know- ledge of the myfterious diftinftion of perfons in the un- divided Godhead, we cannot poffibly have any proper view of the manner in which they concur and ad in that great work. It is affirmed, that // is life eUrnal to KNOW the only true God and Jefus Chriji whom he hath fent. John xvii. 3. Is there not here a plain intimation, that the knowledge of the diftindion of perfons in the Godhead is indifpenfibly neceffary ? The great doctrine of the ever-bleffed Trinity, in (hort, is the grand cha- rafteriftic of the Chriftian religion. By this it is diftin- guilhed and dignified above every religion in the world. The Pagans, as I hinted already, are ignorant of it ; Ma- hometans and modern Jews deny it. It muft, iherefore, be incumbent upon us, as Chriftians, to be well in- ftruded and confirmed in it j in oppofition to the abfurd hypothefes of adverfaries of every denomination. Fourthly, The myfterious nature of the doftrine of the Trinity can be no fufficient reafon for our not recei- ving and believing it. That it is a myftery, and a very great myftery, who can deny ? Of the numerous my- Iteries of our holy religion, it certainly is the chief. Often does the word myftery occur in the fcriptures, and in different views may it be underftood. It may denote what was altogether unknown in the world till revelation difcovercd it to the church ; or what was at firft difcovered in an obfcurcr, and afterwards in a fuller and clearer, manner ; or, in fine, a thing of fuch an abflrufe nature, that, after the fullcfl and cleareft reve- lations that can be made of it to" us, it only is a very impcrfcd. 136 The Sacred Trinity* imperfe^l, inJiAinft, and inadequate conception we cin form of it. And may not the facrcd Trinity, in all thcfe different views, be called a myftery ? A myftery it ever has been ; and it muft: continue to be. In heaven as well as on earth, to angels as well as to men, is it a profound myftery. A myftery, no doubt, it is. An abfurdity, however, it is not. Human reafon it infinite- ly tranfcends ; but docs not contradict. Often have adverfaries egreqioufly mifreprefcnted it ; and by their wicked mifreprefcntations confirmed themfelves in their prejudices againfl it. Did we hold that God is in the fame fenfe one and three, adverfaries might well tri- umph. But when we fay that he is in one fenfe one, and in another three ; or that the divine cfience is one, and the divine perfons three, where is the inconfiftency or contradiftion ? I (hall only add, Fifthiyy That the great article of the facred Trinity has been the fubjeeaks his difciples — ^ f^y ^ot unto you, that I ivill pray the Father. John xvi. 26. Does any perfon call himftlf his ov^n father? Can he poffibly be his own father ? Does any perfon pray to himfeU ? The Father is expref-^ly faid to fend the Son to purchafc re- demption for finners of mankind ; and the Father and the Son to feud the Spirit to apply it to them. Of the Father's fending him, the Son often fpeaks. Of the Father and the Son fending the Spirit, the Son himfclt alfo informs us. John xiv. 26. and xvi. 7. Now, can the The Sacred Trinity, iaj the fame perfon be at once the fender and the fcnt ? Is a perfon ever faid to fend himfclf ? There is to be obferved here the myfterious order in which the divine perfons fubfift. In refpe£l of it, one is the firft ; another the fecond ; and another the third. To this order of fubfiftence, the order in which they ad:, both in the works of nature and grace, ever correfponds. Never is the Sonfaid to fend, or to work by the Father ; or the Spirit, to fend or work either by the Father or the Son. The Father, on the contrary, is faid to fend and to work by the Son ; and the Father and the Son to fend, and to aft by the Spirit. By the Son, the Fa • ther is affirmed to have 7nade the ivorlds. Hcb. i. 2. By his Spirit, he is faid to have garnijhed the heavens. Job xxvi. 13. It does not at all befit the order of fub- fiftence for the Son, on any occafion, to work by the Father ; or for the Spirit to fend or work by the Fa- ther or the Son. But, when I fpeak of an order in which the divine Three fubfift, I do not mean that one is, in duration or in dignity, fuperior and another inferior. As they are all in eflence one, they are, as perfons, equal one to another. Their eftential Onenefs, and their perfonal e- quality, the fcripture moft exprefsly affirms. / and my father^ fays our Lord, are one. Johnx. 30. The equa- lity of the Son to the Feather, an Apoftle of the New Teftament exprefsly afferts. Phil. ii. 6. I am now, III. To confider the particular perfonal charaders by which the three divine fubfiftences, in the one indi- vidual Godhead, are diftinguilhed one from another ; and moft intimately related one to another. I call them perfonal properties or characters, to diftinguiih them froi.* the ejfmtial perfedions or attributes of Deity. Perfections of the latter kind belong to all the divine Three in common. They pertain to that infinite Godhead, which is not peculiar to any one of the T 2 three. 148 The Sacred Trinity » three, but common to them all. Properties of the for* mer kind, on the contrary, belong to them as perfons ; one perfonal property to one ; and another to another of them. Paternity is peculiar to the firfl: ; filiation to the fecond ; and proccllion to the third. The firft perfon neither is begotten nor proceeds, but begets. '1 he fecond perfon neither begets nor proceeds, but is begotten. The third perfon neither begets nor is be- gotten, but proceeds. Of the firft perfon, as a Father, beg^-tting the fecond as a Son, we read in Pfal. ii. 7. / •n-fil declare the decree : The Lord hath /aid unto me^ thou art my Son; this day have I BLGOI J EN thee. Rfge- rerated perfons are, indeed, faid to be begotten arid born qf Gcd. Jam. i. 18. i John. iii. 9. But infinitely does the eternal generation of the fecond perfon of the Tri-. nity, as the Son of God, ttanfcend every other kind of generation. Accordingly, he is ftiled God*s only be- gotten Son. John i. 18. Of the proceflion of the third perfon from the firft, our Lord fpeaks cxprefsly in John XV. 26. When the Comforter is come, ivhom I ivilt Jtnd unto you from the Father^ even the Spirit of truth, '-which PROCEEDEIH from the Father, he Jhall tcjtify cf me. Though the Spirit is not exprtfsly faid to pro- ceed from the Son, as he, in the myfterious order of fubfifience, is the intermediate perfon, the Spirit is un- derftood to proceed from him no lefs than from the Father. His proccflion from the Son, as well as the l''ather, has alio been fuppofed to be intimated to us, when in the fcriptures he is ftiled the Spirit of the Son, as well as of the Father. Gal. iv. 6. Becaufe ye are fons, God hath fcnt forth the SPIRIT of his SON into your /jearts, crying Abba^ Father, This point long divided the eaftern and the weftern churches. The former held, that the Spirit proceeds from the Father only ; the latter, that he proceeds from the Father and the Son. In the enumeration of the facred Three in ihe text which intiOduces this Ledure, the fecond per- fon The Sacred Trinity. 145 fon is, In the ufual flile of the ApoRle John, denomi- nated the Word. Eut even in that text the firfl: pcr- fon is exprefsly called the Father ; ap.d the paternal 5:hara6ler of the firft perfon muft ever imply the filial character of the fecond. For there cai) no more be a father without a fon, than a fon without a father. The nature of this eternal generation of the Son of God, no creature can pretend to unfold or explain. Far is hu- man generation from being the proper criterion or ftandard of divine. Never is the one to be accommo- dated to the other. From fuch a fublime fubjedl, all carnal, grofs conceptions and ideas muft ever be ba- niflied. The proceilion of the Spirit is no lefs myfterious and inexplicable than the generation of the Son. Neither is it ncceffary for us to enquire or to know, in what the generation of the one and the proceflion of the other differ. Differ, however, they mull. No where is the Father faid to be begotten or to proceed. No where is the Son faid either to beget or to proceed. No where is the Spirit faid to beget or to be begotten. Do not thefe different eharadters manifeflly demonftrate two things ? Firji, That they are, in fad, different perfons. Muft not the perfon that begets be different from the per- fon begotten by him ? Muft not the perfon that pro- ceeds from the Father and the Son be different from both ? Secondly^ That they are neceffarily and intimately re- lated one to another. Vain is it to plead, that the Son who is begotten depends upon the Father by whom he is begotten. For the firfc could no more be without the fecond, than the fecond could be without the firft. No more, as I faid already, can a father be without a fon, than a fon without a father. Infinitely near and dear are they one to another. Near and dear are a hu- ynan father and a fon. But infinitely nearer and dearer are ij;o The Sacnd Trinity, are the eternal Father and his co-eternal Son. The Father and the Son could no more be without the Spirit proceeding from them, than the Spirit could be with- out the Father and the Son. All thefe modes of perfonal fubfiflence in the undi- vided Godhead are no lefs natural and neceflary than the Godhead itfelf. Is it any wonder that the eternal generation of the Son, and the eternal proceflion of the Spirit, are to us unknown ? The wifefl: of men, even in his old age, after all the improvements in knowledge which he had made, did not pretend to underfland the manner and progrefe of human generation. Eccl. xi. 5. Far lefs can any man on earth pretend to explain the eternal generation of the Son of God. All that 1 need to fay on this myfterious and fublime fubje£t, for pre- venting miftakes, may be comprifed in the following hints. When I fay that the firft perfon begets the fecond, and that the third proceeds from the firft: and the fecond, I do not mean that the firft: divine perfon ex- ift:ed prior to the fecond, or that either the firft: or the fecond exifl:ed prior to the third. A human father ne- ceiTarily exift:s prior to his fon ; but between human and divine generation, there is an infinite, an incomprchen- fible, difparity. When we fay that the Father, in the myfterious order of fubfiftence, is the firft perfon, the Son the fecond, and the Spirit the third, we do not mean that the fecond is inferior in dignity to the firft, or the third to the firft or the fecond. That there is fuch a myfterious order in which they fubfift is manifeft. But the fecond per- fon is equal, not inferior^ but equal, to the firft; and the third not inferior, but equal to the firft and the fecond. Moreover, the paternity, the filiation, and the pro- celTion, by which the three divine fubfiftcnces are known and diftinguifhed, are not ejfemiali but perfonal acls. The Sacred Trinity. i^l acls. It is not in point of eflence that the Father is faid to beget the Son, the Son is faid to be begotten of the Father, or the Spirit is faid to proceed from the Father and the Son. The elfeiice is one ; and belongs to all the three necejfarily, originally^ and equally. I mud add, that all thefe different modes of perfonal fubfiftence in the Godhead, and intrinfic relations among the co-eternal Three, are natural and neceffary — as na- tural and neceifary as the Godhead itfelf. It never diJ, it never can exifl wi.thout all thefe different modes c^ perfonal fubfiftence. An individual human nature can fubfift in one perfon only. The divine nature no lefs neceflarily fubfifts in three perfons. Can the former admit of only one perfonality ? The latter, no lefs re- quires three different modes of perfonal fubfiftence. It originally and neceffarily fubfifts in the iirft perfon as a Father. It no lefs naturally and neceffarily fubfifts in the fecond as a Son. And it no lefs originally and ne- ceffarily fubfifts in the third perfon as proceeding from both. Thus, I fay, the different modes of perfonal fub- fiftence, of which the divine nature admits, and the in- trinfic relations in which the co-eternal Three ftand to one another, are as natural and neceffary as the divine nature itfelf. Admirably is this myfterious order, in which the divine Three fubfift, exemplified and illuftrated by the differest parts which they perform in the ceconomy of our redemption. The contrivance of the great plan is, in a pecuUar manner, attributed to the Father ; and the execution of it to the Son and the Spirit ; the impetra- tion of it to the Son, and the application to the Spirit. In this work cfpecially have they an opportunity of dif- playing their perfonal as well as their effential glory. This probably has led fome tlieological writers of emi- nence, in other inftances agreed with the orthodox, to confider the paternal character of the firft perfon, the ^lial of the fecond, and the proceffion of the third, as ceconomical 15^ The Sacred Trinity. (economical or cjjicial, rather than proper pcrfonal cha- rafters. Snch writers, though they hold the Trinity of perfons in the undivided Godhead, apprehend that the characlers Father^ Son^ and Spirit, are not original, natural, and neceifary to the facred Three, but rather refult from the oeconomy of redemption. Their mean- ing, in fhort, is this — That there are naturally and necef- farily three perfons in the Godhead ; but, had it not been for the oeconomy of grace, they never would have been known to us by fuch charafters and nam^s. One obvious objeftion, among others, to this opinion is the following. It only is by ihe different perfonal charac- ters which the co-eternal Three have aflumed, and by uhich they are revealed to us, that we know that they are different perfons. If, therefore, we rcfign the com- mon perfonal properties, one of two things mufl follow. Either we mull find other charafters by which we are to diftinguifh them, or refign this fundamental article of the Trinity altogether. If the eo-eternal Three were not, as perfons, originally diftinguilhed by paternity. Jilia- iiojy 2Xi^ procejfion ; if thefe be not the perfonal charac- ters by which they were originally, independent of the oeconomy of redemption, diltinguifiied from one ano- ther, what are the different perfonal characlers which belong to ihem as different fubfiftences in the God- head, and by which they were originally diftinguiffietl one from another ? 1 fhall proceed to the IV. Thing in the anfwer. It is affirmed, that thefe three perfons are ONE GOD. Each of them is God. Iv:ufl: there not be then three Gods ? No. It only is in rcfpcQ: of their different perfonalitics that they are three. In Godhead they are ONE. Not only does Deity belong to each of them ; but one individual Godhead belongs to them all in common. Two things arc here afferttd — That each of them is God — and that they all are cnc Gcd. That the Tather is God, is admitted on all The Sacred Trinity, i^'^ all hands. That the Son, no lefs than the Father, is God ; and that the Spirit, no lefs than the Father and the Son, is God, the Compilers of the Catcchifin here affirm. Accordingly, in proof of the Deity of the fecond and third perfons, I (hall adduce a number of the many teftimonies with which the fcriptures of both Teila- mcnts amply furnifh us. I begin, firft^ with the Deity of the Son, the fecond perfon. This is an article of capital importance in the Chriftian fyftem. At an early period of the Chriftian church, however, was it controverted and denied. The feci of the ancient Arians are well known in ecclefiafti- cal hillory. They are denominated from Arius a prcf- byter of Alexandria. He broache-d his errors in the be- ginning of the fourth century. What he held in the ge- neral was — That the Son had a beginning, and is a crea- ture, though in antiquity and excellency fuperior to all other creatures. The modern feci of Socinians have gone a flep farther than the ancient Arians. They are denominated from Fauftus Socinus, a native of Italy. They hold, that the fecond perfon had no exiftencc till he was formed in the womb of the Virgin. But, in op- pofition to adverfaries earlier and later, it is here affirm- ed, that the fecond perfon, equally with the firft, is God — in perfonaliiy equal to the Father, and in God- head one with him. Now that the Son, no lefs than the Father, is God,' I might evince by a great variety of arguments, la the Firft place. The fame divine names, which on one occafion are applied to the Father, are, on another, in terms no lefs explicit, afcribed to the Son, How do we know that the FA'J^HER is God ? He is in exprefs terms, and in a fcnfe infinitely too high for any of the: creatures, affirmed to be God. In terms equally ex- prefs, and in a fenfe equally high, is the SON laid to Vol. I. U bs^ t 1 54 Tb^ Sacred Tnn'iiy. be God. In places almofl innumerable is tbe latter afFirmed to be God. To fhow that the tide God, when applied to the Son, is to be underfiood in the very higheft: fenfe, epithets are prefixed to it, which are ut- terly inapplicable to the moft: exalted creature in hea- ven, as well as on earth. He is (tiled The MIG?I lY GOD. Ifa. ix. 6. The Supreme God, or GOD OYER ALL. Rom. ix. 5. The GREAT GOD. Tit. ii. 15. An Apoltie tells us, that beiriji; in ihi form of God, he thought it mi robbery to be E9^AL tuiih God. Phil. ii. 6. He who, to the aftonilbment of heaven as well as of earth, voluntarily took upon him the form of a fervant, as veifd 7th fpeaks, was originally in the form of God. What is it to be in the form of a fervant, but, in facl, to be a fervant .'' What then can it be to be in the form of God, but to be truly God ? Irrefragably to prove the Deity of the Son, the fcripture applies to him, no Icfs than to the Father, the incommunicable name JEHOVAH. In order to evade the force of this argument, adverfaries have alledged, that this name, though called incommunicable, is in the fcriptures ap- plied both to perfons and things of the created kind. In fupport of this allegation, they remind us of feveral infcriptions and titles extant in the Old Teflament. Such was the name given to the place in which Abra- ham facrinced — Abraham called the name of that place jEHOVAH-JIREH, the Lord will provide. Gen. xxii. 14. Such was the infcription on the altar which Mofes built — Mofes hmlt an altar, and called the name of it JEHOVAH-NISSI, the Lord is my banner. Exod. xvii. 15. Such alfo was the name of the altar which Gideon ercdled — Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called //JEHOVAH-SHALOM, the Lord will perfedt. Judg. vi. 24. Such, in a word, is the name of the ipiritual city, or New Teltament church — The name of the city, from that day,JJ?all be JEFIOVAH- SHAMMA, the Lcul is there. Ezck. xlviii. ^S' ^^"^» ^o every The Sacred Trinity. j^j every unprejudiced perfon, it muft be fufficiently mani- feft, that the appHcation of this ineffable name to fuch places and altars, was only intended to intimate, that He^ who was worfiiipped in thofe places, and at thofc altars, was that felf-exiftent, all-fufficient, and indepen- dent God, to whom alone the ineffable name Jehovah belongs. It was not properly to the altars or places themfelves, but to Him who appeared and was wor- fnipped in them, that the incommunicable name was given. I Ihall only take notice of another place, on which the advcrfaries of our Ldrd*s divinity have laid no fmall flrefs. In order to invalidate the argument which we take from the application of the ineffable name to him, they affirm, that it is applied to the church as exprcfsly as to him, in Jer. xxxiii. i6. In thofe days Jhail Jiidah he favedy and Jerufalem Jhall dwell fafely ; and this is the name wherewith She Jhall be called, JEHOVAH- TZIDKENU, the Lord our righteoufnefs. But, to every impartial reader, it muit be apparent, (hat the paffage now quoted is exactly parallel to chap, xxiii. 6. which reads thus — In his days Judah Jhall be faved^ and If- r'ael Jhall dwell fafely ; and this is his name wherewith He flmll be called, JEHO VAH-TZIDKENU. Any Ihadow of ground there is for the fuppofition or the pretence, that in chap, xxxiii. 16. the ineffable name is applied to the church, feems to be owing to a mif-tranllation. The vrords might, and probably ought to be, tranllated otherwife ; either thus — This is his name who Jhall call her, that is the church ; or thus — This is the name where- by Jl?e Jhall call him, Jehovah our righteoufnefs. Thus Jehovah appears to be the incommunicable name of ; God. Now, that this great name, of which God only is worthy, is applied to ihe Son as well as to the Father, is fo manifeft,' that adverfarics themfelves are conffrain- cd to admit it. So it is in Ifa. xl. 3. The voice of him that criQth in the wildemef. Prepare ye the way cf U 2 JEHOVAH. 156 77?^ Sacred Trinity, JEHOVAH. That the Son, our glorious Mediator, 19 here intended by Jehovah, is infalUbly certain, from the application of this paflage to him in the New Teftament. Matth. iii. 3. It is fo in Ifa. viii. 13. San6lify Jeho- VAii-TzEBAOTH, the Lord of hojis ; and let him be your fear^ and let him be your dread. And he Jhall be for a fancluary ; and for aflone of flumbling^ and for a rock of ' ojf'cnce^ e Spirit of wfdom and rcvelaticfi in the knowledge of Chrili \ and by \\\\a the eyes of their underfiandings iare fupernaturally enlightened. Eph. i. 17, 18. The great and good work of the fandlification cf unholy fmners is. in an efpecial njanucr. alcribtd to the Spirit. The ^poiUe help, aks the believing I heifalonians thus — God hc'th from iht b \:ii nirg chofcn you tofalvatton, through ^ANCTiflCATlON *jF THE SpIRIT. 2 'ihcll. ii. I3. Fo add The Sacred Trinity, 165 add no more on this^ particular, the glorious work of the rcfirreclion of the dead in Chriil is to be efFe£led by the fpecial agency of the Holy Ghofl. Hence the A- poftle's confolatory words to the believing Roraans— ^ the Spirit of Him that rat fed up Jefus from the dead dwell in you ; he that rat fed up Chrifi from the dead fhall alfo QUICKEN your mortal bodies by hii Spirit that dwelleth in you. Horn, viii 11. Such arc the great and glorious works, efp'?cially of the faving kind, which this blefled agent perfoims. Are not thefe glorious works worthy of God, and calculated to reflect the faigheft honour upon him ? In the ^th placs^ Religious worjhip, which belongs to God alone, is, in the fcriptiires, afcribed to the Spirit equal- ly with the Father and the Son. Prayer, one of the mod folemn parts of the worfhip of the militiint church, is performed to the Spirit, no lefs than the Father and the Son. The apoftoiical benediccion, quoted already, is moft explicit and full — The grace of the Lord Jcfus Chrifi^ and the love of God, atid the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all, 1 Cor. xiii. 14. To which I might add the Apoflle John's praver in behalf of the Afiatie churches-^Rev. i. 4, 5. Baptifm, the initiatory feal of the everlafting covenant, is admini- ftered in the name of the Holy Ghofl:, no lefs than of the Father and the Son. Matth. xxviii. 19. In the ^th place. As an irrefragable proof of the divinity oi the Holy Ghofl, he is affirmed to be not merely equa^ to the Father and the Son, but one with them. So the text prefixed to this Leciure fpeaks — Ihere are Ihree that hear record in heaven, the Father^ the Word, and the Holy Ghoft, and thefe Three are one. How mani- fefl is the difference between the three witnelTes in hea- ven, of whom the text fpeaks, and the three witnefTes on earth, to which the following verfe refers ! As for the latter, it is faid, they agree in one. They arc one jn defign. But the three celeflial witnefies are one iri 1 66 The Sacred Trinity, in .nature, as well as defign. One individual nature is common to them all. If, therefore, any one of them be God, each of them muft be God. It is, in the anfwer, afferted, that the three perfons in the Godhead are not only God, but one God. That God is one we faw on a former occafion. The Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Ghofl is God. And all the Three are one God. For though, as perfons, they be different, one undivided Godhead belongs to them all. That God is one, reafon teaches, and revelation declares. Accordingly, as a further illuftration of this important point, it is V. Affirmed, that the tiirce perfons in the Godhead arc THE SAME IN SUBSTANCE, EQUAL IN POWER AND GLORY. It is not merely affirmed that they are equal. Equal, no doubt, they are. l^ut this is not all. Might not a mere equality con»port with Tritheifm itfcU ? Three human perfons may be equal. They pofltfs three na- tures fimilar ; even fp.-cifically the fame. But, though they may be fpecif.cally, they cannot be numerically the fame. The fubltance of any one of them is in reality different from that of another of them. But, as for the 1 hree divine, ihey are not merely fimilar, but the SAME in fubftance. With great precifion do the Compilers of the Catrchifm exprefs themfelves on this fublinie fubjecl. Againft the herefies of earlier, as vrell as later times, do thev guard us. In two in- llanccs efpecially has this fundamental article been at- tacked. At an early period was it impunged in relation to the diflin6lion of perfons in the Godhead. I'he herefy of the babcllians of tlie third century, fo denominated from Sabellius, an Egyptirn philoiopher, the founder of the feci, every reader of church hiftory knows. What they held, in general, as 1 hinted already, is — That ir^ the Godhead there is only one pcrfon, v;ho fuftains and ads The Sacred Trinity, 167 a^s In three different charatlcrs. The Arians of the ;fburth century allowed that there are three perfons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghoft- But, that thcfe perfons are one God, the fame in fubflancc, equal in power and glory, they deny. Accordingly, the Compilers of this judicious com- mend of the Chriftian religion, having, in the preceding part of the anfwer, aflerted, in oppofition to the an- cient Sabellians and their followers, that in the undivi- ded Godhead there are three perfons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghoft, they, in the latter part of it, affirm, in oppofition to Arianifm and all the abettors of it, that thefe three perfons are one God, the fame in fubftance, equal i-n power and glory. Vhat the Son and the Holy Ghoft, no Itfs than the Father, are God, I have, 1 hope, fufHciently proved already. Now, if the fecond and third perfons equally with the firft, be God, he and they muft be one God ; and the fame in fubftance, as well as equal in power and glory. A di- verfity of divine elTences there cannot be. JSuch afup- pofition is abfurd in the extreme, lleafbn, no lefis than revelation, remonftrales apainft it. Tnefe divine perfons, it is added, are equal in power and glory, f he preceding part of the particular relates to their onenefs in effencc. One eflence or fubftance, nature or Godhead, belongs to them all. This refers to their perfonal equality. As perfons they are not in- ferior, but equal one to another. Two inftances are here mentioned, in which they appear to be equal — in po'-jjsr and glory. I. Power. Of power, as an effential perfedion of the Godhead, 1 have fpoken already. 1 called it an cf- fi^ntial perfection. It is not peculiar to any one of the facred Three, but common to them all. In power, ac- cording to this view of it, they may be faid to be not only equal, hut the fame. I'he expreiTion, however, is varied here. They are affirmed to be the fame in fubftance. l6S The Sacred Trinity. fubflancc, and equal in power. The reafon, probabK*, is this. Power here may he intended to lig'ifv not fo much the divine perfcdion itfelf, as the effects of it ; the great and glorious works, which God, by his poiver^ has produced. In relation to fueh glorious works, it may be proper to fay that they are equaU Though fuch works be the cffecls of that power wirich is cflcntial and common to them all, in the accomplifh- ment of them they ad, in a manner calculated for the manifeflacion of their diftind petfonal charaders, and the myflerious order in which they fubfift. The Kaihcl: works by the Son, not the Son by the Father ; the Fa- ther and the Son by the Spirit, not the Spirit by the Father and the Son. This is the cafe in the works of creation, as well as redemption. By his Son, God the Father is faid to have made the "Worlds ; not the Son by the Father, but the Father by the Son. Heb. i. 2. l^y his Spirit, he garnijhed the hiavens ; not the Spirit by Him, but He by the Spirit. Job xxvi. 13. Was the Father the principal agent in creation, the Son an infe- jior ? No. In it all the pcrfons of the Godhead were equally concerned. It was the work of the Father equally with the Son; and as really the work of the Spirit as of the Father and the Son. Accordingly, it has all along been a maxim among theological writers, that the external works of God are undivided. In what things foever God decs without himfelf, all the perfons in the Godhead are concerned. Such works are called external^ to ciftinguifli them from the internal ads by which the perfons in the Godhead are known one from another, ^uch ads arc peculiar to tjic perfons to whom they arc afciibcd. The firft perfon only begets; the fecond is begotten ; and the third, not the firft or the I'econd, but the third perfon, proceeds. In all exter- nal works they concur. So they did in creation. This, BS I had cccafion to obfcrve formerly, may be intima- ted in the plural word, by which the Creator of all worWs the Sacred Trinity, i6^ worlds is expreiTed. Gen. i. i. Elohim created the hea- foens and the earth. It was the undivided work of the co-eternal Three. Efpecially do they difplay their per- fonal glory, and myfterious order of fubfiftence, in the work of our redemption. A particular part of it, indeed, is attributed to the Father, another to the Son,^ and another to the Holy Ghoft. But in the contrivance of it, the Son and the Spirit concur with the Father. The counfel of peace was between the Father, the infinite contriver, and the Son and the Spirit, by whom efpe- cially the grand plan was to be, in time, carried into adlual execution- Zech. vi. 13. The impetration of it is peculiarly afcribed to the Son. But was the Son alone in this part of the work ? What faith the Son himfclf on this head ? Behold the hour comet hy yea, is now come, that ye Jhall be fcattered^ every man to his own, andjhall leave me alone ; and yet I am not alone, becaufe THE Father ig with M£» John xvi. 32. Was the Spirit as well as the Father with the Son in this work ? Yes. The Spirit was in him fuperabundantly. Jefus being full of the Holy Ghoji, returned from Judea, and ivas led by the Spirit into the wildernefs. Luke. iv. 1. The efFedlual application of our redemption is attri- buted to the Holy Ghoft. But is this divine perfon alone in the applicatory part of the work ? No. The Father and the Son concur with him in it. To exem- plify this in one inftancc — our regeneration is, on one occafion, afcribed to the Father, on another to the Son, and on a third to the Holy Ghofl:. To the Fa- ther, in Eph. ii. 1. Ton hath he, the God of our Lord Jefus Chri/i, the Father of glcry, who raifed Chrill from the dead, and fet him on his oivn right hand in the heavenly places, and gave him to be head over all things to the church — Tou hath He quickened who were dead in trefpaffes and fins. To the Son, it is like wife afcribed in John v. 21. As the Father raifeth up the dead, and quickeneth them, even fs the Son quickenctb Voj-. I. Y . ivhth^ t jyo The Sacred Trinity. whom he icilL And to the Holy Ghoft, It is attributed in John iii. 5. J^fus anfivered^ Vtrily^ verily ^ I fay uni9 thecy Except a man be born of watcr^ and, or even, of the .Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of Ged. The Son, the fecond pcrfon, having affumcd the charader of our Mediator or Redeemer, performs a i3ecuhar part in the ccconomy of our redemption. But the anfvver fpeaks rather of the co-eternal Three in their original characters. As fuch they are all equally concerned in thofe wonderful works, which are efpe- cially the cffccls of power. Wifdom and goodncfs, indeed, no Icfs than power, appear in all thofe works. But, though goodnefs prompts God to work in both the world and the church, and though all his works befpeak deep dcfign, the refult of the mod confummate vifdom; power, in an efpecial manner, is immediately exerted and ulfplaycd in the accompliniment of all the work? of God. i'or this covious reafon m:xy pozucr be cxprefsly mentioned here. The divine Three arc faid to be equal in glory, as. well as in power. Equal in the performance of fuch great works, as neceflarily indicate power peculiar to God, they arc, ol courfe. equal in the glory thiit accrues from them. 1 hough, according to the mylterious or- der in vvhich they fubfilf, the Father may be faid to precede the Son, and the Son the Spirit ; the Son is not, euher in power or iu glory, inferior to the Father ; nor is the Spirit, in the one rclpeft or the other, infe- rior, either to the Father or the Son. Is creation the joint work of the undivided Three ? The glory of it never is ti) be afcribed to the Father to the cxclufionof the oon : or to the Father and the Son to the exclufion of the Spirit As it is a work in which they were all e- qually concerned, equal glory rcfults from it to them all. '1 he gliity of redemption, no Itls than of creation, is due, and afcribed in heaven and on earth, by angels and men, to the unc'ividcd Three j to the Son no lefs than The Sacred Trinity* 17^ than to the Father, and to the Spirit equally with the Father and the Son. From u4iat has been fald on the fubUme myftery of the Trinity, 1 might make feveral ' r • i Repaions. And, fr/i of all, What has been laid fuggefts to us one of the many inftanres, in which reveal- ed rehgion is fuperior to natural. How deficient is the latter ! What glorious difcoveries does the former make I Not only does it teach that there is a God i but that \n one undivided Godhead there are three diilinft per- fons ; the Father, the Son, and the St>iRiT, not in- ferior, but equal one to another. Myfterics innumer- able, indeed, have we in nature. But what fuperior myfteries have we in religion! May not this ot the Trinity be faid to be the chief of them ? Let us ad- mire and adore what we never can comprehend. 2dly, Here is one of the numberlefs inftances, in which we may fee the abfurdity of making our com- prehenfion the ftandard of our belief; and the impoit- ance of diftinguiihing between what tranfcends reafon and what is contrary to it. Infinitely, indeed, does the myftery of the facred Trinity tranfcend our compre- henfion and reafon. But contrary 10 Jowid realbn it iS not. Fully and clearly is it revealed in the facred o- racles. Indifpenfably are we bound, therefore, to be- lieve it. That it is we certainly know ; though to comprehend and explain it we never will pretend. 3^/y, The fublime myftery of the facred innity iS fuch, that univerfal nature cannot furniih any thmg fi- milar to it ; and, therefore, to pretend to repreient it by any funilitude is, in my apprehenfion, abfurd and dangerous. That many excellent writers, felicitous to inftrua their readers, have borrowed from creation dd- l^rent fimilitudes to affift them in forming fome taint idea or conception of this fubhme myftery, is well known. From the heavens above, from the earth be.ow, and even from themfelves, have they taken their fimili* Y 2 ludes. lyt The Sacred Trinity, tudcs. That glorious luminary which we call our f\in, has been fuppoicd to furnifli us with a fit emblem of the myftery of the Trinity. The body of the fun has been undcrftood to rcprcfcnt the Father, the light which pro- ceeds from it the Son, and its heat the Holy Ghofl. A fountain of water, it has been pretended, is a repre- fentation of the Trinity ; the origin of the fountain in the bowels of the earth, of the Father ; the fpringing of it, of the Son ; and the rivulet which is conftantly fupplicd by it, of the Spirit. It has been accommodated to three different kinds of life, vegeiatrce, fenfitivey and rational, in man. A variety of other fmiilitudes have been ufed to enable us to form a diflin£l conception of the great myftery of one Godhead in three perfons, and three perfons in one Godhead. But how unfit and unworthy are all fuch reprcfentations ! Such a method of explain- ing and accounting for the Trinity is, in my opinion, moft unjuftifiable. That it is well intended, I know. Eut it is moO: derogatory to the fublime fubjcft ; and calculated to produce in us conceptions moft: unworthy of it. Between the Trinity and every thing in crea- tion there is nn infinite difproportion. To ivhom icill ye LIKEN ;;/, and others. The Jefoits are well known to be a religious order in the Roman church, founded in the fixteenth century by Ignatius Loyola, a native of Spain. This fociety evidently borrowed its name from Jefus. It, has of late years been abolilhed with the confent of all the Catholic powers. The Arminians are denomi- nated from their leader, Arminius, a famous minifter of Amfterdam. He Hourilhed in the fixteenth century. The initances in which he differed from the Calvinifts I need not now enumerate. The great doctrine ot pre- dejiination is well known to have been one of them. Predeftination, as it relates to both angels and men, confifts of two branches generally diftinguifhed by the names of eledlon and reprobalion. I may fay a few things on it as it relates to angels. That part of the angels were elected, and part of them paffed byj is certain. Of the former the fcripturc makes exprefs mention. I charge thee, fays the Apoftle Paul to his fon Timothy, before God and the Lord Jefus Chrifi, and ^Z^^- elect angels, that thou obfer-ve thefs things^ without preferring one before another^ doing no- thing by partiality, i Tim. v. : i. Of the non ele^, and now fallen angels, two other Apoftles make no lefs exprefs mention. God fpared rot the ah'gels that SINNED, but call them down to hell, and delivered theni into chains of darknefs^ to be referved unio judynunt. 7. Pet. ii..4. fhe angels which kept not their firjt ejtate^ hut left their own habitation, he hath referved in ever- lafling chains under darkmfs^ unto the judgmsr.t of the great day. Thus the election of a part of the angels is mentioned in the fcripturcs ; and the non-election of others is neceffarily implied. Election, as the word literally fignifies, denotes the choice of a part out front among the whole. Had all the angels been appoijued to be confirmed in their original ftate of purity and Vol. I. A a felicity, f 1 86 The Divine Decrees, felicity, they might have been faid to be predejlinafed f but could, wnth no propriety, have been faid to be ele^ed. In eledion a part is pitched upon ; otlicrs arc pafled by. Whether the greater part of the angels were chofen, or not chofen, wc are not told. The number of the (landing, and alfo of the fallen, is to us unknown. But that the number of both the former and the httcr is very great is certain. The defign of the eledion of a great part of the angels is obvious. It was to confirm them in their firfl cftate, and prevent their fall. It is natural to a{k here, whether there be any differ- ence between the cledion of angels and that of men ; and, if there be, in what it confifts. That there is a wide difference between the two is evident. It may confift efpecially in three things. ly^, In eleftion the angels were forefcen and confi- dered as holy and happy beings. They were chofen, as 1 faid already, to be coniirmed in a ftate of holinefs find happintfs. In eleflion men were forefeen and confidered as fmful and fallen creatures. 2d!y, The aingels are no where faid to have been c- Icded in Cbri/i. It has, indeed, been the opinion of great and good men, that, though the angels never finned, and confequcntly never needed Chrift as a Redeemer, he is to them a confirming head. But finncrs of man- kind are exprefbly faid to have been elected in Chrift. For others as well as himfelf the Apofile fpeaks thus — Blcffcd be the Gcd and Father of cur Lord Jcfus Chrijlj VJho hath blcjfed us iv'ith all fpir'tiual blcjpngs in heavenly places in Chriji, according as he hath chofen us in him before the foundation of the world. Eph. i. 3, 4. i^y/y. Sinners of mankind are faid to have been chofen to falvation. Thus the Apoftle befpeaks the believing Thcffalonians — IVc arc bound to give thanks alway to God for you^ brethren^ beloved of the Lord, becaufc God hathfroiu the beginning chofen you To salvation, through fandtficatidn TJjc Divine Decrees, i^y JhnBiJlcation of the Spirit, and belief of the truth. 2 Theff, ii. 13. But no where are angels faid to have been chofen to falvation. To it they could not be chofen, They never finned to need a Saviour. The eledlion of a part of the angels implies the non- cledion of others. This is ufuallv cajled Reprobation. According to the definition of it. In the anfwer which I have quoted from the Larger Catechifm, it implies in it two things ; preferitim and preordination of the objects of it to that punifhment which they, in time, incur by their fins. But what I have to fay on this tremendous fubjcd, I (hall poftpone till I confider it in relation to men. I fhould, therefore, proceed to the great fubjedt of the predeftination of mankind, including both the eledion of a part of them, and the non-ele6lion of o- thers. Sublime, myfterious fubjed! It has been pled that this fubjeQ: is of fuch a nature, that to introduce it into the pulpit, and difcufs it before a popular audience, is improper, if not dangerous. ITiat it ought to be treated with peculiar caution and delicacy is certain. But that it is a part of the revealed will of God, and that revealed things belong unto us and to our children, who can deny-? However, as it is exprefsly mentioned in the anfwer to a fubfequent queftion of the Catechifm, I have refolved to delay the confideration of it till I come to that place. Having poftponcd the folution of feveral difficulties in relation to the divine decrees, as they refer to ths creatures in general, till I have an opportunity to explain the works of providence ; and the confideration of the cledion and non-eledtion of men, till I enter on the elucidation of the anfwer to the following queftion — " Did God leave all mankind to perifli in the eftate of ** fin and mifery ?" I fhall, for the prefent, difmifs the fubj<'£l of the decrees with a few reflexions. How derogatory to the fovereignty, the prcfcience, the perfection, the juainutability of God, is the Socinian ' >6^a a notion 1 88 The Divine Decrees. notion that the decrees of God are not eternal ! Some of ttiern the Socinians can allow to be, in a qualified fenfe, eternal. Others they W\\\ not admit to be in any refpect eternal Bin that God from eternity infallibly foreknew, and foreappointed every thing which comes to pafs in time, may be inferred from the perfedion of his nature ; and is often intimated to us in the fcrip- tures. How unworthy of God is the notion of the Pela- gians and Semi- pelagians, whether ancient or modern, that many things are decreed in a conditional and un- certain manner ! Did not the omnifcient Being, from cvcrhfling, foreknow all the circumftances in which his ■creatures can poOibly be placed in time, and how they a6l feverally in thefe circumftances ? Are things paft and to come with God as ther are with us ? Is his knowledge iniperfetl and progrellive as ours is ? Can he be in hcfitation or fufpenfe about any of his creatures or any of their actions ? The divine decree, foreordaining whatfoever comes to paf?, ever muft be underftood in a confiflency with that freedom with vvnich rational and accountable crf-atures are fiippofed to a6t ; and with the eficntial diflindion between aftions natural and neceflary, and actions uhich are fortuitous and contingent The fa- tality or deftiny of the ancient Stoics the fcripturc knows not. The attual futurition and accomplifhment of every thing decreed from etcrriity is, indeed, infal- libly certain. It cannot but happen. And that evil actions, no lefs than good, are determined to be, I i'm in the fecjuel, to evince from the fcriptures. But the forep.ppointment of an evil action does not influence or prompt the rational agent to commu it. He ads with as full freedom, as if no fuch preord'i.ation had obtained irom eternity. The inclination, the piopcn- iiry, to evil does not originate in God or his puipolc?. It originates in the depravation of the fin(ul pcrfoji that The Divine Decrees. 189 that commits it. God cannot be the author of fm. He, no doubt, permits it, othervvife it could not hap- pen ; but he cannot poflibly excite to the commlffioa of it. What hath been faid accounts for the futurition of one thing, and the non-futurition of another no lefs poflible, or even likely, than the former. To the eter- nal decrees, as their proper fource, may all the works of time be traced ; and into divine fovereignty may the decrees be refolved. How confpicuous is fovereignty in the purpofes of God, and in the accompHfhment of them 1 Might not the felf-fufficicnt God, had he pleafed, have exifted for ever alone ? Let us look back into the ages which preceded he commencement of time. We find the infinite God exifting alone ; and infinitely happy in the fruition of his all-fuf!icient Self. But we, at the fame time, find him in fovereignty purpofing within himfelf to produce a vafl: variety of other beings. He is the fountain of being and felicity. How delightful an employment for us to travel back beyond the boun- daries of time, and the hmits of creation ; to contem- plate the divine Being forming defigns for bringing into exigence and imparting felicity to millions of millions of other beings ; who, had it not been for his fovereignty and benignity, muft have lain for ever in the womb of non-entity ! Great God, what are the creatures, that thou fhouldefl, from eternal ages, have concerted mea- fures for bringing them into being, and making them happy ! Lord, what is man ! As the heavens are high above the earth, Jo are thy thoughts above our thoughts^ and thy ways above our ways. Is it fo? Is every thing that happens in time deter- mined from eternity ? Then let us, without repining, fubmit to our lot on earth. Whether we be in pro- fpcrity or in advcrfity, afflicted or comforted, each of us may adopt Job's words — He per for met h the thing that is appointed, which he himfelf, from beginni.nglcfs ages, appointed tgo The Divine Decreet. appointed for vie : and many fuch ihingi are with htm. Job xxiii. 14. Often, indeed, have we a finful hand in procuring evil things to ourfelves, and provoking the Lord to withhold good things from us. But, if we be the children of God, he will over-rule all things, the very word that can poflibly befal us, for our good in a fub- fcrvicncy to his glory. We know, on the ground of the faithful promife of God, tfiat all things work together for rocfd to them that love God, to them that are called accord* pig io bis purpofe, Rom. viii. 28. Tb^ { 191 ) The Execution of the Decrees. Is A. xM. 10^ Declaring the end from the beginning, and from the dn* dent times the things that are not yet done, faying^ Mj counfeljhalljiand) and I will ds all my pleafure, LOW as religion was when Ifaiah lived and prophc- fied, a godly remnant dill remained. To the im- portant truth, that the God of Ifrael was the only living and true God, they gave the mod explicit and faithful teftimony. On this account he fliles them his wit- nejfes, /, enjen I, am the Lord, and befide me there is n§ Saviour, 1 have declared, and I have faved, and I have fhowed, when there was no (Irange god among you ; there- fore ye are MY wniiiLSSES, faith the Lord^ that I am God, Of his fupreme Deity, the words, which I have read, contain two indifputable proofs. Omnifcience is here attributed to him. All things to come, as well as paft, are known to him. From the commencement of time, nay, from the beginninglefs ages of eternity, he knew every thing that has happened, and every thing that is to happen. Many things paft, and efpecially many Ihings to come, are to us altogether unknown. Thmgs pail 192 The Execution of the Decrees, pafl and things to come, however, are equally known to God. Omnipotence, as well as omnifciencc, is here afcribed to him. Every thing confL^naiit to his nature, a"d tliat does not imply a contradiftion, he can do. All his purpofes and dcfigns he is able to accompliih. The accoinplifhnient of them nothing can defeat. This he declares in the words of the text — My counfcljhall Jland, end I ivill Jo all my pleafure, Mofl naturally does this text introduce the anfwer to the following queftion in the Catechifm — How doth God execute his decrees ? God cxecuteth his decrees in the •works cf creation and providence. As this anfwer is fuflkiently plain, and introdudlory to a number of fub- fequent anfwers, it does not require much explanation. It goes upon a fuppofition, that what purpoil-s or de- figns foevcr God has formed, he cither has already ac- compliflied, or he will infallibly accompliih them. Two ihings efpecially occafion the non-fulfilment of our de- figns, our mutability and our impotency. We form refo- Jutions, and we alter them, or we are unable to fulfil them. Obflacles, which we neither could lee nor pre- vent, come in the way. But, as for God, he is at once omnipotent and immutable. Were any particular ex-' planalion of the anfwer necefTary, I might divide it in- to three particulars ; and fpcak of the infinite worker, Cod ; of the important work attributed to him, the execution of his decrees ; and of the particular inflances in which he fulfils his dcfigns, the ivorks of creation and providence. iji. The infinite worker, God. The three-one God is intended. He, and he only, was fit to form fuch de- figns, and he only is able to accomplifh them. What cannot his wifdom contrive ? What cannot his power perform ? 2(//y, The important work afcribed to this infinite a- gent, THE tXECUTIONOF HIG OWN ETERNAL DECREES. Often are our fchcmes unproduftive. Our defigns and expectation -J The Execution of the Decrees. 193 expc£lations are abortive and unfuccefsful Far other- wife is it with God. What he hath determined he either hath done, or he will infalHbly do. A fuperior among the creatures decrees a certain thing, and an inferior executes it. But the great God executes his own decrees. There is not another being fuperior, or even equal, to him. He executes all his decrees. The non-execution of an undertaking necefl'arily implies im- perfcdlon. But God, in every view, is infinitely per- fed. With the moft evident propriety does Job addrefs him thus — / know that thou canfl do everything^ and that no thought can be ivith-holden from thee. chap. xlii. 2. 3(^/y, rhe particular inllances in which he executes his decrees, the works of creation and provi- dence. Of the glorious work of creation, and alfo of the my fterious works of providence, 1 will have oc- cafion to fpeak in the fequel. The works in which the divine decrees arc accomplifhed are fome times dirtri- buted into creation, providence, and redemption. Re- demption is, in the anfwer, manifeflly included in provi- dence. It is here underftood, that there is a certain eftabhftied order in which God executes his eternal decrees. Creation preceded the works of providence, and paved the way for them. Was not this earth crea- ted ihat it might be the theatre on which the great work of our redemption was to be acted ? Did not the all-wife God permit fin to enter, that from it he might take occaQon to glorify himfelf in the falvation of fin- iiers ? One hnk in the great chain of the divine defigns and difpenfations hangs upon another. Kvents are ac- complilhed in a manner, and by means, of which we never could have thought. Trials, the moil unexpected, befal us. Deliverances, in a manner no Icfs unexpeded, are wrought for us. In relation to all which diverfi- fied incidents each of us may fay in words already quot- ed— He -performeth the thing that is appointed for me^ and many fuch things are with him. Vol. 1. B b Does t 194 *^^^ Execution of the Decrees, Docs God accomplifli all his purpr.fes and dcfigns? "What reafon have liis enemies to be afraid, and his friends to rejoice? What realon has cverv unbeiicvinc^, impenitent finner to fay — My Jiejh trembleth for fear of thee, and I am af aid of tby judgmerts. Who knozutth the power of thine anger, O Lord? According to thy fear fo is thy wrath It i.<. truly, a fearful thing to fail into the hands of the living God; when, as a Grjd of judgment, he comes to execute hii> fearful threatenings, and to per- form his lirange ivork in the earth. But let the friends ot God and religion be animated and comforted. His gracious and faithful word he has not forgotten. For a fcafon, the accompli (hment of his promifcs and the an- fv er of the prayers of his people may be delayed. I he delay, however, is only for a limited time. 1 he period is at hand when, to their incfi'^ble joy, they will have occafion ro fay — Lo. this is our God, ive have waited for him and he willfave us : this is the Lord, we have wait' edfor him, ive ivill be glad, and rejoice in his Jahation, Creation ( 195 ) Creation. Job xxxviii. 4, 5, 6, y. Where waji thou when I laid the foundations of the earths Declare, if thou hall under jtanding. Who hath laid the meafures thereof f thou knowe/t f or who hath Jtretch- ed the line upon it ? Whereupon are the foitndat ions there^ Dffaftemd f or who laid the corner Hone thereof^ when the morning dars fang io^tther, and all the fom of God fhouted for joy f W 7 H AT a ftiipendous work is creation ! What a W magnificent defcription does the all-powerful Creator give us of it in the paffagc which I h?.ve feled- ed and read to you ! It is at once one of the mod de° lightful and the mod profitvible employments to con- template it and the perfedions of Deity fo illuftrioufly difplaycd in it, Uf this great work, in conformity to the fcnptures, our Shorter Catcchifm gives us an account, at once concife and comprehenfive. The work of creation is God's making all things cf nothing, by the word of his power, in the Jpace of fix days, and all very good. The Com- pilers of this well devifed fummary, having fpoken of the eternal purpofes of God, proceed to inform us of the execution of them. The preceding anfwer fpeci- Bb 2 fies 196 Creation. fics two inftanccs in which he executes them, the works of creation, and the works of providence. According- ly, of creation they give us a defcription in the anfwer under review. Ilo revelation are we indebted for authentic infor- mation concerning]: the origin of the univerfe. That, among the nioft fagacious and learned in the Pagan world, there is no finall diverfity of fentiment on this fubject. is well known. The Mofaic account of creation in the firfl: chapter of the firft of all the facred books, is mod explicit and particular. To it a)>;ree all the after iniimatioris of creation, in its origin and matter, form and end, with which the infpired writers furniih us. In the fcripture-account of creation, two things are af- firmed. \ft It is afTerted, that the world had a beginning:. Thib is neceiTarily implied in the Catechifm, in oppofi- tion to the irrational as well as antifcriptural notion, that the world exilled from eternity. Concerning the fuppofed eternity of the world, indeed. Pagan philofo- phers are far from being agreed. In relation to it, a number of opinions h^ve been formed and propagated. Some have only held the poffibility of it ; pretending that there is nothing inconfiftcnt or abfurd in the fup- pofition that the univerfe might have exidcd from eter- nity. Others have held, that it a(flually did exift from cverlafting. The abettors of this opinion are not a little divided among themfelves. One holds that the world was formally, as well as materially, from erernity. In other words, not only did the matter, of which the world is made, exift from eternity, but it fubfifted in that beautiful form in which we now behold it. Ano- ther holds, that the world was not from eternity fuch as we now behold it ; but that the matter ever exifted of whicli it was formed, when, in due time, it aflumed that figure, in which we now fee it. A third, though he admits that the world was frpm eternity, denies that it it was felf-exiftent ; and pleads that the creation of it, at that early period, mud have been the work of an omni- potent a^ent, or Almighty God. All thefe different hypothefes have been invented and defended in tlie Heathen world. To fuch uncertainty and inconfiftency are the unhappy inhabitant^j of our world expofed in periods and places unenlightened by the gofpel. The eternity of the world was held by the Peripate- tics. They were the followers of Ariftotlc. This fa- mous philoibpher was born about 350 years before the Chriftian sera. He was a difciplc of Plato ; and afterwards' tutor to Alexander the Great. The Peripatetics held, that the world exiiled from everlaftin^ ages in the fnaps in which we now fee it ; and that from beginninglcfj ages there has been a regular fucceffioa of men and other creatures. They arc faid, however, to have held the being of God, and that, though he and the world are co-eternal, he cxiited prior to it in order, though noc in duration. The connection between the fupreme Being and the world in point of co-eternity, they have ilkftrated by the fimilirude of the fun and its light ; the fun being prior to the light in order, not in time. The moment tlie fun exifls he emits light. Another hyporhefis was maintained by that feci of phi^ofophcrs known by the name of Epicureans. They are denominated from Epicurus, by birth an Athenian, and cotemporary with Ariftotle. He is faid to have been one ot the grcateft philofophers of his age. What his followers hold in relation to the eternity and origin of the world is this — That, as the matter of the univerfe is felf-exiftent, it muft have been eternal ; that from all eternity there was an unbounded fpacc, in which an infinite number of particles of matter, called Atoms, were in iticeflant irregular motion ; and that at a cer- tain period, without defign, or any fuperior hand to di- red: them, thefe particles or atoms, by accident, met and formed that great and beautiful v/orld in which we dwell. 1 9^ Creation. dwell. What! A world of fuch magnitude and fuch beauty, in every part of which dcfin^n and regularity are fo confpicuous, formed by a fortuitous concourfe, or ac- cidental combination ot atoms of unanimated, undefign- ing matter ! Who can believe it ? With the Epicureans the Cartefians agree in part; and in other inflanccs differ from them. 1 hey coincide with the Epicureans in the opinion that matter and mo- tion, which exificd from evei lafling produced this beau* tiful world. But they hold that there is a lupremc Being, who from everlafling created that matter, and imparted motion to it ; and, having produced and put it in motion* he left it to itfclf ; that, as a great ma« chine, it might move bv the laws of mechan)f;n ; which mechanical motion, without any immediate agency of the original Creator, produced all things, both celcflial and terreflrial. Such arc the principal hypothefcs which have been Invented and held in the Heatiicn world, in relation to the origin of the univerfc. Is it not a pity that the wild romantic drean^s of Heathen philofophers on this fnbjeft, fhould ever have had encouragement from any who have pretenfions to Chriltianity ? In proof of the pretended eternity of the world, it has been pled, that, as God ever has exifted and is in- finitely good, he mult ever have manifefted his being and benignity to his creatures. But perfons, who reafon thus, do not recoiled, that, in all his manifeftations and communications to his creatures, he is not impelled by any natural neceflity, but a£ls according to the determi- nations of his fovercign will. In oppolition, therefore, to all the fabulous hypotheles concerning the origin of the world which have been broached, the account of it in the anfwer goes upon the fuppofition, that the woild once was not. God once exifted alone. But at a cer- tain period he caufcd numberlefs other bciniiS to cxiff. That God once was alone, and, at a ceriam period, brought Creation. 1 9^ brought the world into being, accordir.jj to the determi- nation of his own fovereign will, is the conftant and uniform d^ftrine of the fcriptures— Before the moun- tains were brought forth ere ever thou had/i formed the earth and the ^ -world., even from everlafting to everlafting ihou art God. Pi'al. xc. 2. ihe Lord tiofjlffid me in the beginning of his way. b fore his works of old Prov. vni. 22. That our divine Kedeemer here refers to a period prior to the produaion of the worlds appears from what fol- lows. For he iidds— I was fet up from everlafting, from ihe beginning, ere ever the earth was When there were no depths, when there were no fowuains abounding with water ; before the fuountains tuere fettled, before the hiVs was I brought forth. While as yet he had not made the earth, nor ihe fields, 72or the high eft part of the daft of the world, verfes 23,-26. That the world was not from eternity, but had a beginning, is necefTarily implied in our Lord's \votA%^ [hen Jhall ihe King fay to them on his rio-ht hand. Come, ye bleffed of my Father, inherit the king^ dom prepared for you from the foundation of the WORLD Matth.^xxv. h- No lefs ncceaarily is it im- plied in the words of the Apoftle Paul— )^7jo hath faved us, and called us with an holy callmg. not according to our works ; but according to his own purpofe and grace, which was given us in Chrift Jefus before the world began. 3 1 im. i. 9. ..... c \ It has been a prevailing opinion among leverai na- tions, particularly the Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Chi- ncfc, that, though the world did not exift from eterni- ty, it is of very great antiquity. In relation to the long duration of it, very extraordinary things are to be found in hiftorv. But fuch accounts are unfupported, and manifeftly fabulous. As a flrong prefumption that the Mofaic account of the commencement and creation ot the world is juft, and that it cannot have fubliffed fo long as the romantic accounts of the Egyptians, Chal- deans, and others, pretend, it has often been obfcrvea, that 20O Great iott. that the invention of the mofl anc'cnt art?, and the ereQ;ion of the earlicft empires, are of no very great an- tiquity. According to fcripture-chronology, the world has not exifted 6000 years. How long it is yet to con- tinue in its prefent ftate we know not. // is not for us to know the times or the feafons which God hath put in his own power. idly^ It is here underflood, that creation is the pecu" liar work of God ; that he has rcftrved creative power to himfelf, and has not communicated it to any of his creatures. Now, that it is the peculiar prerogative of the infinite God, in contradiftinftion to all his creatures, to create, the fcripture often intimates — Which alone fpr cadet h out the heavens, and treadeth upon the waters of the fa. Job ix. 8. Thus fiith the Lord, thy Redeemer^ and he that formed thee from the womb, J am the Lord that maketh all tl4figs ; that ftrctcheth forth the heavens above, that fpreadeth abroad the earth by myfelf This is one of the many things which diflinguifh the true God from the idols of the nations. By it the Deity of the former is irrefragr.bly proved. For all the gods of the nations are idols ^ but the Lord made the heavens. Pfal. xcvi, 5. But the Lord is the true God ; he is the living Cod, and an everlafiing king — Thus fl;all ye fay unto them, I he gods that have not ruade the heavens and the earth, even they jhall per ijh froTH the eaith, and from under the hea- vens. He hath made the earth by his power ; he hath eftabtijhed the world by his wifdom ; and hath ftretched out the heavens by his difcretion. Jer. x. 10, i i, 12. Having m^de theie preliminary obfcrvations, I am now to explain the account which the aniwer gives of creation. And it may be neccllary I. To aTcertain the proper meaning of the word cre- ation. 7 liis is the more neceflary, that it is far from having one determinate figniricati(>n in the fcriptures. It fomctimes denotes a fupernatural work of the Holy Gholtj Creation, 2G>i Ghoft ; by which finners, fpirkually dead and unholy^ arc regenerated and fandified — if any man be in Chrid^ he is a new creature, or, as the word might be tran- flated, a new creation. i Cor. v. 1 7. By it may be in- tended the creatures formed, rather than the formation of them. Since the fathers fell a/Ieepy all things continue as ihey were from the beginning of the creation. 2 Pet. iii. .4. It fignifies the prefervation, as well as the pro- duftion, of the world. 'Ihou haji created all things, and for thy pleafure they are and were created, Rev. iv. 11. Here is a prefent, as well as a paft, creation. Often has the prefervation of the world been called a continued creation. That power which produced all things out of nothing, and it only, is fufficient to fupport and up- hold all things. But the word in the anfwer evidently denotes the .produdtion and formation of all things at firft. I pur- pofely ufe two words ; for creation is twofold, primary ^ndfecondary, or immediate and mediate. Ihe former fignifies the produdion of a thing out of nothing, the latter the formation of a material being out of pre- exiftent matter ; but matter fo indifpofed and unfit, that he only who produced the matter can form fuch a creature out of it. For an exemplification of this two- fold creation, I refer you to the firft chapter of Gencfis. On the firfl of the fix days, the Almighty Creator pro- duced out of nothing that vaft mafs of matter, out of which all the feveral fpccies of material creatures were formed; and on the fubfequent days, he a£lualjy formed out of it all the various fpecies of creatures, of which the Mofaic account of the creation informs us. We have ir. The extent of the work of creation, all things. The introdudion to the account, which Mofes gives us of it, divides it into two great parts, the heavens and the earth. It fpeaks of heavens in the plural number. DilTe-ent aftronomers have fpoken of different numbers of hea- Vol, I. C c t • vensi 2G2 Creation, vens. Some have reckoned no fewer than fevcntya But the mofl: common diftribution of them is into three*. The firft is called ihe Aerial heaven. 1 his is otherwile called the Air^ or that atmofphere which furrounds our earth. The fccond is called the JEtherial, or ftarry heaven. The third is called the Empyrean heaven. Solo- mon defigns this the heaven of hea'ueus. i Chron. vi. 18. There is the earth as well as the heavens. Ihis, indeed, is a very Imall part of creation. It is commonly called the Terraqueous Globe; a globe^ on account of its oval figure ; ^\\d terraqueous, to intimate that it confifls partly of earth, and partly of water. What the anfwer intends by all things, the infpired writer to the Hebrews exprefles by worlds. Heb. i. 2. The one great univerfe confilts of a vail multiplicity of parts. The phrafe all things, which the Compilers of the Catechifm ufe, may be borrowed from John i. 3. or Col. i. 16. or Rev. iv. n. ; in all which places the phrafe occurs. Of the all things included in creation, I intend to give a more particular account in the fc- qucl. III. By zuhat God made all things, the word of HIS rowER. This phrafe, the word of his power, has, indeed, been differently interpreted. It has been un- derflood of the per/anal Word, the Son of God, who i» not inferior, but equal to his divine Father ; for, as faith the Apoftle, By him God made the worlds. Heb. i. 2. From this text the adverlaries of our Lord's di- vinity have inferred his inferiority to the Father ; pre- tending that he was only an inflrumcnt which the Fa- ther uled in creation. But that creation was his pro- per work, no Lefs than the Father's, we have fccn al- ready. The phrafe by him, wlijch, in this account of creation, is applied to the Son, is, in another place, applied to the Father. Rom. xi. 36. It cannot, there- lore, be pled, that in the one place it means an infe- rior Creation, 203 rior agent, and in the other a fuperior. The fame phrafe, in different accounts of creation, is applied to the Father and the Son, to intimate, that in that work, the diflferent divine perfons had an equal concern. By the phrafe in the anfwer, the word of his power, may rather be underdood an ad of his irrefiflible will. It may be borrowed from the Apoftle's account of our divine Redeemer in Heb. i. 3. Who^ being the brightnefs of his glory y and the exprefs image of his per- fon, and upholding all things by the word of his power. May it not be expreffed by the word of his power, to intimate the facility with which God effedad the work of creation ? He has only to fpeak, and it is done. His word has in it power which nothing can refill. How eminently was his refiftlefs power exemplified in the snftantaneous production of light ! He faid, Let there BE LIGHT, and there was light ! Independently of him we cannot think, fpeak, or ad. But in being and in ope • ration he is equally independent. It is faid, indeed, that in iS/;<; days the Lord made heaven and earthy and on the feventh day he rested and zuas refreshed. Exod. xxxi. ij. But does this mean that he was w-earied with his work ? No. ^Ihe everlafiing God, the Lord, the Creator cf the ends of the earth faint eth not, neither is weary. Ifa. xl. 28. He refted', that is, he ceafed to produce any new fpecies of creatures. The individuals of the different fpecies are multiplied ftill, but not the fpecies themfelves. He was refrejh:jd\ that is, on a review of his works, w^hich exadly correfponded to the model and plan he had in his infinite mind from eternity, he was fatisfied and pieafed with them. Ihis leads me IV. To confider the time and order in winch God made all things. For my diredory here, 1 take the Mofaic account of creation in the firfl chapter of Ge- nefis. The abfurdity of the fuppofition that' the world pxifted from eternity, and the improbability of the C c 2 chronology fiG4 Creation. chronology of certain eaftcrn nations, according to which, though it had a beginning, it muflhave fubfifted millions of years, we have feen already. That by the creation of the heavens, Gen. i. i. we are to underltand the producYion of them out of nothing, I alfo take for granted. That certain interpreters, even among Chriftians, have under ftood the words of Mofes otUerwife. I am awire. It has been apprehended, that the world exifled long before the period to which the firfl: of Genefis refers ; and that by the creation, of wKich that chapter gives us an account, we are by no means to underftand the firft produdlion of it out of nothing. The abettors of this opinion, however, are fomewhat divided among themfelves. One fancies that this earth had been for a long fcries of ages, previous to the Mof.iic account, inhabited by generations of human beings ; but had fallen into a decayed and ruinous condition. The Mofaic creation, according to this hy- pothefis, denotes only the reparation and renovation of the earth- Another imagines that the chaos fubfifl- cd long before the creation of which Mofes fpeaks, in an unformed and confufed ftate. All that is intended by the Mcfaic creation, according to iJjis hypothefis, is an arrangement and proper formation of the feveral parts of the world, that it might be a commodious ha- bitation for mankind. How fruitful is human inven- tion ! How precarious and unfafe a guide in religion is a luxuriant iancy ! One of the many queftions in relation to the Mofaic creation, u hich have been agitated among interpreters, is in what extent it is to be underftood. One reftriOs it to that part of the great univerfe which has been alloted for the temporary refidence of mankind, which Mofes calls the earth, as contradidinguifhed from the heavens. Another hi Ids a middle opinion, lie neither confines it to our earth, nor extends it to the whole univerle ; but by it undcrlfands what among Aftronoiners is ufu- ally , Creation, 20 c ally called our Solar Syftem. But the opinion gene- rally received among the orthodox is, that, by the hea- vens and the earth, Mofcs intends the great univerfe, the higher as well as the lower parts of it, the worlds which we know, and the worlds which we know not. Another queftion relating to the creation is, at what feafon of the year, time and the world commenced. As to this, there are efpecially two opinions. One imagines it was in the fpring. Another apprehends it was in the autumn. The perfedion in which every thing was pro- duced at firfl has been fuppofed to favour the latter opinion. But on this circumftancc how fmall ftrefs is to be laid ! Do not fpring and autumn vary exceedingly in different fituations and climates ? In fupport of this opinion, however, another circumllance has been pled, which perhaps has fome weight in it. In the early ages of the world, the year is faid to have commen- ced, not only among the Jews, but alfo among the other nations of the world in the autumn. That it was fo among the Jews is certain. In the ages pofle- rior to their coming out of Egypt, they had a twofold reckoning of their years, the one /acred, and the other civil. The former, which was inflituted on that impor- tant occafion, and, in all time coming, regulated their rehgious feftivals and folemnities, commenced in the fpring. The latter, according to which, they calculated their time in preceding ages, is known to have begun in the autumn. But, palling thefe and fimilar queflions as unneceflary and immaterial, I fhall, in a curfory manner, review the feveral parts of creation according to the order in which Mofes has arranged them. Thefe works are faid to have been accomplifhed in six days. By thefe fix days fome have underftood fix years. But, for this fup- pofition, there does not feem to be fo much as the iha- dow of foundation. That days are fometimes in the prophetical writings put for years is admitted. But to ' argue 2o6 Creation, argue from obfcure prophecies to plain hiftorical narra- tions, is very unjuft and unfair. That God could have accomplifhed the works of creation in a rnomcnt as cafily as in fix days, who, that acknowledges his omnipotence, can doubt. It pleafed him, however, to perform them one after another, in a gradual manner, that we may furvey them in an orderly manner, and be furnifhed with a pattern for difpatching our fecular work in fix days, and that we may in a religious manner reft on the feventh. Let us now review the works of the Jirft day. On this day, the omnipotent Creator made the heavens, the earth, and the light. Gen. i. i, — 5. I'irft, The Heavens. The heavens, as I faid for- merly, are ufually underftood to be three. Thefe I may confider, according to their fituation with regard to us. There is the loiijcft, the firfi, or the aereal hea- ven. By this wc underltand, that vaft colle6tion of air which encircles the earth which we inhabit, to a great height ; the principal properties of which are JJuidity, gravity, and elafticity. We commonly call it the «/>« In it we breathe, alternately drawing it in and forcing it out by the action of the lungs. It is known among Geographers by the name of the Atmcfphere, The real altitude or height of it cannot be ascertained. It is, hov.'ever, generally fuppofed to extend about 50 miles from the furface of our earth. 1 here is the fecond, the middle^ the atherial, or the [tarry heaven ; called the fecond in contradiftindion to the firft ; the middle, becaufe it occupies an interme- diate place between the loweft and the higheft heavens ; the anherial to diftinguifli it from the aerial ; and the ftarry heaven, becaufe it comprehends that vaft region in which the heavenly luminaries are ranged, and per- form their periodical revolutions. And there is (htthirdy the bighcjt^ or empyrean heaven. This to us, indeed, is an unleen and an unknown world. One of the great- eft and bcft of men that ever lived, and who had been in Creation, 207 in that world, tells us, that what h.e faw, and what he heard in it, it is impoiiible for any in the ftate of mortality to utter. 2 Cor. xii. It is underftood to be the glorious refidence of the Sovereign of the univerfe ; and the fcene of the beatific vifion, with which angelic fouls, and the fpirits of juft men made perfedt, are favoured. When it is affirmed, that, on the firft of the fix days, God created the heavens, the third heaven, I appre- hend, includes the inhabitants of it. The angds, as is well known, are the original inhabitants of heaven. It has, indeed, been fuppofed by fome, that the angels were created many ages prior to that creation of the heavens of which Mofes fpeaks. Others have thought, that they were not created till the fixth day, and everfc pofterior to the creation of man. But, confidering what Mofes has faid of the creation of the hofts of heaven, in conne£lion with the creation of heaven itfelf, in Gen. ii. I, and comparing with it what we read in Job xxxviii. 4,- — II. of the fong of the holy angels, fliled the morning ftars, and the Jons of God, when they wit- fieffed the works of creation, of which that lofty pafl^ge fpeaks, it appears in the higheft degree probable, that they were created on the firft of the fix days, neither prior nor pofterior to it. That there are fuch fpiritual celeftial intelligences, I hope, I need not prove. Their exiftence, indeed, has been, and is denied. That the feft of the Sadducees among the Jews denied it, the infpired writer of the Book of the Afts informs us. Confidering that they acknowledged the fcriptures of the Old Teftament, at Icaft the five Books of Mofes, in which there is very frequent mention of angels, this muft, no doubt, feem furprifing. The fuppofition of their exiftence runs through the whole fcriptures. There are efpccially two names by which thefe celeftial intelligences are known, fpirits, and angels, the former a name of nature-, deno- ting an immaterial and immortal being, the latter a name of 2o8 Creation, of office ; intimating the orders whicii they occafionally receive from the Sovereign of the world, and execute in all pans of his vafl empire. The number of the angels is to us a fecret. But, from a variety of hints fufficient- ly plain, both in the Old Teflament and the New, we may learn that it is very great. Among the angels there is fuppofed to be a certain fubordination and or- der. They have been divided into two great claffes. The firft comprehends thofe who arc fuppofed to be the conilant attendants and refidents in the Court of hea- ven. The fecond confifts of thofe who are occafionally employed as the miffionaries of heaven in other parts of the univerfe, particularly in our lower world. But this dillinclion feems to have been unknown to the Apoftle Paul ; for, writing to the Hebrews, he fpeaks of the angels thus — Arc they not all m'lnijtcring fpirits^ fent forth to minifter for the??iy who jhall he heirs of fal- •vat ion. chap. i. 14. Others have divided the angels into four orders ; comprehended under four illuftrious heads, Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael. They have alio been diftributed into nine orders ; and thefe nine orders have been fubdivided into three hierarchies. As for the hods of the middle heaven, or celeflial luminaries, I vi^ill have occafion to fpeak of them in the fcquel. Secondly, The Earth. This is that part of the uni- verfe which is deftined to be the ten\porary refidcnce of mankind. It is an opaque body, deriving its light from that great luminary the fun, of the creation of whicli the fubfcquent part ol the Mofaic hiflory fpeaks. Our globe, as its name indicates, is of a round, or racher an oval form. It confilts of diiferent materials, cfpccially earth and water. Of the internal parts or bowels of it, we have only a very impcrled and iuperficial know- ledge. Of its furface, fo far as it has been difcovered, about three fourths are covered with water. The ha- bitable Crcaiiom 200 bitable part of it confifts of two great continents, the one oft this fide, and the other on the oppofite fide of it ; and an almoft infinite number of iflands. Our fide of it is fubdivided into Afta^ on the eaft ; Africa^ on the fouth-weft ; and Europe, on the nonh-weii quarter of it. The other fide contains that vafi; country which we call America. This is by far the largeft and la(t difcovered of the four gre^t Quarters ot the world. Its extent is fo great, th -.t, notwithftanding the centuries which have eiapfed fmce the firft difcovery of it, its boundaries have never yet been fully afcertained. Our earth is one of the primary planets ; and is found to move round its own axis once in twenty-four hours, and round the fun in twelve months. This is the earth, of the creation of which, and its condition pre^ vious to the accompliflmient of the works of the fub- fequent days^ Moles fpeaks in Gen. i. 1,2. ihirdly. Light. Wliat we call the heavenly lumi- naries were not created till the fourth day. It may, therefore, be queried, what is here intended by light. By it many have undcrftood the infinite number and variety of luminous particles which, on the fourth d:-y, were colle£led, and formed thofe vaft: bodies of light and heat which we now call our heavenly luminaries. What a comfortlefs world muft this have been previoujj^ to the produ6:ion of light ! What an agreeable and ufeful thing is light ! No lefs amazing is it lor its velo- city than its other properties. It is by Naturalilts gene- rally fuppofed to fly no lefs thaii ten millions of miles in a minute. Wonderful are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! The works of the feccnd day were two, the firma- tnent^&nd the divijton of the waters under the iirmament from the waters above it. Gen. i. 6, 7, 8. Firji, The Firmament ; or, as the word fignifies, the expanfe. By this may be intended what I called thue aerial heaven; or, according to others, both the aerial and the :ty of beings which inhabit rhem, what aftonifliing traces of wifdom, what glorious eft'eds of power, what a boundlefs pro- fufion of goodnefs, would we difcover ! If the works of the Almighty Creator be fuch, what mud he himfelf be! 0 Lord, how manifold are thy works ! in wifdom haft thou made them all, the earth is full of thy riches. Pfal. civ. 24. Lo ! ihefe are parts of his ways^ but how little are pro- vidential events often accompiilhed ! What an agreeable mixture of aftonifhment l .d joy does every confcien- tious and careful obferver feel in the contemplation of them ! 0 Lord^ how manifold are thy works ! In wifdom haji thou made them all : the earth is full of thy riches. x. It is MOST POWERFUL. The creation of all things was a work of power ; and m the continued prelerva- tion and government of all things is Almighty power in- ceifantly exerted. All the creatures, from the , very lowed to the higheft, does he without incermiiiion up- hold by the word of his power. Thirdly, The objects of providence, the creatures, and the actions ot the creatures, even all the crea- tures, and ALL their adions. All the creatures, and all their adions. He made all the creatures, and. therefore, he pieferves and governs them all. This world, indeed, has been compared to a great machine, v/hich an artift makes, and puts in mo- tion, leaving it to go of itfelf. But that Almighty hand, which made, and it only, can uphold and govern the world. It cannot be for a moment withdrawn ; for no one of the creatures can for a moment fubfift without it. This led our Lord to affirm in the text which in- troduces this Lefture — My Father worketh every hour, every moment ; and every hour, every moment am I a co-worker with him, in the prefcrvation and govern- ment of all worlds, and all creatures. Of the various fpecies of creatures, and of the diiicrent kinds of adions, about wf^'ch providence is verfant, 1 will have occafioa tofpeak under the fecond head. Having given a general account of the definition of providence in the anfwer, lam now, :is I promifed, Vol.1. Hh 11. To t 2*42 Prov'idencs, IT, To take a more particular view of it, as eiriploycd both about the creatures and their actions. And 1 /liall jF/V/i, Take a vifiw of it as icrfani about the inhabi- tants of the nnfeen world, fo far as God has difcovcrcd them, and the difpofals of his providence concerning them ro us. Of the creation of angels, I had occafion to take notice in a former Lecture. The exigence of an- gels is acknowledged not only by Jews and Chrillians, but even by Mahometans and Pagans. What Pagan ^ritcr^ have related of their Demons is well known. Often does the Alcoran of Mahomet fpcak of angels, of their various orders and ranks, and the difierent employments afTigned to them both in heaven and on earth. •Vlyflerious, indeed, are the difpenfations of holy pro- vidence concerning the angels. At an early period were a great part of them permitted to fall from their prime- val Itate of hciinefs and happinefs into a ftate of (in and mifery. The precife period at which this awful cata- ftrophe happened in heaven is not known. Between thtir creation and iheir fall there muft have been fome interval. At a very early period, however, did their fall happen. It muft have been prior to the fall of man ; lor one of them was the unhappy inflrument of his fe- du6tion and ruin. It has been queried, whether ihey all fell at once ; or whether one fell firft, and then was joined by others in his unprovoked and unhsppy revolt from his rightful Sovereign, and generous hcncfaclor. One thing is certain. One of them is every where pointed oi'.t as the head of the ppoflacy. He is, for this reafon, dcfigned, the prince of the poivcr of the air. Eph. ii. c; the king of the bottomlefs pit. K.cv. ix. ii.; antl the god cf this icoJd. 2 Cor. iv. 4. Accordingly, v»c read of ins nK}:;c/s. Matth. xxv. 41. It has been aflced — what was the fm of the angels by which they fell from their original fiate of felicity and dignity? Now, Providence, 243 as to this, there are efpecially two opinions. The one is that it was envy. This is fuppofed to have been occa- fioncd by a revelation granted to them, that, at an after period, the Son of God was to become man ; and that in his divine perfon, the human nature was to be advanced and dignified above the angelic. Accordintj; to the other opinion, it was pride. This opinion is underftood to have a foundation in the A- poftle's words. Speaking of the qualifications requifite in a Chriflian bifiiop, or minifler of the New ieilament, he obferves, among other things, that he muff not be a novice^ leji^ being lifted up with pride, he fall into the CONDEMNATION OF THE Devil. t Tim. iii. 6. Now, fuppofing it to be pride, another queftion is — what was the occafion of it ? and in what manner did it operate ? In anfwer to this queflion, various conjedures have been formed* fhc head of the apoflacy in heaven is fuppofed to have had the audacity to afFeft equality with God himfelf. He has been imagined to have been required to fubmit to fome particular pofitive law, relating to the manner in which he and the other celeftial inhabitants were to worfnip God, or to the order and flation of [he angelic hofts ; and, through an abfurd opinion of his own fuperior excellency, to have haughtily refcfed fub- miflion and obedience to it. His pride has been fup- pofed to be occafioned by fome miniftry afligned to him in our lower world, which he imagined did not befit his dignity ; or, in Ihort, by a difcovery of the fu- ture fubjedion of all creaiurf^s, angels as well as others, to the Son of God in human naiure. But this is all conjedture. Vain is it to afk, what number of angels flood, or "Wbat num DtLivfeR HIM INTO HIS hhnd, and he fmite him accid;''it llv ; then I will appoint thee a place whither ye fhallfee for fatcty. Lxod. xvi. 12, 13. What can be more fortuitous and calual fhan lots. Put even to them does providence extend, and of them it has the difpofal. So fpeaks the roval Preacher — The lo. is caft into the lap ; ^ut the whole difpofirg thaof is of the Lord. Prov. xvi. ^3. All voluiitary. as well as natural, adions, does providence regulate and over-rule — A mans heart de- 'cifeth his way. and what can be more flucfuating and uncertain than the purpofes and di vices ol the human heart ? but ihe Lord dircdeth all hiiftep, 1 might, in the 7bird Third place ^ Review the condud of divine Providence about tue IRRATIONAL and inanimate creatures, and their .'dions. Here a vail field opens to view ; a field in which f mijiht travel for years and a^es. T can, how- ever, glearj in it only tor a few minutes. What an a'lo- nifhing vaietv do we find here i Were we to take an ex- curfion into the celrltial regions, what a'tonifliing proofs of a wife and a powerful Providence might »ve di'cover? Let us recolledt the ainaz ng magnitude of the heavenly bodies, the vaft number of them, and the regularity with which they perform their periodical revolutions. In the prefe'-vation and goveinment of fuch worlds, ex- tended and divetfified almolt beyond imagination, what a glorious difplay have we of the power, the wifdom, the benignity, of God, the fupreme Ruler of the imi- verfe ! With what prccifion can aflronomcrs calculate for years and ages to come, eclipfes both folar and lu- nar, and the ebbings and Rowings of the fea, which are fuppofed to be occafioned by the influence of the moon! Is not this a cercain proof, that all chofe things depend upon certain eftablilhed laws, and are under the direc- tion of an unerring Providence? Let us defcend from the higher parts of the univerfe to this terraqueous globe which we inhabit. How con- fpicuous is the power, which at firft brought it into being in the continued confervation and government of it! He hangeih the earth upon nothiig. How glo ioufly does he manifelt his wildoin and his goodnefs in the feveral parts of it ! No one part of the world has all conveniences and advantages. Each has both its con- veniences and inconveniences; advantages and difad- vantages. What one wants another has One coun- try is extremely cold. Such are the northern parts of Europe, which lie towards the Arftic pole. Thole coun- tries, as might be expected, are generally very barren. But, as has been obferved. they produce vaft woods, not only for fuel to the inhubitanivs, but for lodging numbers 262 Providence^ numbers of wild bcafls, which produce warm furs of fpecial ufc in fuch cold countries ; and, by exporting their timber and furs to other places, the inhabitants obtain, in return, other commodities in which their own country is deficient. A% 10 the countries which He within the torrid zone, whofe inhabitants live under the fcorching rays of the fun, it has been obfcrved, that the cxceflive heat is, in a great meafure, abated by the dews, which, in thofc places, fall in great abundance, and the cooling breezes which ufually begin to blow as the fun rifes ; and, which indicates the fingular bounty of I'rovidence, the breezes are obferved to increafe as the fun afcends and his heat increafcs. In the fultry deferts and fcorching plains of A- rabia, water is fcarccly to be fcen, and consequently tra- velling muft be exceedingly difficult, how remarkable is the care and the kindneis of Providence in furnifliing the inhabitants of thofc parts with animals called Camels and Dromedaries ; creatures which can travel an hun- dred miles in a day on a very httle food, and without fuppiy of water ? Thefe animals are !aid to take at once a quantity of water, on which they can live for feveral days, it is faid, that travellers at the point of death for want of water, in thofe parts, have fometimes been ne- cefijtated to kill one of them, and drink the water found in its ftomach. It has been obferved, that the more favagc animals are lefs numerous, live in folitary places, and ufually go fmgly, not in herds, as the more harmlefs and ufctul creatures do. Thus are they lefs formidable and dan- gerous to mankind than they otherwifc would be. Cer- tain noxious animals can run fwifily ; but when they turn, they do it fo llowly that a perfon purfued by them can cafily cfcape ihcm by turning cither to the right hand or the left. The rattle-fiiake, one of the mod dangerous animals on the face of the earth, gives time- ous warning to perfons, by the noife it makes when it fees Providence, 25 J &es any approaching it. That inftincl which directs birds to migrate from a hotter to a colder climate at the approach of fummer, and from a colder to a hotter at the approach of winter, is truly aftonifhing. rhe fad, however, is indifpatable. Without compafs or pi- lot they undertake voyages over oceans ; fleering a ftraight coarfe tn their defired haven. Certain filhes leave the ocean, fail feveral hundred miles up our rivers^ lodge their fpav/n in the fand, return to the wide ocean, and, after traverfmg it for a feafon, come ftraight back again to the fame rivers. In thefe and a thoufand (imilar inflances, which I might have mentioned, how confpicuous is a fuperin- tending Providence ! Even the minuteft of all the crea- tures are under the dircftion, and at the difpofal of it. About the mod infignificant infers and reptiics, and the vileft vermine, is Providence vcrfant, dirpofmg of them in fuch a manner, and for fuch purpofes, as the great Creator has appointed. And the Lord [aid urdo Mofes, Say unto Aaron^ Stretch out thy rod, and f mite ths dufi of the land, that it may become^ lice throughout all the land of Egypt ^ And they didfo ; for Aaron fir etched cut his hand with his rod, and fmote the dufi of the earth, and it became lice in man and in beafi ; all the dufi of the land became lice, throughout all the land of Egypt, This is the finger of the Lord. Exod. viii. 1 6, — -19. Thus Providence is univerfal, extending to all the creatures, and all their actions. To what I have faid, I fhall only fubjoin a few obvious diftinQ:ions of pro- vidence. It has been confidered as internal^ and as externa!* The former denotes the foreknowledge and pre-ordina- tion of all things. It has been obfervcd, that the word, both in the Hebrew of the Old Tcftament, and in the Greek of the New, to which providence, in our lan- guage anfwers, in point of etymology, fignifies pre-cog- nition. 164 Providence, nition, or forefight. The latter is what wc properly cali providence, and denotes the adual adminifl'-ation of all things in time, in conformity to the divine fore- knowledge and fore-ordination ficm eternity. Providence has been confidered as general, and as fpecial. It is, indeed, emploved about all the creatures and all their actions, particularly in our louer world. In a particular manner, however, is it exercifed about the church, which, though not of the uorld, is in it. This twofold view of providence the ApofUe fuggefts to us ; for thus he fpeaks — God is the Saviour of all MEN, ESPECIALLY OF THEM THAT BELIEVE. I lim. iv. 10. The word traiillited Saviour^ 1 would rather renaer Trejcrver. He is, indeed, the prefcrvtr of men. But, in an efpecial manner, he preleives the heirs of falva- tion. His providence is peculiarly employed about them, for their prefervation and falcty. It may be viewed as common and uncommon,, as ordi- Tiary and extraordinary. In the former way it is to be fcen in a thoufand inftances every day. But fi:ch com- mon incidents we arc apt to overlook. In the latter way, we have accefs to contemplate it in numerous inftances both of n^ercy and judgment. Both in heaven above, and the earth below, has providence, in a preternatu- ral way, manifefkd itfclf. The fun and the moon, on a particular occafion, flood flill. The fun has even been known to go backward. From heaven bread has de- fcended on the earth. Fire and brimflone have been rained from heaven. The earth has been, in a preter- natural manner, overflowed with water. Water has been brought from a flint. A fifti has fwallowed up, and then fpewed out, a prophet of the Lord. The fire had no power to burn the three children, whom tl^c king of l^abylon, in wrath, ordered to be thrown into it. The lions, notwithflanding their fiercenefs and their ftrcngth, had no power to hurt Daniel. He that made the creatures, rcflrains aod governs them as he plea- feth. Providence. 26§' feth. Whatfoever the Lord pleafed that did he in hea- ven and in earth, in the J e as, and in all deep places. Pial, cxxxv. 6. To what hath been faid on this interefting fubject, I might fubjoin a variety of refledilions. Let us ail.iludy to be well eflabhilied in the belief of a divine Providence, The proofs of it, with which we Hre furnifheJ, are many and ftrong. Our atheiftical and fceptical hearts, however, are apt to fuggeft diffi- cuhies and doubts. Is the iaipradticabihty of a con- ilant fupcrintendency and infpection of fuch an infinite multitude oi beings and occurrences fuggefted ? Let us, with abhorrence, reject fuch a furmife. How unwor* thy is it of the infinite God ! Is it infmuated by Satan or by our own depraved and deceitful hearts, that it is be- low the fupreme Being to take notice of the moft gro- velling creature, and moft trifling occurrence which hap- pens in this lower world ? Let us remember, that the finalieft, as weil as the greatefi, creature, is the work- manfhip of his divine Hand \ and can it be unworthy of God to preferve or govern creatures which he himfelf has made ? Are we ftariled at the feemingly unequal and improper diftributions of good and evil, the profperity of the ungodly and the adverfity of the godly ? Let. us refled, that this is far from being a relevant objedlion againft providence ; it rather is a proof of it. Is not this a fulfilment of the fcriptures ? Ar£ there not obvious and important reafons for it ? Now the wicked have their good things, and the righteous their evil things. In the world to come, the latter are to be comforted, the for- mer tormented. Luke xvi. Let us be careful obfervers and admirers of the pro- vidential wonders which God every day performs in the world and in the church. This truly is one of the mofl pleafmg and profitable employments for a rational being and devout mind. The works of the Lord are great^ fought out of ail them who have plea] ure in them, Ffal. cxi. 2. Vol, L LI Whether q66 Providence, Whether we look to the heavens above, or to the earth below ; whether we d'g into the bowels of the earth, or dive into the bottom oi the fea ; whether we ranfack the mineral, the vegetable, or the animal world, what wonders do we fee ! Let us efpecially attend to the procedure of provi- dence in our own cafe. Wonderfully was it exercifed about us in the womb, in our childhood, youth, and ri- per yci^rs ; in all the vicifiltudes which have pafled over lis. How nianifeft is the divine Hand in our trials and deliverances! What deep d«fign does God difcover in lelatian to us ! In how furprifing a manner does he bring about events of which we never could have fo much as t nee thought ! Let us mere e'pecially review the condu£l of pro- vidence about the church and her particular miniflers and other members. In how providential a way are firnrrs, concerning whom God has gracious defigns, brought to the means of grace, or the means of grace fent to them ! In order to brmg Naaman, the general of tht army of Benhadad, the Syrian, to the knowledge and \v(^r(hlp or the God ot Ifrael. a Oily maid is fent by p-.ovidtnce to ferve in his family. Providence, that has the difpofal of our ronpues. as well as our hands and hearts, puts it into her heart one day to mention to her n iftrefs the Prcphet Eliflia, as one th-^t could cure her niafler of an inveterate leprofy, under which he la- boured. He tokes the hint, applies to the Prophet of the Lord accordingly ; and obtains at once a cute of his outw-.-rd and inwaid leprofy. What! A filly captive maiU ihe mean of the converfion of a great general I Unlikely inltrumtnt! But in the hand of Providence, cver\ irflrnnitnt. tvery mean, is fufficient and tftcctual, Conlult the hiflory itfelf. 2 Kings v. chapter. Once was the only prolt fling people oi God on earth, confifl- inp nf many nuriacs, m a barren delert that could fur- nilh them with neither bread nor water. What was the confequcncc ? Providence. 267 confequence? did they all die ? and was religion extir- pated from the earth ? No. There is nothing too hard for an all-powerful Providence. Rather than that the people of God {hould want, it would work a miracle altogether unprecedented in the world. If the earth could not furnifh them with bread, h'^aven could do it. If the rivers could not yield them water, the rocks could do it. To their aftonifhment and their joy, they were fuddenly fupplied with bread from heaven, and with ■water from a rock. Let us ever beware of mu^'muring againft providence. Are our trials complicated and manv ? Do they come from unexpeded quarters ? Are we affllded by perfons by whom we expected to be comforted ? Let us lo -k above all inftruments and means. Neither pretended friends or avowed enemies can hurt us except they be permitted. Neither will providence permit them except it has good reafons for it, and great defigns to be ac- complifhed by it. Jofepb*s brethren fold him into Egypt* But he faw a higher hand in the diipenfation. They could not have done it unlefs God had perinitted. Let us exercifc univerfal and conftant dependence on an all-wife, an unerring Providence. Unknown to us, indeed, are the future occurrences of our temporal lot. But how encouraging to reflett, that our times and cir- cumftances are entirely in the providential hand, and at the fovereign difpofd, of God ! Though we do not, he forefees and foreknows every coming incident in our temporal lot ; and, when it happens, he can fit us for it, and fupport us under it. How necefLry and how ufeful is it to recoiled: former tr'als and deliverances ! From wha^ God has done for us in former flraits and dangers, let us encourage ourfclves in the expcdation and profped of fupport and deliverance in all time co- ming How well does the Apoflle's faith reafou on this head? At myjir/i anfwer. fnys he. no manftocd 'duith me, hut all men forfcok me, Neverthelefs^ the Lord flood with LI i me^ ^6S Providence, me and /Irengihencd me, and I ivas delivered out of the mouth of the lion. Now, what improvement does the Ap iftle make of this fingular inftance of the care of providc-ncc about him? What inference does he draw from it ? J he Lord jhall deliver me from e^o^ry evil work, fays he, and will preferve me unto his heavenly kingdom, 1 ! irn iv. 17, i8. Of what happy confeqiicnccs has the mediation of Jefus Chrift been produdive ? By it has the communi- cation between heaven and earth been opened on the moft honourable terms, and to the mutual fatisfadion of God and men. This is that myflerious ladder, that the Patriarch faw in vifion, on which the angels of God afcend and defcend. Gen. xxviii. chap. John v. 51. What an honour is conferred on the Lints ! the ano^els •who miniftcred to their Head, while on earth, continue to minifter to them. Heb. i. 14. With what mercr- ful views is the adual adminiftration of the kingdom of Providence committed to the Mediator! Is it not, that all the events of time may be over-ruled, and all things in the world employed, in a fubfervicncy to the advance- ment of the Redeemer's intereils, and the welfare of his militant members \ For God hath put all things un- der his feet, and gave him to be Head over all things to the churchy which is his body, the fulnefs of him that fill- eth all in all. Eph. i. 2 2, 2 ^ Accordingly, he addrefles his heavenly Father thus — Thou hall given him power over allflcj}}, that he may give eternal life to as many as thou bait given htm. John xvii. 2. Do we labour and alfo fuffer reproach f Let us tru/l in the living God, who is the preferver of all men, efpecially of them who believe* To conclude, How admirably are the works of providence cal#- culated for the fulfilment of thedefigns which God had from eternity ? Every event that happens was fore-or- dained from eternity. But, in the divine purpofe, the tnd and the means are connected. When, therefore, tho Providence, 1 5^ the end is to be accompliilied, means nre ufed and ren- dered fubfervient to it. Often, for inftance, has it been objected, that if there be a precife time appointed at which each individual of mankind is to die, then rauft phyficians and medicines be unneceflary ; even feif-mur- der cannot be a Im, it only is the fulfilment of the di- vine decree. It has alfo been pled, that according to our doctrine, all cautions and warnings againft intempe- rance, which often has the mean of fhortening the lives of many, are unprofitable and vain. It has been faid, in fine, that fuch dodrine fuperfedes all our prayers to God for our recovery froiin ficknefs, or the prefervationi of our health and life. For all fuch objeclions, one an- fwer fuffices. Phyficians and medicines, temperance and prayer, are means, and by fuch means does God fuliil his dtfigns. Such is the connection between the means and the end, that, except we ufe the former, v.'c cannot cxped to obtain the end. Let us, therefore, neither neglec): the means nor depend upon th^-m. Lti us ufe them, and depend on him that appointed them to ren- der thein effcdual. Let us in all cafes 'acknowledge him, and obferve the operations of his gracious and pro- vidential hand. Are all the creatures, and all the afllons of the crea- tures, under the direction and government of an all- fuperintending Providence ^ Are they all upheld in be- ing and operation by God .? Let all the creatures, an- gelic an i human, rational and irrational, praife their divine Maker, Prcferver, and Benefactor. Let uni- verfal nature, cfpeci Jly let the redeemed of the Lord, adore him, in confideration of his works of creation, of prov'dence, and of redemption. Let them praife him who coveretb the heaven with clouds^ %vho preparcih rain for t ')e earthy who maketh grjfs to grow upon thi mountains. He givelh to the bead his food-> and to tbe young rjvens which cry. He deiighteth not inthe fircngih if ibs horfe ; be takcth not pleafure i?z the legs of a man. I'ht jjyo Providence. ^he Lord takeih pleafure in them that fear him^ in ihofi thai hope in his mercy, Praije the Lord^ 0 Jerufalcniy praije thy God, 0 Zion. For he hath ftrengthencd the bars of thy gates : He hath bleffed thy children ivithin ihee. He maketh peace in thy borders^ and fillet h thee with the fineft of the wheat. He fendith forth his com- viandmer.i upon earth : his word runneth very fwifily. He giveth fnow like wool : he fcattereth the hoar frofl like ajhes : he cafteth forth his ice like morfcls : ywho can (land before his cold ? He fendeth out hts word, and melteth them : He caufeih his wind to blow, and ths •waters flow. He Jheweth his word unto Jacob, his (iatutes and his judgments unto Ifrael. He hath net dealt fo with any nation : and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the Lokd. Iht { 271 ) The Covenant of Works^ Gen. ii. 16, 17. And the Lord God commanded the man, fayir^. Of every tree of the garden thou mayeji freely eat ; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil^ thou fhalt not eat of tt ; for in toe day that thou eateft thereof thou fhalt fur ely die. THE preceding context informs us of the creation of man in the mod material circumftances of it. The words which I have now read, have all along been underftood to refer to a federal tranfadion between God and Adam, now created by him. They contain efpecially two things; a permission; the Lord God commanded the man, faying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayeji freely eat ; and a prohibition ;. but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou fijalt not eat of it ; for in the day that thou eateji thereof thou fhalt fur ely die. Accordingly, we are here inform- ed negatively what man was not, and pofttively what he was to do and to enjoy. Thefe are the two effential parts of the covenant which God, at that early period, entered into with man j and in which we are as parti- cularly 272 The Covenant of Works, cularly concerned as if we had been on the fpot, and in our own perfuns entered formally into a covenant with our Maker, From this text, therefore, I will take occafion to in- troduce and explain to you the account of the covenant of works, which the Compilers of our Shorter Cate- chifm give us in the follov^ing anfwer — When God had created man, he entered into a covenant of life with him, tipcn condition of p'rfcd obedience, forbidding him to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil upon the pain of death. 'Providence, as verfant about the creatures in gene- ral,' we have conHdered already. We now enter on the confideration of it, as excrcifed, in a peculiar man- ner, about man. Him huth God fmglcd out from among his other creatures ; and with him, both in his firft and fallen date, has he dealt in a manner calculated to excite wonder as well as joy. Can we recollect cither the covenant of works or the covenant of grace, and forbear to fay, Lord, what is man, that thcu arty in fuch an aftonilliing manner, mindful of him f All a- Jong has he dealt with man in a federal way, or through the intervention of a covenant. In order to the explanation of this anfwer, and to fet this important fubjed in a full light, let us attend to the following particulars j L To the period at which this important tranfac- tion, between God and the father of the human fa- mily, happened. When God had created man, he entered into a covenant with him, &c. A necclfary re- lation fubfided between the one as the Creator, and the other as his creature. Now z federal relation com- menced between tiiem. Man was now holy and happy, accommodated and furnifhed with every thing necellary and conducive to his felicity and comfort, both in ioul and body. Placed in that delightful place, diftinguiflied by The Covenant of Works. 21 \ by the name of Paradife, he bad variety and plenty, all the neceflaries and all the comforts of life. Is it aiked, what was paradife, and where was it ? This is a queilion on which writers are much divided. Of both the celeftial and the terreftrial paradife does the fcripture fpeak Concernins^ the latter, however there is no fmall divcrdry of opinion. It h:is been ima- gined that the Mofaic account of the earthly paradife is an allegory. But, if this part of facred hi (lor y is to be interpreted as an allegory, wliy may not every other part of it be explained in a fimilar manner ? It has been fuppofed, that, previous to the entrance of fm, the whole earth was a paradife. That the primeval ifate of the earth was very different from what it now is under the baneful influence of the curfe, we have fufficicnt rea- fon to believe ; and that there is a period coming, in which it will be rellored to its firft and belt ftnte, the fcripture gives us ground alfo to expe£t. But, on fuppo- fition, that by paradife we are to underlland a pirticu- lar place, the queffion recurs. Where was it fituated? This 'quelVion it is not eafy to anfwer For paradife p^rfons have fearched alinofl every corner of the univerfe. It has been fuppofed to have been placed in the third hea- ven. But dots not the fcripture plainly difiinguiih be- tween the celeftial and the terreftrial paradife ? It has been fuppofed to have been fituated in the moon It has been found in the middle region of the air. In all the four great quarters of our world, and almoil every country in the eaff and the weft, the fouth and the north, in the place now pofTeffed by the Cafpian fea, even un- der the Ar£licpolc ; nay, not only on the earth, but un- der the earth, has paradife been found - The opinion moft probable, and adopted by the befi: interpreters, is, that it was fituated in Mcfopotanaa or Cbaldea. This is a famous country of Aiia, fituated north-eaif of Canaan. Here we find, at leaft, two of the rivers mentioned in the Mofaic account of paradife. Vol. I. Mm the t ^74 '^^^^ Covenant of Worh, the Euphrates, and the Tigris^ called, in the fecond of Genefis, Hlddekel. '\ he great flream which is formed- by the conflux of thclc two rivers divides again into two branches ; the eaflern o\ which is fuppofed to have been the Gibon, and the weftern the Pifonj of which Mofes fpeaks. It may be queried, whether there was any interval between man's creation and God's entering into cove- nant with him, and of what duration it was. Of an inter- val we naturally thinks but of what duration it was we know not. It may again be afeed. in what fituation man "was from his creation till God entered into covenant with him. Was he under no law ? He murt; have been un- der ihe moral law, which is of univerfal and perpetual obligation ; and, therefore, man ever has been and ever will be under it in one form or another. Accordingly^ another queflion here occurs, as to the difference be- tween a law and a proper covenant. The terms laiv and covenant are fometimes ufed promifcuoufly. Ihus, the law of works, in Rom. iii. 27, evidently denotes the co- ■venant of works. But, between a law, as fuch, and a proper covenant, there is an obvious difference. A law befpeaks the authority of a fovereign, demands obedi- ence from the fubjefk, and, if it be violated, binds over to puniffiment proportioned to it. Thus, all that a law, as fuch, warrants us to expe^fl:, in the event of the non- violation of it, is impunity, or exemption from punilh- tncnt. But the covenant made with Adam, encouraged him, in the event of fulHlling its condition, to expeft a great and glorious reward. Accordingly, had Adam only remained under the moral law, and had no proper covenant been made with him, he would, in that cafe, fo long as be obeyed, have been exempted from punifh- ment ; but no fnperadded felicity or dignicy could he have procured to himfelf. The fuppofiiion that a crea- ture, in any condition or circumflance, can merit at the hand of the Creator is moft abfurd-. But^ The Covenant of Works. £75 But, when the covenant of works was made with A- dam, he was encouraged to exped, in the event of per- forming the condition of it, not merely the continuation of the fehcity which he then poffefled on earth, but a tranflation from a probationary ftate on earth, to a flate ©f permanent feUcity and dignity in heaven. While we obey the laws of our earthly fovereign, we conHder our- felves as entitled to impunity. But, if he (hall be pleafed to flipulate to us, that, if we be dutiful fubjeds, he will at a certain period advance us to great honour, we con- lider this as a covenant between him and us ; and ex- ped future advancement, not in virtue of our obedience to his laws, but as the fulfilment of the covenant he has condefccnded to enter into with us. The applica- tion is obvious. God, having entered into a covenant with man, infured 10 him, in the event of his fulfilling the condition of it, perpetual felicity. It may, indeed, ^bc afked here. Had man remained under a law only, could God have conferred upon him fuch fuperadded fehcity and dignity ? The anfwer is cafy. What can- not God in fovereignty do ? Greater felicity he might, no doubt, have confeired upon man ; but man, in that cafe, could not have been entitled to alk it. Accordingly, in order to a proper Invefligation of this fabjedt, it is neccflary in the U. pla^e, Toafcertain the true nature of a proper covenant. Covenanting, even between man and man, efpecially between God and man, ever has been account- ed a mod folemn adion. It was ufual, in ancient times, for perfons covenantmg, to flay certain aninialf:, divide fhem afunder, and pafs betv/ecn the parts of them thus divided, with awful imprecations, that, if they violated the covenant, they might in like manner be cut afunder. Gen. XV. 9, — 18. jer. xxxiv. 18. Of vaft importance and everlafting confequc.nce are both the covenants which God has made with man. The covenant of works, a* now violated, entails mifery on all who are under it. M m s 1 he 2y6 The Covenant of Works. The covenant of grace as fulfilled bv the fecond Adana, entails felici y on all who are ">nil ited in it I he folemn ceremony wiiich attrnded covenanting of old, manifeftly pointed out t'le manner in which the everlafling cove- naiil w .s firfl typically, and afterA'ards aftually, ratified and coiifirmrd. This was done when the fureiv died ; for the two rflcntial and conlhtuent parts of his huma- nity his human foul and his hun an body, were divided afunder ; and for a feafon fcparated one from another. /is for the trur nature of a proper covenant, it may be necefl'.ry to obfcrv'*, that it has two effeniial and con- Ifituent parts ; a conditionary, and dLpromiffhry ; and fome- times it has in it an adventitious or accidental part, call- ed a fandion or threatening. In a covenant, there are underfto d to be two parties, and, therefore, two parts ; one to be perform d by the one p:irty, and another to be accompliihcd by the other. I'he condition of a co- venant, is that part of it, the adual performance of ■which gives a title to the reward promifed. 1 he pro- mife is th u part which infures the reward in the event of the fulfilment cf the condition In the covenant of works, there was a certain condition to be fulfilled by Adam; and in the event of his pei forming it, God was, on that account, to confer a certain re- ward upun him. r\ccordingly, his fulfilment of the con- dition was to give him -a. federal ox padionaU though by no means a meritorious^ title to all the felicity promifed in th.;t covenant. < hu>, every proper covenant has both a conditional y and a proinillory part. If there be a pf fiibility of the lailure of the party, with whom it is made, a l.iidion or tiireatening is udded. In the cove- nant of vvoik', though Adam, when it was made with him, was an upright man,>ct, as he was only a man, there was a pollibilitv of lailure An exprefs iandion, there- fore, was .inncxtd to it. In the d.>y thou EATtsT TIIERfOF, faid God tO Adam, TH(^U SHALT SIJRL.LY DiE, In this, as well as in ether rclpeftf, do the two covenants The Covenant of Works, 277 covenants of works and of grace differ. As the fecond Aciain, the Lord from heaven, with whom the better covenant was made, was infallible, there was no room for a penalty. The fuppoGtion of a penalty in it is pre- pofterous and abfard. I am in the III. place ^ To (how, from the facred fcriptures, that a PROPER COVENANT was adually made with the firfl: Adam in innocency, in which he reprefented his poile- rity, conlifting of all the numerous individuals of man- kind defcending from him by ordinary generation. That there is a law requiring duty, and forbidding fin ; that men of all ages and defcriptions are bound to do the former and forbear the latter, is a neceflary ditlate of reafon. But that there was a proper covenant made with the firll man, promifing life as the reward of his obedience, and threatening death as the puni/liment of his difobedience, the promife, on the one hand, and the threatening on the other, extending to his poilerity as well as hi iifelf, reafon cannot polhbly dilcover. To revelation, therefore, are we indebted for the difcovery and knowledge both of the covenant of works and the covenant of grace. By the light of nature, mankind have "difcovered that there is moral, as well as penal evil, Jtn, as well as pain, in the world. But how ^\n enter- ed the world, and has overfpread the whole human fpe- cies, revelation only can inform us. Is it a queftion then. Was taere, or was there not, a proper covenant made with the firil Adam, as the reprefentative of his whole natural poiterity? To the law and to the iefti- mony let us fubmit the decifion. What faith the fcrip- ture 01 this point ? That there actually was fuch a tran- fattion between God and Ada n, after his creation, the fcripture otten intim..tes. Of the many proofs, with whica it furnilhes us, let us felcd a few. And, Firfi, We may attend to the paflage read in the en-r try* ibe Mofaic hiilory of the origin of mankind is ihort. S.yt The Covenant of Works, fiiort. It contains fparing hints and intimations whick. ure enlarged and amplified in the fequcl of the facrcd writings. But, if wc examine the paffage before us, wc will find a fufHcient intimation of the important matter in qucflion. Here are the two parties tranfading in this covenant, the Lord God on the one hand, and man on the other. Here are the terms of the covenant part- ly cxprciTed, and partly underftood. Of the precepts of the moral law. indeed, there is no exprefs mention ; nor was there any neceflity for it. It was imprinted on the flelhly table of the human heart. Man knew both what duties it required, and what fins it forbade. But here is the pofitive prohibition of the uf^ of the fruit en a certain tree. This man could not have known with- out an exprefs intimation of it ; and it was intima- ted to him accordingly. Thus the conditionary part of the covenant, confifting in the univerfal performance of duty, and the univerfal abflinence from fin, is intimated with fufKcient evidence. The accidental part of the co- venant, the fanfticn, is moft exprefs and full. Now, an exprefs threatening in the event of non-obedience, mult rmply a prcmife of life in the event of obedience. Thus, }.s ihe conditionary part of the covenant is, at Icaft, in io far txprefs, the promiflbry part is neceffarily implied* Thus, the efiential parts of it, as a proper covenant, are })artly expreilcd and partly underftood ; and the accidental part, the threatening, which was the only part of it that was fcrcfcen to take cfFedl, is revealed in terms the raoit explicit and plain. Secondly^ In feveral other places of the facrcd oracles we have a revelation of the covenant of works, and the terms of it fully, and, with fufhcicnt perfpicuity, pro- pounded. Both covenants are at firfl: difcovered in the icriptures by fparing hints ; but afterwards revealed and iinioldcd in a fuller and clearer manner ; the firft co- venant, as we have fccn already, in the words prefixed l<3 this L:<^.urc j the fccond id the i ah verfc ot the fubfcquent The Covenant of Works, 279 fubfequent chapter. Of this better covenant cfpccially does the feripture often fpeak. But the other covenant does it alfo reveal in terms fufficiently exprefs and plain. I fhall, on ihis occalion, quote only two places ; the one from our Lord's own mouth ; the other from the pea of his Apoftle. A certain perfon having come to our Lord, and ad- drefled him thus, Good Mq/ier, what JJoall I do thai I may have eternal life? The Lord faid unto him, If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. Marth. xix. 17. It is, as if he had faid, Art thou felicitous to know the terms of the old covenant, and to obtain ever- lading felicity in the way which it prefcribes ? The ge- neral tenor of it is this, do, and live. Here aie the two efleniial parts of the covenant ; the condition expreiT- ed by keeping the commandments ; and the promifed re^ ward^ life. The accidental part is neceflarily implied and underftood. When the connexion between the ob- fervation of the commandments and life is exprcfled, the connexion between the non-obfervation of them and death is implied. Does our Lord propound the terms of the covenant of works to encourage any of us to e:c- pedl the life promifed in it ? No. From that quarter no life is now to be expected. Life, as promifed in it, is irrecoverably loft. To all mankind it now is a cove- nant of death rather than of life. The terms of it he purpofely ftates, in order to convince us all of the utter impoffibility of our obtaining felicity from that quarter. The words of the Apoftle which 1 had in view are no lefs explicit and plain concerning the tenor of the old covenant ; for thus he writes. The law is rot of faith ; BUT THE MAN THAT DOETH THEM SHALL LIVE IN THEM. Gal. iii. 12. Here again are the two conftitu- cnt parts of the covenant of works ; the condition in thefe words, the man that doeth them, that is, the works of the law of which the preceding context fpeaks ; the reward in thcfe words, he pall live. In this, as well as the pre- ceding. 2&0t The Covenant of Works. ceding inftancc, the minatory part is implied and undcr- ftood. The thing expreffcd is, He thdt dottb thcfc thin^i fiall live. Tae thing implied is, He that docth them net Jhall die. Thirdly^ The firfl Adam, as the head of the covenant of works, and the fecond, as the head of thecovt-nant of grace, as public perfons, or federal reprcfentarives, are exprefsiy compared one to another, is it not for this reriion that the one is filled the jirft man^ and the other the la/tf The first man, Adam, was made a living foul, THE LAST Adam was made a quickening Spirit. \ Cor. XV. 45. Why fpeaks the Apofllc of the one as the lirft man, and of the other as the laft ? Were there on- ly two men."* Have there not been, are there not mil- lions of other men ? But they are the only public per- fons and federal heads, under whom all mankind are comprehended. No other fuch perfon or federal head has appeared, or ever is to appear, in our world. The former was the type, the latter the antitype. Rom. v. 14. In what view, and for what reafon, is the firft Adam in the place referred to, affirmed to have been a type of the fecond ? In what did the fimilarity and refemblance be- tween the former and the latter mainly lie "i The an- fwer has been fuggefled already. The firft Adam in a refped peculiar to himfelf, and that difVmguiflies him from all his natural dependents, typified the fecond. The former was a federal head, and fo is the latter. As an additional and irrefragable proof, that, as really as the covenant of grace was made with the fecond Adam, the covenant of works was made witli the firfl, let us Fourthly, Attend to the parallel which the Apoflle draws between the confcqucnces of the federal repre- fentation of all mankind by the firft Adam in his cove- nant, and the confcquences of the federal reprcfenta- tion of the chofen part of mankind by the fecond Adam in bis covetiant. Wherefore, as by one man fin entered int» the world, and death by fin 5 andfo death pafcd upon all The Covenant of Works. 281 tf// men^ for tljat all have finned. For uniil ihe law /in was in the world ; but fin is not imputed when thtre is n« law- Neverthelefs^ d':ath reigned from Adam to Mfs, even over them that had not Jinncd after the fimilitude of Adam^s fir/i tranfgrejfion., who is the figure of him THAT WAS TO COME. But not Gs the effence fo alfo is the free gift. For if through the offence of one man\ be dead ; much more the g'-ace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man. "Jefus Chr'i/i haih abounded unio many And not as it was by one that finned, fo is the gift , fr the judgment was by one to c-onUemnation ; but the free gift is of many cffdnces unto jiifiif cation, lor if by one 7nan's of- fence^ death reigned by one ; much more they which receive abundance of grace, and of the gift of righteoufnef. fhall reign in life by one Jefus Chri/i. Therefore, as by the of- fence of one, judgment cams upon all men to condemnation ; evenfo by tfje right eoufn^fs of one, the free gift came upon all men unto juftif cation of life. For, as by om man^s dif- obedience many were made finners ; fo, by the obedience of 9ne,fl)all many be made righteous. Rom. v. 12, — 19, All along here does the Apoftle fpeak of two men ns public perfons, or federal heads ; the firfl Adam, with, whom the covenant of works was made ; and the fe- cond, with whom the better covenant was made ; their two r.-fpedive feeds ; and the conveyances from each of them as a reprelentative to the perfons reprefented by him in his covenant. There is, on the one hand, the one man by whom fin and death entered into the world, verfe 12; by whofe oSence many are dead, verfe '5; by whom judgment v/as to condemnation, verfe 16; by whofe efFence death reigned by one, verfe 17 ; judgment came upon all men to condemnation, verfe 18 ; and by whole difobedunce many are made fmners, verfe 19. On the other hand, there is the one man by whom the grace of God and the gift by grace hath abounded unto many, verfe 1 5 ; by whom the free gift is of many offences unto juftification, verfe 16 j by whom they who receive aburir Vol, I. N i> dance t ^^^2 The Covenant of Works, dance of grace, and of the ^ift of ripihteoufnefs, Hiall reign in life, verfe 17 ; by the righteoufnefs of whom the free gift comes upon all men unto juftification of life, verfe 1 8 ; by the obedience of whom many ihall be made righ- teous, verfe 19. Each of thefe federal reprefentatlves has a numerous feed, called the many^ and the all, whom he reprefcnts in his covenant. The firft man has his natural feed : the fecond his fpiritnal. We have, in fhort, the diflcrent conveyances from rhofe federal heads to their refpedive feeds. From the firfl: Adam fm, condemnation, and death are conveyed to his natural feed ; from the fecond grace, righteoufnefs, and life to his Ipiritual feed. Now, how comes it to pafs, that in Jefus Chrifl many obtain rightcoi:fnefs and life ? The reafon is plain. He repre- fented them in his covenant. He fulfilled the condition of it in their ftead. And, therefore, that righteoufnefs, ■which he wrought out, is imputed to them as truly as if they had accompliHied it in their own perfons, and they obtain the eternal life promifcd in it, no lefs fully than if they had purchafed it for themfclves. How comes it to pals, on the, other hand, that fin and death defcend from the firft Adam to his whole natural pofterity .'' The reafon is obvious. He reprefented them in his cove- nant ; and, therefore, what he did when he violated it, is imputed to them, no lefs than if they had done it in their own perfons. As their reprcfentative did he vio- late it,- and, therefore, as a following part of the Ca- tcchifm fpeaks, they ftnncd in biniy and fell luitb him when he finned and fell. Thus are they guilty and ob- noxious to death. Long before they can contraft guilt and incur death in their own perfons, the guilt ot A- d^im's firft fin is imputed to them; and expoles them to death from their very conception and nativity. So the Apoftic teacheth — Death reigned in the world during the long interval y>o/// Adam to Mofei, even ever them that had not finned after the ftmHitiide of Adam^s tranf- gre/Jien ; The Covenant of Works. 28 1 ^reJJtoA ; that is, who had not committed adual fm. Let us obferve, Fifthly, That the whole fcriptures go upon the fup- pofition, that there was a proper covenant made with the firft Adam, as the repreprntative of his natural po- fterity ; and in them we find repeated references to it. 1 ftiall only mention two places, which plainly refer to it. If I,S\\.di Job, covered my trarfgrelfiom as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bofom — Jobxxxi. 33. It is here underftood, that Adam tranfgrefled the law, and violated the covenant, and that he endeavoured to cover or conceal his fin. That he did fo, the account of his fall informs w^.—'Tbey^ Adam and Eve, beard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day ; and Adam and his wife hid themf elves from the prcfence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. How natural is it for us to follow our firft father's foot- fleps ? But in vain do we actempt to hide ourfclves from the omnifcient God. To Adam's covenant and his vio- lation of it there is an allufion no leis plain in the fol- lowing words — Jhey^ like men, have tranfgrefftd the covenant ; they have dealt treacheroujly again/i me. Hof. vi, 7. The expreffion, like men^ in the Hebrew text, is like Adam. Is it not neceffarily implied here, that a co- venant was made with Adam, and that he violated it ? That he did fo, the fcriptures and our own experience tell us. To all which I fliall only add, Sixthly, That the denial of a covenant of works made with Adam is attended with inextricable difficulties, is even big with abfurdities. If no covenant was made with Adam, as our reprefentative we can have no con- cern in what he did when he violated it ; what he did can be placed to his own account only, not to ours ; there can be no tranfmilTion of guilt and punillimcnt from him to us j in fhort, there can be no original fijn in the world j and, if there is no original fin, how can there be any adual ? Is not the former the root, the Nn 2 latter 2^4 ^^^ Covenant of Works. latter the branches ? Is not the one the fountain, the other the dreams? Can there be branches \^ithout a root, ftreams withouc a fountain? ^-ccording to this hypothefis, infants, at leafl:, can have no fin. Is not fin the caufe? and death the tfied ? lut, that infants, as •well as adults, die we all know. Infants, therefore, muft have finned. In their own pcrfons they cannot have finned. There muft, therefore, be a federal head, in 'whom they federally fubfifted, and in whom they have finned. i\pt are we to find fault with this part of the divine conduct ; and in the ingratiuu'e and pride of our hearts, to fav, \\ hv fhould wt- be accountable for the confe- quences ot an i*dion which happened ihoufands of \ears before we had a being. Was it fit either fcr God to propofe, or for Adam to agree that he fl.ould reprefent us in a covenant, to which we had not an opportunity to give our cor^fent ? Is it not cruel and unjult for God to punifh u£ tor a crime which we did not commit ? hut iliall the creature prefume to arraign the condu6l of the Creaior ? Shall not the Jiidge of all the earth do right? The propriety and fitntfs of this part of the providential condud of God, I will have occafion to point out in the fequel. I am IV. To take notice of the general tenor of this fe- deral tranfadfion between God and our full father. All that 1 need to fay on this article, is to remind you of the appellations and epithets, by which it is ufually diftin- guiflied. It has been defigned, a covenant of inno- CENCY. The reafon is manifeft. It was made with A- dam in a (fate of innocency, and in it he reprefented his then innocent poflerity. The lecond Adam, with whom the better covenant was made, was innocent and holy. But in his covenant he rcprefents guilty perfons. 'Ihis accounts for the difference there is between the condi- tions of the two covenants. The covenant of works re- quired The Covenant of Works, 285 quired only perfedt obedience to the law ; no fatisfaftion for fm. That all-perfed righteoufnefs of Jefus Chrill, which is the fole proper condition of the covenant of grace, includes in it not only perfect obedience, but full fatisfadion for fin. This tranfadion between God and innocent Adam, is commonly known by the name of the covenant of WORKS. This name it evidently has from its condi- tionary part ; for it required a feries of good warks, or, in other words, perfed, perfonal, and perpetual obedi- ence, as the condition on which man was to obtain th& felicity promifed in it. The better covenant, to the furety of it, was, in the highefl: fenfe of the word, a cove- nant of works ; but to us it is, from firft to laft , a cove- nant of grace. According to the tenor of the old cove- nant, man was to do and to live. But, according to the new covenant, he lives by faith ; not by his own doings, but in virtue of the doing and dying of the Surety and Saviour. This important tranfadion is in the anfwer fliled a COVENANT OF LIFE. This epithet the Compilers of the Catechifm have aflumed from the promiflbry part of it. All the evil which it threatened is included in the word death. All the good it promifed is comprehended under the term life. The fearful threatening is exprefled in the words prefixed to this Ledure. 1 he great promife is im- plied rather than exprefled. Had the conditions of it been fulfilled, it had been eventually to Adam and his poiie- rity a covenant of life. But, in virtue of the violation of its precept, the penalty of it has been incurred ; and it has been, in fad, both to him and to them a covenant of death. What a comfort to us all is it, that there is a better covenant which has a rich promife of everlaft- ing life, and no proper penalty or threatening of death ? 'i^he wages of ftn is death ^ but the gift of God is eternal life through Jefus Chrift our Lord^ Rom. vi. 23. Here is an epitome of the whole fcriptures, a compend of law and 2 86 The Covenant of Works, and gofpel, the fum of both covenants. What faith the old covenant ? The ttui^es of fin is dtath. What faith the new covenant ? The gft of God is eternal life through Jc' fus Chrijl our Lord. 1 am V. To take a view of the parties tranfacling in this covenant, God and man. In every proper covenant, as we have found already, there are two effential pans, a conditionary, and a promilfory. There niufl, there- fore, be two parties, the maker of the covenant, and the party with whom it is made. On the one it is incum- bent to perform the condition. To the other the fulfil- ment of the promifc belongs. The maker of the covenant of works is God. He, as was moft fit, concerted and propofed the terms of it. He is the fupreme Lord and Lawgiver. To him all crea- tures are neccflarily fubjcft. As he is the Creator md proprietor, he is the Governor and difpofer of all worlds and creatures. He is a God of unbounded fovercignty ; doing according to his fovereign and uncontrollable will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of our lower world. One of his creatures he dignifies and ad- vances ; another he debafcs and cafls down. This is the TiiREE-oNE-GoD that made man, and now in great condefcenfion entered into covenant with him. Man, with whom he made the covenant, was his own creature ; not -^ creature of the firil, but of a fecondary rank and order. Far, indeed, were the parties contradl- ing in ihis covenant from being on a level. Infinite is the difpaiity which naturally and ncceflarily fubfifted be- tween them. To God was man indebted for all that lie was, and all that he poflclTed. In no inftance could he, flritflly fpeaking, dcterve any thing at the hand of God. This was the firft man, the natural root, and, therefore, exceedingly fit to be the federal rcprcfentativc of all the nations and individuals of the human fpecies, who in the fcveral ages of time proceed from him. 'J'hey were ne Covenant of Works. 287 were In his loins when this covenant was made with him. Adam was now an innocent and upright perfon ; con- formed in both foul and body to the holy will and law of God. The only thinp^ to which I need to attend on this part of the fabje^, is the queflion, v/hether the cove* nant of works was made with Adam only, or with Adam and Eve conjundly ? That by man in fcripture we are fometimes to underfland both the man and the woman, the former comprehending the latter, cannot well be denied. Gen. i. 27. But this will by no means prove, thatj either in fad, or in the judgment of the Compilers of the Catechifm, the covenant of works was made equally with the man and the woman. Does not the fcriprure uniform.ly fpeak of the head of that covenant as one individual'^. Is it not the firft man, not the firff: human pair, but the man as contradiftinguifhed from ihe woman, that is affirmed to have been a type of the fecond Adam ? Uom. v. 14, Does not the Apoftle mean two individuals, the one the head of the old cove- nant, the other of the new, when he fpeaks of the firll Adam and the lafl Adam ! One circumftance efpe- cially merits confideration here. The order of the Mo- faic hiftory vrarrants us to conclude, that the covenant of works was made with Adam before Eve had a being. Of the making of the covenant the two vcrfes read in the entry inform us. But of ihe creation of Eve we hear nothing till we come to the 1 8th verfe of the chapter. That fads are not always narrated in the facred hirtory according to the order in which they are accomplilhed, I knovi^. But that chc two fads in queftion are not re- lated according to the order in v.'hich they happened, I can fee no reafon to think. That the covenant was made, not with the man and the woman, but with the man only, as the reprefentative of his pofterity, feems to have been the opinion of the Compilers of the Cate- chifm ; for thus a following anfwer fpeaks — The cove- nant being made with Adam not only for himself, &c. But a88 The Covenmit of Works, But methlnks I hear different perfons faying, How can thefc things be ? Had Eve no concern, was (he not at all included in the covenant ? 1 can only think of three ways, in one or another of which fhe could be includfd in the covenant ; cither as a reprefentaiive^ or as reprefentecL or as a fort ot third party, that was to ftand or fall by herfelf. That Adam and flie were ro- reprefentatives in the covenant I can fee no reafon to think. Neither does fhe feem to have been reprefented by him in it. It is faid to have been made with Adam not only for himfelf, buty^r bis pofterity defc ending from him by ordinary generation. But fhe did not defcend from him by generation, either ordinary or extraordinary. Was flie then a third partv that ftood and fell for her- felf? If fhe was, why fhould we find fault with God for chufing Adam to rcprcfent us in the covenant ? Here is a perfon that neither was reprefented by another, nor reprefented others, but a£led only for herfelf, and ftia was the very firfl that finned and fell. It is natural to afk here, Had the woman only finned and not the roan, what would have been the confe- quence ? would the covenant have been broken? or would the woman only have perifhed, and another have been created in her place, from whom mankind would have fprung ? Of fuppofitions, conjedlures, and queftions here, there is no end. We neither have information, nor are we under any obligation, to account for them. Why fhould we perplex ourfelves with the fuppofition of events, which we know could not happen? Let U3 confidcr VI. The parts of the covenant, the conditionary, the prcmiffbry. and the minatory. The firft two are the effcn- tial parts of a covenant. The third is an accidental and adventitious part. Of thefc parts, fevcrally, I may give a brief account. There i^ Firji^ Ihe conditionary part of the covenant of works. To the important queflion, What is the condi- tion The Covenant of Works, 289 tion of the covenant of works ? Some pious writers and ufeful Catechifais give this very inaccurate anfwer, Do and live. I call it inaccurate, becaufe it comprehends the whole of the covenant rather than a part of it. la it the two conftituent parts of the covenant are cxpref- fed, and the adventitious part implied. The thing- re- quired of man in it was ta do^ and the thing promifed in it was life. What God required of Adam, as the pro- per condition of the covenant, the actual performance of which was to entitle him and his pofferity to the eternal life promifed in it, ^2i^perfedyperfonal^ and perpetual zoU' formity and obedience to the revealed will of God. The general ftandard of this obedience was the moral law. The fpecial teft of it was a pofitive prohibition relating to the fruit of a particular tree in the garden, with regard to which, God faid to him, Thou jloalt not eat of it. It is here underftood, that he had both the knowledge of the will and law of God, and ability to fulfil it. The law was not yet written either on tables of (tone or on paper. He had it, however, imprinted on the flelhly tabic of his heart ; and was in his whole man, foul and body, con- form to it. He was, and he did univerfally what the holy law required him to be and to do. From his crea- tion, Adam had habitual conformity to the holy law; and habitual conformity is produdive of adual. A holy ^lacure ever is accompanied with a holy life ; or, as our Lordhimfelf exprefles \i, a good tree bringeth forth' GOOD FRUIT. It behoved the obedience, which Adam was required to perform as the condition of the cove- nant ot works, to be (i.) Ferfe6l. It behoved it to be perfed in every re- fped and view ; in refpeft of xii fubjccl. A perfed man only could perform perfect obedience. The law extends to the man himfelf as well as his anions. It behoved him to be, as v/ell as to do, what the law required. It behoved his obedience to be perfe<5l in refpcct oi parts. It was incumbent upon him to obey all the precepts of Vol. I. O o the t 290 The Covenant of Works, the law ; to perform all the duties internal and externa?, which each of them required ; and to abftain from alt the fins in thought, word, and deed, which each of them forbade. It behoved his obedience to be perfecl in dc' greei, as well as in parts. It was incumbent upon him rot only to perform every duty, which the holy law en- joined, but to do it in a perfect manner ; not only the number of the duties, but each of them in perfedtion. (2.) Pcrfonal. The covenant of works admitted of no Mediator or Surety. Had Adam fulfilled the condi- tion of it, his obedience, indeed, would have entitled not only himfelf but his poflerity to ihe eternal life proujifed m it. Each of them in that event would have been con- formed in his own perfon to the holy law. The obedience of his federal head, however, rather than his own per- fonal obedience, would have been fuftained as the ground of his title to life. But on fuppofition that Adam failed. in fulfilling the condition, and a fubftitute both able and willing to do it had offered, the covenant of works could not have accepted of him. How thankful may we all be that there is a better covenant, in which a furety is provided for us ; an exchange ot perfons is admitted ; obedience and fatisfattion received from a fubftitutc in phce of finners themfelves ? For he who kyiew no Jin. ivas made fin, or a fin-offering, for us, that loe might be made the right^^oufnefs of God in him ; Chriji hath once fuffcred for fin. the jud for the unju/i, in their ftead, as well as for their good, that he might bring us unto God (3.) Perpetual. Curfcd is every one, faith the law of works, that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. Gal. iii. 10. It is not faid, Curfed is £very one that doethwot, but curfed is every one that continueth not to do all things. Adam, indeed, was now in a probationary ftate. That (late was only to continue for a limited time. Had Adam conti- nued obedient till the expiration of it, the condition of the covenant would then have been fulfilled j and his own: The -Covenant of Works, agi ©wn cverlaftlng felicity and that of his numerous poftc- rity infured. But would he in that cafe have ccafcd to be conformed and obedient to the law ? No. He would have been confirmed in a ftate of perfedt and perpetual purity, as well as ftiiciiy and dignity. Ihe law, under which he was, is of univerfal, and of endlefs obligation. Univerfal conformity to it is the felicity and the dignity of the rational creature. Such was the tenor, and fuch the demands of the law of works. High, but juil, demands ! Such demands, however, innocent Adam was able to anfwer. God re- quired nothing of him but what he was able to do. Let us Secondly, Attend to the promissory part of the cove- fiant of works. This, though not expreffed, is necella- rily implied in the Mofaic account of it. The threaten- ing of death in the event of difobedience, expreffed in the verfes prefixed to this Lecture, neceflarily implies a promife of life in cafe of obedience. The promtffory part of the covenant is to be confidered as it relates to Adam himfelf, and as it extends to his pofterity. The threatening on the one hand, and the promife on the other, extend to them as well as him. Had he obeyed, not only he, but alfo his pofterity, would have lived. But, having difobeyed, he expofed them, as well as himfelf, to death. The life promlfed in this covenant is ufually confidered as threefold, natural, fpiritual, and eternal. (i.) Natural. This included in it not merely the continuation of the union between foul and body, but the fehcity and comfort of both in a united ftate. Now, that natural life in the promiffory part of the covenant comprehended not only the continued union of foul and body, tjt the felicity and comfort of both in a united (late, is manifefl: from the oppofition which the fcripture ilates between life and death, and the extent in which it underifands the latter. Death denotes not only the adual diflblution of the union between foul and body, O o 2 but 292 7 he Covenant of Works. but the forerunners of it. Accordingly, the moment man fmned, he began, agrefabiy to the letter of the threatening, to die. Not only did he fall under the power of fpiritual death as the forerunner of eternal, but he began to die naturally ; that is, he was expofed to the mlferies of this life as the beginning of the actual diffolution of the mortal frame ; which is, what we com- monly undcrftand by natural death. Now. if natural death includes not only the adual feparation of foul and body, but the infelicity and mifery incident to man du- ring the prefent ftate, life, as oppofed to death, denotes the continued union of foul and body, and alfo the fe- licity and comfort of both during their united flate. It is here underflood, that man would never have been fubjeded to natural death, had he not fmned. It has, indeed, been pretended, that his mortality arifes from his conftitution ; and that, therefore, though he never had fmned, he would have been mortal. But what faith the fcripture ? Does it not every where reprcfeni death as the confequence of fm ? Is not the threatening, In the day that thou eaicji, and finneft, thoujijalt furely die, I'ufficiently cxprefs and plain ? Is it not neceflarily im- plied, that if he did not eat and fm, he fliould not die ? No lefs explicit and peremptory are the Apoftle's words. By one man fin entered into the ivorld^ and death by sin. Rom. V. J 2. When it is affirmed that death entered by fm, mufl: it not mean, that, if fm had not entered, death would not have entered. Death natural, fpiri- tual, and eternal, is intended here. Perfons may under- Ifand it in a rellrittcd view ; but what reafon can they affign for fuch an interpretation .'' Is not death of every fpecies, death in its uimofl extent, the confequcnce of fm ? Is not this wh^t the ApoiUe affirms ? (2.) Spiritual. As natural life denotes the conti- nued union of foul and body, ai^d the felicity and com- fort of both in an united Hate, fpiritual life includes con- tinued union and communion between God and man, ^ in The Covenant of Works, 293 in which the feHcity of the latter confifts. That foul and body may be united, and neither the one nor the other be happy, fcripture and experience teftify. Though they be united one to another, if they be not related to God, it is irnpoflible for them to be happy. Spiritual hfe admits of a twofold confideration, as relative, and as real. So long as Adam obeyed the law he was ap- proved and accepted of God. He was alfo conformed and like to his Maker. He had both a will and a ca- pacity to ferve him. As he lived by God, he lived to him. Wh<4t fweet intercourfe and fellowlhip he then had with God, it is not cafy for us, fallen creatures, to conceive (3.) Eternal, This comprehends the perfedion and perpetuity of natural and of fpiritual life. Different as the covenant of works and the covenant of grace, in many refpefts, are one from another, between the two there is a fimilarity. There is a twofold ftate of man under the covenant of grace ; a ftate of imperfedion on earth, and a ftate of perfection in heaven. The cove- nant of works alfo fuppofed a twofold ftate of man ; a probationary, and a confirmed ftate ; the former on earth, the latter in heaven. The former was an infe- rior and temporary ftate ; the latter a fuperior and an everlafting ftate. Though he was both a holy and a happy man when the covenant of works was made with him, we are not to imagine that the ftate in which he was then placed, was equal to that confirmed and cele- ftial ftate of which he had the profpecl, and on which he was to enter in the event of his fulfilment of the con- dition of the covenant. 1 go here upon the fuppofuion, that there was a certain period at which man*s" ftate of probation was to end, and he was to be removed from the terreftrial to the celeftial paradife. It has, indeed, been pretended, that the promifTory part of the covenant of works warranted Adam to expe£t only the continua- tion of a happy life in the earthly paradife for a feafon. But 294 7^^^ Covenant cf JVorks, But from the fcriptures it is fufficlently manifeft, that the promifTorv part of the covenant infured to man, pro- vided he fulfilled ihe conditionary part, life in its fuUcfl extent; rot only natural and fpirirual, but eternal life. In proof of this important truth it may fuffice to fugged the following confiderations. That the covenant of works promifed eternal life appears I. From the terms of it, as ftated by our divine Rc- deem.er himfelf ; who, in words quoted on a preceding part of the fubjefl, befpeaks a certain perlon thus, If ihou wilt enter into life, keep the eommandmcnts. That the life of glory is, at leaft, ultimately intended here every impartial perfon perceives. That it is of entering into life, according to the tenor and terms of the old cove- nant, our Lord here fpeaks is no lefs evident. That eter- nal life was promifed in the firfl covenant will appear if we confidcr 2> 1 hat it is promifed in the new covenant. Very different, indeed, are the two covenants. Vaftly fupe- rior is the new to the old. But do we not recover, in virtue of the fulfilment of the one, what we forfeited by the violation of the other ? Does not the fecond Adam reflore what not he but the firft Adam took away ? Now, what docs he reftore ? Two things efpecially, glo- ry to God, and felicity to fallen man. What felicity does he reflore to fallen man ? Is it natural, fpiritual, or eternal lite ? It is life natural, fpiritual, and eternal ; and all thcfe kinds of life are refforcd according to the order in which they were loft. Man firft died fpiritually ; and became obnoxious to death natural and eternal. Eledl Tinners firft recover fpiritual life ; and, in due time, a refurreftion to a life of eternal glory, in which foul and body are to be partners and fharers for ever. Now, does the fccond Adam only reftore to fallen man what he forfeited by fm? And does he give the life of glory in heaven as well as of grace on earth ? Then the for- mer no lefs than the latiejr muft have been promifed in the The Covenant of Works. 295 the covenant of v/orks ; and man mufl have forfeited the one, as well as the other, by his violation of that co- venant. 3. Not only natural and fpiritual, but alfo eternal death was threatened in the covenant of works ; and, there- fore, eternal^ as well as natural and fpiritual life, mufl have been promifed. That eternal death was threaten- ed in it is manifefl both from fcripture and experience. Now, the life promifed, and the death threatened in it are, every where in the fcriptures, contrafled. Are the death threatened and the life promifed of equal extent ? Doss the former include eternal, as well as natural and fpiritual death? The latter, by unavoidable confequence, includes eternal, as well as natural and fpiritual, life. With great propriety, therefore, does the Apoflle op- pofe the life promifed in the new covenant to the death threatened in the old, in words which I introduced al- ready— The wages of fin is -death ; but the gift of God /> eternal life through Jefus Chri/i our Lord. That man, in the event of his fulfilment of the con- ditionary part of the covenant, was, at a particular pe- riod unknown to us, not only to be confirmed in a ftate of perpetual purity and dignity, but tranflated, in both foul and body, from earth to heaven, fcems, from vari- ous confiderations, evident. This earth certainly never was intended to be the perpetual dwelling of the count- lefs millions of the human fpccies born already, and to be born. From his conftitution and fuperior nature might we infer, that man was intended for the higher world. The form and afpe£t of the irrational creatures may be underflood to be an indication of their low end as well ?s original ; man's form and afped, on the con- trary, as an indication of his high end as well as O'-igi- nal. Who knoweth the fpirit of man that goeth up- ward, fays Solomon, and the spirit of the beasts' THAT GOETH DOWNWARD TO THE EARTH ? Eccl. iii. 2 1. But the great principle which feeps to run through the whole 2q6 7*;??^ Covenant of Works, >vhole fcriptures, and on which efpeclally we go here, is this — We recover by the obedience of the fecond Adam what we loft by the difobedience of the firft. Now, by the obedience of the fecond Adam we are not only de- livered from that ftate of fin and mifery, to which the difobedience of the firft Adam had reduced us, and in- troduced into a ftate of grace on earth, a ftate in fume refpecls fimilar, though in other views diffimilar and fu- perior, to that ftate from which he fell ; but, in due time, obtain an actual entrance, in both foul and body, into the ccleftial world, and the everlafting poffeflion of it. Thus the felicity promifed in the covenant of works, ■which Adam by his difobedience forfeited for his pofte- rity as well as himfelf, and the felicity promifed in the new covenant, which the fecond Adam has obtained and infured to all whom he reprefents in it, are in fub- flance the fame. The fame in fubftance, I fay ; for they differ only in circumftances. 7 he celeftial glory, of which the weakcft believer on earth is an expectant, is in fe- veral refpedts fuperior to the glory of which the firft Adam had the profpect in the covenant of works. How does it recommend and endear the celeftial glory of which militam faints have the profpe£t, and triumphant faints the poffeflion, that it was purchafed, and is now poffeffed, by the Son of God in our nature, as the pri- mary heir of it ! In virtue of the new covenant our na- ture is now advanced, and wc ourfelves related to God, in a manner unknown to Adam previous to his fall. In the celeftial world, we have now not only the throne of God, but alfo the throne of the Lamb. Had rot the covenant of works been violated, and the fupe- rior covenant been introduced in virtue of the breach of it, no individual of the human race ever could have fccii what the Apoftle John faw. / beheld, fays he, and, lo, in the midfi of the throne, and of the four beafts, and in the mldft of the elders, flood a Lamb as it had been jlain, having feven horns, and fcven eyes, ivhieh are the feven fiirifs The Covenant of Works* iy^ fplfits of God fent forth into all the earth. Rev. v. 6. I am 'Thirdly^ To confider the minatory part of the co- venant. This I called an ad'ventitious and accidental part. It is not eflential to a covenant, but always implies the poflibility of a failure on the part of the perfon or per- Tons with whom it is made. Innocent and upright as Adam was, when God entered into covenant with him, there was, at Icaft, a poflibility of a failure on his part. it was fit, therefore, that a proper penalty fhould be annexed to the covenant. Of this part of it Mofes gives us an exphcit account; for he introduces God befpeaking Adam, when he covenanted with him, thus — In the day thou eaieft, thou shalt surely die. After a particular account of the life promifed in that covenant, I need not infifl on the death threatened in it. Whatever the one be, the other is the reverfe. The particular inflance on which efpecially man's obe- dience, or difobedience, was to turn, is exprefsly men- tioned. Accordingly, I may here fpeak of the tree it- felf, of the fruit of which Adam was forbidden to eat ; of the reafons of the prohibition j and of the corfequence of tranfgrefling it. (i.) The TREE itfelf. It is known In the fcriptures, and in the anfwer under confideration, by the diftin- guifhing name, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In the earthly paradife there were two famous trees, of both which Mofes has given us an account — Out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is plea- f ant to the fght and good for food ; the tree of life alfo in the ?nidf of the garden^ and the tree of know- ledge of good and evil. The tree of life referred to the pror.iiflbry part of the covenant j and might be in- tended to be an emblem of the life promifed in it. The tree of knowledge of good and evil related to the fane- tion of it, and might be intended to remind man of the 4eath threatened in that covenant. Vol. I. Pp ^ t 29^ J^/^if Covenant of Works, As for this laft tree, It has been queried what kind of tree it was. It has accordingly been thought to be the ft;i^-1rce. This opinion probably has been inferred from the account which Mofes gives us of the firfl: garments of our fallen parents. "I be eyes of them both were opened, fays he, and ihey knew that they were naked : and they Jewed FiG-LF.AVES together, and made themjelves aprons. Gen. iii. 7. It has been by others underftood to be the apple-tree. This opinion has been taken from thefe vjoxdii'—I raifed thee up under the apple-tree. Song viii. 5. But all thefe things are the creatures of a fruit- ful fancy. What particular tree is intended it is unne- celfary and impollible for us to know. It is more natu- tal to enquire why it is defigned the free of knozuled^e of good and evil. It certainly is not intended to intimate, that the tree itfelf was enduep with the knowledge either of good or evil. Neither can it mean, that the tree had any intrinfic power or virtue to commuincate the knowledge of good and evil to any. It may be defigned the tree of knowledge of good and evil facramentally and cven- ffially. It was intended to admoniOi and forewarn our firft parents of the experimental knowledge of the good forfeited and the evil incurred, which they would acquird in the event of eating the fruit of it. (2.) The REASONS of the prohibition of the ufe of . this tree. \ here was an exprefs allowance to eat of all the other trees in the garden. This tree as much as any other was at God's difpofal ; but he, in fovereignty and wildom, had chofen it to be the tefl of man's fideli- ty and cbedience ; and, in prohibiting the ufe of it, he jyiight have different things in view. It might be intended tc^ remind man of his dependence upon God, and fnbjcdtion to him. Man had dominion over all the creatures in this lower world. He had'the full and free ufe of the beafls of the earth,of the fowls of tlie air, and of tlx fifhcs of the fea. l^ut by this prohibi- tion he was reminded, that he, who sllowed him the full ard The Covenant of Works, 299 and free ufe of all the other creatures, had he pleafed, iiiight have withheld them from him. For all the other creatures, no lefs than this tree, were in his providential hand, and at his fovereign difpofal. It certainly was defigned to teach man the neceffity of univerfal and unreferved fabmiffion and obedience to the will of God, in what inftances, and by what means foever, he may be pleafed to notify it to him. Here was a tree of the fruit of which man was by no means to eat. But for forbidding him to eat of it no imaginary reafon can be affigned, but only that it was the plcafure of Jehovah, who doth according to his ivill in the army of heaven^ and among the inhabitants of our earth. In fine. It might be intended as a daily nionitor to man, to remind him, that it was not in the fruition of earthly things his felicity confifted, or was to confift. Here was a tree which appeared good for food, pleafant to the eyes, and in every refpe^ much to be defired ; and yet man, even in his paradifaical (late, was not al- lowed to eat of it. No creature, how dx^firable foever it may be, is ever to be fubftituted in place of the Crea- tor. It is not in the former, but only the latter, that felicity and fatisfadion can be found. I may confider (3.) The direful conskqijence of eating the fruit of the forbidden tree, death. In the day thou eateft thereof^ faid God to iidam, thou [halt fur ely die. Death here may be viewed in a twofold fenfe, as relative and as reaU or as legal and as moral. The very day man fmned he died legally^ that is, he was capitally convicted and con- demned to die. That very day he died really and moral' ly. The death threatened in the covenant, as i men" tioned formerly, ever is oppofed to the life promifed in it. The life I have already confidered as threefold, na- tural^ ffiritual^ and eternal. I may, theiefore, confider death I. As natural. That natural death was a part of the punilhment threatened in the covenant of works is ma- Pp 2 nifeft. 3<50 The Covenant of Worls, nifeft. This part of the punifliment comprehends, as I faid already, not onlv the a6lual feparation of foul and bodv, but the numerous forerunners of it. Does natu- ral desth include not only the diffolution of the union between the two conftituent parts of our nature, but the Tiiany temporal maladies which precede and forebode it ? Then man may be faid to have died naturally the very day, the very moment, he finned. No fooner did he fm than he beg^an to feel the confequences of it in both foul and body; he faw himfelf naked j he was filled with fhame, remorfe, and dread. 2. As fpiritual. The very moment man ate he fell into a (late, in various refpe^ls, fimilar to that of the dead. He was deprived of his former fpiritual beauty and comeiinef^. God now faw him with diflike and diflatisfadion. He was totally deprived of a principle of fpiritual motion and adlion. This is the unhappy fi- tuation to which he reduced his numerous poftcrity ; and in which accordingly we all now defcend from him. We come into the world fpiritually blind, deaf, and dumb, infenfibic and unFeeling, incapable of fpiritual motion and a6liv>n. In this unhappy condition we lie till the compafTionate eye of him that made us pity us, and his omnipotent hand help us. Were all the faints in hea- ven and on earth now affembled before me, I might ad- drefs them in the Apoflle'^s words ta the Ephefian con- verts— 7 on hath he quickened ivho ivere dead in trefpajjis and fins — Tou were by nature the children of wrath even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy y for his great love wherewith he loved us^ even when we were dead in fins, hath quickened us together with Chriji, and hath rafcd us up to^ethrr, and made us fit together in heavenly places in Chnjt ^7^-f-Eph. ii. i , 3, — b. 3. As eternal. This includes the crcrlafling fepara- tion of the whole man from God ; and the puniOimenc of both foul and body in that fcparated ftate tor ever. Accordingly, it is ufually confidcrcd in a twofold view j as a The Covptant of Works, ^.si a punifhment oilofs, and as a puniflirr.ent oifenfe. By the former we underftand the privatbn and want of all good ; by the latter the adual inlhclion of all penal evil, k not this, indeed, a punifltment greater than we can bear ? In what tremendous terms does the Apoftle defcribe it 1 *^he Lord Jefus Jhall be revealed from heaven ivith his mighty angels, in FLAMING fi«e, taking vengeance on them that kmw not God. and that obey not the go/pel of our Lord Jefus Cbri/i, who Jhall be punifhed zuith everlast- ing lyEZTKYicniQN from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of JAs power, 2 The IT. i. 7, — 9. This is a pu- nifhment at once moft exquifite in degree, and of end- lefs duration It is called vengeance and dc/irudion, even everlafiing deflruction. But of this tremendous fubject the anfwer to a following queilion will lead mc to fpeak more particularly. Such were the parts, canditionary, promiffory^ and mi' naiory, of the covenant of works.— I may now^ therefore, in the VII. and lafl placs^ Take notice of what many wrl- ,iS have called the seals of the covenant of work?. The external adminiftration of the fuperior covenant, both prior and pofterior to the coming of Chrift, has had facred feals annexed to it. The covenant of works has alfo been underflood to have had its Teals. Con- cerning the number of the latter, writers are not a- greed. But, as both the Jewilh and Chriftian admini- ftrations of the better covenant each of them has two feals, the bed writers fpeak of two feals of the covenant of works. Thefe were the two famous trees in the earth- ly paradife of which I had occafion to take notice al- ready. Of the tree of knowledge of good and evil 1 have fpoken under a preceding head. It was to Adam, as I faid already, a daily monitor and indication of the danger and the death he was to incur, if he tranfgreflcd. Efpeciaily is ^e tree of life underflood to have been a feal of the cove- nant 3C2 The Covenant of IVorks^ hant of works, and a pledge to Adam of that complcic and everlafting felicity which he wns to infure to bimfclf and his numerous pofterity, by fulfilling tlie condition- ary part of the covenant. What particular kind of tree this was, we are not informed, and therefore cannot know. It has been queried, why it was called the tree of life. This appellation has been fuppofed to arife from a particular virtue in it, and which was not in any of the other trees of paradife. It has been fuppofed, that^' though man was made immortal, his nature was fubject to decays which the pe- culiar efficacy of this tree only could repair. Nay, it has been thought to have had fuch a wonderful virtue, that, had man eaten of it, even though he finned, he could not have died ; and, even after he had fmned, and ex- pofed himfelf to death, had he ate of it previous to his expulfon from the garden, his death would have been prevented. This notion probably arifes from a mif-in- terpretation of Jehovah's words — The Lord God fuid, no'-jj^ left he put forth his hand and take afo of the tree of JtfCi and eat and live for ever — So he drove out the fuan : and he placed, at the eall of the garden of Eden, chcrubimsy and a fuming fword luhich turned every luay, to keep the ivay of the tree of life. Gen. iii. 22, 24. Was not the cxpulfion of our firit parents from paradife, and confe- quently from all accefs to the tree ot life, a certain indi- cation not only that paradife itfclf was now loft, but the life, both tcrreltrial and cclcftial, promifed in the covenant of works, was now irrecoverably and for ever forfeited ? When it is faid, that Adam was driven out that he might not cat of the tree of life and live, it is not to be underftccd as an intimation of what would have even- tually happened, but only as an intimation of the inten- tion and view with which he would have eaten of it. !t^ow, he was to know that all expc£lation and views ot life in the wuy of that covenant were foolilh and delu- fory. It only is in the way of a fuperior covenant, of which The Covenant of Fl^'orkr. ^05 which till now our firfl parents had been altogether ig- norant, that any fallen man can exped and obtain life. Far were the two trees already mentioned, as feals of the covenant of works, trom being unneceffary and unpro- fitable. In them Adam had every day, every hour, before his eyes vifible and fenfible monuments of both the fe- licity promifed and the mifery threatened in the cove- nant of works ; in order that he might be excited and warned to infure to himfelf the one and avoid the other. The account which I have given of the covenant of works fuggefls a variety of refle6:ions. Great condcfcenfion and goodnefs did God difcover to man in the covenant of works. How unequal are the parties contrading in it ! Infinitely fuperior v/as he that made it to him with whom it was made. Shall the great Creator covenant with any of his own creatures ! Did he ever treat in fuch a manner with angels ? Lordy luhnt is ?nan ! Manifold are the inflances in which God appears good to man in the covenant of works. No- thing was required of him in it but what might have been required of him though no fuch covenant had been made. Felicity was promifed to him in it far greater than otherwife he could have expected ; even felicity which his obedience, though it had been perfeded, could not have deferved. If Eve acted for herfclf, was it not wifely and mercifully ordered that fhe was permit- ted to fin and fall firfl, to teach us that we need not murmur at God for making a covenant with Adam, his violation of which was to involve us ail in ruin; for had each of us been left to acl, and to ftand or fall for him- felf, we might all have done as our mother Eve did. Manifeft is the validity of fcriprure-confequences. The doclirine of the covenant of works is of capital im- portance in the Chriftian fyilem. It is a doclrine not only moft important in itfelf, but mofi interefting to us. In many places of fcripture, hov/ever, it is not delivered in fuch exnrefs terms, as we may think the importance af 504 ^>^^ Covenant of Worhl of it requires, but it is manifeftly implied in them ; and, by the moft neceffary and natural confequence. dcdu- cible from them. How ncceflary and ufeful is it for us to cdmpare fpiritual things with fpiritual ? Is not the fcrip- tyre its own b'!ft: interpreter ? Let us attend to the fenfe rather than the found. The latter without the former is unprofitable. Firm, indeed, is the foundation we have for our faith in the fcriptures. Copious and clear is the revelation they contain of both law and gofpel, of both the covenant of works and the covenant ot grace. How different is the covenant of works pofterior to the violation of it from what it was prior to it 1 No long- er is it to any of us a covenant of life. It now is a co- venant of death to us all. For ive have all finned^ and *.ve all have died fpiritually, and expofed ourfelves to c- ternal death. Blcffed and holy then is he that hath part in the firjl refurretlion^for over him ihefecond death Jhall have no poiuer. Unhappy and dangerous is the fituation of every per- son under .the broken covenant of works. Unhappy jfftufl: it be. All the good, temporal and fpiritual, promi- fed in that covenant, has that perfon forfeited. Danger- ous mufl: it be. All the penal evil threatened in it has he incurred. He is under the maledidion of heaven. He is obnoxious to the wrath of an angry, an incenfed God. i)ut how fecure and fearlefs are many in this (late ! They are faft aileep, and, therefore, fee not their danger. They are afieep on the top of a moft tremendous precipice, at the foot of which is a bottomlefs gulph, into which they ;:re apt every moment to tumble. May I not befpeak luch a perfon in the words of the fliip-mafler to the Pro- phet faft afleep in the midfl of a great ttmpefl. What TJieatic/t thou^ O sleeper ! Arijc^ call upon thy God, if Jo be that God will think upon us, that we perijh not. Jon. i. 6. Foolilh and prcpoflerous muft it be for any of the po- {lerity of fallen Adam to expect life in the way of the covenant of works. From that quarter no life is now t« The Covenant of Works. lo^ to be expeded. Though we could do all that Adam wa§ bound to do, when the covenant was made with him. even this would be ineffeflual and un-availint;. A- dam carved out new work for himfelf ; woik which nei- ther angel nor man can accomplifh. He has finned, and, therefore, for fm fatisfadtion mud be made. But fatisfac. tion adequate to the dignity of the offended party, a fi- nite bsing cannot poffibly accomplilh. What an arduous tafk, what an impra^licable undertaking is an attempt to obtain life in the way of the covenant of works 1 Who of all mankind can continue in all the things requi- red in the holy and juft law of God ? Who of us all can fufFer the penalty and bear the punifliment of cur fin? What a foolifli and abfurd part do they acl:, who, as the Apoflle exprclTes it, go about to ejlablilh their own ri^hte- oufnefs, or the righteoufnefs of the law, in oppofition to the righteoufnefs of Chrid ; preferring the covenant of works to the covenant of grace ; the former, in fact, a covenant of death ; the latter, in the fulled fenfe of the word, a covenant of life ? Mod apparent is the necefiity of another and fuperior covenant. Is death incurred, and is life forfeited, by the violation of the covenant of works ? Then there mud be another and a better covenant by which fallen man may efcape the death threatened, and recover the life forfeited, in that fird covenant ; othcrwife man is lod for ever. But glory to God in the highed, that, before the covenant of works was violated, nay, long before it was made, even from unbeginnlng ages, another federal Head was found out, and a fuperior covenant was tranf« acted with him. How fuperior is this covenant ! How admirably adapted to the Jtale of fallen man ! The co- venant of works was calculated for the meridian of the rnnoccnt date. But the covenant of grace only can befit the fallen date. Safe and happy,, indeed, is the perfon, and only the perfon, that is in dated in this bet- ^,er covenant. He is delivered from fpiritual death, from Vol. I. Q^q natural t 3o6 '^he Covenant of Works, natural death as penal, and from eternal death. He lives both relatively and really. He has the life of grace in prefent polTcffion, and the profped of tlie poffeflion of the life of glory through an cndlefs futurity. The great queftion then, my friends, is, vvhether lue be per- fonally, in a faving manner, and for ever, inflated in ihis covenant. Necellary, interefting queftion ! Finally, Let me entreat each of you, my dear bre- thren, who hitherto have remained under this broken covenant, and are expofed to the mifery which it en- tails on all who are under it ; let me entreat you to flee fpeedily, without a moment's delay, into that better co- venant now opened to you for this very end, that you may by faith enter into it; fitting down, for time and eternity, under that purple-covering of the all-atoning blood of Chrifl, which will infallibly infure everlafting fafety and felicity to you. May he who has the hearts of all men in his hand determine and enable you to do fo! Amen. Ths { 2>^7 ) The Fall of Man. EccL. vii. 29. ho, this only have I found, that God hath made man up' right ; but they ha-ve /ought out ?nany inventions. IMMUTABILITY is one of the incommunicable per- J. fedions by which the divine Being is diftinguHhed from every being of the created kind. Holy and hap- py was man in his original ftate. But mutability belongs to all the creatures- Gcd made man upright ; but he foon unmade himfelf. So fpeaks the text. God made man upright ; but he found out many inventions, by which he dillionoured God, and deftroyed himfelf. Sudden is the tranfition in the text from man's fiift to his fallen ftate. Sudden was man's fall from a Rate of hdinefs and happinefs into a flate of fm and mifery. This is that unh?ppy change of Hate that man at an e?.rly pe- riod underwent; of which we have a defciiption in ihc following anfwer of the Catechiim, which I am now to introduce and explain — Our fir (I -parents being left to the frgedoni of their own luill, fell from the eflate 'wherein they were created, by finning againft God, Q^q. 2 Oi 3oS The Fall of K\an. Of the creiition of our firfl parents, and of the holy and happy ftate in which they were at firfl: placed, we have heard already. Of the unhappy change of ftate which they fuddenly underwent, conimoniy known by the name of the/^//, I am now to fpcak. In the anfvver which 1 have repeated, and am now to explain, we find the follov/ing particulars. I. The perfons immediately concerned in this dread- ful cataitrophe, our first parents. They were the firfl: human pair, and the common parents of the nu- merous individuals of mankind who have been born in the ages which are pall, and are to be born in the ages which are to come. They were our parents. We are their children. The genealogy of mankind, in all parts of our world, may be traced back from fon to fa- ther, through all the part: ages of the world, till we reach that early period at which only two human beings ac- tually exiiled, and we all lay in their loins. Why then Ihould one of mankind hate or defpife another ? We are all brethren. The high and the rich need not look down with contempt on the mean and the low. One fpecific nature is common to them all. They all have one com- mon father. Of one elood God hath juadc all natiors cf men thai divcll on all the face of the earth. A federal, as well as a natural, relation fubfifts between Adam and us. He reprefentcd us in that covenant of which I gave you an account in the preceding Lcdure. 'I'hcrefore, when he finned and fell, we finned in him and fell with him. II, How our firfl: parents fell from their original fl:ateof dignity, as well as purity and felicity — Being left to THE IREJ.DOM OF 'IHLIR OWN WILL they FELL. Tllis truly is a myflerious fubjcd. That our firft parents fell, and that we ieil in and wi:h them, experience, as well -s fcripiure, tells us. • 13ut how they iclI, it is far from being The Fall of Man, 2 09 being eafy to explain. This is, indeed, one of the mod abilrufc points in revealed religion. It is attended with difficulties, the folution of which is truly hard. Vain and unneceffary is it to aik whether man has adually fallen or not. That he now is li fallen creature is a truth no lefs mournful than certain. He once was a holy and a happy man. How could a holy and a happy man be- come unholy and unhappy ? In him, at his creation, there was a univerfal inclination to good. Whence then had he a propenfity to evil ? Whence did it originate ? This myftery has been explained and accounted for in a manner moft derogatory to God, and fubverfive of the mod capital doctrines of revelation. It has been pretended, that this propenfity or inclination to evil was concreated with man. Bu: could it poffibly be concrca- ted with him ? Could it be of God ? No. He is not, he cannot be, the author of fin, or of any fmful inclina- tion. Had it been concreated with Adam, he mull have had it even prior to his fall; nay, from the very earlieft moments of his exiftcnce. But the fuppofition of a propenfity to evil, or inclination leading to the ac- tual coramiffion of (in, is utterly incompatible with a ilate of perfect purity and felicity, and repugnant to the views the fcripture gives us, and all the ideas we enter- tain of man's primeval flate. The fuppofition tha't there was in man from his creation fuch an inbred inclination (o evil, that man was a fmncr from his creation, or rather that fin was concreated with him, is a monftrous abfurdi- ly. An inclination to evil is evil. A fmful habit, no lefi than a fmful aft, is fm. The holy law requires corfor- inicy to it in the heart as well as in the praftice, in the inward difpofitions as well as in the external adions. A want of conformity to it, as really as a tratifgrcfiion of it. is fm. The fuppofition, I fay, that an inclination to evil was concreated with man is moil antifcriptural and big with abfurdity. Accordingly^ the anfv/cr accounts for his fm 510 The Fall of Man. fin and fall in quite a different manner. He was, in- deed, a holy and a happy man. l^ut he was only a man ; and, therr-fore, capable of change. M.m) crea- tures, indeed, boih angelic a'^d human, are unalterably confirmed in a ftate of holincfs and happinefs. But the prrmnnency of their (iate does not arife from the im- mutability of their natures. It arifes from the liability of the divine purpofes. God, no doubt, could immedi- att^^y have confirmed our firfl parents in a ftate of purity and feliciry. i^^ut icpleafed him to place them, for a fea- fon, in a ftate of probation and trial. As he ever is fove- rcign in the diRribution of all his favours to the crea- tures, he could either give to our original progenitors, or withhold from them, that fuperadded grace and ffrengih bv which they might have been for ever con- firmed in iheir original (late, and not fo much as a pofFibility left cf their falling from it. It does not ap- pear that he withdrew from Adam the grace which he bad formerly given him. Eafily, no doubt, could he hLve btflowed upon him confirming grace, by which his fall might have been abfoluteiy prevented. But tin?, as 1 laid, he might either give or withhold. And he, in fovercignty, withheld it accordingly ; leaving man to his own FREEDOM in the im.provement of what he had already received. Ke did noc in the leafl prompt^ but only permitted, man to fin. He had Qivcn him a ftock of ilrengih frfficient for doing his duty ; and left himi TO THE i'REELOM OF HIS OWN wu L in the ufe of ir. Thus was he to ftand or to fall, as he ufed or abufed lh-:\t freedom of viil and choice to which he was now left; or as he made a good or br.d ufe of that flock he had now in hiR hand, thie imprcvcment of which God had Icit to himfcif He was under the rnofl inviolable obligations to obey. He v. as alhired to obedience from the encou- raging profptcl of the cndlefs felicity which he was to rbtain lor li^infclf and hi." i rfteritv He was deterred from difobedience by the molt exprcls and faithful vvarn- \ The Fall of Man, 3 1 1 ing of the fatal confequsnces of it to himfelf and his off- fpring. Far was it from being equal to him, in point of duty and of intereft, whether he obeyed or difobeyed. Thus encouraged to obedience and deterred from dif- obcdience, however, he was left to his own free choice. Inclined and encouraged as he was to good, it niight have been expeded that no allurement or temptation eould have caufed him to deviate from his duty. But, alas ! mutable and uncertain are all the creatures when left to themfelves. In a mind diredled and bent toward good, all good, and good only» who could have expecled any evil incli- nation or motion ever to arife ? When the choice, the competition was between God and the Devil, fm and duty, felicity and mifery, who could have thought the preference ever would have been given to the latter ? Myflerious and unaccountable as the origin of moral evil in the world, or the entrance of fin into it, mull certainly be, from the nature of God, and from what he has difcovered to us, we know that neither can man, on the one hand, be excufed, nor can God, on the o- ther, be accufed. Sin. as we have repxeatedly obfervcd, he may permit. But he cannot prompt to the commillion of it. God tempteth no man ; neither can he be tempted cf evil. Jam. i. 13. But of the manner in which our fird: parents were fe- duced and fell, the anfwer to a following quefdon giv^ us a more particular account. Accordingly III. We m,ay take notice of the unhappy change of ftate which our firffc parents experienced — They fell TROM THE ESTATE WHEREIN THEV WERE CREATED. With -he moil obvious propriety is it called the fa.'i. It fuppofes a former ftate of dignity, as well as of felicity, it befpeaks a prefenc ftate of infelicity and mifery. High was man previous to this direful event. High was he \n point of relation. He was the Jon of God. Luke iii. ^,8. High 312 The Fall cf Man. High charader ! High was he in point of Hate. He was in covenant wiih bis Maker ; and his vicegerent on earth. All the other creatures in our world were fub- je£k to him. High did he ftand in his Maker's e/ii/na- tion znd favour. High was he in point of employment. He glorified God in a manner of which all the other creatures in our lower world are incapable. He had high attainments and enjoyments. He enjoyed, as well as glorified, his Maker in a peculiar manner. Honour- able, happy man ! Bur, alas ! man, being in honcur, abode not. Low is man pofterior to the fall. An alien and outcafl is fallen man ; quite difabled for glorifying God, and difqualificd for enjoying him, as well as without a title to it. Let us review him in his firfl: flate, and in his now fallen flate. Let us compare, rather contraft, the one with the other. What a ilriking proof and humbling monu- ment of human mutability do we behold ! To what was this difmal change owing ? What caufe could produce iuch a woful cfied ? This queftion reminds me of IV. And /j/? particular in the anfwer. Our frft pa- rents fell from the eft ate ivherein they were created by SINNING AGAINST GoD. .S/>2, wc fec, was the caufe. Our firft parents fell from the holy and happy cftate in which they were created, of which we have a fuller ac- count in the preceding part of the Catechifm, into that flate of fm and mifery, of which we have a particular account in the fequel, by fmntng. Sin ! evil and ac- curfcd thing ! Nay. fin is the only evil thing in the uni- verfe. We (peak of moral and penal evil ; but ftridly fpeaking, there is only one eril ihing, f:n. It only i-s in a qualified fcnfe that we can call puniihment ei'il. Accordingly, it is faid to be of God. Thus be fpeaks — I form the light, and create darknefs. J make peace and create evil, penal evil, / the Lord do all thcfe things. Ifa. xlv. 7. Vengeance is niir.e, I will repay it faith the hord. Horn. xii. 19. \Yha,t Thi Fall of Man. 31.^ What an evil thing in itfelf is fin ! and what bitter fruits does it produce ! [his truly is the vine of Sodomy and of the fields of Gomorrah ; its grapes are grapes of gall ^ its clufters are bitter, Deut, xxxii. 32. What brought an- gels down from the cdeftial manfions which they origi- nally inhabited, and configned them over to the infernal regions ? What brought our firfl: parents out of the ter- redrial paradife, and expofed them to woe and wretch- ednefs in time and through eternity ? Were I to put ten thoufand fuch queftions, one anfwer would fuffice for them all. Sin, that evil thing, fin, is the caufe of all the woes of the wretched creatures. But to fpeak of either the intrinfic evil, or the awful demerit, the odions nature, or the direful efFeds, of fin, is only to anticipate what will come under confideracion in the anfwers to fome fubfequent queftions. What I have farther to fay upon this fubjecl 1 ihali, therefore, poftpone at prefent. To conclude — (i.j What has been faid accounts for that fimilarity and femblance which we all bear to the firft; Adam. Children are fuppofed to refemble their father. Adanl was the common parent of all mankind. They all, as his children, rcfemble and imitate him. Variouily, in- deed, are the nations and individuals of the Imman race didingililhed from one another. But they all bear a femblance to their original progenitor. What is affirm- ed of one of his immediate fons may be f?.id of each of his remoteft porterity— H^ i^ begolien in his own likenefs, and after his image ; his image and likenels as fallen man, in oppofition to that image and likenefs of God afrer which he was at firft created. Gen. v. 3. compared with chapter i. 26, 27. (2.) Koft dangerous mull: it be for any of us to be left to ourfclves. Whence was it that part of the angels fell while others flood ? Were not the (landing and the fallen angels originally in the fame fituarion ? They, no doubt, were. Hov/ then can we account for the fall of Vox., I. 11 r fom« t 314 57j^ Fall of Man* Ibmeof them, and the continuation of others in their primeval flate of holinefs and happinefs? The account 1 have given of the fall of man anfwers the queftion. God confirm^-d part of the ;ingels in their original Ibte, and left others, as he alfo did man, to the freedom ofihtw own zuiil ; withholding confirming grace from them, which he v^as not bound to give to any ; and, therefore, n^ight grant or withhold it as he plcafed. Now, if it was fj dangerous for holy and happy angels, for our firfl: parents in paradife, to be left to therafelves, how very dangerous raufl: it be for us to be left to ourfelves? Lef him that ihinkeib he Jlandeih lb. en iak^ heed left be fall, f Cor. X. 12. O how encouraging is it to think that no believer, however weak, can fall totally or fi- nally r.way ! That believers may be left for their cor- reftion and their trial ; and that they m?.y fall often and grievoufly we know from both fcripture and experience. 2 Chron. xxxii. 31. Put they cannot h\] totally or fi- nalh. Their final perfcverance in a gracious ftatc is infallibly infured. / will make an everlasting co'vC' nant ivith thew.^ faith God, that I will not turn aivay from them to do them good ; but 1 will put my fear in their hearts^ that they small not depart from me. Jer. xxxii. 40. ('^.) How very different is man's fallen flate from his original ftatc ! Often review the fcripture-account of both. Compare the one with the other, 'the crcwn is fallen from our head. Wo unto us that we have finned. (4.) How fuitable to our malady is the remedy which God in rich fovereignty has provided for us ! Are wc fallen creatures ? Here is a wonderful expedient by which fallen man is exalted to dignity as well as felicity, fupc- rior to what he ever would have obtained had he never fallen. l'"or when men are caPt down^ then thoujhaltfay^ there is lifting up ; and he Jhall fave the humble perfon. ]ob xxii. 29. IJnknnu-n is the depth, and unknown is the licighth, of redeeming love. Sin. { 3^S ) Sin, I John iil. 4. Whofoever commiiteth fin tranfgreffeth alfo the law : forfm is the tranfgrejjion of the law. THE high privileges, of which all true believers are partakers, this infpired Apoftle traces to their ori- gin and fpring. He furnilhes us with a certain crite- rion, by which we may difcern whether we be partakers of them or not. That difcriminating and efficacious grace, from which they originally flow, incites every perfon that obtains it to fludy univerfal purity both internal and external. In order to excite us all to this ufeful ftudy, the Apoflle reminds us q{ fin^ both as a hateful and a hurtful thing. Of fm he gives us a concife and a com.prehenfive definition in the words which I have chofen to introduce this Lefture. Whofoever commhteth fin, fays he, tranfgrcjpth alfo the law ; fcrfn is iheiranf grejfton f^f the law. To the Apoflle's account of fm the defcription, which the Compilers of the Shorter Catechifm have given us ci: it, agrees. Sin is any want cfcorformity untOi or iratfgref fion of, the law of Gcd. R r 2 Formerly 3 1 6 Sin, Formerly we faw man exalted almoft to heaven. Laft occafion \re beheld him falling as a flar from heaven ; and we found that his unhappy fall was occafioned by FIN. Is it not, therefore, mofl natural to a(k novi', What is fin? If its fatal effecls be fuch, what mui\ itfelf be? The anfwer, which I have now repeated, informs us. This anfwer naturally rcfolves iifelf into two parts ; the fubject fpokcn v^fin ; and what is affirmed of it, it is any ivant of conformity unio^ or Iranfgrc/Jton of the law of Ccd. I hefe two parts of the fubjed, howeverj 1 fhall confidfr, not feparately, but together. To intimate the vaft number of fms in the world, the great complication of evils A^hich fin has in it, and its manifold direful effcds, the fcripture ufes a multiplicity t>f fynonimous expreffions, which I am not now to enu- merate, far lefs canvafs As for the word tranflatedy/«, if we attend to the etymology and proper fignification of it, it will, perhaps, be found to be borrowed from Archers, who, in hunting or fighting, fhoot with bows and arrows, but mifs their mark. This merhod of fhooting in an- cient times, while fire-arms were not invented, was al- iDoft univerfal ; and to it the fcripture appears often to allude. Is there not here a plain intimation, that there is a certain mark, to which all our aims and anions ought to be ultimately direQed ? Whether we eat or drink^ or wkaifoever we doy we f})ould do all to the glory of Cod. Accordingly, in the anfwer, there is mention of a law, in ihe w.'mt of cotiforwity to which, or a lrarfgre/f:on of it, fin ever confifls. Under this law man ever has been. The defign of it is to regulate every part of his conduct outward and inward. Conformity to it ever is his duty ; and dilconformity to it ever is his fin. This is the tefl by which fin and duty are known and diftin- guiflied the one from the other. I am not now to give you an account of the various acceptations of the word law in the fcriptures, or of the fevcral laws which God ha^ Sin. 217 has impofed upon man. — A furnmary view of the law, however, I am obliged to introduce here» in order to pave the way tor what I am to fay in relation to fm. Sin ever fuppofes a law ; /or, as the Apoftie fpeaks, ivbere m law is, there is no tranJgreffiQn. Rom. iv. 1 5. Now the law, in a want of conformitv to which, or a tranfgreflion of it, fm confifts, comes under a twofold confideration, as natural and as revealed. The natural law confifts in certain inbred notions of right and wrong, good and evil, which belong to us as rational beings ; which, therefore, we bring into the world with us, and which accordingly obtain among mankind in all parts of our world. This is the law, for difconformity to which the nations of the world, without the boundaries of the vifible church, are to be punilhcd. For^ as the Apodle fpeaks, there is 719 refped of perfons with God. For as many as have finned without law fhall alfo perijh without law ; and ^ as many as have finned in the law flmll be judged by the latu- For not the hearers of the law are jujt before God, but the doers of the law fhall be juftified. For when the Gentiles which have not the law do by na- ture the things contained in the law^ thefe, having not the law-, are a law unto ihemfelves. Which fhew the work of the law written on their hearts, their confcience alfo bear- ing witnefs, and their thoughts the mean while accufing or elfe excufing one another^ in the day when God Jhall judge the fecrets of men by Jefus Cbrifl, according to my gojpcL Rom. ii. 1 1, — 16. There is the revealed law. This is contained in the fcriptures of the Old and New Teftament. For, ss I faid in a former Lecture, the fcriptures conti^in efpecial- ly two things ; the law^ which difcovers fm, and the woful ^ffeds of it ; and the gofpel^ which reveals the Sa- viour and his falvation. The revealed law ad .nils of a twofold confideration. It may be underftood in a lar- ger, or in a more limited fcnfe. By the former I un- derftand what is commonly called the Mofaic law. This includc'S 31 8 Sin. includes not only the moral law, v/hich is of univerfal and endlefs obligaiion ; but the ceremonial ar.d Judicial lavs, which were ol: only limited and temporary ufc. The ceremonial law refpecled the Jews in their ecclefi- aflical capacity, or as a church ; gnd regulated the nume- rous rites and ceremonies of their peculiar worfhip. i'he judicial law confidered them in their political capacity, or as a nation. The former is now totally abrogated. Chrift is the end of ths laiu ; not only of the moral law in point oi perfidion^ but of the ceremonial in point of abo' lition. The latter, fo far as the Jewidi polity was pecu- liar and different from every other model of civil go- vernment, has alfo ceafed. The Mofaic law included alfo the morale as contradi- flinguiflied from the ceremonial and judicial laws. This k what I underfland by the revealed law in the limited acceptation of it. It is, I laid, of endlefs as well as uni- verfal obligation. It binds Chriflians now no lefs ihan it did the Jews of old. This is the law, by a want of conformity to which, or a tranfgreflion of it, we fin. it fliows what is conform, and what is contrary, to the will of God. The former it enjoins. The latter it pro- hibits. Various duties does it require ; and various fins does it forbid. It extends to the fprings and motives of our adions, as well as our external actions themfclvcs. In the former as well as the latter, may there be a want of conformity to it. This univerfal law admits of different forms. Accor- dingly it has different epithets given to ic. It is on one occafion denominated the law of works ; and on another the law ofChriJi. Rom. iii. 27. Gal. vi. 2. The law of V'orks is the Icripturnl name of the covenant of works. All unbelievers are under it in this form. They arc un- der it both in its frcccpt and in its peralty ; or, in other uord;sin both its commanding and condemning power. From it, as a covenant of works, or, in the language of the New Teftanicnt, as the la-u; of works, all true be- lievers sin, 3i5r iievers are totally and for ever delivered. In its federal form it was, both in its precept and its pehalty, fulfilied and fatisfied by their great Sarety in their (lead, for this very end that they might be delivered from it. Has the moral law, therefore, no power over them ? Is its obli- gation as to them totally relaxed ? Far froTn it. They are under it in all its precepts and parts. They are un- der fpecial obligations to ftudy univerfal conformity in nature and practice to it. But they are under it in a new form ; not as a proper covenant, only as a law, and under the endearing confideration of tbe law ofChriJh It is natural to aik here, what does the Apollle intend by the law of Chriil ? or, in other words, what is the difference between the moral law as the law of works, under which the unbeliever is; and as the law ofCbrifi^ under which the believer is ? Ml that I (hall fay in an- fwcr to this queftiori is, that, as the law of works, it pro- ciifes life as the reward of obedience, and threatens death as the puniOiment of difobcdicnce ; but. as the law of Chrift, it neither confers life upon believers for their o- bedience, nor punifhes their difobedience with death. Thofc who are under it in the latter fenfe are exempted from death and entitled to life, in virtue of the vicaiious obedience and fatisfaOion of their Surety, who fulfilled the precept ajnd endured the penalty of the law of work?^ in their room and Head. Lhrift^ fays the Apoflie for other believers as well as himfelt, hath redeemed us from the curfe of the law, being f7Uide a curfe for us. For when the fulnefs of the time %uas come^ God fent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law^ to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adop- tion offons. Gal. iii. 13. and iv. 4, 5. Thrj are all true believers, Gentile as well as Jewifh, the weak as well as the ftrong, dehvered as fully and elTedually from the precept, as well as from the penal- ty, of the law of works, as if they had never been un- der it. To be under it, as the law of Chrift, they ac- 320 Siti. count no flavery, but the mon excellent liberty. Uni- verfai conformity in heart and life to it under this en- dearing confideralion is their unfeigned vvifh and aim. All the duties which it requires are they folicitous to perform ; and from all the fins whicii it forbids are they careiul to abflain. From evangelical principles and motives, with the mod generous aims and views, do they wi(h to perform every known duty, and to avoid every known (in. From faith in Chrift, for both affift- ancc and acceptance, and from love to him as their Sove- rei^7i. as well as their Saviour, do they act. How different is the evangelical obedience of believers under the law of Chrift, from the legal, mercenary performances of felf- righteous proff flbrs who are flill attached to the law of works ! The religious fervices of believers arc a work of faith and a labour of love, i \ heff. i. 3. The love of Chri/i, no lefs than his authority, powerfully and fweetly ccn- ftrains them. — I'ut on thefc things, how important and interefling foever, 1 mud not now enlarge. They will come under review in the fcquel. Ihe definition of fin in the anfwer confifts of two branches, and includes in it two things : a want of con- formty to the iaw^ and a tranf^reJI'ton of it. The word tranfgreffion, indeed, fometin;es denotes all fm. The Compilers of the Caiechifm, however, feem to diftin- guifh between a want of conformity to the law and a tranfgveflion of it. Natural, therefore, is it to all:. Do thcfe two exprelUons fignify two different things ? And, if they do, what is intended by the one and what by the other ? 1 anfwer in two particulars. Firjt^ I3y a want of conformity to the law, as didin- guifhcd from a tranfgreffion of it, has been underllood original fin in oppofuion to adual. But to the accu- racy of this diftindion it has been objeded, that origi- nal fin has in it a tranfgreffion of the law, as well as non-conforniity to it. Original fin, as we will fee in the fcquel, has a poftiive as well as a negative part. It com- prehend* Sin. 2,1 i prebends in it not only the ivant of originai rlghiCQvfnefs, but the guilt of Adam' s firft ftn imputed to us, and the univerfal corruption of nature which is inherent in us. Is Adam's firfl fin placed to our account ? Is this an ingre- dient in that original fin which we bring into ihe wori^ with us ? Then original fin includes not only a want of conformity to the bw, but a tranfgnjjicn of it. That Adam's firfl fin, which, though not committed by us, is imputed to us, includes a tranfgreflion of the law, as well as a want of conformity to it, cannot be doubted. — Hence Secondly^ By a want of conformity to the law, as di- flinguifhed from a tranfgrefTion of it, may be intended any fin oi omijfton^'m contradiftinctionto fins of commif- fion. Though we refrain from all the fins the law for- bids, if we omit any one of the duties it requires, we fin. This the anfwer evidently intimates — Sin is any want^ ^c. Manifold are the refpe6ls in which there njjay be a want of conformity to it. It may fuffice to mentioa two particulars here. (i.) It may be in the perfon himfelf by whom the obedience is performed. The law demands conformity in the man, as well as in his adions. He muft be what: it requires him to be, as well as do what it requires him to do. All the powers of his foul mufl be difpofed. and all the members of his body employed, in the manner which it prefcribes. Knowledge in his underfianding, rectitude in his will, regularity and purity in his affec- tions, does the law indifpenfably require. With his bo- dily organs, as well as his intellectual powers, dofs it require him to glorify God. Now, if in any of all thefe inftances there be a want of conformity to the law, or if any oi all thefe things be lacking, the perlbn is not what the law requires him to be ; and, therefore, is a finner. Thus the unregeneraied and unfanclified fin- ner, in whom the good work has not yet been begun, is in all thefe refpeds deficient ; and, therefore, univer- fally finful. Vol. I. 8f f (2.) I 32 2 Sift, (2.) I might confider this want of conformity in rela- tion to the two tables of the holy law ; the different precepts which belong to tliem feveraliy ; and the nu- merous duties which each of its commandments requires. Were we conformed to the firft: table, but not the fe- cond ; in other words, were we difpofed, as we fhould be, toward God, but not toward our neighbour, we would be found deficient and wanting. Were we to obey all its precepts and perform all the duties which they enjoin, one precept or one duty only excepted, we would ftill be deficient and lacking. Numerous are its pre- cepts, and numerous arc the duties, which each of them inculcates. It only is bUMMARiLY comprehended in the ten commandments. Each of the ten comprehends a great number of particular precepts. Were we to re- view'the whole facred writings, and to fclecl from them the numerous commandments which they contain, to what a great number would they amount ! Under one or another of the ten precepts of the decalogue is each of them, however, comprehended. To one or another of tlie precepts of that comprehenfive fummary may they be reduced. Now, if any one of thefe many command- ments be neglc<5ied, or any one of the many duties, which they enjoin, be omitted, there is a want of conformity to the holy law. What reafon then have we to fay, Who among us can comprehend the nature or the number of his errors and offences ? What occafion has each of us to adopt the Pialmifi:'? humble acknowledgment — Innu- ?nerablc evils have compajjcd vw about : mine iniquities have taken hold upon me ; Jo that I am not able to look up, "Ihcy arc more than the hairs of mine head ; therefore my heart failcth mc Pfal. xl. 12. Well may each of us exclaim with holy Job, Behold I ajn vile ; 'what Jhall I anfiuer thee? J icill lay 7nine hand upon my mouth. Job xl. 4. What I have already advanced might fuffice for a brief explanation of the anlwer. I*ut, that I may im- prefs upon your minds the intrinfic evil, and the fatal efl'tcls. Sin, 323 efTeds, of fin ; that I may excite every carelefs perfon among you to confider his fin and his danger ; that I may fhow you your need of the Saviour and his falva- tion, I will fubjoin two additional obfervations, lending to the farther elucidation of this grave fubjeft. Fir^, Sin admits of various divifions. It is ufually divided into (i.) Original and actual. Of original fin, and its feveral ingredients, a fubfeqiient anfwer gives us a particular account. This is the fin which we, as the defcendents of fallen Adam, bring into the world with us. In it each of us was conceived. This is the fin which efpecially the PfalmiH confefles in the fifty-firft Pfalm. This may be called original fin, efpecially for two rea- fons. It is communicated to us from Adam, the origin and the common parent of the numerous individuals of the human fpecies. And it is the fpring of all Rclual tranfgrefllons. It is the foul fountain ; they the ftreams which flow from it. It is the corrupt root ; they the branches which fpring from it. A^iml fin, in contradi- flin£tion to original^ is that which we commit in our own perfons. Original fin is as real as adhial. But that fin, the guilt of which is imputed to us, and in which all our other fins originate, was not our pcrfonal act. It was committed long before we exified. But fo foon as we come into the world, and are capable oF doing evil in our own perfons, we begin to commit fin. So the fcripture teaches ; and the univerfal experience of man- kind evinces it — The wicked are cjlrangcdfrom the womb ; ihey go ajiray as foon as they be born^ f peaking lies. Pial. Iviii. 3. There are fins of (2.3 Omission and of commission. The law to which fin ever aas a relation, and without which there can be no fin, requires one thing and forbids another. The former, for this very reafon, is a duty to he per- formed by us; the latter, for the fame reafon, a fin from which we are to abfi;ain. Each of the precepts of S f 2 the 3.24 SU the divine law has both a pofiUve and a vcgatrje part ; the one cxprfflcd, and the other implied. The pre- cept which explicitly requires a particular duty, impli- citly, and by nccefiary confcqucncc, forbids the con- trary fin. The precept; on the other hand, "svhich ex- prclsly inhibits a particular fin, implicitly, and by ne- cellary confequence, requires the duty to which that lin is immediately oppofed. — There are, (3.) Transgressions, of the /r/? and of (ht fecond table of the divine law. The diltribution of the ten commandments into two clafles or tables, the firft con- taining four, and the fecond fix precepts, is here pre- fiippoled. The former relates to the duty which we owe immediately to God ; the latter to the duty which ^vc owe immediately to our neighbour Now, as God is the Author o\ the whole law, a violation of the one table, no lefs than of the other, is fin. In what re- lates to the worfhip of God, as well as in vhat relates to eqbity between man and man, may v^e fin. Error, no lefs than immorality, is fin. Ti^e former is contrary to the firfl table, or what our Lord calls the firji great conwuindmevA, no lefs than the latter is contrary to the fecond. Does not the firft great commandment enjoin an explicit profeflion of all the facred truths, and a confcientious oblervation of all the holy inftitutions which the Head of the church has delivered to her in the fcriptures, to be preferved, in her, unadulterated and un- corrupted to the tnd of the world? Muft not the de- nial ot any of thofe facred truths, or the non oblerva- tion of any of thefe holy ordinances, theretore, be a tranfgnflion of the fiifl great commandment, no Icls than injufticc, or cpprcfiion, or any other in #iorality, is a violation of the Itcond ? There are (4.) SrcRi.T and public, knoicn and utikncun, fins; fins oi hart and ol /ifc. Dailv do wt break the command- ments in thouqlit. as well as in word and dce(\. 'i he heart, 3s the principal part of the man, is the chief feat of both gooci Sin, 3^5 good and evil. The heart is deceitful above all things^ and defperately wicked / who can know it ? Jer. x vii. 9. 0 JerU' falem ! wajl? thine heart from wickednefs^ that thou mayefi be faved. How longjhall vain thoughts lodge within you f Chap iv. 14. Out of the he-art proceed evil thoughts, murdersy adulteries^ fornications, thefts, falfe witnefs, blafphemies. ihefe are the things which defile a man, Matth. XV. 1 9, 20. Cleanfe your hands^ yefinners, and purify your hearts^ ye double -?mnded. Jam, iv. 8. — The impurity which has its chief feat in the heart, diffufes itfelf, as a noxious kaven, through the whole man, all the members of his body, as well as all the powers of his foul ; and all his adions, natural, civil, and reli- gious. Accordingly, the Apoftle fpsaks of a twofold filthinefs ; the filtninefs of the fiejhj and the lilthinels of the fpirit For thus he bel'peaks the Corinthian con- verts, Having therefore thefe promifes, dearly bt loved ^ let us cleanfe ourfelves from all fii.thiness of the flesh and STIR IT, perfehing holinefs in the fear of God, 2 Cor. vii. I. And, writing to the Hebrew Chriftians, he fpeaks of having our hearts fprinkled from an evil con- fcience, and our bodies wajbed with pure water, Heb. X. 22. The different expreffions here may refer both to the conllituent parts of our nature infected with fin, and the two ingredients of fin, guilt 2indi . defilement ; as alfo the two capital blefiings of ju/lification and fan£lifi» cation. During the typical difpeniation, various fprink- lings and v^ailiings obtained ; both blood and water were ufed ; both the priefts and the people were wafli- ed. When the great High Priefl of our profefiion was offered, and his facred fide was pierced, both blood and water proceeded from it. Guilty finners he jufti- fies ; and the unholy he fandifies. Thus fii>is,at once, a dangerous and a defiling, a hateful and a hurtful, thing. — To all which I fhall only add, in a word, that fins are diilinguifhed by (5.) The AGGRAVATIONS which attend them. One is attended 326 Sin. attended with leffer, another with greater aggravation?. Of the various ways in which fin may be aggravated and rendered heinous, the after part of the Catechifni fpeaks. That fm ever is a great evil, the fcripture every where teaches. What Jolcph faid with regard to the iin which he was foHcited to commit, applies to every other fin. Sbn/l I do this great luickedncfs, fays he, and fm again/l Gcd? Gen. xxxix. 9. Was it a great wick- cdnefs becaufe it was againft God ? Then every fin mud be great wickednefs ; for every fin is againft God. Such was the view David had of his fm. Againjt thee, fays he, thee only have 1 finrxd, and done this evil in ihy fight. Pfal. li. 4. Oftrn are fins committed with a high hand. Often does the prefumptuous ofTender feem to defy Omnipotence itfclf. Evil is fin in itfelf. Bitter are the fruits which it produces. Secondly, Sin is attended with guilt, and with filth. Often do you read and hear of the guilt and of the fikh of fin. The qucftion is, whether you underftand what is intended by thefe expreflions. In order that I may give you feme idea of the guilt and of the filth of fin, you muft recoiled that fin ever has a relation to a law, in the want of confor?nity to which, or a tranfgrejjion of it, it ever confifts ; and in thefe two ingredients, or adjunfts of it, it relates to the law in different views. The fu- preme Legiflator is the infinite God. Upon the law his authority is inftamped. A violation of it, therefore, in- cludes a contempt of the higheft authority. Thus is guilt contraded, and the finner incurs condign punifli- ment. Guilt, therefore, is that which renders perfons obnoxious to punidiment. "Accordingly, when a cul- prit is tried in a human judicature, whether it be for an arbitrary or a capital punifiiment,the qucftion is. Guilty, or not guilty ? And according as there is evidence or not evidence of his guilt, or, in other words, as he is found guilty, or not guilty, he is punifhed or not punifli- cd. — Thus a guilty pcrfon only can be juftly punifliabJe. Vain, Sin. <% 27 Vain is it to obje^ here, that the Son of God, though mofl innocent and holy, was fubjefted to punifliment. For, though he never contrafted guilt in his own pcr- fon, there was a real tranflation of guilt and punifiiment from linners to him, as their engaged and fulfilling Surety. Jehovah laid on him the iniquity of us alL In- fupportable load ! Again the law may be viewed as a tranfcript of the moral perfeftions of the Deity. Accordingly fm, which implies difconformity to that law, or a tranfgreffion of it, befpeaks contrariety to the divine purity. Thus it has in it filth and impurity. The (lain of it is indelible for any thing which creatures can do in order to wafh it out. In vain do finners apply nitre and msx^^foap that they may remove it. For though thou jhouldefi wafh thee with NITRE, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, faith the Lord God. Jer. ii. 22. If I ivajhmyfef with snow-water, faith Job, and jnake viy hands ever fo clean ; yet Jhalt thou plunge me in the ditch y and mine own works fh all abhor me. Job ix. 30, 31. Is it any wonder then that this holy man adds, / abhor myfelf and repent in dufi and ajlies. Nay, fuch is the ftain of fin, that one thing only can wafh it out, the BLOOD OF Jesus Christ, the Son of God ; and his blood only cleanfeth from fin^ and all fin. i John i. 7. This is the full and the ixtt fountain which, according to Old Teflament prophecy, is now by the gofpel opened to ths houfehold of our antitypical David, and to the numerous inhabitants ofourfpiritualjerufalem^for sin, tvtnfor un- CLEANNEss. Zcch. xiii. I . Each of us our condefcending Redeemer may be underftood to befpeak now, as he once did an eminent Apoflle, If I wafh thee not, thou haft no part with me. John xiii. 8. From thefe few hints you may form fome idea of fin in both its guilt and filth ; of the tendency it has both to the difhonour of God and the deflruction of finners. ; — To this fliort account of fin I fiiall fubjoin a few re- flexions for improvement. And, I 328 5/;?. I may, in the \Jl pL::e, Take notice of the vafl: ex- tent of that law, in a difconformity to which, or a tranf- grcflion of it, fin confifts. It extends to men in all ages of the world, earlier and later ; to Adam himfelf, and to the laft of his numerous pofterity ; to men in all quarters and corners of the earth, the eaft and the weft, the fouth and the north ; to men of all defcriptions, high and low, rich and poor, fuperiors, inferiors, and equals. It extends to the whole of the man ; his pcrfon and his actions. What an unknown variety of duties does it enjoin ! What an unknown variety of fms does it inhi- bit ! Is the law of fuch extent ? How foolifh, not to fay •uahi, muft it be for any of mankind fallen to expe£l; e- ternal felicity according to the tenor and terms of it ! In the 2d place, Moft effential is the difference between the law and the gofpel ; and moft ncceffary is it for both preachers and hearers to attend to it. The law difcovers fm and milery. But of a Saviour, or of falvation, it fays nothing. But what the law cannot do the gofpel does. It reveals an all-fnfficient, and ever ready Saviour ; and a falvation, in all refpeds, fuch as our ncceflitous cafe requires. The law, in fhort, is a collection of divine precepts. The gofpel, properly fo called, has no pre- cepts belonging to it. It is an afleniblage of promifes, to us, moft gratuitous and unconditional ; for they be- long to that fuperior covenant, which, though to the i^reat Surety, ftridly conditlonaly and, in the highcft fenle of the words, a covenant of works, is to us alto- gether unconditional ; and, in the fuUeft lenfe of the word, a covenant of grace. In the 2id place. The neceflity of the knowledge of the lav/, in order to the knowledge of fm. Are we, in particular circumftances, at a lofs to know what is fm ? Let us attend to the law, to what it erjoins and to what it inhibits. Duty it ever reqiiires. Sin it ever forbids. If the thing in queftion, therefore, be requi- red, it muft be a duty ; it forbidden, it muft be a fin. Arc Are ^c foUcitous to know what the law enjoins, and what it inhibits ? Let us confcientioufly, and with affi- duity, fearch the fcriptures. They contain a reVelatioa of the law, as well as of the gofpel. Do they connin fuch a full and clear revelation of our duty ? Are we, after all, ignorant of it, or of any part of it ? How in- excufable is our ignorance ? What cxcufe can we plead ? Let us remember the words of our Lord-— ^ / had not come^ andfpoken unto them^ they had net had Jin 5 but now they have no cloak for their Jin. In the j^th place. Numerous, as well as heinous, mufl our fins be. What a variety of commandments belong to the law ! What a multiplicity of duties do they en- join ! What numberlefs fins do they forbid ! NoWj which of all the duties required have we not neglefted ? Of which of all the fins forbidden are we totally inno- cent ? Innumerable, therefore, as well as aggravated, rauft our fins be. Were we offered a full and final pardon of them all, on condition of our giving a full enumeration and detail of them, on this condition, eafy as it may f^erq, we never could obtain it. \vii\iQ t^th plaa;^ We fee the neceflity of that con- vincing work which the Redeemer has promifed to fend his Spirit to perform in the church on earth. So- licitous to fatisfy his difconfolate followers, concerning the propriety and happy confequcnccs of his depaiture from them, the Redeemer belpeaks them in this en- dearing manner — // is expedient for you that I go away / for if I go not away, ihe Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I depart^ I will fend him unto you ; and when he is co?ne, he will reprove the world of sin, of righ- teoifnefs, and of judgment ; of Jn, becaufe they believe not in me. John xvi. 7, 8, 9. How ignorant of fiiv are multitudes ! How fmall account do they make of it ! To them, indeed, it is a light ihing. But to the convinced and awakened finner it is no fuch lighc thing. His guilt (lares him in the face. Hell is unco- Voj.. L T t covered t 330 Sifi. vered and naked before him. His heart fmites him. He is his own accufer and his own judge. He has the moft fearful apprehcnfions. His heart fails. A luounded fpirit who can bear? The effetls of his inward anxiety and diftrefs are. perhaps, vifible on his outward man. His life abhor ret h breads and his foul dainty meat. His/Ie/}) is con- fumed away that it canyiot befeen ; and his bones that "juert not feen^ jiick out. Tea^ his foul drazuctb near unto the grave, and his life unto the de/lroyers. Doleful cafe ! What an accurfed thing is fin ? To what mifery, temporal and eternal, does it expofe finners ? What alarming words from a fin-punifhing God are thefc — If ye will not bs reformed by me by thefe things ., but will walk contrary unta vie ; then will I alfo walk contrary unto you., and will pu- nifh youyctf'ven times ?nore for your fins. Lev. xxvi. 23, 24, The thing is certain, and therefore, the vifion is dou- bled ; the threatening is repeated. If ye will not, for all this, hrarken unto me, but walk contrary unto me j then I will walk contrary unto you in fury ; and /, even /, will chafiife you feven iimes for your fins. Vcrfcs 27, 28. In the tth place. We fee the indifpenfable neccffity, and the admirable fitnefs of the remedy which God, in rich grace, has provided for our loft world. Sinners are we all by nature. Sinners are we by practice. Great is the guilt, and great is the danger, which we all have incurred. We have defiled, as well as deftroy- cd, ourfclves. But Jefus faves from fin. and he deli- vers from wrath. From the power and the practice of fin, as well as its punifhment, does he free. He who Is made of God to us righteoufnefs, is alfo made of God to n%fandification. J n fine. How blifsful and happy are the inhabitants of the heavenly world ! From iin, as well as from mifery, are they completely and for ever delivered. The inha- bitant of that land flmll not fay I amftck. The reafon is, T/jff -people that dwell therein are forgi'i'cn their ini- quity, Man's ( 331 ) Man's Firft Sin. Gen. iii. i, — 7. Now ihe ferpent was more fubiile than any hcaft of the Jield which the Lord God had made. And he /aid unto the woman. Tea, hath God /aid, Te jhall not eat cf every tree of the garden f And the woman faid unto the ferpent. We may eat of the fruit cf the trees of the garden : But of ihe fruit of the tree which it in the jnidji of the garden, God hath faid, Te fhall not eat of it, neither Jhall ye touch it, left ye die. And the fer- pent faid unto the woman, Te Jhall not furely die. For God doth know, that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes fhall be opened; and ye fhall he as gods, know- ing good and evil. And when the woman f aw that the ires was good for food, and that it tvas pleafant to the eyes, and a tree to be defired to make one zvfe ; Jhe took of the fruit thereof^ and did eat \ and gave olfo unto her hufhand with her, and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened ; and they knew that they were naked : and they fewed fg-ieaves together y and made themf elves aprons » I^HIS part of ancient hiflory informs us of an e- vent, not only mod important in itfelf, but at- tended with confequences moft interefling to us a]]» Tt 2 I^ ^ 532 Man^s Firjl Sin, It gives us an authentic, as well as a circumftantial, aci? count of the fcdudion and ruin of the original parents of mankind. Accordingly, 1 (hall take occafion from (he words read, to introduce the account which our Shorter Catechifm gives us of the unhappy adion by which our original anceftors fell. In this event we all were concerned; and the confequences of it we all feel. Had our firff parents (lood, we all would have flood. But they fell, and we all fell wiih them. Let us, there- fore, attend to the infpired Writer's account of the manner in which they fell. To it agrees the defcription which the followine^ Anfwer in the Catechifm gives us of that particular fin by which their fall was originally occafioned. "The fin 'whereby our firjt parents fell from ihe eflate wherein thfy were created was their eating the forbidden fruit. Of the fall of man we have already had an affeding view. As it was owing to fin, the Compilers of the Catechifm, as was mofl: proper, took occafion to in- troduce a definition of fin in general. But as it was immediately occafioned by a fin, the commiflion of which was attended with peculiar circumftances, we have, in the anfwer which I have now repeated, an ac- count of that fin in particular. — Of the manner in which the cruel enemy of mankind attacked the happy pair in paradife, and effcdcd their ruin, the text give$ us an explicit, as well as authentic, liifiory. This tragi- cal (lory 1 ihall review in a curfory manner. Ir is proper here, firft of all, to take notice of that un- happy being who was the cruel inftrumcnt of the ruin nf the human fpecies. As to the serpent, of which the infpired Hiltorian fpeaks, writers have been divided in their fentimtnt?. It has been queried whether a real ffjrpent is intei!ded. One thinks that no fuch animal was concerned in the matter. According to this hypo- thefis the ft^duOion of our firfl parents was efFcded iiimediatcly by Satan, without the inllrumcntality ol any real Maji^s Fir ft Shi, 333 real ferpent* When wc afk the abettors of this opi- nion, why the ferpent is mentioned at all in the Mofaic hiftory, they tell us, it is becaufe on this occafion Satan fignally difplayed his fubtilty ; a quality for which fer- pents have ever been accounted famous. Another runs into the oppofite extreme, affirming that Satan had no concern in the temptation, by which our firfl: parents were ruined. According to this hypothefis, their ruin was efFefted folely by a material ferpent. But the opi- nion which is commonly received fteers a middle courfe between thefe two oppofite extremes. According to it, Satan was the chief agent, a real ferpent the inftrument by which he accomplished his purpofe. The particular kind and figure of the ferpent which he ufed we know not. Of ferpents there are many fpecies. Of the fize and the fubtilty of many of them extraordinary inftances are to be found in hiftory. We read of ferpents no lefs than a hundred and twenty feet long. We have an in- ftance of a ferpent of fuch an enormous fize, that, fhock- ing to relate ! it fwallowed a woman big with child; and of another that fwallowed a large buffalo, or wild ox. Serpents have been divided into poifotious and harmlefs. It is by difcharging a particular liquor into the wound made with their teeth, which mixes with the blood, that they do mifchief. Mortally was man bitten by the old fer- pent. Fatal was the wound which he received. Dead- ly is the poifon which it communicated. This poifon has diffufed itfelf through the whole human fpecies. This is the mifchievous iource of death and all our woes. From the material ferpent which the adverfary of man- kind chofe to be the unhappy inftrument of their original ruin, and the fubtilty which he difcovered on this fatal occafion, is he, in the fcripturcs, denominated 2i ferpent and an old ferpent. Rev. xii. 9. and xx. 2. Of the fub- tilty of the ferpent extraordinary things are related in hiftory. As his heart is (ituated near his head, he is faid, in order to his prefervation and fafety, to wrap up ^is head in the reft of his body. To the fituation of bis 334 Mans I'lrft Sin. Iiis heart tliat early intimation which carries in it a rich promife to us, but a fearful threatening againft the old ferpcnt, may allude. //, or he, /Jjall bruife thy head; that is thy vital part ; and thou /halt brw.Je his heel. Gen. iii. 13. It is faid, that he vomits up his poifon when he goes to drink, left it fhould go down with the water and hurt him. It is faid, that the ferpent, called Ceraftes, hides himfeU in the (and, in order that he may bite the Iiorfe's foot, and caufe him throw his rider. To this circumftancc the Patriarch has been fuppofed to allude. Dan flmll be a i^ERTEiiT by the way, an adder in the path ; ihat BiTETH THE HORSE-iiEEi.s, fo that his rider Jhall fall backivard. Gen. xlix. 17. It is faid, that in order to fliut his ears againft inchantments, the ferpent lays the one clofe to the ground, and ftops the other with his tail. To this the Pfalmift has been undcrftood to refer — 1 heir poifon is like the poifon cf a ferpent : they are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear: -which WILL NOT HEARKEN TO THE VOICE OF CHARMERS, charming never fo ivifely. Pfal. Iviii. 4, 5. It has been imagined, from the convcrfation between the woman and the ferpent mentioned in the words of the text, that ferpents were at firft endued with the fa- culty of fpeech. But it certainly was the enemy that fpake out of the ferpent. It has alfo beeo fuppofed, that ferpents then had feet, or rather went on the hin- der part of their body, with their head and breaft up- right. 1 his opinion is evidently taken from what is denounced sgainft the ferpent — And the Lord God faid vnto the ferpent, Becavfc thou haft done this, thou art curfd cbcTe all cattle, and alcrc every bcall cf the feld : upon THY BELLY SHALT THOU GO, and dujt fialt thou eat all the days cf thy lije. Gen. iii. 14. Very different, in appearance and in other rcfpc£ls, arc snimals of the fame fpecies in different parts of the world. Very different from what it is now was the ftate of the rarthj and, we have reafon to believe, of its inhabitants both Mans Fuji Sin, ;^^^ both inanimate and irrational, previous to the entrance of fin. The ferpent which appeared to Eve, and which the enemy chofe to be the inltrument of her feduction, is fuppofed to have been a very beautiful creature; and, on account of its wifdom, or rather craft, a fit tool to be employed in fuch a work. — Of the addrefs with which the adverfary managed the temptation by which he feduced Eve, many writers have taken notice- In- nocent and undefigning Eve probably fufpsiled no harm from creatures of any fpecies. She was, perhaps, igno- rant of the rebellion that had happened in heaven. The enemy probably made up to her in view of thi tree of knowledge, and reprefented it to her in the mod advan- tageous and engaging light. This fecms to be implied in Mofes' words — Wben the woman faw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleafant to the eyes, and a tree to he defired to make one wife, fhe took of the fruit thereof and did eat. The enemy chofe, as has often been obferved, to make the attempt when (he was alone, and had not accefs to take the advice of her hufband. There is reafon alfo to think, that he allowed her as little time as pofiible for deliberation. In the temptation itfelf there is a manifeft gradation, which indicates much of the fubtilty of the old ferpent. He does not adventure all at once to contradict tne di- vine word ; but only with an air of modeft y infmuates a fufplcion concerning it ; and fpeaks as if he wiflied to receive information. — For thus he addreifes the woman — Tea^ hath God faid^ Te fhall not eat of every tree of the garden ? To which the woman replies. We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden : but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midii of the garden, God bath f aid, Tc Jhall not eat of it, neither foall ye touch it, lelt ye die. It has been obferved, that (he here adds to the 'livine prohibition; for of touching ov not touch- ing that tree, the threatening fpeaks nothing. It has alfo been obferved, that there feems to be a degree of unbelief S3^ Mans FirJ} Sin. unbelief in her words. I he threatening is mofi: pcrcni-i? tory and exprcfs. In the day that thou eatefi thereof thoU SHALT SURELY dic. But licr words have been un- derftood to imply uncertainty and doubt. Soon docs the enemy advance a flep farther, and direftly contra- didls the threatening — And the ferpent /aid unto the luoman^ Te Jlxill not furely die. In order farther to entice her, he reminds her that, notwithftanding her fuperiority in knowledge, as well as other things, to the irrational creatures, there were other beings fu- perior to her and her hulband ; and, by eating of the iruit of this tree, they might acquire fuch knowledge as would render them equal to thofe angelic beings. For God doth knoiv^ fays he, that in the day ye eat thereof , then your eyes JJoall be opened i and ye fhall be as gods, knoiving good and evil. It has been imagined, that, in order more effe^lually to induce the woman to eat of the fruit of this tree, for the acquifition of fupe^ior degrees of knowledge, he himfelf did eat of it, and pretended that in this way he, formerly on a level with the other beafls of his fpecies, had now acquired the faculty of fpeech and rlKscination, which advanced him to an equality with man. By fuch machinations and ftratagems did the e- nemy fuccced. The woman firll and then the man were feduced and ruined. For^ fays the former, the ferpent beguiled 7ne, and I did eat. Of the order in which the feduced pair fmned the Apoftle takes particular notice.* Adaju 'wasfrfi formed, then Eve. And Adain teas net deceived^ that is, he was not deceived ^/y?. or imme- diately by Satan, but by the woman ; the woman being deceived was in the tranfgrcjfion j that is, firft in it. X Tim. ii. 13, 14. To a fuperficial reader this a£lion is apt to appear, if not altogether innocent and harmlefs, at moft but a very frivolous ofl'cnce. But, upon proper examina- tion, it will be found to be a mcft aggravated crime. Alans Firfi Sm. 337 cr ratfier a complicaticn of crimes. It was the mother- fiin What a numerous offspring has it produced ! Pe- culiar circuniftances attended it. Let us recollccl the perfon by whom it was committed,^ and the advantage- ous circumftances in which he was placed. Highly was he honoured in his creation. Happy was he in both body and mind. A federal relation fubfiiled -between his Maker and him. This honour, fo far as we can learn, never has been conferred upon angels. That g;reat and generous being, to who.m Adam was indebted for what he was and what he poffsffed, had, in terms the mod exprefs and peremptory, forbidden him to eat of the fruit of this tree. A creature, arid a fallen crea- ture, prefumes to bid him eat of it. Now the competi- tion was between the great Creator and a mod unwor- thy creature. And, be afhoniihed ye heavens ! the crea- ture is preferred to the Creator. The devil is obeyed ; God is difobeyed. Ungrateful man ! The criminal adb was immediately the tranfgreliion of a pofnive prohibition. This God had chofen to be the particular criterion by which man's fidelity was to be tried. Different writers have endeavoured to (how, however, that it carried in it a virtual violation of all the; commandments of the moral law. Let us exemplify this obfervaiion. Was it not a violation of the Firft Commandment ? Does not this precept require an avowal of God, both as the chief good, in the fruition of which only we can be happy ; and as our higheft Lord, whom we are under every obligation to fervc ? Were not our firft parents duly apprized that, if they ate of the forbidden fruit, they were to forfeit the favour and fruition of God ? Did the enjoyment of the all fuf- ficicnt God. and a temporary fenfual gratification come into competition ? Were thefe two laid in the balance ? And d.d the latter preponderate? The empty creature was preferred to the infinite Creator! ]\lan com7niftcd at once tzuQ capital c--jiis. He ^ortiaok the fountain of ii-ving. Vol. L ' U u 'Wateru f t 338 MiiJi's Firjl Sin, ''juaters^ and hewed out to himfelf broken cifterm that can hold no zuater. Did God forbid, did the Devil bid, them to ertt ? Did they in fuch circumflances aQually eat? Was the former difobeyed ? the latter obeyed ? Was not this a virtual relinqui(hmcnt of their fiirfl and bcfl Ma- fter ? Was it not a practical acknowledju^ment of another mafter ? Ihihappy exchange ! — Was it not a virtual vio- lation of the Second Commandment? Does not this precept enjoin the obicrrvation of all the ordinances and appointments which God is pleafed to grant to us ? Now, was not ab- ftinence from the fruit of the tree of knowledge one of the appointments of God to our firfl: parents ? Such an appointment became the fovereignty of the proprietor of the world. Eafy, as well as reafonable, appoint- ment ! This appointment, however, our original ance- flors did not keep. It has been confidered as a tranf- greflion of the '-Ihird Precept of the moral law. This command- ment, as the Compilers of the Catechifm explain it, re- quires a due acknowledgment and glorif.cation of all the attributes of the Deity. But by eating of the forbid- den fruit, man diflionourcd difFerent p^rfcdions of God. For inftance, the veracity of God, interpofed in the threatening, was difhonoured. God had, in the mod ex- prefs manner, faid. In the day that thou catcft, thoujhalt furely die. But, in defiance of the threatening and the divine veracity engaged for the execution of it, our iirft parents did eat. Was not this act a public allVont to the divine Omnifcience ? Did not man ?6l as if he thought that God did not fee him, to call him to an account for this part of his conduct r Was there not atheifm, as well as unbelief, in this fin ? Accordingly, no looner did A- dam and Eve cotnmit it than they attempted to con- ceal both themfclxes and their fin from God. Was not this fin, in a word, a high alfront to divine juflice ? Did not the perpetrators of it/in efled:, fay, that, notwithfland- Mans Firfl Sin. 2>c>9 ing the peremptory threatening, God either could not, or at leaft would not, punifh it ? This commandment. re- quires the proper obfervation and ufe of the word and the works, as well as the attributes, of God ? But, by eating of the forbidden fruit, our common parents dif- honoured his word ; for he had exprefsly faid, But cf the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou fhalt not eat of it, &c. He was dilhonoured in his works, as well as in his word ; for the fruit of this tree, which was a part of his works, was now ufed in a manner, and for a purpofe diametrically oppofite to that for which it was given to man, and he required to ufe it. — This fm has been confidered as a virtual violation of the Fourth Commandment. That it was committed on the very day on which man was created, and confequcnt- ly prior to the commencement of the firfl babbath, I do not fay, far lefs will I undertake to prove. Had it been fo, it muft have been a very bad preparative for the ob- fervation of the enfuing day. Was it not incompatible with a due regard to the monitory word which uflicrs in this commandment, Remember, &c. ? Is not this intended to admonifhman to endeavour preparation for the Sabbath, previous to its approach ; that, when it comes, he may be in fome tolerable degree difpofed for the facred exercifes of it ? But by this fm man was to- tally incapacitated for the obfervation of the Sabbath. — Was it not a violation of "the . Fifth Precept of the moral law ? God now fudained the char?.der of a Father ; and Adam ftood in the cor- refpondent relation of his fon. If the undutiful beha- viour of children toward their earthly father be a fin, efpecially muft undutiful behaviour toward the heavenly Father be a moft aggravated fin. Did not Eve fail in her duty to Adam in adventuring to eat of the forbidden fruit in his abfence, and with- out his ccnfent ? Was not Adam undutiful to Eve in indulging her in fin, and even concurring with her in U u 2 i^ ^ 540 ^uins Firjl Sin, it ? Were they not both, as our common parents, un- dutlful and cruel to us all in doing what has bccn fo pernicious and fatal to us, as well as to thenifelves ? — This fin was a grofs violation of the Sixth Commandment. livery fin has a murderous tendcncv. Every finner God befpeaks thus — O finner i ihou /?i7/} DESTROYED thyfclf. Shocking is every fpecies of felf-murder. Every finner, however, is Tl f elf -mur- derer. Our firfl: parents, by one fatal ad, murdered them'elves, and the countlef? millions of mankind born and to be born. Such another maflacre, in rcfpe£t of the number of the murdered, neA'cr has been perpetra- ted by human hands. Not only the bodies, but the fouls, no lefs than the bodies, of all mankind were murdered. Univerfal, as well as fatal cataftrophe! — ihis ;in has been confidercd as a virtual violation of the Seventh Precept of the. moral law. On account of It our firft parents were deprived of that c-\itrnal luRrs which attended their bodies during the innocent ftyte ; and which, probably, was intended to guard them agai id fuch irregular defires toward one another, as are incc n- fiflent with that purity in thought. fp:-ech. and beha- viour, which this precept of the holy law enjoins. HoW their modclly was hurt by this criminal acl the hiflory of it aiid its confequences informs us. The eyes cf them both IX. ere cpemd^ and they knew that they were naked ; and ihey fcivid fg-lea'ves together, and made thenijclves aprons. That it has b( en the unhappy fource of numberlels grofs violations of this precept is well known. — Was it rot a palpable breach of the E'rjjih Commandment? The tree of knowledge God had rcierved to liimlelf. Man could not reckon it his own as he could the other trees of paradifc. If, there- fore, he intermeddled with it, was he not guilty of fa- crilegious robbery ? Did he not rob himfelf, as well as Cod ? /Jong with liie itfclfj he forfeited the richep, the honours^ Matis Fb'Jl Sin. 941 honours, and the comforts of it. — Was it not a virtual tranfgreffion of the Ninth Precept of the moral law ? Is the violation of truth between man and man a fin ? Is a man of veracity and honour, when we give him the lie, affronted ? Had God interpofed his veracity in the threatening ; pled- ging his honour for the execution of it ? Did man after all adventure to contradicl it ? Was not this in effed to mike the God of truth a liar ? Did not God threaten mod feverely to punilh this fin ? Was not the commif- fion of it, therefore, after fuch warnings and threaten- ings, the groffed infult to truth ? — This fm was alfo a notorious breach of the 2^«//> Commandment. The forbidden tree was the only thing in paradife, nay, in the world itfelf, which God had withheld from man. He had the richelt va- riety and plenty ; a profufion of the comforts, as well as the neceifaries of life. Had he the difpofal and ufe of the fowls of the air, of the fiihes of the fca, and of the numerous beads and various fruits of the earth, one tree only excepted ? and was he not contented ? One thing only was withheld from him, and this one thing he coveted ! Thus the fin, whereby our iirft parents fell from the eflate wherein they were created, was far from being a fmall offence. It was, on the contrary, an enormous evil, and was attended with a variety of the mod aggravating circumdances. He that committee! it was under fpecial obligations to God. It was committed in paradife. Sin having previoufly entered the celedial paradife, now had infmuaied itfelf into the terredrial. Almod as foon as man was created did he grievoufly offend his Creator. Almod as foon as he had the honour of covenanting with his Maker, notwithdanding the llattering profpecls which he had, he violated the covenant. Was he net now guilty of the bafed ingratitude to his mod bounti- ful benefactor ? Was not this fin the mod criminal and fliameful 342 Matis F'lrjl Sin. fliamcful difobedicnce ? The mofl abandoned and infa- mous of the creatures was obeyed ; the great God dif- obeyed. Was It not the mofl: unnatural and unprovoked rebellion ? The rightful proprietor of all worlds was man*s rightful fcvereign. Had not man folemnly pro- mifed fealty and allegiance to him ? — From what hath been faid wc may infer (i ) How ready we are to be miftaken about fin. How many call darknefs light, and light darknefs ! Were our innocent parents deceived ? No wonder though we be deceived. Of the deceiifulnefs of fin ^ the >\poflle fpeaks, Heb. iii. 1-5. Of i\it ftrengtb of it he fpeaks on another occafion. Is it ftrong ? and is it deceitful ? A formidable enemy mud it be. If upright Adam fell before it, no wonder though we fall. Our mofl: dangerous enemy is wiihin us. — For the hu- man heart is deceitful above all things, and defperately •wicked. (-2.) We fee whence the evil, as well as the danger, of fin arifes. Is the thing, in itfelf innocent, forbidden? Does it feem harmlefs ? It cannot, however, be either innocent or harmlefs. What the law forbids we mult forbear. It is our interefl, as well as our duty, to do fo. For, if we either omit duty or commit fin, God is offended ; and the offence fliall not pafs with impu- nity. He ivill by no means clear the guilty. (3.) What an aggravated condemnation and punifli- ment have we all incurred ! If Adam's firft fin had fuch a complication of evils in it, how guilty mufl we all be from our er.rliefl infancy ! What a complicated and aggravated fin is imputed to us from the earlied mo- ments cf our exiflence ! If there is fo much evil in one fin, what muft the demerit and the puniihment of our innumerable and aggravated iniquiti;.'S be ! (4.) How dangerous mufl it be to parley with the tenipter or with his temptations! He may alTumc the form of a friend j but he is our determined foe. Fricnd- Ihip AlaTi's Fhjl Sin. •?a? fhip he may profefs ; but the moft unrelenting enmity lurks in his heart. What fpecious profefuons did he make to our firft mother ! In the fnare which he fpread tor her was ihe caught. If he deceived her, notwith- ilanding her innocence and her knowledge, no v/onder though he deceive us. Deceiving he deflroys fouls. How neceflary then the Apoftle's caution ! Be fober, be vigilent ; becaufe your adverfary the devil, as a rearing lion, walketh about, feekingwhom he may devour. ( I'et. y. 8. Watch and pray, fays our Lord, that ye enter not into temptation. In fine. Great, precious, mud be the falvation of which Jefus is the Author. Great is the evil of fin ; great the danger to which it expofes us. Is fin fo great a evil? Does it expofe to fo great a punifhment? Is a falvation, in all refpeds great, provided for us ? Is it fully and freely offered to us ? Let us take heed what reception we give to it. How /ball we efcape if we negka fo GKEAT a falvation? In manifold refpeds is this falvation great. Great is the Saviour himfelf, and great is his falvation. From the greatefl fins does he fave. Great is the number he faves. Great is the glory that accrues to God from this falvation. With what alacrity, and how gratefully, fhould we accept of fuch a Saviour and fuch a falvation ! Have we all been bitten, mortally wounded, by the old ferpent ? A fove- reign Phyfician and Healer is provided. An expedient, in ail refpeds, worthy of the wifdom as well as of the grace of God, has been found out. How uncx- peQed was the method which Mofes was di reded to ufe for healing the Ifraelites bitten by the fiery ferpents in the wildernefs ? Fit emblem of the flill more furprifing expedient_ which Heaven has invented, and ufes, for the falvation of our finful world! Into the mvfleries of reueeming love and wifdom angels defire to look. With incelfant wonder, and endlefs joy, do they prv into thcfe things. Have fallen an^rels been Dermitted • • to 34+ Marias Fir/l Sin, to pcrifli ? Are fallen men pitied ? Is a falvation pur-* chafed by blood, blood divine, now oflcred to you ? See then, I fay, again, fee that you do not ne^ltd it. May he that has the human heart in his hand determine us all to accept of it ! Amen, Tlic ( 345 ) The Extent of the Fall, Rom. v. 14. NeveHhelefs, death reigned from Adam to JVhjh, e-ven over them that had not finned after the fimil'itiide of AdartCs tranfgrejfion^ who is the figure of him that •was to come. OF whom fpeaks the Apoflle here ? He fpeaks of two extraordinary perfons ; the one the type, the other the antitype, — -the latter at once fimilar and fuperior to the former. In what fenfe the lirft Adan^x was a type of the fecond, it is eafy to fee. The one was a federal head no lefs than the other. The cove- nant of redemption was made with the lafl Adam. The covenant of works was made with the firft. This aC" counts for the univerlahty of death, of which the A- poftle fpeaks in the words prefixed to this Ledureo Death is the confeqnencc of fin ; and, therefore, as all have fmned, all die. Infants, indeed, cannot {\n m the' ■ own perfons. But they were reprefented by Adam in the covenant of works ; and, therefore, fmned in him, and fell with him 'vhen he fmned and fell. Vol. L X X Thij t 34^ The Extent of the Fall. This text reminds me of the Anfwer to the following Qucftion in the Calechifm — Did all mankind fall in Adam*s firft tranfgrejjion ? The Anfwer runs thus — The covenant being made ivith yldani, not only for himfelf^ but for his pofterity^ all mankind, defcendingfrom him by ordi- nary generation, finned in him, and fell laith him, in his frft iranfgreJJiQn, Having already confidercd the fall of man, fin in gene- ral, and that particular fm to which this fall was immedi- ately owing, I am now to afcertain the extent of the fall. Of the covenant to which this anfwer refers, 1 have given you an account in a preceding Le£lure. It is commonly known by the name of the covenant of ' works. It is here faid to have been made with Adam. On this account is he, in the text which introduces this Lecture, affirmed to have been a type of him that was to come ; that is of Jefus Chrift, ftiled the fecond Adam, and, to intimate his high original, the Lord from hea- ven. It is faid, as I obferved on a former occafion, to have been made with Adam, not with the man and the woman conjundly, but with the man as concradiftin- guiflied from the woman. It was made with Adam as a public perfon. So ihe anfwer fpcaks — The covenant wa^ 7uade zuitb Adam not for hinftlf only, but for his po- sterity, kc. We are informed here both negatively and pofitively, for whom it was made with Adam ; Nigatively, It was not for himfclf only. Here are two things ; it was for himfclf, but not for himfelf only. Firji, It was made for himsei.i. He himfelf was included in it. The confequences of the fulfilment or non-fulfilment were to aflcdl himfclf, as well as his pollcrity. In other words, the life promifed in it, on the one hand, and the death threatened in it, on the other, refpected him as well as them. If the condition of the covenant was fulfilled, he vvas to live. If it was not fulfilled, he was to die. Saotidly, It was not miadQ for himfelf oi the The Extent of the Fall 347 the life promlfed and the death threatened in the covenant extended to others as well as to Adam himfelf. Whether he ftood or fell, he was neither to ftand nor fall alone. If he ftood, his pofterity were to ftand with him. If, on the other hand, he fell, they were to fall with him. — We are told Pofithely for whom the covenant was made with A- dam. It was made with him, not only for himfelf, but for HIS POSTERITY •, and the remaining part of the anfwer afcertains the extent in which we are to underftand his pofterity here. On a former occafion I hinted, that the adverfaries of our holy rehgion, of whofe cavils and ex- ceptions there is no end, have often arraigned this part of the divine condud. The fuppofition that God en- tered into a covenant with Adam, as our reprefentative, without our knowledge and confent, they fay, is incon- fiftent with the juft ideas and notions of God and his perfedions. But was it, in fad, unjuft, or, in any re- fpe6l, unworthy of God to call Adam to reprefent us in a covenant, into which he entered with him long be- fore we had a being ; and to the making of which we could not, in our own perfons, confent ? A candid ex- amination of the matter muft fatisfy every unprejudiced peribn, that it was not only confiftcnt with the juftice of God to enter into fuch a covenant with Adam, as the reprefentative of his pofterity, but manifefted much of his goodnefs. Let us attend to the following things. (1.) God in fovcrelgnty condefcended far when he entered into a covenant with man, efpccially a covenant of fuch a gracious tenor. Great was the difparity be- tween the parties contrading in this covenant ; the one the Creator, the other his creature. Whatever the former was pleafed to command, the latter was indifpen- fably bound to do. The one could not command any thing unjuft or unreafonable. The other, therefore, could not lawfully decUne any thing which the former might enjoin upon him. Xx 2 Mod 24 S The Extent of the Fall. Moft juH: and equitable were the terms of this cove- nant. Nothing was required of Adam in it, but what he was naturally and neccffdrily bound to do, except "what related to the tree of knowledge. Now might uot this tree have been withheld from him, though no covenant had been made with him ? Might not the right- iul proprietor and Sovereign of the world do with his own as he pleafed ; grantirg to mar one thing, and withholding from him another, as he in fovereignty might thinlc n)o(t fit ? Might not ruan. though no rove- nant had been made with hii;.. have tinned ; forfeiting all the felicity which he poflefTed, :ind inrurring all the mifery lhre:atened in the coverant ? No covenant, as we have often obferved. fo far as we have heard, was made with the angels ; and yet that a great part of th-rm tell, depriving lhen;felves of their original dignity, and fub- jecling themfelves to endlefs mifery, we all know. Naturally and neccflarily was man under the moral law, That law, though it never had been reduced to the form of a proper covenant, man might have violated. Now, would not the violation of it, as a law, have fubj^ded man to the whole punifliment which he incurred bv the breach of it as a covenant ? Mud not the 'u.-ages of fin ever be deal]} ? Might not man, therefore, have been in a fi- tuation no lefs ticklilh and critical, on the fuppofition that no covenant had been made with him ? Did not the co- venant place him on a ground, and in circumftances more advantageous and favourable than he ever other- wife could have been ? Did not the fulfilment of it en- title him to higher degrees of dignity than perfcd obe- dience to the law, as fuch, ever could have entitled him ? Can a creature in any fituation or circumflanccs merit any thing at the hand of the Creator ? No. All that man without fuch a covenant could have claimed as his due, in the event of perfeft and perpetual obedience, wai impunity or tx'.'pption from punifhment. On the fuppofition that jio fuch covenant had bpcn made with ''■ Adamj * \ The Extent of the Fall. y^^ Adam, mun- not the felicity of each individual of his numerous pofterity have depended on his own perfonal conduft. In how precarious and dangerous a iituatiou would this have placed us all ! If xldam, notwithfianding the adult (bte in which he was created, and his many other fingular advantages, (inned and fell, what reafon is there to fear that each of us in our own perfons might have finned and fallen ? How precarious and uncertain on fuch a hypothefis muft the obedience and felicity of mankind, to the lateft ages of time, have been ! But, in virtue of the covenant, the obedience of one man was to infure the final felicity of all mankind. To yourfelves, therefore, I appeal. Had you been on the fpot, and had it in your option to have been reprefented by Adam, and your final felicity infured by his obedience, or to have flood or fallen for yourfelves feverally, whether, all circumftances confidered, would you have preferred the former or the latter ? — For, (2.) Was not the perfon, chofen to be our reprefen- tative \n the covenant of works, in all refpeds mofl fit for fuch an important ftation ? Was he not, in every view, equal to the great talk ? Was he not at once able •and inclined to do all that was required of him in the covenant ? He who made him, and entered into cove- nant with him, furnifhed him with every thing necelfary to fulfil the condition of that covenant. What the fe- cond Adam, at an after period, faid, thefirft Adam, du- ring his original ftatc, could fay, / delight to do thy will, 0 my God! thy law is within my heart. Was not the reprefentative mod intimately related to the perfons reprefented by him, and had he not the moft endearing aiFet^ion for them ? He was their father. They arehis children. He was their natural root; and, therefore, he wis the moft proper perfon to be their federal head. Conformed to the holy law in the one table, as well as the other, he loved God fupremely ; and he loved o- thers of the hum.an kiiid as he did himfeif. Their feli- city, 2SO The Extent of the Fall city, as well a^ his own, lay very near his heart. His own felicity, no lefs than ours, was at flake. If he obeyed, he obeyed for himfclf, as well as for us. If, on the other band, he difobeyed, the confequences of his difobcdi- ence were to afiecl hinifelf, no lefs than us. Adam's probationary (late, in all probability, was intended to be but fhort. How foon, therefore, in the event of his obedience, would the perpetual happinefs of all mankind have been infured, and not fo much as a poffibility of their ruin left ! But, had no covenant been made with Adam, the felicity of many of them muft have been for many ages doubtful and uncertain. May not Satan be fuppofed to have been, at that early period, a lefs dangerous enemy than now ? Muft he not then have been lefs experienced and verfant in the va- rious arts of feduftion ? Upon the whole, confidering Adam's pecuhar ad- vantages, muft we not allow, that, had we been pre- fent at the federal tranfadlion between God and him, we would moft readily have agreed, that it was more eligible and fafe for us to have our everlafting felici- ty infured by the obedience of our firft father, as our federal head, than that it fhould depend on our own perfonal behaviour. (3.) If we find fault with this part of the divine conducl:, muft it not be for one or another of the rea- fons following, — either on account of the perfon whom the Creator chofc to reprefent us in the covenant of works, — or of the terms of the covenant itfclf, — -or, in a word, of the pretended injuftice of every federal repre- fentation, by which the confequences of the behaviour of an individual extend to others as well as to himfclf. On the firft account wc certainly cannot f.nd fault with the covenant of works. Our firft father, no doubt, was in every view the moft eligible perfon in the univtrfe to be our federal head. — Nor can it be for the fccond rcafon. Were not the terms of the cove- nant The Extent of the TalL 35J[ liant moft advantageous and favourable for us ? How condefcending and gracious was God in treating with his own creature in the way of a proper covenant, in which there were ftipulations, and re-flipulations ! Did God folemnly bind man to fulfil the condition of the covenant ? No lefs folemnly did he oblige himfelf that, in the event of the fulfilment of the condition by man, he would infallibly perform the promiiTory part of it in its fullefl: extent to him. How good, as well as juft, does God appear in the covenant ! Not only was a re- ward offered and infured in the covenant, but a reward to which, in point of worth and duration, man's obe- dience, though perfefted, could bear no proportion Neither can we object to the covenant on the laft ac- count; for, if every federal reprefentation be unjuft and unfair, then the covenant of redemption made with the fecond Adam, no lefs than the covenant of works made with the firft, muft be incompatible with juftice. If it be ajuft thing for the one federal head to reprefent a part of mankind in his covenant, muft it not have been fully confiftent with juftice for the other to reprefent all mankind in hh covenant ? Far, indeed, are the two federal heads from being on a level. Infinitely is the fecond Adam fuperior to the firft. But was not the firft Adam, though in all refpeds inferior to the ificond, a fit perfon to reprefent mankind in the cove- nant of works ? The remaining part of the anfwer informs us of the extent in which we are to underftand Adam's pofterity here. By his pofterity, whom he reprefented in the co- venant of works, we muft underftand all mankind de- fcending from him by ordinary generation, &c. To a fu- perficial reader, the reftridion in thefe words, defcend- ingfrom him by ordinary generation, may ktm unnec^ftary. But the defign and view with which it is inferted is obvious. It is to exclude the fecond Adan>^ who, as man, was one of the pofterity of the firft; 3J2 The Extent of the Fall firfl Adam, — but did not defcend from him h'J ordinary generations That, in refpe£l of his manhood, he was a defcendent of Adam, the infpired writers, in the ac- count they give of his genealogy, exprefsly inform us, Matlh. i. Luke iii. That he dcfcendcd from Adam in an extraordinary way is, in the chapters referred to, in terms fuliiciently plain, intimated to us. The reafon of the preternatural conception of the Man Chrifl Jefus, and his extraordinary birth, is nianifeft. Natural ge- neration, as we will fee in the fequel, is the channel in which the univerfal corruption of nature is tranfmitted from Adam to his polterity. In order, therefore, that the humanity of Jefus Chrifl mi^fht be exempted from it, it was conceived in a manner till then unknown and unprecedented in the world. Thus was he in his birth, as well as his life and death, holy and harmlcfs, wide- filed and feparated from finncrs. 13ut more of this afterwards. Bid the firfl Adam reprefent in the covenant of works fuch as defcend from him by ordinary genera- tion ? Did the fecond Adam, as man, defcend from him by a generation wholly -preternatural and extra- ordinary ? It follows, of courfe, that the humanity of the fecond Adam could not be reprefentcd by the firfl in his covenant. If he was not reprefented by Adam in the covenant of works, he could noifn in him^ and fall with him in his fir fi tranfgrcfion, Thefe words in the end of the anfwer,7/^;w^ in him, and fell with him^ muff, therefore, be reftricled to his natural poflerity ; that is, all mankind def Lending from him by ordinary genera- tion. Accordingly, on this part of the fubjed, I mean to do three things ; to fliew that all mankind, dcfctnding irom Adam bv ordinary generation, finned in him, and fell with him, in his firfl tranfcreflion ; to fliew how it came to pal's that multitudes finned in him, and fell with liim, by a tranlgrcilion which was committed before they were adually in being j and to point out the cliannel Tke Extent of the Fall, 353 channel in which fin is conveyed from the firfl man to the numerous individuLiIs ot his pcflerity. I. I fhall endeavour to fliow, that all mankind^ dcfcend- ing from AdUim by ordinary generation^ fcii>iNEDiN him, AND FELL WITH HIM, IN HIS FIRST TRANSGRESSION. Now, that all mankind fmncd in Adam, and confe- quently, as his natural defcendentf, come into the world finners, will appear from the iollowiiig confidera- tions. Firfl^ The exprefs declarations of the word of God, To introduce a multiplicity of proofs here is unnecef- fary. A paflage or two may fuffice. By one 77ian^ fays the Apoflle,y/« entered into the %vorld^ and death by fin ; nnd Jo death pajfed upon all men^for that all have fin- ned. Rom. V. 12. in what extent are the Apoftle's words here to be underftood ? Whom does he intend by the ALL that have finned ? Is it to be underftood of a part of mankind only ? No. Sin is of equal extent with death. The univerfality, therefore, of the latter, evinces the univerfality of the former. Ihat all die, experi- ence, no lefs than fcripture, evinces. Do not infants, as well as aduUs, die ? If death be the cffeft of fin, and if infants die, intants muft be Tinners. Sin they cannot commit in their own perfons. How then come they to be fmners ? The Apoflle accounts for it. In the hift claufe of the verfe he fpeaks thus — -for that, or as the phrafe has often been rendered, in ivhom^ that is, in Adam, the one man, by whom un entered firft into the world. ALL ka^je finned. And, agreeably to the Apo- ftle, the Compilers of the Catechiim account for it thus — ALL mankind^ difcerdir>g from him by ordinary genera^ lion, finned in him, and fell i^ith him. in his firjl tranfgref- fion — for ive have before proved both Jews and Gentiles ihat they are all under fn. For all have finned, and come fjort of the glory of God. Rom. iii. 9, 23. .No- thing can be more e^cplicit and full tlian the Apoftolic Vol. L Y y ailertion. t 554 Th: Extent of the Fall aflertion. That infants, as well as adult perfons, are in-» eluded is manileft ; for, as 1 faid already, the former, no Jefs than the latter, die. The former, therefore, as has alfo been obferved, no lefs than the latter, have fin- ned. Now, the only way in which they can be fup- pofed to have finned is expreffed in the anfwcr. And is not this the only way in which it can be accounted for ? Secondly ,li\\t univerfal/)r^S7 happy father, rnofl daring rebels ac^ainft Heaven ? How juft, as well as doleful, the complaint ! Hear, 0 heavens 1 and ghe ear, 0 earth/ for the Lord hath fpoken, 1 have nourijhed and brought up children, but they have rebel- led againji me. Ifa. i. 2. I am III. To confider the way in which fin is conveyed from Adam to. the numerous individuals o{ his pojierity defcend- ing from him by ordinary generation. The anfwer is conceived in terms calculated not only to reflricl the tranfmiffion of fin from Adam to his natural pofterity, or ordinary defcendents, but to intimate the myfterious channel and mode of communication from him to them. Now, that natural generation is the channel by which fm defcends from Adam to his pofterity, which the an- fwer evidently intimates, is neceffarily implied in a num- ber of places of holy writ. I fhall only remind you of the following. Adam lived an hundred and thirty years ^ and begat a fon in his own likenefs, after his image ', and, he called his natne Seth. Gen. v. 3. Adam himfelf had been created an upright and holy man. Now, he was a finful and corrupt man. Accordingly, his_ own lihenefs, or image, after vi^hich he begat Seth, is here appofed to the image and likenefs of God, after which he himfelf had been created. Gen. i. 26, 27. Is there not a plain intimation here of the myfterious channel, through which the univerfal depravity of human nature, in the now lapfed ftate, is communicated by father to fon, from Adam to the hteft pofterity ? Was Seth a corrupt and finful man ? Whence did his depravity fpring ? In what did it originate ? Was it owing to the influence of bad example ? No. It was of an earlier original. He had it from his very conception in the womb. His father begatj and his mother conceived, him 2.finfid man. His father was a corrupt perfon ; and, therefore, the fon alfo was corrupt. For, faiih the text, Adam begat a fon in HIS OWN LIKENESS, and AFTER HIS OWN IMAGE J that is, 358 7hc Extent of the FalL is, in the very ac^ of be?»etting, he communicated that impurity and depravity of nature, in v.hich the fon re- fembled the father. — In fimilar terms fpeaks the Pfal- miH' — Behold^ I was Jhapcn in iniquity ; and in fin did my mother conceive me. Pfal. li. 5. The occafion on which this penitential Pfahn was compofed is well known. David had been permitted not only to commit the foul fm of adultery, but to perpetrate the barbarous crime of murder. Thefe fms he confiders as ftreams, and traces thtm to the fountain ; the imparity, and corrup- tion of nature, with which he was conceived and born. For, fays he, / was shapen in iniquity, and in fm did 7ny mother conceive me. My parents were finners, and, in virtue of my defcent from them, I am a fmner. It was not by imitating their bad example thst I firfi: be- came a fmner. My fm is of a nmch earlier date. It is of equal duration with my exiflence. 1 was begotten of a fmful father, and born of a fmful mother j and from them fm was communicated to me. Accordingly, as a ftrong proof that natural genera- tion is the myilerious chinnel by which the moral im- purity of our nature is conveyed from parents to chil- dren, our blcfled Redeemer, as man, in order that his humanity might efcape that moral pollution which is common to all other men, was conceived and born in a preternatural and miraculous manner. For, as the evangelical prophet fpeaks, in a paflage exprefsly ap- plied to the Melliah in the New Teltament, A virgin Jhall conceive, and, ftill remaining a virgin, JJjall bring forth a fon. That it was in order to his cfcaping the moral impurity of nature that he was conceived in this extra- ordinary and unparalleled manner the fcriplurc oftener than once intimates to us. For, faid the angel unto the virgin-mother, "The Holy Gho/l Jhall come upon thee, and ihe pozvsr of the Hi^he/t Jhall ovcrjhadcw thee; thcrejcrc alj'o that holy ihin^ which Jhall be born of thee, Jhall be called the Son cfGcd; that is, thou Ihalt be found with child the Extent of the Fall. 559 cbild in a manner altogether unprecedented and mira« culous ; and, therefore, that which iball be born of thee, fhall be a holy thing. Myfterious. indeed, is the manner in which fm 13 communicated and conveyed from Adam to his polte- rity. A profound myftery, no doubt, it is. IMany my- fieries are there in the natural as well as the moral world. What, a myffery is human generation itfelf! As to the corruption of our nature, which in this myfterious manner is propagated from generation to generation, it certainly cannot be of God. Carefully, therefore, mud we diftingulfli between our nature and the depra- vity of it. The former is the workmanfhip of God, not the latter. The cafe, fo far as we can conceive it, ftands thus. At a particular period, poflerior to ohr conception, when the body is properly organized and fitted for the reception of the foul, the latter is created and infufed into the former. I'hus both the conftituent parts of our nature, in refpect of their fubftance, are of God. He is the Creator and former of both. But in the formation of them he withholds what a fubfequent anfwer calls original righteoufnefs ; that is, that confor- mity to the holy law, with which human nature was en- dued in its original ft?.te. Hence it only is in refpcft of its fubftance that the foul comes from God. He with- holds original righteoufnefs from it; and, in its unition to the body, it is infeded with moral corruption, in a manner which no man on earth can pretend fuliy t3 underftand. There is only one thing farther in the anfwer to which we need to attend. 4-11 mankind ^ defcer. ding from Aduu by ordinary gentralion, finned in him, and fell "jjith hiniy in his ^IRST tranfgrejjion. His fir ft tranfgrefuon was not \\\'< laft. Innumerable other fin.s did he afterwards commit. But, by \\\% firfi tranfgreffion, he violated tiie covenant ot works ; and, therefore, immediately ceafed tp ftand and aft in the capacity of our reprefentative, ^nd J 60 The Extent of the Falh and federal head. Afterwards he afted only in a pri- vate capacity ; and, therefore, he only was amenable for his after condud. Accordingly, when the Com- pilers of the Catechifin give us an account of original fm, and mention, as a branch of it, the guilt of Adam's fin imputed to us, they exprefsly reftrid it to his Jirjl Izn. Having finifhed what I intended as an expofition of this anfwcr, I Ihall conclude with a rcfleclion or two for improvement. And Firft, Truly God was good to man in his firft flate. Though the covenant, mnde with the firft Adam, was not, in fuch a manner as the covenant made with the fecond, a covenant of grace, yet gracious and good was God to man in the former, as well as in the latter. Eminently js wifdom manifefled in the choice of fo ■ fit a perfon to reprefent us in that covenant. Signally did God difplay his goodnefs in infuring to Adam and to us fuch a rich and glorious reward, in the event of the fulfilment of its condition. Secondly^ We fee on the one hand the analogy, and on the other the difparity, between the manner in which God dealt with man in his firft, and the manner in which he deals with him in his now fallen ftate. It hath pleafed God all along to deal with man through the in- tervention of a covenant. Well did the covenant of works befit man in his ori;Vinal ftate. Admirably is the covenant with the fecond Adam adaptetl to the ficu- ation of the perfons whom he rcprefents in it. What rcafon had Adam to be thankful, and to wonder when his great Creator propofed a covenant of tuch a graci- ous tenor ! Efpccially have we reafon to be thankful Jor the revelation of a covenant fo much adapted to our fallen ftate. Thanks be to God for all his favours. Thanks, in an efpecial manner, be to him for Jcfus Chrift. Thirdh, . '* The Extent of the Fall 361 thirdly. How unreafonably, as well as unlawfully, do we often impeach and quarrel with the divine condud 1 How ready are we to blame God for permitting fm to enter into the world, and efpecially for making us re- iponfible for a fm which we did not commit ? But in great wifdom and goodnefs, as well as juftice and equi- ty, as I pbferved already, did God enter into a covenant with Adam as our reprefentatlve ; and for permitting him to violate it, and by the violation of it to introduce both moral and penal evil into the world, he had the moft important and worthy reafons. What ignorance and what prejudice do we difcover when we prefumc to find fault with God, or with any of his works and ways ! Often does that which is ftraight appear to us crooked. Apt are the bed of men in the ftate of imperfeftion, through the remainder of indwelling corruption, to be miftaken about God and his myfterious condud. What he intends for their good, may appear to them to tend to their hurt. Fourthly^ We all evince ourfelves to be fallen crea- tures. At a very early period do we difcover this. What an epidemical difeafe is fm ! How univerfal a con- tagion is it ! Long ago did the Lord look doivnfrom bea- i>ef2 upon the children of men^ to fee if there ivere any that did underfiand and fek God. They are all gone afide. They are altogether become filthy ; there is no?ie that doetb good, no not one. Fifthly, We fee whence the wickednefs, which, as a univerfal deluge,, has ovcrfpread the face of our earth, originally flows. All the crimes and fins which have been committed in our own times, and in the days of our fathers, may be traced back to the firll (in of ourj^ firft federal head ; all the fms whic'i we have commitLcdl in the feveral pad periods and ftages of our life, to the** corrupLion and depravity of nature in which we w^jt conceived. What an infathomable depth of depravity and deceit in the human heart ! Vol. L Z z La/lly, t m. 562 The Extent of the Fall. Lajlly^ If wc ever enter into eternal life, it nraft be in the way of a covenant very different from that made with the firft Adam, and in all rcfpects fuperior to it. But how encouraging to think, that, as in Adam all die,, Jo in Chri/i Jhall all be made alive ; and that, as fin hath reigned unto death, evenfo grace reigns through ri^hteouf nefsf umo eternal life, by Jefus Chri/i our Lord, Amen, Sin ( 3^3 ) Sin and Mifery Cennedled. Rom. v. 12. Wherefore, as by one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin ; andfo death pajfed upon all men, for thai all have finned. THE words which I have now read lead our thoughts back to a very early period of the world ; and to an event, in which, though it happened thoufands of years before we were born, we all had a particular con- cern. They relate to the firft man, from whom we all defcend^ and to an aftion, which he, as our reprefenta- tive in the covenant of works, committed ; by which he was ruined for ever, and we were ruined in him. Sin having entered our world, death entered along with it. Till fm entered, death was unknown. But when the one entered, the other immediately followed. Between the tw^ there is a neceflary connection. Accordingly, from this text, I may take occafion to remind you, my brethren, of the connection which the Zz 2 Compilers 3^4 ^if^ ^^^ Mifery Contiecfed. Compilers of our Shorter Catechifm (late between ftn and mifery in the following anfwcr. The fall brought mankind info an ejiate offtn and mifery Of the fall, its extent, the immediate occafion and other circumflances of it, I have fpoken already on fevcral "preceding anfwers. Obvious to all is the pro- priety with which that unhappy change, that man un- -derwent when he finned, is called the fall It was the fall of MANKIND. Not Only did the firft father of the human race fall, but, as faith the anfwer to the preceding queliion, all mankind, defcending from him by ordinary ge^ neration^finncd 'in him^ and fell with him, in his firft tranf- grcffion. Accordingly, in the fhort anfwer now before us, we have a defcription of the ftate into which man- kind have fallen. It is a ftate of fin, and a ftate of mi- fery. 1 am not, however, on this occafion, to confider particularly either the finfulnefs or the mifery of it. Of fin in general, and of that fin in particular, by which our firft parents fell from the eftate wherein they were created, we have heard already. In what the finfulnefs of this ftate confifts, and what the mifery of it is, the anfwers to the two following queftions, to which this is intended only for an introdu£lion, will inform us. The only ihing that comes to be confidcred on this occafion, is the necefl'ary connexion between fin and mi- lery. Neceftarily are they conncded. So the anfwer intimates. 1 he fall brought mankind into an cfiate of si's and MISERY. A ftate of fin mull be a ftate of mifery. Diftinguilhed fin and miftry are ; but divided they arc not. Firy^, They are niSTiNGUiSHKD. Sin and the pu- nifhnit-nt of it are two things very dlfterent. The for- mer is of ourfclves. It cannot be of God. Sin, as we found nn a former occafion. he permits. But to it he cnnnot incline; of it he cannot approve. The punifh- ment of fin, however, is his work. He claims it. I'cn- grance is mine, and I will repay it. faith the Lord ! Rom. xif. Sin and Mifery ConneSied, 365 xii. 1 9. Shall there be evil in a city, penal evil, and the Lhrd hath not done it? Amos iii. 6. Secondly, Though fin and pmniftiment be diftinguifh- cd, they cannot be divided. The one accompanies the other. Such is the connection between fin and the pu- nifliment of it, that, even when ihe former is only im- puted, not inherent, the latter attends it. Remarkably was this exemplified in the cafe of the fecond Adam, the Surety of the better covenant No inherent perfonal fin had he. In his humanity he was holy, harmlefs, and undejiled. But, in virtue of the imputation of our guilt to him, he was fubjefted to the full punifhment of our fins, and endured it. For Chriji hath once fuffe red for Jin, the juji for the unjujl, that he might bring us to God. 1 Pet. iii, I 8. Now, if fin when only imputed be ac- companied with punifhment, no wonder though, when, as in our cafe, it is both imputed and inherent, it be at- tended with mifery. Accordingly, were we to review the fcripture-account of our fallen ftate, we would, in in (lances innumerable, find the finfalnefs and the mife- ry of it infeparably connefted. In the text prefixed to this fiiort Lcdlure, fin and mi- fery are conjoined. For thus it fpeaks. By one man Jin entered into the world, and death by sin. Had not the one entered, the other would not have entered.' The one is the caufe ; the other the effe£t. The latter, therefore, neceffarily followed the former. No lefs ne- ceflarily arc they connected in the following words. Wherein, that is, the trefpaiTes and fins mentioned in the end of the preceding verfe, f« time paft,iii^% the Apoftle to the Ephefian converts, ye walked according to the courfe of this world, according to the -prince of the power of the air, the fpirit that now worketh in the children of difobedience. Among whom aJfo we all had our converfa- tion in times pad, in the lulls of the JleJJj, fulfilling the de^ Jires of the JIc/Ij and of the ?nind. ^iffeding reprefenta- tion of the finfulnefs of our natural ftate! Of the mi- . fery ^66 Sin a7id Mifcry Conncfted, fcry of it we have a fhort, but comprchcnfive defcrip- tion in what immediately follows. And luere by nature 'i1)e children of ivraiby even as others. Eph. ii. 2, 3. Molt cloftly are thefc two parts of our natural flatc connected in the Apoftolical account of it here. A fimilar reprefen- tation does this Apoflle give of it in the following paflage. I'or the fdkc rfivhicb things j that is, the things cnume- jated in the loregoing verfe, the wrath cf God cometh on the children of difobcdience. Col. iii. 6. The order here, indeed, is foniewhat inverted. The mifery of our na- tural (late is exprefled by the wrath of God which co- xnetli upon us. The fmfulnefs of it is couched in the plirafc, the children of difobcdience. Things are not ;ilways narrated, in the fcriptures, in their natural order. rs of religion in our times .^ Let the word of Chrift dwell in you richly in all wifdom ; teaching and ad- monijhing otic another in pfihns and hymns, and fpiriiual fongs, jinging with grace in your hearts to the Lord. How worthy of a place in the memory, in the inmoft heart, is the word of Chrift ! But with what fliameful negled do the greater part treat it ! The AFFECTIONS, no lefs than the fuptrior powers of the foul, are corrupted. What anarchy and difordcr has fm introduced into thcfe inferior powers of the foul ! Often are they mifplaced, and terminate on the molt unworthy objects. How earthly and fenfual are they ! How often do they run out inordinately toward lawful objects ? Often do they carry us on precipitately in the purfuit The Sinfulnefs of the Fallen State, ^^^i purfuit of unlawful obje£ls. We chufe what we ought to refufe. We refufe what intereft, as well as duty, requires us to chufe. Of the moft egregious folly arc we guilty. The creature we prefer to the Creator, fub- ftituting the former in place of the latter. My people^ faith God, even my profelTed people, have committed iwa evils : they have forfaken vie, the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cifterns, broken cifterns, that can hold no water ^ Such is the corruption of the immaterial part of our nature, and the feveral faculties of it ! How changed the human foul 1 Let us in the 2d place. Review the other conftituent part of our nature, the body. That this inferior part of our na- ture is a partaker with the fuperior in fin, and a iharer with it in punilhmcnt, fcripture and experience concur to evince. Accordingly, as I faid on a former an- fwcr, there is the filthinefs of the fiejh, as well as the flthinefs of the fpirit ; and, therefore, as the heart needs to be fprinkled, the body needs to be wafhed* That corruption, which as an infe^ious leaven, lurks in the heart, dijEFufes and fpreads itfelf through the whole outward man, rendering the feveral members of it un- happily inftru mental in the commifTion of fm. Of the corruption of the body, as well as of the corruption of the foul, and of the inftrumentality of the feveral parts of the former in various fpecies of immorahty and vice, to the difhonour of God, and the ruin of mankind, the Apoitle, in the verfes preceding our text, has given us a moft affeding, but juft, reprefentation. And, as the Prophet fpeaks, The whole head is ftck, and the whole heart faint' From the fole of the foot, even unto the head, there is nofoundnefs in it ; but wounds and bruifes, and putrifying fores : they have not been clofed, neither bound up^ neither molUfied with ointment. Ifa. u 5, 6. No member of the body has efcaped the con- tagion of fm. In inftances innumerable are the feveral members of it inftrumental in the commiirion of fm. How 382 7^he Sivjulnefs of the Fallen State* How often are our hands and our feet, which fhould be ever ready to run the errands, and perform the work, that God affigns to us, employed in the fervice of fin and Satan ! (Jften are our eyes, with which we ought to contemplate his works, and to read his word, employed in a manner not only unprofitable and vain, but moft pernicious and hurtful. The Apoftle Peter, defcribing the unhappy feducers in both his own and other times of the world and the church, among many other things, tells us, that they have eyes full of adultery^ and that cannot ceafe from fin, 2 Pet. ii. 14. In how improper and unlawful a manner do many ufe their ears, as well as their eyes ! Often arc they fhut againfl whac they ought to be ready to hear, and o- pen to what they ought not to hear. How open are the ears of many to every fpecies of defamation and reproach ! Often and juftly has it been obferved, that were there fewer to receive and fpread evil reports, there would be fewer to invent and raife them. One efifential part of the character of a genuine citizen in Zion is. He taketh not a reproach again] t his neighbour, Pfal. XV. 3. It is not enough that he doth not raife an injurious report. He does not readily, but with reluc- tance, receive it. Of what evil and mifchief is the tongue the un- happy inftrument ? To the molt impious and bafe pur- pofes is that excellent faculty of fpeech, the glory of human nature, proftiiutcd and debafcd. In the moft daring manner do many open their mouths againft Heaven, and (hockingly defy him who made them. They^ to borrow the words of the Pfalmift, fct their mouths againft the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth. Pfal. Ixxiii. 9. With our tongue will we prevail, fay they, our lips are our oivn: who is Lord over us f Pfal. xii. 4. With what oaths and impreca- tions, and lies, is God every day, every hour, alTront- cd and infultcd ! How often is the Apolllc's dcfcription of The Sinfuhefs of the Fallen State. 383 of the depravity of the human tongue, in the feveral branches of it, exemplified ! If any fnan offend not in word, fays he, the fame is a perfed man, and able alfo to bridle the whole body. Behold, we put bits in the horfes mouths that they may obey us ; and we turn about their whole body. Behold alfo, the fhips, which, though they he fo great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very fmall helm, whitherfoever the governor lifteth. Even fo the tongue is a little member, and boafieth great things. Behold how great a matter a little fire kindkth ! Afid the tongue is a fire^ a world of iniquity : So is the tongue among our mem- bers, that it defileth the luhole body, and fetteth on fire the courfe of nature : and it is fet on fire of hell. For every kind of beafts, and of birds, and of for pent s, and things in thefea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame : it is an unrzdy evil, full of deadly poifon. Therewith blefs we God, even the Father-, and therewith curfe we men, which are made after the fimilitude of God. Out of the fame mouth pro- ceedeth blefftng and curfing. My brethren, thcfe things ought not fo to be. Jam. iii. 2, — 10. Such is the cor- ruption of mankind ! From the curfory view which I have taken of hu- man nature in the prefent flate, the following particu- lars are manifeft. (i.) This corruption is, in a twofold refped, univer* fal ; in refpecl of perfons, and in refpecl of parts. It has overfpread the whole human race. It extends to the whole man, inward and outward, (2.) It is a hereditary evil, defcending from parents to children in all ages and generations, earlier and later. (3.) It is the fame in the numerous defcendants of Adam, in all times and places of the world. It ts not the guilt of all, or of any one of the fins of our im- mediate parents that is imputed to us, as their children. They ftood in a natural only, not a federal relation to us. 384 The Sinfuinefs of the Fallen State, us. It is the guilt of Adam's firft fin that is imp'^ted to us aJl. The fame original fm, inherent, as well as imputed, dcfcends from the firft man to every indivi- dual of his natural pofterity. (4.) This corruption of nature is known in the fcrip- tures by different names. It is called the old man. That ye put off, fays the Apoftlc, concerning the former conver- Jation, the old man, which is corrupt, according to the decciiful lufts. Eph. vi. 22. Eafy is it to fee why it is called the vmn. It is not reArided to any one part of the man, cither the inferior or fupcrior part ; but ex- tends to the whole. No lefs obvious is the reafon for which it is defigned the old man. In the Apoflle's words it denotes the remaining corruption of militant faints in oppofition to their renewed part, called in the context the neiv man. Now, though all militant faints have both a corrupt and a gracious part, the for- mer is in them all older than the latter. The one they have from their firft birth ; the other only from their fecond birth. For, as our divine Redeemer fpeaks, that luhich is born of the flejh is flcftj, and that ivhich is born ^f the Spirit is fpirit. This reminds me of another epithet by which the fcripture expreffcs the corruption of nature. Often in the fcriptures of the New Teftament is it c^iWcd Jjcjh, The FLESH, fays the Apoftle, lufielh again fi the fpirit, and the fpirit againjt the flesh, and thefe are contrary the one to the other ; Jo that ye cannot do the things that ye ivould. Gal. V. 17. Is not this a plain intimation of the unhap- py influence which the corruption that is feated in the heart has upon the material and flcflily part ? Does it not intimate how fordid and bafe a thing fm is, and how our nature is degraded and debafed by it? In the pur- fuit of the loweft and balcft gratifications are unfancli- ticd men engaged. It was by preferring the body, and the gratification of its fenfual appetites, to the foul and ?he felicity of it, that man firft firncd and fell. AH along The Sinfulnefs of the Fallen State, 385 tXong have the unhappy poflerity of fallen Adam refem- bled and Imitated their foolifli firft parents'. The mor- tal body is gratified and pampered. The immaterial and immortal part is negleded and murdered With the mo/l obvious propriety, therefore, is the epithet^^j applied to mankind, now in a ftate of fin and mortality, ne Lord f aid ^ in relation to the inhabitants of the an- tediluvian world, My Spirit Jhall not always firivs zvith man^fdr that he alfo is fiejh : yet his days Jhall be an hun- dred and twenty years. Gen. vi. 3. -Ihe voice faid^ Cry, And he /aid. What Jl? all I cry ? All fllsk is grafs, and all the goodlinefs thereof as the fower of the field, Ifa.xl. 6. (5.) -This depravity of nature is fuch that it can be removed by a fandifying work of the Spirit only, Illu- ftrioufly is wifdom difplayed in the method which God by the gofpel has revealed for, delivering us from cor- ruption, as well as condemnation. As we do by natu- ral generation derive ihe depravity of nature from the firft Adam, by fupernatural regeneration we derive pu- rity from the fecond Adam. For, as that which is born of the flejh is fiejh ^ fo that which is born of the Spirit is fpirit. If any man be favingly in Chrifi, the quickening head of the new covenant, by a regenerating work of his Spirit, he is a ne%u creature. Happy, indeed, is the man that has experienced the commencement of this good work, and that now experiences the progrefs and advancement of it ; for the commencement is an infal- lible evidence of the confummation of it. Thus the corruption of natu(^, of "w^ich I have given you a fummary view, is what we, m a^ efpccial manner, intend by original fin. It is not, indeed, the whole of that fin or the only thing which we intend by it. We do not exclude the guilt of Adam's firft fin, or the want of original righieoufnefs. Thefe are neceflariiy included in the ader uate idea of original fin. The depravity of na- ture ever necefiarily fuppofes the privation of original righteoufnefs and primeval purity. How ftrong is the Vol. 1. C c c propcnfity t 3S6 The Sinfulnefs of the Fallen State, propenfity to evil in mankind fallen and corrupted \ What incapacity and inability for good is in them ! What an averfion to it ! The univerfal and total depra- vation of our natures let us inceifanrty bewail. For the renovation of it let us, day after day, pray. He only who made man fmlefs can fandify him in his now fmful (late. The II. Part of the finfulnefs of our natural condition in- cludes ail the actual tranfgreflions which proceed from that natural corruption of which I have fpoken. It is expreflfed in thefe words of the anfwer, -fo^cther ivitb all actual tranfgrejjiom which proceed from it. The reafons why fin ot the one kind is denominated a6luaU in contradiftindion to fm of the other kind, is obvious. The one is, the other is not, adlually com- mitted by us in our own pcrfons. This part of the finfulnefs of the natural ftate is not of equal extent with the former. Natural corruption is to be found in :;11 the ordinary defcendants of Adam, even in infants unborn, as well as born. Adual fin is committed by fuch only as have arrived at the adual exercife of their rational powers, and are capable of knowing the law, of which fin ever is a tranfgreflion, or to which it is a want of conformity. The anfwer fpeaks of adual iranf^rejjions in the plu- ral number. The individuals of mankind are multi- plied to an aftonifhing and unknown number. The fins even of an irdividual exceed number. Who can enumerate his owA errors and offences? What num- bcrlefs finful motions arife within us! What countlcfs idle and finful words have we fpoken ! In inftances in- numerable have we negle£led what we ou;;ht to have done ; and, in inftances no Icfs innumerabie, have we done what we ought not to have done. Can you num- ber the numberlcfs hairs of ybur head ? or can you count the countlefs vapours and drops contained in a thick The Sinfulne/s of the Fallen State. 387 thick cloud ? Still lefs can you number your fms of omiffion and commiffion ; the fms of your earlier and of your riper years. Accordingly, the pardon of our fms is expreffed in a manner, which beipeaks, at once, their vaft number and high aggravations. Come miu, let us reafon together^ faith the Lord, ihovgh your sins, your numberlefs, as well as aggravated, /y?^, be as fear - let, they fhall be white as fnow ; though they he red like crimfon, theyjlmll be as wool, Ifa. i. 18. / haie blotted out, faith God to the church, as a thick cloud thy TRANSGRESSIONS J and, as a cloud, thy sins. Chap. xhv. 22. It remains now, that I dired: your attention, for a few moments, to the connexion intimated in the an- fwer, between original fm and adual. "The finfulnefs of that ejiate into which man fell, confifts in the guilt of Adam's firji fin, the want of original right e oufnefs , and the corruption of his whole nature, together zviih all adual tranfgrffions which -proceed from it. For an obvious reafon is original fm introduced firft, and ac- tual fin laft. The former, as we have again and again obferved, is the caufe ; the latter the efied, — and the caufe is underftood to precede the effect. The connexion between original fm and adual is not, indeed, fuch, that the former mud always be accom- panied with the latter. Such as die in infancy, and are faved from original fm, are for ever exempted from adual. But, though original fm is not always accom- panied with adtual, the latter always implies the former. In other words, though there may be original fin where there is no a£lual, there can be no aftual fm where ori- ginal is not. Let me, therefore, fuggefl: to your confideration fome of the many pafiagcs in which the fcripture flates the clofe connetlion between original fm and actual. It is queried, wl^o can bring a clean thing out of an un- clean? Differently, indeed, has this place been inter- Ccc 2 preted 3S8 The Sinfulnefs of the Fallen State. prcted and applied. Of the propagation of fin from pa- rents to children has it been underdood. But to indivi- duals and their actions it may alfo be applied. Are their adlions unholy ? The reafon is, they themfelves are un- holy. A fimilar reprefentation have we in the words of the Pfalmift. They are corrupt', they have done abomi- nable Kuorks. There is none that doeih good. Pfal. xiv. i . Is it aflied, how it comes to pafs that they do abomi- nable things, that no one of them doeth good. The reafon is, they themfelves are corrupt. Such as the caufc is, fuch mud the effects be. in terms the moft cxpreflire and plain is this important truth affirmed in the following words. The iviclicd are ejiranged from the luomb ; they go a fir ay as f con as they be born, /peaking lies. Pfal. Iviii. 3. cited formerly. Whence is it, that man- kind go aftray in their own perfons almoft as foon as they be born i The reafon is obvious. They are eftran- gcd from the womb ; that is. from their very formation they are, by an inbred principle, inclined to evil. To all which agree the words of the church. We are all as an unclean thing, and all our rightcoufmjjls as filthy rags. Ifa. Ixiv. 6. How comes it to pafs. that ail our righte- oufncflcs are as filthy rags, that all wc do is defiled ? The reafon is, we ourfclves are unclean. On this important fubject the New Tt (lament is not lefs explicit than the Old. Moft cxpreffive are our Lord's own words. Te Jhall know them by their fruits — Eicry good tree bringeih forth good fruit ; but a corrupt tree bringi th forth evilfrui:. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit ; neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Matth. vii. 16, 17, 18. Is net the corrupt tree a fit emblem of our depraved nature ; and its evil fruit of our corrupt converfition ? \o the words of our Lord I may add thofe of f.is Apollle. /// time pafl ye ivalked according to the ccurfe of this ivorld, according to the prince of the pciccr of the air, the fpirit that nozv zccrk^ f'h in the children of difhcdlcnce. I'ph. ii. 2. cited al- ready. The Sinfulnefs of the F alien State, 389 ready. May not the phrafe, the children of difobedience; intimate the depravity of our nature, or that principle of difobedience which is in us from our earlieft childhood and infancy ? rhe corruption of our lives evidently is expreffed by our ivalking according to the courfe of this ivorld. according to the prince of the power of the air. Thus often and plainly does the fcripture intimate to us the neceflary connedion between the natural depra- vity of our hearts, and all the pradical enormities with whicli we are chargeable in our deportment. This is a fummary view of the fmfulnefs of the fallen flate. From what hath been faid, we may learn, Firfi, The difmal fituation in which each of us either is or at leaH: has been. It is, as we will fee when we explain the fubfeqiient anfwer, a (late of extreme mi- fery and danger. Efpecially is it a ftate of fin. It is a fiate of both condemnation and corruption. Guilty is the infant unborn, as well as born. Is the adult ad- dicted to evils and crimes of which the infant is inca- pable ? To thofe very crimes is the infant, though un- confcious of it, inclined. Secondly^ InefFedual mufl: external reformation be without internal renovation. Far is it from being' fuffi- cient for a perfon to refrain from groffer pollutions, in which, perhaps, in times part he has indulged himfelf. He may be another man, while he is not a new man. It is not enough to lop off the branches of grofs out- ward tranfgreffions. The ax muft be laid to the root of the tree of the depravity of nature. Hence we fee, Thirdly, The indifpenfable neceffity of a regenerating work of the Spirit. How fuitable and confolatory is the promife! A new heart will /, faith God^ give unto you, and a new fpirit will I put within you ; and I will take av ay thejlony heart out 0) your flefh, and I will give you an heart of flejh. And I will put my Spirit within you, andcaufe youto walk in myfiatutes; and ye Jlmll keep my judgments, and do them, Ezel^. xxxvi, 26, 27. The great 39o 77?^ Slnfulnefs of the Fallen State, great queftion as to us all is, whether thcfe words be verified, and the good work of lanclification begun, in us or not. Fourthly, We fee cfpecially the neccflity of the Spi- rit, as the Spirit of convidion, to difcover to us the fin of our nature. Adual, as well as original fin, does the Spirit difcover to us. The former, as moft obvious, he probably difcovers firfl to the ignorant and carclefs fm- ner, and traces it as a ftream up to the fountain of the depravity of nature whence it proceeds. This natural corruption lies deep and latent in the heart. It efcapes the notice of fuperficial profeflbrs of religion. To no- thing are they greater ftrangers than to their own de- praved hearts. But the Spirit, when he deals cfFedu- aliy and favingly with finners, leads them into their own hearts. He i\\2X fearchdh all things, even the deep things of God, probes the heart of the fmner, and difcovers the latent wickednefs that is in it. The great quellion is, whether we have the experience of fuch a convin- cing work. Fifthly, We fee the importance and neceflity of early religious inftrudion to children. From their earlieft mo- ments are they finners ; and do they need a Saviour. How important and nccefiary then is it for them to be inftruftcd betimes concerning their original, as well as early adual fins, and the danger to which they are cx- polcd ? What a happinefs to children is it when they have godly parents, and their parents are enabled to be faithful to them ! What a mercy is it, that, as infants are finners, the Saviour faves infants, as well as others ! The C 391 ) The Mifery of the Fallen State. Ephes. ii. 12. 7hat at that ihne ye were without Chri/i, being aVisnsfrom the commonwealth of Ifrael, and Jirangers from the co- •venants ofpromife ; having no hope, and without God in the world. THIS excellent Epiftle, though intended for the ufe of all the churches of Chrift to the end of the world, is direded immediately to the church which had been colleded, and now flourifhed in the city of Ephc- fus — This was one of the mcft famous cities in the Leflcr Afia. It is faid to have been built as early as the times of David ; or, perhaps, much earlier. It was fi- tuated on the river Cayfter. Efpecially was it famous for a temple dedicated to the goddefs Diana. This magnificent edifice is faid to have been four hundred and tv. enty-five feet in length ; and two hundred and twenty in breadth. Its roof was fupported by a hun- dred and twcnty-feven pillars, fcventy feet high ; twen- ty.feven 39* T^^^ Mijh-y of the Fallen State. ty-feven of which were curioufly carved, and all the reifc finely polifhed. The plan of this celebrated building was contrived by Ctcfiphon. CJf fuch extent and ex- quifite work.inan(hip was it, that, from the laying of the foundation to the finifliing of it, there was a period of no Icfs than two hundred and twenrv years, i'ut hew precarious and fluduating are all things in tliis world ! The once famous ciiy of Ephefus has now dwindled into an obfcure village! Variable is the (late of the church, as well as of the world. A very' few only of the inhabitants of that place now bear the name of Chriftians. The Apoflle in this context reminds the Ephefian converts that they were under fpccial obligaiions to dif- criminating grace. In the mod wretched circumflances did grace find thofe Ephefians. They lucre, au the text cxprelTes it, without Chri/i, without the knowledge of him, and an interefl: in him. They were aliens from the commorsjoealth of IfraeU excluded from the fpecial im- munities and privileges, civil and facred, of the literal Ifrael. Efpecially were they ftrangers to the holy com- munity and fellowfliip of the fpiritual and believing If- rael. They \Ntrc ftrangers froJii the covenants ofpromife. The covenant by which the redemption of the church is effcded, which, for this reafon, is called the covenant of redemption, muft be intended here. On account of the dilierent adminiflrations of it in the earlier and later ages of the church, may it be put in the plural number. Till the gofpel was preached to them, they did not fo much as know that there was fuch a cove- nant. They were icithout hope. They knew not Chrift, who is the only foundation of our hopes for eternity. To fay, in one word, all that can be faid, they were ivithout God in the zvorld. The word literally is, the^ were Atheifts. TJiey were without the true knovf ledge of God, without his favour, and the fruition of him. Wretched condition 1 Such, however, is the fituation in The Miftry of the Fallen State. 303 Sn which grace finds all the faved ! Ig it the fituation of the nations and individuals only to whom the gofpei has not been preached? Is it not the fituation of num- bers to whom the goipel is preached ? Is it not the na- tural ftate of all mankind fallen ? Sinful, and therefore mifcrable ftate ! of the fmfulnefs of this ftatc I have fpoken already. Of the mifery of it I am now to fpeak. May the Spirit of convid:ion imprefs both the fmfulnefs and the mifery of it upon the confcience of the carelefs fmner ! What I intend nov/ is to explain that definition of the mifery of the fallen ftate which the Compilers of the Catcchifrai give us. All mankind., by their fall^ lo/i cQmmuniQn %vith God, are under his wrath and curfe, andfo made liable U all the miferies of this life^ to death it/elf and to the pains of hell for ever. With the moft evident propriety is the finfulnefs of our natural condition prefixed, and the mifery of it fub- joined. The one is the procuring caufe of the other. Between the two., thercforcj we have already found a necefl'ary connection. The fubjecls of this mifery are all mankind ; that is, thefirft Adam and all his natural pofterity, or all mankind defcending from him by ordinary generation. A great number of mankind indeed, are now totallv freed from mifery, as well as fm. So are the fpirits of juft men made perfcft in the celeftial world. But they^ no lefs than others of mankind, were once in a ftatc of fm and mifery. Countlefs thou fan ds of mankind are yet unformed and unborn. But they are, in due time, to be conceived in fm and mifery. The faved. no lefs than others, were reprefented by Adam in the covenant of works; confequently muft have hnned in him, and fallen with him, when he fmned and fell. Therefore are they naturally in a ftate of fin, and a ftate of fin muft ever be a ftate of mifery. How mankind came to be involved in fuch mifery Vol. I. D d d and t 394 "^be Mifery of the Fallen State, and ruin, the anfwer intimates. All majikind, by the Fall. &c. Having fpokcn of the fall on former occa- fions, I proceed to the principal part of the anfwer ; the defcription which it gives us of the mifery of our fallen ftate. Now this mifery comprehends in it efpecially three things ; the lofs of man's former felicity ; the mi- fery under which he now comes into the world ; and the miferv to which he is liable and cxpofcd. This laft article inr.lndes in it three things; the miferies of this life ; death i'-felf\ and the pains of hell for ever. But, before I enter on the confideraiion of this de- fcription of the mifery which attends our fallen ftate, it may noc be unneceflary to take notice of a qucftion that has long been agitated among theological writers. It is queried, whether perfons dying in infancy be expofed to this mifery in its full extent. On this que- ftion we find writers not a little divided in their fenti- ments. It has been imagined, that all who die in in- fancy will be infallibly blcfled and happy for ever. The abettors of this opinion, however, arc not fully agreed among themfclves. One fuppofes that infants come into the world innocent ; and therefore cannot be un- happy. But this opinion is utterly incompatible with the doclrine of original fin ; which, I hope, I have irre- fragably evinced and confirmed. Another fuppofes, that, though they bring original fin into the world wiih them, they all are favcd from it. Godly parents, who have been enabled by faith to devote their infants to the Lord at baptifm, or on any other occafion, have, in- deed, no fiiiall encouragement to hope, in relation to them, the things which accompany falvation. This is not only a moft confolatory thought, but an opinion to which the fcripturc feems to me to give countenance. It has been the opinion of different writers, that, though many who die in infancy may not be faved, they arc cxpofcd to a punifhment very flight and cafy in com- parifon of that of others who die in an advanced age. What The Mifery of the Fallen State, 395 What they mean, in fhort, is, that the former fufFer only the punifhment of lofs, not of fenfe. One thing is certain. In the punifhment of the wicked, as w^U as in the glory of the righteous, there are degrees. That the punifhment of one (inner will be tolerable in com- parifon of that of another, our Lord has exprefsly in- formed us. Verily^ I fay unto you, it foall be more tole- rable/or the land of Sodo?n and Gomorrah^ in the day of judgment^ than for that city. Matth x. \^* The I. Thing, in this account of the mifery of our fallen flate, is the lofs of that felicity which man poflellVd in his original flate. All mankind^ by thtirfill, lost com- munion WITH God, &c. Now, what the felicity was which innocent man enjoyed, he himfelf could bcft tell. In conformity to God, and in communion with him, man's felicity and dignity ever mufl confift. During the original ftate, man had conflant accefs to God and uninterrupted communion v/ith him, of which we can- not now form an adequate idea. What a lofer is man by his fin and fall ! Had not the fecond Adam inter, pofed, his lofs muft have been for ever irreparable. Man, by his fin, difqualified and unfitted himfelf for glorifying as well as enjoying, God. Into this comfortlefs fituation he brought not only himfelf but his unhinppy pofterity ; and in it he left them. Accordingly, though finners under a gofpel-difpenfation have accefs to God, to enjoy, as well as to glorify him, they are naturally incapable of the former no lefs than the laitcr. They need, therefore, the fan£llfying Spirit of Jefus Chrifl to qualify and fit them for the fruition of God, as well as his all-perfed righteoufnefs to entitle them to it. Hence the Apoflle's grateful acknowledgment for others, as well as himfelf. Giving thanks unto the Father^ ivhi^h hath made us meet to be partakers of the faints in light* Col. i. I 2. When man fell, ht forfeited a title to communion with Ddd 2 Go4» 396 The Mifery of the Fallen State. God. At once did he forfeit what he had in pof- felfion, comnuinion with God on earth ; and what he had in profpecl, uninterrupted and cndlcfs communion with God in heaven. God and he were now at va- riance ; and, therefore, all comfortable intercourfe be- tween them marred. For, hoiu can tivo walk together except they he agrted? Amos iii. 3. A common relation, indeed, fubfiffed between God, as the Creator, and man, as his creature. As a man, he was flill a pc^itaker of ih- providential bounty of God ; and in operation, as well as being, upheld by him. But the federal relation between God, as his God in cove- nnnt, and man, as the friend of God, was now violated and broken. I'hat fweet fellowfhip, therefore, which tiny had one with another now ceafed. Accordingly, he, whole very life lay in conftant intercou-fe with God, was now afraid of him. and fought rather to Ihun him. For, when they heard the 'voice of the Lord God^ ivnlking in the garden in the cool of the day^ Adam and his ivfe hid thcmfehes from the pnfence of the Lord God among tlx trees of the garden No wonder though jnan was afraid ; for God was offended. As a cer- tain indication that man had incurred God's difplea- fure, and forfeited his former comfortable intercourfe with his iVl.iker, he was expelled from paradife. So he DROVE out the man ; and ht placed, at the cajl of the gar- den of Eden, Cherubim and a flaming Jword^ a fearful cmMrm of the vindiclire wrath of Almighty God, ivhich turned every ivay to keep the tree of life. Now, the life pronii:ed in the covenant of works was forfeit- ed, and all IrieiKlly intercourfe with God in the way of that covenant for ever at an end. Let us, in the II. place. Attend to the n.ifery under which fallen man conu s into the world, ylll mankind, by their fall, AKE UNDER THE WRATH AND CURSE of God. Wrath, ^hcn applied to the infinite God, and when applied to The Mifery of the Fallen State, 397 to his creatures, mufl: be under (lood very differently. Applied to him, the great Jkhovah, it muft be inter- preted in a manner confonant to the abfolute perfec- tion of his nature, with which all human paffions are utterly incompatible. It muft denote, in general, the tremendous effects of that holy refentment which arifes from the contrarit-ty there is in fin to his immaculate nature. What the extent of the wrath of Almighty God is, his omnifcient Self only knows. How figni- ficant the queftion, and the declaration fubjoined to ''it ! Who knoweth the power of thine anger f even accord- ing to thy fear is thy wrath. Pfal. xc. 1 1. Glorified faints in heaven, on the one hand, know felicity, and condemned fmners in hell, on the other, know mifery, in perfedion. What the extent of infernal mifery is we know not. Who would wilh to make the awful experiment ? Upon finners in the infernal ftate, wrath comes to the uttermojl. But what the extent of the phrafe, the iittermojt of the wrath of the Almighty is, who can pretend 10 fay ? What reafon then \\2st ftnners in Zion to be afraid? No wonder though fearfulnefs furprife the hypocrite. For who among us can dwell •with devouring fire? who atnong us can dwell with ever- lajiing burnings ? ifa. xxxiii. 1 4. Sinners are faid to be under the wrath of God. The manner of expreflion exadly coincides with our Lord's own words. He that beiieveth not the Sonfhall not fee life ; but the turath of God abideih on him. John iii. 36. It hovers on the guilty fmner's head. It lies upon him, though he feels it not. Who can think of the fituatioa of bodom and Gomorrah and their wretch- ed inhabitants, when the ftorm of brimftone and fire hung over their heads, ready every moment to burft and fall upon them, and not be fhocked ? i3ut what is a tempeft of brimftone and fire, though tremendous beyond imagination, in comparifon with the wrath of Jekovah ? Fallen 398 7 he Mifer J of the Fallen State, Fallen man is faid to come into the world under the airfe, as well as the wrath of God. By the former we may ur.derftand the condemnatory fentencc of the bro- ken law, by which t\ie guilty finner is bound over to the latter. For as many as are of the ivorks of the law are under the curse ; for it is ivritten^ cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. Gal. iii. 10. Thus, as fm is ever attended with guilt, and each of us is con- ceived and born a finner, each of us comes into the world in an accurfed flate. The import of the malc- diftory fentence of the broken law, and the nature, as well as the extent of the punifhment, to which it dooms guilty fmners, will appear from the confideration of the III. Third thin,^^ in this account of the mifery of our fallen flate — All mankind^ by their falU have not only loH communion with God, and are under his wrath and curfe, but are liable to all the miseries of this life, TO death itself, and to the pains of hell for £VER. Here are three things, the miferies of this life ; death itfelf ; and the pains of hell for ever. Ftrft, The miferies of this life. On a former occafion we found, that the life promifcd in the covenant of works included not only the continued union of foul and body, but the felicity and comforts of life. Wc faid, on the other hand, that the death threatened in that covenant comprehended not only the actual fepa- ration of foul and body, but alfo a forfeiture of the comforts of lite, and the inflidion of temporal calami- tics, which are the forerunners and beginnings of death. I'hus the moment man finned, he began to fufler in both foul and bodv. What a long train of temporal miferies and woes did fin introduce into the world ! To what a complication and variety of temporal calamities and maladies is fallen man fubjei^ed ! Affcding. in- deed, The Mifery cf the Fallen State, 39^ deed, is the account which the facred hiftory gives us of the confeqeiibes of the fail. To all the three con- cerned in it, the ferpent, the woman, and the man, and even to the earth, the theatre on which this fatal tra- gedy was adcd, do they extend. The Lord God SAID UNTO THE SERPENT, Becaufe thou haft done th'is^ thou art ciirfed above all cattle, and above every heajt of the field: upon thy belly Jhalt thou go, and duftfh alt thou eat all the days cf thy life. And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy feed and her feed : it, or he, Jhall bruife thy head, and thou fhalt bruife bis heel, — Unto the woman he said, I will greatly muU tiply thy forrow and thy conception : in forrow Jhalt thou bring forth children ; and thy dcfire Jhall be toward thy hufband, and he Jhall rule over thee. — And unto Adam HE SAID, Becaufe thou ha/i hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and ha/i eaten of the tree of which I commanded thee, faying. Thou Jhalt not eat of it ; cur fed is the ground for thy fake ; in forrow Jhalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. Thorns alfo and thiftles jhall it bring forth to thee : and thou Jhalt eat the herb of the field. In the fweat of thy face Jhalt thou eat bread ; till thou return unto the ground., for out of it waft thou taken : for duft thou artj and untd^uft fhcilt thou return, A full enumeration and detail of the temporal mi- feries and maladies, to which fin has expofed fallen man, I will not attempt. They attend man in all the ftages of Hfe, from his birth to his death. Juftly has it been obferved, that man is born crying, lives complaining, and dies difappointed from the world. Thefe mlferies attend men in all ftations and conditions of life, from the king' on the throne to the beggar that fits on the dunghill. Who ever defcribed the vanity and cala- mities of human life in more plaintive and moving drains than the moft celebraced prince that ever fwayed an earthly fceptre ? He does it in an advanced age, having previoully experienced a great variety of worldly 400 The Mifery of the Fallen State, worldly gratifications and plcafures, asjwell as dilap- pointments and trials. Rather than qi\ote particular paffages to you, I recommend to you a careful pcruial ot the whole book of Ecclefiaftes. In all relations and circumflances \^ man expofcd to miferies and diitrcfles; in the married ftate as wrll as the unmarried. If the married ftate has irs comforts, it alfo has its croflcs. The hufbjnd often is a heavy trial to the wife, and the wife to the hufbind. Ohen are parents a trial to their children ; and children bring down the grey hairs of their parents with forrow to the grave. At an early period did man begin to experience family-affliclion. Fratricide is one of the earlieft crimes committed in cur world. Cain, to the inexpreflible grief of his parents, moft unnaturally embrued his hands in the blood of his brother Abel. The dying complaint of the man according to God's own heart reduplicated mainly upon his family- trials. His houfehold was not fuch in point of either piety or profpcrity as he could have wiihcd. 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. Families, once the moft fiourfhing, have become wholly extindt. Cities of vaft extent, and exceedingly populous, have been overturned ; and fcarce a veftige of their former grandeur now remains. Travellers are very much at a lofs to afcertain the fpot on which they ftood. Nations, formerly moft profpcrous and powerful, have been totally exterminated. Empires and kingdoms moft opulent and mighty have been fub« verted and totally ruined. What war and blood ftied, msflacres and cruelties, have been perpetrated in the world! For thoulands of years has our world been an Aceldama, a field of blood. The barbarities which have been perpetrated by human beings, and the havoc which they have made of one another, are a lafting difgrace to human nature ; and the recital or rccolledion of them hurts the feelings, not only of the Chriftian, but •f the man. Were I to ranfack the hiftory of the world. The Mlfery of the Fallen State. 401 world, of even the world called Chriflian, I might find materials for many volumes on this painful fubjecl. Ungrateful man ! having rifen in rebellion againfl: the great Governor of the world, the inferior creatures have thrown ofF their former fubjedion to him. The beafts of the earth, the fowls of the air, and the fifhes of the fea, have become the executioners of divine ven- geance ; and the feveral elements have fought againft: finful man. Heaven above and the earth bdow have confpired for his deftrud^on and ruin For a fearful fpecirncn of the public calamities which fin has intro- duced into the world, let us take a curfory view of the final deftruflion of Jerufalera, and difperfion of the Jew? a few years after our Lord's afcenfion. Of the fearful prodigies and figns which preceded this difnial event, many writers have taken notice. A ftar, in the form of afword, hung over the city of Jeru- falem a whole year. In the dead of the night, at the time of the feafl of tabernacles, a light, fimihr to that of the fun in his meridian fplendor, fhone for half an hour on the temple, and the places contiguous to it. The great eaftern gate of the temple, which was all of folid brafs, and which tw/^nty men were fcarcely fufli- cient to ihut, though faftened with Itroag bolts, fud- denly opened of its own accord. Armies were feen engaging one another in the air. The priefts, watch- ing in the temple at the fe^fl of Pentecoft, heard a voice, as of a great multitude, crying. Let us go hence. For no lefs than feven years and a half, a country man, called Jefus, ran up and down the (Ireets of Jerufalem, efpecially at their folemn feftivals, crying, in doleful ac- cents, Wo to Jer-.'falem ! Wo to the city ! Wo, to the people! Wo to the temple ! and, though he was cruelly punifhed, nothing could reflrain him from crying ; till at laft, as he was uttering thefe words. Wo to myfelf alfo ! he was flruck dead by a ftone from a fling. — Thele awful to- kens and warnings were far from being infignificant Vol.. I. Fee and t 402 The M'l/ery of the Fallen Stat^ arri vain. The cataftrophc which they prognofticatcd pxceeds defcription. Soon did the Roman army, under Vcfpafian, invade their country from the north-eaft, fpreading defolation throu.'h city and country. The Jews, under a fearful and judicial infatuation, inftead of fubmitting to the mfrciful Vefpafian, madly refifted ; nay, bent on their own deflrudion, they, in many pbces, fought and maf- facred one another. At Jerufalem, efpecially, was the fcene bloody and tragical beyond imagination. The deftruiflion of that unhappy city happened at the time of the paflbvcr, when, it is fuppofed, there might be a confiderably greater number in it than in all North Britain. Its inhabitants, as an additional evidence of their in- fatuation, were divided into faftions and parties. Thefe, though they occafionally united, to make furious, but unfuccefsful, fallies on the Romans, often murdered one another. They even murdered the inhabitants in fport, pretending to try the (haipnefs of their fwords. The multitudes of unburied dead bodies, corrupting the air, produced a fearful pcflilence. Along with fword and peflilence, famine prevailed lo fuch a degree that they fed on one another. Ladies, otherwife delicate, broiled their fucking infants, and ate them. After an obftinate defence, for fix months, the city was taken, and prodi- gious numbers of its inhabitants put to the fword. Six thoafmd Jews, having been perfuaded to take fhelter jn the temple, it was fet on fire, and they perifhcd in the flames. A Roman commander, that our Lord's words mioht be literally fulfilled, ordered the foundations of this (lately edifice to be plowed up. To fuch a degree was Titus, one of the mofl: merciful generals that ever commanded an army, provoked with the obilinacy and madnefs of the Jews, that he crucified of them, before ^he walls of the city, fo long as he had wood to ercft froffcs. a; The Mtfery of the Fallen State* 403 At Jerufalem, no lefs a number of the Jews than ele- ven hundred theufand p-^rifhed by fword, famirxc, and peftilence. Between two and three hundred theufand were cut off in other places. Almoit one hundred thoufand were taken prifoners, and fent into Egypt and Syria, to be expofed for fhows, devoured by wild beads, or fold for flaves. The cruelties and maflacres which the unhappy Jews fuffered in fubfequent agesj are incredible. In a dread- ful war, about a hundred years ?ifter our Lord's afcen- fion, occafioned by a bafe impoftor pretending to be the Meffiah, about fix hundred thoufand Jews are laid to have been flain by the fword, befides what perifhed by famine and peftilence. The very rivers are faid to have been high fwclled with human blood ; and the fea, into which they ran, for fome miles, marked with ir. — • An aftonifhing feries of almoft unparalleled calamities did the Jews fuffer in following ages. But I have faid enough for a fpecimen. To an unknown number and variety of miferics has fm fubje£led mankind. Thefe are, in general, of two kinds, outward and inward. To what bodily maladies and diftempers are we liable ? Long has our world been a kofpitaL Day after day do we hear complaints from all quarters. From difeafe and pain is no part of the body, either external or internal, exempted. One we fee ianguifhing and pining away in ficknefs ; another covered with wounds, and bruifes, and putrifying fores, attended with the mofl excruciating agonies and pains. Shocking is the account which writers give us of the leprofy, for inftance, which often rages with fatal vio- lence, efpecially in hot countries. Shocking, indeed^ muft it be for a human body to be roafted in a fire, kindled within itfelf, till many of its members, fuch a^ the nofe, the fingers, &c. be not only rendered ufelefs, but rot and fall off. This terrible diftemper, it is faid, raged in Europe, in the tenth and eleventh centuries, to E e e » fuch 404 The Mi/efj of the Fallen State. fuch a degree, that no Icfs a number than ten thoufand hofpilals were found necefiary for lepers only. Is it any wonder that the body, in all its organs and mem- bers, fhould fuffer ? The body is a partaker with the foul in fm ; and, therefore, is a fharer in the pain- ful cffefts of it. To what reproach and {hame, as well as bodily pain, are mankind expofed in the world i Poverty and want, hunger and thirlt, as well as re- proach, do they often fufler. Of the many bodily dif- cafes, and temporal calamities, which mankind fuffer, wfi have a ftriking reprefentation in the laft of the five books of Mofes. 1 cannot forbear to repeat part of the pafTage. 'J he Lord jhall make the peJUlence cleave unto theey until he have confumcd thee from off the land whe- ther thou goe/i to poffefs it* The Lord jhall fmite thee ivith a confumption, andzuiih aftver^ and with an injlammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the /word, and with bladings and with mildew. "The Lord Jhall fmite thee with the botch of Egypt, and with the erne rods, and with the fcab^ and with the itch, whereof thou canjl not he healed. The Lord fkall finite thee with madnefs, and blindncfs, and afionifljnient of heart. The Lord fhall fmite thee in the knees, and in the legs, with a fore botch that cannot be healed, from the fole of thy foot unto the top of thy head, Deut. xxviii. Chapter. There are the internal, as well as the external, mife- ries of this life. The foul, the principal part of the man, the chief feat of corruption, mull be the princi- pal fubjcft of mifcry. With all the powers and facuU lies of our fouls have we finned. No wonder then though we fuffer in all the powers of our fouls, as well as in all the parts of our bodies. Of the internal miferies, to which man is liable in con- fequence of the fall, we have a fuflicient fpecimen in the Larger Catcchifm on this fubjed:. It fpecifies hlind- ncjs of mind, a reprobate ferfe, firong dclufwns, hcirdnrfs cf heart, horror of coffcicuce, and vile aff^icns. ' The general The Ml/cry of the Fallen State* 405* general import of thofe different exprcffions is cbvic3A3S.. Tliey refer to the different powers of ihe foul. May they not, in one view, be faid to relate to the finfulnefs of the fallen ftate ; and, in another, to the raifery of it ? It may be faid here, if the miferies of this life be the efFeds of fin, and if believers be faved from fm, and delivered from the punifliment of it, why are they not exempted from thofe maladies and evils which fm in- troduced into this world, as well as the punifhment of it in the world to come ? It may fuffice to fay, that had it pleafed God, he could have at once faved every Tin- ner belonging to the eledlion of grace fiom fin itfelf, and from all the painful efiefts of it ; inftantaneoufly regenerating and glorifying the eled finner in both foul and body. But it is in a gradual, not an inftan- taneous manner, that finners are delivered from fin and the confequences of it. The good work begun in re- generation is perfected in glorification ; and between the two there is an interval of longer or fhorter dura- tion. Thus are they, pofterior to their converfion to Chrifl, expofed to a variety of adverfities and trials, which even to them are the confequcnces of fin. For to fuch afBi.dions and evils would they never have been fubje^l had they never, finned. But, though to be- lievers they be the confequcnces of fin, they are not the proper punifnment of it. From the malignant and penal nature of fuch calamities and evils are all true believers for ever exempted. To fuch perfons they come not in the channel of the threatening of the old covenant ; but rather in the channel of the prorrifTory part of the new. To fuch perfons, therefore, they are a privilege, rather than a punifliment. They are in- tended CO iip.bitter fin to them, and to excite them to be tJ3ie more felicitous for total and final freedom from it. * vVhat a bleffing is fandified afilittion! It is not threatened as a punifliment, but promifed as a prlvi- l?g^' Thus God fpeaks in relation to the head of ths new 4c6 The Mifcry of the Falkn StaU. new covenant, and ihe militant members of his my- flical body, If his children forfake my lazu, and walk not in my judgments ; if they break my flatutes^ and keep not my cumtnandmoits ; then will I vi/it their tranfgreffions with the rod, and their iniquity with f tripes. Never- theless, MY LOVING-KINDNESS WILL / not take froui ihem, nor fuffer my faithjulnefs to fail. Pfal. Ixxxix. 30, ~~33- ... 1 he next thing in the mifery to which fallen man is liable, is, Secondly^ Death itfelf. On a former occafion wc found, that the fcripiure fpcaks of different deaths. In it there is exprefs mention of the fecond death ; and a fccond death fuppofes a firft. Death is ufually confidcred as threefold ; as natural, as fpiritual, and as eternal. But as death in this anfwcr is diftinguiflied both from the miferies of this life, on the one hand, and from the pains of hell, on the other, it mufk denote natural death. Now, natural death, as 1 had occafion to fhow formerly, denotes the aftual diffolution of the myfterious union between the foul and the body, and the temporary fe- paration of thefe two conftituents of our nature. It is here underftood that the union of thefe two great parts of man, as a compound being, is neceffary and condu- cive to his perfection and felicity. The body, on the one hand, is intended to be a proper receptacle and habitation for the foul ; the foul, on the other, to inhabit and aduate the body. That death itfelf is included in the threatening, as a material part of the puniftiment denounced to be inflided in the cafe of tranfgreffion, is manifcft. For thus the threatening runs, In the day thou eateji thereof thou fmlt fur cly die. But it may be faid here, if death be a part of the punilhment of fin, why are not believers altogether freed from it ? Are they not totally delivered from the covenant of works, in its precept and its penalty .•* Are they not as completely freed from the punUhmc.^'. of fm The Mifery of the Fallen State. 407 fm as if they never had incurred it ? Why then are they not totally delivered from the ftroke of natural death ? That believers, no lefs than unbelievers, are fubjecled to the ftroke of death, is certain. But though fubjed- ed to the ftroke, they are freed from the fling of it. They do not die in the fenfe of the threatening of the covenant of works, or fufFer a penal death. Death to them is no proper punifhment ; but, on the contrary, a great privilege. Others may be lofers by the death of the faints ; but they themielves are everlafting gain- ers. Bhjfed are the dead which die in the Lord. Rev. xiv, 13. For all things are theirs, fays the Apoftle to the believing Corinthians, whether Paid, or ApoUos, or Ce^ fhas, or the world, or life, or death, or things prefsnt, or ihings to come ; all are theirs, and they are Chri/i*Sy and Chri/i is God*s. i Cor. iii. 21, 22, 23. Eafily could God have freed his redeemed from the ftroke of death, as well as the fting. But while he de- livers them from the latter, he has his own reafons for fubjtdling them to the former. Is it not moft fit that the members be in all things conformed to the head ? Did he die, and was he buried ? and ftiall we be unwil- ling to follow him to death and to the grave? Does not every believer moft cordially befpeak him as Ruth did Naomi ? Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee ; for whither thou goefi I will go ; and where thou lodged I will lodge ; thy people Jh all he my people, and thy God my God. Where thou diest WILL I DIE, AND THERE ^WILL I BE BURIED. It re- mains that 1 now confider, 'Thirdly^ The laft thing mentioned in the mifery to which fallen man is liable, the pains of hell for ever. The words in the Hebrew text of the Old Tefta- ment, and in the Greek of the New, which we tranilate heU, have often been obferved to have an ambiguity in them. The meaning of the word hell in the anfwer now under confid;; ration, is cbvious. It denotes the ftate 4oB The Mi/cry of the Fallen State, ftate and place of mifery, in which wicked men and Imning angels a»e puniflied in a manner inexpreflibly icvere. Ahnolt all nations under heaven profcfs the belief of both a heaven and a hell. One of the mod ftupid and barbarous of even the African nations arc faid to hold the opinion of no lefs than twcnty-feven heavens, and thirteen Iiclls. A variety of fables and ficlions concerning heaven, on the one hand, and hell, on the other, arc to be found in ancient Heathen wri- tings. A celebrated Latin poet, fpeaking of the wicked in the infernal world, tells us, that if he had an hun- dred mouths and a hundred tongues, he could not ex- prefs the one half of their mifery. ■ The queftion relating to the locality and fituation of hell hns been agitated among Heathens, as well as a- jnong Jews and Chriftians, Some of them have fan- cied hell to be fituated in the fubterraneous regions under the lake Avernus in Campania, from which poi- ionous vapours are faid to arife. Others have imagi- ned it to be under a certain promontory of Laconia ; which is faid to be a dark frightful place befet with thick woods. The Mahometans profefs their belief of a hell, and the endlefs punifhment of the wicked in it. They tell us, that it has feven gates ; the firit for Muf- felmen ihcmfelves ; the fccond for Chriftians ; the third for Jews ; the fourth for the Sabians ; the fifth for the Magians ; the fixth for Pagans j the fevcnth for hypo* critcs of all nations. The Jewifh writers fay, that hell is fituated in the cen- tre of the earth, and that there ars three paflages which lend to it ; the firft in the wildcrnefs, probably the wildernefs of Arabia ; the fecond in the fca, perhaps the Mediterranean; and the third at the city of Jer,- fdlem. As for Chriftian writers, earlier and later, they are liot a little divided in their fcntiments concerning -the r.iturc, as well as the Atuation, of hell, Often is it in the ne Mifcry of the Fallen State; /iJlr iht. facred writings reprefented under the notion o^ fire^* This has given occafion to the queftion. Is hell a viate- rial fire ?. The arguments on the different fides of ibis queftion I reckon it altogether unneceffary to enume- rate and examine. That it is to be underftood ot a material fire, I can fee no reafon to think. Why it is compared to fire, it is eafy to fee. The pain occafioned by fire fs mod exquifite. To deter, therefore, fronj fin, which renders us obnoxious to hell, and to excite Hs to flee from the wrath to come, betaking our- felves by faith to Jefus, a Saviour from fin and fronii wrath, we are reminded, that in the infernal world the corroding worm of a condemning confcience, which in- eelfantly gnaws and preys upon the vitals of the damn- ed, dietb not ; and the fire of the vindictive wrath of Al- mighty God h not quenched. If thy right hand offend ihee^ fays our Lord, cut it off'; for it is bttttr for thee to enter into life maimed ; than having two hands to go info hell 3 into the fire that never fhall he quenched. Where THEIR WORM DIETH NOT, AND THEIR FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED. Mark ix. 43, 4 4,. To this unhappy place, the words of the Prophet have often been applied. Tophet is ordained of old ; tea^ for the king it is prepared : he hath made it deep and large \ the pile thereof is fire and much wood: the breath cf Jehovah y like a dream of britn/ione, doth kindle it. Ifu XXX. 33. As for the opinion: of the primitive Chrifliians con- cerning the locality and fituation of hell, it has been obferved, that, imagining the earth to be an extended plain, with the heavens as an arch drawn over it, fonie of them fuppofed hell to be a place under the earth. Others imagined hell to be a great abyfs io the bowels- or centre of the earth. Since the figure of the earth came *:> be underftood, orher theories and opinions Croncerning the fituation of hell have been invented and propagated. Some have fuppofed it to be in a certain VoL-L Fff zom^i^ i 4 To The Mifery of the Fallen State, comet, or rather a number of comets, which, it is ima- gined, by their eccentric motions, carry the damned at one time into the confines of the fun, and fo near to that immenfe body of burning matter, that they are miferably fcorchcd with his heat ; and at another carry them into dark dreary regions, where they are expofed to the moft intcnfe cold. The opinion of a certain mo- dern writer is, that hell is fituated in the body of the fun. As to the mofl prevailing opinions concerning the fituation of hcll, they fecm to go upon the fuppofition, that by it we are to underfland a material fire. But how precarious and improbable is this opinion ! That hell is we know ; but where it is we know not. Far more material and neceffary is it for us to be folicitous to efcapc it, than to know where it is. Another quellion relating to hell is, whether the mi- fery in it be endlefs. Ihis queftion, the anfwer, in terms the mofl exprefs, determines. "The pains of hell are faid to be FOR EVER. It was, as is well known, the opinion of a famous Chriftian father, and has been the opinion of others in later times, that the duration of the punifh- ment of the wicked in heil is to be longer or fhorter in proportion to the number and magnitude of their crimes in this world ; and that they are all in due time to be liberated from the infernal prifon. But, not to urge other confiderations, there is one obvious argu- ment to prove the eternity of the punifliment of the wicked in hell, which never has been, and, I may ven- ture to fay, cannot be anfwered. It is the following. 'The fame terms are ufed to exprefs the duration of the njiff ry of the wicked which are applied to the duration of the felicity of the righteous, lor thus our Lord fpeaks, ^1 brfc: that is, the ^Aickcd, Jhall go away into everlast- ing punijhmcnt ; but the righteous into life eternal. Matth. XXV. 46. The word applied to the punifliment cf the wicked, and tranlhtcd cvcrlajling^ is, without va- riaticn« The Mifery of the Fallen State. 41 1 riation, applied to the felicity of the righteous, and ren- dered eternal. Why is the fame word ufed to exprefs the duration of the one, that is applied to the duration of the other ? Is it not for this obvious reafon, that the one is of equal duration with the other ? The reafon of the endlefsnefs of the punifhment of the wicked is ma- nifeft. They never can adequately fatisfy for their fms, and, therefore, muft fuffer for ever. The punifhment which the wicked fuffer in hell is commonly confidered in a twofold light ; as a punifh - ment of lofs, and as a punifhment oifenfe. Of all good, temporal and fpiritual, are they for ever deprived. All penal evil are they for ever to undergo, in both their outward and their inward man, in a manner and to a degree that mull far exceed our conceptions in this ftate of mortality. The inhabitants of that infernal world underfland the words of the Apollle better than I, or any preacher on earth, can pretend to do. // is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living Gcd ; for our God is a confumtngfire. Hcb. x. 31. and xii. 29. Such is the mifery of our fallen ftate ! Such mifery, temporal and eternal, has each of us incurred. To this brief fketch of the punifhment of fin, let ma fubjoin a few obvious reflections. firfi^ Let us learn the nature and the demerit of fin. When we recollect what man loft when he fell ; when we refled on the fituation in which he now comes into 'he world ; when we confider the evils which we already feel, and alfo the additional evils which v.e fear, let us remember, that of all thefe evils fin is the origin. They "are only the cfFsds. Sin is the caufe. What an accurfed, what an odious thing is fin ! Hate- ful is it to God. Hateful, as well as hurtful, is it to all good men. Secondly^ We have here a ftrlking inftance and proof of the infenfibility that attends, necefTarily attends, our natural ftate. We come into the world under the ma- Fff 2 |€dia^9n 412 T^he Mifery of the Fallen State, Icdidion of Heaven, and the wrath of the Almightv. Infupportable weight ! It is infinitely more than luf- iicient to fink creation. Under the accumulated guilt and punifliment of the fins of the cleft, the Son of God himfelf funk in drep mire luhere there "jjas no Jianding ; and he came into deep waters where the foods cverjiowed him. But, heavy as the weight of fin and puniHiment, under which we naturally lie, is, we feel it not. The offer of relief and eafe, which the Sa- viour, in the gofpel, makes to us, we treat with the utmofl nrgleft. / have called, fays he, and ye refufed, I have fireichcd out my hand, and no man regarded. Pfov. i. 24. ^thirdly. Is the punifimient of fin fuch ? What rea- fon has each finner to fay, as unhappy Cain, My pu- nijhment is greater than I can bear. Who knows the demerit of fin, or the extent of the punifliment of it ? \Vhat reafon have finners, efpecially finncrs in Zion, to be afraid r* Afraid either at an earlier or a later pe- riod, the moft unfeeling and fearlefs finner muft be. What the apprehenfions and feelings of an awakened and alarmed finner are, the perfon that has been in fuch a fituation can beft tell. What painful anxiety and folicitude do Peter's hearers exprefs ? They were pricked in their hearts, and /aid unto Peter and to the re/} of the Apofks, Men and brethren , what fall we da to be faved ? Fourthly, What an cffential difference is theiT be- tween the afflidions of the godly, and the troubles of the ungodly, in this world ! The former are no longer finder the covenant of works, and, therefore, no long- er under its curfe ; confcqucntly their afflidions come to ihcm in the way of the new covenant, which has in it no curfe. 1 jiey are in a blefled fiate, and a bleflln^ accompanies the'-r alllidtions, as well as their comforts. The-latter, on the contrary, are under the broken co- venant J and, therefore, under its baneful curfe. They are f 1 ><• The M'lfery of the Fallen State, 413 are in an accurfed flate ; confequently a curfe attends all their comforts, as well as their affliflions. In ihort, the curfe imbitters what other wife would be fweet to the one ; and the bleffing fweetens what otherwife -would be bitter to the other. Fifthly, Between the death of the wicked and that of the righteous, there is a fpecific difference. To the former, it is a heavy punifhment ; the confequences of k are mofi fatal. To the latter, it is converted into a privilege ; a precious privilege it is. What a happy, and what a comfortable thing muft it be to fall afleep in Chrift, in the arms of his mercy, in the embraces of his love ! What good reafon had Solomon to fay ir relation to each of the faints. The day of death is better than the day of one's birth. Eccl. vii. i. Sixthly^ The duration of the mifery of the damned in hell, no lefs than the degree of it, is a mofl fearful confideration. It is a puni(hment as endlefs as it is intenfe. Endlefs puniihment! Tremendous thought! Shall we, for momentory gratifications, expofe our- felves to endlefs miferies and woes ? What infatuation an4 folly ! In fine. Is the punifhment of fm fuch as hath been faid ? Under what obligations are the redeemed of the Lord to the dying love of Jefus Chrift ; and what muft the love be that could induce him to fatisfy our fm ? Such is the demerit of fm, fuch the inexorable juftice of Jehovah, that, rather than pafs fm unpunifhcd, he would punifh it on his own Son. For God fpared not his ozun Son, but delivered him over to agony and death for lis. The fwordof fm-revenging juftice was drawn, and fheathed in the bowels of that divinely innocent ^perfon. Such was the love of the Son to us, that, rather than we fhould not be faved from fm and wrath, he would fuSer the punifhment of our fin, and fave us from it. Does fin itfelf, or does its punifhment, feem to you, or any of you, a light thing ? Go to Calvary, view 4x4 '^^^6 Mifery of the Fallen State. view the Son of God, the furety of finncrs, fuffcrlng the punifhment of their fins. Look into his pierced fide. Behold his hands and his feet faflened with tor- turous nails to the accurfed tree. If fin brought the Lord of glory and of life, to fuch an ignominious and excruciating death, how fhall we fatisfy for it ? Suffer we may ; but fatisfy for it we cannot. Behold the Lamb of God, that iaketh away the ftn of the world. Be perfuaded io flee from the wrath to come. Now is the accented time, now is the day of falvation. The ( 415 ) The Covenant of Grace. PsAL. Ixxxix. 3. / have made a covenant with my chofen^ I have fworjk unto David myfsrvant. MOST important are the difcoveries which divine revelation has made in our world. Two things efpecially has it made known unto us ; of which we muft otherwife have been ignorant. It informs us of an ancient federal tranfadlion between the great God and the father of the human race ; a contraft almofl: as old as the creation itfelf. But this is not all. It in- forms us of a covenant imcomparably more ancient ; a covenant between the eternal Father and his co-eternal Son, from the earlieft ages of eternity, in order ta the redemption of mankind, ruined by the breach of the other covenant. Of this fuperior covenant JehovaH fpeakj; in the words which 1 have now read. I have^ fays he, made a covenant with my chofen, I have /worn Wfito David 7ny fervant. To 41 6 T'he Covenant of Grace. To the account which the text, and fimilar places of (cripture, a number of which will be introduced in the fcquei, give us of this eternal covenant, agrees the definition of it which the Compilers of the Catechifm give us in the following anfwer. God havings out of his mere good pleafure, from all eternity, clewed fame to et.-cr- lajiing hfe^ did enter into a covenant of grace, to deliver them out of the efiate of fin and mifery, and to bring them into an efiate offalvation by a Redeemer, Having beheld man falling from a ftate of great dig- nity, into a ftate of the moft abjecl mifery, and having contemplated both the finfulnefs and the wretchednefs of his fallen ftate, we now leave the dark fide of the fubjeft, and enter on a more pleafmg tafk. What an aftonifhing and delightful fcene now opens before us ! The fecrets of eternity are difclofed, and the counfels of heaven are opened to our view. We fee that, prior to our fall in Adam, prior to the making of the cove- nant of works with him, by the violation of which oui^ fall was occafioncd, even long before Adam himfelf was brought into being, a fuperior federal Head was found out, and a better covenant made with him, by which we recover the felicity and dignity which wi forfeited ; nay, felicity and dignity, fuch as we never could have expefted or obtained in the way of the other covenant. We are now entering on the difcuf- fion of a fubjedl of vaft importance and extent. It. may be faid to be the capital article of revelation. From the fcriptures, as I have ftiown on former occafions, it is fufiiciently evident, that a proper cove- nant was made with the firft Adam in a ftate of inno- cency. But the revelation of that covenant, which we have in the fcriptures, is rather indirc6l and im- plicit. Of it we have a number of proofs, but proofs rather of the oblique and collateral kind. — But the revelation of the better covenant, in the fcriptures of both the Old Ttftament and the New, is moft ex- plicit The Covenant of Grace. 417 piicit and plain, as well as copious and full. The fcripture feems to fpeak of the old covenant as if it were with reludance and in a fparing manner. But in the frequent mention, and full difcovery of the new cove»' nant God has peculiar complacence and delight. On every occafion does he fpeak of it with a manifefl: air of approbation and fatisfadion. The violation of the covenant of works was permitted with a manifeft view to the introduction of the covenant of grace. Ac- cordingly, as foon as the one was broken, the other was revealed, and the adminiftration of it commenced. The revelation of it in the feveral ages of the Old Teflament may be compared to the gradual increafe of light, from the firft dawn of it in the morning tili mid- day. The Old Teflament ha;s been divided into four pe- riods ; in each of which the church was favoured with exprefs revelations of the fuperior covenant. In the antediluvian age it was revealed, and typically ratified by facrifices. Gen. iii. 15. and iv. ^6. Of the reve- lation of this covenant to Noah, and of his faith in it? and in the all-atoning facrifice, by which it was in cue time to be confirmed, fignified by the typical facrifices which he offered, the infpired Writer of the Book of Genefis informs us in Chapters viii, and ix. From the flood to the calling of Abraham, that revelation was preferved and enlarged ; for we are informed by an Apoftle of the New Teflament, that unto Abraham the gcfpel vjas preached. Gal, iii, 8. During the interval between the calling of Abraham, and the times of Mofes, this revelation was farther amplified. The very promulgation of the law at Sinai is prefaced with an intimation of this co\'enant. Thus the fupreme Law- giver fpeaks, / a?n the Lord thy God, which have irought thee cu. cf the land of Egypt 0 and the Ijoife of bondage. Thou /hall., therefore., have no other gods before me. In ail the feveral fubfequent ages of the church, till the adua! Vol. L ^ g g incai'nation t 4x8 The Covenant of Grace. incarnation and perfonal miniftry of Jcfus Chriil:, the revelation of the better covenant was not only prefer- ved, but rendered more and more full and clear. In many parts of the writings of the Prophets, as well as the Apoftles, is it mentioned under the exprefs name of a covenant. In numerous other places, though the word covenant does not occur, we have intimations of it no lefs full and plain. On one occafion, the con- d'uiorary p rt of it is introduced, and on another, the promijfory. In a great number of pafTagcs, both its parts, conditionary and promiflbry, are flated y and the dependence the one has upon the other intimated. For a fpfcimen, 1 fhall felccl only cne paflage. It is the fiftv-third chapter of ifaiah. The great work af- figncd to the Surety of this covenant, and which, as the fole proper condition of it, he in due time perform- ed in our room and for our redemption, as well as in our world and in our nature, that illurtrious paflage cxpreffes, by his bearing our griefs^ and carrying our for' rows ; by bis being ftricken^jmitten of God, and afjiidedr, by hi'; being wounded f'-r our tranfgrejp.or.s^ and bruifedfor our iniquiiie: ; by his being cpprcjfed and aflicled. I'he rich reward, which, as a principal branch ot the promif- fory part of the covenant, he was to receive for his arduous work, it exprclVes thus. Ue fballfee his feed, he fnill prolong his days, avd the plcrfure of the Lord Jhall pro/per in his hand. He Jhall fee of the travail of his foul, ''nd fiall befatisficd. In this evangelical paffage are copious and clear intimations of the two great parts of that everlafling covenant, on which the redemption of the church of both the Old Tedament and the New depends. No lefs plainly is the connexion between the two parrs of it, and the dependence the one has upon the other, intimated to u?. Mod cxprellive and full to this purpofe are verfcs lo, II, I i. lVhc7i ihouJhijU make his foul an offering for fm, thut is, in conlidcration of his making his loul an offer- ing The Covenant of Grace, 41^ * ing for fin, and, as a juft: reward for fo great and good a work, he Jh all fee his feed ^ he f mil prolong his days, and the pleafure of the Lord Jh all profper in his hand. Have we not in this confolatory palfage a fufficient intimation of the two great parts of the covenant of redemption,* and of the two glorious parties in it, the one under- taking for the fulfilment of its arduous condition, the other engaging for the accomplilhment of its precious promifes ? This covenant certainly is the chief of the ways and works of God. It is the refult of his manifold wifdom, and the mod glorious difplay of it. Into it angels, as well as men, do look and pry. Admirably is it calcu- lated for the advancement of the glory of all the divine perfons and perfedlions. How often does God call it, by way of diftindion, his covenant ? The covenant of works, indeed, was his. But no where does he call it his covenant. The former is his covenant in point of contrivance. It is his in point of difcovery. An everlaft- ing fecret muft it have been, had he not revealed it to us. He inflates fmners in it, and confers upon them all the benefits and bleffin^s of it. He is infinitely glorified by it, and inetlably, pleafed with the glorious head of it, the blood of it, and with every perfon who obtains a faving intereft in it. Once, at leaft, is it faid to be the church'' s covenant ; for thus the head befpeaks her. As J or thee alfo, by the blood of thy covenant^ 1 have fcnt forth thy prifoners out of the pit where there is no water. Zech. ix. it. The general defign and tenor of ihis covenarrt we may learn from the epithets applied to it in the Icrip- tures. It is commonly known by the name of the co- venant of grace, Condtfcending and good was God in the covenant of works. But the molt illuflrious dif- play or grace was referved for this fecond and fuperior covenant. It has often been filled the covenant c/r^- 4^ nipt ion -f for by it the rsden^piion of the ciiurch of Ggg 2 the 4^0 The Covenant of Grace, • the firft born is effected. It is, in the fcriptures, ftiled a covenant of peace. Ifa. liv. lo. The benevolent de- fi^n of it WIS to brings about reconciliation between the offended God, and offending Tinners of mankind. Often •is it denominated the new covenant. Long ago did the covenant of works luax old. But this covenant ever has been, and ever will be, new. Often is it defifrned an ei'crljjHng covenant. It was from eternity, and it is to eternity. Everlafting is it in refped of the intereft which every believer has in it, as well as in all other views. With great propriety may the Old Tcflament phrafe, a covenant of fait, be applied to it. Salt of old was a token of friendfhip, and a fymbol of incorruption, and was ufcd in the different offerings and facri*:ces, which were prefented to God under the Old Teflament, The falutary defign of this covenant, as I faid already, is to rcftorc a -permanent and inviolable friendfhip be- tween God and man, whom fin had fet at variance. For this end was it ratified and confirmed by the all- atoning facrifice of Chrifl, the great High Pried of our profeffion. In the account which the anfwer gives of the great plan of redemption, there are four important particu- lars, which merit our mofl fcrious confideration ; the author of it, God ; the origin and fpring of it, his mere good pleafure ; the early period at which this glorious plan was formed, /a-o;/? all eternity ; and the important flcps which the co-eternal three, at that early pe- riod, took for the redemption of mankind, forcfecn fal- len in time, having eleSlcd fome to cverloflirg life, Gcd en' end into a covenant of ^r ace, to deliver them cut of the eflate of fin and mifery, and to bring them into an cftate of falvation by a Redeemer. I. The great Author of this important plan, God. All things belonging to creation were of God. Klpe- pially are all things belonging to redemption of him. Crcatioi; The Covenant of Grace. ^21 • Creation was the joint work of the uncreated Three. Efpccially do they all concur in the oeconomy of re- demption. God the Father, however, is chiefly intend- ed here. The order in which the divine perfons ad, ^v'r muft correfpond to the myfterious order in which they fubfift. Accordingly, as the Father is the firft in the order of fabfiReiice, the motion or propofal for oor recovery is fiid to come originally from him. Thus the Father, fuftaining the majefty of the Deity, elects and calls the Son to^De his fervant, and the Son con- defcends to become the Fatner's fervant, and, in that capacity, to accomplifh the work of our redemption. That by God here, we are to under Hand the eternal Father, is manifeft ; for to the Father, as diftinguifhed from the Son and the Spirit, is our eledion exprefsly attributed in the fcriptures. The Son condefcended to be by the bather chofen, and fet apart, to be our Surety and Head in the eternal covenant. For this reafon he is {filed hii eled^ in whom his foul delight eth, Ifa. xlii. i. It was the fiift Perfon that made the covenant with the fecond, the Parchafej: of our falvation, with the con- currence of the third, who has voluntarily condefcend-^ cd to apply to us the falvation which the Surety has purchafed for us. In a word, it is here unden'lood, that the redemption of fallen man is a work which the omnipotent God only can accomplifli. I'he que- flion, Did God lea-vc all mankind to periflp in the cftate of fn and mifery ? neceiTarily implies, that, if God had not pitied mankind in thcif fallen ffate, they mud have un- avoidably perifhed for ever, their cafe would have been altogether hopelefs, and helplefs, tor any thinp^ which they themfelvcs, or the other creatures, could ^ have done for their relief and help. II. There is the origin ?ind fpring of our redemption, HIS MERE GOOD PLEASURE. To his fovereij^Htv, indeed, creation muH be afcribed. But efpecir.liy is our redemp- tion 422 The Covenant of Grace, tion owing, and to be attributed to it. In the world and in the church, he does whatfocver pleafeth him. Did he create the world, does he redeem the church, be- caufc he flood in need of cither the one or of the other ? Can any acceflion to his eflential glory and felicity ac- crue from either the one or the other ? No. Why did he purpofe to redeem fallen men, not fallen angels? Why did he determine to redeem a part of mankind, not the whole ? One anfwcr fufficcs for all fuch que- ftions ? The reafon of all is, fo it feemed good in his fight. Into the Ibvereign pleafure of God, the Apoftle of the Gentiles refolves it. This is the only way in which it can be accounted for. Blejfed he the God and Father of our Lord J.efus Chr'iji^ who hath blejfed us with all fpiritual bleffngs in heavenly places in Chrijt : According as he hath c ho fen us in him, before the foimda- iion of the world, that -WE J}.^ould be holy^ and without blame, before him in love : Having prcdeftinated us unto the adoption of children by Jefus Chrift to himfelf ac- cording TO THE good pleasure OF HIS WILL, tO the praife of the glory of his graces wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved : In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgivenefs of fins, according to the riches of his grace : Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wifdom and prudence ; having made known unto us the vtyftery cf his will, according to his good pleafure, which he hath purpcfed in himfelf : That, in the difpenfa- tion of the fulmfs of times ^ he might gather together into one all things in Chrift, both whit h are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in hi?n : In who?n alfo we have obtained an inhcri lance, being prcdeftinated according to the purpofe of him who worketh all things after the coun- sel or HIS own will. Eph. i. 3, — 11. III. There is here the early period, at which tlie im- portant plan of our redemption was formed, from all eteknitv. 'Ihat every thing which comes to pafs in time The Covenant of Grace, 425 time was foreordained from eternity, we faw on a former occafion. Efpecialiy was the whole plan of our recovery by Jefas Chrifl: concerted and adjafted from everlafting. That our eleftion in Chrift, as our repre- fenting Head, and undertaking Surety, obtained ; and that the covenant, on which our redemption depended, and by which it is effected, was entered into between the eternal Father, and his co-eternal Son, from ever-- lajiing^ the anfwer itfelf affirms, and I will have occafion to evince in the fequel. Any thing, therefore, that might be now faid for the illuftration of this branch of the fubjed will occur afterwards. Therefore I proceed to the IV. And which, indeed, is that part of the anfwer, which, in an efpecial manner, claims our confideration ; the important fteps, which the co-eternal Three, from the earhefl: ages of eternity, took in order to the re- demption of fallen man in time. God, having out of his mere good pleafure, from all eternity, ele6led fotne to everlajiing life, entered into a covenant of grace j to deliver them out of the ejiate of fin and mifery, and to bring them itito an e/iate offalvation by a Redeemer, Here are two things ; our election to everlafting life\ and the making of a covenant ; the important and falutary de- fign of which is to deliver us out of a ftate of fin and mifery, and to bring us into an eftate offalvation by a Redeemer. Firft, Our cledion in Chrift: to everlafting life. Often and differently is the word eleSlion ufed in the fcriptures. It frequently denotes the defignation of a perfon"to a function or office, either in church or ftate. In this view, it is applied to Saul king of Ifrael. Samuel faid to all the people i See ye hirn whom the Lord hath chosen, or elected, 1 Sam. x. 24. Our Lord applies it to the twelve Apoftles. Jefus anfwered them. Have not I CHOSEN, or elcded, you twelve, and one ofymi is a devil f John 424 The Covenant of Grace. John vi. 70. It cannot mean the ete£lion of all the twelve to eternal life ; for one of them was a fon oF perdition. It fometimes fi^nifies the providential fepa- ralion of a number of perfons to an external prcfcfiion of religion, by which they are diftinguifhed from the profane world, though many of them be not chofcn in Chrift to eternal life. In this view it is applied to the whole Jewilh nation. Though there is reafon to think, that the lefTer part of them only were ordained to ever- lalting life, they were Tingled out from among the o- ther nations of the world, and, by folemn profeflion, were, in a peculiar manner, the people O' God. Ac- cordingly, Mofcs befpeaks them thus, Becaufe the Lcrd loved thy fathers, therefore he chose, or elected, their feed after them^ and brought thee out in his fight, 'nith his mighty power out of Egypt. Dcur. iv. 37. In like man- ner arc the numerous members of the Apoftolical churches filled elect, though even in them there pro- bably v/ere perfons who were not chofen in Chriit to eternal life, i Pet. k 2. But in a higher fcnfe is the term ufed in the anfwer. What in the general is intended by election here, 1 had occafion to (how in a preceding Le6lurc. In treating the divine decrees. I trnnfcribed the definition which the Larger Catechifm gives us of both eledion and what is called reprobation, as applied to angels, and as applied to men. In what refpcifts the eledion of men differs from that of angels, I have already fliown. Election, indeed, is an important point. Much has it been mif-undcrflood ; and fadly has it been pervert- ed. Apt are weak and fcrupulous minds to be flumbled and offended at it. In order to fortify you againft temptations from within and from without, and to evince this to be a inofl confolatory, as well an im- portant doctrine, let me recommend to your ferious confideration the following particulars relating to it. i//, Our The Covenant of Grdci, 425 iff. Our election from eternity is of God. He only iexifted at that early period. He alone, therefore, could be the author of our eledion. Our redemption from its commencement to its confummation is God's work. Our election wa5 efpecially the a6l of God the Father y and befpeaks his aftonifhing love to us. According as HE, that is, the God and Father of our Lord Jefus Chriji^ hath CHOSEN us in him before the foundation of the "juorldi Eph. i. 4. In fimilar terms does the Apoftle addrefs the Theflalonian converts. We are hound to give thanks unto God alway for you^ brethren^ beloved of the Lord^ be* caufe God hath from the beginning chosen you to falva- tion, through fandification of the Spirit, and belief cf the truth. 2 Their, ii. 13. idly^ There is the date of our eleclion. It was, as has been obferved^ from eternity. How derogatory to God, and how comfortlefs to the faints, is it to fuppofe, that our eleftion or non-eleclion to eternal felicity, de- pends on our behaviour, good or bad in this world ! That Godj from all eternity, pofitively and unalterably determined a definite number of perfons to be faved in time, the fcripturs often and clearly intimates to us. Even from eternal ages, was their actual falvation in- fallibly determined. This is the confolatory doctrine which the Apoftle teaches in the verfcs already quoted. For thus he befpeaks the believing Ephefians, Accord- ing as he hath chofen us in him before the founda- tion OF THE WORLD. That by the phrafe, btfore the foundation of the worlds he means eternity, is abundant- ly evident. How fhall we exprefs, or how can we think of eternity, but in relation to time, or as prior and as poffe. ior to it ? .What is the Apoftle's dodrine to the Theflalonian churches ? Thus he addreffeth them, God Ifath FROM/ the beginning chofen you to falvation. From the beginning of what ? Scripture is the beft in- terpreter of fcripture. Let the quotation from ihe K- piftle to the Ephefians explain that from the Epiille to Vol. I. Hhh t 426 Thd Covenant of Grace, the Theflalonians. Muft not the Theflalonian converts have been cbofen at as early a period as the Ephefian ? Both, therefore, mufl have been chofen before the foun- dation of the world. I hat the expreflion, from the bS' ginnifi^i^, in fcripture, denotes eternity, I had occafion to ' Ihow in a preceding Ledure. So it does in the fol- lowing words, I '■juas^ fays the perfonal wifdom of God, fct lip FROM EVERLASTING, FROM THE BEGINNING, erc ever the earth luas. Prov. viii. 23. That the phrafe, froin the beginnings is equivalent to the phrafe, from ever*^ la/ling ; and that by both we muft underftand a period prior to the earth, and other parts of creation, even that eternity which is equally without beginning and without end, is manifcft. 'i,d^y'> ^^ur election is mofl ahfolute. Were it condition- al, as has been ablurdly imagined, or did it depend at all on any good thing in us, or to be performed by us, in how comfortlefs a condition would we be ? Were it fufpended on the condition of our perfcvering and abounding in good works, how precarious might it be faid to be ! But of fuch a condition the fcripture fpeaks nothing. Good works, indeed, for neccflary ufes, and from evangelical principles, it often and (Irongly incul- cates. I'ut that the final falvation of all belonging to the eledion of grace, is fo infallibly determined, that nothing can obllruQ or prevent it, is manifeft from the fcriptures. x\cGordinply, they are cxprefsly faid to be choftn to falvation. 2 ThcfT. ii. \'^. Between their eledion and their final falvation^ there is a neccflary connexion. The favcd part of mankind are affirmed to have httn foreordained to eternal life. Adls xiii. ^8. Has that God, who is infinite in wifdom and infinite in power, foreordained them to eternal life, and can they pofllbly come Ihort of it ? Predeftination, or cicdion Infhi eternity as fiaft, and glorification through eternity as to come, are by the Apoille infcparably conneclcd, as links of a chain, which cannot be fcparatcd one from another. The Covenant of Grace. ^ly another. For thus he fpeaks, Whom he did fcrehnow, he alfo did predejiinate : whom he did prede/iinate, them he alfo called: whom he called, them he alfo juitificd : whom he juftified, them he alfo glorified, Rom. viii. 29, 30. Were the fcripture lefs explicit and full on this head than it is, from the perfedion and immutability of God, we might infer the ^bfolutenefs and irrcver- fiblenefs of the purpofe of elc£iion. ^thly, I am to confider the objeds of God's eleding !ove from eternity. They were, not the finning angels, but fmful men. They did not, indeed, exift from eter- nity. But they were forefeen exifting and fallen in time. Perfons and things arc not paft and prefent with God as they are with us. Infinitely different is his dura- tion, as well as his knowledge, from ours. One queftion that has been agitated among divines in relation to the objefts of eleding love, refers to the manner in which they were confidered by God in their eleftion. Certain divines, who are ufually diftinguifhed by the name of Supralapfarians, hold, that in eledtion God confidered man as to be created and to fall. O- thcrs, known by the name of Sublopfarians, fay, that he confidered man as created and fallen. Th?' former flate the cafe thus— The great God, though infinitely happy in himfclf, purpofed for the mr.nifeftation of his fupereminent perfehions, to produce a number of other beings ; and, that he might manifefl his juftice as well as his mercy, the former in the punifliment of one part, and the latter in the falvation of another, he deter- mined to permit many of them to fall into a ihte of fin and mifery.— The latter fi.ate the matter thus— The great God, infinitely happy in the fruition of his ever-bleffed felf, for the manifeftation of his being and perfed^ons, purpofed from all eternity, to produce a great number of other beings, particularly angels and men ; and, having determined in himfelf to permit the fall of mankind, in the forefight T)f i% purpo- Hhh 2 ied 428 The Covenant of Grace, fed, for his own glory, efpecially for the glory of his rich grace, to fave a part of them ; fixing on a cer- tain number, and foreordaining them to eternal life^ According to this lad hypothefis man was confidered, in his cleftion from eternity, as created and ns fallen. And how he could be chofcn to fdlvaiion^ as the Apoflle exprefslv informs us he was, without the fuppofition of hib fall, it is hard to fay. How confpicuous is divine fovereigrty in eternal e- leclion ! Sinning angels are altogether palled by. Fallen men are pitied. Faffing by the form.er. electing love pitches upon the latter. A part of mankind, nay, the fmaller part only is chofen. Many are called., ex- ternally by the gofpei, hut few are cbofen. Mytth. xxvi. 14. Of mankind the iefler part oily are called. But even of thefe part only, and the leifer part, are chofcn. Strait is the gate., and narrow is the ivay, that leadetb unto life ; and few only find it. Matth. vii. 14. ^thly^ Let us attend to the impulfive caufe of cur e- ledtion. One, though he allows that eledion obtained from eternity, holds that God was influenced to cled one rather than another, becaufe he then forefaw the former to be more worthy and delerving than the lat- ter. But fuch a fuppofition argues grofs inattention to the great defign which God has in the redemption of finners, as well as the groITeft ignorance of the fitua- tion of the perfons whom he has chofen and redeems. iVIofl unworthy are they all, and moll illuftrioufly does be manifeft the fovereignty and riches ot his grace in their falvation. To grace is our falvation, from firfl: to laft, afcribed. In every pait of it, from its commence- ment to its conclufion, is grace difplayed. Were all the redeemed, in heaven and on earth, now before me, I might additfs them in the words of the Apoftle to the Kphefians. By grace arc ye fai-ed, through j ait h^ and that not of yourfches ; it is the gift of God. Our iullificjtion is im a6t, and our fandificatiou a work, i ■ ■ ■ cf The Covenant of Grace, 429 (of grace. To grace is our cledlion, in an efpecial manner, afcribed ; and, for this obvious reafon, is it itiled THE ELECTION OF GRACE. Rom. xi. 5. tthly^ A certaiil number of the individuals of man- kind were elected. The number is to us unknown ; but unto God it is well known. The Lord., knoweib ihem that are his, the number of them, as well as every other thing pertaining to them and their falvation. 2 Tim. ii. 19. Each of the individuals belonging to this number he knows ; and he knows the particular corner of the earth where the perfon fojourns, and the time, and all the other circumftances of his converfion before it happens, as well as after it. Accordingly, their names are faid to be enrolled in a book, called the book of life ; for it is the book in which are regiitered all the names of the individuals of mankind who were chofen from eternity to everla/ling life. Rev. xiii. 8. A perfon*s name, is that by which he is known and diftinguifhed from another. When, therefore, their names are faid to be enrolled in a book, it intimates, that the omnifcient God has an exadl knowledge of all the individuals whom he has chofen, born and unborn. And, as we commit to writing what we wifh to be re- membered, the metaphorical expreffion of the book of life carries in it a plain intimation, that God will not negled: any one of the individuals belonging to the election of grace, but will in due time bring them in. Their inbringing to Chrifl: may be long delayed ; but a delay in this cafe is no denial. How abfurd, and how comfortlefs is the opinion a- dopted and defended by Arminian v/riters, that the fcripture fpeaks nothing of the eledlion of individuals, but only of churches ; and that their ele»5tion does, not infure their eventual falvation, but only includes the enjoyment of the means of grace, which fuch per^ fons may, or may not improve ; and that, therefore, they may be, or they may not be, faved. That the fcripture 43® ^^^ Covenant of Grace, icripture fpeaks of churches as cle^, we have feen already. But, is the eledion of a particular nation or people to enjoy the means of falvation, for a feafon, at all inconfiftent with the elcclion of certain individuals in ChriU, to eternal life? The Jews of old were a chofen generation ; chofen and called out from amon;^ the na- tions of the world, to enjoy the gofptl and the ordi- nances of it, as no other nation then did ; and to be, in a peculiar manner, the people of God. But does not our Lord himfelf, and does not the Apoflle Paul, inti- mate, that among them there was a remnant, there were perfons chofen in a fuperior fenfe ; that is, not only, under the direftion of an all-difpofrng Providence, led out to attend the means of grace, and to make an external profeffion of religion, but, foreappointed to eternal faivation ? For thus our Lord fpeaks — Except ihcfe days fhoiild be Jhoriincd^ there Jhould noJJeJh befa-jcd: but for the elects fake^ thofe days [hall he Jhortened. Matsh. xxiv. 22. Let us recoiled to whom, and with what view, thcfe words were fpoken. Was it not to the Jews in the view of the deftruftion of their city, and the difperfion of their church and nation ? i^ow, is it not here underflood, that though the whole nation was in one view elcded, among them there was a remnant elected in fuch a manner, and with fuch a view, as the ^reat body of them were not? Ihefe were the feleft fow, for the fake of whom the perilous days prcdided and approaching, were to be fliortencd. In like manner fpeaks the Apoflle of the Gentiles. Hath God cajl away his people f God forbid. God hath not cafi away his people which he foreknew. Even at this prefent time there is a remimnt according to the cleBion of graces Rom. xi. i, — 5. That it is of the Jews, the chofen nation, the Apoftlc here fpeaks, and that he diflinpuifhes a remnant from the great body of them, is fufiiciently manifcft. That the former were chofen in fuch a fenfe as the latter were not, he plainly inti- mates. '^ihlyy We ne Covenant of Grace. 43 1 7?/j//, We are exprefsly faid to have been chofen in Chrifi. Eph. i. 4. forecit^d. This, as I had occafion to fay in a former Lecture, is one thing that diftin- guifhes the cleftion of men from the ele6lion of angels. Of the eled angels the fcripture fpeaks exprefsly. But no where are they faid to have been chofen in Chrift. He has, indeed, been fuppofed to be a confirming head to the (landing angeis. But this is at bed a problema- tical point. Our eleftion in Chrift fuppofes the eleftion of Chrifl: himfelf. For, as I faid already, the Father exprefsly {files him his elect, in ivhom his foul delighteth ; and in the text prefixed to this Ledure, the Father fpeaks in relation to him thus, / have made a covenant with MY CHOSEN one. Glorioufly v/as wifdom difplayed in the choice of a peribn fo fit for a work of fuch vail importance and difficulty. Mod fit was he to be the head of the eledion of grace. Mod fit was he to be our reprefentative and Surety in the everlafiing cove- nant. It cannot, with any truth or propriety, be faid that Chrifl: was the caufe of our eledtion. It is, indeed, on his account, and in confideration of his mediatory work on earth, that the benefits of redemption are con- ferred upon us. His mediation was necelfary, in order that the effeds of eledling love might be bedowed upon us, in a confiftency with the rights and honour of juftice. But our eternal election originated in fove- reignty. To what honour does elefting and redeeming love advance the faints ! Highly honoured, indeed, were they in their eledion from eternity. At once did elcd- ing love terminate on the Son of God, as the Head, and on the faints, as his members \ on him, as the primary objed, and on them, as the fecondary objetls of it. Ancient, as well as mod intimate, is the relation be- tween the Head and the members of his mydicai body. How 432 The Covenant of Grace. How come they to obtain a faving perfonal inbelng in him in time ? 1 he reafon is, they fubfifted federally \l\ him from eternity. 8//6/y, I am ro confider the ^W of our elcclion. Now the great end of it is our falvaiion, in afubfcrviency to the glory of God. This is another thing which diftinguillies our cleclion froiu the eledion of the (landing angels. Having never hnned, they need no Saviour or falva- tion. The purpofe of election confidercd them as holy and happy beings ; and the defign of it was their con- firmation in that (fate of purity and felicity. But in cle6iion we were confidered as fallen creatures ; and, ac- cordingly, are faid to have been chofcn to falvaiion^ 2 Thcflf. ii. 14. forecited ; or, as it is expreflfed in the alfo forecited Ads xiii. 48. to eternal life. This falva- tion, to which we were chofcn, includes a rich variety of particular benefits ; benefits of which we are partakers in this world, and benefits, the poffeflion of which is referved for the world to come. Of thefe bleflings which, as fo many ftreams, iiow from the eleding love of God, as their eternal fountain, the Apoflle gives lis a comprehenfive fummary in a pafTage quoted already. Rom. viii. 29, 30, 9//j/y, Eternal eleclion includes not only complete and final falvation at the end, but alfo the meam by which this great and good end is accompliflied. It pleafes God, in ordinary cafes, to work by means. He works in the church, as well as in the world, not ac- cording to the extent of his power, but according to tlie determinations of his fovercign will. The redemp- tion of the church may be faid to be ihe principal work which God has in view in this lower world. Now, in order to the accomplifhment of it, he has appointed Certain means, and by thcfc means he fulfils his defign and end. This is the account which the fcripture di- rcftly or indircdly, explicitly or implicitly, gives of the matter, in places too many to be cited on this occafion. Left the Covenant of Grace. ^^'^ Let me only remind you of the Apoftle's words to the believing Theflalonians, repeated in the preceding part of this Ledlure. God hath from the beginning c ho fen yoii tofahation ; that is, total and final falvation. Ttiis was the end of their election- How, and by what means, was this falutary purpofe to be accompliflied ? It is through fanclification of the Spirit, and Belief of the truth. How abfurdly d6 many reafon in relation to eledlon? Thus they fpeak ; Our falvation depends entirely upon our eledlion. It does not matter what we do ; for, if we were eleSed from eternity whether we do any thing or not, we will infallibly be faved. If we were not e- leded, whatever we do, we cannot pofTibly be faved. Such reafoning argues the moft unaccountable inatten- tion to the eonneftion between the means and the end. Were a perfon to reafon tiius ; The prolongation of my life depends entirely t\pon the divine decree. There was a time appointed at which I was born. There is a time fixed at which I am to die. The decree cannot be altered, or the execution of it prevented. 1 will nei- ther eat nor drink ; for, if it was decreed that I am to live for years to come, the decree infures my life ; and, therefore, whether I cat and drink or not, I can- not die till my time come, V^^hat would we lay of fucli a perfon, or of fuch reafoning i' Would we hefitaie a moment to pronounce himfelf mad, and his reafon- ing mod abfurd ? Has God all- along faved others by means f And fliall we, depending upon the decree of eledion, expeO: to be faved without them I Unalterably was it decreed, that Hezekiah, king of Judah, fhould recover of his dangerous illnefs j and no lefs than fifteen years were to be added to his former life. But did this determination of Heaven fuperfcds the ufj of proper means for his r>;covery ? No. The Prophet, by the commandment of God, laid, 'Take a lump of Jigs J and they took and laid it en ike boily and he Vol.. I. Hi recovered,' t 434 '^^^ Covenant of Grace, recovered. 2 Kinps xx. 7. Is a perfon dangeroufly wounded or fick ? Does a fkilful phyfician tell him, that, if he ufe certain means, he will recover ; but if he do not ufe them, he cannot expcdt to recover ? Does the perfon treat the phyfician*s advice and warning with the utmofl: contempt ; pretending that he depends upon the divine decree, and makes no account of any fuch means ? Can we forbear to pronounce him an arrant fool ? Has God appointed certain means of falvation, and affurcd us that it only is in the way of ufing the means that we can expect to obtain the end ? And fliall we, after all, neglect the former, and yet hope for the latter ? Such prefumption and folly ! Finally. Let me obferve, that it only is by its fruits and effecis in time that we can know our election from eternity. It is here underflood that we may in time come to know that we were elefted from eternity. Such a ncceflary and comfortable knowledge has been the attainment of others, and it may be our attainment. Happy, indeed, is the perfon that can adopt the Apoftle Paul's words. / knoio lahom I have believed, and I am ^erfuaded that he is able to keep that which I have com" initted to him againft that day. 2 Tim. i. 12. Not only is it competent for us to know that we were elected from cternicy, but incumbent upon us to ufe all appointed means for acquiring the knowledge of it. For thus the Spirit, fpeaking in the fcriptures to the churches, befpeaks us. Examine your/elves, whether yen be in the faith ; prove your own/elves : know ye not your own ftlvcs.^ how that Jefus Chrijt is in you except ye be re- probates. 2 Cor. xlii. 5. Now, how are we to fet about this important duty, and to acquire the knowledge of our election from eternity ? Arc we to expect informa- tion concerning it by a fecrct whifpcr into our cars, or by an extraordinary impnlle upon our minds? No. There are certain gracious ellc-clis of it, by which only we can obtain the Iclid and faiibfaclory knowledge of it. Eter- nal The Covenant of Grace, 435 Ral cledlion has infeparably conneded with it efFedual calling, and all its falutary concomitants and confe- quences. Now, though the caufc, in this cafe, exifts long prior to the eflfcds, it only is by difcerning the latter that we can know the former. How prepolle- roufly do multitudes proceed in this important enquiry ! ■When they become thoughtful and lerious, the firfl queftion, which, through the fubtilty of Satan, and the deceit of their own minds, occurs, is this, were we eleded, or were wc not ele£led, from eternity ? Pre- pofterous queftion ! They ought, in fuch circumftances, to reafon thus ; Has eleftion from eternity the efFedual vocation of the eleded, and its feveral faving concomi- tants and confequences in time, infeparably connefted with it ? Muft their eternal eledion be to them a pro- found fecret, till it be difcovered to them by their effec- tual calhng and fandification in time ? Then the great queftion, as to each of us is, have we been irrefiftibly and favingly called ? Has the word of the gofpel ever come to us, not in word only, but in the fupernatural power of the Holy Ghoft? Till we be thus regenerated and quickened, called and renewed, we cannot poftibly know that we were elected from eternity. But, if wc have been regenerated and favingly called, then we may infallibly conclude, that we were elefted from eternity ; for between eternal eleQion and effectual calling in time, there is a neceffary connedion. Whomfoever he did PREDESTINATE, them he fooner or later effeduallj CALLETH. Accordingly, when the Apoftic Peter recommends it to us as our bounden duty to afcertain the truth ot our calling and eledion, he purpofely prefixes our call- ing in time to our eledion from eternity ; for thus he fpeaks. Brethren^ give diligence to make firil your calling and then your eledion Jure. 2 Pet. i. io» In vain do you at firft inftancc aik, whether you were elected from eternity or not. The firft queftion is. Have you I i i i been 4-3^ I'k^ Covenant of Grace, been cffeQually called ? Does the queftion recur, or does it remain a diffiv':ulty or problem with you. whe- ther you have been etif ctually called ; and confequently, whether you have been ele£led or not ? The Apoflle in the context, points out the \^ay in which you may obtain fatisfadion in this important point. In effec- tual calling a faving change is wrought, and fuperna- tural difpolitions and graces implanted in the foul, by Mhich the regenerated and called are diitinguifhed from others, who, though they make ^.n external profeffion of religion, ftill remain in a (late of irregeneracy. The mod cfTcclual method, therefore, that Chriftians can take to acquire a more confirmed knowledge of their calling and election, and higher degrees of that fpiritual comfori which flows from it, is to exercife and increafe in thofe graces. Accordingly, in immediate connec- tion with the injurdion to make our calling and elec- tion fure, and in direct fubfervience to the dcfign of it, the Apoflle exhorts us thus. Giving all diligence^ add io your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to know- ledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godlinejss and to gcdiinefs brotbirly-kindnefs a fid charity. For if thefe things be in you and abound, they make you that ye Jhad neither be barren nor w fruitful in the knoiU' ledge of our Lord J ef us Cbri/i. But he that lackcth thefe things is blind, and cannot fee afar off, and hath forgotten that he icas purged from his own fins. WntREFORE, the rather brethren, give diligence to make your calling and cleclionfure. Is it not as if the Apoflle had faid. Do vou w)fh to abound in the knowledge and the comfort %,i your election ? You mufl cultivate and exercife thole graces which 1 have now enumerated ; for they tvcr fuppofe clcdion as well as efledual calling, and are the happy tifcds and evidences of it. Having ftat^l and ilUillratsd the do£trine of our flcQion in conformity to the fcriptures, and in oppofi- tion to dilfcrtnt mifapprchcnfions and mifrcprelcnta- iions of it, I am, Secondly^ the Covenant of Grace, /\ 37 Secondly, To enter on a more particular confideration pf the moft important and conrolatory point expreffed in the remaining part of the anfwer, namely, that cove- nant into which God the Father, from the beginninglcfs Sges of eternity, entered with his co-eternal Son, in order to the redemption of finners of mankind, ruined by the breach of the covenant of works — God, having frgm all eternity clcded fome to everlafting life, did €nt$r into a covenant of grace to deliver them out of the ejlcte of fin and mifery, and to bring them into an e/iate of falvation by a Redeemer. What a covenant in general is, I have already had occafion to fhow. It is unneceffary for me to enter into any critical difquifitions concerning the etymology of the word ufcd in the facred writings, of either the Old Teftament or the New, and tranflated covenant. The propriety of the Engliih word covenant, as applied to this great fubjeft, has, indeed, been queftioned. But what is it with which one or another will not quarrel ? The chief queflion among the Orthodox is, whether the name covenant or teftament be moft proper. Fhefe two epithets and defignations, certain writers have con- joined, calling it a teftamentary covenant^ or a federal teftament. For adjufling the matter, I would obferve, that there are efpecially two views of it ; and, accord- ing to the one, it is in the fulleft and mod proper fenfc of the word a covenant ; and, according to the other, it rather is a teftament^ It may be viewed as it was from eternity propofed by the Father to the Son, and ac- cepted by him as our reprefentative and undertaking Surety ; and, in this view, it may, with the utmoft pro- priety, be called a covenant ; a covenant, ftriQly con- ditional ; and, in the higheit fenfe of the word, a cove- nant of works. Or it may be conlidered as it is by the gofpei revealed to us, and, in the adual exercife of faith, accepted by us. In this view it is altogether un- conditional and gratuitous J not a covenant 0^ works, but 438 The Covenant of Grace, but entirely a covenant cf grace ; or a rich tcftamcnt in which the mod precious legacies are bequeathed to us in the frceft, as well as thefulleft, manner. This twofold view of it accounts for the propriety and juflnefs of the two names by which it is commonly known ; the covenant of redemption ^ and the covenant of grace. In relation to the Surety, it was a covenant of REDEMPTION. Its benefits and bleflings he purchafed and procured for the perfons reprefented by him ia it. To us it is in every view a covenant of grace. Grace moved God to make it with his Son and our Surety, from everlafting. Grace moves him to inflate fmners perfonaily and favingly in it in time, putting them in poflefiiou of its ineftimably precious bleflings. With what propriety it may be called a covenant as it relates to the Surety, and a te/iamcnt as it refers to us, will appear more fully from the account which 1 am to give of it in the fequel. 1 go here upon the fuppofition, that the covenant made with the Surety from eternity, and with fmners in their own perfons in time, is one. It has, indeed, been an opinion, that one covenant was made with the Surety from everlafting, the condition of which he fulfilled in his obediential life and fatisfaftory death ; and that another covenant, diftind from the former, is made with finncrs in time, the condition of which is faith', or, as others fpeak, faith and repentance \ to which fome have added, ftncere obedience. 13ut that the cove- nant, though, as I faid already, it admits of a twofold confideration, is one, and that faith can with no pro- priety be called the condition of it, I am to evince in the fequel. Accordingly, of this covenant, I fhall give you a par- ticular account in the following order. I. I may take notice of the great ANTiquiTY of this covenant. That the elcdion of Chrift, the reprefenta- tivc The Covenant cf Graci, 439 tlve in the covenant, and of thofe whom he reprefents in it, obtained from eternity, we have feen already. At that early period was the covenant entered into with him, and with us in him. How fuperior is it to the covenant of works in antiquity, as well as in all other refpefts ! From eternity, indeed, did God decree to make a covenant with the firft Adam. But that cove- nant can with no propriety be faid to have been made from eternity. The reafon is obvious. One of the parties contracting in it did not exift, and, therefore, could not ad, from eternity. The covenant of works, indeed, we commonly call the Jirfi, and the covenant of grace the fecond covenant. The reafon of this ar- rangement is no lefs manifeft. The covenant of grace was not at all known in our world till the covenant of works was broken. The reafon of this is alfo plain. Had not the one covenant beerl violated, and man ruined by the violation of it, there would have been no occafion for the revelation of the other ; the merciful defign of which is, the reftoration of fallen man. Afto- nifhing is the length, as well as the breadth, of redeem- ing love. It is from eternity and to eternity. That from the earlieft ages of eternity this fuperior covenant was made, and the whole plan of our redemp- tion fettled, the fcripture often, and with great plainnefs, intimates 10 us. The Surety and Head of this cove- nant is introduced fpeaking thus, / was fet up from ^WEKhASiTiHG, from the beginning, ere ever the earth was. Prov. viii. 23. It has been obfcrved, that the word tranflated, I was fet up, literally fignifies, I was anointed from everlafting. The phrafeology is manifeflly bor- rowed from the manner in which perfons were folemn- ly fet apart to an office in the church and nation of the Jews. It was with the ceremony of anointing. Do not the words then carry in them the fulled and plain- eft intimation, that Chrift was fet apart to his media- tory office and work j or, in other words, to be the Surety 440 T^^ Covenant of Grace, Surety and Head of the new covenant, from everlaft- ing? An effeniial part, I mean the promiflbry part, of the covenant, is exprefsly faid to have obtained from eternity. The Apoltlc fpcaks of that eternal life which God that cannot lie promijed before the world be- gan. Tit. i. 2, Now, muft not the promiflbry part of the covenant ever imply the conditionary ? If, there- fore, the one was, the other rauft have been, from eter- nity. With great propriety is this covenant almofl: every where in the fcriptures of both the Old Teftament and the New, faid to be the everlajiing covenant. I will efia- blijh my covenant^ faid God to Abraham, between me and thee J and thy feed after thee in their generations, for an EVERLASTING COVENANT ; to be a God unto thee and i9 thy feed after thee. Gen. xvii. 7. Now, the God of peace, faith the Apoflle to the believing Hebrews, that brought again from the dead, our Lord Jefus Chrift, that great fhepherd of the fheep, through the blood of the ever- lasting COVENANT, &c. Heb. xiii. 20. Is not this covenant faid to be everlafling, to intimate that it was from eternity, and is to eternity ? 11. We are to confider the glorious parties contract- ing in this covenant. In every covenant, divine and human, there arc underftood to be different parties. A proper covenant has neccffarily two parts ; a conditionary 2>n^ 2i promiffory I and, therefore, in»it there muft be, at leaft, two parties, one to perform the one part, and another to fulfil the other. It was fo in the covenant of works. On the one hand, there was the great God that made it ; and, on the other, man, with whom it "was made. It is fo alfo in the covenant of grace. One of the glorious parties in this better covenant, the anfwer exprefsly mentions. God, having out of his mere ^ood pleafure, 6v. Why the other party is not mention- ed, 1 know not, In the account of this C9vcnant \^hich the The Covenant of Grace. 44 1 the Larger Catechifm gives us, the Son, with whom it was made, no lefs than the Father, who made it with him, is exprefsly mentioned. It is afked. With whom was the covenant of grace madef The anfwer is, -[he covenant of grace was made with Christ, as the fccond Adam, and in him with all the eled, as his feed. Of both the parties in it, we have a plain intimation in the words with which I introduced this Lecture. He who made the covenant informs us with whom he made it. For, fays he, 1 have made a covenant with my chosen. Ac- cordingly we have here Firjl, The Maker of this covenant. The Son is not faid to have made it with the Father. But the Father is faid to have made it with the Son. The co-equal Three ad: according to the order in which they fub- fift. Often has it been obferved, that the word in the Old Teflament, which is applied to the making of the cove- nanti literally fignilies cutting the covenant. / have MADE, faith God, a covenant with my chofen. The ex- preflion is probably borrowed from the manner in which covenants were ratified in ancient timss. On fuch oc- cafions ani.ijals were facrificed Was not this a plain intimation that the evevlaJting covenant was, in due time, to be confirmed by an ali-mcrito ious facrifice ? Not only were animals facrificed. but divided afunder; and the pcrfons covenanting palled between the parts of them. This practice cariicd in it a tacit imprecation, that it rriight be done to them as it had been done to the facrificed animals, in the event of their violating the cove- nant. The everlafting covenant was made wich the Sure- ty of fmners, who, by fm, have incurred death. Sin fe=. parates between God and finners. In order, therefore, that a total and final feparation between God and finners might be prevented, the Surety condefcended to under- go a temporary feparation of the two conflituent parts of his humaniiy. Thcimh neither his huican foul or Vol. L "K k k his 442 The Coi^enant of Grace, his human body, was feparated from his divine pcrfofl,' they were, for a feafon, divided afunder the one from the other. What mud the love be that could induce the eternal Father to make a covenant in fuch a man- ner with his own co-eternal Son! As to the maker of this covenant, it has been que- ried, was it God ejfentially confidered, or was it God the Father, the firll perfon in the order of the myfte- rious Trinity, that made this covenant with Chrift ? One thinjj is certain. Though the divine perfons as fuch, be diflincl one from another, they are, in effence and will, one. The making of the covenant of works with the firft Adam was the joint work of the divine Three. And, in making the fuperior covenant with the fecond Adam, they all concurred. It was the three- one God that was oiffnded by the perfon who vio- lated the firll covenant, and was to be fatisfied by the Surety of the fecond. But it may be faid, that on this important occafion, the firft perfon in the order of fub- fiftence fuftained the majefty of the Deity, and tranf- afted with the Son, as our undertaking Surety in that covenant, by which all the perfons and perfedlions of ihe Godhead are moft eminently glorified. Secondly^ There is the party with whom this ever- lafting covenant was made, ftiled, in the anfwer quoted from the Larger Catechifm, the fecond Aaam. As the eternal Son of the eternal Father, or, as the fecond perfon in the myftcrious Trinity, he, no lefs than the firft and the third perfons, was concerned in the making of it, and in the glory which was to accrue from it. But what an unknown depth, as well as height, is there in the undertaking and dying love of Jefus Chrift ! With what alacrity did he undertake to be our rcprefentativc and Surety in this covenant ! No readier was the Fa- ther to call him to the work than he was to undertake and acconiplifli it. Compelled to it he could not bc» But, as compulfion was impradlicable, it was no lefs un- Dccefl'ary. The Covenant of Grace, 44^^ neceffary. With what ineffable fatisfadion does the Father fpeak of him in the text ? / have, fays he, 7nade a covenant with my chosen. To intimate that the Head of the eledion of grace, the Surety of the new cove- nant, is intended, the word, as has been obferved, is in the fingular number. The covenant of works was made with one man, and fo was the covenant of grace. So it is written, The firjl man Adam was made a living foul ; the laji Adam was made a quickening Spirit* The frji man is ef the earth earthly ; the fecond man is the Lord from heaven, i Cor. xv. 45, 47. Great was the incquahty between the two parties contracting in the covenant of works. But between the parties contracting in this covenant there is no fuch inequahty. The Son, with whom it was made, was not originally inferior, but equal to the Father, that made ^t with him. In this covenant, however, he has affumed a character, in which he afts in fubordina- tion to the Father. With great propriety, therefore, is he, in the account which the Larger Catechifm gives of him, {tiled the fecond Adam. In the covenant made with him, he acts as the rcprefentative of others. As the firft Adam reprefented his natural ^ttd in the covenant of works, the fecond Adam reprefents his fpiritual feed in the covenant of redemption. Ac- cordingly, the party with whom this covenant was made, comes under a twofold confideration, as the party reprefenting^ and as the party reprefented. The latter, when the covenant was originally made, did not actually exiil in their own perfons. But they may be faid to have had a federal fubfiftence in their underta- king Head. Accordingly, as the covenant was made with him, reprefenting them, and with thsm, repre- fented by him, from eternity, it is, in the fcriptures, of- ten faid to be made with them in their own perfons in time. Voluntarily did he accept of it, when, as a cove- nant ftriftly conditional, it was by the Father propofed to K k k a liini 444 ^^^^ Covenant of Grace* him from eternily. Voluntarily do they in the day of power cccept of it, and of all its benefits, exhibited to them in the gofpel, in the moft unconditional and gra- tuitous manner. Well pleafcd was he with it ; and well pleafed are they with it. Alihou^^h my houfe be not Jo -joitb God as it ought, faid David, and fays cvctv be- liever, yet he hath made with me an cverlajiing covenanty ordered in all things and fare ; for this is ail my falva- lion, and all my deftre. 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. V/as this covenant made with Chrift, as the fecond Adam ; and in him, with all the ele£l, as his feed ? Then how abfard is the fuppofition, thit there are two covenantr^ for the recovery of fallen man ; one made wiih thr Surety, and another made with Tinners them- felves ! This hypothefis, without foundation in the facred fcriptures, is attended with dilTerent inconveniences and difficulties. One thin? is obvious. In every proper cove- nant there are two ejfentlal parts ; a conditionary, and a promiflbry. If therefore, there be a covenant made with fmners, different from the covenant made with the Surety, it muft have a condition, which they them- felves mufl perform. Accordingly, the abettors of the opinion of two covenants have been obliged to call faith the condition of the covenant made with finners. ^But tliat faith can with no propriety be called the condition of the covenant, I am afterwards to prove. That there is only one covenant, viewed differently as it relates to the Surety and to finners, I might evince from various confiderations. May it not be inferred from the analogy which the fcripture, in fo full and pliin a manner, intimates between the firfl Adam and the fecond? Why is Jefus QX\x\S!i^^t^\\\t fecond Adam? WMiy is the firfl Adam faid to have been a figure of the fecond ? The anfwer is obvious. The one was the head of the covenant of works, and in it reprefented his natural ht^. Ihe other is the head of the cove- nant of redemption, and in it rcprcfcnts his fpiritual '•• • ' ' [".^A. The Covenant ef Grace, 445 feed. Now, was there one covenant made with the firfl Adam, the condition of which he was to perform, and another made with his pofterity, the condition of which they are to fulfil ? No. One covenant included him and them. It was made with him as their reprc- fentative, and with them as reprefented in and by him. The proper condition of it, as we faid in a former Le£lure, v^-as that perfeQ:, perfonal, and perpetual obe- dience which he was to perform ; and the actual per- formance of it was to be accepted for them as well as him, and to entitle them, no iefs than him, to the feli- city promiled in it. In like manner, one covenant in- cludes the fecond Adam and his fpiritual feed. The condition of it he hath fulfilled ; and his fulfilment of its condition entitles them, as well as himfelf, to the eternal life promifed in it. Accordingly, it has been obferved, that the fcripture all along fpeak<; of it as me covenant ; and fpeaks of the blood, not of covenm.ts in the plural number, but of ttie covenant in the fm- gular. Mofes took the bloody and fprinhled it on the peo- ■pky and faid, Behold, the blood of the covenant. £xod. xxiv. 8. As for thee alfo, by the blood of thy co- venant, / have fent forth thy prifoners out of the pit ivherein is no water. Zech. ix. 11. And in the Epiftle to the Hebrews, the Apoftle, in two different places, makes exprefs mention of the blood of the covenant, chap. X. 29, and xiii. 2c. Accordingly, when the fcripture, in allegorical lan- guage, reprefents this covenant under the familiar em- blem, of a chariot, and, to intimate the excellency and duration of it, a chariot of the wood of Lebanon^ it in- timates, that there is only one chariot for king Solomon himfelf and for the daughters of Jerufalcm ; not one for him and another for them, but only one for both. K.ng Solomon made a chariot of the wood of Lebanon. He made the pillars thereof of filver^ the bottom thereof of goldi the covering of it of purple ; the middle thereof bei?ig paved 44^ ^^^ Covenant of Grace, , 'pavcd with love for the daughters cf Jerufakm. Song iii. 9, 10* It has, indeed, been obferved, that the word rendered chariot here does not occur anv where clfe in the Old Teftament. It has, therefore, been reckoned doubtful, whether it fhould be tranflated cha- riot, or by another word. It has alfo been a queftion, what is intended and to be underftood by it. That the bed interpreters underfland it of this fuperior cove- nant is well known. With the moft obvious propriety may it be compared to a chariot. A chariot is a well known machine, by which perfons are carried, with dignity as well as eafe, from one place to another. The falutary defign of the chariot of the wood of Lebanon, is to tranfport poor finners of mankind from the wil- dernefs of a natural ftate, and out of the wildernefs of this prefent evil world, into the heavenly country. Now, as I faid, the chariot is one. King Solomon himfelf and his happy and honoured bride (it in the fame cha- riot. It is afked, whom does the fecond Adam reprefent in the covenant of redemption ? The anfwer may be collcfted from what hath been faid already. In it he undertook for that part of mankind whom God the Father is faid to have choftn in him. Ihem, and no others, does he reprefent in this covenant. All man- kind did the firft Adam reprefent in his covenant. Only a part of mankind docs the fecond reprefent in his. For this reafon are they called a remnant. Had all mankind been predeflinated to life, they could not have been faid to be ekded. Election befpeaks the choice and feparation of a part from the whole. Chrifl himfelf fpeaks of them as chofen out from among the reft of mankind, and as given to him, to be by him reprefented in his covenant, and redeemed from fin and wrath. I have manifcjlcd thy nf>?ne^ fays he to his I'ather, 7into the men whom thou ^avcji mc out cf the world, ''Thine they were, and thou gavcfi them me, and they have kept The Covenant of Grace. 447 i^ept thy word. John xvii, 6. In their (lead, therefore, and in order to their falvation, he fulfilled the conditioa of the covenant, by obeying the law and fatisfylng juftice for their fins. For, fays he, / lay down my life fortbejheep. John x. 15. III. We are to attend to the parts of this covenant. Now, every proper covenant, as has been repeatedly obferved, has two effential parts ; a conditionary, and a promijfory. What in the general is intended by the conditionary, and what by the promilTory part of a proper covenant, we faw on a former occafion. The covenant of works, we found, had three parts ; a mi- natory part, as well as a conditionary and a promiflbry. But the minatory part was accidental, arifing from the fallibility of the perfon with whom it was made. But this fuperior covenant, as we will fee in the fequel, has no proper penalty. He, with whom it was made, is God, as well as man, and therefore infallible. Of the two conftituent parts of this covenant I ihall fpeak in order, Firft, I (hall confider the conditionary part of it. Now the queftion. What is the condition of the covenant pf grace? has been anfwered different ways. Often has it been faid, from both the pulpit and the prefs, that faiths or, as the Apoftle expreffes it, belief in the Lord Jefus Chrift. is the condition of the covenant. But this manner of expreffion, however well it may have been intended by the many great and good men who have nfed it to fay no worfe of it, is highly improper. It goes upon a fuppofition, for which, we have found already, there is no foundation in the fcriptures, that there arc two covenants ; a covenant of grace made with believers in time, different from the covenant of redemption made with the Surety from eternity. This beipeaks inattention to the true notion and nature of the condition of a proper covenant. What can the conditioa 44^ Thi; Covenant of Grace, condition of a covenant be, but that part of it on the fulfilment of which the acconipli;hment of the promif- fory part is fufpend^d ? Was not this coveiiant made with the Surety? Is it not incumbent on the perfon ■with whom a covenant is made, to fulfil the conditiori of it ? Did not the fecond Ada;a reprefent his fpiritual feed in his covenant, as much as the firft Adam did his natural feed in his ? Now, whether did it belong to the firfl: Adam, ihe reprefentative in the covenant of works, or his pofterity rcprefented by him in it, to perform its condition ? Was it not the perfonal obedience of Adam himfelf that was the proper condition of that covenant, to entitle him and alfo his pofterity to the felicity pro- mifed in it ? Did it not, in like manner, belong to the fecond Adam, as our reprefentative and Surety in the covenant of grace, to fulfil the condition of it ? Is it not what he did, not what vre ourfelvcs do, but what HE did in our nature and (lead, which alone can en- title us to the benefits and blclTings promifed in the co- venant ? Was not his fulfilment of the condition of this everlafting covenant the great work which he came into our world to accomplifh ? Is not this the work in relation to which he fpeaks thus, // becomctb us to fulfil all righUoufncfsf Matth. iii. 15. Does he not fpeak in the plural number, to intimate, that he now aded in the capacity and character of a public perfon and fcdc-. ral Head; or, in other words, as our reprefentative and Surety in the evcrlafling covenant. Does not faitb belong to the promifTory part of the covenant ? Is it not, as much as any other benefit or bleffing, promifed to us in the covenant ? Now, can faith belong to the promiflbry part of the covenant, and be the condition of it ? Are not the conditionary and promifTory parts of a covenant always diftinct the one from the other? That faith is a precious grace and blef- fing, promifed in the new covenant, is a mofl certain and confolatory truth. Were it not fo, no fuincr of man- kind The Covenant of Grace, j^j^) kind ever could believe. Unable and unwilling to be- lieve are we all naturally. How then does any perfon obtain faith? The Apoftle's words, formerly quoted, account for it — Te are faved by grace^ through faith, and that not g/ yourfehcs.^ it is the gift of God. And -Efaias faith, -There Jhall be a root of Jeffe^ and he that Jljall rife to reign over the Gentiles , in him shall the Gentiles trust. Rom. xv. 12. Aik the faints of the moft High in heaven and on earth, whether they confider any thing performed in them, or by them as the foundation of their right to the bleflings, or any of the bleflings of the covenant. Such an infinuation and pretenfion, they all would, in one voice, difclaim and difavow. To what hath been faid, may be obje£i:ed the anfwer to the following queftion in the Larger Catechifm— Hij'Zi; is the grace of God manifefied in the fecond covenant ? The grace of God is manifefted in the fecond covenant^ in that he freely provideth, and offer eth tofnners, a Media- tor, and life and falvalion by him\ and requireth faith as the condition to intereji them in him ; promifeth and giveih his holy Spirit to all his eted, to work in them that faith^ nvith all oiher faving graces ; and to enable them unto all holy obedience^ as the evidence of the truth of their faith and thankfulnefs to God, and as the wCiy which he hath appointed unto falvation. But, to every reader ?ind hearer it muft occur at once, that the Compilers of the Larger Catechifm do not affirm faith to be the condition of the covenant. All that tliey fav, is, that God requires faith, as the condition To interest us in the Mediator of the covenant. Uo fay that faith is required as the proper condition of the covenant, and to fay that it is required as the condition or infcruraent of interefting us in Chrift, and inflating us in the co- venantj are ^two things exceedingly diilerent. That faith can with no propriety be called the condition of the covenant, I have, I think, made fufEciently evident Vol. L Lll already. t 450 The Covenant of Grace. already. But that faith is indifpenfably nfceffary, as the inflrument or mean, by which we are perlbnally and favingly inflated in the covenant, is a mod impor- tant trutl). To faith the fcriptures often afcribc a par- ticular inftrumcntahty in the bufinefs of our falvation. By it wc arc jujtified^ adopted, and fanClified. With- out faith vvc have no intcreft in Chrift, or in the co- venant of grace. The only queftion, therefore, with regard to the quotation from the Larger Catcchifm, is, whether the term condition in it be proper or not. And Without difparagement to that excellent Summary, or to the worthy Compilers of it, I may fay, that another word lefs expo fed to mifconftru6lion might have been iifcd. That faith has a particular inftrumentality in our fal- vation, and is, in a peculiar manner, the mean of inflating us in the fuperior covenant, and interefting us in the whole of falvation, the fcripture often and clearly in- timates. Believe in the Lord Jefus Cbri/i, faid the A- poflle to the Philippian jailor, and thou Jhalt be favcd* A6ls xvi. 31. He that belicvcth, faith our Lord himfelf, Jhall be faved. He that believeth not Jhall be damned, Mark xvi. 16. Does our Lord himfelf, or docs his Apoftle, mean that faith is the condition of falvation ? No. All that can be inferred from the words either of the former or the latter is, that between faith and all the other blefiings of falvation, there is fuch a ne- cefiary connection, that without the former we cannot cxptfl to obtain the latter. This connection between faith and the whole of falvation, the fcripture, in places innumerable, intimates. I might quote a great variety of places ; but a fpccimen may fufiice. Look unto me, that is, believe in me, and be ye favedy all the ends of the earth ; for I am Gody and there is none elfe. Ifa. xlv. 22. For God fo loved the -^orld^ that he gave his only begot- ten Son, that luhofoeier believeth iu himfhonld not pe- ri^jj bid hai-e cvcrlafiing life. — He thai belibveth on the The Covenant of Grace. ^^i the Son hath everlafting life ; and he that beliei:cth not the Son fhall not fee life ; but the wrath of God abideth on him. John iii. i6, 36. The reafon of this connec- tion, which the fcripture fo often dates between faith and falvation, is obvious. Faith apprehends and applies Chrift, in whom, and in whom alone, there is falvation, and an all-fufficiency of falvation. Accordingly, in whatever view the obie£l of faith is revealed in the fcriptures, faith in its adings is rcprefcntcd in a manner correfponding to it. Is the object of faith revealed un- der the familiar notion of meat and drink ? Believing is accordingly expreflcd by eating and drinking. MyJleJJj, fays our Lord, is meat indeed, and my blood drink in- deed. Except,' therefore^ ye eat the Jlejh of the Son of God, and drink his blood, ye can have no life in you. John vi. Chapter. Is the object of faith reprefented under the metaphorical notion of a garment or robe ? Then to believe is to put it on. Put ye on the Lord Jefusy and make not provifion for the fefh, to fulfil the lufs thereof. Rom. xiii. 14. Is the Saviour, in (hort, or is falvation, exhibited under the notion of a rich and free gift ? Then to believe on Chrift is to receive him. But as many as received him^ to them gave he power to become the fons of God, even to them that believe on his name. John i. i z. Is falvation, in the freefi:, as well as the fullefi: man- ner, exhibited and offered to us ? Is faith only the in- ftrument, or the hand, by which we receive what God gives freely ? Then we can, with no propriety, afcribe conditionality to it. In order that we may poflefs the inelliraably precious gift of falvation, our believing ac- ceptance of it, in the nature of things, mufl be indifpen» fably necelTary. A kind friend fcts meat before us, and, in the moft preffing manner, invites us to eat it. Ex- cept wc do adually cat it, however, we cannot be nouriihed by it. Chrift crucified is the food of our fouls. But in order to our fpiritual nourifliment, we LI I 2 muit 452 The Covenant of Grace, mil ft apply and ufe this food. But is the offer of it fufpended upon our application of it as a condition? No The oflfer is undcrftood to be akogcther free ; for the Spirit and the Bridtfay^ Come. And let him that heartth fay. Come. And let him that is athir/i. Come, And ivhofoever luill, let him take- the bread and the water of life FREELY. Rev. xxii. 17. Having feen, that, though faith be the inftrument by which we apprehend and obtain a faving intereft in the new covenant, it can, with no propriety, be called the condition of it ; it remains that I now Ihow \vhat is the fole, proper condition of this covenant. jNow, in order to afcentain this important point, we muft recoiled the definition which I already gave of the condition of a proper covenant. It is that part of it, the aclual performance of which, by the perfon with whom the covenant is made, entitles him to the reward promifed by the perfon that made it with him. On the perfon, therefore, whoever he be, with whom the covenant is made, muft it be incumbent to fulfil the conditionary part cf it. Was the covenant of grace made with the fccond Adam, as our great under- taking Surety in it ? Then, on him was it incum- bent to perform the condition of it ; and his per- formance of it muft entitle not only himfclf, but all thofe whom he reprefenis in the covenant, to the feli- city promifed in it. Accordingly, by the condition of this cverlafting covenant, we undcrftand what the great Surety of it, with whom the eternal Father made it, did and fuffcrcd during the days of his humiliation on earth. There was a certain period, during which, the firft Adam was to fulfil the condition of his covenant. There was, in like manner, a limited fcafon, during which, the fccond Adam was to be employed in the great woik of ptrforming the condition cf his fuperior covenant. Ihere is efpecially a twofold ft ate of the glorious Me- diator concfponding to the two parts of the covenant ; a The Covenant of Grace, 453 a flate of humiliation on earth, In which he fulfilled its condi[ion, and a ftate of exaltation in heaven, during ■wh'ch he enjoys the infinitely rich reward promifed in it. By the condition of the covenant, in (hort, we un- derfland the furety-righteoufnefs of Jefus Chrift. The perfedb obedience of the firfl: Adam was required as the condition of the covenant of wo'ks. The perfect obedience and fatiifadion of the fecond Adam confti- tuce the fole proper condition of the covenant of grace. The reafon why the fecond covenant requires fatisfac- tion, as well as obedience, we will fee in the fequel. This is called the yi/r^'/y-righteoufnefs of Jefus Chrift. The reafon is obvious. . An eflential righteoufnefs be- longs to him as God. An unrighteous God is a con- tradidion in terms. Righteoufnefs is eflential to that Godhead which is common to all the uncreated Three. But it is the righteoufnefs which the Son of God, as the fecond Adam, or the Surety of the everlafting covenant, performed in his obediential life and fatisfactory death, of which 1 now fpeak. For when the covenant M^as entered into between the Father and the Son before all worlds, it was ftipulated on the part of the former, and reflipulated on the part of the latter, as our undertak- ing Surety, that he, as the fulfilling Surety of the co- venant, ihould, in the fulnefs of time, do the following jihings — ift^ That he fliould, in due time, affume our nature in full habitual conformity, in all the powers and parts of it, to the holy law. Subjedion to the law in either its precept or its penalty was utterly incompatible with the iperfetlion of his divine nature. It behoved him, there- fore, to take to himfelf a nature capable of fubjeftion to the law in both its precept and penalty. In human nature was that obedience, which was required as the cohdition of the covenant of works, to be performed. In the fame fpecific nature was that all-perfed righteouf- nefs performed, which is the condition of this better co- venant. 454 ^'•'^ Covenant of Grace, vcnant. An exchange of pcrfons is admitted. Obedi- ence is performed by the Surety in the place of finners. But the fame nature in kind that fmned is fubjcd to the law, and fufFcrs to fatisfy for fm. For as much ihen^ as the children are partakers of fiejh and bloody he alfo himfelf likewife took part of the fame. --^For^ verily^ he took not on him the nature of angels ; hut he took on him the feed of Abraham. Hcb. ii. 14, 16. As it was in this aflumed nature that the Son of God, fuflaining the charai^er of the fccond Adam, was to fulfil the con- ditionary part of this covenant, when the period ar- rived, at which he was to perform the great work, he, who made the covenant with him, prepared it for him, :and he aflumed it accordingly, for when, at his in- carnation, he Cometh into the world, be faiths Sacrifice and offering thou wouldft not, but a body haft thou pre^ pared me, Heb. x. 5. Now, was human nature reftored to its primeval purity. For this end, that humanity, which the Son of God afTumed, was prepared in a man- ner altogether miraculous and unprecedented. In his birth, no lefs than in his life, was he holy, harmlefs, and undefiled, 1 hat i6fl3//2/j/ righteoufnefs, or, in other words, that \]niverfal conformity of the whole man, in all the powers of the foul and in all the parts of the body, which the law originally required in the firft Adam, as the head of the covenant of works, and of which, though concreated with him, he at an early period de- prived himfelf, is reftored in the perfon of the lecond Adam, as the Surety of the covenant of grace. Thus was the humanity of the Son of God formed holy and pure, that in it he might be fully conformed to the law of works, to which he, as our federal head, fubmitted ; and that it might be the model, according to which the members of his myftical body, as far as is con- fiftcrt with the ncceflary difparity between the head and the members, might be lafhioncd, tiad the firft Adam The Covenant of Grace, 455 Adam retained his original purity, not only would he have fulfilled the condition of the covenant of works, but tranfmittcd purity to his numerous pofterity. But, having contradled impurity in his own perfon, he com- municates it to each of his natural dcfcendants. The fecond Adam, on the contrary, retaining that univerfal purity, with which his humanity was formed, as our Head and Surety fully anfwered the demands of the law for us ; and from him we, his fpiritual feed, derive thq,t purity of nature which we loft in our firft federal head. With great propriety, therefore, may the Surety be faid to re/tore what he took not away. What the firfi: Adam could once fay, the fecond Adam has faid^ I delight to do thy willy 0 my God : yea^ thy law is within my heart. It was, in (hort, to the moral law in its federal form, or, as the New Teftament exprefles it, as the law ofworks^ that the Son of God, in the charader of our fulfilling Surety, was fubjeded. For the very dcfign of his fub- jedtion to it was to deliver us from it. From it as a rule of moral conduct, no rational creature can be ex- empted. But from it, as a proper covenant, or, as the law of works, rewarding obedience with eternal life, and punifhing difobedience with cverlafting deilruc- tion, every beUever in Chrift is freed, and freed in con- fequence of the Surety's conformity and obedience to it. Chrift hath redeemed us from the curfe of the law, being made a curfe for m. — For when the fulnefs of the time was come^ God fent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the lawy to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of fons. Gal. iii. 13. and iv. 4, 5. Practice is fuppofed ever to correfpond to nature. In order, therefore, that the Surety might perform uni- verfal praQiical obedience to the law, it behoved him to b^ iu nis whole humanity conformed to it. The k'vv extends to the man, as well as to his manners. The Surety, therefore, was, as well as did, what the law 45 6 The Covenant of Cracc, •law requires. Forfuch an high pricft became us, who is HOLY, HARMLESS, UNDEFILED, SEPARATE FROM SIN- NERS. Heb. vii. 26. Having, in a preceding Lcdlure briefly illuflrared that original righteoufnefs with v/hich the firft Adam, at his creation, was endued in his whole man, I need not now exemplify or explain that univerfal reclitudc and purity, with which the humanity of the fecond Adam was formed. Accordingly, in the id place. It behoved the Surety of this better co- venant, in order to the fulfilment of its conditionary part, to perform a feries of univerfal and unfinning obe- dience to the law, from the commencement to the con- clufion of his humbled ftate. Not only was the firft Adam, at his creation, endued with univerfal habitual conformity to the law, but, in order to the fulfilment of the condition of the covenant of works, was bound to perform univerfal -pradkal obedience to it all along to the end of his probationary (late. It, in like man- ner, behoved the fulfilling Surety of the covenant of grace, not only in his concepilon and nativity, to be, but all along, in his life and actions on earth, to do, what the law of works required. So he himfelf inti- mates to John at his baptifm. Jcfus anfivered end faid unto him. Suffer it to be fo now : fcr thus it be- Cometh us to fulfil all ri^hteoufnefs. Of his lubjtdlion and obedience to the whole iVIofaic law, the hiftory of bis life and actions furniflies us with exprefs inflanceSo In token of his fubjedion to the ceremonial law, he was, at the period and in the manner it prefcribes, cir- cumcifed. As a proof of his ready fub|r^6tion to the po- Mtical laws of his country, he cOndefcendcd to pay tri- bute. Efpccially v,as he under and did he obey the moral law. This is the law, in univerfal obedience to which the condition of the firfl covenant confided. This alfo is the law in univerfal fubje6tion and perfed obedience to which the conditionary part of the fupe- rior The Covenant of Grace, ^j7 rlor covenant efpecially confifts. This law lie fulfilled in its utmoft extent. In both its tables^ and in all the feveral commandments belonging to each of them, did he obey it, and obey it psrfedly. From all the fins which it forbids was he totally exempted. All the du- ties which it enjoins did he perform. God he claiine.d and avowed for his God. in the feveral duties and ordinances of religion was he moft: confcientious and exemplary. Thefe duties and exercifes he performed, in the manner and at the times which the law appoint- ed, with the utmoft punctuality. No lei's regular and confcientious was he in the duties of the fecond table. What a bright pattern has he left us of filial duty to parents ! Not only was he in the earlier period, and during the obfcurer part of his life, moft dutiful to his legal father and real mother ; but, during his extremeft agony, and in his departing moments, he ftews a be- coming regard to the latter, by recommending her to the fpecial notice of a particular furviving friend. When Jefus, thereforCjfaw his mother, and the difciple ftand- ing by whom he loved^ he faith unto his mother^ Woman^ behold thy Son. 'Then faith he to the difciple. Behold thy mother. And from that hour that difciple took her unto his own home. John xix. 26, 27. How fcrupulouHy juft, and how protufely generous, .was the Surety and Saviour ! The obedience which the Surety performed to th.e law was, in all refpedts, perfcSl. He himfcif was per- fed:, and his works were perfe£t. A perfe£lion cf de-- greesy as well as of parts, did his obedience poifefs. The higheft polTible lionour did he to the law, and to the lawgiver. For he, who, as God, is the fupreme law- giver, be aftonifiied O heavens ! condefcended, as God- man, in our ftead, as well as in our nature, to be the law falfiiler. By the obedience of the firft Adam, bad lie perfifted in it, the law would have been fatisfied. But by the obedience of the fecond Adam, the Lord Vol. I, M m m from t 4j8 The Covenant of Grace. from hearen, the law is magnified and ennobled, in a manner for which there had been no room, had not fm entered the world. Therefore // Jehovah well -pleafed for his righteoufnefs fake, for he hath magnified the laiu and made it honourable. Ifa. xHi. 21. Perfect was the obedience of the fecond Adam in duration, as well as in all other refpeds. For long thirty-three years did he perform univerfal obedience to the law of works. How long the period was in which the firll Adam, as the head of the covenant of works, was to have yielded that obedience to the law, which was to have been accepted as the proper condi- tion of it, entitling him and his pofterity to the eter- nal life promifed in it, we know not. But from the evangelical hiftory of the fecond Adam's flate of fub- jeftion and fervitudc on earth, we know how long the period was in which he performed the moft arduous of all work?, the condition of the covenant of redemp- tion, by which he obtained for himfelf, the Head, and iojc his fpiritual feed, che members, the eternal life pro- mifed in it. In this work the Surety was all alacrity and activity. From the commencement to the con- fummation of it he was incc0ant and unwearied. Ac- cordingly, when the end of his ftate of humiliation ap- proached, and his work was almoft completed, in his folemn addrefs to his eternal Father, he fpeaks thus, / have glorified thee on the earth ; I have finifljcd the ivcrh ivhich thou gavejl me to do. And the day follow- ing, with his expiring breath, he adds, // is finifjcd : and he bozued his head, and gave up the ghcfl. John xvii. 4. and xix. 30. But this is not all. in order to the completion of the conditionary part of this covenant, it behoved the fulfilling Surety of it, in the ^d place. To make real and adequate fatisfadion for the numerous and aggravated offences of the perfons whom he reprefented in it. This is one thing in which efpccially the condition of the fecond covenant difters from The Covenant of Grace. 459 ti-om that of the firft. It behoved the head of the lat- ter, in order to the fulfilment of its condition, to obey. But, in order to the performance of the condition of the former, it behoved the Surety both to obey and to die. The reafon is obvious. This covenant was made with him, as the reprefentative of fmful men ; who have not only come fhort of the obedience which the law requires, but, by the violation of its precept, have incurred its penalty. Thus was the work affigned to the Surety in the fecond covenant far more arduous than that affigned to the head of the firft covenant. The Surety was under the law of works in its penalty, as well as in its precept. In order that we may efcape the eternal death threatened in the covenant of works, and obtain the eternal life promifed in the covenant of grace, he not only led a holy and meritorious life, but underwent an accurfed and expiatory death. Real and full fatisfaftion for fin is here underftood to be indifpenfably neceflary in order to the pardon of it. Without JJjedding of blood is no remijjion of fin^ Hcb. ix. 22. It, therefore, behoved the Surety of the covenant to be an atoning, as well as interceding high prieft. The neceffity of that vicarious fatisfadion for fin, which he, as the great High Pried of our profef- fion, made by the all-meritorious facrifice of himfelf, the fcripture often intimates to us. Thus he himfelf fpeaks. It behoved Cbriji to fuffer, and to rife from the dead the third day, Luke xxiv. 46. For, as the Apoftle, writing to the Chriftians of the difperfions, fpeaks, we could not be redeemed with corruptible things, asfilver and gold, but ivith the precious blood of Cbrift, as of a lamb without blemijlj and without fpot. i Pet. i, 18, 19. Not only was blood, but blood divine, indif- penfably neceflary, in order to the expiation of our guilt, «nd the redemption of our fouls. The redemp- tion of the foul is precious, and muft have remained for ever unaccompliflied, had not a divine perfon under- Mmm 2 taken 460 Ths Covenant of Grace, taken it. But how admirably qualified and fitted was the Mediator for the arduous, the difficult work ! In human nature, indeed, he fuffered and died.. But he that fufFer- ed, and bled, and died, was God, as well as man. That humanity in which he fulfilled the precept, and under- went the penalty of the law, never fubfifled but in his divine Pcrfon. Therefore, though the nature that fuf- fered was human, the perfon was divine; and from his divinity the fufferings of his humanity derived infinite value. Accordingly, the blood which he fhed, and by which he appeafed the Majefty of heaven, is exprefsly faid to be the blood of Gcd. So the Apoftle fpeaks in his folemn charge to the ciders of the Ephcfian church — Take bccd, ihcrtfore^ unio yourf elves ^ and to all the f'Cck over the which the Holy Ghojl hath made you over- fccrs, to feed the church of Gcd, ivhich he hath purchafed, Vv'iTii HIS OWN BLOOD. Afts XX. 28. From finncrs to ihe Surety was there a tranflation of guilt and punilhment. Under this tremendous weight did the Surety labour and groan for a feries of years in our world ; and, had he not been the omnipotent Gcd, under it he muft have unavoidably fuccumbed. What muft iht preffure have been, which could extort from the Creator of the ends of the earth the heavy complaint, I fink in deep wire lib ere there is no Jlanding : I am ccme into deep waters where thejlocds overf.ow :nc ! Pfal. Ixix. 2. What muft the inward anguifli have been, which could force from the numerous pores of his human body that preternatural fwcat, of which the evangelical hillorian fpeaks ! And, being in an agony, he prayed more carneft- ly ; ar.d his sweat was as it were great drops cf blood jnUing down to the ground. Luke xxii. 44. "\Vhat nnsft the inconceivable diftrefs have been that could induce him, who from the carlicft ages was bent on this blood/ work, :o pray thus, lather, if thou be willirg, ir it i:e ruS5iBL£, let this cup fnfs from me. Bloody work ! 'J'o fatiify for fm, and to fave fmncrs, it behoved the Lord of The Covenant of Grace, 461 of li^e and of glory to undergo a mofl excruciating, as well as a moft ignominious death. Such, my friends, is the general tenor of the condi- tionary part of this everlafting covenant. Eafy was the condition of the covenant of works. Infinitely ar- duous was the condition of the covenant of grace. Hard, indeed, was the work affigned to the Surety of this covenant ! Such things it behoved him to do, and fuch things it behoved him to fufFer, in order to the fulfilment of its condition, and the adual impetration of the infinitely rich blefTmgs promifed in it. 1 pro- ceed. Secondly , To the confideration of the promissory part of this fuperior covenant. As it was incumbent on the Surety, with whom it was made, to fulfil its con- dition, it belonged to the eternal^ Father, that made it ■with him, to accomplifh its promijjory part. Now, the accomplifhment of this part of the covenant goes upon the fuppofition of the fulfilment of its condition. The promifes of it, indeed, began to be fulfilled long before the conditionary part of it was actually accomplifhed. But from the carliefE ages, the Surety agreed to per- form the condition of it in due time j and his under- taking was, by the Father, accepted as the fullelt fe- curity for it. This promilTory part of the covenant is of fuch import- ance, that the covenant is exprefsly denominated from it, and accordingly filled a covenant ; or, for reafons already afligned, covenants of promise. Eph. ii. 12. forecited. Now, as the party, with whom this covenant was made, comes under a twofold confideration, as the party r^- prejenting^ and the party rfprefented, the projmjjory part of it may be viewed efpecially in a twofold light, as it relates to him, and as it relates to thevi. To him, their undtitaking Surety in the covenant, were all the pro- mifes originally made. Even the promifes, which are accompliihed to hi? fpi;ilual feed, were primarily made and ^62 The Covenant of Grace. and fulfilled to him, and are made and performed only in a fccondary way to them. For, as the Apollle af- firms, all the promifes of God are in him ; and in him are yea, and in him amen, to the glory of God, 2 Cor. i, 20. And he fpeaks of the hope of that eternal life, which Gcdy that camwt lie, prcmifed', that is, promifcd us in Chrift, before the world began. Tit. i. 2. I might }ft, Confidcr the promij/bry part of the covenant fo far as it is peculiar to the Surety, and terminates on his Mediatory perfon. And, in this limited view, it in- cludes efpecially three things ; fufficient afftftance in his arduous work ; the a^ual acceptance of it j and an in- finitely rich reward for it. SuflScicnt afliftance in his arduous work was infured to the Surety. When the covenant of works was made with the firil Adam, he was furniflicd with fufiicient ftrength for performing the condition of it. When the fecond Adam was fent into the world to accomplifli the fuperior work of the condition of this covenant, he, in like manner, was furnifhed with human nature, and with the extraordinary aflillances of the Holy Ghoft, to qualify him for the performance of it. (Jften, in the view of his coming into the world, and fulfilling his work in it, is the afhftance infured to him intimated. Thus fpeaks the Father in relation to him, With him viy handfhall be eftablijhed \ mine arm alfo flmll ftrengthen him. Pfal. Ixxxix. 21. Animated with fuch affurances of fufiicient fupport and afTiltanccs, on his coming into the world, he fpeaks thus, / will give my back to the f miter Sy and my cheeks to them that pluck cjf the hair ; 1 "will not hide my face from fiame and fpitting. For the Lord God will keep me, therefore fl^all I not be confounded : therefore have I ft my face like a flint, and I know that I fliall not be apamed. He is near that juftificth me, who wdl contend with me ? Lk us ft and together ; who is mine adverfary ? la him come r.car unto me. Behold, the Lord God wilj- keep The Covenant of Grace, /\G'^ keep me; ivho is he that foall condemn me ? Lo, they all Jhall ivMt old as a garment ; the moth Jhall eat them up,. Ifa. 1. 6, 7, 8, 9. From his very conception and na- tivity, in a manner peculiar to himfelf, was he in his humanity endued with the gifts and graces of the holy Spirit. Nay, God gave not , the Spirit by meafure unto him, John iii. 34. Accordingly, when he was baptized in Jordan, the heaven ivas opened^ and the Holy Ghojl defcended in a bodily jhape like a dove upon him ; and^ it is added, Jefus being fidl of the Holy Ghoji, returned from Jordan^ and ivas led by the Spirit into the wildcr- nefs. Luke iii. 21, 22. and iv. 1. And the hiftory of his lafl agony informs us, that when he had kneeled down and prayed, faying. Father, if thou be willing, re- move this cup from me : neverthelefs, not my will, but thine he done ; there appeared an angel unto him, from heaven, STRENGTHENING him. Chapter xxii. 41, 42, 43. The actual acceptance of his work, no lefs than af- fiftance in it, was infallibly infured to hinj. This, no doubt, is included in the Apoftle's account of the great myflery of godlinefs, and accounts for the propriety of the manner in which he ftates and expreffes one of the articles of it — Without controverfy great is the myflery of godlinefs : God ivas juftified in the Spirit, i Tim. iii, 16. No guilt did the Saviour ever contract in his own per- fon. But the accumulated guilt of the eled was im- puted to him; and, therefore, in point of imputation, he was the guiltiefl: perfon that ever appeared in our world. But, having expiated our guilt, and borne our utmoft punifhment, he may be faid to have beea officially juftified ; that is, acquitted and difcharged from the debt, which, as our Surety, he owed to the law and jufticc of God. This, as we faw already, was in- fured to him in the promiflbry part of the covenant. For thus he himfelf fpeaks, He is near that jufiifieth me, •who will contend with me ? Accordingly, though, as an indifputable proof of his* 464 The Covenant of Grace, his Deity, he is on one occafion faid to rise from the dead J on other occafions, i[ is affirmed, that the Father, as a certain evidence of his approbation of him, and alfo of his work, railed and advanced him to that felicity and dignity which he now poifeflcs. God^ fays the Apoftle, raised bim up from the dead, and GAVE HIM GLORY, that your faith and hope vughi be hi God. I Pet. i. 21. This leads me to add, that he had infured to him An infinitely rich and glorious reward for his great 'R'ork. The unknown depth of humiliation to which he was reduced, on the one hand, and the unknown height of glory to which he is promoted, on the other, with the fubfervicncy of the former to the latter, the Apofile dates in terms the mod appofite and cxpref- five — Chrift Jffus, being in ihc form of God, ihcught it rtot robbery to be equal ivith God ; but made himfclf of no reputation^ End took upon him the form of a fervant, find "jjas 7iw(ie in the liktriefs of men. And, being found in fajhion as a 7nan, be humbled himfclf, and became obe- dient unto death, even the death of the crofs. Where- fore, God alfo bath highly c waited him, and given him a name vohich is above every name : That at the name of Ifefus every knee fJjculd bc-jj, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth : And that every tongue Piould confefs, that Jefus Chri/l is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Phil. ii. 6, — 11. Of the as it agreed among the co-eternal Three, that the fecond perfon, the Surety of the covenant, iliould be the ad- miniftrator of it. Accordingly, as foon as fm entered into the world, did he enter on the aclual adminldra- tion of it, ?:nd make over all its benefits rind blefTmgs in a tcftamentary way to fmful, fallen men. He did not, indeed, for four thoufand years from the fall of man, and the commencement of his mediatory sdminiftra- tion, adually die to ratify the covenant and confirm his teflament. But, from the firfl entrance of fm, and the^ revelation of this covenants he may be faid to have died and ratified it typically. During iht patriarchal ^.gzs, and the T-Iofaic ceconomyg expiatory facrifices all aioRg <}btained. Thefe were not intended to make real atonement for iniquity, but only to prefiguve the all-atoning facrifice of Jefus Chriil. He may, therefore, be faid, to be a Lamb fldin, though net really, yet typical! y,/ri!,72 the foundation of the zvorld. And, at the appointed time, as was indifj^enfably ne- cefTary, he attually died for the confinuatioTi of his bleffeu teftament. For without the (hcdding of bloody and blood of inlinite value, is -no rerm/fion offin^ or redemp- tion of fmners. Ooo 2 - Differently s^'-j6 7 he Covenant of Grace, Dlllerently is this covenur.t adminiftercd in e?.rlier and later times. The admiiiiftration of the covenant has been confidered in a threefold view ; in relation to three great p:!riods of tlie church; the Fatriarckcil, the Jew- i/ib, and the Chr'i/tian. It is generally confidered as Hvofold', legal and evdngelical, or Jewijh and Chrijiian. For the law ions ?fven by Mofcs^ but grace and truth came by Jefus Chriji John i. 17. God, ivho at fundry times and in divers manners /pake in times pajc uhto the fathers by the prophets, hath in thcfc lafi days fpoken unto us by his Sond Heb. i. I, 2. The covenant, in fubltance, ever is the fame. It only is in the manner of external adminillration that it dllFers in earlier and later times. u\ccordin,L^ly, in relation to the diverlity of adminiflra- ijons of it, it is confidered as old, and as ncio. In it- i\'h' iL ever has been and ever will be new ; not only to t'lc end of time, but throue,h the unending ages of tternity. The firll: adminidration of it, however, has long af^o waxed old. Another, a new adminifhalion, has lucceeded and fnperfeded it. In point of perfpe- cuity, extent, and fpiritnality, the latter far tranfcends the iormer. The elementary and carnal difpcn/ation befitted the infantile (late of the church. A more fpi- Titual and heavenly difpenfation befits ihe more perfect and mature fi::ite, at which the church has now arrived. Such is the comparative view which the Apoftle gives us of the two difpcnfations. New, I fay, that the heir, as long as he i: a child, differ cth nothing from a fervant, though he be lord of all ; but is under tutors and gover- nors, until the time a ('point ed of ihe father. Even fo tue, ivben we ivere children, were in bondage under the ele- MENTs of the world; but, when the fulnefs of the time w.?s co'iie, God fcnt forth his Son made of a woman, made ■under the law, to rcdectn thcjn that were under the law, that we nii^ht receive the adoption offons. Gal. iv. i, — s« Tills fubjed the Apcflle iarther elucidates and explains in an (ni-!e. the well known dtfign of which is to cilabliih l^he Covenant of Grace, 477 eftablifh the fuperlority of ths Cbriftian to the Jewifh adininiftration of the covenant. If, fays he, that firjl covenant , that is, the Jewifh adrainiftration of the cove- nant of grace, bad been fauitlefs, then Jhould no place have been found for the fecond, and fuperior adminidra- tion of it. Biity finding fault with them, he faith. Be- hold the days come, faith the Lord, wheji I ivill make a new covenant with the houfe of Ifrael, and with the houfe Judah ; that is, I will introduce another and a better difpsnfation of the covenant ; not according to the cove- nant that I made with their fathers ; that is, the Mo- i^uac ceconomy, which was adjufted and eftablifhed in the day when I took them by the band to lead them out of the land of Egypt. — Now, in that he faith, A new cove- nant, he hath made the firft old. Now, that which dc- cayethy and waxcth old, is ready to vanifh away. Heb. vili. 7, 8, 9, 13. In a very gradual way, as well as at different times, was this covenant revealed in the early ages of the world and the church. During the unincarnate Hate of the Son of God, and the non-accomplifliment of ths great work of redemption, the covenant v/as adminifter- cd in a typical and emblematical manner. A great va- riery of typical perfons and places, things and aftions, v/ere ufed. To the church in her imperfed and in- fantile flate thefc reprefented, in a fenfible manner, fpi- fitual and heavenly things to come. Chriit, in his me- diatory perfon and work, was prefigured. During the non-accompli(hment of tlie work, in point of impetra- tion, matters were fo ordered, that, though the admi- niftration of the covenant was efFe<5i:ual for the falvation of numbers, yet it was comparatively contraded and narrow. . For many ages the gofpel was preached, and falvation was confined to the Jews, with a few Gentile profjlytes, as pledges of ths introdudlion of the Gentile nations into the church at a future period. Thefe pro- ftlytes are generally fuppofed to have been of two kinds. 478 'i^^Jt^ Covenant of Graci, kinds, diftlnguillicd by the names of profelyies of the gate^ and proftlyies of righteoufricfs^ or of the covenant. The forrrcr rcnounct^d the ,crofs idolatries of the ni- tions, and obfeived v. hat the Rabbinical writers among the Jews have called ihc feven precepts of Noah. The reafon of the ?ppelIarion, projclytcs of the gate, is ob- viou?. NcrwiihiUnding that they were allowed to dwell in Canaan, and had certain privileges among the native Jews, they were only a fort of outer court wor- Ihippcrs. To the feals of the covenant they were not ndmitted. Naaman the Syrian, Cornelius the centu- rion, the Ethiopiim eunuch, and Solomon's numerous Servants, ai»c fi:ppoIbd to have been profeiytcs of ihis kind. The latter, or the profclytes of righteoufndfi", not only renou.H'jcd Pa;.^an idolatry, but embraced the whole Jewifli religion, fubmitting to the initiatory ordinance of citcumcijion, and alfo receiving the other feal of the covenant, the ordinance of \S\^ pajfovcr, I'hus, during the eld adminiftration of the covenant, the Jowjfli church was confined within a facrcd inclo- i'urc, and all tiie other nations of the v.orld were ex- cluded. But the better difpeiifaiion knows no diitinc- tion, and has no refped of perfons. /7?r, under it, nei' ibcr circi:v.:c:f:cn aiaikih any thing, nor uncircinncifwn* Gal. vi. 15. Now, there is neither Greek nor Jew, cir- auncifion nor uncircmncifion:, Barbarian, Scythif.n, bond ?icr free. Col. ili. 1 1. Far is the New^ Teflament church from being con- fined to any one quarter or country of the world. Sin- r.eis come to Chrid and inro his church, from the liall and the Weft, the Norrh and the South. The new jtrufalem, o'i which we have a msgnificcnt dc- fcrip'.icn in the twenty-firfl chapter of the Revelation, is faid to have four equal fides, and in each of its fides three gates, to intimate, that there is accefs into it for the iiii:abili'.nt$ of all the four great quariers of the world. The Covenant cf Grace. 47'g world. Ths gofpely either has been or will he preached in all parts of the inhabited world,, for a ivitncfs to all nations. Matth. xxiv. 1 4. For all the ends of the earth havefeen, (5r fliall fee, the falvailm of our God. The falutary ends and purpofes for which the Re- deemer has been honoured with the actual adminiftra-- tion of the covenant, and performs it in the fcvcral ages of the church, may be coilecled from what hath been faid already. It was in order to the commencement, the progrcfs, and the final completion of thai myftery and work of grace, which is carried orv in the church on earth, from the firll promulgation of the gofpel to Adam and Eve in paradife, till the actual arrival of the folemn period at v.'hich the blowing of the filver trum- pet of the everlaliing gofpel is to ceafe, and to be fuc- ceeded by the 'founding of that tremendous trumpet by which the dead are to be raifed. The important de- fign of the adminiftration of the covenant, in (hort, is the converfion of the unconverted eleft, the edification of imperfed faints, arid the compkte redemption of all thofe "for whom the Mediator undertook In this ever- lafting covenant. Equally confpicuous in the choice of the admlniflra- tor of the covenant are the wifdom and the grace of God. Are the glory of God and the (\ilvation of fin- r.ers deeply concerned in the adminidration of the co- venant ? Who fo worthy and fo fit to be entrufted with it as the perfon who, ftimulated by zeal for the glory of God, and an ardent defire for the falvation of perifli- ing fmners, moft cheerfully undertook and accomplifli- ed the hard work cf the condition of this covenant I Infinitely worthy is he of the authority and honour at- tending the adminiftration of it. The brief view I have now given of the great doc- trine of the covenant of grace, fuggefts a copious, as well as important improvement. firjl^ Is not this covenant, in every view, fiiperior ta 480 7'he Covenant of Grace, to the covenant of works ?' Superior is it in point of anliquily. It is from cvcrlafling, as well as to everlaft- ing. Unknown is the length, as well as the breadth of redeeming love. In duration, it is equal to eternity it- felf; not lefs without beginning ^han without end. Lord ! ivhat is 7;.'^«, that he fliould have employed thy thoughts, that thou fiiouldft have formed purpofes and defigns of mercy to him from an earlicli: eternity ? Superior is this to the other covenant, in refpecl of the perfcn with whom, it was made. Is not the fecond Adam, in ail rcfpeds, infinitely fuperior to the firft .? Is he not, as Mediator, the mofl extraordinary perfon known either in this or in any other world ? He that Cometh from aho-ve is above all : he that is of the carlh is earthly y and fpeaketh of the earth : It£ that comet h from heaven is above all. John iii. 31. Superior is this covenant in refpeO of the glory •which accrues fram it to God, and the felicity which it enfures to Tinners. Worthy of the wifdom and of the gocdnefs of God, indeed, was the covenant of works. By it, had it been fulfilled, God would have been glo- rified, and man's felicity perpetuated, as well as com- pleted. But far more eminently is God gloriiied by the fulfilment of the condition of this fuperior, this bcr- ter covenant. Infinitely has the Redeemer glorified God on the earth. What an honour has the law received ! Mofl amply is juftice fatisfied. What an endearing con- fideration to the faints is ir, that their redemption was obtained by the blood of the Lamb that v. as llain ? Superior is this covenant in point oi /lability. Suf- ficiently firm did the covenant of works appear at firlt to be. The fulfilm.ent of its condition depending upon a mutable being, there was, however, a pofiibility of tai- lure. But infallibly fure is this better covenant. Ac- cordingly, to intimate the mfallibility, as well as the vafl importance of it, it is faid to be ratified and con- firmed with the mutual oath of the covenanting p:n ties. Of The Covenant of Grace, 4 8 1 Qf his fvvearlng to his eternal Son, as our Surety in it, God the Father himfelf fpeaks — Once have /swoRi^f by my holinefsy fays he, that I will not lie wito David, Pfal. Ixxxix. 35. Of the Surety's fwearing, there is no lefs exprefs mention in another Pfahn. — Lord! re* member David and all his afflidions ; how he sware unto the Lord^ and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob. Pfal. cxxxii. 1,2. Infallibly certain is the final falvation of all who by faith have obtained a faving intereft in this covenant. Far fuperior, in point of ftability, is the (late of the mod imperfed: and weak believer on earth to that of perfect Adam in his primeval innocer.cy. For the final perfeverance of the faints, the weakeit, as well as the ftrongeft, is infallibly fecared. The com- pletion of their purity and ftrlicity, and the perpetuity of u, nothing can obftruft. Happy, thrice happy, then is the perfon that is inflated in this covenant. For, if once in it, ever in it. Secondly^ We fee the propriety and importance of the different chara£lers in which the Mediator appears and aOs. In order to the fulfilment of the conditior.ary part of the covenant, it behoved the Mediator to ad the part of our Kinsman-Redeemer. This implies the forlorn condition of the perfons for whom he engaged in the covenant. What was incumbent upon him, and what he, in the character of our Kinfman-Redeemer^ -did, I will have occafion to fhow in my next Le6lure. It behoved the Mediator of the covenant to be our Surety. Infolvent debtors are we all. A tv/ofold debt do we all naturally owe ; a debt of obedience to t!ie law, and a debt oi Jatiifa6lion to juftice. Neither the one nor the other could we ever in our own perfons have paid. But what we could not do our Surety has done in our (lead. Obedience and fatisfadlion from hiai has God accepted for us. .Accordingly, It behoved the Mediator to be our faciificing High Priest, and to offer an all-atoning facrifice to fatisiy Vol.!. ' Ppp for t 482 ' The Covenant of Grace, for onr fins. For He, luho knew no fin^ ivas made a fin-offering for us. As the adminiftrator of the covenant, the Mediator alfo fuflains and acls in various charafters. He is the glorious TRUSTEE of the covenant. All things are ori- ginally in him, and of him, as God. An all-fulnefs is in him as Mediator. This oeconomical, difpcnfatory ful- nefs is in him, to be by him communicated and diftri- buted to us. Every faving blefling was purchafcd and is difpenfed by him. Of his fidmfsy fay the faints in heaven and on earth, have ive all receivedy and grace for ^race. John i. 1 6. He fuftains the charafter, and performs the part of the TESTATOR of the covenant. How ready was he to make his tejlament^ and to bequeath the richcft le- gacies, in the freeft as well as the fullGft manner, to poor finners of mankind ! At how early a period did he this ? Unwilling are many men to make their latter will. To the very laft do they delay it. No fooner did fin enter our world than the Redeemer arrived in it, and made over to finners the rich bleffings of falvation, as fo many fpiritual legacies to them ; and, in order to confirm their faith in the validity of his teftamcnt, he immediately, in a /ypieal mznntT, confirmed it. How fuperior is Jcfus Chrill to all other leflators ! In the cafe of every other teftament, the teftator and the exe- cutor mufl be two different pcrfons. But the Redeem- cr, though once dead for the confirmation of his tefla- ment, now lives as the executor of it. Did he die to. purchafe all faving benefits and bleffings for us ? and fhall he not moit readily beflow them upon us ? Had he f.»tisfa6lion, fuperior to what a hungry man has in meat or a thirfty man in drink, in fulfilling the condi- tionary part of the covenant, and mud he not have ineffable fatisfaclicn in the adminiftration of it for the actual redempiion of the church ? It was neceflary that the Mediator of the covcnantf ihould Tht Covenant of Grace, 483 fhould be a Prophet, no lefs than an atonir!|T High Pried. It behoved the eternal fecret to be difclofed. At an early period was it difcovered. What wonder and what joy did the difcovery of it occaficn in both heaven and earth ! How fit a perfon was the Mediator to be the revealer and interpreter of Heaven's fccrets to us ! For, though, no man hath at any time Jeen God the Father, yet, the only begotten Son, who is in the bofom of the Father^ he hath declared him. John i. 18. It behoved the Mediator to be a King, as well as a Prophet. As Mediator he ever ads In virtue of a com- miflion from the Father. It was neceflary, therefore, that he fhould not only be called to the hard work of purchafing our redemption, but inverted with the high honour of difpenfing and applying it. For this end has God exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Jfrael, and forgive- iiefs of fins. A6ls V. 31. It is neceffary, infine^ that the adminiffrator of the covenant perform the office and work of an interce- ding High Priest. For this end has he removed from earth to heaven ; and in that celeflial world he obtains the aftual communication of every thing necef- fary and conducive to the edification and profperity of his myftical body on earth. The actual inftatcment of the unconverted eled in the covenant, and the complete redemption of all who have already been inftated in it, does his all-prevaiiing intercefiion infallibly infure. Now, is not this covenant wifely ordered, and, in all refpefls, adjufted in a manner vi'orthy of the manifold wifdom of God ? 'Thirdly^ How admirably adapted is this covenant to the fituation of Tinners ruined by the violation of the old covenant ! Wifely, indeed, was the covenant of works concerted. It was adapted to man's original (late. But to fallen man it can afford no relief. From that quarter no help can be expefted. For doing what Ppp 2 it 484 ^^^ Covenant of Grace.* it requires, fallen man is totally difabled. But in the revelation of this fuperior covenant a door of hope is opened. Life is offered as a free gift. The offer is clo£^ped with no condition to be performed by us. Sal- vation comes to us in the way of a covenant, which is altogether unconditional ; the condition of it having been fully performed by the glorious Surety in our room ; and in order to obtain a free redemption for us. Fourthly^ What a full warrant, and what ample en- couragement has every finner of mankind, to whom the gofpel comes, to apprehend this covenant, and to claim its benefits and bleflinps for himfelf ! What is the gof- pel but a revelation and exhibition of this falutary co- venant, as the grand expedient which Heaven has in- vented and nfes for the falvation of our finful world ? To w^hom flinll an exhibition and offer of a Saviour and falvation be made but to finncrs .? Does the Re- deemer's teftament contain the benefits and bleffmgs of a full and a free falvaiion, as fo many fpiritual lega- cies ? Who ihould be his legatees? To whom fhould fuch legacies be bequeathed, but to finners .'* Does a dving friend make his teflamcnt in favour of a furviving relation, and his numerous poflerity, unborn as well as born ? A full and particular nomination of the lega- tees, in this cafe, is unncceffary and impradlicable. The fcveral children of the family, however, are en- titled to nvail themfelves of the teftament ; and, if they do not obtain its contents, it mufl be becaufc they do not claim them. Ihc Redeemer may be faid to have made his tefla- mcnt when he appeared to our original ahceflors in paradife, immediately after the fall. Then did he firft difcover himfelf to them as their Saviour. To their afloniniment and their joy did he inform them, that, hn\g before they fell, by the violaiion of their cove- pant, tliis fuperior covenant was made with him for ^.hcir recovery and redemption. Intimating to them, that. **The Covenant of Grace, 485 that, at a future period, he was to fulfil the condition of his covenant, he exhibited to them its benefits and blefTinffs in the fulleft and freeft manner. He preached and offered to them that falvation, which, as finners, they now needed, and without which they were un- done for ever In other words, the faving benefits and bleflings which the Father had, in a federal manner, from eternity, difponed to him, to be by him obtained for finners, he now, in a teflamentary manner, difponed to finful man. His teftament he now made in favour of Adam himfelf, and his numerous children. Accord- ingly, each of them, to whom the gofpt-1 comes, as foon as he is born into the world, is entitled to plead the Redeemer's teitament, and to claim the rich lega- cies contained in it. Is it, therefore, a queftion with any of you, whether you be among the Redeemer's le- gatees, and entitled to claim his faving legacies } Inte- retling queftion ! The determination of it, however, is eafy. It turns upon this other queftion ; Do you belong to the pofterity of Adam ? Are you members of the human family ? To Adam and to his pofterity, as well as himfelf, was this teltament originally made. Each of his pofterity, therefore, to v/hom it is notified and publifhed, has an indifputable title to plead ic, and to claim the falutary contents of it. To finners of man- kind, as fuch, are they exhibited and offered. For thus the Redeemer, in words already quoted, fpeaks. Unto yoit^ 0 MEN ! /, the preacher of righteoufnefs, call. My voicey in the gofpel, is to the Jons of man, the finful deicendants of fallen Adam, without exception. For the Father hath fent me to be the Saviour of the loft world of mankind. If, therefore, any one individual of the human family, to whom the gofpel is preached, be not eventually laved, it is not becaufe he has no accefs to the Saviour and falvation, but becaufe he does pot employ him, and apply it. Bfthly^ We fee the diftcrent fituations of the belie- ving 486- The Covenant of Grace, ving ?.nd unbelieving hearers of the gofpel, In relation to this covenant. The former are interefled in all its benefits and blcflings, and eutitled to the full and final poffeflion of them. The latter, though not as yet fa- vingly inflated in this covenant, have accefs to it and all the faving blefllnps which it contains. This right of accefs to Chrift, which is the high pri- vilege of gofpel-hearers as fuch, and therefore the right of ^// gofpel-hearers, is, indeed, a mofl: important point. Whether we have an intereft: in Chrift or not, may be a qucftion with us. Often is it a queflion with believers themfelves. But whether we have accefs to Chrift, needs not to be a queftion with any of us. Even this, however, often has been a queftion with the awakened hearers of the gofpel ; nay, with gracious pcrfons themfelves. Their guilt ftares them in the face. They have alarming apprehenfions and views of their demerit and danger. Ihcir cruel adverfary whifpers into their ears, their own unbelieving and legal hearts fuggeft, that, though at an earlier period they might have been faved, the Redeemer, notwithftanding his ability and his will to fave finners. now cannot, or at leaft will not, fave them. Their harvefi is pajl and \\\^\x fiimmcr cndcd^ and, therefore, rbey cannot now be laved. But, does not the gofpel furnifti every perfon, to whom it is preached, the old as well as the young, the gracelcfs no le(s than the gracious, with a fulllcicnt right of accefs to Chrift, as a Saviour ? Is not a gofpcl- dilpenfation, for this very reafon, reprefented under the iamiliar fimilitude of a market? I counftl thec^ fays the companionate Redeemer to the poor, wretched, inifer- able (inner, io buy of me gold tried in thejirc, that thou vwyejl be rich ; and white raiment that thou mayell be (loathed^ and that the Jhame of thy nakednefs do ?iot ap - pear ; and anoint thine eyes with eyc-falve that thou mayell fee. Rev. iii. 18. Of the perfons that go to a market, one buys the wares offered to fale in it, another does not The Covenant of Grace, 48^ not buy. But are not the commodities expofed to the latter, and has he not acccfs to buy as well as the former ? Were not the bleffings of falvatlon offered to the gofpel-hearer that perifhes, as well as to him that is faved, the former could not contract the guilt or in- cur the danger of a rejection of the Saviour and falva- tion. A non-reception of falvation, no lefs than a reception of it, necefiarily implies the offer of it and accefs to it. How ample and univerfal is the revelation of this covenant, and the exhibition of falvation which the gofpel makes to the unworthy and wretched! Ho! every one that thir/ieth, come ye to the ivaiers, and hs that hath no money ; come ye, buy and eat ; yea^ come, buy ivine and milk loithout money and ivithozit price. Where- fore do ye fpend money for that which is mi bread f and your labour for that which fatisfieth not ? Hearken dili- gently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, a?2d let your foul delight itfelf in fatnefs. Incline your ear, and come unto me : hear, and your foul jhall live ; and I will make an everlq/ling covenant with you^ even the fure mercies of David, Ifa. Iv. 1, 2, 3, Sixthly, We fee the fafety and felicity of every pcr- fon that has been favingly brought into the bond of this covenant. Upon a fure bottom does fuch a perfori ftand ; a bottom that cannoc poffibly mifgive. On a firm foundation does he build his hopes for eternity ; a foundation which God has chofen and laid in our Zion. This, indeed, is the only foundation on which we can fafely, and with fuccefs, build for eternity. Very different, indeed, is this chariot of the wood of Leba- non from all other chariots. It has pillars, of filvcr, and a golden bottor.i. By the former, the bell inter- preters have underftood the precious promifes of this cverlafting covenant, on which all true believers reft ; and for the accomplidiment of which they wait. By the latter, they underftand the divine veracity and faithfulnefs 488 The Covenant of Grace, faithfulnefs intcrpofed in the promifes, and pledged fot the accomplifhmcnt of them. Solid bottom ! Stable foundation this! At an early period was the old cove- rant unbottomcd, and difabled for carrying man to the realms of blifs. This chariot has a covering oi purple \ or, as the word has been tranflated, fcarlet. Is not this evidently to be interprf-ted and underllood of the all-atoning blood of the Surety, by which the covenant was ratified, which fcrves for a canopy and covert, un- der which every perfon favingly in the covenant, is cfFeclually protected and defended from danger. Hap- py fituation ! Such a perfon dwells en high \ his place of defence is the munition of rocks. Provifion, as well as protedion, does the covenant infure to him. For it is immediately added, Bread fhall be given him, and his luafer fhall he Jure, Ifa. xxxiii. 16. 'There is no condem- naticn to them who are in Chri/i Jefus, It is God that jullifieth\ who is he that condemncthf Rom. viii. 1,33, 34. Hence, Seventhly, It mufl be the higheft intereft of each of you to afcertain his infliatement in this covenant. Un- der the old covenant, and under its curfe you all have been. The queflion then is. Have you feen your danger .«* Have you fecn the gofpel-way of cfcape and deliverance ? Are you confcious that there is no fafety for you but in the chariot of the wood of Lebanon, and under its purple covering ? Are you pleafed with this covenant, with the Head, with the blood, with the promifes, and with the blelFings of it ? Is it all your fal- vation, and ail your defire ? Arc you pleafed with that fatherly difcipline and corrcdion itifured to you as the children of God in the covenant ? Do you fee it to be needful and beneficial for you ? ar;d are you thankful for it ? Does tl.c advancement of the inlcrells and ho- nour of the Head of the covenant lie near your hearts ? Do you. day after day, with fervour and importunity, pray for the accomplifhmcnt of tlic promiflbry part of the The Covenant of Grace, 489 the covenant ; not only in your own pcrfonal falvation, but in the exrentionand enlargement ot the Redeemer's kingdom, and the edification of his mylKical body in the world. In this fenfe, the ancient prophccv has a continued Fulfilment, Prayer //bail be made for him cori' linually. Plal. Ixxii. 15. Can you adopt the Pfalmift's words, If I forget thse, 0 Jerufa em ! let my right hand forget her cunning If I do not remember ihee^ let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth ; // / prefer not Je~ rufalem above my chief joy ^ Pial. cxxxvii. 5, 6. Lajilyy We lee the intereft. as well as the duty, of each of us. It is to take hold, by faith, of this falutary covenant, and to apply its bl^filngs to ourfelves. Ruin- ed and undone are we all by the breach of the cove- nant of works. In this <^uperior covenant, and in it only, is there falvation for us. But what can it profit us that there is fuch a covenant, and in it an ali-fuflicient falva- tion, if we be not for ourfelves interefted in it, and par- takes of its benefits ? In the event of a finrd negle.ft anii rejcdion of it, mud not the painful lefleclioo, that we once had accefs to it, but mifimproved this ineftimable blefling, afflicl us in a manner which no words can ex- prefs ? Now, it only is by believing that we can obtain a faving intereft in it. Widely is the door of this my- fterious chariot opened in the gofpd. But what can it avail us that it is opened, if we do not, by faith, enter into ir ? Often hiS it been opened. Many hiiVe entered into it. But yet there is room ; and rooni for you. I cannot forbear to embrace this opportunity of recommending. to the mofl careful perulal of my readers a b<>f.«k on this impor- tar.t fn'jijed; of a finall fize, but of ineftiraable value and worth ; a book, in my opinion, iiicomp.Trably the belt ever yet written ou the fubjeft by an uninfpired man. The book, to which 1 refer, is entitled, '* A view of the Covenant of Grace from the Sacred Vol. I. P o q* Records; ^f)o- The Covenant of Grace, Records ; wherein the Parties in that Covenant, the Making «f ir, Its parts Coaditionary and Promiffory, and the Adminiftra- lion thereof, are diftinftly confidered." This book, as is well known, was written by that great man of God, the late Reverend Mr Thomas Bollon of Ettrick, — a man, in my eftimation, the iirft our ifland has produced. So long as the Redeemer has a church on earth, his name, I am perfuaded, will be favour)- in it. With honcnir will his incomparable writings tranfmit it to lateft ages. Efpecially has he doue the moll eflcntial fervice ^o truth by his view of the Covenant of Grace, and his explanatory notes on " tlie Marrow of Modern Divinity." Notwithftanding the many great and good men that have appeared and written in Eu- rope, eipecially in our favoured ifland, iince the commencement of the Proteflant reformation, the nature of the covenant of grace, of the law and of the gofpel, with the eflential difference between the two, do not fcem to me ever to have been lo w^ll undcrilood till this fmgular Chriilian and eminent Minifter's '' View of the Covenant," and " Notes upon the Marrow" were publiflied,- and read. Tliefe two books, therefore, I murt, in the warmelt man- ner, recommend to the moft attentive perufal of all my hearers and readers, and every perfon that wilhes to obtain clear views of the (chemc of redemption. Jffus t 49i j Jefus Chrifl the only Redeemer, I Tim. ii. 5. there is one Mediator between God and man, the wan Cbri/i Jefui. nrO Jefus Chrift all the Apoftles, as well as the 1 Prophets, give witnefs. That he is the Saviour^ the all-fufficient. the only Saviour, is the conftant and uniform declaration of all the infpired writers, both earlier and later. In this centrical point all the lines of revelation meet. Of the facred fcriptures this is the fum. As there is one God, there is one Mediator between God and men. , - From this text, therefore, I fliall take occafion to explain to you the account which the Compilers ot the Catechifm have given us of the mediatory perion ot Jefus Chrift. It is queried, Wto is the Redeemer of God's elen? The anfwcr is, ihe only Redeemer oj God s eka is the Lord Jejus Chrift. who bein^ the eternal bon of God, became man, andfo was, and continucth to be t?ot/J God and man, in two diftind natures and one perjonjor ^'^^^' qja^qt * Nothing- 49^ 7^'-f Chrijl the only Rcdeaner, Noth'mg can be more natural than the tranfition from the preceding anfwer to this. The great fubjeft of the former is that everlailing covenant, the impor- tant and merciful defign of which was to deHver fallen men out of a ftate of (in and mifery, and to bring thera into a flatc of falvation, by a Redeemer. This great dcfign was formed from the earlieft ages of eternity, and is accon)pliflied in the fevcral ages of tiiye. Of both the finfuhiefs and the mifery of the ftate into which mankind have lalK n, we have an account in the preceding part of the Cafechifm. To that ftate of fin, into which the violation of the fiift covenant brought us, the ftate of falvation, into which the fupeiior covenant intn duces us, is oppofed. Of this ftate of falvation ue have a more particular account in the following part of the Catechifm. It is a ftate ot partial falvation in this ^orld, and perfed falvation in the world to come Is our natural ftate a ftate of lin and mifc^y ? Our favcd ftate is a ftate of purity and felicity. Now, as the pre- ceding anfwer fpeaks. the great and good work of re- fcuing us from the one ftate, and introducing us into the other, is accompHfhed by a Redeemer. Accordingly, in the anfwer. which now comes under review, the Compilers of the Catechiim, with great pro- priery, introduce a defcripiion of the glorious pcrlon of the Redeemer. Two things, efpccially in relation to liim, claim our attention ; Xm pcrjcn, ard his rjjke. Of his general cflice and work, as our Mediator and Re- deemer, we have an intimation here. Ot his fcveral faving offices we ha\e a more explicit and circumftan- tial account in the anfwers to iome lubfequent queftions. Ef|)ecial!y have we in this, and m the following anfwer, a dtfcription of his mediatory perfon ; including both his divinity or Godhead, and his humanity or man- hood. The contents of this anfwer, I may comprehend under two general heads j firjt, a dcfcription of the perfon of Jcfus ye/us Chrift the only Redeemsr, 49^ Jcfus Chrift, as God-man, Mediator ; and, fecondl)\ an intimation of the general charafter which he fuftains ia the (Economy and work of our redemption. I. We have a defcription of the perfon of Jcfus Chrift, as God-man, Mediator. ''The only Redeemer of God*s eleSi is the Lord Jesus Christ, who being the ETERNAL SoN OF GoD, BECAME MAN, AND SO WAS, AND CONTINUETH TO BE BOTH GoD AND MAN, IN TWO DISTINCT NATURES AND ONE PERSON FOR EVER. The feveral parts of this defcription I ftiall confider according to the order in which they are here ar- ranged. We have, /•/r/?. His high titles ; Lord, Jefus^ Chrift. In ex- plaining thefe titles I ftiali invert the order in which they are here enumerated. And begin with Christ. This word, as is well known, is originally Greek. It anfwers to the Old Teftament word Mef- fiah ; which is of a Hebrew derivation. The fignifica- tion of both is the fame ; that is, the anointed^ or the anointed one. This name is manifeftly borrowed from the ancient pradice of fetting perfons apart to an office among the Jews by the ceremony of anointing. In this manner were perfons confecrated to all the three offices of prophet, prieft, and king. Prophets are ftiled by God himfelf his anointed, fouch not mine anointed, fays he, and do my prophets no harm. Pfal. cv. 15, Kings, as well as prophets, were confecrated by this fignifcant rite. Samuel took a vial of oil^ and poured it upon his^ that is Saul's, head^ and kijfed /?/>«, and /aid. Is it not becaufe the Lord hath anointed thee to hz captain^ or king, over his inheritance, i Sam. x. r. Of the undion of priefts, the fcripture often and ex- plicitly fpeaks. It nas been a queftion, whether the ceremony of a- nointing wis always ufed when perfons were fet apart to the prophetical, pricftly, or kingly office among the Jews. It has been luppofed that it was always ufed in the 494 ^^^ Chrifl the only Redeemer, x\it cafe of priefts ; but not always in the cafe of pre- phets and kings. As for Jcfus Chrift, there is no mention of his being anointed with material oil. But, in a fenfe peculiar to himfelf, does the charader, anointed, belong lo him. Of his unftion the fcripture fpeaks exprefsly. Thou love/} rightcoufnefsy and hat eft ivickednefi : therefore God, thy God, hath ANOINTED thee with the oil of gladnefs above thy felloivs. Pfal. xlv. 7. That the Redeemer is here intended, an infpired writer of the New Teftament, as an infallible expofitor of the fcriptures of the Old, e- vinces ; for to him does he apply thefe words. Heb. i. 9. What the oil is, with which he was anointed, the evangelical Prophet, perfonating him, informs us ; for thus he fpeaks, Thefpirit of tlje Lord God is upon me, hecaufc the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings ttnto the meek. Ifa. Ixi. i. The application of the cha- radler, ajiointed^ to our Redeemer, has been underflood to befpeak three things. 1. His dcfignation from eternity to the office and work which he performs in time. This has been called his eternal inauguration. Of his being fet apart to his mediatory office, or, as the phrafe in the original text literally fignifies, anointed from eternity, he himfelf fpeaks. / ivas^ fays ht,fet up, or anointed, /rem everlaft' ing, from the beginning, ere ever the earth was. Pro v. viii. 23. For he verily was foreordained before the foun- iation of the world; that is, he was called and fct apart to his mediatory office and work from all eternity. 1 Pet. i. 20. 2. His authority to execute the office and work of our Mediator. He did net run unfcnt. His office he did not ufurp. The honour of it he did not arrogate to himfelf. And no man taketh this honour unto hiitfclf but he that is called oj God, as was Aaron, So al/o Chrift glorified not hinfclf to be made a high prieft ; but he that faid unto him, "ibou art my Son, to-day have I begotten thee* yefus Ghr'ifi the only Redeemer, 495 thee. And he faith alfo in another place. Thou art a frieft for ever (^ter the order of Melchifedec Heb. v 4, 5. This has been undcrftood to be the thin^ incended by the Father's fealing him, of which he himfelF fpeaks. Labour not for the meat that perijheth, but for that mrat wbkb endiireth unto everlafti-ig life, ivhich the Son of man (hall give unto you : for him hath God the Father SEALED. J^hn vi. 27. Often in the fcriptures of both Tcftaments is he (tiled the Father's fervant, as well as his Son. The Father befpeaks him thus, fhou art my Servant, 0 Ifrael ! in whom I will be glorified, 'fa. xlix. 3. Though he was in the form of God, he thought it not robbery to be equal with God ; he took upon him the form of a servant. Phil. ii. 6, 7. 3. His ability and fitnefs for his important and ardu- ous work. With the Spirit v/as he furniGied fuper- abundantly during his (late of humiliation, to fit him for the accomplifliment of the work in point of impctration. In him, in his now exalted ftate, does the Spirit refide fuperabundantly, to be by him difpenfcd to fmners as the great applier of the purchafed redemption to them. Col. i. 19. John i. 16. forecited. Were not perfons fct apart of old to all the three of- fices, of prophet, priclt, and king, to intimate, that the Eedeemer was to be not a prophet only, or a pcieft only, or a king only, but a prophet, a prieft, and a king? Is he in the language of the Old Teftament ftiled Mef- fzah, and in the language of the New, Chrift: r Is not this a plain intimation to us, that he is the common Saviour of Jews and Gentiles ? The fecond name afcribed to him here is Jesus. Jefus, as is well known, is originally an Old Teliament name, and of a Hebrew etymology, though it has aflumed a New Teftament form. Thus, Jefus, in thj New Teftament, anfwers to Joflvja in the Old. In his name, as well as in his office and work, was our Kedee:ner typified by that eminent perfon whom God employed 49^ y^r Chr'tjl the only Redeemer. employed to lead the literal Ifrael out of the wildernefs into the promifed land. How fuperior is the antit/- pical Jefus to the typical ! The former, as a Redeemer by power as well as price, brings the numerous tribes and individuals of the fpirirual Ifrael out of the Egypt of a natural (late, conduds them fafely through the wildernefs of this evil world, and in due time intro- duces them into the celeflial Canaan. The important reafon of the name here applied to our glorious Re- deemer, an angel of the Lord appearing unto Jofeph in a dream, hath affigned — Thou /halt call his name Jesus, fays he, for hejhallfave his people from their ftm. Matth. i. 2 1. It fuppofes, on our part, evil, both moral and penal, that is, the evil of fm and the evil of punifh- ment ; and it befpeaks deliverance from both. He de- livers from wrath. Efpetially docs he fave from fm itfelf ; from all fm, orig-nal and aQual ; from the all of fm ; its guilt and defilement ; the power and the praftice, as well as the punilhment of it. From all evil, to z\\ good, does he redeem ; to holinefs and to hap- pinefs, to grace and glory. The third charader here applied to the Redeemer is Lord. Often in the fcripturcs of both Teftaments, is this high charafter applied to him. Lord, in the Icriptures of the Old 1 eltamcnt, when it is put for Jehovah, the incommunicable name of God, is obferved, to be written in capital letters. When it is put for another of the names of God, it is written in lefier characters. It has alfo been obfgrved, that it is the term by which two Greek words of the New Tefla- ment are tranflated ; and, when it anfwcrs to the one, it is applied to God clTentially confidcred ; and, when to the other, it is to be underflood of the Mediator. On fuch philological obfcrvations, however, 1 need not infiff. The title Lord is generally underHood to denote au- thority, dotfiimoriy and power. In this view it is moft: applicable to our glorious Mediator. Not only is he a piophet Jefus Chrifi the only Redeemer, 49^ prophet and a prieft, but a king. i:he King of Kings, and Lord of Lords is his infcription. All power is ori- ginally in him ; as he, in common with the other divine perfons, is the fupreme God. As Mediator he has uni- vcrfal authority and power by delegation from his Fa- ther. Thus he fpeaks. All power is given unto me, as Mediator, in heaven and on earth. Matth. xxviii. 18. Confolatory confideration to the church ! All-fufficient is he to edify and eftablifli, to proted and provide tor her, as well as to fubdue all his and her enemies. We have, ^ Secondly, The high original of our glorious Redeem- er. He is THE ETERNAL SoN OF GoD. Of the God- head itfelf, of the myfterious diftinftion of perfons in it, and of the filial charader of the fecond perfon, as well as of the paternal charader of the firft, 1 had oc- cafion to fpeak in a foregoing Ledure. Between ano- ther father and his fon, and the divine Father and his divine Son, there is an infinite difparity. Another father and his fon have one fpecific nature. The divine Father and his divine Son have one individual or nu- merical nature* Though the firft and fecond perfons, as fuch, be different, one Godhead belongs to both. Another father, in duration, is fuperior, and his ion inferior. But the divine Son is of equal antiquity with his divine Father. Therefore is he fliied htre the eter- nal Son of God. In time only is he the Son ot mam But from eternity was he the Son of God. His huma- nity had a beginning. But his divinity is no lels vv^ith- out beginning than without end. To the epithet eternal, applied to the filial charaacr of the fecond divine perfon, writers, in oth'v r inllances orthodox, have objeded. The amount of their objec- tion is this— No where has the fcriptiire dcfigned hun the tcernal Son of God. But how nugatory is this objeaion ! How many things does every church under heaven hold, which are not, in exprefs, terms, ftated m Vol. I. Rrr ^be' t 49o 'J'^fi^^ Chrijl the only Redeemer, the fcriptures ? How many things are neceflarily iin-f plied in the fcriptures which are not fully expreifed in them ? That the firil perfon in the Trinity, as fuch, is a Father : and that the Tccond, as fuch, is a Son, the fcripture, in places almoft innumerable, intimates. Are not Fatbtr and Son the perfonal characters by which the firll and the fecond ot the co-eternal Three arc di- ftinguifhed, and by which we know that they are dif- ferent perfons ? Now, if the firft: perfon, as fuch, be a Father, and the fecond, as fuch, a Son, mud not the- former be the eternal Father, and the latter the eternal Son. Of this wonderful perfon it is affirmed, Thirdly^ That he became man. Ever was he God. But in time only has he become man. What the Com- pilers of th J Catcchifm intend by his becoming man, they inform us more fully in the next anlwer. It was not the Godhead itfelf, or all the facred Three, but the Son, in contradiftindion to the Father and the Holy Ghoft, that became man. This is affirmed here in oppofition to the fundamental error of an an- cient heretical feift of the third century, denominated from one Sabellius, a philofopher of Egypt. They held, that in the Godhead there is only one divine perfon ; and that the fecond and third perfons are only vir- tues of the Deity. The firfl perfon, whom we ftilc the Father, they compared to tl>: fun ; the fecond per- fon to the illuminating, and the third perfon to the warm- ing, influence of the fun. According to this hypothefis, the Father only is a divine perfon ; and, therefore, he iiiufl have becouje man. Hence, in ancient ecclefiafti- cal hrftory, this feet are fometimes known by the name patripajjians ' But that, in the undivided Godhead, there arc three perfons, not inferior, but equal to one another, we found on a former occafion. And that the fecond perfon, called the Son, as diltinguilhed from the firft perfon, the eternal Father, and from the third, the Refits Chrijl the only Redeemer, ^ga the co-eternal Spirit, became man, the fcripture often and in terms the moft explicit, teaches. Jn the begin - ning was the Word^ avA the Word ivm ivith God, that Is, the fecond perfon was with the firft, and the Word was 7nadefiejh ; that is, the fecond perfon, not either the firft or the third, but the fecond, was incarnate, and taber- nacled among Its in this lozver "jjorld. John i, 14. For, ijohen the fulnefs of the time was come^ God^ that is, God the Father, fent forth his Son made of a zuoman^' made under the law. Gal. i. 4. Fourthly^ In relation to this extraordinary perfon, it is added, that he so was, and continueth to be BOTH God and man in two distinct natures AND one person FOR EVER. Priof to this period he was God only. Pofterior to it he is neither God only, nor man only ; but both God and man. That he ever was God I endeavoured, on a former occafion, to prove. That he now became man I am afterwards to fhew. Thus there is a twofold ftate of the Mediator ; the for- mer an unincarnate, the latter an incarnate ftate ; the one without beginning, the other without end. When he became man he did not ceafe to be God. Nor is he ever to ceafe either to be God, or to be man. Were our Mediator God only, or man only, he would be unqualified for his work. It is fuch as can be ac- complifhed only by a perfon, who is both God and man. The neceffity of his being God, In order to his under- taking and performing the work, is obvious. In order that human nature might bear the avenging wrath of the Almighty, and its fufferings be adequate to the intrinfic evil and demerit of fm, it was neceifary that it fhould fubfift in a divine perfon. Various are the refpedls in which the work of our redemption ap- pears to be fuch, that a divine perfon only could perform it. Who but God can forgive fin ? Who but he can quicken the fpirltually dead finner ? It behoved our Mediator to be man, as well as God. Subjection to 11 r r > the 500 y^'J Chrljl the only Redeemer. the law, in its precept and penalty, was incompatible with the perfcftion, the felicity, and the immutability of the divine nature. He became man that he might fuffer and fatisfv for fin, in the fame fpecific nature that committed it. Having ever been God, and becom- ing in due time man, he was wonderfully fitted for his mediatory office and work, llluftrioufly is wifdom difplayed in the conflitution of the perfon of our Me- diator Mod intimately is he related to the two parties between whom he ads. Is he God? Is he man? Is he both God and man ? Then how fit a perfon is he to deal with both, the one the offended, the other the of- fending party, to bring about an honourable and per- manent reconciliation betwixt them ! I am not now to fpeak particularly of either the one or the other of his natures. Of his divinity I have fpoken already. His humanity will be confidered in the following anfwer. It is affirmed that the two natures are entirely diftinfl: in the perfon of the Mediator. Neither is the one con- verted into the other, nor blended with it. There is no compofition or mixture of divinity and humartity here. Though they fubfift in one perfon, they remain totally diflin£t. The effentiul properties of the one re- main uncommunicated to the other. This is affirmed by the Compilers of the Catechifm, in oppofition to an old ctror held by an ancient heretical fed, known in eccle- fiaftical hiftory by the name of Eutychians. This fed, denominated from Eutychcs, called at one time a monk, and at another an abbot, tlourifhed in the fifth centu- ry ; and held, that the Mediator, as he is one perfon, has only one nature, a mixture of divinity and humanity ; the two being blended together in his perfon, or, ra- ther, his divinity having fo fwallowed up his humanity, that the latter cannot be diflinguifhed from the former. But that the two natures remain diflind in his me- diatory perlon m.ight be inferred from the natures them- fclvts. Can divinity be degraded into humanity ? or can Jefus Chrijl the only Redeemer, 501 can humanity be advanced to divinity ? Is not immu- tability eflejitial to divinity ? What God now is, has he not ever been, and will he not ever be ? The myflerious union of foul and body, in one human perfon,'and the cffential diftindlion between thefe two conftituent parts of our nature, a certain writer on this fubjedt fuppofes to be the befi: emblem we have to illuftrate this rayftc- rious union of divinity and humanity, and the neceflary diftin£tion that remains between them, in the perfon of our Mediator. Spirit and body, mind and matter, though they unite in a human perfon, remain unblend- ed and unmixed the one with the other. The eflen- tial properties of the one remain uncommunicatcd to the other. The body, notwithftanding the myfterious union between the foul and it, retains the efTential pro- perties of body. The fpirit no lefs retains the efTential properties of fpirit. In the mediatory perfon of Jefus Chrift divinity and humanity unite, and yet they remain altogether un- blended. Neither are the eflcntial pcrfedions of his divinity communicated to his humanity ; nor the pc- culiar properties of his humanity imparted to his divi- nity. It may be fufficient to exemplify this in one in- ftance. Though knowledge belongs to both his divi- nity and humanity, the knowledge of the one infinitely differs from the knowledge of the other. The know- ledge that belongs to him, as God, is unlimited and unbounded. Peter /aid unto him. Lord! thou knoioeji A\.i. things; thou knowest that I love thee, John xxi. 17. The knowledge that belongs to him, as man, is limited and bounded. This accounts for what is faid in Mark xiii. 32. Ihat day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither THE Son, but the Father. '^Ihus, as God-man, he is the moft extraordinary perfon in heaven or in earth. Such another perfon is not to be found in -the vaft univerfe. Though he has tw» 502 y^fus Chr'ifl the only Redeemer, two natures infinitely more diftant than heaven and earth, the one the uncreated Godhead, the other a created manhood, he is one and only one perfon. It is not from his humanity that he has his proper perfon- ality. He did not begin to fubfifl: as a perfon, \irhen he became man. He ever fubfiftcd as a perfon, as a divine perfon, and a divine perfon diftinft from the eternal Father and co-etcrnal Spirit. When he became man he did not affume another perfonality ; but only took another nature into union with his divine perfon. His humanity never had any proper, perfonal fubfiftcncc by itfelf ; but ever fubfifted in his perfon, as the Son of God. His Mediatory perfon was in wifdom confti- tuted thus, in order that what he did, and what he fuf- fered, might derive value and worth from the dignity of his perfon, as the Son of God. In human nature only did he fuffer, and bleed, and die ; and yet che blood he filed was divine ; or, as the Apoftle cxpreffes it, the blood of God. A6ls xx. 2 8. The onenefs of the perfon of the Son of God, not- withftanding the diverfity of his natures, the Compilers of the Catcchifm affcrt here in oppofition to a fc£l of heretics of the fifth centnry, known in ancient cccle- fiaftical hiftory by the name of Nejlorians ; fo denomi- nated from Neftorius, a bifhop of Conftantinople. They held, that the Mediator has not only two natures, the divine and the human, but two different perlbnalities, a divine and a human. They held, that though the virgin Mary was the mother of the man, known by the name of Jefus of Nazareth, fhe was not the mother of that divine perfon called God, and the Son of God, vho is faid to have purchafed the church with his own blood. The onenefs of the perfon of the Mediator, notwith- flanding the diverfity of his natures, is, indeed, a my- llerious, but a mofl important and neceffary truth. Had he been man only, not God, his obedience and fatisfaflion Jtifus Chrifl the only Redeemer, 503 fatisfaflion could have been of only finite valae and worth* Such as the caufe is, fuch muft the efFed be. But if the humanity he affunied, and in which he fa- tisfied the law in both its precept and its penalty, fub- fiftcd all along in his divine perfon, then, from the divi- nity of his perfon its fervices and fufFerings muft have derived infinite value and worth. That the Mediator^ in point of perfonality, is one, notwithftanding that he has two natures, diftind and unmixed, the fcripture in many places, and in terms fufEciently plain, intimates to us. Unto us a child is born^ fays the evangelical Pro- phet, unto us « Son is given ; the mighty God, the everlajl-^ ing Father. Ifa. ix. 6. Here is his humanity, a child born. Here alfo is his divinity, the mighty God, the everlafting Father. Now, does that humanity belong to one perfon ? and does this divinity belong to another ? No. Of one perfon both arc here predicated. He, who, in refpcd of his humanity, is a child born, in re- fpeEEMEK livetb, faith Job, and that he (hall ft and, at the latter day. upon the earth. And, though after my fcin worm: deftroy my body, yet in my flejh Jhall J fee God : ivhom Ijhallfee for myfelfand Vol. I. S f f mint ^o6 y^fi^^ Chrijl the only Redeemer^ mine eyes jhall behold^ and not another ; though my reins be confumed within me. Job xix. 25, 26, 17. To re- deem, according to the etvmology and primary figni- ficatlon of the word, is to buy back a thing that has been fold or lofl:. In the fcriptures, it is applied to both perfons and things. We commonlv fpcak of two kinds of redemption ; redemption by price^ and redemption by poiver. The redemption, which our Jcfus performs, is of both kinds. Ic Is a redemption by price. Now what the ranfom or price, which he paid for cur redemption, is, two A- poftles of the New Teftament, in the fulleft manner, inform us — Feed the church cf God, fays the Apoftle Paul to the Ephefian elders, ijhich be hath purchajed ivith HIS OWN BLOOD. A6ls XX. 28. Te know^ fays the Apoflle Peter to the Chriftians of the difperfion, that ye ivcre not redeemed with corruptible things, fuch as Jil'ver and ^old, but with the pkecious blood of Christ, as cf a Lamb without blemijh and without f pot. i Pet. i. 18, 19. It is a redemption by tower. Though the Redeem- er has paid a fufficient ranfom for us, and fatished ju- ftice for our fins ; though he by the gofpel proclaims liberty to us, we are unwilling to accept of it. Satan, the flrong man, detains us in flavery to him. Poth his policy and his power he exerts, in order to prevent the liberation of fpiritua! prifoners. This occafions the queftion, Shall the prey bo taken from the ini'^hty^ or the lawfid captive be delivered? Is Satan the ftrong man ? The Saviour is infinitely Wronger. By a fignal exer- tion of his power, he fpoils the (Ir'ong man ot his goods. By a flrong hand and an outftrctched arm were the lite- ral Ifrael brought out of Egypt. But a fuperior exertion of divine power is necelfary to deliver finncrs trom the ipiritual Egypt of a (late of nature. Sooner or later is tiie promife iulfilled in the experience of every finncr belonging to the e led: ion of gnce, "[by pec pie Jhall /v "jcillir.'^ in the day cf thy poiijer. Pfal. ex. 3. Thus yefus Chr'iji the only Redeemer, 507 Thus the Redeemer can claim the redeemed as his property, on a twofold account. They are his by pur- chafe, and his by conqueft. He redeems them by his blood, and conquers them by his grace. Admirably is redemption adapted to our condition, and calculated for accomplifhing the important ends in- tended by it. Redemption fuppofes the alienation of the perfon redeemed. Man originally was not only in common with the other creatures, God's property, but, in a fpecial manner, intended and fitted for his fervice and ufe. But foon did he alienate himfelf and his fer- vices from God ; refigning both to fin and Satan. For thm faith the Lord^ Te have fold yourf elves for nought. Fooliih bargain ! But ye Jl^all be redeemed without money. Ifa. lii. 3. Eminently was our Redeemer typified, as well as clearly revealed, under the Old Teflament. In order, therefore, to fet this part of the fubjeQ: in a proper light, it may be neceffary and ufcful to review the laws relating to the redemption of both perfons and things among the ancient Jews. Of thefe laws we have an excellent abridgment in the twenty-fifth chapter of the book of Leviticus. They relate in general to perfons and to polTefTions — To pojfej/tons. If an inheritance was fold or mort- gaged, it was competent either for the perfon that fold or mortgaged it, or for his near kinfman, to redeem it. Verfes 23, 24, 25, 26, 27. -As the literal Ifrael of old was an emblem of the fpiritual, that is, the redeem- ed of all ages and countries, the land appropriated to the former, and polTefied by them, was a figure of that better country, of which the latter are now heirs, and ■which they are to pofTefs for ever. I his heavenly in- heritance fallen man has forfeited. He cannot redeem it for hi.nfclf; and, therefore, the forfeiture mufl be final, if a near kinfman, both able and willing, be not found to redeem it for him. But man's extremity ig Sff2 God's 5o8 Jefus Chr'ijl the only Redeemer, Go(l*s merciful opportunity. The Son of God, to the aftonifliment of heaven and earth, interpofed ; and, in order to qualify himfclf for afting the part of our Re- deemer, he rondefcrnded to become our kinfman. for as much as the children are partakers of Jlejh and bloody he alfo himf^:lf iikcwife took part of the fame. Heb. ii. 14. Thus h.'s he recovered for fallen man that infinitely rich inheritance which by his fin he had forfeited and loft ; that is. an interefl in the infinite God, and the fruition of him. Each of the redeemed, therefore, can fing, The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance^ and of my cup. Thou maintaineft my lot. The lines are fallen unto me in plcafant places j yea, I have a goodly heritage. Pfal. xvi. 5,6. Among the ancient Jews there was a redemption of pcrfonsy as well as pofiefTions. Verfe 47, — z^^, inclu- fivcly. Redemption is applied efpecially to two defcriptions of perfons ; prifoners of war and Haves. Now fuch prifoners are we all in our natural ftate. At an early period did man commence hoftilities againft Heaven. Mad attempt I Soon did he find the Almighty God to be infinitely more than a match for him Never was a poor captive as much in the power and at the mercy of a mi)?,hty conqueror, as the finner is in the hand and at the difpofal of God. The moft abje6l flaves are finners in their natural condition ; even flaves to Satan and to fin. Of all the fpecies of flavery we know, this is the moft wretched. From it no one of us ever could have extricated him- felf. But if the Son of God, the Saviour of the world, make us free^ "wcjhall be free indeed. It has been hint- ed already, that, according to the JewiHi law, it was either the perfon himfelf, or his kinfman, that was to redeem him and his inheritance. Ourfelves we cannot pollibly redeem. I'he heavenly inheritance we have forfeited, and never can recover for ourfelves. Ihe redemption Jefus Chrijl the only Redeemer, 509 redemption of the foul, and of the celcftial inheritance was a work of fuch importance and difficulty, that a di- vine perfon only could undertake and accomplilh it. But between divinity and our humanity there was an infinite difproportion. Did it behove our Redeemer to be our kinfman ? How then could the eternal Son of the eternal Father be in a capacity to redeem poor fm- ners of mankind, and recover the heavenly inheritance for them ? Difficult queftion ! But can any thing be too hard for infinite wifdom to contrive, and for infinite power to accomplifii ? In the unfathomable depths of his wifdom, God found out an expedient,Sby which the Son of God might become the Son of man ; and, be- coming bone of our bone, and fleffi of our flefh, might ad the part of our kinfman-Ktdittvac^, For both he that fandifieth, and they who arefandijied, are all of one ; par- takers of one common nature, and related to one com- mon Father ; for which caufe he is not ajhamed to call them brethren. Heb. ii. 11. To the Jewifh Goal, or typical kinfman-Rcdeemer, it belonged to avenge the blood of his relation, if mur- dered. By fm and Satan was the firft Adam murder- ed ; and all his pofterity were murdered in him. Sin ever has a murderous tendency and cffcd. In the de- flruftion either of the finner or of itfelf, it mufl termi- nate. On fm and Satan, thofe cruel murderers of man- kind, our glorious antitypical Redeemer has executed vengeance. For by him tranfgreffion has httn Jlnifnedy and an end has been made of Jin. Dan. ix. 24. And through death he hath deftroyed him that had the power of death, that is, the devil, Heb. ii. 14. Actuated with zeal for the glory of his offi^nded Father, and love to fmners of mankind, he exprcITes his holy indignation againft fm and Satan thus, — / will tread them in mine ange^^ and trample thcfn in my fury ; and their blood fJ:)all be fprinkkd upon my garments, and I will /lain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine hearty and ^ he year of tiiy redeejiied is come. I fa. Ixiii. 3, 4. Ta 5IO 'Jefus Chrifi the only Redeemer, To the typical Goel did ir belong, when his relation died without children, to marry his widow and raife up children to him. Our glorious kinfman-Redeemer, in virtue of his marrying our nature, and betrothing the church to himfelf for his happy and honoured fpoufe, raifes up a numerous fpiritual feed, which i• made perfed, intercede with God for us, ^W y^^I rants of this lower world. Another part o^lf^ ? ' that they only ad as mediators between