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 -7/V 
 
 '^'^4 
 
 ■■•T^, 
 
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 t f 
 
 CALVINISM. 
 
 •an 
 
 DOCTEINE OF THE SCKIPTCBES. 
 
 J 
 
 I 
 
• 
 
 

 CALVINISM, 
 
 THE DOCTBINE OF THE SCRIPTURES, 
 
 OR 
 
 A SCRIPTURAL ACCOUNT O^THE RUIN AND 
 RECOVERY OF FALLEN MAN, 
 
 AND 
 
 A REVIEW OP THE PRINCIPAL OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE 
 BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST THE CALVINI8TIC SYSTEM. 
 
 BT 
 
 THOMAS M'CULLOCH, D,D. S.T.P. 
 
 ETC. ETC. 
 lAn PKESIDENT OF DALH0U8IB COLLKOK. HALIFAX, N.8., ADTHOE OF 
 " FOPUT CONDEMNED," ETC. 
 
 " After the way 'vhich they caU heresy, so worship I the God of my 
 father., believing aU things which are writtsn in the law and in the 
 rropheta."— Acts, xxir, 14. 
 
 PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM COLLINS, 
 
 SOUTH FREDERICK STREET, GLASGOW, 
 PATERNOSTER-ROW, LONDON. 
 
:.>'.«u 
 
 M' 
 
 
 I 
 
 GLASGOW; 
 
 WILLIAM COLLINS ANIi CO. PKINTtH 
 
 X5^ 
 

 HIEFAOE. 
 
 The following dissertations ar3 (Jesi^ncd to exhibit 
 a brief view of the ruin and recovery of fallen man, 
 according to what is commonly denominated the 
 Calvinistic system. Considered as the doctrine 
 taught by our Lord, and afterward confirmed by 
 them that heard him, it might, with more propriety, 
 be termed the Chriscian system: but thete-m Cal- 
 vinistic has been adopted to distinguish it from 
 ether views of religious principle, which have also 
 been believed to be founded upon divine truth. So 
 many gigantic minds having >ilready exhausted 
 their energies upon the exposition of Scripture • 
 pretension to additional knowledge in tue following 
 brief essays, would appear presumptuous, and, per- 
 haps, too, be very iU-founded. In their behalf, 
 therefore, all that is claimed is ihe rrangement 
 and diction. 
 
 That the several parts of the system might be 
 viewed in connection, they have been, as far as pos- 
 ble, separated from those objections and replies, 
 which, in theological works, have been frequently 
 mtermixed with the direct statement of doctrinal 
 prmciple. This arrangement, it is hoped, may 
 tend to distinctness of view, and, perhaps, also, to 
 the reception of truth. 
 
TI 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 mi 
 
 JtTd 
 
 Calyiniso, as not congenial to the views and 
 tendencies of human nature in its fallen state, has 
 been opposed bj numerous objections. These, 
 however, have been extended much farther than 
 logical precision authorizes. The admission, that 
 the Scriptures are a revelation from God, renders 
 many of those abstract reasonings with which Cal- 
 vinism has been assailed, entitled to no considera- 
 tion. Objections cf this kind in general, have no 
 nearer relation to the word of God, than the ques- 
 tion of Nicodemus, How can these things be ? Be- 
 sides, some of them which have been advanced with 
 the greatest exultation, are equally applicable to 
 every system of roligious belief. 
 
 It ought ever to be kept in view, that Scripture 
 is partly intended for the communication of know- 
 ledge which the human mind, by its own processes 
 of reasoning, cannot acquire. Its doctrines, there- 
 fore, however repugnant to the understanding des- 
 titute of the wisdom from above, are still entitled 
 to acceptance. Christianity demands absolute sub- 
 mission to the veracity of God in his word ; and, 
 therefore, respecting those topics which he has not 
 been pleased to elucidate, man must walk by faith. 
 This submission, humiliating to his loftiness though 
 it be, accords alike with his character and state. 
 The Scriptures, the source of religious knowledge, 
 are only a partial disclosure of divine arrangement; 
 and, consequently, objections against a part, which 
 appear unanswerable, may, in relation to the whole. 
 
PREFACE. yjj 
 
 be perfectlj groundless. Besides, man, bj defect 
 of intellectual capacity, tendencies of constitution 
 and acquired prejudices, is excluded from that ac- 
 curacy and enlargement of view, which belong to 
 the perfection of reason. Imperfect intelligence, 
 therefore, exercising itself upon a partial reyela- 
 tion of the divine plan, must be ill qualified to be- 
 come Its own guide to the knowledge of what is 
 concealed. Who can bj searching find out God? 
 Reason, so defective in aU, and in amount so diver- 
 sified in individuals, it becomes not, to accommo- 
 date revelation to its own standard. The teaching 
 of him who is the Faithful and True Witness, is 
 what its deficiencies need ; and, when it apprehends 
 the import of his words, it ought to acquiesce in 
 his veracity. Where the statements of Scripture 
 do not harmonise with human opinions and wishes, 
 the argument ajpriore ought not to be employed for 
 the purpose of accommodating the word of God to 
 the preconceived notions of man. Under a system 
 of discipline which includes only a partial revela- 
 tion of divine arrangement, reasoning from the 
 nature of God to the nature of his plan, must, in 
 many case% prove an uncertain guide to the know- 
 ledge of truth. Besides, the Scriptures do not need 
 such a mode of explanation. They are not an ob- 
 scure exhibition of divine truth : they are the teach- 
 ing of one who has compassion upon the ignorant ; 
 and, therefore, objections, either repugnant to their 
 obvious meaninj, or derived solely from criticism 
 
 ,^-- -..«-._ 
 
!$i^ ' 
 
 VlJl 
 
 CRBPAOE. 
 
 and fkr.fetchod oxpogition, ought ever to be diire- 
 garded. 
 
 While opposition to the Calvinistic sjgtem. doubt- 
 less, originates in the reluctance of the human mind 
 to receive the things of the Spirit cf God, various 
 subordmato causes have also contributed to effect 
 Its rejection. Not unfrequentlj, fashion models 
 even rehgion. and thus beguiles the unwarv. Upon 
 this ground, Calvinism ha^ been reviled and Re- 
 jected by multitudes who kne^ not whereof the- 
 affirmed. OcoasionaUj. too. it has suffered from 
 the mistaken views of its friends, and also from 
 their unguarded expressions. Upon these its op- 
 ponents havb eagerlj fastened, as if the refutaUon 
 of an mdividual were a refutation of Calvinism, 
 it has. also, been injured bjthe misrepresentations 
 of its opposors. These have not unfrequently di- 
 rected their attacks against distorted views of its 
 doctrmos, and against tenets which it utterly re- 
 jects. As traffickers in these insidious modes of 
 discussion. Dr. Taylor, in his treatise upon Origi- 
 nal Sm. and Dr. Wiiitby. in his discourse upJn 
 what are commonly denominated the Five Points 
 occupy a conspicuous place. As th% precedinij 
 treatises contain the amount of what is u.uallv 
 advanced against t^e Calvinistic system ; in re- 
 plymg to objections, it has been judged most ap- 
 propriate, to make them the subject of a brief re 
 view ; and, on this account, in relation to their 
 authors, a few additional observations are requisite. 
 
i'RBPAOK. 
 
 IX 
 
 Perhaps no other writers upon controverted topics 
 have possessed so much candour, and jet, in its 
 exemplification, displayed less deference to the can- 
 did judgment of their readers. For their gross 
 perversions of Scripture, preconceived notions might 
 furnish an excuse : but, for their frequent attempts 
 to excite human prejudice and passion against the 
 Calnnistic system, there can be no reasonable vin- 
 dication. He who enlists these upon his side, ma/ 
 show himsolf a dexterous wrangler: but he has no 
 claim to the character of a candid .advocate of truth 
 Both Tajlor and Whitbj, bj their frequent use of 
 this mode of discussion, instead of adding weight 
 to their reasonings against Calvinistic principles, 
 have, certainly, subjected themselves to tho disap- 
 probation of every candid reader of their works 
 Magee's remark upon Taylor's Key to the Aposto- 
 lic Writings, and upon his Scripture Doctrine of 
 Atonement, is equally applicable to his treatise 
 upon Original Sin : " It is nothing more than an 
 artificial accommodation of Scripture phrases to 
 notions utterly repugnant to Scripture doctrine.! 
 The subjoined quotations from the last mentioned 
 work, wiU show both his professions of candour and 
 its actual amount. 
 
 "Pray," says he, addressing his readers, '*do 
 not forget that I am only helping ycu as weU as I 
 can. I impose nothing upon your faith and con- 
 science. I pretend not to jud^e for you : you must 
 * On the Atonement, vol. i, p. 181. 
 

 mrn^. 
 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 SlW^r ^""""''^'^ '»" of »" do I pre. 
 
 bu if I ; '■"""'t P°-""^' I -'^y te mistaken; 
 
 inte.H! u Tt ^ "■"' " " "'^""S"' defect, not of 
 
 tm ™, 1 """ers-aadiog, and, therefore, I 
 
 whTe 1 ^ri'r" """ "''''"'■'^' "' " debt due 
 those who admit the doctrine of original sin a! 
 caused bj the mfus.on of an evil principle ? Yet 
 mm, fahaey, to suppose that something is infused 
 Ctt^h""'" r'"'- ^'""'' •'"="''^ 0' other, not 
 
 tut on ; °' '"'^""O"' ='"«ring the natural consti! 
 tution, faculties, and dispositions of our souls "« 
 
 that r'r'h 'T ■'""f.*''^' " It iB my persuasion, 
 that the Christian religion, which was Terj eari^ 
 and grievously corrupted by dreaming, igiorant 
 and superstitious monks, too conceited^ b^T sS 
 denInT?Kl "^ r ^'"'^" ■■"' '0"' ■■™''i"od iu that 
 
 sId I" "■ '"' " ^"" "»' '^ «"'o misunder. 
 stood, even m some main articles, by those who 
 
 ITJZ: tr ™' *"" '^"-'P-testanl and mot 
 perfect Reformers:" and farther, "I desire it 
 may bo observed, that I have no de ign to asplrse 
 thememory of the Assembly of Divines, eitherhe« 
 or in any other part of the book. It is my ol'r 
 that, they were a body of men, not inferL'eX 
 
 ^. laj. ^Suppl., p. 168. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 XI 
 
 in understanding or integrity to anj in those days. 
 They were not the authors of the doctrine we are 
 examining. Nor wa^ it an upstart doctrine among 
 our Reformers ; but had been professed and esta- 
 blished in the Church of Rome, many ages before 
 either the Assembly of Divines or the Reformers 
 were in being." ' 
 
 From the preceding quotations it appears, that, 
 though, in t)ie opinion of Taylor, the Assembly 
 of Divines were not inferior in understanding and 
 integrity to any in those days ; still, in their belief 
 of the doctrine of original sin, they were the fol- 
 lowers of dreaming, ignorant, and superstitious 
 monks. Whether he designed to asperse their 
 memory, may not appear from his hollow profes- 
 sion of respect for their understanding and integ- 
 rity : but his intention respecting them may be cor- 
 rectly deduced from his opinion of their exposition 
 of Scripture. " The brightoc revelation," he has 
 said, "thus wretchedly applied, must be worse 
 than the darkness of mere ignorance : it will not 
 only not discover the truth, but vindicate the great- 
 est errors."* 
 
 To refer the doctrine of original sin to the Church 
 of Rome, is an adaptation of assertion to ignorance 
 and prej:.dice, which few controversial writers 
 would be willing to hazard. Had Taylor affirmed, 
 that, in all ages, the church has received that 
 doctrine as the trutli of God, he would have con- 
 'P-127. *P. 186. 
 

 Xll 
 
 PaEPAOE. 
 
 ■ ) 
 
 ; J 
 
 11 
 
 3 ?.'!"'«■•'■»•. '» Scripture and ecclesiastioal 
 record Of .ts recepfon in tljoprimitivechurch P^ 
 t«t. m h,. TheologieChretienne, has p^X^drr 
 
 aTntTf Vh, ! : "^ "'" ''"'™' "■»'• before tte 
 BuTl, f ".^ " ''*' "" "'''=^' of Jewiah belief » 
 Bu the foundation of Christian faith is neitheV 
 
 Tord 7J1 '' 'T"'' °' ■"'- ^ " - 'hat surl 
 
 wiU show that the doctrine of SL , ^ isTh ' 
 doctrine of the Scriptures ^ ' ""^ 
 
 ia^^thI?eKti!T? "^ "'"'"''^<'- "«"' -^-^-J"- 
 'ng the self-gratulation with which hehaj rororH^w 
 
 h.s escape from Calvinism, his mode of conTove^ 
 
 menof tfr ?'"" ^'^'^ " "^o ""i^ersity, undw 
 
 .Tool f ''"'"'^'"■""'"""'"d.sccouldhelr 
 no other doctrme. or receive no other instructions 
 from the men of those times ; and, theref!^ h^ 
 
 tit whT^;"""'""'"* ^" '"^'' doctrines Now 
 
 dation ox these doctrines, yi^., the imputation of 
 
 1 T-„l ? 
 
 ' ^'ol. i, p. 436. 
 
 ^ Vol. ii, p. 3S2, 
 
PREFACE. xjii 
 
 Adam's sin to aU his posterity, was the stranire 
 consequences of it."> 
 
 Bj Whitbj. s own showing, his firm belief was 
 not derived from a studious investigation of divine 
 tr-uth: it was merely a faith founded upon the tes 
 timony of his teachers. When he did, at last, ques- 
 tion their authority, and proceeded to reason from 
 the strange consequences of their doctrine to the 
 import of Scripture, he adopted a most unlikely 
 mode of ascertaining what is the mind of the Spirit. 
 Had he carefully investigated his Pelagian princi- 
 ples, he would have perceived consequences equally 
 strange : and, in the same manner, and with the 
 same result, he might have scanned every other 
 system of religious belief, till he escaped from con- 
 sequences by the rejection of every divine truth. 
 
 "After some years," he has further observed, 
 " I met with one who seemed to be a Deist; and, 
 tellmg him that there were arguments sufficient to 
 prove the truth of the Christian faith and of the 
 holy Scriptures, he scornfully replied. Yes, and yon 
 will prove your doctrine of the imputation of original sin 
 from the same scripture; intimating that he thought 
 that doctrine, if contained in it, sufficient to inva- 
 lidate the truth and the authority of the Scriptures 
 And by a little reflection, I found that t^e strength 
 of his argument ran thus, tliat the truth of holy 
 Scripture could no otherwise be proved to any man 
 that doubted of it, but by reducing him to somo 
 
 Preface, p. 1 . 
 
te' 
 
 
 
 t 
 
 mm 
 
 xiy 
 
 PBEFACE. 
 
 . absurditj, or the denial of some avowed principle 
 of reason. Now, this imputation of Adam's sin to 
 hi8 posterity, so as to render them obnoxious to 
 God 8 ™th and to eternal damnation, onlj because 
 thej were born of the race of Adam, seemed to him 
 as contradictory to the common reason of mankind 
 as anythmg could be; and, so, contained as strong 
 an argument against the truth of Scripture, if that 
 doctrme -as contained in it, as any that could be 
 oflFered for it: And, on this account, I again 
 ?9arched into the places usually alleged to confirm 
 that doctrine, and found them fairly capable of 
 other mterpretations. ' ' i 
 
 Thus. ao«Jording to Whitby, if Scripture do not 
 comcide with the common reason of mankind it 
 ought to be rejected. But the phrase, common rea- 
 son of mankind, is more easily expressed than de- 
 fined. Every age has had its tastes in religion, 
 which, however diversified, hurcan reason has ap- 
 proved in succession. In fac ■, the history of man- 
 kind in every age, is a record of the jarring of par- 
 ties ; each contending that they were the men with 
 whom wisdom dwelt. Besides, of the plan of God 
 m the government of inteUigent beings, the Scrip- 
 tures are only a partial disclosure; and, surely, it 
 would iU become human reason, imperfect in know- 
 ledge, and, also, so variable in its own standard to 
 constitute itself the test of divine truth. Pre- 
 sumption may, from a deduction of apparent con- 
 
 ^ Preface, p. 1 . 
 
 ri'* 
 

 m 
 
 ■ -1>T 
 
 PRBFAOE. 
 
 XT 
 
 sequences, boldlj decide : but humility, aware of 
 Its Ignorance, will acquiesce in the instruction of 
 heavenly wisdom, and, instead of testing divine truth 
 by seemmg consequences, it wiU walk by faith 
 
 AccordingtoWhitby'sprincipleofexplaining Scrip.' 
 ture by same avowed principle of reason, had his 
 Deist rested his rejection of divine truth, not jpon 
 original sm, but upon the doctrine of the Trinity 
 Uni^rianism would have gained a convert; for 
 Whitby must then have found, that those parts of 
 Mvelation which state the manner of the existence 
 ofiGod, are fairly capable of other inter pr etc tions. 
 
 Of Whitby's general mode of discussion, it mav 
 be justly remarked, that it iudicates rather a strid- 
 ing for masteries, than a calm vindicatim o^what 
 he accounted truth. If its arrogance does not. at 
 times, degenerate into malignity, it is, certainly 
 not characterised by a communion of sympathies 
 with him who has compassion on them that are out 
 of the wav. 
 
i>- ■ -kT-jfi 
 
 ■..^A^^^'-!: 
 
 .^Tv "L^ V-.^- 
 
 J,- _, . .-.j„^-,.,f. 
 
 r» 
 
 , 1 1 
 
 ti' 
 

 .>,,; 
 
 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 DISSERTATION L 
 
 ON ORIOnrAL BOf. 
 
 th.^!in '""^"'^ ■^''» «>.t aU men hare, and lire nn<Wr 
 
 T^^^''^^*^'"''^^^'^*^'''^- The whole w«^ 
 of God accords with this Tiew of h„m«, character 10 Z> 
 
 30 G^ completely erased ft.mtheh»n^«;:i;",. Se 
 ^ TvfT. T^ ""^ * deteriomtion aoquin.! in the 
 TZ Vf' ^' *^' ^^^ "^ ^'^''^ fi»t »i°. 13. Adam 
 '^'^^'^.^'^'^of&pring,U. TheloMofthedi- 
 
 ^i«^.or«pmtualdeath.notther«mltofpe«enal^ilt 18 
 of moral guilt, 18. The transference of moral goilt not sel- 
 
 c^S^"!?"''*""'^'- I*--n»equenceofttoffi. 
 ci*l character of Adam, who, in the corenant of work, w« 
 inrested with the control of his natural oftpring. 20 'ft" 
 form ,n which the covenant was presented ^ L Se 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINli: OF ORIGINAL SIN 
 C0N3IDERED. 
 
 c.rr ""^^ 1^^ *^' ^'"*'^" •^^ «"«^ «° deny the offi- 
 cial ch«aeter of Adam. 30. The standard which iylor ^ 
 
 .inployed i» his Scripture Doctrine of original sin «n«SpLn^ 
 
COITTENTB. 
 
 and illogic*!, 30. Hii own views not acoonUnf to hit stand- 
 ard, 8 ' According to Taylor death was by, or in oonseqveB# 
 of, Adam's sin ; but according to Scripture his posterity died 
 in him as their representative, 32. The doctrine of Adam's 
 official character vindicated, 83. The rejection of it leads «o 
 the rejection of the imputat- of his guilt to his posterity, 54. 
 Parents do not stand in the same relation to their children as 
 Adam did to his posterity, 36. Th« impuUtion of one per- 
 son's guilt to another taught in Scripture contrary to Taylor's 
 assertion, 37. The guilt only of Adam's first sin imputed to 
 bis oflfspring, 40. The dominion conferred on Adam, and ^« 
 grant made to Noah, very different, 41. While Taylor denies 
 the transference of guilt, he admits the transference of taiswy, 
 which is the .wages of sin, 43. His mode of accouniing for 
 the sufferings and death of children implies what he denies. 
 45. His views as to sufferings and death being a benefit to 
 mankind contrary to Scripture and inapplicable to the case of 
 infants, 46. Death as the wages of sin not confined to the di». 
 solution of the body, 49. Tj^ylor's notions of the image of God 
 unscriptural, and his arguments in support of them inconclu- 
 sive, 63. Those who deny th« imputation of Adam's sin reject 
 the doctrine that human depravity is derived from him, 59. 
 Taylor's unfair statement of this doctrine and inooncliirive 
 arguments against it, 60. Depravity, affording to Scriptuw, 
 derived through parents from Adam, 65. The necessity anil 
 nature of regeneration prove the existence and extent of de- 
 pravity, 66. 
 
 I 
 
 DISSERTATION lit. 
 
 ON THE 8ATISFACTI0X OF CHRIST, 
 
 God must punish sin, 68. General belief that sin deserves 
 
 punishment, 69. This belief coincides with the enactments 
 
 and administration of God, 70. Divine Benevolence cannot 
 
 prevent but requires the punishment of sin, 7i. RepentmuM 
 
» ii:?^^' 
 
 ^■■^■■'i!^''/:':)^ 
 
 ''H 
 
 ,<\ 
 
 
 
 OORTEVrg. 3 
 
 «*Mot merit |»rdoD. »2. It. in.uffloiency m a wtiriketion 
 
 IT. ' * ^^"^ ***"" entertained the notion of.iUMi 
 
 U^a«,pture. te«h ric^-iou. s«tuf.ction. 77. The ua^ Z 
 «f^ceof«erifice.78. Christ « the substitute of ,^ 
 m H "*"""' ^'- «« «"'^»™-* *« *»>« J»w under 
 
 fen.^ inflicted by the Father and endured for the sins of hi. 
 P^ple. 81 In making satisfaction he was the servant of the 
 
 ^^;etd*i^:r8f*G^'''^n^^- ?^*'^*"^''" 
 
 rL^trTr"'""'"*'"''^- '^^'^e^J-tion of Christ 
 --rangemen of justice. 91. Its fitness as an expedient de- 
 pends on the fulness of it. satisfaction. 85. 
 
 1 1 
 
 i 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 ON THE EFFECTS OF CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. 
 
 Chmfc mediation designed to establish a system illnstrat- 
 mg God s unchangeable moral administration. 98. The bles- 
 MB^ premised Christ for his people not deserved by them. ib. 
 Chmt . Satisfaction did not affect him in his personal b„; in 
 hu. official capacity and its effects are applied to his people, 99 
 Man cannot be justified by works of law done, or oVaceount' 
 of ,„.>8equent obedience. 100. The gift of righteousne*. de- 
 rir^ solely from Christ's r tisfaction. 103. In justification 
 here is a transference of Christ's righteousness. 105. The 
 justified cannot be numbered with transgressors, but become 
 ^adoption the sons of God. 107. Adoption connected with 
 ^novation of mind which is an effect of Christ's mediation. 
 1 1« t;^" ""o^^t'on not reformation but a new creation. 
 11^ It does not originate in any preparatory aptitude of hu- 
 mM nature, 111. in rfc.eneration no new revelation given 
 
4 OOXTBHTS. 
 
 bat a oipMity to reeeire the tnith rerflaM, US. Ooiin«^> 
 
 tM&a of ■piritniJ life lewb to Mtivity in fiuth raeniTiag jciH 
 
 tiflea^a and adoption, 115. ReooneUiation to God oflbutod 
 
 by ChriBt in hi« exalted state. 117. R'goieration duplayed 
 
 in obedience springing from faith, 119. The obedience of 
 
 the regenerate vindieates the immataUe equity of Qod's go> 
 
 rernment, 1 22. Sanotifioation a gradual prieeM in whidi they 
 
 are actively employed, 1 23. They haTe liberty juiid aeoeie te 
 
 God through Christ, 124. By this aoeess they enjoy tb» 
 
 comforts of their Father's house, 120. Tri halation the means 
 
 of their improvement, 129. The Father's engagements te 
 
 Christ show tie amount of mercy which they reoeiTC, 181. The 
 
 fulfilment of Christ's engagements secures the fulfilment of the 
 
 Father's promise, 132. Evidences that the Father will foMl 
 
 his promise, 136. The reception and enjoyment of salvatioii 
 
 depend on faith, which is the gift of God through Christ and 
 
 maintained by him, 135. The permanence of faith depends 
 
 on the will of God, 137. Means by which its permanence is 
 
 secured, HI. Blessings included in eternal life, 142, Amount 
 
 of those who shall enjoy eternal life, 143. Not all the human 
 
 race but all for whom Christ died, 144. Evidences which 
 
 prove that Christ's satisfaction and its actual eificiency are of 
 
 the sam-} extent, 1 46. 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE OF THE PEBSEVERANCK 
 OF SAINTS CONSIDERED. 
 
 Whitby's rejection of the doctrine of perseverance, 155. 
 His misrepresentation of Calvinism, 166. His alleged incom- 
 patibility of aL. ^lute election vrith the prayers of saints and 
 the intercession of Christ — contrary to Scripture, 167. The 
 promise which faith receives does not present mere spiritual 
 existence but eternal life, 169. The life of faith constantly 
 
OOVTIMTS. 
 
 •apportad by gnee, IM. BcUeren not ui * lUte of pi«k*~ 
 tfoo bat fl^MlopCioB from whiehtkioreMUMlflkn, 191. Ebomu^ 
 ofMMBteto penerenuioeuid warningB Ofriit opgrtaoj do not 
 imply tho poidbUity of ($ilmg from grace, 164. Tht riowo of 
 AnniiiiMMi repngiuuit to the amuigeinents of the ooTeuuit of 
 graoe and incapfiUe of proof, 165. Liberty of will oooaiftent 
 with an abiolate decree and a fixed condition, 1 61. The diicip- 
 line mukr which God's children are placed of a kind which pro- 
 dnsM Tolnntary rabmiaum to his aathority, and aeonros their 
 pna^rtnaot. 16«. PerMveranoe through faith for the per- 
 manence of which proTiaion is made, 172, Paaaages adduced 
 to disprove the doeteine of peraeTeranoe considerod, 1 Tim., i, 
 19, 20 ; 2 Tim., ii, 17, 18. 173. Heb„ vi, 1^ ; x, 26-29, 178. 
 Bo«^ xir, 15-21. lCor.,viii. 7-13. 186. Eaek., xriii, 
 24, 191. 
 
 DISSERTATJON VI. 
 
 Oi«VEIWAL ATOKKMBMT DISPROVED. 
 
 ApjjMrent proota of univeraal redemption, 201. It inrolTes 
 diaeordance between the benevolence of God in deviaing the 
 plan, and hia wiadom in executing it, 202. To obviate this 
 difficulty it has been aUeged, that those who know not the goa- 
 pel may receive salvation, 208. The terma world and all uaed 
 in reference to Christ'a satisfaction, denote something else than 
 a universal redemption, 204. Uaed to counteract the pre- 
 judices of the Jews, respecting the extent of Christ's king- 
 dom, 205. Of these prejudices the New Testament aifordw 
 many iUustrations, 210. John, who used the terms all and 
 world more frequently than any other inspired writer, limits 
 the mediation of Christ to a part of the human race, 213. 
 Passages adduced in s'apncrtot universal redemption considered 
 214 : 2 Cor., V, 14-16. 2l4; 1 Tim..ii. 1-8, 217. 1 John, ii] 
 2, 223. Heb„ ii, 9, 226. Rom., v, 18; 1 Cor., xv, 22, 229. 
 2 Pet, iii, 9, 236. 2 Pet., ii, 1, 239. Extent of the gospel 
 
w^^-^x.. J^ 
 
 . ''Ht^tf 
 
 1(1 
 
 G OOKTlMTf. 
 
 call, hM ooMsion 'jd mi objection Againit partienUr redemption, 
 243. Whitbj on oi^ng this objection, hM drawn a nnirerMl 
 conelnaion Arom limited premiMt, 245. 
 
 DISSERTATION VII. 
 
 OM KLBCnOM. 
 
 Neeeeeity of acting in a particular .way rousiatent with li- 
 berty of volition, 248. The Arminian objection, ihat consis- 
 tently with the doctrine of unconditional decrees God must be 
 the author of sin, 260. The doctrine of foreknowledge has the 
 same difficulties as the doctrine of unconditional election, 252* 
 The objection that Calrinism is less accordant with divine be- 
 nerolence, fallacious, and fraught with pernicious consequen- 
 ces, 253. Election does not imply partiality in God, 257. 
 Arminian views of election not supported by Scripture rightly 
 interpreted, 259. Some terms to which Arminians have at- 
 tached a signification according to their yiew of election con- 
 sidered, 263. Harshness ascribed to the doctrine of election, 
 a particular use of the ancient sceptical objection, which led 
 to the exclusion of Deity fiom the universe, 267. UncoQiU'- 
 tional decrees not inconsistent with the sincerity of God, 268' 
 
 
ED If JONS OF THB WORKS QUOTBD IN THE POLLOWING 
 U188BRTATI0N8. 
 
 ft 
 
 Ttgrkw'i Scripture Doctrine of Original Sin. Ix)ndon, 1161. 
 Wbitby'« Diwourse concerning Election, etc. Oxfotti, 1816. 
 Preddent Edward's Work*. 8 Tol. London, 1817. 
 Principal Hill's Lectures in Divinity, 3 rol. Edinburgh, 1826. 
 Pictefs Theologie Chretiennc, 8 vol. Geneva, 1 72 1 . 
 Maoknight'B Translation of the Epistles. Edinburgh, 1820. 
 M*gee on the Atcnement, 8 vol. London, 18 J 6. 
 
 » ■-'* 
 
€=S, vfem*?'' r^: 
 
 ■!;iiv*.'. 
 
 i i 
 
 I 
 
 !'1 
 
 :1 
 
 .gl 
 
 H 
 
DISSERTATION I. 
 
 ON ORIGINAL SIN. 
 
 Human conduct shows that all men have, and live under the 
 in.'^uence of. unhaUoned propensities^ The whole word of 
 God accords with this view of human eharacter-The image 
 of God completely erased from the human soul-The loss of 
 
 ^itr.T^T' * •^«*«"«'^*-" -«^"ired in the course 
 of hfe but the effect of Adam's first sin-Adam the federal 
 head of his natural offspring-The loss of the divine ima«e 
 or spintual death, not the result of personal guilt-The 
 transmission of moral impurity implies the transference of 
 
 Zl""t~?' *--^— of moral guilt not seldom 
 taught in Scnpture-It is a consequence of the official cha- 
 racter ot Adam who. in the covenant of wo.lcs, was invested 
 with the control of his natural offspring-The form in which 
 the covenant was presented to him. an.) the absence of his 
 
 td;^""" '''-' '' ^" ''-'-^- - --'^ 1~1 
 
 Since the introduction of sin into the world, no 
 period has been characterized bj the innocence of 
 Its population. To the existence of unhallowed 
 propensities in man, everj section of the human 
 race l.as furnished an ample quota of evidence. 
 ^yery where, society has been marked by aberra- 
 tions from duty, which neither a sense of moral 
 Obligation nor political enactments, have availed to 
 
 B 
 
Ill 
 
 10 
 
 DISSERTATION I. 
 
 prevent. Even where intelligence and refinement 
 liave exhibited human nature in its blandest as- 
 ])Octs, social order has been maintained, not through 
 the absence of vicious propensities, but, to a con- 
 siderable extent, by numerous penal statutes for 
 the prevention of crime : And still society, though 
 protected by the=^, has not been preserved from 
 (^oimtless violations of moral prescription. 
 
 With the preceding view of society, the general 
 tonor of revelation accords. It is announced in the 
 L.1W ; and it is confirmed by the Gospel. Divine 
 authority has enjoined that redemption through the 
 blood ,:f Christ should be preached to all nations ; 
 because, through the purifying efficacy of his atone- 
 ment, every human being needs to be reformed. 
 Kespecting this extent of moral depravity, the evi- 
 dence of Scripture is ample and explicit. The hu- 
 man constitution, indeed, contains a variety of prin- 
 (•iples, which, in particular circumstances, repress 
 its unholy propensities, and even elicit a course of 
 action entitled to human applause. Through the 
 operation of the Spirit of God, also, the ample and 
 animating motives of the Gospel have produced in 
 society ennobling effects : in fruits of rigliteous- 
 iioss, they have conferred upon the Gentiles glory, 
 like a flowing stream. But, even where tiiese re- 
 straints and incentives have combined to render 
 men just, one who sinneth not is not to be found. ^ 
 Tried by the law of God, human nature has e/er 
 
 1 Eccles., vii, 20. 
 
 # 
 
ON ORIGINAL SIN. jj 
 
 dispL-.vcd,a univcr,»l hUuro. Our Lord l,as, there- 
 fore. sa,d, Preach tie Gospel, not morely t^ 0^,- 
 nation, but.,, every creature ;' an.l all need it, for 
 xllhave come ,h„rt o//« glory „f God' 
 -Vor docs .Scriptnr ihon'.o the opinion, that, 
 
 InTI" '.'71"""*"- ""'"''^ P'opensiti s ar 
 Wended wuh the image of God ; that, in the Di- 
 
 IZ ':"^'°f •«■=» in W^ natural .tate, with mneh 
 that 1, oTil, contains mueh that is good. Thai 
 
 It; " ^'' "{ *>'*• "■^'^■- »"<■ with aat 
 
 "■h,c,, uborn ofa.e Spirit, it has nothing in con,- 
 ■non. ■ In the sight of God. it has „„ spiritual ex- 
 elence; and. heuce. the statement of Scripture. 
 "■^'^y^i^^^jUohJ-.elklhm good thin,, ^ 
 
 In reference to the social relations of life, hu- 
 man nature, indeed, is not without much that is 
 valuable; and often it exemplifies much rectitude 
 of pnncple and kindliness of heart. It conta"m 
 numerous energies, which, bearing upon ,7, 
 formance of social duty, contribute lo the g'od 
 order and happmess of the soei.al state. Bf' L„ 
 dutj ,< of divine prescription , and. as such, it re 
 quires affecfonate submission to the authority of 
 t-od. The prmcipal motive to the discharge of 
 <bty ,s not what society needs, but. what the duty 
 has 2omed ; and. therefore, the mere performance 
 of ^» hat .due to man, does not amount to what 
 d.vmc anthonty require,. Yet such i, human Z 
 
 1 Afnrlr wl 1 c i t^ 
 
 1 Mark, xvi, 15. 
 
 - Rom., iii, 23. 
 * Rom., vii, 18. 
 
 ' John, iii, 0. 
 
I 1 
 
 'I III 
 
 il 
 
 I, 
 
 12 
 
 D188ERTATIOX I. 
 
 ture, that, in relation to the intercourse of life, it 
 may perform much tliat is jrood, while it is ignor- 
 ant of God ; and, where there is ignorance of God, 
 thoi t) must also be a complete destitution of attach- 
 ment to him, and of moral submission to his will. 
 The natural man lias perceptions and processes of 
 reasoning, which, to a certain extent, adapt his ca- 
 pacities to his statical in the scale of being ; so that, 
 oven without the knowledge of God, he does by 
 nature the things contained in the law;^ but his 
 treatment of the Gospel evinces, that, in spiritu- 
 ality it view and obedience alike, ho i= deficient. 
 When the things of the Spirit of God are present- 
 ed for his acceptance, 3ii8 estimate of their worth 
 displays a complete lack of perception ; and his 
 reasonings respecting them, originating in ignor- 
 ance, terminate in rejection : they are foolishness 
 to liim ; and, though divine authority enjoins their 
 acceptance, he receiveth them not.- As born of 
 the tlesh, he has only the capacities of a carnal 
 mind : darljiess broods over it ; and, in relation to 
 (jod, as requiring submission to the things of the 
 Spirit, its essence is unmingled aversion ; The car- 
 nal mind is enmity against God ; for it is not sub- 
 feet to the law of God, neither indeed can he. So, 
 then, they t/iat arc in the jlesh cannot please God.^ 
 Having the understanding darkened, and being alien- 
 ated from the life of God, is the Scriptural account 
 
 Kom., ii, 11. 
 
 2 1 Cor., ii, 14. 
 
 3 Iloin., viii, 1, 9. 
 
 I 
 
ON ORIGINAL 8IN. 
 
 i;j 
 
 Of Its stato.1 The morality, of mere human nature, 
 therefore, is body without spirit ; and. in eyery na- 
 tion under Iieaven. its re'-ion has ever been a reli- 
 gion of vanity, a religir 3luded from the accept- 
 ance of God. From cuis general destitution of 
 moral rectitude, there is not a single exception. 
 The tchole world lieth in ^oichedness:^ God looked 
 down from heaven upon tJ^ children of men, to see if 
 there were any that did understand, that did seek 
 
 ayether become JiUhy ; there is none that doeth 
 good, no, not one.- 
 
 This completo estrangement from God is not a 
 deterioration acquired in the progress of life By 
 repeated acts, the mind may. indeed, acquire a new 
 bias ; even to what it had previously disliked, it may 
 become strongly attr^ched. But habit in the natu- 
 ral man is the mere corroboration of a principle 
 coexistent with his life : he was shapen in L,ui^ 
 ^r.d the imarjmation of his heart is evil from his 
 youth. The first transgression of Adam has Z 
 tended Its deteriorating influence to all his descen- 
 dants by ordinary generation. Though himself 
 createu in the image of God. he has been by diso- 
 bedience rendered unlike his Creator. As unfit 
 tor holy intercourse, therefore, he was expelled from 
 paradise ; and, when ],e begat a son, he was in his 
 own likeness, and after his image, The import of 
 ' Eph., iv, IS. 
 ' Ps. li, 5. 
 
 - 1 John, V, 19. 
 ^ Gen., viii, 21. 
 
 ^ Ps. iiii. 2, .3. 
 •^ Gen., V, 3. 
 
(i 
 
 14 
 
 DISSERTATION I. 
 
 tliese expressions, as denoting degeneracy from his 
 original constitution, the Scriptures abundantly 
 illuscrate : they represent the image of Adam as a 
 contrast to the image f Christ, or to that nature 
 which man originally possessed. 
 
 In illustration of the preceding point it may be 
 remarked, that our first pfirent was the figure of 
 him that was to corned that is.'of Christ. Hence 
 our Lord, who is of heavenly origin, and the linage 
 of the invisible God,'' is termed the last Adam :^ and 
 one grand end of his mediatorial appointment is the 
 communication of his likeness to unholy men. It 
 is accordingly stated, that, as the first Adam was 
 made a living soul, the last Adam was made a quick- 
 eninrj spirit.^ The need of quickening in the sub- 
 jects of our Lord's mediation is thus implied : first, 
 as descendants of Ada^n, they are natural men \ 
 and tlien, as begotten of God through the last 
 Adam, they are rendered spiritual. In refprence 
 to this order it is said, Howbeit, that was not first 
 ivhch is spiritual, but that which is natural; and 
 afterward that which is spiritual.' And, subse- 
 quently, these words are explained, as denoting the 
 different results produced by respective connection 
 Avith Adam and with Christ. The offspring of each 
 correspond with the nature of their progenitor : 
 The first man is of the earth, earlhy ; the second 
 man is the Lord from heaven. And, as we have 
 
 ' Koni,, V, 11. 
 
 - I Cor., xv, A.O. 
 •» 1 Cor., XV, 4G. 
 
 3 1 Coi\, XV, 45. 
 
ox ORIGINAL SIN. 
 
 15 
 
 home the image of the eartfiy, we shall also bear the 
 image of the heavenly i The image of the heaven- 
 ly, then, IS the reverse of the image of the eartliy 
 or of that likeness in wliich our first progenitor be- 
 gat his son : And, when it is taken into account 
 that his descendants, in their natural state, are de- 
 nominated the seed of the Serpent,^ and a genera- 
 tion of vipers,3 the innate depravity of those who 
 bear his image, will appear sufficiently evident. 
 
 As bearing upon the same point, our Lord has 
 said. That which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and 
 that which U born of the Spirit, isspirit:* and these, 
 m nature and operation, are declared to be contra- 
 rtes: The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the 
 Spirit against the fksh.^ Since, then, those who 
 are born of the Spirit have been created anew in 
 the image of the heavenly ; others must stiU bear 
 the image of the earthy. Divine grace has not en- 
 abled them to put off the old man with his deeds : 
 they are still characterized by the want of original 
 righteousness, and by a complete depravity of na- 
 ture. 
 
 Of the natural deterioration of the human race 
 the manner of our Lord's incarnation supplies ad- 
 ditional proof. As a sacrifice for sin, it was requi- 
 site that he should be without blemish ; and, hence 
 the supernatural arrangemert which rendered him 
 undefiled and saparate from sinners : T/ie Holy 
 
 ' 1 Cor., XV, 47-49. 
 ' .fohn, iii, G, 
 
 - Gen., iii, 15. 
 ^ Gal., V, 1?. 
 
 3 Matt., iii, 7. 
 
ir> 
 
 mSSERTATION I. 
 
 I 
 
 I ?' 
 
 M } 
 
 Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the 
 Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore, also, that 
 'Wi^' thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the 
 Son of God. ^ 
 
 This depravation of man's original constitution, 
 tne Scriptures refer to a connection subsisting be- 
 tween our first parent and h.s natural descendants ; 
 and, hence, it is said that in Adam all die/^ That 
 this death IS not, as some have imagined, a mere 
 dissolution of the body, but also a privation of the 
 jmage of God, or of spiritual life, is evident from 
 the contrast of Adam with Christ, whibh has been 
 already lUustrated. That is a contrast of persons 
 in relation to effects. Whea 't is said, that, as in 
 Arim^ all die, even so in Christ shall all be made 
 n.ive,- the spiritual life which our Lord confers 
 evinces the nature of the death bj Adam to be a 
 ■''tato in which his descendants are dead wliile liv- 
 mg, ..lat IS, dead in trespasser and sins." Because 
 ^^piritual death, or moral depravity, as well as th. 
 dissolution of the body, became his allotment, it 
 has become the allotment of all his natural descen- 
 dants. (\)5 
 
 It ought not to be affirmed, that the spiritual 
 death of Adam s descendants is the result of their 
 personal guilt ; for it has pervaded those whom 
 l.od has termed innocents,^ that is. persons uncon- 
 tammated by actual sin. Infants have not sinned 
 
 » liUkp, i, 35. 
 ' •''cr., ii, 34. 
 
 - 1 Cor., XV, 23. 
 ^ Sec page 28. 
 
 ^ K|)h.. ii, 1. 
 " Jer., ii, 34. 
 
OK ORIGINAL SIX. 
 
 17 
 
 after thestmilitude ofAdam^stramgressian:^ jet in 
 Adam aldtc : And that infants are the subjects of 
 spiritual death is evident, both from the extent of 
 our Lord s mediation, and from the ordinances of 
 his ohurch. Where there is no bondage of corrup- 
 ..on ],ere can be no corresponding redemption ; 
 yet Christ has represented infants as noediue his 
 mediation: Sufer little children to com. unto ,ne. 
 
 r/ , . '^'"^ ""'' ' ^''^ ""^'"'^^ " '^^ ^i»9dom of 
 (^^d- Infants, therefore, as well as adults, belong 
 to the covenant of grace ; and they belong to it not 
 in consequence of original puritj. The system of 
 redemption shows, that, in tlie very first stage of 
 existence, they need the application of that Wood 
 which cleanses from all sin. Whether Jew or Gen- 
 tile, they are all under its power as a moral pollu- 
 tion ; and. for the restoration of purity, different 
 dispensations of the covenant of grace'kave con- 
 tained an ordinance, provided a. means of relief 
 from their unholy state. Formerly, they needed the 
 circumcision of the heart, and they still need the 
 washing of regeneration. To this spiritual reno- 
 vation, circumcision and baptism alike refer ; and 
 It cannot be reasonably affirmed, that either of these 
 ordinances is emblematical of deliverance from im- 
 purity acquired by actual transgression. Infants 
 were circumcised upon the eighth day ; our Lord, 
 also recognized them as proper subjects for receiv- 
 ing his blessing ; and an essential part of the bless- 
 
 ^ Rom., V, 14. 
 
 - Mark, x, 14. 
 
18 
 
 DISSERTATtOX I. 
 
 mg of Christ is ever the communication of a holj 
 mind. Infants, indeed, cannot now be presented to 
 Christ personaUj, as in the days of his flesh : but 
 tliey still need tlio renewing of the Holy Ghost, 
 and are, therefore, brought to the ordinance of bap- 
 tism, which, for that end, ho has instituted, and 
 promised to bless. 
 
 Both tlie testimony of God and the evidence of 
 fact, evince the want of the divine image in the first 
 stage of human existence. If pure intelligence 
 moulding the heart to rectitude, be that which gives 
 to human nature the likeness of God; the condition 
 of infants is best described, not by appellations of 
 imcontaroinated excellence, but by that foolishness 
 which is bound in the heart of a child} lie who 
 knows what is in man, has so described the period 
 of infancy. He has also stated, tliat death reigned 
 from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not 
 sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression: « 
 and it reigned, not in consequence of their personal 
 guilt ; for in Adam ull die. 
 
 Viewing death in its diversified forms, as the 
 wages of sin, the principles of retributive justice 
 suggest, that, where there has been a transmission 
 of moral impuiity. there must liave also been a 
 transference of guilt. Penal infliction without im- 
 plication in previous crime, cannot exist in the 
 government of God: Justice and judgment are the 
 habitation of his throne.^ Death by Adam must, 
 ' Prov., xxii, 1.3. -■ Kom., v, 1 t. ;' Psalni Ix.xxix, 14. 
 
ON ORIGINAL SIX. 
 
 19 
 
 therefore, stand in connection with sin from the 
 same source. Respecting the transference of guilt, 
 It IS, accordingly, ..tated. that hy one man's disobe- 
 dience many were made sinners : ' and it must be hero 
 observed, that the term sinner ooes not, as some 
 have supposed, denote subjection to death. It re- 
 fers sol.ljrto the violation of law, and, consequently, 
 implies the idea of guilt. In the preceding state- 
 ment of Scripture, tlie imputation of sin is explicitly 
 affirn^ed. 
 
 Hut this doctrine of tlio transference of guilt, 
 does not rest upon a solitary evidence. It is far- 
 ther proved by a scriptural sta ment, which traces 
 the death of the human race to connection of th' ir 
 first progenitor :_^y owe man sin entered into the 
 world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon 
 all met for that, or, as this expression may be ren- 
 dered, in relation to him all have yinned.^ And, as a 
 proof that this death passed upon all men, not as 
 the result of their ovn personal transgression, but 
 as the effect of Adam's first sin, it is added, that 
 (hrouffh the offence of one many are dead.- How 
 many are dead through the off-ence of one, is not 
 the subject of conjecture. Short-siglited reason 
 may speculate, and deny that ono man's guilt can 
 be imputed to another; but he who knows aU pos- 
 sibilities, has declared, that, by the offence of one, 
 judgment eame upon all men to condemnation.' 
 
 1 Roin.. V, I 'J. 
 
 - H'.ii!., V, 12. 
 ^ Koin., V, IS. 
 
 Item., V, 1 ■>. 
 
20 
 
 niusEUTATioy i. 
 
 I 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 Thus, hough tho act wa, AdamV. tho guilt, coa- 
 -lemuafou a„d punishment, have be™,no tZ 
 .ommon allotment of all hi, natural descendar 
 l^nco a „ stated, that *„M re.;„„iyro. A^X 
 Mo,e, even over ,Uom that had not sinned of t„ the 
 
 rrt f *"•■' ''''-^-'"-.- ■ that i , over 
 all who had not like him, X.y eatin, the forbidden 
 fru.t, violated tho condition upon which life had 
 heon suspended. Bei„.-, thus, the allotment of ^ 
 . re.gned not onl^ over actual transgressors, bul 
 also over mfants, who could not be charged with 
 personal guilt. * '" 
 
 From these statements it is evident, that all 
 human death proceeds fro,., the imputation o 
 Adam » s,„, and, that by one ,,„„•, iUoMience 
 many were made sinners. 
 
 But. further, tho p'-ecedin^ imputation of rruilt 
 is a consequence of that pubhc capacity in which 
 our first parent acted, as the representative of his 
 offspnn. Of this, the parallel between Adam and 
 Chr- ,t. as It IS stated in Scripture, affords conclu- 
 s.ve evidence. That our Lord sustained a prblic 
 character m relation t^ his church, is abundantly 
 
 of Chnst w.ll, therefore, indicate the character of 
 our first parent in relation to his descendants. 
 
 Upon tins topic it maj be remarL.-d, that, in al- 
 lusion to M:im^,tkejlrsiman, our Lord is termed 
 
 * lloin., V, 14. 
 
Ott Of.IGINAL Siy. 
 
 21 
 
 f/ie second. But many generations Irving inter- 
 vened between them ; this appeUation of Christ 
 .•annot refer to m.ro priority on the part of our first 
 parent. It must aliudo to something in which thr. 
 hrst man was the figure of the second; and. accord 
 dingly our Lord is termed, not only the second 
 nian. but also the last Aoam. Xow. Christ in this 
 character. ,s the head of his spiritual seed, or as it 
 .8 expressed in Scripture, t/ie /^ead of /as bcd^j the 
 rhurcL^ Adam, therefore, as his typo or figure 
 must have been not n.erely the first, but also the 
 head, of the Imman race as constituting one body 
 
 Respectmg Christ, then, it must bo further ob- 
 served, that in the covenant of grace, he repre- 
 sented all whom he Imd been appointed to redeem. 
 Their guilt w.s transferred to him; and, hence 
 ly s said. The Lord la^d on him the iru,uUy of ul 
 all. And also. He bore our sins in his oL body 
 on the tree.^ Ihs satisfaction to the law i... also 
 imputed to h,s seed: it is th. ground of their ac' 
 ceptance with God ;for by the obedience of one shall 
 many be maae rirhteous^ Thus. Christ represented 
 the body of which he is the head; and. that Adam 
 as his figure sustained the same character with res 
 pect to Lis offspring, is evident from this consider- 
 ation, that the parallel between them is a parallel 
 "oc merely of persons, but of persons as produc- 
 ing, each to his own seed, a particular result By 
 
 Col., i, IS. 
 
 - Is., liii, 6. 
 * Koin., V, 19. 
 
 ' 1 Tot., ii, 24. 
 

 m 
 
 I 
 
 n\ 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
 f * 
 
 22 
 
 DISSERTATION I. 
 
 Adam, tlicro are condemnation and death to all his 
 natural descendants: by Christ, JMstification and 
 life to all the children whom God has given him : 
 And. therefore, it is said, fiat, as by one mans 
 disobedience many were made siancrs, so /ii/ the obe- 
 "' ce of one shall mmiy be made righteous,^ and 
 dso. that, as in Adam all die, even s > in Christ shall 
 all be made alive. "^ 
 
 But, farther, the nature of the trusts respectively 
 committed to tlie first Adam and to the last, affords 
 an additional illustration of tlie same point. Our 
 Lord was invested with authority and power, that, 
 as the liead of his spiritual seed, ho might control 
 their destinies. All power, lie lias said, is given 
 unto me in heaven and in earth -.^ pover over alljlesh,* 
 that he should give eternal life to those whom he 
 represented. Adam. also, as the figure of Christ, 
 was invested with the control .- his natural descen- 
 dants These, while the subjects of his govern- 
 ment, were to be dwellers on the earth ; and the 
 earth was the measure of his kingdom: Be fruit- 
 ful, and multiply, and replenish the earth; and have 
 
 dominion over every living thing that 
 
 movefk on the earth.^ Viewing our first parent, 
 then, in his official character, as the vicegerent of 
 God, and as entrusted with the control of his off- 
 spring, he must have boon equally the agent of 
 God and the representative of men. Wherever 
 
 i Rom., V, 10. = ] Cor., xv, 22. ^ Mai., xxviii, 18. 
 * John, xvii, 2. « Cgn,^ ;^ 28. 
 
ox ORIGIXAL SIX. 
 
 23 
 
 there is dominion, there is the ropresentation of 
 the ruled. Adam, therefore, was the responsible 
 head of his natural descendants; and. when in this 
 official character he violated his trust, the sin of 
 the head of the bodj became the sin of the mem- 
 bers. Of this truth, painful experience furnishes 
 to every man a feeling illustration. To God hu 
 man nature has often said, wliy hast thou made me 
 thus? Keasoning, also, from -nscriptural views 
 It has often denied the official character of our first 
 parent, and the imputation of his sin; but the 
 miserj whicli liis sin has entailed upon the world 
 It cannot deny. Doatli. which God has de- 
 nounced as the wages of sin, it may, like some 
 speculators, represent as the result of the onVinal 
 constitution of man; or, like others, it may affect 
 to regard death as a blessing: but. from the appal- 
 ling truth, tliat. by connection with Adam, every 
 human being is accursed of God, it can find no ra- 
 tional evasion. For tJie transgression of our first 
 parent it was said, Cursed is the ground for thy 
 ■sake; m sorrow shah thou eat of Hall the days of thy 
 life. Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth 
 unto thee '.^ And which of all his descendants is 
 m Ills thorny pilgrimage, exempted from the bread 
 ot sorrow? The whole creation groaneth,^ In the 
 progress of life, therefore, as well as in the inflic 
 tiou of death, the natural descendants of Adam 
 nitaat and adult without exception, inherit tiiJ 
 'Gen.,iii, 17, 18. 2 Horn., viii, 22. 
 
24 
 
 DISSERTATION I. 
 
 «;urse pronounced against himself: And, consis- 
 tently with the principles of immutable justice, this 
 arrangement could occur through him, only as sus- 
 taining the character of a representing head. 
 
 In connection with -lO preceding view of the of- 
 ficial character of Adaii as the representative of 
 his natural offspring, it must be further remarked, 
 that he was so constituted by the appointment of 
 God. This divine arrangement is usually denomi- 
 nated the covenant of works ; that is, a mutual 
 agreement between God and our first parent as the 
 representative of the human race. That such an 
 arrangement or covenant existed, is evident, not 
 only from its effects upon Adam's posterity, but 
 also from obvious statements of Scripture. Our 
 first parent was the figure of him that was to come. 
 Now, respecting Christ, the last Adam, God has 
 said, / roill give thee for a covenant of the people:^ 
 and the blood of Christ, as ratifying its promises, is 
 termed the blood of the covenant," and, of the ever- 
 lasting covenant.^ Adam, then, was our Lord's 
 figure in reference to a federal transaction ; and, 
 lience, of Israel it was said, They like men, or, ac- 
 cording to the original expression, they like Adam 
 have trani'gressed the covenant.* 
 
 The will of God was, indeed, presented to our 
 first parent in the form of a precept: And ihe 
 Lord God commanded the man, saying, of every tree 
 
 1 Is., xlvi, 6, 
 
 2 Ileb., X, 20. 
 UIos. ■ " 
 
 3 lleb., xiii, 20. 
 
 VI 
 
ON ORIGINAL SIN. 
 
 25 
 
 tree 
 
 eat 
 
 I shall 
 
 of the aarden thou mnyest feeely ecu 
 of the knowledge of good and evil, i 
 
 of it; for in the day that thou eatest _, , „._., 
 
 surely die.' But the preceptive form in" which the 
 divine will was announced, is perfectly consistent 
 with its federal nature. Indeed, in this very cir- 
 cumstance, the first Adam was the figure of him 
 that was to come. Like our first parent, the Mes- 
 siah .7&8 the Father's servant: and what is termed 
 the covenant of grace, was presented to our Lord 
 in the preceptive form. Adverting to this view of 
 the arrangement of mercj, he has said, I know that 
 hts (the Father's) commandment is life everlasting :^ 
 And all that he did in his mediatorial capacity, he 
 has represented as a ministration of obedience t< 
 the authority of God: / came down from heaven 
 not to do mine own wil.\ but the will of him that sent 
 me. ' The Father who sent me, he gave me command- 
 ment, what I should say, and what I should speak.^ 
 As the Father gave me commandment even so I do.'> 
 Besides, it may be added, that a precept from God 
 to one bearing his image, must be unavoidably re- 
 ceived with cordial acquiescence. They both walk 
 m the light: in unity of sentiment they have fel- 
 lowship one with another,^ and cannot disagree. 
 When God, therefore, commanded, his image in 
 Ad a must have like Israel replied, All that the 
 
 * Gen.,u, 16. 17. 
 
 * John, xii, 49. 
 
 2 John, xii, 50. 
 * John, xiv, 31. 
 
 ' John, vi, 38. 
 « 1 John, i, 7. 
 
26 
 
 DISSERTATION 1. 
 
 L wd hath said, I tvill do and be obedic.U; ^ And 
 
 such an agreement constitutes a covenant. 
 
 Jt ought n c to bo affirmed, that the absence of 
 Adam's d scendants rendered the covenant of 
 works, a mere personal transaction with himself. 
 A personal transaciion could not, in its worst ef- 
 fect , be extended to those who had not bfconrepre- 
 .■sented: yet, in Adam all die. Besides, the covenant*} 
 which God has condescended to make in relation 
 to men, have not derived their validity from the 
 presence and consent of all who were included in 
 those arrangements. Moses, reciting to Israel tlie 
 covenant of God respecting them, has said, Neither 
 with you only do I make this covenant and this oath; 
 But with him that standeth with us here this day be- 
 fore the Lord, and also with him that is not here with 
 us this day.^ In tlie counsel of peace, also, when the 
 covenant of redemption was made, no man was pre- 
 sent, either to concur or to reject: ^et, upon the 
 ground of personal absence, whoever disclaimed a 
 right to its blessings ? But vain man would be wisej; 
 and, when by the covenant of works he finds himself 
 a loser, he pleads his absence, and concludes his rea- 
 sonings with a rejection of the arrangement of God. 
 Truth is against him; and experience proves it; for 
 by the offence of one, judgment came upon all nien to 
 rondemnation: and condemnation has introduced 
 the curse into every man's lot; into his enjoyments 
 in life, and into his very existence. To dwellers 
 
 ' Exod., xxiv, 7. 
 
 ^ Deut., xxlx, 14, 15. 
 
I 
 
 ON ORIGINAL SIN. 
 
 27 
 
 on ihe earth there is but one sentence: In sorrow 
 shah t/iou eat of it, all the days of thy life. In the 
 sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return 
 unto the ground; for out of it wast thou 'aken: for 
 dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return} 
 
 "■ Ucn., iii, 17-10, 
 
OT R. 
 
 (a) For OB in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all 
 hf made alive. These words refer directly to the resur- 
 rection of the body : but they refer to it as constituting 
 the completion . that spiritual existence which believers 
 receive in connection with Christ. This will appear from 
 the following considerations: — In this chapter, the apos- 
 tle has restricted his discourse to the resun-ection of those 
 that are C7irisfs.^ This is evident from his account of 
 its natm'c. But the resurrection promised through Christ, 
 commences with the call of the Gospel, Awake, thou that 
 steepest, and arise from the dead ; and Christ shall give 
 thee light.^ By the powerful application of this call, our 
 Lord verifies hiss declaration. The words that I speak unto 
 you, they are spirit, and they are life.^ Hence, believera 
 are said to be already risen with Christ.* Thus, they are 
 alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord,^ and walk 
 in newness oflife.^ Of this new life, the resurrection of 
 the body is the consummation. Death by Adam is then 
 completely surmounted; and life by Christ perfected. 
 This corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal 
 must put on immoitaiity. So, when this corruptible shall 
 have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put 
 on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying 
 ihat is written. Death is swalloued vp in victory.'' 
 
 I Eph., ii, 23. 2 Eph., v, 14. 3 John, vl, 63. 
 
 * Col, iii, 1. 5 Rom., vi, 11. c Rom., vi, 4. 
 
 ^ 1 Cor., XV, 63, 54. 
 
DISSERTATION II. 
 
 ( 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE OF ORIGINAL 
 SIN CONSIDERED. 
 
 Those who reject the doctrine of original sin deny the official 
 chai-actcr of Adam— The standard which Taylor has em- 
 ployed in his Scripture Doctrine of original sin unscriptural 
 and illogical— His own views not according to his standard 
 —According to Taylor death was by, or in cr .sequence of, 
 Adam's sins— According to Scripture his posterity died in 
 him as their representative— The doctrine of Adam's official 
 character vindicated— The rejection of it leads to the rejec 
 tion of the imputation of his guilt to his posterity— Parents 
 do not stand in the same relation to their children as Adam 
 did to his posterity— The imputation of one person's guilt 
 to another taught in Scripture contrary to Taylor's assertion 
 —The guilt only of Adam's first sin imputed to his offspring— 
 The dominion conferred on Adam and the grant made to Noah 
 very different— While Taylor denies the transference of guilt 
 he admits the transference of misery, which is the wages of 
 sin— His mode of accounting for the sufferings and death of 
 children implies what he denies— His views as to sufferings 
 and death being a benefit to mankind contrary to Scripture 
 and inapplicable to the case of infants— Death as the wages 
 of sin not conlnod to the dissolution of the b- 'y— Taylor's 
 notions of the image of God unscriptural and his arguments 
 in support of them inconclusivo— Those who deny the im- 
 putation of Adam's sin reject the doctrine that human de- 
 pravity is derived from him— Taylor's unfaL- statement of 
 
30 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 ira- 
 
 this doctrine and inconclusive arguments against it — Dcp._ 
 vity according to Scripture derived through parents from 
 Adam — Tlic necessity and nature of regeneration prove the 
 existence and extent of depravity. 
 
 Those who reject the doctrine of original sin, of 
 course, also, deny the oflScial character of Adam, 
 as the representative of his offspring. Upon this 
 subject Dr. Taylor has remarked, that "a repre- 
 sentative of moral conduct, a representative, the 
 guilt of whose actions shall be imputed to us, and 
 whose sin shall corrupt and debauch our minds, is 
 without any foundation in Scripture, and is in it- 
 pelf a great absurdity."^ Respecting the divine 
 denunciation, In the day thou eatest thereof thou 
 shalt surely die, he has also said, "Here is not 
 one word relating to Adam's posterity." - 
 
 Before adverting to these sentiments it may be 
 remarked, that, in the discussion of this contro- 
 vert'^d topic, Taylor, in determining the amount of 
 scriptural doctrine, has employed a very unscrip- 
 tural and illogical standard. Respecting tlxe moral 
 government of the world, scripture is a system of 
 progressive disclosure; and, consequently, the 
 shade which obscures its earlier statements, should 
 receive illumination from its later brightness. 
 But Taylor has laboured to obscure the light, in 
 accommodation to the darkness. In the denuncia- 
 tion of God to our first parent, this author, having 
 discovered "not one word relating to Adam's pos- 
 * Taylor, p. 205. Taylor, p. 8. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 :n 
 
 terity," has adopted the opinion, that tucse wero 
 not implicated iu the disobedience of their progen- 
 itor : and, then, by most unnatural distortions, he 
 has endeavoured to accommodate to his precon- 
 ceived notions, those parts of Scripture in which 
 the doctrine of original sin is explicitly taught. 
 
 In the divine denunciation, it is true, there is 
 not one word respecting Adam's posterity. But, 
 in reference to the promise, that the Seed of the 
 woman sh( uld bruise the head of the Serpent, Tay- 
 lor might with equal propriety have said. Hero is 
 not one word, that the Sou of God should b:* mani- 
 fested to destroy the works of the Devil. Besides, 
 his own theory contains the means of its refutation. 
 Though, in the divine denunciation, he has found 
 not one word relating to Adam's posterity ; he has 
 not refused to Admit that in Adam all die. View- 
 ing this admission, then, a: an c osition of the 
 divine threat to our first parent, it extends the ef- 
 fects of his disobedience to all his natural descen • 
 dants ; and, where the effect is admitted, the cause, 
 particularly when specified with equal plainncc., 
 ought not to be rejected. 
 
 In the opinion of Taylor, a representative of 
 moral conduct is a great adsurdity. Upon his own 
 principle, therefore, he ought to have maintained, 
 that the death inflicted on the human race through 
 Adam's delinquency, is not more rational. Be- 
 sides, immutable justice requires, that, wliere there 
 is no guilt there should be no condemnation : yet, 
 
:\2 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 among tho numerous inconsistencies which the 
 
 plain language of Scripture has forced upon Tay- 
 
 lor, ho has repeatedlj stated, that, by the judicial 
 
 sentence of God, the death denounced against our 
 
 ftrst parent's disobedience has been extended to all 
 
 his offiipring. «'The judgment that passed upon 
 
 all men to condemnation," he has said, "is death's 
 
 coming upon all men by the judicial act of God, 
 
 upon occasion of Adam's transgression. "^ But, if 
 
 Adam did not represent his descendants, how could 
 
 divine rectitude transfer to them the wages of sin 
 
 by a judicial act? 
 
 To evade the preceding objection, Taylor has 
 represented the death of Adam's descendants, as a 
 mere coiisequonce of his disobedience; that is, as 
 an event which his transgression did not unavoida- 
 bly entail. ^ From him," says he, "our mortalitv 
 commenceth ; death was by him ; that is, I sup- 
 pose, by, or in consequence of his condur "2 But 
 the Scriptures explicitly state, not that the human 
 race die in consequence of Adam's transgression, 
 but, that they die in himself; and, therefore, the 
 death of both is an eflFect of which his disobedience 
 is the cause. Though, as Taylor has conjectured, 
 by a divine arrangement subsequent to our first 
 parent's transgression, his descendants might die 
 ajler him, they could die in him, only in con- 
 sequence of their membership in that body of 
 which he was the head: and that he was a respon- 
 
 » Taylor, p. ^1. a Taylor, p. 25. 
 
0BJECTI0K8 CONSIDERED. 
 
 33 
 
 1 
 
 sible head between God and them, is evident from 
 that cLpreme authoritj with which he was invested 
 over •very living ihing that moveth upon the earth.^ 
 The preceding point was forme'-!/ illustrated hj 
 a reference to the scriptural parall 1 between Adam 
 and Christ. Our first parent, in contrast with him 
 that was to come, and in relation to his own off- 
 spnng, is represented as the one man, in connexion 
 wi^h whom these hrve been subjected to condemna- 
 tion and deatli : Judgment was by one to condemna- 
 tion,^ and, by one man's offence death reigned by one.^ 
 
 Onthecontrarj.relieffiomcondemnationanddeath, 
 IS by one man Jesus Christ.* Thus, in the arrpjige- 
 ments of God, each occupied a public station ; and, 
 as was formerly stated, the official character of 
 Christ must delineate the official character of him 
 who was his figure. Our Lord, then, is the head of 
 his body the church-,'^ and it must be kept in view, 
 that this is not a headship of priority merelv, but 
 also of direction and control, and consequen'tlj of 
 representation: The Father hath put all things 
 under his feet, and gave him to be head over all 
 things to the church, which is his body.<^ Hence, 
 Christ has represented the members of his church 
 as a part of himself. / am the vine; ye are the 
 branches:^ and they are also denominated members 
 of his body, of hisJUsh, and of his bones.^ They 
 
 1 Gen., i, 28. 
 * Rom., v,;i5. 
 ^ John, y, 6. 
 
 * Rom., V, 16. 
 *Col,, i, 18. 
 8 Eph., m, 30. 
 
 » Rom., V, 15. 
 » Eph., i, 22. 
 
34 
 
 DIESEniATIOX II. 
 
 were chosen in him, and they are saved in him, 
 expresslj upon the ground of his mediatorial 
 agency. The one man Adam as his figure, tliere- 
 fore, was the head of those to whom he stood in 
 relation ; and having been, as well as Christ, in- 
 vested with dominion, he possessed an official 
 agency, which rendered him, the representative of 
 tliose under his control. Accordingly, it is stated, 
 that, as the eflfects of our Lord's official work are 
 transferred to tnose who are in him ; those, also, 
 who are in our first parent reap the fruits of his 
 agency : By one mans disobedience many were made 
 sinners,^ and in Adam all die.^ 
 
 In consequence J the rejection of our first par- 
 ent's official charactei, as the representative of his 
 offspring, the imputation of his guilt must be also 
 rejected. "If the Spirit of God," says Taylor, 
 "be corsistent with itself, it is manifest from 
 Ezekiel, chap. 18th, that the im-.utation of sin, so 
 far as to make the posterity guilty of, and charge- 
 able with, the sin of the parent, is no scriptural 
 notion."' 
 
 The Consistency of the Spirit of God no Chris- 
 tian doubts ; and to make it the subject of supposi- 
 tion, accords ill with the character of an humble 
 disciple, which Taylor, not without ostentation, has 
 professed to be. This very consistency in the 
 !: Iptures of truth, has reduced him to the neces- 
 sity of adopting a mode of expression, which refutes 
 1 Horn., V, 19. - 1 Cor., xv, 22. 3 Taylor, p. 200. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 35 
 
 i 
 
 Ills own notion. •• Death," be has said, "must bo 
 understood to liave passed upon all mankind, not 
 for that :liey all have sinned, really, properly, and 
 personally ; but they have sinned, are made sinners, 
 are subjected to death througli, the on^ offence of 
 one man, that is, of Adam."' Here, the expression, 
 made sinners, he has explained as denoting made 
 subject to death; but his exposition is an utter viola- 
 tion of the established use of the term sinner. It 
 is, in other words, to explain t.ie guilt by the pun- 
 isliment. The correlate of sin is guilt: he, therefore, 
 wlio is made a sinner, is constituted guilty ; and 
 such, by connexion with Adam, is the character oi 
 the whole human -ace. It was formerly remarked, 
 that, where there is no guilt, there can justly be no 
 condemnation : yet the scriptures explicitly stating 
 that the Judge of all the earth ever does right, have, 
 vith equal plainness, announced, that, uoon the 
 ground of our first parent's tronsgressio". divine 
 justice has passed a condemnatory sentence upon 
 the whole human race: By the yjfence of one judg- 
 ment came upon all men to cotidemnation.- Since, 
 then, the offence was Adam's, the guilt could bo 
 theirs only by imputation. 
 
 In the 18th chapter of Ezekiel, to which Taylor 
 has referred, it is said, T\e soul that sinneth, it shall 
 die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, 
 neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son : 
 the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, 
 ^ Taylor, p. 53. 2 Rom., v, 18. 
 
 # 
 
36 
 
 DISSERTATION 11. 
 
 ! 
 
 ! 
 
 i 
 
 and th wickedness ^ the toicked shall be upon him.' 
 
 But, before these declarations of God can be ad- 
 missible as evidence against the imputation of sin, 
 It ought to be proved, that, under the moral ad- 
 ministration of God, every parent sustains, in re- 
 htion to his son, the same character which Adam 
 sustained in relation to his offspring. It ought also 
 to be proved, that every parent is a figure of him 
 that was to come ; that, through one offence com- 
 mitted by each, judgment passes upon his children 
 to condemnation; and that in him they aU die. 
 But, while divine truth attributes none of these to 
 parents in geaeral, it ascribes the whole to our first 
 parent; and, therefore, when it farther designates 
 him as the one man in contrast with Christ, and in 
 contradistinction from ull other human beings, it 
 evidently exhibits him, not in liis parental charac- 
 ter, but, like our Lord, as the occupant of a public 
 station and ofiicc in relation to his descendants. 
 For these reasoiiB, the preceding passage of Ezekiel 
 cannot be fairly adduced a^jainst the doctrine of 
 imputation. It is merely an exhibition of the 
 general tenor of the divine government, as corre- 
 sponding with the law which God had prescribed 
 for the regulation of the commonwealth of Israel. 
 
 But, though the declaration of God by Ezekiel 
 proves, that, after Adam's first act of disobedience, 
 every man's sin and its punishment belong solely to 
 himself; it contains no evidence, that there did not 
 
 ^ Rom., V, 20. 
 
 9 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 57 
 
 exist a previous constitution, by which all in Adam 
 are implicated in the sin of his official chai-acter. 
 On the contrary, it does contain indirect proof 
 of the actual existence of such au arrangement. 
 When it is said. Tht soul that sinneth, it shall die, 
 the infliction of death as a punishment, is suffi- 
 cientlj obvious. Infants, therefore, who die without 
 personal guUt, must have been implicated in sin ; 
 and, when it is taken into account, that they die in 
 Adam, for in him aU die, it is evident that a par- 
 ticipation of death through him, must originate in 
 a participation of sm from the same source. " How 
 mankind," says Taylor, "who were perfectly inno- 
 cent of Adam's sin, could for that sin, and upon no 
 other account, be justly brought under God's dis- 
 pleasure and curse, we cannot understand. But, 
 on the contrary, we do understand, and by our 
 faculties we must necessarily judge, according to 
 aU the rules of equity it is unjust ."^ For those, 
 therefore, who with Taylor reject the doctrine of 
 the imputation of sin, it remains to reconcile with 
 justice, the allotment of its wages to infants, who 
 have not done its work. 
 
 Respecting imputation Taylor has said, "I have 
 with a good deal of care examined the scriptures 
 on this head, and can find no more places in all the 
 bible, where imputing, accounting, or reckoning, 
 an action to any person, is spoken of, but those 
 that follow; 2 and, after an enumeration of various 
 » Taylor, p. 162. a Taylor, p. 206. 
 
 
38 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 I 
 
 passages, he has added, "These are all the places 
 I can find in scripture, where imputation of righ- 
 teousness or sin is spoken of; and nothing, you see, 
 is said to be imputed, reckoned, or accounted, to 
 any person, but the proper act and deed of that 
 person."^ 
 
 There is, however one passage of scripture at least, 
 which, if Taylor considered with care, reflects little 
 credit upon his acuteness and candour. He seems to 
 have found it, not exactly to bis purpose ; and, affect- 
 ing to consider it as of trivial importance, he has 
 placed it by itself in the following note; "Philem., 
 
 18 If he have wronged thee, or owetk thee ought, 
 
 put that to mine account. . . . I will repay 
 it. This relates to a pecuniary matter. For the 
 apostle doth not take Onesimus's former wickedness 
 or villany upon himself; only ho promises to make 
 good any damage he may have done his master."^ 
 From these remarks it would seem, that Taylor 
 either deceived hiLaself,or intended to deceive. The 
 scriptures, it is true do not impute the act of Adam 
 to his descendants. The eating of the forbidden fruit 
 was peculiar to himself: but the guilt of that action, 
 the scriptures represent as the subject of imputa- 
 tion ; aua the case of Onesimus contains an illus- 
 tration exactly in point, the wickedness or villany 
 of that fugitive, the apostle does not take upon 
 himself for the transference of an action is an utter 
 '"mpossibility: but the condu^ of Onesimus was a 
 ' Taylor, p. 210. 
 
 • 
 

 0JECTI0K8 CONSIDERED. $f^ 
 
 sin against his master; and the apostle submitted 
 to the imputation of his gaUt: If he hath vmmged 
 ^«**» • • . ' put thai to mine account. 
 
 Tajlor has remarked, that the apostle's promise re- 
 lates to a pecuniarj matter: but it relates to deport- 
 ment. as weU as to debt, and wrong, whether in 
 relation to God or to Philemon;' is exactly of the 
 same nature. Respecting pecuniary obligation, 
 which 18 merely a particular species of guilt, it 
 may be observed, that, viewed simply as a debt, 
 It diflPers nothing in its nature from what the sinner 
 owes to the law of God. Had Taylor, therefore, 
 considered with care the apostle's language, he 
 would have found at least one part of scriptuie, 
 m which guilt by imputation is explicitly stated. 
 
 There are. however, other most appropriate scrip- 
 tural proofs, which, not according with nis opinion, 
 he has either overlooked, or intentionaUy omitted. 
 The typical dispensation contains the foUowing 
 divme injunction: And Aaron shall lav hoik his 
 hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over 
 htm all the sins of the children of Israel, and all 
 tUvr transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon 
 the head of the goat; . . . and the goat shall bear 
 upon him all their iniquities.^ But, farther what 
 was thus tTOically imputed to the goat, was ac- 
 tuaUy laid ^ the head of our Redeemer: The 
 Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.^ He 
 was numbered with the transgressors, and he bare 
 ' Lov., xvi, 21, 22. 2 is.^ liii^ Q 
 
40 
 
 DI8SEBTATI0N II. 
 
 the tin of many ;^ and aUo, Hit oum telf hare ottr 
 tint in hit oton body on the tree.* Had Taylor, 
 therefore, considered with accuracy the doctrine of 
 the scripture respecting the imputation of sin, he 
 must hare arrivod at the scriptural conclusion, 
 that by one man*t ditohedience many were made 
 
 sinnert. 
 
 It scarcely deserves remark, that the doctrine of 
 the imputation of Adam's sin, has been met by the 
 objection, that, supposing him to have been the 
 official representative of the human race, his sub- 
 sequent transgressions, repentance, and pardon, 
 must by imputation be also theirs. To this it is 
 sufficient to reply, that, since God has specified 
 only one offence of our first parent, man has no 
 right to connect with his official character any sub- 
 sequent event of his life. It may, however, be 
 further observed, that, in consequence of the one 
 offence, he was expelled from his public station in 
 paradise: his subsequent offences, therefore, were 
 personal acts; and neither these nor the pardon 
 whfch God was pleased to confer, belonged to the 
 covenant of works. The former were violations of 
 thei mortJ law abstractly considered; and the latter 
 flo^^ from the despensation of mercy, extended 
 to himself as a fallen individual. By this arrange- 
 ment or covenant of grace, also, his dominion was 
 transferred to another representative, to him who 
 has said, All power is given unto me in heaven and in 
 ^ Is., liii, 12, » 1 Pet., ii, 21. 
 
OBJ10TI05S 0ON8IDBBED. 41 
 
 earrt;" and. therefore, Ad«m'e descen<Unt. neither 
 remiuned under hi. federal control, nor were im- 
 pUcated m his subsequent disobedience 
 
 Upon the preceding topic of goremment, Tay. 
 lor has advanced an unscriptural notion, in which 
 he ascribes to Noah and his posterity, the domin- 
 ion formerlj possessed ov Adam, but now, under 
 Uie corenant of grace, i ousted safely to Christ, 
 ''he verysame blessings and marts of excellencT " 
 
 Lrr t' ""' '^ ^'"' ""'"''<' '"<' P""o»«o.id 
 npon the human n.iture, more expressly and em- 
 
 phaticaUy at the restoration of L world, Xn 
 
 the race of mankind was to be propagated anew 
 
 from Noah and his sons: Gen.,ixll.AndTZ 
 
 •ferf - ""^rt'""'" f «"'«• Which is repeated 
 
 arui^,ngf„,kabundana!, in Oe earth, and Zu- 
 plyAenxn. Hence, I conclude with the clearest 
 evidence, that the propagation and birth of fte 
 hnmau race in all parts of the world, both with re- 
 gard to parents and the fruit of their bodies is 
 under the very same blessing of God, wh ch ;i^ 
 pronounced originally upon our first parents. vTr 
 -. And the fear of you and the dread of you, ,hM 
 i' upon e^eryleoH^tHe earth, anduponle^fZ 
 If the a»;upon all ihat n>o.eth upon the .aZfand 
 
 l^deh^ed. Every „,oring thing .kail he J^ 
 
 ^ Matthaw, xxviii, ]8. 
 
itFf 
 
 .T<g- i 7 li< ' » TtT i rni>ii-i- nt>KT>r~ i n» ll«88t— — 
 
 42 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 
 !. 
 
 for you ; even as the green herb, have I given you of I 
 things. Hence, I iufer, that we have a more ex- 
 'tensive dominion granted to us over the brutal 
 world, than was originally given to Adam."^ 
 
 Upon our first parent, there was conferred do- 
 minion over every living thing that moveth upon the 
 earth.* This cannot reasonably be supposed to have 
 referred merely to living beings then in existenco. 
 To Adana, therefore, it was a grant of control over 
 his future offspring, as well as over the other parts 
 of animated nature. But the blessing conferred 
 after the deluge, was assigned to no individual : it 
 was a graLt of reciprocal authority to the whole 
 liuman family, for the preseivation of social order, 
 that the earth might not, as formerly, be filled with 
 violence. To all without distinction, the law of 
 retaliation was prescribed, for the purpose of personal 
 security, and as the grand principle by which civil 
 government ought to be regulated : Whoso sheddeth 
 man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed.^ 
 
 Taylor has evidently mistaken a more extensifo 
 grant of the inferior animals as means of subsist- 
 ence, for enlarged dominions ove'* them. But the 
 authority conferred upon Noah and his descend- 
 ants in the social state, instead of enlargement, 
 was circumscribed by political rule : rt'd, in refer- 
 ence to other living beings, it was maintained, not 
 60 much by the energies of man, as by the feelings 
 of the creatures appropriated to his use : And the 
 
 1 Suppl., p. 85. " Genesis, i, 28. ^ Genesis, xi, 6. 
 
43 
 upon 
 
 OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED." 
 /ear of you, and lue dread of you, shall be 
 ^-fry beast of the the earth, S^c, Every moving 
 
 green herb, have I given you all things.^ 
 
 Thus with respect to life and propertj. dominion 
 was conferred upon mankind coUecti.elj, tha: in 
 accordance with the law which the Deity himself 
 
 tablisHr'^i ^'^^ "'^'^' ^^ ^^- socia/stain 
 tabhsh that order which would best secure us safety 
 
 and comfort. But s« oreme authority was reserved 
 ^r hini of whom Adam was the figure. He is 
 K.ng of kings and Lord of lords ; and to him, the 
 kingdoms of nature and of grace have been alike 
 
 2:il« ; /^«/«'^- Mgeth no man, but hath 
 committed all judgment to his Son. ^nd 
 
 hath given him authority to execute judgment also, 
 because he IS the Son of man.^ 
 
 Though Taylor has denied the imputation of 
 sin. the testimony of God. verified by the experi- 
 ence of man, has forced him to admit, that, incon- 
 sequence of the disobedience of our first parents, 
 heir oflfspring suffer. " We their posterity," he 
 h^ observed .'are in fact subjected' to the'^same 
 affl ctions and mortality here, by the sentence in- 
 flicted upon our first parents. Concerning which 
 afflictions and mortality, we may truly affirm, that, 
 though they are occasioned by the sin of our firs 
 parents, though they were not inflicted till they 
 transgressed, and so descended to us in consequence 
 
 1 Clan ; O O ... 
 
 ' Gen., i, 2, 3. 
 
 - John, V, 22, 27. 
 
w 
 
 n 
 
 44 
 
 DiaSBBTATIOM n. 
 
 of their transgression ; yet they are not inflicted 
 upon us ab a punishment for their sin :' And, in 
 reference to the descendants of Ham, and of others 
 whom he has specified, he has said, " It is fact, 
 that the children suffered ; but it is false that the 
 guilt of the parents was imputed to them, or that 
 they were punished for their crimes.*' * 
 
 That the sins of Ham and the others mentioned 
 by Taylor, were not imputed to their oflfspring in 
 any other sense than that which is specified in the 
 second precept of the decalogue, is readily admit- 
 ted. But, though, since the fall, mankind have 
 been the subject of an arrangement under which 
 sin is not imputed without personal acquiescence 
 in its commission ; it does not follow, that impu- 
 tation of guilt by transference, did not exist under 
 a covenant which constituted Adam, the represen- 
 tative of all his natural descendants. Besides, upon 
 Taylor's own principles, that to punish one man 
 for another man's sin is unjust, it belonged to him 
 to show how a child should, consistently with the 
 justice of God, suffer in consequence of his parent's 
 guilt. This objection to his scheme he has endea- 
 voured to evade by remarking, that " the Scriptures 
 direct us to conceive, not that the child is punished, 
 but that the sin of the parent is punished in the 
 sufferings of his child. "' But admitting these suf- 
 ferings to be no punishment ; still, the result of 
 the infliction is pain ; and, in this respect, exactly 
 » Suppl. p. 21. 2 Suppl. p. 17. =• Suppl. p. 19. 
 
 
 r\ 
 
OBJB0TIOK8 OONSIDBRED. 
 
 45 
 
 the same as the punishment of the parent : and, 
 certainlj, it ill becomes those who deny the trans- 
 ference of guUt, to admit a transference of that 
 misery which is the wages of sin. Besides, in many 
 instances, children suffer when tbereare -o parents 
 to be punished. Upon Taylor's priui .e, how is 
 that consistent with the justice of God ? The 
 Scriptures furnish the only satisfactory reply : Suf- 
 fering constitutes a part of the sentence of con- 
 demnation, pronounced upon our first parent; and 
 though, since the faU, children are not punished 
 for the guilt of immediate ancestors ; as in Adam, 
 they were included in his sentence : By the offence 
 of one judgment came upon all men to condemna- 
 tion;^ and, therefore, all suffer. 
 
 Taylor, in illustration of his view of the preced- 
 ing point, has remarked, that where children suffer 
 through their parents, they are «' evidently regard- 
 ed as the property and possessions, the most dear 
 and valuable enjoyments of parents, and come un- 
 der the same general consideration with cattle, 
 lands, fruits of the earth, &c., consequently, in the 
 instances alleged, (that is, the posterity of Ham, 
 Gehazi, and others,) the parents only were punish- 
 ed by the sufferings of the children." « 
 
 But, by classing children with land and other 
 property, he has assigned to them an allotment, 
 worse than that which he has apportioned to Adam. 
 Upon the sentence pronounced by God, in conse- 
 
 ' Rom., V, 18. 
 
 Suppl., p. 47. 
 
' .11 
 
 '^i 
 
 I 
 
 46 
 
 DISSERTATION 11. 
 
 quence of our first parent's transgression, he has 
 said, " A curse is pronounced upon the Serpent 
 and upon the ground, but no curse upon the woman 
 and the man. For, though they are here manifestlj 
 subjoctod to sorrow, labour, and death, yet these 
 are not inflicted under the notion of a curse." ^ But, 
 by his classification of children with land, he has 
 indirectly aflSrmed what he has directly denied : he 
 has placed them under tho curse ; for to c .r first 
 parent it was said, cursed , i the ground for thy sake.* 
 Besides, it is not true, that no curse was pronounced 
 upon our first parents. A curse upon basket and 
 store, is a curse upon man. Our first parents were 
 doomed to sufferings aid death; and upon these 
 the Scripturca confer the very appellation which 
 Taylor has rejected. The progenitors rf the human 
 race could not sin but as the subjects of law ; and 
 divine truth certifies, that as many as are of the 
 works of the law, are under the curse.^ Our first pa- 
 rents, therefore were subjected to the curse ; and 
 their offspring, even when classed with the soil, 
 are by descent in the same condition. Hence, it is 
 said, that hy one man sin entered into the world, and 
 death by sin ; and so death passed upon all men, for 
 that all have sinned; because by one mans disobe- 
 dience many were made sinners. 
 
 Tn accounting for the sufferings and death of 
 mankind, Taylor has endeavoured to show, that, 
 though these were to our first parents a punishment, 
 1 S-")?!., pp. 19, 20. 2 Gen., iii, 17. » Gal., iii, 10 
 
 H 
 
OnJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 47 
 
 thej are to tueir oflfspring a favour. " It is true," 
 he has observed, "from the whole current of scrip- 
 ture, which represents suflferings and afflictions as 
 means of our spiritual benefit, that, though afflic- 
 tions and death are the conseque-^es of Adam's 
 sin ; yet, thej are really a benefit to us, as thej 
 are a great advantage to our virtue, by mortifying 
 our lusts, and leading us to the fear and obedience 
 of God, and the desire of a better world :" » And 
 again, •• But now that we are, through the grace of 
 God, brought into being ; though we are obnoxious 
 to sorrow and death, and in consequence of Adam's 
 sin too ; yet, this is not by way of punishment by 
 us ; because we rere not guilty of his sin, but by 
 way of wise and gracious dispensation." « 
 
 It is not true, that tlie whole current of Scripture 
 presents the preceding view of afflictions and death. 
 To those who are interested in the grace of the gos- 
 pel, the mercy of God renders even the punishment 
 of sin, subservient to spiritual improvement ; and, 
 thus, it constitutes a part of that system in which 
 ail things work together for good^ But the point of 
 issue is not, what beneficial results divine grace 
 produces by affliction and death, but, whether these 
 are a benefit or the punishment of sin : And, 
 surely, in themselves they ought not to be account- 
 ed benefits of a gracious dispensation, since God 
 has declared death to be an enemy doomed to de- 
 struction.* To transgressor- , affliction and death 
 
 ' Suppl., p. 21. 2 Suppl., p. 249. 3 Rom., viii, 28. 
 
48 
 
 DIU8EUTATI0K 11. 
 
 are the wages which the righteous Goremo? of the 
 universe pays for the work of disobedience ; and 
 evil and bitter, erery worker finds them.^ In IScrip- 
 tore, accordingly, affliction and death are repre- 
 sented as originating, not in the benerolence of 
 God, but in that disapprobation of sin which his 
 moral natu e must, in the administration of justice, 
 ever exemplify. On this account they are deno- 
 minated judgment* ; that is proofs of displeasure 
 inflicted upon ground of legal decision. They are 
 also termed punishments ; and to all in their natu- 
 ral state, they are the effusions of wrath.' These, 
 as children of disobedience, are not the subjects of 
 a ffracious dispensation, by which benefits are con- 
 ferred : they are under the ministration of law ; 
 and till they obtain an interest in the salvation of 
 the gospel, the wrath of God abideth on them.* 
 
 But, farther, with respect to infants, affliction 
 and death car confer no benefit : they can npither 
 mortijy lusts, nor lead to the fear and obedience of 
 God. Since, then, it is not the character of God 
 to - ^y ihe righteous with the wicked ; for 
 the inf tion of death in tlie period of infancy, 
 its supposed boL, icial tendency does not constitute 
 a satisfactory reason. Of this, Taylor appears to 
 have been iware : but, instead of candidly meeting 
 the objection, he has resorted to evasion, by re- 
 marking that the sufferings of infants are to be 
 viewed " as appointed for other wise and good pur- 
 » Jer., ii, 19. « Eph., v,6. s John., iii, 36. 
 
CiiJEOTIOKS OOirSlDIRED. 
 
 49 
 
 pofes, if not to themseWer, jet to others : And the 
 . Lord of all being can never jrant time, place, or 
 power, to compensate abundantly an/ suflFerings 
 they maj now undergo in subservience to his good 
 providence." ' 
 
 But, admitting that the suflFering3 and death of 
 infanta do promote the benefit of others, the ques- 
 tion still recurs, how do these inflictions upon in- 
 nocence comport with the righteous judgment of 
 God ? The Deitj, it is true, cannot want either 
 time, or place, or powe , to execute his purposes : 
 but it becomes not man to conjecture imaginary 
 reasons for what God himself has explicitly ac- 
 counted. He has said. The. soUi that sinneth, it 
 shall die .•« and the allotment of innumerable infants 
 is death. In sin, therefore, they must have been 
 implicated ; and as sinners the Scriptures recognise 
 them : sin hath reigned unto death, even over them 
 that had not sinned after t>^ similitude of Adorn s 
 transgression.^ 
 
 Taylor's view of death as a benefit, required that 
 he should limit its nature to the dissolution of the 
 body. " Observe well." he has said, "here is not 
 one word or the least intimation of any other death, 
 but that dissolution which all mankind undergo, 
 when they cease to live in this world, whatever that 
 dissolution be. For to this dissolution alone, the 
 words of the great Judge evidently restrain this 
 death, v. 1 9. Till thou return unto the ground ; for 
 1 Suppl.. p. 83. 2 Ezek.. xyiii, 4. » Rom., r, 14. 
 
 [ 
 
50 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 l! 
 
 lis 
 
 
 
 ! 
 
 om/ of it thou wast taken ; for dust thou art, and unto 
 dust thou sholt return.^ But the nature of the 
 death denounced against transgression, ought to be 
 ascertained by whatever the Scriptures staie respect- 
 ing it ; and these, beside the dissolution of the 
 body, disclose a diversity of infliction, by no means 
 ia accordance with Taylor's opinion. When dust 
 returns to the earth as it was, the spirit returns to 
 God who gave it ; and as, in the actions of life, 
 body is merely the instrument of mind, not the in- 
 strument, but the agent, returns to the tribunal of 
 Him who brings every work into judgment. Now, 
 respecting those who have not obtained acceptance 
 with God through the deatli of liis Son, it is stated, 
 that, after the dissolution of the body, they go 
 away into everlasting punishment ;* and this pu- 
 nishment, as constituting a pa'-t of the wr?)? of 
 sin, is termed the second death.^ Since, then, di- 
 vine truth announces that by one mans disobedience 
 many ivere made sinners ; it is evident, that inde- 
 pendently of actual transgression, the spirit of 
 every human being, whether adult or infant, re- 
 turning to God without an interest in the grace of 
 the gospel, must bo found a iransgreosor, and, con- 
 sequently, suffer death in its full extent. Taking 
 into account, also, that in Adam all die ; to him 
 and his descendants alike, the sentence of God 
 must have assigned an equality of death ; and, 
 therefore, had the spirits even of our first parents 
 » Suppl., p. 20. - Mat., XXV, i6. ^ Rev., xx, 14. 
 
 I 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDEFiED. 
 
 51 
 
 I 
 
 returned to him, unredeemed by the blood of 
 Christ, thej would have suffered that second der.th, 
 which is the allotment of many of their offspring. ' 
 But. farther, in the opinion of Taylor, the sen- 
 tence pronounced upon our fir^t parents, contained 
 no reference to their moral depravity c/ spiritual 
 death. It includes, he has said, '« not one word 
 of a curse upon their souls, upon the powers of 
 their mind, their nnderstandir and reason ; not 
 one word of darkening or wak- .ng their rational 
 powers, not one word of clogging those th any 
 additional difficulties. This i undeniable. ' ^ 
 
 This is not so undeniable as Taylor has supposed. 
 The history of the delinquency of our first parents, 
 contains various particulars which ho has over 
 looked, and -^rhich certainly indicate in them a de- 
 terioration of mind. To Adam it had been 3aid, In 
 the day tho.. eatest thereof thou shalt surely die ; and 
 the Scriptures describe a state in which human be- 
 ings are dead while living, that is, dead in trespas- 
 ses and s:ns.^ Accordingly, that our first parents 
 had by transgression subjected themselves to a con- 
 dition of mind, which formed a contrast with their 
 previous innocence, is evident from the language 
 of Adam, / heard thy voice in the garden, and I 
 wo: aj uid; because I was naked, and I hid myself 
 In our fiv,t parents, then, there was a conscio' s'- 
 ness of guilt ; and that the Scrptures denominate 
 an eml conscience.' In their minds, there was also 
 ' Suppl., p, 20. 2Eph..ii.]. 3 Gen., ir. 10. UIeb..x 22 
 
 i 
 
i 
 
 52 
 
 DISSERTATION IT. 
 
 a destitution of that perfect love wliich casteth out 
 fear :' for intercourse with God, there was dislike ; 
 and to these may be added departure from him, 
 and the folly of attempt at concealment. There 
 existed in them, therefore, those very principles 
 and processes of mind, which divine truth deline- 
 ates as sure indications of spiritual death ; and 
 which, in allusion to Adam's actual character by 
 transgres'iion, an apostle has described as the old 
 man that is crucijied with Christ, that the body of 
 sin might he destroyed.* 
 
 Again, if our first parents be considered as sub- 
 jects of redemption, the nature of the mediation 
 of Christ presents ample evidence of their spiritual 
 death. It is his oflBce to give life from the dead ; 
 and his call in the gospel is not to persons who have 
 death in prospect : it is to dead men : Awake thou 
 that steepest, and arise from the dead.' When he 
 does dispense life, also, he commences with the 
 soul : it is quickened together ivith Christ :* and, 
 hence, respecting those who have received this 
 quickening, it is said, not merely that they have 
 a future resurrection and existence in prospect, but 
 that, already, they are risen with Christ,'^ and have 
 passed from death unto life.^ 
 
 From the preceding considerations it is sufli- 
 ciently obvious, that our first parents, as well as 
 their descendants, were subjected to spiritual 
 death. 
 
 1 John, iy 18, » Rom,, vi, 6. sEpli., v, 14. *Eph., ii, 5. 
 5Col., iii, 1. 6 John, iii, 14. 
 
 \\ 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 53 
 
 In connexion with the denial of the spiritual 
 death of our first parents, Tavlor has endeavoured 
 to depreciate the image of God in which they were 
 created. " It appears to me," he has said, " that 
 the common scheme of original righteousness, as 
 well as that of original sin, is ivithout any foun- 
 dation in Scripture, or the reason and nature of 
 things." 1 Yet, in Scripture it has this foundation, 
 that the regenerated are said to be renewed after 
 the image of God ; and this image is farther reore- 
 sented as consisting in knowledge, righteousness, 
 and true holiness. Tht regenerated have put of 
 the old man with his deds, and have put on the new 
 man, which is renewed in knowledge, after the image 
 of him that created him :« And again it is said, that 
 this new man is after God created in righteoumess 
 and true holiness.' 
 
 In adverting to the preceding passage of Scrip, 
 ture, Taylor has remarked, "that this new man 
 this new state, is after the image, or is agreeable to 
 the naiure of him who thus createth him. But 
 doth this prove that righteousness and true holi. 
 ness was the imj»ge of God in which Adam was 
 made ? Possibly, the apostle may allude to Adam's 
 being made in the imago of God, and taketh his 
 manner of expression from thence : but it will not, 
 1 nad almost said, it cannot follow, that Adam was 
 originally created in the image of God, for a very 
 goon reason ; because this image or the habits of 
 » SUi.pl., p. 167. *Col..iii.9, 10. 3Eph.,iv, 24, 
 
04 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 virtue and holiness cannot be created in the same 
 manner as our natural faculties. Our natural fa- 
 culties are made, and so were Adam's, by an act of 
 God's absolute power, without our knowledge, con- 
 currence, or consent. But moral virtue or holiness 
 in its very nature, implieth the choice and consent 
 of a moral agent, without wJiich it cannot be virtue 
 or holiness. God, indeed, can, and undoubtedly 
 doth, assist and direct us in this choice and con- 
 sent, in ways and degrees which we are not able to 
 determine. But, still, holiness must necessarily be 
 the choice of our own minds. For how much so- 
 ever we are assisted in choosing, it must be our 
 own ac": and deed, or it cannot be our virtue or ho- 
 liness. A necessary holiness is no holinass." ^ 
 
 But, in tlie preceding remarks, Taylor, that he 
 might evade the plain evidence of Scripture, has 
 involved himself in sophistry which furnishes its 
 own refutation. Adam, he imagines, was not crea- 
 ted in the image of God, that is, in knowledge, 
 righteousness, and true holiness; "because this 
 image, or habits of virtue and holiness, cannot be 
 created in the same manner as our natural facul- 
 ties." Here, it must be observed, that Taylor has 
 confounded the original constitution of man with 
 his habits. But habit is a bias which the mind, by 
 the frequent repetition of an action, acquires; and, 
 therefore, the creation of a being endowed with ha- 
 bits, is not a conceivable case. It does not, how- 
 
 1 Suppl, I). 184. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDEi^ED. 55 
 
 ever, follow, that the Deitj could not create man 
 witli tendencies of mind, in perfect accordance 
 with what Taylor has denominated virtue and ho- 
 liness. Twat man was so created, the apostle has 
 in the preceding passages affirmed : and it will be 
 afterward shown, that, without these qualifications, 
 he could not have possessed a life of innocent en- 
 joyment in paradise, and much less have discharged 
 the duties of his station. 
 
 In the opinion of Taylor, a being so created 
 would be neither virtuous nor holy ; because "moral 
 virtue or holiness in its very nature implieth the 
 choice and consent of a moral agent, without which 
 it cannot be virtue or holiness:" but "Adam's 
 natural faculties were made without his consent. 
 But, in these remarks, Taylor has applied to facul- 
 ties of tlie mind what belongs solely to moral action. 
 Though virtue in action unquestionably implies the 
 consent of the will, it does not follow that an original 
 bias to virtue is not a virtuous tendency. Exactly 
 upon the same principle he might have affirmed, 
 that no act of Adam wa? rational, because he had 
 been endowed with reason without his consent. 
 The language of Taylor would seem to imply that 
 a being so created as the apostle has described, 
 must act, not from choice, but from some kind of 
 pliysical necessity. But, in a rational nature, per- 
 fect holiness includes perfect intelligence, and, con- 
 sequently, the perfection of moral volition. Be- 
 sides, upon Taylor's principle, because, in a future 
 
 •^1 
 

 56 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 state, living beings act in a particular way, and 
 cannot act otherwise, their actions constitute 
 neither virtue nor vice. " A necessary holiness,'» 
 he has said, "is no holiness." In the divine na- 
 ture, there is a necessity which regulates action. 
 Is there no holiness in God ? 
 
 Respecting the expression, image of God, as de- 
 noting the nature with which Adam was created, 
 Taylor has remarked, that " it must be understood 
 of the rational faculties of his mind, or the dominion 
 he had over the inferior creatures." * But moral 
 attributes are essential to the nature of God, and, 
 consequently to his image ; and, in the language of 
 the apostle in the preceding passages, there is a 
 peculiarity of expression, evidently in allusid to 
 these attributes, as contained in that likeiess in 
 which Adam was created. Moral depravity he has 
 termed the old man; and the restoration of the 
 divine image, the new. lu the opinion of Taylor, 
 the first of these " relates to the Gentile state ;" 
 and the last, " either to the Christian state, or the 
 Christian church."^ Butwhy did the apostleemploy 
 the terms old and new man f Simply, because he 
 referred, not to external states, but to states of the 
 mind, in which it bore either the image of the 
 earthly, or the image of the heaveniy ; that is, the 
 image of the first man and of the second, to whom 
 respectively, those addressed by him had formerly 
 been, or n^w were, reLted as their federal head. 
 When Taylor has referred the expression old man 
 
 > rib-e, S3. ^ Suppl., p. 154. 
 
 I f 
 
OBJECTIONS CONaiDERED. 
 
 57 
 
 to the Gentile state, he has not taken i:ito account 
 that all m that state are under the control of a 
 carnal mind, ignorant of God, and enmitj against 
 him; and, farther, that the term renewed denotes 
 the restoration of something which had previously 
 existed. In reference to Adam, therefore, who. as 
 well as his descendants, needed renovation, this term 
 must denote, that, as his renewal consisted in know- 
 ledge, righteousness, and true holiness, these were 
 comprised in the image of God, after which he had 
 been created. It must be also observed, that the 
 renovation specified bj the apostle, cannot, as 
 lajlor has supposed, denote either rational facul- 
 ties, or ar J other faculties of the mind. Know- 
 ledge, righteousness, and holiness, are not mental 
 powers: thej are merely indications of the parti- 
 cular state of mind in which these powers exist. 
 
 But, farther, when Taylor explains the expres- 
 sion, ivMge of God, as denoting the dominion with 
 which Adam had been invested, he exposes the 
 fallacy of his own explanation. Our first parent 
 received dominion, that he might govern his sub- 
 jects in accordance with the will of his superior. 
 But, without knowledge, how could he rule ? and, 
 taking into account the righteous and holy nature 
 of God, how could he, without the same tendencies 
 of mmd, discharge the duties of his official station ? 
 When, therefore, it is said, that the new man has 
 been renewed in righteousness and true holiness, it 
 
 E 
 
5S 
 
 DISSERTATIOX II. 
 
 ought to be admitted, that the old man or fallen 
 nature in Adam, had been originally endowed with 
 these qualifications. 
 
 In accordance with the preceding view it is 
 stated, that God made man\\n the Hebrew, Adam,) 
 upright, ^ I'pon these words Taylor has remarked, 
 that " the Hebrew word which wo render upright^ 
 doth not generally signify a moral character : For 
 it is applied to various things not capable of moral 
 action:"^ And, after adducing several parts of 
 Scripture, in which the Hebrew term signifies sim- 
 ply right, he has added, " This makes it evident 
 that it may be said, God made man right ; (for it 
 may, and, I tliink, ought to be so translated,) and 
 yet, thereby may not be denoted his being right in 
 the highest and most perfect sense, or his being 
 actually righteous, but only his being right with 
 regard to his being made with those powers, and 
 favoured with those means and encouragements, 
 with a proper use of which he may become righter^us 
 or right in the best and most absolute sense in which 
 a moral agent can be right." ^ 
 
 But tliese remarks are a mere trifling with divine 
 truth. They present a false ^''ew of the scriptural 
 import of the term translated upright; and, withal, 
 a view repugnant to the general scope of the part 
 of Scripture, from which the preceding quotation 
 is taken. To Taylor's statement, the reply of 
 Edwards is just ai;d appropriate : " Because the 
 1 Ecclcs., vii, 29. 2 Suppl., p. 1 "0. 3 Suppl., p. 168. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. .',() 
 
 word sometimes signifies right, he would from thence 
 mfer that it does not properly signify moral recti- 
 tude, even when used to express the character of 
 moral agents. He might as well insist that the 
 English word upright, sometimes and in its original 
 meaning, signifies right up, or in an erect posture • 
 and. therefore, it does not properly signify any 
 
 moral character, when applied to moral agents 
 
 The word is used, as applied to moral agents, or to 
 the words and actions of such, (if I have not mis- 
 reckoned,) about a hundred and ten times in Scrip- 
 ture ; and, in about a hundred of them, without all 
 dispute, to signify>irtue or moral rectitude." i 
 
 Admitting, that, in the passage quoted, the He- 
 brew term signifies simpfy right; still respecting 
 the ongnal state of our first parents, Taylor's criti- 
 cism refutes his opinion. RigJu, whether applied 
 to the human mind, or to any thing else, denotes 
 conformity to a standard, or, that quality which 
 constitutes an exact adaptation of means to end. 
 Viewing Adam's duty, then, as the standard, and 
 his nature as the means for eff-ecting an end; the 
 latter could be right, onfy by a perfect knowledge 
 of his duty, and, also, by the possession of those 
 moral qualities m hich constitute righteousness and 
 true holiness. To his Creator he owed the homa-e 
 of acceptable worship ; and they that worship God, 
 must worship him in spirit and in truths 
 
 Those who deny the imputation of Adam's sin, 
 
 ^ Suppl, p. 294. 2John, iv, 24. 
 
00 
 
 DISSERTATION n. 
 
 reject also the doctrine of the original depravity of 
 human nature fro"" i. me source. " As for any 
 moral taint . .■/ ■ . h derived from Adam," says 
 Taylor, "^i' o me leave honestly to confess, I do 
 not understand what can be meant by it, in any 
 consistency with sense or truth. I do not know 
 that wo derive any thing all from AJam, but by 
 the will and operation of God ; no more than the 
 acorn deriveth from the oak. It is, I judge, a great 
 though a common fallacy, to suppose that some- 
 thing is infused into the human nature ; some 
 quality or other, not from the choice of our minds, 
 but like a taint, tincture, or infection, altering the 
 natural constitution, faculties, and dispositions of 
 our souls, absolutely independent of ourselves, and 
 not from the will of God." ^ 
 
 That the depravity of human na:ure is produced 
 by a moral taint, tincture, or infection, is doubtless 
 an un scriptural notion ; and if Taylor intended to 
 ascribe it to those who maintain the doctrine of 
 original depravity, his remark is alike uncandid 
 and insidious. These do not believe that the want 
 of spiritual life is caused by the infusion of spiritual 
 death. The latter, they regard as a consequence 
 resulting from the absence of those operations of 
 the Spirit of God, which he has not been pleased to 
 continue. It has already been shown, that, by 
 transgression, our first parents lost that purity of 
 nature, which qualified them for the discharge of 
 » Suppl,, p. 189. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 61 
 
 
 dutj, and for intercourse with God ; and that their 
 natural descendants began to exist in the same state, 
 accords with the general tenor of divine truth. 
 
 In discussing the doctrine of original depravity, 
 Tajrlor has said, " As to our mental capacities, for 
 anj thing I caa find in Scripture, thej are the same 
 as Adam's ; saving so far as God sees fit to set any 
 man above or below his standard." ' 
 
 Respecting the number of mental capacities or 
 powers, possessed bj Adam and his offspring in 
 common, Taylor and those who maintain the doc- 
 trine of original depravity, do not disagree. The 
 difference between them consists in the very point 
 which he has himself excepted ; that is, " saving so 
 far as God sees fit to set any man above or below 
 his standard" in his state of innocence. That 
 Adam and his descendants differ in several respects, 
 Taylor has admitted ; but, in stating the difference', 
 he has specified only what is calculated to mislead. 
 " Between the highest and lowest degrep if reason 
 among men," he has observed, ** there . 3 various 
 gradations, as our wise Creator seeth fit to give unto 
 every one. We consist of soul and body ; > did 
 Adam : we have sensual appetites ; so had he. . . . 
 But in these things we differ, Adam was created in 
 the maturity of bodily stature and mental capacity, 
 we in the ignorance and weakaess of infancy." « 
 But, beside the appetites, t^ere are, in common to 
 our first parent and his offspring, various other 
 » Siippl., p. 247. 2 Suppl.. p, 247. 
 
69 
 
 DISSERTATIOir 11. 
 
 active principles ; and, taking into account, that 
 the several intellectual capacities of man are given 
 for the purpose of regulating his inclinations by the 
 will of his Creator, the point at issue is, whether 
 equally in Adam and his descendants, the operation 
 of the rational powers and of the active capacities, 
 has been so adjusted as to qualify each for the dis- 
 charge of his duty. 
 
 In noting the original character of our first parent, 
 Taylor has said, Adam was created in tlie maturity 
 ot bodily stature and mental capacity." But mental 
 capacity is not knowledge ; and if Adam wit' .e 
 active principles of hi? nature in full operation, lind 
 been characterised by ignorance ; his life must also 
 have been characteMsed, not by a rational discharge 
 of duty, but by personal gratification. It has, how- 
 over, been previously shown, that he was created in 
 kuowledgt), and, consequently, in the possession )f 
 all that variety of motive, which was requisite to 
 concentrate the operation of his active powers upon 
 the duties of life. Taylor, therefore, in contrast- 
 ing our first parent with his ofispring, ought to have 
 said, Adam was created with intellectual capacities 
 perfect in knowledge; they, in the weakness of 
 infancy and ignorance. 
 
 But, farther, Taylor, by admitting the ignorance 
 of Adam's descendants in infancy, has conceded 
 the point in dispute. " We are bom," he has said, 
 *' as void of actual knowledge as the brutes them- 
 selves. We are bom with many sensual appetites 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 63 
 
 and consequeutlj liable to 
 
 ""Station and sin. But 
 this is not tlio fault «.* xture, but the will of 
 
 God wise and good. ^ 
 
 It i.«. doubtless, the " Hi f God, that we should 
 be 80 born. But, though .^aoranco combined with 
 sensual appetites, may ,, . ; the fault of our nature, 
 it is its defect; and the very defect too, which 
 evinces it to be destitute of the imago of God. 
 Wlierever there are appetites and other active prin- 
 ciples, uncontrolled by intelligo.ice, gratification 
 becomes the motive to act on ; and not the will of 
 God, but the will of th flesh is fulfilled. This is 
 the state of human nature in infancy ; and, in kind, 
 it identifies itself with the scriptural account of the 
 depravity of man in advanced years : alienated from 
 the life of God through the ignorance that is in him, 
 because of the blindness of his hearth Not without 
 reason, therefore, it is declared, that childhoodand 
 youth are vanittj? By nature, the human race 
 neither resemble their progenitor in paradise ; nor 
 does their moral depravity originate in habit : they 
 ire estranged from the tpomb* 
 
 " The original cause of sin," says Taylor, "is a 
 mail's choosing to follow the appetites of the llesh ; 
 r • i*s dreadful end is destruction. But how, I 
 pray, doth it appear from this place, (James, i, 14 
 15,) that all transgression and wickedness proceed 
 irom o..i.- nature's being corrupted by Adam's own 
 
 sin 
 
 2" 5 
 
 » Suppl., p. 244. 
 
 3 Eph., iv, 1 8. 3 Eccles,, xi, 10. * Pa. 1, 4. 
 « Suppl., p. 120. 
 
CI 
 
 DI8&ERTATI0N 11. 
 
 But Taylor, in his assertion rbsnt^oing the origin 
 of sin, has mistaken the effect for the cause. 01:'>08- 
 ing to follow the appetites of the flesh, is itself sin , 
 and, as an effect, it must have been caused by some- 
 thing else. Why does any man choose to follow 
 his appetites ? Simply, because these are not 
 under the control of knowledge, directing their 
 operation into the channel of obedience. A de- 
 praved ohoice indicates a depraved nature, or, in 
 other words, a nature destitute of that adjustment 
 of mental principles, which would regulate the 
 gratification of appetite by the standard of duty. 
 The tree is known by its fruity 
 
 The part of Scripture to which Taylor's observa- 
 tions refer, may not trace human depravity to 
 Adam's one sin ; but it shows, that, wheu man in 
 the early stages of existence is drawn away of his 
 ovm lust, and enticed, he is under the direction of a 
 nature in which his own will predominates ; and, 
 consequently, he must be destitute of that perfect 
 moral principle, which constitutes the image of God. 
 Kven Taylor lias admitted that this d cangement 
 may be derived from parents. " Indeed," he has 
 observed, ''the blood and spirits of ibe child raay 
 be of the same temperature with those of the pare t ; 
 and so a man may possibly have passions and appe- 
 tites of the same degree or quality with those of his 
 progenitors."* But passions and appetites, unre- 
 strained by moral principle, constitute what is 
 » Mr. , xii, 33. 2£uppl., p. uj2. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 65 
 
 termed the coiTuption of human nature ; and this, 
 according to the preceding quotation, is both 
 innate, and derivea from parents. These, like 
 Adam, begat children after their own image ; and 
 occasionallj, too, this image contains not a single 
 trace of a i-ational nature. 
 
 In tracing the moral deficiency of the infant to 
 his parent, we ultimately arrive at the first parent 
 of all ; and, accordingly, in many parts of Scripture, 
 want of conformity to the image of God is referred 
 to natural generation and connexion with Adam. 
 Our Lord has said, That which is born ofthejieshy is 
 flesh : 1 and Taylor, in explanation of these words, 
 has remarked, that "a natural birth pvoduceth a 
 mere natural man. That which is born of a woman, 
 or by the will of the flesh, by natural descent and 
 propagation, is a man consisting of body and soul, 
 or the mere constitution and powers of a man in 
 their natural state." « But what is this natural 
 state ? It is a state in which the dispositions of 
 the mind are diametrically opposite to the nature 
 and operations of the Spirit of God : For the flesh 
 lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against th^ 
 flesh ; and these are contrary the one to the other ;» 
 and, therefore, to those who are born of the flesh, 
 that is, to all in their natural state our Lord has 
 said, Ye must be horn again.*' 
 
 " That which is born of the Spirit," says Taylor, 
 " IS born of God into a divine and spiritual life 
 »John, iii,6. 2 Suppl., p. 148. 'Gal.,v, 17. *John, iii, 7 
 
66 
 
 DISSERTATION II. 
 
 into the right use and application of the natural 
 powers." 1 But the right vse and application of 
 natural powers is an eflfect : by what is it caused ? 
 A divine and spiritual life can be exemplified, only 
 by a corresponding mind : but, of the mind bom 
 after the flesh, the essence is enmity against God ; 
 and, therefore, in those who are born of the Spirit, 
 the right use and application of natural powers, 
 must proceed from their transformation in^o that 
 new man which is renewed in hioxoledge,^ and created 
 in righteousness and true holiness. ' 
 
 The preceding scriptural view of the renovation 
 of the mind, Taylor has endeavoured to evade by 
 remarking, that " regeneration, or being bom again 
 or of the Spirit, is a gospel doctrine ; as it is used 
 to signify the gaining of those habits of virtue and 
 religion, which give us the real character of the 
 children of God. " This is the most perfect sense 
 of regeneration."* But, in this definition, Taylor 
 has mistaken the effect for the cause. How can 
 habits of virtue and religion commence where ener- 
 getic, selfish propensities have, as he himself has 
 stated, only the ignorance of brutes for their guide ? 
 Besides, habits can be acquired, only during the 
 progress of life : but the expression being horn has 
 no reference to protracted existence. It must be also 
 observed, ihat habits are acquired, only by the 
 repetition of actions ; and, in this point of view 
 they are altogether of man ; but the regenerated 
 
 1 Suppl., p. 146. 8 Col., iii, 10. « Eph., iv, 24. 
 « Suppl., p. 268. 
 
OBJECTIONS CONSIDERED. 
 
 67 
 
 are born, not of the will of man, but of God,^ On 
 
 this account, the Scriptures refer regeneration, not 
 to the life of him who is born again, but to the state 
 of his mind. He is a new creature, the workmanship 
 of God, that his new nature may acquire those 
 habits which exemplify a life of virtue and religion. 
 Since, then, regeneration is the workmanship of 
 God, the unrenewed possess nothing but what they 
 have received by natural descent ; and, therefore, 
 their destitution of the image of God must be ulti- 
 mately referred to their first progenitor. 
 
 ' John. i. 6. 
 
 i, "" 
 
DISSERTATION III. 
 
 ON THE SATISFACTION OF CHRIST. 
 
 God must punisli sin— General belief that sin deserves punish- 
 ment. This belief coincides with the enactments and admin- 
 istration of God— Divine benevolence cannot prevent but re- 
 quires the punishment of sin -Repentance cannot merit par- 
 don-Its insufficiency as a satisfaction for sin generally ac- 
 knowledged—The sinner cannot merit eternal life— Justice 
 does not exclude him from the means of relief— Mankind 
 have entertained the notion of, and the Scriptures teach vi- 
 carious satisfaction— The use and significance of sacrifice- 
 Christ as the substitute of men must have their nature — He 
 conformed to the law under which he was made, and suffered 
 its penalty— His sufferings inflicted by the Father and en- 
 dured for the sins of his people. In making satisfaction he 
 was the servant of the Father, who appointed him to his 
 
 office His satisfaction complete and accepted— God cannot 
 
 extend relief to sinners without satisfaction for sin — The 
 mediation of Christ an arrangement of justice— Its fitness 
 as an expedient depends on the fulness of his satisfaction. 
 
 The Deity, as a moral governor, cannot regard 
 with indifference the rejection of his authority. 
 The dignity of his official character requires, that 
 the law which he has prescribed to the subjects of 
 his government, should be also the rule of his own 
 
ON THE SATISFACTIOir OP CHRIST. 
 
 69 
 
 administrations. Besides, since the grand end of 
 the moral government of God is the illustration 
 of his beneficence, by an established connection be- 
 tween the duty and happiness of intelligent beings, 
 it will farther appear, that sin, as subvertiug his 
 arrangement, must induce a corresponding change 
 in his treatment of the guilty. Both the veracity 
 of God in the sanction of his law, and the Vindica- 
 tion of his government, require, that the disobedient 
 be subjected to those proofs of displeasure which 
 he had previously denounced, and, therefore, with- 
 out dishonour to himself, he can neither overlook 
 disobedience, nor dispense pardon by a deviation 
 from rectitude. 
 
 With the precr ing remarks, the general senti- 
 ments of mankind have ever accorded. In the hu- 
 man mind, the operation of reason produces an un- 
 avoidable belief, that a certain course of conduct, 
 as constituting duty, is acceptable to God, and,' 
 also, that every deviation from that course sub- 
 jects the transgressor to the divine displeasure and 
 the retributions of justice. These natural senti- 
 ments the Scriptures represent, as the result of that 
 moral constitution which originally adapted man 
 to His station in the scale of being, and produced 
 his acquiescence in the law and government of God : 
 For when the Gentiles who have not the law, do by 
 nature the things contained in the law ; these, having 
 not the law, are a law unto themselves : which show 
 the work of the law written in their hearts; their con- 
 
70 
 
 DISSERTATIO:^ III. 
 
 science also bearing witness, and their thoughts the 
 meanwhile accusing, or else excusing one another.^ 
 
 This natural belief respecting the connection of 
 sin witli punishment, accords with the original en- 
 actment of God, and, also, with his actual adminis- 
 tration of law : Because thou hast eaten of the tree, 
 of which I commanded thee, saying. Thou sholt not 
 eat oj it : cursed is the ground for ihy sake : in sor- 
 row shalt thou eat of it all th'> days of thy life. Thorns 
 also and thistles shall it bring forth 7uUo thee ; and 
 thou shalt eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of 
 thy face shall thou eat bread, till thou return unto 
 the ground ; for out of it wast thou taken ; for dust 
 thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."- 
 
 Where there is between the law of God and his 
 moral government a coincidence so exact, it ouglit 
 not to be imagined, that, as a beinj, of perfect be- 
 nevolence, liis regard for the guilty will induce 
 liim to relax tht execution of his sentence. Ex- 
 perience proves that every man's portion is the 
 bread of sorrow, and also that, as all are of 
 dust, all turn to dust again.^ Besides, it was this 
 Being of perfect benevolence, who established and 
 announced an inseparable connexion between sin 
 and death ; ind ho will never deceive into obedience 
 by the terrors of a sentence which he does not in- 
 tend to execute ; nor will he sacrifice his veracity 
 upon the altar of benevolence : He is not a man 
 » Rom., ii, 14, 15. - Gen., iii, 10, 17. ' Ecclcs., iii, 20. 
 
ON THE SATISFACTION OP CHRIST. 71 
 
 that he should lie} If tJie mercj of his nature did 
 not prevent the appointment of the law ; it ought 
 not to be supposed tliat liis mercj will remit the 
 punishment of guilt : He is not one mind, and who 
 can turn him ? * 
 
 From the mere existence of benevolence in God 
 It cannot be deduced, that the operation of that at- 
 tribute will supersede tlie claims of divine justice. 
 As a principle of mind, benevolence has no relation 
 to the quality of actions : it refers solely to living 
 beings, as susceptible of plea^ire and pain. Were 
 mere misery sufficient to produce its operation, it 
 would, by extending to right and wrong indiscri- 
 ramate kindness, obliterate every moral distinction 
 It IS evident, therefore, that, in a world in which the 
 happiness of intelligent beings has been based upon 
 obedience, every operation of benevolence, not r- 
 gulated by tlie principle of justice, must thwart 
 original arrangement, and, (^-onsequently, add to 
 the misery which it purposed to relieve. 
 
 Nor ought it to be imagined, that repentence 
 entitles the transgressor to the favourable consider- 
 ation of God. Where sin has been committed, the 
 same moral law which required the obedience of 
 the sinner, requires his repentance. In his j>eni- 
 tence, the law may find a duty performed ; buc - 
 no duty can exceed its own legal prescription, V( 
 cannot subserve any other requisiffion, and, conr - 
 quently, the law in its penal sanction has receive^ 
 J Num., xxiii, 19. i' Job, xxiii, 13. 
 
n 
 
 DISSERTATION III. 
 
 no satisfaction. Besides, the very idea of repent- 
 ance implies acquiescence in the equity of both the 
 precept and the penalty of the law. In true re- 
 pentance, there is a just perception of guilt, and, 
 also, of the justice of God in its punishment ; so 
 that the sinner, in the very act of his penitence, fur- 
 nishes evidence of the equity of his own condemna- 
 tion, lie, therefore, who rests pj'Tdon upon re- 
 pentance, must imagii.'e God, to be such a one as 
 himself. Knowing that ho has transgressed, he 
 tvusts that the Deity, "hy disregarding the requisi- 
 tions of his law, vili also make himself a transgres- 
 sor. In this point of view, the doctrine of pardon 
 upon the grounds of rep jnlance, becomes the patron- 
 age of pin. But, for the accommodation of the 
 guilty, God will neither disregard his veracity, nor 
 subvert the administration of justice. 
 
 Nor ought the sufficiency of repentance to be 
 deduced from the supposed consideration, that, by 
 the commission of sin, the Deity, has been .^.ubjected 
 to no actual lobS. Disobedience is not sn offence 
 against God, as sustaining a loss, but, as the admin- 
 istration of a law whoso claims cannot be overlooked 
 without the destruction of his moral nature, and 
 also the destruction of the happiness of those whom 
 he governs. Even in these points of vit,w, the in- 
 sufficiency of repentan-^o will app< ir trom the 
 amount of loss. An ordvr which God has epta- 
 blished as just in its requisitions, and which he 
 hsLS declared to be beneficial in its tendencies, can- 
 
I 
 
 on THE 8ATI8FA0TION OF CURI8T. 73 
 
 not be infringed by himself without loss of charac- 
 ter ; and the value of the character of God who can 
 dechire ? lam the Lord; that is my name : and 
 y glory will I not give to another.^ / will bejea- 
 hut for my holy name* 
 
 While the Scriptures aflford not the slightest evi- 
 dence, that repentance ensures the pardon of guilt- 
 they expliciUy state, that by itself it is of no avail.' 
 When your fcar cometh as a desolation, and your 
 destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress 
 and anguish come upon you : Then shall they call 
 upon me; but J wiU not answer : they shall seek me 
 earlyy but they shall not find me? Besides?, divine 
 truth has announced, that, though the world mav 
 feel a sorrow for sin, it is a sorrow that worketh 
 death.* The subsequent view of the Christian 
 system wi'l also evince, that the worid of itself can- 
 not exercise that godly sorrow which worketh re- 
 pentance unto salvation.'^ 
 
 Respecting the inefficiency of repentance as a sa- 
 tisfaction for sin, the general sentiments of man- 
 kind have supplied abundant evidence. Of this 
 point, indeed, proof cannot be collected from the 
 danng opposer of divine truth, nor from him who 
 is at ease in his possessions : but in every nation 
 unacquainted with the gospel plan, it is amply dis' 
 played in breedings of fear, and in eager search for 
 means of reconciliation with God. There, the 
 ' laa.. xlii. 8. 2 Ezek.. xxiix, 26. • Prov., i, 27 58 
 «2Cor..Tu. 10. *2Cor..vu. 10. 
 
 F 
 
74 
 
 1)ISSERTATI05 III. 
 
 most precious objects in nature have, amidst doubts 
 of their acceptance, been offered as an atonement 
 for sin. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, 
 and bow myself before the high God? Shall I come 
 before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year 
 old ? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of 
 rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil.' shall I 
 give my first born for my transgression, the fruit of 
 my body for the sin of my soul ? ' Individuals, 
 reasoning from preconceived notions, may assign 
 to the Deity a nature of their own creation ; and, 
 then, chorish a persuasion, that such means of re- 
 conciliation originate in the groundless terrors of 
 ignorance. The ignorance refers to the means of 
 reconciliation only ; but the terrors proceed from 
 doubt of the efficiency of penitence and the offered 
 atonement : and, that these terrors are not imagin- 
 ary, the character of God, whether exhibited in 
 his law, in the gospel of his grace, or in the dis- 
 pensations of his providence, most amply proves. 
 Speculators in religion are not prone to question 
 their own intelligence. It must, however, be said 
 of them, that, in accounting repentence a sufficient 
 satisfaction for sin, they exemplify -the confiding 
 security of ignorance. They do not know the ve- 
 racity of him who has said. The wages of sin is 
 death ;' and, from the same want of knowledge, 
 they will not believe tSiat without shedding of blood 
 is no remission.^ 
 
 ' Mic, Yi, *>, 1. -' Rom., vi, ^o. ' Ilcb., ix, 22. 
 
ox THE SiTlSFAOTION OP CnBIST. fj 
 
 As tlie constitution of tl,o law has, thus, ejta- 
 bhshed an unsepa.able connection between sin and 
 death ,t has le t tho sinner without subsequent re- 
 lief. In himself ho has no resources. That ar- 
 rangement, also, which combined obedience and 
 l.fe. terminated m our first parent's transgression; 
 and there neyer ei.sted another covenant of works 
 
 lttTo„"f ''i'"'''' " '"'^ "'"'^""e in a statu of 
 probation for subsequent favours. From the tree 
 
 of l.fe, the sole emblem of hope, he was excluded ,• 
 
 and, from the presence of God, dismissed into a 
 
 are „ m""" -^^ "'="""'• '''^°' '^ •'--ndants 
 are mtim same circumstances; children of u,ra,hi 
 wuhout God, and u,Uhout hope in the world > 
 
 Though man could actually satisfy divine jus- 
 t.ce for sm and also renew his obedience, this 
 discharge of his dutj would not place the bei^ 
 of fife "7 ""'■S^'-o- '; -now his gracious promise 
 
 of God ^Z :T'^ ™'""''^'°" '» "«' a'ftoritr 
 of God. without reference to subsequent reward 
 ^ the indispensable dut^ of intelligent bei'gs 
 To possess the divine favour during the period of 
 obedience, also, is an ample recompfnce. 'b t .hi! 
 
 Deitj a debtor to the obedient for the continuation 
 of existence With respect to Adam, the promise 
 of immortahtj was a gratuitous ar«„gemeht • to 
 
 "me'unr tf'''^'- "" """''''>•' «'«'« -«- ,„', 
 «>me under the cognizance of justice. TLo can« 
 
 ' El)!!., ii, 3. 1 E,,!,.^ ii, 12. 
 
 I 
 
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76 
 
 ]>I8B2BTATI0ir III. 
 
 
 of existence iras not obedience ; and the cause of 
 its permanence is not the discharge of dutj, bnt 
 the will of the Creator. 
 
 Upon the preceding point, there may exist a 
 diversity of opinion ; but, respecting what God has 
 explicitly stated, there ought to be but one belief : 
 And to the fallen family of man he has announced, 
 that he has provided for them no prescription of 
 obedience, by which they may procure either spi- 
 ritual or eternal life : If there had been a laic given 
 which could have given life ; verily, righteousness 
 should have been by the law.^ As transgressors, 
 their lot is regulated by original arrangement : by 
 nature they are the subjects of that death which 
 is the wages of sin. 
 
 Justice, however, does not require that the 
 guilty should be excluded from the means of relief. 
 The direct object of the moral government of God, 
 is not the misery of sinners, but the illustration of 
 his displeasure against their sin. This, the Scrip- 
 tures denominate the condemnation of sin ; and 
 as sin is in the flesh, that is, in human nature, the 
 misery of man becomes an unavoidable result. The 
 condemnation of sin being, thus, the grand end of 
 the moral government of God ; he is at liberty to 
 permit the intervention of adequate means for the 
 relief of the guilty. Though, for that purpose, 
 neither the repentance of the sinner nor his subse- 
 quent obedience can avail, other resources may be 
 
 ' Gal-, iu, 31. 
 
05 THE SATlSFlOTIOir OF CHRIST. 77 
 
 provided ; and justice does not require that a satis- 
 fectorjr oflFering in his behalf, should be excluded 
 from the acceptance of God. 
 
 Here, it maj be observed, that, in every section 
 of the human race, the possibility of satisfaction 
 fcr sin by oubstitution, has been a general beUof. 
 Nor has it, perhaps, been less generaUy believed, 
 that the satisfaction consists in the death of the 
 substitute. Respecting the nature of the ofFering 
 to be presented to God, the guilty have often erred ; 
 but their belief corresponds with divine arrange- 
 ment. In the first sacrifice recorded in Scripture, 
 both the principle of substitution and the death of 
 the substitute, were sanctioned hy the authority of 
 God. By faith, it is said, Abel offered unto God a 
 tnore excellent sacrifice than Cain, hy which he ob- 
 tained wOnest that he was righteous, God testifying 
 of his gifts} Now, righteousness denotes confor- 
 mity to a rule ; and, in the present case, the witness 
 of God is satisfactory evidence, that the rule pro- 
 ceeded from himself. Abel oflfered by faith; that 
 is, he believed the divine testimony respecting the 
 prescription of sacrifice; and, acquiescing in its 
 nature and use, he exemplified submission to th« 
 authority of God. In every succeeding age of the 
 church, also, the death of the substitute, as the 
 proper satisfaction for sin, has continued to be a 
 prominent feature in the scriptural worship of God. 
 So unavaUing for the acceptance of the sinner has 
 
 > Heb., xi,' 4, 
 
78 
 
 DISSERTATION III. 
 
 repentance ever been, and so necessarj the inter- 
 renrtion of death, that without shedding of blood is 
 no remission.^ 
 
 But, when the Scriptures state that pardon is 
 attainable through the medium of death, it must 
 not be supposed that the blood shed under former 
 dispensations of grace, procured for the guilty a 
 spiritual acceptance with God. To the member* 
 of the church, the victims offered for sin were me- 
 morials of that death which transgression had in- 
 troduced into tlie world. Guilt, also, being bj 
 divine appointment punished with exclusion from 
 the exteriial privileges of the church ; those sacri- 
 fices became the ground of a pardon which re-esta- 
 blished the guilty in the rights of membership : 
 If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the 
 Lord, . . . he shall bring his trespass offer- 
 ing unto the Lord, a ram without blemish out of the 
 flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering 
 unto the priest : And the priest shall make an atone- 
 ment for him before the Lord: and it shall be for- 
 given him, for any thing of all that he hath done, in 
 trespassing therein.^ Thus, also, the blood of bulls 
 and of goats and the ashes of an heifer, sprinkling 
 the unclean, sanctified to the purifying oftheflesh.^ 
 But ceremonial sacrifices conctituted no condem- 
 nation of sin in the flesh. Under the moral ad- 
 ministration of God, therefore, they could afford 
 to justice no satisfaction ; and hence, the declara- 
 1 lleb., ix, 22. 2 Lev^ vi, 2, 6, 7. » Heb., ix, 13. 
 
OK THE 8ATI8FA0TI0R OF CHRIST. 
 
 79 
 
 1 
 
 non of Scripture, Tt is not pouible that the blood of 
 bulls and of goats should take away sins. ^ 
 
 But, though ceremonial sacrifices could not sa- 
 tisfy tl justice of God, thej could suggest the 
 necessity of a substitute, whose death for sin would 
 provide relief for the guilty; and in Scripture, ac- 
 cordingly, this is represented as the principal end 
 of their introduction into the church : 7Vi« law was 
 our schoolmaster to bring to Christ, or, till Christ 
 came.« Our Lord having been appointed the sub- 
 stitute of the guilty and the dispenser of pardon, 
 the ceremonial law occupied merely a subordinate 
 place in the general arrangement of mercy. Its 
 institutions, as emblems of spii ■ jal favour, directed 
 the faith of the church to that source, from which 
 alone acceptance with God and consequent blessing 
 could be obtained: it was a shadow of good things 
 to come; but the body is of Christ.' Viewing our 
 Lord, then, as the substance or body of blessing, 
 so often exhibited to the church in promise and 
 type; his scriptural character in relation to the 
 moral government of God, ard to the divine pur- 
 pose of mercy with respect to the guilty, must next 
 be considered. 
 
 Since the violation "of the law on the part of 
 man, required the condemnation of sin in thh flesh, 
 it became necessary that Christ, as the substitute 
 of the guilty, should possess their nature. In all 
 things it behoved him to be made like unto his breth^ 
 
 ' lUh., X, i. 
 
 2 Gal., iii, 2i. 
 
 ^CoL. ii, I',. 
 
I ! 
 
 80 
 
 srasosTATioir m. 
 
 fvn.^ He, therefore, took not on htm the natiur* 
 of angels ; bat, that he might be legally qualified, 
 and also sustain the character of the promised seed, 
 he was made of a kohum,* and took on kim the teed 
 of Abrakatn* Thus, he was made in ike likeneet 
 ofsinfulfetk* 
 
 Bj this assumption of human nature, our Lord 
 became the subject of moral administration, or, as 
 it is expressed in Scripture, he was made under the 
 law:' and, being unde/iied and separate from ein^ 
 nerst* in his constitution there existed nothing to 
 which the law couid object Between his holy na- 
 ture and his deportment, also, there was unyarjing 
 coincidence : and, that he fulfilled all righteousness 
 by affording to the law a perfect obedience, the 
 testimony of God is a satisfactory youcher. For 
 his exact compliance with divine prescription, he 
 received from God the Father honour end glory, 
 when there came meh a voice from the excelletU glory. 
 This is my beloved Son in whom lam well pleased^ 
 In connection with the preceaing yiew of the 
 obedience of Christ, it must be obserye^ that, con- 
 sistently with the principles of justic, he could 
 not on his own account be made the subject of pe- 
 nal infliction. Yet, though, like our first parent 
 at his creation, possessing the image of God, he 
 was located in no paradise : he was made the inha- 
 
 » ITeb., ii, 17. 
 * Rom., rjii, 3. 
 
 « Gal., iv, 4. 
 « Gal., iv, 4. 
 » 2 Pet., i, 17. 
 
 » Heb., u, 16. 
 « Heb., Tii, 2e. 
 
OH TBI SATISrAOTIQH OV 0HBI8T. 
 
 bitaat of a irorM ftccursed, 
 
 81 
 
 d a sharer of its sor* 
 rows; and, also, like fallen Adam, death waa Jiia 
 allotment. 
 
 It ought not to be affirmed, that these events in 
 the life of Christ had no particular reference to 
 guilt, and that thej were merelj incidents origin- 
 ating in his office, as the reformer of a sinful world. 
 As far as human agency inflicted sufferings upon 
 him, the events of his life might be accounted 
 casual: but, in what thus befel him, men were 
 mere agents to effect the purpose of God, as the 
 moral governor of the world : Of a truth, against tk^ 
 hofy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both He- 
 rod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the 
 people of Israel, were gathered together, to do what- 
 soever thy hand and thy counsel determined b^ore to 
 be done} Our Lord endured the sorrows of perse- 
 cution from men; but it was not human agencj 
 that impelled hira to exclaim, My God, my God, 
 why hast thou forsaken me?* When subjectea to the 
 rage of enemies his griefs flowed also from a higher 
 source : It pleased the Lord to bruise hims he hatk 
 put him to grief.' 
 
 For this manifestation of divine displeasure, the 
 Scriptures assign a satisfactory reason. Our Lord, 
 personally considered, had merited no moral disap- 
 probation; and there is no unrighteousness with 
 God: but Christ, as the substitute of sinners, and 
 made under the law, was subjected to a ministration 
 > Acts, iv, 27, 28. s Mat., xxtu, 46. » laa., liii, 10. 
 
mmmmm 
 
 
 '•. : 
 
 82 
 
 DTSrSERTATION IH. 
 
 of justice, which to the whole human race waa a 
 ministration of death. Disobedience had exposed 
 our first parent and his natural descendants to the 
 curse of the law ; and our Lord, bj connection 
 With his fallen family, was also made a curse.^ 
 
 But mere relation to sinners, does not establish 
 a connection with their guilt. Christ, therefore, 
 as perfectly righteous, could not on his own ac- 
 count be subjected to penal sentence of the law: 
 but respecting him it had been predicted, that'; 
 when he should be cut off. it would not be for him^ 
 self.2 Since, then, under a righteous government, 
 guilt evet- precedes condemnation ; inflictions upon 
 Christ must have originated in the guilt of others? 
 It is, accordingly, stated, that his sufferings were a 
 penal retribution for the transgression of those 
 with whom he had connected himself by the tie of 
 a common nature : He suffered Jor sins, the Just for 
 the unjust,^ and, He was made a curse for us.* In 
 accordance with these statements, our Lord has 
 represented himself as sustaining, in his sufferings 
 and death, the character of a substitute : / lay 
 down my life for the sheep. '^ 
 
 As a substitute, then, Christ became the reprfe- 
 sentative of those for whom he endured the sentence 
 of the law. This is his scriptural character. In 
 contrast with the first progenitor of the human 
 family, he is termed the second m^n, and, also, the 
 
 ' Gal., iii, 13. 2 Dan., ix, 26. 3 1 Pet., iii, 18. 
 
 ♦ Gal., iii, is. « John, x. 15. 
 
ON THE SATI8PA0TI0V OF CHRIST. 
 
 83 
 
 last Adam:^ and that he received these appellations 
 in reference to his character as a substitute, is evi- 
 dent from what ♦he Scriptures in general state re- 
 specting both the cause and the effects cf his death. 
 It is also apparent from this consider? tion, that, 
 in the preceding ront.rast, the t.ecJ of e.ich receive 
 their allotment, upon the ground of connexion with 
 their respective heads: For as in Adam all die, 
 even so in Christ shall all he made alivt. - 
 
 But the mere act of substitution does not neces- 
 sarilj imply the efficiencj of t!ie representation. 
 Where the law requires satisfaction, a bgal sub- 
 stitute must be oue approved bj the despenser of 
 justice. This qualification our Lord posseLs^d.. 
 The arrangement of morcy by which men art* saved, 
 did not originate in the interposition of tho Sou of 
 God, to avert the just retributions o" his offended 
 Father. Divine benevolence under the guidance 
 of infinite wisdom, produced the mediation of 
 Christ; and, thus, became subservient to the illus- 
 tration of justice, and to the reliei of the guilty. 
 Hence, our Lord in his substitution is represented 
 as the Father's servant: I came down from heaven, 
 not to do mine own will, hut the will of him that sent 
 me.' 
 
 Respecting the preceding view of the source of 
 
 salvation, the Scriptures famish abundant evidence. 
 
 To induce the operation of divine benevolence, 
 
 fallen mau needed no intercessor. Hich in mercy, 
 
 ' 1 Cor., XV. 46, etc. 2 1 Cor., xv, 22. 3 John, vi, 38, 
 
 Ji 
 
84 
 
 DIS8ERTATI01I III. 
 
 is the Father's character. When the hnraan hmi* 
 Ij were dead in iins, with great lore ht loved them ;» 
 and, uhen the/ulnets of the time vm$ come, he sent/orth 
 hi* Son, . , . ,to redeem them that were under 
 the law.* Our Lord also represented himself, as 
 acting upon the ground of his Father's authority: 
 / am come m my Father's name : * And, both as » 
 substitute and in the work of substitution, he pos- 
 sessed his Fathicr's approbation: TAe Lord is weU 
 pleased for his righteousness* sahe:* This is my be- 
 loved Son, in whom I am well pleased,' Such is 
 the nature of the arrangement of mercy ; and such, 
 also, th^ character which Christ in ite completion 
 sustained. 
 
 Our tord being, thus, by the appointment of the 
 Father and by his own acquiescence, a substitute 
 for the guilty ; it became his duty to render what 
 the law required from those whom he represented. 
 By his official character, he teas numbered with the 
 transgressors.^ Their guilt became his by imputa- 
 tion; and, hence, it is said, The Lord hath laid on 
 him the iniquity of us all,'' and. He bare the sin of 
 many.* Here, it must be observed, that to put on, 
 to lay on, and to hear iniquity, are scriptural terms 
 for the ascription of guilt.' Our Lord, therefore, 
 was guilty by imputation; and his submission to 
 death was an act of substitution. As such, it is 
 
 * Eph., ii, 4. 
 *l8a., xlii, 2i. 
 ^ lea., liii, 6. 
 
 * GjJ., iv, 4, 6. 
 'Mat., iii, 17. 
 « Isa., liii, 12. 
 
 ' John, V, 43. 
 •Isa, liii, 12. 
 » Lev., xvi, 21, 22. 
 
03 THB aATISrACTIOH OF OBBIST. 
 
 85 
 
 roprwented bj himself: / lay down my life for tU 
 9^} Death from men, it was easy for the Son 
 of God to hare evaded: but, as made under the law 
 for sinners, there was a moral necessity that he 
 should submit to the retributions of justice. The 
 Father, as a righteous governor, required the vin- 
 dication of his authority bj a satisfaction for sin; 
 and the Son has stated, that, when he bare tlu sin 
 of many, the surrender of his life was an act of 
 obedience to his Father's command: No man taketk 
 a from me; but I lay it doum of myself, I have 
 power to lay it doum, and I hope power to take it 
 again. This commandment have I received of my 
 Father* To regard the sufferings and death of 
 Christ, as intended merely to exemplify submis- 
 sion to the wiU of God, or to afford an additional 
 confirmation of divine truth, is an unscriptural view 
 of his agency for men. Besides, neither as an ex- 
 ample of submission to divine authority, nor as 
 confiiming the truth by his death, could he become 
 the object of the Father's desertion in the hour of 
 trial: yet he it was, who exclaimed, My God, my 
 God, why hast thou forsaken mef ' As the substi- 
 tute of sinners, he was the accursed of God; and, 
 in the hour of darkness, he had no fellowship with 
 the Father. Being made a curse for vs, it was the 
 Father himself who poured upon his beloved Son 
 the vials of his indignation: Awake, O sword, 
 
 >John.x.lfi. a John. X, 18. » Mat., ixrii, 46. 
 
86 
 
 "JISSERTATION III. 
 
 ttgaintt my Shepherd, and against the man that ii 
 my fellow, sailh the Lord of hotti : smite the Slupherd} 
 
 Thus, our Lord, in his official character, sub- 
 mitted to the penal requisitions of the law ; and, 
 that bj his death ho afforded complete satisfaction, 
 divine truth furnishes abundant proof. Ancient 
 prediction had announced that he should finish 
 transgression;^ and upon the cross he published the 
 fulfilment of prophecy : he said, // is finished; and 
 he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.* In this 
 obedience to the death, he doubtless exemplified 
 snbmiiSfeion to his Father's will ; and, also, in con- 
 firmation of his doctrine, approved himself to be 
 the Faithful and True Witness:* but a far more 
 glorious result flowed from the death of the Son 
 of God. Every handwriting of charge against 
 those whom he represented, he cancelled, nailing 
 it to his cross;" and, upon this ground, there are 
 good tidings of great joy unto all people; the pro- 
 clamation of pardon tiirough his blood, a pardon 
 secured by the fulness of his pmal satisfaction: 
 Be it known unto you, men and brethren, that through 
 thi$ man is preached unto you the forgiveness ofsins:^ 
 ■and to ther: that are in Christ, there is no condem- 
 nation.'' 
 
 Such is the scriptural view of the relief which 
 the Deity has provided for the guilty. Human 
 reason, bewildered in its own speculations, may 
 
 » Zech., xiii, 1. ' Dan., ix, 24. » John, xix, SO. 
 
 * R«v., iii, U. « Col., ii, 14. « Acts, xiii, 38. 
 
 ^ Rom., viii, 1. 
 
.c 
 
 oir tiibbatisfactiok or ciirist. 87 
 
 reject the eounse! of God, and invent ^sources for 
 it«elf ; but these will evor be eiporienced to be a 
 refuge of lies. From more liuman nature, repen- 
 tance and reformation are reluctant oflFerings to 
 God; and it accounts them pe&rU of great price: 
 but, in the eight of him whose throne is established 
 in righteousness, for the removal of guUt thej are 
 of no avail. For the pardon of sin, he has himself 
 laid a foundation in Zion: other foundation can no 
 •nan lay; and, where the relief of God is rejected 
 there is neither help nor hope: There femaineth no 
 fnore aacrificefor sins.^ 
 
 But, farther, the tenor of our Lord's deportment 
 m life, as well as his sufferings and death, consti- 
 tuted a part of that submission to the law, which 
 as the representative of sinful men, it became his 
 duty to afford. Transgression does not relieve the 
 guiUj from moral obligation. Those prescriptions 
 of duty which God has appointed for the regulation 
 of human conduct, are a transcript of the principle 
 of justice, subsisting in himself. Obligation to 
 duty, also, originating in divine prescription, is 
 regulated by man's diversified relations. While 
 these relations, therefore, remain, a failure in the 
 •amount of duty arising out of them, must consti- 
 tute a deviation from rectitude; and such a devia- 
 •tion from duty, the Deity cannot overlook. Moral 
 •perfection in God implies the immutability of 
 •justice. As the moral law, then, is a transcript of 
 
 » Heb., x,,2d. 
 
88 
 
 DI8RBRTATI0N III. 
 
 that attribute in himself, any diminution of the 
 amount of dutj must exclude it from his accep- 
 tance, ffeit the Father of lights, tcith whom u no 
 variableness neither shadow of turning; ^ and, there- 
 fore, one jot or one tittle shall not pass from the taw, 
 tiU aU be fulfiUed.^ 
 
 Besides, the moral law is the law of man's ra- 
 tional nature ; and, consequentl j, without an altera- 
 tion of his original constitution, the amount of his 
 obligation to datj must remain unaltered. It maj 
 be also observed, that, wherever a rational mind 
 perceives its relations to other beings, its sensations 
 and perceptions acquiesce in the immutability of 
 moral prescription. Human reason may persuade 
 itself, that of duty God will accept less than the 
 amount of his requirements ; or it may cherish the 
 belief that this or that is not enjoined in the law: 
 bat the first of these opinions is repugnant alike to 
 the veracity and unchangeable holiness of God; 
 and both the first and the last imply a persuasion 
 of the nuaitored continuance of moral prescription. 
 From the nature of mind, this belief must unavoid- 
 ably occur; for, in every case, perception regulates 
 belief; or rather, it may be said to bo belief itself. 
 He who perceives in an action the quality of right, 
 is not at liberty to doubt the existence of raoral 
 obligation. That duty ought to be performed, is 
 the invariable decision of his mind. Wherever, 
 therefore, moral perceptions exist, the immutabi- 
 
 ' James, i, 17. 
 
 « Mat., V, 18. 
 
OJf THE SATISFACTION OP CHRIST. 
 
 89 
 
 litj of moral prescription is also recognised. This, 
 the Scriptures vi present as the result of man's ra- 
 tional nature: For when the Gentiles who Jiave not 
 the law, do by nature the things contained in the law; 
 these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: 
 which shew the work of the law written in their heart; 
 their conscience also hearing witness, and their 
 thovghts the meanwhile accusing, or else excusing one 
 another.^ 
 
 Viewing our Lord, then, as the substitute of 
 beings who could in no respect comply with the 
 requisitions of the law, it is evident, tliat, in order 
 to effect the designs of his mission, he must have 
 been made under the law in its full extent. While 
 he suffered its penalty, it was equally requisite that 
 he should obey its precept. In relation to this 
 point he lias, accordingly, said, Think not that lam 
 come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not 
 come to destroy, but to fulfil.^ He was commissioned, 
 not to relieve trausgressors from moral prescrip- 
 tion, but to establish its authority ; first, by his own 
 obedience ; and, then, by the restoration of his spiri- 
 tual offspring to a life of rectitude : and the perfec- 
 tion of his obedience, the evidence of Scripture has 
 amply proved. Even though separate from sinners, 
 and needing no repentance, in the baptism of John 
 he recognised the authority of God, submitted to 
 the established order of the church, and said, Thus, 
 it bscometh us to fulfil all righteousness -.'and a voice 
 » Rom., ii, \i, lo. 2 Mat., v, 17. 3 Mat., iii. 15. 
 
90 
 
 mS8EBTATI05 III. 
 
 from heaven announced his a<^eptance with God : 
 This is my beloved Son, in whom lam well pleased.^ 
 He had much to do, as well as much to endure ; 
 and, respecting the completion of his work, he could 
 say to his Father, have glorified thee on earth: I 
 have Jlnished the work which thou gavest me to da,* 
 Thus, while he made reconciliation for iniquity, he 
 also brought in everlasting righteousness. 
 
 But, farther, the resurrection of Christ is itself 
 a decisive proof of the perfection of his atonement, 
 and of the fulness of his satisfaction to every other 
 claim of ! the law. Respecting him it is statoJ, 
 that, when subjected to death, it was not possible 
 that hj should be holden of it? Upon the part of 
 the Father, it was not possible ; becouse, by the 
 discharge of our Lord's official duty, divine justice 
 and veracity were pledged for his resurrection : 
 When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, 
 
 . . . he shall prolong his days* Upon the 
 pavt of Christ, it was equally impossible. The sting 
 of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the lew .•' 
 but, upon the cross, our Lord put away sin by the 
 sacrifice of himself ; and, thus, destroyed him who, 
 by the transgression of man, had acquired the 
 power of death : And, having, by means of his 
 satisfaction to the law, removed every legal ob- 
 struction and every hostile opposer ; in virtue of 
 the power of life inherent in himself, ho took pos- 
 
 *Mat., iii, 7. ^ John, xvii, 4. ' Acts, ii, 24. 
 * la., Iviii, 10. ^ 1 Cor., xv, 66. 
 
■^w. 
 
 ON THE SATISFACTION OP CHRIST. 
 
 91 
 
 session of that reward which the grace and justice 
 of the I ather had promised. 
 
 Such is the scriptural account of the resurrec- 
 tion of Christ. The grand end of his mission was 
 the illustration of the glorj of the divine character. 
 This was the object of his delight, and it was also 
 the subject of his prajier : Father, glorify thy name.^ 
 Father, glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may 
 glorify thee :^ And the desire of Christ was amplj 
 gratified bj his resurrection from the dead : He 
 asked life of thee ; and thou gavest it him, even length 
 of days for ever and ever.' Thus, the Father was 
 glorified ; for our Lord was raised from the dead 
 by the glory of the F::(her* that is, bj a glorious 
 exhibition of his veracitj and justice. Respecting 
 the Son, also, it is said, that the Father hath 
 raised him from the dead, and given him glorj, 
 the glorj due to an all-sufficient Saviour. Hence, 
 We are taught to regard the resurrection of Christ, 
 as the foundation of hope : If Christ be not raised, 
 your faith is vain : ye are yet in your sins.^ But 
 the Father raised him from the deaa, and gave him 
 glory, that your faith and hope might be in GodJ 
 
 Here, it raaj be asked, if, according to the opin- 
 ion of some, repentance be suffic'«nt to procure the 
 restoration of the favour of God, why did he exact 
 the obedience and death of his well beloved Son V 
 Human misconception maj lean upon penitence ; 
 
 ' John, xii, 28. 2 John, xvii, I. sp^. ^xi, 4. * Rom., vi 4 
 M Cor., XV, 17. 6 1 Pet., i, 21. ' * 
 
ffi 
 
 DISSERTATIOir III. 
 
 1? 
 
 0?; under the suspicion of insecurity, it may corn- 
 bins faith and repentance with the satisfaction of 
 Christ ; but th«se plans of relief are the hay and 
 stubble of unscriptural speculation. It was not 
 with such oflFerJngs that Christ entered within the 
 Tail : it was with his own blood ; and he needed 
 nothing else ; /or by one offering he hath perfected 
 for ever them that are sanciijied^ 
 
 Inquiry into the possibility of relief by other 
 meana than tho mediation of Christ, is at best 
 a useless speculation. For the guilty, it is suffi- 
 cient to fciow and improve the relief which God 
 has provided. At the same time, it ought to be 
 remarked, that the sentiment entertained by some, 
 that the T>eity has power to forgive sin without a 
 reference to the claims of justice, is an opinion 
 destitute of foundation in Scripture. It is a mere 
 sophism, originating in ♦he misapplication of the 
 physical term power to a moral action. Our Lord 
 has, indeed, said, that with God all things are pos- 
 sible:* but from this expression it cannot be infer- 
 red, that his power will ever be employed to effect 
 what is repugnant to his nature. Power in the 
 Deity must be always regulated by will ; and, con- 
 sequently, since perfect moral rectitude is an attri- 
 bute of his nature, his will in reference to moral 
 agents must ever accord with the principles of jus- 
 tice. Besides, he has said that he will by no means 
 clear the guilty ; and, thus, his veracity is pledged, 
 
 » Ileb., X, 14. 
 
 2 Mat., xix, 20. 
 

 OH THE SATISFAOTIOX OF CnaiST. 
 
 93 
 
 that his mora! government will exactly coiaoido 
 with the declaration of his law. 
 
 Nor ought it to be affirmed, that the mediation 
 of Christ is a mere arbitrary arrangement, or, as it 
 has been exp/essed, « merely a fit expedient, de- 
 manded by the wisdom of God, whoreby mercy 
 might be safely administered to sinful man. " » The 
 demand created by transgression, does not ori- 
 ginate in the wisdom of God : it proceeds from 
 his justice ; and that expedient only can be fit, 
 which affords a legal satisfation. Any other is not 
 consistent with the righteousness of God, as de- 
 clared in his law. It, therefore, leaves the sinner 
 under the same le^al claim ; and 't is not the cha- 
 racter of God, to disregard the sanction of bis 
 authority : m is not a man that he thould lie, 
 neither the son of man that hs should repent* 
 
 It becomes not man to affirm that God could 
 provide relief for the guilty, only by the mediation 
 of Christ. Scripture, however, warrants the belief, 
 that, had he adopted a different arrangement, it 
 would have furnished an exact satisfaction to legal 
 claim. Viewing the expedient provided, as it in- 
 yolves the death of the San of God, it certainly 
 indicates no remission of demand ; and, when it is 
 taken into account, that, in Scripture, his obedience 
 and death are represented, not as an arbitrary ex- 
 pedient of relief, but the actual fulfilment or' all 
 righteousness, his satisfaction will appear an ar- 
 » Magee on the Atonement, vol. 1, p. 180. a Num., xxiii, 19. 
 
94 
 
 DISSERTATION III. 
 
 
 rangement of justice, and a yindication of the 
 righteousuess of God. If divine equity required* 
 that, through our first parent as a representatire* 
 the execution of the sentence of the law by the in- 
 fliction of death, should pass upon all his natural de- 
 scendants ; such an illustration of moral govern- 
 ment furnishes no evidence, that their restoration 
 to life through the agency of Christ, will be dis- 
 pensed by a remission of legal demand. 
 
 In illustration of the preceding point it may be 
 farther observed, that, while the Scriptures refer 
 the mediation of Chris* to the mercy of God, they 
 also represent it as an arrangement of justice: 
 when mercy and truth go before his face, justice 
 and judgment are tie habitation of his throne.^ 
 Hence, the relief dispensed through our Lord's sa- 
 tisfaction, is termed a redemption, that is, the re- 
 storation of the redeemed upon the ground of an 
 equivalent. Under the ceremonial law, this was 
 the nature of typical redemption ; and it ought 
 not to be affirmed, that the term redemption, when 
 applied to the mediation of Christ, is merely a fi- 
 gure borrowed from the type. Under the former 
 dispensation of grace, figurat e redemption was 
 not instituted, that it might supply our Lord and 
 his apostles with figurative terms. It was a sha- 
 dow of good things to come ; and, of course, the 
 terms which expressed the nature of the shadow, 
 prefigured also the nature of the substance. In 
 
 * Pa. Izxxix, 14. 
 

 ON THI SATISFAOTXOir OP OHBIST. 
 
 95 
 
 spiritual things, the law was the schoolmaster of 
 the church till Christ came ; and, then, typical 
 terms were employed to describe the nature of his 
 work ; because typical shadows were then supersed- 
 ed by what they had prefigured : 7%« law was given 
 by Moses ; but grace and truth came by Jesus 
 Christ.^ 
 
 When our Lord was made under the law, it was, 
 that he might redeem them that were under the 
 Iaw.« With this view of his mission, the language 
 of Scripture, describing the nature of his work, 
 exactly corresponds. What type had prefigured, 
 our Lord realized : When thou takest the sum of 
 the children of Israel, after their number, then shall 
 they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the 
 Lord:^ and, The Son of man came to give his life 
 a ransom for many.* Hence, it is said, that he 
 purchased the church with his own blood.' Those, 
 also, whom he has redeecied, are bought with a 
 price :« and it ought to be particularly noted, that, 
 with respect to the plan of reliaf, it is not the fit- 
 ness of the expedient that they are directed to con- 
 template : it is the value of the ransom : Ye u)ere 
 not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and 
 gold, .... but with the precious blood of 
 Christ.'' 
 
 From these remarks it appears, that the fitness 
 of our Lord's mediation, as an expedient, proceed- 
 
 » John, i, 17. 2 Gal., iv, 6. s Exod., xxx, 12. *Mat., xi, 28, 
 "Acts, XX, 28. 1 Cor., ri, 20. » i pet,, xyiii, 19. 
 
 
96 
 
 filBBERTATION III. 
 
 ed from the fulness of his satisfaction tu the justice 
 of God. By that, he became the end pfthe law for 
 righteoueness.^ Any other vievr of his obedience 
 and death, derog^^es alike from the glory of bis 
 mediation, and from the glory of the moral cha- 
 racter of God. The divine nature it assimilates 
 to sinful flesh, and, at the same time, withholds 
 from the human mind a just conception of the 
 moral evil of disobedience. It, also, disagrees with 
 scriptural statement respecting the grand end of 
 the mediation of Christ ; that is, a glorious exhi- 
 bition of perfect justice in the moral government of 
 God : Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation 
 through faith in his blood, to declare his righteous- 
 ness for the remission of sins that are past, through 
 the forbearance of Gou ; To declare, J say, at this 
 time, his righteousness ; that he might be just, and 
 thejustifier of him who believeth in Jesus.* Expe- 
 dience is not the scriptural test of our Lord's satis- 
 faction : it is the law under which, as the seed of 
 the woman, he was made ; and divine trutn suffi- 
 ciently indicates, that his mediatorial work was 
 not abridged by a mitigation of claim. By com- 
 pliance with immutable requisition, he made the 
 law honourable ; for he brought in everlasting 
 righteousness.^ 
 
 ' Rom., X, 4. 2 Rom., iii, 25, 26. ^ Dan., ix, 24. 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 

 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 :W 
 
 •V.'1 
 
 EFFECTS OF CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. 
 
 Cnnt't mediation designed to establish a system illastntlDg 
 God's unchangeable moral adramistration— The blessings 
 promised Clui.Ht for his people not deserved by them— . 
 Christ's satisfaction did not affect him in bis personal but 
 la hU oflSclal capacity and its effects are applied to his 
 people— Man cannot be justified by works of law done, or 
 on account of subsequent obedience— The gift of righteous- 
 ness derived solely from Christ's satisfaction— In justi3ca- 
 tion there is a transference of Christ's righteousness— The 
 justified cannot bo numbered with transgressors but become 
 by adoption the sans of God— Adoption connected with re- 
 iiOTation of mind which is an effect of Christ's medUtlon— 
 This renovation not reformation but a new creation— It does 
 not originate in any preparatory aptitude in human nature 
 —In regeneration no new revelation giver, but a capacity to 
 receive the truth revealed— Communication of spiritual life 
 leads to activity in f Hh receiving justification and adoption 
 —Reconciliation to God effected by Christ in his exalted 
 state— licgeneiation displayed in obedience springing frwn 
 faith— The obedience of the regenerate vindicates the im- 
 mutable equity of God's government — Sanctification m 
 gradual pi-ocess in wiiich they are actively employed— They 
 have liberty nrd access to God through Christ. By this 
 access they enjoy ^ l,e comforts of their father's hous&— Tri- 
 bulation the means of vlieir imprcvement The Father's 
 
98 
 
 DISSERTATION IT. 
 
 I 
 
 engmgenents to ChriBt nhow the traount of merey which 
 they receive — Tbo fulfilment of Christ's engagement seoarai 
 the fulfilment of the Father's ,romiso— Evidences that th» 
 Father will fulfil his promise — The reception and enjoyiucnt 
 of salvation depend on faith which is the gift of God through 
 Christ and maintained by hi-n — 'flic permanence of faith 
 depends on the will of God — Means by which its permanence 
 is secured — Blessings included in eternal life — Amount of 
 those who shall enjoy eternal life — Not all the human r»oe 
 but all for whom Christ died — Evidcpces which prove that 
 Christ's satisfaction and its actual eflSciency are of the same 
 extent. 
 
 That 'the mediation of Christ vas designed to 
 establish a system which would illustrate the un- 
 changeable nature of tho moral administration, 
 will appear from a view of tlie influence of his sa- 
 tisfaction, upon the character of those whom he had 
 been appointed to redeem. 
 
 To our Lord's satisfaction there was annexed a 
 promise, not only that he should himself be reward- 
 ed with a life of glory, but, also, that the benefits 
 of his mediation would be extended to a numerous 
 offspring : When thou shall make his soul an offer- 
 ing for sin, he shall see his seed.^ But, as the dis- 
 pensation of mercy is regulated by the principle 
 of justice, it is evident that those whom Christ 
 came to redeem, have, on their own account, no 
 right to the promised reward. He has complied 
 with the requisitions of the law, and has a right to 
 demand ; but they have come short of the glory of 
 
 Us., liii, 10. 
 
■ ■ ,;,;-ur-. ,." 1 ,' (-> . .» 
 
 ''7^< ^■'\' 
 
 -V.^V^^/ 
 
 > 
 
 BFFBOTS 0? CHBlST'g iATItFAOTIOK. 99 
 
 God. The law, therefore, requires both their 
 obedience and death : it cannot recognize them as 
 righteous men ; and, consequentlj, in their natural 
 character thej have no claim to those blessings, 
 which, though of grace from God, are dispensed to 
 Christ, and through him to men, onlj upon the 
 ground of righteousness. 
 
 Here, it must be kept in view, that the satisfac- 
 tion of Christ was afforded bj him in his public 
 character, as a representative, and, also, that the 
 result of his work had no reference to himself as a 
 private individual under the prescription of law. 
 It affected him onlj in his official capacity, as 
 standing in relation to his promised seed ; and the 
 partir.1 reward, which, by his exaltation to glorj, 
 he has already obtained, ho, in the character of 
 their representative, received as a pledge from 
 God, that the same favour would be dispensed to 
 all who are interested in his mediation. Hence, 
 the Scriptures represent the resurrection and exal- 
 tation of Christ, as the grand encouragement of 
 religious prospect As the head of his body the 
 church, the Father raised him from the dead, and 
 gave him glory, that the faith and hope of its 
 piembers might be in God ; that is, his exaltation 
 is a pledge to them, that they also shall share the 
 promised reward. From the natural charactor of 
 the members, then, it is evident that their claim 
 must be derived from the satisfaction of Christ ; 
 and, consequently, as his reward is a reward of 
 

 100 
 
 DISB1BT1TI09 IT. 
 
 righteoufmess, the satiafaction of the head must be 
 ascribed to the members. By this it is not meant, 
 that God, in the justification of the guilty, regards 
 them as actual performers of the work of Chnst ; 
 but. that, as the guilt of Adam's first sin was trani- 
 ferred to his natural descendants, so che righteoue- 
 ness of Christ, the last Adam, is transferred or im- 
 puted to those for whom it was aflforded : aad, ac- 
 cordingly, it is stated, that as by one mans dtto- 
 bedience many were made sinners, so by the obedtenee 
 of one s^all many be made righteous.^ That ihli M 
 the sole ground of a sinner's acceptance with God. 
 will farther appear from the subjoined scriptural 
 statements. 
 
 Divine veracity, in deciding upon the character 
 of man. cannot declare him to be otherwise than 
 what he actually is. Since, then, justification is a 
 legal announcement of the righteousness of the jus- 
 tified ; the guilty can have no claim to acceptance 
 with God. His law has claims upon them ; and, 
 in the presence of him who is the administrator of 
 a righteous govemment, both their duty and dan- 
 ger require from them confession and deprecation : 
 If thou. Lord, shouldst mark iniq. . ' O Ixtrd, 
 who shall stand f^ En*er not int nt ttfitk 
 
 thy servant; for in thy sight shall no living man 
 
 be justified} 
 
 The condition of the human race being thus a 
 state of guilt ; judgment has come upon all men (o 
 'Eoin.,v, 19. 2rs.c«x,3. 3 Ps. cxliii, 2. 
 
-■;?> 
 
 EFFECTS OF CHttlST'g 8ATI8FACTI0W. 101 
 
 etmdemnatien ;' and, consequently, the sinner's ac- 
 ceptance with God cannot be derived from his per- 
 sonal conformity to the prescriptions of law. With 
 this view of his state, the declarations of Scripture 
 uniformly accord ; and, because human nature has 
 dangerous leanings to its own imaginary worth, 
 these decorations are often repeated. Div'Me 
 truth announces, that every man, either by revealed 
 prescription, or by the law of his own moral con- 
 stitution, is the E. rvant of v,od ; and, also, that, 
 when tried by either of these tests, he is found a 
 defaulter : WhaUoever things the law saith, it saith 
 to them that are under the law ; that every mc\th 
 may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty 
 before God:* And, upon the ground of this guilt, it 
 is stated, thatMc Scripture hath concluded all under 
 m ;^ that is, as the term concluded denotes, locked 
 them up together as condemned crirainala. Under 
 an exact moral administration, therefore, tho relief 
 of the guilty can be procured, only by an adequate 
 compensation : but no satisfaction of the sinner can 
 benefit himself. The law which subjects him to 
 the penalty of transgression, has provided no sub- 
 sequent relief. Under the execution of its sentence, 
 divine justice has jJaced him ; and there he is left: 
 If there had been a law given, which could have given 
 life , verily, righteousness should have been by the 
 law.'- JusiiScation, therefore, is neither ol' works, 
 
 { 
 
 *Rom , V, 18. 
 
 2 Rom., iii, 19. 
 «Gal., iii, 21. 
 
 ,8 Gal., iii, 22. 
 
 > I 
 
,- n 
 
 102 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 nor by works of righteousness which we have done ;^ 
 for by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be 
 justified.^ This impossibility of obtaining justifi- 
 cation bj the law, the Scriptures farther declare to 
 be evident.^ It is evident, both from the condition 
 of man, and from the want of a law by which it 
 might be acquired ; (A) and it is farther evident 
 from this consideration, that, by divine appoint- 
 ment, it can b'e derived only from a different source. 
 
 But, farther, justification from a different source 
 is not dispensed upon the ground of any inherent 
 quality, or of any external qualification of those 
 who are thus accepted of God. He views them 
 oxactlv in that character which, under his moral 
 administration, they actually sustain, that is, as 
 transgressors of his law, and at enmity against him. 
 Regarding them as such, he gives them acceptance, 
 or, as it is expressed ia Scripture, he justifies the un- 
 godly.'' 
 
 Still, however, in the justification of the ungodly, 
 the satisfaction duo to the law is not overlooked. 
 In this act of divine government, legal demand is 
 met by an exact administration of justice ; and, 
 hence, justification is represented as dispensed upon 
 the ground of a legal satisfaction : it is by or 
 through righteousness. 
 
 But, when it is said that acceptance with God is 
 through righteousness, it ought not to be imagined 
 that his act, in any respect, depends upon the faith 
 1 Tit., iii, 5. 2 Rom., iii, 20. 3 GM., iii, 11. * Rom., iv, 6. 
 
EFFECTS OP CHEIST'S SATISFACTION. 103 
 
 or the good works, which the ungodly may after- 
 ward perform. The justification of a sinner is the 
 judicial declaration of his actual righteousness in 
 the sight of God ; and divine veracitj will not de- 
 clare him to be in the possession of what he has 
 jet to acquire. It is not, therefore, the character 
 that will be, but the character that is, which is the 
 subject of justification ; and, accordingly, in Scrip- 
 ture It is stated, that in this act the Deity is not 
 influenced, either by the present qualifications of 
 the justified, or by their subsequent acquirements : 
 It ^\not of works, lest amj man should boasO When 
 the justified do obtain acceptance with God. they 
 have received a favour to which thevhad no claim 
 It 18 B.gift of righteousness to ungodly men ;2 a free 
 gift which IS of many offences unto justification.' 
 
 This gift of righteousness, divine truth represents 
 as derived solely from the satisfaction of Christ • 
 It IS through the redemption th. ^ is in Christ Jesus * 
 By the prophets, our Lord has been announced as 
 the provider of everlasting righteousness, which 
 would procure for many their acceptance with God: 
 Byhts knowledge, or by the knowledge of himself, 
 shall my rrghteous Servant justify many} Kespect- 
 ing him It had been also foretold, that, from the in- 
 fluence of lus righteousness upon the justification of 
 the guilty, he should himself receive an approprTate 
 appellation : Behold the days co.e, saille^rd 
 
 'Is., llii, 11. 
 
 * Kom., iii, 24. 
 
w^ 
 
 mmt 
 
 mmm 
 
 104 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 that J will raise unto David a righlcom Branch ; 
 and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute 
 judgment and justice in the earth ; . . . . and this 
 is the name wh:reh>j he shall he callel, the Lord our 
 Righteousness} These predictions our Lord has 
 verified. As i legal substitute, he has satisfied the 
 justice of God ; and, now, by applying his satisfac- 
 tion to the guilty, he is made of God unto them 
 righteousness.' In relation to the law, both in its 
 precept and penalty, his obedience to the death 
 was perfect ; and the Scriptures announce, that, 
 wlA respect to the end for which it was afi"orded, 
 it is perfectly availing. God hath made him to he 
 sin, or a sin offering, for tis who hnew no sin, that 
 toe might be made the righteousness of God in him :^ 
 In whom we have redemption through his Hood, the 
 forgiveness of sins .•* and, being now jiut'fied by his 
 blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.^ 
 Legal institutions, propliets, and apostles, have 
 each afforded an attestation of the suffiiiioncy of the 
 satisfaction ol Christ ; and it must be particularly 
 noted, that these have equally attested, that, in the 
 justification of the guilty, everything else is exclud- 
 ed : The righteousness of God without the law is 
 manifested, being witnessed by the law and the pro- 
 phets ; E^'en the righteousness of God, which is by 
 faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that 
 believe.^ From the preceding statement: it will 
 
 ' Jcr., xxiii, 5, 6, » I Cor., i, 30. » 2 Cor., v, 2.' . 
 
 *Kpb., i, 7. <Rom.,v,9. « Rom., iii, 21, 22. 
 
EFFECTS OF CHRIST 'a SATISFACTION. 105 
 
 appear, that, in justification, there is a transfer- 
 ence or imputation of the righteousness of Christ 
 to the members of that bodj of which he is the 
 he-vl. Aocordinglj : various parts of Scripture, 
 this doctrine of imp ^ righteousness is presented 
 to the faith of the chu. oh. In tJie book of Psalms 
 m particular, it is said. Blessed is he whose tratis- 
 gresiiou. is forgiven, whose sia is covered. Blessed 
 is Ike man to whom the Lord imputelA Hot iniquity .^ 
 And, in the epistle to the Romans, this non-im- 
 putation of sin is represented as derived from a 
 righteousness which did not belong to the guiltj : 
 Eten as David also describeth the blessedness qf die 
 ««»» to whom God imputeth righteousness without 
 works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquiHes are 
 forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the 
 man to whom the Lord will not impute sin* 
 
 Th»s, as, hj an arrangement in what has been 
 denoniinated the covenant of works, the guilt of 
 Adam's first sin was transferred or imputed to his 
 natural descendants; so, by a similar arrange- 
 raeut in the covenant of grace, the righteousness 
 of Christ is imputed to his spiritual seed : For as 
 htf one man's disobedience many were made sinners, 
 *o ly th^ obedience cf one shall many be made 
 righteous.^ 
 
 To mere human reason, speculating upon the 
 preceding point, it has ever proved a stone of 
 stumbling and rock of offence. Sincere, and eager 
 
 ' Pa. xxxi, 1, 2. 
 
 2 Rom,, iv, 6-8. 
 
 H 
 
 ' Ilom., V, 19. 
 
106 
 
 DISSERTATION lY. 
 
 in the search of truth, the natciral man may hare 
 often been . out, refusing the submission of his 
 understanding to the reracitj of Qod, he has ever 
 stumbled at the word ;^ and, thus, remained unac- 
 quainted with that sure foundation, upon which 
 alone the gtriltj can stand in the presence of a 
 righteous God : They, being ignorant of God's 
 righteousness, and going about to establish their own 
 righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the 
 righteousness of God.* Others, submitting to the 
 fustruction of heavenlj wisdom, hare accepted the 
 proffered relief ; and, in estimating its comparative 
 worth, have accounted their best personal qualifi- 
 cations as the vile.t productions of nature : Yea, 
 doubtless, and I count jxH things but loss, for the 
 excellency of' the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord; 
 Jor whom I hate suffered the loss of all things, and 
 do count them but dung, that I may win Christy 
 and be found in him, not having mine own righteous- 
 ness, which is of the law, hut that which is throt^k 
 the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God 
 byfaith.^ 
 
 The preceding riew of the ground of the sinner's 
 acceptance with God, furnishes conclusive evidence, 
 that the satisfaction of Christ was not merely, as it 
 has been termed, "a fit expedient demanded by 
 the wisdom of God, whereby mercy might be safely 
 administered to sinful man," but an arrangement 
 of wisdom, by which divine justice was glorified in 
 » 1 Pet., \i, 8. » Rom., x, 3. » Phil., iii, 
 

 EFFECTS OF OHRIST's SATISPAOTIOIf. 107 
 
 the dispensation of mercj. This will stiU farther 
 appear from the fallowing view of the influence 
 
 thl'T *^!. °*;"™ «f justification it is evident, 
 that the justified can be no longer numbered with 
 transgressors. He. therefore, who. b, the sin of 
 Ada n. became the prince of this world, has over 
 them no nght of control. To deliver from his 
 authontj and servitude, is one principal design of 
 themed,at,onof Christ; and to our'urd.^sa 
 part of h.s reward, it was the promise of the Fa- 
 ther, that, m this respect, he should be the redeemer 
 of men : Ev^ the captive of the mighiy shaU be 
 taken away and the prey of the terrible shall be de- 
 
 fcith thee, and I mil save thy children^ Our Re- 
 deemer, having, thus, bj means of his 3atisfaction 
 oruised Saten under his feet, became empowered 
 to relieve those who were oppressed of thrdev .« 
 Like the first representative of men, he has re 
 ceived dominion, and is invested with power to 
 collect his subjects out of that kingdom E h^ 
 canje to destroy. Hence, the jusUfied are repre 
 sented as delivered from the power of darkness 
 and as translated into the kingdom of God's dea; 
 of fh« t^i arrangement they become children 
 of the kingdom, m consequence of what is termed 
 m Scripture t^e adoption of sons. Formerlv, they 
 ' I... xlix. 25. »Act,.x.38. » Col., 1,13 
 
1(8 
 
 DlSSBRTATIOir IV. 
 
 w€re o{ the\r father the devil ;* and, while members of 
 his family, thej were also, aliens from the common- 
 wealth of Israel, and strangers from th* covenants of 
 promise:* but, by the act of God in adoption, they 
 become fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the 
 household of God ;' and receive the accomplishment 
 of that divine promise, which announces alike their 
 station in the household, and their relation to its 
 master : / will be a Father unto you ; and ye shall 
 he my sons and datighters, saith the Lord Ahnighty.* 
 In this relation, also, they are acknowledged by the 
 flrst-born. of the family : he is not ashamed to call 
 them brethren.* These, again, by connection with 
 Christ, beoOTHe entitled to th» privilegea of their 
 Father's house. By the appointment of tLe 
 Father, our Lord iias been constituted heir of all 
 things : they also are joint heirs ; and each, accord- 
 ing to the amount of his right, obtains inheritance. 
 Already, all things have been intrusted to Christ ; 
 and divine veracity is pledged, that he iriio over- 
 rcmeth, shall inherit all things : I u-iU be his Ocd ; 
 cmd he shall be my son.^ 
 
 But, thoogh the act of adoption confers the right 
 of admission into the family of God, it communi- 
 cates ncme of thoso inherent qualifications for in- 
 heriting which his children ought to possess. By 
 nature, these are of the earth, and bear the image 
 of th« earthy ; and, in the sight of God, no earthly 
 
 ) {: 
 
 » J->hn, viii, 44. * Eph., ii, 12. 
 
 «IIeb., ii, 11. » Rev. 
 
 3Eph., 11,19. 
 
 xxi, 7. 
 
'effects of OBEIST'g 8ATI8FACTI0K. 109 
 
 adaptation can qualify them for introduction into 
 a houselwld which i« spiritual and l^earealy. In 
 •Tery natural raan. there is a want of wrirUual 
 perc^Uon. which excludes him from a knowloike 
 of the benefits of adoption ; and. consequent^, 
 what his understanding does not value, his will 
 cannot choose As a natural man, his peweptio« 
 of the supposed vaJne of natural things, produce- 
 a corresponding attachment ; and. at the same 
 time, agauut the household of God in its spiritual 
 tendencies, his carnal mind feels only aversion.^ 
 
 Darkness of understanding and alienation of 
 heart, being thus the characteristics of the natural 
 man ; adoption into the family of God requires to 
 be connected with a corresponding renovation of 
 mind. This spiritual lenovation. our Lord has 
 declared to be indispensable : E:,oepi a man be bofn 
 agam, he cannot see the kingdom of God* The 
 adopted has borne the image of the earthv ; but 
 being mtroduced into a spiritual familj. he musi 
 also bear the image of the heavenly ; and this is 
 the subject of promise : A new heart aUo wOl I 
 ff*fe you, a,Hia «««, spirit ioM I pxU wUhin you : 
 and I will lake away the ^p heart out of your 
 Jtesh, andlwxllgiveyou a heart of flesh. ^ To effect 
 this spiritual change, constitutes a part of our Lord's 
 mediatorial work. Those who are adopted, do not 
 Irom a natural perception of his excellence, attach 
 themselves to him, but are apprehended by Christ 
 > Horn., viii, 7. 2 John, iii. 3. » E.ek.. xxxvi, 26. 
 
'■«»<-^!»^<^ -^ ^IMH 
 
 110 
 
 DI8HERTATI0N IT. 
 
 Joflus.i As the head of his bod^ the church, he 
 establishes between himself and them a connexion, 
 by which, in the character of members, thej re- 
 ceive the commencement of his spiritual likeness.* 
 Being, thus, joined to the Lord, they become par- 
 takers of the divine nature, and are one spirit' 
 Formerly, they were related to Christ as their re- 
 presenting head ; now, they are united to him as 
 the first born of the family of God, and ar3 mem- 
 berr. of his body, ofhisjlesh, and of his bones.* 
 
 This renovation of mir d is not a reform of that 
 moral constitution which *^an by nature possesses. 
 That which is horn of the flesh, is flesh ; and, in 
 regeneration, it is not converted into a spiritual 
 substance. When the human mind is renewed, it 
 is by the communication of a principle of life to 
 those who are dead ; and /especting tliem it is said 
 that old tilings are pa<jsed awav, and all things are 
 become new.* On this account, the change which 
 they have experienced, is termed a creation, or the 
 production of something which did not previously 
 exist : If any man be in Christ, he is a new crea- 
 ture .•' And also. We are the workmanship of God, 
 created in Christ Jesus.'' 
 
 It ought not, however, to be imagined, that, in 
 this new creation, there is either a diminution or 
 increase of the faculties of the mind. It is the com- 
 munication of a spiritual life, which gives to ori- 
 
 » Phii., iii, 12. « 1 Cor., vi, 17. 3 2 Pet., i, 4, 
 
 * Eph., V, 30. * 2 Cor., v, 17. « 2 Cor., v, 1 7. 
 
 ^ Eph., ii, 10. 
 
EFFECTS OP OnBI8T*8 SATISFACTION. HI 
 
 g'mal capacities an operation in accordance with 
 the mind of Christ. There is still the samj under- 
 standing ; but it has acquired a spiritual percep- 
 tion : it is now ligfu in the Lord.^ Origii.al pro- 
 pensities also exist ; but, where enmitj formerly 
 controlled them to rejection of God, the heart now 
 responds to the exemplication of his affectionate 
 regard : We love him because he first loved us* 
 
 From the preceding statements it appears, that 
 regeneration does not originate in anj preparatory 
 aptitude subsisting in human nature. Doubtless, 
 the man of amiable mind in reference to social in- 
 tercourse, is not so depraved as he who cherishes 
 immoral propensities ; but, still, as a natural man, 
 he is alienated from the life of God ;' and in his 
 mind, there are no resources which either enable 
 him to commence in himself a spiritual existence, 
 or which prepare him f-' its reception. Divine 
 truth refers it solelj to Un mediation of Christ. 
 Those who are renewed in the spirit of their mind, 
 have been created in Christ Jesus. This new cre- 
 ation he produces by the agency of the Holy Spi- 
 rit. This divine person dwelling in our Lord as 
 the head of his body the church, animates also its 
 members. These are the children of God by adop- 
 tion ; and to them belong the privileges of chil- 
 dren. With adoption, therefore, they receive illu- 
 mination of mind and a filial disposition : the^ are 
 born of the Spirit ; and, hence, it is said, Because 
 > Eph.. V, 8. M John, iv, 19. » Eph., iv, 18. 
 
112 
 
 DISSERT AT1<>S IV 
 
 ye are tons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his 
 Son into your heartt.^ The Spirit of CIwl, nlfo, m 
 the author of this renovation, in termed the Spirit 
 of wisdom and revelation in the knoteiedge of Christ f* 
 and, wliile he thus moulds the understanding to 
 intelligenre, he directs the tendencies of the heart 
 into that channel which comports with the nataro 
 of the household of God. His fruit is love. 
 
 But, when the Spirit of God is denominated the 
 Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge 
 of Christ, it ought not to bo imagined that the re- 
 generated receive a personal and direct revelation 
 from God. Regeneration consists, not in the im- 
 press of knowledge, but in the communication of 
 spiritual capacities, or, as it is expressed in Scrip- 
 ture, the enlightening the eyes of the under- 
 standing to perceive.' And that our Lord "hould 
 effect this intellectual renovation, was the promise 
 of the Father : I the Lord will give thee for a light 
 of the Gentiles, to open the eyes tfthe blind.* 
 
 Still, it must be remarked, that regeneration and 
 spiritual knowledge coexist in the mind. It is by 
 the application of divine truth, that a spiritual 
 operation is produced in its several capacities. But, 
 for this purpose, the truths employed by the Spirit 
 of God, are not privatj and personal revelations : 
 they are the sure word of prophecy or Scripture, 
 which Christ has communicated in common to the 
 
 > Gal., iv, 6. 
 
 'Eph.. i. 17. 
 * Iw., xlil, 6. T. 
 
 s Ei>h.,i, 18. 
 
BPFECT8 OF OHBIST's SATIBFACTION. 113 
 
 members of the church. Through those, as meang. 
 he prayed for the spiritual life of those whom thi 
 Father had given him : Sanctify them through thy 
 truth : thy word it truth : And he has also »tated, 
 that these means the Spirit would employ for the 
 renoyation of men : When the Spirit of truth is 
 fome, he will puu/e yen in^j all truth; Jor he $haU 
 not speak of himself; hut whateoever he fhaU hear, 
 
 that .hall he apeak He shall glorify 
 
 me ; for he shall receive of wine, and shall show it 
 vmo you.' In con/ormity witli this account of the 
 mode of regeneration, those wIh) hare become its 
 subjects, aro said to be begotten with the word of 
 truth,' and. also, to be bom again, not of corrup- 
 tible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God 
 which liveth and abideth for ever.* 
 
 That the adopted, tl erefore, may be renewed, 
 our Lord has in Scripture communicated to the 
 church what is the mind of the Spirit, and also in- 
 stitutod a public dispensation of scriptuial truth.: 
 And as means in religion, as well as in nature, ar« 
 thus connected with end, it ought not to be sup- 
 posed, that, since man cannot regenerate himself, 
 intelligence is useless ; lot rather, that, afi regene' 
 ration is eflFected by moans of knowledge, knowledge 
 ought to be acquired. The natural man, it is true, 
 possesses no spiritual perception : but the contents 
 of Scripture, as facts and statements, are as much 
 
 ' John, xvii, n. J John, xvi, 13. 14. » JameB, i. 18. 
 ♦ 1 Pet., i, 28. 
 
lU 
 
 DIB8BRTA\I0N IV. 
 
 within the range of his rational powers, as any 
 other part of intelligence ; and this rational know- 
 ledge maj, hy tho operati^^n of the Holy Spirit, be 
 rendered subservient to spiritual illumination. 
 But, as it is the established order of religion, that 
 man is bom again by the incorruptible seed of the 
 word ; whore the word as means is unknown, the 
 agency of the Spirit ought not to be expected. 
 
 That the Spirit of God regenerates the adopted 
 by means of divine truth, is explicitly stated in 
 Scripture, and ought to be believed : but to inquire 
 with Nidodemus, How ca. these things be? is to 
 piy into what God has not been pleased to reveal. 
 In the study of nature, every investigation termi- 
 nates in mystery ; and in religion, also, even the 
 regenerated know but in part. Human reason can- 
 not comprehend how a universe could be called in- 
 to exi«tence ; yet, the voice of the Lord ispowerful : 
 h spake, and it was done, hy the word of God the 
 heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of 
 the water and in the water} When oui lord called, 
 Lazarus came forth. To him, also, who is dead ii 
 trespasses, it is said. Awake, thou *hat steepest, atui 
 arise from the dead:* and, while human reason li- 
 mits the operations of God to its own knowledge of 
 cause and effect, the dead hear the voice of the 
 Son of God; and their rege^^tuu'ion proves that 
 his word is with power. 
 
 The preceding statements sufficiently show, that, 
 »2Pet., iu,5. »Eph., V, 14. 
 
EFPBCTB OF 0HRI8T*» BATISFACTIOK. 115 
 
 in this great spiritual change, the effect is not pro- 
 duced hy constraint upon the mind. Regeneration 
 does not coiisist in the eradication of its original 
 capacities, nor in the compulsion of these to reluc- 
 tant opcrat"on : it is the enlargement of the rational 
 powers of the mi;.d, and a consequent and corres- 
 ponding renovation of the heart. To the regenerated 
 understanding new motives are presented ; and spi- 
 ritual things become the choice of the will. Thus, 
 the rod of Christ's strength is a moral suasion : 
 his people are willing in the daj of his power. 
 
 Of tliis communication of spiritual life, the im- 
 mediate result is spiritual action. The new views 
 of tho understanding give to the will or heart a 
 corresponding impulse i they produce attachment 
 to the objects of its former dislike. Against everj 
 thing spiritual, the essence of the natural mind ig 
 enmitjr: but, when renewed hy the Spirit, it is 
 characterised bj a tu: .ing to GoJ: Whom have I 
 in heaven but thee; and thsre U Mne upon the earth 
 that I defire beside thee.^ 
 
 . This conversion to God displays its tendency by 
 that exercise of mind which is termed believing, 
 liespecting the nature of this mental operation, it 
 is here sufficient to remark, that the faith of the 
 regenerated is the transcript of divine truth sub- 
 sisting in the mind, and, also, the mind's submis- 
 sion to whatever divine truth presents for its ac- 
 ceptance. Hence, those who believe on the name 
 ' Psalm Ixxiii, 26. 
 
 i 
 I 
 
116 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 of tliP Son of God, ar^, in Scripture, described a. 
 those who receive hira.i Tliis christian grace 
 l)eing, thus, an acquiescen e in what divine truth 
 ^^resents to the mind; by an acceptance of the 
 irtisfaction of Christ, it concurs with God in its 
 imputation ; and the believer is justified by faith* 
 In tlte same manDer, it acquiesces in the act of adop- 
 tion ; and the adopted, in exercising this grace, are 
 characterised as the children of God by faith m 
 Christ Jesus* Thus, he who, in regeneration, was 
 apprehended by Christ, by the act of faith appre- 
 hends'him in return; and by this reciprocal adher- 
 ence their union is perfected. 
 
 The connexion and concord thus establishe 1 be- 
 tween Christ and the believer, extends, also, to the 
 first person of the Trinit- as the Father of the 
 household of faith: he is reconciled to his adopted 
 children. It ought not to be imagined, that, because 
 divine love is the source of redemption, there can 
 be no reconciliation on the part of God. The ex- 
 istence of divine love is not incompatible with the 
 coexistence of divine displeasure. Attachment to 
 perilous does not necessarily imply the same opera- 
 tion of mind with respect to their character and 
 conduct. According to circumstances, intensity of 
 love may require to be illustrated by the painful 
 effects of disapprobation ; so that he who is the ob- 
 ject of divine benevolence, may, in the mean time, 
 be excluded from a participation of the fruits of 
 1 John, i, 12. * Rom., iii, 28. ' Gal., iii, 26. 
 
 H 
 
EFFECTS OF OIIRIST's SATISFACTION. 117 
 
 divine complacencj; and pievious to the regenera- 
 tion of the adopted, such is their actual state. He 
 who loved them with an everlasting love, regards 
 with displeasure both their nature and conduct; 
 and, therefore, he excludes them from the gratifying 
 proofs of his paternal affection. By visiting tl»eir 
 di.«»obedieace with corresponding retribution, he 
 makes them also feel hi- displeasure : in his moral 
 government, he causes their own wickedness to 
 correct them, and their backslid ings to reprove 
 them. It is not to those who have renounced the 
 comfort of a father's bouse, it is to hia returning 
 prodigals, that he dispenses the gracious overflow- 
 ings of paternal love. 
 
 This reconciliation our Lord, upon the ground 
 of his satisfaction, is now effecting in his state of 
 exaltation. We have a great higk priest that is 
 passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. -^ And 
 he is the propitiation far our sins.^ This he be- 
 oomes, bj establishing reciprocal relation between 
 God and man. In the ceremonial law, the shadou) 
 of good things to cwne, this mutual reconciliation 
 was extensively prefigured. Bj its prescriptions, 
 inanimate objects employed in the worship of God 
 as well as persons, needed to be reconciled.^ With- 
 out this propitiatory rite, they could not become 
 means by which the divine complacency might be 
 displayed : but, being reconciled, they became the 
 objects of the gracious approbation of God. Hejoce. 
 ' Ileb., iv, U, 2 1 John, ii, 2. » Lev., viii, 15 ; xu. 20^ 
 
118 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 it is stated, that almost all things are by the law 
 purged with blood; and, without shedding of blood, 
 is no remission} Consequently, where there is no 
 remission, the moral government of God must with- 
 hold from the gu Ity every proof of his compla- 
 cence. It was, therefore, necessary that the patterns 
 of things in the heavens shotdd be purified with these; 
 (the blood of calves and of goats,) but the hecvenly 
 things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 
 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made 
 with hands, which are the figures of the true ; but in- 
 to heaven itself, now to appear in f^e presence of God 
 for us ;• And, when he did enter, it was with his 
 own blood, that, through his intercession, he might 
 obtain for the objects of his redemption the favour- 
 able consideration of God, and their consequent 
 reconciliation to him, as the Father of the house- 
 hold of faith. 
 
 In accordance with the preceding view of recon- 
 ciliation, it is stated, that God was in Christ recon- 
 ciling the world unto himself, not imputing their tres- 
 passes unto them.' Here, it must be observed, that 
 the non- imputation or pardon of sin produces no 
 diminution of the enmity of the human heart, ?nd, 
 consequently, no reconciliation on the part of man. 
 On the part of God, however, it removes the first 
 cause of exclusion from divine complacency ; and 
 the last is removed by means of the word of recon- 
 ciliation. Through this incorruptible seed the par- 
 » Ileb., ix, 22. « Ileb., ix, 23, £4. » 2 Cor., v, 19. 
 
EFFECTS OF C'HRIST*8 SATISFACTION, 119 
 
 doned are born again.i Thus, justified and rege- 
 nerated through the intercession of Christ, they 
 walk in the light as God is in the light ; and the 
 result is mutual reconciliation and fellowship.' 
 
 But, while the Scriptures ascribe the work of 
 reconciliation to God ; thej, also, refer it to the 
 agencj of Christ in the discharge of his official 
 dutj: God was in Christ, reconciling the world un- 
 to himself. Our Lord was constituted not onij a 
 sacrifice and intercessor, but, also, the agent for 
 dispensing the blessed fruits of the complacency of 
 the Father. In this character, he was represented 
 bj the prefigurations of the ceremonial law. The 
 duty of the legal priesthood included alike the work 
 of atonement, and the consequent annunciation of 
 divine favour : The priests, the sons of Levi, shall 
 come near ; for them hath the Lord thy God chosen 
 to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the 
 Lord:^ And this blessing, Christ, in the exercise 
 of his priesthood, both announces and confers: 
 Unto you (Jewa)yirst, God, having raised up his 
 Son Jesus, hath sent him to bless you, in turning 
 away every one of you from his iniquities.* 
 
 As the blessing of Christ consists in turning the 
 redeemed from their iniquity ; their regeneration 
 or spiritual life displays itself in t: 3 diversified acts 
 and exercises of holy obedience. These constitute 
 the characteristics of the children of God. Hence, 
 
 ^ 1 Pet., i, 23. 
 
 ' I John, i, 7. 
 * Acta, iii, 26. 
 
 ' Deut,, xxi, 5. 
 
129 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 their lif" is represented as an exemplification of 
 submission to divine testimony ; and this submis- 
 sion refers equally to what the testimony presents, 
 and to the mode in which its promises are to be 
 realized. To both tnese pomts an apostle alluded, 
 whfa he said, The life which J note live in the flesh, 
 I live by the faith of the Son of God> In tuis life 
 of faith, therefore, there is, first, a continued ac- 
 ceptance of Christ, as exhibited in the word of 
 truth. But the acceptance of the Son of God does 
 not include the actual reception of all that the be- 
 liever n^eds. By the exercise of faith, he does not 
 become the repository of divine goodness. It hath 
 pleased the Father that in Christ should all ful- 
 ness dwell ; and it is the good pleasure of the same 
 Father, that the brethren of Christ should live, not 
 by actual possession of requisite resources, but by 
 daily dependence. Thus, a life of dependence is 
 rendered subservient to a life of faith ; that is, a 
 life of trust in the veracity of God, and a life which, 
 through the medium of trusting, from day to day 
 receives the bountiful provisiop ^ of a Father's 
 house. Of the nature of this life, a delineation was 
 presented to Israel by Moses : He humbled thee, and 
 suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee oith manna, 
 which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; 
 that he might make thee to know that man doth not 
 live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth 
 out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.^ i hese 
 
 1 Gal., ii, 20. 
 
 ■^ Dent., viii, :}.\ 
 
EFFECTS OP CHRISI'S SATISFACTION. 121 
 
 words, as denoting both the nature and mode of 
 a spiritual life, our Lord has quoted ;' and, in ac 
 cordance with them, he has also prescribed the 
 language of the prajer of faith: Give us day by 
 day our daily bread.* Thus, faith, acquiescing in 
 the promise of God. and also in the mode of its 
 fulfilment, receiyes out of the fulness of Christ 
 what 18 requisite for the continuation of spiritual 
 life: And, hence, it is said, The jmt shall live by 
 fatOi} and, We walk by faith, not by sights 
 
 But. farther, the faith of the regenerated is, 
 from Its yerj nature, unseparablj connected with 
 a life of general submission to the authoritj of God 
 The belief which receives the gospel as the charter 
 of blessing, acquiesces in the law of God, ooth as 
 the rule of spiritual life, and afe prescribing the or- 
 der m which the several blessings of salvation are 
 to be dispensed. This submission to divino iiiitho. 
 rity is produced by what has been termed a moral 
 necessitjr. The perception of fiiith, whether it 
 respect promise or precept, is a perception of ex- 
 cellence; and, from the constitution of a rational 
 nature, the mind's view regulates its choice. The 
 contemplation of exceUence. therefore, whether in 
 the law or in the gospel, produces the submission 
 of faith; and, in the mean time, divine goodness 
 dispensed bj the gospel, supplies an additional mo- 
 tive to increase alacritj in submission to the law. 
 
 * Matt., iv, 4. 
 
 2 Luke, xi, 3. 
 
132 
 
 DI88ERTATTON IX. 
 
 Thus, faith works uj love, and induces the regene- 
 rated to saj, We love him whoJirU loved us.^ 
 
 Bv the preceding arrangement, those who bad 
 been the children of disobedience are restored to 
 the discipline and order of their Father's house ; 
 and, by the^r conversion to God, they exemplify one 
 principal end of our Lord's mediation. The grand 
 scope of his official work, is the vindication of God, 
 as governing intelligent beings according to the 
 piinciples of immutable rectitude. Of this, in his 
 person when he fulfilled all righteousness, he af- 
 forded a perfect illustration ; and, when he gave hi» 
 life a ransom for many, it was, that, by their res- 
 toration to holiness, he might prepare them for 
 submission to the righteous government of God : 
 He gave himself for us, that he might redtsm us from 
 all iniquity y and purify unto himself a peculiar peo- 
 ple, zealous of good works.* The views and deport 
 ment of the regenerated, also, in proportion to the 
 amount of their spiritual life, coincide with the de- 
 sign and operation of Christ. They perceive and 
 feel, that, instead of being without law to God, 
 they are the subjects of their Redeemer's legisla- 
 tion.' To be the servants of God is their choice ; 
 of their renewed nature, his law is the delight ; and 
 the grace which our Lord dispenses, they improve 
 as meauR of additional conformity to himself. 
 They know that their old man is crucified with 
 Christ, that the body of sin might be destroyed, 
 
 » 1 John, iv, 19. » Tit., ii, U. » 1 Cor., ii, 21. 
 
EFFECTS OF OHRIdl's 8ATI8FACTI0K. 183 
 
 that henceforth they should not serve sin. Being 
 planted together with him in the likeness of his 
 death, it is the scope and exertion :f their renewed 
 nature, to be also planted with him in the likeness 
 of his resurrection ; that like as Christ was raised 
 up from the dead bj the glory of the Fafiher, even 
 80 they also should walk in newness of life.* 
 
 But, in connection with these remarks respecting 
 the faith and obedience of the regenerated, it must 
 be farther stated, that, though the fruits of the 
 Spirit are certainly produced by every one who is 
 bom of God; they may be so I lended with the un- 
 belief and unholy propensities of mere human na- 
 ture, that even the existence of spiritual life may 
 Jiat be at first perceptible. It is not the arrange- 
 ment of God, that those who have passed frwn 
 death unto life, should, in every case, be aware of 
 their privQege. Not unfrequently, the kingdom of 
 God within them, cometh not with observation.' 
 At its conmiencement, it may resemble the smallest 
 of seeds; and progressive growth only, exhibits 
 faith increasing to full assurance, and general 
 obedience advancing toward the perfection of the 
 beauty of holiness. This progressive improvement 
 originates in the order established in the household 
 of f^Aith. It is not the will o^ the Father, that, 
 while his own Son is watchful and active to pro- 
 mote the interests of brethren, his adopted sons 
 should be heedless and idle. These, in their origi- 
 
 * Rom., Ti, i^6. 
 
 2 Luke, xrii, 20, 21. 
 
I?4 
 
 di8SE!itat:05 ir. 
 
 
 nal state, had, bj repeated acts of disobedience, 
 converted natural propensities into habits ; and 
 when the Father introduces them into his familj, 
 he enjoins th«m to co-operate with their elder bro- 
 ther; that is, to exert themselres in subrerting the 
 control which they had conceded to nature, and, 
 by repeated acts of submission to God, to acquire 
 the habits of the household of faith: Ca$t awajf 
 from you all your transgressions whereby ye have 
 transgressed, and make you a new heart and a new 
 spirit} In this command to actiyity, however, be 
 does not rest exertion upon their own energies. 
 Wkh his injunction, he has promised the power of 
 compliance : As thy days, so shall thy strength be.* 
 When he commands their activity, he is with them 
 to act : Work out your ovm salvation toith fear and 
 trembling; for it is God that worheth in you both to 
 will and to do of his good pkaswre.^ But, while the 
 p Dwer is God's, the activity is theirs ; and, influenced 
 by the energy which his power communicates, the 
 regenerated say. Forgetting those things which art 
 behind, and reaching forth unto thote things wkiek 
 are b^ore, we press toward the marh.* 
 
 This energetic and increasing activity is a con- 
 sequence of that glorioas liberty, which the Father 
 confers upon his adopted children. As sons, he re- 
 lieves them from a servile disposition ,* a disposition 
 wiich, in the presence of a master, renders fear, the 
 
 1 Etek., xviii, 31. 2 Deut.. xixiii, 26. 3 Phil., ii, 12, 13. 
 *Phil., iii, 1' i3. 
 
EFFECTS OF CHBIST's SATISFACTIOX. l25 
 
 feeling of his jlave. In their heart, l.e implaats the 
 Spirit of his Son ; ' and, w^etAe Spirit of the Lord 
 i*. there is liberij,. « To them, therefore, as led bj 
 the Spirit, it is said. Ye have not received th* spirit 
 of bondage again to fear; but ^ have received the 
 Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father,^ 
 With this .spirit of dutiful affection, the adopted 
 abo obtain thst free access to the Father, which 
 neither the spirit of the bondman, nor the will of 
 his maater, aapctions ; so that, under feelings 
 of want, thej suflFer no exclusion from the source 
 of sympathy and supply. lu the gospel, their 
 faith contemplates the gracious exhibitions of 
 the Father's love ; and, while their view of his 
 mercy fans the flame of filial aflfection, and com- 
 municates a confidence which anticipates a wel- 
 come reception in his pr nee, and aflFectionate 
 proofe of his paternal regard, it induces them to 
 say, Let us come ooldly to the throne ofgraco,. * 
 
 It ought not. however, to be imagined, that 
 either the filial aflfection of the adopted, -- their 
 filial confidence, procures this access tc the Father 
 and his consequent sympathies. These tendencies 
 of mind prepare no path into his presence ; nor do 
 they confer a right to his paternal kindness. The 
 privilei'es of the adopted are derived jfrom him who 
 is their elder brother in the household of faith. He 
 it is, who has prepared the way for them ; and, also, 
 
 > Gal., iv. 6. 3 2 Cor., Hi. 17. « Rom., viii, 16. 
 *Heb.,iv. 16. 
 
126 
 
 DISSERTATION IT. 
 
 hj becoming their forerunner, provided for them 
 acceptance at the throne of grace. By his satis- 
 faction he has rent the vail of exclusion from the 
 Father's presence ; and by his intercession he both 
 qualifies them to enter, and provides for them the 
 proofs of the Father's love : And, when he says to 
 his brethren, no man cometh unto the Faiher but by 
 me ; * they express their faith in terms of acqui- 
 escence, Through him toe have access by one Spirit 
 unto the Father. » Having, therefore, brethren, 
 boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 
 by a neux and lid/tg way, which he hath consecrated 
 for us through the vail, that is to say, his flesh ; and 
 having an hiyh priest over the house of God, let us 
 draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of 
 faith.- 
 
 By this access, the adopted obtain the comfort 
 of their Father's house. It is ' is arrangement, 
 that, in the household of faith, they should find the 
 pleasures of home. His will respecting them is 
 strong consolation ; and the means which he has 
 provided for eflFecting that end, present them with 
 abundant inducements to exclaim, How amiable 
 are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts. A day in thy 
 courts is better than a thousand : I had rather be a 
 door-keeper in the house of my God, than to dwell 
 in the tents of wickedness.* The foundation of this 
 spiritual pleasure, the Father has laid in the gos- 
 
 » John, xi; , 6. ^ Eph., ii, 18. » Heb., x, 19-22. 
 *P9. Ixxxiv, 1, 10. 
 
RPPECTS OF CHRIST'S SAlISFAOTIOK. 127 
 
 pel ; an exhibition of paternal regard, ^hich, as 
 displaying both the extent and immutable destina- 
 tion of his favour, evinces the despondencj of doubt 
 to be unreasonable mistrust : Whtrein Goi', tcil- 
 iing more abundantli to skew unto the heit r of 
 promise the ivti^^tabiJty of his council, confirmed it 
 by an *h. That by two immutable things, in 
 rihich it was impossible for God to lie, we might have 
 strong vonsolatiotiy who have Jied for refuge to lay 
 hold upon the hope set before us.^ This testimony 
 of paternal affection, the adopted believe ; and, 
 then, according to the variety of mode in which it 
 bears upon their condition, their faith becomes the 
 medium of spiritual enjoyment. By the applica- 
 tion of the blood of Christ to their conscience, they 
 have peace within. Walking in the ' " of the 
 Lord, they are blessed with the pleasantness of 
 wisdom's ways. His Spirit, also, witnesses with 
 their spirit, that they are the children of God, and 
 seals them unto the day of redemption. Thus, 
 they obtain an assurance of personal interest in 
 their Father's love, and lejoice in the Lord. They 
 rejoice in the actual experience of divine favour, 
 and exult in those anticipations of hope, which 
 flow from the full assurance of faith •. believing, 
 ihey rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.* 
 It must, however, be added, that, in Christian 
 experience, the pleasures of religion are, for vari- 
 ous reasons, unavoidably blended with much that 
 » ileb., yi, 17, 18. 2 i Pet, i, 8. 
 
128 
 
 DIB8CRTaTI0]« !▼. 
 
 is painful The children of God are still connected 
 with the material world ; and, bj this relation, they 
 are exposed to those afflicting incidents, which, 
 daring the present stage of existence, befal human 
 nature. The promise and protecting care of their 
 hearenlj Father, indeed, ensnreti the co-operation 
 of the several parts of their allotment, to a result 
 that is good : but, still, with a harTeet of joj in 
 reserve, thej >nay sow in tears. In the regenerated, 
 there is much which needs to be renewed ; and 
 wherever the remains of their old nature, either bj 
 material inducement, or spiritual agency, acquire 
 a temporary co» trol of the mind, they experience 
 the effects of di -ii.a disapprobation. The Father 
 of mercies, while he exercises a benevolent regard 
 for all his children, does not view with complacence 
 their 'mitation of the children of disobedience : Ae 
 visits their transgression with the rod, and their 
 iniquity with stripes.'^ 
 
 But, even where the mind clings to its spiritud 
 enjoyments, it may be subjected to the pain of pri- 
 vation. The pleasures of religion are not dispensed 
 for the mere purpose of gratification. Their most 
 important bearing is upon Christian activity: they 
 supply the motive to alacrity in the discharge of 
 the duties of life. He, therefore, who clings to the 
 means, without regard to the end, may say to him- 
 self. It is good to be here ; and, then, ho may pro- 
 pose to erect his tabernacle : but his heavenly Fa- 
 » Ps. Ixxxix, 32. 
 
V/ 
 
 EfFKCTs or Christ's batispaotion. 129 
 
 ther, who knowt what U good, terminate* hit re- 
 joicing in disappointment and fear.^ 
 
 To the children of God affliction is also dis- 
 pensed, as constituting a part of that sjstem of 
 means, which subserves their improyement In 
 relation to this end, our Lord haa said, in the icorld 
 jfe shall have tribuiation* But, wlien the Father 
 afflicts his adopted children, it is not for his own 
 pleasure : it is for tlieir profit, that tliey a." he par- 
 takers of hi!4 holiness.' Though he came p ief, yet 
 'tfiil he have compeusion according to the muUitude of 
 his tnercies.* With the corrections of h" 'ove, he 
 combines the reviving instruction of the Comfor- 
 ter ; and, bj the application of divine truth to 
 their mind, confers increasing excellence and re- 
 turning comfort. Thus, tribulation worheth pa- 
 tience; and patience, experience; and experience, 
 hope ;' And he who once said. It ». good to be here, 
 now glories in tribulation, and sa^e, // is good for 
 me that I have been afflicted^ Besides, the Father 's 
 discipline Avith respecv to individuale, may be de- 
 signed for general advantage in the household of 
 faith : what is suffered by one, may subserve the 
 improvement of many. Mercy does not always 
 consist in connecting the prayer of the afflicted 
 with prompt relief. Delay may tend alike to its 
 glory, and to the glory of its results. When our 
 Lord heard that Lazarus was sick, he abode two 
 
 1 Luke, ix, 33, 34. « John, xvi, 33. * Heb., xii, 10. 
 * Lam., ill, 32. «Hom., v, 3, 4. "Pa. cxix, Yl. 
 
30 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 days still in the same place where he was. But, 
 where there is this apparent neglect, there is scops 
 for sympathy and brotherly kindness in the family 
 of God ; reciprocal aflfection is cherished ; and the 
 very hopelessness of relief enhances the glory of 
 mercy in the subsequent confirmation of faith : 
 And, hence, the declaration of Christ, Lazarus is 
 dead ; and I am glad for your sokes that I was noi 
 there, to the intetit ye may believed 
 
 Afliictions in the family of God, however, ought 
 not to bo viewed, either as always originating in 
 disobedience, or as intended merely for Christian 
 improvement. Theii^ grand end is the illustration 
 of the character of God ; a character which he has 
 stamped alike with the sovereignty of his will, and 
 the riches of his grace. In the salvation of his 
 children, he displays the glory of his grace, by the 
 glory of his sovereignty in the prescription of 
 means which confound the wisdom of the wise. 
 By his use of affliction, he renders the wages of 
 sin subservient to his purpose of salvation : and, 
 while human reason, regarding adversity as a 
 judgment upon transgression, inquires. Who did sin, 
 this TtMn or his parents, that he was bom blind f 
 truth replies. Neither hath this man sinned, nor his 
 parents ; but that the works of God should be made 
 manifest in him* For the restoration of vision, 
 the wisdom of the world would denounce an oint- 
 ment of clay : but Christ applied it, and, to tho 
 1 John, xi, 6, 16, ' John, ix. 2 3. 
 
EFFECTS OF OHRISl'd SATISFACTION. 131 
 
 glory of divine sovereigntj, gave sight to the 
 blind. 
 
 But whatever befals the children of God, befals 
 them as a part of that discipline to which the 
 Father of mercies subjects the household of faith. 
 The diversified events of the Christian life are a 
 part of those means by which he promotes their 
 improvement. Under his discipline, also, they 
 gradually acquire conformity to himself; and, 
 with this conformity, corresponding enjoyment in 
 the path of duty : Or, as it is expressed in Scrip- 
 ture, they grow up into him in all things, who ut the 
 hetidj even Christ.^ Thus, in their progress heaven- 
 ward, they go from strength to strength : every 
 one of them in Zion appeareth before God. That 
 this is the blessed attainment of all who are re- 
 ceived into the family of God, will appear from the 
 subjoined view of the arrangement or covenant, 
 according to which salvation is dispensed. 
 
 It was formerly stated, that to fallen man the 
 mercy of God is communicated through the media- 
 tion of Christ. It was also shown, that our Lord, 
 as the receiver and dispenser of the Father's mercy, 
 stands in an official relation to those for whom this 
 mercy has been provided. These are persons 
 whom the Father has given to him, that, in con- 
 nexion with him in his official character, the pur- 
 pose of mercy respecting them might be eflFected. 
 As he and they thus constitute one body ; the 
 amount of the Father's engagements to him as the 
 
 > Eph., iv, 16. 
 
 I 
 
132 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 head, will show the amount of mercy which they, 
 in the character of members receive : And to 
 Christ the promise of the Father is, He thall see his 
 see i, he shall prolong his days ; and the pleasure of 
 the Lord shall prosper in his hand.^ These words, 
 then, as exhibiting the amoant of divine engage* 
 meut to Christ, contain a promise of life to him- 
 self. Through him, also, to the members of his 
 body, as a spiritual seed, they present the same 
 blessing : And, when it is stated, thpt the pleasure 
 of the Lord shall prosper in his hand, it is announc- 
 ed that tiie operation of Christ, in effecting the 
 purpose of God with respect to the irembers of hii 
 body, will be attended with complete success. 
 Since, then, with respect to Christ and his seed, 
 the pleasure of the Lord is the dispensation of 
 life ; the extent of the life of both mast be ascer- 
 tained from the promise : and respecting our Lord 
 it is said, He ashed life of thee ; and thou gavest it 
 him, even length of days for ever and ever* Through 
 him, also, to his seed the same amount of blessing 
 is announced : This is the promise that he hath 
 promised tw, even eternal life.^ This is the record, 
 that God hath given to its eternal life ; and this life 
 is in his Son.* 
 
 But the completion of the promise of God, de- 
 pended upon the completion of our Lord's engage- 
 ments. It was not consistent with justice, that the 
 
 > Isa., liii, 10. « Pa. xxi, 4. ' 1 John, ii, 25. 
 
 « Joan, V, 11. 
 
EFFECTS OF CHRlST*i iATISFACTIOK. 133 
 
 guiltj shoald be relieyed, without a vindication of 
 the moral character of God. When Christ, there- 
 fore, was appointed to the work of mediation ; the 
 fttlftlraent of legal demand was, also, constituted 
 the condition of the promise: It became hm.for 
 whom are all things, and oy whom are all things, in 
 bringing many sons unto glory, to make t/te Captain 
 of their sahation yerfect through sufferings} But 
 what became or was honourable to the justice of 
 God, when his law required satisfaction, eqnallj 
 becomes the same moral attribute, when, upon the 
 ground of satisfaction afforded, his promise ought 
 to be fuMMed : And dirine Teracitj is pledged, that 
 the eqnitj of God will ensure the dispen«ation of 
 mercy. Having exacted the condition, he will 
 accomplish his promise. Thi:; illustration of jus- 
 tice he has represented, as the glorj of his charac- 
 ter in the covenant of grace : There is no God else 
 beside me, a Just God and a Saviour.* 
 
 Of the equity of God in relation to his promise, 
 satiBfactory eridence is presented in the resurree- 
 tiwi of Christ : he was raised from the dead by 
 the ghry of the Faeker.' His resurrection was an 
 act of dirine justice ; and, as it was dispensed to 
 him in his official character, it is a pledge from 
 God, thai the same glorious justice of the Father 
 wiH be displayed in the resurrection of those whom 
 oot Lord came to redeem : Now is Christ risen 
 from tht dead, and become the first fruits of them 
 'Heb., ii, 10. »Iw., xlT, 21. 3 Rom., vi, 4. 
 
 1l 
 
134 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 that slept But every man in his oum 
 
 order ; Christ the first-fruits ; afterward they that 
 are Christ's at his coming.^ Hence, in reference to 
 this blessed consummation, our Lord, for the as- 
 surance of those that are his, has announced him- 
 self to be in the possession of his conditional life ; 
 and, also, represented it as a ground of infallible 
 certainty respecting the life of his seed : Fear not: 
 I am he that liveth, and was deed ; and, behold, I 
 am alive for ever more — amen,^ and. Because I live, 
 ye shall live also.' Thus, what divine justice de- 
 mands, divine faithfulness will realize. 
 
 This truth derives additional evidence from the 
 nature and efl&ciency of our Lord's intercession. 
 Here, it must be remarked, that his application to 
 the Father is founded upon his previoas satisfac- 
 tion to justice : By his own blood he entered in once 
 into the holy place, having obtained eternetl redemp- 
 tion.* Since, then, his blood is the ground of his 
 pleading with respect to both persons and blessing, 
 his satisfaction and intercession must be of equal 
 extent. With this statement, divine truth exactly 
 accords. His intercession is for those of whom he 
 had received a grant from the Father ; and, as the 
 redemption obtained by his death, is eternal ; the 
 life for which he intercedes, is of equal duration : 
 Glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee. 
 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he 
 
 > 1 Cor., XT, 20-23. ' Rcv., i, 18. » John, xiv, 9. 
 
 * Heb., ix, 12. 
 
EFFECTS OP Christ's satisfaction. 135 
 
 should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given 
 *««•.' This intercession being a claim of justice ; 
 the Father heareth him alwajs : and hence res- 
 pecting the result ho has said, All that the Father 
 giveth me, shall come to me ; and him that cameth to 
 me, I will in no wise cast otU."^ 
 
 The same truth *ill farther appear from a view 
 of the arrangement bj which the promised life is 
 dispensed. 
 
 The salvation of the guilty being altogether gra 
 tuitous on the part of God ; in dispensing it to men, 
 he was at liberty to adopt any mode which might 
 prove consistent with the attributes of his nature: 
 and that which he has been pleased to preacribe, 
 our Lord has expressed in the following terms : 
 God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten 
 Son, that whosoever believeth m him should not per- 
 ish, but have everlasting life.' He has, also, farther 
 stated, that, respecting all who are capable of be- 
 coming subjects of faith, the observation of the pre- 
 ceding order is indispensable : Tie that believeth on 
 the Son, hath everlasting life ; and he that believeth 
 not the Son, shall not see life ; but the wrath of G< ^ 
 abideth on him.* 
 
 From the preceding view of divine arrangement, 
 it appears that the ultimate possession of life is 
 through the permanence of faitL ; and the subjoin- 
 ed observations will show, that, in the covenant of 
 
 * John, xvii, 1, 2. 
 
 2 John, vi, 37. 
 ♦ John, iii, 36. 
 
 ' Joha, iii, 16. 
 
 J 
 
136 
 
 DI8SRRTATI0K IV. 
 
 
 yi 
 
 I 
 
 grace, there is ample proviaion for that enduring to 
 the end, which terminates in salration. 
 
 Life in all its bleseings is obtained through the 
 intercession of Christ. But, as the ground of his 
 plea, he uses neither the personal right, nor the 
 qualifications of those for whom he intercedes. It 
 was with his own Wood alone, that he passed into 
 the heavens. In the presence of God, therefore, 
 he has nothing else to present when he says, .Father, 
 I will that they aim whom thou hast given me, be 
 wkk mewhere I am} But, according to divine ar- 
 rangement, these can be with Christ, only through 
 believing. 
 
 As natural men, however, they cannot produce 
 in themselves the operation of a spiritual faith ; 
 and, consequently, they cannot receive the things 
 of the Spirit of God. In their mind, there is no 
 predisposing tendency to an acceptance of Christ. 
 Their feelings are repugnant alike to himself and 
 his benefits ; and it is when they are in this state 
 of alienation, that the process of bringing them to 
 Christ is commenced: When we teere enemies, we 
 were reconciled to God by the death of his Son* 
 Faith, therefore, and also the blessings which it 
 receives, are derived from the same source ; and, 
 hence, the declaration of Christ, tk' man can come 
 tmio me, except the Father who hath sent me, draw 
 him. ' 
 
 In accordance with the preceding view of the 
 
 ' John, XTii, 24. 
 
 2 Rom., T, 10. 
 
 ' John, vi, 44. 
 
EPPE0T8 OF CHBIST'S 8ATI8F. .TION. I37 
 
 origin of faith, our Lord represents it «» • . 
 from God through the meZm of M "''"'"''^ 
 
 proceeding from the Father, it H faith „/;. 
 operation of God,' as dispe^ed b/ch 't t t 
 
 nf ^i.A J ^ ^^ denominated the Spirit 
 
 Chit '"V ""i*""" '- *"» ''-owledgr" 
 wa^ wrought m them, were the enemies of God t 
 3 termed a gift.a and, when these live byfai h 
 « because n ,s ,,.„ to them in behalf of "ch"^";' to 
 
 But the mere possession of faith does not ensure 
 
 xruTiur Jrethtttr^"'^ - 
 
 affirmed, that this ^'JZLTlteTJ^^t': 
 upon which salvation is suspended The conn: 
 on between faith and eternal life, is not a cZet 
 t.on of cause and effect, but of means and end 
 An, other v,ew of their relation does not accord 
 with the scriptural account of the system of re 
 dempfon. Faith and the benefits wS it re 
 ceives, are equally the gift of God: and it cln"; 
 
 ^ John, xiy, 1 6. 
 * Heb., xii, 2. 
 
 2 John, xvi, 13. 
 ' Eph., i, 17. 
 ^ PWl.. i, 2d. 
 £ 
 
 " Col., ii, 12. 
 " Eph., ii. 8. 
 
138 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 be logically affirmed, that a blessing obtained, is 
 the condition of blessing to be received. Nor does 
 Scripture authorize the opinion, that, after faith 
 has been obtained, its subsoqoent exercise becomes 
 the condition of eternal life. It has been already 
 shown, that, when men are the enemies of God, 
 they are reconciled through faith. On the suppo- 
 sition, then, that by ceasing to believe they fall 
 from grace, or, in other words, return to their for- 
 mer enmity; either the gift of faith must be again 
 communicated, or final apostacy must ensue: they 
 cannot fenew themselves again unto repentance. 
 Should it be maintained, that, by the good disposi- 
 tions acquired through the previous exercise of 
 faith, it is reproduced iu the mind; that is merely, 
 in other words, to affirm that they have not fallen 
 from grace ; for, of every man who possesses good 
 dispositions, it ought to bo the language, By the 
 grace of God I am what I am. ' The opinion which 
 supposes a falling from grace, rests upon the prin- 
 ciple, that the preservation and the loss of faith, 
 belong solely to the regenerated. But, while it is 
 admitted that as moral agents they possess a per- 
 fect liberty of choice, the subjoined observations 
 will show, that, by the arrangement of God in the 
 covenant of grace, though they may occasionally 
 omit the exercise of faith, they are not divested of 
 its principle ; and, farther, that this being through 
 the medium of motives again called into operation, 
 1 1 Cor., XV, 10. 
 
gT"'" "^ ""*""' "' '"■"' ■» the promise of 
 
 dependence Thfiir 7 a'tnbute of i„. 
 
 much the effect of he" ""'''' '" "^'"^ '^ «» 
 
 -he. phJ: e^'JtrThrhf ;rrr 
 
 continue to live nlh *""''"' 'hatthe^ 
 
 "imationrrc^^ Z'^!: :j ■^•'^^or 
 
 of grace evince tl,T""^T "' ""> -=<"-«"'< 
 
 'ift.ers;:;if:^:4:r "■'''■'>-'■-- 
 
 reopect to it, eontinnation/^gltilT; '!; ""'■ 
 d.'ine will. What the wil of Oodlh! -^ ^^ '"" 
 iation to those whom he haa^ive'' t^'ShrS '" '" 
 be ascertained bv what 1,. I,, I. , '*'' """«' 
 
 veal : and our Lord haV ai^ rl™ "T' '" '■'■ 
 •'ill who hath sent me ZT^'Jf " "" ^""•'''•' 
 
 John, VI, 39. 
 
MO 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 tSon, and helieveth on him, may have everlasting life; 
 and I will raise him vp at the last day} Faith being, 
 thus, requisite in order to the full possession of the 
 promised life ; the means provided for the perman- 
 ence of believing, must next be considered. 
 
 The intercession of Christ includes all whom the 
 Father has given him ; and liis pleading in their 
 belialf is without intermission. Through his me- 
 diatorial agency, al ), the power ot the Father 
 operates to eflTect the design of his request ; and, 
 hence, it is stated, that he is able to save them to the 
 uttermost that come unto God hy him, seeing he ever 
 liveth to make intercession for them,* Respecting 
 the amount of those whom divine power will bring 
 to him, he has also said, All that the Father giveth 
 me, shall come to me ; and him tlat cometh to me, I 
 will in no wise cast out:' And it ought not to be 
 ^affirmed, that, when tlie faith of those who come to 
 him, terminates, the operation of his power in their 
 behalf, will also terminate. The same divine en- 
 ergy which, when they were enemies, reconciled 
 them to God, will still be exercised to preserve 
 them in their state of reconciliation : For if when 
 we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the 
 death of his Son ; much more, being reconciled, we 
 shall be saved by his life.'' 
 
 This preser/ation of the reconciled, our Lord 
 effects by the agency of the Holy Spirit. Their 
 
 1 John, ¥1, 40. 
 
 2 Ileb., vii, 25. 
 * Rom., V, 10. 
 
 3 John, vi, 37. 
 
fiFFBOTS OP CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. Ul 
 
 bodies are temples of the living God ;» and, by the 
 unmterrupted application of his j^ower. their spi- 
 ritual hfe IS maintained. Since, then, according 
 to he promise of Chri.t, the Holj Spirit abideth 
 m them for ever, their can be no cessatic of their 
 spiritual life Besides, it must be farther observed, 
 that the Holj Spirit is given, not merely as the 
 agent of progressive holiness, but also ar a pledge 
 from God for the performance of his promise of 
 eternal life ; and, hence, to those in whom he re- 
 sides. It IS said, After that ye believed, ye were seal- 
 ed With that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the 
 earnest of our inheritance, until the redemption of 
 the purchased possession . * ^ ^ 
 
 Those who have been reconciled, may. indeed, 
 grieve the Spirit ; and a decay or unhealthy state 
 of spiritual life, may consequently occur. Thus, 
 their present activity and comfort may be inter- 
 rup ea : but, still, on the part of God, there is no 
 final rejection Under the impenitence of their 
 unbelief, his Spirit brings to their recollection the 
 word of truth ; and. convinced by him of sin of 
 righteousness, and of judgment,^ they take with 
 them words, and turn to the Lord. In this man- 
 ner, the Spirit of truth, operating in them as moral 
 agents, supplies the grace ond the motives which 
 render eternal life, the object of their choice ; and 
 by a voluntary perseverance in faith, they obtain 
 the promise. Thoy are kept by the power of God 
 ' 2 Cor., vj, 1(3. 2 Kj,h^ i^ y^^ j^^ 3 j^j^^ ^^.^ ^_^^^ 
 
142 
 
 DlaSERTATIOV IT. 
 
 ihrouyh faith unfo salvation :^ and our Lord, '<y 
 perfecting that grace in them, fulfils liih engage- 
 ment, /^ive tin/o them etemalli/e ; and they shall 
 never perish.* 
 
 Re8pe(!tiiig the amount of privilege included in 
 otenit4 life, liuman knowledge must be regulated 
 by the statements of Scripture ; and, to the faith 
 of the Christian, divine truth presents only such 
 brief and general views, as tend to subserve the 
 purposes of religious comfort, and of cheering in- 
 ducement to go on to perfection. The nature of 
 the occu|)ations and enjoyments of the redeemed in 
 glory, constitutes a part of the mystery of God, 
 which, as not necessary to be known by his chil- 
 dren during the preseut stage of their existence, he 
 lias not been pleased to reveal, 'ihe human mind, 
 wandering in the regions of fancy, may conjecture; 
 but that want of knowledge of spiritual things, 
 which the Scriptures ascriba to man in his natural 
 state, to a certain extent describes also the ignor- 
 of the children of God, with respect to the 
 jCcu \tion8 and pleasures of a future existence : 
 JEt/e nath no 'cn, nor ear henrdy neither have enter- 
 ed into the heart of man, the things uhiih God hath 
 prepared for them that love him.^ I3y grapes in the 
 wilderness, the Father of mercies gratifies his du- 
 tiful children with a foretaste of their inheritance, 
 that they may know it in part ; but a full disclo- 
 sure of its glories he has reserved for actual expe- 
 
 » 1 Pet., i, 5. 
 
 » John, X, 28. ' ! Cor., ii, 9. 
 
EFFECTS OF CHRIST 's SATISFACTION. 143 
 
 rience, wlien tha' which is in part, .haU be done 
 ftway ; and that which is perfect, is come. The 
 Scriptures, however, authorize the belief, that the 
 perfection of what is now communicated in part, 
 will then constitute the oternal life of the promise. 
 In reference to the redeemed, the design of the 
 mediation of Christ is, to impart to them his im- 
 age, to restore them to the service of God, and to 
 perfect their liappiness in the heavenlj state. This 
 blessed process he commences upon earth ; and in 
 hearen it is complete : It doth not yet appear what 
 we ahaU be ; but we know thai when he shall ap- 
 pear, we shall be like him.' The,, are before the 
 throne of God, and serve him day and night in his 
 temple ; and he that sitte'h on the throne, shall dwell 
 among them. They shall hunger no more, neither 
 thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on them, 
 nor any heat. F • the Lamb which is in the midst of 
 the throne, shall feed them, and shall lead them unto 
 living fountains of waters; and God shall wipe away 
 all tears from their eyes.^ 
 
 Respecting the amou:it of those who shall obtain 
 the possession of eternal life, divine truth wo rrants 
 the belief, that they will constitute a multitude 
 which no man can number.^ This multitude, how- 
 ever, does not constitute the whole of the human 
 race. While some enter into life eternal, others 
 shall go away into everlasting punishm< ut.< This 
 
 * 1 John, iii, 2. 
 
 2 Key., vii, 15-It. 
 * Mat., XXV, 46. 
 
 ' Rev., vii. 9. 
 
144 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 diversity of allotment standi in connexion with 
 that diversity of character, which the several indi- 
 viduals of mankind will respectively sustain at the 
 last day. But the approbation of God, which the 
 innumerable multitude of the redeemed will then 
 receive, does not proceed from the superior excel- 
 lence of tLeir original nature. They, as well as 
 others, were dead in trespasses and sins ; and, 
 when accounted worthy of eternal life, they ascribe 
 their qualiRcations bo the agency of Christ : Thou 
 wast slain, and hast redeemed us to Gcd by thy 
 blood.^ ' If others, then, do not possess the same 
 excellence of character, it must be because they 
 have not obtained an interest in our Lord's media- 
 tion : yet, he has represented his satisfaction and 
 its actual efficiency as of the same extent. It 
 follows, therefore, as a consequence, tha his satis- 
 faction was not afforded for the whole human race. 
 In illustration of the preceding topic it may be 
 remarked, that Christ, in reference to the extent 
 of his satisfaction, has ^aid, / lay dovm my life for 
 the sheep r and the persons whom he has thus de- 
 signated, he has often mentioned as given to him 
 by the Father. The efficiency of his satisfaction, 
 he has also stated to be as extensive as the Father's 
 gift : All thct the leather giveth me, shall come to 
 me ; and him that cometh to me, I will in no wise 
 cast out.' Besides, for the ultimate safety of tho?e 
 who come to him, he has pledged his promise, and, 
 » Kev., V', 9. -' John, x, 15. » John, vi, 37. 
 
».v 
 
 EFFECTS OF CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. 145 
 
 also, assured them of the Father's co-operation 
 with himself in their behalf: / gh, unto them 
 eternal life; and they shall never perish; neither 
 shall any pluch them out of my hand. My Father 
 who gave them me, is greater than all; and none is 
 able to pluck them out of my Father's hand} They 
 are therefore, kept ly the power of God through 
 faith unto salvation.^ 
 
 But, yi hile eternal , is thf allotment of tho,se 
 whom our Lord has denominated his sheep -. of 
 otheishehassaid. Ye a.e not rr<^ sheep .^ and,vxth 
 respect to the latter, \t ought not to be affirmed, 
 taat their want of faith was the ground of his de- 
 claration ; for Le has explicitly stated that they 
 were destitute of faith, because they did not belong 
 to that class for which he laid down his life : I lay 
 down my life for the ,heep^ But ye believe not be- 
 ct'use ye are not of my sheep.'' In the satisfaction cf 
 Christ, therefore, the whole human race have not 
 been included. 
 
 The preceding scriptural truth derives additional 
 evidence fror^ the limitation of our Lord's inter- 
 cession. The gift of the Father and this part of 
 Christ's mediatorial work, are of equj extent- 
 Father, I will that those also xchom thou has given 
 me, be with me where I am.^ But, while these are 
 the objects of his intercession, there are others for 
 whom he does not intercede: I r, ay for them, I 
 
 ^ John, X, -2%, 29. s I Pet., i, ■ 
 * Jf hu, X, 2G. 
 
 3 John, X, 26. ^John, X, 15. 
 ^ John, xvii, 24. 
 
146 
 
 DISSERT/ TION TV. 
 
 pray not for the world, but for them whom thou hast 
 given me .'^ And it cannot b rulj affirmed, that, 
 in these words, his intercession is made for be- 
 lievers, in contrast with others who might after- 
 ward believe. All saving faith flows from the in- 
 tercession of Christ ; and, consequently, those for 
 whom he does not pray, are excluded from belief. 
 Besides, the extent of his intercession is not regul- 
 ated by the existing character of those for whom it 
 is made. It includes the whole grant of the 
 Father, whether already introduced into the house- 
 hold of fai'h, or still in unl)elief: Neither pray I 
 for the<e alone, hut for them also who nhall helieve on 
 me through their word.^ Thus, the limitation of 
 our Lord's intercession shows, that redemption has 
 not been provided for the whole human race. 
 
 A farther illustration of the same point may be 
 deduced from the nature of the arrangement, by 
 which Christ dispenses tlie benefits of redemption. 
 He gave himself for vs. that he might redeem u* 
 from all iniquiti/, and purify unto himself a peculiar 
 people.^ These privileges he appointed to be ob- 
 tained through sanctification of the Spirit and 
 belief of the truth ; and, that the truth might be 
 known and believed, he commissioned liis apostles 
 to give it publicity : Go ye into all the world, and 
 preach the gospel tc every creature. He that btlieveth 
 and is baptised, shall be saved * From this arrange- 
 ment it id evi'leat, that, where the gospel is not 
 
 > John, xvii, 9. ^.Tohn, xvii, 20. 3 Tit., ii, 14. 
 * Mark, xvi, 16. 
 
EFFECTS OF CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. 147 
 
 preached, unless some other mode of relief has been 
 provided there can he neither faith nor salvation. 
 But the Scriptures explicitly state, that eternal life 
 IS obtained onlj through knowledge, as the means 
 of fa,th To the Ephesian converts, who had pre- 
 
 IZ'JZl" .^''^'^"— of heathenism, it was 
 saia.^i that time, ye vere without Christ; and 
 therefore as the mercy of God is dispensed oni; 
 through h.s mediation, thej were also vsithout God 
 in the norm So inseparably connected is a know- 
 ledge of the mercy of God, with an interest in his 
 mercj that rhere there is no vision, the people 
 pertsh.2 Connecting, then, the preceding scrip- 
 tura view of the arrangement of Christ, with the 
 limited propagation of the gospel, and. farther, 
 with the positive divine injunction, that it should 
 not be preached in particular parts.' it is not even 
 a supposable case, that he died for all. and inter- 
 cedes for all, and yet leaves any destitute of the 
 only means by which thay might obtain salvation. 
 On the part of Christ, there is neither inattention 
 nor neglect. Respecting those whom the Father 
 has given him, it is said that the foundation of God 
 standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord kncweth 
 thern that are his.* Since, then, of some our Lord has 
 said, I know wy sheep i^ but to others. I never knew 
 you : depart from me,^ it is sufficiently evident. 
 'Kph ii.,2 ^Prov..xxix.l8. > Act., x.i. 6. 7. 
 
 *2Tim..„.l9. 'John, X, 14. "Mat., yii. 23. 
 
 I 
 
148 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 that his mediation does not extend to the who)^ 
 human race. 
 
 The preceding truth derives additional evidence 
 from the statements of Scripture respecting the 
 divine purpose of salvation. In illustration of this 
 point it may be remarked, that the material world 
 displays an adaptation of means to end, which in- 
 dicates inconceivable intelligence ; and this intel- 
 ligence characterizes every part of creation. That 
 these are the result of design in reference to a par- 
 ticular end, is evident, both from the wisdom which 
 they display, and from the express declaration of 
 God : He hath made all things for himself} The 
 Scriptures, also, represent the superintending care 
 of his providence, as constituting the execution of 
 his predetermined plan : He worketh all things 
 after the counsel of his otvn will,^ 
 
 That any event or circumstance should frustrate 
 the purpose of God, is utterly inconsistent with 
 his perfect wisdom ; and, hence, our Lord has de- 
 clared, that, between the purpose and providence 
 of his heavenly Father, the agreement is so exact, 
 that, under his government, there is neither con- 
 tingence nor counteraction : Are not two sparrows 
 sold for a farthing ; and one of them shall not fall 
 on the ground without your Father.^ This coin- 
 cidence, also, the Deity claims, as indicating both 
 his character and the result of his plan : I am 
 God, and there is none like me, declaring tho end 
 1 Prov., xvi, 4. - Eph., i, 11. ' Mat., x, 29. 
 
EFFECTS OP CHRIST'S SATISFACTION. 149 
 
 from the beginning, and from ancient times the things 
 that are not yet done, saying, my counsel shall stand, 
 and I will do all my pleasure, i 
 
 Since, then, the providence of God is the infal- 
 lible accomplishment of his counsel ; his superin- 
 tendence of the human race cannot be, the opera- 
 tio- of divine power to an uncertain result. On 
 the contrary, it is stated in Scripture, that, re- 
 spectmg those who are saved, the government of 
 l^od IS the effectual execution of his purpose • They 
 are predestinated according to the pm-pose of him 
 wlioworketh all things after the counsel of his own 
 vnll.^ Respecting these it is also stated, that thev 
 have been predestinated to the adoption ^f sons.' 
 If, therefore, it appear from Scripture, that this 
 predestmation or purpose of adoption does not in- 
 clude tJie whole human race, it will sufficiently 
 evmce that the mediation of Christ has not been 
 appointed to effect a universal salvation. 
 
 As bearing upon the preceding topic it mavbe 
 observed, that, in Scripture, the predestination of 
 the redeemed is termed an election ; and the im- 
 port of this term certainly denotes, that one is 
 taken, and another left. Even admitting, accord- 
 ing to the opinion . f some, that the terms elect and 
 elected or chosen, are in Scripture occasionaUy em- 
 ployed to denote the actual separations of indivi- 
 duals and churches from the mass of the world ; 
 the nature of the predestination which specifies the 
 'Isa.,xlvi,9, 10. 2Eph.,i, 11. 8Eph..i.5. 
 
160 
 
 DISSERTATION IV. 
 
 adoption of sons, still remains to be ascertained ; 
 and, respecting the import of this expression, di- 
 vine truth is abundantly explicit. The mission of 
 our Lord was in subordination to the purpose of 
 God for the redemption of men ; and the purpose 
 or decree which designated Christ to his media- 
 torial office, included those whom he was appointed 
 to redeem : thej were chosen in him} It is also 
 stated, that, when thus elected, they were cJw$eH 
 unto salvation. * Here, it must be kept in view, 
 that the providence of God is the certain accom. 
 plishment of his purpose, and, also, that our Lord 
 has been invested with mediatorial power, expressly 
 that the divine purpose might be fulfilled in the 
 salvation of all who had been choson in ] imself : 
 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he 
 should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given 
 him:' And respecting these he has said, They shall 
 never perish* Since, then, all are not saved, all 
 have not been included either in the mediation of 
 Christ, or in the purpose of salvation. 
 
 But, farther, tlie evidence of Scripture proves that 
 the predestination of the elected was prior to creat- 
 ed existence, and, consequently, cannot, as some 
 have supposed, denote their call to the privileges of 
 the gospel. These, even in thei natural state, are 
 denominated vessels of mercy afore prepared unto 
 glory; ' and this previous preparation, other parts 
 
 > Eph., \,i. 2 2 TI , 8s., ii. 13. 9 John, xvii, 2. 
 
 *John, X, 2i. «Rcm.,ix, 23. 
 
EFFECTS CF CHRISt's SATISFACTIOX. 151 
 
 of Scripture refer to the eternal counsel of God 
 Of the elected it is said, that, from the begiiininir' 
 thej were chosen unto salvation.^ As dfrivine 
 their salvation from Christ, they were chosen hi 
 htm before the foundation of the world;' and re- 
 spectmgthem it is also, stated, that the purpose of 
 mercj was given them in Christ Jesus before the 
 world began » TJms. the whole system of redemp- 
 tion 13 founded upon an election from eternity 
 or, as It 18 expressed .n Scripture, it hthe manifold 
 wisdom of God, according to the eter.al purpose 
 which /le purposed m Christ Jesus our Lord.* 
 
 It does not accord with divine truth to affirm 
 that the result of the decree of election depends 
 upon the subsequent faith and good works of the 
 elected. In the system of redemption, human con- 
 duct, as a condition or co-operating cause, is com- 
 pletely excluded. To the Father of mercies alone 
 belongs the glory of salvation ; and both by its sub- 
 jects, and the manner in which it is dispensed he 
 has shown that he permits no flesh to dory in his 
 presence.' It is is vot of works, /eit any man 
 should boast ;^ and boasting is equally excluded h» 
 the law oj faith? In the Christian system, it is not 
 the office of faith, to procure salvation, but to re- 
 ceive the relief which divine grace has provided 
 Of this relief, faith itself is a part: it is the gift of 
 
 » 2 Thess., ii, 13. 
 ♦Eph,, iii, 10, 11. 
 
 2 Eph., i, 4. 
 ^ Cor., i, 29. 
 ^ Rom., iii, 27. 
 
 » 2 Tim., i, 9. 
 « Eph., u, 9. 
 
152 
 
 DISSEttTATlON IT. 
 
 God.^ To those who are in a state of acceptance 
 with him, it has been given in behalf of Christ to 
 belieye on his name.' 
 
 Thus, in the plan of redemption, means and end 
 have been alike provided, or rather, one part of 
 salvation prepares the redeemed for the reception 
 of another, till in progressive order the whole is 
 obtained. The elected have not been chosen be- 
 cause they would surmount their original corrup- 
 tion, and, either by their faith or by any other 
 qualification, render themselves acceptiible to God. 
 That t^ey might be prepared for glory, they were 
 predestinated to be conformed to the image of his Son :' 
 and, when they do acquire this conformity, they 
 give God the glory, by ascribing their faith and 
 good works to the mercy which they have obtained, 
 according to his eternal decree : Blessed be the God 
 and Father of our Lord and Jesus Christ, who hath 
 blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly 
 places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in 
 him before the foundation of the world, tha* ae should 
 be holy and without blame before him in love.* 
 
 The elected having been, thus, chosen to salva- 
 tion through sanctification of the Spirit and belief 
 of the truth; every .j>iritual attainment of the 
 Christian has been included in the divine decree ; 
 and each constitutes a link in that chain of bles- 
 sing, which infallibly terminates in the full posses- 
 
 1 Eph., ii, 8. 2 Phil., i, 29.' » Rom., viii, 29. 
 
 * Eph., i, 3, 4 
 
"MCT8 or CHBISI'S SAIISFiOTIOir. 153 
 
 oU^ siall He not u,m M„, aUo freely ,1 us aU 
 ' Rom., viii, 30-32. 
 
154 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 (a) For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be 
 made alive. As the apostle is here treating of tho resur- 
 rection of believers only ; perhaps, the original words 
 might be more properly rendered, For as all in Adam 
 die, even so all in Christ shall be made alive. This accords 
 best with the apostle's statement respecting the amount 
 of that resurrection to which his language refers. This 
 he has, in the subsequent verse, stated to be, Christ 
 the first fruits; afterward they that are CJirisfs at his 
 coming. The preceding translation, also, is sanctioned 
 by a similar arrangement of the original diction, in Acts, 
 xxvii, 37, which, in our version, has not been rendered, 
 in the ship all, but, all in the ship. 
 
155 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO THE DOCTRINE OF THE PER 
 SEVERANCE OF SAINTS CONSIDERED. 
 
 Whxtbt'h rejection of the doctrine of per«evemnce-IIis nm 
 representation of Calvinisn^-His alleged inco»p.t b Hty . 
 absolute elecfon with the prayers of saints and ChrUtt 
 .ntercess.on contrary to Scripture-The promise which f^ 
 
 .fe-The hfe of faith constantly supported by grace-Be- 
 levers not .n a state of probation but of adoption Sm wl^h 
 
 heycannotfall-Encou«gementstope.e.era„ceZ:a: 
 "igB against apostacy do not imply the possibility of falW 
 from grace-The views of Arminians ..pugnant to the^ 
 
 fiTi ^-^ -'"consistent with an ahsolntc decide a^d a 
 fixed condition-The discipline under ich God's children 
 are placed of a kind which produces voiuntary submissL 
 to his authority, and secures their perseverancT-PerseTr 
 ance through faith for the permanence of wh eh provision is 
 made-Passages adduced to disprove the doctrine of perse- 
 verance considered-1 Tim., i. 19. 20: 2 Tim., ii. 17 18- 
 Heb vi,l-8: Heb.. x. 26-29-Rom..xiv, 13-24- 1 Cor 
 via. 7-13-Ezekiel, xviii, 24. • «> ^* • X Lor., 
 
 Whitby in his treat.se, Concerning the Persever- 
 a«ceo/M« Saints, has expressed his rejection of 
 that doctrine, m the following terms: 
 
156 
 
 DI88ERTATIO!» V. 
 
 " 1. Wo deny that God hath absolutely promised 
 to keep them (tho Baints) by his power from mak- 
 ing shipwreck of the faith, or that the just man who 
 lives by faith, shall never draw back to perdition. 
 
 "2. Wo conceive, we have just reason to deny 
 that God hath from eternity decreed, or absolutely 
 promised, to preserve them from falling into those 
 sins which he cautions them to avoid, or to perform 
 himself what he requires as their duty. 
 
 •♦3. We deny that God hath absolutely promised 
 to interpose his rower unfrustrably, t' gage all 
 true believers io use these means;" (th«tfc is, so to 
 use the raear=5 of salvation, that there shall be en- 
 during to the end.) 
 
 Though the preceding principles are contained in 
 what Whitby has denominated the State of the Ques- 
 tion, and, of course, where a candid view o. the doc- 
 trine which he rejected, ought to have been exhibited; 
 
 the second is one of those gross misrepresentations 
 of Calvinism, which, for the purpose of bespeaking 
 the favour of ignorance and prejudice, he has abun- 
 dantly used. Calvinists do not maintain, that, from 
 eternity, God either decreed, or absolutely promised, 
 to preserve his saints from falling into those sins 
 which he cautions them to avoid. They believe 
 that a Just man falleth seven times: but they also 
 believe, that, by the aid of that grace which God 
 has promised, and which he is faithful to dispense, 
 the just mrn riseth up again? Nor do they mam- 
 in that God has either decreed, or promised, to 
 
 1 Prov.. xxiT, 16. 
 
\ 
 
 \ 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO PEaaEYBRANOE CONSIDERED. 157 
 
 perform hix-^^ ' . he requires as the duty of 
 
 the samta. yL.^y >oIie7e that these are workers 
 together ^cah C ' and, that, when he. by the 
 powerful oporatio'. of his Spirit, works in them to 
 will and to dr , , good pleasure, thej work out 
 their own salvation.* 
 
 Whitbj, in what he has termed the State of the 
 Qj^stton has farther observed, "that the assertors 
 of this doctrine (that is, of final perseverance.) 
 hold that the foundation of this perseverance is the 
 absolute election of those that persevere unto sal- 
 vation: And this shows the inconsistencj of two 
 of their arguments for perseverance, taken from 
 the prajers of the saints that thej maj persevere 
 and from the supposed intercession of Christ to the 
 same eflFect; for, a^ it cannot be proved that either 
 Christ intercedes, or the saints praj, more for per- 
 severance to the end. than for their preservation 
 from those sms to which experience and scripture 
 show that thej are obnoxious : so. is it as absurd to 
 praj or intercede for that which God hath absolutely 
 decreed from all eternity, shaU come to pass, as to pray 
 and intercede tha* the world may not be drowned 
 igain, or, that Christ may come to judgment. "^ 
 
 But neither is tiie intercession of Christ nor the 
 
 prayer of saints restricted to requests, that the 
 
 icitter may be preserved from sin, and endure unto 
 
 the end. The prayers of both are in submission 
 
 »2Cor.,yi. 1. 2 PbU.. ii, 12, J3. => P. 285. 
 
r 
 
 ii 
 
 158 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 1 1 
 
 ! 1; 
 
 to the purpose of him who worketh all things after 
 tho counsel of his own will; and, conseq'ieutlj, 
 they take into account, that the law of the mem- 
 bers warring against the law of the mind, maj re- 
 sist the operations of grace, and, as in the case of 
 Peter, terminate in a temporary rejection of Christ 
 himself. But even where this does occur, there is 
 no final apostacy. Our Lord's account of his inter- 
 position is, I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail 
 not; and his subsequent language evinces perfect 
 assurance, that his intercession would not be una- 
 vailing: When thou art converted, strengthen thy 
 breiiireny^ 
 
 But Whitby's last assertion contains a still more 
 glaring disregard of divine truth : " So is it as ab- 
 surd to pray or intercede for that which God hath 
 absolutely decreed from all eternity shall come to 
 pass, as to pray and intercede that the world may 
 not be drowned again, or that Christ may come t 
 judgment." 
 
 Doubtless, what God has a^?o]utei/ willed, he 
 will infallibly acccmplish: yet, our Lord enjoined 
 his disciples to pray for the accomplishment of 
 the divine will : Thy will be done in e-. rth as it is 
 in heaven.^ lie has also said, This is the icili of 
 him that sent me, that of all which he hath given me 
 I should lose nothirg, but should raise it vp again at 
 the last day :^ yet, he did not account superfluous 
 
 ' .,jke, xxii, 32, 
 
 ' Mat., vi, X. 3 John, vi, 39. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 159 
 
 to praj, Father, I will that they also whom thou hast 
 given me, be tdth me where lamA Besides, in ac- 
 cordance with these examples, God himself has 
 prescribed prayer, as the means of obtaining what 
 he has absolutely purposed to dispense: Then the 
 heathen, that are left round about you, shall know 
 that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant 
 that that was desolate: I the Lord have spoken it, 
 and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord God, I will 
 yet for this he enquired of the house of Israel, to do it 
 for them.^ Though Whitby judged it absurd to 
 pray for Christ's coming to judgment, an apostle 
 account»«d it a christian duty, and said. Even so, 
 come, Lord Jesus.' 
 
 Before adverting to those parts of Scripture 
 which have been adduced, as refuting the doctrine 
 of final perseverance, it may be useful to remark, 
 that the promise which faith receives, is not a pro- 
 mise of mere spiritual existence ; for he who be- 
 lieves, is already the possessor of spiritual life. 
 Nor is it a declaration which restricts the continu 
 ation of life to the continuation of faith. It Is a 
 promise of immortality: This is the promise thai 
 he hath promised us, even eternal life .-* and also / 
 <jive unto them eternal life,- and they shall never per- 
 ish." The faith, therefore, which makes its own 
 exercise the measure of the promise, is not the faith 
 
 ' John, xvii, 24. 2 Kzek., xxxvl, 36, 37. ^ Rev., xxii, 20. 
 * 1 John, ii, 25. " John, x, 28 ' 
 
ti] 
 
 160 
 
 DISSERTATION V, 
 
 of the gospel. It neither believes its own life to 
 be eternal; nor does it, give credence to Christ, 
 when he declares that those to whom he has given 
 the promised life, shall never perish. 
 
 To afl^rm that the promise of eternal life is con- 
 ditional and conditionally believed, does not sub- 
 serve the sentiments of those who reject the doc- 
 trine of final perseverance. It was forn 3rlj shown, 
 that the commencement of the promised life is 
 without condition: it is begun in those who are 
 dead in trespasses and sins : And it must be farther 
 obserted, that, if the renewed mind have not, like 
 Christ, the source of life in itself, it must obtain 
 continued spiritual existence as it obtains natural 
 life, that is, by the uninterrupted operation of the 
 Spirit of life, dispensed through the mediation of 
 him who upholdeth all things by the word of his 
 power. Of all the children of God, our Lord alone 
 hath immortality; but to his brethren it is said. 
 Your life is hid with Christ in God} In the pro- 
 gress of spiritual life, therefore, every act of faith 
 is the fruit of existence already obtained ; and it 
 cannot be with propriety affirmed, that faith, a pre- 
 sent work of the Spirit, is the condition of his 
 subsequent operation. If, then, there occur a fall- 
 ing from grace, it must originate, not in the failure 
 of faith, but in the departure of the Spirit of life 
 from the soul. But against such an event, the in- 
 tercession of Christ has provided. Respecting the 
 
 1 Col, iii, ;3. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 161 
 
 perseverance of his brethren, he has said to them, 
 / will pray the Father, and he shall give you another 
 Comforter, that he may abide with you forever : ^ 
 and he has farther added, He dwelleth with you, and 
 shall be in you* The permanence of our Lord's 
 mtercession, therefore, secures the permanence of 
 spirituallife : and, ever living to make intercession, 
 i to his brethren he has also said. Because I live, ye 
 
 shall live also.^ 
 
 In farther illustration of this point, it may be 
 useful to advert to the character which the Deity 
 sustains in the covenant of grace. When he placed 
 our nrst parents in a state of probation for life, he 
 acted as a sovereign, having a right to do with his 
 own according to his pleasure. But the doctrine 
 whicii regards man as again placed in a state of 
 probation, accords neither with the grace of the 
 gospel, nor with that gracious character in which 
 God is there exhibited. By the covenant of grace 
 he has assumed a relation, by which he has pledged 
 himself to protect the interests of all whom he has 
 given to Christ : / will be a Father unto you : 
 and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the 
 Lord Almighty.'' These, therefore, are not upon 
 trial for ete-Mal I fe. (a) As childien, they are 
 heirs; heirs uj '^od, and joint heirs with Christ;'^ 
 and their heavenly Father has in reserve an inhe- 
 tance - -oared for them from the foundation of 
 
 'John, xi., 16. 
 
 * 2 Cor., vi 
 
 1 
 
 '/I 
 
 i 
 
 2 John, xiv, 17. 3 John, xiv, ]\}. 
 
 . 18. ^-Rom., viii, 17. 
 
162 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 ' ' 
 
 - r 
 
 i: 
 
 the world.^ Prodigal sons they may be ; but, 
 Btill, they are sons : and, on the part of God, there 
 is no interruption of paternal relation, nor of pa- 
 ternal regard. Our Lord has, accordingly, said. 
 This is the Father's will who hath sent me, that of 
 all whom he hath given me I should lose nothing :* 
 and, while he has also declared that they shall never 
 perish,^ his account of the management of his trust, 
 contains no enumeration of sons that are lost; 
 Behold, I and the children whom God hath given 
 me.* 
 
 It taust be also observed, that the arrangements 
 of God in the covenant of grace, have been made 
 expressly for the purpose of effecting the preceding 
 result. Admission into his family is not dispensed 
 upon the ground of worth in the adopted. When 
 dead in trespasses and sins, the Father quickens 
 them together with Christ, and puts them among 
 his children ; and, respecting them in the posses- 
 sion of this life and station, our Lord has said, 
 They shall never perish. None is able to pluck them 
 out of my Father s hand.^ When, therefore, the 
 opponents of the doctrine of final perseverance 
 aflSrm, tliat the adopted may sever themselves 
 from the household of God, they concede to sons a 
 power which none can possess ; they contradict 
 the testimony of Christ ; and ascribe to the sons 
 of God the prerogative of their heavenly Father. 
 
 I Mat , XXV, 34. 2 j„iin, y\^ 39. 3 John, x, 28. 
 
 ♦ Hcb., ii, 13. * John, x, 29. 
 
I 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO PER8EVEEANCE CONSIDERED, 163 
 
 A son maj disclaim connexion with his parents; 
 but he can neither dissolve his relation, nor disin- 
 hent himself. 
 
 Were the dispensations of divine favour suspend- 
 ed upon faitli, or upon anj other act of obedience, 
 for the erring there would be no relief. As it is 
 not m man that walketh to direct his steps, there 
 would unavoidably ensue a universal expulsion 
 from the family of God. To affirm that the dis- 
 obedient are, through penitence, restored to the 
 favour of God, involves in it an indirect admission 
 of the doctrine of perseverance. Where there is 
 departure from the living God ; return proceeds, 
 not firm resources inherent in the penitent : its 
 origin is the renewed communication of grace from 
 him, who, for the very purpose of giving repent- 
 ance, has been exalted bj God with his right hand 
 a Prince and a J^aviour.i Hence, our Lord hal 
 represented all approach to himself, as activity 
 produced by the Father's grace : No man can come 
 to me, except the Father who hath sent me draw 
 htm/ The repentance of disobedient children 
 therefore, is a part of that system of mercy by 
 which they are enabled to endure unto the end. 
 It IS the gift of a Father who had previously 
 reconciled them to himself; of a Father who not 
 willing that any of them should perish, has intrust- 
 ed their safety to him who has all power in heaven 
 and m earth ; and the result is their perseverance: 
 »Acts, V, 31. ^John, vi, 44. 
 
■Hi 
 
 164 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 , t 
 
 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to 
 God by the death of his Son; much more, being re- 
 conciled, we shall he saved hj his life} 
 
 In the Scriptures, believers are enjoined to be 
 stedfast in the faith, encouraged by the promise of 
 blessing m connexion with perseverance, and 
 warned against apostacy, by a denunciation of its 
 ruinous effects. These divine instructions, the 
 opponents of the doctrine of final perseverance re- 
 gard as so many proofs of the possibility of fallmg 
 from grace, and of final apostacy. Their senti- 
 ments upon these points have been expressed by 
 Whitby in the following terms : 
 
 " All commands and exhortations directed by 
 God to the faithful, to persevere in well doing, and 
 to continue faithful unto the end ; and to fear lest 
 they should faU away ; all cautions directed to 
 them to take heed that they do not do so ; all 
 places which contain a supposition tliat they may 
 do so, and which suspend our future happiness on 
 this condition that we continue stedfast unto the 
 end, and promise salvation on so doing, and which 
 pronounce the most dreadful and abiding threats 
 to them who do not so, are so many pregnant evi- 
 dences of the possibility of doing so, and are plam 
 indications that God hath made no absolute decree, 
 or promise, that good men shall not do so : for, as 
 when these motives are used to induce men to em- 
 
 iRom,, V, 10. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 165 
 
 brace Christianity, or perform any other christian 
 duty, they contain an evidence that it is possible 
 for men to do otherwise ; so also when they are 
 used to induce men to persevere in that profession 
 which they have undertaken, they must necessarily, 
 for the same reason, contain an evidence that it is 
 possible for any man who is induced by them to 
 persevere in the course of a christian, not to per- 
 severe. "^ 
 
 Again, lie has said, " It seems incongruous to 
 imagine that God should make an absolute pro- 
 mise, that true believers should persevere to the 
 end, and be unfrustrably saved, and yet suspend 
 their happiness and reward on this condition, that 
 they do persevere unto the end." * 
 
 In the preceding extracts, the conclusion against 
 the doctrine of final perseverance, is deduced from 
 premises which, as repugnant to the arrangements 
 of God in the covenant of grace, are themselves 
 incapable of proof. The future happiness of the 
 believer is not suspended upon the condition, that 
 he continue stedfast unto the end. Final perse- 
 verance and future happiness are successive events 
 inseparably connected ; but their succession is not 
 by a connexion of cause and effect The only con- 
 dition of eternal life, is the satisfaction of Christ. 
 By his obedience to the death, he obtained those 
 mediatorial qualifications by which he is enabled 
 to bring many sons unto glory : When thou shall 
 
 » P. 299. 
 
 2 P. 308. 
 
1G6 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 make his soul an offering for sin ; he shall see his 
 seed, he shall prolomf his days, and the pleasure of 
 the Lord shall prosper in his hand} Upon the 
 ground of this offering the pleasure of the Lord does 
 prosper in the hand of Christ; and his seed are 
 seen by him, being kept by the power of God through 
 faith unto salvation : And, as both faith and the 
 salvation which it receives, are the gifts of God ; 
 it ouffht not to be affirmed tlio L the one is the con- 
 dition of the other. Besides, were stedfastness in 
 the faith, the condition of eternal life, for disobe- 
 dient childi-en thero would be no hope. Accord- 
 ing to the doctrine of universal redemption, he who 
 falls from a state of grace, returns to a state of 
 nature. But relief from that state is not derived 
 from the energies of the natural mind : it is the 
 work of him who reproves ♦he world of sin ; and 
 the arrangements of the -jovensnt of grace preser . e 
 from the hopelessness of a natural b.ate, and super- 
 sede the necessity o^ repeated regenerations. The 
 interruption of faith is not the destruction of the 
 principle of grace. Every son is the habitation of 
 God through the Spirit.^ By the intercession of 
 Christ, also, the abode of the Spirit is permanent ; 
 and his work, perseverance. Disobedience excludes 
 from the complacency of the Father's love ; but it 
 excludes not fiom the intccc ion of Christ, nor 
 from its blessed resul's. Our Lord has compassion 
 on them that are out of the way? To Pster he said, 
 1 Isa.. liii. 10. "- Epli.. ii, 22. =* Ileb., v, 2. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 167 
 
 I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not ;> and 
 to all his brethren he also said, / will pray the 
 Father; and he shall give you another Comforter, 
 that he may abide with you for ever.'' 
 
 The preceding quotation of Whitbj contains also 
 a supposition, that commands and exhortations to 
 stedfastness in the faith, and threats against fall- 
 ing awaj, imply a liberty of will which maj ter- 
 minate cither in apostacj or in salvation, and, con- 
 sequently, that God cannot have made an absolute 
 decree respecting final perseverance. But liberty 
 on the part of the Christian, is perfectly consistent 
 with an absolute decree. How tliese coincide, the hu- 
 man mmd. during the present stage of its existence, 
 may not comprehend; but, that they completely 
 harmonise, the Scriptures exhibit to faith satisfac- 
 tory evidence. Without liberty of choice, there 
 can be no guilt: yet, to the murderers of Christ it 
 was said, Bim being delivered by the determinate 
 ccunsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, 
 and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.^ 
 
 Liberty of will does not necessarily imply a con- 
 dition in which the Christian may either persevere 
 or apostutise. In the heavenly state, the will can- 
 not chooso disobedience; y^i, its submission to 
 God IS a free wiU offering: and of the redeemed on 
 earth, also, it is affirmed, that whosoever is born of 
 God doth not commit sin: . . . he cannot sin 
 because he is born of God.* The limitation of the 
 » Luke, «ii, 32. 2John,xiv, 16. 3 Acta, ii. 23. 
 
 * 1 John, iii, 9. 
 
168 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 mind's choice to a particular course, therefore, is 
 no infringement of human liberty; and, conse- 
 quently, commands and threats in reference to per- 
 severance, do not more imply a liberty of aposta- 
 tising, than commands and threats to an unrenewed 
 man, imply a liberty of will to refuse the evil and 
 to choose the good, or, than a command to stretch 
 forth a withered hand, indicates a capacity of com- 
 pliance. On the coi.trary, by the divine blessing 
 upon these very means, the will of the redeemed 
 under innate incapacity, is determined to that per- 
 severance in well doing, which arrives at the full 
 possession of eternal life. 
 
 In illustration of this point, it may be useful again 
 to advert to the character which believers possess 
 by their interest in the covenant of grace. These 
 are not in a state of probation for the favour of 
 God: they are living members of his family, and, 
 as joint heirs with Christ, interested in all the 
 privileges of their Father's house. While they are 
 thus under his paternal authority, to threaten or 
 to encourage according to circumstances, they are 
 also the objects of his affectionate care ; and the 
 whole discipline of his house is the discipline of a 
 Father's watchfulness, that none of them be lost. 
 It is, also, of that kind which produces a voluntary 
 submission to their Father's authority. In a ra- 
 tional nature, the choice of the will must be regu- 
 lated by motive ; and the discipline of the house- 
 hold of God is a discipline of intelligence; a dis- 
 
Ol.«Cn0KS TO PE«S,.yE,..vcB C0»8.DEnKD. 169 
 
 been C ; 'Vr„l "^f' "' P'™"' "''o have 
 
 produce the w.Il 3 submission to heavenly wisdom 
 Thus far. therefore, the life of the believer .Tund 'j 
 the direction of invincible grace H» « 
 refuse compliance with the'clof tt ^ p^ ^ll 
 «- dead can refuse to hear the voice of thrLn of 
 
 The subsequent discipline of the household of 
 God ,3 also calclated to confirm the dutifl,, bias 
 of the believer's will ; and the same invinciMeLce 
 wh ch. m connexion with the voice of the S^of 
 God ,n the gospel, called him out of darln "s i, 
 stiU connected with means provided for Ms1m 
 provement. From various sources, grace Z en" 
 counter resistance; but it overcomes at tot^^d 
 produces enduring to the end. ^ 
 
 Why the Father of mercies does not at once re- 
 
 tore to a state of perfection his adopted children 
 
 It IS not for man to enquire. It i, sufficient „; 
 
 h m to know, that God has appointed those who 
 
 haTe contracted habits of sin, to taste its bitterne'" 
 

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 170 
 
 BI88KSTATI0N V. 
 
 and, then, to obtain deliyerance through tlM 
 dium of their own exertions to acquire babka o£ 
 holiness: And farther, that, to ensure their sucoeis, 
 he has proyided, and connected with his blessing, 
 all that variety of means which their diversified 
 circumstances require. To faith, he has presented 
 the animating motives of the gospel; but, as hi? 
 children have still a law in their members warring 
 against the law of their minds, the suggestions of 
 nature he has opposed by denunciations of the 
 danger of disobedience. 
 
 Bat the preceding adaptation of motive to circum- 
 stance, constitutes no evidence of the possibility of 
 falling from grace: it is rather a proof of the 
 Father's aflfectionate care to accomplish his purpose 
 of mercy. Accordingly, of all the arrangements of 
 the household of God, not one suggests the idea of 
 separation from his regard: the whole point to per- 
 severance. When his children disobey, he visits 
 their transgression with the rod and their iniquity 
 with stripes : ^ but disobedient though they be, he 
 is still their Father; and because he loves, he 
 chastens; and scourges that be may receive. 
 Wilfulness may forsake the comforts of a father's 
 house ; but the miseries of a far country are his 
 discipline to bring his prodigals home : l^ine own 
 wickedness shall correct thecy and thy backslidings 
 shall reprove thee: hnow therefore and see, that it is 
 an evil thing and bitter^ that thou hast forsaken the 
 1 PMOm Ixxxix, 82. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERgBTBRAKCB COKSIDERBD. ITl 
 
 Lmi^God.^ Even when he eipels the refrac- 
 tory from the comfortg of his house, and oonsi^rus 
 thtmu> Satan, he does not withdraw his paternal 
 »^rd. Temporarj eielusionfrom the complacency 
 of hM love aud the wretchedness of Satan's tyran- 
 nising, are his paternal discipline^- the destruction 
 or t^/hsk, that the spirii may be saved in the dau 
 of^ Lord Jesus.^ Hou, shall I give thee up, 
 ^>hramf How shaU I deliver thee, Israel? hL 
 »halllfnake thee as Admah? Hotc shaU I set thee 
 as Zdmm? Mine heart is turned within me; my 
 ratings are hindUd together, /will not execute 
 ^JUsreeness of mine anger ; I will not return to de- 
 '^Ephraimsforlam Godandnotman, the Holy 
 One m the midst of thee.' 
 
 The engagement hy which Ood has placed him- 
 self at the head oi the honsehold of faith, is not a 
 promise of mere paternal rehition. He who en- 
 gages to be a father, engages also to do the lather's 
 part; and with God there is neither incapacity nor 
 want of will. What paternal aflFection inclines him 
 to do, his power can eflfeot. Since, theu, to lose 
 chUdren who might be preserved, is abhorrent to a 
 father s heart, the promise of God must include 
 the perseverance of his sons ; and that his love will 
 produce this result, he has given ample assurance: 
 Jhts M the promise that he hath promised us, even 
 eternal life,< and, he is faithful that promised.*^ His 
 » Jer.. ii, 19. 2 1 Cor., y, 5. z Hos., xi 8, 9. 
 
 * 1 John, ii, 25. i Heb., X, 23. 
 
, 
 
 172 BISSERYATIOK T. 
 
 children are kept by his power through faith unto 
 salvation. 
 
 The perseverance of the children of God being 
 thus through faith; for the permanence of this 
 Christian grace, the provisional arrangements of 
 their father's house contain efficient resources, 
 rivine truth, by which the regenerated have been 
 bom again, continues in them an indestructible 
 principle ; and this, though they may overlook and 
 forget, they are not permitted to lose. Of the 
 Spirit of God dwelling in them it is the work, to 
 bring it to remembrance, and give it efficiency; 
 and, thus, it proves itself to be an incorruptibh 
 seedy which liveth and abidethfor ever. As the word 
 of life, it is the source of a faith which cannot fail, 
 and of an obedience which endures unto the end ; 
 and, hence, it is said, Whosoever is born of God,do(h 
 not commit sin ; for his seed remaineth in him; and 
 he cannot sin, because he is bbrn of God:^ And 
 also, We know that whatsoever is bom of God,, «n- 
 neth not; but he that is begotten of God, heepeth him- 
 self; and that wicked one toucheth him not.* The 
 begotten of God may, indeed, keep themselves so 
 badly as, for a time, to neglect both truth and duty ; 
 and the wicked one may, for the destruction of the 
 flesh, be permitted to bruise their heel ; but he can- 
 not touch them, or as the original term signifies, he 
 cannot get a retaining hold of them. They, there- 
 fore, recover themselves from the snare of the 
 
 1 1 John, iii, 9. 
 
 » 1 John, V, 18. 
 

 •^.n.^^Z^',-?:- .:Xi 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO PBBSEVKBANOB C0KSIDB5ED. 173 
 
 doyU; and, hence, our Lord has stated the utter 
 impossibihtj of his finaUj deceiving the elect.^ 
 
 ■But, m opposition to the doctrine of faith as a 
 ^anen^. principle, the subjoined passages of 
 Smpture as indicating the loss of faith and the pos- 
 sibility of faUing from grace, are usuaUj adduced : 
 
 1 Tim ,, 19, 20. Holding faith and a good cm- 
 ^nce, ichtch same having put away, concerning faith 
 ^vemadeMpwreck. Of whom are Hymeneus and 
 Alexander whom I have delivered unto Satan, that 
 ^y may learn not to bUzsptieme. 
 
 2 Tim. ii, 17, 18. And their word will eat as 
 doth a canker: of whom is ffgmeneus and Pf-'^^us 
 ^ho concerning the truth have erred, saying that 
 th^ resurr^tion is passed already; and oterthro^o 
 inejatth of some. 
 
 Upon the first of these passages Whitby has re- 
 marked, «Now to put away a good conscience, he- 
 tongs to them alone who once had and ought to 
 have retained it, and to make shipwreck of tlie faith 
 80 &3 to blaspheme that doctrine which they oncJ 
 professed, is surely to faU oflf from the profession 
 of It. Lastly, the faith and that good conscience he 
 charges Timothy to retain, is, doubtless, a sincere 
 taith and a good conscience, that unfeigned faith 
 and that good conscience he then had: by saying 
 therefore that others had laid aside both these, he 
 m effect declares that they were totaUy faUen away, 
 which IS a sufficient confutation of aU their argu- 
 ^ Matthew, xiiv, 24. 
 
i^mm 
 
 174 
 
 DISSERTATION V, 
 
 ments produced fromSciiptore for the doctrine] of 
 perseTerance." * 
 
 But Whitby's conclusion is deduced firom pre- 
 mises not warranted bj Scripture ; and, therefore, 
 it'is no sufficient confittation. The terms ^«eft 
 and believing, when used, in relation to divine truth, 
 do not always denote the faith of God's elect, that 
 faith which believes to the saving of the soul. The 
 system of grace does not presuppose that the un- 
 renewed mind cannot, by evidence, acquire the 
 knowleffe of truth. On the contrary, it states that 
 the children of this world are in their generation 
 wiser than the children of light.* As far, therefore, 
 as mere truth is concerned, evidence produces in 
 the unregenerated the assent of understanding; 
 and this assent the Scriptures denominate faith. 
 Simon Magus could not resist the proof by which 
 the truth of the gospel was confirmed : he believed, 
 and was baptised ; yet, he was still in the gtM of 
 bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.* He had net 
 received a spiritual perception, to exercise that 
 faith which works by love, and purifies the heart ; 
 and, by his subsequent conduct, he exemplified 
 that faith and a good conscience may be put away 
 by those, whom evidence will not permit to disbe- 
 lieve the truth of the gospel. 
 
 In reference to faith and a good conscience, 
 Whitby, indeed, considers the terms putting away, 
 as equvalent to not retaining : but the original word 
 
 ip.'296. 2Luke, xvi,8. » Acts, iii, 13-23. 
 
OBJEOTI058 TO PERSEVBRAJTOB COSSIDEREl). 173 
 
 mw^m,^ denotes simply thrmting away; and, in 
 Scripture, it is used to signify the rejection of what 
 w oflFered, as weU as the renunciation of what is 
 \ actuaUj possessed. Of this, the subjoined passage 
 
 \ contains an illustration: Then Paul and Barnabas 
 
 waxedbold.andsaid. It wa$ necessary that the tcordof 
 God should first have been spoken to you; but seeing 
 -W«r/. ye put it away from you, and judge your- 
 selves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the 
 Gentiles.^ In the same manner, Hjmeneus and 
 Alexander, and, also, those whose faith was over- 
 thrown by Hjmeneus and Philetus, though they 
 had possessed only a speculative belief, might be 
 said to put or thrust away from them faith and a 
 good conscience. 
 
 But, admitting that fchesd did actuaUy possess the 
 feith which accompanies salvation, their subsequent 
 error and shipwreck furnish no 'conclusive evidence 
 ^inst the doctrine of final perseverance. Whitby, 
 indeed, con^siders error in faith, as indicating tho 
 loss of the principle of grace: but it has been 
 already shown, that, in the renewed mind, the word 
 of God lives and abides ;« and, also, that the Spirit 
 of truth abides in it for ever.» Sophistry may pro- 
 duce a temporary aberration from scriptural truth ; 
 but the word of God is an incorruptible seed, and 
 cannot be destroyed. By this indestructibility of 
 spiritual knowledge, there are ever in the mind 
 materials for renewed efforts in the life of faith ; 
 
 ' Acts, xiii, 46. 2 1 Pet., i, 23. 3 John, xiv, 13. 
 
^^.^ 
 
 176 
 
 DISSEKTATION V. 
 
 \ 
 
 i 
 
 and, to these materials, the Holy Spirit, according 
 to the promife.^ of Christ, gives due efficiency: Me 
 a/*a// bring all things to your remembrance^ whatso- 
 ever I have said unto you.^ 
 
 The conclusion which deduces from error in fiuih 
 the consequent loss of grace, is founded upon the 
 supposition, that, by the tenor of the covenant of 
 man's redemption, erring from the faith produces 
 between the Father and his adopted children reci- 
 procal rejection. But the children of God are not 
 under the law. As objects of the Father's affec- 
 tionata regard, they are under grace; and their 
 disobedience does not deter him from doing the 
 father's part : and, accordingly, he has represented 
 perseverance, as a prominent characteristic of his 
 covenant for their salvation: Behold, the days 
 come, saith the Lord^ when I will make a new cove- 
 nant with the house of Israel and with the house of 
 Judah : Not according to the covenant that I made 
 with tfieir fathers, when I took them by the hand to lead 
 them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued 
 not in my covenant; and i regarded them noty saith 
 the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make 
 with the house of Israel after those days, saith the 
 Lord, I will put my laws into their mind, and write 
 them in their hearts; and I will be to th-m a God, 
 and they shall be to me a people. And they shall 
 not teach every man his neighbour, and every man 
 his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for all shall 
 
 1 John, xiv, 26. 
 
\ 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO PBX8BVERAN0S OONSIDERBD. 177 
 
 ^"ov me /rim the least io the ffreaiest. Fot I %nU 
 be merciful to their unrighieousnees, and their situ 
 and their iniquities wiU I remet^ber no mare . i And 
 again, i will put my fear in their hearLi; and they 
 shall not depart from me* Ud der the go^neJ. thei «- 
 fore, there is but one baptism ; because there is but 
 one regeneration and ingrafting into Christ. It 
 follows, of course, that an admission of the possi- 
 bilitj of falling from grace, leads to the li avoidable 
 conclusion, that everj felling from grace is a find 
 apostacj. This, however, those who reject the doc- 
 trine of perseverance, will not maintain ; and, there- 
 fore, their cwu opinion, from which as a conclusion 
 it is logically deduced, must be unscripturaL 
 
 It must be farther remarked, that the case of 
 Hymeneus, and of the others who had erred from 
 the faith, indicates neither falling from grace nor 
 final apostacj. These had been memLers of the 
 church ; and, in the judgment of charity, children 
 of the covenant: but, still, as was already observf 1, 
 they might never have obtain 3d the faith of God's 
 elect. Besides, though they had actually turned 
 from the exercise of a true and living faith, the 
 apostle's language suggests no turning from them. 
 On the contrary, regarding them still as members 
 oi the church, he dispensed to them that ordinance 
 which God had instituted for the recovery of the 
 erring. Using that power which the Lord had 
 given him for edification, and not for destruction, 
 » Heb., via, &-12. 2 Jer,, xxxu, 40. 
 
 il 
 
r-3>^ 
 
 i78 
 
 DISBSBVATIOjr T. 
 
 he delivered them to Satan, not that he might re- 
 tain them, but f^at thej might learn Pot to Uas- 
 pheme ; or, a? he has elsewhere expressed himaelf, 
 for the destruction of the Jlesh, that the spirit may be 
 saved in the day of the Lord Jems> That, in the 
 children of God, this apostle supposed neither fallp 
 ing from grace nor final apostacy, is erident from 
 the view which he has given of their uninterrupted 
 recognition by their heavenly Father. Though 
 some had erred from the faith ; NevertheUss, the 
 foundation of God standeth sure, having this staly 
 The Lo^d knoweth them that are his.* 
 
 Heb., vi, 1-8. 'Jherefore, leaving the prtndples 
 of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on untoperftTtion; 
 not laying again the foundation of repentance from 
 dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine 
 of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and ofresur- 
 recfion of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And 
 this xcill we do, if God permit. For it is impossible 
 for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted 
 of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the 
 Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, 
 and the powers of the world to come, if they shall faU 
 away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing 
 they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh^ 
 and put him to an open shame. For the earth, which 
 drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and 
 bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is 
 dressed, reeeiveth blessing from God,- But that which 
 1 Cor., V, 5. 2 2 Tim,, ii, 19. 
 
1^^ 
 
 -^^^w 
 
 OBJB0TIO5S TO PXftSSTBBAliOl CONSIDERED. 179 
 
 heantk thorns and brian, is rejected, and is niph 
 unto eursinfff whose end is to be burned. 
 
 Heb., X, 26-29. For, if we sin wil/uify after that 
 toe have received the knmcledge of the truths there 
 remainah no more sacrifice for sins^ but a certain 
 Jcwrful lookinp/or of Judgment and fiery indignation, 
 which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised 
 Mosey /aw, died without mercy under two or three 
 witnesses. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose 
 y«, »hall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden 
 under foof. the Son of God, and hath counted the 
 blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, 
 an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the 
 Spirit of grace f 
 
 The persons to whom the apostle sJlades in the 
 preceding verses, had been once enlightened, had 
 tasted of the heavenlj gift, been made partakers of 
 the Holj Ghost, and had >^ted the good word of 
 God and the powers of the world to come : and, upon 
 these grounds, objectors to the doctrine of perse- 
 yerance consider them, as having had an actual in- 
 terest in the covenant of grace. " That this, ' ' says 
 Whitbj, «'i8 spokea of them who were once true 
 .believers, is evident, first, from the word ^••«rCi»«* 
 enlightened; for the same apostle, in the same 
 epistle, and in a place of the same import, speaking 
 to the same persons, saith, that, after they wjre en- 
 lightened, they endured a great fight of aviations, 
 andtoohj'oyjully the spoiling of their goods, knowing 
 that they had in heaven a better and a more enduring 
 
180 
 
 DI88IRTATI0N T. 
 
 1 
 
 tubtiaHee. They, therefore, were so enlightened as 
 to know that thej had an inheritance in hea?en, 
 and a great recompense of reward, and that the^ 
 ihould inherit the promises, if they did not caet 
 away their confidence, but with patience continue 
 to do the will of God, were doubtless sincere Chris- 
 tians and true believers. Secondly, from the words 
 following, it it impossible to renew them to repentance 
 from dead works, ver. 1 ; they, therefore, had once 
 truly repented ; for, I suppose, the apostle did not 
 speak of laying again the foundation of a hypocri- 
 tical repentance, nor did he judge it a thing im- 
 possible to produce that in them ; the phrase, it is 
 impossible to renew them again unto repentance, 
 seems plainly|to imply that they were once truly in 
 that state to which they were to be renewed, and 
 also the loss of it."^ 
 
 But, though this apostle has employed the term en- 
 lightened, in relation to those who had been called by 
 his grace ; it does not follow, that it always denotes 
 the saving illumination of the Holy Spirit. The 
 Son of God is the dispenser of life, and of that light 
 or int< lligence with which human life is connected: 
 In him was li/e^ and the life luas the light of men: *^ 
 and farther, as communicating to men the percep- 
 tion of truth, he is termed the true light which light- 
 eth every one that cometh into the uwrld.^ Wherever, 
 therefore, our Lord, either as the God of nature, 
 or as the God of grace, confers intelligence, he 
 
 ' Taylor, p. 289. 2 John, i. 4. s John, i, 9. 
 

 OBJEOTIOKS TO PEB8STEBAK01 COHBIMRBD. 181 
 
 *nl»pktefu: and & contrast of the heathen with those 
 who have been foroared with scriptural instruction, 
 •bandantlj proves, that, in innumerable instances, 
 divine truth enlightens where no interest in salva< 
 tion ensues. Hence, of those to whom Christ 
 communicated his gospel, it is said, 7^ people who 
 •at in darkness^ have seen a greeU iiffhty Every 
 man, therefore, whose mistaken views have been 
 displaced by knowledge, is an enlightened man. 
 
 This apostle instead of limiting the term enUgfa- 
 en*fd to the saving operations of the Holy Spirit, 
 has himself, in the last of the passages under* con- 
 sideration, explained it as denoting a correct view 
 of the Christian system : If toe sin toilfully after 
 that we have received the knowledge of the truth t 
 And this knowledge and, also, its concomitant fruits 
 may exist, where the mind has experienced no 
 saving change. As an enlightened believer of this 
 description, Simon Magus has been already men- 
 tioned ; and of others it is said, that, wtien Jesus 
 was in Jerusalem, at the passover, in the feast day, 
 many believed in his name, when they saw the mira- 
 cles which he did. But he did not commit himself 
 unUt fo'iwi, becatise he knew all men, and needed not 
 that any should testify of man; for he kneib what is 
 in man.* Here, then, are enlightening and believ- 
 ing, without the saving illumination of the Holy 
 Spirit and the faith of God's elect; and this tem- 
 porary faith may produce both corresponding re-. 
 
 ^ Mat., iv, ] 6. 
 
 ' John, ii, 23-26. 
 
182 
 
 DI88EaTATI0N V. 
 
 
 pentance and reformation. At the preaching of 
 Elijah, Ahab rent hi* clothes, and put snjkcloth upon 
 Msjksh^ and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and teent 
 aoftly.^ Herod, also, feared John, knowing that he 
 was a Just man and an holy, and observed him, 
 and, when he heard him, he did many things, and 
 heard him gladly.^ It is not, therefore, requisite 
 to suppose with Whitbj, that those to whom the 
 apostle alludes, either professed a hypocritical re- 
 pentance, or felt that godlj sorrow which worketh 
 repentance unto salvation. On the contrary, in 
 the suUequent verses, the contrast between them, 
 and others renewed by divine grace, represents 
 them as totally destitute of practical excellence: 
 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh 
 oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them 
 by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God. 
 But that which beareth thorns and briers, is refecttd, 
 and is nigh unto cursing; whose end '* to be burned.^ 
 It has, indeed, been oft n afi&rmed, that those 
 to whom the apostle alludes, iiad been sanctified by 
 the blood of the covenant, "That the apostle," 
 says Whitby, "speaks of them who had received 
 the remission of their past sins by fai.h in the 
 blood of %he new Testament, shed for the remiseion 
 of sins, and so of them who had true justifying 
 faith, is evident from these words, that they were 
 sanctified by his blood, for to be sanotified, through- 
 out this whole epistle, and more assuredly, to be 
 ' 1 Kings, xxi, 27. 2 Mark, vi, 20. > Heb.. ri, 7, 8. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PBBSBYBBAJrOB CONTIHUED. 183 
 
 kcmoHJied with the blood of Christ, hath still rek- 
 tion to our justlJcation, or the remission of sing 
 procured bj the blood of Christ," etc.^ 
 
 But the preceding view of the apostle's language, 
 does not accord with the general tenor of his dis- 
 course. Upon the expressions, who haih trodden 
 underfoot the Son of God, and haih counted the 
 blood of the covenant tohereunth he was sanctified an 
 unhokf thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit 
 of grace. Guise has justly remarked, that "Me 
 bl^dd of the covenant whe^-ewith he wcu sanctified, 
 seems to relate to Christ, who was consecrated to 
 his priestlj office by his own blood, rather than to 
 hvay who counted the blood of the covenant an unholy 
 thing: For the Son of God is the immediate ante- 
 cedent; and the apostle's design was to aggra- 
 vate the sin of apostates, from a cons' leration of 
 the worth and dignity of the object which they 
 slighted and abused.** » This t lew of the expres- 
 sion, blood of the covenant, accords alike with the 
 prefigurations of the ceremonial law respecting our 
 Lord, and with scriptural statement respecting 
 the means by which he became qualified for the dis- 
 charge of his official dutiee. Aaron was sanctified 
 or consecrated to the priestly office by anointing ; 
 but, subsequently, his consecration was perfected 
 by the sprinkling of blood :» Ar>xl Moses took of the 
 anointing oil, and of the blood which was upon the 
 altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron,^ .... and 
 
 » Taylor, p. 291. « In loc., Note, a Exod., xxix, 1, etc. 
 
'} 
 
 184 
 
 DISSERTATION 7. 
 
 i 
 
 1 
 
 sanctify Aaron^ Our Lord, also, was anointed 
 with the Holy Spirit ;« and this consecration he 
 subsequently completed upon the cross with his own 
 blood ; because it became him for whom are all 
 things, and by whom are all things, in bringing 
 many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their 
 salvation perfect through sufferings:^ And, hence, 
 it is said, that neither by the blood of goats and 
 calves, but by his own blood, he entered in once into 
 th^ holy placed The assertion respectingthe blood of 
 the covenant sanctifying, must, therefore, be under- 
 stood ate refening, not to the apostate, but to Christ 
 who sanctified himself.® 
 
 Those who adduce the preceding passages of 
 Scripture, as evidence against the doctrine of final 
 perseverance, require to be reminded that an argu- 
 ment which proves too much, proves nothing. 
 According to their own principles, he who falls from 
 grace, has forsaken Christ. He has, therefore, 
 practically apostatised from the faith; and the 
 apostle's language as quoted in support of their 
 opinion, announces that it is impossible to renew 
 the apostate to repentance; so that he who falls 
 from grace, must perish forever. 
 
 To affirm that the case of those to whom the 
 apostle alludes, was peculiar, is assumption without 
 proof. These had crucified to themselves the Son 
 of God afresh, and put him to an open shame : they 
 
 ' Le>., viii, 30. 2 Acts, x, 38. s Heb , 'i, 10. 
 * Heb., ix, 12. « John, xvii, 19, 
 
 L 
 
^_¥:??r/i 
 
 OBJECnONS TO PBBSETESANCB CONSIDERED. 185 
 
 had trodden under foot the Som of God, counted 
 the blood of the cover ant wherewith he was sancti- 
 fied an unholj thing, and done despite to the Spirit 
 of grace. But doei not every person who sins wil- 
 fully, practicaUj do the same thing? The impos- 
 sibilitj of the repentance of apostates, the apostle 
 does not refer to their exclusion from divine grace, 
 but to their own rejection of the onlj means by 
 which grace is dispensed. By renouncing Christ, 
 tlieir case became hopeless; because no other sacri- 
 fice for siu has been provided; and no other ordi- 
 nance as means of repentance, by which thej could 
 be renewed, possess the sanction of God. But 
 apostacj does not invariably terminate in final re- 
 jection. Idolatrous Israel often apostatised; vet 
 Israel was not forsaken, nor Judah of his God, of 
 the Lord of hosts, though their land was filled with 
 sin against the Holy One of IsraeU Tlie interpos- 
 mg mercy of God reclaimed his apostates, and in- 
 duced them to say, What have I to do any mor^ 
 with Idols :^ and the same privilege belongs to 
 children of God: th'iy shall never perish. Others 
 who have displayed an equally promising appear- 
 ance, may apostatise and be lost ; but for this the 
 Scriptures assign a satisfactory reason: they ^.e- 
 longed not to the household of faith; and. hence, 
 an apostle has remarked respecting them. They 
 tvent out from us, but they were not of us; for if they 
 had been of us, they would no doubt have continued 
 ' ^^^-y li. 5. 2 Ho8., xiv, 8. 
 
 N 
 
166 • 
 
 DI8SEBTATI0K T. 
 
 
 with us: but they went out, that they might be made 
 manifest that they were not all ofus.^ 
 
 Rom., xiv, 13-21. Let us, therefore, not judge one 
 another any more: but judge this rather, that no man 
 put a stumbling block or an occasion to fall in his 
 brother's way. I know, and am persuaded by the 
 Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: 
 but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to 
 him it is unclean. But if thy brother be grieved unth 
 thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy 
 not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died. Let 
 not your good be evil spoken of. For the kingdom of 
 God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and 
 peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. For he that in 
 these things serveth Chrht, is acceptable to God, 
 and approved of men. Let us, therefore, follow after 
 the things which make for peace, and things where- 
 with one may edify another. For meat destroy not 
 the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but 
 it is evil for that man who eateth with offence. It is 
 good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any 
 thing tvhereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended^ 
 or is made weak. 
 
 1 Cor., viii, 7-13. Howbeit there is not in every 
 man that knowledge :for some with conscience of the 
 idol unto this hour, eat it as a thing offered unto an 
 idol; and their conscience being weak is defied. But 
 meat commendeth us not to God: for neither if we 
 eat, are we the better; neither if we eat not, are we 
 
 ' 1 John, ii, 19. 
 

 OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVEEANCE CONSIDERED. 187 
 
 the worse. But take heed lest by any means this 
 liberty of yours become a stumbling block to them that 
 are weak. For if any man see thee who hast know- 
 Udge. sit at meat in the idoFs temple; shall not the 
 conscience of him that is weak, be emboldened to eat 
 those things which are offered to idols ? And through 
 thy knowledge shaU the weak brother perish for whom 
 Christ diedf But when ye sin so against the breth- 
 ren, and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against 
 Christ. Wherefore, if meat make my brother to of- 
 fend, I will eat no flesh while the world standeih 
 lest I make my brother to of end. 
 
 The preceding passages of Scripture refer to the 
 duty which members of the Church, oossessing n 
 knowledge of their Christian liberty, owe to those 
 brethren who have not been equally emancipated 
 from their former prejudices and mistaken views. In 
 both, the apostle has su.<Tgested that the lawful pri- 
 vilege of the strong, ought not to be used to the 
 fnjury of the weak. Upon the supposed possible 
 extent of this injury, there has been advanced an 
 objection against the doctrine of persevtrance. 
 The terms destroy and perish in the preceding pas- 
 sages, have been adduced as denoting tha loss of an 
 interest in the salvation of the gospel. But that 
 our Lord should permit one member of his body 
 to effect the final destruction of another, is repug- 
 nant alike to the wiU of God, the engagements of 
 Christ, and the scriptural account of his mediator- 
 ial work. It is not the will of the Father of 
 
5*5^, 
 
 ': 
 
 ! 
 
 I 
 
 188 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 mercies, that any of those little ones who believe 
 in Christ, should be offended ; and much less, that 
 they should perish.^ Our Lord, also, has assured 
 them, that neither the heedlessness of friends, nor 
 the designing exertions of foes, shall tbTrsrt the 
 purpose of God. Unfeeling brethren may disre- 
 gard their weakness: but subservient to the will of 
 God and to the promise of Christ, divine power 
 will ever counteract whatever tends to exclude 
 them from salvation; and, henco, the declaration 
 of our Lord, I give unto them eternal life; and they 
 ahall never perish ; neither shall any pluck them out 
 of my hand. My Father who gave (hem me, is 
 greater than all; and none is able to pluck them out 
 of my Father's hnad * With this assurance of pro- 
 tection, our Lord's character and mediatorial work 
 alike accord. He has compassion on the ignorant, 
 and on them that are out of the way; ^ and, He shall 
 feed his jktck like a shepherd: he shall gather the 
 lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, 
 and shall gently lead those that are with young. * In 
 opposition to these plain statements of Scripture, 
 it is not a reasonable conclusion, that any mr iber 
 of the church should be permitted to effect tl j des- 
 truction of his weaker brethren. 
 
 That the apostle, in the passages under con- 
 sideration, anticipated no such result, the general 
 scope of his discourse sufficiently illustrates. In 
 
 > Mat., xviii, 6-14. 
 
 2 John, X, 28, 29, 
 ♦ Isa., xl, 11. 
 
 3 Hob , T, 2. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PER8BVBBAN0B CONSIDERED. 189 
 
 the first, he inculcates the dnty of self-denial, as 
 requisite in reference to those Jewish converts who 
 had not yet learned that every creature of God is 
 good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received 
 with thanksgiving} I know, says the apostle, and 
 am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing 
 unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing 
 to be unckan, to him it is unclean. But if thy 
 brother be grieved with thy meat, now wilketh thou 
 not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat for 
 whom Christ died. 
 
 Here, it must be remarked, that the death of 
 Christ is not adduced ii contrast with the final 
 destruction of the brother aggrieved, but with the 
 uncharitable walking of him by whom that brother 
 was offended. From affectionate regard for the 
 aggrieved brother, Christ had died; and the mem- 
 bers of the Church, instead of acting in opposition to 
 the design of his death, ought to exemplify the same 
 reciprocal attachment, by walking in love: Let us 
 therefore follow after the things which make for peace, 
 and things wherewith one may edify another. This 
 the apostle has enforced by two considerations. 
 He who in things indifferent disregards the con- 
 scientious scruples of his weaker brethren, injures 
 himself; for it is evil for that man who eateth with 
 qfefice. His conduct is a violation of brotherly 
 kindness, which subjects him to our Lord's disap- 
 probation and correction: TVhen ye sin so against 
 the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, ye 
 
 1 1 ai:_ 
 
1 
 
 
 m 
 
 !«><-• 
 
 II 
 
 I 
 
 It 
 
 1 J 
 
 190 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 sin against Christ. The aggrieved brother also is 
 injured ; because a stumbling block or occasion to 
 fall is placed in his way; and, therefore, the apostle 
 has added. It is good neither to eutfieshy nor to drink 
 wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, 
 or is offended, or is made weak. 
 
 Since, then, to be stumblod, offended, or made 
 weak, is by the apostle stated to be the amount of 
 the destruction inflicted ; the passage under consi- 
 deration ought not to be adduced as evidence 
 against the doctrine of perseverance. The same 
 remarft is applicable to the second passage, from 
 the first Epistle to the Corinthians. In the latter, 
 the apostle had observed, that those members of 
 the church who possessed knowledge uncombined 
 with the due exercise of charity, mignt, bj eating 
 things sacrificed to idols, induce their weaker bre- 
 thren to deviate from Christian purity: If any man 
 see thee who hast knowledge, sit at meat in the idoVs 
 temple, shall not the conscience of him who is weak 
 be emboldened to eat those things which are offered 
 to idols^ Indeed, that individual members of the 
 Corinthian church still adhered to this idolatrous 
 custom, appears from what the apostle had previ- 
 ously stated : For some with conscience of the idol 
 nnto this very hour, eat it as a thing offered unto an 
 idol. Thus, the liberty of some had become a 
 stumbling-block to others ; and the latter, being in- 
 duced to offend, had defiled their weak conscience. 
 Tlio apostle, t'lerefore, addressing the members of 
 

 ^M^ 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO PBRSEVEBAWCE CONSIDERED. 191 
 
 the church indiriduallj, has added. And through 
 thy knowledge shall the weak brot/ier perish, for whom 
 Christ died? 
 
 Bj these who reject the doctrine of perseverance, 
 
 undue importance has been attached to the preced- 
 
 ing term perish, as if it denoted a final separation 
 
 from Christ. But the apostle's language is merelj 
 
 an interrogation, bj which he asks the Corinthians 
 
 if any one of them would permit the knowledge 
 
 which puflFed him up, to oppose the grand end of 
 
 our Lord's death. Besides, the term which in this 
 
 passage has been translated/>gmA, not unfrequentlj 
 
 signifies merelj to be subjected to loss or trouble ; 
 
 and iu Scripture it is repeatedly used in this sense, 
 
 to denote the condition of those who, though they 
 
 have departed from the living God, are still the 
 
 objects of his afifectionate care, and shall never 
 
 perish. Hence, our Lord has stated respecting 
 
 himself, / am not sent, but unto the lost or perished 
 
 sheep of the house of Israel,^ and also. The Son of 
 
 man is come to seek and to save that which teas lost 
 
 or perished.2 
 
 Exek., xviii, 24. But, when V ". righteous turneth 
 aiciy from his righteousness, and committelh ini- 
 quity, and doeth according to all the abominations 
 that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his 
 righteousness that hs hath done shall not be mentioned: 
 in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his 
 sin tlat he hath sinned, in the,r> shall he die. 
 » Mat., XV, 24. 2 Luke, xix, 10. 
 

 192 
 
 DI88ERTATION V. 
 
 Ji 
 
 
 In reference to the preceding part of Scripture, 
 Whitbj has properlj remarked, that " God is here 
 asserting the righteousness of his ways against the 
 murmurings and the repinings of the Jews, that 
 thej died for their fathers' sins ; for tha* this was 
 the import of their proverb, The fathers have taten 
 sons grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edpe,^ 
 is evident from God's answer to this proverb, that 
 every one should die for his own iniquity, Jen, xxxi, 
 -9, 30, and to these murmurers that the soul th«t 
 sinneth, it shall die, Ezek., xviii, 3, 4. This sense 
 of the^e murmurers the prophet represents more 
 plamlj in these words, If ovr transgressions and our 
 sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how shall 
 we then live f eh. xxxiii, ver. 10.*'« 
 
 Whitbj^'s subsequent observations, however, are 
 less in accordance with the spirit of the passage 
 which he has attempted to explain. "Observe," 
 saje he, "that the righteous man here spoken of 
 is one truly righteous; for he is ops who sinneth 
 not, committeth not iniquity, and tumeth not away 
 from his righteousness ; one who walketh in God's 
 statutes, and keeps his judgments, yea, who walketh 
 in the statutes of If e without committing iniquity;^ 
 and, therefore, assuredly is one wno is truly and 
 inwardly righteous, an^' not in outward profession 
 only ; for, saith Dr. Prideaux, should he only turn 
 away from his counterfeit and hypocritical right- 
 eousness, should he not rather live than die, inas- 
 1 Ezek., xviii, 2. 2 p. 287. 3 Ezek., xxxiii, 15. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 193 
 
 much ac he would put oflF the wolf to put on the 
 lamb."» 
 
 But, since the Scriptures state that there is not a 
 just man upon earth that dveth good and sinneth not, 
 correct principles of exposition require, tliat the 
 freedom from sin expressed in tlie preceding scrip- 
 tural terms, be restricted to that exhibition of law 
 which the context announces, as connecting obe- 
 dience with life, and disobedience with death. Of 
 this obedience, God himself, in describing the char- 
 acter of the righteous m^n, has stated the amount, 
 m the foUowing terms: If a man be just, and do 
 what is lawful and right. And hath not eaten upon 
 the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the 
 idols if the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his 
 neighbours wife, neither hath come near to a men- 
 struous woman, And hath not oppressed any, but 
 hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled 
 none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, 
 and hath covered the naked with a f/arment. He that 
 hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath tahen 
 any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from ini 
 quiiy, hath executed true judgment between man and 
 man. Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my 
 judgments, to deal truly; he is just; he shall surely 
 li^^e, saith the Lord God.^ 
 
 From the preceding verses it appears, that the 
 righteousness mentioned in this part of Scripture, 
 consisted of external acts of submission to the au- 
 ' P. 288. 2 Ezek., xriii, 5-9. 
 
V 
 
 194 
 
 DI831RTATI05 T. 
 
 thoritj of God: And it ought to be kept in TJew, 
 that, according to the constitution of the Jewish 
 economy, long life and prosperity in the land of 
 Canaan, were promised to obedience ; but misery 
 and death, denounced against a contrary condnct 
 Even mere external compliance with the requisi- 
 tions of the law, received its reward. It is net, 
 therefore, necessary to conclude with Whitby, that 
 the character described in these verses, was in- 
 wardly righteous. When Paul was a blasphemer 
 and a persecutor; still, touching the righteousness 
 whiph is in the law, he was blameless.' With such 
 a declaration from an apostle, it is as little neces- 
 sary to suppose with Prideaux, that the righteous 
 man described in the preceding verses, if not in- 
 wardly righteous, must have been a counterfeit or 
 hypocrite. In the huinan constitution, there are 
 numerous principles which often produce the ex- 
 ternal performance of duty, where divine authority 
 is not recognised. There may, also, be a sincere 
 and scrupulous attention to the requisitions of the 
 law, where its spirit is not felt; and, hence, in 
 Scripture it is remarked of some, that, not from 
 love to God, but through fear of death, they made 
 themselves slaves in the work of obedience.* 
 
 But, farther, it was of temporal judgments a: 
 tending to the dissolution of the body, that Israel 
 complained: If our transgressions and our sins be 
 upon us; and ice pine away under them, how should 
 
 1 Phil., jii, 6. 
 
 ' iieb., ii, 15. 
 
0BJK0TI0M8 TO rERSBTiiRAirOB CONSIDERKD. 195 
 
 we then livef^ And, from the context, it does not 
 ^pear that anj other death was contained in the 
 denunciation of God. Respecting the wicked man 
 who turned from his wickedness, it is said, In his 
 nghteousmea that he hath done, he sfiall live:^ but 
 an apostle has oxplicitlj stated the utter impossi- 
 bilitj of obtaining acceptance with God and etor- 
 nal life upon the ground of obedience : By the deeds 
 oftU law there thall no flesh le justified in hit sight:^ 
 If there had been a law given, which could hate o'"'^en 
 life; verily, righteousness should have been by the law.* 
 The life promised to the man who turned from his 
 wickedness, must have therefore, referred solely 
 to the continuation of his present existence; and, 
 consequently, the death denounced against him 
 who turned from his righteousness, cannot be reas- 
 onably extended farther than the deprivation of na- 
 tural life, or exclusion from the blessings forfei+ed 
 by disobedience. 
 
 Bi t Whitby has farther observed, that "the 
 man who is here said to die, is said to die, not only 
 for, but in his iniquity, and to be taken away in his 
 iniquity; and so, must die not only temporally but 
 eternally."^ 
 
 T?un before it be admitted that the divine de- 
 nunciation included eternal death, the import of 
 the expression, dying in sin, or in iniquity, ought 
 to be ascertained. Upon this point, President 
 
 » Ezek., xxxiii, 10. = P:z.U.. xviii, 22. a Rom., iii. 20. 
 * Gal., iii, 21. ^ P. 288. 
 
n 
 
 ■f^- 
 ^ 
 
 196 
 
 DISSERTATION V. 
 
 Edwards has remarked, that "the godly themselves 
 were reallj exposed to die in their iniquity ; that is, 
 thej were liable to be destroyed by God's awful 
 judgments in this world. The prophet has a spe- 
 cial eye to those destroying judgments that God 
 had lately brought to the nation of the Jews ; which 
 are very much the subject of the prophecy, and 
 seem to have given occasion for it ; and which the 
 Jews had respect to in the proverb which they 
 used, and which gave occasion to what is said in 
 this chapter. If the sinner turned from his out- 
 ware^ wickedness unto an outward righteousness 
 only, he would save his soul alive, with regard to 
 those outward calamities ; and if the righteous fell 
 away outwardly, by committing some grievous sin, 
 and getting into a bad way,, they exposed them- 
 selves to die by this their iniquity in tliis manner."'* 
 Of the justness of the preceding observations, 
 the scriptural account of the divine government 
 contains ample proof. To some it might appear 
 hard to affirm, that Moses and Aaron died in their 
 sins : yet, turning from their righteousness at the 
 waters of Meribah, occasioned their death in the 
 wilderness. Through disbelief of the promise of 
 God respecting an entrance into the land of Ca- 
 naan, many of Israel also died in the wilderness: 
 but it is not necessary to suppose that either the 
 whole of these, or Moses and Aaron, were subject- 
 ed to eternal death. Our Lord, indeed, said to the 
 
 ' Vol. viii, p. 452. 
 
OBJECTIONS TO PERSEVERANCE CONSIDERED. 197 
 
 Jews, If ye believe not that lam he, ye shall die in 
 your sins; ' and, doubtless, in these words he de- 
 nounced a death in contrast with that life and ini- 
 mortalitj, which his gospel reveals. But the im- 
 port of the expression, dying in sin, as used in the 
 prophecies of Ezekiel, ought not to be deduced 
 from its use bj him who came to establish a spirit- 
 ual kingdom. Its meaning should be learned from 
 those, who, like that prophet, lived under tlio law 
 of a carnal commandment, and, being of the earth, 
 accommodated their expressions to earthly things : 
 And from the language of the Old Testament, it 
 appears to have referred solely to temporal death. 
 It can scarcely be supposed that the daughters of 
 Zelophehad considered their father as consigned to 
 everlasting destruction; yet, respecting him they 
 said. Our father died in the wilderness, and he uas 
 not in the company of them that gathered themselves 
 together against the Lord in the company ofKomh; 
 but he died in his own sin.- 
 
 Upon the whole, therefore, there is sufficient 
 ground for the conclusion, ihat the declaration of 
 God by Ezekiel refers simply to temporal deatli. 
 
 ' John, viii, 24. 
 
 Num., xxvii, 3. 
 
^■w 
 
 
 
■■ 
 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Ca) 5<a/€ of probation, precepts of the gospel, condition 
 of salvation, and similar forms of expression, are occa- 
 sionally nsed by individuals who profess the doctrines of 
 grace. These, perhaps, they consider themselves as em- 
 ploying in consistency with the statement of Scripture 
 respecting the plan of salvation, Ifb^ffrr^ce, then is it no 
 more of works; otherwise grace is no more grace} Bat, 
 in the n?3 of words, the meaning most apt to be attached 
 to them by those to whom they are addressed, should 
 ever be kept in view; and, considering the leanings of 
 human nature to the imaginary worth of its duties, it 
 merits the attention of the friends of the gospel, whether 
 modes of expression more accordant with its grace, might 
 not be more advantageously employed. For example, 
 Dr. Hill, in his Theological Lectures, has said, "Script 
 ture represents this life as a state of proba^on, upon 
 our conduct during which, our everlasting condition de- 
 pends." ^ If Calvinism be the doctrine of Scripture, it 
 ought not to be stated in Arminian terms. 
 
 The above mentioned forms of expression would seem 
 
 to imply that divine mercy is obtained, not without monev 
 
 and without price, but rather, in some respect, by a 
 
 covenant of works; a covenant by »vhich human conduct 
 
 ' Rom., xi, 6. 2 Vol. iii, p. 347. 
 
200 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 •Y : 
 
 is constituted the foundatioa of favour. But the cove- 
 nant of man's salvation la not an arrangement which 
 promises m-cy, upon condition of obedience to what 
 have been denominated the precepts of the gospel It is 
 the promise of an eternal life of which obedience is the 
 fruit. Of this life, the several degrees are received in 
 the order which God has prescribed; an order by which 
 the dispensation of life produces the performance of duty; 
 and, then, repeated communications of grace exciting to 
 farther obedience, form habits of holiness, and prepare 
 the obedient for additional favour. The gospel, as ''■•-- 
 tingvished from the law, contains no precept: it is a sys- 
 tem of unconditional mercy. Some precepts cf the law 
 enjoin the acceptance and improvement of the gospel, 
 and others require the acceptance and improvement of 
 providence; but neither do the former belong to the gos- 
 pel, nor the latter to providence. Both are constituent 
 portions of that moral system, which, as containing the 
 prescription of duty, has been denominated law; and, 
 therefore, the expression, /jrec<'/)^s of the gospel andjore- 
 cepts of providence, are alike incongruous. 
 
''rc%''*v:.' 
 
 201 
 
 DISSERTATION V*I. 
 
 ON THE ARGUMENTS PRODUCEP IN SUPPORT 
 OF UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION. 
 
 A^TABENT proofa of universal redemption— It involves discord- 
 ance between the benevolence of God in devising the plan 
 and his wisdom in executing it— To obviate thLi difficulty 
 It has been alleged, that those who know not the Gospel may 
 receive salvation-The terms world and aU used in reference 
 to Christ's satisfaction denote something else than universal 
 redemption—Used to counteract the prejudices of the Jews 
 respecting the extent of Christ's kingdom— Of these prtyu- 
 dioes the New Testament affords many illustrations-John 
 who used the terms all and vowld more frequently than any 
 other inspi^ writer, limits the mediatiou of Christ to a 
 part of the human race— Passages adduced in support of 
 umver?al redemption considered— 2 Cor., v, 14-16—1 Tim., 
 ii, 1-8—1 John, ii, 2— Heb., ii, 9— Rom., v, 18 ; 1 Cor! 
 XV. 32—2 Pet., iii, 9—2 Pet , ii, 1— Extent of the Gospel 
 call has occasioned an objection against particular redemp- 
 tion— Whitby in urging this objection has drawn a universal 
 conclusion from limited premises. 
 
 In the Scriptures it is stated, that God toill have 
 all men to be saved,^ that Christ gave himself a ran- 
 som for all* and that ke is the propitiation for the 
 Sins of the whole worlds To these and similar ex- 
 1 1 Tim., ii, 4. 2 I Tim., ii. 6. 31 John, ii, 2. 
 
■Kr. 
 
 r 
 
 I 
 
 H 
 
 
 -irr.-'W 
 
 ::&. 
 
 
 1 . igj t ii, _ i ] i ii « J i ij«-i i[»i. 
 
 ^MVPiP 
 
 202 
 
 nSSERTATION Tt. 
 
 pressioDB of Scripture, as denoting the extent of 
 dirine mercy to man, much importance has been 
 attached; and it must be admated, that, in eup- 
 port of the doctrine of universal redemption, they 
 present a striking appearance of proof. Besides, 
 the human mind, reasoning from the nature of God 
 to the nature of his operations, is apt to conclnde 
 that a redemption provided for all, being most ex- 
 tensively adapted to human necessity, must be also 
 most consistent with divine benevolence. But a 
 survey of the general providence of God abundantly 
 shotrs, that a deduction from whrt he is, to what 
 his benevolence will do, must at best be uncertain 
 conjecture. His judgments are a great deep ; and 
 reason, attempting to fathom it, labours in vain : 
 he destroys the wisdom of the wise, and brings to 
 nothing the understanding of the prudent.' 
 
 However much a universal redemption may seem 
 to accord with the benevolence of God ; if it do not 
 coincide with the actual arrangements of his wis- 
 dom for the dispensation of mercy, the doctrine 
 which aflSrmb it, ought not to be received as a scrip- 
 tural truth : And it must be remarked, that, upon 
 the principle of a redemption including the whole 
 human race, there is, between the benevolence of 
 God in the extent of his plan and the wisdom of 
 his arrangement for its execution, an unaccount- 
 able discordance. By divine appointment, salvation 
 is obtained through faith's acceptance of Christ; 
 
 ' 1 Cor., i, 19. 
 

 U)»iVER8AL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 203 
 
 but, urithout the exercise of this grace, there is uo 
 participation of the raercj of God : He that believ- 
 tth on the Son, hath everlasting life; and he hat 
 belteveth not the ^on, shall not see life ; h't (he wrath 
 of God abidelh upon him :^ And also, Whosoever 
 shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. 
 How then shall tl,ey call on him in whom they have 
 not believed? and how shall they believe in him of 
 whom they have not heard ? and how shall they hear 
 without a preacher ? And how shall they preach ex- 
 cept they be sent f . , , ^ So, then, faith com- 
 tth by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.'' 
 For those, therefore, who have not been favoured 
 with the Gospel, there is uo relief. 
 
 To obviate the preceding difficulty, the religious 
 state of the heathen has been often regarded with 
 more speculative charity than what the Scriptures 
 authorise; and, to prove that those excluded from 
 the know'edge of the Gospel may still obtain an 
 mterest in its grace, the language of Peter with 
 respect to Cornelius, lias been often quoted : Of a 
 truth, I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: 
 But, i.i every nation, he ihatfeareth him, and worh- 
 €th righteousness, is accepted ofhim.^ But the cha- 
 rity which contradicts divine truth, is no christian 
 grace. That view of the apostle's lauguage, also, 
 which represents him as adverting to what human 
 nature in a state of heathenism may become, is ut- 
 terly repugnant to the general tenor of Scripture. 
 
 John, iii, 36. 
 
 Rom.,!, 13-17. 3 Acts, X, 34, .35. 
 
%1 
 
 
 294 
 
 DISSERTATION TI. 
 
 ^11 
 
 Whei-e there is not that knowledge of the gracious 
 character of God, which his Gospel is designed to 
 communicate, there can exist neither love to him nor 
 the obedience of faith ; and divine truth states that 
 the heathen sit in darkness and in the shadow of 
 death, and, also, that against God their heart is 
 enmity : He showeth his too-rd unto Jacob, his sta- 
 tutes and his judgments unto Israel. He hath not 
 dealt so with anxf nation; and as for his judgments^ 
 they have not hnoum them.^ He, also, who was given 
 to he a light to tnlighten the Gentile^, has said, O 
 righteous Father, the world hath not I vwn thee .•* 
 And respe^-ting all who belong to the world, the 
 Father himself has declared that there is no fear of 
 God before their eyes.' The heathen, therefore, are 
 outcasts from God,* or, as their state is represent- 
 ed by an apo&tle, thej are without Chi-ist, having no 
 hope, and without God in the world. -^ anl, hence, 
 though Cornelius, as a Jewish proselyte might 
 know and obey tlie truth ; as a heathen, he could 
 be neither a fearer of God nor a worker of righte- 
 ousness. 
 
 Taking into account, then, that every individual 
 of the human race has not been favoured with a re- 
 velation of mercy ; the terms world and all, when 
 used in Scripture in reference to the extent of our 
 Lord's satisfaction, must denote something else 
 than a universal redemption. Upon this topic, the 
 
 ' Ps . cxlvii, 19 20. 2 John, xvii. 25. » Rom., iii, 18. 
 * Mai., xviii, 1 7. 5 Ephes., ii, 12. 
 
UHITTJBSAL REDIMPTIOfi W8PB0TED. 205 
 
 ■abjoined extract from l»rincipa! HilPs Theological 
 Lectnrea, merits consideration : " I refer at pre- 
 sent onlj to John. vi. where our Lord sajs repiat- 
 edlj, that he gave his life for the world ; and where 
 he speaks aiso of those whom the Father hath riven 
 him. Tfu bread of God is he who comsth doum 
 ^om heaven, and giveth life unto the world. The 
 bread that T will give is my flesh, which I will aire 
 for the lye of the world. All that the Father giveth 
 me, shall come to me. This ie the Father's will that 
 of aU whtch he hath given me, I should lose nothing 
 but should raise it up again at the last day. Here 
 are tho doctrines of particular and universal re* 
 demption seeminglj taught in the same discourse 
 The expressions of the one kind must be employed 
 to qualify the expressions of the other kind ; and it 
 cannot be said that we pervert Scripture, when, ad- 
 hering to the particular destination of savii those 
 who shall be saved, which reason teaches! and 
 Christ declares, we give the other expressions such 
 an interpretation, as renders them consistent with 
 that destination. ^ 
 
 That the terms world and all, when employed 
 in Scnpture to denote the extent of redemption 
 were not intended to include every individual of 
 the human race, but to counteract the selfish no- 
 tions of the Jews respecting the extent of the 
 Messiah's kingdom, and to assure the Gentiles 
 upon the same point, will appear from the follow, 
 ing remarks. 
 
 1 xr„l 
 
 •I 1' 
 
'hT-: 
 
 DISSEUTATIOH TI. 
 
 ' J 'j the termination of tho Babylonish captintj, 
 the Jews r'»turned from the land of graven images^ 
 with an abhorrencu of idolatrj and with a just con- 
 ception of their own character as a holy teed ;^ that 
 IS, as a people separated from other nations, and* 
 consecrated to the service of God. Subsequently, 
 also, they were noted for a rigid attachment to the 
 forms of their religion ; and, finally, their eager- 
 ness for external perfection produced a mass of 
 traditionary commandments of men, which dis- 
 placed the law of God, and reduced the religion of 
 the gVater oart of the nation, to what our Lord 
 has denominated the righteousnes? of the scribes 
 and Pharisees. By those means, tiiey acquired an 
 overweening opinion of their own worth, and an 
 equal contempt for every other section of the hu- 
 man race. 1 hey trusted in themselres that they were 
 righteous, and despised others.^ Being, thus, in 
 their own opinion, meritoriou<« dpsc*»ndants of tho 
 father of the faithful, they regarded themselves as 
 the sole objects of divine appi obation ; and, upon 
 this ground, expecting the favour of God y means 
 of the Messiah, they assigned to him the task of 
 subjecting to their authority the heathen world. 
 Of a Messiah who would dispense either spiritual 
 blessings to themselves, or favour of any kind to 
 the world at large, they hr\d formed no just con- 
 ception. 
 
 With the preceding view of the Jewish nation, 
 ' Ezra, ix, 2. * Luke, xviii, 9. 
 
UNITERSAL RBDUfPTIOV DMPROVBD. 207 
 
 th» mhiMtrationg of the Baptist accords. His was 
 * mission to prepare the waj of the Lord ; and its 
 duties he discharged, bj opposing thepreconceired 
 notions and prejudices of the Jews. Accordingly, 
 he reprobated their expectation of divine favour 
 upon the ground of lineal descent. Think not to 
 u>Uhtn your elves, We have Abraham fo our father - 
 MI say muo you, that God i, abUof these ,toJ$ 
 to raue up chiUren unto Ahraha.n,^ His delinea- 
 tion of the Messiah's character, also, formed a 
 striking contrast with Jewish eip tation and 
 monopolj : it was an exhibition of Christ as the 
 dispenser of spiritual favour, and one in whom all 
 tne families of the earth shouM be blessed : Behold 
 the Lamb (^ iod whiek takeih away ihe sin of the 
 world.'' ^ 
 
 Against the preceding prejudices of the Jews 
 the ministrations of our Lord also were particularly 
 directed. It has been alroa<lj re narked, that these 
 accounted themselves to be. bj lineal descent, the 
 children of that kingdom which thej expected the 
 Messiah to establish. Hence, in reply to our Lord 
 announcing to them liberty through belief of the 
 tru h. they referred to their privilege. We be Abra- 
 ham's seed, and ner>er were in bondage to any man • 
 how sayest thou, ye shall be made free / « He, there- 
 fore, showed them tliat their want of faith 'and its 
 Iruits, efficiently indicated their want of connex- 
 ion with the father of the faithful:* Ij ye were 
 »Mat.,iii,9. 2 John, i, 29. ^ John, vui, 33. 
 
„: r .. 
 
 r—i 
 
 m' 
 
 : Twyi 
 
 ', 
 
 I' 
 
 DISSSRTATIOir TI. 
 
 Abraham'' $ ehMren, ye wauid do the works of Ahrahmm '^^ 
 And, like the Baptist, he tart^ht them, that, thoogh 
 thej shoald be rejected, the isther of the faithful 
 Wv lid itill have children : / »ay unto you, that many 
 shall come from the eaet and wett^ and shall rt dottn witfi 
 Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of 
 heaven. BtU thi children of the kingdom shall be cast 
 out into outer darkness.* Nor did he conceal from 
 them, that those whom thej defipised and a(;count- 
 ed no people,^ would become the partakers of his 
 grace: Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold ; 
 them also I must bring ; and they shall hear hty voic , and 
 there shall be onefold and one shepherd.* 
 
 Thus, both the preparatory mission of the Bap- 
 tist and the subsaquent ministrations of Christ, 
 opposed the prejudices of the Jews, and rerealed 
 the extending of the blessing of Abraham to Gen- 
 tile nations. 
 
 Upon this subject, our Lord's discourse to Nico- 
 demus presents additional evidence. Having state(» 
 the necessity of regeneration eren in those who 
 accounted themselves the children of the kingdom, 
 he further observed, If I have told you earthly things ; 
 and ye believe not : how shall ye believe if I tell you of 
 hexivenly things ?' Here, it must be observed, that, as 
 in Scripture the term earth is used to denc^. the 
 Jewish nation as a political body ;« our Loid, len- 
 der the expression earthly things, alludes to what he 
 
 ' John, viii, 39. * Mat , viii, 11, 12. »Rora., viii, 19. 
 
 *John, X, 16. * John, iii, 12. • Heb., xii, 26. 
 
nwiviRSAL Rinifpnoir oiipbovid. 209 
 
 hM preriouslj stated to Vicodemus re»pecting th« 
 necwsitj of regeneration. That this is its import, 
 appears ft-om the mode of expression employed bj 
 the Baplist in a subsequent part of the ch*ipter ; in 
 which he gives an account of himself as a member 
 of that bodj, and of his ministrations as referring 
 «olelj to the Jews. Contrasting himself with the 
 Messiah, he has said. He t',at » of the earth, is 
 earthy, andspeaketh of the earth : he that cometh from 
 heaven, i, above aU ; and what he hath $een and heard, 
 that he testiftetii.^ By heavenly thing,, therefore, our 
 Lord, m testifying what he had seen and heard, 
 denoted things relafng to the heavenly kingdom 
 which he came to establish: And that he had par- 
 ticularly in -'ew the introduction of the GentUes 
 into his kingdom, a doctrine to Nicodemus still more 
 incredible than that which inculcated tne necessity 
 of Jewish regeneration, is evident f;->m his subse- 
 quent instructions : At> Moses, for the benefit nf the 
 peonl« of Israel, lifjd up the serpent in tlie wilderness , 
 ^•ven so, must the Son of man be lifted up ; That whoso- 
 ever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlast- 
 ing life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his 
 only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, whe- 
 ther Jew or Gentile, should not perish, but have ever- 
 lasting life* The preceding statements of Christ, 
 as announcing the love of God to the world, inclu- 
 sive of every individual of the human race, are 
 not consistent with the limited propagation of the 
 
 1T_1 ••• —- 
 
 // 
 
 
 'John, iu. 81, 32. 
 
 *John. iii, U-16. 
 
210 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 gospel ; but, as denoting the extension of grace to 
 the heathen, they exactly accord with the incredulitj 
 originating in the preconceived notions, hich our 
 Lord ha? as'-ibed to Nicodemus in these words, 
 Hoir s: relieve, if I wU you of heavenly things? 
 
 And the , .Iso, iccord with that universal incre- 
 dulity which the Baptist has ascribed to the Jews : 
 He that Cometh from heaven, is above all: And ivhat he 
 hath seen and heard, that he testifieth ; and no man re- 
 ceivrth his testimony, 
 
 Of this inveterate prejudice of the Jews in favour 
 of tkieir own nation, the Now Testament contains 
 numerous illustrations. The apostles themselves, 
 though favoured with both the public and private 
 instructions of Christ, so little understood the 
 gospel as a doctrine designed fnr all nations, that, 
 even after his resurrection, their views of ins king' 
 dom were still restricted to the glories of a tempo- 
 ral reign, in accordance with Jewish prejudices: 
 They asked him, saying, WHt thou at this time restore 
 of/ain the hin,jdom to hrneH^ Nor does it appear that 
 the gift of the Holy Ghost upon the day of Tente- 
 cost, though it qualified them to publish the tidings 
 of salvation, either removed their prejudice against 
 the Gentiles, or enabled them to perceive the ex- 
 tent of their own apostolic commission. A vision 
 was requisite to induce Peter to visit Cornelius, 
 nor were other ministers of Christ more enlighten- 
 ed, or more charitable; for they u-ho were scattered 
 
 ^ Acts, i, 6. 
 
GNIVERSAL HEDEMFTION DISPROVED. 211 
 
 ibioad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen, 
 traveUed as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, 
 preaching the word to none but Jews only} When Peter 
 also, returned from Cornelins, they that were of the 
 circumcision, contended with him, Saying, Thou wentest 
 into mm uncircumcised, and didst eat ui/h them :> And 
 when his defence convinced them that God had 
 opened to all nations the door of faith, thej spoke 
 of It as an event altogether unexpected : Then hath 
 God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto llfe.^ 
 
 But, farther, the same bitter and exclusive spirit 
 still more stronglj actuated the unbelieving part 
 of the Jewish nation. While their preconceived 
 notions respecting tlie character of the Messiah, 
 mduced them to reject a crucified Saviour ; their 
 hatred of the Gentiles displayed itself in enmity 
 against the go.pel, as extending to the heathen the 
 blessing of Abraham. That this hostility should 
 occur, an apostle has stated as an event of ancient 
 prediction: Moses saith, I will provoke you to jeMusy 
 by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will 
 anger yo.:* And the truth of the preceding pro- 
 phecy, the same apostle's experience amply proved. 
 Of the diversified afflictions which he suffered,' 
 perils from his own countrymen were not the least • 
 and, tnat these perils originated in the discharge 
 of his duty as the apostle of the Gentiles, there is 
 abundant evidence. When he stated to his un- 
 
 ' Acta, xi, 19. 
 
 2 Acts, xi, 2, 3. 
 *Kom., X. 10. 
 
 ^ Acts, xi, 18. 
 
212 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 ¥ 
 
 I 
 
 4 
 
 believing brethren at Jerusalem the manner of his 
 convertion, they gave him audience: but, when he 
 farther informed them of his call to the apostleship 
 of the Gentiles, they lifted up iheir voices, and mid. 
 Away ivith such a felloto from the earth; for it is not fit 
 that he should live. And they cried out, and cast off their 
 clothes, and threw dust into the air.^ 
 
 The same apostle, in detailing his sufferings for 
 the sake of the gospel, has also said. Of the Jews, 
 Jice times received I forty stripes save one:^ And the 
 continuance of life he owed, not to the cessation of 
 enmitj on the part of his kinsmen according to *-ie 
 flesh, but to the protection of an overruling provi- 
 dence. 1 hat Jewish hostility against the commu- 
 nication of the gospel to the Gentiles, subjected 
 other ministers of Christ to similar opposition, ap- 
 pears from this apostle's language to the Thessa- 
 lonian church : Ye, brethren, became followers of the 
 churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus: for 
 ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, 
 even as they have of the Jews: Who both killed the Lord 
 Jesus and their own prophets, and have persecuted us ; 
 and they please not God, and are contrary to all men; 
 Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles, that they might be 
 saved. ^ 
 
 From the preceding remarks it is evident, that 
 Jewish enmitj was not more directed against a 
 crucified Saviour, than against the extension of 
 mercy to the heathen world ; and it would be won- 
 ' Acts, xxii, 21, 22. ^ 2 Cor., xi, 14. ' 1 Thes., ii. 14, 16 
 
CKITIBSil MDEkPTION DUPKOVED. 213 
 
 oh„,w_ doctrine, preaching amidst contradicting 
 
 go pel plan. It might rather be expected, that, 
 ert^L r""" ''""' ""^^ """ P'cminenti; 
 Jcnn. He u t/,e propmalion for our .im; and n„tfor 
 our, only, but also for the sins of lie wMe u-orU.' Had 
 the attenfon of the friends of the gospel been as 
 much directed to Jewish enmi., against the hea 
 
 t2r,r l\ '^ "•>"""'"' "' «"■"»' "PO" the 
 grounds of Ks crncifirion and the spirituality of 
 
 alrt-^r- '^"^ "°""' P''""?'' l-ave less fre- 
 quentlj adverted to the terms world and »;/ as 
 
 prools of the doctrine of universal redemption. ' 
 
 With resnect to the extent of the love of God 
 and of the mediation of Chris, the terms J« a, d 
 < are, m no other section of scripture, so fre 
 quently used, as in ,he writings of the apost e 1 „ - 
 jet h., view of the design of our Lord's death as a 
 Lte 7a guilt, does not accord with the dL 
 trme of a universal redemption. In one of his 
 ^Utements upon this subject, he has said. AndZ 
 oj ««.. »a. , Caiapkas, Mng tke UgH priest thai san- 
 y^^sa^d untoj,^, y, ,„„„ ^^,„^ ^ ^„ ^^ - 
 
 fal U « e^peduntfor us, tHa, „„. „„ „,^,^ ,.^ 
 peo^e, and O^ tke wHoie nation peri,>. not: AndtkuL 
 'P'-ke, not of ,,i„setf <^,. iein,, ,,g^ prUs. ,.at ye^r, L 
 
 ' 1 John, ii, 2. 
 
 ii 
 il 
 
2M 
 
 DI8SEP.T4TI0N TI. 
 
 prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation: And not 
 for that nation only, hn: that also he should yather to- 
 gether in one the "hildren of dud that were scattered 
 abroad.^ Here, bj the phrase, children of God, the 
 apostle cannot mean the lispersed of Israel ; for 
 that would, 'u other words, be to restri(;t the results 
 of the dodth of Christ to the Jews. It must, there- 
 fore, refer to the Gentiles, who should be afterward 
 received into the family of God, according to the 
 declaration of Clirist, (Jther sheep have I which are not 
 of this fold : them also I must bring ;* and it is ex- 
 pressed by an apostle, That^ in the dispensation of the 
 fulvess of time, he might gather together in one all things 
 in Christ. ^ 
 
 In opposition to statements so plainly limiting 
 the mediation of Christ to a part of the human 
 race, it cannot be reasonably affirmed, that, in the 
 writings of this apostle at least, the terms vorld 
 and all, in reference to the extent of redemption, 
 prove it to be universal. Upon other parts of Scrip- 
 ture, the subjoined observations will further show 
 that they have been, in n) instance, employed for 
 the purpose of stating that doctrine. 
 
 2 Cor,, 5, 14-16. For the love of Christ constrain- 
 eth us; because ice thus Judge, that if one died for all, then 
 were all dead : And that he died for all, that they who live, 
 should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto i. Im who 
 died for them, and rose again. Wherefore, henceforth 
 know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known 
 
 'John, xi, 49, 52. sjohn, x, IC. SEph., i, 10. 
 
 31 
 
UNIVEHSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 215 
 
 Christ after the flesh ; yet, now henceforth, know ue him 
 no more. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new 
 creature: old things are passed away; behold, all thirys 
 are become new : And all things are of God, who hath re- 
 conctled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to 
 us the ministry of reconciliation ; To wit, that God was in 
 Chnst, reconciling the uorld unto himself 
 
 With respect to the import of the expression, re- 
 concdtng the world, it is sufficient to .-emarJc, that in 
 the Epistle to the Romans, it is explained as're- 
 fernng, not to a reconciliation established between 
 God and every individual of the human race, but 
 to the introduction of the Gentiles into the king- 
 dom of Christ: For I speak unto the Gentiles, inasmuch 
 a. lam the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office; 
 If by any means I may provoke to emvlatitn them who 
 are my flesh, and might save them. For zf the casting 
 away of them be the reconciling of the world, etc i 
 
 With the preceding view of the meaning of the 
 term world, the general tenor of the verses under 
 consideration exactly accord. The apostle, ad- 
 verting to nimself and other ministers of the gospel 
 said, We thus Judge, that if one died for all, then 
 u^ere all dead: And that he died for all, that they who 
 live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto 
 htm who died for them and rose again: And, then, he 
 has shown how he and other ministers actually 
 lived. In their ministrations, thej recognised n'o 
 difference between Jew and Gentile : Henceforth, 
 '' Rom., xi, 13, 15. 
 
i 
 
 216 
 
 DIS8BRTATI0M VI. 
 
 know we no man after the flesJ' It is evident, there- 
 fore, that, in the preceding verses, the apo!>tle did 
 not allude to the death of Christ, aa a provision of 
 raercy for every individual of mankind, but as bear- 
 ing upon the interest of the Jews and the Gentile 
 nations without disti .ction. 
 
 The apostle has farther stated, that not only in 
 apostles, but also in Jews and Gentiles alike, re- 
 generation tends to remove prejudice and its anti- 
 pathies, and to implant in the human mind univer- 
 sal benevolence : If any man be in Christ, he is a new 
 creature : old things are passed away : behold all things are 
 become new. This change he has ascribed to God, 
 who when even the apostles themselves under the 
 iuflueuco of Jewish prejudice, accounted it unlawful 
 for a man that is a Jew to keep company or come ante 
 one of another nation, taught them the extent of 
 the gospel plan, and committed to them the minis- 
 try of reconciliation ; To wit that God was in Christ, 
 reconciling the world or tho Gentiles to himself That 
 this is the nature of the reconciliation here men- 
 tioned, has been already shown from the same 
 apostle's statement in his epistle to the Romans ; 
 and his epistle to the Ephesians furnishes an addi- 
 tional ^illustration of the same point. But now in 
 Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off^ are made nigh 
 by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath 
 made both one, and broken down the middle wall of par- 
 tition between us ; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, 
 even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, 
 
UNIVERSAI, REDEMPTION DISPflOTED. 217 
 
 for to make in himself of twain one new man, so makiny 
 peace; and Viat he might reconcile both unto God in onr 
 body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby; and 
 came, and preached peace to you who were far off, and 
 to tliern that were nigh, i 
 
 From these remarks it is evident, that, as this 
 reconciliation is through the preaching of peace it 
 cannot include those who liavo not been favoured 
 W)th the gospel; and it is no less evident, that the 
 all for whom Christ died, are not mankind individu- 
 aUj, but everj nation whether Jewish or Gentile. 
 
 1 Tim., ii, 1-8. I ezhort, therefore, that, first of all, 
 supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, 
 be made for all men ; for kings and for all thatare in 
 authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in 
 all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable 
 m the sight of God our Saviour; who will have all men to 
 be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 
 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and 
 men, the man Christ Jesus; who gave himself a ransom 
 for all, to be testified in due time. Whereunto I am or- 
 dained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in 
 Christ, and lie not,) a teacher of the Genres in faith and 
 verity. I will, therefore, that men pray everywhere, lift- 
 ing up holy hands without wrath and doubting. 
 
 In order to ascertain the general import of uhese 
 verses, it maj be useful to observe what the apostle 
 had previously stated. 
 
 In the fourth verse of the preceding chapter, he 
 
 ^ Epli., ii, 13-17. 
 P 
 
318 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 had directed Timothy to prohibit teachers in the 
 Ephesian church, from giving heed to fables and end- 
 Jess genealogies, which minister questions, rather than 
 i,odlt/ edifying which is in faith. Tliat, in these WOrds, 
 he alludes to the contracted and selfish opinions of 
 the Jews, respecting the value of their descent, 
 and the importance of the ceremonial law, appears 
 not only from the subsequent verses, but also from 
 the subjoined instructions of the same import, 
 which he delivered to Titus : Avoid foolish questions, 
 and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the 
 law ; for they are unprofitable and vain. ' Many of the 
 converts from Judaism, could not brook equally 
 with those whom they had been accustomed to stig- 
 matise as sinners of the Gentiles. ■'■ They regarded 
 them, rather as a subordinate race who might ob- 
 tain salvation, by attaching themselves to the people 
 oflsrael, submittingtocircomcision.andobeyingthe 
 ceremonial law. In the subsequent verses, there- 
 fore, the apostle proceeded to show, that such selfish 
 views and feelings are alike repugnant to law and 
 gospe' : Note, the end of the commandment is charity ; 
 and this end of the commandment or charge he has 
 farther represented, as according to the glorious gospel 
 of the blessed God.* Of the charity of the gospel, he 
 has next adduced himself as an example ; and, then, 
 announced that the gospel has been provided for 
 the ery characters that Judaizing converts affected 
 
 1 Tit., iii, 9. 
 
 2 Gal., ii, 15. 
 * 1 Tim., i, 1 1. 
 
 3 1 Tim., i, 6. 
 
UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION DlbPROVED. 
 
 >) 
 
 w 
 
 to despise : This is a faithful .aying, and worthy of all 
 uccepUition, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save 
 sinners. Having, thus, in those words, employed 
 the terms world and sinners in a latitude opposed to 
 Jewish bigotry, he drew the conclusion contained 
 in the first of the verses under consideration: 
 lejchort, therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, 
 intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men. 
 This exhortation he lias far'Jier enforced upon the 
 additional grounds, that God will have all men to be 
 saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth, and 
 that Christ gave himself a ransom fur all. 
 
 Respecting the preceding apostolic assertions it 
 maj be remarked, that the first, as a proof of uni- 
 versal redemption, is altogether inadmissible. 
 When it is said that God will have all men to be 
 saved, and to come unto the knowledge of t. truth , 
 it is evident, th^t, with respect to their salvation 
 and their knowledge of the truth, his will must be 
 of equal extent. But, as he has permitted many 
 to continue in the ignorance of heathenism, of 
 these, at least, it cannot be logically aflSrmed that 
 he has willed their salvation. The terms, oilmen, 
 therefore, ought to bo taken in connection with 
 what the apostle had previously stated respecting 
 Jews i,nd Gentiles, as constituting distinct sections 
 of mankind, but, as also ^being in relation to the 
 gospel one whole or all. This view of the will of 
 God respecting the salvation of all men, accords 
 
 > 1 Tim., i, 15. 
 
220 
 
 
 
 DISSERTATION VI, 
 
 with tho actual extenpion of the gospel to the 
 heathen; and it also accounts for the Apostle's 
 statement in tho subsequent verse. Though there 
 are Jews and Gentiles, equally needing salvation ; 
 there is common to both but one God who has willed 
 it, and but one mediator bj whom it is dispensed. 
 The preceding view of the apostle's language de- 
 rives additional confirmation from his subjoined 
 statement respecting the satisfaction of Christ: 
 IVho gave himself a ransom for all, to he testified in 
 due time. Here, it must be observed, that the as- 
 sertion, Christ gave himself a ransom for all, is 
 represented as a truth which had been formerly 
 unknown, but was to be testified in due time. By 
 this expression, the apostle evidently alludes to the 
 revelation of our Lord as a ransom for the heathen ; 
 a mystery which had been hid from ages and from 
 generations;^ or, as it is expressed in the Ef tie 
 to the Ephesians, The mystery of Christ, which in 
 other ages was not made known unto the sons of 
 men, as it is now revealed unto the holy apostles and 
 prophets by the Spirit; That the Gentiles should be 
 fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of 
 his promise in Christ by the gospel. - They all, there- 
 fore, for whom Christ gave himself a ra':som, are 
 not the whole human race, but the Jews and Gen- 
 tile nations collectively, to whom a conjunct inte- 
 rest in the satisfaction for sin, was in due time to 
 be testified. 
 
 1 Col., i, 26. 
 
 Eph., iii, 4-6. 
 
UNIVERSAL RBD'^MPTIOX DISPROVED. 221 
 
 That th'" is the import of the apostle's state- 
 ment, is farther apparent from the subsequent 
 verse: W hereunto I am ordainec a p'^acher and 
 an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ and lie not), 
 a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity. The 
 opposition of the Jews to the calling of the Gentiles, 
 of course, became op^^jsition to those by whom 
 that doctrine was taught They forbade the 
 preaching of the gospel beyond their own nation ; i 
 and, when it was communicated to the Gentiles, 
 they spake against it, contradicting and blasphem- 
 ing.^ As this apostle, therefore, had been p:.rti- 
 cularly designated to preach among the Gentiles the 
 unsearchable -iches of Christ, and to make all men 
 see what is the fellowship ofthj mystery which from 
 the beginning of the world had been hid in God,^ he 
 became the principal object of Jewish hostility ; 
 and the contradiction with which he was met ren- 
 dered it necessary, that, in teaching this doctrine, 
 he should vindicate his office. On this account, 
 his writings contain numerous references to his 
 apostolic call in relation to the Gentiles. Of this, 
 the passage under consideration presents an ex- 
 ample. Having stated that Christ, as a ransom 
 for Jew and Gentile alike, was to be testified in 
 due time, he has, with strong asseveration, asserted 
 his own appointment to disclose to the latter that 
 glorious mystery : Whereunto I am ordained a 
 preache- and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ 
 ' 1 Thess., ii, 16. 2 Acts, xiii, 45. 3 Eph., iii, 8, 9. 
 
0'}0 
 
 DISSEnTATION TI. 
 
 
 ! 
 
 
 fi'^ 
 
 Si 
 
 and lie /tot. J But, as if the precedinjr assertion 
 had not been sufficiently strong, he has added, A 
 teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity; that ia, 
 with respect to both liis office and tho gospel, he 
 taught them upon the ground of divine authority, 
 and he taught them the truth. With tliis personal 
 faith in the reaMty of his appointment to the 
 apostleship of the Gentiles, also, he has, in the sub- 
 sequent verse, exercised .sis apostolic power in re- 
 lation to what was testified in duo time : / will, 
 therefore, that men pray every where, lifting tip holy 
 han(is, without wrath or doubting; that is, since 
 Christ has given himself a an.som for Gentiles as 
 well as Jews, and since God hc*s willed them both 
 to be saved, prayer should be made for all ; and, 
 that this duty might be performed with a spirit 
 becoming the b^^nevolenee of the gospel, there 
 ought, on the part of the Jews, to be no wrath 
 against the calling of the Gentiles; and on tue part 
 of the Gentiles, no doubting with respect to the va- 
 lidity of their call lO participate in the blessing of 
 Abraham, according to the promise of God, In thee 
 and in *hy seed shall all the families of the earth he 
 blessed. * 
 
 Upon the whole, then, as it cannot be reasonably 
 supposed that God would accept a ransom for 
 every ind dual of the human race, and yet for 
 ages exclude the greater part from its benefits ; or, 
 that he would will all to come to the knowledge of 
 the truth as the means of their salvation, and, yet 
 ^ Gen., xxviii, 14. 
 
UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 223 
 
 retain^ that knowledge a hidden mystery from any ; 
 the verses under consideration' cannot hav* been 
 designed to represent either the will of God or the 
 satisfaction of Christ, as evincing the doctrine of a 
 universal redemption. They ought, therefore, to 
 be viewed as referring, not to every individual of the 
 human race, but to all nations. Thus, they har- 
 monize with tlie general scope of the apostle'^ dis- 
 course, and also with tha will of God, as it haB 
 been displayed in the execution of his plan for the 
 diffusion of the gospel. 
 
 1 John, ii, 2, And he is the propitiation for our 
 sins ; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of 
 the whole world. 
 
 From the seventh verse of this chapter it ap- 
 pears, that this epistle was addressed to Hebrew 
 convert**, and consequently, to persons who had felt 
 the influence of Jewish prejudice, against the e* 
 tension of the privileges of the Messiah's king- 
 dom to heathen nations. On this account, even 
 M*Knight, an avowed advocate of uni^ jrsal redemp- 
 tion, admits, that, in the passage under considera- 
 tion, the term world denotes the Gentiles as con- 
 tradistingTMshed from the people of Israel. In this 
 point of view, then, Christ must be the propitiation 
 for the sins of the wliolo world, in the same sense 
 as he gave himself a ransom for all. This remark 
 applies, also, to those declarations of our Lord, in 
 which he has stated that God loved the world} that 
 
 * John, iii, 16. 
 
294 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 
 f 
 
 lie himF^lf came to save the tcorld,^ that he wonM 
 give hisjleshfor the life of the world,^ and that he 
 giveth life unto the world.^ That he employed these 
 expressions, not in reference to every individual of 
 mankind, but to the human race collectively, as 
 including Jews and Gentiles alike, he has himself 
 furnished conclusive evidence. It is not a snppos- 
 able case, that he would take no interest in persons 
 whom Grod loved, and for whom he himself laid 
 down bis life ; yet he has eaid, I pray not for the 
 world, but for them whom thou hast given me:* and 
 it cannot be truly affirmed, that oar Lord's inter- 
 cessibn referred to believers only. It included all 
 whom the Father had given him; all who, at that 
 time believed, and all who should be afterward 
 introduced into the household of %ith: Neither 
 pray I for these alone, but for them also who shall 
 believe on me through their ivord.^ 
 
 Thus, the world for which Christ did not pray, 
 stands in contrast with that whole -vorld for whose 
 sins he is the propitiation ; and, consequently, the 
 last cannot include every individual of the human 
 race : its reference must be to men of all nations. 
 Accordingly, of some he has said, / lay down m^ 
 life for the sheep i^ but of others, ye are not my 
 sheep :'^ and it ought not to be affirmed that the 
 want of faith in the latter, is the ground of his de- 
 claration respecting them ; for he has stated, that 
 
 ' John, xii, 47. - John, vi, 61. » John, vi, 3S. * John, xvii, 8. 
 ^ John, xvii, 20. « John, x, 15. ? John, x, 26. 
 
I 
 
 UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 225 
 
 ihejwere destitute of faith, because they did not 
 belong to that class for which he laid down his life : 
 ye believe not, because ye are not my sheep ^ Besides, 
 he has acknowledged as his sheep individuals of 
 heathen nations, bj whom he was not even known : 
 other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them 
 also I must bring :^ and, though he would not pray 
 for the world, for these his intercessory prayer was 
 made. 
 
 It must be, also, farther remarked, that the pro- 
 mise to Abraham, that he should be heir of the 
 world,' was made also to Christ as his seed. To 
 our Lord it was promised, that he should receive 
 the heathen for his inheritance ; and, on this account, 
 he IS denominated the Saviour of the world. Since, 
 then, the promise to both is to the same extent, 
 the amount of Abraham's inheritciuce wiU show in 
 what respect Christ is the heir of the world: and 
 the promise to Abraham was, that he should be the 
 father, not of the whole race, but of the faithful, 
 whether Jew or Gentile: He received the sign of 
 circumcision, a seal of righteousness of the faith 
 which he had, yet being uncircumcised - that he 
 might be the father of all them that believe, though 
 they be not circumcised; that righteousness might 
 be imputed to them also : and the father of cir- 
 cumcision to them who are not of the circumcision 
 only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of 
 our father Abraham, which he had, being yetuncir- 
 
 » John, X, 26. 2 John x, 1 6. 3 Kom., iv, 13. 
 
226 
 
 DISSERTATION YI. 
 
 cumcised} These, therefore, are the inheritance 
 which our Lord purchased with his own blood ; and 
 hence, the complete salvation of those who believe, 
 is termed the redemption of the purchased posses- 
 sion. Since, tlien, divine truth thus states, that 
 the possession which Christ has purchased, shall be 
 completely redeemed ; it cannot warrant the con- 
 clusion, that those who shall not be finally saved, 
 have been bought with a price. 
 
 Thus, both from our Lord's declarations, and 
 from the general scope of the Scriptures, it appears 
 that J the term toorJd, as used in reference to the 
 love of God and to the satisfaction of Christ, does 
 not relate to every individual of matikind, but col- 
 lectively to all nation?. 
 
 Heb , ii, 9. That he hy the grace of God ahotdd 
 taste death for every tnan. 
 
 In this verse, the term man being a supplement ; 
 the propriety of its insertion must be ascertained 
 from the context. Respecting it M'Knight has 
 remarked, that, "as this discourse is concerning 
 God's bringing many sons unto glory through the 
 death of Clirist, the phrase i^if w»,t»( may be thus 
 supplied, v-rt( -rxnTts vitv, on account of e*:ery son, 
 namely of God, who is to bo brought unto glory. "« 
 But, since, in the preceding verses, the apostle has 
 not used the term sons, though the expression 
 every son may convey his meaning, it would lather 
 seem tha^ ne has here employed every, in relation to 
 1 Rom., iv, 1 1, 12. 2 In log., note 3. 
 
rjdVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 227 
 
 something which he had previouslj stated. On 
 this account, some hare supplied the tenn heir, 
 from the last verse of the preceding chapter. But, 
 though that accords equally well with the general 
 scope of the apostle's discourse; as the antecedent 
 oftvery in the verse under consideration, it is too 
 remote ; and therefore, in order to ascertain its pro- 
 I per supplement, it may be useful to advert to the 
 
 ' intervening verses. 
 
 In the fifth verse of this chapter, the apostle had 
 said, unto the angeh hath he not put in subjection the 
 world to come, whereof we speak; that is, the pre- 
 sent dispensation of divine grace. By the Hebrews, 
 the Messiah was denominated, he that was to come; 
 and, in allusion to this appellation of Christ, the 
 phrase, world to come, denotes that dispensation of 
 mercy which he came to establish. In accordance 
 with this view of the apostle's expression, the world 
 to come whereof toe speak, the preceding part of his 
 discourse relates to the dispensation of the last 
 days: God, who at sundry times and in divers man- 
 ners, spake in time past unto the fathers by the pro- 
 phets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his 
 Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things} 
 Respecting the subjection of this nortd to come, to 
 our Lord as the heir of uH things, ho has added, 
 But now we see not yet all things put under him. 
 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than 
 the angels, for the sufferings of death, crowned with 
 
 ' Ilcb., i, 1, 2. 
 
228 
 
 DISSERTATION VL 
 
 glory and honour, that he by the grace of God should 
 taste death for every —. In these words, therefore, 
 the term every must be considered as the distribu- 
 tive of all} and consequently, not man but thing is 
 the proper supplement. Bj ascertaining then, the 
 import of the expression all things, the meaning of 
 the term every will be also ascertained. 
 
 As bearing upon the preceding point, the sub- 
 joined remark of M'Knight merits considerp.tion : 
 "sometimes, the neuter adjective is put for the 
 masculine and feminine jointly. John, vi, 37. n«» 
 aU pr every thing that the Father giveth me. 1 Cor., 
 VI, 11. K«i raura, and such OT thosG things were some 
 of you. 1 Cor., xi, 12. For as the woman is of the 
 man, even so is the man also is by the woman, but 
 T«»r« all things, that is, both the man and the wo- 
 man, of God." ^ In various other parts of Scrip- 
 ture, also, the expression all things is used to denote 
 all persons : Whom he hath appointed heir of all 
 things:^ That, in the dispensation of the fulness of 
 times, he might gather together in one all things in 
 Christ:^ And having made peace by the blood of his 
 cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself:* 
 And also who shall change our vile body, that it may 
 be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according 
 to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all 
 things unto himself^ In these quotations, the 
 terms all things denote all those persons of whom 
 
 ' Essay iv, Sect., 20. 
 * Col, i, 20. 
 
 3 Heb., i, 2. 3 Eph., i, 10, 
 «PbU., iii, 21. 
 
UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 229 
 
 Christ is heir; all, whether Jew or Gentile, whom 
 he gathers together in one in himself; all whom, 
 bj reconciling he subdues or puts under himself. 
 When the apostle, therefore, in connexion with the 
 passage under consideration, has said, but now we 
 tee not yet all things put under him, he must mean 
 all those persons of whom our Loj had been con- 
 stituted heir ; and, consequently, oy every thing iot 
 which he tasted death, is denoted every son or heir 
 of salvation. 
 
 Rom., V, 18. Therefore, as by the offence of one, 
 judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even 
 so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon 
 men unto justification oflfe. 
 
 1 Cor., XV, 22. For, as in Adam alldie; even so in 
 Christ shall all be made alive. 
 
 The extent of the redemption stated in these 
 versus, must be estimated by the meaning in which 
 the apostle has used the expressions, all men, and 
 justification of life. Of the first of the preceding 
 passages, M'Knight has adopted the following ex- 
 planation: "Delivering all men from immediate 
 death, allowing them to live a while on the earth, 
 and declaring that after death they shall all be 
 raised from the dead." » Taylor, also in his treatise 
 upon Original Sin, has advanced a similar exposi- 
 tion. "It must," he has remarked, *'be true and 
 fit, that the revoking that condemnation by the 
 righteous action of one, should likewise extend to 
 
 ' lu loc. 
 
m^ 
 
 mi 
 
 230 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 all men, to deliver them from mortality to which 
 they were adjudged, and to restore them to life at 
 the resurrection." ^ Bat that these explanations 
 do not contain the import of the apostle's state- 
 ment, will appear from the following remarks. 
 
 The preceding views of the expression, ju*/j/?ca- 
 tion of life, amount merely to this, that all men are 
 relieved from the sentence of condemnation, and 
 again placed in a state of probation for life. But 
 the apostle's meaning evidently is, that, by the 
 mediation of Christ, there is not only relief from 
 coridemnation, but also a superabundance of bles- 
 sing, which secures to the pardoned a glorious im- 
 mortality. In illustration of this remark, it is re- 
 quisite to advert to the subjoined context. F'or 
 if, through the offence of one, many be dead; much 
 more the grace of God and the gift by grace, which 
 is by one man Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto 
 many. And not as it was by one that sinned, so is 
 the gift; fur the judgment was by one to condemna- 
 tion, but the free gift is of many offences unto justi- 
 fication. For if, by one man's offence, death reigned 
 bi' one; much more they who receive abundance of 
 fjrace and of the gift of righteousness, shall reign in 
 life by one, Jesus Christ. Therefore, as by the 
 offence of one, judgment came upon all men to . m- 
 demnation ; even so by the righteousness of one, the 
 free gift came upon all men unto justification of life 
 For, as by one man's disobedience many were made 
 
 ^ P. 63. 
 
wmm 
 
 I 
 
 UNIVERSAL REDElfPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 ainners; so, by the obedience of one, shall many be 
 made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that the 
 offence might abound: but where sin abounded, 
 ffrace did much more abound. That, as sin hath 
 reigned unto death; even so, might grace reign 
 through righteousness, unto eternal life by Jesus 
 Christ our Lord.^ 
 
 In these verses, the apostle has first adverted to 
 the diflference between what is entailed upon man- 
 kind through Adam, and what is dispensed through 
 connexion with Christ: But not as the offence, so 
 also is the free gift; and, then, he has stated that 
 this difference consists in the amount of the gift ; 
 a gift which, in its gracious results, confers much 
 more than relief from the offence and its deadly 
 punishment : Fdr if through the offence of one many 
 he dead; much more the grace of God, and the gift 
 by grace, which is by one man Jesus Christ, hath 
 abounded unto many. Of this superabundance, the 
 subsequent verses contain an enumeration of the 
 several parts. 
 
 1. The apostle contrasting condemnation through 
 Adam with pardon through Christ, has stated, 
 that the former was caused by one or by one of 
 fence, but that the latter is extended to many 
 offences : And not as it was by one that sinned, so is 
 the gift; for the judgment was by one to condemna- 
 tion, but the free gift is of many offences unto justi- 
 fication. 
 
 ^Rpm., V, 15-21. 
 
r 
 
 2S2 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 ■H 
 
 2. In adverting to the next part of the super* 
 abundant blessing, it must be remarked, that, 
 though pardon is a prerequisite to the justification 
 of a sinner, it is not the ground upon which he is 
 justified ; nor does it confer upon him a character 
 which can obtain his acceptance with God. The 
 justification of the ungodly is a legal decision, not 
 merely that he is free from guilt, but that he also 
 possesses a righteousness, or obedience in exact 
 conformity with the requsitions of the law of God. 
 This view of the nature of justification, the apostlo 
 ha^ given in the subsequent verses : By the obedi- 
 ence of one shall many be made righteous, and, by 
 the righteousness of one, the free gift ca,ne upon all 
 men unto justification of life. Thus, those who, 
 through Christ, receive the pardon of many offences, 
 receive also the gift of righteousness ; and, upon 
 the ground of this gift, they obtain acceptance with 
 God, and are justified. 
 
 3. According to +he constitution of the covenant 
 of grace, justification and life are inseparably con- 
 nected ; and, hence, justification by the righteous- 
 ness of one, is termed justification of life. This 
 expression, M'Kuigh*^ and other advocates of uni- 
 versal redemption, consider as denoting merely 
 deliverance from immediate death, permission to 
 live for a time, and, finally, a future resurrection. 
 Their opinion, however, does not include the whole 
 fejope of the apostle's reasoning. The superabun- 
 dance of blessing, displayed in the pardon of many 
 
TJinVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 233 
 
 otfenoes, and in the gift of righteousness, though 
 » glorious manifestation of grace, is stiU subordi- 
 nate to the grand exhibition of superabounding 
 mercy, in the dispensation of life. Those who ob- 
 tain pardon and righteousness, are not merely, 3 
 Adam, permitted to lire in a state of probation; 
 they reiffn in life; and, as they possess this privi- 
 lege by one, Jesus Christ; the permanence of their 
 station is not derived from their own resources 
 Their life is Aid with Christ in God;^ and, by re- 
 ceiving out of our Lord's fulness abundance of 
 ffrace, as well as the gifnf righteousness, they reign 
 with an ultimate victory over sin and death, and 
 retain a life which is without interruption and 
 without termination. Hence, the conclusion of 
 the apostle's reasoning is, that, where sin abounded, 
 grace did much more abound: That as sin hath 
 reigned unto death, even so might grace reign 
 through righteousness, urto eternal life, by Jesus 
 Christ our Lord. 
 
 But, while the reasoning of the apostle repre- 
 sents the mediation of Christ, as conferring a free 
 gift of superabundant blessing, the exposition of 
 his language which the doctrine of universal re- 
 demption necessitates its advocates to adopt, ac- 
 tually renders the gift, the greatest of calamities 
 to a part of the human race. In their opinion, an 
 essential part of the gift which has come upon all 
 men unto justification of life, is a resurrection from 
 
 * Col., iii, 3. 
 
234 
 
 DISSERTATION VT. 
 
 the dead: but, to some, that will prore a resurreo- 
 tion 0^ damnation. He, therefore, who adopts the 
 doctriuo of universal redemption, must either deny 
 that the free gift has. come upon all men, or he 
 must admit that it is not superabounding merftj 
 to all ; and, consequently, by either alternative, he 
 must further admit, that, when the apostle has said, 
 By the righteousness of one, the free g'> ft came upon 
 all men xmto justification of life, ough his language 
 may refer to all nations, Jewish and Gentile, it 
 cannot mean that the grace which much more a- 
 hounds, has come upon every individual of man- 
 kind. 
 
 In order to ascertain the import of the expression 
 all men, as it is used by the apostle, it is requisite 
 to observe the general scope of his reasor ing, in 
 reference to the amount of persons upon whom <Ac 
 ffiftbi/ grace is conferred: and, here, it deserves 
 attention, that, at the very commencement of the 
 contrast of Adam with Christ, as each affects the 
 destiny of the human race in reference to the 
 amount of individuals interested, he employs a 
 term from which the doctrine of universal redemp- 
 tion can derive no proof: by Adaui, many are dead; 
 and by Christ, the gift by grace hath abounded 
 unto many. Had he intended to denote the exten- 
 sion of mercy to the whole human race, the term 
 all would have been here the common, and the most 
 natural, mode of expression. But his reason for 
 using ti.xi term many, is assigned in the subsequent 
 
CNrVBRSAl REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 235 
 
 verse. By Adam, sin has reigned unto death ; and 
 this death has passed upon all men : but bj Jesus 
 Christ, the reign of life is restricted to those to 
 whom the abundance of grace and the gift of right- 
 eousness are dispensed : For if by one man , ofence, 
 death reigned by one ; much more they who receive 
 abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, 
 shall reign m life by one, Jesus Christ. iSince, then, 
 righteousness is the sole ground of acceptance with 
 God; when the apostle states, that, by the righte- 
 ousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto 
 justification of life, his expression, all men, cannot 
 be logically extended to those whom God has never 
 recognised as righteous persons: and, accordingly, 
 in the subsequent verse, when he adverts to those 
 who are actually made or constituted righteous by 
 the obedience of one, he recurs to the use of the 
 term many: so by the obedience of one shall many 
 be made righteous. 
 
 That the apostle has employed the expression, 
 all men, in reference to all men only whom Christ 
 will ultimately save, is farther evident from the 
 parallel statement contained in his first Epistle to 
 Corinthians : For as in Adam all die, even so in 
 Christ shall all be made alive. As a proof of the 
 doctrine of universal redemption, these words have, 
 perhaps, been adduced more frequently than any 
 other part of Scripture : yet it would be difficult to 
 select another in which the doctrino of particular 
 redemption is more explicitly taught. M'Kuight 
 
236 
 
 DISSERTATION TL 
 
 lias remarked, that "Romans, y, .18 is a good 
 • ommentary upon this passage. Well, then^ as 
 through one offence sentence came upon all mtn to con- 
 demnation, even so, through one righteousness, sentence 
 came upon all men to justijication of life. ' ' ' But had he 
 reversed his assertion, and affirmed that this pas- 
 sage 3 a good comu.cntary upon Romans, v, 18, 
 as asserting the doctrine of particular redemption, 
 his statement would have been more scriptural, and, 
 of course, more consistent with the general scope 
 of the apostle's reasonings. This inspired writer, 
 in stating thatm Chi ist all shall he made alive, has not 
 left the meaning of the terfti all to the conjecture of 
 human expositors. In the subsequent verso he has 
 shown, that the (dl who are made alive are those 
 who have been redeemed to God, and who will be 
 infallibly raised to a glorious immortality : For as 
 in Adam all die, even so, in Christ shall all be made alive: 
 But every man in his own order; Christ tht^ first fruits, 
 afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. ( Aj 
 
 2 Pet., iii, 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his 
 vromisc, as sr > . ? count slackness; but is long suffer- 
 ing to usward, not i ding thr iny should perish, but that 
 nil should come to repentance. 
 
 Upon the last part of this verse, M'Knight, 
 after translating it, Xot desiring that any should perish, 
 ^•c, has made the following remarks : — •* The word 
 Btvxt/utvat in thi? passage cannot be understood of the 
 ultimate determination of the divine will: for that 
 Mn. loc. (A.) See note, page 28. 
 
UNITBR8AL RBDEMPTION DISPROVED. 237 
 
 ia always followed with the thing willed. The 
 proper translation of the word is, not desirinyt for 
 (Jod may be truly said not to desire that any should 
 l*eri»h, as he hath included Adam and all his pos 
 teritj in the covenant of grace, and hath given the 
 means of repentance and salvation to all "i 
 
 In the preceding observations, M' Knight has 
 educed this apostle's meaning from the doctrine 
 of universal redemption: but, iiad he been required 
 to prove that doctrine, he would have refcnod to 
 the view which lie has given of the apostle's Ian- 
 guage, and, thus, sophisticallj reasoned in a circle. 
 But, when he states that God " has included Adam 
 and all his posterity in the covenunt of grace, and 
 has given the means of repentance and salvation to 
 all," he has not regulated his assortionb by scrip- 
 tural truth. An apostle has represented heathen 
 nations as strangers to the cov€i?mts promise, with- 
 out Christ, and loithout God in the world.' Vhi' in 
 this condition, also, divine truth declares them to 
 be excluded from -epentance : The times of ignorance 
 God winked at ; but now commandeth all men everyivhere 
 to repent.' And scriptural (lelinpaiion of those 
 times of ignorance exhibits nothing of a peneteu- 
 tial nature. This I say, ther.fjre, and testify in the 
 Lord, that ye henceforth walk 7iot as other Gentiles w-ih, 
 in Vie vanity of their minds; Iwnng the uudtrstanding 
 darkened, being alienated fr^m the life of God through 
 the ignorance thai is in them, because of the blindness of 
 1 In loc., note 2. 2 Eph . ii. 1 3. » Acts, ivii. 30. 
 
238 
 
 DISSEPTATIOil TI. 
 
 their hearty who, being past feeling, have given t^^'^sehes 
 over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with 
 greediness. ' 
 
 It must be also observed, that M'KnightV cri- 
 ticism upon the Greek term for willing is not in ac- 
 cordance with its radical and principal meaning. 
 Schleusner, in his Lexicon, has, under the word 
 hovxcfjt.a.,, observed, t)'at it denotes more than 'hxu; 
 that the former signifies I ivill or resolve upon tke 
 ground of previous deliberation; but the latter, 
 simplj, I ivill or desire. In corroboration of bis view 
 of th6se terms, he has adduced the authority of 
 Eustathius upon Homer ; and also, quoted from 
 Scripture the following appropriate proof: Then 
 Joseph her husband being a just man, end not S-sX^i' wil- 
 ling or desiring to make her a public example, tisvxnh 
 was minded or resolved to put her away vrivily. ^ That, 
 in the passage under consideration also, the term 
 Hovxafttm, translated willing, signifies minded, or re- 
 solved, and, consequently, denotes , not simply the 
 desire of God, but his determination, will appear 
 from the subjoined remarks. 
 
 When it is said :hat God is Img-svjfering ' ^ us- 
 ward, not willing that any should perish, hid that all 
 should come io repentance, his will that none shoald 
 perish, cannot logically be extended beyond those 
 toward whom he is long-suffering: and this the 
 apostle has restricted to those who belong to Christ. 
 Ho is long-suffering to usward, that is, tr those who, 
 
 » Epli., iv, 17-19. 
 
 2 Mat., i, ;9. 
 
tJlflYERSAt REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 239 
 
 like this apostle, had obtained the faith of the gos- 
 pel. This verse, therefore, so often quoted in sup- 
 port of universal redemption, is actually a proof of 
 the determinate "will of God, to illustrate the truth 
 of his promise by the salvation of those who ar^ 
 Christ's. That this is the apostle's meaning is 
 evident from the general scope of his discourse. 
 ScoflFers had said. Where is the promise of ?iis coming? 
 for, since the fath<rs fell asleep^ all things - 'inueas they 
 were from the beginning of the creation. But tliOSO 
 whom the apostle addressed, he directed to take n. 
 diflferent view of the forbearance of 'rod : The Lord 
 is not slack concerning his promise^ as some men count 
 slackness. To all toward whom long suffering was 
 exercised, apparent delay was an arrangement of 
 mercy, by which the ui'll or intention of God re- 
 specting their repentance or complete reformat! ja 
 might be effectet ; and, therefore, when scoffers ac- 
 counted him slack concerning his promise^ those 
 whom the apostle iddressed, were to account the 
 long-suffn>ing of God salvation. 2 Thus, as he had 
 previously stated, by this arrangement, the pur 
 poses of mercy and judgment were alike fulfilled: 
 The Lord knoiceth how to deliver the godly out of tempt- 
 ation^ ar>'l to reserve the uijiist unto the day of judgment 
 to J>e punished. ^ 
 
 2 Pet., ii, I. But there were false propheis among the 
 people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, 
 whoj)rivily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying 
 1 Mat., iii, 4. 2 Mat .,iu, 15. ^ Mat., ii, 9. 
 
240 
 
 mSSERTATION VI. 
 
 the Lord that bought them, and briny uprm themselves 
 xmfl destruction. 
 
 Our Lord has said. Hie Father loveth the Sou, and 
 hath given all things into his hand,^ As this grant was 
 conferred upon Christ in virtue of his satisfaction 
 to divine justice, he may thus be considered as the 
 purchaser uf the whole. It does not, however, fol- 
 low, that this purchase of all men was intended to 
 terminate in the salvation of all. Our Lord came 
 down from heavc-n to do the will of him that sent 
 him ; and of some he has said. This is the Fathers 
 will who hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me 
 I should lose nothing, but Jwuld raise it up again at the 
 last day. » But that the purpose of God, and also 
 the declaration of his purpose in Scripture, might 
 be accomplished, the destruction of the son of per- 
 dition became unavoidable ;'' and of others, also, it 
 is stated, that they were before of old ordained to this 
 condemnation. * Christ, therefore, who, for the ac- 
 complishment of the Father's will, has been intrust- 
 ed with the government of the universe, must be 
 viewed both as the God of nature and as the God 
 of grace ; and his acquisition of all power in subor- 
 dination to these ends, must be also viewed as stand- 
 ing in relation alike to mercy and to judgment. 
 
 In connection with the preceding remarks it must 
 be farther observed, that the apostle's language, 
 'lenying the Lord that bought them, S,'c., militates 
 
 ' John, iii, 35. 2 John, vi, 39. » John, xyii, 12 
 
 * Jude. 4. 
 
DNIVEri3AL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 241 
 
 against the doctrine of particular redemption, onlj 
 in appearance. The term hfxoTKs, which in this 
 verse has been translated Lordy is never in Scrip- 
 ture applied to Christ as the dispenser of grace. 
 It signifies the master or owner of piop6ii,_y. Be- 
 sides, the original term for bought, denotes not only 
 to purchase by an equivalent, but, also, simply to 
 acquire. In this meaning it is used in Rev., iii, 18, 
 / counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire; and 
 also in the Septuagint, Isaiah, Iv, 1, Jluy wine and 
 milk without money and without pric\ The Statement 
 of the apostle may bo justly translated. The master 
 who acquired them ; and this vicT of his phraseology 
 best accords with the character of those to whom 
 he alluded. They had known the icay of righteousness ; 
 and, through this knowledge of the Lord and Saviour 
 Jesus Christ, had escaped the pollutions of the world; * 
 but, though they had exchanged heathen ignorance 
 and vice for the rational principles and practice of 
 the christian system, they had not obtained that 
 spiritual understttuding which renovates the heart ; 
 and they were still in what the apostle has termed 
 their own corruption.^ Their ambition had excited 
 them to emulate Christ, by founding new sects ; and 
 to secure success they had employed deception, 
 privily bringing in damnable heresies, denying the 
 Lord who bought them ; that is, the master who 
 had acquired them by their rejection of heather ism 
 and their acquiescence in the faith and practice of 
 i2Pet.,ii, 20. 21. a2Pct, ii, 12. 
 
 
242 
 
 DISSERTATION VI. 
 
 II 
 
 the Church. But, though christian in profession, 
 they were destitute of that spiritual knowledge 
 which the redeeme'^ possess: and, hence, in form- 
 ing parties for themselves, they are represented 
 as displaying their want of kn'^wledge and their 
 malevolence, by speaking erU of things which they 
 understood not.^ 
 
 From the apostle's description of the persons to 
 wh 3m he alluded, there is not the least ground for 
 supposing that they had ever experienced the power 
 of divine grace. The passage under consideration, 
 therefore, contains no evidence against either par- 
 ticular redemption or final perseverance ; and the 
 buying which he mentions, must be siiailarto that 
 which Moses has stated in liis oddress to Israel: 
 Do ye thus requite the Lord^ foolish people and unwisef 
 is he not thy father that hath bought thee^"^ Upon the 
 apostle's form of expression, M 'Knight, though 
 an advo( ite for the doctrine of universal redemp* 
 tion, has made the following remarks. 
 
 '^Denying even r»v ^iffTomy the Lord who bought thenu 
 Because the Lord is said to have bought the persons 
 who denied him, buying cannot mean the buying 
 of these persons from eternal punishment, but must 
 be taken in the sense in which God is said to have 
 bought the Israelites to be his subjects and people 
 namely, by working miracles for their deliverance 
 out of Egypt, and their introduction into Canaan, 
 Exod., XV, 16 ; Deut., xxxii, 6. In this sense, either 
 1 2 Pet., ii, 12. 2 Deut., xxxii, 6. 
 
 * 
 
tNlVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 243 
 
 ■^od or Christ might be called the Lord who bought 
 the false teachers. The common opinion, however, 
 is, that Chrict is the Lord spoken of. Benson, 
 indeed, aflSrms that the Father is meant ; because 
 Jude, in his fourth verse, distinguishes the only 
 (itr^oTnt) Lord God from our (kv^hs) Lord Jesus 
 Christ, and because in Scripture the title hir^arnt is 
 no where else given to Christ but the Father. But 
 the determination of this point is of little import- 
 ance; because, whether the Father or the Son be 
 here stiled inr-rarvf, it is generally agreed, that, by 
 the Lord's buying the heretical teachers, nothing 
 more is meant, than his making them his profes- 
 sing people by the preaching of the gospel ; and 
 that their denying the Lord who bought them, con- 
 sisted in their refusing to obey the precepts r{ the 
 gospel ; perhaps, also, in their worshipping idols, 
 in order to escape persecution. If Christ, in par- 
 ticular, is the Lord here spoken of, the false teachers 
 who denied him, may be those described 1 John, 
 iv, 1 ; some of whom denied his humanity, v. 2 ; 
 and others, his divinity, v. 15.'" ^ 
 
 In support of the doctrine of universal redemp- 
 tion, Whitby has added, that " a farther enforce- 
 ment of this extent of the death of Christ ariseth 
 from the obligation which is, and always was, upon 
 all persons to whom the gospel is or was revealed, 
 to believe in Christ; for, if it be the duty not only 
 ' " some few of every sort, but even of all and sin- 
 
 ^ In loc. 
 
2U 
 
 DISSERTATION VT. 
 
 
 gular to whom the gospel is revealed, to belieye in 
 Christ, that is, to own him as their Saviour, or as 
 that Jesus who came to save them from their sins ; 
 it must be true that ho came into the world to be 
 the Saviour of all men, and to be the propitiation 
 for the sins of the whole world, as holj Scripture 
 doth expressly teach." ^ 
 
 It was formerlj ehown that the satisfaction of 
 Christ was not afforded for the whole human race. 
 Still, the extent of the gospel call has occasioned 
 an objection against the doctrine of particular re- 
 demption. Upon all to whom the gospel is preach- 
 ed, divine authority enjoins its acceptance ; but, 
 if the remedy, which it announces, has not been 
 provided for all, how does this injunction accord 
 with the sincerity of God ? 
 
 To obviate the preceding objection, some have 
 referred the extent of the gospel call to what they 
 have denominated the tnjiniie value of the satisfac- 
 tion of Christ. It may, however, be doubted that 
 their opinion is more specious than solid. In re- 
 ference to the relief of the guilty, the intrinsic 
 worth of our Lord's satisfactionr is not the sole 
 ground of its sufficiency. The appointment of 
 God, to effect by means of it a particular nd, 
 must be taken into account ; and, in this point of 
 view, as far as the interests of mankind are con- 
 cerned, its actual value becomes limited to those 
 whom it has been designed to ransom, 
 
 1 P. 1.02. 
 
UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 245 
 
 Though several other reasons for the extent of 
 the gospel call have been adduced, a satisfactory 
 solution of tlio preceding difficulty is still a desi- 
 deratum ; and, perhaps, from Calvinists professing 
 to walk by faith, the admission of imperfect know- 
 ledge, and a consequent incapacity of reconciling 
 the different parts of the divine plan, would injure 
 their principles less than inefficient attempts to 
 elucidate beyond the light of revelation. To the 
 Calvinistic system, this would be no reproach. 
 In every scheme of revealed religion, there are 
 difficulties which must remain unsolved till the 
 mystery of God be finished. In the mean time, 
 without adverting to Whitby's uncandid represen- 
 tation of Calvinism in reference to the preceding 
 point, it must be remarked, that, by reasoning from 
 the extent of the gospel call to the doctrine of uni- 
 versal redemption, he has most illogically deduced 
 a general principle from a particular assertion, and, 
 also, furnished an argument which refutes his own 
 hypothesis. 
 
 Between Arminians and Calvinists, the point at 
 issue is not, whether the latter can solve the pre- 
 ceding difficulty, but whether the extent of the 
 gospel call constitutes a satisfactory proof for the 
 doctrine of universal redemption. Upon this topic 
 Whitby has said, " If it be duty not only of some 
 few of every sort, but even of all and singular to 
 whom the gospel is revealed to believein Christ, 
 it must be true that he came into the world to be 
 
 
», 
 
 ^ 
 
 246 
 
 DISSEBTATIOy TI. 
 
 the Saviour of all men, and to bo the propitiation 
 for the sins of the wliole world.'' But admitting 
 thot Christ did die for all to whom the gospel haa 
 been preached, it does not follow that he died also 
 for those from whom it has been withheld. In ac- 
 cordance with Scripture, and, also, with more logi- 
 cal precison, Calvinists affirm, that, since the faith 
 essential to salvation comes only by liearing, and 
 heariuL' by the word of God ; ' for those from whom 
 the word of faith has been withheld, no salvation 
 has been provided. This view of the extent of our 
 Lord's satisfaction coincides with the statement of 
 Scripture respecting the dispensation of mercy: 
 W/iosoever shall call on the 7tame of the Lord shall be 
 saved. How then shu'.l they call on him in whom they 
 have not believed ^ and how shall they believe in him of 
 whom they have not heard ! and hoiv shall they hear with- 
 out a preacher 1 * God showed his word unto Jacob ; 
 but he dealt not so with any other nation.'' Our 
 Lord was sent but to the lost sheep of the house 
 of Israel.* Paul, also, was prohibited from preach- 
 ing the gospel in particular parts : ^ And, farther, 
 to the greater part of the world, it has not yet been 
 proclaimed. But, if Ciirist died ff^'' the whole 
 human race, and dispenses the benefits of redemp- 
 tion through belief of the truth, how has all this 
 occurred ? The Arminian system can furnish no 
 satisfactory reply: but Calvinism accounts for the 
 1 Rom., X, 17. - Rom., x, 13, 1 1. 3 I's. cxlvii, 19, 20. 
 * Mat., XV, 24. ^ Acta, xvi, 6. 7. 
 
tTNITERSAL REDEMPTION DISPROVED. 
 
 247 
 
 limited propagaiton of the gospel, by the limited 
 extent of the satisfaction of Clirist ; and, in support 
 of the doctrine of particular redemption, it refers 
 to his own declaration, / fay doivn my life for the 
 aheep.^ 
 
 * John, X, 15. 
 
DISSERTATION VII. 
 
 ON ELECTION. 
 
 Nkckssitt of actinnr in a particular way consistent with iil>er(,v 
 of yolition-The Arrainian ohjcction. tJiat consistontly with 
 the doctrine of unconditi.mal .locrcos G«d must be the 
 autlpr of sin, nioi-c specious than candid— Tho doctrine of 
 foreknowhd-e has the same difficulties as the doctrine of 
 unconditional election—The ol.jection that Calvinism is less 
 accordant with divine benevolence, fallacious, and fraught 
 with pernici.nis consequences— Election does not imply par- 
 tiality in God— Amiinian views of election not supported 
 l.y Scripture ri;,ditly interpreted- Some tei-nis to which 
 Ai-nun.ans have attached a si^M.iiication accordincr to their 
 view of election oonsidercd-llarshness ascribed to the doc- 
 trine of election, a particular use of the ancient sceptical 
 objection, which led to the exclusion of Deity from the uni- 
 verse—Unconditional d«H5rees not inconsistent with the sin- 
 ccrity of Cod. 
 
 Against the Calvinistic view of the doctrine of 
 election, it lias been objected, that the prcdetermi- 
 nation of means and end with respect to human 
 action, is inconsistent with that liberty of tlic will, 
 which is requisite to constitute man a responsible 
 agent. But ncccssitj of acting in a particular 
 wa V, IS perfectly consistent with liberty of volitioD, 
 
t)N ELECTION. 
 
 249 
 
 The will of the Deity mtrst ever be regnlated by 
 the moral attributes of his nature; yet, though he 
 cannot but lore righteousness, and hate iniquity, 
 he wills with a liberty which renders him a per- 
 fectly moral agent. Such, also, is the constitution 
 of man, that, by a moral necessity, his volitions 
 must be of a particular kind. That liberty which 
 Arminians place in the self-determining power of 
 the will, exists only in speculation: it cannot exist 
 m a ratioral nature. Volition considered as a de- 
 cision of the mind, is, like its other decisions, pro, 
 duced by evidence. The mind's attention to ex- 
 ternal objects is unavoidably accompanied by a 
 perception or belief of the existence of their 
 qualities ; its view of propositions, also, regulates 
 Its belief of their truth or their falsehood ; and 
 m the same manner, the mind's view of the 
 connection of means and end, produces that de- 
 cision which is termed an act of the will. Without 
 considering the wiU as a mere mechanical .-in- 
 ciple, therefore, it is as impossible to conceive of 
 its acting without motive, as to conceive that the 
 mind can decide upon the qualities of an object, 
 or upon the truth of a proposition, when neither 
 object nor proposition has been brought under its 
 notice : And, farther, to suppose that the will is 
 not always regulated by what appears to the mind to 
 be the strongest motive, is, in other words, tosuppose 
 that volition is not the act of a rational nature. 
 During the present stage of human existence, ii 
 
 a 
 
250 
 
 DISSERTATION VII. 
 
 %' 
 
 is not necessary for man to un<lersU*nd how predes* 
 tinatioQ leaves him in possession of a libcrt)', which 
 still renders him a responsible agent. The Chris- 
 tian walks bj faith ; and, in the meantime, it is 
 sufficient for him to be assured by the testimony 
 of one who cannot lie, that, for actions which God 
 has infallibly decreed, man is accountable. Pro- 
 phecy is the declaration of prcdotorrained events ; 
 yet, when it is fulfilled by the agency of man, it is 
 fulfilled by uis voluntary a?t. 0/a truth, against 
 thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both 
 Herod- and Pontius Pilate, with t\e Gentiles, and 
 the people of Isrccl; were gathered together, for to 
 do whatsoever thy hand and thj council determined 
 before to be done.^ The Scriptures, also, explicitly 
 state, that, for what God has decreed, man, by his 
 voluntary act in fulfilling the divine purpose, is re- 
 sponsible: Him, being delivered by the determtnaie 
 counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, 
 and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.* 
 
 Against Calvinism it has been often objected, 
 that, consistently with the doctrine of unconditional 
 decrees, the Deity must be the author of sin. The 
 Arminian use of this objection, however, is more 
 specious than candid. If by the expression, author 
 of sin, it be meant, that God has permitted moral 
 evil to constitute a. part of that system, by which 
 he has been pleased to regulate creation, the objec- 
 tion is not peculiar to Calvinism. It belongs 
 equally to every system of religion, which recog- 
 
 > Acts, iv, 27, 28. 2 Acts, ii, 23. 
 

 Oir ELECTION. 
 
 251 
 
 uises onlj one Hviag and true* e creator and 
 
 governor of the universe. ■ 'uvi /soi refers sin to 
 the want of that grace wbic» ^eitj withholds; 
 
 and Arminianism, notwithstauu.. ^ its rejection of 
 unconditional decrees, is ultin: Niy necessitated to 
 refer moral evil to the same source. " Armip-'ins," 
 sajs Dr. Hill in his Theological Lecures, "are 
 compelled to have recourse to the very same answer, 
 although thej attempt bj their system to shift it 
 for a little. Tliey say that men do not repent and 
 believe, because they resist thpt grace which might 
 have led them to repentance and faith. But why 
 do they resist this grace ? The Arminians answer, 
 that the resistance arises from the self-determining 
 power of the mind. But why does one mind de- 
 termine itself to submit to this grace, and another 
 to resist it? If the Arminians exclude the infallible 
 operation of every foreign cause, they must answer 
 this question, by ascribing the difference to the 
 different character of the minds ; and, then, one 
 question more brings them to God, the Father of 
 spirits. For, if those different characters of mind 
 be supposed to Lctve existed independently of the 
 divine - ' , ? sufficient account is indeed given, 
 why some are predestinated, and others reprobated : 
 but it is an account which withdraws tho everlast- 
 ing I'.ondition jf his reasonable offspring from the 
 disp(»al of the Supreme Being: whereas, if it be 
 admitted that he who made them, gave to their 
 minds the qualities by which they are distinguish- 
 
252 
 
 Dissertation vit. 
 
 ed, and ordained all the circumstances of t' ^ir lot» 
 which conspire in forming their moral character, 
 the resistance given bj some is referred to his ap- 
 point!) ont. It appears to be an incontrovertible 
 truth, a truth the evidence of* which is impliedjin the 
 terms in which it is enunciated, that the gifts of 
 nature and the gifts of grace proceed equallj from 
 the good pleasure of him who bestows them : and, 
 if this fundamental proposition be granted, then, 
 the Calvinistic and Arminian' systems lead ulti- 
 matelj to the same conclusion."^ 
 
 Armenians, bj admitting the foreknowledge of 
 God, render their own system liable to the charge 
 which they advance against Calvinism. Upon this 
 Doint, President Edwards has justly observed, that, 
 
 t it will follow at all, that God is the author of 
 .-/o, from what has been supposed of a sure and in- 
 fallible connexion between antecedents and conse- 
 quents, it will follow because of this, viz., that for 
 God to be the author of sin or orderer of those 
 things which he knows before hand, will infal'ibly 
 be attended with such a consequence, is the same 
 thing in effect, as for him to be the author of that 
 consequence. But, if this be so, this is a difficulty 
 which equally attends the doctrine of Arminians 
 themselves ; at least of those of them who allow 
 God's certain foreknowledge of all events. For, 
 on the supposition of such a foreknowledge, this is 
 the case with respect to every siu that is committed ; 
 J Vol. 3, p. 124. 
 
 / 
 
Oil EtEOTION, 
 
 253 
 
 God knew that if he ordered «nd brought to pass 
 such and such events, ^uch sins would infallibly 
 follow."* Arminians in general do not deny that 
 the Deity, with perfect foreknowledge* that certain 
 of his creatures would sin, not only gave them an 
 existence and capacities of sinning, but, also, during 
 their disobedience, continues to uphold them by 
 the word of his powerr If, then, Arminians will 
 not admit, that, upon the ground of his operations, 
 he ought not to be termed the author of sin ; much 
 less ought they to affirm, that he should be so de- 
 nominated upon the ground of his decree, which 
 eflfects nothing. 
 
 Arminians have farther represented Calvinism 
 as less accordant with divine benevolence, than 
 their own system of principles. This objection, 
 Whitby has adduced with a frequency and harsh- 
 ness of expression, which indicate more arrogant 
 exultation than candour. " The doctrine of uni- 
 versal redemption," he haa remarked, "tends highly 
 to the promotion of God's glory ; it gives him the 
 glory of his free love, rich goodness, gj oat mercy 
 and compassion to the sons of men, fa- above the 
 contrary doctrine ; for, if to redeem any doth mag- 
 nify his goodness, to redeem many doth increase 
 it, to redeem all doth advance it to the highest 
 pitch ; for the nore are benefited, the greater is 
 the glory of the benefactor."* 
 
 Again, in adverting to the scriptural import of 
 » Vol. 1, p. 377. 2 P. 133. 
 
254 
 
 'niSSERTATIOir VII. 
 
 the term toorld, as denoting the extent of redemp- 
 tion, he has obserred, that, " if the world in all 
 these places, were to be restrained to some few 
 people, some little remnant of the world alone, it 
 might with greater truth and reason have been said, 
 that God so hated or cast off the world, that he 
 sent not his Son to save the world, but to condemn 
 it/*i " It maj, more trulj and properly, be said, 
 that God would have all men to be damned ; be- 
 cause, according to their (the Calvinists') doctrine, 
 he hath already passed an act of preterition on the 
 greater part of men, which rendereth their dam- 
 nation unavoidable." « 
 
 Though the mode of expression employed in 
 the; preceding remarks, abundantly indicates, that 
 Whitby was very well pleased with his own argu- 
 ments ; they are not very creditable, either to his 
 candou;-, or to Jiis logical precision. Instead of 
 refusing Calvinism, he has merely bewildered him- 
 self in his own sophistry, and furnished the refuta- 
 tion of his own assertions. But, before adverting 
 to his view of unconditional election, as being in- 
 consistent with the benevolence of God, it is requ- 
 site ^0 remark, that, in so frequently exhibiting 
 the Calvinistic system as extending mercy to some 
 f«w people onhj, to some little remnant, a remnant go 
 small that it may truly and properly be said, that 
 Gri would have all men to be damned, he has placed 
 before his readers, not the true state of the qucs- 
 
 ' P. 93. 
 
 2 P. 82. 
 
ON ELECTION. 
 
 255 
 
 tioD, but a species of declamation which might be- 
 speak the favour of the feelings. Upon scriptural 
 grounds, the Calvinistic sjstem pcknowledges the 
 redeemed to be a great multitude which no man 
 can number :' and Arminian principles do not re- 
 cognize them as more abundant. Indiyidual Cal- 
 ▼inists, bj mistaking the import of particular pas- 
 sages of Scripture, or bj deducing the number of 
 the redeemed from the actual success of the gospel, 
 may have occasionally represented the elect as 
 comparatively few : but their opinion constitutes 
 no part of the Calvinistic system. Between the 
 Calvinist and the Arminian, the point at issue is 
 not whether those elected are few or many, but, 
 whether a part of the human race are uncondition- 
 ally chosen, or the whole inchided in a conditional 
 decree. 
 
 In the opinion of Whitby, the Arminian view of 
 election is more honourable to the benevolence of 
 God, than the Calvinistic scheme. " For," pays 
 he, *• if to redeem any, doth magnify his goodness; 
 to redeem many, doth increase it ; to redeem all, 
 doth advance it to the highest pitch ; for the more 
 are benefited, the greater is t'le glory of the bene- 
 factor." But, under thi? h'>^' of wisdom, there is 
 a fallacy which, in its result;., subverts the whole 
 system of religious truth. If the honour of divine 
 benevolence be calc ted by the amount of those 
 who are saved, Armiiiianism is lees honourable to 
 
 * Rev., Tu, 9. 
 
256 
 
 DlffSBRTATIOir TH. 
 
 God than the doctrine of universal restoration, 
 which extends salvation to aU : and even the latter 
 systena must yield to a universe, into which sin 
 and misery would not be permitted to enter. Ex- 
 actly upon the same principle, the sceptic, contem- 
 plating the physical and moral evils which pervade 
 the world, concludes that it cannot be the work of 
 a Being of perfect benevolence; and, then, ignor- 
 ant of the derangement of nature, which the justice 
 of God has judged requisite to efifect for the illus- 
 tratiou of his moral character, he says with the 
 fool, There is no God. 
 
 From these remarks it is evident, that reasoning 
 from the goodness of God to the nature of his pur- 
 poses, instead of constituting as Whitby has sup- 
 posed, a refutation of Calvinism, merely subjects 
 Arminianism to the same charge ; and, instead of 
 leading in the path of knowledge, beguiles into the 
 rayless region of sceptical doubt. 
 
 The Arminian scheme, by proposing the condi- 
 tional extension of mercy to all, may appear more 
 benign than Calvinism : and, on this account, it is 
 apt to be more pleasing to human nature : but its . 
 benevolence consists solely in appearance. The 
 harshness which has been supposed peculiar to un- 
 conditional election, belongs equally to Arminian 
 belief. The advocates of Arminianism, by admit- 
 ting the foreknowledge of God, acknowledge that 
 he foresaw the destinies of men with equal certainty, 
 as if their allotment had been the subject of his 
 
 
 \ 
 
^ 
 
 ON ELECTION. 257 
 
 infallible decree. In the admission of the divine 
 prescience, therefore, it remains with the Arminian 
 to reconcile the benevolence of God with his crea- 
 tion of beings who would never be saved. This 
 harshness of his system is not softened by affirming, 
 that, if any are not saved, thej have themselves to 
 blame. To those wiio have not been favoured with 
 the means of salvation, this assertion does not ap- 
 ply ; and, with respect to others, it devolves upon 
 the Arminian to explain how a God of perfect be- 
 nevolence, foreseeing that any would reject the offer 
 of his mercy, could yet, consistently with his own na- 
 ture, call them into existence. Besides, benevolence 
 abstractly considered, lias no relation to either sin 
 or duty. The tendency oi its operation is the hap- 
 piness of those toward whom it is exercised ; nd, 
 therefore, to measure the extent of salvation solely 
 by the benevolence of God, is, in other words, to 
 render misery and salvation of equal extent 
 
 With as little reason, has the doctrine of uncon- 
 ditional election been charged with implying par- 
 tiality in God. Where there is no claim, the with- 
 holding of favour is no act of injustice. The gospel 
 plan, as a:i arrangement of grace, by its limited 
 e:i*cnt furnishes no just ground of complaint. All 
 have sinned ; and, consequently, the withholding 
 of mercy from any is no evidence of unrighteous- 
 ness with God. Justice requires only the punish- 
 ment of guilt ; and misery, the effect of just retri- 
 bution, has no legal right to relief. The extent of 
 
258 
 
 DISSERTATION VII. 
 
 the relief must, therefore, be regulated by the 
 good pleasure of him who said, I will have mtrey 
 OH whom I will have mercy,^ To those who ascribe 
 partiality to unconditional election, it is sufficV'.nt 
 to reply, that, according to their own principles, 
 the Deity foresaw, that, while he would extend 
 mercy to some, he would permit others to perish ; 
 and, yet, his benevolence did not withhold from the 
 latter an existence. 
 
 In relation to the final destiny of man, humau 
 nature may be reluctant to concede to the potter 
 powei- over the clay : but the character of God, as 
 exhibited in his word and works, is stamped with a 
 general sovereignty, which Arminians cannotdeny : 
 and when they object to its exercise in the ultimate 
 allotment of mankind ; by the admission of dirine 
 foreknowledge, they make their objection recoil 
 upon their own principles. Why hast thou made 
 me thug, is a question whicii God has not been 
 pleased to answer. Why did he pass by the angels 
 that sinned? and, foreseeing, that some of the hu- 
 man race would ruin themselves, why did he give 
 them an existence? To these and similar queries, 
 Arminians can furnish no satisfactory reply ; and, 
 therefore, their own principles require them, as 
 well as Calvinists, to refer all to the unlimited 
 sovereignty of God : Even so. Father ; for so it 
 seemed good in thy sightJ* 
 
 Arminian views of the nature of election, do not 
 
 ^ Rom., ix, 15. 
 
 * Mat., xi, 26, 
 
ON ELECTION. 
 
 259 
 
 
 appear to be supported bj evidence sufficient to 
 
 ▼arrant their adoption. These views Whitby has 
 
 expressed in the following terms : 
 
 ** 1. That the election mentioned in the holy 
 
 Scriptures, is not that of particular persons, but 
 
 only of churches and nations." 
 
 *• 2. That this election doth import rather their 
 
 being chosen to the enjoyment of the means of 
 
 grace, than to a certainty of being saved by these 
 
 means.*' 
 
 '* 3. That the election to salvation mentioned in 
 the holy Scriptures, is only a conditional election 
 upon our perseverance in a life of holiness, and is 
 to be made sure unto as by good works." 
 
 In support of these principles, Arminians usually 
 adduce from the Old Testament a variety of pas- 
 sages, in which Israel collectively are represented 
 as elected or chosen ; and, then, they refer to some 
 of the Epistles, in which the whole members of 
 particular churclies are termed the elect: And, 
 because individual Israelites died in their sins, and 
 individual members of those churches, also, aposta- 
 tised and perished, Arminians conclude that they 
 have proved their belief. Their proof, thus, rests 
 upon the supposition, that the national election of 
 Israel, and the election of those who, in the Epistles, 
 have been represented as chosen in Christ, are of 
 the same amount. But the apostle Paul has ex- 
 plicitly stated, that the Israelites, though, as a 
 
 1 P. 25. 
 
2C0 
 
 DISSERTATION VII. 
 
 nation, the chosen of God, were not aU interested 
 m that election which designates to everlasting life : 
 They are not all Israel, who are of Israel . Neither 
 because they are the seed of Israel, are they all chil- 
 dren.^ ^ 
 
 From the preceding quotation of Scripture it ap- 
 pears, that, though Israel were nationally elected 
 to the privilege of i..osses8ing the oracles of God ; 
 a part of them onlj, were predestinated to the 
 adoption of sons. Not the wh ol. nation, but thrse, 
 cur Lord has denominated the elect: and it must 
 bo t;,f ther remarked, that, instead cf representing 
 the latter as merely - choson to the enjoyment of 
 the means of grace," or, as the subjects of " a con- 
 ditional election," he has affirmed the utter impos- 
 sibihty of their final apostacj. Announcing to'his 
 disciples the judgments about to be poured upon 
 that nation which God had chosen to be a peculiar 
 people to himself, he said. In those days shall he 
 affliction, such as was not from the heginninq of the 
 creaft^n, y,hich God created, unto this time, neith^ 
 shall he. And except that the Lord had shortened 
 those days, no flesh should be saved : hut for the 
 elect's sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened 
 the days. And then, if any man shall say to you, 
 Lo, here ts Christ, or, lo, he is there ; believe him not 
 lor false Christs and false prophet, shall rise, a,,. I 
 shall, how signs and wonders, to sedua, if ii were 
 possible, even the elect.^ 
 
 * Rom., ix, 6 
 
 * Mark, xiii, 18-23. 
 
On elk c tick. 
 
 261 
 
 < 
 
 The term electa therefore, as used by our Lord, 
 both in its nature and results implies something 
 different from the amount of the same term, when 
 applied in the Old Testament to the nation of 
 Israel. Accordingly, an apostle has explained it, 
 as denoting an election to the gratuitous favour of 
 God, displayed in the gift of a justifying righteous- 
 ness and its concomitant blessings. As in the 
 days of Elijah, God had, out of the nation, of 
 Israel, reserved to himself seven thousand men 
 who had cot bowed the knee to the image of Baal ; 
 Even so then, says the aposth, at this present time 
 also, there is a remnant according to the election of 
 grace ;^ that is, a number who sought justification, 
 not by the works of the law, but by the hearing of 
 faith : And this remnant, interested in the election 
 of grace, the apostle, in direct contradiction of the 
 opinion entertained by Whitby, represents, as ac- 
 tually obtaining that to which they had been elect- 
 ed : Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh 
 for ; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest, 
 or those not elected, were blinded.* 
 
 In the Scriptures, indeed, churches collectively 
 are addressed as the elect of God : but this appli- 
 cation of the term furnishes no proof, that the 
 election of grace is an election of individuals col- 
 lectively considered. A credible profession of the 
 faith is the only evidence upon which office-bearers 
 in the ^church are authorised to judge of the secret 
 
 I 
 
 \ 
 
 Rom., xi, 5, 
 
 * Rom., xi, 7. 
 
262 
 
 DISSBRTATIOH Til. 
 
 in: 
 
 purpose of God respecting any of its members, 
 i/y their fruits ye shaH know them, was the prescrip- 
 tion of Christ, to guide his apostles in their esti- 
 mato of human character ; and these, acting upon 
 this principle, received into the church, not only 
 those who possessed the faith of God's elect, but 
 also others who, in their belief, resembled Simon 
 Magus, and were still t» the bond of iniquity. 
 
 In discussing Arminian objections against the 
 doctrine of final perseverance, it was formerly shown 
 that those mentioned in Scripture as apostates, had 
 never ,been renewed by the Holy Spirit. Of their 
 final apostacy, also, the apostle John has stated the 
 cause ; they did not belong to the election of grace: 
 7%ey went out from us, but they were not of us; for 
 if they had been of us, they would no doubt have con- 
 tinued icith us: but they went out, that they might 
 be made manifest that they were not all of us} The 
 designation of these as elect, therefore, was not 
 founded upon the purpose of God respecting them : 
 it was the expression of that judgment of charity, 
 which their existing profession and deportment had 
 induced the authors of the Epistles to entertain. 
 
 There is still another view of the term election, 
 which ought not to be overlooked. " This elec- 
 tion," says Whitby, "doth import rather being 
 chosen to the enjoyment of the means of grace, than 
 to a certainty of being saved by these means." But 
 an apostle has taught that the elect have been 
 
 1 1 John, ii, 19. 
 
09 XLEOTIOV. 
 
 choMia, not only to the enjojment of the meanik of 
 grace, but also to the actual possession of the sal" 
 Tati(« dispensed bj these means. Besides, it is 
 undeniable, that those to whom the gospel has not 
 been pr< ached, have not been chosen to the enjoy- 
 ment IHthe means of grace; and, since an apostle 
 has declared, that such are without Christ and unth- 
 out God in the world,^ it unavoidably follows, that 
 they have been excluded from that election of grace 
 by which, in the exercise of divine sovereignty, one 
 is taken, and another left. 
 
 But, beside the term elect, there are several others 
 to which Anninians have attached a signification 
 in accordance with their own view of the doctrine 
 of election. " The other words,'' says Whitby, '* by 
 which it is conceived that such an election may bo 
 taught, and signified in the New Testament, are 
 these three, *?<>y*iie'i the foreknowledge, r^tiftf the 
 purpose, and r(»»^,rft»( the fore-appointment of God 
 of all which let it be noted, 
 
 •*1. That none of them relate to particular or 
 individual persons, (save only when they are used 
 of our ']blessed Lord and his sufferings for us,) but 
 only to churches and nations in the general :" 
 
 "2. That this foreknowledge, purpose and ap- 
 pointment, is only that of calling men to the know- 
 ledge of salvation by Jesus Christ:" 
 
 **3. That this calling is by God designed •«•< 
 TtuT(u, that they who are thus called, might obtain 
 
 1 Eph., ii, 12. 
 
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 lief of the truth," ^ 
 
 But these assertions are not supported hj th« 
 evidence of Scripture. It has been j ustly'remiu^Etft 
 bj Dr. Hill, that, "admitting that inaajLOf.^ 
 persons addressed as saints and elKt, 4pl not 
 finally be saved ; still, these words imply somethmg 
 more than a change of the outward condition : and 
 there is no necessity for our departing so far from 
 their natural and obvious meaning, as to bring it 
 down to mere external advantage : " * And his re- ' 
 mark is equally applicable to the terms mentioned 
 by Whjtby. The elect have been predestinated, 
 not merely to external privileges, but, also, by 
 means of these, to be conformed to the image of 
 the Son of God :' and this conformity they receive ; 
 because they have been ordained, not to external \ 
 privileges alone, but to eternal life.^ The actual / 
 result of predestination, therefore, ill accords with 
 Arminian views of the nature of election, as stated 
 in Scripture: Moreover, whom he did predestinate, 
 them he also called, and whom he called, them he also 
 justified i and whom he justified, them he alsoglo-^ 
 rijied,^ 
 
 Besides, Arminians mistake, in affirming that 
 Scriptural terms which denote predestination, ex- 
 cept when they are used in reference to Christ, re- 
 late only to churches and nations in general. Of 
 
 ' P. 36. . 2 Theol. Lect. voL 8, p. 144. s Rom., viii, 29, 
 * Acts, xiii, 48. * Rom., viii, 3C. 
 
OV ELECTION. 
 
 296 
 
 // 
 
 ^lliiii, an appropriate fllastratidn is contained in the 
 EpiBile to the Romans : For the children being 
 -notpH bom, neither having done any good or evil, 
 ^fk^ the «i»tie,, purpose of God according to election 
 might stand, not of works, but of Mm that caUeth, It 
 teas scud unto her, (Rebecca) , The elder shall serve 
 the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, 
 tut Esau have I hated. What shall we say to themf 
 Is there unrighteousness with Godf God forbid. 
 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I 
 will have mercy, and I will have compaacion on 
 whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of 
 him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of 
 God that sheweth mercy. For the Scripture saith 
 unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I 
 raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, 
 and that my name might be declared throughout all 
 the earth. Therefore, hath he mercy on whom he 
 will have mercy, and whom he will, he hardeneth.^ 
 
 Of the preceding verses, Whitby has given an 
 exposition which by no means comports with the 
 general scope of the apostle's reasoning. " The 
 purpose of God according to election mentioned 
 Rom., ix, 11," he has said, "respecteth not the 
 persons of Jacob and Esau, but their whole nation 
 and posterity. This is plain, 
 
 "1. From the words of God to Rebecca, JW 
 
 nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people 
 
 ehall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people 
 
 1 Rom., ix, 11-18. 
 S 
 

 266 
 
 DI88BBTATI0N Til. 
 
 
 J 
 
 hM 
 
 shall be stronger than the other; and the elder shall 
 serve the younger. " ^ 
 
 " 2. From this observation, that, as to the per- 
 sons of Esau and Jacob, this was never true, that 
 'he elder did serve the younger ; but only m to their 
 posterity, when the Edomites became tributaries 
 to David, 1 Sam., viii, 14." 
 
 " 3. Because what is here oflfered as a proof or. 
 v-'onfirroation of this, is cited Trom the prophet Ma- 
 lachi, who prophesied long after Jacob and Esaii 
 were dead personally, and speaks expressly of the 
 natioi^ of the Edomites."* 
 
 But, though the information communicated to 
 Rebecca, included an account of th** respective de- 
 scendants of Jacob and Esau ; the different allot- 
 ment of these nations originated ia the x^ahin; or 
 purpose of God respecting the ancestor of each. 
 Not the Israelites and the Edomites, but Jacob 
 and Esau, not yet bom, neither having done any 
 good or evil, are the subjects of the apostle's dis- 
 course ; and love extended to the one and hatred 
 to the other, previous to their capacity of action, 
 constitute the ground of that objection to the doc- 
 trine of unconditional election, which he has stated 
 in the fourteenth verse. What shall we say then f 
 Is there unrighteousness with God 9 Besides, the 
 whole passage under consideration, applies T^ihrts 
 or purpose of God to individuals ; first, the children 
 not yet bom ; next, him that willeth and him that 
 
 * Gen., XXV, 23. 
 
 2 P. 32. 
 
OV ELBOTION. 
 
 267 
 
 ronneth ; then, Pharaoh ; and lasUj, in accordance 
 with the divine claim of absolute soToreigntjr, an- 
 nounced to Moses, it is added, Therefore kath he 
 mercy h on (him J whom he will have mercy, and «> 
 (him) whom he will he hardencth. 
 
 Nor is Whitby more correct, when he affirms 
 that the term election, except when applied to 
 Christ, refers only to churches and nations. By 
 one apostle, Rufus has been particularly specified 
 as chosen in the Lord ; ' and by another, the terms 
 el^t sister and elect lady, have been ^.pplied to in- 
 dividuals.* Perhaps, too, "Whitby ought not to 
 have asserted, that, *' as to the persons of Esau &nd 
 Jacob, it was never true that the elder did serve 
 the younger." Esau certainly tendered service to 
 Jacob when he said, Let us go, and I will go before 
 thee, and also, Let me now leave with thee some of the 
 foUt that are with me.* Besides, if, as stated by 
 Whitby, "the election mentioned in the holy 
 Scriptures, is only a conditional election upon our 
 perseverance in a life of holiness, aud is to be made 
 sure unto us by good works," it remains for Ar- 
 minians to show, why under a system of salvation 
 which they juppose to be designed for the whole 
 human race, one nation has been elected to the 
 means of grace, and another not elected to these 
 means, and, consequently, left without Christ and 
 without God in the world. 
 
 The harshness which Arminians ascribe to the 
 Rom., xvi, 13. 2 John, 2 Ep. » Gen., xwiii, 1 ?, 15. 
 
'P'BW'- *^' 
 
 268 
 
 BIBSERTITION Til. 
 
 doctrine of unconditional election, is m.erelj a par- 
 ticular use of that objection which induced the 
 ancient sceptics to exclude the Deity from the uni- 
 verse. The Calvinistic view of the divine decrees 
 may not harmonise with human feeling ; but it is 
 in perfect accordance with that diversity of allot- 
 ment which God has assigned to the various sec- 
 tions of animated nature : And, surely, if man 
 admit, that, in the diversified disposition of other 
 parts of creation, there is no unrighteousness with 
 God ; respecting himself it becomes him not to 
 say. Why hast thou made me thus ? Besides, that 
 very sovereignty which Arminians do not concede 
 to God in his disposal of individuals, they must, 
 according to their own principles, admit with re- 
 spect to nations, whether these be elected to the 
 means of grace, or be left to perish where no vision 
 is. Admitting, the purpose of God according to 
 election to be either of individuals or of nations, 
 still it is not of works, but of him thatcaUeth ; and, 
 therefore, it must be referred to the good pleasure 
 of him who has said, / wiU have mercy on whom I 
 will have mercy, and I will have compassion on 
 whom I will have compassion. So then, it is not of 
 him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of 
 God that sheweth mercy. 
 
 Nor is it with more propriety objected, that the 
 doctrine of inconditional decrees is inconsistent 
 with the sincerity of God, exemplified in his warn- 
 ings against sir, and his exhortations to obedience. 
 
ON BLEGTIOV. 
 
 2^9 
 
 Oalvioiite reply, that these are the very means 
 which the Deity employH to effect his purposes : 
 and, farther, bringing the objection to bear upon 
 the Arminian system, they request its advocates to 
 account for warnings and exhortations, which God 
 infalliUy foreknew must prove unprofitable to some, 
 simply because he does not work in them to will 
 and to do of his good pleasure. If Arminian ob- 
 jection against the Calvinistic doctrine of predesti- 
 nation be traced to its results, it will be found, that, 
 betwflon imconditional decrees and infidelity, there 
 is no intermediate ground of belief, which does not 
 divest the Deity of some attribute of his nature. 
 The Scriptures, it is true, leave Calvinism, as well 
 as other systems of religion, without affording a 
 roply to every objection : but it has the plain testi- 
 mony of God for its support ; while other systems, 
 after every attempt to accommodate divine truth 
 to the feelings of human nature, are' liable to ob- 
 jections equally formidable. For those who are 
 reluctant to acquiesce in its doctrines, it would be 
 well to consider, that, to mar 'uring the present 
 stage of hifi existence, the Scriptures do not disclose 
 the whole counsel of God. Till that which is im- 
 perfect shall be done away, they leave human 
 knowledge imperfect. When that which is perfect 
 is come, the perfection of human capacity will pre- 
 pare the christian to know, even as he is known. 
 In the menu time, recollecting that he walks by 
 faith, it 1 comes him to concede to the potter 
 
270 
 
 DIS8BRTATI0V TI. 
 
 power oTer the claj ; andf without rmprofitable 
 prjipg into what God has concealed, to say with au 
 apostle, O tke depth of the riehe* bdh of the tcisdom 
 and knowledge of Goa ! how uneearchable are hie 
 Judgments and hit toaifs past/lnding out ! ^ 
 
 >Fom., xj, 32 
 
 GLASGOW : 
 WILUAM C0LUN8, AND CO., PKINTEM. 
 
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