doubtless it is thus far turned to very great account, in that it was a most precious offering in the fight of the Lord, and drew God's love the more eminently unto mankind, at least fuch as fhould believe in his name; as his folemn prayer to his Father at his leaving the world, given us by his beloved difciple, doth plainly witnefs.

For how can it otherwife be, but that it should render God most propitious to all fuch as believe in Christ, the light of the world, when it was but placing of his only begotten Son's fufferings truly on their account that should ever believe and obey him? Yea, doubtlefs, greatly did that facrifice influence to fome fingular tenderness, and peculiar regard, unto all fuch who fhould believe in his name, being the last and greatest of all his external acts, viz. The refifting unto blood, or the fpiritual good of the world, thereby < offering up his life upon the crofs, through the power of the Eternal Spirit, that remiffion of fin, (God's bounty to the world) might be preached in his name, and in his very blood too, as that which was the most ratifying of all his bodily fufferings.' And indeed, therefore might it seem meet to the Holy Ghost, that redemption, propitiation, and remiffion, fhould be declared and held forth in the blood of Chrift unto all that have right faith therein, as faith the apostle to the Romans, "Whom God hath fet "forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood:"" and to the Ephefians; "In whom we have redemp

tion through his blood, the forgiveness of fins, &c. because it implies a firm belief that Chrift was come in the flesh, and that none could then have him as their propitiation or redemption, who withstood the acknowledgment of, and belief in, his visible appearance, which John tells us fome denied. 2. That he came in order to the remifiion, redemption, and falvation of the world. 3. That his fo dying was both an evident token of his love, and a ftrong argument

y Rom. iii. 25. 2 Ephef. i. 7

of

of confirmation of his meffage and work. 4. That it might the better end the Jews fhadowy fervices, by an allufion to the way of their temporary and typical facrifices, as the whole epiftle to the Hebrews fheweth. 5. And that by bringing (through the holy light in every particular) into the acknowledgment of, and belief in, the blood, which was ratifying of that whole appearance, men might be brought unto the knowing Chrift after a more inward and fpiritual manner, fuitable to Chrift's own words, "It is the "Spirit that quickens ;" and the apostle avers, that "the Lord from heaven is that quickening Spirit ;' by which eternal Spirit he offered up himself without fpot. Nor can any reasonably fuppofe, that when Chrift fo fpoke to his difciples, explanatorily of what he had obfcurely and in parables faid to the Jews, that he meant not fomething more hidden and divine than what they and the Jews faw; yet that which hindered those Jews from the knowledge or benefit thereof, was their stumbling at him, without a confeffing of whom they could never come into the beholding or experiencing of his divine life in them.

To conclude; that body was the divine LIFE'S; "A "body haft thou prepared ME;" therefore all that was done by that body, towards the redemption of mankind, was eminently the divine life's: yet because oftentimes actions are denominated from, or appropriated to, the instrument, as the next cause, though not the efficient or moft eminent caufe; therefore the fcripture speaks forth (as indeed is the propriety of both the Hebrew and Greek tongues) parabolically, hyperbolically, metaphorically, the inward fubftance and hidden life of things, by things more exterior and obvious to the fenfe, to the end that such mysteries might be the better accommodated to vulgar capacities. Confider what I fay, with this qualification, that ultimately and chiefly, not wholly and exclufively, the divine life in that body was the Redeemer: for the sufferings of that holy body of Jefus had an engaging and procuring virtue in them, though the divine life

D d 4

was

was that fountain from whence originally it came. And as the life declared and preached forth itself through that holy body, fo they who did then come to the benefit procured by the divine life, could only do it through an hearty confeffion to it as appearing in that body, and that from a sense first begotten by a measure of the fame in themselves.

This is the main import of those places; "whom "God hath fet forth to be a propitiation," and "in "whom we have redemption through faith in his "blood." For who is this be, whom God hath fet forth, and in whom is redemption? Certainly the fame be that was before Abraham, the rock of the fathers, that cried, "Lo, I come to do thy will, O God; a "body haft thou prepared me;b" which was long before the body was conceived and born. But may fome fay, How is it then his blood?' Why, juft as the body is his body.

Those who had faith in that blood, believed his vifible appearance, inafmuch as they acknowledged that great feal and ratification of it, to wit, the fhedding of the blood of his body, who came to fave the world, and who alone is the propitiation, redemption, and falvation of all who had and have right faith in that appearance, and meffage fo confirmed, and therefore fo often expreffed by it, as including all his whole life and fufferings befides. And this is my reason for it, that it was impoffible for any man, in that day, to confefs to and believe in the divine light and life which appeared in that prepared body, but from the inward discoveries and operations of the divine light, with which Chrift the Word-God, who took flefh, had enlightened him.

However, though the apoftles might then fo exprefs themselves, thereby to affert and recommend unto the faith of all, that eminent and bleffed manifeftation, and the great love of Chrift therein, as the vifitation of the heavenly life through that prepared

Rom. iii. 25.

Heb. x. 5, 7.

body,

body, and the deep fufferings of both for the world, being true and fpiritual witneffes thereof; yet it was never intended that they should barely rest there, but press after the knowledge of Chrift, by faith, in fomething farther, and beyond that body in which he appeared, not excluding our belief in that too. They who knew Chrift after the flesh, were to prefs after fome more spiritual discovery of him; and it was expedient that they, who almoft doted upon his outward manifeftation, should be weaned from it, to the end his more interior, and indeed beneficial revelation of himfelf, might be witneffed by the foul.

Faith in his blood was requifite, that they might confess him, whofe body and blood it was, to be the CHRIST, who is God over all, bleffed for ever; which was the great question with the Jews, Whether God was truly manifefted in that body of flesh, which they faw?' So that the ftrefs lies in confeffing to the Divinity come in the flesh; otherwife they would have rejected not only the most fignal fuffering of the whole manifeftation, but confequently that itfelf. To conclude, we confefs, be who then appeared, was and is the propitiation, &c. and in him was redemption obtained, by all thofe who had fuch true faith in his blood: but still it is to be understood, that there must be a witneffing of a measure of the fame light, spirit and power, to appear for the redemption of the foul from the pollution of fin, in each particular.

VIII. That juftification came by faith in his blood, is clear in a fenfe; for by the law could no flesh be juftified: that is, the law being added because of tranfgreffion, certainly the tranfgreffor could not be juftified, whilft fuch, by that law which condemned him for being fuch. Which puts me upon diftinguishing betwixt juftification, as it is fometimes taken, viz. for remiffion, pardon, or forgiveness of fin paft upon. repentance; and that juftification which implies an acceptance with, and an access to, God, as a keeper of the law of the fpirit of life; which is to be made inherently juft, righteous, or holy.'

In

"

In the first sense, fince all have finned, no man can be justified by the law he has tranfgreffed: therefore that great favour and mercy of remiffion, pardon, and forgivenefs, was only then generally preached in the name of Jefus, which fuch as believed in his meffage fhould obtain. Thus, " by the work of the law "fhall no flesh be justified;" because all the righteousness man is capable of, cannot make fatisfaction for any unrighteoufnefs he hath committed; fince what he daily doth, is but what he daily owes. But ftill, fuch as keep the law are juftified: for that a man fhould be condemned both for tranfgreffing and keeping the law too, would be very hard. What shall we fay then, but that juftification in the first fense, fince Adam's day to this, hath been God's free love, upon repentance? and above all, that by Christ's visible appearance and fuffering, and in his name, was remiffion, pardon, or forgiveness preached, or held forth to the whole world, upon their believing therein, more eminently than ever.

But in the last fenfe, no man can be justified, but as he is made juft, and is found actually doing the will of God: that juftifies; that is it which gives acceptance with, and accefs to God. In this fenfe it was the apoftle faid, "Such as are the doers of the law

fhall be justified;" and not from the guilt of what they formerly did against it by their after keeping it; for that is the free love of God alone, upon the repentance of the creature; which hath been in all former ages, but never fo eminently held forth to the world, as by the coming of our Lord Jefus Christ in the flesh.

So that thus far we can approach the honefter fort of profeffors of religion; or rather, we were herein never at a distance from them, viz. That men may be reconciled, and in a fenfe juftified, while fin may not be totally destroyed:' that is, God, upon their repenting of paft fins, though not then clearly purged from the ground of evil, may, and we believe doth, remit, pardon, or forgive former offences, and is thus

far