fiveet-fmelling favour, Heb. vii. 27. Who needed not daily to offer facrifice, firft for his own fins, and then for the people. For this he did once, when he offered up himself. With the fame idea he fays, ix. 22. And without hedding blood there is no remiffion. This view of the death of Chrift occurs pretty frequently in this epiftle to the Hebrews, but not more than about half a dozen times in all the other books of the New Teftament; the principal of which is 1 John ii. 1. And he is the propitiation for our fins. But if the great object of the death of Chrift was the establishment of that religion by which the world is reformed, in confequence of which the divine being is rendered propitious to them, how natural is it to reprefent his death as a facrifice to God, for that great purpose? Befides, facrifices for fin under the law of Mofes are never confidered as standing in the place of the finner ; but as the people were never to approach the divine presence, upon any occafion, without fome offering, agreeably to the ftanding and univerfal cuftom of the Eaft, with refpect to all fovereigns and great men, fo no person after being unclean (which not only moral guilt, but a number of things abfolutely indifferent to morality were fupposed to render a man) could be introduced to the tabernacle or temple fervice, without an offering proper to the occafion,

This idea may explain 2 Cor. v. 21. He made him fin for us who knew no fin, that we might be made the righteoufness of God in him; because by fin in this place may perhaps be understood a fin-offering. Or it may correfpond to Rom. viii. 3. What the law could not do, in that it was weak, through the flesh, God fending his own fon in the likenefs of finful flesh, and for fin (on account of fin, or on the business of fin, i. e. to destroy and take it away) condemned fin in the flesh. In this cafe, the fense of the paffage will be, that Chrift was made, not fin, but in the likeness of finful flesh, that is, he was made a man for our fakes.

Many perfons are carried away by the found of the word redemption, as if it neceffarily implied. that, mankind being in a state of bondage, a price must be paid for their freedom, and that the death of Chrift was that price. But the word which we render redemption fignifies only deliverance in general, in whatever manner it be effected, and it is frequently fo rendered by our tranflators. Belonging to this class of texts are the following, Matt. xx. 28. Mark x. 45. The fon of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minifter, and to give his life a ransom for many. I Tim. ii. 8. Who gave himself

ransom for all.

In order to judge of the meaning of this expref-. fion, let the preceding paffages be compared with the following, in which the fame Greek word is

ufed,

ufed, Luke xxiv. 21. We trusted that it had been he who should have delivered, or (as it might have been tranflated) redeemed Ifrael. In this cafe, the difciples certainly meant a deliverance, or redemption, from a state of subjection to the Romans, which they could not fuppofe was to be effected by purchase, but by the exertion of wisdom and power. Luke i. 68. He has vifited, and redeemed his people; which is explained in ver. 71, by a deliverance from our enemies, and from the hands of all that hate us. In Acts vii. 35. Stephen ftiles Mofes a ruler and deliverer, or redeemer, but what price did he pay for their redemption? In the Old Teftament alfo God is frequently faid to have redeemed Ifrael from the hand of the Egyptians; but he certainly did not redeem them by paying any price for their redemption, and much lefs by becoming a bondman in their place, but, as it is often expreffed, he redeemed or delivered them, with an high hand and an outstretched arm. So alfo may Christ be faid to redeem, or deliver from fin, viz. by his precepts, by his example, and by the precious promises of his gospel; by the confideration of which we are induced to forfake fin.

Stress has been laid upon the word for in the above-mentioned paffages, as if Chrift dying a ranfom for all neceffarily implied that he died in the Stead, or in the place, of all; but the fame word has other fignifications, as becaufe, and fo it is rendered

Because thou haft not believed my

Heb. xii. 2.

dered Luke i. 20. word. Who for, or because of the joy that was fet before him. It alfo fignifies on the behalf, or on the account of, as Mat. xvii. 27. That take, and give them for thee and me, that is, on the account of, not instead of me and thee. So Chrift died, and gave his life a ransom, not instead of many, but on the behalf of many, or for their benefit.

Much stress has also been laid on Chrift being faid to bear the fins of mankind; as if they had been afcribed or imputed to him, and he had taken them upon himself, and fuffered the wrath of God for them. If. liii. 11. He fhall bear their iniquities. 1 Pet. ii. 24. Who his own felf bare our fins in his own body, on the tree. Heb. ix. 28. So Chrift once fuffered, to bear the fins of many.

Thefe, I think, are all the places in which this particular view of the death of Chrift occurs. But beside the manifest injustice, and indeed abfurdity, of an innocent perfon being punished for one that is guilty, the word does not fignify to bear or take upon another, but to bear away, or to remove, by whatever means; so that the texts above-mentioned correfpond to, 1 John iii. 5, 6. And ye know that he was manifeft to take away fin, and in him was no fin..

I

The phrase bearing fin is never applied in the Old Testament, but to the fcape-goat, which was not facrificed, but turned loofe in the wilderness, to fignify

fignify the removal of the fins of the people, which God had freely forgiven, to a place where they fhould never more be heard of. The goat itself, which was emblematically faid to bear their fins fuffered nothing in confequence of it; but, as its name imports, was fuffered to efcape, or was let loofe. Perhaps the fending away of the fcape-goat was intended for a monitory sign to the people, that they should ceafe to commit thofe fins which had been fo folemnly confeffed over him, and which he was faid to bear away into a land of feparation. See Levit. xvi. 22. in the margin.

The evangelift Matthew had, most evidently, this idea of the meaning of the paffage in Ifaiah, when he applied it upon the occafion of Chrift's healing the bodily diseases of men, viii. 17. For he fays that he performed these cures, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, Himfelf took our infirmities, and bare our ficknesses. Now how did Chrift bear the bodily diseases which he cured? Not, furely, by taking them upon himself, and becoming diseased, as the poor wretches themselves had been; but by removing them by his miraculous power. In like manner Christ bears, `or takes away fin in general; not by fuffering himfelf to be treated as a finner, but removing it, by the doctrines and motives of his gospel. Agreeably to this, when Peter had faid, Who his own felf bare our fins in his own body on the tree, he explains his meaning