us to imagine that the holy God compelled, enticed, or in any degree influenced his creatures to sin, or rendered it necessary or unavoidable to them: on the contrary, having formed them for ever capable of avoiding it, and having given them every encouragement and incitement to obedience, he let them know his infinite hatred of sin, and determination to punish it with the utmost severity, and warned them with all solemnity against it. But he did not deem himself bound in justice to prevent, by an exertion of almighty power, that fall which, unless they were wanting to themselves, they were able to avoid. He foresaw that, left to themselves, they might, yea would fall; and for wise reasons he chose thus to leave them, knowing that he might justly do so: and then he embraced the occasion, thus offered by their wilful aggravated rebellion, to manifest and glorify his infinite mercy, (an attribute of his character which had never before been displayed:) in harmony with his other perfections, in the work of redemption.

"If man be acknowledged to be a fallen apostate creature, none of the rest can be denied without palpable blasphemy. God doubtless foresaw that man would fall, if left to himself: certainly he could have prevented it by an exertion of almighty power: but he did not. Had justice required it, assuredly he would. Had it not been the wisest and best, all things considered, he would never have permitted sin. The thing proves itself. The existence of sin demonstrates that it was just and wise in God to permit it: and they argue against self-evidence, who, by objecting to this part of the divine providence and government, endeavor to prejudice men's minds against those doctrines, which presuppose what has been here delivered. If God could not consistently with justice and wisdom leave his rational creatures to themselves, when he foresaw that they would sin if thus left, he must either be divested of omniscience, or forbidden to manifest either his justice in punishing sin, or his mercy in pardoning it: and thus his giving a law and governing the world come to nothing; for, if any break the law, the blame is cast on God who permits it! Such bold objectors are best answered by the apostle: Nay but, Oman, who art thou that repliest against God?"

The writer now proceeds to the doctrine of the Trinity, and of redemption.

REDEMPTION DESIGNED TO MAGNIFY THE LAW.

"MAN's disobedience dishonored and reflected on the precepts of God's holy law, as if it had not been equitable, reasonable, or necessary; as if it were needlessly strict and rigorous; commanded things incompatible with the happiness of those who were subject to it, and forbad them enjoyments which would have added to their real and true felicity: in fine, as if the great lawgiver had been defective either in wisdom, or in love to his subjects. This is evidently implied in transgression; for why else break a law which is, in perfect wisdom and benevolence, promulgated for our good?.....

"The various objections which are so commonly made against one or another precept of the law, and against its strictness and spirituality, together with the multiplied schemes continually framed by antinomians, neonomians, and others, for abrogating, lowering, altering the law of God; and the harsh language which many use concerning it; too plainly prove the opinion which sinners entertain of it: how glad they would be to be rid of it: how they hate it with a perfect hatred: and consequently how necessary it was that God, as the great Governor of the world, should, in his plan for the salvation of sinners, counteract this disposition, and magnify the law, and make it honorable.

"This the Son of God hath effectually done by his obedience to the law in our nature. The dignity of his person, God with us; the voluntariness of his obedience-he being under no obligation to obey in this our world for so many years; the difficult circumstances in which his obedience was performed-even in the midst of all those external obstacles, temptations, and sufferings which sin has placed in our way, but with which no holy being, save Jesus Christ, ever struggled in obeying; the perfection of his obedience in every point; the cheerfulness with which he undertook, and persevered in, and perfected his work -uniformly declaring that he delighted to obey-that the law was in his heart-and that it was his meat to do the will of God, and to finish his work: all conspired to put unspeakable honor on God's law, in the view of the whole intelligent creation, even more than the united obedience

of all creatures could have done. While the Father, in not making any abatements, or relaxing in one single point, on account of his infinite love to his only-begotten Son, or for his personal worth and dignity, more convinc ingly demonstrated his regard to the honor of his law, and his unalterable judgment of its transcendent excellency, than can be conceived to be in any other way possible.

"But, though the first Adam, as surety for his posterity, who could have no guilt to answer for previously to his transgression, had only active obedience to perform; yet the second Adam, as surety for sinners, must also be obedient unto death, even the death of the cross: that is, the penalty, as well as the precept of the law must be honored. -Nothing can be more obvious than this provision. This apostate world resounds from one end to another with clamors against this part of God's word. The very mention of eternal damnation is reprobated as horrible. Tyr anny, cruelty, and such like terms are applied by apostate rebels to the righteous denunciations of their offended sovereign: for the self-same reason that traitors and robbers execrate those cruel laws which condemn them to death. And, if any man, out of zeal for his Maker's honor, and benevolent compassion for his fellow sinners, venture in plain terms to tell them their guilt and danger, he immediately becomes the object of their scorn and execration. In short, this thought, that the curse of the law is needlessly severe, is congenial to the human heart.

"But, if such be indeed the sanction of the divine law; if eternal damnation be denounced against all transgressors; and if God's subjects, so far from submitting to his righteousness in this particular, openly quarrel with it, and scruple not to charge him with tyranny and cruelty; it surely must be highly necessary that, in exercising mercy for the pardon and salvation of sinners, he should adopt some decisive measure for vindicating his own honor, and convincing the world of his justice: lest it should seem as if he tacitly acknowledged himself wrong, and was making them an amends.

"For this end the divine surety was made a curse for us, when he redeemed us from the curse of the law.....

"Let us consider the whole rational creation, every intelligence that ever was, or ever shall be created, receiving information of this event that, when God of his most rich mercy to sinful men, whom he judged righteous

ly deserving of eternal damnation, purposed to spare, forgive, and save them; in order that none might think worse of his law, or better of sin, or that he would not punish sin as the law denounced, because it would have been too severe to do it; he in their stead punished his only-begotten Son, and spared him not, but caused the sword of justice to awake against him and smite him: let them be informed of this, (as doubtless they will be, and will they not see and acknowledge that God's hatred of sin, and determination to punish it inflexibly and impartially, are more displayed in this transaction than in not sparing the angels that sinned, or even in eternally punishing every individual transgressor?

"Let but the divine dignity of the Son of God; the infinite love of the eternal Father to him; the excellence and glory of his character; the perfection and willingness of his obedience; and the intenseness and complication of his sufferings, from the contempt and cruelty of man, the temptations of the devil, and those horrors, with which doubtless the combined forces of hell in that hour assaulted his soul: let his sufferings in body and mind, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, though by the wicked hands of men, be well considered: then contemplate the eternal Father not sparing, but delighting to bruise his well-beloved Son-to pound him as in a mortar, the original word implies: then remember that he was wounded for our transgressions, was bruised for our iniquities; that the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and that with his stripes we are healed; that all we like sheep had gone astray, and the Lord laid upon him the iniquity of us all: and then let us determine whether this was not a more evident attestation of his infinite hatred of sin, and of his absolute approbation of the curse of the law, as righteous and reasonable, than if he had without mercy inflicted it upon us all.

"The event plainly evinces that the eternal misery of sinners is not an act of arbitrary choice in God; that he does not delight in their death; but that it has its foundation in the nature and reason of things; and must be so, if God be perfect, if he judge of things as they really are, proportion his love or hatred to the good or evil he sees in them, and order his conduct accordingly. For, when his infinite love prevailed in shewing mercy to sinful men, his infinite hatred of sin, and regard to justice, influenced

him to give his only Son to be the propitiation for their sins; and, when he would spare them, he would not spare him.

"Nor doth the conduct of the divine Mediator less unequivocally proclaim the same truths. Though he was so far from having merited any punishment, that he had more honored the law of God than all creatures can ever do, and therefore was on his own account no ways liable to death, which is the wages of sin; having also a body and soul properly his own, and at his own disposal; yet most willingly and cheerfully did he give up both body and soul a sacrifice for sin; and without one murmur or complaint, without any reluctancy or impatience, bore all that pain, anguish, contempt, horror, wrath, and vengeance which sin had merited-the infinity of his person fully compensating the temporary duration of his sufferings. The language of this conduct of the Son of God is most plainly this: 'I delight in the whole law: that dreadful penalty which the law denounces against every transgressor, and which excites such rancorous enmity in the hearts of sinners, and causes such blasphemous clamors against the divine administration, I cordially approve. Though my heart is filled with immense compassion and tenderest love for sinners, and is fixed in the gracious purpose of effecting their salvation, yet do I declare sin to be that evil thing which this awful sentence implies. I will vindicate with my dying lips the righteousness of God therein: and, rather than the sanction of the law should be in the least dishonored through the remission of sin, and the exemption of transgressors from the curse, I myself will be made a curse, and thus in their stead suffer the deserved vengeance;

that

all the universe to all eternity may see and know, that I deem every sinner deserving of eternal misery; that God may be glorious in his impartial justice, and rich abounding mercy.'

PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL-INVITATIONS.

"AND now, all that was requisite having been done to manifest God's awful hatred of sin, and inflexible justice in punishing it, for the instruction of all his subjects in this part of his character to all eternity; every impediment being thus removed, the gracious propensity of the divine nature, which is LOVE, and which induced him to take these