Sect. 1. 365 duct of kings and rulers bring misery on their subjects, who are not acceffary to their follies. The fins of parents, in like manner, bring poverty, difeafes, and even death, on their innocent children. On the other hand, the wifdom and juftice of princes, are productive of happiness to their people: The virtues alfo and heroic deeds of parents bring honours and riches to their defcendants, which remain with them often to the lateft pofterity.

This conftitution of God, whereby evils are brought on inno. cent perfons, for the faults of others in which they were nowife concerned; and blessings are conveyed to the unworthy, for the good deeds of others to which they contributed nothing, is not repugnant to the ideas which mankind entertain of juftice and goodness. For, by univerfal confent, in all well regulated human "governments, without any imputation of injustice, a fimilar conftitution is established by law, through which, on the one hand, children are involved in the punishment inflicted on their parents, for crimes of which the children are entirely innocent; and on the other, are made to fhare in the honours and rewards conferred on their parents, for virtues, to which the children contributed nothing.

Since then, by the appointment of men, fo many evils befal the innocent, and fo many benefits come to the undeferving, on account of actions performed by others, in which they had not the least concern, why fhould it be thought inconsistent with the juftice and goodness of God, as moral governor of the world, to have fubjected Adam's pofterity to fin and death on account of his offence, notwithstanding they were in no respect acceffary thereto? And having fubjected them to these evils, it certainly must appear both proper and juft, that he should have provided a remedy for them by the obedience of his Son, although the perfons benefited by it, contributed nothing to his obedience. Wherefore, the account which revelation hath given of the introduction of fin and mifery into the world, and of the method in which these evils are remedied, cannot be found fault with, although in either cafe, no regard was had to the perfonal demerit of the individuals affected thereby: But in both, God acted agreeably to the fovereignty of his own will.

To prevent any mistake, however, on this head, let it be observed, that from what hath been advanced, it by no means follows, that mankind are not to be rewarded or punished according to the nature of their own deeds. For, as B. Butler hath obferved, Analogy, part ii. chap. 5. fect. 7. "The world's "being under the righteous government of God, does indeed "imply, that finally and upon the whole, every one, shall re"ceive according to his personal deserts: And the general doc"trine of the whole fcripture is, That this fhall be the com"pletion of the divine government. But during the progrefs, " and, for ought we know, even in order to the completion of "this moral scheme, vicarious punishments may be fit and ab"folutely neceffary." And if fo, vicarious rewards may also be neceffary for the fame end.

Secondly, To the foregoing vindication of the account given in revelation of the ruin and recovery of the human species, it may be objected, that the evils, which, according to the present constitution of things, are brought on the innocent by the vices of the guilty, and the benefits which the undeserving receive through the good deeds of the virtuous, are things merely accidental, owing to the natural relations by which mankind are connected: Consequently, that no argument can be drawn from fuch a conftitution, to prove that it was confiftent with the juftice and goodness of God, to subject Christ, an innocent perfon, to fufferings and death, for the fake either of faving the guilty from the penal confequences of their tranfgreffions, or of bestowing favours on the undeferving. True. Such an argument does not follow from that part of the constitution of things juft now explained: But it follows from another part of the same constitution, equally original and equally evident. For to use Butler's words immediately following those already quoted: "Men by their follies run themselves into extreme distress, into "difficulties which would be absolutely fatal to them, were it "not for the interpofition and affiftance of others. God com"mands by the law of nature, that we afford them this affist"s ance, in cafes where we cannot do it without very great

many

pains and labour and fufferings to ourselves. And we fee in "what variety of ways, one person's sufferings contribute to "the relief of another; and how or by what particular means,

Sect. I. 367 "this comes to pafs or follows from the conftitution and laws "of nature which come under our notice: and being fami"liarized to it, men are not shocked with it." For example, many, by their vices and follies, bring on themselves diseases, and a variety of accidents, which would often prove fatal to them, were it not for the timely affiftance afforded to them by others, who, in lending them that affistance, sometimes expose themselves to great dangers, and sometimes fubject themselves to long and painful fufferings. Having, therefore, in the prefent constitution of things, inftances of innocent perfons fuffering voluntarily, by the exprefs appointment of God, extreme evils, for the fake of alleviating or removing the temporal penal confequences of the fins of others, it cannot be thought inconfiftent with the juftice and goodness of God, in his original plan of the government of our world, to have provided that the eternal penal confequences, which he hath connected with fin, shall not in every cafe and to every perfon, inevitably follow their tranfgreffion and even that this deliverance fhould be accomplished by a perfon, different from the finner himself, who, for a purpose fo benevolent, voluntarily expofed himself to the greatest sufferings for a time. To object against this appointment, is in reality to object against God's original conftitution of nature, and against the daily course of his providence in the government of the world. For, as the before mentioned ex. cellent author hath obferved, Anal. part ii. ch. 5. fect. 7. "The "world is a conftitution or fyftem, whofe parts have a mutual "reference to each other: And there is a scheme of things gra "dually carrying on, called the course of nature, to the carry❝ing on of which, God has appointed us, in various ways, to ❝ contribute. And when in the daily courfe of natural provi"dence, it is appointed that innocent people should suffer for "the faults of the guilty, this is liable to the very fame objection

as the instance we are now confidering. The infinitely greater "importance of that appointment of Chriftianity which is

objected against, does not hinder but it may, as it plainly is, "an appointment of the very fame kind, with what the world "affords us daily examples of. Nay, if there were any force "at all in the objection, it would be ftronger, in one respect, "against natural providence, than against Christianity. Be

"cause,

"cause, under the former, we are in many cafes commanded, "and even neceffitated, whether we will or no, to fuffer for "the faults of others. Whereas the fufferings of Chrift were "voluntary."

Thirdly, To the efficacy of the sufferings and death of Chrift in preventing the future penal confequences of fin, it hath been objected, That we do not understand how they can have any fuch efficacy. True; we do not understand this, because revelation hath only discovered to us the fact, without explaining the manner in which it is brought to pafs. Nevertheless from the filence of scripture, and from our ignorance of the manner in which Chrift's fufferings and death operate, in preventing the future penal confequences of fin, it doth not follow, that his fofferings and death have that efficacy, by an arbitrary and tyrannical appointment. They may have it in the way of natural confequence. For, to ufe B. Butler's words, Anal. part ii. c. 5. fect. 7. "What has been often alleged in juftification of this "doctrine, even from the apparent natural tendency of this "method of our redemption; its tendency to vindicate the authority of God's laws, and deter his creatures from fin; this "has never yet been anfwered, and is, I think, plainly unan

fwerable: though I am far from thinking it an account of "the whole of the cafe. But without taking this into confi"deration, it abundantly appears, from the obfervations above "made, that this objection, is not an objection against Chris

tianity, but against the whole general conftitution of nature. "And if it were to be confidered as an objection against "Christianity, or confidering it as it is, an objection against "the conftitution of nature; it amounts to no more in conclu"fion than this, That a divine appointment cannot be neceffary "or expedient, because the Objector does not difcern it to be "fo: though he must own that the nature of the case is such, "as renders him incapable of judging whether it be so or not, "or of feeing it to be neceffary, though it were fo."-Farther, as the fame excellent reafoner obferves in the fame page, "Though it is highly right, and the most pious exercise of our "understanding, to enquire with due reverence into the ends "and reasons of God's difpenfations: Yet when those reasons

"are

are concealed, to argue from our ignorance, That such dif"penfations cannot be from God, is infinitely abfurd. The "presumption of this kind of objections, feems almost lost in "the folly of them; And the folly of them is yet greater, "when they are urged, as they usually are, against things in Christianity, analogous or like to those natural dispensations " of providence, which are matter of experience. Let reason "be kept to, and if any part of the fcripture-account of the "redemption of the world by Christ, can be shewn to be really contrary to it, let the fcripture, in the name of God, be given up. But let not fuch poor creatures as we, go on "in objecting against an infinite fcheme, that we do not "see the neceffity or usefulness of all its parts, and call this " reasoning."

66

Fourthly, To the efficacy of the fufferings and death of Chrift in preventing the future penal confequences of fin, it hath been objected, that it is unneceffary; because finners being rendered capable of pardon by repentance, God, whofe goodness is infinite, will pardon them without any atonement: that is, he will in confequence of the finner's repentance, prevent the future penal consequences of his fins from befalling him. But, before an objection of this kind is urged, the objector ought to know, whether there are any reasons which make the punishment of fin neceffary, under the moral government of God." And if there are fuch reafons, whether they may be difpenfed with in every cafe where repentance takes place. And what effect the difpenfing with these reasons, and the pardoning of the finner fimply on his repentance, would have on the other fubjects of God. To the determining of these questions, such a knowledge of the whole plan of God's moral government, and of the relation of its various parts to each other, and of the purposes for which, and the means by which he carries on his government, is neceffary, as doth not fall within the comprehenfion of human reason. In fuch a state of ignorance, for any one to determine, in oppofition to the scheme of falvation made known in revelation, that God may, and will pardon finners fimply on their repentance, feems not a little prefump

tuous.

VOL. III.

Bb

Were