volence of God does not prevent Him from forgiving sins; in other words, from exercising mercy; or, in other words, from hindering or removing those baneful consequences with which, in the usual course of His providence, those sins would be attended. To prove this, numerous passages might be cited; but Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7, is sufficient, where God speaks of Himself as, The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, FORGIVING INIQUITY AND TRANSGRESSION AND SIN.'-Thus far ́ will surely be admitted by all; and the grand point is, Can God consistently with his justice, or, which is the same thing, with his benevolence, forgive sins, without a satisfaction?

III. The Scriptures of the Old Testament teach us, by recording facts and divine declarations, that

46

* When I had written these words, I recollected that they are contradicted by a passage quoted in the Anti-satisfactionist, p. 50, from Stockell's Redeemer's Glo y unveiled, p. 157. "In a strict and proper sense, the infinite God doth not forgive sin; for it is readily granted by all who are sound in "the faith, that Jesus Christ hath given full satisfaction to di"vine justice for all sin, and hath fully paid the debts of his "church. And if Christ hath satisfied the justice of God "for all the sins of his people, how then can it justly or with "propriety of speech be said, that God pardoneth our sins "and transgressions? Sure I am, that debt can never be for"given which is paid."-I suppose Stockell would readily have admitted, consistently with the satisfaction-scheme, that God could not forgive sins without the full satisfaction of Jesus; and if so, he must allow that "in a strict and proper “sense,” God cannot forgive sins at all. Unitarianism is not without its difficulties, in which, however, it is not peculiar; but, unlike some of the doctrines which it opposes, it involves -no absurdities.

6

it is not inconsistent with the justice of God, that is with His benevolence, that He should forgive sins, when the sinner repents of and forsakes them. Let the wicked forsake his way,' saith the prophet Isaiah, (ch. lv. 7,) and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," saith the Lord.'-Passages of similar import might be adduced from various parts of the Scriptures, (a reference to some of which will be found below), but I think that the foregoing pas sage is sufficient to satisfy any reasonable person.

If, to destroy the force of the inevitable conclusions which follow from this most important truth, it be maintained, that it was the death of Christ which gave repentance its efficacy, even in the ages preceding that event, I have merely to reply, that nothing of the kind is said or implied in the Scriptures, and much is said which implies the contrary; and that therefore, without inquiring whether or not it could be so, I cannot hesitate to affirm that it

was not so.

IV. Throughout the whole of the Old Testament, obedience to the divine will is represented as essentially necessary to obtain acceptance with God, and nothing is said which justifies the belief, that any thing additional is requisite to render that obedience acceptable to Him. Sacrifices indeed were

y 2 Chron. xxx. 9. Neh. ix. 17. Job xxxiii. 27, 28. Ps. xxxiv. 18. li. 17. cxxx. 4. Is. Įvii. 15. Ezek. xviii, 21, 23, 30-32. xxxiii. 11, 12. Zech. i. 3.

appointed or sanctioned by the Mosaic dispensation; and external rites and ceremonies were enjoined, accommodated to the infancy of the human race, and founded upon the peculiar relation which God was pleased to establish between Himself and the Jews; but it is never represented that these institutions had any efficacy in themselves considered, that they could of themselves remove guilt and restore men to the favour of God. They were the appointed means of communication between Jehovah and His people; and the performance of them was valuable, as an act of obedience; but the language of the authorized instructors of the Jews is too explicit to allow of the idea, that they were designed to supersede the grand duties of piety and virtue, to atone for the neglect of them, or to render the discharge of them valuable in the sight of God. Thou desirest not sacrifice,' says the Psalmist, else would I give it; thou delightest not in burnt-offering; the sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O= God, thou wilt not despise.' And alike decisive are the words of the Prophet Micah, after express

Ps. li. 16. David clearly declares in this interesting passage, that God had appointed no sacrifices as an atonement for such guilt as he had contracted; that in cases of moral guilt, the only means of regaining the favour of God is genuine contrition, leading to thorough repenta: ce; and that this is acceptable to God. He obviously knew nothing of the necessity of a satisfaction for the sins of men, to enable God to extend his mercy to them: and if God could pardon David without the atonement supposed to be made by the death of Jesus, all arguments in favour of the commonly received doctrine of atonement, derived from the nature of the divine attributes, fall to the ground at once.

ing his sense of the nullity of sacrifices to atone for breaches of duty, he says, (ch. vi. 8,) He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?'

V. To the same purpose are the declarations of our Saviour. He represents obedience to the will of God, as what is requisite to obtain His acceptance; and he does not give the slightest intimation, that our obedience is accepted in consequence of any thing which he himself might do or suffer for us, or that our imperfections are supplied by his perfect obedience. Not every one, that saith unto me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven "." "Whosoever shall do the will of my Father, who is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother d'

VI. And to the same purpose are the declarations of the Apostles. They represent obedience to the commandments of God as necessary in order

a See also 1 Sam. xv. 22. Hos. vi. 6.

Is. i. 11- -15. Jer. vi. 20.

Some may possibly imagine that John vi. 53, 54, imply, that eternal happiness is obtained in consequence of believing in the merits of his death ;-but the meaning of our Lord's assertion in that passage is plainly no more than this, that unless the Jews received his doctrines and imbibed the principles of his religion, they had no ground to hope for everlasting happiness, which, on the other hand, would be allotted to all who should receive his doctrines and imbibe his principles: comp. vs. 35, 40, 47, 63.— That Matt. xxvi. 28, furnishes no objection against the representations above, see Chap. ix.

No. 4.

c Matt. vii. 21.

d Matt. xii. 50.

to obtain acceptance with Him; and they give no intimation, that faith in the efficacy of the death of Jesus is necessary for that purpose, or that it was the death of Jesus which renders our imperfect obedience acceptable to God. Paul says, 'I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the MERCIES of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, ACCEPTABLE to God.' Again, We must all appear before the judgement-seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, ACCORDING TO WHAT HE HATH DONE, whether it be good or bad'.' The Apostles do indeed lay the utmost stress on faith in Jesus; and when it is recollected of what nature were the ob

jects of his mission 8,-how essentially necessary faith in him, as the Son of God, was to the accomplishment of those objects,-that in the circumstances in which the Gospel was first preached, nothing but vicious affections or practices could prevent faith in Jesus,-and, on the other hand, that, in those circumstances, speculative belief naturally and usually produced practical belief, in other words faith and obedience were usually found connected as cause and consequence,-who can feel any surprise at the degree of importance attached to faith in Jesus, especially when it is taken into account, that it placed the believer in a state. of great and glorious privilege? But what has all this to do with faith in the atoning merits of Christ, or in the efficacy of his death?

e Rom. xii. I.

f2 Cor. v. 10.

See also Gal. vi. 7-10. Eph. iv. 20-24. vi. 8. 1 Tim. vi. 17-19. 1 John ii. 3-5. h Sec p. 159.

8 see § X.