tered upon methods to defeat his designs, and bring his kingdom to nought, and crush the rebellion, and put him to open shame and at length bind him up in his chains, that he should deceive the nations of the earth no more-and give all nations, languages, and tongues, to Jesus Christ, and bring the whole world into subjection to him....Rev. xx. 1-4. He designed to display his glorious grace, in bringing millions of this seduced, apostate race from the jaws of eternal destruction to eternal glory....Rom. ix. 23-Eph. ii. 7. He designed to put all mankind in a new state of probation, and to display his glorious goodness, patience, forbearance, and long-suffering, in his dealings with the obstinate and finally impenitent in this world, and his glorious holiness and justice in their everlasting punishment in the world to come, in the same lake of fire and brimstone which was prepared for the devil and his angels, with whom they had joined in their rebellion against the Majesty of heaven ....Acts xiv. 17-Rom. ii. 4, and xix. 22-Mat. xxv. 41 :-In a word, he designed to take occasion, from the apostacy of mankind, in the innumerable instances in this world, and throughout eternal ages in the world to come,, to display all his glorious perfections: and so, by his whole conduct, to exhibit a most perfect and exact image of himself.

Thus we see that his designs of mercy towards a rebellious, guilty, undone world, took their rise, not from any motives in us, but altogether from motives in himself from the infinite, boundless goodness of his nature, and his sovereign good pleasure: And in this light must we view the grace of the gospel; and all our encouragements to hope in his mercy, through Jesus Christ, must take their rise, not from any thing in ourselves, but only from that self-moving goodness and free grace which he has manifested through Jesus Christ....Rom. iii. 19, 20, 24 —Eph. ii. 8.

And thus we see that his end, as to the elect, was to bring them back from their apostacy, their rebellion, and wickedness, and ruin, to God, their rightful Lord and Sovereign, to become his servants, to love him, and live to him, and live upon him,

and be blessed in him forever: And in this light must we view the gospel; and with this its design must we heartily fall in. And being encourged, by the grace of the gospel, to hope for acceptance in the sight of God, through Jesus Christ, we must, through Christ, give up ourselves to God, to be his servants forever....Luke i. 74, 75—II. Cor. v. 20—Rom. xii. 1— Tit. ii. 11-14.

From what has been said, it will be very natural to make these following remarks:

REM. 1. If all God has done in the gospel, for our recovery from ruin, be of mere free grace, then it is self-evident that God was under no obligations to a fallen, sinful, guilty, rebellious world; but, as for us, might have, consistent with all his perfections, left us in ruin, to inherit the fruit of our doings, and the punishment of our sin. He was under no obligation to provide a Redeemer, or a Sanctifier....to give the least hint of a pardon, or take any methods to recover us from the power of sin. He was under no obligations to deal any better by us, than would, in the whole, be no worse than damnation. By the constitution with Adam, and by the law of nature, this would have been our proper due. Every thing, therefore, whereby our circumstances have been rendered better than the circumstances of the damned, God was under no obligations unto; but all, over and above that, has been of free and sovereign grace. God was at liberty, as to us, not to have done any of these things for us: Yea, there were on our part mighty hinderances to prevent the mercy of God, and to put a bar in the way of the free and honorable exercise of his grace: even such hinderances, that nothing could remove them, but the blood of Christ. Hence,

REM. 2. Mankind were, by their fall, brought into a state of being infinitely worse than not to be. The damned in hell, no doubt, are in such a state, else their punishment would not be infinite; as justice requires it should be: But mankind, by the fall, were brought into a state, for substance,* as bad as that

For substance, I say, because it must be remembered that the superadded punishment inflicted upon any in hell, for despising the gospel, must

which the damned are in: For the damned undergo nothing in hell, but what, by the constitution with Adam, and the law of nature, all mankind were, and would have been, for substance, exposed unto, if mere grace had not prevented. And, according to what was but now observed, God was under no more obligation to grant any relief to mankind, in this their fallen, sinful, guilty, undone condition, than he is now to the damned in hell; i. e. under no obligations at all: but the way for mercy to come to them was mightily barred and blocked up, by the infinite reasonableness of their being punished, and their infinite unworthiness, in the very nature of things, as the case then stood, of ever being pitied: So that mankind were, by the fall, brought into a state of being, (in scripture called condemnation and wrath....Rom. v. 18—Eph. ii. 3,) for substance, as bad as that which the damned are in; so that, if the damned are in a state of being infinitely worse than not to be, as no doubt they are, then so also were mankind: And mankind being actually brought into such a state by the fall, is what renders the grace of the gospel so inconceiveble, so unspeakable in its greatness, and so absolutely free. To deny that mankind, by the fall, were brought into such a state, is the same thing, in effect, as to deny original sin, and undermine the glorious grace of the gospel.

OBJ. But how could God, consistent with his perfections, put us into a state of being worse than not to be? Or how can we ever thank God for such a being?

ANS. Our being brought into so bad a state was not owing to God, i. e. to any fault in him, but merely to ourselves.... to our apostacy from God. It was our apostacy from God that brought all this upon us, in way of righteous judgment.... Rom. v. 18, 19. Our being in so bad a state is no more owing to God, than theirs is who are now in hell. They deserve to be in hell, according to a law that is holy, just, and good; and

be left out of the account: For all this is over and above what, by the constitution with Adam, and the law of nature, mankind were or ever would have been exposed unto.

we deserve to be in such a state, according to the constitution made with Adam, which was also holy, just, and good: and therefore the one may be consistent with the divine perfections, as well as the other. It cannot be disagreeable to the holiness, justice, and goodness of the divine nature, to deal with mankind according to a constitution, in its own nature holy, just, and good.

Now, in as much as God did virtually give being to all mankind, when he blessed our first parents, and said, Be fruitful, and multiply; and in as much as being, under the circumstances that man was then put in by God, was very desirable...we ought, therefore, to thank God for our being, considered in this light, and justify God in all the evil that is come upon us for our apostacy; for the Lord is righteous, and we are a guilty race.

Those in hell are in a state of being infinitely worse than not to be; and, instead of thanking God for their beings, they blaspheme his name: but still there is no just ground for their conduct: They have no reason to think hard of God for damning them; they have no reason to blame him; they have no reason to esteem him any the less for it: he does what is fit to be done: His conduct is amiable; and he is worthy of being esteemed for doing as he does....and all holy beings will always esteem him for it....(Rev. xix. 1—6.) Therefore the damned ought to ascribe all their evil to themselves, and justify God, and say, "He gave us being...and it was a mercy...and he de66 serves thanks; but to us it is owing that we are now in a state "infinitely worse than not to be: God is not to blame for that; "nor is he the less worthy of thanks for giving us being, and "for all past advantages which we ever enjoyed: for the "law is holy, just, and good, by and according to which we "suffer all these things :"-So here: Mankind, by the fall, were brought into a state of being infinitely worse than not to be: and were they but so far awake as to be sensible of it, they would no doubt, all over the earth, murmur, and blaspheme the God of heaven, But what then?... There would be no just ground for such conduct: We have no reason to think hard

of God-to blame him, or to esteem him any the less. What he has done was fit and right; his conduct was beautiful; and he is worthy to be esteemed for it: for that constitution was holy, just, and good, as has been proved: And therefore a failen world ought to ascribe to themselves all their evil, and to justi fy God, and say, "God gave us being under a constitution ho "ly, just, and good; and it was a mercy: We should have ac"counted it a great mercy, in case Adam had never fallen; but "God was not to blame for this....nor therefore is he the less "worthy of thanks: All that we suffer is by and according to "a constitution in its own nature holy, just, and good:" Thus mankind ought to have said, had God never provided a Savior, but left all the world in ruin: and thus ought they to have justified God's conduct-laid all the blame to themselves, and acknowledged that God deserved praise from all his works; which, as they came out of his hands, were all very good....Gen.

i. 31.

OBJ. But although we were, by the fall, brought into such a state of wrath and condemnation, yet now we are delivered out of it by Christ; for as, in Adam, all die, so, in CHRIST, shall all be made alive.

ANS. Before men believe in Christ, they are as justly exposed to divine vengeance, as if Christ had never died.... John iii. 18, 36: And there is nothing to keep off vengeance, one moment, but sovereign mercy; which yet they continually affront and provoke....Rom. ii. 4, 5: And they are so far from an inclination to turn to God of their own accord, that they are disposed to resist all the means used to reclaim them.... John iii, 19. It is true, God is ready, through Christ, to receive returning sinners, and invites all to return through him: Thus God is good and kind to an apostate world, and offers us mercy. God is not to blame that we are in so bad a case: our destruction is of ourselves, and the Lord is righteous: But still it is evident we are in a perishing condition, and shall certainly perish, notwithstanding all that we, of our own mere motion, ever shall do. If sovereign grace does not prevent, there is no hope.

PP