the text, it is faid, "Who his own felf bare our fins, in his own body on the tree.' 66 Left any fhould imagine that Chrift's bearing our fins, was to be understood in a typical, or metaphorical fenfe; the language of the Holy Ghoft is, himself, (autos) emphatically himfelf, and not another. Sacrifical expiations had been 66 long in use, for, "without fhedding of blood "there was no remiffion." Heb. ix. 22. " but "the law which was only a fhadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things can never with those facrifices which they offer"ed year by year continually make the comers "thereunto perfect. Heb. x. 1. But now the Lord had prepared himself a facrifice. Zeph. i. 7. This Jefus was the "Lamb of God that. "taketh away the fin of the world." 66 "Bore our fins," lifted them up to the crofs in order to expiate them by the fhedding of his blood, agreeable to, If. liii. 4. "he bore our griefs, and car"ried our forrows." To which may be referred, John i. 29. "Behold the Lamb of God which "taketh away the fin of the world." If it be enquired how Chrift bore our fins? We anfwer, not by becoming perfonally a finner, "for in "him there was no fin, neither was guile found in his mouth;" for an high-priest became us who was feparated from finners; therefore that holy thing, (bagion) which was born of Mary, was emphatically called, the Son of God. But fecondly, He bore our fins by imputation, 2 Cor. v. 21. "He hath made him to be fin for us, who "knew no fin," compared with If. liii. 4. "He "hath born our griefs, and carried our forrows," ver. 6. the Lord bath laid, hath caufed to meet in him, as fo many lines drawn from the periphery of a circle which coincide at the centre, so the fins of all his people in every age and place are laid on him their furety. Without controverfy great is this mystery of godliness," in him "was no fin," yet as a finner he fuffered and that for fins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. 1 Pet. iii. 18. If it fhould be further enquired whofe fins he bore? A full and fufficient anfwer may be given by adverting to Ch. i. ver. 1. 2." To the elect strangers scat"tered abroad." To imagine the pronoun our extended to, and comprehending individuals, and yet deny the confequence, universal salvation, is grofly abfurd; inalmuch as the price paid was great beyond conception, and the purchafed poffeffion fecured by divine veracity; for, "all that "the Father hath given me fhall come to me." John vi. 37. "And they fhall never perish, nei"ther fhall any pluck them out of my hand, my "father which gave them me, is greater than all, and none is able to pluck them out of 66 my father's hand." John x. 28, 29. He bare our fins, not as a nameless author on this fubject affirms, with an uncommon degree of boldnefs:* That Chrift's bearing our fins in his own body on the tree, cannot clearly and confiftently be understood of any other than his leaving us an example that we fhould follow his fteps, and to confirm the truth of this monftrous hypothesis we have his ftrong ipfe dixit, over and over again, without one fcripture proof to fupport his affer tion See a tract, entitled, "Chrift's Sufferings exemplary, or the interprepretation of St. Peter's Account of Chrift's bearing our Sins in his own body on the tree. Printed at London, 1761. tion; or the leaft regard had to the divine oracles. But bleffed be God we have a more fure word of prophecy to which we shall do well to take heed. God at fundry times and in divers manners, spake to our fathers by the prophets, concerning the promifed feed, which was held forth from age to age under various types and figures, in all which the fuffering Saviour was pourtrayed, not as an exemplar, but as a furety. Every bleeding Lamb if rightly understood, when yielding up to death, bleated the name of Jefus, while the lowing bullock bleeding out his foul, prefigured and held forth, the vicarious fufferings of the Lamb of God. In his own body, when he cometh into the world he faith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not, but a body thou hast prepared me. Heb. x. 5. The legal facrifices were but temporary and fhadowy, nor could the blood of bulls? and goats, take again fin. ver. 4th. "But by "the offering of the body of Jefus once for all, "he hath put away fin, and perfected for ever "them that are fanctified. Ch. ix. 26, 10, 14. When the adorable Jehovah agreeable to the everlafting purpose of his love, came into the world to fave finners, and effectually to put away fin by the facrifice of himself; he caufed the facrifice and oblation to cease, Dan.. ix. 27. which had hitherto shadowed him forth; and prefented the fubftance, the prepared body, an expiatory facrifice for fins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity." And in this mighty work he flood alone, "and of the people there was none with me, "therefore mine own arm brought falvation un66 to me." If. lxiii. 3, 5. Nor was there need of an adjutor, for HE is the wonderful counsellor, દર 66 the the mighty God, the everlasting father, the prince of peace. On the tree. God faid to the first Adam, In the day thou eatest from that tree, thou shalt surely die." Gen. ii. 17. And of the second Adam, When be fhall make his foul an offering for fin, be fball fee bis feed, viz. the travail of his foul and be fatisfied. If. liii. 10. 11. As the curfe first came on man by the tree, fo Chrift bore the curfe, or in other words, was made a curfe for us, that by the tree might come the bleffing. On the tree, or on the wood, perhaps alluding to the exceeding greatness of his fufferings, in which he was like a whole burnt facrifice offered up to God. And as, when the legal victim ready to be offer'd the wood was firft laid in order, and the fire put under it, then the facrifice was properly disposed upon the wood; fo the Lord Jefus, when made a facrifice for fin, was ftretched and nailed unto the wood; his body bruifed, mangled, rent and torn, while the vindictive fword pierced to his very heart, and the fire of almighty indignation wafted his spirit. Thus did Jefus, the moft lovely Jefus, bear our fins in his own body on the tree. The text thus opened and explained, prefents this propofition to be more fully infifted upon, and enlarged. That this facrifice was, First, Perfect correfponding with thofe under the law. Second, Propitiatory, or placamentary. Fourth, Plenary, or full, anfwering all the ends ift. Christ our paffover, as facrificed for us, was a facrifice perfect in it's kind. The truth of this will appear by adverting to what was required in the facrifices under the law, which were afpecially two things, 1ft, That whatever was of fered in facrifice to God, must be spotlefs and unblemished. 2d, The act must be voluntary and unconstrained. The former appears from these fcripture paffages, Malach. i, the Lord by his prophet accufes Ifrael of ingratitude and impiety, in that they not only were forgetful of benefits received, but had fo great a difrelish for fpiritual things, that religious exercises were wearifome tasks; and the facrifices God had commanded, were regarded as a kind of prieft-craft, and pious impofitions on the people. However if cuftom bears too hard upon them, or a national conftitution obliges them to offer fomething; irreligious difcretion directs them to offer the worst in its kind; but at last the Lord who although he fuffer long, yet will not permit his ordinances to be trampled under foot, arifes to vindicate his own caufe, ver. 13. "Ye brought that which was "torn and the lame and the fick, thus ye have brought an offering; but fhall 1 accept this at your hands, faith the Lord? ver. 14. curfed "be the deceiver," the man who would rob God, and vainly imagine he can impofe on omnifcience. by fpecious appearances, that having found unblemished cattle, "that hath in his flock a male," and voweth and facrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing," a blemished facrifice," for I am a great king, faith the Lord of hofts." Thus we fee how the Lord indignates the facrifice that is not fpotlefs, and brandifhes in refentment his vindictive fword against the people he had chosen to be his own inheritance; even that fword, that E had |