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tolerate in professors very great delinquences, believing them to be compatible with grace; merely on the credit of occasional influences of the same animal sensibility: whereas in others, a much higher grade of inward and outward rectitude, and a regular discharge of devotional duties, would pass with the same pious persons for mere legal righteousness; or a splendid species of sinfulness, not at all consistent with a state of acceptance with God. In consideration of the above, the author does not hesitate to conclude, with Mr. Baxter-" Expect not that your assurance shall be perfect in this life: for till all grace be perfect, this cannot be perfect:* and again-If we be imperfect and our faith imperfect, and all our endeavours and graces imperfect, then our assurance must needs be imperfect also." It is evident, that Mr. Baxter uses the term assurance, in the sense of a persuasion of mind, not immediately infused into it, but resulting from a right state of the affections. In propor tion to this, he would doubtless have acknowledg ed an approach to the perfection of assurance, not reached. With what propriety the word is applied by him to a state of mind admitting degrees, is a matter not here inquired into: but it is believed, that there is no authority for such an application in the Scriptures.

* Practical Works, vol. i. p. 876. † Vol. ii. p. 876.

1

DISSERTATION IV.

OF REDEMPTION.*

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Division of the Subject.-Section I. Of the Divinity of Christ. -Introductory Chapters of St. Matthew and St. Luke.Introduction of the Gospel of St. John.-Commission in Matthew, xxix, 19.-References to Texts.-Fathers.— Section II. Of the Propitiatory Sacrifice.-Meaning opened-And proved. Reconciliation.-Fathers.--Section III. Of the Extent of the Benefit.-General Sense of Scripture, -Beginning of the contrary Doctrine.-The Sense of the Church. Section IV. Of" An Improved Version," (so called.) Design of this Section. First two Chapters of St. Matthew.--First two Chapters of St. Luke.-Beginning of St. John.-Other Passages.-Propitiatory Sacrifice. -Exploded Passage of St. Luke.-General Remarks on the Version and on Unitarianism.-Newcome vindicated.

IT is designed to treat of this subject, in the form in which it is presented in that clause of the creed, wherein the catecumen confesses-I believe "secondly, in God the Son, who hath redeemed me and all mankind." The sentiments to be delivered will arrange themselves under the heads of-The Saviour's Divinity-His Propitiatory Sacrifice.The Extent of it, and-Remarks on "An Improved Version" (so called) of the New Testament.

SECTION I.

OF THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST.

Three of the four gospels begin with express acknowledgments of it: St. Matthew and St. Luke affirming the miraculous conception, and St. John affirming pre-existent dignity, in terms evidently hav

See Lecture II.

ing a bearing on a well known heresy of his day; but on principles which make them equally contradictory to the maintainers of the simple humanity of the Saviour.

They endeavour to invalidate the testimonies of St. Matthew and St. Luke by alleging, that from the seventeenth verse of the first chapter of the former, to the end of the second chapter, and from the fifth verse of the first two chapters of the latter to the end of the second chapter, are interpolations. In the first case they say, that two very early sects, called "Nazarenes" and "Ebionites," who were few in number and of short duration, and who denied the divinity, had a gospel without the passage in question. In the latter case they say, that Marción-a well known heretick-possessed a copy of the gospel without the two chapters. The facts are not denied on the other side; but are accounted for by a reference to the errours, which such mutilations were calculated to favour. These sects were never acknowledged, as making a part of the primitive Church: and as to Marcion in particular, he was a learned man, who, being excommunicated for immorality, became the head of a sect. Among their blasphemies, was that of their denial, that the world was created by a wise and benevolent being. That all the copies handed down include the passages alluded to, is not denied: so that they are set aside, at the expense of giving up the only true evidence of scripture-the testimony of the Church. Other objections are made; but they turn on alleged dissonances, which may be reconciled; but not within the present limits.

Concerning the introduction to the gospel of St. John, it is alleged, that Christ is intitled "The Word," by way of metonymy, God having revealed his word by him-That "In the beginning," refers to the commencement of the evangelical dispensation-That "The word was with God," is

expressive of Christ's withdrawing to converse with God, before his entrance on his ministryThat "The word was God," might be "a God;" here predicated of Christ, as it had been of Moses, who was to be "a God to Pharoah."* That" all things" (meaning relatively to the Christian dispensation) "were"-not "made," but "done by him:"That for "In him was life"-which is the most agreeable to the original-we should read "By him was life:" and to pass over other such criticisms, that for "The word was made flesh,” it should be "The word was flesh"-or, a mortal

man.

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These strained interpretations-all of them in themselves untenable-are foreclosed by a reference to the design with which St. John wrote his gospel, according to the testimonies of very early fathers. It was to oppose the heresy of Cerinthus; who alleged, that Jesus and Christ were two distinct beings, united at baptism, but separated before the passion. The evangelist uses the very terms affected by this heretick, but in such a manner, as to rescue them from his abuses. It corroborates ecclesiastical history in this particular, that there are certain other passages in the writings of St. John, not easily explained but on the same principle. This might be made to appear by comparing the thirty-first verse of the twentieth chapter of his gospel with from verse the first to the sixth of the fifth chapter of his first Epistle; and then, the whole with the profane philosophy of the Gnosticks, as exhibited in any of the histories of the early times. But it is here supposed, that without recurrence to such a source, the latter passage, in any fair translation, will always speak sufficiently to the effect for which it is now cited.

As the gospel narrative begins with the testimonies which have been recited; so it ends with

Exod. vii. 1.

Christ's commission to his apostles-“Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.* What an association is here of subjects utterly unfit, on the opposite principle, to be incorporated in the same commission! It would be a low construction, and give a quite different sense, to say with some, that the passage means instruction concerning the subjects specified. Even then, there would be redundancy in the recital of the last subject; it being contained in the first. But to baptize in the name, or, as the Greek preposition rather signifies, into the name, must at least have for its object the profession of faith in an agent spoken of.

After such weighty authorities, the following is a string of others from the gospel of St. John; which it is thought sufficient merely to refer to-ii. 19. and 21.-iii. 13.-viii. 58.-x. 30.-xii. 41. compared with Is. vi. 1.—xiv. 9.—xvii. 5.—xx. 28.

If it should occur, that the immediately preceding texts are taken exclusively from the gospel of St. John; the answer is, First-that this apostle wrote expressly to sustain the truth on the present point; designing his work chiefly for Churches gathered from among the Gentiles, as especially appears in his many incidental explanations of words and of customs peculiar to the Jews: and Secondly, that the other evangelists, when they quote from the Jewish Scriptures passages describing a character above man and every other created intelligence, show their presuming on such a character, as an acknowledged property of the true Messiah; and conceive of no more remaining for them, than to apply the same to Jesus. Thus in Matt. xxii. 45; when on a reference to the one-hundred and tenth Psalm, it was asked concerning the Messiah-" If David call him Lord, how is he his Son?" Whatever supereminence of character attaches to the person in the

* Matt. xxviii. 19.

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