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this is not all; For in this fenfe, by every S ER M. declaration of the Will of God, by every command and prohibition, is the knowledge of Sin; and fo the Gospel it felf might as properly be stiled the strength of fin, as the law. Since therefore by the Law, the Apostle plainly means That discovery of the Will of God which was made to mankind before the Coming of Chrift; and particularly that which was given to the Jews; in oppofition to the Chriftian or Gofpel-difpenfation: 'tis certain that by its being the ftrength of fin, must be understood Something more, than barely its being the occafion of the knowledge of Sin. It remains therefore, that it must fignify the making fuch a discovery of the heinous nature and guilt of Sin, as yet either not to afford a poffibility of avoiding it, or not to discover any fufficient means of recovering from it. Now in what fenfe, and how far this may be truly applicable to the Jewish Law, is of fome difficulty to determine: (For if the Jews under the law had neither any poffibility of avoiding Sin, nor VOL. V.

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yet

SERM. yet any fufficient means of recovering VIII. from the guilt of it, it would follow that people were in much harder circumstances than the representations which the Scripture makes to us of God's difpenfations and dealings with them allows us to fuppose:) I shall therefore for the clearing this whole matter, and to fhow both in what sense the Law is called the Strength of Sin, and how our Saviour has given us the victory over it, (which was the first thing I propofed to speak to,) indeavour briefly to prove thefe following Propofitions. ft, That the Original Law of God requires exact, perfect, and unfinning obedience; which fince Man through the weakness and corruption of his nature is not capable of performing, men are all thereby neceffarily concluded under Sin 2dly, That that Law, under which the Jews were, fo far as it is diftinguished from, and opposed to, the Grace or Gofpel of Chrift; is the fame with the Original Law of God, in its full force, and feverity. 3dly, That yet God never dealt with men according to the ftrictnefs and

VIII.

rigour of that Law, but always anticipa- SER M. ted the favour of the Gofpel, and dealt with men according to the Gracious Terms of the New Covenant. 4thly, That Our Saviour at his appearance, openly promulged and declared to all the World the lefs fevere Terms of this Cove.. nant of Grace, and by that means totally freed men from the fear and bondage of that rigorous Law, which was really in force untill the time of his appearing; excepting only as God was pleased to anticipate the Grace and Favour of the New Covenant, at firft by the secret difpenfations of his Mercy, and the obfcure promises of a Redeemer to come; and afterwards, as the time of the promise drew near, by the more open and plain declarations of the prophets. ft, The Original Law of God requires exact, perfect, and unfinning Obedience; which fince man through the weakness and corruption of his nature, is not capable of performing, men are all thereby neceffarily concluded under Sin. This is evident from the confideration of the Nature of

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God,

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SER M. God, and of the true and Original notion VIII. of a Law. The Authority of God being

fupreme, and the condition of his creatures abfolutely dependant; Obedience entire and conftant, univerfal and perpetual, is plainly and naturally due to his commands: The nature alfo of a Law being to require obedience; and provifion for reconciliation after a violation of it, not being originally in the condition of a Law, but only an after-provision of Favour and Mercy; 'tis plain that originally to the Laws of God, there is due a perfect and unfinning Obedience. That therefore which the original law of God declares, is this; that as God is himfelf a Being of infinite purity and holiness, so he cannot be pleafed with any creature, that imitates not that purity according to the utmoft capacity of its nature; that as there are eternal measures of Good and Evil, Right and Wrong, which are as unchangeable as the nature of God and the conftitution of things, fo God cannot posfibly delight in any creature 'that obferves not thefe effential and fundamental laws

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of his Kingdom; that therefore men who S ER M. are made capable of knowing God, are bound to worship him as God, without giving any part of that honour to another which is due only to him, or paying him that honour which is due to him, in a way not becoming the excellency of his nature; And in brief that knowing the eternal rules of juftice and equity; honefty and fidelity, temperance and sobriety, to be the laws of his Kingdom, they are bound to be true and just in all their dealings one with another with all fimplicity and fincerity of mind, and to live in Sobriety, Temperance and Chastity, with all Purity and Holinefs: And this they are bound to do, constantly and at all times; the original law of God affuring indeed those that obey it in all points of a reward and the favour of God; but not providing any expiation, nor pointing with any certainty at the means of reconciliation, for those who shall at any time. have tranfgreffed and incurred God's difpleasure. 'Tis true theWorld always had great and reasonable hopes, that God would

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