dience, and denounces punishment to the transgressor. "Now we know," says Paul," that whatsoever things the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law; that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may become guilty before God." Rom. iii. 19.

1.

3. Another thing which characterises the state of man is, a state of total impotency, as to the attainment of salvation. The truth of this appears from two considerations.

Ast. The law requires sinless obedience. It promises life to the performance of all its requirements, and to nothing else. Its language is, "The man that doth them shall live in them." But man has disqualified himself in a moral view to do these things, since he is "under sin," and continues to commit it while in an unrenewed state. As man, therefore, while a sinner, cannot render sinless perfect obedience, he cannot effect his own salvation.

2d. Besides, man has incurred the penalty of the divine law. It stands against him," Cursed is every : one that continueth not in all things, written in the book of the law, to do them." This penalty has been demonstrated to be endless suffering. How shall man free himself from it? He can do nothing which can render it consistent with God to pardon. He cannot keep the law by perfect obedience, and consequently cannot be saved on that ground. If he undertake to endure its penalty, he of consequence must give up all hope of salvation.

Having explained the moral state of man, I now proceed,

3. To explain the design of God in creation.

It is a mark of a wise and intelligent being, to have respect in all his actions to the accomplishment of some end. This circumstance principally distinguishes

the actions of men from those of brutes. In all operations performed by rational beings, we expect design, and an exact adjustment of every part to the accomplishment of that design. When we look at the majestic works of God in creation and redemption, we are at once impressed with the absurdity of even imagining them to have been made without a view to some great end. In these works we behold order, connexion, regularity and harmony. How these should have existed without design, is impossible to conceive. It is equally impossible to conceive, how God should make such stupendous works, without a view to some end exceedingly great, glorious and important. For it is inconsistent with wisdom to make great preparations, and to perform great actions, for the accomplishment of small purposes. If God have one chief end in his works, we may be assured that these works are har moniously adjusted to its accomplishment. All God's works then must be considered as means wisely arranged, and tending to one final issue. This issue must be brought into view before the means of its completion can be seen in their propriety and beauty. Let us then propose to ourselves this question; Why did God create? Surely he was under no necessity to do this. For if he was, that necessity must have been eternal, and the same reason must have been assigned for the existence of things, as for the existence of God. That reason God gave, when he said, “I am that I am." God, as he is eternal, involves in his own nature the cause of his existence; but this cannot be the case with any thing created. Creation, then, as it did not proceed from necessity, must have proceeded from choice. The question then stands thus; "Was God's end in creation himself, or the

thing created?" The following considerations perhaps will assist us in answering this question.

1st. Before creation nothing exterior to God existed. The reason then why any thing has existed, must be sought for in God. That reason must have been his own choice, and if so, then his own pleasure, and not the thing to be created. Should it here be objected, that God made creatures on purpose to bestow happiness upon them, the objection proves this only, that God is pleased with bestowing happiness. If so, then God made creatures for his own pleasure, and not for theirs. If God made creatures merely for the sake of making them happy, why does he permit so many of them to be miserable? We learn what God means by what he does, as well as by what he says. God has created all things, and in these has exhibited a picture of himself. But it would be absurd to suppose all this was done without design.

2d. The next consideration I bring into view is, that it is inconsistent for infinite wisdom and goodness to prefer an inferior to a superior object. Such conduct would carry the most striking marks, and wear the most prominent features, of injustice and imperfection. All creatures are as nothing, in comparison of the immense GOD. Collect all the powers and principalities of heaven, all the perfection of angels and virtues of men, all the splendours scattered over creation; collect all these into one vast assemblage, and they are lost before God, like a mote in the full blaze of the sun. Creation has added nothing to the real sum of virtue and happiness; for these, wherever found, are only streams from the great exhaustless fountain. God therefore created with a view to diffuse and communicate in different forms that immense ful

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ness which dwelt in himself. God must love and regard the highest excellency most; but this is nowhere but in himself. Nor is this supreme regard of God to himself, as some have affirmed, an exercise of selfishness, but of the highest benevolence; for this consists in a supreme regard to the greatest good.But this greatest good is God himself.

3d. In the next place we may consider further, that for God to act with a supreme regard to himself, or to the display of his true character, is to act in such a way as will secure the highest happiness of intelligent beings. For all true happiness results from the knowledge and enjoyment of the greatest good. God is the greatest and the only true good in the universe.It follows from this, that the more this true good is displayed, the more it will be known and enjoyed.Consequently, more happiness is secured by a display of God, than could be by any thing else. God then must surely, in all his works, act with a supreme regard to his own glory, or to himself. This is the uniform language of scripture. God declares, "that he made all things for himself;" that " of him, and to him, and through him, are all things."

From these considerations it appears, that God's ultimate and chief end in creation, was himself.

PART II.

HAVING explained the several things proposed in the first part of this discourse, concerning the law of God, the moral state of man, and the ultimate and chief end of God in creation; I now proceed to explain the matter, necessity, and the nature of atone

ment.

Since it appears that the ultimate and chief end of God in creation was the display of his own nature, we may infer with certainty, that this end will be kept in view in the continuance and government of creation. For if it be not, then the arrangements in the divine administration are not calculated so as certainly to coincide with the ultimate intention of the divine will. But God "worketh all things after the counsel of his own will." Therefore, all parts of the great scheme of creation, providence and redemption, will ultimately exhibit a complete picture of the true character of God. He will then appear in reality to be the "beginning and the end," "the all in all." The obedience and sufferings of Christ, as they are the medium through which God's love of holiness and hatred of iniquity are seen, so they answer, as to the display of God's glory, all the purposes and more than would have been answered by the endless obedience or sufferings of all transgressors. Atonement, therefore, by the death of Christ, is to be viewed as a necessary part of God's great plan, and as possessing the propriety and fitness of means for the accomplishment of an end. If we consider atonement, in a general view, as that part of Christ's mediatorial work which rendered the forgiveness of sin consistent with God's character, it will comprise, as essential to its nature, more than suffering, though suffering appears to constitute its chief and most important part. If grace were to be manifested, it was proper and necessary that that grace should "reign through righteousness;" that is, in such a way as was consistent with the rectitude or justice of God. Whatever, therefore, would bring into view the character and law of God as effectually as the perfect obedience or suffering of men, must be considered as the atonement for sin. Though the