great delight and greediness, and pouredst out thy heart unto it? Consider that Christ offered himself more willingly than ever thou didst sin. 'Lo, I come,' says he, Ps. xl., 'I delight to do thy will;' and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!' Luke xii. 56. And though to shew how great an evil and misery it was in itself, he shewed an averseness to it; yet as it was his Father's will for our salvation, he heartily embraced and drank off that cup unto the bottom.

Fourthly, didst thou sin with much deliberation, when thou mightest have avoided it? There was in this circumstance in Christ's sufferings to answer that, that he knew all he was to suffer, and yet yielded up himself, as John xviii. 4.

Fifthly, hast thou sinned presumptuously, and made a covenant with death and hell? Christ in like manner offered up himself by a covenant and complot with his Father so to do.

Sixthly, are there any especial circumstances of time and place, &c., that aggravate thy sins?

As first, that so great a person in the church should scandalize the name of God in sinning. Why, how great a person was Christ? Even equal with God the Father; and yet how greatly humbled, even to the death; his offices of King, Priest, and Prophet being debased with him. How great a name had he! as Heb. i. 4, which notwithstanding was dishonoured more than ever any man's.

Or secondly, that thou sinnedst at such a time, or in such a company, which sometimes serve to make a sin the more heinous. Consider how God contrived to have the shame and affliction of his Son's death aggravated by all these circumstances. It was of deaths the most accursed, at a time most solemn, in a place most infamous, with company most wretched.

Thus might we find out that in Christ's suffering and satisfaction made, that would fitly answer to anything in our sins; and so thereby we should be the more relieved. And though the whole body of his sufferings do stand and answer for the whole bulk of our sinnings, yet the consideration of such particulars will much conduce to the satisfying of an humbled and dejected soul, about the particulars of its sinnings.

Therefore (to conclude) get your hearts and consciences distinctly and particularly satisfied in the all-sufficiency of worth and merit which is in the satisfaction that Christ hath made. As it is a fault and defect in humiliation, that men content themselves with a general apprehension and notion that they are sinners, and so never become thoroughly humbled; so it is a defect in their faith, that they content themselves with a superficial and general conceit, that Christ died for sinners, their hearts not being particularly satisfied about the transcendent all-sufficiency of his death. And thence it is, that in time of temptation, when their abounding sinfulness comes distinctly to be discovered to them, and charged upon them, they are then amazed and their faith nonplussed, as not seeing that in Christ which might answer to all that sinfulness. But as God saw that in Christ's death which satisfied him, so you should endeavour by faith to see that worth in it which may satisfy God, and then your faith will sit down as satisfied also. If a man were to dispute for his life some hard and difficult controversy, wherein are many great and strong objections to be taken away, he would be sure to view, and study, and ponder all that might be said on that other part which he were to hold, in way of answer to them, and to get such a clear and convincing light as might make the truth of his position apparent and manifest through those clouds of objections that hang

in the way. Now you will all be thus called one day to dispute for your souls, sooner or later; and therefore such skill you should endeavour to get in Christ's righteousness, how in its fulness and perfection it answereth to all your sinfulness; that your hearts may be able to oppose it against all that may be said of any particular, in or about your sins; that in all the conflicts of your spirits, you may see that in it which would clear your whole score; and that if God would but be pleased to impute it to you, you might say, I durst presently come to an account with him, and cut scores with his law and justice.

Thus much of the first thing made the object of faith, namely, Christ as dying.

Christ's resurrection supporteth faith two ways: 1. By being an evidence of our justification; 2. By having an influence into our justification.—The necessity of Christ's resurrection, for the procuring our justification.

THE next thing to be looked at in Christ, as he is the object of justifying faith, and from whence our faith may seek and fetch support and comfort in the matter of justification, is Christ's resurrection: upon which we see here, the apostle putteth a rather, 'Yea rather, that is risen again.' There must therefore be some special thing in the resurrection of Christ, which it contributes to our faith and justification, for which it should have a rather put upon it, and that comparatively to his death. Now to shew wherein this should lie, consider how the resurrection of Christ serveth to a double use and end, in the matter of justification.

First, as an evidence to our faith, that God is fully satisfied by Christ's death; his resurrection may give us full assurance of it.

Secondly, it had, and hath an influence into our justification itself; yea, and as great an influence as his death had. In both these respects it deserves a rather to be put upon it, and Paul had them both in his eye, when he wrote these words. So as first, if you ask an account of his faith, and a reason of his so triumphant assurance, he allegeth his resurrection to confirm it, Christ is risen.' Or,

Secondly. If you would have a reason of the thing, how it comes to pass that we who are believers cannot be condemned; Christ is risen,' saith he. He allegeth it as a cause, that hath such an influence into justification itself, as it makes all sure about it.

1. By way of evidence. Although Christ's obedience in his life and his death past do alone afford the whole matter of our justification, and make up the sum of that price paid for us (as hath been shewn), so as faith may see a fulness of worth and merit therein, to discharge the debt; yet faith hath a comfortable sign and evidence to confirm itself in the belief of this, from Christ's resurrection after his death. It may fully satisfy our faith, that God himself is satisfied, and that he reckons the debt as paid. So that our faith may boldly come to God, and call for the bond in, as having Christ's resurrection to shew for it, that the debt is discharged. And hence the apostle cries victory over sin, hell, and death, upon occasion of, and as

the coronis and conclusion of that, his large discourse about Christ's resurrection, 1 Cor. xv. 55-57, O death, where is thy sting?' that is, sin, and the power of it; for so it follows, the sting of death is sin;' and ‘O grave, where is thy victory? Thanks be to God who hath given us victory, through Jesus Christ our Lord,' namely, as risen again; for of his resurrection, and of that chiefly, had he spoken throughout that chapter.

2. But surely this is not all, that it should only argue our justification by way of evidence. This alone would not have deserved such a rather to be put upon it, if Christ's resurrection had not had some farther real causal influence into justification itself, and been more than simply an evidence of it to our apprehensions. Therefore, secondly, in justification, although the materiale, or matter of it, be wholly the obedience and death of Christ; yet the act of pronouncing us righteous by that his obedience (which is the formale of justification), doth depend upon Christ's resurrection. Ordinarily there hath been no more expressed concerning this dependence, than that the resurrection of Christ justifies by working actual faith, to lay hold upon what Christ hath done in his life and death, which is called the applying of it, of which more anon. But that speech of Paul, 1 Cor. xv. 17, seems to import more, If Christ be not risen again, ye are yet in your sins, and your faith is in vain; that is, although you could suppose faith to be wrought in you upon the merit of Christ's dying, yet it would be in vain if Christ were not risen again; for your title to justification itself would be void; you were yet in your sins.' Which is said,

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because his resurrection was it, whereby sins (though satisfied for in his death) were taken off, and they acquitted from them; which I take to be the meaning also of that, Rom. iv. 25, He was delivered for our sins, and rose again for our justification.' When the apostle says, 'for our sins he was delivered,' he means his laying down that which was the price for them, a satisfaction for them, which his death was. And in that sense, 'he died for our sins; that is, his death stands instead of our death, and so satisfies for sin. But yet still that upon which the act of God's justifying us, and his discharge given us from our sins, and whereby he reckoneth us justified, that depends upon his resurrection. He rose again for our justification.' Note that justification there imports the act of imputation, and reckoning us just, which he had spoken of in the verses immediately foregoing, ver. 22, 23, 24.

In a word, to the full discharge of a debt, and freeing the debtor, two things are requisite: 1. The payment of the debt; 2. The tearing or cancelling of the bond, or receiving an acquittance for the freeing of the debtor. Now the payment was wrought by Christ's death, and the acquittance to free from the death was at and by his resurrection.

CHAPTER II.

For the explanation of both these is shewn, how Christ sustained a double relation: first, of a surety given for us; secondly, of a common person in our stead. The difference of these two, and the usefulness of these two considerations, for the explaining all the rest that follows, in this whole discourse.

Now the better to explicate both these, you must consider how that Christ, in almost all that he did for us (as the phrase is here, and is to be annexed to each particular) did stand in a double relation for us unto God.

1. Of a surety, bound to pay the debt for us, and to save our souls. 2. Of a common person, or as an attorney-at-law in our stead. And both these, as they have a distinct and differing consideration in themselves, so those several considerations of them will conduce to the understanding of those two things forementioned, as ways and arguments to shew how the resurrection of Christ may support our faith, both by way of evidence that the debt is paid, and by way of influence that we are thereby acquitted, and cannot be condemned. The notion of his being risen, who is our surety, clears the first, and that of his rising as a common person, illustrates the other. And I shall here a little the largelier insist upon the explication of these two relations, because their consideration will be of use through all the rest that follows, to illustrate thereby the influence that his ascension, and sitting at God's right hand, &c., have into our justification; and so I shall carry them along throughout this discourse.

1. A surety is one that undertakes, and is bound to do a thing for another; as to pay a debt for him, or to bring him safe to such or such a place, or the like; so as when he hath discharged what he undertook and was bound for, then the party for whom he undertook is discharged also.

2. A common person with, or for another he goes for, is one who represents, personates, and acts the part of another, by the allowance and warrant of the law; so as what he doth, as such a common person, and in the name of the other, that other whom he personates is by the law reckoned to do; and, in like manner, what is done to him, as being in the other's stead and room, is reckoned as done to the other. Thus, by our law, an attorney appears for another, and money received by him is reckoned as received by him whom it is due unto. Thus the giving possession of an estate, a re-entry made, and possession taken of land, &c., if done by and to a man who is his lawful attorney, it stands as good in law unto a man, as if in his own person it had been done. So ambassadors for princes represent their masters: what is done to them is reckoned as done to the prince; and what they do, according to their commission, is all one as if the prince, whose person they represent, had done it himself. In like manner also, the marriages of princes are transacted and solemnized by proxy, as a common person representing his lord, and in his name, is married to a princess in her father's court; and the laws of men authorize it, and the marriage is as good as if both princes themselves had been present, and had performed all the rites of it. And thus to be a common person is more than simply to be a surety for another: it is a farther thing; and therefore these two relations are to be distinctly considered, though they seem to be somewhat of a like nature. Thus an attorney is a different thing from a surety. A surety undertakes to pay a debt for another, or the like; but a common person serves to perform any common act, which by the law is reckoned and virtually imputed to the other, and is to stand as the other's act, and is as valid as if he had done it; so as the good and benefit which is the consequent of such an act, shall accrue to him whom he personated, and for whom he stood as a common person. Adam was not a surety for all mankind; he undertook not for them in the sense forementioned, but he was a common person representing all mankind; so as what he should do was to be accounted as if they had done it. Now the better to express and make sure our justification in and by Christ, according to all sorts of laws (the equity of all which God usually draws up into his dispensations), God did ordain Christ both to be a surety for us, and also a common person representing us, and in our stead. That as Christ took all other relations for us,