"(especially, Ifai. xxviii. 18.) the word

9 capbar feems to retain fomething of "what I take to be its natural and origi"nal fenfe, viz. to cover or fmear over, "as Gen. vi. 14. the only place, where it " is evidently fo ufed." Agreeably to this, the Dr. fays," Atonement for fin, is the " covering of fin." To fupport which, he quotes Neh. iv. 4, 5. Pfal. xxxii. 1. Pfal. 1xxxv. 2 Jam. v. 20. In which texts, the pardon of fin is expreffed by its being covered, and the punishment of it, by its not being covered'.

REMARK S.

The text, Gen. vi. 14. to which the Dr. here refers us, is as followeth, Make thee an ark of Gopher-wood; rooms fhalt thou make in the ark; vecapharta and thou shalt pitch it within and without becopher with pitch. The Dr. thinks, that the root 797 capbar bears its natural and primary fense in this text; in which I agree with him. But then he fays, that the natural and original fignification of this root, was that of covering; and in this I cannot agree with the Dr. efpecially confidering, that covering, in the fenfe of hiding or concealing

See Scripture-doctrine of Atonement examined, Chap. VI. §. 115.

f Ibidem §. 117.

ing a thing, is the fignification of this Hebrew-root which he contends for.The noun copher in this text,, without doubt, fignifies pitch, bitumen, or fome substance of the like glutinous and tenacious nature; for no fubftance, of different qualities, could have anfwered the end intended. Now, as it is natural to think, that nouns, or the names of things, were invented and fixed before the verbs which fignify actions upon or about them; and to conceive, that these verbs would be often taken from those names which were given to things, of which we have many evident inftances in all languages: fo it is natural to think, that the verb caphar was taken from the noun 197 copher, which fignifies pitch or bitumen; and that this verb, at the beginning, fignified neither more nor lefs, than to pitch, or to apply pitch to a thing; which fignification doth not imply the idea of covering, much less that of covering with a defign to hide or conceal.

As to the pitching of Noah's ark; the thing intended by it, was, the filling up the fpaces in the joinings, and the chinks, cracks, and vacuitys in the wood, with this cement, to the end, that there might be fuch a clofe union effected in, and between, all its component parts, as might render it impenetrable by the waters of the flood. Wherefore, if the wood of the ark was not porous, but

of

of a close texture, all this might have been done, without covering the ark over with pitch. Or, if the porofity of the wood rendered it neceffary to cover the whole ark with this glutinous matter, yet the covering it with it, was not the thing directly and ultimately intended, but was only fubordinate to it. The principal and ultimate end, aimed at, was not the covering of the ark, but the filling the feams, chinks, cracks, and pores, of the boards of it with pitch, in order to bring all the parts of it into close contact with one another, and to preferve them in that ftate of union. When these things, therefore, are confidered, it appears, I think, that the fenfe of the words pitching with pitch, in the texts before us, is rather that of pointing, cementing, or uniting, than that of covering. And when all these places in the Hebrew bible, where this verb and noun occur in a derived and figurative fenfe, are carefully infpected and confidered, it will, I doubt not, be found, that they retain more of this fenfe, than that of covering.

But fuppofing, that the verb caphar did, in the text before us, fignify to cover, or to hide; yet, furely, it was not the defign of atonement to cover or hide fin. Yea, by the facrifical atonements, fin, inftead of being covered or hidden, was exposed to public view; and, therefore, the covering

of fin is excluded from the idea of facrifical atonement. God, indeed, is faid, in fome texts of fcripture, to cover fin, by which is meant, that he pardons or forgives it. But between pardoning fin, and making atonement for fin, there is a wide difference. By pardon, fin is covered: by atonement, it is not; otherwise the pardon, fubfequent to atonement, and by which alone fin is covered, would be ufelefs. The texts, therefore, produced by the Dr. and in which God is faid to cover or pardon fins, are no way to his purpose; because it doth not follow, from God's being faid to cover or pardon fins, that atonements, made by facrifice, did cover or pardon them.-The paffage which the Dr. quotes from Jam. v. 20. relates to another affair, and is much lefs to his purpose than any of the others for which reason, I fhall fay nothing about it here.

;

The place in which, above all others, the Dr. thinks that the verb 1 caphar doth retain fomething of its natural and original fignification, as fignifying to cover, is Ifai. xxviii. 18. Your covenant with death 1 cuppar fhall be difannulled, (atoned,) and your agreement with bell fhall not stand: when the overflowing Scourge fhall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it. The Dr. fays that the fenfe of the Hebrew word cuppar in this text, is, it shall be

blotted

blotted out, fmeared over, cancelled, confequently, covered. But this interpretation of the Hebrew word, appears to me, to be very unnatural; because their covenant with death, as appears from the latter part of the verse, was to be atoned for by punishment, which is not a mean of covering or hiding fin, but of expofing it to public view, and the finner himself to fhame and difgrace. The words, I think, fhould be rendered thus, Your covenant with death shall be atoned for, or expiated, viz. not by facrifice, but by punishment. And then the Hebrew verb will bear the fame fenfe which it doth in other places, where atonement is faid to be made by the execution of justice. upon offenders: which is a fenfe very different from that of covering or hiding.

h

As to the Hebrew noun n caporeth, which fignifieth the mercy-feat, and is derived from the root 97 caphar, the Dr. fays, "the fenfe of it feems to be transferred " from covering, or fecuring with pitch, "to a thing of a different nature 1. But in this the Dr. I think is as much mistaken, as he is about the natural and original sense of its root, caphar. This notion of his about the fenfe of the word, caporeth, which fignifies the mercy-feat, is grounded

See Scripture-doctrine of Atonement examined, Chap. V. §. 95. No. 25.

Ibidem Chap. IV. §. 63,