which man can never do, so as to be delivered from it, or from suffering, because a finite creature is not capable of suffering the evil contained in the curse in any limited duration; and therefore his sufferings must be without end, or everlasting. And no future obedience, should man repent and live perfectly obedient after he had transgressed, would atone for his sin, or remove the curse in the least degree, according to law: for his obedience, though ever so perfect, and continued ever so long, would be no more than what he constantly owed, and therefore no more than his duty, had he never transgressed. Thus man by sin fell into an irrecoverably lost state, and brought the curse of the law of God upon him, from which it is impossible he should deliver himself, or be delivered, consistent with this law, either by all possible sufferings or obedience of his own.

This is the law of God, and is the voice of God to man, and is an unalterable expression of his heart, or moral character and perfection. It therefore cannot be altered or abated in the requirements of it, or in the threatening. It is as unchangeable as the divine character itself, being founded on the eternal, unchangeable reason and nature of things. And it is not consistent with the truth of God not to execute the threatening of his law: For this would not only be giving up and making void his law; but acting contrary to his own declaration. Divine threatenings are predictions, declaring what shall be, and what God will do in case of transgression of his law. And it is as inconsistent with truth not to execute his threatening, in the true meaning of it, as it is not to accomplish and bring to pass, what he has declared and promised shall take place. This law therefore must be maintained in the true meaning and spirit of it; as the grand and only perfect rule of rectoral justice, rectitude, or righteousness. And if it were possible that God should do any thing in his conduct towards moral agents, which should be inconsistent with this his law, or express the least disregard of it, it would be infinitely wrong, and contrary to truth, rectitude and righteousness, wisdom, and goodness. For this would be injurious to himself, and to his moral kingdom, and subversive of the greatest general good. Therefore if man

could not be redeemed and saved consistent with maintaining this law, and showing the highest regard to it, God could not be true, just, wise or good, in saving them or showing them any favour.

But to pardon man and restore him to favour and happiness, in this situation, and remove the curse which the divine law fastens upon him, would be acting contrary to this law, repealing and renouncing it as a rule of righteousness, as not good and right: It would be joining with the sinner to disregard and dishonour the law; and favour, justify and encourage rebellion. This therefore would be inconsistent with rectitude, righteousness, wisdom and goodness, and infinitely contrary to these, and would put an eternal end to all perfect moral government. It would dethrone the Governor of the world, destroy his kingdom, and give full scope to the reign of rebellion, confusion and misery forever. Therefore it were better, infinitely better, that rebel man, even all mankind, should have the curse of the law fully executed on them, and they be totally miserable forever, than that this infinitely greater evil should take place by shewing favour to him, contrary to the dictates of the most perfect, righteous, and infinitely sacred law of God.

This otherwise insuperable difficulty, this mighty bar and obstacle in the way of shewing any favour to man, and escaping eternal destruction, is the ground of the necessity of a Mediator and Redeemer, by whom it may be wholly removed, and man be delivered from the curse of the law; and saved, consistent with the divine character, with truth, infinite rectitude, wisdom and goodness; and so as not to set aside and dishonour, but support and maintain the divine law and government. This is the light in which the scripture very expressly sets this matter. St. Paul, speaking of the pardon and salvation of man by Christ the Redeemer, says, "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past: To declare, I say, his righteousness : That he might be just, and the justifier of him which be lieveth in Jesus."* Here the design of the Redeemer

Rom. iii. 25, 26.

is expressed, and the great thing he is to accomplish is to maintain and declare the righteousness, the rectitude, and unchangeable truth and perfection of God in opening a way by his blood, his sufferings unto death, for the free pardon of sinful man, consistent with his rectoral justice and truth, and doing that which is right and just both with respect to himself, his law and government, and all the subjects of his kingdom.

The work of the Redeemer therefore has a primary respect to the law of God, to maintain and honour that, so that sinners may be pardoned and saved consistent with that, without setting that aside, or showing the least disregard to it, in the requirements and threatenings of it; but that it may be perfectly fulfilled; and especially that the threatening might be properly and completely executed, without which God could not be true or just in pardoning and saving the sinner.

It was

therefore predicted that he should " Magnify the law, and make it honourable."* And Christ himself declares that he came into the world to fulfil the law. "Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets : I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled."t The law could not be fulfilled by Jesus Christ without his suffering the penalty of it, and obeying it perfectly. For to give up the penalty, and not execute the threatening of the law, when it is transgressed, is to dissolve and destroy the law: For a penalty is essential to a law, and where there is no penalty threatened there is no law, as has been shown. Therefore had the Redeemer undertaken to save man, without regard to the penalty of the law and suffering it himself, he would have come to make void the law and destroy it, to all intents and purposes. He could not "make reconciliation for sin, and bring in everlasting righteousness," which it was predicted he should,‡ without suffering the penalty of the law, the everlasting rule of righteousness. In doing this his love of righteousness and hatred of iniquity was exercised and displayed in the

• Isaiah xlii. 21.

Matt. v. 17, 18.

Dan. ix. 24.

most signal manner, and to the highest degree. Therefore it is with respect to this regard which he paid to the divine law in suffering the penalty and obeying the precepts of it, that it is said to him, "Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows."* The same is expressed in other words by St. Paul. "And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name."+ His being obedient unto death, strongly expresses his laying down his life for sinners, suffering and dying in their stead, agreeable to the particular command which he had received of his Father. To this end he was "made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law." Sinful men were under the curse of the law; and in order to redeem them, the Redeemer must take their place under the law, and suffer the penalty, bear the curse for them, and in their room, which is expressed yet more fully, and in the most plain and unequivocal words in the preceding chapter. "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us." By being made a curse for us, can be nothing else but suffering the penalty, the curse of the law, under which we were, and which man must have suffered, had not the Redeemer suffered it for him, as he could not be redeemed

in any other way, without destroying the law.

From this general view of the design and work of the Redeemer of man, taken from the holy scriptures, the way is prepared for a farther stating and explanation of this subject, under the following particulars.

I. ONE important and necessary part of the work of the Redeemer of man, was to make atonement for their sins, by suffering in his own person the penalty or curse of the law, under which, by transgression, they had fallen; so that sinners might be pardoned and saved, consistent with the divine law, and without the least respect to that, or in any degree making it void; but so as to establish and honour the law.

* Heb. i. 9. Psal. xlv. 7. † Phil. ii. 8, 9. ‡ John x. 18. § Gal. iv. 4, 5.

There is no truth in the Bible more clearly and abundantly revealed than this. This truth is evident from what has been above observed from the scriptures; but it is proper more particularly to attend to the scripture representation of this important subject.

The institution of sacrifices of beasts and other animals, after the apostasy of man, and the declaration, that redemption should take place by the seed of the woman; and those more expressly appointed under the Mosaic dispensation, do all, more or less, illustrate and confirm this truth, and point out vicarious sufferings as necessary and effectual to make atonement for sin. The guilty person was ordered to bring the beast to the altar, and lay his hands on the head of it, and confess his sin; and then it was put to death and sacrificed on the altar by the priest, instead of the sinner, and he was forgiven, an atonement being made for his sin by the death and blood of the beast.* These sacrifices were of various kinds, and offered on different occasions, as types of Christ, and those things which related to him, and the atonement he was to make. For all these sacrifices were designed types of Christ, and in this all their worth and efficacy consisted. The death and blood of a beast could not in any measure or degree make atonement for sin, and was of no avail any farther than it had respect to Christ, and was a type and figure of his death, of his blood which he shed, which was the only real atonement, and which alone avails to take away sin. "For it is im

The paschal lamb was an eminent type of Christ, with a principal reference to which he is so often called "The Lamb, the Lamb of God." Therefore he is called the christian's passover. "For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." This lamb was slain, and roasted with fire, as an emblem of the sufferings and death of Christ. There was a particular direction and command respecting the blood of this lamb. "And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts, and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.-And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are: And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt." As the blood of this slain lamb, when applied according to divine direction, secured the Israelites from the destruction which fell on the Egyptians; so Christ was slain and sacrificed, that they to whom his blood is applied by their believing in him, may have their sins forgiven, and be secured from that destruction which they deserve, being delivered from the wrath to come. Il

* 1 Cor. v. 7.

+ Exod. xii. 7, 13.

|| Eph. i. 7. I Thess. . 10.