SERMON X.

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. THE JUSTICE OF god.

DEUT. xxxii. 4.-Just and right is he.

THE end, for which the Song, of which this verse is a part, was written, is expressed in the preceding Chapter, verse 19, in these words:

Now, therefore, write ye this song for you, and teach it to the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel.

To this end it is perfectly suited. It is a general testimony of the perfection of God, and of his peculiar kindness to that people. As it strongly and unanswerably exhibits the Righteousness and Goodness of God in all his dealings with them; so, in the same evident and forcible manner, it manifests their ingratitude and unreasonableness in rebelling against him. These it presents in the most affecting light; because it shows, that God clearly foreknew all their transgressions, and, with this foreknowledge, still performed for them all these blessings.

At the same time, it forewarned them of their sin and danger, and urged on them the strongest motives to obedience. This timely testimony was itself a most convincing and affecting proof of his goodness, and left them without excuse.

The text is a general ascription of supreme excellence and glory to God, in his nature, agency, and works. I will publish the name of the Lord, Jehovah, saith Moses in the preceding verse; ascribe ye greatness unto our God.

This Name, or Character, is published in the verse which contains the text. He is the Rock; his work is perfect, for all his ways are Judgment: a God of Truth, and without iniquity; Just and Right is he. That is, God is the Rock, or foundation, on which the Universe stands. His work, the great work of building and governing the universe, is perfect; without imperfection, error, or fault; comprising all things which it ought, and nothing which it ought not, to comprise. The reason of this perfection is, that all his ways are Judgment; that is, are a perfect compound of wisdom, righteousness, and goodness. Just and Right may signify the same thing; or, as is often the meaning of Right, so here it may naturally denote the perfection of God generally considered.

DOCTRINE.

God is a Being of perfect Justice.

Before I enter upon the proof of this doctrine, it will be neces

sary to examine the different meanings of this term; as, like most other abstract terms, it is variously used.

1st. Justice, as applied to cases, in which property is concerned, denotes the exchange of one thing for another, of equal value,

Justice, considered in this manner, affects all bargains; the pay. ment of debts; and the adjustment, and fulfilment, of all contracts. Whenever these are so made, and performed, as that an exact equivalent is rendered for what is received, then, and then only, justice is done. This is called Commutative Justice.

2dly. As applied to the conduct of a Magistrate towards subjects, 1 denotes exactly that treatment of the subject which his personal conduct merits. To reward the good subject, and to punish the bad, according to equitable laws, and real desert, is to treat both justly; or to exhibit justice in the distributions of Government. Accordingly a Ruler, conducting in this manner, is by the common voice declared to be a just ruler. Justice, in this sense, is properly called Distributive Justice.

3dly. Justice, in a much more extended sense than either of these, denotes doing that, which is Right upon the whole, in all cases; that which is fittest and most useful to be done; in other words, that which will most promote the universal Good. In this sense, Justice is, together with its corresponding term, Righteousness, used as synonymous with Benevolence or Virtue, and involves the whole of moral excellence. This is sometimes called General Justice. This use of the word is very frequent; and many persons appear to make no distinction between this sense of the word and the last mentioned. Yet the meanings are widely different. In the former sense, Justice is the conduct of a Ruler only; in the latter, is applicable to all Intelligent beings: in the former, it is a course of conduct, respecting a single object, according to his merit, or demerit; in the latter, it always respects the universe.

Justice, when considered as an attribute, is the disposition, which gives birth to these, or to either of these, kinds of conduct.

With respect to the first of these senses, we cannot easily suppose a case, in which God, who is the giver of all good, can receive any thing, for which an equivalent can be rendered. The nearest resemblance to such a case, which is applicable to God, is one, in which he requires the service of mankind in a particular manner, and promises to reward them for such service with worldly possessions. Several such instances may be found in the Scriptures.

Thus he promised the Israelites abundant worldly good, in consequence of their faithful obedience. Thus he promised David, as a reward for his obedience, many earthly blessings. Thus, for the execution of his decree against Tyre, he gave Egypt into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar.

These instances are, however, all plainly imperfect ones, for the purpose of exhibiting a complete display of this Attribute in the sense in question. God, in all the cases specified, exhibited VOL. I.

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his bounty, and mercy, so much more strongly than mere commutative justice, that we are apt to forget, that this was exhibited at all. Nor can we suppose a case, in which this difficulty will not arise, from the character and situation of God, as the Author and Giver of all good, and as the Receiver of nothing from the hands of his creatures.

Yet, if a case could be proposed, in which God could act, as Just in the Commutative sense, his disposition to be just, in this sense, would be as perfect, as in either of the other senses.

This

is unanswerably evident from the consideration, that he requires, under the most awful penalties, the exercise of such justice from the hands of his subjects. In the two last senses, the justice of God is perpetually, and perfectly, exercised towards all his Intelligent creatures.

As the Ruler of the Universe, he rewards every rational being exactly according to his works; except that he hath shown mercy to numberless sinners, who had merited nothing but wrath and pu nishment: an exception supremely glorious to his character, and formed in entire consistency with exact justice.

As the great friend of happiness, he has devised, also, the most perfect happiness of his immense Kingdom, and the most perfect means of accomplishing it. This he pursues with infinite intenseness of energy, without intermission, without change, and without

end.

In this sense, the Justice of God respects first, himself; and secondly, his creatures.

1st. God is infinitely just, as his conduct respects himself.

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In an uniform series of dispensations, he exhibits to the Universe, his own character, as supremely glorious, excellent, beautiful, and lovely; and as therefore deserving all possible admiration, confidence, love, reverence, worship, and obedience, from all Intelligent beings. In this divine employment he has published to Intelligent beings a glorious rule of rectitude, as the rule of his own conduct a rule, to which all that conduct is entirely conformed, without variableness, or shadow of turning. To this rule he requires them to conform all their conduct, also. In obeying it, are involved their duty, interest, honour, and happiness, alike. This he has exhibited as an unchangeable and everlasting rule; by which the Intelligent universe is every where, at every period, and with respect to every thing, to be governed; and which he will never forsake, even though that universe were to be the sacrifice. 2dly. In the same sense, God is perfectly just to his creatures. The justice of God to himself is the highest and first act of justice to his creatures. But for this regard to himself, they could never venerate his character, nor render him their love, or their confidence. As the promoter of the universal good, God can in no way so contribute to this great and glorious end, as in unfolding his own supremely excellent character. This is the source, and

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foundation, of all virtuous, sincere, and enduring happiness. this conduct of God, therefore, the universe is infinitely intérested. In each particular dispensation to them, also, he directly pursues the same end, in all the parts of his endlessly diversified administration. Not a wrong, not a mistake, not a defect, finds admission into his providence, throughout eternity and immensity.

But it is chiefly as the great Ruler of all beings, that the justice of God demands a particular consideration, at this time. In this character, his justice is employed in the distribution of rewards to holy and virtuous creatures, and of punishments to false and rebellious subjects of his government.

All these distributions are made on the ground of law. Such, as obey the law of God, are by impartial justice rewarded: those, who disobey, are punished. The perfection of these distributions consists in this; that each creature is rewarded, or punished, according to his character and conduct, exactly; so that the reward, or the punishment, shall be precisely proportioned to the several degrees of virtue, or guilt, just as they have existed. In this case all the palliations, and aggravations, of guilt, and all the means of increasing or diminishing virtue, will enter completely into the estimate of the character of each individual. Of all these, God, who searcheth the heart, and trieth the reins, is a perfect judge. Nothing is unknown, or forgotten, by him; and nothing will be left out of the estimate of character, which will be the foundation of the reward, or the punishment. The proofs of the justice of God, exhibited by reason, or found in the system of Providence, are not to us, demonstrative. Yet they are well deserving of our attention. 1st. The character and circumstances of God strongly lead us to believe in his perfect justice.

God is perfectly independent; in the actual possession of all possible good; and completely secure against every possible loss, and evil. Whatever he pleases to have exist, or done, is certainly brought to pass; and in the precise manner, which is pleasing to him. Hence no temptation, or inducement, to any injustice, can exist with respect to him. Possessing all things, he can need nothing; contriving all things, he can fear nothing; effecting all things, which he chooses, with infinite ease, and no possible obstruction, he can never have occasion to adopt any other character, or conduct, but that of perfect justice. Injustice in our experience is always derived, and of course, from the dread of some disadvantage, or the desire of some advantage which otherwise would not exist. But these things have no possible application to God. Reason sees not, therefore, how God can be under any inducement to injustice. But without such inducement, injustice cannot exist.

2dly. In this state of trial many exhibitions of the divine justice are made in divine providence.

These are seen chiefly in the application of punishments and rewards to Nations, considered in their national capacity. Nations,

as such, exist only on this side of the grave. Hence it would seem, that in this peculiar character, as nations merely, they are with propriety rewarded or punished here. Thus nations, after they have become corrupted to a certain degree, have constantly been destroyed for their national corruption. God, indeed, has usually waited with wonderful patience, until their iniquities were full; and so evidently, that the ancient heathens described and painted Justice as lame; that is, slow in arriving. This conduct of the Creator is highly becoming his glorious character, as a most bountiful and merciful God towards beings, still in a state of trial.

Yet the destruction, or punishment, has been sure; however late it may seem to us. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as men count slackness; but is long-suffering to usward; not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repent

ance.

So evident has been the justice of God in such instances, that the heathen have strongly marked, and fully acknowledged it, generally throughout the whole heathen world: a clear proof, that it has struck the eye, and convinced the mind, of Common

sense.

3dly. The justice of God is conspicuous in this great fact; that mankind are never afflicted beyond their deserts.

In the last discourse, but one, I have observed, that this truth is rendered evident in the only case, in which it can with the least appearance of reason be disputed; viz. the sufferings of virtuous men; by their own uniform acknowledgment, that they never suffer even so much as they are conscious of having deserved. But the only tendency of any mind to injustice is to withhold good, or inflict evil, contrary to, or beyond, the desert of the recipient. As neither of these is ever the fact; as, on the contrary, men always receive more good, and less evil, than they have merited; it is plain, that the justice of God on the one hand, and his absolute freedom from injustice on the other, are strongly evidenced in his dispensations to man in the present world.

4thly. All the arguments, which I have deduced from the character and circumstances of God, to prove, that he is benevolent, are capable of an equally forcible application to the present subject; and contribute, in the same manner, to prove that he is just.

As these have been so lately rehearsed, it will be unnecessary to mention them again at the present time.

5thly. As God is benevolent, it is impossible that he should not be just.

In the last discourse I observed, that love constituted the whole moral character of God; and that, although we were obliged for the sake of distinctness, to consider, as the Scriptures themselves often do, this character in different views, and under different names; yet it is in reality a disposition simple and indivisible: these names denoting only its different modifications and exercises.

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