vidence for that Belief. If he commands us to do what we are naturally incapable of doing, he promises, if we will afk, the Aid and Affiftance of his Holy Spirit to enable us to perform what he commands. Thus fhall every one, who falls fhort of Salvation, be rendered inexcufable at the laft Day. Every Mouth fhall be stopped.

To the Point.

After St. Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, had proved the whole World, Jews and Gentiles, to be under Sin, he draws this Conclufion; "Therefore by the Deeds of the Law there shall no Flesh be justified in his Sight". And having, in the following Verfes, fhewed how we are and must be justified, he again draws this Conclufion; "Therefore we conclude that a Man is justified by Faith without the Deeds of the Law".

If there is any Meaning in the Apostle's Reasoning these Conclufions affert the Doctrine of Juftification by Faith alone in the Blood of Chrift. The one is negative, the other is poffitive. The one fays, We are not justified

juftified by Works; the other fays, We are juftified by Faith. The one rejects the falfe Foundation; the other establishes the true one.

"It is commonly objected, that by the Deeds "of the Law, the Apostle means the Deeds of "the ceremonial Law":

If we attend to his Chain of Reasoning without Partiality and Prejudice, we fhall foon difcover that he excludes the Works of the moral, as well as the Deeds of the ceremonial Law, in the Affair of a Sinner's Juftification before God. In fhewing how the Gentiles were to be juftified and faved, he could not with any Propriety appeal to, or from, the ceremonial Law of the Jews, because they were never under it's Power and Dominion. therefore we find him accufing them of Breaches of the moral Law, the Law of Nature, the Law of the Ten Commandments, which are common to, and equally binding upon, every Son and Daughter of Adam. Take his own melancholy Catalogue of Heathenish; Of Hea thenish did I fay? Of Chriftian Crimes: "And even as they did not like to retain GoD

And

in their Knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate Mind, to do thofe Things which are not convenient: Being filled with all Unrigh teousness, Fornication, Wickedness, Covetoufnefs, Malicioufnefs; full of Envy, Murder, Debate, Deceit, Malignity; Whisperers, Backbiters, Haters of GoD, difpiteful, proud, Boafters, Inventers of evil Things, difobedient to Parents, without Understanding, Covenantbreakers, without natural Affection, implacable, unmerciful ".

Now if the Gentiles were never under the cere monial Law, and if in thefe Words they are only charged with Tranfgreffions against the moral Law, we must allow, that if they were justified by Faith without the Deeds of the Law, it must be by Faith without the Deeds of the moral Law So much for the Gentiles.

Let us next confider the State of the Jews. If the Apostle appeals to the Law of the Tem Commandments: If he repeatedly charges them with Breaches of That, and of That alone: If he never once mentions, when speaking of the Nature of Juftification, the ceremonial Law:

And

And if the Jews were generally very observant of the ceremonial, and very negligent in the moral: Then I think it must be allowed, that the Apostle means to establish the Doctrine of Juftification by Faith in Chrift, without the Deeds of the moral, or any other Law whatTake his own Words:

ever.

"Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the Law, and makest thy Boast of GOD; and knoweft his Will, and approveft, the Things that are more excellent, being instructed out of the Law, and art confident that thou thyfelf art a Guide of the Blind, a Light of them that are in Darkness, an Inftructer of the Foolish, a Teacher of Babes, which hast the Form of Knowledge and of the Truth in the Law. Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyfelf? Thou that preachest, a Man fhould not steal, doft thou steal? Thou that fayeft, a Man fhould not commit Adultery, doft thou commit Adultery? Thou that abhorrest Idols, doft thou commit Sacrilege?

Nothing can be more evident than that the Apoftle

T

Apostle makes his Appeal in all these Interrogations to the moral Law of GOD, and not to the Ceremonial.

Again. "We have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under Sin". What Sin? Sins of the ceremonial Law? No: Under Sins of the moral. "As it is written, There is none righteous, no not one: Their Throat is an open Sepulchre: With their Tongues they have used Deceit; the Poifon of Afps is under their Lips: Whofe Mouth is full of Curfing and Bitterness: Their Feet are swift to fhed Blood: There is no Fear of God before their Eyes".

This is alfo the moral Law, or the Law of the Ten Commandments. He then proceeds: "Now we know that what Things foever the Law faith": What Law? The moral Law juft mentioned: "It faith to them that are under the Law; that every Mouth may be stopped, and all the World become guilty before GOD. Therefore by the Deeds of the Law, there shall no Flesh be justified in his Sight": For by the Law is the Knowledge of Sin.