good and evil; hence were all the sacrifices, purgings, expiations, which were so generally spread over the face of the earth; but this was and is but very dark, in respect of that knowledge of sin with its appurtenances, which is to be obtained.

A farther knowledge of sin upon all accounts whatever, is given by the law; that law which was added because of transgressions. This revives doctrinally all that sense of good and evil which was at first implanted in man; and it is a glass whereinto, whosoever is able spiritually to look, may see sin in all its ugliness and deformity. The truth is, look upon the law in its purity, holiness, compass, and perfection, its manner of delivery with dread, terror, thunder, earthquakes, fire; the sanction of it, in death, curse, wrath, and it makes a wonderful discovery of sin, upon every account, its pollution, guilt, and exceeding sinfulness are seen by it. But yet all this doth not suffice to give a man a true and thorough conviction of sin. Not but that the glass is clear, but of ourselves we have not eyes to look into it; the rule is straight, but we cannot apply it, and therefore Christ sends his Spirit to convince the world of sin; John xvi. 8. who, though as to some ends and purposes he makes use of the law, yet the work of conviction, which alone is a useful knowledge of sin, is his peculiar work. And so the discovery of sin, may also be said to be by Christ, to be part of the wisdom that is hid in him. But yet there is a twofold regard besides this, of his sending his Spirit to convince us, wherein this wisdom appears to be hid in him.

1st. Because there are some near concernments of sin, which are more clearly held out in the Lord Christ's being made sin for us, than any other way.

2dly. In that there is no knowledge to be had of sin, so as to give it a spiritual and saving improvement, but only in him.

1st. For the first, there are four things in sin, that clearly shine out in the cross of Christ.

(1st.) The desert of it.

(2dly.) Man's impotency by reason of it. (3dly.) The death of it.

m Gal. iii. 19. Rom. vii. 13.

■ Exod. xix. 18-20. Deut. iv. 11. Heb. xii. 18-21.

(4thly.) A new end put to it.

(1st.) The desert of sin doth clearly shine in the cross of Christ, upon a twofold account.

[1st.] Of the person suffering for it.

[2dly.] Of the penalty he underwent.

[1.] Of the person suffering for it. This the Scripture oftentimes very emphatically sets forth, and lays great weight upon; John iii. 16. God so loved the world, as that he sent his only-begotten Son.' It was his only son that God sent into the world to suffer for sin; Rom. viii. 32. He spared not his only Son, but gave him up to death for us all.' To see a slave beaten and corrected, it argues a fault committed, but yet perhaps the demerit of it was not very great. The correction of a son, argues a great provocation; that of an only son, the greatest imaginable. Never was sin seen to be more abominably sinful and full of provocation, than when the burden of it was upon the shoulders of the Son of God. God having made his Son, the Son of his love, his only-begotten, full of grace and truth, sin for us, to manifest his indignation against it, and how utterly impossible it is, that he should let the least sin go unpunished, he lays hand on him, and spares him not. If sin be imputed to the dear Son of his bosom, as upon his own voluntary assumption of it, it was (for he said to his Father, Lo I come to do thy will,' and all our iniquities did meet on him), he will not spare him any thing of the due desert of it; is it not most clear from hence, even from the blood of the cross of Christ, that such is the demerit of sin, that it is altogether impossible that God should pass by any, the least unpunished; if he would have done it for any, he would have done it in reference to his only Son; but he spared him not.

Moreover, God is not at all delighted with, nor desirous of the blood, the tears, the cries, the unexpressible torments and sufferings of the Son of his love (for he delights not in the anguish of any; ' he doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men ;' much less the Son of his bosom) only he required that his law be fulfilled, his justice satisfied, his wrath atoned for sin, and nothing less than all this, would bring it about. If the debt of sin might have been com

pounded for, at a cheaper rate, it had never been held up at the price of the blood of Christ. Here then soul, take a view of the desert of sin; behold it far more evident, than in all the threatenings and curses of the law. I thought, indeed, mayest thou say from thence, that sin, being found on such a poor worm as I am, was worthy of death, but that it should have this effect, if charged on the Son of God, that I never once imagined.

86

t

[2dly.] Consider also farther, what he suffered. For though he was so excellent a one, yet perhaps it was but a light affliction, and trial that he underwent, especially considering the strength he had to bear it. Why, whatever it were, it made this fellow of the Lord of hosts,' this 'Lion of the tribe of Judah,' this" 'mighty one,' the wisdom and power of God, to tremble,' sweat, cry, pray, wrestle, and that with strong supplications. Some of the Popish devotionists, tell us that one drop, the least, of the blood of Christ, was abundantly enough to redeem all the world; but they err, not knowing the desert of sin, nor the severity of the justice of God. If one drop less than was shed, one pang less than was laid on, would have done it; those other drops had not been shed, nor those other pangs laid God did not cruciate the dearly beloved of his soul for nought. But there is more than all this.

on.

a

It pleased God to bruise him, to put him to grief, to make his soul an offering for sin, and to pour out his life unto death. He hid himself from him, was far from the voice of his cry, until he cried out, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" He made him a sin, and a curse for us, executed on him the sentence of the law, brought him into an agony, wherein he sweat thick drops of blood, was grievously troubled, and his soul was heavy unto death; he that was the power of God, and the wisdom of God, went stooping under the burden, until the whole frame of nature seemed astonished at it. Now this, as I said before, that it discovered the indignation of God against sin, so it clearly holds out the desert of it. Would you then see the true

Zach. xiii. 7.

u Psal. lxxxix. 19.

t Rev. v. 5.

x Prov. viii. 22. 1 Cor. i. 24.

y Matt. xxvi. 37, 38, Mark xiv. 30, 31. Luke xxii. 24. Heb. v.7.

d

demerit of sin, take the measure of it from the mediation of Christ, especially his cross. It brought him who was the Son of God, equal unto God, God blessed for ever, into the form of a servant, who had not where to lay his head. It pursued him all his life, with afflictions and persecutions, and lastly brought him under the rod of God; there bruised him, and brake him, slew the Lord of life. Hence is deep humiliation for it upon the account of him whom we have pierced. And this is the first spiritual view of sin we have in Christ.

(2dly.) The wisdom of understanding our impotency by reason of sin, is wrapped up in him. By our impotency I understand two things.

[1st.] Our disability to make any atonement with God for sin.

[2dly.] Our disability to answer his mind and will, in all or any of the obedience, that he requireth by reason of sin.

[1st.] For the first, that alone is discovered in Christ. Many inquiries have the sons of men made after an atonement, many ways have they entered into, to accomplish it. After this they inquire, Mich. vi. 6, 7. Will any manner of sacrifices, though appointed of God, as burnt-offerings, and calves of a year old, though very costly; thousands of rams, and ten thousand rivers of oil, though dreadful and tremendous, offering violence to nature, as to give my children to the fire; will any of these things make an atonement? David doth positively indeed determine this business, Psal. xlix. 7, 8. none of them, of the best or richest of men, can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him, for the redemption of their souls is precious, and it ceaseth for ever. It cannot be done, no atonement can be made. Yet men would still be doing, still attempting; hence did they heap up sacrifices, some costly, some bloody and inhuman. The Jews to this day, think that God was atoned for sin, by the sacrifices of bulls and goats, and the like; and the Socinians acknowledge no atonement, but what consists in men's repentance and new obedience. In the cross of Christ, are the mouths of all stopped as to this thing. For,

d 1 Phil. ii. 8.

f Zech. xii. 10.

e 1 Cor. ii. 8.

g Vid. Diatr. Just. Divin. cap. 3.

1st. God hath there discovered that no sacrifices for sin, though of his own appointment, could ever make them perfect that offered them; Heb. x. 11. Those sacrifices could never take away sin; those services could never make them perfect that performed them, as to the conscience; Heb. ix. 9. as the apostle proves, chap. x. 1. and thence the Lord rejects all sacrifices and offerings whatever, as to any such end and purpose, ver. 6-8. Christ, in their stead saying, 'Lo I come; and by him we are justified, 'from all things, from which we could not be justified by the law;' Acts xiii. 39. God, I say, in Christ, hath condemned all sacrifices, as wholly insufficient in the least to make an atonement for sin. And how great a thing it was, to instruct the sons of men in this wisdom, the event hath manifested.

2dly. He hath also written vanity on all other endeavours whatever that have been undertaken for that purpose, Rom. iii. 24-26. by setting forth his only 'Son to be a propitiation,' he leaves no doubt upon the spirits of men, that in themselves they could make no atonement. For 'if righteousness were by the law, then were Christ dead in vain.' To what purpose should he be made a propitiation, were not we ourselves weak and without strength to any such purpose? So the apostle argues, Rom. vi. 6. when we had no power, then did he by death make an atonement, as ver. 8, 9.

This wisdom then is also hid in Christ; men may see by other helps perhaps far enough to fill them with dread and astonishment, as those in Isa, xxxiii. 14. but such a sight and view of it, as may lead a soul to any comfortable settlement about it; that only is discovered in this treasury of heaven, the Lord Jesus.

[2.] Our disability to answer the mind and will of God, in all or any of the obedience that he requireth, is in him only to be discovered. This indeed is a thing that many will not be acquainted with to this day. To teach a man that he cannot do what he ought to do, and for which he condemns himself if he do it not, is no easy task. Man rises up with all his power, to plead against a conviction of impotency. Not to mention the proud conceits and expressions

8 Psal. xl. 6, 7.

h Quia unusquisque sibi virtutem acquirit ; nemo sapientum de ea gratias Deo egit. Cicer.