the worthiness of any of our fellow-creatures. But the merit of our respect or obedience to God is not infinite. The merit respect to any being does not increase, but is rather diminished, in proportion to the obligations we are under in strict justice to pay him that respect. There is no great merit in paying a debt we owe, and by the highest possible obligations in strict justice are obliged to pay; but there is great demerit in refusing to pay it. That on such accounts as these, there is an infinite demerit in all sin against God, which must therefore immensely outweigh all the merit which can be supposed to be in our virtue, I think is capable of full demonstration; and that the futility of the objections which some have made against the argument might most plainly be demonstrated. But I shall omit a particular consideration of the evidence of this matter from the nature of things, as I study brevity, and lest any should cry out, metaphysics! as the manner of some is, when any argument is handled against a tenet they are fond of with a close and exact consideration of the nature of things. And this is not so necessary in the present case, in as much as the point asserted-that he who commits any one sin has guilt and ill desert so great, that the value and merit of all the good which it is possible he should do in his own life is as nothing to it-is not only evident by metaphysics, but is plainly demonstrated by what has been shewn to be fact, with respect to God's own constitutions and dispensations towards mankind. Thus, whatever acts of virtue and obedience a man performs, yet if he trespasses in one point, is guilty of any, the least sin, he according to the law of God, and so according to the exact truth of things and the proper demerit of sinis exposed to be wholly cast out of favour with God and subjected to his curse, to be utterly and eternally destroyed. This has been proved; and shown to be the doctrine which Dr. T. abundantly teaches.

But how can it be agreeable to the nature of things and exactly consonant to everlasting truth and righteousness, thus to deal with a creature for the least sinful act, though he should perform ever so many thousands of honest and virtuous acts, to countervail the evil of that sin? Or how can it be agreeable to the exact truth and real demerit of things, thus wholly to cast off the deficient creature without any regard to the merit of all his good deeds, unless that be in truth the case, that the value and merit of all those good actions bear no proportion to the heinousness of the least sin? If it were not so, one would think that however the offending person might have some proper punishment, yet seeing there is so much virtue to lay in the balance against the guilt, it would be agreeable to the nature of things that he should find some favour, and not be altogether rejected and made the subject

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ORIGINAL SIN.

of perfect and eternal destruction; and thus no account at all be made of all his virtue, so much so as to procure him the least relief or hope. How can such a constitution represent sin in its proper colours, and according to its true nature and desert, (as Dr. T. says it does) unless this be its true nature, that it is so bad, that even in the least instance it perfectly swallows up all the value of the sinner's supposed good deeds, let them be ever so many. So that this matter is not left to our metaphysics or philosophy; the great lawgiver and infallible judge of the universe has clearly decided it in the revelation he has made of what is agreeable to exact truth, justice, and the nature of things, in his revealed law or rule of righte

ousness.

He that in any respect or degree is a transgressor of God's law, is a wicked man, yea, wholly wicked in the eye of the law; all his goodness being esteemed nothing, having no account made of it, when taken together with his wickedness. And therefore, without any regard to his righteousness, he is, by the sentence of the law, and so by the voice of truth and justice, to be treated as worthy to be rejected, abhorred, and unless cursed for ever; and must be so, interpose to cover his transgression. But men are really in themselves what they are in the eye of the law, and by the voice of strict equity and justice; however they may be looked upon and treated by infinite and unmerited mercy.

grace

So that on the whole it appears all mankind have an infallibly effectual propensity to that moral evil, which infinitely outweighs the value of all the good that can be in them; and have such a disposition of heart, that the certain consequence of it is their being, in the eye of perfect truth and righteousness, wicked men. And I leave all to judge, whether such a disposition be not in the eye of truth a depraved disposition?

Agreeable to these things, the scripture represents all mankind not only as having guilt, but immense guilt, which they can have no merit or worthiness to countervail. Such is the representation we have in Matt. xviii. 21. to the end.There, on Peter's enquiring, How often his brother should trespass against him and he forgive him, whether until seven times? Christ replies, I say not unto thee, until seven times, but until seventy times seven; apparently meaning, that he should esteem no number of offences too many, and no degree of injury it is possible our neighbour should be guilty of towards us, too great to be forgiven. For which this reason is given in the parable following, that if ever we obtain forgiveness and favour with God, he must pardon that guilt and injury towards his majesty which is immensely greater than the greatest inju ries that ever men are guilty of one towards another; yea,

than the sum of all their injuries put together, let them be ever so many, and ever so great; so that the latter would be but as an hundred pence to ten thousand talents, which immense debt we owe to God and have nothing to pay; which implies, that we have no merit to countervail any part of our guilt.And this must be, because if all that may be called virtue in us be compared with our ill desert, it is in the sight of God as nothing to it. The parable is not to represent Peter's case in particular, but that of all that who then were, or ever should be, Christ's disciples; as appears by the conclusion of the discourse, (ver. 35.) So likewise shall my heavenly Father do, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

Therefore how absurd must it be for christians to object against the depravity of man's nature, a greater number of innocent and kind actions than of crimes; and to talk of a prevailing innocency, good nature, industry, and cheerfulness of the greater part of mankind? Infinitely more absurd than it would be to insist, that the domestic of a prince was not a bad servant, because though sometimes he contemned and affronted his master to a great degree, yet he did not spit in his master's face so often as he performed acts of service. More absurd than it would be to affirm, that his spouse was a good wife to him, because, although she committed adultery, and that with the slaves and scoundrels sometimes, yet she did not do this so often as she did the duties of a wife. These notions would be absurd, because the crimes are too heinous to be atoned for by many honest actions of the servant or spouse of the prince; there being a vast disproportion between the merit of the one and the ill desert of the other: But infinitely less than that between the demerit of our offences against God, and the value of our acts of obedience.

Thus I have gone through with my first argument; having shewn the evidence of the truth of the proposition laid down at first, and proved its consequence. But there are many other things that manifest a very corrupt tendency or disposition in man's nature in his present state, which I shall take notice of in the following sections.

SECT. IV.

The depravity of Nature appears by a Propensity in all to Sin immediately, as soon as they are capable of it, and to Sin continually and progressively; and also by the Remains of Sin in the best of Men.

The great depravity of man's nature appears, not only in that they universally commit sin who spend any long time in the world; but in that men are naturally so prone to sin, that none ever fail of immediately transgressing God's law, and so of bringing infinite guilt on themselves, and exposing themselves to eternal perdition, as soon as they are capable of it.

The scriptures are so very express upon it, that all mankind, all flesh, all the world, every man living, are guilty of sin; that it must at least be understood, every one capable of active duty to God or of sin against him. There are muititudes in the world who have but very lately begun to exert their faculties as moral agents; and so have but just entered on their state of trial as acting for themselves: many thousands constantly, who have not lived one month, or week, or day, since they have arrived at any period that can be assigned (for the commencement of their agency) from their birth to twenty years of age. Now-if there be not a strong propensity in men's nature to sin, that should, as it were, hurry them on to speedy transgression, and if they have no guilt previous to their personal sinning-what should hinder, but that there might always be a great number, who have hitherto kept themselves free from sin, and have perfectly obeyed God's law, and so are righteous in his sight, with the righteousness of the law? And who, if they should be called out of the world without any longer trial, as great numbers die at all periods of life, would be justified by the deeds of the law? And how then can it be true, that in God's sight no man living can be justified, that no man can be just with God, and that by the deeds of the law no flesh can be justified, because by the law is the knowledge of sin? And what should hinder but that there may always be many in the world-who are capable subjects of instruction and counsel, and of prayer to God-for whom the calls of God's word to repentance, to seek pardon through the blood of Christ, and to forgive others their injuries because they need that God should forgive them, would not be proper; and for whom the Lord's prayer is not suitable, wherein Christ directs all his followers to pray that God would forgive their sins, as they forgive those that trespass against them?

If there are any in the world-though but lately become capable of acting for themselves as subjects of God's law-who are perfectly free from sin; such are most likely to be found among the children of christian parents, who give them the most pious education and set them the best examples. And therefore such would never be so likely to be found in any part or age of the world, as in the primitive christian church, in the first age of christianity, (the age of the Church's greatest purity) so long after christianity had been established that there had been time for great numbers of children to be born, and educated by those primitive christians. It was in that age, and in such a part of that age, that the apostle John wrote his first epistle to the christians. But if there was then a number of them come to understanding who were perfectly free from sin, why should he write as he does? 1 John i. 8, 9, 10, If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and the truth is not in us.*

Again, the reality and greatness of the depravity of man's nature appears in this, That he has a prevailing propensity to be continually sinning against God. What has been observed above will clearly prove this. That same disposition of nature which is an effectual propensity to immediate sin, amounts to a propensity to continual sin. For a being prone to continual sinning is nothing but a proneness to immediate sin continued. Such appears to be the tendency of nature to sin, that as soon as ever man is capable, it causes him immediately to sin, with.

*If any should object, that this is an overstraining of things; and that it sup poses a greater niceness and exactness than is observed in scripture representations to infer from these expressions, that all men sin immediately as soon as ever they are capable of it. To this I would say, that I think the arguments used are truly solid, and do really and justly conclude, either that men are born guilty, and so are chargeable with sin before they come to act for themselves, or else commit sin immediately, without the least time intervening, after they are capable of understanding their obligations to God, and reflecting on themselves; and that the scripture clearly determines there is not one such person in the world, free from sin. But whether this be straining things to too great an exactness or not; yet I suppose none that do not entirely set aside the sense of such scriptures as have been mentioned, and deny those propositions which Dr. T. himself allows to be contained in some of them, will deny they prove, that no considerable time passes after men are capable of acting for themselves, as the subjects of God's law, before they are guilty of sin; because if the time were considerable, it would be great enough to deserve to be taken notice of, as an exception to such universal propositions as, in thy sight shall no man living be justified, &c. And if this be allowed, that men are so prone to sin that in fact all mankind do sin, as it were, immediately, after they come to be capable of it, or fail not to sin so soon that no considerable time passes before they run into transgression against God; it does not much alter the case as to the present argument. If the time of freedom from sin be so small as not to be worthy of notice in the fore-mentioned universal propositions of scripture, it is also so small as not to be worthy of notice in the present argument.