or of the true way of life ma ATRIJ him; and all cicle whom Gont are, are brought by his pic and gas, o acquaintance with mee things; w is an act of his fovereign wil, and in nftance of his fingulking favour, de whilt he bides there things from the wi è mui prudent, he reveals them to babes, even y bigther, fays Chrift, £for få it comet posa 2.2 fight. Hence,

IV. By all men, whom God would have to be faved, we are not to understand every individual of mankind; tince it is not the will of God that all men, in this large fenfe, fhould be faved; for it is his will, that fome men should be damned, and that very justly; for their fins and tranfgreffions; ungedly men, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation; and to whom it will be faid, Go ye curfed into everlasting fire. Moreover, if it was the will of God that every individual of mankind fhould be faved, then every one would be faved; for who hath refifted his will? or can do it? Does he not do according to his will in the armies of the heavens, and among the inhabitants of the earth? Nay, does he not work all things after the counsel of his own will? and yet it is ceffalo, that all men, in this large fente, ie not f are

ved; for fome will go away into everlasting punishment, when the righteous fhall go into life eternal. Befides, the fame perfons God would have faved, he would have come to the knowledge of the truth: But this is not his will, with refpect to every individual of mankind; was it his will, he would, no doubt, give to every man the means of it 3 which he has not done, nor does he; for many hundred years he suffered all nations to walk in their own ways, and overlooked the times of their ignorance. He fhewed his word unto Jacob, his ftatutes and his judgments unto Ifrael; he hath not dealt fo with any nation: And as for his judgments they have not known them. Many to whom the gofpel does come, it is hid; fome are given up to ftrong delufions to believe a lye; and few are favingly and experimentally acquainted with the truth as it is in Jesus.

V. There are indeed ', many things urged in favour of this large fenfe of the phrase, all men. As,

1. The exhortation of the apostle, in ver. 1. that fupplications, prayers, intercef fions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men. But furely, by all men, is not meant every individual man, that has been, is, or fhall be in the world; millions of men are k Acts xiv. 16. and xvii. 30. Pfal. 1 Whitby, p. 120, 121. dead

Matt. xxv. 45. cxlvii. 19, 20.

dead and gone, for whom prayer is not 1 be made; many in hell, to whom it would be of no fervice; and many in heaven, who stand in no need of it; nor fhould we pray for such who have finned the fin unto death". Befides, giving of thanks, as well as prayers, were to be made for all men; but certainly the apostle's meaning is not that the faints fhould give thanks for wicked men, and perfecutors, and particularly for a perfecuting Nero, or for hereticks, or falfe teachers; fuch as Hymeneus and Alexander, whom he had delivered to Satan: The phrafe is therefore to be taken in a limited and reftrained fenfe, for fome only; as appears from ver. 2. for kings, and for all in authority; that is, for men of the highest, as well as of the lowest rank and quality.

2. This fenfe is contended for, from the reafon given in ver. 5. for there is one God, "who is the God of all, the common Father and Creator of all men: Now, it is faid, thus he is the God of all men in particular; and fo this argument muft fhew, he would have all men in particular to be faxes" To which may be replied; that God is the God of all men, as the God of nature at providence; but not as the Gos of your, or in a new covenant way; fo

be no diftinguiding favour or magari y

any people, that the Lord is their God; he is indeed the one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all, meaning believers, to whom the apoftle writes; the fame Lord is rich unto all'; but then it is to them, that call upon him.

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3. This is argued for from the one mediator between God and man, the man Chrift Jefus But it fhould be obferv'd, that he is not faid to be the mediator between God and all men, and much less every individual and fince he is exprefly called, the mediator of the new covenant, he can be only a mediator for those who are in that covenant; and it's plain, that he has not per

'man;

formed the feveral branches of his mediatorial office, the oblation of himself on the crofs, and his interceffion in heaven for every man; and though the nature he assumed is common to all men, was endued with the best of human affections, and subject to the common law of humanity; yet, fince it was affumed with a peculiar view to the elect of God, the feed of Abraham, they fhare all the peculiar bleffings and favours arifing from the affumption of such a na

ture.

4. It is obferved, that Chrift is faid, in ver. 6. to give himself a ransom for all which is understood of all men in particular:

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Eph. iv. 6. Rom, x. 12.

Heb. xii. 24.

;

But

But it should be obferved alfo, that fom is zoleg Cap Tavlor, a carous ranfom, fubftituted in the room and lead f all; whereby a full price was paid for all, and a plenary fatisfaction made for the fina of all; which cannot be true of every individual man; for then no man could be justly condemned and punished. The fente cf thefe words is beft understood by what Chrift himself has faid, The fan of man came not to be miniftred unto, but to minifter, and to give his life a ranjam for mary. So the Hebrew word, all, to which this anfwers, fignifies fometimes many, a multitude; and fometimes only a part of a multitude; as Kimchi has obferved. Wherefore,

VI. It is better by all men, to underkind some of all forts, as Autin did long ago, and is the fente in which the word all is to be ra ken in many places; as in Ger. vil 14 blat iv. 23, 24. Joel ii. 23. and is the meaning of it in ver. 1. and well agrees with mater of fact; fince Chrift has redeemed fame of all nations, fome out of every kindel, tongue and people; and God faves asic...i fome of every rank and quality, as dogs and peasants; of every fire and costs as rich and poor, bond and free, oferty