ftile manner, and fitly expreffes their ill treatment of Chrift and his ministers, by falling upon them, and putting them to death; which is the refiftance here particularly defign'd, as is manifest from the following words, as your fathers did, fo do ye; which of the prophets have not your fathers perfecuted? And they have flain them which shewed before of the coming of the just one, of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers.

NUMB. XXXIV. Rom. v. 18.

Therefore, as by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even fo by the righteoufness of one, the free gift came upon all men, to juftification of life.

T

HESE words ftand as a proof of general redemption; and the fenfe given of them is ', that Chrift died for the justification of all men; and that juftification of life was procured by him for, and is offered unto, all men; it being apparent that the apoftle is comparing the condemnation which is procured by the fin of Adam, with the free gift of justification procured by the fecond Adam, as to the extent of perfons con

Whitby, p. 113, 117, 118.

cerned

fication, it was not an offer of it, but the bleffing it felf. Thefe words then are not to be understood either of Chrift's dying for juftification for any, efpecially for every individual man; fince all men, in this large fense, are not juftified, many will be righteoufly condemned, and eternally punished; and confequently his death, refpecting them, must be in vain, were this the cafe; nor of the procuring of juftification, ftill lefs of the offer of it, but of the application of it to the perfons here mention'd.

II. It is apparent, that the apoftle is here comparing the firft and the second Adam together, as heads and reprefentatives of their refpective offspring, and the effects of fin, to the condemnation of those that sprung from the one, with the grace of God to the juftification of fuch that belong to the other, and. not the number of perfons concerned in these things. His plain meaning is, that as the first Adam convey'd fin, condemnation and death, to all his pofterity; fo the fecond Adam communicates grace, righteoufness and life, to all his pofterity; and herein the latter has the preference to the former, and in which lies the abundance of grace here spoken of; that the things communicated by the one are, in their own nature, to be preferred to the other; and particularly, that the righteousness which Chrift gives to

his, not only ties from the l Adam, and cures fum al

by it, but als from al ver vie

ever, and is a

wherefore its ca

life, which the iri d

the comparison be

who are condemnet in the ins

and of the vas we ut fer

oufness of the one the wethers seng me

fame, the grace of the

be wholly, for where

exuberance, let me i erted o lity?

III. Admiring that the one scor ring the content and proced by the in of an vun the et i justification procures 19 the lessas bar, as to the extent of perions concerned in both. This extent cannot se thought to reach to more thas Ler who receive bing from them, and belong to men Moore could be condemned y me in far, than those who narang selesa i va him by stary generation The meds that fell, are not conuernet by Aus fin, from whom they did tot boring, ont for their ows petional in gates

reached not to the man Cora jeling so was he condemned by on for Dimed, Decaule he defcended not from Atsm, by or

dinary generation; fo no more can be justified by the righteousness of Chrift; nor does that reach to the juftification of more than those who are Chrift's, that belong to him, and who are in time regenerated by his Spirit and grace, and appear to be his fpiritual feed and offspring.

IV. All men, in the latter clause of this text, can never defign every individual of mankind; for if the free gift came upon all men, in this large fenfe, to juftification of life, every man would have a righteousness, be juftified, be fecure from wrath to come, have a right to eternal life, at laft be glorified, and everlaftingly faved; for fuch who are juftified by the blood of Chrift shall be faved from wrath through him; and whom God juftifies, them be alfo glorifies. Now it is certain, that all men, in the utmost latitude of this phrase, have not a justifying righteoufnefs; there is a fett of unrighteous men who shall not inherit the kingdom of God, are not, nor will they ever be juftified; but the wrath of God abides on them, and will be their everlasting portion: Could it be proved that the righteousness of Chrift is imputed by the Father, and applied by the Spirit, to the juftification of every man, and that every man will be faved, we shall

f Rom. v. 9. and viii. 30.