sítion to inflict eternal punishment. There was a clear and full exhibition of retributive justice, in the first law given to man. "In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely dic." This law, clothed with all the authority of God, man violated & exposed himself to the awful penalty. And in consequence of his single act of disobedience, his posterity became involved in the same state of wretchedness and guilt. What now could be done? It is easy to see, that justice might be done, without the least difficulty, for this had been done in a similar case The fallen angels had been doomed to hopeless ruin, for their first offence. But how could pardoning grace be displayed? This none of the intelligent creation could tell. The angels of light could not tell; for they had seen those, who kept not their first estate, excluded from heaven and the door of mercy forever shut against them. Man could not tell. He knew the sentence of death was passed upon him, which might be justly and immediately executed. How then could grace be displayed consistently with justice? This question God alone was able to solve. He knew that he could be just to himself, if his justice were displayed, by the sufferings of a proper substitute in the room of sinners. He knew that the sufferings of a substitute, in the room of sinners, would both display his justice and support the honor of his law and government. And as he saw that such a substitute was necessary, he appointed Christ to take the place of sinners and to suffer and die the just for the unjust. Christ was the Son of his love, the second person in the sacred Trinity and equal to himself in every divine perfection. He was the only substitute to be found in the universe, who was competent to the great work of making a complete atonement for sin.--Him therefore the Father set forth to be a propitiation, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins. And though he was once in the form of God and thought it no robbery to be equal with God; yet he made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of

men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, that he might taste death for every man. For it became him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. It was indispensably necessary

that

Christ should suffer, when he took the place of sinners to make atonement for their sins. For suffering is the penalty, which God threatens to infiict upon transgressors of his law, to display his vindictive justice. It was only by causing Christ to suffer in the room of sinners, that God could display his vindictive justice towards them. Accordingly we read, "It pleased the Lord to bruise him and to put him to grief, when he made his soul an offering for sin; that he was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities, and the chastisement of our peace was upon him.”---By inflicting such sufferings upon Christ, when he took the place of a substitute in the room of sinners, God as clearly displayed his hatred of sin and his inflexible disposition to punish it, as if he had made all mankind personally miserable forever. It is agreeable to the common opinion and practice of mankind, in war, to hold prisoners as hostages, so that in case the enemy violate the law of arms, by abusing or putting to death the captives they have taken, they may justly retaliate, by treating the hostages as the abused captives were treated. So general Washington proposed to act, when a British officer, contrary to the law of nations, killed Capt. Huddy, an American officer, after he had surrendered. He determined to put Capt. Asgill, a British officer, whom he had in his hands, to death in the room of the man, who killed Capt. Huddy. And had he actually done this, he would have displayed his just displeasure against the murderer and all who justified and protected him. Or in other words, he would have done justice to himself, by making it appear, that he meant to maintain the dignity of his character as a commander in chief and to support his au

thority in punishing all, who should dare to violate the law of arms. He would not, indeed, have done distributive justice to the murderer, nor have prevented his being put to death, if he could have been found and apprehended. Just so, God, by subjecting the Son of his love to death, in the room of sinners, could display his immutable disposition to punish sin, in the most striking and awful manner. Accordingly, when Christ actually took the place of sinners and poured out his soul unto death on the cross, his sufferings in their room as clearly displayed the vindictive justice of God to angels and men and the whole intelligent creation, as if he had made them all personally miserable forever. By subjecting Christ to sufferings and death on the cross, God has done justice to himself and made a complete atonement for sin. He, not Christ, made the atonement. He bruised him and put him to grief; his sword pierced his heart and shed his blood on the cross. So the prophet predicted. "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts; smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered." This prediction Christ applied to himself just after he had instituted a standing memorial of his death and just before his sufferings began in the garden. "Then saith Jesus unto his disciples, All ye shall be offended because of me this night for it is written, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad."--Christ knew, that it was absolutely necessary, that the Father should put him to death, in order to display his justice in the forgiveness or remission of sins. And it was on this ground solely, that he cordially submitted to die on the cross. This he expressly declared before he suffered, "Now is my soul troubled : and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name." It was the Father, that made atonement for sin, by putting Christ to death on the cross, by his own hand. By making his own Son a substitute for sinners and putting him to death in their room, he de

clared his righteousness to the whole universe, so that he can now be just and the justifier of him, which believeth in Jesus. This was the great and important end to be answered by an atonement. And in order to answer this end, Christ's atonement was absolutely

necessary.

IMPROVEMENT.

1. If the atonement of Christ was necessary entirely on God's account, that he might be just in exercising pardoning mercy to penitent and believing sinners; then it was universal and sufficient for the pardon and salvation of the non-elect, as well as for the pardon and salvation of the elect. Some believe and maintain the doctrine of a limited atonement. They suppose, that Christ died to make atonement for the elect, exclusively of the non-elect. This opinion appears to be founded on a wrong notion of the nature and design of the atonement. It was designed to maintain and display the justice of God in the remission of sins. And if it has rendered it consistent with the justice of God to exercise pardoning mercy to one sinner, it has rendered it equally consistent with his justice to exercise pardoning mercy to all sinners. The atonement of Christ has the same favorable aspect upon the non elect, as upon the elect. It opens as wide a door of mercy to the one, as to the other. It removes all natural obstacles out of the way of the salvation of either, because it renders it consistent with the justice of God, to pardon and save a part, or the whole of mankind, according to his sovereign pleasure and eternal purpose. The atonement of Christ has laid God under no obligation to save one of mankind, but left him at full liberty to save a part, or the whole human race. It is generally allowed, that God does in the gospel offer salvation to all; but how can he consistently offer salvation to all, if Christ has not made atonement for all? If Christ has not made atonement for the nonelect; it is no more consistent for God to offer salvation to the non-elect, than to offer salvation to the fal

len angels, for whom all will allow he has made no atonement. Besides, the scripture not only represents God as inviting all men to accept of pardon and salvation, through the blood of Christ; but represents him, as threatening to punish all eternally, who refuse to accept the offers of pardon in Christ's name. This looks perfectly inconsistent with the retributive justice of God, unless the atonement be universal. What can be more unjust, than to punish sinners for not accepting a salvation, which was never provided for them. And it never was provided for them, if Christ did not, by his sufferings and death, make atonement for them. But Christ commands his ministers to say to all, without exception, "He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." This, as well as many other passages of scripture, clearly proves that the atonement of Christ is not limited, but extends to all the children of men. "God so

loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life." And the apostle John says, "He is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."

2. If the atonement of Christ was necessary entirely on God's account, to satisfy his justice towards himself, in exercising pardoning mercy to the guilty; then it did not satisfy justice towards sinners themselves. Justice, as it respects them, stands in full force against them. Nothing, which Christ did or suffered, altered their characters, obligations, or deserts. His obedience did not free them from their obligation to obey the divine law, nor did his sufferings free them from their desert of suffering the penalty of the divine law. Both the precept and penalty of the divine law is founded in the nature of things; and Christ did not come to destroy these, nor could he destroy them, by obedience or sufferings. The atonement, which Christ has made, has left sinners in the same state that they were in before. Its whole efficacy respects God's character. It has completely satisfied his justice, in exercising mercy to all