the Prophets, to the noble Army of Martyrs, to the Holy Church, militant on Earth, and triumphant in Heaven.

III. To inflame our Hearts with an ardent AffeЄtion towards thofe which live in Holiness here, and with a reverent respect for thofe Saints who are departed, and are now with GOD. As nearness of Relation requires Affection, fo there is no natural Conjunction, to be compared with that which is fpiritual; no temporal Relation with that which is Eter=nal.

IV. To direct our Charity. As there is a general Reafon calling for our Mercy and Kindness to all Men, so there is a special Reafon engaging us to do good to those who are of the Houfhold of Faith t. If+ Gal. vi. to we communicate with them in the everlafting Mercies of GOD, is it a great thing that they should partake of the Bowels of Man's Compaffion, of temporal and carnal Benefits?

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ARTICLE X.

The Forgiveness of Sins.

Do freely and fully acknowledge, and with unfpeakable Comfort embrace this as a moft neceffary and infallible Truth, that whereas every Sin is a Tranf greffion of the Law of GOD (a), upon every Trangreffion there remaineth a Guilt upon the Perfon of the Tranfgreffor, and, that Guilt is an Obligation to endure Eternal Punishment (b); fo that all Men being concluded under Sin, they were all oblig'd to fuffer the Miferies of Eternal Death; it pleafed GOD to give his Son, and his Son to give Himself, to be a Surety for this Debt, and to releafe us from these Bonds; and because without fhedding of Blood there is no Remiffion, He gave his Life a Sacrifice for Sin (c), He laid it down as a Ranfom, even his precious Blood, as a Price, by way of Compenfation and Satisfaction (d) to the Will and Justice of GOD; by which Propi tiation, GOD, who was by our Sins of fended, became reconciled (e), and being fo, took off our Obligation to Eternal Punishment,

nishment, which is the Guilt of our Sins and appointed in the Church of Christ (f), the Sacrament of Baptifm (g) for the first Remiffion, and Repentance (b) for the conftant Forgiveness of all following Tref passes (i).

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(a) It is obfervable, that tho' the Writings of the Apoftles give us few Definitions, yet we find even in them a proper Definition of Sin. Whosoever committeth Sin trangreffeth alfo the Law, faith St. John: And he proves this by an Argument from the Definition, For Sin is the trangreffion of the Law t. St. Paul affirming that the Law worketh Wrath, i. e. a Punishment from GOD, alledgeth this Reason, For where no Law is, there is no Tranfgreffion *. Every Commiffion, or Omiffion, and every corrupt Inclination to either, is a Sin, as being diffonant and repugnant to the Law of GOD.

† Joh. iii. 4. H duapríz v dvouiz, where not only the indefinite Expreffion, but likewife the Articles prefix'd both to Subject and Predicate, make a proper Debnition.

* Rom. iv. IS

(b) Altho' there were no Threats, or Penal Denunciations accompanying the Laws of GOD, yet the Tranfgreffion of them would nevertheless render the Perfon tranfgreffing worthy of, and liable to, #whatsoever Punishment can in Juftice be inflicted for the Offence. This Debt, therefore, or Obliga tion to Punishment, neceffarily refults from the na ture of Sin, as it is a breach of the Law; but it is yet more particularly represented in the Word of GOD, revealing the Wrath of GOD unto Unrighteoufnefst, and affuring us, that if we do ill, Sin lieth † Rom. i. 18, at the door *. Our bleffed Lord thus taught his Di-. * Gen. iv. 7. fciples: Whosoever is angry with his Brother without Cause, kall be liablet, or obnoxious, to the Judgment; and whofoever fall fay to his Brother, Racha, fhall be liable to the Counsil; M 2

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+ "Evo2os ésar, which we fome. times tranflate Shall be in danger, is always of a fuller and more preffing Senfe, intimating an Obligation, or binding over to Punishment.

bus

† Mat. v. 22.

but whosoever shall fay thou Fool, shall be liable to Eter nal Fire t. And again, He that shall blafpheme against the Holy Ghost, hath never Forgiveness, but is Mark iii. 28,29. liable to Eternal Damnation *.

Heb. ix. 26.

• Heb. vii. 26.

+ Ifai. liii. S.

+ Rom. iv. 25.

(c) The Scriptures fully acquaint us with this Deduction and Series of Truths: That the Death which our Lord endured, He fuffer'd for Sin; Once in the end of the World He appeared, to put away. Sin by the Sacrifice of Himfelf: That the Sins for which He fuffer'd were not his own; Chrift bath once Suffered +1 Pet. iii. 18. for Sins, the just for the unjuft ; He was holy, harmlefs, undefiled, and separate from Sinners*: That the Sins were exprefly ours; He was wounded for our Tranfgreffions; He was bruised for our Iniquities : He was delivered for our Offences: He gave Himfelf for our Sins; He died for our Sins, according to the Scriptures That He fuffer'd Death for our Sins, as a Punishment taken upon Him, to free us from the Punishment of them; GOD laid on Him the Iniquity of us all; He has born our Griefs, and carried our Sorrows; the chaftifement of our Peace was upon * Ifai. liii. 5, 6. Him, and with his Stripes we are healed : Laftly, That by his fuffering this Punishment to free us from what our Sins deferv'd, thofe Sins are forgiven us; This is my Blood (fays He,) of the New Teftament, (or Covenant,) which is fhed for many, for the remiffion Mat. xxvi. 28. of Sins * In Him we have redemption thro' his Blood, the Forgiveness of Sins, according to the riches of his Grace +.

Gal i. 4.

I Cor. xv. 3.

+ Ephef. i. 7.

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(d) Altho' GOD be faid to remit our Sins by which we were captivated, yet He is never faid to remit the Price, without which we had never been redeem'd. The Son of Man came to give his Life a ransom for many. Now a Ranfom † is properly nothing elfe but fomething of Price given by way of redemption, to buy or purchase that which is detain'd, or to procure the release of that which is inthrall'd. Ye are bought with a Price +, faith the Apoftle; and it is the Lord who bought us, with the price of his Blood; for we are not redeem'd with

corruptible things, as Silver and Gold, but with the precious Blood of Chrift t. GOD is of infinite Maje- Pet, i. 18. fty, against whom we have finn'd, and Chrift is of the fame Divinity, who gave his Life a Ranfom for Sinners. GOD hath purchased the Church with his

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own Blood*; which cannot, therefore, but be a full, A&s xx. 28. perfect and fufficient Satisfaction.

2 Cor. v. 18.

Rom. v. 10.

Coloff. i 20.

(e) GOD fo loved the World, that He gave his Only-begotten Son, to be a propitiation for our Sins, and for the Sins of the whole World. And this Pro-Joh. iii. 16: pitiation amounted to a Reconciliation, i. e. a Kind- I Joh. 1, nefs after Wrath. We are all of GOD, who hath reconcil'd us to Himself by Jefus Chrift†; and that by vertue of his Death; for when we were Enemies, we were reconciled to GOD, by the Death of his Son, making peace through the Blood of his Cross, and by Him reconciling all things unto Himself. It is a weak Exception of the Socinians, That in the Scriptures we are faid to be reconciled to GOD, but GOD is never faid to be reconciled to us: For in the Language of the Scripture, to reconcile Man to GOD, is, in our vulgar Language, to reconcile GOD to Man, that is, to caufe Him who before was angry and offended, to become gracious and propitious. Thus the Princes of the Philiftins (pake of David; Wherewith fhould be reconcile bimfelf to his Mafter +1 Sam. xxix. 4. i.e. Wherewith fhall he appeale his angry, Mafter, and regain his Favour? Thus our Saviour adviseth; If thou bring thy Gift, &c, go thy way, first be reconciled to thy Brother t; i.e. reconcile thy Brother to +Mat. v. 23, 24., thy felf, whom thou haft injured. And thus the Apoltle; Let the Wife that departeth from her Husband, remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her Hus

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band*; i.e. fubmit to her Husband, and recover his 1 Cor. vii. 11. Affection.

(f) The Doctrine of remiffion of all Sins, propounded and preached to all Men, was proper and peculiar to the Gospel.

The Law, confider'd ftrictly as fuch, promifed Life only upon abfolute and unfinning Obedience;

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the