that fignifies the ground of our acceptance with God, which thofe interpreters, tinctured with that scheme, which afterwards diftinguished the fect of the Pharifees, imagined was alms, and other acts of mercy. Juft as the Talmudical writers, from the fame notion of the merit of good works, term alms. See Lightfoot horæ Hebraicæ ad Matth. vi. 1. and Luke xi. 41.

His attempt to prove, that fixansbar may fignify to be faved or delivered, is ftill more feeble: for, in the paffages cited by him, that word either fignifies, being acquitted from the guilt of fin, and entitled to the divine favour, or having our character vindicated and justified before men. The firft of these is the sense of the word, in Isa. xlv. 25. Acts xiii. 39. and Rom. vi. 7. The fecond in John ii. 25. Dr. Taylor explains that paffage thus: " Was not Rahab the harlot jufti"fied, (i. e. delivered, or faved from the de"ftruction in which Jericho was involved) by "works, when fhe had received the meffengers, " and fent them out another way." I ftay not to remark, the Doctor's inconfiftency with himfelf, as he elsewhere afferts, that James, in this chapter, treats of the second juftification, or final acquittance at the day of judgment. It is enough to my present purpofe, that both interpretations are inconfiftent with truth. The evident meaning of the apoftle is, "Was not the fincerity of "Rahab the harlot's profeffed faith in the God "of Ifrael, juftified by her receiving the spies, "and fending them out another way." Turn to the immediately preceding verfe: See then "how that by works a man is justified, and not

by faith only." Juftified cannot there mean

delivered

delivered from outward calamities, for from thefe neither the faith of Chriftians, nor their good works deliver. Unless therefore, we charge the apostle, with a ftrange inaccuracy of method," and abufe of language, he would not argue, that Chriftians are juftified by works, from Rahab's being juftified by them, if juftified, as applied to her, had an idea noways analogous to what it bears as applied to Chriftians. Equally clear it is, that James does not fpeak of a fecondary juftification in Dr. Taylor's fenfe of that phrafe. For when Rahab had received the meffengers, and fent them out another way, fhe had not as yet preferved her faith and holiness to the end of her life.

It is further pleaded, that juftification may mean no more than admiffion into the church, because that admiffion is expreffed in terms full as ftrong, e. g. being faved and obtaining mercy; nay, the purpose of that admiffion is termed election. Which of these phrafes is ftrongeft, I will not determine. The weakest of them is too ftrong, to import admiffion to the church, as understood by the Doctor. But if you understand by the church, what the apoftles understood by it, I fhall be as free as any to acknowledge, that election means the divine purpose of bestowing upon men church privileges, juftification the being intitled to them, and salvation and obtaining mercy the actual enjoyment of them.

If the Jews afferted that circumcifion and obedience to the law, were neceffary for admiffion to God's church and covenant, they also afferted that they were neceffary to entitle to eternal life. It cannot therefore be inferred from their fenti

ments, that the firft is the fenfe of justification, rather than the second.

But the fifth chapter of the epiftle to the Romans is a fufficient confutation of the notion, that juftification by faith does not secure acquittance at the day of judgment. The apostle having eftablished in the preceding chapters, that grand and important doctrine of Christianity, that a man is juftified by faith without the deeds of the law, infers from it, in the fifth chapter, the happiness of the justified, particularly in verfe 2. their rejoicing in hope of future glory. And that this joy had a folid foundation, or, in other words, that the juftified could not fail of attaining eternal life, he proves from four arguments. (1.) Becaufe even tribulation, which was a curfe under the Sinai covenant, was to believers in Jefus a real bleffing, ver. 3,-5. (2.) Because that love, which God bears them, and, in confequence of which, they fhall be eternally happy, is afcertained to them, and the joyful fenfe of it fhed abroad in their hearts by the Holy Ghoft, ver. 5. at the end. (3.) If the effect of the death of Christ was, that thereby ungodly finners and enemies were juftified and reconciled: much more, through the life of Chrift, fhall thofe now reconciled, be eternally happy, ver. 6-11. The Doctor himself thus paraphrafes the latter part of yer. 10. "Much more now, that we are actu"ally turned to God, by receiving the gospel preached to us, may we affure ourselves, we fhall obtain eternal falvation, by that life and power to which our Saviour is exalted." (4.) If by Adam's first fin, not only a sentence of condemnation was paffed on his pofterity, but

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the

the penal effects thereof have actually reached them, in confequence of his fin being imputed to them, much more fhall the bleffings merited by Chrift's obedience, be conferred on all for whom he obeyed. Thus the whole of that chapter feems directly calculated, to confute Dr. Taylor's fcheme, that the justified may finally perish.

He has indeed endeavoured to give that chapter a very different turn. According to him, ver. 11-21. contains a third argument, that divine grace and juftification reach to all mankind, even uncircumcifed Gentiles as well as the Jews; which may be reduced to this fyllogifm. The confequences of Chrift's obedience extend as far as thofe of Adam's difobedience. But the confequences of Adam's difobedience extend to all mankind. Therefore, fo do the confequences of Chrift's obedience.-Need I tell my reader, what is extremely obvious, that this would be proving a thing, by taking it for granted? For, if the Jews denied, that the Gentiles were justified by faith, they equally denied that Chrift's obedience was the foundation of juftification or church privileges; imagining thofe privileges founded, either on their own merit, the merit of their forefathers, or the particular affection of God for their nation.

But the true fenfe of juftification, as importing a complete and effectual right to the pardon of fin, and to all the bleffings of grace and glory, through the blood and merits of Jefus, has been fo fully vindicated, and the diftinction of a first and fecondary juftification, fo thoroughly refuted, by a multitude of Calvinist and Lutheran divines, in their writings againft Papifts and Arminians,

and

and in their systems of divinity, that my entring upon that argument is happily fuperfeded.

SECTION VIII.

§ 1. THER

HERE are fome Scriptures, in Dr. Taylor's pompous collection of texts, which merit particular remark, as on a fuperficial view, they may appear to give confiderable countenance to his scheme.

Contentions are enumerated among the works of the flesh, Gal. v. 19, 20, 21. and yet it is faid of the Corinthians, 1 Cor. i. 11. There are contentions among you; and iii. 3. Whereas there are among you envyings and ftrifes, and divifions, are ye not carnal? And vi. 8. Ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren. (Key, chap. x. $158.)-This is no doubt meant to infinuate, that fome in the church of Corinth lived after the flesh, and were habitually unjuft. Had that been indeed the cafe, after the apoftle had folemnly declared, that the unrighteous and voluptuous are excluded from the kingdom of God, would he have added? Such were fome of you, but ye are washed, but ye are fanctified, &c. i. e. once you were among the unrighteous and voluptuous, but now ye are of another and a bet ter fpirit and behaviour. Would he not rather have told them, as truth and minifterial faithfulnefs required, fuch are fome of you? Indeed there is little difficulty in the cafe. Solomon tells us, Ecclef. vii. 20. There is not a juft man upon earth, that doeth good and finneth not. And Paul, Gal. v. 17. The flesh lufteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh and thefe

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