I 8 a Premonition. really or reputatively, to bejuflified by that Law, is none of the way of Life, whichyou think the only way. ( And I hope we (hall both meet there). 4. 39. M. S. It's clear as the light of the sun, that their fundamental diflintlion is abfurd, to make finning and fuffering equivalent to doing: becaufe he that bath born the utmofl penalty, hath clone no more towards living, than he thatneverfinned or fuffered : elfe Adam in Innocencyfhhould have been fentenced worthy of life. If a servant inflead ofhis service fled, and ;Vlore it, he meriteth not hiswages, &c. ] An. r. It's certain that you miftake andwrong us : I never put finning among the things that are equivalent to doing or meriting : Of this be- fore. 2. I doubt you noted not fuficiently that no Creature can merit commutatively as a Proprietor ofGod, as a Servant doth his wages; nor can have any thingof God but what ( inrefpe;;t offtch merit and the value of the thing) is an abfolute free Gift : free as tocommutation: And that all Gods Lawsof Life, arebut a prefcriptionof thewife order in which he will give his free benefits ; As a Father will give Lands to the Son that will behave himfelf decently and thankfully, and not to thecontemptuous Rebel : So that as to commutation no Man orAngel bath other merit, than not tocomment the contrary ( perdition) : God is never the better for our Doing. If you dream of meriting commuta- tively from a Proprietor by work for wages, I can loon tell you what we let upinftead of fuch merit : I hope you had no fuch thoughts, but want of due diftinguifhing. But as to Doing and Merit in refpedt to Paternal Vice, that which I let inftead of fulfilling the firft Law is as aforefaid, ( not finning and fufering, but) a. Chrift's Satisfailion, and the Merit ofhis compleat Rtghteoufnefs. 2. The Gift of Pardon and Life by a new conditional Covenant merited and made by him. 3 .AQual Pardonof all fin thereby. 4. A&lual Adoption. s. Ourfulfilling the Conditionof that Covenant, that there may be ours. And thus the Law was difbonoured by our Sin , but is glorified by Chriils Obedience and satisfaíiion 5 And Gofpel-juflice , but fpecially Mercy, glorified in our perfonal Obedience'to the Gofpel : without fuch Doing indeed (drift's as Principal in fulfilling theLaw in the Perlon ofa Mediator, andours as fubordinate in obeying the Gofpel,) there is no Glorification. And I think this is plain truth. But in your inftance of a Servant deferving his wages, youTeem to look atCommutative :u.ilice, when we have to doonly with governing (Paternal) yuflice : And you íhould have remembred that if the Servant donot hisWork, in order of governing yu.ilice, it is his crime : And if he havenofault, he hath nofault ofOmifion : And he that bath no sin of Omif ion bath done all his Duty, and fo deferved the Reward. As for Adam. r. In the firft inftant of his life he was bound to no prefent Duty, before he could do a moral Aft. 2. But afterward I think he merited in tantum e9. pro tempere ; and had not the Condition of the Promife been offurther extent than onealt, he had merited life : But a Reward fora years Duty is nòt merited by an hours. §. 40. M. S. There is a ivedium between jufl andunjujl: He was non juftus; He was not a :sallyjú3"í, though habitually : He had done nothing for which the Law could ju,flifte him : elfe why did he not livefor ever ? An. E. Habitual holinefs fits a Soul for Glory, where no more is due (as if one die immediately.) And fo it would have done Adam, had God tranflated him inftantly, and made him no Law of alual Duty. 2. But afterward that Adam in Innocency did that for which
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