• "" ,.,, \ 'f . ,. 12 tJf Man~:J . Original Happim:fl. ~as fuch, as the life promifed was; and that mofi jufHy, t-o wit, temporal, fpiritua!, and eternal death . The ev'8nt is a commentary on this ; for that very 9ay he did eat there-.' ()[, he was a dead man in 1aw; but the execution was ftop· ped, bec~ufe of his pofierity then in his 'loins; and another covenant was prepared; however, that day his body got its death wounds, and became mortal. Death alfo feized his foul; he loO: his ori2inal righteovfnefs and the favour of God; witnefs the grips and throws of 9onfcience, which made him hide 'himfelf from God.' And he became liable \ to etert)al dea~h, which would have actually followed of courfe, .if a Mediator had not been pr'ovided, who found him bo9nti with the cords of death, as a m~lefaetor ready to be led t<) execution. Thus you have .a {hort defcrip– tion of the covenant, into which the Lord· brought n1an, in the fiate of l.nnocence. ' · And feemeth it a fmall-thing unto you, that earth w~s thus confederate with heaven? This could have been done to none ·but him, whom the King ~f heaven delighted to lwnour. It was an act of. grace worthy of the gracious God whofe favourite he was; for there was grace and free '_ favour in thefir£1: covenant, tho' the exceeding riches of grace, •s the apofl:le calls it, Eph. ii. 7. was referved for the fe– cond. It was certainly an act of grace, favour and admirable condefceniion·in God, to enter mto a covenant: and fuch a covenant with his own creature. Man was aot at his own, . ~ b.Yt at God's difpofal ; po..r had.he any thing to work with, . but what he had received from God. There was no pro– portion betwixt the work and the promifedrew~rd. Before that covenant, man was bound to perfect obedience, in 'Yir· tue of his natural dependence on God' : and deatp was natu- ' -rally the wagt!s of fin; whi.ch the j uftice ofGod could and _would have required, tho' there had never been any cove· , nant 'betwix,t God and man : but t;;oa was free; man could never have required eternal life as the reward ofhi~ work, if there bad not been fuch a covenant. God was free tq pa~e difpofed ofhis creature as he fav:r meet •: andifheh~~ fiood in hi\ integrity as long as the 'world ~ould ll~nd, ~~~ th~re had been no covenant promifing ete~na~ life to him up· on his obedience; God might have with.drawo his fuppotting hand at la!l, and fo made hilU creep back.iQto the womb . . . • . , . O·c • • I • ' ~
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