14+ An 6xpofition of the - CH A p.II. upon the account of his Purity, or Holinefs. That is fuch, as he cannot pats by tan, or letit go unpunifhed. The Pfalmifl alfo expreffeth the nature ofGod to the fame purpofe, Pfal. 5.4, 5, 6. Thouart not a Godthat bath pleafure in wickedneJf, neitherfball evil dwell with thee ; the foolifh Jhall not (land in thy fight, thou hatejf all the workers of iniquity, thou Jhalt deffroy them that Wreak leafing, the Lord will abhor the bloody and de- ceitful man. What is the formal Reafon and Caute of all thefe things, that he bates, abhors,and will defiroy fin andfirmer ? It is becaufe he is fach a God; Thou art not aGod to dootherwife; a Godof fuch Purity, GuthHolinefs; and thould he pals by fin without the Punithment of it, he would not be flub a God as he is. Without eeafrngto be fsch aGod, fb infinitely holy andpure, this cannotbe : The foolijh, and all Workers of Iniquity mutt be deftroyed, becaufe he is fuch a God. And in that pro- clamation of his name, wherein he declared many bleffed Eternal Properties of his Nature, headds this among the cell; that hewill byno means clear the guilty, Exod.34.7. This his Nature, this his Eternal Holinefs requireth, that the guilty be by no means cleared. So J'ojhua infiruóts thepeople in the Nature of this Horfs ofGod, Chap. 24.19. Ye cannot fume the Lord, for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God, he.will not forgive your tranfgreffions, nor your fns. That is, ifyou continue in your fins, if there be not away to free you from them, it is invain for you to have any thing todo with this God; for he is Holy and Jealous,and will therefore certainly detitoy you for your iniquities. Nowif fuch be the nature ofGod, that with refpedt thereunto, He cannot but punith fin in whomfoever it befound, then the fxferrng of every sinner, in his ownperfon, or by his fumy, dothnot depend on a meet free Voluntary Con(litution, no is rankedmeetly into the VeracityofGod,io his commination or threaming, but is an- tecedently unto them indiftenfibly necefrary, unlefs we would have the Nature of Gód changed, that finners may be freed. Whereas therefore the Lord Christ is affigued theCaptain of ourSalvation, and hath undertaken the work of bringing finners unto Glory, it was meet with refpe&t unto the Holineflof God, that he fhouldundergo the punithment due unto their fin. And thus the necef icy of the fufferingsand fatisfatdion ofChrist, is refolved into the Holinefs andNature ofGod ; He being flub a God as he is, it could not otherwife be. SecondlyThe Came is manifest from that whereunto the panijhment of in is of tgned; which isnot any free AUof the Will ofGod, but an Effenrial property of hisnature; namely, his _ujtice or Righteoufnefs. What God Both becaufe he is righteous, isneceffary to be done. And ifit bejuji withGod in refpeet of his Effential Jultice topunifbfin,itwould be unjujtnot to do it : for to condemn the innocent, and to acquit theguilty is equally unjutt. Juttice is an eternal and unalterable Rule,and what isdone according unto it, is neceffary s it may not otherwife be, and Jultice not beim- peached. That which is tobe done with refpeét toJultice, muff be done; or he that is to do it, is unjuJl. Thus it is laid to bea righteous thing with God to render tribulation untofinners, a Theff: r. 6. Becaufe he is Righteous, andfrom his Righteoufneflor Juffice; So that the contrarywould be unjujf, not anfwer his Righteoufnefs. And it is the judgement ofGod, that they who commitfin, are worthy of death, Rom. 1.3z. Namely, it is that which his Juliet requireth fhould befo ; that is, the judgement ofGod. Not only dothhe render deathunto finners, becaufe he hash threatned fo to do, but be- caufe his Jultice neceffarily requireth that fo he should do. So the Apoftle farther ex- plains himfelf, Chap. z. 5, 6;7, 8,9. Where he calls the tall day, the day of theRevela- tion of the righteous JudgementofGod; wherein by rendring tribulation unto inners, he will manifettwhat his Righteoufnefs requires. And what that requires cannot otherwifebe ; God being naturally, neceffarily, ofntially Righteous. And this Property of Gods nature requiring that Punijhmenr beinllidted on fin and (inners is often in Scripture called his Anger and Wrath. For although fometimes theEjfis ofAnger and Wrath in Punifhment it felt, bedenoted by thofe expreflions, yet of alto they . denote the Habitude of the Nature ofGod in his Juftice towards fin. Foringer in it felf being aPaffion and Perturbation ofmind, includingchange and Weaknefs, can- not properly be afcribed untoGod ; and therefore when it is fpoken of, as that which is inhim, and not of the Effedts which he works on others,it can intendnothing but his Vindiüive Jufice, that property of his nature, which neeee larily enclines himunto the punifhment of fin. Thus it is faid, that his Wrathor Anger H revealedfrom Hea- ven again!i all ungodlinefl, Rom. t. 18. That is, he difcovers in his judgements what is his Ju(ìiceagainfl fin. And thus when hecomes todeal with Chritl himfelf, tomake him a propitiation for us ; he is laid to have let him forth, de t`e11440 vñt Wouttoowos, Rom.
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