SECTION II: 519 tiVe allow it, Agrippa, thus far, that true virtue and pure religion is taught in plain languageby these divine missionaries But it were for better for them to have left it in that plain lan- guage, than to have superadded so many of the sacrificial phrases, if they meant utterly to root all the doctrine of substi- tutions and atonements out of the minds and hearts of Jews and Gentiles. To me it is evident as the sun-beams, that while the New Testamentrestores 'natural religion to us in the brightest and fairest light, and lays the strongest obligations on us toperform all the duties of it; yet it still supposes' the imposibility of our salvation thereby, through our own incapacity to perform these duties perfectly ; and therefore it sets forth to our view the bles- sed sacrifice of the Soil of God, which is the only true and proper atonementfor our sins. Nor does it set this atonement in the room of our endeavours after inward religion and real vir- tue, but in the roomof all other sacrifices whatsoever, whether ,Jewish or Gentile. As for all the Jewish offerings, they were but appointed types of the sacrifice of Christ, and could never really atone for the sins of mankind against God as Ruler of the world. And the sacrifices of the Gentiles, what were they, but substitutions and offerings of beasts or men upon their altars, such as God never appointed, and thereforewould never accept, either as real atonements, or as figures of the true propitiation and atonement. This is the most evident sense of St. Paul, in Rom. viii. 1J. There is no condemnation to themwho are in Christ Jesus, that is, who trust in him as the medium of their pardon, and who walk not after theflesh, but after the Spirit, that is, who live holy lives : What the law could not do in that it was weak, and unable to justify us through the flesh, that is, through our inability to perform it, God has done this by sending Ids own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and a sacrifice for sin, as it is in the Greek, has condemned sin in the flesh, 6c. and thus made a way through his sacrifice of atonement for our justi- fication and sanctification. But lest the force and significancy of any of these scriptures should be lost for want of a true idea of what I mean by a `° pro- per and complete atonement remade for thesins of men," I would here give some general explication ofwhat I intend by the word. I donot pretend to such accuracy and exactness of definition, as might bè expected from a civilian or a divine ; but I would speak what I take to be the common sense of the thinking part of mankind in this matter, and more particularly the sense of the writers of theOld and New Testament. By atonement for sin therefore, I donot mean any such thing as shall in a proper and literal sense appease the wrath of God, the offended Governor, which is supposed to be kindled against his sinful creatures, and shall 'incline his heart to mercy, which was before determined
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