his life doing all that the law required to be done, and in the fufferings of his death fubmitting to all that the law threatned to inflict; in both fulfilling all righteousness, and bringing in everlafting righteoufnefs. And as Chrift, in all he thus did and fuffered, fuftained the character of the Mediator and Surety of his people, this is, what has been commonly and properly called his Mediatorial or Surety-fhip righteoufnefs; and is that alone righteoufnefs which finners have to plead, and in which they may truft for their juftification in the fight of God. This is the fum of what has been at large confidered and reprefented upon this head. I now pro

ceed,

Secondly, To fhew how we come to have an intereft in this righteoufnefs; how this righteousness, which is originally and fubjectively without us, comes to be made ours, and we to have an interest in it, fo that we may fay in the file of the text, in the Lord have I righteoufnefs. To which I anfwer in general, that this is done by Imputation. God mercifully and graciously imputes and reckons it to the foul in believing, and fo we come according to the tenor and conftitution of the new covenant to have a real and pleadable intereft in it. Not that he reckons we wrought it out in our own perfons, fo that the individual obedience and fufferings of Chrift are judged to be our obedience and fufferings, this destroys the imputation of that which is done by another for us, and is not according to the judgment of truth; nor that he takes it from Chrift, and transfufes it into us, fo that we become the feat and subject of F

it

it by way of inherency, and this righteousness an inherent quality in us, that is impoffible in the nature of things: But the meaning is, that he gracioufly accepts it for our pardon and justification, as if we had perfonally wrought it out our felves; as it was performed in our room and ftead, by a proper fubftitution of Chrift to bear the guilt and punishment of our fins, as fuch he confiders it in his law, and deals with us accordingly, and all the benefit and advantage of it by the conftitution of the new covenant redound unto us.

This is what we mean by Imputation and fuch in general is the way in which we come to have an intereft in this righteoufnefs. And in this very sense, or in a fenfe that has a near relation to it, we find the word used in fcrip. ture. It was exprefsly required under the law, that all facrifices fhould be offered up to God at the tabernacle, and no where else, Lev. xvii. 4. God had wife ends in fuch a prohibition, partly that he might create a greater veneration for public worship, and partly that he might the more effectually reftrain the people from idolatry, to which the facrificing in private might give too great occafion. Now, if any person, in contempt of fuch exprefs prohibition, fhould dare to perform this part of worship in private, or any other place, it is faid, blood shall be imputed to that man, he hath fhed blood; not that it was fuppofed, that the perfon that did this was actually guilty of murder, but he should be looked upon in the eye of the law, and under that conftitution, as though he had murdured a man, and be treated accordingly. So Shimei pleaded

with David, when he knew how juftly he had expofed himself by his bafe conduct to his refentment, Let not my Lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy fervant did perverfely. 2 Sam. xix, 19. He owns the fact, but pleads that it might not be charged upon him, fo as to bring him under the fentence he had reafon to fear.

But what comes nearer our purpose, is, what the Apoftle fays to Philemon in relation to his fervant Onefimus, who is fuppofed to have wronged him, epistle to Phil. ver. 18, 19. If he hath wronged thee, or oweth thee ought, put that to mine account (¿uoì ixxóye) I Paul have written it with my own hand I will repay it. Where the Apoftle makes himfelf chargeable with Onefimus's debt, and engages to his mafter, that whatever he had wronged him in, or might owe him, he would be refponfible for it. And it is worth obferving, that the word which the Apostle uses, when he thus charges himself on Onefimus's account, is the fame that he ufes when ftating the way and manner of our juftification *. The Pfalmift defcribes the bleffed man in this, that God doth not impute iniquity to him, Pfal. xxxii. 2. Which the Apostle more fully explains by God's

* Aoyida fignifies to reckon or account, and with a dative cale, to put to any one's account Locke on Romans, chap. vi. verfe 8. and a learned man has obferved, that this word is used ten times in that chapter; his words are, "Vox Græca refpondens imputationi non paucius quam decies reperitur in uno capite, Rom. iv. ea autem eft aoyiçoμar vel ejufdem familiæ ἐλλογῦμαι ; qua quidem ad imputationem notandam aptiorem mihi fateor minime fuccerrere." Tull. juftif. Paul. page 81.

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imputing righteoufnefs to him, Rom. iv. 6. E ven as David alfo defcribeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness with out works; imputeth a righteoufnefs for his juftification without any works of his own. And fhewing, onwards in that chapter, from the way and manner of Abraham's juftification, how this bleffing was extended to the Gentiles, he tells us, that he was the father of all them that be▪ lieve, though they be not circumcifed; that righ tecufnels might be imputed to them alfo, ver. 11, and that it was not written for his fake alone that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it fhall be imputed if we believe, ver. 23, 24. So we read, that God was in Chrift reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trefpaffes unto them, 2 Cor. v. 19. that is, not charging, nor punishing the guilt of fin upon the finner, as he might in juftice have done. And Chrift is faid to made of God unto us righteousness, 1 Cor. i. 30. which must neceffarily fignify, that the righteoufnefs of Chrift it fet down to our account, or reckoned and imputed to us for our justification, it being mentioned as a diftinct bleffing from the righteousness of fanctification, which is inherent in the Chriftian. And, once more, in the ftrong expreffion of the Apoftle, 2 Cor. v. 21. Chrift is faid, to be made fin for us, when he knew no fin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. In the fame way and manner in which Chrift was made fin for us, we are made the righteousness of God in him: the one could be only by imputation, therefore, fo muft the other. So little reafon is there to except, as fome have done, against the phrafe of being juftified by an

imputed righteoufnefs, or by the righteousness of Chrift imputed to us, when in fome places we have the expreffion itself of God's imputing righteoufnefs in fo many fyllables, in others the full fenfe and meaning of it, and fometimes thofe expreffions are used that are, if poffible, more strong and forcible.

But ftill the enquiry returns; what foundation is there for fuch imputation, and how is it confiftently with the truth of things, that that righteoufnefs, which is wholly inherent in, and wrought out by another, can by fuch imputation be made ours? Can be imputed of God for our juftification, and we be confidered as having an intereft in it? This is a queftion of principal importance in the gofpel scheme of juftification; and in answer to it I defire the following things may be confidered,

I. That this righteoufnefs was wrought out by the appointment of God, and in confequence of folemn covenant transactions from eternity between the Father and Son.

II. That Chrift in the fulnefs of time affumed our nature with this very view, that he might be in a capacity to work out this righteoufnefs.

III. That appearing in our nature to work out this righteoufnefs, he acted in all he did and fuffered not only in the common nature, but in the common name of his people; by which I mean, that he did what he did, and fuf. fered what he fuffered, not only for their benefit, but ftrictly and properly in their room and ftead.