pears, cared for nothing but a covering for their carcaffes: So was the fear of GOD extirpated, and their glory turned to fhame. But

11. When the Almighty (who knew what they had done) came to arrest and convict the offenders, on hearing his voice, their fears ftarted up and hurried them to hide among the trees of the garden; they fled as from the face of a foe, he was terrible to them, they could not ftand in his prefence. And as it was neceffary that their conduct should pass the fcrutiny of a formal proceedure, to induce them to acknowledge their crime, and to exhibit the justice of the sentence to be paffed upon them; fo the LORD GOD called to Adam, and faid, "Where art thou*?" When after a particular enquiry, being found guilty, every delinquent was fentenced according to the part he bore in the difobedience. So, in a fhort, but, to us, an uncertain time, they paffed through a different checquered scene of things: Their original fear being fucceeded with none, with fenflefs ftupidity; and ftupidity with tormenting terrors.

12. And as fear was rendered irreligious and tormenting to its poffeffor, fo Love, the fupreme affection of the heart, was turned to hatred. For, as holiness was the life of the foul, and the ground of their religious affections; and as its continuance depended on obedience to the poffitive precept, and disobedience being to induce death, or the lofs of holinefs, &c. fo difobeying they died, were deprived of the ground of their original affections; a neceffary effect of which was, love to GOD and goodness was loft, had no

*Gen. iii. 9.

more

more place in their heart. And as a spiritual nature (which is the substance of the foul) remained, which could not fubfift without a quality, so it now neceffarily poffeffed the reverfe of what it had forfeited; which, by the rule of contraries was wholly finful, the genuine immoral image of the devil, and produced hatred to GOD and all that is morally good. There could be no medium. It was then as natural to hate GOD and goodness, as it was to love them while original purity was the refident reigning difpofition of the foul. The quality of the foul in both cafes determined their affections. Love to GOD in the created state was no cafual thing, it did not depend on 'choice, but was matter of natural neceffity, it being as natural for a holy foul to love GOD, as for the Almighty to love his own likenefs. There was the fame neceffity in the contrary cafe. As a finful difpofition was become the ground of their affections, it as neceffarily hated him, as the once holy loving angels were afterwards finful haters of him. Hence they regarded him not, but ran from his prefence, and owned him no more as their father and friend.

13. Thus love, the image of the Deity and cement of immortal fouls, the facred and focial tie, was confum'd; which feparated their affections from God, and rendered them obnoxious to his difpleafure. Wherefore, as GOD fpared not the angels who finned, but caft them into hell; fo the finners on earth were banished paradife, to wander over earth's wide maze, curfed for their fake, and rendered perplexing to its poffeffors.

14. And now, that their love was extinct, Joy had

no

no place. The crown was fallen from their head; the glorious favour and image of GOD were departed; fo being aliens from GoD, dark, cold, and fpiritlefs within, all cause and power of rejoicing were far removed from them. Yea GoD, the glorious GOD, having quitted his habitation, creation became a chaos; disolation and diftrefs enfued. Impurity, implacability, guilt and fhame, the circumventers and fucceeders of primitive perfection and beauty, were no reafons of religious rejoicing. Rather, these were the matter of their mifery, the curfe that was come upon them: By thefe, they were rendered wretched, helpless, and diftreffed. Now forrow fat brooding in the midnight foul, where not one ray of light celeftial fhining, darkness, grofs darkness reigned. Songs of rejoicing, harmony, and unutterable fweetnefs, as when the morning ftars fang together, had here no place. The voice of the turtle was not heard in this land; joy ceafed. A fad reverfe! A rueful change! For peace and ferenity of foul, remorfe, irreligious remorfe hung heavy on the heart. The days of rejoicing were few, the golden age was prefently gone, and the iron age, the feafon of forrow, early fucceeded. What pity that beings formed fo free, fhould fo foon be intangled in bondage and mifery! An omen of a world of woes! A fpecimen of that perplexity which is the lot of all who fee the fun. O how unlike the ftate from which they fell! Partners then with thofe in blifs, unrivaled by angels, for their joys were one. But the fentence to condemnation ftripped them of all their plumes, and, if a precious promife had not mitigated their mifery, affwaged their grief, and rendered poffible a retrieve of their never to be fufficiently lamented lofs, had funk them

into eternal despair. in time; for now

A lofs which did not terminate

15. Hope, the fpring and end of action, and fupport of finking fpirits, alfo expired. Paradife was loft without hope of recovery. Driven out, the garden of Eden, once their delightful habitation, and whose fruit was fweet to their tafte, was now become a garden fealed. They found no entrance, and a flaming fword and cherubim were placed to keep the way of the tree of life. Yea Heaven, the celestial paradife, likewife became a forfeiture; immaculate purity being depraved, their title to glory fell with it. Humility, meeknefs, and refignation to GOD, having taken their flight, their fouls wanted wings to mount to the fkies. And as an infeparable effect of the departure of the divine quality, without infufion of foreign evil, the image of Satan was fully formed within them, in pride, anger, felf-will, and every other fatanical temper and affection. So being deprived of paradife, and difqualified for heaven, all hope refulting from their created condition difappeared, the very idea of it was obliterated. Thus the understanding, will, and affections, the whole moral man was marr'd, was rendered irreligious and the reverfe of God. That holinefs which made them like GoD, and which was the ground of all their practical good, was intirely defaced; and that was death to their divineft part.

16. And as death paffed upon the foul in refpect of the quality of it, fo alfo in regard of its fpirituallity: For as the fpiritual nature of the foul rendered it impoffible to lofe its being, eitheir by natural decay, or by cafualty; and as by the forfeiture of original righteousness

F

righteoufnefs it became finful in its difpofition, fo confequently offenfive to Go D, and obnoxious to his wrath. Hence it neceffarily incurred and came under a fentence fimilar to its immortal nature, of punishment perpetual and eternal; which is death in its most terrible form, far exceeding the lofs of holiness which it firft fuftained by difobedience. That was deprivation of good only, with the poffeffion and punishment of contrary qualities; but this the infliction of real pofitive evil, of evil inconceivable and unspeakable; the moft terrible things in nature being frequently used to fignify it unto us; as fire, fire and brimftone, a bottomlefs pit, perpetual darknefs, &c. all which fufficiently demonstrate the miferable condition of fouls feparated from GoD and the light of heaven.

17. 'Tis true, to mitigate their mifery, the Almighty might have fufpended his wrath: or, after inflicting it for a feafon, have withdrawn it, and left them to fuffer by the fin of their nature only, by turbulent tempers, vile affections, and infatiable defires. Or he could have taken away that which he gave, (for he who can create can destroy) he might have reduced the foul to a fenflefs ftupidity, or by annihilation to nothing. But as in that cafe, it could not have remained the fubject of moral death, (for if the substance had been deftroyed, fo muft the quality alfo) fo there could have been no deliverance from fin in this life, nor punishment for it in the next. Moreover, if annihilation had been immediately inflicted, if GoD had utterly deftroyed them as foon as they finned, it had rendered a new race of reasonable and religious creatures neceffary, or the earth had been left without a fubordinate lord.