-rolling ourselves or our burden on him- tafting how gracious the Lord is," and the like, convey to the enlightened mind far better ideas of the nature, work, and object of juftifying faith, than the most accurate and laboured human definitions.

THE

CHA P. III.

The Ufe of Faith in Juftification.

HE defcription before given of justifying faith, fufficiently discovers its ufe in Juftification; but as different writers have expreffed this use of it with fome variety, and in feveral ways inconfiftent with each other, they must be confidered in our progrefs; and this I fhall do with all poffible brevity.

Proteftant Divines, until of late, have unanimously affirmed faith to be the inftrumental cause of our Justification. This ufe of faith was from the first oppofed by the Papists, afterwards by the Socinians, and lately by fome among ourselves.

Those who affert faith to be as the inftrumental caufe in our Juftification, do fo for two purposes. First, they defign hereby to explain those Scriptures, wherein we are faid to be juftified by faith, or through faith; by which, and other fimilar expreffions, the generality of Protestants understand an inftrumental cause. Some

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Rom. iii. 28. We are faid to be juftified, wise, by faith, abfolutely; which muft denote, either infirumentam aut formam, aut modum actionis. So dia πISEWS, ver. 22. EX TI5EWS; Rom. i. 17. Gal. iii. 8. dia rns wisews; Eph. ii. 8. Rom. iii. 22, 30. That is, fide, ex fide, per fidem; which we can express only by faith, or through faith. Propter fidem, os dia misiv, for our faith we are no where faid to be justified.

Some kind of causality they plainly intimate, of which the lowest and meaneft is that which is inftrumental.

But it may be faid, that "If faith be the inftru"mental caufe of Justification; it is either the inftru"ment of God, or of believers. That it is not the in"strument of God, is plain; because it is an act "which he requires, and which we perform; and no "act of ours can be an inftrument of his work. And

if it be our inftrument, feeing an efficiency is a"fcribed to it, then are we the efficient causes of our

own Juftification, and may be said to justify our"felves, which is derogatory to the grace of God and "the blood of Chrift."

I confess I lay not much weight on exceptions of this nature; for notwithstanding what is objected, the Scripture is exprefs-God juftifieth us by faith, and through faith, and purifieth the hearts of men by faith; wherefore faith may, in fome fenfe, be called the inftrument of God in our Juftification; both as it is the means appointed by him, whereby we shall be justified; as alfo because he beftoweth it on us, and works it in us to that end. But that which is principally intended is, that it is the inftrument of them that believe ; yet are they not faid hereon to justify themselves; for it being a pure fovereign act of God, it doth not produce the effect of Juftification, by a physical operation; nor is it morally meritorious thereof; nor doth it dif pofe the fubject to the introduction of an inherent formal caufe of Juftification; nor hath it any other refpect to the effect of Juftification, but what arifes merely from the conftitution and appointment of God.

Secondly, Those who speak of faith as the inftrumental caufe of our Juftification, intend thereby to declare the ufe of faith, as expreffed in Scripture by apprehending and receiving Chrift, or his righteoufnefs,

* Rom. iii. 30. Gal. iii. 8.

+ Acts xv. 9.

and

and remiffion of fins thereby. We are faid to "receive Chrift"-" the gift of righteousness"—" the. abundance of grace"-" the atonement"—" the promife"-" the forgiveness of fins."-There is nothingwhich concurs to our Juftification, but we receive it by faith. Now, when we receive outward things, which are given to us, we do it by our hand, which is the proper inftrument of that reception: fo, the object. of faith in our Juftification being tendered, granted, and given to us of God, in the promise of the Gofpel; and the office of faith being to receive it, or lay hold upon it, that it may be our own, I know not how it can be better expreffed than by an instrument.

Those indeed, who plead for Juftification by their own inherent righteoufuefs, and fo deny the imputation: of Christ's righteoufnefs, cannot admit of this term ; for as they do not allow that we receive the righteoufnefs of another by way of gift, they cannot allow of any inftrument whereby it fhould be received.

Some perfons affert, that " faith is the condition of our Juftification." I fhall not contend, as I faid before, about words, fo long as what is intended by them is agreed upon: and there is an obvious fenfe in which faith may be fo termed; for if no more is intended than that it is the duty which God requires of us that we may be juftified, it is a truth to which the whole Scripture beareth witnefs; but this does not forbid, that, as to its ufe in Justification, it may properly be called an inftrument.

The word condition is no where ufed in Scripture in this matter, which I argue no further, but that we have no certain ftandard to try its fignification by. Wherefore it cannot firft be introduced in what fenfe men please, and then that fenfe turned into an argument for other ends. For thus, on a supposed conceffion, that it is the condition of our Juftification, fome heighten it into a fubordinate righteoufnefs imputed to us, antecedent to the imputation of the righteouf

nefs of Chrift, whereof it is the condition. We must therefore examine the meaning of the word, and what is intended by it, before we admit of its use in this cafe.

:

The word Conditio, in the best Latin writers, is variously used*: but in common ufe among us, it fometimes fignifies the state or quality of men; and fometimes it fignifies a valuable confideration of what is to be done; and herein it is applied with great variety: fometimes the principal procuring purchafing caufe is fo expreffed-as the condition on which a man lends another an hundred pounds, is that he be repaid with intereft the condition on which a man conveys his land to another, is that he receive fo much money for it: thus a condition is a valuable confideration. Sometimes it fignifies fuch things as are added to the principal caufe, and on which its operation is fufpended; as when a man bequeaths an hundred pounds to another, on condition that he come to fuch a place to demand it. There is an endless variety as to the degree of respect to that, whereof any thing is a condition; therefore we cannot obtain a determinate fenfe of the word, without exactly knowing what is intended by thofe who ufe it.

For inftance; it is commonly faid, that "faith and new obedience are the condition of the new cove"nant;" but becaufe of the ambiguous ufe of the word, condition, we cannot certainly understand what is intended by the affertion. If it mean no more thanthat God in and by the new covenant doth indifpenfably require these things of us, in order to his own glory, and our full enjoyment of all the benefits of itit is unquestionably true; but if it be intended, that they are fuch a condition of the covenant, as to be performed by us antecedently to the participation of any grace, mercy, or privilege of it, fo that they fhould be the confideration and procuring caufes of them; or, as

* Status, Fortuna, Dignitas, Caufa, Pa&tum initum.

fome

some speak, "the reward of our faith and obedience," it is most false; and not only contrary to express testimonies of Scripture, but deftru&tive of the nature of the covenant itself. Or, if it be faid, that faith and obedience (that is, our works of righteousness), are fo the condition of the covenant, as that whatever the one is ordained of God to be the means of, as Juftification; that the other is likewife ordained to the fame end, with the fame kind of efficacy, or with the fame respect to the effect-it is contrary to the express defign of the Apostle on that subject. But if it be intended, that these things, though promised in the covenant, and wrought in us by the grace of God, are yét duties required of us, in order to the participation and enjoyment of the full end of the covenant, in glory-it is the truth that is afferted.

CHA P. IV.

Of Fuftification-the Signification of the Word in Scripture.

THE proper fenfe of the words Justification, and to

juftify, must be carefully examined, in order to obtain a clear understanding of the nature of Juftification, and to preferve our difcourfes from equivocation for fome perfons having taken these words in one fenfe, and fome in another, have appeared to deliver contrary doctrines, who have nevertheless fully agreed in their proper import.

The true and genuine fignification of thefe words is to be determined from thofe in the original languages of the Scripture, which are expounded by

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them.