gave a legal or external purity; fo that he who had duly, in these methods, done away his uncleanness, or atoned for his errors, was a legal member of the external church and commonwealth of Ifrael. But what is this to the taking away of guilt, and to reftoring us to the favour of God?

It has been pleaded in behalf of facrifices, and the like performances, that they are very expreffive figns of a finner's religion: he who brings a bullock to the altar, as an offering for fin, confeffes his iniquity; when he flays him, he acknowledges before God what he himself ought to fuffer; and deprecates the punishment which he owns to be juftly due to himself. Allow all this, and it muft appear to you, that these external performances are in themselves of no value, but have all their value from that true religion, and those acts of it, of which they are fignificative. I will not trouble you with inquiring upon what motives, or principles of reafon, natural religion dreffes herself out in figns and fymbols: the inquiry is not pertinent to the prefent purpose: for be this as it will, the value of the figns depends upon the true value of the things fignified, which are internal acts: and the queftion before us must be determined by confidering, Whether the internal acts of religion, natural and proper to the state of a finner, can expiate guilt, and reftore to the favour of God?

The religion of a finner is an application for pardon; and unless it can prefcribe a proper method for obtaining it, it is ufelefs and infignificant. The two attributes of God, with which this religion is chiefly concerned, are his juftice and mercy:

but if we argue, that infinite juftice must neceffarily punish all iniquity, that infinite mercy muft extend to all offences, we get into a maze, in which we may wander for ever, without finding any way to get out. I will fuppofe therefore (and it is the very truth) that juftice and mercy both meet in the rules of reafon and equity; and that the judgments of God are righteous judgments, free from all fuch blemishes as human judgments are liable to from a weak inclination to mercy, or a rigorous affectation of juftice.

In a point of mere natural religion, I will not expect the doctrines of revelation to be admitted as principles; I will not infift therefore that all men are finners and I think it will not be denied that great numbers are; fo many, that natural religion can be of little ufe, if it has no remedy for this cafe.

Now all that natural religion has to offer to God in behalf of a finner, is the forrow of his heart for what is paft, and the purpose of his mind to offend

no more.

Let us confider this cafe: Sorrow for fin, in fuch as apprehend they shall certainly and miferably fuffer for it, is a very natural paffion: but there is no virtue in it: it is not fo much as the effect of choice; for a man muft neceffarily grieve, when he is fure he has made himself miferable. It never was made part of a virtuous man's character, that he lived in fear of the gallows or the whipping-poft; and did you know any good man poffeffed with fuch fears, inftead of commending his temper, you muft needs laugh at his folly. This obfervation

muft cut off all that repentance which arifes merely from apprehenfions of evil; and much I fear, that it will, in great measure, difable natural religion from finding a remedy against guilt. The generality of mankind are far from being philofophers, or able to look back upon their iniquities with fo much calmness and judgment, as are neceffary to create a juft abhorrence of vice, and to produce a real change in the affections of the heart, and reftore the pure love of God and of virtue, where vice and luft had been long predominant. Let us allow to fuch a change as this all that can be asked in its behalf: What then? Will you conclude, that the world has no reason to look beyond natural religion for a remedy against fin? Will you call that a proper religion for the world, which is fitted only to the purposes of perhaps twenty in a country, and perhaps not to half the number? God has dealt with mankind in fuch methods, as are fuited to that degree of reason which he has generally beftowed, and to which men generally may arrive, under the cares and burdens and neceffary employments of life and there is nothing more abfurd, than to think all men capable of fuch reafonings as fome few of diftinguished abilities have arrived at: efpecially in the cafe of religion, which is, and ought to be, every man's concern, to fuppofe that the speculations of a few contemplative men can be reduced to common use and practice, is downright enthusiasm. All wife governors have fortified their laws with penalties, intending that the fear of punishment should keep the fubject from offending; but without ever imagining themselves obliged to

:

spare all fuch as fhould discover a fear of the punishment, after they had incurred it by disobedience. Now our reafon being the common rule by which we judge of the actions of all reasonable beings, and by which we ought to regulate our own; how come we to judge it reasonable for God to do that, which, in parallel circumftances, we never think reasonable to do ourselves? It may be faid, that we are not capable of judging in this case, and distinguishing between the mere fear of punishment, and the rational forrow for having offended; but God can distinguish, and therefore there is ground to fuppofe him to act otherwife than reason in our circumstances can oblige us to act. Admit this difference, and it follows, that all who are willing to reform merely through the fears and terrors of guilt are without remedy: which fhews, that the far greater number of finners are in an helpless ftate under natural religion.

But let us fee what the condition is of one feriously convinced of the iniquity of fin, and purpofing to forfake it. The cafe fuppofes him to have finned fo as to deferve punishment by all the rules of reafon and equity: the question is, Whether a fincere alteration of mind can give him fecurity of a pardon. I fuppofe it agreed by all who admit a future judgment, that misery and happiness are set before us upon fome terms: I fuppofe likewife, that it will be deemed reasonable for God to act upon fuch terms as reason itself, the interpreter of God's will in this cafe, propofes to us. Confider now; We come into this world reasonable creatures, enabled to distinguish between good and evil; we find

ourselves accountable for our behaviour to God, our maker and our judge: from these principles the confequence is certain, that obedience to the moral law is the condition of falvation: but how will you come to the confequence fo much wanted, that whoever lives in difobedience fhall be faved, if ever he grows fenfible of the folly and iniquity of fo doing? Is this condition implied in any law in the universe? Would it be a fit condition for God to propose to men at their first setting out in a state of nature? No, you will fay, it would enervate the force of all his laws. How comes it then to be abfolutely fit for God to do that, which it is abfolutely unfit he should ever promise or profefs? But we depend, you will fay, upon the equity and goodnefs of God. You do well: but where do you learn this equity? How do you find it to be equitable, that men fhould live by one rule, and be judged by another? No man will affirm, that reafon teaches us to think God and his law fatisfied by finning, and then repenting : we are not to conduct our lives by this rule, why then muft we needs be judged by this rule? especially fince it is a confeffed maxim, that the rule of life and the rule of judgment ought to be the fame. It may perhaps be thought, that the goodness of God confidered, and the weakness and frailty of man, and his inability to pay a punctual obedience in all things to the law of reafon, it is a reasonable conftruction upon the law of nature to expect pardon for our failings and omiffions, and that the very terms of our obedience carry this equitable construction with them. This to me feems the moft material