55 intimates, that Abraham's faith would have been imperfect, if he had refused to offer Ifaac when God commanded him to do it. Wherefore, according to James, to render works acceptable to God, they must proceed from faith; and to render faith perfect or complete, it must produce good works. In fhort, without this union, neither faith nor works feparately will avail any thing to men's justification. In this doctrine Paul agrees perfectly with James, as is evident from Gal. v. 6. vi. 15. formerly quoted p. 52. And from all thofe paffages in his epiftles, where he declares, that the unrighteous fhall not inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Cor. vi. 9. and that without holiness no man fhall fee the Lord, Heb. xii. 14.

Having thus fhewed that the two apoftles rightly understood, agree perfectly in their doctrine concerning juftification; it remains, for the farther illustration of the subject, to offer the five following remarks.

1. Notwithstanding in the account Paul hath given of Abraham's justification, Rom. iv. 3, 4. believing is opposed to working, it does not follow that faith is not a work. Paul himself hath called faith a work, 1 Theff. i. 3.-And Christ hath termed believing on him whom God hath fent, the work which God prescribed to the Jews, John vi. 28, 29. This I think fheweth, that the working, to which believing is oppofed by Paul, does not mean the performing of good works from a principle of faith, but the perfect performance of all the works which the law of God enjoins. And the oppofition which is stated between believing and working, implieth nothing more but that believing is not a perfect obedience to the law of God; and that it hath not the influence to procure a meritorious juftification, which a perfect obedience would have, if it were poffible for us to attain to it.

2. Many theologians overlooking the doctrine of James concerning juftification, and attending only to the found, without confidering the sense, of what Paul hath written on the subject; and at the fame time forgetting that faith is itself the greatest of all good works, have afcribed to faith some efficacy in justification, which good works have not. This efficacy they reprefent, by calling faith the hand which layeth hold on the righteousness of Christ, so as to make it the righteousness of the believer, and to render him perfectly righteous in the fight of God. But a doc

trine of this kind, which implies an impoffibility, and from which many dangerous confequences have been deduced by the Antinomians, ought not to be received; more especially as it hath no foundation in fcripture. For none of the inspired writers hath called faith, a hand which layeth hold on the righteoufnefs of Chrift. They do not even fay, that Chrift's righteoufnefs is counted, or imputed to believers; far lefs that they are made perfectly righteous thereby; which is an impoffibility, because no person can be perfectly righteous in the fight of God, but one who hath never finned. See Rom. iv. 3. note 2.-What Moses hath written concerning the justification of Abraham, is, that his believing in the Lord, and not the righteousness of Christ, was counted to him for righteousness. In like manner, what Paul hath taught, is, that the faith of believers is counted to them for righteousness through Jesus Christ; that is, on account of what Christ hath done to procure that bleffing for them. The efficacy, therefore, of faith, doth not depend on its laying hold on the righteousness of Chrift, nor on its poffeffing any inherent merit, but on the good pleasure of God, who from mere favour, counts the believer's faith to him for righteoufnefs, having appointed it as the condition or means of his juflification. But the fame kind of efficacy is afcribed likewise to good works. And furely it belongeth to God, to appoint what conditions or means of juftification feemeth to him good. Now that he hath actually made faith and works, not separately, but jointly, the condition of justification, both Paul and James have declared: the one by affuring us, that nothing availeth to men's juftification, but faith working by love; the other by telling us, that Abraham's faith `co-operated with the work of lifting up Ifaac on the altar, in procuring him the promise of the bleffing of juftification. However, neither the one apostle nor the other meant, that juftification is merited by faith or works, either feparately or jointly. The meritorious cause of men's justification, is Chrift's obedience to death, Gal. iii. 13. Chrift hath bought us off from the curfe of the law, being made a curfe for us, that the bleffing of Abraham might come on the nations through Jefus Chrift: As the reward of his obedience to death, Chrift hath procured for mankind the gracious new covenant, in which God, from pure favour, hath promised to bestow pardon and eternal life on all, who by faith and holinefs

nefs are capable of enjoying these great benefits. In one word, By grace we are faved through faith; but it is a faith which worketh by love.

3. By conftituting Abraham the father of all believers, Gen. xvii. 5. God made his juftification, the pattern of the justification of believers of all nations, and in all ages of the world; and in him bath fhewed, what the difpofitions and actions are, which he requireth in those on whom he will bestow juftification as a free gift. This both Paul and James have taught us, by founding their doctrine concerning juftification, on the justification of Abraham. It is therefore of importance, in the prefent queftion, to attend to the character and behaviour of this chief of believers, as defcribed by Mofes.-Abraham was a native of Chaldea. But being commanded by God to leave his country and kindred, and to go into a land which he would shew him, Abraham obeyed, not knowing whither he was to go. When he arrived in Canaan, God promised to give that country to him and to his feed; and to make his feed as numerous as the stars of the heaven. This promife Abraham believed, notwithstanding he had all his life gone childlefs. Nay, he continued to believe it, till the long promised fon, by whom his feed was to become as the duft of the earth, was brought forth by Sarah, in the ninetieth year of her age, and when Abraham was an hundred years old. But mark what happened! When this only fon was grown, God commanded Abraham to offer him up on an altar as a burnt-offering. This difficult command he obeyed, notwithstanding all the promifes which God had made to him and to his feed, were limited to this only fon: reafoning with himself, that God was able to raise him even from the dead, after he was burnt to ashes on the altar; and believing that he would actually raise him.-Farther, though the poffeffion of Canaan was promised to him perfonally, Acts vii. 5. God gave him none inheritance in it, no not fo much as to fet his foot on for the cave and field of Macphelah, Abraham bought with his money from Ephron the Hittite. Yet when he was dying, he died in the firm perfuafion that God would raise him from the dead, to poffefs the country which he had promised to him. What an admirable example of faith and obedience doth the history of this great believer prefent to our view! An example which fhews, that

;

his

his faith and obedience did not confist in a single act exerted on a particular occafion, but extended to all God's declarations and commands without exception, from the time he left Chaldea, to the end of his life. Wherefore, having on every occafion believed in the Lord, and obeyed his commands, he obtained the promise of juftification, confirmed by the oath of God, after he had offered up his only fon; and was made the father of all believers, to teach us what our difpofitions and actions must be, if we expect to be juftified as Abraham was; and to make us fenfible, that we are not his children and heirs of the promises made to him and to his feed, unless, as our Lord expreffeth it, John viii. 39. We do the works of Abraham,

4. It was mentioned in the preceding Effay, page 3, That God faid concerning Abraham, Gen. xviii. 19. I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they fhall keep the way of the Lord, to do juftice and judgment, that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him. And it was obferved, that this was a declaration, not only to Abraham himself, but to Abraham's children, that they were to receive the bleffings promifed in the covenant, and particularly the bleffing of faith counted to them for righteousness, only on condition of their keeping the way of the Lord, and their doing juftice and judgment. These things merit the reader's notice in this place; because Abraham's juftification being the pattern of our justification, if he was not to have the things promised to him, unless he kept the way of the Lord, and did juftice and judgment, we cannot expect pardon and falvation, unless we persevere in faith and holinefs to the end of our lives, as Abraham did.

5. The defenders of juftification by faith alone, ought to confider, that the doctrines of religion both natural and revealed, may be really believed without having any influence on a man's temper and behaviour. So faith James, chap. ii. 18. One may fay, Thou haft faith, and I have works; fhew me thy faith without thy works, and I will fhew thee my faith by my works. 19. Thou believeft that there is one God; Thou doft well: Even the devils believe this, and tremble. Wherefore, the belief of the doctrines of the gospel, however firm it may be, and however zealously contended for, even to the giving of one's body to be burned,

will have no influence in any man's justification, if it doth not produce good works. 1 Cor. xiii. 3. A faith of this kind is what James calls a dead faith. Like the body without the fpirit, it hath no vital operation. In fhort it is not the faith which at the judgment will be counted to the believer for righteousness; but rather will aggravate his wickednefs, and increase his pu

nishment.

SECT. III. Of the Juftification of the Heathens.

To the doctrine of juftification by faith, it hath been objected by the oppofers of revelation, that it excludes all from the pollibility of falvation, who have not the benefit of revelation. This objection, if it were well founded, would, I acknowledge, bring difcredit on the doctrine of juftification by faith, and even on the gospel itself; because it would represent God as requiring from finners a condition of falvation, which he himself hath put it out of their power to attain.

But the objection is of no value, as it proceeds on a palpable mistake; namely, that the faith neceffary to juftification confifts in the belief of doctrines knowable only by an external revelation. For whether we confider the fcripture account of faith, or whether we examine the particular acts of faith, by which individuals are faid in fcripture to have been juftified, we shall find, that faith doth not confift fo much in the belief of any revealed moral or religious truth, as in mens attaching themselves fincerely to God, by a ftrong inclination to know and to do his will; and in making a right use of their reason in searching after the will of God, as manifefted by the light of nature; or if they are favoured with an external revelation, in implicitly directing their religious fentiments and conduct by that revelation, fo far as they are capable of understanding it; and in relying with an entire confidence on all the promises of God. Properly fpeaking, therefore, faith lieth in the heart more than in the head. So the apostle Paul teacheth, Rom. x. 10. With the heart we believe unto righteousness; We believe so as to have righteousnefs counted to us.-The fame apoftle reprefents faith to confift in the ftrength of one's perfuafion of the religious truths