viz. God's fending his Son to be the Saviour of the world, and giving him up to the death a facrifice, and ranfom, or price of redemption, for finners, as prifoners, flaves, and captives, are redeemed: yea, our Lord carries it fo far as to fay, that the Father loves him for this very reafon, that he laid down his life. I need not ftand to obferve how he is faid to have been "de"livered by the determinate counsel of "God, and that the cup that was put into "his hand was given him by his Father," &c.

The strongest expreffion of all is that in the text, that he redeemed, or bought up his people, from under the curfe of the law, by being made a curfe for them; which has occafioned a number of fpeculations from the different apprehenfions men have formed to themselves of the nature of the ' curfe, and fome, I might fay many of them, not very honourable, either to the Father or the Son. It appears paft controverfy, that the Redeemer put himself in the very place where the redeemed ftood, and took upon him that very curfe which they were bound under; that we are fure was death, the destruction of the life they

had

had from Adam; and that was what the Redeemer, the true head of mankind in relation to the fpiritual and eternal world, did, in their name and behalf, refign and give up on the crofs. The curfe is a relative term, founded in

the fanction of the

law but it does not follow, that the effect of it is any evidence, either of wrath or vengeance, but on fin, which he has given the fullest affurance he will abfolutely deftroy out of his world: and fo far from being an evidence of wrath to the perfon of the finner, who will enter into the death of Chrift, and homologate for himself what he did in their name, that it is the highest evidence that can be imagined of the most perfect love and kindness. The man Jefus was indeed left to himself on that occafion; and no wonder, that he who enjoyed all the pleafures a human life is capable of receiving, fhould be troubled to a great degree on the profpect of what he was to fuffer. But he knew well, that however he was left for a feafon to fight it out, and`avenge the murder of his brethren on the murderer, he knew for certain, that his heavenly Father loved him on that ve- ry account, and for what he had thus left

him to do. By his office, indeed, the fins of all who were to have the benefit of his facrifice were laid upon him; but no otherwife than the Old-Teftament fins were laid on the priest who offered, viz. that he was bound to put them away in the manner which God had appointed. So that there is not the leaft colour for the many harsh and prefumptuous things which have been boldly thrown out against God, and the Son of his love, in whom he was always well pleased, and never better than when he cried out on the cross, My "God, my God, why haft thou forfaken me?"

66

By these short hints, if pursued with any tolerable attention, it will easily appear,` how the ever-bleffed Son of God, being made a curse, and fuffering, the just for the unjust, came to be the ranfom or price by which they are bought out from under the curfe of the law. The curfe of the law is the curfe of God; and there is no efcaping from under it, but by his order and release. Thus we have on record a conftitution of pure grace, but which cannot fubfift but in Chrift; an order or decree in which Father, Son, and Spirit,

concur,

concur, whereby the eternal Word, uniting with man in the perfon of Jefus, was constituted a priest-interceffor to take upon him the fins of his people, and to put them away by the facrifice of himself; and if we believe the Pfalmift, and the Apostle after him, Heb. vii. 21. the grant of priesthood, with all the privileges belonging to it, and among others conveying the bleffing mentioned Acts iii. 26. was confirmed by a very folemn oath. This tranfaction has of late had the title given it of the covenant of redemption between the Father and the Son. I have nothing to fay against it but the difficulty of conceiving a covenant or mutual agreement on terms and conditions between the Father and Son, who are one: and indeed I cannot help looking upon it as an indecency to make them tranfact, propose, and agree, as men do when they are driving a bargain. Our Lord's view of a grant or deed of conveyance appears to be better warranted, and more becoming the majefty of the great and fole proprietor of life and bleffednefs; compare John v. 26. "As the Father hath "life in himfelf, fo hath he given to the "Son to have life in himself," with what

H

is written, John v. 21. "As the Father rai"feth up the dead, and quickeneth whom "he will, fo alfo does the Son;" which connects with what the Apoftle John fays of God's teftimony or record, viz. that he has made a grant, or deed of gift, of eternal life in favour of mankind, and that this life is in his Son. Whence it follows of course," that he who hath the Son, hath “life; and he who hath not the Son, hath 66 not life."

The proof the Apostle brings of Chrift being made a curfe, viz. his dying upon a crofs, has been thought by fome too weak to fuftain fuch a weight as he lays upon it. It is no more, fay they, but an arbitrary constitution, which has nothing in the nature of the thing to fupport it, as there is nothing in this kind of death more than another, which can bring a curfe on him who fuffers it. It is indeed an arbitrary constitution; but it was made by him who has an undoubted right to make what conftitution he pleases, and is no more accountable for making this, than for his making what we call nature to be what it is. God faid, and has left it on record, Curfed is every one that hangeth on VOL. III. Dd