fon against the Deity; in Special, by the AntiSacramental Act of Eating of a Prohibited Fruit oppofite in It's Nature and Effects to the Tree of Life; as alfo by Attributing to that Fruit a Virtue or Power which is in God alone, even to Communicate, or Give Wisdom: And every Man fince Born into the World, is not only Born with the Taint of that Crime; but may Himself in fome Kind and to fome Degree alfo Commit the Same, even by Afcribing the Proper Attributes of the Deity, to fome other Being or Thing; As, heretofore, to the Hoft of the Heavens and their Idols; Now, to Angels and Saints; or to Ourselves, to our own Reafon, Virtue, Repentance, &c. And,

In this Cafe, it will not be a little partial Reformation in Refpect of the Purfuit of That they call a General Happiness, in the Exercise of Social Offices and Duties One towards Another, that can set Men Right when gone Wrong (fuch Offices being indeed all Foreign to the Affair in Hand) But, as they have committed Crimes of another Nature, Crimes properly and immediately against the Deity, as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, as their Creator, Redeemer, and Father; fo muft fome Satisfaction be made to His Infinite and Eternal Justice for the Affront offered in each Inftance of Treason and Rebellion against His Infinite Majefty and Goodness, before they can be Reconciled and fet Right with Him. For this Reason, so many Threatnings in Holy Scripture are Denounc'd against Rebels and Revolters; and Rebellion is faid to be as the Sin of Witchcraft, and Stub

born

bornness as Iniquity and Idolatry. 1 Sam. 15.23. And, Walking after the Imaginations of Men's own Hearts against the Lord, that is, Following their own Conceits without, or against His Revealed Word, has particular Marks of Guilt fet upon it. Indeed, no Crime is fo Heinous as that of Committing, or Imagining Spiritual Treafon against the Almighty Lord and King: And therefore has He much more to do with us than purely as a great Father of a Family in fome of our Modern States, to keep Order amongst us as Brethren; to fee that we do no Violence or Wrong by one another, to Cross that fuppofed general End of Being, a General, Moral, and Social, Happiness, Öne amongst Another. If the Paternal Power among us Men be Circumfcrib'd within thefe narrow Limits (which yet I think It is not) This proves nothing what is, or must be, that Power in God. But,

Secondly, Suppofing, (as these Men do Suppofe) Social Duties to be the Chief or Only Points, with Refpect of which Men are to give Account of their Conduct to Almighty God; How will it thence follow, that (When or Howfoever Men fhall have Tranfgreffed as to these Points) they muft nevertheless be, after all, the proper Objects of God's Pardon and Forgivenefs on their bare Undoing, as far as in them lies, by Repentance, what they have done Wrong. It is certain Revelation gives no Countenance to any fuch Doctrine, and the common Sense of Mankind alfo is against it: And, therefore, Howfoeyer fome Men may Utter fuch Con

F

ceits

ceits as This in Sport, None in their Wits can Seriously Believe them. For, If That which is Fuftice at Human Tribunals and according to all the Notions Men have of Justice, do hold the leaft Shadow of Refemblance to That which, in the Nature of Things, is Justice at the Tribunal of the Almighty; there are many Enormities and Crimes committed also against the Moral Law, fo flagitious and outragious, fo complicated and perplext, as that no Repentance nor Any Undoing as far as in a Man lies, can in Reality, to any Degree, Vndo them; And, therefore, neither can any fuch Repentances and Undoings be admitted, as good Pleas in Juftification of Perfons Guilty of fuch Crimes, before God or Man: The Reafon is, because no Part of Amends is hereby made by the Injurious to the Injured Parties. Without which God (who as the Common Father of His Creatures is to fee Justice exactly Distributed among Them) cannot admit them when Guilty, as aforefaid, to Pardon and Forgiveness; But, To do Justice allo to the Injured Parties, (in all Cafes where no Amends, as aforefaid, can otherwise be made) He muft inflict Condign Punishment on the Injurious; otherwise, He fhould, in this Cafe, Act, (as Adversaries love to Talk) Partially, Nay, He fhould fhew more Favour even to His Worft Children than to His Beft, and fo give Encouragement to the moft defperate and abandon'd Criminals. Neither is This all, But,

There are fome Crimes of This Clafs which, in Strict Juftice, not only do demand fome Punish

nishment; but which must also be Punished in another World, there being no adequate Punifkment for them in this. And this Reafon lies fo plain and open, that It seems to have been almoft Sufficient of Itfelf to Implant in the Breasts of Mankind, a Perfwafion of the Neceffity of a Future State of Rewards and Punifhments, wherein Injuries for which there can be no Retribution Here, may be brought to a juft Account. So far is it from being True that, Men by Repenting, do in the Sight of God, undo every Wrong they have done; that contrariwife, because there are Crimes which by no Repentance merely can be Undone at all; Therefore God has appointed a Day in which He will Judge and Punish fuch Crimes as They deferve.

So that, (taking the Cafe as thefe Men themfelves have Stated it) there is no Crime, no Injury, of any Kind or Degree, (which the Perpetrators have not Strictly and Properly Undone by an Exactness of Retribution and Compenfation) but God, confidered merely as the Common Father of All, muft Punish it in the Other World, as aforefaid; I mean thus It must neceffarily be, if there were not fome other Law or Reafon of Compenfation and Pardon than that of Simple Repenting and Undoing imagined by thefe Men: And, fo, Few or None that ever have done Wrong, could be Accepted with God at all. But, Thanks be to God, who in Mercy to Mankind, hath delivered us from the terrible Confequences of these Men's vain Thoughts on this profound

F 2

Subject;

Subject; having found a Way Truly and Properly First to Campenfate Injuries and Wrongs amongst us, and Then to Accept our Repentance on the Score of that Compenfation: His Son, the Common Benefactor of All, can place each Trefpafs to the Account of His own Satisfaction; and Pardon Each upon Terms given to All for their common Benefit, even the Terms of Repentance with Faith in His Satif. faction. And, befides This, there is no Other Ballance in the World to Human Actions. The Heathen Socrates will Affirm the Juftnefs of the above Conclufion, viz. That Crimes, by which Injuries and Wrongs have been done to Others, are not to be remitted either in this World or the next (fuppofing there were no other Method to Compenfate for Wrongs) without Satisfaction made to the Injured Parties. For thus, in Plato's Phedon, He divides His Criminals into Curables and Incurables. The Incurables He throws into Tartarus, to be kept Prisoners in inconceivable Torments for ever. The Curables (after they have been Repenting all their Life-Time, but yet have not Satisfied the Parties they have Injured) He plunges into Tartarus likewife; From whence, after a Years Abode, they are caft into Cocytus, where they cry out Bitterly, and Invoke and Conjure those whom they have Killed or offered Violence to, to Pardon, and Affift them, that may pafs the Acherufian Lake; to which if the others Confent, they are delivered from their Miferies: If not, they are caft again into Tar tarus, and from thence back into Cocytus, as

before;