them. The Hebrew word (px), is rendered, by the Seventy, δικαιον αποφαίνω, Job xxvii. 5. δίκαιος αποφαινομαι, chap. xiii. 18. Sixatov xpw, Prov. xvii. 15. to declare one righteous; to appear righteous; to judge any one righteous. And the fenfe may be taken from any one of them, as chap. xiii. 18. Behold now, I have ordered my caufe; I know that I shall be justified”—the ordering of his caufe, is his preparation for a fentence of abfolution or condemnation; and hereon his confidence was, that he should be justified; that is, abfolved, acquitted, pronounced righteous. This word, whether expreffing the act of God towards men, or of men towards God, or of men among themselves, is always used in a forenfic fenfe; and never denotes a phyfical operation, or transfufion. Thus, in 2 Sam. xv. 4. "If any man hath a fuit, or cause, let him come to me, and I will do him justice"—"npasni I will justify him, judge in his cause, and pronounce for him. So in Deut. xxv. 1. "If there be a controversy among men, and they come to judgment, that the they Jball והצדיקו את הצדיק,judges may judge them justify The Latin derivation and compofition of the word Juftificatio, would seem to denote an internal change from inherent unrighteoufnefs to righteousness likewise inherent; for fuch is the fignification of the words of the fame compofition. So Sanctification, Mortification, Vivification, &c. denote an internal work. Hence, in the whole Roman School, Juftification is taken for Juftifaction, or the making a man inherently righteous, by the infufion of a principle of grace. And this apparent fenfe of the word poffibly deceived fome of the andents, as Austin particularly, to declare the doctrine of gratuitous fanctification, under the name of Juftification; but they never thought of a Juftification before God in that manner. Indeed, Juftificatio, and Justifico, do not properly belong to the Latin tongue; nor can any good author be produced who ever ufed those words for making a perfon inherently righteous, who was not fo before; and as they are derived from Jus and Justum, they must respect an act of Jurisdiction, rather than a phyfical operation. Juftificari is fuftus cenceri, pro jufto haberi ; to be esteemed, accounted, er adjudged righteous. justify the righteous ;" pronounce fentence on his fide; to - and they ball con והרשיעו את הרשע which is oppofed demn the wicked-make him wicked, as the word fignifies; that is, declare him fo; whereby he becomes fo judicially, as the other is made righteous by acquittal. The fame Antithefis occurs, Prov. xvii. 15. "He that juftifieth the מצדיק רשע ומרשיע צריק wicked, and condemneth the righteous"-not, he that maketh the wicked inherently righteous, but he that without reafon acquits him in judgment, or declares him to be righteous, " is an abomination to the Lord *." The Greek word Amasow, is ufed in the New Teftament to the same purpose, and that alone; nor is it ufed in any good author to fignify the making a man righteous, or producing internal righteousness in him, but either to abfolve and acquit, to judge, efteem, and pronounce righteous; or, on the contrary, to condemn †. That this is the true fenfe of the word, will appear from the following paffages: Matt. xi. 19. " Wisdom is juftified of her children”—not made juft, but approved and declared fo to be. So Matt. xii. 37. "By thy words fhalt thou be juftified; not made juft by them, but judged according to them; as appears by the antithefts and by thy words fhalt thou be condemned." Again, Luke vii. 29. “ They justified God;" not surely by making him righteous in himself, but by avowing and To the fame purpose is the word used, Ifa. v, 23. chap. 1. 8. Kings, viii. 31, 32. 2 Chron. vi. 22, 23. Pfal. lxxxii. 3. Exod. xxiii. 7. Job. xxvii. 5. Ifa. liii. 11. So Suidas fays-It hath two fignifications; "to punish, and to "account righteous;" which he confirms by inftances from Herodotus, Appianus, and Jofephus. They never thought of any fenfe of the word but what is forenfic and in our language, "to be juftified," was used formerly for "to be judged and fentenced," as it still is among the Scots. One of the articles of peace, at the furrender of Leith, the days of Edward VI. was, That if any one com*mitted a crime, he should be justified by the law, upon his trial.” and declaring his righteoufnefs. Many other Scriptures are referred to in the notes; and, in fact, it is not in many places of Scripture, as Bellarmine grants, that the words have this fignification; but in all places where they are used, they are capable of no other than a forenfic sense, especially where mention is made of Juftification before God. And it is obfervable, that all things concerning Juftification are propofed in Scripture under a juridical fcheme, or forenfic trial and fentence. As, (1.) A JUDGMENT is fuppofed in it, concerning which the Pfalmist prays that it may not proceed on the terms of the law +. (2.) The JUDGE is God himselft. (3.) The TRIBUNAL, on which God fits in judgment, is " the Throne of Grace." (4.) A GUILTY PERSON; the finner, who is obnoxious to the judgment of God §. (5.) AcCUSERS, who are ready to propofe and promote the charge against the guilty perfons; namely, the Law¶, and Confcience**, and Satan +t. (6.) The CHARGE IS admitted and drawn up into an hand-writing, in form of law, and is laid before the tribunal of the Judge, in bar to the deliverance of the offender ‡‡. (7.) A PLEA is prepared in the Gofpel for the guilty perfon; and this is grace, through the blood of Chrift; the ransom paid, the atonement made, the eternal righteousness brought in by the furety of the covenant . (8.) To this alone the finner flies, renouncing every other defence or apology §§. Other plea than this for a finner before God there is none; and he, who knoweth God + Pfal. cxliii. 2. ‡ Ifa. 1. 7, 8. Rom. viii. 33. | Heb. iv. 16. Ifa. xxx. 18. Rom. i. 32. ii. 19. ii. 15 tt Zech. iii. 2. Rev. xii. 10. iii. 23, &c. Dan. ix. 24. Eph. i. 7. cxliii. 2, &c. &c. John v. 45. ** Rom. Rom. Pfal. God and himself, will truft to no other, were he fure of all the angels in heaven to plead for him. (9.) To make this plea effectual, we have an ADVOCATE with the Father, Jefus Chrift the righteous (10.) The SENTENCE hereon is Abfolution, on account of the ranfom, blood and righteousness of Christ, with acceptance into favour, as perfons approved of God +. : Of what use the declaration of this procefs in the Juftification of a finner may be, hath been in some measure before declared and if perfons did but ferioufly confider, that all these things are required to the Juftification of every one who shall be faved, they would not entertain fuch flight thoughts of fin, and of the way of deliverance from it as they seem to have. It was from this confideration, that St. Paul learned, that "terror of the Lord," which made him fo earnest with men to feek after reconciliation ‡. Further to confirm the fenfe we have given of the word Juftification, we may obferve the opposition in which Condemnation is placed unto it, in feveral Scriptures already referred to, and in many others §. Now, as Condemnation is not the infusing a habit of wickednefs into him that is condemned, but the paffing a fentence upon him with respect to his wickedness; fo Juftification is not the change of a perfon from inherent unrighteoufnefs to righteousness, by the infufion of a principle of grace, but a fentential declaration of him to be righteous. Moreover, the thing intended is frequently declared in the Scripture by other equivalent terms, which are abfolutely exclufive of any other fenfe; fo the Apostle expreffeth it by the "imputation of righteousness without works;" Rom. iv. 6, 11. and calls it the " bleffednefs," which we have by the pardon of fin, and the John ii, 2. † Job xxxiii. 24. Pfal. xxxii. 1, &c. 2 Cor. V. JO. § Ifa. 1. 8, 9. Prov. xvii. 15. Rom. v. 16, 18. and viii. 33, 34, &c. the covering of iniquity, in the fame text. So it is called "Reconciliation with God;" Rom. v. 9, 10. "To be justified by the blood of Christ" is the fame with being "reconciled by his death *." Reconciliation is not the infufion of a habit of grace," but the effecting of peace and love, by the removal of all enmity and cause of offence. "To fave," and "Salvation,” are used to the fame purpose. " He shall save his people from their fins +," is the fame with, " by him all that believe are justified t." It is alfo expreffed, by "receiving the atonement;" blotting out fins and iniquities;"" cafting them into the fea," and many other expreffions of fimilar import. 68 I have infifted the more on the fignification of the word in Scripture, because a right understanding of it, doth not only exclude the pretences of the Romanifts about the infufion of "a habit of charity," from being the formal cause of our Juftification before God, but may alfo give occasion to fome to confider into what place they can difpofe their own perfonal inherent righteousness in their Juftification before him. CHA P. V. The Distinction of a first and fecond Juftification examined. The Continuation of fuftification, on what it depends. THE HE Roman Church builds her whole doctrine of Juftification upon a diftinction of a double Juftifcation, which they call the first and fecond. The first, they fay, is the infufion of an inherent principle of grace, whereby original fin is extinguished, and all habits of fin # See 2 Cor. v. 20, 21. Matt. i. 21. Acts xiii. 39. are |