UNIVERSALIST 
 HISTORICAL LIBRARY 
 
 Crane Theological School 
 TUFTS UNIVERSITY 
 
 MEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS 
 
 Sea 
 iff/, 9^1 
 
The Myjlery hid from ^ges and Generations ^ 
 made manifeji by the Gofpel-Revelation : 
 
 o R , 
 
 THE SALVATION 
 
 O F 
 
 ALL MEN 
 
 THE GRAND THING AIMED AT IN THE 
 SCHEME OF GOD, 
 
 As opened in the New-Teftament Writings, and entruftecj 
 with Jesus Christ to bring into EfFe6l. 
 
 ■% 
 
 ^ ^ 
 
C V 3 
 
 THE 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 TH E "johole human race are confidered, 
 in the following work, as made for 
 happinefs ; and it finally fixes them in the 
 everlafting enjoyment of it, notwithftand- 
 ing the lapfe of the one man Adanty and all 
 they/;/ and mifery that ever has been, or ever 
 will be, confequent thereupon. The fub" 
 jedi is certainly interefling and important ^ 
 and if what I have offered to afcertain its 
 meaning, and juftify its truthy is worthy of 
 regard, there can be no need of an apology 
 for its publication. This muft be left with 
 the reader to determine : Though, whatever 
 his judgment is, I may be allowed to fay 
 for myfelf, that I have gone through a great 
 deal of hard labour in Jearching the Jcrip^ 
 
 A 3 tuns* 
 
ERRATUM. 
 
 P. 384, line I, _/i?r deftroyed r^«^ punifhed, 
 
T^he Myjiery hid from Ages end Generations, 
 made manifeji by the GofpeURevelation : 
 
 O R, 
 
 THE SALVATION 
 
 O F 
 
 ALL MEN 
 
 THE GRAND THING AIMED AT IN THB 
 SCHEME OF GOD, 
 
 As opened in the New-Teftament Writings, and entrufted 
 with Jesus Christ to bring into EfFe£t. 
 
 IN THREE CHAPTERS. 
 
 TheFirJiy exhibiting a General Explanation of this glo- 
 
 rioufly benevolent Plan of GOD. The Second , proving 
 
 it to be the Truth of Scripture, that Mankiicd 
 UNIVERSALLY, in the Final Issue of this Scheme, fhall 
 REIGN IN HAPPY LiFE FOR EVER .— — 7*/^^ y^/V^, lar<jely 
 anlwenng Objections. 
 
 By Qne who wijhes well to the whole Himm Race, 
 P — — — f^/ 'J 
 
 X^KTTou tou Ku/3iou r\tAuv, Apoille PauL 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED FOR CHARLES DILLY, IN THE POULTRV, 
 < ————————— 
 
 M.DCC.LXXXIV. 
 
 ^*- 
 
[ V ] 
 
 V t 
 
 
 THE 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 TH E w&ok human race are confidered^ 
 in the following work, as made for 
 happinefs ; and it finally fixes them in the 
 everlafting enjoyment of it, notwithftand- 
 ing the lapfe of the one man Ada?ny and all 
 theym and mifery that ever has been, or ever 
 will be, confequent thereupon* The fu!?- 
 je5l is certainly interefling and important ^ 
 and if what I have offered to afcertain its 
 meaningy and juftify its truth y is worthy of 
 regard, there can be no need of an apology 
 for its publication. This muft be left with 
 the reader to determine : Though, whatever 
 his judgment is, I may be allowed to fay 
 for myfelf, that I have gone through a great 
 deal of hard labour in Jearching the J'crip-- 
 
 A 3 tureSf 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 turesy that I might be able to put together 
 what is here prefented to his view. I had 
 indeed no idea of the fentiments expreffed 
 in the following pages, till I had been gra- 
 dually and infenfibly let into them by a 
 long and diligent comparing of fcripture 
 withfcripture. What I therefore now offer 
 to the world is not the refult of my own 
 imagination^ or wifdom : Nor was it fetched 
 from 2iny fcbeme of man s invent ion -, hut folely 
 from the fountain of revealed truth, the 
 infpired oracles of God, Thefe were my 
 governing rule in this enquiry; and I have 
 taken great care, and fpared no pains, that 
 I might underftand them in their genuine 
 fenfe. And it appears to me that I have 
 really done fo : Though I am far from ex- 
 pelling, or defiring, that any ihould impli* 
 citly take my word for it. Nay, I fhould 
 be heartily forry, if any one fhould be fo 
 unadvifed as to receive what is here deli- 
 vered, either in whole, or in part, iov /acred 
 truthy till he has thoroughly examined the 
 texts that are brought to fupport it as fuch, 
 and is inwardly convinced thereupon that 
 
 they 
 
PREFACE. vii 
 
 they are a real and juft: fupport of it. His 
 faith will then reft upon the word of him 
 who is faithful and true -y and he may 
 pleafe himfelf with the thought, that her 
 has afted a reafoiiable part, and will certain- 
 ly meet with the approbation of his Maker 
 and Judge, 
 
 I am not infenfible, that, in a perform- 
 ance of this nature, where the proof is 
 of the 7noral kind, and depends upon a 
 variety of circumjlances duly adjufted and 
 fituated with refped to each other, there 
 will be always room left for difference of 
 fentiment in different perfons, according 
 to the difference there may be in their tem- 
 per of mind, manner of education, condi- 
 tion in life, freedom in the exercife of their 
 faculties, attachment to names, religious 
 fyftems, and the like. It would not there- 
 fore be a matter of wonder to me, if what 
 is herewith emitted, fliould be very dif^ 
 ferently received by thofe into whofe hands 
 it may fall. .Many will, doubtlefs, efteem 
 
 A 4 it 
 
viii P R E F ui C E. 
 
 It dangerous grofs herefy. And fome, it may 
 be, without previous examination, upon 
 feeing only the title-page, will at once pro- 
 nounce me a perverter of the Go/pel, and fix 
 my final Jiate ; though an Apojile has faid, 
 " Who art thou that judgeft another man s 
 •* fervant ? To his own mafter he ftandeth 
 " or falleth." I am not at all concerned 
 about either the opi?2ion, or doofn, oi this kind 
 of perfons. And, to Ipeak the plain truth, I 
 do not think, whatever a man's charader may 
 be in other refpedts, that he is duly prepared 
 to pafs fentence upon the prefent work, if 
 he has not often read over the New Tefla- 
 ment, and in the language in which it was 
 originally wrote, and with 2. fpecial view to 
 take in an idea of th^fcheme offalvation^ as 
 it is there fet forth in its native purity and 
 Jimplicity ; and fhould any, while confcious 
 to themfelves that they have not done this, 
 be free in cafting reproach upon it, I /hould 
 not envy them the honour they would here- 
 by procure to themfelves. Thofe only, as 
 I imagine, are proper judges in this debate, 
 
 who 
 
PREFACE. i± 
 
 tvho have made the facred writings in gene^ 
 ral, and the apoftolic writings in particular, 
 efpecially the writings of the apoftle Paul, 
 their careful and diligent ftudy, and this for 
 feme confiderable time. There are a num- 
 ber, and I would hope it daily increafes, of 
 whom this may be faid with exad: truth. 
 Tvomfuch I expeft no ill treatment. They- 
 will, doubtlefs, difcern in this work a great 
 many marks of weaknefs and imperfection 5 
 and may, probably, be able to point out to 
 me wherein, through inattention, or want 
 of better fkill, I have put a wrong fenfc 
 upon this or that particular text. It would 
 indeed be very extraordinary, if I fbould 
 not, in thefe ways, or others flill more 
 faulty, have mifunderftood fome or other 
 of thofe numerous fcriptures I have endea- 
 voured to explain : Though I am not con- 
 fcious to myfelf that I have; and can ho* 
 ncftly declare, that I have not knowingly 
 forced any one of them to fpeak a fenfe it 
 did not contain. And this is efpecially the 
 truth with refpe<3: to thofe texts which arc 
 
 the 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 thoi principal fupporf of the fcheme of thought 
 here advanced : In which I am clearly fa- 
 tisfied, I have exhibited the truth as it is in 
 Jefus ; though I prefume not to fay dog- 
 matically even here, that I have not been 
 milled, either by the weaknefs of my fa- 
 culties, or an infufficient attention in the 
 exercife of them ; or by the undue fway 
 of fome undifcerned prejudice in favour of 
 fentiments peculiarly agreeable to my natu- 
 ral benevolence of temper. And fliould it 
 be the truth, that I have really been mifled, 
 it would be a kindnefs (I Ihould efteem it 
 fuch) in fome Chriftian friend of better 
 abilities, greater integrity, and more learn- 
 ing, than I can boafk of, to fet me right. 
 I can truly fay, it would be a pleafure 
 to me to be favoured with the candid 
 endeavours of fuch a friend. If I know 
 myfelf, I am ftill open to convidtion. I 
 was at firft brought into this train of 
 thought by being willing, in oppofition to 
 previous fentiments and ftrong biaffes, to 
 follow the light wherever it fhould lead 
 
 me. 
 
PREFACE. xi 
 
 me. And as I am yet pofleffed of the fame 
 difpofition of mind, I would hope, if I am 
 in an error, I am not fo inveterately fixed 
 in it, but that fuitable means of convidlion 
 may be effedual to reduce me. If any 
 fhould think fit to rail at, rather than argiie 
 with me, they may be aiTured before-hand, 
 their condudl will have no other influence 
 than to excite my pity towards them : But 
 if they will be at the pains to apply to my 
 underflanding in a fober and Chriflian way, 
 I fhall think myfelf obliged to let them 
 know, that I have either changed my mind, 
 or can give a good reafon v/hy I have not 
 done fo. 
 
 I fhould not be jufl to what I account 
 diJlingiiiJJ:ed merity if I did not take this 
 opportunity publicly to acknowledge my 
 obligations to the writings of the late re- 
 verend Dr. John Taylor of Norwich. Had 
 'it not been for his Scripture DoSff^ine of 
 Original Sin, and his Paraphrafe and Notes 
 upon the Epijile to the Romans^ with the pre- 
 vious 
 
xll PREFACE. 
 
 vious Key to the Apojiolic Writings In general^ 
 I Ihould never, I believe, have been able 
 to have compofed this w^ork. I do not 
 mean, by what I now fay, to iniinuate 
 ^ to the world, as though this excellent 
 writer was of the opinion, that all men 
 Jhall finally be favedy for I know he had 
 quite other fentiments of the matter : But 
 what I would fuggeft is, that it was his 
 example and recommendation that put me 
 upon ftudying the fcriptures in that free, 
 impartial, and diligent manner, which led 
 me into thefe fentiments. And further, 
 it was, in a great meafure, from the light 
 reflected on the facred writings by his 
 learned labours, that I was enabled to pro- 
 ceed in my enquiries, till they iffued in 
 what now appears to the reader. I have 
 often, as occafions were offered for it, en- 
 livened and ftrengthened this performance 
 by ufmg his words; and have taken care 
 to give him the honour of what I could 
 not have exprelTed fo well myfelf. And 
 though I widely differ from him in the in-^ 
 3 terpretation 
 
PREFACE. xiii 
 
 terpretatlon of fome very important texts^ 
 yet even here I am beholden to him ; and 
 fhould not, perhaps, have been qualified to 
 have gone into this difference of fentiment, 
 had it not been for the light and inftrudlion 
 I had firft received from him. Of this the 
 reader may fee a flagrant inftance in what 
 I have offered upon Rom. v. from the 12th 
 to the end. My illuftration of that pafTage 
 very much differs from Dr. Taylor s-^ and 
 yet, I could not have wrote miney if I had 
 not enjoyed the advantage of reading his. 
 But though my fentiments difagree with his, 
 and in points too of very conliderable im- 
 portance ; yet the opinion I have of his cha- 
 rity, candour, and greatnefs of mind, will not 
 fufFer me to fufpedl, that, had he been now 
 living, he would have thought the worfe 
 of me merely upon this account : Efpe- 
 cially, as he has advifed his readers * freely 
 * to ufe their own judgment, without re- 
 ' garding his;' that is, unlefs they fliould 
 perceive it to be grounded on good evi- 
 dence. He has himfelf exemplified this 
 
 advice 
 
xiv PREFACE. 
 
 advice in his own condudt towards Mr. 
 Locke ', falling in with his judgment, when 
 he apprehended he had juft reafon to do 
 fo: Otherwife diffenting from it, and with 
 all freedom, as led thereto by the light of 
 truth. And this is the way in which we 
 fhould always read the writings of others,' 
 efpecially upon thtfcripttires, however high 
 an opinion we may entertain of their inte- 
 grity, capacity, or learning. We fliall then 
 ufe them as helps, as we reafonably may, 
 in order to underftand the true meaning 
 of revelation j founding our faithy not on 
 what they fay, but on what we are enabled by 
 their affiftance to be fatisfied is the word 
 and will of God. 
 
 Had it been a matter of importance for 
 any to know the author of the following 
 work, I fhould not have fent it into the 
 world without my name : But as this can 
 neither add to, nor take from, the real 
 force of any of the arguments upon w^hich 
 I have refted the caufe I am engaged in, 
 
 I am 
 
PREFACE. XV 
 
 I am quite willing to lie buried in obfcu- 
 rity; and this, if even good judges fhould 
 entertain a better opinion of my labours than 
 I can reafonably fuppofe they deferve. 
 
 I hope none of my readers will make 
 an /// tife of the dod:rine here fet forth as 
 2.facred truth. It is capable, I own, of be- 
 ing abufed ; and fo is every other truth, 
 whether natural or revealed. If any fliould 
 pervert its proper defign, and genuine ten- 
 dency, taking occafion from it to continue 
 in fiHy the fault will be their own. The 
 hope of the go/pel, as illuftrated in thefe flieets, 
 is powerfully adapted to excite our moft 
 earneft endeavours that we may eiiter into 
 life without paffing through tht fee ond death : 
 But if we will be fo difingenuous as to turn 
 the grace of God into wantonnefs, we can 
 juftly lay the blame no where but upon 
 ourfelves, (hould we be made to fufFer for 
 oar folly, God only knows how long, and 
 to how awful a degree, in th^Jtafe that h 
 beyond the grave, 
 
 5 liin. 
 
xvj PREFACE. 
 
 I finccrely refign the following efFed 
 of much pains to the difpofals of Provi- 
 dence ', wishing, on the one hand, that it 
 may meet with no acceptance in the world, 
 if it tends to deceive unwary Joulsy and 
 turn them afide from the Jimplicity of the gof- 
 pel; and, on the other hand; that it may 
 univerfaily gain admittance into the hearts 
 of men, in fpite of all oppolition, if it 
 Ihould be the truth of fcripture-revelation^ 
 as I have no doubt but it really is. 
 
 The author. 
 
 PROOFS 
 
THE 
 
 PROOFS 
 
 O F 
 
 UNIVERSAL SALVATION. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 AS the Firfl Caufe of all things is infinitely be- 
 nevolent, 'tis not eafy to conceive, that he 
 Ihould bring mankind into exiftence, unlefs he in- 
 tended to make them finally happy. And if this 
 was his intention, it cannot well be fuppofed, as he 
 is infinitely intelligent and wife, that he fhouid be 
 unable to proje6t, or carry into execution, a fcheme 
 that would be effedlual to fecure, fooner or later, 
 the certain accomplifhment of it. Should it be 
 fuggefted. Free agents, as men are allowed to be, 
 mull be left to their own choice, in confequence 
 B whereof 
 
2 InfroduBion, 
 
 whereof biame can be refieded jufliy no where 
 but upon themfelves, if, when happinefs is put in- 
 to their own power, they chufe to purfue thofe 
 courfes which will end in mifery : The anfwer is 
 obvious, Their Creator, being perfeclly benevo- 
 lent, would be dilpofed to prevent their making, or, 
 at lead, their finally perfiiling in, fuch wrong 
 choices •, and, being infinitely intelligent and wife, 
 would ufe fuitable, and yet effeftual, methods, in 
 order to attain this end. Should it be faid fur- 
 ther. Such free agents as men are may oppofe 
 all the m.ethods that can be ufed with them, in 
 confiftency with liberty, and perfift in wrong pur- 
 fuits, in confequence of wrong determinations, to 
 the rendering themlelves finally unhappy : The re- 
 ply is, This is fooner fnd than proved. Who will 
 undertake to make it evident, that infinite wiiciom, 
 excited by infinite benevolence, is incapable of 
 devifing expedients, whereby moral agents, with- 
 out any violence offered to their liberty, may cer- 
 tainly be led, if not at firft, yet after various re- 
 peated trials, into fuch determinations, and con- 
 fequent adions, as would finally prepare them for 
 happinefs ? It would be hard to fuppofe, that in- 
 finite wifdom fhould finally be outdone by the ob- 
 flinacy and folly of any free agents .whatfoevtr. 
 If this might really be the cafe, how can it be 
 thought, with refpe6l to fuch free agents, that they 
 Ihould ever have been produced by an infinitely 
 benevolent caufe ? If the only good God knevv 
 (as he muft have known, if he is infinitely intelli- 
 gent), 
 
IntroduSlion, 3 
 
 gent), that fome free agents would make them- 
 felves unhappy, notwithftanding the- utmoft ef- 
 forts of his wifdom to prevent it, why did he 
 create them ? To give them exiftence, knowing, 
 at the fame time, that they would render them- 
 felves finally miferable, by abufing their moral 
 powers, in oppofition to all that he could do to 
 prevent it, is fcarcely reconcileable with fupreme- 
 ly and abfolutely perfedl benevolence ; which, in 
 this cafe, one would be ready to think, muft have 
 withheld the gift of exiftence. 
 
 But however uncertain the final fiate of men 
 may be, upon the principles of mere reafon, the 
 matter is fufiiciently cleared up in the revelations 
 of fcripture. For we are here informiCd, not only 
 that men were originally made for happinefs, but 
 that they fhall certainly attain to the enjoyment of 
 it, in the final ifTue of things. The falvation of 
 the whole human kind is indeed the great thing 
 aimed at, in the fcheme, the bible has opened to 
 our view, as now in profecution, by the bene- 
 volent Deity, under the management of that glo- 
 rious perfonage, Jefus Chrift ; who, we are there 
 aflTured, will go on profecuting this defign, till all 
 the individuals of the human race that ever had, 
 now have, or ever will have, exiftence, (hall he 
 fixed in the poirefTion of conipleat and everlafting 
 happinefs. 
 
 This, I am fenfible, is very contrary to the 
 common opinion, which fuppofcs that the gteatcft 
 part of mankind will be finally miferable, notwirh- 
 
 B 2 ftanding 
 
4 Introdii5lio7i. 
 
 {landing the appointment of Jefus Chrifl to the 
 office of a Saviour, and all that God has either yet 
 done, or will hereafter do, under his miniftration, 
 in order to prevent it. Nay, it is the opinion of 
 fome, that the eled (a very fmall number com- 
 paratively confidered) are the only ones, the be- 
 nevolent Deity has concerned himfelf for, fo as 
 efFedually to fecure their falvation •, having left all 
 others, whom he might as well have faved, had 
 he fo pleafed, to bring upon themfelves remedilefs 
 and eternal ruin, for the praife of the glory of his 
 juftice.. 
 
 Thefe fuppofed dodrlnes of revelation have fa 
 long been received for important truths, not by 
 the vulgar only, but by perfons venerable for their 
 learning and piety, whofe bufinefs it has been to 
 enquire into things of this nature, that it may 
 feem to many an afFe6lation of novelty, if not an 
 argument of fomething worfe, fo much as to 
 call them in qu^ftion. Multitudes, having been 
 taught, from their early childhood, the dodlrine 
 of eternal torments, and, what is commonly con- 
 neded with it, the final, mifery of the greateft part 
 of mankind, are becom.e infenfibly and flrangely 
 prepofTefled in favor of thefe tenets, however 
 Ihocking to unprejudiced minds ; infomuch that 
 it would be no wonder, if they fhould determine, 
 at once, without examination, that an efTay intend- 
 ed to prove, that the fcheme of redemption con- 
 cerns the human race univerfally, and will, in its 
 final refult, inflate them all, without diflindlion or 
 5 limitation. 
 
IntrodiWlion. 5 
 
 limitation, in perfed blcflednefs, inufl needs be 
 an heretical undertaking, the very propofal of 
 which ought to be rejedted, as carrying along with 
 it its own confutation. 
 
 But yet, there are fome, it may be hoped, who 
 are not fo far under the government of prejudice, 
 but that they can fufpend their cenfures, at lead, 
 till they have deliberately read what may be of- 
 fered from the books themfelves, containing the 
 revelations of God, in fupport of the hypothefis, 
 that all men fhall finally be happy. And; fhould 
 it be found capable of being fully confirmed by 
 folid proofs, from thefe books, none who regard 
 their authority, as facred, fhould withhold their 
 aflent. To be fure, tney ought not to do fo, as 
 being influenced thereto by an undue attachment 
 to their fpiritual leaders, however renowned for 
 knowledge, or judgment, or exemplary virtue : 
 For they are certainly fallible, and may therefore 
 be mi ft a ken. 
 
 And this, I am deeply fenfible, is the truth 
 with refpefl to myfelf. I know I am liable to err, 
 in common with other men. Nay, I pretend not 
 but I may have been betrayed, in the prefcnt cafe, 
 into an apprehenfion of that as true, which is 
 really falfe^ through the undue prevalence of fome 
 undifcerned wrong bias or other. For which rea- 
 fon, inftead of finding fault with any, into whofe 
 hands thefe papers may fall, for reading them 
 with caution, I would ferioufly advife them to do 
 fo \ left they fhould be deceived with the mere 
 B 3 appearance 
 
5 Jntroduciioiu 
 
 appearance of truth: Only, they ought fo take 
 care that they do not fo mix prejudice and jealoufy 
 with their caution, as to prevent a fair and im- 
 partial enquiry. All I defire is, that, if the proofs 
 here offered fhould appear to any, upon a thorough 
 examination, to be juftly conclufive, they would 
 honeftly yield to convidion. If they fhould per- 
 ceive no ftrength in them, or not flrength fuf- 
 ficient to fupport the caufe that is refled on them, 
 I think, they would adl: commendably, and be- 
 coming their character as men and chriftians, 
 if they fhould flill adhere to their former fenti- 
 ments. Every man muftjudgefor himfelf : though, 
 if his judgment is wifely and reafonably formed, 
 it will be the effeft of apparent evidence, upon 
 an honefl and full enquiry. 
 
 That I may proceed, in the illuftration of this 
 fubjedl, without perplexity, I fhall begin with men- 
 tioning a few things, in a preliminary way, tend- 
 ing to prevent a m.ifconception of my meaning, 
 when I affirm, that all men Jhall be finally happy, 
 it will then be natural to exhibit the proper argu- 
 ments in fupport of this affirmation : Which, hav- 
 ing confirmed by diredl proofs, I fhall endeavour 
 further to flrengthen by particularly going over, 
 -and invalidating the contrary evidence. 
 
 C H h P- 
 
Preliminary Explanations. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Containing Preliminary Explanations. 
 
 AS I am defirous of avoiding confulion of me- 
 thod, and would, at the fame time, guard, 
 as much as may be, againft the undue operation of 
 prejudice in thofe who n:ay think it worth their 
 while to read the following effay, it may not be 
 amifs to begin with a few particulars, tending to 
 prevent a mifconftru(flion of my meaning, in the 
 propofition I have advanced, and fhall endeavour 
 prefently to prove, namely, that all men^ according 
 to the fcripturc-fcheme^ foall finally and certainly be 
 happy. And they are thefe that follow : 
 
 I. I would not be underftood to mean hereby, 
 that all men will be admitted to the enjoyment of 
 happinefs in the ftate that next fucceeds the pre- 
 lent. This would be a dire6l contradidllon to the 
 general tenour of the fcriptures. Nay, it fhould 
 feem, from feveral pafTages in the New Tefta- 
 ment, as though the greater part of mankind 
 would mifs of happinefs in the ftate that follows 
 next upon this. To this purpofe is that of our Sa- 
 viour, " (a) Strait is the gate, and narrow the way, 
 
 (a) Matt. vii. 4. 
 
 B 4 " which 
 
8 Preliminary Explanations, 
 
 " which leadeth unto life 5 and few there be that 
 " find it." And, when one came to him with that 
 queftion, " (b) LorS, are there /^w that be faved ?" 
 he plainly concedes that it was fo, by the reply 
 v/hich he makes in the following verfe, " Strive 
 " to enter in at the ilrait gate ; for many.^ I fay unto 
 *' you, will feek to enter in, 2.ndjhall not be able^ 
 And it is obfervable, the conclufion of two of his 
 parables is fummed up in thefe emphatical words, 
 *' (c) For many are called, and few are chofen." 
 To thefe and fuch like texts it may be owing^ 
 that the falvation of comparatively but a few of 
 the human race has been received as an undoubted 
 dodrine of the bible. And I fee not, I confefs, 
 but that fuch texts would be a full confirmation of 
 this dodlrine, if it were a truth (as has been 
 generally fuppofed) that the next is the final flate 
 of men. But if this, inftead of a truth, Ihould 
 turn out a falfe notion, grounded on miftaken ap- 
 prehenfions of the genuine fenfe of fcripture, the 
 above declarations, importing that many fhall not 
 be faved in the next ftate, are no inconfiftencies 
 with the affirmation we have laid down to be 
 proved. And that it is a miftake, and a very grofs 
 one too, greatly tending to the difcomfort of man- 
 kind, as well as giving occafion for unworthy re- 
 fledlions on the Deity ; 1 fay, that it is a miftake 
 to fuppofe the next llate a final one, we fhall CDf 
 
 (h) Luke xlii. 23. (c) Matt. xx. 16.'— xxii. 14. 
 
 deavour 
 
Preliminary Explanations. 9 
 
 deavour to evince, in its proper place 5 where it 
 will be feen, that the fcripture is fo far from aflert- 
 ing this, that it very plainly and frequently infi- 
 nuates the contrary, and cannot indeed be under- 
 ilood, as to the main thing it has in view, upon 
 ^ny other fuppofition. 
 
 II. Though I affirm, that all men will finally be 
 happy, yet I deny not but that many of them will 
 be miferable in the next ftate of exiflence, and to 
 a great degree, and for a long time, in proportion 
 to the moral depravity they have contradted in 
 this. There is no reafonable room for debate 
 here. It is not only plain from the threatenings of 
 God in general, compared with the known cha- 
 rade rs of men, but from feveral parables fpoken 
 by our Saviour, as well as from the frequent re- 
 prefentations that are made of the great, and (as 
 it is commonly called) lad judgment, that many, 
 in confequence of their prefent ill-condudt, will 
 have their next exiflence in the place of " weeping, 
 *' and vvailing, and gnafhing of teeth." Moft inter- 
 preters, I am aware, fuppofe this to be a place of 
 everlafting torment. And they ftrengthen them- 
 felves in fuch a thought, by certain phrafes, which 
 frequently occur in the facred pages •, imagining 
 they carry in them this fenfe, and cannot well be 
 underilood in any other. And if this is the real 
 fenfe of fcripture, I readily own, the hypothefis 
 here advanced is incapable of proof. But that 
 the fcripture ought not to be interpreted in this 
 
 fenfe. 
 
10 Preltminary Explanations. 
 
 fenfe, we fliall take care to make clearly evident 
 afterwards. 
 
 In the mean time, it ought to be particularly re- 
 membered, and confidered, that the future mifery, 
 though not everlafting, according to the prefent 
 fyftem, may yet be awfully heightened in degree, 
 and protradled in continuance •, which I the ra- 
 ther mention, left any fhould fooliilily take oc- 
 cafion, from the dodlrine here advanced, to en- 
 courage themfelves in their evil ways. Let not 
 any fay, if we fhall finally be faved, we may then 
 live as we lift. For, according to the fcheme we 
 are illuftrating, there will be no falvation for thofe, 
 in the next ftate, who habitually indulge to luft in 
 this •, but they muft be unavoidably miferable, 
 notwithftanding the infinite benevolence of the 
 Deity, and to a great degree of feverity, God only 
 knows how long, in proportion to the number and 
 greatnefs of their vices. And this ought, in all 
 reafon, to be a powerful motive to reftrain men 
 from making themfelves vile : Though it be a 
 truth, that, in the final refult of things, they fhall 
 be happy. — But of this, as it is a matter of vaft 
 importance, I Ihall fpeak diftin6lly and largely in 
 the fequel. 
 
 III. I would not be nnderftood, when I fay, 
 that all men fhall be finally happy, to infinuate as 
 though this would ever be their lot, till they are 
 all cured of their moral depravity, and formed to 
 a mectnefs for heaven, by being brought back to 
 2 a virtuous 
 
Trelimlnary 'Rxphnatlons. 1 1 
 
 a virtuous temper of mind. Men, who are in- 
 telligent and moral agents, cannot" be rationally 
 happy, but in the regular exercife of their intel- 
 letflual and moral powers. Vv^hile in a degenerate 
 ftate, they muft be miferable. 'Tis impofTible in 
 the nature of things it fhould be otherwife. And 
 if ever they are delivered from their mifery, it 
 muft be by efFedling a change in their moral cha- 
 radler. It is not, perhaps, in the power of an all- 
 wife intelligent being, however benevolent, to 
 make reafonable creatures happy in any other 
 way. If therefore the next ftate (conformably to 
 the common mode of thinking) is a ftate of pu- 
 niftiment, not intended for the cure of the patients 
 themfelves, but to fatisfy thejuftice of God, and 
 give warning to others, 'tis impofTible all men 
 fliould be finally faved : whereas, if the next ftate 
 is a ftate of difcipline, deligned for the amend- 
 ment of the fufferers themfelves, as well as the 
 good of others, and wifely adapted as a mean to 
 this end, they may be recovered, and formed to 
 a meetnefs for immortality and honor. Or, fhould 
 any have fo funk their natures in this, as not to 
 be capable of a recovery in the next ftate ; a 
 ftate beyond that may be again a ftate of difci- 
 pline, wherein mifery will be infiidled with a falu- 
 tary view : Upon which fuppofition, their recovery 
 will be ftill pofTible ; they may, in the end, be- 
 come the capable fubjefls of happinefs. And that 
 this will be the operation of the fcheme of God, 
 with reference to the whole human kind, as it is 
 
 fee 
 
1 2 Preliminary "Explanations* 
 
 fet forth in the fcriptures (the efFed whereof will 
 finally be the accomplifhment of their falvation) 
 we (hall fee more reafon to believe, in the pro- 
 grefs of this attempt, than we may, at prefent, be 
 ready to imagine. 
 
 IV. Upon the whole therefore, what I mean to 
 prove, in thfe following eflTay, is, that the fcheme 
 of revelation has the happlnefs of all man- 
 kind lying at bottom, as its great and ultimate 
 end; that it gradually tends to this end; and 
 will not fail of its accomplifhment, when fully 
 compleated. Some, in confequence of its opera- 
 tion, as conduced by the Son of God, will be 
 diifpofed and enabled, in this prefent ftate, to 
 make fuch improvements in virtue, the only ra- 
 tional preparative for happinefs, as that they Ihall 
 enter upon the enjoyment of it in the next ftate. 
 Others, who have proved incurable under the 
 means which have been ufed with them in this 
 ftate, inftead of being happy in the next, will be 
 awfully miferable ; not to continue fo finally, but 
 that they may be convinced of their folly, and re- 
 covered to a virtuous frame of mind : And this, as 
 I fuppofe, will be the effed of the future torments 
 upon many -, the confequence whereof will be their 
 falvation, they being thus fitted for it. And there 
 may be yet other Rates, before the fcheme of God 
 may be perfeded, and mankind univerfally cured 
 of their moral diforders, and in this way qualified 
 for, and finally inflated in, eternal happinefs. But 
 
 whether, 
 
Prelimi?iary Explanations, 1 3 
 
 whether there are any other fuch ftates befides the 
 next, or not ; or however many ftates fome of 
 the individuals of the human fpecies may pals 
 through, and of however long continuance they 
 may be ; — the whole is intended to fubferve the 
 grand defign of univerfal happinefs, and will 
 finally terminate in it : Infomuch that the Son of 
 God, and Saviour of men, will not deliver up his 
 truft into the hands of the Father, who committed 
 it to him, till he has fully difcharged his obliga- 
 tions in virtue of it ; having finally fixed all men 
 in heaven, when God will be all in all. 
 
 This, in general, I take to be the fcheme of re- 
 velation, vi^ith reference to the human kind. And 
 it exhibits the Deity in fo amiable and intereil- 
 ing a light, and refleds fo much glory on the 
 mediatorial undertaking of Jefus Chrift, that every 
 man, one would think, fliould, beforehand, be 
 difpofed to wifli it might be well fupported from 
 the fcriptures. Can the thought be difpleafing 
 to any fon of Adam, that the whole human race 
 . fhall finally have entrance miniftered to them into 
 the kingdom of heaven, to partake there of joys 
 that flow for ever from God's right hand ? Where 
 is the man fo deftitute of benevolence, fo bereft 
 of humanity, as not to bid God-fpeed to an at- 
 tempt, intended to eftablifh it as a revealed truth, 
 that this, before the fcene of providence is finally 
 fhut up, fliall be the portion of all men, of what- 
 ever nation, charadter, colour, ftation, or con- 
 dition ? It cannot be fuppofcd, that any fliould be 
 fo filled with envy, or foured by rancour, hatred, 
 
 or 
 
14 Preliminary Expla?iations* 
 
 or malice, as not to hope, that fo benevolent a 
 plan may be found, upon the ftrideft enquiry, to 
 be a true one. 
 
 Some generally received dodlrines, it is con- 
 felTed, muil be given up, if this is admitted to be 
 the fcheme of God, with reference to mankind. 
 And it is high time they Ihould be renounced, 
 and others embraced in their room, that are more 
 honorable to the Father of mercies, and comfort- 
 able to the creatures whom his hands have form- 
 ed. I doubt not, it has been a perplexing diffi- 
 culty to mod perfons (I am fure, it has been 
 fuch to me), how to reconcile the dodrine, which 
 dooms fo great a number of the human race to 
 eternal flames, with the eflential, abfolutely per- 
 fe6b, goodnefs of the Deity. And, perhaps, they 
 contain ideas utterly irreconcilable with each 
 other. To be fure, their confiftency has never 
 yet been fo clearly pointed out, but that a horror 
 of darknefs flill remains, that is fadly didreffing to 
 many a confiderate tender heart. Whereas, there 
 is no difficulty of this fort attending the prefent 
 fcheme. All objedions to the infinite benevolence 
 of God vanifh at once ; and this attribute of the 
 divine nature fliines even more confpicuous, as 
 viewed in the light of revelation, than in the light 
 of mere reafon. Nor is there any fcheme that fo 
 illuftrioufly fets forth the powerful efficacy, and ex- 
 tenfive advantage, of the mediation of Jcfus Chrill. 
 If mankind univerfally are the objedl of his con- 
 cern j if he died for them all ; if he is afcended 
 i3p to heaven for them all 5 if he is there acting 
 
 on 
 
Preliminary Explanations ^ 35 
 
 on their behalf, and managing all things, in the 
 kingdom of grace, with a view to their falvation, 
 and will not give up his miniftry, in this kingdom, 
 till he has adtually accomplifhed this great dc- 
 fign, and inflated the whole human kind in eternal 
 glory •, — what more noble idea can we form of his 
 undertaking for us ? 'Tis now carried to its ut- 
 moft height, and appears to be a defign emi- 
 nently worthy of God's contriving, and of Chrift's 
 executing, and that lays a juft foundation for the 
 everlafting admiration and adoration of all angels, 
 and of all men : Whereas, upon the common 
 fcheme, the extent of God's benevolence is com- 
 paratively fmall, as well as the advantage of 
 Chrift's mediation. For notwithftanding all that 
 has yet been done, or ever will be done, the 
 greateft part of mankind will continue God's ene- 
 mies, and the devil's (laves •, corrupt in their difpo- 
 fitions, and *' vefiels of wrath fitted for eternal de- 
 " ftrudlion." Is there any room for debate, which 
 of thefe fchcmes rcfleds moft honor on God, and 
 Jefus Chrift, and is moft benefici:il to men ? If any 
 are prepoftefted in favor of dodrines, they have been 
 taught, even from children, to revere as divine 
 truths, it may be hoped, they will fo far lay afide 
 prejudice as fairly and impartially to hear svhac 
 may be faid in proof of this •, as the good ofman^ 
 kind in common, as well as the honour of God, 
 and of his Son Jefus Chrift,- are clofely conoeded 
 with it, 
 
 C H A P- 
 
1 6 ^ie Proofs of Unlverfal Sahatwu 
 
 CHAPTER IL 
 
 Exhibiting the Proofs of the 7nain Point in 
 Debate. 
 
 THE way being thus prepared, I now come 
 to make it evident, that mankind univer- 
 fally^ according to the fcripttires^ Jhall^ in the finat 
 refult of things^ he happy. And I am in no ftrait 
 here for want of forcible arguments, as thofe 
 may be ready to imagine, who have been accuf- 
 tomed to read the Bible under a itrong bias in 
 favor of contrary principles. This was the man- 
 ner, I freely own, in which I formerly read the 
 facred fcriptures : Nor could I, for a while, with- 
 out confiderable difficulty, confult them upon the 
 prefent point unreilrained from previoufly im- 
 bibed fentiments. It was with care and pains 
 that I brought myfelf fo far to fufpefl the truth 
 of common do6trines, as to be able, with toler- 
 able freedom of mind, to enquire whether this 
 had a jufl foundation in the word of God, or not. 
 But when I had once difengaged myfelf from the 
 influence of former notions, fo as to be able to 
 look into the fcriptures, with a readinefs to receive 
 
 whatever 
 
The Proofs ofUniverfal Sahatmt. 17 
 
 whatever they fliould teach for truth, it was 
 truly furprifin^io me, to find in them fuch evi- 
 dent traces oi ilie dodrine I am now going to 
 prove to be a rcvealed one. And indeed the dif- 
 ficulty, in tlii5part of my fubjed:, is not fo much 
 to find good evidence, as to colled it together 
 from the various parts of the Bible, and range ic 
 in fuch order, as that the reader may eafily have 
 a clear and diftind view of it, and be able, with- 
 out perplexity, to judge upon it, in its full and 
 united force. 
 
 The feveral texts, containing this evidence, I 
 fhall bring to view under five or fix propofitions : 
 Only defining that the produced texts may be con- 
 fidered, not apart from each other, but in connec- 
 tion. What I rely on as proof, in the prefenc 
 argument, is, the refult of all thefe texts, not con- 
 fidered fingly, but in one conjund view : Though, 
 perhaps, moil of the texts, taken feparately, will 
 appear to have confiderable force, and fome of 
 them to be ftrongly conclufive even of themfelves 
 alone. 
 
 PROPOSITION I. 
 
 ** From the time that fin entered into the world 
 •' by the firft man Adam, Jefus Chrifl is the per- 
 " {on through whom i and upon whofe account^ happ> 
 " nefs is attainable by any of the human race." 
 
 I am ready to think, the Aoyo?, who, if we may 
 believe the fcripture, certainly cxifted before the 
 
 C creation 
 
1 8 'ihe Proofs of Vnlverfal Salvation. 
 
 creation of this world, would have been employed 
 in the government of it, and of mankind in par- 
 ticular, in order to their being formed to a meet- 
 nefs for the final fruition of God, in glory, if 
 Adam had not finned. But be this as it will, 
 'tis undoubtedly true, that, fince the entrance of 
 fin and mifery into the world, he is the glorious 
 pfrfonage, through whofe mediatory intervention, 
 the dlfpiays of God's goodnefs are made to the 
 fons of men, and that in particular, which will 
 fix any of them in final and eternal happinefs. 
 Hence he is reprefented, as far back as the days 
 of Adam, " as the feed of the woman, who fnould 
 *' bruife the ferpent's head (a).^^ Hence he is fpoken 
 of, in the times of Abraham, as one "in whom all 
 '* nations," yea, " all families, of the earth, fhould be 
 *' blefiied (h)" Hence thofe types and figures, un- 
 der the Mofaic difpenfation, which derived their 
 principal value from the reference they had to 
 that facrifice of himfelf, which, in the fullnefs of 
 time, he v/as to offer up to God to put away fin. 
 Hence the prophetic defcripticns, fcattered all 
 over the v^ritings of the Old TefLament, pointing 
 out his office and charafler, as the Saviour and 
 King of men. And hence, in fine, thofe numerous 
 pafi^ages in the Apoflolic writings, which afcribc 
 it to his mediatory undertaking for men, that 
 they are prepared for, and finally crowned with, 
 eternal life ; in confequence whereof, the redeem- 
 
 (m) Gen. iii. 15. (hj Gen. xii. 3. 
 
 cd 
 
The F roofs oflJniverfal Salvation. 19 
 
 ed are brought in, finging that hymn of praife to 
 him, Rev. i. 5, 6, " Unto him that loved us, and 
 " wafhed us from our fins in his own blooJ, and 
 " hath made us kings and priefts to God, and his fa- 
 " ther; to him be glory and dominion for ever and 
 " ever. Amen." — Bud need not enlarge here. This 
 is a point that will not be difputed, ac lead, by 
 thofe with whom I am now concerned. 
 
 PROPOSITION II. 
 
 "The obedience of Cbrifiy and eminently His 
 ** obedience to deaSb^ when he had afllinied our 
 *' flefh, in the fulinefs of time, is the ground or 
 '' reafon upon which it hath pleafed God to make 
 *' happinefs attainable by any of the race of 
 " Adam." 
 
 Hence we are faid to be '' reconciled to God by 
 '* the death of his fon (c) j" to '' have redemption 
 " through his blood, the forgivcnefs of fins (d) •/' 
 to be " redeemed from the curfe of the law," by 
 '* his being made a curfe for us (e) •," to be "made 
 *' righteous through his obedience (f) ;" and to ob- 
 tain " the juftification of life through his righteouf- 
 " nefs (g)" And hence, in a word, eternal life, 
 which is the fum of all fpiritual and heavenly 
 blefllngs, is faid to be " the gift of God through 
 ** our Lord Jefus Chrift (b)? 
 
 (c) Rom. V. 10. (d) Eph. J. 7. (e) Gal. iii. 13. 
 
 (f) Rom. V, 19, (g) Rom. v. i3. (h) Rom. vi. 21. 
 
 C 2 It 
 
20 "The Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 It- would be too great a digrefiion, and beyond 
 the defign of this prefent work, to ftop here to 
 fix the precife 'kxii^^ in v/hich the obedience and 
 death of Chrift may be confidered as the reafon 
 of God's making the grant of final happinefs in 
 the gofpel. It will be fufficient, to our prefent 
 purpofe, to fay only in general, that it was with a 
 view to the obedience and death of Chrift, upon 
 this account^ upon this grcundy for this reafon^ that 
 God was pleafed to make the gofpel promife of a 
 glorious immortality to the miferable fons of men. 
 And in this, thus generally exprefied, there is an 
 agreement on all fides, each explaining the matter 
 according to their own fchemes. 
 
 PROPOSITION III. 
 
 *' Chrift died, not for a fele^l number of men 
 " only, but for mankind univerfally^ and without 
 " exception or limitation,'* 
 
 The facred writers are fingularly emphatical in 
 exprefting this truth. They could not indeed 
 have been more full and peremptory in de- 
 claring it, had they intended to guard againft 
 men's ftraining their words to another meanins:. 
 They fpeak not only of Chrift*s " dying for 
 " us (i),'* " for our fins (k),'' "for finners (I),'* 
 *' for the ungodly (m)" "for the unjuft (n) j" but 
 
 OJ I Thef. V. 10. CV I Cor, xv, 3. fij Rom. v. 8. 
 {mj Rom. V. 6. fmj i Pet. iii. 18. 
 
 affirm. 
 
T'he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 2 1 
 
 affirm, in yet more extenfive terms, that he died 
 " for the world C^^," *' for the whole world (p) ;" 
 yea, that they might not be mifunderftood, they 
 fay? that God " laid on him the iniquities of us 
 *' all f^j," that be " gave his life a ranfoni for 
 *' all (r) ;" yea, that he " tailed death for every 
 *' man f/J." And, as though it were on purpofe 
 to prevent a mifconception of this extenfive de- 
 fign of his death, he commifTioned his apoftles, 
 ?nd fcnt them, forth to " preach repentance, and re- 
 " miffion of fins, through his name, to all na- 
 '' tions {t) •," yea, " to every" reafonable "creature 
 " under heaven (u) :" which he could not have 
 done, in confiftency with wifdom, or fincerity, 
 or mercy, if, in virtue of his death, the forgive- 
 nefs of fins, and eternal life, had not been attain- 
 able by all the fons of men. 
 
 I know there are fome, who, notwithilanding all 
 thefe texts, fo ftrongly exprefllve of the univer- 
 fality of Ch rift's death, are fixed in the opinion, 
 that he died only for the ele6l, that is, a few com- 
 paratively of the human race. But it would, in 
 my apprehenfion, be a mifpending of time and la- 
 bour to argue with men, fo blinded with prejudicate 
 notions, as thofe very evidently mud be, who can 
 ferioufly go about to contrive fliifts to evade the 
 meaning of fuch language as the fcripture has 
 ufed upon this head. They might as eafily elude 
 
 (0) John i. 29.— iii. 16, 17. (p) i John ii. 2. 
 
 (q) Ha. liii. 6. (r) i Tim. ii. 6. (/) Heb. ii. 9. 
 
 (t) Mat. xxviii. 19, (u) Mark xvi. 15. 
 
 C 3 the 
 
22 T^he T roofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 the fenfe of any other words, this truth could 
 have been delivered in. — But it is not my pur- 
 pofe to infifl here ; not having come as yet to 
 that which is peculiar to the prefent fyftem. 
 
 Only, before I proceed, I v/ould make this ge- 
 neral remark, that, if Chrlft died for all, the 
 fcheme we are eftablifhing perfcdlly falls in with 
 the great defign of his death. And 'tis far more 
 reafonable to believcj that the whole human kind, 
 in confequence of his death, v^^ill finally be faved,, 
 than that the greater part of them fiiould perifli. 
 More honor is hereby reflected on God \ greater 
 virtue is attributed to the blood of Chrift llied on 
 the crofs -, and, infcead of dying in vain, as to 
 any real good that will finally be the event, with 
 refpefl to the greateft part of mankind, he will 
 be miade to die to the beft and nobleft purpofe, 
 even the eternal happinefs of a whole world of 
 intelligent and moral beings. 
 
 PROPOSITION IV. 
 
 " It is the purpofe of God, according to his 
 " good pleafure, that mankind univerfally^ in con- 
 " fequence of the death of his Son Jefus Chrift, 
 " fhall certainly and finally he y^W."— The texts 
 that afcertain this, are thofe that follow : 
 
 The firft is Rom. v. 12, to the end. I fhall, 
 that I may convey my fenfe of this fcripture in 
 the faircil and eafiefl way, in the firft place fet 
 
 it 
 
The Proofs ofUnherfal Sahatlon. 23 
 
 it down with a paraphrafe, containing what I take 
 to be its true meaning-, I fhall then juftify the 
 paraphrafe by critical notes ; and finally apply the 
 notes and paraphrafe to the main point in view. 
 
 Text. Paraphrase. 
 
 1 2. Wherefore^ as For this caiife or reafon ( i ) 
 by one man fm enter- we have received reconcilia- 
 ed into theworld^and tion by Jefus Chrifl, namely, 
 death by fin^ and fo becaufe as fin entered into the 
 death faffed upon all world by the one man Adam, 
 men, for that all and death by his fin in eating 
 have finned, of the forbidden tree, and thus 
 
 (2), by this fin of his, death 
 hath come upon all men, 
 whereupon^ upon which^ in con- 
 fequence ofwhich^ they have all 
 Jinned (3): — [That all have 
 finned, and yet that '^ death 
 *' palTed upon all," by means 
 of the fin of the one man 
 Adam, as I obferved in the 
 foregoing verfe, and would 
 briefly prove before I proceed 
 to finifh the comparifon I there 
 began, is exceeding evident; 
 
 13. For until the for all along, from the time 
 law fin was in the of Adam's lapfe to iht giv^ 
 worlds hut fin is not ing the law by Mofes, fin 
 imputed where there was in the world (4) : But 
 is no law, whatever fin may, in its own 
 
 C 4 nature, 
 
24 ^he F roofs ofUnherfal Salvation. 
 
 Text. 
 
 14. Neverthelefs^ 
 death reigned from 
 Ada^n to MofeS'i even 
 over thofe that had 
 not ftnned after the 
 fimiliiude of Adam's 
 tranfgreffwn'i who is 
 the figure of him that 
 was to come. 
 
 1 5. But not as the 
 
 offence^ fo alfo is the 
 free gift. For if. 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 nature, be fuppofed to de- 
 fervc, it is not reafonable to 
 fuppofe, that it fhould be uni- 
 verlally reckoned to death, 
 when no law is in being that 
 makes death the fpecial pe- 
 nalty of tranfgrefTion : And 
 yet, death reigned thus uni- 
 verfally through the whole 
 period of time between Adam 
 and Mofes, and over thofe 
 too (5) who did not violate, 
 as they might have done, a 
 pofitive command of God, 
 " after the fimJlitude of A- 
 " dam's tranfgrefiion," be- 
 tween whom and " him that 
 *' was to come," namely, 
 the Meffah^ there is a like- 
 nefs (6) as to the damage oc- 
 cafioned by the one, and the 
 gift beftowed through the 
 other : Not that the damage 
 occafioned by the lapfe of the 
 
 one man Adam, and the ad- 
 
 through the offence vantage arifing from the free 
 
 ■€f one^manyhe dead\ gift through the one man 
 
 much more the grace Jefus Chrift, exadlly corre- 
 
 of God, and the gift fpond to each other; for if 
 
 hy grace ^ which is by the many, that is, all men, are 
 
 one fubjedled 
 
The Proofs of Unherfal Sahatmt. 25 
 
 Text. 
 one 7nan^ J^f^^ Chrift^ 
 bath abounded unto 
 many. 
 
 16. And not as it 
 was by one that ftn- 
 nedy fo is the gift : 
 for the judgment was 
 by one to condem- 
 nation *, but the free 
 gift is of many of- 
 fences unto jujiifica- 
 tion. 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 fubjeded to death through 
 the lapfe of the one man 
 Adam, the orace of God, 
 and the gift by this grace of 
 his (7), which grace is be- 
 llowed through the one man 
 Jefus Chrift(8), hath much 
 more abounded unto the fame 
 many^ or all men. And not 
 as the damage fto repeat 
 what I obferved in the be- 
 ginning of the former verfe, 
 that I may be more expli- 
 cit in opening myfelf upon 
 a matter of fuch importance ; 
 I fay, not as the damage (9) 
 through the " one man that 
 " finned," that is in the one 
 inftance in which he was 
 tried (10), fo is the gift 
 through the one man Jefus 
 Chrift : For the judicial fen- 
 ten ce took rife ( 1 1 ) from the 
 lapfe of the one man, and pro- 
 ceeded to condemnation, con- 
 demnation fubjed^ing man, 
 kind to mortality, and there- 
 ppon to fin alfo ^ but the gift 
 takes rife from the many fins 
 which men commit in the 
 courfc 
 
Z6 The Proofs ofUitiverfal Salvation. 
 
 Text. Paraphrase. 
 
 courfe of their lives, and pro- 
 ceeds, in oppofition to the 
 power and demerit of them 
 all, fo as finally to terminate 
 in jullification, juftification 
 including in it their delive- 
 rance from fm as well as 
 death, their being made 
 I ^ righteous as well as reigning 
 
 in life. And it is quite rea- 
 fonable to think thus of the 
 
 17. For if hy one matter; for if, by the lapfe 
 ffian^s offence^ death of the one man, death, in all 
 reigned by one\ much its confequences (12), reign- 
 more they which re- ed through this one man over 
 cetve abundance of all men \ much more Ihall thefe 
 gr ace ^ and of the gift all men y who are the recip- 
 cf right eoufnefs^fljall €nts{i^) of the abounding 
 reign in life by one^ of the grace of God, and of 
 Jefus Chrifl. the gift that fhall make them 
 
 righteous C14), finally reign 
 in life through the one man 
 Jefus Chrift.] I fay there- 
 fore (15) (to refume now, 
 and purfue, the comparifon I 
 
 18. therefore as began in the 12th verfe) as it 
 ly the offence of one^ was by the lapfe of the one 
 
 judgment came upon man Adam (16) that theju^ 
 
 dl men to condemna^ dicial adl, " duft thou art, 
 
 tion\ even fo by the *' and unto dud thou fhah 
 
 righ' *' return/"* 
 
216^ Proofs of TJnherfal Salvation 
 
 Text. 
 righteoufnefs of ens, 
 the free gift came 
 upon all men unto 
 juflification of life. 
 
 27 
 
 " return," 
 
 19. For as hy 
 one man's difobedience 
 many were madefm- 
 ners \ fo hy the obedi- 
 ence ofonejhall ma?iy 
 Is made righteous. 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 
 came upon all 
 men (17) fubjedtlng them to 
 death *, even fo by the righte- 
 oufnefs of the one man Jefus 
 Chrift, the oppofite advan- 
 tageous gift is come upon 
 the fame all men, which de- 
 livers them from death to 
 reign in life for ever (18), 
 And this may be admitted 
 without difficulty -, for, to 
 proceed in the comparifon, 
 as by the difobedience of the 
 one man Adam, themany^ or 
 all men, in coiifequence of a 
 divine conflitution, fubjedl- 
 ing them to a frail mortal 
 flate, occafioned by this dif- 
 obedience of his, became Ji n- 
 ners {icf) ', even fo by the 
 obedience of the one man 
 Jefus Chrill, the fame many, 
 or all men, in confequence of 
 an oppofite conltitution, 
 grounded on this obedience 
 of his, fliall become righteous 
 ferfons (20}, and as fuch be 
 iubjedtively qualified for the 
 juftification of life, or, what 
 means 
 
2 8 The F roofs of TJniverfal Sahatwn. 
 
 Text. 
 
 20. Moreover^ the 
 law entered that the 
 offence might abound: 
 but where Jin abound- 
 ed, grace did much 
 wore abound. 
 
 21. That as Jin 
 
 hath reigned unta 
 
 death J 
 
 Paraphrase. - 
 means the fame thing, an 
 eternal reign in happy life. 
 
 Now (21), the introduc- 
 tion of the law among the 
 Jews is fo far from being an 
 objedion, as fome perhaps 
 may be ready to think, a- 
 gainft what 1 have been fay- 
 ing, in the above verfes, that 
 it perfedly coincides with 
 the dt^ign of it : to which 
 purpofe let it be obferved, 
 the law was introduced a- 
 mong the Jews, a fmall part 
 of mankind i that fm, upon 
 fuppofition of its being com- 
 mitted, might abound, be 
 increafed, heightened, in its 
 malignity and guilt (22): But 
 then it ought to be remem- 
 bered, that the grace I have 
 been fpeaking of abounds 
 much beyond the utmoft in- 
 creafed malignity, or guilt, 
 of fin, by means of the law 
 (23) : Infomuch that it may 
 be juftly concluded, and fairly 
 faid, as fin hath univerfally, 
 reigned by death ; fo fhall 
 
 grace 
 
The Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 29 
 
 Text. Paraphrase. 
 
 death \ even fo might grace reign as univerfall)\ 
 
 grace reign through and trium-phantly^ through 
 
 right ecu fnefs unto e- righteoufnefs, unto eternal 
 
 ternal life^ by Jefus life (24% by Jekis Chrift 
 
 Ch'ifi our Lord^ our Lord. 
 
 NOTES in fupport of the above Paraphrase. 
 
 (i) For this caufe or reafonj] The Englifh phrafe 
 that mod exadlly anfwcrs the true import of the 
 Greek one, ^loc tovtoj is, as I apprehend, for this 
 caufe or reafon. There is always an argumentative 
 conne6lion between the difcourfe that goes be- 
 fore, and that follows after, this demonftrative 
 pronoun ; and its proper ufe is, to point out the 
 reafon, caufe, or ground, of this conne6lion« 
 Only, it ought to be particularly minded, the caufe 
 or reafon of this connexion is fometimes to be 
 found in what goes before ^\% touto, and fometimes 
 in what follows after it. It is ufed here in the 
 latter fenfe. The words that follow ha, ro^ro^ viz. 
 *-"• As by one man fin entered into the world," &c. 
 are brought in as the proof or illultration of fomc 
 fpregoing words ; and the defign of this pronoun 
 is to point out the rational connexion there is be- 
 tween them. The only difficulty is to fay pre- 
 ciiely what thefe foregoing words are. It feems 
 evident to me, they are the immediately preceding 
 ones, ver. 1 1, " by whom [that is, Jefus Chrift] we 
 !' have received the [above fpoken of] reconcili- 
 
3o "The Proofs ofXJniverfal Snhaticn. 
 
 *' ation." Accordingly, the defign of J'ta tout© In 
 this T2th verfe, and &^a eui? in the i8th verfe, is to 
 introduce a proof of the credibility, the fitnefs, or 
 reafonablenefs, of what the apoiile had faid in the 
 1 ith verfe, namely, that " we have received reconci^ 
 *' liation^^ and have received it by Jefus Chrifi^ 
 The thought intended to be conveyed by thefe 
 particles, I fuppofe, is this ; that fince fin and 
 death entered into the world, and have reigned 
 over all men, without any wilful fault of theirs, 
 but purely by the difobedience of one man ; for 
 this caufe or reafon^ it feemed agreeable to the 
 infinite wifdom and grace of God, that this 
 damage fnould be repaired, and mankind refcued 
 from the ftate of fin and death, to which they 
 had been thus reduced, in a way analogous hereto, 
 viz. by the obedience or righteoufnefs of one 
 m.an. As if the apoflle had faid, * I obfcrved 
 ^juft now, that by Jefus Chrifl we hdiVt reconci- 
 ' liaiion with God •, and it is for this reafon that 
 
 * the free gift, by the righteoufnefs of one, is 
 
 * come upon all men to juflification, namely, 
 
 * becaufe it was in fuch a way, viz. by the 
 
 * offence of one, that judgment cam>e upon all 
 ' men to condemnation.' And I imagine the 
 apoftle's prim.ary view in ufing thefe conned- 
 ino- particles was to (hew, that as the change 
 from a flate of righteoufnefs and life to a ftate 
 of fin and death was certainly introduced by one 
 man (as he has proved, ver. 13, 14) ; it is equally 
 credible, that a change back again, from this ftate 
 
 of 
 
^The Proofs ofVnlverfal Salvation. 3 1 
 
 of fin and death to the contrary flate of righteonf-, 
 nefs and life, (hould hkewife be made by one 
 man -, the flrcfs being plainly laid upon this, 
 that each of theie changes.^ great as they were, and 
 univerfal in their confequences, v/as efFedcd by 
 oneftngkperfon. 
 
 It will perhaps be here faid, it has Indeed often 
 been faid, that the apodle, in the foregoing nth 
 verfe, is fpeaking oi believers^ and the reconciliation 
 they have received •, for which reafon, the advan- 
 tage by Chrift, treated of in the following para- 
 graph, and introduced with aioc, rovro, ought to be 
 confidered as their appropriate privilege. Dr. 
 Doddridge attributes it to non-attention to this 
 thought, that many commentators have given a 
 wrong fenfe to this palTage of fcripture. His 
 words are thefe, [Note (e) on this chapter.] ' As 
 
 * this 1 2th verfe is an inference from the nth, it 
 ' feems evident that believers only are fpoken of j 
 ' for it is plain, from comparing the 9th, loth, 
 ' and nth verfes with the firft, that it is only zhty 
 
 * who are juftified by faith, who have peace with 
 
 * God, and who joy in Chrifl as having received 
 
 * the reconciliation. And this obvious remark 
 ' clears the following pafTage of difficulties, which 
 
 * would be exceeding great, if it were to be con- 
 ' fidered without regard to this conneflion, and 
 
 * which have in fa6l miQed many commentators, 
 ' who, for want of attending to it, have plunged 
 
 * themfelves, and their readers, into great per- 
 
 * plexity, and given a fenfe to the paragraph of 
 
 9 ! which 
 
jl ^be Proofs ofUmverfal Salvation, 
 
 * which it is by no means capable.' It is to mt 
 very furprizing, that a gentleman of Dr. Dod- 
 dridge's clear difcernment lliould be able to fatis- 
 fy himfclf of the truth of his own interpretation, 
 upon the force of this remark. It fliduld feem as 
 evident as words can well make it, that the apoftle 
 is running a comparifon betwcfen Adam and Chrill, 
 as the rei"pe61:ive oppofite fources of death and life 
 to mankind univerfally. When he fays, ver. 15. 
 *' If through the offence of one many be dead, 
 *' much more hath the grace of God abounded 
 *' unto many\'* what a (trange interpretation mud 
 it be, to underlland by the firft mam^ all mankinds 
 and by the lecond, believers only^ that is, a very- 
 few of mankind ? efpecially, if it be remembered, 
 that the apoRie is here profeffedly fhowing how 
 piucb the advantage lay on Chrifl's fide of the 
 comparifon. But when he fays, in the 18th verfe, 
 *' As by the offence of one judgment is come 
 *' upon all men | £*? tt^^ci/t^? a^/O^w-rou?] unto con- 
 *' demnation ; even fo by the righteoufnefs of one 
 *' the free gift came upon all men [ft? Travra? aj^S^w- 
 " jTQvq'] unto juftification of life," it can be no other 
 than a flat contradi6lion to theexprefs words of the 
 apoftle himfelf to fay, that, in the latter part of this 
 comparifon, not ^// ?nen are meant, but believers onlyy 
 that is, a few of them. If any can bring themfelves 
 to embrace a fenfe of this paffage, that is attended 
 with fo grofs an abfurdity, I fee not but they are pre- 
 pared to make the fcripture fpeak what they pleafe. 
 — But to return to the pretended ground of this in- 
 
 terpretation^ 
 
The Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 3 3 
 
 tcrpretation, the apoftie's fpeaking of believers 
 only, in the nth vcrfe, when he fays " by whom 
 *' we have received the reconciliation." And in 
 order to fet this matter, becaufe a very important 
 one, in a clear point of light, I mufi: defire the 
 reader to bear with me, while I lay before his view 
 the general defign and connection of the apoule's 
 difcourfe, from the beginning of the epiflie to the 
 1 2th verfe of this 5th chapter. 
 
 Let it then be obferved, after fultably introdu- 
 cing the epiftlcj he makes it his main buiinefs, till 
 he comes to the 20th verfe of the 3d chapter, to 
 prove, that both Jews and Gentiles, that is, m.an- 
 kind univerfally, were under fin •, infom-uch that 
 " every mouth was (lopped, and the whole world 
 " become guilty before God." Upon this proof, 
 from the 20th vcrfe of the 3d chapter to the end 
 of it, he opens and efiabliflies the gofpel method of 
 juftification, namely, that by faith through Chriil, 
 in oppofition to a claim founded on works done in 
 obedience to ftridl rigid law. He then, in the 
 4th chapter, illuftrates this method of the finner's 
 juftificaiion by the example of Abraham, whofe 
 *' faith was counted to him for righteoufnefs," that 
 is, was as available with God, in the great affair 
 of his juftification, as though it had been a perfe6t 
 righteoufnefs: Which example of juftification 
 was written, ver. 23, 24, '^ not for his fake alone, 
 but for us alfo," us Jews and Gentiles, " to whom 
 *' faith fhall be imputed," to the fame merciful 
 
 D purpofe. 
 
34 ^^^ Proofs of Univerfal Sakation. 
 
 purpofe, " if we believe on him that raifed up Jefus 
 " our Lord from the dead j" upon which thofe ob- 
 fervable words, in the 25th verfe are added, " who 
 *' was delivered for our offences," the offences of 
 us Jews and Gentiles, of us the whole world, who 
 had become guilty before God, and were therefore 
 incapable of being juftified upon the foot of mere 
 law, "and was railed again for our juftification," 
 that we might be brought back to a capacity of 
 being juflified, that we might be put into the 
 gofpel method of juftification by faith reckoned 
 for righteoufnefs. He now proceeds, in the 
 former part of the 5th chapter, to mention the 
 great advantages connected with, and confequent 
 upon, this method of juftification he had opened 
 and eflablifhed •, introducing the juftified by faith, 
 the perfons he fpeaks of in the firft verfe, as 
 boafting, or glorying, and upon jufl reafons, in 
 three things efpecially. i. They gloried^ or 
 hoafted^ [fo the word is in the original, K<3iu;^>i(rif, 
 a noun from the fame verb, is the word ufed, 
 chap. iii. 27, when the apoftle demands "where 
 *' is boafting then ?"] " in hope of the glory of 
 •' God," ver. 2. Mankind univerfally, and not be- 
 lievers only, are fo far reconciled, changed in 
 their ftate, through Chrift, as that they are made 
 capable of obtaining this glory ; [this the apoftle 
 had proved before, as we have k^n above ; and 
 further proves afterwards, as we (hall fee pre- 
 fcntly] though believers only, fuch as are juftified 
 
 by 
 
^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation* 35 
 
 by faith, can, in the fenfe here meant, boaft, in 
 hope of this glory. 2. They boafted, or gloried 
 in their fufferings, ver. 3. And why ? Becaiife 
 they knew, ver. 3, 4, 5, " that tribulation," duly 
 improved, would *' work patience; and patience 
 " experience j and experience an increafe of 
 ** hope •," fuch hope " as would not make them 
 afhamed." And why did they know this ? Becaufe, 
 ver. 5, a fenfe of " God's love was poured into 
 ** their hearts by the Holy Ghoft.'* And, having 
 here mentioned the love of God, he goes on, in 
 the 6th, 7th, and 8th verfes, to fet forth the ex- 
 ceeding greatnefs of it, from this confideration in 
 particular, that it was [mind this] while we were 
 without firerigth'i in a weak helplefs ftate, inca- 
 pable of delivering ourfelves from fm and death, 
 ungodly^ and ftnners^ that Chrift died for us. 
 Surely, by us^ he does not here mean the juftified 
 by faith only, of whom he had before been fpeak- 
 ing, but finners in common, the Jews and Gentiles, 
 of whom he had faid, chap. iii. that they were all 
 under fm ; yea, " all the world,'* which he there 
 declares to have *' become guilty before God." 
 And as though he had it in exprefs view to lead us 
 into this conftrudlion, he fays, ver. 6, *' when we 
 ** were without ftrength Chrift died.** For whom t 
 Mind here, he does not fay for usy nor for us 
 while we were ungodly \ bur, in general, for the 
 ungodly^ vTTE^ Gcci^uv (a) ; which plainly points out 
 D 2 the 
 
 (aj It may be obferved here. Dr. Doddridge bimfelf, in 
 
 hii 
 
36 T^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 the fenfe of the perfonal pronouns we and «J, tilt 
 we arrive ro the i ith verfe, extending them to Tin- 
 ners in common. And, in truth, the doctrine of 
 ■ juflification, as (ti forth in this epiftle, can have no 
 other juft foundation in true reafon than this, that 
 Chrift has died for finners univerfaliy ; which is 
 the plain do(5lr!ne of the whole New Teilament. 
 The apoftle, having thus magnified the love of 
 God from the charader of the perfons for whom 
 he fent his fon to die, goes on, in the gth verfe, to 
 teach us what to argue herefrom, '' much more then 
 " being 7ic'W]u^\'aQd by his blood, we ihall be faved 
 " from wrath through him." By the ^4;^ here, we 
 mufl by no means underftand believers, only as 
 they arc Included in the v/eak, ungodly, and finners, 
 for whom Chrifl died j that is, ail who were in- 
 capable of jollification upon the foot of mere law, 
 
 his note upon this word ungodly^ oppofes Mr. Locke, who un- 
 derilands by it Gentiles, as he does alfo by the words, nveakt 
 finnersy enemies, ^c. faying, " They are undoubtedly included, 
 ** but it Teems very inconfiftent (and 1 join with him in 
 ** faying fo) with the whole llrain of the apoftle's argument, 
 ** in the foregoing chapters, to confine it to them. Compare 
 ** chap. iii. 9, 20, 22, 23. iv, 5, I therefore all along 
 ** explain fuch paffages in the moj} extenjive terms; and 
 *' think nothing in the whole New Teftament more plain, 
 ** than that the gofpel fuppofcs eijery human creature, to 
 ** whom it is addrciTed, to be in a ftats of guilt and condem- 
 ** nation, and incapable of being accepted with God any 
 '* otherwife than through the grace and mercy it proclaims. 
 ** Compare John iii. 16, 36, &c. and efpecially i John i. 10, 
 *' than which no afleition can be more pofitive and exprefs." 
 
 9 as 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 37 
 
 as having " become guilty before God," chap. iii. 
 19, 20, 21. For thefe all now^ under the gofpel, 
 ftand juftified in fadl by the blood of Chrift ; that 
 is to fay, they are by his death put into fuch a 
 ftate, as that they may have faith imputed 
 to them for righteoufnefs, and To are capable, in 
 this way, of obtaining eternal life. It is a grofs 
 miftake to think, that the apoflle, in this verfe, is 
 fpeaking of that juftification he had, in the firft 
 verfe of the chapter, connedcd with faith-, and 
 for this decifive reafon, becaufe, if we undcrftand 
 him in this fenfe, we (hall abfolutely deftroy the 
 force of the argument he here ufes *, for as fal- 
 vation from wrath is one thing effentially included 
 in that juftincation which is the refult of true 
 faith, it would be ridiculous to argue, " inuch more 
 " beingjuftified," meaning hereby this juitification, 
 " we fhall be favedfrom wrath." Befides, the parti- 
 cle I'uv, noit\ conneded v^ith the juftification here 
 treated of, is emphatical ; making it clear, that 
 the apoftle is not to be underftood of jufti- 
 fication at the great day, but of juftification that 
 had at that prcfent time been compleated. It was 
 now^ in the then gofpel day, that the perlbns here 
 fpoken qf ftood juftified by the blood of Chrift, 
 fo juftified as that their falvation was rendered 
 poffible ; they were, in one word, fo juftified as 
 to be freed from the condem,nation they had been 
 fubjedled to through the lapfe of the one man 
 Adam -, as the apoftle has explained this matter at 
 large, from the 12th verfe to the end of the chap- 
 
 D 3 ter. 
 
38 T^he Proofs ofVniverfal Salvation, 
 
 ter (h). And, in this view of the words, the 
 apoftle might, with the greateft reafon, as well as 
 force, argue, *' much more being juftified, we Ihall 
 ** be faved from wrath." And, perhaps, upon 
 trial, it will be found, that there is neither reafon nor 
 force in his argument, upon the common inter- 
 pretation. He goes on, in the next, or loth verfe, 
 to illuftrate the pertinency and ftrength of the 
 above argument. '^ For if, when we were enemies, 
 *' we were reconciled to God by the death of his 
 *' Son; much more being reconciled we fhall be 
 " faved by his life." By the voe here, we muft 
 underftand the fame perfons fpoken of in the 
 former verfe, that is, not believers, only as they 
 are included in the ungodly and finners for whom 
 Chrift died. And 'tis obfervable, it was while 
 they were enemies^ that is, enemies by being un^ 
 godly zndjfmers^ that they were reconciled. The 
 words exprefsly declare this. Now, in what pofTible 
 fenfe, confidently with the fcope of the new= 
 
 {ij It appears to me indifputably clear, that a double 
 juftification is fpoken of by the apoftle Paul. The one means 
 the fame thing with abfolution at the day of judgment, and 
 is always conne6^ed with a charader, commonly faith. The 
 other is, not that which Dr. Taylor contends for, a vifiblc 
 Handing in the kingdom of God, in oppofition to heathenifm ; 
 but the advantageous ftate mankind univerfally and abfor 
 lutely are put into, through Jefus Chrift, in oppofition %o the 
 difadvantageous one they were fubjeded to through the lapfe 
 of Adam. I might largely explain and confirm this double 
 juftification; but it would take up too much room for a 
 notc» 
 
 teftament 
 
T!he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 39 
 
 teflament writings, can perfons, while enemies^ by 
 being ungodly m^djifiners^ be faid to be reconciled 
 to God, but in the fenfe in which we explained 
 their being juftified in the preceding verfe ? 'Tis 
 certain i\\q jujiification in that verfe, and the recori' 
 dilation in this, mean the fame thing, though fig- 
 nified by different allufions. And plainly, the 
 gofpel knows of no j unification or reconciliation 
 for fmners, while finners^ but their change of (late 
 in reaard of their condemnation through the one 
 man's lapfe, or its being made pofTible for them, 
 of the grace of God, through the death of Chrift, 
 to obtain falvation upon the foot of faith reckoned 
 for righteoufnefs, notwithftanding the fin of Adam, 
 and all their own perfonal fins added thereto. 
 [Critically read what is faid, fome pages onwards, 
 in illuftration of Col. i. 20; where all the texts in 
 the New Teltamenr, containing the words recon- 
 cile', reconciled^ reconciliationy are pa'-ticularly con- 
 fidered.] And, in this point of light, the apoftle's 
 reafoning, in this verfe, is (Irongly conclufive -, for 
 if it was, while we were all enemies, by being fin- 
 ners and ungodly, (believers themfelves as well as 
 others) that " we were reconciled to God," brought 
 back to a (late of peace and friendfhip with him 
 fo far as to be rendered capable of eternal life, 
 notwithftanding the condemnation we were under 
 through the lapfe of Adam, and our own perfonal 
 fins, "*' by the death of his Son : much more being 
 '* thus reconciled, we fliall be faved by his life-," 
 there can be no imaginable reafon to doubt, fince 
 
 D4 God 
 
40 T^he T roofs of Univerfal Salvation, 
 
 God has taken fuch an extraordinary flep as this, 
 whether he will go on till he has accomplifned his 
 Kind intentions towards us in our final falvation. 
 And, I would add here, 'tis eafy to fee how this 
 arguing of the apolile, though thus generally ex- 
 tended, is yet to the purpofe of proving, that the 
 believer's hope fhall not make him afhamed •, for 
 as believers, confidered as fmners in common with 
 the reft of Adam's pofterit}^ were absolutely juf- 
 tified, and reconciled to God, while they were 
 finners^ |g the fenfe above explained, the apoftle's 
 reafoning is firidlly conclufive with refpedl to this 
 point : though if it was not, it would not difprove 
 what we have offered, becaufe the apoftle, from 
 the 6th verfe to the end of the loth, is upon the 
 head of illuftrating the love of God, which he took 
 occafion to do, from having mentioned it in the 
 5ih verfe. ^. Believers boafted^ or gloried^ [the 
 fame word, in the original, is ufed here, as in the 
 foregoing inftances of glorying] in God, that is, a§ 
 their covenant God, and father, through our Lord 
 Jefus Chrift. And now come in the words *' by 
 " whom we have now received the reconcili- 
 " ation (c) •," that is, the change of ftate fpoken 
 of in the preceding verfe. It may be worthy of 
 
 (r) Mr. Taylor fays, in his note upon this verf-, •* I can- 
 ** not imagine what fhould induce our tranflators to render 
 *' KaT«^^a7•/5l/ by atonement^ when they render the verb 
 •* y-u-ruXhaaa-u by reconcile in the foregoing verfe, and in all 
 *' other places ; and y.ccTu'h'hayri in a 1 other places by recon' 
 *' cilia tion*'* Dr. Doddridge has a like note upon this, 
 verfe. 
 
 our 
 
^he 1? roofs ofVniverfal Salvation, 41 
 
 our remark here, 'tis common with the apoftle 
 Paul to join a verbal noun with A^jaSaj/w, inftead 
 of ufing the verb itfelf. For inllance, to 
 " receive condemnation," Rom. xiii. 2, is the 
 fame thing as to be condemned ; to " receive a 
 '* reward," i Cor. iii. 14, as to be rewarded-, 
 to " receive edifying," i Cor. xiv. 5, as to be 
 edified ; to " receive trial," Heb. xi. 0^6^ as to 
 experiment: fo to " receive reconciliation" is the 
 fam»e thing as to be reconciled. In what fenfe 
 now, is it here faid of believer?^, that by Jefus 
 Chrift they have been reconciled ? Evidently in 
 the fame fenfe in which the apoftle had faid, in 
 the foregoing verfe, " when we were enemies we 
 " were reconciled." The reconciliation intended, 
 is that change of ^\^t^ v^hich believers, v/hile 
 they were finners, in common with the reft of 
 mankind, v/ere brought into by the death of 
 Chrift •, as has been above explained. This the 
 word vuv, now^ confirais. For it was eminently 
 mw^ that is, in the gofpel day, in the times 
 of Chrift, and by his death, that they and all 
 mankind were put into this ftate of reconciliation. 
 The meaning of the apoftle therefore plainly and 
 briefly is, *' We believers glory or boaft in God, of 
 our intereft in, and relation to him as our cove- 
 nant God, through Jefus Chrift -, by whom we 
 were fo changed in our ftate, while enemies^ by 
 being finners and ungodly, in common with the 
 reft of mankind, as to be made capable of this 
 privilege, yea, and of final juftification, upon the 
 
 foot 
 
42 T^he Proofs of Univefal Salvation. 
 
 foot of faith reckoned for righteoufnefs," This, 
 I doubt not, is the true fenfe of the apoftle in 
 thefe words : and as it is a noble fenfe, fo it per- 
 fectly coincides with the former part of this 
 chapter, and the whole foregoing epiftle, as well 
 as the paragraph we have begun to illuftrate. 
 And, perhaps, it will appear, before we have done, 
 that it is the only fenfe that will make out a con- 
 fiftency in the apoftle's difcourfe. 
 
 (2) And thiis^ x^i ouTWf.] It is the opinion of 
 fome, and of no fmall note neither, that outw? 
 here anfwers to (^mn^ in the beginning of the verfe. 
 Accordingly, they make the fenfe of the apoftle to 
 be this : " As by one man fin and death entered into 
 the world, even fo^ fo alfoy hath death pafled upon 
 all men." But if the apoftle had intended, that the 
 particles outw^, and uc-Tn^^ in this 12th verfe, fhould 
 anfwer to each other fo as to compleat his fenfe, 
 he would have wrote ovTug xa», and not na* ovroog -, 
 for the xai, thus placed before ourwf, is plainly 
 copulative, joining the words that follow ovrus 
 with thofe that went before it, as in the paraphrafe. 
 There is the more weight in this criticifm, be- 
 caufe the ourw anfwering «?, in the 18th verfe, has 
 the xaci placed after, not before, it. The xoci has the 
 fame place in the 19th verfe, where it anfv/ers to 
 ojo-TTf^ ; and yet again, in the 21ft verfe. To which I 
 may add, that, throughout the New Teftament, 
 when ouTw or outw? are correlates to wo-Trf^, the >ca», 
 when ufed, as it moft commonly is, is invariably 
 placed after, never before, cutw or ourw?. Not 
 
 a fingle 
 
The Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 43 
 
 a fingle inftance to the contrary can be produced. 
 Befides, as there is fo evidently a comparifon car- 
 ried on, through this whole paragraph, between 
 the one man Adam and the one man Jefus 
 Chrift, it is far more natural, as well as reafonable, 
 to underftand this 12th verfe as beginning this 
 comparifon, and containing its former part only. 
 The 13th, 14th, 15th, 1 6th, and 17th verfes will 
 then obvioufly fall in by way of parenthefis, and 
 the comparifon be again taken up, and compleated, 
 in the i8th and 19th verfes. If the reader fliould 
 defire further fatisfadlion upon this point, he may 
 meet with it in Locke, Taylor, and Doddridge, 
 in loc. 
 
 (3) Whereupon all have finned.'] 'Tis to me very 
 furprifing, that this eafy natural conftrudion of 
 ^^ w izoLvxi^ vfxoiorov has never yet (that I know of) 
 been hit upon. It makes out a perfedlly good 
 connexion with the apoftle's reafoning in this 
 epillle, even from the firft chapter, the main fcopc 
 of which evidently is, to prepare the way for his 
 do6lrlne of juftijication upon the foot of grace 
 through Jefus Chrift^ by proving that mankind 
 univerfally have finned^ and conftrquently cannot be 
 juftified upon a claim founded on mere law. Nor 
 can it be faid, with juftice, that it gives the pre- 
 pofition f TT* a wrong fenfe \ for it takes it in the 
 very fenfe in which it is mod commonly ufed 
 throughout the New Tedament, when joined, as 
 here, with a dative cafe. I have now by me 
 rnore than threefcore examples, feleded from 
 
 thefe 
 
44 ^he Proofs of Univ&fal Salvation. 
 
 thefe writings only, bcfides others -, in vvliich it has 
 precifely the fame force I have given it in this paf- 
 fage; thjt is to lay, it ftands in them all to denote 
 the occafional caufe of the things fpoken of, or that 
 hy whicb^ through which^ upon which^ in confe^ 
 quence of which, they were as they are in thole 
 places reprefented. It lliaii fuffice at prefent to 
 mention only two or three inftances by way of 
 ipecimen. Thus,^ in Luke, v. 5, ettj, joined with 
 Tw prijwari cou, means upOfif or in confequence of. 
 The tranflation, in our Bibles, at thy word, per- 
 fectly agrees herevviih j for the particle at^ as 
 here ufed, has precifely the fame force with wpon^ 
 or in confeqiicnce of. So in i Cor. viii. ir, 
 where tin is joined with rn a-n -yvwo-f^, it has the 
 fame fenfe. The common verfion is, ''''through thy 
 •' knowledge (hall thy weak brother perifh :" but it 
 comes to one and the fame thing, whether nn be 
 here tranflated through, hy, upon, or in confluence of-, 
 for it certainly has the force of an occafional caufe, 
 In like manner, this fam.e prepofition, joined with 
 -Trao-n rn [ji^moi uy.m, is jullly rendered in our Bibles, 
 Philip, i. 3, " upon every remembrance of you." 
 'Tis true, I don't make the article w, in my way 
 of conftrudion, to agree either with <%i/9^cj7ro?^ or 
 ^ocvoiTci;, the only foregoing fubftantives. But this 
 is an objedion of no weight, becaufe it may as 
 well have for antecedent the whole foregoing fen- 
 tence. And thus the very phrafe, £<? w, is ufed, 
 and by the apoftle Paul too, in 2 Cor. v. 4, 
 *' For we that are in this tabernacle do groan. 
 
 " being 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 4^ 
 
 '* being burdened," [f;p w o\j ^iXoy^^v] " upon ivhich'^ 
 {groaning and being burdened] " we do not defire 
 " to be unclothed ; but to be clothed upon, that 
 '' mortality might be fwallowed up of life." In like 
 manner, if the preceding words, in the text under 
 confideration, namely, " and thus, in this way, 
 *' death haih pafied upon all men," be t. ken for 
 antecedent to w, and the prepofition tm^ joined 
 with it, be conftrued upon ivhich^ an eafy f-nfe 
 will be given to the vrords which next follow, all 
 have finned^ and, at the fame time, a very, imporranc 
 one \ yea, the very one in Vv^hich the^apodle had 
 ufed thefe words before. He mesns by .the cx- 
 prefTion, in this place, '' all have finned," pre- 
 cifeiy the fame thing as when he fald, chap. iii. 9, 
 all are under fm\ and again, vcr. 19, all the 
 world are become guilty before Cod -^^ zv.^ yet again, 
 ver. 23, all have finned. Only, in the text we are 
 upon, according to the fenfe I have given of his 
 words, he lets us into the true occqfwnal fource of 
 this univerfal defection, by carrying our view back 
 to Adam, through whofo lapf^ a v/eak, frail, 
 mortal nature has been tranfmitted to us, upon 
 ivhich, in confeq^uence of which ^ we have all finned 
 ourfelves, in our own perfons, as we mud do, if 
 we are jutlly, or even intelligibly, chargeable with 
 being finners at all. And there is the more reafon 
 to give in to this conftrudtion, becaufe the apoftlc 
 Paul, in all his epidle?, efpecially in this epiftle, 
 particularly in the 7th chapter, confidcrs our 
 hdiesy in their prefent frail, mortal fate, as the 
 
 true 
 
46 T^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 true fourcty by means of their appetites, of thaf 
 dominion which fin has over us. — But I have only 
 hinted the reafons, upon which I ground the above 
 conftrudtion of i(p w Trocvlf? »i^a^Tov ; becaufe I have 
 greatly enlarged upon them in the work, I had 
 occafion juft now to refer to, as defigned for a 
 Hill further illuftration of this. 
 
 (4) For from Adam to Mofes fin was in the 
 world*'] The apoftle, in the comparifon he had 
 begun in the former verfe, having mentioned two 
 difadvantages confequential upon Adam's lapfe, 
 viz. death's having pafTed upon all men, and their 
 having all finned, makes a paufc before he proceeds 
 to finilh it ; introducing, by way of parenthefis, a 
 fummary proof of what he had thus faid. It is 
 with this view he brings in the 13th and 14th 
 verfes, in which he endeavours to fhew, that all 
 have finned, and yet that it was through the one 
 man Adam that death hath paffed upon them. 
 " F<?r," fays he, " until the law fin was in the 
 *' world." The plain meaning is, that mankind 
 made it evident that they were finners, through 
 the whole fpace that intervened between Adam 
 and Mofes. The Jews could not be infenfiblc of 
 this, as the facred hiftory acquainted them with 
 the enormous wickednefs of the worki, during 
 this interval of time. But, left they fliould argue 
 from hence, that men were fubjedled to death for 
 their own fins, the apoftle goes on to prove the 
 contrary, by fhewing that they were thus fubjedled 
 on account of the lapfe of the one man Adam. 
 
 His 
 
^he T roofs ofTJniverfal S ah at ion. 47 
 
 His reafoning is to this purpofe : * Sin is not im- 
 puted when there is no law.' What he means is, 
 not that men can't be guilty of fin, when they 
 are not under a promulgate law like that of 
 Moles *, for he had faid, in the foregoing words, 
 that they had in facl finned before the giving of 
 fuch a law : But what he intends is, that fin is 
 not reckoned, brought to account, ought not to 
 be looked upon as being taxed with the forfeiture 
 of life, [fee Locke's note in loc.'\ when there is no 
 law in being with death as its affixed fandlion. 
 " Never thelefs^^^ fays he, " death reigned from 
 " Adam toMofes," that is, through the whole in- 
 terval between the lapfe and the giving of the law. 
 The confequence from whence is, that the true 
 caufe of this univerfal fubjedion to death mud be 
 fetched from the law given to Adam in Paradife, 
 " In the day thou eateft thereof thou Ihalt furely 
 " die i" for there was no other law that fct a 
 price upon fin, taxing it with the lofs of life. 
 
 If any fi^ould here aflc. Why does the apoflle go 
 back to the time before the giving of the law by 
 Mofes, to prove that mankind died in Adam? 
 the proper anfwer is. After the giving of the law 
 by Mofes, death, in a great number of cafes, was 
 the penalty with which tianfgrefiion was threaten- 
 ed. For which reafon, had he not fhewn that 
 death reigned in the v/orld, and univerfally too, 
 before there was any law in being which threat- 
 ened fin with death, his account of the reign of 
 death, through the lapfe of the one man Adam, 
 
 misht 
 
4§ ^he Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation^ 
 
 might have been objedled to: Whereas, 'tis now 
 unanfwerably clear and (Irong. 
 
 (5) And over thcje too.l I fuppore the apofllc 
 might now have in his thoughts the patriarchs 
 Abraham, Noah, and others, v/ho died, in com- 
 mon with the r^ft of the world, though they fin- 
 ned not after the fimilitude of Adam's tranf- 
 greflion, as they might have done, having re- 
 ceived a poficive command from God for the 
 trial of their obedience. The aui^ upon this fup- 
 pofition, befides having its common and mod 
 natural meaning, will be emphatical, giving an 
 additional force to the apoftle's reafoning | as it 
 feems to me it plainly does in the paraphrafe. 
 And I know not but the apoflle might intend to 
 take in the cafe of infants alfo ; though, not being 
 fo clear in this, I did not mention them in the 
 paraphrafe. 
 
 (6) There is a likenefs.'] The apoftle, having 
 mentioned our firll father Adam, takes occafion 
 to fpeak of him as the figure, or type [tutto?] of 
 him, that is, the Meffiah^ that was to come. What 
 he intends to denote hereby, is, " that there was 
 fomething with reference to Chrifl:, which was 
 to bear a correfpondence, or to anfwer to feme- 
 thing with reference to Adam." [See Taylor in he, 
 who has, as I thirk, fet this matter in a very clear 
 and ftrong point of light :] Only, as this corre- 
 fpondence was not exa6t, the advantage by Chrift 
 exceeding^ going beyond^ the difad vantage by Adam ; 
 he proceeds, in the 15th, 1 6th, '^ and 17th verfes, 
 
 to 
 
The Proofs of Unherfal Salvation. 49 
 
 to point out the difference between thefe two 
 grand counterparts in the fcheme of God, v.'ich re- 
 fpcvft to mankind, before he refumes the com- 
 parifon he had begun in the 12th verfe. And 
 what he fays, upon this head, in iht^c three verfes, 
 is that alone which enables us to underftand the 
 true force and full meauing of his reafoning in the 
 iSth and 19th" verfes -, which I defire may be par- 
 ticularly noticed : And the rather, becaufe the true 
 meaning of thefe verfes, as I imagine, has not been 
 underftood by expofitors. See note (15.) 
 
 (7) The grace of God^ and the gift ly grace J\ By 
 this n x^'P*^ '^^^ ^'^'^j '"^^^ ''^ ^copEoc iv x'^ptrij the apoftle 
 intends the advantage (whatever that be) on the 
 part of Chrift, which exceeds^ reaches beyond^ the dif- 
 advantage on Adam's part of the comparifon. 
 Thefe phrafcs mean precifely the fame thing with 
 TO h x^pid^x^ ver. 16, and v\ x^P^'' ^'^* "'^ ^^p^^ "^^^ 
 hy.xicoa-'jungy ver. 1 7 ; and anfwer exadtly to the to 
 Xoi^icr(/.x, ver. 15, and the ro ^upYifxa, ver. 16, which 
 are cppofed to the difadvantage by Adam's lapfe, 
 fpoken of in thofe verfes j which ought to be par- 
 ticularly attended to. 
 
 (8) PFhich is left owed through the one man Jefus 
 Cbrift.~\ Dr, Taylor conftrues the words, tj S(^^:x 
 sv x^^^"^^ '^^ '^°'-' ^^^^ ai/G^wTTO'j InTov X^KTTO'jy thus i 
 the gift by grace, zvhich (grace) is of the one man 
 Jefui Chrijl. Here, fays he, ' The grace, favor, 
 ' benevolence, of our Lord Jefus Chrifl, his 
 ' good-will to mankind, is made the ground of 
 ' the gift of God, or the donation of benefits m 
 
 £ ' the 
 
to Tbe Proofs of Univerfal Salvatwu 
 
 * the crofpel, as well as his obedience to God; 
 ' ver. 19th/ Raphelius (v;ho is herein followed 
 by Wolfius) grounds this gift on the grace or favor 
 which the one man Jefus Chriil has with God. 
 His words are thefe, ' iv y^oL^iri m tcu Bv^yg ocy^fiojTrou.. 
 
 * Ina-o'j X,»i<rTou, i. e. Ex gratia, in qua Deus ha- 
 
 * bet UHum iftum hominem Jefum Chrijiumy five 
 
 * ex amore, quo Deus eum ampk5iitur. Nam x^9^^ 
 
 * nvoq non tantum aflive, fed etiam pafTive acci- 
 
 * pitur. Ut xap;? r.o\j.lr,(To^j fit gratia Jefu, in qua 
 
 * apud Dcum Patrem eft. Sic et Latini dicunt, in 
 
 * gratiam alicujus quid facere, pro amore erga. 
 
 * ilium, five iilius caufa,., propter ilium.'. In fur- 
 ther juftification of this fenfe, he produces two 
 or three fimilar pafTages out of Polybius. Vide 
 Raphel. Annot- Philolog. vol. ii. page 256. But 
 it does not appear to me, that either of thefe great 
 men have hit upon the true fenfe of the apoftle. 
 The facred books of the New Teftament, do no 
 where fpeak of the gift of falvation as grounded 
 upon, or originating in, either the benevolence of 
 the one man Jefus Chrift, or his being a perfon in 
 favor v^ith God. 'Tis true, the grace of Chrift, 
 that is, his henevolence towards men, is often 
 celebrated in the New Teftament, particularly, 
 in Ads XV. II. Rom. xvi. 24. 2 Cor. viii. 9, 
 Matr. XX. 28, the texts cited by Dr. Taylor in 
 juftification of his fenfe of the pafTage. ^Tis true 
 alfo, the favor of Chrift with God, the " Father's 
 *' being well pleafed with him," is fpoken of as a 
 thing witnefled to by^^^fp^eift-^Mf^heaven. But 
 
 ;1A3SACHUSETT8 
 
 ItMt-- 
 
TChe Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 5 1 
 
 flill, the benevolence of God^ not of Chrift i and 
 his htn^voltnui towards men, not towards Chrift, 
 is the true and only fonrce of gofpel falvation. 
 And this is always the language of the fcripture 
 upon this head (a). The way, indeed, through 
 which this benevolence, or grace, of God is com- 
 nninicated, is the obedience, death, or blood, of 
 the " one man Jefus Chrift ;" and thus the facred 
 v/ritings invariably fpeak upon the matter (I?). I 
 have accordingly interpreted the paflage under 
 confideration, as though it had been wrote, cTwpia 
 f^ %apir* T>i ^ix rov £i/or, &c. And I the rather fup- 
 pofe the prepofition ^ice. is here underftood, and 
 ought to be iupplied, becaufe is is exprefTed in the 
 17th verfc, where the apofile, fpeaking of this very 
 gift, and of its abounding too, declares it to be 
 ^ioi ro\j £1/0? Indov X^KTTQVy thvough the one man Jefus 
 Chrift. 
 
 (9) And net as the damage^ &:c.] The apoflle, 
 in the foregoing verfe, had affirmed only in gene- 
 ral, that the gift reached beyond the offence, with- 
 out faying in what fpecial refpe6t. In this verfe, 
 he proceeds to fay particularly wherein, or in 
 what fpecial refpefl, the gift abounded beyond the 
 lapfe. I fuppofe therefore, that the words, o^x, 
 cc? h ivog o(,[/.x^Tr,(rocvTog, to ^u^riy,ocj are nothing more 
 
 faj John ill. i6.-^Rom. v. 5. — Eph. ii. 4, 9, 10.— 
 2 Thef. ii. 16. — i John iii. i. — iv. 9, 10, 11, 16, 19. 
 
 ClfJ Rom. iii. 24. — V. 9, 10, 18, 19. — vi. 21.— Eph. i. 6, 7. 
 — Col. i. 6. — 2 Tim. i. 9, 10. 
 
 E 2 than 
 
C2 'the Proofs of Univerfal S ah at ion. 
 
 than a repetition of the oup^ w? to Tra^aTrrco^aa, outc* 
 xat TO p^a/JKTjtAa, in the foregoing verfe j and that 
 they are introduced by the copulative x^j, and^ 
 to lead us into this conftru6tion. As if the apoftle 
 had faid— I obferved, in the foregoing verfe, that 
 the offence and gift did not exadly corrcfpond 
 to each other-, and I fay again, that I may take 
 occafion to explain myfelf more particularly upon 
 this point, 'the damage through the one man 
 that finned, and the gift through Chrifl, do not 
 perfectly correfpond to each other i'/(?r, and fo 
 on. 
 
 (lo) 'Through the one man that finned^ in the one^ 
 &c.] Mr. Locke here changes ai^cc^TYidocyro; into, 
 «6/xa^T'/i/xaToj •, but, as I imagine, without any juft 
 reafon for it. ' For \i ivoq^ one, in this verfe, be to 
 
 * be taken for the perfon of Adam, and not for 
 
 * the one fin of his eating the forbidden fruit, there 
 
 * will be nothing to anfwer ttoXXu^v TrupxTrruixocTuv, 
 ' many offences •, and fo the comparifon the apoftle 
 ' is upon will be loft.' And 'tis certain, the apoftle's 
 comparifon will be loft, unlefs there be fomething 
 to anfwer the many offences, here brought in by 
 way of oppofition. But, in order to find this 
 fomething, there is not the leaft neceftity of chang- 
 ing a^a^TncravTOf into ajU,a/)T>?^«TOf, in contradiction 
 to all the copies and verfions, two or three only 
 excepted. It is to me a little ftrange, that fo 
 critical an obferver Ihould not perceive, that 
 h ivo; ocixot^rna-cKVTOiy as it ftands in this paragraph, 
 
 means 
 
The Proofs of TJjiiv erf al Salvation. 53 
 
 means precifely the fame thing with tw tou vjoq 
 TToc^^.TTTUfAocTi, iH vcT. I ^^ wHich famc phrafe is again 
 repeated in the 17th verfe : Nor indeed can it be 
 interpreted in any other fenfe, confiftently with 
 what the apoftle has obferved over and over again, 
 namely, that it was by one fin^ the fingk offence'^ 
 of the one man Adam, that his pofterity have 
 fuffered fuch damage. Befides, it is to be remark- 
 ed, the phrafe, f>c ttokXuv TrapaTTTw/Aara-'i', plainly has 
 reference to the immediately foregoing words, ro 
 fj.iv x^ii/^x £^ £vo?, with TTxpccTrrooiMXTog underflood : Nor 
 was there any need of its being expreffed, as it 
 might fo eafily and naturally be fupplied from the 
 
 following ea TToXXuv Tra^aTTTW/Aarajv, with which it is 
 
 grammatically, as well as in point of argument, 
 connc<5led. Though, I would add here, ro y.£u 
 KcifAot f J f^o^, with Tra^aTTTw/xaTo? underftood, ought 
 not to be conftrued, the judgment was from one 
 offences but, ih^ fingle offence of the one man. See 
 the reafon for this conftru6tion in note (16) on 
 verfe 18th. 
 
 (11) For the judicial fentence took rife.] The 
 words paraphrafed, from the particle For^ are, in 
 
 the original, ro (xsu yoc^ yi^i^oc fj iyoq £k; Kix,ra.y.pi[jt.Zf 
 ro $i y^ocpicr^x iv. ttoaAcov 7rxpx7rrcoiy.a,roov fi? ^iKOnccfj^x, 
 
 Literally tranflated they fland thus, ' For the 
 
 * judgment was from one offence unto condemna- 
 
 * tion, but the gihhfrom many offences ««/^jufti- 
 
 * fication/ Their true meaning, as I imagine, is 
 exhibited in the paraphrafe. The intelligent rea- 
 der will readily perceive, that I have had a parti- 
 
 E J cular 
 
54 7)5^ Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 
 
 cular eye to the force of the prepofition sg or ek and 
 u;. And if he will be at the pains to confuk what 
 Dr. Taylor has faid upon thefe words, in his note 
 upon that phrafe, '-'' from faith to faith," Rom. i. \ 7, 
 he will fcarce fail of being convinced, .that they 
 are here, at lead, interpreted according to tlieir 
 juft import. The only thing that needs further 
 illuftration, is the fenfe I have given to the words 
 xccray.^ilr'.x and ^ixxicc[xoi. To fet this matter there- 
 fore in a proper lighr, let it be obfcrved ; — ^hcn 
 the apoftle fays, " the judgr^ient was from one of- 
 *' fence unto condem^Mtion/^ by this condemna^ 
 tion he means the whole damage Adam's polle- 
 rity were fubjedled to through his one offence ; 
 not mortality only, but all that was confequent 
 thereupon. He is certainly fpeaking of the whole 
 damage arifing from the one oiFence of the one 
 man. The grand point he has in view, makes 
 it neceflary to underftand him in this fenfe : Nor 
 will his arguing, upon any other interpretation, be 
 conclufive. And if by this condemnation, we un- 
 derlland the whole damage occafioned by the one 
 offence of Adam, it v/ill be found to be more 
 than fimple death. For, in the 12th verfe, the 
 apoftle had fpoken of this one offence of Adam's 
 as the occafional fource of fin as v;ell as death. 
 Mortality^ and thereupon a Uahknefs to fin^ iuch 
 a liablenefs as that, feparate from grace, or gof» 
 pel, men would fin, were the two difadvantages 
 he had mentioned as occafioned by i\dam's one 
 offence. Thefe, therefore, muft both be included 
 
 in 
 
The Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 5 5 
 
 in the condemnation here argued from, as this 
 word, y.aT«x^t/xa, condemnation^ is evidently ufed 
 to fignify the whole damage of the lapfe. Now 
 the word J'tjcaiw/xa, in the lad claufe of this verfe, 
 is oppofed to jcara>c^t^a in the foregoing claufc 
 of it •, and as nccToca^irxoc fignifies condemnation^ (0 
 muft ^laxiuucc fignify jujiijication ; and, to make 
 out the oppofition, jujiijication in a fenfe that 
 will fully anfwer to the preceding condemnation, 
 Confequencly, as the condemnation refpedls men's 
 finning as v/ell as dying; the oppofite jufiijication 
 muft include in it their deliverance from fin as well 
 as death, their being made righteous as well as 
 reigning in life, conformably to the paraphrafe. 
 And perhaps the word J^ixatoj/.^a is the moll pro- 
 per one to convey the idea di jujiijication in this 
 fenfe. Mr. Locke has largely examined the mean- 
 ing of this term. He fuppofes it fignifies ' that 
 ' rule, which, if comply'd wich, juftified, or render- 
 * ed perfed, the perfon, or thing, it referred to •/ 
 fupporting this fenfe of the word by critically 
 viewing the places where it is ufed in the New 
 Teftament. See his note upon Rom. ii. 26. If 
 this great man has given the juft import of this 
 word, as it appears to me that he has in the ge- 
 neral, the apollle, by faying, that the gift to man- 
 kind is fK oiy.xiufxx, plainly means, that it is a gift 
 that will terminate in their being brought to fuch 
 a conformity to the rule of right, as that they 
 Ihall, through Chrift, reign in life for ever; which 
 fenfe of the phrafe exhibits, as it ought to do, 
 E 4 a mean- 
 
r6 The F roofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 a meanino' that is oppofite to the meaning of sk 
 y.otra.^^il^'y. in the preceding claufe, as that phrafe 
 has been explained, and necelTarily mult be ex- 
 plained, in order to make ont a confiftency in the 
 apcftle's argument. The fum of the matter i?, 
 the abounding of the gift by Chrift, beyond the 
 damage of the lapfe by Adam, which is the point 
 the apoftle has in view, he illuftrates thus: — The 
 fentence terminating in a condemnacion, which 
 fubie61:ed mankind ro mortality, and thereupon 
 to an unhappy liablenefs to fm, took rife from the 
 one offence of Adam only : But the gift by Chrifl-, 
 on the contrary, takes rife not onlv f-om this one 
 offence of Adam, but the mar/y offences v,'hich 
 mankind, in conleq -lence of that one fin, commit 
 in their own perfons, and finally terminates, in 
 oppoficion to the power and demerit of them all, 
 in rheir conformity to the rule of righteoufnefs, 
 and their being accordingly reftored, not fimply 
 to life, but to reign in it for ever. Critically 
 compare this note with the notes on the iSth and 
 19th verfes, where it will be feen, that this reign- 
 ing in life, in the way of being previoufly m.ade 
 righteous perfons, is feparately and diilindly treat- 
 ed of, and this as the counter-parts to the two 
 grand difadvantages, which have been occafioned 
 by the one lapfe. 
 
 (12) Death in all its confequeiices.'l So, I think, 
 ^eath ought to be underftood here ; anfwering to 
 the condemnation fpoken of in the foregoing verfe, 
 and taking in the whole damage of the lapfe. 
 
 (13) Much 
 
Tihc Proofs ofVniverfal Salvation. 57 
 
 (13) Much more jh all thefe all men, who are the 
 recipients, &c.] The fenfe I have given ttoAXw 
 fxxXXov ot — Xocix^ocvoyng appears to me abfolutely 
 neceilary, in order to make out a confident con- 
 nection between this, and the two foregoing 
 verfes. Dr. Taylor, in fupport of a different 
 fenfe, d-iftinguifhes the grace and gift through Chrift 
 into that which anfwers exadly to the damage 
 through the lapfe, and that which exceeds, 
 abounds beyond, it. The former he extends to 
 mankind univerfally, the latter he confines to thofe 
 only who receive^ that is, improve^ gofpel means 
 and privileges. He gives us his fenfe of this gift 
 and grace, as to its abounding part, page 287, 288, 
 of his work upon Romans, where he fpeaks of it 
 as that which is to be received, that is, improved, 
 by thofe who Iliall reign in eternal life ; and makes 
 this the criterion that diftinguilhes it from that 
 part of the grace which anfwers to the off*ence, 
 and gives reftoration to life to all men, whether 
 they do, or do nor, receive, or improve, it. For fo, 
 fays he, ' the apoftle faith exprefsly, they who 
 ' receive the abounding of grace, and of the gift 
 ' of right eoufnefs, fljall reign in life. Reigning in 
 
 * life is the confequence of receiving the grace 
 ' and gjft. Therefore receiving the grace, is a 
 ' neceflary qualification, on our part, for reigning 
 
 * in life : But the neceflary qualification, on our 
 ' part, for reigning in life, according to the whole 
 
 * tenor of the gofpel, is believing and improving 
 
 * all the prefent privileges, advantages, bleflings, 
 
 ' promifes. 
 
58 The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 * promifes, means, ordinances, , of the gofpei- 
 
 * Therefore {receive] muft here have the fame fenfe 
 
 < as in Matt. xiii. 2G. — ^Johni. 12, — iii. n, 32, 33. 
 
 < — V. 43. — xii. 48. — xiii. 20. — xiv. 17. — xvii. 8. 
 
 * And the abounding of grace, and the gift of 
 ^ juJiificatioHy mufl include all the bleffings and 
 
 * privileges of the gofpel, which it is our prefent 
 
 * duty to receive and improve, in order to our 
 
 * being qualified to reign in eternal life. And if 
 
 * fo i then this is the fenfe of the grace cf God^ 
 
 * and of the gift by grace, which hath abounded 
 ^ unto the many, ver, 15; namely, it includes all 
 
 * gofpel privileges and bleffings.' 
 
 But however high an opinion I have of the cri- 
 tical fkill of this learned and judicious commen- 
 tator, I mufl beg leave to think, his difcourfe here 
 is quite befid-e the defign of the apoille ; who is 
 not treating, any where in this paragraph, of gof- 
 pel privileges, means, or advantages, as improve- 
 able in order to a reign in eternal life: nor are 
 gofpel privileges what he intends by the abound- 
 ing of the grace and gift he is fpeaking of in the 
 15th, 16th, and 17th verfes. The g^and point in 
 view, in thefe three verfes, is to fhov/, that the 
 advantage arifing from the gift and grace through 
 Chrift abounds to ail men beyond the difadvantage 
 that is come upon them through the'^lapfe of 
 Adam, And, in the i6th verfe, he diredly, and 
 ex profejfo, makes the abounding advantage of this 
 gift to confift in its terminating in the juflilication 
 of all men, that is, their reigning in life as rigfe- 
 
 teous 
 
l^he T roofs ofU7iherfal Salvation. 59 
 
 teous perfons \ and this, notwithftanding- all the 
 fins they are perfonally guilty of in the courfe of 
 their lives, and confequently notwithftanding all 
 x.\\^\r ftnftd mifiwprovements even of the gofpel, and 
 all its means and privileges. The truth is, the 
 apoflle introduces the 15th, i6th, and 17th verfes, 
 with an exprefs view to give notice, before he 
 purfued the comparifon he had begun in the 12th 
 verfe, that there was a dijji'militude between the 
 damage through Adam, and the gift or grace 
 through Chrift. And wherein does he make this 
 dijfimilitude to confift ? Evidently in this, and in 
 this only, that the gift exceeded^ overflowed, ftretch- 
 cd beyond^ the damage. Wherein ? Why, the da- 
 mage took rife from one offence only^ terminating 
 in the condemnation of all men ; whereas, the gift 
 takes rile from many offences^ not only the one 
 lapfe, but even all the fins, which, in confequencc 
 hereof, mankind u-^w^t^fally commit in their own 
 perfons, and terminates, notwithftanding them all, 
 in oppofuion to them all, in their finally reigning 
 in life as righteous perfons. This is the thought 
 the apoftle intended to convey ; which will more 
 fully appear by attending to the order and con- 
 nexion of thefe three intervening important verfes. 
 Let it then be critically obferved. 
 
 In the 15th verfe, the apoftle declares more 
 generally, that the gift by grace hath abounded to 
 t\\Q fame many, or all men, who had fuftaintd da- 
 mage by the lapfe of the one man Adam •, and 
 with like cer:ainty too, for the fame peremptory 
 
 language 
 
6o 'The Proofs of TJniverfal Salvation, 
 
 language is uled in both branches of the verfe. It 
 is as flrongly affirmed, on Chrift's fide of the com- 
 parilbn, the gift hath alounded^ as, on Adam's fide, 
 thrcugh the offence^ many are dead* In the i6th 
 verfe, the apoftle proceeds to fay more particular- 
 ly wherein the abounding of the gift confifted, 
 namely in this, that the judgment took rife from 
 cne offence only^ and terminated in condemnation^ 
 that is, the whole damage of the lapfe *, whereas 
 the gift takes rife from many offences., and as cer- 
 tainly terminates, notwithftanding them all, in 
 juftification^ that is, a glorious reign in life con- 
 formably to a rule of righteoufnefs. With refpedt 
 to whom ? Indifputably mankind univerfally. The 
 antithefis will otherwife be loft. For mankind 
 univerfally are the objed of condemnation •, the 
 fame mankind therefore muft be the obje61: of the 
 oppofite juftification. Befides, mankind univer- 
 fally are the many [ot TroAAotJ in^rhe foregoing 15th 
 \tr[cy who are exprefsly mentioned as the perfons 
 unto whom the gift by grace hath abounded. For 
 which reafon, this i6th verfe cannot be conneded 
 with the i 5th upon any interpretation but this, 
 which makes all men the perfons who fhall finally 
 be juftified, that is, reign in life as righteous per- 
 fons, notwithftanding all the fms they may have 
 perfonally committed. The apoftle Having, in 
 thefe two verfes, firft generally afierted, and then 
 particularly defcribed, the abounding advantage of 
 the gift beyond the damage, goes on, and adds, in 
 ihe 17th verfe, '^ For if by one man's offence 
 
 "death 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 6 1 
 
 *' death reigned by one ; much more they vvliich 
 '^ receive the abounding of grace, and of the gift 
 *' of righteoufneis, (hall reign in life by one, Jcfus 
 *' Chrift." It is obvious, upon a curfory reading 
 only of this verfe in connexion, that it is brought 
 in to riiow the fitnefs, the reafonablenefs, the cre- 
 dibility, of what had been delivered in the two 
 foregoing verfes, more efpecialiy the i6th, with 
 reference to the abounding of the gift through 
 Chrifl beyond the damage through Adam's lapfe. 
 Confcquently, to make the apoftle's arguing to 
 the purpofe, reigning in life^ in this 17th verfe, 
 mud mean precifely the fame thing w'lih jtijlifica- 
 tion in the i6th verfe; and not only fo, but man- 
 kind univerfdlly mutl be confidered as tks recipients 
 eft [0* Tr\v 7n^i<TG2iccv TYi; p(^af*Tc^ — Aaup^aJi/ovTff] (bs 
 perfons li'ho receive the abounding of the grace and 
 gift, to their reigning in life. For, in both the 
 foregoing verfes, with which this is infeparably 
 joined by a ccnne6ling ya^, or for y mankind uni- 
 ijerfally are the object of the gift through Chrift 
 in all its abounding glory, as well as of the damage 
 through Adam ; and fo muft they be here too, 
 to give the apoftle's reafoning due weight and 
 ftrength. 
 
 Uy by thofe who receive the abounding of the 
 grace and gift, we underftand, with Dr. Taylor, 
 not mankind univerfally, but thofe only, who, in his 
 fenfe, receive the grace and gift, that is, iwprove 
 the gofpel, and its privileges, this 17th verfe, which 
 is purpofely introduced to illuftrate the reafonable- 
 nefs 
 
62 T^he Proofs ofXJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 nefs of the thought advanced in the two foregoing 
 verfes, cannot be connected with them in point 
 of argument, as it ought to be, and indeed muft 
 be, to give the yaf, or/jr, its jufl force, or pro- 
 per emphafis. The fliort of the matter is, the 
 apollle is not treating, either in this paragraph 
 in general, or in this 17th verfe in particular, of 
 men's iwprovirig^ or not iwprovivg^ the advantages^ 
 privileges, means and ordinances of the gofpel ; but 
 what he aims at is to fhow, that as mankind uni- 
 verfally are fubjcclcd to damage through the lapfe 
 of the one man Adam ; fo they ihall as univerfally 
 be delivered from it through the gift by the one 
 man Jefus Chrifl, and with fuper-abounding advan- 
 tage. And herein (to ufe the words of Dr. Tay- 
 lor) lies the connection and finews of the apoftle's 
 whole argument, which ought to be well obferved. 
 By thofe therefore who " receive the abounding of 
 *' the grace, and of the gift of righteoufnefs," to 
 their reigning in life, arc meant, not the improvers^ 
 but fimply the receivers of this grace and gift. 
 The words, oi XoiiJi(^avoyrEg, plainly intend nothing 
 more than to point out the oi?je^ of this " abound- 
 " ing of the grace of God through Chrifl," or to 
 fpecify the perfons upon whom it is beftowed ; 
 who are tnankind univerfally^ as has been faid : Nor 
 otherwife will the apoftle's arguing be either co- 
 herent, or conclufive. 
 
 I fhall clofe this note, though long already, 
 with what a learned friend was pleafed to fend me, 
 when he returned thefe papers, which I had put 
 
 into 
 
"l^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 63 
 
 into his hands, in manufcript, for critical examina- 
 tion- He fays, * As XaiAficiucvrsg is a very impor- 
 
 * tant word in this paragraph, I have looked into 
 
 * every text in the New Teftament where it is 
 ' ufed, and I find that, in general, it fignifies to 
 
 * iake^ or receive-, though, according to the difte- 
 >* rent circumltances of the cafe, it is mod properly 
 
 * rendered by different Englifh words. It is ufed 
 ' with refped both toperfcns^ and things; fometimes 
 
 * in a bad fenfe, but moil frequently in a good 
 
 * one. 
 
 ' I. It is ufed with refpedl to perfons. 1. Some- 
 
 * times in a bad fenfe 5 fignifying to take hc4d of 
 
 * with force and violence^ Matt. xxi. 2S'> '^9' Mark 
 ' xii. 3, 8. 2. Very often it is ufed in a good fenfe, 
 
 * to receive with kindnefs as a friend, or to treat a 
 *" ferfon agreeably to the chara^er he pretends to, 
 ^^ 3. It is applied figuratively to the pafTions ; the 
 ^ feizing of perfons with amazement, fear, &c. 
 
 * II. Ir is ufed with refpedl to things, i. Once 
 
 * in a bad fenfe, Matt. v. 40, to take away from 
 ^another without his confent. 2. But mod com- 
 ' monly in a good fenfe, to t^ke of another with his 
 ' confent \ which is properly to receive. It alfo has 
 ' a larger fignification ; to take up, to take hold of, 
 *" to catch, to obtain, to attain. To receive a tefti- 
 ' mony, an exprefTion common in John's gofpel, 
 ' means to receive it as true -, except once, viz. 
 ' John V. 39, where it is ij be underftood in tlie 
 
 * ufual acceptation of a«ju9«j/w, that is, oi having a 
 ' tejlimony given- to one. In the fame ku^Q we are 
 
64 T^he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation* 
 
 ' to underftand receiving words ^ John xii. 4S. 
 ' Thefe are all the fenfes which I caa find Aa/x/3av« 
 
 * has in the New Teftamenr. 
 
 ' Dr. Taylor, Br. Doddridge, and others, led 
 ' hereto, as they thought, by the whole tenor of 
 ' the golpel, underlland Aa/xj3avci.r£c, in Rom. v. 17, 
 
 * to mean improving the prefcnt advantages, 8^c. 
 
 * of the gofpel \ and in fupport of this they cite a 
 ' number of texts \ all of them, as it feems to me, 
 
 * foreign to the purpofe. In fevcral of thofe 
 ' texts, the verb Aa//,j3a^w is joined with a perfon : 
 *" And in thefe it cannot mean to improve-, this 
 ' being only reflrained to things y for I think it is 
 ' improper to fpeak of improving or making a 
 ' good ufe of perfons. To receive a perfon, in the 
 
 * New Teftament, means either to admit him in 
 
 * the character he fuftains, or to give him a kind 
 ' entertainment i as was obferved before. In all 
 ' their other texts, this verb is joined with the 
 
 * nouns, teftirnony^ or words : To receive which 
 
 * is to admit them for true \ which may be done 
 ' without improving them. And this is plainly 
 ' the cafe in one of their texts, Matt. xiii. 20 •, 
 
 * as appears from the next verfe. In both thefe 
 
 * cafes there feems to be nothing like the idea of 
 ' improving : Nor are thefe ufes of the verb A^y,- 
 ' |2ai/w fimilar to the ufe of it, when joined with 
 ' grace^ or gift ; as in the text now in queftion : 
 
 * To receive either of which, in all the other places, 
 
 * where it is ufed, means fimply to have it heficw- 
 ' ed. This verb is joincjd with X'^f'^ i" J^^" i* ^.^> 
 
 \ where. 
 
The Proofs ofXJniverfal Salvation, 65 
 
 where, I think, there can be no doubt b'lt that 
 it means fimply recehiiig-, and again in Pom. i. 5, 
 where it plainly has the fame meaning, St. Paul 
 rpeaking there of the favor he had received from 
 God, in being made an apoflle. It is joined with 
 ^co^icx, in Adls ii. 38, and x. 45, compared with 47, 
 in both which places it moil evidently has the 
 fame meaning. Thefe four are the only places 
 
 1 can find, where Aaju|3ai/w is joined with XH^'^ 
 or ^w^sa. I find 'XjOCDi; in one place, namely 
 
 2 Cor. vi. I, joined with Si-xjifxcciy a verb of like 
 import, though not of fo general a fignification, 
 as Xocy.poivu3 •, being never ufed for taking by force^ 
 or againft the confent of another. But neither is 
 there any reafon to think, that this verb ever 
 carries in it the idea of improving the thing re- 
 ceived. Mod certainly it does not, in the place 
 juft referred to; for the apoftle is there exhort- 
 ing the Corinthians to improve the grace of God 
 which they had received. 
 
 * Upon the whole, I have fatisfied myfelf, that 
 the proper meaning of Xa^Paj/w is only to iake^ 
 or receive \ and that there is not one place in the 
 New Teftament, where it fignifies improving^ or 
 making a good ufe of the thing received. And, in 
 fome places, and fuch too as are fimilar to this 
 in Romans, to underftand it oi improving would 
 be highly abfurd. Thus, in the parable of the 
 talents. Matt. xxv. 16, he that did not improve 
 his talent is faid to have received it, as well as 
 thofe who did improve theirs. Receiving there- 
 F ! fore, 
 
6.6 , T^he- Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 * fore, not improving^ is the true meaning of Aap- 
 
 * ^ccvovri^y in Rom. V. 17, if we may judge by the 
 ' conftant ufe of this word in the New Teilamenc. 
 
 * And the conneclion of the difcourfe here (Irong- 
 ' ly confirms it. To what you have urged on this 
 ' head, page 58 — 62, it fcems to me may be? 
 ' added, that " receiving the abounding ,of grace^ 
 '' and of the gift of righteoufnefs," in this 17th 
 ' verfe, mufl mean the fame thing (only in the 
 
 * more glorious fcnfe explained in ver. 15, 16) 
 
 * as " receiving the reconciliation," ver. 11 thy 
 ' where it is impoffible to condrue sAci|3o/Afj/, by 
 ' whom we have now improved the reconcilia- 
 ' tion. 
 
 ' I obferve lailly, that it is not pretended, that 
 
 * the apoltle Paul ever ufes A«/A|3a!/co in the fenfe of 
 ' improvingy except in the place now in queflion ; 
 
 * not one of the texts alleged, in fupport of this 
 *■ meaning, being taken from him : Though he 
 
 * ufes this verb forty times; and, if the Epiftle to 
 
 * the Hebrews be his, near fixty times.' 
 
 Thus my ingenious friend, and, I fhould think, 
 fo the entire fatisfadion of every attentive reader. 
 
 ( 1 4) And cf the gift that foall make them righ- 
 teous.] 1 he words tyi<; ^cocsxg t?i? ^ijiccicca-vuri?, are 
 capable of being conftrued, (as Dr. Taylor con- 
 ftrues them) of the gift of jufAficatioiu They 
 may likewife be rendered, cf the gift of mercy. 
 And I was once inclined to take this to be the 
 true rendering : as it agrees fo well with the 
 7} ^u}^ioi i)^ X^i^^h the gift by grace^ in the 15th 
 
 verfe. 
 
^he Proofs of XJnherfal Salvation. iy 
 
 verfe. But I now prefer the tranilation in our 
 , Bibles, the gift of righteotifnefs\ meaning by it, 
 the gift which will make men righteous^ pro- 
 duce in them, fooner or Jater, a conformity to 
 the rule of right, the law of righteoufnefs, in this 
 way forming them to a meetnefs for an eternal 
 reign in life, as in the paraphrafe. And I the 
 rather give in to this fenfe of the words, becaufe 
 the " abounding of the gift '' towards mankind, 
 in the foregoing verfe, with which this is clofel^ 
 connedled in point of argument, is made to con fid 
 in its terminating in their juftification, that is, 
 [as we. have feen note(ii)] in their reigning in 
 life as righteous perfons, in fpite of all the fins 
 they may commit in confequence of the lapfe. 
 
 (15) 1 fay therefore.l This therefore is the 
 fame which began the 12th verfe. The Protafis, 
 or firft part of the comparifon, was there entered 
 upon \ but left unfinifhed. 'Tis here refumed y 
 '' I fay, therefore, as by the offence of one man,'' 
 &c. Then follows the Apodofis, or latter part 
 of the comparifon, " even fo [«>ut» y.oh~\ by the 
 " righteoufnefs of one," 6Jc. This I take to be 
 the true conftru^lion ; looking upon the difcourfe, 
 from the 13th to the end of the 17th verfe, to be 
 an interpofed parenthefis. See note (2). Though 
 it may be worth obferving here, it will make no 
 effential difference in the apoille's reafoning, if we 
 fliould fuppofe (as fome do) that the fenfe of ver. 
 1 2th is compleat in itfeif, and that the i8th and 
 J 9th verfes, introduced with ^^a c-i/, are a con- 
 
 F 2 clufion 
 
68 Ihe Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 clufion from the three foregoing vcrfes, giving a 
 fummary reprefentation of the com parifon between 
 Adam and Chrift. The grand fcope of the 
 Apoftle, and the force of his arguing, will be 
 much the fame upon either conftrudion. Only, 
 it fhould be heedfully minded here, though the 
 apoftle, whichever conftru6i:ion of his words be 
 preferred, is certainly pointing out, in the iSth 
 and 19th verfes, the refemblance^ Ukenefs^ corrc- 
 fpondence, there is between Adam and Chrift, or 
 rather between the confequences of the offence of 
 the one, and of the obedience of the other ; yet 
 this likenefs, or correfpondence, ought to be 
 confidered with all the abounding advantage which 
 had been given to Chrift, on his fide of the com* 
 parifon, in the foregoing 15th, i6th, and 17th 
 verfes. For the view of the apoftle, in interpofin-g 
 thefe veiies, giving us to underftand, that the 
 gift through Chrift exceeded^ abounded beyond^ the 
 damage through the lapfe of Adam, was, that he 
 might argue from the gift in this abounding fenfe, 
 when he came to profecute the comparifon between 
 Adam and Chrift. Why elfe (hould he ftop to 
 point out this abounding advantage of the gift on 
 Chrift*s part of the comparifon ? And if the " gift: 
 " through Chrift" might reafonably be fuppofed 
 to abound towards men beyond the damage of the 
 lapfe, in the 15th, 16th, and 17th verfes, why not 
 in the i8th and 19th ? 'Tis certain, if we take the 
 "gift through Chrift," in the 1 8th and 19th verfes, 
 in all its abounding glory, the reafoning of the 
 
 apoftle 
 
l^he T roofs of TJmvcrfal Salvation. 6g 
 
 apoftle will be more uniform and confident ; more 
 honor alfo will be reBe(5led on God, and his fen 
 Jefus Chrift, and greater benefit redound to man ; 
 and, in a word, a very natural and rational account 
 will herefrom arife, why the apoftle fhould make a 
 paufe to infert the intervening important thought, 
 contained in the 15th, 1 6th, and lythverfes : Where- 
 as, upon any other fcheme of interpretation, it will 
 be difficult, if not impoffible, either to account for 
 this intervening thought, or to make out a good con- 
 nexion between the feveral parts of this paragraph. 
 In confideration of thefe things, I cannot but 
 wonder, that Dr. Taylor fhould take fo much 
 pains, in his Scripture Bo^lrine of Original Sin-^ 
 to prove, that the comparifon on Chrift's part, 
 in the 18th and 19th verfes of this chapter, does 
 not take in the whole advantage of the gift, 
 or the gift in all its abounding glory. What he 
 has offered, upon this fame head, in his paraphrafe 
 and notes upon Romans, has increafed my wonder; 
 for he has here added arguments, to thofe he had 
 urged before, to make it ftill further evident, that 
 the comparifon, in thefe verfes, on ChriR's part, 
 is not to be underftood in its abounding fenfe : 
 And yet, in thefe very notes, he has virtually 
 given up all his arguments, declaring them to be 
 infufficient to the purpofe for which he had brought 
 them. For he fays exprefsly, page 286, ' Sup- 
 ' pofing tiie apoftle, in the letter of the 18th and 
 ' 1 9th verfes, compares the confequence of Adam's 
 * offence and Chrift's obedience, only fo far as the , 
 
 F 3 * onled 
 
"^o ^he Proofs ofViiherfal Salvation. 
 
 * one is commenfuratc to the other-, yet his rea- 
 
 * foning, ver. I5rh5 i6th, and i7i:h, plainly (hews 
 
 * it is his meaning and intention, that we (hoiild take 
 
 * into his conclufion the whole of the gift ^ fo far as 
 
 * it can reach to all mankind.' And again, page. 
 291, ' But after all, I am perfuaded, the fenfe of 
 
 * ver. 15th, 1 6th, and I7th5 is intended^ and under- 
 ^ flood, in ver. i8th and 19th-, and that the drift 
 
 * of the apoilie's conclufion is to fhew, that the 
 
 * gift, in its utmoft extent, is free to all mankind/ 
 And this is undoubtedly the real truth of the cafe. 
 It was the apoftle's intention, and indeed the main 
 thing he had in view, to take into the comparifon, 
 in the 18th and 19th verfes, the ^ //> in its utmoft 
 extent : Nor is it otherwife conceivable, what end 
 he could propofe in making a flop, in his reafon- 
 ing, to bring in the 15th, i6th, and 17th verfes^ 
 the mofl important of any in this whole para- 
 graph. 
 
 (16) By the lapfe of the one man AdamJ] I am 
 fenfible, 'the v/ords ^i svog 7ra^oi7rlw^aa7o?, in this part 
 of the comparifon ; and confequently the words 
 ^i 2vo; S''iy.ccia!(jt,oclG;i in the following branch of it, 
 may properly be rendered, hy one lapfe, by one 
 d5i of conformity to the rule of rtghteoufnefs : 
 Nay, this is the mod natural, as well as grammati- 
 cal, tranHation of the phrafes, confidered limply 
 in themfelves. But this notwithfranding, if we 
 confider thefe phrafes as parts of a difcourfe, 
 containing a comparifon between the one man 
 Adp.m and the one man Jefus Chriji^ in which 
 
 comparifon 
 
T^he Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. y i 
 
 comparifon <^i £vo? [oftener without than with the 
 lubftantive cjvO^wttou expreflVd] is the phrafe that 
 points out the one man^ either Adam or drifts and 
 is certainly ufed eight times in this very paragraph 
 to this purpofe : I fay, if v^^e confider this, it will 
 perhaps appear both mod natural and reafonable' 
 CO conllrue ii ii/cg, in this verfe, as alfo in the 
 abovementioned i6th verfe, [three other places 
 where it is ufed in this palfage, and the only dif- 
 putable ones] as in the paraphrafe, I^y the lapfe of 
 the one man Achm^ hy the rightt'on/nefs of the 
 one man Jefits Chrift. I cannot but think, both 
 Mr. Locke and Taylor have overlooked the true 
 emphafis of thefe phrafes, by their not underftand- 
 ing them in this fenfe -, which they were very 
 obvioufly led to do, as they make the beginning 
 of this 1 8th verfe a repetition of the Protafis, or 
 firft pare of the comparifon, in the 12th verfe; 
 v/here cc^^c^ttou is exprefsly joined with £vog. And 
 this, it fe^ms to me, fhould put the matter out of 
 all doubt with thofe, who connecl this iSth verfe 
 Vv'ich the 12th, in the manner that thefe great men 
 do. I may properly add yet further, it is not the 
 truth of facfy that it was iy one a£i of righteouf- 
 r.efs, on Chrift's part, that the gift of jnflification 
 is come upon all men, 'Tis true, that one great 
 afl, of Chrift's righteoufnefs, his freely fubmitting 
 to die on the crofs, is often mentioned fingly, or 
 by icfelf, as the ground of this gift. 'Tis twice 
 thus mentioned in this chapter, ver. 9, " being 
 *' now juftified by his blood.,'' and, ver. 10, 
 
 F 4 t[ reconciled 
 
JZ T^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation, 
 
 " reconciled by the death of his Son.** But when-^, 
 ever the hlood^ deaths or facrifice of Chrift are 
 fingly mentioned as the ground of the gofpel do- 
 nation of benefits, they are to be underftood as 
 including his other a6ls of righteoufnefs in the 
 capacity of mediatqr -, one eminent ad: being, by 
 a common figure, put for the whole. For it 
 is certain, that his other aifls of conformity tq 
 the Uw of righteoufnefs, together with this, are 
 the proper ground of the " gift of juftifica- 
 *' tion." See Philip ii. 6 to lo j where his willing- 
 nefs to become incarnate, with all his humilia- 
 tions in this ftate, as well as his humiliation to 
 death, arc exprefsly made the reafon or ground 
 of his exaUation^ which virtually means the fame 
 thing with what is here called the gift of juftU 
 fication^ His death had eminently an influence 
 in the beftowment of this gift, being the moft 
 fignal aft of fubmilTion to the goverping v,^ill of 
 God he was ever called to exercife \ and there- 
 fore it is often fingled out, not to exclude, but 
 include the reft, by putting one eminent part fo^ 
 the whole s which is common in ail language, pro* 
 phanc, as well as facred. 
 
 {i)) 'The judicial aol came upon all^ &c.] The 
 Englifh reader has doubtlefs obferved, that the 
 Vi ox Az^ judgment came^ in the former part of the 
 apoftle's comparifon, as well as the words, free 
 gift came^ in the other part, are printed in a dif- 
 ferent character from the reft of the verfe. The 
 reafon is, becaufe they are not in the original, but 
 
 fupplied 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 73 
 
 fupplied by the tranilators. And as this verfe, in 
 both parts of the comparifon it contains, is ellipti- 
 cal, it muft be fupplied fomehow or other. And 
 perhaps it could not have been fupplied better 
 than by the viovd judgment ^ xpi/^a, in ih^ protajis^ 
 and the word gifty x^-f ^c/^a^, in the apodofis, as in 
 the common Englilh verfion. The conne6lion of 
 this verfe, with the paragraph of which it is a 
 parr, makes this fupply, or fome other analogous 
 to it, no matter in what words it is expreffed, ne- 
 ceiTary to compleac the apoftle's fenfe. 
 
 (18) Which delivers them from death to reign in 
 life.'] The critical reader will perceive, that I 
 don't take fo much into the meaning of the word 
 jJiHaiOJtri? in this verfe, as I gave to the word 
 ^rK«iu[xot in the i 6th verfe; as alfo, that I take 
 the word j^araxjjjjita herc in a lefs extended fenfe» 
 than I underftcod it there : The reafon is this, 
 and I defire it may be flridlly examined, as be- 
 ing a very important point in order to the true 
 underflanding of this paragraph. The apoftle, in 
 the foregoing i6ch verfe, is certainly fpeaking of 
 the whole damage introduced by the lapfe of the 
 one man Adam; [See note (11)]; but then, in- 
 ftead of particularly branching this damage into 
 its tv/o grand parts, as he had done in the i2ch 
 verfe, he generally includes them in the word 
 x.ccro6xpi(ji.oty condemnation^ as, I think, is made evi- 
 dent in the note juft referred to. In like man- 
 ner, when he goes on, in the other part of the 
 comparifon, to defcribe the oppofite abounding 
 
 advantage 
 
74 ^^'^ Proofs ofXJniverfal Salvation. 
 advantage of the gift through the one man Jefu^ 
 Chriil, he does not particularly branch it into its 
 two oppofite correfponding parts, but generally 
 includes them in the word S^y.oawfj^oi,^ juJlijj£'ation<, 
 as has been explained in the paraphrafe and note 
 on that verfe. Whereas, in the i8th and 19th 
 verfes, he proceeds diflindiy and particularly to 
 point out the correfpondence there is between the 
 cffeds of Adam's lapfe, and of the gift' through 
 Chrifl:. Accordingly, in the i8th verfe, he runs 
 the comparifon between Adam and Chriil, v<^ith 
 refped to death and life \ as he does, in the 
 19th verfe, with refpec5l \.o f,n and right eoufnefs^ 
 Separately and particularly taking into the com* 
 parifon both the difadvantages through the lapfe," to- 
 gether with the two oppofite correfponding advan- 
 tages through the gift. It ought to be heedfully 
 ■minded here, the apoftle, in the 12th verfe, had 
 begun the comparifon on Adam's part, making 
 the damage, occafioned through his lapfe, to con- 
 fid in tisjo things^ namely, fin as well as death. 
 As therefore, in the i8th and 19th verfe, he has 
 refumed and com pleated this comparifon, it may 
 reafonably be expeded, that he fhould mention 
 ti^o advantages^ on the fide of Chrift, as counter- 
 parts to the tvjo difadvantages^ on the fide of 
 Adam. This is accordingly done, in the view 
 we have given of thefe verfes ; and it makes out 
 a beautiful and ilrong confidency between thele 
 verfes and the 12th : Whereas, upon other fchemes 
 of interpretation, particularly Mr. Locke's and 
 7 ' ' Taylor's, 
 
T^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation, y^ 
 
 Taylor's, there is nothing in thefe verfes to anfwer 
 to that part of ttie coqiparifon, on Adam's fide, 
 in the 12th verfe, £(p ca ttxvts^ riy.apTovy whereupon 
 dll have finned. This important point will be 
 further illuftrated in the following notes, which 
 the reader is defired to compare with this. 
 
 I would juft add here, though, with Mr. Locke 
 and Taylor, I confider the word xar^xai^a, con- 
 demnationy in this i8th verfe, as fignifying no- 
 thing more than the death which Adam's pofterity 
 were fubjeded to in confequence of his one of- 
 fence \ yet I differ from them as to iht jujiifica^ 
 tion of life^ fignified by the oppofite phrafe 
 ^iKociu}(riv rn? ^wtis". They confine it to mere de- 
 liverance from death : Whereas, I extend it to 
 a rejgn in life for ever ; and for this very good 
 reafon, becaufe the gift, on Chrift's part of the 
 comparifon, ought [as we have proved note (15)] 
 to be taken here in its abounding fenfe : Nor 
 otherwife can the correfpondence between Adam 
 and Chrill, with refpe6l to their being the fources 
 0^ death and life ^ be conncdled with the foregoing 
 verfes, particularly the 17th, where, not mere 
 deliverance from deaths but reigtiing in life^ is 
 the abounding advantage by Chrifr, oppofcd to the 
 death by Adam. 
 
 (19) Became finners.'] The apoftle certainly means 
 the fame thing, in this 19th verfe, when he fays, 
 *' by the difobedience of one, the many," or all 
 men [y.xrE(TTa,9rAccv a/jtaprcoXeiJ " are made finners," 
 as when he fays, in the 12th verfe, '* and thus, ia 
 
 " this 
 
76 ^he Proofs of Unh erf al Salvation. 
 
 •' this 'way, death hath pafTed upon all men," [^f 
 til -jraynq nf/.x^roy] " 'whereupon^ Upon which^ in con'- 
 *'^ fequence of which -i all have finned.** If therefore 
 we may interpret this 19th verfe, by the fore- 
 going 1 2th verfe, the fenfe will be as expreffed iri 
 the paraphrafe. And the truth is, this firft claufe 
 in the 19th verfe is a repetition of the latter part 
 of the comparilbn begun, but left unfinifhed, in 
 the 1 2th verfe, in like manner as the firft claufe 
 of the foregoing i8th verfe, is a repetition of the 
 former part of that fame comparifon : For which 
 reafon, the former part of this 19th verfe, and the 
 latter part of the 12th, mud mean precifely the 
 fame thing, as I have made it to do. And 'tis ob- 
 fervable, in this way of interpretation, I not only 
 make out a clear and ftrong connection between 
 the 1 2th, and the i8th and 19th verfes, which 
 anfwer to it, and refume and compleat the com>- 
 parifon that was there begun; but give the phrafes, 
 *' all have finned," and *' the many are made fin- 
 *' ners," their full natural force ; and cannot be 
 complained of for making fm^ by a harfh me- 
 tonymy, to fignify mortality. 
 
 (20) Shall become righteous perfons,'] This part of 
 the gift, on C brill's fide of the comparifon, muft 
 mean our being made fubjeclively righteous, in 
 ionfequence of his obedience, and the conftitution 
 of God grounded thereon, in order to its being 
 a counterpart to the damage in confequence of 
 Adam's dilbbedience, mentioned in the foregoing 
 branch of the comparifon on his fide, if 1 have 
 
 given 
 
^T/fe TrooJ's of Ufiiverjlil Salvation. jj 
 
 given a juft idea of that \ as, I truft, I have, and 
 have faici enough to make it evident that I have. 
 However, I would go on, and fay further \ — In 
 the light I have fet thefe two verfes, they per- 
 fi;,(5lly harmonife with each other, and with the 
 J 2th verfe; and, what may be worthy of fpecial 
 notice, the conneding particle 73:^, for^ which in- 
 troduces this 19th verfe, has its proper force and 
 emphafis, and makes this verfe, as it ought to do, 
 a reafon, and a very good one too, of that which 
 immediately preceded : Whereas, if the phrafes, 
 «/xar5TcoAci KaTfo-raO'/io-ay, and J'ixaio* >iCiTa(rT«0-/i<roi/Ta;, 
 are interpreted, as Mr. Locke and Taylor interpret 
 them, in the metonymical fcnfe, this 19th "^^{^ 
 will exhibit no reafon at all of the foregoing 
 1 8th verfe, though infeparabiy joined with it by 
 the particle 7<%2», ox for -, but will be a mere tau- 
 tology. For if, by all men's being r,iade fmners 
 through the difobedience of Adam, and their be- 
 ing made righteous through the obedience of 
 Chrift, nothing more is meant than their being 
 made mortal^ or fufferers as far as deaths and be- 
 ing refiored back again to Ufe^ this 19th verfe, 
 containing thefe words, cannot be a reafon of the 
 1 8th. According to this fenfe of thofe phrafes, 
 the fame thing is only repeated in the 19th verle, 
 which had been affirmed in the i3th; and the 
 19th verfe, inftead of being a reafon or argument, 
 illuftrating and confirming the iSth, (as it ought 
 to be, to give the connefting yxo its juH force) is 
 a needle fs repetiiion of one and the fame thing) 
 
 as 
 
7 8 ^be Proofs of Univefal Salvation. 
 
 as it is really made to be in the paraphrafes of 
 both the above-named expofitors : Nor, as I ima- 
 gine, could it have been otherwife according to 
 their conftrnclion of the words. 
 
 Upon the whole, it fhould feem indifputably 
 evident, that thcfe verles [the i8th and 19th] 
 are brought in to compieat the comparifon be- 
 tween Adam, and Chrift, which was begun, but 
 left unfiniflied, in the 12th verfe : Confequently, 
 2isfm and dsath^ that is, fin upon death, in confe- 
 quence of death, are the two grand difadvan^ 
 tages^ on Adam*s fide of the comparifon, in the 
 12th verfe*, the fame disadvantages muft be 
 meant in the repetition of the comparifon in the 
 18th and 19th verfes. This being fo, the ad-- 
 vantages, on Chrift's fide of the comparifon, being 
 counter-parts to the difadvantages on Adam's fide, 
 muft mean life and right eoufnefs^ anfwering to death 
 znd fin-, and this (if we would conned the i8th 
 and 19th verfes, with the i5th5 i6th, and 17th, 
 verfes) in a fenfe that will make thefe advantages 
 to exceed, overflow^ ahound beyond, the difadvan- 
 tages by Adam, and to mankind univerfally, and in 
 oppofition to all their own fins as well as his. In 
 this view of the paragraph, its feveral parts are 
 well connected with each other, with the preced- 
 ing context, and whole foregoing epiftle ; and ex- 
 hibit an eafy, clear, and confiilent fenfe, as well 
 as a moft gloriouOy important one : And, I will 
 venture to fay, no other fenfe that has yet been 
 put upon it, at leaft that I have feen, will make 
 
 k 
 
^ke Proofs of Univerfal Sahafmi. 7^ 
 
 in either confiilent with itfelf, or the foregoing 
 diicourfe, or give an intelligible meaning to the 
 words in which it is delivered. 
 
 (21J Now.~\ The word, in the original, is <^ ; 
 which, I think, lliould be tranflated noiv^ (as it 
 often is elfe where) and not moreover. This 20th 
 verfe will then naturally be connedled with the 
 foregoing difcourfe, as in the paraphrafe. 
 
 (22) 1' bat fin — might ahoundy &c.] Mr. Locke 
 and Taylcr do both of them iinderftand, by the 
 iihoundiiig of the offence by the entrance of the 
 lavi\ 'an increafe or multiplication of fuch offence 
 ' as Adam's was \ fuppofing that the offence, with 
 
 * the penalty of death annexed to it, was but one, 
 
 * namely, the offence of Adam, before the intro- 
 
 * dutftion of the law ; but that, by the introduc- 
 
 * tion of the law, the offence abounded, that is, 
 
 * was increafed and multiplied to be as numerous 
 ' as all the tranfgreffions of the law which the 
 
 * Jews were guilty of.' I have, in the work be- 
 fore referred to, largely endeavoured to fhow this 
 to be a miftake ; and fliail therefore only fay at pre- 
 fent, that if the v/ords, " the law entered that fin 
 *' might abound," be compared v/ith Rom. vii. 5, 
 6, 7, ^, 9» 10, II, the fenfe will appear to be 
 that which is given in the paraphrafe. The <va, 
 here pointing out the defign of the entering of the 
 law,, does not intend, that the law was given, that 
 men might fin ; but, if they did fin, that their 
 guilt might hereby be increafed. And this, by 
 the way, is one of the fenfes in which the law was 
 r a fchool- 
 
8o "ihe Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 a fchool-mafter to bring the Jews to Chrijl, as the 
 apofl:le*s language is. Gal. iii» 24. By increafmg 
 their guilt, it Ihewed them more ftrongly the ne- 
 celTity of grace, that grace which is manifefted 
 towards men through Jefus Chrift. 
 
 (23) Abounds much beyond the utmcfl, &c.] The 
 apoftle had evidently a view, in thefe words, to 
 the 15th, 1 6th, and 17th verfes, particularly the 
 1 6th, where he had made the abounding of the 
 gift by Chrift, to confift in \is furpajfing all the fins 
 cf men in their own perfons^ under all difpenfationsr 
 as well as the lapfe of the one man Adam. The 
 word, v'7n^i7n^i<r(Tz\)(riVy here ufed, is emphati- 
 cally ftrong. Grotius, in loc^ fays ' Non fatis ha- 
 
 • buit dicere nn^Krc-BvaiVy fed prepofitionem augen- 
 
 * tern addidit, ut intelligeretur multo illuftrius ap- 
 
 • paruifle Dei benevolentiam quam ante apparuerat 
 
 * peccati turpitude. Amat tales compofitiones 
 ' Paulus* A number of inftances he has accord- 
 ingly there produced. 
 
 (24) Unto eternal life through Jefus Chrift. "] It 
 may be worthy of particular remark, the apoftle, 
 while clofing, or rather fumming up, his whole 
 argument upon the comparifon he had been run- 
 ning between Adam and Chrift, oppofes, in 
 this 2ift verfe, an eternal reign in life to the 
 reign of fin by death \ and not only fo, but this 
 reign in life he exprefsly declares to be as ex* 
 tenfive as the reign of fin by death : And confe- 
 quently, the latter being ahfolutely univerfal^ the 
 other muft be fotoo. 
 
^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 8r 
 
 Jhe preceding text, pablaphrase, and notes, 
 applied to the main argument. 
 
 The reader is now defired critically to view the 
 two grand counterparts of the fcheme of provi- 
 dence, in the correfpondence they are reprefent- 
 cd, in the above paffage of fcripture, to have to 
 each other : upon which he will eafily perceive, 
 on the one hand, that Adam is confidered as the 
 fource of damage to mankind univerfally : On the 
 other hand, that Chrifl is a like fource of advantage 
 to the fame mankind ; but with this obfervable dif- 
 ference, that the advantage, on the fide of Chrifl, 
 exceeds^ overflows^ abounds beyond^ the dam»age on 
 the fide of Adam ; and this to all mankind. Thus 
 much fhould fcem indifputably clear and certain. 
 The 15th, 16th, and 17th verfes, in which the 
 apoftle has defcribed, f^^^r^/^, the abounding advan- 
 /^^^ of the gift through Qhx\% beyond iht damage, 
 through Adam, are abfolutely unintelligible upon 
 any other interpretation. — To be yet more parti- 
 cular. 
 
 The apofHe here makes the damage, on the 
 fide of Adam, to confifl in t'wo things^ namely, the 
 fubje^ion of all men to a frail mortal life here on 
 earth, and a liablenefs thereupon^ or in confequence 
 thereof to be drav/n into the commifTion of that 
 which is finfuL [The reader is defired carefully 
 to attend to the foregoing notes, on which the 
 proof of what is here offered is principally refted.] 
 The cppcfne fuper-abcundi?ig advantage through 
 Chrifl, he accordingly places in tivt? thin^s^ name- 
 
 G ly, 
 
82 The Proofs ofUniverfal Salvatio?2. 
 
 ly, a reign in Ufe-i and a being formed to a meet- 
 nefs for this mercy by being made righteous per- 
 fons ; and this, notwithftanding the influence of 
 all the fins that are confequent upon Adam's fin, 
 whether in point of power, or demerit. And, re- 
 mark well, this fuperaboiinding advantage through 
 Chrift, in both its branches^ is extended to the 
 fame mankind who have fuffered the oppofite da- 
 mage through Adam. Thus, in the i6th verfe, 
 the gift through Chrift^ [fK J^ix-xtw/^-a] terminat- 
 ing in a reign in life as righteous perfons, is ap- 
 plied to the fame mankind who were fpoken of, in 
 the foregoing claufe of that verfe, as fubjedled to a 
 fentence [a,- xaTa>t^iaj>i] terminating in the whole 
 damage through Adam. This matter is yet more 
 diftinflly and clearly fettled in the i8th and 19th 
 verfes, where the damage through Adam, and the 
 advantage through Chrift, are feparately and par- 
 ticularly treated of in both their grand parts, and 
 oppofed to each other. In the i8ch verfe, the da- 
 mage through Adam, is judgment to condemna- 
 tion ', the oppofite advantage through Chrift, is 
 the jujlification of life : And the juftification of 
 jife is dire(Stly faid to have come upon the fame 
 all men that were under the judgment to con- 
 demnation. In the 19th vtdQ, the damage through 
 Adam \% fin\ the advantage through Chrift is 
 righteoufnefs : And \\\t fame many^ or all men^ who, 
 in conlequence of Adam's dilbbedience, are made 
 finners, arc, in confequence of Chrift's obedience, 
 made righteous. The damage through Adam, 
 3 acid 
 
The Proofs of Unherfal Salvation. § 3 
 
 and the advantage through Chrift, in both their 
 branches, are precifcly of the fame extent ; reach- 
 ing, not to fome only among men, but to the 
 whole human reice, mankind iiniverfaily, without 
 exception, or limitation. 
 
 And it may be worthy of further fpecial notice, 
 i\\G f up er- abounding advantage^ on the fide of Chrift, 
 together with the damage on the fide of Adam, 
 are equally fpoken of as certain with refpedl to 
 their events or adually coming into effe5f. Is 
 the "judgment to condemnation come upon all 
 " men ?" So is " the juftification of life," ver. 18 ; 
 that is to lay, all men are as certainly put into 
 fuch circumftances through Chrift, as that they 
 iliall reign in life, as they are through Adam fub- 
 jedled to death. Are the many, or all men, made 
 Tinners, in confequence of Adam's difobedience ? 
 It is as peremptorily and abfolurely declared, that 
 the fame many^ or all men, (hall be made right- 
 eous, in confequence of the obedience of Chrifl^ 
 ver. 19. Thefe advantages through Chrift are as 
 certain with refpeiSl to their events or coming into 
 fa^^ as the oppofite difadvantages through Adam. 
 They are indeed, to fpeak plainly, the ahfolutely 
 free gift of God through Jcfns Chrift, and will be 
 carried into effe^f, fooner or later, with rcfpedt to 
 the zvhole race of men. This is the plain, natural, 
 moft obvious, meaning of this fcripture paftage ; 
 and it can, as I imagine, have no other intelligible 
 confiftent fenfe put upon it. 
 
 Only, let ic be heed fully obfcrved here, deaths 
 G 2 being 
 
84 ^^^ Proofs of Univerfal Bahation. 
 
 being a natural difadvantage, may come npon 
 mankind by the appointment, or conflitution, of 
 God, without the iatervenrng confidei'ation of 
 their own mifufed agency. In like manner, fimple 
 deliverance from death, being a natural advan- 
 tage, may, by a like conllitution of God, be fe- 
 cured to the fame mankind without any regard 
 had to their own well-ufed agency. And accord- 
 ingly, this is the real truth of the cafe. The hu* 
 man race come into the world under the difad* 
 vantage of being fubjedled to death, in virtue of 
 a divine conftitution, occafioned folely by the of- 
 fence of the cm man Adam *, and they come 
 into exiftence likewife under the advantage of an 
 abfolute afllirance, that they fliall be delivered 
 from death, in virtue of a divine conftitution, oc- 
 cafioned folely by the obedience of the one man 
 Jefus Chrift, Deliverance from the power of 
 the grave is as ahfolutely and certainly the advan- 
 tage even all men are under through Chrift, as 
 fubjedtion to death is the disadvantage that has 
 come upon them through Adam. The advan- 
 tage is no more connected with their own agency, 
 than was the difadvantage 5 but, be their cha- 
 ra£ler what it will, they ftiall as furely hear the 
 voice of the Son of God, and come forth from 
 their graves, as they went down into them. This 
 is as evident as that there Ihall be 2^ general refur- 
 reciion from the dead. 
 
 But the cafe is quite different, with refped to 
 
 the other difadvantage through Adam, and its 
 
 10 oppofite 
 
^he Proofs ofTJniverfal Salvation. 85 
 
 oppofite advantage through Chrift, namely, fin 
 a^d right eoufnefs. Adam's lapfe became a difad- 
 vantage to all men, with refpedl to their being 
 finners. This is plain from the 12th and 19th 
 verfes. But how did it become a difadvantage ? 
 Evidently, as they derived from him, in confe- 
 quence of his lapfe, a frail mortal nature, where- 
 upon, from whence^ they took occafion to fin them- 
 fclves. The obedience cf Chrift, on the other 
 hand, becomes an advantage with refpe6t to their 
 being righteous. But how ? Evidently, as, in con- 
 fequence of this obedience of his, and the confti- 
 tution of God grounded thereon, they will be 
 wrought upon, fooner or later, in a moral way, fuch 
 an one as is adjufted to moral agents, to become 
 righteous perfons. For it ought always to be 
 kept in mind, that righteoufnefs is as truly a 
 moral good quality, as fin is a moral evil one. 
 They are both connedled with perfonal agency, 
 and abfolutely dependent on it. We can no more 
 be made righteous by the righteoufiiefs of another 
 transferred to us, and reckoned our's, than we can 
 be made finners by the fin of another transferred 
 in like manner. They are both moral impolTibi- 
 lities, and equally fo. 
 
 That part therefore of the advantage through 
 Chrift, which confifts in our being made righ- 
 teous, and in this way becoming qualified for an 
 happy reign in life, after we are delivered from 
 death, efi^entially fuppofes the ufe of means ^ and 
 fuch too as are proper to be uled with moral 
 agents, in order to their being formed, agreeably 
 
 G3 to 
 
86 T!he F roofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 to their natures, into righteous perfons, or, what 
 means the fame thing, a meetnefs for an eternal 
 reign in happy life. And this, at once, lets us 
 into the true reafon of the eredlion of the gofpel- 
 kingdom, with all its means, privileges, blefiings, 
 and motives. And this alfo, I would add, is the 
 true reafon of ftill other difpenfations^ which will 
 (as we fliall fee by and by) hereafter take place, 
 that fo mankind univerfally may, at length, be 
 wrought upon, and in a rational way, to become 
 righteous perfons. For it is as abfclutely declar- 
 ed, in this pafTage of fcripture, that they Jhall 
 be made righteous^ as that they are made Jin- 
 vers. And unlefs they are thus 'made righteous^ 
 before the time of the end. that they may be 
 fitted to reign in life, the advantage through 
 Chrift, inftead of exceeding^ abounding beyond^ the 
 damage through Adam, will really fink below it ; 
 which is a flat contradidlion to the main fcope of 
 the apoftle's argument in this paragraph, more 
 efpecially the 15th, i6th, and 17th verfes. The 
 plain truth xs,^ final cverlafiing falvation is ahfolutely 
 the free gift of God to all men through Jefus Chrijl ; 
 that is to fay, he has abfohitely and unconditionally 
 determined, of his rich mercy, through the inter- 
 vening mediation of his Son Jefus Chrift, that all 
 fsjen^ the whole race of lapfed x^dam, fliall finally 
 reign in life, and be prepared for that ft ate by being 
 formed into righteous perfons. The whole fcope of 
 the apoftle's difcourfe leads to fuch a conception 
 of the matter : Nor can it, upon any other inter- 
 pretation, as I freely own it appears to me, be 
 
 poftibly 
 
The Proofs ofUnherfal Salvation. 87 
 
 poflibly true, that the gift^ through the one man 
 Jefus Chrijl^, hath abounded beyond, exceeded, 
 the damage through the one man Adam : Nay, the 
 apoftle's reafoning, upon any other fuppofition, 
 ought, in all reafon .^nd juftice, to be inverted, and 
 the advantage, in the parallel he is running, be 
 p;iven to Adam inftead of Chrift : For the damage 
 by Adam certainly and ufiiv erf ally comes into 
 event ; and if this never is to be the truth with 
 refpeCl to the advantage through Chrift, how can 
 it be but that the damage Ihould exceed^ firetch 
 beyond^ the gift ? 
 
 The Ihort of the cafe is, the abounding glory of 
 the gift through Chrift lies in this, that it ahfo- 
 lately places all mankind under circumftances, 
 with refped: to an eternal reign in happy life, that 
 furmount^ go beyond^ furpafs^ all their difad van- 
 tages, whether occafioned by the lapfe through 
 Adam, or their own fins confequeot thereupon. 
 No other idea of the grace and gift through 
 Chrift will give a confiftency, much lefs an em- 
 phatical cogency, to the apoftle's reafoning here. 
 Infallibly, if the greater part of the human kind, 
 notwithftanding this gift, and the abounding of it, 
 are left to perilh eternally, in confcquence of the 
 lapfe through Adam, a broader foundation is really 
 laid for their groaning under the damage by him, 
 than for their rejoicing in the oppofite advantage 
 derived to the world through Jefus Chrift : Nay, 
 it will dem.onftrably follow, that Adam has done 
 more hurt than Chrift has done goody and confe- 
 G 4 quently, 
 
S§ T^he F roofs of Unherfal Salvation, 
 
 quently, that the race of men have more reafon 
 for complaint on account of his difbbedience, than 
 they have for thankfulnefs on account of Chrift's 
 obedience: Which is a thought as far from re-, 
 dounding to the honor of God, or his -fon Jefus 
 Chrift, as it is with fuiting the main drift of the 
 apoftle's arguing in this portion of fcripture v/e 
 have been thus long confidering. 
 
 The only dilticuky the above interpretation is 
 liable to, that I know of, is this \ — rhat it feems 
 inconfiflent with the general run of fcripture, which 
 threatens a mifimprovement of the gofpel, and its 
 means, advantages, and blefTings, with certain 
 death after the refurredion at the great day, v/hen 
 all men Ihall be reftored to life. And how, it will 
 be aflced, can men univerfally reign in life for ever, 
 when fo many are finally difobedient to the gofpel, 
 and mud, for that reafon, fuffer the pains of the 
 fecond death ? This, I own, is a difficulty •, and 
 it is the very one thar has put interpreters upon 
 eonftruing the apoftle's words, in this paragraph, 
 quite differently from what they would otherwife 
 have done. And the truth is, they have greatly 
 perplexed his reafoning, and fadly tortured his 
 word.., in order to reconcile what he has here faid 
 with the fcripture-account of that death, or mifery, 
 which wicked men fhall fuffer after the general 
 refurreclion. But this difficulty, it is hoped, we 
 fliail, in the progrefs of this work, intirely remove 
 away, by fhowing, in fadl, hov/ wicked men • may 
 univerfally reign in life, through Jefus Chriil, 
 
 though 
 
^he F roofs ofUniverfal Salvation, 89 
 
 though many of them will firil fuffcr the fecond 
 death for their fin and folly in this preient 
 Hate. 
 
 I cannot proceed to the other texts under this 
 propofition, till I have fiiggefted this further 
 thought in confirmation of the iVnfe we have put 
 upon the above pafiage, namely, its giving: a An- 
 gular pertinency to the immediately tollowing 
 words, which begin the next chapter •, '' What fhall 
 " we fay then ? lliall we continue in fin, that grace 
 " may abound ? God forbid !" For they will now 
 be brought in to guard againft the ill ufe, that 
 might be apt to be made of the foregoing do6lrine 
 of univerfal grace. And thus introduced, there 
 will be a lingular juilnefs in them, which there is 
 not in the other ways of interpretation. If the 
 ahoundiKg of the grace^ and of the gift through 
 Chrift^ ox which the apoftle had been fpeaking, 
 was only a conditional offjr of life, (as Dr. Tay- 
 lor fuppofes) that is, the offer of it in cafe men 
 would improve their gofpei advantages, which if 
 they did not, they muft certainly periih notwith- 
 Handing this offer •, I fee not with what propriety 
 any could be introduced, from this do6trine of his, 
 as plending, that they might continue in Jin that 
 grace might ahoun'i : Whereas, upon our interpre- 
 tation, whicn makes the abounding of the grace 
 through Chrift to ifiue finally in men's univerfally 
 reigning in life, notwithfianding all their ovon fins, 
 as v,'eli as the one lapfe of Adam, this is an obvious 
 ^wd. natural pretence ; and it might indeed be 
 
 reafonably 
 
no The Proofs of Vnherfal Sahation. 
 
 reafonably expelled, that the apoille fhould take 
 care to guard againft the undue infiuence of it : 
 Which he accordingly does, in this fixth chapter, 
 by a variety of confiderations ; among which, that, 
 in the 21ft and 22d verfes,.is one, and not the 
 lead weighty, " What fruit had ye in thofe things 
 " whereof ye are now afliamed ? For the end of 
 *' thofe things is death. But now being made free 
 ** from fin, and become fervants to God, ye have 
 *' your fruit unto holinefs, and the end everlafting 
 " life." His defign, in thefe words, plainly is to 
 difcourage men from abufing the grace of God 
 through Chrift^ by pointing out, on the one 
 hand, the evil effects that would follow upon their 
 indulging to fin, notwithftanding v;hat he had 
 faid of the abounding of the grace of God, viz. 
 fjdjne in this world, and ihefecond death in the next ; 
 and, on the other hand, the happy effe5fs that would 
 follow upon their approving themfclves the faith- 
 ful fervants of God, viz. their being immediately 
 ihftated in eternal life upon their refurre^ion at the 
 great day. This fame thought he further enforces, 
 in the 23d verfe, in thefe words, " For the wages 
 " of fin is death •, but the gift of God is eternal 
 " life, through Jefus Chrift our Lord ;" that is, If 
 men continue the fervants of fin, the wages they 
 fliail receive, before the gift through Chrift is con- 
 ferred on them, will be the fecond death , whereas, 
 if they become the fervants of God, this gift 
 through Chrift will ifTue in their eternal life 
 without their paHing through the fecond death. 
 
 I'his, 
 
^he Proofs ofTJniverfal Salvation. 9 1 
 
 This, I am fenfible, will be called a novel inter- 
 pretation ; but it may notwichftanding be the true 
 one : And, I believe, it will be found, upon exa- 
 mination, to be the only one that is fo. For it is 
 to be remembered, an eternal reign in life is the 
 grant of GoJ.*s free favour to all men, as grounded 
 on the obedience of Jefus Chrift, according to the 
 whole tenor of the apoftle's arguing in the fore- 
 going chapter ; and therefore, when, in order to 
 guard againll the ill ufe that might be made of this, 
 abounding favor of God, he fays, that, if men 
 encourage themfelves herefrom to continue the 
 fervants offiUy their folly will end in death •, where- 
 as, if they are wrought upon, by this grace, to be- 
 come the fervants of Gody the end will be eternal 
 Ufe : I fay, when the apoftle fpeaks thus, he can 
 mean, in confiftency with himfelf, and to the pur- 
 pofe of his argument, nothing more, with refpedt 
 to the fervants of fin ^ than death previoufly to a reign 
 in life \ and with refped to the fervants of God, an 
 inftatement in life without paffing through the fecond 
 death. — But the reader may not be, at prefent, 
 prepared to difcern the propriety of this interpre- 
 tation, or the force of the argument grounded on 
 it. He may therefore, if he pleafes, fufpend his 
 judgment till he has gone further into the fcrip- 
 tures that fupport the fcheme we are upon. 
 
 Another text, to the purpofe of our prefent ar- 
 gument, we meet with in Rom. viii. from the 19th 
 to the 24th verfej which, according to the fore- 
 going 
 
02 T^he Proofs ofVniverfal Salvation. 
 
 eoing method, I ihall firil lay before the reader's 
 view with a paraphrale •, then juftify the paraphrafe 
 bv ccrrefponding notes , and finally Ihew the per- 
 tinency of the text, as explained in the paraphrafe 
 and notes, to the main point in profccution. 
 
 Text. 
 
 j^. For the earneft 
 eticf eolation of the 
 creature waiteth for 
 the manifeftation of 
 the fons of God. 
 
 20. For the crea- 
 ture 'was made fub- 
 jeoi to vanity^ not 
 willingly^ hut hy rea- 
 fon of him who fuh- 
 je^ed the fame in 
 hope^ 
 
 1 1 . Becaufe the 
 
 creature itfelf alfo 
 
 fball he delivered 
 
 from 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 
 For (26) the creature, the 
 rational creature, mankind 
 in general (27), waits in ear- 
 neft expectation for the time 
 when it {hall be revealed that 
 they are the fons of God by 
 being made glcrioufly immor- 
 tal (2S). And they may 
 with good reafon, upon a 
 juft and folid foundation, 
 thus wait \ FOR (29) the ra- 
 tional creature, or mankind, 
 was fubjeded to the infelici- 
 ties of this prefent vain mor- 
 tal life (30), not through any 
 fault of its bwn (31); but by 
 the judicial fentence of him 
 who fubjedled it (32), not 
 finally and/^r ever^ but in ccn- 
 fequence of a previous hope, 
 having fird given reafon to 
 expedt (33) that (^^4) even 
 this very creature, i\\tf elf fame 
 mankind {'^5)^ ihould be 
 delivered 
 
Text. 
 from the bondage of 
 corruption^ into the 
 glorious liberty of the 
 children of God, 
 
 The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 93 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 delivered from its flavery 
 throug^h the influence of a 
 frail mortal corruptible body 
 {'2,6)^ into the freedom of 
 thofe, who, as the fons of 
 God, fliall, in proper time., 
 be clothed with immortal in- 
 corruptible bodies (37). I h ad 
 faid, in the 19th verfe, that 
 mankind wait, with earned 
 expe6lation, for the revela- 
 tion of the fons of God ; and 
 I have proved, in the 2otli 
 and 21(1 verfes, that they 
 might reafonably thus wait 
 with expecflation: I now come 
 to fpeak to the truth of the 
 fadl itfelf, to (how that they 
 are really waiting for this 
 revelation of fons ; upon 
 which m.uch need not be 
 faid, FOR {'^Z) it is a certain 
 truth, we all know, that the 
 whole rational creation, even 
 all mankind, feel the vanity 
 of this prefent (late, and 
 have all along done fo from 
 the entrance of fm and death 
 into the world ; infomuch 
 that they have groaned un- 
 der 
 
 22. For we knew ^ 
 rthat the zvhole cre- 
 ation groanethi ^^^ 
 travaileth in pain 
 together until now. 
 
94 7he Froofs of Univerfal Sahation. 
 
 Text. 
 
 23. And not only 
 ihey^ hut ourfelves 
 alfo^ which have the 
 fir Jl fruits of the Spi- 
 rit, even ijue our- 
 felves groan within 
 ourfelves^ waiting for 
 the adoption^ to wit^ 
 the redemption of our 
 body* 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 der it, and been in pain, like 
 a woman in labour, lono-insj 
 to be delivered (39}. Now 
 (40) fuch is the conftitution 
 of thino;s, in the all-wife go- 
 vernment of God, that not 
 only mankind in general, but 
 we Chriftians alfo, who have 
 had the " firfl fruits of the 
 " fpirit(4i)*' beftowed on us, 
 even we ourfelves do groan 
 under the prefilires of this 
 vain life, which groaning of 
 ours is a virtual and con- 
 ftru6live waiting for the 
 adoption, I mean, the deli- 
 verance of our bodies from 
 their ?nortal corruptible con- 
 dition, v^hen they fhall be 
 cloathed with immortality and 
 glory. 
 
 NOTES juflifying the foregoing Paraphr ase, 
 
 (26) For^ 7-s^-] This illative particle denotes 
 an argumentative conne6lion between the para- 
 graph beginning with the 19th verfe, and th^ 
 preceding difcourfe ; which appears to me to ftand 
 thus. In the 17th verfe, the apoftle had argued,, 
 with refped to himfelf and all good Chriftians, 
 
 whom 
 
T^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 95 
 
 whom he had been fpcaking of as children ; I fay, 
 he had argued, " if children, then heirs," that is, 
 to fome valuable inheritance •, " heirs of God,'' 
 that is, to an inheritance worthy of \'o great and 
 munificent a father; and '* joint heirs" to it 
 *' with Chrill: ; inafmuch as," or fince (a) "we 
 *' fuffer with him, that vve may be alfo glorified 
 "together/* In the iSth v^vk^ he had argued 
 (h) ilill further, " that the fufterings of this 
 
 " prelent 
 
 (a) So I think the conjunflion h-jt-.p Ihould have been 
 tranflated, and not, iffo he. 'Tis certain it may properly be 
 thus tranflated ; and if it may, it ought to be To here. For it 
 may be worth obferving, i\vq. force of the apoftIe*s reafoning 
 (which perhaps has not been attended to, if perceived, by ex- 
 pofitors) Uomfonfhip to heirjhip lies in this, that the children are, 
 at prefent, \v\ f offering circumflanceo. Were we wholly exempt 
 from Jhjferings kere, we could never argue, from our being the 
 children of God, that vve were heirs to any better or higkir Itate 
 hereafter. There would then have been no foundation, in 
 reafon, to think, but that this was to be our_/z"W ftate. But 
 taking in the confideration of our yJ/^r/;?^/, the concluiion is 
 juft, and the argument flands thus ; Since ijoe are the children 
 of God. and yet in z Jiate of fufferingj we may argue, that vve 
 are heirs to a better Jlate^ inafmuch as God placed us in this 
 ftate oi fuferin^ with this view, and for this end, that we 
 might be fitted for, and at length introduced into, a ftate of 
 ghry. Thus we may argue nc--w ; but when we have attained 
 to x\ns glorious flate, we can no longer argue, if children, then 
 heirs. 
 
 (b) So this i?th verfe is introduced. I argue, "hayilpyLXi. 
 This verb, when \ikd paj/ively, fignifies to be reckoned, or put 
 to account ; and thus it is frequently ufed in this epiftle, and 
 elfewhere. But when it is u^ed aai'vely, it alfo iignffies to 
 think, to reafon, to argue^ to prove, to conclude by argument. 
 
 This 
 
o6 i!he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation » 
 
 *' prefent time are not worthy to be compared 
 " wicfi the glory that fhall be revealed [si? >i,aa^, 
 " not /», but] to us'' Particularly remark here, 
 the glory, the apoftle is treating of, is glory in 
 futurity \ glory that is the objed, not of fight, 
 but of hope ; glory that is not at prefent enjoyed, 
 but muft be waited for till the proper time of its 
 revelation. The apoftle emphatically enlarges 
 upon this thought, in the 24th and 25th verfes, 
 which ought to be read, and compared, with this, 
 as they are a clear and full comment upon it. In 
 this manner, the 19th verfe, and the following 
 one, of which it is a part, are introduced •, and, 
 as I imagine, with a double view*, i. To fhew 
 the reafonablenefs of what the apoftle had been 
 juft arguing, namely, that thole who are the chil- 
 dren of God are heirs to glory, glory incomparably 
 more than a balance for their fufferings ; 2. To 
 reconcile them to the thought of its being glory, 
 not in poiTeflion, but expedlation only ; what they 
 do not adlually enjoy, but muft patiently wait for. 
 And, in both thcfe views, there is a fingular per- 
 tinency and force in what the apoftle advances in 
 this paragraph. For if the creature^ the rational 
 creature, mankind in common [fee note (27J] are 
 the fons of God, his fons fo as that glory Ihali be 
 
 This fenfe it has in Mark xi. 31. Rom. iii. 28. Heb. xl. 19. 
 and in other place?. And in this fenfe it ought to be taken 
 here. As if the apoftle had faid, * 1 argue, reafon, or con- 
 * elude, from our being the children of God, that the fufferings 
 ^ of this prefent time y 13 c** 
 
 revealed 
 
The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 97 
 
 revealed to them [fee note (28)] •, 77Juch more fhall 
 this be the cafe of thofe who are the children of 
 God, as having the " fpirit of adoption," as 
 being formed to a refemblance of their heavenly 
 Father in his moral image* And if it is the wife * 
 conftitution of God, with refpedl to the whole 
 rational creation in this lower world, that glory is 
 the objedl of their hope only •, what they do not 
 at prefent enjoy, but mud come to through fuf- 
 fcrings, after long and patient waiting : I fay, it 
 God has thus conftituted things, thofe who are his 
 children, as being partakers of his nature, ihould 
 not complain, they have no reafon to complain, 
 that the like conftitution takes place with regard 
 to them. This I take to be the ground of con- 
 necljon between the paragraph we are nov/ entering 
 upon, and the preceding verfes in this chapter, 
 which I defire may be carefully attended to. 
 
 (27) The creature^ mankind in common,^ Some, I 
 am fenfible, by » xlto-i? in this 19th verfc, and -rroLfrx 
 ri 5ijia-t? in the 22d verfe, undcrftand the inanimate 
 creation; which, fay they, was fubjedled to vanity, 
 through the lapfe of the one man Adam, and fhall 
 finally be delivered from it. They accordingly 
 fuppofe, that the apoftle here brings in this v/hole 
 creation, by a ftrong rhetorical figure, as groaning 
 under its prefent vanity, and longing, and waiting 
 for the time when it fhall be reftored to its original 
 ftate. And fhould this be the thing intended by 
 the apoftle, it would rather ftrengthen, than weak- 
 en, the grand point I am aiming to prove. For 
 
 H lurdy, 
 
98 The Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 turely, if ^^^^ >^'7'<^*^ is extended in its meaning 
 {o as to take in the inanimate part of the creation, 
 the rational or moral part ought much more to be 
 comprehended. For though, on the one hand, 
 the rational part of the creation may properly 
 cnouc^h be ftiled Tracrct -n xltcr^, without including 
 the inanimate part ; yet it would be highly in- 
 congruous, on the other hand, to give this ftile to 
 the inferior, or lefs valuable part, wholly leaving 
 out the mod excellent : efpecially would it be fo 
 here, if it be remembered, that the judicial ndt of 
 God, fubjeding the creation to vanity, was ulti- 
 mately pronounced againfl; the rational creation, or 
 mankind : and refpeded the creation, as to its 
 inanimate p<irt, no otherwife than as a means to 
 carry this fentence againft mankind moreeffedlually 
 into execution. The rational creation therefore, or 
 mankind, ought to be confidered as the ultimate 
 ohje5l of the deliverance from vanity here treated 
 of; and the creation, in the more extended fenfe, 
 no otherv;ife, than as its deliverance might be a 
 means fubfervient to the great end of delivering 
 mankind. Thus the above interpretation is no 
 ways inconfiftent with the argument I am upon. 
 But yet, I am fully perfuaded, it is not the true 
 one. 
 
 It does not agree with the other parts of this 
 fame paragraph. The phrafes, earneft expetlation^ 
 waitings groaiiing^ travailing together in faint are 
 more naturally and obvioufly applicable to the 
 rational than inanimate creation , and do not call 
 
 for 
 
The T roofs of U?2tverfal Salvation, gg 
 
 for fo bold a figure in fiipport of their propriety. 
 Befides, which is of far greater importance, it is 
 exprefsly faid of this creature, or whole creation, 
 that it was fubjedled to vanity, ov^ £x.ov(roc, 72ct wil» 
 fully [fee note (31).] But the rational creature, 
 or creation, is the only creature, or creation, that 
 could pofTibly be thus fubjedled to vanity. Fur- 
 ther, it is affirmed of the creature, and whole 
 creation, that it fhall be " delivered from the bon- 
 " dage of corruption," that is, its flavery, through 
 the influence of a frail corruptible body, " into the 
 " glorious liberty of the children of God," that is, 
 the freedom of thofc who, as God's fons, fhall be 
 cloathed with immortal incorruptible bodies [fee 
 notes C36)(37)]j but no creature in this lower 
 world, befides man, no creation but that which is 
 intelligent and moral, can, with any propriety of 
 fpeech, have fuch things affirmed of them. More- 
 over, the comparifon in the 23d verfe, between 
 " we ourfelves, who have the firfl fruits of the 
 *' Spirit," and the creature^ or whole creation^ will 
 be eafy and natural, if we underftand by the 
 phrafes, the rational creature, and creation j but 
 uncouth and harfh, if we extend their meaning 
 any further. 
 
 But what is mofl of all worthy of notice is, that 
 the phrafe Tao-a ytliG-iq is never ufed [one difputed 
 text only excepted. Col. i. 15, fee note (41)] in ail 
 the New Teftament, to fifrnify more than the 
 "ii-hole moral creation^ or all mankind. And 'tis 
 remarkable, when the apoflles were commifTioned 
 
 H 2 to 
 
ICO ^he Proofs ofVniverfd S ah at ion. 
 
 to preach the gofpel to all mankind^ the words are, 
 Mark xvi. 15, Tr^itni m xlio-a. So, when the gofpel 
 is faid to have been preached, in confequence of 
 this commiflion, to all mankind^ the fame words 
 are ufed, Trao-rj ttj }i\i<Tiiy Col. i. 25. And that the. 
 rational creature, or mankind, is the only meaning 
 of thefe words, may certainly be colleded from 
 Matt, xxviii. 18, and Luke xxiv. 47, where the 
 gofpel is fpoken of as entrufted with the apoftles, 
 to be preached, sk -n-y.^oc rix, zhn, that is, to all 
 nations of men. So that it is the rational creature, 
 the rational creation, or all mankind^ that the apoftle 
 is here fpeaking of. 
 
 (28) Revealed to he the fins of God^ ^c] That 
 
 by the phrafe, r-Av cciro^ocXv^iv ruv uioov rou 0fou, is 
 meant fuph a revelation of the fons of God as imports 
 their glorious immortality^ is evident from the 
 whole fcope of the apoftle's reafoning in this paf- 
 fage, as well as from its connection with *the pre- 
 ceding verfes. Nor will this be difputed. 'Tis 
 the fenfe in which the words are commonly under- 
 flood. The only controverfy here is, whether 
 thefe words are to be connedled with the creature^ 
 the rational creature^ mankind in common , as figni- 
 fying, that the time will come, when they 
 Ihall be revealed to he the fons of God by being 
 made glorioufly immortal. And it evidently appears 
 to me, that this is the apoftle's meaning : Nor 
 will any oiher meaning, as I imagine, make out 
 an argumentative confiilency between this verfe 
 and the other verfis it is conneded with, whether 
 
 thofe 
 
Hhe Proofs of Uiiiverfal Salvation. i o i 
 
 thofe that go before, or follow after it. The 
 apoftle had been arguing, in the foregoing verfes, 
 that the fuffertngs of good Chrijtians fhould be 
 over-balanced with a future weight of glory ; and 
 very juflly, if the time is coming when the crea- 
 ture^ that is, mankind in common, fhall be revealed 
 to he the fons of God, notwithftanding all tht fuffer- 
 tngs they may groan under, by being admitted to 
 immortality and glory: For this is arguing, and 
 very ftrongly too, a fortiori. But, if this revelation 
 of fens is a revelation that the creature^ or man- 
 kind, will not be finally benefited by, why are 
 their groanings, under the prefTures of this vain 
 life, reprefented as a longing, and waiting for it ? 
 Why fhould they long and wait for a revelation of 
 glory that will be, as to them, of no manner of 
 fervice ? And how can their waiting for that 
 which they will never obtain, be an argument [as 
 it ought to be, to give the connefting ycc^ its 
 proper force, fee note (26)] that l\\t fufferings of 
 good Chriflians are not worthy to be compared with 
 the glory that floall be revealed to them ? Befides, 
 which ought to be well regarded, the revelation of 
 the fons of God, in this 19th verfe, means the fame 
 thing with deliverance from the bondage of corruption 
 into the glorious liberty of the children of God, in the 
 21ft vcrfe-, to be fure, thefe /^//(?r words include 
 in them as much as the former, and neither of 
 them comprehend lefs than 2i glorious immortality. 
 Now, the creature, the whole creation, even mankind 
 tinivcrfally, is exprefsly made, in this 2ifl verfe, 
 
 H3 the 
 
102 ^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 the SUBJECT of this glorious immortality ; yea, it is 
 ainrmed here of the far/ie creature^ the Jelffame 
 mankind, which had ht^nfuhje^edto vanity,, ver. 20, 
 that it fhall be delivered from it fo as to beglorioujly 
 immortal. This immortality therefore is the reve- 
 lation of fons fpoken of in the 19th verfe, which the 
 creature^ or mankind^ are longing and waiting for. 
 The words, confidered in this view, make out a 
 flrong connection between the feveral parts of the 
 apoftle's difcourfe here, which cannot otherwife 
 confift together. 
 
 (29) For^l The particle for^ 7^^, evidently 
 
 flands here to denote that this, and the following 
 
 verfe, are brought in as the reafon^ or argument^ 
 
 why mankind earnellly expedl the revelation of God's 
 
 fons^ its being made to appear that they are his 
 
 fons by their being crowned finally with immor- 
 
 talily and hojior \ namely, becaufe they wtxcfuhje^ed 
 
 to vanity^ not through their own faulty but in virtue 
 
 of a divine canjlitution^ which conftitution did not 
 
 take place i\\\ jujl ground had been fir ft given for 
 
 this expe5fation [fee note {'^i;^)']' 'Tis obfervable, 
 
 the arguing here, as to its true import, is precifely 
 
 the fame with that in Rom. v. 15, If through the 
 
 cffence of one the many^ or all men, are dead \ much 
 
 MORE hath grace abounded /d? the {d^vat many ^ or 
 
 all men; that is, 'tis m.uch more credible -to- 
 
 fuppofe it, 'lis much more reafonable to believe it. 
 
 And the arguing is ftri6lly conclufive. For if 
 
 mankind were fubjedled to a ftate oi fuffering^ not 
 
 through any wilful difobedience which they them- 
 
 felves 
 
"the T roofs of Vniverfal Salvation » 103" 
 
 felves had been perfonally guilty of, it is congruous 
 to reafon to think, that they fhould be fubjeded 
 to it, not finally and for ever, but with room for 
 hops that they ihould be delivered from it. And 
 v.'as it not for this hope, it cannot be fuppofed, it 
 ought not to be fuppofcd, it would be a refledion 
 on the fupremely perfect benevolence of the Deity 
 to fuppofe, that they would have been fubjedled to 
 it. Sherlock, Bilhop of London, very juftly 
 argues upon this head, [Ufe of Prophecy, pnge 284] 
 ' Whoever views mankind in their prefcnt ftate, 
 
 * into which thev came by no voluntary a6t of 
 ' their ov;n, but were placed in it by him who is 
 ' their maker, and will be their judge -, fubjed to 
 ' ignorance, and fuperflition, by a kind of necefTity 
 
 * of birth and education ; furrounded with many 
 ' natural infirmities and paffions, arifing from no 
 
 * crime of which they are confcions \ and, at the 
 
 * fame time, confiders the benignity of the divine 
 
 * nature, and the love of God towards his crea- 
 
 * tures, of which the affedion of natural parents is 
 
 * but a faint refemblance, will eafily fee that the 
 
 * condition of man pleads ftrongly for mercy ; that 
 
 * nature, with unutterable groans, calls for help 
 ' and deliverance for her children •, and that there 
 ' is great reafon to exped, from the goodnefs of 
 ' God, that he will not be deaf to their cries.' 
 And indeed [as he goes on, page 291] ' Were it 
 ' not for a juft expedlation, from the promifes of 
 
 * God, that all the miferies and confufions in the 
 ' world fhall finally end to the glory of God, and 
 
 H 4 * the 
 
1 04 ^be Proofs of Umverfal Salvation. 
 
 ' the good of thofe who continue with patience 
 « in well-doing, [he might with the fame force of 
 'argument have fpbken as extenfively as I do j nar 
 ' indeed is his argument otherwife conclufive] it 
 ' had been far greater mercy to have put an end to 
 
 * two wretched lives, than to continue them, for the 
 '^ propagation of wickednefs and mifery, to a thou- 
 ' fand generations.' Nor can it be thought, [as 
 this fame author fays, page 286] 'that God would 
 ' have fuPrered the world to have been filled with 
 ' weak miferable creatures, had he not intended 
 
 * them for ohje^s of his mercy, ^ 
 
 (30) Wasfuhje^ied to vanity. ^^ This vanity includes 
 in it not only mortality.^ but all the unavoidable 
 unhappinefs and imperfe^lion of this prefent weak<t 
 frail^ mortal flate. We cannot conceive more 
 juftly of the thing aimed at by the apoftle than 
 by confulting Solomon's book of Ecclefiaftes^ which 
 muft fatisfy us, that man's life on earth is fuf- 
 liciently vain ; efpecially, if we compare what is 
 there faid with what we feel within ourfelves. 
 
 (31) Not through any fault of its own."] This I take 
 to be the true import of the words o^o-x^ Eytova-cx, \ 
 which cannot be better iiluftrated than in Dr. '^ay- 
 lor\ words. He fays (in loc) ' f>couo-a feems to 
 ' have the fame fignification as ^xouo-tw?, wilfully^ 
 ' Heb. X. 26 j or as OeAoj/ra?, 2 Pet. iii. 5. this 
 ' they ^r^ WILFULLY ignorant of What we render lie 
 
 * not in wait (Exod. xxi. 13) the Seventy render o^o^, 
 '■.sau.'Vy not wilfully^ in oppofition to prefumptuoujly^ 
 
 * in the next verfe. Thus fxouo-a denotes a cri- 
 
 ' minal 
 
T'he Proofs ofXJnherfal Salvation. 105 
 
 * minal choice, and in an high fenfe too, [carefully 
 
 * obferve how fxouo-iw? {lands, Heb. x. 26] name- 
 ' ly, a tranfgreflion fubjefling to wrath. The crea- 
 ' ture was made fubje£i to vanity, not by its own 
 
 * criminal choice, not by finning after the finiilitude 
 ' of Adani^s tranfgrejfwn. Rom. v. 14.' 
 
 (32) But Ify the judicial fentence, dzc.] Theapoftle 
 having faid, negatively, in the foregoing words, 
 how mankind were not fubjedled to vanity, de- 
 clares here, pofitively, how they were, namely, ha, 
 rov xjttotoc^ocvtoc, by or through him who fubje£led them, 
 Mr. Locke fuppofes, with fome others, that the 
 devil was the him through whom mankind were 
 fubje6i:ed to vanity. And it is true, it was through 
 the devil's fubtlety, in managing the temptation 
 with which he afiaulted our firft parents, that 
 fin was introduced into the world, that Jin which 
 gave rife to this fubje^ion to vanity* But though 
 the devil's temptation was the occafion of fin, and 
 fin the occafion of mankind's fubjedtion to va- 
 nity; and fo the devil may (as well as our firfi 
 parents) in a fenfe, be faid to have been the au- 
 thor of this fubje^ion : Yet the will of God, 
 publifhed in the judicial sentence takino- rife 
 from Jdam's lapfe, was that, and that only, 
 which really fubje^ed mankind to vanity* This 
 WILL or CONSTITUTION of God therefore, thus 
 taking rife from Adam's lapfe, mud be the thing 
 intended by the apoftle : Nor will there be any 
 room for doubt upon the matter, if we compare 
 what is here faid with this apoftle's more enlarged 
 
 declaration 
 
io5 T^he F roofs of Ufiiverfal Salvation » 
 
 declaration upon this fame point, in the 5th chapter 
 of this epiftk, where he fays, ver, 16, " The judg- 
 " ME NT came by one to condemnation " and yet 
 more fully, ver. 18, " By the oftence of one judg- 
 *' MENT came upon all men to condemnation." 
 The plain meaning of which texts is — that mankind 
 univerfally were fiihje5fed to vanity^ or inortalityy 
 with ail the appendages of them, by the judicial 
 SENTENCE OF GoD, taking rife, not from their 
 cwn difobedience, but the fin of the one man Adam^ 
 their common father. 
 
 (33) //; confequence of a previous hope."] This, I 
 am fully perfuaded, is the true meaning of the 
 phrafe, t-n- iXin^i. The prepofition eti has this 
 force, when ufed with a dative cafe, moft com- 
 monly throughout the New Teftament. [See 
 note (3) on chapter 5th, ver. 12th.] And perhaps 
 £7r», rather than any other prepofition, was here 
 joined with eAttk^i, to fignify, that the judicial fen- 
 tcnce^ fubjeding mankind to vanity, was not merely 
 pofteriory in point of time, to the hope of deliver- 
 ance, but confequent upon it in the purpofe of God *, 
 fo coyfequent as that he never would have paffcd 
 the fentence, had he not intended to have given 
 reafon for j;his hope> It may be worthy of fpecial 
 notice here, ^}ci^ judicial fentence of God, which fub- 
 jeded mankind to vanity, that is, the infelicities 
 of this vain mortal life, was not pronounced till a 
 Saviour had been promised, and provifion ac- 
 tually made for their deliverance'^ not only from 
 t\i^ final confequences of this fentence, but for their 
 
 reinftatement 
 
The Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. loj 
 
 |-einftatement univerfally in immortal happinefs. 
 For, if we turn to the third chapter of Genefis, 
 we fhall find, that the feed of the woman to briiife 
 the ferpenfs head was proniifed before the fen- 
 tence^ dooming the race of Adam to vanity, was 
 given out. And this promife contains fummarily 
 that difpenfation of grace which mankind, from the 
 lapfe of Adam, have all along been under, though 
 perhaps few of them have known it •, and in con- 
 fequence of it they have all along been interefted in 
 the gift and grace through Chrift<i which the apoitle 
 treats of in the 5th chapter of this epiftle-, and in 
 the deliverance from the bondage of corruption into 
 the glorious liberty of children^ of which he is 
 fpeaking in the pallage under debate. We fhall 
 have occafion to fhew more particularly after- 
 wards, chat this is the true import of the pro- 
 mife, " the feed of the woman (hall bruife the fer- 
 " pent's head." 
 
 I ihall only add here, Mr. Locke, Albertus, 
 and fome others, had no need to make the 20th 
 verfe a parenthefis^ that fo they might join the 
 words £7r iXivih^ with the verb ocTriyihyjtroci. This 
 conftrudlion is lefs agreeable to the fyntax of 
 the pafTage than the common tranflation, which 
 connedts in hope with the foregoing words, fub- 
 jeEled the fame. And ihz fenfe abfolutely requires 
 this conftru(flion, if there be any truth or per- 
 tinency in what has been above advanced, which 
 is left with the reader to judge. 
 
 (34) ThatJ] It would be au affront to thofe, in 
 
 any 
 
I o 3 l^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 
 
 any mcafure verfed in Greeks to point out places, 
 tvhere the particle o-ri is ufed precifely in the fenfe 
 which i have here given it. Scarce a paragraph 
 of any length can be met with, throughout the 
 New Teftament, without an inftance to this pur- 
 pofe. It is a wonder to me this word was hers 
 tranClated hecaufe. Not that this is not fometimes 
 its proper meaning; but not in this place ; And 
 it fo perplexes the fenfe, that it is, I believe, im- 
 pofiible a merely Englijh reader Ihould ever un- 
 derftand the apoftle. 
 
 (35) Even this very creature.'] The repetition of 
 this word creature [jtrto-K] feemed quite harfh to 
 Erafmus. Beza thought it was brought in more 
 Hebraico, Zech. Pierce fuppofes it was origi- 
 nally 2. marginal glofsy and from chence too hafti- 
 ly taken into the text ; but he does not feem to 
 have good reafon for this thought, as yiTKni; is in- 
 ferted in all the copies and verfions. Vide Wollii. 
 Cur. Philolog. in loc. And it appears to me, 
 that, upon the fcheme of interpretation I am 
 explaining, it is emphatical ; efpecially as it is not 
 a fimple repetition, but a repetition joined with 
 y.cci aurn. The apoftle, as I imagine, would fug- 
 ged, by the words xai auryi 71 xTio-i?, that even that 
 very creature^ the felf-fame mankind, who was fub- 
 jeHed to vanity^ (hould be alfo delivered from it i 
 which is exprefled far more ftrongly by the re- 
 petition of KTKTK with the pronoun uvm, than it 
 would have been without it. 
 
 (36) Shall he delivered from the Jlavery^ &c.] It 
 would not alied the rriain' argument I am purfu- 
 
T!he F roofs of Univerfal Salvation. 109 
 ing, if I (hould allow the common interpretatioa 
 
 of the words £A£u9f^co0'/i(r£r:tt aTTO Ty\(; hvXsiccg rr\g 
 
 ^Oo^a? to be the true one. But I am clearly fatif- 
 fied it is not ; and that the fenfe given in the pa- 
 raphrafe ought to be preferred. For it is evident, 
 from the whole run of the apoftle Paul's writings, 
 not only that the crealirre, or man, is under 
 l^orids to deaths that is, fubjecled to a frail, mortal, 
 corruptible condition •, but that, in confcquence of 
 this bondage^ he is, upon the foot of mere law^ 
 and without the fuppofition of grace or gofpeU iii 
 bondage alfo to bodily or animal appetites and indi- 
 nations, [This I have proved at large in the book 
 feveral times before referred to.] Both thefe fenfes 
 of bondage are certainly included in that vanity the 
 creature is fubje5led to. They ought therefore to 
 be BOTH comprehended in the oppofite deliverance 
 here fpoken of. The plaifter, in this cafe (to ufe 
 a vulgar comparifon) will be as broad as the fore; 
 but not otherwife. So it is exprefsly reprefented to 
 be (which ought to be remembered here) by this 
 fame apoftle, in the 5th chapter of this fame 
 epijlhi as we have before feen •, and I am per- 
 fuaded he had the fame Jiing in view here. 
 
 {^7) Into the freedom of thofe, &c.] The para- 
 phrafe here is certainly juft, if I have given the 
 true fenfe of the creature's deliverance from the 
 bondage of corruption. The interpretation of both 
 parts of the fentence is grounded on the fame rea- 
 fon. And it may be worth obferving, the fenfe 
 we have given of thofe verfcs makes out a per- 
 
 fca 
 
I io '^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 fed analogy between the apoflle's difconrfe herCi 
 and in the 5th chapter of this fame epifile. The 
 creature's fuhje^fion io vanity^ in the 20th verfe of 
 this chapter, is the fame thing with death's hav- 
 ing paffed upon all men, whereupon they have all fin- 
 ned, in the 12th verfe of the 5th chapter. And 
 the deliverance of this very creature, that was 
 fubjedled to vanity, from the bondage of corruption 
 into the glorious liberty of the children of God, ver. 
 21ft of this 8th chapter, is precifely the fame 
 thing, in import, with the free gift that is come 
 upon all men unto juftification of life, and that will 
 qualify them for it by makiftg them righteous 
 perfons, in the i8th and .19th verfes of the other 
 chapter. The apoflle, without all doubt, had the 
 fame general thought in his m.ind, while he was 
 writing both thefe paragraphs ; as may more fully 
 appear prefently. 
 
 ^38) jFcr.] Expofitors, as it feems to me, have not 
 duly attended to the true connexion of this par- 
 ticle /^r, yaf ; which ought not to be joined either 
 with the preceding 21ft or 20th verfes, but with 
 the 19th, as in the paraphrafe. The apoftie had 
 faid, in the igth verfe, in order to illuftrate the 17th 
 and 1 8th verfes, that the creature earneftly expelled, 
 and waited for, the manifeftation of the fons of God» 
 Before he proceeded to prove that the creature 
 thus actually watted, he interpofes the 20th and 
 2ift verfes, which may very well be confidered as 
 a parenthefts, to fliew that it might reafonahly, or 
 vpon juji groufidsy thus wait in expedation. And, 
 
 having 
 
'The Prvofs of Univerfal Salvation, 1 1 1 
 
 having difpatched this, he now goes on, in the 
 22d verfc, to the proof of the /^^ he had alfcrted 
 in the 19th verfe. In this view of the words, the 
 for in the 20th verfe, as well as in the 2 2d, is 
 joined in conftrudiion with the 19th verfe; but 
 not to prove the fame thing. The former is in- 
 tended to denote the reafonablenefs of what he had 
 afferted ; the lacier^ its truth in point of fa^ : 
 And, in this method of connexion, there is a pro- 
 priety, confiftency, and force, in both thditfors^ 
 and the whole pafTage of which they are parts. 
 
 ^39) Have groaned — longing for deliverance.'] This 
 deliverance, the zvhole creation., or all mankind^ are 
 reprefented as longing for^ refpects the manifejla- 
 tion of the fons of God-t t\\Q\x freedom fro7}i corrup- 
 tion^ and being made glorioufly immortal^ as has 
 been explained in fome of the above notes. 
 The connedion of the difcourfe makes this necef- 
 fary. 
 
 But how, you will afk, can this be ? How can 
 even all mankind long and wait for this deliverance., 
 when but a very fmall part of the world of men 
 know any thing of the ohtainahlenefs q{ fuch a de- 
 liverance^ To which Dr. Taylor, in his note upon 
 this place, has, in my opinion, given a very clear 
 and fatisfadlory anfwer. He fays, ' We know, 
 
 * as the apoftle fays, ver. 22, that all mankind 
 ' do groan under the afflidlions and prefiures of 
 ' this prefent world, fcnfible of its imperfections 
 
 * and vanity, and confequently mufl defire fome- 
 
 * thing better. And although they may not know 
 
 2 ' what 
 
1 1 2 The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 c .^hat that better thing is, yet the apoftle knew 
 ' it ; and he fpeaks according to his own know- 
 ' ledge, and not theirs. He affirms, of his 
 « own knowledge, what their expeftations would 
 ' ifllie in. Their earneft waiting was in fad, 
 ' however they might be ignorant of it, a 
 ' waiting for the manifeftation of the fons of God, 
 ' And he proves this [I would rather fay, the 
 ' reafonablenefs of it. See note (38)] ver. 20, 
 
 * 2 1 ; as fuppofing the Chriftians, to whom he 
 ' wrote, might be ignorant of it : Which fhews, 
 
 * that when he affirms, the earnefi defire of man- 
 
 * kind after a releafe from the fufferings of this 
 
 * vain life, he fpeaks not of what Heathens^ or 
 
 * even Chrifiians^ underftood, or believed, to be 
 
 * true. Further, Dr. Whitby, upon the place, 
 ^juftly obferves, that, in the fac red dialed, dejire 
 ' and expe5fation is afcribed to creatures in refer- 
 
 * ence to things they want, and which tend to 
 ' their advantage, though they explicitly know 
 
 * nothing of them. Thus the Meffiah^ before 
 
 * he came, is called the defire of all nations^ 
 
 * Hag. ii. 7.' 
 
 (40) 'Now^^ The word, in the original, is 
 li\ which, I think, ought to be rendered now^, 
 and not and^ as in our Bibles, and by mofl com- 
 mentators. The apoftle, as it appears to me, 
 comes, in this verfe, to apply the argument he had 
 been purfuing to the cafe of Chriftians^ for which 
 he had brought it. As if he had faid, " You fee 
 that even the whole world of mankind do virtually 
 
 declare. 
 
* ^he_ Proofs of Unherfal Salvation, 113 
 
 declare, by their groanings under the fufferings of 
 this vain life to which they are fubjedted, that they 
 defire, long after, and wait for, fomc better ficte : 
 Now, this is the truth with relped: to us Chriftians 
 alfo. The all-wife God has fo conftituted things, 
 that even we like-wife groan under the various pref- 
 fures of life, which is zfa£f implicitly fignifying, or 
 declaring, that we zvait for redemption^ not being 
 as yet adlually poflelTcd of it." 
 
 (41) U'^ho have had the fir ft -fruits of the Spirit,^ 
 Perhaps, the apoftle may intend, by the words, 
 mv uTTx^yj,]/ ro'j tti/e-juccto^j more than expofitors 
 commonly take into it. He certainly here alludes 
 to the Jewifh cuflom of offering y^it fir ft- fruits of 
 their increafe ; which oblation fandified not only 
 tbefe fruits, but all the reft. And might he not, 
 by this allufion, have it in view to lead us to think, 
 that thefe Chriftians were not merely the firft that 
 had received ihc gifts ^nd graces of the Jpirit -, but 
 that thefe gifts and graces, beftowed on them, 
 were a fpecimen, pledge, or edrneft, of what fllould 
 be bellowed, in God's time, and way, upon the 
 reft of mankind P If thefe Chriftians are thus looked 
 Upon as the firft fruits, and the zvhole race of men 
 as \ht folloxving harveft, it will admirably fuit the 
 apoftle's argument, and give a noble fenfe to his 
 words. And there are other texts which feem 
 to countenance this interpretation. The apoftle 
 James, in the i8th verfe of the firft chapter of his 
 Epiftle, fays of hmfelf and the Chriftians he was 
 writing to, " Of his own will begat he us with the 
 
 I ': word 
 
114 ^^^ Proofs ofUniverfaJ Salvatio^i. 
 
 ** word of truth" [fiJ to t^von 7i[u,cc; caroL^yjAv rivac n^y 
 avrov xrta-(j.ccTO)v'\ THAT wc might he a certain firfi- 
 fruits of his creatures. To what had God begotten 
 thefe Chriftians ? If we may anfwer in the words of 
 the apoftle Peter, fecond Epiftie i. 3, 4, 5, it was, 
 to a lively hope. Of what ? " An inheritance in- 
 " corruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away, 
 *' referved in heaven for us, to be revealed in the 
 *' lad time." And as they were thus begotten, that 
 they might be iht firfi- fruits [rwv cx.\)rQ\j xTio-^arwvJ 
 cf God's creatures^ his rational creatures, mankindy 
 I fee not but thefe creatures-, in relation to whom 
 thefe Chriftians are called the firft-fruits^ mud 
 partake in the fame common hope, fo as finally to 
 enjoy the thing hoped for. The allufion to the 
 Jezvifh firft-fruits naturally and obvioufly leads to 
 this thought: Nor can it be fo eafily explained 
 any other way. Iz may tend flill further to 
 (Irengthen this fenfe of the apoftle's allufion, if we 
 attend to the thing meant, when Chrifi is called, 
 I Cor. XV. 20, oLTcoL^yjfi Twv x£Koiy.niJ.ii'U)v, the fir ft- 
 fruits of them ftept* Surely, the thing intended, by 
 this mode of exprefiion, is not that Chrifi was the 
 ftrft that was raifed from the dead ; but that he 
 was th^firft that was raifed as z. pledge-, earnefty or 
 affurance-, that mankind7^;//z;f?/^//y fiiould be raifed 
 alfo. His refurre^on^ in analogy to the firft fruits 
 under the law, confe crated the whole world of men^ 
 and was defigned, by Qod, as an intimadon, that 
 the refurre^lion of all men [hou]d as furely follow 
 the refurre^yion of Chrift^ a^ the whole harveft fol- 
 lowed 
 
"The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 1 1 j 
 
 lowed ihtfirft -fruits. And this alfo is the true 
 meaning of that ftyle which is given to Chrifl, 
 Col. i. 1 8 — Rev. )• 5, tt^wtotojco^ £x twv ysK^(jd]fy the 
 firft-horn from the dead. So the common tranfla- 
 tion has it; and very juftly, if by tht firft-horn be 
 meant, not merely the firji that was raifed from the 
 dead •, but the chief the head^ the firfi in pre^ 
 Crninence^ of that family^ of thofe children^ who 
 iliall live again after death ; the refurre5lion of 
 Chrifl being here confidered as x^ae pledge of their's. 
 And this, by the way, may ferve to lead us into 
 the true fenfe of that controverted text, Col. i. 15, 
 where the apoftle, fpeaking of Chrift, calls him 
 ^^'jiXQrQy.ot; •k%(ty[^ xrta-fwf, the firjl-bom of every crea* 
 ture^ as it is rendered in our Bibles ; and with 
 propriety, if, by every creature , we underftand 
 every rational creature in this lower world ; [This, 
 as we have feen note (27) is the meaning of the 
 phrafe -rrxac/. v.'r\iT\^ in the Nevv-Teftament writings] 
 and if, hy firjl-bornt we underlland, not the firfi 
 creature i\\2it was born ; but ihe firfi in pre- eminence ^ 
 the chief among mankind •, the eldefi fon, with 
 v;hom is the right of primogeniture ; that glorious 
 perfon whom God made the firfi heir of all things j 
 and the other children, the refi of the family, heirs 
 through him, or on his account, fo heirs as that they 
 fhall finally come to poflefs the inheritance with 
 
 him. The phrafe, Trcoororoy.og tv TroXXoiq 0(,^sX(p0i<;, 
 
 in Rom. viii. 29, may properly be explained by 
 this in Col. i. 15. The many brethren there, may 
 mean the fame thing with every creaturt here, that 
 
 \ 2 is* 
 
1 1 6 T^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 is, every rational creature, all mankind. For it 
 is to be remembered, the fpecia! reafon given, vi^hy 
 Chrift became a partaker of flefi and bloody is, as 
 the author of the Epidle to the Hebrews exprefifes 
 it, chapter ii. 14, " becaufe the children were par- 
 '' takers thereof." The children^ that is, every fin 
 and daughter of Adaniy the ivhole human race ♦, for it 
 was with a view to every man, in order to his 
 being qualified to give his life a ranfim for every 
 MAN, that Chrift was made for a zvhile inferior to the 
 angels^ or, what means the fame thing, became 
 rwan, partook of fiefh and bloody as in the 9th verfe 
 of this chapter. Upon the whole, it fiiould ap- 
 pear highly probable, ta fay the leaft, that the 
 apoftle, by ufing the phrafe, the firjl fruits of the 
 Spirit^ with reference to the gifts and graces be- 
 llowed on ihtfirfi Chrifiians^ intended an infinua- 
 tion as though thcfe gifts and graces would be'be- 
 ftowed on mankind univerfally •, or that thefe Chrif- 
 tians were, with relation to all men, what the/r/?- 
 fruits were, among the Jezvsy with reference to- 
 the following whole harvefl, 
 
 OBSERVATiONSf deduced from the foregoing text? 
 
 PARAPHRASE, and NOTES. 
 
 Upon a careful perufal of the above paflage of 
 fcripture, with what has been offered in ilkiftra- 
 tion of it, it is eafy to obferve. 
 
 That the race of men^ mankind univerfally^, are 
 ffft creature^ and the whole creation^ the apoille is 
 
 treating 
 
The Proofs of "Univerfal Salvation* 1 1 7 
 
 treating cf in this pla-ce. It may pofTibly feem. 
 harfh to an Englijh reader to underftand, by the 
 whole creationy nothing more than mankind -, and, 
 being always ufed to interpret the phrafe in a more 
 extended fenfe, he may have a fecret prejudice in 
 his mind againft: this retrained one. But it is 
 certain, the Greek phrafe, Trao-a y\ xna-igy has not 
 the fame force, in the New-Teftament writings, 
 with the EngiiJJj one, the ivhole creation. The 
 idea obviouHy conveyed, and intended to be con- 
 veyed, is this, -and only this, the whole rational 
 creation, the ivht)Ie world of mankind. 
 
 It is further obfervable, two grand things 
 are here fpoken of, as referring to this' whole crea* 
 tioHy or all mankind^ namely, their subjection to 
 VANITY, and their deliverance from it. 
 
 On the one hand, it is affirmed of the creature, 
 that is, of mankind in general, that they s^vcfubjeofed 
 to vanity, that is, the imperfe6liohs and infelicities 
 of a vain mortal life here on earth. And, it is 
 v/orthy of fpeciai notice, their fubjedlion to this 
 vanity is faid to have been faftened on them, not 
 through any default of their Sy not by anywiftil atf 
 of difohedience they had been perfonally guilty of-, 
 but in virtue of a divine conflitutiony by God who 
 was pleafed thus to fubjedl them. And why did 
 he thus fubjed them ? Not arbitrarily •, not in a 
 mere Ibvereign abfolute way : But upon occafion 
 of the lapfe of the one man Adam, their common 
 progenitor ♦,• as this fame apoftle had before, in 
 tiie fifth chapter, particularly related. And here 
 I 3 I cannot 
 
1 1 8 'The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 I cannot but obferve, and point out, the perfe(5l 
 analogy there is between his difcourfe in this pa-- 
 ragraph^ and that remarkable chapter. He fpeaks 
 indeed the fame thing, exprefTes the fame fenti-s 
 me'ntSa though in difierent words. What he here 
 calls iht creature's fuhje^f ion to n)anity^ he /i^^r^ calls 
 all men's coming under condemnation ; deaths reigning 
 over them -, death's having pajfed upon them, where- 
 upon they have all finned. And whereas, he hen 
 fays, the creature was fubjeded to vanity, ^Mk 
 WILFULLY, not by any fm of jheir's-, but through 
 the will of him who fuhje^ed. them ; He there de- 
 clares the fame thing, only in a more full and ex- 
 plicit manner -, afcribing this fubjeftion of all men 
 \.Q mortality^ or vanity, with the confequences ^he.r€-, 
 of, not to their \\z.'si'm'g finned after the fimilitv4^ -of 
 Adam\^ iranfgrejfwn \ but to the conftitution of^God^ 
 occafioned by,^jpd taking rife from, the, one man 
 that fmned^jhe fine ofence.pfthe^ one man Adam. 
 The general idea intended to .be cpmm.umcated 
 both there and- here^^ is evidently the fam^, fo evi- 
 dently that one can fcarce help dilcernirlg the iden- 
 tity of fentiment. 
 
 On the other hand, it is as pofitively affirmed 
 of the creature, or mankind in general, that they 
 were not fubjedled to this vanity finally, and 
 
 FOR ever, but IN CONSEQUENCE OF HOPE, HOC 
 
 only that they fhould be delivered from this unhappy 
 fubje5iion^ but be inllated in immortal glory as God's 
 fans. For fo the words are, in the 20th and 2 id 
 vcrfes i " who fubjefled the fame in hope, that 
 
 ":' the 
 
^he Proofs of XJniverfd Sdhntion. 1 1 9 
 
 ** the^ creature itfelf alfo," even this very creature^ 
 the [elf fame mankind^ " fliall be delivered from the 
 ** bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of 
 •' the children of God i" diredly and plainly affirm- 
 ing, that mankind was not fubjeded to the infelici- 
 ties of this prefent vain life as z final condemnation^ 
 but upon the foot 0^ 2. previous hcpexhu theyfliould, 
 in due time, be delivered^ and wiih advanta^^e too. 
 For obferve, what is the ohjel^ of this hope ? Not 
 merely deliverance from the bondage of corruption 4 
 but an enlargement into the glories of an immortal 
 life. And who are i\\^ fuhje^isoi it ? Why, the crea- 
 ture^ the zvhole creation^ that is, mankind, the whole 
 race of men. For, remark," the very fame crea- 
 ture^ the f elf fame mankind^ who was fubjeclcd to 
 vanity, was fubjecTced to ic in hope. In hope of 
 what ? Not only of a deliverance from this vanity^ 
 but # deliverance from it that f'ould be accom- 
 pa4'"-J with an immortality in glory and honour, 
 
 Ihe attentive reader wiil, upon this explana-" 
 
 4ion, very eafily perceive, that the object of 
 
 ' HOPE, in this pafTage, is precifdy the fame thing 
 
 with the ABOUNDING GIFT AND GRACE THROUGH 
 
 CHRIST, in the foregoing fifth chapter; and that 
 Y, y.TKT^;, and TTXG-jc n nTKrig, the creature^ and theichcle 
 creation^ fpoken of here, mean the fame thing with 
 Of TTcAAoi, and TrauTEg ai/6^w7rot, the jha'ny^ and dlt men\ 
 upon whom the abound'ing gift through Chrift 
 is there bellowed. And further, if, by deliverance 
 from the "bondage of corruption into the glorious 
 liberty of the children of^God^ we underlland here 
 I 4 deliverance 
 
1 20 The Proofs of JJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 deliverance ixom fuch bondage mio fuch freedom as 
 is mentioned in the paraphrafe, the analogy will 
 be flill more obfervable, and may^ in this refpefl^ 
 be feen pointed out in note (37),... The truth., isb^ 
 one can fcarce critically compare what the apoftle 
 fays here^ with what he has advanced in the fore- 
 going fifth chapter, and be afterwards at a lofs to 
 determine, that he was purfuing thQ fame thought 
 in both thefe places. It is certain, if we interpret 
 thefe places by one another^ making them to fignify 
 'ene and the fame things we fhall give a very juft 
 and confiftent fenfe to the apoflle's words, and, I 
 believe, the mofl natural and obvious one that 
 can be pitched upon : Yea, this palTage, in this 
 point of view, will appear quite eafy and intelli- 
 gible ; and we fhall have no reafon to rank it, as 
 ibme have done, among the chief of the Pauline 
 5ic-vo>ira, or thiii:^s hard to he underfcod. 
 
 The fum of Me matter is, the apoftle, col 
 ing his dilcpurfe hcrey with his difcourfe in the 
 chapter, from the 12th verfe, is evidently fpeal^ 
 ing of the ^-juhole human race. And what he fays \ 
 of them is, that they are fubje6i:ed to 2l fuffering 
 itate i that they were fubje6ted to it, not on the 
 account' of ^wj'^;/, ox fins ^ they had been guilty of 
 previous to this fubjedion, but by the will of God^ 
 taking rife froni, and grounded on, iht fin of the 
 qne fUi^n'Jdam'.y and that he fubjedled them to this 
 fuffer i ng (zonimon, not 2i% 2i final condemnation^ but 
 upon having /r/? given them reafon to hope^ not 
 only that they fliould be delivered from their 
 
 fufferings^ 
 
T^be T roofs of TJniverfal Salvation, izi 
 
 fufferingSy but with abounding advantage, by 
 being finally made meet for, and then crowned 
 with, immortality and glory as the fons of God. 
 This is the plain natural fenfe qf this pafiage of 
 icripture, compared with the other ; and it is the 
 rnofl confiilent fenfe alfo, that which gives not 
 only the ftrongeft energy to the argument the 
 apoftle is upon, but the bed connexion between 
 the fe vera! parts of his difcourfe. ^.>. ; 
 
 I fhall only add, that the apoftle's way of argu- 
 ing here^ as alfo in the foregoing fifch chapter, is 
 very unlike to that which is commonly to be met 
 with in commentators, and other Chriftian writers. 
 "They ground the fuffering (late mankind are fub- 
 je6led to, on the ^n which tbey themfehes have 
 been guilty of s reprefenting the 'whole human race 
 to have finned in, and fell zvithy the one man 
 Adam in his firj} tranfgrejfwn : And having thus 
 ftnned by his finning, they fuppofe they have me- 
 rited all this unhappinefs, and that it is fit and 
 proper they fhouldy^^dr it, as being a jufl tefti- 
 mony of the difpleafure of God againft the fttt^ 
 they thenfelves are chargeable with : Whereas the 
 apoftle fpeaks very differently upon the matter. 
 He frees mankind from all blame on account of the 
 offence of their firft father 9 acknowledging indeed 
 that this offence of his was the occafion, ground-^ or 
 reafon^ of that fubjedliod they are under to vanity 
 and mortality, and the unavoidable appendages of 
 them i but affirming, at the fame time, that they 
 were thus fubjedled to fuffering, not remedilefshj 
 
 but 
 
122 ^he Proofs of XJniverfal ^ahatioit. 
 
 but with an intention of mercy \ and that their 
 fuffemgs fball finally terminate in their fuper- 
 ahiinding advantage \ yea, and that it was highly 
 cono-ruous to reafon to conceive thus of the matter. 
 And it is this thought only, fo far as I am able 
 to judge, that can reconcile the mavoidahkfuffer- 
 ings of the race of men, as occafioned by, and 
 takincy rife from, the lapfe of their common father 
 Jdam^ with the perfedions of God, particularly 
 his infinitely perfect and unbounded benevolence. 
 And this, as I imagine, will effedtually do ' it., 
 The grant of exiftence, in this point of light, ap- 
 pears, at the firft glance, to be an unfpeakable 
 benefit, and what calls for the mod grateful ac- 
 knowledgments from all the fons of Adanty not- 
 ivithftanding all xht farrows^ and trials^ they are 
 fubjedled to, and mu(t pafs through ; as they will 
 end in their reigning in happy life for ever. But, 
 upon any other view of the cafe, I fee not, I freely 
 confefs, for my own part, that x^n^ gift of exijlence^ 
 all things eonfidered, is a valuable one, or what 
 we can rationally be thankful for. According to 
 the common way of explaining the fall of Adam^ 
 there is moil certainly juft ground for complaint ^ 
 on account of the difadvantageous circumilai^ces 
 his pofterity^ by this means, have been fubjecfbed 
 to: Nor i? this ground for complaint in the 
 lead removed away by the gift and grace through 
 Chrift \ for, with refpecl to the greater part of the 
 human race by far, their cafe is as remedilefs as 
 ir 'j^'ould have been, had no grace been ever mani- 
 
 fefted 
 
"ihe Proofs of Unherfal Salvation . i :2 3 
 
 fefled towards men in Jefus Chrifl : Nay, what 
 is worfe, their cafe, by means of Chrift, is made, 
 in the end, more a^gravatedly miferahle^ though 
 not lefs remedilefs : The reverfe of all which is 
 evidently the great /cope of the apoftle's reafonino^ 
 in this eighth chapter of his Epiftle, as well as in 
 the foregoing Jifib ; which ought always to be 
 read together, as they exprefs the fame fentiments, 
 and mutually and clearly illuflrate each other. 
 
 Another lext, falling in with the general head 
 v;e are upon, occurs in CoL i. 19, 20. " For it 
 " pieafed the Father that in him fliould all fullnefs 
 " dwell. And (having made peace through the 
 " blood of his crofs) by him to reconcile all things 
 " to \iiimfeif, by -him, I fay, whether they be 
 *' things in earth or things in heaven." 
 
 Callellio, and, from him, Mr. Pierce, and the 
 author of the new edition of the New Teftament 
 in -Greek with an Englifh verfion, tranflate thofe 
 
 words, in the 19th verfe, fv aurw fvccxj^trf -n-ccy TO 
 
 frXTf^ufAQc nccroiXY.Txi, ihus, it pieafed the Father by him 
 to inhabit all fullnefs. It is of no importance, in the 
 prelent argum.ent, whether this, or the rendering 
 in our Bibles^ be adhered to: For which reafon, 
 waving all difpute upon fo critical a point, I Ihall 
 retain the verfion that is commonly received. The 
 only thing then needful to be fettled in ver. 19th, 
 is, what the apoftle means by the phrafe, tt^.u to 
 irA?;f^iwa, all fullnefs. And he plainly means by it, 
 as I conceive, fiich a fullnefs o^ gifts a,nd grace, as 
 ihall be fujfficienty and effcclual, to repair tho damage 
 
 of 
 
124 ^^^ P^otf^ tf Uni'verfal Salvation. 
 
 of the hpfet 2Lnd all that has been confequent upon 
 it, with abounding^ advantage, even to all mankind. 
 I Ihall fet this matter in as clear and ftrong a light 
 as I am able. In order whereto let it be carefully- 
 obferved, 
 
 The apoftle Paul, fpeaking of Chrift, fays, in 
 
 the fecond chapter of this epiftle, the 9th verfe, 
 
 " in him dwelleth all the fullnefs of the Godhead 
 
 *' bodily." By this fullnefs of the Godhead we are to 
 
 iinderftand, not that ahfohte fullnefs of all perfedllon 
 
 which belongs to the Deity, but ihz.t fullnefs of gifts 
 
 and grace, which the Godhead intends hy him to 
 
 impart to others. See this verfe illuflrated by Mr. 
 
 Pierce, -as I think, beyond all reafonable difpute. 
 
 Agreeably, when it is faid, that the fullnefs. of the 
 
 Godhead dwelleth in Chrift bodily, the meaning is, 
 
 that he is really and truly pofTeired [See this fame 
 
 expofitor on the word o-w^aaTiJcw?] of ^// thetranfient 
 
 fullnefs of God^ or, as the fame thought may be ex- 
 
 prefied in other words, that he is the glorious 
 
 perfon in whom God has really lodged, and through 
 
 whom he will adually communicate all that full- 
 
 Tjefs wherewith he intends this lapfed world Ihall 
 
 he filed, in order to its rejioration. In conformity 
 
 to this fenfe of the word fullnefs y it is faid, in the 
 
 immediately following verfe, x^i ic-tb eu ocvrca TreTrXn- 
 
 ^'^IJiivoi, not, and ye are compleat in him-, bur, and ye 
 
 are filled hy him. In like manner, it is obferved 
 
 of Chrift, not only that he was " full [7rA-,i^r/?] of 
 
 " o-race and truth *," but that \}y. toM TrXn^u^'Oirog 
 
 vdVTcu] " of his fullnefi we have all received, and. 
 
^he Proofs of Vniverfal Sahattoft, 125 
 
 *' grace for grace," John i. 14, i6. And it is with 
 reference to this hrcitfullnefs that has been lodc^ed 
 in Chrift, to be imparted by him to the raceoflapfed 
 man^ that we read of " the fullnefsof him who fil- 
 ^' ieth all in all," Eph. i. 23. Mr. Pierce, in con- 
 traditflicn to Mr. Locke, and moft interpreters, nn- 
 derftands thefe words, whojillcth all in all^ not of 
 Chrift^ but of God the Father, He fays, in his note 
 upon Col. i. 19,'Confidering the lofty terms wherein 
 ' he [the apoftle] had jiift before fpoken of God 
 ' the Father^ deriving all things from him that were 
 
 * even in Chrift himfelf, and comparing this ex- 
 
 * prefTion with what he fays of the Father^ Eph. iv. 5, 
 " One God and father of all, who is above all, and 
 " in you all,*' and with i Cor. xii. 6, '* It is the 
 " fame God who worketh all in all :" I fay, con- 
 
 * fidering thefe things, I am much rather inclined 
 ' to underftand the Father to be meant by him that 
 ^ flkth all in all* But furely this accurate ex- 
 pofitor did not duly confider, though the Father 
 is above all, in alU the Father of all, and zvorketh 
 all in all\ yet that he does nothing by himfelf 
 Immediately, but all through and by the intervening 
 egency of his Son Jefiis Chrift. For all the tranfient 
 fullnefs of the Godhead dwelleth in him, and was 
 made to dwell in him for this very purpofe, that 
 it might by him be communicated to the lapfed 
 creation. And, in truth, Chrift, having this /«/^ 
 nefs lodged in him, afcended up far above all hea- 
 vens [n^5i 7>Kv\ ^ucr\ Toc TravTOc] THAT HE MIGHT 
 
 FiLL ALL THINGS, as the apoftlc exprefsly affirm?, 
 
 Eph. 
 
126 llje Proofs of Univerfal Sahaimi. 
 
 Eph. iv. lo. And as ih^ filling all thmgs^ that is, 
 in the lapfed worlds that they might be rejtored^ 
 was the final cause of the afcenfion of Chrifl: up 
 to heaven, all things mud accordingly be filled in 
 fa^t by him, fooner or later. The apoflle there- 
 fore obferves, in the following verfes, not only 
 that he had imparted gifts^ in profecution of this 
 end of his exaltation \ but that, in order to the fnli 
 accomplifhment of it, he would go on to impart 
 them, " TILL WE ALL COME to the unity of the 
 *^ faith, unto a perfe61: man, unto the meafure of 
 *' the ftature of the fullnefs of Chriil." [Read v;hat 
 is further faid upon this matter, under Eph. i. 9, 10. ] 
 And it was, as I fuppofe, with a diredb view to 
 Chrift's thus filling all things^ that the apoflle fpeaks 
 of him, in the words we are nowconfidering, as that 
 glorious perfon in whom it has pleafsd the Father that 
 all communicable fullnefs Jhould dwell. I need not 
 fay, that this interpretation gives the phrafe, all 
 fullnefs^ a very emphatical, and mod glorioufly fig- 
 nificant meaning. And I am the rather fatisfied, 
 that this is its true meaning, as it fo admirably 
 agrees with the following; verfe ; in which the 
 apoflle goes on to fpeak of the Father^s reconciling 
 all things to hlmjelfhy Jefus Chrifl^ whether they be 
 things in earthy or things in heaven. 
 
 This verfe has been vaftly puzzling to expo- 
 fitors. Scarce a text in all the Bible has more 
 exercifed their talents, or given cccafion for 
 greater variety in their fentiments. Grotius in- 
 terprets it one way, Dr. Hammond another, 
 7 Dr. 
 
^he Proofs of Vniverfal Sahntion. 1 27 
 
 J)r. Whitby another, Mr. Locke another, Mr. 
 Pierce another. Dr. Taylor, fpeaking of this 
 text, plainly fays, [in his book on Romans, 
 page 282], ' that he does not underfland it.' And, 
 fo far as I can judge, it is really inexplicable 
 upon the common ichemes of divinity ; but yet 
 obviouily capable of an t%{^^ and yet noble and 
 iubiime fenfe, if underftood conformably to the 
 fenfe we have given of the preceding words. 
 
 The idea I have of it, without troubling my- 
 felf, or the reader, with what others have faid 
 upon it, is plainly this. ^^ the things in earthy 
 and the things In he a'v en ^ I underiland this whole 
 lower creation^ both animate and inanimate^ both 
 men and things^ whether in the earth or the aerial 
 heaven that lurrounds it. By God^s reconciling the fe 
 things to himfelfi I underfland his changing them 
 hack again to their former or original Jiate, And 
 whereas he is faid to reconcile or change the ftate of 
 thefe things hy Jefus Chrift^ having made peace by 
 the blood of his crofs *, I fuppofe the thought in- 
 tended to be conveyed is, that Chrift, having, by 
 his death on the crofs ^ laid a juft foundation for 
 peace with God^ is the glorious perfon, by v;hom, 
 as the prime minifter of God, this change was 
 brought into effed. As if the apoftle had faid, 
 10 fum up the meaning of thefc verfes in the fol- 
 lowing paraphrafe, *' It pleafed the Father, that all 
 communicable fullnefs fhould be lodged in his Son 
 Jefus Chrifiy and by him, as h\s great agent^ (hav- 
 ing prepared the way for it by his blood fhsd 
 
128 ^he Proofs of Jjniverfal Sahdfwh 1 
 
 on the crofs) to change hack again till things tl 
 himfelf', I fay, hy him it pleafed the Father to 
 change the Jiate of this lower worlds of the men and 
 the things of it^ whether they be on the earthy or iri 
 the heaven that encompafTes it." 
 
 In fnpport of this interpretation it is fcarc6 
 needful to fay, that ou^avoc may (ignify the aerial 
 ifeaven^ the heaven that furrounds this earth, fince 
 we fo frequently read of the rain of heaven \ of 
 the clouds of heaven ; of iht fowls of heaven ; of the 
 heaven as covered zvith hlacknefsj as cloathed with 
 darknefs^ and the like. It will be of more im^ 
 portance to go on, and fliow, that the word xaT^sX- 
 Xoctra-oj, a derivative from ccXXoq, and a compound 
 of jcar^ and aXXao-c-w, properly fignifies to re- 
 change^ or hrifig hack again to fome former fiate. 
 Thus it is ufed in i Cor. vii. lo, ii. " Unto the 
 " married I command, yet not I, but the Lord, that 
 '' the wife be not feparated [;)/w^i(r9^mt] from her 
 " hufband : But if fhe be already feparated [fay h 
 *' xat p^w^Kr9>]], let her remain unmarried, or let her 
 *' be reconciled [xwaTaXAa-ytiTce] to her hufband -y* 
 that is, let her he rechangedt return hack to her former 
 Hate of living with him. In all other places in the 
 New Teftament, this word is ufed with reference to 
 the great affair of falvation by Jefus Chrifi •, but 
 ftill, it has the fame general fenfe, at leaft one 
 that obvioufly coincides with it. This is its mean- 
 . ing here. And we fhail the more readily perceive 
 it to be fo, if we call to mind. 
 
 That a change^ by means of the offence of the 
 
 one 
 
T!he Proofs of JJniverfal Salvation . 129 
 
 one man Adam^ and the condemnatory fentence of 
 God taking riie therefrom, was introduced, not 
 only in the flate of all his -pofterity^ but of all 
 things elfe in this lower creation, that is, in the 
 things of the earthy and the things in the heaven that 
 furround it, as it is here exprefTcd. It was indeed 
 by this change of the earth and heaven from their 
 original ftate, that they became fitted to be the oc- 
 cafion of that vanity^ forrow^ and death, to which 
 it pleafed God to fubjedl the zvhole human kind. 
 It is true, the earth only is mentioned, in the third 
 chapter of Genefis, as that which was ciirfcd for 
 man's fake^ that is, changed from its original fiate^ 
 that it might be adapted to be an occafion of for- 
 row and death to the race of laffed man : But the 
 earth here is to be underftood as meaning the 
 'Lvhoje lower worlds not only the earth iff If, but 
 the hea'ven that environs it. Accordingly, when it 
 is Taid, " It has pleafed God to reconcile all things 
 " to himfelf, the things in earth, and the tilings in 
 '* heaven ;" the obvious meaning is, that he has re- 
 changed their Jiate, brought them lack to that they 
 were originally in. And having done this, he will 
 take effedtual care to accomplifli the defign of 
 his mercy herein. And this interpretation of the 
 words wonderfully coincides with what the fcrip- 
 ture elfewhere fays with reference to all things^ 
 underftanding hereby the inanimate ivorld, and 
 mankind the principal inhabitants of it. We ihall 
 be a little particular in the illuftration of this im- 
 portant point. 
 
 This is the fenfe of fcriptufe with rerpe(ft to ell 
 K things 
 
130 "The Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 things in the inanimate world. Hence thofe words of 
 our Saviour, Matt. xix. 28, '' Ye which have fol-* 
 *' lowed me, evenye^ in the regeneration, (ball 
 *' fie upon twelve thrones — ." The word TraXiyyt- 
 HiTiay here tranflated regeneration^ is the very word 
 that is ufed (as Dr, Burnet obferves) both by the 
 Greek philofophers, and the Greek chriftian fa- 
 thers, for the RENOVATION OF THE WORLD. And 
 
 doubtlefs the new form ofexiftence that is to be given 
 to all things^ their being, as it were, horn again to 
 another and better Jiate^ is what our Saviour has here 
 i'rt view. Hence alfo thofe words of the apoftle 
 
 Peter, A6ls iii. 21, a%ft y^^^oyt^iv aTroxocrcca-roiO-sa:^ 
 
 frcivrm^ Until the times of the restitution of all 
 THINGS. And this fame apoille fays, 2 Pet. iii. 13, 
 ** According to his promife we look for new hea- 
 ^* tens, and a new earth j" probably alluding to 
 thofe words of the prophet, Ifa. Ixv. 17, "Behold, 
 " I create new heavens^ and a Vew earth ; and 
 *^* the former ihall not be remembered, nor come to 
 " mind." And the apoftle John points our view to 
 the time when " there fhall be no more curse," 
 Rev. xxii. 3 ; when the "old heavens and earth 
 *' fhall FLEE AWAY," chap. XX. 2 •, when there lliali 
 be " a NEW HEAVEN, and a new earth, for that 
 " the FIRST HEAVEN, and the first earth are 
 ** PASSED AWAY," chap. xxl. I t Upon which, 
 he thatfitteth on the throne is introduced, faying, as 
 in the 5th verfe, \h'o^ kxivoc Trocvra, TTOiWj Behold, I 
 MAKE ALL THINGS NEW. Thus the things in 
 earthy and the things in heaveny meaning hereby the 
 'inanimate paj-ts of this lower world, are reconciled 
 
 t9 
 
"The Proofs of Unhyerfd Salvation, i j i 
 
 io God : And they may, with as much propriety, 
 be iaid to be fo^ as they are faid to have been 
 curfed by him. Their ftate was changed, by means 
 of the curfe., occafioned through the lapfe of the 
 one man Adam •, and they are changed hack again 
 to their former or original flate. This lower world 
 now is, and has been, all along, from the days of 
 Adam, in the unhappy ftate [unhappy, I mean, 
 with refped: to us men] it was changed to by rea- 
 fon of the/^//.* But the time is coming when it 
 fhall be changed into another ftate^ that is, be eredl- 
 ed into a new world, a new pieav^n and a new 
 EARTH. And becaufe this certainly will be, 
 yea, now is in the purpose of God, it is fpoken 
 of in this place, as though it aBually was. So ic 
 is faid of Chrift, Heb. ii. 8, " Thou haft put all 
 *' things in fubjedion under his feet :" Not that this 
 is, at prefenc, the real truth oifatt-^ for, as it is added, 
 in the latter claufe of this fame verfe, '' we fee not 
 " YET all things put under him :'* But they certainly 
 SHALL BE •, and that which certainly shall be is 
 fpoken ofj for that reafon, as though it actually 
 
 WAS. 
 
 This alfo is the fenfe of fcripture with reference 
 to mankijidy the principal inhabitants of this lower 
 world. It fpeaks of God, in other places befidcs 
 this we are confidering, as having reconciled them 
 to himfelf that is, rechanged, brought them back to 
 their former or original ftate. By the lapfe of their 
 firft father Adam, thtir flate was changed^ that is to 
 Jfay, they came into being under quite difTercnc 
 41 Difi . ^2 circumftancci- 
 
132 T!he T roofs ofVniverfal Salvation. 
 
 circumftances from what they would otherwifc 
 have done, under the condemnatory fenience of 
 God, and in fuch a ftate, in one word, as that it 
 was impoflible they fhould be faved. But by 
 Chrift ihtiT ftate was changed^ they were abfolutely 
 brought back to the condition they would have been 
 in had it not been for the lapfe *, what I mean is, 
 that they were absolutely and uncondition- 
 ally put into falvable circumftances, notwithftand- 
 ing the condannation through the lapfe, and all that 
 could be confequent upon it. And it is upon this 
 foundation, and this only, that they are become 
 capable of a future immortality ; and that 2,fcheme 
 has been eredied, under the miniftration of Jefus 
 Chrift, in the final iffue of which they fhali all, 
 notwithilanding the lapfe, and what has followed 
 upon it, reign in life as righteous per fons. Ail the 
 paiTages, in the New Teftament, where the words 
 reconciliation, reconcile, reconciled, are ufed, with re- 
 ference to the affair of falvation, admirably coin- 
 cide with this fentiment. We fhall briefly con- 
 fider them ail, fo far as is neceffary to illuftrate 
 the prefent point. , , 
 
 The firft we have in Rom. v. 10. *' For if, 
 "^' when we were enemies, we were reconciled to 
 ^' God by the death of his Son ; much more being 
 " reconciled we fliall be favcd by his life.'' The 
 words, while we ivere enemies, point out the ftate 
 mankind were changed to, in confequence of the 
 lapfe through the one man Adam. While mankind 
 were thus enemies^ in the view of God, they were re- 
 5 concikd 
 
l!he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 133 
 
 concikd to him, that is, changed in their ftate^ fo 
 changed as to h^ abfolutely put into a falvable con- 
 dition, the condition they would have been in had 
 it not been for the lapfe. And as this change of 
 ftate was efFeded by the Son of God^s death for 
 them^ and this while they were enemies^ and as luch 
 in a flate of condemnation^ the apoftle therefore 
 argues in that moft ftrong and conclufive manner, 
 *' MUCH MORE being reconciled we fhall be faved 
 ^' by his life." As if he had faid, " Forafmuch as 
 God, while mankind were in the unhappy ftate 
 of enemies^ and tinder condemnation^ was pleafed 
 FREELY and ABSOLUTELY to rechange their ftate, 
 putting them into a falvable condition^ and in no 
 lefs aftoniOiing a way than by the death of his own 
 Son-, MUCH MORE will he, now that he has raifed 
 his Son from death to live at his own right hand, 
 cloathed with all power in heaven and earth, 
 finally accomplifh their a5fual and eternal faha- 
 tionr 
 
 The word reconciliation is again [in the cri- 
 ginal'] ufed in the next verfe ; where the apoftle, 
 in the name of believers, fays, " By whom [that is, 
 •' Jefus Chrift] we have now received the reconcilia- 
 " tion," that is, [See note ( 1 ) where this text is par- 
 ticularly conlidered] the change of fate fpoken of, 
 and argued from, in the preceding verfe. 
 
 It may be worthy of fpecial notice here, the 
 
 apoftle having, in this and the preceding verfi, 
 
 fpoken of the aftair of mankind's rcconciliatian^ or 
 
 rechange of ftate by Jefus Chrift^ goes on, in the 
 
 K 3 following 
 
J 34 2^^^ Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 following ones, to lead us into a juft and full idea 
 of this whole matter. He tells us, in the 12th 
 verfe, not only that mankind were changed from 
 their original fi ate ^ but acquaints us with the way 
 and means by which this was brought about, namely» 
 the lapfe of the one man Adam* And left any 
 fhould miftake his meaning, and argue, from his 
 having ufed the words ao^ra^xxccs-a-io^ and ^ioiTOiXXocyn, 
 in the loth and nth verfes, that Chrift had re- 
 (hanged their fiat e only so far as to put them into 
 the like falvaUe condition they would have been in-i had 
 it not been for the /^/y^, and the condemnation through 
 it, he immediately, before he has finiHied one 
 fentence, goes off into zparenthefis to guard againfl: 
 any fuch thought, (hewing that the gift through 
 Chrijl EXTENDED FAR BEYOND THIS, changing 
 them into a better than their original ftate ; a flate 
 that would certainly, in the final operation of the 
 fcheme of God, as in profecution by his Son Jefus 
 Chrift, iffue in their adually reigning in life for 
 €ver^ being previoufly changed into a mcetnefs for 
 jt. This the reader ihould particularly keep in 
 view ; and he will then fee, that the reconciliation^ 
 here treated of, is fuch a change of flat e^ with re- 
 fpedl to even all mankind^ as virtually includes in 
 it their fnal fahation. It is, in one word, a re- 
 floration to their frfl flate, with all the abounding 
 ADVANTAGE dclcribed in the i5th,s 16th, and 
 J 7th verfes. ,-^^^ ^^^^^ /^k^\ i\%^\\'h^m U... 
 
 The next place that mentions reconciliation is 
 Rom. xi. 15^ where the apoille, fpeaking of the 
 
 reje^ion 
 
Hhe Proofs of Vnherfal Sahation. 13; 
 
 reje5iion of the Jews, fays, " If the cafting away of 
 *' them be \_y.a.rcx.XKocyr\ tou xoo-juou] the reconciliation 
 ** of the world — " ; that is, a mean to promote y^^Z? 
 a change in their tempers and manners as (hoiild 
 make them meet for ^ and inter eji them in, an ^cJual 
 right to eternal life. Let it be remarked here, 
 though the world', mankind univerfally^ were fo 
 changed in their flate by the death ofCbriJiy as that 
 they were in a fahahle condition, notwithftanding 
 the lapfe, yet it was neceflary they fhould be mo- 
 rally fit for falvation before it could atlually be 
 bellowed on them ; and the gofpel-difpenfation was 
 the grand mean the wifdom of God had contrived 
 to this end. Now the reje^icn of the Jews was an 
 occurrence fitted to extend i\\Q gofpel-difpenfation, and 
 in this way to promote the reconciliation of the 
 world, that is, their change offtate^ in point of meet- 
 mfs for^ and an a^ual interejt in, the jdvation 'of 
 heaven. The word reconciliation, in this text, has, 
 as I imagine, a meaning fomewhat different from 
 the fame word, or the word reconciled, in the 
 texts before mentioned. There is indeed, in the 
 fenfe of the apoftle Paul, a double reconciliation, as 
 well ^s Jujlif cation. The one means that change of 
 flate all men absolutely are brought into by the 
 death of Chrift -, and is opp')fed .to the condemna- 
 tion through the lapfe of the one man Adam. The 
 ether is that change of fate which :s connedcd with 
 an atlual meetnefs for, and prefent interejl in, eternal 
 life. The lattery I fuppofe, is fpoken of in this 
 K 4 text: 
 
1 36 7he Proofs of Univerfil Salvation* 
 
 text : Though it ought to be remembered, the 
 former is connected, in the fcheme of God, with 
 the latter ; and ^\\\ finally ilTue in it, as the apoftle 
 has abundantly explained this matter, Rom. v. 12, 
 and onwards j which has been taken notice of al- 
 ready. 
 
 , The words reconciliation^ reconciled^ reconciling^ 
 are all ufed, and repeated, and fo as to confirm 
 what 1 juft now obierved of a double reconciliation, 
 in 2 Cor. v. 18, 19, 20. " And all things are of 
 *' God, who hath reconciled us to himfelf, by 
 *' lefus Chrifl, and hath cjiven to us the mi- 
 " nifiry of reconciliation. Js (becaufe (42) God 
 
 (42) Js, hicauf?.'\ So, I think, t;? otj ought to be ren- 
 dered, and not, to nvit, that, as in oar Bibles. If the par- 
 ticle a<; ever means to avity it is in ^ome rare inftances, where 
 the fenfe cannot otherwife be made out ; which is far from 
 being the cafe here. The feiife is rather hurt, than helped, 
 by this tranflation of the word. It is true, thofe words, in 
 the beginning of this 19th verfe, if/jaf God ivas reccnciling the 
 nvorU to himfelf, may be conne£led with the minijiry of recon- 
 (iliation, fpoken of in the foregoing i8th verfe, and confidered 
 as explanatory to it : And in this way there may be a proprie- 
 ty in rendering w? toivit. Bat then the difficulty will be to 
 point out the coherence of the words that immediately follow, 
 and hath committed unto us the ivord of reconciliation. Whereas, 
 if we conne«i.\ this u: with tTrs^ X^icrroy ow '7r^B<7(3evoiJ.eij in the 
 20th verfe, making the words from on^ in the 19th, -a. par en- 
 ibijis, and tranllating o:c as, and on becaufe, there will not 
 only be good fenfe, but a noble elegance, in the apoftle's dif- 
 courfe. According to this conftruclion, the 19th \t\h will 
 
 bo 
 
^he Proofs of Unhcrfal Salvation. 137 
 
 '' was in Chrift, reconciling the world unto himfelf, 
 *' not imputing their trelpaircs to them, and hath 
 *' committed unto us tlie miniftry 01' reconciii- 
 *' ation) in the ftead of Chrill we do therefore 
 ''• come to you with an embafly ; as though God 
 " did befeech you by us, we pray you, in Chrift's 
 *' ilead, be ye reconciled to God." Here it is de- 
 clared, that God hath reconciled its to himfelf by 
 ^Jefiis Chrifi', the mer.ning of which is, that he has 
 by the death of his Son changed the fate of man- 
 kind^ putting them ahfolutely into z. falvahle condi- 
 tion. In confequence of this, having thus changed 
 their flate^ he \\-3i% given unto us [apoftles] the mini- 
 firy of reconciliation ; that is, the office or fervice 
 of acquainting the world that they are abfolutely 
 changed from the fbate of condemnation they were 
 in, through the lapfe, into a fahahle one through 
 Jefus Chrift ; and to prevail upon them to make 
 a wife and good ufe of this change of jiate^ that 
 it may ifTue in that moral internal change^ which 
 would make them, meet for^ and actually inte- 
 refi them in, the immortality and glory that is 
 opened to view in the gofpel. And becaufe 
 God zvas in Chrift reconciling the world unto him- 
 fclfy that is, had eredled the gofpel difpenfatton^ 
 as a wife and powerful mean^ under him, for ef- 
 
 be a reafon, and a very good one, of the ftrong and pathetic 
 language in the 20th verfe ; and the w;, in the 19th verfe, 
 will anfwer to the other a? in the 20th, io as to make out a 
 very beautifa! climax, as in the above tranflauon. 
 
 feding 
 
138 ^he Proofs of Univerfcil Salvation. 
 
 feding fuch a moral change in them, as woulH 
 prepare them for, and actually intereft them in, 
 that immortal life they had been ahfolutely chdnged 
 into a capacity of attaining to ; and becaufe he 
 had depofjted in his apoflles this word of reccnciUd' 
 tion-, this gofpel-mean of thus changing men into a 
 fneetnefs for a glorious immortality, ^bey are here 
 brought in as hefeeching men, in the ftrongeft and 
 moft pathetic language, to he reconciled to Gody 
 that is, to fuffer themfelves, in a willing way^ a-s 
 moral agents^ to have this important change wrought 
 in them. It appears to me ahfolutely neceffary 
 to underftand the words reconciliation^ reconciled^ 
 reconciling^ in this pafTage, in this latitude of fenfe, 
 in order to make out an intelligible and confiftenc 
 meaning. And taken thus, they obvioufly afford 
 fuch an one. If mankind have been really fo 
 changid in their ftate, by the death of Chriji, as 
 that they are now in z falvable cor\d\tiou^ a juft 
 foundation is laid for the erection of a difpenfation^ 
 with proper minifters^ in order to change them in 
 a moral way, which is the only fuitable one, into 
 an a5iual meetnefs for f aha t ion : Nor could it have 
 been eredted upon any other foundation. In vain 
 would it be for God to ere(5l fuch 2l difpenfation as 
 the gofpel one is, furnifhed with all defirable means 
 and motives to change men into a meetnefs for falva- 
 tion/if ihty vjQre not frfi changed from that ftate 
 of condemnation they were in through the lapfe. 
 And, unlefs this be fuppofed, vain would it be alfo 
 in apoftles^ or prophets^ or paftors, or teachers, 
 
 to 
 
T!he F roofs ofVniverfal Salvation, 1 39 
 
 to " befeech men, as in Chriil's (lead, to be recon- 
 *^ ciled to God," to be willingly changed into the dif- 
 pofitions of virtue. The gofpel min.ftry^ and indeed 
 all \x.%means. advantages^ and motives^ are to be con- 
 fidered as a fuperjlru^ure upon that ahfolute change 
 cf ftate which mankind have been brought into 
 by the death of Chrift. And this ahfolute change^ 
 as it has been argued from, and explained at 
 large by the apodle Paul in his iifrh chapter to 
 the Romans, ir'is to be remembered, \\\\\ finally 
 iflue in that moral one which will prepare them to 
 reign in life as righteous perfuns. Th^s, it is true, 
 may fail of being the efFed, by any of the means 
 that will be ufed under the prefcnt difpenfarion 
 of the kingdom of God; but other means, in 
 STILL FUTURE DISPENSATIONS, will be ufed, and 
 fuch too as fhali finally prove effectual 5 as 
 we may fee afterwards. 
 
 Another text that fpeaks of the affair of recon- 
 ciliation, is Eph. ii. 16. "And that he might re- 
 "concile both unto God m one body, by the 
 *' crofs, having flain the enmity thereby:" The 
 meaning of which words, and of the whole con- 
 text they are related to, is, that God, having by che 
 death of Chri[t rechanged the ftate of all mankind^ 
 had, in confequence ot this, and as a wife mean 
 to acccmpliih his merciful intention herein, taken 
 aWay ihe dtftinction he had formerly made between 
 Jeivs and Gentiles \ ereding a difpcnfatwn^ with his 
 own Son at its head, under which they fliould be 
 no more twain^ but one body^ or political commu- 
 2 nity. 
 
i 40 ■ The F roofs cf Univerfal Salvation, 
 
 niry- The breaking dczvn the partifion-zvall be- 
 tween Jew and Gentile is not the thing ultimately 
 meant by the reconciliation treated of in this chap" 
 ter. This is rather to be confidered as a vtean^ 
 in the fcheme and government of God, in order 
 to carry into efFed: his grand defign of mercy in 
 having rechanged the ft ate of all mankind by his 
 Son^s death. It would convey, comparatively, but 
 a poor lean idea of the fcheme of God, to under- 
 ftand the apoille in any lower fenfe. 
 
 Thefe now are all the texts in which we meet 
 with the words reconciliation^ reconcile', reconciled., 
 exept one, which I (hall have occafion to men- 
 tion prefently. And though they do not, in every 
 place, mean precifely the fame thing -, yet they 
 are always connculed with^ and grounded on., that 
 
 RECHANGE OF STATE COmmon tO ALL MANKIND, 
 
 with reference to which the apoRle Paul has 
 taught us to argue, much more if we are thus 
 
 CHANGED SHALL WE FINALLY BE SAVED BY 
 
 CHRIST: Declaring, at the fame tim^e, that the 
 PECULIAR ADVANTAGE of this rcchange cf ftate 
 lies in this, that it has placed us in better cir- 
 eumfiances than we fhould have been in had it not 
 been for the lapfe ; for that it will certainly ter- 
 minate, in the final operation of the fcheme of 
 God, in our reigning in life for ever as righteous 
 .-perfons, 
 
 I fliall only add, the context that follows the 
 paifage we have been thus long illuftrating very 
 much favours the fenfe we have given it. For 
 
 the 
 
. The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 141 
 
 the apoftle having faid, " Ic pleafed the Father, by 
 '' Jefus Chrift, to reconcile all things to himfeltV' 
 immediately fubjoins, applying himfelf to ihc Genlik 
 converts, " and you that were fome time alienat- 
 *' ed, and enemies in your mind by v/icked works, 
 ^' yet now hath he reconciled, in the body of his 
 " fieOi through death, to prefent you holy, and un- 
 *' blamable, and unreprovablc in his fight; if ye 
 '^^ continue in the faith, grounded and fettled, and 
 *' be not moved away from the hope of the gofpcl, 
 *' which ye have heard." — x^s if he had faid, "You 
 Chrijliau Gentiles^ to whom I am v;riting, arc an 
 evidence of the truth of what I juft nov/ obferv- 
 ed, namely, that it \\^.\h ;pleafed the Father by Jefics 
 Cbrjjl to reconcile all thwgs to himjelf-, for though 
 you were once [Trori] feem.ingly left of God, be- 
 ing eflranged from his church, \_clie;is from tips 
 <:ommonzvealth of Ifrael, as it is exprefled, Eph. ii. 
 2 2.] and enemies to him in your mind by wick- 
 ed works i yet now, in thck go/pel-d^ys, hath he 
 placed j^:/ equally with the Jews under the power- 
 ful method of reconciliation his vvifdpn) iiath con-. 
 trived, and goodefs ercded, through the deatj;! of 
 the flelhly body of Chrift, in order to your hav- 
 ing xh2Lt moral change effeded in you which fhali 
 make you holy, unhlamahU^ and unreprovabk in his 
 fight : And this will be the effedt of your being 
 placed under the gofpel means of reconciliation^ 
 if ye continue in faith, grounded and fettled, and 
 be not moved away from the hope of the gofpei 
 •vhich ye have heard." The apoflle goes on to 
 
 fav, 
 
142 ^^^ Pr^f/} ofVnroerfal Sahation. 
 
 fay, that the gofpel^ which thefe Coloffians had 
 heard, had,^ in confequence of God's pleafure to 
 reconcile all things^ been preached to evetj creature 
 under heaven. He then fpeaks of him felf as a 
 tninijier of this gofpel^ and as made a mini ft er of ic 
 to fulfil the word of God, enjen the my ft cry that had 
 been hid from ages and generations. What myftery 
 was this ? Expofitors commonly underfband by 
 it the purpofe of God to admit the Gentiles into 
 his vifibk kingdom. But furely, it ought to be in- 
 terpreted in an higher and more fignificant fenfe. 
 In one word, this fecret to former ages, was the 
 purpofe of God to rechange the ftate of the whole 
 world by the death of his Son Jefus Chrift^ in the 
 fenfe that has been explained. Accordingly, this 
 IS the fecret which has now, in the gofpcl-days, 
 been made manifeft. For in execution of the 
 pleafure of God to reconcile all things^ the diftindtion 
 between Jew and Gentile has been taken away, 
 and Chrift the hope of glory preached equally to 
 ALL MEN : So fpeaks the apoftle, ver. 28, " Whom 
 " we preach, warning every man, and teaching 
 *' EVERY man, that we may prefent every man, 
 " perfed in Chrift Jefus." We (hall have occa- 
 fion more fully to explain and confirm thefe things 
 under the next fcripture pafTage pertinent to the 
 general propo/ition we are upon j to which I accord- 
 ingly now proceed. 
 
 It is in Eph. i. 9, 10, "Having made known 
 " unto us the my^firy of his will, according to his 
 " good pleafure, which he hath purpofed in him- 
 
 *^felf. 
 
"The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 143 
 
 " felf, that, in the difpenfation of the fullnefs of 
 '* times, he might gather together in one all things 
 ** in Chrifl, both which are in heaven, and which 
 *' are on earth, even in him." The fame thing is 
 meant here, by the things in heaven and on the 
 tarthy that is intended by them in the foregoing 
 text. So that we need not be at any lofs to know 
 their meaning in this place, if we have interpreted 
 them right in that. And what is there called 
 God's reconciling thefe things to him felf, is here 
 fpoken of as his gathering them together in one: 
 So the words, av«xs(paA«<aj(ra<r0a; rx Travra, are 
 tranflated in our bibles. In order to a clear under- 
 (landing of the thing meant by the apoftle, it may 
 be proper to fay, 
 
 Kf^aA«ioi/, from whence ocvocKe^ocXxiua-xa-^ai is de- 
 rived, is that fum of any thing which is the re- 
 fult of feveral particulars united. In figures, 
 xf^aAaio^ is the fum arifing from feveral numbers 
 colledled into one. In money-matters, it is that 
 fum which is made up of feveral parcels. Hence 
 thofc words, in Ads xxii. 28, " with a great fum 
 " [ttoAAou x£9«Xaiou] obtained I this freedom." In a 
 difcourfe, it is a fummary reprefentation of things. 
 Hence Heb. viii. i. " Now, of the things which we 
 '*have fpoken, this is [xEipaAaioi/] the fum" Accordr 
 ingly, the compound verb, a^»xf<paXaiow [fumma- 
 tim repeto, in fummam redigo] fignifies to fpeak 
 fummarily, to reduce that which was before in parti- 
 culars into one ivhole. So, when the apoftle Paul 
 had enumerated the feveral duties wc- owe to our 
 
 neighbour, 
 
144 ^^^ Prccfs cf Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 neighbour, he fays, Rorri. xiii. c- "if there be any 
 • *' other, [ai/a)C£(^aAaiouTai €v rw ] it is fumiiiarily 
 " comprehended in this. Thou fhalt love thy neigh- 
 *' hour as thy felf." In like manner, when Iheep, 
 in a fcattered (late, are coUccled into one flock, 
 it may properly be faid, ocv(x,'ii2(po(,Xcciovvroti. So 
 when foldiers, tliat were difperfed from each 
 other, are reduced into one troop, it may aptly 
 be exprefifed by faying, ocvU}ic(poi,Xoi.io\jyro(,i, And, in 
 the fam.e general fenfe, thi^s word may, with as 
 much propriety, be ufed with refpe6l to all things 
 in heaven, and on earth. By; means of the lapfi, 
 and what has been cov/fequent thereupon, thefi 
 things were got into a broken, disjointed, dif- 
 orderly (late ; and the good pleafure of God to 
 reduce them from their prefent feparated diforderly 
 ilate, into one duly-fuhje^ed and "well fuhordinated 
 iisohok-i may very fitly be ilgnified by the phrafe, 
 ccvo(.ytB(pix,Xccico(Tcca-^cii ra ircci/TOi., And this I take to 
 be the thing intended here. . Tiie , thought the 
 apoftle would convey is the fame with that in 
 Col. i. 20. . He ufe3 indeed another word, but of 
 like general meaning. For they both equally 
 import, that the thir.gs in heaven and earth fhall 
 be reduced to another fiate than that they zvere in 
 through the laffe-^ which is the main thing in view 
 in both texts. 
 
 Some, I am fenfible, chufe to fetch the meaning 
 
 of the words, 0LV(X,'*ll(pOL7^(i\iC<7X(j^CX.\. TQL TTO(.]t'TQC £V XfilCTCi), 
 
 from thofe in the 2 2d verie, aoa w^rcv s^ccks K£(pa,Xw 
 vTTs^ TTxvrcc T?] skuXyiIjixj aud gave hira to he head 
 
 over 
 
'J'be Proofs of Unive?fal Sahatmi. 145 
 
 Gver all things to the church ; explaining them 
 both (43) by that pafTage of our Saviour, 
 Matt, xxviii. 18, where, Ipeaking of himfelf, he 
 
 fays, fd&9}] \J.Qi Trava fjoto-iu: iv ovpxi/ui aoct fTrt y,;?, ^// 
 
 power in heaven and earth is given to me. But 
 Ihould it be allowed, that the apoftle has reference 
 here to the headjhip of Chrift over all things^ it is 
 evident, he is to be underftood, not merely of the 
 power as committed to hir,h but ^j exerted hy him in 
 reducing all things to their former Jiate of fubjeclion. 
 By the lapfe, and in confequence of it, all things 
 were, as it were, unheaded, not knowing their 
 place and fubordination, not moving in that order 
 
 (43) Raphelius; In his note upon the words, avx-<i!px7.xiv- 
 c-eec-Qxi rot vcx-vra, iv X^ia-ru, fays, * Idem hoc eft cum eo, quod 
 
 * paulo poft lequitur, v. 22, uvtov t^umv y.i^paXr.v '^■ttio ttxv-cc ttj 
 
 * f/.y.Atjo-ta. Cujus utriufque loci interpretationem petendam 
 ^ arbitror ex Chrifti verbis. Matt, ixviii. 18, Eoo0»7 (^ot 'jtu^x 
 ' dcvjia It ov^aveo y.ai, £7n yr,;. Equidem hoc ipfum verbum in 
 
 * Xenophonte me legere non memini, cognatum tamen inveni, 
 
 * et quod ejufdem plane eft fignificationis, <r'j>'x£^<»Aa;ot;crOai." 
 He goes on to illuftrate this fenfe from feveral pafTages in 
 Xenophon and Polybius. Fid. Raphel. x'^nnot. Fhilolog. 
 vol. ii. pag. 463, 464. Wolfius, having mentioned this fenfe 
 of Raphelius, and his illuftration of it from the ufc of the 
 word avyy.i(pa,Xccioua^a,\y gocs on, and fays, * Neque mirum 
 
 * cuiquam videri debet, quod apoftolus non verbo j-y^xr^^Aat- 
 
 * uaatr^txi, fed cc\uy.i(pa.7.uiu::;roi.jhxiy utatur ; cum pollerius illud 
 
 * aptius fit ad indicandum, per Chriftum affedlum efte, ut, 
 
 * quiE ab hominibus fada erat difcefEo, tolleretur, et idem 
 
 * ad unum caput revocarcntur/ lid. Wolf. Cur. Philolog. 
 in he, 
 
 L thfv 
 
146 ^^^ Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 
 
 they might otherwife have done (44). In this flate 
 of all things^ it was the good pleafure of God to 
 re -head them in Chrift ^ giving him pov/er to reduce 
 them under due fubjeflion to himfclf, and fubor- 
 dination to each other. In either way of interpret- 
 ing the words Qivcc>iz(pccX<yAU<rcia-^oci tqj Tnxvrx^ the 
 fenfe will amount to much the fame, and exprefs 
 the very thought that was propofed to be com- 
 municated by the phrafe, in Col. i. 20, a7ro)c«- 
 
 This text and that do yet further harmonife 
 with each other. For as it is faid there^ fo it is 
 declared here^ that all thefe things in heaven and 
 earth lliall be reduced, from the flate they were 
 in by means of the lapfe^ into a well-fubje6led and 
 fubordinated whole, by Christ : So iv rco X^tc-rw 
 ought, as I think, to be rendered, and not in Chrift^ 
 as in our Bibles. And the fame may be faid of 
 the tv auTw ; it ought to be rendered, not in him^ 
 but hy him, that is, Chrift. The idea the apoille 
 would fuggeft is evidently this, that Jefus Chrift is 
 the perfon, that glorious agent, whom God would 
 employ in effedling this reduction, or reconciliation. 
 This is put beyond all doubt in Col. i. 20, for 
 there the words are ^i olvtou, hy him, that is, Chrift : 
 Nay, the apoftle, that he might exprefs himfelf in 
 
 (44) It is accordingly obfervable, they are reprerented, m 
 chap.ii. ver, 2. of this Epiftle. as in a flate of difohedience 
 to God's authority, and o^ fuhje^ion to a foreign headt an 
 afurping power j the prince ofthepoiver of the air> 
 
"the Proofs of Univerfal Sahaihn. 147 
 
 ix\ emphatically ftrong manner, upon this point, 
 repeats the words \ I fay, J'* oi^^^tom. And as £» 
 ftUTw, in this text, is brought in, by way of repe- 
 tition, after it had been faid fi/ tw X^jo-tw, it fliould 
 feem pad all difpute, that it ought to be conftrued 
 hy him, that is, Chriil ; as the ^i aurou muft be in 
 the parallel one. 
 
 It may be dill worthy of notice, this redudlioa 
 of all things is fpoken of, as what it is the good 
 pleafure of God to accompl;fh, n? o;)covo^{av tov 
 7rKy\^(cfxa,roq roou nxipoovy in the dippenfation of the fiilU 
 nefs of times \ that is, in the times that are under the 
 adminifiraticn of Jefus Chrift : For, as this fame 
 apoftle obfcrves, Gal, iv. 4, " God fent forth 
 " his Son, 0T£ ^iaOs to 7rXnpuiji,x Tou ;(^^oi/ou, v/hen the 
 *' fullnefs of the time v/as come." The (sime gener^J 
 period is meant in both thefe texts, viz. the time 
 'when God's kingdom is in the hands, or under the ad- 
 wimftration cf Jefus Chrift, And it is called the 
 fullnefs of the time, or times, becaufe it did nor come 
 on till the times introdudlory to it, in the appoint- 
 ment of God, were fnliy run out, compleated^ ov filled 
 ?/p(45). Only let it be particularly regarded here, 
 
 this 
 
 (45) It is ajafl obfervation of RapheHas, ' Tunc plenituio 
 ' tempnris veniffe dicicur, quando extremum, quod prxfinicum 
 
 * erar, fpatium ejus exadum eft. Ita plenitude vita vocatur, 
 
 * cum quis oftogeflimum aetatis annum atti^it, quod nunc ett 
 ' longifllmum tempus homini ad vivendusn pixuitutum, 
 
 * apud Herbdotum, Jib. iii.' pag. 192.' -^chiopuin toc 
 Jec^atos Perfarurri interrogab.Vt, 'X^omj' oko-sv yi.xx^j~x-r^t uir.j 
 lli^iy-r,: (x'ei ? Qnod longiflimum tcmpus a viro Perfo viverctur? 
 
 L 2 llii 
 
.148 T^he Proofs ofXJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 this time ofChrift^sadminiJlration ought not to be 
 confined, as mofl divines do confine it, to this pre- 
 fent fiate\ but is to be carried into the refurre^lion- 
 world, and continued there till the coming on of 
 that period^ when the Son Jh all deliver tip the medi- 
 atory kingdom to the Father ; for, in all this time, 
 he will go on profecuting the grand purpofe of God 
 to reduce all things to one well-fubje^ed whole : Nor 
 will he deliver up his /r^^, as head of the media- 
 tory kingdom of God, till he has fully carried this 
 purpofe of God into effeol':, as we fliall have occa- 
 fion particularly and largely to fhow afterwards. 
 
 Upon the whole, the juft import of this fcripture 
 may, I think, be properly exprelTed in the follow- 
 ing paraphrafe, " The thing which God purpofed 
 in himfelf, according to his own good pleafure, and 
 which would have remained a secret in his own 
 breail, but that he hath made it known to us, is, 
 that he will reduce all things ^ both in the- aerial 
 •heavens, and on the earth, from their prefent dif- 
 jointed irregular ftate, into one uniform, well-fub- 
 je6led, and duly-fubordinated whole *, and that he 
 will do this, not by himfelf immediately, but by the 
 
 Illi refpondebant, Oy'ouy.ovru irta, ^UYtq 7rXrfw//,a ct^^^i iJ,ccy^orxTov 
 9r^oxa£o-0«i, Perfeftiflimura dm vivendi fpatiam homini proponi 
 o^loginta annof. Quare nee hie Hebraifmus uUus eft, ad 
 quern hoe loquendi genus Beza refert. Ufurpatur et nomen 
 TrAr^wj-ig, de pleno tempore f lib. iii, pag. 214. O Mayog iQoca'hivt 
 li.r,voe,<; s'jttx rcvq ETriAojTroff KaiJ,(3va'/i £? rx oura ittcc Tviq '7r7^7i^aaio<;, 
 Magus regnavit menfes leptem, qui reliqui erant ad implen- 
 dum odavum annum regni Cambyfis. Fit/. Raphel, Annot. 
 Philolog. vol. ii. pag. 445, 446. 
 
 figency 
 
^he Proofs of Vnkerfil Suhatwn. 1 49 
 
 egency of his Son Jefus Chrifi, and in the period of 
 his mediatory adminijiration^ which commenced when 
 the times preparatory to it ^'tr^ fully compleated^ or 
 filled up, and will lafi till his delivery of the kingdom 
 to the Fathery when God fhall be all in all.''* 
 
 It will be an additional confirmation of the above 
 fenfe of this fcripture, if we go on, and (how its 
 analogy with the following context, and indeed this 
 whole Epifile. Be pleafed then to obferve, 
 
 The apoftle, in thefe verfes, having fpoken of 
 the purpofe of God to reduce all things by Chrift 
 into one well-fubjedted whole, immediately fub- 
 joins, in proof that he was really profecuting fnch 
 z grand fcheme, the following words, " In whom 
 " alfo we have obtained an inheritance, being pre- 
 *' deftinated according to the purpofe of him who 
 " worketh all things according to the counfcl of 
 " his own will; that we Ihould be to the praife 
 •' of his glory, who firfl: trufted in Chrift : In 
 *' whom ye alfo trufted after that ye heard the word 
 *• of truth, the gofpel of your falvation •, in whom 
 *' alfo, after that ye believed, ye were fealed with 
 *' that holy Spirit of promife, which is the ^rnefl: 
 " of our inheritance, until the redemption of the 
 " purchafed poficiTicn, unto the praife of his glory." 
 As if he had faid, *' In him we Gentiles^ in exe- 
 cution of this glorioudy extenfive plan of God's 
 grace, are, in common with the Jews, put into 
 the gofpel-method of obtaining an inheritance (46), 
 
 not 
 
 (46) Go/pel-method of oltaining an inheritance'] The word 
 here is iyM^oj%uiy ; which Mr. Locke, after Dr. Hammond,, 
 
 L o underftandj 
 
J 50 7he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation^ 
 
 not like that of the earthly Canaan, but one tha^ 
 is heavenly, incorruptible, and eternal, being be^ 
 
 fore 
 
 underflands paffively, in ivhom nve became his inhritance, in-, 
 ilead of in ^hom ixie banje obtained an inheritance : * This being,* 
 fays he, ' the way wherein God fpake of his people, the 
 
 * Jfraelitesy of whom he fays, P«ut. xxxii. 9, •* The Lord's 
 *' portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.** 
 
 * See alfo, Deut. iv. 20. — i Kings viii. 51, and other places.' 
 But the apollle evidently brings in this, and the following 
 verfes, to illuftrate, or prove, what he had juft before ad- 
 vanced, namely, that it was God's purpofe to gather all. things 
 into one hy Chriji* So, in the above-explained t^ix-iexti 
 Gol. i, ig, 20, having obferved, that it was the ** good plea? 
 •' fure of the Father to reconcile all things to himfelf/' he 
 goes on to illudrate what he had obferved by faying, '* And 
 ** you Gentiles, who were once alienated from God, hath he 
 
 *^ now reconciled ." He plainly intends the fame thing 
 
 an both places. And what he means i3,,nqt that the/e QentiUs 
 were already poiTefTed oi that change which made them met 
 
 for^ and aSlually inttrejied them in, the hea-venly inheritance i but 
 that they were put into x\iZ gofpeUmethod of having this moral 
 €hange effeded in them, that fo, being made meet for ^ they might 
 become a^-ua'Iy interejied in, this inheritance* It is therefore ob- 
 fervable, the apoHle fays, in the former of thefe places, •' if ye 
 "continue in faith, and be not moved avvay from the hope of the 
 ** gofpel." And ihishm^ condition is tacitly underfioodhere. We 
 ** have obtained an inheritance," that is, are put into thegojpel 
 -way of obtaining it ; and may be faid aSiually to have obtain- 
 ed it, if<we continue in the faith ^ and do not renounce the gofpeU 
 It is not the defign of the apoille to give us to underftand, 
 as though the admiflion of the Gentiles into th? gjl/pel kingdom 
 was the accompiiftiment of God's purpofe^ 2ind.good pleafure, to 
 gather all things into one, to reconcile all things', for this was ^meaii 
 pnly in order to the accomplilhment of this end : Which OTf^« 
 might, and would, be ineffeftual with refpefl to many, ,be- 
 p^ufe they would not continue in the faith, and remain unmoved 
 
 fi'OSi 
 
ne Proofs of JJnherfal Sahatwft. 1 5 x 
 
 fore appointed hereto conformably to the ddign 
 of him who worketh all things after the counfel of 
 his own will : And we, the firft Gentiles who hoped 
 for glory in Chrift (47), were put into the gofpel 
 
 from the gofpel But this is no argument that the grand purpofe 
 of God to reduce^ reconcile^ all things ^ fliall not be fully carried 
 into execution. For this is only en? mean in purfuance of this 
 great defign ; and when it has had its courfe, fome other dif 
 penfation will open in profecution of iMi^fame end, as we Ihall 
 fee afterwards. Dr. Hammond fays, * The king's MS. has 
 
 * not the word EKXri^udriixsv, but eyM^r.^jt-sv, ruueivere called.'' The 
 author of the New Englifh verfion of the New Teflament fays, 
 
 * it is iKhn^x^iv in Alexand. Germ. Gr. Lat. — Clar. Gr. Lat.— . 
 *. Bonner Gr. Lat.' Wolfius's note, in loc. agrees herewith, 
 
 * Pauci quidem codices legunt EJt/uiGTjjL.sv ;' but he juftly adds, 
 
 * vitio, puto, iibrariorum, qui verbi alterius notionem non 
 ' fatis adfequerentur.' And indeed it is no way likely, that 
 fo uncommon a word as ExXr^afir-Z^sv, a word that is ufed no 
 where elfe in the whole New Teftament, fhould creep into any 
 copy, if it had not been in the original text : Whereas it is 
 eafy to fuppofe, on the contrary, that ekMDj?/*;^, a very com- 
 mon word, might be fubftituted by fome i.anfcriber, who did 
 not well know what £y.Av?^a;G-/://.iy meant. 
 
 (47) ^^'^ '^^ fi^'fi Gentiles ^joho hoped far glory in Cbrijf,] In 
 the original it is *//!/-«? Tr^&r/XTrty.oTac iv ru X^io-ru; the meanino- 
 of which words may be learned from Col. i. 27, where the 
 apoftle, fpeaking of the gofpel which had been preached to 
 the Gentiles, calls it, X^io-ro? vj vuiv n Att*? rry? ^o^r,:, ChrtJ} 
 among you the hope of glory. And the Gr-ntiles, who £rft em- 
 braced Chriftianity, might very fitly be fpoken of a^ thofe 
 \v\iofrJ} hoped for glory in Chrift, becaufe, in the fccond chap- 
 ter of this fame epiflle, and i2ch verfe, that is one or the cha- 
 rafters the apoillc applies to them in their Pagan ftate, o.i:\^a 
 ur) E>:o>T£?, not having hope, that is, gofpel-hope, fuch hope as 
 the gofpel juftly lays the foundation for, 
 
 L 4 way 
 
152 ^he F roofs of TJniverfal Salvation . 
 
 way of obtaining this inheritance, that we mighs 
 be to the praife of God's glory. In Chrift aifo 
 ye Ephe/tan Gentiles were put into the fame way 
 of obtaining this inheritance (48), having heard the 
 word of truth, the glad- tidings of falvation : In 
 him alfo, having believed, ye were fealed by the 
 holy proQiifed Spirit both sNith miraculous gifts and 
 Chrijlian graces (49) ; which fealing by the pro- 
 
 mifed 
 
 • (4S) In Chriji alfo ye Epheftan Gcniiles, &c.] Mr. Locke, aa 
 it appears to me, is right in fuppofing, not only that the 
 words, £v w y.ai vusu^ arc elliptical, but that they fhould be 
 fupplled with the verb £x/\r^wOv3T£. I have accordingly (o 
 fiipplied them> though in the fenfc in which, I think, this 
 word ought to be underftood. Not that this/u/>pfy, or that of 
 trufiedin our Bibles, are cither of them abfolutely necefiary ; 
 for the verfe may be thus conftrued without them, ** In whom 
 ye Ephefiati Gentiles alfo, after that ye had heard the word 
 of truth, the gofpel of your falvation ; I fay, \\\ whom, af- 
 ter that ye had believed, ye were fealed, &c.'* But the 
 fenfe will be more eafy, and the difcourfe more emphatical', 
 if we fuppofe that the apoftle, in the nth verfe, is fpeaking 
 of the Jf^y? Gentiles that believed ; and in this^ of the Epkejians 
 who were believers after them \ making them both to be 
 TEqually put into the gofpel- niethod of obtaining the inhe* 
 riiance. 
 
 (49) With miraculous gifts and graces. 1 It is certain that the 
 Holy Spirit was promifed, and beftowed, both in miraculous 
 gfts and Chrijlian graces. And it fhould feem reafonable 
 therefore to think, that both thefe, the former as well as the 
 latter, are t\\2it fealing by the Spirit, which is here fpoken of as 
 an earnefi^ pledge^ or proof oi iht future inheritance. Only, it 
 ought to be remembered, miraculous gifts are a pledge, or 
 aj/urance, of nothing more than the truth of the gcf pel, which 
 declares the heavenly inheritance to be an ohiainalle good : 
 
 Whereas, 
 
The Proofs of Vnrcerfal Salvation. 153 
 
 mifed Spirit is the earneft^ pledge, or afllirance, of our 
 inherilancc-i of the inheritance both ive and ytii were 
 put into the gofpel-way of obtaining ; vcr. 1 1, 13, 
 *' unto the purchafed redemption" (50), or //// the 
 day of redemption [chap. iv. 30], *' the adoption \vc 
 " are waiting for[Roni. viii. 21. 23^, the rcdemp- 
 
 Whereas, the real being o^ ChriJIian graces in the hearts cf be- 
 lievers is an ean:ej}, or plec^ge, that they are «oxy usually in- 
 terefted in a right to this inheritance. 
 
 (50) IJnio the purchafed redemption. ^ In the original it is, 
 £jj olt:q\vi^uc\v -vr^c, TrifiTroiy.c-iu;. The phrafe has been puzzling 
 to interpreters, if we may judge by what they have fafd upon 
 it. The true fenfe appears to me to be given in the para- 
 phrafe. AttoAut^wo-k obvioully means deliveraticej redemption^ 
 the Tame thing with what the apoille Paul calls the redemption 
 cf the body, deliverance from corruption into a glorious immortality, 
 n^^tTTor/^rjr properly fignifies acquifition, purchafe, pof/cjjion. 
 The prepofition sk has often the force of a particle of tirti^, 
 anfwenng to the Engiifj word untOy until, as in our tran|]ALion, 
 laftances to this purpofe are too common to be particularly 
 mentioned. If now we look upon the word 7r£^i7roi>;^£4;5, a 
 fubilantive of the genitive cafe, as having the force of an 
 adjective [like examples of which are frequently to be met 
 with in fcripture. We have two in the prccedijig \c\iQt the 
 iijord of truth for true ~a:ord ; and Spirit of promfe for promifed 
 Spirit^ the phrafe, e^ ctT!u'Kvx^b;,7vj Tr,g TTE^jTrctTjTEfs, may fitly be 
 rendered i^atot until the purcbafd redemption, that is, the day, 
 the time, when the redemption which Chrill has purchafed 
 Inall be adually pofTcfTed as an inheritance. This feems to 
 me to be the moll eafy natural conftrudion of the phrafe ; 
 and it perfedly fuits with the apoftle's general fcope in this 
 paffage of facred writ. The tranflation in our Bibles, to fay 
 the beft^ is darkly exprefled, and fo as to be fcarcely intel- 
 ligible to many readers. The reader will judge whether I 
 have fet it in a better light. 
 
1 54 I^Joe Proofs of U?iiverfal Salvation. 
 
 ^* tion of our body," purchafed for us by Chrift,, 
 -when we fliall be '' delivered from the bondage of 
 *' corruption into the glorious liberty of the children 
 *' of Godi" that fo j^^^ alfo, as well as we^ may be 
 " to the praife of the glory of God's grace," — The 
 apoflle, after giving thanks^ and making prayers^ for 
 thefe believing Gentiles, goes on to fytdikoi Chrijl as 
 that glorious perfon, " whom God has fet at his own 
 " right hand in the heavenly places, far above all 
 *' principality, and power, and might, and domi- 
 *' nion, and every name that is named, not only 
 *' in THIS WORLD, but in that WHicp is to 
 '' COME-, and under whofe feet he hath put all 
 " THINGS, giving him to be head over all 
 *^ THINGS to the church, which is his body, the 
 *' fuUnefs of him that filleth all in all." And 
 furely, God's thus fetting Chrift far above all 
 things^ and putting all things under his feety and 
 criving him to be head ever all things^ and fo as to 
 deferve the charadler of filling all in all^ is fuch a 
 comment on his purpofe to gather all things into 
 one by him^ as will fully juftify what we have faid 
 upon it. 
 
 The apoftle, indeed, has his eye, not only in this 
 chapter^ but throughout this whole epiftle^ upon the 
 redu^ion of all things into one by Jefus Chrijl, Hence 
 hefpeaks of the unity of every thing that relates 
 to this grand purpofe of God's grace. *' There 
 ♦' is," fays he, chap. iv. 4 — 6. " one body, one 
 " Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one bap- 
 ^' tifmj one God and Father of ail, who is above all, 
 
 " and 
 
^he Proofs of TJiivverfal Salvation » 155 
 
 *^ and through all, and i?i you all." And as Chrift 
 is " afcended far above ali heavens, ver. 10. that he 
 '' might FILL ALL THINGS," he will go on Imparrino- 
 
 g'tfiSMQ this END, ver. I^, ^e^f^ ^o:'rccyTnT:^^^i\) Oi iTOcvrzi 
 
 t-tf T'Av si/ornroc — , " until we are all arrived at the 
 *' UNITY of the faith, — unto a perfect man, unto the 
 *' mealure of the ftature of the fullnefs of Chrift.'* 
 If we confider this impartation of gifts in c-onnec- 
 tion with God's ptirpofe to gather all things into 
 one hy Jefus Chrift ; with Chriil's being that glo- 
 rious perfon who Jilleth all in all-, with his being 
 ftt at God's right hand as head over all things, and 
 to this end, that he might fill all things : I fay, if 
 we confider this beltowment of gifts in this view, 
 it v^ill be both reafonable and natural to fuppofe 
 the continuance of it, not only through the prefent 
 adminiftration of the kinG:dom of God, but till 
 every indi^jidual of the human kind i^ arrived at 
 fuch UNITY in faich nnd knowittige, as to be, in 
 the fpiritual fenfe, ^ full grown man- in fotre pro- 
 portion conformed to the fudnefs of the jpiniual 
 ftature of Jefus Chriil. No other interpretation 
 will fo well conned the apoftlc's difcourlc in. 
 this epiftky or give it fo full and noble a mean- 
 
 ing. 
 
 And it is with reference ftill to this fame re-- 
 du^ion of all things into one whole, that the apoftle 
 fpeaks of fc*xs and Gentiles, chap. ii. 14, as be- 
 ing made both one-, and, ver. 16, as being both 
 reconciled to God in one body^ by the crofs of Chrift. 
 It is a great miftake to think, as many com- 
 mentators 
 
156 'The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 nientators do, that this incorporating both Jews and 
 Gentiles into one churchy parcaking in common of 
 the vifible advantages and privileges of the go/pel 
 kingdom^ is the only thing the apodle has in view. 
 This, it is true, is part of his defign, but not the 
 whole. One leading ftep, in confequence of Chrift's 
 death on the crofs, in order to the accomplifh- 
 ment of the extenfively glorious plan of God to 
 reduce all things into one^ was the breaking dov^n 
 the partition-wall he had formerly made, which 
 feparated between the Jews and Gentiles^ and put- 
 ting things in fuch a fuuation as that they might 
 both make one ecchfiafiical commm7ity^ enjoying in 
 common the privileges, motives, advantages, and 
 hopes of the gofpel-difpenfation. But the accom- 
 plifl-irnent of this was not the accomplilhment of 
 the piirpofe of God to gather together all things in 
 ene. It was a mean only in order to this end; 
 ■which ei'id^ if it be not accomplifhed by this jnean 
 [as it will not] muft and will be followed with 
 fome oiher^ and more effectual mean^ in forne other 
 difpenfation of the kingdom of God s as Hiall 
 be fhown in its proper place elfewhere. The 
 MYSTERY therefore fpoken of, in this Epiflle, 
 with fo much afFedionate admiration, is not the 
 edmijfwn of the Gentiles into the vifthle kingdom of 
 Gody in itfelf limply confidered ; but their admif- 
 fion into it as a mean that was wifely and power- 
 fully adapted 10 promote the bringing into effe^i 
 the GRAND PURPOSE of God of which we are 
 treating. It is therefore obfervable, the apoitle 
 
 not 
 
*The Proofs of Vniverfal Sahatioit. 1 57 
 
 not only declares, in the paflage we have been thus 
 long confidering, that '' God hath made known unto 
 ** us the MYSTERY of his will, — which he purposed 
 *' in himfelt-'i" but explains what he means by this 
 MYSTERY, making it to confifl: in this, namely, 
 " that, in the difpenfation of the fuiJnefs of times, 
 " he would gather together in one all things by 
 *' Chrift, both which are in heaven, and which ."^re int 
 *' earth." This then is the thing meant by the 
 *' MYSTERY, which, in other ages, was not made 
 " known to the Tons of men," that is, fo made known 
 to thenu in fo clear, full, and explicit a manner, '' as 
 *' it is NOW," under the gofpel, " revealed to the 
 *' apoftles,and prophets, by theSpirit,"astheapofl:le 
 fpeaks, chap. iii. ver. 5 . And this is the thing meant 
 by the mystery, which this fame apoftle fays, in the 
 3d verfe of this chapter, " was made known to him 
 " by revelation, as he wrote afore [that is, chap. i. 
 •' ver. 9, 10] in few words ;" which mystery, as 
 he opens it, ver. 6, lay in this, that " the Gentiles 
 " fliould be fellow- heirs, and of the fame body, and 
 " partakers of his promife in ChrifV, by the gofpel." 
 Remark here, the mystery of which the apoftle is 
 treating, in this third chapter^ is they^z;;;^ myjlery o^ 
 which he had fpoken in the firft chapter -, for he 
 exprefsly fays, that he had wrote before about it in 
 few V)OYds, When therefore he makes this myflery, 
 in this third chapter^ to confift in this, " that the 
 *' Gentiles (hould be fellow-heirs, and of the fame 
 ^* body, and partakers of God's promife in Chrift," 
 the meaning ought not to be confined to the ad- 
 9 . miftioi 
 
158 The Proofs of Univerfal S ah at ion ^ 
 
 mifTion of the Gentiles into the gofpeU'vifibk-king-* 
 dom^ fo as to be joint-partakers with the Jews in 
 the privileges of it. This may be one thing in- 
 tended [in the fenfe that has been explained], but 
 riot the main. What the apoflle has principally and 
 ultimately in view is, that glorious plan of God 
 which he had purposed im himself, conformably 
 to which both Jews and Gentiles^ that is, mankind 
 univerfaliy, ^txt fellozv-beirs^ fo united together as 
 to make one and the fame hody^ and co-partners in eter^ 
 fial Ufe^ v;hich, in Jefus Chrift, is the great promife 
 of the gofpel. The apoftle therefore, verfes 8, 9, 
 glories in it as an high honour done him, that God 
 fhould make him a rninifter of this grand myftery of 
 his will. *' Unto me," fays he, " who am lefs than 
 *' the lead of all faints, is this grace given, that I 
 " Ihould preach among the Gentiles the unfearch- 
 *' able riches of ChrifV, and make all men fee 
 ^' what is the fellowfhip of [the joint-partnerfhip 
 *' in] the mystery, which, from the beginning 
 " of the world, hath been hid in God -, who cre- 
 ** ated all things by Jesus Christ." The 
 apoflle, you obferve, as God's minijler^ was to make 
 ALL MEN fee xhtiv fellowjhip^ ox joint-par tnerjhipy 
 in the mysterv that had been hid in God^ oc-no ruv 
 mcovcav^ fror/i former ages. What myftery was this? 
 Plainly, the purpose in God's breall (as it is ex- 
 preiTed, chap. i. ver. 9, 10) to '' gather together 
 " in one by Jefus Chrift all things j" ^r that pur- 
 pofe of his, in which [as it is fignified in the 6th 
 verfe of this third chapter^ both Gentiles and Jews^. 
 1 that 
 
The Proofs of Unroerfal Sakatton. 1 59 
 
 that is, the whole world of men, were made fel- 
 low-heirs^ one myftical body^ and partakers in common 
 of eternal life^ the great thing promifedy and aimed 
 at, in the gofpel. And that all men fliouki fee 
 this myftery^ this purpofe of God, and fo fee it as 
 to kncj; their fellowfoip^ joint-partncrjhip, in it, 
 though it had formerly been 2ifecrety a thing hidden 
 in Gody is very ftrongly fuggefted in thofe remark- 
 able words, in the 9th verfe, " who created all 
 *' THINGS Bv Jesus Christ." 
 
 Interpreters are much at a lofs to point out the 
 connexion of thefe words with the difcourfe of 
 which they are a part. The great Mr. Locke, 
 not perceiving how God^s creating all things hy 
 Jefus Chrifty in the literal common fenfe, could be 
 connefted with the argument the apoftle is here 
 purfuing, judged it necefTary to underftand the 
 words figuratively^ that is, of the new creation. 
 ' By interpreting them otherwife, (fays he) we 
 ' (hall make St. Paul a very loofe writer, and 
 ' weak arguer ; — bringing in things not at all to 
 ' his purpofe, and of no ufe to the bufinefs in 
 ' hand.' See his note in loc. But the view we 
 have given of his difcourfe throws a fingular per- 
 tinency upon his here introducing Chrill as the 
 perfon hy whom God created all things^ not figura- 
 tively^ but in the literal fenfe of the words. For, 
 if God created all things^ in this lower world, hy 
 Jefus Chrifty he could not employ a more fuitable 
 agent to carry into effe^ the myjlery which he had 
 purpofed in himfelf^ namelj', the reducing them from 
 
 thiir 
 
1 6o ^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvatioti, 
 
 their frefent disjointed irregular fiate^ into one orderly 
 well-fuhordinated whole. And as he is equally the 
 creator of all things by Jefus Chrifl, it is highly 
 reafonable to think, fince he has made him his 
 great agents his prime minijhr, in the affair of re- 
 ftoring the worlds that he will do it universally ; 
 red.Ltcing all things, as one, \nfubje5iion to God. 
 If there was any thing, in this lower world, that 
 was not created by Jefus Chrift, it might be con- 
 fidered as an exception in the fcheme q{ recovery \ 
 but as ALL THINGS, withcut limitation, were cre^ 
 fijed by him, it is a credible truth, a thing fir, 
 i-eafonable to be believed, that they fhall all by 
 him be gathered together into one well- conn ecled and 
 duly-fuhorcUnaied whole* In fhort, if God created 
 all men, as well as other things, in this world, by 
 his fon Jefis ChriJI^ we may eafily colled from 
 hence, how he comes to be their common father, 
 [iMal. ii. loj 5 and if their father, how they are his 
 CHILDREN ; and if they are children, how fir, 
 proper, and reafonable it is, that they fliould be 
 
 fELLOW-HEIRS TO, and JOINT-PARTAKERS IN, 
 
 that happy Jiate which he has purposed fhall take 
 place, when he has gathered all things into one, 
 under the agency of that fame Jefus Chrifi by whom 
 he, at firfl, created them all. In this view of the 
 apoftle's words, harmony and beauty, wifdom and 
 goodnefs, yea, the riches of them, run through 
 the plan of God, and the execution of it, with refe- 
 rence to this world of our's : Forafmuch as he 
 not only made all things \xi it by Jefus Chrift^ but 
 
 will 
 
T^he Proofs of Univerfal Sahatio?!. 1 6 1 
 
 will reduce them all, from their prefent disjointed 
 difordered (late, by means of the lapfe^ into cne 
 glorious perfe^ly fuhordinated whole ; and will do ic 
 by the fn^ne Jefus Chrift^ through whofe agency he 
 created them in the beginning. 
 
 And this, it may be noted, is the true meaning 
 of the myftery hid from ages and gertcrations^ which 
 is fo often, and fojuftly [upon the prefent Ichexc] 
 mentioned with admiration by the apolUe Paul in 
 all his epiftles. Well might he fpcak of it in that 
 ilyle, Col. ii. 2, 3, " the myftery of God, even the 
 *' Father, and of Chrift, in which" [fo fv w ought to 
 be trandated, or wherein^ as in the margin ; and not 
 i}2 zvhoWy as in the text itlclF] " are hid all the trea- 
 *' furcs of wifdom and knowltdge." Well might he 
 fay, as in i Cor. ii. 7, 8, " We fpeak the wifdom of 
 " God in a mydery, even the hidden wifdom, 
 " which God ordained before the world to our 
 " glory : which none of the princes of tins world 
 " knew ; for had they known it, they would not 
 " have cruciEed the Lord of glory (5O." In a 
 
 word, 
 
 (51) It may be wcrth obfervlnor, the words, ivhich none cf 
 the princes of this ^crldy &c. let us into the true rea/on why the 
 purpo/e of Gcd to reconcile all things, to gather all things into one^ 
 was kept a m\Jhry, z fecrett \.f^ former ages and generaticns. The 
 ^eaih of Chiift was zfoundation-Jlrcke in the fchemc of reco».- 
 ciliation, iht grand mean in. order to its accompliihment. If 
 this fcheroe of God had been revealed by the Spi it loformr 
 agesy as it has leenfnce, it could not, humanly fpe^king, h-ve 
 been carried into execution : For none of the princes ff thit 
 I'.orld, in that cafe, fivculd have crucifed Chrlji It was, 
 
 ]\^j thertforc. 
 
1 62 7 he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation* 
 
 word, well might he cry out, as in Rom. xi. 33,' 
 " Oh the depth of the riches of the wifdom, and 
 *' knowledge of God ! How unfearchable are his 
 "judgments, and his ways paft finding out!" 
 This exclamation took rife from the wonderful 
 way in which this myftery^ the falvation of Jews 
 and Genliles, that is, mankind univerfally, was to 
 be brought about, namely, by their being in their 
 turns generally left to unbelief-, for, fays the 
 apoftle, vcr. 32, " God hath fhut them up all 
 *' together [fl-uvsjtXfic-s rou? ttocuIcc^^ in unbelief, that 
 *' he might have mercy upon them all.'* He, 
 I am fenfible, is fpeaking, in this chapter^ ox Jews 
 and Gentiles^ in the coUecfive fenfe ; and of their 
 being, in this fenfe, admitted into, or caft out of, 
 the vifible kingdom of God: But it is eafy to fee 
 that he aims at fomething far higher ; fpeaking of 
 this conduct ofGcd towards the c^//^^7/'L'^ bodies both 
 of Jezvs and Gentiles, not as his ultimate intention, 
 with refpect to either of them ; but as a wife and 
 well-adapted mean, in profecution of his grand 
 purpofc to have mercy upon all, or, as it is more fully 
 exprefled in Col i. 20, and Eph. i. 10, " to re- 
 " concile all things to himfeif,'* to " gather to- 
 *' gether all things in one:'* Nor will any other 
 interpretation give fo grand a fenfe, and fo noble a 
 
 therefore, at leail In part, with a view to this leading flep in 
 the accompiilhment of the affair of rfr<?«^//V«/io«, that it was 
 hid in God \ and with great propriety, as a clear and explicit 
 revelation of It would have direftly tended to counteradl, and 
 defeat, this purpofe and counfel of God. 
 ,5 pertinency^ 
 
Tthe Proofs of JJnherfal Sahatio?t. 1 6 3 
 
 pertinency^ to the doxology which concludes this 
 chapter, " For of him, and through him, and to 
 *' him, are all things ; to whom be glory for ever. 
 *' Amen." 
 
 I fhall now finifli what I have to offer, in proof 
 of the prefent propofition, with a few touches 
 upon thofe obfervable words, in i Tim. ii. 4, 
 
 oq TTOciHocg SsXei a^O^coTTou? a-(i}9rii/oti, " who is willinor, 
 *' defiroLis, that all men fLould be faved." Now, 
 iffuch a Being as wejuftly conceive God to be, is 
 really iz'ilUng, fincerely dcfirous^ that all men Jhould he 
 faved^ they certainly Jhall be faved. 
 
 Two things are objected againft this reafoning, 
 the nnfwer whereto will fet the text upon which 
 it is grounded in a clear and full point of light. 
 
 It is faid, in the frft place, the apoftle is htrc 
 fpeaking de hominura generibus^ non fingulis 'perfonis ; 
 that is, of all ranks ov forts of men, not of allindi^ 
 "jiduals. In order to our forming a right judg- 
 ment of this plea, we muft confult the whole para- 
 graph, of which the words in debate are a parr. 
 It runs thus : '' I exhort, therefore, that, firftof all, 
 *' fupplications, prayers, intercelTions, and giving 
 *' of thanks, be made for all wen; for kings, 
 *' and for all that are in authority, that we may 
 *' lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godlinefs 
 *' and honefty. For this is good and acceptable 
 " in the fight of God our Saviour ; who will 
 *^ have ALL MEN to be faved, and to come to the 
 *' knowledge of the truth. For there is one 
 *' God, and o>^e mediator between God and 
 
 M 2 !* man. 
 
164 T'^^^ Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation . 
 
 " man, the man Chrift Jefus; who gave himfelf 
 *' a ranfom for all, to be teftified in due time." 
 The queftion now is, Who are meant by the all 
 MEN God is willing Ihould be faved, whether all 
 men individually^ or grnerically? It fhould feem 
 pad alldlfpute, that the apoftle intends \\\t formers 
 and for theie two reafons. 
 
 1. God's willingnefs that all wen iliould be 
 faved is brought in as an argument to enforce the 
 foregoing duty of praying for all men, Confe- 
 quently, we mud underftand, by all men^ the fame 
 perfons in the motive^ that are intended in the 
 duty : Otherwife, we Hiall make the apoftle argue 
 inconclufively. Now, all men univerfally are the 
 ohje^ of the duty here enjoined. It is for all mtn, 
 without e^^ception-i that we are exhorted to pray« 
 All men therefore, without exception^ are the perlbns 
 meant by the all men God is willing, or defires, 
 fhould be faved. 
 
 2. The reafon given, why God defires the fal- 
 vation of all men is, becaufe there is one God, and 
 o?te mediator between God and jneu^ the man Chrift 
 Jefus. Now, this is a reafon that extends equally 
 to all men without limitation. 
 
 ^here is one God^ (i. e-) all men have one God 
 and Father. God is as truly the God of one m.an 
 as of another j and there is therefore the fame reafoa 
 to think, that he fhould be defirous of the faivation 
 of every man^ as of any man. We may colle(5l the 
 juil ftn^Q, and full force, of thefe words, from thofe 
 fimilar ones, Rom. iii. 29, 30, " Is he the God 
 
 '' of 
 
Ti'he Proofs of Unherfal Salvation, 165 
 
 *' of the Jews only ? Is he not the God of the 
 
 " Gentiles alfo ? Yes, of the Gentiles alfo : Seeing 
 *' it is ONE God that juftifieth the circiirncifion by 
 " faith, and the uncircumcifion through faith (52)." 
 In like manner, we may argue here. Is he the 
 God oi "z, fm all portion of mankind only ? Is he not 
 the God and F cither of all men P Surely he is; and 
 equally willing to juftify them all through the faith 
 of the gofpel. 
 
 The other branch of the reafon, " There is one 
 " mediator between God and men, the man Chrift 
 " Jefus," equally extends alio to all men. The 
 parties between whom the man Jefus mediates are 
 Gcd and men ; that is, men tiniverfalhy the 'whole 
 race of men •, not fome men, in diftinction from 
 others. No reafon, to be kire, no good reafon, 
 can be afligned, why the mart Chrift Jefus fliould 
 mediate between Gcd sand fome men cnl)\ to the ex- 
 clufion of others. And indeed he is probably 
 fpoken of under the ftyle of the man Jefus, to 
 intimate, that nun-, the whole human kind, is one of 
 
 (^2) Dr. Benfon, in his note f&J on i Tim. ii. 5, tranflates 
 thii) : cch verie thus : For if is one and the fame God nvho -will 
 j'-ijiify ['Z!ji^i7o^r,v BK CTis-TEw;] the be'ienjing JeiCy [xa* a,y.:o$Ls-rka.t, 
 ici!. BK -cTicTTti/f] a»d the believing Gentile \cict. rr? tc-is-Tfa^i] by 
 the faith of the gUpeL I was at once ftru':K with the propriety 
 of this verfion, though the Dr. barely mentions it, without 
 cfikiring any thing to fupport it. And it is the only one I 
 «ver faw that 1 could rell fatisfied in. Were this a fit place 
 for it, I could eaiily point out the preferablenefs of /^V to 
 the ccmmcn tranflation, and juftify it againll all the objeiSions 
 1 am aware could be made to.it. 
 
 M 3 the 
 
1 66 'The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 the parties, on whofe behalf he has undertaken 
 the office of a mediator. So that there is no rea- 
 fonable room to queftion, whether, by all men we 
 are here to underftand mankind univerfally. This 
 Ihould feem to be undeniably evident. 
 
 It is pleaded, in the fecond place, there is no 
 certain conne^lion between God's being willing that 
 all men fhould be faved^ and their being eventually 
 faved ; becaufe this deftre of God, however ftrong 
 and hearty, may be countera6led by men them- 
 felves. He may, in confequence of this defire, 
 ufe proper moral means that all men might be 
 faved ; but, as men are free agents^ they may 
 mif-improve thefe means, and hung final ruin upon 
 themfelves, notwithflanding God's willingnefs they 
 ihould be laved. 
 
 I readily own, in anfwer hereto, that men, as 
 they zvcfree agents^ have the power oi refifiing^ or 
 cppofingy thofe means, which God, from his deftre 
 of their lalvation, may fee fit to ufe with them ; 
 which power ought not to be over-ruled^ nor in- 
 deed can it be in confiftency with moral agency. 
 But then it mull be affirmed, at the fame time, 
 that they have power to make a good as well as 
 bad ufe of thefe means •, and of exerting it with 
 the full confent of their wills. And if God really 
 defires their falvation, why need it be fuppofed, 
 that his defire fhould ht finally and everlaftingly 
 fruftrated through men's non-compliance with the 
 means ufed in order to its accomplilhment ? Is 
 infinite wifdom, excited by infinite benevolence, 
 
 and 
 
T!he Proofs of Unherfal Salvation. 1 67 
 
 and accompanied with infinite power, incapable of 
 devifing, and then executing, a fcheme, with re- 
 ference to all men^ which iliall, in events without 
 breaking in upon their liberty^ or ufing any means 
 but fuch as are i:toral and rational^ and therefore 
 adjuRed to their character as 7noral agents, infaUibly 
 ifilie in their falvation ? It appears to me a grofs 
 refle(5tion on that Being, who is infinitely perfed, 
 to fuppofe him unable finally to count eraufy and in a 
 moral way too, the weaknefs, and folly, and obfti- 
 nacy, of fuch poor inferior creatures as men are. 
 And if he is able, in confiftcncy with men's make, 
 as moral and intelligent agents^ to efFedl their fal- 
 vation^ 1 fee not, I own, when it is faid, he defires 
 they Jhould be faved^ but that fuch a declaration 
 virtually and conflruftively amounts to the fame 
 thing as if it had been faid, he %vould fave them in 
 event and faB* For if God is really able to favc 
 them, his defiring they jhould be faved, and his even- 
 tually faving them, are convertible terms: Unlefs 
 we abfurdly fuppofe, that God can be heartily de- 
 firous they fhould be faved, and yet not ufe thofe 
 means in order thereto, which it is in his pwer to 
 ufe, and which, if he fhould ufe, would bring their 
 falvation into event ox fan, I am free to declare, 
 for myfelf, that a revelation^ from fuch a Being as 
 God is, dire(5lly afnrmiiig, that \\t defires all men 
 JJoould befavedy is, with me, a fuHicient inducement 
 to believe, that they eventually fhall. For if he is 
 fincere in this defire, what Ihould hinder its coming 
 into/^^7? Shall wc let up man in oppofition to 
 
 M 4 (^od^ 
 
1 6 8 T^he Proofs 'oj Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 God, and fay that his fooliflmefs and ohft'macy are an 
 overmatch for the infinite vvifdom, knowledge, and 
 power of God ? The bare mentioning fuch an ab- 
 furdity is a fuflicient confutation of it, — But it will 
 more fully appear, that God's deftring the fal- 
 vation of all men is certainly conne6led with their 
 final falvation^ when we come to fliew, as we iliaU 
 by and by, that, in confeqrience of this defire^ or 
 willingnefs^ in God, fuch means will be ufed, in faft, 
 as ^VdW prevail upon all men, and prepare them., in 
 a moral way^ as moral agents^ for an eternal reign in 
 happy life. 
 
 In the mean time, I would fubjoin here to what 
 has been already faid, that thofe words in ver. 6, 
 " who gave himfelf a ranfom for ail," exceedingly 
 favour the interpretation we have given of the 
 preceding words, ver. 4, " who defires that all 
 *' men fliould be faved/' For they are, in their 
 connevTlion, aHigned as an argument in Jullification 
 of their truth. As if the apoftle had faid, " ! had 
 af^rmed, in the 4th verfe, that God dejires all men 
 ficidd be favfd, and you may give full credit to my 
 affirmation j for Jefus Chrift, in confequence of 
 this defire-t and that it might be complied with, 
 gcve himfelf a ranfom for all'^ Now, if God defires 
 the. falvQiion of all, and Chrift died that this defre 
 of God might be complied with, is it credible 
 that a fmall portion of men only fhould be faved 
 in event? Can itreafonably be fuppofed, when dse 
 all- merciful God has exprefled his defire that all 
 tncn-, the whole race of Adafn^ fiiould be faved, and 
 
 has 
 
'f he Proofs ofUniveffol Salvation, 169 
 
 has adually fent his fon Jefus Chrifl to give his life 
 a Tcwfom for them alU that both the defire of God^ 
 and the covfequent death of his own Son^ fhould, in 
 event and fa^y be of no Jignificancy with refpefl to 
 the greatefi 'part of the fens of men, as they certain- 
 Iv will be, \f i\\ty finally and eternally perifjj ? No, 
 fays the apoille, the contrary to this fhall be fully 
 evidenced in proper time. This, as I imagine, is the 
 true import of thofe obfervable words^ which are 
 added to the 6th verfe, to f/,xfvciov y.o'Apoig ihoig^ 
 a teftivicny in due time {^3)» The fcnrence is fome- 
 
 what 
 
 (53) Dr. Benfon tranflates the words, to iJ.ar.rv^iov axi^o:; 
 ihoiCf a tejlimony to his times \ fupponng the apollle would 
 hereby fuggell, that Chriil nDt only gave his life a ranfom for 
 all, but that by his death he was ** an eminent and ftedfaft 
 vvitnefs of the truth to the age in which he lived." And it is 
 readily acknowledged this is the truth o^faSI ; but I cannot, 
 at preltnt, be perfuaded to think, it is the truth intended to 
 be communicated in this place. The word tefimony, tc- 
 ^oi^vpiov, as it appears tome, ftands connedied, in this pafTage, 
 TiOl ftmply with the death of Chrifl but with the thing affirmed 
 of his death, its being a ranfom for all. His giving his life 
 a ra7fom for all is therefore ro ^a^v^irj, the tejlimony , here 
 fpoken of. And the truth it is a tefimony to is, that God 
 deftres the falvation of all men: Which teftimony, it is faid, 
 fliall be fully exhibited y.o^.^£o^c, t.J'iOK) temporihus propriis^ congru- 
 entibusy connjenientihuSi \n proper feafon, in meet y fit, due lime, as 
 in the tranllation of our Bibles. Some chufe to render the 
 phrafey«/; temporib.is, in vis times, that h, the times cfChrifiy 
 within the general period of the adminlflration of God's king- 
 (f^^ in his hands. Either tranflation, as it feems to mc, is 
 iuft : Nor is it of any importance which of them be preferred. 
 The fame thing, without all doubt, is intended by y.aj^oK 
 
J JO Tbe Proofs of U?iiverfal Salvation. 
 
 what abrupt and fufpended j but its meaning, 
 fupplied, and placed in due order, agreeably to its 
 conne6lion with the other part of this paflage, is 
 obvioufly this, namely, that Chrift*s being a ranfom 
 for all Ihould, in its feafouy in proper^ due time, be 
 an evidence, or teftimony^ glorioufly convincing to 
 all, that God wm r tally willing, heartily defirous^ 
 that all men jhould he faved^ In agreement with 
 this fenfe, the apoflk obferves, in the words that im- 
 mediately follow, " whereunto" [jj? o, to which tef- 
 timony, that is, to make it appear a juft and full one] 
 ** I am ordained a preacher and an apoftle." And, 
 in the execution of his truft as fuch, he has made it 
 manifeft^ that Chrift's giving his \\it a ranfom for 
 all is a clear evidence, a juft teftlmony, that God is 
 voilliyjg that all men fiiould be faved: Though, I 
 would add here, this will not be fet in its fulleft 
 Tind ftrongeft point of light, till the commencement 
 of THAT PERIOD, or DISPENSATION, when Gody 
 even the Father^ (hall be all in all ; which we 
 fhall have occafion largely to explain under the 
 next propofitioni to which I accordingly now 
 proceed. 
 
 PROPOSITION V. 
 
 *' As a mean in order to men's being made 
 " meet for falvation, God, by Jefus Chrift, will, 
 ** fooner or later, in this state or another, 
 
 t^tsj? here, which is intended by TrX/j^i^/^a roy %^ovoy, Gal.iW4 ; 
 and EK owiovo/Avav TrXyj^w/xolo; twv Kui^uVf Eph. i, 10, as theie 
 phrafes have been before explained, 
 
 *' reduce 
 
'The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 171 
 
 " reduce them all under a willing and obedient 
 " SUBJECTION to his moral government." 
 
 The grand difficulty that lies in the way of 
 men's being univerfally faved is, that moral depravity 
 fo many of them have funk into by vicious living. 
 And it is readily confefled, that, if any of the race 
 of men have fo corrupted their minds, and vitiated 
 their tempers, as that they are really incurable 
 by any moral means that can be ufed with them, 
 in order to their recovery, their ilate mud be 
 HOPELESS : It is impoffible, in this cafe, confidently 
 with reafon, that they fhould be finally happy. 
 My defign therefore, under this general head, is to 
 make ic evident, from the fcriptures, that mankind 
 are lb far from being incurable in degeneracy, that 
 they fhall all, fooner or later, be recovered in 
 FACT to a virtuous temper of mind, and fo made 
 meet for happinefs in a date that will lad for ever. 
 
 And thus much, I think, is the obvious natural 
 import of thofe texts, which fpeak of the deftruc- 
 tion of fin y the faving men from their fins ^ the taking 
 away their fins^ as i\it great defign of the mediatorial 
 mifiion of Jefus Chrid into our world. The texts 
 that carry in them this fenfe are numerous. The 
 apodle fays, 1 John iii. 8, " For this purpofe was 
 " the Son of God manifeded, that he might dedroy 
 *' the works of the Devil,'* that is, vice and 
 wickednefs. Parallel whereto are thofe words, in 
 th^4th verfe of this fame chapter, " He was ma- 
 *' nifeded to take away our fins." Hence John 
 
 the 
 
t'jz I'he Proofs cf Unrccrfal Sahation, 
 
 the Bapiip fpeaks of him in that language, 
 John i. 29, " Behold the Lamb of God, which 
 *' taketh away the fins of the world." And the 
 name Jeftis is faid to have been given to him 
 for this reafon. Matt. i. 21," becaufe he (hall hv^ 
 *• his people from their fins." 
 
 Thefe texts, if interpreted according to the 
 natural and genuine force of the words in which 
 they are exprefTed, do certainly give us to under- 
 itand, that it was one great pare of the defign of 
 Chrid's manifeftation in our flefh, to put an end 
 to the reign oi fin^ by univerfaUy deftrDjing its infiU' 
 ince over the hearts of men. But, as it is {^tn in 
 fa5f that this dejign is not accomplifhed at prefsnt^ 
 with refpedt to a great many among mankind, the 
 meaning commonly put upon thefe and fuch like 
 texts is — that Chriil was manifefted, not to deftroy 
 fin in certain fa 51^ but only to make.ufe of proper 
 and weil-adapted means in order to the attainment 
 of this end^ w^hich end m2ij finally fail of being at- 
 tained, and will not, in events be attained with re- 
 fpe6t to multitudes. But why fhould thefe texts 
 be thus reftrained in their fenfe ? What need is 
 there of thus limiting their meaning ? May we 
 not, yea, ought we not, to argue rather after this 
 manner ? " As it was the defitgn of Chrift, in coming 
 into the world, to deftroy fin ^ it mud: certainly be 
 deftroyed ; and fince it is not deftroy ed in this 
 -prefent ftate, we may reafonably look for anotlm^ 
 when this defign of his mediatory manifeftation fhali 
 be fully accomplifned." This, 1 IhouM think, is 
 
 the 
 
^be Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 1 75 
 
 the moft natural and confident way of reconciling 
 frefent fa£l with the moft obvious fenfe of thefe 
 texts. And that 'this is not only their /rw^/'/^y^, 
 but the true ivay of reconciling their fenfe with 
 prefent facl^ we fliall be at the pains particularly 
 and largely to prove, by an enumeration of feveral 
 pafTages of fcripture, which peremptorily declare, 
 either in fo many words, or by juft and unavoidable 
 confequence, that mankind iiniverfally^ before the 
 fliutting up of the fcheme of God, as condu61:ed 
 and managed by his Son Jefus Chriti, in order to 
 rheir falvation, (hall certainly, or in event and 
 
 FACT, be RECOVERED FROM THE REIGN OF SIN", 
 
 and reduced under a willing and obedient sub- 
 jection to the divine government. The texts 
 
 to this purpofe are thefe that follow. 
 
 1'he firft is Pfil. viii. 5, 6, as explained, and 
 argued from, Heb. ii. 6-— 9. Infpired David is 
 fpeaking in this pLace concerning Chriji', and fays» 
 in the language of prophecy, " Thou haft made 
 " him a little lower than the ans-fh, and haft 
 *'* crowned him with glory and honour. Thou 
 ^"^ madeft fiim to have dominion over the works of 
 ^' thy hands: thou hast put all things under 
 *' his feet." That thefe words were fpoken, not 
 of Ada^u n-if of any fon of Adam by ordinary 
 generatiotu but prophetically of ChrijU we are af- 
 fured by the writer of the Epiftle to the Hebrews, 
 4ft..his fecond chapter. It would be too great a 
 digreftion, and, it may be, a needlefs one, to ftop 
 here to juftify this application of the pafiage; as I 
 
 have 
 
J 74 T!he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 have rrow to do only with thofe who believe the 
 divine infpiration of the author of the Epiftle to 
 the Hebrews : Though, if any fhould defire to fee 
 this done, they may confult, as I think, to their 
 full fatisfadion. Dr. Owen, or Mr. Pierce, who 
 have fet this matter in a very clear and ftrong point 
 of light. At prefent, I take it for granted, upon 
 the authority of this writer, that the pafiage was 
 prophetically fpoken of Chrijl. i\nd he applies it 
 to him in fupportof his argument, tending to prove 
 tht fuperiority of Chrijl to the angels. For having 
 faid, ver. 5, '' unto the angels hath he not put in 
 ** fubjedion the world to come," he then intro- 
 duces this pafiage in the Pfalms concerning Chrift : 
 And, having mentioned thofe words in it, thou 
 
 HAST PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS 
 
 FEET, he goes on, and argues, as in the 8th and 
 9th verfes, '' For in that he put all in fubjedlion 
 " under him, he left nothing that is not put under 
 *' him. But now we fee not yet all things put 
 '* under him. But we fee Jefus, who was made a 
 *' little lower than the angels, for the fuffering of 
 "death, crowned with glory and honour, that he 
 " by the grace of God fhould tafte death for 
 *' every man." The true import of which words, 
 I (hall take leave to exprefs in the following para- ' 
 phrafe : — " In proving the /up eriority of Chrift to 
 the angels, I had faid, ' unto them God had not put 
 * in fubjedion the world to come,' and with very 
 good reafon ; for in that pafiage, in the eighth 
 Pfalm, which fays, in thofe excenfive words, ' thou 
 
 * haft 
 
^he T roofs ofXJniverfal Salvation. 175 
 
 * haft put all things in fubjcdlion under him,' even 
 the angels themfelves are included. For v.'hen ic 
 is faid, without limitation, all things are put 
 UNDER HIM, it is manifeft there is no room for any 
 exception r, but God muft be fuppofed to have left 
 
 NOTHING UNSUBJECTED TO HIM. It is ttue, WC 
 
 do not YET fee all things reduced under fubjedbion 
 to him : But this ought not to be conftrued an 
 argument againft the above extenfive application of 
 the Pfalmifl's words to him ; becaufe, though we 
 do not at prefent fee ail things brought into fub- 
 jection to him, yet we fee Jefus, who, for a little 
 while (54), was made inferior to the angels, that 
 he might be qualified for the fuffering of death (55), 
 
 crowned 
 
 (^4) For a !itthivhiJe.'\ So ^^cc'/y n may properly be tranf- 
 lated, as it is in the margin of our Bibles. Erafmus and Beza 
 render \t paulifpcr ; Grotius, ad breve tempus. And it mull be 
 taken in this fenfe Ads v. 34, *' And he commanded to put 
 ** the apoftles forth, \_Pr^a,yv rt] for a little fpace." And it 
 ought to be thus tranflated here; for it can fcarce be faid of 
 Chrift with truth, to be fure, not with accurate propriety, 
 that he was made a little lo-iver (for it was a great deal) than 
 the angels: Whereas it is flridtly juft to fay of him, that he 
 was, for a iittk feafony zjhort timcy mads inferior to them. And 
 it is obfervable, the Hebrew word tOyO* in the 8th Pfalm, 
 which anfvvers to the Greek phrafe ^payy n in this place, is 
 ufed in the fame manner, as will be evident to any who will 
 be at the pains to compare Job xxiv. 24, Ifa. x. 25. — xxix. 17. 
 Jer. li. 37, Hof. i. 4, Hag. ii. 6. Junius and Tremellius 
 accordingly tranflate the Hebrew woid by pauli/per, a little 
 nxhile* 
 
 (55) That he might h? qualijied f§r the fnffcring of death. \ 
 Thi? io the fenfe I would chuf« to give the words, ha, ro 
 
176 T'he Proofs oflJniverfal Salvation, 
 
 crowned with glory and honour, that he might 
 profecute the grand intention of his death {^()')^ 
 which by the grace of God he tailed for every 
 man. 
 
 The following things, to our purpofe, are ob- 
 vioufly difcernible in this pailage of fcripture. 
 I. That thofe words, in the eighth Pfalm, " Thou 
 " haft put all things in fubjedion under his feet," 
 
 'rraJc'T.i/.cc rov Buiolou, I am fenfible they mny be joined with 
 the preceding words tbus, n.vho for a 'while was made inferior t6 
 the angeh by f'ffering of death : So Mr. Pierce joins them. Or, 
 they may be connefted with the fubfeqaent words in this 
 manner, luho upon the account of his juffering -zvas cro^vned nvith 
 glory and honour', which well agrees with the fcripture ac- 
 count of the renvard of Chrill's humiliation to death. But 
 they may alfo be conftrued in the \cv.(c I have put upon them ; 
 and perhaps in {Iridefc conformity to the proper force of the 
 prepofitlcn oiu, when joined with an accufative cafe. And 
 thus interpreted, their meaning will be the fame wiih the 14th 
 verfe, which I take to be aj-jft comment upon them, *' For- 
 '* afmuch as the children were partakers of fleih and blood, 
 ** he alfo took part of the fame, that [being now qualified 
 *' for it] he might through death deftroy him that had the 
 *' power of death." 
 
 (56) That he might profecute the intention of his death. '\ This 
 thought I have borrowed from Mr. Pierce ; who, in juiliiicatiort 
 of its f'iys, *' that fuch an ellipfis^ ov f^llepfs, is to be met with 
 both in prophane and facred writers;'* and refers us to 
 Gatak. adverf. Mifcel. Poet. C 31 ; where there is produced 
 a great many inftances of this kind, two of which he mentions 
 from him. See his note upon this text. So that the {tu{& of 
 the words is this, ** That God crowned Jefus with glory and 
 honour, that fo he might be qualified to purfue t\\^ great end 
 of his death for all men, in bringing them into fHeSlicn to 
 bimr 
 
 are 
 
"The Proofs of XJniverfal Sahafioft. I jj 
 
 al-e juftly applicable to Chrlfl:, and in their ftria and 
 full fenfe. 2. Thar, when all things are faid to 
 htptit under him, the words, all things, muil 
 be underftood in the greatest latitude, fo as 
 to include [God only excepted] all things what- 
 soever. So they are mod accurately explained 
 in what follows : " For in that he put all in fubjec- 
 " tion under him, he left nothing that is not 
 " put under him." 3. That all things, in this 
 latitude of fenfe, are nor as yet adually reduced 
 under fubjedion to Chrift. So it is mofl: peremp- 
 torily and diredlly declared in the words that im- 
 mediately follow, rj'j §2 ouTTo; o^w^otgj/, "But now we 
 " fee NOT yet all things put under him." 4. That 
 our not feeing all things, at prefent, as yet, adlu- 
 ally fubjeded to Chrift, is not an argument of any 
 force againft the application of the Pfalmift's words 
 to him in thar full and moft extenftve meaning ; be- 
 caufe, 5. We fee that " fame Jefus, who, ''for a 
 " little while, was made inferior to the angels^ 
 " crowned with glory and honour." 
 
 But how, you will afk, is this a proof, that all 
 
 THINGS ARE PUT UNDER SUBJECTION TO ChRIST^ 
 
 according to the extensive meaning of the 
 Ffalmifl, as above explained ? I anfwer. The Pfal- 
 mift fpake of that which certainly zvouldhe, as thotigh 
 it was already infant. And though Chrift's being 
 •' crowned with glory and honour" is not a proof 
 that all things are already fubjeded to him, yet ic 
 is a fare argument, that this is vow in profecution, 
 and that it will, in proper time, be actually carried 
 
 N into 
 
178 ^he T roofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 into effe5f, '^ We fee Jefus crowned with glory and 
 *' honour." The proper force of the apoftle's argu- 
 ment herefrom is this -, — We fee, by the light of 
 fcripture, that Chrifl has been exalted to the right 
 hand of dignity and power in the heavenly world, 
 and we may fee as clearly, by the fame light, that 
 it is his proper worky in this exalted ftate, to reduce 
 all enemies^ bringing them under fuhjeEiion to him^ 
 and that he willy^ ufe his regal dignity and power 
 as certainly and eventually to accomplijh this end. — 
 This is the apoftle's argument. ,And its pertinency 
 and ftrength, to the purpofe for which he brought 
 it, lies in the connection God has eflablifhed 
 between Chrift^s exaltation to kingly glory and power ^ 
 and the certain aUual reduElion of all things under 
 fuhje5fion to him in due time; infomuch that we 
 may infallibly conclude, fince we fee Chrift crowned 
 with glory and honour^ that the final effect of 
 it will be, the fulfilment of the Pfalmift's pro- 
 phecy, when it fhall be literally and ftridly true, 
 that ALL THINGS, in the full and extenfive lati- 
 tude of the words, are actually, or in event, 
 fuhjcEied to him. Compare this argument of the 
 apoflle with what is afterwards faid upon i Cor. xv. 
 22 — 28, and we Ihall not beat a lofs to deter- 
 mine, that this is its true fenfe. 
 
 To apply now the above proof of the /;;^/y//^- 
 jeHion of all things to Chrift to the purpofe of our 
 
 prefent argument. And the reafoning here is 
 
 quite cafy, and yet ftridtly jud, and ftrongly con- 
 
 c 1 u fi ve# I f A L l things fball he fuhjeSied to Chrift^ 
 
 ^ and 
 
^he Proofs of XJnzverfal Salvation. 179 
 and in a fcnfe fb umv erf ally extenfive as that 
 
 NOTHING SHALL BE LEFT UNSUBJECTED, the time 
 
 wilHhen come, and muft come, when sin, among 
 other things, fhall ht fuhje^ed to him. This is cer- 
 tainly one of the things^ which greatly needs to be 
 reduced under fuch fubjedlion : For it is en enemy ; 
 yea, a principal enemy ; emphatically that enemy ^ 
 which Chrift came into the world to deftrcy^ ac- 
 cording to thofe fore-cited exprefs words of the 
 apoftle, I John, iii. 8, " For this purpose, the 
 "Son of God was manifefted, that he might 
 " deflroy the works of the Devil,'* that is, fin and 
 wicked nefs. Now, how can fin he deftroyed^ or^ 
 what means the fame thing, he fuhje5fed to Chrift^ 
 but by effedling fuch a change in finners as fhall 
 make them, inftead of rebels agaiyift Gody his 
 willing and obedient people ? There is no other 
 poiTible way in which an end can be put to the do- 
 minion offin^ and moral fuhjeoli on to the government 
 of God fubftituted in the room of it. The truth 
 of the matter is plainly this: — Men, by finningj 
 oppofe the government of God : Not his government 
 oi power ^ for this ever was, and ever will, and ever 
 muft be, fubmitted to; but that moral govern- 
 ment which he exercifes over intelligent and free 
 agents. Here is room for oppofjion. Men may 
 reftft'i they have it in their power to refill, that will 
 of God v/hich requires their ohedierice as moral 
 agents. And herein, properly and accurately 
 fpeaking, and herein only, lies the ejfence oi fin^ or 
 incei Nor can it be dcftrcyed^ or reduced under 
 
 N 2 moral 
 
1 8o mje Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 moral fuhje5fion^ but by application to the wills of 
 finners fo as to gain their free and full ccnfent to 
 become the obedient fervants of God. Now Chrifi^ 
 that he might xk\m def troy fin by making mankind 
 the obedient fubje^fs of God, in order to his being 
 qualified for this great and noble zvork^ and placed 
 under fuitable circum (lances for the effectual ac- 
 compuflment of it, was, after he had tafied death for 
 EVERY MAN, cvowued With gloYy and honour *. And, 
 
 in 
 
 * This fame thought is very clearly and fully exprejTed by 
 Dr. Samuel Clarke, though with no view to ellablifli the 
 pre/ent doSirine, of which I cannot colled from his writings, 
 that he had any notion. His words, which may be the more 
 regarded, becaufe he was fo great a man, are [vol. i. of his 
 wjorksy pag. 197, 198] thefe : * The kingdom of God /irwci- 
 
 * pally confius, in his government of rea/onaMe p.nd inielligent 
 
 * creatures ; in his beingy^ri/^^and obeyed by thofe, who, at 
 
 * the fame time, are capable of difoheying\ — who, in their 
 
 * feveral ftations and degrees, according to the light that is 
 
 * afforded them, difcern what is right, and approve Vv'hat is 
 
 * good, and aSi by ^€\^ free pon/jer, and are conjcioiis of the excel- 
 
 * lency of ^virtue, and lo'oe him whom they obey, and are 
 
 * made happy by the participation of his perfeftions. This is 
 
 * that, wherein principally confifts the kingdom of God. — By 
 
 * fiuy this kingdom of God, this his government over the 
 
 * hearts and <w'dU of the rational part of the creation, is cppojed 
 
 * and nxjithjiood. For \\\2> natural kingdom, the kingdom of his 
 
 * pc~jjer, cannot be refifted. In this r^fpeft, the whole world is 
 
 * in his hand as a duft of the balance ; he can withdraw from 
 
 * all things their very being itfeif, and, with a blaft of his 
 
 * mouth, whenever he pleafes, reduce them all into nothing in 
 
 * a moment. So that it is a very abfurd notion, which fome 
 
 * have entertained, from certain figurative exprefiions of fcrip- 
 
 * ture very much mifunderftood j as if the Devil had at- 
 
 * tempted 
 
ne Proofs ofUniverfcil Salvation. 1 8 1 
 
 in truth, this is the only fuhje^ion, it can reafonably 
 be fuppofed he (hoiild be advanced to regal dignity 
 
 and 
 
 * tempted to oppofe the Almighty with/ore^, and had contended 
 
 * with him for the dominion of the uni'verfe. No : Such repre- 
 
 * fentations as thefe are only the nilions of the poets. The 
 
 * Devil indeed rebelled agalnfl God; but in the fame fenfe 
 
 * wherein wicked men rebel agzind him : Not by thinking to 
 
 * refill his pcwer, but by prefumptuoufiy venturing to difoley 
 
 * his ivill, in thofe things wherein the nature of 'virfue 2nd 
 
 * %'ice, and the very e^^nce of moral go^oernment^ necefiarily 
 
 * require that they fliould not be over-ruled and compelled by 
 
 * force. For here, the thing which God requires is (h^ free 
 
 * confem of the ivill ', which, in the nature of things, is not 
 ' fubjedt to compulfton : Obedience itfelfheing no obedience, where 
 
 * there is no polHbility of having ^//^^O'^'^* By yz« therefore 
 ' this moral kingdom of God began to h^oppofed ; by the fins of 
 ' evil angels, and by t.\\tjins of nvicked men : Among whom, as 
 ' they corrupted themfelves by degrees, in departing from 
 ' the living God, the Devil fet up a kingdom of idolatry and 
 ^ great 'wickednefs, in oppofition to the kingdom of God. la 
 ' order to deflrr.y which njoorks of the De'vil, [to deftroy them, 
 ' not by the exercife of omnipotence, but by the estae- 
 
 ' LISHMENT OF VIRTUE AND TRUE RELIGION, which is 
 
 ' the PROPER, and only proper destruction of immo-« 
 ' RALiTY AKD vice] God was pleafed to give alTiftance and 
 ' ftrength to the light of nature and reafon, by making 
 ' re'zelations o\ himfelf, from time to time, to the degenerate 
 ' world ; — liril by the Patriarchs ;— then by Mofes and the 
 ' prophets ; — and at I all by his oivn Sen, who came into the 
 ' world, and loas manifefed (as St. John afTures Ub) ** for this 
 '* caufe, that he might deftroy the works of the Devil ;*' that 
 ' is, that he might root out idolatry and fuperftitious worfliip, 
 
 * and reiorm men from debauchery and all unrighteous prac- 
 ' tices ; that by the knowledge, worlhip, and love of the one 
 ' p-ue God, and m&her of all things, in purity andholinefs of 
 
 N 3 • life, 
 
iSz ^he Proofs ofVnlverfal S ah at ion, 
 
 and power^ at God's right hand in heaven, that he 
 might accomplifli. Sinful men 'wtxt before abfo- 
 lutely in fubjedion to the kingdom of God's powers 
 as being unable to make the leaft refiftance to any 
 of its difplays, however fatal they might be in their 
 tendency. There was no need therefore of Chrifi's 
 exaltation^ in order to force finful men to fuch 
 a fubjedion as this. The great thing neceiTary 
 was, as they -^tx^ free agents^ to make them a 
 willing people, in confiftency with their liberty. 
 And to this end it was, that Chrifl was crowned 
 'voith glory and honour : And this end\^t mufl: accom- 
 pliih, before it can be faid, either with propriety 
 or truth, that all things ere fuhje^led to him^ in 
 that latitude of fenfe, in which the writer of this 
 epiftle has explained thefe vvords, and, ex profeffo^ 
 direded us to underftand them. 
 
 The plain truth is, if all things fhall finally 
 be fubje5fed to Chrift^ as they mull be, or this 
 
 •life, injuflice, meeknefs, and univerfal charity and good- 
 
 * will towards each other, he might bring them back from a 
 ' ftate of general corruption, to beccnie worthy and obedient 
 
 • fubjefts of his father's kingccm of righteoufnefs.' The 
 Bodlcr has here exhibited a true and juft idea of Gog's moral 
 hngdotni his principal glory; and of y?», by which c»/j it is 
 cppo/ed and '^withfiood', and of the deflruSiion of Jtn, which is 
 precifely ii\&fame thing with the eji ablijhment of real <virtue. 
 And his whole difcourfe here is a clear and ftrong illuftration 
 of the truth we are upon : Though he did not perceive it ; 
 which to mz is exceeding ftrange, as it is fo obvioufly and na- 
 turally connected with the notion he has given us of the deftruc- 
 tion of Jin f on which alone God's moral kingdom t which is his 
 principal one, can he ere^edt in t\iis Jtnful and degenerate world, 
 
 writer 
 
T^he Proofs ofXJniverfal SahaUon, 183 
 
 writer has not argued juflly and fairly ; I fay, if 
 ALL THINGS, without any limitation, or exception, 
 fhall be brought undtr fui^je olio /i to Chrift^ then the 
 time mud come, Jboner or later, in this ftate or 
 fome other, when there fhall be no rebels among 
 the Tons of Adam^ no enemies againll the moral go- 
 vernment of God. For there is no way of reducing 
 rebels^ fo^as to deftroy their charader as fiich^ but 
 by making them willing and obedient fubjeBs. And 
 with whattruth can it be affirmed, that all things, 
 leaving nothing in referve to be excepted^ [for the 
 apoflle, it is to be remarked here, is exprefsly fpeak- 
 ing of all things in this unlimited Jen fe\ are fubjeBed 
 to Chrifty when millions of finners (according to 
 the common opinion) are finally left to blafpheme 
 both his and \\\s father^ s name, as being prompted 
 thereto by the unsubdued unconquered enmity 
 of their hearts ? 
 
 It will, doubtlefs, be faid here, thefe rebels will 
 all be confined, at the great and lafl day, in the 
 prifon of hell, and in this fenfe be brought under 
 fubje5lion to Jefus Chrift. But, this fuhjeclion not- 
 withftanding, they vv'ill flill continue the enemies of 
 God^ and as much unfubje6l:ed to the government 
 of Chrift, as his willing and obedient fervants, as 
 ever. How then can it be affirmed, that all 
 THINGS are brought under fiibje5lion to Chrift? If 
 thefe finners (lill continue in their ;Y^^///i?;7, and are 
 really (though in hell) the willing fervants y not of 
 Gody nor of his Son Jefus Chrift^ but oifin and the 
 D^iv/, they are infallibly as yet in a flate of non^ 
 
 N 4 fubje^ion 
 
184 T^he Proofs ofVniverJal Salvation, 
 
 fuhje5lion to the government of Heaven, in a true 
 and proper fenfe ; yea, I mayjuftly fay, in that 
 \^xy fenfe in which they^ were fo when Chrill came 
 into the v4^orld/2?r thiir redu&ion: It" may there- 
 fore, with as much truth be faid then, as now y 
 nay, with much more, we fee not yet all thvi7s 
 pit under fuhjeElion to Chrift : Ncieher (according 
 to the generally prevailing dodlrine) (hall we ever 
 fee thts-i though we have {ttn Jefus crowned with 
 glory and honour : To be fure, v/e fhall never fee 
 this, in that latitude of fenf^, in which it is here faid, 
 all things are fuhjetJed to Chrift \ which things are 
 fpokcn of, in the prefent tenfe, as aHually in a fiate 
 of fubjedion to him, becaufe, in the final ifiue of 
 his adminiftration, they certainly will he. 
 
 I may add here, with great prgpriety, as well as 
 ftrength of argument, if all things, without ex- 
 ception, Hiall ht fiihjeEisd to Chrift^ then deaths the 
 SECOND as well as i\\z firfi deaths will be finally 
 iwallowed up in vlciory. None doubt but that 
 ihtfirfi death will be fo far deftroyed, even with 
 refpe6l to the wickedy as that they fhall be again 
 reflored to life. And it fhould feem as jgfl and 
 necelTary a confeguence from this fcripture, that 
 the SECOND DEATH alfo fhall be deflroyed. -For 
 this is as truly an ener/iy^ in every fenie that can bei^-. 
 afTigned, as i\it fir fi death. And as tht firfl death 
 is one of the things that fliall httfuhje&ed to Chrifl^ 
 that is, he dcft.royed\ the argument holds as flrong 
 for his conqiiefi of the second death, becaufe all 
 THINGS muft htfuhje^Ied to "himy fo univerfally-, in a 
 
The Proofs of Ufiiverfal Salvation, i g 5 
 
 fcrtfe/^ unlimited, as that nothing Jhall he left un- 
 juhjeSfed, If any (hould be difpofed to fufpea:, that 
 this reafoning lays too great an emphafis upon the 
 words, ALL THINGS, and is too rigorous in extending 
 the lenfe of them, I truft he will acquit me of all 
 blame upon this head ; for, if there is jufl reafon 
 for blame, he mud throw it upon the author of 
 this epifile, and not upon me : For I only ufe his 
 argument, which, \ am fare, concludes thus much 
 if it concludes any thing at all. 
 
 I (hail only fubjoin to what has been hitherto 
 faid, that if I have, given the true meaning of 
 the 9th verfe, which is thus rendered in the para- 
 ph rafe, IVefee J ef us, who, for a little while, was 
 made inferior to the angels, that he might be qua^ 
 lified for thefuffering of death, crowned with glory 
 and honour, that he might prof ecute the grand inten- 
 Hon of his death, which, by the grace cf God, he tafted 
 for every man: I fay, if we have given the true 
 fenfe^of this verfe, more efpecially the laft claufe 
 of it, it will very much favour that univerfal fuh- 
 jeElicn to Chrift we have been pleading for. For, 
 according to this conftruciion, the grace of God, his 
 love, good-will, or kindnefs, is the original y>n;;^, 
 or>ra^ of the death of Chrift: Now, this love of 
 God being univerfal, the death of Chrift was uni- 
 verfal too -, and having died/.r all, he is crowned 
 with glory and honour, that he might profecute :he 
 benevolent intention of his death, which was, the 
 fi'^al falvaiion of all, by vtducmg all under fuhjemon 
 to God^% his willing and obedient ferv ants. 
 
 The 
 
r86 l^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 Thcfenfe we have put upon the paffagc of fcrip- 
 ture we have been confidering^ will be very 
 much illuftrated and confirmed by proceeding to 
 the ne^t that deferves particular notice upon this 
 occafion % which is that parallel one, in the fecond 
 chapter of the epiftle to the Philippians, where the 
 apoftle, having fpoken of the humiliation of Chrifl, 
 even to the death, goes on, and fays, ver. 9, 10, 
 II, "Wherefore God hath highly exalted him, 
 " and given him a name which is above every 
 *' name, that, af the name of Jefus, every knee 
 " fhould bow, of things in heaven, and things in 
 " earth, and things under the earth ; and that 
 ** every tongue fhould confefs that Jefus Chrifl is 
 *' Lord, to the glory of God the Father." The 
 following things are eafily obfervable in this 
 text: 
 
 1. That the exaltation of Chrifl: was not merely 
 confequent upon his humiliation to death, but the 
 
 ♦ reward cf it. This will readily be acknowledged 
 a point beyond- all difpute. 
 
 2. That this exaltation of Chrifl confided in 
 God's giving hir/i a name above every name •, that is, 
 dominion fuperior to all other. For 'tis pbin, by 
 nnme we are here to underfland authority^ power ^ 
 dominion. Hence, in Heb. i, 4, Chrifl's fuperiority 
 to the angels, in point of dignity and power, is 
 expreded by his' having obtained a more excellent 
 name than they. Hence alfo our Saviour, fpeaking 
 of this name which had been given to him, fays, 
 Matt, xxviii. 18, *' All power in heaven and earth 
 
 '' is 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation, 1 87 
 
 •* is given. to me." And what is here called God's 
 giving him ci name above every name^ is exprefifed, 
 Eph. i. 20, 2 1, by his " fetting him at his own 
 " right hand, in the heavenly places, far above all 
 "principality, and power, and might, and do- 
 " minion, and every name that is nam^ed, not only 
 " in this world, but in that which is to come." 
 The name then given to Chriil, in rev/ard of his 
 fufferings and death, was univerfal dominion. To 
 be fure, none will exclude this^ whatever elfe they 
 may include in its meaning. And this is ail I con- 
 tend for. 
 
 3. That the final cause of God's giving to 
 Ghrift this univerfal dominion was, that he might 
 univerfally reduce things under fubje5iion to the 
 moral kingdom of God, which was now under his 
 ddminijiration. This is fully and ftrongly cx- 
 preflcd in thofe words, " God harh given him a 
 " name — that, at the name of Jefus, every knee 
 " fnould bow, of things in heaven, and things in 
 '^ earth, and things under the earth ; and that 
 *' every tongue fhould confefs that Jefus Chrift is 
 '' Lord, to the glory of God the F-ather." Inter- 
 preters differ {^j) as to the precife meaning of 
 
 the 
 
 (57) Interpreters di^er'\ Dr. Whitby, by things in hea'ven^ 
 underlUnds the holy angels ; by thinis in earth, men ; by 
 things under the earthy the dead, who, being raifed by Chrift, 
 fhall acknowlecge his power. Mr. Peirce paraphrafes the 
 things in h:a'ven and earthy * heavenly and earthly beings ;* 
 that is, as 1 fuppofe, angels in heaven, and men on earth. By 
 the things under the earth, fays he, * are included the dead, as 
 
 ' Chrift 
 
1 8 8 T'he Proofs of Univerfil Salvation. 
 
 the enumeration here, " things in heaven, and 
 *' things in earth, and things under the earth ;" 
 
 But 
 
 ' Chrift is " mah Lord of both the dead and llving^^ Rom. 
 
 * xiv. 9 :' Though, as he adds, * 1 fee no neceflity of con- 
 
 * ^ning this expreflion to them ; for the fallen angels may be 
 ' alfo comprehended In it.' Wolfius is of the fame mind, 
 thinking the things in hca^ven, and earth, and under the earth, 
 may well be explained by the fimilar phrafes that are ufed, 
 R-ev. V. 13. He fays, * Hsc omnium optime ex fimili phrafi 
 
 * Jpannis, Apoc. v. 13, exponi pofTe videntur : K«.t ritxv 
 
 * x1tcrjM,a, S i(f\iv Bv ru ov^avu (en iTrov^ancc) , zca sv rv) yr, (en zTTtf-io.), 
 
 * xai VTTQy.ixlu rvji; yrjq (en zcclccx^o'na,) — viKovcrcc Xehvloc<; — ' And 
 
 this was the opinion of meft of the ancients, as this author 
 fojnmarily reprefents . their fcnfe in the following words 
 
 of Chryfoftom : ^ TovIbctIiv xoaiJ.o<; Tra?,' y.oci avUXoi, y.ai avG^WTroJ, 
 
 * y.Gt.1 c'cii^ovzq, 'h oli y.ot,i, qi hy.oiioiy y.cci ot ay(.oc,^.u)7\o',.'* But the moil 
 
 eafy, natural interpretation of thefe phrafes, is given by Mr. 
 Hallet, in his Notes on particular textsy vol. i. page 27. * It is, 
 
 * (fays he) an old and common method to divide the world into 
 
 * three parts, hea'ven, earthy and 2^ place' under the earth. By 
 
 * the laji, I apprehend, is meant they^«. This feems to 
 
 * appear from the following palTages : Exod. xx. /}, " The 
 ** likenefs of any, thing that is in heaven above, in the earth 
 •* beneath, or in the <vjatcr under the earth. '*'' Nehem. ix. 6, 
 " Thou haft made heansen, — the earth, — the feas'^ Exod. 
 *'xx. 2, ** For in fix days the Lord made he&'ven^ and earth, 
 ** they?^, and all that in them is." Pfal. Ixix. 34, ** Let 
 " the heanjen and earth praife him, t\iQ feas, and every thing 
 **-.that moyeth therein.'* R.ev. v. 3, *' And no man in 
 ** bea"jen, nor in earth, neither under the earth, and fuch as 
 *' are in they^^." From thefe texts it feems plain to me, that 
 *-jhe things under the earth muft be the things in the ^waters 
 •'which are under the earth, as the expreflion is in the fecond 
 'commandment.^ From cosnparing the former texts, we fee 
 
 * what fome call under the earth, the others call they^^/, ox ths 
 
 ** fwaters:^ 
 
ne Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 189 
 
 But yer, they all as one agree that mankind univer- 
 fall)\ whether livings or dead, are comprehended in 
 it, which is as much as the prefent argument re- 
 quires- The great and only queftion therefore to 
 be debated is. 
 
 What are we to underftand by t\\d,t fuhjs Bio Jiy 
 Chrifl was exalted that he might reduce mankijid 
 under ? 
 
 The common opinion is, that it was a free and 
 voluntary fubjedion, with refpedl to feme among 
 them •, and a forced one, with refpecl to all the 
 rcjl^ at the great and general judgment, when they 
 fliali be obliged, by the feperior pov»'er of Chrift, 
 to fubmit to him as thtrir Lord. But this is evi- 
 dently too low and redrained an interpretation, 
 and falls vaflly below the jull and full import of 
 the apollle's words. They are certainly capable, 
 and without the help of any force to ftrain their 
 fenfe, of being underftood to mean a willing fub- 
 je6tion with refpect to all, and not fome only. 
 And this indeed is the fenfe thac/r/? offers to the 
 mind; and it is fo obvious and natural, that, 
 perhaps, no other could have been thought of, had 
 not previoufiy received lyftems made i: necelTary. 
 When the apoftle fays, Chrift was exalted to regal 
 
 * ivaters. And To the defign of the apoftle was to fiiew, ibaf 
 
 * all the creation vjas to boifj the knee at the name of ye/us.* li 
 this (hould be the true fenfe of thefe phrafcs, the thought here 
 defigned to be conveyed is the fame, for fubftancc, with that 
 in Eph. i. 9, 10, and Col. i. 19, io ; which we have before 
 largely explained. 
 
 I dignity 
 
igo Tie Proofs ofUniverfal Sahatioft. 
 
 dignity and power, that every knee might hm) 
 to him^ and every tongue cpnfefs that he is 
 Lord, to the glory of God the Father, the juil 
 and full meaning of what he affirms is, " that he 
 was thus highly exalted, not that he might, by fu- 
 perior power, compel mankind, who are free agents^ 
 to fubmit to his authority and government, owning 
 him, by conflraint^ to be their Lord ; for there is 
 no moral worth in {\^z\^ forced fuhmiffion : But, that 
 he might, being now qualified for it, ufe fuch 
 means, in the execution of his regal trud, as ihould 
 influence them unlvcrfally, fooncr or later, in a 
 rational moral waf, and as is befitting /r^^ and in- 
 telligent agents-i to how down before him, practically 
 confefTing him to be Lord^ to the glory of the 
 Father." 
 
 So far as Chrifl is now in the execution of this 
 power, which was conferred on him, in reward of 
 his humiliation, it is the truth o^ fatl^ that he is, 
 in THIS WAY, endeavouring to reduce mankind 
 under obedience to him, by approving themfelves 
 faithful ftihj eels in that kingdom cf God q^ w'hxch he 
 has been conilicuted head and Lord, The firil 
 thing therefore we read of, after all power in 
 heaven and earth had been given to him, is, the 
 commiffion he gave his apoRies to go, and haptife 
 all nations, teaching thera to ohferve whatfoever he 
 had commanded. Matt, xxviii. i8. And the whole 
 gofpel difpenfation, net only its miniflers, but its 
 doftrines, precepts, ordinances, rewards, and pu-^ 
 nifliment?, are evidently defigned, and \\{zdi^ by 
 
 Chrifl, 
 
^he Proofs of Unherfal Salvatiofi. 191 
 
 Chrift, as head of the mediatorial kingdom, in 
 order to bring men univerfally into that obedient 
 fuhje5!ion to the laws of righteonfnefs, which is 
 the grand fubje(5live qualification for rational and 
 eternal happinefs. 
 
 'Tis true, he will not, in thisJlaU, prevail upon 
 fjl willingly to bow down before him as their Lord. 
 iNlultitudes, notwithftanding all the methods of 
 his wifdom and grace, will ftand it out, refufing 
 to have this man to rule over them. But fhall their 
 prefent ohftinacy defeat the glorioufly extenfive de- 
 fign of his being exalted at the right hand of God 
 in heaven ? May he not, in the next ftate^ reduce 
 thofe under fubjedlion, whom he was not able ef- 
 fed:ualiy to work upon in ihis^ in any of thofe 
 moral ways, he might think proper, as their moral 
 governor, to ufe with them ? Where is the ab- 
 furdity of fuch a fuppofition ? Why fhouid it be 
 thought unreafonable or incredible ? There would 
 be no difficulty at all in admitting, that Chrift 
 might ufe means with finners, in the 7iext ftate^ in 
 order to his making them good fubjeols in the 7noral 
 kingdom of God, and fuch means too as (hould 
 be effeoiual to anfwer this end, were it not for the 
 previoufly imbibed notion, that the prefent fate 
 only being intended for the recovery of men to 
 virtue^ thofe, who are not recovered now^ muft 
 be made miferahle in the next ftate^ which is a ftate 
 of endlefs torment : Whereas, even the very torments 
 of the other world may, in perfect conriftency 
 both vvi:h reafon and fcriitwcy (as wc fhall fee in 
 
 its 
 
192 "The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation^ 
 
 its proper place) be confidered as means^ unc(ef 
 the government of Chrift, in order to awaken the 
 attention of the fubjedsof them, bring them to con- 
 federation, and finally gain the conjent of their wills 
 to become the willing people ox God. And if Chrift 
 was exalted for this end, that every knee fljould 
 how to himy and every tongue confefs his right of 
 dominion, to the glory of the Father ^ I fee not 
 but he muft fail of accomplifhing this end^ if 
 mankind imiverfally, fome time or other, in this 
 ilate, or a future one, are not in fa5i reduced 
 under a willing and frauiical fubjedion to his go- 
 vernment. 
 
 It will be of little avail to fay here, that the end 
 of Chrlil's exaltation will be anfwered, as, at the 
 great and general judgment, the faints fhall be 
 rewarded as his good and faithful fervants^ and 
 /inner s fent away to hell as \i\%fuhdued enemies^ For 
 the genuflexion and adoration^ here fpoken of, are 
 evidently voluntary a6ls of moral agents, brought 
 into an obedient fubje^lion to Chrill : Whereas the 
 damned in hell do not thus bow before him in 
 practical acknowledgments of his dominion, to 
 the glory of the Father. The only fubmiiTion in- 
 deed they are fuppofed to be -birought to, is a 
 forced one *, and confequently, they no otherv^'ife 
 bow down to Chrifi than as hardened and conder/ified 
 malefa^ors. And what a poor low kind of fubmif- 
 fion is this, in comparifon with that we are pltad^ 
 ing for ! It is not worthy of being irentioned- 
 A moft weighty confideration truly 1 and may 
 
 very 
 
I'he Proofs of Ufiiverfal Salvatio?t» 193 
 
 very well be looked upon as a good argument in 
 favour of the interpretation we have given of this 
 palTage : Efpecially, if it be remembered, that the 
 reward bellowed on Chrift for his humiliation in 
 our flefl-), was not /imply an exaltation to dominion, 
 but to dominion ififuing in the redu^ion of all under 
 fubje^ion to him. This reward therefore will be 
 great, or comparatively finally according to thcfenfe 
 in which we underftand this fubje^i on. If ail men^ 
 without limitation, are wrought upon, under his 
 mediatory reign, fo as to become the zvilUng and 
 obedient fubjeEls of God's moral kingdom, his 
 reward will be c-arried to the utmofl height of 
 glory : whereas, if multitudes, the greater part of 
 the human race (as the common thought is) will 
 finally continue rebels^ and, as fuch, be everlaft- 
 ingly bound in chains of darknefs, his reward 
 will be, comparatively, but low zx\Afmall, 
 
 'Tis readily acknowledged, the glory of Chrift's 
 power, as head of the government of God, will 
 be illuftrioufly difplayed, if by force only he 
 finally fubdues obftinate finners : But it mud, ac 
 the fame time, be faid, the glory will be fmall^ 
 very fmally in comparifon with what it would be, if 
 he fhould univerfally conquer their rebellion, by 
 fo working upon them as to difpofe and influence 
 them, with the freedom of moral agents^ eternally 
 to adore before him as the obedient fiibjeuls of God, 
 There is no room for difpute here. The reduc- 
 tion of one rebel-finner under a voluntary fuhje^i on 
 to the divine government, will refled more hcuour 
 
 O on 
 
194 5^*^^ Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 on Chrifti as feated at the head of God's kingdom, 
 and tend more to the glory of the Father^ than the 
 forcible conquefl of multitudes by fuperior power 
 only. And herein, it feems to me, lies the fupe- 
 riority^ as well as dijlinguijhing glory^ of Chrift's 
 dominion, that it will, under his wife, and righ- 
 teous, and gracious management, prove finally 
 effe^ual to the redu5fion of the whole human race^ 
 fo as to prepare them for a happy immortality. 
 And how glorioufly heightened, in this view of 
 the matter, is the reward of Chrift's humiliation 
 to death, the death of the crofs ! The whole 
 world of men, upon this fuppofition, will, with 
 the free and full confent of their wiils^ bow down 
 before him inchearful, thankful, humble adora- 
 tion of his wifdom, and power, and grace, dif- 
 played in the methods by which he has wrought 
 upon them, as moral agents^ reducing them under 
 a voluntary fubjedtion to God, and, in this way, 
 fitting them for final and everlafting happinefs : 
 Whereas, according to the common interpretation, 
 the greateli part of the human kind v^ill no other- 
 wife be ever prevailed upon to acknowledge him 
 as hord'i than as chained rnalefa^fors fubmit to the 
 fuperior power that confines them. There is cer- 
 tainly more honour done to Chriji^ upon the prefenP 
 fcheme than the co?nmon one •, and the reward of 
 his fufferings will turn out, beyond all ccmpari- 
 fon, a greater as well as a piore eminently worthy 
 gift^ from his infinitely benevolent God and Fa- 
 ther. And this voluntary genufiedion of the 
 
 whole 
 
Tthe Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 195 
 
 whole race of Adam before Chriil, as prime mini- 
 fler in God's kingdom, may alfo, upon this inter- 
 pretation, with a much greater emphafis, be faid 
 to be to the glory of the Father* Perhaps, the 
 thing hereby meant is, that it will be to his glory ^ 
 as it is that which will make way for the coming 
 on of that eminently glorious difpenfation^ when God^ 
 even the Father^ ihall be all in all. Compare 
 this ie>:t with what is faid upon the following ones 
 before I proceed to which, I would ju ft add. 
 
 That thele words of the apofble, we have been 
 confidering, if not a quotation from IHuahxlv. 23, 
 are, at lead, an allufion to it. The whole para- 
 graph, as it ftands in the prophecy is, '' Look 
 " unto me, and be ye faved, all the ends of the 
 " earth : For I am God, and there is none elfe. 
 " I have fworn by myfelf, the word is gone out 
 *' of my mouth in righteoufnefs, and fhall not 
 '' return, that unto me every knee fhall bow, and 
 *' every tongue (hall fwear. Surely, fhall one fay, 
 " in the Lord have I righteoufnefs and ftrength : 
 " Even to him fhall men come, and all that are 
 " incenfed againft him fhall be afhamed. In the 
 *' Lord fhall all the feed of Ifrael bejuftified, and 
 *' fhall glory." I fhall, without any formal rea- 
 foning, from this pafTage, leave it with every un- 
 biaffed reader to judge, whether, by all the ends of 
 the earthy by every knee^ and every tongue^ it is not 
 more obvious to underftand the whole world of 
 men, than a few of them only ? As alfo, whether, 
 by their bowing the biee^ it is not more natural to 
 
 O 2 underftand 
 
196 T^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation, 
 
 underftand a voluntary^ than a forced fubmifTion ; 
 a fubmiffion oi freedom and love^ rather than of 
 conjlraint ? And if fo, whether this prophecy can 
 be juilly faid to be accompliftied, according to the 
 full fenfe of the words in which it is delivered, but 
 in agreement with the dodrine we are proving : 
 Upon fuppofition of the truth of which, it may 
 have a mod glorioufly extenfive fulfilment. 
 
 I am not infcnfible, this prophecy of Ifaiah is 
 quoted by the apoftle Paul with an immediate re- 
 ference to the general judgment. For having faid, 
 Rom. xiv. 10. " We (hall all (land before the 
 ** judgment-feat of Chrift," he adds, in the words 
 that next follow, " For it is written," [tHat is, in 
 Ifa. xlv. 23] " As I live, faith the Lord, every knee 
 *' fhal'l bow to me, and every tongue fhall confefs 
 *' to God." But it can by no means be argued, 
 from this application of this prophecy, that it had 
 nothing in view beyond i\\t fuhmijjive acknowledg- 
 tnents that fhould, at the day of judgment, be paid 
 to Chrifi^ and herein to God ultimately, who con- 
 llituted him. judge of the world. This was doubt- 
 lefs one thing intended in the prophecy : For which 
 reafon it might pertinently be thus applied by the 
 apoftle. But then, his thus applying it is no argu- 
 ment, that it meant nothing more. An inftance 
 parallel to this, and a decillve illuftration of it, we 
 have in the fecond chapter of the A6ls, where 
 the apoftle Peter applies that prophecy in Joel, 
 chap. ii. 28, which foretells that God would 
 *' pour out his Spirit, in the laft days, upon all 
 
The Proofs ofXJnlvcrfal Salvation. 197 
 
 " flelli," to the out-pouring of the Spirit upon the 
 apofiks on the day of Pentecojt, This was, no 
 doubt, one thing intended to be pointed out by 
 this prophecy \ and for this realbn, it was juftly 
 applied in this cafe. But it is cerrain, it was not 
 all that was meant by the divine Spirit, Nay, the 
 greater f>art of expoHtors extend the meaning of 
 this prophecy beyond every thing that happened 
 in the apoftle's days •, making it to look forward 
 to a more glorious out-pouring of the Spirit in times 
 yet to come. And herein, I am well perfuaded, 
 they fall in with the real mind of God in laQ 
 delivery of this prophecy. In like manner, this 
 prophecy of Ifaiah, though it includes a bowing 
 hefore Chrift at iht: great day^ and is therefore juftly 
 applied by the apollle in that fenfe, may yet have 
 a further meaning, and look for<^ard to a far Kore 
 noble and glorious fiihje5liony fuch a fubjedtion of 
 mens "juills to the will of Jefus Chrift^ as (ball influ- 
 ence them univerfally to fall down before him in 
 voluntary y humble y and grateful acknowledgwentSy 
 that he " is Lord, to the glory of the Father.'* 
 
 The next portion of fcripture, in proof of the 
 proportion we are upon, I fhould efleem decifive 
 of itfelf, was there no other text in all the Bible 
 of the like import. It v.(as this indeed that firft 
 opened to. me the prefent fcheme, lerving as a 
 key to unlock the meaning of many paflages, in 
 the facred writings^, which before 1 could never 
 underftand. You will find it in the ill Epidle to 
 
 O 3 :hr 
 
198 The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation > 
 
 the Corinthians, xvth chapter, from the 24th to the 
 end of the 29th verfe. And, as I lay great ftrefs 
 upon this important pafTage, and think that it will 
 fet this whole matter in a clear and ftrong point 
 of light, I fhall, to prepare the way for the oh- 
 fervations I have to make upon it, prefent to the 
 reader's view the text itfelf, together wi^h a pa- 
 r^/>^r<i2y^, containing what I judge to be its true 
 fenfe. 
 
 Text. 
 
 24 Then comet h 
 the end, when hejhall 
 have delivered up the 
 kingdom to God, even 
 the Father-, when he 
 Jhall have put down 
 dl rule, and all au- 
 thority, and power ^ 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 
 After that [the refurreSlion 
 of ^^ faints at Q\in^% fecond 
 coming'] fhali be the end, when 
 Chrift fhall have delivered up 
 the mediatorial kingdom to 
 God, even the Father •, when 
 he Ihall have put down all 
 principality, and authority, 
 and power. Only, take care 
 you do not miftake my 
 meaning. I do not intend 
 to infinuate, as though the 
 end would come, that is, the 
 fcene of providence, with re- 
 fped to the fons of Adam, be 
 Ihut up, IMMEDIATELY after 
 the advent of Chrift to re- 
 ftore the faints to happy life. 
 For obferve, I have conned:- 
 ed the endy not only with 
 Chrift's 
 
^he T roofs of Univerfal Salvation. 199 
 
 Text. Paraphrase. 
 
 Chrift^s delivery of the king- 
 dom to the Father^ but with 
 his having alfo put down all 
 principality^ and authority^ and 
 power : And upon very good 
 
 25 For he muft reafon ; For he muft ftill 
 reign till he hath put reign, and go on reigning, 
 all ene?nies under his till he has totally fubdued 
 feet, all enemies, and fubjeded 
 
 them to his dominion, as 
 head of God's kingdom ; 
 which may require a long 
 time J God only knows how 
 long, for its accomplilhment. 
 And let it be particularly 
 
 26 ne laft enemy obferved, the laft enemy that 
 that fhall he defiroy- is to be deftroyed, and that 
 ed is death, muft and fliall be deftroyed, 
 
 is DEATH, I mean, the se- 
 cond DEATH ; that death 
 which wicked men mufl under- 
 go^ before they can be made 
 the willing fuhjeols of Jefus 
 Chriu, and fo fitted for an 
 happy immortality : Nor let 
 *. this feem any thing ftrange ; 
 
 27 For he hath put For God hath purpoied, that 
 all things under his all things fliall be sub- 
 feet. But when he jected to his Son Jefus 
 faith^ All things are Chrift, Only, when it is faid, 
 
 put O 4 ALL 
 
200 T'be Proofs of Univer/al Sahatioiu 
 
 Text. '' ' ^- Paraphrase. 
 
 put under him^ it is all things ihall be suB-^ 
 manifefty he is ex- jected to Chrift, it is ob- 
 cepted which did put vious to perceive, that that 
 all things under him. glorious Being is to be ex- 
 cepted, who fubjedled all 
 28 And when cU things to him. Atid when 
 things Jhall he fuh- all things fliall, in event, or 
 dued unto him, then fact, be reduced undery^^- 
 Jhall the Son alfo him- jeSlion to h i m , t h e n , an d n ot 
 felfbefubjetluntohim till then, however long a 
 that put all things fpace of time it may re- 
 under him^ that God quire for its accomplifhment : 
 may be all in alU then, I fay, (hall even the 
 Son himjelf be fubjed to him 
 who put all things under him, 
 that god may be all in 
 
 ALL, 
 
 If I have, in the above paraphrafe, exhibited the 
 Jen[e the apoille really intended to communicate 
 to his readers, there is no room left for difpute, 
 whether alt men jhall finally be faved. It remains 
 now to make it evident, that I have not, in any 
 elTential point, mifreprefented his meaning. 
 
 Only, before I come to this, it may not be im- 
 proper to clear the connection of the words, and 
 point out tht fpecial part they bear in the difcourfe 
 to which they are related. And here it may fufEce 
 to obferve, that the apodle having, in the former 
 pari of the chapter^ largely proved the certainty of 
 9 a refurreCfion 
 
I'he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 201 
 
 a refurre5iion from the dead^ from the certainty of this 
 fa5ly namely, that " Chrifl: has rifen from the dead," 
 whereby he became '' the tird-fruits of them that 
 " llepti" he goes on, in the 2 ift and22dyerfes, fum- 
 marily to lead our thoughts up to the uuq fources 
 both ofdea/bi and oHife after death -^ deriving x\i^ for- 
 mer from Adam^ the latter from Chrifl. His words are 
 thefe, " For fince by man came death, by man alib 
 " came the refurrection from the dead. For as in 
 " Adam all die, even fo in Chrift fliall all be made 
 " alive." It is, with me, beyond all controverfy 
 evident, that the apoflle is fpeaking here, not of a 
 partial y but tmiverfd refurreiSlion , not of the re- 
 furredlion of the righteous only, but of the ivhole 
 race of Adam* For he not only affirms, that death 
 came by Adam, and the refurretlion by Chrijl'., but 
 that the same all who fuffer death through Adam, 
 fliall through Chrift be made alive. The compa- 
 rifon between the damage by Adam^ and the advart" 
 tage by Chrift^ lies in this very thing. As by the 
 former came deaths fo by the latter comes ///>, and 
 to tht fame perfons. The particles (c(nri^ and o'jtco^ 
 as and fo^ which point out a comparifon in the 
 apoftle's words, and compleat it, necefficate this 
 fenfe. Only, it (hould be well regarded, the apoftle 
 does but briefly and fiimmarily fpeak here of the 
 damage by Adam^ and the advantage by Chrifl, 
 And had he no where elfe opened his mind more 
 fully 2ind ^particularly upon this matter, the utmoft 
 we could have argued, from his words, would have 
 been, '' that as all men die in Acjam, fo in Chrift 
 
 they 
 
1102 7he Proofs of Umverfal Salvation. 
 
 they iliould all be delivered from this death by a 
 refurredtion to life." But as he has largely, and 
 ex profejfo^ treated of this fame point in his Epiftlc 
 to the Romans, we may explain, we ought to ex- 
 plain, we fhould deal unfairly if we did not explain, 
 what he fays here^ by what he has delivered there. 
 And if we thus explain his words here, their 
 amount will be this, '' not merely that all men fliall 
 be delivered from the death they fuffer in confe- 
 quence of Adanis lapfe, but that they fhali be de- 
 livered from it, in confequence of the obedience of 
 Chriji, with abounding advantage, that is, fo as 
 to reign in life for ever'^ See the interpretation 
 we have given of Rom. v. 12, to the end. The 
 apoftle, having fettled this point, and, as I ima- 
 gine, in this fenfe, proceeds, in the following 
 23d verfe, to obferve, " But every man in his own 
 '' order •, Chrifl the firft-fruits, afterwards they that 
 *' are Chrift's, at his coming.'* The thought he 
 would fuggeft, perhaps, may be this, namely, 
 *' that God would obferve 2LJuft decorum-^ keep to 
 rule and order with refpedl to all men (58), in the 
 
 (58) Keep to rule and order ivith refpeSl to all men J\ This, it 
 may be, is the true meaning of the phrafe iv tu ihu rocyi^uli. 
 The word ra^/xa is no where elfe ufed in the New Teftament. 
 But the fubflantive t«|k, another noun from rua-a-co, of like 
 fignificatlon, we feveral times meet with; particularly in 
 I Cor. xiv. 46, where it is ufed in this fenfe : Let all things be 
 done [sv(7.xyiff'ivu'; if-on y.cclcx, rx^n/] deitntly and in order. Agreeably 
 to this fenfe, iv ra^ei, ^»a ra^eu^, are rendered, in Stephens's 
 juftly entitled Th/aurus Lingua Graca, compojjte, concinne, 
 decor Ci opportune ; as alfo, mn temere, fed confiituta cert a que 
 rat zone. 
 
 great 
 
T^he P7'Oofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 203 
 
 great affair of making them alive after deaths that is, 
 (o alive as to reign in happy life ; for (as has been 
 faid) this is the advantage by Chriji, that is oppofite 
 to the difadvantage by Adam^ of which he had been 
 fpeaking. Accordingly, that God might keep to 
 order ^ obferve 2l preper decorum^ it is faid Chriji is 
 the firft'fruits from the dead, that is, the firft that 
 was raifed from death to immortal happy life^ hav- 
 ing been previoufly prepared and qualified for it; 
 and not only fo, but his refurredtion was an earneft, 
 pledge^ or affurance to all men, that they alfo lliould 
 be raifed to a like immortalityy when it could be 
 done in confiftency with due order. Jfter Chrift^ 
 thofe that are his^ that is, believers in him, the 
 true followers of him, fuch as have lived to him, 
 and died in him, fhall he the next that are raifed^ 
 notfimply to life, but to immortal happy life^ as, by 
 being Chrift's^ they ?irt fitted for this life, and may 
 be raifed to it conformably to order : And this 
 their refurredlion fhall be effected at his comings 
 that is, his fecond coming, his coming at the end 
 of the world, or of this prefentftate of things. Or, 
 perhaps, the apoftle might intend to fugged, by 
 the phrafe, 'Ey.afrroq h iv Tw tJ'ico rayfxxTi^ that man- 
 kind will be hereafter railed, not Jmply to life, but 
 to happy life ; not all at once^ but fuccefjively ; not 
 all together y but in different ranks or companies. And 
 then his meaning, in this verfe, will be, '* Chrift 
 is the firft firuitSy thQ pledge or ear;:eft of a refurrec- 
 tion to immortal happy life with refpedl to all men ; 
 but every man fhall be raifed to this life 11^ his 
 
 OWN 
 
20-4 Tl^^ Proofs of JJnherfal Salvation^ 
 
 OWN RANK, IN THAT COMPANY, UNDER THAT 
 
 STANDARD^ to whlch he properly belorigs (59). 
 
 The 
 
 {5,9") In his 6<wn rankt in. that company ^ Cffr.] The wor«3 
 'sr&yit.a.^ though ufed no where in the New Teftament but in 
 ibis place, is yet feveral times ufed by the LXX, with 
 w'aom it feeras to be a military term, as it often is with 
 the befl: Greek writers [fee Stephens's Lexicon ypon this 
 fwsrd^ together with Ta|K, and rajro-w^ from whence they are 
 both derived]. The LXX have ufed it once [2 Sam. 
 sxiii. 13] for the Hebrew word \W\ cater^a^ a troop. In the 
 ether pbces, which are all in i\{Q/econd ?^ndi tenth chapters oS 
 IMambers, it is the tianllation of *5Jl*?-> which Euxsorf renders 
 'vexillumj and our tranflators a Jiandard<. The verb 7^% 
 Vkhich occurs ia Canticles, Bux,torf tranflates by 'ue.xillum 
 ^rigsre, our tranflators have the word banner^ and the LXX' 
 T:a.G-cu ; which verb, when applied to military affairs, (as it 
 very frequently is) iignifles to dranv np troops in order of battle, 
 CJ to range them under their proper ft andards, or hannsrs. The 
 paflage before us may then, in ftri£l propriety, be rendered, 
 injery man in his omm ranky or, in his civn company-, or, under hss 
 mjun ftandardy or banner. The expreflion naturally leads one 
 to think, that the whole body of mankind will he fuccejively 
 jaifcd to happy life in different rctyy-cilas, according as they 
 become qualified for it by being Chrift's, by being formed 
 by him to a mettnefs for a blejjid immortality ; for the fr^ 
 tayij.a, is to confift cf thofe that are Chrift^s at his coming, that is, 
 thofe who have been prepared by him, under the prefent ad- 
 jniniftration of his kingdom, for a reign in life when he Ihall 
 appear iht fecond time. Perhaps the apollle John, in his book 
 of Revelation, might mean the fame thing with ivhat the 
 9poftle Faul would here fuggeft, when he fpeaks, chap. xx. 5, 
 ef the FIRST RESURRECTION, that IS, of the refurredHoQ 
 of the FIRST COMPANY of the fons of Adam to a glorious 
 IM^70RTALITY. Accordingly, this feems to be the explication 
 of its meaning in the following verfe ; for the partners in this 
 
 rcfurredioQ 
 
^he Proofs ofVniverfal Salvation, 20^ 
 
 The FIRST COMPANY that fhall be railed to this 
 happy life are the faints^ at Chrift's fecond comng. — 
 And here, you obferve, the apoltle comes to a 
 
 pau[e- — 
 
 refurrei^ion are there pronoanced kJefed*, And why? Not 
 bccaufe their deliverance from death, fimply in iticif, pre- 
 ceded that of otheri in point of time , but becanfe the /ecoad 
 death Jhould huDe no pozuer ouer them^ as it would have over the 
 wicked ; and becaufe they fhould be kings atJ priejis, and 
 reign ijcith Chriji a thovfand years : Which thoufand years are 
 mentioned, not becaufe they ihould no longer live and reiga 
 with Chrift [for they are faid» in the twenty-fecond chapter, 
 5th \t\{Qy to live and reign v/ith him a? "rovj af^yyaj twv oh-^vutv^ 
 for ages of ages'] ; but becaufe, during this period, no attempt 
 fhoald be made from any quarter to diilurb their peace and 
 happinefs ; as alfo becaufe the rejl of the dead, the wicked 
 dead, though rafed to life before the expiration of this period^ 
 could not, till it had run out, be fo raifed to it as to live 
 without dying again, or to reign ^'ith Chriji as kings and pr lefts* 
 The one only thing, as it appears to me, that can give force 
 and emphafis to the epithet first, here applied to the refur^ 
 reciiony is, its being the firft general lyfurredion of meuy not 
 fimply to life, but to live happily iu a glorious reign ifjith Chrift ; 
 and the apollle John calls it the fir ft refirreclion, becaufe it is 
 thi firft of this fort; obvioufly infmuating, that it would, in 
 God's way, and time, be fucceeded with others of the fame kind, 
 it is true, he has faid nothing in particular concerning any 
 following refurreSlion of this kind; but, by fpeaking o^Sifrft, 
 he has in the general, after the manner of the apollle Paul, 
 in this place, given us reafon to hope for ftill others y the mau- 
 ner, time, and circumftances of which, though hid from our 
 knowledge at prefent, may, in after difpenfations, \iQ revealed, 
 as ftiall bed anfwer the purpofes of divine grac?. -I have but 
 mentioned this interpretation of the apolile John's first 
 HfisURRECTiON, becaufe it would carry me too great a lengtlj 
 
 • S;s tie Afftrdix, 
 
 t9 
 
2o6 The Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 paufe. — Inftead of particularly going on to fpeak 
 of the wicked's being raifed^ fo as that their refurrec- 
 tlon fhoiild be an advantage abounding beyond 
 
 to ofFer what I have in readinefs for its fupport. So far as I 
 am able to judge, the three laji chapters of the Apocalyp/e can- 
 not be fet in an intelligible confiftent light, but in conformity 
 to this fenfe oi the/e njoords ', and thus explained, they exhibit 
 a noble, and yet perfeftly confiftent meaning. 
 I ftiall only add, the expofition we have given of the 23CI 
 4i>^^ verfe of this fifteenth chapter of the fe^d-Epiftle to the Co- 
 rinthians, is truly fignificant and grand; which cannot, as I 
 conceive, bejuftly faid of the other interpretations that are 
 given of it. To explain the words, as moft do, of 7nere order 
 of time', as though the apoftle had nothing more in view than 
 this, namely, that Chrift, in point of time > was raifed/r/?; 
 and next to him, in point of time, the righteous fhall be raifed ; 
 and then the ^vicked: I fay, to give this as the apcftle's mean- 
 ing, is to make him, while fpeaking upon the moft intereft- 
 ing fubjecl, to deliver that which is of very little importance 
 for any to know* E^ery man in his ovjn order — 'are words that 
 ought to be looked upon as carrying in them fome v try Jtgni* 
 fcantfenfe-, which they do not, in the common way of ex- 
 plaining them : Whereas, in x.\\eje?7/evic have put upon them, 
 thev are njajily momentous. For they are made to fuggeft, that 
 the raifing men, not Jtmply to life, but to life that is glorioijly 
 immortal, is not a thing that will be done at randorn, but con- 
 formably to RULE and order. E'very man ftiall be thus mads 
 alinje by Chrif.\ for this is the advantage by him that is op- 
 pofite to the difad-vantage by Adam: But it Ihall be done in 
 DUE ORDER, confiftently with //, meet, ivi/e, proper condudj 
 that is, in one word, when they are previoufly prepared and 
 qualifed for this mercy of God in Jefus Chrift. Or, Ihould the 
 other fenfe we have given (which indeed virtually is the fame) 
 be preferred, it would exhibit the like important meaning ; 
 as it leads ijis to think, that mankind uninjerfally fhall be raifed 
 to immortal happy life, though fucceffi^oely, and in different 
 TuyiJi,ct,Tcc, or companies, as they become// tor it. 
 
 the 
 
T!he T roofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 207 
 
 the difadvantcige they had fufFered through Adam^ 
 he interpofes, by way oi parentheftSy the 24th, 25th, 
 26th, 27th, and 28th verfesi then refuming the 
 fubjed: of the refurre^ion^ but confining his dif- 
 courfe about it to the righteous^ without faying any 
 thing of the wicked. And thus the pajfage we are 
 upon is introduced. It is this flop in the run of 
 the apoftle's argument ; in which he has taken 
 care to fuggeft feveral very important truths^ proper 
 to be thoroughly weighed, in their juft confe- 
 quences, before we confider the mediatory fcheme as 
 ihut up, or the wicked in circumftances to be made 
 alive by Chrijl, conformably to order, in the mer- 
 cifully ABOUNDING fenfe, in which ail that die in 
 Adam (hall, in the final refult of things, be tnadc 
 dive by Ckriji, 
 
 If w^e critically compare the 23d verfe with the 
 29th and following verfes to the end of the chap- 
 ter, and conned them together fo as to make out a 
 coherent meaning, we fhall eafily perceive, that the 
 paragraph under confideration is a break in the 
 thread of the apoftle's difcourfe, not happening 
 through carelefifnefs, inattention, or confufion of 
 thoughr, but made upon exprefs defign. This pa- 
 renthcfis^ comprehended within the 24th and 29th 
 verfes, was purpoicly interpofed to bring us to a 
 paufe in our thoughts, and give us opportunity 
 and occafion to reflcdl upon, and duly confider, 
 the great truths that are here revealed ; purfijing 
 them in ihtirjuft tendency^ necejfary comie6lion^ and 
 final refidt : In the doing of which, we fhould our- 
 
 5 felves 
 
20 8 T!he T roofs of Unherfal Salvation. 
 
 felves virtually continue the difcourfe, and finifli it 
 with refpedt to the wicked-, as the apoflle had done, 
 in the general^ with refped to the righteous^ This, 
 as I imagine, wil], upon the clofeft examination, 
 be found to be the part the pajfage before us bears 
 in the apofllc's argument: Having obferved which> 
 I now go on, as was propofed, to illuftrate and 
 confirm the fenfe we have given to it. And here 
 the following particulars fliould be heedfully at- 
 tended to. 
 
 I. Though the apoftle, in this paragraph, turns 
 our view to the end of the mediatory fchemSy the 
 time when Chrift Jhall have delivered up the king- 
 dom to the Father^ yet he has very evidently taken 
 care to do it in fuch a manner as to guard againil 
 the error^ which expofitors, and Chrlftian writers, 
 have flrangely run into, namely, that this fcheme 
 will htfinijhed^ come to its intended period, upon 
 the fecond advent of Chrift, by his then finally and 
 unalterably fixing the ftates of men, whether good 
 or bad: I fay, the apoftle, as though he had it in 
 exprefs view, has taken all reafonablc care to guard 
 againft this moft evident 7nifconftru5fion of his mean- 
 ing, by giving us very clearly and fully to under- 
 fland, that there is a great deal to be done^ after the 
 fecond coming of Chrift, for the doing of which a 
 long period of time was abfolutely requifite, before 
 the plan of God would be compleated, and the 
 whole accompliftied which he had entrufted his 
 Son with the mediatory kingdom^ in order to bring 
 into effe^. For, 
 
 IL It 
 
ne Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 209 
 
 IL It is moft peremptorily affirmed, that an 
 Umverfal fuhje^ion to Chrift (hould yet be ef- 
 fected ; and the affirmation is expreficd in a va- 
 riety of as (Irong and extenfive terms as could 
 well have been nled : As, by " putting down all 
 *' rule, and all authority and power j** by " putting 
 " all enemies under his feet j" by " puttingall things 
 " under his feetj" by "all things being fubdued to 
 " him." All enemies then, yea, all things, muft be 
 fubjeded to Chrift, before he delivers up the king- 
 dom to the Father. The meaning of /to />^r/ of this 
 fcripture is the fame with the two foregoing texts 
 we have already confidered 5 to which therefore 
 I refer the reader, to prevent repetition, 
 
 111. It is worthy of fpccial notice, that, before 
 ChrilVs delivery of the mediatorial kingdom to 
 the Father, and the final fhutting up the falutary 
 defign of his being entrufted with it, the lafl enemy 
 wuft he dejlroyedi which is death \ the second 
 DEATH, that death which thofe who die wicked 
 men muft fuffer^ before they cnn be reduced 
 under fulje^lion to Jefus Chrift, as head of God's 
 kingdom, and fitted for an happy immortality* So 
 I have paraphrafed the apoftle's words, and, I 
 think, for 'weighty reafons. They are thofe that 
 follow. 
 
 I. It is evident, from the whole tenor of the 
 New Teftament, that thofe v/ho are not Chrift'Sy 
 that is, the reft of mankind, the wicked and im- 
 penitent, thofe who have habitually indulged to 
 fin while they lived, and then died in a ftnful 
 
 P ftate J 
 
2 1 o T!he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 ftate : I fay, 'tis evident, with refpeft to thefe,, that 
 they muft fuffer a second death. Hence the 
 wages ofjin^ after the firft death has been fuffered, 
 is faid, by the apoftle Paul, to be death. And 
 the apoftle John, fpeaking of the wicked^ after 
 their refurredlion from the death they fuffered in 
 Adam, declares, that they fhall be *' cad into the 
 *' lake of fire," which, fays he, " is the second 
 ** DEATH." And the " refurredion to damnation," 
 the " going away intoeverlaftingpunifhment," the 
 *' being caft into the furnace of fire, where there 
 -^' fhall be wailing and gnafhing of teeth," mean 
 the fame thing, in the facred dialedl, with the fe- 
 cend death, 
 
 . . 2. This fecond death may, with as much pro- 
 priety, be called an enem)\ as the firft death. 
 Would the firfl deaths if not deftroyed, be an 
 enemy to men's admifTion to a glorious immortality^ 
 an enemy fo as abfolutely to prevent it? The 
 Jame may be faid of the feccnd death, and with 
 more emphatical truth. And let any fenfe be af- 
 figned, in which the frji death can properly be 
 fpoken of as an enemy ; and it will at once be 
 eafy to make it appear, that the fecond death is, 
 in the fame fenfe, as truly an enemy, and much 
 more fo. It is this indeed, if not deftroyed, that 
 -will prove the hitterefi enemy to the happinefs of 
 mankind ; and fuch an one as will be a vifible 
 .ft"anding demonftration, that they are not as yet 
 reduced under fuhje^iion to Jefus Chrift, as the 
 faithful and obedient fervants of his kingdom. 
 .^. This fecond death, ftfi(^ly and properly fpeak- 
 
l^be Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 211 
 
 ing, is THE LAST ENEMY, and the only one that 
 is fo. For it is an enemy that has no exiftence //// 
 after xh^Jirft death is fo far deftroyed, as that thofe 
 who are under its power are again reflored to life* 
 For it is after the wicked have been raifed from 
 the dead, that they are ccift into that lake of firey 
 which the fcripture calls the fecond death. As 
 therefore the fecond deaths or that which wicked 
 men will fuffer in confequence of their ozvn Jins, is 
 a LATER ENEMY than the frfi deaths or that death 
 they fuffer in confequence of Adam's lapfe^ \t 
 fhould feem reafonable, as it is obvious, when the 
 apoftle fays, " the lad enemy, which is death, fhall 
 *' be deftroyed," to underftand him to mean by 
 deaths xht fecond death : For this may, with the 
 ftridleft accuracy, be called the last enemy > 
 v/hereas the firji death cannot be fo called, either 
 with propriety or truths the fecond death being 
 fofterior to it, and indeed having no exiftence till 
 that has been fo far deftroyed as to allow of a 
 reftoration to life. For thefe reafons, which ap- 
 pear to me unanfwerably ftrong, I take this to 
 be the meaning of the death here fpoken of. 
 
 But fhould we keep to the common interpreta- 
 tion, and underftand by this death, xht firft deaths 
 or the death that mankind fuffcr in confequence 
 of Adam^s lapfe^ its definition by Chrift, under- 
 flood as it ought to be, will, in reality of fenfe, 
 amount to precilely the fame thing with what we 
 have been pleading for. For ftmple refloration to 
 life is not the thing the fcripture means by death 
 
 P 2 drfrcjcd* 
 
 I 
 
2 1 2 l!he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 
 
 deftroyed. To be fure, the apoftle Paul had quite 
 another notion of it. And of this we have all the 
 evidence we can defire, in the latter part of this 
 very chaptevy where he is treating, ex profejfo^ of 
 death vanquijhed-, conquered^ deftroyed. For what is 
 the idea he leads us to entertain of it ? Plainly, 
 not a ha-re return to life, but fuch an one as is con- 
 ne6i:ed with a glorious immortality. His difcourfe 
 upon this head is therefore thus : — " It is fown in 
 *' corruption-, it is raifed in incorruption: it is fown 
 *' in difhonour \ it is raifed in glory : it is fown in 
 *' weaknefs ; it is raifed in power : it is fown a 
 " natural body; it is raifed a fpirituai body." 
 And a little after come in thofe remarkable words, 
 *' So when this corruptible fnall have put on in- 
 ** corruption, and this mortal Ihall have put on 
 " immortality, then fhall be brought to pafs the 
 "faying that is written, death is swallowed 
 ** UP IN victory.'* And he clofes all by putting 
 that fong of triumph into the mouths of thofe, 
 who have obtained this conquest over death and 
 the grave, " Oh death, where is thy fling ? Oh 
 *' grave^ where is thy victory ? The fting of death 
 " is fin, and the ftrength of fin is the law; but 
 *' thanks be to God, which giveth us the viiflory, 
 *' through our Lord Jefus Chrift." 
 
 It is eafy to obferve, and no attentive intelli- 
 gent reader can well fail of making the obferva- 
 tion, that the apoftle's notion of death fw allowed 
 up in viElcry^ or, in other words, of death con- 
 fidered as a conquered^ deftroyed enemy^ is this, and 
 
 only 
 
'the Proofs of IJnherfal Salvatmt* 2 1 3 
 
 only this — his being fo defpoiled of his power, as 
 that thofe, who were under it, are not /imply raifed 
 to life^ but to fuch a life as ihall give jiifl occafion 
 for holy triumph in Jefus Chrift on account of 
 this viftory j which cannot be, unlefs they are 
 raifed to an imniortality that will be for their ^^• 
 vantage. So that that if death is deftroyed^ with 
 refped to wicked men ; and deftroyed it muft be, 
 with refpedt to ':hem all, before Chrifl's delivery 
 of thr kingdom to the Father: I fay, if deaths the 
 laft enemy^ is deftroyed^ the whole human race muft 
 not only be raifed from the dead, but fo raifed 
 therefrom as to reign in life^ fooner or later, as the 
 reduced fubje(r^s of Jefus Chrift. This is certainly 
 the apoltle's notion of death dejlroyed^ f wall owed up 
 in vi^ory^ in this chapter. 
 
 And it is remarkable, the idea he here gives of 
 death deftroyed perfectly coincides with that abound- 
 ing of the grace and gift through Chrift to all men^ of 
 which he fpeaks in the 5th chapter of his epiftle 
 to the Romans •, which, over and above reverfing 
 the fentence of death, will finally inftate them all 
 in eternal life. For, as he there argues, [and his 
 argument refers to mankind univerfally, as I have, 
 I truft, fufficiently proved already] " If by the 
 " offence of one, death reigned by one ; much 
 " MORE they who receive the abounding of grace, 
 " and of the gift of righteoufnefs, fliall reign m 
 " LIFE by one, Jefus Chrift." And again, '* That 
 JJ,,as fin hath reigned unto death 5 even fo might 
 
 P 3 I' grace 
 
fl»l4 T'^^^ T roofs ofUniverfal Salvation^ 
 
 *' grace reign through righteoufnefs nnto eter« 
 *' NAL LIFE, by Jefus Chrifl our Lord." 
 
 IV. It is with a great deal of clearnefs and par- 
 ticularity afferted, in this fcripture, that Chrijl fiall 
 not give u'p his truft^ as head of the medialorial king- 
 dom^ till he has, in event and fact, fuhdued all 
 enemies. For it is declared in fo many words, " he 
 ** mufl reign till he hath put all enemies under 
 *^ his feet." And again, " when all things fhall 
 " be fubdued, then," and not till then, " fhall 
 ^' the Son alfo himfelf be fubjedl to him that put 
 ** all things under him." We were taught to 
 argue, in the before-explained, Heb. ii. 8, 9, thac 
 all things would be fuhje^ed to Chrijl^ fince he was 
 crowned with glory and ho?iour. We are here ex-, 
 plicitly given to underftand wherein the true force 
 of that argument confifts, It lies in this, that 
 Chrifl:, having been exalted to regal dignity and 
 power^ fhall continue vejled with it, and never lay it 
 qfide^ till he has, in fact, brought all things, 
 ALL enemies, into/2^^>^/^» to him- The apoftle 
 has left no room for debate upon this matter. 
 Jt is certain, if we may rely on his authority, 
 that Chrifl: will continue head of the kingdom of 
 God, and .exprcife his wifdom, and power, and 
 grace, in this capacity, till he has actually sub- 
 dued ALL ENEMIES. Upon which I would afk, 
 Js SIN an enemy {60) ? If it is, then it fhall be 
 
 defiroyed : 
 
 (60) It would be ftrange if any fhould queftion, whether 
 SIN inay be called an (nemj/, or cne oftboft enemies which are 
 
 to 
 
^be Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 215 
 
 dejiroyed : Nor will Chrift deliver up his mediatory 
 kingdom, till he has, in event and fact, dejiroyed 
 it. Now, SIN can be destroyed in no pofiible 
 way but by reducing Tinners under moral juhjeQioii 
 to the government of God. See Heb. ii. 8, 9, 
 under which text this matter is argued. . i;, would 
 afk again. Is death, the second death,., an 
 enemy (61) F Then this enemy alio fhall be de^ 
 Jlroyed', for Chrift muft deftroy all enemies, and 
 confequently this : Nor can he, upon the plan of 
 Gcd, deliver- up the kingdom, till he has done 
 this. Now the fecond death can be dejiroyed. in 
 
 to be dejiroyed. For it is exprefsly fpcken of [Roiri. viii. 7. 
 and James iv. 4.] as enmity to God, and that which \% not Jub^ 
 je^tothelaixjofGod* And it was indeed sin that at firfl 
 broke the peace between God and man ; and it has ever fince 
 oppo/ed the government of God, ai*d is the grand hindrance to 
 that moral Jubjed Ion to the divine authority, which all reafon- 
 able creatures ought to be under to it. And it was prikcx- 
 PALLY with a view to destp.oy this'ENEmy in particu- 
 lar, that Chrift came into the world ; and it was to this end 
 pRiNCiP.^LLY alfo, that he was exalted to the right hand of 
 God's power in heaven. Sin therefore is emphatically one of 
 
 THOSE THINGS, Of ENEMIES, thatmuil hs fubdued^ brOHcrht 
 
 tnder fuhje5iiont before Chrifl's ^i-Zyx'^r)/ of the kingdom to ths 
 Father. . - • . 
 
 (61) Let not any fay, that the second- D£ATH-is no^ an 
 enemy. For it may with as much propriety be fo called as th$ 
 fir Jl death : Nor can ihcfirji death be faid to he an enemy xa 
 any aflignable fenfe, ' but the fame may be faid ofthe/etond 
 d^ath in the fame feiij'e. Mod certainly it is a t hi Kg capable, 
 in its own nature, oi hei^^ Jubdued : And if all things 
 abfolutely, God only excepted, ihali hejubduedto Chriji, thii 
 ilfo mud hejubdued, 
 
 P 4 m 
 
^ 1 6 T^he F roofs of Vjiiverfal Salvation^ 
 
 no way whatfoever, but by pitting an end to its 
 power over thofe who are the fubjedls of ir. The 
 arguing here appears to me ftridliy and ablbiutely 
 eonclufive. nc^nvry 
 
 There are two texts parallel to this, which I 
 jnay properly mention here, as they tend to 
 ilrengthen what I have been jufl faying. The 
 firjl is Heb. x. 12, 13. " But this man, after he 
 *' had. offered one facrilice for him, for ever fat 
 ^' dow^n at the right hand of God, from hence^ 
 " forth expeding till his enemies be made his 
 " footftool.'* T\\Q ferfe^ and entire redu6lion of 
 all enemies is what Chrifl is here reprefented as 
 looking^ OY waiting for ^ as the effeoi of his exaltation^ 
 in reward of his /offerings and death. And furely, 
 he ought to be fuppofed to expe^ this, upon good 
 grounds 'y fuch as would not, in the end, difappoint 
 
 and make him ajhamed. The other text is Pfalm 
 
 ex. I. " The liOrd faid unto my Lord, Sit thou 
 *' at my right hand, until I make thine enemies 
 ^' thy footftool." It is remarkable, this pafTage 
 is no lefs than five times applied to Chrift, by the 
 writers of the New Teftament •, as in Matt.xxii. 44, 
 Mark xii, 36. Lukexx. 42. A6ts ii. 34. Heb. i. 13, 
 And th^ plain meaning of it is, that Chriil was 
 feated at God's right hand in heaven, to continue 
 there as Head and Lord of the mediatorial king- 
 dom, till all enemies iho\|ld be perft^ly and ah/a- 
 lutely fuhjeBed to hini •, which means the fame 
 thing with what is declared in the palTage we are 
 upon) namelyj that he ihall go on reigning^ and 
 
 not 
 
T^he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 2 1 7 
 
 net give up the kingdom^ till he has fuhdued all 
 enemies. 
 
 V. In the lad place, it readily falls in with the 
 obfervation of every attentive reader of this para- 
 graph, that the reign of Chrift^ in his mediatory 
 kingdom, is to make way for God's being all 
 IN ALL 3 and will accordingly laft^ till he has r/- 
 pened and prepared things for the commencement of 
 this glorious period* As the viediatory kingdom was 
 put into the hands of Chriji for the reduoiion oi' all 
 enemiesy he will be all in all till he has accomplifh- 
 ed this end ; that is, the adminiilration of govern- 
 ment, till this time, will be wholly in his hands. 
 He will be head over all ; he will govern all ; 
 he will be all unto all. But when he has dif- 
 charged his mediatorial trujl, by having reduced 
 all enemies under fubje6lion to the divine govern- 
 ment, THEN will he deliver up the kingdom to 
 God, even the Father, when god shall be all 
 IN ALL, that is, fhall govern all, influence all, 
 make communications to all, immediately, and 
 
 NOT THROUGH THE HANDS OF A MEDIATOR. 
 
 New, and as long as the mediatory kingdom lafts, 
 nothing is done but through the intervention 
 OF CHRIST 5 but then, all things (hall be di- 
 rectly governed by god himself. All duty 
 will be IMMEDIATELY tendered to him, and 
 all favours and rewards immediately commu- 
 nicated from him. 
 
 It is eafy to diftinguifh between thefe two periods, 
 THAT wherein the mediatory kingdom is in the 
 
 hands 
 
2 1 8 I'he Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation, 
 
 hands of Jefus Chrift; and that which will after- 
 wards commence, when God, as King, will be 
 IMMEDIATELY ALL IN ALL. Thcfe are Certainly 
 periods quite dijUnEl from each other. The jufl 
 difference between them has not, I believe, been 
 fufficiently attended to : Whereas, if it had been 
 clearly ftated, it might have ferved as a key to 
 open the true fenfe of a great many texts of fcrip-. 
 ture, I mean, thofe in particular v/hich relate to? 
 t\it future exijlence of the race of Adam. 
 
 I (hall endeavour, as briefly as I can with per- 
 fpicuity, to point out the difference between thefe 
 periodsy or difpenfations. 
 
 As to the fir ft y the reign of Chrift in his mediato- 
 rial kingdom \ — this takes in the whole fpace of 
 time, from his exaltation to this dignity and truft, 
 till all enemies, all rebel- men , the whole human kindy 
 fliall be recovered from their apoftacy, and re- 
 duced under due fuhjeEiion to God. And whatever 
 is done, within this fpace, whether to good men, 
 or wicked men ; in a way of reward, or punifhment\ 
 in the prefent ftate, or the future one, it is all to be 
 confidered as the refult of Chrift's admimftration in 
 the kingdom of grace, and in order to prepare the 
 way for the coming on of the other grand period, 
 the time when god shall be all in all. 
 
 ^his fpace of time, the time, I mean, oi Chrifi'^s 
 reign in his mediatorial kingdom, may be divided 
 into two general periods. The one takes in this 
 prefent ftate of cxiikcncG ; as to which we are all 
 ready enough to acknowledge, that Chrift reigns 
 
 at 
 
T!he Proofs of Unmerfal Salvation. 2 1 9 
 
 at the head of God'^s kingdom of grace, and that 
 ofie effc5l thereof will be the reduction of a number 
 of the fons of Adam under fuch obedience to God, 
 as that they will be fitted for a glorious immortality 
 m the next ftate. The other period of Chrift's reign 
 is THAT which intervenes between the general refurrec- 
 tion and judgment, and the time when God Jhall be all 
 in all. There is, as I imagine, a jufl foundation to 
 fpeak o^ fuch a period as this ; and it is, if I miftake 
 not^ a period of very great importance : Upon which 
 therefore I fhall be a little particular in explaining 
 myfelf. 
 
 It has been commonly fuppofed, that, at the 
 fecond coming of Chrift, and the general refur- 
 redtion and judgment, the fmnts Ihall be received 
 to heaven, and the wicked fent to hell ; and that 
 now the fcene of Providence will be clofed, the 
 final fates of men being abfolutely fixed : Where- 
 as, it is very evident, from this paragraph of 
 facred writ, that a fecond period of the reign of 
 Chrift will commence at the general refurre^ion^ 
 when, as head of the kingdom of God, he will 
 open a new difpenfation, with refpedl to both the 
 righteous and the wicked. 
 
 As to the righteous, whom he has already, or in 
 the fir ft period of his mediatory reign, reduced 
 undtv fuhjecUon to the moral government of God, 
 he will, at Wis fecond coming, beftow upon them the 
 reward of good and faithful fervants : Not giving 
 lip the kingdom to the Father, upon having done 
 this,- as is commonly fuppofed j but flill reigning 
 
 at 
 
6i6 ^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 at its head, under a new and more glorious admi- 
 niftration, and going on to do fo, not for ever, 
 but till the time is come when god shall b^ 
 ALL IN ALL ! Upon which will commence a flill 
 neWy and ftill more glorious difpenfation. 
 
 And as to the wicked^ who would not be per- 
 ifuaded, by any' of the methods that were ufed 
 with them, in this prefent Jtate, to fubmit to the 
 divine government, they^ while the righteous are 
 feigning in life and glory ^ fhall be fent, by the Lord 
 Jefus Chrifl, in execution of his mediatory truft, 
 to the place of weepings and wailing^ and gnajhing 
 of teeth \ not to continue there always^ but till the 
 rebellion of their hearts is fubdued, and they are 
 ivrought upon to become the willing and obedient 
 fiihje5fs of God. For 'tis plain, from this text, 
 that Chrifl, after the refurredion of the faints, at 
 his fecond coming, and their being crowned with 
 immortality and life, will ilill continue at the head 
 of the kingdom of God, yea, and go on exercifing* 
 his wifdom, and power, and grace, in his kingly 
 office, till he has conquered all enemies absolutely 
 and WITHOUT exception. PofTibly, it may be a 
 longferies of time before they will all be willing to 
 fubmit, fo as that they may ht prepared ^or mercy: 
 But yet, they will «//, fooner or later, and fome 
 of them, probably, much fooner than others, be 
 brought to fubmit with freedom and pleafure 
 
 too. 
 
 The idea, in Ihort, I would convey of the mat- 
 ter is this i — that the ftate, between the general 
 
 refurre^ion^ 
 
^ "The Proofs of Wiiverfal Salvation. 221 
 
 refuneElion^ and God's being all in all, may contain 
 a. duration oi long continuance, fo long as to anfwer 
 to that fcripture phrafe, si? rou,- a.\ijiya.q twv aicovwi/, 
 for ever and ever, or, as it might more properly 
 be rendered, for ages of ages ; and that, during 
 the whole of this ftate, the righteous fhall be happy^ 
 under the government of Chrift, and the wicked 
 7niferable [at leafl fuch of them as are mod obdu- 
 rate. See what is afterwards faid upon this phrafe 
 in the Revelation, for ever and ever] : Not with a 
 view to their continuing fo finally, and eternally ; 
 but as a mean, under the condudl and influence 
 of Chrift, ftill at the head of God's kingdom of 
 grace^ to deftroy the enmity of their hearts, and 
 make them his willirtg and obedient people : Which, 
 when accomplifhed, the grand period fhall come 
 on, when God ihall be himfelf immediately 
 
 ALL IN ALL. 
 
 And the difference between this period, and that 
 we have been defcribing, feems to me to lie in 
 thefe things : — The one has Chrift reigning at its 
 head -, which reign will be for a time onlyy though 
 it may be a long time : During which time a 
 part only of mankind, having been prevloufly pre- 
 pared for it, (hall be inflated in the pofTcfTjon of 
 immortality and happinefs ; while the reft ftiall 
 have their portion in the place of blacknefs of 
 darknefs, as a fuitable and necelTary difcipline^ 
 under the government of Chrift, in order to their 
 being reduced under moral fubjeolion to him; 
 Which being accomplinie,J, this period will now 
 r have 
 
222 T^he Proofs of IJnherfal Salvation* 
 
 have an end^ and the other be ufhered in, the 
 dijlin5iive chara^leriftic of which is, that god will 
 BE ALL IN ALL ; that is to fay, the adminiftration 
 will be now in his hands, not in the hands ofjefus 
 Chrijly for he alfo will be ftihje£i to the Father. 
 And mankind univerfally, having been cured of their 
 enmity, and formed to a readinefs to be \n fuhjec- 
 tion to God, fhall be the objeds of his merciful 
 care. He will nov.' be a God to them all, and 
 IN ALL THINGS, IMMEDIATELY conceming him- 
 felf for their welfare, fo as that they fhall be happy 
 beyond conception, and without end, 
 
 I would here remark, upon what has been above 
 offered, that the reward promifed, under the admi- 
 niftration of Chrift's kingdom, in this prefent ft ate, 
 in order to perfuade men to become his good and 
 faithful fubjeds, is not the final happinefs God in- 
 tends to heftow upon them, but the happinefs of 
 THAT STATE which intervenes between the refur- 
 region and God's being all in alL And the Icrip- 
 ture account of this reward furprifingly agrees 
 with this fentiment. It is frequently ipoken of 
 under the notion of happy enjoyment in the 
 KINGDOM OF CHRIST ; which dircdlly points our 
 thoughts to z period, difpenfation, or ceconovAy, that 
 has Chrijt for its Head and Lord. And, in truth, 
 that kingdom, in which Chrift is faid to reign for 
 ever, muft have a comparatively low fenfe put 
 upon it, if it continues no longer than the end Oii 
 this prefent world : Whereas, it will have a very 
 fignificant meaning, if Chrift is to reign king of the 
 
 faints^ 
 
^be Proofs ofU?iiverfcil Salvation. 223 
 
 faints^ in that glorious ftate that will be eredled at 
 his fecond coming. — This reward alfo is defcribed 
 by the faints7?///>^ down with Chrift in his throne^ 
 as he is fet down with the Father in his throne ^ and 
 by their living and reigning with him : Both which 
 reprefentations obvioufly fuppofe, that He is yet 
 at the head of his mediatorial kingdom ; the time 
 not being come, when God even the Father is 
 immediate Lord and Sovereign. And it is obfervable, 
 the promife of this reward is expreflfed. Rev.* 
 V. 10, by their reigning on earth ^ which, by the 
 way, is a plain intimation, that it will be bellowed 
 on them in the new heavens^ and the new earthy 
 which will fucceed the dijfolution of the prefentform 
 of this lower world by fire. Here the faints, in 
 their refurre5fion-ftate^ (hall live under the reign of 
 Chrift^ who will be all in all to them^ till the period 
 commences, when the adminiftration fliall change 
 hands, and God be himfelf immediate king and 
 fovereign* — But I have room only to fuggeil this 
 thought. To fet it in a full light would carry me 
 too far befide my prefent defign. 
 
 It is likewife an obvious and natural deduction 
 from what has beenfaid, that the punijirment threat- 
 ened^ under the prefent reign of Cl\rifl: in God's king- 
 dom, to difcourage our rebellion againfl the moral 
 government of Heaven, and to promote owv fuhje^ion 
 to it, is the 7nifery of the same intermediate 
 STATE, and not mifery that will have no end. 
 And with this remark, the fcripture alfo admirably 
 well agrees. Hence the future piiniflment is moft 
 2 frequently 
 
224 ^he Proofs of Univerfal S ah at ion. 
 
 frequently fpoken of in terms, that evidently cort- 
 vey the idea of a difpenfation^ age^ or period of dti^^ 
 ration* This is plainly the meaning of that fa? 
 mous text, in which this mifery, as is commonl/ 
 fuppofed, is faid to be fK tou? aimoti; tm ocKjovm^ 
 for ages of ages ; and of thofe texts which call it 
 i(.QXa,(yiroo'.mioVy ro ttu^ to aiwi/ioV;, oAsO^ov ocimiovy ever-* 
 Jajling punifimenty everlafting fire^ everlajling de* 
 fruElion : So the words are rendered in our Eng- 
 li(b Bibles ; but we are very obvioufly led to un- 
 derftand by them, mifery that mufl be fuffered for 
 z certain period^ age^ ox difpenfation\ for that is the 
 proper meaning of the word aiwi/. It is moft corn- 
 inonly ufed in this fenfe throughout both the Old 
 and New Teftament ; as we fliall have occafion 
 particularly and largely to (hew afterwards. 
 
 Conformably to the above remarks, the great 
 difference between thofe, who go out of this pref en t 
 ft ate Gdd's obedient fuhje^s'^ and others who die 
 rebels againft him, will lie in this, not that the 
 fmner'^iW enter u^on final happinefs^ or the lattef 
 hponfiymr mifery •, but that the one fhall be admit- 
 ted, at Chris's fecond comings to dwell with him 
 in his kingdof/i of glory for 'X certain 'period of dura- 
 tion^ while the other lliall be baniflied his prefence, 
 to dwell in tinfpeakahk torment till they arc 
 wrought upon to fee their folly^ repent of it, and 
 ■willingly yield themfelves up to God as his obedient 
 fervantj. And, in this view of the matter, full 
 fcope is allowed for an adjuftment of that inverted 
 condu^ of Providence, in \\iis prefent Jiate^ accord- 
 ing 
 
^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 225 
 
 ing to which it has happened to the righteous accord- 
 ing to the work of the wicked^ and to the wicked 
 according to the work of the righteous ; and not 
 only fo, but opportunity is given alfo, by means 
 of this different treatment of the righteous and 
 wicked^ to prepare them both, no doubt, in the 
 wifeft and befl-adapted manner, for that new and 
 GRAND DISPENSATION, which is yet to take place. 
 And now the fc heme of God, fo far as it was put 
 into the hands of Chrijl to be carried into execu- 
 tion, under his mediatory management, is finished. 
 For the whole condufl of Providence, under his 
 adminiltration, having been adjufled, and the whole 
 human race^ at the fame time, reduced under moral 
 fubjeHion to the divine government, He will now 
 give up his mediatory kingdom to the Father^ who 
 will, from this time, reign immediately himfelf\ 
 making the rnoft glorious manifeftations of his 
 being a God^ and Father^ and Friend to all^ in all 
 things, is^ithout end, 
 
 I need not now fay, what a poor, low, lean idea 
 the common explanation of this fcripture gives us of 
 the FINAL EFFECT of Chrift's reign in his media- 
 tory kingdom, in comparifun with that, the al>ove 
 interpretation lets us into. According to this, sin, 
 SATAN, and DEATH, the second as well as first 
 
 DEATH, fliall be TOTALLY and absolutely DE- 
 STROYED, and the whole human race reduced 
 under sifree, and ycxfull, fubjedion to the govern- 
 ment of God, fo as to be the meet cbje^s of hi* 
 mncy^ when he Ihall finally take the kingdom into 
 
 Q^ his 
 
226 l^he Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 his own hands : Whereas, according to the other, 
 myriads of the fons of Adam will be everlast- 
 ingly CONFINED IN HELL, as REBELS againft the 
 government of God, that is, as the moral ene- 
 mies of his kingdom •, notwithftanding it is here 
 moll peremptorily affirmed, that all enemies Jh all he 
 fubdiied^ yea, that all things Jhall he put under the 
 feet of Chrijl ; and that he fhaJl not deliver up the 
 kingdom to the Father till all this is actually 
 
 CARRIED INTO FACT. 
 
 No wonder this has been reckoned among the 
 dark and difficult texts in the apoftle Paul's writings, 
 while men have endeavoured to fallen afenfe upon 
 itj that really fets it at variance with itfelf, beyond 
 the poffibility of a reconciliation by any human 
 ficiil : Whereas, according to the fenfe here given, 
 the apollle's meaning is quite eafy, and yet con- 
 fiftent. And it is indeed a circumllance much fa- 
 vouring the interpretation we have gone into, that 
 it is not the refult of nice and laboured criticifm 
 upon the words here ufed, but obvioufly arifes from 
 the jull import of them, in their moll ftmple and 
 natural conilrudion, without the help of art, or 
 the {how of any extraordinary under ftanding in the 
 force of language. 
 
 Before I proceed to another text, I would in- 
 terpofe an obfervation here, which, as I apprehend, 
 will not be wholly ufelefs. It is this: — Upon fup- 
 pofition of the truth of the above explication of 
 this fcripture paflage, it is obvious, at the firll 
 glance, that yiw^ among the fons of men will be fo 
 
 wroujzht 
 
I^he t^ roofs of Univerfal Salvatmt, 227 
 
 wrought upon, in this prefent ftate, under the ad- 
 miniftration of God's kingdom by Jefus Chrift, as 
 to be prepared for an immediate rei^n with him in 
 life and glory at his fecond coming-, while others 
 will fland it out againft all the methods of wifdoni 
 and grace, he fees fit, as a moral governor, to ufe 
 with them, and will not be perluaded to become 
 his iviiling people, till they have firft known by ex- 
 perience what the torments of hell mean. And 
 may it not be with a view to this difference^ which 
 God knew, before all worlds, there would be 
 among men, that the language of many texts of 
 fcripture \s formed? And if this thought were duly 
 attended to, in their explication, might it not giv^e 
 a clear and unexceptionable meaning to them ? I 
 fhall not think it a needlefs digreflion to explain 
 myfelf here by coming to inftances. Thus, when 
 it is faid, i Tim. iv. 10, "God is the Saviour of 
 " all men j efpecially of them that believe," are 
 we not herefrom at once enabled to put upon the 
 words an eafy and fignificant {^n^^ ? For God may 
 properly be called the Saviour of all men, as they 
 fhall all, in the final iffue of things, partake of 
 the falvation by Jefus Chrift •, and yet, he may 
 eminently be faid to be the Saviour of them that he^ 
 lieve, as, by their being believer Sy they are pre- 
 pared for an entrance upon an happy immortality, 
 and fJoall enter upon it immediately at Chrift*s 
 coming, without firfl pafTing through the fecond 
 death. So when our Saviour fays, John x. 14, *' I 
 '' am the good fhephcrd, and know my Iheep, and 
 CL 2 !' I am 
 
228 T/je Proofs of U?iiverfal Salvation. 
 
 " I am known of mine *," and again^ in the 15th 
 verfe, "I lay down my life for the (heep j" and 
 yet again, in the 27th, 28th, and 29th verfes, 
 ** My llieep hear my voice, and I know them, and 
 *' they follow me. And I give unto them eternal 
 *' life, and they fhall never periili, neither (hall 
 " any pluck them out of my hand. My Father, 
 *' which gave them me, is greater than all ; and 
 '' none is able to pluck them out of my Father's 
 " hand:" I fay, by the help of the above thought, 
 may it not be eafy to give a plain and confident 
 meaning to his words ? By thefe Jheep which the 
 Father hath given to Chrijiy for whom Chrift laid 
 down his life ^ to whom he will give eternal life ^ and 
 who both knozv him and are known of him ^ may we 
 not fairly underltand that part of mankind who 
 are of fuch a temper of mind as to be perfuaded to 
 fubmit to Chrift, as their Jhepherd and guide^ in 
 confcquence of the means that are proper to be 
 ufed with men in ihxs prefent ftate of the kingdom 
 of God? And as God knew who thefe were, hp 
 m\ghi give them to Chrift to be fitted by him to 
 reign in life sl certain age, difpenfation^ or peri-ad of 
 duration, to commence immediately upon his 
 fe^ond coming -, and he will certainly prepare them 
 for this reign in life, and bring them to it, and 
 nothing (hall be ever able to prevent the execution 
 of this purpofe of God's mercy concerning them. But 
 then, ii ought to be remembered, and particularly 
 canOdered, thefe are not Chrift' s fheep, neither did 
 God give, them to him to bring them to eternal life^ 
 
 w 
 
T!he Proofs ofXJnwerfal Salvation. 2^9 
 
 to the final exclufion of the reft of mankind. For 
 he fays, in this very chapter, ver. i6th, " And 
 " other fheep I have, which are not of this fold : 
 " Them alfo miift I bring ; and they fhall hear my 
 " voice, and there fhall be one fold, and one 
 <• SHEPHERD." Other interpretations may be 
 given of thefe words ; but may not the true mean- 
 /«^ of them be this — that the reft of mankind are the 
 fheep of Chrift^ have betn given to bim by the Fa- 
 ther, and fhall, in the time laid out for it in 
 the fcheme of God, certainly hear bis voice^ fo as 
 that the zvbole human race fhall make one fold and 
 have one foephcrd? And may we not underftand 
 in the fame fenle, what has fometimes been called, 
 the golden chain of falvation^ Rom. viii. 29, 30? 
 *' For whom he did foreknow, he alfo did pre- 
 '' deftinate to be conformed to the image of his 
 " Son, that he might be the firft-born among 
 " many brethren. Moreover, whom he did pre- 
 *' deftinate, them he alfo called; and whom^he 
 " called, them he alfo juftified ; and whom he 
 " jufliified, them he alfo glorified." As if the 
 apoftle had faid, '' Whom God, in his infinite prc- 
 fcience, knew to be of a difpojition to be wrought 
 upon, under the adminiftration of his kingdom 
 of grace, in this prefent ftate^ them he deftinated^ 
 or determined^ before all worlds, fhould be con- 
 formed to the image of his Son in the glories of the 
 next fate, that he, that is, the Son of God, might 
 have many brethren^ and be the firft-born^ that is, 
 the chief and head among tbem in that ftate. And 
 Q^ 3 whom 
 
2^0 ^he T roofs ofWiiverfal Salvation. 
 
 whom he thus deftinated, or determined, fhonld 
 enter upon the joys cf the next ft ate ^ them he pur- 
 pofed to call^ or invite^ into the gofpUkhgdcm^ by 
 the preaching of Chrift, or his apoftles, or their 
 fucceflbrs ; and whom he thus invited into this 
 kingdom, them he purpoled ^o juftify^ upon their 
 becoming the qualified objedls of this favour ; 
 and whom he juftified, them he alfo purpofed to 
 admit to the glories of the refurre5fmi-ftate'' Not 
 that it was the defign of the apoftle, in this text, 
 to leave the reft of mankind to perifh without hope^ 
 or mercy : For he elfewhere fays, in thi? very 
 Epiftle, that they fhali all reign in life through Jefus 
 Chrift, But he is here fpeaking of thofe who are 
 the perfons that (hall be glorified^ according to the 
 fcheme of God, in the ftate that follows next upon 
 this. God knew who, among the fons of Adam, 
 would be fo difpofed as that they might, in con- 
 fiftency with their liberty as free agents^ be wrought 
 upon to become his obedient fubje^Cy in confe- 
 quence of the means his wifdom thought proper 
 to ufe with men in this prefent ftate \ and them, in 
 the manner before defcribed, he determined fhould 
 be glorified in the refurre^ion-ftate.'-^ln the fame 
 fenfe ,ltill may we not underftand thofe texts, in' 
 which particular perfons are fpoken of as the eleSf-,; 
 or chofen of God ? I am fully fatisfied, that the 
 terms Ele^^ Chofen, are often ufed, in the New 
 Teftament, with refpedt to the whole body of 
 Chriftians, as fignifying nothing more than their 
 being feleded from the-reft of the world, and ad- 
 mitted 
 
The Proofs of U?iiverfal Salvation. 231 
 
 mitted into the viftble kingdom of God, in order 
 to their being under peculiar advantages that they, 
 may be fitted for eternal life. But this notvvith- 
 flanding, I think it certain, that they are fome- 
 timcs ufed otherwife, and (land to fignify particular 
 perfons infallibly fele5ied for falvation. . Thus the 
 term chofen is ufed by our Saviour, in that obferv- 
 able pafTage, Matt. xix. 30, '^ Many are called, 
 " but few are chofen ;" which is repeated again, 
 chap. xxii. 14. And in the fame fenfe the word 
 ele5l is taken, as I apprehend, in Rom. viii. 33 : 
 " Who fhall lay any thing to the charge of God's 
 *' eled ? It is God that juftifieth — j" and in other 
 places that might be mentioned. But whenever, 
 by ele5fy or chofen, the fcripture means particular 
 perfons certainly f clewed for falvation, why may we 
 not underiland by them thofe, whom God knew 
 would be vjrotight upon, in this prefent ftate, under 
 the government of Jefus Chrift, and therefore fixed 
 upon them as the perfons that (hould, in the ne>it 
 fiate, be glorified by him ? though not to the ex- 
 clufion of ethers •, as has been already faid, and need 
 not be again repeated. And whatever other texts 
 there are of the like import with thofe above- 
 mentioned, may they not all, in this way, have an 
 eafy fenfe put upon them, and fuch an one as is 
 confident with the univerfal benevolence of God, 
 and the univerfal efficacy of Chrift's power, as 
 feated at the head of God's kingdom of grace, 
 in order to prepare mankind for the bleffed time, 
 when God fhall be all in all? — I have not yet had 
 Q^ 4 leifure 
 
232 T^he Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 
 
 leifure fo thoroughly to examine all the texts of 
 this fort^ as to fay, that they certainly ought to be 
 thus i cite rpre ted j but I know of no valid objedion 
 to the contrary, and cannot but think it well wor- 
 thy of confideration, whether this may not be the 
 real truth of the cafe : Which, if it fhould prove 
 to be fo, would at once put an end to f&me contra* 
 'verJteS', which are thought to be important. 
 
 I (hall now clofe the proof of this propofition I 
 have been fo long upon, becaufe an important one, 
 and that indeed on which the prcfent caufe entirely 
 refts, by turning your thoughts awhile to one of 
 the firfi texts in the Bible, and the 'very fir fi that 
 reveals the fromife of a Saviour \ and I would the 
 rather bring this text into view, as it fummarily 
 comprehends the whole of what we have been 
 faying concerning the redu^ion of mankind uni" 
 verfally to an obedient fubmijfion to the governing 
 will of God, The text I have in my eye is Gen. 
 iii. 15, ^' And I will put enmity between thee and 
 *' the woman, and between thy feed and her feed -, 
 *' it fhall bruife thy head, and thou fliak bruile his 
 *^ heel." Expofitors feem univerfally agreed, that 
 Chrift^ who was born of a womarh is the feed here 
 principally intended. And when it is affirmed of 
 him, that he ihall bruife the ferpent^s head^ the 
 thought defigned to be conveyed is, the compleat 
 vi^ory which he fhould gain over the Devils here 
 fpoken of under the emblem of 3 ferpent. For 
 the words are evidently an allufion to the way of 
 miitig ferpentSp .by ftriking at their head. To 
 
 bruifi 
 
7 he Proofs of UnivafarSalvatidJu 233- 
 
 hruife a fer pint's bead, is a phrafe exprefTive of one 
 and the laaie thing with kiliwg a ferpcnt, Confe- 
 quently, when it is faid of Chrifl:, that he- (hall 
 braife the ferpent's head, the idea naturally and ob- 
 vioufly communicated by the words is, that he 
 fhall dejhoy the Devil ; not his beings but thai king- 
 dcm of fin, which, by his means ^ as a tempter^ he had 
 introduced into the world, accompanied with 
 forrow and death. If interpreters liave been right, 
 as I judge they have (62), in underltanding thefe 
 
 words 
 
 (62) It would be needlefs, in a work of this nature, to 
 enter upon a laboured proof of the propriety of this interpre- 
 tation. The reader who needs, and deAres, fatisfaiTiion here- 
 in, may meet with it in Bifhop Sherlock's U/e and Intent of 
 Prophecy^ or in Dr. Shuckford's Hiftory of the Creation and 
 Fall of Man. I would only observe, it would be treating Mofes 
 with great difhonour, to make him fpeak, in this text, as fome 
 are pleafed to do, of a mere conteft between the race ofmen^ and 
 the race of ferpents ; as though he intended only to fuggell 
 this, ** that ferpents would be apt to bite men's heels, and. 
 that mea would be apt, in return, to ftrike their heads.'* This 
 is too trifling a bufinefs to be introduced, with fo much fo- 
 lemnity, by any valuable writer, much lefs fo grave, ferrous, 
 and judicious an one as Mofes, confidering him only in his 
 ordinary chara£ler. Befides, it ought to be remembered, 
 
 * Mofes does not here fay [to ufe the words of the laji of the 
 
 * above-tnentioned authors], that mankind 2.n6, ferpents fhould 
 
 * have a general enmity at each other ; but the Hef>rcxv words, 
 
 * if truly interpreted, denote, that fome one person ftiould 
 
 * defcend from the woman, who fhould capitally conquer and 
 
 * fobdue the great enemy of mankind-^ The words, JJua Je- 
 fuphka rcjh, as this writer largely ihews, * cannot mean it, 
 
 * berfgedy Jhall bruift tha in tbi beadt taking the ytoidfeed, as 
 
 • a noua 
 
234 ^^^ Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 words of Chrift, and his vi5iorious conqueft of the 
 De-vtU that is, his works ^ that Jin and wickednefsy he 
 has all along, from the beginning, been the en- 
 eoLirager of, by his temptations ; I fee not but this 
 jirfi promife of God fairly leads us to look for the 
 time, when sin fliall be totally and absolutely 
 DESTROYED by him, who was born of a woman. 
 This is certainly the moft fimple, plain con- 
 
 * a noun oi multitude, to mean many ; for, in fuch cafe, the 
 
 * Hebrew language would have been, they Jh all brutfe thee in 
 
 * the head : But it ought to be tranflated, he himself, in- 
 
 * tending one p erf on ^ and no moxG, Jhall brui/e thy head,* And 
 it is obfervable, as this author further remarks, * the tranf- 
 
 * lators of the Septuagint have thus rendered the place with- 
 
 * out infpiration, and before Vi.Viy prophet, or apojlle, haddirefted 
 
 * any fuch interpretation, by being only true mailers of the 
 
 * Hebrew tongue, fo as not to lofe, or vary from, the precife 
 
 * meaning of a very fignificant exprefiion in it.' — Having faid, 
 the Septuagint verfion runs thus, ** And I will put enmity be- 
 ** tween thee and the woman ; and between thy feed and the 
 "feed of her : he [aYTOS] fhall bruife thy head, and thou 
 ** ihalt bruife his heel ;" he proceeds to fay, * the point to be 
 
 * obferved in this tranflation is, that it does not f^y* it Ihall 
 
 * bruife thy head. The pronoun does not refer to the word 
 ''feed, but it is, he Ihall bruife the head of the enemy here 
 
 * fpoken of. Had the Gteek interpreters thought the text to 
 
 * mean, that the woman's feed or offspring in the general were 
 
 * here intended, they would have faid avro, to agree with 
 ' a-7rs^[xci, 'as we fay it in our Englifh : But they more cor- 
 
 * reftly rendered the place cjuto?, he ; apprehending fome one 
 ' particular perfon to be here intended, and not the offspring of 
 
 * the woman in the general* This fame author largely fhews 
 this to be the true meaning of the Hebrew likewife, Hiflory 
 of the Creation and F all of Man , page 240, and onwards. 
 
 Itrucllon 
 
l:he Proofs of Unfverfal Sahation. 235 
 
 (Irudion that can be put upon the words {Jq'^\ if 
 they have any reference to Chrift^ and his conquejl 
 
 of 
 
 (63) When I fpeak of this as an eafy plain conftruftion of 
 the words, I would be underftood to mean with refpeft to us, 
 who are acquainted with after fimilar, but more explicit, pro- 
 mifes and predidtions, together with ihc explanation of them 
 by their accompliftim'ent (in part) in the incarnatiotiy life^ 
 deaths refurredion, and exaltaticn, of our Saviour Jefus Chrift, 
 and what we arc direftly told will be eonfequent thereupon. To 
 us, in this fituation, under thefe circumitances, this promife 
 very evidently appears to contain the meaning we have put 
 upon it. I do not fay, that it appeared to Adam, or to his 
 polleriiy m former ages, in this light; or that God intended it 
 fhould. Perhaps, it would not have confifted with the inter^ 
 mediate ft ep 5 in the accomplifhment of this promife, to have 
 delivered it in a manner fo explicit as that they might have 
 thus underftood it. But this is no argument, that it did not 
 really contain this meaning, or that we may not be rationally 
 convinced that it did, confidering it in connediion with the 
 fcheme of Providence, as it \\2LsJtnce been opened, more efpcci- 
 ally in the revelations of God by bis Son fefus Chrift to the 
 apoftles and prophets^ and through them to us. We may, in 
 confequence of thefe advantages, be able very eafily and ob- 
 vioufly to perceive, that this was the real intention oi God in 
 his promife to Jdam, and that the words, in which the promife 
 is delivered, are not only capable oi this fenfe, but as clearly 
 znd fully expreflive of it as words fummarily could be. And, 
 in truth, it is with me one of iheftrongeft e^virUnces of the di-vi- 
 nity oi ihQ fcriptures, that this, and other ancient promifes and 
 predidlionsi areyo njoorded, as that the fcheme of falvacion, as 
 it has been gradually unfolding till thefe laft days, is 'very ob- 
 'vioufty, however fummarily, pointed out in them ; infomuch 
 that a fober enquirer can fcarce fail of perceiving, that one 
 and i\iQ fame fcheme has been in profecution even from the days 
 of Adam ; which fcheme, however dark to former ages, is noiu, 
 
 in 
 
236 The F roofs of Unt'lftiy'M SalvaHon. 
 
 of the Devily that is, of the kingdom of fin which he 
 had been an injlnment in introducing into the 
 world. So that the whole of what we have done,^ 
 in this efTay, is nothing more than an enlargement 
 upon that which was fummarily, and in a few ftrong 
 and exprelTive words, delivered as the grand inten- 
 tion of God, in conllituting his Son Jefus Chrift the 
 Saviour of men. And I fee not, I confefs, if the 
 time does not come, before Chrifl's delivery of the 
 kingdom to the Father^ when it Ihall be true, in 
 EVENT and FACT, that sin is totally destroyed, 
 by a reduflion of all men under moral sub- 
 jection to god, but that it ought fairly and ho- 
 neftly to be owned, that he has not bruifed the 
 ferpent*s heady as it is here declared that he Ihould. 
 How can it be, that the Devils that is^ his kingdom^, 
 which effentially confiils in the reign of fin and luft^ 
 ihould be deftroyed by Chrift^ in any propriety of 
 fenfe, while thoufands and millions of the fons of 
 Adam^ not only in xhc prefent ftate^ but throughout 
 ell eternity^ (as the commonly-received opinion is) 
 will live IN ENMITY WITH GOD, retaining their 
 charader as rebels against him, but subjects 
 IN the devil's kingdom? I know not in what 
 light the above evidence, in favour of a univerfal^ 
 redu^lton of mankind, may appear to others j but' 
 
 in the times of the Gofpel, made Jufficiently manifell: to all 
 men : Though the e'vidmce is not {0 full as it will be, when 
 mankind are got Hill further into the accomplipment of the grand 
 purpo/e of God, generally declared m \\i\i original promi/e tp 
 Adam, 
 
 tQ 
 
"The Proofs of Unkerfal Salvation. 237 
 
 to me it is fo glaring, that I cannot but wonder it 
 has been fo generally unperceived in the Chriftian 
 world, all along to the prefent day ♦, and that even 
 ftill multitudes are fo blind as not to fee it. It 
 cannot eafily be accounted for from any other 
 caufe, than that ftrong bias there has been upon 
 the minds of men, even from children, in favour 
 of contrary doctrines. 
 
 PROPOSITION VI. 
 
 " The fcripture language, concerning the re- 
 *' DUCED, or RESTORED, in confequcnce of the 
 '' mediatory interpofition of Jefus Chrift, is fuch 
 " as to lead us into the thought, that they are 
 *^ comprehenfive of mankind universally. 
 
 There is om iexr, at lead, expreiled in fuch 
 terms as render it incapable of being underdood 
 in any ctber fenfe^ and feveral others that may na- 
 turally and reafonably be interpreted to carry this 
 meaning -, efpecially if compared with the texts 
 that have been already explained. 
 
 The text that I will venture to lay is clearly and 
 fully exprefTive of this idea, namely, that the re- 
 deemed by Chrift are comprehenfive of m^,7jkhid univer- 
 fallyy is in the bock oi the Revelation. I fhall 
 introduce what I have to fay upon it with this (horc 
 previous remark, namely. 
 
 That as the apoftle John, or rather the Divine 
 Spirit who fpake by him, had it in dcf)gn ro 
 
 exhibit 
 
238 T!he Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 
 
 exhibit a 'prophetic reprefentation oi th^ feveral fuc^ 
 cejftve ftaies of the Chriftian church, before the 
 fecond coming of Jefus Chrift -, and of that ft ate alfo, 
 ■which will intervene between his fecond coming 
 and the/;^//:?/;?^ of the fcheme of God, with refe- 
 rence to men, as managed by him ; he was led, in 
 purfuance of it, to open to our view that period 
 under Anti-Chrift^ which would give occafion for 
 tremendous jiidgjnents in the conduct of Providence. 
 And, while he was upon this dark and terrible 
 fcene of things, for the relief of the apoflle's mind, 
 and for the encouragement and fupport of the 
 people of God, he has now and then interpofed a 
 vi/ion^ in which he had a fight of the vi^forious effi- 
 cacy of Chrift's dominion, as head of the kingdom 
 of God, the glory whereof he heard afcribed to 
 him by the holy angels above, as well as the happy 
 fuhjeots of it. And, in one of thefe interpofed 
 vifions, the text I lay this firefs upon, in proof of 
 the prefent propofition, has a place. 
 
 It is. Rev. V. 13, " And every creature which 
 *' is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the 
 '' earth, and fuch as are in the fea, and all that are 
 " in them, heard I, faying, Blefling, and honour, 
 " and glory, and power, be unto him that fitteth 
 " upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever 
 *' and ever." Thefe words evidently look forward 
 to the COMPLETION of the fcheme of God with 
 reference to mankind, or to the time of God*s 
 being all in all ; bringing in ih^finlefs intelligences 
 above^ as uniting with the whole race of Adam, in 
 
The Proofs of Ufiiverfal Salvation. 239 
 
 giving the glory of their restitution, or re- 
 demption, to God who contrived the plan of it, 
 and to Chrift who was the perfon, under God, that 
 carried it into execution. And that mankind uni- 
 verfally are the perfons finging this hymn of praife, 
 in concert with the holy angels of heaven, is 
 evident, as I imagine, beyond all reafonable dif- 
 pute, from the enumeration here made, which is in 
 the fullefi and mofi extenjive terms. For not only 
 the creatures which are in heaven^ but thofe alfo 
 which are on earthy and under the earthy and in 
 the fea^ are the creatures whom the apoftle John 
 faw bowing down in voluntary a^s of homage, and 
 thankful adoration, before God^ and the Lord 
 Jefus Chriji, for the great benefit of redemption^ or 
 falvation. And, as though fufficiently extenfive lan- 
 guage had not as yet been ufed, in the above 
 enumeration, it is further added'. And all things in 
 them. If the apoftle had really intended to have 
 introduced the whole human kind, together with the 
 angels^ as afcribing thankfgiving, and blefTing, and 
 honour, to God and the Lamh-, for their reficration^ 
 reduHion^ ov falvation, how could he have done it 
 in words that more eafily and certainly convey 
 this fenfcr ? For the whole human kind are to be 
 found in the places herefpecijied ; and the fpecificaticn 
 of thefe places, which contain them «//, is a fure 
 argument that he intended to comprehend them 
 all' Why elfe fhould he be thus particular in 
 fpecifying them ? It is obfervable, when this fame 
 apoftle, in the 20th chapter of this hock^ would 
 r ranfack 
 
24^ ^^^ Proofs ofUniverfal Salvation, 
 
 ranfack the whole creation, in order to bring all 
 the individuals of the human race before the throne of 
 Chrift's judgment, his language is, " And the fea 
 *' gave up the dead that wcr^ in it \ and death and 
 *' the grave" [fo I fliould tranflate the word (xh<;^ in 
 this place, and not heH\ " dehvered up the dead 
 ** that were in them." Now, the creatures fpoken of, 
 in the foregoing 5th chapter, as under the earthy 
 are thofe very ones concerning whom it is faid, in 
 the 20th chapter, that *' death and the grave de- 
 *' livered up the dead that were in them :" In like 
 manner, the creatures that are there faid to be in the 
 feay are the dead that the fea is here faid to give up. 
 So that if mankind univerfally are included in the 
 terms ufed in the 20th chapter, they ought alio to 
 be included in thofe that are ufed in the 5th chap- 
 ter. And there is indeed greater reafon to inter- 
 pret the language in the 5th chapter, as including 
 mankind univerfally^ than in the 2Cth ; becaufe the 
 enumeration there is mox^ full znd compleat : For 
 it takes in all on the earthy as well as under it^ and 
 in the fea \ that is, it takes in both the quick and 
 the deady which are terms, in the facred dialed, 
 comprehenfive of all the individuals of the human 
 kind^ In fhort, the creatures^ the apoftle John faw 
 paying their thankful acknowledgments before 
 the throne of God, in concert with the angels of 
 heaven, for the falvation by Jefus Chrift, were the 
 whole pcfterity of Adam ^ mankind without excep- 
 tion : And left we fhould be led to think other- 
 wife, he has ufed language that comprehends all 
 
 that 
 
The Proofs of Univerfal Salvation. 2 4 t 
 
 ihnt live on the earth \ all that ever died on it^ and 
 were httried under it ; and all that ever died on the 
 fea-i and were thrown into it. And if every crea- 
 ture that lives on the -earthy and eVery creature 
 that is in theftate of thedead^ does not comprehend 
 mankind tmiverfally^ it is difficult to find words 
 that can do it. I am pretty confident, no other 
 fenfe than that we have given this text can be put 
 upon it, allowing the words in which it is ex- 
 prefled their natural due force, and, at the fame 
 time, a confident meaning. 
 
 There are flill other texts, though perhaps not 
 conclufive in themielves fimply confidered, yet of 
 confiderable weight, and well worthy of notice, if 
 explained by ihc fcriptures we have already offered 
 to view. 
 
 Such are thofe. Gen. xii. 3, '' In thee fhall all 
 ** fmiilies of the earth be blelTed." And, chap, 
 xviii. 18, " In thee iliall all nations of the earth 
 ''be blefied." And chap. xxii. 18, *' In thy 
 " feed (hall all the nations of the earth be blel- 
 " ind.'* That thefe pafiTages refer to Chrift^ and 
 the fpiritual falvation wherewith all families'^ and 
 all nations^ in the earth, fhould be hleffed in his 
 day, will be beyond difpute with thofe who will 
 pleafe to compare them with Afls iii. 25, 2 5, 
 where the apoftle, having quoted the words '' in 
 *' thy feed fhall all the kindreds of the earth be blef- 
 " fed,'* adds thereupon, '* Unto you hath God 
 *' fent his fon Jefus, to blefs you, in turning away 
 *• every one of you from his iniquities ■" or with 
 Gal. iii, 8, where it is faid, that " the fcripture 
 
 R " tbrefeeing. 
 
2^2 T/je Proofs of Unherfal Salvation. 
 
 *' forefeeing, that God would juftify the heathen 
 *' through faith, preached before the gofpel unto 
 '' Abraham, faying, In thee jh all all nations he hlef 
 ''^ fed'^ And in what better fen fe *, in what fenfe 
 more honourable to God, or to his fon Jefus Chrid:, 
 can thefe words be interpreted, than in that which 
 makes them to mean, that mankind, however di- 
 vided into a great number of nations^ and into a 
 flill vafily- greater number of families, fliall yet all 
 be fpiritually hhjfed by Jefus Chrill, fo hlejfed, as, 
 fooner or later, to be turned from their iniquities^ 
 and formed to a meetnefs for eternal life^ that they 
 may be crowned therewith ? The words are cer- 
 tainly capable of being conflrued in this fenfe: 
 Nor need they be at all tortured to make them 
 fpeak it out. All nations^ and all fatnilies^ of the 
 earthy are phrales naturally exprefTive of man ki72d 
 univerfally ; and the facred writings often ufe them 
 to convey this idea. Confequently, when Chrifl is 
 promifed to blefs all nations, and all families, of the 
 earth, the words confidered in themfelves, much 
 more if confidered in connedlion with the foregoing 
 texts, very readily offer x\\^ fenfe I have put upon 
 them, far more readily than that which makes a 
 few only of mankind finally hlejfed by Chrift ; leaving 
 the refi to be curfed by him in event and faB^ and 
 this to all eternity. A flrange fenfe this, however 
 generally received for the true one : And a fenfe 
 it is, I believe, that never could have been thought 
 on, had interpreters known how, in confiftency 
 with other friptures, to have fixed upon a more 
 fignificantly benevolent meaning. This we are 
 I lenabled 
 
^he Proofs of Univerfal Sahatkn. 243 
 
 enabled to do, by what has been difcourred in 
 the foregoing pages : For which reafon, I Ice not 
 but we may explain thefe phrafes, as they are 
 fairly capable of it, in the glorioufly high and ex- 
 tenfive fenfe we have given them. 
 
 Another text of the like import, and the only 
 remaining one to be mentioned under this head, is 
 that in Gen. xv. 5, where, upon God's having 
 brought forth Abraham abroad, he faid to him, 
 '' Look now toward heaven, and tell the flars, if 
 *' thou art able to number them : so shall thy 
 '* SEED BE." If any will be at the pains carefully 
 to compare this promife of God with Rom. iv. 
 from the nth to the 17th, and with Gal. iii. 7th, 
 8th, they mufi: be convinced, if they can depend 
 upon the authority of the apoflle Paul, that it 
 includes the fpiritualy as well as natural, feed of 
 Abraham, that is, thofe who fhould be his children 
 by a refemblance of him in his moral fswper^ as 
 well as thofe who fliould deicend from him by 
 ordinary geiuration. It is readily owned, the pro- 
 mife, tal<:en even in this fenfe, does not, in itfelf 
 fimply confidered, convey any other idea than this 
 general one, namely, that the children o': Abraham^ 
 by a participation of his moral likenefs^ fhould be 
 vajlly numercits^ a multitude lb great as that, like 
 l\\^ ftars of heaven^ they could not be numbered. But 
 flill, if we confider this promife in connedlion with 
 the other fcriptures we have brought to view, we 
 may fairly and reafonably fix it to a move particular 
 and determinate fenfe •, fuppofing that God, when 
 
 R 2 he 
 
244 ^^-^ Proofs ofXJnherfal Salvation. 
 
 he made it, really meant by it an engagement 
 that mankind universally fhould, in due time, fo far 
 refemble Abraham^ in his moral temper^ as that they 
 fhonld be his fpiritual children : Which, in true 
 fenfe, is one and the fame thing with their being 
 Mejfed in Cbri/l, or with their being reduced by him 
 under moral fubje5f ion to the government of God \ as 
 the matter is exprefted in the above texts. And 
 it is certain, this promife to Abraham is fo worded 
 as to be very obvioufly capable of this extenfive 
 meaning : Nor will any meaning that has ever yet 
 been put upon it, fo fully anfwer iht proper natural 
 force of the words here ufed, as this we have of- 
 fered. The common one falls vaftly ihort of their 
 juft import : Whereas, this happily comes up to 
 it 5 giving them a full and excenfive fenfe, and 
 hereby making the promife glorioufly fignificant in 
 itfelf, as well as an eminently worthy engagement 
 from him who is the God and Father of all. 
 
 There are many other teicts-i though not men- 
 tioned under either of the foregoing propofitions^ 
 becaufe not relied on as their main proofs that yet 
 evidently favour the fcheme we have been endea- 
 vouring to illullrate and confirm : At lead, they 
 are capable of a much higher and more fignificant 
 fenfe, and would appear in a much more advantage- 
 ous light, upon fuppofition of its truths than the 
 contrary. I (hall not think it a needlefs digreflion 
 to fubjoin a few thoughts upon them, by way of 
 appendix to what has been already offered ; though 
 I fhall do this in a curfory manner only, and with- 
 
 3 ^"^ 
 
^be Proofs of XJniverfal Salvation. 245 
 
 out any other order than that in which thefe texts 
 may come into my mind. For, inftead of depend- 
 ing on them as proofs^ I have it rather in view to 
 fliow, how much better accommodated they are to the 
 prefent do5frine^ than that which is contrary to it. 
 
 The firft of thefe texts is, Pfalm Ixviii. 18, 
 " Thou haft afcended on high, thou haft led cap- 
 " tivity captive, thou haft received gifts for men, 
 " yea, for the rebellious alfo, that the Lord God 
 " might dwell among them." Here evidently 
 feems to be a diftindion between men^ and the 
 rebellious^ for both of whom our Saviour is faid 
 to have received gifts. But who are meant by men^ 
 and by the rebellious alfo ? Why may we not fay 
 lapfed mankind^ confidered in all the difference there 
 is between them by means of their contra5fed ob- 
 fiinacy and rebellion ? And why may we not fup- 
 pofe, that our Saviour, when he afcended on highy 
 received such gifts for the fons of lapfed Adam 
 as were fuited to their refpeolive different chara^ers^ 
 and to this end, that he might, in due time^ and by 
 proper means^ prepare them all for God's dujelling 
 with them ? It may, perhaps, give countenance 
 to this interpretation, if it be remembered, that 
 the apoftle Paul had this text, in the Pfalms, in his 
 eye, when he faid of Chrift, Eph. iv. 10, that he 
 " afcended up far above all heavens, that he might 
 ** fill all things i" that is, that he might fodifpenfe 
 thofe gifts^ which he had received upon his afcenfion'^ 
 as that, in the time laid out for it in the fcheme 
 of God, he might fill all the sons of lapsed 
 
 R 3 Adam^ 
 
246 T^he F roofs of Viiiverfal Salvation. 
 
 Adam, \\o\vtt\'tv obdurate ^n6. rebellious^ with that 
 fpiriiual fullmfs which would prepare them for God 
 to dwell with them. — Can it be truly faid of Chrift, 
 that he hath accomplifhed that^ which is here faid 
 to be the end cf his afcenjion^ namely, the filling 
 ALL THINGS, if the greater part of mankind, ef^ 
 pecially of the fnore rebellious amiong them, are left 
 finally and everlaftingly empty both of h\s> fan^tify- 
 ing and Javing gifts ? — See the illuftrations on 
 Col. i. 19. 
 
 Another text in this clafs is, John xii. 32, 
 '^ And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will 
 ^^ draw all men to me." Here is no exception 
 oi any individual of the human race. And what 
 right has any one to limit thefe glorioufly extenfive 
 words of our Saviour Jefus Chrift, in defcribing 
 the merciful effe5i of his death on the crofs ? Eipe- 
 cially, as we have feen the way pointed out, from 
 the fcripiures themfelves, in which all men^ ac- 
 cording to the flridnefs of the letter, may cer- 
 tainly be drawn to Chrifl. 
 
 Parallel to the former text, is John xvii. 2, ** As 
 *' thou haft given him power over all fleih, that 
 *' he might give eternal life to as many as thou 
 '' haft given him." It is in the original, -rrav 
 McoKiz; auTw, to all thou haft given him. There is 
 fom.e difficulty as to the graiDinatical propriety of 
 the word Trav. in this place. Erafmus, Beza, Gro- 
 tiiis, and'matiy others, confider it as an Hebraifm 
 for irKVTt. L: de l)ieu, in Pool, confcrues it as a 
 nofninati'he cafe ufed abfolutely, Wolfius conftrues 
 
 it 
 
7he Proofs ofVnlverfal Su'rcation, 247 
 
 it the fame v/ay, and produces inftances of the 
 like conftruclicn, both out of the Nf w Teftamenc 
 and other Greek writings. Vid. Wolf. Cur. Phi- 
 lolog. in loc. But however the grammatical pro- 
 priety of this word be accounted for, the plain 
 {ii^{t of the text is, " that the Father had given 
 Chrift power over all men, that, or to the end 
 THAT, he might give eternal life to these all 
 MEN he had fubje(51:ed to him." 
 
 In like manner, when our Saviour, in Matt. 
 xix. 28. ufes thefe words, i^ r-n TroiXiyysvicrioi^ in 
 (he regeneration, he would very evidently hereby 
 lead us to think, that the time was coming, when 
 this whole lower world fhould be, as it were, born 
 again, formed into a new and better jiate of exift- 
 ence : Which fame thought is fuggefted by the 
 apoftle Peter, in A6ls iii. 21, under that mode of 
 
 expreffion, ^Xf* yfov^j^^j a.7roY.o<.rx(Tra,(TiUi; trxyruj^j^ 
 7intil the times of the reftitution of all things. 
 
 Perhaps, thofe words, in Rom. xi. 32. may 
 properly come in here, " God hath concluded 
 " them all in unbelief, that he might have 
 " mercy upon all." I will not fay, that God's 
 having mercy upon all, has no reference to a morf 
 full admifTion both of Jews and Gentiles, con- 
 fidered in the collecJive fenfe, to the vifible privileges 
 of Chrift's kingdom here on earth •, but this may 
 not be the principal meaning of the words. They 
 are obvioufly capable of a much larger and more 
 extenjive fenfe: And thus much is certain, if wc 
 extend their fenfe to manki?id univerfall)\ in the 
 
 R 4 final 
 
248 T^he Proofs ofVniverfal Salvation. 
 
 final ijfue of things, the exclamation of the ^pofVles 
 in the words that immediately follow, will be 
 much more emphatical, '' Oh the depth of the 
 " riches both of the wifdom and knowledge of 
 "' God 1 How unfearchable are his judgments, 
 ^' and his ways pafl: finding out !" And there 
 will be 4 far more noble fignificancy alfo in the 
 afcription to God, which concludes his difcourfe 
 upon this head, " For of him, and through him, 
 •" and to him, are all things ^ to whom be glory 
 ■' for ever. Amen." 
 
 In the like fenfe may we take that pafiage of this 
 fame apoille. Tit. ii. 1 1, " For the grace of God, 
 '' that bringeth falvation, hath appeared to all 
 " mep." So the words are in our Englifh Bibles ; 
 but the original has it, nj:i(^ot.yY, yoc^ » x^i^^ "^^"^ ^^^^ 
 ■yj ^ctirn^io; TToccriv ocv^^oottok;, that is, tbe grace of Gody 
 which bringeth falvation to all men, hath appeared, 
 -v^It is known to thofe acquainted with Greek, 
 that the words may be thus tranflated ; and it feems 
 to me that it is the npoft obvious and grammatical^ 
 cop(lru61:ion of them, if read without artificial ftops^ 
 as they ought to be, becaufe they are without them 
 in the manufcript from whence they were taken, 
 ^nd in what fo fignificant a fenfe can the grace of 
 God be affirmed to b^ falutiferous^ ov favingy to all 
 men, as in that we are pleading for ? 
 
 And when the birth oi Chrift-, the Saviour^ is 
 fpoken of, Luke ii. 10, as " good tidings of great 
 "joy to all people," the mod vulgar underftand- 
 ing muil perceive, that the words are capable of a 
 
 more 
 
ihe F roofs ofVniverfal Salvation, 2^^ 
 
 more literals and a more exalted fenfe, upon the 
 above fcheme than any other. According to the 
 coinmon dodrine, it is not indeed true^ that Chrift's 
 coming into the world, in the quality of a Saviour^ 
 is good tidi'figs of great joy to all people^ unlefs, by 
 all people^ we underftand, by the alTiftance of a 
 very ftrong figure, a very few people-, for as to the 
 greater part of the human race by far, they have 
 either never heard of the name of Chrift, or will 
 be eventually, or m fa£f, much the worfe for havino- 
 heard of him. To be fhort, it is comparatively 
 but a poor low fenfe that can be put upon this 
 text, according to the common fcheme : Whereas, 
 if we interpret it agreeably to the doBrine explained 
 in thefe papers, we may allow the words their jufl 
 and full import, and take them in xhtix great ejl la- 
 titude \ that is, we may underftand them in a fenfe 
 that is highly honourable to God^ and Chrifi^ and uni- 
 V erf ally joyful to men. 
 
 Thofe texts likewife deferve a place here, which 
 fpeak of God as not keeping anger for ever \ as not 
 contending for ever \ as not chiding always, and not 
 being always wroth. Can thefe expreffions be fo 
 fully^ and fignificantly, applied to God, upon any 
 hypothefis as that we have here advanced ? Does 
 not this fet thefe phrafes in ^flronger and far 7nore 
 glorious point of light, than the common interpre- 
 tation, which is founded on the thought, that God 
 DOt only r,}ay, but that he aflually will, abandon 
 the greateji part of the human fpecies to final and 
 everlafiing damnation ? 
 
 The 
 
250 ^hc Proofs oj Vniverjal Salvation* 
 
 The fame may be faid of thofe numerous paf. 
 fages, which reprefcnt the blefTcd God as tender in 
 mercy •, plenteous in mercy \ abundant in mercy \ 
 as the Lord that hath mercy ; the Lord to whom 
 mercy helongeth *, the Lord that delight eth in mercy. 
 It would be an affront to the underftandings of 
 men to go about to prove, that thefe defcriptions 
 of the infinitely merciful God are capable of a much 
 7noreftiblime and honourable meaning, upon the plan 
 of univerfal falvation^ than the oppcfite fcheme. 
 
 And this is emphatically true of the many texts, 
 which charaderife the Deity as a Being whofe 
 mercy endureth for ever \ whofe mercy is everlajling \ 
 whofe mercy is from everlafing to everlafiing \ yea, 
 whofe mercy^ whofe tender mercy^ extendeth over all 
 the works of his hands, A far more emphatically 
 great and benevolent fenfe is certainly given to thefe 
 cxpreflions, upon the doctrine we are fetting forth, 
 than the common one : Nay, upon the common one, 
 they can fcarce have any meaning at all, without 
 the help of art to qualify, and bring down, the 
 fenfe they naturally and obvioufly carry in them \ 
 and, even with the help of a figure, it cannot be 
 faid of God, unlefs in a comparatively low fenfe, 
 that his mercies endure for ever^ and are over all his 
 worksy if, as the generally-received opinion fays, 
 they are confined to zfew only of the race of men, 
 while all the rejly inftead of feeling the advantage 
 of his mercies for ever^ zx^ for ever fiiffering the ef- 
 fects of his anger and wrath. 
 
 In 
 
The T roofs of Univerfal Salvation. 251 
 
 In fine, there are a great many propBecies fcat- 
 tered all over the facred books of revelation, con- 
 cerning the times of Cbrijl^ and the great things that 
 (hould t>e accompliflied, under his adminiflration 
 at the i?Wof God*s kingdom, which cannot be un- 
 derflood, upon any Icheme, in a fenfe lb honourable 
 to God^ and his Son Jefus Chrift^ and that fo well 
 anfwers the natural import of the words in which 
 they are delivered, as this we have been opening. 
 Inftead of particularly quoting thefe prophecies 
 (which would carry me too great a length), I would 
 rather fay in general^ the partial events^ to which 
 they are commonly applied, and which leave the 
 greatcft part of the pofterity of lapfed Adam in a 
 ftate of degeneracy and mifery^ do, by no means, 
 come up to xht full meaning of tho^tflrong and ex^ 
 tenfively benevolent terms in which they areexprefled. 
 And it deferves ferious confideration, whether 
 there is not danger left the oracles of God fhould 
 be expofed to contempt y while they are reprefented 
 as fpeaking in a ftrain that is plainly too hyperbolic 
 cal and exaggerating ? And will not this be the 
 real truth, if we confine the feyife of thofe prophe- 
 cies, which are delivered in the mojl grand and 
 univerfal language ^ to partial and comparatively 
 fnall events^ fuch as are no ways anfwerable to the 
 ideas we have of the infinite greatnefs^ and ivifdom^ 
 and knoii;kdgey and power, and benevolence of 
 God? 
 
 I have now colleiSled, and put together, in the 
 moft intelligible manner I could, the dire^ evidence 
 
 in 
 
252 ^he F roofs ofUniverfal Salvation. 
 
 in favour of the important point I undertook to 
 reprefent as 2ifmptiire truth. The proofs I have 
 relied the caufe on are not ftngle independent fen- 
 lenceSy detached from this and the other part of the 
 Bible, merely for the fake of iht\x found \ but pa- 
 ragraphs of facred writ, and fome of them large 
 ones too, and taken in conncEllon^ and as falling in 
 with the principal defign of the infpired authors in 
 inferting them in the places where they are found. 
 After all, I may be miftaken. If any Iliould per- 
 ceive that I am, and would be at the pains, in a 
 candid and Chriftian way, to lliew me particularly 
 wherein, I (houid efteem it a kindnefs, and hold 
 myfelf greatly obliged to them *, for I have really 
 jiothing in view but the good of mankind-^ as 
 crrounded on the truth as it is in Jefus. Or Ihould 
 any think, that the evidence the above texts arc 
 capable of yielding \s fufficient^ though I have not 
 been able to reprefent it asfuch\ if what I have 
 done fhould prove a motive to flir them up to 
 place this evidence in a ftill clearer and ftronger 
 point of light, inftead of envying their fuperior 
 abilities^ and greater merits I fhall heartily join in 
 giving them their juft praife ; efteeming my pains 
 (in which I have not been wanting) well-fpenc 
 labour, fhould this only be the effedt. 
 
 I have only this to fay further, that, as our more 
 immediate concern, in this prefent flate, is to fecure 
 our well-being in the next^ it is not a matter of 
 wonder, that no more is faid, in the revelations of 
 God. either by the ancient prophet s^ or his Son 
 
 Jefus 
 
Tthe Proofs of Vniverfal Salvation. 253 
 
 Jefus Chrift and his apojlles^ with reference to the 
 ftale which is i\,\\\ beyond that % at lead, in/>/^;«and 
 €xplicit language (64), leaving no room for doubt. 
 It is indeed no other than might reafonably be ex- 
 pected, that the infpired writers fhould largely and 
 particularly treat of th^joys and miferies of the refur- 
 reLlion-ftate^ and but [paringly and generally of that 
 which will commence afterwards. And this is the 
 
 (64.) It was doubtlefs bell, and God might know it was Ko^ 
 to fpeak upon this matter fo as that it fliould not be clearly 
 underftood, till the time came wh^n fuch knonjoledge might ht fit 
 and proper for the world. Poflibly, as a very confiderable author 
 exprefTes it [Hartley on Man, vol. ii. pag. 435], * the writers 
 
 * of the Old and New Teftaments did not fee the full mean- 
 
 * ing of the glorious declarations, which the Holy Spirit has 
 
 * delivered to us by their means ; juft as Daniel, and the other 
 
 * prophetic were ignorant of the full and precife import of their 
 
 * prophecies i relating to Chrift. Or perhaps they did; but 
 
 * thought it expedient, or were commanded, not to be mors 
 
 * explicit. The Chriftian religion, in converting the various 
 
 * Pagan nations of the world, was to be corrupted by them ; 
 
 * and the fuperftitious fear of God, which is one of thofe cor- 
 
 * ruptions, may have been neceflajy hitherto on account of 
 
 * the reji» But now the corruptions of the true religion begin 
 
 * to be difcovered, and removed, by the earneft endeavours 
 
 * of good men of all nations, and fedls, in thefe latter times, 
 
 * by their comparing fpiritual things ivith j'pirituaL* And as 
 knowledge, in other refpects, has been greatly increafed, it 
 may noiv be proper that more fliould be underftood with refe- 
 rence to the exttnfive bene-volenct of God towards mankind 
 through Jefus Chrift, than was neceflary informer ages. The 
 
 fupport of Chrifiianity may be connefted herewith. Perhaps, 
 the amiable light in which it is placed, by the abovt reprefen- 
 tition of it, 13 the moji ej^effual^nu dots, again ft infidelity. 
 
 \ trutii 
 
2^4 516^ F roofs of Univerfat Salvation,, 
 
 truth oifa^. They have moftly laid out their en^ 
 deavours to promote our welfare^ in the ftate that 
 will fucceed next after this j while, at the fame time^ 
 they have interpofed enough to lead an impartial 
 and attentive enquirer into the thought, that the 
 final re fult of the fcheme of God, condu6led by his 
 Son Jefus Chrijl, will be the happiness of ma;^- 
 KiND UNIVERSALLY, whcn God Jhall he all in all % 
 as has, I truft, been fufiiciently evinced in thefc 
 papers. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
Objcdtlons anfwered. 255 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Stating and anfwering Objeu^iovj. 
 
 NOTWITHSTANDING all that has been 
 offered in proof, that ih^ final f ah at ion of 
 all men is a dodlrine of the Bihle^ it ought not, it 
 is freely acknowledged, to be received as fuch, 
 nnlefs the contrary evidence can be fairly invalidated. 
 This makes it neceffary to examine the objections 
 that lie aeainft the truth of the foreg-oino; fcheme : 
 In the doing of which, I fliall propofe them in 
 their full ftrength, fo far as I am able ; for if they 
 will not, viewed in this light, admit of a clear and 
 fatisfaftory anfwer, they will remain ohjeclions ftill, 
 and ought, in true realbn, to reltrain us from em- 
 bracing the above fyftem, however plaufible the 
 arguments in its favour may appear, confidered 
 feparately from thofc difficulties that lie againft it. 
 
 I know of no objections to the final fahation 
 of ail men from natural reafon^ in the fenfe we 
 h;we explained it. ^his feems to fpeak rather 
 /?;-, than a-yaivft it. Or if, on the one hand, 
 it fhould not give any pofitive grounds to expecfl a 
 final d^n\\ univerfal reftoration -, neither, on the other 
 
 hand. 
 
256 Objections anfwered. 
 
 hand, does it offer any ohje5lions againft it : To be 
 fure, not againft the pojfibility of it. Does it con- 
 tradi6l any didate of true reafon to fay, that the 
 infinitely benevolent God may^ if he fo pleafesj 
 make the whole human race finally happy f None 
 will pretend to affirm fuch a thing. And if a good 
 God may make them happy, he may open his 
 mind upon this matter *, declaring that he cer- 
 tainly and actually will : Upon the fuppofition of 
 which, ^"^^7^?^ would rather approve of the reve- 
 lation as worthy of him, than cavil at its meaning 
 as reflecting difhonour upon him. We have 
 therefore no concern, in the prefent debate, with 
 any ohje^ions that are purely rationaL 
 
 The only difficulties, thrown in our way, are 
 fetched from iht fcriptures. And the difficulties 
 from this quarter, it is confefTed, are not without 
 their weight. We fhall give them a diftindl and 
 particular confideratlon. 
 
 OBJECTION I. 
 
 *' Endlefs never- ceafing mifery is, according to the 
 " fcriptures^ the portion of wicked men beyond the 
 " grave ; and confequently the whole human kind 
 *' cannot ht finally happy '^ 
 
 This confequence, I readily own, is unavoidable, 
 if never-ceaftng mifery^ with refpedl to wicked men, 
 is a doftrine of the Bible. The ohje3fion fays it is. 
 My bufmefs (hall be to fhow, that it is not. 
 
 The 
 
ObjeBlons d?ifwered, .2^j 
 
 The evidence^ the ohjeolion would bring, in fup- 
 port of the dodrlne of endlefs mifery, may be fet in 
 the following light : — The mifcry of wicked men, 
 in the future ftate, is frequently faid, in the fcrip- 
 lures, to be everlafling : And this fame word ever- 
 lajiing', which is joined with the mifery of the 
 ivicked, is joined alfo with the bfppifiefs of the 
 righteous ; {o that if the one is endlefs^ the ether mull 
 be fo too : Nay, the righteous and -zvicked are fpoken 
 of in i\\t fame fcntencs^ and it is affirmed of the 
 wickedy in the fame peremptory m.anner, that they 
 fiall go away into everlafting punijhment, as it is of 
 the righteous-, that t\\ey Jhall go away into eternal 
 life : Yea, this fame word, everlajiing, which is ufed 
 to point out the duration of the future torments, is 
 the very word that is often ufed to point out the 
 ftri5i ahfolute eternity of God, Befides all which, 
 the mifery of the 'K;/V;^^i is faid to he for ever \ and, 
 as though this was not fufficiently expreffive of its 
 endlefs continuance^ it is further declared to be/<?r 
 e'-Jtr and ever, the ftrongeil phrafe ufed, in fcrip- 
 ture, to defcribe the proper eternity of the Supreme 
 Being. And further (till, our Saviour, as if it had 
 been his view to put this matter beyond all con- 
 troverfy, has thrice, in the fame difcourfe, m.oft 
 folemnly repeated thofe emphatically ftrong words, 
 with refpe(5l to wicked men, in the coming (late, 
 
 *' WHERE THEIR WORM DIETH NOT, AND THEIR. 
 
 " FIRE IS NOT QUENCHED." Upon which It is 
 
 added, In what more clear and decifive language, 
 
 could the endlefs never-ccafing mifery of the wicked 
 
 S have 
 
258 Ohje&ions anfwered. 
 
 have been revealed ? No words could have been 
 chofen, the language in which the fcriptures were 
 wrote afford none, that more eafily, obvioufly, and 
 flrongly, convey this idea. 
 
 This is the ohjeElion^ and, I think, in \i% full force, 
 I know of nothing that has been offered, in defence 
 of the do6lrine of endlefs mifery^ that is left out of 
 the plea, as above fummariiy dated. If I could 
 make it ftronger, I would willingly do fo. 
 
 It begins. The puniiliment of wicked men is 
 frequently faid, in the fcriptures, to be eternal^ or 
 everlafting. The texts in proof of this are as 
 follow : Matt, xviii. 8, " vVherefore, if thy hand 
 " or foot offend thee, cut them off, and caft them 
 *' from thee : It is better for thee to enter into 
 *' life halt, or maimed, rather than having two 
 ** hands, or two feet, to be caft into everlasting 
 *' fire." — XXV. 41, *' Then Ihall he fay to them 
 " on the left hand. Depart from me, ye curfed, 
 " into EVERLASTING fii'c, prepared for the Devil 
 ** and his angels." — 46th verfe, " And thefe (bail 
 *' go away into everlasting puniihment."— 
 Mark iii. 29, " But he that blafphemeth againft 
 *' the Holy Ghoft,— is in danger of eternal 
 *^ damnation."— 2 ThefT. i. 9, " Who Dial! be 
 " punilhed with, everlasting deftrudion from 
 ** the prefence of the Lord, and the glory of his 
 ** power.'* 
 
 Thefe five texts are the only ones, in all the 
 New Teftament, in which the mifery of the wicked 
 Is faid to be eternah or everhjling •, unlefs we take 
 
 in 
 
Objections anfwered. 259 
 
 in thofe words of Jude, which arc fpoken of the 
 Sodomites, " fuffering the vengeance of eternal 
 *' fire." Upon which I cannot help making a paufe, 
 before I proceed, to exprefs my furprize to find the 
 facred writers fo very fparing in their ufe of this 
 word eternalj or everlafii^igy as referring to the 
 future torments^ upon which fuch vafi: ftrefs is laid 
 in the preient controverfy. I mud needs fay, I 
 expedled, when I began to colledl this part of the 
 evidence, to fet before the reader's view, to have 
 feen the word everhfling^ connected with the mifcry 
 of the next jl ate ^ at lead, in every hook of-the New 
 Teftatnent, if not feveral times in each book : 
 Whereas, upon examination, it appears, that by far 
 the greater part of the infpired writers have never 
 .ufed this word, nor any other word allied to it in 
 fenfe and meaning, with reference to the future 
 torments ; while thofe who have ufed it, have very 
 rarely done fo. It is ufed but thrice by the evan- 
 gelift Matthew •, but once by the evangelifl: Mark, 
 and this in 2, fpecial cafe only ; and but once likewife 
 by the apoftle Paul, though his epiftles make fo 
 confiderable a part of the New Teftament. It is 
 not to be met with in the gofpels either of Luke 
 or John ; nor in either of the three epiftles of 
 John. It no where occurs in the epiftles of Peter 
 or James. And, what is very remarkable, in the 
 account we have of the preaching of the apoftles, 
 from place to place, throughout the world, in the 
 book of Ads, there is a total filence as to their ever 
 having ufed this word, or any other importing 
 
 S 2 that 
 
26o OhjeElions anfwered. 
 
 that the mifery of the wicked is endlefs and never' 
 cea/ing. All which is very extraordinary, if this is 
 a dodrine of Chriftianity, For, if it really be fo, 
 it is a mofl important one J and it cannot eafily 
 be accounted for, that the infpired writers fhould 
 have fo ftrangely pafTed it over with i\egle6t. It 
 might rather have been expedlcd, that they fhould 
 perpetually have infifted on it, and with great fo- 
 lemnity too, and in a great variety of plain and in- 
 difputable terms. And their omifiions, upon this 
 head, are a ftrong prefumptive argument, that 
 they knew nothing of this dodlrine, which has 
 been fo vehemently pleaded for in thefe latter 
 days. — ^But to return to a more diredl and parti- 
 cular anfwer to the ohje^ion^ in this branch of it. 
 And, 
 
 I. It is obvious to remark, that the fubftantive 
 aiwi^, and its derivative ixiccviog, commonly tranf- 
 lated in the Bible eternity^ eternal^ or everlajiing^ 
 MAY fignify a limited duration. None acquainted 
 with Greek will dtny this, becaufe they know, or 
 eafily may know whenever they pleafe, that they 
 are in fact often ufed in this fenfe, in the facred 
 writings. We (liall have occafion prefently to pro- 
 duce a large number of initances to this purpofe. 
 
 Now, from this remark only, had we nothing 
 further to fay, it follows, that the preceding evi- 
 dence, in favour of univerfal falvation^ remains 
 ftrong and valid, notwithftanding tht fcripture has 
 joined the word aiuvio?, tranflated everlafting^ with 
 the punijhment of wicked men, in the future world ; 
 
 becaufe 
 
I 
 
 ObjeBions a?ifwered. 261 
 
 becaufe this fame word is often nfed, in the f rip- 
 tiire itfelf^ to fignify a limited dur?ii\on only. 
 Though therefore it is true, not only that the 
 wicked fhall be bid, at the great day, to depart 
 awayy £•.<; to ttu^ to aiwvtci', inlo everlnjling fire ; but 
 that they fhall likewife, in confequence of this 
 doom, a6l;jally go azvay^ 5»? x.cAao-ji/ ol\'^v\q\i^ into 
 '"everlafting punijhraent : Yet it may notwithftand- 
 ing be as true, that they fhall, in the final ifTue of 
 things, be made happy \ becaufe the fcriptures have 
 informed us, in numerous places, that the word 
 cciu)viog MAY mean nothing more than a limited 
 period of duration. All I infifl upon, in confequence 
 of the prefent remark, is only this, that the word 
 aja)i/io,% tra.n([zted everlajiifig, may Cignify a period 
 of time only •, and if it may be conftrued in this 
 fenfe, there is not the fliadow of an interference be- 
 tween its connexion with the ///;?/^/^^f;;^;// of wicked 
 men, and their being finally faved. In order to 
 deflroy the above evidence, in a way of flrid: and 
 conclufive reafoning from this word, it muft be 
 Hiown, that it not only means an endlefs duration^ 
 but that it cannot be underftood in any other fenfe; 
 which every one, that knows any thing of Greek, 
 knows to be befide the truth of fa6l. 
 
 II. Thefe words, a<wv and aia;v<o?, are evidently 
 more loofe and general in their meaning, than the 
 Englifh words eternity^ everlafting^ by which they 
 are commonly rendered in our Bibles. If it were 
 not fo, how comes it to pafs, that ot.\m and oci'^nQ<i 
 will not always b;^ar being tranflated eternilyy ever- 
 S I lajlrng? 
 
262 ObjeBions anjwered. 
 
 lofting? It would many times found quite harfh to 
 call that, in Englifh, eternal or everlafting^ which 
 yet, with great propriety, might have the word 
 atoji'to? joined with it. A few examples will bring 
 this down to the lowed underftanding. Before the 
 eternal times is an impropriety in Englifh ; but tt^o 
 ^^ovicv oiiuivicov is a beautiful Greek phrafe, putting 
 us upon looking back beyond /ijr^/^^r ages: The 
 tranQators of the New Teftament have accordingly 
 rendered it, Tit. i. 2, Before the world began. So 
 when our Saviour fays to his apoftles, and to their 
 fucceffors, for their encouragement in their work, 
 *' Lo, I am with you alway," cw? r-n; a-wTsXuxi tov 
 aiooi/og-, the words are a promife very eafily and 
 naturally alTuring them of his prefence, through 
 the whole time of the gofpeUdifpenfation, It is ac- 
 cordingly rendered, in our Bibles, " even to the 
 *' end of the world :" But the natural force of the 
 Englifli word eternal would not allow of its being 
 tranflated, to the end of eternity. In like manner, 
 when the evangelift Luke fpeaks of holy prophets 
 which have been o-tt' camoqy it is tranflated, y?;/^^ the 
 world began : But the rendering would have been 
 uncouth, from eternity ; nor would fuch a tranfla- 
 tion have conveyed a right meaning. In fine, for 
 I would not needlefsly multiply inftances, when 
 the apoftle Paul fpeaks of the my fiery which hath 
 been hid^ octto rcov aiwi/wv, it is very juitly tranflat- 
 ed, from ages that are faffed: But it would have 
 been a folecifm in Englifli to have faid, from pafi 
 eternities. 
 
 I may 
 
Objediions anfwered. 263 
 
 I may not impertinently remark yet further here, 
 the particles, in and i-nny-nvx^ are fometimes add- 
 ed, in the Septuagint verfion of the Old Tefta- 
 ment, to the word ^s^twi/, to give it the greater em- 
 phafis: Whereas, fhould we add the Englifh 
 words, anfwerable to thofe Greek particles, to the 
 term eternity^ it would make evident nonfenfe ; as 
 any one may readily perceive upon trial. Thus, 
 Exod. XV. 18, ^he Lord JJo all reigns tqv ohojvx, xat 
 f-TT atwv^, Koci sri, for ever and ever^ and farther* 
 — Dan. xii. 3, 'They fhall fhine as the JiarSy nq rov 
 aiojvcc, y.oci in, for ever and farther, — Mic. iv. 5, 
 We will walk in the name of the Lord our 
 Gody ft? Toi/ aiCc'i/of, y.cci ETTETisivXy for cver and be- 
 yond it» 
 
 The plain truth is, thefe Greek words have a 
 different natural force from the Engliili ones, by 
 which they are moltly rendered in the Bible •, be- 
 ing more loofe in their meaning, and not fo cer- 
 tainly fignifying duration without bounds or limits : 
 Otherwife they might, without impropriety in 
 fenfe, or indeed any harlhnefs in found, be always 
 tranflated by them, or ufed with like additions to 
 them ; which we have feen they cannot. 
 
 Now, from this remark, it is obvious, that the 
 facred writers ought not to be looked upon as 
 having in their minds the fame idea^ when they 
 apply the words oni^v and oacouioi; to the future 
 torments^ pointing out their continuance, which 
 we are naturally led to have, when we conned: 
 with them the words eternity^ everlafling, Thofe 
 S 4 acquainted 
 
264 Object mis anfwered. 
 
 acquainted with the Engiifli language only, having 
 been ufed, from their childhood, to join the idea 
 of endkfs duration with the words eternity^ everlaft- 
 ing^ are apt at once to put this fenfe upon them, 
 whenever they fee them, in the fcriptures, applied 
 to the hereafter punijbment of the wicked. But it 
 is far from being certain, or indeed fo much as 
 probable, that the /acred penmen were, in the fame 
 manner, ready, when they ufed the original words, 
 to which thefe tranjlated ones are made to an- 
 fwer, to underfland them in the fame fenfe. We 
 have feen they have a different force ; and confe- 
 quently the idea they applied to them muft be 
 -proportionahly different^ that is, not fo determi- 
 nately fignificative of continuance beyond all hounds 
 cr limits. 
 
 III. The word ajwv, and its derivative atwvtof, 
 are fo far from being confined in their meaning to 
 endkfs duration^ that they really fignify nothing 
 more than an age^ difpenfation^ period of continuance^ 
 either longer or ihorter. It is certain, this is the 
 fenfe in which they are commonly, if not always, 
 ufed in the facred pages. The texts in proof of 
 this are almoft numberlefs. I Ihaii mention a 
 few at large, and more generally point out a 
 great many more, both in the Septuagint tranfla- 
 tion of the Old Teflament, and in the v/ritings 
 of the New. 
 
 To begin with the Old Teflament.— -Gen. vi. 4. 
 
 *' There were giants in the earth in thofe days,-^ 
 
 *' mighty men which were of old, «7r' ^iwvo?."^^ 
 
 9 ix. I2« 
 
ObjeBlons anfwered. 265 
 
 ix. 12. " This (the rainbow) is the token of 
 ^' the covenant which I make between me and 
 ^' thee, and every living creature, for perpetual ge- 
 " nerations, t^q yii/sx; ajwvtou?.*' — 16. '^ And the bow 
 " fhall be in the cloud, and I will look upon it, 
 " that I may remember the everlalling covenant, 
 ^' ^kxhy.nv aiu)viGp, between God and every living 
 " creature." — xiii. 15, " All the land which 
 *' thou feeft, to thee will I give it, and to thy feed 
 '* for ever, soo; ocwj^yoq" — xvii. 8. *' I will give 
 " unto thee, and unto thy feed, — all the land of 
 " Canaan for an everlafting pofTefrion, n? y.xTccffyj- 
 " civ on(£\iio\^" — 13. *' He that is born in thy houfe 
 " — muft needs be eircumcifed, — and my covenant 
 " fhall be in your flelh for an everlafting cove- 
 " nant, nq J'taOrixTii/ ociui/igv." — 'Exod. xii. 14. " And 
 " you (hall keep it (the pafTover) throughout your 
 *' generations : You fhall keep it a feaft by an or- 
 " dinance for ever, voija^qv ato-'viov." — 24. '' x'\nd ye 
 '* fhall obferve this thing (the pafTover) for an or- 
 " dinance to thee, and to thy fons, for ever, i(^<; 
 " ai:o^o?." — Numb. XXV. 13. " And he (Phinehas) 
 " fhall have it, and his feed after him, even the 
 " covenant of an everlafting priefthood, J'ia0-/;x*j 
 " ii^x7six<; ajwvia." In like manner, the Jewifh 
 ftatutes and ordinances are ftiled atwuoj, and faid 
 to be fK TCI/ ajwi/a, in the following places, as 
 
 they are enumerated by Mr. Whifton. Exod. 
 
 xxvii. 2 1. — xxviij. 43. — xxix. 28. — xxx. 21. 
 
 ! — xxxi. 16. Levit. vi. 18, 22. — vii. 24, 
 
 26. — X. 15. — xvi. 29, 31. — xvii. 7.— xxiii. 14, 
 
266 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 31, 41. — xxlv. 3, 8, 9. Numb. x. 8.— xv. 15. 
 
 — xviii. 8, 19, 24. — xix. 10. — xxv. 13. Upon 
 which he adds, with great truth and proprie- 
 ty, * There is no end of citing more ordinances^ 
 
 * ox ftatutes^ ox grants-, which were to be eternal^ or 
 ' everlafting^ or to laftfor ever^ in our modern way of 
 ' interpreting thofe Greek words : Which yet were 
 
 * to laft no longer, at the utmoft, than the Mofaic 
 
 * occonomy itfelf •, and have many, very many, of 
 
 * them ceafed, or at lead have been intermitted 
 ' above fixteen hundred years together *.' 
 
 And the fame ufe of thefe words is retained in 
 the New Teftament y as may be feen by the fol- 
 lowing texts. — Matt, xxviii. 20. " Lo, I am with 
 *' you alway, even to the end of the world," tou 
 €iimog^ the gofpel age, or difpcnfation. — Luke xvi. 8. 
 *' The children of this world," tou ocic^^yog Tourau, of 
 this age-i " are wifer in their generation, than the 
 *' children of light." — xx. 34. " The children of 
 " this world," tou axmoz toutou, of this age^ *' marry, 
 *' and are given in marriage." — i Cor. i. 20. 
 *' Where is the wife ? Where is the fcribe ? Where 
 *' is the difputer of this world," tou aiwvo? toutou, 
 of this age P — x. 11. " All thefe things happened 
 *' unto them for enfamples, and they are written 
 *' for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the 
 " world," Tcov aicomv, of the ages-, *' are come." 
 Gal. i. 4. " Who gave himfelf for our fins, that 
 ♦' he might deliver us from this prefentevil world," 
 
 * Eternity of Hell Torments confidered, page «!• 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 267 
 
 rjc Tou zyscrurog aimog ttove^ov, from this prefent 
 evil age. — Eph. ii. 7. " That he might fhew in 
 *' ages to come, iv rot^ onu(ri £7r£^^oy.£uoigy *' the ex- 
 *' ceeding riches of his grace." — iii. 9. " And to 
 '' make all men fee what is the fellowfhip of the 
 " myftery, which from the beginning of the 
 " world," a^TTo Twi/ aiojvwv, from agesy " hath been 
 " hid in God."— Col. 1. 26. '* The myftery which 
 '' hath been hid," aro rw^ atwj/wv, " from ages, 
 " and generations." — But I am weary of citing 
 particularly any more texts, and (hall content my- 
 felf with defiring the reader to turn to the follov/- 
 ing ones, as they are to be feen in the Greek 
 Teftament. — Matt. xii. 32. — xiii.22, 39,40, 49. — 
 xxiv. 3.— Markiv. 19. — Luke i. ^^. — xviii. 30. — 
 John viii. 35. — ix. 32. — Adls iii. 2 1. — Rom. xii. 2. 
 — xvi. 25. — I Cor. ii. 6, 7, 8. — iii. 18. — viii. 13. 
 — 2 Cor. iv. 4. — Eph. i. 21. — i Tim. vi. 17. — 
 2 Tim. iv. 10. — Tit. ii. 12. — Heb. i. 2. — iv. 26, 
 with feveral others, which I may have pafled 
 over ; for I pretend not to have exhibited a com- 
 plete lift. 
 
 From this frequent, and almoft perpetual, ufe 
 of the words atai/ and aiuviog, it is, I think, beyond 
 all reafonable difpute, evident, that their proper 
 meaningy at leaft, as ufed in the facred writings, is 
 an age^ ceconomy^ or period of duration^ whether long 
 ox fljort. 
 
 It will, perhaps, be faid here, the words aiwv 
 and atw;/iof, whatever they may be fuppofed to 
 fignify in ftri^l propriety of fpeech, are certainly 
 
 ufed, 
 
268 Obje5ltons aiifwered. 
 
 iifed, in fcripture, to mean fometlmes duration 
 WITHOUT hounds y as well as with. To which I 
 anfwer, As gck^^v properly fignifies an age^ or period 
 of duration^ the circumftance of longer or Jloorter^ 
 definite or indefinite^ does not depend on the nature 
 of the word^ but other things^ which fhould be 
 confidered, in order to afcertain its precife fenfe in 
 this refpe^l. From whence I freely aiiow the 
 following obfervation to be a juft and true one^ 
 namely, 
 
 That iht precife duration:, intended by the words 
 (Xim and aicoi/tof, in any particular place, cannotj 
 with certainty, be colledted from the force of the 
 words, in themfelves fimply confidered j but mufl 
 be determined, either by the nature of the thing 
 fpoken of, or other pafiages of fcripture that ex- 
 plain it. As, to illuilrate this in a few inftances, 
 when it is faid of God^ as in Rom. xvi. 26, that 
 he is Ofo? ccimioq^ we cannot argue that his duration 
 is boundlefs and unlimited^ merely becaufe this epitbeit 
 is applied to him : But yet, we may reafonably 
 conftrue it in this (tnft^, becaufe he is previoufiy 
 known to be 2i.fuhje5i capable of this kind of du- 
 ration, and the word aiwi/ allows of the conftruc- 
 tion, as it naturally fignifies an age, or period of 
 duration in general, leaving the circumftance of 
 longer oxfhorter^ definite or indefinite^ to be fettled by 
 the nature of the fubjedt with which it is conned- 
 cd. In like manner, when it is faid of the holy pro- 
 phets, that they have been ocrr'atooi^og -, we do not inter- 
 pret this of a duration within fuch and fuch certain 
 
 hounds^ 
 
ObjeBions aufwered* 269 
 
 hcunds^ merely from the force of the ivord^ but 
 from the nature of the fubje5i to which it is re- 
 lated. And the fame may be faid, with refpecl to 
 the happinefs of the righteous^ and the mifdry of the 
 wicked; they can neither of them be certainly 
 fixed to this or that precife duration^ whether 
 longer ox floor ter^ limited or iirdimited^ merely from 
 the joining the word atwi/io? with them \ becaufe 
 this word properly fignifies a period of duration^ 
 without taking into its meaning, its precife lengthy 
 or determining whether it is bounded^ or unbounded,, 
 In order therefore to fix the true duration in- 
 tended by this epithet^ thus applied, we mull 
 recur to the jiature of the fuhjcol^ or what may be 
 faid with reference to it in other texts \ nor can 
 it, with any manner of certainty, be done in any 
 other way : Though I would obferve here, and 
 the obfervation may be worthy of fpecial notice ; 
 if we will confine ourfelves to the mere force of 
 the isjord itfelf it more probably nieans a limited^ 
 than an endlefs^ duration ; and for this very good 
 reafon, becaufe this is, by far, the mofl frequent 
 ufe of it in the facred writings -, as any one may 
 foon fatisfy himfelf by the help of -a Greek Con- 
 cordance. 
 
 And from hence it appears, at once, that the 
 fcripture account of the future mifery as everlafltjig^ 
 is no ways inconfiftent with the foregoing fcheme 
 oi univerfal falvation : Nay, from the proof above 
 offered, that mankind univerfally fliall be faved^ 
 we are clearly and certainly taught how to under- 
 Hand 
 
270 OhjeBions anfwered. 
 
 Hand the word atwvto?, when joined with iht future 
 mifery, namely, as meaning, not an unlimited^ buc 
 limited duration. For, as this word is evidently 
 found, in fa6l, to be capable of being underftood 
 in either of thefe fenfes, it is nov/ put out of all 
 doubt, in which of them it is to be underftood, 
 namely, in the limited fenfe. To illuftrate this 
 by an example. It is Taid of Chrift, Dan. vii. 
 14, that " his dominion is an everlafting do- 
 " minion-," and again, Mic. iv. 7, that " he 
 *^ fhall reign in Mount Zion from henceforth 
 " even for ever." The words, caooviog, and fi? 
 rov ocicavoc, in the Septuagint, in themfelves fimply 
 confidered, do not abfolutely determine, whe- 
 ther the reign of Chrift fhall be endlefs^ or for a 
 period^ or difpenfatton only : But when an infpired 
 apoftle exprefsly declares, that, after the redudlion 
 of all enemies, Chrift " (hall deliver up the king- 
 " dom to the Father, and be himfelf fubjed to 
 *' him, that God may be all in all," the precife 
 meaning of thefe words is now fixed ^^ and we are 
 no longer at a lofs to fay, that they are to be un- 
 derftood of a //m//^i duration, though a long one. 
 So, when it is affirmed of the wicked, that they' 
 jhall go away^ sk y.oXo(,(nv aiuviov, into everlafting pu- 
 nijhment^ the certain meaning of this word, ixiu}viov^ 
 everlafting^ is clearly and fully fettled by the above 
 proof of the final fahation of all men. We are no 
 longer left in fufpenfe, but may affuredly fay, it is 
 to be underftood in the limited fenfe. 
 
 But, to give the prefent objedlion the utmoft 
 
 pofTiblc 
 
OhjeBio?is anfwered* tyi 
 
 poiTible advantage, I will fiippofe, what has never 
 yet been proved, nor can be proved, viz* that the 
 word ociuinoq properly and ftri5lly fignifies duration 
 without end\ and that, whenever it is iifed in the 
 limited fenfe, it is in a lax and lefs proper way of 
 fpeaking. And, even upon this large fuppofition, 
 the above evidence, in favour oi univerfal fahation^ 
 is not overthrown. For, as the fcripture itfelf has 
 taught us this lax and lefs proper fenfe of the word, 
 by ufing it in this fenfe, and more frequently too 
 than in its fuppofcd proper one, it cannot be 
 thought hard, or unreafonable, to put this fenfe 
 upon it, when plain proof is offered, from the 
 fcriptures themfelves, that men fhall be univerfally 
 faved at laft. So that if the proof we have c^iven 
 of the doctrine of univerfal falvation is good, in 
 itfelf, it remains good, notwithftanding this chjec- 
 tion •, becaufe the future mifery, the thing ohjeHed^ 
 is eafily capable, upon this ftrongeft fuppofition, 
 of being reconciled with it. 
 
 I have now faid enough to free the foregoino- 
 difcourfe from any difficulty, arifing from the con- 
 nexion of the word aicouto;, tranflated everlaftingy 
 with the mifery of wicked men in the future (late ; 
 and might therefore content myfelf without adding 
 any thing further. Bur, as the do6lrine oi endlefs 
 torments is ftrenuoufly pleaded for by a great many, 
 and reprefented as an effential truth of the Ckriftian 
 revelation, while yet, in my opinion, it has no real 
 foundation in the facred books of the New Tefta- 
 7nentj I fhall, though I do not think it needful, in 
 10 vindication 
 
272 Objections anfwereds 
 
 vindication of the preceding fyftem, go on^ and 
 fay, 
 
 IV. It is fufficiently evident, even from the very 
 texts that are brought to prove xht ftri5l eternity of 
 hell torments^ that they contain no fuch doctrine ; 
 and much more is this evident from other texts 
 which fpeak of the fame torments. 
 
 If we attend to the produced icxts^ we fhall find, 
 that the exiftence of wicked men in mifery without end 
 is rather a confequence deduced from, than the thing 
 itfelf 2,^rmtd in, them. For, let it be obferved, 
 in two of the above five texts [Matt, xviii. 8. and 
 XXV. 41.] it is only faid of the fire wherewith the 
 wicked fhall be punifhed, that it is everlafting, 
 And ' could it be proved, (as a late valuable 
 
 * writer expreffes it *) that the/r^ itfelf will be ab- 
 
 * fokuely without end., it will not neceffarily follow 
 
 * from thence, that every individual fubje£l^ which 
 ' is cad into it, mud be fo too : Becauie God may 
 
 * either think fit to continue i\{\sfire in being, as a 
 
 * perpetual monument of his juflice; or, becaufe, 
 ' in fo large a fyflem of rational beings as the 
 
 * univerfe contamsy there may be, as well \n future 
 ' ages, as in the prefent^ beings that abufe their 
 ' moral agency, and become proper fubje6ts to be 
 ' punifhed in it, I fay, either of thefe propo- 
 
 * fitions may be true, and, as fuch, fufficiently 
 
 * account for this phrafeology (if underftood in 
 
 * its utmofl rigour), and yet no neceffity of infer* 
 
 Mr. Nichol Scot. 
 
 c 
 
 rinor, 
 
Ohje5lions anfwered^ 273 
 
 r*? ring,, that every individual fuhje5l, that is cafl 
 ^ into this fire, fhall be continued alive in it without 
 * ^«i.'— But not to infill upon this, which yet I 
 think well worthy of notice. 
 
 It may be of more importance to remark, that 
 there is no good reafoo to fuppofc, th;u the word 
 aiwvioj/, cverlafling^ here joined with the fire of hell^ 
 is to be underftood, as pointing out a ftridly and 
 abfolutely endlefs duration. And, I believe, no- 
 thing but mere cudom prevents our perceivino-, 
 at once, the abfurdity of fuch an interpretation. 
 No one ever imagined himfelf obliged to think, 
 that this earth will continue, ftridlly fpeakinj?, 
 to all eternity^ becaufe it is faid, in fcripture, 
 to abide for ever^ No one ever fuppofed the hills 
 and mountains to be abfolutely endkfs in duration, 
 becaufe the term everlafling^ is applied to them by 
 the iacred writers. And, in fine, no one ever 
 imagined there had been an eternal Jucceffion of 
 prophets^ becaufe the fcripture fpeaks of prophets % 
 a-nr' cctcavog^ from eternity. Common reafon, in thefe 
 cafes, readily underftands the word eternal in the 
 limited fenfe. And the famie reafon, one would 
 think, if not under fome previous bias, would as 
 readily underftand th^ fame ii'ord^ in iht fame fenfe y 
 in the prefent cafe. For it is, perhaps, as great 
 an abfurdity to fuppofe fire to be ftri^lly and ab- 
 folutely eternal, as to fuppofe the earth, or mountains^ 
 or prophets in fucceffion, to be fo. hire, as fuch, 
 naturally tends to an end, and will, in time, adlually 
 come to an endy and it is impofTible, according to 
 
 T \hs 
 
274 Objedliojis anfwered^ 
 
 the eflabliflied laws of nature, but that it fhould 
 certainly do fo. The nature of the fuhje£i there- 
 fore obliges us to put a limitation on the word 
 ftjcoi/iov, everlaftingt when joined with fire. And 
 this is fo often the fenfe of this fame wordy in like 
 cafes, even in the fcriptures themfelves, that it is 
 ftrange any fhould be at a lofs in this matter. A 
 rejirained interpretation of the word^ when conne6l- 
 cd with fire^ is certainly the mod natural, as well 
 as rational. And I fee not but an age^ difpenfation^ 
 or period^ for the continuance of this fire^ will very 
 well anfwer the full import of the word atwviov, 
 everlajiing ; efpecially, if we fuppofe this age to 
 laji^ till ihtfire has accomplifhed the end for which 
 it was enkindled. And we may the rather reft 
 fatisfied with this interpretation, which reafon fug* 
 gefts, by calling to mind the language of fcrip- 
 ture, with reference to the cities of Sodom and 
 Gomorrah, which is, that " they are fet forth for an 
 ** example, fufferirfg the vengeance of eternal fire.'* 
 Surely, we have no need, in order to do jufticeto 
 the fcripture, to fuppofe, that thofe cities are now 
 in flames, and will be fo to all eternity. The words, 
 interpreted as they eafily and naturally may be, 
 import no more than this, that this fire lafted^ till 
 it had accom,pii(hed the defign of Heaven in the de- 
 ftruEiion of thofe cities ^ for a ftanding public example 
 cf the divine vengeance to after ages. And the fire 
 oi hell is doubtlefs called everlafting for the like 
 reafon. 
 
 And if by to ttu^ to oL^mm^ everlafting fire y we 
 
 are 
 
Objedlions anfwered* 275 
 
 are to nnderftand a fire that will laft, not always^ 
 but an age^ or difpenfation^ there is no difficulty in 
 fixing the meaning of the fame word aiwuo?, ever- 
 lafting^ in the other three texts. In that [Matt: 
 XXV. 46.] where the phrafe is everlafting punijhment^ 
 it is evident, the epithet everlafting^ is joined with 
 ■punijhment on account of the /r^ that will occafion 
 it. For the wicked's going into this everlafting 
 punifiiment is exprefsly mentioned as the execution 
 of the fentence in the foregoing words, " Depart, ye 
 " curfed, into everlafling fire." Confequently, 
 the duration of this punifliment cannot be longer 
 than the duration of the fire that caufes it. If that^ 
 from the nature of the things muft have a limited 
 fenfe put upon it, the fame limitation muH be put 
 alfo upon the punijhment that is the effe^ of it. So, 
 in Mark iii. 29, where they who blafpheme againft 
 the Holy Ghoft are faid to be in danger, atwi/iou 
 x^«(r£wf, of eternal judgment^ it is evident this judg- 
 ment is called eternal, becaufe the effc^ of it will 
 be their departing into eternal or everlafling fire '^ 
 for that is the judicial fentence itfelf, as we have 
 feen. Matt. xxv. 41. In like manner, when the apof- 
 tle Paul, in the laft of thofe texts, fpeaks of " ever- 
 ** lading deftru6lion from theprefenceof theLord,'* 
 2 Their, i. 9 •, he very evidently ufes this term ever- 
 lafting, on account of the fire that is to bring on 
 this deftrudion. The connexion of the words 
 puts this beyond all difpute. It is thus : " When 
 •' the Lord Jefus fhall be revealed from heaven, 
 *' with his migh y angels, in flaming fire, 
 
 T 2 '' taking 
 
276 Objections anfwered. 
 
 *' taking vengeance on them that know not God, 
 " and that obey not the gofpel of our Lord Jefus 
 " Chrift, who fhali be punifhed with everlast- 
 *• iNG DESTRUCTION." Their deilrudion is 
 plainly fpoken of as everlafting^ becaufe it will be 
 the efFed of flaming fire, which fire is called 
 by our Saviour himfelf ^I'^r/^y//;/^, in the very fen- 
 tence which dooms wicked men to this deftrudion. 
 So that the true fenfe of the word everlafting^ in 
 theie three laft texts^ appears to be the fame with 
 that in which it is ufcd in the two former \ where, 
 being joined with fire^ the nature of the fuhje5l 
 obvioufly fixes it, as we have feen, to a limited 
 duration only. 
 
 I may pertinently add to what has been faid 
 above, that /r^, being a deftru6live element, pow- 
 erfully tending, according to the ftated laws of 
 nature, to bring on a folution of continuity in thofe 
 bodies that are caft into it \ this alone, one would 
 think, might be fufficient to fatisfy a confiderate 
 reader, that wicked men would not fufter, in the 
 never-ceafing fenle. by the fire that is called everlaft- 
 ing. We know of no lubilances that will endure 
 the force of fire v/ithout diffolutioHy in time. And 
 z^fire is that by which, in thofe texts ^ the punifh- 
 ment of the wicked is faid to be effedlcd, the nature 
 of the fuhje5f cbviouily, and, I think, neceifarily, 
 leads us to conceive of this punifhment as ever- 
 lafting^ not in the fenfe in which the fcripture fays 
 that God is everlafting ; but in the fenfe in which 
 it fays the hills are everlafting^ and the prophets have 
 
 heen 
 
OhjeBions anfwered, 2jy 
 
 leen for everlafibig^ that is, for a limited duration 
 only. It ihould leem evident, were we confined 
 to thefe texts alone, that there is enough con- 
 tained in thern clearly and fully to fatisfy an im- 
 partial attentive reader, that there is no good 
 reafon to think, either that the fire of hell is end- 
 lefs, or that the mifery of the wicked there will be 
 fo. 
 
 But there will not be left much room for dif- 
 pute, upon, this .head, if we go on, and confidef 
 the ct/jer texts which fpe.ak of the fiiture mifery. 
 And here it ought to be particularly remembered, 
 it is not laid in any of them, either that the wicked 
 
 (hall ALWAYS LIVE IN TORMENT WITHOUT DYING ', 
 
 or that their bodies^ at the refurre^iont Ihall be 
 
 IMMORTAL, Qf INCORRUPTIBLE, Ot INDISSOLUBLE: 
 
 No i but, on the contrary, it is exprefsiy declared, 
 in thele texts, that the wicked Jhail reap corrup- 
 tion (a) V that they Jball he destroyed (b) ; that 
 they Jhall perish {c} •, that they ihall undergo 
 DEATH (d) : And this deaths which they fhall fuf- 
 fer, is faid tQ be the second death (e). And it 
 is remarkable, this fecond death is fpoken of as 
 that, which fhall be effcdled by the fire of helL 
 Hence the fccoud deaths which wicked men fhall 
 
 (a) Gal. vi. 8. (b) Matt. vii. 13.-- x. c8.— 2 Thef. 
 i. 9. — I Tim. vi. 9 — James iv. 12. — 2 Pet. iii, 16. 
 (c) John X. 2S. — Luke xiii. 3, 5. — 1 Cor. i. 18. — 2 Cor. 
 ii. 15. — 2 Thef. il. 10. — 2 Tet. iii. 9. (d) John viii. 51. 
 ^— Rom. vi. 21, 23. — viii. 13. — 2 Cor. ii. 16. — i John iii, 14. 
 r-v. 16. (ej Rev. ii. II. — xk, 14. — xxi. 2, 
 
 T 3 paf5 
 
278 Objedlions anfw&red. 
 
 pafs through, and their being caji into the lake of 
 fire, mean, in the hook of the Revelation of John, 
 precifely one and the fame thing ; as may be feen 
 in the 20th chapter. Accordingly, in conformity 
 to this reprefentation of their dyings and this by 
 fire^ they are often compared, not to things (if 
 any fuch there be) which will bear the a6lion of 
 fire^ without being confumed ; but to chaff, and 
 
 TARES, and WITHERED BRANCHES (a)^ which, 
 
 when caft into the fire, muft, without a continued 
 miracle, be defiroyed. And in allufion, doubtlefs, 
 to this idea of the fire of helh God is called, not a 
 perpetual tormenting^ but confur/iing, fire (b). And 
 the defiru5lion of wicked men is connedted, by 
 the apoftie Paul, with Chrifl's appearing i«^.^wi;;^ 
 fire to take vengeance on them (c). This deftruc- 
 tion, it is true, is called an everlafting defiruElion \ 
 but for this reafon, as has been faid, becaufe it will 
 be effected by j^r^ that will laft an age^ or difpenfa- 
 iion^ during which period it fhall certainly and 
 fully be accomplifhcd. 
 
 It cannot, perhaps, be determined, with any 
 certainty, whether the fire of hell is to be under- 
 flood literally^ or figuratively \ but whether we take 
 it in the former or latter fenfe, it is plain, from 
 the above texts, that the torments fignified thereby, 
 inftead of rendering wicked men never-ceafingly 
 miferahky will, fooner or later, bring on their dif* 
 
 (a) Matt. in. 12. — xiii. 30, 40, 42. — Luke iii. 17. — John 
 :cv. 6. (bj Heb. xii. 29. (cj 2 Thef. i. 8. 
 
 ' folution. 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 279 
 
 folutloHy deftru5fion^ or death. This is the idea, 
 they very clearly and ftrongly convey to our minds: 
 Which makes it quite eafy to fix the fenfe of the 
 word oc^mio<;^ everlafiing^ when joined with the future 
 mifery -, underftanding by it, not an endlefs^ but a 
 limited^ duration : Which limited fenfe of the word 
 wiij not appear in the lead /trained or forced^ if 
 thefe two undoubted fadls are attended to. Firft^ 
 that this is the very fenfe in which this word is 
 MOST FRECtyENTLY USED throughout the New 
 Teftament. Secondly^ that the texts which join the 
 word atw^iof, everlaftingy with the mifery of the 
 wicked, are very few, in comparifon with thofc 
 which join with it a diffolution^ deftru^ion^ or 
 death. 
 
 Nor need we be at any lofs to know, in general, 
 what is fignifiad by this deftru^ioriy or death, A 
 juft idea of the firft death will lead us into a right 
 conception of the thing meant by the fecond 
 death. 
 
 The jirft death was never intended to put an 
 end to our emftence-t but only its prefent mode^ with 
 all its connexions and dependencies^ The human 
 fyftem is a moft curious piece of divine workman- 
 fhip. It is compounded of a material body^ con- 
 fiding of numberlefs parts, admirably put toge-r 
 ther, and organifed, fo as to be capable of ferving 
 a vaft variety of ufeful purpofes ; and a fpiritual 
 fiihftance^ ov fouU endued with noble powers, the 
 fource of thought, felf-determining, felf-confcious, 
 and fufceptible of pleafure and pain, indefinitely 
 
 T 4 divcrfified. 
 
28o ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 diverfified, both in kind and degree. Between 
 thefe two, though thus different in their natures, 
 the God of heaven has formed a mod intimate re- 
 lation^ or clofe iinicn^ in confequence of which, 
 fuch is their dependence on each other, that the 
 body is a mereufelefs machine-, only as it is 'adluated 
 by xht foul: Neither. can the foul afluare it,: to any 
 of the valuable purpofes of llfej till, by the organs 
 of fenfation, it is furnifhed with the materials of 
 knowledge : Nor, when furniilaed, can it exert it- 
 fcif but by the pody^ as its injlrument. This is our 
 frame. Thus are we conftituted living arrive 
 agents^ and become iTtted'fbr thofe various em- 
 ployments and enjoyments, whether -'^tji/'/y or mem- 
 iaUfecular or religious^ wherein confifts the benefit 
 of life, and in the due proportioning of which lies 
 its perfection and glory in this pi'-efent world, and 
 its preparation for the coming one. • No^, death 
 putsan endy not to the exiftence t\tht\ of our bodies 
 ox fouls-, but to the relation, or union, there is be- 
 tween them, and iht'it- confequent fuhferviency to 
 'each other, and every thing dependent thereon. 
 No more ideas, either pleafurahle or painful, are 
 let into the mind by the bodily fen fes -, neither can 
 the mind itfelf any more exert any of its powers, in 
 the ufual way, in its prefent (late. And there is 
 now, in a word, a total period put to all commu- 
 nication with the world -, infolnuch, that we have 
 no more to do v/ith it, and are no more capable 
 of receiving pleafure, or pain, from it, than if we 
 had never been brought into exiflence. 
 
 Now, 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 281 
 
 Now, this notion of the jirft death will lend ns 
 into juft feiuiments, in the general, concerning the 
 fecond death. It is evident, from the fcriptures, 
 that the refpe5iive fouls of wicked men will, at the. 
 refurrc^ion^ be again related^ or united^ X.Q particular 
 fyftems of matter, fomehow or other adapted, by 
 the vvifdom of God, to render them capable of 
 commtmualion v^iih the 'u^orld they Ihall then be 
 placed in. Ideas will be let into their minds by 
 the mediation of their bodies ; though the manner, 
 to us, at prefent, may be inexplicable. And, in 
 the fame way, they will become fitted iov fenfatiom 
 of pai'fi^ V a illy more various in kind, and greater in 
 degree, than at prefent •, which yet they will be 
 able to endure for a much lortger continuance. But, 
 in time, the torments, they mud fufrer, will end in 
 their death, that is, the diffolution of the union be- 
 tween thdr 'fouls and bodies-, upon which, they 
 ^wili have no more concern with that world, than 
 they have v\?lth ikis upon the coming on of the 
 firf-i death. ■'^' ' 
 
 Should any enquire here, what becomes of 
 wicked men afrer the fecond death ? The anfwer 
 is eafy, upon the foregoing fcheme. They are no 
 more turned out of exiftence, than when they died 
 x.\\t firft death; but ih^'w fouls ^ in God's time, fhall 
 ht united again to their refpedlive bodies: And if, 
 by means of the torments of hell, they have been 
 humbled^ and fo brought mto fubje 51 ion to the go- 
 vernment of God, as that they are meet for his 
 mercy in Jefus Chrift, the bodies they Ihall be re- 
 lated 
 
282 Obje5lions anfwered. 
 
 lated to fhail, by the divine wifdom and power, 
 be fitted for that glorious difpenfatioriy when God 
 Jhall he all in all Or, if any of them fhould be 
 fo fixed in their ohftinacy^ as not to be wrought 
 upon, by the torments of the next ft ate ^ to yield 
 themfelves up to God as his willing fubjetls^ they 
 Ihall again^ in fome other form of exiflence, be put 
 into a ftate o{ fuffering and difcipline^ till, at length, 
 they are, in a wife and rational way, prepared for 
 final and everlafting happinefs* 
 
 But if the foregoing fcheme fliould be found to 
 have no truth in it, and the wicked are fent to hell 
 as fo many alfolute incurables^ the fecond death 
 ought to be confidered as that which will put an 
 end to their exiftence^ both in foul and body^ fo as 
 that they fhall be no more in the creation of 
 God. 
 
 The objection proceeds : — The fame word, ever-^ 
 lafting^ which is joined with the mifery of the 
 wicked^ is joined alfo with the happinefs of the righ- 
 teous •, fo that if the 07U is endlefsy the other muft 
 be fo too : Nay, to fatisfy us of this, it is affirmed 
 of the wicked, " that they (hall go away into ever- 
 " lafting punifhment," in the fam^ text in which 
 it is laid of the righteous, that " they Ihall go into 
 *' everlafting life." 
 
 I anfwer; — If we may fuppofe the foregoing 
 fcheme to have been well fupported, this difficulty 
 is happily and entirely fuperfeded. For, accord- 
 ing to the difcovery there made, the next fiat e will 
 not laft for ever^ either with refped to the righ- 
 
 teousy 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 283 
 
 teous^ or the wicked \ but for an age^ or ages only : 
 Upon which, the difpenfation will come on, when 
 God will be himfclf immediately all in all. See 
 before. 
 
 The righteous^ It is true, will pafs into \}c\\% final 
 difpenfation^ not by dying again^ but probably in 
 Ibme way analogous to that^ in which the be- 
 lievers that are alive on the earth, at Chrifl's fe- 
 cond coming, (hall pafs into the refurre5iion-ftate : 
 Upon which account, their life and happinefs may 
 properly be faid never to have an end. But (till, 
 the next ft ate they will be in, and, I believe, their 
 next mode of exiftence, with all its connexions and 
 dependencies^ will come to 2. period^ and, by a quick 
 and pleafing tranfmutation, be fwallowed up in 
 that grand (economy^ of which God will be immediate 
 head 2Lnd fovereign. So that the whole difficulty, 
 arifing from the application of the word aiw^ioc, 
 everlafting^ to the next ft ate of the wicked, as well 
 as of the righteous, and in the fame verfe too, is 
 entirely fuperfeded ; bccaufe it means the fame 
 thing, with refpe^l to them both, namely, a limited 
 duration only. This I take to be the true, and beft 
 anfwer to this difficulty ; and it abfolutely removes 
 away, even the very foundation upon which it is 
 built. 
 
 But if we fliould fuppofe the foregoing fyftem 
 to have no truth in it, and that the next ftate^ 
 agreeably to the common opinion, is final with 
 refpe6t both to the righteous and the wicked: I 
 fay, if we (hould fuppofe this, it will not follow, 
 1 that 
 
284 QbjeSfions anfwered. 
 
 that the wicked muft be miferahle without end^ be- 
 caule the righteous are thus happy •, though the lame 
 word, aiwi/to?, everlafiing^ is joined both with 
 the puniffjment of the one^ and the hafpinefs of the 
 ether. And for thefe reafons : 
 
 I. There is an obferyable difference between 
 the application of the word ajwi/ioj, everlafiing, to 
 the righteous^ and to the wicked. It is but five 
 times applied to the future Jlate of the wicked 
 throughout the New 'Tejlament : Whereas it is ap^ 
 plied to the future fiat e of the righteous more than 
 forty •,. which I do but mention in tranfitu. It is 
 of more importance to remark here, this wcrd^ 
 when applied to the righteous^ is' mjoiliy joined 
 with the word life, fo as. that, if it is underllood 
 in the endlefs fenfe, we rauil fuppofe they (hall live 
 in happinefs without ever dying again: Whereas 
 this zvord, when applied to the wicked^ is never 
 once connedVed with their life, hut always with 
 thej^r^ they fhall depart into, or with that damna- 
 tion^ punifijmenty or definition, which fhall be ef- 
 fe6led by m.eans of thisj^r^. Now, fhould the fire 
 of hell be everlafiing^ in the never-ceafing fenfe of 
 the word, there is not the fame reafon to fuppofe 
 that the wicked fhall live without end in this fitre^ 
 as that the righteous fhall live without end in hap- 
 finefs\ becaufe the word, everlafiing^ is joined 
 with the LIFE of the righteous^ while it is joined 
 only with ihtfire the wicked fhall go into, or with 
 their punifhment^ or deftru^ion^ that is hereby ef- 
 fedled. And it is a fuppofeable cafe, at leaft, 
 
 that 
 
Objeciions anfwered, 285 
 
 that the/r^ of hell may be endlefs^ and not the life 
 of the wicked. And if this fire may be eudlefs^ 
 while the liii; of ciie wicked is not {o •, their ^^7;/- 
 riation^ fiimjhmenty or deftruulion^ may be called 
 everlajiing^ on ^ccouul oi xhh endlefs j.. , and not 
 with a view to the duration of their life in in. 
 This, I am fure, is a poQible fuppofition •, which 
 is enough to (how, that the ivickcd may not en- 
 dure never-ceafing mlfery^ while the righteous may 
 enjoy never-ending happinefs -, though the fame 
 word, everlafting, is ufed in both their cafes. 
 
 2, There is a very wide difference bttwcen hap- 
 pinefs and mifery^ reward and puniflyment •, which 
 may make it proper to underftand the word ever- 
 lafting in a different fenje with refpedt to thefe dif- 
 ferent fulje^s. Common reafon, as has been ob- 
 ferved, teaches us to explain this term, which is 
 capable of being underdood, either of limited or 
 unlimited duration, by the different natures of the 
 fiuhjeuls to which it is applied. And as ih^fubje5fs^ 
 in the prefent cafe, are widely different, this ought 
 to be the rule of interpretation here ; which, if it 
 is, a different coiiftruftion of the word may reafon- 
 ably be admitted. It perfcdiy falls in with the 
 notions mankind univerfally entertain of the in- 
 finite benevolence of the Deity, to interpret the word 
 everlafting, in \\\t endlefs fcnfe, when joined with 
 a reward, which is the gift of grace •, to be fure, 
 there is nothing in fuch a conftrudion, that carries 
 in it the leafl: repugnancy to the ideas v^g have of 
 the attributes, and government, of God. But will 
 
 any 
 
286 Objecllons anfwered, 
 
 any fay, that there Is the like reafon to nnderftand 
 the word everlajting^ in xhtfamefenfe^ when joined 
 with punijhment, which is God's Jtrange work:, and 
 what he takes no pkafure in? Does the do6lrine 
 of never-ending torments agree fo well with the idea 
 of infinite mercy^ an allowed eflential attribute of 
 the only good God^ as that of never-ending happinefs? 
 Does not the one^ at once, approve itfelf to the 
 univerfal reafon of men, while the other cannot, 
 without great difficulty, if at all, be made to con- 
 fill with it? As theic ftdje^s are thus vaflly dif* 
 ferent in their 'natures^ why fhould not the duration^ 
 fiornified by the term everlafti?2gy be fo too P Why 
 may we not, yea, why ought we not, to //;;;// the 
 word, with refpe(5l to the 07te \ while we extend it, 
 with refpedl to the other^ as far as it will bear. 
 But, 
 
 3. It is moil of all worthy of confideration, that 
 we are naturally and obvioufly led to interpret the 
 word atwviof, everlafting^ when joined with the 
 happinefs of the righteous^ in the endlefs fenfe, from 
 other texts which determine this to be its meaning: 
 Whereas wc have not the like reafon to underftand 
 the fame word in the fame fenfe^ when joined with 
 the mifery of the wicked. The citing here a few 
 texts of fcripture will fully illuftrate the propriety 
 and force of this remark. Lukexx. 56, Ovn ccttq^ 
 
 ^XVEiV in ^vvGiT/lcn *' NEITHER CAN THEY DIE ANY 
 
 *' MORE, for they are equal unto the angels, and 
 *' are the children of God, being the children of 
 '* the refurrc6tion."— I Cor. ix. 25, *' They doit 
 
 "to 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 287 
 
 '' to obtain a corruptible crown ♦, but we, cc(p^ccfo]^^ 
 " AN INCORRUPTIBLE.'* — Chap. XV. 42, " So alfo 
 ** is the refurredion of the dead •, ic is fown in 
 *' corruption, it is raifed, fv ct^^xotnx^ in incor- 
 " ruption." — 52d verfe, " The dead fhall be 
 *' raifed, A(pQafoi, incorruptible." — 53d verfe, 
 *' This corruptible mud put on, oc(p^ao(Tioiv^ incor- 
 " RUPTiONi and this mortal mud put on, a9«- 
 " vao-tav, IMMORTALITY." — 54th vcrfe, " When 
 " this corruptible (hall have put on, a^Oa^o-tav, in- 
 " CORRUPTION ; and this mortal fhall have put on 
 
 *' a0av:K(riav, IMMORTALITY." 1 Thcf. iv. 17, 
 
 ** So (hall we be, TravroTf, ever with the Lord." — 
 2 Tim. i. 10, '' Jefus Chrift, who hath abolifhed 
 •^ death, and brought life and immortality,, 
 *' ^cc'fiv xa» a(p^oc^iTixu, to light, through the gofpel.*' 
 — Heb. xii. 28, " We receiving a kingdom that 
 
 •* CANNOT BE MOVED, cc(rx\iv]ov" 1 Pet. i. 4, 
 
 ** He hath begotten us — to an inheritance, aipOa^- 
 
 *' Tov y.oci a[Aiaplo]f xat ff.iAOCooc^ov^ INCORRUPTIBLE, 
 
 •• uNDEFiLED, and that fadeth not away." 
 —Rev. ii. II, " He that overcometh fliall not be 
 
 *' hurt, VA Tou ^ocvxIq'J ^vSli^O'j of the SECOND DEATH." 
 
 —Chap. xxi. 4, *' God fhall wipe away all tears 
 " from their eyes, and, o ^xvxloq Gvy^ ia]xi, iri^ 
 
 " THERE SHALL BE NO MORE DEATH." 
 
 Now, as the above fcriptures exprefsly afHrm, 
 that the righteous , at the refurreElion^ fhall be made 
 INCORRUPTIBLE, IMMORTAL, and that they shall 
 NOT DIE ANY MORE, v/e are abfolutely obliged (if 
 the next ftate is JinaU the fuppofition I am now 
 
 arguing 
 
288 ObjeB'tGns anfwcred, 
 
 arguing upon), as we would not fet the fcripture 
 at odds with itfelf, to underftand the word o'Accv^oi; 
 everlafting^ when joined with the life of the righteouSi 
 in the endkfs fenfe. And could the like texts be 
 produced, wherein it is affirmed of the wicked^ 
 that they fhall be immortal, or incorp^uptible,- 
 or that they shall not die again, after the 
 general refurreofion, we fhoiild be obliged to put 
 the like endlefs fenfe upon the word evtrlaftingi 
 when joined with the torments theyrnuft fuffcr. 
 But, inftead of their being ever reprefcnted as 
 
 IMMORTAL, or INCORRUPTIBLE, or NOT AGAIN 
 
 SUBJECTED TO DIE, it is moft peremptorily affirmed 
 that they fhall reap corruption, perish, be de- 
 stroyed, and DIE A second time ; which fixes 
 the fenfe of the word everlafting^ when joined with 
 the mifery they fliall be doomed to undergo, limits 
 ing its meaning to an age^ or period of duration 
 only. This I call a decifive anfwer to this branch 
 of the ohje^ion-i upon fuppofition that the next is 
 jhe/;/^/ ftate of men. 
 
 And whereas it is faid, that the f? me ivcrd is 
 ufed, in the fame verfe^ to point out the duration 
 both of the future miferyy and of the future happi- 
 nefs \ and that it would be unreafonable and ab- 
 furd to interpret the /-7w^ word^ in lYiQ fame fen- 
 tcnce^ in two dijferent lenfes : I anfwer, the fad 
 contained in this plea is readily allowed to be true 5 
 for, in Matt. xxv. 46, a^mvo^^ everlafling, is the 
 %vord that is joined both with the ptnifhment of the 
 -jcuked. and with the ha^py life of the righteous. 
 
 But, 
 
abjections anfwered. 289 
 
 But, inftead of its being unreafonahle or ahfurd^ it 
 is higiily fit and proper^ that we Hiould underftand 
 this word as applied to the righteous in one fen fe^ 
 and as applied to the wicked in another \ that is, if 
 the next is tht fifial ftate of men, the fLippofjtion 
 we are now arguing upon. The reafons given in 
 anfwer to the foregoing branch of this ohje5lion 
 are equally pertinent here, and make it necelTary 
 to put a different fenfe upon the word everlafting^ 
 according to the different nature of the fubje^s 
 treated of in this verfe. But I have one thing to 
 offer further, which, if attended to, will, I believe, 
 fufficiently fhew, that it is no fuch abfurdity^ as is 
 pretended, the ohje5fors themfehes being judges, to 
 interpret this fame word differently^ even in the 
 fame fentertce. It is this : 
 
 There are two other fentences, in the New Tef- 
 tament, in each of which this word oamio^, ever- 
 lajiingy is twice ufed^ but, in the opinion of thefe 
 ohjeElors-i in a different fenfe. As in Rom. xvi. part of 
 the 25th and part of the 26ch verfes, '' According 
 " to the myftery which was kept fecret \xi^^^^^ 
 ** atojuo*?] fince the world began ; but is now made 
 *' manifeft — according to the commandment [tou 
 " ftiwviou 0€ou] of the everlafting God." And, iit- 
 Tit. i. 2, " In hope [^wt]? ai-jviou] of eternal life, 
 " which God, that cannot lie, promifed \jr^o yj^ov^^t 
 *' ajcoviwv] before the world began." In both thefe 
 fcripture fentences, the word aiwHo? is twice ufed, 
 but, upon the principles of the ohje5fors^ in a different 
 fenfe. In the one, «jwko?, as joined with 0fo?, is 
 
 U taken 
 
290 ObjeBions anfwered, 
 
 taken in the endlefs fenfe ; whereas, as joined with 
 X^ovo;^ it can mean only an age^ or period cf du- 
 ration: And it is accordingly fo tranflated in our 
 Bibles. In the other, atwi/tou, joined with ^wn?, muft, 
 in the fenfe of the ohje^ion^ be underilood of a 
 never-ending duration ; whereas it can mean nothing 
 more than an age^ or difpenfation^ as joined with 
 X^^v^^ • And it is accordingly fo rendered by the 
 tranllators of the New Teflament. It is evident 
 then, in point of facl, and by ihtpra5lical acknow- 
 ledgment even of the ohjeElors themfelves, that the 
 word atwi/io?, everlajling^ may be ufed in a different 
 fenfe, and the very one we are pleading for, and in 
 t\it fame fe7it en ce too. So that they cannot com- 
 plain of us for being either arbitrary, or abfurd, 
 in the interpretation we put upon Matt. xxv. 46, 
 without condemning themfelves for the fenfe they 
 put upon the above-quoted texts. 
 
 It will, perhaps, be pleaded here, common reafon^ 
 in the produced cafes, eafily difcerns a neceffity^ 
 from the things fpoken of, to interpret the word 
 miavioq differently y according to their different natures. 
 The fame may be faid in the prefcnt cafe. For 
 reafon difcovers a wide difference between ihtfub- 
 je5is here treated of. Befides which, the fcripture 
 exprefsly declares, concerning the righteous^ on the 
 one hand, that they shall never die any 
 MORE ; and as exprefsly, on the other hand, con- 
 cerning the wickedy that they shall die a second 
 TIME: Which is enough, one would think, to 
 make a confiderate reader underfland the word 
 
 everlajling 
 
OhjeBions anfwered* 291 
 
 everlafting in a correfpoiding fenfc with refpe6c to 
 them both, that is, in the endlefs fenfe, with refpedt 
 to the former \ and the limited onCy with refpedl to 
 the latter, 
 
 ms branch of the obje6bIon is fcill further en- 
 forced by the following remark, namely, that the 
 word ccio)viGg, which is ufed to point out tht duration 
 o^ t\\^ future torments, is the very word which is 
 ufed alfo to point out the ahfolute eternity of God* 
 But this criticifm I take to be of very little 
 weight ; infomuch that I (hould not have men- 
 tioned it, but that I have often heard, and feen, 
 it urged in the prefent controverfy. It might in- 
 deed be mentioned to good purpofe, could it be 
 (hown, that the word atwuo? is joined, in fcripture, 
 with nothing but what is firiBly eternal: But, as 
 it is otherwife in fad, this remark can be of no 
 real importance ; becaufe, if it proves any thing, 
 it proves a great deal too much. If the punijb^ 
 ment of the wicked muft be never-endi)^gt merely 
 becaufe the word atwwc?, which is fomecimes joined 
 with the word God^ is joined with that alfo; it v/ill 
 follow, as this fame word is joined with the earthy 
 and hills, and generations^ and prophets, that they 
 mull all of them be flriofly and abfolutely eternal , 
 the abfurdity of which is too glaring not to be^ 
 at once, perceived. The plain truth is, the na^ 
 ture of the fubjeSl treated of, together with other 
 fcriptures^ muft always be taken into confidera* 
 tion, in order to fix the precife fneaning of this word, 
 with any degree of certainty. Nay, the eternity 
 U 2 even 
 
29^ Objedlions anfwered. 
 
 even of God himfelf is not to be coUefted merely. 
 from the force of this word , but from the -previ- 
 cujly known nature of the fuhje^y and the word\ 
 being capable of this unlimited conflrudlion \ as 
 has been obferved already. 
 
 The ehjeSlion goes on ;■ — The mifery of the 
 wicked is not only faid to be everlafting, but 
 FOR EVER ; and, as though this was not fufiiciently 
 expreflive of its endlefs continuance^ it is further 
 declared to be for ever and ever, the ftrongeft 
 phrafe ufed, in fcripture, to defcribe the proper 
 eternity of the Supreme Being. 
 
 The texts, in which the inifery of the wicked is 
 faid to be for ever, are only two. — 2 Pet. ii. ij^ 
 ** To whom the mill of darknefs is referved 
 *' FOR EVER."— And verfe the 12th of Jude's 
 Eoiflle, " To whom is referved the blacknefs of 
 " darknefs for eveji." But as the word aim dif- 
 fers from the word «jw:/tQ;, no otherwife than eter- 
 nity differs from eternal^ the one being d^fubftantivey 
 the other an adje^ive, as the grammarians fpeak ; 
 I have nothing to do here but to' refer the reader 
 to what has been faid, in the preceding pages, 
 upon the word eternal^ or everlafting. 
 
 The texts, which reprefent the mifery of the 
 wicked as what v^'ili be for ever and ever, are 
 three^ and no more. — Rev. xiv. 9, 10, 11, *' If 
 " any man worjQiip the beaft, and his image, and 
 " receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 
 " the fame (hall drink of the wrath of God, which 
 " is poured out without mixture into the cup of 
 
 " his 
 
ObjeSlhns ajifwered. 293 
 
 *' his indignation : And he fhall be tormented with 
 *' fire and brimflone in the prefence of the holy 
 " angels, and in the prefence of the Lamb. And 
 
 *' THE SMOKE OF THEIR TORMENT ASC£NDETH UP 
 *' BEFORE GOD FOR EVER AND EVER, and the/ 
 
 *' have no reft day nor night." — Chap. xix. 1,2,3, 
 *' And after thefe things I heard a great voice of 
 " much people in heaven, faying, AUeluja \ fal- 
 " vation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto 
 *' the Lord our God ; For true and righteous are 
 " his judgments ; for he hath judged the great 
 *' whore which did corrupt the earth with her forni- 
 " cation, and hath avenged the blood of his fervants 
 *' at her hand. And again they faid, Alleluja ; 
 
 " and HER SMOKE ROSE UP FOR EVER AND EVER." 
 
 — Chap. XX. 7, 8, 9, 10, " And when the thoufand 
 *' years are expired, Satan fhall be loofed out of 
 " his prifon, and fhall go out to deceive the na- 
 " tions, which are in the four quarters of the 
 •' earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them toge- 
 *' ther to battle ; the number of them is as the 
 *' fand of the fea. And they went upon the 
 " breadth of the earth, and compafTed the camp 
 " of the faints about, and the beloved city ; and 
 " fire came down from God out of heaven, 
 " and devoured them. And the Devil that de- 
 *' ceived them was caft into the lake of fire and 
 " brimflone, where the beaft and falfe prophet 
 *' are, and shall be tormented day and night 
 
 " FOR EVER AND EVER." 
 
 The reader is dcfired carefully to confider thefe 
 U 3 pafTages, 
 
294 Objedfions anfwered. 
 
 paflages, which I have thus tranfcribed at large," 
 that he may be the better able to judge, whether 
 they refer, as is pleaded, to the torments v;hich 
 wicked men will endure, in the refurre5lion~fiate, 
 for the fins they committed in this. It does not 
 appear certain to me, that they have this refer- 
 ence •, and much might eafily be faid to (how the 
 contrary : But (hould it be allowed, that they have 
 this reference, they are fo far from fpeaking of the 
 torments oif/nners in common^ that the two former 
 relate only to the worjhippers of the heaft *, and the 
 latter^ to the Devil, and a rahhle-rout of men, whom 
 he will be permitted to deceive, after the milknniwm 
 is over, with the heaft and falfe prophet * : And 
 confequently, thefe fmners, which include, compa- 
 ratively fpeaking, but a very fmall part of the 
 
 wicked 
 
 * It cannot, perhaps, be certainly determined, of whom it 
 id here faid, And [^aa-uvurBviaovroci'^ they jhall be tormented, I 
 have gone upon the largeft fuppofition, taking in the beaft 
 z.^di falfe prophet, as well as the De'vil and Gog and Magog, 
 Mr. Whifton [The Eternity of Hell Torments confidered, 
 page 50] conftrues the words thus, * And they \pog and Magogs 
 *■■ with the D€'vilh\m{QU] Jhall be tortnentedi' obferving, that ' it 
 « is not diredly faid here, that th's bea/i and the falfe prophet, 
 * but only the Devil, with Gog and Magog-> Ihall be fo long 
 ^ tormented.'' And if the De'vil be confidered as a colleSiive 
 noun, by which we are to underftand the ewil angels, I fee not 
 but the Devil only may be the antecedent to p«£rai'KT§>3crovTat. 
 Ill the preceding verie, Gog and Magog are fpoken oi z.% pimijhed 
 by immediate infiiciion from God. In this, as I irnagine, the 
 §'vil angels, who deceived Gog and Magog, and for deceiv- 
 ing t|iem, are fpoken of as punifhsd likewife, and in the plac& 
 
0bje5iions anfwered^ 295 
 
 v)ichd \kitxt, have been among men, in all fuccefllve 
 ages, from the beginning of the world, are the 
 ojily ones, with whofe torment we have a right to 
 connect the duration^ whatever it is, that is pointed 
 out by the phrafe, nq tok? aimxi; rwv oauvvv^ tranf- 
 lated, in our Bibles, for ever and ever. 
 
 But, to give the ohje5fion all the advantage that 
 can be defired, let it be fuppofed, that thefe paf- 
 'aoes relate, not only to ih^ future torments, but to 
 t' '^fe torments as they will be fuffered by wicked 
 men in common. And what is the confequence 
 herefrom ? Not that they will fuffer them in the 
 fjcver endin-^ fenfe : And for this very good reafon, 
 becaufe the above phrafe is obviouHy capable of 
 being underftood of a limited^ as well as endlefs^ 
 duration-, and may, to fay the lead, be as properly 
 rendered for ages of ages, 2^% for ever and ever. We 
 have already fcen, that the word a<uj!/, in xkit fingii- 
 lar number, a] mod perpetually fignifies an age 5 
 and it would be very ftrange, if its being ufed in 
 the plural fhould efTentially alter its meaning. Ic 
 is certain it does not. For it is remajkable, though 
 
 where the beaft z.iidi falfe prophet were punifhed, for which 
 realbn they are here brought in, and not becaufe they are to 
 be looked upon tls partners in xMis punijhmentj as they were not 
 partners in the fin that occaiioned it. But however this be, 
 it is worthy of our particular remark, that, excepting this, 
 and the t^joo foregoing places, which yet do not relate to 
 Jlnners in gemraU but to finners in the times of Antichrijl, and in 
 the days of Gog SiViA Magog, the duration connedled with the 
 mifery the wicked fhall undergo, in the refurredion, is no 
 where in all the Bible faid to be £k T'^'-'? ai^-'as t^^'J uicovuv', no, 
 nor £j,' Toi J aiwva?, fimply In the plural, without a redupJica'-^ 
 tioa. 
 
 u 4 it 
 
%g6 OhjeBions anfwered. 
 
 it is to be met with, in the Septuagint^ in fever at 
 places, it is ufed in them all to fignify nothing 
 more than the plural of an age^ that is, a duration 
 that is confidered as made up of more ages or periods 
 than one. Such are the texts that follow. — 2 Chron. 
 vi. 2. " I have built an houfe of habitation for thee, 
 *' and a place for thy dwelling for ever," ft? touj 
 ak(jo'jciq, for ages. — Pfalm xlviii. 14. " He will be our 
 *' guide even to death," ft? rpu? aiwvaj, through the 
 feveral ages or periods of life: So the Seventy render 
 ihe original words ni2 ^y, which, in our Englifh 
 Bibles, are more literally tranflated even to death. — 
 Pfalm Ixi. 4. " I will abide in thy tabernacle for 
 **• ever," n? rov; oauivx;, for ^^^J.— Pfalm Ixxii. 17. 
 *' His name" [that is, his kingdom, his regal admi- 
 niftration] " fhall endure for ever," a? ro-oq(x,iwvx^,for 
 ages. Whether thefe words are fpoken of Davids or 
 Chrift-i the f on of Davidy they mean nothing more. See 
 the next text but two. — Pfalm cxlv. 13. "Thy king- 
 " dom is an everlaftlng kingdom," jSao-iAaa ttocvtoov 
 rm dioovoov^ a kingdom over all ages. — Dan. ii.4. "Then 
 " fpake the Chaldeans,- — O king, live for ever,"^^? 
 rovg ccioovxg, for many daysy long periods of time,—' 
 Ver. 44. " And in the days of thefe kings ihaii the God 
 " of heaven ki up a kingdom, — -and it: fnail (land, 
 " f»^ ro\)<; cx,imoi<;^ for ever." The meaning of this for 
 ever is pundually afcertained by the apoftle Paiil^ 
 who fays, i Cor. xv. 28, that " when all enemies 
 " fhall be fubdued, Chrift himfeif fliail be fubje^ to 
 " him who put all things under him, that God may 
 *' be all in all." It is, in like manner, obfervable, 
 the plural of this o^^u^ \s^ mod commonly, if not 
 
 always, 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 297 
 
 always, ufed, in the New Teflament, to point 
 out a duration^ confilling of agesy difpenfationsy or 
 periods \ as may be feen by taking a view of the 
 following texts. — Luke i. ^^, " And he (hall reign 
 " over the houfe of Jacob, ft? tou? atwva?, for ever*," 
 the meaning of which /cr ever has been above ex- 
 plained from theapoiile Paul. — i Cor. ii. 7. " The 
 " hidden wifdom which God ordained before the 
 *' world," 'rr^o ruv xicouwu, before the ages^ " to our 
 " glory." — Chap. x. 11.*' All thele things are writ- 
 " ten for our admonition, upon whom the ends of 
 " the world," Tcoi/ «ia;i^wi/, of the ages^ " are come." 
 — Eph. ii. 7. " That, in ages to come, iv toj? Qi,iui(7\, 
 " a7r£^;^o/x£V9K, he might (hew the exceeding riches 
 *' of his grace." — Chap. iii. 9. " The myftery which 
 " from the beginning of the world," aTro tm ociuvuy^ 
 f r om former ages y " hath been hid in God." — Col. i.26. 
 " The myftery which hath been hid, ^tto twv aiw^wv, 
 '^ from ages, and from generations." — Heb. i. 2. 
 *' By whom alfo he made the worlds, rouq cciuvocg,'' 
 — ix. 26. " Now once in the end of the world," eiri 
 c-vvnXiiM roou (jiiwva;v, at the clofe of the ages^ " he ap- 
 " peared to put away fin." — xi. 3. " By faith we 
 *' underftand that the worlds, tou? cciojvaf, were made 
 *' by the word of God." Now, \ioL\mi^^ in the plural, 
 is thus frequently ufed to fignify a duration that con- 
 fifts of more ages ox periods than c7Uy its being doub- 
 led cannot make it improper to underfland it in the 
 fame general fenfe ftill *, but is rather a good reafon 
 why we ought fo to underftand it. For a dura- 
 tion containing in it a coUe5fion of ages is, at once, 
 intelligible j but a duration for eternities of eter- 
 nities 
 
298 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 mties is, to fay the lead, a very uncouth mode of 
 cxpreflion, and would found as harlh in Greek, as 
 it does in Englilh, if the natural force of the 
 Greek word, aiwi/, was the fame with the Englifh 
 word, eternity. It is therefore very clear to me, 
 that the flural of atwv, even when doubled^ as in 
 the phrafe, fi? rou? aiwi/a? rm atwi/wv, may always 
 be underftood in this fenfe, and perhaps ought al- 
 ways to be fo. This is certainly its meaning in Rev. 
 xi. 15, ^' The kingdoms of this world are become 
 *^ the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Chrift j and 
 *' he (hall reign," jk tou? aimoa rcou a^moovyfor ages 
 of ages. This fenfe an infpired apoftle has vir- 
 tually or conftrutflively put upon this phrafe, by 
 affuring us, i Cor. xv. 24 — 28, that the time will 
 come, when Chrift fnall deliver up his kingdom, and 
 be himfelf a fuhjeEi in another kingdom that will 
 fucceed in its room^ having the Father at its head, 
 as its immediate King and Sovereign. This alfo is 
 its meaning, Eph. iii. 21, where the doxology to 
 God is expreffed in thefe words, " Unto him be 
 *' glory in the church, by Jefus Chrift," ft? Trao-a? 
 ra^ ysvsocg ro\j aicavog roov aiwi/wi/, through dll fuccefjions 
 
 of future ageS'i or literally, to all generations of th^ 
 age of ages. 
 
 It ought to be well regarded here, the phrafe we 
 are examining is to be met with, for the moft part, 
 in the ISlew 'Teflament doxologies to God or Chrift, 
 And there is no manner of need to fuppofe, that 
 the facred penmen, when they thus ufed this phrafe, 
 had it in their view to fpeak metaphyfically of ^ 
 ftriEl znd proper eternity. It will every whit as 
 
 well 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 299 
 
 well anfwer all the ends of piety and devotion, if 
 we underftand them as fpeaking in a popular wsl"^ 
 only, and meaning by thefe afcriptions of glory ^ in 
 regiird of duratiou, the fame thing that is meant 
 in Eph. iii. 21, which we juft now quoted. And 
 there will be the more reafon to think thus, if 
 we compare the doxologies in the New Teftament^ 
 with thofe in the Old. The latter are expreffed 
 [i Chron. xvi. '^6. — xxix. 10. — Pfalm xli. 13. 
 — cvi. 48. — Dan. ii. 20.] in that form, " BlefTed 
 *' be the Lord, the Lord God of Ifrael,'* ayro tou 
 9i,i(^)/o(; xat fco? tou oamoq \ that is, in the Englifh tranf- 
 Jation, '* from everlafting to everlafting :" But not 
 with fo much propriety as if it had been rendered, 
 from age even to age. To ufe here the words of 
 Mr. Hallett, in his note upon Pfalm xli. 13, 
 *' BlefTed be the Lord God of Ifrael, from ever- 
 " lading, and to everlafting I Amen, and Amen." 
 ' I am apt to think,' fays he, ' that many Eng- 
 
 * lifh readers fuppofe, that the words, from ever- 
 
 * lafting^ fignify a duration that was pafi in ths 
 
 * daysofthe Pfalmift. But, upon fecond thoughts, 
 ' the Englifh reader will perceive, that this can- 
 ■ not podibly be. The Pfalmift here exprefTes 
 
 * his defire, that God may he hleffed. But it is im- 
 
 * pofTible to defire, that God may be blefTed here- 
 ' tofore. To fay, Bleffed be God in pafi ages^ would 
 ' be ridiculous. — The text then muft be rendered, 
 
 * Bleffed be the Lord God of Ifrael from age to 
 ' AGE ! that is, from this time forth, throughout 
 
 * all ages. Every one will allow that the Hebrew 
 
 * word, Olam^ here rendered, everlafting^ does fre- 
 
 ' qucntly 
 
joo ObjeSiions anfwered, 
 
 ' quently fignify an age^ or generation. Nor wili 
 
 * any one objedt to this interpretation the word 
 
 * AND ; from everlafting and to ever la f ting ^ as if 
 
 * this would hinder us from rendering the ex- 
 
 * prcffion, from age to age \ when he fhall confider, 
 
 * that the word, and^ in fuch like expreflions, is 
 
 * redundant, or fuperfluous, in our language, what- 
 
 * ever grace it adds to the Hebrew phrafe. Thus 
 
 * the Hebrew expreffion, 2 Chron. ix. 26, is lite- 
 
 * rally to be rendered, — from the river and unto 
 
 * the land of the Philifti?ies, Our tranflators have 
 
 * rendered the Hebrew particle by, even ; — from 
 
 * the river even unto the land of the Pliliftines, It 
 
 * would have been as well if they had dropt it 
 
 * quite, and had faid, from the river to the land 
 
 * of the Philijlines. See alfo 2 Chron. xxx. 5. 
 
 * So the paflage of the Pfalm now under con- 
 
 * fideration may be rendered, Bleffed he God, from 
 ' age even to age^ or, more (\mp\y, from age to age, 
 
 * In the fame fenfe the expreffion is to be under- 
 
 * flood, Pfalm ciii. 17. The mercy of the Lord is 
 
 * from everlafiing to everlafiing, or rather, from 
 
 * age to age^ that is, from this age to the next, 
 
 * and fo on throughout all future ages.* Notes on 
 
 peculiar texts, pag. 75, 76. In the fame fenfe 
 
 Itill, I would add, we mud interpret, Jer. vii. 7. 
 and XXV. 5, *' The land that I gave to you, and to 
 *' your fathers, for ever and ever, cctt' aiwvo^ xai iuig 
 ccimog^from age to age. And this is the fenfe alio 
 in which, as it feems to me, we are to underftand 
 the doxologies in the Ne'W T'eftament, It is plain, 
 they may be thus underftood : Nor is there any 
 
 neccfiity 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 301 
 
 neceflity to give the duration fignified by them an 
 higher meaning. And we may the rather be fa- 
 tisfied of this, if we confider ftill further, that, in 
 the Septuagint^ the phrafe, £*? onmx a^w^of, in our 
 Enghfh Bibles ufually/<?r ever^ and the yet ftronger 
 
 one, fif Toi/ aiwi/a xat £1? Tov aiuux tou ociuvogy in thc 
 
 fame Bibles for ever and ever^ are frequently to be 
 met with, and always, as I think, to be underftood 
 in this fenfe. To be fure, they are ufed, in a va- 
 riety of places, fo as not to be eafily capable of an 
 higher meaning. We (hall give inflances with, 
 refpedl to them both. 
 
 The Jirft of thefe phrafes cannot well be taken 
 in any other fenfe in the following texts. — Pfaim 
 xxxvii. 28, 29. " The feed of the wicked (hall 
 " be cut off. The righteous fhall inherit the 
 *' land, and dwell therein for ever," fi? a,it£v» 
 aiuvogy fro?}} generation to generation. -^^hXm Ixi, 8.- 
 "So will I fing praife to thy name for 
 " ever,'* aq aiuvoc ocicci^o^j from one age or -period 
 of my life to another \ for the following words are, 
 " that I may daily perform my vows." — Pfalm 
 cxii. 9. *' He hath difperfed, he hath given to 
 ** the poor, his righteoufnefs enduieth for ever,'* 
 
 >3 J'txixioiTUk'/i auro'j ^ivn £tf rov oci'jOiia, tov Aiccvo;^ he is 
 a merciful man through the feveral periods or 
 ages of his life. — Pfalm cxxxii. 13, 14. '^ The 
 " Lord hath chofen Zion, he hath defired it for 
 " his habitation ; this is my reft for ever," a^ 
 tftj^va xi'jivoq^from age to age. 
 
 The other mentioned ftronger phrafe is ufed, in 
 the like fenfe, in the. following places. — Pfalm 
 
 xlvii. 
 
20 ± OijeBions an/were J. 
 
 xlvii. 13, i4» " Mark ye well her bulwarks, con- 
 *' fider her palaces, that ye may tell it to the ge- 
 *' Deration following; for this God is our God for 
 
 '* ever and ever,' ft? rov aiuvoc, koci sig rov uiuv<x, tov 
 aimo<;. It is plain, the duration fignified by this 
 phrafe, in this place, can mean no more than 
 cne age upon another -, becaufe it is the truth of 
 fact, that God has long fince ceafed to be the God 
 of the Jews^ in the fenfe here fpoken of. — Pfaim 
 cxix. 44. " So fhall I keep thy law continually for 
 ** ever and ever," £*? rov aimoc kxi £ig rov oawoc rou 
 dic^vogy as long as I have a beings through the feveral 
 ages or periods of my life on earth* — Pfalm cxlv. 2. 
 " Every day will I blefs thee, and I will praife thy 
 ** name for ever and ever," «;? rov atwo^i &:c. 
 through every period of my life. — Verfe 21. "Let 
 ** all flefh blefs his holy name for ever and ever,*' 
 fi? rov aiMvoc^ &c. from age to age, and through 
 every age. — Pfalm cxlviii. 6. '* He hath eflablifli- 
 *' ed them" [the fun, and moon, and heavens] 
 " for ever and ever," f*? rov ociccvoo, &c. throughout 
 ml ages. 
 
 It is, I would hope, abundantly evident, by this 
 time, that the phrafe, zk; rov; aiccvcc; ruv aioovuv^ 
 cught to be conflrued, for ages of ages. Thus 
 much, at lead, is indifputably clear, that it may^ 
 without impropriety, be thus interpreted; and for 
 this very good reafon, becaufe the Bihle itfelf has 
 taught us this ufeof it. From whence the conclufion 
 is, that the future torments cannot be proved to be 
 Alfolutely endlefs, merely from the joining of this 
 jf ^ r^/^ with them • The nature of the thing, or 
 I {ither 
 
Obje5lions anfwered. 303 
 
 ither texts of fcriptiire, mud be taken into con- 
 fideration. And if fo, the greater part of what 
 has been offered to fhew the reofonahlenefs^ and 
 neceffity^ of underflandiiig the word, everlajling, 
 not in the endlefs^ but limited fenfe, is equally per- 
 tinent here, and will as ftrongly evince, that this 
 phrafe alfo muft have the like meaning. 
 
 Nor is it of any fignificancy, in point of argu- 
 ment, that this phrafe is fometimes applied to Gcd, 
 For if, from th^ force of it, fimply confidered, the 
 ahfolute eternity of God could be argued, we might 
 as well argue the ahfolute eternity of the land of 
 Canaan^ znd o^ i\\c fucceffjve generations of men^ be- 
 caufe this phrafe, or one equivalent, is joined with 
 each of them ^ as well as with God, Reafon afilires 
 us, that God is a Being whofe duration will have 
 no end\ and it is from this previoufly knovcn nature 
 of God, and not fimply from the force of this 
 phrafe, that we interpret it, when applied to God, 
 as meaning a duration without end. And when we 
 can, upon as good a foundation, interpret the fame 
 phrafe, in xht fame fenfe, when applied to i\\t future 
 mifery, then fuch a conftru6lion may reafonably be 
 admitted j but not till then. The plain truth is, 
 it mud be faid of the phrafe, ek r&if aiwvaj ra^ir 
 a\Qovicy, as of the word ato:\no;, that the duration, in- 
 tended to be pointed out by it, cannot be deter- 
 mined by the naked force of the phrafe itfelf-, but 
 the fuhje5i with which it is conneded muft be 
 taken into confideration, as alio other tests which 
 fpeak of the fame thing. And, in this view of 
 
 the 
 
304 Objediions anfwered, 
 
 the matter, it is as certain, that it onght to be 
 conftrued /(?r ages of ages, and lu this izmt only, 
 as that the 'wicked-, ^n the ref:irre5lion-ftate^ will not 
 
 be INCORRUPTIBLE, h\M Jhall DIE A SECOND TIME J 
 
 in declaring of which the fcripture is very peremp- 
 tory and exprefs, as has been proved. 
 
 I may pertinently fubjoin to what has been faid, 
 that it is not certain, that every individual Jimer^ 
 in the future ftate, fhall be tormented the whole du^ 
 ration^ pointed out by the phrafe £k tou? aiwya; twv 
 ^icoi/wv, though it fhould be allowed to fignify no 
 more than for ages of ages* For, as is obferved 
 by Mr. Nichol Scot, * It fhould not be fuppofed, 
 ' that, as by the heaft and falfe prophet [in the laft 
 
 * of the above texts} are meant, not two Jingle per- 
 
 * [ons^ but colUMive bodies of men, fo by the DeviFs 
 
 * being cajl into this lake (if it relate to the future 
 
 * judgment) may be intended, not merely that 
 
 * the individual p erf on ^ fo called, was caft therein, 
 ' but the Devil and his angels inclufive ; for it is a 
 
 * fire prepared for the Devil and his angels : And, if 
 ' thofe colUolive bodies are intended, it may be 
 
 * flridly true, that, as collective bodies^ their tor- 
 
 * ture may laft for many ages, without any neccflity 
 
 * of inferring from hence, the fame duration of toi^-^ 
 
 * ture holds true of any, much lefs every individual^ 
 
 * that belongs to them ; for as the future judgment^ 
 
 * from the nature of the thing, muft be a work 
 
 * of very confiderable time, fo as that the indivi- 
 ' , duals, of which thofe bodies are compofed, may 
 
 * be fucceffively tried and Gondemned> and fuccef- 
 
 5 * /^^^^ 
 
ObjeEiions anfwered. 305 
 
 ^ fi'vely cafl into this lake offire^ in order to be con- 
 
 * fumed there : And confequently, how true foever 
 ' it is, that the fum total of this judiciary proceed- 
 ' ing may h^ for ages of ages ^ it will not neceflarily 
 ' follow, that the torture oi any\ much lefs oi every 
 ' individual^ fhould continue for that length of 
 ' time. Nor fhould it be overlooked, that, as 
 
 * this diftindlion has its foundation in the nature 
 ' of the things fo it feems to have been favoured 
 
 * by as remarkable a variation in the fcripturefiyle-^ 
 
 * for, after having faid [in the former of the above 
 ' texts], " If any one worfhip the bead, the fame 
 " [axk oLiTo;, he alfo'] drinkeih of the wine of the 
 " wrath of God, and he fhall be tormented with 
 " fire and brimftone," it is not fubjoined, and the 
 ' fmoke of HIS torment-, in the fmgular number, 
 ' which might feem to have determined the pro- 
 ' pofition to individuals ; but " the fmoke of their 
 *' [auT^'i/] torment," in the plural, and which, con- 
 ' fequentiy, may relate to colle5live bodies \ which 
 
 * lad propofition may be very true, without any 
 
 * necefiity of inferring, that any^ much lefs every 
 
 * individual^ that belongs to thofe colle5live bodies^ 
 ' (liall be tormented for luch a length of time.' 
 
 * And what renders this criiicifm the more pro- 
 
 * bable is, that we find terms of much the fame 
 
 * import ufed by iht prophetic fpirit, in that cafe, 
 ' where a long feries of national calamities are 
 ' defcribed, that is, in a cafe where, from the 
 ' nature of the things there is, indeed, an uninter- 
 \ rupted fufilsring of the colle^ive body, but withal 
 
 X I onl/ 
 
306 Objections anfwered. 
 
 * on!y zfucceffive fufFering of individuals, *' My 
 *' Iword (fays the prophet Ifaiah, chapter xxxiv.) 
 ** fhall come down upon Idumea, — and the dull 
 " thereof fhall be turned into brimftone, and the 
 *' land thereof fliali become burning pitch ; it 
 *' fhall not be quenched night nor day, the 
 *^ fmoke thereof fhall go up for ever : from gene- 
 *' ration to generation it fhall lie waite, none fhall 
 *' pafs through it for ever and ever." 
 
 This excellent writer may, perhaps, be miflaken, 
 when he fuggeils, that the individuals^ of which 
 the collefiive body of the wicked is made up, may 
 ht [uccejfively condemned-^ and cafi into the fire of hell \ 
 and that they may be fpoken of as tormented in 
 this fire/^r ages of ages ^ not becaufe this will hold 
 true of any of the individuals^ but becaufe, being 
 fucceffively condemned, and thrown into the lake of 
 firey it may take up the duration fignified by the 
 phrafe, for ages of ages^ before they will all be de^ 
 ftroyedy or confumed^ in this fire : h\ this, I fay, the 
 above author is probably miflaken^ For it is not 
 intimated in any of the defcriptions we have of the 
 future judgment y as though the wicked would be 
 fucceffively^ that is, individually^ one by one^ con- 
 demned, and fent into the place of coming tor- 
 ment : But, on the contrary, they are all, as a coU 
 le^ive body^ reprefented by our Saviour (particu- 
 larly in Matt, xxv.) as flanding before his judgment- 
 feat ; and the judicial fentence is pronounced, not 
 againft the individuals^ mfuccefjwn ; but the whole 
 body, at one and the fame time : And they are 
 
 accordingly 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 307 
 
 accordingly fpoken of as going away^ in confe- 
 quence of this fentence, into everlafting punijhmenty 
 not fuccejfively^ but all at once. 
 
 It muft therefore (according to this account of 
 xht future judgment) hold true 0^ fome of the indivi- 
 duals^ conflituting the colle5live body of the wicked^ 
 that they (hall be tormented for ages of ages: 
 Though I fo far agree with this very good writer 
 as to think, th .. there is no neceffity this fhould 
 be the truth with refpcfl to them all-, becaufe, if 
 a durction, confiding of ages of ages ^ aflually runs 
 out before the torments of all the miferable wicked 
 come to an end^ it will be ftridly true, in the coU 
 h^ive fenfe, that they will be tormented for ages of 
 ages ; though fome of them only fhonld be tor- 
 mented through the whole of this period, and the 
 reft varioujlyy as to time^ in proportion to their de- 
 fer ts. 
 
 And this interpretation, it is obvious, very na- 
 turally makes way for an indefinitely various punifh- 
 ment of wicked men, according to the indefinitely 
 various degrees of that moral depravity they have - 
 contrafted in this prefent fiate \ and in a manner 
 too that is perfectly analogous to what takes place, 
 in fa(5l, here upon earth. The firfi deaths we find, 
 by daily obfervation, is brought on with great va- 
 riety^ both in refped of time^ and the cruciating 
 pains that accompany it. And this, according to 
 the prefent explication, may be the real truth, 
 with refpeifl to xht fecond death. The refurre^licn- 
 bodies of the wicked may, by the wifdom of God, 
 
 X 2 be 
 
3o8 Objections anfwered. 
 
 be varioufiy fitted, both for the fenfations of tor- 
 ment^ and a continuance under the preflure of them. 
 Thus it is in the prefent ftate. Some, from the 
 very formation of their bodies, are capable of fuf- 
 fering keener pain than others •, and they can bear 
 it a great while longer^ without giving up the 
 ghoft. And why may it not be reafonably fup- 
 pofed, that it fliall be thus alfo in the coming 
 ftate of '* weeping, and wailing, and gnafhing of 
 " teeth ?" 
 
 It is true, there is awful reafon to think, with 
 refpe6t to all the wicked, that their refurrePAon- 
 bodies will be formed for a much longer duration-, 
 than they are capable of exifting at prefent \ and 
 that they mufl: pafs through much more intenfe^ and, 
 it may be, various, pain^ before their dijfolution 
 will be efFe6led. But this is no objedion againft 
 the fuppofition, that they may die^ fome of them 
 at one time^ and others 2it another *, Sind fome of them, 
 not till their torments have lafted for ages of ages. 
 If they muft finally undergo z fecond death, as the 
 fcripture declares that they mud, it is rather agree- 
 able, than contrary, to reafon^ to think, that their 
 diffolution will be thus varioufly effeded, by the 
 pains which they will fuffer. 
 
 And it is certain, there will be full fcope, upon 
 this i\iY>\iO^'iX\ov\^iQV proportioning men's torments to 
 all the various degrees of their contra6ted ftupidity, 
 ftubbornnefs, and moral degeneracy, in every 
 conceivable fhape and form. And it deferves 
 copfideration, ' Whether this important truth can 
 
 ! be 
 
Ohjedlions anfwered. 309 
 
 ' be {o well fecured, upon the contrary fuppofition? 
 ' For an eternity of mifery fwallows up all propor- 
 
 * tion : Or, though there (hould be fome difference 
 
 * in the degree of pain, it is fuch a difference, I fear, 
 ' as will be fcarce thought worthy of being brought 
 'into the account, when the circumflance oiendlefs 
 
 * duration is annexed to it.' 
 
 But there is another fenfe dill, in which we may 
 take this phrafe, they Jhall he tormented for ages of 
 ages j underftanding it yet as fpoken of the collec 
 live body of wicked men, and not oi every individual 
 that goes to conftitute this body. It may be in- 
 tended to lead us into the thought, that it will take 
 up, not only a long period of duration, but a period 
 that will confift oi many difpenfations, ages, or ftatesy 
 varioufly adapted for the difcipline oi fluhhorn and 
 rebellious creatures, before they will all, in a wife 
 and rational way, be fitted, agreeably to the fore- 
 going fcheme, iox final happincfs. To explain my- 
 felf more particularly. They may all, in one coU 
 leUive body, be doomed, at the great day o^ judg- 
 ment^ to a ftate of mifery which will lafl an age : 
 In which ftate, fome, under the miniftratlon of 
 Jefus Chrift, as head of this ftate, may be wrought 
 upon to fubmit themfelves to God as his willing 
 and obedient fubje^s ', upon which, in God's time 
 and way, they (hall be made happy. Others may 
 die in this ^2itQ flupid ^ndfiiibborn, notwithftanding 
 all the torments of it for a ^ivhole age : And thofe 
 who thus died in their obflinacy may again, in fome 
 other form of exiftence, be put into a place of fuf- 
 
 X 3 fering 
 
3 1 o Objections anfwered. 
 
 fering for another age \ in which fome may be re- 
 duced under moral fubje5fion to God, and others 
 Hand it out JiilL And thefe others may, in yet 
 another form of exiftence, be lent into a place of 
 difcipline for another age ; and fo on, till there has 
 been torment for ages of agesy before the whole coU 
 leCfive body of rebellious men are prepared for the 
 FINAL DISPENSATION, when God fhall be all in 
 
 ALL TO THEM ALL. 
 
 In either of the foregoing fenfes, wicked men, 
 as a colleClive hody^ may be tormented for ages of 
 ageSy without fuppofing that this fhall be the cafe 
 with refped to every individual And it is highly 
 probable, if not certain, that the duration of this 
 torment is Xo be interpreted in one ox other of thefe 
 fenfes. 
 
 But if it fhould be allowed, that there is no juft 
 foundation for this criticifm^ and that every indi- 
 vidual wicked man fhall be tormented^ in confe- 
 quence of iht future judgment ^ sic rovg ccicovxg twi/ 
 &t(ai/m, it is abundantly evident, from what has 
 been above offered, not only that this phrafe may 
 mean a limited duration^ though a long one ; but 
 that this is the fenfe in which it ought to be un- 
 derflood 5 which is a fufEcient anfwer to the oljecr 
 tion :— 
 
 Tht jlrongejl enforcement of which, in the opinion 
 of fome, is flill behind. It is this. Our Saviour 
 himfelf has thrice^ in the fame difcourfe, moil fo- 
 lemnly ufed thefe forcible words, with refpe(5l to 
 wicked men, in t\\^ future ftate, " where their 
 
 " WORM 
 
Objediions anfwered. 311 
 
 ** WORM DIETH NOT, AND THE FIRE IS NOT 
 
 " QUENCHED." Mark ix. 44, 46, 48. 
 
 In anfwer whereto, it is obvious to remark, it 
 may be literally and Jiri5lly true, that, in helh the 
 worm dieth noty and thcjire is not quencbedi while 
 yet, it tnay be as true, that wicked men may die in 
 bell, 2ind be no more capable oi xht fenfations of 
 paifh either from this worm^ or this fire* If, by the 
 worm that dieth not, we underftand, even ac- 
 cording to the common opinion, rcmorfe, horror^ 
 and agony of confcience^ this may not ceafe, while 
 the wicked are in hell j but it does not certainly 
 follow from hence, that they fhall live eternally in 
 this place. And if, by the fire that is not quenched^ 
 we underftand the lake ^Qf fire the wicked (hall be 
 caft into, even this may be unquenchaUe^ while 
 yet the wicked may not live eternally in it. The 
 plain truth is, thefe v.'ords, in point of {tricl aro-u- 
 ment, can prove no more than this, that the tor- 
 ments of the wicked Ihall lad as long as their next 
 ftate of exijlence lafts^ without determining how long 
 this (liall be, whether for a period only, ov for ever. 
 If their worm preys upon them, without ceafing, 
 as long as they are in hell, it is, to them, (Iridlly and 
 rigidly fpeaking, a worm that does not die : So if 
 the fire torments them as long as they exijl in the 
 next ftate, it is, to them, an unquenchable fire^ though 
 their exiftence, in that ftate, iliould not be ahfo- 
 lutely eternal. 
 
 But the moft fimple,- eafy, and fatisfa<5tory an- 
 fwer is, that thefe words are taken from the book 
 
 X 4 of 
 
312 OhjeBions anfwered. 
 
 of Ifaiah's prophecy, and allude to the punijhment 
 of thofe, whofe bodies were either burnt in the 
 valley of Hinnom, or permitted to lie upon the 
 ground, in the form o^ dead carcafes^ to be fed 
 upon by zvorms that delight in putrefadlion. And 
 confequently, as the Jire which burnt thefe bodies, 
 and the worms which fed upon them, can, in no 
 other fenfe, be faid nol to he quenched, and not to die^ 
 than this, that they continued till thefe carcafes were 
 entirely confumed : So may it be faid cf tht worm 
 that preys upon the wicked in hell^, and of thefre 
 that torments them, that the one dieth not^ and the 
 other is not quenched^ till they have certainly and 
 univerfally effedled the dijfolution^ dejiruBion^ or 
 d.eath^ of wicked men, in the future (late. And it 
 is obfervable, this interpretation perfeclly coincides 
 with the other fcriptures which fpeak of this mat- 
 terj as has been largely fhown in the preceding 
 pages. 
 
 I have no where feen this text fet in fo clear 
 and full a point of light, as in the difcourfesof the 
 laft.quoted author, upon ihe future torments : For 
 which reafon I fliall be at the pains, in order further 
 to fatisfy the reader, to tranfcribe his words at 
 large. — ' It fliould be here obferved,' fays he, 
 ^ that thefe words of Chrift are taken from the lafi 
 * verfe of the frophecy of Ifaiah : *' They (hall go 
 " forth, and look upon the carcafes of the men 
 ** that tranfgrelTcd againft me •, fqr their worm 
 ^* fhall not die, neither Ihall their fire be quenched, 
 *' ^nd they ihall be an abhorring to all fiefh." 
 
 ' Nowj 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 313 
 
 ' Now, as this propofition is mod evidently affirm- 
 
 * ed, with reference to car cafes [fee alfo ver. 16 
 ' of the fame chapter of Ifaiah], or bodies deprived 
 
 * of lifcy and confequently no longer in a ftate of 
 ^ fenfation^ whatever is intended by it, this cannot, 
 
 * with any confiftency, be intended, that thefe bodies 
 
 * themfeives fhould be continued in a ftate o^ never- 
 ' ending mifery, 
 
 ' It is affirmed, indeed, of the worm that preys 
 
 * upon thefe carcafes, that it dieth not^ and of the 
 ^ fire^ by which, I fuppofe, their life [they are faid 
 ' exprefsly in the i6th verfe to be the flain of 
 ' the Lord. See alfo Rev. xx. 9.] was dejlroyed, 
 ' that // is not quenched: Both which may be very 
 ' true, and true, if taken in the moft ftridt and 
 
 * rigorous fenfe of the words ; and yet no necefTity 
 ' of drawing fo ftrange a conclufion from hence, 
 ' as though the carcafes themfeives fhould be con- 
 ' tinucd in a ftate of mifery^ when defcribed as 
 ' carcafest that is, as bodies deprived of life^ and, 
 
 * with that, of 2i\\fe?ifation. 
 
 ' As to that conftru6lion, which fome modern 
 ' writers have put upon this worm^ as though it 
 ' fliould relate to the remorfe of confcience^ it re- 
 ' quires no other reply than this, that it is a mere 
 
 * arbitrary interpretation, that has no proof, or 
 ' warrant, from the fcripture ufe of this phrafe. 
 ' And, indeed, whoever confults the pafTage of 
 ' Ifaiah, from whence this citation is made, will 
 ' find the worm is fomething that relates, not to 
 ^ fenfation^ or perception, but corruption* " By fire, 
 
 " and 
 
314 ObjeSlions anfwered. 
 
 *' and by his fword, will the Lord plead with all 
 '* flefh, and the (lain of the Lord fhall be many.*— 
 ** They ihall go forth, and look upon the carcafes 
 ** (or dead bodies) of the men that tranfgrefled 
 ** againft me *, for their worm dieth not." And 
 
 * whereas it is fubjoined, that " their fire Ihall not 
 " be quenched," by their fire may be meant (as I 
 
 * have fliewn) the/r^ by which they were deftroyed. 
 
 * And xk\\sfire may be faid, rwt to he quenched, either 
 
 * to imply, that it is fuch a fire as cannot be put outy 
 
 * but, on the contrary, fubdues and deftroys whatever 
 
 * is call into it ; or, poflibly, that this very inftru- 
 
 * ment of divine vengeance may be continued as an 
 
 * awful memorial to after-times : Either of which 
 
 * propofitions may be very true, and yet lay us 
 
 * under no neceffity of fuppofing, in dired con- 
 
 * tradi6lion to the fcripture account (for they are 
 
 * reprefented as carcafes ^ or bodies deprived of life) 
 
 * that the fubje^s that were killed by this fire, muft 
 
 * be preferved alive, in a ftate of never-ending 
 
 * mifery, 
 
 * As to that claufe, which immediately follows 
 
 * this paffage in St. Mark, " For every one fhall 
 *' be falted with fire i" though it will admit of 
 
 * fome debate, whether this claufe fhould be con- 
 
 * neded with the immediately foregoing verfe, 
 
 * and not rather with the whole preceding para- 
 
 * graph, in which our Saviour inculcates upon his 
 
 * difciples>" in common, the great duty of felf- 
 ' denial, and fuffering, for the fake of religion and 
 
 * virtue : Yet (to give our obje^or all the advan- 
 
 5 ' tage 
 
Objediions anfwered, 315 
 
 * tage that his heart defires) let it be fuppofed, 
 ^ that this datife fhould be underftood of the future 
 
 * mifery : And here, I fay, that whoever infers 
 
 * from hence, that, becaufe thejire is reprefented as 
 ^ performing the office of fait, and becaufe the 
 
 * ufe of fait is to preferve from corruption, that 
 ' therefore the bodies of the wicked fhall be pre ^^ 
 ^ ferved incorruptihle-, and confequently alive by the 
 ^ fire-y he does, in the firit place, by this conftruc- 
 
 * tion, introduce the moft prepofterous confufionof 
 
 * images, by reprefenting the fire, which is a de- 
 
 * ftrutiive element, and which rends afunder what- 
 
 * ever is cad into it, as a means of preferving 
 ' from dijfolution, and this too in diredl contra- 
 
 * didlion to the exprefs afTertions of fcripture, with 
 ^reference to this very affair-, for the fcripture 
 
 * affirms, they ffiall reap corruption^ or dijfolution of 
 
 * parts-, and, in this very context, it is obferved, 
 ^ that their worm (which is an emblem of corrup- 
 ' tion) dieth 7iot. 
 
 *■ Thefe confiderations, one would think, are 
 
 * fufficient to put any unbiafTed mind upon the 
 
 * enquiry? whether the ancients did not confider 
 
 * this metaphor in more views than one ? Or, 
 
 * whether the genius of the oriental languages will 
 
 * not admit of a different interpretation ? In Ifaiah 
 
 * li. 6, we are told, that " the heavens ffiall vaniffi 
 '* away like fmoke, and the earth wax old," or be 
 
 * fretted, or worn out, '' like a garment." Here, 
 
 * therefore, the ideas of confumption^ov diffolution, are 
 
 * manifeftly intended j and what we render, fhall 
 
 * vanifh 
 
2i6 Objedlions ajifwered, 
 
 * vantjh away^ is exprefled, in the original, by a 
 « verb which exadly anfwers to this in the text i 
 
 * the heavens Jhall he failed^ that is, as Buxtorf ex- 
 
 * plains it, he dijfolveL It is a well-known maxim 
 
 * in chemijlry^ that hodies are deftroyed hy falts * : 
 
 * And, becaufe things, which are grown old and 
 
 * putrid, are eafily pulled aiunder, hence we find a 
 
 * word of the fame derivation, in Jer. xxxviii. 1 1, 
 « applied to putrid rags^ or, as our tranflators ren- 
 
 * der it, " and he took the rotten rags, and let 
 *' them down by cords into the dungeon." 
 
 * Now, whether our Saviour refers to this ancient 
 
 < yfe of this word, or, whether he intended by it, 
 
 * that tht Jire (hould not merely fcorch the external 
 
 * furfaces of bodies, but penetrate (like fo much 
 c r^ii or hrine) into their iumoft parts, is not ne- 
 ' cefTary to my prefent argument to determine ; 
 
 * but, confidering in what different points of view 
 « z figurative mode of fpeech may be taken, I may 
 « appeal to any candid impartial enquirer, whether 
 
 * a word, confefied on all hands to be ufed in a 
 
 < figurative fenfe, fnould be underftood in that 
 ^ fenfe which fuits, or in that which contradicts, 
 « the nature of the fubje6l to which it is applied ? 
 
 « Had the fcripture never told us, that \.\\q fub- 
 ^ je5is, which are caft into this fire, fhall reap 
 « corrupioriy or dijfolution, flill, as fire, from the 
 
 • Alia corpora deflruunt ^ hoc confirmat calcinationes 
 cum falibus, coementationes, et corrofiones, immo ipforuin 
 metallorum intimae et radicales deflrudiones. Tejchmeri In- 
 Jiimiones Chemia, pag. li, 12. 
 
 ^ nature 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 317 
 
 ^ nature of the thing, is a dejiru£five element, and 
 ' has a tendency to confume, Q.nd force a/under, the 
 ^ bodies that are cafl: into it, furely that fingle 
 ^ circumftance would determine the confiderate 
 ' reader again ft the notion of incorrupliony as being 
 ^ a fenfe of the 7netaphor which agrees not with 
 ' the 7iature of the thing: How much more, when 
 ^ both the nature of the things and the fcripture- 
 ' account are agreed ; and both, in conjundlion, 
 ^ oblige us to infer, not that the wicked fhall be 
 ^ prefer-ved company and incorruptible y by the fire, 
 ' but be confumedy and burnt up^ in it ? 
 
 ^ I fhall only add, that fhould it be imagined, 
 ' that this incorruptibility by fire is favoured by that 
 ' reference which our Saviour makes to the Jewijh 
 '- facrifices under the law, in that claufe, "And 
 " every facrifice fhall be faked with fait ;" I an- 
 ' fwer, that this claufe relates to quite another 
 ' thing: For ihe facrifices under the law were not 
 ' falted in order to prefer ve them from being con- 
 ^ fumed upon the altar, or to render them incorrupt 
 ' tible mfire, but to reprefent that moral purity, or 
 ' freedom from myral corruption^ which fhould be- 
 
 * long to thofe, who, like to fo rc\2Lny facrifices , are 
 ' devoted and confecrated to God. And, accord- 
 ' ingly, our Saviour, confidering the metaphor in 
 
 * this point of view, fubjoins, " Salt is good, but 
 '' if the fait have loft its faltnefs, wherewith will 
 ^^ you feafon it ? Have fait in yourfelves, and have 
 " peace one with another." 
 
 It is added, upon the whole^ which clofes the 
 
 objcullon 
 
3 1 8 Objediions anfwered. 
 
 chjeBion we have been confidering — In what more 
 clear, ftrong, and decifive language, could the 
 endlefs jtever-cea/ing mifery of the wicked have been 
 revealed ? No words could have been chofen, the 
 Icriptures fcarce afford any words, that are more 
 obvioufly and certainly exprefiive of this idea. 
 
 The anfwer is eafy, and I fhall give it in the 
 words of the foregoing author, rather than my 
 own, becaufe they are ready at hand, and appear 
 to me to be flrongly convincing. He fays, ^ I do 
 
 * much wonder to find, that one who has read the 
 
 * fcriptures, and underftands the <?r/g-/«^/ languages, 
 
 * (hould affirm, that thefe languages do hardly af- 
 
 * ford more full and more certain words than thofe that 
 
 * are ufed, whereby to exprefs a duration that has 
 
 * no end, when it is confefTed, on all fides, that the 
 
 * word, which we render everlajli}ig^ is frequently 
 
 * applied to things that are well known to have an 
 ^ endy and, confequently, ofitfelf, is not full and 
 ^certain: And, if the languages in which the 
 
 * fcriptures were written do hardly afford more full 
 
 * and more certain words, whereby to exprefs a 
 
 * duration without end, how come we to find, in 
 ^ fcripture, fuch words as incorruptible, iai- 
 
 * MORTAL, INDISSOLUBLE ? [See the original of 
 
 * Heb. vii. 16. What we vtndtTy endlefs life, is, 
 
 * in the original^ axolaAfUTou ^co»?, that is, jndis- 
 
 * soluble life] And, in fo many words, it is af* 
 
 * firmed of the righteous, that they cannot die any 
 ' more : Or, why are thefe terms conftantly re- 
 *- ftrained to the goodd^rA virtuous part of mankind ? 
 
 ' Why 
 
ObjeBions anfwered* 310 
 
 ' Why do we not read of the wicked^ that they ^ 
 
 * fhall be incorruptible, immortal^ or itidijfoluble ? or, 
 
 * why is it not affirmed, that their pain or torture 
 
 * endetb not ? Or will it be pretended, that the 
 ^ languagesy in which the fcriptures were written, do 
 ^ hardly afford fuch terms as thefe ?' 
 
 Enough, I truft, has now been faid, to make it 
 fufficiently evident, that the dodrine of univerfal 
 fahation may be admitted as 2l fcripturc-truth^ not- 
 withftanding the chjecled pbrafeologies^ in favour of 
 never-ceafing mifery^ with refpedt to ivicked men, as 
 a contradi6lion thereto. Did iht fcripture contain 
 nothing that might be thought to countenance the 
 opinion o^ final univerfal happinefs^ there would be 
 good reaibn, as we have Teen, to think, that the 
 future torments would have an end: But it is much 
 more reafonable to believe this, while we take 
 into the SLVgument the above proof of this do^rine -^ 
 becaufe, fo far as it carries with it any real weighty 
 it ought to be looked upon as a good reafon^ why 
 we fliould underftand thofe phrafes in a limited^ and 
 not an endlefs-^ fenfe, which are capable of either. 
 
 I (hall now finilh my reply to this/r/2 cbje5!ion, 
 with the following ^^;/^r^/r^;«^r^j, which, perhaps, 
 may not be altogether unworthy of notice. 
 
 It dees not appear to me, that it would be ho- 
 nourable to the infinitely righteous and benevolei^t 
 Governor of the world, to make wicked men ever- 
 laflingly miferable. For, in what point of light 
 foever we take a view ofy?/;, it is certainly, in its 
 nature, a finite evil It is the fault of a finite 
 
 crtature^ 
 
220 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 creature^ and the efFedl q{ finite principles, pafTion^, 
 and appetites. To fay, therefore, that the finner 
 is doomed to infinite mifery for th^ finite faults of a 
 finite life, looks like a refle(5lion on the infinite 
 juftice^ as well as goodnefs, of God. I know it has 
 been often urged, th^Lt/m is an infinite evil, becaufe 
 committed againft an infinite ohje5i ; for which rea- 
 fon, an infinite pinifioment is no more than its due 
 defert. But this metaphyfical nicety proves a great 
 deal too much, if it proves any thing at all. For, 
 according to this way of arguing, all finners 
 mufl fuffer to the utmoft in degree, as well as du- 
 ration}, otherwife, they will not fuffer yi? much as 
 they might do, and as they ought to do : Which is 
 plainly inconfiRent with i\\2i\,difi[erencei\'\t fcripture 
 often declares there fhall be in the punifhment of 
 wicked men, according to the difference there has 
 been in the nature and number of their evil deeds. 
 
 The fnjallnefs of the difference between thofe, in 
 this world, to whorn the chara6ter oi wicked be- 
 longs in the lowejl fenfe, and thofe to whom the 
 charader of good is applicable in the like fenfe, 
 renders it incredible, that fuch an amazingly great 
 difference {hould be made between them in the 
 future world. The former differ from the latter, 
 by a difference, as to us, fo imperceptible^ that it 
 is, perhaps, impofTible we fhould be able fo 
 much as to diftingui(h the one from the other^ with 
 any manner of certainty : And yet, the difference 
 between them, in the other world, according to the 
 common opinion, will be doubly infinite j for the 
 10 good 
 
Objc5lions anfwered. 321 
 
 gtod are fcreened from infinite mifery^ and rewarded 
 with infinite happinefs ^ whereas the •uoicked are ex- 
 cluded from infi.nite happinefsy and doomed to infi- 
 nite mifery. For the reward and piinifl:)ment^ being 
 both eternal^ \\o\vtwtv fmall tliey may be fuppofed 
 to be in each finite portion of time, they mufl at 
 laft become infinite in magnitude. How to re- 
 concile this with the abfolutely accurate impartial 
 Uty of God, is, 1 confefs, beyond me. 
 
 A very great part of thofe, who will be mife- 
 rable in the other vjorld^ were not, that we know 
 of, INCURABLY finful in this. Multitudes are 
 taken off before they have had opportunity to 
 make themfelves hardened abandoned finners : And^ 
 fo far as we are able to judge, had they been con- 
 tinued in life, they might have been formed to a 
 virtuous temper of mind by a fuitable mixture of 
 corre5fiony inftruciion^ and the like. And can it be 
 iuppofed, with refpe6t to fuch, that an infinitely 
 benevolent God, without any other trials in order 
 to eliecSt their reformation, will confign them over 
 to endlefs and irreverfible torment ? Would this be to 
 conduct hi mfelf towards them hkt2i Father F Let the 
 heart of ^ father on earth fpeak upon this occafion* 
 Nay, it does not appear, that any finners are fo in- 
 corrigible in wickednefs, as to be beyond re- 
 covery by ftill further methods within the reach of 
 infinite wifdom : And if the infinitely wife God 
 can, in any wife methods, recover them, even in 
 any other fiate of trial, may we not arg'je, from 
 his infifiite benevolence, that he will ? And is it not 
 
 Y far 
 
322 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 far more reafonablc to fuppofe, that the niiferies of 
 the Gther world are a proper difcipline in order to 
 accomplilh this end^ than that they fhould be final 
 and vindiBive only ? 
 
 The fmal/nefs of the number of thofe who fhall 
 hcfavedi in the next ftate^ ought, in all reafon, to 
 be efteemed a weighty argument againll interpret- 
 ing any texts of fcripture fo as to mean ahfolutely 
 eternal mifery: It is a plain cafe, if the next ftate 
 is finals but very few^ comparatively, of the fons 
 oi AdzmmMhe faved. Our Saviour himfelf has 
 faid, Matt. vii. 14, *' Strait is the gate, and nar- 
 ** row is the way which leadeth unto life, and few 
 *' there be that find it :" Nor will there be any 
 room, left to contrive ihifts to elude the obvious 
 natural fenfe of thefe words, if we confider the 
 necejfary qualifications in order to the finding this 
 life^ and then compare the chara5ier of m^ankind 
 herewith. The chofen^ and faithfuU and true, 
 though in the worlds are not of the worlds but a 
 peculiar and feparate people. The whole world lietb 
 in wickednefs. It does fo at this day, as we our- 
 felves know, and cannot but know, if we do not 
 fhut our eyes againft the light. So it has done in 
 the ages that are paft^ if we may believe the in- 
 fpired writers of fcripture. And fo it will do in the 
 ages that are yet to come^ if the fame facred pen- 
 men may be depended on : For they r.lTure us, 
 that the earth that now is^ with its inhabitants and 
 works, are kept in ftore^ and referved unto fire ^ for 
 the tmgodlinefsy and infidelity^ and unrighteoufnefs^ 
 I which. 
 
Objedlions anfwered, 323 
 
 ^hich, in future times, fhall be univerfaJly preva- 
 lent. Now, if a fezv only of mankind, in the 
 final ifllie of things, are to ht favcdy and the refb 
 damned', that is, fentenced to endure never -ending 
 torments in helU what a (Irange idea miift we have 
 of the MERCY of the Chrijlian difpenfaiion, which 
 is fo celebrated, in the New-Teftament writings, for 
 its unfearchable riches and glory ? The birth of Jcfus» 
 the Saviour, into the world is fpoken of as *' glad 
 *' tidings of great joy to all people," and an anthem 
 of praife was fung, on this account, by the hea- 
 venly hod, to God, becaufe of the good-will hereby 
 difcovered towards mankind. But if t[.e greater 
 part of mankind by far will eternally periJJj in hell^ 
 notwithilanding the incarnation of the Son of God, 
 and all that he has ever fuffered, or done, or will 
 do, for their relief, what occafion was there for 
 fuch univerfal joy? And with what propriety could 
 glory be given to God for his good-will towards 
 men } The total ruin of fuch multitudes of the 
 fons of Adam appears to me a mofl palpable incon- 
 fiftency with the grace of God as exhibited in the 
 gofpel of Chrijl. And it is indeed incredible in it- 
 lelf, that God fboujd conftituce his Son the Sa'vicur 
 of men^ and the bulk of them he finally and eternally 
 damned. Nor can it be any other than a bafe and 
 grofs reflection on the Saviour of men^ whofe pro- 
 per bufinefs and office, as fuch, it is, to defeat the 
 defign of the Devil, and refcue mankind out of 
 his deftroying hands •, I fay, it cannot but reflccfl 
 great diflicnour on him to fuppofe, that the Dcvil^ 
 Y 2 not- 
 
324 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 notwithftanding his mediatory interpofition^ and all 
 that he could do in oppofition to him, fhould 
 finally get the better of him, by effefting the ever- 
 lafting damnation of the greater part of thofe whom 
 he came from heaven on purpofe to fave» To 
 mc, I own, the thought is fhocking ; nor can I 
 fee how it is pofTibly reconcileahk with the honour 
 that is due to Chrift^ in his chara6ler as the Sa- 
 viour of men. The confideration of hell as a purg- 
 ing fire* is that only which can make the matter 
 fit eafy upon one's mind. 
 
 In fine, it ought to be particularly remembered 
 and confidered, the proper tendency, znd final caufe^ 
 of evils ^nd Offerings y in this prefejtt fiate, are to 
 do us good, in the natural, or moral fenfe, or both. 
 They are a fuitably adapted mean to this end '<, and 
 the all-wife merciful Governor of the world makes 
 nfe of them as fuch. This is the voice of reafon^ 
 confirmed by obfervation and experience ; and the 
 fcripture concurs herewith in fpeaking of the pu- 
 niJhmentSy evils, or fufferings, which it pleafes Gcd 
 
 . ♦ Mr. Hartley, as I think, very juflly obferves, * The 
 
 * doftrine of purgatory ^ as now taught by the Fapijis^ Teems 
 
 * to he & corruption of 3. genuine do^rine, held by the ancient 
 
 * fathers^ concerning a purifyvag fre. It may, perhaps, be, 
 
 * that the abfolute eternity of punilhment was not received, till 
 
 * after the introdu£lion of metaphyfical fubtleties, relating 
 ' ioithte^ hernityi &c. and the ways of expreffing thefe ; that 
 
 * is, not till after the pagan philo/ophyt and 'vain deceit, had 
 
 * mixed itfelf with, and corrupted, Cbriftianity .^ Hartleys 
 
 to 
 
Obje5lio7is anfwered. 325 
 
 to bring upon the Tons of men, as a proper difci- 
 pline in order to humblC'i a^idprcve, and do them good 
 in their latter end. The texts to this purpofe are 
 fcarcered all over the Bible, And we have fuch 
 an obiervable pafTige as that, Pfal. Ixxxix. 31, 
 32, '^^'^^ " If his children forfake my law, and 
 " walk not in my judgments •, if they break my 
 " ftatutes, and keep not my commandments; then 
 " will I vifit their tranfgrefiions with the rod, and 
 " their iniquity with ftripes. Nevertheless, 
 
 " MY LOVING-KINDNESS WILL I NOT UTTERLY 
 
 " TAKE FROM THEM." Whether thcfe words are 
 ipoken of the children of David ^ or of the children 
 of Chrift^ of whom David was an illuftrious type^ 
 the loving' kindnefs of God is reprefented 2ii finally pre- 
 vailing towards them. And his viftting their tranf- 
 grefiions with the rodi and their iniquity with ft rip es^ 
 is fpoken of as the mean^ in a way of difcipline^ 
 corrcufion^ or chaftifementi in order to promote this 
 tnd. And if evil^ punifioment^ or mifery^ in the 
 prefent life, is mercifully intended for the good of 
 the patients themfdves-, why not in the next life ? 
 Is the charader of God, as the Father of mercies y 
 and God oi pity and grace-, limited to this world 
 only ? Why (hould it not be fuppofed, that the infi- 
 nitely benevolent Deity is xht fame good being in the 
 other world, that he is in this? And that he has 
 the fame kind and good intention in the punifhments 
 of the next (late, that he has in this, namely, the 
 profit^ or advantage^ of iht fufiferers themfelves. This 
 is certainly moft agreeable to the natural notions 
 
 y 3 wQ 
 
326 ObjeBions anfuDered, 
 
 we entertain of the only good God : And it is moft 
 agreeable alfo to the ideas, which the fcriptnres 
 give us of him. For they reprefent his mercy un- 
 der the embiem of the tendereil pafTion in men, 
 that of a father'' s pity towards his children ; yea, 
 they defcribe it by fpeaking of hinn, as affii^ed with 
 us in our afflichonsy and as grieved at the heart for 
 the miferies of Ifrael. And why fnould not thefe 
 reprefentations of the mercy of God be extended to 
 the future world ? Why (hould he not be looked 
 upon as plying Tinners, a^nd punifoi}7g them, in the 
 7U^t fl:ate as well as this, in order to their benefit? 
 Surely a change in the raode^ and place, of wicked 
 men's exiilence, v/ill not infer a change in the na- 
 ture of that God, who is " the fame yefterday, to- 
 *' day, and for ever," and muft, in the other world 
 as well as this;, be dxipofed to make it evident, 
 that he is a being of houndlefs and inexhauftihle 
 gcodnefs. 
 
 It may be v/orthy of our fpecial notice here, 
 not only the language of mankind, in all agep, 
 and in all places, as grounded on the inoft obvious 
 reafoning from the kvhole courfe of nature^ but even 
 the revelations of fcripturCi conftantly fpeak of God 
 as the univerfal Father^ as well as Governor, of 
 men. And our Saviour, Jefus Chrift, has parti- 
 cularly taught us how to argue from this relation 
 (jod ftands in to us. The argument is, that (Matt, 
 vii. 11) '-If ye, being evil, know how to give 
 :^' good gifts unto your children, how much more 
 ■j^ fhall your Father, which is in heaven, give good 
 -- ** things 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 327 
 
 *' things to them that afk him ?" What now is the 
 temper and condud of /^//^^rj on earthy though 
 they arc e'vil, towards their offspring? They readily 
 do them good, as they are able, while they behave 
 fuitably j and as readily chajiife them for their;>r^//, 
 when they need corre^ion : But they do not put 
 off the bowels of parents, and punijh their children 
 without pity, having no view to their advantage. 
 We (hould entertain an opinion of thole parents, as 
 degenerate to the laft degree, who fliould infiia: mifery 
 on their own children, without any intention to 
 promote their welfare thereby, in any fhape what- 
 ever. And (hall we fay that oi our Father in hea- 
 z'en^ (who, indeed of being evil, as all earthly fathers 
 are more or lefs., is infinitely good) which we cannot 
 fuppo'.e of any father on earth, till we have nrft 
 divefied him of the heart of 2i father? Can it rea- 
 fonably be conceived, that that God, who calls 
 mankind his offspring without exception, and him^ 
 felf ihar father, fhould torment them eternally with- 
 out any intention to do them the lead imaginable 
 good, as muft be the cafe, if the dodrine of never- 
 ending mifery is true ? Will not God be as truly the 
 father of wicked men in the other world, as he is 
 in this ? And, if he punifhes them there, muft it not 
 be in the charader of ihar father, who defires their 
 '70od, and corre^Js them with a kind intention to pro- 
 mote it? No good realbn, I will venture to fay, 
 can be aOigned, why our Saviour's argument, 
 founded on the nature of things, the relation that 
 {^biiils between God and vjcn i I fay, no good rea- 
 Y 4 fcu 
 
5 28 Objedfions anfwered. 
 
 fon can be given, why our Saviour's argument, 
 *' Much more will your Father in heaven give you 
 *' good things," fliould be confined to thfe pre^ 
 fenty and not extended to the future world. And, 
 perhaps, the only thing that has led mod writers 
 to confine the pity of our Father in heaven^ and 
 the merciful intention of his punifljing his rebel- 
 lious children^ to the prefent life, is, the notion they 
 have previoufly imbibed oi never -cet^Jing mifery, 
 which, having no real foundation in the facred 
 books of revelation., as has, I v;ould hope, been 
 abundantly proved, we are at liberty to conclude, 
 that the defign of evil, piinijhment^ or mifery^ in 
 the FUTURE WORLD, as well as this^ is to disci- 
 pline wicked men, and, in this way, to efFe6l 
 their ov/N personal, as well as the ^^»^n;7, ^W. 
 
 OBJECTION II. 
 
 *^^ The 'wce^ which our Saviour denounced againfl 
 ^' Judas, by whom he v^as betrayed, in thofe words, 
 "^^ iVIark xiv. 21, Good were it for that man if he 
 ^^ had never been born^ is inconfiftent with i\\q final 
 ^^ fahation cf all men ; though it will not certainly 
 • ' prove a llate of endjefs niifery." 
 
 I anfwer-— This paffage of fcripture mufl be in- 
 terpreted, according to the ftridefl: rigour of the 
 letter, in order to make it coniradid the above 
 dcclrine oi final happinefs. But what neceffity of 
 fiirh a rigorous interpretation ? The fpeech may 
 
 be 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 329 
 
 be proverbial'^ ; and proverbial fay ings, we know, are 
 never to be underftood with rigour: Or, fliould this 
 be reje6tcd as a mere vain conjedture, it is obvi- 
 ous to remark, that the words are certainly well 
 adapted to give, in the general, a concife^ and yet 
 Jlrong and lively^ reprefentation of the greatnefs of 
 Judas'sy?^, and the aggravated punifiment he fhould 
 fufFer for ir. And as this fcems to have been the 
 only intention of our Saviour, it is fufficient to 
 abiblve the meaning of his words, without going 
 into a more particular interpretation of them. 
 To be fure, it is not neceffary, that we fhould un^ 
 derftand them in any other fenle. They are fairly 
 capable of this, and might be thus taken, had the 
 fcripture no where faid a word about the final fal- 
 vation of all men : But, as fo many texts have been 
 produced, in proof of this point, it is highly reafon- 
 able, that this text fhould be conftrued in confiftency 
 with thofe ; efpecially as it is obvioufly capable of 
 fuch a conftru6lion, and cannot, indeed, be con- 
 ftrued otherwife, without taking the words in 
 their utrnofi literal rigour ^ of which there is no real 
 need. 
 
 Nay, fhould we fuppofe (to give the obje£fion 
 the greateft advantage) that t\\tfiri5l literal mean- 
 
 * It is fpoken of by Mr. Pool, from Lud. Capellust (Vid. 
 Synopf. Crit. in loc.) as Locictio RahbinicUy et Talmudic'ts ujita" 
 tijjima. And it was doubtlefs a faying intended generally, 
 though fironglyy to exprefs the unhappy condition of thofe to 
 whom it was applied ; And this feems to have been its only 
 fneaning* 
 
 ing 
 
3 JO ObjeBions ajtfwered, 
 
 ing of thefe words, confidering-the text f.mply in it- 
 fclf^ is the mod reafonable^ and what any one would 
 moft naturally take them in ; yet, even upon this 
 fuppofition, they could not be a difproof of the 
 above doftrine ; becaufe it is an atlowed maxim, 
 that the ftrici literal fenfe of words, not only may^ 
 but ought to be departed from, when inconfiftent 
 with others that fpeak of the fame thing. It is 
 therefore far more reafonable, as we have brought 
 to view fo many palTages, which declare the final 
 falvation of all men-, to interpret this paflage in con- 
 fiftency with thofe^ though we fhould, by fo doing, 
 depart from its y^n^ literal fenfe, than to adhere 
 X.0 \zs ftri5i literal {^x\{^^ and, by fo doing, make 
 tht fcripture at variance wich itfelf. We do thus 
 in an hundred other cafes \ and it would be difficult 
 to affign any good reafon, why we iliould not do 
 the like in the prefent cafe. 
 
 But, after all, it may be, interpreters have not 
 hit upon our Saviour's real meaning in the words, 
 
 'TLOcXov Yiif cevr6i}y n ova £y£V]/y\^7\ o avG^WTro? ivrnvo^. It is 
 
 remarked of Judas^ in confequence of his having 
 betrayed our Lord, that " he went, and hanged 
 *^ himfelf," Matt, xxvii. 5. He was fo uneafy 
 in his mind, from a convidtion of his treachery and 
 hafenefs^ that he preferred death to life, praclically 
 declaring, that he thought it better not to have 
 ieen lorn^ not to have had exiftence, thap to 
 hold it under the preflure of fuch tormenting re- 
 flexions on himfelf for his folly. And why may 
 not the paffage under confideration be looked 
 
 upon 
 
ObjeBions anfwered. 331 
 
 upon as a prophecy foretelling this event, in a 
 way of warning, or caution ? As if our Saviour 
 had faid, " Well may I pronounce a ivoe againft 
 the man that fliall dare to betray me •, for, if h^ 
 ventures upon this a(5l of treachery, he fhall, in a 
 very little while, be weary of his life, and pradi- 
 cally declare, by hanging himfelfy that to him, in 
 his apprehenfion, [fo the pronoun, ojutoj, I think, 
 ought to be rendered, and not, for him, as in the 
 common tranflation] /7 were good he had not 
 been horn^ had not been brought into being." 
 This conftrudion evidently gives a ftrong and very 
 fignificant meaning to the words, as, in this view 
 of them, they contain 2i predi^ion intended by our 
 Saviour, not only to fet forth the horrid nature of 
 this fin, but to be a ftanding 'proof to all ages of 
 the truth of his divine mijfion. And we may the 
 rather be induced to underftand thefe words, in 
 this fenfe^ as our Lord, in this very chapter, took 
 occafion, from Peter's too great confidence in him- 
 felf, to warn him in the like prophetic way, faying 
 unto him, as in the 34th verfe, " This night, be- 
 " fore the cock crow, thou fliak deny me thrice." 
 The newnefs of this interpretation is no certain 
 argument, that it is not the true one; and if, upon 
 examination, it ihould be found to be fo, it is ob- 
 vious, at firft fight, that the ohje^tion^ grounded 
 pa this texty is wholly fuperfedcd. 
 
 OBJECTION 
 
332 ObjeSions an/were d. 
 
 OBJECTION III. 
 
 *' Blafphemy againfi the Holy Ghoft is declared, 
 " by our Saviour himfelf, to be unpardonable. No 
 '* lefs than three of the evangelifts have recorded 
 *' his words to this purpofe ; and they are empha- 
 *' tically exprefiive of this thought. In Matt. xii. 
 " ^r, 32, the words are. Wherefore I fay unto you^ 
 *' all manner of fin and blafphemy foall be forgiven 
 ^^ unto men\ but the blafphemy againft the. Holy 
 " Ghoft fhall not be forgiven unto men. And who- 
 ^^ foever fpeaketh a word againft the Son of man^ it 
 *' fjjall be forgiven him ; but who fo ever fpeaketb 
 ^^ againft the Holy Ghoft ^ it fhall not be forgiven him, 
 " neither in this worlds neither in the world to come. 
 ** — -Mark expreffes the matter a little differently, 
 " but very flrongly. He fays, chapter iii. 28, 29, 
 ^^ Verily I fay unto you^ all fins fhall be forgiven unto 
 " the fons of men, and blafphemies wherewith they 
 ^^ fhall blafpheme \ hut he that fhall blafpheme againft 
 ** the Holy Ghoft hath never forgivenefs ; but is in 
 ^^ danger of eternal damnation. — Luke is more 
 *' concife, but withal as peremptory as the other 
 " evangelifts ; for this is his language, chapter 
 " xii. I o, " Whofoever flmll fpeak a word againft 
 ^' the Son of man, it fhall be forgiven him ; but utfto 
 " him that blafphemeth againft the Holy Ghoft^t 
 * ' ftoall not be forgiven . " 
 
 If 
 
Objeclions anfwered. 333 
 
 • If the learned Grotius is right in his interpreta- 
 tion of th?Je text 5^ the difficulty ohjeuled from them 
 is entirely fuperfeded. He fuppofes our Saviour's 
 meaning to be no more than this, *' that all other 
 fms and blafphemies (hall fooner be forgiven, than 
 the blaff.hemy againft the Hcly Ghoft •," looking upon 
 the words as an Hebraifm, intended to fignifv, 
 not fo much the pardonablenefs of fome fins, and 
 the tivpardonahlenefs of others, as the greater dif- 
 ficulty of obtaining pardon for blafphemy againft 
 the Holy Gbcfty than for any other blafphemy. His 
 reafoning, in favour of this conftrucftion, is to this 
 purpofe : — " It could not be the defign of our Sa- 
 viour, in i\\t former part of thefe fentences, where 
 he fpeaks of ether fins and blafphemies, to affirm 
 abfolutely concerning them, that they [hall be for- 
 given ; becaufe this is not true in fatfl, as there arc 
 multitudes of thefe fins that are not forgiven : And 
 therefore," fays he, " we ought, in all reafon, to 
 look upon thefe fentences as Hebrew forms of 
 fpeech, like that in the 5th chapter of Matthew, 
 where our Saviour declares, that '^ heaven and 
 *' earth (hail pafs away, but my words lliall not 
 " pafs away." The meaning of which is ex- 
 plained by Luke, in the fixteenth chapter of his 
 gofpel, where the words are, not that heaven and 
 earth Jhall pafs azV'ay^ but rhac it is erfier for them 
 to pafs azuayy than that Chrifs "Jcordfhould faiU^ — 
 lilais celebrated writer adds, " It was- a common 
 way of fpeaking among the Jews, this thing fhall 
 he^ and that fhall not be^ v/i:en it was not their in- 
 tention 
 
^ H Obje5iions anfwered, 
 
 tention to affirm any thing ahfehitely of either^ but 
 only to exprefs \}iit greater difficulty of effediing the 
 latter than the former'' — Upon which he con- 
 cludes, that the only meaning of our Saviour, in 
 thefe words, is, that it is eafur to obtain the par- 
 don of any fins ^ and therefore of the great eft blaf- 
 pbemieSy than the blafpheniy againft the Holy Choft : 
 As if it was his defign to be underftood cowpara- 
 tively^ fignifying the greater heinoiifiiefs of the blaf- 
 phemy againft the Holy Ghoft^ than any other blaf 
 phemyt and that the pardon of it would be -mord 
 difficultly ohmncd : Not that it is //n^//y and ab- 
 folutely unpardonable. He refers us, as the final 
 confirmation of this fenfe of the words, to i Sam. 
 ii. 25, where, hefuppofcs, there is a like compara- 
 tive mode of fpeech with this of our Saviour, '' If 
 *' one man fin agamfl another, the judge fhall 
 *' judge him : But if a man fin againft the Lord^ 
 *« who (hall intreat for him ?" 
 
 Archbifliop Sharp was fully fatisfied with this 
 interpretation of Grotius \ exprefiing his opinion 
 of it (in his Sermon upon this fubjetl) in thefe 
 words, " I muft confefs, I think it the true one."' 
 And whoever goes, about to prove, that there is 
 no truth in it, will, perhaps, before he has done, 
 find, that he has undertaken a very hard taflc. 
 
 But we fhall fuppofe, that this great man has 
 miftaken the fenfe of our Saviour ; and that his 
 intention was, to reprefent the blafphemy againft the 
 Holy Ghoft as abfolutely unpardonable. And what 
 will follow herefrom I Not that which is pleaded 
 
 in 
 
Ohjecllons aJifwered. 335 
 
 in the ohje^liouy namely, that mankind tiniverfally 
 cannot be faved ; as we (hall be foon convinced 
 by afcertaining the precife fenfe, in which ibis blaf- 
 phemy is here fpoken of as unpardonable. In order 
 whereto it may be proper to make the following 
 enquiry — 
 
 Wherein does th^ pardonahlenefs of all other fins 
 and blafphemies confill ? The true anfwer to this 
 queftion will at once fettle the point in difpute. 
 And the anfwer is, 
 
 The pardonablenefs of all other fins and blafphe- 
 mies lies ia this, it's being pajfihle for men to efcapa 
 the torments of helU though they Ihould have been 
 guilty of thofe fins. The gofpel-grace is fuch, fo 
 vaftly extenfive, as that, whatever other blafphe- 
 mies men may unhappily commit, they may not- 
 withftanding, if they do not commit the blafpbemy 
 againft the Holy Ghoft^ be delivered from the mife- 
 ries of the coming world-, it is 2l pojlihle thing; thofe 
 torments may be evaded by the intervention of a 
 pardon. It is this, and this only, that diftingulfhes 
 all other blafphemies from the hlafphemy againfi the 
 Holy Ghoft. 
 
 Accordingly, x.\\^ unpar dona blenefs oiih^ blcfphe'iny 
 Ggainft the Holy Ghoft mult con fid in i\ ^. revcrfe 
 of the pardonablenefs of all other fins, that is to fav, 
 in the intpoffibility of their efca ping the torments of 
 hell^ who are chargeable with the guilt of this fin. 
 Whoever thus blafpherae muft certainly go to the 
 place of future torment, as being excluded from the 
 gof pel-privilege oi forgivenefs. ■ And it is obfervable, 
 
 the 
 
f?36 Obje5tions anfwered. 
 
 the evangelifl Mark, having faid, *' He that fhall 
 " blafpheme againft the Holy Ghoft hath never 
 " forgivenefs," adds, in the words that imme- 
 diately follow, by way of explanation, " but is in 
 " danger of eternal damnation," ^aa' ivoyj^c; ic-ny 
 eiimio\j >t^K7£^f, hut is guilty of eternal judgment^ is 
 liable to the judicial fentence^ which, at the great 
 day, will doom him, ek to ttu^ rd uiuviovy to eternal 
 fire. So that never to have for givenefst and to lie 
 cxpofed, without hope, or remedy, to the doo7n of 
 the judgment-day^ mean precifely one and the fame 
 thing. And, in truth, the unpardonahlenefs of the 
 hlafphsmy againft the Holy Ghoft^ in the fenfe even 
 of the ohjetlors themfelves, lies in this^ and in this 
 folely^ that, if men commit thisfin^ they mull tin- 
 avoidably go to the place oi future torment ; having 
 no hope from the gofpel-promife of forgivenefs^ be- 
 caufe they are excepted perfons. 
 
 This now being the meaning of the unpardonMe^ 
 nefs of blafphemy againft the Holy Ghoft ^ it is quite 
 eafy to perceive, that even thefe blafphemerS', notwith- 
 flanding the unpardonahlenefs of the fin they have 
 committed, m2iy finally he faved^ if the torments of 
 hell are not endlefs •, as we have feen that they are 
 not. For, if they are not faved^ till after they 
 have paffed through thefe torments, they have fiever 
 heen forgiven^ in the fenfe, in which our Saviour is 
 here fpeaking of forgivenefs. The divine law has 
 taken its courfe ^ nor has any intervening pardon 
 prevented the full execution of the threatmed pe- 
 nalty on them. Forgivenefs^ ftri^ly and literally 
 
 fpeaking. 
 
OhjeBions anfwcred^ 337 
 
 fpeaklng, has not been granted to them. Even their 
 fahation^ as it is posterior to their having under- 
 gone the torments of hell ^ is not the effe5l of that 
 gofpel-forgivenefs our Saviour is treating about. 
 Their cafe is ejfcntially different from the cafe of 
 others^ who have not committed this fin. Others^ 
 notwithftanding their commiQion of all other fins ^ 
 may be admitted to mercy s that is, by the inter- 
 vening privilege of a far don., they may be faved 
 without firft going through the torments of hell, or, 
 as the fcj'ipture exprefles it, without being " hurt of 
 " the fecond death:" Whereas, it is not poffible, that 
 thefe fliould bt fo fa-ved. They mu^firji fuffer the 
 pains of helU becaufe no intervening pardon can ex- 
 empt them therefrom. 
 
 As to thefe words, in Matthew's gofpel, *' Who- 
 " foever fpeaketh againft the Ho^y Ghofl, it fhall 
 " not be forgiven him, o'^n iv to i/ui/ ajwvi, oute iv 
 '' T^ /^fAAo^ri, neither in this v/orld, neither in the 
 '' world to come," it may be difficult to fix their 
 exa^ fenfe. Expofitors greatly differ here. Som^ 
 fuppofe they are an allnfion to the Jewifh per- 
 fuafion, that fome fins which would not be for- 
 given upon ih^'w facrifices, (whether their daily Xz- 
 crifices, or that on the great day of expiation) and 
 fo were irremiffible in that age, might yet be remit- 
 ted in that to come^ that is, the age of the Meffiah. 
 Others fuppofe the words allude to the notion the 
 Jews entertained with reference to the (?^f;.7 of their 
 highefl excommunication, the fentence whereof they 
 held to be reverfible, neither in this worlds nor the 
 
 Z ether. 
 
33 S OijeBmis anfwered, 
 
 other. Others refer the reafon of this expreffion 
 to that common, but vain, imagination of the 
 Jews, as if there were fomefms^ that had not been 
 forgiven here, which would be expiated by death, 
 and forgiven after it. There are yet others, who 
 think our Saviour refers to the two different times 
 there are iox forgivenefs^ the one^ here upon earth 
 to the believer and penitent finner ; and the other^ 
 at the day of judgment, when the great Judge fhall 
 pronounce thefentenceof abfolution to all his faith- 
 ful fervants : As if he had faid, " This hlcifphemy 
 cgainfi the Holy Ghqft fiiall neither obtain remiffion 
 noiju in the nnner's confcience, nor at the great day 
 of accounts." — But, to me, the moft probable opi- 
 nion is, that this mcde of fpeech was proverbial in 
 Qur Saviour's day. And that, when it was faid, 
 a thing froall not he^ neither in this worlds neither in 
 the Ivor Id to coms^ it was the fame thing with faying, 
 it Jhall never he* And, indeed, this is the very 
 explanation that is given of this idiomaticd phrafe, 
 by the evangelift Mark \ whofe words are thefe, 
 chap. iii. 29, "He that ihali blafpheme againft the 
 *' Holy Ghoft, hath never forgivenefs." And this, 
 we have feen, is the real truths with refped to fuch 
 as blafpheme againfi the Holy Chofi \ notwithftand- 
 ing which, as we have feen alfo, they may be finally 
 faved. ' ,^ 
 
 I fliall add here, Mr, Whifton fuppofes it is 
 implied, in the mode of expreffion here ufed by 
 our Saviour, thu fome Jins may be forgiven in the 
 other worlds which were not forgiven in ihis. His 
 
 words 
 
ObjeclioJis anfxered, 339 
 
 words are thefe, \Hell Torments covftdered^ pag. 37] 
 ^ That Ibnie fins net forgiven in thh world or 
 ' age-i will be forgiven in the world or age to come^ 
 t feems very clear from this text [072;. Mate. 
 
 * xii. 32] : But what fins thefe are, will be con- 
 
 * fidered, when 1 come to the Shepherd ot Hennas.^ 
 When he comes there, he fays (pag. 59), ' Apof- 
 ' tacy joined to blafphemy feems to be the principal 
 ' fin abfolutely irremijjlhle^ both in this^ and the///^ 
 ' ture world.' By this future world, or age^ he 
 means Hades^ the ftate between death and the re* 
 
 furreBion *, and accordingly fuppofes, that this is a 
 Jlatey wherein finners (thofe excepted who have 
 been guilty of blafphemy) will have all poflible 
 means [fee pag. ibid.] ufed v^^ith them to bring 
 them to repentance and falvation. To this pur- 
 pole he interprets i Pet. iii. 18, 19. and iv. i6. 
 And he underftands thefe texts in this fenfe by a 
 text in Jeremiah, now loft, but produced by Juftin 
 Martyr, by another out of Thaddeus, another 
 out of Hermas, another out of Clement" of 
 Alexandria, and another out of Origen \ in all 
 which [fee pag. 44] this doclrine is contained. 
 But it does ^5K- not appear to me, I ov/n, that it 
 was our Saviour's defign, in the expreflion he ufej?^ 
 with reference to the blafphemy againjl the Holy 
 Ghofi, to fuggcR, ihsLl any Ji?is might be forgiven 
 in the coming -loorld^ or ^?r^, which were not for- 
 given in thts : Neither am I fatisfied, from the 
 twopaffages in Peter's firft epiftle, that this apoftic 
 intended to infinuate, as though the gcfpel was 
 
 Z 2 preachgd 
 
"^Ao ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 preached in Hades, in order to bring men to repen- 
 tance \ for which reafon, I have filently palTed over 
 thofe t&xts^ in the foregoing work. But fl^onld it 
 be allowed, that our Saviour intended to declare, 
 that hlafphemy againjl the Holy Ghoft was unpardon- 
 Me in the age to come-i as well as the prefent ag^ ; 
 that is, in Hades^ as well as on earthy it would, be 
 no difEculry in the way of our dodrine of final 
 happinefs, becaufe this kind of finners, being abfo- 
 lutely excluded from the privilege of forgiven efSy 
 muft, as has been hid, fuffer the torments of another 
 worlds before they can he faved. Nay, fhould it be 
 even fuppofed, that thefe blafphemers are fo har- 
 dened in wicked nefs, as not to be fubdued by the 
 pains of the next fiate-, they may, in a ftate beyond 
 thaty be wrought upon, and prepared for final faU 
 vation* 
 
 OBJECTION IV. 
 
 '' It will greatly tend to encourage wicked men 
 *' in their vicious ccurfes, to be told, that the 
 " ftiture torments m\\ have an end; as muft be the 
 *' truth, if it is polTible, that they fliould be finally 
 " faved. They are fcarce kept under tolerable 
 *' reftraintSy though they are taught to believe, 
 " that an eternity of mifery will be the unhappy 
 ** confequence of their habitually indulging to 
 *'' their lufts. To what enormous lengths then may 
 •' it be expedlied they will foon run, in all manner 
 i* of in:)piety and immorality, if, inftead ofl'eceiv- 
 
ObjeStons anfwered, 341 
 
 ^^ ing this do6lrIne as the truth of fcripture, they 
 " fhould be made to think, that hell torments are 
 " of a limited continuancey and that they zn^.^ finally 
 '' h happy?'' 
 
 It is eafy to remark, in anfwer to this objection, 
 that it is defigned, either as an argument to dif- 
 prove a ftate of limited mifery only^ and together 
 with, it x\\t final f ah ation of all men-, or, to point 
 out the dangerous tendency oi pithlijhing fuch tenets 
 as thcfe. — I fhall confider the obje5lion in both thefe 
 views. 
 
 If the thing meant by it is, to difprove the no- 
 tion of a limited ftate of mifery^ and, together here- 
 with the final falvation of all men ; it muft be 
 plainly {hown, that thefe do^rines do naturally and 
 dire5lly tend to encourage men in vicious pradice : 
 Othervvife it cannot, with the lead appearance of 
 reafon, be pretended, that this argument carries in 
 it any r^al force. Wicked men may pervert the 
 tendency of any thing, and take occafion, even from 
 that, which is naturally 2S\^ flroi'gly adapted 10 fof- 
 ten their hearts, zn^effeSl their reformation, to har- 
 den themfelves in fin. The " riches of God's good- 
 " nefs, and forbearance, and long-fuffering,'* mani- 
 feiled towards finners, in the courfe of Providence, 
 are admirably fuited to work upon their ingenuity, 
 melt them into grief and fliame for their pad 
 faults and follies, and lead them to repentance: And 
 this is the thing intended^Dy a good God. But 
 they may pervert both the dcfigv^ and tendency , 
 
 Z 3 6f 
 
'342 ObjeBions anfwered, 
 
 of all this goodnefs, and take occafion, even 
 from the riches of it, to encourage themfelves 
 in an evil way. The fame may be faid in the 
 prefent cafe. The do6lrine of final falvatioi^ as 
 pleaded for, vv^ith refped to wicked men, only in 
 confequence o^ deflate of torment^ which will lafl: till 
 their chara6ler, as wicked^ is deftroyed^ is naturally 
 and powerfully adapted to dif courage them from 
 going on in their finful courfes. But if, in oppo- 
 fition to the natural and genuine tendency of this 
 do5lrine^ they will encourage themfelves in wicked- 
 nefs^ it is not the do^rine that gives this encourage- 
 ment^ but their ahufe of it. And if this is a good 
 reafon why the dodlrine fliould not be true, no 
 do6lrine can be true \ for there is not one but 
 what may be perverted^ and turned to an ill ufe. 
 ThQ grace of the gofpel^ according to the common 
 fcheme, not only may be, but adually has been, 
 and now is, perverted and ahtfed by thoufands of 
 the fons of men. But fliall their ahufe of that 
 which is well defigned^ and ftrongly adapted^ to pro- 
 mote their good, be conftrued as an argument 
 againft the difplay of this grace towards them ? 
 The ohjeElors are fenfible of the injufijciency of the 
 argument, as thus applied ; and it is equally in- 
 fufficient in the cafe we are confidering. 
 
 Had we attempted to introduce mankind uni- 
 verfally into a ^.2iXQ of hcippinefs^ upon their leaving 
 this world, whatever their moral conduct had been 
 in it, the argument would then have held ftrong. 
 Put, as we have not only allowed, but even 
 
 proved, 
 
ObjcBions anfwered. 343 
 
 proved, that moral depravity is inconfiftent with 
 rational happinefs^ and that it is as impcjjihle men 
 fhould be happy^ in the other world, ns in this^ till 
 they are reduced under a willijig fuhjeBion to the 
 government of God ; yea, that the reafon of their 
 fuffering the torments of the next ft ate >, which are 
 awfully great in degree^ as well as long in duration^ 
 is, that they might be tnside the willing people of 
 God, and that they fliall not be delivered from 
 ibefe torments till this has been effe61:ed : I fay, as 
 we have proved all this, it cannot, with any fhadow 
 of truth, be pretended, that a do^rine, thus circum- 
 ftanced, fhould, from its natural tendency^ give en- 
 couragement to vice, k is, on -the contrary, very 
 powerfully fuited to check men's lufts, and dilen- 
 gage them from their fins ; and if it hath not 
 a5liially this effe^lj it is becaufe they will not 
 hearken to the didates of reafon^ and adl up to 
 their charader as intelligent agents. 
 
 It mud certainly argue /^//v, and to an high de- 
 gree too, for men, rather than not proceed in their 
 vicious ways, to chuje to undergo unutterable 
 PAINS FOR A LONG DURATION, God Only knows 
 how long. When they m/ight, by approving them- 
 felves faithful fnhje^s in the kingdom of Jefus 
 Chrift, pais, without fuffering thefe pains, into the 
 
 JOYS OF THE RESURRECTION WORLD : And thls 
 
 folly will rather defer ve the name of dozvnright 
 inad?iefs^ if it be remembered, that they muft ceafc 
 from being wicked^ before they can poffibly be fixed 
 in find happinefs. There is no room for debate 
 here. Thofe men mud ad in contradidion 
 
 Z 4 to 
 
344 Obje6iions anfwered. 
 
 to all prudence^ and in defiance of common fenfe^ 
 who will venture, for the fake of the pleafures 
 effing to expofe themfelves to that fire of hell, 
 which will efte6t their death a second time, 
 under all the circumilances of lingering hor- 
 ror, AND tormenting AGONY j cfpecially if i^ 
 be confidered, that they may, if they will but 
 renounce their fins, avoid this miferable deaths and, 
 inflead of it, be admitted to a glorious immor- 
 tality IN heaven. The plain truth is, if men 
 will encourage themfelves in wickednefs from the 
 above do^rine^ it mud be by laying afide their 
 reafony and a6ling a diftra5fed part ; for it is im- 
 poGible they fhould take encouragement herefrom 
 in any other way. 
 
 But it will, perhaps, be faid, the difcouragement 
 to fm is much greater upon the fcheme of never- 
 ending torments^ than this that is pleaded for. We 
 fliall, for the prefent, fuppofe it to be fo. And 
 what is the confequence herefrom ? Surely, not 
 that fin mufi be thus dijccuro.gedy and that any lower 
 method of difcouraging it cannot be the truth of 
 revelation. For God is not obliged to make the 
 difcouragements to vicious pradlice the greateft^ it is 
 polTible his power lliould make them. This would 
 not confift with his wifdom^ which muft confider 
 rv)tn as free agentSy and adjuft his ^^;;^z^^/ towards 
 them 2iS fuch. He could, doubtlefs, in point of 
 power, reprefent Hell to the view of finners in fuch 
 a ftriking light, even fuppofing the torments of it 
 were not endlefs, as that they fhould be irreftjiibly 
 
 flopped 
 
ObjeBions anfwered, 345 
 
 ftopped in their wicked purfuits : But fuch a me- 
 thod of dealing with men would not comport with 
 t\\t\x free agency. No room, in this cafe, would 
 be left for the trial of their virtue. The difcou- 
 ragement^ that fia would carry with it, would fo 
 overpower the mind, as to give no opportunity 
 for choice. The motive could not be withjlcod. — 
 The (hort of the matter is, God is a much better 
 judge, than we are, what motives are the wifefi^ 
 and heji^ to be ufed with his creatures : For which 
 reafon, it will not follow, that the -prefent do^rine 
 is not true, even upon the fuppofition, that it does 
 not dijcourage fin fo ftrongly^ as it is difcouraged 
 on the other fchcme. 
 
 It will not be thought, by any of thefe ohje£forSy 
 that our Saviour did not ufe the wijefl and moft 
 proper method to convince the Jews, in his day, of 
 his MeJJlahffoip, becaufe he did not judge it fit to 
 gratify that humour in them, which required 7?/// 
 further evidence of this truth ; which evidence, in 
 regard of pozz^er, he could eafily have given them. 
 He had done enough, by the miracles, and ivonders, 
 andy%;/j-, which he had wrought in the midjt of 
 them^ to make it appear, to all unprejudiced impar- 
 tial enquirers, that he was a man approved of God \ 
 and he therefore juftly calls them *' an evil and 
 " adulterous generation," attributing xhciw unbelief <, 
 not to want of proper evidence, but to perv erf enefs 
 and objlinacy of temper, which would probably have 
 made an ill ufe even oi ftronger evidence, if fhort 
 of irreftflihlc^ had he laid it before them ; which 
 
 therefore 
 
^±6 ObjeEiions anfwered. 
 
 therefore he wifely refufed to do. — To apply this 
 to the prefent cafe. God, no doubt, could have 
 made the difcouragements to vicious pradice much 
 fironger than he has done, had his wifdom]\.\i^gtd it 
 proper. And if any will not be fatisfied with the 
 fitnefs and fuitahknefs of thefe difcouragements^ be- 
 caufe they might, as they imagine, have been dill 
 more powerful^ they would do well to confider, whe- 
 ther they do not difcover a difpofition very like to 
 that of the Jews, in our Saviour's day, who would 
 not believe in him, unlefs he would gratify their 
 humour-, by giving xkitmjufi that evidence^ in proof 
 of his pretenfions, that they defired. If the motives 
 to difcourage men from vice are, in their nature, 
 rationally and Jirongly adapted to promote this 
 defign, it is highly abfurd to ohje5t againft their 
 divinity^ upon this confideration merely^ that they 
 are nox. fo powerfully adapted to this purpofe, as we 
 may fondly conceit they might be. 
 
 But this ohje5fion^ perhaps, is levelled, not fo 
 much againft the truth of the foregoing fcheme, 
 as the wifdom of opening it to the world. It is 
 feared^ if the rejlraint^ that is laid upon men, by 
 xhtix faith in the do6i:rine of endlefs torments^ is 
 taken off, by their being told, that they willfooner 
 or later come to z period^ when they (hall be admit- 
 ted to happinefs^ they would univerfally indulge to 
 vice*, infomuch that the ii'hole earthy it might be ex- 
 pe6led, would quickly be overrun with wickednefs^ 
 in all its various kinds. — To the ohje^ion^ in this 
 
 point 
 
Ohjedltons anfwered. 347 
 
 point of view, I wou] : anfwer in the following 
 particulars : 
 
 I. If men's /^//^ in the do6trine o^ 11 ever- ending 
 torments is founded, not on iht fcripture itfelf^ but 
 their own wrong interpretation of it, it would be 
 very extraordinary, if the fetting them right in this 
 matter fhould have the bad te7idency that h feared. 
 It ought not to be fuppofed, that men fliould be 
 made worfe by underilanding t\\t fcripttire in its 
 true and genuine fenle. To Uippofe fuch a thing, 
 would carry with it a bafe reflexion on the revelations 
 of God contained in it. Itfnal univerfal happinefs 
 is 2Lfcripture truths we need not fear its doing any 
 damage to men^s morals, fhould they be told of it, 
 and brought univerfally and heartily to believe it. 
 And, indeed, to fpeak plainly, dWfear^ upon this 
 fuppofition, is ultimately founded on man^s wifdom^ 
 in oppofition to the wifdom of God; which (lands in 
 need of no huvaan craft, but can without it guard 
 mankind againft wickednefs, and make them good 
 :xndfaitJful fubje5is in his kingdom of righteoiifnefs 
 and holinefs. 
 
 Some learned as well as good men, I am fen- 
 fible, who had themfelves no faith in the dodlrine 
 of never-ending torments, have yet been under re- 
 ftraint in opening themfelves, upon this head, 
 through /if^r of doing hurt, by lelfcning the re- 
 ceived and credited motive to difcourage vice. 
 Origen, one of the primitive and moft celebrated 
 Chriftian fathers, having faid, ' He that defpifes 
 ' the purifications of the word of God, and the 
 
 * dodlrine 
 
^aS Objections anfwered. 
 
 « do^lrine of the gofpel, is referved for thole 
 
 * dreadful and fenal purifications afterwards •, that 
 
 * fo he may be purged by thtfire and torment of 
 
 * helU who would not receive purgation from the 
 
 * apoftolical dodlrine, and evangelical word, ac^ 
 
 * cording to that which is written, of being purified 
 
 * by fire. But hoiv long this purification, which is 
 
 * wrought out by penal fire^ fhail endure^ or for 
 
 * how many periods or ages it fhall detain ftnful fouls 
 
 * in torment^ he only knows to whom all judgment 
 
 * is committed by the Father :' I fay, having 
 fpoken thus, upon the fame place and fubjedl, he 
 adds, ' But we muft ilill remember, that the apof- 
 
 * tie would have this text accounted as a myftery^ 
 
 * fo as that the faithful and perfeEl ones may keep 
 
 * its fecret fenfe among themfelves^ and not ordina- 
 
 * rily divulge it to the imp erf e 51^ and lefs capable of 
 
 * receiving it *.' And Dr. Thomas Burnet, a wri- 
 ter in this prefent century, having largely, and 
 with a good deal of learning and judgment, op- 
 pofed the common notion of the eternity of hell 
 torments, yet adds, upon the whole, in a marginal 
 note, * that if any one fliould tranflate into the 
 
 * vulgar language^ v/hat he had written for the fake 
 
 * of the learned^ he fliould think it was done with a 
 
 * bad mind, and zfinifter view f.' 
 
 • See the preface to Mr. Whitens ReJIoration of all Things* 
 f Hacc, quae do6tibribus infcripta funt, fi quis in linguam 
 vulgarem tranltulerit, id malo animo atque confilio finiflro 
 fadum arbitrabor, De Statu Mart, et Refurg* page 305. 
 
 But 
 
Objeciions anfwered. 34^ 
 
 But it appears to me an argument of evident 
 weakvefsy taking rife from the remains of religious 
 fuperftilion^ for any to be reftrained from fpeaking 
 what they efteem a real truth of God, through fear 
 of doing burl thereby, provided they take care to 
 fpeak with prudence. For, as Mr. Whifton well 
 obferves, [^Hell I'orments conftderedy pages 132,139] 
 ' We have no warrant to impofe upon Chriilians, 
 ' or upon mankind, in matters of religion. We 
 ' have no authority from God, or his Chrifl:, or 
 ' Holy Spirit, to difguife our Chriilianity ; to ufe 
 
 * frauds of either prieji-craft, or lay-craft : But 
 ' ought to lay the duties, the promifes, and the 
 
 * threatenings, of the gofpel, plainly ^ndfincerely 
 ' before men, without all arts or tricks whatfoever* 
 ' I fay further, I will not deny but that, during 
 ' the times oi grofs ignorance, fuch as, in general, 
 
 * were the feveral ages, from the fifth to the fix- 
 
 * teenth century of the gofpel, many pious, or 
 
 * rather impions frauds, ^^'ishfalfe do brines in abun- 
 ' dance, and, amon^. the reft, this abRird dodrine, 
 ' were univerfally believed : Which, how falfe fo- 
 ' ever in themfelves, did then do the lefs harm^ 
 ' becaufe few, or none, perceived them to ht fatfe, 
 
 * -But the cafe is quite otherwife now. A natura( 
 
 * curiofity of examining every thing, ^nd a fceptical 
 
 * curiofity of examining the books and do6lrines 
 ' of the BiMe, and of Chriftianity, in order to difj 
 ^ cover any flaws or impofitions therein, does now 
 
 * greatly prevail i and makes it ablblutely neceifary 
 ^ for all good men, and good fcholars, efpecially 
 
 ' for 
 
-3 CO ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 ' for Clergymen and Divines^ to difcard all pious 
 ^ frauds^ and to lay the naked truth of every thing 
 
 * clearly before the world. Nor indeed, does holy 
 
 * Job allow us to /peak wickedly for Gody nor to 
 
 * talk deceitfully for him (a) •, Nor St. Paul permit 
 ' us to tell lies to promote God's glory (b) : nor, in 
 
 * general, to do evil that good may come^ but pro- 
 
 * nounces their damnation to be juft that do fo. 
 
 * St. Peter alfo, in the Recognition of Clement^ afTures 
 
 * us, " that it was not lawful for him to lie ; nor 
 
 * ought he to deceive men, whether an unbeliever 
 
 * might be thereby faved, or not faved :" Which 
 *^ precepts, and example, therefore, ought to take 
 ' place among Chriftians, before any political max- 
 
 * ims whatfoever.' 
 
 2. It ought to be confidered, that the torments 
 of helli according to the fcheme we are pleading 
 for, SLVcfufficient to difcourage any, that will ad 
 under the influence of reafon^ from going on in 
 a courfe of fin \ infomuch that, if they are not 
 wrought upon by this motive^ it muft be, becaufe 
 they are fhamefully inattentive, nay, I might fay, 
 ftupidly thoughtlefs. And to perfons, who will lay 
 afide their reafon-, and live and a6l as though they 
 had none, what room is there to expedt, that they 
 would be influenced by diftant torments, however 
 lengthened in duration ? If they would conftder, and 
 behave like men, it is impoffible they fhould go on 
 in a vicious courfe, under the profpedl: of being 
 condemned by the righteous judge of all the earth, 
 
 (a) Job, xiii. 7, (h) Rom. iii. 7, 8. 
 
 10 "Ot 
 
Objedlions an/were J. 3 5 1 
 
 not only tp banifhnient from the joys of the re- 
 
 SURRECTION-STATIi, buC tO POSITIVE TORMENTS, 
 
 which, though they will end in deaths yet fhall be 
 
 AWFULLY GREAT IN DEGREE, and LONG IN CON- 
 TINUANCE, "In proportion to the number and ^reat- 
 nefs of their crimes : But if they will not fufFer so 
 DREADFUL A PUNISHMENT as this to have any 
 influence upon them, by their thoughtlejfnefs and 
 inconftderation^ there is certainly no good reafon to 
 fuppofe, was the punifhment mzdt greater by the 
 increafe of its duration^ but that ih^ fame thoughtlejf- 
 nefs and ftupidity would render it ineffe^ual. If 
 men will put off their character as reafonahle crea- 
 tures, no diftant motives^ however increafed in 
 firength^ will operate upon them. It is not indeed 
 pojffible they fhould operate, but by making them 
 prefent to the mind by contemplation. And if 
 men would be confiderate and attentivey they would 
 be fuficient^ without height ejung them to the utmoft^ 
 to have the defired effed : Whereas, if they will 
 be thoughtlefs, their being thus heightened will pro* 
 bably ferve to very little purpofe. Our Saviour 
 has faid, " If they hear not Mofes and the pro^ 
 ** phets, neither will they be perfuadcd thougli 
 " one rofe from the dead ;" that is, it is not pro- 
 bable that they would. That stxy perverfenefs of 
 temper, which obftrudls the influence of the public 
 ftanding revelations of God ^ would, in aH likelihood, 
 prevent their being wrought upon by this pro- 
 pofed expedient. The fame may be faid, with 
 equal truth, in the prefent cafe. If men will go on, 
 
 in 
 
^c2 OhjeBions anfwered. 
 
 in vicious pradice, notwithftanding the terrors 
 OF THAT DEATH, vvliich fhall be brought on with 
 
 PAINS AWFULLY CRUCIATING, and yCt AWFULLY 
 PROTRACTED IN THEIR CONTINUANCE, it muft be 
 
 bccaufe they are Jtupidly inconfiderate-, and it is 
 hif^hly probable, x.\\q fame ftupidity would prevent 
 their being difengaged from their mad purfuits, 
 \i th of e pains y inftead of ending in deaths were to laft 
 always* There is little reaion to think otherwife. 
 But, 
 
 3. It may be well worth while to enquire, whe- 
 ther the common doUrine is fo likely to reftrain men 
 from fin, as that which has been explained in thefe 
 papers. It isfeen, mfa^i^ notwithftanding all that 
 has been faid to make men believe, that the tor- 
 ments of the coming world fhall never have an end^ 
 that they generally " walk in the way of their ov^n 
 *' heart, and in the fight of their own eyes,*' and 
 will not be kept within due bounds. And, perhaps, 
 upon examination, it will be found, that one prin- 
 cipal reafon of this is, that the terrors propofed for 
 their perfuafion exceed their belief. If they do not 
 openly fpeak of it as an incredible things that they 
 fhould be hereafter doomed to never -ending torments^ 
 it may be queftioned, whether they inwardly affent 
 to this as the real truth. The natural notions 
 ihey entertain of the goodnefs and mercy of God 
 rife up in oppofition to it, and firovgly operate, 
 though, it may be, infenfibly many times, to obfiruU 
 its influence^ and give them peace* Thefe appre- 
 henfions concerning their Creator, and Prefcrver, 
 
 and 
 
()bje5iions anfwered, 3^ j 
 
 arid Fatl^er, have a real exiftence in their minds, and 
 in confequence hereof, their inzvard fecret hope isj 
 that they fhall not fuffer fuch dreadful torments. 
 An infinitely benevolent God, they cannot well 
 help thinking, will not bey^/fi;^r^ with his poor, 
 though finful, creatures. It is, with me, paft all 
 doubt, that the generality of wicked men, under 
 the gofpel, whatever they may profefs, or imagine 
 they believe, are not really perfuaded^ that never^ 
 ending mifery will be the certain effect of fin perfifted " 
 in. The conceptions they naturally, and as it 
 were infenfibly, form of the all-merciful Being, are 
 a counterbalance to their fear from this quarter. 
 They recur in their thoughts, and cannot eafily do 
 any other than recur, to the infinite benevolence of 
 the Deity, and ultimately place their dependence 
 here*, and to this it is very much owing, I believe, 
 that the dodlrine of never-ending torments has no 
 greater influence upon them. Whereas, upon the 
 foregoing fcheme, there is nothing incredible in the 
 torments of another world. They are perfe6lly 
 analogous to what is experienced in the prefent 
 ftate; and there is no more reafon to obje^ againft 
 them, than againlt the prefent judicial proceedings 
 of Heaven againft zvicked rqen. They are equally 
 confiftent with men's natural notions of the benevo- 
 lence o^ Godi, And, confequently, as propofed in 
 this fcheme, their influence could not be at all ob- 
 ilrucled from their incredibility •, but they would 
 llrike the mind with/:/// force^ and probably ope- 
 rate to much better purpofe, reftraining men more 
 tffcclually from their wicked courfcs. 
 
 A a h 
 
354 ObjeBions anfwered. 
 
 It may alfo be pertinently fuggefted here, the 
 public officers of religion might be more free ^ and 
 fulh in urging upon men's confciences the do6lrine 
 oi future mifery, in order to check their lufts and 
 paffions, upon the plan exhibited in thefe papers, 
 than upon the common one. And they would be 
 likely to do a great deal more good. A very 
 confiderable number of Divines, at this day, do not 
 believe the eternity of hell torments ; though they 
 may not difclofe their minds to the vulgar, but, 
 for political reafons, fuffer it to pafs among them, 
 that they do believe it. And, as to fuch, they 
 are evidently reflrained from making that ufe of 
 the terrors of the Lord, for the warning of men, 
 which they might otherwife do, and, it may be, 
 to good effed, with refpedb to many. And, in 
 truth, as honefl Mr. Whifton, with his ufual frank- 
 nefs, obferves, [//f// 'Torjnents conjidered, pages 
 3:55, 136] ' Till this dodrine of the equal dura- 
 ' tion of the torments of hell with thtjoys of heaven, 
 
 * and that they are to be co-eternal with God, be 
 
 * laid afide. Divines of real fagacity, and true judg- 
 
 * ment, dare hardly treat, in particular, of thefe 
 
 * terrors of the Lord*, in order to aftrighten men 
 
 * from their wicked courfes, and to perfuade them 
 ' to be religious j they dare hardly, in earneft, en- 
 
 * force our Saviour's folemn cay tion, to fear him 
 
 * who is able to deflroy loth body and foul in hell f i 
 
 * Nor can they frequently, with an honefl heart, 
 
 * exhort them to cut off their darling lufts iorfear 
 
 * 2 Cor. V. II. t Matt. x. 28. 
 
OhjeBions anfwered^ 355 
 
 " of the worm that never diss, and the fire that never 
 *■ Jhall be quenched "^t as our Saviour did : Nor can 
 
 * they fufficiently terrify the greatcft flnners, among 
 ' Chriftians, as did the author to the Hebrews, 
 ' with that certain fearful looking for of judgment, 
 
 * and fiery indignation^ which fhall devour the adver- 
 '^ faries \ •, with that fore punifhment that he fhall be 
 
 * thought worthy of that hath trodden under foot the 
 ^ Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the cove- 
 
 * nant, wherewith he had been fan^fified, an unholy 
 
 * thing, and hath done defpite to the fpirit of grace ; 
 
 * fince // is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of 
 ' the living GodX* Becaufe their own natural con- 
 
 * fciences would fly in their faces, and tell them, 
 ' that what they affright their readers and hearers 
 ' with, is unjult in its own nature, cruel both in 
 ' the threatening and in the execution, and what 
 ' any one that believes and confiders the exa6t 
 ^ juftice, and infinite goodnefs of God, cannot pof- 
 
 * fibly believe at the fame time. We need not 
 
 * indeed much wonder, that a weak enthufiaft, or 
 
 * a bigot ted [I would isiy, friend to topical orthodoxy^ 
 
 * rather than] Athanaftan^ may be in earnefl: in 
 ' fuch a dof^trine, and exhortation ; and that fuch 
 
 * as do not give themfelvcs leave to think, and 
 
 * examine, may follow their common interpreters, 
 ' and may both believe, and preach up, and de- 
 
 * fend this proper eternity of hell torments* But if 
 
 * we come to fuch great and good men as arch- 
 
 * Mark ix. 43 — 48, \ Heb. x. 27. j Ibid. ver. 29, 31* 
 
 A a 2 * bifhop 
 
2^6 ObjeSiions anfwered. 
 
 ' bilhop Tillotfon*, and Dr. Whitby t> who have 
 
 * both of them ventured to treat on that eternity ^ 
 
 * and this without either of them, or even Dr, 
 
 * Burnet himfelf, having made a thorough ex- 
 
 * amination into the foundation it (lands upon, 
 
 * we (hall find, that archbifhop Tillotfon was fo 
 
 * fully fenfible of its abfurdity, that he chofe rather 
 ' to give up the veracity of God in thefe his 
 ' threatenings^ than to defend this eternity \ and Dr. 
 ' Whitby, who has been fo hardy as to defend it, 
 
 * is forced entirely to give up \i\^jujiice in fuch his 
 ^ punijhments : While much the greater part of 
 
 * Divines generally avoid the treating diredly upon 
 ' fo difagreeable and dangerous a fubje6l. Where- 
 
 * as, if they would enquire into the bottom of this 
 
 * matter, and go to the fountain-head of this 
 
 * common notion, they would find no more difH- 
 
 * culty in treating upon this, than any other points 
 
 * of Chriftianity. If indeed the common doflrine 
 
 * were certainly true, i\\t juftice of God muft in- 
 
 * evitably be given up, and much more his mercy : 
 ' Which yet are the proper and only foundation of 
 
 * all filial fear, and rational reverence ; of all jufi: 
 ' honour, and truft, and hope, and love, and con- 
 
 * fidence in him, who has ever been efteemed as 
 ' optimus maximusy the i'^/, as well zsgreatej^^ of be- 
 
 * ings ', while this dodrine fuppofes him to delight 
 
 * in cruelty : And all his reafonable creatures, that 
 
 » Tillotfon's Sermons, vol. I. Serm. 86. 
 f Whitby's Appendix to the Comment on the Second to 
 the TheiTalonians. 
 
 • dare 
 
ObjeBions anfwereJ. 3^7 
 
 '.dare think, mud give themlelves up to defpair 
 
 * and horror. — Such are the fatal confequences 
 
 * of this amazing dodrine, fo very unjultly, fo 
 
 * very unjuftly, I fay it again, (blefled be the name 
 
 * of God, and his Chrift, for ever !) fathered upon 
 
 * our holy religion.' 
 
 I flialJ only add — the future torments^ confidered 
 in the light we have fet them, are more fuitably 
 adapted, in the nature of the thing, to work upon 
 rational and intelligent agents, than in the common 
 point of view. The end propofed by them per- 
 fectly coincides with benevolence i for they are the 
 chajlifements of 2i father-; as well as judge, and de- 
 figned principally for the reformation^ and confe- 
 quent good^ of the offenders themfehes. And when 
 men are taught to think thus ; and that thefe 
 corre^ions fhall be heavy in proportion to their^?^^- 
 hornnefs in fin, and continued till they are humbled 
 and fubdued ; and that they Ihall have no mercy till 
 this end is accompliflied — what can be wanting, 
 in a motive thus circiimftanced^ to operate, in a moral 
 way, upon reafonable minds ? It fhould feem to be 
 as well calculated to the purpofe, as it pofTibly can 
 be. And if men will not be wrought upon by it, 
 it mud be becaufe they will not a6t like men. To 
 be fure, if they fhould be difpofed to take occafion, 
 from fuch a reprefentation of the future torments^ 
 to give the reins to their lufts, they mufl adl in 
 defiance of all reafon^ and gratitude^ and interefty 
 and be looked upon as abandoned fiupid creatures. 
 
 A a 3 CON- 
 
[ 3S8 ] 
 
 CONCLUSION, 
 
 I HAVE now offered what I had to fay in proof 
 oi t\it final fdvation of ^ all men: Nor am I 
 fenfible of any effential defeft in the evidence upon 
 which it has been fupported from the revelations 
 of God, The more carefully I review it, the more 
 clearly fatisfied I am it will ftand the fevereft 
 trial, if it be an impartial one. 
 
 And as it is from the bible, that we are fur- 
 nifhed with this evidence *, as it is in this facred booky 
 that the infinitely benevolent God is reprefented 
 as having fee on foot a.fcbeme for the recovery of 
 the whole race of Adam ^ which fcheme he will go 
 on profecuting by his Son Jefus Chrift^ on whofe 
 hlood and rigbtecufnefs it was founded, till he has 
 inflated them all in the poffeffion of everlafiing 
 happnefs\ — how thankful (hould we be for the 
 fcripture-revelation ? And how very imprudent are 
 fuch as voluntarily put themfelves into the ftate of 
 thofe who have no hcpe^ but what they fetch by 
 their own arguings from the mere light of nature? 
 There are great numbers of this kind of perfons in 
 the Chriftian world; and they feem to be upon the 
 increafe. But why Ihould any chufe to renounce 
 the hope of the gofpel for one that is built upon 
 
 reafon 
 
Conclufwn* 359 
 
 reflfon only f Is the profped: which nure reafon gives 
 ns of a future world to be compared with tbaty 
 which we may take of it by the help o^ revela- 
 tion? By no means. The light of reafon^ it is 
 true, if duly attended to, may open to our view 
 zjlate beyond the grave : But does it difcover, with 
 clear nefs and certainty, what our condition will be 
 in that ftate ? It may, if we have behaved /// in 
 this^ excite our fears, and fill us with anxiety, when 
 we look into that -, and it may alfo, if we have 
 endeavoured to a6t conformably to the rules of 
 virtue, encourage us to rely on the divine goodnefs 
 with fome degree oi hope : But it cannot, upon 
 folid grounds, affure us of a hleffed immortality, 
 ' For who can fay, he hath performed a virtue^ 
 ' that, in the en:imate of his own reafon, will entitle 
 ' him to it ? Who can pretend to have fo behaved, 
 ' as to deferve any one blefTing from God's ha^ds? 
 ' Is it not evident, that the bed virtue, any man 
 ' performs, needs the relief of grace and mercy ? 
 ' And where is that grace and mercy revealed, but 
 ' in the gofpel ? The gofpel alone difcovers and 
 
 * enfures immortality •, or reveals the grace which 
 
 * exprefsly gives ir, the ground upon which this 
 ' grace ftands, the end for which it is given, and 
 ' the means by which we may obtain it. And can 
 
 * the full perfuafion and view of immortal honour 
 ' and glory be efteemed a trifle ? — The gofpel is 
 
 * good news from heaven ; pardon and eternal life 
 ' promifed to a finful world. iVnd can any be 
 ' fo infatuated as to wifh its heavenly light and 
 
 A a 4 * hopes 
 
260 Conclufion. 
 
 * hopes at once extinguiftied, and the darknefs 
 
 * of Taganijm reftored among the nations ? Doth 
 
 * not nature itfelf teach us to be thankful for 
 
 * fuperior blefFings, and to turn our eyes to the 
 ' brighteft profpe6ts of happinefs ? If the univerfal 
 
 * Father is pleafed to beftow upon us fingular fa- 
 
 * vours, is it not moil unnatural and wicked to 
 
 * defpife and rejed them ? Such is the glory and 
 
 * excellence, fuch the delightful profpeds of the 
 
 * gofpel, that, inftead of cavilling and oppofing, 
 ' methinks the proper and only concern of every 
 
 * mind fhould be to feek out evidence, and all 
 
 * polTible means to ellablifn its truth.' After 
 this manner Dr. Taylor reafons, excellently well, 
 in his dedication to his work on the Romans ; 
 though he had no notion of tht gofpel plan of mercy ^ 
 in that extenfively lenevolent fenfe we have fet it 
 forth, in the foregoing pages : Upon which, the 
 reafoning is far more emphatically ilriking and 
 forcible. The Beifts themfelves will not pretend 
 to fet up reafon in competition with revelation^ if 
 the happinefs of the whole human fpecies is the 
 GREAT END of the fcheme of God there opened, 
 and an end that fhall yiot fail of being accomplifhed 
 in the ifiue of its operation. Suppofing this to 
 be the truth, nothing can be faid, upon the prin- 
 ciples o^ mere reafon^ that will reprefent the blefled 
 God in fo amiable and endearing a light: Nor 
 could the human mind, in any way but this of 
 revelation^ have been let into a defign of raercy^ fo 
 wonderfully fitted to deliver mankind from that 
 
 corruptible 
 
Conclufion. 361 
 
 corruptible mtferahk condition we know we are fub- 
 je6ted to, by preparing us for, and finally fixing 
 us in, the joys of a glorious immortality, Reafot 
 may perfedlly acquiefce in this fcheme of revela- 
 tion^ not having a word to objefl againft it ; but 
 it could not, of itfelf, have made the difcovecy. 
 It might have put here and there a great genius 
 upon making conje^ures refpeding another worlds 
 and grounding feeble hopes upon them •, bi!it it 
 would not have enabled them to have m2idtfuch a 
 reprefentation of it, and of the way^ and manner^ in 
 which mankind univerfall)\ fooner or later, in one 
 period of their exiftence or another, fhall be made 
 happy in it, as is given us in tht f crip tures : A re- 
 prefentation eminently worthy of God, and of the 
 acceptance of every fon of Adam. Nor can I 
 fuppofe, that any foberly thoughtful Deijl would 
 ever have recurred to mere reafon, in oppofition to 
 revelation, for the fupport of a hope towards Gody 
 if he had entertained this idea of its defign and 
 tendency. 
 
 It is, I am verily perfuaded, very much owing 
 to the falfe light in which revelation has been 
 placed, and by its very good friends too, that fo 
 many have been led to rejeoi it. And, in truth, 
 if thQ fenfe of revelation really was, what it has too 
 generally been reprefented to be, even by Chrif- 
 tians themfelves, I fee not that blame could juftly 
 be reflected on them. It is impoflible that fhould 
 come from God, which is unworthy of him •, nor 
 would any external evidence be fufficient to juftify 
 
 a man 
 
j62 ConcJufion, 
 
 a man in believing him to be the author of that-^ 
 which, in its own nature, is unreafonahle and ah- 
 furd. This, if I miftake not, is well v/orthy of 
 the fober confideration of thofe, who profefs a 
 veneration for the bible as a divine book. It is 
 a hdi too evident to be denied, that the revelations 
 of Gody as contained in the writings of the Old and 
 New Tejlament^ have been gradually and ftrangely 
 comipted by falfe philofophy and vain deceit ; and, 
 perhaps, as grofs abfurditiesy as palpably wrong and 
 dijhonotirable ideas of God, have been received by 
 believers for facred truths, upon the foot of revela- 
 tion, as were ever received by infidels upon the foot 
 of reafon, even in the darkeft ages and places of 
 Paganifm. Yea, notwichftanding the light and 
 learning of the prefent day, horrible ahfurditieSy 
 both in dotlrine and worfhip, are flill grounded on 
 the writings even of the apoftles of Jefus Chrift, 
 and by thofe too who profefs a regard to them as 
 wrote by infpiration of the Holy Ghoft. Such 
 are the doctrines taught in the church of Rome. 
 More enormous falfehoods were never fathered upon 
 the God of truth. They are indeed fuch an affront 
 to the human underftanding, fuch a defiance of 
 common fenfe, as cannot but naturally and (Irongly 
 tend to make men infidels. And fuch alfo, if not 
 in fo high a degree, are fome of the dodrines 
 which Proteftants receive for revealed truths. Of 
 this kind I may properly mention, upon this oc- 
 cafion, the dodtrines of eleSfion and reprobation ; of 
 the eternity of hell torments *, and of the partial de- 
 
Conchjion. 363 
 
 ftgny and final cffeEl^ of the mediatory interfofttion of 
 Jeftis Chrijf. Mr. Whifton has declared it as his 
 thought, " that the common opinion, concerning 
 the future torments, if it were, for certain, a real 
 part of Chriftianity, would be a more infuperable 
 objedlion againft it, than any or all the prefent 
 objedtions of unbelievers put together." The 
 fame may be faid, I think, with as much, if not 
 more, truth of the do6lrine of ahfolute reprobation^ 
 as it has been particularly explained, and warmly 
 defended, by many Chrifiian Divines, and of very 
 confiderable note. And the mediatory undertaking 
 of Jefus thrifts as commonly underftood, is per- 
 haps incredible alfo. Thefe, and fuch-like, repre- 
 fentations of the fenfe offcripture^ have, I doubt not, 
 been " ftones of Humbling, and rocks of offence." 
 Many may have taken occafion herefrom to call that 
 *' foolifhnefs," which in reality is " the wifdom of 
 *' God." And in vain fhall we hope to filence the 
 objedions of infidelity, and put a ftop to its grov/th, 
 till we are able to exhibit an account of the inter- 
 nal contents of the facred writings, that is r,tore ho- 
 nour able to the infinitely perfe5l Being, and more con- 
 ducive to the real advantage of mankind. Such an 
 account, it appears to me, I have given, in the 
 foregoing work, of the revelations of fcripture ; an 
 account fo far from being unreafonable and abfurd, 
 that it cannot but approve itfelf to the human 
 mind, as that which refledls great glory on God, 
 and his Son Jefus, in the good it univerfally brings 
 to the fons of men : And it is the more to be rc- 
 3 garded. 
 
264 Condufion* 
 
 carded, as it is eminently fitted to promote true 
 piety and real virtue in the world. 
 
 If, conformably to the account we have given 
 from the fcriptures^ God has fo loved us as to pro- 
 jed; a Icheme, which, in the final refult of its profe- 
 cution, will inflate us all in heavenly and immor£al 
 glory, how powerfully are we herefrom excited 
 to yield to him the incire homage of our hearts ? 
 Who but God, who in competition with God, 
 (hould be the fupreme objedt of our love, hope, 
 confidence, joy, and delight ? We may, with in- 
 finite reafon, take to ourfelves the words of the 
 Pfalmift, and fay, " Whom have we in heaven 
 " but thee ? There is none on earth we defire be- 
 *' fides thee : Our fiefh and our heart may fail us : 
 *' But God is the ftrength of our heart, and our 
 " portion for ever." 
 
 lijefus Chrijl is the glorious perfon through whom 
 God has made the fromife of eternal life ^ and by 
 whomy z% prime minifler in the kingdom of his grace, 
 he will prepare mankind for the a£lual heflowment 
 of it j how right and fit is it, that, next to God, 
 and in fubordination to him, we fhould make his 
 Sony whom he has authorized to be our king and 
 Saviour, the beloved objedl of our faith and hope, 
 our fubmifiion and obedience? And how con- 
 {training are the arguments, which urge us to a 
 compliance with thdc peculiar requirements of the 
 gofpel ? They naturally and neceffarily grow out 
 of the relation he fuftains, as the gra7id commifftoned 
 truftee to carry into efFed the benevolent plan, 
 
 which 
 
Conchijion. 365 
 
 which God has laid with reference to the whoU 
 pofterity of lapfed Adam, And it is as reafonable, 
 upon fuppofuion of the truth of this plan, that we 
 *' fliould honour the Son," as that we fliould " ho- 
 " nour the Father ^" and the motives hereto are in- 
 vincibly ftrong : Nor can they be withftood, unlefs 
 by mifreprefentation, or non-attention. 
 
 If God is equally the Father of us all, if wc 
 are all joint-partners in the fame hope of eternal 
 life^ and fhall 2l\\ finally make one family ^ and live 
 together as brethren in the heavenly world ••» how 
 peculiarly proper is it that we fhould be kindly af- 
 fe^ioned to each other^ and difcover that we are fo 
 by all Chriftian offices of good-will and benefi- 
 cence, as occafions are offered for them in provi- 
 dence ? Should any of our race make themfelves 
 vile, as is too commonly the cafe, we Ihould not 
 be deftitute, upon this account of the fcripture 
 fcheme of mercy, of fufficient motives to embrace 
 them with the tendereft affedion. We might 
 refent their folly, and in all fuitable ways teftify 
 againft it : But we fhould, at the fame time, if wc 
 were ourfelves good Chriftians, pity them under 
 it, and do all in our power, within our proper 
 fphere, to reclaim them from it. And fhould 
 they, after all, appear to be " vefTels of wrath 
 *' fitted for deftru(ftion," inflead of treating them 
 with rancour and ill-will, we fhould ftill view them 
 as ohjecis of the divine mercy ^ and feel within our- 
 felves a fecret pleafure refulting from the thought, 
 that they will finally be recovered from the fnare 
 
266 Conclujion. 
 
 ef the Devil, and partake, in common with oiir- 
 felves, of the temper and inheritance of God's 
 children. 
 
 In fine — If we fhall all, before the completion 
 of the fcheme of God, be crowned with immortality 
 and honour •, how fingularly forcible are the induce- 
 ments herefrom to meeknefs, patience, content- 
 ment, and refignation to the divine pleafure, un- 
 der the various trials of this prefent vain, frail^ 
 mortal life ? And how eafily reconcileable are th^ 
 ft^fferings of the life to come, with the wifdom, and 
 goodnefs) as well as iuftice of God ? And how in- 
 tirely are all complaints, upon this head, at once 
 filenced ? For if we are brought into being expec- 
 tants of a bleffed immortalityy and upon a founda- 
 tion that will not difappoint us, why fliould we 
 find fault v»^ith that difcipline, however fevere^ 
 which may, in the reafon of things, be morally 
 conneded with our coming to the a5lual enjoy- 
 ment of it P noOsf TO Kctjiov J From whence camt 
 evil? has been one of the grand puzzling quef- 
 tions in all ages of the world. We have here 
 the moil eafy fatisfadlory anfwer to it* Evils 
 and fufferings^ whether prefent or future, in this 
 world or another^ are a difciplinary mean wifely 
 and powerfully adapted to promote the good of 
 the patients themfelves, as well as others ; they 
 ftand connedled with this end in the plan of 
 God, and will, in the laft refult of its opera- 
 tion, certainly bring it into fa^, Inflead. there- 
 fore of being a contradi5fion to, they very ob- 
 
 vioufly 
 
Ctnclujion. 367 
 
 vioufly coincide with, 'uoife and reafonahle be- 
 nevolence : Yea, they are a wonderful illuftra- 
 tion of it, if it be true, as we have endeavour- 
 ed to prove it to be, that they will finally ilTue, 
 conformably to the original purpofe of God, in 
 an " exceeding and eternal weight of glory." 
 
 APPENDIX, 
 
^i 
 
[ 3^9 ] 
 
 r- ? 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 ANOTHER memorable paflage, to the 
 purpofe of our prefenc argument, we have 
 in Rev. xx. 4, 5, 6, &c. which I fhall have occa- 
 fion to infert afterwards at large. It may perhaps 
 be thought, the reafoning here muft be precarious 
 and doubtful, becaufe the words upon which it is 
 founded, together with the preceding and fub- 
 fequent context, are of the prophetic fort : And, as 
 all prophecy is dark, that of the Apocalypfe is pecu- 
 liarly fo, and no branch of prophecy, even in the 
 Apocalypfe^ more juftly falls under this charadler 
 
 than the paflage above referred to. 'And it is 
 
 readily acknowledged, prophecy in general is har^ 
 to be undcrftood^ and this is eminently true of that 
 propofed to be confidered, with the context to 
 which it is related. But though it may be dif- 
 ficult, it may not be impofTible, to underftand its 
 meanino;, and lb to underlUnd it too, as to argue 
 from it to general fatisfadion. I imagine, the 
 fenfe in which I take Rev. xx. 4, 5, 6, &c. and 
 the whole prophecy contained in the three lad chap- 
 ters of this book, with which it is infeparably con- 
 ncded, is fo plain and natural, and fo perfedly 
 confident with the whole run of fcripture, that I 
 may reafonably argue from it with reference to 
 
 Bb the 
 
370 APPENDIX. 
 
 the great point in debate. But whether I judge 
 right in the cafe muft be left with the reader to 
 determine. 
 
 The interpretation I have to exhibit is new* 
 To me, at lead, it is ib. For which reafon I would 
 introduce it with a few general remarks upon the 
 contents of the three laft chapters in the A;pocalypfe> 
 The reader will then be prepared to underftand 
 \}a^ paraphrafe that will follow, containing this in- 
 terpretation, with the notes^ which, as I think, dc^ 
 fufficiently juftify it. 
 
 Let it then be obferved, that all the events 
 fpoken of in thefe three chapters belong to one and 
 the Jam general period^ which period, under the 
 adminiftratiqn^ of Jefus Chrill, takes in the gene- 
 ral refurredlion and judgment, and the refpedive 
 Itates of good and bad men univerfally in the 
 world of retribution. The iiril coming on of this 
 period began with the deftruMion of Antichrijl^ an' 
 account of which concluded the nineteenth chap- 
 ter. The fucceeding order of events, as I fup- 
 pofe, is thus :-—Satany the grand tempter of men 
 to wickednefs, is laid under a divine rejlraint:^ 
 Chap. XX. verfcs i, 2, 3. Upon having mentioned 
 this, the apoflle John anticipates himfelf, by going 
 \v\to fubfequent events^ that he might exhibit, in 
 one view, all he had to fay relative to Satan's be- 
 ing bounds and loofened^ and, the ftate of things that 
 would refpedively follow thereupon ; verfe 4th 
 to the nth. He now returns from this digref- 
 fion, and proceeds in his account of the feries of 
 
 events. 
 
APPENDIX. 371 
 
 events. • Accordingly, the next event following 
 upon the reftraint of Satan^ is the appearance of* 
 the Son of man, fitting upon a great and glorious 
 throne ; the pailmg away of the earth and heaven, 
 as to their prefent form j the refurredlion of all 
 mankind from the dead ^ their Handing before the 
 throne of judgment ; and their receiving their, 
 refpedlive fentenccs according to their works ; 
 verfes ii, 12, 13. The jiext event is the execution 
 of the fentence pafied upon the nikked, which is 
 briefly reprefented in verfes 14, 1 ^, by their being 
 caft into the lake of f re : See note (n). The 
 laft event is the happy condition of the faints^ 
 in confequence of their having been approved 
 by the Judge, at the general judgment. This 
 begins with the twenty- firfl chapter ; in which it is 
 declared, that a nezv heaven^ and a new earthy were 
 formed for their reception •, that God dwelt with 
 them \ that he wiped away ail tears from their 
 eyes, &:c. &:c. In a word, fuch things are faid 
 concerning ihcfa/e they were in, as difcovered it 
 to be a proper reward for God to beftow, and an 
 objeft worthy the purfuit of all rational creatures. 
 And with this ftate of things, thefc chapters and the 
 Apocahffe conclude. 
 
 N> B. The FIRST resurrection, fpoken of iti 
 the fixth and feventh verfes of the twentieth chap- 
 ter, or, what means the fame thing, the living 2ind 
 reigm7jg of the faints for a thousand years with 
 Chriil, that is, for this fpace of time, without any 
 attempt being made to moled them, (fee note (d) ) 
 B b a i3 
 
372 APPENDIX. 
 
 is to be brought forward, and referred to their lift 
 in the paradifaic earth after iht judgment. The 
 attempt alfo of Gog and Magog to difturb their 
 quiet, is in like manner to be brought forward, 
 and placed a thoufand years from the beginning of 
 the judgment, and the happy reign of the faints 
 in confequence of it, in the new heaven and earth ; 
 afterwards, they are to reign for ages of ages, 
 (chapter xxii. ver. 5) without any further attempt 
 again ft them. 
 
 A large treatife by itfelf might be requifite in 
 order to juftify minutely and particularly ih'xs, feries 
 of events^ and point out its con/iftency with the 
 whole fcheme of prophecy. But my fituation for- 
 bidding the attempt, I fhall reft the proof of this 
 general fenfe of the chapters upon the notes^ which 
 are intended to fupport the following paraphrafe 
 of fo much of them ks is neceflary, in purfuance 
 of the defign I have in view. 
 
 Text. Paraphrase. 
 
 Rev. XX. 4. And And I faw thrones, and 
 
 I faw thrones, and them that fat upon them 
 
 they fat upon them, (a), and judicial power was 
 
 and judgment was given to them. And [to let 
 
 given to them ; and you know who fat on thcfe 
 
 / faw the fouls of thrones with this judicial 
 
 them that were he- power, I go on, and would 
 
 headed for the wit- fay more particularly] I faw 
 
 ti^fs of Jefus, and the fouls of thofe who were 
 
 for the word of God, beheaded (b) for the tefti- 
 
A P P E N D IX 
 
 and which had not 
 worfljtppedthe beaft^ 
 neither his image^ 
 neither had received 
 his mark upon their 
 foreheads^ or in their 
 hands \ and they liv- 
 ed and reigned "joith 
 Chrift a thoujand 
 years. 
 
 373 
 Paraphrase. 
 mony of Jcfus, and for the 
 word of God -, and I faw alfo 
 the fouls of them who had 
 not worfhipped the bead:, 
 nor his image, nor had re- 
 ceived his mark upon their 
 foreheads, or in their hands ; 
 and they all, whether mar- 
 tyrs^ or other righteous pcr- 
 fons, lived in their refpedtivc 
 bodies (c)^ and reigned with 
 Chrift a thousand years, 
 without any attempt from 
 Satan^ or wicked men under 
 his influence, to difturb their 
 
 5. But the reft 
 
 [and years vsere fi- 
 nifhed, ms is the 
 
 FIRST resurrec- 
 
 tion. 
 
 peace and quiet (d). But 
 
 of the dead lived not the reft of the dead (e)^ the 
 
 again until the thou- wicked dead^ I mean, did not 
 
 thus live and reign with 
 
 Chrift, though delivered from 
 
 the power of the grave, till 
 
 after the expiration of this 
 
 period of a THOUSAND years. 
 
 This reigning of the faints 
 
 with Chrift in life, you muft 
 
 particularly note, is the first 
 
 resurrection of this fort 
 
 6, Blejfed and ho- (f). And bleffed, and fepara- 
 
 ly is he that hath ted, or diftinguifhed from 
 
 fart in the first the reft of mankind (g), is 
 
 R E s u R- B b 3 he 
 
374 ^PP 
 
 Text, 
 resurrection: 
 On fuch the fecond 
 death hath no pow- 
 er ^ hut they jhall 
 he 'priefts of God, 
 and of Chrift-, and 
 Jhall reign with him 
 
 ^THOUSAND YEARS. 
 
 7. And when the 
 ihoufand years are 
 expired^ Satan Jhall 
 he loofed out of his 
 prifon ; 
 
 8. And Jhall go 
 cut to deceive the 
 nationsy which are 
 in the four quarters 
 of the earthy gog 
 a7td MAGOG, to ga- 
 ther them together 
 to hattky the num- 
 her of whom is as 
 the f and of the fea* 
 
 9. And they went 
 upon the breadth of 
 the earthy and com- 
 pajfed the camp of 
 the faints about y and 
 the beloved city : and 
 
 fire 
 
 E N D I X. 
 
 Paraphrase.** 
 he who is a partner in the 
 
 FIRST RESURRECTION : Apd 
 
 I niay well fay To, for over 
 fuch the SECOND DEATH hath 
 no power, and they ihall be 
 prietls of Gci, and of Chrift, 
 and thev ihall reign with 
 him a thousand years, as 
 obferved before. And when 
 thefe THOUSAND years fhall 
 be completed, the reftraint 
 that had been laid upon Sa- 
 tan (hai,l be taken off; upon 
 which he Ihall go out into 
 the four quarters of the earth, 
 and delude the nations of it, 
 who, like gog and magog 
 (h)^ in the prophecy of Eze- 
 kit?], fliall aiTemble in vafi: 
 numbers, in order to engage 
 in battle againft the faints. 
 And fo great a multitude 
 were they, that, as they went 
 up from their feveral coun- 
 tries, they . overfpread the 
 very furface of the earthy 
 and they encompafTcd the 
 camp of the faints, and fur- 
 rounded even the beloved 
 city, the new Jerufalem itfelf. 
 
 But 
 
A P P E N D I X. 
 
 Text. 
 fire came down from 
 God, out of heaven^ 
 and devoured them. 
 
 I o. And the Be- 
 inly that deceived 
 them, was caft into 
 the lake of fire and 
 hrimfto::e^ where the 
 heafi and falfe -pro- 
 phet are^ ar,d fhall 
 be tormented day and 
 nightt for ever and 
 ever. 
 
 375 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 
 But this attempt was per- 
 
 fedtly fruitlefs ; for God, in 
 
 a fudden and extraordinary 
 
 manner, defeated and de- 
 
 ftroyed them by fire from 
 
 heaven, as he did the Gog and 
 
 Magog mentioned by the 
 
 prophet Ezekiel, chapters 
 
 xxxviii. 2 2. — xxxix. 6. And 
 
 the Devil, the chief fomenter 
 
 of this enmity againft the 
 
 faints, and rebellion againft 
 
 the government of Chrifl, 
 
 was caft into a lake of fire 
 
 and brimftone, where the 
 
 beaft and the falfe prophet 
 
 are, and Ihall be tormented 
 
 (i) day and night for ages of 
 
 ages. 
 
 To be yet more particu- 
 lar (k) in the account of my 
 vifion, that you may not 
 miftake the order and connex- 
 ion of events by what I have 
 hitherto reprefented. At the 
 fame time that I faw Satan 
 laid under rcftraint, [the men- 
 tioning of which led me to 
 interrupt i\\tferies of events, 
 that I might place the whole 
 Bb 4 of 
 
376 APPENDIX. 
 Text- 
 
 1 1 . And If aw a 
 
 great white throne^ 
 and him that fat on 
 it, from whofe face 
 the earth and the 
 heavens fed away, 
 and there was found 
 no place for them, 
 
 12. And I faw 
 the deady fmall and 
 great, Jiand before 
 God 'y and the hooks 
 were opened : and 
 another hook was 
 opened, which is the 
 hook of life : and the 
 dead were judged out 
 cfthofe things which 
 were written in the 
 hooks, according to 
 their works. 
 
 13. And the fea 
 gave up the dead 
 that zvere in it, and 
 death and hell deli- 
 vered up the dead 
 that were in them, 
 and 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 of what I had to fay upon 
 that affair in one view] I faw 
 alfo a magnificent and bright 
 throne, and a glorious perfo- 
 nage fitting on it, upon whofe 
 appearance, the form of the 
 earth and heaven was quite 
 changed from what it is at' 
 prefent (I), and was no more. 
 — -I then beheld in my vifion 
 the dead raifed, both high 
 and low, young and old, and 
 they flood before the throne 
 of God, and were judged in 
 a mod fair and equal manner 
 (m), according to their works, 
 whether they had been good 
 or evil. And, that this retri- 
 bution might be ahfolutely 
 univerfal, taking in the whole 
 race of men, the dead, with- 
 out diftindtion or limitation, 
 were raifed again to life, whe- 
 ther they died and were bu- 
 ried in the fea, or whether 
 they died on the land and 
 were buried in a grave ; all 
 in the invifible flat^ of the 
 dead were brought to life, 
 and judged according to their 
 works. 
 
A P P 
 
 Text. 
 and they were judged 
 every man according 
 to their works, 
 
 1 4. j^nd death 
 and hell were caft 
 into the lake of fire, 
 *This is the second 
 
 DEATH. 
 
 15. And whofo- 
 ever was not found 
 written in the book 
 of life^ was caft into 
 the lake of fire* 
 
 377 
 
 Cbap.xxi. I. And 
 I faw a new heaven 
 and a new earth ; 
 for the firft heaven 
 and the firft earth 
 were paffed away* 
 And there was no 
 morefe%, 
 
 E N D I X. 
 
 Paraphrase, 
 works. And, in confequence 
 of this judgment, death and 
 the grave might, in a fenfe, 
 be faid to be caft into the 
 lake of fire, fuch numbers 
 were adually caft into it (n). 
 This fire is that which will 
 effed the fecond death: And 
 do not wonder that I fay fuch 
 multitudes will be caft into 
 it, for if any man's name is 
 not then found written in the 
 Lamb's book of life, he fhall 
 be caft into this lake of fire. 
 
 This is what I faw in con- 
 fequence of the judgment, as 
 it refpecls mankind. On the 
 other hand, with refpedl to 
 the righteous (0)^ and in or- 
 der to their being fuitably 
 rewarded, I faw a new hea- 
 ven and a new earth brou^rht 
 into exiftence by the wifdom 
 and power of God ; for the 
 prefent heaven and earth (as 
 I related before, ver. 1 1 ) 
 were palfcfd away, as to their 
 exterior form dindfafioion ; and 
 there was, in this new earth, 
 no more fea. And [to pro- 
 3 ceed 
 
78 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Text. 
 
 2. And I John 
 jaw the holy city^ 
 the New Jerufalem^ 
 iormng down from 
 Cod out of heaven^ 
 prepared as a bride 
 adorned for her huf 
 hand. 
 
 Paraphrase. 
 ceed now to a particular re- 
 prefentation of the happy and 
 glorious ftate of the faints] 
 I faw the holy city, the New 
 Jerufalem, defcending from 
 God out of heaven, and it 
 appeared in fplendor, like to 
 that which is ufed at mar- 
 riage folenfinities. 
 
 NOTES juflifying the foregoing Par a phr ase. 
 
 (a) Jnd them that fat upon them, &c.] The 
 
 original words, Jtat iMoc^icrccy nr csuroi;?, Jta* •A^{fjt,(z. 
 
 Mn auTSic, are tranilated by fome, and they, to 
 whom judgment was given, fat upon them. But 
 the Jtojj before x^i/xa,- according to this conftrudlion, 
 will, as it appears to me, be fuperfluous and need- 
 lefs : Whereas, it will retain its proper ufe and 
 forcfc .as a copulati'Oe, if the fcntence is rendered, 
 and they fat upon them, and judgment was given to 
 them ; and thus tranflated, it will run quite fmooth 
 and eafy, with iht fupply in ihe paraphrafe -, which 
 kind of fupply is often neceflary, and often re- 
 paired to, in all parts of the New Teftament. 
 
 (b) The fouls of thofe who were beheaded^^ The 
 literal tranflation of.rwv TrsTrsAsKKrixtum is, fecuri 
 percufforum^ the fmitten with the ax-, but the ver- 
 
 fion 
 
A P P E N D IX. 379 
 
 fion in our Bibles is more elegant, ibe beheaded. 
 Though it ought to be obferved here, the apoftle 
 John undoubredly intended to include all who 
 had undergone death tor the fake of Chrift, and 
 his religion, in what way foever it was brought 
 upon tht?m. And it is for this reafon that the 
 generality of them, who unrienland the life fpoken 
 of in the latter claufe of this verfe, in the literal 
 fenfe^ confine it to the martyrs ; imagining that 
 they will be diftinguiihed from all other good 
 men, by being raifed from the dead a thoiifand 
 years before them. But there does not appear to 
 me a jufl: foundation for fuch an opinion from any 
 thing iiere related. The grammatical order and 
 conftruflion of the fourth verfe, upon which this 
 opinion is bulk, is plainly thus. The apoftle 
 firllvdeclares in generaU that he faw thrones, and 
 that he law thofe that fat upon them, with judicial 
 power given to them, without faying particularly 
 who they were. He then goes on to a more 
 particular reprefentation of the matter. I faw, 
 lays he, the martyrs for the fake of Chrijl ; and 
 I faw thofe who had not worfjipped the beaft^ &c- 
 The martyrs for the fake of Chrift^ and thole 
 ^juho had not worfjipped the he aft, feem to me 
 plainly diftinguifhed from each other. The apoftle 
 faw not only the martyrs, but thefe alfo. But 
 who are thefe who had not wcrfhipped the beaft ? 
 Plainly, all thofe whofe names were written in the 
 hook of life. Chap. xiii. 8* And thefe take 
 in the whole number of thofe who flmli not he 
 
 cafl 
 
380 A P P E N D I X. 
 
 caft into the Me of fire ^ Chap. xx. 15, that 
 is, the [aints univerfally, Befides, one of the 
 €hara5!eriflics of thofe whom the apoftle John 
 faw living and reigning with Chrifl is, that the 
 fecond death Jh all have no power over them^ ver. 6 ; 
 which is a privilege common to the faints^ and 
 not peculiar to the martyrs. Further, it is faid 
 of the perfons, who fhall live in this millennium 
 ftate, that they {hall be " priefts of God and of 
 *' Chrifl, and fhall reign with him," ver. 6\ which 
 is another privilege not confined to martyrs^ but 
 extended to all the faints. Hence that fong, Rev. 
 3. 5, 6, and v. 9, 10. Moreover, it ought to be 
 remembered, the general vifion, in the firfl claufe 
 of this verfe, of thrones^ and them that fat ufoii 
 thenii having judicial fowery is fo far from being 
 an honour appropriated to martyrs^ that it is (^m- 
 mon to the faints^ according to the current ftrain 
 of fcripture, which every where reprefents the 
 happinefs of good men, in the coming world, 
 under the emblem of a crown^ a crown of glory ^ a 
 crcwn of righteoufnefs^ an incorruptible crown. i\nd 
 when our Saviour would defcribe the happinefs 
 cf the faintSy in the future ftate, he does it 
 in thefe words, to the man in the parable, 
 who had made a wife improvement of his ta- 
 lents, Matt. XXV. 21, " Well done, good and 
 " faithful fervant, thou haft been faithful over 
 ** a few things, I will mal<.e thee ruler over 
 " many things : Enter thou into the joy of thy 
 *^ Lords" which words, upon a like occafion, 
 
 are 
 
APPENDIX. 381 
 
 arc repeated in the twenty-third verfe. So in this 
 book of Revelation, chap. iii. 21, the promife to 
 him that cvercometh is, ^' to him I will grant to fit 
 " with me on my throne, even as I alfo overcame, 
 '* and am fet down with my Father in his throne." 
 Or, perhaps the apoftle John may here have in 
 view more particularly^ the honour which will be 
 done, not the martyrs only, but the faints in genera!^ 
 in their being, in fome fenfe, ajfejfors with Chrijlj 
 in the judgment of the world. And if this was 
 his thought, it may be explained by 1 Cor. vi. 2, 3, 
 '^ Do ye not know that the faints fhall judge the 
 ** world ? — Know ye not, that we fhall judge 
 ** angels ?" It is obfervable, our Saviour, look- 
 ing forward to the revivifcence of the faints, fays 
 to his apoftles. Matt. xix. 28, *' Ye which have 
 *' followed me, even ye, in the regeneration,'* 
 or time of the faints reigning in happy life, " fhall 
 ^' fit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve 
 " tribes of Ifrael." B^^ the foregoing text, it 
 fhould feem as though all the faints would, in like 
 manner, but in a lower degree, fit upon thrones, 
 judging the world. — Upon the whole, there is no 
 reafon to think, but that the fai7its in general^ and 
 not the martyrs in particular ^ are the perfons who fhall 
 live and reign with Chrift thefe thoufand years. 
 
 (c) And they lived in their refpc^live lodies.] Dr. 
 Whitby, Mr. Lowman from him, and many 
 others, underfland the life here fpoken of, in a 
 figurative f-nfe, as meaning nothing more than a 
 fpiritual refur reel ion of the church, a general and 
 
 glorious 
 
382 APPENDIX. 
 
 glorious revival of the true fpirit of Chriftianily^ ta 
 continue a ihoufand years. It would require more 
 room than would be proper to take up in a jwtey 
 to examine what has been faid to juftify this de- 
 parture from the letter of the apoille's words. I 
 Ihall only obferve, at prefent, in oppoficion to the 
 figurative i and in fupport of the literal fenfe of 
 this life and reign with Chrift^ that it is twice ex- 
 prefsly called, in this very palTage, the first re- 
 surrection. Now, as this life and reign^ accord- 
 ing to thefe expofitors, are fubfequent to the dejlruc- 
 tion cf Antichrijl^ and immediately preceding the con- 
 flagration-i geyieral refurre^ion^ and judgment^ there 
 can be no other revival of religion, no other fpiritual 
 refurreUion of afpiritually dead church. Why then 
 is it called the first resurrection ? Can there 
 be 2Lfirft without zfecond? If there is a fpiritual 
 life and reign^ it is the laft that ever will take place 
 in the prefent earth ; and would, for this reafon, 
 have undoubtedly been ftyled the lajl^ not the 
 firft refurreuiion, Befides, according to this fcheme 
 of interpretation, how (l^all we account for the 
 rife of GOG and magog ? Tht prophecy compares 
 this rabble-rout of men to the f and of the fea for 
 multitude ; and it brings in alfo the extraordinary 
 ^powerofGod, to pfeferve the faints from being 
 overrun by them. Upon which I would afl<, 
 whether it is likely there fhould be fuch Oiformida- 
 hie appearance of wicked men in that period of 
 time, in which, according to thefe very expofitors, 
 there is to be the greateji and moft exien/ive revival 
 
 5 ®^' 
 
A P P END IX, 383 
 
 of religion that ever took place in the world? One 
 would think, a thoufand years continuance of the 
 true fpirit of Ckriftianity among both Jews and 
 Gentiles, and in all parts of the earth, would ren- 
 der it impoffible, that instantly upon the expi- 
 ration of this term, there fhould be found ftub 
 /warms of abandoned wicked men, as to compofe 
 the GOG and magog here defcribed. It in truth 
 exceeds all belief! Efpecially, if it be remem- 
 bered here, that the coming of the Son of man^ 
 (which, according to thefe expofitors, will be at 
 the end of thefe thoufand years) is compared, by 
 our Saviour, to the coming on of the flood m the 
 days of Noah, on account of the wickednefs that 
 would be univerfally prevalent. His words are 
 thefe, Matt. xxiv. 37, 38, 39, ^' As the days of 
 '' Noah were, fo fhall alfo the coming of the Son 
 '' of man be. For as in the days that wen-; be- 
 *' fore the flood, they were eating, and drinking, 
 " marrying, and giving in marriage, until the 
 *' day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew 
 " not, until the flood came, and took them all 
 '' away : So fliall alfo the coming of the Son 
 *' of man be." In like manner, he fays, defcrib- 
 ing the character of the time in which he fhould 
 come, Luke xviii. 8, " Shall he find faith on the 
 *' earth ?" And the apodle Paul, fpeaking of 
 this fame advent of Chrlfl:, declares, 2 Thed. i. 
 7, 8, 9, that he " (hall then be revealed in 
 " flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that 
 ^' know not God, and obey not the gofpel of our 
 
 " Lord 
 
384 APPENDIX, 
 
 *^ Lord Jefus Chrift, who fhall be deftroyed with 
 " everlafting deftrudlion.' — It is evident, from 
 thefe texts, that, the world wili be horribly wicked 
 at the coming of Chrift, and that he will come to 
 deftroy it for its wickednefs. How then can this 
 millennium immediately precede this coming of 
 Chriftj and for this end ? Can it reafonably be 
 fuppofed, that tht pureft and heft Jiate oi xht world, 
 and for a thoufand years continuance, (hould be 
 that ftate of the world, which (hould immediately 
 precede the coming of Chrift to deftroy it, for its 
 abounding wickednefs ? To me, thefe are infupe- 
 rable objections againft tht figurative interpretation 
 of this life and reign with Chrift, 
 
 (d) A thoufand years without any attempt, ^^O 
 As a thoufand years are here particularly mentioned, 
 it has been generally thought, in former ages, as 
 well as more lately, that this is the precife period of 
 the happy ftate of the faints here fpoken of; 
 which feems to me an evident miftake ; and it 
 may have been a means of hindering expofitors 
 from perceiving the true meaning of the prophecy 
 this period relates to. I fuppofe a thoufand years 
 are here mentioned, for no other reafon than this, 
 that Satan (hould be fo long confined and bound, 
 and wicked men fo long reftrained from making. 
 any attempts at all to difturb the happinefs of the 
 righteous. For it is plain, as this reign of the 
 faints will be in the paradifaic earthy [See the 
 foregoing order and connexion of events] that ic 
 fhall continue £k tcuj aiwv«j twv aiwvwj/, for ages of 
 
 ages^ 
 
APPENDIX. 385 
 
 (igeSy chap. xxii. 5 -, which wjl readily be allowed 
 to mean a duration mucli longer than a thoufand 
 years- 
 
 (e) T/je reft of the deed, &c.] If the apoftle 
 John is fpeaking in the foregoing vcric of lileral 
 life, as I imagine he is^ (fee note (c) ) he muft 
 mean by the de^d here, the litej-ally dead. Dr. 
 Burnet anj^ others, who are in the fcheme of a 
 literal refurredlion of martyrs only to reign with 
 Chritl a thcufand years, fuppofe that, by the reft 
 of the dead, we muft underftand all the izicked^ 
 and thofe among \\\t faults, who were not called to 
 lay down their lives for the lake of Chrift. But 
 it appears to me, the v;icked dead are the only 
 pcrfons here meant ; as alio, that the life^ ic is faid, 
 they lived not till the thouj and years were expired, is 
 to be interpreted of that fort of life which had 
 before been defcribed, that is to fay, of life con- 
 neded with a reign with Chrift as kings and 
 priefts -, the unavoidable implication of which i?, 
 that ivieked men, after the completion of this 
 thoufand years ^ though not before, may thus live 
 WITH CHRIST. It may be worthy of fpecial ob- 
 fcrvation here, the fuppofition that wicked men may 
 live BEFORE the expiration oi t\\\^ period, is not at 
 all inconfillent with the afnrmation, which here 
 fays, they lived not till after it -, provided the 
 term life is underftood differently in the fuppcfition 
 from what it is in the otjirniatisn. My meaning 
 is, there is no contraditlion, not the Iliadow of an 
 incoufijUncy^ between this affirmation-, namely, the 
 C c 'wicked 
 
386 A P P E N D 1 1". 
 
 mcked lived not till thefe thoufand years were com^ 
 pleted, meaning hereby, they lived not a life of 
 happinefs as kings and priefts with Chrift •, and this 
 fuppofition, namely, the wicked may live before thefe 
 thoufand years are expired^ meaning hereby, not a 
 happy life with Chrifl^ but a life of mifery with evil 
 angels, Thefe two forts of life fo obvioufly and 
 effentially differ from each other, that they may 
 refpeEiively be affirmed and denied^ in the fame pro- 
 pofition, at the fame time, and of the fame per- 
 sons. Accordingly, it is here faid, that the righte- 
 cus only among the dead, lived and reigned with 
 Chrifty within the thoufand years ^ and that the reji 
 ef the deady that is, the wicked dead, did not any of 
 
 them THUS LIVE AND REIGN WITH CHRIST, TILL 
 AFTER THE COMPLETION OF THIS PERIOD. Nof 
 
 does it from hence follow, that the wicked may not, 
 at the beginning of this period, (as is the truth of 
 the cafe) be delivered from the frjl death, fo as to 
 be put under circumftances of dying the fecond 
 death. There is no inconfiflency in this, with 
 their not living as the righteous live in happinefs 
 with Chrift, till the thoufand years are finiflied. 
 This fcheme of interpretation I take to be the 
 only one that will make this paffage confifient 
 with the other parts of the fame prophecy* It will 
 accordingly be further explained, and enlarged 
 upon, and fupported, under the following note, 
 which the reader is defired carefully to compare 
 with this. 
 
 (f) 'This is the fir ft refurre^ion of this fort.'] The 
 
 great 
 
APPENDIX. 387 
 
 great queftion to be decided here is. What is the 
 true ground or reafon of the epithet first, ap- 
 pHcd to the word refurre^ion f And if I may fpeak 
 my mind freely, I cannot but think, the true rea- 
 fon has not been perceived by expofitors, or any 
 Chridian writers, fo far as I have been able to 
 confulc them* And to this it may be owing that they 
 are fo inconfillent with each other, and with them- 
 felves alfo. But, without multiplying words, or 
 enlarging upon what others have faid about this 
 matter, I would briefly propofe my own fenti- 
 ments. 
 
 And firft'^l would fay negatively^ this refurrec- 
 tion of the faints is not diftinguifhed by the epi- 
 thet FIRST, to infinuate, as though the wicked {hou\d 
 not be raifed from the dead within this period of 
 a thouf and years. For it is evident, from the cur- 
 rent ftrain of the New-Tefl:ament books, that thd 
 pimifljment of the wicked^ and the reward of the 
 ri'j^bt€oiiS,\s\\\ QOtnr[\tncQ at one and the fame timey 
 namely, at the end of the world, or the finilhing 
 of the prefcnt difpenfation of the kingdom of 
 God. The texts to this purpofe are numerous^ and 
 fo explicit as to admit of no difpute. — Matt. iii. 12. 
 ." Whofc fan is in his hand, and he will through- 
 [f* ly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into 
 t** the garner, but he will burn up the chaff with 
 *' unquenchable fire." It is here evidently fup- 
 pofed, that the vifible church confifls both of 
 faints and finncrs at prefcrnt •, but that t!ie time 
 iS coming, when Chrift fliall make a feparation 
 C c 2 betwtea 
 
388 APPENDIX. 
 
 between them, and that when he does this, ht 
 will puniJJj the wicked, while he rewards the righte- 
 ous* This is more fully and particularly exprefled 
 in the parable of the wheat and the tares\ Matt, 
 xiii. from the 24th to the 31ft verfe, the conclii- 
 fion of which parable is in thefe emphatical 
 words, " Let both grow together until the harvell ; 
 *' and in the time of the harvell, I will fay to the 
 '' reapers. Gather ye together fiift the tares, and 
 *' bind them in bundles to burn them : But ga- 
 *' ther the wheat into my barn." And, that we 
 misht be at no lofs about the meanino of thefe 
 words, the explanation of them, as given by our 
 
 Saviour, is this ^ " The good feed are the chil- 
 
 " dren of the kingdom -, the tares are the children 
 
 " of the wicked one-, the harveft is the er.d of the 
 
 *' world \ the reapers are the angels: As therefore 
 
 ** the tares are gathered and burnt in the fire, fo 
 
 *' fhall it be in the end of the world : The Son 
 
 *' of Man fhall lend forth his angels, and they 
 
 ** fliall gather all things that offend, and fhall 
 
 *' call them into a furnace of fire j there fhall 
 
 *' be wailing and gnalhing of teeth. Then fhall 
 
 " the righteous fhine forth as the fun, in i\\^ king- 
 
 *Mom of their Father." And the explanation 
 
 of the parable of the iW/, contained in the 47th 
 
 and 48 th verfes of this chapter, is thisj — " So fliall 
 
 *' it be at the end of the world ; the angels fhall 
 
 *' come forth, and fever the wicked from amono- 
 
 ** the jufb, and (hall caft them into a furnace of 
 
 *' fire." ver. 49, 50. The fame truth is obvi- 
 
 ouflv 
 
A P^P E N D I X. 389 
 
 cudy fuggefted iii the parable of the Virgins^ 
 chap. XXV. from the ift to the 13th verfc ; and 
 in the parable of the man travelling into a far 
 country, the conclufion of which is, " The Lord 
 *' faid to him that had improved his talents, Well 
 " done, good and faithful fervant, enter thou into 
 *' the joy of thy Lord." ver. 23. And to him 
 that had made no improvement of his talent, 
 " Call ye the unprofitable fervant into outer dark- 
 " nefs." ver. 30. And it is, in the mod exprefs 
 language, declared by our Saviour himfelf, that 
 when he comes in the glory of his Father, with the 
 holy angels, he will fay to the righteous, *' Come, 
 '' ye blcfled," &c. ver. 34; and to the wicked, 
 " Depart, ye curfcd," &c. ver. 41 : And accord- 
 ingly, both thefe fentences are put diredly in exe- 
 cution, " and thefe Ihall go away into everlafting 
 ''• punifnment ; but the righteous into life ecer- 
 ^' nil." ver. 46. And the apoftle Paul, in fo many 
 words, declares, that when Chrift (hall be revealed 
 from heaven, at the great day of judgment, it fhall 
 be to " take vengeance on the wicked, and to be 
 *' glorified in his faints," 2 ThefT. i. 8, 10. And, 
 to put ic out of all doubt, that the funifiment of 
 she wicked^ and the reward of the faints -^ fliall com- 
 mence at the f4me period, he introduces the words 
 by faying, as in the 6th and 7th verfes, " Ic is 
 " a righteous thing with God to recompenfe tri- 
 " bulation to tht.TA that trouble you, and to them 
 '' who are troubled, reft." — But it would be end- 
 lefs to tranfaibe all the pafTages of the New 
 C c 3 Teftament, 
 
390 APPENDIX. 
 
 Teflament, which diredtly lead us to think, that 
 the wicked Ihall be ptinijhed at the same time that 
 the virtuous are rewarded. Now, this being an evi- 
 dent fcripture truth, the obvious certain confer 
 quence is, that they mud at the fame time alfo, be 
 delivered from the power of the grave* For it 
 is impoffible their punifhment fhould commence 
 with the reward of the righteous, if their refurrec^ 
 tion is poftponed a thouf and years. Accordingly, 
 our Saviour feems to have put this matter cut of 
 all reafonable doubt ^ for, as he connefe the falva- 
 tion of the righteous with the damnation of the 
 wicked^ in point of time, fo does he their refurrec- 
 iion^ in that obfervable pafTage, John v. 28, 29, 
 *' The hour is coming, in the which all that arc in 
 *' their graves fhali hear his voice, and fhall come 
 ** forth : I'hey that have done good, to the refur- 
 *' reflion of life, and they that have done evil, to 
 ^' the refurredion of damnation." It appears then, 
 •upon the whole, that, at the end of the w^orld, or 
 the fecond coming of Chrift, the wickedy as well as 
 the righteous^ (hall be raifed from the dead. The 
 ''refur region of the faints therefore, fpoken of by 
 the apoftk John, is not called the first refurrec- 
 tion MERELY on account of their deliverance from 
 the: power of death. For the wicked, in this 
 fenfe, will be raifed to life as well as the righte- 
 ous ^ within the term of thefe thou fand years : And 
 thus vre zfe led to conceive of the matter in this 
 very prophecy itfelf ; fee the foregoing account of 
 th^crde'r- of events in thefe chapters. 
 
 ,. . Secondly i—^ 
 
APPENDIX. 391 
 
 Secondly^ — But to fpeak more particularly, and 
 ■pofitively. The refurredlion of the faints is called 
 the FIRST refurredtion, becaule it is ih^firft general 
 refurre^ion of men that will fecure them from 
 dying ciy more-, inflate them in immortality^ and 
 mai-vt t^rm happy m 2, glorious reign with Chrijl^ 
 in the new heaven and earth. Accordingly, this 
 il-ems to be the explanation of its meaning in the 
 following verfe. For the partners in this refur- 
 :.:iicn are pronounced hkjfed. And why? Not 
 becaufe their deliverance from death, confidered 
 fimoiy in itfelf, precedes that of the wicked ; [for 
 the wicked aifo, as we have feen, (hall, in this fenfe, 
 be delivered from death,] but becaufe the fecond 
 death Jhall have no power over them^ as it will 
 over the wicked \ and becaufe they fhall be kings 
 and priefts, and reign with Chriji a thoufand yearSy 
 without an attempt, from any quarter, to dif- 
 turb their happinefs ; and after that/<?r ages of ages^ 
 ciiap. xxii. 5. It feems plain to me, that 
 the apoftle Paul had this firfi refurre^ion^ which 
 the apoftle John is here fpeaking of, in view, 
 when he wrote the fifteenth chapter of his Firft 
 Kpiftle to the Corinthians. But this we have con- 
 fidered already. 
 
 As to a fecond reJurreElion^ it is true, John hath 
 faid nothing about it, in plain language. But, by 
 fpeaking of a /r/?, he has, in the general^ given us 
 reafon to hope for the second, the manner ^ time^ 
 and circumjiances of which, though hid from us 
 now, may hereafter be revealed. Upon the wholc> 
 C c 4 by 
 
392 APPENDIX. 
 
 by the first reJurreBion^ the apoftle John could 
 not mt2injin'iple deliverance from deaths that deathj 
 which all men are fubjedled to in confequence of 
 the lapie? becaufe mankind univerfallyy had as well 
 ^s good^ will be thus raifed at Chriys fe.cond coming : 
 Whereas, the righteous^ they who are made fo in 
 this prefent world, and they only, are the first 
 amono; mankind, who iliail be so raised to life, 
 as to reign with Chrift in glory and honour. And 
 their refurre5fion^ thus to reign v.'ith him, is called 
 the FIRST RESURRECTION, becaufe the first of 
 THIS KIND : Obvioufiy and naturally implying, 
 that there will be a second resurrection of 
 the SAME SORT, that is to fay, that the wicked^ 
 after the feccnd deaths being previoufly fitted for 
 it, fhall be raifed alfo to reign in glorious life, in 
 fome ftill future difpenfation of Gi^d, 
 
 (g) And feparated or diftinguijhed>~\ Perfons, as 
 well as things, are called holy in the fcriptures, on 
 account of their being feparated from a common, 
 and fet apart for ^ and devoted to^ a fpiritual ufe and 
 fervice. It would be a mifpending of labour to 
 point out inftances to this purpofe, they arefo fre- 
 quently to be met with. And this feemiS to be 
 the fenfe of the word holy, ay*©?, in this place. 
 They are reprefented not only as happy, hin fpa- 
 ratedi and diftinguifjed from the reft of mankind, 
 being partakers of the firfi refurre^iion. And with 
 good reafon, for, as it follows, the fecond death 
 hath no power over them. 
 
 (h) Gog and Magog.] Expofitors have found k 
 
 vaftjy 
 
APPENDIX. 393 
 
 vaftly difficult to point out the perfons here de- 
 fer! bed under the character of Co^ and Magog* 
 And, upon every fcheme of interpretation I have 
 met wich, infuperable objedions attend their rife 
 and numbers. We have already fcen (note (c) ) the 
 impoflibility of ever getting together fuch a body 
 of wicked men, upon their plan, who give into a 
 figurative fenfe of the /r/? refurre^iion. And the 
 impofTibility is as great, if not greater, upon the 
 fcheme of Dr. Burnet, who begins the millennium 
 AFTER the conflagration^ but before the refurre^ion 
 of the wicked. He can, upon his fcheme, no better 
 account for the origin of Gog and Magog than 
 from thejlime of the ground., and the heat of the fun., 
 as brute creatures., \\c fays, were generated at frjl : 
 An account too romantic to deferve a ferious con- 
 futation. It evidently carries with it the marks 
 of an in-vented hypothecs to ferve a prefent turn. 
 Though I wonder he fhould fix on one that was 
 r2ii\\er /hocking than plaufible, upon the bare pro- 
 pofal of it. 
 
 Perhaps, the true reafon of the difficulty of ac- 
 counting for the rife of G^^ and Magog is owing 
 to the miftake learned men have fallen into with 
 refpecl to the time of their appearance. They all 
 of them place their appearance before the general 
 refurre^tion and judgment. Whereas, if they gave 
 it a date posterior to thefe events, and did not 
 look for them on this fide the grave, all difficulties 
 would at once vanifh, and an eafy, intelligible 
 iiccount might be given both of their rife^ mmbersy 
 
 and 
 
394 APPENDIX. 
 
 and -y5>?nV, fitting them to engage in the attempt 
 here defcribed. For let it be obferved, the mul- 
 titudes that make up the colledive body, fignified 
 by Gog and Magogs perfedly fall in with the fcrip- 
 ture reprefentation of the numhers who, in confe- 
 qnence of the general judgment, will be obliged to 
 live in mifery. And where fhould they live but 
 on this earth ? It is at lead as reafonable to think, 
 that this earth will be the place where they will 
 live in torment, as any other place that can be 
 conceived. This earth, it is true, in {om^ other 
 formy will be the place where the righteous are to 
 'reign in happy life. But there is no difficulty in 
 fuppofing, that the conflagration^ under the all-wife 
 and powerful government of God, may operate 
 very differently upon the earthy making it, in one 
 part, a hell for the wicked^ and in another, a heaven 
 for the righteous. And upon this fuppofition, 
 which has nothing harih or hard in it, there will, 
 at the end of the thoufand years here pointed out, 
 be z Sufficient numler of men upon the earth, and 
 with dijpofttions exadlly fitted for the attempt^ they, 
 through the influence of the Devil, engage in. 
 What then (hould hinder us from thinking, that 
 ihefe 'wicked men are the Gog and Magog here 
 fpoken of ? Efpecially if it be remembered, that 
 the time of their affembling to invade the faints is 
 poflerior to the general refurredion and judgment ; 
 as may be colleded from the preceding notes, 
 and further evidenced by fucceeding ones. 
 
 (i) Shall be tormented,^ See note pages 294, 295. 
 
APPENDIX. 395 
 
 (k) ^0 he yet more f articular-'] The critical ^reader 
 will eafily perceive, by the manner in which 1 have 
 introduced the vijion in the iith vcrfe, and on- 
 wards, that I look upon it as a continuation of the 
 Vffwn which was begun in the three firft veiTes, 
 but interrupted for a while, that the apoftle might 
 exhibit, in one view, all he had to fay upon the 
 head of Satan s being bound and loofened. What 
 he has ofiercd upon this head begins with the 
 4th, and ends with the loth verfe *, and is intended 
 to give an account of the events themfelves relating 
 to the fubjed he is upon, not the order of them. 
 This feems to be rather left with the reader to 
 adjuft, upon having carefully looked over the 
 whole prophetic vifwn^ as here reprefented. Ex- 
 pofitors have ftrangely taken it for granted, that it 
 was the defign of the apoftle^ in thefe verfes, to 
 point out not only the events themfelves here fpoken 
 of, but the order in which they fhould take place; 
 giving us to underitand, that the thouf and years 
 reign of the faints, the rife of Gog and Magogs and 
 their deftrudlion, would precede, in point of time, 
 the appearing of the Son of Man, the general re- 
 furre(5tion and judgment, and future ftate of retri- 
 bution : Whereas, it fhould feem plain, that thefe 
 verfes were brought in for no other reafon, than to 
 comprehend in one view, the whole of what be- 
 longed to one fubjed. Upon which fuppofition, 
 the order of events could not, in the nature of 
 things, but be negledcd, or rather anticipated to 
 make the account compleat. And in this view 
 
 of 
 
396 APPENDIX. 
 
 ct ihefe verfes^ which is quite eafy and natural, the 
 whole fertes of events in the vifion^ which is con- 
 tinued to the end of the Apocsilypfe, runs fmooth •, 
 while, upon any other fuppofuion, it will be per- 
 plexed, and the events rendered incapable of a 
 reconciliation with each other. If the ihoufand 
 ytars reign of the faints, and the rife oi Gog and 
 Magogs precede the general refurretlion^ all the diffi- 
 culties that have been mentioned, as accompanying 
 either Dr. Burnet's fcheme, or ih^ figurative one 
 of others, will take place. Whereas thefe diffi- 
 culties are entirely avoided by the plan of inter- 
 pretation here propofed. Befides, the life and 
 reign of the faints, fpoken of in th^fe verfes^ is the 
 fame life and reign with that in the faradifaic earth 
 defcribed chapters xxi. xxii. which, if it be true (as 
 v;e fhall fee that it is> note (o) ) makes it certain, that 
 the events themfelves in thefe verfes, not the order 
 of them, are what the apoftle had in view ; and 
 what we are principally to regard, as has been faid. 
 
 (l) l!heform of the earth andheaven,'\ This we'may 
 reafonably take to be the meaning of the i7^^'i?^» 
 and earth's paffing away^ to he no more ; for according 
 to the apoftle Peter, who has particularly treated 
 of this matter, in his feco7td epiftle, third chapter^ 
 the form only of the heaven and earth will be 
 changed by the conflagration, lis, prefent form fhall 
 he no more. It fhall pafs away^ that it may be 
 fucceeded by one that is quite new* 
 
 (m) PFere judged in a fair equal manner."] This 
 fcems to be the thought intended to be commu- 
 nicated 
 
APPENDIX. 397 
 
 nicated by t^ie particular mode cf di^lion here uicd. 
 See Lowman, as to the reafon why books are men- 
 tioned, and the hook of life in particular. 
 
 (n) Death'-and the grave,"] If the paraphmfe of 
 this i4.th verle does not give its true lenfe, it is, I 
 confefs, beyond me to underlland its meaning. 
 The common interpretation is, Death and Hades 
 were entirely deftroyed. They were cafi into the lake 
 cf fire^ that is, they were brought abfolutely to an 
 end. Beath fhall be no more •, there fhall be 710 
 mere fiich a place as Hades. But two things leem/to 
 me infuperable objedlions to this interpretation. 
 I. It is not true in f adl : For the wicktd, after 
 they are raifed from the dead, 7^^// die again^ as 
 we have repeatedly fliewn. And 2dly, \^ thit total 
 deflri'Mion o^ Death and Hades is the thing meant, 
 when they are laid to be caft into the lake of fire \ 
 how comes it to pafs, that total deflrucfion is not 
 the thing meant, when the wicked are faid, in the 
 fame words, to be caft into the lake of fire? We 
 may make words fignify jufb what wepkafe, if we 
 may underftand tliem in contradi5lcry fenfcs^ in one 
 and the fune paragraph. And two fenfes cannot 
 be more contradidlory to each other than anmhi- 
 latiofii ceafmg to bcy and never- ceafing life, exifting 
 without end.' — I fhali only add here, the fcnfe aiven 
 in the paraphrafe perfedlly falls in with the thread 
 of the apoltle's difco^ric, and makes out an eaf^ 
 and pertinent connection. For having, in the pre- 
 ceding vcrfes, given an account of men's being 
 judged accordiiig to their works ; what more na- 
 tural 
 
398 APPENDIX. 
 
 tural than that he fhould proceed to fpeak of their 
 refpefdve ftaies in confequence of this judgment ? 
 And thus he is made to fpeak in t\\t faraphrafev 
 beo-inning with the wicked, and afterwards going 
 on with the righteous. And it is the truth of the 
 things which makes it more likely to be the truth 
 of this place, ihdiifucb numbers of wicked men will 
 be caft into the lake of fire, that Death and Ha^es, 
 upon the refurredion and judgment, may, in a 
 fenfe, be faid to be caft int9 it. 
 
 (g) I fr'JD on the other hand.'] It appears tome 
 evident, beyond all reafonable difpute, that this 
 2ift chapter is conne6ted with the 20th in the 
 manner pointed out in the paraphrafe. And, if 
 xhtftate here defcribed is confequent upon, and 
 the refult of i\\t general judgment^ as it concerns 
 good men^ it is eafy to fee, that their happy exiftence^ 
 after the refurredion, will be upon this earth. •' It 
 *- feems to me (to ufe the words of Mr. Hallett) 
 
 * that the reward of good men, in the future date, 
 
 * will be a reducing them to that happy ftate 
 
 * which Adam lott by his fall, together with the 
 *- addition of fome other glorious circumftances of 
 ' bUfs. While good men are afcended up in the 
 
 * clouds to meet their Lord in the air, and the 
 
 * tranfa^lions of the laft judgment are carrying 
 ' on, this earth, by the power of God, (liall be 
 
 * brought back to the fame ftate it was in before 
 
 * the fall*, and will be a paradifs all ever, [I 
 
 * (hould fay, fo far as is neceflary to make it a 
 
 * proper feat for the faints to live happily]. As 
 
 * in 
 
A P P E N D I X. 399 
 
 * in the old paradife there was a tree of Itfe^ of 
 
 * which, if our firft parents had always eaten, they 
 
 * would have lived for ever^ Gen. iii. 22, 23; fo 
 
 * on the new earthy there (liall be a tree of life, 
 
 * and renters cf life^ Rev. xxii. i, 2. And whac- 
 
 * ever eafe, peace and fccurity, and happineis, man 
 ' enjoyed in paradife^ the fame (hall good men 
 
 * partake of in the New Jerufalem : Nay, in fomc 
 ' refpecls, it will exceed the old paradife. There 
 
 * was ni^bt in paradife Gen. i. 31. The evening 
 
 * and the morning were the ftxth day. But in the 
 
 * Ne"j9 Jerufalem^ there fhall be no nighty Rev. 
 
 * xxi, 25. ^he city fhall have no need of the fun^ and 
 ' of the moony that they fhonld fhine into it \ for the 
 
 * glory of Gcd^ tlie Shecbinah, a bright cloud of 
 
 * light reprefenting the peculiar prefcnce of God, 
 
 * fhall han-T over it, and enlighten it^ and the 
 
 * Lamb j7joiI be the light of it^ ver. 23. — This 
 
 * account oi x\\z place where good men fhall dwell 
 
 * for ever [I would fay for oges of ages\ after 
 
 * the refurre^tion, is of great ufe to give men an 
 
 * idea of the future ftate. I own, I take St. 
 ' John's account of the new earth to be, in moft 
 ' particulars, a literal defcription, which is to be 
 
 undcrftood in a literal fenfe. And then, it is 
 
 * poflible for us to have a notion of a future fl ate. 
 
 * But what notion q^x\ we have of it, according 
 to the common way of men's talking about it ? 
 
 * Where can the heaven be of which they fpeak ? 
 In the boundicfs fpace that furrounds us ? We 
 know of iiothing there but/*?/, moony fixed ft arsy 
 
 ' earthy 
 
400 APPENDIX. 
 
 » earth, and comets. Neither of thefe, except the 
 ' earth, can be thought fit to be the habitation of 
 ' good men in the future ftate. In fuch a place, 
 
 * in the new earth, St. John and St. Peter fay, 
 '^ good men (hall dwell. Why then (hould we 
 
 * feek for another unknown place, of which the 
 ' fcripture never fpeaks ?— This is a very eafy 
 
 * and ao-reeable notion of the ftate of good men 
 ' in the world to come. We may now form fome 
 ' idea of it, by comparing it with the prefent ftate. 
 ' We may conceive of good men as living in bo^ 
 ' dies, but become fpiritual, glorious, and immor- 
 
 * tal, upon a new earth, where they will feel no 
 
 * more heat or cold, pain or uneafmefs, v/here 
 ' they will meet with no enemies, ftorms, or dan^ 
 ' aers, and where they (hail fpend all their dura- 
 ' tion in love and happinefs." Notes on particular 
 texts, Sec. Pages 201, 202, 203. 
 
 But what I would principally otiferve wirh refe- 
 rence to this paradifaic ftate of good men, in con- 
 fequence of the general judgfnent, is, that it is the 
 fame life with that fpoken of in the fourth and 
 fixth verfes of the twentieth chapter. Some things 
 have been faid in the foregoing notes, in juftifira- 
 tion of this thought. I would here add fome fur- 
 ther hints to the like purpofe. Let it be obferved 
 then, the overcomers, in thefe three fir ft chapters 
 of the Afocalypfe, are certainly to be ranked among 
 thofe that were beheaded for the witnefs ofjefus, or 
 thofe who had not wcrfhipped the beaft, concernir^g 
 whom it is faid, chap. xx. 4, ^* they lived ar>d 
 
 '' reigned 
 
APPENDIX. 401 
 
 ^* reigned with Chrift." Now, moft of the fpecial 
 promifes made to thofe overcomers, are made 
 in thole very words which are the grand charaElc-^ 
 rifiic of i\\c paradifciic Jifite^ dcfcribed in the twcn- 
 ty-firft and twenty-fecond chapters. The promife 
 to him that overcometh is, in chap. ii. ver. 7, " that 
 " he fhall eat of the tree of hfe^ which is in the 
 " midfl: of the paradife of God." And one of the 
 defcriptions of the Neiv Jeriifalem on the new 
 earth is, that '' in the midfl: of the ftreet of it^ 
 " there was the tree of hfe," chap. xxii. 2. Agree- 
 ably to which defcription^ it is declared in the 
 fourteenth verfe, " BleiTed are they that do his 
 " commandments, that they may have a right to 
 " the tree of life." The promife to him that over'^ 
 Cometh^ in chap. ii. ver. i r, is, that '* he fhall 
 " not be iiiirt of the fccond death i" the very thing 
 wherein their bleffednefs is made to confid, who 
 are partakers of the firjl refurreuiion-^, or happy life^ 
 fpoken of chap. xx. 4, 6. And th\sfame hlejfcdnefs 
 is one of the glorious charatlcrifiics of the paradi- 
 faic ftate defcribcd in the twenty-fiiil and twenty- 
 fecond chapters ; for it is laid, chap. xxi. ver. 4, 
 *' there fliall be no more death." The promife, 
 chap. iii. 12, to him that overcometh, is, " I will 
 '* write upon him the name of my God, and the 
 '* name of the city of my God, which is the New 
 '* Jerulalem, which cometh down cut of heaven, 
 *' from my God j" and it is faid of thofe, v;ho 
 are to live on the paradifaic earthy chap. xxii. 4, 
 that " the name of God fnall be on their fore- 
 D d •* heads/* 
 
402 APPENDIX. 
 
 ** heads." And the grand dlfcriminating privilege 
 of this earth is, that the " New Jerufakm fiiail 
 " defcend down from God out of heaven upon it," 
 
 chap. xxi. 2. and lo. The promife to him that 
 
 overcometh^ chap. iii. 21, is, " to him I will grant 
 '' to fit with me on my throne, even as I alfo over* 
 *' came, and am fet down with my Father in 
 *• his throne :" and one of the defcriptive marks 
 of the Nezv Jerufalemftate is, " the throne of God 
 " and the Lamb {hall be in it," chap. xxii. 3. 
 
 Two things have led expofitors to think, that 
 the happy life of the faints fpoken of chap. xx. 
 ver. 4, 6, is different from, and previous to, that 
 defcribed in the twenty-firft and twenty-fecond 
 chapters. One is, that the former of thefe lives 
 is diftinguiihed from the latter by a number of in- 
 iervening events. But there is no need of fuppof- 
 ing this, as may be feen, Tiote (k). The other is, 
 that the life, fpoken of in chap. xx. ver. 4, 6, is 
 conneded with the period of a tboufand years^ 
 whereas the life defcribed in the twenty-firft and 
 twenty fecond chapters, is faid to be ^k rouf ql^'^volc; 
 Twv ociccmvy for ages of "ages. This aUb iias been 
 accounted for, note (a) ; to which I would here 
 further add, that a tboufand years might be parti- 
 cularly fpecified, chap. xx. ver. 4, not only for 
 the reafon before afiigned, but becaufe this was the 
 period that mud run out, before the reft of the deady 
 that is, the wicked dead, could any of them live as 
 kings and priefts with Chrifti plainly infinuating, 
 that, 4t the expiration of this term, the wicked 
 
 might 
 
APPENDIX. 403 
 
 might thus reign in happy life. And this is a 
 good and fuHicient reafon, why this period of 
 a thoufand years fhould be particularly mention- 
 ed. And, if it was mentioned for this reafoiiy not 
 to infinuate that the faints (hould reign no longer 
 than a thoufand yearsy but that they Ihould reign 
 this period without any attempt to moleft them, 
 and before any of the wicked fliould be admitted 
 to reign with them, there is not the leafl incon- 
 fiftency between their reigning a thoiifandycarsy ac- 
 cording to the prophecy -i and their going on to reign 
 {»? Touj ajwi/af Tiav cciu)vu;v, for ages of ages. This 
 fame long psriody it is obfervable, is the very fpace 
 of duration^ that terminates the utmoft length of the 
 longeji punifhment^ which any of the fons of Adam 
 ihall be obliged to fufFer* And as the duration 
 of the happy ftate of ih<: faints thus coincides with 
 the uttno/l length of the future mifery^ with refpcdl 
 to many of the wicked^ I fuppofe, it contains the 
 period^ in which all enemies fhall be fubdued, and 
 the way prepared, under the mediatory govern- 
 ment of Chriil, for the coming on of that dill 
 more glorious periody when *' God fhall be all in all," 
 conformably to what has been faid upon i Cor. xv. 
 24 — 28 verfcs, which the reader is dcfircd to 
 turn to, and compare with the difcourfc in this 
 Dlace. 
 
 Dd t yf'f 
 
4C4 APPEND IX. 
 
 ^he Applicaticn of the above Paraphrase and 
 IS^OTES to the prefent Argument. 
 
 A few words only will be necefiary to lliew the 
 
 pertinency and force of what has been offered 
 
 above, in fupport of the general argument now 
 
 under confideration. For, if we have given the 
 
 true meaning of the phrafe, " the reft of the dead 
 
 ^' lived not till the thonfand years were expired," it 
 
 is plain, that upon the completion of this period, 
 
 the wicked dead may, fo many of them as /hall 
 
 be prepared for it, be admitted into the New 
 
 Jerufalem^ to reign in life as kings and priejls 
 
 with Chrift. And, if we have given the juft 
 
 import of the word first, applied to the refur- 
 
 redtion of the faints, it is plain alfo, that there 
 
 will be a second resurrection, that is to fay, 
 
 a refurredtion from the the fecond deaths a refur- 
 
 redion from the death that is effe6led by the 
 
 torments of helU to a happy reign with Chrift in 
 
 life* And perhaps there may be other refur^ 
 
 re5lions ftill. Wicked men may not be fubdued, 
 
 till they have^saac again and again, in this and 
 
 the other form of exiftence, fuffcred torments that 
 
 fhall end in death : The refult of v^hich fhall 
 
 finaljy be, their refurreBion to reign in life for 
 
 ever. An aftonifning thought this! We may well 
 
 break forth in words of admiration, and fay, ** Q 
 
 [I the depth of the wifdom and knowledge of 
 
 I "Goal 
 
APPENDIX. 405 
 
 f* God 1 How nnfearchable are his judgments, 
 5' and his ways pafb finding out !" 
 
 Mr. Whifton having faid, concerning Origen's 
 hopes of the delivery of all finners from the tor- 
 pients o^ hell'y nay, of their admiffion at lali into 
 heaven, ' It woukl be a mod acceptable piece of 
 
 * news to me to find fome juft and fure founda- 
 
 * rion for fuch hopes in the ficred writings^i as 
 
 * being very dcfirous of the falvation of all God's 
 
 * rational creatures,' lEterniiy of Hell Torments 
 conftdcred^ page 1 3 « ] -, I fay, having obferved this, 
 he further remarks, page 133, ' All I can fee any 
 
 * hope for is future to the world to come^ and to 
 ' the next age^ after the deftrudlion of the bodies 
 
 * of the wicked in Gehenna^ at the general refur- 
 
 * rc(5lion. I mean, as the Prophet Efdras feems 
 ' to hint, that there may be, in the utmoft bowels 
 ' of companion of the Almighty, another refurrec- 
 ' t'ion^ and another time of trial allotted^ to thofe 
 ' miferable creatures fomewhere, in which many 
 
 * or all of them may pofTibly be recovered, and 
 ' faved at l;ift by the infinite indulgence and love 
 ' of their Creator.' Mr. Whifton does not ap- 
 pear, from any of his writings, that I have feen, 
 to have perceived that the fcripture any where 
 gave a hint oi fuch a refurre5iion^ and fuch a time 
 of trial. But if we have juftly interpreted this 
 palTage in the Jpocalypfe^ what that gentleman 
 has conje(5tured as a thing poffible^ we may pro- 
 nounce a doolrine of revelation. And I am the ra- 
 ther inclined to think, the interpretation we have 
 
 given 
 
4o6 APPENDIX. 
 
 given of the above fcripture is juft, becaiife It fo 
 perfedly coincides v/ith the general do^rines illuf- 
 trated in thefe papers. And fo far was it from 
 any previous bias, that I fell into thefe fcnti- 
 nients, that I entered upon the ftudy of the Jpo- 
 calypfe, (Irongly prepoffeiTed in favour of another 
 ki\^Q oi this prc'phecy. And I was gradually and 
 infenfibly brought off from it, and fettled in this, 
 by finding it impolTible to make out a confident 
 meaning, according to any other fcheme of inter- 
 pretation. 
 
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wmmmammm 
 
 
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