arife and grow out of him, as the branches of a tree are included in the original stock, root or feed. God, in, .creating the first herbs and trees, with the feed in them felves, to propagate their kind, really created all the herbs and trees which fhalt exift to the end of the world. So he created all mankind, in creating the first man; and in giving dominion to him, he gave dominion to all They were all made like him, in kind, and their state condition and circumftances were fixed; as much a that of the race of plants and trees. All mankind wer created in the image of God, and to them was given do minion over all the earth. "And God bleffed them, an God faid unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fi the earth, and subdue it." This bleffing, and this com mand, refpected mankind, and not the firft man perfor ally, in diftinction from the reft; for he alone was n to fill the earth, and fubdue it; but the human rac God is therefore represented as bleffing THEM all, at fpeaking to them all, and not to a fingle perfon. hence appears, that the pofterity of Adam were fo co nected with him, and included in him, that they mig properly be confidered as ONE; and that he was fof the head, and reprefenting father of the whole, that creating him, all mankind were created, and in bleffr him, all were bleffed; and what was faid to him, a done for him, was faid to, and done for the human rac that the law given, and covenant made with him, wi the bleffing and the curfe, the promise and the thre ning, was given to all, and made with all, having refpt to all mankind, included in their father and head: A what he did as a moral agent, was done for them, as mu as himself; so that they, even the whole human ra muft fhare equally with him in his obedience, and t promifed, confequent bleffing, or in his difobedien and the curfe. But the evidence and certainty of th is more fully established, by what took place, and h been been revealed fince the apoftacy of man. What God faid to Adam after he had finned, was faid to, and of all mankind; and the calamity or evil to which he was doomed in this world, as the consequence of his transgreffion, equally falls upon his pofterity. "And unto Adam he faid, Because thou haft eaten, &c. Curfed is the ground for thy fake; in forrow fhalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. In the fweat of thy face fhalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground: For out of it waft thou taken; for duft thou art, and unto duft fhalt thou return." As this fentence, "Unto duft fhalt thou return." did not refpect Adam only, but all his pofterity; we are naturally, if not neceffarily led to understand the fame language in the threatning, as having respect to all mankind, "In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt furely die." But this is reduced to a certainty by St. Paul.* "Wherefore, as by one man fin entered into the world, and death by fin; and fo death paffed upon all men, for that all have finned. Through the offence of one, many are dead. By the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation. By one man's difobedience, many were made finners." Here Adam is afferted, in the moft plain and strongest terms, to be conftituted the public covenanting head of mankind, so that fin, condemnation and death, came upon all his pofterity, by his disobedience. The threatning, therefore, respected all mankind, and consequently the promises did alfo. And all depended on Adam's conduct, to determine whether his pofterity fhould be holy and happy forever, or finners and miferable.-But this fubject will be more particularly confidered in the next chapter. This covenant or conftitution, in which Adam was confidered and treated, as the father and public head of his future pofterity, was more than mere law; and in * Romans, v. 12. this respect different from the covenant made with the angels. It is fuppofed they acted every one for himself, and that they all exifted at once, and there was no fuch peculiar union between them, like that between the first man and his pofterity, which rendered fuch a conftitu. tion, with respect to the latter, proper and wife; yea, neceffary, in order to the exercise of the most perfect and excellent moral government. Should any object to this, and fay, that as the pofterity of Adam had no opportunity to confent to this conflitution, it was not confiftent with wildom or righteoulnefs to include them in it, and fix it for them. And as it was not the best and most likely way for them to obtain eternal happiness, by making it depend on the conduct of the first man, it was not confiftent with goodness, and really unjuft, and injurious to mankind; In answer to this, it must be observed, 1. The creature has no right to object to any law or conftitution which God fees fit to make refpecting him; but is obliged to acquiefce in what he orders. God has a right to prescribe the particular method in which he will govern his creatures, and this belongs to him; and for a creature not to approve and confent to what God prescribes, is rebellion against his Maker. Therefore there was no need to wait, to see if Adam's pofterity would approve of fuch a conftitution, before it could be with juflice and propriety fixed for them. This therefore cannot be the ground of a reasonable objection. Indeed, if it can be proved to be an unjuft, or unwife conftitution, we may be fure no fuch conftitution was ever made by the Governour of man, This brings to obferve, appear, and cannot There was as great 2. Such a conftitution does not be proved not to be juft and good. a prospect and probability, that the firft man would not fin, but perfevere in obedience, as that any one of his pofterity pofterity would; yea, much greater, seeing he was created an adult, in the full exercise of all his rational faculties; whereas they must come into existence infants, and gradually rife to manhood, through the weak ftate of childhood and youth, in which they would be more expofed to fall by temptation. And the father of mankind had a strong motive to obedience, which none can have who act only for themselves, as the intereft of all his pofterity was put into his hands, and he acted for them all. Before the confequence was known, had any one capable of viewing all circumftances been to judge, he would doubtlefs have concluded that such a constitution, was the most eligible, and the best that could be formed for mankind, and most likely to fecure their holiness and happiness. Now the event has proved to be evil, and by this conflitution, Adam and his pofterity are fallen into a ftate of ruin, we may view it as bad, and injurious to us; especially fince we are become prejudiced against the dictates of wisdom, and enemies to the wife and good government of JEHOVAH. But this is not the leaft evidence, that it is not wife and good. Mankind, while in tate of rebellion, are disposed to think and fay, "The ways of the LORD are not equal." And they will find fault with any conftitution, which infinite wisdom and goodness can form. Witness their disapprobation of the gofpel, and oppofition to it. It ill becomes those who chufe to live in fin; and when they have the offer of pardon, and deliverance from fin, and of eternal life, will not accept of it, but fpurn it from them, to find fault nd complain that they were originally placed under a onftitution, by which they are fallen into that fin and uin, from which they cannot be perfuaded to accept deliverance, but chufe to live in fin, as a privilege, and conftantly approve of the original tranfgreffion, by obinately perfifting in that rebellion, which their firft faher began, when he finned, 3. It must be observed, that if it could be proved, as it cannot, that fuch a conftitution was not the most favourable to every individual, it will not follow that it is not, on the whole, the wifeft and beft conftitution that could be formed. If no injuftice be done to any one by it, and it be best suited to answer the most wise and important ends, it is certainly the best poffible conflitution. If it were evident that mankind did not enjoy fo great advantages to be holy and happy forever, under fuch a conftitution, as they would have under fome other, it does not follow that any injuftice is done to them; for they had no right to these advantages; and God was not obliged to grant them: If he were, there could be no ftate of trial, and eternal life must be made fure to them. all, which God was able to do. But this would not be wife, it would not have been fuited to answer the most important ends, and for the greatest general good. There.. fore if this conftitution is fuited to answer these ends, and is the best that could be for the general good, then it is the wifeft and best that could be devised. certainly no evidence that it is not fo: But abundant evidence of the contrary, which may more fully appeal by what is farther to be said on the subject, in attending to the confequences of this, conftitution, or the ends ac tually answered by it. There is IMPROVEMENT. I. FROM what has been brought into view in this chapter, we are led farther to reflect on the goodness of God, and our obligation to gratitude. The goodnefs of God appears in his forming angels with fuch high and noble capacities, and under advantages to be proportionably happy, in the exercise of their powers, under the good and excellent moral government, under which they were placed. |