This fophiftical argument probably misled Mr. Whitefield. But the "medium" which he could not fee, the medium which spoils his " inextricable dilemma," the door at which we readily go out of the prifon, where Logica Genevenfis fancies he has confined us, may easily be pointed out, thus: if God had not entertained gracious thoughts of peace, mer cy, and redemption towards ALL mankind; if he had defigned abfolutely and unconditionally to glorify nothing but his vindictive juftice upon a number of them, for having SEMINALLY SINNED in Adam, he might undoubtedly have paffed them by; yea, he might have feverely punished them. But, as I have obferved, in this cafe, he would have punished them equitably, that is, SEMINALLY. He would have crushed guilty Adam, and with him his Cainifh, reprobated feed; contriving the birth of Abel, Seth, and others, in fuch a manner, as to bring no man into perfonal exiftence, but fuch as had a perfonal share in his redeeming mercy. And this is the very plan, which, according to our doctrines of grace, and according to the fcriptures, God graciously laid down in eternity, and faithfully executed when the Lamb flain from the foundation of the world, tafted death for EVERY min- -gave himself a ransom for ALL,-and be came an evangelical (not an Antinomian) propitiation for the sins of the WHOLE world.

A third flaw in Mr. Whitefield's dilemma, is the fuppofition that Calvinian reprobation is only an barmlefs preterition: but a paffing by, in fome cafes, is borribe cruelty. Thus if a mother calvinistically paffes by her fucking child for a week, fhe actually tarves and deftroys him. This is not all: Calvinian reprobation is a downright appointment to eternal death, "The" [Calvinian] predestination of fome to life," &c. fays Mr. Toplady, "cannot be maintained without admitting the" [Calvinian]" reprobation of fome

others

others unto death," even unto eternal death, or damnation. But I afk again, what can be more unreafonable and unjust, than to appoint millions of unborn infants to perfonal, confcious, unavoidable, and eternal death, through the horrible medium of a perfonal, unavoidable perfeverance in fin; and this merely for a fin which they never perfonally and confeionfly committed?

A fourth flaw in Mr. Whitefield's, argument, confifls in confounding the Calvinian with the Scriptural imputation of Adam's fin. If God imputed fin to Adam's offspring in its feminal fate, it was merely becaufe Adam's offspring feminally finned in him. God's imputation is always according to truth. When Adam had actually tainted his foul with fin, and his body with mortality; finfulness, and mortality actually tainted all his offspring then in his loins; and therefore God could truly impute finfulness and mortality to them all, that is, he could truly account them all to be what they really were, i. e. feminally finful and mortal. How different is this righteous imputation from the imputation maintained by Zelotes! a cruel, fuppofed imputation this, whereby God is reprefented as arbitrarily determining, that numberlefs myriads of unformed men fhall be fo accounted guilty of a fin which they never perfona ly committed, as to be personally and absolutely predeftinated to eternal death, through the horrible medium of neceffary, remedilefs fin!

If Zelotes replies: "God may as jufly impute Adam's fin to the natural feed of Adam, as he does impute Chrift's righteoufnefs to the fpiritual feed of Chrift." I reply (1) The cafe is not parallel. The King may july give a thousands pounds gratis to whom he pleases; but he cannot juftly give a thoufand fripes gratis to whom he pleafes, becaufe Freewrath is abfolutely incompatible with juftice.—(2)

Faith is imputed for righteousness: or, if you pleafe, God imputes righteousness to BELIEVERS. Now, who are be lievers? Are they not men who have faith ?-men who have that grace which unites them to Christ the righte ous, and by which they actually derive from Chrift (in various degrees) not only a peculiar intereft in his merits, but alfo the very righteoufnefs, the very ha tred of fin, and the very love of virtue, which were in the heart of Chrift? Therefore when God imputes faith for righteousness, or when he imputes righteousness to believers, he only accounts, that what is in believers is actually there; or, if you please, that believers ale what they really are, that is, righteous. Hence it appears, that to fupport Calvinian imputation of fin, by Calvinian imputation of righteoufnels, is only to defend one chimera by another.

Mr. Whitefield's argument in defence of Calvinian reprobation appears to us fo much the more inconclufive, as it is not lefs contrary to feripture than to reason. Who can fairly reconcile that reprobation to the texts which intimate, that this proverb fhall no more be used in Ifrael: the fathers have eaten four grapes, and the cafe is remedilefs: the children's teeth being neceffarily and eternally set on edge; that the fon fhali not eternally die, or be reprobated to eternal death for the fins of the father: that God's mercy is over all his works, till provoked free-grace gives place to jufl-wrath :--: that he willeth not primarily the death of a finner :- and that God our Saviour will have all men to be javed, in a rational, evangelical way, that is, by freely working out their own falvation in fubordination to his freegrace.

From all the preceding anfwers, I hope, I may conclude, that the inextricable dilemma" is a mere fophifm and that the truly Reverend Mr. Whitefield? understood far better how to offer up a warm prayer,.

and

and preach a pathetic fermon, than how to follow Error into her lurking holes, in order to feize there the twifting viper with the tongs of Truth, and bring her out to public view, ftript of her fbining, flippery drefs, and darting in vain her forked and hiffing tongue.

IV. Having anfwered the threefold objection of Zelotes, Mr. Toplady, and Mr. Whitefield, I fhall now retort it, and fhow, that upon the plan of the Calvini în “doctrines of grace" and wrath-of unavoidable finished falvation for a fixed number of elect, and and of unavoidable, finished damnation for a fixed number of reprobates, all the divine perfections (Sove eignty not excepted) fuffer a partial, or a total eclipfe. I have, it is true, done it already in the Checks: but, as my opponents do not feem to have taken the leaft notice of the paffage I mean, though it contains the strength of our caufe with respect to the divine perfections, I beg leave to produce it a fecond time. If in a civil court a fecond citation is fair and expedient, why might it not be fo too in a court of controverfial judicature? I therefore afk a second time:

"What becomes of God's goodness; if the tokens of it, which he gives to millions of men, are only intended to enhance their ruin, or caft a deceitful veil over his everlafting wrath ?-What of his mercy which is over all his works, if millions were for ever excluded from the leaft intereft in it, by an abfolute decree that conftitutes them veffels of wrath from all eternity?What becomes of his juice, if he fentences myriads of men upon myriads to everlafting fire, BECAUSE they have not believed on the name of his only begotten Son; when, if they had believed that he was their Jefus, their Saviour, they would have believed a monstrous lic, and claimed what they have no more right to,

than

MATT. vi. 16, 17, 18.

Moreover, when-ye faft, be not as the Hypocrites, of a fad Countenance, for they disfigure their Faces, that they may appear unto Men to faft. Verily Ifay unto you, they have their Reward.

But thou when thou fafteft, anoint thy Head and wash thy Face.

That thou appear not unto Men to faft, but unte thy Father which is in fecret, and thy Father. which feeth in fecret, fball reward thee openly.

1.

T has been the endeavour of Satan from the beginning of the world, to put asunder what God had joined together; to feparate inward from outward religion, to fet one of thefe at variance with the other. And herein he has met with no fmall fuccefs, among those who were ignorant of his devices.

Many in all ages, having a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge, have been ftrictly attached to the righteousness of the law, the performance of outward duties, but in the mean time wholly regardless of inward righteoufnefs, the righteoufnefs which is of God by faith. And many VOL. II

R

have