Order of Nature. Indeed the Derivation of the evil Difpofition to the Hearts of Adam's Pofterity, or rather the Co-existence of the evil Difpofition, implied in Adam's firft Rebellion, in the Root and Branches, is a Confequence of the Union that the wife Author of the World has established between Adam and his Pofterity; but not properly a Confequence of the Imputation of his Sin; nay, rather antecedent to it, as it was in Adam himfelf. The first Depravity of Heart, and the Imputation of that Sin, are both the Confequences of that eftablished Union; but yet in fuch Order, that the evil Difpofition is first, and the Charge of Guilt confequent, as it was in the Cafe of Adam himfelf *.

*

The

My Meaning, in the whole of what has been here said, may be illuftrated thus: Let us fuppofe, that Adam and alt his Pofterity had co-exified, and that his Pofterity had been, through a Law of Nature eftablished by the Creator, united to him, fomething as the Branches of a Tree are united to the Root, or the Members of the Body to the Head, so as to conftitute as it were one complex Perfon, or one moral Whole: So that by the Law of Union there fhould have been a Communion and Co-exiflence in Acs and Affections; all jointly participating, and all concurring, as one Whole, in the Difpofition and Action of the Head: as we fee in the Body natural, the whole Body is affected as the Head is affected; and the whole Body concurs when the Head acts. Now, in this Cafe, the Hearts of all the Branches of Mankind, by the Conftitution of Nature and Law of Union, would have been affected just as the Heart of Adam, their common Root, was affected. When the Heart of the Root, by a full Difpofition, committed the firft Sin, the Hearts of all the Branches would have concurred; and when the Root, in Confequence of this, became guilty, fo would all the Branches; and when the Heart of the Root, as a Punishment of the Sin committed, was forfaken of God, in like Manner would it have fared with all the Branches; and when the Heart of the Root, in Confequence of this, was confirmed in permanent Depravity, the Cafe would have been the fame with all the Branches; and as new Guilt on the Soul of Adam would have been confequent on this, fo alfo would it have been with his moral

Branches

The first Existence of an evil Difpofition of Heart, amounting to a full Confent to Adam's Sin, Dd 3

no

Branches. And thus all Things, with Relation to evil Dispofition, Guilt, Pollution and Depravity, would exist, in the fame Order and Dependence, in each Branch, as in the Root. Now, Difference of the Time of Existence don't at all hinder Things fucceeding in the fame Order, any more than Difference of Place in a Co-existence of Time.

Here may be worthy to be observed, as in several Respects to the prefent Purpose, fome Things that are faid by Stapferus, an eminent Divine of Zurich in Switzerland, in his Theologia Polemica, published about fourteen Years ago;-in English as follows. 66 Seeing all Adam's Pofterity are derived from their "firft Parent, as their Root, the whole of the human Kind, "with its Root, may be confidered as conftituting but one "Whole, or one Mafs; fo as not to be properly a Thing "diftin&t from its Root; the Pofterity not differing from "it, any otherwife than the Branches from the Tree. From "which it eafily appears, how that when the Root finned, all "that which is derived from it, and with it conftitutes but one "Whole, may be looked upon as alfo finning; feeing it is "not diftinct from the Root, but is one with it." -Tom. i. Cap. 3. §. 856, 57.

66

"It is objected, against the Imputation of Adam's Sin, that "we never committed the fame Sin with Adam, neither in "Number nor in Kind. I answer, we fhould diftinguish here "between the Phyfical Act itself, which Adam committed, and "the Morality of the Action, and Confent to it. If we have refpect only to the external Act, to be fure it must be con"feffed, that Adam's Pofterity did not put forth their Hands (6 to the forbidden Fruit: In which Senfe, that Act of Trans"greffion, and that Fall of Adam cannot be phyfically one "with the Sin of his Pofterity. But if we confider the Morality of the Action, and what Confent there is to it, it is altogether to be maintained, that his Pofterity committed "the fame Sin, both in Number and in Kind, inasmuch as they are to be looked upon as confenting to it. For where "there is Confent to a Sin, there the fame Sin is committed. Seeing therefore that Adam with all his Pofterity constitute "but one moral Perfon, and are united in the fame Covenant, "and are Tranfgreffors of the fame Law, they are also to be "looked upon as having, in a moral Eftimation, committed "the fame Tranfgreffion of the Law, both in Number and in Kind. Therefore this Reasoning avails nothing against

66

"" the

no more infers God's being the Author of that evil Difpofition in the Child, than in the Father.

The

"the righteous Imputation of the Sin of Adam to all Mankind, or to the whole moral Perfon that is consenting to it. And for the Reafon mentioned, we may rather argue thus: "The Sin of the Pofterity, on Account of their Confent, and "the moral View in which they are to be taken, is the fame "with the Sin of Adam, not only in Kind, but in Number; "therefore the Sin of Adam is rightfully imputed to his "Pofterity." Id. Tom. iv. Cap. 16. §. 60, 61.

The Imputation of Adam's first Sin confifts in Nothing "elfe than this, that his Pofterity are viewed as in the fame "Place with their Father, and are like him. But feeing, "agreeable to what we have already proved, God might, "according to his own righteous Judgment, which was "founded on his moft righteous Law, give Adam a Pofterity "that were like himself; and indeed it could not be otherwife, "according to the very Laws of Nature; therefore he might "alfo in righteous Judgment impute Adam's Sin to them; "inasmuch as to give Adam a Pofterity like himself, and to impute his Sin to them, is one and the fame Thing. And therefore if the former be not contrary to the divine Per"fections, fo neither is the latter.—Our Adverfaries contend "with us chiefly on this Account, That according to our "Doctrine of Original Sin, fuch an Imputation of the first Sin " is maintained, whereby God, without any Regard to uni"versal native Corruption, esteems all Adam's Pofterity as guilty, " and holds them as liable to Condemnation, purely on Ac"count of that finful Act of their first Parent; fo that They,

without any Respect had to their own Sin, and fo, as innocent "in themselves, are deftined to eternal Punishment. — I have "therefore ever been careful to fhew, that they do injuriously fuppofe thofe Things to be feparated, in our Doctrine, which "are by no Means to be feparated. The whole of the Controverfy they have with us about this Matter, evidently arifes from this, That they fuppofe the mediate and the immediate Imputation are diftinguifhed one from the other, not only in the Manner of Conception, but in Reality. And fo indeed they confider Imputation only as immediate, nd abftractly from the mediate; when yet our Divines fupofe, that neither ought to be confidered separately from the ther. Therefore I chofe not to ufe any fuch Distinction, or to fuppofe any fuch Thing, in what I have faid on the Subject; but only have endeavoured to explain the Thing

"itfelf

The first Arifing or Exifting of that evil Difpofition in the Heart of Adam, was by God's Permiffion; who could have prevented it, if he had pleafed, by giving fuch Influences of his Spirit, as would have been abfolutely effectual to hinder it; which, it is plain in Fact, he did with-hold: And whatever Mystery may be fuppofed in the Affair, yet no Chriftian will prefume to fay, it was not in perfect Consistence with God's Holiness and Righteousness, notwithstanding Adam had been guilty of no Offence before. So Root and Branches being one, according to God's wife Conftitution, the Cafe in Fact is, that by Virtue of this Oneness anfwerable Changes or Effects through all the Branches co-exist with the Changes in the Root: Confequently an evil Difpofition exifts in the Hearts of Adam's Pofterity, equivalent to that which was exerted in his own Heart, when he eat the forbidden Fruit. Which God has no Hand in, any otherwife, than in not exerting fuch an Influence, as might be effectual to prevent it; as appears by what was obferved in the former Chapter,

But now the grand Objection is against the Reafonableness of fuch a Constitution, by which Adam and Dd 4

his

“itself, and to reconcile it with the divine Attributes. And "therefore I have every where conjoined both these Concep"tions concerning the Imputation of the first Sin, as infepa"rable; and judged, that one ought never to be confidered "without the other. While I have been writing this Note, "I confulted all the Syftems of Divinity, which I have by me, "that I might fee what was the true and genuine Opinion of "our chief Divines in this Affair; and I found that they "were of the fame Mind with Me; namely, That these two

Kinds of Imputation are by no Means to be feparated, or "to be confidered abstractly one from the other, but that one does involve the other."-He there particularly cites thofe two famous reformed Divines, Vitringa, and Lampius.→ Tom. iv. Cap. 17, §. 78,

his Pofterity should be looked upon as One, and dealt with accordingly, in an Affair of fuch infinite Confequence; fo that if Adam finned, they muft neceffarily be made Sinners by his Difobedience, and come into Existence with the fame Depravity of Difpofition, and be looked upon and treated as though they were Partakers with Adam in his Act of Sin, I have not Room here to rehearse all Dr. T-r's vehement Exclamations against the Reafonablenefs and Juftice of this. The Reader may at his Leifure confult his Book, and fee them in the Places referred to below *. Whatever black Colours and frightful Representations are employed on this Occafion, all may be fummed up in this, That Adam and his Posterity are not one, but entirely diftinct Agents. But with Refpect to this mighty Out-cry made against the Reasonableness of any fuch Conftitution, by which God is fuppofed to treat Adam and his Posterity as One, I would make the following Obfervations,

I. It fignifies Nothing to exclaim against plain Fact. Such is the Fat, moft evident and acknowledged Fact, with refpect to the State of all Mankind, without Exception of one Individual among all the natural Defcendants of Adam, as makes it apparent, that God actually deals with Adam and his Pofterity as One, in the Affair of his Apoftacy, and its infinitely terrible Confequences, It has been demonftrated, and fhewn to be in Effect plainly acknowledged, that every Individual of Mankind comes into the World in fuch Circumftances, as that there is no Hope or Poffibility of any other than their violating God's holy Law, (if they ever live to act at all as moral Agents) and

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