Qu. 26. Is it not most evident that, if a being be punished without any other reason than his confent, the punishment must be inconfiftent with juftice?

Qu. 27. If (as it should seem) an innocent being, though he confent to be punished, cannot be in juftice punishable; if the only righteous ground of a being's punishment be his own offence; if the punishment of an innocent being (tho' the thing were in itself right) cannot make an offender not punishable ; doth it not follow, that the doc

trine

trine which afferts the fatisfaction. of justice by vicarious punishment, is a doctrine falfe and erroneous?

Qu. 28. If in oppofition to reason, we believe that the human nature, as fuch, is a wicked nature; if webelieve that the mere confent of an innocent being to be punished renders him properly and truly punishable; if we believe, that the punishment of fuch an innocent being may make an offender punishable no longer; why then are we not confiftent enough to fhew our oppofition to reason, and our contempt of it in every inftance;

par

particularly by declaring our unfeigned affent and confent to fuch propofitions as thefe; that a body moving from one point to another in a crooked line, goes the nearest way; that it is very poffible for a thing to be, and not to be, at the fame time ; that the most virtuous, and excellent men are the fittest to be banged; and that the verieft villains are the fittest to be honoured and rewarded?

IN fincerity and uprightness, and with a view to ferve the Chriftian caufe, I have offered the preceding queries. I am

per

perfuaded that all religion, as far as it is genuine, is a reafonable fervice and this perfuafion was the ground of my attempt to rectify, by a few hints, Mr. M-'s mistake, concerning the human nature; which he reprefents as morally corrupt in its effence and concerning human falvation, which he teaches is the effect of the vicarious fufferings of our Blefied Saviour. What has been fuggefted, perhaps, will be feverely condemned by thofe, who, fpeaking in a stile somewhat lofty, call themfelves orthodox (that is infallible) men. But, at least, there

are

are fome men truly wife and good, I hope many, who will not condemn it: my own heart approves it: and the omniscient judge knows my upright in

tention.

It will be observed, that the first four questions have not the less weight for intimating nothing very different from Mr. M-'s fentiments.

AND I beg it may be observed, that if it be admitted (agreeably to what is intimated in Qu. 12 and 13,) that our moral character is folely conftituted