we shall be fatisfied that thofe phrases conveyed no fuch ideas to them as they now do to us.

Barnabas speaking of the Jewish sacrifices, fays, "These things, therefore, has God abo"lished, that the new law of our Lord Jefus "Chrift, which is without the yoke of any such "neceffity, might have the spiritual offerings of "men themselves. For fo the Lord faith again, "to thofe heretofore; Did I at all command your Fathers, when they came out of the land "of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or facri"fices. But this I commanded them, faying, "let none of you imagine evil in your hearts

against his neighbour, and love no falfe oath. "For as much then as we are not without un"derstanding, we ought to apprehend the defign "of our merciful Father. For he speaks to us,

being willing that we, who have been in the "fame error about the facrifices, fhould think and "find how to approach unto him; and therefore "he thus bespeaks us; The facrifice of God is a "broken fpirit. A broken and a contrite heart "God will not defpife." This is not fubftituting the facrifice of Chrift in the place of the facrifices under the law, but moral virtue only.

In the fhepherd of Hermas (if this should be thought to be the work of the Hermas men

Sect. ii. Cotilerii. edit. p. 57.

tioned

tioned by Paul) we find nothing of the doctrine of atonement, but ftrong expreffions denoting the acceptableness of repentance and good works only. "Then," fays he*, "fhall their fins be forgiven, which they have heretofore committed, " and the fins of all the faints, who have finned

even unto this day, if they will repent with all "their hearts, and remove all doubts out of "their heart." He farther fayst, He farther fays, "Whoever "has fuffered for the name of the Lord are "efteemed honourable by the Lord, and all "their offences are blotted out, because they "have fuffered death for the name of the Son of God.".

It seems pretty evident that so far we find no real change of opinion with refpect to the efficacy of the death of Christ. These writers adopt the language of the apoftles, using the term facrifice in a figurative fenfe, and represent the value of good works, without the leaft hint or caution left we should thereby detract from the merits of Chrift, and the doctrine of falvation by his imputed righeousness.

* Vif. ii. Sect. a † Sim. ix. Sect. 28.

SECTION

SECTION VI.

Of the Opinion of the Fathers till after the Time of Austin.

THAT it was not the received doctrine

of the christian church within this period, that Christ did, in any proper sense, make the Divine Being placable to men; but that the pardon of fin proceeded from the free mercy of God, independently of his fufferings and merit, may, I think, be clearly inferred from several confiderations.

1. This doctrine, on which so much stress has been laid by fome moderns, is never enumerated as an article of chriftian faith, in any antient Jummary of chriftian doctrine; and the early chriftian writers, especially those who made apologies for christianity, had frequent occafion to do it; and we have several summaries of this kind.

To fay nothing of the apologies of Juftin Martyr, Athenagoras, and Tertullian, who give accounts of the principal articles of christian faith, but may be thought to do it too concisely for us to expect that they should take notice of fuch a doctrine as this (though the great importance of it, in the opinion of those who hold this doctrine,

is fuch, as ought to have given it the preference of any other) I cannot help laying particular stress on the omiffion of it by Lactantius, who treats profeffedly of the system of christianity, as it was generally received in his days. Yet in his Divine Institutions, there is fo far from being any mention of the neceffity of the death of Christ to atone for the fins of men, that he treats of the nature of fin, of the mercy of God, and of the efficacy of repentance, as if he had never heard of any fuch doctrine.

We see his fentiments on these fubjects very fully in his treatise De Ira Dei*. And when he profeffedly confiders the reasons of the incarnation and death of Chrift†, he only fays, that, " ex"ample was neceffary to be exhibitted to men as "well as precepts, and therefore it was neceffary "that God fhould be cloathed with a mortal

body, be tempted, fuffer, and die." He gives no other reason whatever. Again, he fays, "Chrift was made flesh, because he was not only "to teach, but also to do, and to be an example, "that none might alledge in their excufe the "weakness of the flesh."

Cyprian, an earlier writer, often mentions the humiliation and fufferings of Chrift, but always

* Cap. xix. xx.

* Cap. v. p. 143.

P

† Epitome, chap. 1. p. 142.

either

either as an example, or fimply as foretold by the prophets.

Arnobius fays, That*, "Chrift permitted his man, that is, the man to whom he was united "to be killed, that, in consequence of it (viz. his "refurrection afterwards) it might appear that " what they had been taught concerning the safety "of their fouls was fafe, or to be depended upon, " and that death was not to be defeated any other cc way."

Austin, in several places, fpeaks of the end of Christ's life and death, but never as defigned to make fatisfaction for the fins of men, but generally as an example. "In his paffion he shewed "what we ought to endure; in his refurrection, "what we are to hope fort." Speaking of the incarnation in general, he fays +, "Chrift affumed

a human body, and lived among men, that he "might fet us an example of living, and dying, "and rifing again." When he speaks figuratively, it is plain he did not carry his ideas fo far as the orthodox now do. "In his death," he says, "he "made a gainful traffick, he purchased faithful

men, and martyrs. He bought us with his "blood. He laid down the price of our redemp"tion." But he likewife fays, "the martyrs have "returned what was laid out for them, that is,

* Lib. i. p. 24. † Lardner's Credibility, vol. x. p. 299. Ib.

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