if poffible, from afferting it. But, is it poffible for a Man of common Understanding, who is not ftrongly byaffed to a preconceived Scheme, to read this divine Paffage, and find our Author's Senfe in it? Credat Judæus, &c.

After all the learned Pains which Mr T. has bestowed on this Paffage of Scripture, to reconcile it, if poffible, with his favourite Scheme, it is ftill too plain to be denied, that the whole of this Difcourfe plainly fhews, that the Apoftle underflood and believed, that Death came upon Mankind by Adam's one Offence: not for that they have all finned perfonally, but they have finned, and are made Sinners, through the one Offence of one Man, p. 51. But then to allow this, and yet to deny the Imputation of the Guilt of Adam's Sin to his Pofterity, is fo glaring an Absurdity, that our Author finds himself conftrained to try if he can get over it; which, therefore he attempts in an Appendix to

PART I.

F 2 REMARKS

[36]

REMARKS

ON THE

APPENDIX to PART I.

I

N the Appendix, our Author propofes Two Questions: One is, How it is confiftent with Justice, that a whole Race fhould be fubjected to Death, by the Difobedience of one Man? The other is, How fhall we account for all Mankind's being made righteous, or restored to Life at the Refurrection, by the Obedience of another Man, Jefus Chrift? So far as thefe Queftions regard real Facts, the Reader may find an eafy, rational, as well as fcriptural Answer to both of them, in the Book I referred to before, viz. The Ruin and Recovery of Mankind. But let us hear our Author's Account of these Matters. As to the first Queftion, he gets rid at once of all Difficulty that may arise from the Confideration of God's Justice, by afcribing it wholly to his Goodness, that by the Offence of one, Judgment is came upon all Men to Condemnation;

Condemnation; and that by one Man's Difobedience, many are made Sinners; or, as he is pleased to express it, that the whole Race of Adam are fubjected to Death for his Sin; for Death, he tells us, is upon the whole a Benefit; and from thence we may account for all Mens being made Sufferers by the Disobedience of Adam. Suffering of Benefits is not very common Language: But this Writer deals much in peculiar Acceptations of common Words and Phrafes. All Words were coined by fome Body; and why may not he have the Liberty of coining new Meanings to Words, when it will fuit his Purpose so to do? Well then, by fuffering, we are now to understand receiving Benefits; and by our fuffering on account of Adam's Sin, we are to understand our being graciously rewarded for it, even with the Benefit of Death. But how is Death a Benefit? is a Question which our Author puts, p. 69. If the Question were, How Death, which was originally a Curfe upon Mankind, is now turned into a Benefit, by the Gospel, to them that believe in Chrift; or, rather, how they receive Benefit by it? a fatisfactory Answer might eafily be given: But this Gentleman will have Death to be an original Benefit, and that to all Mankind. He fupposes it is in mere Mercy and Goodness that all are made to fuffer this Benefit, viz.

to

to increase the Vanity of all earthly Things, and to abate their Force to tempt and delude us; and when Death, at near a Thousand Years diftance, was not fufficient generally to gain thefe important Ends, God was pleafed to fhorten our Days, reducing them gradually to feventy or eighty Years. And, he adds, if the corrupt Morals of the Antediluvians was the Occafion of this Reduction of human Life, (as feems most probable) then it will be true, that as Death entered into the World by Adam's Sin; fo the haftening of Death, or Shortness of Life, entered into the World, and came upon all Men, by the Sin of that vicious Generation; and by their Difobedience we are all again, fo far, made Sinners, i. e. we receive the Benefit of Death, according to this Author's Senfe. And what Reason have we then to be thankful for their Wickednefs, and to honour the Memory of that vicious Generation, who were, by their Wickedness, the Occafion of our fuffering fo important a Benefit, and of our receiving it fo much fooner. Our Author goes on to display the Benefit of Death, and of the fhortening of human Life to it's present Standard, viz. that the wild Rage of Ambition and Luft might be brought into narrower Bounds, and that Death, being fet ftill nearer to our View, might be a powerful Motive to regard lefs the Things of a tranfitory World,

and

and to attend more to the Rules of Truth and Wifdom. And does this Author, indeed, believe, in good earnest, that Death is fuch a Benefit to Mankind, in the general? Does it appear, in fact, that the fhortening of Life, and the nearer View of Death, has a natural Tendency to produce thefe good Effects? Is it, indeed, generally, a powerful Motive with Men to regard lefs the Things of a tranfitory World; or does not the common Obfervation and Experience of all Ages plainly fhew the contrary? has not Covetousness been always accounted the Vice of old Age? As Death comes in a nearer View, we plainly fee, that, generally, Men grow, in their Regard to the Things of a tranfitory World. We are fure, therefore, that Death is no fuch Benefit, as our Author describes, to the generality of Mankind; no, but quite the contrary; it is the King of Terrors to them, 'tis the Burden of their Lives, and the Bane of all their Pleasures. To talk, therefore, of Death's being a Benefit, an original Benefit, and that to all Mankind, is to talk against the common Senfe and Experience of the whole World. Or, if our Author should fuppofe, that God gave it originally for a a Benefit, but Men pervert it, by their own Fault, into a Curfe and Mifery; how will he account for the Effects proving fo generally contrary to the original Intention, and

natural