(1st.) His remunerative or rewarding justice. It is just with God to reward our obedience, and to give men what his promise hath made due to them. It is true we cannot expect reward from God in strict righteousness, or by the exact laws of commutative justice and strict righteousness in this fallen estate, as if there were an inward condig- nity of our works to that which God gives. Oh no ! that is disclaimed by the saints: Ps. ciii. 3, ' Who forgiveth all thine iniquities ;' Ps. cxliii. 2, ' Enter not into judgment with thy servant ; for in thy sight shall no man living be justified/ From any exuberancy of merit we cannot expect a reward from God ; but we may and ought to encourage ourselves from his righteousness, even that it is not an unrighteous thing with God to give us heaven and happiness when we have served him faithfully, and patiently continued in well-doing. You know the-
VeR. 137.] SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. 441
apostle distinguisheth that there is a reward according to debt, and a reward according to grace, Eom. iv. 4. Though it be righteous with God to give the reward, yet he gives it not out of debt, or for any con- dignity of worth ; but he gives it out of grace. And so all the comforts we have from obedience are said to come from the righteousness of God ; even the pardon of sin, which is one of the freest acts of God, and wherein he discovers most of his mercy : 1 John i. 9, ' He is faith- ful and just to forgive us our sins.' It is not, faithful and gracious, but just. And so for the eternal reward in 2 Thes. i. 6, 7, SUatop, ' It is a just or righteous thing wilh God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you.' Ay ! you think it is just with God to punish evil ; but is it a righteous thing that he should reward our obedience ? Kead on : ' And to you who are troubled, rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven/ &c. God in righteousness is bound by his own promise to give this reward : Heb. vi. 10, ' God is not unrighteous, to forget your work and labour of love.' How is God's righteousness engaged ? Partly by Christ, Christ having given satis- faction equivalent to the offence and wrong to his majesty, and having interposed an everlasting merit, it is just with God to forgive the sin, as it is just for the creditor to forgive the debt when he hath received satisfaction from the surety. And it is just because God is bound by his own promise ; he hath promised a crown of life to them at the end of their trial, James i. 12 ; and it is part of his justice to make good his word ; by promise God hath made himself a debtor. So 2 Tim, iv. 8, ' Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge will give me at that day.' Ber- nard glosseth sweetly upon that place, Paulus expectat coronam jus- titice, justiticB Dei, noti suce ; jushim est ut reddat quod debet, debet autem quodpoUicitus est. It is just with God to pay what he oweth, and God oweth what he hath promised ; and so it is a crown of right- eousness which God the righteous Judge will give us at that day. Once more, it is just with God not to forget your labour of love, be- cause it agrees with his general justice, or the rectitude of his nature ; it falls in with his law. As God is a holy, perfect being, he cannot be indifferent to good and evil ; it concerns him to see, ut bonis bene sit ; et mails, male ; that it be well with them that do well, and ill with them that do ill. But how upon terms it should go well with them, that must be interpreted according to either covenant ; either according to the exactness of the law, and so no flesh can be justified in his sight, or according to the moderation of the gospel, where the soul sincerely frames itself to do the will of God : and it is not an unright- eous thing with God to give you according to your labour of love, and zeal for his glory.
(2dly.) There is his vindictive justice on all sinners. God punish- eth none but sinners, and only for sin, and that ever according to the measure of the sin ; as it is more or less, so they have more or less punishment: Rom. ii. 9, 'Tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile.' God will render vengeance to the Gentiles, that had the light of nature to teach them God, to show them the invisible things of his godhead and power ; but chiefly upon those that have been tired up in his ordi-
442 SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. [SeR. CLIII.
nances, and mostly upon them that have rejected the terms of grace oflered them in the gospel ; for so it is said, 2 Thes. i. 8, ' lie will render vengeance upon all them that obey not the gospel ;' and John iii. 18, 19, ' Pie that believeth not is condemned already.' The law is passed upon him ; hut ' this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.' Their sin is inexcusable that will not lay hold upon the offers of grace. They have no cause to murmur, or impute their damnation to God's secret purpose ; in their own consciences they may read the justness of their condemnation. Well, then, this is God's justice ; it is that jiroperty by which God acts agreeable to his nature as sovereign lord ; and agreeable to his covenant as governor and judge of the world, either his covenant of works or grace.