Our inquiry is, how convinced sinners do, on their believing, obtain the remission of sins, acceptance with God, and a right unto eternal life? and if this can no other way be done but by the imputation of the righteousness of Christ unto them, then thereby alone are they justified in the sight of God, And this assertion proceedeth on a supposition that there is a righteousness required unto the justifica- tion of any person whatever: for whereas God, in the justification of any person, doth declare him to be acquitted from all crimes laid
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unto his charge, and to stand as righteovis in his sight, it must be on the consideration of a righteousness whereon any man is so acquitted and declared; for the judgment of God is according unto truth. This we have sufficiently evidenced before, in that juridical procedure wherein the Scripture represents unto us the justification of a be- lieving sinner. And if there be no other righteousness whereby we may be thus justified but only that of Christ imputed unto us, then thereby must we be justified, or not at all ; and if there be any such other righteousness, it must be our o^vn, inherent in us, and wrought out by us; for these two kinds, inherent and imputed righteousness, our own and Christ's, divide the whole nature of righteousness, as to the end inquired after. And that there is no such inherent righteous- ness, no such righteousness of our own, whereby we may be justified before God, I shall prove in the first place. And I shall do it, first, from express testimonies of Scripture, and then from the considera- tion of the thing itself; and two things I shall premise hereunto: — -
1. That I shall not consider this righteousness of our own abso- lutely in itself, but as it may be conceived to be improved and ad- vanced by its relation unto the satisfaction and merit of Christ: for many will grant that our inherent righteousness is not of itself suffi- cient to justify us in the sight of God; but take it as it hath value and worth communicated unto it from the merit of Christ, and so it is accepted unto that end, and judged worthy of eternal life. We could not merit life and salvation had not Christ merited that grace for us whereby we may do so, and merited also that our works should be of such a dignity with respect unto reward. We shall, therefore, allow what worth can be reasonably thought to be communicated unto this righteousness from its respect unto the merit of Christ.
2. Whereas persons of all sorts and parties do take various ways in the assignation of an interest in our justification unto our own righteousness, so as that no parties are agreed about it, nor many of the same mind among themselves, — as might easily be manifested in the Papists, Socinians, and others, — I shall, so far as it is possible in the ensuing arguments, have respect unto them all ; for my design is to prove that it hath no such inter^est in our justification before God, as that the righteousness of Christ should not be esteemed the only righteousness whereon we are justified.
And, FIRST, we shall produce some of those many testimonies which may be pleaded unto this purpose, Ps. cxxx. S, 4, " If tliou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, 0 Lord, who shall stand ? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared." There is an in- quiry included in these words, how a man, how any man, may be justified before God; how he may stand, that is, in the presence of God, and be accepted with him, — how he shall stand in judgment, as
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it is explained, Ps. i. 5, " The wicked sliall not stand in the judg- ment," shall not be acquitted on their trial. That which first ofiereth itself unto this end is his oiuii obedience; for this the law requires of him in the first place, and this his own conscience calls upon him for. But the psalmist plainly declares that no man can thence ma- nage a plea for his justification with any success; and the reason is, because, notwithstanding the best of the obedience of the best of men, there are iniquities found with them against the Lord their God; and if men come to their trial before God, whether they shall be justified or condemned, these also must be heard and taken into the account. But then no man can " stand," no man can be "justified," as it is elsewhere expressed. Wherefore, the wisest and safest course is, as unto our justification before God, utterly to forego this plea, and not to insist on our own obedience, lest our sins should appear also, and be heard. No reason can any man give on his own account why they should not be so; and if they be so, the best of men will be cast hi their trial, as the psalmist declares.
Two things are required in this trial, that a sinner may stand : — 1. That his iniquities be not observed ; for if they be so, he is lost for ever. 2. That a righteousness be produced and pleaded that will endure the trial ; for justification is upon a justifying right- eousness. For the first of these, the psalmist tells us it must be through pardon or forgiveness. " But there is forgiveness with thee," — wherein lies our only relief against the condemnatory sentence of the law with respect unto our iniquities, — that is, through the blood of Christ, for in him " we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins," Eph. i. 7. The other cannot be our own obedience, because of our iniquities. Wherefore this the same psalmist directs u-s unto, Ps. Ixxi. 16, "I will go in the strength of the Lord God : I will make mention of thy righteousness, of thine only." The righteousness of God, and not his own, yea, in opposition unto his own, is the only plea that in this case he would insist upon.