All that I woidd infer from these things is, that the faith whereby we believe unto the justification of life, or which is required of us in a way of duty that we may be justified, is such an act of the whole soul whereby convinced sinners do wholly go out of themselves to rest upon God in Christ for mercy, pardon, life, righteousness, and salvation, with an acquiescency of heart therein ; which is the whole of the truth pleaded for.
TESTIMONIES FROM THE PROPHETS. 295
CHAPTER XVI.
The truth pleaded farther confirmed by testimonies of Scripture. — Jer. xxiii. 6.
That which we now proceed unto, is the consideration of those express testimonies of Scripture which are given unto the truth pleaded for, and especially of those places where the doctrine of the justification of sinners is expressly and designedly handled. From them it is that we must learn the truth, and into them must our faith be resolved ; unto whose authority all the arguings and objec- tions of men must give place. By them is more light conveyed into the understandings of believers than by the most subtile disputations. And it is a thing not without scandal, to see among Protestants whole books written about justification, wherein scarce one testimony of Scripture is produced, unless it be to find out evasions from the force of them. And, in particular, whereas the apostle Paul hath most fully and expressly (as he had the greatest occasion so to do) declared and vindicated the doctrine of evangelical justification, not a few, in what they write about it, are so far from declaring their thoughts and faith concerning it out of his writings, as that they be- gin to reflect upon them as obscure, and such as give occasion unto dangerous mistakes ; and unless, as was said, to answer and except agamst them upon their own corrupt principles, seldom or never make mention of them ; as though we were grown wiser than he, or that Spirit whereby he was inspired, guided, acted in all that he wrote. But there can be nothing more alien from the genius of Chris- tian religion, than for us not to endeavour humbly to learn the mys- tery of the grace of God herein, in the declaration of it made by him. But the foundation of God standeth sure, what course soever men shall be pleased to take into their profession of religion.
For the testimonies which I shall produce and insist upon, I desire the reader to observe, — 1. That they are but some of the many that might be pleaded unto the same purpose. 2. That those which have been, or yet shall be alleged, on particular occasions, I shall wholly omit; and such are most of thein that are given unto this truth in the Old Testament. 3. That in the exposition of them I shall, with what diligence I can, attend, — First, Unto the analogy of faith; that is, the manifest scope and design of the revelation of the mind and will of God in the Scripture. And that this is to exalt the fi'ee- dom and riches of his o^vn grace, the glory and excellency of Christ and his mediation ; to discover the woful, lost, forlorn condition of man by sin ; to debase and depress every thing that is in and of our- selves, as to the attaining life, righteousness, and salvation ; cannot be df^nied by any who have their senses exercised in the Scriptures.
296 ON JtrSTIFICATIOX.
Secondly, Unto tlie experience of them that do believe, with tlie condition of them who seek after justification by Jesus Christ. In other things I hope the best helps and rules of the interpretation of the Scripture shall not be neglected-
There is weight in this case deservedly laid on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as promised and given unto us, — • namely, " The Lord our Righteousness," Jer. xxiii. 6. As the name Jehovah, being given and ascribed unto him, is a full indication of his divine person; so the addition of his being our righteousness, sufficiently declares that in and by him alone we have righteousness, or are made righteous. So was he typed by Melchizedek, as first the " King of righteousness," then the " King of peace," Heb. vii. 2 ; for by his righteousness alone have we peace with God. Some of the Socinians would evade this testimony, by observing, that right- eousness in the Old Testament is urged sometimes for benignity, kindness, and mercy ; and so they suppose it may be here. But the most of them, avoiding the palpable absurdity of this imagination, refer to the righteousness of God in the deliverance and vindication of his people. So Brenius^ briefly, " Ita vocatur quia Dominus per manum ejus judicium et justitiam faciet Israeli." But these are eva- sions of bold men, who care not, so they may say somewhat, whether what they say be agreeable to the analogy of faith or the plain words of the Scripture. Bellarmine, who was more wary to give some appearance of truth unto his answers, first gives other reasons why he is called " The Lord our Bighteousness ; " and then, whether unawares or overpowered by the evidence of truth, grants that sense of the words which contains the whole of the cause we plead for. "Christ," he says, " may be called 'The Lord our Bighteousness,' be- cause he is the efficient cause of our righteousness;" — as God is said to be our " strength and salvation." Again, " Christ is said to be our righteousness, as he is our wisdom, our redemption, and oiu- peace; because he hath redeemed us, and makes us wise and righteous, and reconcileth us unto God." And other reasons of the same nature are added by others. But not trusting to these expositions of the words, he adds, " Deinde dicitur Christus justitia nostra, quoniam satisfecit patri pro nobis, et eam satisfactionem ita nobis donat et communicat, cum nos justificat, ut nostra satisfactio et justitia dici possit." And afterward, " Hoc modo non esset absurdum, si quis diceret nobis imputari Christi justitiam et merita, cum nobis donantur et appli- cantur, ac si nos ipsi Deo satisfecissimus," De Justificat., lib. ii. cap. 10; — "Christ is said to be our righteousness because he hath made satisfaction for us to the Father; and doth so give and com- municate that satisfaction unto us when he justifieth us, that it may