And this is the account these gentlemen give us concerning the condition and state wherein the first man was of God created : A heavy burden of the earth it seems he was, that had neither righteous- ness nor holiness whereby he might be enabled to walk before God in reference to that great end whereunto he was created, nor any knowledge of God, himself, or his duty.
Secondly. [As] for his sin, the great master of their family disputes that it was a bare transgression of that precept of "not eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil,'' and that his nature was not vitiated or corrupted thereby:^ wherein he is punctually followed by the Racovian Catechism, which also giveth this reason why his nature was not depraved by it, namely, because it was but one acfj — so light are their thoughts and expressions of that great trans- gression!^
Thirdly. [As] for his state and condition, they all, with open mouth, cry out that he was mortal and obnoxious to death, which should in a natural way have come upon him though he had not sinned.® But of this before.
Fourthly. Farther ; that the posterity of Adam were no way con- cerned, as to their spiritual prejudice, in that sin of his, as though they should either partake of the guilt of it or have their nature vitiated or corrupted thereby ; but that the whole doctrine of original sin is a figment of Austin and the schoolmen that followed him, is the con-
' "Fit»mentio destitutionis vel carentise divinse gloriae, ergo privationis imaginis Dei et justitiiB et sanctitatis, cjusque originalis; fitmentio carentite divince glorite, ergo in creatione cum homine fuit communicata : o ineptias!" — Smalc. Refut. Thes. dePeccat. Orig. disput. 2, p. 42. " Porro ait Frauzius, Paulum mox e vestigio imaginem Dei, seu novum hominem ita explicare, quod fuerit conditus primus homo ad justitiam et sanctimoniam veram. Hie ciun erroribus fallaci^, etiam et fortassis voluntaria), sunt commixtae. . . . Videat lector benevolus quanti sit facienda illatio Franzii, dum ait, ergo imago Dei in homine ante lapsum consistebat in concreata justitia et vera sancti- monia primonxm parentum. Si hffic non sunt scopse dissolutse, equidem nescio quid eas tandem nominabimur." — Smalc. ubi sup. pp. 50, 51.
' Volkcl. de Vera Eelig. lib. ii. cap. vi. p. 9, edit, cum lib. Crell. de Deo.
* Socin. Prwlcct. cap. iii. p. 8.
* " Etenim \mum illud peccatum per se, non modo universes posteros, sed ne ipsum quidcra Adamum, corrumpendi vim habere potuit. Dei vero consilio, in peccati illius poenani id factum fuisse, nee usquam legitur, et plane incredibile est, imo impium id cogitai'e." — Socin. Prselect. cap. iv. sec. 4, p. 13. "Lapsus Adami, cum uuus actus fuerit, vim eam, qua; depravare ipsam naturam Adami, multo minus posterorum ipsius posset, habere non potuit. Ipsi vero in ptenam irrogatura fuisse, nee Scriptura docet, ut superius expo.suimus, et Deum ilium, qui omnis aquitatis fonsest, incredibile pi'orsus est id facere voluisse." — Cat. Rac. de Cognit. Christ, cap. x. ques. 2.
* " De Adamo, eum immortalera creatum non fuisse, res apertissima est. Nam ex terra creatus, cibis usus, liberis gignendis dcstinatus, et animalis ante lapsum fuit." — Smalc. de Divin. Jes. Christ, cap. vii de promisso vitss seternoe.
156 VIKDICDE EVANGELIC^E.
slant clamour of them all.^ And indeed this is the great foundation of all or the greatest part of their religion. Hence are the necessity of the satisfaction and merit of Christ, the efficacy of grace, and the power of the Spirit in conversion, decried. On this account is salva- tion granted, by them, without Christ, a power of keeping all the commandments asserted, and justification upon our obedience. Of which in the process of our discourse.
Such are the thoughts, such are the expressions, of Mr B.'s masters concerning this -vvhole matter. Such was Adam in their esteem, such was his fall, and such our concernment therein.^ He had no righteousness, no holiness (yea, Socinus at length confesses that he did not believe his soiil was immortal^); we contracted no guilt in him, derive no pollution from him. Whether these men are in any measure acquainted with the plague of their own hearts, the severity and spirituality of the law of God, with that redemption which is in the blood of Jesus, the Lord will one day manifest; but into their secret let not my soul descend.
Lest the weakest or meanest reader should be startled with the mention of these things, not finding himself ready furnished with arguments from Scripture to disprove the boldness and folly of these men in their assertions, I shall add some few arguments whereby the severals by them denied and opposed are confirmed from the Scriptures, the places before mentioned being in them cast into that form and method wherein they are readily subservient to the pur- pose in hand : —
First. That man was created in the image of God, in knowledge,
' " Concludimus igitur, nullum, improprie etiam loqueudo, pcccatum originale esse ; id est, ex peccato illo primi parentis nullam labem aut pravitatem universe humano generi necessario ingenitam esse, sive inflictam quodammodo fuisse."— Sociu. Prrelect. cap. iv. sect. 4, pp. 13, 14. " Peccatum originis nullum prorsusest, quare nee liberum arbitrium vitiare potuit. Nee enim e Scriptui-aid peccatum originis doceri potest." — Cat. Rac. de Cognit. Christ, cap. x. de Lib. Arbit. — — "Qufedam ex falsissimis prin- cipiis deducuntur. In illo genere illud potissimum est, quod ex peccato (ut Yocant) originali depromitur : de quo ita disputant, ut crimen a primo parente conceptum, in sobolem derivatum esse defendant, ej usque contagione, turn omnes humanas vires cor- ruptas et depravatas, turn potissimum voluntatis libertatem destructam esse asscrant. . . . qu£e omnia nos pernegamus, utpote et sanse mentis rationi, et divinte Scripturne contraria.'' — Volkel. de Vera Kelig. lib. v. cap. xviii. pp. 547, 548. " Prior pars thesis Franzii falsa est. Nam nullum individuum unquam peccato originis fuit infectum. Quia peccatum illud mera est fabula, quam tanquam fcetum alienum fovent Lutherani, et alii." — Smalc. Refut. Thes. Franz, disput. 2, p. 46, 47. Vid. Compend. Socin. cap. iii.; Smalc. de Vera Divin. Jes. Christ, cap. vii. " Putas Adami peccatum et inobedieutiam ejus posteritati imputari. At hoc 9eque tibi negamus, quam Christi obedientiam cre- dentibus imputari." — Jonas Schlichtingius, disput. pro Socino adversus Meisnerum, p. 251; vide etiam p. 100. " Quibus ita explicatis, facile cos qui . . . omnem Adami posteritatem, in ipso Adarao parente suo peccasse, et mortis supplicium vere fuisse commeritum.". — Idem, Comment, in Epist. ad Hebrasos ad cap. vii. p. 290.