410 VINDICI^ EVANGELIC^.
compared to the daily sacrifices of the priests. Now, those daily sacri- fices were not performed in the most holy place, whither the high priest entered but once in a year; which alone was a representation of heaven : so that what Christ did in heaven cannot answer to them, but what he did on earth, before he entered the holy place not made with hands.
And chap. ix. ] 2, " He entered by his own blood into the holy place, aiojviav XvTpuigiv supd/jysiiog," — " after he had obtained eternal re- demption." Redemption is everywhere in the Scripture ascribed to the blood of Christ ; and himself abundantly manifesteth in what ac- count it is to be had, when he says that " he gave his life a ransom," or " a price of redemption." Where and when Christ laid down his life we know; and yet that our redemption or freedom is by the offering of Christ for us is as evident: Chap. ix. 26, " He put away sin" (which is our redemption) " by the sacrifice of himself;" so that this sacrifice of himself was before he entered the holy place ; and consequently he was a priest before his entrance into heaven. It is, I say, apparent from these places that Christ offered himself before he went into the holy place, or sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high; which was to be proved from them.
4. Christ is often said to " offer himself once for all ;" designing by that expression some individual action of Christ, and not such a continued course of procedure as is his presentation of himself in heaven, or the continuation of his oblation, as to its efficacy, by his intercession. So Heb. vii. 27, Tovro liroii^siv £<pd'!ra^' ix. 28, "Atk^ '^pogsvix^si'g, etc.; x. 10, 12, 14. In all these places the offering of Christ IS not only said to be one, but to be once offered. Now, no offering of Christ besides that which he offered on the earth can be said to be once offered; for that which is done in heaven is done always and for ever, but that which is done always cannot be said to be done once for all. To be always done or in doing, as is Christ's offering himself in heaven, and to be done once for all, as was the oblation spoken of in those places, whereby our sins are done away, are plainly contradictory. It is said to be so offered dva^ as to be opposed unto 'xoXXuTiig, whereby the apostle expresses that of the Aaronical sacrifice, which in two other words he had before delivered. They were offered s/s to dii^vsxsg and xad' ^fj^spav, that is, 'xoXXdxig: in which sense his offering himself in heaven cannot be said to be done aVag, but only that on the cross. Besides, he was aVa^ 'xpoffevi^hlg slg TO 'TToXXuv avsviyxsTv dfiapTiag, chap. ix. 28, and how he did that we are informed, 1 Pet. ii. 24, "Os Tag dfictpTiag rifLm alrhg dv^viy-Aiv h tui <rw- fji^ari avrou stI rb ^vXov, — he did it in his own body on the tree.
Besides, the apostle, Heb. ix. 26, tells us that he speaks of such an offering as was accompanied with suffering: " He must often have suffered since the foundation of the world." It was such an offering
OF THE DEATH OF CHRIST, ETC. 411
as could neither be repeated nor continued without suffering that he treats of. We do not deny that Christ offers himself in heaven, — that is, that he presents himself as one that was so offered to his Father ; but the offering of himself, that was on earth : and there- fore there was he a priest.
5. Once more ; that sacrifice which answered those sacrifices whose blood was never carried into the holy place, that must be performed on earth, and not in heaven. That many proper sacrifices were offered as types of Christ, whose blood was not carried into the holy place, the apostle assures us, Heb. x. 11. The daily sacrifices had none of their blood carried into the holy place, for the high priest went in thither only once in the year; but now these were all true sacrifices and types of the sacrifice of Christ, and therefore the sacri- fice of Christ also, to answer the types, must be offered before his entrance into heaven, as was in part declared before : yea, there was no other sacrifice of these but what was performed in their killing and slaying; and therefore there must be a sacrifice, prefigured by them, consisting in killing and shedding of blood. All this is^ as- serted by the apostle, Heb. vii. 27, " Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself" Those sacrifices which were offered xaS' ^fMspav, " daily," were types of the sacrifice of Christ, and that of his which was offered jpa<s-a^ did answer thereunto, — which was his death, and nothing else.
CHAPTER XXI.
Of the death of Christ, the causes, ends, and fruits thereof, with an entrance into the doctrine of his satisfaction thereby.
Mr Biddle's twelfth chapter is concerning the death of Christ, the causes, and fruits, and ends thereof; the error and mistake where- about is the second great head of the Sociniau religion. Next to his person, there is not any thing they set themselves so industriously to oppose as his death, in the sense wherein it hath constantly hitherto been embraced by all Christians, — as the great foundation of their faith and confidence.