3. If we are constrained to acknowledge, as indeed we must, that Abraham was justified by faith without works, yet that was a personal favour to him on ac- count of the extraordinary strength of his faith, and not to be drawn into a precedent for us —
[But this also is as erioneous as either of the foregoing objections : for though it is certain that he is celebrated above all men for the strength of his faith, and that the exercises of his faith are recorded to his honour, yet it is expressly affirmed by St. Paul, that " it was not written for Abrahams sake alone, that faith was imputed to him for righteousness, but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus from the dead, who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification1."]
Having thus considered the example of Abraham, we proceed to notice, that, II. Of David—
The passage which St. Paul adduces from the Psalms of David, in confirmation of his argument, is peculiarly deserving of our attention1".
In the words themselves, roe, if not directed by an inspired Apostle, should not have found any decisive evidence of justification by faith alone —
[There is nothing in it respecting imputation of righteous- ness, but only of a non-imputation of sin. That non-imputation, or forgiveness of sin, might, for aught that appears in that passage to the contrary, be obtained by works : for there is nothing said about faith in Christ, or indeed about faith at all. Moreover, the words, as they stand in the psalm, and are followed by what is spoken of a guileless spirit, seem to inti- mate the very reverse of what St. Paul has deduced from them, namely, that a man, who, in consideration of his guileless spirit, lias his infirmities forgiven, is a blessed man.]
But St. Paul has, by Divine direction, put a sense upon them which beyond all possibility of doubt determines the question before us —
[He tells us, that David in this passage " describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteous- ness without works." Here it is not possible to shut our eyes against the doctrine of imputed righteousness. We do not approve of taking one or two particular expressions, and giving
• vcr. 20—25. k Ps. xxxii. 1, 2.