former, and is founded upon it. The two, however, ought not to be confounded, as both are clearly revealed in Scripture, and moreover they differ as to the parties, as to the promises, and as to the conditions. On this subject Turrettin says,^ " Atque hie su- perfluum videtur quaerere. An foedus hoc contractum fuerit cum Christo, tanquam altera parte contrahente, et in ipso cum toto ejus semine, ut primum foedus cum Adamo pactum fuerat, et in Adamo cum tota ejus po.-^teritate : quod non paucis placet, quia promissiones ipsi dicuntur factse. Gal. iii. 16, et quia, ut Caput et Princeps pop- uli sui, in omnibus primas tenet, ut nihil nisi in ipso et ab ipso obtineri possit : An vero fcedus contractum sit in Christo cum toto semine, ut non tarn habeat rationem partis contrahentis, quam partis mediae, quee inter dissidentes stat ad eos reconciliandos, ut aliis satius videtur. Superfluum, inquam, est de eo disceptare, quia res eodem redit; et certum est duplex hie pactum necessario attendendum esse, vel unius ejusdem pacti duas partes et gradus. Prius pactum est, quod inter Patrem et Filium intercedit, ad opus redemptionis exequendum. Posterius est, quod Deus cum electis in Christo contrahit, de illis per et propter Christum salvandis sub conditione fldei et resipiscentiae. Prius fit cum Sponsore et capite ad salutem membrorura : Posterius fit cum membris in capite et sponsore."
The same view is taken by Witsius : ^ " Ut Foederis gratiae natura penitius perspecta sit, duo imprimis distincte consideranda sunt. (1.) Pactum, quod inter Deum Patrem et mediatorem Christum intercedit. (2.) Testamentaria ilia dispositio, qua Deus electis salutem aetemara, et omnia eo pertinentia, immutabili foedere addicit. Prior conventio Dei cum mediatore est: posterior Dei cum electis. Haec illam supponit, and in ilia fundatur."
§ 4. Covenant of Redemption.
By this is meant the covenant between the Father and the Son in reference to the salvation of man. This is a subject which, from its nature, is entirely beyond our comprehension. We must receive the teachings of the Scriptures in relation to it without presuming to penetrate the mystery which naturally belongs to it. There is only one God, one divine Being, to whom all the attributes of divinity belong. But in the Godhead there are three persons, the same in substance, and equal in power and glory. It lies in the nature of personality, that one person is objective to another If
1 xn. ii. 12 ; edit. Edinburgh, 1847, vol. ii. pp. 157, 158. a De CEconomia Faederum, lib. ii. ii. 1, edit. 1712, p. 130.
360 TART m. Ch. n. — the COVENAiSfT OF GRACE.
therefore, the Father and the Son are distinct persons the one may be the object of the acts of the other. The one may love, address, and commune with the other. The Father may send the Son, may give Him a work to do, and promise Him a recompense. All this is indeed incomprehensible to us, but being clearly taught in Scripture, it must enter into the Christian's faith.
In order to prove that there is a covenant between the Father and the Son, formed in eternity, and revealed in time, it is not necessary that we should adduce passages of the Scriptures in which this truth is expressly asserted. There are indeed passages which are equivalent to such direct assertions. This is implied in the frequently recurring statements of the Scripture that the plan of God respecting the salvation of men was of the nature of a covenant, and was formed in eternit}'. Paul says that it was hidden for ages in the divine mind ; that it was before the foundation of the world. Christ speaks of promises made to Him before his advent ; and that He came into the world in execution of a commission which He had received from the Father. The parallel so distinctly drawn between Adam and Christ is also a proof of the point in question. As Adam was the head and representative of his pos- terity, so Christ is the head and representative of his people. And as God entered into covenant with Adam so He entered into covenant with Christ. This, in Rom. v. 12-21, is set forth as the ftmdamental idea of all God's dealings with men, both in their fall and in their redemption.
The proof of the doctrine has, however, a much wider foundation. When one person assigns a stipulated work to another person with the promise of a reward upon the condition of the performance of that work, there is a covenant. Nothing can be plainer than that all this is true in relation to the Father and the Son. The Father gave the Son a work to do; He sent Him into the world to perform it, and promised Him a great reward when the work was accom- plished. Such is the constant representation of the Scriptures. We have, therefore, the contracting parties, the promise, and the condition. These are the essential elements of a covenant. Such being the representation of Scripture, such must be the truth to which we are bound to adhere. It is not a mere figure, but a real transaction, and should be regarded and treated as such if we would understand aright the plan of salvation. In the fortieth Psalm, expounded by the Apostle as referring to the Messiah, it is said, " Lo, I come : in the volume of the book it is written of me, 1 delight to do thy will," i. e., to execute thy purpose, to carry out