Part 2 — Chapter 3: How Christ Suffered for Us in Our Room and Place

The Lord Jesus has a room in each Covenant, of Works, and of Grace: In the Covenant of Works as a sufferer for the breach of it. It is said by learned Davenantius, one is said truly and properly to die for another, who dies to procure his good — though the other by his own fault, get no good of his dying for him. But there is not such a question as this, whether one may truly and properly die for another, but whether Christ in the sense of the Holy Ghost died vere & proprie, truly and properly, the just for the unjust, to procure good to the unjust, and yet these unjust may eternally perish and reap no good by Christ's dying, through their unbelief? 2. Will it not follow that Christ 1. died truly and properly for all, and yet, non obstante morte Christi, notwithstanding of the Lord's dying, all the world may eternally perish, as say Arminians and Socinians. 3. It shall follow that the immediate, yet the complete effect of Christ's death is not actual, but possible saving of all. And Christ has vere & proprie, truly and properly died for them. Nor 4. is it enough to say that Christ had a special intention in dying for the Elect to give them faith, but he had no such intention in dying for the Reprobate. But hence it follows that Christ as properly and truly died for the Reprobate as for the Elect, as touching the nature and intention of his dying; and that he offered as sufficient a ransom for the one as for the other, and that is a mere possible ransom, but as concerning the intention to apply effectually, or no effectual intention to apply the death, there's the difference. But 1. we ask for Scripture, where it is said Christ dying as dying for the world, had these two contrary intentions. The Scripture says, Christ died to gather his scattered children (John 11:5), to bring to God (1 Peter 3:18), these for whom he died, that they might have life (John 10:11), live to God (2 Corinthians 5:15), die to sin (1 Peter 2:24), be redeemed from their vain conversation (1 Peter 1:18), be delivered from this present evil world (Galatians 1:4). Here is our effectual intention; where is there a place for his dying with no effectual intention to bring any to God? And yet he died for all good and evil, to make salvation possible, say they. It is not enough to coin two intentions in Christ-God-Man dying, and give us Scripture for one of them only, and bid us take the other on trust. 2. Nor is it enough to say all these places speak of Christ's effectual dying for his Elect only. For 1. it is not truly nor properly said that Christ effectually died for the Elect only, for he effectually died for no man by this way, because he died only to make salvation possible to all, so as they might perish for ever, notwithstanding of his dying for them: So the efficacy of dying is in Christ's intention, and application. Now efficacy of intention and efficacy of application are both extrinsical to his laying down his life. 2. The place, 2 Corinthians 5:15, cannot be expounded by them of only the effect: For it speaks (as they expound it) of Christ dying for all that were dead, as verse 14, and these they say are Elect and Reprobate. 3. Nothing is said, whether Christ on the Cross did sustain the person of all for whom he died, Elect and Reprobate, and whether he sustained two persons (for he was cut off, but not for himself, Daniel 9:26), one for the Reprobate, another for the Elect. And whether he finished the transgression, and made an end of sins, as Daniel says (Daniel 9:24), that is, of all sins and transgressions, final unbelief and all others: For except he did that, he cannot finish the transgression, make an end of sins, make reconciliation for iniquity, and bring in everlasting righteousness, to these for whom he died; Except either he bring in half a righteousness, or at least imperfect, and never make an end of some sins and transgressions, because men will not have it so, and set bounds to the infinite sufficiency of Christ: Or because he puts an end of sin, and brings in everlasting righteousness conditionally, and is gracious and merciful as men will, and decrees to show mercy, not upon discriminating rebellion, or upon unbelief, which separates a Reprobate from an Elect, if so it seems good to men, and if man shall have mercy on whom he will, and harden whom he will, or, which is all one, if man shall have mercy upon himself, because he will, or harden himself, because he will harden himself. Yet may it be disputable to some, whether grace by which one is effectually drawn to Christ, rather than another, be the grace of predestination continued and so before Christ's death, or a fruit of Christ's death and so after. But it may well be said that every created saving grace is a fruit of Christ's death, and that we receive the habit of saving grace out of his fullness, and the saving habit infused separates an Elect from a Reprobate: For it is peculiar to Believers and the Elect to be gifted with one heart (Ezekiel 11:19), and a new heart in the habit (Ezekiel 36:26), and with the spirit of grace and supplication to believe and mourn (Zechariah 12:10), and the Spirit and blessing that is poured on the thirsty ground, and the seed (Isaiah 44:3). And so must we say, that the same habit as actuated by the Lord's Spirit, and as it makes one to believe, and draws him effectually to the Son, actually and efficaciously, and draws not another, is a fruit of Christ's death, but this way must glory be a fruit of the death of Christ, but not habitual saving grace. 2. The death of Christ for all is as common a means of salvation as the preaching of the Gospel: And both must be made effectual by efficacious grace, which is not the fruit of the merit of Christ, by this way, and since grace to actually apply the death of Christ, is not given to Pagans and millions for whom Christ died, as these authors teach, how insufficient must the death of our Lord be? For it leaves faith as impossible to the reprobates as if he had never died for them, for neither habitual nor actual faith is purchased to them by this death: Only the Pelagian application is left to them, which they should have had, suppose Christ had never died for them.

2. It is to be considered, how many ways Christ may be said to give himself a ransom for us, or in our place.

1. Christ has sufficiently died for all in their room to redeem them. For, pro [〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉], for men, notes ever the decree and intention of Christ dying for men; but the sufficiency and worth and intrinsical dignity of Christ's death depends not upon the decree and intention of God for the worth of the death and the blood of him who is God (Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 2:8), and the Lord of Glory is infinite, because of the infiniteness of the person, before and without the decree of God. 2. Nor is it true that Christ's dying for all and every one (which is a dream) makes salvation possible to all, so that the covenant is preachable to all upon condition of believing (Acts 10:43). To him (Jesus Anointed who went about doing good and so was man, verse 38) — to him (who was slain in our nature, not for all and every man, verse 39 — to him) whom God raised up the third day (verse 40) — to him gave all the prophets witness (as it is, verse 43) that through his name, whoever believes in him shall have remission of sins.

2. And this would be considered — whoever believes in Christ are justified and saved — how it is universal? It is most true thus: there is a sure connection between faith and life eternal, and the connection is decreed of God; or the concatenation of the end and the means, or of the means and the end, faith and salvation. And it is true: whether all believe or none at all believe, and whether all or none at all be saved, as is this — whoever shall keep the law perfectly, shall be justified and saved by the works of the law. But 1. it makes neither faith nor salvation possible to pagans and reprobates, nor perfect obedience in doing the law, nor justification or salvation by the works of the law possible to any living man. But the question is, whether the connection of the former be made true by the decree and revealed will of God promising life to the believer, by no means, but only by this, because Christ died for all and every one. And so this should have been false — if all pagans and reprobates and elect believe they shall be saved — if Christ had died only for the elect. This must be proven either by Scripture, or by some solid reason from Scripture; for it says this: reprobates cannot have life by believing in Christ crucified for them, except it be true that Christ was crucified for them. But none can be saved by believing that Christ died for them, except they also believe that Christ rose from the dead, and ascended and intercedes in heaven for them. Then one might infer this could not be true, but false — if reprobates believe they shall be saved — except Christ has died, risen again, ascended, and intercedes for all reprobates and elect. For true and saving faith, the only condition of salvation, must lay hold on the resurrection, ascension, and intercession of Christ, as well as on his dying for all. The reason why it cannot be true that reprobates shall be saved, if they believe, except Christ has died for them, is [reconstructed: by this way] — they cannot believe that Christ has died for their sins, except it be true that he died for their sins. Indeed, I answer, they cannot believe that Christ rose again for their righteousness, except it be true that Christ also rose for the righteousness of the reprobates; this latter they cannot say.

It is said by Christ's dying for all, God has now a conditional will of saving all and every one, Elect and Reprobate, if they shall believe, which conditional will was not in God, before Christ's dying for all. Indeed without Christ's dying for all, salvation upon condition of believing had been impossible. But not to say that it is unworthy of the Holy Lord, that new wills and new decrees should arise in him, upon any thing that falls out in time, such as the crucifying of the Lord Jesus. Such doctrine we condemn in Vorstius, and in Arminians, as is well observed by Doctor Twisse, such a decree as this, that God should say (I decree, will, and intend remission and life purchased by the death of Christ, to all Pagans that never hear the Gospel, to all Reprobates, so they shall believe in Christ: and yet I never decree they shall believe nor have grace to believe) says no more than there is a connection between faith as the condition, and remission and life eternal as the thing promised. As when God had decreed that Jerusalem should be burnt, and deny grace to obey; yet says Jeremiah from the Lord (Jeremiah 38:17), If you will assuredly go forth to the King of Babylon's Princes, then your soul shall live, and this city shall not be burnt with fire, and you shall live and your house. And the Lord says to Cain (Genesis 4:7), If you do well (and shall savingly believe as Abel) you shall be accepted. Then was that connection decreed of God, it containing a most just condition of life, and a condition to which Zedekiah and Cain were obliged, but that the death of Christ made the Lord to intend and decree conditionally and in any terms either acceptation to life or remission to Cain, as the end, and well doing as the means, or intended to purchase the grace either of the one or the other, is not warranted by Scripture, for both the one and the other, are the fruits of the merits of Christ. Show first how God can will and decree such a thing to the Reprobate: for it is as if a father would say, I purpose to sell such a plot of ground to my son, so he pay me a hundred Crowns, when first, the son, by no possibility, has, or can have the hundred Crowns, but only from his father; second, when the father of his free pleasure has decreed never to give him the hundred Crowns or the plot of ground. Second, show how faith is made possible by Christ's death, when it is not purchased to the reprobate by Christ's death, it is not surely made physically possible by Christ's death. If it be said that it is made possible morally, rationally, and objectively to them, because there cannot be an offer of life made to Reprobates and to all, upon condition of faith, except Christ have died for the Reprobate, that is denied, and never proven. If one should come (say they) to the Antipodes or to such as never heard of Christ and preach the Gospel, he should not, before he preach, look for any new establishing of the conditional Covenant (whoever believes in Christ shall be justified and saved) but should take it as granted, it was made with them before; therefore by Christ's death the Gospel of itself is preachable and may be preached to all Nations, quovis seculo, in any age, as it was to Job. Answer: If any come to the Antipodes and any nation that never heard of Christ, having the gift of Tongues, and preach to such, or by his own industry acquire the gift of such Tongues, and by the strong hand of providence preach the conditional Covenant, these providences should be a command, and the setting up of a shining torch there should prove these people (as to the elect among them) in God's mind were a Covenanted people no less than the Church of Samaria. And there were no need to expect a new establishing of the conditional Gospel-Covenant. But how is that proven to be from this, because God sent his Son to die for all and every one of these Antipodes, and made the Gospel-Covenant with all and every one of them before: the authors shall be shallow of Scripture here. And if these Antipodes should, all and every one, refuse the Gospel and kill the Preacher, and never one either receive the Gospel, or propagate to any that may receive it; then such an apostolic mission is not in Scripture, and the lawfulness of that man's call to me is to be questioned: and I should judge, his own spirit, not God, sent him. Nor is this true, that the Gospel is and was preachable, and of itself, may be preached to any age. Job lived before the giving of the Law, and Melchizedek, and they had the call of God to preach to them to whom they preached. Second, it shall be denied that Jonah had sinned, if he had not preached to Nineveh, except God had expressly commanded him to preach to Nineveh, otherwise it had been the sin of godly Prophets who lived with him in the time of Joash King of Judah (2 Kings 14:25), and they had been guilty, as Jonah, in not preaching to Nineveh. Indeed all the Ministers and Apostles, and Prophets had sinned in not prophesying to the Philistines, Syrians, Persians, Bithynia, Samaria; whereas the Apostles (Matthew 10:5; Acts 16:6) were forbidden to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, to Asia. And it were strange to say Ezekiel sinned in not preaching to a people of an unknown language, whereas the Lord expressly says he sent him not to them (Ezekiel 3:5-6), and that (Romans 10:15) "How shall they preach, except they be sent?" is meant of the Apostles, and of all lawful Pastors. And there may be running and no sending of God to Nations (Jeremiah 23:21), and (Psalm 147:19-20) when he denies, he declared his judgments and his statutes to any Nation, by sent Prophets, as he did to Jacob, if the Gospel then was of itself preachable to all Nations, Prophets unsent might have preached these same judgments to other Nations, that were preached to Jacob, though not sent of God. But that place (Psalm 147) and diverse others would say he chose only Israel as his Covenanted people: as (Deuteronomy 7:7-9; Deuteronomy 10:12-15; Exodus 20:1-2; Psalm 78:5-6; Amos 3:1-2; Deuteronomy 27:1-2) to them only he revealed the Covenant of Grace, then was it not a Covenant of its own nature that might at any age, be preached to all Nations. But what is then revealed in these decrees? (If the Reprobate believe, they shall be saved.) Answer: Not God's intention conditional or absolute to save them, or to give them faith or grace merited by Christ's death, to believe, for then some good will and love of election, the Lord should bear toward the election of such, and should desire all the Reprobate to be saved, so they would believe, and yet by this way, no more is there grace purchased to them, by Christ, to believe, than there is grace purchased to them to perform obedience to the Law. Now the authors will not say that by Christ's dying for all, there is a conditional will in Christ, or in the Father, to give life to all who perfectly keep the Law: for this conditional will or means and end, was in God before, and suppose Christ had never died for sinners. Second, this would say that the Reprobate were to believe that Christ died to save them, having purchased life to them, and to believe that he died not to save them all for whom he died, because they are not to believe he died to purchase faith by his death, or grace to believe, without which salvation is impossible. It cannot be said that God absolutely intended to save them, whether they believe or not, even while as there is such a decree in God, because he has decreed both the end and the means, to wit, having ordained for them salvation, and having ordained for them faith. Nor is there any such decree in God, toward any but the Elect only, therefore this conditional decree (if all and every one believe, all and every one shall be saved) can infer no love of God through Christ to the persons of all and every one to have them saved, more than this can infer a love of saving all and every one, to be in God or to have been in the Lord, before the fall of Angels, and men (if all and every one of Angels and men shall perfectly, without sin to the end, keep the Law, then all Angels, all men Elect and Reprobate shall be saved eternally). Now no man sound in judgment, can say this conditional can infer that God had a good will to save some Angels, not to save others. More than this (if all and every man believe in Christ they shall be saved) can infer that God has a good will to save Reprobate men, and not fallen Angels. In a word, no simple conditional propositions can infer the desire or good will of God to the persons of men or to have the things done, except God effectually work the condition. As this (if all fulfill the Law perfectly, men and Angels, and all men shall be saved by the Law) cannot infer that God has a good will to the persons of all Angels and all men to justify and save them all, without exception, by the works of the Law; the contrary of which he decreed. For this connex proposition may stand true with the salvation of all Angels, of all men, of no Angels, or no men, according as the Lord shall be pleased of his good pleasure and free grace to work, or not to work the condition of moving the will of Angels and men to keep the Law. And therefore these connections nihil ponunt absoluti, they place nothing absolutely to persons, but only to things, to wit, first, that it is the duty and obligation of all Angels and men to perform absolute obedience to the Law, as they would be justified and saved by the Law, and it is the duty of all men in the visible church to believe in Christ, if they would be justified and saved in Christ. Second, that there is a wise connection between means and end, obedience legal and life, faith and life, according to the approving will of God, and yet neither means nor end may ever come to pass or fall out, and neither means nor end may ever be decreed of God to fall out. Indeed God may decree absolutely that none of the extremes shall exist as God decrees (if Zedekiah shall yield to the King of Babylon, Jerusalem shall not be burnt) and yet according to his decree or will of purpose the Lord has decreed that the yielding of Zedekiah, and the safety of the idolatrous city should not come to pass, but the contrary. So God decrees, if Judas repent and believe, he shall be saved according to the will of precept, and yet according to the Lord's will of purpose, neither did the Lord decree or intend the repenting and saving believing of Judas nor was grace to believe and repent purchased by the death of Christ to Judas (by these authors) though they boast of the amplitude of Christ's death, nor did the Lord by that will of purpose ever decree or intend the salvation of Judas.

Therefore, 3. this, that the death of Christ is of its own nature preachable to all nations, in every age, is not true: For the phrase is neither in Scripture, in Old or New Testament, nor is the thing itself in Scripture: For the meaning is, either God may send Apostles in any age to all the nations of the world, to preach: If that be, by his extraordinary power, he may save all the damned, that way. That preachability is not the object of our faith: Nor is that preachability a fruit of Christ's dying for all. If it be meant that God by his ordinary power may send Apostles in any age to all nations: How is that to be said? Except we say God has decreed in his will of purpose to send preachers to all; That cannot be, except his decree be disappointed. [reconstructed: Or] 3. If it be his command and revealed will that the Gospel be preached to all nations, every age, they grievously sin, who preach not the Gospel to the Brazilians and Antipodes, whether they can speak in their language or not. And if the doctrine of the covenant of its own nature may so be preached to all nations, without exception, in every difference of time, then must all the nations of the earth, in all differences of time, be in a capacity to be a covenanted people of God, the church of Christ, the vineyard of the Lord, his inheritance, the spouse of Christ, his body, his called and chosen flock. For to have the doctrine of the covenant fixedly preached to a nation, and Christ offered to them, is to be the planted vineyard of the Lord, for to preach to Macedonia, fixedly, they willingly hearing, is indeed the Lord's entering in covenant with Macedonia, and his choosing them to be his confederate people, and the Lord's planting a vineyard, and building a wine-press in it, and setting up a ministry therein; and therefore the Lord was not in covenant with them before. Indeed to preach the Word simply to scoffers who reject it, and that occasionally in the passing, so as there is no sort of accepting of the covenant nor any fixed ministry there, is not a renewing of the covenant with them, nor does it presuppose a covenant before made with them. 2. It is against the wisdom of God, that 1. there should be such a bond of love — the greatest love that ever was (John 15:13) — lying upon all mankind, Brazilians, Americans, binding them to thankful Gospel-obedience that Christ died for them, yet this obligation of the greatest love is neither written in their heart, as the law of nature, nor is it ever revealed to them that they are under so much love by covenant. 2. How can the Lord say I chose you, O Israel, among all the people of the earth, and entered in covenant with you and your seed only. For 1. there is no need of a new establishing of the conditional Gospel-covenant, for it was established with Israel, and with all the world before he chose or called them. 2. He cannot be said to enter in covenant with them only. For all the world ever was thus covenanted with God. 3. All the world must be an invisible covenanted church, and the fit matter to be a church. For the Gospel may be preached — est de se annunciabile — not to stones and to rocks, but to all nations, quovis seculo. 4. Since the preaching of the Gospel to some nations, and not to others, is an act of the sovereign pleasure, indeed and of the free grace of God to such as this sunlight graciously does visit, by this way, the sinful neglect of such as refuse to preach shall be the cause of the perishing of the elect — a dream.

2. Christ may be said to die for us, as if we had substituted him in our place, in so rigid a sense, as if he had been made our surety to fulfill both the preceptive and active, and also the satisfying and suffering part of the law in our room. This may please Antinomians, but a doubt it is, if it stand with the truth: For then whatever we, indeed all mortal men be (for Christ died for them all, as many teach) most wicked, yet Christ's active and surety and cautionary righteousness should be ours, and though we should never believe, yet Christ who fulfilled the law and preceptive as well as the threatening part, must have believed for all that he died for, and what need we then in our persons either believe or repent? It's true, we need not perform any active obedience, as a part of active fulfilling of that covenant of works, which either must have all, or no obedience. If it be said that alio titulo, upon another account of thankfulness to our ransom-payer we owe active obedience: Yet all that Christ died for, both actively and passively must be perfectly righteous and justified, having paid the most perfect active and passive obedience that the law required, though we never believe, and Christ must have paid the active part of justifying faith for us. And why, but we should be formally justified in him without faith also? As also, God, not we, laid our sins upon Christ (Isaiah 53:6; 2 Corinthians 5:21) and therefore we did not commission and substitute Christ to die in our room.

Socinus, Crellius, the Raccovian Catechism, Arminius, contend that Christ died for all finaliter, for to procure good and salvation to all, so they believe, and yet through their own fault, they may perhaps never be saved: not that he satisfied for us, but died for example as a martyr (say Socinians) as Paul suffered for the Church, so as we, believing in Christ as in the only chief martyr and witness, who as the only author declared the Gospel, not as a sufferer and ransom-payer who redeemed us from the law, are saved. And as Arminians, he died for our good, not that he died in our room and stead, so as the sins of the Elect were actually taken off them and translated upon Christ, so as we are actually freed from the punishment of sin, as if we had substitute a Savior ourselves, and paid our debt ourselves to God; and so according to the rigor of justice, we might crave by the law of buying and selling deliverance from punishment, and life eternal from God. But this way they will not have Christ to die in the place and room of any, but only for their good, so as they may die eternally themselves for whom Christ died. Hence 1. It follows that Christ died for them but gave no ransom of blood for them for whom he died. 2. Arminians will not have the sins and punishment satisfactory to justice (for of such punishment we speak) actually upon Christ, and translated off the sinner and laid upon Christ and believers actually freed from satisfactory punishment: So that both believers and Christ must actually bear the satisfactory punishment. Which indeed makes believers half redeemers with Christ: against which we disputed before.

3. Arminians deny that we paid our debts to God, in Christ paying them for us. So that the broken man cannot be said to have satisfied the debt in, and through the surety who satisfied for him, which in all law is unjust. And since Arminians deny that we paid to justice a ransom for sin, because our surety Christ paid for us, he must deny that Christ was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities, or that the chastisement of our peace was upon him: contrary to Isaiah 53:5. Because we made him not our mediator and surety, but God made him mediator, and laid our iniquities upon him (Isaiah 53:6). But it is accidental in law that the debtor substitute the surety, or request him to take the place of surety upon him. But he is a real and a most legal surety who, not requested, of free grace becomes surety and pays the very same sum in kind that the debtor ought to pay; this reason does prove he is both a surety and a gracious surety. As a king's son who comes in and lays down his head for a malefactor, truly and really dies and lays down his life in the room and place of that malefactor, though there was no covenant nor pact between him and the king's son, though neither the malefactor, nor any friend in his name did request the prince to become surety and die for him. Reuben offers his two sons to Jacob as pledges to be slain, if he should not bring home Benjamin safe to the father: and had Jacob accepted of the offer, Reuben's two sons who knew not of the bargain, had been sureties for Benjamin (Genesis 42:37), and Judah might have been law-surety for Benjamin to Jacob, though Benjamin requested him not to take any such place. The Lord the Creditor and Christ the Cautioner did strike hands together: Christ put himself in our room, as an hostage, pledge and surety to die for us, and paid the first and second death, the sum that we were owing, according to a pact between the Lord and Christ, and we requested not Christ to be surety, only by believing, we thank him, and subscribe and say Amen to what is done. But in law we paid, in regard the same nature that suffered was ours, and accepted as ours. But Arminians clearly refuse that Christ shall be an hostage and surety for us, because the offended party of his own furnished not one that died for him; and so he strikes at the root of a real sacrifice that is satisfactory to God, because one and the same cannot be both satisfied, and, de suo, of his own, furnish a satisfying surety. For so as his own, Socinus says, one cannot be both a satisfier and a person satisfied, and this is no satisfaction at all, says Socinus. (4.) Our believing cannot effectuate this, that Christ has actually borne the satisfactory punishment due to us. Arminius says that Christ has not, actu ipso, actually borne that punishment: he must say he has borne it only potentially, potentia. Then it is like when we believe, he bears that punishment completely, but he cannot die nor suffer, but once; only he must mean that Christ did actually bear our sins, but the satisfactory punishment is not accepted as suffered in our name. But our believing hinders not, but he has in genere causae moralis and meritoriae really as a meriting cause deserved that God in justice cannot exact from us that same satisfactory punishment that Christ has suffered for our sins, and it is impossible that our faith can add any meritorious power to Christ's death: and therefore though not in ourselves and physically, yet really, morally, legally in Christ, deliverance from satisfactory punishment is due to us, we being in Christ legally, and life eternal is due to us, being in Christ according to the rigor of justice, and injuria irrogata Christo sponsori foret, wrong should be done to Christ, and commutative justice, by which, ex condigno, by condignity, he has bought freedom from hell, and right to heaven, to these he died for, if we should suffer eternal wrath, in our persons, whether we believe or believe not; for believing is no part of the meriting cause of the satisfying ransom. Indeed Christ by right of buying and selling, and we in Christ our surety may claim freedom from the second death, and right to everlasting life, so as God should fail against commutative justice against Christ, and break (with reverence and humble submission to his glorious Majesty be it spoken) covenant to Christ, and he should buy with a price more than enough, his seed, and not get his wages, if these he died for, die the second death, and come short of glory eternal, if the Lord say to Christ, I promise to you a seed, that they shall be delivered from the second death, and have life eternal, providing you shall give me a price abundantly sufficient to buy these, to wit, the life and blood of God-Man, and offer yourself a sacrifice upon the Cross to offended justice. If Christ shall do this and pay the ransom, and Christ get no wages, no saved seed, but they perish through the want of faith only: either must faith be a part of the ransom, which none can say, or then the Lord shall not keep covenant to Christ. (5.) When Arminius says that the Lord can, nullo jure, by no law, nor justice crave of us faith and conversion to God, if we have paid our debts, by rigor of justice exactly to God in Christ who legally in our stead and place paid for us, he supposes plainly that God requires faith and obedience of us as a part of recompense made to offended justice. And Arminius says, that Christ's righteousness is ours, not as performed by him, but as imputed to us by faith: so that faith comes in as a collateral price paid for us or a part of the price, the very act and work of believing being counted ours, and our righteousness before God: indeed but God by no necessity of hurt justice craves faith and repentance from us.

That Christ died not for our good only, but in our stead is proven, 1. Because Christ in some other more legal way died for us than for Angels, for he died for their good, that he might be made the Head of Angels (Colossians 2:10; Philippians 2:7-11; Romans 10:9-11), and he died for the good of the whole Creation that he might make all things new, and restore the creatures to their perfection, which by the sin of man they had lost (Romans 8:20-23; Acts 3:21; Revelation 21:5). But he died not as suffering punishment due to the Angels, and the work of Creation in their stead, as wounded for their transgressions, as he died for our transgressions (Isaiah 53). For the transgressions of us all, Elect and Reprobate as, they say, expounding that all of Isaiah 53:6, of all and every one of mankind, were upon him.

2. We deny not, but there be considerable differences between Christ's dying, and the punishment of the Elect which they were to suffer. As,

1. Ours should have been eternal, because we could never fully satisfy. But the sufferings of Christ, because of the dignity of his person God-Man, were perfectly satisfactory in a short time.

2. He could not suffer the same pain in number, that we should have suffered, for one and the same accident cannot be in different subjects, nor is the surety to pay the very same sum, that the debtor borrowed.

3. The Lord could not but have punished the Elect with hating and aversion of mind, they being intrinsically and inherently sinners. He punished Christ, who was not inherently, but only by imputation the sinner, with no hatred at all, but with anger and desire of showing and exercising revenging justice, but still loving him dearly, as his only Son. But upon this account, Christ must stand in our room, and because of the five-fold oneness and law-identity and sameness. For,

1. Though physically the surety and the debtor be two different men, yet in law they are one and the same person, and one and the same legal party, and the same object of justice. Whoever pursues in law the surety, does also pursue the debtor.

2. The debt and sum is one, not two debts, nor two ransoms, nor two punishments, nor two lives to lose, but one.

3. It is one and the same solution and satisfaction, there can not in law-justice, come another reckoning, dying, and payment making after the surety has paid.

4. There is one and the same acceptance upon the creditor's part, if he accept of satisfaction in the payment made by the surety, he cannot but legally accept of the debtor, and cannot pursue him in law, but must look upon him as no debtor. To justify him is another thing: it being a forensic transient declaration of his righteousness who believes. I speak here of an acceptance of satisfaction to hurt justice revenging sin, not of an acceptance of obedience.

5. It is one and the same legal effect, Christ justified in the Spirit, and risen again (1 Timothy 3:16), and we in him as in the meritorious cause are legally justified. Hence he who suffered the same satisfactory punishment, for the same sins committed by us, which in law we ought to have suffered eternally.

2. He suffered and died for us in our stead and place, especially when the Creditor counts these sufferings, as if we had suffered: so Paul (2 Corinthians 5:14), if one be dead for all, then were all dead. And the Messiah was cut off and died not for himself (Daniel 9:26). He did no violence, neither was guile found in his mouth (Isaiah 53:9; John 8:46; Hebrews 7:26). But he was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5; 1 Peter 2:23-25). He was delivered for our offenses, the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was cut out of the land of the living, for the transgression of my people was he plagued (Isaiah 53:8). He bore on his body our sins on the tree.

3. He who being made under the Law, paid that law-debt of satisfaction, which the Elect in their persons should have paid, and thereby freed them from the law-debt of satisfaction: he sustained the person of the Elect in his suffering. But Christ being made under the Law, paid that law-debt of satisfaction, which the Elect in their persons should have paid. The proposition is out of doubt, none denies the minor, but that we should have died eternally in our persons, if Christ had not died for us.

4. He who of purpose took on him our nature, the nature and seed of Abraham, and the legal condition of a surety to suffer for us, he stood in our person and room in suffering for us. But Christ took on him our nature, which is common to believing Jews, and to such also who are cast off of God (Romans 9:3-4), but not as common to them, but as the seed of Abraham (Hebrews 2:16).

And 5. (Galatians 3:10) For as many as are of the works of the Law, are under the curse, for it is written, cursed is every one who continues not in all things which are written in the book of the Law to do them. Verse 13: Christ has redeemed us from the Law, being made a curse for us — not to reconcile all and every one to himself, or to obtain a potential and far off power of salvation. But, verse 14, that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Not that we might believe or not believe, if we would, that is not the blessing of Abraham (Acts 11:18; Acts 15:8-9; Acts 5:31; Philippians 1:29), and for his great love he died for us, the just for the unjust, to bring us to God.

6. And it is thus confirmed, Christ in dying is not looked on as a man; nor 2. simply as a single man dying; nor 3. as a public martyr or witness that all, or none at all, if they so will, may get good of him, but by special paction, if he shall lay down his life, and work his work, and suffer for our sins, that which we should have suffered, he shall receive his wages and see his seed.

7. As also none who dies as a surety or pays as a surety, but he bears the person of such as he pays for, whoever gives a ransom for another by way of payment, and whoever as a Priest offers a sacrifice for another, he represents the person offended for whom he offers, so does the Advocate act the person of the Client, the intercessor his person for whom he intercedes.

8. The phrase to die for another as a ransomer signifies to die in the stead and person of another. Demosthenes, in place of Ktesiphon. For Archias, for Marcellus, he pleads — it is in law as if Archias, as if Marcellus, or as if the parties for which Cicero and Demosthenes do plead, were in persons pleading themselves. It is true, Isocrates has [in non-Latin alphabet], for in bonum, for the favor and good of any: and (for) [in non-Latin alphabet] notes also to do or die for the good and profit of others, (Colossians 1:24). I rejoice in my sufferings for you, that I may fill up the remnant of the sufferings of Christ for his body. But if it cannot be denied but for Christ to die for his body is somewhat more than for Paul or any martyr to die for the body, then surely Christ's dying for his Church (as the more does include the less) notes Christ's dying for the good of his Church, and somewhat more than for the Church's profit: any may see Stephanus his Thesaurus.

[In non-Latin alphabet] (For) is often the same with [in non-Latin alphabet]. Paul, (Romans 9): I would wish to be separated from Christ, for my brethren — that was not that they might be saved or not, it were contrary to his prayer. (2 Corinthians 5:15): If Christ died for all, then all were dead. The bread is my flesh which I will give for the life of the world. The good shepherd gives his life for his sheep. I lay down my life for my sheep. Greater love than this has no man, that a man should give his life for his friends. It is expedient that one die for the people (John 11). Christ has died for the ungodly (Romans 5) — in their stead. For the just, verse 7. [In non-Latin alphabet] for notes most frequently vice, loco, in the place and stead. As also, [in non-Latin alphabet] (2 Samuel 18:33): would God I had died for you, Absalom. The Septuagint, the Syriac version, and the Chaldee paraphrase: in your stead, I would I had died, and you remained alive. (Genesis 22:13): A sacrifice for Isaac, in stead of Isaac. (Genesis 44:33): I shall remain pledge (says Reuben) for the lad — [in non-Latin alphabet] in pledge for the lad. (Numbers 3:12): I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn, in stead of the firstborn. So Septuagint, [in non-Latin alphabet].

2. When a ransom is given for another in point of justice — (Mark 10:45): Christ gives his life a ransom for many. (Matthew 20:28): He came to give his dear precious life a ransom in stead of many. (1 Timothy 2:6): [in non-Latin alphabet], a counter-ransom for all. (Matthew 5:38): Eye for eye, tooth for tooth. (Exodus 21:24, 23): You shall give life for life. Give that piece of money for you and me (Matthew 17). (Isaiah 43:4): I will give men for you, and people for your life.

3. It is used thus, when a man is given in place of another. (Proverbs 11:8): The righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked comes in his stead. (Job 34:24): And he makes others to stand in their place, as before in the Hebrew. (Psalm 45:16): In stead of fathers shall be sons. (Job 16:4): Oh, if your soul were in my soul's stead.

4. It is when the son comes in the room and stead of the father, or one kills another, which is a sad exchanging of one person for another, and though the following king does not act in the person, or by the name and authority of him who went before, yet there is one person changed, and another reigns in his place and room. (1 Chronicles 14:1): Abijah slept, and Asa his son reigned in his stead. Septuagint: [in non-Latin alphabet]. (1 Kings 3:7): You have made your servant to reign in the room of David my father. Septuagint: [in non-Latin alphabet]. (2 Kings 11:43): Rehoboam reigned in his stead, [in non-Latin alphabet], Chaldee Paraphrase, pro eo. 31: Abijah reigned in his stead, [in non-Latin alphabet]. (2 Kings 1:17): Joram reigned in his stead, Septuagint [in non-Latin alphabet]. (1 Kings 15:28): Baasha slew him and reigned, [in non-Latin alphabet]. (2 Kings 8:15): He slew him, and Hazael reigned, [in non-Latin alphabet]. (2 Kings 15:10): Shallum slew him, and reigned in his stead, [in non-Latin alphabet]. Verse 14: Menahem slew him, and reigned, [in non-Latin alphabet]. Verse 30: Hoshea smote him, and reigned, [in non-Latin alphabet]. So also (Esther 2:4), (Ecclesiastes 4:15), (2 Samuel 17:25), (Genesis 30:2), (1 Kings 16:10): Zimri reigned, [in non-Latin alphabet] (Ezekiel 16:32).

Joseph heard that Archelaus did reign in the room of Herod his father (Matthew 2:22). Tremellius, and Trostius both turn it, loco Herodis, (Matthew 5:38) eye for eye: it is the same word [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉] (Matthew 17:27) give it for me and you. The same word, (Luke 11:11) if his son ask a fish, for a fish in stead of a fish. Tremellius and Trostius, in place of a fish, loco piscis, he will not give him a serpent. (Romans 12:17) neither render evil for evil: so the same in both languages is, (1 Thessalonians 5:15) [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉], and (1 Peter 3:19) and (1 Corinthians 11:16) her hair is given her in stead of a covering. The same word in the Syriac is, (1 Peter 3:18) the Lord Christ died, the just for the unjust: in stead of the unjust, Christ is, (Galatians 3:13) made a curse for us, in our stead. (Matthew 20:28) Syriac, that he might give his life a redemption for many, [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉] vice multorum. And the same is, (Mark 10:45) and (Romans 5:6) in due time Christ died for the wicked, [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉]. Syriac, [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉] pro, vel vice improborum. (Romans 5:8) While we were sinners, Christ died for us, [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉] in our place, (2 Corinthians 5:15) if one died in place of all men, all were dead. (Mark 14:24) This is my blood of the New Testament which is shed [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉] for many, loco multorum, (Luke 22:20) this cup is the New Testament in my blood, which is shed in place of you. (John 10:11) The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep, in place of his sheep: the same word, (John 11:50) know you not that it is expedient that one man die in the place of the people, and that the whole people perish not. Then the intrinsic end of Christ's dying consists not with the perishing of these for whom he died: for he died that the whole people should not perish. (1 Timothy 2:6) Who gave himself a redemption for every man. (Titus 2:14) Who gave his soul in stead of us. (Hebrews 2:9) Who tasted death in the place of every man. (1 Peter 2:21) Christ died in stead of us, (1 Peter 4:1) (Romans 9:3) I pray that I were separated from Christ in stead of my brethren. The same word so constantly used can hardly signify, for the good and profit either of things or persons: as (Luke 11:11) will the father give the son a serpent in stead of a fish, for the good and profit of a fish? (1 Thessalonians 5:15) See that none of you render evil for evil, that is, evil for the good and profit of evil? A wild sense, and it is wilder in the case of persons, when it is said, the son reigns, [〈in non-Latin alphabet〉], so often by the Seventy Translators, in stead of his father, that must be for the good and profit of the dead father. But nothing can be wilder, than to say Jehu killed Ahab's seed, and Zimri slew his Master Elah, Hoshea slew the King, and he reigned in his stead (as the Seventy say not once) that is, he reigned for the good and profit of the King whom he slew, and so slaying of Kings, and rooting out the race and posterity of Kings, shall be their good and profit.

Socinus, and the Catechism of Raccovia, says, if to die for sinners be as much as to die in the place and stead of sinners, then to die for sins must be to die in the place and stead of sins. Answer: These and the like argue much the vanity of Socinus, if this be retorted, as justly it may. Then as Christ's dying for sinners, is for the good, profit, saving, believing, and confirming of the faith, establishing the comfort of sinners, then by the like Christ's dying for sins, must be to save sins from hell, to bring sins to God, that sins should not live to themselves, and to establish the faith, the consolation of sins; whereas Christ died not for sins as for sinners, that he might save sins, but to dissolve the works of the devil, to take away sin (1 John 3:9; John 1:29). Christ dies one way for sins, and another way for sinners: the physician one way cures the disease that it may be rooted out, and be no more, and another way the diseased person, that he may live and be in health.