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ruined kinfmen, quite unable to act for themselves. Not one of them all was able to redeem himself, and far lefs his brother. Withal, the angels, near akin to them in the rational world, durft not meddle with the redemption; being fure they could not have miffed to mar their own inheritance thereby, nor have delivered their poor kinsmen neither. If he should have declined it, and drawn off his fhoe to them, or to any other of the whole creation, there was none who durft have ventured to receive it, or put his foot in it. I looked, faith he, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold; therefore mine own arm brought falvation, Ifa. Ixiii. 5. He took on himfelf the character of their kinsmanredeemer; and of him as fuch Job fpeaks in the forecited paffage, which I conceive to be thus expreffed in the original; I know, my kinfman-redeemer liveth; and the latter one, he shall stand up upon the duft. In which words Job comforts himself with a view of Chrift as his kinfman-redeemer living, even in his day, in refpect of his divine nature; and as the latter or second one, (in oppofition to the former or first, Exod. iv. 8, 9. Deut. xxiv. 3, 4.), namely, the latter or fecond Adam REDEEMER, in oppofition to the former or firft Adam DESTROYER; firmly believing, that the one, uniting to himself a human nature, should as fure stand up upon the duft of the earth, and do the kinfman's part for him; as the other having the breath of life breathed into his noftrils, ftood up upon it and ruined all.

Now, there were four things the kinfman-redeemer was to do for his kinfman unable to act for himfelf; all which Chrift the fecond Adam undertook in the covenant.

1. He was to marry the widow of his deceased kinfman, to raise up feed to his brother. Hereof Boaz was put in mind by Ruth, chap. iii. 9. I am Ruth thine handmaid: Spread therefore thy skirt over

thine handmaid, for thou art a near kinfman. Compare verfe 10,--13. chap. iv. 10. and Ezek. xvi. 8. 1 fpread my skirt over thee---and thou becameft mine. Our nature was in a comfortable and fruitful condition, while the image of God, impreffed thereupon in Adam, remained with it; but that image being removed, in the fpiritual death caufed by his fin, there enfued an abfolute barrennefs, as to the fruits of holiness, in our nature thus left. But our kinfman-redeemer confented to marry the widow. Being to take to himself a human nature, he undertook to take on our human nature in particular, taking his flesh of Adam's family. Thus was it provided, that his body should not be made of nothing, nor of any thing whatsoever that was not derived from Adam as its original. It was a low match indeed for him; and would have been fo, even if the family of Adam had been in its primitive state and splendor ; but now it was confidered as in the depth of poverty and difgrace. Yet being neceffary for our redemption, he confented thereto, as our kinfman-redeemer. Accordingly, in the fulness of time, he was made of a woman, a daughter of Adam's family, Gal. iv. 4. and fo was a fon of Adam, Luke iii. 23,- -38. Thus was a foundation laid for the mystical marriage of believers with him; which myftical marriage doth not belong to the condition and making of the covenant properly fo called, but to the promise and administration of it, being a finner's perfonal entrance thereinto. And the great end, in fubordination to the glory of God, for which this more intimate union and match with our nature was gone into by our Kinfman-redeemer, was to render it yet again fruitful in the fruits of true holiness; and without it our nature had for ever remained under absolute barrenness in that point, even as the nature of fallen angels doth.

2. He was to redeem the mortgaged inheritance

of

of his poor kinfman: Lev. xxv. 25. If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath fold away fome of his possesfion, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then fhall be redeem that which his brother fold: or rather, then fhall come in his kinfman-redeemer, that is near unto him; and he shall redeem that which his brother fold. Our father Adam waxing poor thro' the deceit◄ ful dealing of the tempter with him, quite fold away the inheritance of eternal life for a morfel of forbidden fruit: and his children waxen more poor ftill, thro' their own perfonal fault, had fet themselves farther and farther from it. They could not have raised, amongst them all, what would have redeemed fo much as one man's part of it. Howbeit, without it was redeemed, they could never have had access to it. Wherefore the fecond Adam, as kinfman-redeemer, took the burden of the redemption on himself, and agreed to pay the price of that purchase; dying for us, that we might live together with him, 1 Thef. v. 10.

3. He was to ranfom his poor kinfman in bondage, pay the price of his redemption: Lev. xxv. 47. If--thy brother-wax poor, and fell himself.---verse 48. After that he is fold, he may be redeemed again; one of his brethren may redeem him. Verse 52.---according unto his years shall he give him again the price of his redemption. Being fold in the loins of our first father, we were brought into bondage under the curfe of the law: fo we are by nature the law's bondmen, and confequently flaves to fin and Satan; never to have been released without a ranfom, the full worth of fo many fouls. This ranfom was stated in the covenant; to wit, that the Kinfman-redeemer fhould give himself a ranfom for his poor kinsmen : and he agreed to it, for purchafing their liberty, 1 Tim. ii. 5, 6. The ranfom was great, foul for foul, body for body; a perfon of infinite dignity, for his poor kinsmen in bondage. But he confented to take on him the form of a fervant, that they might be set

free;

free; to have his ear bored at the law's door-poft, that they might be delivered out of their bondage."

4. Lastly, He was to avenge the blood of his flain kinfman on the flayer: Deut. xix. 12. The elders of bis city fhall fend and fetch him thence, and deliver him into the hand of the (Goel) avenger of blood, that he may die. Our Kinfman redeemer faw all his poor kindred flain men. And the devil was the murderer, John viii. 44. He had miniftred poifon to them in the loins of their firft parent; yea, he had fmitten them to death, killed them with an arrow fhot thro the eye. But no avenger of their blood could be found, till the fecond Adam, as their Kinfman-redeemer, did in. the fecond covenant, undertake the avenging of it. Mean while, the murderer had the power of death, Heb. ii. 14.; and the fting of death is fin, and the ftrength of fin is the law, 1 Cor. xv. 56. Wherefore there was no difarming and deftroying of the murderer, without taking the fting out of death which he had the power of. And that was not to be done, but by removing the guilt of fin, whereby finners were bound over to death: neither was this to be done, but by fatisfying the law, whofe awful fanction of death ftrongly kept faft the guilt of death on the finners. Thefe were the iron gates to be broke through, ere the Kinfman-redeemer, the avenger of blood, could get at the murderer. But the mighty Redeemer undertook, by his own death and fufferings, to fatisfy the law; and by that means to remove the ftrength of fin; and by this means again, to take away the fting of death: and fo by his own death to deftroy the murderer that had the power of death; and thus to avenge the blood of his flain kinfmen upon him, Heb. ii. 14. So did Samfom, a type of our Kinfman-redeemer, avenge Ifrael of the Philiftines their oppreffors, pulling down the houfe on the Philiftines, and dying himfelf to deftroy them, Judges xvi. II. Chrift

CHR

II. Chrift the Surety of the Covenant.

HRIST the fecond Adam confenting to the covenant, fifted himself alfo furety of it: Heb. vii. 22. By fo much was Jefus made a furety of a better teftament; or rather, as others read it, of a better covenant. A furety is one who undertakes for another, obliging himself, whether for paying his debt, civil or criminal, or for his performing a deed. That we may then rightly understand Christ's furetiship, it is neceffary we confider, 1. For whom, 2. For what he became furety in the covenant.

First, For whom Chrift became furety in the covenant. I find two things advanced on this head, namely, (1.) That he became furety for God to finners; and (2.) Surety for finners to God. Το the first of these the Socinians restrain Christ's furetifhip, denying the fecond; and fo overthrow the foundation of our falvation. But all orthodox divines agree, that the second of these is the main thing in it. Some of them indeed make no difficulty of admitting, that Chrift became furety for God to finners, as well as furety for finners to God; undertaking, on God's part, that all the promises fhall be made good to the feed, even to all that believe. There is no question, but God's promifes are, in refpect of his infallible truth and veracity, most firm and fure in themfelves, and cannot mifs to be performed: but we, being guilty creatures, are flow of heart to believe; and therefore do need what may make them more fure to us, or affure our hearts they fhall be performed to us. And for this caufe he hath given us his word of promife under his hand in the holy Scriptures, and an earneft of the promif. ed inheritance, Eph. i. 14.; the feal of the Spirit, verfe 13. 2 Cor. i. 22.; the facramental feals, Rom. iv. 11.; yea, and his folemn oath too, in the matter, to fhew unto the heirs of promife the immutability of

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