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nation. For Desert has relation to the Justice of God, confidered by it felf, as diftinct from his other Attributes. And a Creature is then faid to deferve Punishment at God's hands, when the Juftice of God either obliges him to inflict, or permits him not to remove, its Punishment. Now the Juftice of God cannot but (I will not fay inflict, for in this Cafe the Punishment or Mifery is the unavoidable Confequence of its natural Pollution but) permit the Punishment or Mifery of that Creature to continue, which is a Slave to Sin. Such a Creature therefore must needs deferve God's Wrath, and, as the Confequence thereof, Damnation to all Eternity. Becaufe, unless Mercy prevents it (which is not to be fuppofed, whilft we talk of Defert, which has a relation to Juftice only) it must to all Eternity continue the Object of God's Dif pleasure.

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Let us therefore always bear in our Minds, that the Punishment of Original Sin is not properly inflicted by God; but 'tis permitted to be the Confequence of that State and Order of things which his Wisdom has appointed. So that whatever God has done. with respect to Man, is pofitively good, and a real Effect of his infinite Love and as for the dismal Confequences of Original Sin, they are chargeable, not upon God, but upon our firft Parents. And therefore, tho' our firft Parents were undoubtedly guilty of the utmoft pofitive Injustice, in plunging their Pofterity into fuch dreadful Circumftances; yet God is not to be impeach'd for the bare Permiffion of that Punishment, which as long as the Creature continues evil, he is not in Juftice obliged to remove. For how can that Creature, which is juftly odious to God in its own Nature, chal

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lenge God's Juftice to make it happy, whilft is continues odious to him?

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Perhaps it may be faid, That 'twas unjust in God to appoint fuch an Order of things, as that One Man's Mifery fhould be the unavoidable Confequence of another's Wickednefs. To this I anfwer, That in Fact God has acted thus in another Inftance. For one Man may cripple or otherwife ruin another; and in the prefent Order of Things this is fometimes unavoidable: But furely the Juftice of God muft not be impeach'd, becaufe he was the Author of that Order, Iconfefs, there is a vaft Difference between Temporal and Eternal Mifery; but yet it must be obferv'd, that as to Mifery it felf, as oppos'd to Happiness, this vaft Difference is not in Kind, but in Degree only. And confequently, if it be really unjust in God to appoint fuch an Order of Things, that the eternal Mifery of one Man depends upon the Will of another: then 'tis as certainly, tho' not equally, unjuft for him to appoint fuch an Order of Things, as that any the fmalleft Injury fhould be unavoidably done by, one Man to another. For the fmallest Injustice is as impoffible to God, and as inconfiftent with his Juftice, as the greatest that can be imagined. And yet, furely no Man will accufe God of Injuftice upon the account of this prefent Order of Things; because whatever is properly his, is a Kindnefs to us, and all the Irregularity must be charged only on fuch as pervert his Order, and abufe it to the Mifery of their Fellow Creatures. Wherefore let the Solution of the one Difficulty be applied to the other. For this Argument against the Justice of God, with refpect to Original Sin, has no more Strength in it, than that which may be urg'd with Parity of Reafon against ordinary Providence. And

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the Folly of this Argument, as urg'd against ordinary Providence, muft therefore be allow'd; becaufe that Holy God, who can't do any Injuftice, does certainly fuffer fuch Facts every Day; which may therefore in their own Nature be accounted for, tho' they seem at prefent infuperable Difficulties to our felves. Surely we ought to refolve all thefe Proceedings into his unfearchable Wisdom and inexpreffible Goodness, of which we receive every Moment of our Lives numberlefs, fresh and demonftrative Evidences; and which therefore, we may firmly believe, did jointly determin, that the Bleffings he intended us by this Order of things, were an Overbalance to all the Poffibilities of Evil arifing from it.

But do Infants alfo, because they are infected with Original Sin, deferve God's Wrath and Damnation, even tho' they die in their Infancy? For the Article faies, that Original Sin deferves God's Wrath and Damnation in every Perfon born into this World. I anfwer, That these Words, as full and comprehenfive as they seem to be, do notwithftanding fairly admit, if not neceffarily require, a Limitation. For the Article manifeftly fpeaks of thofe only, in whom theFlesh lufteth always contrary to the Spirit, and in whom the genua cagnds is not fubject to the Law of God. Do but obferve the Words of the Article, and the Order of them. The Church faies, that Original Sin is the fault, &c. of every man, &c. whereby man is very far gone from Original righteoufnefs, and is of his own nature inclin'd to evil; fo that the flesh lusteth always contrary to the Spirit. Then fhe adds immediately, And therefore in every perfon born into this world it deferveth God's wrath and damnation. You fee, in the Judgment of our Church, Original Sin doth therefore deferve God's

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Wrath and Damnation in every Perfon born into this World; because, by Original Sin, that Person is, not only very far gone from Original righteousness, and of his own nature inclin'd to evil, but also the flesh lufteth (in him) always contrary to the Spirit. Again, the Church fuppofes the Cafe to be fuch, that Original Sin doth actually discover it felf by mifchieVous Effects, in refifting the Divine Will: for fhe fpeaks of it, as that which is not fubject to the law of God. And can thefe Phrafes with any tolerable Propriety be applied to those Infants, which have as it were a barely Animal Life, and die before the rational Faculties exert themselves, or feem capable of being wrought on and depraved by Original Sin Can it be faid of fuch Infants, that their Flesh lufteth always contrary to the Spirit, and that their Luft of the Flefh is not fubject to the Law of God I think therefore that the Words of the Article can't be extended farther, than to thofe who live fo long, as to feel the Effects of Original Sin working in them, and producing Evil Actions; and confequently our Church's Doctrin is only this; that Original Sin does deferve God's Wrath and Damnation in every Perfon born into this World, in whom the Flefh lufteth always contrary to the Spirit, and in whom the sea caçade is not fubject to the Law of God. Nor do I fee, how we can interpret the Article otherwise, without doing Violence to it.

However, if any Perfon thinks, that thofe very Infants, who die in their Infant State, do deserve God's Wrath and Damnation, upon the Account of their being infected with Original Sin; 1. Becaufe 'tis certainly poffible, and perhaps very probable, that Original Sin may have actually depraved their Faculties in confequence of the Union of Body

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and Soul, even tho' that Depravation doth not ap pear; 2. Becaufe God can't but deteft even the first Seeds of Vice, and hate the Child upon the account of it (there being now no fuppofal of Grace to renew its Nature) and confequently cannot vouchfafe it that Enjoyment of himself, for which this Pollution difqualifies it; I fay, if any Man thinks thus, he may notwithstanding fubfcribe the Article very honestly. For tho' the Church faies no more, than that every one of those, who live long enough to discover the Fruits of Original Sin in their A&tions, deferves God's Wrath and Damnation: yet fhe does not fay, that fuch as die in their Infancy do not deferve God's Wrath and Damnation upon the account of Original Sin. She affirms it indeed of none but fuch as live paft their Infancy; but fhe does not deny it of those that die in their Infancy. And therefore he that believes it both of those that do, and those that do not, die in their Infancy, may fubfcribe what the Church affirms, tho' he believes more than the Church teaches or requires him to fubfcribe.

But tho' Original Sin does in its own Nature thus deferve God's Wrath and Damnation; yet fuch were the Bowels of Divine Compaffion, that God feems to have been oblig'd, by that internal Neceffity which his Goodness laid him under, to make thofe very Creatures the Objects of Mercy, which his bare Juftice would have continued under Punishment. Therefore did the fecond Perfon of the bleffed Trinity, who is God himself, become incarnate, to fatisfy Juftice, to obtain our Pardon, to rectify our corrupted Nature by the Affiftance of Grace, and thereby reftore us to Happiness. So that 'tis no Contradiction or Inconfiftency to affirm, that tho' we deferv'd God's Wrath

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