Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…

142. To the asserting of the rigid sense of Imputation, they are necessitated to say that, which supposeth Gods repute of the matter to be false; that is, that he reputeth us to have done that in and by Christ, which we never did by him: But God judgeth nothing to be otherwise than it is? that he judgeth Christ to have been the Sponsor and Mediator, and in that person to have done and suffered as he did, is because it is true: But he judgeth him not to have been the legal Person of the Sinner, and as many persons as there be redeemed Sinners in the world, because that is not true.

143. They say that what the Surety doth, the Debtor doth in Law-sense, and to judge so is not to err. But there are several sorts of Sureties, much more of Instruments in paying a Debt. 1. There be free Sureties, who are not obliged to the Debtor as his Dependents; and these either by counter-security, or by right of the thing, may recover all of the Debtor again. And therefore the Law supposeth not the Debtor to have payed the Debt by them; but that the Creditor made them both Joint-Debtors for his own security. 2. There are Sureties antecedently, and Sureties consequently: One that before the Debt doth conditionally make himself a Joint-Debtor, in case the Principal pay it not; And there is a Surety more properly called an undertaking-Friend, who after payeth the Debt, being disobliged before. Christ was not a Surety of the first sort, in Law-sense; And if you call Gods Decrees, which are ⟨p. 67⟩his Essence, Suretyship, your liberty of words changeth not the case. 3. There is a Surety who payeth the Debt in the name and person of the principal Debtor; (And he is not properly called a Surety, but an Agent or Substitute:) And Christ was none such; nor is any proper Surety such. And there is a Surety which, by the Creditors consent, doth pay the Debt in his own name, agreeing that the chief Debtor shall have no benefit by it but from him, as he shall give it, on certain terms: And this was Christ's case. 4. There is a Surety that payeth the same debt that was due from the Principal: And there is a Surety or Friend that undertaketh only to make the Creditor satisfaction, because the Debtor cannot pay. And this is the case. 5. Lastly, There is a pay-master that is the Debtors Instrument, whether Servant, Delegate, or whoever at his command or request doth pay it in his name and person: And this is not the case. And there is a proper Surety, who is a third person and no Instrument, and payeth it in his own name though for another. This, as I said, is the case; and therefore it is not we that paid it.