Discourses upon the Existence and Attributes of God

And so it is to be understood, not of an actual death of the Body, but the merit of death, and the necessity of death; thou wilt be obnoxious to death, which will be avoided, if thou dost forbear to eat of the forbidden fruit; thou shalt be a guilty person, and so under a sentence of death, that I may when I please inflict it on thee. Death did come upon Adam that day, because his nature was vitiated. He was then also under an expectation of death, he was obnoxious to it, though that day it was not poured out upon him in the full bitterness and gall of it. As when the Apostle saith, Rom. 8.10. The Body is dead because of sin, he speaks to the Living, and yet tells them, the body was dead because of sin; he means no more than that it was under a sentence, and so a necessity of dying though not actually dead. So thou shalt be under the sentence of death that day, as certainly as if that day thou shouldst sink into the dust. And as by his Patience towards man, not sending forth death upon him in all the bitter ingredients of it, his Justice afterwards was more eminent upon mans surety, than it would have been, if it had been then employed in all its severe operations upon man. So was his Veracity ⟨p. 797⟩eminent also in making good this threatening, in inflicting the punishment included in it upon our nature assumed by a mighty person, and upon that person in our nature, who was infinitely higher than our nature.

And so it is to be understood, not of an actual death of the Body, but the merit of death, and the necessity of death; thou wilt be obnoxious to death, which will be avoided, if thou dost forbear to eat of the forbidden fruit; thou shalt be a guilty person, and so under a sentence of death, that I may when I please inflict it on thee. Death did come upon Adam that day, because his nature was vitiated. He was then also under an expectation of death, he was obnoxious to it, though that day it was not poured out upon him in the full bitterness and gall of it. As when the Apostle saith, Rom. 8.10. The Body is dead because of sin, he speaks to the Living, and yet tells them, the body was dead because of sin; he means no more than that it was under a sentence, and so a necessity of dying though not actually dead. So thou shalt be under the sentence of death that day, as certainly as if that day thou shouldst sink into the dust. And as by his Patience towards man, not sending forth death upon him in all the bitter ingredients of it, his Justice afterwards was more eminent upon mans surety, than it would have been, if it had been then employ'd in all its severe operations upon man. So was his Veracity