The divine will considered in its eternal decrees, and holy execution of them. By…

1. The upper end of this Chain, I mean, that first Sin of eating the forbidden fruit, called in the Schools Peccatum original originans: here there was truly magnum in parvo, a vast World of Sin in a small Act. ⟨p. 178⟩There was an Idol of self-excellency a framing, and to adorn it, a concupiscential stealth of the forbidden fruit; and in this stealth a bloody Homicide, a slaying of all Humane Nature at one blow; and which is more, a kind of Deicide too, a slaying (as much as in Man lay) even of God himself; the Pride of this primordial Sin snatching at God's excellency, the Unbelief stabbing at his Truth, the Rebellion fighting against his Sovereignty, the Ingratitude trampling his Goodness under foot, and the Presumption as it were daring out his Justice into warlike Arms; and all this contra praeceptum tam breve ad retinendum, tam leve ad observandum. This is the upper end of this Chain, and it reaches down to us all; for in him we all sinned, Rom. 5. 12. The sweetest Bonaventure cannot say, In Adamo non peccavi: For Adam was not here considered as a private person, but as the Root and Head of Mankind; Adam's person was the fountain of ours, and his Will the representative of ours; we were all in him naturally as latent in his Loins, and legally too as comprised within the Covenant made with him; therefore we all sinned in his Sin. Omnes nos unus ille Adam, ⟨p. 179⟩saith one Father; Genus humanum in primo parent velut in radice computruit, saith another. But that of Nazianzen is fullest of spiritual sense, who cries out, O infirmitatem meam! meā enim duco primi parentis infirmitatem. If any reply, But how could we sin in Adam? I answer, that our humane Nature was in him, and why might it not sin there? You'll say, It could not for want of a Will; I answer, that our Wills were put into Adam's by that Covenant which was made with him for himself and all his posterity. If one Man may put his Will into another Man's Will in a Compromise, why may not God (who is more Lord of our Wills than our selves) put all our Wills into Adam's by a Covenant? and here God did it with abundant Equity, because our Wills were put into Adam's as well for the obtaining blessedness upon his Obedience, as for the incurring punishment upon his Disobedience.