A Body of Practical Divinity

2. We Glorify God by an ingenuous Confession of Sin: The Thief of the Cross had dishonoured God in his Life, but at his Death he brings Glory to God by Confession of Sin, Luke 23.41. We indeed suffer justly. He acknowledged he deserved not only Crucifixion but Damnation, Josh. 7.19. My son, give, I pray thee, glory to God, and make confession unto him. An humble Confession exalts God; how is God's Free-grace magnified in crowning those who deserve to be condemned; as the excusing and mincing of Sin doth cast a Reproach upon God, Adam denies not he did taste the forbidden Fruit, ¹but instead of a full Confession, he taxes God, Inscripser• Deos sceleri, Gen. 3.12. The woman whom thou gavest me, she gave me of the tree and I did eat. It is long of thee, if thou hadst not given me the Woman to be a Tempter, I had not sinned. So Confession glorifies God, it clears, it acknowledgeth he is Holy and Righteous whatever he doth. Nehemiah vindicates God's Righteousness, Chap. 9.33. Thou art just in all that is brought upon us. And Confession then is ingenuous when it is free not forced, Luke 15.18. I have sinned against heaven, and before thee; he chargeth himself with Sin before ever his Father chargeth him with it.

2. We Glorifie God by an ingenuous Confession of Sin: The Thief of the Cross had dishonour'd God in his Life, but at his Death he brings Glory to God by Confession of Sin, Luke 23.41. We indeed suffer justly. He acknowledged he deserved not only Crucifixion but Damnation, Josh. 7.19. My son, give, I pray thee, glory to God, and make confession unto him. An humble Confession exalts God; how is God's Free-grace magnified in crowning those who deserve to be condemn'd; as the excusing and mincing of Sin doth cast a Reproach upon God, Adam denies not he did tast the forbidden Fruit,