God saw meet to place Man first in a State of Trial, and not to give him a Title to eternal Life, as soon as he had made him: because it was his will that he should first give Honour to his Authority, by fully submitting to it, in Will and Act, and perfectly obeying his Law. God insisted upon it that his holy Majesty and Law should have their due Acknowledgement, and Honour from Man, such as became the Relation he stood in to that Being that created him, before he would bestow the Reward of confirmed and everlasting Happiness upon him; and therefore God gave him a Law when he created him, that he might have Opportunity, by giving due Honour to his Authority in obeying it, to obtain this Happiness. It therefore became Christ, seeing that in assuming Man to himself, he •ought a Title to this eternal Happiness for him, after he had ⟨p. 57⟩broken the Law, that he himself should become subject to God's Authority, and be in the Form of a Servant, that he might do that honour to God's Authority for him, by his Obedience, which God at first required of Man, as the Condition of his having a Title to that Reward. Christ came into the World to that end, to render the Honour of God's Authority and Law, consistent with the Salvation and eternal Life of Sinners; he came to save them, and yet withal to assert and vindicate the Honour of the Lawgiver, and his holy Law. Now if the Sinner after his Sin was satisfied for, had eternal Life bestowed upon him, without active Righteousness, the Honour of his Law would not be sufficiently vindicated. Supposing this were possible, that the Sinner himself could by suffering pay the Debt, and afterwards be in the same State that he was in before his Probation, that is to say, negatively righteous, or merely without Guilt; if he now at last should have eternal Life bestowed upon him, without performing that Condition of Obedience, then God would recede from his Law, and would give the promised Reward, and his Law never have Respect and Honour shown to it, in that Way of being obeyed▪ But now Christ by subjecting himself […] the Law and obeying of it, has done great Honour to the Law, and to the Authority of God who gave it: That so glorious a Person should become subject to the Law, and fulfil it, has done much more to honour it, than if mere Man had obeyed it:
God saw meet to place Man first in a State of Trial, and not to give him a Title to eternal Life, as soon as he had made him: because it was his will that he should first give Honour to his Authority, by fully submitting to it, in Will and Act, and perfectly obeying his Law. God insisted upon it that his holy Majesty and Law should have their due Acknowledgement, and Honour from Man, such as became the Relation he stood in to that Being that created him, before he would bestow the Reward of confirmed and everlasting Happiness upon him; and therefore God gave him a Law when he created him, that he might have Opportunity, by giving due Honour to his Authority in obeying it, to obtain this Happiness. It therefore became Christ, seeing that in assuming Man to himself, he •ought a Title to this eternal Happiness for him, after he had ⟨p. 57⟩broken the Law, that he himself should become subject to God's Authority, and be in the Form of a Servant, that he might do that honour to God's Authority for him, by his Obedience, which God at first required of Man, as the Condition of his having a Title to that Reward. Christ came into the World to that end, to render the Honour of God's Authority and Law, consistent with the Salvation and eternal Life of Sinners; he came to save them, and yet withal to assert and vindicate the Honour of the Lawgiver, and his holy Law. Now if the Sinner after his Sin was satisfied for, had eternal Life bestowed upon him, without active Righteousness, the Honour of his Law would not be sufficiently vindicated. Supposing this were possible, that the Sinner himself could by suffering pay the Debt, and afterwards be in the same State that he was in before his Probation, that is to say, negatively righteous, or meerly without Guilt; if he now at last should have eternal Life bestowed upon him, without performing that Condition of Obedience, then God would recede from his Law, and would give the promised Reward, and his Law never have Respect and Honour shewn to it, in that Way of being obeyed▪ But now Christ by subjecting himself 〈…〉 the Law and obeying of it, has done great Honour to the Law, and to the Authority of God who gave it: That so glorious a Person should become subject to the Law, and fulfil it, has done much more to honour it, than if meer Man had obeyed it:
