N03467:69
Discourses on various important subjects, nearly concerning the great affair of the soul's eternal…
Discourses on various important subjects, nearly concerning the great affair of the soul's eternal salvation, viz. I. Justification by faith alone. II. Pressing into the Kingdom of God. III. Ruth's resolution. IV. The justice of God in the damnation of sinners. V. The excellency of Jesus Christ. : Delivered at Northampton, chiefly at the time of the late wonderful pouring out of the spirit of God there. / By Jonathan Edwards, A.M. Pastor of the Church of Christ in Northampton. ; [Three lines from Deuteronomy]
Boston: printed by S. Kneeland and T. Green, 1738
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1. The Nature of Things will not admit of it. And this appears from the infinite Guilt that the Sinner 'till justified is under; which arises from the infinite evil or heinousness of Sin. But because this is what some deny, I would therefore first establish that Point, and show that ⟨p. 21⟩Sin is a Thing that is indeed properly of infinite Heinousness; and then show the Consequence, and show that it being so, and so the Sinner under infinite Guilt in God's Sight, it cannot be suitable, 'till the Sinner is actually justified, that God should by any Act testify any pleasedness with, or acceptance of, any Thing as any excellency or amiableness of his Person, or indeed have any acceptance of him, or pleasedness with him to testify.
1. The Nature of Things will not admit of it. And this appears from the infinite Guilt that the Sinner 'till justified is under; which arises from the infinite evil or heinousness of Sin. But because this is what some deny, I would therefore first establish that Point, and shew that ⟨p. 21⟩Sin is a Thing that is indeed properly of infinite Heinousness; and then shew the Consequence, and shew that it being so, and so the Sinner under infinite Guilt in God's Sight, it cannot be suitable, 'till the Sinner is actually justified, that God should by any Act testify any pleasedness with, or acceptance of, any Thing as any excellency or amiableness of his Person, or indeed have any acceptance of him, or pleasedness with him to testify.
That the evil and demerit of Sin is infinitely great, is most demonstrably evident, because what the evil or iniquity of Sin consists in, is the violating of an Obligation, the doing contrary to what we are obliged to do, or doing what we should not do; and therefore by how much the greater the Obligation is that is violated, by so much the greater is the Iniquity of the violation. But certainly our Obligation to love or honour any Being is great in proportion to the greatness or excellency of that Being, or his worthiness to be loved and honoured: we are under greater Obligations to love a more lovely Being than a less lovely; and if a Being be infinitely excellent and lovely, our Obligations to love him are therein infinitely great: The matter is so plain it seems needless to say much about it.