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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.
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.
Some have argued exceeding strangely against the infinite evil of Sin, from its being committed against an infinite Object, that if so, then it may as well be argued that there is also an infinite value or worthiness in Holiness and Love to God, because that also has an infinite Object; Whereas the Argument from parity of Reason will carry it in the reverse: the Sin of the Creature against God is ill deserving in proportion to the distance there is between God and the Creature, the greatness of the Object, and the meanness of the Subject aggravates it; but 'tis the reverse with regard to the worthiness of the respect of the Creature to God. 'tis worthless (and not worthy) in proportion to the meanness of the Subject: so much the greater the Distance between God and the Creature, so much the less is the Creature's respect worthy of God's notice or regard. The unworthiness of Sin or opposition to God rises, and is great in ⟨p. 22⟩proportion to the dignity of the Object, & inferiority of the Subject; but on the contrary the worth or value of respect rises in proportion to the value of the Subject; and that for this plain Reason, viz. that the evil of disrespect is in proportion to the Obligation that lies upon the Subject to the Object; which Obligation is most evidently increased by the excellency and superiority of the Object; but on the contrary the worthiness of respect to a Being is in proportion to the Obligation that lies on him who is the Object, (or rather the Reason he has) to regard the Subject, which certainly is in proportion to the Subject's value or excellency. Sin or disrespect is evil or heinous in proportion to the Degree of what it denies in the Object, and as it were takes from it, viz. its excellency and worthiness of respect; On the contrary, respect is valuable in proportion to the value of what is given to the Object in that respect, which undoubtedly, (other Things being equal,) is great in proportion to the Subject's value, or worthiness of regard; because the Subject in giving his Respect, can give no more than himself; so far as he gives his respect he gives himself to the Object; and therefore his gift is of greater or lesser value in proportion to the value of himself.