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but, saith he, it was not so; for God appoints nothing in vain, and he not only appointed the repetition of these sacrifices, but also, that, in every repetition of them. there should be a remembrance made of sin, as of that which was yet to be expiated. (Ev avios) in them; "in these sacrifices," we supply the defect of the verb substantive by, "there is;" for there is no more in the original than, "but in them a remembrance again of sins," the sacrifices intended are principally those of the solemn day of expiation; for he speaks of them that were repeated yearly, which are peculiarly fixed on, because of the solemnity of their offering, and the interest of the whole people in them at once. By these, therefore, they looked for the perfect expiation

of sin.

"A remembrance again made of sin;" that is, by virtue of divine institution, whereon depends the force of the argument; for this "remembrance of sin," by God's own institution, was such as sufficiently evidenced, that the offerers had yet a conscience condemning them for sins, and hereby the apostle proves effectually, that these sacrifices did not make the worshippers perfect. Their confession of sin was in order to and preparatory for, a new atonement and expiation of it; our remembrance of sin, and confession of it, respects only the application of the virtue, and efficacy of the atonement once made, without the least desire, or expectation of a new propitiation. Their remembrance of sin respected the curse of the law, which was to be answered, and the wrath of God, which was to be appeased; ours respect only the application of these benefits of the sacrifice of Christ to our own consciences, whereby we have assured peace with God.

§6. (II.) Hence we may infer,

1. The discharge of conscience from its condemn

ing right and power, by virtue of the sacrifice of Christ is the foundation of all other privileges we receive by the gospel. Where this is not, there is no real participation of any other.

2. All peace with God is resolved into a purging atonement made for sin, "being once purged."

3. It is by a principle of gospel light alone, that conscience is directed to condemn all sin, and yet to acquit all sinners that are purged; its own natural light can give it no guidance in this matter.

§7. 1. An obligation to such ordinances of worship as could not expiate sin, nor testify that it was perfectly expiated, was part of the bondage of the church under the Old Testament.

2. It belongs to the light and wisdom of faith so to remember sin, and make confession of it, as not thereby to seek for a new atonement for it, which is made "once for all."

Confession of sin is no less necessary under the New Testament, than it was under the Old; but not for the same end. The causes and reasons of confession now are to affect our own minds and consciences with a sense of the guilt of sin in itself, so as to keep us humble, and fill us with self abasement. He who hath no sense of sin but what consists in a dread of future judgment, knows little of the mystery of our walk before God, and obedience to him; wherefore we do not (as the manner of some is) make confession of sin a part of compensation for the guilt, or a license for the practice of it.

VERSE 4.

For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.

$1. The important ends of instituting the legal sacrifices, though they could not take away sins (2 The impossibility of atonement being made by them, in the nature of the thing. $3. Taking away sin what. §4. How impossible by the blood of bulls and goats. $5. Observations.

$1. THERE is no difficulty in the words, and very little difference in the translations of them; "by the blood of bulls and goats," he intends all the sacrifices of the law; now, if it be impossible that they should take away sin, for what end then were they appointed?

The answer which the apostle gives, with respect to the law, in general, may be applied (with a small addition, from a respect to their special nature,) to the sacrifices of it, "they were added to the promise, because of transgressions." For God in and by them continually represented to sinners the curse and sentence of the law; or, that death was the wages of sin; for although there was allowed in them a commutation, that the sinner himself should not die; but the beast that was sacrificed in his stead (which belonged to their second end of leading to Christ) yet they all testified to the sacred truth, that it is the judgment of God that "they who commit sin are worthy of death." He let no sin pass without a representation of his displeasure against it, though mixed with mercy directing to relief against it, in the blood of the sacrifice. Again; they were added as the teaching of a schoolmaster to lead to Christ. By them was the church taught, and directed to look continually after that sacrifice, which alone could really take away all sin; and in this consisted, we may affirm, the principal exercise of grace under the Old Testament economy.

As to their special nature, they were added as the great instruction in the way and manner, whereby sin was to be taken away; for although this arose originally from God's mere grace and mercy; yet, was it not to be accomplished by sovereign grace and power alone. Such a taking away of sin would have been inconsistent with his truth, holiness, and righteous government of mankind.

These things evidently express the wisdom of God in their institution, although of themselves they could not take away sin; and those by whom these ends of them are denied, as they are by the Jews and Socin. ians, can give no account of any end of them, which answer the wisdom, grace, and holiness of God.

§2. "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats." If in the nature of the thing itself it was impossible that the sacrifices, consisting of the blood of bulls and goats, should take away sin; then however, whensoever, and by whomsoever they were offered, this effect could not be produced by them; wherefore, in these words, the apostle puts a close to his argument, and makes mention of it no more, except for illustration to set forth the excellency of the sacrifice of Christ; as ver. 11, and chap. xiii, 10-12. The reason why the apostle expresseth them by "bulls and goats," while yet they were calves and kids of the goats, hath been declared on chap. ix, ver. 11, 12.

He makes mention only of the blood of the sacrifices; whereas in many of them, the whole bodies were offered, and the fat of them all was burned on the altar, because it was the blood alone whereby atonement was made for sin; and there is a tacit opposition to the matter of the sacrifice, whereby sin was really to be expiated, which was the "precious blood of Christ," as chap. ix, 13, 14.

§3. That which is denied of these sacrifices, is aPaipei apaplias) the taking away of sins, which is to make atonement for it, to expiate it before God by a satisfaction given, or price paid, with the procurement of the pardon of it, according to the terms of the new covenant.

He declares directly and positively what he intends by this taking away of sin, and the ceasing of legal sacrifices; ver. 17, 18, "Their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more, now where remission of these is, there is no more offerings for sin." The cessation of offerings follows directly on the remission of sin, which is the effect of expiation and atonement; and not of the turning away of men from sin for the future. It is, therefore, our justification, and not even sanctification, that the apostle discourseth of. It is, moreover, an act, upon sin itself, and not immediately upon the sinner; nor can it signify any thing, but to take away the guilt of sin, that it should not bind over the sinner to punishment, whereon conscience for sin is taken away.

§4. The manner of this negation is, that it was "impossible" it should be otherwise; and it was so, not only from divine institution, but also from the nature of the things themselves. It had no condecency to divine justice; in satisfaction to justice, by way of compensation for injuries, there must be a proportion between the injury and the reparation, that justice may be as much exalted and glorified in the one, as it was depressed and abased in the other; but there could be no such thing between the demerit of sin, and the affront put on the righteousness of God, on the one hand; and the reparation by "the blood of bulls and goats," on the other.

$5. From these things we may observe,

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