Nor is their confidence in these opinions at all shaken by the declarations of the scripture, that "Christ bare our sins," that he "died for us," that he "died for our sins," that he gave himself for our sins," that he "gave his life a ransom for many," that he " gave himself a ransom for all," that he "suffered that he might sanctify the people with his -66 own blood," that his "blood" was "shed for the "remission of sins," that he "maketh intercession "for us," that he is our "advocate with the Fa"ther."* They pretend that all these expressions, and any others of a similar kind that may be adduced, will easily admit of a different sense from that which has been attributed to them by the Christian Church for many ages; and that a different one must of necessity be attributed to them, if we would follow the dictates of reason. To bear sins, in the scriptures, they admit, does sometimes denote bearing the punishment of sins; but they plead that it also signifies to bear away sins, that is, to abolish or remit them whence God is said by Moses "to bear "sins," that is, to forgive them. To die for us they consider as not at all implying vicarious punishment, since we ourselves are commanded "to lay down "our lives for the brethren," if the circumstances of the times require it; though no one has ever pretended it to be our duty to atone for their sins. Nor have the other expressions any greater weight with them. They understand the assertion, that "Christ died for our sins," as importing that our sins furnished the occasion of his death, and that he died to abolish them, not that he suffered the punishment due to them. They suppose that he is said to "sanctify the people with his own blood, shed for the "remission of sins," inasmuch as,' to use the language of Crellius,* by means of his bloody death. 'he has penetrated into the highest heavens, and by 'his care delivers us from the guilt and punishment ' of sins.' By his having "given himself a ransom,' and "his life a ransom "for many," they understand, not that he suffered any vicarious punishment, but that from the sacrifice of his life, we derive an example of piety, a thing necessary to salvation; and he acquires the right and power to deliver us from the servitude of sins and the punishments due to them. And finally, the followers of Socinus are far from acknowledging that Jesus Christ our advocate really executes the office of an advocate, being of opinion. that he is called "an advocate," and said to "make " intercession," not as commending us and our services to God, but because by power received from God he preserves us, if we go to him, secure from sin and from punishment. Thus the disciples of Socinus, whenever they are pressed with passages of scripture, betake themselves to verbal ambiguities or metaphorical senses, as to impregnable fortresses. In the course of my studies on these subjects, indeed, I have sometimes observed such subterfuges altogether precluded to them by the very tenour and scope of the places which treat of the sacrifice of Christ. Yet it In Heb. xiii. 12. has appeared to me worthy of consideration, whether it would not be possible from the nature of the facts themselves, the death and sacrifice of Jesus, to elicit and establish a little more certain sense of all those phrases by which the efficacy and design of those facts is expressed in the scriptures; concluding, that, if this could be accomplished, the facts themselves would invariably throw more light on the expressions, than the expressions on the facts. While I was reflecting on these things, it occurred to me that the scriptures speak of Christ as our high priest, and of his death not only as the death of a martyr and witness, but also as that of an expiatory victim, slain for the sins of mankind; that the high priest of the Jews shadowed forth Jesus Christ our high priest, and their expiatory victims, to say nothing here of the others, represented Christ as our victim; and lastly, that it is beyond all doubt, that what was shadowed forth by the types was really accomplished by the antitype. Being fully persuaded of this sentiment, I thought it necessary to examine the sacrifices of the Jews, and carefully to inquire, what is the proper design of a sacrifice;-what kinds of sacrifices were appointed by the laws of Moses ;which of those kinds principally shadowed forth the sacrifice of Christ;-what a very particular selection of every kind was appointed by God;-to what persons each kind was either enjoined or permitted;-on what accounts, with what ceremonies, and in what place, it was to be offered and killed;-what was the design of the sacred tabernacle, of the temple at Jerusalem, of the consecrated altar, and of the sacred table;-what were the respective parts of the priests, the Levites, and the offerers, in regard to the sacrifices; and lastly, what opinions were held by the Jewish doctors, and by the Heathens, on their respective sacrifices; and by the ancient Christian writers on both. My examination of these and many other points led me to form two conclusions respecting the sacrifices of the Jews. First, That the efficacy of them all, like that of solemn prayers and thanksgivings, properly had respect to God; because I found them all to have been divinely instituted, as means of obtaining or celebrating his favour. Secondly, That the expiatory victims, by their vicarious suffering, expiated the sins of those persons for whom they were offered.—These two positions I thought required to be distinctly proved, before I should treat of the Sacrifice of Christ; lest by crowding the Jewish sacrifices, and the ceremonies belonging to them, into the same part of the work with topics peculiar to Christianity, I should induce obscurity on the subjects of my discussion and be tedious to the readers. And conceiving that all the Jewish sacrifices might be examined with nearly the same labour as these two propositions, I thought it better to discuss the whole of the subject at large, than to confine myself to certain parts of it, and those disconnected with each other. Such was the occasion of my writing the following dissertation on the Sacrifices of the Jews, with the addition, where I thought it important, of some accounts of the sacrifices of other nations. I hope the work will be useful to persons who are |