Tomline on Article IX: Of Original or Birth-sin

The philosophers of old in vain endeavoured to account for the depravity of human nature, and the origin of evil (a) ; and even those who have had the assistance of Revelation, have held verj different opinions upon these subjects, both in antient and modern times. I shaQ attempt to show that the doctrines aaserted in this article are founded in Scripture.

When God placed Adam in the garden of

Eden, he said to him, ” Of every tree of the

garden thou mayest freely eat; but of the tree of

the knowledge of good and evil, thou shatt not

eat of it : for m the day that thOu eatest thereof,

thou shalt surely die (by These wc^ds, ” Thou

tAaah surely die,” must ntean, that from that

time Adam should become subject to death,

since (a) The zBorbid state of maa both in bis moral and intellectual capacity, and the misery conseqaent to it, were fully admitted by many of the Heathen poets, historians, and philosophers. This doctrine entered into their mythology, and the soundest sects of their philosophy. Philosophy is defined by JGcrodes to be […] 8 recovery of happiness from which man had fallen. Cicero says of the mind, id ipsum quod judicat, aegrotat ; and Hesiod says,

(h) Gen. c. 2. T. 16, 17. •

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333 Exposition of the [part hi.

since it is certain that he did not actually die on the day on which he ate the forbidden fruit Hence we conclude, that if Adam had not eaten the forbidden fruit he would not have died ; and therefore Adam became subject to death in con- sequence of his disobedience. And the Scrip- tures farther teach us, that the sin of Adam not only made him liable to death, but that it also changed the upright nature in which he was originally formed, into one that was prone to wickedness ; and that his liability to death, and propensity to sin, were entailed from him upon the whole race of mankind : By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin ; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned (b)’ — •” As by the offence of one judg- ment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life (c)” ** By one man’s disobedience many were made sinners (tt)” — ” Through the offence of one many are dead (e)y — ” By one man’s offence death reigned by one (f)” — ” By man came death (g):’—” In Adam all die f A;.”— ” The imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth (i)” — There is no man that sinneth

not.” (b) Rom. c. 5. V. 12. ic) Rom. c. 5. v. 18. (d) Rom. c. 6« ▼• 19- (O Rom. c. 5. v. 15.

(f) Rom. c. 5. V. 17. (g) 1 Cor. c. 15. v. 21-

(h) rCon c. ifi, V. 22. (%) Gen. c, 8. v. 21.

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not (k).” — ” God made man upright, but they have sought out many inventions (I),” — ” If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (m).” — ** The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked (n)r—” The flesh is weak (o)r—” The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would (p) — ” I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my members (q) From. these texts of Scripture it appears that Adam, who was at lirst ’ made uprit and in the image of God fr,” fell, by his transgression of the com- mand of God, from a state of innocence, purity, and happiness ; became subject to death, sin, and misery ; and transmitted his nature thus cor- rupted to all his posterity. Upon this universal depravity of mankind, and consequent liability to punishment, is founded the necessity of a Re- deemer, whose merits and mediation might atone for those sins which are common, in a greater or less degree, to every descendant of Adam. And

all

(k) 1 Kings, C.8. v. 46. (I) Ecc. c. 7. v. 29. (m) 1 John, c. 1. v. 8. (n)ier. c. 17. v, 9.

(0) Matt. c. 26. V. 41, (p) Gal. c. 5. v. 17.

(g) Rom. e. 7- v. 23. (r) Gen. c. 1.^ v. 26.

Eec. c. 7. V. 29.

$34 EjL’position of the [part in.

all those expressions of the New Testament, w hicK assert that every one, before he can be entitled to tlie benefits of the Gospel dispensation, must be ” born again,” must become ” a new creature,” and ” pat on the new man,” imply a corruption of his present nature, and plainly prove, that a great change must Imve taken place since God ” created man in his own image, and saw every thing iStaX he had made, and behold it was very good.”

Notwithstanding the plain and obvious sense of the above passages, the Pelagians (rj formerly siaintained, and the Socinians still conteDd, that Adam’s mortality belonged to his original nature: that his sin was merely personal, and confined to himself, and did not in any respect afifect his posterity. But upon the authoiities which have been just stated, we of the church of England, hold, that original guilt

ADAM

(t) Pelagius lived in the former part of the 5th cen- tury ; he waa a native of Wales, and his real name wag Morgan, which in the Welsh language signifies the same as Pelagius in Greek. He travelled into Italy, Africa, and Palestine. He denied original sin, and the necessity of grace, and asserted that men might arrire at a state of impeccability in this life. These errors caused so much alarm and disturbance in the Christian world, that no less than thirty councils are said to have been held concerning them between the years 412 and 430. His principal opponent was Augustine, and occasion- ally Jerome, Fulgentius, Prosper, and many others.

ART. IX.] Thirty-nine Articles. 235

ADAM (s) (as the PELAGIANS DO VAINLY

talk) but it is the fault and corruption of the nature of every man that na- turally is engendered of the offspring of adam; whereby man is very far gone from original righteousness (t), and is of his own nature inclined to evil, 80 that the flesh lusteth always con- trary to the spirit.

The general corruption of human nature, in consequence of Adam’s disol)edience, was acknowledged by the antient fathers of the Christian church, as appears from the following quotations : Ignatius, speaking of Christ, says, *’ Giving himself a ransom for us, that by his blood he might cleanse us from the okj trans- gression (u)y’ meaning the transgression of Adam. — Justin Martyr says, that ” Christ was bom and crucified for mankind, who through Adam liad fallen under death and the deception of tlie

serpent,

(s) By the ” following of Adam,** is meant the imi- tation of Adam; thus Pelagiiu^ himself, as quoted by Augustine, In Adamo peccasse omnes non propter peccatum nascendi origine contractum, sed propter imitationem, dictum est. Aug. de Nat. et Grat. cap. 9.

(t) By original righteousness is meant that recti- tude of nature in which our first parents were created, and which, if they had ^ot sinned, would have been transsaitied to all their descendants.

(u) r.p. ad, Trail.

1J3^ Erposition of the [part iil.

serpent, besides the particular sins of which each person is guilty (jc) — Tatian, speaking of the effect of Adam’s sin, says, ** Man who was made according to the image of God, being divested of his more powerfid spirit, became mortal (y). — Irenaeus says, ” Men are by no other means saved from the antient wound of the serpent, but by believing in him, who, by being crucified after the similitude of the sin of the flesh, both draws all things after him, and quickens the dead (z)y’ — Origen says, ” The curse of Adam is common to all men (a) ’ and he infers that every one is bom in original sin from the words of David, ” I was shapen in wickedness, and in sin hath my mother conceived me;” and also from the practice of infant baptism, ” for,” says he * if there were nothing in children which required remission, the grace of baptism would seem superfluous (b)” — Tertullian says, I am speaking of Satan, by whom man was at first seduced to violate the command of God, and was therefore made subject to death, from thence he caused his whole race, being infected by his seed, to be liable to his condemnation (c)” — Cyprian, speaking of baptism, says, ” An infant ought not t#.be refused baptism, who, being newly bom, has

been

(x) Dial, cum Tryph. (y) Orat. contra Gent.

(%) Adv. Hser. Hb. 4. cap. 5. (a) Cent. Cels. lib. 4- (b) Hom. 8, in Lev. (c) De An.

ART. IX.] Thirty-nine AiHieks. 237

been guilty of no sin, except that being carnally born according to Adam, he has contracted the contagion of the old death at his first birth ; who is admitted to the remission of sins more readily,* because not his own sins, but those of another are remitted {d)” — Athanasius says, *^ As the sin of Adam who transgressed, passed into all men, so the like power of the Lord, who was powerful, shall pass unto us (e)^’ and in another place he speaks of ” the antient sin,” which through Adam came upon all men (f)” — Gregory Nazianzen says, ” It was necessary that I should be entirely saved, because I had entirely fallen, and was con- demned for the disobedience of our first pa- rents (g)y — It should be remembered, that all these writers were prior to the time of Pelagius ; and as they lived before original sin was denied, the subject is only mentioned incidentally as a thing universally admitted. The term Original Sin was first used by Augustine, and before his time it was called, as we have seen, the Old Guilt, the Antient Wound, the Common Curse, the Old Sin, &c. all which expressions denote the cor- ruption or depravation of human nature derived from the fall of Adam.

The article proceeds to state, and there- fore IN EVERY PERSON BORN INTO THE

WORLD

(d) Epist ad Fid. (e) Orat. 2.

(f) Syn. Sac. Sen. (g) Orat. 3.

238 . Eij)o^ition of the [part in.

WORLD IT DESERVETH GOd’s WRATH AND

DAMNATION. These words imply that every per- son who is bom into the world, exclusive of the sins which he himself commits, or even if he does not live to commit sin, is, on account of the disobedience and guilt of Adam, subject to the wrath and punishment of God; and we have seen the same thing intimated in the second article, where it is said, that Christ suffered ” as a sacrifice not only for original guilt, but also for the actual sins of men : ” this is the doctrine of Augustine (h) and his followers, whose opinions upon this subject are thus stated and supported by bishop ‘Burnet : ” They believe that a co- venant was made with all mankind in Adam as their first parent; that he was a person con- stituted by God to represent them all ; and that the covenant was made with him, so that, if he had obeyed, all his posterity should have been happy through his obedience ; but by his dis- obedience they were all to be esteemed to have sinned in him, his act being imputed and trans- ferred to them all. This opinion,” continues the learned prelate, ” seems to have great foundation in that large discourse of St. Paul’s, where, in the fifth of the Romans, he compares the bless-

[…]

ART. IX.] Thirty-nine Articles.^ 239

ings that we leceive by the death of Christ with the guilt and misery that was brou^t upon us by the sin of Adam. Now it is confessed, that by Christ we have both an imputation or communi- cation of the merits of his death, and Ukewise a purity and holiness of nature conveyed to us by his doctrine and spirit In opposition then to this, if the comparison is closely to be pursued, there must be an imputation of sin as well as a corruption of nature transferred to us from Adam. This is the more considerable as to the point of imputation, because the chief design of St. Paul’s discourse seems to be levelled at that, since it is begun upon the head of reconciliation and atonement; upon which it follows, that ^ as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and death passed upon all men, for that (or as others render it, in whom) all have sinned (i)’ . Now they think it is all one to their point, whether it be rendered * for that,’ or,, ^ in whom ; ’ for though the latter word seems to de- Kver their opinion more precisely, yet it being affirmed that, according to the other rendering, all who die have sinned, and it being certain that many infants die who have never actually sinned, these must have sinned In Adam ; they could sin no other way. It is afterwards said by St. Paul, that by the offence of one many were dead ; that

the (i) Rom. C.5. V. 12.

240 Exposition of the [partiii.

the judgment was by one to condemnation ; that by one man’s offence death reigned by one ; that by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation ; and that by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners. As these words are positive and of great importance in themselves, so all this is much the stronger by the opposition in which every one of them is put to the effects and benefits of Christ’s death, parti- cularly to our justification through him, in which there is an imputation of the merits and effects of his death, that are thereby transferred to us; so that the whole effect of this discourse is taken away, if the imputation of Adam’s sin is denied. And this explication does certainly quadrate more entirely to the words of the article, as it is known that this was the tenet of those who prepared the articles, it having been the generally received opinion from St. Austin’s days downwards.”

But many persons, although they reject the Pelagian system, do not accede to this opinion of Augustine, concerning original guilt; as thinking it incompatible with the justice and goodness of God to make the whole race of men liable to punishment for the sin of Adam, in which they had no concern ; and the case which appears the most repugnant to the di- vine attributes, is that of infants and idiots, who being incapable of sinning, ought not to

be

AUT. IX.] Thirty-nine Articles. 241

be subject to punishment These men admit that a mortal and conrupt nature is derived from Adam to all his descendants ; and that this cor- ruption is so strong, that no man ever lived to the age of maturity without sin ; and conse- quently that every such person is liable to divine punishment, for the sins which he has himself actually . committed, but not for Adam’s sin. They therefore think that infants and idiots die, because of Adam’s sin, but that no &r- tfaer , punishment awaits them. Our being thus adjudged to death, and to all the miseries that accompany mortality, they think may be well called God’s wrath and damnation, as tempo- rary judgments are* often so denominated in Scripture: in this sense they understand the words of the Article ; and bishop Burnet seems to think it possible, that the framers of it, although their own opinion coincided with that of Augustine, frpm a spirit of moderation, de- signedly used such expressions as would admit of another interpretation.

It must be acknowledged that original guilt, considered in this point of view, is a difficult and abstruse subject ; and as the Scriptures do not inform us what were the full and precise effects of Adam’s disobedience upon his posterity, it is perhaps scarcely to be expected that there should be an uniformity of opinion among

VOL, II. R divines

242 Exposition of the [part hi.

divines upon that point ; we may however observe, that the difference between those who confine t)riginal guilt to a mere liability to death and sin, and those who extend it to a liability to punishment also, is not very material, since both sides admit that Christ died as a propitiation for all the sins of the whole world, whatever were the nature and character of those sins. In either case the effects of Christ’s obedience are commensurate with those of Adam’s disobe- dience ; and upon either principle, if we believe the Gospel, and act conformably to its precepts, all our sins, whether original in Adam, or ac- tual in ourselves, will be forgiven, and we shall be eternally happy : ” As by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life O’J.” They who consider the sin of Adam as imputed to all his descendants, believe that that sin will be remitted for the sake, and through the mediation, of Christ, and they contend that it is as consonant to perfect justice to im- pute the sin of Adam, as to impute the merits of Christ, to all mankind ; and that the divine goodness is fully vindicated by the assurance, that God had pre-ordained the redemption of

man

(j) Rom. c. 5. V. i8.

AUT, IX.] Thirty-nine Articles. 243

man by Christ Jesus, when he punished the disobedience of Adam upon his posterity. There are indeed many passages in Scripture, which from the context appear to refer solely to the redemption of mankind from the guilt and penalty of sin, which Adam entailed upon the human race. In this sense, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,” was ” the Redeemer of the whole world/’ — delivered all mankind, without any exception, from the power of sin and death, to which they are by nature subject, and rendered them capable of eternal happiness, but at the same time at liberty, as responsible beings, to forfeit or secure that title to immortality, which he purchased by his blood. Thus the case of infants and idiots, who arc incapable of actual sin, of individual guilt, i% clearly consistent with the justice and goodness of God, though considered as by nature liable to punishment Thus the Gentiles wno are without the law ” of Moses or of Christ, and cannot be saved by faith (” for how shall they believe if they have not heard?”) partake of ” the salvation which is by Christ;” and thus the world collectively is ” made free from sin ” — free from the punishment of original or birth-sin — ** being justified freely by grace,” while individu- ally all men are sinners,” remain in a corrupted

B 2

!244 Exposition of the [part iir.

state of nature, and subject to disease and death; and the miseries of this world, and liable to future condemnation ; for, ^’ there is no man liveth that sinneth not,” doth not commit actual sins.

And this infection of nature doth remain, yea in them that are regene- rated, whereby the lust of the flesh^ called in greek *ponhma zapkos, which some do expound the wisdom (k), some sensuality, some the affection, some the desire of the flesh, is not subject TO THE LAW OF GOD. That the corruption of nature does always continue, every cine must know from his own experience ; and that it is not subject to the law of God, is expressly asserted by St. Paul : ” The carnal mind is en- mity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be (ly The members of the church of Rome maintained that original sin is entirely taken away by baptism ; but there is no authority for this opinion in Scripture ; on the contrary, St. Paul says to the Galatian converts, ” The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh ; and these are contrary the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would (m) : ”

and

(k) The Vulgate renders it Sapientia Carnis. (l)^ Rom. c. 8. y. 7. (m) Gal. c. 5. v. 17.

AUT. IX.] TTtirty-nine Articles. 545

fuid St. Peter admonishes the Christians to whom he writes, ’ to abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul (n):” and St. James says, every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed (0).’ These Epistles were all written to persons who had been baptized, and the apostles evidently con- sider them as still liable to the ’ infection of nature,” contracted by fhe fedl of man. ” There is no reason,” says bishop Burnet ” to think that baptism takes away all the branches and effects of original sin; it is enough if weare by it delivered from the wrath of God, and brought into a state of favour and acceptation : we are freed from the curse of death by our being an- titled to a blessed resurrection ; and if we are so far freed from the corruption of our nature, as to have a foederal right to such assistance as will enable us to resist and repress it, though it is not quite extinct in us so long as we live in these frail and mortal bodies, here are very great efiects of our admission to Christianity by* bap- tism, though this should not go so far as to root all inclinations to evil out of our nature.”

That there is no condemnation for

them that believe and are baptized,

• we learn from St. Paul : ” There is therefore now

no condemnation to them which are in Christ

Jesus

(n) 1 Pet. c. 2. V. 11. (o)JzmtB, c. 1. v^ 14.

246 Expo9iti(m of the [part hi.

Jesus (p)*^^ Faith in Christ joined with re- pentance and a sincere endeavour to obey his commands, will through the merits of his death, avert the punishment due to our sins, and procure us admission into the kingdom of heaven.

Yet the apostle doth confess that concupiscence and lust hath of itself THE NATURE OF SIN. The passage here alluded to is generally understood to be the following: ^* What shall we say then ? is the law sin ? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin but by the iaw ; for I had not known lust except the law had said, thou shalt not covet Cy^.”— ” It is observable here,” says Dr. NichoUs, ” that the compilers of our Articles do not say, that con- cupiscence had only then the nature of sin when it is ripened into outward act, or has the will con- senting to it, but that it has the nature of sin of itself antecedently to the compliance of the will, and before it is reduced into act. And moreover it is observable, that they do not say that concupiscence is a sin properly so called, as when men voluntarily comply with a temp- tation, or do any unlawful action ; but only that it hath the nature of sin. — Now a thing may have the nature of sin, or be deemed a sin in a large and figurative sense, to which no act of the will

is , (P) Rom. c. 8. V. I. (q) Rom. c. 7. v. 7.

ART. IX.] Thirty-nine Articles. 247

is consenting. Now the nature of sin doth partly consist in a deflexion from the rectitude of the divine rule, which must make it for that reason disagreeable to the divine wisdom and goodness, and consequently render the persons who are the subject of this deflexion or depra- vation, out of favour with God. For no one can say that the lust and passions of our animal nature, and those tendencies to vice which we all of us feel within ourselves, are as pleasing to God as if all our appetites were perfectly calm and quiet, and were continually in that exact obedience, and conformity to our reason, and the rules which God has prescribed, as they would have been, if man had continued in his un- lapsed state. And this doctrine was main- tamed by Augustine himself in the midst of his most vigorous opposition to the Pelagian tenets ; for he does not look upon it as a sin, properly so called, unless the consent of the will go along with it; for explaining those words of St. James, * every one is tempted when he is drawn aside by his own lusts,’ he speaks thus ; * The mother is concupiscence, the child sin; but concupiscence does not bring forth, unless it conceive ; and it does not con- ceive, unless it draw aside, that is, has gained the consent of the will to an evil action’ (r)”

(r) Cont. Jul. lib. 6. cap. 3.

R 4

548 Ejpposition of the [part iii.