Christian Classics
‹ Systematic Theology - Volume II
Contents
TitlePrefatoryPart II. Anthropology1. Scriptural Doctrine.2. Anti-Scriptural Theories.3. Antiquity of Man.1. Scripture Doctrine2. Trichotomy.3. Realism.4. Another form of the Realistic Theory.1. Theory of Preëxistence.2. Traducianism.3. Creationism.4. Concluding Remarks.Chapter IV. Unity of the Human Race.1. Meaning of the Word, or the Idea of Species.2. Evidence of Identity of Species.3. Application of these Criteria to Man.4. Philological and Moral Evidence1. The Scriptural Doctrine.2. Man Created in the Image of God.3. Original Righteousness.4. Dominion over the Creatures.5. The Doctrine of the Romish Church.6. Pelagian and Rationalistic Doctrine.Chapter VI. Covenant of Works.1. God entered into Covenant with Adam.2. The Promise.3. Condition of the Covenant.4. The Penalty.5. The Parties to the Covenant of Works.6. Perpetuity of the Covenant of WorksChapter VII. The Fall.1. The Nature of the Question to be Considered.2. Philosophical Theories of the Nature of Sin.3. The Doctrine of the Early Church.4. Pelagian Theory.5. Augustinian Doctrine.6. Doctrine of the Church of Rome.7. Protestant Doctrine of Sin.8. The Effects of Adam’s Sin upon his Posterity.9. Immediate Imputation.10. Mediate Imputation.11. Preëxistence.12. Realistic Theory.13. Original Sin. · Part 113. Original Sin. · Part 213. Original Sin. · Part 314. The Seat of Original Sin.15. Inability.Chapter IX. Free Agency.1. Different Theories of the Will.2. Definition of Terms.3. Certainty Consistent with Liberty.1. God has such a Plan.2. Supralapsarianism.3. Infralapsarianism.4. Hypothetical Redemption.5. The Lutheran Doctrine as to the Plan of Salvation.6. The Remonstrant Doctrine.7. Wesleyan Arminianism.8. The Augustinian Scheme.9. Objections to the Augustinian Scheme.1. The Plan of Salvation is a Covenant.2. Different Views of the Nature of this Covenant.3. Parties to the Covenant.4. Covenant of Redemption.5. The Covenant of Grace.6. The Identity of the Covenant of Grace under all Dispensations.7. Different Dispensations.1. Preliminary Remarks.2. The Scriptural Facts concerning the Person of Christ.3. The Hypostatical Union.4. Consequences of the Hypostatical Union.5. Erroneous and Heretical Doctrines on the Person of Christ.6. Doctrine of the Reformed Churches.7. Lutheran Doctrine.8. Later Forms of the Doctrine.9. Modern Forms of the Doctrine.1. Christ the only Mediator.2. Qualifications for the Work.3. The Threefold Office of Christ.1. Nature of the Prophetic Office.2. How Christ executes the Office of a Prophet.1. Christ is truly, not figuratively, a Priest.2. Christ our only Priest.3. Definition of Terms1. Statement of the Doctrine.2. The Intrinsic Worth of Christ’s Satisfaction.3. Doctrine of the Scotists and Remonstrants.4. Satisfaction rendered to Justice.5. The Work of Christ Satisfies the Demands of the Law.6. Proof of the Doctrine. · Part 16. Proof of the Doctrine. · Part 26. Proof of the Doctrine. · Part 37. Objections.1. State of the Question.2. Proof of the Augustinian Doctrine.Chapter IX. Theories of the Atonement.1. The Orthodox View.2. Doctrine of some of the Fathers.3. The Moral Theory.4. The Governmental Theory.5. The Mystical Theory.6. Concluding Remarks.1. Christ our Intercessor.2. Its Nature.3. Its Objects.4. Intercession of Saints.1. The Church God’s Kingdom.2. Christ is truly a King.3. Nature of Christ’s Kingdom.4. The Kingdom of Glory.1. Includes his Incarnation.2. He was made under the Law.3. His Sufferings and Death.4. He endured the Wrath of God.5. His Death and Burial.1. Resurrection of Christ.2. Ascension of Christ.3. Sitting at the Right Hand of God.4. Christ’s coming to judge the World.1. Scriptural Usage of the Word.3. Common Grace.4. Efficacious Grace.5. Proof of the Doctrine.6. Objections.7. History of the Doctrine of Grace.

Charles Hodge · 66 of 128

3. Parties to the Covenant.

§ 3. Parties to the .

At first view there appears to be some confusion in the statements of the Scriptures as to the parties to this . Sometimes Christ is presented as one of the parties; at others He is represented not as a party, but as the and surety of the ; while the parties are represented to be God and his people. As the old was made between God and the Hebrews, and Moses acted as , so the new is commonly represented in the Bible as formed between God and his people, Christ acting as . He is, therefore, called the of a better founded on better promises.

Some theologians propose to these modes of representation by saying that as the of works was formed with Adam as the representative of his race, and therefore in him with all mankind descending from him by ordinary generation; so the of was formed with Christ as the head and representative of his people, and in Him with all those given to Him by the Father. This simplifies the matter, and agrees with the parallel which the Apostle traces between Adam and Christ in Rom. v. 12-21, and 1 Cor. xv. 21, 22, 47-49. Still it does not remove the incongruity of Christ’s being represented as at once a party and a of the same . There are in fact two relating to the salvation of fallen man, the one between God and Christ, the other between God and his people. These differ not only in their parties, but also in their promises and conditions. Both are so clearly presented in the Bible that they should not be confounded. The latter, the of , is founded on the former, the of . Of the one Christ is the and surety; of the other He is one of the contracting parties.

This is a matter which concerns only perspicuity of statement. There is no doctrinal difference between those who prefer the one statement and those who prefer the other; between those who comprise all the facts of Scripture relating to the subject under one between God and Christ as the representative of his people, and those who distribute them under two. The Westminster standards seem to adopt sometimes the one and sometimes the other mode of representation. In the Confession of Faith it is said, “Man, by his fall, having made himself incapable of life by that [i.e., by the of works], the Lord was pleased to make a second, commonly called the of ; wherein He freely offereth unto sinners life and salvation by Jesus Christ, requiring of them faith in Him, that they may be saved, and promising to give unto all those that are ordained unto life, his Holy Spirit, to make them willing and able to believe.” Here the implication is that God and his people are the parties; for in a the promises are made to one of the parties, and here it is said that life and salvation are promised to sinners, and that faith is demanded of them. The same view is presented in the Shorter Catechism, according to the natural interpretation of the answer to the twentieth question. It is there said, “God having out of his mere good pleasure, from all eternity, elected some to everlasting life, did enter into a of , to deliver them out of the estate of sin and misery, and to bring them into an estate of salvation by a Redeemer.” In the Larger Catechism, however, the other view is expressly adopted. In the answer to the question, “With whom was the of made?” it is said, “The of was made with Christ as the second Adam, and in Him with all the as his seed.”

Two to be Distinguished.

This confusion is avoided by distinguishing between the of between the Father and the Son, and the of between God and his people. The latter supposes the former, and is founded upon it. The two, however, ought not to be confounded, as both are clearly revealed in Scripture, and moreover they differ as to the parties, as to the promises, and as to the conditions. On this subject Turrettin says, “Atque hic superfluum videtur quærere, An fœdus hoc contractum fuerit cum Christo, tanquam altera parte contrahente, et in ipso cum toto ejus semine, ut primum fœdus cum Adamo pactum fuerat, et in Adamo cum tota ejus posteritate: quod non paucis placet, quia promissiones ipsi dicuntur factæ, Gal. iii. 16, et quia, ut Caput et Princeps populi sui, in omnibus primas tenet, ut nihil nisi in ipso et ab ipso obtineri possit: An vero fœdus contractum sit in Christo cum toto semine, ut non tam habeat rationem partis contrahentis, quam partis mediæ, quæ inter dissidentes stat ad eos reconciliandos, ut aliis satius videtur. Superfiuum, inquam, est de eo disceptare, quia res eodem redit; et certum est duplex hic pactum necessario attendendum esse, vel unius ejusdem pacti duas partes et gradus. Prius pactum est, quod inter Patrem et Filium intercedit, ad opus redemptionis exequendum. Posterius est, quod Deus cum electis in Christo contrahit, de illis per et propter Christum salvandis sub conditione fidei et resipiscentiæ. Prius fit cum Sponsore et capite ad salutem membrorum: Posterius fit cum membris in capite et sponsore.”

The same view is taken by Witsius: “Ut Fœderis gratiæ natura penitius perspecta sit, duo imprimis distincte consideranda sunt. (1.) Pactum, quod inter Deum Patrem et mediatorem Christum intercedit. (2.) Testamentaria illa dispositio, qua Deus electis salutem æternam, et omnia eo pertinentia, immutabili fœdere addicit. Prior conventio Dei cum mediatore est: posterior Dei cum electis. Hæc illam supponit, et in illa fundatur.”