different things. If there had never been any such thing as sin
the judicial act of God, upon occasion of Adam's transgression." And 'tis very remarkable, that in pp. 279, 280, and 283 he insists, "That in Scripture no action is said to be imputed, reckoned or accounted to any person, either for righteousness or condemnation, but the proper act and deed of that person." And yet he thus continually affirms, that all mankind are made sinners by a judicial act of God the judge, even to condemnation, and judicially constituted sinners, and so subjected to a judicial sentence of condemnation, on occasion of Adam's sin; and all according to the threatening denounced to Adam, "Thou shalt surely die." Though he supposes Adam's posterity were not included in the threatening, and are looked upon as perfectly innocent, and treated wholly as such.
I am sensible, Dr. Taylor don't run into all this inconsistence, only through oversight and blundering; but that he is driven to it, to make out his matters in his evasion of that noted paragraph in the fifth chapter of Romans; especially those three sentences (v. 16), "The judgment was by one to condemnation," (v. 18), "By the offense of one, judgment to condemnation came upon all men," and (v. 19), "By one man's disobedience many were made sinners." And I am also sensible of what he offers to salve the inconvenience, viz. "That if the threatening had immediately been executed on Adam, he would have had no posterity; and that so far the possible existence of Adam's posterity fell under the threatening of the law, and into the hands of the Judge, to be disposed of as he should think fit: and that this is the ground of the judgment to condemnation, coming upon all men." But this is trifling, to a great degree: for,
1. Suffering death, and failing of possible existence, are entirely different things. If there had never been any such thing as sin committed, there would have been infinite numbers of possible beings, which would have failed of existence, by God's appointment.