Chapter IV
The second head : the great security the consideration of Christ s intercession
affords to faith for our justification, shewed, 1. By way of evidence ; by two things.
And so I come (as in the former I have done) to shew what strong grounds of security and triumph our faith may raise from this last act, namely, Christ s intercession for us in the point of justification ; Who shall con demn ? It is Christ that intercedes. And was the second general pro pounded ; and therein to proceed also according to the method taken up in
the former.
1. What assurance by way of evidence this doth afford unto faith of noncondemnation.
2. What powerful efficacy and influence this must be of, that Christ
intercedes.
68 THE TRIUMPH OF FAITH [SECT. V.
1. First, to handle it by way of evidence. That Christ intercedes, is a strong evidence to our faith by two demon
strations.
(1.) From the very intent and scope of the work of intercession itself, and what it is ordained by God to effect.
(2.) From the end of Jesus Christ himself, who lives in heaven on pur pose to intercede for us. Our salvation it is both finis operis, the end of the
work, andjura s ipsius operantis, in some respect the end of Christ himself, the
interceder ; and both these do lay the greatest engagement that can be upon
Christ, to accomplish our salvation through his intercession.
(1.) For the work itself. Intercession, you have seen, is a part of the
office of Christ s priesthood, as well as his dying and offering himself: now all the works of Christ are and must be perfect in their kind (even as God s are, of which says Moses, Deut. xxxii. 4, His work is perfect ), for otherwise he should not be a perfect priest. Now the perfection of every work lies in
order to its end for which it is ordained ; so as that work is perfect that
attains to such an end as it is ordained for, and that imperfect which doth
not. Now the immediate direct end of Christ s intercession is the actual
salvation of believers elect, and persons whom he died for. The end of
his death is adoptio juris, purchasing a right unto salvation ; but of inter
cession, procuratio ipsius salutis, the very saving us actually, and putting us
in possession of heaven. To this purpose, observe how the Scripture speaks concerning Christ s death, Heb. ix. 12, He entered into heaven, having obtained redemption, or found redemption, that is, by way of right, by procuring full title to it. But of his intercession it says, Heb. vii. 25, that by it
* Christ is able to save to the utmost them that come unto God
by him ; that is, actually to save, and put them in possession of happiness : that is made the end and scope of intercession there ; and that phrase (eif rb cravrsXsg), to the utmost, notes out a saving indeed, a doing it not by halves, but wholly, and throughly, and completely ; g/ rb cravrgXeg is to save
altogether, to give our salvation its last act and complement, that is the true force of the phrase, even to effect it, to the last of it, all that is to be done about it. Thus also Bom. v. 9, 10,
* We are justified by his death, but saved (namely, completely) by his life ; that is, his living to intercede. So that the very salvation of believers is it that is the work, the rb egyov of Christ s intercession.
Now what security doth this afford ? For, to be saved is more than to be justified ; for it is the actual possessing us of heaven. So then, do but
grant that Christ s intercession is as perfect a work in its kind as Christ s
jdeath is in its kind, and you must needs be saved. The perfection of Christ s death, and the work thereof, wherein lay it (as on Christ s part to be performed) but in this, that he should lay down a ransom sufficient to
purchase salvation for such and such persons as God would save ? And so the perfection of it lies in the worth and sufficiency of it, to that end it was ordained for; it being a perfect sacrifice in itself, able to purchase eternal redemption for us, and to make us salvable against all sins and the demerits of them, and to give us right to heaven ; and had it wanted a grain of this, it had then been imperfect. Now then, answerably for intercession, the comfort of our souls is, that the proper work that lies upon Christ therein is the complete saving those very persons, and the possessing them
of heaven ; this is the rb egyov, the proper work thereof. To outvie the demerits of our sins was the perfection of his death, but to save our souls
is the end and perfection of his intercession. Our sins are the object of
CHAP. IV.] FKOM CHRIST S INTERCESSION. 69
the one, and our souls of the other. To that end was intercession added to
his death, that we might not have a right to heaven in vain, ofwhich we might be dispossessed. Now therefore, upon this ground, if Christ should fail
of our souls salvation, yea, but of any one degree of glory (purchased by his death to any soul) which that soul should want, this work of his would
then want and fall short so much of its perfection. That place in Heb.
vii. says not only that Christ will do his utmost to save, but save to the
utmost.
Obj. You may say, My infidelity and obstinacy may hinder it, though Christ doth what in him lies.
Am. Well, but intercession undertakes the work absolutely ; for Christ
prays not conditionally in heaven, If men shall believe, &c., as we do
here on earth ; not for propositions only, but for persons ; and therefore
he prays to cure that very infidelity. Now, as if a physician undertakes to
cure a madman (if he knows what he doth), he considers the madness of
his patient, and how he will tear off what is applied, and refuse all physic ; he therefore resolves to deal with him accordingly, and so to order him as he shall not hinder that help which he is about to afford him, and so upon those terms he undertakes the cure : even so doth Christ, when by inter
cession he undertakes to save us sinners ; he considers us what we are, and how it is with us, what unbelief is in us, yet undertakes the matter ; and
so to save us is the scope and end of this his work, which if he should not
accomplish, he after all this should not be a perfect priest. It was the fault
that God found with the old priesthood, that it made nothing perfect, Heb. vii. 19, and therefore, ver. 12, the law was changed ; and the priest hood was changed together with it, as there you have it. Now in like manner Christ s priesthood should be imperfect, if it made not the elect
perfect, and then God must yet seek for another covenant, and a more per
fect priest ; for this would be found faulty, as the other was. So then our
comfort is, if Christ approve himself to be a perfect priest, we who come to God by him must be perfectly saved. It is in this office of his priesthood, and all the parts of it, as in his kingly office. The work of his kingly office
is to subdue all enemies, to the last man, even fully to do the thing; and
not only to have power, and to go about to do it : so as if there should be
any one enemy left unsubdued, then Christ should not be a perfect king. The same holds in his priestly office also ; he should not be a perfect priest,
if but one soul of the elect, or those he intercedes for, were left unsaved. And this is indeed the top and highest consideration for our comfort in this
argument, that intercession leaves us not till it hath actually and completely saved us ; and this is it that makes the apostle put a further thing upon intercession here in the text, than upon that other, his sitting at God s
right hand. So as we are in this respect as sure of attaining unto the utmost glory of our salvation, as Christ to have the full honour of his priest hood. A man saved is more than justified ; and Christ cannot reckon his
* Who shall con demn ? It is Christ that intercedes.
work, nor himself a perfect priest, until we are saved.
(2.) Besides the consideration of the nature and scope of this work itself, which Christ, upon his honour of acquitting himself as a perfect priest, hath
undertaken, there is in the second place a farther consideration that argues him engaged by a stronger obligation, even the loss of his own honour, his
office, and all, if he should not effect salvation for those that come to God
by him ; so much doth it concern him to effect it. Of all the works that
ever he did, he is most engaged in this ; it will not only be the loss of a
70 THE TKIUMPH OF FAITH [SECT. V.
business which concerns him, and of so much work, hut himself must he
lost in it too ; and the reason is, that he intercedes as a Surety. He was not only a surety on earth in dying, and so was to look to do that work
throughly, and to be sure to lay down a price sufficient, or else himself had
gone for it : he pawned in that work, not only his honour, but even his life and soul to effect it, or lose himself in it ; but he is a surety now also in
heaven, by interceding. This you may find to be the scope of Heb. vii. 22, by observing the coherence of that 22d verse (wherein he is called a surety ) with verses 23, 24, 25, that title and appellation is there given him, in rela
tion unto this part of his office especially. And although it holds true of
all parts of his office whatsoever, yet the coherence carries it, that that mention there of his being a surety doth in a more special manner refer unto his intercession, as appears both by the words before and after : in the words before (ver. 21), the apostle speaks of this his priesthood, which is
for ever, and then subjoins (ver. 22), By so much was Jesus made a
surety of a better testament ; and then after also he discourseth of, and
instanceth in his intercession, and his continuing a priest for ever in that work : so, ver. 23, 24, 25,
* Wherefore he is able to save to the utmost,
seeing he ever lives to make intercession. Yea, he is therefore engaged to
save to the utmost, because even in interceding (for which he is said there
to live) he is a surety.
He was a surety on earth, and is a surety still in heaven ; only with this double difference, which ariseth first from the different things which he undertook for then, whilst on earth, and for which now he undertakes in heaven ; that on earth he was a surety to pay a price so sufficient as should
satisfy God s justice ; which having paid, he was discharged (in that
respect, and so far) of that obligation, and his bond for that was cancelled ; but so as still he remains a surety, bound in another obligation as great, even for the bringing to salvation those whom he died for ; for their persons remained still unsaved, though the debt was then paid ; and till they be
saved, he is not quit of this suretyship and engagement. And, secondly, these two suretyships do differ also by the differing pawns which he was
engaged to forfeit, by failing in each of these works : for the payment of our debt, his soul itself lay at the stake, which he offered up for sin ; but
for the saving of the persons all his honour in heaven lies at stake. He
lives to intercede. He possesseth heaven upon these terms, and it is one end of his life ; so that as he must have sunk under God s wrath, if he had not paid the debt, his soul standing in our souls stead, so he must yet quit heaven, and give over living there, if he brings us not thither. It is true, he intercedes not as a common person (which relation in all other forementioned acts he still bore ; thus in his death he was both a common person and a surety representing us, so as we died in him ; so likewise in his re
surrection we arose with him, and in his ascension we ascended, &c., but
yet he intercedes not under that relation, namely, not as a common person), for we must not, cannot be said to intercede in him, for this last work lay not upon us to do. He doth it wholly for us indeed, but not in our stead, or as that which we should have done, though on our behalf ; for it being the last, the crown of all his works of mediation, is therefore proper to him
as Mediator, and his sole work as such. Thus in like manner the first work of incarnation, and answerably the last of intercession, in neither of
these was Christ a common person representing others, though a common Saviour of others in these. For the one was the foundation of all, the other
the accomplishment of all, and so proper only to himself as mediator. But
CHAP. V.J FROM CHRIST S INTERCESSION. 71
although he intercedes not as a common person, as representing us in what we were to have done for ourselves ; yet, so as that other relation of a surety
is continued still in that work, he stands engaged therein as an undertaker
for us, and so as a surety intercedes : such as Judah was for Benjamin, Gen. xliii. 9,
* I will be surety for him ; of my hand shalt thou require him :
if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever. So says Christ for us. And therefore sponsio, or under
taking for us, is by divines made a great part of this part of his office. Now
the consideration of this may the more secure us ; for the more peculiarly and solely it is his work, the more his honour lies at stake, and the more he will set himself to effect it ; yea, and being by way of suretyship, it con
cerns him yet more nearly, for he hath engaged, and if he should fail, might even lose that honour which he hath now in heaven.