therefore, my sin before thee, for it is great: (as he saith also Psalm xxv.) But I so confess my sin, as to confess at the same time, that thy "loving-kindness" and thy "tender mercies" are far greater than my sin; and that thy righteousness, by which thou justifiest sinners is, to an infinite degree, too great to allow me to despair: ' -and therefore he saith, "according to the multitude of thy tender mercies." And since he saith, that there are a great multitude of tender mercies, he plainly denies, and will not know any holiness, either in himself or others. For what suitable meeting could there be between a multitude of tender mercies, and human holiness! If, therefore, mercy be so great, there is no such thing as holiness in us: and it is a mere fabricated term to call a man a Saint, even as it would be a fabricated term to say, that God is fallen into sin: for this is no where in the nature of things.

These deeply-rooted and inveterate errors and false opinions, therefore, are to be rejected: such as saying, after the manner of the monks, Saint Jerome, Saint Peter, Saint Paul, &c.; for they are all in themselves sinners, and God only is holy; as the Church sings. And those whom we call saints, are sanctified only by the holiness of another, even of Christ; which is a holiness granted of free-mercy. By this holiness, the whole Church of the faithful are saints alike, and there is no difference. And thus, I am a saint as well as Peter, and the thief at the right hand of Christ as well as me. Nor does it make any difference, that Peter and Paul did greater things than you or I, for we are all alike sinners in ourselves, and have need of "loving-kindness" and "tender mercies." And although the apostles had less of external sins, yet they often felt in their hearts presumption, often pride, often thoughts of desperation, often denials of God, and the like defects of human infirmity and therefore, there is in man nothing holy, nothing good to be found: as saith the Psalm, "God looked down from heaven upon the children of men-and there is none that doeth good, no not one:" and if there be

none good among the children of men, where can they be else!

Therefore, let us talk no more about holiness and saints for we know that those are saints, who, from being insensible, are made sensible sinners: who do not presume upon their own righteousness, (which has no existence), but begin to have an enlightened heart to know themselves and God-that whatever is of ourselves is evil before God, and is pardoned by the forgiveness of "tender mercies." Into this bosom we, and all saints, must betake ourselves, or, we must of necessity be damned. And it was for this purpose that God sent his Son, that he might reveal these "tender mercies" to the world, and make known that doctrine which the human heart and reason know not. And David here sets this doctrine before us while he confesses his sins, and yet confesses, that the mercy of God is greater.

Wherefore, let all men sing this verse with David, and acknowledge that they are sinners, but that God is just; that is, merciful. This confession is the sacrifice that is acceptable and well-pleasing unto God, and to which David invites us. For he would tnat this were the doctrine of the whole world;-that, when the devil or conscience should accuse us on account of sins, we should freely confess, that we are in many and great sins, and yet not despair; because, although our sins should be great and many, yet we are here taught, that the mercy of God is wide and great also. It was in this way that all the saints defended themselves against Satan; so that, although they were sinners, yet by this knowledge they were justified; according to Isaiah liii., The knowledge of Christ shall justify many.'

When we have once heard these things, we think they are easy, and may be learnt immediately. But here is the labour, here is the conflict-to hold these things fast in the time of temptation. For the conflict is not about a thing of nought; eternal death is in the matter, and we fight for the salvation of our souls. Moreover, we find in our experience, not only conscience crying

out against us, but also Satan breathing into us thoughts of death on account of those sins of which we are ourselves conscious. Therefore, for a man to say that he is a sinner, and yet not to despair, is altogether of Divine power. And to this power we attain, not by extenuating our sins as our adversaries do, but thus by believing, that, as our sin is, in its nature, very great and very grievous, so also grace, or mercy, is immense and inexhaustible: as David here glories and cries, "according to the multitude of thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions."

And to this also agrees the very term "blot out,' which the prophet here uses; as does Paul also, Col. ii., Blotting out the hand-writing which was against us; and also Peter, Acts iii., "Repent and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out." For the term "blot out," denotes, that our sins are written upon our conscience by the pen of the law. And the prophet desires, that as writing is blotted out on any paper, so the memory of his sins might be blotted out from his own heart and from the sight of God. And in this way, neither grace nor gratitude will be made void; for our sin is thus pardoned that we may never forget grace. For as Peter saith of those who forget the forgiveness of their former sins, that they heap up new sins by unbelief and ingratitude; so we see, in this day, the world to be full of the contempt of the Gospel and of all kinds of licentiousness. In such, sin is not blotted out, but more deeply inscribed.

David, therefore, in his desire embraces both :-that his sin may be blotted out, and that the Holy Spirit may be given him by which he may resist sin. And since he seeks nothing but the blotting out of sin, it is quite manifest, in which way we become righteous;-only by the imputation of righteousness: seeing that, our sins are blotted out by grace, and we are received into favour for Christ's sake. But compare with this the dreams of the sophists and of the school-men, and you will then see, how absurdly they taught concerning righteousness and the remission of sins.

VERSE 2.

Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

Hitherto, he has begged for grace and the remission of sins, or for clemency :-that God would favour him and us all, and would pardon and blot out sin according to his mercy. For this is the first part, or the first step, after the knowledge of sin :- to receive grace, to have God favourable, and ready to do us good: so that we may be in the bosom of the mercy of God, and may have a trust in those firm promises which are made to us concerning the grace of God. And as we have these promises in baptism, so they had them in Christ promised. In this verse, however, where he begs that he may be cleansed from his sin, he sets before us another view of sin, distinct from that which he had taken before. For above, we have divided sin into felt sin (so to speak) and unfelt sin; as we have made also two kinds of sinners, sensible and insensible sinners; or true sinners, and false saints or hypocrites, who, being hardened and secure, do not feel their sin. Here David shews, that sensible sin is also twofold, or may be considered in a twofold point of view. It is sin pardoned by grace, and sin remaining in the flesh. Sin pardoned by grace is that God, for Christ's sake, wills not to leave us, how great sinners soever we may be, but wills to pardon us in mercy, though we be thus lost and corrupted by sin.

But it is not enough that this sin is pardoned by grace, for through infirmity we fall into sin again. We are to desire, therefore, that sin be not only pardoned, but abolished entirely. For sin, (as Augustine says,) remains in reality, though the guilt be gone.' That is, that which is sin itself in reality, and which is pardoned, and is passed by of God, that still remains in the flesh, and is not as yet quite dead: except that, as it is said, Gen. iii., The head of the serpent is bruised by Christ, though the

tongue still shews itself, and the tail still threatens to strike. For sin, because the grace and mercy of God reign over us, cannot damn us, cannot make God wrath with us. And yet the remnants of sin still remain in those who are justified; such as, concupiscence, and other evils, which the prophet beholds in himself as certain remaining dregs, or seed-beds. And therefore, as before, he had begged for an universal remission; so here, he prays for the expurgation or extirpation of these remnants.

This, therefore, is the second part of his petition, which, as I said, sets before us the other view of sin :that God wills to blot out sins, as to the remission of guilt and the power of sin, but not as to sin itself, or the nature of sin. For the power of sin is, to accuse, to condemn, to bite, to grieve, to leave no peace to the heart, and to present an angry God, hell, &c. This power of sin is taken away by free mercy, and yet, the real remnants of this sin still remain. Therefore, both these observations are true, that no Christian has sin, and that every Christian has sin. Hence arises this different view, that in Christians, sin is twofold:-sin pardoned, and sin remaining which is to be extirpated and abolished. Sin pardoned, is that which is bruised from a believing reliance on mercy, which cannot condemn or 'accuse, but which, by reason of this flesh, still breaks forth and wars in our flesh, so as to produce the same fruit as aforetime, in order to make us secure, ungrateful, and ignorant of God as we were before. These are the strivings of the remnants of sin in us, which even the saints feel; but which, through the Holy Spirit, they do not indulge.

The Christian, therefore, after he is justified by faith, or has received the remission of sins, must not remain secure, as though he were rendered wholly pure from all sins, but there is still to be in him this perpetual struggling against the remnants of sin, from which the prophet here desires to be washed: though he is, indeed, already righteous and sanctified by another's, or by an external sanctification, (so to call it for the sake of in