A Wakening Call, Chapter 9
CHAP. IX. The first Sin, Fall, and Punishment of many evil Angels, and of all Mankind, in Adam.
EVIL Mankind, in Adam, joyn'd with evil Angel-kind, in Satan, through a mutual Union of Love to themselves and one another, electing or chusing for themselves, their own earthly, mortal, First covenant Law-life of the Creature, given by a First-creation, in preference and opposition to the heavenly, immortal, Second-covenant Gospel-life of the Creator, offer'd them by a second or new Creation. The evil Angels herein, did, at first, commit the unpardonable Sin against the Holy Ghost, under the immediate Beamings forth of Christ's heavenly Creature-Gospel spirit, the Son of everlasting Righteousness, upon their highest, single intuitive natural Understandings. Secondly, They had no superiour Rank of Creatures, in the First-creation, already fallen, above them in Subtlety and Power, to tempt them. Thirdly, They were all, actually created and set up, in their compleated personal Beings and Life, at first; Mankind receive their personal Beings, successively, Generation after Generation. Fourthly, Mankind's first Sin, in Adam, was not against such clear Knowledg of their own unspeakable Concern, as well as Duty to God, though in the same kind of First-covenant Law-life, with Angels. The inferiour Ingredients into Man's personal Constitution (bodily, Sensual-life, tho created pure and incorrupt) rendred his intuitive Discerning, inferiour to that of Angels, where 'twas single and alone. Hence, what was immediately and more convincingly made known to Angels, was represented to Adam, by a figurative Tree of Life; and, himself, in distinction from that, by the Tree of Good and Evil. The former represented Christ to him, in that heavenly Creature-life, offer'd by a new Creation: the latter, represented himself to himself, as but a mystical Tree of Good and Evil, in his own Life, given in his first Creation, corruptible and changeable, mortal and perishable, with all the earthly things, therein, Will, Understanding, Righteousness, Wisdom, &c. with all Works or Fruits ever possible to be done or brought forth, therein. By, and under the superiour Subtlety and Power of the Devil, the mystical Old Serpent, was Adam, in the primitive Purity of his whole Being, and Mankind, in him, as their Head and Representative, induc'd, perswaded and deceiv'd, so as to prefer Satan's self-pleasing Lie, to God's Spirit of Grace and Truth. So, under and with the Serpent, he chose his own earthly Life of the Creature, in preference to God's own heavenly Creature-life of the Creator. Many of Mankind, when restor'd out of the Darkness and Death of their own Spirits, into the Light, Life and Righteousness of Man, do sin again, in their own Persons, after the Similitude of Adam's first Transgression, who, at best, in Innocency, was but a Figure of the Second Adam who was to come, in the Fountain-purity of our Nature, and also, full of the Holy Ghost (Luke 4. 1. Iohn 1. 14.) his heavenly Creature-spirit of Grace and Truth, Rom. 5. 14. This Sin, again, in their own Persons (after all sad Experience of fallen Mankind, thereby, in Adam, and all Warnings and Counsels of God, since) is unrepentable by them, (Heb. 6. 4, 6.) and unpardonable, by God, Heb. 10. 26, 27. This is the Case of any, that conclusively and absolutely prefer their own restor'd earthly Life of the Creature and Righteousness of Man, to the heavenly Creature-life of the Creator, and everlasting Righteousness of God, therein. All, that will not receive and have, the heavenly Creature-life of God (by submitting to the Death of restor'd Nature, at best, the Loss of all their own Life and things, therein) God will take away the said Life, from them, again, and lay them down, for ever, under his unquenchable Wrath, in eternal Death, Luke 8. 18. This is that, Christ says, Mat. 16.25. Whosoever will save his Life, shall lose it: and, whosoever will hate and lose his own Life, for my Sake, from Love to my heavenly Creature-life, shall find it, with unspeakable Gain, as chang'd by Death and Resurrection, into an eternal Life. Satan was at it, with Christ himself, (Matth. 4. 8, 9.) to stay and set up with and under him, as a State of true Happiness, in the mortal Life of our Nature; and, by his Apostle Peter, was at the same Point, to pity and spare himself, there, saying, be the Death thereof, far from thee: this shall not be unto thee. Christ discover'd and declar'd this Word of Peter, to be Satan's Counsel, in and by him, Mat. 16. 21-23.
As the first Sin of Angels was differing from Man's first Sin, so was the Punishment. The Punishment of evil Angels, was the giving them their own evil Choice, their own self-chosen earthly Life, receiv'd in their First-creation, with all the things thereof, their own Wisdom, Righteousness, Subtlety and Power, all natural Excellencies and Perfections, therein, as by them abus'd, turn'd into, and us'd, in unchangeable Enmity to God and his heavenly Creature spirit of eternal Life. God also permitted to them the Exercise of a ruling Power over sallen Mankind, all along this World, by which, Satan carries on the same delusive Work, as on Adam, at first: that the Life, given in the First-creation, is eternal, no need of a second; nor, therefore, of the Death of the first. Ye shall not die, Gen. 3. 3. This is Satan's uniform Lie, all along this World, that the Life given in the First-creation is eternal. You must die, or never live and reign with me, in my heavenly Creature-life, which is eternal: This is Christ's Truth, his faithful Saying, 2 Tim. 2. 11, 12. There's nothing more pleasing to Man's Will, in the restor'd earthly Life of the First Adam, than Satan's Lie: and, nothing so universally contrary to it, as God's Truth; that, the Death and Loss thereof, with all the things therein, is indispensably neceessary to any Man's receiving that Life which is eternal, by a new Creation. Man, in the restor'd Life of the First Adam's living Soul, and highest spiritual enlightning Gifts, convincing him of the Life offer'd by a Second, and of the Necessity of parting again, with the restor'd earthly Life and things of the First Adam's living Soul, for the heavenly Life and Things of the Second Adam's quickning Spirit; under all this Mercy, is Man liable, through his own unspeakable Folly, to be bewitch'd back from looking after Christ's heavenly, Gospel-life, shew'd and offer'd him, and to set up for himself, under and with Satan, in his own earthly Law-life and Righteousness, signified by Holy Flesh, Gal. 3. 1, 3. This may be call'd a Sinning after the Similitude of the evil Angels first Transgression, under the clearest Discovery of the Life offer'd by a new Creation, with the Terms of receiving it, and their unspeakable Concern for submitting thereto, as the only possible Means to find eternal Life, or scape eternal Death.
That the Punishment of evil Angels for their first Sin, by God's giving them up, to their own self-chosen Life, and their own Will and Way, therein, all along this World, that this was a greater Punishment than Man's for his first Sin, (which was the Death and Loss of his abus'd First-covenant Life and Things, receiv'd by a First-creation) may seem strange to Man's Wisdom, who reckons, Adam should have kept what he had, in the primitive Purity of his First-creation, the keeping of which, in preference to the Life of the Creator, offer'd by a Second, was his Sin; the Loss of it, by God's taking it, from him, his Punishment. At Man's rate of Judging, the evil Angels were in the Right, as keeping what they receiv'd in their First-creation, all the Glories and Excellencies, Wisdom and Power, therein.
Quest. Could Mankind, or human Nature, at best, in Adam, chuse the heavenly Creature-life of God, shewn and offer'd them, by a New Creation?
Answ. No. Neither Man nor Angel had Power in their own earthly Life and Wills, to choose the heavenly Creature-life of God, offer'd by a New Creation: for, then they would have elected themselves. The receiving from Christ, as a Fruit of his meritorious Sufferings and Death in our Nature, the renew'd Life and Righteousness of the First-creation, is of him that willeth. All may receive that, if they will. But, the attaining and receiving of the Life, God offers, by a Second-creation, this is not of him that willeth or runneth, in his own Spirit and Will, at best, but of God who will shew this Mercy, to whom he will, only, Rom. 9. 15, 16. All, that finally elect or chase for themselves their own earthly Life of the Creature, reject the heavenly Creature-life of the Creator. All, that God has elected, will be brought to hate and lose their own earthly Life, at best, from love to his heavenly, as the only Way to receive it.
A third Part of Angels fell, irrecoverably, by their first Sin, Revel. 12. 4. The far greater part of Mankind, the many in the broad Way, will be found irrecoverably fallen, for ever. Yet, will Christ's few, in the narrow Way, be an innumerable Multitude, Revel. 7. 9.