The great goodness of God to his creature in making such plentiful provision for him, did questionless very much aggravate Adam's sin in eating the forbidden fruit. If God had left him but one tree only to eat of, and restrained him from all the rest, it had been another matter; but when he restrained him from one only, and gave him his choice of all the rest, that doth make his sin more exceedingly sinful. God, that would not have the mouth of the ox muzzled when he trod out the corn, (Deut. xxv. 4,) would not withhold Eden's fruit from Adam, that took the care of Eden's garden. 1 Cor. ix. 7. But though Adam's pasture was wide, yet it had a hedge; and though his liberties were large, yet they had their limits. The positive law, thou shalt not eat, was very plain and express, and contained no hard words or phrases: it was easy to understand, as easy to remember, and (one would think) every jot as easy to obey. As for a reason, the will of the Lawgiver is reason enough; but the ends of it may be supposed to have been,

1. To make Adam know that high as he was, yet still he was but a subject, and that there was one above him that had power to command him.

2. To try his obedience.

He had by nature a principle within him utterly averse to every thing that was in itself sinful; so that it was against his

very nature to do any such action; and, therefore, God would try him with the command of a thing which was in itself neither good nor evil, antecedent to the command, that he might have respect to nothing but the will of God, and obey purely for obedience sake; and to obey is better than sacrifice. 1 Sam. xv. 22.

Thou shalt not eat; thou, O man; thou, my creature; thou that I have been so kind to, so careful of, and done so much for. This little word carries in it a great argument to move Adam to obey this command.

In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. Even Adam in innocency was awed with a threatening, which is one part of the hedge of the law; for God, being a Master as well as a Father, requires not only the love of children, but the fear of servants. Mal. i. 6. Here note,

1. The thing threatened, Death; a short word, but very comprehensive, including in it all the miseries both of this life, and of that which is to come; which are all the wages, that is, the due desert of sin.

2. This death was to be sudden; in the day. Sin and death are such inseparable companions, that the former could not come into the world a day sooner than the latter, Sin entered into the world, and, immediately it follows, death by sin. Rom. v. 12.

3. This death was to be certain,-surely die: Heb.-dying thou shalt die; noting either the severity, or rather the certainty, of his death. But how was the threatening fulfilled, when Adam lived many a long year after he had sinned? Death is threefold: (1.) There is spiritual death, which is the death of the soul, by which it is deprived of the love of God, and of all sweet communion with him, and gracious communications from him. And if in God's favour be life,-yea, if his favour be better than life itself,-(and so it is to a gracious soul,)-surely in the want of that favour is death; yea, his displeasure is worse than death itself. As his smiles are quickening smiles, so his frowns are killing frowns. Now, being deprived of these smiles, and lying under these frowns, is the death of the soul; and thus Adam died in the very day, the very hour, that he sinned. (2.) There is a natural death, the death of the body, consisting in the separation of it from the soul; and how did Adam thus die in the day of his sin? Why, [1.] He became mortal: as soon as he had sinned, he became subject to death. The reward promised to his obedience, was immortality; not essential,-for, being made of the dust of the ground, he had in him the seeds of corruptibility,-but immediately, by the gift of God; and that immortality he lost. [2.] He became obnoxious to death.

As soon as he had sinned, he lay at God's mercy every hour; he was dead, in law, like a condemned malefactor; sentence was passed, (chap. iii. 19,) though execution was not yet done. [3.] The symptoms and harbingers of death did instantly seize him;-fear and shame, pain and sickness. Death then struck the first blow, and never left hacking and hewing at him, though it were nine hundred and thirty years before the last blow came. (3.) There is eternal death; everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. 2 Thess. i. 9. And this Adam became liable to; so that, as soon as he had sinned, if God had thrown him, body and soul, into hell, he had dore him no wrong.

Christ, having undertaken to satisfy offended justice, must therefore of necessity die, because of this threatening. If the debtor must die, the surety must die.

18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

Hitherto Adam was alone: the angels were above him, for he was made a little lower than the angels, (Ps. viii. 5,)—and they being spiritual beings, were not fit to hold converse with him, who was

made of the dust. The beasts were a step below him,-not endued with such a rational soul as he was endued with; so that he was alone, though he had a world of creatures about him; and this, God said, was not good for him. (1.) Not for the good of his comfort; for man, being naturally a sociable creature, delights in company; and if there were but one man in the world, how dismal and uncomfortable a life he would lead, is easy to imagine. Solomon saith and proves that two are better than one, and woe to him that is alone. Eccles. iv. 9, 10, 11, 12, (2.) Not for the good of his kind; for how could one increase and multiply, according to the blessing? Chap. i. 28..

The woman was made to be a help meet for him; was made for the man, as saith the apostle, 1 Cor. xi, 9. The great thing that should direct the choice, and doth influence the comfort, of that relationship, is meetness; and truly where there is not meetness, I think there will be but little help.

19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them and whatsoever Adam cal