The difficulty of this interesting passage is its seeming to place original sin in the privation of original justice, as above defined: whereas baptism, cleansing as it does from original sin, does not impart original justice, but sanctifying grace. Original sin is the privation of sanctifying grace, under the explanations given in note, p. 379. God's sentence upon Adam has worked like an attainder upon a nobleman guilty of treason. The title is taken away from the family. We are by nature and birth a family of commoners, and worse than commoners, for we ought to be noble, and are not, because of the brand of treason resting upon our race. So we are tekna phusei orgês (Eph. ii, 3): we are born in disgrace with God. Our nobility comes with our baptism, and consists in the sanctifying grace given in that Sacrament; not in 'original justice,' which shall not be restored to our race till the day of the resurrection of the just.

There is no difficulty in the text of Ezechiel, which refers to the sins of the people to whom the prophet was sent; and describes the providence of God, not over Adam, but over his posterity.

Of God and His Creatures: 4.51